So, it started out with me being hungover from drinking too many frozen screwdrivers at The Front Porch. I finally drag myself up and out the door to go get my eyebrows waxed for the new year and, as I'm approaching my car, I see that my driver's side window has been smashed and there is glass everywhere.

I look inside and see that the radio is still attached (I guess they couldn't figure out how to get it off) but everything in my glove compartment has been pulled out - my glove compartment where my iPod was. The iPod is, of course, gone as is my BlackBerry phone charger (WTF?) and, worst of all, my fucking cheap sunglasses that I've had for five years or so and love. See that picture of me in the banner? Those are the sunglasses that they took.

I filed a police report, mentioning that there's actually blood in the car on the door, the radio, and on the trunk (yeah, they looked through there too), but the cops never even came outside to look at my car, which sort of pissed me off. I get that it's a small crime, but shouldn't they do something about it?

So, now I need to get the window replaced (1:30 appointment today to do so), buy a new iPod and FM transmitter, and find a new fucking pair of sunglasses which will be impossible since I can never find sunglasses dark enough. I'm guessing that will cost about $600. Bah. Maybe Christine's idea of a new iPod fund for me will take off or something. The timing on this sucks even worse since I got hit by some lady a few weeks ago and have a $375 estimate on the work. Yay for needing to spend like $1,000 on my car. :-P

.: 306 words at 02:35 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Sephora hardly ever does sales, but right now if you enter FF2007 when you check out, you can get 20% your whole purchase. Needless to say, I bought a ton of shit.

Also, if you sign up for Ebates they'll give you $10 and 4% back on your Sephora purchase. Make sure to use this link and I'll get $10 too!

Yay for cheap(er) make-up!

.: 65 words at 09:32 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I can't believe I haven't mentioned this yet, but I am beyond excited for the next - and final - Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

I've loved all the books since I read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone back in late 1997 or 1998. I remember finishing it on my lunch hour in the Kentucky Fried Chicken that was very close to my office and wanting to cry, it was such an amazing book.

While I didn't love the fifth book, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, as much I'm planning to go back and reread it (or at least most of it) before starting Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

However, at least part of the reason that I was blogging this was to let people know that Amazon is offering a free $5 promotional gift certificate to spend in the store if you pre-order Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows before July 20, 2007.

Since they also offer a pre-order guarantee where price decreases between your order time and release date, you'll receive the lowest price, you can't really lose out from ordering from them. Plus, select Standard Shipping, you're guaranteed the book on its release date or it's free. I actually didn't choose this option last year, but ended up getting my book anyway.

What are you waiting for? Go place your pre-order!

.: 238 words at 12:30 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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A nice guy named Stephen from Dorval, Quebec sent me a book off my wishlist, Claimed By Shadow by Karen Chance.

I'm assuming that this was a birthday present, but since I don't know who you are (or I'm not associating your online persona with your real name), I just wanted to say thank you!

I just finished the first book in the series, Touch the Dark, a few weeks ago. I really enjoyed reading it and was thinking to myself that I needed to see if the new one was out, so this was definitely a pleasant surprise.

Again, thank you, Stephen!

.: 105 words at 09:19 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I thought that St. Patrick's day was going to be kind of mellow at least for the first part. I went to bed at about 5:00 am (I spent a lot of time reading, taking a bath, watching movies on TBS, and just generally fucking around), so I didn't get up until around 2:00 this afternoon.

I had just heated up some pizza and was watching Major League (I love that movie) when Foxy called. The conversation went something like this:

Her: "Guess who's going to the rodeo with me and Shelly tonight to see Brooks & Dunn?"
Me: "I don't know. Who?"
Her: "You!"

A friend of ours is on the rodeo committee and was able to get a bunch of awesome seats to the show, so I got to go along with them.

I hadn't been to the rodeo in about two years (the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is the biggest rodeo in the world) and was supposed to go on Tuesday to see Rascal Flatts, but the lead singer had bronchitis, so the show was cancelled. The weather really sucked that day and Ben wasn't feeling well (which meant I would have had to sit alone), so it wasn't a big deal, but Shelly and Foxy have been to like six shows this year and were always talking about it, so I kind of wanted to go.

The rodeo was fun. My favorite part - aside from the concert - was the calf scramble where twenty-eight kids race to get calves to raise the next year for the show (all animals sold at the show raise scholarship money). One girl had the last calf and had him roped and almost in the ring when he got loose and another boy got him. I felt so bad for her since she had really wrestled with that calf, but they announced later that since she had worked so hard, she was going to get a cow of her own anyway. It totally made me happy.

Brooks & Dunn were awesome, though they didn't play "You're Going To Miss Me When I'm Gone," which is just about my favorite song of theirs. I've been a fan for years and saw them back in 1992 or 1993 when Martina McBride opened for them, but I didn't realize until how awesome Ronnie Dunn's voice is until last night. It's easy to sound good on the radio, but much harder to sound good live in front of almost 75,000 people.

After the rodeo, we went to Sherlock's on Westheimer to hear my brother Russell's band Adrenaline play. They're really good, doing mostly covers, but they're recording some originals now, which you can hear on their MySpace page. It's really good.

After we left there, Satyajit had texted us to see where we were, so we went and met him and Lambo at 59 Diner for some food. I love 59 Dinner and was so happy when it went to being open 24/7. The nice waitress Emily even comped my Oreo shake since it was my birthday and Satyajit paid for all of our meals. It was a great time and we laughed at everything. OMG. It was so much fun.

So, it's a few hours until my birthday dinner at Lupe Tortilla (Mmmmm) and I am so excited. I love birthdays! Yay!

* Quote from Shelly when we went to New Orleans this year for New Year's/her birthday. I'm supposed to say this at least twenty-five times today.

.: 589 words at 04:28 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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I can't believe I haven't blogged for like two and half months. I have no idea why, except work has been so busy lately, so I might be burned out on blogs by the end of the day. ;-)

So, here's some random stuff:

• I finally - for the first time ever - bought a cell phone. It's not that I haven't had one for the last eight years or so, but my first one was a Christmas gift and my second one I got through a marketing program and they left the service on for three years for free to boot. After seeing that most of my minutes are spent talking to Ben, I switched to T-Mobile's MyFaves plan and bought a Blackberry Pearl. I absolutely adore it. It's so shiny and pretty and new. I've named her Josephine.
• I spent a bajillion hours playing Fairy Godmother Tycoon. That game was absolutely addicting. It needs more levels, though, since I'm already done with it.
• I've been reading a lot (well, I always read a lot, but I digress) and I've read some great books lately - Pompeii, Touch the Dark, The Secret Life of Bees, You Suck: A Love Story, and more. I list all the books I've read the last few months in my sidebar, but my All Consuming profile has everything I've read over the last few years in case you ever want to check out my reading list.
• This week a post I wrote for Everything TypePad went live. I actually wrote this post too, our first in a series highlighting the TypePad Knowledge Base, but since I didn't blog about it then, I'm blogging about it now. ;-) It's always so surreal to have something that I wrote up on an official Six Apart blog.
• Red, my camera that I've had for about four years, has got a dirty sensor that's going to cost about $100 to repair, so I bought a Sony Cybershot DSC-H5 today. It's 7.2 megapixels, has an image stabilization feature, and looks cool. It's essentially an updated version of Red which I love, so hopefully this camera will be just as awesome.
• Cindy came in from Canada for my birthday party last weekend and it was amazing to get to see her again. When you count Mac and Don, she's the third out of town blogger I've seen in just a few weeks.
• There was more stuff that I wanted to say, but everything else has totally slipped my mind.
• Dude, I can't believe my birthday's Sunday!

.: 428 words at 06:21 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.



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"It's always so surreal to have something that I wrote up on an official Six Apart blog."

I still feel this way a lot, too. But these are great posts! I'm really glad that info is up there, it helps a lot.

Posted by Anil at March 18, 2007 04:51 PM





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Saturday night, Sarah made dinner for about twenty of us at Shelly's house - a yummy, Italian dinner. Ben and I got over there a little late after running errands all day Saturday (and we got to have breakfast at Waffle House, which was delicious and my first time to eat there, unbelievably). We were kind of tired, so bowed out early to go home and watch Babe since I watch it every Christmas and I've really been in the mood to see it again. After watching it (and crying at about fourteen different points in the movie), I headed home.

I had some work done on my car Tuesday since the brake rotors were out and it was suggested that I get a coolant flush as well. I was already spending over $400 and didn't want to spend the other $90, but I figured I might as well since I was getting a bunch of work done already. Even though they said it would only take about an hour and a half, NTB ended up keeping my car for three hours. Annoying, but Foxy came and picked me up and we got some shopping done, so it wasn't the end of the world.

Anyway, so I'm driving home, about at Greenspoint, singing along to my newly installed radio (it went out sometime while I was in Europe), when I notice that my car is running hot - hot, like all the way past the H in the gauge. I'm starting to freak out, wondering if maybe the gauge is broken, and if I should try and make it the last ten miles or so home or if I should stop somewhere and see if it will cool off. It's about that time I'm coming up on Richey Road, so I decided to go ahead and get off the freeway and find somewhere to stop.

Just as I'm making this decision, the check engine light comes on. I start getting over and trying to take the exit when the car starts making this pinging sound. I make it off the freeway, come to the Richey Road intersection thinking over and over "please don't make me catch the light, I need to get through and find somewhere to park," and - of course - catch the damn light. I stop, the car stalls, and smoke starts pouring out of the hood in copious amounts, so much so that I thought that there must be a fire under the hood.

I get out - mind you that I am in my pajama bottoms, a t-shirt, and a hoodie - and start trying to get my phone to work, but it was out of battery power, something that never happens. I'm trying to get my phone to power up when a little red car pulls up next to me with two young boys in it. The driver puts down his window and is all like, "Ma'am, ma'ma, do you need help? Ma'am, you should get out of the car. Ma'am, let us help you."

I go over to their car and ask them for a cell phone. They back up and park behind me and Alan, the driver, gives me his phone so I can call my parents. I call and tell my mom a quick message about how my car is on fire, I'm at Richey and I-45, and to come as quick as they can.

The next fifteen minutes or so I spend in a panic waiting on my mom and dad to get there. Alan and his friend Alex, are absolute angels. They spend the entire time telling me it's going to be okay, not to worry about anything, and asking passing motorists if they have any water that they can put in the car. Alan gets some from one motorists and puts it in the car despite my protests about opening the hood since I was scared that there would be a fire under there and I would kill the nice kid (he was sixteen) that stopped to help me. We even moved my stuff out of my car in case it was going to really burn.

Eventually my parents showed up and we got the car pushed off to the side. We took my dad back home, finally got through to a towing service, and went back to wait for the wrecker. He got there not too long after we did and put my tiny little car onto his big ass flatbed trailer. It's now about 4:15, so by the time we get to the house, wait for the car to be taken off of the trailer, wash my face, and then get to bed, it's almost 5:30.

The next day my mom calls NTB and explains that I had my coolant system flushed on Tuesday and, after driving only about a hundred miles in the meantime, the car overheated and will no longer start. They immediately offer to tow the car to the nearest NTB and take a look at it to see what needs to be done. A few hours later, we talk to a guy and he's tentatively saying it's their fault - it looked like there was something up with the coolant and that most of it had drained away causing the engine to completely lock up. In other words, my car's never going to start again without rebuilding the engine.

Today NTB called and they have accepted full responsibility for my car. Not only will they fix my car, but they're also going to get me a rental car. I'm also hoping that they are going to refund the money I spent on the tow truck and on the coolant flush - the thing that started this whole problem in the first place. I hope that they also refund all the money that I spent on the brake job to help make up for things like being stranded on the side of the road in the early morning hours while thinking that your car is going to explode any minute.

So, all in all, I'm glad that NTB has stepped up and that this isn't going to cost me a ton of money, like I had worried about. It's damn inconvenient, but shit happens and as long as you try to make it right, that's what really counts.

.: 1067 words at 12:00 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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I submitted the following picture to JPG Magazine for their theme Tourist. It's two of the gargoyles atop Notre Dame overlooking Paris with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

I have other shots from up there that I love (when we got back to our apartment in Versailles that night and I downloaded the pictures for the first time, despite the fact that I was so tired and my feet were killing me, I was excited and so very happy that these pictures came out exactly like I saw them in my head), but I just can't get over how old and amazing the stone looks in this picture. You can just feel the history emanating from it.

If you like it, please go vote; it would really make my day.

.: 133 words at 02:31 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Earlier this summer, I read an article in Lucky Magazine about how to achieve the perfect smoky, glittery eye.

Now, being a fairly girly girl and also raccoon-like in the way that I love shiny, sparkly things, I desperately coveted some eye glitter. Alas, the loose dust that they mentioned, was by Napoleon Perdis, an Australian make-up designer, and it was almost twice the cost of the glitter to buy it. Being Internet savvy and tenacious, however, I refused to give up and eventually stumbled upon Napoleon Perdis Loose Dust at Adore Beauty where I got their Techno Glitter (#39), shipping included, for about $20.

Since my group of friends and I spend a fair amount of time about town in bars, I wear it out almost every where I go and I have gotten a ton of compliments on it from everyone from the Subway lady giving me my sandwich to Jawad when we went to hear him at Sambuca the other night.

Ladies, if you're looking for something to add some drama, sparkle, and fun to your make-up palette, I can not recommend this enough. If you want to apply it really heavy, like I do, just make sure to wet your make-up applicator first. That makes a huge difference.

.: 213 words at 02:10 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I haven't mentioned it yet, but I've been posting pretty regularly over at my Vox blog, The Neurotic Fishbowl That is My Life...: Vox Style. Most of it's Vox Hunt and Question of the Day posts, but it's still posting.

I really do love Vox and I'm quite proud that it's the newest product from my company. Registration's now open, so you too can now join.

Yay Vox!

.: 71 words at 10:48 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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It's unbelievable that in my The Best Trip Ever Set, I am only at the beginning of day two (we started off at the Eiffel Tower and then ended up going to Notre Dame, the Arc de Triomphe, and back to the Eiffel Tower since the lines were smaller) and I've already uploaded over 150 pictures.

I swear, before I get through all 1,243 pictures that I took on this trip, I will be old and grey.

Feel free to go take a look at what I've got up so far, if you are so inclined.

.: 97 words at 06:19 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Last weekend was absolutely the best Halloween I have ever had.

It started off with an unexpected three day weekend, so Thursday night Ben, Foxy, Shelly, Satyajit, and Sean went over to Tony's Side Pocket on West Dallas (formerly Keys West, but I like that name better, so that's what we call it). There was a lot of screwdrivers, raspberry kamikazes, pool games, slow dancing, and country music, so all in all, it was a good time.

My next day Ben came and picked me up around noon so we could go have lunch at Chuy's since I'd been craving it for weeks. Since I was throwing the First Annual Halloween Spooktacular Masquerade Dinner at Sambuca that evening, I thought it would be nice to have little gift bags for everybody. After eating, we walked over to CVS in the shopping center and picked up little goodies like pumpkin yoyos, glow in the dark rubber bugs, and spiky balls plus some candy. While there, we found the best Christmas decoration ever.

We also made a run to Rice Village, Linens N' Things for some more Island Teal Satin Glow, Best Buy, and the grocery store. Some how we managed to spend something like four hours running errands, so it was almost time to get ready and head out to Sambuca for dinner.

First of all, let me just say how much I love Sambuca and all the people that work there. The staff is beyond amazing and my entourage and I get personally greeted bu almost everyone that works there each time we come in. We've also gotten close to a lot of the musicians (like Tianna Hall and Norma Zenteno) and several nights a month you'll hear, "This one's for Kymberlie..." from the stage without me even needing to make a request. That never fails to make me smile.

Anyway, Jonathan, the lovely manager, booked the VIP lounge for us, so fifteen of us had the most delicious dinner upstairs in our own private section with our own bar and servers. We even had special little menus with the menu I had picked for us that I'm planning on framing and doing something special with for the guests.

The next day was spent relaxing and not doing much, though Ben and I did get to watch Santa's Slay on TV (that movie is funny when you're drinking, btw). Eventually it was time for us to get dressed and head over to Melissa's for some food before heading to some huge house party.

I was a pirate this year - a pirate with a corset that totally involved a lot of work on Ben's part since he had to get me into the thing (think the scene in Gone With the Wind where Scarlett gets put into one), for which I am eternally grateful. There's some great pictures, so go take a peek.

The party was lots of fun and I loved my costume (rental from Party Boy on I-10, so if you ever need a good costume, I highly recommend going there). I also used a shot block for the first time ever, which I missed out on in college since I didn't back drink then.

Eventually we headed home to eat some Taco Cabana and watch some Drawn Together, but then it was off to bed since we were having brunch the next day at Mi Luna.

Since I usually work on Sundays, I've never got to do the brunch thing before and it was a blast. It was mostly a blast due to the fact that we were there for four hours and I drank a bajillion glasses of sangria. I never drink wine (I'm more a vodka girl) and the sangria really kicked my ass. Thank god all the pictures with me in them were taken early! Ben and I ended up looking for patio furniture at Garden Ridge and two targets and he got to walk with my very tipsy ass through the stores laughing at all kinds of things. Good times.

So, that pretty much concluded my best Halloween weekend ever. All I can say is that I love my friends and that spending time with them makes me happy beyond belief. I really don't think I've ever been as happy as I am now. *sniff* Sappy, but true.

Now Natalie just needs to get better and come hang out with us again since I miss her much.

.: 749 words at 02:48 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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Yeah, so it's been months since I posted. Anyone remember me?

Things are good: I'm busy constantly, out all the time, have the best group friends ever, and am really loving my life.

I've finally started going through my pictures from Paris and Rome (yep, I did go in May to those of you who were wondering) and have got a few of them up in my Best Trip Ever photo set.

I took some incredibly awesome photos - especially ones from the top of Notre Dame - and I'm really excited to get them up for people to see. I took 1,243 photos (seriously; that's not a made up number), so it may be a while before they all make their way up for display.

I just thought I'd let everyone know that I'm not dead, I'm doing really well, and there might be some new pictures up in my Flickr account, so go have a look and feel free to say hi if you're so inclined. :-)

.: 170 words at 11:33 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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These are two phrases - "Do you speak English?" in both French and Italian - that I'm going to have to learn very well soon.

In case you're wondering if I'm simply trying to be prepared in case I meet citizens of either Italy or France, the truth of the matter is that on May 20th, I'm leaving to spend eleven days in Paris and Italy.

My lovely friend Melissa, the same Melissa who made all the yummy jello shots for my birthday, is going to Paris for a business trip and invited a bunch of us to go with her since she not only has a hotel room, but the company flat in Versailles as well.

The group of us who are going - Melissa's mom and brother, Ben, Nathalie, and I - were talking about what we wanted to do while there. Someone brought up going to Italy, so we're going to be in Paris for a week and then fly to Italy for a few days since we found these cheap round trip tickets for a couple of hundred dollars.

Two of the places I have always wanted to go just happens to be Paris and Italy, so I am beyond excited to have this opportunity come up. Not only am I going to get to see these places, I'm also getting to go with three of my favorite people on the planet. I really can't even begin to guess how much fun we're going to have on this trip.

So, for those of you who a) still read this site and b) have been to Paris, what would you say is a must see for someone going to Paris for the first time? I'd love to know what y'all found to be the most enjoyable.

.: 299 words at 02:48 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (9) :.

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Roses from Mac and Mr. Fish for my birthday. I love them.

.: 12 words at 03:59 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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I've never mentioned this, but I have found the absolute best t-shirt store in the world.

The store is Threadless and right now they're having a huge sale. All their t-shirts are marked down to only $10 a piece. Tons of things are selling out, so if you see anything you want, I suggest getting it pretty quickly.

I own about ten of their shirts (The Communist Party, Corporate Zombie, Emotional Trip, MP(3), Afternoon Delight, and Chance are some of my favorites) and they are just the coolest. I always get compliments on them. Well, that or people just like my big boobs.

Either way, you really can't go wrong with $10 t-shirts and cheap shipping. Go be a cool kid like me and get some of your own. Use the Threadless coupon "SUPER TEES" to get $3 off your order.

.: 142 words at 02:29 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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Saturday was Kymberlie's 2nd Annual Karaoke Birthday Bash and I have to say I had the absolute best time of my life.

It started off with me calling Marc and asking him to be the birthday girl's driver for the evening since the birthday girl should never ever have to drive herself on her birthday.

After confirming that he would indeed be willing to drive both me and Natalie Fox (Foxy for the rest of this post since I had three Natalie/Nathalies at my birthday) for the evening I got dressed - jeans, a low cut top so I could put glitter all over my boobs, my Burberry heels, and my birthday tiara from last year. Nothing like Burberry heels, glittery boobs, and a tiara to make you feel like a pretty princess!

I had reservations for 8:00 at Farrago and I love my friends, but we they tend to run late. I couldn't believe it, but by 8:15 we already had half of the people there. From what I can remember, this is everyone that ended up at dinner: Russell, my brother; Carrie, his girlfriend, who happens to be a Rocket Power Dancer (she's Carrie M. on the first row); another Rocket Power Dancer, Nicole J.; James; Mona; Marc; Heath; Melissa Kling; Ben; Melissa Kronberger; Vivian; Thomas; Sean; Shelly; her brother, Brad; Sean (AKA Scott); Elaine; Andrea; Mary; Penny; Foxy; and, last but not least, Kendall.

Dinner was lots of fun; we all talked for hours, ate delicious food (the pepperoni pizza there is just simply to die for), drank wonderful drinks (oh, the pink lemonade martinis are so good), and I even got to open presents (including a nifty little hand-held massager, some earrings, a Sephora gift certificate, a Barnes & Noble gift certificate, a cute purse to name some of the loot). To top it all off, everyone even covered my drinks and food. Yay!

After that, most of us headed over to Sambuca and met up with more revelers including Jenny, Rod, Roger, Satyajit, Sarah, Chat, Nathalie, Natalie, and Barrett. We drank for a few more hours (and the delightful bartender Danny even bought my first drink), talked and laughed the whole time, and then most of us took off for Ben's house.

By 2:30 we had the karaoke system hooked up, the disc set up figured out, and the singing began. And, boy, did we ever sing. We sang for almost the next five hours. We sang ABBA, The Counting Crows, songs from the Grease soundtrack, Radiohead, Chuck Berry ("I'd rather drown than live without my ding-a-ling," as ad-libbed by Brad, had to be the best line of the night), George Michael, Nazareth, Barry Manilow, Tina Turner, Lou Bega, Madonna, David Allan Coe, Neil Diamond, and more. We definitely got $80 worth out of the discs I rented.

In addition to the hours of singing fun, we also had cake made by Foxy, jello shots made by Melissa Kling, and Hot Sex shots supplied by Sarah, not to mention Ben opening up his house for all of us. A lot of people put a lot of effort into making my birthday really nice and I appreciated it so very much.

As a matter of fact, standing in the kitchen doing the first of the Hot Sex shots with about twenty people toasting me, I swear, I have never felt more loved or special. Really, this whole birthday was nothing but the coolest experience of my life. You always know that your friends love and adore you, and I really feel it with the crowd I hang with, but I felt it so strongly at my party that I just about cried in the kitchen when they were toasting me. Words really can't put it into perspective.

7:15 we finally packed up the karaoke machine, Marc drove various people to either their cars or their houses, and I headed home. I drove all over Spring since the Burger King by my house was closed and I had psyched myself up for a Croissan'Wich, but finally got my breakfast (the birthday girl triumphs!). The rest of the day was spent sleeping and watching lots of television, which is really the perfect end to a twelve hour birthday party.

This was really one of the best days of my whole life and I can't wait for Kymberlie's 3rd Annual Karaoke Birthday Bash.

.: 742 words at 03:18 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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It's hard to believe, but it's already the middle of March. Not only that, today just happens to be my thirty-first birthday!

The last couple of years I've really been hardcore about celebrating my birthday and today is no exception. As a matter of fact, tonight's celebration is in three stages and has been dubbed Kymberlie's 2nd Annual Karaoke Birthday Bash. Thirty people have RSVPed that they're coming and another ten are probably showing up later, so we should have a good crowd.

First, we're starting off with dinner Farrago since they have these delicious pink lemonade martinis and very yummy pizza. After dinner, we're heading to our favorite bar, Sambuca, for some more martinis and to listen to some great music.

After that, the final stage of my birthday will begin. Sarah (a relatively new friend and now my realator) has a karaoke machine and since I had so much fun singing last year with Katie, I decided that we needed to do karaoke again this year. I found a place that rents your 350 discs with over 4,000 songs on them, so we're going to finish up the night at my friend Ben's house where we'll be singing and drinking until the wee, wee hours of the morning.

All in all, I'm really excited about my birthday even though I am now officially in the "over thirty" category. You can always make me feel better about this by sending me a little something off my wishlist, though. ;-)

Man, I'm so excited! Tonight is going to be great!

.: 263 words at 03:36 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (10) :.

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I've been back from San Francisco for a few weeks and was really going to blog, I swear, but things have been crazy. Of course, I'm not going to be doing much blogging right now because I have to pack for my trip to Vegas (my plane takes off in about four hours).

So, I hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day and that life's treating you well. Hopefully, things will slow down a bit over the next weeks, though I doubt it with my birthday coming up, including the spectacular Kymberlie's 2nd Annual Karaoke Birthday Bash.

Have a great day, everyone! I'm on vacation! woot!

.: 106 words at 10:58 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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It's hard to believe, but I'm not actually dead and I haven't forgotten how to use Movable Type. A miracle, no?

This is just a quick little update since I'm leaving at 8:00 am tomorrow for San Francisco to finally meet all of my co-workers. That's right - we're all on our way to California tomorrow for our Christmas (yeah, it's a little late) party.

Anyway, I've got to go to bed soon, but I just wanted to let everyone know that I'm still alive, my dad's still doing well, and I that I am going to come back and start posting again some day, maybe even someday soon.

I owe lots of people e-mails (especially Nicole and Kenny) but I'll try and get those out soon. My mailbox is getting something like 800 spam messages a day and since I use webmail, that means I'm having to delete it all by hand and, with that many messages, it runs slow and takes forever.

Anyway, if you still come by and read the site, be sure and leave a comment to let me know. Readership here is basically down to nothing, but it would be nice to see some comments again.

Oh, and while you're at it, go vote for this recipe that Mike created.

.: 217 words at 11:48 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (16) :.

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Kymbrlie is having a massage. She will be back online someday.

(She is ok, and her dad is doing good. She's just busy right now, and I told her she needed another update here - so I'm taking care of it for her. Like her own personal assistant.)

- Christine

.: 50 words at 06:33 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (13) :.

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I spoke with Kymberlie about half an hour ago; her Dad is out of surgery and it was the "best case scenario" after all. The cancer seems to have been contained in his kidney, and he was in recovery when we spoke.

I could hear the relief in her voice.

She wanted to thank everyone for their positive thoughts. She will post more within the next day or so.

- Christine

.: 71 words at 01:53 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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Tomorrow my dad goes in to get his kidney removed. Best case scenario: His cancer hasn't spread and everything will be fine. Worst case: I can't even think about it.

His surgery is around 10:00 and should take about three hours. He'll have to spend some time in recovery too but hopefully that won't take too long.

Christine said she'll swing by and take me to lunch or dinner and then I might meet some friends downtown at Sambuca. God knows I'll need a drink by then.

If you don't mind, continue to send good thoughts our way. They're really appreciated, even if I haven't e-mailed anyone back yet (I haven't been spending too much time on the computer except to work lately).

.: 124 words at 07:08 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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I just got off the phone with my mom and it sounds like everything is going to turn out okay.

The doctor doesn't think the cancer has spread from his kidney (he's got three tumors right now). He's had complete renal failure in that kidney already, but the other one has already picked up the slack and is functioning just fine, so he shouldn't need a transplant (though two of my uncles have already offered) or have to worry about totally losing function all together.

He goes in for surgery on November 1st and they'll simply remove the kidney all together. I must say I wish it was sooner than that, but it's not like two weeks is a really long time.

So, I'm feeling much better today. My brother, my mom, and my dad all sound pretty good too, so that makes me happy. It sucks that I'm so far away in Philadelphia, but I think we're fine.

Please continue to keep my family in your thoughts. The next few months are going to be hard on all of us, no matter what.

.: 185 words at 11:23 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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The good news is that I'm having an absolutely wonderful time staying with Mac and Mr. Fish. We've gone to haunted prisons, carved pumpkins, had sushi at Morimoto, and visited both Body Worlds and the aquarium in Jersey. Plus we've still got the trip to New York on Friday to look forward to.

The bad news is that today my dad found out he has cancer. It's on one of his kidneys and he sees the specialist tomorrow, so I don't know anything beyond that right now. Of course, though, I'm terribly scared and very sad and I'm hoping very hard that it hasn't spread and all will be well.

So, if you could keep me and my family in your thoughts I would really appreciate it.

.: 128 words at 05:19 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (13) :.

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Yeah, I'm not sure how I've managed to not blog about this, but I'm headed back to Philly next Friday to spend ten days with Mac and Mr. Fish.

We're hoping to have a little mini-blogger get together in Philly on Saturday, October 8th, so if you live in town or nearby, let us know. I would just love to meet some more bloggers from up north.

We're also going into New York one day too, so if you live in the city, we might be able to meet up there.

Woo hoo! Nine more days!

.: 96 words at 10:27 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (3) :.

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Everyone over here at Casa Neurotic Fishbowl is safe and sound. We even finally have both power and an Internet connection. Yay!

We lost power Saturday morning at around 2:30, which must be when Rita made landfall. I was upstairs playing my new obsession, Sid Meier's Pirates!, which is the most awesome game. Pirates definitely rule!

Originally the lights were off for about nineteen hours or so, when they came back on for about ten minutes, long enough for me to heat up a hot pocket and see what was in the news. Then, they went back off due to a fire (!) on the pole, caused by a transformer blowing.

The electricity company got the lights back up a few hours later, but then it became the flicker game. On for a bit, off for a bit. On for a bit so you think, "Good; it's fixed!" then off again. Power finally was restored for good yesterday afternoon and it looked like we were going to have Internet access again, but then it went out.

I finally had enough, so I went to bed early last night since I was just exhausted. (Note to self: Never live anywhere with trees. Hauling them next door to neighbor's backyard to make a fire pile in 100 degree weather sucks.)

So. No major damage over here. A big tree limb hit the fence, but it didn't break, so that's pretty much it. I think we're glad we stayed here as opposed to having a 24+ hour commute to Austin, even with no air conditioning and having to sit in the backyard so there's a breeze, but getting eaten alive by bugs.

I hope everyone else fared as well!

.: 287 words at 01:40 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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It's starting to look a little dark outside, boys and girls. Rita's on her way.

Latest predictions is that she's going to hit the Freeport area, so Houston and Galveston may be spared much in the damage/wind/rain arena. That would be nice.

I've showered, had dinner, and I've got my car under the carport over at my aunt's house next door, so I guess that's as prepared as I can be.

Lots of bloggers are staying in town (Sat, Jay, Emily, Elaine, and Hanna to name a few), so send us all good thougths. We definitely appreciate them.

.: 103 words at 06:21 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (7) :.

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Okay, I'm starting to freak out a little about Hurricane Rita. It's really freaking big and it's going to hit around the Freeport area, best guess as of now.

I live in Spring, about ten minutes from Intercontinental Airport, so I think we're far enough away that nothing too big is going to happen to us, though I'm sure we're going to lose electricity and get a lot of rain.

Anyway, keep all of us in your thoughts that everything will be okay for us in Rita's path.

.: 88 words at 10:46 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (10) :.

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This Monday marks the return of Monday nights with The El Orbits at Houston's very own Continental Club.

While bingo won't (and may never) be back, the boys will be bringing their very own blend of retro, cool, and cover songs to the stage for a three hour, non-stop set. As always, there's no cover, $2 Lone Star pints, and $3 maritinis.

If you do come out, look for me and my friends so we can say hi and absorb you into our weekly gathering! I'll be the one in the "There's no religion but sex and music" t-shirt.

.: 100 words at 07:12 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I watched a couple of movies this weekend - House of Flying Daggers (gorgeously shot; excellent score, which I just added to my wishlist; great movie) and Finding Neverland (another great movie; Johnny Depp with a Scottish accent is my newest pretend boyfriend.

So, after watching these two movies, my big question is this: Who's cooler - ninjas or pirates (yes, no pirates were in either of these movies, but Johnny Depp plays a pirate, and those are the kinds of jumps my mind makes)?

What do you think? I usually lean towards pirates being the coolest of the cool (Talk Like a Pirate day is coming up; it's September 19th), but I'm kind of torn.

More proof I lean towards being a pirate can be seen in this picture and in the fact that I went as a pirate wench for Halloween last year.

.: 148 words at 08:48 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (8) :.

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My friend Kimberly (or Berly as she's known since there are a million Kimberly/Kymberlies around) turned forty Thursday and for her birthday milestone, she wanted to go skydiving. Since I loved it so much last time, I totally had to go.

I knew my brother Russell would also love it, so I told him that if he came, I would pay for part of his tandem since his birthday is Thursday. He said no, since he already had plans to go to Austin that weekend, but he called me Thursday morning and said that if I was still going, he'd like to come, which really made me happy; I just love my brother.

About fifteen people ended up going out, including Katie and Chris, though only seven of us jumped.

We were supposed to jump around 11:00, but, as far as I can tell, having a reservation with a large group of tandem jumpers doesn't really make a difference. There's usually a limited number of tandem masters (I think it was three today) and videographers, so there's no way to go through a large group quickly; you simply have to be split into several groups.

We still probably would have been gone by early afternoon except for the crappy weather. Since you obviously can't skydive in the rain or with lightning or anything else like that. They had to keep stopping the plane, so we didn't actually get in the air until around 4:45.

Russell and I rode up in the same plane along with a girl from his firehouse. I never really worry about myself too much when jumping, but Russell was jumping before me and I must admit it was a little scary watching him approach the door and jump out. He's my kid brother, you know?

Finally, it was my turn and I was a little nervous when we got to the door, but much less so than this time. I enjoyed the freefall a little more this time, I think because I didn't have a videographer, could concentrate more on looking around as opposed to at the camera, and also knew a little more what to expect.

As always, though, floating down after the chute pull was my favorite part. The time, Elio, my tandem guy, removed my goggles for me, so I was seeing the ground without the kind of crappy plastic being in the way. He also let me pull on the chute's handles which allowed me to steer us through the air.

I can't believe how much I love doing this. Since Russell enjoyed the hell out of his jump too, I'm hoping we can start working on our certifications together next year. I really don't want to have to go through all the classes and training alone.

Shame it's such a damn expensive hobby. Anyone want to give me about $6,000 for training and gear? lol

.: 485 words at 10:33 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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While "The Five Stages of Properly Pissed" is funny, nothing is funnier or more true than Larry Miller's "The Five Levels of Drinking". (Don't be a dick; right click and "Save As...")

Not that I've ever gone through these stages or anything. Especially not Tuesday night, right, Irfy?

.: 50 words at 02:00 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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I'm back at Elaine's housesitting while she visits Kenny up in Washington.

Since the last time I was here I got the worst case of hives ever, I'm hoping we're right in thinking it was her pillows, which I have safely moved off the bed. I've even taken a Zyrtec already.

Of course, thinking about hives is making me itch which is making me paranoid that I've got them after being here like an hour. I'm so neurotic.

Anyway, cross your fingers that the hives stay away. I'm skydiving again Saturday and tomorrow's the monthly Geek Gathering, so I'm too busy to spend it swollen up like someone beat me badly about the face.

.: 116 words at 09:43 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Tonight is another Tiara Happy Hour down at The Flying Saucer.

They're always fun, so if you're in Houston and own a tiara (that you don't mind trading for a different one) come down and join us. Boys are welcome, but you must wear a tiara too.

Now if I could just wake up enough to get ready. So very tired. *yawn*

.: 62 words at 06:26 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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I have been watching Silver Jewelry Club like a hawk lately. They've added a ton of new stuff - including lots of rings in my size, finally! - and so much of it is just gorgeous.

I've gotten this lovely triple stone blue topaz necklace, a silver celtic band ring for my thumb, a really pretty trillian cut amethyst ring, and a garnet and citrine ring that I can't wait to get in the mail.

If you haven't visited them lately, you should go take a look. It's the best $5 you'll spend today, I promise you.

.: 98 words at 10:40 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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I've been meaning to blog this week, but I have been either running out the door on my way somewhere else or asleep within fifteen minutes of my shift ending. Oy.

Tuesday was trivia night at The Flying Saucer, so I went to pick Kendall up over in Rice Village. Thanks to taking the back way into town, we were even early enough to be able to stop in at Sambuca for a happy hour priced apple martini.

I must go off on a tangent for a minute because within the last month or so, I've become one of Sambuca's regulars and all my drinks and, also importantly, all the drinks of my friends who are with me, are now happy hour prices. That's right. Instead of paying $8.00 for an apple martini, I pay $4.50. And those martinis - they are mighty tasty. So, with cheaper drinks and live music every night, Sambuca's in way beyond my favorite downtown place to hang. I just love it there.

After the drink, we met Melissa at The Saucer and got ready to play trivia. I was a little nervous when it was just us (the last time that I went to trivia it was just Melissa and me and we got our asses beat; normally, our team places, so it was humbling), but figured I'd have some bacon cheese fries (Mmmmmm. Cheese fries.) and it wouldn't matter.

The format of the game changed, but it's way more fun in my opinion. What was really cool is that we got all of the questions right in the first round except for one (the one we missed was how many verses does Don McLean's "American Pie" have. I thought it was six, changed it to five since it was a better sounding number, and missed it because it was six. Damn!) and we were the leaders at the end of the round so we got a free round. Seth got lucky and walked in like two seconds after Rita, the trivia girl, announced it, but she was sweet and let him have a free drink anyway. Yeah!

The second and third rounds sucked since we only got one question right (Where was Rudyard Kipling born? India.), so going into the final question - where you can bet up to twenty points - I was slightly discouraged. We figured we didn't have much to lose, though, and went ahead and bet the full twenty.

Discouragement quickly turned into despair when we hear the question: Within ten years, guess the combined ages of Sandra Bullock, Tom Hanks, Marlon Wayans, Shannon Elizabeth, Denzel Washington, and John Lithgow.

I couldn't believe it, but thanks to some superior guessing skills on our part, we came up with 263 and the correct answer was 264. Since we were the only team to get it right, we catapulted into first place for another $30 win.

Irfan showed up pretty soon after that and Marc called, so we all took off for better drinks and live music at Sambuca. Carol Fran was singing the blues, so we all laughed, drank, danced, and had a fabulous time until closing time.

Never ones to go home early, we then retired to Twelve Spot for more merriment until they closed. After that, I was starving so we all headed to Katz's for breakfast. Finally, the night was over and it was time to go home.

The next day was the day that I chose to fight my bogus parking ticket. Long story short: parked in an area where parking after 6:00 is permitted, but I got a ticket - the only car in a line of about six to get one. I even stopped a cop and he said he couldn't figure out why I had one. Needless to say, I was pretty pissed.

Since it was only $35, I was just going to pay it, but then I saw on the ticket that you can get a hearing within a half hour of requesting one, so I figured what the hell. I'd taken pictures of the other cars without tickets, the parking sign, and even the cop that we stopped, so I figured I didn't have anything to lose.

I headed down to Lubbock Street, finding the building easily enough (my internal map of Houston is finally becoming complete; I'm so proud of myself). I went down to office in the basement, found the place, and there was only one guy in front of me.

After about ten minutes, I got to see the judge and I explained my story, showed him the pictures, and, remember advice that I've heard on like a million television shows, resisted the urge to babble at him and shut the hell up.

He asked a couple of questions ("Is this the sign post in the picture? How far were you away from it?"), but after about five minutes, I was out of there with the ticket dismissed. Yeah! Damn the man! Take that, you shitty ticket system!

The El Orbits were playing at Sambuca, so I headed down to listen to them, have a drink, and chat in the Technology Bytes IRC channel since the show was on at the same time. Whoever Matt is, his wireless connection is still unsecure, so I can totally get online from the bar.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love The El Orbits? My god, they rock. I can't wait for them to resume their Monday night gig at The Continental Club the first Monday after Labor Day. An Evite will be going out soon. If you live in Houston and want to come, leave a comment or something.

After Technology Bytes ended at 9:00, I went over to The Flying Saucer to meet Sat, philktid, Barrett, and Marc.

The Saucer was having some kind of birthday party and between that and the people from The Astros game, it was completely packed. We managed to get a seat outside, but it was hot as balls. I should have lost like twenty pounds, I was sweating so much. Nothing like it being a million degress outside with 1000% humidity at almost 10:00 at night.

After a quick drink and some cheese fries, I made the executive decision that it was back to Sambuca since they had both air conditioning and The El Orbits. We (minus Barrett) headed back over there, just in time to snag seats at the corner of the bar.

More drinks were drunk, more songs were sung, another arguement over whether or not the song playing was Telepopmusik's "Love Can Damage Your Health" was had (It is, damn it!), and basically we just talked about random shit as we're all prone to do.

Next thing we knew, it was closing time (or rather the bar had been closed for thirty minutes, but the bartenders - the lovely Lara and the cute Carson - didn't make us leave) so we headed to Twelve Spot again. We're party animals, I tell you.

Again, more random conversation, another drink (or half a drink, in my case), and again it was closing time. We wanted to hang downtown for a little bit more, but nothing was open. We ended up in front of Kaveh Kanes since my car was parked there. Pete, the guy who works there, was just locking up and he confirmed that nothing was open, but he happened to have a bunch of pastries. Did we want them?

Hell, yeah we wanted them! So for about forty minutes, I sat on the hood of the car, Sat and Marc stood on the sidewalk, and we people watched (I swear, those girls were making out in that limo) and talked some more. Finally, it was time to call it a night. Or rather a morning since it was almost 3:00 am. Oy.

The next night it was out with Nermine and her friend Deanna to Tumbleweeds to do some country dancing. It's so weird, but whenever I start thinking that I need to go dancing, Nermine e-mails me to ask me if I want to go.

OMG, I had so much fun. I haven't been dancing on a Thursday in forever, but I still knew half the bar. Lots of good dancers were in attendance, including Adam and Buelle, so I got to dance pretty much the entire evening.

I had forgotten just how incredible it feels to dance. I took lessons for years and kicked around going into competition last year, so I'm pretty good. It's an absolute joy to dance. Nermine, Deanna, and I had such a blast, I hope it's something that we start doing at least a few times a month. I wish more people in our cirle of friends enjoyed this; I would love to get a huge group of us going regularly.

Friday I was going to meet Elaine and some others down at Onion Creek, but I totally crashed from all the late nights and was asleep by about 5:30. I woke up around 9:00, but just couldn't muster the energy to get ready and go down there. I hate living a million miles away from everything.

So far, the rest of the weekend was spent with me working yesterday (I work Tuesday through Saturdays now), catching up on a lot of stuff on the TiVo since I haven't watched television in like three weeks, I finished the latest Stephanie Plum novel, and just took it easy.

Anyway, this is why I haven't blogged in a few days - too damn busy being a social butterfly! :-D

.: 1610 words at 08:54 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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I love Glarkware's t-shirts.

I bought "Lawyers do it in front of a jury of their peers" for Katie and "Don't @#$! with Tubey", "Oceanica Airlines: Getting halfway there is all the fun!", and the swordman (which has the best t-shirt description ever) for myself. I also have "In Soviet Russia, shirt wears you", which is currently my favorite t-shirt ever.

You're probably thinking, "So? What's your point?"

Well, I'm definitely getting this shirt (I have been looking for a pink maneki neko forever; seriously, if you ever find one, buy it for me and I will buy you a gift in return) and I can't pass up anything that says NARM, so I'm getting it too.

The thing is, though, I can't decide if I should get "You are nothing without your robot car. Nothing!" or not. I don't have any abiding hatred for David Hasselhoff, but that shirt really tickles my funny bone.

So, I'm asking you. What do you think? Stupid or cool? Should I get it or not?

.: 177 words at 08:58 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (1) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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I'm participating in Spoil-A-Blogger (Who can't use a little spoiling, after all?), so here's the answers to the questionnaire for my secret pal to use:

• What is your favorite color? It's a toss up between purple and blue.
• What is your favorite scent? Vanilla and buttercream.
• Where is your favorite place to vacation? Las Vegas, Philadelphia, New York, and any place with a beach.
• Do you collect anything? Jewelry (I have tons of earrings and bracelets), nail polish (I love bright colors - blues, purples, pink, glitters), DVDs, books, and fish stuff (statues, toys, ornaments, etc.).
• Do you have a favorite tv show? I've got lots. lol CSI, CSI: Miama, Without a Trace, Survivor, The Amazing Race, The Dead Zone, The 4400, Six Feet Under, Queer as Folk, Lost, Desperate Housewives, Smallville, Rescue Me, 24, Medium, Numb3rs, and probably more. God, no wonder I have to own so many TiVos!
• Are you crafty? If so, how? Probably like that Beastie Boys song, but otherwise it's limited to making stamping projects.
• Do you have kids? Nope.
• Do you have pets? A beta fish named Spike.
• What kind of movies do you like? Pretty much anything, but especially dark comedies, suspense, cult movies, and romantic comedies.
• What kind of music do you listen to? Again, just about anything, but my favorite genre is downtempo. You can see what I'm listening to here.
• What kind of books do you like to read? Everything! I love to read! As a matter of fact, I have a (neglected but I swear I'm going to catch up) book review blog. I love horror, suspense, and chick lit the best, though.
• Do you have a favorite magazine? Card Player Magazine.
• What is your favorite weekend activity? Usually meeting friends for dinner, drinks, and/or seeing a band.
• What kind of work do you do? I do tech support for Six Apart for TypePad and TypeKey.
• What do you do for fun? Read, play poker, play at Pogo, listen to live bands (especially The El Orbits), go to bars, skydive (just once, but I'm going again soon!), watch movies, and listen to music.

.: 362 words at 12:31 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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OMG. I am totally in love with this bracelet.

It's like it was made with me specifically in mind - blues and greens, a gold star, and a hand carved goldfish!

Maybe if I successfully beat that stupid parking ticket (I'm going to go request a hearing on it Wednesday), I'll put the $35 from the fine towards the bracelet and buy myself a nice "you don't suck, you rock" present.

(Link courtesy of C.)

.: 77 words at 11:42 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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You know what's a good way to measure how much people think of you? The contempt and hatred that your father feels towards you.

Yeah, that's a good measure.

.: 29 words at 12:59 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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Looking for something to do tonight?

If you are, River Oaks Theatre on West Gray is showing Back to the Future tonight as their midnight movies.

My brother, his friends, and some of my friends are going, so come out and join us if you're free. It should be fun.

.: 50 words at 08:03 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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You know, maybe I should get all of my friends to do this for me.

At least it would be interesting.

(Link courtesy of Thomas.)

.: 27 words at 01:18 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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- I am almost completely hives free. My face is peeling like I got the world's worst sunburn (or stood next to a nuclear blast) and the right side is still a bit puffy, but I am definitely way improved. I didn't realize how shitty I felt this weekend until I started feeling better Monday night. How on earth did I complete the Blogathon?

- For some reason one of my credit cards that I paid online had dropped the 0 off the beginning of my bank account, so I got dinged with a $35 returned check fee (basically) and a $30 late fee. I called and bitched and they said they would reverse the late fee, but not the other fee. I hate places like that that don't verify your bank account info when you put it in for you (like PayPal or Capital One does). It's just an easy way for them to make money off of you. Bastards. I will be highly pissed if after updating my account information it doesn't work AGAIN when I try to pay it a second time on Friday.

- I cried through just about the entire last episode of Six Feet Under. How are they going to wrap that whole show up in two episodes? I still think I'm going to buy this shirt. NARM!

- I currently have over 1,000 e-mails sitting on my webserver - stuff I haven't even downloaded and added to the other thousand unread messages in Outlook. When the hell did it become so hard to get through all of my mail?

- I need a manicure in the worst way. My work schedule has shifted to a Tuesday through Saturday week, so I am going to take advantage of the empty nail place and go in the middle of the day Monday. Yeah!

- I just noticed that this picture is probably the only picture of me in my glasses on the Internet. Hmmm.

- I love this picture that Jay took. And I love that Jay now defends my mix CD position to the death. Ha! Another person who'll do my bidding! ;-)

- Thanks to looking nasty from those hives, I missed trivia night at The Flying Saucer for the first time in over a month and my team came in second place. Suxor.

- My new favorite cussword is one that I made up: fuckola. Has a nice ring to it, no?

- Must go shower so I can proof read something for my brother. He's such a great kid.

.: 431 words at 12:08 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (3) :.

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I've been too busy and/or too tired to really blog around here much, but here's a quick catch up, as much as my benefit as for yours, of the last few weeks:

Friday, July 1st: Marc and I went to see Land of the Dead (good zombie film, though I found myself way too distracted by what a nice suit Dennis Hopper had on; I am so weird) and then went to Zimm's for martinis. Good apple martinis, but the DJ must have thought either that everyone there was there to hear him or that there were 900 people there because, damn, he was loud. We then went to Katz's (Katz's never kloses) for food and then to Marfreless for more delicious martinis.

Saturday, July 2nd: party at Kenny and Elaine's. Lots of fun and I got to see people that I hadn't seen in a while including Pat and Hanna.

Sunday, July 3rd: poker night at Kevin and Kimberly's. Six people played and I doubled my $20 and drank apple martinis mixed by Kevin. I miss playing cards regularly.

Wednesday, July 6th: I met Bruce Campbell! I was actually really nervous to get to meet him; again, I am such a dork. We totally had a moment when he signed my book (and called me dear) and talked about how I spell my name. Okay, probably not a moment, but I made it one in the life that I lead inside my head, so it counts.

Marc and I went to Romano's (Mmmmm. Pizza.) and next to Marfreless (Mmmmm. Apple martinis made with sour apple rum instead of apple pucker.). We then met Jeff and Elizabeth back at the River Oaks Theater for Bruce's Q&A and to see The Man With The Screaming Brain.

Bruce didn't seem as personable as he did in some of the other Flickr pictures of him, so I suspect he had a bad day or something, especially since the Q&A was actually three hours later than it was supposed to be.

It was still fun and while the movie wasn't exactly great, it was still pretty cool to see in a theater filled with Bruce Campbell fans. Or maybe it was the martinis before hand. Btw, this is the best Bruce Campbell picture ever.

After the movie, we went back to Marfreless since the rumor was that Bruce was going to be there, but he didn't show. Drats!

Friday, July 8th: met Katie at her house so we could get a bite to eat before the big Technology Byte's Tenth Anniversary Party.

We went to Farrago's where I had just about the best pizza ever (crispy, but not too crispy; perfect amount of sauce with tiny chunks of tomato) and some yummy pink lemonade martinis. It was an even better dinner when Chris and Katie paid for the whole thing. They are so sweet and I love them.

Next up was Kaveh Kane's for the party. It was a lot of fun seeing Sat, Jay, Barrett, and the rest of the gang. Sat and I popped into the bar next door since Kaveh Kane's doesn't serve hard liquor and I got to try out my apple flavored cocktail sugar. Pretty good stuff, though I think I would like it more if it was of a finer grain.

The party broke up around midnight, so Sat, Kendall, and I went over to Twelve Spot. I just love the look of that place with the exposed brick and the high ceilings. Kendall left after a bit, but Sat and I sat (heh) and shot the shit since we hadn't talked for a while.

Last stop of the night was Frank's Pizza (Mmmmm. Pizza.) for some delicious food. I'm always amazed at how packed that place is at 3:00 in the morning.

Sunday, July 10th: lunch with my family at Tila's on Shepard to celebrate my aunt's birthday. Their regular margaritas weren't very good, but their raspberry ones were. The service kind of sucked, but I had the absolute best cheese quesadillas ever. They were freaking delicious. The roasted corn was also really good, but the chili pepper on it was too spicy for me.

I got home just in time to get a call from Kendall saying that she was taking her massage table to Katie's, so I headed over to her house. After a really nice massage, Kendall and I went to Sambuca for a drink.

Lara, our bartender, made the best apple martinis, so I need to talk to her to see what she did different. These two old guys kept hitting on us, so we left and went to The Flying Saucer where we had the best bacon cheese fries. The Saucer makes shitty drinks (unless you like beer), but their bacon cheese fries are to die for. We called Sat and he joined us for a while too.

Tuesday, July 12th: trivia contest night at The Flying Saucer! Sat, Jeff, Elizabeth, Amber, Melissa, girl and boy, and I played a kick ass match of trivia, leading ten other teams for most of the twenty questions. Unfortunately, we fell behind and finished only third. We won a $10 gift certificate good for next Tuesday, so I'm going to try and go back out.

We then went over to Sambuca for a drink where the talented Carol Fran was singing the blues. She was awesome. I was a little disappointed since the nice waiter who put on my tiara one time when I was there before a Tiara Happy Hour was kind of a dick and put everyone's drinks on my tab. I think I'm still owed like four martinis.

Wednesday, July 13th: The El Orbits were having their monthly show at Sambuca, so I headed back downtown. Since Technology Bytes is on at the same time, the original plan was to go to the Saucer or somewhere else with WiFi, but thanks to an unsecured network, I was actually able to connect from Sambuca's bar, listen to the show with one headphone, The El Orbits, and chat in the IRC channel at the same time, all while having a delicious apple martini. It was quite a bit like heaven.

Quite a bit like heaven, that is, until we left at 9:00 to get some food and I found a parking ticket on my window when I went to go put my laptop up. Since there were cars parked both in front of and behind me, a sign next to my car saying that parking was not permitted from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm (I parked at a little after 7:00), Katie's parked there before, and a cop that we flagged down said he wasn't sure why I got a ticket, I was pretty pissed off.

I really want to fight it, but the fine is only $35 and I'd rather not have to lose vacation time to fight something that small. As Katie said, it's a win-win for the city since they know most people will pay the ticket even if they shouldn't have gotten one because it's easier.

After a bite to eat at St. Pete's Dancing Marlin, we went back to listen to the rest of The El Orbit's show. Man, I've really missed them. Kendall picked up some admirers (I did too, but since they were out of towners and older than I'm really looking for, I pretty much danced when asked to, but didn't pay them much attention).

Kendall wanted to go to another bar after Sambuca closed at midnight, so we went upstairs to The State Bar and talked for a few more hours.

Despite the ticket, the night had still been mostly awesome, but while we were getting ready to leave Kendall, who'd had a lot to drink and always does this when she's a bit inebriated, lifted me up, stumbled on the uneven sidewalk, and fell backwards. She landed on her ass, I fell on my knees, and right onto a sharp sign outside the front door, cutting a huge gash into my arm.

It really hurt, but I didn't cry until we went back upstairs into the bar's bathroom and I saw it in the mirror. It was really bloody, a few inches long, and I started to freak out that it was going to scar.

As of right now, it still really hurts, looks incredibly gross, I have scratches and bruises on my upper arm (and on my knees where I hit the ground), but I don't think it's going to scar, or at least not too badly. It's getting lots of hydrogen peroxide and Neosporene applied, so I'm hoping for the best.

So, that's the last couple of weeks around here. Most of those night ended with me not getting home until well after 3:00 or 4:00, so is it any wonder I took tonight easy?

Natalie's birthday is being celebrated Sunday, so even if I do nothing tomorrow, I'll still be out and about. Sat and I also talked about seeing the Peter and James Duo Monday at The Continental Club and trivia is Tuesday, so looks like my wild life is never done. What I wouldn't give to own a nice little condo downtown or in midtown so I could shave at least an hour of driving off each night. Curse living in the sticks!

.: 1582 words at 11:46 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Gah! I just got the mail and I have another bill in there from that stupid kidney stone procedure that I had in April, this one to to the tune of $162.

I wish when you had a procedure like this done they'd give you some kind of clue how many other people are going to need money in addition to the $2,800 I had to give them the day of the surgery. At this point, we're rapidly approaching $4,000 and it's anybody's guess if another bill or two or three are going to show up.

God, I hate insurance companies.

.: 101 words at 02:02 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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Since last Friday, I have been out five nights where I haven't made it home before 3:00 in the morning. It's only 9:00 pm, but I am going to bed right now. Man, I'm beat.

.: 35 words at 09:10 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I swear, my life has been non-stop since getting a rental car last Thursday, which is a good thing since last week I totally lost my shit after being stuck in the house with no car.

Thursday I got my not-so-fabulous rental car - a red Dodge Neon. It has like no acceleration and I'm afraid it's going to get me killed driving on the freeway. It is kind of fun, though, to listen to a song with heavy bass because it totally makes the sideview mirrors shake, almost like a Tyrannosaurus rex is approaching, though I suppose it could have been the power trying to come back on.

The silly thing about the Neon is that I'm actually a little afraid of driving it. I realized the other day that I haven't had a car with a backseat since either 1993 or 1994 (my last three cars have been two-seaters; two were convertibles and the other had t-tops), so it just seems huge. I'm such a weirdo.

Anyway, as soon as I got the rental, I headed to Wal-Mart to get some shopping done since I needed Diet Cherry Cokes and some postcards to send to Flickr. I made out like a bandit there since I got four twelve packs of Coke, two pairs of boxer shorts (which is work clothing for me since I work from home), two pairs of shoes, some jeans, a purse, shampoo, conditioner, and some groceries for $100.

My parents, my brother, my aunt, and I usually go eat dinner somewhere about once a week and Friday my dad told me I could pick the restaurant since I usually don't get to which really made me happy. I chose Pei Wei since I hadn't been there in a very long time. Food was delicious and we all stuffed ourselves. Mmmmm. Mongolian beef.

After hanging out at Russell's apartment for a little bit, we went home and I was contemplating slipping into a food coma when my phone rang. It was my friend Johanna asking me if I'd left yet. I had no idea what she was talking about until she pointed out that the show at The Continental Club that I thought was the next day was actually starting. Ooops. I quickly touched up my make-up, threw on some clothes, and ran out the door, arriving at The Continental Club at exactly the same time as Johanna.

The first band was Two Hoots and a Holler, a mostly rockabilly group who also play some mean cover songs. Their guitarist was so incredible and they had a really hot girl on drums who fucking rocked. I was a percussionist in high school and one of only three girls to march a drum in four years at both my high school and the sister school across the way, so I'm always pleased to see a girl on drums. I liked them so much I bought one of their CDs and would definitely recommend catching them live if you get a chance.

Next up was Guy Forsyth, which is actually the reason that Marc, Irfan, Rod, Michelle, Johanna, a few other people, and I went to the club to begin with. Guy is Irfan's total hero/boy crush and he's a huge groupie, so an opportunity to see Guy is never missed.

Guy was really good, but after about two hours of him on top of the other band, I was ready to give my ears a break and get out of there. I was also starving, so Marc and I took off for an early morning breakfast at Katz's where I got my usual of French Fries and French toast. I know it sounds weird, but trust me, it's delicious.

By the time we got done eating and I got back to my side of town (Oh, how I hate living in the suburbs!), it was about 3:45, making it close to 5:00 in the morning before I even got the bed.

The next day I worked for a few hours and then headed out to the Heights to meet Irfan and Marc at someone's house for a pre-Pride Parade party. Jess was there too, so I got to see her briefly before heading over to the parade.

This was my first Pride Parade and I loved every minute of it. It's probably cheesy, but I was so proud of everyone that marched or even came out. I hate how this country is becoming more and more dominated by the conservatives and religious right and to stand up and be proud of who you are is wonderful. I clapped and cheered for each person that walked past me, taking pictures the whole time.

I don't have any of them up at Flickr yet except for this one, which seems to sum up everything the parade was about. I can never understand why people get so upset if someone's gay. There's not enough love in the world as it is, so why deny it when two people are lucky enough to find each other?

After the parade, we all went to JR's Bar & Grill for a drink and to get out of the heat. It's hard to believe, but that was my first time in a gay bar. How have I never been in a gay bar before? Melissa and I loved it, not least of all because of the fabulous apple martinis, so hopefully we'll be back there soon.

Next on the list was drinking and dart playing at Dog House Tavern. When we got there, it was dead, but soon some very drunk/high people including, apparently, a pro bowler (WTF? That's what they said the one guy was, but surely that couldn't have been right) showed up to liven the place up.

I swear, if I was a lesbian, I would never want for a date since no less than four girls came over to hang out with me, all of them proclaiming that I was hot. This doesn't even include the incredibly sexy girl at the parade that wanted to give me her number. I guess if I'm ever in need of an ego boost, Westheimer is the place to go.

When the place shut down, I was starving, so Marc, Irfan, Josh, Melissa, and I went to Late Night Pie for some pizza. Man, it was good. It's not as good as Frank's or Romano's in my opinion, but neither of them are open at 3:00 am either. After dinner, a quick stop at the store, and the drive home, it was a little after 4:30 before I got home.

Is it obvious that I was glad to get out of the house this weekend? ;-)

.: 1129 words at 01:32 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (8) :.

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Last week Mikey asked which is normal: If your second toe is longer than your big toe or vice versa. Turns out that if your second toe is longer, it's a forefoot disorder called Morton's Toe and can lead to foot pain.

I actually had no idea which way my feet were, so I immediately took a look and my second toe is definitely longer, very much so on my left foot. No wonder my damn feet always hurt.

So now I'm curious. Who else has Morton's Toe? Surely I'm not the only strange footed blogger out there.

On a random side note, any time someone says that they have nice feet (I think mine are kind of nice), I always hear this Geena Davis and Michael Keaton exchange from Speechless in my head:

Julia: You have nice feet.
Kevin: Well, you know. I work out.

Thinking of that always cracks me up.

.: 153 words at 11:08 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (12) :.

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About a month ago, a contact on Flickr by the screen name of luvforboobies (classy, no?), using usaforever@hotmail.com as their e-mail address, sent me a some Flickr mail about how he thought my boobs were beautiful and we should talk.

I mailed him back saying I don't use Flickr to try and pick up people that want to talk about my boobs, so thanks, but no thanks. He kept mailing me saying that he had a big cock (yeah, right) and finally I sent him mail to please stop contacting me. He did, until yesterday when he poppped back up asking me to post more "boobie" pictures.

I told him again to leave me alone and then got "i will if you send me one boobie pic. just one hun. Do this boobie loving guy a favor; btk7@hotmail.com" I finally told him to fuck off which got me, "nope, I won't... i wanna lick your boobies."

That was the final straw, so I reported him to Flickr for sexual harassment and told him I had done so and was probably going to contact Hotmail as well. His reply to that? "i dont give a fuck bitch. I like big boobs and you got em... so send some pics and cut the shit."

What the hell is wrong with this guy? What makes him think that he's entitled to half-naked pictures of me? Maybe I should never have replied back in the first place, but I assumed, foolishly I guess, that if I told someone to leave me alone that they would. I absolutely love Flickr and it sucks that every time I get new mail there my first thought is to wonder if it's more shit from that asshole. Maybe I'm making a bigger deal out of it than I should be, but I find it abusing and upsetting to repeatedly get mail from this creep.

Like I said, I've reported him to Flickr, but does anyone know if there's a way to block someone from sending you mail in the meantime? I shouldn't have to take that from him.

.: 351 words at 01:40 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (12) :.

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And I can drive it all night long now. Thanks to my fantastic insurance company, I now have a rental car (one day shy of the three week mark of my accident) and I can once again resume having a life. Yeah!

Allstate, my insurance company, should also be sending out an adjustor to take a look at my car and getting the details of the accident in the next few days. The nice guy who filed my claim said if the other driver (or "lying fuck" as I like to refer to him) got a ticket, then they should be able to go after his insurance company. I hope so. I don't want to pay the damn deductible, especially after getting a bill for $177 more from that kidney stone procedure I had in done April.

So, the good news is that I have a car again, even if it is a rental and not my cute little Miata. I hope the adjustor doesn't find a lot wrong with her! I don't want to be without my car for too much longer.

.: 183 words at 11:21 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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The goddamn insurance company for that lying fuck of a dump truck driver just denied my claim. The guy got a motherfucking ticket! How much clearer can it be that he was at fault?

Almost three fucking weeks, I still don't have a car, and now this. So much for justice.

.: 52 words at 01:05 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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Is it wrong of me to watch old Monty Python movies and think John Cleese is hot?

.: 17 words at 09:03 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (12) :.

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I didn't know it, but the article that The Houston Chronicle wrote about me came out on Thursday, so if you still have your paper from then, look in the "This Week" section.

If you already tossed it, though you can read the article here.

Kind of cool, huh?

.: 50 words at 06:50 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (8) :.

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When I connected to the Flying Saucer's WiFi downtown Friday night, several other networks were detected. My favorite was STOP Stealing My Internet. Of course, if you don't want your connection used, seems to me like you'd at least secure your network.

My friend Jon got on it and left him text files that said You'll never shut down the real Napster.

.: 63 words at 09:32 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (3) :.

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About an hour after posting yesterday that I was heading out to meet Katie, I was on the road. I had just passed Greenspoint and was nearing West Road when the traffic slowed to a crawl. I was thinking, "Shit. This is totally going to make me late to meet Katie. Wonder if I should call her..." when I felt something hit the side of the car. I looked out the window and saw that a big dump truck had decided to change lanes and, not seeing my car (I drive a Miata), had just hit me.

I started to get over so that I could pull off onto the shoulder. I get over and notice that while the truck has done the same thing, he's not actually stopped, but is still moving forward slowly. I figured he was just moving up enough to give me room, but the further he drove up, the less likely he seemed to actually be stopping. I start to panic, look for a license plate on the back, realize he doesn't have one, and start running after him.

I'm now in between his truck and the wall of the HOV lane, so I start banging on his door. He's still not stopping, so I start yelling things like, "Open the door, motherfucker! You just hit my car! Stop the fucking truck! Hey, stop!" All this time, I've been on the phone with my mom since I grabbed it off the dash, speed dialed her, and told her I just got hit as soon as it happened.

The truck finally stops and this old Hispanic man opens the door. I'm all like, "You just hit my car," to which he responds something like, "No. Me no. Pequeno? (Little in Spanish)" He kept asking pequeno or mas (big), but I told him it didn't matter, he'd just hit me. Turns out he spoke pretty much no English which certainly added even more frustration to an already awful event.

Since he didn't look like he was going to take off, I started back to my car to get my insurance card and driver's license. Suddenly, a green Mustang started to pull in between us. Turns out that my friend Kendall was driving by and saw me so she pulled over to help. I give her the phone and have her call 911 and go take a look at my car.

A truck full of the coworkers of the guy who had hit me also had stopped. Since they didn't speak English very well either, they gave me a cell phone so I could talk to their boss who kept trying to tell me that it wasn't necessary to call the police, he would cover all my damages, yadda yadda yadda. There was no way, though, I was just going to take his word and drive off since I could call him the next day and get, "Kymberlie who?" I was not going to get screwed since none of this was my fault.

At first, it the damage looked pretty minor (gash in the back driver's side tire, damage to the section around the wheel, scraps on the hubcab), but after my parents arrived (they left as soon as I called them), we started looking at the car from the back and noticed that the wheels seemed to be leaning in from the top. The wrecker driver that later towed my car said it looked like when the truck caught my car, it pulled either the suspension or the axle.

Apparently everyone must drive past this section of I-45 around 7:00 on Fridays since, in addition to Kendall, Elaine and Joanna, my brother's girlfriend, drove past and called (or had Russell call) to see if I was alright.

After about an hour, a state trooper (Trooper Cash; I wanted to ask him if his first name was Johnny, but I refrained) arrived. It looked like we'd be able to at least get the car off the freeway so our little caravan (my car, my parents, Kendall, the dump truck, and his truckful of co-workers that had also stopped) moved to the Taqueria Arandas.

Trooper Cash took our statements and then started looking at the damage to the cars. He kept saying there was no tire residue from the truck to my car which puzzled me; I couldn't figure out what that had to do with anything. He did, however, find some white residue, though he was unsure where it came from.

After a little while he came over and said that while he could tell that there was damage done to the cars, he couldn't make a detemination on who had hit who. I start freaking out because I *know* I'm not at fault. Hell, I'd see a dump truck if I tried to get over but he wouldn't necessarily see me if he tried to and I always check my blind spots.

All this time, Kendall had been looking over the wheels of the truck, trying to find some evidence of what had happened. We'd found a part of the center of the wheel at the front of the truck that had what appeared to be a new scrape (it was shiny while everything else was rusted looking), but it was hard to tie to my car. Suddenly, Kendall holds up a shred of silver plastic that was embedded in one of the lugnuts. Turns out that it was a small piece of my car.

We took it to Trooper Cash who looked back over the tire and my car, and then he went back to talk to the driver of the truck again. I wasn't aware of this, but the truck's driver had told him that we were actually in the same lane, with me behind him. He said that I got over into the next lane, saw a car coming, and swerved back into the lane, clipping his truck.

If he would have told me this at the beginning, I think I could have saved us all some time since I don't think it would be physically possible for this to happen. If I would have hit him, I would have hit him with either the front of my car or the entire side. When you turn the wheel, the front of the car turns first, so there's no way for only my back to have hit him if I would have been behind him.

Anyway, Trooper Cash comes back over to us and tells me that the other driver is receiving a citation for an unlawful lane change since his story doesn't fit the evidence. I asked if that meant he was at fault to which he replied, "I don't assign blame, ma'am, that's for the courts to decide. However, he is getting a citation and you are not."

Thanks to Kendall turning into a CSI (Trooper Cash even told her she should be a police officer), everything looks like it's going to turn out okay. I did call the guy's insurance company today and only got an answering machine telling me to call back during normal business hours, so I'm a little freaked by that. Please don't let them be some fly-by-night cheap ass rinky dink company.

Kendall dropped me off downtown, so I was able to make it to the Geek Gathering, though it only lasted about a half hour or so longer (damn it!). Katie, Chris, Jon, and I went over to the Flying Saucer which was more crowded than I'd ever seen thanks to some pub crawl. Eventually Sat showed up as well and even let me talk him into driving me back home to Spring. Thanks, Sat!

I was so hyped up on adrenaline yesterday that I just felt plain exhausted today. I was supposed to go to bingo night at a bar with a bunch of friends and shopping with Katie, but since I didn't have a car, I couldn't make it. A weekend with stuff to do and no car totally sucks.

Cross your fingers that when I call that company on Monday everything works out. At least I work from home so I won't be totally screwed if I can't get a rental car right away, but I definitely don't want this thing to drag out.

.: 1392 words at 10:26 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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Today is the first Friday of the month, so that means that tonight is the monthly Technology Bytes Geek Gathering at Kaveh Kane's downtown around 7:30. Jay is back from Europe, so I'm sure we'll be entertained with stories of his trek cross the continent.

I'm meeting Katie at her place and Jess is supposed to meet us there. It's rumored that Elanie and Sat may be joining us later at the Flying Saucer, so it's almost like a little mini blogger meet up.

If you're free tonight and want to join us, drop me a line and I'll get you any information you need.

Happy Friday, y'all!

.: 108 words at 05:14 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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The title reflects how our stupid RoadRunner connection has been for the last ten days or so, culminating in being able to get on for only brief moments yesterday.

The stupid connection even turned me into a page from my old psychology (yeah, that's what my degree is in) text book. You know the experiment where the rats hit the bar for a food pellet? You know how the one rat stops hitting the bar if it doesn't give him a pellet but the other one goes on hitting the bar until he drops dead if you reward him randomly? Substitute "other rat" with "Kymberlie" and "drops dead" with "3:00 am" and you have my evening last night.

Once I dragged my tired ass out of bed this morning, I found the connection completely dead (no even trying to fool me with a random reward) which means that I had to crawl around under desks and look for a phone line so I could get on dial up. Let me repeat that - a freaking dial up.

With my slow ass Internet connection, the day kind of sucked. For whatever reason RoadRunner has decided to work again, so that makes me happy. However, I am still tired from playing the rat, so I am soon off to bed. Good night, everyone!

.: 221 words at 11:09 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (1) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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For the last few days I have been on a movie kick. Since Friday I have watched (and I've seen almost all of these before):

* Phantom of the Opera (Loved it, by the way)
* Maverick
* Keeping the Faith
* The Fifth Element
* Se7en
* Notting Hill
* Survivor: Second Season, Disc 2
* Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Skydivers, The Creeping Terror, and Bloodlust!

Honestly, if I would have had more movies from Netflix (damn their no shipping on Saturday policy), I would have watched even more. Movie madness, I tell you.

.: 96 words at 10:51 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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I got the weirdest comment the other day. It was in French and said, "Allez tous chiez chez bourdons mersie de lire mon message."

Thanks to Babel Fish, I found out that it means, "Go all shit in bumblebees mersy (thanks?) of reading my message."

Bizarre, no?

.: 47 words at 09:12 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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There was an e-mail today in the Houston Metblog's list saying that a reporter from the Houston Chronicle was looking for people on the northwest side of town to talk to.

I e-mailed Kim (another Kimberly; we've been all over the place lately) and she immediately asked for my number. She called and basically I'm going to be in the paper, along with two other bloggers (probably) for a piece about blogging, why's it popular, what's my blog about, yadda yadda yadda.

They are even sending over a reporter tomorrow (have got to get my office cleaned before then) to take some pictures. My mom told me I should get dressed up, but honestly, I wasn't going to. I figured it's a story about normal, kind of geeky bloggers, so I'd just wear jeans and a t-shirt (maybe even my favorite TWoP one).

So, what do you think? Dress up or don't dress up? How I wish I had one of those "I'm blogging this" shirts so I could be *really* geeky.

.: 172 words at 01:53 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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Wow. What a weekend this turned out to be. I think I need another weekend to recover from it.

Saturday I woke up around 9:00 so I could get dressed, pack an overnight bag, and meet Katie at her house so we could go to Dianne's (a friend of Irfan's).

Dianne lives really close to Taft and Allen Parkway, which is where the annual Art Car Parade is held, so we got there early for a little pre-parade party. There were some snacks (including the best chocolate chip cookies ever) and also libations like jello shots, sangria, and kamikazes. While there we met a bunch of new people including the lovely Jessica, a blogger that moved into Irfan's complex about a month ago.

Since Katie couldn't stay for the whole parade, we left early so we could walk amongst the cars. This was my first Art Car Parade, so I didn't really know what to expect. I was elated when the first car I saw as we got to Taft was this lovely Miata.

If you didn't know it, I drive a Miata and that is exactly the shade of blue that I want mine to be. In addition, it's covered in fish, making it my new dream car.

I didn't know it, but The El Oribts were also there performing, so I totally got to see my pretend boyfriend David Beebe.

There were almost 280 cars in the parade, giving you so much to look at and take in. There were little cars and big cars. There were cars that made me long to be a kid again and cars that reminded me that I'm not. There were geeky cars and artsy cars. In all, I took almost 130 pictures, which I put into a set so you can see all the different cars too. Eventually I'll even get around to adding descriptions.

After the parade, it was over to Irfan's and Jessica's complex for drinking, dining, and relaxing at the pool. While there I found out that one of the guys was a senior the year I was a freshman at Spring High. To make it even more like a high school reunion, Matt Clegg, a trumpet player that was two years behind me, was at the pool and also lived in the complex. Small world.

I had invited Sat to join us and he brought along Jon, making it five bloggers at one party. Yeah for a blogger mini meetup!

After much chilling around the pool, Marc took me, Irfan, Sat, Paul, and Jenny to The Ginger Man so we could hear Irfan's friend (I swear, Irfan knows *everyone*) Renee's band, The Lost Boys.

The Lost Boys are an 80s cover band and they fucking rock; just look at how much fun everyone is having. I can still hear Renee singing "Goodbye To You." She's got the most gorgeous voice. They're playing Thursday at Vito's, so if you're a fan of the 80s, you ought to try and make it out.

After they finished, it was back to Irfan's to get my car and then I finally got to go home. Of course, after all that walking and partying, I was beat. Hell, my feet are still killing me.

As Katie says, Art Car day is the best day of the year; I know I certainly had a blast.

.: 573 words at 09:19 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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It's been a little over a week since I poseted last (where does the time go?), so here's a long rambling post on various stuff.

* First of all, I'm a panelist on Mikey's version of the Match Game, so go over there and see how many of my answers you can match.

* Been feeling much better since my lithotripsy. Saw my urologist (hee!) last week and he said the stone broke up nicely, but there's still a few pieces that fell back into my kidneys. He said we should zap them again, but I said not if it was going to cost me another $3,000. It looks like my new insurance with Six Apart is much better than the crappy stuff I have through COBRA, so it may only cost me a couple of hundred dollars with them. I need to find out if this is considered pre-existing soon.

* Got my findings from the chiropractor today (six week check-up). I've improved dramatically in all of the tests that they did (big clue being now I can stand upright, which I totally couldn't do when I first went there). I've still got some issues with my shoulders (not surprising since they hurt all the time, just about), but he thinks they'll be able to fix them up. We also looked at my x-rays and it always freaks me out a little bit to see my bones like that, especially my skull. Weird.

* Went to Sambuca last night to hear Norma Zenteno (she rocks) with Irfan, Jenn, Seth, and Marc. Lots of fun, though Norma didn't sing as much as I thought she would. Met her sister-in-law in the bathroom, though. I'm hoping that Jenn and I can make this a twice a month thing.

* Finally got to see Battle Royale and I loved it. That film totally rocked. See it if you get a chance.

* I also saw The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy a few weeks back and while I thought it was good, I didn't love it like I was hoping I would. I thought the casting was excellent (especially Sam Rockwell), but I found how they did Zaphod's extra head very weird and the whole addition of John Malkovich's character distracted me because I kept thinking, "That's so not in the book." Plus all the little asides that make the book so funny didn't make it in. I need to find my copy and reread it.

* The Houston Chronicle made the move to Movable Type for their blogs. Good choice, Dwight! :)

* The Art Car Parade is tomorrow. Katie and I are going down there together and then she's headed to Galveston with her family and I'm headed to a party with Irfan. Should be lots of fun.

* Woo hoo! It's Friday, and a Friday the Thirteenth at that! Yeah for the weekend!

I'm sure there's other stuff that I've been meaning to blog about, but I'm tired (getting to bed around 2:00 and then waking up at 3:30 for a while will do that to you), so I'm going to go relax in the big chair and watch Without a Trace. I am still totally in love with Anthony LaPaglia.

.: 546 words at 06:06 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (3) :.

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Dude, has anybody else noticed all the new silver jewelry over at Silver Jewelry Club? I'm totally digging a lot of it, especially the dangle earrings, and if I see them in anything besides citrine, I'm totally snapping up a pair.

The Friday before I ended up in the emergency room, I got all my jewelry and it's pretty nice. Two of my pendants are pretty similar, but I guess that just shows that at least my tastes are consistent.

Regardless, for $5.99, their jewelry is simply a steal. You should definitely check them out if you haven't already.

.: 100 words at 08:03 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Ever have one of those days where you're really glad that it's over and it's Friday? Yeah, me neither.

Also, today is the opening day of The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy and several of the Technology Bytes listeners, including Katie, Sat, and I, are going. The show's at The Angelika at 9:50 with dinner at Jenni's Noodles before hand.

Hope to see you there!

.: 67 words at 06:35 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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I'm back home from the doctor. The stone was zapped and it's passing, so that's good.

What's not good is that the fucking procedure was $2,800 out of pocket (and that's the "discounted" rate for my insurance). The nurse who scheduled it didn't even tell me this or warn me that I had to pay up front, so I was lucky I had a credit card that would even take a charge of that magnitude on it with me.

Needless to say, I didn't expect it to be this much and once you throw in the ER vistit, presciptions, COBRA for another month, and doctor visits, I'm guessing that the final cost will be around $3,500. It kills me since I just finished paying off another $4,000 in fucking hospital bills.

I'm still really upset, so I'm going to go ahead and stop now. I'm glad I'm healthy and that things are okay, but I'm still really upset about the cost. Healthcare is so fucking outrageous.

.: 175 words at 01:53 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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I should have posted this a yesterday, but here's the rundown of my last run in with kidney stones and an update on the computer problems I've been having.

Saturday I woke up around 10:30 with the worst stomach cramps. I'd gone to Elaine's for dinner the night before and had sausage and mushrooms, so I thought that maybe something didn't agree with me.

Pretty soon, though, I started throwing up. (This is probably all TMI, I'm sure.) There wasn't anything in my stomach, though, so all I was throwing up was bile.

If you've ever thrown up on an empty stomach, you know how much it hurts to do that. My mom finally had me take a Vicodin and I was able to lay down and get a little bit of sleep. After only about thirty minutes, I was was up again and vomiting.

When I woke up, it felt like the pain wasn't located on my left side in front, but lower on my back. I had thought it might be kidney stones when I first woke up, but since the pain was more in the front, I was hoping it was just stomach cramps. The pain moving to the side, though, pretty much cinched it for me that it was indeed kidney stones.

I called my 24 hour nursing hotline that United Healthcare provides and basically, they told me call my doctor and, if they hadn't called back in two hours, to go to the emergency room. I told her I didn't think I could wait two hours, but I would call my doctor anyway. Called his office, heard "If this is a medical emergency, please go to your nearest ER.." and hollered at my mom that it was time to take my puking ass to the hospital.

We got to the ER at about 1:40, I signed in, and then proceeded to lay, curled up in a little ball, across one of the benches. About twenty minutes later, the triage nurse called me up. She took some vitals, I puked into one of these handy little plastic funnel things they use instead of bedpans, and then got to go back to the waiting room.

Unfortunately, someone was sitting on my bench (the only one in the ER). Sitting up was far too painful, but a nice man taking pity on my shuffling, wan figure, informed me that there were more benches back by the restrooms. Turns out that there were two benches and a few seats, but no one but me was over there so I took the opportunity to lay on my stomach on the bench (uncomfortable, but better than laying on my back right on the stone), take my shoes off, and just not move, which is the only way to deal with a kidney stone.

It seemed like forever, but after about an hour, I was called back for a bed. Tina, the nurse, was so sweet. She took one look at me (pale, hunched over, shoes in my mother's purse), put her arm around my shoulder, and announced, "Pumpkin! You look terrible! Let's get you into a bed and get you some pain medicine."

Eventually, after a some more tests, including a CAT scan, I was hooked up to an IV, given some fluids (you get so terribly dehydrated throwing up for that many hours), and then some morphine. I pretty much passed out immediately.

Tests confirmed that not only did I have a kidney stone, I apparently have like one of the biggest ones seen in the ER. Most kidney stones are a few milimeters in diameter, small enough that you can pass. Mine is a freaking centimeter which is too big for me to pass on my own. Tina said that they called the lab to make sure that it actually said cm not mm since they never see them that size. Lucky me!

I remember waking up at one point and being very hungry (I hadn't eaten since dinner the night before and it was already after 4:00 in the afternoon). Tina brought me a sandwich, so I took some small pieces of ham out of it to eat. Even though I was hungry, apparently I was more tired than hungry because I kept falling asleep in the middle of chewing! I would wake up and find that I still had ham in my mouth!

I guess about five hours later they admitted me upstairs (looking back I can't believe I was out of it for that long. Good thing my mom brought a book to read!). They thought they were going to have to put in either a catheter or a stent (stint?), but ended up doing neither.

Despite the bed being the most comfortable I'd ever slept in (or maybe I was just exhausted), I ended up needing both morphine and Ambien to make it through the night. The next morning they released me and I went home, Vicodin perscription in hand.

The pain's been okay since then. I take a Vicodin when my back starts to really ache, though that usually ends up making me feel sick to my stomach. Tomorrow, though, it should all be over.

At 10:30, I'm having lithotripsy, which is the procedure where they use sound waves to break up the stones. I'm not really worried about it since I will be given "twilight" anestesia, and will be mostly out of it.

I'm annoyed, though, that this happened now. If it would have happened next week, I would be covered under Six Apart's insurance. As it is, I'm going to have to extend my COBRA for another month just to make sure that nothing is considered a pre-existing condition. I was freaking out at first about the cost, but I'm thinking that this won't end up being near as expensive as I had feared, especially since I was only in the hospital one night. I will be very grateful if I can get out of this for under $1,000 and have all my stones broken up so I don't have another attack again (it's only been eleven months since the last one).

As for the computer problems, I had installed the latest version of AdAware SE which found about 187 problems. Unfortnately, something that it removed had embedded itself deeply into the start up profile so that when I tried to login, all I got was a brief flash of the desktop, and then I was logged back out again. Safe mode wouldn't work, last known good config wouldn't work, and I was starting to freak out.

Luckily, my mom is a wiz at computer stuff and she's managed to restore Windows without damaging any of my data (at least, it appears that way). Of course, with this occurring right now when I'm sick, I'm sure it will be a few days before I can get everything back to how it was.

So, that's what's been happening with me. I'm off to shower soon, take a Vicodin, and then go to bed since I have to be at the hospital at 8:30 for my procedure. From everything I can tell, it should be a fairly simple and not very painful process, but feel free to send good thoughts my direction anyway.

Thanks to all of those that have left notes and sent e-mails; I really appreciate it. Special thanks to Katie, my other spouse, who sent me roses to help ease my pain. It really made my day to get an unexpected flower delivery!

I'll try and post tomorrow to let everyone know how things went.

.: 1276 words at 10:13 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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You know what's worse than having kidney stones (surgery's Wednesday, btw)? Having kidney stones and having your stupid computer go completely berserk so you can't even login and have to use your mother's computer instead.

I was so looking forward to having thousands of dollars in medical bills again. Possibly needing to buy a new computer really makes that even better.

Fuck.

.: 62 words at 09:45 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (7) :.

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Christine blogging for Kymberlie here - she is in the hospital again for kidney stones. It might be a leftover stone from last summer at my wedding when she had three, since this one is reportedly really HUGE. They will be doing the surgery to blast it away, but no word yet on when. It might be tonight or tomorrow, and I'm not sure if they will be keeping her afterwards.

Send her some positive thoughts, she could really use them right now!

.: 83 words at 08:55 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (17) :.

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Late last November, I had blogged that, after a long period of unemployment, it was looking like I was finally going to get a job.

At the time, I was interviewing with a company located further away than I really wanted to drive (for those of you familiar with Houston, I live in Spring and the job was at Bellaire and the Beltway), doing pretty basic web stuff - things that I had done when I first got into web development. The company seemed kind of cool, though, and there seemed to be room to grow, so I was interested.

Then, the most incredible thing happened. I got an e-mail from Brenna asking me to join the Movable Type Support Team. Not only did they want me to work on blogs (Getting paid to work on blogs! It's like a geek's dream come true!), I would get to do it from home.

Since I've been contract and not an official member, I haven't blogged about working for Six Apart, but today I got my offer letter and I am officially the newest Six Apart employee!

I've been really excited, learning a lot, and even making the customer's extremely happy. For a geek like me (especially one that always wants to be geekier), this has been pretty close to the perfect job.

I feel extremely lucky to have found this job and want to thank Kristine for suggesting me, Brenna for being an awesome boss, and especially Shelley for taking me under her wing and teaching me so much. You are all awesome, incredily talented women and it's truly a privilege to be working with y'all and with Six Apart.

.: 283 words at 06:12 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (1) :: All the Voices Say... (8) :.

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I haven't posted much around here lately except for quick posts, so here's one of those massive, rambling posts that I'm so prone to do.

Last Friday was Mike's birthday party, a little get together and his and Christine's house. In attendance were Emily, KW, Elaine, Kenny, Edge, Sherry, Lawrence, Jelly (Edge and Sherry's daughter), Chelsey, and Brian.

Even though we were celebrating Mike's birthday, he and Christine had some gifts left over from both Christmas and my birthday, so I got presents too.

Among the swag (which included a beautiful Old World Christmas fish ornament and a handmade pair of earrings) was a bottle of Del Sol nail polish in Shooting Star. The funny thing is, Mac had just blogged about the same polish, so I was planning on buying some, including Shooting Star, and it was already in my cart.

Let me tell you, this polish is now my new favorite thing. I was amazed at how quickly it changes color and how radically different it looks. I frequently walk outside just to watch my nails change (I know; I'm a dork). One of my trips outside included me taking my cameraphone along, so you can see a before picture and an after picture. Forgive the poor quality. I am incapable of taking a non-blurry cameraphone picture with one hand.

I became the official bartender of the evening since I had brought over a large bottle of vodka and both apple and raspberry infusions to make my famous Blue Sour Raspberry Apple martinis.

Somehow we ended up talking about the copy of Trivial Pursuit Pop Culture DVD Game that Christine and I had bought at Wal-Mart one time, which commenced the drunking boasting of trivia prowess. We split into two teams - boys vs. girls - and got down to it.

Around 3:00 am, after going back and forth on getting to the middle and missing the final question, a sudden death question was proposed. The girls got a hard one (though I can't remember what it was) and the boys got the easiest question ever: Which civilian convinced Hummer to start selling their products commercially? (Arnold Schwarzenegger. Duh.) Technically, they won the game, but I'm not counting it since it was not a full game. I do believe that I also answered the most questions individually, so I am not relinquishing my title of Fount of Useless Information.

The next night it was down to midtown for drinks and dancing with girlfriends. Lots of fun, but my knees are still hurting since, when I'm drunk, I think I can dance like a crazy woman (or possibly a stripper) and do that thing where you lower yourself all the way down repeatedly. I must remember that I am now thirty and old and quit doing that shit.

I was reminded yesterday that I am indeed old by my chiropractor's assistant. She's in high school and her prom is today. I asked her if she was going to Project Prom (they lock you in the high school and have lots of fun, games, and food to keep kids from getting drunk and/or impregnating each other) and she said that it wasn't at the school, but at some place in Conroe, so her and her friends were doing something else. I mentioned that my Project Prom was one of the first (I think it was the third one) and she was all like, "Wow? Really."

Damn, I'm old. No wonder I have to see a chiropractor. At least I got a wonderful little mini deep tissue massage on my neck and shoulder muscles. Soooooo worth the $20 co-pay.

I've got other shit to ramble on about, but since it's already 4:00 am, I guess I'll end this now and continue later. Night, all!

.: 638 words at 03:56 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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We all know that I am all about the free. Hell, I even changed my search engine so I could win prizes (and thanks to the people that have signed up! I know that two of you have won stuff already!).

My newest free find (thanks to Christine) is SilverJewelryClub.com.

Every fifteen minutes, SilverJewelryClub.com puts up a new, sterling silver and gemstone piece. I've seen earrings, necklaces, and rings with all sorts of gems including amethyst, citrine, blue topaz, and garnet. The pieces are free, with a $5.99 shipping charge.

Christine had said that she got a ring she ordered within just a few days, so it seems to be a pretty good, legitimate deal. I've ordered a pair of earrings and a necklace myself, so I should know how they are soon.

Just wanted to pass along the good deal, especially if you're a jewelry lover like me.

.: 152 words at 09:03 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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I was thumbing through the mail this afternoon, innocently enough, only to be frightened by this evil, leering tree that popped out at me.

The ad said that the Tree Face "livens up your yard," but if the trees in my yard ever came to life looking like that, I would move quickly before they could steal my soul.

Why would you put something like that in your yard? So very, very creepy.

.: 73 words at 10:16 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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Last February I went out with this guy a couple of times. We had instant chemistry, I felt very comfortable with him right away, and we had tons in common.

We had a few really great dates, he called me the day after the last one, and we set a time later in the week to go out again. Unfortunately, he'd been feeling sick (and I think he really was;his coughs sounded both liquidy and like his lung was about to explode from his chest), so the last date never happened.

I called him a few times that next week, but he never called me back. I was hurt and puzzled over the whole thing, but that's life in the dating world, right?

Yesterday I was talking to my mom about dating (I don't even remember how it came up) and I mentioned that the only one that I really regret things not working out with was with that guy (we'll call him Mr. X). In all honesty, I liked him and was attracted to him more than any guy that I've seen in longer than I can remember.

Today I was reading my mail and got an e-mail from Match.com (yes, I'm a member) saying I had two winks. The first one was from Mr. X.

WTF? While we met on a different dating site, my profiles are exactly the same and use the same pictures. He never had my e-mail, he doesn't appear to be a member of the site we met on anymore, and I've changed my phone number since we met.

Is this some weird way of seeing if I'll contact him back? Could he have totally forgotten that we've got out a few times and just thought my profile was cute and winked?

If you were me, what would you do? I did really like him.

.: 311 words at 05:39 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (11) :.

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You know that post I made about wanting a 24/7 post office and then finding one in the local Wal-Mart?

Remember how I said my next wish was to win the lottery? Well, it's not the lottery but I did just win $100 in the Branica.com monthly contest.

I wonder if this means I'll meet the man of my dreams tonight.

.: 62 words at 12:48 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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This evening, I was thinking about how wonderful and how much easier it would make my life if the post office was 24/7. After all, I still need to mail Burn It CDs to all of these people (if your name is on there, feel free to send me your address again) and Marie (I know. They sould have gone out long ago. I suck.) plus I have other stuff I need to get out.

Tomorrow just happens to be both Tiara Happy Hour and the monthly Geek Gathering so I decided I would make a bunch of copies of my Burn It CDs and give them out to whoever wanted them. I'd stopped because I'm pretty sure everyone at the THHs have them all by now, but new people are around, so it's time to pass some more out.

I'd just started printing labels when I ran out of ink, so I quickly took off to the local Wal-Mart (where else can you get ink at 11:00 at night?) to pick some up.

I was standing in line, getting ready to check out and listening to the people in front of me talking to the cashier about how they couldn't believe that the bank inside was open. The cashier remarked that it was 24/7, just like the post office. I interrupted, to make sure I'd heard right, and it turns out that the Wal-Mart near my house does indeed have an always open post office.

Just in case that was one of my wishes coming true by finding a genie or something, for my next wish I'd like to win the lottery and then I'd like to meet a wonderful, handsome boy who falls deeply in love with me and whom I adore.

.: 294 words at 12:32 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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I know that I visited Mac back in October, but I'm just now getting around to putting up my pictures from the trip.

I'm planning on going back up there in either late April or early June, so if you live in the area, keep watching here for dates so you can come meet me; you know you're dying to. ;-)

I also wanted to give a shout-out to A Northern Soul who gifted me with a Flickr Pro account for my birthday. I figured since I have all of that space now, I might as well start getting some pictures up there.

.: 104 words at 08:35 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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Remember how I said that my back had been killing me and I was taking massive pain killers to deal with it? Well, it turns out there's a reason for my back pain. I went to the chiropractor yesterday for an initial consult and x-rays and went back today to see what the good doctor found out.

Turns out that my right hip is out of alignment. It's actually higher (somewhere between a half inch and an inch and a half; can't remember what he said), causing my spine to get a bit of a sideways curve to it and also putting pressue on the nerves in my lower back.

This means that I will be starting chiropractic therapy again. (I saw a chiropractor a few years ago for a loss of curvature in my neck. I mentioned this to my new doctor and he said that it's looking good, so whatever the last doctor did obviously worked.) I'll be getting adjustments for three times a week for three weeks and then twice a week for three weeks (another freaking $250 in doctor's bills, give or take. Will I ever be done with doctors or hospitals?). We'll then re-evaluate and see what needs to be done next.

I also get to wear little lifts in my shoes, which makes me feel like a total dork. Hopefully this will help it stop hurting, though, which is the important thing.

.: 238 words at 07:34 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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For the last three or four days my back has been killing me. It's been painful to stand, impossible to stand up straight, and even hurt when sitting.

I was whining to my mom and she asked me if I had any pain medication left from my last trip to the ER, and while I didn't find my vicodin, I did find some hydrocodone that I'd forgotten about.

I'm thinking that the drugs are kicking in since I'm starting to feel buzzed and my back doesn't hurt any more. Yeah for good drugs!

.: 94 words at 08:45 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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Looks like my birthday season got extended by a few days because I received another present today. Yeah for birthday gifts!

Wendy, a cool chick who just happens to have the same birthday that I do, sent me The Incredibles. My mom and I just finished watching it and it was great. Thanks, so much, Wendy! It's an honor sharing your birthday! :-)

Since we're still talking about my birthday, you can now see a picture of my bling shoes (purchased almost a year and a half ago and forgotten until I found them in the closet while looking for nail polish. I immediately decided that they were the perfect shoes to usher in my thirties with) and me in my bling tiara. Notice the sparkler in my cake. Between it, the shoes, and the tiara, it was a very sparkly evening.

.: 145 words at 11:07 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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So, last night was Kymberlie's Big Three Oh Bash (as I called it for the Evites) and fun was had by all.

I headed over to Katie's and we took off for Farrago, getting there about 7:20. The original plans had called for dinner at 7:00, but it looked like most people were going to be late, so I moved the reservations to 7:30.

When we got there, Kimberly was outside, so we all went in together. We sat and talked for a while and then Kathy and Elaine arrived, bearing gifts. I got handmade cards from both of them (Yeah! My first Kathy card!) and gift certificates from Stampin' Up and Target.

I've always much admired Katie's 2004 SXSW DJ monkey shirt, so I was thrilled when she found one at SXSW this year and got me my very own. Yeah for monkey shirts!

Then my brother, Russell, Joanna, Steve (AKA Boob), Shelby, and Garrett showed up, followed shortly by Christine and Mike, with our friend Kendall arriving later. Russell even brought me a seriously bling tiara from the local Fiesta that matched my bling shoes.

We talked, we ate (and I got the most delicious cake with a sparkler on it; it was so pretty!), we talked some more, and then finally, Katie, Chris, Kendall, Kimberly, Russell, Joanna, Boob, Shelby, Garrett and I headed out to Spotlight Karaoke.

I've always wanted to go to a karaoke bar, but I was never sure if I would actually be able to get up in front of people and sing. I figured, though, that if I can jump out of a plane, I could sing a song in front of a bunch of strangers, especially considering that the music was pretty loud, drowning out the singers a bit.

Katie had said that she would sing the Bee Gee's "How Deep is Your Love?" with me, a song that we've adopted as "our song." True to her word, she got up and sang it with me. I have a feeling that everyone in that place probably thought we were lesbians since I was really too scared, especially at first, to look at the audience and sang it looking at or holding onto Katie. You can hear Katie doing her patented Bee Gee sound here if you're curious about what you missed. After that, we headed home and I slept until very late this afternoon (had to recover from my night of debauchery).

This was really my first birthday party since I was like twelve at the roller rink, but I must say that I think it was a success. Everyone seemed to have a good time; I know I did.

Thanks so much to everyone who sent gifts, left good wishes, and/or came out to the party. I think this bodes well for my thirties!

.: 478 words at 11:33 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (3) :.

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The UPS man just rang the doorbell (well, the bell at the gate, so I could go meet him since our house is like a fortress, but I digress...), making me squeal with delight and run out to meet him.

I got not one, but two boxes from the UPS man, increasing my joy on this momentous birthday.

The first one was from Syd who sent me Donnie Darko - The Director's Cut. She also called me darling on her card, making me all mity-eyed. Thanks, Syd! I can't wait to see you tonight; it's been too long!

The second box was from Cat. She sent me Squee's Wonderful Big Giant Book of Unspeakable Horrors. I've never read Squee before, but it looked right up my alley, so I can't wait to jump in! Thanks so much, Cat!

.: 143 words at 01:19 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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Woo hoo! Today is my thirtieth birthday!

While I'm kind of torn about moving up into a new decade (I'd thought I'd be in a lot different place than I am), I'm still pretty excited. I've met a lot of great new people over the past year or so, made tons of new friends, and got an awesome new job

Tonight's plans involve dinner at Farrago, home of delicious pizzas and pink lemonade martinis, with lots of friends, and then, for something different, we're all heading over to Spotlight Karaoke. I've never been to a karaoke bar before, so it should be interesting, at the very least.

Here's to hoping that thirty treats me right!

.: 116 words at 12:50 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (2) :: All the Voices Say... (25) :.

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I forgot to mention this, but I got an early birthday present from the people at FreeiPodShuffle.com this week - my free iPod shuffle! (Click the picture to go to the larger version on Flickr.)

I promptly named it Mulder and I must say, that I do believe that I'm in love.

When the iPod shuffles first came out, I scoffed. I really couldn't see why anyone would want one. It was too little, it didn't hold enough songs, blah blah blah.

But, now that I have one, I can totally see why you would want to own one of these babies. It's so very cute! It's so very tiny! It totally would fit in my little bitty purse and still give me room for my phone, wallet, and other stuff.

While I wouldn't replace Abe, my 40 GB iPod photo, with a shuffle, it's still nice and a hell of a lot cheaper at only about $150.

.: 159 words at 08:35 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (1) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I managed to get a couple of really great shots lately with my camera phone and uploaded them over to my Flickr account.

This one and this one are my favorites.

And, since it's spring time (just about), I've got more flowers on my toes.

Six hours until my birthday! Eeek!

.: 53 words at 05:42 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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My dream of getting enough people approved so I can get a digital camera (though, now I've changed it to the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-P200 in red. A red camera! How cute is that?) has hit a snag.

Two people I referred for MP3Playsers4Free.com got disqualified, so I still need one more person for the $275 and two more for the $40 iTunes bonus offer.

Despite two different people being disqualified under me at DVRs4Free.com, I still have enough for the $275 offer, but need two more for the bonus $75 and I still need one more for the $150 offer and one more for the bonus offer at DS4Free.com.

My birthday's in two days (Eeek!). Don't you want to sign up and complete an offer for me to show me some birthday love? ;-)

As always, send me your link and I'll add you to the conga. Don't paste your links here, though; I'll delete them.

.: 159 words at 08:14 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Today, a gift from an unknown person (Admirer? Friend? Blogger?) arrived; something very special for my birthday season.

When I went out to check the mail, I noticed a large box (think almost up to my hip) sitting at the gate. As I got closer, I noticed that it said "Perishable" and "Fresh flowers," which caused me to squel in delight. Aside from my stay in the hospital with that pesky pulmonary embolism, I've only had flowers sent to me two other times.

I took it inside and opened it up to find twenty pink tulips, so fresh from the grower that they still had dirt clinging to their stems.

They are absolutely beautiful, but since there was no card inside, I have no idea who they are from. If you sent them, please let me know so I can thank you; they so made my day.

.: 149 words at 10:43 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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Today, I received not one, but two gifts to help me celebrate my birthday season!

The first was yet another gift from Howard. He sent me George Michael's CD single "Amazing." Thanks yet again, Howard! You so rock!

Amber, another March 18th birthday, sent me Top Secret! on DVD which immediately brought back a ton of memories.

When I was in middle school, my best friend Rebecca had the biggest crush on Val Kilmer. We watched Top Secret!, Real Genius, and Top Gun on an endless loop. She had a big, soft stuffed bear that we named Val and, if was lucky, she would let me sleep with him when I spent the night at her house. We were silly kids.

Thanks so much, Amber, for both the present and the fond flashback!

.: 140 words at 02:20 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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For quite some time now, I've been coveting the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-P150, a 7 megapixel digital camera that's small enough to fit in my tiny purse.

As bad as I want it, though, I haven't been able to justify buying one. I have a digital camera already (another Cyber-Shot, the DSC-P71). Plus, I'm going to have to pay taxes and I was out of work for about a year.

However, it looks like I may be able to make this camera mine. I've been patiently waiting and I've finally gotten enough people so that I'm being processed at DVRs4Free.com and MP3Playsers4Free.com for a $275 PayPal payment on each. Provided that no one on my list gets disqualified, I'll actually have enough to get my camera.

I still need to get people for the bonus cash, but I'm closer to getting there. I also just need a few more people for DS4Free.com, so if I can just remain patient, that cute little camera will be in my hot little hands.

Must. Remain. Patient.

.: 174 words at 12:49 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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This week has positively flown by. I've been so busy that just about every day, I've looked at the clock and been shocked at how late in the day it's gotten. It's already Friday, for crying out loud.

Since this is the first Friday of the month, it also happens to be time for the monthly Geek Gathering at Kaveh Kanes. Several people from both the Technology Bytes show and the IRC chat that Katie and I hang out in should be there.

If you don't already have plans, come on out. I'm not sure what I'm doing either before or after the GG, but if you want to meet me for a drink or something, let me know.

.: 119 words at 02:09 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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It's kind of funny that I declared today the start of my Birthday Season (and thanks to everyone that has left a comment already!).

You're probably wondering why that's funny. Well, when I went out to get the mail today, I found a package waiting for me that contained my first birthday present of the year! Hooray!

Howard sent me The Infinite by Douglas Clegg (whom I once got an e-mail from) and the Tiffany Designs Stained Glass Coloring Book. The image for this skin came from a contest that Mena once had using it.

Thank you so much, Howard! You totally rock and you made the beginning of my birthday season very memorable!

.: 116 words at 09:42 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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Over the past year, this blog has really gotten away from the personal tell-all that it always has been. A lot of it had to do with all the crap I went through from the end of September to the beginning of December in 2003. I spilled my guts in here and after the post I made in February about my best friend deciding to have nothing to do with me, most of my posts have been chronicles of the places I go, all the free stuff I've gotten, my obsession with The El Orbits, and various links.

A lot of it is because I've begun to feel very isolated again. Despite going out all the time, I'm so very lonely deep in my heart. I've never really gotten over losing Jeanna, my best friend, and I think I haven't let any get as close to me as I used to after that. Add to the fact that my boyfriend of six years left me just a few months earlier and I swear, as melodramtic and pathetic as it sounds, that I just cannot see why people would even want to be around me.

Realistically, I know it's not true (the fact that Katie, Irfan, and Gil hang out with me constantly and Mac always wants to know when I'm coming back to Philly mean that at least some people enjoy my company), but deep in my heart I've really begun to believe it.

I haven't wanted to post this because things have gotten better. I've got a job that I really like (and, as I got told this week, I'm kicking serious ass at). I've started going out more and even have become a regular down at The Continental Club. I've made new friends. But I'm still lonely. I miss having someone to be close to, like I was with Jeanna.

I watched The Village again this weekend and the scene where Ivy is at her sister's wedding and walking through the crowd with her hand outstrected, trying to find her way, and Lucius takes it, tucking it under her arm so he can lead her, made my heart yearn and ache for that. I want someone to be there to take my hand again.

.: 378 words at 02:39 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (11) :.

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This has been another one of those crazy, busy weeks. I've got stuff I want to blog about (including my upcoming thirtieth birthday), but I have just been swamped.

Last Monday, even though it was Valentine's Day, saw me meeting up with Katie, Chris, and Irfan at The Continental Club for our requiste Monday night with The El Orbits. My brother, Russell, and Joanna even showed up in the limo that he had rented. Of course, he had to bum $20 off me to tip the driver, so I think his stopping by might have been motivated by that. ;)

Despite a late start, The El Orbits rocked, even playing their new favorite, the theme song to The Dukes of Hazard. That then segued into a true Houston classic, the theme song from the old Thunderbolt commercials ("If your transmission's got you down and your motor falls apart..."). It totally rocked.

The next night, I managed to get some free tickets to the Toyota Center to see the Rockets play the Washington Wizards. I took Irfan along with me and we were surprised to find out that his friend Josh and Melissa were going to be there for a late Valentine's Day celebration. We hooked up with them afterwards and went to La Carafe and Twelve Spot for drinks and conversation.

Wednesday Irfan's apartment complex was throwing a soiree at Sambuca and, not only was there free appetizers, The El Orbits were also playing.

We had made plans to meet Gil, Scott, Hollie, Martha, Don, and Pam there and as we were walking up, I thought to myself, "Man, I should have invited my friend Mandy. She would have loved this."

No sooner had I walked through the door when I saw Mandy walking up! She was there with her girlfriends Becky and Annette. As soon as she saw me, she said, "I was just thinking I should have invited you to meet us tonight! Look who's playing!" It was such a cool coincidence.

The party was upstairs, but I actually spent most of the night downstairs on the patio with Mandy, Becky, and Annette. Irfan, Gil, and most of the others also came outside to sit with us, as did this cute guy named Cash. Mandy had had a bit to drink, so when he walked by and smiled back at us, she yelled at him to come join us for a drink and he did. I was very impressed at her cojones.

I also accosted someone from the patio - Jim Henkel of The El Orbits! I've never actually spoken to him before, even though he's really good friends with Jay Lee, a new friend of mine. I'm fairly certain I didn't make too big an ass out of myself, though I did tell him we were car twins (we both drive silver Miatas).

We finally left when the place closed down, but since I'd had a few drinks, Irfan and I went to Katz's Deli for some food so I could sober up for the drive home. I had french toast and french fries (they don't really go together, but it's what I love) and I felt much better.

Thursday was a down day, but it was spent mostly recuperating from being out so late the nights before. Lots of television was watched.

Friday, it was Girl's Night Out with Mandy, Becky, and Annette. I met Mandy and Annette at Mandy's and then we went to Becky's for some pre-party drinks. We ended up swapping brother stories and talking about television shows, past and present.

From there, we walked over to Komodo's Pub. Komodo's is just a house in midtown; it's hard to tell it's a bar. If you drove past it, you would probably think, "Wow. Those people sure know how to throw a hell of a party!"

Lots of alcohol was consumed, a creepy guy that wouldn't stop touching me was fended off, and we eventually left to go to The Copa Room. Again, lots of alcohol was consumed and Annette saw this cute guy from Komodo's that had been totally flirting with her and they exchanged numbers. I'm betting he calls her Tuesday.

We left there, walked back to Becky's (me barefoot since my new boots where killing me), hopped into Mandy's jeep, and picked up Taco Cabana for a little late night snack. After eating, I totally crashed on Mandy's couch.

I woke up late the next morning and decided against actually getting dressed and drove home in my plaid housepants; putting on make-up and jeans seemed like too big a chore. I left, picked up lunch, and headed home to put in some time on the help desk (I have to put in five hours on the weekend to complete my forty hour week).

After working, I had just enough time to get ready to go to Katie's house so we could head over to The Continental Club (twice in one week!) to hear Dave Alvin play. The music was awesome, Jay Lee was there too, and once again lots of alcohol was consumed.

As is usually the case when I go to Katie's house on a weekend night, I crashed there and the next morning we went to Katz's for breakfast (lots of reoccurring themes in my week with double doses of The El Orbits, The Continental Club, and Katz's Deli).

I finally made it home at about 3:00 after running various errands at the mall and Wal-Mart. I'm telling you, I'd never been so happy to have a night with nothing planned.

Of course, it's now 2:30 and I'm still up. I'm now off to bed to get some sleep since I have a feeling I'll be going back out to The Continental Club again tonight to hear The El Orbits. I swear, it's like I'm stuck on a repeat button!

So, another chock-full, fun filled week in my life! Yeah for cool friends and cool things to do!

.: 1003 words at 01:38 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (3) :.

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I think that Mr. Blobby (who's a Fathead, which is a species of fish found in the NorfolK Ridge) so needs to be a mascot for something. Can't you see that face (such as it is) on a t-shirt?

(Link courtesy of Katie.)

.: 44 words at 07:45 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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My dad just surprised me with a big bunch of beautiful roses, the yellowish-redish mix kind.

He called asking me what color I thought my mom would like. I told him I wasn't sure, so he asked me what kind I would like. I told him ones that are mixed are always pretty and he bought some that were exactly what I was describing.

When he got home, he showed them to me asking me if I thought mom would like them. I told him they were beautiful and then he gave them to me. And here I thought I wouldn't be getting any flowers at all!

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

.: 111 words at 01:55 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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You know what's a great feeling? Getting ready for a funeral and realizing you have no good funeral attaire. Gah!

.: 20 words at 11:48 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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My aunt Meleese just died. She was one of my favorite aunts when I was growing up. She was a Mensa member, read a lot, and could read palms. We'll miss her.

.: 32 words at 05:51 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (12) :.

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I have a new favorite phrase: "Arrette ou je te fous une baffe."

It means, "Quit it or I’ll slap you." Isn't that great? I think I'll be using that one a lot.

.: 34 words at 05:48 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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I've been meaning to blog for days, but throw in a very busy schedule and being sick, and it all leads to this blog not being updated for about a week. So, here's another playing catch-up entry to keep you informed of my weekly happenings.

Wednesday night, I had an appointment for a cut and color with my new stylist, David Michael. Several of my friends use him and I've loved how their hair looks after seeing him, so I made an appointment. The color is gorgeous and it's nice to not have so much hair, though it's still halfway down my back. You can't really tell how it looks from this picture, but it's the only shot I have of it right now.

After that it was off to Katie's to hang out in the Technology Bytes IRC chat as we do every Wednesday. We bailed a bit early, though, so we could catch The Light Rock Express.

LRE consists of three of The El Orbits band members (The Dazzling Pete Grey, Jim Henkel, and Paul "The Kid" Beebe) and a drummer whose name I never caught. They play nothing but 70s light rock tunes ("Escape - The Pina Colada Song," "Afternoon Delight," "Stayin' Alive" and other classics) and it's a blast. It's amazing how The Kid can sound like just about any 70s band.

Anyway, we had a great time. Tricia, our dancing waitress from The Continental Club, was there and she even baked cookies. Jay Lee also showed up, which was nice since we hadn't seen him in a while.

The highlight to the evening (aside from Katie and I singing "How Deep is Your Love?" to each other), was the girl who got (semi) naked. LRE has this tank and panties set they sell for $10 that says "Light rock is for lovers" on it. They're super cute, but I don't think they sell very well. However, this one girl bought a set, went and changed into it, and then came out and danced to a song in it. Jay took pictures of the evening and this one of the dancing girl and Pete is my favorite.

Thursday I started noticing that it hurt to breathe in really deep. Ever since I had that damn pulmonary embolism a little over a year ago, I'm always a little worried that I'm going to get sick again. PEs are about the least fun thing in the world to go through and I never want to have another one again. Since my PE was originally misdiagnosed as pneumonia, the painful breathing made my brain scream, "Pulmonary embolism!" so I called the doctor and scheduled an appointment for Monday afternoon. Of course, since I'm neurotic (as I always say, this site ain't named Neurotic Fishbowl for nothing) I called back and moved the appointment to Friday since I kept thinking, "That's five days away. You could be *dead* by then!"

Friday, I went to the doctor and it turns out that I don't have a pulmonary embolism or any fluid around my lungs. I was running a slight fever, however, so the concensus was that I was probably coming down with something like the flu. Fun.

Around 6:00 that evening I headed back to Katie's since Todd was in town and staying with her for the weekend. His cousin and her fiancee had extra tickets to the Cirque du Soleil show, Varekai and he'd thoughtfully invited me along.

Veraki was good (especially the magician/lounge lizard guy doing "Ne Me Quitte Pas"), but it's not my favorite show of theirs which is, and probably always will be, "O" at The Bellagio in Vegas. Afterwards we went to Casa Manhattan for dinner. It's in between The Copa Room and Red Door and while waiting for our car, I saw Matt Clegg, a guy that was a few years behind me in school. Random, huh?

On the way home, I noticed that a new body piercing/tattoo palor was still open, so I swung in and got a hoop through the top of my left ear. I've always wanted one, but every time I've gone to get it done, I can never find a place open. It looks pretty cool, bringing my total piercings up to three in one ear, four in the other, and a belly button ring. I'm pretty sure I'm done with piercings at this point.

Saturday I was supposed to go to Elaine, but I still wasn't feeling very well and ended up working a few extra hours. It was then back to Katie's so we could go to Kevin and Kimberly's. All the girls went on a martini tour except for me. I stayed there and played low-limit poker with all the guys, drinking Sour Blue Apple Raspberry Martinis most of the evening.

I lost about $10 playing, which is about what I expected since the players were all very new, which is the hardest kind of game for me to play in, mostly because it's so hard for me to put anyone on a hand. In most games I play in, people know that K-5 offsuit isn't a calling hand. Hell, Chris had flushes twices without even knowing what they are. Beginner's luck, indeed! ;-) We left around 2:00 and it was back to Katie's for some sleep.

We woke up around 8:30 to go meet everyone for breakfast at House of Pies. Their minimum table service sign really tickled my fancy and their french toast and bacon really hit the spot.

I then went home after a quick stop at the mall to pick up some face powder. I also found these boots for about $45, so I picked them up since I've been desperately needing a pair.

I spent most of the rest of the day sleeping and just sitting in front of the television. I thought I was just tired from not getting enough sleep this weekend, but I just took my temperature and it read 100.7° (keep in mind too that my body temperature is actually a little cooler than 98.6°; it's usally more like 97.8°) so no wonder I'm so tired and it's really hard to make sense out of questions and the like.

I'm now headed off for bed, so here's to feeling better when I wake up. It's Monday, so that means that The El Orbits are playing. I'm supposed to be meeting some people there, but I guess it's really going to depend how I feel tomorrow if I can make it out or not.

Good night, all! Thanks for reading all of this!

.: 1109 words at 01:40 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (3) :.

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I seem to be doing this a lot lately - not blogging for a while and then making a super long post to catch everyone up with what's been going on. I guess I ought to reward you if you make it the whole way through, so I'll put a download up for grabs in the "Read More" section. Don't say I never gave you anything.

So, two Fridays ago, Katie IMs me. We had talked about going to see Molly and The Ringwalds that night at The Continental Club (The El Orbits are playing there again Monday and I've invited quite a few people to join the Monday Core Group, consisting of Katie, Irfan, Gil, and I, so if you want to come out, send me an e-mail and I'll get you the details), but she suggested dinner at Pei Wei and going to see Sideways instead.

I haven't been to the movies since last May (I much prefer movies at home to theaters filled with screaming babes and cell phones), so I readily agreed, especially since I adore eating at Pei Wei's.

I met her and her husband Chris over at their place and we headed out to eat. The food was delicious (Mongolian beef for me with crab wontons and lettuce wraps as appetizers) but after we got done eating, we found ourselves with over an hour to kill before the movie. Since Kimberly and Kevin (friends of Katie and Chris) don't live too far away, we headed over there to kill some time.

After chatting and having some black cherry Effen vodka (it's really called Effen vodka; isn't that great?) with cranberry juice, we left for the theater on River Oaks. It's an older theater without the super huge screens and stadium seating and it reminded me so much of all the times I'd gone to the movies in high school with a group of friends. Funny how things can make you nostalgic out of nowhere, huh?

Back to the movie - Sideways was great. It was funny, witty, interesting, and I just loved it. It started off a little slow, but quickly picked up. It had some absolutely hysterical scenes along with touching, heart-felt moments. It's great and I highly recommend checking it out.

The next day I headed back out to Katie and Chris's. Their friend Fred was having his fortieth birthday at Farrago, a restaurant I'd never been to before. It was a lovely place with food to die for. I had the pepperoni pizza and shared Kevin's old fashion dark chocolate cake with creamy chocolate frosting, raspberry sauce and fresh raspberries. They also make a pink lemonade martini that I have simply got to get the receipe for. The drink menu said it had pink lemonade, vodka, and grenadine, but I have no idea how many parts of each to use. Guess I'll be schmoozing the bartender next time I'm there.

It was then back to Kimberly and Kevin's for lots more alcohol (more Effen vodka and cranberry juice in my case; wine and champagne for everyone else) and lots more conversation. I remember Katie and I towards the end of the evening drunkenly making plans to build our own computer and moding it out so it would be the coolest computer ever. Ah, when geeks drink. ;-) I also remember all of us singing to Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" off of the Pulp Fiction soundtrack in the car on the way home. Good times, I tell you.

The next morning, just slightly hung over, we met everyone at Mission Burritos for breakfast. I'd never been there before either (I swear, after living in Houston all my life, I'm just now going venturing out. Better late than never, I guess!) but the food was delicious. They've got the best fajita beef tacos I've ever had, especially considering two tacos and a coke only cost me about $5. I swear, betwen Pei Wei, Farrago, and Mission Burritos, it was the best food weekend I've ever had.

After breakfast, I left Katie's and went back to my house. I'd been thinking about getting a new desk since I'd been using a incredibly tiny one only really big enough for my monitor and a few books. Now that I'm working from home, it was just not conducive to getting anything done. There was just simply not enough room. My mom had mentioned that Sam's Warehouse had a nice U-shaped workstation so she and I headed over there to check it out.

I feel in love with the desk right away, so after getting some more office supplies (paper clips, a desk calendar, highlighters, etc.) and checking Office Depot in case there was anything I liked better, we went home, got my uncle's huge ass truck, and went back and bought the thing (a steal at $376 in my opinion).

The next two days were spent hauling the desk (The World's Biggest Desk is what I christened it) upstairs and putting it together. I was so stiff this entire week. We got it together pretty quickly considering it was just my mom and I working on it and you can see the pictures here. I also bought a beta fish (and named him Spike since all my betas are named Spike or, if they're red, Flame; I just think they're great fish names).

Wednesday was a H-Town Happy Hour at Onion Creek. I met Kimberly at 7:00 so I could sell her my 20 GB iPod. She's delighted with it which makes me happy. Nice doing business with you, Kimberly! ;-)

While initially, it didn't look like too many people were going to show, we ended up with a pretty big turn out. As far as I can remember, here's all the bloggers that showed: Robert, Elaine, Kathy, Jon, Sketkar, Katie, Laurence, Ted (and his fiance Leslie), Gary, and Jason (but I can't remember their URLs. Next time, I'm brining a sign in sheet!). If I left anyone out, sorry!

We also had a special guest, Dwight Silverman. He's online news editor of the Houston Chronicle, who also writes the computing column that appears every Tuesday.

Dwight was going around asking us what our blogs were about (and I should have brought up BiblioBlog, my book review site in hindsight. Of course I'm currently five books behind over there. Must do those soon!). I started with the "random stuff from my life, whatever I feel like, blah blah blah" spiel when Elaine mentioned all the free stuff that I've gotten (at current count, I've gotten the iPod, the iPod photo, the Sony Wega 27" television and placed my orders for the iPod shuffle and the Coach handbag. I'm also pretty close to getting some cash from the various 4Free.com sites - the DS4Free.com one in particular - so feel free to sign up for any of them). He was really interested in the story and suggested that it would make a great feature to the news guys, so hopefully I'll hear from them. It would be pretty cool if that made it into the paper.

Friday, Kathy invited several of us over for pizza, conversation, and to watch Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (the Unrated Extended Edition). While I totally could have lived without the "Battleshits" scene, I thought the rest of the movie was great and just really funny. The special features, though, sucked. What's up with that?

I didn't get home until after 3:00 in the morning, didn't actually go to bed until almost 6:00 AM, and since I got up around 11:00, I was pretty well exhausted this afternoon (been going to bed way too late during the week and haven't slept more than six hours on any given night). I caught up on some stuff on the TiVo and crashed hard around 6:30. I woke up a little after 10:00 (and panicked because I thought it was a work day and I'd overslept) and I'm going to read for a little bit and then go back to bed.

So, there's everything that's been going on with me for the past week. I've been really busy, work's going pretty well, and I've been having the greatest time hanging out with my friends.

Thanks for reading this far. Don't forget the free music in the extended entry.

.: 1466 words at 03:12 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (7) :.

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Monday night, a couple of my friends and I headed out to The Continental Club for our weekly fix of The El Orbits.

We got there, only to find that a birthday party was going on for the guy that used to own Rockefellers. I was a bit sad to find out that it wasn't going to be an El Orbits night like it generally is and wasn't looking forward to the other bands (though, to be honest, I didn't even know who was playing).

Boy, was I in for a treat. The first band that was up was Diunna Greenleaf & Blue Mercy. They were incredible. Diunna is this awesome, sexy as hell, blues singer. As Katie put it, it was like we got a birthday present, it was so amazing listening to her sing.

It turns out that Diunna & Blue Mercy are having a CD release party in Humble this Saturday, which is pretty close to where I live since I'm stuck out in the suburbs in Spring. Here's the info from the website:

Twin Oak Tavern
211 E. Main St.
Humble, TX 77338
281-359-8687
Release party starts at 9:00

Like I said, she was awesome, so it would be well worth checking her out if you can. According to her site, there isn't another Houston show scheduled for months. Anybody want to join me? It would be a great little mini-blogger get together!

.: 239 words at 08:07 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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A few weeks ago, Sheryl approached several bloggers, me included, about have a Delurking Day. Since I had missed the one that was done previously, I jumped right on the bandwagon.

Now, I know that lots of people read this site. However, my comments don't reflect that at all. I know many people don't like to leave comments if they feel they have nothing significant to add to the conversation, but I say if you think it or feel it, it's significant, so speak up!

With this in mind, leave me a comment. I don't care what it's about. It can be about what you got for Christmas, what you hope happens for you (or to you) in this new year, what color your nails are painted, what color your underwear is - whatever. Just leave a comment. Now that I'm working from home and not surrounded by office mates, trust me, I appreciate every contact with human life that I can get. ;-)

If you'd like to jump on the bandwagon too, go here to swipe your own nifty little button and declare it Delurking is Delightful Day on your blog too!

.: 194 words at 01:19 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (2) :: All the Voices Say... (28) :.

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Since I got my new photo iPod, I need to sell my 20 GB 4th Generation iPod.

Edited: I have a buyer for the 20 GB 4th Generation iPod itself, but the Sonic iSkin (selling for $25; regular price is $30, plus $7.50 shipping) may still be available. Contact me if interesting.

Edited again: Sold!

.: 57 words at 06:14 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (8) :.

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It's New Year's Eve and my plans for tonight include going to Katie and Chris's for a drink and then heading to a party some friends of theirs. Later, we're going to The Continental Club to hear The Allen Oldies Band and, my favorites, The El Orbits (maybe I'll end up near David Beebe at midnight and get a kiss. Hey, you never know. Stranger things have happened!). I get to spend the night, so drinking will definitely be commenced as soon as I get to their house.

Speaking of alcohol, I stopped by the liquor store to get some vodka and Rose's Cocktail Infusions (picked up all three - blue raspberry, apple, and cranberry). Since I was on the phone with Christine and had my hands full with four bottles, I sat everything on the counter, kind of near this cute guy's hand. There was another couple between us and they asked if we were together and the guy said, "No, I'm not that lucky." It was so sweet, it totally made my day.

I must get ready soon, but I hope everyone has a wonderful New Year's. Here's to a wonderful 2005!

.: 194 words at 05:19 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (7) :.

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My brother and five of his friends are over spending the night before they all head out to The Big Easy for New Year's. They went and bought some fireworks so we all headed out to light them. While setting them off, we noticed a car coming down the street (we live on a dead-end road, outside of a subdivision). We all back out of the road and comment that they seem like asses since they actually sped up to drive pass us.

The truck (one of those little F-150s) gets to the dead end and turns around. I was turning away from the road when I noticed a light, like they had tossed a cigarette out of their window at us. I thought, "How rude," and then something solid thumps into my back.

Those fuckers had tossed a lit bottle rocket out of the car at me. It hit me in the back (thank god I had turned around), fell to the ground, and shot off towards our house. My mom's SUV was parked right there with the back open, so I guess it's also a good thing that it didn't fire off into there.

Who the fuck drives around throwing light fireworks at people? I wish we could have gotten their license plate. I would have loved to have called the cops on them.

Bastards.

.: 227 words at 12:19 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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Merry Christmas, everyone! May your day be filled with nothing but love, happiness, and lots of presents!

.: 17 words at 04:17 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (9) :.

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Oh my god! It's snowing! It's not like real big flakes, more like hard rain, but it's really coming down! Wow! (Glad I'm inside in sweats, though.) Happy Christmas Eve, everyone!

Edited: It sounds like it's raining, so the concensus is that it's actually sleet, not snow. It's still white and pretty, though.

.: 53 words at 04:24 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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Jay took some great pictures at the Festivus Tiara Happy Hour last Firday. You can see all the fun here.

My favorites are Pat and I (look at my eeeeeevil red eyes!), Kenny in his tiara and Elaine's scarf with me looking on adoringly, and Kenny in the same get-up plus cigarette.

Good times, good times.

.: 60 words at 10:41 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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I think I have an apology to make to my ThinkBlank Secret Santa.

After bitching yesterday that nothing had been bought of my wishlist and I thought I was going to get stiffed, I got a box from Amazon with a wrapped book inside it (I know it's a book because the note says, "I just finished reading this as well and enjoyed it alot. Hope you enjoy it too.").

I'm still not positive it's from my Secret Santa since the note doesn't indicate it, but I'm going to assume it is. I'm also not really sure how anything from my wishlist got here at all since it wasn't indicated that anything had been bought. Strange.

Anyway, if this gift is indeed from you, Secret Santa, sorry and thanks!

.: 130 words at 09:06 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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I have a feeling that I'm going to get stiffed in the ThinkBlank Secret Santa gift exchange this year. The only thing purchased off my wishlist so far was for another exchange. You know, you are a complete scrooge if you don't follow through on something like that. Bah humbug! (Of course there's still nine days before Christmas is here, so maybe I'll have a Christmas miracle and get my gift.)

.: 71 words at 11:45 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (12) :.

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I am totally getting into the holiday season all of a sudden. I got my first Christmas gift, put up my Christmas tree, got a lovely new holiday skin, read Holidays on Ice, and just got done watching Elf (which I found to be totally hilarious. Will Ferrell was just so funny).

To help you get into the mood, here's some holiday music for you (don't forget to do the "Right click and save as" or I'll have Santa put you on the naughty list):

Rod Stewart & Dolly Parton - Baby, It's Cold Outside
The Jingle Cats - Carol of the Bells
The Jingle Cats - Dance of the Reed Flutes
The Jingle Cats - Silent Night
The El Orbits - Let It Snow
The El Orbits - Sleigh Ride
The El Orbits - The Christmas Song

.: 142 words at 02:31 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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My holidays are never really complete without reading Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris.

The first story, "Santaland Diaries," is all about the time that Sedaris was an elf at Macy's in New York. It's by far, one of the funniest things I've ever read. Since I've worked retail at such places like a grocery store (and not a good one. We would have rats die in between the shelves in inaccessible locations and get such things as turtles in the refrigeration bay), a video store (I swear, it was just like Clerks), and Foley's (where the would have sold my kidney to the highest bidder if there was a way to legally do it), I can totally relate. If you don't know who David Sedaris is, you should really read him. If you know him already, this book is a delight.

You might also notice in the Moblog that I put my Christmas tree up. So what if it's less than six inches tall? It's still a tree, damn it, so merry Christmas!

.: 175 words at 09:41 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Today, despite the 72° weather (which I'm loving), it totally felt like Christmas to me.

Let me tell you why - I got my first Christmas present of the season. The wonderful, talented Mac sent me this pair of socks as a present!

I've been dying to get a pair of socks from her (even more so since I visited and watched her knit) and today my little holiday wish came true! Since I get to work from home (yipee!) I wore them all day, frequently putting my foot up in the air to admire the lovely stripes and feel the soft yarn (yeah, I'm a weirdo).

Thank you so much, Mac! They're the cat's meow and I love them (and you) so much!

.: 124 words at 09:42 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Happiness is a Sour Blue Apple Raspberry Martini in my beautiful Mikasa martini glass (notice my lovely little iPod too) while getting ready to watch Lost (man, do I love that show).

I haven't posted any this week, though I've got some exciting news. On Monday I started doing contract remote tech support for a very awesome company. I'm still learning the ropes, so I hope I can pick up enough quickly to be able to be brought on full-time in the future. It's an awesome gig and I'm very excited about it. Feels kind of weird, though, to be back on a schedule after being unemployed for some time. While it feels weird, it also feels kind of good. :-)

Here's to December starting off on a good note and hopefully only bringing even better things for the new year!

.: 141 words at 07:39 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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I've not been a very happy camper for the last couple of days. You might rememeber that I puppy sat for Katie a couple of weeks ago. While there I left, my pillow, the big one that I hold onto when I sleep. (I'm one of those people that cocoon themselves when they go to sleep; I've got pillows on either side of me.)

A few days later, my shoulder started to bother me. I figured it was because I didn't have the right kind of support and just dealt with it (even though I'm a big baby and whine when I don't feel well).

Earlier this week, I got a surprise when my free television from FreeFlatScreens.com showed up (my account still says, "Sent to vendor, waiting on product"). It's pretty heavy, so it took me, my mom, and my dad to move it upstairs.

I'm pretty sure that moving it caused me to get a pinched nerve in my arm or shoulder. Every now and then I'll move my arm and I'll get this tingly sensation running all the way down it. Yeah, not fun. I spent most of yesterday when the heating pad on my shoulder and it's feeling better, but still not perfect yet.

I'm actually about to get ready so I can head over to Christine's so we can go watch Mike perform with the Lager Rhythms. Should be lots of fun, so if you live in Houston and don't have anything to do tonight, why not join us up at The Mucky Duck?

.: 259 words at 04:46 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (7) :.

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As Katie pointed out to me last week, I need to update. I can't believe I haven't posted here in over a week, especially since there are things going on in my life right now that I want to talk about. So, here's random thoughts from the past week or so.

- First of all, it looks like I shall be joining the ranks of the gainfully employed again soon. I don't want to mention anything else until I'm sure and I confirm that it's okay to do so, but let me say that it's an very interesting opportunity and I'm very excited about it.

- Yesterday my parents, Joanna (my brother's ex-girlfriend but still good friend), and I drove to the middle of nowhere (Richmond, Texas which is like seventy miles away from my house) to watch my brother and his roommate put out fires. They're getting ready to graduate from firefighting academy in a couple of weeks and part of the final training is putting out live burns. It was pretty cool and I took some pictures that might make it up here eventually. A few that I took with my phone are currently up over at the Moblog.

- I'm so excited that The El Orbits are playing at the Continental Club tomorrow night. It's been months since I've heard them and I'm really looking forward to it. Katie, Gil, and Irfan should be meeting me there which always make a good time even more fun. Jay, the host of Technology Bytes on 90.1 FM might be there as well. Last week Katie and I hung out in the IRC chat while the show was on and got a shout-out on the air. Woot!

- I can't believe it's been almost two months since I visited Mac and I still haven't blogged about it! In my defense, I made a bunch of notes when I came home so I would remember everything and now I can't find them. Soon, I promise, I will blog about that trip and post some pictures.

- Speaking of pictures, I still have to post the rest of the three random pictures that people asked to see. I absolutely cannot take a picture of my hands and feet until I get a manicure and pedicure. It's been like two months and I would be ashamed - ashamed, I tell you! - to have a lasting record of how terrible my nails look right now. I also have got to get my eyebrows waxed to avoid people asking me why two hairy little creatures are perched on my forehead. I swear I look like a sasquatch. If you want to see three random things from my life, just ask.

- I'm currently waiting on Gratis's Customer Service to credit me with my FreeHandbags.com offer completion. As soon as they do, I should be able to put in my order for my free handbag (still not sure if I want the purple or black Coach). Feel free to sign up under my brother's account since he promised me I could have his so I don't have to choose. ;-) That will be a free handbag, a free flat screen television, and free iPods for both my brother and I. I'm also one person short of getting a free Photo iPod and five people short of a free desktop PC. Not too shabby.

- I am massively behind over at BiblioBlog. I still need to review Magician by Raymond E. Feist (really liked it; reviewed), Red-Tails in Love: A Wildlife Drama in Central Park by Marie Winn (wanted to like it more than I did), The Halo Effect by M. J. Rose (worth reading, but not as gripping as I had hoped), Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire (I really wanted to love it, but just couldn't), and Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks (I really enjoyed it; reviewed). Must get these books reviewed soon.

- About six weeks ago I came across a blog (I think it was Pam's) that had mentioned Rose's Cocktail Infusions. If you've ever been out drinking with me, you know I love apple martinis. I've never know what goes in them, however (Person: "So, what's in an apple martini?" Me: "Um, vodka and apple stuff?"), so I was delighted to find out about Rose's. They have three types of infusions - cranberry, sour apple, and blue raspberry - and they're very reasonable at only $5 a bottle or so. To make an apple martini, you take two shots of the apple infusion, two shots of vodka, shake, pour, and you have a delicious apple martini. The bottle came with a little recipe book and my new favorite drink is a Sour Blue Apple Raspberry Martini (two shots of vodka with one shot of apple infusion and one shot of blue raspberry infusion). Not only is it delicious, it's the prettiest bluish-green color.

- Since I am now capable of making my own martinis, I figured it was time I got some nice martini glasses and a decent shaker. Currently, I'm using these Crown Royal glasses that I won at the local country and western bar and a plastic shaker that I got for free at a liquor store. The glasses are too wide and tend to make it easy to spill (and I'm clumsy to begin with) and the shaker is just dumb looking. As a Christmas gift to myself I ordered these Mikasa martini glasses. I have a feeling that the swirl one will be my favorite (and at half off and free shipping I could hardly pass on them). To go with them, I picked up this three-toned striped cocktail shaker. I feel so swank now.

- Speaking of martini glasses, I love these four. Even though they are gorgeous and hand-blown (heh, that's a funny phrase or maybe I'm just dirty-minded), $40 a piece is a bit steep. Even more expensive are these hand-blown flamingo cocktail glasses, which totally crack me up. At $80 a piece, though, they are definitely a bit pricey. I don't care how much gold leaf was used in making them.

- I have a new cell phone number, so if you want it, just send me an e-mail and I'll pass it on to you.

- Someone needs to invent a blogging dictaphone. Whenever I'm in bed trying to get to sleep, I come up with all these posts but when I wake up, they're all gone. I need something so that I can speak into the microphone (limited time download to thank you for reading this far; don't forget to right click and save as) and the post magically appears on my blog.

.: 1149 words at 09:54 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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Last night after letting Lucy and Pascal (Aren't they cute? They're really well-behaved too and were a joy to puppysit) out to run around free in the backyard, I went to The Galleria to look around (pictures of the big Christmas tree are up in the Moblog).

I should be completing my FreeHandbags.com referrals soon, so I thought I'd see the purses available (Kate Spade, Prada, Coach, Fendi, Christian Dior, Burberry, and Gucci - they just added several more designers in several different colors) in person so I could decide which one I wanted. The Galleria is full of high end shops, so I actually found all of them but the Fendi one.

I had originally planned on getting the Prada Mini Hobo, but after seeing it, I'm changing my mind to the Coach Signature Demi Pouch. The Prada one was cute, but it was made out of nylon and I just wasn't that impressed (they're $258, a bit pricey for nylon in my opinion). Now I'm torn on which Coach to get - the purple one or the black one. The black one goes with everything, but the purple one is so pretty. Click the picture below to embiggen and feel free to leave a comment on which one - the black or purple one on the top shelf - you like better.

If I get lucky, my brother will get enough referrals and then he can get whichever color I don't choose and give it to me. He said I could have it since I helped him get an iPod. Nice kid, huh?

.: 266 words at 09:42 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (9) :.

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Katie is out of town (she's a arguing a motion in California with her mad lawyering skillz, yo), so I am housesitting and watching Lucy and Pascal her two beagles. Let me tell you, they are cutie pies.

So, who wants to come over and help me trash her place? Party! ;-)

.: 52 words at 04:46 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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Despite the fact that the poll I ran overwhelmingly picked the Vamp (purple) over Sonic (blue) iSkin, when I was in Fry's a couple of weeks ago, they only had Sonic and Artic, so I ended up buying the Sonic one. It has a tendency to get dust on it (but the forums over at iPod Lounge suggested rubbing baby powder on it to end that problem), but otherwise I've been really pleased.

Their newest product is another must-have accessory in my book - iShades. They replace the screen protector on your iSkin with colored screens and look just too cool. Right now they're half price with the purchase of an iSkin.

I'm already half way to getting a free Photo iPod from FreePhotoiPods.com, so if I do end up meeting my referral requirements, I'll have to buy a new iSkin. Seems like the perfect excuse to pick up some iShades while I'm at it!

.: 158 words at 10:08 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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Thanks to a helpful tip from Quixy it looks like my site is back up and running again (seems the problem had to do with MT BlogTimes.

I had deleted the single BlogTime that displays on the bottom of the page but since the BlogTimes Archive page that I created was still rebuilding, it still broke it every time. Things should now be back to normal now. Yeah!

.: 69 words at 01:58 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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My brother Russell and his boss from work dressed up as the couple from American Gothic (note that they even have the frame around themselves). Not too far off, huh? (Click to embiggen.)

.: 33 words at 12:58 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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By now we're all familiar with the Apple Switch ads. Errol Morris, the creator of the ads, has changed them up a bit for Switch: Election '04, ads that show people giving the reason that though they voted for Bush in 2000, they won't be voting for him again this year.

I found the ads very moving (though the ones where the woman goes, "I'm still a Baptist, but I'm no longer a Republican," makes me giggle) and they only reinforced my desire that Bush not be reelected this year. Simply put, the man scares me.

I'll be voting again this year, though my Democratic vote in Texas doesn't really count for much. Make sure you go and do the same.

.: 123 words at 02:39 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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I was sitting at home Monday afternoon watching CSI on the TiVo (Did anyone else squeal with delight when Sark from Alias showed up as a lab tech? I kept expecting him to talk with a snotty, British accent and be very condescending to people. First they have Alex Krycek and now Sark. Must be villian season.) when my phone rang. It was my hot lawyer Katie asking me to join her for an evening out.

We had originally planned to go see The El Orbits (yes, I still have a crush on David Beebe) at The Continental Club, but it turned out that The Light Rock Express - comprised of a few El Orbits members - were playing instead. We figured that that would be good enough, called Irfan and Gil to come join us, and headed out the door.

We got there, got our drinks, and presently were joined by the guys. Irfan pointed out that I don't really blog much any more and I pointed out that there's not too much going on for me to blog about (of course, I still haven't blogged about my trip to see Mac, but I promise to real soon).

The evening was lot of fun. I danced with both Gil and Katie (though I was never sure which one of us was supposed to be leading) and we got to sing along to such light rock classics as "Afternoon Delight," "Escape - The Pina Colada Song," and "How Deep is Your Love?" As Katie put it, it was just like listening to Sunny 99.1, only better. I even managed to impress Katie with my Burger Time playing skills, causing her to give me the title of "Burger Time Savant." I'm sure my mother's very proud.

The Light Rock Express is going to be at the Continental Club the next couple of Mondays instead of The El Orbits, so it's not a bad idea to go out and hear them. It was ladies night, too, so Katie and I got to drink for $1.00. Good friends, light rock, and cheap booze - the essence of a perfect evening.

.: 360 words at 01:20 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Apple and U2 have teamed up to create the new, special edition iPod for Mac and Windows.

It's totally gorgeous in my opinion, but since I just got a free ipod from FreeiPods.com, I think I'll pass on buying one. It sure is fine looking, though.

(Link courtesy of KB.)

.: 53 words at 03:43 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Joelle was bored and decided to do the ten random song thing (start WinAmp, hit random ten times, and post your results).

I'm feeling a little bored myself, so I decided to play along. Here's what I got:

1. Janet Jackson - Let's Wait Awhile
2. Tori Amos - Landslide (Live - East Lansing 1994)
3. Madonna - Nobody's Perfect
4. The Porter Project - I Love Paris
5. Brandy - Baby
6. Huey Lewis & The News - If This is It
7. Wet Wet Wet - Love is All Around
8. Spin Doctors - Little Miss Can't Be Wrong
9. Faith No More - I Started a Joke
10. Squeeze - Heaven Knows

I'm actually suprised that nothing too unhip made that list considering some of the things I have as mp3s (How the hell do I have Don Johnson - yes, Miami Vice Don Johnson - singing something? WTF?).

.: 152 words at 10:12 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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Ciao! My bella! is currently offering a free redesign for anyone on Movable Type or Blogger/Blogspot that's interested. You have until October 31st to e-mail them, so I'd get on over there if I were you.

.: 36 words at 09:30 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I finally decided which case I want to get for my iPod - an iSkin eVo2. The only problem is that I can't decide which color I want. I really like most of them, but I've got it narrowed down to two finalists. I may or may not take y'all's advice, but I'm curious to see which one people like better.

.: 62 words at 12:28 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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I've mentioned my love and devotion for TiVo many, many times on this site (Seriously, it's the best invention ever. If you don't own one, you definitely need to buy yourself one).

Kevin went one step further with this love and created some nifty buttons that you can put on your site to show that you too are a TiVotee.

Btw, if you don't already own a TiVo, now's a great time to buy one. Right now you can get a forty hour box for less than $80 after mail-in rebate at Amazon.

If you do buy one, please be sure to use kymberlie@neuroticfishbowl.com as your referral when you active your service. I only need four more referrals before I can get a free box.

.: 129 words at 02:35 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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I'm sitting in Mac's house (well, in her chair with her cat Sassy) and absolutely loving the gorgeous weather. This must be what fall is like in places that aren't Houston. Of course, it will soon be too cold for me, but right now, Philly is gorgeous.

I'm having a great time with her and Mr. Fish and can't wait to meet all the bloggers tonight, especially LT. Then tomorrow, it's off to Manhatten for shopping and sightseeing. Hope everyone's Friday is as wonderful as mine is!

.: 88 words at 02:17 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (3) :.

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My plane to go visit Mac and other assorted bloggers leaves in eight and a half hours (yes, I'm leaving at the ungodly time of 5:30 am). Guess I should pack, huh?

.: 32 words at 08:51 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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As I mentioned yesterday, my iPod from FreeiPods.com shipped. The estimated arrival date was between one and two weeks, so imagine my surprise when I went outside today to find a box hanging on my gate from Apple!

I took it inside, opened it up, and indeed, my brand new 20G iPod was inside. It's got FreeiPods.com engraved on the back, but that's a small price to pay. Plus, there's still plenty of room to get other things engraved.

This is perfect timing since I leave on Friday to visit Mac, LT, and any other bloggers that want to meet me.

I was beginning to be very skeptical of the whole FreeiPods.com thing, but I'm proof that it does work. I'm rotating links out for people still needing referrers, so if you haven't signed up for it or for the free flat screen tv or the free Dell Dimension 3000 desktop computer, please go here to sign up.

Do not post your own referrals links here! I will delete them. If you want your link added, go here and follow the instructions.

.: 184 words at 09:10 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (12) :: All the Voices Say... (18) :.

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I opened my inbox expecting to get tons of spam (and wasn't disappointed) but I was ecstatic to see the following subject line:

Order Shipped From freeiPods.com!

It said that I can expect to receive my iPod in one to two weeks. Shame it didn't ship in time for me to get it before my trip to see Mac this Friday, but who cares? It was free! (Click the image below to embiggen the proof.)

If you haven't signed up for the iPod, flat screen tv, designer handbag, or Dell Dimension 3000 desktop PC yet, please go here and use the links of one of the people that I'm helping get theirs.

Do not post your own referrals links here! I will delete them. If you want your link added, go here and follow the instructions.

.: 136 words at 08:28 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (1) :: All the Voices Say... (6) :.

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Just an FYI, but there are a half dozen new reviews up at BiblioBlog and seven new cards up in my gallery over at Stampin' Fish.

.: 27 words at 03:07 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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So, it's been one of those weeks. I had a really cool experience (driving around Houston in an awesome Viper) followed by a really shitty experience (hitting a curb while trying to avoid debris and screwing up my car's undercarriage, so now it's in the shop and I'm sans car causing me to miss Hanna's wedding and Kathy's birthday party).

The insurance adjustor's going to be checking my car out, hopefully tomorrow. I'm assuming it's going to be covered under insurance, but I'll be out my deductible which is $500. Kind of crappy timing since I just dropped $200 on glasses and contacts and leave for Philly and New York Friday.

Today is the one year anniversary since I got out of the hospital last year. I must say I never, ever, ever want to have a pulmonary embolism again. I really can't believe it's been a year.

Back during Project Blog, you might remember me screwing around with the TypoGenerator. I've had the images that I did then sitting on my desktop ever since, so now's as good a time as any to post them. Click "Read more" if you want to see them.

.: 196 words at 11:20 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Kathy has combined her love for the Sims 2 with her love of her friends and come up with The Blogger Family.

This tight-knit clan consists of Christine, Elaine, Matt, EJ, Hanna, and me. Should be interesting to see what happens to us.

.: 49 words at 08:03 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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When I went to Vegas with Christine last month, my glasses got bent on the airplane. Being the genius that I am, I decided that I would try and bend them back into shape, only to snap the arm completely off. Ever since, I've been wearing them without the right arm which, actually, I don't really mind. (Whenever I fall asleep on the couch, it just makes it more comfortable since the arm isn't between my face and the couch).

However, since my trip to Philly and New York to see Mac and other assorted bloggers is next week (Whee! I'm so excited!), I figured I should get the glasses replaced so I don't look like a total dork at Mac's house. And, honestly, those glasses have got to be at least seven years old, so who knows how terrible the prescription really is.

So, today I went to the eye doctor (really cool guy - collector of Elvis memorabilia and has a daughter that's a web development projet manager as well, though she actually has a job) to get new glasses and contacts (since I'm on my last pair). I found two frames that I like, but I wanted to get some opinions on them. Since I had my ever-present camera phone on me, I snapped a couple of pictures. Granted, it's easier to see the glasses better in one picture than the other, but what do you think? (Click to embiggen.)

Find many different styles of Glasses online?
You will find a variety of designer glasses in an assortment of glasses frames. If it is value you want, we have cheap spectacles as well as GlassesCrafters.com.

.: 280 words at 02:26 AM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: Pings (0) :: All the Voices Say... (13) :.

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