in which she describes insanity.

Favorite Moment of the Day: The woman in front of me in line at the post office today had very short hair and was decked out in a purple Minnesota Vikings sweatshirt and matching yellow baseball hat. After I purchased my stamps for my irregularly shaped envelopes (Halloween cards, of course!), I watched the Lady Vikings fan climb into a black PT Cruiser. The stereo on the vehicle was cranked so loud I could fully recognize Gwen Stefani's "Rich Girl" as I passed on the sidewalk. My favorite part of this scene? The little girl in the front seat, about 12 years old with some of the chubbiest cheeks I've ever seen, dancing and singing along like there was no tomorrow/like this was her American Idol audition. I absolutely love unchecked enthusiasm.

Runner Up: Coming home to find the squirrels diligently eating my decorative indian corn. I yelled at them. They challenged me with their eyes. I put pepper on my faux-cornucopia. I win. For now.

Honorable Mention: For my trip to the post office, I kind of dressed like a flamboyant hobo. :)

The Todd Palin Show

Every now and again, conversations between myself and KK lead to ideas we would like to see put forth on television. Previous pitches include:

Wild Dinner: Impossible
Uniting chef Robert Irvine of Dinner: Impossible with Bear Grylls of Man vs. Wild. Robert has to construct a gourmet meal for approximately 400 people in a short amount of time out of items Bear locates after they have been purposefully stranded on an island/in the mountains/etc.

Sportstime with Samantha
Lots of talk about the "third plate line" and reminders as to the rules of football.

The Fanboy Next Door
A no-frills cooking show. Hosted by someone like Harry Knowles, but much less successful and extroverted. Easy meals that can be constructed and consumed without ceasing your current quest in World of Warcraft and/or Star Wars marathon (Original trilogy only, of course.)

Latest pitch:

The Todd Palin Show
(Inspired by Jason Sudekis' latest portrayal of Mr. Palin during SNL 2 weeks ago. The Todd Palin Show would cover the obvious topics (ice fishing bait & tackle, proper hunting apparel selection, jerky recipies) and also feature culturall relevant debates (Artic Cat vs. Skidoo, bow hunting vs. rifle hunting vs. musket hunting). TTPS would air either on the Outdoor Network or PBS, preferably paired with the fishing show hosted by former Minnesota Twins player, Kent Hrbek.

stop! hammer time!

like herpes....

....but for positive!

i have a wide variety of sources.

A small part of me feels bad for posting this. Because its a little like the questions that children trap each other with (I, for example, have a terribly embarrassing story about the confusion between Christain/Catholic/Lutheran). But then I remember she's an adult and the outcome is a little more serious than, "Who will I sit with at the lunch table?"

get down with the sickness.

I am ill. This does *not* amuse me.

Sidenote: I was, overall, very impressed with the Heroes premiere this evening. Its been a long time coming; 9 long months since we had any new material, even longer since we had any material that could be considered above mediocre.

The one problem I have: Okay, so I get it; when her fight or flight response engages, Black Death Tears Girl Mya's power appears. Mohinder comes to the conclusion that adrenaline is the trigger in Mya (and in everyone; adrenaline is the key to the super powers). He injects himself, becomes super awesome (and a beefcake), and they have amazing superhero sex. (Implied off screen, of course.)
The problem I have is this: about 2 years ago, Jason Statham (Transporter badass) starred in a movie about a guy who needs to keep his adrenaline levels high or he'll die. (I know....I really should write movie reviews/recaps professionally, they're so captivating!) He does this in a wide variety of ways: running from the cops, shooting things, and having sex with hot chicks. Unfortunately, the same chemicals that make us excited when we're scared are also the chemicals that make us excited when we....well, you get the picture. So, in theory, wouldn't any suitor of Mya's be victim of the Black Tears of Death as well, even if she was being adrenalized in a good way?

Yes. I do realize what the previous rant says about my personality and extracurricular interests. :)

Best quote from tonight's premiere of The Big Bang Theory: "I've got more nervous tics than a Lyme disease research facility."

I love Geek TV.

tales from education.

A dear friend of mine is an elementary teacher. She is experiencing this year that some parents love their children, but some parents love their children too much. Included below is an email from a (what I would call) enmeshed parent*. It is best if read aloud:

Hi Ms. X:


I thought I would write this email; rather than chance having Rebecca bring a note for her phy ed teacher and forgetting to give it to her tomorrow------

We just came from our weekly appt. wth our Chiropractor------Rebecca has worn orthotic's in her shoes for the past four years ----

Tonight; she got her new pair along with new athletic shoes ----she jumped from a size six in women's to a size nine women's shoe----we have Foot Locker measure her feet twice per year to get an accurate reading----

She now wears my size. I hear the good news is that we can wear each other's shoes. She is growing like a weed.

Anyway, I would like her phy ed teacher to be aware she is wearing a shoe which is two sizes bigger than basically yesterday ---

I remind her each time she gets a new pair and matching orthotics to be careful when running. Her doctor this evening also said to be very careful; this is a substantial jump in the size/shoe for a ten year old who is not regularly involved in athletics, at least for now ---

Thank you for forwarding this message. I know Mr. Butler; but haven't met her new teacher; hoping for conference time.

Have a good evening; thank you again for helping us with this, Ms. X.


Jean

*Names have been changed to protect the unintentionally hilarious.