Word Association for November 21st

As always, I take them from here.

1. Reconnect:: Old Friends
2. Gearshift:: Clutch
3. Mania:: Pac-Man
4. Manhattan:: NYC
5. First date:: Tennagers
6. District:: of Columbia
7. Yearbook:: High School
8. Breakup:: Sad
9. Episode:: TV Show
10. Costume:: Halloween

Something to say

I need a topic to talk about. I really should have a blog post today, but nothing much has happened.

I think I may have made some progress on research on my paper this week. Guess we'll see when I start writing this weekend. I still don't really feel like I have any clue what I'll be talking about.

And here's the worst part. I'm going to have to use footnotes or end notes! I was always able to use paraenthetical references when I was a student. The main reason I'm not looking forward to this? I hate trying to make word do what I want it do. That could take longer then the paper itself. Still, that' minor compared to getting the paper written.

And this is the guy who said a 5 page paper would be a breeze. LOL.

I'm really enjoying Jeremy Camp's new CD. Not as hard rock as his first with some great lyrics. Hope to get a review up next week.

And I got Clay Aiken's Christmas CD. Instant classic. I love it!

Youth group last night, we were in the music room for the school instead of the huge gym/sanctuary. It was more crowded, but we could actually hear everyone singing, which was so nice for a change. Small room, better accustics for a small group. Must remember that.

Wednesday night, of course, was the end of an era. The last night Matt would come over to watch sci-fi. Of the group that started three and a half years ago, he was the last one. Now it's just down to Matt. The other one.

Weather's been really nice during the day. Low 70's. Cools down to the 50's at night. Haven't had to run the heater or AC much this month at all. My electric bill will love that next month.

I bought a new coat Wednesday night. My old one got ruined by my airbag going off in my accident 3 years ago, and I finally replaced it. Got it on sale at Kohl's. 50% off. Can't beat a deal like that. It's heavier, too, which will be nice.

Look at that, I managed to find something to ramble about.

Thursday Threesome for November 18th

This week's is brought to us by gluttons and The Back Porch.

Onesome: No one-...to talk to? Nah, who is it you look forward to seeing at one of the holidays just to be able to sit around and chat with? Sure, even someone you see during the rest of the year!
My uncle and aunt. I don't see or talk to them nearly enough. Maybe I should change that. Will only see them for Christmas again this year, but looking forward to it. Haven't seen them since my brother's wedding.

Twosome: diets- Have you ever tried one of the "fad" diets out there? Yes, I include Atkins in this category! How did it work for you? Would you do it again or try another one?
Nope. I don't believe in dieting. Which is why I could stand to loose 10-20 pounds. :)

Threesome: on Thanksgiving- What's your favorite dish? Would you be happy just pigging out on turkey, or do you need all the fixings? Does the pumpkin pie make the meal or do you prefer Mom's green bean casserole?
I have a couple of favorites. Stuffing is a must. My mom makes the best stuffing you ever tasted! And my mom's yams, apples, raisins, and cinnimon is a must for us as well. And I really do love pumpkin pie for desert, much to my mom's dismay. She hates it!

I've Got Bad News and Good News

Actually, I've known the bad news for about a week now.

Matt, who has made a few appearances in my comments and almost constantly the last few months in posts, is leaving town this Saturday.
:( And we still have 2/3rd's of season 5 of Babylon 5 to go, too. Seriously, we've become very good friends in the last few months. Better then we were before. I thought I had until May, but now it's now.

Why do my friends keep doing this to me? Don't they realize that when you become my friend you sign a contrap to stay in town forever and ever amen?

We were talking about Heaven in both services in church Sunday. That forever things, while hard to wrap my brain around, sounds so good when I think of all the friends I'll be able to spend forever with. Like Matt, the Durons, Donald, Jeremiah, Grandma.

Got the good news last night. Effective January 1st, I'll be getting a raise. And a better raise then I'd hoped for, too. Considering it's been several years, I'm very happy. Not enough to allow me to kick out my roommates, but enough that Trixie camp by myself should be no problem what-so-ever.

Meanwhile, I am stressing about my paper big time. I have no clue when I'm going to get it written or even find research to be able to write it when I find the time.

And I've decided to get a laptop. Preferably before I head home for Christmas. Any thoughts are more then welcome. The sooner the better so I can get on-line at home again.

TV Tuesday for November 16th

Time one again for the TV Tuesday.

1. Any holiday favorites you can't live without?
A Charlie Brown Christmas. I don't know if I've ever missed it in all the Christmases I can remember. Close behind it is the animated How the Grinch Stole Christmas and some version of A Christmas Carol. I'm rather partial to the George C. Scott version, but also love the Muppet version.

2. Holiday viewing: Parades or Football?
Who has time to watch TV on the holiday itself? I'm too busy eating or spending time with family.

3. What's your favorite holiday TV memory?
Linus quoting the gospel of Luke comes close. Have I mentioned how much I love that special?

~Bonus~ Holiday remakes, are you a faithful fan of the old classics or do you prefer the newer versions?
Well, I already mentioned that I prefer the 1984 George C. Scott version of A Christmas Carol, so I think you know where this is going. I tend to like recent versions. Of course, on TV, I don't know if there is a classic episode of any show that gets played over and over again except on Nick and Nite. And people don't remake TV shows. At least most of the time.

I'm not ready for it to be Monday yet!

I need at least another two or three days on my weekend.

Of course, that would be because I didn't really do much Saturday that was at all productive. Other then talk to my family. And three loads of laundry. But I spent most of the afternoon playing around on the internet, not working on my paper, not working on the Sunday School message for Sunday morning, not working on either Trixie fan fic idea, not working on finishing the book for a group discussion on a mystery board I belong to. Yeah, other then that I got a lot done. :)

I did finally get the message prepared enough that I didn't look like a complete idiot Sunday morning. Went really short, but I was at a natural breaking point in Matthew 5, so I figured I should stop there. Which meant I dealt with Divorce and Oaths. Two topics that are sure to be part of every jr. higher's every day life. :)

Then Sunday afternoon, I went to my friend Debbie's house for an afternoon of praise. I brought my guitar, and we sang for at least an hour after we shared some praise from the Bible or songs. A really great afternoon. Couple that with the messages from both services Sunday (about Heaven from Revelation 20 & 21), and I was flying high.

Sunday night I finished the book for the discussion. Frankly, I was less then impressed with Sick of Shadows. Very weak plotting and not funny like it was supposed to be. I guess it was supposed to be a social satire on Southern culture, but not being a Southerner, I just didn't get it.

And I'm rather tired, too. Probably because I stayed up Saturday night to try my hand at Halo 2. Went to bed about 1 AM. And I stink at first person shooter games. Too many controls to try to keep track of.

Frankly, that game is going to cause some serious problems. All my roommates want to do is play it. On line if they can. Well, to do that, they have to be plugged into the DSL server. The same place my computer plugs in. Which means if I want to be on-line, I have to kick them off. And, getting the TV in the living room is even a bigger problem. Honestly, they play that things probably 12 hours a day between the three of them. And when Tom goes to bed early, I have no choice but to be out there. I wonder if they'd suspect me if the game suddenly got broken.

Finally got my new bumper stickers on magnets and four of them are on my car. Found them at bumperart.com. The four I have on my car read like this: "I used to be indecisive. Now I just don't know." "Hi!, I'm the dread pirate Roberts #3690. Ask about franchise opportunities in your area." (I know Mary will want to get that one.) "One by one, the penguins steal my sanity." And finally. "I'm not paranoid! Which of my enemies told you this?"

Looks like it's dinner time. Have a good night.

Word Association for November 14th

On line for a few minutes, so thought I should get this taken care of. As always, found here.

1. Childhood:: Home
2. Ransom:: Note
3. Melissa:: Gilbert
4. Trust me:: Board Game
5. Report:: Paper
6. Give up:: Quit
7. Nightgown:: Sleep
8. Smokes:: Chimney
9. Cookies & cream:: Ice Cream
10. Gameshow:: Prizes

My Week in Review

Not that there's too much to review.

Tuesday night, I went with Matt, Casey, and Stephanie to see The Incredibles. It was incredible! Seriously, it was loads of fun. Pixar has yet another hit on their hands. I hope their winning streak lasts for a long, long time. I'm thinking I'll probably go with my roommates this weekend, too. Disney was stupid to let them get away.

Last night we did a new song at youth group. "Pour Out my Heart." At least it was new to me. But I really like it. It'll definitely be making a come back.

I have done nothing toward my paper or the Sunday School lesson for Sunday yet. I guess that's what tomorrow is for.

I officially hate Halo 2. It will be months and months before I am able to use my TV in the living room without kicking someone off. And to hook it up to the internet, they have to unhook my computer. Not to mention the fact that it's a shoot 'em up game, which I dispise because I'm horrid at them, get lost, and they're pointless. Other then that, I like it. :)

Got our annual jr. high thanksgiving tonight. It's when everyone brings a food that starts with the first letter of their last name. I'm bringing my standard, bread and butter. Worked through lunch so I can get off at 4:30 and actually buy it and change clothes and get there on time. Should be fun, as always.

Thursday Threesome of November 11th

But first, a public service announcement.

Happy Vetrans Day! And thanks to all those who have served to keep us safe and free.

Now, on to the business at hand. This week's edition brought to us by jet lag and The Back Porch.

Onesome: World-- Okay, you've been here; you've been there. ...or maybe not. Is there someplace you think it would be cool to spend a holiday? Christmas in the Alps? St. Patrick's Day in Erie? Oh, sure, take the entire family if you'd like!
I'd love to spend the 4th of July in Washington DC. Along with everyone else in the country, I'm sure, but it would still be cool.

Twosome: Weary-- Have you ever had to deal with jet lag? How have you handled it? ...and which direction is worse for you, going East or going West? Just curious...
I've noticed it when traveling to the East Coast, but it's not as bad as Europe and Israel. Israel was the worst cause I was only there a week, had just adjusted, then got hit again going the other way. I think coming back was the worst from both because you get tired so early but must stay up. I had little trouble going to sleep on the going end because I had slept so little in the plane. But coming back it suddenly hits me and I can't keep my eyes opened another minute.

Threesome: Traveler-- When you've traveled, what conveyance has bothered you the most? That camel in Morocco? The train ride through the Rockies? Your brother-in-law's Dodge? What just set your nerves on edge?
My dad's driving in Europe. :) We had such a hard time following the signs. We got lost multiple times and even wound up in a pedestrian only place once.

Thoughts on Uniting

(Yes, this post will be political. Read accordingly.)

So, over and over again, we hear the Democrats calling on President Bush to unite the country. Heck, there were lots of complaints because he didn't unite us in his first term. Kerry brought up the idea of unity in his concession speech. Other leaders have called on Bush to unite this country in the week since then.

And yes, President Bush does have a responsibility to reach out and work with everyone in government to do what is best for the country. But there are some things it doesn't mean.

This does not mean that Bush needs to scrap his agenda for the Democrat agenda. He was elected because of what he said he'd do, so he now needs to follow through and try to do that. Yes, work with Democrats to get all sides of the issue and pass the best bills/reforms possible. But don't surrender what got him there in the first place.

But let's look at the other side. See, unity, like everything else in life, is a two way street. And I'm holding the Democrats to a much higher standard then Bush for his second term. After all, it was the Democrats who filibustered every single one of Bush's judge nominations for the past four years. That's hardly doing anything toward unity.

And, frankly, it's people like this who are helping divide our country. (Warning, there are some very graphic signs here, at least for what you'd normally find on my blog.) I mean, really, will these people ever unite with Bush over anything? I think if he came out and did the opposite of everything he's done for the last four years, they'd think he was still evil.

Then there's this article. I'm sorry, but that just sounds like a bunch of whiners. Who again, will not be uniting with Bush even if he were giving $1 million to every person who voted against him.

Then there's the talk of succession. States in this country tried that when they didn't like the outcome of an election. In 1861. Remember studying a little thing called the Civil War? And in this case, there are lots of people in the blue states that wouldn't go along with it. CA went to Kerry with only 54% of the vote. That means almost half of the people voted for Bush. That's a lot of your fellow citizens who would resist a move to take us away from the country because of Bush.

Or those talking about moving to Canada. I'll believe that when I see it. And I'm sorry, but that's just petty and childish.

You see, it's called a Democracy. That means that majority picks it's rulers. Ok, so we're actually a Republic (happy now, Matt?) where we pick leaders to make the rules for us. But the majority still picks the leaders. That means sometimes you win and sometimes you loose. When you loose, you need to be gracious about it and work toward the next time. Power will shift yet again. It's happened time and time again in this country.

But it will not help anything to call those of us who voted for Bush (you know, the majority of the population) stupid, moron, idiot, or worse. How is that going to unite anyone? We both looked at the same facts and the same candidate and reached different conclusions. That doesn't make either one of us smarter or dumber then the other. Just different.

I had originally intended to lash out at this point in my post and say I was going to start taking these comments personally. Fortunately, God whacked me upside the head with a reminder from the Sermon on the Mount about praying for those who persecute you. So, God helping me, I will continue to work at my friendships with those who agree and disagree with me.

A comment for my friend "The Truth." This was an American election. We were electing our leaders. I didn't tell you who I thought should be your leader nor did I insult you after the results. Please extend the same courtisy to me.

One final point. I have never called anyone who disagreed with me unpatriotic. I reserve the right to do so in the future, but then it will be for something truly outrageous like calling for another attack on our country or some such thing. It will not be for simply disagreeing with Bush. This country has lots of room for disagreement and I will always support that. Encouraging the enemy is unpatriotic. Disagreeing with our government isn't.