awesome

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb47QmTT1ck

goodreads

my sister got me onto goodreads.com and now that i'm reading again i'm loving going through and trying to remember my favorite books and which ones i want to read. it's hard to concentrate on a book when you're down in the dumps. since my thud i've re-surfaced and am just about to finish water for elephants. i can't wait to see the ending. anyway, i love seeing the books my sister is reading and which ones of mine that she chooses for her list. fun, fun, fun. plus, reading is good. check it out.
www.goodreads.com

the january sun is a godsend. my mother burst my bubble today when she told me in was 68 degrees in sacramento. it's probably only about 45 degrees here. it's still freezing but the sun is shining. vitamin d is a good thing.

i'm getting excited for tuesday. change.
1/20/09

update: helen

my friend helen's surgery went amazingly well. they removed what they think was scar tissue built up from her last surgery in the same area. thank you all for the positive thoughts. it made it all easier.
we love you helen!
peace.

here ya go patty!

i've received a couple of comments about this part of the show. i agree that it's completely asinine. because these idiots come on thinking they can sing (or are planted there...you know it's true) it forces the judges to say the meanest things. you know what simon says you all agree with - it's just that he doesn't have a filter. supposedly they are making this part shorter and the hollywood part longer. also, they are bringing back the "wild card" - where each judge gets to bring back one eliminated contestent. i want to say they stopped that in the third season or so. this is fun so, i'll see you next week!

kansas city here we come!

will they ever give up the lame beginning? at least some of the faces are real now and not that creepy thing they had going before.

kansas city: home of last year's winner, david cook.

lime green babydoll, paula? really?

surrender the fantasy, chelsea. no bueno. ouch. stop. really. stop. please.

simon is absolutely smitten by casey! he can't stop smiling...

i already see a couple of people who will be "spliced in" tonight! i wonder what the big number will be?

the crying segment is genius! i loved every minute of it. come on, sister? patty? come on! i think i'm gonna watch it again!

castro's punk rock brother? thoughts?

"do you want a banana?"

jasmine "jazz. it's pretty much my name" joseph. i'm wondering if i need to elaborate?

i think 'over the rainbow' will be the splicer tonight.

"these are my crazy pills" that 93 year old woman was the star of this show.

i'm calling right now that jessica furney and the punk-y castro brother will make the top 12 or whatever.

"we're rappers." "why you try to steal my cookie from me" india dragged her sister, asia, to american idol because she knew she was good. asia made it. india didn't. sisterly love is awesome.

[cool. joss whedon's "dollhouse" is finally starting on february 13!]

oh. my. god. they are playing neko case's "train from kansas city"! neko. no. this is a sad day.

the sob story is sad, but this guy better be good. they don't care about the grief if you suck. uh-oh. music teacher. wow! me likey! i might have to add danny to that list with punk-y castro and jessica. that story will carry him to the top 12.

anoop-dog! hollaaaaaa! who woulda thought? "you got some crazy vocals jumpin off there!" - randy

rats! tonight's splicer, "sign, sealed, delivered"

andrew's cheerleaders were hysterical. those splits? eek! andrew singing "my girl" was, well, sort of hilarious. he's so gay!

i like asa barnes. he's so cute. he has a good aura. i like cara too. she's lookin' hot tonight in kansas city!

i can't watch the retarded guy - but i'm glad i saw simon's reaction to him when he walked in the room! was he a plant? thoughts?

why do people insist on continuing to sing after they tell them it sucks? why?

dennis. what about dennis? cara really likes him. i'm not sure. i don't think he'll make it past this first round. dennis' weave is growing out. time to cut that shit out dennis! tyra would be apalled.

they always save the best - er, worst - for last. mia conley. yep. she sucks. you know she's gonna cause a scene. she's still mumbling the song...stop - woa! no, stop. mia. girl. "god's gonna get you!" what does that mean?

wait, maybe they did save the best for last. lil rounds. yep. put her on the list. probably the best. she sounds like mary j. let's get crunk! randy agrees with me! i said it first, randy! i really like her. i loved the way her husband looked at her. very sweet.

some of my favorite simon-isms tonight:

you're a singing ryan seacrest aren't you?

let's just say goodbye

josh grobin? honestly brian

contestent: "can i try it again?" simon: "no"

well, let's just change blind to death and that song would make a lot of sense

not happy at all

it was terrible

it's a sorta bit geeky at the moment

it's like swimming in jello

no. no. no.

let's be clear. the first records you bought were paula's, yeah?

next stop: 6 more cities including new york and san francisco. see you then. cara? will you marry me?

on another note...

can you believe george bush wants to come on tv and "say goodbye"? what a pompous ass! doesn't he know that people are literally counting down seconds until he's out of there? doesn't he know? he's acting like people are going to miss him. him and all his tears on tv about leaving office! i'm not falling for it! george w. bush, you will ALWAYS BE THE PROVEN WORST PRESIDENT IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY. always. i can't imagine there could be anyone worse. all he's done was maneuver us into the worst economic crisis since the great depression, started 2 meaningless wars and manipulated, lied, deceived and committed treason against america and americans. he should be in jail. anyone else would be. he believed he was above the law and he made it so he was.
tuesday won't come soon enough. hope is upon us. i know that obama is not the answer to all of our problems - he can't fix everything. it's going to take years to get back on track. but we have to keep fighting for civil rights, our environment and democracy. president obama thinks we can do it. he believes in america. i also think we should re-visit the constitution of the united states. i know president obama will uphold the founding principles of our fine nation.
here's to hope.
peace.

american idol thoughts

it's that time of year again kids! american idol is back. all the buzz is about cara, the new judge. i have to tell you, i like her so far. the unfortunate thing is that she makes paula look really crazy because cara is normal. i'm going to blog while watching and see what happens.

***

what about that woman in the bikini who tried to tongue kiss ryan? doesn't she know he's gay?



sexual chocolate? i loved when simon said, "that's enough sexual."



uh, paula, are you trying to give randy a run with all these ridiculous glasses? this pair during the sexual chocolate segment were, like, amber vision.

"i used to teach myself to sing in my closet late at night. apparently there was a lot of mold in there. i ended up getting really sick. that was a fun story. i've missed a spanish test for this. it feels like if i don't do it that i'm going to get a b or probably worse. for nothing. that was a joke. but. um." [crickets]
when simon told alex that he'd just come out of the closet - that kid's face was priceless. his breath caught in his throat. but his voice? kinda ok. but gosh, this guy is a social retard.

what can you say about that guy with the bass of a voice?

i hate the new trend of making these poor people sing one song so they can splice it together and humiliate them. if they asked me to sing something after they've already told me i suck i'd be all, "no way! you're going to splice me in, i know it!"

a blind guy? wow, they are pulling out all the stops this year...he is good! awesome. a blind guy on idol? curious.

ryan, for future reference, you can't high five a blind guy without telling him your up for a high five.
"go high" - GOB bluth

tomorrow? kansas city! see you there...

unlikely stars of last night's game...

steve blake

10 assists

16 points

4-9 from 3 point range

greg oden

13 rebounds (6 offensive)

17 points

and...travis?
travis outlaw
(get this)
33 points
7 rebounds (2 offensive)
4-5 from 3 point range!
35+ minutes

hollaback portland! a convincing win with an almost invisible b.roy. this is what i'm talking about. go rip city!

oh, have i mentioned that barack obama will be inaugurated in 8 days?!

god bless america ... my home sweet home

helen

my friend helen is going in to have what they believe is a cancerous tumor removed on wednesday. i'm very worried for her because i love her and she's already had breast cancer and ovarian cancer, god bless her. i pray it hasn't spread so i think happy thoughts and hope you will too.
peace

benjamin biting his nails after surviving arctic blast while watching the trailblazer game

i want to blog but what to blog about? i suppose i could tell you about the amazing movie the curious case of benjamin button. you all know what it's about right? the baby that's born as an old man? yeah, that one. brad pitt ages backwards. it's one of the most amazing love stories i've ever watched. cate blanchette [*sigh*] and brad pitt [*sigh*] are so believable as a couple who meet when they are 7 - she a ordinary 7 year old and he a 7 year old old boy living in an old folks home - who looks like an old man. they fall in love instantly - she sees he's a young person trapped in an old person's body, literally. once their ages collide they come together and have a love affair that lasts years. those scenes are awesome because it's so believable that they are in love, that's they've always loved each other and that they will always love each other. the story is being told in the present right before katrina hits new orleans. brad pitt calls it a love story to new orleans. after i get over their love story, i'll watch it again and watch it from the city's point of view. i hope this film wins some awards. i loved it.



i've bitten my nails off. well, not completely off just - well, down. not as bad as they used to be but they don't look super good. i just can't bring myself to bite them down as far as i had. thank god. it all started after the shingles. i traded shingles for nail biting. it's a decent trade, i suppose. i'm trying to stop again. it's worse than smoking! you can't, you know, just not buy a pack of fingernails for chewing.

now that arctic blast is over we're on to flood watch 09. as al roker so gently put it this morning, "they're getting hammered in the pacific northwest!" we're lucky here in portland. everywhere else in oregon and washington is flooding. highway 5 is closed to seattle! closed! highway 5! the air is strangely warm but the wind is cool. does that make sense? when the wind isn't blowing the air is quite arid. humid, maybe.

went to the blazers/pistons game last night. the first 3 quarters were so boring i could have dozed off. the crowd was just not into the game. the trailblazers went down 14 at one point. it was as quiet as i've heard it in the 5 games i've been to this season. jarryd bayless played 17 minutes (a season high) and was just a spark in that second unit; which is a complete mess due to brandon roy being out. he really showed the fans what he can do with a little playing time. he was pumped to be on the floor everytime he was out there. lamarcus aldridge finished with 26 points. i was so happy to see that l.a. has stepped up while brandon's been on the injured list. the 4 games brandon's been out l.a. has averaged 20 points a game. he has to be the leader when brandon is not on the floor. and he did it. i was impressed. he also has played an ass-load of minutes! this is the second game i've gone to that was determined by 1 point in the final seconds. 84-83. the home opener against san antonio was also determined in the final seconds, 101-99. all of the games i've attended so far my portland trailblazers have won. awesome. go blazers!

2009

happy new year everyone!
i actually stayed up until midnight this year and i wasn't in bed! we had a gathering at sharon and di's house. we were supposed to do it at johna and jenn's new place but they just moved in on sunday. we thought we should cut them a break. i thought about my house, but my neighbor doesn't like fun. plus, way more people came to our gathering than would even fit in my apartment!
we ate a lot of yummy food and chatted and danced around and saw dick clark?! did you all see dick clark? why did they let him come on tv. it was really sad. he's had a stroke, of course, and they've got him so botoxed up that nothing on his face was moving. his mouth barely moved. perhaps one side of his face doesn't work due to the stroke so they just shot up the other side so he didn't look droopy. it didn't help. then they had this white make up on him - he looked dead. it was sort of creepy. god bless ya, dick clark!
russell street rocked yesterday! i guess new year's eve is busy. it was our first time staying open, usually we close early.
ok. peace.
20 more days...