So Cindy is talking Christmas gifts. See Cindys blog(ooh ooh, I did a link! Thank you Kimba!!!) The Christmas gifts that we all have gotten and have to smile and say 'thank you' to. I have never been good at doing exchanges or returns. Which is really funny because I work in Retail, I manage a store and get returns/exchanges almost every day. Maybe that is why. But I figure it is that lazy aspect to me. I get frustrated with gifts like clothing. I am an odd sized person. Bigger then an XL but not quite a 2x or such. But when other people buy you gifts, how often does it all really fit? And do they think of YOU or what is cute and on sale and in that season. One of my friends - I have known her almost 12 years now got me a great 'lounge' suite. A shirt, some pants and some gooshy comfy socks. All very nice and it all fit and it was cool. Except it was also- all in black. Um.... Hello? DOG HAIR?????? Yes, my dogs shed. They shed 24 hrs a day and 8 days a week. There is hair everywhere. And it is white hair. And she knows this. She has been to my house. She has been shed on by my dogs. What was she thinking? So the black lounge suit got put into a drawer and the socks became nice and grey on the soles and maybe someday I will wear it. Sigh. I would much rather have gift cards - or hey, just pay a bill or two off. My In Laws are great at gift cards - Best Buy is a favorite. That one is a classic winner. I say I would rather have gift cards, but then I have gift cards from last year that I still haven't used. These are the places that there is only one of in town and it is on their side of town not ours...so we don't get there. So yeah, just send money. Honest, I won't think its chinsy, I will appreciate it. We must stop and think about the other side though. I wonder sometimes what happens to the gifts I give to people. Do they really like them as much as they say they do? Or does it all get shoved into a drawer or closet? I try to get things that have proven to be hits in earlier years. My Dad is a cook. He loves to cook and is very good at it. So working at a 'knife store' filled with cutlery, I give him some good knives. These get put in the china closet and not used. The $10.00 cheese knife I got him is used everyday. He loves that one. So. Last year I get him two styles of that. Its a HIT!!! Think of the other side when you buy your gifts this year. What would be easily exchanged if necessary and what has been a success in the past. Happy shopping!

I love Snapfish! In case anyone is wondering, they are an online photo printing company. They did our Christmas cards. I love them! I haven't had Christmas cards to send out in years. Working in Retail you find that time is highly valuable from now till Dec 30th. Social life is nill and families just learn to understand. But this year I sent Snapfish a pic early enough that I got my cards to send out to people. It is exciting. It means I may even get some back from people. Our Christmas card archway has been looking pretty thin lately. The Christmas cards have led to some Christmas memories. I had a pretty creative Mom when I was growing up. She used to do all kinds of neat things with the Christmas decorations. Not all the normal stuff, but some (cough cough) unusual things too. When I was just a wee one we had the coat hanger christmas tree. You know, you make it out of wire and hang the balls on it and it is sort of a free wheeling design in the living room. Happy to say that was just one year. We had the tree that needed lots and lots of wires to keep it up and not horizontal. We also had the tree that was cut down and brought in by my Dad - from the neighbors yard. Ha, he didn't know it when he cut, he thought he was still in our yard. My Mom soothed that over by inviting them to the New Years party she had every year. My Mom loved to decorate for Christmas - you know the pine wreaths, the wreaths made at the garden club with dried stuff, green stuff and pine cones. We also had the lights outside the house and the wonderous cookies everywhere. It was fun at Christmas in my house. We have home movies that are pretty cliche. My younger brother and I at the top of the stairs wanting to run down them and jumping up and down. Me elbowing my little brother out of the way. Us with paper flying everywhere and the classic shot of Red (our family dog) laying calmly in the middle of it all. And of course the presents we got. Holding them up and squealing as only kids can. One great scene in later years on the home movie is from my older brother bringing my Mom her present - it was an art sculpture with a very esoteric feel that had paint drips on it. Looking at it now, it looks like an Octopus grabbed its head and then died. Poor Mom. She had to look all happy about it. She was good at that though. Christmas is just 35 days away. I learned that going to Sam's Club today. We went in for 2 things, (water and dog food) we ended up buying 9 things and spent $90.00. Not too bad for a Sam's club. Happy Holidays!

Thanks JRH...I can do your thing of a song as a title... I have to, see I went to see the movie - Walk the Line - the Johnny Cash story. It was enrapturing from the first moment to the last. The movie opens with them in the Folsom prison and it is just beautiful photography/filming of the first few minutes. Joaquin Phoenix also did an awesome job. And this is from a knows nothing about the artist kind of gal. (other then he sang a Boy named Sue - which is not in the movie) They showed a lot of the story about the romance/tension between Johnny Cash and June Carter - the was the feeling of what they couldn't have off stage and it came on stage. And a couple scenes that had me teary. Also some back story about his growing up and what made him feel inside what he sang out to the public. I lowered my voice and sang on the way home. Did pretty good too. Sounded at least like Phoenix, if not Cash. Now the theatre is one that I may never go back too though. It was a crunched up little box theatre that had huge airplane like seats, and lots of floor space, but we were almost hugging each other while sitting. No elbow room. I stood up at the end just to see if I could feel my left arm again. The right one had been busy with popcorn, so it was safe. Now, this movie is one that was longer then some, but really worth the time. Well done. As I said, it got me singing. It also has me looking at soundtracks and for cd's to play on the way to work. Of course, I wonder how much of the movie is truth and how much is drama, as with any movie, but this is story that was done with some humor, lots of drama and a touch of love. Thats what made the movie. The power of the love. Go see it, you will enjoy it. But don't blame me when you come out singing... "I can hear the train a coming, its coming round the bend...."

> Okay, this is a joke, but it is a decent set up and I liked it enough to share. As a photographer I know what my choice would be... > This test has one question, but it's a very important one. By giving an honest answer, you will discover where you stand morally. The test > features an unlikely, completely fictional situation in which you will have to make a decision. Remember that your answer needs to be honest, > yet spontaneous. Please scroll down slowly and give due consideration to each line. > > ------------------------- > > THE SITUATION > > You are in New Orleans to be specific. There is chaos all around you caused by a hurricane with severe flooding. This is a flood of biblical > proportions. You are photo journalist working for a major newspaper, and you're caught in the middle of this epic disaster. The situation is > nearly hopeless. You're trying to shoot career-making photos. There are houses and people swirling around you, some disappearing under the > water. Nature is unleashing all of its destructive fury. > > =============================================== > > THE TEST > > Suddenly you see a man in the water. He is fighting for his life, trying not to be taken down with the debris. You move closer. Somehow the man > looks familiar. You suddenly realize who it is. It's the President, George W. Bush. At the same time you notice that the raging waters are > about to take him under forever. You have two options- you can save the life of the President, or you can shoot a dramatic Pulitzer Prize > winning photo, documenting the death of one of the world's most famous men. > > =============================================== > > THE QUESTION > > Here's the question, and please give an honest answer....... > > > Would you select high contrast color film, or would you go with the classic simplicity of black and white?

I was watching JFK today as I was doing other things around the house - mostly in the kitchen. This movie is a wonderful orchestra of actors, story and directing. My husband is a bit of a JFK fanatic. He watches all the movie about JFK, the shooting and that has taught me a lot that I hadn't known. (thanks to my wonderful history classes that didn't get past 1900) So, here I am, at home with just minor household chores to do and watching a movie I have seen many times. The first time was on the big screen with my hubby and his son. We had just been married 2 years and were still in a honeymoon feeling. The poor kid was just 14 and I didn't think he was going to make it thru the whole thing, but he did. And the discussion that came afterwards was great. Knowing the exwife and boys mom, I was happy to learn that breeding can begat some brains. I enjoyed the movie just because of all the actors that I knew from so many other things - seeing them in a new light. Norm from Seinfield, Jackie from Roseanne, Kevin Costner was excellent, but I mean, geesh, Sissy Spacek, Kevin Bacon, John Candy, Jack Lemmon, Joe Pesci - it goes on and on. They all played off of each other so well and it was an amazing movie. I think what really amazed me was that this movie was about a trial and such that happened so many years ago - and yet it was so difficult for anyone to believe that it was a conspiracy and that there were men on the grassy knoll. I still listen to the scene where they are in the trial and Costner is saying "back and to the left" over and over. It is a valid point. How did that bullet bounce as it did. Stop in mid air as it did and then continue on to kill. If we are all believers that it was a conspiracy, or at least nonbelievers that Oswald acted alone, why was nothing more done? So JFK died. Oswald was killed and has been said...the truth is out there.

I received this link in an email. It was a little silly but in a funny way. And no, not at all true. http://wwwflashfunpages.com/couple.swf

As a LOST fan, I have been thinking alot about the Numbers. Yes, the Numbers with a capital N. See, in the show, if you don't know what I am talking about, there is a set of Numbers that is interconnected with one of the characters and things that happen in the show. Hurley, a lovable dude if there ever was one used the Numbers, 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 & 42 on the Lottery. And Won big. Then we come to find out those are the numbers inputed into a computer system and also the numbers on all kinds of things in the show - the girls soccor team in the airport, the speed Desmond was bicycling, the reward for Kate...it goes on and on. So, what do the Numbers mean to me? Well....my 16th wedding anniversary is today. Yep. Hubby and I made it 16 wonderful roller coaster wild years. And 16 is one of the numbers. So I started thinking about how the numbers match up in my life. Well, 4 is easy. That has always been a number for me - there are 4 kids in the family, we are 4 years apart and so are my parents. Also, I was married on the Fourth. As for 8, well, my husband and I are 8 years apart. That works. Now 15 was tougher. Then I thought, hey, I was 15 when I got my drivers license. Yep, not 16, but 15. So that makes me special. And it is a Number. 16 we know already. My anniversary this year. And then there is 23. That is a very special number. I lost my virginity at 23. Yep. Hung on for a long time waiting for the right guy and then said 'ah, what the heck' and went for broke. I will say I had a good time and will never forget Flash Gordon (the 80's version) because of that. So we are down to 42 - I couldn't find a significance to link that number to me, and then it hit me. The Meaning of Life. Yes, Hitchhikers Guide and I even got to meet Douglas Adams at reading he gave at my college one year in the eighties. So there we go. All the Numbers are connected to me and I to them....I am not LOST....

A chance to dress up in costumes - absolutely! It is a favorite in this house. My husband and I love to do the costume thing and we don't do it that often, but when we do, we do! I posted the following on another board and then figured I would be lazy here and just copy and paste...so some of you may have read this already. My cousin has a big blow out Halloween party every year. We make it to her place about every other or third year. She is not close and we have to plan our time off around this. But it is worth it. Some favorites of our costuming fun- We made Classic Star Trek costumes - Gold shirts and with the Enterprise ships emblem on the chest, only we had new depts....the male and female symbols that are classic. The Ankh and the other one. I had the female symbol and he had the male. Our department? We were SEX THERAPISTS. So we went about talking to everyone at the party about sex. Their sex lives. I also had a bra stuff to the gills with socks. That was a riot. We were acting like we were a)from another universe and b) trying to make sure everyone was fine sexually and help them if they needed it. One year we went to the party and he made his own Batman outfit. It was awesome, considering he did it all without a sewing machine. Everything looked good, except for the mask. But the party wasn't till nov 2 (because of the weekend) and on Nov 1st I walked into a halloween party shop and found a rubber batman mask marked from like $50 bucks to $11. I bought it for him and it made the costume. I went as Poison Ivy. I am posting this pic down below. I think I have posted it here before. Once he made a Duffbeer man costume...but he ended up looking more like someone from the Village People!!! I had a costume that I liked - I was a dog trainer. I sewed a couple stuffed Dalmatians on to my arms and legs and it looked like they were attacking me. Sort of. Mostly that one was cute but annoying as the animals kept bumping into things. One year we went as Laurel and Hardy. Those were pretty easy to make once we got the masks. Though when we got into dancing to the music of Meatloaf 'Paradise by the dashboard light', they got sweaty and we started stripping stuff off. To the music and it turned out to be quite the number. Unforgettable is what my cousin says. Happy Halloween everyone!!!

I finally finally finally got rid of that darn Church Lady. Gosh she was annoying as a level emblem. I don't mind Kramer. I do have to join the crowd and name my butterfly. I think I will go for Madison. It is a determined butterfly and I like that. Not just because of Vincent on Lost, thought that helps. Mad Butterflies.

We went to see this movie - Good night and good luck, directed by George Clooney. It was a piece about the McCarthy era and the way CBS and Edward G Murrow started the ball rolling on bringing some justice to America. It was done in the form of broadcasts with information and questions on what exactly was McCarthy doing and to whom. Murrow was trying to show America that what was happening should not be happening - it was against the constitution. And it worked. I never studied this in school. We always talked about the Revolutionary war and the Civil war but unfortunately never got past the 1900's. I have read and seen movies about Kennedy and other parts of our American past. But not this era. So when the hubby asked me to go, I said yes. It was interesting and I wanted to talk more about it. The movie was pretty well put together too. It was filmed in black and white and shot with angles as you might have seen in 1953. It was interesting. It is movies like this, about times like those that make me happy to live in America.