more precious than a pot of gold

my sentiments exactly- :( anger and dismay

2008-07-16T12:33:00.000-05:00

ST. LOUIS JOURNAL
Anger and Dismay at the Sale of a City Treasure

Jeff Roberson/Associated Press

Anheuser-Busch traces its roots to before the Civil War. The company on Monday accepted a sweetened $52 billion takeover offer by the Belgian beer giant InBev.

ST. LOUIS — With the shades inside a tavern on Pestalozzi Street drawn to block the early morning sun, Dave Liszewski, a third-shift worker at Anheuser-Busch, nursed a bottle of Bud Light and a hollowed sense of pride.

“It took everybody by surprise,” Dave Liszewski, a 30-year employee who operates a machine that puts labels on bottles, said of the takeover deal. “They promised us this wouldn’t happen.”
“We were betrayed,” said Mr. Liszewski, who was still not sure he could believe the news that the company had agreed to be sold. “The good Lord was sold out for 30 pieces of silver. We were sold out for $70 a share.”

August A. Busch IV, the scion who runs the family brewery that makes Budweiser and Michelob and dates to before the Civil War, had vowed that there would be no sale on his watch. But in the end, sentiment and tradition were no match for a $52 billion offer from the Belgian beer giant InBev.

All around this old Midwestern city famous for its brew, heads have been shaking in disbelief. Budweiser, the king of American beers, will belong to Europe.

“It took everybody by surprise,” said Mr. Liszewski, a member of the Teamsters union who followed his uncle into the brewery 30 years ago. “They promised us this wouldn’t happen.”

An American flag snaps high above the belching stacks of the brewery, a red-brick and wrought-iron fortress in the historic Soulard neighborhood, where the air is tinged with the smell of yeast.

The Anheuser-Busch dynasty is so ingrained in the identity of St. Louis that people here talk about the Busch family as if they are both royalty and relatives, making references to “Gussie” (August A. Busch Jr.) and “Augie” (August A. Busch III).

In a city that does not do much bragging, the mighty brewery has long been a reason to boast.

“St. Louis has a terrible inferiority complex,” said Susan Manlin Katman, sitting in the shade at an outdoor cafe in the trendy Central West End neighborhood. “We’re not North or South, East or West. So we tend to dwell on what we’re lacking, instead of what we have.”

Downtown St. Louis has witnessed a striking resurgence in recent years, with the opening of stylish pubs and restaurants and the refurbishing of residential lofts. With its French and German influences, St. Louis has a rich cultural history and an architectural flourish. It has exulted in the glories of Cardinal baseball heroes, from Stan Musial to Albert Pujols. The city also claims Forest Park, an urban nature preserve near downtown that is bigger than Central Park.

But for all that, its national acclaim is tied mostly to the brewery — it brings the tourists to town, along with the Gateway Arch. Almost anywhere in the world that residents of St. Louis travel, they are asked about the King of Beers and, of course, the Clydesdales, the mascots of the brewery.

InBev has pledged not to shut down any of Anheuser-Busch’s 12 breweries in the United States. But many here still feel here as if a treasure is endangered.

As Opal Henderson, a 78-year-old auto salvage yard owner, put it, “Why can’t those foreigners just stay at home and leave us what we have?”

Mayor Francis G. Slay has a different view. “One of my first goals,” he said in a statement, “will be to try to convince InBev, which loves to cut costs, to move to St. Louis, where pretty much everything is cheaper than in Belgium.”

That is not likely to happen. Among the 6,000 St. Louis-area workers employed at A-B, as it is known here, the worry is that the new owner will try to cut jobs or wages.

Mr. Liszewski, who operates a machine that puts labels on bottles of Bud Light, earns $27 an hour. He is a blue-collar man in work boots who has been able to pay off his house and buy land in Southern Illinois where he can hunt for deer. “It’s not just been a good life,” he said. “It’s been an excellent life.”

At the St. Louis Galleria, Alexis Littlejohn, a bank worker, said she believed that the new owners think they have a way to squeeze more profits out of the brewery. “If it didn’t make economic sense,” she said, “they wouldn’t be doing it.”

In the bars around the brewery district, there is a mixture of anger and fear, even among those who do not work for Anheuser-Busch.

Loyalty runs deep for the brewery and its workers. If you order a beer at Crabby’s saloon, it had better be an Anheuser-Busch product. They do not carry anything else.

The owner, Stephanie Hafertebe, certainly does not stock any Stella Artois, a beer made by InBev.

“Not so many years ago, union workers would walk out of a place if you served anything that wasn’t Anheuser-Busch,” Ms. Hafertebe said.

A couple of patrons were shooting pool. A cocker spaniel was crawling around the floor. On the jukebox, Frank Sinatra crooned, “I get no kick from Champagne.”

Tom Lucas, a 51-year-old auto mechanic with oil-stained fingers, sat on a barstool and drew hard on a cigarette.

St. Louis is a place where people can still smoke in taverns. But everything else seems to be changing. The idea of the brewery belonging to foreigners seemed unfathomable to many. People like Mr. Lucas may have to get used to it. But he does not have to like it.

“It stinks,” Mr. Lucas said. “Augie would be rolling in his grave if he knew about this.”

tribute- metal gear solid

2008-06-17T16:01:00.000-05:00

more cat pictures

back by popular demand- company want ads!

2008-02-28T11:57:00.003-06:00

ok- it's just one..... i laughed so hard when i read it!

Wanted...Tudor!! For 7th grader, Lawrence area. In my home, pay by the hour. Please leave message.....all calls returned.

i think the parents are in desperate need of a TUTOR as well! ;o)

i should be doing homework....

2008-02-18T22:01:00.002-06:00

while i was doing some research i stopped to take a break and read ShoeboxBlog.com, i got a giggle out of this one-

anatomy of a machead

2008-01-31T10:50:00.001-06:00

Are Macheads as arrogant as they’re portrayed in those “Get a Mac” ads? Apparently so! According to Mindset Media, who conducted a survey at of 7,500 respondents at Macworld earlier this month, Macheads tend to be “highly open-minded, more liberal, less modest, and more assured of their own superiority than the population at large.” What do you think? .
AdAge broke it down further in the illustration below: (click to enlarge and read)

my source-
techiediva.com, i'm not sure if i agree with all of it...... well at least as far as i'm concerned and a few other macheads i know. ;o)

POWERTHIRST part 2!

2008-01-29T15:45:00.000-06:00

and in case you forgot-
POWERTHIRST part 1!

it's been a long time....

2008-01-28T13:05:00.000-06:00

it's been a really long time since i've updated my bloggy blog... i didn't even post how i did in the 1/2 marathon i ran back in october! so it's safe to assume that i've been crazy busy the last few months. here's a quick recap-

i finished the 1/2 marathon with a slow time, but w00t i finished a 1/2 marathon! now i'm training for another and contemplating training for a full marathon this upcoming fall.

school was really intense after mid-term, but i came out of it alive with an A in executive leadership and a B in marketing. (hmm i think it's obvious which class i liked better). i'm enrolled in one class this semester- marketing research, it's really interesting so far.

we had a really good time at christmas this year, we burned off the steam from our classes on the slopes of winter park and sol-vista basin in colorado for 5 days.... btw- it pays to be in shape, i wasn't sore at all!

speaking of in shape, saturday i sold 8 trash bags full of clothes on craigslist. while going through my fat clothes, transition clothes and old clothes i found my biggest pair of jeans- a size 18. below is a pic of the jeans i wore not even a year ago. i'm still working on it, but i'm now 15 pounds to my original goal (i'll prolly go a bit lower) and from a size 18 to a 10.

ignore the goofy look on my face and the bad saturday housework hair!

run the city of fountains!

2007-10-19T14:36:00.001-05:00

tomorrow is the big day! the day i run my first half marathon (13.1 miles) in the Kansas City Marathon! i'm nervous and excited! it's hard to believe i've only been running since mid june and i'm already tackling something so grand. what's even harder to believe is that in march i was at my heaviest weight ever, and so far i've lost 44 pounds and gone from a size 18 to a size 10 in those past few months. i've still got quite a few more to go, but i'm up for the challenge! let's go running!

wtf is that?

2007-10-18T09:06:00.000-05:00

my good friend eric sent me this link for a fabulous accessory for my iphone.... phone fingers

a few comments from one of my friends and fellow iphone owner-

1. Oh... hang on, my phone's ringing and I need to put on my "protection"

2. Oh man.... it took too long to get them on and now my phone isn't ready anymore :(

rrraaaawwwwwrrrrrrrrr!

2007-10-16T23:25:00.000-05:00

they folkin' rock!

2007-09-05T21:59:00.000-05:00

this one is from episode 11

this one is from episode 7

flight of the conchords- the best show EVER! (besides IT Crowd)

2007-09-05T16:28:00.000-05:00

here's a few of my favorites....

thanks evan...

2007-09-05T16:19:00.000-05:00

i ripped this off my buddy evan's blog - www.withlogos.com

the answer is 42.

2007-09-04T12:34:00.000-05:00

Lunkwill: O great computer, the task we have designed you to perform is this: We want you to tell us the Answer.
Deep Thought: The answer?
Lunkwill: Yes.
Deep Thought: The answer to what?
Lunkwill: Life.
Fook: The universe.
Lunkwill: Everything.
Deep Thought: Tricky.

after 12 million years....

Deep Thought: You're really not going to like it.
Lunkwill: Tell us.
Deep Thought: The answer to the Great Question...
Lunkwill: Yes?
Deep Thought: ...of life, the universe, and everything...
Lunkwill: Yes?
Deep Thought: ...is...
Fook: Yes?
Deep Thought: ...is...
Lunkwill, Fook: *Yes*?
Deep Thought: Forty-two.
[stunned silence]
Lunkwill, Fook: *Forty-two*?
Deep Thought: It was a tough assignment.

*it also happens to be how many pounds i've lost since march 11, 2007*

moment of inspiration

2007-08-14T13:26:00.000-05:00

this morning on the elevator, a very friendly lady commented on the banana i had in my hand, giving me props for my healthy breakfast. then she gave me the up and down look and said, but you're a lot smaller than me... a banana is enough for you. i said- it is! but i had to work for it, i've lost almost 40 pounds so far because of these bananas... her mouth dropped, and she of course complimented me on my progress. i thanked her sincerely, and left the elevator... that is the first time i've heard the phrase "you're a lot smaller than me" in years! i'm flabbergasted!

as for the picture- i thought it was funny, thanks carmie!

another 5k!

2007-08-12T15:23:00.000-05:00

this morning i got up at 5:30 am, lubed up my toes to prevent blisters in the sorching heat, put on my gear and headed out to the Komen Race For the Cure in front of Union Station. there were thousands of participants and 215 were on my corporate team. my best guess would be that 80% of the participants were walkers so that presented a challenge in itself. i spent most of the race weaving in and out of walkers and strollers, on sidewalks and off sidewalks and everywhere i could go to keep my pace. it was almost as challenging as a unpaved trail run! there were record numbers of people out today that paid an entrance fee to be used for research, i'm happy all those folks came out for such a good cause!

btw- i'm up to 6 miles for my 1/2 marathon training.... this upcoming saturday is my first stab at 7 miles, i'm up for the challenge!!

milimeters matter

2007-08-06T15:29:00.001-05:00

fitness update

2007-07-30T11:15:00.000-05:00

i figured it's been awhile since my last fitness/weight-loss update. since starting my journey march 11, 2007 i've lost 35 pounds and over 1/2 of my body fat percentage goal. i'm over halfway there, 25 more to go! my first 30 came off quickly and dramatically, but those recent 5 took about a month to come off. it proves the point the more you have to lose, the faster it comes off, but when you get closer to your goal it slows down. but that's okay, i'm still seeing progress and digging old barely worn clothes out of my closet!

my hard work in the gym and running outside has also been paying off. i think it's pretty safe to say i'm in the best cardio shape of my life. even as an athlete in high school, i didn't work nearly as hard as i do now. but i've always been a competitor, then and now, even if now it's only for personal best. i'm training for a 1/2 marathon and every week i make a new personal best in how many miles i've put in that week and distance of individual training runs. this saturday i continuously ran 5 miles for the first time in my life. i may be slow but i have the endurance to keep going, and it feels amazing!

random quote wednesday

2007-07-18T10:03:00.000-05:00

that is if i can remember to do this next wednesday...

It is of course well known that careless talk costs lives, but the full scale of the problem is not always appreciated. For instance, at the very moment that Arthur Dent said "I wouldn't want to go anywhere without my wonderful towel," a freak wormhole opened up in the fabric of the space-time continuum and carried his words far far back in time across almost infinite reaches of space to a distant Galaxy where strange and warlike beings were poised on the brink of frightful interstellar battle. The two opposing leaders, resplendent in their black jewelled battle shorts, were meeting for the last time, when, a dreadful silence fell, and, at that very moment, the words, "I wouldn't want to go anywhere without my wonderful towel" drifted across the conference table. Unfortunately, in their native tongue, this was the most appalling insult imaginable, so the two opposing battle fleets decided to settle their few remaining differences in order to launch a joint attack on our galaxy, now positively identified as the source of the offending remark. For thousands of years the mighty starships tore across the empty wastes of space and finally dived screaming on to the planet Earth - where, due to a terrible miscalculation of scale, the entire battle fleet was accidentally swallowed by a small dog. Those who study the complex interplay of cause and effect in the history of the Universe say that this sort of thing is going on all the time.

- douglas adams-
-hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy-

HP in IMAX 3-D

2007-07-12T21:16:00.000-05:00

we went to see the new harry potter movie tonight in IMAX 3-D, all i have to say is WOW. wow. WOW. we have an IMAX theater blocks from our house and we've taken advantage of it whenever we can, however this is the first time we saw one in 3-D. IT WAS AMAZING, the effects were awesome but the added 3-D made them stunning. the story was pretty close to the book, several things were left out but they always are for the sake of a 2+ hour film, no complaints on the story at all. i loved it! the only draw back of 3-D at least for me.... was i couldn't walk straight or see after the film. the effects and glasses tweaked my eyes out so badly that i had no depth perception or distance vision for a bit after we left. i had to wear my glasses, to clear my vision.... whew. my eyeballs hurt, but totally worth it!

monday night we went to see "the transformers"... that movie was really great too! i loved the dry delivery of jokes by Shia LeBeouf. it was serious, light-hearted, fun, action packed and compassionate all in one film and who would have thought this would come from a movie based on a cartoon from our past in the late 1980s.... never would have guessed that!

while we were on vacation during the 4th of july week, it wouldn't be right if we hadn't seen "live free or die hard". the newest of the bruce willis movies that happens to revolves around the holiday. action packed, adrenaline and testosterone filled man movie! it was really good, there were a few moments where i couldn't hold onto the suspension of disbelief and was like- no way man, no way. then i had a hard time wrapping my head around justin long's character, not that he was a brilliant hacker but they made him do it on a *gasp* pc when he pimps the fab mac for his day job! ;o) it was a good movie, i really enjoyed this one too. it's got MENERGY!

"i'm gonna have to drop out of school"

2007-07-10T22:12:00.000-05:00

said walter tonight...

i'm all geeked out! i've got my new PS3, E3 coverage is on G4 AAANNNNND they're talking about Halo 3! i've got so many games to play this september and october i'm gonna have to drop out of school!

since the price dropped $100 on the PS3 yesterday i knew the days were numbered before we had one. when walter sent me a link for a Blu-Ray special for 5 FREE Blu-Ray movies with purchase i could read his mind. they aren't the best titles but considering they're 30 bucks a pop i'm not complaining! ;o) so when i stopped at target for groceries tonight after my workout, i teased him and asked if he needed anything like a PS3, YUP! after i wandered the store picking up random items we needed (tortillas, face wash, coffee, conditioner, tank top (not on the list), and avocados), i headed to the electronics department and asked for a PS3, Resistance and then picked up Ghost Rider on Blu-Ray as our first movie. 4 dudes were standing there with their mouths dropped open.... esp. since i had my shiny iPhone in my hand as well. ;o)

OooOOooo i haven't posted about that yet! i absolutely love it! i sat in line for 6 hours in front of the apple store on june 29 to get my hands on the beautiful iphone. then we left on vacation the next morning; i surfed the internet the entire week on at&t's recently (day before release) beefed up EDGE network and took advantage of people's wifi when i could. i had no trouble while walter read OXM and i watched youtube videos and emailed camping in the woods. so nice! the Mac OS is seamless between my computers and the phone. everything is integrated perfectly. by far this is the BEST first release ever. my address book, ical and music sync'd perfectly through itunes. i've got my 1/2 marathon training schedule from iCal on the phone so i won't forget how many miles i'm supposed to run that day. the 2mp camera takes beautiful clear pictures esp. compared to my RAZR camera. the images look amazing on the brilliant screen as well as imported into iPhoto. i agree that there should be some sort of zoom capability but you can zoom and crop once the photo is taken. 2 complaints- is the ringer doesn't get loud enough, but i have that complaint with every phone.... i have a hard time hearing "marimba" when i'm in the kitchen and my phone is in the livingroom and forget it if it's in my handbag. my second complaint is that the visual voicemail the caller's voice sounds very digital. it still sounds like them but kinda robotic. actually now that i think about it... that's cool too!

Waiting for Your iPhone: Five Ways to Handle the Unbearable Stress

2007-06-19T10:31:00.000-05:00

from datamation.com

Waiting for Your iPhone: Five Ways to Handle the Unbearable Stress
June 19, 2007
By James Maguire

Just between you and me, let’s be honest: you want one. Oh baby, you need one. Bad.

Even saying the name – iPhone – makes you kind of anxious. You get nervous and sweaty and your palms start trembling. Your left leg is shaking and it just won’t stop.

Here’s the hard part: you gotta wait. There’s no choice. The iPhone is not yet available. Or worse, maybe when you read this, it’s out in stores, and other people are having all the fun – but yours is back ordered.

Oh, the agony.

And to think, every blog, every tech magazine, heck every national magazine, is foaming at the mouth about the iPhone. They have photos of it. They say it’s cool. They say you’ll be cool if you buy one.

You’ve tried to stop thinking about it, but every time you turn around, it’s there. It’s like an episode of “Twilight Zone”: “You enter a parallel universe, where all news outlets are fixated upon a small handheld gadget that no one has yet seen…”

Accepting the Absurdity of Your Desire

Of course, part of you wonders why you crave one. The iPhone is essentially a cell phone, and you already have a cell phone. You bought it for $49, or less than one tenth the price of the iPhone, at $499-599.

But, you say to yourself, attempting to understand your own irrational desire, the iPhone also surfs the Web.

Yet the rational part of your brain answers: yeah, so what? Your PC – which you’re in front of all day – surfs the Web with a full-size screen. And this new technology called Wireless allows your lowly laptop to surf everywhere except a plane at 30,000 feet.

But still, your inner child shrieks, the iPhone is a music and video player! Just like the iPod! And I want one!

At this point you try to forget that you’ve already plunked down $300 for an iPod. You bought it in 2003, and it broke 14 months later. So you bought another for $250, then you bought your spouse one (the deluxe one, of course) for another $300. You don’t want to admit you’ve spent $850 on Apple music players, which is enough for a lifetime.

Admitting You Need Help

Finally, you give up the process of being rational. As far as you can tell, you want – you need – an iPhone for the following reasons:

• It’s new!

• It’s shiny!

• Its name starts with the letter ‘i’!

(Put an i in front of anything and it seems cool. You don’t like chores, but what about an iChore? Sounds interesting, doesn’t it? How about an iRoot Canal? I want one!)

Knowing that you’re resigned to days of anxious waiting, there are a few things you can do to handle the stress. As a public service, we at Datamation offer the following list of survival strategies:

1) Use Creative Visualization.

Buy a can of black spray paint and paint your existing cell phone black (like an iPhone that’s turned off). Then take off your glasses and hold it at arms length. You’ll notice no real difference between your painted Nokia and your not-yet-arrived iPhone – they both make phone calls. Look at your painted Nokia lovingly and say, ‘Wow, my iPhone is really cool. I’m so glad it finally arrived.”

Note: Some unfortunate individuals report this strategy only works for 5-7 minutes, then their leg muscles start trembling again.

2) Form a Support Group.

Gather an intimate group of like-minded iPhone-starved individuals – you’ll have no trouble finding them – and find a private place. Then stand up and address the group: “Hi, my name is Bob, and I’m an iPhone nut-job.” Everyone will answer: “Hi Bob.”

Between meetings, if you start to get overly anxious, just make a phone call. This will help reassure you that life is possible without an iPhone – at least for short periods.

3) Find a Higher Power.

We humans think we’re strong enough to wait for the iPhone by ourselves. We’re not. We need the help of a powerful major deity, in this case Apple CEO Steve Jobs.

Get a black light poster of Mr. Jobs. Put it up in your bedroom. Close your eyes and chant softly: “Oh Steve, all-powerful maker of the most beautiful iPhone, please send me my wonderful gadget. Please send it, Steve. Please send it now.”

If the poster actually responds, you’re in deep trouble. If your room remains silent, you know you have the mental health to wait at least one more day.

4) Strike a Match.

Part of what makes it difficult to wait for your iPhone is the stress of hanging on to that $500 until you can finally give it to Apple.

If having the cash gets to be too much of a bummer, carefully remove it from your purse, wallet, or wall safe. Hold the ten fifty-dollar bills (or twelve fifties if you’re dreaming of the 8 GB model) in your hand, and strike a match. Hold the fifties over the small flame, until they go gloriously up in smoke. (You may need to open a window.)

Enjoy the sense of lightness you feel. Take comfort in the fact that you’ll get to do this again the moment your iPhone arrives.

5) Take a Trip.

This one’s no joke – it’s a real suggestion from a salesperson in a Mac store. I asked her what I could do if I’m having trouble waiting for an iPhone. She looked at me, a little confused for a moment, then said, “I recommend taking a trip to the Islands – maybe Jamaica.” She pointed out that I could lay on the beach for days and not have a single thought about telephones.

She seemed to be suggesting I could simply relax. But I’m not sure. Go days without thinking of the iPhone? No, I don’t think that’s possible. In fact, I’m sure it’s not. Even now, my hands are starting to shake, my breathing is shallow…

UNCOMFORTABLY ENERGETIC!

2007-06-18T08:47:00.000-05:00

POWERTHIRST!

since when was 5K 3.75 miles?

2007-06-16T10:35:00.000-05:00

this is after the race with one of my marathoner friends, lynette... we ran my first 5k since high school. i started running last week when i got tired of my usual workouts, i needed to mix it up a bit for variety. i started running on the treadmill what i expected to be no more than 5 minutes turned into 20 and by the end of the week i was at 3+ miles. i told her i was running again and she had me signed up for a 5k a few days later!

i was a bit bummed at the finish line by the time on the clock and a bit bummed that i had to stop and walk a few times... then come to find out, the race was almost 4 miles!!! they mapped it wrong! that would explain why i had to walk, it was so much longer than i was used to and why my time was so bad! my final time was 47:05 for 3.75 miles... my goal was 40 minutes, but not too shabby considering i had to walk a bit, and i'm only halfway through my weight-loss goal (i've lost 30 pounds so far, with 30 more to go obviously from the pic, i got me some chub). i'm hooked and looking forward to the next one!

shaun, you've got red on you.

2007-06-11T09:06:00.000-05:00

12" Shaun of the Dead Talking Action Figure

bring it on, eric!

2007-06-05T16:01:00.000-05:00

my good friend eric and i have started a friendly competition of who can lose 15 pounds the quickest. which will bring me to 15 pounds away from my goal. sunday is our weigh-in/start date. he has the advantage, being he's a guy and we all know that guys lose weight faster than girls. so that gives me extra incentive on top of our wager- a $10 iTunes gift card.

anyone else want a piece of this weight-loss machine? let's go, i'm ready! who else wants to lose 15 pounds?

R.I.P. RAZR

2007-06-03T20:49:00.000-05:00

last night the black RAZR died, it made it's last few calls just before a tragic accident involving a shallow sink-full of water. i've heard you can drown in a teaspoon of water, as it turns out a phone can die the same sad way. the RAZR was a good, hard-working phone for several years purchased the week of release, but lately it had become quite ill in the last few months. the RAZR suffered dropped calls, network failure, inability to connect to calls (frequently displaying "call failed" message), cavities in it's bluetooth connection and last but not least the refusal to charge when connected to the power source. no one could have predicted drowing as it's method of demise. holding on to the last shred of hope- maybe the RAZR jumped into the water, knowing it was soon to be upgraded by the apple iphone.... i guess we'll never know. little did it know it would not be all together replaced but saved as a backup, for just such emergencies.

black RAZR, you lead a full life of calls, texts, voicemails and IM chats... RIP black RAZR

sticker shock!

2007-05-19T19:06:00.000-05:00

i'm having a bit of sticker shock right now.... we just got back from Nebraska Furniture Mart and we spent $1200 (it was a really great deal) on laminate and accessories to redo the flooring on the main level of our house. it's actually more shock of how much work we have ahead of us. it's gonna be so sweet when it's done! we are doing the living area, hall and both upstairs bedrooms. (we have laminate tile to install in the kitchen, both bathrooms and both entries; so much work to do this summer)! after we bought the flooring we couldn't resist a home theater system.... it was an amazing deal- it's a onkyo 7.1 channel blah blah blah that we got for $280 on sale from $500 not bad. it even has an optional iPod dock, that i'm ordering as soon as i'm finished here! so now walter is trying to get it set up so we can take it down in a week for the flooring install. yikes. gotta love "the mart" where else can you buy flooring and a home theater system in one place?

the incredible shrinking girl!

2007-05-12T11:24:00.000-05:00

i used a title similar to this about a year and half ago and it didn't quite work out that time, but today's the day i'm bringing it back!

i have officially LOST 20 POUNDS! according to my scale at home, i've actually lost 21 pounds. i'm feeling really good! i've gone down almost 2 sizes, i've had to shrink a lot of my pants in a hot dryer to get more life out of them, yesterday i had to add a belt into the mix to hold them up. i'm gonna miss some of my clothes! i can't bring myself to buy some new ones yet because i've still got so far to go, but i'm sure i'll have to pick up some transition pieces soon.

well i gotta run! we're driving to STL today to visit our fams, and we're stopping in warrensburg for a few things in the university bookstore... i'm gonna get a diploma frame before they run out of ones with CMSU on them, since they changed the name to UCM. m. do you need anything? ;o)

famous alumi

2007-05-09T21:59:00.000-05:00

i was screwing around the KU website and came across this list of notable alums. some of them i already knew, but i thought it was neat to see all the famous KU alumni. ever wonder why KU is the center of google earth?

yippee!

2007-05-02T20:44:00.000-05:00

so i said it was official before, but it was more like it's official that i've decided i wanted to go to KU. i'm pleased to announce with tons of hard work studying and countless hoops to jump through, i've been accepted into the KU Graduate School of Journalism and Mass Communications! i start a new chapter in my life this august and i couldn't be happier! at least right now, ask me again when i'm going insane with homework and projects. ;o)

my friend carmen's hubby manny is taking his GMAT on may 12! let's wish him luck getting accepted into Georgia Tech!

you're off the effing chain!

2007-04-27T22:09:00.000-05:00

hot fuzz was so funny, i laughed the entire movie! walter and i just kept looking at each other snickering at all the shaun of the dead references. so if you haven't seen shaun of the dead at least 20 times, then you probably won't get a lot of the jokes. but it's a funny spoof on american cop action flicks, with scene re-enactments of point blank and bad boys II. aw... just go see it!

for the greater good.....

6 week progress report

2007-04-21T10:49:00.000-05:00

i've got good news and bad news today- the bad news first is that i've only lost a 1.5 pounds this week, not quite sure about that... my trainer assures me it's water fluctuation and not to dwell on it. he's so good. so the good news is that in six weeks i've lost 6% total body fat which he also assures me is AMAZING. my measurements have gone down about an inch on my core and extremities from the calculations today but matt (my trainer) said that he hates the measuring tape he had to use that it's not nearly as accurate as the one he usually uses. so he's convinced i have lost more inches than his new tape suggests. he told me several times to mention in my blog that his tape was crap today.

quick subject change both the cardinals and the royals won yesterday!!! we went to the royals game last night and we had so much fun, it was a great game! there's a new promotion since krispy kreme decided not to give ticket holders a dozen glazed donuts when the royals make 12 hits... this year's promotion is when the royals make at least 13 hits and win the game, panera is giving ticket holders a dozen bagels. what are we going to do with 2 dozen bagels?

the landlord

2007-04-18T09:12:00.000-05:00

here's a funny little tidbit about the movie on people.com.

i was a bit worried... but i'm 2.5 lbs. less!

2007-04-15T13:11:00.000-05:00

total weight loss since march 11- 11.75 pounds!

this week was a bit rough on me... with the easter holiday meals and walter's birthday i thought sure this weeks weigh-in would be disapointing. whew! it all worked out okay, but i think that has to do with my trainer's routine change-up this week. he's pushing me more and more, and it feels great!

yesterday, my friend k. met me at the gym and she did my workout with me... of course with lower cardio speeds, weight and reps. but she did an awesome job i'm so proud of her!!! i'm curious to find out how sore she is today!

HAPPY 31st BIRTHDAY WALTER

2007-04-12T09:59:00.000-05:00

on april 12-

1204 - The Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople.

1606 - England adopted the original Union Jack as its flag.

1770 - The British Parliament repealed the Townsend Acts.

1782 - The British navy won its only naval engagement against the colonists in the American Revolution at the Battle of Saints, off Dominica.

1799 - Phineas Pratt patented the comb cutting machine.

1811 - The first colonists arrived at Cape Disappointment, Washington.

1833 - Charles Gaylor patented the fireproof safe.

1861 - Fort Sumter was shelled by Confederacy, starting America's Civil War.

1864 - Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest captured Fort Pillow, in Tennessee and slaughters the black Union troops there.

1877 - A catcher's mask was used in a baseball game for the first time by James Alexander Tyng.

1892 - Voters in Lockport, New York, became the first in the U.S. to use voting machines.

1905 - The Hippodrome opened in New York City.

1911 - Pierre Prier completed the first non-stop London-Paris flight in three hours and 56 minutes.

1916 - American cavalrymen and Mexican bandit troops clashed at Parrel, Mexico.

1927 - The British Cabinet came out in favor of women voting rights.

1934 - F. Scott Fitzgerald novel "Tender Is the Night" was first published.

1938 - The first U.S. law requiring a medical test for a marriage license was enacted in New York.

1944 - The U.S. Twentieth Air Force was activated to begin the strategic bombing of Japan.

1945 - In New York, the organization of the first eye bank, the Eye Bank for Sight Restoration, was announced.

1945 - U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt died in Warm Spring, GA. He died of a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 63. Harry S. Truman became president.

1955 - The University of Michigan Polio Vaccine Evaluation Center announced that the polio vaccine of Dr. Jonas Salk was "safe, effective and potent."

1961 - Soviet Yuri Alexeyevich Gagarin became first man to orbit the Earth.

1963 - Police used dogs and cattle prods on peaceful civil rights demonstrators in Birmingham, AL.

1966 - Emmett Ashford became the first African-American major league umpire.

1967 - Jim Brown made his TV acting debut on the NBC show "I Spy."

1969 - Lucy and Snoopy of the comic strip "Peanuts" made the cover of "Saturday Review."

1981 - The space shuttle Columbia blasted off from Cape Canaveral, FL, on its first test flight.

1983 - Harold Washington was elected the first black mayor of Chicago.

1984 - Astronauts aboard the space shuttle Challenger made the first satellite repair in orbit by returning the Solar Max satellite to space.

1984 - Israeli troops stormed a bus that had been hijacked the previous evening by four Arab terrorists. All the passengers were rescued and 2 of the hijackers were killed.

1985 - U.S. Senator Jake Garn of Utah became the first senator to fly in space as the shuttle Discovery lifted off from Cape Canaveral, FL.

1985 - In Spain, an explosion in a restaurant near a U.S. base killed 17 people.

1985 - Federal inspectors declared that four animals of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus were not unicorns. They were goats with horns that had been surgically implanted.

1987 - Texaco filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy after it failed to settle a legal dispute with Pennzoil Co.

1988 - Harvard University won a patent for a genetically altered mouse. It was the first patent for a life form.

1988 - The Chinese government named a new array of younger leaders to ensure economic reform.

1989 - In the U.S.S.R, ration cards were issued for the first time since World War II. The ration was prompted by a sugar shortage.

1992 - Disneyland Paris opened in Marne-La-Vallee, France.

1993 - NATO began enforcing a no-fly zone over Bosnia and Herzegovina.

2000 - More than 1,500 anti-drug agents raided four cities in Colombia and arrested 46 members of the "most powerful" heroin ring.

2000 - Robert Cleaves, 71, was convicted of second degree murder and was sentenced to 16 years in prison. Cleaves had repeatedly run over Arnold Guerreiro on September 30, 1998 with his car after the two had an argument.

2000 - Israel's High Court ordered the release of eight Lebanese detainees that had been held for years without a trial.

2002 - A first edition version of Beatrix Potter's "Peter Rabbit" sold for $64,780 at Sotheby's. A signed first edition of J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit" sold for $66,630. A copy of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," signed by J.K. Rowling sold for $16,660. A 250-piece collection of rare works by Charles Dickens sold for $512,650.

2002 - It was announced that the South African version of "Sesame Street" would be introducing a character that was HIV-positive.

2002 - JCPenney Chairman Allen Questrom rang the opening bell to start the business day at the New York Stock Exchange as part of the company's centennial celebrations. James Cash (J.C.) Penney opened his first retail store on April 14, 1902.

2002 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez resigned under pressure from the country's divided military. (He was returned to office two days later.)

2004 Barry Bonds hit his 660th home run to tie Willie Mays for third on baseball's career list.

2 pounds closer

2007-04-07T08:26:00.000-05:00

total loss in 4 weeks- 9 pounds!

i was a the gym by 7am to workout with my trainer... however my trainer forgot all about it, even after we talked about it last night. i asked the receptionist to give him a wake-up call and to let him know that i was working out anyway, and that i had weighed myself and that i was down 2 more pounds. (i checked 3 times just to make sure i was right)! about the time i was finishing up my hour cardio routine he strolled in with the red face of embarassment. he sheepishly smiled at me as we crossed paths, me on my way out and him with his 8am client.... dork.

i have to say, changing my eating habits and working out has done wonders for me. losing weight is just one of the positive side effects. my digestive problems are 99% gone and that feels great! i have energy, stamina and motivation for lots of things. i'm feeling great, i'm so glad i finally made this lifestyle change. i was kinda already on my way with it the last few months anyway. i had cut so many things out of my diet because they affected my digestive system in a negative way. this just kind of seemed like the logical next step, eating mostly whole foods, and limiting processed food. my guts are thanking me! i think that's why this wasn't a difficult commitment to make, my body and my mind were ready for it.

this weekend will be hard with all the family dinners and treats everywhere. i don't want to undo all that i have done so far. so my trick will be to eat on a salad size plate instead of a dinner plate to control my portions. not to mention show my family how serious i am about my health, not just losing weight.

happy days are here again

2007-04-06T12:46:00.000-05:00

i've mentioned before, that my gamertag on our 360 has it's own blog and it's frequently unhappy with me because i don't play very often.

for instance-

macsweetie's Xbox - 3/29/2007
I see all these other 360s with streak badges and happy faceplates... and when I look at my accomplishments lately all I see is that I've been ignored for 4 days. If I have more badges, I would delete one... just for spite.

but now, it's finally happy!

macsweetie's Xbox - 4/6/2007
I was about to feel sorry for myself, until macsweetie showed up and made my day with a little gaming! Our gamerscore stands at 1805 and counting! That is an increase of 50 points over last time! She made some progress on Guitar Hero II adding 5 achievements, as well as checked out what was new in the live marketplace.

macsweetie's Xbox - 4/5/2007
Like a king on her throne, macsweetie said 'awaken' and for I did comply. 1755 points represents the size of our growing kingdom. Ok, enough of this Monarchy stuff. That is an improvement of 80 points over last time! She rocked out to Guitar Hero II picking up an amazing 6 achievements, and I thought macsweetie injured herself in the process... but I was wrong... she lives to fight another day!

macsweetie's Xbox - 4/4/2007
macsweetie hit the switch and fired me up yesterday... her total gamer score is 1675. That is a boost of 20 points over last time! She rallied Guitar Hero II finishing 2 achievements, and wished it would never end, but it did and that was sad.

soooo tempted........

2007-04-05T10:54:00.000-05:00

for those about to ROCK...

hi, my name is sara and i'm an addict...

2007-04-05T08:55:00.000-05:00

in general i am not a fan of video games. there are a few that i personally own that i will play with my husband, but you'll never see me firing up the 360 to get my game on alone. as much as that would tweak my husband out to come home to his wife killing superhero villians or blasting tiny lego stormtroopers apart, that just isn't me. until now... and i'll tell ya, he's stoked about it!

i bought Guitar Hero 2 bundle with two guitars for the 360 for my husband's birthday, he loved it. and i do too! the first night we played and i took to it uber fast. walter stopped early stopped to study and i kept going til about midnight. last night as soon as we got home, we fired it up again. i dvr'd our shows and started shredding it up! we were tearing it up like rock gods! we played some face-off challenges and cooperative songs then walter had to go study again, i kept going on career mode racking up the achievements... i'll tell ya on some parts of songs it really feels like you're playing the frets like eddie van halen!

my favorite songs to play out of my 4 venue setlists- mother- danzig, woman- wolfmother, monkey wrench- foo fighters, hush- deep purple. i wonder what the next 5 songs i unlock will be when i hit venue 5 tonight?

HAPPY (early) BIRTHDAY WALTER!!!

2007-04-03T19:49:00.000-05:00

i talked to walter on my way home from the gym tonight and he told me that there was a big box on the porch when he got home. at first i didn't know what it was, perhaps my new juicy couture bag i had ordered? nope......

he saw it was from redoctane.com and knew it was his birthday present waiting for him a week early. he knew i was going to get him either a Nintendo Wii or the Guitar Hero 2, XBOX 360 bundle by his request. since i couldn't find a wii anywhere, besides over-priced on ebay and amazon, the guitar hero 2 won out! he loves his new toy!!!

he's shredding his rock-god fingers to the bone to the toadies "possum kingdom" right now. (he's getting boo'd) ;oP

IT ROOOOOCKS!

update- we are both so addicted, and we're pretty good too! i kept playing after walter went back to the office to study. i'm ready for some new songs! guess i know what i'll be doing tonight...

Royals 7 vs. Red Sox 1

2007-04-02T20:08:00.000-05:00

this was the most amazing opening day ever! first, the weather was absolutely beautiful, the high was over 80 and not a cloud in the sky. then of course the royals whipped the red sox into submission! it was an awesome game, and so far- seriously the royals are in first place, tony pena jr. leads the league in triples and starter gill meche left in the middle of the 8th inning to a standing ovation. not to mention our seats were effing awesome! we had the best time, it was nice to walk into the stadium with all the sights and smells of the game, i was ready for it after a long baseball-less winter. ahhhh it felt so good to be at the K!

fyi- relish won the first hot dog derby for the season. dang, i wanted it to be mustard!

it's opening day somewhere...

2007-04-01T20:17:00.000-05:00

shhhh, i'm watching the first CARDINALS game of the season! so far my cards are losing to the mets in the bottom of the 4th inning, but that's okay because it's FINALLY BASEBALL SEASON and there's a whole lot of baseball to be played between now and late october!

tomorrow, we're headed to the ROYALS opening day festivities. it's been a long, long loooooong winter with no baseball, and we're dying to get in the park, smell the dogs and popcorn, and take it all in... we're taking bets on who's going to win the first hot dog derby of the season... mustard, ketchup or relish?

in case you were wondering that is my official KS plate on my cardinals-mobile. cute, eh?

2 more down!

2007-04-01T12:58:00.000-05:00

thank you, 24 Hour Fitness!

i still have quite a ways to go, but i'm still on track and seeing progress! it's strange but the goal my trainer set for me seems very fast to lose the amount of weight i need to. i'm on track to lose it all by august 31. but in the short term, it seems like it's coming off so slow! not that 2+ pounds a week is slow, but it is when you're waiting for your clothes to fit differently, it's a bit daunting! but i've lost 7 in three weeks, and that's something to be proud of!

the GRE exam sucks!

2007-03-31T21:56:00.000-05:00

i took my exam today... i did ok, not fabulous and not as well as i should have, but ok. i was a bit rattled by the timer a few times and didn't think my answers through properly in fear of not finishing in time. i got some of my scores already, hopefully my analytical writing scores will be top notch. i'm really hoping my average score will be enough to get me accepted into KU's program even on a probationary basis, because i don't really want to go to UMKC. blah. if anything, i'll just study even more, memorize more random words and try it again.... at least i know what to expect for next time (i hope there won't be a next time).

afterwards i blew off a bit of steam... and headed to a real mall with no zombies for a bit of shopping! the mall i took the test in was a bit more "lively" on a saturday afternoon with more people walking between the anchor stores, there was no fear of having my arm ripped off and chewed on. whew!

simply stated-

2007-03-31T21:42:00.000-05:00

blades of glory is an effing ROIT! will ferrell will do and say ANYTHING for a laugh. the movie is hilarious, i cant wait for the DVD to see the ad-lib extras!

i swear there were zombies

2007-03-29T20:11:00.000-05:00

after my workout i went to go check out the site where i'll be taking my GRE this saturday. i wanted to make sure where it was in the metcalf south mall. i discovered several things while i was there, the most obvious is that it's a completely dead mall. there's only three stores in the whole thing. Macy's on one end, Sears on the opposite end and in the middle a crappy gift and home decor shop. It was eerie to wander around looking for my test site. the first creepy thing i noticed was that the floor had a mirror like shine from no one walking on it. it's like the night crew had contests to see how shiny they could make the floor. then there was the creepy music in the very empty mall. yep, that background music that you never really hear normally. it was quite loud and echo-y. scary. then next thing that caught my attention was the fountains, they still had them running all over the mall, so the combination of the music and the fountains was really freaking me out. and all the escalators and main stairways were all blocked and even walled off with locked doors in front of them, so you couldn't get to the second level. i wonder if that's where they keep the bodies? i seriously expected the few old people wandering around for exercise to be real zombies. i was waiting for one of them to jump out from around a corner and start chewing on my neck. really, i'm not joking. it was just like out of a zombie movie... the dead, empty mall with old wrinkled people shuffling about. tell me if you've seen this one?

after i found where i was supposed to go on saturday, i quickly walked back to the macy's end where i had parked. this time i looked at all the empty stores. all the big ones were there at one time, and some didn't even take the fixtures with them when they moved out. it was like they couldn't get out fast enough. it's strange, because there is a lot of traffic that still goes by there and there were quite a few people in macy's and a lot of cars in front of sears as well. the mall was completely "dead".

i'm creeped out that i have to go back there on saturday, i hope i can concentrate without the worry of zombies trying to eat my guts.

perfectly pink playstation2 & psp

2007-03-28T13:40:00.000-05:00

take a look, the pink psp is so cute!

holy plastic figurines, batman!

2007-03-27T13:57:00.000-05:00

courtesy of IGN.com

LEGO Batman Confirmed
Holy plastic figurines, Batman!
by Micah Seff

March 27, 2007 - Today, Warner Bros. affirmed all the rumors by announcing the development of LEGO Batman: The Videogame for "next-generation and current generation platforms and the PC in 2008." It's still up in the air what this means, but we're banking on the game coming to pretty much every system possible like its Star Wars cousins.

"We're sure our fans will be excited to know that we have the same fantastic team at Traveller's Tales responsible for LEGO Star Wars and LEGO Star Wars II working on LEGO Batman," said Tom Stone of Traveller's Tales.

Anyone who played either of the LEGO Star Wars games should perk up at the mention of Traveller's Tales. Most likely, this means that the game will feature some awesome co-op action for Batman and Robin, as well as a huge cast of characters from the Batman universe. Hopefully, LEGO Batman has the same humorous sensibilities of those previous games; the campiness of the Batman series screams for a LEGO-ization.

The game takes place after a massive exodus out of Arkham Asylum by the most nefarious villains from Batman's Rogues Gallery. Batman and cohorts will be charged with tracking down criminals, and bringing them to justice. Players can utilize an extensive arsenal of classic Batman gadgets, as well as build and pilot a wide array of vehicles ripped straight from the annals of Batman history.

There's no official word on the game's release date.

just in case you wanted to know

2007-03-25T12:00:00.002-05:00

2.25 more pounds gone!!! so far i'm on track to my goals!

i'm not coming into work today!

2007-03-22T11:07:00.000-05:00

ok well, not really today and not really the whole day... but on 4/2 we're taking a half day to go to the royals home opener! i was trying to get tickets for weeks because i overslept the day they went on sale (evan's fault). i tried ebay and i tried craigslist, everyone wanted $150 to $200+ for nosebleed seats. no way. i just couldn't swing that kind of cash for such awful seats. last year we sat in the cheap seats for the home opener and it was terrible for us who actually wanted to watch the game. it was quite obnoxious up there!

anyway, keeping an eye on the company want ads came in handy today... i saw a listing for home opener tix for under face value. i called and he said i was the first person to call, so they were mine! it was meant to be!!! not only were they under face value, they're also amazing seats! i'm feeling so blessed right now... the baseball gods are smiling on me, for pineing and craving baseball this long winter season. let's go royals! (until the cardinals are in town) ;o)

princess is doing fine!

2007-03-18T17:02:00.000-05:00

i picked princess up from the vet on friday afternoon from having her claws lasered out. she was whiney all the way home and looked like she was in pain. but when i opened her carrier she walked out without a limp, she seemed to me doing well. she kept to herself most of the evening, but i could tell that she did have some irritation from the procedure. she tried to scratch her head with her back foot and then she limped a bit afterwards. it's been several days and she seems to be doing a-ok, she's not limping or favoring one paw over the other. she's been jumping on and off things since i brought her home, i'd have to say even in her old age of 9 her surgery was a success!

2.75 and counting

2007-03-18T16:55:00.000-05:00

so here's my results from my weekly training session.... down 2.75 pounds in just one week. and if you think this isn't much then consider what a pound of ground meat looks like in the grocery store...

after one week i'm already on track to hit my goal, my hard work in the gym is paying off!

DUH

2007-03-16T15:26:00.001-05:00

You Are a Mac

You are creative, stylish, and super trendy.

You demand the best - even if it costs an arm and a leg.

Are You a Mac or a PC?

i'm tired

2007-03-15T20:42:00.000-05:00

last week i took a good long look at myself and noticed something.... i'm FAT. it's true, my lazy comfortable lifestyle has caught up with me. i've been packing on the pounds for quite some time now and it's not like i haven't done anything about it. two years ago, i joined a gym, and i do pay attention to what i eat. but i've also had phases of lazyness and bad-for-me foods which is so comfortable and easy, it seems they've won the battle. so i've decided to finally do something about it. i've spent most of my twenties chunky, and now that i've hit that thirty mark i'm not about to start them the same way.

two weeks ago, i went to the gym, sadly to find out it was the 5th time i had been there in the last 6 months. a coincidence that my trainer had checked on me that morning.... strange eh? it was meant to be. so i made an appointment for a fitness evaluation that following sunday. long story short, i'm the biggest i've ever been, and it was a huge smack in the face. it shouldn't have been considering i do know what size i wear, and it too is the biggest i've ever bought. but it was, i think it was the poundage number that got me. i guess in my head as long as i was under a certain number it wasn't all that bad. well, i hit the magic number (of course that number included my workout clothes and shoes), hint- never weigh in your clothes and especially your shoes if you have to... the best time is first thing in the morning while you're tummy is empty. but no such luck in the gym with a trainer at least i hadn't eaten anything yet.

we set up an aggressive workout schedule, his plan for me is to be at my desired goal weight by the end of august. yep, it's that aggressive, let's see if i can do it. so the reason i'm tired is my first week of "homework" he's given me, which is really "gymwork". i've worked out hard in my past workouts but not consistantly like my new plan of attack. thinking back it is as hard as my old track coach used to work us to get ready for the upcoming season. it was a nightmare! this week has been nothing short of those memories of when i was a svelt athlete. thinking of how hard this week has been, i just might make it by august, it seems like a fairly attainable goal.

my homework so far is hard-core cardio 6 days a week with the addition of weight lifting 3 of those days. friday is my off day, no gym. i'm really looking forward to tomorrow and a night of no gym. at the same time i already feel guilty for not going tomorrow. i won't bother with the details of my workouts other than, one of my friends who is in awesome hot shape couldn't keep up with me, even after 6 months on the sofa.... i am still a competitive athlete, this time the competition is with myself. the other part of my homework is to write down everything i eat. everything. i've been entering my intake and activity on an online food diary, www.fitday.com. on sundays i'll give my food diary to my trainer to evaluate. accountability is going to be the key to my success. well, that and to actually see results.

so we'll see on sunday if my first week was successful... because i'm really, really tired.

update- i've also joined www.peertrainer.com, for added tracking and support! thanks for the link steak!

she broke my heart

2007-03-15T08:56:00.000-05:00

all princess had to do was hear me open the door to her carrier... she hid all morning knowing she was going for a trip to the vet. when i pulled her out from under the bed she didn't fight me at all (used to that, from when she was so ill a few months ago), she just laid limp in my arms and whimpered. that was enough to ruin my day. she whined all the way to the vet, i took her someplace different and the drive was twice as long and twice as heartbreaking...

she's having all 4 sets of claws removed. it's a pretty cool procedure, and they recover almost instantly not knowing that they are missing at all. in her old age it's perfectly safe because they hardly feel anything at all. they zap the claw at the cuticle so it doesn't grow back, the laser sears the nerves so there's little pain and sears the blood vessles so there's no blood either. it's much more humane than traditional declawing where they cut off there toes at the first knuckle. poor kitties!

the owner of the pet hospital insisted on doing her procedure himself... that made me feel much better about everything, because i still had some concerns. after we talked this morning i felt even better about the whole thing, he assured me that everything was going to be easy for her. afterall- they had been doing this for the last 10 years and were the first to adopt the laser declawing in KC.

she was a good girl when i left, she wasn't whining at all when the vet took her away. i hope she stays good for them.

updates to follow-

i called the pet hospital around 1:30 this afternoon... my baby is doing fab! she has tiny bandages on her tiny paws and as long as she can clean her little feets herself tomorrow afternoon she can come home! yay! because i miss her to death...

red roxx- they don't just look good.... they sound freakin' awesome!

2007-03-12T10:29:00.000-05:00

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macsweetie's xbox 360 blog

2007-02-28T22:30:00.000-06:00

i haven't logged into my xbox360 account for about a month. and my 360 has a blog to track my achievements with funny quips. needless to say it isn't very happy with me.

i thought this one was so hilarious i had to share!

macsweetie's Xbox - 2/13/2007
Here I sit broken hearted... macsweetie has somewhere departed... our relationship needs repair... I will meanwhile sit in cold despair... I know I will feel the spin again, the question now is when!

1080 HD

2007-02-27T15:12:00.000-06:00

check out sony's new cameras!

march 30- blades of glory

2007-02-19T19:22:00.000-06:00

kick some ice!!! the question is, will it be as funny as "talladega nights"?

have you tried closing, and opening it again?

2007-02-19T13:21:00.000-06:00

this reminds me of the IT Crowd!

Brett Hull Way

2007-02-18T14:57:00.000-06:00

Clark Ave. in St. Louis renamed Brett Hull Way

V-Day

2007-02-14T11:01:00.000-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

hint hint- honey i want this.....

2007-02-05T13:18:00.000-06:00

if it ain't metal it ain't music

what? surely not.... you MUST be joking.

2007-02-02T14:05:00.000-06:00

Zune’s Boss Steps Down. Is the iPod Killer…Dying?

and, and what's this about screens cracking?

Rock Your Face!

2007-02-01T13:42:00.000-06:00

i will ROCK YOUR FACE!

ATTACK OF THE MOONINITES!

2007-01-31T21:07:00.000-06:00

Suspicious devices part of marketing plan

when i think Vista- i think Wow!

2007-01-31T09:15:00.000-06:00

thanks for the link steak-

I absolutely adore this photo from the Times. Not one smile in the bunch, never mind ebullience, mania or even pleasant anticipation. Just because a marketer says something is amazing, exciting or just plain wow doesn't mean it is.

this post sampled from Seth Godin

david pogue on windows vista

2007-01-30T14:19:00.000-06:00

NYT's David Pogue on Windows Vista

it's official!

2007-01-27T18:16:00.000-06:00

this may come to quite a shock to most of you, being as i haven't mentioned the idea to anyone... but....... i've decided to go back to school! i'm headed to KU for a Master's of Science degree in Marketing Communications from the School of Journalism. i've been toying with the idea for quite some time now and i've finally decided that it's time to jump in with both feet. originally i wanted to get my MFA (master of fine arts), but i've been feeling drawn to the marketing program for several years instead. i've been getting this feeling that there's so much more out there for me possibly on the business side of it all. but, i can still be a designer, with a little extra punch.

there's so many idiot marketing people out there that have no design sense at all, telling designers to put a big "yellow burst with a drop shadow" because they think it will look good. or, i used to get this one a lot- "you can't sell chocolate with blue, no blue packaging, ever"! so here i am, i hope to be a double whammy out there as a designer with marketing experience, or a marketing girl with lots of design experience. we'll see what happens!

so now i'm getting started, i've filled out my online application, i've got my transcripts ordered, i have to schedule my GRE test, line up some letters of recommendation, and a few other details all by Feb 15, to start fall 2007! my new adventure should take me 2 years to complete, then who knows what will happen next! but i'm excited to start a new chapter in my life and kicking myself that i didn't start sooner....

a sony "oops"!

2007-01-26T13:41:00.000-06:00

Sony Site Snafu

2007-01-25T14:31:00.001-06:00

this is why i love craigslist

ErgoQuest 500

2007-01-23T14:12:00.000-06:00

no more sick days! i'm wondering what's going to happen when that bondi blue iMac smashes his face.

bush baby?

2007-01-23T13:21:00.000-06:00

jonathan & kenneth on jimmy kimmel live

know how i know?

2007-01-22T14:07:00.000-06:00

justice league, and 40 year old virgin

she must have said no?

2007-01-17T13:37:00.000-06:00

this was on the intranet want ads today....

Engagement ring. Exceptionally beautiful pear-shaped diamond. 2.26 carat solitaire. Magnificent brilliant. Beautiful simple platinum setting. GIA certified: VS1 clarity/ D color (colorless). Paid $32,000. Asking $20,000.

crableg night

2007-01-17T12:48:00.000-06:00

i'm so excited, tomorrow is crableg night at Jumpin' Catfish although it's changed a few time since it's conception, the purpose of crableg night remains the same.... to hang out with friends and eat as many crablegs as you can stand! our tradition started in college between three girls, m. k. and myself. back then we referred to ourselves as buttercup, blossom and bubbles... (there's a fun reference with that). we'd meet at one of our places, with extra large pots and boil lots of crablegs and shrimp, it was sooooo good!

when m. moved away k. and i kept up the tradition, with a few variants of going out for crabs since it was easier to not have to clean up afterwards. just once in the last 3 years have the three of us been together and enjoyed the original tradition, meeting at k.'s house. my last visit to see m. we enjoyed some tasty crabs (and carmie was there too)! k. and i's latest plan is to conveniently meet at the jumpin' catfish location in olathe or lee's summit and dine on all you can eat crablegs for $19.99. yep, you read it. $19.99 and they're fresh and tasty! if we bought as many crablegs as we eat there it would cost us $50 a piece to make them ourselves. so the tradition is now on thursday nights... i'm soooooooo ready!

update... no crabs tonight... postponed til feb. 1.

All-Star 2009

2007-01-16T13:09:00.000-06:00

St. Louis has been chosen to host the 2009 All-Star Game at the new Busch Stadium!!! read more here!

defense

2007-01-10T10:54:00.000-06:00

i already grow tired of defending myself on why we're going to buy the new apple iPhone... obviously everyone has differing opinions and thoughts of the new product and that's great, that's what capitalism is for. different people need different things! i guess i should say why i want the phone instead of just being giddy excited with proclamations of future ownership and looking like a gadget queen, just looking to snatch up the latest and greatest toy.

the truth is, i have been looking at "smartphones" anyway for when it's time for the phone upgrade and i upgrade every two years. in particular the samsung blackjack because it's slim and does the job. the RAZR is great for calls, and fine for the camera and fine for SMS messaging. but i need more than that... the internet on the RAZR is just pathetic and slow. although, i will say my RAZR has been awesome as far as durability! in the work i do on the side, i'm constantly looking up addresses on google maps and printing them out, now i'll have it in the palm of my hand without an added GPS device that i've also been heavily researching. it's everything i've wanted in a phone with an easy interface of Mac OS X and no buttons, and syncs to all my desktop apps on my Macs! and WiFi, for real that's just handy!

there's so many bonuses that we all know from reading/watching the keynote that i won't go into. except for the added bonus of the integrated iPod. i'm not looking for an iPod replacement, i'm perfectly happy with my 30GB video capable one. i also wasn't looking to replace my 20GB iPod Photo (of which is still use at the gym), i just was offered a deal that i couldn't pass up on the 30GB one! the iPhone has the added bonus to be a music and video player as well, and that's awesome. i'm not getting rid of my black iPod, i'll still use it... be it in the car or at work for added music variety. for some people the iPhone is not the right product, but for me it's a perfect fit.

I want to be cryogenically frozen until the iPhone release date!

2007-01-10T09:02:00.000-06:00

said the subject line in an email waiting for me at work today... of course, i replied back- OMG! ME TOO!!!

walter and i are both completely giddy about the new Apple iPhone, although we'll have to stagger when we buy them. we can't be dropping $1200 on 2 new phones at once. and i'd better start saving for them... i've been goofy excited since i read the keynote live yesterday for both the Apple TV and the iPhone. last night, while i was making dinner- (completely uncharacteristic) walter was skipping and jumping around the kitchen after watching the self-guided videos on apple.com of the funtionalities of the the iPhone saying- "i'm getting one"! he wanted one from just the links and pics i sent him yesterday afternoon during keynote excitement, after watching the videos he was as silly-giddy as i was. then before we went to bed we watched the whole keynote in quicktime on the MBP. even though i knew what steve-o was going to say from reading the keynote about 3 times yesterday, we both sat with our mouths open speaking only to say "did you see that"?! it really is more than just an iPod or phone or "smartphone" blackberry, treo etc... it's amazing and can't wait til our contract is up in august so we can get new phones! we're counting the days....

thanks for the joke evan!

2007-01-09T16:03:00.000-06:00

A conversation between Steve and Bill:

Steve: The zune uses wifi to do what?

Bill: To send a song to another zune for 3 plays.

Steve: Why would you do that? Regardless. Check this out... Oh, and one more thing: no, it's not just for Mac.

speechless

2007-01-09T13:40:00.000-06:00

so i'll just let steve jobs do the talking, read it on engadget.com

see the live keynote presentation

standard nerds

2007-01-05T19:27:00.000-06:00

IT CROWD UPDATE-

the first episode of the second season aired today on Britain's Channel 4!

also, it's been confirmed that NBC has picked up the IT CROWD and will have an American cast. i'm not exactly sure what i think about this, but The Office turned out really awesome. The Office is getting better and better every season, so i guess we'll have to see what happens!

spiders on drugs

2007-01-05T14:37:00.001-06:00

thanks for the link carmie!

Spiders on Drugs, a documentary

HD DVD or Blu-Ray?

2007-01-05T09:46:00.001-06:00

i'f you've been debating like we have on which to buy HD DVD or Blu-Ray, check this out!

what i did on my christmas vacation

2007-01-02T10:58:00.000-06:00

absolutely NOTHING. i had big plans for our week off between christmas and new year's. it was the week we both had off to get stuff done around the house. so what did we do instead? we sat on the sofa, wasting endless hours on the XBOX 360, watching movies and having food delivered. it was a chore to make a blockbuster run for more free movies. we didn't even get the tree and decorations taken down on monday as we planned. i'm stuck in a tired and lazy stupor, and it's sad to admit i really enjoyed it all. staying in my jammies all day just lounging and hanging out and being together, it was nice. today on the other hand is quite an adjustment after a week of staying up til it's almost light out and sleeping in till 11 or so to start another day of gaming and movies... i had to get up early and of course i couldn't sleep last night because i'm used to staying up... it sucks. all in all it was a fabulous holiday, christmas was great and new year's was a nice quiet eve getting tipsy playing video games. but not so knackered that monday was a day of regret, just another day of lazy.

so i guess it was just like any other vacation except the sleepy lethargy was on the sofa, not the beach.

(one of my favorite gifts this year)

2006-12-22T13:00:00.001-06:00

savage chickens

2006-12-19T10:10:00.000-06:00

Savage Chickens

('the island of misfit toys' and spiders are my favorites)

2006-12-18T14:21:00.000-06:00

You are a "Neko" (cat)

What Japanese Smiley Are You?

gamertag

2006-12-13T10:34:00.000-06:00

um... i think last night walter said- BRING IT!

2006-12-12T14:08:00.000-06:00

Matt does Matthew

2006-12-06T16:23:00.000-06:00

Scary 'Mary Poppins'

2006-12-06T09:32:00.000-06:00

fred claus

update- princess

2006-11-27T17:44:00.000-06:00

due to princess being sick we decided to board her for our ski trip... she was also due for an exam to check her progress of the medications, so i had the vet do all the bloodwork and exams while we were gone... she has a clean bill of health and has gained two pounds! she has to finish her round of meds she's on now and that's it, she's done! the torture of having to give her several drops twice a day and dropping a pill down her throat every other day is almost over!!! and she'll finally get her vaccinations after her meds are done... finally!

first time for everything

2006-11-27T16:26:00.000-06:00

over the thanksgiving holiday walter and i went on a ski trip to Copper Mountain, CO with some other family members. walter had gone several times before and this was my first time on a pair of skis. it was quite an adventure!

the first full day was a bit rough on me, i rented my equipment and bought my day of ski school and lift tickets for the rest of the week... i was ready for the challenge of learning to ski, it couldn't be that hard could it? i had a bit of problems my first day and it was all due to a pair of ill-fitting ski boots. i was told "they're supposed to fit that way". nope, they aren't supposed to bruise your calves, shins maybe but not calves. so during my lunch break at ski school, i went back to the rental place with tears in my eyes to exchange my boots for a different pair. after lunch, same problem... i had to take a 15 minute break in the warming hut with my boots off to get some circulation back in my feet, they went numb from them squeezing my calves so badly. i was ready to give up just from the pain. an instructor walked in to check on one of her students who was having the same issue. she knew immediately how to fix it. i was so thankful! the problem was that i have muscle-y calves and that unisex boots are really mens boots in wormen's sizes. women have larger calves and are lower than mens, so i had to find women's boots. after my first day of lessons, with tears in my eyes, while everyone else was finishing up their last run, i returned my equipment and went to just about every rental shop in the village to find a pair of women's ski boots and skis. i finally found what i needed and even though i was in pain, i could instantly feel the difference and comfort in the new boots. i had renewed faith that i was going to learn to ski.

the second day i decided to take another day of private lessons because i hadn't learned much the first day from all my personal drama. i was still a bit scared, but by the end of the day i was ripping it up! i had made amazing progress with the combination of new boots, equipment and my awesome instructor. Jan (pronounced Yahn), only several days in America from Czech Republic, was so patient with me on the first day and the second day we started making progress. his steps of excerises and then putting them all together into one fluid motion gave me confidence and ability. i was taking the lifts and skiing by myself long after my lesson had ended! i couldn't believe it, i didn't want to stop... i was skiing!!!

the third day i once again decided to take another day of private lessons from Jan. there was so much more to learn... in three days i had moved from being a first-time beginner, stopping and turning with a wedge to a seasoned parallel skiier!

i'm hooked!!!

this just in....

2006-11-16T09:25:00.000-06:00

from ign.com

PS3 Downscales 720p on Incapable TVs
If your TV doesn't support a specific resolution, expect to go low-res.
by Jeremy Dunham
November 15, 2006 - As final PlayStation 3 units continue to trickle into more and more hands, additional details about how the system works and what it can and can't do are hitting the web. The latest (rather major) tidbit is how the console treats the upscaling and downscaling of 720p titles on televisions that don't support that resolution -- specifically those that are only 1080i capable.

As it turns out, gamers who own older HD sets that feature only 480i, 480p, and 1080i resolution input capabilities will have to settle for the display quality being downsized as the game boots in its 480p mode rather than upscaling the image from its more desirable 720p mode to the TV's 1080i. We tested this development on older HDTV sets with games designed for 720p but not 1080i -- Resistance: Fall of Man, NHL 2K7, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07, and Need for Speed Carbon. Sure enough, the system downshifted all four titles to 480p rather than moving up to 1080i.

The PlayStation 3's competitor, Microsoft's Xbox 360, does upscale 720p games to 1080i if the HD set supports the latter resolution but not the in-between and commonly-employed 720p resolution.

IGN contacted Sony representatives for comment regarding this feature, but SCEA spokespeople have yet to return our phone calls as we went to press (we'll update this story when they do). It is not known yet if this is purely a software issue or a deeper technical problem and whether or not this lack of upscaling might be resolved on launch PS3 systems in future updates of the hardware via downloadable firmware patches.

For the laymen, 720p is a high-definition format that offers a complete 720-pixel line frame on the screen at 24 to 60 frames per second (progressive), while the 1080i signal is presented as two 540-pixel fields that when displayed back to back look like a complete image (interlaced). The difference being that a 720p picture offers quicker refresh rates while 1080i offers more detail with stationary imagery. The maximum resolution of the PlayStation 3 (and currently the maximum for available HDTV sets) is 1080p. It is thus capable of displaying all major standard-definition and high-definition video outputs wherever HD standards are employed (in PS3 games and Blu-Ray Movies, most commonly), but as has already been reported about PS1/PS2 games and DVD playback, it does not currently upscale any lower resolution images to higher image standards.

my silly husband...

2006-11-14T19:21:00.000-06:00

he bought Gears of War saturday afternoon, and he's already beat the first difficulty level and he didn't even play on sunday...

it's crazy huge!

2006-11-13T19:34:00.000-06:00

we just couldn't wait.... and it's crazy HUGE!

Samsung 56" 1080p DLP HDTV

16:9 widescreen aspect ratio with selectable 4:3 normal, wide, zoom 1 and zoom 2 modes

Cinema Smooth 1080p Light Engine and next generation DLP chips create a film-like picture with no visible pixel structure and impressive low-light detail; incredible contrast (10,000:1) for an arresting viewing experience

Cinema Smooth film mode 3-2 pulldown eliminates artificial frames that are created when films are converted to DVDs, resulting in a clearer image without the subtle motion artifacts caused by 24-to-30 fps video conversion

2.2" color wheel spins at 14,400 rpm for smooth fast-motion video and eliminates pixel breakup; Brilliant Color provides brightness increase in nonprimary colors and boosts overall color intensity

DNIe (Digital Natural Image engine) with 6x density enhancer, motion optimizer, contrast enhancer, detail enhancer, color optimizer and My Color control image processors ensure true colors, high contrast and elimination of digital artifacts

3D comb filter brings out fine picture detail and enhances color purity

2 built-in 10W speakers with Dedicated Acoustic Chamber Speakers (DACS); SRS TruSurround delivers a virtual surround sound experience

Auto volume leveler prevents volume fluctuations and is ideal for night viewing

PC video input lets you connect your computer to experience high-resolution images

USB 1.1 interface allows for easy connection of your digital camera so you can view your photos on the big screen

Inputs: 2 HDMI, 1 RF, 3 A/V (1 side, 2 rear), 2 S-video, 2 component video, 1 PC (RGB) and 1 PC audio

Outputs: 1 monitor and sound and 1 optical digital audio

V-Chip parental controls keep children from being exposed to undesirable material

Other convenient features include previous channel, game mode from Microsoft, nonvolatile memory and clock with on/off timer

2006-11-09T09:34:00.000-06:00

Ross the Weatherman

2006-11-09T09:27:00.000-06:00

CRIKEY!!!