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i redid my links.
yay!
added quite a few interesting ones that people have sent me or which i have collected over the past few months.
if you find a dead link, please let me know so i can fix it.
the stagger will stay up and running during the move, so no worries there, fair patrons.
i am going back to bed because i am sleepy. which made me think of this for some reason.
please let the coffee fairy stop by whilst i dream a little dream...
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 10:55 AM | Comments (2)
for some reason i found this link interesting.
cannot put my finger on why though...
oh wait, yes i can.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 04:02 PM | Comments (0)
and never back again.
what i am leaving:
where i am going:
no comparision. at all. not a smidge.
oh, by the way, i am in love.
he's cute, is he not?
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 12:32 PM | Comments (1)
to leave kansas:
my neighbor's wife left him. again.
now he keeps showing up for random reasons, usually very drunk and very high.
weirdest reason to come knocking on my door? direct quote from him: "i was shooting my bb gun at the trash barrels and may have hit your house. didn't want you to worry or nothing. of course, there's no way that little gun would shoot all the way over here. i've been shot in the leg with a bb gun and it didn't even break the skin."
listening to him ramble on took valuable minutes away from my life in which i could have been doing something constructive like calling my psychic friend hotline or buying something from qvc. i know, i know. neither of those things are constructive but they are still better than listening to this neanderthal!
first, why are you shooting at the trash barrels with a bb gun? did they piss you off somehow or are you just really, really, really bored?
second, why come tell me you may have hit my house with a bb and then tell me there is no way you could have done that because the gun is not powerful enough? make up your mind and when you have made up your mind, do not come back to tell me. i do not care.
third, why brag that you have been shot with a bb? please do not tell me any more of the story. again, i do not care.
needless to say i check all the locks in the house before i go to bed. about twenty times.
one week, two days.
i can deal with this.
i am going to be hiding over here, okay? under the covers. behind the locked door. with a bat in one hand and a redneck dictionary in the other.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 05:29 PM | Comments (1)
i could swear i posted earlier but it apparently went on holiday. the post that is. not my mind. or perhaps my mind. could be with my post. hopefully on a beach.
in any case. back from a quick overnight trip to kansas city. early morning yesterday beginning with a sick puppy.
she is better now, thanks for asking.
errands, lawyers and several adventures later i am safely back home and recovering nicely. was able to sleep in this morning, then headed off to lunch with mart before continuing home. i miss kansas city more than i realized.
this one made me laugh:
rain pounding on your door
explodingdog.com
getting everything ready for the yard sale next weekend. bah. so ready to unload all the stuff. so hard to look at everything and realize that we are selling off pieces of our life that once was. a little melancholy these days i suppose.
tonight, i drape. i drape across my chair and read and refuse to do anything constructive.
because i can.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 10:39 PM | Comments (0)
i will fess up now.
i am moving to boulder, colorado in two weeks. two weeks from today to be almost exact.
out of kansas? YAY!
back in colorado? YAY!
still a bit sad at times, but i can deal with it. life does have to move forward. always helps to have people to move forward with, which i do.
does this make sense?
it does to me.
*happy dance*
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 04:56 PM | Comments (0)
graduated yesterday and had his grad luncheon today.
he had cake. a lot of it.
and we took our usual self-portrait
congratulations, austin!
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 07:53 PM | Comments (0)
here are some photos from the barbeque last weekend.
i will tell you, it really is a dog's world:
while the dogs ruled the day, there were other activities such as:
talking
talking to chairs
writing poetry
looking sexy
being too tall and too short
dancing
fuzzy dancing
there would be more pics of me, but i have finally realized exactly how much weight i have gained. so pfft to all of you, i am on a diet.
thanks to dad and alisha for photos!
thanks to colin for always tuning in to the soundtrack of my mind.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 07:55 PM | Comments (1)
if i did have a personal life, which i do not, i would not blog about it: US Senate Staffer Sues Sex Blogger
here is the original story. you can make up your own mind about her.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 01:43 PM | Comments (0)
surprise anyone? (it sure as hell surprised me!)
 |
You scored as Idealist. Idealism centers around the belief that we are moving towards something greater. An odd mix of evolutionist and spiritualist, you see the divine within ourselves, waiting to emerge over time. Many religious traditions express how the divine spirit lost its identity, thus creating our world of turmoil, but in time it will find itself and all things will again become one.
What is Your World View? created with QuizFarm.com |
(thanks to gary for the link)
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 02:33 AM | Comments (0)
that as i do not have a job and am out of school i would have wonderous and amazing amounts of time to post wonderous and amazing thoughts.
well i do not.
so there.
went to see star wars tonight. one word: neato.
packing sucks.
kaya is being a brat.
i should have gotten at least one stich in my finger from the dog bite last night because one of the bloody (literally) punctures will not stay shut.
pfft.
just in case you did not catch that, let me repeat:
pfft.
there does exist, somewhere deep down, a need to express myself through words. currently, this need has been taken hostage by a rival gang and is being held for ransom. until such time as i can come up with the payoff, please be patient and read my drivel. because even drivel has feelings.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 12:24 AM | Comments (0)
you just act without thinking. automatically. like when you try to help out a squealing puppy and get bit on the hand instead.
duh.
lesson learned: do not stick hand out toward scared puppy as they tend to bite.
do not worry, i sometimes wonder about my ability to survive life, the universe and everything too.
i am off to pack. some more.
soundtrack to my mind can be heard here and here.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 11:13 AM | Comments (0)
here at the stagger. thought i would be in kansas for the summer but looks as if i am moving to colorado. stay tuned for details...
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 03:11 PM | Comments (0)
As a soon to be traveller to a big country I have my towel packed and am selecting a suitable box (see previous post) to avoid the shock of being in a big country.
I was curious to see what the Guide had to say about bringing gifts for your hosts:
"Upon visiting foreign climes, it is always a Good Idea to bring gifts for your hosts. These gifts can used to, amongst other things, distract the natives from attempting to roast you for dinner or bribe yourself out of uncomfortable misunderstandings with custom officers.
Suitable gifts, by the way,for the unexperienced Hitchhiker do not include the fluff from your belly button, candles made from your ear wax, or the chocolates you don't like, left over from a selection box your Great Aunt Maude gave you.
However, in certain parts of society, these are perfectly acceptable gifts, though these may not be the parts of society that Hitchihikers would choose to be in. However, being a Hitchhiker, one often has to choose less than salubrious company. The old saying, "Hitchhikers can't be choosers" comes to mind.
Particularly when travelling to a different country, planet, solar system or galaxy, it is always nice to bring gifts of a local nature which the local inhabitants have never seen before.
This could be anything from novelty shaped tea pots through to tea towels and aprons with humorous and slighty naughty prints on. (Hitchhikers should note than in an emergency a tea towel can be used as a temporary towel until you find your towel again).
A good gift, particularly when visiting the female of the species is chocolate. For some reason, the females of most species are rather fond of chocolate. It is a Good Idea for a Hitchhiker to carry some spare chocolate in case he is imprisoned as a sex slave by the Amazonian Princesses on Garuld VII or otherwise pressed into service on a Brothel ship."
Interesting entry ...
As I am travelling to a big country, I've decided to bring some novelty gifts along from my small country. I am in the process of selecting these gifts for my hostess and am sure these will be discussed here in detail during and after the visit. I shall keep them mostly a surprise, but please, dear readers, prepare yourself for the epic tale of marmite here one day ...
And the guide's comments on Marmite.
"Yuk"
Hmmm ... we'll let our gracious hostess decide and update that entry.
Oh, and I'd better throw away my belly button fluff collection ...
Posted by jayzn at 09:20 AM | Comments (0)
dawn of a new day. well, it will be in about six hours.
does that count? i think so.
the past few days have been roller coaster-esq. very high highs and very low lows. repetitive? perhaps a bit.
as of friday at 12:30pm i was finished with school.
for now, in any case.
friday afternoon was spent in a flurry of last minute shopping and cleaning and then, finally, hanging out with my friends. it was topped off by an early morning arrival who is only excused because he brought french market coffee and is thus forgiven.
somewhat.
saturday was long day of people and food and people and drinking and food and people and... well, you get the point. yes, there are photos. no, i am not posting as i do not have release forms. that is my story and i am sticking to it.
it was fantastic. the whole day i just did what i wanted and was allowed to do so.
*grin*
sunday i awoke with high expectations of rest and relaxation. these expectations were met, but not without a price.
after being surrounded by people for days and days, to be suddenly alone. when i feel good, i feel very very good. but when i feel bad...well, that is why i was on happy pills for a time. without the meds to balance me out, i get a bit dopey and sad and start to think too much.
late in the day people started to show up again and i was able to put my mood somewhat behind me. keeping busy helps to keep the shadows away. keeps you from being lonely and feeling second best. or at least gives you something to do so you do not pay attention to those shadows.
so yes, here i am.
sad that everything is over: the school, the routine, the normalacy of my life.
scared because everything has now changed and i am not sure if i can deal with it, or in some cases, if i even want to deal with it.
excited because this could be the start of a brand new time with new things to do and see.
but, on to more mundane things. the past few days have had a few of their own ups and downs. packing away almost everything i own has been quite an adventure. the next few months will see a very boring, very lifeless house. the good thing is that the pile for the garage sale is bigger than the pile of stuff my father is taking away to storage.
really. it is!
the crew and i have been watching movies the past few nights. we also went to a thai restaurant tonight and had fun trying out a bit of everything.
worked on the baby quilt a bit more. have put it off but have now picked up where i left off. realize that although september seems like a long way off, it will be here sooner than i realize. so excited for my brother, his wife and their kids! they say this is the last one...perfect trifecta of children. two girls and a boy.
*grin*
tomorrow, more lawyers! yay. hopefully dinner with kellie in kansas city if we can swing it. i hope so, because i already miss her dreadfully.
well, i am off. drowsy dog and a good book to check in with over there on the bed.
title: just when we got close, you had to leave
exlodingdog.com
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 11:55 PM | Comments (0)
maddison marie barrett
in utero, i believe is the term.
just to clarify, this is a picture of my newest niece.
*grin*
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 05:47 PM | Comments (0)
505 bash.
now that school is almost over, kellie is heading off to kansas city for her internship. eva and i are stuck in hell, urm, i mean here...for the summer.
we all met up for drinks.
kellie and eva looked a bit evil
and i look a lot tan (and a bit evil, too)
kellie = another good reason to go to kansas city!
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 11:40 PM | Comments (0)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4538547.stm
Read this article and just remember the Terminator film and perhaps the Matrix ...
Is this the beginnning of the end?
If you don't see me around much for the next few days it is because I am
a) Building and stocking my underground bunker / lair
b) Working on my rocket ship
c) Standing outside of the houses of Parliament with a placard that reads, "The end is nigh"
Posted by jayzn at 12:44 AM | Comments (0)
Here, in the small provincial country of England, some of you may have noticed that our elections are over. Now, we are a small country. The sort of country that would almost fit in your pocket, or be described to owners of larger countries by itself as "Bijou" and "Compact". It's the kind of country where you can drive from one end to the other in a day or maybe less.
Sometimes however, that trip could take much longer due to traffic jams, accidents and roadworks on the M1. Or, if you are fortunate, cows / ducks / chickens / swans / nutcases on the road (delete as appropriate).
However, we are not as small as some countries, which are really small. In fact, they are so small that the locals give directions something like, "Go straight up that road there and before you fall off the edge of the country, you'll see Eliza's house on the left, next to the rock."
That's a small country.
An even smaller country would be the kind where you have to stand on one foot in order to be in it, but then your other limbs would be invading the airspace of other countries in a Lilliputian kind of way, and the slightest mis-step could result in a national calamity.
Now soon I am going to visit a big country. A country so big that it positively boggles the mind. I mean, I complain it's a long way to the corner shop here, but there, it's even further.
Now, in preparation for my journey, I have consulted my trusty Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy for advice. Apart from the pre-requisites of a towel and a babel fish (to translate for me as apparently this big country speaks a completely different language) the Hitchhikers has this to say about large countries:
"For the denizens of small countries who visit big countries it may be a little bit confusing and overwhelming when you realise just how big big is. It's not just big, but really big. Further than big and bigger than a very big thing that is very big indeed. And most certainly, it is bigger than your small country.
Visitors to a big country may risk an attack of agoraphobia or even just complete panic. In the later case, please pay turn to the words on the cover of your friendly guide for advice.
In order to prevent these symptoms small country visitors to large countries should pack a box to take with them.
Upon arrival in the big country, place the box over one's head before disembarking from your chosen method of transport. The use of the box will allow you to keep your small country perspective whilst enjoying all the pleasures of the large country.
Should the traveller find themselves unceremoniously dumped in a large country by a passing Vogon constructor ship, then the towel can be used as an emergency substitute until a suitable box can be found. Place the towel over one's head, obscuring the view and you will retain your small country view.
At this juncture, we should probably kindly remind our readers of a few criteria for selecting their box.
1) Ensure that the box is opaque. If you have a translucent box then there is every chance you will in fact see through it and realise that you are in a big country.
2) The size of box chosen for use should be one that is of a suitable size for you. Choosing a box that is too big may in fact result in the same panic sustained from realising you are in a big country.
3) It may be worth considering cutting some airholes in your box. Some unfortunate hitchhikers have learnt this lesson the hard way. And whilst you are engaged in cutting holes in your box, it may also be a good idea to cut some ear holes so that you can hear oncoming traffic, charging elephants, evacuation sirens and flushing lavatories.
Of course, as Gargantula Mammorabilis learnt on Zargon III, wearing a box may well protect you from the shock of being in a big place, but does not protect you from the Dubyanites nibbling at your tentacles.
To those Hitchhikers who have not had the pleasure of visiting Zargon III, a Dubyanite is a small, annoying reptile that enjoys munching on extremeties and, if left unchecked, can in fact devour an entire BugBlatter Beast in a single sitting. These are most certainly worth avoiding and should never be invited around for dinner, and most certainly not elected to any positions of power."
So, dear weary fellow Hitchhikers supping here at the Stagger Inn: should you see a bemused Englishman wearing a box or indeed a towel on his head, you now understand why, and can warn him of any Dubyanites nibbling at his toes as he meanders around your big country, occasionally bumping into things.
Posted by jayzn at 07:38 AM | Comments (0)
soundtrack to my mind.
yes, i am a happy person.
really.
barbeque in t-minus five days.
austin and i planted shrubbery today. and wildflower seeds. and grass seeds. and we mulched. that sounds much dirtier than it actually is...
i scared a turtle. iam happy to report he survived his encounter with me, although not his later encounter with the mower.
luke mowed the lawn. and the turtle.
two finals down, two to go.
wednesday there is a going away party for kellie. thank goodness she will only be in kansas city!
congrats to hedo on her master's degree and krisa-tina on her B.A.!!!
i am so proud of both of you. we should start a club. "the never worked in the truly real world and finally getting there after an average of 8 years of higher education" club. kind of a clunky title, but we can work that out later.
over and out.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 08:17 PM | Comments (0)
to study group. had to stop by and get a supportive hug from austin.
really, i have been studying.
promise.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 12:27 AM | Comments (0)
cinco de mayo!
my evening included:
austin and jen showing up out of the blue!
and
kaya waiting not so patiently for me to get the linens done and remake the entire bed
ta ra!
random quote of the day?
Self-realization. I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, when he said, "I drank what?" --Chris Knight, Real Genius
(congrats on the A, zan!)
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 11:32 PM | Comments (1)
that in only a few short days i will no longer be a student? at least for a little while. who knows what will happen in the future. i figure if i do not like it in the real world, i can always go back to get my master's degree...and then a doctorate...then...well...hmm, i will have to get back to you on where i will go from there.
the pile of magazines i have been shoving into the bookcase to keep 'out of sight, out of mind' beckons to me; so have many blogs i have not been able to keep up with; the drawing of doodles that i have put aside in the name of finally getting my schoolwork done; the cleaning; the packing; the thought of getting a job. these are all pressing into my brain like an overstuffed child's toy that you see hanging at a cheap carnival...waving in the wind, beady eyes staring at you, and who in the hell ever thought a neon blue unicorn was a good idea for a kid's toy anyway?
*shudder*
does anyone find it odd that my graduation is on friday the thirteenth? i do, because i just looked up at my calendar and it just sank in what date it exactly was. as if it was not a reality until just a moment ago.
all of the roomie's stuff is out of the house as of today, which means i can start to put together a somewhat barren (ah, let us call it sleek, modern, bare) bedroom together for houseguests.
my herbs are all sprouting. my petunias are doing petunia-like things. kaya is currently outside conversing yet again with the neighborhood pups. the house is silent other than my keyboard clicking away and the occasional ring (ringtone: muppet show theme, go ahead and laugh) of the phone to keep me from wondering if i am perhaps lost in a twilight zone of some sorts.
come and see my pretty house.
my windows all aglitter.
and if you stay awhile, you'll even catch a show.
of light that is
in red, yellow, orange and blue.
the downing sun and dawning night
putting up their daily fight.
yep, bad poetry. the odd sometimes beats out the id. i would apologize but i just do not care.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 10:04 PM | Comments (0)
will eventually have one of the bride on here, i hope...have to get one that is not copywritten! (hint, hint, steph!)
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 01:03 AM | Comments (0)
Sorry, I haven't written much I have been busy with training for my rides this summer and battling an internal discussion as to whether or not to blog about news events as that might hamper my future as a reporter if future employers didn't care for my tone. I have been back and forth on this last point as if I show I lean toward the democratic side of things or republican I would be hampered if I were to say work at the Denver Post covering politics. In that, leaders of the opposite party may be hesitant to speak with me.
In other events, I had a peculiar incident happen to me during my journalism class that I thought I would share. I was ridiculed for shaving my legs. Let me back up and explain the decision to shave or not shave went on for several months during which Heather and I had many discussions about it. The reasoning goes to several things including: 1.if I were to crash, cleaning up a road rash is easily done and will heal better without hair, 2. In larger events and with the purchase of my faster road bike, crashes are more likely, 3. Imagine it being like a rite of passage into an exclusive club (the last reason wasn't a big factor). I finally decided to do it after I purchased my road bike as I am firmly behind the notion that hair can be a nuisance during a crash and also I have encountered issues when my legs accidently strike my gearing which causes the skin to tear open. I guess also one last reason I decided to shave was because my heroes do it (Armstrong, Danielson, Hincapie, my Uncle Bill and all the other weekend warriors I ride with) and also because I think of myself as more of an athlete. This idea of thinking of myself as an athlete is an amazing tool when you are like me and desperate to get into shape. I drew strength from these factors during my rides and I also draw strength from a card my Dad had sent me. It says:
If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.(Thoreau) So, long story short if I strive to be a cyclist no matter the criticism I am hopeful I will be a good amateur or at the least I will give myself the gift of health. One more thing and I promise that will be it, during my decision making about shaving the discussion of ridicule was explored by myself and I decided then and will continue to think that if I want to be a reporter and an athlete I have to accept others' oddities and faults as well as my own. This acceptance of myself and others is what I hope will make me a more well-rounded person and a better reporter. And for those that must ridicule I feel sorry for you in that at some point you will have to stand up for something that is not at all popular and I hope you will then understand.
Posted by trester at 01:28 PM | Comments (0)
Here in the beautiful United Kingdom a general election is bearing down upon us and is being as well received by the general population as a coffee enema.
In light of this, perhaps it is time we understand our own political leanings.
http://www.politicalcompass.org/
This website asks you a few questions and then helps you understand whether you are ranked with George W. Bush, Nelson Mandela or Stalin ...
I'd be curious what everyone's results are.
Just for the records mine came out as
Economic Left/Right: -5.38
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -2.41
Which on their pretty graph puts me in the same areas as the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela and Ghandi.
Phew ... was worried I may have ended up in a different section! Fab! Time to go and attend a non violent process for world peace!
Posted by jayzn at 06:42 AM | Comments (2)
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 12:40 AM | Comments (0)
star bright.
nights are warm enough here to sit out on the porch now. i do this quite often late at night when my brain starts to get overwhelmed by the hundreds of little things i know i have to do.
tonight is clear and a bit chilly, but kaya and i sat in our little canvas chair for a while. she listened to the conversation among the other dogs, occasionally chiming in when she felt the need. i stared at the stars and tried to figure out when the tiger lilies would start to grow and bloom. i think it is usually toward the end of may/beginning of june. will be beautiful here when they show up.
a billion things to do before the bbq. including washing windows. any volunteers to help spring clean this weekend? i did not think so. oh well. i will set the media player on random while i wind my way through the house cleaning on autopilot.
the voices in my head seem to get louder at night, when everyone is asleep and there is nothing/no one to keep me otherwise occupied. does not help that i am such a night owl that going to bed before 2 or 3 or 4 in the morning seems unthinkable.
seems insane that school is almost over.
Posted by tofallfromgrace at 11:30 PM | Comments (1)
