Well, yes I have a lovely ring set with a cubic zirconium but the gold came from the bridge work in my father's teeth. Good quality gold too! No, he isn't dead. But he had really bad teeth and they were all pulled when he went into the army. So I am thinking you can take that gold and a diamond me. What a family heirloom!
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So yesterday was Thanksgiving. And in keeping with those American yearnings, I roasted a turkey, and did those sweet potatoes with marshmallows, and made pumpkin soup. The Blessing, gowing up a pagan, claims she doesn't like pumpkin. Doesn't like pumpkin pie. She had a cheese sandwich while objecting to the fresh corriander sprinkled over the soup. I do hope at some point she decides to taste more food. I can't convince her to try strawberries!
So of course the evening ends up with a group of adults drinking port and whiskey and watching old music videos. The day before at work had lead to a discussion on what our top ten favorite tunes are. At first it was quite difficult. My problem now that I have thought about it is that I can't get it down to 10. I was also told my list was very American. I like to think it is interesting and eclectic even if I resisted the urge to add Coltrane's Favorite Things from the Newport Jazz recordings. And well, as you may have a slight curosity as to what is on it, here it is. And well, number one should come as no surprise.
1. Elvis Costello -- Lipstick Vogue
2. X -- Los Angeles
3. Gershwin -- Rhapsody in Blue
4. Frank Sinatra -- One More for the Road
5. Bruce Springsteen -- Born to Run
6. Lucinda Williams -- Changed the Locks
7. The Police -- Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic
8. Christina Aguillerra -- Dirrrty
9. Fishbone -- Party at Ground Zero
10. The Clash – London’s Calling
11. Tom Waits – Step Right Up
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I don't know why I am excited by this. It's not like they will run on my line.Something about the tracks not being upgraded (though I read the press release on the money being available to upgrade the line!).
And well, I've run out of Pratchett to reread (he is quite popular with the conductors) and have moved onto rereadin the Jilly Cooper. Trying not to buy books because I am hoping that Father Christmas steps up to the plate and gets me something to read in about a month's time. But if you want me to post an amazon wishlist...
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I am just speechless.
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I didn't write it (I deal more in political limericks). But I am quite taken with cat haiku
*****
The food in my bowl
Is old, and more to the point
Contains no tuna.
----
So you want to play.
Will I claw at dancing string?
Your ankle's closer.
----
There's no dignity
In being sick - which is why
I don't tell you where. ----
****
Seeking solitude
I am locked in the closet.
For once I need you.
----
Tiny can, dumped in
Plastic bowl. Presentation,
One star; service: none. ----
****
Am I in your way?
You seem to have it backwards:
This pillow's taken.
----
Your mouth is moving;
Up and down, emitting noise.
I've lost interest.
----
The dog wags his tail,
Seeking approval. See mine?
Different message. ----
****
My brain: walnut-sized.
Yours: largest among primates.
Yet, who leaves for work?
----
Most problems can be Ignored.
The more difficult
Ones can be slept through.
----
Cats can't steal the breath
Of children. But if my tail's
Pulled again, I'll learn.
----
I don't mind being
Teased, any more than you mind
A skin graft or two. ----
****
So you call this thing
Your "cat carrier." I call
These my "blades of death."
----
Toy mice, dancing yarn
Meowing sounds.
I'm convinced: You're an idiot.
(author unknown)
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What can I say, it's my idea of christmas dinner heaven.
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So yeah it snowed last week. And weirdly (because I live on the coast) it appeared to snow more where I live than it did in Belfast. Where there was no snow! No points frozen on the train tracks. No late trains. But out where I was at 7:35, I got to wait on a cold platform for a late train, that kept stopping and had no heating. Still, as I walked to the platform, in the dark, I noticed that in the snow, everyone else was much friendlier, saying 'good morning' and all the rest and this had me thinking about the civilising effect of snow. Because it sure civilised Whitehead. Could this be an explanation for the generally benign and happy lives of the Scandanvian? The lifestyle of Canadians? Perhaps my worship of the sun just leads to civil unrest and crime. I don't know.
I also went up the coast for the weekend. And was shocked, shocked! to see people out surfing. I am sorry but the North Coast of Ireland in late November just doesn't strike me as a surfer's paradise. You could lose a finger to frostbite! Despite earlier offers, had to take the blessing to the cinema. Saw The Incredibles. Which I quite enjoyed. Of course, it made me want a vodka martini. And play more Sims. The decor owed a lot to the Sims. I recognised that bookcase. I am currently simless because well, I lent my sims to a friend and then the computer keeps deciding to exist in its own universe and will stop letting me play with my later expansion packs and demand the original sims and well, i don't have it at home. And well, there is more to the story, which somehow involved my brother but in a nutshell means I am simless and sad.
I try to distract myself with other games. Mostly Age of Mythology. I like to play the followers of Thor and am quite fond of Fire giants. I am sure as a girl I am not supposed to like these things. My protege has lent me her copy of Typing of the Dead. Which I think is a bit scary but the Blessing is quite taken with it and wants to play it tonight. I do think she may be too young for zombie fighting.
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Golden Brown Ayers Rock
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I am sure that shocks no one. A great big bag. Normally, I just ignore it. I know if I was 14 again, I do a whole lot of things different. But then again, I am pretty happy with life as it is now, so my choices haven't been too screwed up. It will also shock no one to hear me refer to myself as a feminist. I would go so far and say I am actually one of those great big scary boot-wearing feminist who really does thing that women belong in the army, carrying guns and if needs be, stomping all over prisoners' human rights. Look if men can misbehave, who really thinks women are going to be morally superior? Anyway, this may then come as a surprise that one of my biggest regrets is not going to a single sex university. No, I am serious. If I was 18 again, I would not choose UCLA. I'd go to Mills. Because, for better or worse, I regard myself as a failure. I have in no way and do not every day of my life, tap into my intellectual potentail. Not one little big. I have fun. I drink too much. I read a lot of books. Sometimes I can be moved to write. But really, I do nothing. And maybe I am just deluding myself. Like I was over that potentila Kerry win. But I do think that if instead of reading the paper and sleeping in my 150+ Upper level political theory classes at UCLA, I had gone to a small school and been challenged and pushed and well kept tabs on, I was have done grad school sooner, more methodically and well, I'd still be blogging but I probably wouldn't play nearly so much Age of Mythology. And guess what? I have a daughter. I have no concerns about sending her to a single sex school. .
If the H has a hope of the Blessing following in his ion scattering footsteps, he needs to listen to the boot wearer in this relationship.
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I am going to try and be better. And go on today and clean up my broken html link so that words once again reappear. No, I still have no idea what I am doing with html. But I think the blogging god is telling me to stop doing Friday quizzes. And who am I too refuse?
I'm having a bad Monday morning. Need to write two papers in the next two days and am struggling against bad customer services. I plan on eventually appealing to the ombudsman in NI to deal with what I fully expect to be a problem with my rates (all concerning the fact that I didn't have a road until November 5th, no I really didn't. I still don't have street lights. Lovely orange things sticking up from the ground that I think will grow into street lights, but none yet.) More annoyingly, I have been trying to sort a problem with a broken dvd player with Argos for the last three months. They now have the dvd player. They have had it for a month now, but they seem incapable of sending me a refund cheque and I am not quite sure what I can do to force them to live up to their legal responsibilities. I am not linking to them because at the moment my message is DO NOT SHOP AT ARGOS. DO NOT SHOP AT ARGOS. Maybe someday they will give me some money, but I think three months is quite poor customer service.Of course these people have I think quite a strong case against however did their survey. I think that could quite spoil the joys of home ownership.
And if you are interested, the Blessing is fine and has discovered the delights of Ben and Jerry's. Which works surprisingly well at getting her to tidy up her toys.
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Um, I suppose all advice is good advie?
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| Which CSI are you Jim Brass You never have a clue but hey you are the fuzz so you don't need one. 
posted at
6:46 AM
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No depression here. No, really. I am feeling pretty good. Except that I lost money to a co-worker. I hadn't thought it was possible that Kerry would win for months and months. Then I got sucked into the hope about two weeks ago (I blame Brad DeLong. Never trust a Berkeley academic). Thought the early returns looked good. Was so excited it took so long to call Virginia. Never expected Dubya to do so well in Florida. Not for a moment. But really, think about it. It's a good election to lose. There are lots of problems and now the Republicans have to deal with them. They have to make the hard choices. And well, nothing the President has done so far fills me with confidence that he can govern competently for the next four years. And if the American people want to pursue a conservative agenda who am I to stop them? Of course, I do have the luxury of living out of the country. And read that Guardian piece. Do you remember the UK 1992 election? I do. I couldn't believe that Labour didn't win. But guess what? They won later. They won big. And I can't picture a conservative victory now. The tories are still in the deep dark wilderness. Take hope from that all my liberal-type friends. Hope that the Republicans will go too far and implode. I look forward to the 2006 mid-term elections and a lame duck president with a huge deficit. And face it, if the party can't make their case to the voters, they don't deserve to be elected.
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I expect that he will be asleep. I hope he will be asleep. And I don't think he uses his computer to listen to the radio anyway. But he really might have a heart attack if he heard me tomorrow morning. On Good Morning Ulster. Talking about who I am voting for. Not that it should come to any surprise. To anyone. I did once vote for a Republican. He was pro-choice. It was for US Senate. I am still okay with that vote. Otherwise, it has always been straight party line. Yet my father keeps sending me emails detailing the dangers of John Kerry. I can see someone not voting for Kerry. I can see someone not liking Kerry. But I have a harder time coming to terms with the 'Kerry is the most dangerous man in the US' school of thought. Just as well we didn't put that bumber sticker on the car then, isn't it?
I also think its odd that at this age in my life I am still hiding things from my family. Sure, it made sense when I was young and it was all about boys and alcohol. Let alone the evils of marijuana. But now? About politics?
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I'd like to think that if vegas ever published something academically speaking, it would have an acknowledgement much like this.
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Just like the state of nature, nasty, brutish and short...I was always fond of the nickname 'Craxi'...Sometimes I cook, sometimes I tend bar, sometimes I even knit. Mostly I try not to read the plethora of government publications that cross my desk and write one page summaries.
favorite food: lobster. ben and jerry's ice cream
favorite show: CSI
favorite drink: grey goose vodka (with ice, it doesn't need anything else)
age: far older than I like to admit/contemplate
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