Haunted Garage...

The story begins with my Mother-in-Law. She has a long history of finding things like fart machines and the Billy Bass funny. I think the best present I ever got her was a whoopy cushion.

About 2 years ago my MiL sent us the Santa Pig. It's a plush pig dressed like santa, AND when you pull it's tail it says, "Oink, oink, oink...Oink, Oink, Oink" to the tune of jingle bells. Needless to say it drove Yasser mad. So, every year for Christmas we bring out the pig for a few hours and let Yasser have at it. Just the sight of it puts Yasser into a frenzy. Over the years, the pig has gotten a little worse for ware. His Santa suit is loosing some of it's sparkle. You can't always get the music to start...or stop. In December I'll try to get some video of Yasser and Moshe finishing him off.

So, every once in a while, in the last two days, when we open the garage door the pig, tucked away in the box of Christmas decorations, will be oinking. It is just about the creepiest thing ever. It's not motion sensitive...you really have to pull on the tail to get it to Oink. Just now, at 9:45pm I was going to go out and get a soda, but I opened the door and there was Oinking. I shut the door, locked it, and made Bradley go out there.

I'm not messing with the Satan Pig.

Promotion

A good friend of mine runs this site. You should check it out. He's funny most of the time.

Record Breaking Heresy

I just want to see how many posts I can put up in one day. Plus, this way I can at least truthfully tell people I spent the day writing.
So, it's been three weeks. It's hardly enough time to tell if a show is going to make it or not, but it seems like it's been enough time to comment on Dollhouse.

Let me start by saying I like Joss Whedon's stuff. Like. Although I've rhapsodized about certain elements of Angel, I'm not a huge fan. I think other shows, like BSG, the Wire, and H:LOTS, have approached similar ideas differently and better. What?! You say it's not fair to compare the Whedonverse to such dramatic shows, but I think it is. At it's heart the Whedonverse takes some heavy topics, adds vampires or space, and a little comedic element to make it all palatable.

Dollhouse attempts to loose the less realistic factors of the Whedonverse and just give all out drama, which is where I think it goes wrong. The show actually needs to be darker. It needs a little of BSGs bleakness. The wise cracking characters in Dollhouse seem out of place with everyone and everything else. I'm willing to suspend belief. I don't need any explanations of the science, but in this case I need it to at least be serious. If other characters don't take their world seriously, why should I? A darker, bleaker world might also help me to feel more sympathetic to the "dolls" when they are no programmed. Right now the world they inhabit appears so plush and rosy that I am not as alarmed for them as I should be.

Here is the other issue. The show feels rushed. I know, I know I am supposedly a more sophisticated viewer and I can handle multiple plot lines; but, maybe I don't want to. It seems like there is a need to get too much of the mystery out there too soon. I know Whedon's had problems with Fox before (Firefly), but he seems driven to get all the mystery out there right now. I can't quite keep up. In fact, I need to go back to the third episode because I am still not sure how Tamoh Penikett's character got shot.

In short, I like the show, but I think it needed to be on SciFi or HBO or some other channel where it could have been darker and less rushed.

Proverbial bull...

It is a beautiful, snowy day here in Someday land. It beautiful because it doesn't happen here that often, which means whenever it does snow there is bound to be a day off. This semester has had it's share of late starts. Since I don't teach until 1:00pm, those do not normally affect me. Today, however, today they just cancelled the whole day. Woo Hoo! I got an extra, much needed day off.

Of course, I began badgering the DH to take me out. It's really not that bad on the main roads, but a lot of areas are without power. As we got ready to go out, I went into the back yard to play around. I stood under the deck umbrella to hit the snow and make it fall off. Unfortunately, doing that, caused an imbalance in the umbrella. The whole table began to tip over and when the umbrella stalk hit the glass of the table it shattered. Yup. Shattered. It's all over the deck. I tried to clean it up, but I think I have to wait for the snow to melt. This kind of thing only happens to me. I broke the deck table in the middle of winter.

I'm so sad. Now, we don't have a deck table. I guess we'll have to start trolling the ailses at Home Depot and Big Lots.

Snow Da y Cuteness

As you've probably heard, the world has come to an end south of the Mason-Dixon. The great part of living down here is the occasional "Snow Day" when everything shuts down. Unless you work at the grocery store, you get the day off. Here are some pictures of snow and animals to get us through the day.
This is a momentous occassion. Yasser and Moshe have been playing together, but Yasser is a grumpy little bastard when he sleeps. He even growls at us for moving. Consequently, this is the closest they've ever been when relaxing. AND Yasser moved there voluntarily.

Puppies first big snow. I think it is actually as deep as his belly. Whatever it is, he doesn't like it much.

The sun is out. The sky is blue. It is truly a GORGEOUS day.

Weather Update...

It is finally snowing. Snowing hard.

Sunday, rainy sunday...

It isn't snowing yet, so much for 4-6 inches, but it is icy. The poor willow tree in the back yard is covered in ice. I can hear the wind and the rain. All the animals are on their own today, no walks, no company in the yard. I am not stepping a foot outside of the house.

Tomorrow I have to go back to school for one week and then Spring Break! I wish it were next week, I am so unenthused about it all. On Friday, in a conference I almost told a student that she was absolutely correct. She has nothing to say. Don't worry, I was a good teacher. I'd never really say anything like that. Fortunately this week is full of presentations and I don't have to do much. Well, tomorrow, I'm giving a presentation of my own. One of my colleagues asked me to speak to her class. The class is reading My Stroke of Insight, so I'm going to tell them about my own stroke experience. I'm a little nervous about it all, but I said I would do it.

Anyway, since there is not much going on here today, I give you a meme. (I just assume these are "favorites." It didn't come with instructions.

A
- Available: for teaching
- Age: non-linear
- Annoyance: People
- Animal: (s) too many
- Actor: Huge Ackman
- Actress: Kate Winslet

B
- Beer: good
- Birthday: September 2nd
- Best Friend: Hamish & the CP
- Body Part on opposite sex: Wrists
- Best feeling in the world: Clean Sheets
- Best weather: Sitting on the deck weather
- Been on stage?: Not enough

C
- Car: Scarlette
- Candy: Chocolate & Nuts
- Cried in school: Not yet, working on keeping it that way
- Chocolate/Vanilla: Depends
- Chinese/Mexican: Vietnamese
- Cake or pie: Cake
- Country to visit: Czech Republic

D
- Day or Night: Night
- Dream vehicle: Vespa
- Dance: Not enough

E
- Eggs: Yes
- Eyes: Brown
- Everyone has: A bellybutton
- Ever failed a class?: Nope

F
First crush: Mark something or other....I was told. The first I remember Chris Tomzack
- Full name: Somedayphd
- First thoughts waking up: Damn Puppy

G
- Greatest Fear(s): Burning
- Goals: Who needs them?
- Gum: I don't like to chew gum much anymore.
- Get along with your parents?: Usually
- Good luck charm: Clearly I need one.

H
- Hair Color: Whatever the bottle says.
- Height: 5' 5"
- Happy:
- Holiday: Bastille Day
- How do you want to die: What a ridiculous question.

I
- Ice Cream: Yes
- Instrument: Flute

J
- Jewelry: I like it.
- Job: Teaching

K
- Kids:
- Kickboxing or karate: Neither
- Keep a journal?: Never good at it.

L
- Longest Car Ride: Western Wa to Homer Alaska
- Love: My family and friends and animals.
- Letter(s): ?
- Laughed so hard you cried: "The dog was loose and still is loose."
- Love at first sight: Sure.

M
- Movie: LA Confidential
- Mooned anyone?: No
- Marriage: Is all about the good story.
- Motion sickness? nope
- McD's or BK: McD's

N
- Number of Siblings: 2
- Number of Piercings: 3
- Number:

O
- Overused Phrases: Post - ????
- One phobia: Falling down stairs.

P
- Place you'd like to live: Central France
-Perfect Pizza: pineapple/ham
- Pepsi/Coke: Diet Coke/ Cherry Pepsi

Q
- Quail: Never tried it.

R
- Reason to cry: Many
- Reality T.V.: No
- Radio Station:
- Roll your tongue in a circle?: Since my grandpa taught me as a wee lass.

S
- Song: Girl in the War
- Salad: with Bleu Cheese
- Shrimp?: Why can't they clean it properly?
- Sport?: Hockey
- Skipped school: Occasionally
Slept outside: Not recently.
- Seen a dead body?: Yes.
- Shower Daily?: Mostly
- Sing well?- Define well
- Stuffed Animals?: They've all gone to the dogs.


T
- Time for bed: Ideally - 9. Realistically - 12-1.
- Thunderstorms: Love them.
- TV: Of course.
- Touch your tongue to your nose?: Nope.

U
- Unpredictable: I'd like to think so, but not really.

V
- Vegetable you hate: cooked carrots. But, I love them raw. Go figure.
- Vegetable you love: Fresh Peas
- Vacation spot: Vacation?

W
- Weakness: Chocolate
- When you grow up: I want to work somewhere else
- Which one of your friends acts the most like you?: don't know
- Who makes you laugh the most: Robert
- Worst feeling: Nausea
- Wanted to be a model: Nope.
- Worst weather: Chilly, rainy, and blustery.

X
-X-Ray: Just to prove I can swallow

Y
-Year now?: 2009
-Yellow: Can't wear it.

Z
- Zoo animal: Sharks
- Zodiac sign: Virgo

Last person who:
-Went to the movies with you: DH
- You went to the mall with: I try to avoid the mall, but I think it was CP
- Went to dinner with: DH
- Talked to on the phone: My Dad
- Made you laugh: Robert