*2Flower* To You...

Saturday, October 04, 2003

Movie Reviews

Scott suggested today while we were talking and driving, that I should do some more movie reviews of the movies we've seen lately. So here goes:

Open Range: 8 out of 10
We saw this when it was out in theaters not too long ago, and Scott and I both really enjoyed it. Despite the "R" rating, there wasn't too much in it that I found offensive. It was pretty violent, but not so much so that I wouldn't let my children see it. I thought the story was very good, and I'm not a big Western fan. Robert Duvall and Kevin Costner both played very likeable characters. The conflict in the story was between them and a rancher whose property they were traveling through with their herd. Unfortunately for them, the rancher pretty much owned the town and the law there, and there was no justice except what they were able to get on their own by fighting for it. The cinematography was quite beautiful, and I also enjoyed the romantic aspects of the film, as there was just enough in my opinion, but not too much. The story moved sort of slowly and deliberately, but I felt that the pace reflected the time period, so I didn't feel impatient about the slow pace. I felt I could really savor the movie and get my money's worth out of the experience. I would highly recommend it to anyone.

Shanghai Knights: 3 out of 10
3 out of 10 is generous, but I have a place in my heart for Jackie Chan. We rented this recently, and it left us all cold. The only redeeming qualities to me were Jackie Chan (because I'm usually a fan) and his stunts. We only laughed a couple of times throughout the entire movie, and it was supposed to be a comedy. To me it wasn't even funny accidentally. It had a very predictable but not believeable plot. It had quite a bit more offensive language and innuendos than the first movie, Shanghai Noon, so I wouldn't consider it a family movie. There was absolutely nothing likeable or redeeming about Roy O'Bannon (Owen Wilson) in this sequel -- he was just irritating. We rented it because the first movie was so funny and fun, but my family hardly laughed at all at this one. I'm just so glad we didn't actually pay to all go see at the theater.

A Mighty Wind: 3 out of 10
A Mighty Wind -- Blows. I would give it less than 3, but I did enjoy some of the music, and we laughed a few times. My family didn't enjoy this "Mockumentary" very much, and the kids were pretty bored. I really blew it for picking this one out, and I'll probably never hear the end of it from my family. It was just --- weird. And that's probably why we kept watching instead of turning it off. We kept waiting for it to make a little sense, but it never really delivered. When it was over, we just kind of looked at each other in wonder and shrugged. I'm not really sure why it received so many rave reviews. But if you really want to see something "different", this is it, because I've certainly never seen anything like it before. Or as my son Jason said, "Wha' Happened?"

Daddy Daycare: 6 out of 10
I have mixed feelings about this one. It was good in the sense that it was clean and good for the whole family to watch. I didn't notice anything offensive in this one, plus it was rated "PG". It was fairly entertaining, but the plot was quite predictable. It could have been "Mr. Mom" almost. I thought some of the characters were overdone, especially Anjelica Huston's role as a competing daycare owner. And I thought some of the humor was lame, like the kid that always kicks adults in the shins or in the groin. That's for cheap laughs, but I don't think it's funny. Plus, I have a personal opinion about daycare not being the best for kids, no matter how fun it happens to be. But overall, it's a good pick if you want a movie that the whole family can watch together without anyone getting too bored.

Well, that's it for tonight. I have a few more, but I'm going to go to bed now. Good-night...

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General Conference

Scott and I went to my parents' house to watch General Conference today. What I saw of it was good, although I spent part of the time crashed out on their living room floor. There wasn't really a comfortable spot anywhere else, and I didn't want to sprawl all over Scott. I was surprised I could sleep down there, because I'm not a floor person. But I've been unexplainably drowsy the last few days. It's a good thing I wasn't driving. Actually, it could be my medicine. Lexapro has made me drowsy ever since I started taking it, but some times are worse than others. As far as the conference goes, I wish I had taken notes, but I will have to write about it later. But there were some great talks, and I feel peaceful tonight.

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My Hero

I was delighted with the results of this quiz, as Ronald Reagan has always been someone I greatly admire. I think he is the greatest president of the 20th Century. It is a goal of mine to create a page about my heroes on my website soon. He will definitely be on the page. Ronald Reagan is a hero. He won the cold war. Without him, who knows what state the world would be in today.

Republican - You believe that the free market will
take care of most things, but that the
government should be there with moderate
taxation to provide for national defense and
enforcing morality. Your historical role model
is Ronald Reagan.

Which political stereotype are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

I remember in my high school history class having to listen to my stupid history teacher put Ronald Reagan down almost daily, calling him a fascist. I was so angry with her. It was almost intolerable to be a conservative in her class. She called Republicans and conservatives fascists too. I hated her class, and a small number of us sat in the back together for moral support. That was back when Bill Clinton was governor of Arkansas. She always had loads and loads of praise for him and Hillary. Plus he was just SO good-looking, and "blah, blah, blah, blah, blah." All the "Young Democrats" sat up in the front, and were all teacher's pets, fawning over Mrs. T and her liberal spewing. It was sickening. ~~I'll bet she had slept with Bill. I'll just bet. Of course, I don't know. I can only guess, but you know, it probably isn't beyond the realm of possibility considering his track record.~~ I was in a bad mood the day I wrote this. I'll just say that it was very obvious that she had a huge crush on him. And I'll leave it at that. Hopefully that was it.

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Friday, October 03, 2003

The Friday Five

1. What vehicle do you drive? a 1994 Ford Taurus wagon -- green.

2. How long have you had it? 3 years or so, bought it used.

3. What is the coolest feature on your vehicle? I like the back because it's so good for loading and unloading groceries, plus it has an extra seat back there so the kids have more room.

4. What is the most annoying thing about your vehicle? It has some electrical problems.

5. If money were no object, what vehicle would you be driving right now? Some really high-dollar SUV.

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I would rein over the wind. Actually, I'm just in it for the purple hair. ;)

Goddess of Wind, calm and cool and under control.
You don't like getting personal with too many
people.

What element would you rein over? (For Girls)
brought to you by Quizilla

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If I Were A Witch, which I'm not (usually)

I was so excited to hear that there was a Terry Pratchett quiz on Quizilla! Charity found this today. She was Granny Weatherwax, and I was:

You're Magrat Garlick

(Terry Pratchett) Which witch are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

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Today is another Brother Stevens Day for me. I've got to go pick him up in a few minutes and take him into town to run errands and do laundry. I'm really grateful to Scott for getting up and driving Ian to school. Ian missed the bus, and if I had taken him I wouldn't have been able to eat breakfast or fix my hair, etc. As it is now, I have a few minutes to post.

Do I have anything to say? No, not really. My snuggle-bug Christopher has made it in here. He usually comes and gets in our bed in the mornings. He's my baby still, even though he's 9.

It's getting chilly here at night now. We haven't had to run the heat yet, but I can tell just because my skin is getting so dry, which is painful. But the good this is that my face doesn't break out as much in the fall and winter. I do love this time of the year. Summers are too hot for me here, and I stay in the air-conditioning.

Jason just woke up and is late for work. He must have stayed up too late again. Thankfully, he usually gets himself up and going now. This is the first time he's overslept, and he's been working there for several months.

Well, I really have to go. I'll write later...

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Thursday, October 02, 2003

thisdayinmusic.com

This site is really fun! I was able to find out the number 1 songs for each member of my family. Here is mine:

The No.1 on the day I was born was... Love is Here and Now You're Gone by The Supremes

I'll have to find that one sometime.

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I haven't really written anything personal in a couple of days, but I've been working on a new page that I just put up tonight. I called it "101 Things More Than Anyone Wants To Know About Me." I'm going to join the 100 Things About Me NetRing. Of course, I had to be a little different and put 101 things.

Oh yeah, and "Hi Sandy!" She's a friend of mine who may be coming to check out my page.

My son Jason started a weblog yesterday, and it's going to be great. He's a fantastic writer, and I'm not just saying that because he's my son. It's called The Rooftops, if you want to check it out.

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Wednesday, October 01, 2003

Is this really me?

If it is, do I dare admit it? Oh, who cares. I am who I am, or "I yam who I yam".... or something like that.

Conscious self	Overall self

Take Free Enneagram Test

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The Big Five Personality Test

Extroverted	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	68%
Introverted	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	32%
Friendly	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	74%
Aggressive	\|\|\|\|\|\|	26%
Orderly	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	42%
Disorderly	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	58%
Relaxed	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	42%
Emotional	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	58%
Intellectual	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	78%
Practical	\|\|\|\|\|\|	22%

Take Free Big 5 Personality Test

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Past Fives

Since I've only been doing this blog since September 8th of this year and just now found The Friday 5, I'm very late starting. I thought I'd do the archived ones on other days of the week. It looks like fun.
(from Past Fives)

1. Where were you born (city or state or just country)? New London, Conn. My dad was stationed there with the Navy, and he was on a submarine a lot until I was 5.

2. What is your favorite number? forty-seven. I don't really have a good reason, except it sounds good comedically.

3. Vanilla or chocolate? Is this a real question? I have a hard time believing that anyone could have the passion for vanilla that I feel for chocolate.

4. What section of a bookstore would I find you in? Well, a better question to ask would be what parts you would NOT find me in. As for books I actually buy, I would say classics, science-fiction fantasy, politics, and whatever non-fiction subject I'm currently obsessed with.

5. What kind of mattress do you have on your bed? soft? firm? water? Soft, but I would prefer a firmer one. But I'm not in a financial situation to complain. I won't look a gift mattress in the springs.

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Tuesday, September 30, 2003

I'm Spork and I'm Proud

You are a spork! You are a mismatched hodgepodge of a personality, and as such, utterly useless.

what kitchen utensil are YOU?

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Pepsi??? Bluh...

Oh yeah, here is my email to Subway tonight:

I went to Subway yesterday, and I was sad to see that the bottled sodas were gone, but despite my disappointment I managed to order a fountain Coke and paid for it. Alas, upon my arrival at the soda machine to my great dismay there was NO COKE. Nor any sign that Coke had ever been there. It was quite spooky really. I had to drink Mug Rootbeer. :p Instead, evil Pepsi was lurking on the soda machine in its stead! What happened? Is this happening at all Subways, or is this an isolated incident? Subway is my favorite fast-food chain restaurant. I visit every week, but that could all change. Especially if Burger King and others make good low-fat subs AND sell COCA-COLA. Hmmm.... Do you really want to follow in the footsteps of Taco Bell? The food is pretty tasty (although admittedly NOT low-fat) but there also is no Coke. And that is why I only go there maybe once or twice a year when someone talks me into taking them there.

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Can't Shut My Fingers Up

Nowadays I can't shut my fingers up when I find things offensive. I mentioned in my blog on September 10th about the "Big O"ffensive Commercial run by Overstock.com. Well, I think I can safely declare victory, amazingly enough. I haven't heard it once since I e-mailed them that day, and a few weeks have now passed. I'm not saying that I did it, but I may have helped. I think they take comments very seriously, as few people bother to voice opinions. So one person can make a difference.

I didn't do a blog on it yet, but have you seen the AllPosters.com pop-up ads with the two women lying down together in their underwear trying to suck each other's lips off? I usually see it on GeoCities sites up in the right corner of the screen. Anyway, ewwww... I just hate it. I wrote to AllPosters a few weeks ago---about the same time I wrote to Overstock.com. I haven't heard a peep from them yet, but then again I'm not surprised. Here is what I wrote them:

"Kiss" poster ads

I find this poster very offensive, and I'm tired of seeing it on pop-ups. Why are you using it to advertise your website? Why don't you try to appeal to more mainstream audiences? Does your company believe in family values?

And then tonight, I followed a link to find an article on The Arizona Republic about an 11-year-old homeschooled boy who invented an improved device to help law enforcement officials. The ad that was up on the on the page at that time was really offensive, so my email to them says it all:

I was trying to read an article about a homeschooled boy who invented a device to help police officers, however, the article was wrapped around a really offensive MGM Grand ad with a woman's bare behind sticking virtually in my face. I am really disappointed that you run those kind of ads on your website. I guess I mistakenly assumed that this was a family-friendly news site. I was looking forward to letting my children read the article as well, but I can't. Too bad for us.

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Our House

Christopher and I found our house on TerraServer USA. We read that the images were taken in February 1994, but our house wasn't there yet, so it had to be taken in the winter, within the last 4 years. I'll tell you what, I think directions and map-reading are a more typically male ability. Christopher is 9, and without his help I don't know if I would have been able to follow the roads from the nearby small town to our house. It's amazing. :) Anyway, if you want to see it or not, this is our house:

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The Gender Genie

This is really amazing. A computer program has been developed that can tell the gender of an author by scanning for key words. Supposedly, it's about 80% accurate on both fiction and non-fiction writing. So I put it to the test, and I copied and pasted in my blog from last night (Lord of the Ringers), and here are the results:

Words: 360

(NOTE: The genie works best on texts of more than 500 words.)

Female Score: 839
Male Score: 803

The Gender Genie thinks the author of this passage is: female!

Read more here at Nature.com.

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Monday, September 29, 2003

Muhahahaaaa!

I am 36% Evil Genius

I want to be evil. I do evil things. But given the opportunity, and a darn good reason I may turn to the good side. Besides I am probably a miserable evil genius.

Take the Evil Genius Test at fuali.com
(I'll be good)

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Lord of the Ringers

I realize more and more how much I hate the telephone. We can truly become slaves to the technology that is supposed to make life easier. Nothing irks me like hearing the phone ring. 95% of the calls I get are either telemarketers, charitable organizations who want donations, or others who would like to monopolize my time in some way. I have also been pretty disappointed with the uncertainty of the FTC's National Do Not Call Registry. I finally reached a point in my life recently that I am no longer willing to be at it's mercy 24/7. So yes, I have become a Call Screener. I used to wonder at people who would do that, thinking what right do they have not to pick up the phone when they hear it ring? Now I admire their courage and want to be like them. I asked myself: "Am I morally obligated to be available to everyone because I happen to be home?" And I said, "No!" I realize this sou

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WorldNetDaily: Al Franken is an irrelevant sissy

I love this article by Vox Day about Al Franken. I used to really like Al Franken as the loveable character of Stuart Smalley. I even overlooked his book Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot: And Other Observations, because I kidded myself into believing he was just misguided. Well, I just got rid of my copy of "Stuart Saves His Family" because I never want to look at him intentionally again. Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them is inexcusable. "Fat" and "idiot," sound like playground taunts, but to call some of my favorite writers and columnists liars is unpardonable to me. And on top of that, there's that stupid trick he tried to play on Attorney General John Ashcroft. Just so you can understand me Al, I will momentarily stoop to your level: "You're not funny. Shame on you, you little sissy coward. You're a wimp and a lisping whiner, and I don't want to play with you anymore."

I haven't read the book yet, so some of what Vox wrote went "swoosh" right over my head. The title and reviews are enough for me to see that it is slanderous trash. I'll be picking up my copy for 50 cents at my local Goodwill. He's not getting a dime from me.

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I found this quiz link on Chew's Place as well. I can never find any good quizzes on Quizilla when I look. I can only find the sick and/or juvenile ones.

Athena

Athena

?? Which Of The Greek Gods Are You ??
brought to you by Quizilla

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Sunday, September 28, 2003

Fun Blog

I found a great blog today called Chew's Place. It had links to fun articles and a lot of great quizzes (as you may be able to tell from my posts today). I found her on a link to Carpe Jugulum (a Terry Pratchett book I'm reading) from AllConsuming.net. It's fun to read about someone with similar interests to mine.

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BBC's Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale

(Scored out of a possible 5)
Concern over Mistakes (CM)
A tendency to associate mistakes with failure and a loss of respect from others
Me:4 Average:2

Personal Standards (PS)
Setting very high standards for yourself and criticising yourself according to how well you achieve them
Me:3 Average:2

Parent Expectations (PE)
The belief that your parents set very high goals
Me:5 Average:2

Parental Criticism (PC)
The belief that your parents were overly critical
Me:4 Average:1

Doubting of Actions (D)
How much you doubt your ability to complete tasks
Me:3 Average:2

Organisation (O)
Your tendency to be orderly
Me:3 Average:2

I'm not as obsessed about perfection as I used to be. (I'm kidding myself) I'm sure I have room for improvement, though. (there I go again)

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My sentiments exactly

I HATE AOL! Nothing personal against you AOL-er's out there. I don't hate you--just AOL. I had AOL when I was new to internet service, and I really think they give lousy service at too high a price. I call it "internet with training wheels," personally. I can't even get rid of the most recent AOL infection that my computer got. So I really loved and agree with this article I found on Beyond Brilliance, Beyond Stupidity from September 25th:

AOL Malignance

Your Computer: Few viruses are as difficult to eliminate as a bad AOL infection. My new laptop came with about 4,000 AOL icons in every possible nook and cranny: the desktop, my favorites, my links, my startup menu... These days, this is almost impossible to avoid with a new machine, but a couple hours of work usually eliminates the cancer.
Unfortunately, the infection can return when you download certain things including, surprisingly, old versions of Netscape. Why can't McAffee list these guys as the major virus they are and block 'em?

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The Pride and Prejudice type: Truly an Austenite,
this type is a Romantic at heart, but they
always keep their head and are wary of
melodrama. Lively, clever, and independent.
These people are easily amused by their own
foibles and the quirkly foibles of others. They
lament society today, and dream of the time
when guys were gentlemen and girls were ladies.

Jane Austen novel quiz
brought to you by Quizilla

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Elizabeth Bennet

Which Jane Austen Character are you? (female)
brought to you by Quizilla

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Quiet Girl

What kind of little girl were YOU?
brought to you by Quizilla

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Last Night

I didn't really write anything about my day yesterday, but it ended at 2 a.m. this morning, so I wasn't going to stay up any longer writing about it. I stayed up that late making posters for the upcoming Ward un-Talent Show and Harvest Dinner. They turned out really good. I used a lot of fun fonts and clip art. Anyway, it was a long story why it took until 2 a.m., but I'll get to that. Murphy's Law was in full effect. And it carried over into today when I stayed home because my gall bladder was hurting, and I sent the posters with my family, and no one remembered to bring them in and give them to Sis. Jevons or set them up in the foyers. So, I was more than a little unhappy about that. I was mad at Scott and the kids for about 5 minutes, said a little prayer to myself, and got over it since it was pointless to be mad, and Scott did help me alot with getting the stuff for the posters, even going in to Wal-Mart at 11:30 p.m. last night. Being mad also wasn't going to make the posters go back in time and get set up. But it was pretty important since next Sunday is General Conference, so not as many people will see the posters then, so that just leaves one more Sunday for people to see my fantastic posters (LOL). Scott took them tonight for the fireside, and said he would set them up. We'll see...

Scott and I sort of went on a date last night. I say sort of because most of it was work. But we did go out to Brangus, which is one of our favorite restaurants. I don't care for the music they play (country), but the atmosphere is really homey and comfortable and there are a lot of old and funny things to look at and read on the walls. You get to eat all the peanuts you want until the food comes, and you just throw the shells on the floor. The glasses are wide mouth quart jars, so you don't need a refill for a long time (if at all). The people who run the restaurant are really nice, and of course, the food is really good too. Not exactly "classy," but I feel really relaxed there, and Scott and I never feel rushed. It feels private enough that you can have a good conversation.

Afterwards we went by Scott's office to try to use the projector to trace off the posters, but it wasn't detailed enough, so we took home some printer paper since I was completely out at home (or I thought we did!) so I could just print and cut out the words and pictures. Then we went grocery shopping, which was pretty exhausting. We were both tired and they converstion waned on the way home. I was pretty mad at myself when I got home and realized that I had somehow NOT brought home the printer paper. I struggled with trying to freehand the posters for awhile, but Scott volunteered to go buy paper. He really is a good guy.

Scott is taking the week off this week which should be very nice. Although I imagine I'll be busier with other things, and I may not write as much. But I want to if I can, because it is so fun for me to keep this weblog. I don't want to get back out of the habit of writing daily. It's something I really look forward to.

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dogwood blooms

what day is it?

reading

finished

i wish

i'm an enfp

my guestbook

bloggerrific peeps

blogroll me

i'm a blogger with bOObies

the "you know what" list

blog help & goodies

artsy-fartsy toys

blog listings

i support

blogometer

Movie Reviews

General Conference

My Hero

The Friday Five

If I Were A Witch, which I'm not (usually)

thisdayinmusic.com

Is this really me?

Past Fives

I'm Spork and I'm Proud

Pepsi??? Bluh...

Can't Shut My Fingers Up

Our House

The Gender Genie

Muhahahaaaa!

Lord of the Ringers

WorldNetDaily: Al Franken is an irrelevant sissy

Fun Blog

BBC's Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale

My sentiments exactly

Last Night

referrererererers

what'd i miss?

cozy blogs

puffin peeps

radio peeps

links i likeses

memes

my webrings

right peeps

wictory wednesday

blogs for Bush