Sunday Trivia

As my life is still boring as hell, it is time for another edition of 'Sunday Trivia.' Enjoy! (Once again, all of these facts are courtesy of mental_floss.)

--The male seahorse is the gender of the species that gets pregnant and gives birth. The female deposits her eggs in the male and they then are fertilized.

--During World War II, Julia Child tried to join the WACs but was turned down because of her height (6'2"). Instead, she joined the Office of Strategic Services, a precursor to the CIA.

--The substance that makes flamingos pink is carotene--the same stuff that makes carrots orange. If a flamingo does not eat carotene-rich foods, its pink coloring will fade after it molts.

--Frogs don't have teeth, so they must swallow their food whole.

--At one time, Roman law decreed that all prostitutes must dye their hair blond.

--Cats were originally desert animals.

--The dried, green berry of the pimento tree is ground to make the spice known as 'allspice.'

--On June 6, 1933, in Camden, NJ, the first drive-in movie theater was opened.

--The Venus flytrap plant is only found growing on the coastal plains of North and South Carolina.

--The cheetah can go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds.

--A Labradoodle is a cross-breed of a Labrador Retriever and a Standard Poodle. There are many benefits to this breed: the dog sheds very little, usually has no body odor, rarely attracts fleas, and has a coat that is allergen-reduced.

--There are no newly-born ox. The reasons? 1) All oxen are males. 2) All oxen are adults. 3) All oxen are castrated. 'Ox' is simply a name given to a castrated, adult male bovine. (That being said, an ox cannot be born, or give birth--so, no new-born oxen!)

--President Eisenhower was the only US president with a four-syllable last name.

Hank's Hat Trick

Henrik Zetterberg scored his first NHL career hat trick against Phoenix tonight in a 4-1 win. Hot damn I wish I could have seen that! I DID listen to the game on the radio via the web, but it just ain't the same. :) However, it really made me realize just how much I actually do miss listening to good radio--something we are sorely lacking here. If I could convince K, I would love to have satellite radio--but he likes to listen to local stations wherever we are, so that isn't going to happen. Anyway, this moves the Wings to first in their division, first in their conference, and second in the league--and they are only one point behind Buffalo overall! There are still two months left of the regular season, so it doesn't REALLY mean all that much, but it is a good feeling nonetheless. (And it just might shut up some of the people who said the Wings were washed up when Yzerman retired and Shanahan left!)

It also was announced that Tomas Holmstrom has signed a three-year contract extension. Good news, as he really is doing some good work on the ice. Homer would be missed a lot if he wasn't there being a 'pest' in front of the other team's net game after game after game!

Another Train Wreck Happening

I don't think anyone will be too surprised by the news that Britney Spears is in the process of totally losing it. In the last few days it has been reported that she checked herself into--and out of-- rehab at Crossroads rehab center in Antigua, shaved her head, and gotten two new tattoos. She was reportedly agitated and 'wasn't making any sense at all' while at the tattoo parlor. Here is the whole story and a picture of her new look.

Isn't there SOMETHING that can be done for these stars/starlets/personalities when EVERYONE can see that they are self destructing? Why do we just have to sit by and watch all of this happening? This young girl has two babies that need a mother who is healthy and can be with them while they are growing up, so why doesn't anyone get her the help that she needs? Are the laws in this country such that we can't force someone to get help when they are so obviously in need of it? At this point, she is a danger to herself and, quite possibly, others--including her children! This is just so, so sad to have a second one in such a state in so short a time.

A Little Of This, A Little Of That...AND some hockey

--The town is all set and ready for the annual dog sled races. They bring snow into the downtown area, on the main street, and that is where the race starts. This all will be happening tomorrow evening and continue through the weekend, ending some time on Sunday. K asked me if I wanted to go and watch the start of the race. HA, HA!!!! I don't care WHAT the temps might be--right now they are thinking maybe the low teens--I have no intention of standing around in the middle of the winter just to watch dogs start running!

--I don't know where the problem lies, but Site Meter hasn't been recording all of the visitors to this blog. The reason I know this: first, I have seen the visits recorded on StatCounter; second, people who have not been recorded have left comments. Strange.

--Talked to A tonight and she thinks she may allergic to her vitamins! All winter long she has been all stuffy and every time I time I talk to her it sounds as if she has a cold. It has become so prevalent that I just quit asking her if she is feeling okay. (Her co-workers have commented on how she is ALWAYS sick, too!) Well, it seems as if she was feeling a bit nauseous a few days ago and she stopped taking her vitamins. This caused her to 'unstuff.' Then she went back to taking her vitamins and all of her 'cold' symptoms have returned! Now she has to talk to her doctor and see if the allergy thing is possible and if she has to be tested. Weird!

--Our three-year-old granddaughter was diagnosed a couple of weeks ago with a genital hernia. A couple of days ago, they took her to see a surgeon for evaluation and she will be having surgery the end of this month. I guess this is something quite common in boys, but a bit unusual in girls. The surgeon wants to take care of things while she is still young enough so that things don't get more complicated. It is always something when you have kids!

--Here is a post on mental_floss entitled 'World's most dangerous road?' It is a tunnel dug through a rocky cliff somewhere in China and the pictures are awesome. It is the most frightening thing! It is hard to describe--click on the link and see the pictures for yourself.

--Daisy Singer Alexander, the only heir to the Singer sewing machine fortune, was quite eccentric. She would put messages in bottles and drop them in the River Thames. In June of 1937, she wrote the following and put it in a bottle: "To avoid all confusion, I leave my entire estate to the lucky person who finds this bottle." She then threw the bottle in the river. In 1940, Alexander died. In 1949, in San Francisco, a dishwasher by the name of Jack Wrum was walking along the beach and found a bottle. Inside the bottle was a note. Jack Wrum inherited 8 million dollars because of the note inside the bottle. (courtesy of mental_floss)

--I hate to see what our yard will look like when the snow goes. Once again, I witnessed our neighbor's rather big dog taking a dump in our yard! And he was outside the whole time, probably watching the damn dog doing it! Pisses me off.

--K went back to work after his long weekend on the 8th. When it is all said and done, he will have his next day off around the 23rd. At least, we THINK he will have a day off then. He isn't SCHEDULED to work that day, but with the overtime, who knows.

--I am so bummed! The Wings play in Phoenix on Saturday night and I will not get to see the game! The ONLY channel that is broadcasting it is one of the NHL channels that you have to pay for. And I'm not sure if you can only buy one game or if you have to buy an entire package. I have to call our cable company tomorrow and see what the deal is--hopefully it won't be too expensive and I can get to see the game after all.

--Well, all of the speculation is over: Forsberg was traded to Nashville. I don't know how I feel about this. First, it probably wouldn't have been very comfortable for some of the Wing players to have him at Detroit--after all, there IS history. Second, it is being talked that this could be just what Nashville needs in order to win the Cup this year. Without wanting to wish any harm to a person, it might be to Detroit's advantage if Forsberg's foot starts acting up again. Time will tell on whether Nashville did good with this trade. And there is always the possiblity that Detroit will trade for someone that will help them even more than Forsberg could possibly have done.

They Redeemed Themselves

While tonight wasn't the best game I have seen, at least the Wings won 3-1. It really was quite a boring game until the third period. Then, again, the Wings became fired up and started to play amazing hockey. Dallas scored in the second and the Wings were scoreless until Datsyuk scored in the third. If Detroit's first goal of the game isn't featured in all of the highlight reels for a long time to come, no goal will be. Zetterberg was rushing toward the net with the puck, started skating around the back of it, as he is known to do, and at the last possible moment he passed the puck BACKWARDS, between his own legs AND a Dallas player's legs, and got it to Datsyuk to score. Beauty, grace, talent--absolutely amazing. Zetterberg is very possibly the best player in the NHL, and he doesn't get nearly enough credit for what he does. Later, he scored the winning goal.

Datsyuk and Zetterberg celebrate the winning goal:

(AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

It will make for much nicer pictures when Zetterberg gets those teeth fixed! :) I believe he chipped one tooth and knocked off a crown on another. What a way to make a living.

Happy Valentine's Day

Hope you all have a great Valentine's Day! As my Valentine's Day gift to all of you, here are a couple of videos.

First, a Teddy bear goes to see his love:



And to help you rock out your Valentine's Day, here is a live video of Queen singing 'Crazy Little Thing Called Love.' Freddy Mercury sure could sing! I DEFY you to not keep this song going through your mind all day after hearing it! :)

Dead Wings

While the Wings don't really deserve to be called their nickname from the 80s, the way they played last night was absolutely abysmal. In a 6-1 loss, one of the top 4 teams in the NHL lost to the worst team, Philadelphia. (Sorry, RT, but that IS their record. :|) It took me an entire 24 hours to actually process what I saw--and I'm STILL not sure what went on. The Flyers ran over Detroit and there is nothing more to be said about it. I guess some would blame Joey MacDonald for his work in the net, but it wasn't all his fault. He is, after all, young and new to the NHL--he just didn't have much help from the rest of the team. I really doubt Hasek or Ozzie would have done a whole lot better with the lack of support.

So, what is it that the Wings need to do in order to take their play up a notch? First and foremost, I believe they need to get one or two players that are willing to get physical. I am not talking about becoming a clone of Philadelphia when they were the 'Broad Street Bullies,' I am just saying they need someone to intimidate and protect. Philadelphia went after Detroit's goalie, as well as several Wing players, and there was NO ONE on Detroit's team to say, 'BACK OFF!' Yes, Detroit needs Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Holmstrom, etc, to make the beautiful plays and goals, but finesse isn't all there is to the game. Teams all through the NHL know that Detroit is all about finesse and little physicality--this leads to Detroit being pushed around and getting run over. It's time that the powers that be get with it and bring someone in that will take care of the star players. It's time for Detroit to start intimidating, not just look good!

They Were Smokin'--for 40 minutes

Pity the team that has to play against the Wings the next game after a humiliation like they experienced last Thursday. Tonight, it was Calgary that needed to be pitied. Detroit played a 40 minute game tonight, not just a 20 minute one. (They could TRY a 60 minute game once in awhile!) After the first period, they were leading 3-0. After the second period, they were leading 6-1. THEN, they gave up 3 goals in the third and finally ended up winning the game 7-4. The first two periods they played as if they were the only team on the ice--it was beautiful to watch. Joey MacDonald was in the net tonight, so he got the first win of his NHL career! Yippee! He'll be in net again tomorrow night, as Ozzie has a broken finger and Hasek has an inflamed wrist. We'll see how he can do in back-to-back games.

Snow Statues

Last year I posted about the Winter Carnival at MTU--you can find the post here. Well, this weekend is Winter Carnival and they have some amazing pictures of this year's snow statues. Here is the overall winner:


This pic is kind of impressive, but if you want REALLY impressive, go here. Click on the pic and when you get to the next page, click on the picture again to zoom in. The amount of detail work that goes into these statues is simply amazing! There are numerous links on the first page, so if you want to see some truly awesome examples of snow statues, spend some time and look around. And don't forget, these are all done by COLLEGE STUDENTS, NOT any professionals.

Some Thoughts For Today

Gee, I wish I had some good, philosophical things to write about, but I don't. So, here are some things going around in my head today.

--Many people have come to this blog by searching for 'deathclock lyrics.' I have NO idea what that is--and searching for it isn't any help. Does anyone know what this is?

--This made me happy today: I looked outside and all of the 3-4+" of snow/ice on the top of my Jimmy was gone! Yup, the sun was out and it was warm enough for every bit of ice to come off the roof--HOORAY! We don't have a garage, so there is usually at least a little bit of snow/ice on the vehicles at all times. (The Jimmy is too high for me to reach and brush everything off--and it has a luggage carrier on top, so that makes it doubly hard to take care of. K doesn't mind that it isn't snow-free.)

--The temp went up to 22 degrees above zero on our backyard thermometer this afternoon! How great is that?

--This winter has been a little strange in the fact that I can't keep the house humidified at all. All winter long, every year, I have to run humidifiers just so I won't shock myself to death by walking through the house. For some reason or another, this year is horribly bad! I have three humidifiers running at top speed constantly and it STILL is very staticky! My hair stands out around my head like some sort of halo/aura--NOT a good look. We have an antique brass bed that we sleep in, so it is LOADS of fun making the bed every day. I have to try not to get too near the headboard or foot or I wind up creating sparks that would light up a medium-sized room! The poor cat is terrified to rub against my leg for fear of a teeth-shattering shock. This is one thing that could make me want winter to go away.

--The cat usually will come with me in the computer room and keep me company. While I don't mind this, the other night she drove me absolutely insane. She was chewing her toenails! The sound is very close to fingernails on a chalkboard and just grates away at my nerves. Despite what some people feel, we had the cat declawed at the time we had her spayed. (Some people feel this is akin to torture--I feel this has saved her life. I WILL NOT have a cat destroy my furnishings, etc, by shredding them. I find no problem with declawing a cat that will NEVER be allowed to roam outside on its own--which ours doesn't.) However, she still has her back claws and, I guess, she has to groom them to keep them at a respectable length. I really don't care WHAT the reason is for her doing it, it just drives me insane!

--I saw this video and thought it was one of the funniest I have seen in a long time. Here I present "Baby Panda Sneezing."

Stopped At 175

The Red Wings lost tonight to St. Louis--and were shut out at the same time. So the record ends at 175 games without being shut out--the last time was 7 January 2004. (The score tonight was 1-0.) Really, with the way Detroit played tonight, they deserved to lose. HOWEVER, Joey MacDonald didn't deserve the loss--he was very good in goal, having stopped 28 of 29 shots. It would be nice if he could have been awarded the win--and the team not get any points--just for the good effort he made. He didn't have a team backing him well enough--he couldn't do it all himself, and so the Wings are now 3 points behind Nashville for the top spot in the Central Division. And they would have had the top spot to themselves with a win. Damn.

Let's Talk Manners

One of my biggest pet peeves is people who don't send thank you notes. I am not talking getting a little pissed, I am talking I WANT TO RIP THEIR F*****G HEADS OFF! Where did this tirade of mine come from all of a sudden? We FINALLY received a thank you from one of The Nieces for the wedding gift we sent--for their SEPTEMBER wedding! Granted, I actually GOT a thank you, but why so late? And, no, it is NOT true that you have an entire year after getting married in which to send out the notes. The rule of 'as fast as possible' still applies to wedding 'thank yous' as well as any others.

While I was growing up, I had to call everyone who sent me a birthday card with money. (Gifts were few and far between for the birthday.) At Christmas, I had to call everyone who gave me a gift. This was the rule, this I had to obey. (I think The Mother didn't make me WRITE thank you notes because it cost money to buy them and then to send them. My opinion.) Whatever way it was done, I was EXPECTED to acknowledge a gift and thank for it--even the $1 bill one of my VERY cheap aunts always sent.

From the time my girls were old enough to hold a pencil, they 'wrote' thank you notes. Granted, the first ones were ones I wrote and they scribbled their 'names' on. Then, I wrote the notes and they actually signed them. The next step: I wrote out a sample note which they then copied in their own handwriting. And, finally, they were on their own to write the notes by themselves. To this day, they continue to write thank you notes for gifts they receive--and quite beautiful ones, I have been told. (They are very hit-and-miss when it comes to sending notes to me. I have accepted this as long as they remember to send to everyone else.)

The Brother and his family hardly ever send thank you notes. I am still waiting for thank yous from his three oldest daughters for their graduation gifts--as well as YEARS of other gifts we have given that family. These graduations were in 2001, 2003, and 2004 (or '05)--I don't think they will be coming. Their youngest--our goddaughter--gets a note out to us once every few years. No note this year for the Christmas OR birthday gifts. (Last year, I sent a check for her birthday and it never was even CASHED!) I have always wondered WHAT the hell is wrong with The Brother and his wife and I still do to this day. They are such social SLOBS.

The way I look at it: if someone spends the amount of time to pick out a gift for you, spend their money, and get it to you, you have an OBLIGATION to spend three minutes writing a thank you note. Why aren't people being taught this very simple social grace?

Anna Nicole Smith

It is being reported that Anna Nicole Smith has died. The only reason I am even writing about this is the fact that she has been a frequently recurring subject in the gossip columns I read. Terrible thing for me to say, but, I'm not really surprised by this. It will be interesting (?) to see how this plays out in the media over the next few days, weeks, months.

Things I Don't 'Get'

There are some things that just completely elude me--other than football, that is. Here are a few:

--Ayn Rand

Praises on top of praises have been heaped on this author and I just don't see what is so great about her. I read 'The Fountainhead' and hated it--there were no characters in the book that I admired or 'pulled for', and that included the main character. After my disappointment with this book, I decided against reading anything else she wrote.

--Shakespeare

Now, he may have been a wonderful writer and told great stories, but I just found his writing to be too much work. When I read something, I want to be entertained (to a certain extent) and I found myself working too hard when I read anything of his. For entertainment purposes, I need things to be easy--Shakespeare isn't easy. Other than being forced to read him for school, I will pass on Shakespeare.

--Regis Philben

If anyone can explain WHY this man is on TV and WHY anyone wants to watch him, I will listen. All I see when I look at the man--not that I do so voluntarily--is an old man with an enormous ego who loves to hear himself talk. Just don't get his popularity.

--Bruce Springsteen

I know these are fighting words, but, I DON'T LIKE 'THE BOSS.' I don't think he is overly talented with his song writing or his singing. Can't see what the appeal is there.

--Opera

Do I even need to explain why I don't get this?

--The 'handsomeness' of Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio

Okay, maybe this is a generational thing, but I don't think either one of these two men are good looking. For sure, neither does a thing for my 'knock my socks off' meter. I 'get' Patrick Dempsey, Hugh Laurie, Adrian Grenier, Matthew Fox, Matthew McConaughey, etc.--I just don't see it with Brad or Leo.

--Apple and Steve Jobs

No one has explained in an understandable way why exactly Apples are better than PCs. I have had an opportunity to 'mess around' with an Apple and just don't see the advantage. Steve Jobs, as far as I have ever been able to tell, is just a great salesman. The man is an over-sized ego inside a normal-sized body. At least with Bill Gates, he actually KNOWS how to write software (the man does have a near-genius IQ)--something I have never heard said about Jobs.

--American Idol, Survivor, and most every other reality show

Granted, I HAVE watched 'Queer Eye For The Straight Guy' (and was a fan), 'Project Runway' (and was a fan), and one or two other shows (for part or all of only one season), but I don't understand the obsession that people feel for some of these shows. I don't see the appeal. (That being said, I AM watching the new show on Bravo called 'Top Design'. It is only in its second week, so I am not sure how much more I will watch. I figured I might get some good ideas for my own home by watching--we'll have to see.)

--Sushi

Raw fish? And just WHO thought this was a good idea?

--A Brazilian Wax

Don't even want to THINK about it.

Cujo VS The Dominator

And The Dominator came out on top. Yes, the Wings won over Phoenix 4-2 tonight. It was a pretty good game--at least they played more than a 20 minute game! Zetterberg did some of the magic that he does--damn, but the man makes it look so easy. I'm afraid Detroit is going to have to let someone go after Zetterberg negotiates his next contract--he will DEFINITELY need to get a raise. Damn salary cap--they could keep all of the high-end players they wanted if it wasn't for that cap.

During the game, and especially after the win, I couldn't help but think of the feud between Hasek and Curtis Joseph. They were both goalies for Detroit several years ago and, for whatever reason (long story), the bad blood became so bad that they couldn't even sit next to each other in the locker room. Yup, the third goalie had to be the buffer between the two of them. Instead of two grown men, top professionals in their field, I could only think of little girls out on the playground. This made me wonder: did Hasek do a little victory dance after he beat his rival? Did he make faces at him and say 'nanner, nanner'? Did Cujo have a voodoo doll of Hasek and did he put in pins to aggravate the old groin injury? Did each give the other the old 'evil eye' across the rink? Kind of fun to wonder about--after all, they are just human beings. And, being professional athletes, they have somewhat large egos--Hasek's being a bit larger, I would have to say. Probably would be interesting to be able to read their minds.

Tomorrow night they play in St. Louis--will have to see if they can keep it together for two nights in a row. I'm not expecting too much: Joey MacDonald will be in net for Detroit. And I really can't blame Joey, it's just that he hasn't been played hardly at all this year, so he can't be up to speed. Time will tell--I hope for the best for Joey.

Another 20 Minute Game

Once again, the Wings played only 20 out of 60 minutes of a game. The third period was great--and they won, 4-3. I know I've said it before but, if they actually played 60 minutes of hockey each time, they would win the President's trophy as well as beat everyone else for the Cup! They have a good team, I just don't understand why they can't get it together any better than they do.

The trades have started. The Rangers have acquired Avery from the Kings--hmm, interesting. I still can't wait to see what happens with Forsberg--might be very interesting to add another Swede to the team. I just don't want them to mess things up too much--they aren't doing THAT badly.

We're Having A Heatwave

--Today the temp in our backyard was a tropical +15 degrees! Considering the high yesterday was -5, this is a vast improvement. We should continue to have temps in the teens this week--yippee!!

--What is the definition of true love? How about: putting on a Super Bowl party for your significant other when you LOATHE the game of football. Yup, that's what I did for K yesterday. I'm such a good wife.

--Got a phone call from the cardiologists office today and now K has to go in for a full stress test on Friday. I guess there was some difference in his last EKG from the time before and they want to see if there is any heart disease going on. Oh, yay.

--We bought ourselves a new printer/scanner/copier on our last road trip and I am loving it! When we got this computer, the scanner we had just wouldn't work--I could install it, but it wouldn't scan into the computer. Couldn't find out the problem, so I got rid of the scanner. Well, turns out that K missed the scanner as much as me, so we got ourselves a new 3-in-1. I started copying our important papers last night and am really enjoying working with the thing. It is so cool to have a copier in my own home! (I know, I'm SUCH a geek.)

--And a little FYI. There is a place called the 'Gay Bar' here in the UP. That is its name because it is located in the town called 'Gay.'

Southern People Are Funny

(This is in response to your comment on my last post, burg. Hope you enjoy.)

Two days after K and I married--October 8, to be exact--we packed up our car and moved to Charleston, South Carolina. K was in the Navy and Charleston was his home port--not that he spent all that much time there, you realize. With his short- and long-term cruises, he was gone a whole lot more than I ever dreamed possible. But, I digress. We found ourselves an apartment and started our lives together.

A few weeks after we moved into our apartment, K was gone on a cruise. It was a short one--a week or ten days at the most--so it must have been the one to Gitmo. Anyway, here I was, alone, in a city--don't forget, I grew up in a town of less than 1000 people--no phone, didn't drive, and didn't know anyone. It was a bit daunting. Somehow or another, I became friends with another Navy wife who lived on the other side of the parking lot from us. To say we got close quickly is putting it mildly.

Laurie and her husband were from Philadelphia and that in itself made her my long-lost sister--or at the very least, my long-lost cousin! There was just something about us Yankees standing against the Southern folk that made a bond between us that was very strong. Now, don't get me wrong, all of the people I met that were natives or from other places in the South were very nice--they all were just different than we Yankees were. Native Southerners just can't understand the shared experiences we Northerners had. Now, finally, we get to my story.

During the Christmas season, Laurie, her husband, K, and I went to the local mall to do some Christmas shopping. (We had no money, so it must have been more Christmas window shopping, but, I digress again.) As this was the South, we were wearing short sleeves. Laurie and I were lamenting the fact that we were not going to see snow at all for Christmas, much less for the entire winter. We continued belly-aching as we were waiting to be taken care of in one store. The clerk must have over-heard us--actually, he would have had to be deaf to NOT hear us complaining--because he asked, "Are you-all from up North?" To which we replied, "Yes." He then asked us, "Do you get much snow where you are from?" Laurie nodded her head and I said, "Yes. As a matter of fact, we get at least 200" of snow where I'm from." To which the clerk looked at me, very befuddled, and asked, "All at once?" I'm sorry to say, I could not answer the man because I was trying too hard not to laugh. I'm sure the poor thing must still, to this day, be wondering why Laurie and I started laughing hysterically the second we were out of his sight.

And this is why I think some Southern people are funny! :)

Baby, It's COLD Outside

Yes, it is beginning to sound like a broken record, but we are STILL cold here. The high today is not supposed to go above zero. So, I figured it would be a good time to break out some cold-weather/winter, UP trivia. Enjoy!

--The latest, plowable snowfall in the UP was June 1945. They had to haul out the snowplows to do the roads.

--On June 22, 1992, a temp of 32 degrees was reported at our local weather station. This is the latest freezing temperature for our area ever recorded.

--August 18, 1968 was the earliest we have had a temp of 32 degrees.

--September 13, 1975, found snow falling in places in the UP. This was the earliest recorded snowfall for the winter season.

--3" to 6.5" of snow fell around the UP on September 22, 1995.

--The coldest November temperature was -13 on November 30, 1976.

--The greatest one-day snowfall on record occurred in Marquette on December 12, 1961. 14.2" fell from just before midnight on the 11th to about noon on the 12th.

--December 20, 1983 had the coldest December temp on record: -28 degrees.

--On occasions, Lake Superior has kept its ice into June (1972) and July (1876).

--The most snow that has fallen in one winter is in the northern part of the UP, a place called Delaware. During the winter of 1978-1979, 391.9" of snow fell. (Delaware averages 231.5" per year.)

--The greatest depth of snow on the ground was 80" at the Marquette Airport on February 16, 1971.

--And even though it has never been made official, snow HAS fallen on July 4th here in the UP. It has happened once that I remember.

How Cold Is It?

I know the answer to the question should be something humorous, but I don't feel very funny about the cold right now. The temp is about -11 and the wind chill is at least -24. It is cold. And it is only supposed to get worse--the predicted wind chill for Monday morning is -45. THAT will close the schools! (As opposed to snow, which doesn't close schools that often.) So, just how cold is it? Here goes:

--if you are outside for 5 minutes (or even less), you get 'brain freeze'

--your toasty-warm vehicle cools off in under 10 minutes

--sitting in your unheated vehicle makes the backs of your thighs instantly turn to ice--even if you have cloth-covered seats

--when the wind blows, your breath is literally taken away

--you can't dress warmly enough, unless you have very special cold-weather clothing

--your lungs hurt when you breathe

--your eyes tear and hurt even when there isn't a wind

--the insides of your nostrils literally get caked with ice

--the only thing your unheated vehicle does for you is protect you from the wind--otherwise, it is no warmer than outside

--you MUST protect your animals when they go out--they are just as prone to frost-bite as people

--at -45, you can get frostbite in less than 10 minutes

--if you touch a metal object outside with your sweat-dampened hand, you WILL stick to said object (can happen when opening your car door, for example)

--ice, sometimes an inch thick in the corners, WILL form on the insides of your house windows--even if they are double-paned

--to keep warm, you MUST turn your thermostat up

--sitting at home with a glass of wine or brandy, is the nicest way to wait out the cold!

Too Cold For Hockey...

...at least it would be if the rink was outside! Right now we are at about -6 degrees with a wind chill of -15. Compared to what it is going to be tomorrow, the weather is absolutely balmy. The wind chill is supposed to be between 25 and 40 below zero, or as we like to say, "A little chilly." :D Welcome to our yearly cold snap--and I hope it only happens once this year. Surprisingly, the house hasn't felt cold--we'll have to see what it's like tomorrow, though.

Today has been a day of catch-up, just as every day after a trip is. It seems as if it takes forever for me to get everything done when I get home. I'm still trying to finish up the laundry.

The Wings played St. Louis tonight and it certainly was an entertaining game. Some beautiful goals were made, one of the Wings got slashed with a stick to the face (no damage was done), and the Wings' goalie was knocked on his ass in a not nice way. There were even a few minor scuffles--no fights, though. {boo hoo} All in all, a very good game--and, of course, the fact that Detroit won 5-3 made the game even better! :)

I Came Back

We got back from our road trip early this evening. It turned out to be about the same as all of our road trips--no real surprises. We didn't buy anything exciting, unless you think laundry detergent is something to talk about! We did have one bit of an experience, though: K got stopped for speeding and got a ticket. This now is his second one in a year. I don't know what he will be doing about it. C thinks he should dispute it, cause the cop wrote him up for doing 20 above the limit. I really don't think he was doing more than 10 above, but... If K accepts this, he will have a total of 6 points on his license. YIKES! I'm sure our insurance will go up after this.

Yesterday we were sitting in the mall and I saw something I never thought I would see. There, in all his glory, was a man walking through the food court in flip-flop sandals, with no socks. A lot of people wouldn't really find this too odd of an occurrence, but the temp was running about 22 degrees and the wind chill had to be around 10-15 degrees! I guess he had no problems with being bare-footed in the cold because there was no snow. As I said, I never thought I would see anything like it, and never thought I would see it ever again. And today, I DID see it again!! The first thing we did when we got back here to town was go to the gas station and fill up. (We are supposed to be getting some nasty weather, so we wanted to have a full tank of gas in case of emergency.) And lo and behold, a guy pulls up to the pump next to us, gets out of his vehicle, and he is wearing flip-flops and no socks. Again, the temp was in the 20 degree range and there was a wind chill. The thing that made this time worse was the fact that WE have snow and he had to walk through several inches of it in his bare feet! I only wish I knew where this guy lived so that I could go and watch him this weekend when our HIGHS are only supposed to be about zero. I wonder what he will wear then? Maybe he will decide it is the perfect temp to go out streaking. (And believe me, NO ONE wants to see this guy naked! {shudder})

What A Game!

I was all ready to give up on tonight's game and they actually won it! The Islanders were winning 3-0 as the third period began. Then, out of nowhere, the Wings managed 3 goals to end with a 3-3 tie! One more goal was scored during overtime to win 4-3. Detroit played an amazing 20 minutes of hockey tonight--too bad a game is 60 minutes long. If they could consistently play good, solid hockey for 60 minutes, there would be no team around that could beat them. Unfortunately, they can't keep it going for an entire game. All in all, though, they are playing a lot better than any of the experts thought they would be this year. I guess it just proves one thing: if you have a lot of decent players, then your team doesn't need to suffer if you lose one or two stars.

We are off on a road trip in the morning and won't be back till some time on Thursday. It will be good to be away from home for a night, again. We haven't been anywhere since October--that is when K started having the health issues. I'll catch up with everyone in a few days.

Sunday Trivia

For those who would like to ease their way into the Monday routine, I present another installment of trivia. Thanks, again, goes to mental_floss.

--John Lennon and his son Sean were both born on October 9.

--In the year 2000, the number of US households with computers reached the 50% threshold. In 1984 only 8.4% of homes had computers.

--Sardine oil is more costly than the fish, so canners attempt to package as many sardines in each can as possible.

--On October 31, 1926, Harry Houdini died of peritonitis caused by a ruptured appendix.

--The Crescent wrench is not a type of wrench, but a brand name.

--Groundhog, woodchuck, and whistle-pig are all names for the same animal.

--On TV and in films, Lassie was always played by a male--even though Lassie was supposed to be female. This was for two reasons: 1) males tend to shed less than females, so the dog wouldn't look so ragged during the warm weather, and 2) male collies are several pounds larger than females, thus making it easier for the dog to do some of the stunts required.

--American Sign Language is the third most-used language in the US.

--Elwood Edwards is the name of the man who says "You've got mail." on AOL.

--Anna Edson Taylor, a 63-year-old widow, was the first person to survive going over Niagara Falls in a barrel.

--A 'blue moon' is the second full moon in a month. The next blue moon will be on June 30, 2007.

--The Bayer company once sold heroin as a cough remedy.

And They Won

I really was worried about how the Wings would do today--after all, they have injuries and illness galore. All three of the goalies had problems: one with a broken finger, two with the flu. Hasek must have felt a whole lot better, because he played. Even though the announcers weren't too high on the game, I thought it was quite good. It wasn't a high scoring game--3-1--but there was good hockey to be seen. We even got to see a couple of slight shoving matches, but nothing more. I'm still waiting to see a good, old-fashioned fight--wonder if it will happen? The Wings dominated the entire game--the Avs really didn't do much to talk about. Next game is on Tuesday when they play the Islanders.

Something Else That's Boring

With nothing interesting to say, I decided to post a list of some of the movies I have never seen. What can I say, it's been a slow news day! :)

--Casablanca
--Goodfellas
--Chinatown
--L A Confidential
--The Maltese Falcon
--Singin' In The Rain
--On The Waterfront
--Annie Hall
--any Marx Brothers' movies
--40 Year Old Virgin*
--Titanic*
--Scarface
--Rebel Without A Cause
--Shane
--anything by Michael Moore*
--Halloween (any number)*

So, am I depriving myself by never having seen any of these? Are any of the movies on the list your favorite? Feedback will be welcome.


*Don't ever plan on seeing.

Didn't Quite Get It Together

The Wings lost in overtime to St. Louis, 2-1 tonight. It just seemed as if the players were like a bunch of kids coming back after spring break: just not quite with it. It was not a good game. As a matter of fact, I did my filing while the game was on--not something I would normally do during a well-played game. While it isn't an excuse, the Wings were playing without a number of their regular players: 3 had the flu, one has a bad knee, one is out with a broken collarbone, and one has a broken foot. Two or three players had to be called up from Grand Rapids, so they didn't play too badly, all things considered. It WAS a low scoring game, after all. I just hope they play a better game when they meet the Avs on Sunday.

Horrible Nightmares

I really don't know when I will be back to what I laughingly call normal. Last night I had horrible nightmares and I'm just trying to get over them. Of course, if I use the term 'horrible nightmares,' it must mean the main characters in my dreams were The Family--and that is true. Every single hurt, slight, yell, etc, that they have done to me in the past was in this particular nightmare--and my mind even made up a few for good measure! I still have to stop myself from shaking every once in awhile--it just was too, too real. Hopefully the memories will fade fast.

NHL All Star Game

I watched the All Star game last night--albeit, with the volume off while I was on the phone with A. :) It really turned out to be a goal-fest with the West winning 12-9 over the East. I was kind of pleased that the young upstarts (Sidney Crosby) didn't run away with the game as predicted. Experience DOES count for something--and the youngsters need to sit back and watch the veterans do what they have been doing so well for so long. It also was nice to see the West win because the best players--statistically speaking--are in the East. Just because you are an individual high scorer doesn't always mean your team is going to win--there IS something to be said for having a lot of very good players on a team as opposed to having one superstar player with a bunch of semi-good ones. All in all, I'm happy the break is over and we can get back to the second half of the season. I will be interested to see if Detroit will be getting any new players before the trade deadline in February. Rumor has it that they might look to get Peter Forsberg--hmmm, an enemy (ex-Av) and an old guy (33) and has injury problems (right foot.) Can't wait to see how this is going to play out.

The Web, Politics, 'Excuse Me?!' and Trivia

--Blogger was having some issues earlier today and it seems as if they might be fixed. But, then, who really knows. On a related matter: I have been having serious slowness problems with Sitemeter for the past several days. It is as if I was using dial-up AND every person in the world was trying for Sitemeter at the same time. Slow doesn't even come close to describing the problem. Actually, the entire Web has been just a scooch off for a few days. Hmm.

--Watched a few of the 'highlight' clips from the State of the Union address today and one thought kept running through my mind: the Brady Bunch episode when Marcia and Greg were both running for student body president. How sad is that when the behavior of our elected officials can be compared to The Brady Bunch!

--Does anyone else think this is just getting out of hand? (Or does anyone else even WATCH Grey's Anatomy?) This whole deal with Isaiah Washington and his use of the word 'faggot' is what I am talking about. NOW it is being reported that he has been sent to a residential treatment facility for rehab because of his use of the word. I don't like it when people use 'bad' words to describe or disparage another person, but hasn't this whole thing gone from a non-story to completely ludicrous? Is the show falling in the ratings and they need publicity to keep it on the air? As for me, I am very close to taking it off of my 'to be watched' list. This is getting ridiculous.

--And now, for those who actually have stayed and read through this entire post, some trivia from mental_floss. (Does anyone see how much I LOVE this site/magazine?)

* John Adams spoke with a lisp because he stubbornly refused to wear dentures.

* John Tyler holds the presidential paternity record. He had 14 children live to maturity, the last one born when Tyler was 70.

* James Buchanan had one eye set higher in his head than the other, so he walked around with his neck cocked to one side.

* Chester A. Arthur owned over 80 pairs of pants and insisted on changing several times a day.

* Benjamin Harrison had the first electric lights in the White House, but was scared to turn them on or off for fear of electrocution. Instead, he made the servants do it.

* Calvin Coolidge, while president, enjoyed riding on a mechanical horse and whooping like a cowboy. He also thought it was great fun to hit the buzzer for the servants and then hide.

* Richard M. Nixon loved football. As president, he'd occasionally call up NFL coaches to chat and offer strategic advice.

* Bill Clinton was eight years old when he was mauled by a sheep. That was the day, according to his biography, that he learned he could take a hard hit.

Hockey Players and Elected Officials

Even though I am not getting to see the Red Wings play this week, I did watch the YoungStars game and the SkillsCompetition. Actually, the game didn't hold my interest too well. The last time I realized what the score was, it was somewhere around 9-8 or so. This was, of course, the best of the best young players, so it wasn't that much of a competition. I found the SkillsCompetition to be quite good. It always is amazing to watch a player shoot the puck into the net at 100+ mph. THAT is why it hurts so much when a player gets hit with one! (Granted, ALL of the players don't hit the puck that hard, but do you want to be hit by a puck ONLY going 80 mph?) Tomorrow night is the AllStar game and I will have that on, too. We'll see how interested I am when it is all said and done.

Obviously, I didn't watch the State of the Union address tonight. I really have given up on watching those--I would rather just read the transcript and watch the highlights on the news. This all comes down to one reason: the observers at the speech. Now, I'm not talking just one party here, but ALL of the people involved. I find it very disgusting and juvenile when every minute or so the President's party members jump up and applaud as if he is giving the Sermon on the Mount. And, of course, the opposing party members just sit and--at the most--politely applaud with looks on their faces as if they have something extremely uncomfortable shoved up their respective asses! I don't care who is President, this is the way it is with each of the parties. It is really too bad that we have to observe such ill manners--and people wonder WHY we have bad-mannered sports fans (for example)! If our elected officials, the people who we are to respect and have voted in to run our country, act like this, how can we expect any more from the 'common' man? I guess good manners are something that have gone away.

And We Think WE Have Restrictive Rules

From mental_floss:

Naming your baby Brooklynn, America, or Lindsee might be acceptable (if mockable) in the good ol’ US of A, but don’t try a stunt like that in Denmark. Of all the European laws regulating baby names, Denmark’s are the strictest. Danish parents must choose from a state-approved list of 7,000 names, which seems like a lot, until you fall in love with a name that isn’t on there. And bucking the system means months of slogging through a bureaucratic process to get your chosen moniker individually approved by the Names Investigation Department and the Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs. Each year, those organizations reject 15 to 20 percent of the names they review—all in the, uh, “name” of protecting the baby’s dignity.

A Tuesday Funny

I'm sure this has been passed around far and wide, but it still gives me a chuckle. Hope you enjoy.


20 Ways To Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity


1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and point your Hair Dryer At Passing Cars. See If They Slow Down.

2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice.

3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, Ask If They Want Fries with that.

4. Put Your Garbage Can On Your Desk And Label It "In."

5. Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks. Once Everyone has Gotten over Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch To Espresso.

6. In The Memo Field Of All Your Checks, Write "For Smuggling Diamonds."

7. Finish All Your sentences with "In Accordance With The Prophecy."

8. Don't use any punctuation

9. As Often As Possible, Skip Rather Than Walk.

10. With a serious face, order a diet water whenever you go out to eat.

11. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is "To Go."

12. Sing Along At The Opera.

13. Go To A Poetry Recital And Ask Why The Poems Don't Rhyme.

14. Put Mosquito Netting Around Your Work Area And Play Tropical Sounds All Day.

15. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party Because You're Not In The Mood.

16. Have Your Coworkers Address You By Your Wrestling Name, Rock Bottom.

17. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream "I Won!, I Won!"

18. When Leaving The Zoo, Start Running Towards The Parking lot, Yelling "Run For Your Lives, They're Loose!!"

19. Tell Your Children Over Dinner. "Due To The Economy, We Are Going To Have To Let One Of You Go."

20. And The Final Way To Keep A Healthy Level Of Insanity......
Share this with someone to make them smile :-)

Monday Ramblings

--I never would have believed it, but I am having withdrawal symptoms because the Wings won't be playing again till Friday. What will I do when the season is over?

--K saw the PCP today. While his blood pressure and cholesterol are pretty good--for someone who is otherwise healthy--the nephrologist wants the numbers much lower. So, he came home with two more prescriptions. He now will be taking Lipitor and another blood pressure med. If he keeps this up, he'll catch up to the amount of pills I take every day! (prescription AND supplements on my part)

--I don't now, or ever have, understood the appeal of American Idol. And after hearing about how mean the judges have been to these people, I don't understand it even more. (And, yes, those people 'ask for it' by putting themselves out there, but still...)

--It is not for me to judge, but I can't really believe that the parents of Shawn Hornbeck allowed him to be interviewed on TV this soon after his return. Despite their assurances that he wanted to do it, I think he shouldn't be making these kinds of decisions until he is an adult--they should be protecting him from all of this. And Oprah--the media whore herself--should be ashamed of herself that she would do this interview. (And, I have not seen the interview--I don't watch Oprah. I have read about this, though--take my opinion for what it is worth: NOTHING!)

--K really bummed me out when he revealed that he had been to the Big Boy restaurant for breakfast this morning! I was quite pissed--we were supposed to go together after the crowds died down. (The old restaurant burned down about three years or so ago and it just was rebuilt.)

--While all politicians are very good at talking without saying anything, I think Barak Obama has to be the best person EVER at this. He 'talks real purty,' but I can't find one bit of substance in what he has to say.

--I am soooo close to trying to put Linux on my computer. I would have done it already, but I am too dependent on programs that will only run on Windows. (As well as peripherals.) Doing a dual-boot WOULD solve the problem, though.

--I am getting new computer fever, the closer it gets to the day that Vista is put on the shelves.

--I think my next bigger purchase is going to be a Wii. I can't stand the thought that I don't have one already.

--'Heroes' returns tonight after many weeks--I can't wait! I will also be watching 'Prison Break'--hooray!!--and '24.' A good night of TV. Tomorrow night: 'Gilmore Girls' and 'Veronica Mars.' AND the YoungStars game and SuperSkills competition will be on Versus. (This is hockey. :)) Be still my heart!

--The AllStar game is on Versus on Wednesday night--can't decide if I will be cheering or booing. Too many players I don't like will be playing.

--I have to get in touch with a close friend this week. We usually try to get together for dinner every 4 to 6 weeks and haven't really even talked since the end of November! Way too long for us not to visit. A friendship is really like a marriage: you have to work at keeping it alive!

--I really must be in a horrible slump--I have been thinking WAAAAY too much about things I want to buy. NOT things I need, just want to buy.

--K starts night shift tonight. Then he is off for three days, works another four days and THEN it will be long weekend. I REALLY hope we can go on a road trip--I REALLY need it!

--There are times--as when I'm cleaning up litter or hacked-up hairballs--that I would like my cat to not be here. As in dead. Then I feel very bad, because I love her so much.

--I'm so over the Hollywood award shows. I used to LIVE for them, but I now find them just so useless.

--Today is the 34th anniversary of the Supreme Courts decision to legalize abortion. It is a very sad day.

Sunday Trivia

As my life is just about as boring as it can get, I don't have anything to write about. So, with that in mind, I hope you enjoy some trivia. Thanks to the January/February issue of mental_floss magazine for all of these facts.

--Both Neil Diamond and Giorgio Armani trained to be doctors but never finished med school.

--The actual name of the character in the board game 'Operation' is Cavity Sam.

--In India, starting 4000+ years ago and continuing as recently as the early years of British colonization, execution by elephant was done. This consisted of the (trained) elephant crushing the person's skull with its foot.

--The Iditarod dog sled race commemorates a 1925 emergency trip to get medical supplies from Nenana to Nome during a deadly diphtheria outbreak.

--A composer by the name of John Cage wrote a piece called "4'33"," which consists of 4 minutes and 33 minutes of silence. This is the most famous work of music to feature no music at all. (Personally, I don't understand this one!)

--In 1996, Betty Rubble replaced the stone-age car as one of the Flintstone vitamin shapes.

--In New Jersey and Oregon it is illegal to have self-service gas stations.

--Because Harper Lee never published anything after 'To Kill A Mockingbird,' some people think that Truman Capote (her close friend) actually wrote it.

--The Ken doll was re-released in February 2006--this, after he was 'dumped' by Barbie in 2004.

--Thalidomide is being used to treat cachexia (the severe weight loss often seen in AIDS and cancer patients) and skin conditions associated with leprosy.

--'The Scream' by Edvard Munch was stolen in 2004 from the Munch Museum in Norway. It was found two years later. To protect it from being stolen again, visitors and their belongings have to pass through a baggage scanner and metal detector before being allowed to see the painting. Also, two inches of bullet-proof glass protects the painting and it is bolted to the wall.

--Not only are there extreme security measures in place to protect the 45.5-carat Hope Diamond from being stolen, nobody knows for sure whether the one on display at the Smithsonian is the original.

--To gain entry into the vault at Fort Knox where the US gold reserve is, several staff members are required to enter their part of the combination. No single person knows the entire code.

--All of the Beatles were born in Liverpool, England.

--Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second wife, had six fingers on her left hand.

--Bibendum is the actual name of the Michelin Man.

--A 'liger' is the offspring of a male lion and a female tiger. A 'tigon' is the cub of a male tiger and female lion. The males of each of these creations are believed to be sterile.

Very Sad

The Wings lost their second in a row--I'm sad. At least tonight's game was better played than last night's--but it still did no good. Hopefully, with the week off, they will get well rested and be back in good form when they play again on Friday.

Only one of the Detroit players--Lidstrom--will be playing in the All-Star game. Zetterberg took himself out of the game because he has tendinitis in his wrist and will probably need a cortisone shot before they play again. Good grief, they don't need another player that can't play! Tonight Kronwall had to leave the game because he got a cut from a skate across the bridge of his nose--they think he should be able to play next week. It is definitely okay that more Wings are not playing with the All-Stars--no need to put them out there and risk getting hurt.

'My boy,' Valterri Filppula, scored the only goal for Detroit tonight. Way to go!

I Attract Craziness

I must be on the 'strangest magazine' subscription offer list. Got another one in the mail today: Obit magazine. From what I can tell, it is going to be about dead people--famous and not so--and what their lives can tell us about our own. They will do in-depth obituaries and use them as a starting place for introspection. Oooookay!

But, this got me to thinking (not good)--am I ever going to be one who will not only 'never speak ill of the dead,' but a person who puts the dead on a pedestal? For example: K's identical twin died when they were 21. I liked b-i-l, we were good friends throughout high school, but I saw him for what he was: someone who was young, sometimes foolish, with great potential, but without direction. The family has idealized him to the point of absurdity--as if he could never do anything wrong. I really wonder how this makes K feel--after all, who knows a twin better than a twin? I'm sure K remembers his brother's faults better than anyone.

Some could say that I WILL be kinder to the dead when it is a close family member of mine who dies. Maybe. Another example I find extremely strange, though, comes from my own family. I was molested by an uncle when I was young. A cousin was another member who was molested by this same uncle. While I remember him as a drunk--NOT an alcoholic, a drunk--and a many-generation child molester, she only sees his potential for genius (which he had.) She acknowledges the abuse he did, just seems to put that aside and focuses on his intellect and what he could have been. Which one of us is the 'better' person? Her for trying to focus on the good and not the bad, or me--the one who cannot get over the true nature of the person? (And, no, I am not harboring any unresolved feelings about my abuse--I worked through that in therapy.)

The Mother had an absentee father--yet she cannot come out and say how mad and hurt she was by him. If she could only say that she hated him--as well as loved him--I think she could be a more whole individual. But heaven forbid you actually say a mean thing about someone who is dead! I don't understand it.

My, my, aren't we getting a little heavy for a Thursday! I think I have a headache now--must go.

And Furthermore...

While I realize with my last post that I explained the reasons for not liking football, I neglected to say why I think I HATE it. One reason and one reason only: Packer fans. I'm sure there are many who are NOT complete idiots, I just haven't found any. (And if any non-idiotic Packer fan happens to read this, I apologize.) And the biggest, most idiotic Packer fan I know: The Brother. Enough said.

I Hate Football

Now, from the title of this post, you would think I hate football. You just don't understand. See, I REALLY HATE FOOTBALL!!!!! That might bring across my message a little better. I have actually been know to cry when a football game--that is EVERY game ever played--has gone over its allotted time and caused a program I want to watch NOT to start at its scheduled time. (Don't worry, I am getting MUCH better about this--I haven't acted like that for at least two or three weeks!) I have tried to like the game. For crying out loud, when I was in high school and going with the 'love of my life,' I tried to understand and like the game just to be able to watch with him. Didn't happen.

In trying to understand a little bit more about my aversion to football, I can only come up with two possible reasons for why I don't like it: football was not watched by anyone--that means The Father--in the house while I was growing up and we didn't have a football team in the school I attended.

There was only one television set in the house while I was growing up and NO ONE dictated what was to be watched, but The Father. After all, he worked hard and it was his right to watch whatever he wanted when he relaxed. So, I had a very good education in westerns--'Gunsmoke', 'Have Gun Will Travel', and 'Rawhide' are just some of what we watched. I also got a real good education on a lot of country singers--if it was 'Hee Haw' or any other show that featured country music, it was watched. As for sports, we watched boxing--still a fav of mine--some baseball, and hockey. NEVER did a football game get played on the set. I attribute my love of hockey and boxing to those early, growing up years. ( I think I always wanted to be 'Daddy's girl'--never happened.)

The school district I attended was small. Our graduating class had about 35 people. We went from kindergarten through 5th grade in the school in the town I lived, and went from 6th through 12th in the school 3 miles away. We had a basketball team and a track team. We had a swimming pool--the only high school in the area (at that time) WITH a pool--and I'm not really sure whether there was a swim team or not. We didn't have a tennis team, despite the fact we had tennis courts. (The tennis courts were condemned because of the mine shafts under them--they were becoming hazardous because of the unused shafts beginning to cave in.) The high school hockey team didn't come about till after I had graduated. AND we had no football team--probably the only school in the area without one. For some reason or another, nobody questioned this. We had a trophy case with an old football in it--not sure why it was there--so it was understood that at some point in time there HAD been a team in the school. I believe the last team the school had was in the 1930s or 40s--and it could have been earlier. One time I questioned The Mother about this--she went to the same school--and she told me the reason football was discontinued had to do with a player who died. It is my understanding that this was the direct result of a football injury--whether he died during the game or after, I'm not sure. I have no idea where to go to find the story, either--I looked on the web, but it was no help. (Yoopergirl, maybe YOU would know where to find the answer!) Over the years, I have found it very strange that I never heard of anyone bringing up the possibility of starting a football program at the school again.

If The Father would have been a football nut--and with me wanting to please Daddy--I probably would have become a fan. If the school would have had a team, I would have had to, at the very least, TOLERATE football, because I was in the band and would have had to attend the games. But because neither of those things happened, I guess I will have to stick with hockey. Oh, I am sooooo sad! ;)

GO WINGS!

Been Tired Lately, Haven't Had Much To Say, EXCEPT...

The Wings won against Nashville tonight, 5-3. WHOO HOO!! This puts them just 2 points behing Nashville in the run for first in the division. The game definitely started off slow, but became very good as time went on. Only two more games till the All-Star break. Halfway through the year--lots more hockey to go!

I really have been in quite a slump lately. Don't know if it's the time of year or if my thyroid is off-whack again. I just think I can WILL myself out of this, but it isn't happening. I have to do something, though.

From the "And This Is Something We Didn't See Coming?" news:
Lindsay Lohan is in rehab. Here is the story. Now I'm just waiting for the story telling of Paula Abdul going in! (If you haven't seen the tape of her disastrous interview, you can find it here.)

Don't know how many of you know about 'Veggie Tales,' but I love them. 'Veggie Tales' are a series of cartoons and products that teach values and Bible stories in a unique and fun way--by using 'vegetables' as the actors. The company behind this very successful product has been around for at least 13 years. I liken 'Veggie Tales' to 'The Muppet Show' as it appeals to both children and adults, but 'Veggie Tales' are more 'message-based' shows. The humor is fantastic--silly enough for children and sophisticated enough for adults. One of my favorite parts of any 'Veggie Tales' CD is 'Silly Songs With Larry.' Here is one of my favs:



And if ALL school lessons were this much fun, we wouldn't be able to keep kids away from school! Enjoy:

Another Shutout!

The Wings won 2-0 over Montreal tonight, giving Hasek his 74th career shutout. This puts the 'Dominator' in the top 10 on the career shutout list! And the man is in good company with Tony Esposito, Jacques Plante, Martin Brodeur, and Terry Sawchuk. Surprisingly, he was passed over for the All-Star game next week--and at a league-leading 1.98 goals-against average! He seemed quite disappointed--as he should be--but it probably is a good thing. His injuries have historically come during the second half of the year, and he doesn't need to be taking any unnecessary risks. The longer he can go without an injury, the better the chances he will be healthy for the play-offs--when he really will be needed.

We Have Winter

Anyone who has read this blog for awhile knows that I really don't mind winter--I don't even mind the snow all that much. What I DO mind is getting winter all at once! Yes, it has been snowing and doesn't look as if it will stop for a few more hours at least. K has to get the ol' snowblower out and start taking care of the driveway--hopefully not much more snow will come after he's done. It looks as if we will have 6" to 12" here in the city when it is all said and done. While that isn't a LOT of snow for us, it just isn't fun for it to come down all in one day.

I am just grateful we aren't experiencing the ice storms that Oklahoma, etc, are having. That's some nasty stuff! (Hope you are doing well, burg!)

Sunday Evening (Can't Have a Better Title Than This, Right?)

Burg in Oklahoma wrote all about their ice storm on Friday--nasty stuff. While we had freezing rain, we didn't get as much as they had--and ours was more of the 'black ice' variety. Of course, this kept ME home! Since the drizzle stopped, we have been getting snow--looks as if winter has arrived. We are now under a lake effect snow warning through tomorrow night. While we here in the city don't (usually) have as much to worry about, the out-lying areas may be getting up to 12" of the white stuff. I guess we may not have to worry about the dog-sled races being canceled for lack of snow!

I am closing in on 500 posts with this blog and 4000 hits--and not one of the hits has come by way of searching for 'Harry Potter.' Hmmm, I'm still wondering whether the 'Harry Potter' experiment was a bust? Yesterday and today my hits have dropped off dramatically from what they were all during the week--is it just because it's the weekend? Don't know. I do find it all fascinating, though--I'd love to find out what the sociologists are saying about all of this. I'm sure I could find an article online if I REALLY was that interested--but I'm too lazy to search for one now.

With football winding down, NBC has now put hockey on its schedule. Yesterday I watched the Flyers and Penguins play. I really enjoyed seeing two Eastern conference teams play--not something I can see too often. I now have several players in the East in my sights of 'players I can't stand.' :)

Yesterday was 'hockey day in Canada.' I don't exactly know WHAT that means--I thought EVERY day was hockey day in Canada! Anyway, after the Red Wings game last night--which they won 6-3 (YAY!!!)--I could have watched at least two more games (on our 'local' Canadian station) AND a taped replay during the early morning hours. I decided that watching two games in one day was more than enough--don't need to overdose on hockey!

Hockey is the only sport I watch, so I don't get to see too many of the commercials that are geared toward sports' fans. However, I HAVE been seeing a few that are making me gag already and a couple that make me laugh each time I see them. I am SOOOO sick of hearing the 'American Pie' song being played for the Chevy commercials. ENOUGH ALREADY!! So you payed too much for the rights to use the song --suck it up and admit you made a mistake and DUMP IT! The other one that makes me want to switch channels--which I usually do--is the country singer singing about 'built Ford tough.' It isn't ONLY that I dislike country music, but it is more the OVERUSE of the damn song. Let's move on, PLEASE! My favorite commercial of the moment is the lizard versus Jeep one--makes me laugh every time I see it! Another one that I LOVE is quite old--don't think it is playing on TV anymore--and it is the crab and Honda Element one. HYSTERICAL!

I haven't gotten to watch too many movies lately, but did manage to see a couple. Cinderella Man, I thought, was very good. Quite understated, but well done. I thought the acting was good--Zellweger was actually okay--and the story was interesting. I was not aware of the story of Jim Braddock, even though I am a boxing fan. (Obviously, not a big enough fan! :)) I also got to see Walk the Line. I thought the performances were amazing--Phoenix and Witherspoon were unbelievable with their singing abilities--but I just was not happy with the script. I thought the story could have been told better--I never quite knew how much time passed between scenes. Sometimes it seemed as if only a day or two had passed, sometimes it was months--but it just was not EXPLAINED. For example: one day Cash 'tried' pills and in the next scene he was strung out on all sorts of things--but there was no indication as to how long of a time there was between the two scenes. I found it a bit confusing. And the reason I wasn't too thrilled with the movie has absolutely NO relationship to my dislike of country music--I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY wanted to like it. I grew up being 'forced' to listen to country music--that's all that was ever played around our house--so that is where the dislike comes from. Also, I practically knew every detail of Johnny Cash's life because The Mother pretty much worshiped the man, so the movie just didn't do it for me. While I would recommend it, I just wouldn't want to build it up too much--as had been done before its release.

24 begins the new season tonight. And, yes, it is being broadcast as I am sitting here typing. I am taping it so that I can savor EVERY minute of it later tonight. I hope it is a good season--can't get enough of Jack Bauer!

A New Meme

While I was surfing tonight, I found a few interesting memes--and I will post them over the next several days. Here is the first one:

Do a Google search for "[your name] needs" and list what the Internet thinks you need!

Here are some of the things I need:

...some lovin' (don't we all?)
...to stop looking at clothes (and the point is?)
...you! (always)
...her (depends?!)
...a bone marrow transplant (hope not)
...your help! (at some later date)
...parents who will be able to be patient (won't go there)
...her head examined (and this is surprising, WHY?)
...to stand up to them (ah, YES!)
...a bit more hop (excuse me?)
...relevant information (of course)
...a new fashion template (is this a slam at the way I dress?)
...to rely less on Richard (who exactly is Richard?)
...some sort of female support system (more than I already have?)
...her own reality show (it WOULD be a hit!)
...to put that big girl down (depends on which big girl we're talking about)
...some solid home cooking (no, I think I have had TOO MUCH solid home cooking!)
...to begin digging to find the murderer (I don't think so)
...for him to focus on the accident or else they are dead in the water (???)
...money (this goes without saying!)
...crit pack positioning (???)
...to get out more (depends on where we are going)
...to balance the lifetime memberships (ooookay)
...to be on it (on 'it,' NOT on 'who'?)
...to get a grip (on reality?)
...a photo to post (not happening)
...stuff (YES!)
...something more than just fast sex and a roll in the hay (exactly!)

(When I did my search, there were quite a few people with my name that have already done this, so I ignored their lists when I came up with my own.)

I am not going to tag anyone personally, but if you are reading this, consider yourself tagged! Let me know when you post your list--can't wait to read them!

Harry Potter Experiment Update

Since doing my Harry Potter posts yesterday, I haven't had anyone come to this blog through a 'Harry Potter' search. Now, I don't know if this means that the experiment failed, but...I guess I can only wait and monitor my hit counters.

I must say, though, for the past several days I have had more traffic here than usual--and none of it has anything to do with Harry Potter. The main searches (historically) that bring people to this blog are 'garters and stockings' and 'spanked brats.' To tell the truth, I DON'T want to know the people who search for these terms--a bit scary. :) For the last several days, though, people have come here through very strange searches. Here are some that have lead people here since Monday:

--most overplayed song in hockey (searcher from Massachusetts)
--looks males prefer, larger eyes (searcher from Washington)
--depression 'paranoid tendencies' (searcher from Massachusetts)
--copy of legitimate fake dentist excuse for work (unknown location)
--malware yay yay yay (Illinois location)
--sunshine tattoos (Ohio)
--sedated diaper (California)
--movies of dogs peeing in owner's house (New York)
--staph infection welts (Sun Health Corporation, Arizona)
--dental problems caused by underbite in dogs (unknown)
--jennifer granholm marilyn monroe (this puzzles me--WHAT does Michigan's governor and a dead movie star have in common?) (Vancouver British Columbia)
--no more noise or smell (Magic Valley Regional Medical Center, Idaho)
--kevorkian's release date (Minnesota)
--deathclock lyrics (Washington)
--of men say prefer women to shave (Florida)
--should i wait till my water breaks to go to the hospital (Texas--and I HOPE she DIDN'T wait to go to the hospital!)
--with a broken leg i'm quite inactive and lazy (Germany)
--older pissy (Pennsylvania)

And these were just some of the more interesting searches! Absolutely unbelievable. And completely fascinating!

Holmstrom's Hat Trick

Tomas Holmstrom--along with the Eurotwins (Zetterberg and Datsyuk)--helped the Wings to a 5-1 win over Phoenix. It really was great to see the Wings play as well as they did--after all, this was the last game of their longest road trip for the year. Holmstrom got his second hat trick of his NHL career--always an exciting thing.

On Saturday we get to see Detroit against Chicago--always a thrill to watch two of the original six play.

Harry Potter...But Not Hockey

A lot of people are beginning to think I write too much about hockey, but not with this post. This is a part of the Harry Potter search/hit experiment. I know, I posted for the experiment already, but I figured I would up the possibility of getting hits if I put the term 'Harry Potter' in the title of the post. Will it work? We'll see. I haven't had anyone come to this blog by searching for Harry Potter yet, so this will tell if it matters if the term is in the title or not.

As you can tell, I'm trying to write quite a bit of drivel--hoping that writing a little more might make the experiment more of a success. (Does that make any sense? I don't think so.) So, once again, Harry Potter! :)

I'm Following The Crowd!

Dazd over at Dazd and Confuzed From Here posted about an experiment to see how many hits a blog could get if Harry Potter was mentioned. Because Harry Potter is a term that is searched for numerous times a day, mentioning Harry Potter should increase the hits a blog gets. So, I am following the crowd and joining in on the experiment--we'll see if this blog gets more hits just by mentioning Harry Potter.

Dazd also mentioned the possibility of getting more hits by talking about the Rosie O'Donnell/Donald Trump feud. I don't like either of those two sleaze balls, so I haven't mentioned either Rosie O'Donnell OR Donald Trump in any of my last posts. Could mentioning them bring more people to this blog? Rosie O'Donnell, Donald Trump. Rosie O'Donnell, Donald Trump. Ick--I feel so dirty now. I really need to go and bathe!

Weather Report, My Life, & Some Interesting Stuff

Our weather here hasn't even been close to normal this winter--but, then, whose has? We STILL don't have snow--just a light dusting--and the temp is in the 30s tonight. They keep telling us that we are getting snow, but it never amounts to much. However, the temps are supposed to go down to around zero the beginning of next week. This, of course, will cause an endless amount of problems. We have no snow to insulate the ground + the temps plunge = frozen water pipes. The local plumbers should be making good money next week! If the snow doesn't get here soon, I don't know what will happen to the local economy--it is so tied up in the tourist industry. Skiing, snowmobiling, winter carnivals, dog sled races, etc, are all a big part of the winter months and snow is NEEDED for these things to take place. Well, we are ALMOST to the halfway point of winter, so there is still hope--we have AT LEAST 3 more months before we can stop expecting snow to come. ;)

Life here has been rather quiet. K went for his stress test last week and the cardiologist just gave a preliminary exam/consult. When he found out that K doesn't have any chest pains, he canceled the stress test and has scheduled a treadmill test instead. If that is okay, then there will be no stress test, otherwise, the test will happen later.

Today is the last day of K's seven-day long weekend and he worked 5 of those days! I'm not too sure if any overtime will be available next week when he gets off of night-shift. Of course, the overtime is what we have to work around in order for us to do a road trip.

A couple of weeks ago my Palm crashed. For the last few days, I have been restoring all the info I had on it. Thankfully, I DID have back-ups of most of my information, so things weren't QUITE as bad as they could have been.

I finally bought an external hard drive to use as a back-up for my PC. The night I got it, I plugged it in and my wireless keyboard refused to work! I unplugged the hard drive and the keyboard worked fine. A quick search on Google didn't give me any help as to what the problem is, so I left the damn thing and haven't looked at it again. I guess I have to try and see if I can find the problem. Computers are SO much fun.

It's been a while since I have posted any links, so I thought I would do a few today. I am not sure if I have posted these before, but here they are--someone might find them interesting!

Abebooks is a VERY cool place to browse. On this site, you can find and buy used books--as well as new ones. Now, I know there are MANY places where you can get used books, but this site is SO much more. I find the 'Community' (the forums) to be fantastic! You can post a question asking for recommendations if you need a gift for someone, or recommendations for books for yourself, and there is always someone willing to help. There also is a place where you can describe the plot of a book you don't remember the name of, and people will help you find it! I have purchased used books from this site--had good results--and have read book recommendations, and have been well pleased.

I am sure most of us don't think much about the money we handle every day--except for thinking we don't have enough! But, if you WANT to know more about your money, then Where's George is the site for you. When you go to this site and sign up, you can post the serial number of your $1, $5, $10, etc, bills and this site will track them for you after you spend them. (That is, as long as someone goes back to the site and reports your bill.) I have received bills from the other side of the country--unfortunately, most of the ones I have entered don't go very far from home. It is fascinating, nonetheless.

The third site I will highlight today is BookCrossing. The idea behind BookCrossing is to spread books throughout the world--one person at a time. Here is how it works: You have a book that you would like to 'pass on.' You register said book at BookCrossing. You place a note in the book stating that it is free for whomever finds it. You leave the book in a public place and hope someone takes it and reports the find at BookCrossing. This is another fascinating site--especially if your books are picked up by people willing to report their 'catching' your 'released' book.

I Was Beginning To Get Scared

The Wings won tonight 4-3 in a shootout over Colorado. Now, a three game losing streak isn't really ALL that bad, but I was really starting to wonder if the team could get their shit together and play a good game again! Maybe they'll have a winning streak now.

I don't really know why those of us that are fans are having such a hard time with the Wings this year--after all, they aren't THAT far behind where they were at this same time last year. (Just a couple of points different.) We ALL knew the team would be far different from what we were used to--you can't just replace Stevie Y or Shanahan and expect things to stay the same. I am just as bad as the next person, but I don't think we give the players enough credit--they are trying to come together and build a new team. I guess we should accept a less than stellar year for them to get together and start making magic again. But again, I must say, THEY ARE NOT HAVING A REALLY BAD YEAR!!!

As a long-time hockey fan, a lot of my frustrations are with the division Detroit had been placed in. It is hard for us, as fans, to have to be 'up' for a game that starts at 10:30 local time (as was the case with the San Jose and LA games,) so I can just imagine how hard it is for the players to be beginning a game at a time when they are used to ENDING one. I definitely hope there will be a change in the way the divisions and conferences are made up next year--the rumors are flying and we can only wait to see what happens.

I was glad to see Chris Chelios back on the ice--he was missed. At the age of 45, he is still doing things during a game that much younger players could only WISH to do.

When Is The Retraction?

Angelina Jolie gave an interview to Elle UK magazine. She is quoted as saying this:

“I think I feel so much more for Madd and Zee because they’re survivors, they came through so much. Shiloh seemed so privileged from the moment she was born. I have less inclination to feel for her...I met my other kids when they were 6 months old, they came with a personality. A newborn really is this...Yes, a blob! But now she’s starting to have a personality...I’m conscious that I have to make sure I don’t ignore her needs, just because I think the others are more vulnerable.”

Excuse me! Calling your child 'a blob?' Saying you have 'less inclination to feel for her' when you are speaking about your newborn child? Saying you 'feel so much more' for some of your children over others? Saying you have to be 'conscious' to not 'ignore her needs' when you are speaking about your newborn? WHO would say things like this?

Do these people even THINK before they speak? Do they have ANY concept of how absolutely disgusting they sound? I don't understand WHY these people even speak. I am truly disgusted.

I LOVE Anonymous Commentators!

Today I got a 'beat-down' by a commentator about my post Some People Shouldn't Reproduce. Here is what the anonymous one said:

"A simple Google search for "Merv Grazinski" gives you the straight dope. Among the top 10 Google hits:

http://www.breakthechain.org/exclusives/lawsuits.html

http://www.stellaawards.com/bogus.html

People who buy these unsourced, quite obvious urban legends and use them as a basis for editorializing about the decline of our civilization are the ones who "should (...) not be allowed to reproduce", as this blogger so tastefully puts it."

Now, I have been lambasted at different times by commentators, but I usually ignore them. However, I AM going to comment about this for a couple of reasons.

The first is: The VERY NEXT POST that I did, I corrected myself. I was VERY embarrassed that I posted this in the first place, because I usually am SO cautious about passing on these things before checking whether or not they are real or urban legends. If this person would have looked a little bit further into my blog, he/she would have found my correction.

The second reason for my commenting on this: The person who lambasted me actually SEARCHED for this post. Not that he/she was searching for mine in particular, but any that mistakenly posted this as fact, not fiction. I would imagine the only reason for doing the search would be to try and belittle the writer of whatever blog happened to post this erroneous information.

So, whoever you are, anonymous commentator, I expect your apology in a swift and timely fashion. I don't EVER expect to get an apology, though--you are most likely the kind of person who just wants to be mean and will NEVER admit to making mistakes. (See, I can make generalized, nasty, comments, too.)

Yes, It's Embarrassing

Red Wings--4
San Jose--9

I DON'T want to talk about it! ;)

They Won One For 'The Captain'

As a wonderful ending to a great night, the Wings won 2-1 against the Anaheim Ducks. While it wasn't the greatest game ever played--someone watching hockey for the first time would wonder what all the hype was about--they didn't disappoint Yzerman on his night.

Hopefully this win will be the boost the Wings need to help them on their road trip which starts on Thursday. With Datsyuk hurt--especially since he had been playing quite well lately--they need all the help they can get.

#19 Is Retired

Steve Yzerman
"The Captain"

22 year NHL career--all with the Red Wings
Youngest player to be named 'Captain' of the Wings
Won 3 Stanley Cups
Played 1514 regular season games
With 1755 points, is #6 on the list of NHL career point leaders
Played 10 times as an All-Star
Won numerous trophies, including the Conn Smythe and the Lester Pearson Award

I, along with hockey fans across North America, watched tonight as Steve Yzerman's jersey was retired. With all of his accomplishments, Yzerman is one of the classiest and least egotistic athletes I have ever heard speak. Tonight was HIS night--tonight everyone came to praise HIM. And yet, he praised his coaches, teammates, and the fans for all of his success. There won't be another like Stevie Y. God bless.

How You Liking 2007 So Far?

I spent an exciting New Year's Eve night! (heavy sarcasm) I watched the Wings win their traditional New Year's Eve game and then I put the SciFi channel on and watched the Twilight Zone marathon--while I transferred birthdays, etc. to the 2007 calendars. I didn't even know that it had turned 12:00--OR that K had gone to bed--until C and her family called to wish me a Happy New Year. I lead SUCH an exciting life!

I was a little late this year, but I finally got all of the Christmas decorations down on Saturday. It is a good feeling. I put it off far too long--for me--and it was nice to have the house back to normal.

K goes in for his stress test on Thursday--his birthday! What a wonderful present. I still haven't figured out what to get him as a gift--I think I just may do some baking and cook a special meal. What more could a person want? :)

We got a few inches of wet, heavy, slushy snow last night. That, combined with high winds, caused the lights to dim a few times, but nothing more. Thank goodness. The sun was out today and turned all of the snow into clear ice on the tree branches--it was a beautiful sight. Just wish I would have thought to take pictures. I don't think the snow will stay, though, as we are supposed to have temps in the 40s by Wednesday. Unless things begin to change, I just might have to start believing in global warming! (Fat chance.)

Looks as if K will begin overtime shifts within the next week or so--there is an outage coming. Don't know how long this will last, but I think we will have to make time for a road trip. For one thing, it has been WAY too long since we have been out of town. We also seem to be getting on each other's nerves, so we need a change of scenery. I'm sure part of the reason we aren't fond of each other right now is the tension we have been going through with K's medical stuff. So, a road trip would go a long way toward making us friends again! :) (And, no, we are not having problems--we just get sick of each other day in and day out when there is nothing new going on! This can happen when you have been married for more years than God is old! :D)

Interesting: An Internet monitoring company called Netcraft revealed that there are now more than 100 million websites on the Internet. The first survey that they conducted was in 1995 and they concluded that there were 18,000+ sites at that time. Unbelievable that it has boomed like that in such a short time! Also unbelievable: 1995 was around the time I first went on the Internet--we connected by using AOL. Can't remember the exact year, but it was around then. So, I have been on the web for around 12 years and I have been using a computer for about 14 years--amazing! (Still wondering how many of the sites are porn--a good percentage, I'm sure.)

Now, I will conclude this post with a public service announcement: THERE WILL BE NO MAIL DELIVERED ON TUESDAY, JANUARY 2, 2007. It has been declared a national day of mourning for President Ford. So, no Christmas bills for one more day--YAY!!!

A New Year's Eve Tradition

I watched the Red Wings play their traditional New Year's Eve game and they won. The score was 6-2 against the Kings. While they played rather well, they started slacking off again late in the second period. If they played 60 minutes of full-out hockey, there wouldn't be a team able to beat them!

Filppula scored his first at-home goal--YAY! While what he WANTED to do would have made for an absolutely amazing goal, he couldn't quite pull it off and there was an element of luck to it. All in all, it was a goal and I'm sure he has no problem with however it happened.

I'm gearing up for the game tomorrow night. It will be bittersweet to watch them retire "The Captain's" number. If only he could have held out for a couple of more years--but he couldn't. He is missed.