Trojans, Babies, Amy, and Hockey

A small amount of excitement here. (Now, that is a relative term, I know!) A couple of days ago the desktop started with some strange pop-ups and through a LOT of research, I came to the conclusion that it is infected with a backdoor Trojan. I spent HOURS yesterday trying to get rid of the problem, but I ended up taking it in to be fixed. See, I know enough about computers to be dangerous. I ALSO know enough to NOT do anything I am not absolutely sure about, hence the passing of the repairs on to someone else. From what I could find out, it seems as if the spyware took up residence in the registry, and I will NOT touch the registry--too much can go very, very wrong. I'm hoping the repairs won't take longer than a day or two--if I have my druthers, I will be picking it up tomorrow. I won't hold my breath. THEN I will have to have someone come over to look at my network--I don't believe it is secure. If I learned one thing from this whole deal, it is this: I need to be able to do EVERYTHING, including banking, on my laptop. Right now, I don't dare.

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A sent me a text message on my phone yesterday to let me know her pregnancy test came out negative. Once again, she shut down and didn't want to talk--her prerogative, I know. She DID text me this afternoon--just small 'talk'--so I am hoping she is taking this as well as can be expected. I can't be sure what her state of mind is until I actually talk to her, so...

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I am really impressed by Amy Winehouse--I got her CD 'Back to Black' and am absolutely amazed by her voice. It is just too bad that she is such a train wreck! Hopefully she will get her life back in order--her talent is too big to go to waste.

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I calmed down about the Wings by the game on Sunday. While they didn't win, at least they played a whole lot better than they had been. Then last night, they were back to form--they beat Colorado 4-0! It certainly was a joy to watch. Baby Boy FINALLY got a goal--Z got two goals and Datsyuk got three assists! Hallelujah! The bad part is what REALLY got the spark going: Lidstrom got bashed into the boards and had to leave the game. They say he hurt his knee, but by the way he had to be helped off of the ice, I wouldn't be surprised if it is much worse. Maybe this time they are telling the actual truth and not trying to make things sound better than they are. Now they are down three D-men--not a good situation at all. But, there still is plenty of time till the playoffs, so...

Celebrate

Holidays for the week:

17 February
Championship Crab Races Day
My Way Day

18 February
National Crab Stuffed Flounder Day

19 February
Chocolate Mint Day

20 February
National Cherry Pie Day
Northern Hemisphere Hoodie Hoo Day

21 February
National Sticky Bun Day
Introduce A Girl To Engineering Day

22 February
Pebble Flintstone's Birthday

23 February
National Banana Bread Day
National Dog Biscuit Day
Clam Chowder Day
Curling Is Cool Day*
Open That Bottle Night

*I'll have to try and remember to see if Canadian TV broadcasts more curling than usual on this day! :)

Guys, I Hardly Know Ya!

The Wings lost their fifth in a row. They certainly are not the same team that played before the All-Star break. Watching them against Columbus was not only painful, it was bordering on disgusting! Something is broken and needs to be fixed--FAST!!!

Not an excuse, by any means, but the Wings DO have four players injured at the moment. Four rather key players--among them TWO of their best D-men. Very discouraging to watch them skate around with no rhyme or reason behind what they are doing. Passing has been bad, give-aways are rampant, and they can't score no matter how many shots on goal they have. Such a difference from the first half of the season.

Again, not an excuse, but the officiating has been HORRIBLE lately. The amount of penalties NOT called on BOTH teams was unbelievable. And the rotten penalties that WERE called, well... I'm not sure if it is the frustration the Wings are feeling, or just plain horrid reffing, but Lidstrom has been getting more than normal penalties AND Datsyuk has been getting sent to the 'sin bin!' Absolutely unheard of.

I certainly hope someone lights fires under the guys (or rips them new ones, for sure) before Sunday. The Wings will play Dallas as NBC's Game-of-the-Week and they don't need to humiliate themselves on national TV! Won't SOMEONE save them from themselves already?!

The Best Valentine

K gave me the best card--had me rolling on the floor!

One the outside:

"Valentine, I love you more today than yesterday."

Inside:

"Yesterday you really got on my nerves."


He picks the GREATEST cards!! :D

Happy Valentine's Day, everybody.

Valentine's Day

So tomorrow we celebrate Valentine's Day. The day where women get/expect(?) candy, flowers, or jewelry as a gift. The day where men give candy, flowers, jewelry as a gift in order to get sex.

K and I didn't wait till tomorrow to give each other gifts. He gave me TWO heart necklaces*--he is such a sweetheart! I gave him flowers. Which one of us is expecting sex? :D

My new necklaces--he DOES have very good taste!





*I really am wondering if he can't make up his mind between two pieces of jewelry OR is he just trying to make sure the girls don't have to fight over each piece after I die?! :|

Worried? You Bet!

The Wings now have a four game winless streak going. (According to the NHL, they haven't LOST four in a row because of the overtime loss to Toronto. Big whoop.) The last time they had a four game losing streak was last year in March. I think it is time to worry. Yes, they STILL are WAY ahead of everyone else in the league, but if they keep playing the way they started tonight's game, they won't be ahead for very long. Someone has to figure out what the problem is and fix it. Fast!!!

Anyone?

Has anyone had LASIK or LASEK surgery? Do you know anyone who has had it? I'm seeing my ophthalmologist in about a month and am going to ask him if I am a candidate for the surgery--and I want to find out how others feel about it. Surgery on my eyes is a very scary thought--but I think I am ready to make the move away from glasses.

I have been wearing glasses since I was in fourth grade. My eyesight is so bad that I can barely see the big 'E' on the eyechart without my glasses. Add to that my astigmatism AND the fact I have needed bifocals YEARS earlier than the normal person and you get what I deal with. The first thing I do when I wake up is put on my glasses--I can't imagine even going to the bathroom without them. Being without my glasses for a few minutes gives me a RAGING headache. While my vision has stabilized, I do need to get stronger bifocals all of the time. I suffer from eyestrain--probably due to the fact that I cannot get glasses fitted to give me perfect sight. To see perfectly, I need to look through the 'sweet spot' on my glasses--something that is easier said than done, as the 'sweet spot' is not very large. Wearing contacts would be another option for me, but with my allergies I think I would have even MORE eye irritation if I wore contacts. I realize that if I have the surgery I would STILL need to wear reading glasses, but I would gladly do that if I could see better and give up my glasses full-time.

This would be such a big step for me. The thought of losing my sight--or making it worse--just scares the hell out of me. I am such a big-time reader that I don't know WHAT I would if I couldn't read! I realize there are some risks with the surgery--as with ANY surgery--so I have a lot of thinking to do.

Good Grief

It's too late in the season for the injuries to start! Kronwall has been put on injured reserve--doesn't sound like they know WHEN he will be back with the clavicle injury. Hasek is out till whenever with a hip flexor problem. Cleary is out for about two months with the broken jaw. Great.

THANKFULLY nothing like what happened to Zednik of the Panthers is going on with the Wings. During yesterday's game, one of Zednik's teammates caught him in the side of the neck with a skate--hit his carotid artery and he needed surgery to repair it. I can't imagine how frightening it must have been to see that!

A Fan

I am extremely passionate about hockey. I love the sport--the speed, the beauty, the physicalness, etc. There are so many things to like. This is one reason why I was so upset over today's game. With the NHL needing to expand its fan base, it was an absolute embarrassment to watch what went on in the game. This definitely is NOT the way to win fans.

Of course, I am even MORE passionate about the Red Wings. Most sport fans have a favorite team and I am no exception. I love to talk to other fans--even non-fans--about the players, about the game, about the organization. My favorite subjects, of course, are the Red Wings, but I will talk hockey to just about anyone at just about any time. My love of the Red Wings is the other reason why I was so upset over the game.

In many ways, I am a typical fan. If you looked up 'hockey fan' in the dictionary, my picture would be there. I live for the season and go into withdrawal during the off-season. I guess I really need a life.

As a fan, I will berate the Wings whenever they give a game away. Too many times I've seen it happen and it really hurts. On the other hand, I never let go of a loss that was handed to the other team. (One of the reasons I am such a non-fan of the Ducks.) And, I remember the ones stolen from them a lot longer than the ones they gave away. Today's loss will be one I remember.

Another way I am a typical fan is in the merchandise department. I have a jersey (or 'sweater,' as hockey jerseys are called) with my favorite player's name and number on it. (I have vowed not to wear it until I can see him play in person--something that may never happen.) I have Red Wing t-shirts that I only wear on game day. I have four different 'winged-wheel' necklaces that have become my jewelry of choice. My Jimmy is pretty much a 'Wingmobile'--a Wing antenna topper, the logo on the back window, a Wing license plate on the front and a plate frame on the back, and a winged-wheel in the side window. My laptop has a Red Wing Skin-It on the top . The background picture on my cellphone is the winged-wheel and a picture of Filppula is on both of my computer desktops. So, a typical fan.

I watch every Red Wing game I can. We are lucky to live where we do, as our cable system DOES carry the Detroit station that broadcasts almost all of the games. We also have Versus, so whatever the one station doesn't carry, we can find on Versus or NBC. This keeps me from having to put out the cost of NHL Center Ice. I have been able to watch at least a portion of every game they have played already this year. Not many people are as lucky.

As a fan of the game, I also am lucky to have Canada so close. Our cable company also carries a Canadian station, so whenever the Wings aren't playing I can usually find a game that is being broadcast from Canada. This gives me a good chance to see teams from the east that we don't see at other times.

I have many internet sites that I visit every day to see what is going on with the Wings and the league as a whole. I subscribe to two hockey magazines so that I can be as knowledgeable as possible about what goes on. I get email from at least three different sites daily. My cellphone has the Red Wings' website bookmarked.

One thing that separates me from a lot of fans is this: I don't feel as if I am a part of the team. You will NOT hear me say "We're No. 1!!!!" You will NOT hear me say "We won the game." I don't, in any way, think that I have a hand in the Wings' wins or losses. I do NOTHING to help the team or hurt them. I watch them do what they do best, that's all. And I appreciate every minute of entertainment they give me.

Not Surprising

Once again the Asshole Ducks got great gifts from the refs and won. That last goal being called off was the most bullshitty call I have ever seen, but the refs have to kiss the Ducks asses at every turn. NOT calling anything that the most dirty player in the NHL does--meaning Pronger, of course--and not calling penalties against the Ducks, calling penalties against the Wings, I could go on and on, but I won't. I have to go and calm down or I will have a stroke.

Sorry for this rant, but...

Not Too Bad--Yet

We are under a whole lot of weather warnings here. High winds, wind chill advisories, coastal flooding, high waves off of the lake, etc, etc. It hasn't hit us yet. Right now the temp is -1 and the winds are gusting to 38mph--this gives us a wind chill of -24. Here in the city we haven't had a lot of snow come down, so the wind isn't causing a lot of visibility problems.

However, they are saying the worst is coming. We are looking at 60mph wind gusts causing 25 foot high waves along the shoreline--which means icing of the roadways. Winds are supposed to be sustained at 30-40mph with gusts of 60mph--this will cause blowing and drifting snow and visibilities of less than half a mile. Wind chills are supposed to go into the very dangerous area. Such fun.

Celebrate

'Holidays' for the week:

10 February
Umbrella Day

11 February
Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk Day
Pro-Sports Wives Day
Satisfied Staying Single Day
White Shirt Day

12 February
National Plum Pudding Day
Safety Pup Day

13 February
National Tortini Day
Get A Different Name Day

14 February
Read To Your Child Day
Ferris Wheel Day
National Call-In Single Day
Quirky Alone Day

and (ready for this?)

National Condom Day

15 February
National Gumdrop Day
Do A Grouch A Favor Day

16 February
National Almond Day

Hockey Day in Canada

Today was Canada's annual celebration/overdose of hockey. Why this is any different than any other day in Canada, I'll never know, but...:) All of the Canadian teams in the NHL had games today and each team was trying to do well for the hometown crowd. Detroit played in Toronto. Enough said.

Actually, the Wings played better today than they did the other night, but it would have been hard for them to NOT play better. They played to a 2-2 tie, but Toronto won it in overtime. Another disappointment. At least they got one point out of the deal.

A REAL bad turn of events today: Dan Cleary took a puck to the jaw and it looks as if it is broken in two places. After he is seen by the Detroit doctors, the word will come down as to how he is doing and how long he will be out of the lineup. Wonder if this is going to change any trade deadline decisions? Babcock sat Hudler out today--a wake-up call to get his ass in gear! He only has one assist in the last eight games and one goal in the last ten--time for him to step it up. Baby Boy just might be the next one to get shaken up--but, he HAS been playing better lately. Trouble is, he isn't getting any points, either.

I don't have much hope for tomorrow's game. Anaheim has Selanne and Niedermayer back in their lineup AND they didn't play today, so they will come in fresh, whereas the Wings will be playing twice in 24 hours. I'm afraid tomorrow will end up being the third in a row they don't win.

SUCH A Pessimist

Every time the Wings lose, the thought "Oh, my gosh, they will NEVER win again!" goes through my mind. I guess you can't call me a 'glass half full' kind of gal. ;)

Oh, Boy

If hockey players cried, there would have been a wailing and weeping like no one has seen in quite awhile. In a VERY rare occurrence, the Wings gave up four unanswered goals and allowed LA--the WORST team in the league--to win the game 5-3. The Wing players that were interviewed after the game had the same look of a deer caught in headlights: PURE SHOCK! The good thing about tonight's game? This just may be a wake-up call for the Wings. They now KNOW that they have to WORK to win games and not count on the flukey wins like they got in St Paul the other night. Hopefully they will put this one behind them quickly and get back into the groove before the weekend--they play Toronto on Saturday and Anaheim (in NBC's Game of the Week) on Sunday. Tough.

Illness

K had to call in to work tonight because he is sick. I don't know what it is about him being sick that really gets me. I suppose it is my old fashioned notion of the man being the strong one, the provider. What ever the reason, him being sick just messes up my entire day. I am so 'off' right now, it isn't even funny.

I don't think there is anything that seriously wrong--he has a stomach upset, low-grade fever, and chills. While it isn't influenza--something he has to get inoculated for because of his other health problems--it DOES sound like he has the stomach 'flu.' I figure he should be much better by tomorrow. Of course, I told him he SHOULD be seen BECAUSE of his kidney problems, but he has decided to wait. WHY do men have to be men when it comes to seeing doctors? On the other hand, they ARE the biggest babies when they are sick. I will never understand them.

Nothing Much

Saw my MD today and he is so happy with my numbers--I actually thought I was going to see him do cartwheels down the hall! My cholesterol is in the 'amazing' range and my blood pressure is very close to what he wants it to be. A very good visit--and what makes it even better is the fact that I don't have to go back until November!!!! For crying out loud, I see the damn orthodontist every THREE months and THAT is just to make sure the teeth aren't moving out of alignment. This just is good news.

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For some stupid reason, K has really been getting on my last raw nerve lately. Last night I think I was about as mad at him as I ever have been--I didn't DARE take my BP because I know it would have been through the roof. Anyway, he is getting ready to turn in his paperwork to the company he used to work for in order to receive his pension from them. He knew this day was coming a year ago and he told me what papers I needed to find/copy that had to be turned in with the rest of the paperwork. So, I had a year to copy a few documents and guess what? I did the copies! I put these in a folder and gave them to him. K asked me for the copies last night and I told him I had given them to him months ago and I didn't know where he had put them. He said it never happened. I said it did. We went a few rounds like this and then I said he probably put them on the roll top desk. Of course, he said again, that it never happened, but he condescendingly agreed to look. Well, lo and behold, he found the papers. And he had the NERVE to show me he found them in a very matter-of-fact manner--NO 'I'm sorry to doubt you,' NO 'I was wrong you were right', he didn't even have the good manners to have a sheepish look on his face!!! I told him he had to go into the other room because I had murder in my heart. MEN!!!!!!! (I actually didn't like him very much earlier today, either, but that is another story...)

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I'm trying to begin planning C's 'First Anniversary of Her 29th Birthday' party. I actually was hoping to rent space at the local university up there and have the whole thing catered by them, but I don't know if I want to spend the money. I got a very preliminary estimate today and I could be looking at $1000+ to put this thing on! I have to decide if this is well worth it just so I don't have to deal with The Mother or the rest of The Family!

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Don't know if you have heard the news about the embryo created from three parents. While I understand what the scientists are trying to do, I still wonder if it is a good idea. First, this will lead to designer babies and rich people having the 'cream of the crop'--just another thing for them to lord over us huddle masses. The other thing that bothers me is the parentage. Anyone who has had to call the house of a child's friend knows this scenario.


"Hello."
"Hi, Mrs. Jones. This is Sue Doe, Jane's mother. My daughter is a good friend of your daughter Maggie."
"Oh. I'm not Mrs. Jones. Sam Jones is Maggie's dad, but I'm now married to John Johnson. However, after I divorced Sam, I went back to using my maiden name and now I am Cindy Mason."
"So sorry! I was told Maggie's mother's name was Mary."
"That's okay. Mary is Sam's new wife. Maggie calls her 'Mom,' too."

I have ACTUALLY had conversations like that. Can you imagine how confusing it is for the children? So, add another biological parent into the mix and things REALLY start getting interesting. Here is the whole story.

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Looks like A and her husband have gone through the artificial insemination bit again. She so much has her hopes up--and she won't learn until the 18th (at the latest) if she's pregnant. It hurts me so much to see her so desperate to get pregnant. I wish there was something I could do for her, but there is nothing. She doesn't even want to talk whenever she finds out that she isn't pregnant--she just shuts down. I DO worry about her--she has my tendencies in the depression department.

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C and her husband had to bring their son in to be tested the other week. The findings came back that he is a very high functioning autistic. While she wasn't really surprised, it is a hard thing to go through. At least they found out early enough and he should lead a fairly normal life with the proper treatment. He will need help throughout school, but many with learning disabilities of one kind or another need help. Just one more thing she has to add to her plate of things to do!

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I think I'm ready to go on another vacation. K keeps on saying he wants to go back to Vegas in March or April. I want to go to Disney World. Trouble is, we probably won't get to either place. At this point in time, I would be happy to just go to St Paul or Milwaukee! And don't get me started about wanting to go to Detroit for a game. I don't see that happening this season, at all.

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Political correctness has come to just about every group except those who are overweight. I seems as if it is okay to say just about anything about a fat individual--from saying how gross they are, or how disgusting, etc. People will comment about the way a fat individual looks, what he/she eats, the AMOUNT the person eats and not think there is anything wrong with that. I don't get it.

I sympathize and understand when thin people say they go through the same thing--comments about being anorexic or when someone tells them to 'eat a sandwich, already,' etc. Yes, I'm sure it hurts. BUT, the big difference is this: Whenever someone makes a disparaging remark to a thin person, it is--at least 99.9% of the time--said out of pure jealousy. It might be mean, but the person saying it WANTS to be in the same position as the thin one. However, any time something is said to/about a fat individual, it is ALWAYS said in disgust. Just because someone might be clothed in a blanket of fat, that doesn't mean they are insulated against meanness.

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Michigan Technological University's annual winter carnival is this weekend. While this doesn't mean a whole lot to a lot of people, the snow statues DO cause quite a commotion. It is unbelievable what these students can do in the way of construction. Here is the link to where you can see pictures of the snow statues being built. Tonight is the all-nighter, so the statues have to be completed in time for the judging tomorrow. The site will be updated with new pictures as they become available. Do go and check out the pictures--you will be amazed.

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Not sure HOW they did it, but the Wings managed to steal a win from the Wild last night. They played HORRIDLY through the first two periods and were down 2-1 late in the third. With less than two minutes to play, they tied--in overtime they scored the game-winner. I guess that is what makes them so good--they manage to win even when they shouldn't! Through the rest of the month, they will play 7 games on the road--this should prove just how good they actually are.




--The Wild's Branko Radivojevic up-ends the Red Wings' Tomas Kopecky during the first period. (AP photo)--

Trivia

Haven't done one of these for a while. Again, I thank mental_floss.

--Alfred Hitchcock gave six-year-old Melanie Griffith an unusual present when her mother (Tippi Hedren) was working in his film The Birds: a Barbie-sized wax replica of her mom presented in a tiny coffin. Griffith believes that Hitchcock thought he was making a nice gesture, but admitted that the incident definitely freaked her out. She says she threw the gift away long ago.

--Queen Elizabeth II is one of the world’s wealthiest women, but that doesn’t mean she squanders her money on lavish gifts. In fact, she leans towards the practical side. Some of the Christmas presents she has given to her staff include a bag of clothespins for her personal laundress and a large horseshoe-shaped magnet for her seamstress (to make it easier to retrieve dropped pins, of course). How thoughtful!

--Elizabeth Taylor has been the recipient of some very lavish gifts in her lifetime, including a 69.4-carat Cartier diamond from her former husband Richard Burton. But surely nothing can compare to the highly personal present she once received from her pal Michael Jackson – a life-size doll of himself. Hmmm…

--What do you give the woman who has everything for her 40th birthday? If the woman in question is Sophia Loren and you’re her husband, film producer Carlo Ponti, the answer is a custom-made 14-karat gold toilet seat.

--When Stephen Douglas accused Abraham Lincoln of being two-faced during an 1858 debate, Lincoln's famously wry response was: "I leave it to my audience - if I had another face to wear, do you think I would wear this one?"


--The governor of the Wyoming Territory signed a women's suffrage bill into law in 1869, and on September 6 of the following year, a 70-year-old housewife named Louisa Ann Swain became the first female to legally cast a ballot in a United States public election. An article that appeared later in the Ladies Home Journal assured the nation that Mrs. Swain had not "lost" her femininity by voting.


--When Betty White first appeared on the game show Password in 1961, host Allen Ludden, a widower with three children, was immediately smitten. The pair became friendly, but White was leery of becoming romantically involved, having been divorced twice already. Nevertheless, Allen bought an engagement ring and wore it on a chain around his neck until Betty finally accepted his proposal in 1963.


--Joanne Woodward often attributes the success of her 50-year marriage to having a good sense of humor. She regularly fretted over husband Paul Newman's safety once he took up racecar driving. But when Joanne fell out of bed and managed to break her collarbone, Paul couldn't resist the opportunity to needle her a little. While they waited for the paramedics, he told her "I'm not going to listen to any more complaining about my racing!"


--Comedian Jack Benny and Mary Livingstone had been married for 48 years when Jack passed away in 1974. The day after Benny's death, his wife, Mary, received one long-stemmed red rose from a florist. The next day, another came. When Mary called to ask about the deliveries, she learned that Benny had stipulated in his will, "one perfect red rose daily for the rest of Mary's life."

Saturday: Wings 3, Bruins 1

On Saturday night the Wings won their 40th game--they have played 54 of the 82 games in the regular season. With the win they pulled ahead of the next team in the league by 16 points. This means that the Wings would have to lose 8 straight games and Ottawa (no. 2) would have to win 8 straight for them to catch up. Not a bad place for Detroit to be. They keep on figuring out how to win--hopefully they keep it up.

In basically all of the statistical lists, at least one Wing is in the top 10. In about 50% of the lists there is more than one Detroit player in the top 10. On the =/- list, 6 of the top 10 are Wings. Crazy! If things keep on the way they are, a lot of the Wings should win the end-of-the-season awards. Lidstrom should win the Norris again and Datsyuk should be the winner of the Lady Byng--again. Things are looking up for a lot more to show up in Detroit. Jack Adams? Conn Smythe? Selke? Hart? President's Trophy? Clarence S. Campbell Bowl? Stanley Cup? All are very, very possible.

Super Bowl

Who won?
Answer: I don't know!

Who played?
Answer: I don't know and I DON'T CARE!

Thus concludes my remarks about the Super Bowl.