lynna12000

Oh God! I think I'm a Grown Up.....

2009-11-29T09:02:35Z

First, I acquired a mortgage. Then, I had a car that doesn't have any payments due on it. And now, NOW I've completed my Christmas shopping! Before December has begun!

When does the next childhood start? I REALLY want to know.

And how was YOUR Halloween?

2009-11-01T11:22:12Z

Mine alas, was far more Trick than Treat.

First, I woke up at almost 5 p.m. instead of the Noon I'd planned. Showered, dressed, had breakfast and left in the hopes of avoiding the trick or treaters. No candy in the house, and no Halloween spirit either. Decided I'd pay off the rest of the Tony Hawks Skateboard thing I had a deposit on at Gamestop. (interractive device for the Wii. Looks cool). And of course, there were hordes of the screaming, squealing, monsters. And those were just the parents. All thru the Mall..........One of these days I'll upgrade my memory and REMEMBER that the local malls ENCOURAGE the trick or treaters....

It only went downhill from there.......

After fighting my way thru the hordes, had dinner, completed my errand. Then decided I'd do some grocery shopping at Fred Meyers. They usually have some good deals. Figured I'd kill some time, let the kiddies get home before I did. Before leaving the car, made sure the lights were shut off, doors locked, all the usual. Got back to the car after 1030 pm....sucker wouldn't start. Went to call for a jumpstart with the cel......ITS' battery was dead.

Went back to Freddies. Their electronics dept cels those battery operated cel chargers. Bought one of those. Plugged it into my phone...It is now completely dead. I now know to avoid them like the plague.

In the age of cel phones....pay phones are next to impossible to find. Had to cross Evergreen, avoid the speeding police cars with their flashing lights zooming up and down Hwy 99, not to mention avoid all the stranger than normal folks stumbling out of Dennys and other assorted places, before finding a pay phone at the gas station next to the Denny's.

Evidently Halloween was good for the towing business. I didn't get home til after 1 a.m. I did , however, get to see several suspect transactions in the Fred Meyers parking lot before the tow truck arrived. I now know to avoid that particular store late at night.

on the menu for today....

2009-10-18T19:30:23Z

Meatloaf stuffed with herbed bread , served with a side of smashed red potatoes, buttered green beans. Dessert is Pumpkin Pie with whipped cream.

I've had the urge to cook lately. Yesterday I made a pot of soup with the carcass of the chicken I had roasted last week. (it had been safely stored in the freezer) I had roased the chicken with onions, garlic and butter under the skin and stuffed into the cavity. The gravy was superb, and made a great base for bread and gravy breakfasts.

Cooler weather always brings out the urge for old fashioned comfort food. I'm starting to get a craving for old-fashioned bread pudding.

I never knew how many back muscles were involved w/changing socks...

2009-10-04T13:40:17Z

...until I pinched a nerve in MY back. Whatever it was I did in a past life to have this inflicted on me; I NEVER want to do it again. I spent Wed., Thurs, and Friday whimpering in pain. If I could have removed the left side of my body I would have. Without anasthetic. It would have hurt less. The weekend is going a bit better. But I'm taking Monday off just in case.

Interesting food stuffs

2009-09-14T11:32:59Z

The Omnivore’s Hundred
1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment at Very Good Taste linking to your results.

Diana's Omnivore’s Hundred
Venison
Nettle tea
Huevos rancheros
Steak tartare
Crocodile
Black pudding (Um…NO WAY! You know what goes into this? )
Cheese fondue
Carp
Borscht
Baba ghanoush
Calamari
Pho
PB&J sandwich
Aloo gobi
Hot dog from a street cart
Epoisses
Black truffle
Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
Steamed pork buns
Pistachio ice cream
Heirloom tomatoes
Fresh wild berries
Foie gras
Rice and beans
Brawn, or head cheese
Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
Dulce de leche
Oysters
Baklava
Bagna cauda
Wasabi peas
Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
Salted lassi
Sauerkraut
Root beer float
Cognac with a fat cigar
Clotted cream tea
Vodka jelly/Jell-O
Gumbo
Oxtail
Curried goat
Whole insects
Phaal
Goat’s milk
Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
Fugu
Chicken tikka masala
Eel
Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
Sea urchin
Prickly pear
Umeboshi
Abalone
Paneer
McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
Spaetzle
Dirty gin martini
Beer above 8% ABV
Poutine
Carob chips
S’mores
Sweetbreads
Kaolin
Currywurst
Durian (NOT ENOUGH MONEY IN THE UNIVERSE) Frogs’ legs
Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
Haggis (another thing you couldn’t pay me to eat. I know what goes in it)
Fried plantain
Chitterlings, or andouillette
Gazpacho
Caviar and blini
Louche absinthe
Gjetost, or brunost
Roadkill
Baijiu
Hostess Fruit Pie
Snail
Lapsang souchong
Bellini
Tom yum
Eggs Benedict
Pocky

Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
Kobe beef
Hare
Goulash
Flowers
Horse
Criollo chocolate
Spam
Soft shell crab
Rose harissa
Catfish
Mole poblano
Bagel and lox
Lobster Thermidor
Polenta
Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
Snake

This is ALL Nani's fault. At least the list is...Haven't figured out who to blame for the rest. :D

i'm edging into the 21st century..

2009-08-08T05:50:12Z

I finally did what I've been talking about doing for at least 2 years. I purchased a Sony E-Reader. Sadly, Sony no longer offers 100 free books to d/l at time of purchase. They do offer some free books at their site; and the content seems to change periodically. Granted, the reasons some of these books are free is obvious when read. But hey! I didn't pay for them. Happily.

The device itself is pretty cool. With the cover, it's about the size of a journal. Fits into a purse of backpack. Charges via usb, or you can purchase an AC charger. Loading books does not take any time at all. It can hold up to 160 books on the device itself, additionally, it is capable of reading SD cards or Sony Memory sticks that can hold even more books. The books themselves are in pdf format. You don't have to get them from just one source (kindle/Amazon). The handbook specifically mentions the Guttenberg project as being compatible. I'm psyched. I'll be able to free up some shelf space.

I have tasked myself with going thru and getting rid of my paperbacks. (NOT as easy as it sounds. Believe me)

Hey Nani, Does each book count as one thing for the Get Rid of One Thing a Day? Or is it each individual box of books taken to be taken to the re-purchaser?

i hate holidays....

2009-07-05T07:56:05Z

The weekend started so well....and then I called my parents house. My Mom had another stroke on Wednesday. I only heard about it today because Dad says he didn't want to leave a voicemail. Screaming and swearing would not do any good; nor would it fix things. I think my Dad's hearing aids have difficulty picking up the beep for VM, and Dad doesn't want to admit it.

Mom's stroke wasn't as bad as the last few she had. She was only in the hospital for a few days. Now she has gone to a nursing home for some physical therapy. And Mom being Mom, doesn't want anyone to come see her.

holiday's suck

I am a truly EVIL Auntie...

2009-04-13T15:14:02Z

Alas, Norwescon has once more come and gone. I took my nephew with me for the first time; and he LOVED it. He sat thru panels and even enjoyed most of them. And scarily enough, he even liked FILKING of all things. So now I have been given the mission of finding copies of the songs that he liked the best. But what he really, really, really loved; even more than LazerTag, was of all things, wa The Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long. Poor kid is going to be warped as an adult. :D And it will be all my fault.

My main regret for the weekend was that I wasn't able to get the t-shirt I REALLY wanted. It's one that all Buffy fans would love: 'And then, Buffy staked Edward. the end' I almost died laughing when I saw it. Sadly, the vendor had sold out. I'll just have to keep my eye out for it.

shiny pretty things!

2009-03-15T03:36:15Z

I was a bad, bad, bad, girl today. Or maybe a VERY good one, depending on the POV. I bought myself a new HP laptop. 3G of ram, and 320G hard drive, what I find scary is that it was cheaper than the one that I bought last year.. It even comes with a built in numeric keypad (i'll admit that the keyboard was what REALLY sold me) The 1G ram, 160G hard drive, Sony I purchased last year got handed down to my sister.

The set up went smoothly. The only real pain was exporting my darn favorites. It would be nice if there were a drag-n-drop feature for that, but nooooo; that would make far too much sense.

Where oh Where have the little books gone?

2009-03-13T22:13:37Z

I have the next set of Torchwood books in my possession, and am willng to loan them out. But I would like to have my other books back first. I like being able to complete the picture formed by the book spines. Silly, I know. So, please, help them find their way home.

Important things to know when riding the bus...

2009-02-26T17:24:43Z

When riding the public transit systems there are certain rules of etiquette that should always be followed. Pay your fare when getting on, sit down quickly, and don't bug/annoy your fellow passengers OR the driver. Especially, the driver.

Last night there was an idiot who gave a demonstration of what NOT to do on the bus. When he got on he not only refused to pay the whopping 50 cent fare he was rude and confrontational with the driver. By and large the Transit drivers are really reasonable, laid back people. If you tell them you don't have the change, or that you'll pay next time, they'll let you on with no problem. The idiot, on the other hand, in addition to being rude to the driver threatened to blow up the driver AND the bus. Well, that was that. Driver had had enough. He shut down the engine, in front of the Everett Clinic, mind you, and called his supervisor. Keep in mind the bus was full at this point. 10 minutes later, the guy is still sitting on the bus, being rude; the passengers are starting to REALLY get upset, and the Supervisor finally shows up. She gets on the bus and starts talking to the Idiot. He spends the next 3-5 minutes arguing with her. He doesn't feel he needs to pay fare or get off the bus. Finally, he gets off and starts to walk away. At which point the Supervisor tells him that he needs to stick around. In the mean time, all the passengers on the bus have moved towards the front of the bus; we don't want to miss out on the entertainment that we just KNOW is going to unfold. Idiot, instead of ignoring the Supervisor and walking away, stays and continues to argue with her for another 3-5 minutes. He finally starts to figure out his stupidity when the nice shiny police cars pull up in front of him. Idiot then spends the next 10 minutes providing the bus passengers with lots of demonstrations of what happens when you resist arrest. It was like watching a live version of COPS.

I'm just glad that I have a habit of leaving for work well before I need to. I ended up at work almost 30 minutes later than I usually do. But the entertainment made it worth it.

One thing does nag me. Why on earth did it take the Police so darn long to get from the Everett Police station to the Everett Clinic? Considering the drugs and the drug treatment programs at the Clinic, you'd think they'd have a car stationed there 24/7.

Not as Bad News/Bad News.....the ongoing Soap Opera of my life

2009-02-15T02:28:50Z

The last week my family has been on pins and needles, worried about one of my Aunts in England. She had been ill for a while, and the doctors decided that she needed exploratory surgery to determine why. She had her surgery last Monday, but we only heard the results today. Sometimes being an ocean and a continent away can really, really suck.

It wasn't colon cancer as the doctors initially thought. They now think it's Crohn's disease instead. A diagnosis which I think is only SLIGHTLY better than the cancer diagnosis. They are both terrible.

So now, my Mom is going to be stressing about her little sister, in addition to her own medical issues. She is going to have a biopsy in March to determine if SHE has cancer.

If my life is a soap opera, I want some new writers.

Torchwood is coming! Torchwood is coming!

2009-02-06T20:07:28Z

I was visiting TV.com, and low an behold! They had the trailer for this years' Torchwood mini series. It looks awesome. I may even have to let go my anger over the deaths of Owen and Tosh. (granted, Owen was already dead when they blew him up, but still....It's the principle of the matter)

Christmas memories.

2008-12-27T00:35:07Z

After getting off of work at 630a, I had to hike up the fjord disguised as 164th. After successfully making my way thru the treacherous mass of snow and ice, and navigating the snowy, empty parking lot at the Park and Ride, I had to wait another half hour for the bus. Standing in the falling snow, with no one else around, listening to 'Dante's Prayer' by Lorena McKennit, was positively surreal.

By the time I finally got home, I closely resembled Frosty's smaller, less round, sister. Watched little guy finish unwrapping his gifts. Then fell into bed, got up and went back to work. Next year, I am so NOT working Christmas day. Money isn't worth the lack of sleep.

I am such a Cool Aunt!

2008-11-08T19:07:42Z

Amazon has yet again secured my posistion as the most favorite of all relatives: The 'Cool' Aunt.

All my nephews are electronic gaming fanatics. The eldest has the gameboys, xbox, gamecube, PSP, and something called a TwinCast that plays the old NES and SuperNES game cartridges. Last month, in a terrible accident, the TwinCast was damaged beyond repair. (No one has told me exactly how it happened. Or what happened to the perpetrator. Rumor has it that dire happenings occured. 'Nuff said)

So being the considerate Auntie, I ordered another one thru Amazon. I hadn't intended to, I had already purchased a lot of clothes for the job hunt he is embarking on. The electronic confirmations were received, along with the electronic receipt for the purchase and shipping.

Today I talked to my Mom (he lives with my parents), and he was over the moon! Mom says when he opened the box, he was speechless. First words out of his mouth were "Wow! I didn't think Aunt Diana was THAT happy with me. She said she wasn't going to get me one; that I was old enough to buy it myself."

They had shipped him a Wii.

The smell of cinnamon and cloves....

2008-10-11T03:57:32Z

is one of the most perfect scents ever discovered by humanity.

Here it is, as promised, my famed applesauce cake recipe:

3/4 cup raisins 1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 cup boiling water 1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 cup shortening 2 eggs
1-1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1-1/2 cups thick applesauce
1/2 teaspoon salt 2-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 2 teaspoons baking soda

Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease and flour 13x9x2 baking dish. Combine raisins and boiling water in small bowl, and set aside. (for best results, cover the bowl. This will ensure nice, plump, moist raisins) In large bowl, beath shortening, sugar, salt, spices, and eggs until fluffy. Blend in applesauce, then flour and soda. Blend in raisins and water. Pour into baking dish and bake 40-45 minutes until tooth pick inserted in center comes out clean.

This cake keeps well, and works great for bagged lunches. It also freezes extremely well; and tastes wonderful with ice cream or whipped cream.

Note: if you are out of allspice, simply add a little extra cinnamon and cloves.

I've been making this cake for 15 years, and the only complaint I have ever heard was that the pan was empty.

I'm a cooking fool....

2008-09-14T22:01:00Z

Watching the Food Network, and then going grocery shopping is a dangerous thing. Especially when most of the food that caught my interest was Italian.

I made a rather nice Minestrone soup on Saturday. Good flavor, smells great. Probably what I'll be taking into work on Wednesday for the potluck. One of my co-workers wants me to do ravioli, but I really don't feel up to it. The 7 cheese ravioli I normally make is expensive. And I rally don't feel like spending 4-5 hours making the things from scratch. Weather is just to warm right now.

Right now, I'm making 'Cappellini et Brodo', Italian for Cappellini in Broth. It looked really, really, really good; and didn't look too hard to make. Basically, brown chicken thighs in a little olive oil with onions, carrots, celery, and salt. Then toss some red wine into the mix, and some water, and let simmer for a few hours. After the meat has simmered, remove it from the broth, and strain out the veggies. Then strip the meat from the bones, toss back into the broth; and combine the chicken, broth, and cooked pasta. Right now, it is smelling VERY good.

I haven't decided what I'm going to make for dessert. But it will come to me. Probably something a little old fashioned. Right now the front runners are bread pudding with raisins, or rice pudding.

Changing Plans and disappointed kids....

2008-08-09T08:52:11Z

Mother Nature is certainly NOT consulting with me before she makes executive decisions about the weather. I had originally planned to take my nephew and one of his buddies up to the Birch Bay waterslides this weekend. But no, there is to be rain & possible thundershowers instead. Never fun to have a couple of young kids upset with you over something not your fault.

So we are on to Plan 'B' instead. Plan 'B' consists of going to a movie and lunch afterwards. One picks the movie, the other the lunch place. Happily the movie is one I wouldn't mind seeing: The Mummy III. I know it will be slightly (ok, more than slightly) cheesy. It could have been worse: the alternate was 'Space Chimps'.

One happy note: Primeval starts on BBCA this weekend. I've seen the preview on Demand, and it looked pretty good. Here's hoping it will help fill the void left by Torchwood.

It's the little things in life .....

2008-08-02T19:26:21Z

Finally got an answer back from Community Transit. Only had to wait a week and a half; oh well. I qualified for the free bus pass. So, for the next few months, CT is going to mail me a nice, shiny $45 bus pass. Granted, I had to ..... edit the truth a tad on my application. CT is trying to get people who either don't, or rarely, ride the buses, by offering the free passes thru October. I said I ride the bus 1 or 2 days a week. Which is stretching the truth by 2-3 days, but hey! I get a free transportation. Plus I get my daily excercise. And boy, do I get the excercise. Going up that hill in the mornings is HARD. But, it lets me avoid the gym. : )

lynna12000 @ 2008-07-27T22:05:00

2008-07-28T05:10:47Z

As per the suggestion of Captain Slinky (not to mention, copied from his blogpage):

1. Add a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It’s actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I’ll assume you’re playing the game and I’ll come to your blog and leave one about you.

For a rarity, the sequel was better than the original

2008-07-13T04:55:51Z

I went and saw Hellboy II this weekend. I am DEFINITELY planning to see it again on the big screen. And not just because of the BBCAmerica 'Primeval' preview trailers that ran before the movie. (little snippets can be seen On Demand) It looks very cool. Possibly even Torchwood cool. But we'll have to wait and see.

The Iron Man movie was excellent, one of the best comic adaptations that I have seen. And I'm not even an Iron Man comic fan. But Hellboy II beats it hands down. Easily.

I know, I know, I'm gushing. But this is the best movie I've seen this year. The scripting, acting and editing were beyond superb. And that is without throwing the visuals in. When the dvd is released, I plan on watching it without the sound. It is that beautiful. Mignola and Guillermo Del Torro have outdone themselves. Here's hoping that they come out with Hellboy III.

I must be getting old

2008-06-30T16:29:57Z

I realize that many of todays' musical 'artists' feel so creatively challenged that they have to 'sample' older music. I wish they would stop. Immediately. If not sooner. It confuses the living daylights out of me to hear what I first think is one song & it turns out to be something completely different.

Case in point: the new Kid Rock song. When I first heard the piano melody, I thought: 'Oh, he's redone an old Bob Seger song.' Guess again....instead of KR breaking into the chorus of 'Awooooo Werewolves of London!', he starts singing about drinking some booze & smoking some grass in 1989. It's just .......wrong, wrong, wrong, disconcertingly wrong.

It's a sad, sad, time....

2008-06-23T11:21:18Z

George Carlin died this weekend. He was one of the few Comedians worthy of the title. He was one of the few who could make me laugh so hard I would cry. And his bit on The Seven words you cannot say on Television.....truly hysterical.

Hulking thoughts.

2008-06-22T05:45:11Z

Went and saw the new Hulk movie. The writers and actors did a good job. I just don't think it was as good as Iron Man. Ed Norton as Banner and Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky were both good choices; as was William Hurt. It just seemed to be lacking ....something.

The special effects were pretty good, there was the obligatory Stan Lee cameo, as well as Lou Ferrigno appearing as a security guard, and a brief snippet of an old Bill Bixby television show (I think it was 'The Courtship of Eddy's Father'). And the writers certainly came up with an interesting reason for celibacy. Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase 'Safe Sex'.
Having Tony Stark show up at the end clearly a set up for the things to come.

Maybe I don't like feeling like I spent $10 to watch a set up for 'The Avengers' movie. For that they should have given us Nick Fury as well as Tony Stark.

I say it proudly: I am an Elf!

2008-06-19T01:06:12Z

I took the quiz on Nani-Ka's site today, and here are the cut & pasted results:

Your result for The What Middle Earth race do you belong to Test ...

Elf
You scored 0% Size & Strength, 71% Morality, 65% Aggression, and 82% Intelligence.

You're an Elf! You scored low in size, high in morality, high in aggression and high in intelligence to get here. The first and favorite race created by the Valar, the Elves have been in Middle Earth for many ages, and are currently the only race allowed to join their creators in Valinor. Blessed with eternal life, enhanced senses, great beauty, wisdom and skill, the race of Elves still has several black marks on it. (Kinslaying, anyone?) But hey, no one is perfect, right? Of course not, but the Elves are damn close to it. FYI, your polar opposite is the Troll.

Knew there was a reason I always liked Tolkein!

Plus, last night while browsing tv.com, I saw that BBCAmerica is going to be broadcasting 'Primeval' in July/August. From it's description, it sounds a bit like Torchwood, and the reviews have been good. Plus, I picked up a book adaptation from Borders this weekend as well as my Torchwood books. It was pretty good. I'll catch the first few episodes. Hopefully it will carry me thru part of the Torchwood drought.