only the beginning

One thing I'm thankful for....

My scale is broken.

AND since DH is looking for work, we shouldn't be spending money on "non essentials"

Between Thursday, and having leftovers on Friday, and a Chinese dinner at MILs on Saturday ---

Ah yes -- it's the beginning of the holiday eating season (which I enjoy much more than the holiday shopping season).

Methinks fuzzybutt will be needing a few more walks.

QUITE a few more LONG walks.

Blew it before I knew it....

I didn't know there was such a thing as a "buy nothing day" but I found out it's today.

Of course, by the time I found out, I'd already bought something.

BUT I was a "good" girl about that purchase. I was meeting Crem at the dog park -- he insists that he's addicted to Starbuck's (not coffee in general -- Starbuck's in particular) so I picked up a cup for him *BUT* I brought my own coffee from home. So I didn't spend more than I needed.

I wonder if it could cease to count if I get the $1.98 back? I wonder if he gives me $2.00 if I'd have to put in my $0.02 (2 cents)?

And how will I do the rest of the day????

Stay tuned to the blog to find out. I'm not thinking it will go strong -- I'm almost out of milk, and I haven't yet figured out what's for dinner.

Hey - I'm a classic

Took a classic dame test ... Unfortunately, I don't feel very quirky and independent today.

My score on The Classic Dames Test:

**************************************

Katharine Hepburn
(You scored 23% grit, 14% wit, 57% flair, and 14% class!)

"You are the fabulously quirky and independent woman of character. You
go your own way, follow your own drummer, take your own lead. You
stand head and shoulders next to your partner, but you are perfectly
willing and able to stand alone. Others might be more classically
beautiful or conventionally woman-like, but you possess a more
fundamental common sense and off-kilter charm, making interesting men
fall at your feet. You can pick them up or leave them there as you see
fit. You share the screen with the likes of Spencer Tracy and Cary
Grant, thinking men who like strong women.

Find out what kind of classic leading man you'd make by taking the
Classic Leading Man Test."

**************************************

Take it!
http://www.okcupid.com/tests/take?testid=4621123663119520922

Science Fiction book meme

A Science Fiction book meme -- and I'm DONE for the day :} I'm really tired - I should train my children to SLEEP IN on school holidays.

This is a list of the 50 most significant science fiction/fantasy novels, 1953-2002, according to the Science Fiction Book Club.

Bold the ones you’ve read, strike-out the ones you hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put an asterisk beside the ones you loved.


The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien*
The Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov
Dune, Frank Herbert
Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert A. Heinlein*
A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin
Neuromancer, William Gibson
Childhood’s End, Arthur C. Clarke
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick
The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley
Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury
The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe
A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller, Jr.
The Caves of Steel, Isaac Asimov
Children of the Atom, Wilmar Shiras
Cities in Flight, James Blish
The Colour of Magic, Terry Pratchett
Dangerous Visions, edited by Harlan Ellison
Deathbird Stories, Harlan Ellison
The Demolished Man, Alfred Bester
Dhalgren, Samuel R. Delany
Dragonflight, Anne McCaffrey
Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card
The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R. Donaldson
The Forever War, Joe Haldeman
Gateway, Frederik Pohl
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, J.K. Rowling*
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams*
I Am Legend, Richard Matheson
Interview with the Vampire, Anne Rice
The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le Guin
Little, Big, John Crowley
Lord of Light, Roger Zelazny
The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick
Mission of Gravity, Hal Clement
More Than Human, Theodore Sturgeon
The Rediscovery of Man, Cordwainer Smith
On the Beach, Nevil Shute
Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke
Ringworld, Larry Niven
Rogue Moon, Algis Budrys
The Silmarillion, J.R.R. TolkienSlaughterhouse-5, Kurt Vonnegut
Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson
Stand on Zanzibar, John Brunner
The Stars My Destination, Alfred Bester
Starship Troopers, Robert A. Heinlein
Stormbringer, Michael Moorcock
The Sword of Shannara, Terry Brooks
Timescape, Gregory Benford
To Your Scattered Bodies Go, Philip Jose Farmer

Once again, ahead of my time .....

An Inconvenient Truth is being released on DVD today. In an effort to seem intelligent and timely, I'll say something seemingly incredibly environmentally friendly.


A columnist in The Daily Telegraph wrote on an article in The Idler magazine. I never read the original Idler article, but I must say I find myself in agreement with the basic premise.

I'll put in a link to the original article, but I'll pull some comments.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2006/11/13/do1303.xml

Do nothing, save the world: it's the only option By Jim White
Last
Updated: 12:01am GMT 13/11/2006

It is one of the favoured management-speak clichés of our times,

...

And most of all you hear it from politicians, anxious to display their anti-pollution credentials even as they sanction the use of depleted-uranium bullets on the streets of Baghdad.
"Doing nothing," they all tell us, "is not an option." We hear it so often, it goes without challenge.

...

What if, however, it turns out that doing nothing is the best thing we could possibly do? What if within the mere act of doing nothing lies the solution to the most serious problem we face? This is the intriguing thought laid out in the latest edition of The Idler magazine: when it comes to global warming, doing nothing is the only option.

...

Its understanding of the causes of global warming, for instance, is acute. We have, the magazine suggests, come to this because of an insistence on being busy. This avowal of busyness has gained ascendancy not because it achieves anything, but because the act of being busy is seen as morally superior to the act of doing nothing.

...

But there is a solution. Don't just insulate your loft and install a composter in your garden – when it comes to most of the activities of modern life, take the idle turn. Instead of jetting off on holiday, walk down to your nearest stretch of river and spend time reflecting on your own reflection. Instead of switching on the television, read a book. When it comes to Christmas, don't busy yourself buying tat nobody needs that has to be shipped in from China on a giant boat; buy nothing at all. These are three simple acts of doing nothing that would save far more carbon than installing a David Cameron-style wind turbine on your roof. And the neighbours wouldn't complain about the vibrations.

...

SEE, I don't deny my children from having endless classes and experiences because I'm lazy or a cheapskate. It's because I'm OH SO GREEN!!!!

Must dash -- time for my nap.

I am 26 today

NO -- it's not my birthday - I took an online quiz ...

I consider myself open to the views of many different philosophers. And, I am also open to what I consider philosophy. (HEY -- Cookie Monster has a LOT to say).

TODAY -- I think I can show that I do follow a belief of one of my favorite philosophers .....

[cue music]

I'm growing older but not up

my metabolic rate is pleasantly stuck

let the winds of change blow over my head

I'd rather die while I'm living than live while I'm dead.

--- Jimmy Buffet

[music off]

I took this quiz and according to the quiz I'm 26.

I highly suspect it's because of two of the questions. One of them being my ideal career (hey -- video game tester sounds like FUN). The other being something about flipping through channels and what show do you stop at. Well, I don't really watch tv - so I picked the only show on there I've ever seen.

Can *I* help it if my kids watch Spongebob???

Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax. http://www.blogthings.com/whatagequiz/

all creatures great and small

A few weeks ago, our family made one of our semi-annual treks to one of the fundraisers for one of our favorite organizations The Critter Corral, a guinea pig rescue.

http://www.crittercorral.org/

YES -- I said a guinea pig rescue. And yes, my sister, and my friend Crem have both informed me that Guinea Pigs are bred for food in Peru. I think they're trying to gross me out, but considering that they are prolific breeders and need very little space, this makes sense.

Actually, considering what prolific breeders they are, it goes to reason that a guinea pig rescue is needed. The thing people don't realize about the little buggers, is that they can start breeding at 6 weeks of age. So if you have brothers and sisters, or mothers and sons in the same cage ......

Another reason many guinea pigs end up in the rescue is that (being the size they are) they are very difficult to sex. Quite a few babies have ended up at the rescue simply because a pet store sold "two boys" or "two girls" and a family was surprised a few weeks later.

Yes, animal rescue is a good an honorable way to contribute, and I think that it's important to teach my children to care for others (even if "others," in this case, are rodents). And I'm glad my children "know" that animals come from rescues and not pet stores.

But let's face it -- these things are *FUN* -- just look at those pictures. I think my friend from The Family Blender will really appreciate the picture at the bottom. (Hmmmm - maybe I should have saved this post -- or at least that picture -- until New Year's Eve).