More photos up at Picture Fish. So far I haven't missed a day since I decided to participate in 1000 Words a Day. I'm so glad I got my new camera; I've been enjoying myself immensely taking all of these pictures and am turning into quite the shutterbug!

.: 50 words at 08:02 PM in Picture Fish Update, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Kristine blogged about how much she hates the AOL commericals that are always on TV ("I can talk to my friends with Instant Messanger!" I always yell back at the TV, "You don't need AOL to use AIM, you idiot!"). I can't stand them either.

Last week I thought a new one was coming on when an AIM screen pops up on the TV. One guy IMs the other and says that's he's on AIM. The other guy says he is too. The other one says how easy it is to get online. The other guy says same here. The first guy goes, "AOL only costs me $23.90 a month!" The second guy types back, "What!!!??? Juno only costs me $9.50 a month! :-)" I laughed so hard at that. I guess someone at Juno must think the same thing I do every time one of those commercials comes on.

.: 150 words at 05:50 PM in Daily Ramblings, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Looks like I am not my own master...

(Link courtesy of Michele)

.: 27 words at 05:38 PM in Quizzy Stuff, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Least anyone forgets today is Blogathon. I am lending immoral support (and possibly cleavage shots) to Michele, but here are some other great people who are blogging today for different causes:

.: Brandy is blogging for VDAY - Until the Violence Stops

.: KD and Skarlet are blogging for Electronic Frontier Foundation

.: Laurence is blogging for Magen David Adom (The Red Star of David)

.: Lynda is blogging for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society

.: Ciscley is blogging for The House of Mews

.: Heather is blogging for Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

Good luck to all that are blogging today and thank you for doing something so worthwhile!

Update: I don't know why I didn't go ahead and do this before, but I went and donated money to Brandy, Lynda, Michele, Ciscley, and KD and Skarlet. Better late than never, I suppose!

.: 150 words at 05:01 PM in Linky Love, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Nothing good in my Amazon.com Gold Box Offers today.

.: Polder Preprogrammed Cooking Thermometer: Steven could probably use one of these. Looks like a nice thermometer.

.: Sabatier Walnut Precision 14-Piece Stainless Steel Knife Set with Block: first time I've gotten knives in a long time, but I still don't want them.

.: Black & Decker HS2000 Flavor Scenter Steamer Plus Steamer and Food/Rice Cooker: as I've said several times in the past, we don't need a rice cooker.

.: Norelco 6891XL Quadra Action Shaver Deluxe: once again, I don't need a shaver.

.: Oneida True Rose 20-Piece Stainless Steel Flatware Set, Service for 4: no flatware, please. Pass

.: 114 words at 10:48 AM in The Gold Box, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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And now, time for today's Friday Five!

1. How long have you had a weblog? Since January 28, 2002 which also happened to be Steven's birthday.

2. What was your first post about? It was basically a "Hi. My name's Kymberlie. It's my boyfriend's birthday. Thanks, Christine for setting my blog up. Check back to see what I have to say."

3. How many changes (name, location, etc.) of your weblog have there been, if more than one? None so far.

4. What CMS (content management system) do you use? Do you like it or do you want to try something else? I use Movable Type and I just love it. Excellent software. I use it over at Picture Fish too. I even donated $45 for its use.

5. Do you read people who have both a journal and a weblog? Or do you prefer to read people who have all of their writing in one central place? I prefer central simply because it's easier to keep up with. I mostly just read blogs, though.

.: 176 words at 01:18 AM in Friday Five!, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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It's time for Dave's Thursday Thumb-Twiddler!

1. You've been diagnosed with a presently incurable disease, with no more than three months to live. If you had a modest chance of surviving cryogenic freezing in the next week, to be awakened in a thousand years to live a greatly extended life ... would you do it? No. You wouldn't know anyone, the world would be so radically different, it just doesn't really seem worth it.

2. A friend asks for your opinion about an original novel (painting, sculpture, song) they've created. You think it is utterly dreadful. Do you lie about it, diplomatically tone down your true feelings, or tell the complete, unvarnished truth? I would do an in-between. Let them know that I think some things need to be changed and see if we couldn't start to get the thing better bit by bit.

3. In honor of the weather, what do you think is the most enjoyable thing to do in the snow? Um, I've never actually seen snow, so I have no idea. Nothing really sounds that enjoyable, though, because I don't like the cold.

.: 188 words at 11:52 PM in Thursday Thumb-Twiddler, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Time for Deb's Thursday Threesome!

Onesome: all - all the world's a stage... So what types of issues put you on your soapbox? Lots of them, but lately they are family planning, the whole stupid TIPS (spy on your neighbor) thing, trucks and SUVs on the road, and slackers.

Twosome: things - what sort of things are you most likely to purchase "spur of the moment" when shopping? Beanie babies and little cheap knick-knacks that I don't need.

Threesome: girl - sugar and spice and everything nice? Come now, what are YOU really made of? Both. I am very sweet, but I can also be a real bitch.

.: 109 words at 11:49 PM in Thursday Threesome, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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More entries over at Picture Fish including Christine's favorite Big Pink Cookie.

.: 13 words at 08:24 PM in Picture Fish Update, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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I was reading through some old comments that I had received on various posts and found one that asked me if I realized that "'family planning services' is a euphemism for 'pushing abortion.'"

Actually, I don't realize that because that statement is wrong. Let me quote a few facts from the article "International Family Planning Makes a World of Difference" from Planned Parenthood's website:

- Each year, more than 585,000 women die,­ at least one woman every minute of every day,­ due to pregnancy-related causes (USAID, 1999a).

- Family planning alone can reduce maternal mortality by 25 percent by reducing the number of high-risk pregnancies, those that are spaced too closely or occur too early or too late in a woman’s life (USAID, 1999a).

- In Thailand an expanded HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Program led to a 90 percent decrease, from 1988–1995, in the number of men attending government clinics for STI treatment (USAID, 1999c).

- In Russia, because of limited contraceptive availability, abortion has been used as the major method of birth control. However, the recent increased availability of modern family planning methods has already resulted in a greater than one-third drop in the abortion rate (USAID, 1999a).

- The introduction of modern contraception in Hungary coincided with a 60 percent reduction in abortions. Similar results can be seen in Chile, Colombia, Mexico, South Korea, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine (USAID, 1999a).

- Family planning is crucial to women’s achieving higher status, health care and nutrition equal to men, and full participation in their country’s economic and political institutions (UNFPA, 1997).

- Slowing population growth helps poorer countries develop politically and economically, which reduces human suffering due to poverty, malnutrition, and disease (USAID, 1999a; Upadhyay & Robey, 1999).

So you see, family planning services are not about "pushing abortions." When I lost my insurance I went to Planned Parenthood and got my annual exam for $20. If I would have gone to my regular OB-GYN without insurance: $300+. No one tried to give me tracts about how great abortions are and, if I ever got pregnant, how I should rush back and have an abortion.

Family planning helps people live better, healthier lives. Family planning tries to break the cycle of poverty and hopelessness that people become trapped in. Hell, family planning helps make a dent in the abortion rate. There is no hidden agenda. There are no people that rub their hands together with glee at the thought that they will get to perform an abortion today. Family planning is simply about trying to making the best situations possible for people.

.: 431 words at 01:48 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (9) :.

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My day is rapidly going from bad to worse. Never a good sign when you notice all the ingredients needed for disaster popping up.

.: 24 words at 12:16 PM in Rants, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Today's Theme Thursday was "Home," so you can now see where I live by wandering over to Picture Fish.

.: 20 words at 02:21 AM in Picture Fish Update, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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The Equity in Prescription Insurance and Contraceptive Coverage (EPICC) amendment would establish equitable coverage for contraceptive prescriptions and related medical services. Contraceptive equity means that if a health plan covers prescription drugs and devices, it has to cover contraception also. Right now women pay on average 68% more out of pocket for health care expenses than men. Tell your senators that you think it's time health care became more fair and urge them to support this important piece of legislation.

.: 81 words at 09:55 PM in Take Action!, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (4) :.

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I have always loved the little Ot-to critters, so I was excited to find out they had a new batch for download. They only have a few left, so hurry if you want to get your own. If you look down at the bottom of the side bar, you'll see my new buddy Stanley. Thanks go to Meike for pointing the new critters out.

.: 65 words at 10:32 AM in Geeky Things, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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More children's stuff in my Amazon.com Gold Box Offers. When will I ever get a Box that is tailored to me?

.: Grow-with-Me Gentle Vibrations Bouncer: as I've mentioned many times, I don't have any kids. No more kids stuff please.

.: Kitty Magic: Pink Persian: I'm not even sure I want to know what this does. Sounds like a p0rn video.

.: Tender Vibes Soothing Mattress: okay, this really sounds like an adult product.

.: LEGO Pirate Battle Ship: got a "we just ran out of this item" message on this product. It at least looked really cool.

.: Bebe Sounds Prenatal Listener - Deluxe Gift Set: I don't have any kids and I'm not pregnant. Total waste of time on this one, though I think prenatal things like this are very cool and a good thing to use.

.: 146 words at 09:38 AM in The Gold Box, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I was browsing through An Exaltation of Larks: The Ultimate Edition by James Lipton trying to find today's "It's a Group Thing" term when I read one that I thought was really pretty. Today's term is:

A Conflagration of Fireflies

.: 40 words at 09:18 AM in It's a Group Thing, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I added a few more photos over at Picture Fish. I'm trying to keep up with 1000 Words a Day, so expect to see lots of Picture Fish updates.

.: 31 words at 11:27 PM in Picture Fish Update, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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When you add up that I'm tired, the kitty is missing, the hormones are kicking in, my shoulder has been hurting really bad since Friday, and work stress you get one blue fish girl. Is it Friday yet?

.: 38 words at 05:30 PM in Daily Ramblings, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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Today was all children's stuff in my Amazon.com Gold Box Offers.

.: Magic 8 Ball Party Game: not sure exactly what you're supposed to do, but Magic 8 Balls are always cool. Wish they explained the game, though.

.: Fashion Snap Doll (Blonde): I have no kids and dolls are creepy, so this is a big miss.

.: Snugli - Early Care Newborn Soft Carrier: again, no kids.

.: Amazing Ally with Kitten: yikes! Another creepy doll!

.: Atrium Blue Glass with Flower Accent Photo Box: I love pressed flowers and this would actually be nice to keep pictures in. Very pretty.

.: 108 words at 03:07 PM in The Gold Box, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (1) :.

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There are more flowers to see over at Picture Fish including two of my 1000 Words a Day entries.

.: 19 words at 12:16 AM in Picture Fish Update, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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When I came home from work today the kitty was not on the porch where he has pretty much been since we adopted each other. We went to dance class, came home, watched The Dead Zone, still no kitty. I walked around the whole complex going, "Here, kitty, kitty," but he didn't show up. I am now worried that someone took him to a shelter and he's going to be put to sleep. I hope he's just out prowling around. Steven said he was here when he went to work a little before 11:00, so he's only been missing, at most, about twelve hours. I hope he comes back!

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

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Here's PromoGuy's Monday Mission 2.29:

1. Do you remember your first encounter with computers? Tell me about that.
I remember doing BASIC programming on TRS-80s in elementary school. I thought it was the coolest thing. I also remember playing Oregon Trail, but not the snazzy graphic one, the one on the TRS-80.

2. How late can you stay up and still be functional the next day? Do you do that very often?
Routinely I stay up until 2:00 or 3:00 a.m. and get up to go to work the next morning at 8:00 a.m. I don't require a lot of sleep, but it does probably explain why I sleep until 3:00 p.m. or later on the weekends.

3. When was the last really good hug you got from another adult? Who was it and what was the situation?
I would have to say Steven. A few weeks ago I came to his office and was really upset about something going on at work and he had me sit in his lap and held me while I cried. It was nice to be hugged like that.

4. One thing about children is that they all like to draw. We all shared the same ability and skill level at one time. Do you still like to draw? (Not do you think you draw well, or do others, but do you like to?) If not, how come? Did you get discouraged at some point?
I love to draw even though I'm not really good. I doodle snails all over everything. I even sign cards with my little snail, giving him santa hats for Christmas when he becomes Santa Snail. I don't really even sit down and draw, though.

5. Have you ever overslept on a day you had something important going on? What's the story there?
Nothing too important - just work or school. ;-) Actually, I did oversleep for my microeconomics mid-term when I was a sophomore, but the really bad part of the morning was when I got into a wreck in the U of H parking lot. Luckily the teacher was a nice guy and let me take it after school.

6. What was the last thing you almost bought, but thought better of it? And why the heck do we do that to ourselves?
I do this all the time. Saturday I had a shirt picked out that I kind of liked - a white button-down with blue and black vertical stripes. I actually gave it to the girl behind the counter but changed my mind before she rang it up. I liked it, but the more I looked at it, the less I liked it. I guess we do this because we've been trained that, as good Americans, we should consume lots of goods. Sometimes the high from buying is better than the actual purchase.

7. It's all such a blur now. I'd asked you to help me wake up but the alarm didn't go off. It was 10 till and just I knew I'd be late. Somehow you got me here on time. How did you do that?
With my amazing ability to drive like a demon in my little Miata. Just be thankful we're alive.

BONUS: Can't you see, you belong to me?
How my poor heart aches with every step you take.

.: 558 words at 03:26 PM in Monday Missions, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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It's Monday, so time to start the week out right with Jess's Participation Positives!

• I had a great time out with Jeanna at DCI on Friday and with Juidth on Saturday at the mall. It's good to go out with girlfriends!
• I managed to get first place in a couple of poker tournaments and get my account back up to a decent amount
• I got a really cute skirt from The Limited for only $15
• I adore my new camera and have added lots of cool pictures to Picture Fish
• I finally got my $100 Amazon.com gift certificate from Milesource so I was able to get fifth season of The X-Files on DVD and all of the Anita Blake books
• Lucky, the cat we found, seems to be happy and looks like he's doing better
• We have a new The Dead Zone episode to watch
• I love and am loved

.: 151 words at 11:54 AM in Participation Positives, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (2) :.

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I was beginning to think that I wasn't going to get anymore Amazon.com Gold Box Offers after not getting one all weekend.

.: Oxford Garden Designs Chadwick Collection Armchair: another chair. It's nice enough, but I am not going to buy a chair for $100 site-unseen from them.

.: Flowtron MT-150 Mosquito PowerTrap: mosquitos are definitely a problem around here, but there is no way in hell that I am paying almost $225 for a mosquito killer.

.: Lakeland Mills CF1125 Cedar Log Rocking Chair: I think that this is an ugly chair. Far too rustic for my tastes.

.: MAC Sports MOCP-K-S Moon Chair, Khaki: this is kind of a cool chair, though I don't like the color. We had a chair real similar to this in our office and it was so comfortable.

.: Omni 616 Reclineaire PTX Hammock Chair, Navy Blue: I think these things are so cool, but there is no where to hang it in my condo. Plus, it's freaking hot outside. I'm not going outside for an extended length of time for anything.

.: 184 words at 09:39 AM in The Gold Box, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I spent quite a while getting all of my new pictures into Picture Fish today. The pictures include all of my images from Theme Thursday, my foray into Rice Village with Jeanna, and a few other miscellaneous things.

.: 39 words at 01:01 AM in Picture Fish Update, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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Been a busy day here. Steven and I met his mom and dad for lunch at Thai Spice, a Thai buffet. I'm not a big fan of Thai and Indian food, but it wasn't too bad. After that we ran the monitor that I borrowed from work over to my office and went to Best Buy to pick up my repaired monitor. There wasn't enough voltage (or something like that), so they did some internal adjustments on my monitor and I have color contrast again. Yeah! After that we came home, I got first place in another poker tournament, and started fixing some images to put into Picture Fish. Be warned. The next update at over there will probably be over twenty pictures. I've just finished stairmastering, so I'm going to go watch a little tv and eat some dinner. Shame that the weekend is already over. I could have used a longer weekend this time for sure!

.: 161 words at 10:03 PM in Daily Ramblings, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I took some picutes of Lucky, the stray cat we found, today. You can see in these shots how skinny and his bald patches. I looked online and it said that the hair loss could be from allergies, stress, or diet changes. Poor kitty has had all of those.

.: 49 words at 09:55 PM in Fish Tales, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (5) :.

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Time for Chris's Sunday Op-Ed!

1. Fall
What is something that is a relief in Texas? Fall means that the temperature starts to go down (at least a little bit) and give everyone a respite from the heat. I wish that we had more trees that changed colors and someday I would like to go up north and watch the foliage change.

2. Vacation
What is something that I can never get enough of and wish I had a lot more of? I love taking vacations, even if it's just to stay home from work and do something around town with friends.

3. Travel
What is something that I intend to do a lot of before I die? I've made Steven promise that we will go to Paris, Italy, Australia, Greece, and The Bahamas at least.

.: 137 words at 09:01 PM in Sunday Op-Ed, ";print substr($entry_cats, 0, -2); ?> :: Link :: :: All the Voices Say... (0) :.

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I made my first post at the group photoblog Common Threads today. I am glad they accepted me. Some of the photos there are absolutely stunning.

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

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