Long and Literary Post

I found this on MagicMarmot's blog.

I wasn't going to give in. I mean, post 106 book titles? What am I? Crazy?

My English degree won me over and here I am.

From MagicMarmot:

What we have here are the top 106 books most often marked as "unread" by LibraryThing’s users. As in, they sit on the shelf to make you look smart or well-rounded. Bold the ones you've read, underline the ones you read for school, italicize the ones you started but didn't finish.

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
Anna Karenina
Crime and Punishment
Catch-22
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Wuthering Heights
The Silmarillion
Life of Pi : a novel
The Name of the Rose (and I liked the movie)
Don Quixote
Moby Dick
Ulysses
Madame Bovary
The Odyssey
Pride and Prejudice
Jane Eyre
The Tale of Two Cities
The Brothers Karamazov
Guns, Germs, and Steel: the fates of human societies
War and Peace
Vanity Fair
The Time Traveler’s Wife
The Iliad
Emma
The Blind Assassin
The Kite Runner
Mrs. Dalloway
Great Expectations
American Gods
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
Atlas Shrugged
Reading Lolita in Tehran : a memoir in books
Memoirs of a Geisha
Middlesex
Quicksilver
Wicked : the life and times of the wicked witch of the West
The Canterbury Tales
The Historian : a novel
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Love in the Time of Cholera
Brave New World
The Fountainhead
Foucault’s Pendulum
Middlemarch
Frankenstein
The Count of Monte Cristo
Dracula
A Clockwork Orange
Anansi Boys
The Once and Future King
The Grapes of Wrath
The Poisonwood Bible : a novel
1984
Angels & Demons
The Inferno
The Satanic Verses
Sense and Sensibility
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Mansfield Park
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
To the Lighthouse
Tess of the D’Urbervilles
Oliver Twist
Gulliver’s Travels
Les Misérables
The Corrections
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Dune
The Prince
The Sound and the Fury
Angela’s Ashes : a memoir
The God of Small Things
A People’s History of the United States : 1492-present
Cryptonomicon
Neverwhere
A Confederacy of Dunces
A Short History of Nearly Everything
Dubliners
The Unbearable Lightness of Being (HATED the movie)
Beloved
Slaughterhouse-five
The Scarlet Letter
Eats, Shoots & Leaves
The Mists of Avalon
Oryx and Crake : a novel
Collapse : how societies choose to fail or succeed
Cloud Atlas
The Confusion
Lolita
Persuasion
Northanger Abbey
The Catcher in the Rye
On the Road
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Freakonomics : a rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance : an inquiry into values
The Aeneid
Watership Down
Gravity’s Rainbow
The Hobbit
In Cold Blood : a true account of a multiple murder and its consequences
White Teeth
Treasure Island
David Copperfield
The Three Musketeers

To total up:
Read on my own: 16
Read for school: 22
Started but didn't finish: 7

Happy Birthday, Magic Marmot!

I took a page from the blog of MadBlonde for this one. She posts pictures of fun birthday cakes for friends' birthdays. Thought I'd try it on for size.

Since I'm AT work right now, I didn't want to risk searching for anything NSFW. I couldn't find a marmot cake, but I figured, "Hey! Marmots live in burrows. Rabbits live in burrows. Marmots eat... stuff. Rabbits eat carrots... but they both eat. Marmots are fluffy and fuzzy... so are rabbits."



Besides, Bugs Bunny is smart...

... and so is Magic Marmot.

So... on Target?

My Personality

Neuroticism	40
Extraversion	20
Openness to Experience	44
Agreeableness	27
Conscientiousness	52

You are a calm person who is considered almost fearless by some, however you tend to lack energy and have difficult initiating activities. You get overwhelmed by too much noise and commotion and do not like thrill-seeking activities. You tend not to express your emotions openly and are sometimes not even aware of your own feelings. You do not enjoy confrontation, but you will stand up for yourself or push your point if you feel it is important, however you generally see others as selfish, devious, and sometimes potentially dangerous. You take your time when making decisions and will deliberate on all the possible consequences and alternatives.

Take a Personality Test now or view the full Personality Report. The best UGG Boots.

Crazy talk! Crazy talk! Change the subject!

"Crazy talk! Crazy talk! Change the subject!" -- Arthur, The Tick

Fans of the short-lived, live-action version of The Tick will remember that line above, delivered frantically by the Tick's sidekick, Arthur.

Someone should have thought to offer that advice to my former boss. Last August I posted about the Nerd Clan's pilgrimage to the Twin Cities and what part the company I worked for played in that. The post was prompted by a Star Tribune article, outlining the CEO and his dash from the law due to tax evasion.

After 14 months as a fugitive, authorities caught up with him on November 1, 2007 in Orlando, FL. I guess Mickey Mouse is a draw for tax evading religious zealots. Anywho, he's back in the Twin Cities, on trial, providing his own defense. But if he wasn't in enough trouble already, check out this article from the Star Tribune on Monday. Apparently, even from his jail cell, he's still having chats with God. It seems that God isn't too fond of the judge assigned to his trial. Allegedly, he told his common law wife, "God ... wants me to take the judge out, that's what he wants me to do," and "Once I take down Ann Montgomery, no judge in the whole court will have anything to do with me."

Good job. Nicely done! If you're going to make secret plans to get rid of a judge, the perfect means of communications is to do it through RECORDED PHONE CALLS FROM JAIL to result in the arrest of your accomplices. Very sneaky!

Yes. I'll watch this trial over the next two weeks with great interest.

Tagged!

I've been tagged by CubeZoo!

The rules:

1. Pick up the nearest book (at least 123 pages).
2. Turn to page 123.
3. Find the 5th sentence
4. Post the 5th sentence on your blog.
5. Tag 5 people.

"There's my picture: and I'm his friend - so much so, that had he thought seriously to catch you, I should, perhaps, have held my tongue, and let you fall into his trap." (Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte)

And now the tagged:

Anomalous Data
Room to Ruminate
Madblonde
Wild Colonial Boy
MagicMarmot

Hot and Cold Running Air

Taking a quick break from working at home today. We're finally replacing our ancient furnace and central air conditioning. We scored a great deal on having both installed at once, and we jumped at the opportunity.

The furnace was original with the house, built in 1980. It was loud, smelly, and had an efficiency rating indicated by a pictograph of a neanderthal rubbing sticks together. The A/C was on it's last legs, having been repaired several times by Minnegasco, often through the shaking of ceremonial beads, banging of drums, and sacrificing of chickens.

It was time.

In the seven years that we've "owned" this house, this is just the latest in a running list of repairs and replacements, including but not limited to: water heater, water softener, sump pump, refrigerator, dish washer, garbage disposal, roof, tree removal... and more!

In short, our house inspector was a freakin' moron.

Now, however, we'll have a brand new efficient furnace with a digital thermostat, an A/C that actually works when you turn it on, and it's all backed by a full warranty. In June we're having the house painted and deck stained again. We're putting in some new flooring, taking on some interior improvements ourselves. It'll be nice.

Now if we could just afford new windows, a new deck door, landscaping...

Tell me again why home ownership is better than renting?

Positive Post #10

Yes. It's been a long time since I've posted.

Yes. I feel guilty.

Yes. This is a lame-o Positive Post, but here it is.

2007 TAXES ARE DONE!

No more tax prep worries for at least... several... months.

Hey. I tried.

Stone Soup on TrekMovie.com!

Proud wife moment! Avindair's latest trailer for "Valdez" has been picked up by TrekMovie.com. Scroll down to "New Star Trek Trailer."

Wow!

A 3-Year Old Explains Star Wars

I couldn't resist this. Enjoy!

A Walk Down Horror-Filled Memory Lane

Back in 2002, I co-hosted a few episodes of "Horror, Inc." on KSTC Channel 45 with Jake Esau. When Jake went off the air as TV's Count Dracula and the show was reincarnated with Uncle Ghoulie (Thom Lange) and Carbuncle (Tim McCall), the fans asked that I make a come-back. That led to our independent film group, Stone Soup Films, working as the crew and sometimes cast of "Horror, Inc." in 2003 and 2004.

Recently, Tim McCall has begun posting the bits that we filmed on YouTube. I thought I'd offer up the ones that featured me or Avindair.

DISCLAIMER:

1. The budget per episode wouldn't pay for a family of five to have a reasonable dinner out.
2. Our schedule consisted of filming FOUR episodes in ONE two-day weekend.
3. We often didn't get to memorize the script until the day that we filmed.

So, no... it's not my best acting! These are just a smattering of what we did.

The Mesa of Lost Women - Part 3 (Lawyer)



Creature from the Haunted Sea - Part 2 (Lawyer and Swimsuit Babe)



The Crawling Hand - Part 2 (Geek Goddes as Lawyer and Avindair with his awesome homemade steady cam work)



The Brain that Wouldn't Die - Part 2 (Swimsuit Babe)



The Bat - Part 2 (Avindair as Weird Hick Guy, Avindair and Geek Goddess as NRA Representatives)



Lady Frankenstein - Part 2 (Lawyer)



Nosferatu - Part 3 (Caterer)

"I Wanna Be Your Tribal Dancer!"

Friday mornings aren't a good time for puns. Comparing this woman's art to Tina Turner's "Private Dancer"... less than stellar, GeekGoddess.

I found this amazing woman on Bohemian Rhapsody's blog. Rachel Brice is a tribal dancer extraordinaire. Check out these videos! I guarantee it will kick-start your weekend.



Wait till you see her drop to the floor in this one. Amazing!

Positive Post #9 - Good Dog

Another home-grown Positive Post today.

This morning at around 230am, we woke to the sound of dogs barking and our dog, the ever-viglant NerdHound, growling at the window.

A few months back, one of our cars was broken into and our GPS stolen. Although we've since installed motion detection lighting and an intrustion alarm system, we're still wary.

Tony poked his head out the bedroom window. "The motion light's been triggered. Did you park your car in the garage last night?"

"No," I said. "I would have had to move your car over more and forgot about it. Crap."

We rushed out of the bedroom and down the front stairs. I threw open the front door and walked out. If there was someone lurking about, I wanted to scare the crap out of them.

Instead, I saw a very large dog standing at the end of our driveway in the darkness. Staring intently at me.

Uh, oh. My first thought was, "Get back in the house. NOW." You never know what the behavior of big, lone, wandering dogs will be. The last thing *I* wanted to be was another dog attack victim.

By the time I closed the screen door behind me, HE was on the other side.

HE was a very large golden lab. He looked sweet, cold, and seemed to be begging for human attention... and he had a collar labeled "Scruffy" with two phone numbers. Now we had a name for him.

I carefully opened the door a couple of inches and firmly grabbed his collar, trying to keep NerdHound from coming through the door at the same time. NerdHound was aggressively curious, as poodles can be. Scruffy was quiet and friendly. "How you doing, Scruffy?" He looked up at me with happy chocolate eyes. Sweet pooch.

I read off the local phone number to Avindair. I heard him speak into the phone. "I'm sorry to get you out of bed, but we found your dog wandering in our street." He gave detailed directions to the house and promised we'd be waiting at the door.

Avindair picked up NerdHound and kept him at a distance, while I brought Scruffy into our entryway. He was cold and muddy, but gentle and quiet. Never made a sound the entire time. I scratched his ears, said his name a lot, and told him he was a good dog.

A few minutes later, a car pulled up at the end of our driveway. A slim, middle-aged woman, who had the distinct appearance of someone woken up in the middle of the night, got out and cautiously came up the walk. I'd be cautious, too, if I was walking up to a stranger's house at almost 3 in the morning.

Scruffy, we learned, had been gone for some time. They'd almost given up hope of finding him. I immediately thought of all the hungry and cold days and nights he'd probably had to endure. As the woman leaned in to take hold of his collar, she pressed a $10 bill into my hand.

"Thank you for finding him. Please take it for your trouble," she said.

I handed it back to her. "Oh, no! He was a good pooch. No trouble at all. It's just good to know that he's going home!"

She thanked me again and herded Scruffy into her car.

Getting up at 230am is no fun. Doing a good deed at 230am is.

And, since we never would have discovered Scruffy without NerdHound's alert, he got a biscuit before he went back to bed. Good dog.

Woe is Me

Stuffy nose. A vague fuzzy, humming in my ears. Sinuses that feel like they're packed with wet cement. A painfully red nose. Headache. Muscle ache. Sore throat. Chills.

The cold and flu season is my bane this year.

I wash my hands. I had my flu shot. I take my vitamins. I even regularly disinfected my desk and keyboard at work.

I've had the flu -- twice. It made at least a couple of laps at our house. Now Monkey Dude and I both have killer colds.

Misery, thy name is GeekGoddess.

As much as I'd like to, I can't call in sick this week. I'm taking next week off, and I hope and pray that I'm well by then. I have a document due tomorrow that MUST get done before I leave.

It feels all the worse to me because before I came back to a regular 9-5 gig, I was healthy. When I was freelancing, I went years without severe colds or flu. One year back in an office and I've been sick more than I can count.

An excellent argument for more telecommuting.

Positive Post #8

I admit it. I'm a little behind on my Positive Posts. The final week of "Sound of Music" performances really took it out of me. Here's my positive post for the day:

"Sound of Music" is done!

Even though I'm relieved that it's done and I can get back to my regularly scheduled life programming, I have many positive things to say about it:

1. It was great to be back on stage again.
2. It was great to have the challenge of live theater again.
3. It was great to be in a show with Avindair again.
4. It was my first show that A) had a run that long and B) was over 98% sold out. Only 11 unsold seats - over 5,100 tickets sold.
5. We met a lot of great people.
6. We worked with a fantastic cast and crew.
7. We got a foot in the door at an active and successful community theater.
8. It helped us get through the worst part of the winter.
9. We got the kids involved in ushering. Monkey Dude worked the last show, even though he was exhausted from closing "The Laramie Project" the night before. Adventure Girl worked at all of the last six shows, impressing the volunteer coordinator so much that she emailed us and told us so.
10. It completely pushed my endurance limits for a show and proved to me that I can do more than I thought I could.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I have to share this little St. Patty's Day goodie with everyone. One of our fellow cast members from "Sound of Music" sent this my way today. THANK YOU, Sharon!

The best rendition of "Danny Boy"... EVER!

Creepy Argentinian Gnome Video

Weird news alert! Apparently a small gnome-like creature has been terrorizing a small town in Argentina. According to the Belfast Telegraph, it stalks the streets at night with a creepy sideways walk. Here's the video that was caught. The "gnome" only shows up on the last few seconds of the video.

Positive Post #7

A replacement for petroleum-based plastics?

There may still be hope.

Finally, an Explanation for Nigerian Spam

Who hasn't received one of those odd Nigerian spam emails asking for help in claiming a lost inheritance or other such crap? Ever wonder why the language in them was so... well... odd?

It seems that Nigerians have allowed English to go it's own way, with words that survived from early Victorian-era colonists mixed with the syntax and grammar of indigenous African languages.

It's either linguists nightmare or doctoral study dream!

Now Playing - The Laramie Project

Our son, Monkey Dude, has taken a big step into the world of theater.

Last night, I went to the second dress rehearsal of "The Laramie Project" at Maple Grove Senior High School. This is a powerful and challenging story for a high school theater, and I applaud them having the guts to do it. Here's an excerpt from the school's web page dedicated to the show:

"In October 1998 a twenty-one-year-old student at the University of Wyoming was kidnapped, severely beaten and left to die, tied to a fence on the outskirts of Laramie, Wyoming. His name was Matthew Shepard, and he was the victim of this assault because he was gay. Moises Kaufman and fellow members of the Tectonic Theater Project made six trips to Laramie over the course of a year and a half in the aftermath of the beating and during the trial of the two young men accused of killing Shepard. The conducted more than 200 interviews with the people of the town. Some people interviewed were directly connected to the case and others were citizens of Laramie. THE LARAMIE PROJECT chronicles the life of the town of Laramie in the year after the murder. Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater members have constructed a deeply moving theatrical experience from these interviews and their own experiences. THE LARAMIE PROJECT is a breathtaking theatrical collage that explores the depths to which humanity can sink and the height of compassion of which we are capable."

Each actor in the show portrays several real-life characters. Monkey Dude himself, has five. Even at a dress rehearsal, these young actors brought the professionalism and gravity of the subject to light with surprising talent and thoughtfulness.

If you're in the area and you have the opportunity, see this show!

Location:
Maple Grove Senior High Auditorium

Performances:
March 13, 14 and 15
7:00pm

Tickets:
Call 763-391-8736 or email mgshdrama@gmail.com.
Adults - $8
Seniors - $5
Students - $5

Adult Advisory:
This show contains strong adult language and themes that may not be suitable for all audiences. Discretion is advised.

For more information, visit the Matthew Shepard Foundation.

Always Look on the Bright Side of Death (Warmed Over)

WARNING: Long pissing, moaning, and whining post ahead... with a happy ending.

It's a phrase my family used to use if someone looked very tired or sick, "Oofta! You look like death warmed over!" Its usage was so common, that I never really considered how horribly dark that statement was until I was much older.

Today, along with the rest of the NerdPod, I feel like death warmed over.

Why?

1. Tomorrow begins our last run of Sound of Music. Six performances in a row. Last week it was five followed by two days off. Great people. Lots of fun. But after several months of rehearsals and almost 20 performances spanning five months, I'm running out of steam.

2. Big projects at work sucking up all available brain power. By the time I finish up an hour of commute and 8 hours of work each day, I'm absolutely mentally drained.

3. Monkey Dude's rehearsals for his play keep us hopping in the short period between leaving work and getting to the theater for our own show AND on the days we don't have a performance. Last night's dress rehearsal went past 1130pm.

4. Adventure Girl has a life, too. We've had to juggle her school commitments, as well as plan a social calendar for her when Monkey Dude isn't available. We owe Adventure Girl's friend's parents for all the sleepover invites that have accomodated our hectic schedule.

5. Round and round it goes sickness. We've hardly gone a week in the past two months without someone in the family having some version of flu, cold, or just plain exhaustion-induced ickiness.

6. Health issues of close and distant family has had me worried. It wears on the psyche.

7. Avindair's work has been a constant source of irritation, like a rabid weasel in one's underwear.

7. All work and no play has made Jill a grumpy bitch goddess. Each day, for months, has been jam-packed with have-to's from before sun up to after sun down. My juggling act is suffering as all but the most important red, bouncy balls get dropped.

There is some good, though. To drop a cliche, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. A few of them, in fact.

1. By this time next week, there are no commitments on our calendar for the next few months.

2. A hectic day will mean going to work and running a few errands on the way home.

3. We're both taking some time off over Spring Break when the kids are out of school. We are not going away. We are not going on a vacation. We're staying home. Get up when we feel like it. Do some projects around the house that have been nagging at us. Getting things accomplished for US, not for someone else.

4. We'll have time to be social again. Invite friends over to watch a movie or play games.

5. We'll be able to eat dinner as a family and spend time together again.

6. It's Spring! The weather is warming up. Now we can take walks by the lake after work and maybe the trails at Elm Creek on weekends. I had my first walk-around-the-building at work today after months!

7. I'll have the energy to exercise in the morning, like I've been wanting to.

8. We've made some new friends with Sound of Music and hope to nurture some of those friendships past the final curtain.

9. We got our foot in the door at a remarkable community theater. It's great to be back on stage, and once we've rested up, we'll be auditioning again... later. *grin*

10. St Patrick's Day the whole family gets to see Gaelic Storm!

I know it's another cliche, but it fits. Sometimes you can't see the forest for the trees. I'm weary beyond belief today and don't quite know how we're going to make it through the week. I had to scramble up a veritable old oak and get some perspective before I lost all hope.

It didn't give me the rest of a full night's sleep, but it did help quell some of the frustration. I'll just play the last scene of Monty Python's The Life of Brian in my head and remember these important words:

Some things in life are bad,
They can really make you mad,
Other things just make you swear and curse,
When you're chewing life's gristle,
Don't grumble,
Give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best.
And...

Always look on the bright side of life.
[whistle]
Always look on the light side of life.
[whistle]

If life seems jolly rotten,
There's something you've forgotten,
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you're feeling in the dumps,
Don't be silly chumps.
Just purse your lips and whistle.
That's the thing.
And...

Always look on the bright side of life.
[whistle]
Always look on the right side of life,
[whistle]

For life is quite absurd
And death's the final word.
You must always face the curtain with a bow.
Forget about your sin.
Give the audience a grin.
Enjoy it. It's your last chance, anyhow.
So,...

Always look on the bright side of death,
[whistle]
Just before you draw your terminal breath.
[whistle]

Life's a piece of shit,
When you look at it.
Life's a laugh and death's a joke it's true.
You'll see it's all a show.
Keep 'em laughing as you go.
Just remember that the last laugh is on you.
And...

Always look on the bright side of life.
Always look on the right side of life.
[whistle]
[repeat and fade out]