The Building of Boxes

So Jodie-girl-who-won't-date-me, her mom's birthday is today.

That's right, she's a Hallowe'en baby. *grin*

Anyway, I love Jodie's mom. She's got a heart as big as all outdoors, she loves her family to death, she'll do anything for you and she opens her home and her heart to many, many people. She's the kind of woman that, if you have to move in three weeks, she'll show up with boxes and tape and help you pack (which she actually did not that long ago).

Did I mention that my mommy bought me a table saw a few weeks ago? *big grin*

I decided that I was going to make Jodie's mom something for her birthday. So I look in my scrap heap of wood and find two chunks of 11 1/2 inch by 12 inch pieces of pine... perfect for the top and bottom. Then I had 2 12 inch pieces of pine... but I couldn't find 2 others. I did, however, have 2 2ft pieces of cedar *grin*.

I spent 3 hours cutting, sanding, and nailing. It turned out great. Except for the part where I couldn't find my tapper to countersink the nails and decided to use a drill bit instead and my thumb slid down the bit and sliced it open. I had to spend extra time sanding off the blood *grin*.

The hardest part was that I had decided, rather than hinging the lid and putting a latch on the front, that I'd carve out the sides of the lid so that it would sit on the inside. That part took forever and it was definitely not a perfect job *grin*.

Then I stained it, let that dry, and verathaned it. Which lead to my second boo boo. I turned the box upside down to let it dry. Unfortunately, I put it on a milk bag. Which meant that this morning, when I lifted the box, I had red and blue stuff all over the lip of the box. *sigh*

So, I take my chisel and sandpaper to work and scrape and sand all that stuff off at my desk. (The cleaning lady is going to love me *grin*)

But you know, it was all worth it when I saw her face. She was absolutely thrilled with it. Turns out she loves wooden boxes and was especially happy that I had taken the time to build one specifically for her. She teared up.

I'll do a better job next time but... I don't know that it'll beat this one.

Work Whine

Kinda...

I remember a while ago whining about a woman that I work with.

Today I was working away around 2 in the afternoon when an email comes from her to a bunch of us saying, basically, she's been let go, nice working with you, give me a call sometime.

I was, quite frankly, both shocked and not shocked. I was shocked because I figured that, given her years of service, they'd keep her until she quit. I was NOT shocked because of her whining and her unwillingness to learn new things.

In a way, I'm glad because it proves that the company does pay attention to what's going on. In another way, it makes me nervous because if they can let her go, they can let anyone go. I do feel secure in my job at the moment because no one else knows what I do. *grin* I *don't* feel secure because they're supposed to be bringing in a new software tool that will make my job obsolete. Of course, that was supposed to happen 2 years ago, so who knows.

I really wish that I'd won that $54 million lottery last night... *sigh*

Survivor

So I'm watching Survivor tonight with the roommate and we got into a discussion about how many Survivor series there were.

Turns out, believe it or not, that this is the 11th one. Jeff Probst could NOT be more uninterested in this one... he's totally phoning it in and ripping people a new one with reckless abandon.

Which is beside the point which is this: I get slightly obsessive *grin* so I decided that I had to see a list of all Survivor winners. Do you think I could find one on Google? I think not! So I decided to make one. And then I decided to share. *grin*

Suvivor 10 (Palau) - Tom Westman
Survivor 9 (Vanuatu) - Chris Daugherty
Survivor 8 (All Stars) - Amber Brkich
Survivor 7 (Pearl Islands) - Sandra Diaz-Twine
Survivor 6 (The Amazon) - Jenna Morasca
Survivor 5 (Thailand) - Brian Heidik
Survivor 4 (Marquesas) - Vecepia Towery
Survivor 3 (Africa) - Ethan Zohn
Survivor 2 (Australia) - Tina Wesson
Survivor - Richard Hatch

Women, women, women...

What is it about women that make them unable to hear and comprehend the simplest of concepts? Like "No, I don't want to be in a relationship with you."

I have a friend, Jodie-the girl-who-won't-date-me. She's an adorable woman, smart, funny, cute as anything with a warm, caring, fun personality. I've known 6 or 7 women who'd love to take her out. But there's one woman in particular who has been unable or unwilling to hear what Jodie has been telling her for months.

Literally months. Jodie has been telling her "I think you're great. I'm not ready for a relationship. Thanks for asking." Everybody in the known world *knows* that this is "polite-speak" for "I don't want to go out with you."

Evidently it's "everyone in the known world minus one" cause this chick just ain't gettin' it! Out of one side of her mouth she's saying "Oh, I'd love to just be friends" and out of the other side she's saying "I can't get you out of my head." Jodie has tried to be as polite as she can possibly be - she's one of those women who doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings... but I think it's coming to a head. I told her "You can't say 'I don't want to be in a relationship', you have to say 'I don't want to be in a relationship *with you*'" Don't leave wiggle room for ambiguous readings like "I don't want to be in a relationship right now" means "I'm not ready at the moment but if you hang around for a couple of months I might change my mind." Cause that's what this woman thinks.

So poor Jodie is being put in the position of doing exactly what it is that she's been trying to avoid: she's going to have to be blunt to the point of hurting this chick's feelings. And I tell her "That's not your problem. If her feelings get hurt it's her own fault for not listening to what you've been saying for 6 months."

Perhaps it's just me, but if someone says to you "I don't want to be in a relationship right now" - give it up!! Put a period on it. Move on.

Of course, this would have more impact if I followed my own "Move on." advice...

*grin*

Weekend update

My mom called me on Tuesday and asked what I was doing this weekend. I said not much, so she said that she was gonna come up and visit if that was ok with me and when would be best. (Mom, and the rest of my family, live 2 hours away from me.)

It's my mom so I said "Whenever you wanna come". We decided around noonish Saturday and I spent the next 3 days cleaning up my house and setting up a guest room for Mommy to sleep in.

She came Saturday, we visited for a few hours then decided to go shopping. (I needed a furnace filter cause, evidently, I didn't have one). We're wandering around the hardware store, looking for filters, when I spot a sign - $39.99.

"Mom! Mom! Where are you? Mom, c'mere and look! Does that say what I think it does??"

It was a table saw - regular 99.99 on sale for 39.99. I've been wanting a table saw for a long time because I really want to get into woodworking. Mom grinned at me, I grinned at her and she said "Go get a cart."

I'm doing quick math in my head. I have $55 on me and $70 in the bank. I get paid on Friday, but there's no way I can pass up this deal. I mean, it's 60% off!!

I grab a cart, load in the saw and off we go to find filters. We also picked up some tea towels and some Comet and some lightbulbs. We get to the check out and before I can get organized, Mom has her cash out. I say "We'll stop at the bank on our way home." She says "Consider that your birthday present."

In the middle of the store, I hug and kiss my mommy and start a little jig. "I have a saw! I have a saw! Lookit me, I have a saw!"

*grin*

My mom laughs at me (mostly because I dance like a goof *grin*)

Then we went to the book store and I picked up 4 books on sale, came home, hauled my saw into the house and started a new dance in front of my roommate. She laughed at me too.

Today, my mom cleaned my house. She said that once a day she's up at my sister's and throws a load of laundry in, folds one, does some dishes, that kind of thing. She was happy to get a chance to do the same for my house.

For four hours we dusted, washed knick knacks, washed lighting fixtures, vaccuumed, cleaned the basement, picked up garbage, sorted out recycling, cleaned out the furnace, cut up and froze green peppers, sprayed "Orange Clean" stuff everywhere. *grin*. And then hauled a couple of mattresses down from upstairs for garbage day tomorrow.

And then she left for home.

I adore my mother. When I grow up, she's the woman I want to be.

(I have a saw! I have a saw! I have a saw!!)

Tom Cruise rant

I never liked the man. I've never liked his movies (except Top Gun and that was cause Kelli McGillis was in it). I've never gone out of my way to see one of his movies, ever. And I quite frankly hated "The Last Samurai".

I was watching "The Actors Studio" today and they were doing a retrospective of the last 10 years and they had Tom Cruise asking James Lipton his "famous questions". (I'll put 'em at the end in case you don't know them.) Anyway Tom Cruise is just so... god, so *something* but I don't know what it is. So falsely earnest, so polite, so emphatic, so... I dunno. But I just don't like him. It's a "not like" verging on "hate".

Even before the proselytizing for Scientology and the "excercise and vitamins can cure post-partum depression" and psychiatry is a bad, bad thing, he just struck me as manipulative.

Now he's got Katie and she's pregnant with his baby and doesn't he just have the perfect life and it's all due to Scientology. I'm sorry, but here's the question for me: Tommy has been married twice before - no kids with the first wife but she was pregnant soon after she remarried. No biological children with the second wife - they adopted two. According to rumours I've read (which, being rumours, may or may not be true) second wife had a miscarriage just before they split up.

Now: how come, all of a sudden, Katie's pregnant with his baby? He was in a 10 year marriage where he couldn't be bothered giving his wife a biological child, but this chick, that he's been dating for a few months, is worthy? Not buying it. Not buying it at all.

One of the best jokes I heard on the season premiere of "Will and Grace" went something like "It's incomprehesible! It's convoluted! Kind of like the contract they make you sign when you marry Tom Cruise."

Says it all for me.

Shocked! Shocked, I say!!

Britney Spears Sex Tape

Who'd a thunk that a fine, upstanding mental giant like Britney made a sex tape!! Granted, it's evidently made with her husband, but still....

Can someone explain to me the fascination of making a tape of yourself having sex?? I just don't understand that. It's the same reason I don't understand mirrors on a bedroom ceiling. Yes, sex feels good, it's fun, it's a beautiful way to connect with your partner, but I don't want to watch myself doing it!! It's not pretty, it's not a turn on.

Quite frankly, I'm not in the best shape. I don't have a teeny tiny waist and I don't have six-pack abs and my breasts are not perky. I don't want to see my guts flabby on the mattress or my breasts in my armpits. I don't want to see my flat ass either.

Not to mention that, in the wrong hands... ok, I don't even want to think about someone I don't know watching me have sex.

**Shudder**

Eyes too big for it's tummy

Gator vs. Python

(I know it's a long link)

Either the python was REAL hungry or... ok, I can't think of an "or".

Just... DAMN.