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Weekend update

I have job news — well, sort of. I was told Wednesday by <prospective hopeful> that I was being hired on, and that they would get in touch with me as to when to come in to do pre-employment and the pee test and that they were hoping to get me in (working?) as soon as Monday. But, I’m assuming that there must be a hold up, because I haven’t heard from them since. So, I can’t share anything yet … in the meantime I have an interview Monday with another company that seems really interested. At this point I can’t sit around and wait any longer.

Jessie’s mother is in Talladega this weekend, so Jess has stayed with us. She and I went yesterday over to see my folks. I saw Dad for just a few minutes, but he didn’t say much. Mom tells me that his results from last week’s biopsies came back as skin cancer, but they haven’t spread, so they’re going to take a place off his face and off his chest. She also told me that they finally sold their house and will be closing on it soon. I think Jessie was more upset about that than anything, LOL. There’s no pool at their new house.

We had a good time though, and it was good to just sit and visit with Mom like I used to. It was such a pretty day out, not very hot, very breezy, great for relaxing … and getting the crap burned out of you. ;P I had slathered Jessie down pretty good with sunscreen and had done so on myself for my face and neck, but forgot to do my arms. I thought “No biggie, we’re not staying long.”

Well, this is what happens to me after an hour out with no sunscreen — my dumb ass won’t be forgetting that shit again!

Ow, it hurts!

And so I’m spending today wincing in pain when I move my arms, or if they touch something (LOL!), catching up on the past 2 days worth of news feeds and other fun email stuff. I had a friend email me with an offer of Jimmy Buffett tickets for one of his shows this summer. I wish! Too bad he’s not playing anywhere down here any time soon. I’d love to see him in concert.

Today is also “cleaning day.” Jessie’s pouted and moped all morning, mad because I’m making her do her chores (that she didn’t do Friday or yesterday) today and that we’re “not going anywhere fun” today. LOL!

Oh well, hate it for her.

She made the comment, “I feel like I’m cleaning every DAY and it all just keeps getting dirty again!” I chuckled and said, “Welcome to my world.” :lol:

Twitter Terms, Kitty Cuteness, and a Last.fm Twitter How-To

Yes, I’m amusing myself far too much with this thing! LOL :mrgreen:

I ran across some Twitter-related terminology via the San Fransisco Chronicle:

• Twitterer: A user of Twitter.
• Twittering: To send a Twitter message.
• Twittermob: An unruly and ragtag horde of people who descend on an ill-prepared location after a provocative Twitter message.
• Twittercal mass: A community that has achieved a critical mass of twitterers.
• Twittermaps: A mashup technology that lets Twitter users find each other using Google maps.
• Twitterrific and Twitteroo: Two services that let users post to Twitter using a Mac or PC.
• Twitterpated: To be overwhelmed with Twitter messages.
• Twitterrhea: The act of sending too many Twitter messages.

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Here’s some funnies I ran across while surfing through the Twitter Fan Wiki (cats):

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A quick “how to” for anyone wanting to display their Recent Tracks:

1. Visit Last.fm’s Data Feeds page and grab the RSS URI listed under Recent Tracks: www.last.fm/tools/feeds
2. Hop on over to Twitter Feed and login: twitterfeed.com
3. Click “Create new twitter feed” and add the RSS URI for your Recent Tracks and set to the desired update frequency

Voila! :cool:

When you first add the feed, it will post only the first entry from the feed. All entries after that are added separately.

Tweet Tweet Tweet!

I’ve been having fun playing around with my Twitter account lately. I wanted to pop on real quick and post a few more links that some of you may find interesting:

Twit This! – a scrap of javascript to allow your visitors to quickly send Twitter messages about your blog or post. (a WordPress plugin is also available)

TwitterAmI? – A Frappr map of fellow “Twitterers” (or “Tweeters”?). Find someone local to you.

Newbie’s guide to Twitter – Rafe Needleman’s how-to for getting started using the Twitter service, some advanced features and a few “Twitterers worth following.” (Or, just do what I do, use the TwitterSearch!)

The Top 5 Ways Smart People Use Twitter – Sharon Sarmiento’s list on the benefits of using Twitter, including branding, improved communications, networking and more.

Twitter: Use it Productively – I love LifeHack.Org. This handy list demonstrates how you can use Twitter to actually get things done.

Hacking Twitter for Fun and Profit – Don Steinberg’s article describing “10 ways to make the newest wireless social network phenomenon do something interesting – and useful.”

If you have anything that you’d like to add, please feel free to share via the comments! :grin:

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UPDATE: Ran across one on the Last.fm forums:

Google Twitter Gadget – A widget for your Google personalized home page. It can show the public timeline, your own or your friends timeline, you can also elect to show the ‘What are you doing’ update section, and more.

More Twitter mapping tools, nice!

TwitterMap & GeoTwitter

A Firefox “add-on”: Post updates from your Firefox Search bar

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UPDATE: A nice tip from Josh Kenzer on how to find Twitter users by Location:

If you want to find Twitter users near you, you can use Google to search based on location. To do this, enter into the Google search bar:

site:twitter.com location cityname

Obviously, replace cityname with the location you want to find users from.

Very nice! :cool:

Women: Why do we do this to ourselves?

Something that I both understand, but yet not understand: why do we women obsess over our weight?

A relative recently told me that I was “looking too thin.” I was delighted hearing this and took it as a great compliment. I know I’m no skinny minnie, but am finally to a decent body shape, and (for the most part) a proper-looking proportion.

I’ve never had a huge weight problem, but have always been a little too worried about my weight — to the point of neurosis. I was always physically active. When we were little, my brother and I spent every summer outside playing ’til dark. As a teen, I played community and school sports. In high school, we were weighed and measured (for BMI I guess?) in P.E. twice a year. It never bothered me, because I never gave it any thought.

Around my ninth grade year, we were weighed, and when I mentioned to a friend what I weighed, a boy I had a crush on overheard what I said and told me “Good grief, you’re fat!” That’s all it took … from that point on, I was constantly watching my weight, worrying about it, obsessing over it. I starved myself. I would eat lunch and dinner with family and friends, then sneak off to go throw up. My parents knew something was wrong, but back then bulimia and anorexia were unheard of. Hell, my dad tried to force me to eat sometimes and would throw fits if I were caught throwing up after dinner. They didn’t know how to deal with my obsession, but I guess all things considered dealt with me the best they knew how.

I guess my saving grace was college. I moved to Mobile — over 300 miles away from home, and I knew absolutely no one. I was shy growing up and doing this forced me to come out of my shell. In the process of meeting new people and finding new friends, I did a little self-discovery and eventually realized the damage I was doing to myself. Discovering I could sing (purely by accident even, but that’s another story!) helped. I’d always had a love of music, but being able to express myself through song really helped. I wrote and sang songs about things I was feeling. Having people come up to me saying things like “I know exactly how you feel!” or “Thank you, I’m glad I’m not the only one who feels this way!” helped in ways (that I thought) no one else knew.

Heh, I think I put on about 20 pounds that year. While I’d love to be a tiny little size 0 again, I can’t complain too much about the way I look now. One of the best compliments I’ve ever received was from my best friend, Reggie. I was complaining about gaining a little weight — one of my coworkers made an offhand comment that I had taken the wrong way. (Imagine that! ) He looked at me with a very serious look on his face and said, “I’m going to put it this way: you’re FINALLY getting curves where you’re SUPPOSED to have curves! Now stop your bitching.”

LOL

All of my life before that, no one had ever put things in perspective to me in that way. I had spent all that time obsessing over my weight — a stupid number! — and never once considered the way my body LOOKED.

I won’t lie to you … I still look in the mirror and say to myself, “My God, you’re fat.” BUT I can honestly say that I avoid scales like the plague. I’ve discovered that you can drive yourself crazy in a hurry if you are comparing numbers three times a day. I had even talked to my doctor about trying out one of those serious diet prescriptions (like Tenuate) … yikes! What was I thinking?

Eventually I realized that my problem all along has been me. My perception was always that being ‘healthy’ meant matching a certain number on a chart to my weight rather than looking at my measurements or how I FELT. Even when I was thin, I never “felt good.”

In realizing this, I came to a few conclusions:

• I know I could exercise more. I know I’m nowhere the shape I was in high school or college — it was fabulous, and I’ve gotten lazy in my old age. ;P But oh well, that’s a goal.
• I know that I look well because I’m otherwise healthy. I eat better now than I have in years.
• I’m finally happy. Well … over all.
• Sure, I don’t have everything I want in life, but I am engaged to a very wonderful man, and eventually we WILL be married.
• Sure, I don’t have a job right now, but I want to work very badly and know that I work hard and take pride in everything I do. I push myself to learn something every day in order to better myself.

So I must be doing something right, right?

Besides, I realize that not everything will go the way I want or planned. I know that I’ll always have something to bitch and moan about … but if I didn’t, I think I’d be awfully bored!

100 things about me

Ok, after a little nudging I have finally composed a list of 100 things about me … hopefully things that most of you don’t already know about me:

1. I don’t like exposing my weaknesses or fears.
2. I have irrational fears, or am afraid of intangible things.
3. I hate seeing my name misspelled.
4. I don’t like to be late and will usually be at least 15 minutes early to events or meetings.
5. I may not show up or walk through the door that early, but I’ll be somewhere in the area.
6. I don’t like unexpected visitors. Call me first or I won’t answer the door.
7. I don’t like pushy people.
8. I don’t like feet. Don’t touch mine and don’t expect me to touch yours.
9. If I could, I’d wear my boots 24x7x365 and with any outfit.
10. I need more outfits that require boots.
11. I love jewelry, but usually don’t wear a lot of it.
12. I like to wear things that are simple.
13. I love dark colors.
14. As much as I love “girly stuff,” I hate pink.
15. I hate things that make me cry — including but not limited to: movies, music and books.
16. I love to laugh, so I will usually surround myself with things and/or people that I find funny.
17. For personal reasons, I don’t like talking about politics. Just about any other conversation topic is fair game though.
18. I have strong political views, but don’t like to share because when I have to defend them, I feel I’m being attacked and take that very personally. If I like you and you want me to KEEP liking you, don’t push it.
19. I love all creatures on God’s green earth, but will kill a cockroach (or anything resembling one) every freakin’ chance I get.
20. I’m too forgiving when it comes to family.
21. People usually take advantage of me because of that, but I’m working to change that.
22. I don’t trust people, and it takes a lot to earn my trust.
23. I don’t like being lied to, and it’s the quickest way to lose my trust and friendship.
24. I like to say “y’all” … a lot.
25. I also swear … a lot … but will not do so around children or unfamiliar company.
26. I’m very self-conscious about my accent; whenever possible I enunciate and “try not to sound so Southern.”
27. I hear music in my head — always. As far back as I can remember, I have always been this way and am almost never without a tune of some kind stuck in my mind.
28. I’m awfully “wordy.” I love to write, and when inspiration hits it pours out like a river.
29. Because of this, a friend calls me “The Niagara Falls Wordflow Goddess.”
30. I have a slight temper, and it has nothing to do with my hair color.
31. I have no idea what my natural hair color is anymore.
32. I’m pretty sure at least 40% of it is gray by now.
33. When I was young, I secretly wished I was Native American so I could have their beautiful black straight hair, dark eyes and tanned skin — as opposed to my non-tanning, blue-eyed, frizzy curly-haired, very VERY white, “so white I almost glow in the dark” ass.
34. I think Native Americans are some of the most beautiful people.
35. Ditto Asians.
36. I seriously dig Native American and Asian men.
37. I don’t care for blond men.
38. I adore brunettes.
39. I have a weakness for men in uniform.
40. I also have a weakness for musicians and geeks.
41. A very simple feature can make someone attractive to me: eyes, smile, laugh, toned arms or legs.
42. Too many muscles is a turn off.
43. My biggest turn ons aren’t physical features: wit, intelligence, sense of humor, kindness, patience.
44. Despite having a broad range of “likes” I’m very picky when it comes to men. (sorry, guys!)
45. Lucky for Jim, he figured out how to snag me pretty early in the relationship: he fed me and wore his Army gear up to where I worked a lot. *grin*
46. I am best bribed by food and/or drink — preferably a free lunch or dinner, chocolates, or my favorite brew.
47. Back in the day, I was a pretty heavy drinker; now I’m tapped out after a couple or three.
48. I don’t like to drink when upset or crying.
49. I drink a lot when happy.
50. I drink more when angry.
51. I’m a pretty happy drunk. Most often I’ll hug everyone and tell them how much I love them and beg to go karaoke.
52. If I keep drinking past the “happy drunk” stage, I’ll start crying. It’s time to take me home at that point.
53. Drinking tequila or rum makes me very sick.
54. I’m told that I’m mean when I drink tequila.
55. Drinking absinthe also makes me sick.
56. I’ve read for many years about famous artists, writers, and so forth drinking absinthe and it “enhancing” their artistic visions. It didn’t do squat for me.
57. I have a little talent in a lot of areas, but specialize in none.
58. I often wish I could do only one thing, so I could be best at it.
59. I’m usually an incurable optimist, but will retain pessimistic views on some things.
60. I believe everything happens for a reason.
61. I’m a hopeless romantic.
62. I secretly love a good love story, but usually avoid reading things like that because I know they’ll make me cry.
63. Actually, it’s pretty easy to make me cry.
64. Once I start crying, it’s sometimes hard to stop. (now you know why I avoid it)
65. I don’t think I’m photogenic and hate having my picture taken.
66. I don’t like “breakfast foods” and usually would much prefer some pasta or a sandwich.
67. I hate eggs.
68. I think milk tastes funny.
69. I don’t like sausage or any other kind of “ground” meats.
70. This includes hamburgers — but I will eat BK or Krystal’s.
71. I hate fish, but love fried crab claws.
72. I love potatoes and will eat them in any and every way, shape or fashion with the exception of raw.
73. I get very cranky very quickly when I’m hungry and can’t eat.
74. I hate seeing people who do bad things get rewarded. (ahem, Paris Hilton)
75. I hate reality tv shows.
76. I hate daytime tv. (soap operas, talk shows, etc.)
77. I hate that MTV and VH-1 don’t play music videos anymore.
78. I don’t like American Idol.
79. I didn’t like Friends.
80. In general, I hated Seinfeld.
81. I try not to watch the news.
82. I would much rather watch something educational than trendy.
83. I don’t like when men won’t open a door for me.
84. It pisses me off when people won’t say “excuse me” or “thank you.”
85. I think the reason people make fun of our state is because the people here drive like absolute brain-dead morons.
86. I think parents who let their daughter wear something that looks like it’s from Britney Spears’ closet should be slapped senseless.
87. I think parents who let their kids dress, talk or act like Snoop Dogg should be slapped as well.
88. I think parents who let their kids run wild and/or act like rude little brats in general should have their asses kicked.
89. I believe a gay marriage can function as well as any straight marriage.
90. That said, I believe it is imperative that a child have an active mother AND a father in his/her life.
91. I support stem cell research.
92. I think those who can work SHOULD. Get a job, you lazy bums! If you can’t find work, go see your local Department of Industrial Relations; their purpose in life is to help you find a job.
93. I believe that if you want to live in this country, you should learn to speak its language.
94. I believe that anyone who comes in to this country illegally should be sent back ASAFP when found/discovered. — Why should you get special treatment over those who are following our rules and trying to get in LEGALLY?
95. I think jail and prison terms SHOULD be hard time. If you don’t enjoy your time there, don’t break the law so you won’t go back!
96. “Gun control” means having it out of or away from the reach of your children.
97. As I see it, we are all the same color on the inside. What you look like on the outside does not make you any more or less of special than I am, nor does it entitle you, me or anyone else to anything extra. We are all the same animal and come from the same place; get used to it.
98. I love big ideas and enjoy talking with philosophers and thinkers.
99. It is easier to convince me with action than it is with words.
100. I am happiest with “the simple things in life.”

Stuck in some bad mojo

Things are crazy right now, I promise I’ll post an in-depth and proper update soon. In the meantime, here’s something that I wanted to share with y’all:

Anyone who’s visited my MySpace profile has noted the Stuck Mojo banner and I am American lyrics. I’m a big fan of theirs and a huge supporter of their latest album, Southern Born Killers. There’s one song that has drawn national attention — Open Season. The music video has been featured on several cable news channels and big name political blogs/websites, and rightly so! It’s a great song, and if you read the lyrics posted on the band’s website the meaning is quite clear … that is, if you’re an unbiased rational person.

Via the band’s forums:

My Response to CAIR’s Misrepresentation of “Open Season”
by Rich Ward

As many of you know, the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) has attacked Stuck Mojo by falsely claiming that “Open Season” advocates violence against all Muslims. This is patently false. Any rational, unbiased person who reads the lyrics to the song (copied below) can clearly see that the song purely advocates a defensive posture against violent, global Jihadists.

You can read the full story at Little Green Footballs here.

The registration at LGF has been closed for some time. With that in mind would someone here on this board, who is also a member of LGF, please pass along my appreciation for the support that the LGF community has shown us.

We never considered for a second that this video would generate such newsworthy attention. The simple fact is that we are currently in a global war against an ideology whose principle objective to transform the world into an Islamic state. Those who resist are to be converted or killed. And, while we have no interest in pursuing a “holy war,” we refuse to take no action in response if such a war is brought to our doorstep. Are all Muslims Jihadists? Of course not. Are virtually all Jihadists Muslims, absolutely. You can make of this what you will.

The message of “Open Season,” and Stuck Mojo in general, is very clear:

“We reject your war of fear and we are prepared to engage you defensively and decisively if your Jihad threatens our neighborhoods and communities.”

This should not be controversial. Yet CAIR and others seem to think that it is. What person would not defend themselves and their family against an enemy who violently threatens their life, liberty or pursuit of happiness?

We believe in and stand by the message of “Open Season” and find it shocking and disappointing that anyone in the Muslim community would find this video offensive; even more so for those in a leadership position within that community. Their condemnation of the anti-Jihadist message of “Open Season” is a clear indication of where their true loyalties reside.

Thanks to everyone who has supported Stuck Mojo during this time. Your comments and feedback from around the world has shown us that we are not alone in recognizing the reality of the world we now live in. And extra special thanks to those who have shown their support with their wallets and purchased a copy of the CD despite the album being made available free for download. After years of being a lone voice in the left-leaning music business, it has been great to see that the people will directly support a band whose message hits home.

Resources:

Stuck Mojo Site (download/buy the album, see the video, lyrics etc.): StuckMojo.us

Original video for “Open Season:” youtube.com/watch?v=ymLJz3N8ayI

Remix of the video by StopCAIRNow: youtube.com/watch?v=d9oX5Q2ftmA

Little Green Footballs article on CAIR attacking Mojo:
littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=23903_CAIR_Slams_Boxer_Stuck_Mojo

HotAir.com article on the CAIR remix:
hotair.com/archives/2007/01/06/video-open-season-the-anti-cair-remix/

Lyrics for “Open Season”

I speak peace when peace is spoken, But I speak war when your hate is provoking, The season is open 24-7-365, Man up yo time to ride, No need to hide behind slogans of deceit, Claiming that you’re a religion of peace, We just don’t believe you, We can clearly see through, The madness that you’re feeding your people, Jihad the cry of your unholy war, Using the willing, the weak and poor, From birth drowning in propaganda, rhetoric and slander, All we can say is damn ya

My forefathers fought and died for this here
I’m stronger than your war of fear
Are we clear?
If you step in my hood
It’s understood
It’s open season

I don’t need a faith that’s blind, Where death and hate bring me peace of mind, With views that are stuck deep in the seventh century, So much sand in your eyes to blind to see, The venom that you leaders preach, Is the path to your own destruction, Your own demise, You might say that I don’t understand but your disgust for me is what I realize, Surprise!
Your homicidal ways has got the whole world watching, Whole world scoping, So if you bring it to my home base, Best believe it, The season’s open

(Chorus)

I see you, Hell yeah I see you, Motherfucker naw, I don’t wanna be you, If you come to my place, I’ll drop more than just some bass, Yo you’ll get a taste of a, Sick motherfucker from the Dirty, I ain’t worrying not a fucking bit, I’m telescoping like Hubble, Yo you in trouble, Yo on the double, I’m wild with mine, Bring that style with mine, Fuck with my family I’ll end your life, Just the way it is, Just the way it be, Do you understand? No matter if you’re woman or man, or child, My profile is crazy, That shit you do doesn’t amaze me, I’m ready to blaze thee

(Chorus)

I don’t give a damn what god you claim, I’ve seen the innocent that you’ve slain, On my streets you’re just fair game, Like a pig walk to your slaughter, The heat here is so much hotter, And my views won’t teeter totter or fluctuate, Step to me you just met your fate, And I’ll annihilate, With the skill of a Shogun assassin, Slicing and dicing precise with a passion, In any shape form or fashion, Bring it to my home, Welcome to the danger zone, Cause your attitude’s the reason, The triggers keep squeezing, The hunt is on and it’s open season

It’s Open Season

It’s an overcast kind of day…

It’s rainy. It’s cold. It’s “blah” weather.

My day started out ok … Jessie was a bit argumentative this morning. Actually, she has been a lot lately, and I know it will only get worse the closer she gets to her teens.

We were nearly 30 minutes late to work this morning due to the traffic. I swear, the people here totally forget how to drive when it rains. *rolls eyes* Even worse, I’d say a good quarter of the numbnuts I passed on the road didn’t have their lights on, and as dark/foggy as it was this morning, you can’t see SHIT until you’re right up on it!

Got to work and I had already had 3 calls, people wanting me to fix their screwups.

Oh joy. ??:

Jim has a doctor’s appointment first thing in the morning, plus we have new clients in town this week and training is tomorrow — so that means that we don’t be able to go to the mc chris show tonight.

ARGH! *pout* *sobs* *throws a tantrum*

I should have stayed in bed today.

And I knew it too, as soon as I saw that my extension was denied again. I posted a complaint to the umo-reviewer mailing list after posting a note and resubmitting my updated extension.

I know I sound like I’m being a whiny little bitch but that really pisses me off and has been one of the burrs in my fur this morning/today.

PLUS I’ve called several times and left messages for the lady who handles the booking for the Gardens. I’ve been trying to get the date and time finalized for the wedding. I finally heard back from the reception place today, but the downside is that if we LAN like Jim wants to do, we more than likely won’t be able to have any alcohol.

Work is putting more pressure on us to get the new system going, but I can’t do that unless I have all of my other webshit done, so it’s been an endless vicious cycle, and I swear to God they don’t pay me enough to endure this shit!

AND I’M OUT OF CHOCOLATE!

*pout*

Can I go home now?

mc chris Website Menu Navigation updated to 0.200 on AMO website

Extension was denied AGAIN by the same reviewer. Apparently he found two more problems he had previously missed but no error information or other details given, so I have NO FUCKING IDEA what he’s running in order to recreate these. I’ve tried on several machines and different configurations and had no problems, and no one else reported problems.

grrrrrrrrrrrrr me thinks he’s not testing with a vanilla profile! :evil:

Plus, he’s not responding to my emails and questions, so I resubmitted the extension to AMO with the same file, updated version, and a long-assed note addressed specifically to him. If he denies it again, I’m filing a complaint with the Moz moderators.

mc chris Website Menu Navigation updated to 0.20 on AMO website

One of the AMO reviewers had a problem with the Contact link (last menu option), so I removed it and had to change the version so the AMO system will take the updated file.

That is the only difference between the version hosted here and the one that will be hosted on AMO.

When I get time I’ll revisit the issue and may re-add it when/if fixed.

mc chris Website Menu Navigation 0.2 released

I’ve updated my mc chris extension — added forums functionality and more interviews:

Install / Download: [ Firefox site, here ]

Screenshot:

Description:

Based upon my MonstersGame extension, this allows you to browse the mc chris website with ease conveniently from the Firefox browser menu. Menu options are available for various facets of his website, as well as the forum, various resource links and other neat stuff! This is a must-have tool for died-in-the-wool nerdcore junkies.

A big thanks goes to: The mc chris forum for giving me the idea to put this together and for their feedback. I’d like most of all to thank mc chris himself for the inspiration, and for supplying mad tunes for my coding pleasure. And last but not least a big thanks to YOU the end-user.

Comments? Bugs? Suggestions? Feel free to contact me through the email in the About dialog box, or via my website. (Please do not use the feedback/rating system at AMO for support.)

Version Log:
0.1 – Initial Release!
0.2 – Added forums functionality and more interviews.

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