Mid-week weekends

Yeah, it is a lazy Wednesday afternoon for me. I don't have the normal 9-5, Monday - Friday kind of job. I have "weekends" in the middle of the week. It is kind of cool, but at the same time, most of my friends don't have the same schedule so it can be a little lonely.

When I have these mid-weekends, I usually spend some time on the computer to dawdle, catch up with friends and figure out what I am going to do with my time off. I know there is the never ending list of housework and yard work and other chores. There is also the the constant studying required for my job. The gym calls me and so does a nice trip to the day spa. There are countless errands and little craft-like projects. Oh, and home projects. Sometimes the longer I sit, the longer the list gets and I get so overwhelmed, I become a couch potato and watch taped episodes of 'scrubs' or something.

Sometimes I ponder about putting together a master list of all my projects and another list of all chores and try to schedule them so there will be order to my days off and they won't be wasted. Then, I think that is way too anal and I should just focus on chores. Hard labor is always good for the waist line and the house looks better. I also then think, I really need to learn how to relax.

Hmmm, what to do, what to do??

Oh, thank you cards from the birthday party and uploading of photos. Means I can sit here on the computer a little longer and see if anyone IM's me to chat.

Speaking of photos, took this one of a tiger the other day, just before he tried to spray us. Thank goodness for the chain link fence. I think he was hungry.

I can't believe I am doing this

I am selling Inky. Who is Inky? He is a 1978 Super Beetle Convertible that I bought in 1999. Every since I was a kid, I loved the VW Bug. On old family friend, who I referred to as my Grandpa growing up, owned an used car lot near our place. I would just love to play in the VW Bugs on his lot. When I went away to college my mom sent me a care package. In that care package was a small scale model of a 1978 white convertible super beetle with a $20 bill wedged in the trunk. Later, my miniature car collection of various VW Bugs increased to about 12 that filled the shelves of my cubicle and office at work.

Then in 1999, I had some extra money and I started shopping and eventually bought Inky. He was named this by a good friend. She said it was due to his color. Sometimes I would start to call him Stinky Inky, but it was always with affection.

Since I bought him, I have learned to do some minor maintenance myself, like oil changes, points adjustment and timing belt. I think one year though, I almost reached my max on AAA free tows.

Driving the car most days is like the best anti-depressant, anti-anxiety, anti-stress drug in the world. During the day, the sun warms you and wind flows by and in the background is the purr of the engine. At night, the stars twinkle and the crips air blows around. Ah, it is wonderful. Maybe I should record that before I sell it for good.

So, why am I selling it? My practical nature is winning me over. To make this car the way I truly want it, I would have to probably spend another $5000. My practical nature just can't let me spend that kind of money on a car for restoration purposes. Maybe, if there was no college fun to worry about, or house projects on the list or retirement savings to think about....maybe I could let myself spend the money. Maybe.... Then of course, there is the issue of safety, especially since we have a young one in the family.

So with deep regret, Inky is for sale.

Tried old story lines

After a few recommendations I finally started and finished Eragon by Paolini. The book was supposedly so great that they even made a movie (I haven't seen it yet). I started the book with high hopes and found I was a little frustrated by the book at first. I felt like I had jumped right in the middle of a D&D adventure. I actually put the book away unable to get much further, but then I was home with the sick daughter yesterday and read the book as she slept or lounged on me. Then, I could not get over how much of the story was ripped from Star Wars, and then later from Lord of the Rings. For some reason though, I kept reading on.

It got me to thinking, are those story lines so universal that they show up everywhere? Are they so great that everyone wants to plagiarize them?

You think I am exaggerating about the copying from Star Wars? In Eragon, an orphaned boy is being raised by his uncle on a farm outside a small city in the middle of nowhere. The orphaned boy was delivered by his mother to the uncle and she mysteriously disappeared. The father is unknown and remains unknown throughout the first book, but believe me I am pretty sure it is one of the evil villains that will turn out to be his dad. Then, the boy finds something that the evil Empire (King of the Empire) wants and the evil empire does.... guess what? Yep, the bad guys torch his uncle's place while the boy is away and managed to kill the uncle. So, who helps the boy on his quest for revenge? An old mysterious man who is wise on many subjects, including the use of magic and starts training the boy on how to levitate rocks and sword play. Sound familiar yet???!!! The book goes on with additional similarities with the rebel force hidden away in a mountain, the evil king corrupted by dark magic, etc....

Then towards the end of the book is a long chase scene that reminds me of Lord of the Rings. In LOTR the group is trying to get to the land of elves for safety and they have to cross that magical river where the water rises up like a wall of white running horses. Yep, I am reading this book and that is what I can't stop thinking of the whole time.

Yet, somehow I was engrossed in this book. With all the cliches (there are more!), I was still on a mission to finish it last night and I think the reason why is that I am sucker for dragons and the author brought them to life for me and gave them a personality, mystery and beauty. It kind of reminded me of how I discovered the Anne McCaffrey books as a youngster at the library all those many years ago. Her books are the main reason I have the dragon tattoo on my back. It started an early fascination with dragons. Now that I think about, he copied stuff from those books as well!

My last thought on the Eragon book is that it was probably published because it is an amazing piece considering the the boy who wrote was about the same age as the character in his book, 15. That may be the main fascination for most people.

And I can't believe this, but one of my goals at the library today is to find his other book so I can read what happens next. Such a sucker!

Bored and procrastinating

I should be online taking some courses required for work, but I don't want to. Actually, I think I have a long list of things I should be doing and instead I am leaving messages on my friends' myspace pages, reading blogs, drinking coffee, browsing amazon, etc.....but not anything I should be doing.

I found this image and it makes me giggle. It goes with another thought I sometimes keep in the back of my mind, "Keep smiling, it keeps people guessing."

I kind of had a bad day at work yesterday and it happened only 4 hours into a 12 hour shift and it took me a couple hours to get my head back together after that incident. I am still upset by it and think I am just doing mindless stuff now to avoid thinking about it.

So, I took this quiz that was on Newt's page. It says I am daisy, but the family member that made my day miserable at work probably things I am some kind of crab grass.

I am a Daisy What Flower Are You?

A daisy is..."a sweet person. When a friend needs a shoulder to cry on, you are happy to offer yours with a box of tissues as well. Once in awhile, you wish you could be a little more dramatic but then sensibility sets back in and you know that you are perfect the way you are."

I should probably move on to more productive things today. Sigh.....

A portrait of Howie

The daughter was drawing a picture of one her favoritie friends, Howie the dog. He kind of looks like a rhino with skinny legs, but she was proud of it so I had her sign it. In a way, sometimes Howie is a lot like a rhino with skinny legs. I then told her I was going to feed the picture to the computer. I told her how all that noise was the computer chewing her picture. She didn't buy it. She says, "Mom, I think you are just kidding." She is getting too old to even get her to believe that a computer eats paper.

Can't sleep, clowns will eat me

At least, I can't sleep well these past two nights. I am not sure if it is the job or the book or just life in general but I can't turn my brain off at night. I have all kinds of active dreams. I wake up and can't get back to sleep. Last night I gave up around 2am and just got up and finished my book I was reading, "Circus of the Damned." I was thinking, maybe that was why I couldn't sleep because I couldn't wait to find out how it ended. I was so close to the end and it was leaving me on the edge of my seat. Nope, finished it and 4am I still can't sleep. I think I fell asleep about 5am and my alarm wakes me up at 5:30 to get to work. Man, I was so close to calling in sick due to lack of sleep.

Here's hoping I get more sleep tonight. Maybe I should read more calmer books and not ones about vampires, zombies and werewolves.......

Musical memories

I have been thinking a lot about all the memories a single song can bring out. It is amazing how much in my life is associated with music. So, I thought I would share my list. My list though is not all inclusive as my memory fades and there are just too many great musical memories.

Listening to my "Jungle Book" album soundtrack at age 7 on my little record player. "Look for the bare necessities...."

The Michael Jackson "Off the Wall" album on dad's awesome stereo system. The speakers were probably 4 feet high. It felt like Michael was in the house singing. I can still almost hear him cry as he sings "She's out of my life." I can't believe I am writing this, but CDs don't sound the same as vinyl. Vinyl is so much warmer and richer.

Discovering Grandma's old vinyl albums 78s of classical pieces by Stravinksy, Dvorak or Brahm, then using her stereo system that would play that speed. It was one of those rectangular long cabinets with sliding doors on the top, a beautiful wooden piece. The sound was amazing. I would sit down and listen to the music with a sketch pad and draw what I felt the music was describing. I overheard my dad tell my mom that I was odd. I wonder where that stereo is now?

Any song by Erasure brings up some great times with friends. One night we were driving around trying to cheer up a friend. We ended up at a dead end road in the country. We stopped the car, left it running with headlights on, Erasure blaring and had our own dance party under the stars.

Then there was the Erasure concert, when we heard this guys behind us say, "Oh my god! These guys are gay!" Yep, the band was and there music was too. I mean their music was happy-gay, not gay-gay. :)

The "Circle of Life" will always remind me of Dana. I miss her and still am saddened that she was killed so young. It took a few years before that song didn't make me cry anymore. Now, I just get some chills when I listen to it.

"Rio" by Duran Duran has many moments for me. Our silly girl band (Modern Modes) when we were like 14 or 15. Friends in college singing that song to me but substiting my name for Rio. That was a very silly night.

"Oye como va" was a song my dad would blare on his stereo until the walls and windows rattled in the house, but I LOVED playing this song in high school band at the football games. I played tenor sax and this song was just a blast to play at those games. Same goes for "Wake me up before you go-go" by Wham. It was a lot of fun for a sax player, even though the song is a bit cheesey.

"Sail away" by Enya. I remember my boyfriend (now my spouse) and I were taking my younger brother and sister somewhere and this song came on the radio. My brother thought the lyrics were "save a whale" and was singing it loudly. To this day, I laugh when I hear that song and sing in my head "save a whale, save a whale, save a whale." It is a great message, right?

"Mustang Sally" and a trip to New Orleans with my future spouse. We had a rental car and it was a burgundy mustang and I swear that song came on the radio just about everyday we drove it.

"Whole of the Moon" by The Waterboys will always remind me of my true friend that did a musical dedication for me on KFOG when I was away at college. She recorded it and mailed it to me for my birthday.

"Ghost Town" by the Specials reminds me of a road trip with two friends and a little music video we made in the middle of nowhere Texas. I think we broke the camera after making that movie, but we still have the video somewhere.

"Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen at the 12/31/92 New Year's Party and banging our heads so much to this song that we nearly fell over from being dizzy.

Listening to Elvis Presley and Frankie Valley and the 4 Seasons on 8-track in my mom's yellow Plymouth Duster on the long roadtrip to visit Grandma every summer.

I think I could on forever and maybe do a book, but that is my list for now. Care to share your musical memory?