When The Boss is Away...

this is what happens.

The saddest part is the broken, pink, sparkly M in the bottom left corner (I geuss the little silver, sparkly tiara and pink "PH" were never recovered).  It was hidden amongst a sea of "W"'s in the Planet Hollywood gift store in Vegas.  The one little trinket I, for whatever reason, needed to be sure to purchase.  I guess it's more important that the key was found, but I loved my little "M".

Is this Really Necessary?

I may have already gone off on a tangent about this during the life of this blog, but I'm far too lazy to go back and find out.  So, if I have and you remember it, go ahead and skip reading this.
T and I were out running around this afternoon looking for dresser knobs (exciting, I know), I was flipping radio stations when I heard the beginning strains of Forever Young.  I love this song.  I've listened to it forever.
and so here is the  point of my rant.  I hate remixes and remakes.  The Alphaville song I thought I stumbled upon was a remix AND a remake.  I have no idea who did it or why, but I was not amused.  Not only had it been made into some sort of a dance tune, there was some sort of rapping in the middle of it.
I don't know why songs need to be remade.  I know people have songs they grew up listening to and think that just because they are an "artist" they can remake the song, make it their own and call it an homage or a tribute or whatever.  But how many remakes are actually better than the original?? In my books, one.
Ok, now I don't know every remake made and maybe a song I love is actually a remake I don't know about, but for right now I claim only one remake as being better.  Maybe it's because I don't care for the original artist...I don't know, I'm not a huge fan of the remake artist either, and why I like the song in general is beyond me, but I do.  It's Suspicious Minds by Dwight Yokam.  I know, SHOCK!  Everyone knows I hate country music, but for some reason beyond me I enjoy this song by him.  I don't like the Elvis original, but let Dwight put his twist on it and voila!
Some of the worst remakes I've heard:

• Life is a Highway by Rascal Flatts...ugh it makes me vomit a little in my mouth every time I hear it.  Tom Cochran's original is a million bazillion gajillion times better.  Don't fight me on this, it just is.
• American Woman by Lenny Kravitz...just listen to the Guess Who
• Come on Eileen by Save Ferris.  Why on earth would anyone need to remake this??
• Sweet Dreams by Marilyn Manson.  Really, you think you can top the Eurythmics?? I think not.
• American Pie by Madonna.
• I'm a Believer by Smash Mouth
• Big Yellow Taxi by Counting Crows

Plus a plethora of more, but those are just some that make me hurry and turn the channel!  I know I have left some good ones off my list and there are some remakes I like, not as much as the original though and like I said I probably love some songs not even knowing they are remakes.  I do love the New Order remake of Blue Monday, but it was a remake of their own song....so does that even count?

So what remakes do you hate/love?

Say It Ain't So

While all of the news seems to be focused on the Saints winning the Super Bowl (good for you Saints!)...this is what caught my eye.

Howard Stern Confirms 'Idol' Talks

Howard Stern told his satellite radio listeners on Monday that he is considering leaving Sirius -- and radio altogether -- to become a judge on "American Idol."

Stern confirmed a report that Fox is interested in hiring the Sirius shock jock to replace Simon Cowell on the reality show.

(full article at www.msn.com)

If this happens...I will stop watching Idol. I know, I know, who cares it's American Idol? But it's a fun show and they do have some talented people sometimes, even if it is frustrating when people remain on the show longer than they should because they are cute or have a sad backstory. Regardless, I like Idol and I hate Howard Stern. Granted, I have never met the man, so I hate the Howard Stern I have been presented with (maybe he is a lovely man in person, but I am okay with never meeting him). Do they really think he would be the best choice to replace Simon? You will never replace Simon of course, but couldn't they at least try to find someone a little more appealing to the public? Some one with a little bit of experience in the music business, whether it be they are a singer/musician or they sign acts, write songs, etc.? Sure Ellen Degeneres isn't in the biz, but she does love music and she has said she will be more of a people's voice than a music critic. But when you take the one person who has signed huge acts, written hit songs, and has major credit in the business and replace him with Stern?? That makes no sense other than they want someone with an acerbic tongue.

Anyway...just my thoughts for a Monday morning.

On a positive note, I am excited for the start of the Olympics this Friday!! T and I have our sweatshirts all ready to break out and wear and root for the home team!! Even though she kind of has two home teams...I won't let her know that until she's older! Until then Go Canada!!

A&E, I Heart You.

I am a big fan of A&E's show Intervention. I think it is a great window into addictions of any kind. From drugs, to alcohol, to shopping, to overeating; anything is game. Nothing is made to look pretty, or be hidden. It is the life of the person, and their family, for everyone to see. Anyone who watches this show and continues to do, or begins to do, drugs of any kind, must have watched with their eyes closed. Last night's episode was one of the best I have seen. Two brothers addicted to more than drugs, to each other. Talk about co-dependency.

Now, A&E has a new show, Hoarders. Unbelievable. I couldn't turn it off. Last night's episode focused on a family with the wife a compulsive shopper and the husband a hoarder. They were in danger of losing their children due to the condition of their home. There was not a single inch of floor visible, they ate meals on the bed because it was the only available surface, the kids climbed on desks and dressers to get to their beds and toys. Their front porch was the spill-off area for things that couldn't fit in the house (I think there was a bathtub on the porch), and the yard housed much more (such as a unattached/unusable deck).

The other woman the show followed was also a hoarder, but a food hoarder. Her landlord had given her an ultimatum of clean up or be evicted. She had numerous rotting pumpkins and other gourds in her home, 6 month old yogurts in her fridge, bags upon bags of rotting apples in her living room and probably many things that could not be identified. At one point, she found a rotting cabbage, peeled back the outer leaves, seeping with juices and mold, revealing leaves with their original purple colour. She then proceeded to put the cabbage back in the bag saying it was now completely edible. I think I threw up a little at this point, even the professionals had to leave the room after opening a drawer in the fridge that housed rotting, seeping meat. One professional said he had never smelled anything as wretched in his whole career of helping people. Every item of packaged food, unless it was puffed out, was to be kept; Sour Cream could never be bad since it is already sour. This woman did not like to think that food would be wasted and that most people were afraid of the expiration date, as many foods are perfectly edible long past that arbitrary date.

Like Intervention, the bring in a team to help the people..organizers, cleaners, psychologists, whatever it takes to help, if they want the help. The couple were able to get their house organized and de-junked and avoid having their children taken away from them. The food hoarder was able to avoid eviction so long as she continued to make progress on cleaning out her house. The teams are only given 2 days to get in and make a difference...I figure they must not sleep in those 2 days because I don't think I could get it done in 2 weeks.

I think this might be my new favourite show...so long as I can stomach it. Check it out, Monday nights, A&E, you won't be disappointed.

Monday's Musings

Does anyone watch Entertainment Tonight? Or any of the celeb trash shows?

If you do watch these shows, do you admit it to people? I used to watch ET back in the day, maybe 15 years ago (ugh), but the only time I see it now is when I am changing the channel to catch my daily Wheel of Fortune fix.

I think John Tesh had the good sense to jump ship, yet somehow the show just keeps rolling ahead. Is it really any better than the tabloid magazines, Perez Hilton or TMZ? From the glimpse I got of last Friday's show, and the blatant exploitation of Michael Jackson's death, I would vote no. When did we get so obsessed with celebrity that obviously made up claims, assumptions and accusations overshadow the real news stories of the world. I admit, I like me some celebrity gossip, but when it strays over the line into inappropriateness or bad taste, I shut it down. When David Carridine died, I couldn't believe the "stories" these shows put together on the situation. Does the public really need to know the sordid details. These people have families, let them grieve without public scrutiny and prying eyes.

Obviously people are watching and reading otherwise, ET, Access Hollywood and all of the others would fade away nicely. I confess that I used to read Perez Hilton's website, but I gave it up because it seemed to be one of the best examples of hypocrisy I could give. Now, after his altercation in Toronto with wil.i.am...I guarantee you I will never type his website address again.

Anyway, just my rant for today. Nothing mind busting or important, just my two cents.

Day One

Got off to a good start today, only ate half of a brownie at the BBQ!! I even got in a trip to the gym when we got home.

Of course they have to put a McDonald's AND a Dairy Queen right across the street from the gym...but I succeeded and drove right on home. Oh but how good a soft serve cone, or a blizzard or a chocolate dipped cone would have tasted after a day outside in the sun.

One down...many more to go.

All the News That's Fit

• Ok, so he won. No, not him, him.
• The cops in MN are looking for a kid and his Mom who fled the state to avoid having chemo. The kid doesn't want it, he's 13, his parents agree. Why is the state so bent on bringing him back? He's old enough to understand that without chemo he will probably die, but he wants to try some other alternative methods. He's 13, not 3, he knows the risks. If it was all his parents idea then yes, step in, but come on, aren't there more serious things happening that require police time and effort?
• TV channels are introducing their fall line ups. Eli Stone and Pushing Daisies get cancelled, but NBC made another season of I'm a Celeb, Get Me Out of Here? AND cancelled Medium?? Tragedy. Luckily CBS picked Medium up.
• It was 97 degrees here the other day...I hate the heat.
• LOST was AWSOME. Now I have to wait until January or February to find out what happened AND it'll be the last season. I am stocking up on anti-depressants and kleenex now.
• Facebook is lame. Can anyone explain to me it's purpose/relevance? And while you're at it, explain to me why I keep logging on and checking my profile?
• SYTYCD starts tonight...wooot wooot! I should be on that show.
• How does anyone know how to go about obtaining a surface-to-air missile?? I wouldn't know the first person to talk to about that, maybe it's just me.

North vs North

The wee one and I will be heading off for an international escape tomorrow...wish me luck on the drive, any hints for well behaved 10 month olds in a car for 7 hours would be welcomed! Perhaps I will treat you all to some foreign words of wisdom as we explore all that the great motherland has to offer, well that which is located in our city anyway.Hopefully the spouse survives without us...as I suspect he will, albeit with dirty dishes and unwashed clothing! But survival nonetheless. Perhaps he will keep our readers occupied with his political blatherings, sports statistics or random ventings since there will be no one here censor or shut down such ideas!!

To the North!!

Midnight Writings

Last night, after almost an hour of trying to get someone to go back to sleep at 1:30AM, I laid in bed writing blogs in my head. They were good too. Well written, funny, witty, almost certain to bring about my impending blogosphere celebridom. I contemplated going out to the computer to post them, but my responsible side won out and told me to stop thinking so much and just go to bed. and of course, once I woke up this morning, did I remember any of these wickedly awesome blogs? No. Well, sort of, but not well enough to jot them down. Dang it! It was like literary magic flowing from my brain....blogary magic anyway. Perhaps sometime during the day I will remember them, but I doubt it. In the meantime I'll be working on my "ode" to Adam Lambert.

False Idols

Sorry Mark...your blog needed to be pushed down a few!! :o)

Not that I have anything important to say - we just needed a change of scenery.

So. Idol. What's up?
I've kind of been on the Gokey train since the beginning. I won't say he is the world's best singer, but he is darn good and I like him. After last night though, I am thinking about de-boarding said train. It's no secret I am not a fan of country music, I don't hide it. It's no bigger secret that I don't like Rascal Flatts. It's no mammoth sized secret that I detest that song he sung last night. I will admit that as soon as I hard him say he was going to sing it, I cringed; however I am a benefit of the doubt kind of person, so I stuck around...for about 15 seconds of the song, just until the vomit started to creep into my throat and then I hit fast forward (thank you DVR). I'm sorry, I don't care how good of a singer you are (and sorry RF fans - which would be the entire group of my in-laws) that song is just wrong. I've hated it since the first time I heard it...which wound up being about 30546732098520547092580249824671851 times with radio overkill. Danny won't go home tonight, and I still like him, but Danny, no more RF, okay?
Megan - go home. That's all that needs to be said.
Adam - we like you, just dial it down a notch. A tad theatrical for Idol. I do think he might pull off an awesome Queen song though. I think he might be able to reach some of the notes that Freddie could hit. Think about it. Just don't do Bohemian Rhapsody. Also, I would have gone with some Vanilla Ice, Ice Ice Baby last night instead of That Funky Music.
Scott - sorry bud I think you're next on the go home path, right behind Megan.
Kris - Understatedly (is that a word?) good. I'm going to see some more life in you though.
Alison - you rock! Last week's Papa Was a Rolling Stone was awesome. This week, not as good. You better not go home. If you do, we might see the judges pull out the save card.
Lil - always good. I want to see her do an upbeat, newer tune. No Mary J Blige though because when she does, she will draw the inevitable critique of trying to imitate her and not make it Lil's. Even though the judges told her to sing Mary.
Matt - come on Matt! Last week was great. I didn't think this week was as bad as the judges thought, but it wasn't as good as last week. Matt needs to pimp it out. Maybe some Prince. That would be cool.
Anoop. Oh Anoop. I really, really like you. You've got to stop having awesome weeks followed by crappy weeks. Maybe sing some Boyz To Men or try some Maroon 5. I'd like to hear that.
Actually I'd like to hear Matt sing some Adam Levine too. Maybe Lil could do some justice to a Prince song as well. Prince night would be awesome.
On a more pressing note...why are there even judges? Their jobs are moot. Since it's the peoples vote, their opinions are solely blowing hot air. Paula's might be laced with Helium. They all say the same thing over and over dawg. There's no artistry, but you look really pretty tonight, even if it was reminiscent of a hotel lounge singer.
If you're going to have judges why not use them?? Let the people vote in the bottom 3, let them sing for survival and let the judges have the final say. If not, just put some cute kitties in those judges chairs and give them a ball of string to bat around. Makes about as much sense, right?
And what in the world is up with Paula's outfits? It looks like she's raided the 1987 closet of prom dress rejects. Generously, she decided to share her findings with Alison last night. Alison, don't go back into that closet.
Anyway, that's just my opinion.

Wednesday Rants

Here is my daily rant. I don't usually blog my rants otherwise they'd take over this blog...but here's what's on my mind today.

I am sure some people would call me a feminist. I wouldn't agree with them, completely. Feminists wouldn't call me a feminist, but I do feel strongly about equality.
Here's where my rant comes in. I guess March is Women's History Month, never knew. My first thought is why is their a month for women's history month? Why not have it all year mixed in with all the other history? Like Black History month, I think history should be history...teach it all year round, have a section on it in school, don't single it out otherwise we'll run out of months. It should be a regular part of school's curriculum.
OK, I am going off my train of thought here.
There were some quiz questions on one of the morning shows about women and their history (first woman to be a Democratic presidential candidate, etc.), one of the questions was "For every dollar a man earns, how much does a woman earn?" The answer was less, my brain has gone blank...I think it was like 70 odd cents per dollar a man earns. To me there should be no pay difference for men and women who do the same job and have the same job experience. Obviously there will be differences if a man is a doctor and a woman is a teacher...that happens, but if they are both teachers, teaching in the same school, with the same experience, they should be paid the same. One other point the show brought up was that less than 7% of the Fortune 500 earners were women. Sure that seems low, but in the workforce what is the percent of working men vs. working women? If only 3 out of 10 workers are women then of course there will be more men earning the bigger pay checks. Did they stop to think that women are more likely to work part time or to leave the workforce if they have children? I get frustrated when columnists, journalists, celebs, whoever start talking about how there needs to be more women in politics, more blacks in CEO level jobs, more Asians in movies, more Canadians in the MLB...whatever. Here's my thing with it all - if people aren't applying for these jobs how can we hire them? Maybe a woman doesn't want to run for office, do we pick an unqualified woman just to have better diversity? What if a Black man doesn't want to be the head of a company... if people do not enter these fields they can't be hired! It's not brain surgery folks. If an employer had two resumes in front of them and one was a man and one a woman and the woman had a better record, more experience, etc., I would think she would be hired (maybe that's the feminist, commie liberal in me, right Mark?), not because they need a woman to look diverse but because she is the best candidate. I don't know what the big fuss is...even if you don't agree with Obama, he is a Black man and the US President. Do you really think he was elected just because he is Black and the US had yet to have a Black president? I sure hope not because that would be stupid and dangerous. May be I am a little too believing in people, and give too many people the benefit of the doubt, but in this day and age I just don't think people base their hiring decisions on race, gender....it's about experience and qualifications. I'm just tired of this "we need more Asians in DC, we need more Women in science, we need..." Well if you need them, start making the rounds at schools and get these kids interested. I guarantee you that if Women, Blacks, Asians, Koreans, Brazilians...whoever, get involved more, you will see more minorities in all of these arenas.
In the end, it comes down to this, you can't hire those who aren't applying. And if you do the same job you should definitely get the same pay.
And those are my two cents. Hopefully it made some sense because it did in my head!

Am I Too PC?

Alright bloggers I need your help.

If I was to get a laptop (and I want one) convince me why I should get a Mac or a PC. I am not that computer tech savvy, so to me it makes no difference. I don't need one for anything specific. I am not a graphic design nut, or a gaming freak; I use the computer for Internet travels, blogging, uploading pictures...typical stuff.
Share with me why you love/hate your PC or Mac. I'm not one to follow ship just because... so tell me why I should. What's the major differences between the two? Does one do my dishes? Can I program my DVR from one? Will Paul Walker personally deliver it to my door? Or is it just personal preference? Dell does have some cool looking notebook options, and that touch screen HP looks awesome (but a bit pricey for what I want a laptop for)...so dish! See if you can persuade me to your side!

March Migraines

• when Ryan tells us we'll have at least two hours to vote. What does that mean? Will I have 2 hours, or will it be 3? Do east coasters get more time?
  
• when Alison tells contestants they have to lose more than 14 pounds. Why doesn't she say they have to lose 15 pounds to take the lead? Or at least 15 pounds? If I lose 14.1 pounds do I win?
  
• why people leave a teaspoon of milk in the jug. Why don't you just finish it off?? Is there already that much milk in your bowl? Or do you just want to annoy me? Same goes for any beverage in any container. (You know who you are)
• awesome shirts that you want to buy that are just a smidge too small and the stores that don't carry the bigger size. Curses on these stores!
• people who talk to you loudly when they can see you're trying to get a cranky wee one to take a nap. Do you think your voice is going to lull her to sleep??
• never-ending senate races. Would you please stop it already?? By the time this gets settled, it'll be time for a new election.
• octomom. And whoever gave her that stupid moniker. Could we please stop discussing her and everything related to her?
• the uproar over sleeveless. Who cares if Michelle Obama wears a sleeveless dress? Now if she wore daisy dukes...then I might understand.
• why does the Today Show have to have so many commercials?
  

An Open Letter

Dear Abby,

I am writing this to express my disbelief, anger, frustration, and utter loss of words.
I have tried for many hours and days to figure out just why you do this, but have come up empty handed. Is it a brain dysfunction? A lack of consideration? A night filled with boozing it up? Or perhaps you're just a pure and simple idiot. I am willing to wager on the latter.
There is NO good reason, no circumstance so dire, that a telephone call must be placed at 3:00AM or 4:00 AM, or at any hour after 10:30PM. None. You will never convince me. I have even told my Mother repeatedly, "Do not call me if someone is hurt, dies or has a child between the hours of 11:00PM and 6:00AM." Yes, that might sound cruel, but what am I going to do? I don't live in any form of close proximity to my family (immediate or extended), so at 2:00AM, all I can do is lose sleep, cry or be angry. I am of no good. Call me at 6:00AM when my brain will be functioning properly and if I have to leave I can either get a flight relatively soon ,or I can hop in my car and drive.
Even worse than an early morning phone call informing you of the birth of your new twin nieces, is the wrong number/drunk/stoned person calling. Those people called us twice in the last 4 days. Actually there were 3 calls; The first call I couldn't get to fast enough, so they called right back, sending a text to land line (you can do that?). My biggest problem with this call was that the person was calling back because they didn't recognize our number when we had called earlier and left this person a VOICEMAIL. Here's a thought - instead of calling someone back at 3:00AM to ask "this number called my cell, who is this?", why not check the voicemail that was left?!! Novel idea, I know. The third call was last night on the cell phone. Nothing better than the T-mobile jingle in your ear at 4:00AM. Idiot with a wrong number. Just who are you calling at 4:00AM anyway?
I realize I am probably over reacting, but it bugs me to no end!! One time we had a guy call, obviously drunker than a skunk who insisted on a conversation - even inviting us to come hang out with him (um, no thanks!)...he would not get off the phone. We hung up, and he called back! Idiot. In the hours of daylight and a few hours or so to ponder, I know in the scheme of things there are many worse things to experience...but at this time in my life, I love sleep and I love every minute that I can get. So when that is disrupted, I wind up going out to the couch because I am so angry that I can't sleep (and nothing is on TV at that time), only to have the wee one wake up an hour later. Not a good day in this household!!
On top of the annoyance, these situations can be more serious. Okay, so no one will be killed or maimed, but injuries could be sustained. A sleep deprived, glasses-less woman running from the bedroom to the kitchen in the pitch dark is the perfect set-up for an accident!
So if you're ever thinking of calling us, or anyone, beyond the hour of 10:30...think twice before you press send. Maybe I'm just old, but usually I'm not up for chit chat at 3:00AM.
Would you give your good readers a little refresher in consideration and good manners for me?

Thanks for listening,
Don't Call Me Past 10:30 CST.

Is There An Interpreter In The House?

In an attempt to lighten up the blog and resume my duties of celeb craptainment blogger, I found this pretty amusing piece, courtesy of www.abcnews.com. It's pretty hard-hitting, journalist award worthy stuff here...okay, not in the least, but it definitely made me laugh out loud a couple times!! Oh celebs...why some people try to emulate you, I'll never know.

"Every time I'm not wearing my ring, people think I'm getting divorced. That's crazy! It just didn't go with the dress. Divorce is not -- and was never -- an option." -- Actress Jennifer Lopez to In Touch magazine, Jan. 11, 2009, on her marriage to singer Marc Anthony. This is her third marriage. She has been divorced twice-- to Ojani Noa and dancer Cris Judd.

"So, where's the Cannes Film Festival being held this year?" -Christina Aguilera, 2000, to the cast of "Saturday Night Live" backstage

"I think gay marriage is something that should be between a man and a woman." - Arnold Schwarzenegger, 2003, in an interview with radio host Sean Hannerty during the California gubernatorial campaign

"The Holocaust was an obscene period in our nation's history. I mean in this century's history. But we all lived in this century. I didn't live in this century." - Dan Quayle, Sept. 15, 1988 during a press conference in Moore, Okla., in answer to a question on the Holocaust

"I can see Russia from my house!" -- Comedian Tina Fey impersonating Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on "Saturday Night Live," broadcast Sept. 13, 2008

"When I pictured heroin, I pictured some crazy crackhead with no shoes under a bridge. You never think that is going to be you. And it never was me. I was never under a bridge, and I always had shoes." - Nicole Richie, 2007, Nylon magazine

"I can't really remember the names of the clubs that we went to." -- Shaquille O'Neal on whether he had visited the Parthenon during his visit to Greece in 1994 to Sports Illustrated

"What's Wal-Mart? Do they like make walls there?" -Paris Hilton, 2003, on show "The Simple Life"

"I think the 'Clueless' movie was very deep. I think it was deep in the way that it was very light. I think lightness has to come from a very deep place if it's true lightness." -Alicia Silverstone, 2000 to the Sunday Telegraph. She was nominated for Britain's annual Foot in Mouth award, honoring the celebrity who makes the most baffling verbal statement.

"It's really hard to maintain a one-on-one relationship if the other person is not going to allow me to be with other people." -Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses, 1989, Rolling Stone

"Too many ob-gyns aren't able to practice their love with women across this country." -President George W. Bush, Sept. 6, 2004, while discussing malpractice lawsuit reforms

"All of a sudden you're like the Bin Laden of America. Osama bin Laden is the only one who knows what I'm going through." -R. Kelly, 2003, after a court hearing on charges of child pornography

"Smoking kills. And if you're killed, you've lost a very important part of your life." -Brooke Shields, 1982, during interview to become spokeswoman for a federal anti-smoking campaign

"I love religion. I remember whenever the book "The Da Vinci Code" came out, the Discovery Channel did this three-night piece on it that I TiVoed and then watched eight times." - Jessica Simpson in 2009, Marie Claire magazine

"Maybe 100." -- Sen. John McCain, in a January 2008 town hall meeting in Derry, N.H., discussing how many years U.S. troops could remain in Iraq.

"All of them, any of them that have been in front of me over all these years." -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, responding to a request by CBS anchor Katie Couric to name the newspapers or magazines she reads, broadcast Oct. 1, 2008.

"I get to go overseas places, like Canada."' -Britney Spears in 1999, to the Toronto Star, when asked about the perks of fame.

I think Dan Quayle's quote is my favourite, but Axl, R.Kelly and Brit-Brit...you all made me chuckle and shake my head a little too. Thanks for the fodder!

What Brings You By?

When randomly checking the blog, I usually peruse the little counter at the bottom to see if I have made it to the celeb blogosphere level yet (I haven't) and also to see where traffic is coming from. Sometimes I recognize the traffic, most of the time I don't. Since the blog is listed on our facebook accounts, I realize any number of people can pop in and see what we're complaining about, but I wonder just what brings people by? With the exception of known blog readers (which seems to be dwindling... ahem!) who are probably checking in to see if we've relented and posted pics of T on here so they don't have to log in to the private blog, what brings someone from Vught, Noord-Brabant to our blog? (Where is Vught, Noord-Brabant anyway??)

I looked a little deeper, and it seems certain blog entries get much more google search results than others and it just makes me curious as to what these folks searching for and why my blog comes up as a result?

Here are a few that seem to get the most traffic:

• is it the bow? (this seems to get THE most traffic)
• such awesome times of the year?
• the logo? (this gets rank #2)
• their faces?

And here are a few of the places people are dropping in from:

• Miami
• Alberta
• California
• Alabama
• Tokyo
• Bethlehem
• Vinkovci, Vukovarsko-Srijemska
• Anoual, Nador
• Petaling Jaya, Wilayah Persekutuan
• Pennsylvania
• Oregon
• Portici, Campania
• Montesilvano, Abruzzi

...and a myriad of other places. What's interesting to me is that a lot of these very foreign (Bethlehem!!) searchers seem to be drawn to our blog all because of that blasted baby in a headband! Perhaps baby headbands are even more rampant outside North America!
I guess long after I'm gone I'll be remembered for my hatred of baby headbands, especially those larger than the baby itself, and for breaking crock pots.

Sounds of the Season

So I guess it's time for the obligatory post-Christmas post.

Why does it seem like Christmas was 6 months ago already? There is so much lead up time and then it is over just like that! We were able to drag it out a little with Christmas in Idaho, a mini-Christmas in Fargo and then Christmas here in Minnesota.

This year we decided our Christmas would have a theme; the winning theme was Sharing. We thought it would be best to extend this theme to Mark's entire family, not just with the three of us. So we began on Christmas...with a niece and nephew. By that evening Mark and a few others had taken part. I was the lucky recipient the day after Christmas. We were all more than happy to share with others, but those on the receiving end were not too happy about the sharing. Isn't Christmas all about sharing and giving?? I guess when you're passing around some form of the flu, people would prefer that you kept it to yourself.

Mark asked me a good question after this hit me...he asked if I was more upset that I had become sick or that I had put an end to my 18 year streak without throwing up (not even while pregnant did I vomit. Yay me!). I was obviously more bothered that I had to reset the streak. So I am now happy to say it's been almost 2 weeks since the last incident!!

Other than our bonding over flu bugs, Christmas was a lovely time. Idaho was continually dumped with snow while we were there, we lost a day to travel (thanks a lot low visibility at Idaho Falls airport and thanks Alamo for ridiculously high one way car rental prices), but we enjoyed hanging out with family and friends. We weren't able to get down to Utah to visit with everyone we wanted to due to the pesky snow, winds and difficult driving conditions that plague Idaho in the winter months, hopefully we can get out to visit this summer!

We were even able to visit with some of my family when we returned home; We jumped back in the car for a 3.5 hour drive to Fargo for New Years. I have to say, Fargo might be the rocking-est town to be in on New Years Eve. Spectacular. Ok, not really. Dick Clark's Rocking New Year's Eve is lame no matter where you watch it, even if it is in a hotel room in North Dakota. But when you have a very over tired, stuffy nosed 6 month old, what else can you do?

I guess all that is left to do it to look forward to next Christmas and hope and pray that you're spared by the gift of sharing!

Here are a couple of Christmas pics. Out of all of T's gifts, the tissue paper was her favourite by far!

Modern Journalism

Is this really the most newsworthy item happening in the world right now?

Apparently, since every news outlet, whether it be ET, Inside Edition, Anderson Cooper, MSNBC, The Soup, Regis and Kelly, The View etc., etc., etc., made it their top story last week. I guess the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are over. Every African country is at peace with itself. World hunger has been cured, global warming is over and the U.S. economy is nearing heights it hasn't seen in 54 decades.

I love how entertainment "news" shows now seem to be on par with "hard hitting" news shows.

Celebrities have overtaken top news stories and we all have the 24 hour news crawl announcing Brad and Jen's divorce to thank for the mainstreaming of all things celebri-news. Personally, I'm just glad that I can find out what Britney's favourite gas station snack is since 8364 paparazzi's are there capturing it on film to sell to the highest bidder.

That's my pet peeve for today! Thanks for reading.

Paper or Plastic?

Whatever happened to grocery baggers? Where did they all go? Has that job been eliminated due to the recent economic woes? are grocery baggers always the first to be let go?

When we lived in NYC, I will admit I loved Fresh Direct. There is something wonderful about getting groceries while wearing flannel penguin pjs, and having them delivered directly to my door. However, I do enjoy grocery shopping in an actual grocery store (call me weird, it won't be the first time). So when we moved back to suburbia, I was a wee bit excited to go grocery shopping and be able to buy whatever quantity I wanted because I had a trunk and backseat to put the groceries in, not a small granny cart with 2 wobbly wheels. Yesterday though I wasn't too excited about the whole process...maybe it was because T didn't want to be there, or that there seemed to be many more shoppers than usual for a Tuesday afternoon (thanks Thanksgiving!), or most likely because when T did finally start to fall asleep, everyone and their dog had to come up and start talking to her "oh you're a wide awake shopper, aren't you?" Actually yes, she usually shops with her eyes half closed. Then when it is finally time to leave and I have a 15 pound turkey and hordes of other items...the check out lady decides it would be better to continue pushing the button to make the conveyor belt move so that all of my food smashes together at the end of the belt. No bagger in sight, it's all me. Once said items are paid for we begin the task, which I usually don't have a problem with, but T is crying, a strange, random woman is talking to T, and the check out lady is just standing there, pushing that stupid button that makes the belt move...like that helps me...I can push it myself!!

So while Paula Cole asks Where Have All the Cowboys Gone? I ask Where Have All the Baggers Gone?

For the Love of...

With all that's going on with the economy, I have one more to add to Jeff's timely list. Thanks to celebrities, head shrinkers will never need to worry about job security... well, thanks to celebrities who have kids.