Right now, I'm watching daytime television. The usual suspects, Oprah, Ellen, the World Series of Poker on ESPN, MacGuyver on TVLand... and then I see Metallica. Metallica, the lords of heavy metal, and one of the first bands I REALLY got into when I was a kid. Yep, there they are, Metallica, on my television. On the Jane Pauley show. I will say it again. Metallica is currently on the Jane Pauley show, talking about their experiences in therapy. I had to watch it, like slowing down to see a car wreck. I'm filing this away with Greedo shooting first in the "crapping on my fond childhood memories" hall of fame.

Then again, they're mostly over 40 now. Thank goodness they're not doing the same thing they were when they were 25. And while my initial shock and horror may never go away, it's funny how a certain part of me expects certain things to stay frozen in time.

SIck, sick, sick.

So here's the thing. I have a cold, a rather nasty one.

It's funny how I look forward to almost any chance to slack off at work, but laying in my bed or on the floor of my house aren't exactly what I had in mind. It's funny how the sniffles, a cough, and fever reduce me in age by 20 years and suddenly I'm seven and all I'm wanting is ginger ale with a straw and my blanky. What stinks is that I am missing work. At work I have to walk around a lot and be outside a bit, but if I had a normal desk job I could tough it out at my desk. So I guess I'll take the chance to redecorate my room, since I had the time to clean it yesterday... Any suggestions? Please, don't leave me to my own tastes as a black velvet painting of Elvis could look mighty appealing in my ill state.

errands

Been having a productive day. Went to the doctors to get my little friends in my back checked out... went to Fry's and priced out computer parts... and dropped a manuscript off at the post office (I've had the writing bug lately). And am now home before 11 am! I've done more before 11am on my day off than most people do on their lunchbreaks. But for me, it feels oh so productive. *grins*

Reflection

(I've been saving this post as a draft since sunday, trying to get the words right. Like with most of my college term papers, the "aw screw it, it's fine" point has been reached)

Ever have the feeling like you finally know what you've been doing wrong and why you're in the funk you've been in? But it's a little late in the game to prevent some of the side effects of your actions? This is the feeling I've been having the last couple of days.

I have an attitude problem. I often expect the worst out of people and creating unrealistic expectations on the people around me, so that when I'm disappointed I can turn around and say "there! I was right!" So when I went through the most recent breakup a month ago, the girl in question wanted to remain friends. This wasn't a scenario that I have a lot of familiarity with. I was distrustful and leaned on her to hard, while at the same time got uptight and stopped listening, the very things that make me appealing as a good friend in the first place. She got impatient and stressed over me and some other things going on in her life. I didn't take the time to get over the loss of a romantic relationship, and was perpetually wanting more out of a regular friendship, then both of us getting frustrated when neither of us were getting what we wanted.

The irony is that both of us set things up and made the choices we did because we both really did want to be friends, real friends. But sometimes when you try and force something, you break it. I sure hope that the damage isn't permanent, especially now that I can honestly say I get it. It's sadly funny that now when things have blown up and such that I finally take the chance to relax, take a deep breath, and really listen to what she was telling me... and realize that I don't know as much as I think I do.

I'm happy right now. For no other reason than I choose to be. Whoever is reading this, I sure hope you're happy too. Life really is beautiful when you look up at the clouds instead of focusing on the mud that's on your feet.

Question

When some girl from church brags about how good her "better than sex" chocolate cake is... what's she saying about how good sex with her is? That people might prefer chocolate cake to it?

Ju-On: The Grudge

"An evil curse and vengeful spirits seem to linger upon a house where the horrific murder of a woman and child took place and anyone who sets foot inside the house is marked for a terrifying haunting which will not rest. One by one, those who have been tainted by the house begin to die, and nowhere is safe." - imdb.com

This movie was made by the same crowd that made "Ringu" which was made stateside into a little movie called "The Ring". This may be excited afterglow, but this just might be the scariest movie I've ever seen. Yes, to my mind it was scarier than "The Shining". It cranked up the spooky suspense within the first 5 minutes and really didn't let up for the rest of the movie. Now I have to figure out how to find a good way to get the most recent ex to go see it before it's out of theaters, as the predecessor's adaptation is one of her favorite flicks. Seriousy, if you have a chance, go see this movie. Zan bruised my arm she was so scared. One of those nasty purple-blue-yellow bruises, too.

What was interesting is that they used a really wide variety of film and plot devices to get the audience reaction, instead of pushing the same button over and over like "What Lies Beneath" or "The 6th Sense". The plot has some holes, and since I speak Japanese I can pretty much tell you it's not a matter of translation... but I think part of the charm of the movie is the ambiguity that we don't know entirely why everything is happening, merely that when that little ghost kid shows up, someone's gonna buy the farm. Sadly, it looks like the American version is going to be starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, so I can't say that I have high hopes for it.

Gooood thinking, USA

In a flash of brilliance today, A London-to-Washington flight was diverted to Maine when it was discovered that passenger Yusuf Islam, formerly known as singer Cat Stevens, was on a government watch list and barred from entering the country.

This is a man, an artist, that has done nothing but speak out against terrorism and islamic extremism, and preach peace his entire life. He's on the FBI's watch list for apparently being famous and Muslim. Way to go, geniuses... let's alienate the very type of people we should be putting on the air to show we're at war with terror, not Islam.

I said something funny today:

Man from Australia: "Yeah, some places in America can be dangerous... but if anyone gets cheeky, I'll just lay a good Aussie slap on 'em"

Me: "ermmm... 'aussie slap' ? "

Man from Down Under: "Right, mate."

Me: "So that's what, about 75% of a regular American slap at the current exchange rate?"



hmm... maybe you had to be there.

"Oh God, where art thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place?"

(D&C 121:1-2)

As Shakespeare says, let us sit on the ground and tell sad stories about the death of kings. (Richard II) I can't be witty, or funny, or even so much myself when there's a large amount of turmoil inside me. I'm sorry if you're expecting something interesting or funny to read, I just don't have anything inside at the moment. We are experiencing technical difficulties, please stand by.