Yes, I saw it last night. Changed my mind about plans to see it multiple times between work and arriving at the theater. But it was all for not, because when I arrived at 6:15, Finding Nemo was sold out until 9:30. So, I saw it at 9:30.

It's great! There were a few scenes that might frighten small children. I think this is probably the darkest of the Pixar movies. But it's still very funny, and often combines the tense scenes with humor. Dory, the blue fish, is by far my favorite character. She's a laugh riot. The set up and story telling feels like Toy Story 2, a character kidnapped and the scenes switch between that character's adventures and the adventures of the people trying to rescue him. But otherwise, things are brand new.

The movie is visually stunning as well. I can't get over how real the underwater world looked. They still don't quite have human's right, but it's a stylized look and it works.

I do think that they've finally not topped their last picture for sure enjoyment, in my mind at least. But considering they topped their last picture ever since Toy Story, that's pretty impressive. And I definitely loved it. 5 out of 5 stars.

No outtakes. Yet. The last two movies they've added them after a month or so. But they do have some crazy stuff going on during the credits, so it's worth sticking around to watch.

Don't walk. Don't run. Swim to see this movie this weekend!

So, what have I been up to this week? Not much.

I was home both Tuesday and Wednesday nights because I wasn't planning to go to Bible Study Thursday night. It's amazing how much reading you can get done when you actually sit down and read. :) Of course, I was watching stuff, too. I'm wishing I didn't have TV Land. I'd have far fewer things to watch right now. :) Anyway, stayed up much later then I had intended to Wednesday night cause I got caught up in the 3rd Alias prequel novel. The last part reminded me so much of Ten Little Indians, complete with a great twist at the end.

Thursday, I was supposed to get together with a couple friends from Santa Rosa who were on their way through town and go out to dinner. They called me at noon to tell me that they were ahead of schedule, would be through town before I got off work, and therefore were going to keep going. So I went to Bible study. But since I hadn't gone to practice, I didn't bring my guitar. :) It was interesting watching the group up there without me. I will definitely give them major points for starting a song a capella and being in the right key. Trust me, that wouldn't happen for me. I'd be a tiny bit up or down. Anyway, the Durons were with the Christian school seniors in Hawaii and it was also the night of the jr. high sports awards banquet, so we had two guys and all three of the male staff members were there. We decided to walk to the shopping center around the corner, so I got my Quizno's sandwich earlier then normal. Kinda fun to hang out for a change.

Got home and Mike Lovell stopped by for a few minutes. He's leaving town and heading to Hume Lake to work this summer and then moving to Sacramento. We'll see if that actually comes to be, he changes his mind so often.

They painted the apartment Thursday, and squashed half my plants. Two definitely look like they'll recover, but we'll see what they did to them today. Hadn't quite finished last night.

Took my car in to the dealer about the AC again today. It was hardly putting anything out when it was so hot Monday and Tuesday. They say it's working fine and I should just recirculate the air instead of trying to draw in fresh air when it's that hot. Don't remember having this much trouble before, but I'll give it a try. I feel a little foolish, but feel better knowing that it's not going to be a bigger problem again. Wish it hadn't cost me the money, however.

Pete and I didn't swim at all this week, cause he got sick. But I did work out twice this week. My arms always feel a little sore when I leave, but an hour later, they feel fine. Even when I add lots of extra weight like I did today.

Marcus is gone for the weekend, so the wild, drunken party's at my place.

Actually, tonight, I think I'm going to head out and watch Finding Nemo. I have been looking forward to this movie for months, and I'm not sure when I'll get to see it if I don't go tonight. Tomorrow, I'm planning trips to the Reagan Library and Mysteries to Die For. Should be a fun but busy weekend.

Quiz day once again at RRfSSC. starting with the dinner edition of Mary's Tuesday Two.

1. What is the most embarrassing thing you have ever done in a public restaurant?
I’ll have to go with a stray straw cover going into a neighbor’s food as well. Fortunately, my parents also still blow off the covers, so I don’t get in trouble for the accidental stray paper.

2. What did you have, or are planning to have, for dinner today?
I don’t know. I’m getting together with friends who are coming through from out of town, and we haven’t decided where we’re eating yet. Boring answer, isn’t it?

And now, for today's Thursday Threesome, brought to us this week by your grammar and The Back Porch. (And not to be stolen by Susansuth this week because she cheated and didn't wait for me to put mine up.)

Onesome: Ain't- There's a lot of slang floating around out there. Some of it has even found its way into the dictionary. Is there any one word that you find more annoying than others? That you just wish would fall off the face of the planet, never to be heard again?
Ain’t. I was horrified when I learned it had made the dictionary. Fortunately, Word doesn’t seem to recognize it.

Twosome: It- It's/Its, they're/their/there. Just a few of the most commonly misspelled words in the English language. So the question is, when you blog, do you worry about grammar, punctuation and spelling? If you notice a typo do you go back and edit? Or do you shrug it off because everyone makes typos?
If I notice a typo, I’ll go back and correct it. Every so often, I’ll run something through Word first. But most of the time, I’m just lazy and don’t worry about it. Which is really bad with how bad I am at typos and misspellings and stuff like that.

Threesome: Purty?- Purty/pretty, crick/creek, warsh/wash. All common pronunciations, whether they sound pretty or not. And one is mispronounced. What's one commonly mispronounced word that just drives you nuts?
Harriss/Harass. Absolutely drives me up a wall when it’s not pronounced properly.

What a weekend.

Friday, I stayed home. Watched, and laughed at, America's Funniest Home Videos. That show really cracks me up. Unfortunately, both hours were reruns, because their challenge America segment was one I could have gotten excited about. It was to do something funny with your hair. Now, I don't have video of what I've done in the past, but why should I let a little thing like that stop me? Unfortunately, the deadline seems to be over, so I won't be submitting anything anyway.

Started on laundry about 10 PM. And it worked perfectly to keep me awake until Donald got in around 2 AM. Especially since I forgot to start one of the dryers and had to go back over and start it again. I may have found a new time to do laundry, too. It was completely empty.

Saturday was fun. Donald and I jammed on our guitars for about an hour and a half before he and Heather left for a wedding. Then, that evening, I met up with them and Stephen and Natalie and Pete at a park for a picnic. Afterward, we got out some frisbees. And one point, we have three frisbees being thrown around and four people catching. Yes, it was wild. Unfortunately, I tried to twist my ankle. It seems ok, but my leg further up has been sore ever since. Feeling it's best today, but I'm still trying to take it easy on it.

Sunday and Monday were pretty much down days. Went to church and talked to my family, but that was about it. Tried to get something going yesterday, but everyone had plans. (As if I was surprised.) I was about to go out of my mind, but I finally sat myself down to work on editting Jennie's book. Got through four chapters and suddenly wasn't bored anymore. Read some in my own book, and suddenly I was down to the last 100 pages there as well. Why couldn't I have tried that hours before?

I should mention that the weather cooled way down. It was in the 70's with foggy mornings. Now, I see it's back up to high 90's. Just in time for me to sit in my office and not head out to the beach and enjoy it. Man!

I did buy some impatiens to plant by the front door this weekend as well. If my neighbors are any indication, they'll look great in about a month. Marcus hasn't said anything yet. We'll see if and or when he notices. Ironically, found out today that they're going to be painting our part of the complex later in the week. Should have waited a week, I guess.

Now, I'm down to the last 25 pages of said book, and believe me, I'll be finishing tonight. Along with watching the return of Dog Eat Dog on NBC. I'm pathetic.

In the health department, the bump on my finger from the bug bite of some kind is going way down. It’ll clear up on its own no problem. However, my right eye is bright red! And how it got that way is a little embarrassing.

I was eating salad on Wednesday night. A piece of lettuce was caught behind another piece of lettuce, and when it came loose, it flung some salad dressing that hit me right in the eye. It was irritated yesterday, but today it’s just red. Today, everyone is commenting on it, yesterday, no one said anything to me.

Pete and I got to swim at lunch time yesterday. While he says I was keeping up with him better then last year, we were both pretty out of breath when we finished. Need to get in shape.

So Congress has passed another tax cut, which makes me happy. However, here’s my question. Why set up a tax cut with provisions that expire? I mean, either you cut taxes or you don’t. Don’t be wishy-washy about it. Is it any wonder that people are so confused by tax law?

Wednesday night, I show up at Moss’s for practice. And there’s another family from church there. So we go into one of the kid’s rooms. First chance we’ve had to practice without TV distraction, even if it was in a much smaller room.

Things went well last night worship wise. But Becky and I were the only staff there at 7, when we split between jr. high and high school. So I’m trying to lead the Bible study with the 3 guys, basically flying by the seat of my pants since I really didn’t prepare anything. And the guys are being as disruptive and distractive as always. Seth and Kurt both showed up late, and commented on it. So I talked to them afterward. Seems like I need to figure out a way to get the kids to settle down again, because both of them said they can get the kids to behave. Of course, part of it is that the kids like them. They never want to be in my small group. Really need to pray hard about that aspect of my ministry.

So, I’ve been working out at lunch time on a regular basis in the weight room. Usually, when I leave, my muscles feel tight and a little sore. But by the time I leave work, they feel fine. Is this at all normal? I have noticed a little difference, so I think I’m going something.

Right now, I have very little and sketchy at best plans for the weekend. While recently, I’ve been shouting with glee that I have nothing specific going on, this weekend, I’m depressed by that fact. I want to do something fun! I think it’s because it’s a three day weekend and I always want to spend a three day weekend doing fun stuff.

Donald is coming down and staying with me. Heather’s moving home this weekend, so he’s helping her pack up and then they’ll be leaving Sunday afternoon. The worst part of the whole thing is, he’s not coming in until 1:30 AM tonight. I have to figure out some way to stay up that late. Last night, I was ready to hit the hay at 9.

Anyway, after they leave, I really have nothing planned. At some point this weekend, I need to spend some time critiquing Jennie’s book for her, which should make her very happy. I only have 7 chapters that I haven’t really look at.

Obviously, I’m not sure when or if I’ll be around this weekend, so if I’m not around, have a great three days everyone.

Today is survey day. Starting with Mary's Tuesday Two. (On Thursday. When else would I do it?)

1. What is an expression that you find yourself using all the time?
“With friends like these….” “Don’t confuse me with the facts.” I know there are others but I sure can’t think of them right now.

2. What did you wear today? And I want details! *g*
Pull over shirt with buttons. Green paisley pattern. Black jeans, white low cut socks and black Reeboks. And that’s all the details you’ll get. :)

And now, today's Thursday Threesome, brought to us by childhood nursery rhymes and The Back Porch.

Onesome: Rain, rain- Some people love rainy days every once in a while. Are you one of them? Do they make you want to curl up in bed with a good book or going walking through the mist? Or would you rather it just go away?
I love rain. In the winter. In fact, I’ve been complaining that we haven’t gotten enough rain recently. Rain makes we want to curl up with a good book after a walk in the rain.

Twosome: Go away- If you could go away to just one place, where would you go and why?
Right now, Hawaii. The seniors at Santa Clarita Christian are about to head over with the Durons as chaperones. And Other Seth is talking about wanting to go since we went last year, and it makes me want to go.

Threesome: Come back another day- What's the one place you've been to that you would like to go back to another time?
I’ve been whining about wanting to go to Hendy Woods State Park for years. I miss camping in the redwoods. And my family’s going next weekend, too.

Something bit me! And I've got the bump on my middle finger to prove it. Now, when would something have bitten me there? That's what I really want to know.

So, last night, I leave to go shopping with four specific items in mind. I find the new Nichole Nordeman CD just fine, then head over to the Disney store. Do they have any of the three DVD's I'm looking for? Of course not! Head over to Best Buy, and get 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, but they don't have The Love Bug or The Rescuers either. Now where do I look?

And I'm getting very frustrated with my bank. The ATM at the branch on my side of town has been down three of the last four times I've tried to get cash. And since it's after work, when the bank's closed, that creates a problem.

I'm sick of cliffhangers!!!! Once again this year, I'm feeling like if one more show I like ends with a cliffhanger, I'm going to scream. Which means, I'll be screaming Thursday night when I watch tonight's Enterprise. That will have a cliffhanger to end all cliffhangers. Yet last night, someone tried to kill Palmer in the last minute of 24. And we have to wait all summer to find out he lived. I'm just curious when the new season will pick up again. Guess we'll just have to wait and see. At least I'll have Amazing Race 4 to distract me this summer.

Hot weather has arrived! It was in the 90's today. You should hear the natives complain about the opressive heat. Someone was claiming that it was over 100. That would be bad, but I sure haven't seen any proof of it anywhere other then rumor. Although I notice my weather guy has managed to get his shirt off again. :)

You know you have self-control when you are reading at lunch time, end a chapter with the villian saying to the hero "And that's why you must die." and you put your book down and come back into work. Helps that I've read the book before, but it's been years and I don't really remember what Ricky does to get out of this mess.

I've got to start making notes on what I want to blog about, cause I sure don't remember now. :)

Inspite of the warm weather, didn't get to swim today because Pete forgot to look for and bring his stuff. Man, it would have been great, too. I was really looking forward to it.

I was a good boy this afternoon and, when the office sent someone to Dairy Queen for a mid-afternoon snack, didn't get anything. Maybe I really will loose a little weight this summer.

Signed up for ultimate frisbee Summer league again. Really should start running seriously so I'm in shape when it starts next month.

Could I be any more random today?

I certainly had fun this weekend. Other Seth and I went camping Saturday night. Yep, I was out of town for just 18 hours, but it was great. We left after Seth got off work on Saturday, which meant in the afternoon. Drove out to Ventura. The place we were aiming for was full, but we headed another 15 miles north and got the last tent spot they had. Spent the night, then came back in time for Sunday school Sunday morning. Which meant having to get up very early. For me anyway. Seth got to sleep in until 6, but I had to get up early at 6. :) And we got to use my new lantern (only a little) and the hot dog roasters I bought for this trip.

The weather has steadily gotten hotter. Had to run the AC a few times at home. But it's about time. After all, it is May. Talking to someone today who thought that we shouldn't have hot weather yet. Come on. Especially since we're only talking 80's. In another few weeks. 80's will seem cold.

Why is it I take forever to read the first half of a book, then finish it in a day or two? Did it again with Maid for Murder. Over all, I wasn't that impressed with the book. I'm curious to read the next, but it won't be as a hardcover. In fact, if I can get it from the library, even better.

Had a SNYF last night, and I finally got to use the new song books we created months ago. Yet no one commented on them or requested any of the news songs that I'd put in. HMPH!! :) Jon and D Rob were there. They had come to church since Chips was speaking in the evening service, and they came to both youth activities. It was good to see them again, especially Jon, who has been attending seminary in Chicago since they both graduated last year.

Tonight, it's all about talking to my family and trying to get somewhere on stuff around the house before I start in on season finales on TV. I have a reviewing goal that I want to reach this week, and part of that means watching the season 2 Bab 5 commentaries tonight and tomorrow night. Fortunately, there are only two of them. (And my 300th review did indeed show up on Saturday. YEAH!)

Frankly, not a whole lot to say today. The weather is wonderful. It's finally reached 80 (should have been there for more then a day in April) and they're saying it should stay like this for the next week and a half. If it stayed like this year round, I certainly wouldn't complain.

One thing I am going to complain about again is Amazon. They haven't posted any new reviews since Tuesday, and I have three waiting in the wings. Normally, this wouldn't be that big a deal, but I'm waiting for them to appear because that will give me 300 reviews at Amazon. Yep, that's a lot. And I've already written 68 this year. If I keep on with the pace I've been going, I should hit 400 before the year is up. When I think about it this way, it's no wonder my rank has steadily climbed all year.

I also need to complain about how I was lead astray last night. I'd heard a rumor that they were planning to kill off one of the CSI team on the season finale last night. And TV Guide confirmed the story, but didn't know who. So, I spent the entire episode waiting for someone to bite the bullet, literally. And it never happened! Now I'm going to have to watch the show again when it's on again so I can actually enjoy it. If I hadn't been waiting to see who died, I'm sure I would have thought it was a great episode.

Think that's all for today. Have a great weekend, everyone.

Good morning. Time for a Matrix Reloaded report.

I enjoyed it. Not as good as the first, but very entertaining. The special effects weren't as good as they were supposed to be, but the fight/chase scenes were cool. And I enjoyed the freeze frame stuff, even if it's a bit old hat and overdone now.

The worst part was that the group I went to see it with desided to break up into two smaller groups, so I had to choose whether to sit with people from work, or friends like Pete and Josh. I sat in the back row with them, but would have liked to sit with everyone from work, too.

Ok, this week I'm skipping Eric's Psycho psurvey because I'm not feeling very psycho after staying out til 1 AM at M:R

Which brings us to Mary's Tuesday Two, done on Thursday, of course.

1. What quality, or qualities, do you think is/are most important in a friend?
Loyalty, patience, the ability to accept each other as they really are, weird hobbies and interests included. (I’ve learned this last one the hard way. Believe me, I’m much happier now then I was a few years ago.)

2. Do you have a lot of friends, either casual, close or both?
I seem to be someone who will have a few close friends at a time. For some reason, I can’t seem to maintain relationships with more then that. I will, however, know lots of people to say hi to if I happen to run into them.

Which brings us to today's survey, the Thursday Threesome, brought to us this week by Speedy Gonzolas (if that's how it's spelled) and The Back Porch.

Onesome: Quick as- Quickly now, June is almost here: are you attending any graduation ceremonies in the next few weeks? Hmmm... Maybe that should be "Have you been invited to any?"
Next few weeks? I’ve already skipped two, one of which I was most definitely invited to. Just didn’t feel up to the college and seminary graduations last weekend. I will be attending 8th grade graduation next month on the 5th? Something like that.

Twosome: Can- Still moving right along: Can it really be the Merry Month of May? How many birthdays do you have to remember this month? Family? Friends? Associates?
If I do, I’ve forgotten them.

Threesome: Be(e)- Be ready, the bug population is starting to be a bother (at least from blog reports). Is there any particular crawly or flying beastie that just makes you jump out of your skin?
While I seem to be a target for mosquitoes (I just heard they like bananas, and since I eat one for breakfast every morning, that might explain it), I hate bees and stinging insects of any kind. Something to do with my fear and avoidance of pain.

Looks like Heather and I won't be going to see What a Girl Wants tonight afterall cause it's not showing so Matrix Reloaded can open a day early. Think a nice evening at home sounds good. CSI and Without a Trace finales. Maybe I'll even do my laundry instead of putting it off until tomorrow. Maybe.

After I left work for the day, I remembered that I forgot to post the most important news of the day. Phil ok'd my time off, so I can go on all those trips I was talking about on Friday, INCLUDING TRIXIE CAMP!!!!!!!

Well, I didn't do laundry again last night. The laundry room was swamped. I decided that I could make it until Friday, but I must do laundry then. Since I have nothing going on, that shouldn't be an issue, however. I hope.

Going to see Matrix: Reloaded with a ton of people tonight. People from work, Josh and Bonnie, you name it, they'll be there or were at least invited. Heck, Phil's even going. The best part is, we have tickets to a 10 PM showing tonight, so I'll still be home in time for a decent night's sleep and I won't have to leave our guitar practice early.

Since there's no Bible study tomorrow night (due to a huge concert the school's putting on), we're just getting together to jam again. And I can stay for awhile since I don't have to rush home for Enterprise. Just plan on recording it.

Don't worry, I'll spoil every plot point of M-R when I post tomorrow. :)

I was a lazy procrastinator last night and didn't do my laundry. Got home and realized I had just enough time to rewatch The Matrix if I started right then. So I decided I could do laundry tonight, once I figure out about how I'm running errands tonight. You see, I need to go to Trader Joe's. Normally, I'd do that first, but I have no cash, therefore requiring a trip to the ATM before I go, which is right by the grocery store I normally use but wasn't planning to go to tonight because they seem to have discontinued my hand soap. Complicated much?

Pete and I were going to start swimming at lunch time again today. But then Pete couldn't find all his stuff, and it cooled off again. It's been overcast all day, and might have reached 70. What happened to my nice weather?

I feel another rant coming on....

As you know, I'm a writer at a group blog called Snark!fest. It seems like, in the last two weeks, the foul language factor has increased significantly. F and S words are now being used as all parts of speech. That's my biggest pet peeve. It doesn't bother me too much when it's said in conversation, but when someone feels the need to use it in their writing, which we're supposed to be able to think about and edit to "emphasize" a point, that's just wrong. Think about it. Do you really need to use those words? Especially when discussing a family show like 7th Heaven! Can't you come up with some other, cleaverer way to say you're happy or upset by something? Or is your vocabulary really that limited?

Yes, I'm aware that nobody there will see what I'm saying here. But I'm saying it anyway.

Friday, I went to Career group Bible study for the first time in weeks. And what do I find out? It's a game night. So we played Catch Phrase and Spoons before I left. I went home intending to go straight to bed, but wound up watching Marcus played Risk on his computer for a couple hours. Yep, pretty pathetic. Then, when I did get to bed, I stayed up to finish my book. Really enjoyed it, too.

So Saturday, I didn't get going very early, so I skipped graduation. I was feeling domestic when I got up, so I cut my hair, then vacuumed the apartment and washed my sheets. When they were done, the laundry room was still pretty empty, so I washed towels, too. Now, tonight, I just have to do two loads of clothes.

So, the laundry room was closed for three days so they could remodel it. Best I can tell, all they did was replace two dryers that weren't necessarily working well with two older models. And that took three days?

I don't think I've mentioned the fact that I'm growing a beard. At least trying to. I still seem to have the basic problem I've had for years. I have nice bald spots on my cheeks. It's look a little better, but I'm not sure how long I'm going to keep it. And yes, I did start this as the weather finally started to warm up.

It was in the 70's all weekend. Finally, so decent spring weather where you don't need your coat outside.

Tried to go to the movies with Heather Saturday night. Yet the movie we were going to see was canceled for a sneak preview. Didn't know about that, even though I'd called them that afternoon. So we went to Cold Stone Creamery instead. Heather really wanted her study break. :)

Sunday, I just lazed around the apartment. Didn't go to Seminary graduation, either. Feeling kinda guilty about that today, especially since Billy (the co-worker that graduated) has been talking about it. My boss's son graduated as well.

But, I did talk to Mom and Grandma and finished Red Card, the recent winner of the Agatha in the kid's book category. Really enjoyed it, too.

And, by skipping graduation, I got to watch the Survivor finale last night. Shocked doesn't even begin to cover it, but I'm not upset with the outcome. They did vote off Rob afterall.

BTW, I got to thinking about the good news in Phil not giving me the time off I want right away. He seems to think me taking time off would be a problem in July, something that wouldn't be the case if I weren't going to have a job in July! (Yes, the talking to I got two months ago really has me rattled.)

Things are winding down for the summer here. Wednesday was the last time I'll have the "convention" over for sci-fi stuff this year. Feeling very guilty that Jeremiah won't be back next year since he's never seen Babylon 5 before and we're just finishing up season 2. Of course, since he graduates Saturday, he probably really doesn't care right about now. Of course, this means that for the next few months at least, I won't have to rush from praise team practice on Wednesday night.

Speaking of which, last night sure was interesting. My cold (which is getting better faster then normal), was sitting in my throut. Which made it kinda hard to lead singing, and especially to sing out at all. Music wise we got off a couple times, but it seemed to flow pretty well.

Still working on the Donna Andrews book. Wednesday through Friday are such busy days for me.

Went in to ask Phil for time off over the next couple months, and he told me he didn't know. Because we still don't know when the audit will be. That's right. So I can't plan out my summer yet. I was asking for a few things at once. 1) The father/son backpacking trip the youth groups are doing. I could take of leave this one. If there's room and they need some seregate fathers, they'd like the staff to go, so there might not even be room for me. 2) The annual river rafting trips, which they're planning on making an overnighter this year. While it sounds like more fun, it kinda stinks that I have to take an extra day of vacation for it. 3) Trixie Convention. Yep, I might not get to go if they decide to move the audit way up. They can't do this to me!!!!! And after we're finally having one I can drive to. I never figured it would be an issue or I would have asked sooner. Plus Phil is planning to be gone that week. Think I need to start asking for things like that sooner. Thought May would be plenty soon enough, has been in the past.

BTW, don't know if I mentioned it here or not, but I was also planning a trip to camp on the Channel Islands the last weekend in June. Other Seth, the one who got me interested in the first place, has backed out temporarily. We're hoping for Early Fall. It'd better happen.

Meanwhile, I'm off to grab dinner in the caf one more time until fall semester. Pizza, of course. It is Friday afterall.

Good Morning! Here with today's Thursday Threesome, brought to us this week by your local drink stand and The Back Porch.

Onesome- Coffee: Do you drink coffee? If so, do you ask for brewed or do you prefer the fancy espresso drinks? What's your flavor?
Can’t stand the stuff. Love the smell (fortunately) but the taste is horrid. One vice I never developed.

Twosome- Tea: Do you drink tea? Hot or iced? Regular, herbal or flavored?
I have maybe one cup of hot tea a year. I do read Laura Childs' Tea Shop Mysteries, however.

Threesome- Or Me?: Ok, not really me! Seriously, what's your favorite beverage? Alcoholic or non, healthy or not?
I drink water the most of anything. I do like fruit juice and seem to be heading to Jamba Juice a couple times a week right now. I only drink sodas occasionally, but I’m picky with those, too. Root Beer and 7 Up type drinks are all I’ll really have.

So lats night on the way home from work (ok, it's not on the way, but between when I left work and when I got home), I stopped by Jamba Juice and got a Strawberry Tsunami smoothy with immunity and vita boosts. Figured that might help knock out my cold. Don't know if it's worked or not, but it sure knocked me out. I stayed up until 11:30 reading (only 90 pages to go. Yeah!) But then I was out like a light until my alarm when off. And I couldn't function all morning. Felt like I had a hang over. The good news is I think it might have done the trick. I still feel a bit of a cold, but nothing like I normally would 48 hours in. Don't think I'll try it again tonight, and I know I shouldn't get shot tomorrow, but it's still an improvement.

I meant to link these two commentaries as well from Friday and Monday. Some interesting thoughts as always.

A day late, but yesterday's Tuesday Two from Mary's blog.

1. What is the longest road trip you ever took (either as passenger or driver), and where did you go?
As a driver, it's my trips to and from my parents. But as passenger, it was probably the family vacation when we drove up to Banff and Lake Louise in Alberta Canada. Great trip, too.

2. Where (either location, restaurant or both) is the strangest place you've ever eaten a meal?
Afraid I still can't come up with anything here. I just tend to be an ordinary, boring guy. Which is why you read my blog. Maybe I should change the name. Random Ramblings of a Boring Guy. :)

And finally, the quiz everyone seems to be doing today. Need to fit in.

The Dante's Inferno Test has sent you to Purgatory!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level	Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers)	Very High
Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers)	High
Level 2 (Lustful)	Very Low
Level 3 (Gluttonous)	Very High
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious)	Moderate
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy)	Low
Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics)	Very Low
Level 7 (Violent)	Low
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers)	Low
Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous)	Very Low

Take the Dante Inferno Hell Test

I am holier then you are, so there. (More humble, too.)

It's official. I've caught a cold. I blaim Donna Andrews for keeping me up late reading two nights in a row. And Marcus. He thought he was getting sick over the weekend. I'd say he was and he was nice enough to pass it on to me. Unfortunately, I've already called to refill my allergy medicine, but I can't get shot this week because I'm sick. I'll have to go pick it up and then go next week to get shot.

Talking to my parents last night, I found out that they've put aside some of the money they got from Grpop's estate for Mike and I to use as downpayments. Maybe I can get a mortgage instead of paying rent!!!! It sure would be nice, at least. We'll just have to see what happens.

Did stay up and watch CSI:Miami last night before I went to bed. Even so, I only read a few pages before I was out like a light. Then I woke up before my alarm clock went off, and just lay in bed. Probably would have gotten back to sleep about 5 minutes after the alarm went off. O well. Maybe tonight I can get a good night's sleep again and help fight off this stupid cold thingy.

Hang on to your hats. It's the Mark weekend recap, brought to you by my weekend, obviously.

When last I'd checked in, it was Saturday early afternoon. And raining occasionally. That continued until early afternoon, when it was just partly cloudy for the rest of the weekend.

Went home and watched Babylon 5 DVD set extras, and some of my TV Land stuff, then played some games with Marcus. I beat him at Pente and Risk, which he supposedly is the all time champion of. I'm sure next time he'll get me, though. I made a mistake of mentioning what Jeff and I were doing last summer, so Marcus now claims I have to jump into the pool twice. They'd better start heating it soon!

We finished Risk about 11:30. We talked for a little while, then I started to read "just a little bit more" of Click Here for Murder. Finally stopped at 1 AM.

Sunday after church, ran a couple errends, then met Debbie and others at Baja Fresh as planned. Had a really nice afternoon, but got sunburned. Yep, enough sun was out that the hour and a half we sat outside was enough to burn my arms (which never burn) and my face. Very mild, but still not happy about it.

Then Jeff and Jen came over. We played the Stock Market Game and watched the season finale of Alias. I can't believe, with how they left that show, they expect us to wait until September to find out what happens next!

Finally got all the bank recs basically finished today. This is turning into a bigger job then it needs to be, but I'm not quite sure how to get it to go back down to what it should be. This is getting most frustrating.

Speaking of which, there aren't enough hours in the day. I stayed up way late reading again last night (half way done already). I desperately need to find out what happens next, yet I've got multiple hours of TV recorded to watch. Really don't want a huge build up. And I plan to go to bed early tonight since I've been up too late the last few nights. But we'll see if that actually happens, I guess.

I finished The Mark on the Door last night. I thought I was tired, but when I crawled into bed to read, I kept going. And then I was so close to the end that I figured I might as well stay up and finish. so this morning, when I woke up, I start on Click Here for Muder. Looks like it's going to be as good as I hoped it would be.

So, looks like we're going to get rain showers off and on all day. It was raining when I got up this morning, the the sun broke through the clouds. Darkened up and started raining about the time I went to the caf for brunch (last one of the year). And I mean pouring! My jeans are still slightly damp. Now, the it's partly sunny again. Hey, this is supposed to be May in SUNNY Southern CA. Did someone miss the location when this weather was delivered?

Forgot to complain about my rent going up yesterday. Got a notice this week that the new rental company is raising my rent. Not that much, and I wouldn't be that upset about it, except they claim that I'll still be paying $100 under market value for the place. Let's fix it up, espeically the plumbing, then we'll start talking about whether or not that's it's market value. I find it hard to believe, however, considering the neighborhood, unless other places have gone up that much. This doesn't take effect until July 1st, so we'll see when it goes up after that. Anyone know how often they can increase the rent when you're on month to month? Or is there even a law that covers that?

So, what have I been up to beside waisting work time playing around here? (Please note, I now have a blogroll. And if I set it up right, it'll even let me know when blogs have been updated if you ping weblogs.) Not a whole lot.

I as so sick of fighting credit cards to try to understand what's happening to reconcile the bank. It really shouldn't be this hard.

Finished Armageddon Tuesday like I wanted to. It was great, until the last chapter. The worst part? I can't understand why the characters were doing what they were doing!

Went over to the Moss's to just jam on Wednesday night. By the time everyone showed up and we were finally ready to get started, it was 7:10 again. Yep, basically a waste of time for me. And Mrs. Moss didn't see why having the TV on would be a problem. Hello! Trying to play and concentrate. And the couch kinda faces it.

Jeff's in town for the weekend. We're talking about a Stock Market game at some point in the next couple of days.

I have been very tired recently and I'm not completely sure why. Got ready for bed after CSI last night and had the lights out by 11. Heck, I figured I'd be through with the Hardy Boy's book I'm reading by now, but I'm only half way through.

Did get the Babylon 5 season 2 DVD set this week... on Thursday. So I'll only get to use it with the guys once this semester. Can't believe next week is it already!

Think this catches you up on my exciting week. Have a good weekend!

I've changed my template. Comments? Suggestions?

The biggest thing I'm still trying to do is change my archives so there's only one link per month. Anyone know if I can do that?

If it's Thursday, that must mean it's time for the Thursday Threesome, brought to us by Dick, Jane, and The Back Porch.

Onesome: See- What do you see when you look out your kitchen window? Just curious...
It’s a rather boring view of the houses across the street. Of course, my last two apartments didn’t even have windows in the kitchen, so I guess I shouldn’t complain.

Twosome: Spot- Okay, pet names... Come on; not everyone has a "Sparky" or a"Fluffy". If you have a pet or two, what did you name them? Hmmm... No pets? How about a 'pet name' for someone close to you?
No pet names or names for someone close to me. However, I used to pretend I had a cat named Kitten. Did I ever tell you the story about when Kitten died? :)


Threesome: Run- Hey, what's your favorite 'run over to' place? You know, the "Honey,I'll be back in a bit, I need to run over to..." That place!
Used to be Crime Time. Now, probably Borders. But I’m becoming less and less of a run to person these days.