Cell Phone Rudeness and Stupidity

Cell phones have become a part of our everyday lives. Hell, they've been a part of our everyday lives for years now. The fact that they have been such a part of our daily lives, you'd figure that people would have finally adjusted to the right times and places to use them. I mean after all this time, and all the years of complaints and arguments both pro and con, you'd figure our society would have come to some consensus about their usage and when and where it is appropriate. One place where their use is inappropriate would be in any room where the following is posted: "THE USE OF CELL PHONES IS NOT PERMITTED IN THIS AREA. PLEASE USE THE LOBBY AND CORRIDOR NEAR THE ELEVATORS." Not very cryptic and it seems to be written in the common tongue of our country. So you would think that people would get the idea? Wrong! I spent most of my day in the Prince Georges County Permits and Review Office and was amazed at how rude and selfish people can be when it comes to the use of their cell phones. What the hell did these assholes do before cell phones? I can understand if you are there and it's your first time and your phone rings and you instinctively answer it. It's become second nature to us. And in defense of those in line with me, the signs weren't right in front of you. Well, almost, but not quite, so I can maybe see that you missed them. But in the waiting room itself, which really isn't that large of a space, it was posted in no less than 10 locations. It was posted twice on the forward wall, three times on the side wall, on the back of the computer facing the line, once on the far wall, once on the back wall, on the door to the office and on a big sign hanging above the desk. Unless you are blind, stupid or just can't read English you CAN'T miss these signs. They all look the same, they all say the exact same thing and they are all larger than anything else on the walls. It was the first thing I saw once I entered the room. Yet for some reason, there are those few people who think that the rule is for everyone but them. I spent most of my waiting time listening to this guy talk to his wife and give her a "honey do" list for the day. He also walked her through which credit card payments he wanted her to make, caught up on the day's gossip and chatted her up about their dinner plans. WTF! I don't want to listen to this guys conversation, and the room isn’t' that big, so no matter where I'm sitting, I can here this guy talking. Apparently the use of a cell phone magically transports people to a land where they think they are the ONLY ONES IN THE ROOM! There were two other people in the room who felt the same as this guy and were chatting away with their friends and/or significant others. It might not have been that bad if they were at least discussing why they were there or getting some other tidbit of information that would make their filing run that much smoother, but no, every conversation had to do with their own personal bullshit. I even pointed out the sign to the guy dealing with his wife and asked if he minded and he looked at me like I was purple with 7 heads (he then went back to talking to his wife like I didn't even exist - Asshole).

Now for the stupidity. Before I start I have to explain the Burger King layout near our house. The drive-thru lane at our Burger King is just that....A Drive-Thru Lane. It is wide enough for a single vehicle, has curbing on both sides, no marked pedestrian access and is landscaped on both sides, except for one section where it is just a curb between the main access to the parking lot and the lane itself. Needless to say, it was not designed with pedestrian crossing in mind. There is a separate area with a marked crossing area for pedestrians. That being said, last night I almost ran over a 12 year old in the drive-thru lane and would have had I not happened to catch a glimpse of her crossing the access drive (where she shouldn't have been in the first place). She was so caught up in her conversation on her cell phone that she was 100% oblivious to what was going on around her. After crossing the access drive (without paying any attention to what was going on around her) she stepped over the curb without a pause and stepped in front of my vehicle. She finally noticed that I was there about halfway across the lane (I was stopped by this time) and jumped like I had come out of nowhere.

I'm not saying that I don't like cell phones, far from it. Cell phones are great. I have one, I use it, I love it for it's convenience and the mobility it allows me to have, but I do know when and where it's appropriate to use (I swear I am going to go nuts the next time I hear somebody talking on one in a movie theater during the movie) and I'm also always fully aware of where I am and what I am doing while I am using it (and I can walk and chew gum at the same time too). Why are there so many people out there who can't seem to figure out when and where their use is appropriate and why are there so many idiots out there who can't pay attention to their surroundings when talking on the phone? We aren't talking rocket science here.

The First Day Of School

Today marks Savanah's official first day of school. I think she is taking it better than Kathy and I are. Hell, yesterday I said she was 4 (having not quite adjusted to being the parent of a 5 year old). Today was just a two hour intro for the parents and just a few of the kids. Wednesday she will meet the rest of her class and Thursday she'll have her first lunch at school with Friday being the first full day of class. Savanah was all smiles and happiness about starting school, whereas I don't know it I'm quite ready just yet. I still miss the little baby that would fall asleep on my belly. She did well in class today (not that I had any worries about that) and likes the few new classmates that she met today. She also likes her new teacher who from what we can tell is very dedicated and great with the kids.

The Maryland State Fair

We spent pretty much all day at the Maryland State Fair on Sunday. Donna, Chelsea, and Annie Ann came with Savanah and I and we met up with NTS (Mel for those of you who don't understand NTS) and her friends there as well. All in all a fun day, but good lord my calves hurt now. After a full day at the Renaissance Festival on Saturday, spending 6 hours walking around the State Fair was brutal. Savanah and Chelsea had a blast though.

I was rather impressed with Savanah's daring and willingness and utter enjoyment with some of the rides. She loved the ferris wheel and the Carousel which I knew she would, but she also loved the Zero Gravity, which is one of those spinning rides that stick you to the wall. Her and Chelsea also spent a good portion of the day at Tiki Town (The Fun House) and The Monkey Maze (The Hall of Mirrors).

There was only one problem that I encountered with the Fair and this year was worse than I remember previous years. Why don't parents teach their kids manners anymore? These parents bring their kids to the Fair and let them run wild. I know they are excited and I know there are lots of things to do and see, but really people, cutting in line, pushing other kids out of the way and other such antisocial behavior is unacceptable. The fact that I had to tell two 14 year old boys that the two little children in front of them were in line is rediculous. I shouldn't have to do that! They were slowly pushing past Savanah and Chelsea to the point where they were forcing them out of the line and at 5 and 9, they aren't going to stand up for themselves against two large 14 year old boys. I can't blame it all on the kids though. I watched a mother with her child cut in line as well. They just walk right up, oblivious to the fact that there are other people who have been waiting to get on the ride. And later in the day when we went to see the livestock I watched people walk up to the animals acting like it's a petting zoo. We are fortunate enough to know people who show cows at the Fair, but even knowning them as well as I do, I would never presume that it's ok to just walk up and start petting them without asking first. First off, it's just downright rude and secondly, it's dangerous. If you have a cow step on you it's gonna at least hurt and at worst break something. Don't just tell your 6 year old to run up and touch the cow while you wait safely on the other side of the hay bed. Where the horses are concerned, if one steps on you, or happens to kick cause you ran up behind it and spooked it you are going to get seriously injured and just because their owners ride them, it doesn't mean that they don't bite! These people need to use a bit of common sense and a bit more respect.

Anyway, even with all that, Savanah is looking forward to going back next weekend and I am too.

Meet Dummy Buddy

Who is Dummy Buddy? Well, in one of my first posts I mentioned that Annie Ann was teaching me to sew. Well, the reasons for me wanting to sew was:
A) So I could help in making a costume for Savanah for the Fairy Festival,
B) So I could start making a custom made costume for the Renaissance Festival,
C) So I could help with any and all future costuming needs and finally,
D) It's a good skill to have.

The custom costume I am working on is a variation of Legolas' costume from the Lord Of The Rings and some of the patterns for this costume we are going to have to create. In order to do this we needed a sewing dummy. Well, rather than spend the $200 or so on a real sewing dummy, I found directions online for making your own Duct Tape Sewing Dummy. I went out and bought the supplies and Annie and Kathy taped me up (I'll have to see if I can find those pictures). I can tell you that 3 layers of duct tape over a t-shirt is an interesting (and very hot) experience! Anyway, once finished I mounted it on an old coat rack and put a t-shirt on him. The next morning Savanah woke up and was amazed by it. She asked what is was and what it was for and then decided that he needed a name. Thus Dummy Buddy was born.

A Fun Day At The Fair

Yesterday was Opening Day for the Maryland Renaissance Festival. It was Savanah's first trip and boy did she have a blast. As picky an eater as she can be, I was surprized at how much she ate. From the Turkey Leg that Kathy "shared" with her (Savanah ate most of it) to the Pork On A Stick that I "shared with her (Again, she ate more than half of mine) to the snacks and treats she didn't stop eating!

She loved all the costumes, but was a bit single minded about the things she wanted to do. They have a Ren Fest period pin ball game that she dragged Stracy, Annie Ann, and myself to so she could play. I think she would have grabbed a lot more people and drug them over as well had I let her.

They have installed a playground for the kiddies since my last visit which was nice. Gives the younger kids a bit more to do.

She dressed in her fairy costume on this outing, but Annie and I will be working on an outfit to match the one I am putting together. It should be cute once finished. I think I'm going to have to make a "Dummy Buddy" for her as well. Don't know what a "Dummy Buddy" is? I'll put up a short post about him as my next entry. I am off to snap a photo of him right now.

Colorado Beware! (part 2)

I realize that my earlier warning might have been a bit obscure to all you Coloradans (or is it Coloradians?) so I thought I'd give you a little bit of help in identifying said female without breaking any laws. For anyone who's ever played charades this should be easy.........Look at the picture of the Nickle and think "Sounds Like"

EDIT: Part I

There Goes Sci-Friday

If you've been following along you all know I'm a big fan of Stargate SG-1 and Science Fiction. Well, sad, sad news for any of you who are also fans of the show. The powers that be over at MGM have decided to pull the plug.

Updated:2006-08-23 15:08:37
Booted 'Stargate SG-1' Could Live On
By STARGATE SG-1, AP
NEW YORK (Aug. 23) - The Sci-Fi Channel has pulled the plug on "Stargate SG-1," but there still might be life ahead for the long-running series.

MGM, which produces the show, is hoping to dock it on another channel.

"We do have plans," MGM spokesman Jeff Pryor told The Associated Press on Wednesday. "This is not the end of the `Stargate' franchise. This is just the end of (`Stargate SG-1') airing on the Sci-Fi Channel."

Earlier this week, Sci-Fi announced it would not order further episodes of the show, now in its 10th season. The cable channel, however, has booked a fourth season of "Stargate: Atlantis," a spin-off that debuted in 2004.

The final 10 episodes of "Stargate SG-1," which logged its 200th episode Friday, will air next year on Sci-Fi, Maureen Granados, a spokeswoman for the channel, told the AP on Wednesday.

Beyond that, MGM believes "in this new media world there are many more opportunities to continue (the) franchise," Pryor said. "We're exploring those possibilities."

The show, inspired by the 1994 movie starring Kurt Russell as an intergalactic traveler, has a devoted fan base.

"Even though there's been a slight dip in the ratings, there are still nearly two million homes tuning in a week," and up to about 10 conventions held each year, Pryor said.

At least Atlantis will be around for at least another season and Battlestar Galactica will be back. A sad time for Science Fiction TV. I had such high hopes at the beginning of last season, with Invasion, Threshold and Surface plus the return of the Sci-Fi Channel's programming. Now they've cancelled Threshold (not a big loss), Invasion (just when it was starting to get good), and Surface (what the hell? what the hell are they thinking? This was hands down one of the best new shows of last season!). I guess money speaks louder than quality nowadays.

Blockbuster Nightmare

So last night I made my weekly run to Blockbuster. I'm there almost every Tuesday night to rent the latest releases. I go in, I pick my movies, I get in line, I check out, I go home. The whole process usually takes about 10 minutes from leaving my house to walking back in my front door. Last night the whole process took 45 minutes. I went in, I picked my movies, I got in line, I waited, I waited, I waited, I waited, I (well you get the picture). I'd like to point out at this time that the line I was waiting in consisted of me and the lady at the counter. Yeah, that's it. They weren't busy.

Its one thing to wait in a line when they are busy and you have 4 or 5 people in line, but it's another thing when it's just you waiting for somebody to finish up at the counter. Now, if she had a legitimate reason for taking so long, that would have been one thing, but no, her whole deal was that she was too stupid to comprehend what the clerk was telling her. She wanted to rent 5 movies for under $10. She thought she had the system figured out. With the rent one, get one free, plus the Rewards program's rent 5 get one free AND the in store Mon. thru Thurs. rent any 3 for $9.99 she figured she'd walk out of there with 5 movies and have only paid the $9.99. Unfortunately the computer system and fine print of the 3 separate and individual programs had her beat. The clerk clearly explained to her that it was one or the other. You can get two for free (the Rewards deal plus the rent one get one free) and pay for the other 3 or you can get the $9.99 for three and pay for the other two, either way, you aren't getting out of here for under $10. Well each time he was ready to ring her up, she stopped him and he had to go over it all again. Mind you her total price was $14.00 plus some change, so this whole ordeal was over $4.00. This whole thing went on for 20 minutes. The poor clerk kept looking at me mouthing, I'm sorry. I was ready to smack the lady.

Finally she just agrees to pay the $14.00 and does so and then doesn't leave. She tries to start up a conversation with the clerk, still expressing her view that she thinks she should have gotten out of there paying no more than $10.00. At this point the clerk is assisting me OVER the computer because she hasn't moved. So now, even though she's paid, she is still in the damn way. She eventually leaves and there is a collective sigh released from the staff and the other customers who had, by then, all lined up behind me. Then the clerk explains to me that this woman does the SAME DAMN THING EVERY TUESDAY NIGHT! So this isn't a case of her not getting it, but rather a case of her playing dumb every Tuesday night to see if she can get away with a better deal than she deserves. At this point I'm rung up and being the smart ass that I am, and always one for some fun when I have an audience, I look at the clerk and separate 3 movies out to one side and the forth on the other and very innocently say to him "OK, so I get these three for $9.99 and this one should be my free rental..........right?"

Colorado Beware!

Just a friendly warning to all Coloradans. Beware of new female transplants to your state from the state of Maryland! In the near future we will be lucky enough to have this particular female move away from our state, but unfortunately for you all, she's headed to Colorado. Do not, under any circumstances, lend this woman any money and do not accept a check from her! I'd also be skeptical of anything she says!

EDIT: Further Information

My Daughter Has Expensive Taste

As mentioned in the previous post, we ate lunch at Fuddruckers yesterday. As we were leaving I was waiting for our friends to follow us and I pulled up next to a brand new BMW convertible. Savanah looks over at the car and says "OH DADDY, I really like that car, can we get one?" Never one to pass up an opportunity to instill some values or life lessons, I replied with, "Well honey, those are very expensive cars. If you really want one, you'll have to do well in school and go to college and then find a good job and then maybe you can get one." Now I know most of what I just said is lost on her and she doesn't really understand what I'm talking about, other than the part about doing well in school (which I'm not at the moment really worried about since she is so excited about starting next week), but it makes me feel a bit better having started to encourage some sort of drive to succeed with her. After thinking about it for a bit she looks at me and says "That's okay Daddy, I still like it anyway." So much for encouraging her to succeed with the promise of an expensive car as the prize!

Blasts From The Past And Other Strange Encounters

I am pretty much used to the random encounters that occur infrequently from time to time, but this past weekend, and this past summer to some extent, was filled with more than its fair share.

For starters, yesterday I got a call from the mother of one of Savanah's friends asking if we'd like to meet them for lunch before attending a birthday for a fellow classmate. Not having planned anything for before the birthday I said sure. So I get Savanah ready to go and we drive over to Fuddruckers. Thinking that I've arrived a bit late (we had to stop for Birthday Cards) I walk around the restaurant looking for them. They aren't there yet, but I do hear somebody call my name. Now, you have to understand that neither I nor any of my local friends frequent Fuddruckers. I've been a handful of times with the last time being over two years ago so I have no idea who would be there that would know me. I turn towards the voice and much to my surprise; Kristy and Mandy are sitting there eating lunch. So what's so weird about that? Well, considering that one lives in Glen Burnie and the other in Deale and I'm sure there are several Fuddruckers between there and Reisterstown, I'd say a lot. I even saw them when I walked in, but my mind dismissed it actually being them due to the impossible odds of them sitting in a Reisterstown Fuddruckers on the same day as my first time being there in two plus years.

So I chat with them for a bit until Savanah's friend arrives and we order and sit down to eat. Sitting in the next booth over from us is a little boy who keeps "flirting" with Savanah and Rebecca. The boy's mother explains that he is all about the little girls and flirting (they are only 5 so it is all rather funny (I've still got a few years before I have to go into "That's MY daughter you are flirting with!!!" mode)). Anyway, I recognize the mother as a girl who attended the same High School as me. I'd like to point out that in the many years we've lived in Maryland, other than the three years I spent living in Timonium, I have lived in the Owings Mills / Reisterstown Area. In the past 17 years I've bumped into maybe 5 people from High School (although thanks to the Internet, I've made contact with a few more than that, but we are talking random encounters here) and strangely enough, most of those people I bumped into in Hanover, MD at the Cancun Cantina rather than back in the Owings Mills / Reisterstown Area.

Anyway, so here I am, I've been at Fuddruckers for 30 minutes and have already bumped into two people who I wouldn't have expected to see there in a million years and an old acquaintance from High School. We finish off lunch and head over to the Birthday Party at Pump It Up. Savanah and Rebecca are off and running the minute we get through the door and I'm over with the other parents chatting away. During the course of the party I notice yet another person that I recognize from back in my High School days. Back in my B'nai Brith days (some 18 years ago) her I and two other friends were a tight group. It took her a few moments to recognize me though after I said hi.

This past summer had several similar occurrences. The party we attended on Sunday was for two of Savanah's classmates. Their father happens to be another guy I knew from B'nai Brith. Another mother of one of her classmates knew me from my life guarding days at the JCC. And another mother we just recently found out is married to a previous exchange student who I knew and who my mother dealt with as an AFS representative back when I was in High School.

It really is a small small world.

Home Is Here

Just a quick update about Randomonium and Randomonium II. After several weeks at both, I've decided that I prefer this blog site over VOX. They had some nice features, but none that I'd really end up using much. Maybe that'll change in the future, but, with the updates that they are releasing here and the lack of a layout that I really liked over at VOX, I am no longer going to be double posting (one here and duplicate content over there). Two is one too many (when they are the same thing) so now it's just Randomonium and Randa-Movie-Um for me. Hopefully there are still a few of you reading this (I know Tony is at least, and Annie tells me she does, but I never see any comments) and if you followed me to VOX you have followed me back.

Enjoy!

Seinfeld Was Right

I was always a fan of Seinfeld. I watched the show regularly and always found it funny, but always thought they were taking a particular quirk or situation to an extreme to increase its funniness. Well, today I encountered my first honest to goodness soft-talker. You would remember her from the Puffy Shirt Episode. She was the one who asked Jerry to wear the pirate shirt on TV and he agreed never having really heard her. Well, their portrayal of that character was right on the money! This "real live" soft-talker works for CVS and I'll be damned if you can make out anything she says. I think I was a mere inch from her face before I actually heard noise coming from her mouth. And I gotta say, when there is a problem with their credit card machine and you are asking questions, and expecting answers to those questions, a soft-talker is not who you need to talk to.

Yes, I'm Still A Geek....

So I was very disappointed with "Who Want's To Be A Superhero?" last night. Yes, I watch and love the show and I'm a sci-fi geek (forever and always!). Anyway, Creature and Lemuria got sent packing last night. Creature was my second favorite with Lemuria being my favorite. Their departure leaves my least favorite character on the show, Fat Momma, who by the way, at least in my mind, proved beyond a shadow of a doubt on last week's show, that she doesn't deserve to be there. Bring Lemuria back and get rid of Fat Momma! I just hope Fat Momma doesn't win. I don't think I could handle a comic book featuring her as well as a sci-fi channel full length movie starring her.

I guess the elimination of Lemuria and Creature bumps Major Victory up as my favorite to win. I really was so hoping for Lemuria to win. Now I'm just hoping for Big Momma to loose.

My Love Affair With Epson Is Over.....

Since I got my first computer, I've always had an Epson Printer to go along with it. For many years I've sworn by them so when I found a great deal on the CX5400 at BJ's about a year and a half ago I was thrilled. Little did I know that was the beginning of the end.

The CX5400 was a great printer, scanner, copier when I first got it home. Installation was a breeze and I was thrilled with the output both from copying and printing. It was everything I expected from an Epson. Then, about 9 months after I got it, the paper feeder started to jamb up a bit. I thought to myself, ok, than can happen, not a big deal. I called Epson, they shipped out a new one and I sent them the one that wasn't working. Then after about 14 months of using the replacement one, I had to change the ink cartridges again. You use ink, you replace ink, pretty typical of all printers and I've changed the ink on this one several times with no problems. Well this time there was a problem. I started printing again and the output looked strange. So I ran a print head cleaning routine and a printer alignment. That's when I noticed that the magenta ink wasn't printing. Hmmmm, maybe a bad ink cartridge......so I put a brand new one in. Nothing. So I figured I'd do a little research. Turns out that this particular Epson Printer is known for this. Many people have encountered this SAME EXACT PROBLEM. We aren't talking about a "similar problem" or a "problem sorta like that but". We are talking, exactly the same thing. Case after case of the same thing happening. The only difference is when it happens. Most are 14 to 18 months after purchase which of course puts it two to six months AFTER the warranty is up. So, just like everyone else (I'm sure they all went through something similar to this) I called Epson Tech Support. I gave them the serial number and the product number and then was told "I'm sorry, that isn't under warranty." I explained that I've done research and this is a known flaw in this printer. She acknowledged that she had heard that, but still wouldn't help me. So I asked for a supervisor. They weren't much help either. They refused to let me talk to anyone higher up than the supervisor explaining that I would get the same answer regardless. Of that one fact I have NO DOUBT. It was the one truthful thing I heard during my entire conversation with Epson. They'd be willing to help me, but it was gonna cost. They weren't the nicest people to talk to either. I'd rather talk to some outsourced Indian who was polite than these Epson people again. Anyway, after asking one last time if they were gonna help me with this problem and having them tell me NO again, in no uncertain terms, I told them thanks a lot, so much for standing behind your product and so much for customer loyalty and then I told them that I would do my best to make sure nobody ever bought Epson again and that I was done with em. Funny thing about that is that she seemed genuinely confused about why I would feel that way. They put out an inferior product (a piece of crap printer) and then don't stand behind their product and then they are surprised when the customer isn't happy? At least car manufacturers realize there is a problem after a certain amount of similar occurrences and complaints and then do a recall. I wonder if anyone ever thought about a class action suit? Anything to teach them a lesson. I have done my part though, and whenever I'm in a Best Buy, Comp USA or similar store, if I happened to walk by the printer aisle and see somebody looking at an Epson, I feel obligated to share my experience and do. I've seen several customers move over to HP and Cannon after telling them my story. If you are interested you can read the reviews for it over at Amazon.com.

On a brighter note, I recently purchased a Canon MP830 and I can't say enough good things about this one. I absolutely love it. Let’s just hope that it's still printing 14 months from now.

The Big Day...Come and Gone

The Birthday Girl
Originally uploaded by Cayusa.

Thank god it's over!!! Savanah's 5th birthday party was this past Sunday and all in all everything went well. I did forget the candles for the cake, but a quick trip to 7-11 took care of that and very few were the wizer. The kids had a blast at the JCC playground at the first party and the annual cook out was fun for both the adults and the kids. We set up a table for the kids with pens, glitter pens, fuzzy pom pom balls, googley eyes, foamies and glue and laid out some poster board with a picture of Savanah in the middle and let the kids go nuts decorating it. That kept them busy for a long time and they seemed to enjoy the project and it turned out a lot better than I expected. You can see pictures of them decorating it over at My Flickr. (I'll get the final posted soon!) Uncle Mike, Aunt Stacy and Annie Ann all went out of their way again this year to make the party that much more special for Savanah.

While the turn out for the Kid's Party wasn't as great as I'd have liked it, it did turn out to be better than I expected. With 9 kids showing up (out of the original 25 invited) they all played together rather than splintering off into groups as is typical of any large group. I would have liked more kids there, but what can you do? August is a bad month for birthdays. Camp and other summer activities ended this past week and school starts in two weeks, so if you're gonna have a family vacation during the summer, you are left with little choice as to when it will occur. All things considered though, I'd rather have the August birthday and have the option of an outdoor party and cook out, than risk the winter weather and be forced indoors. So far we've been lucky with Savanah's birthdays and the weather. Last year was a bit hot, but bearable and this year you couldn't have asked for a nicer day. The previous three years were were just as nice as well and you just can't beat a gathering of good friends and family on a nice day.

There will be some occasional updates to My Flickr as I get more photos from the others who were taking pictures at the party, so keep checking back.

To all of you who made it, thank you for helping make it such a special day for my daughter and for those of you who couldn't make it, you were missed but in our thoughts. Thanks again everyone!

The Big Day - Almost...

Well it is 1:14 Sunday Morning (or Saturday Night depending on how you look at things) and my daughter is 5 (well at 10:14 PM this evening she will be officially 5, but if you start counting from when Kahty's water broke, she was 5 an hour and fourteen minutes ago). I'm pretty sure we have everything organized for her party. Just have to print out a picture, get the hot dogs from the freezer and pick up the cake in the morning and we are set to go (I think and hope LOL). I'll let you know how it went after the parties!

Hair Ties

Having had long hair pretty much all my life and having worn that hair in a pony tail for probably about the past 10 years I must say that I'm really not thrilled with the direction Hair Ties are going. The powers that be have apprently decided that long hair for men is out or that they just aren't going to put products out there for those of us who have long hair.

It used to be the common hair tie was that little colored band-like thing with the gold colored stripe in it and the metal connector. These hair ties tended to last quite a long time (at least in my experience) and did a damn fine job. The only drawback to these was that every so often your hair would get caught by the little metal connector and you'd end up yanking a few hairs out. OUCH! but it was over quickly. The colors were pretty basic....black, yellow, brown, red, blue, white and green. These hair ties have now become extinct. Nowadays, you have a much greater selection of types (thick, thin, woven, smooth, corrugated (at least that's what I call em) and a much greater selection of colors (pink, marigold, chartruse, purple, neons, pastels, etc etc etc) none of which are very masculine past the black and blues. The one thing that all of these have in common is that they aren't very taught. It used to be that I'd wrap the band aroudn my pony tail 3 times and I wouldn't have to touch it the rest of the day, regardless of the day's activities. Now, however, I find my self wrapping the pony tail 5 times minimum just to get it to stay up and lord help me if I happen to need to run, jog, move quickly, sneeze, or even shake my head yes or no. All of those activities usually require a fix to the pony tail. They just don't hold your hair like they used to. The other thing they have in common is that little metal connector is gone. Apparently this is to make them "ouchless."

Now some of you may be saying "Well, you are getting older, are you sure your hair isn't just thinning out?" to which I must answer yes, I am sure that isn't the cause. I actually found a few of the older ones (the ones with the metal connector) and low and behold, still just need the 3 wraps maximum to hold the hair up. The length and condition of my hair is still as it was when I first started wearing it up.

These "ouchless" hair ties don't seem to stand up to much wear and tear either. After about a weeks use, it is time for another one cause it's lost its elasticity.

My other problem is these new colors. I don't want a pink hair tie or any of these other pastel girly colors. I can live with purple, but that's about as far as I'll go. So I can either buy all black (which is pretty much what I've been doing) or buy a pack with some colors and give Savanah and Kathy most of em, leaving me with the 5 or 6 that will work for me or switch to rubber bands........uggg and ouch!

I want the old ones back, with the little metal connector. They worked, they were the right colors, and they lasted a month or more per band before unravelling.

Attempted Assassination

Original Post Aug 9, 2006

So I am starting to believe that my cat (Jesse) is out to get Kathy. In the past week he has managed to sneak up on her and get under her feet on at least two occasions that I've witnessed. At the beginning of the week he tried to give her a heart attack by sticking his tail under her as she came in the house carrying bags so that she couldn't see him and when you aren't expecting it, that screech that he gives when his tail is messed with can scare the crap out of you. Especially considering that his normal mode is one of complete silence. For the longest time I thought he was mute cause he'd open his mouth and you could tell he was trying to meow, but no sound came out. So when he does make a noise, it is surprising. On the second occasion he actually managed to trip her causing her to jamb her baby toe. Maybe the second attempt was actually pay back for the tail incident. To add insult to injury, however, after he made her trip over him, he would come up to her on the sofa and rub his head across her feet right where her jambed toe was, causing her further "discomfort."

Camera Fun

Original Post Aug 9, 2006


Annie was over last night and we packed the goodies bags for Savanah's Birthday Party. In the process several of the glow sticks that I had gotten for the kiddies snapped and as we all know, when you snap a glow stick they become activated. By the time we were done Annie had two necklaces and 4 bracelets on. I pulled out my camera to get a few shots and then decided to see what else I could do with the camera and it's night settings. We took about 40 pictures or so with the only light source being the glow sticks and in a few we added a Disney light toy and out of those 40 or so picture we actually got a few really cool shots. There is a total of 6 that I felt were Flickr worthy. Check out My Flickr to see the rest.

My Non-Celebrity Product Endorsement

Original Post Aug 8, 2006

This past saturday I went to pick Savanah up from her Mom Mom and Pop Pop's house. Having spoken to them earlier in the week I knew that they were packing up Kathy's oldest sisters stuff that has been in storage in their basement for several years and loading it into a U-Haul for a trip up to Canada to deliever it to her. Being the nice guy I am, I offered to help. Considering how much stuff she had there, what they had packed to deliver wasn't all that much, so I had Pop Pop hand me the boxes and I loaded the U-Haul. We managed to get the thing loaded in record time and were about to close it up when Mom Mom notices that we had missed a box of pictures (framed prints and stuff). Well the box wasn't going to fit, but individulally, we could stick the pictures here and there and make em fit. As I'm putting the last one in, it happens. After loading all of the heavy boxes with no problem at all, a framed print weighing no more than a pound does me in. Next thing I know, it hurts to breath and my back feels like a knife was jabbed into it. Well, I get home and whine to Kathy (I'm such a baby when I'm in pain LOL) and she goes out and gets me the Ben Gay Pain Relieving Patch. She puts two of em on my back which is at first a miserable experience (the are ice cold when you first apply them) but then once they warm up are kinda nice. By sunday morning the pain in my back is down about 90% and by Monday pretty much gone. The last time I pulled something in my back I was in pain for a little over a week. This time the majority of the pain was gone in less than 24 hours. Now if I can only get them to pay me for my product endorsement I'd be perfect LOL.

A Very Rare Occurance

Original Post Aug 7, 2006

So I get home today and find Kathy waiting patiently for me at the door (she had to work tonight so she was waiting for me to get home so she could leave). She shushes me and then leads me inside and this is what I find. I don't think Savanah has taken an afternoon nap in about 2 1/2 years! Wow, I guess all the running around we did this weekend, plus the birthday party she went to yesterday and the Blue's Clue's watching party she had with her friends last night (Blue got a baby brother for those of you who aren't up on your Blue's Clues) finally caught up to her. She is such and angel when she sleeps (and oh so quiet LOL)!

Back......Sort Of

Well, it's been a few days over at VOX and I guess I like it well enough. It's got some cool features that aren't located here. I don't know that they apply all that well to me though. So, for the time being, I will maintain Randomonium II there, but will post the same here. I've gotten a few complaints from a few of those who actually follow this blog about the Vox Blog. I am hoping that they improve the site over there (it is still relatively new), but until that time, you'll find the same entries here. With that said, the next few entries are to catch the content here up with the content there.

Moving?

Ron sent me an invite to move my Blog over to VOX so I'm gonna give it a try for a bit. Not sure how much I'll like it, so this one will remain for the time being, but all new posts will be at Ranomonium II. I may come back here, I may stay over there. So far I've been impressed with some of the features over at VOX, but there are some I feel are lacking, and I'm not really impressed with the available themes, but it is a relatively new service and they promise they are working on more, so we will see. Follow the link above or at the side to get to the new Blog and don't forget to bookmark it!

Tony vs. Sushi

So about a week ago Tony mentions to me that he has never had sushi before. Being a fan of sushi and always looking for a reason to actually go out and get some, I suggested we go out to lunch one weekend and have him try some. So I got in touch with Steve (another sushi fan) and we figured out where and when. So just this past saturday it fit into all three of our schedules to meet for lunch at Olive and Sesame in Towson for some sushi. For his first time, I must admit that he was open and willing to try it all (well almost all.....The clam....well, even I wasnt' going to eat that one). He does, however, have a unique way of eating it though. Apparently the pieces were a bit large for him, so he decided to cut them up with a fork and knife. I've seen people use their hands, I've seen people bite the pieces in half, but never have I seen somebody take the fish off the rice, cut it with a knife and then place the smaller piece on the rice, switch back to the chopsticks and then eat it. Needless to say, Steve and I had a bit of fun with him after that (thus part of the reason for the picture and this post!)