This is very wrong.... but funny

Worth it: full metal rudolph...

Television

I am a huge fan of Heroes, Lost, Battlestar Galactica, The Office and a few other finely written shows. I was bemoaning the possibility that there will be no winter episodes to watch because of the writers strike. Then this morning I was reading this article when it came to me: (as I am sure it has to many people) maybe the best thing to come out this would that I watch LESS TV. Don't get me wrong, I support the writers but it wouldn't be so bad if we turned the TV off more. That's my thought for the day.....

What a way to start the holidays

Gretchen's foray into the hospital sent me into a bit of a tailspin. I was all ready for Christmas then her week long hospital stay threw me out of the holiday mood. However I learned a lot from our mini-crisis. I learned (though begrudingly) not to take my child's feelings personally. I learned Steve and I handle stress differently. I knew that before but I really know that now and I'm thankful for it. I got calls from people I haven't talked to in some time (maybe it will open the lines of communication for us). Some of my friends were really there for us and they made me feel thankful. The gratitude I feel for them and for the help and support they gave us has put me back in the holiday spirit! So let the holidays come! I am ready again.

What trick or treating means to me....

She says "I dunno" when we ask but then she comes up with a better answer......

Shameless promotion but funny!

I'm sure this is for a movie or something of his but it's still funny:

Another Candidate Calculator

I stole this from the honestpartisan but I have posted one before he did...... Anyway, it's very interesting. Especially for some of you fence-sitters! Hee!

Quinoa?

Well, in my short years as a vegetarian (2 to be exact), I never got around to trying this grain but the bag I had in my pantry kept staring me in the face. When my boredom with my current list of meals safe for Weight Watchers sets in, it inspires me to try something new..... Last night my family got a taste. Of course Gretchen wasn't interested (it will take several times before I can get her to eat it. Steve and I liked it just fine. Good alternative to rice. It looks like couscous but is softer in texture with a very slight touch of chewyness. All in all it was pretty good and it's good for you. Here's what wikipedia had to say:
"Quinoa was of great nutritional importance in pre-Columbian Andean civilizations, being secondary only to the potato, and followed in third place by maize. In contemporary times this crop has come to be highly appreciated for its nutritional value, as its protein content (12%–18%) is very high. Unlike wheat or rice (which are low in lysine), quinoa contains a balanced set of essential amino acids for humans, making it an unusually complete foodstuff. This means that unlike wheat protein, one does not need to supplement it with complementary foods such as legumes containing the other essential amino acids. It is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten free and considered easy to digest. Because of all these characteristics, quinoa is being considered as a possible crop in NASA's Controlled Ecological Life Support System for long-duration manned spaceflights.^[5]"

Candidate Calculator!

Someone forwarded this to me and I just couldn't resist. Which candidate are you likely to vote for based on the issues?

I found the magic bullet for losing weight!

Starve yourself.....

No, just kidding. Not that I'm losing a ton of weight but it does seem like keeping busy and avoiding boredom (by not watching tv, eating, drinking alcohol) helps in my efforts. Though I do miss just watching tv by myself while Steve is at school and Gretchen is sleeping. I will have to make some time to lie around... Hee!

....I wanna go here

...goes to most peaceful place to put your rump
Originally uploaded by Seen Thru My Eyes

Look nice doesn't it?

fairy toadstools

fairy toadstools
Originally uploaded by algo

This is such a weird picture - for some reason it made me think of Pan's Labyrinth (movie) that we just saw this past weekend.

Facebook Frenzy

I got on the web 2.0 train at the beginning of the year and I never thought I would get anyone to use the sites I was on (facebook, flickr, myspace, blogger). And so I didn't try too hard but in the last month, it seems like Facebook took off. I finally got some friends on it and they got some friends on it, and so on and so on. I like Facebook way more than twitter and myspace. The CEO of Facebook is in his 20s! It will be interesting to see where all this goes...

Other than blowing my free time on Facebook, I've been working on my music collection. Steve and I both have iPods now (replacing other brands). I am not a huge fan of iTunes but I'm adjusting. Between ripping CDs to our iPods and answering trivia questions on Facebook my ass has left a serious imprint on my computer chair. With school coming (3 hour lectures once a week), it's not going to get better. I haven't found anything interesting to post lately but I'm sure something will turn up. I'm avoiding politics right now but with the anniversary of 9/11 upon us, I'm sure something will get my attention.

Weight Watchers is a cult

says my friend Kris yet she and I drag our fat asses to Saturday's "cult" meeting for the weekly weigh in. Whatever they are, it works for me. I am always amazed when I realize it's not that hard to eat "healthy". I LIKE vegetables! Why can't I do it all the time - I dunno. Character deficiency? I'm a fat slob? Well, I do eat when I'm bored, upset, drunk or hungry..... Hmm.... My problem is I like to eat pizza and not just a little of it (plus I wash it down with beer). I like to have a Crown and Coke or two on the weekend... I can still do those things but not like it's my last day on earth..... Wish me luck....

The internet is dead and boring?

I don't agree with this guy at all but maybe I was slow to warm up to Web 2.0 tools. I don't think so but maybe.....

I had a crush on Obama

If you haven't seen Obama Girl's video on youtube yet, go see that first and then check this out - it's very funny.

How to Interview a Celebrity

Anyone who knows me well knows I get a lot of magazines. Before I had Gretchen, I received Time, Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, Fitness, etc. So I have read a lot of interviews.... This guy's advice to inspiring journalists on how to interview a celebrity seems spot on to me.... Enjoy!

I love summer and I love when it's over

It's ironic that I spend most of March and April hoping for warm weather so we can open the pool, plant the garden, finish school for the quarter, etc. It seems like we have a great July and then by this time of year, I'm already looking at the garden and what should be cut down NOW. It doesn't help that my beautiful vegetable garden looks like it's had enough too. We had a banner week of produce. I am so proud!

Guilty Pleasure

O Little Town
Originally uploaded by Mike Schmid

While I'm enjoying summer immensely - for a very, very little flicker of a second, part of me cannot wait for Christmas!

Crackberry Indeed

From Information Week (though I stole it from my DePaul professor's blog - too good not to):

On top of the recent posting about 4 billion SMS messages per month comes the an AOL survey about mobile e-mail use. Among the findings...

• 59% of those with mobile devices check e-mail every time it arrives in their in-boxes
• 43% of respondents said they keep their mobile devices nearby when they're sleeping to listen for incoming mail
• 15% of respondents described themselves as
  "addicted to e-mail," with many planning their vacations in places
  where they'll be able to access it
• 83% admit to checking their e-mail on vacation
• 59% of people said they check e-mail in bed, 53% in the
  bathroom, 37% while they drive, and 12% admitted to checking e-mail in
  church

Which of these do you do?

8 Strangest Web Communities...

Great article! The ice chewers is my favorite. Having played Second Life for a class project - I agree with the comments made there.

Incubus Chicago July 25th

2007_07_22_Incubus@STL_ (34)
Originally uploaded by hyphen1982

Incubus played the Charter One Pavilion last night - it was great. The venue was outside on the lake front by the Adler Planetarium. Very nice.

It's interesting to me how married people switch roles and become more like each other. This little jaunt to watch a concert, outside with the lake breezes inspired Steve to bring up the "let's move to Evanston" conversation. I don't know when we switched roles but Steve wants to live in the city and I want to stay in the suburbs (sort of). I can't say why Steve wants to move back to Evanston but I know why I do. I picture Gretchen walking down the sidewalk to the store, to a street fair, to an ethnic restaurant, etc. Or hopping the L to the Blues fest or Taste of Chicago. Those are the things I remember most fondly about my childhood. And while I like the Gurnee area, it can't compete with that. White bread city with minimal amount of sidewalks (thank God for Hayashi's sushi restaurant).... To move would take work (pay off debt so we can afford a house in Evanston). I would want a closer job. And I would have to undo all the work it took for me to feel like home where I'm at. But maybe it's worth it..... When the wind is blowing across you face on a beautiful summer night on the lake with one of your favorite bands playing.... Hmm.

Going to See Incubus

incubus {brandon boyd
Originally uploaded by jdg4

on Wednesday - can't wait

Digital vs Film

Since Gretchen was born, I have neglected my film camera. It was just easier to use the point and shoot digital camera for baby pictures. Sadly it wasn't even a slow transition - it was overnight. Our Canon Sureshot takes a good picture so it was easy for me to forget how great my film SLR was. I was looking at pictures on Flickr and was inspired to go use up all the old film I have (expires Oct 07). This weekend I loaded my Canon Rebel Ti with film and started using it again. I want a digital Rebel but my film camera will have to do........

Tool

Maynard James Keenan
Originally uploaded by Gus Greeper

was very good last night. Saw them at the Sears Centre.

Today was a rainy day

Today was a rainy day
Originally uploaded by .Vega

So I took some time to explore Flickr more. What is Flickr you ask? You should check it out. I found this great Ramblas shot there. Makes me miss Barcelona. Steve and I walked many walks like this.

ASUG Weekend

This past weekend I was at the ASUG annual Volunteer Meeting. ASUG is America's SAP Users Group. It's a networking and education group where SAP users from different companies across North America can network and learn about from one another. I volunteered again this year so I had to go the planning meeting they have to develop our content for the year. I met a great group of people. The team I am working with already know each other but they were very nice to me. I hope I am helpful to them in getting things done this year!

It's funny - I was telling Steve my fear of disappointing my group and he just sighed. He said I am still the A student (trying very hard) and he's still a C student even though we are no longer in high school. (though he forgot I am in school).

School's out for summer!

I have finished my last class for the summer. I have 4 more classes to finish my masters at DePaul University. I am so close to being done but it feels very far away.

I decided to start working on my own personal blog since some things I put on Gretchen's blog don't have to do with Gretchen. I will use this for personal and professional discussion I guess. If they get too personal, maybe I add another one. We'll see.

About Me

I'm working on a project for school regarding social networking where I will discuss LinkedIn. While most of my posts about my life revolve around my daughter, I didn't want to put her blog as my blog on LinkedIn so here I am with another blog. Should be interesting! Maybe I can get my friends to post here though most of them are busy too!