Lolcat of the Week

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I had to post the above pic because I fail at naps. For to the reals. But not because I fall off the bed. No. It's much worse than that.

You see, I woke up at a decent time today, 10 AM. This is decent for me because ever since school let out, I've been waking up later and later every day. So yes, I woke up at a decent time, and I fully expected to get up and go about enjoying my day while there was still sunlight available, but then the siren call of my pillow beckoned me. And I thought to myself, Self, you can just take a little nap for a little while longer. Just a nap.

I ended up waking up at 2 PM. Friggin' TWO POST MERIDIAN. Or whatever the damn PM stands for.

Good-bye, AM, nice knowing you.

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Post-It Love

So today I woke up feeling sad for no reason at all, just kinda grumpy and not all right at all. My wonderful friend Hanny sent me this video with the promise that it would cheer me up right away. I was dubious, but I heart my Hanny, so I decided to give it a go...

And it worked. Boy did it work.

If you have ever worked in an office and/or love those little Post-It notes, you will love this video. More post after the jump:




I know, I know -- that was an overdose of cute. It's just too cute. You can see why it cheered me up! :D

What is your stance on dating a co-worker? I never have. Not for any other reason, mind, that I just was never attracted to any of my co-workers. For those of you who have ... did they ever show their feelings for you in a similar way? What is the sweetest, most incredible thing someone has done to show their love for you?

I had a boy serenade me with the song "Unchained Melody" while he was riding a bike on the street outside my window. If you didn't get to read that blog post, go here.

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Lolcat of the Week

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All jokes aside, do cats really have a superiority complex? Do they really think they are above us? Here are some things cats do that seem to prove this assumption is correct:

  • Do not attempt to call a cat using "Here, kitty, kitty" unless you want to be given an incredulous look by said feline.
  • You don't walk a cat, he walks you.
  • Don't try to read a newspaper in front of your cat unless you want him to sit precisely on top of the article you are reading.
  • No alarm clocks are necessary if you own a cat -- he'll let you know when it's time to get up (aka, feed him).

Those are just a few of the behaviors I have witnessed firsthand that suggest cats do in fact have a superiority complex. All jokes aside, I have always admired how regal and elegant cats can be. Consider that the ancient Egyptians didn't worship dogs -- they worshipped cats. I think this innate elegance in cats, this inner independence, makes them appear to be snobby and standoffish. The truth is that cats can be very affectionate. They just have to get to know you first. Whereas most dogs, God bless the friendly creatures, will lick a burglar's hand.

What's your take on cats? Conceited balls of fluff? Or independent and noble creatures?


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"Fathers, be good to your daughters. You are the god and weight of her world."

:) Happy Father's Day! (:

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This weekend is very special in my family, not just because of Father's day, but because yesterday was my father's birthday AND my parents' 39th wedding anniversary. So yes, a very special weekend.

To celebrate, we took Dad to eat at Outback yesterday (one of his favey-fave restaurants). Good thing I was in a carnivorous mood! But I almost didn't get to eat my steak because of the bread. What is it about that restaurant's bread that I cannot resist eating more and more and more of it until I want to pop? Now, to be fair, I am a breadaholic. Yes, that word exists -- I just made it up. I will eat bread of all types. But typically, I prefer the darker breads. Pumpernickle is my absolute favorite.

Luckily, I left just enough room in my stomach for dinner. But me, I could live on bread alone quite happily thankyouverymuch.

Today we are going to treat Dad to lunch and just let him laze around the house and watch TV. His two favorite activities. ;)

Have a great Father's Day!

(The title of this post is from a John Mayer song.)

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K

Yesterday's Lolcat was a black cat, which prompted my question regarding superstition and whether you believed black cats crossing your path equals bad luck.

Apparently this superstition exists in the Eastern world as well, as is shown in this Japanese video. I must warn you -- you might feel a little bit weepy by the end of it. I know I did! It will definitely make you appreciate black cats more.




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Lolcat of the Week

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Why are black cats seen as bad luck? I personally love black cats. I think they are beautiful. But maybe that's just me. If I see one cross my path, I smile. What do you do?

Have a great week, everyone! :-D

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These are a few of my (current) favorite things...

Audrey Kawasaki
I came across this artist by accident on LiveJournal. Her paintings had been fashioned into icons for the site, and I downloaded a couple of them for my own use. Then I got curious about the artist and googled her. (Can you believe we use the word "google" now as a verb? Sigh...) Anyways, I fell for her style -- hard -- when I took a look at the rest of her work. The one at your left, "My Dishonest Heart," is my favorite piece of hers. Here is a description of her style from her website:
The themes in Audrey Kawasaki's work are contradictions within themselves. Her work is both innocent and erotic. Each subject is attractive yet disturbing. Audrey's precise technical style is at once influenced by both manga comics and Art Nouveau. Her sharp graphic imagery is combined with the natural grain of the wood panels she paints on, bringing an unexpected warmth to enigmatic subject matter.
I think that's pretty much accurate! To view more of her work, you can visit her site, and to learn more about the artist, you can visit her blog.


Neverwhere

What is Neverwhere? It's a book by Neil Gaiman that tells the story of Richard Mayhew, an ordinary man just going about his business in London when he discovers that he may not know London as well as he thinks he does. After coming to the aid of an injured girl on the street (no good deed goes unpunished...), he opens the portal to a shadowy new world that exists beneath his, London Below, which he must travel and ultimately conquer if he wishes to go back home to London Above. This is one of the most satisfying books I've read in a while. I started it on a Saturday morning a few weeks ago and finished it in a matter of hours. It's got action, romance, mystery, danger -- all the elements you can hope for in a great book. I highly recommend it!

You can click on the book cover to read a snippet from Amazon.com. If you've read this before and are looking for another good book by Gaiman, I recommend The Graveyard Book.




Transit Lounge
Now let me get this straight -- I am not that big into clubs. Yes, I may live in Miami, but I don't eat sleep breathe clubs. I can't even remember the last time I was in one. So I tend to prefer more laid-back places, like bars. I discovered a great one recently.

If you live in South Florida or just happen to be visiting, you might want to check out Transit Lounge, a very cool bar in the downtown Miami area. There's no charge to get in at all, for guys or girls, and the drinks are reasonably priced. It's a very low-key place and the crowd is mostly people in their late 20's, early 30's. They feature great live music plus karaoke on most nights. I've enjoyed myself the two times I've been there, both on a Saturday night and on a Wednesday night, so that tells you the place is good on any night.

For more information, visit their website.



Ropes of Silicon
I am a movie fanatic. I actually used to have a less discerning taste before I met le boyf. He's an uber film buff who has taught me to be more discriminating with the movies I watch. But truthfully? I still enjoy watching laugh-out-loud grossout films and romantic comedies, even if they aren't exactly Oscar material. I like keeping up-to-date with the latest films and I love seeing trailers.

Ropes of Silicon is a most awesome website that has the latest film buzz, including trailers and movie stills. Thanks to them, I found out when my much anticipated "The Time Traveler's Wife" is coming out in theaters (August 14!!!) plus I saw the just-released trailer, poster, and a gallery of movie stills on their site last night. Read my article for Examiner to see the trailer and movie poster.

Check out Ropes of Silicon's website here, and if you're on twitter, you can follow them here.



What are some of your favorites this month? Share them in the comments! :-)


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Drag Me to Hell

In our quest to view more movies this summer, le boyf and I went to see "Drag Me to Hell" tonight. I am still recovering.

It's by Sam Raimi, the same talented man behind "The Evil Dead" and the "Spiderman" movies. And there is no doubt of his talent. I honestly think "Drag Me to Hell" is one of his best films to date. It's certainly his scariest.

All I know is that I'm still sleeping with a light on tonight.

You see, the story of "Drag Me to Hell" is precisely the type of story that shakes me to the core. I may not be deeply religious, but I do have my faith. And I do believe there is a heaven and a hell, and that in between there are forces of good and evil that do exist even in our world.

I won't ruin the film for you in case you want to see it, so I'll just give you the basics. "Drag Me to Hell" tells the story of Christine Brown, a young woman who seems to have everything going for her. But when she refuses to help out an elderly woman who is in danger of losing her house (Christine's a loan officer), the elderly woman places a curse on Christine. What's the nature of the curse? Oh, no big deal. She will just go to hell in three days.

Anything dealing with the occult, with demons, or something along those lines always gets me. I didn't sleep well for over a week after seeing "The Exorcist." I really hope that won't be the case this time. (Gulp.)

If I haven't completely turned you off the movie, you can click here to see a trailer of "Drag Me to Hell."


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This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.


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Hibernation, here I come.

Ever since school let out, I have been sleeping on average 12 hours a night. Considering that's double the average of hours I sleep a night during the school year -- on a good night -- I am very happy. Even if I seem to approaching hibernation. I don't care. At least I'm rested! :D

What else have I been doing? A lot of reading and writing. A lot of Facebooking. A lot of video gaming. A lot of listening to music. Tokyo Police Club and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs have been on repeat mode a lot.

Le boyf and I have been wanting to see the loads of good movies that have come out recently: Up, Drag Me to Hell, The Hangover, to name a few. We finally got to see one of these, The Hangover, last night. It was much better than I thought. It somehow managed to be disgusting, hilarious, and heartwarming all at once.

Le boyf's been showing me all the old Star Trek movies ever since I became a fan. Most recently we saw Star Trek VII: Generations. We've also seen The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock, The Voyage Home, and First Contact. I don't think I missed anything, but I'm not sure. It's been a marathon of movies. I think my favorite was The Voyage Home. Next up is watching the shows online. Do you know the original series of Star Trek is on YouTube? True story.

So yes. I am a trekkie. It is true. *shrugs*

Tonight, we are going to a friend's house for dinner, which means I am going to have to do something with this hair of mine. I've been wearing it wavy all week and it's a tangle of knots. Sigh.

Is it wrong that I feel like taking a nap?

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ABC's of Me

A - Age: 30.

B - Bed size: Twin.

C - Chore you hate: Cleaning the bathroom.

D – Dessert: Thai Donuts.

E - Essential to start your day: Shower.

F - Favorite flower: Tulips.

G- Gold or Silver: Silver.

H - Height: 5'9"

I - Instruments you play(ed): Once upon a time, the piano.

J - Job you had in high school: I was a copy-girl at an auto insurance company.

K - Kid(s): 0, unless you count my students. ;p

L - Lunch spots: Shorty's, Ruby Tuesday's, and this Hot Dog/Wings place that just opened near le boyf's house.

M - Mom's Name: Martha.

N - Newest item bought: Twizzlers. :D

O - Overnight hospital stay: Never. *knock on wood*

P - Pet Peeve: Hypocrisy.

Q- Quote from a movie: "We die containing a richness of lovers and tribes, tastes we have swallowed, bodies we have plunged into and swum up as if rivers of wisdom, characters we have climbed into as if trees, fears we have hidden in as if caves. I wish for all this to be marked on by body when I am dead. I believe in such cartography - to be marked by nature, not just to label ourselves on a map like the names of rich men and women on buildings. We are communal histories, communal books. We are not owned or monogamous in our taste or experience." (The English Patient)

R - Right or left handed: Right.

S - Siblings: 1 younger brother.

T - Time you wake up: During the school year, 5:30-6:00 AM. During the summer, 12:00 PM. :D

U - Underarm deodorant?: Degree.

V - Very surprising fact: Hmm... I need at least a sliver of light in order to sleep comfortably. Can't sleep in complete darkness!

W - Ways you run late: If I oversleep (which happens more often than I'd like!).

X - X-rays you've had: My leg.

Y - Yummy food you make: Nothing, unless it's microwaved. :D

Z - Zoo animal: Bengal Tigers -- they are the prettiest.


Thanks to Ann for the awesome idea of doing this post. If you're reading it, you've been TAGGED and must post your own ABC's! :)


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Lolcat of the Week

I love how truly evil this cat looks, lol. What makes it even funnier is the fact that it is a kitten. "Now in fun size," indeed.

Have a great week, everyone! :-D

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Where have the fireflies gone?

We are entering summer, that newly discovered territory of humid, sticky nights and ice cream that melts in your hand and fireflies that flirt with the stars.

I miss fireflies. I used to see more of them as a child. I don't know if it's light pollution or pollution-pollution, or what, but I haven't seen them in a while. I've always liked the idea of trapping them in a jar just to watch them light it up, but something about this always seemed cruel to me, too. So I've never done it. Have you?

So I started writing this story today. It's about a boy and a girl and fireflies. :D For once, the story came to me fully formed. This doesn't always happen. My mind is like a halfway home for characters -- they come, get fed and clothed, and then leave and I never hear from them again. But not these two. They walked in, pulled up some chairs and asked how long they could stay.

I hope they stay a while! Here's what I have so far. Please comment with your thoughts -- they're much appreciated.

Fireflies

She turned away from me laughing, her hand reaching up to open a cupboard. We were in her kitchen. The spare light of evening lay in between us like a gossamer blanket. That transparent. That full of possibilities, of stones unturned and doors unopened.

She opened the cupboard, her profile in sharp relief against the raised wood of the cupboard door. She had a classic face with an upturned nose, a delicate jaw, and obsidian eyes that flashed fire whenever she was excited over something. A face made for cameos, made for photographs taken in sepia.

I cupped my face in my hands and just stared, drinking her in. She hummed lightly as she rooted around in the cupboard, a habit of hers whenever she was concentrating. I couldn’t discern the tune and this bothered me, somehow.

“Ah, here it is,” she sighed with satisfaction as she removed a large mason jar from the cupboard.

“What’s that for?” I asked.

She turned towards me with a ready smile. “This is for the fireflies you and I are going to catch tonight.”

"Do you know I've never seen a firefly?"

She closed the cupboard and turned toward me, her wide eyes even wider in her small face. "Really?"

"Yeah. I didn't even know we had them here in Miami."

"Well, you are going to see your first firefly tonight, buster. Just you stick with me."

I felt like telling her I'd stick with her no matter what, to remind her I'd been sticking with her since the seventh grade. But I've learned there are moments you speak up and moments you keep the words inside, hidden, waiting for the day when you'll really need them.

This is not a love story. Let me make that clear. Love stories have definitive beginnings and definitive endings. A plot, a conflict, and a resolution -- the sickly sweet happy ending where our happy couple skips off into the sunset, hand in hand, while the violins thrum madly in the background.

That's not going to happen here. At least, I don't see it happening. Ever. And I'm OK with that. At least, that's what I keep telling myself.

But I suppose I should fashion a beginning of sorts, since I still have your attention.

I met Ingrid in the seventh grade. I was the nerd with glasses and the knobby knees and the voice that couldn't decide whether it was treble or baritone. She was the bully with buck teeth and pigtails.

I was down on my knees in the playground, the glasses having been knocked off my face by my friendly classmate Jose. I was blind as a bat's grandmother and couldn't see where my glasses had landed. The next thing I knew, a foot landed in my face and I landed on my back with a breathless "oof!" that sounded somehow comical, like something from a cartoon. Only I wasn't laughing. I was crying. Jose was now on top of me, punching me repeatedly in the nose. There was both dirt and blood in my mouth.

"What's going on here?" came the strident voice I recognized from my third period Social Studies class. It belonged to the girl with buck teeth and pigtails, the one whose hand was perpetually in the air, the one who always had the right answers. The one who cut everyone else in line in the cafeteria and nobody bothered because she was taller than the tallest boy in the whole school. If anything, I was more scared of her than of Jose.

'Why don't you mind your own business, Beaver."

That was the name everyone called her behind her back. This may have been the first time anyone had dared to say it to her face.

"What. Did. You. Just. Say," she said in a menacing voice. I was inching away from Jose, having found my glasses near a bush. I could dimly see that a large crowd was gathering around us, the noiseless hush of their attention gathering more students.

I shoved my glasses back on and winced. The nose was definitely broken. But at least I could see again. And Jose was looking mighty nervous. I watched him gulp and stutter over a response. Watched her hand flash forward and (wonder of wonders) karate chop him. Watched him crumple to the ground in a messy heap.

Watched her head my way, a purposeful look on her face.

Before I could even blink, she was reaching out a hand towards me. I'll admit it -- I flinched. So would have you after having witnessed the Karate Kid in action.

"The name's Ingrid. I think you're in my Science class."

"A-A-Actually, it's Social Studies. And my name is Jack."

"Whatever. It's nice to meet you, Jack."

Her hand was warm in my hand. Her smile was warm, too. I smiled back nervously but then stopped when I realized the action made my face hurt.

"Come on, Jack," she said, still holding on to my hand with a resolute grip. "Let's go get you some ice."




ETA: Thanks to everyone who's commented on this story! I've published it on Protagonize.com and will keep adding to it there. If you'd like to keep up with the story, you can read it here.
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Lolcat of the Week

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Happy Monday! And it is a happy Monday for me because this is the last week of school! Woo-hoo! Time to start planning summer trips. For sure we want to hit up Sea World because they have a new ride, Manta. And the best part is I just found out Florida teachers can get into Sea World FREE. Which is awesomeness.

Have a great week, everyone! :-D

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