Oh, shiiii.... sugar, suctionprints. That really sucks. So you temporarily loose both the convenience of public transportation and your regular work station? I remember when NYC transit almost went on strike right around Christmas time - what a disruption! And they didn't even go out. Maybe your transit agency won't either. I hope so. What a bummer.

I am so with you, birdlady, on trying to be happy regardless of circumstances, but damn, it's hard sometimes! Sugar spills, transits strike, and sometimes you have to look up? down? the butt of a nekkid lady in the sauna. I guess we just have to keep our sense of humor. Ugh. I know for me that sometimes the best part of a hard week is Thursday night Survivor or TAR.

And a chocolate ginger body scrub? Sounds so delicious to me! I use a citrus oil mixed with moisturizer on my body every day, so I have that whole citrus thing going. Oooooh, I'm ready sooo ready to start using some chocolate. sounds like heroin or some drug...

I must say I hate clutter too. For 13 years I have lived with Mr Aussie's clutter, which drives me up the wall. Before him, I lived in places so clean that you could eat off the floor. Now, I feel like I'm drowning in it, it's overwhelming and I feel I'll never get on top of it. He grew up in a hillbilly-type town in Montana, where everyone has loads of clutter, in their house, in their garden, everywhere. I couldn't believe it! His parents have so much clutter in their house that they had to move into their garage apartment! That was one thing I found really hard about living there. At least Mr Aussie doesn't have "stuff" in the garden, no one around here does, and he'd probably be in trouble with the council if he did, but we've never lived in a place where the garage wasn't full of clutter. In fact, it's only been the last two houses that I've insisted that the car go inside the garage among the clutter, as it's just torture getting into it after it's been sitting out in the sun.

Yogi, tomorrow night we are getting an extra ep of Survivor, number 3. So we here in convict land will be all caught up to you guys, at least for a few hours before you get number 4. As for being spoilerish, please don't worry about that, I seem to find out from other sites what is going on, and anyway, you all should feel free to discuss the eps as they happen. But I swear, the Prince of Peach, as Miss Alli called him in her recaps, is getting better and better! I think I will change my name.....

Jenn thanks for the explanation of the George Foreman, but why not just call it a grill? Huh? I think there's a boxer by that name, so it was conjuring up visions of boxing in your kitchen!

suctionprints, I too love, love, love lemon meringue pie. Mmmmm, I could eat one right now. I have a sweet tooth, chocolate, meringue, anything. Hershey's are not really popular here, but that is mainly because they've only recently come onto the market (a few years ago). Cadbury's is my chocolate of choice.

AussieGirl, George Forman the boxer endorses (and lends his name to) the kitchen gadget, so they are one and the same! (He also has a line of various other 'healthy cooking' appliances, like a chicken rotisserie.) I'd call it 'grill' except that term, in my mind, conjures up memories of the large, flat, hot surface we had when I worked in food service, the sort of thing you'd cook pancakes, hashbrowns, or toasted cheese sandwiches for 300 on - that, or the equivalent thing one has on the stovetop on fancy stoves like my grandma's. In other 'Jenn Can't Get The Terms Right' news, I'd call a countertop, plug in version (or cast-iron campfire version) of the pancake surface a griddle.

I blame this all on the previously mentioned foodservice job, because they had a bunch of terms we all had to use in order to eliminate confusion over which utensil one wanted. If you say 'spatula', do you want the flexible rubber bowl scraper, the flexible metal long-handed pancake turner, or the inflexible short-handled metal thing you use to serve sheet cake? ... so they were 'scrapers', 'turners', and 'servers'. Not all of them were as logical -- often they referred to the person who ordered the equipment, so a certain size of serving dish was a 'Renee Bowl'.

As for the clutter, it bugs me somewhat, but I figure my time is better spent doing important things like watching Survivor and TAR and L.A. Law reruns than cleaning. My parents, who didn't allow me to watch any TV other than the Rose Parade, are soooo disappointed in me. Plus Mr. Blevins spends more time at home than I do, because he works at home, so he produces more clutter. I keep the kitchen sanitary, the laundry done, and the bed sleepable, but I'm not going to stand there picking kleenex off his desk over his shoulders.

Without a doubt, a very sensible attitude, Jennblevins. And since Mr. Blevins works at home, you couldn't possibly expect him to be clutter free. At work, my desk truly frightens me sometimes. Truly. It gets worse every year as a reflection of my cluttered mind, no doubt. Plus the fact that I am now an amazingly adept procrastinator.

Aussie Girl/Princess Peach, George Foreman has become synonymous with this particular kitchen appliance, just a kleenex is synonymous with tissue. And who wouldn't want to think of George Foreman whenever they grill some chicken? Somehow, that mean old boxer became a very cute and endearing old pitchman. Go figure.

I am so sore today. Yikes!

Yogi as I've met you in real life, I thought I saw you last night! I was watching the Queer Eye, as I am wont to do, and they went to a Bikram class (appeared to be either Union Sq. or Flatiron area). In one shot I notice a teeny little blonde thang, flexxing & raising & whatnot, who I was like, "YOGI???" But then, they zoomed in & it wasn't you. Plus I'm sure you would have mentioned yogaing with a 6'5" man & two stars of Queer Eye.

How funny! An "almost sighting"!

Indeed I would have mentioned that one, skagirl especially with the cameras there! I don't do much Bikram yoga, not a big believer in the hot room. And the whole concept of "glamor yoga" kind of turns me off, but it sure was fun seeing the Queer Eyes doing it last night. Oh my, doesn't Kyan look lovely without a shirt.

I don't mention a lot of my run in-s with celebs. But I will share this one, since you brought it up. I ran into Paris Hilton the other day. It was one of those frigid, windy, horrible days, and she was coming into my building as I was leaving. So she completely stood there and watched as I struggled with the door like a little princess. Usually, I hardly notice what or who is around as I run about my business, but since this person was such an incredible diva and refused to touch the door, I looked right in her face, and it was little Paris. So my assessment? IRL? She's still an entitled little Diva. Maybe I will show up on the next Simple Life?

We've both run into her now- how very not exciting. Except when I saw her she was holding down her hair instead of her skirt on a very windy day. Ahem.

Paris Hilton.... so young, and yet so over-exposed...

And Paris has a freakin' book deal now, too. Makes me want to vomit.

I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to work when suction's union goes on strike. The U doesn't have near enough parking, and what exists is expensive. It's going to be a bad, bad month of March. Based on what I've read, and suction can correct me if I'm wrong, the main issue is a huge increase in health care for the employees. Like, from $167/month to $400/month for family coverage. We have to do something about health care in the US, we just have to. [/rant]

Why, yes. Yes, he does.

Heh. According to the latest recap of The Apprentice, Miss Alli heartily agrees. How much do I love this Survivor into The Apprentice segue? Words will not suffice to tell.

I don't get a lot of celebrity sightings in my neck of the woods, although I do have a persistent fantasy that Bruce Springsteen will run out of gasoline in front of my house some day and come inside to pass the time. He will, of course, be wowed by my grace and charm and will write a song for me. Never mind that I live on a peninsula that has one very small dead end road. It could happen!

As for clutter, I must confess that I am a slob about clothing, and neat about kitchens and living rooms. Unfortunately, the kids aren't big on picking up after themselves, although we are trying to instill good habits. And Mr. Hildy? The slobbiest slob that ever slobbed. But he's cute and sweet, so I'll keep him around.

That's not Kyan, that's Kwame. Kyan is the hot white grooming expert on Queer Eye, Kwame is the hot black MBA on Apprentice.

And they both looked good without their shirts on, but the winner of the Thank You for Shooting a Scene Without His Shirt On from the past seven days goes to: er and Goran Visjnic. Even though it was only his naked back, since it allowed me to dream of the front.

Actually Miss Alli gave Kyan his props when she talked about the team's visit to the Queer Eye guys. Mmm....Kyan...

I have a general theory that boys...are messy & smelly. They just are. Some not as much as others, & some think they're clean & their apartments are clean, but bless their hearts. They're often wrong.

imissethan, the Queer Eye guys were on The Apprentice last week, causing Miss A. to wax rhapsodic about Kyan in the latest recap. Although Kwame is hot, too, so really, it's all good.
Now here is a question: How young must a hot young man be before twinges of guilt set in? I ask b/c I occasionally find Gregory Smith (Ephram on Everwood) quite attractive, and really, that's not good. I think I might be old enough to be his mother.

Hello - today is day 8 without coffee. It is probably the first sad day for me. Several of them were during virus time, but now its really cold turkey for a great coffee lover like me. Do you all love coffee? Do you also have tons of people that say "oh I gave up caffeine and I am SO MUCH MORE AWAKE" that happens to me a lot. I feel like with the thesis writing and work I have been drinking far too much so I am taking a 2 week respite to see if I am MUCH MORE AWAKE. Worse case scenario I can reset my "limit" and drink less to feel more awake...At this point Mr. Ricci (sounds dumb saying that when its his name..)is trying on Atkins for size so he is off the coffee as well. I'm glad, heartless girl that I am, cause he should get into shape. I don't care about the diet stuff, but he needs to walk or bike or something. As a coach/athlete, I can't see how he is so stationary. Of course I love him anyway and will marry him anyway, as he puts up with my slight amount of clutter. Yogi/Ska and other New Yorkers. I like hearing about celebrity sightings if you ever want to tell. Not-so-much random citations of sightings - but when people I "know" speak about it. I am the most gullible of gullible-ness and believe most editing and most hype- hearing how people really are is always a lesson to me. And as for Paris, I am shocked that she is always high up on the "most searched for on insertsearchengine list" how annoying.

Ah...so it's you I have to thank! Because honestly, I surprised even myself--not only did I pass, but I was the first one done (you get two hours, but it takes most people an hour to an hour and a half; I finished in 25 minutes) and got a 94! So now I never have to study this crap again!!! (Well, at least until continuing ed requirements kick in after I'm hired and have been working a while.)


Oh, I remember that too! I was on pins and needles because I live in the East Village and was working a seasonal job for Bliss (the spas/product line) at a loft in DUMBO, so I wasn't looking forward to the long walk in the dead of winter, but I was poring over maps planning it out just in case. (There's no way I could have afforded cabs there and back...the pay was so laughable it would have eaten most of my salary!)


Yeah, let's hope not!

As far as celebrity encounters just out at random, I haven't had too many, but that might be because I'm a. usually in my own little world; friends are always telling me they saw me and waved hi but I was oblivious, and b. have a hard time recognizing people out of context, if that makes any sense. I did chat with Chloe Sevigny at this Smiths-themed karaoke night (how random is that?) at this little bar in the East Village for a few minutes, and she was very cool and down to earth, but I had no idea it was her until someone pointed it out after she left.


Hee! Well, for what it's worth, lately when I come home, I've noticed my apartment smells like whatever scented candle I've been using. It's become a thing with me. I don't like the floral-type smells; I like the ones that make it smell like baking. I just finished an apple cinnamon (probably my favorite thus far) and tonight I'm starting a caramel pecan.


I LOVE coffee, but I can't really have caffeinated any more because I'm on two dietary supplements that have ginseng and guarana and I'm really sensitive to stimulants...sometimes I can even get wired off decaf! But I still have decaf occasionally. I also much prefer flavored coffee to plain.


Wish him luck! Like I said before, I'm on the South Beach Diet, so for me, coffee is allowed, but no milk, at least not yet. Kind of bums me out because I usually use vanilla soymilk and I love how it tastes. Oh--and if he isn't already on a fiber supplement like psyllium husks, he needs to get on one immediately. Trust me on this one!!!

Ha Ha I did tell him Last Dodo that i knew "people" on the South Beach Diet. He hasn't bought into the "friends on the computer boards" yet. He'll learn. I'll relay the supplement info. He used to work with Pharmeceutical law so he is very cynical about non-FDA approved items (cue Mr. Ricci's platform on law...its a long speech). Anyway, Congrats on finishing your test Ahead Of the Class!

Not only are you good looking, Last Dodo, you're smart! What a fabulous Gang we have here at the Meet Market. I'll be happy to send you good energy any time - just let me know when you need it!



Yikes, Tracey Bee, you use the transport system too? This is such a bummer. When our transits were talking about striking, Mayor Bloomberg got on the television with a bike and said he was going to pedal to work. It was highly irritating. Most of us were doing what Last Dodo did, pouring over maps, etc. I'm going to keep a good thought that either the strike won't happen (like ours with a last minute resolution) or it only last just a couple of days, which gives both you and suctionprints a fabulous opportunity to take chocolate baths, eat bon bons, watch useless television, and of course hang out with us at TwoP!

I have a coffee song, Ricci... it goes like this

C - O - F - F - E - E
coffee is not for me
It's a drink that people wake up with
That it makes them nervous is no myth
Slave to their coffee cup
They can't give coffee up

We used to sing it in a round at summer camp. I have a remarkable capacity to remember ridiculous songs, jingles, and such. I can sing along to almost any television song. People have me do it at parties - it kind of freaks them out. Possibly holding all this information in my head is why I'm not so smart anymore!

My aunt once told me my head was so full of song lyrics she was surprised I knew anything else. I'm glad I'm not alone.

Coffee? I love my coffee. In fact I always make sure I have a coffee transfusion first thing in the morning. I am one of these "strange" people who prefer instant coffee to percolated, but I like both.

Re famous people: I met Daniel Day Lewis in England, he was with his gorgeous then girlfriend Isabel Adjani - he was so scruffy looking that at first I thought he was Bob Geldof! But even scruffy, he was delectable. And years ago I went out with a famous Pakastani cricket player (and also a prince), who at the time was voted the most eligible man in the world, at least the parts of the world where cricket was played. I've met or seen a few other celebrities also, some nice, some not so nice.

Re Health Care - until a few years ago it was free here, and it still is, you can get very good quality health care for nothing here, if you are prepared to wait, but the Government brought in the thing of paying for health care a few years ago, using various incentives, and we can see it is slowly going over to the US system where it costs so much. For us to have health insurance here costs about $28 a week for the whole family (that's about $20 US) but the problem is that it covers some things, and not others, and you are often left with a huge bill anyway. So many people thought, what's the point of having it? And still rely on the public health system which is good, especially in an emergency. When I was growing up dental care was free too. Now it costs a lot, but there are programs in schools where they offer kids free basic dental care, so that's something, I guess.

Hildy I love your Bruce Springsteen fantasy! Sounds damn good to me.

Yogi I am trying to change my TWoP name but can't figure out how to. Hoola, how did you do it?

aussiegirl, you have to start from scratch and reregister as a new person with a new name. You can't just migrate yourself over.

So, coffee: Never drink it. Mr. Hildy is hugely addicted. I don't understand. Has anybody ever read Memoirs from and antproof case? A hilarious send up of coffee addiction, among other things.

What Hildy said. You have to use a different e-mail account. I still get the urge to login with my old name.

A prince? You guys make me feel so boring.

It was so depressing today. I helped pack up the local Howard Dean office. We actually mostly drank and left the cleaning for tommorrow's group of workers but ... so sad. Go Edwards! I guess.

Coffee isn't that good. Unless it's what's soaking some ladyfingers in tiramisu that I'm about to eat. Ice cold diet Coke is my obsession.

I heard this yesterday morning and I'm still so angry:

The Minnesota governor, Tim Pawlenty, was interviewed on NPR about the possible transit strike. (Just so you know the numbers, 40% of workers in downtown Minneapolis, 33% of workers at the U, and 20% of workers in downtown St. Paul use the public transit system.) Pawlenty's comment about a transit strike? "Those workers will just have to find other ways to get around."

Gee, thanks, gov, that was spoken like a man with a driver and a reserved parking space. What an arrogant git.

Tracy, that's awful. What a snot. It almost irks me as much as the Colorado U. football (American football) coach's comments about the former placekicker who's accused another player of rape. He said (paraphrasing), "Well, she was a lousy player. Other players don't respect lousy players." The hell!?!? What is that supposed to mean, let alone the relevance of a girl who says she was raped?!?!?! GRRRRR!!!

AussieGirl, Daniel Day-Lewis's kid is in school with my boss' kids (kindergarten but different class than her daughter). He was dressed jauntily for a bit with a large crazy hat. Hee. And, it's a public school. Not a super-hyper-competitive, just a good public school in the area.

I committed a mortal sin...I just bought tickets...for a, gulp, Yankees Stadium Tour for my cousin & me. God help me not to show up in my Red Sox hat. I think my Cubs hat will prevent a pelting...and I'll do my special edition, "Welcome Back, Wild Thing Greg Maddox" shaking my butt dance.

What an ass. Seriously. I can't understand why a politician would make such a cavalier statement about something so potentially damaging to so many people. Obviously, he is not hoping to be re-elected.

What is the fare right now, Tracey Bee? In NYC they ended up raising the fare from $1.50 to $2.00. Is that possible?

I just got to the office from the dentist. My very excellent dentist is a young woman who just had a baby. She spent most of the time working on me crying. She was distraught. I'm going to need a cheese sandwich to recover. It's always daunting to have the person working on you crying.

There's nothing like a cheese sandwich to make everything all right again!

Yogi she cried the entire time? And you let her work on your mouth??? I would have given her a hug & asked to reschedule (well, as my dentist is a weird man, no hug).

No, she didn't cry for the first part. I could see that she wasn't herself, so I just was quiet for the first part of the cleaning. (She's a wonderful dentist - she does everything herself.) I could tell she wanted to talk. First, she told me her daughter went to have her shots. I thought she was just emotional about that. She wasn't crying - just a bit emotional. I was supportive. Told her about how most mother's get emotional, etc. I listened.

Then, at the second part of the cleaning, she told me that when she was first pregnant and went to her OB/GYN, the gave her a blood test. Unbeknownst to her, they tested her genetics. It turns out that according to the tests, she has a high risk for having a child with Cystic Fybrosis. So she was terrified her whole pregnancy. And because one doesn't know until the age of two, she is still afraid. Then the crying started. The kicker? No one in her family or her husband's family has ever had cystic fybrosis. So basically her whole life was changed by this test. Terrible, I think. I pointed out that results are only as good as the test. I listened some more.

But it seemed like she wanted something more from me than listening. At this point, the exam was over, and I was standing at the door, but I couldn't leave her. Then I told her that for me, I turned down my amnio test. Personally, abortion is not an option I would choose. I told her that even though my son's situation - the surguries, the proceedures, the day to day care was hard - and still is. Even though I lost my career, lost my health, lost many friends, I would do it all again in a moment. My son is a light to the world. He is worth it all. I wouldn't hesitate. That seemed to be what she wanted to hear, because then she reached out both her arms to me. And then it seemed OK to leave.

But what an emotional visit to the Dentist, no? The cheese sandwich is helping.

Wow. I'll say. That's a lot to bring up, and to go through in the first place. At the very least you deserve that sandwich!!!

I also have a ridiculous memory for pop culture facts and trivia. I'm really good at knowing who sang what song and what year it came out (particularly if it's before the early 90s, which is when I stopped subscribing to Billboard), and over in the Santa Barbara thread I can go into ridiculous detail about storylines from nearly 20 years ago. But practical things? Like where I left my keys? Not so much. I'm the epitome of absent-minded. And I always seem to have this knack for leaving the house and forgetting exactly one thing out of several things I need for the day.

Yeah, me too, Last Dodo, my friend. And it's not like going to the dentist is a walk in the park under the best of circumstances.

I can never tell you who sang any song. Luckily, Mr. Yogi got that brain cell. I am always asking him, "who sang that?" and he says I asked the same question about the same song the week before. It's embarassing. Also, I can't recognize voices on the phone. Not even my mother's. That is also embarassing. But give me the first couple of words of most any TV theme song? I can sing it!

Who said a mind is a terrible thing to waste?

Nice Governor, TraceyBee. Way to sympathize with your consituency, I'm sure that will stand you in good stead come election time.

As for skaCub'stour of Yankee Stadium, well, I guess it'll be okay if you promise to scrub all the Yankee cooties off as soon as you get home and then go to confession and purge your burdened soul. Of course, while I still hate the Yankees I'm now kind of embarrassed by the whiney sour grapes of Sox owner John Henry. Salary cap? Hello, you have the second highest payroll in baseball! That's like Donald Trump complaining that the beautiful young women only want to marry Bill Gates for his money.

And that dentist? Not ready to come back to work. That said, it must be awful to have to live with the sword of Damocles overhead for two years. I think I'd cry, too.

I agree, Hildy. I hope I didn't sound hard-hearted. I don't blame her. It's just a little hard to do really be there emotionally for someone when your having your teeth scraped. I would have been better sitting up with a cup of tea nearby.

Speaking of Yankee Stadium and the EVIL Steinbrenner, he was on the "cover" (the back page, Heh) of the Post with the words Sour Grapes. It appears John Henry is calling for a cap (sensible) and Steinbrenner's reaction was just as nasty as you would expect. (He and the Governor of Minn should get married or something.) And the Post? Right on top of it! I do love the Post.

yogi, they've already been raising the fares. I ride an express bus that costs $2.50 one way. I use a bus pass that costs around $50 per month, and it's gone up during the past two years. I'm sure what regular fares are, but I think they've also been increased. It boils down to a refusal by this administration to fund Metro Transit adequately (among many, many other agencies). They'd rather add lanes to the highways than support public transportation.

Heh.

I'd be a little nervous if a crying person was poking sharp instruments into my mouth!

edited for stupid sexy coding

Oh my goodness, yogi, your reaction was the opposite of hard-hearted. I would have been completely nonplussed by the crying. In fact, at the first hint of emotional meltdown I think I would have sprinted out the door, dental bib still wrapped around my neck and air pick still stuck in my mouth.

So Mr. Hildy and I are going to see the Best of the Banff Mountain Film Festival next week. It's on a world tour, and we try to go every year. It's great--very cool short films about all sorts of fun stuff like skating, skiing, ice climbing, rock climbing, kayaking, etc. etc. etc. You can check it out here.

Jeez Yogi, now you've got me worried about your dentist! You'll have to keep us informed. I sure hope everything works out okay.

As if! I don't know if you COULD ever sound that way Yogi

I would like to change my screenname too, oh well. It is easier than changing your real name. Another day long coffee-less day. At least I have another addiction on TV tonight.

I went to the Banff site, Hildy, but I'm not sure I understand what they do. Is mountain arts the same thing as mountain sports? They seemed to offer lots of leadership stuff too. It was interesting, but not so clear to the uninitiated. Is it sort of like watching the winter olympics? Or do they show non-sports type things? I've got to say, when I got my art degree, we didn't talk about sports as an art, but I love to broaden the definition of things.



That is just so wrong, Tracey Bee.

Hurray for Thursday!!!

Yogi, wow, your dentist is sure going through some emotion there. It must be terrible to not know for 2 years, I think I'd rather not have that hanging over my head. What I am worried about is that now that she is so constantly aware of that possibility, and thinking about it all the time no doubt, she could possibly help to create it happening. I would rather not know, and besides, doctors don't know everything.

I also refused the amnio, I was almost 40 and was worried about the risk of miscarriage with it (I'd already had one of those months before). I got a lot of pressure and finally hit on a compromise - there is a test called the Triple Test, they do it mainly in the UK, and it indicates with a fairly good degree of accuracy if anything is wrong, and there is no risk of miscarriage. That test came out okay, so I decided to forego the amnio.

I have to have a new email address to change my name? I've only just gotten used to this one. I may just be AussieGirl for a while yet. But you can all think of me as Princess Peachy!!!!

Today the weather forecast is for such hot weather (39 C) that the teachers and the media were recommending keeping the kids home from school. That's the first time in living memory that's happened. So my 11 year old is having a 3 day weekend! He's happy. And this weekend they have forecast temps of 41 C. And very bad humidity. That's about 106 F. It is just unbelievable, and people are collapsing and being taken to hospital everywhere. And it's usually about 5 degrees hotter here than what they forecast. So it looks like we will be spending the next 3 days in mum's pool. It's really the only effective way of dealing with such terrible heat, getting wet.

Kate'sBoy is having problems grasping the "friends on the computer boards", too. I'm forever saying, "yeah, I was talking to someone who..." or "A friend of mine..." and he'll say "talking? or reading techno babble from?" and "friend? or computer person?"

And add me to jennblevins and yogi's group of folks whose brains are crowded by song lyrics. If that weren't bad enough, some part of my brain keeps making up songs and singing them over and over. It's latest? :

S-N-O-W
It's S-N-O-W
Not R-A-I-N-Y or S-U-N up in the sky
No, it's S-N-O-W
That cool white stuff in front of you
Not N-O S-N-O-W, it's S-N-O-W - that's SNOW!

Y'all? There's hand motions, too.

And I hate it! You know what might bug me the most? That it's not of parallel structure. It's snow... and rain and sun. Or snowy... and rainy and sunny. But mixing? Oh, heavens. It hurts.

I'm trying to work on posting shorter posts. Because I'm longwinded, even in text. But I would love to play Name that Tune with The Last Dodo (heh, do you ever scare yourself with being able to name a tune? I love it when that happens), and am fully in wow over yogi's dentist visit.

Sounds like "Let them eat cake...", and we all know where that line got Marie Antoinette!

Dentists - does anyone know about Reikki healing? I got certified in the technique just before a visit to the dentist. My normally cheerful, peppy Dr. K. came into the exam room with (figuratively speaking) black clouds surrounding him - definately not in a good mood. I was doing the Reikki technique to calm my own dentist-phobia, and it was working. While he drilled, the tooth shattered. He knew my phobia and was very concerned for me, but I was fine, almost blissful. After the session, he was humming and whistling, very cheerful. As I paid the bill, his receptionist/wife was amazed at his good mood, and told me he'd gotten a phone call just before my appt, telling him his best friend had been killed in a boating accident. I was blown away! Not only had the Reikki healing technique kept me calm, but it seemed to soothe his anguish as well.

Hey! So I told you that I'd let you know how that dinner/play date went.

And...oy. I'm trying to think of how I can describe this. If any of you watch The Bachelorette, imagine going out on a date with Ryan M. In his 50s. With a more know-it-all attitude. I mean, he would. not. shut. up. It was like he was on speed or something. And a lot of it was doing that thing that a lot of older men do that I HATE, which is assume they know more than me and talk down to me. Like verbally patting me on the head in essence. For example, when I'm looking at the menu, beaming at me, "And what are we having?" like I'm some sort of precocious five year old or something. GRRRRRRRRR. Yes, I can talk in complete sentences and cut my own meat, Gramps. Do I get a cookie now?

And then, from out of the blue, we were talking about Chicago theater and he mentioned that he had seen a play there years ago and the lead was just fantastic! Well, I happened to have dated that guy when I was 21. He led me on, exposed me to HIV without telling me (thankfully I didn't get it), beat me up when I confronted him about it, and later I found out from someone else that I was just part of a bet with another positive guy to see how many "stupid twinks" he could infect. He's dead now (at which point there was obit after obit in the local trades about what a wonderful guy he was and what a waste it was, which just made me want to scream, but what could I really do?), and I don't think about it or him very often anymore, but it still upsets me more than I would like when I do. Now, I'm not holding that against my date, because how could he have known, but still--I mean, of all the worst possible things to bring up, you know?

Then...I had thought from what he had said this was an old-fashioned type thing where he was taking me out for dinner and a play, but I had to pay for my share of the dinner and the seats were discount nosebleed seats. So...I mean, not that that's unreasonable, and it was still nice of him to invite me, but it wasn't what I was expecting.

The play itself, though, was wonderful. Very solid performances, especially from Eileen Atkins, whom I'd never heard of before but who was AMAZING. The kind where the actors are fully immersed in the characters and you forget you're even watching actors...the kind that remind me of why I still want to pursue acting myself and show me what's possible to achieve. So it wound up on a good note, but more despite my date than because of him.

Ah well. I've been blasting the new Courtney Love CD on the way and at home, which has definitely helped me feel better...I find she's always good to listen to when I'm pissed or disgruntled, particularly at M-E-N. I think I'm going to run out and grab a couple vodka/Diet Cokes at one of the local bars...I could definitely use them!

Skycatcher it certainly sounds like Reiki helped both you and your dentist in difficult situations. I became a Reiki healer 15 years ago, it is one of many healing modalities I have practised over the last 25 years (God I sound old, even to myself! I'm only 43, I started doing healing and self awareness courses etc when I was quite young).

The Last Dodo sorry to hear that your dinner/play date didn't go so well. Bummer. And a shame he wouldn't shut up. Do you think it was that he was nervous? Trying to impress you with his wealth of knowledge? Or was he just a know-it-all? I take it you will not be seeing him again? But glad you enjoyed the play - at least it was something good on the night.

Guys, things are really seriously bad here with the weather. Today we had the hottest day on record, since 1925. People everywhere are collapsing from this oppressive heat, hospitals are turning people away, many are sick from heatstroke or sunburn. The ozone layer over Australia has been so badly damaged that the effects of the sun are much more severe here than most other places. And the power system is so overloaded from people using fans and air conditioners that thousands of people are without power, and there are fears that that situation will become worse with all the electricity going out. This heatwave is worse than anything I can remember, at 7am this morning it was about 38 C, and when there was a breeze it was like a furnace blowing on you, and now at 10.30pm it's just slightly cooler, at 34 C. And the really bad news? The forecast is for temps 41 to 45 C for the next two days at least. It is so bad that the newspapers, TV and radios are constantly putting out heat alerts. One of my kids is refusing to eat and sleep, he is just too hot. I've been pouring the cold water into him and his brother, washing them down with cold water constantly, hoping that they will be okay. Send us some "cool" thoughts, please! We need them badly.

Oh, Aussie, that sounds terrible. White, fluffy snowy thoughts are coming your way! Like the white fluffy snowy thoughts on my sidewalk.

Is there any way you can check into a cheap (but airconditioned) motel for a couple of days? I'd imagine they'd be pretty well booked, but maybe not? Oh, I hate extreme heat so, so much. :::pours big bucket of virtual water over aussiefamily::::

more later, I gotta go into work for a while to try and catch up on stuff before the you-know-what...

That heat sounds blistering, Princess Peachy. I'm so sorry for you and all y'all down that way. It's really difficult to endure weather extremes like this - hopefully it will pass soon. Have you done the films thing? I recall that theatres are always a bit over cooled. For that reason, they are probably really crowded right now, but perhaps it's better to be crowded and cool than the alternative? I join suctionprints in sending cool breezes your way, and fresh from the pic-i-nic basket a Carvelle ice cream cake - mmmm, it's so good!

Oh dear, Last Dodo, out on a date and reminded of such a traumatic event in your life. I'm sure that bringing up such an awful experience is the last thing your date would want to have done. It sounds like your date was very nervous and insecure. I find that nervous people talk a lot and insecure people talk down to others. (Being blonde a small blonde woman with a high voice, I get talked down to a fair amount, so I feel your pain!) And neither habit is a pleasure to be around regardless of the reason for the person doing it.



Whoever told you this is truly evil, because I can't see any good coming out of believing you were some pawn in this man's infected mind. I pray to God that it is just some lie that someone came up with to malign the evil man/actor who almost infected you. It truly grieves me that someone could even consider behaving in such a way. Since you can't be sure it's true, and all you do know is that it is possibly true viscious gossip, I strongly encourage you to give it as little credence as possible. I think the infected actor hurt you enough without buying into that piece of information. {{{Last Dodo}}}

I reread some of the later posts about my dentist, and I realize that I must clarify. Her daughter has been tested, and according to the tests she does not have cystic fibrosis. Her mother/my dentist continues to worry nonetheless. It's so sad. No one in her family has ever had this problem, her daughter is beautiful and healthy, but she continues to live in fear. At the end of our conversation, she said that she will only get over this with psychotherapy. I suggested that she find some way to heal her spirit, to find faith. I suggested that she can choose to have faith in the doctors, statistics, and this one test that may or may not be an accurate measure, or she can have faith in the fact that this has never happenned before, that it hasn't happened yet, and if it did happen, she has the strength and power available to her to handle it. You all are so kind to worry about her, but I truly believe she will come through this well. She is a lovely woman. Mr. Yogi adores her. He saw her twice in the last two weeks, and she just showed him photographs and told funny stories. He was very surprised when I walked into the office and told him my experience.

Last Dodo: sounds truly like a date from hell. Re: your eeeevil ex-, what yogi said. Courtney and vodka, seems like you're on the road to recovery, my friend.

Oh Dodo! sorry to hear about your night. I have had some friend in the similar 'twink' situations as well. Some people are just horrible. That being said, I am wondering if he was nervous too? Anyway, I am glad that I have found someone else who likes and listens to Courtney like I do! My CD should be arriving in the mail today.
Also::cool thoughts your way::Princess Peachy

Hey! With regards to the date...yeah, he probably was nervous, and I can babble too if I'm nervous (although not to that extreme). That I can deal with. It's condescension I can't. And if the two are combined, it's lethal!

yogi: I never really thought about that before, but it's true; I just accepted what I was told at face value because I could see it being true and because I didn't see where the person who told me would have any motive for lying to me. But you're right, it could not be true. But honestly, I'd just rather not think about it either way!

Ah well. New day!

So the Courtney Love CD is basically Celebrity Skin Part 2, and "Mono" is basically "Violet Part II", but it's still quite enjoyable if you like her music even if it's not necessarily breaking any new ground. Hope your CD arrives soon! I just got mine on sale for $9.99 at Circuit City when it first came out; that and the new Kylie Minogue one (which I also got) were both on sale for that price. CC can be quite good in that regard.

AussieGirl/Princess Peachy, it's snowing here. I wish I could send it all your way! We've had more than our share. I'm so sorry to hear how miserable the heat is there. How long does a typical heat wave last? Anyway, sending cool, cool thoughts your way!
Yogi thank you for clarifying your dentist's situation. The poor woman, it must be so horrible to live in fear like that.
And Dodo, I hope your next date goes better than your last. I know a couple of absolutely wonderful people I wish I could introduce you to. And your ex...I'm sure he's roasting in hell right about now. How anyone could willfully endanger other people like that! Thank goodness you're okay!

Wow my computer hasn't like this site very much, this is the first time I could make it back here in like months.
Hi Miss Yogi I've missed you.

Hi everyone. Well I have survived another day in hell, or so it seems. Today was the hottest day ever recorded here - in some parts of Brisbane temps as high as 52 (no, that's not a typo!!) degrees Celsius. I have never in my life experienced anything like it, anywhere in the world. Just bloody unbelievable. 4 people have died from the heat today so far, and as terrible as that is, I guess we should be thankful that there wasn't more. The hospitals and clinics are full. It's like a furnace.

All the shopping centres and cinemas are packed, and the trouble is the car parks are full, so if you still want to go, you have to park on the street in the sun, and getting back into your car will just about kill you. But today we found a park and took the kids to a movie, so that was nice. Then into the pool at my mum's house, and the rest of the time washing our bodies down with ice and drinking litres and litres of water. But joy!!! As I write this, sweat pouring off me onto the keyboard, there is thunder and lightning, and and a very few drops of rain. I swear, I'll even do a raindance to make it rain hard! We are literally praying for rain. I'm keeping my son home from school tomorrow again, as they are saying tomorrow will be almost as bad as today. But hopefully that will be the end of it, and also the end of my rantings here, as they are saying temps will drop on Tuesday.

Thanks for your thoughts of cold and snow. Sorry guys, I just can't think of even think of anything else to talk about. I think my brain has been fried.

Wow AussieGirl, that's nearly 126 F! You're not kidding that's hot -- I felt 123 once in my life, in a very, very dry desert climate, and have no desire to ever feel that again! I'll try to send you the rain we're supposed to be getting on Mardi Gras day -- everyone would much rather you get it than we do!

Hi Gang at Meet Market, and especially my most favorite elf! (don't tell Legolas)

Poor Princess Peach and the horrible heats. Sending you more cool breezes. They seem to be taking a while to get there... Australia is so far away. Next time I'll send my cool breezes via fed ex...

I treated myself to a massage from a new massage therapist today. I adored my former massage therapist who was a young man who had previously served it the Russian military. He was a darling - and strong, oh my heck. But for some reason, he went off and joined our military (I never ask questions. As you might have guessed from my dental encounter, I have boundry issues in my life. I hold to a no questions policy in virtually all encounters.) What I loved about Alexi was that he was strong as a bull and dead silent. I love it when a man knows when to shut up (something Last Dodo's date needs to learn. Ugh.)

So my new massage therapist? He is like seven feet tall. I kid you not. His hands are huge! They cover most of my back. What a delicious massage. And Hurray! Again, he does not talk. A dream come true, a seven foot man with huge strong hands who doesn't talk. If my personal sun didn't rise and set on Mr. and Little Yogi, I might run off with my new massage therapist. Though he is gay, so it probably wouldn't work out anyway.

So now, I feel delicious. Y'all go out and get yourselves some of this!