McCain & Palin

I'm not one for promoting politicians one way or another, but I thought this was big news:
http://www.comcast.net/articles/news-general/20080829/CVN.Veepstakes/

Australia Beer At Its Finest - Must Watch

So I had day surgery today for my 9mm kidney stone and I'm not up for much bogging....please watch this video, I guarantee you will enjoy it! OK, maybe not guarantee, maybe it's the drugs I'm still on from the surgery....but it's still very cool.

Bejing Olympics Closing Ceremony Moments

See the transformer bus below as it opened...

Front view of my

new bike!

"Bell Girls"

OK, this was cool - all the people in red in the middle were drumming and wearing bike helmets...odd, but they did actually go with their costumes. All the rows on the outside are what I call the "bell girls" (See photo above). Their bodies had hundreds of bells attached to them and they would light up periodically.

So, I'm actually writing this during commercials while watching the Olympics closing ceremonies. A few things worth mentioning. First, I thought it was great how everything was done on such a grand scale - with hundreds and hundreds of entertainers, drummers, etc. Then out come these glow in the dark circle things that have people in the middle of them - they were actually some type of bicycle b/c we could see the people peddling.(See photos above) Mike said he wants one...really, he wants me to see if we can get one. Might not be that hard, I mean really, what do they do with all these things after the Olympics? I can't imagine someone is going to be using those as their mode of transportation after this...."Aw shit, I have the Light Wheel today, I'll never get to work on time!" I'll attach a photo of this oddity.

Speaking of oddities....they announced the next summer Olympics will be in London in 2012, during which Jimmy Paige of Led Zeppelin fame played guitar atop a transformer London-style double decker bus. OK, it's been a while since I've seen 'ol Jimmy crankin' out the riffs, and "Whole Lotta Love" still sounded nice (could have been guitar-sync'd?).....but holy shit is he old! Really I was blown away....I think I'm still in shock. I mean when you looked at him, you looked at the features of his face and it was kind of like, "Gee something looks familiar, but....the packaging is all wrong!"

The bus was kind of cool - looked just like a red double decker bus from London, they had a bus stop and everything, but after they danced all around it, the top opened up right down the middle, in pieces and the pieces kind of folded down over the sides of the bus so you couldn't even see any red from the bus anymore - it was all covered. From inside the bus two platforms arose and the whole things became a weird kind of stage. (see photos above).

Watch Out, Einstein!

You heard me! Move over.....uh, I can't think of any more really famous smart people but they better watch out for my 8 year old! Bethany is getting ready to enter 3rd grade and of course they do not have any formalized honors program in elementary school, however, we do have what is affectionately called "The Talented and Gifted Program". I'm not kidding, that's what it's called. Which is kind of funny b/c you don't have to possess any talent to be accepted.

There is a whole big process for this program...try to follow along people (I know it might be tough for those of us who have not been through said Program):

• You get a letter from your child's second grade teacher advising you that your child is a candidate for the program but will need to be grilled by a psychologist before being accepted into said Program. Of course this letter alone is enough to send most parents running for college applications, right? I'm not the only one, right?


• You have to send a form back saying, yes, please let me know if my child is a genius, or no, my child will not be subjected to your silly test - read "afraid of rejection". I'll make a note here that you really should try to read this note as soon as you get it, even if it's 2 weeks before school ends and you have enough papers coming home every day that you could paper the bottom of every bird cage in the state.


• Should you choose yes, once you send the form back to school (making sure to pin it to your child's forehead to make sure the teacher sees it), you should hear back from someone at the school letting you know when they will be testing your child. Another helpful note here, especially if it's close to the end of school: if you do not hear from anyone at the school regarding said grilling, do not wait until two days before school ends.


• Should you happen to wait until 2 days before the end of school, most likely you will be told your child will have to interrupt their blissful, education free time at some point and be subjected to the test. I accepted this at face value and made a note in my planner to call someone mid-July if I had not heard anything.
• Once August hits and you've forgotten to look at your planner for weeks, expect a phone call from the flaky psychologist to try to set up said testing. Of course I get a call just as Bethany has come down with mild pneumonia and we both agree that she should not be tested when she isn't feeling well. After a very long conversation with the psychologist that felt like she was never quite sure what she was talking about, she advised she would call back at the end of the week to see how Bethany was feeling.
• After no call at the end of the week and us forgetting all about the testing, my husband comes home one day the following week to a message that went something like this: "This is Lydia and I'm waiting to test Bethany! She hasn't been tested yet!" all in a very annoyed tone and of course listened to hours after it was left. I get ahold of this woman who I find out was at the school waiting for us to show up for our appointment we never knew we had...?
• Did I mention my daughter has to switch schools for this program? There are only 2 classrooms in our city for this program, neither at my daughter's school. Little Miss Pyscho has been telling me all along that Bethany will be sent to School B due to where we live - it's all decided by where you live. The Program is for 3rd and 4th grade only. Then she would have to re-join the non-Einstein kids for 5th grade, which begins middle school.
• Anywho....after refreshing psycho's memory about her calling to see how Beth was feeling and slowly getting the "oh yeah" response...and another talking in circles conversation, we set up a time for her to be tested. I should make a note here that really, read the paper as SOON as your child brings it home. Had she been tested while at school before it ended last year, we could have avoided all this....although I was becoming more amused with Little Ms Psycho.
• Bethany had no fear of the test and thought she did great....she's a trooper and takes most things in stride....certainly doesn't take after her parents! Little Miss Psycho advised she would grade Bethany's test right away and bring it to the Superintendent that day since it was so close to school starting. She gave me the gentleman's phone # and said I could call there to get the results. With my previous experience with her, I should have just ignored anything she said, but I'm a sucker like that.
• When I call the superintendent's office there is no answer or machine. Of course not, why would I expect her to have known what she is talking about! When I talk to my husband, Mike, about this he just keeps asking "And she is giving these tests?" So I again call Ms. Psycho only for her to advise she has not yet graded Bethany's test. When I remind her she advised she would grade it right away, etc., she dismisses that and just tells me probably tomorrow. I'm ready at this point to run out and buy this poor woman some sort of supplement to help memory loss....
• I call Superintendent's office the next day and am rudely told they cannot give me this information and the person who tested my child usually gives that info. I explain the psycho probably doesn't remember the grade and told me to call their office. They take my name and number and throw it away.
• Day 3: I come into work to find a message from......the Superintendent's office! I truly was surprised. So I call back and am given the wonderful news that Bethany has been accepted into said Program. Not only that but she tested at a 5th grade level for everything except Math. She tested just above 6th grade for that. He tells me she has an IQ of 140. Never having been through the said Program myself, I stupidly say, "I'm not sure what that means"....and he is thinking, "of course you don't...let me explain it s-l-o-w-l-y", but he says "I give the example of people who usually go for their Doctorate have an IQ of about 125-129." I'm thinking,"Holy Shit!"...but I say, "That's great!"
• So I immediately call Mike to tell him the good news and he says, "She gets it from you because I'm a dumbass"! Which he isn't, of course, but it's still good to hear him say it :) Then he gushes about how proud he is.

Oh, I forgot to mention that Ms. Psycho told us the wrong school as well. Bethany would not be going to school B, she will be going to school C and it's a world of difference b/c school C is not that old and still looks brand new (and actually is identical to her original school - they used the same plans) and school B is a much older (Mike went there for elementary school, just to give you an idea of how old and he is 40!) and run down.

So we all had a tour of the school she would be going to and she decided she would at least try the Program. They advised if she really didn't like it she could go back to her own school with the less talented and gifted. She is worried about missing all her friends and I don't blame her...what else do you have at this age?

I will feel utterly awful if I don't mention that our older daughter, Jamie, was also recommended for the Program when she was going into 3rd grade, but she refused to even get tested. She did perfectly fine without having gone through said Program. She just completed 5th grade where she was in the honors classroom and had straight A's and A+'s the whole year. She is 11 years old and reads more in a week than I read in a normal year. She is in the process of writing a book and has created a website with a friend. Now I'm feeling like a dumbass. When I was 11 it was all about Chinese jump rope and swimming at the local public pool.

Spain in Mourning

I would just like to take a minute to say how sorry I am to all those families who lost a loved one in the plane crash in Spain. You are in my thoughts.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/21/world/europe/21madrid.html?hp&excamp=GGGNspaincrash&WT.srch=1&WT.mc_ev=click&WT.mc_id=GN-S-E-GG-NA-S-spain_crash

Breaking Dawn Shines in My Book!

I honestly could not believe what I was reading online today. Only just having finished the final saga of the Twilight series, I went online to see what people were saying about it. I previously avoided this so as not to accidentally get wind of any plot spoilers. Now I read that there are people encouraging others to return this book! From what I have read in different blogs and articles, this is mainly due to some fans not enjoying how the story played out in this final episode. (warning, spoilers approaching quickly !)

This article: http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jyVVyyqxmaE7yoin8eWk11lsqBmg
talks about how some in the fandom say Breaking Dawn portrays females as weak (b/c Bella can't live without Edward) and glorifies teen pregnancy AND promotes anti-abortion! Are you kidding people??!! Seriously...do you sit there and analyze everything you read and figure out ways to bring negativity to something that is created to bring enjoyment? It's a book for crying out loud! Remember? That's a story where the author makes up characters and a plot and tries to make it really interesting? I believe Ms. Meyer has undoubtedly succeeded in that respect! Ms. Meyer is the only one who got the privilege in decided where the story line would bring us. Anyone with their own story line running in their head were probably disappointed - but that's no one's fault but their own.

I also want to address the fact that anyone who feels the latest "Bedward" story was not right for their daughters SHOULD NOT HAVE LET THEM READ IT! I have not let my daughter read any of the series yet, although she is only 11 (going on 15) so that might be a given, but I will probably not allow her to until she is 16 or so. My main reason is all the sexual tension in the books. The Edwella romance provides for quite the passionate relationship. The sexual tension is almost unbearable at times....really, it's not just me, right? This is something I don't think younger girls will understand at all...OK, I'm hopeful my daughter won't understand this until she is much older....and without the knowledge of those feelings from experience, the pages are turned with much less intensity.

It's my first day after finishing Breaking Dawn and I'm so sad the series has ended :( I'd love to hear from other Edwella fans!

Breaking Dawn

I haven't been into giving personal reviews of the books I read, but I felt I had to make an exception. I have just finished reading the 4th and final (supposedly) installment of the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer.

Background: For those of you not familiar with the hottest book series out there since Harry Potter, Twilight was the first brilliant read by this talented author. What are they about? Hmmm....I watched a web cast with the author who, even herself, said she hesitates to tell people the book is about Vampires....I can feel you cringing - stop that! Let me be the first to tell you I normally do not like books about Vampires and you will hear a lot of Twilight fans say this. I normally read Michael Crichton, murder mystery or just good story telling, like the Shell Seekers. Never in a million years did I think I would like Twilight. The books are classified as being for the "young adults"....but so were Harry Potter, right?

Months ago a librarian recommended Twilight for my daughter (who is 11 but the woman thought she was 15.....yes we're in for trouble with her!) - my daughter had no interest in reading the book so I took a look. I had nothing to read at the time, and so began my wild journey into the Twilight world!

I read Twilight in a matter of days and it wasn't until the book ended abruptly that I realized it was a series. I flew through the next 2 books, Eclipse and New Moon (I can't remember if that is their correct order) with such a ferocious appetite it was exhilarating. However, I didn't talk about it much outside of my family. I mean really....Vampires? Who would take me seriously? What would my friends think?

I even went on the official fan club web website http://www.twilightlexiconblog.com/ to check it out, but it definitely felt geared toward the young adult.....then it happened. I was at the library with my girls, as we are at least once a week, talking with the same woman (young adult = 18 yr old) that recommended the book originally. She was hooked way before me and created legions of followers for which I am grateful. Suddenly another Mom who was lingering close by said, "Are you talking about the Twilight series?" and that was all we needed to start our own little adult Twilight discussion...someone else my age equally enthralled with energy pulsing through these books! That was all I needed to no longer be in denial of my love of these characters and the feelings I have when reading them! It was such a release!

From then on it was my personal crusade to educate my friends and co-workers on the benefits of reading this series: pure enjoyment. It revolves around such an amazing, intense, heartbreaking and deeply emotional love story, you can't help but get caught up in the words pulsing through these pages.

The 4th book was released at midnight Aug. 2nd with release parties at many Borders and Barnes and Noble book stores. I reserved my copy at the Mansfield, MA Borders and arrived at 11pm to get my wristband and wait in line. I had tried to wake my 11 yr old daughter to go with me, but she refused to budge. So there I was, along with hoards of 13-18yr olds with their Moms, who were pretending they were there for their kids - oh yeah, you know they were just as excited as their kids to get their hands on that book!

I know it's a bit childish, but I put off starting the book, b/c I knew it was supposed to be the last book and once I started it, it would go quickly and that would be the end. So I read all but the last 3 chapters and have been putting off those last 3 chapters for about 2 weeks. Now, sadly, it is done. I loved the book, but I'm sad it's the end. Maybe I can start a letter-writing campaign to Stephenie Meyer to please write more?

Well, the movie Twilight comes out Nov. 21st so I guess there is still that to look forward to.

For now, go, read them, enjoy.....and know you are not alone in your enjoyment of these wonderful books!

Update A Palooza

Just wanted to update a few stories I have touched upon:

The US is getting involved now in trying to bring home the 2 little girls from NJ who are stuck in the war torn country of Georgia.http://www.comcast.net/articles/news-national/20080819/Trapped.in.Georgia/ It seems the Uncle did make it there and is with the girls at his parents house, but the US has advised trying to take them out of the country "rescue mission" style would put them in more danger. A US Rep is currently in Georgia and has discussed the children with Georgia officials. Keep them in your thoughts to have a safe resolution.

The Big Foot discovery was a hoax! What a shocker!http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24211558-5012748,00.html I had my "I Y Big Foot" T-shirt on and was ready to spring for a vile containing REAL Big Foot fur....it could happen!

Olympic Update
Michael Phelps did what everyone expected him to do: broke Mark Spitz record and won 100 gold medals at one Olympics. Personally I think it's more interesting when the unexpected happens. Maybe if he started doing the doggie paddle during one of his meets or something? Anyone, according to news reports he is on schedule to now earn more than an human being should be allowed. Whatever....

The chinese woman gymnast beat out the US gymnast even though she fell. Judges gave lame excuse that the Chinese routine was more difficult. I'm sure there are Chinese officials making sure the Chinese athletes are presented in the best possible light (wink, wink, nudge, nudge, know what I mean?)

I hope you have enjoyed today's version of Update A Palooza!

Olympics Update!

OK, I'm not here to give you an update on Phelps millionth gold medal being won, or to let you know that the black design on the beach volleyball players shoulder was not, in fact, a very large tattoo but medical tape to aid in shoulder support....I'm here to discuss the Chinese gymnasts. This US won't let this controversy go! To bring those of you with your head in the sand up to speed....to be on the Olympic gymnastics team, you must be 16 yrs of age the year the Olympics are being held. 9 months ago the Chinese media reported that one of their gymnasts was 13 yrs. old. This same gymnast is now on their Olympic team and was one of the gymnasts that helped beat the US team last week. So if she is 13, she would be ineligible to be on the team and maybe they wouldn't have beaten the US. The Chinese media is saying they made a mistake when they reported her age to be 13 and it goes on and on, back forth b/w the sides...blah, blah, blah. Everyone seems to be missing the bigger point here, and don't get me wrong, I'm all for following the rules and winning by the book, etc....but I believe that either way...SHE HELPED HER TEAM BEAT THE US. Not saying I don't want the U.S. to win, but if she IS 13 yrs. old - good for her! That only makes her feat more extrodinary! Yeah they will probably lose their gold medal, etc., but the U.S. will only look worse for being beaten by a 13 yr. old! Let it rest!

Big Foot, Big Letdown

Briefly I just want to say how disappointing it was on Friday after waiting all day on the edge of my seat for the press conference releasing evidence of Big Foot remains, to get no conclusive evidence of anything! The blood samples taken say it's human, or a possum, or a human who ate a possum and then someone said the samples were probably tainted and cannot be reliable. So, while they continue testing, I will assume Big Foot is still out there....with Nessie, Chupacabra and they are all in some remote corn fields creating huge designs....

Big Foot Revealed!

Tomorrow is the big day! Very exciting! My birthday? No. Going on vacation? No. Tomorrow two guys from Georgia are supposed to release their DNA evidence that they have, in fact, found the remains of Bigfoot. This in itself should be a relief to all those people in Northern Georgia who have been terrified thinking Bigfoot was still out there! And to think so many people have thought he was roaming around California and Oregon for all these years! I'm on the edge of my seat waiting for this one.....if you have never seen the Patterson footage of Bigfoot taken in I think 1967...there is actually a good copy of it on You Tube (there is also a not-so-good copy of You Tube so make sure to check them out). I'd love to hear your thoughts on this creature which has captured the interest of people for years - right up there with Loch Ness and the corn field designs!

All Spiffed Up

You may notice I have once again been playing around with some new things on my blog. I added this cool Google search thingy that shows what people are searching for - I guess maybe only I think that's cool? But the COOLEST thing I just added is that if you scroll down, you can play PAC MAN right from my blog! I know that might bring my intelligence credibility down a notch or two....but it's PAC MAN! I grew up on PAC MAN so I'm really excited about being able to add that to my blog....now all I need is my leg warmers and rainbow sheets!
Enjoy!

War in Georgia Hits Close to Home

If you have watched the news lately no doubt you have seen something about the war happening in the country of Georgia, once part of the Soviet Union. Like the average American, you probably tuned it out or changed the channel to something more local, more relevent. Well I just saw a news story on Foxnews.com about two little girls from NJ who are on summer vacation staying with their Grandparents on their farm in this country when the fighting broke out. I believe the girls are 7 and 3 years old. The parents are here, in the US, terrified. The Grandparents tried getting to the airport as soon as they realized what was happening, but were turned back by Russian troops. If you are not a parent, you may not understand the truly painful situation this presents. I watched a video clip of this story and the parents are so understandably distraught. The story went on to say how a relative, the girls' Uncle I believe, is on his way there to try to help get around the Russian troops and bring the girls home. Very sad. Join me in keeping this family in your thoughts for well wishes and a safe return of their children.

Gloucester "Mama Drama"

The principal at the Gloucester high school where 17 girls got pregnant this past year has resigned. From what I have read, it appears that after the fallout from his comment in Time Magazine and the media bombarded this small fishing town, the principal was told to keep quiet by the Superintendent. Shortly afterward, the Mayor had a press conference stating no confidence in his statements to Time magazine.

Now, I have no idea if there was a pact or there wasn't a pact - this seems to be the point of contention for the Mayor and the Superintendent, what I do know is that regardless of why the media was there, this principal was able to bring to light an obvious problem with teenage pregnancy at that school. No one disputes there were 17 girls that got pregnant and no one disputes that is nearly 4 times the norm at this school. I think the Mayor and Superintendent were embarrassed that their high school was being thrown into the spotlight for negative reasons and were trying sugar coat the situation as well as place blame anywhere but on them. They should be embarrassed....for not bringing the situation to light themselves!
*"Mama Drama" taken from the Boston Herald article

Harry the Pig (Spider Pig)

I have to introduce you to Harry. Harry is the pet of my dear friend. She and her fiance moved into a house out in the "boonies" you might say and the house came with a barn. They actually found Harry in the mud next to the barn when he was just a wee small piglet - who doesn't love cute little piglets! They found out later he had actually been a gag gift brought to a birthday party to a distant neighbors house and had escaped. What a weird gag gift? Anyone want to explain that b/c I'm at a loss. Anyway, my friend takes in any long lost animal as it is, but they both decided Harry belonged with them. The barn was soon fixed up with a nice pen for Harry and he has been living like a king ever since. I believe that last time I got his stats he was around 350 pounds...but what a cutie! This photo is when he was much younger, but it's one of my favorites! His nickname is Spider Pig -like in the Simpsons movie. I also have a link to some more current video of Harry on You Tube. Feel free to leave messages for Harry through comments to this blog...I'll make sure he gets them!

Rockefeller Identity

By now most of us have heard, seen or at least read something about this case. Living near Boston, we heard about his abduction first hand when the car radio broadcast an emergency signal, followed by the Amber Alert for the missing girl. Slowly the story unfolded how she and her mother were here visting from the UK and the girl was on a supervised visit with her father when basically he shoved the social worker and jumped into a waiting suv with his daughter. The You Tube plea from her mother, the searches for his boat, etc. etc. It all seemed quite wild and then it got even wilder as we are now learning that he is actually from Germany and is wanted for questioning in the murder of his old landlords in CA - he disappeared right after they went missing. For some reason he thought he could go to Baltimore, buy a house and live a normal life without being found out - good thinking! Didn't work out for him though and he turned himself in and is currently in jail in Boston and his daughter, I believe, has been returned to her mother.

So here is my question: can you possibly imagine being his ex-wife? The girls mother who pleaded for her return on You Tube? If this woman had no idea who he really was, this woman must be counting her blessings every single day that she unloaded this guy, or maybe he dumped her, I have no idea, but either way I'm sure she saddled with relief that nothing serious happened to her or her daughter. Maybe the ex did know and that's why she kicked him to the curb?