Pursuit of Perfection

About two months ago, when the undefeated New England Patriots were playing the also-undefeated Indianapolis Colts, I got kind of a cool opportunity. I got a chance to interview Earl Morrall and Charlie Babb of the 1972 Miami Dolphins, and ask them how they felt about the possibility that one of those teams would equal their perfect season.

Unlike crazy Mercury Morris, who you've probably seen on TV ranting and raving about the Pats' record, Morrall and Babb were very courteous, very respectful. They said they wouldn't be bitter or angry if someone duplicated their record-- but that they wouldn't be cheering for someone to do it, either. Babb added (and I'm paraphrasing here), "We're old men now. That 16-0 season is all we have left to hang our hats on."

Of course, that possibility has become a reality. The Patriots escaped the New York Giants on Saturday night to go 16-0-- a perfect season for just the second time in history.

Or is it? What if I told you that another team had a perfect season-- before either the Dolphins or the Patriots?

The Cleveland Browns did it in 1948. That's right-- a team you've heard of. A team that's in the NFL, though at the time the Browns were a member of the All-America Football Conference (AAFC).

The AAFC was only around a few years, but it was a pretty formidable opponent to the NFL. Teams like the San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Colts and Buffalo Bills started out as members of the AAFC. The AAFC even drew more fans to their games than the NFL.

Just a year after the Browns' perfect season, the NFL absorbed the AAFC, and the Browns became one of the top teams in the league.

Now here's the rub. In 1970, the NFL had another merger with the AFL-- and the NFL recognizes all of the AFL's records (pre-1970) as NFL records. The same isn't true for the AAFC records. So the NFL doesn't recognize the 1948 Browns-- or their perfect season. Sure, they only won 15 games (as opposed to the Patriots 16 so far), but perfect is perfect, right?

It's kind of sad, really. Most of the players on that team were born in the 1920's. And while the bigger names, like Otto Graham and Lou Groza, have passed away, I'm sure there are still members of the perfect 1948 Browns that are still alive and kicking.

I wonder what they think about the 2007 Patriots?

But now you know. So when that guy in your office starts babbling about how awesome the Patriots are, dazzle him with your knowledge of the first NFL team to play a perfect season. You'll blow his mind.

Ink-A-Dink-A-Doo

So today, I signed up for unemployment benefits. Fun stuff, huh?

And guess when my printer ran out of ink? Oh, I knew it was coming-- it's been over a year since we replaced the cartridges, and the color one never worked. So today, I had about 15 pages of application, instructions, and claims forms to print-- and no functioning printer.

I ended up going to the store and just about had a seizure when I realized I'd be blowing 60 bucks on new ones. $60! I could damn near buy a new printer for $60.00. And, here I am, trying sooo hard not to spend any money on unnecessary things during my period of unemployment. But then, I realized that not being able to print resumes and employment applications was probably going to put a cramp in my job-hunting... so I sucked it up and shelled out the cash. Ugh.

You know, I should go to pages like Inkjet Deals.info, because I'm sure it would be a heck of a lot cheaper to buy printer ink online. So I checked it out. They index different websites who deal with inkjet cartridges, and the prices were so-so on new ones-- better on re-conditioned cartridges... and they also have a page of Coupon Codes for each of the websites that they index. And we all know how much I love coupons. I don't buy anything that isn't on sale.

So, if you're not an idiot like me... and you can actually remember in advance that you might need printer ink-- or laser printer toner cartridges, check it out. It might keep you from having a heart attack in the office supply store.

I guess now that I've printed out all my materials, that makes me officially unemployed... with the paperwork to prove it. Good times.

Hit the Lights

Cory's family is down here for the holidays-- and his dad rented the same house they rented for the Wedding. It's out in the "nice" (read: expensive) part of the Cape-- the only part of town that has two-story houses. And no, I'm not kidding. Two-story homes are pretty rare around here.

Anyway, one of the things that Cory and I both like about driving out there is that people in that part of town actually have landscaping-- and they know how to light their yards... or at least their landscapers know how to do it.

Since Cory and I only have a small condo-- with an even smaller "yard," landscaping and lighting realy haven't been a high priority for us. We really wanted to get some little solar lights for our walkway, but never got around to it.

I like the solar lights because they're energy-efficient-- and I never even realized that you can now get outdoor lighting in the form of LED lights. They hardly cost anything (at least, not compared to other lighting), and the lights last forever.

You know, It seems like LED lights are everywhere all of a sudden-- I saw them in the Christmas aisles at the stores this year-- and pretty soon you'll be able to buy LED landscape lighting online, too.

So, gussy up your yard... and save the planet, too!

Pop Quiz, Hotshot

Due to my impending unemployment (I work today and Wednesday, then they boot my booty out the door), I've decided to take a little mental vacation... and do some fun web quizzes while I pretend that everything's A-Okay in my life.

Okay, so a website about Structured Settlements might not be the place you'd expect to find fun quizzes, but I'm sure you can find much stranger things on the "interweb." This one has a quiz to see if your blog is family-friendly (and really, who the hell would want to read that?), if you're financially secure (if I was, I probably wouldn't be blogging for money), and your odds of living to be 100 years old.

67%
Settlement Quotes - Structured Settlements

For what it's worth, I don't want to live to be 100. It doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun. Sure, there are some pretty spry centegenarians out there-- but I think there's also a lot of them who probably would just rather jump in front of a mack truck. Then again, I've been feeling a little pessimistic lately, so maybe in 62 more years, I'll feel differently about it.

Hostess with the Mostess

So-- now that I'm just a little more than a week away from the unemployment line-- it's time to start thinking about what I'm going to do with all the free time that I anticipate having in the near future. After all, there are only so many job-search websites out there, and I'm getting to be a pro at scouring them all in under two hours.

My plan? Dream up a million-dollar website. A lofty goal, I know... but a girl's gotta dream, right?

I already have my website domain name registered (and no, I'm not going to tell you what it is. I can't have you stealing my ideas!). Now, I just need to design everything, and find a host for my site.

Well, guess what? Just like there are job-search websites (and believe me, there are a lot of them) and travel-search websites, there's also a site where you can search for your ideal web host... and it's an easy address to remember: http://www.webhostingchoice.com

You type in your requirements (how much memory you need, and how much you're willing to pay per month), and it suggests one of 40 different web hosting services (Though in my searching, I've discovered that it seems to always recommend HostGator.)

"Web Hosting Choice" also has customer reviews of hosting providers and plans, and a little quick startup guide for dummies like me that really aren't sure what the heck they're doing.

Okay, so even with their help, I'm probably not going to make a million dollars. Hell, I've had this site for nearly five years and I've only earned about $150.00. But like I said, a girl can dream, right?

How Cool is this?

So you're addicted to YouTube. Or you're addicted to karaoke (like my husband). Or maybe... just maybe... you think you're the second coming of Elvis himself.

Do You Want To Be Famous & Win $10,000?Then check this shiznit out: Impersonated.com. All you need is a decent voice (or as they say on their website, "all it takes is a little bit of talent") and a webcam, and you can become an instant internet celebrity.

Oh, you'd better believe I've already perused the site ad nauseum. My favorite? The 8-year-old girl singing "Needle and the Damage Done." by Neil Young-- with absolutely no idea what she's singing about. My second favorite? The Japanese woman (Complete with kimono) singing "Mamma Mia" by ABBA. Really. I *heart* ABBA in the first place... she make it just that much more... um... something.

By the way, if you don't win the ten grand, there's plenty more where that came from. Apparently, they've scoured the web for the most exciting range of goodies they could lay their greasy little hands on... like MP3 players, camcorders, and cold, hard cash. Good times.

I just might put on the ol' Cher wig and sing my heart out. In my soon-to-be unemployed state, I don't have anything to lose, right?

Communication Breakdown

So here's a little question for you: Do Men and women communicate differently? According to my Master's Degree in interpersonal communication, the answer is yes. And I'm inclined to belive that, since I spent about ten grand to learn about the way we communicate.

I mean, think about it? The way we communicate is a direct result of our personal experiences. How many times have you heard yourself saying the exact same things that your mother (or father) said to you a million times while you were growing up? (And if it hasn't happened to you yet, I assure you, it will.)

So since women's experiences are very different from men's experiences, it stands to reason that the way that the two genders communicate would differ as well, right?

Not according to the Sedona Method. They say that these perceived communication differences are just stereotypes that make us focus on our differences instead of our similarities.

Ok. I'll bite. But here's the thing that confuses me. From what I understand, the Sedona method teaches us how to suppress our negative emotions. Now I'm all for feeling better about myself, and getting rid of my self-esteem issues... But don't we need those negative emotions? If we're angry and we're hurt, shouldn't we try to understand it? And shouldn't we communicate those emotions with our loved ones?

Bypassing the Belly

I keep seeing commercials for the "Lap-Band," and I have to say, I'm a little intrigued. The way I understand it, it's kind of like a kinder, gentler, more temporary version of gastric bypass surgery.

What a brilliant idea, right? I mean, all those celebrities who have had gastric bypass... and all those horrible stories they tell afterwards, like, "All I can eat in one sitting is six peas. Really. Any more than that, and I might die."

Oh... and how about Star Jones? Remember a few months ago, when she made the "shocking" announcement that she'd lost 150 pounds using (gasp!) gastric bypass. As though there were a person alive who: a) cared, and b) was naive enough to believe that she'd suddenly shed half her body weight using diet and exercise.

Now, I'm not knocking Star Jones because she had the surgery. If it makes her feel better about herself-- and makes her live a more healthy lifestyle, then good for her. I'm knocking her because she didn't just come out and admit it. Oh, and also because I find her to be annoying and talentless.

So anyway, back to the Lap-Band. From what I can tell, it's a little silicone belt that surgeons install around your stomach to make it smaller. And it's a much less invasive surgery.... as long as you can get around the fact that someone basically put a zip-tie around your stomach. Whatever works, right?

Anyway, I know you'll be stunned by this, but apparently one of the biggest clinics that does Lap-Band surgery is in L.A. Crazy, I know. Who would think that Los Angeles would have a lot of people concerned about their body image? there's also lap-band Houston, and even a clinic here in God's waiting room, Florida.

The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

In just the last few days, Cory and I have seen a couple of promos for the movie "Sweeney Todd" with Johnny Depp. I honestly can't think of anyone better to play the role of the Demon Barber of Fleet street. He really straddles the line between cute and yet creepy, innocent and yet evil, better than any other actor I can think of.

I've seen the Sondheim Musical, Sweeney Todd, at a production at Oakland University back when I was a senior in high school. The main character was played by my drama coach, Tony (I can't remember his last name-- only that all of the girls in our class had an insane crush on him). The play was great. You don't see a lot of musicals about serial killers, after all-- let alone ones who get their ladyfriend to bake the victims into meat pies.

Without going into too much detail-- Sweeney Todd does it all to get revenge-- primarily against a particularly nasty judge who raped his wife, stole his child, and banished him. For more details, you can visit the official Sweeney Todd movie site.

I don't think there's anyone out there that hasn't fantasized about getting revenge against someone... though hopefully not through murder or human-meat pies. Really, though, I think revenge is a driving force for a lot of people. Seriously, think about it. You get told your whole life that you're ugly, and you dream of turning into a beautiful swan "just to show them that they're wrong."

So tonight, Cory and I were talking over a beer about revenge scenes in movies. I asked him which were his favorites, and he reeled off a lengthy list-- mostly from movies I've never seen. "The Godfather" (because waking up next to a severed horse's head definitely qualifies), "Hostel" (I've never seen it, but apparently there's a pretty amazing revenge scene which involves finger-removal), and "First Blood," the original Rambo movie, where he gets his revenge against the Sheriff (and most of the town, as well).

I brought up the movie "Fatal Attraction," but I refuse to discuss it any further because I don't want to think about what happened to that poor little bunny.

My favorite revenge scene doesn't come from a movie nearly as gory. I love the utterly stupid revenge that the Deltas get in "Animal House." Seriously. They get even with Dean Wormer, Faber College, ROTC, the Omegas, and even the Mayor-- simply by ruining the homecoming parade. Good times.

Well, sweeney Todd isn't in a fraternity, nor does he boil anybody's pet bunny. His revenge is a bit more bloody. And, from the looks of the trailer on the official website, also a bit more entertaining. Seriously... anything Tim Burton touches turns to gold-- even if it is a musical about a serial-killing barber.

Oh, and if you're feeling lonely, you can visit Sweeney Todd on MySpace. I bet if you ask really nicely, he'll even be your "friend."

Flasher on the loose

Cory's a big fan of the flash drive (or if you prefer, "memory stick"). As a bit of a techno-geek, he has one that he stores some of his work stuff on-- and for a while was in the habit of wearing it on a lanyard around his neck. I liked to call it his "nerd necklace," which seemed to discourage him from wearing it more often.

Now don't get me wrong-- I have a flash drive of my own. I bought it once our station started using computer-based editing programs. I can download (upload?) my video from the computer into the flash drive so that I can watch it on my computer at home. In fact, just tonight, I
put my way-cool story about the Stanley Cup onto my flash drive. So, I have the technology. I just don't like to advertise my geekiness by wearing it as a fashion accessory.

About four years ago, when "flash drives" first came out, Cory convinced me that it would be a good idea to get my dad one for Christmas. It ended up being a pretty good gift-- while he was
visiting us, he could do work on his laptop, then if he wanted to email it, could save it onto his memory stick, and load it into my PC which had internet access.

Since then, I've stumbled across flash drives as PR devices-- when I was at Super Bowl XLI this year, the Super Bowl XLII committee was plugging their venue by handing out flash drives, which were loaded with information and pictures of Glendale Arizona and the University of Phoenix Stadium... site of next year's game. And when one of my co-workers swiped it, I was ticked off!

Now there's a company called Pexagon, that's designing Personalized Flash Drives specifically for gift-giving.... with available themes like snowflakes and butterflies that you can have engraved on the flash drives. You can even have them personalized. And of course, you can always pre-load them with fun stuff like pictures for grandma (assuming she's fairly computer savvy) or loaded with MP3 files of music for your kids (assuming that you can figure out what kind of music they'll like). Of course, you could also give them a blank one-- nothing's wrong with that, either.

Just warn them... if you ever see them wearing it lanyard, you hold the right to mock them incessantly and call it a "nerd necklace."

Tourist Season

Having grown up near Detroit, and having lived in some pretty boring places-- it's kind of weird living down here in Florida. I've never lived someplace that people actually wanted to visit. And while we haven't exactly been overrun by houseguests (a good thing for the most part... I hate cleaning for company), there is a certain glamour to living here.

Sure, living in the Sunshine State isn't exactly like living in a city like Savannah or Key West or San Diego-- cities that are themselves tourist destinations. Cities that people who live here would take a vacation to visit.

Several years ago, when we were still living in the Peach State, we got to visit Savannah for a few days. The downtown area is adorable, the history is fascinating-- and I didn't even find the peoples' accents annoying (unlike the part of Georgia where we lived. The accents there were obnoxious).

There was so much to see that we decided to take an official tour. I think it's the only time that I've done that, and it was really interesting. For more than an hour, we traveled up and down the streets of Savannah, seeing unusual sites-- like the park bench that Tom Hanks sat on when they filmed the movie "Forrest Gump." We stopped at the Telfair museum (site of my "Wordless Wednesday" post two weeks ago). We even saw the infamous "Bird Girl" statue of "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" fame. Oh, and I got to pet a horse. That's always a plus in my book.

I don't know if I'd ever go back to Savannah-- love the city, hate the state. But I think if we went back, I'd want to go on the Savannah Ghosts Tour. We considered going on a simlar tour when we were in New Orleans but never got around to it... and it sounds pretty cool!

I don't see a vacation in my near future-- but if you plan on visiting one of those touristy cities, and you don't know where to start when you get there, check out one of those tours-- one of the companies that seems to offer tours in every city is Trusted Tours and Attractions. I know, it sounds cheesy-- but turst me, it's better than sitting around your hotel room staring at pamphlets and tour guides (which is what I often end up doing-- and regretting). And if you have to read those tour guides, you can do it while riding on the trolley between tourist stops!

Trusted Tours and Attractions has an email newsletter that you can sign up for-- and as an added bonus, if you sign up, you'll be automatically entered to win 4 free tickets to tours in a city of your choice. By the way, that offer is only good until Friday, December 14th, 2007. So if you're going to do it, get on the horn!

Artsy Fartsy in the Sunshine State

I saw a sign today for an Art Festival, and got a little excited. I love art fairs. My favorite is the annual Ann Arbor art fair-- but since I'm never in Michigan during it, I haven't gone since I was in grad school (about 12 years ago).

It's a common problem. I never, ever get to go to art fairs... usually because I work on weekends, which are prime art-fair time. The last one we went to was right here in the Cape-- and we could only spend about an hour because we had to squeeze it in during our lunch break.

Today, I heard about another cool art festival here in Florida-- the St. Augustine Artwalk. I've never been to St. Augustine, though I'd love to go. Even though I'm not a history buff, it would be really cool to see the oldest city in the nation (Eat that, Jamestown!)

The Artwalk divides the city into five art districts... with about 20 galleries taking part. And even though it's an Artwalk, they also use the Old Town Trolley Tours to shuttle people to the galleries. So you get to see the city while you see all the galleries.

The next First Friday Weekend Artwalk is December 7th. I won't be able to make it-- but they're holding them on the First Friday of every month in 2008-- so hopefully, we'll get there sometime in the next 12 months.

Gussying up the place

Since Cory and I bought the condo almost a year ago, most of the improvements we've made have been on the interior. Fresh paint, new carpet, wainscoting and tile in the bathroom. As far as the exterior goes... we really haven't done much. I planted a bougainvillea and a hibiscus, and we laid down a little mulch. We've done absolutely nothing with our patio, so it still looks really white-trashy.

When we first started looking for a place, we wanted to buy a house instead of a condo-- and if prices had been as low as they are now, we could have done that. After 14 straight years of living in apartments, I really wanted a yard.

Not that I have any idea what to plant in it. It gets way too hot here for most of the plants that I'm familiar with. But even though we have no yard to speak of, I still flip through catalogues, looking for fun things to put in the yard.

I always liked those artificial rocks. No, not the little bitty ones you stick in a garden and stash your spare key inside. I like the big boulders. Now granted, I'd rather have a real one than a fake one, but I lack the cash-- or the physical strength-- to acquire a huge granite monolith for the yard.

And before you get any crazy ideas, I'm not looking for a giant Stonehenge replica to put in the yard. Nothing fancy. Nothing that would attract druids playing pan-flutes during every full moon. Just a nice boulder. Just a couple feet around, maybe.

Sometimes, during my decorating daydreams, I go to websites like the Artificial Rocks Factory and check out the wares. They have boulders in different shapes, sizes, and colors (Yep, colors. You wouldn't want sandstone if it clashed with your slate sidewalk, right?). You can even get faux boulders with address plaques on them.

You know, at work, I spend a lot of times driving around hunting for people's houses, and I'm always stunned at how hard it is to find the house number in front of people's homes! It's become kind of a pet peeve of mine. Seriously, how hard is it to put some numbers on your mailbox-- or even better, get a cool rock with your address on it!

Of course, for me, this is all just a pipe dream. We only have a very narrow strip of landscaping--- not even big enough for a fake boulder. But I like our tiny little yard. It looks nicer than most of our neighbors' entryways. And since it's so little, there really isn't any upkeep!

Maybe they could start making mini-monoliths for condo dwellers.

This post brought to you by: Artificial Rocks Factory

On the Dark Side

A couple of nights ago, our friend Jason (who occasionally prefers that we call him "Dan Handsome") was all in a tizzy about a book he saw at Barnes and Noble. Apparently, it was a book about fetishes, and being the least intimidated person I've ever met in my life, he was reading the book openly in the store.

Apparently, it had some pretty interesting pictures, one of which amused/disturbed him so much that he had to tell me all about it. I say "amused/disturbed" because for Mr. Handsome, it seems the two are often one and the same. For example, he loves that guy "Mystery" on MTV's show "The Pick-Up Artist." Get the picture.

He described the photo in stunning detail-- I'm really couldn't do it justice if I tried to replicate his description. Just imagine the type of photo you might see in a book about Fetishes. Throw in a little nudity, and few cylindrical props, and your imagination has probably done all the work for me.

Now, I need to explain Jason. When he sees things that amuse/disturb him, he gets all worked up into a tizzy. He'll talk about it for days unless you nip it in the bud immediately. So here's all I said:

"I'm just glad they found each other."

And honestly, that's true. I mean, it's hard enough to find someone you love in this world when you're a fairly "normal" person. But what if you're goth? Or a vampire? Or if you're a "furry?"

Well, I still don't know how the "furries" do it, but as far as the Goth/Vampire/Alternative/Fetish crowd goes, you'd better believe there's a website out there just for Goth singles. Why wouldn't there be?

Darkyria.com calls itself a "friendship and matching coven," but behind all the draped red velvet and heavy black eyeliner, it seems a lot like any other online dating site. Members can upload photos and “Send a Wink” if they see someone that they're interested in. There's even a "Dark Cupid" that can help match up Darkyria members. The website also has a World Map Seeker, so I guess if a member wanted to find a vampire in Pennsylvania instead of one in Transylvania, this would be the place find him!

And it's not just for "goths," but for the whole horror/sci-fi/fantasy/alternative/extreme music crowd. So if you're the only single vampire in Novinger, Missouri, there's somewhere for you to go!

I love the internet. There's a place for everyone!

This post brought to you by: Darkyria.com

Dreaming of A "Green" Christmas

Here in the Sunshine State, it's never really "Beginning to look a lot like Christmas." Instead, the warm weather means that the holidays sneak up on you. For example, the first Salvation Army bell-ringer I ever saw here was wearing shorts and a tank-top with her Santa hat. You'd never even know Christmas was on the way if it weren't for neighbors who decorate their yards with thousands of twinkling Christmas lights. (often in their palm trees-- also a little odd the first time you see it)

But this time, when I say "Green Christmas," I'm not talking about the Florida weather. This time, I'm talking about the Al Gore-type green. (And on a side note, did you catch Al Gore on "30 Rock" last week? His cameo was great! His best line? "A whale is in trouble! I have to go!" And then he removed his suit jacket a la Clark Kent. Good Stuff)

Those twinkle lights take up a lot of electricity. And in a place like Florida, where we're suffering from a nasty drought, there's a good chance that they could start a fire. Very un-Christmasy.

But, modern technology is making a better, greener Christmas. How? LED holiday lights! Light-emitting diodes use 1/10th of the energy of standard incandescent Christmas lights. Even better, they also create virtually no heat so they're safer, too.

And-- even if you don't care about the environment (and shame on you if that's the case), there's another benefit. If you're like me, you've always dreaded the day you put up the tree because of the remarkable pain in the tuckus that those light strings create. The bulbs break-- or fizzle out-- and suddenly, an entire string of lights doesn't work because of one cruddy bulb. Or, even worse, no matter how neatly you stored the light strings, they emerge from your basement/attic/closet in one giant tangled wad. I've been known to make a special trip to the store to buy a new light kit-- just so I wouldn't have to untangle the lights I already had.

Well, the folks who make these LED lights say they're nearly indestructable. And the wire? Tangle-resistant. Save the planet, save your sanity.

It's a Festivus Miracle!

This Post brought to you by: Holiday LEDs.com

Snap Attack

One of my coworkers has a digital picture frame at her desk with photos of her kids-- when she got it (last year for Christmas, I think), it was quite the novelty around the newsroom. We all oohed and ahhed for a while, mostly because that type of stuff is totally outside of our pay grade.

Every time I see it, it makes me think about how much digital cameras have completely changed our world. Ok... that sounded a little silly, I know. It's not like digital cameras have brought about world peace or anything.

But think about it... just about everyone has a cameraphone now. Remember when we were kids, and you weren't allowed to bring cameras into a concert? Imagine trying to police that rule now! You'd have to confiscate nearly every cell phone in the crowd!

And what about Drivers' Licenses? Remember when you had to wait 4-6 weeks to get your new license in the mail, only to discover that your eyes were closed? Or that there was a shadow across your face that made you look like you had a moustache? Now you can see that horrific picture in just minutes!

Cory and I have two digital cameras (aside from the ones on our phones). Mine is larger and takes better pictures, but I'm always afraid to take it anywhere. I don't want to bring it to an amusement park, for example, because it's a little too big and too nice.

Cory's camera came free when we signed our mortgage. It's much smaller (I can carry it in my purse, so I can take pictures any time I want), but the pictures it takes aren't as nice. And somehow we lost the software and the USB cable to connect it to our computer, so any time I want to remove pictures from it, I have to go to the store and use their photo computer, which is kind of a pain in the butt.

What I like most about our digital cameras is what some people like least about them-- you don't have any pictures. I'm okay with that. I have shoeboxes full of photos from film, and I rarely look at them. But if I have a digital picture I like, I can email it to my friends. Or I can make a print of it. Or, I can make it part of the new "Wordless Wednesday" here on the blog. Did you catch last week's picture of the Tiger and his meat kebab? I'd never been that close to a tiger before-- it was pretty cool!

I'm going to try to post more pictures on "Wordless Wednesdays"-- so I can show off a few more photos. I haven't figured out if I want to do some kind of theme yet-- we'll see. If you have any suggestions, let me know.

El Cheapo

That's me, El Cheapo.

Given any situation, I'll try to take the cheapest way out. When I bought brand-new custom-made pink golf clubs, I got them from a guy who makes golf clubs at the flea market. When I go on vacation, I take the cheapest direct flight I can possibly find... even if it means flying at 7:00 in the morning or 11:00 at night. When I rent a car, I use an online coupon for an academic fraternity that I wasn't even a member of.

The best? When a restaurant has an online club, I always sign up, because I know that somewhere, buried in all the spam I'll get in December, there'll also be a coupon for a free birthday meal. I heart a free birthday meal. Of course, I sign Cory up, too. That way, we eat for free in September and in December!

Now, I'm not so cheap that I'm willing to make a scene in a store, or demand a discount on something because "It looks like the box has been opened." I worked retail long enough to know how obnoxious those people are. But if I can find a legitimate way to get some money off without making an ass of myself, I'll do it.

That brings me to online shopping. I love to shop online because I don't have to deal with people, and because the prices are usually good enough that they balance out the shipping costs. And who doesn't like getting a package in the mail, right?

But the best part about online shopping-- is that you can always find coupons online if you're willing to hunt for them. Sometimes you can get 10% or more off, sometimes you can snag free shipping. I have a few favorite coupon-hunting websites-- And just today, I found another good website for Online Coupons. They have coupons for Sierra Trading Post, where I recently bought a couple of adorable skorts for golfing. That's right, I said "skorts." They're coming back in style... really! Oh-- and they also have Target.com coupons... which (I've discovered) comes in very handy when buying gifts on people's baby registries. They also have a bunch of stores and websites I've never even heard of before-- but with Christmas coming, I may have to check all of them out! They have an alphabetical listing-- so I might just have to start at the A's and work my way down!

It's funny to think of Christmas being on the way-- it's about 80 degrees and sunny here today. And we went to an outdoor concert two nights ago. Last year, Christmas totally snuck up on me... so I'd better start shopping now!

This post brought to you by: NC Natural.com

The Mist

When I was ten, I saw "The Shining." You know-- the one with creepy Jack Nicholson typing "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" over and over and over again.

It was, by far, the scariest movie I'd ever seen. I think it was probably at that moment that I understood the phrase "edge of your seat," because I was literally there for most of the movie. It still gives me the heebie-jeebies.

After that, I started reading a lot of Stephen King books-- and then becoming more and more disappointed every time I saw the film adaptations. I think the last straw was probably "Maximum Overdrive," which my friend Emma and I went to see in high school, mostly because Emilio Estevez was in it. Even a brat-packer couldn't disguise the fact that the movie was horrible, and at that point, I stopped reading King's books-- and swore off his movies.

But then, something happened. People started making good adaptations of King's novels (and novellas). Movies like "The Shawshank Redemption," and "The Green Mile." Movies I loved.

Today, I watched the trailers for The Mist by Stephen King and it looks pretty good. First of all, I love Marcia Gay Harden-- she's a great actress. The plot looks pretty cool, too. A weird mist envelops a small town, and traps a bunch of people in a supermarket. They're pretty sure there's something evil in the mist... but inside the market, there's a different kind of evil.

I haven't read King's novella, so I don't know what the payoff is. There's some shots of giant bugs and some kind of tentacled thing-- I hope the effects don't make the movie cheesy. I really like a good psycho-drama, and I hope this one doesn't disappoint me. At least, now that I've seen the trailer, I know it'll be better than "Maximum Overdrive." When you get a chance, check out the trailers online (The Mist by Stephen King). I'd like to hear what you think.

Sadly, Cory and I have only gone to about five movies since moving to Florida, so I'm not sure if we'll make it to this one. Sigh.

A girl can dream about a movie date with her husband, right?

Selling Out

Remember the first time your favorite band "sold out" to the man? Maybe it was when KISS did that god-awful disco album, "Dynasty." Ugh. Or when Metallica did an album of all covers? Or when Sugar Ray stopped doing hardcore punk... and then sold out again when lead singer Mark McGrath started hosting Extra?

Pretty bad, right? But then, at some point, you got older, and you thought to yourself "What's wrong with trying something different?" or maybe "They probably just needed the money."

So what's my point? I guess that I'm "Selling Out."

No, I promise I won't release a disco album. Though if I did, it would be damn good.

You may have noticed in the last month or so, I've done a couple of "sponsored posts." In blogger-speak, that means I've sold out. Blogging for fun and profit.

I don't even know how I found payperpost. I was just blog-surfing one day, and some blog I visited had a payperpost link, so I clicked, and the next thing I knew, I was signing up!

I'm still new to all of this, so I'm not quite sure where this is going. I mean, I know I'm not going to be an internet millionaire. Or even a thousandaire. I'm hoping for hundredaire. Maybe enough money to buy some Christmas presents-- or some new tile for the bathroom shower. Or that motion-sensor light at Lowe's I've had my eye on.

"But wait!" my loyal readers say. "What about us?" (I like to fantasize that I have loyal readers. Don't spoil my delusion.)

The way I see it, this will only improve my blogging. First of all, payperpost requires me to write at least one non-profit post for every "sponsored' post I write. Second, I promise to only write about things that I can relate to my own life... preferably with humorous anecdotes... or discussions of KISS doing disco.

Alzheimer's Awareness Month

This post brought to you by The Alzheimer's Foundation of America.

November is Alzheimer's Awareness Month-- And Alzheimer's Disease is something that I think about often.

A few years ago, my Nana passed away... but even before that, we watched her slowly fade. Even when I was a kid, she had some minor memory problems-- the type of stuff that people do all the time. She'd call me by my mother's name... or call my mother by someone else's name. We all do things like that on occasion, right?

Well, with my Nana, it just kept getting worse, and eventually, she was moved into a home. Talking to her on the phone was heartbreaking. As a woman who lived by herself well into her 80s, she didn't understand why she couldn't come and go as she pleased. She thought the nurses were stealing her clothes and purse. And one particularly sad night, she begged me to come rescue her-- even telling me which floor she lived on, which window was hers, and the best time to break into her room. It probably sounds funny-- let's face it, I'm not exactly Jack Bauer. But it was the most depressing phone call I'd ever experienced.

Alzheimer's terrifies me. Last year, my mom was having memory problems because of some medication she was on, and I was scared that it was already starting to happen to her. Hell, when I forget someone's name, I worry about myself.

So I try to be proactive about my memory. I've always liked doing stuff like brain teasers, sudoku and crosswords-- and I recently read that all of those things help to stimulate the neural paths in your brain, which in turn helps prevent dementia. The Alzheimer's Foundation of America has information on other steps you can take to keep your memory sharp (or as they put it, "Tips for Successful Aging"). Take a look at them, and tell others about them, too.

I'm even considering getting my memory screened-- not that I'm worried right now, but I figure having a baseline for comparison in the future wouldn't be such a bad thing. Since November is Alzheimer's Awareness month, there's also a National Memory Screening Day (November 13th), with sites across the country offering screenings during that week. If you're concerned about yourself-- or someone else, you should check out the list on the Alzheimer's Foundation website. I was pleased to see that there were several locations within a half-hour or so from us.

Of course, with the holidays coming, you can also contribute to the cause. The Alzheimer's Foundation allows you to donate in someone's honor or memory, or as a holiday gift. Prevention is always important-- and finding a cure would be fantastic-- but people suffering with Alzheimer's now can use some help, too.