Today and tomorrow is the annual Make A Wish Request-a-thon for WZPL Z99.5 radio station. Make-a-wish is an awesome organization that grants wishes for kids with life-threatening illnesses.
Times are tough, but you can donate a lot or a little. You can spread it over a year. But if you can afford it, please consider donating. It's a great cause. No child should have to go through and know about what these kids do. To be able to make a dream come true for them while there is still time is indescribable.
I don't have a big reader-ship, so if you stumble on this, it'd be great if you'd pass it on.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Blue GRRRR(ay)
My mom had a toothache today so I had to stay home with Tyler. We had fun, lunch with Aunt G (twin) and then shopping at Walmart. Picked up a few things for G'ma and, per Adam's request, got the new Star Trek movie on DVD.
Or so I thought.
Apparently I got Blue Ray instead of DVD. Which I didn't realize until I had taken off the shrink wrap. I guess the box was slightly shorter than a DVD box, which I didn't notice because in the store it was placed in an anti-theft devise, making it impossible to tell what the actual box size was. Neither Adam nor I noticed it once we took it from the bag at home. THEN I noticed the tiny 1/2 inch border at the top of the box that says Blue Ray.
So another trip to Walmart took care of it, they took it back without too much arguing. But I'm annoyed. I hate that there are two different formats. HATE. But if there has to be, why can't one of them look significantly different? Like VHS vs. DVD or Record vs. cassette tape vs. CD?
So.
Dear Blue Ray Powers that be,
Get some creativity to go along with your technological advances. I DO DVD. Make your shit look different or something.
Stubbornly,
Melissa
Or so I thought.
Apparently I got Blue Ray instead of DVD. Which I didn't realize until I had taken off the shrink wrap. I guess the box was slightly shorter than a DVD box, which I didn't notice because in the store it was placed in an anti-theft devise, making it impossible to tell what the actual box size was. Neither Adam nor I noticed it once we took it from the bag at home. THEN I noticed the tiny 1/2 inch border at the top of the box that says Blue Ray.
So another trip to Walmart took care of it, they took it back without too much arguing. But I'm annoyed. I hate that there are two different formats. HATE. But if there has to be, why can't one of them look significantly different? Like VHS vs. DVD or Record vs. cassette tape vs. CD?
So.
Dear Blue Ray Powers that be,
Get some creativity to go along with your technological advances. I DO DVD. Make your shit look different or something.
Stubbornly,
Melissa
Friday, November 13, 2009
Nature's WTFs
My twin wrote a blog post ages ago about what she described as "nature's cutest WTF", a duckbill platypus. See it here
Then I saw an article on People: Pets and we had the following email exchange:
Saw these on People-Pets. Thought some of them gave the Duckbilled Platypus a run for it's money in the "nature's WTF" catagory.
FENNEC FOX
The tiny Fennec foxes — native to North Africa — may look pretty cute, but they're actually nighttime predators whose oversized ears are so sensitive that they can hear insects walk on sand. Perhaps they can also get a better listen when they phone home?
Me: Really cute and mildly strange looking in an AW sort of way.
Twin: These are just cute, they’re not creepy at all. I like the big ears. It’s like your cat is trying to eavesdrop.
Me: Hee! For real. It’s all like “I’m not listening…really. Continue.”
With eyes as large as their brains, the furry little tarsiers of Southeast Asia are able to climb within a day of being born. That must make things easier when you take them to your leader.
Me: Okay those eyes could be scary.
Twin: The funny thing is that the eyes open REALLY slowly, so it’s like he’s shocked in slo-mo. I think he’s cute, though.
Me: Oh that’s hilarious. But yeah, he is kinda cute.
STAR-NOSED MOLE
Ahh, it's coming to get you! Well, if you're a worm or small insect, that is. The star-nosed mole, often found in Canada and the U.S., literally inhales its food, taking less than a quarter of a second to find its prey, grab it and digest.
Me: FREAK-Y I kinda threw up in my mouth a little bit when I saw this one.
Twin: He looks like bad things happened to your personal bits or something. On the other hand, check out the awesome press-on nail action!
Me: Ew yeah totally. LOL he does have lee press on’s!
ALBINO HEDGEHOG
Is it a bird? A plane? Nope, just an albino hedgehog, so rare that there's only one for every 10,000 in the current hedgehog population. Though his look is intriguing, his upbringing will be solitary: Because he stands out so much in the wild, he'll have to live in a hedgehog home to survive.
Me: Not that weird and sorta cute.
Twin: Hedgehogs are cute. The end.
Me: Agreed
ECHIDNA
Named for a mythological Greek monster that was half-nymph, half-snake, the echidna seems like something that might want to whisk you away in its UFO. But these little guys are typically harmless — the toothless creatures feast predominantly on insects.
Me: Hee. Does he have a boner?
Twin: Looks like! Look how cute they get when they’re bigger, though!
Me: I must say, he’s cuter as an adult. And more nails.
COMMON-SIAMESE SOFT-SHELLED TURTLE
He may look like a spongy space creature, but this common-Siamese soft-shelled turtle can be a fierce fighter when necessary. The breed, found throughout the world, is known for a disproportionately long neck, which helps the animal to keep its body submerged in water, sand or mud while still getting oxygen from the surface.
Me: Ew. I hear a squishy sound for this one.
Twin: It looks like it’s been microwaved. Me no likey.
Me: LMAO he does looked nuked!
AYE-AYE
My, what really big eyes you have! Though its wiry hair and spooky yellow peepers give the Aye-aye a Martian-like look, the foragers — native to Madagascar — are kind of like woodpeckers, gnawing holes in wood to find food.
Me: I feel like he'd be all hyper-active. Too much sugar.
Twin: This is that thing the zoo’s getting! It’s all strung out and weird looking, like it’s been forced to survive inside of a Starbucks for a year.
Me: They are getting these a the zoo?! And yeah, totally beyond caffeine buzzed
BLOBFISH
It came from outer space! Or actually, cool waters off the coasts of Australia and Tasmania. The blobfish — literally what it sounds like — is a creature rarely seen by humans, that lacks muscle and floats just above the ocean floor.
Me: This guy looks like a loogie.
Twin: But a kind of cute loogie. I feel like he should have been in Finding Nemo, and that’s why he looks all depressed, because his part was cut for Dory.
Me: Gotta disagree here. He looks diseased. I do love that he appears to have a nose.
GOLDEN MONKEY
Though they're cute and furry, little is known about the golden monkeys, making them extra-mysterious. The endangered creatures are typically found in the mountains of Africa, restricted to highland forests filled with bamboo.
Me: Not weird! Cute! And snuggely
Twin: Not weird, just sweet!
PANGOLIN
Often compared to a "walking pine cone," pangolins have hard scales all over their bodies, and can curl up into a ball when feeling threatened. But their craziest characteristic? Tongues that extend into their stomachs!
Me: Okay the tounge part is icky.
Twin: Agreed, but I like this guy. He looks like a porcupine and an armadillo had a baby.
Me: Yeah, he’s got some cute. And more nail action…these animals could use some mani-pedi action.
HORESHOE CRAB
You know that guy who never wants to leave the party? Well, this is that guy in the animal kingdom. The horseshoe crab (with Baker) has been around for half a billion years. If you see one — they're all over the eastern seaboard — thank it for its contributions to science. "We use their blood to screen for contamination in hospitals," Baker explains. "If you've ever had an operation, you owe something to the horseshoe crab."
Me: Cool animal. Low on the cuteness scale, and I wouldn’t want to cuddle him, but he’s got charisma, no?
Twin: If by charisma you mean the ability to make me want to pee my pants, yes.
CORNISH SUCKER
Baker's love affair with this creature began in tidal pools near his home in the UK. "You flip over a rock and you see this weird fish. Yes, it's a fish!" says Baker. He explains its weird look: "Its pectoral fins have fused to form a huge sucker on its belly."
Me: EW. Sort of a speckly turd. I can’t believe this guy admits to having a “love affair” with this thing. And what exactly does it suck?
Twin: It’s an angry slug. I veto this creature.
SILKY ANTEATER
They're fun to look at, but don’t get too close — those razor sharp claws can pull apart concrete in their quest for food! Baker learned the hard way when one grabbed on to his finger. "They have karate moves!" Sounds painful!
Me: On one hand, aw, cause it looks like he’s rubbing his eyes, all sleepy-like. On the other, lethal looking. He’s a cutie though…all fluffy
Twin: “I am so sleepy… HAHAHAHAHA you fell for that! Dumbass.”
MIMIC OCTOPUS
This critter "uses its incredible muscular control to push its bodies into different shapes," explains Baker. "It can be a flat fish, it can be an eel, it can be a jelly fish." Never trust a shape-shifter!
Me: Dude, he’s kinda cool. Not very attractive. He’s like Odo on DS9 (Adam has turned me into almost a trechie)
Twin: It also looks like two naked snails doing it.
HELLBENDER
This slimy salamander — which can be as big as 18 inches! — lives all over the American Appalachians. Baker loves this animal, called a Hellbender, because of its unique gender roles. "The males guard the babies!"
Me: Ick, this guy is majorly slimy. And his tail is flat. Kinda hard to tell head from tail. I don’t get the name though.
Twin: I think that’s its head. I think God stepped on him, and tried to fix it and then was like, nah, it’s cool like that.
Then I saw an article on People: Pets and we had the following email exchange:
Saw these on People-Pets. Thought some of them gave the Duckbilled Platypus a run for it's money in the "nature's WTF" catagory.
FENNEC FOX
The tiny Fennec foxes — native to North Africa — may look pretty cute, but they're actually nighttime predators whose oversized ears are so sensitive that they can hear insects walk on sand. Perhaps they can also get a better listen when they phone home?
Me: Really cute and mildly strange looking in an AW sort of way.
Twin: These are just cute, they’re not creepy at all. I like the big ears. It’s like your cat is trying to eavesdrop.
Me: Hee! For real. It’s all like “I’m not listening…really. Continue.”
With eyes as large as their brains, the furry little tarsiers of Southeast Asia are able to climb within a day of being born. That must make things easier when you take them to your leader.
Me: Okay those eyes could be scary.
Twin: The funny thing is that the eyes open REALLY slowly, so it’s like he’s shocked in slo-mo. I think he’s cute, though.
Me: Oh that’s hilarious. But yeah, he is kinda cute.
STAR-NOSED MOLE
Ahh, it's coming to get you! Well, if you're a worm or small insect, that is. The star-nosed mole, often found in Canada and the U.S., literally inhales its food, taking less than a quarter of a second to find its prey, grab it and digest.
Me: FREAK-Y I kinda threw up in my mouth a little bit when I saw this one.
Twin: He looks like bad things happened to your personal bits or something. On the other hand, check out the awesome press-on nail action!
Me: Ew yeah totally. LOL he does have lee press on’s!
ALBINO HEDGEHOG
Is it a bird? A plane? Nope, just an albino hedgehog, so rare that there's only one for every 10,000 in the current hedgehog population. Though his look is intriguing, his upbringing will be solitary: Because he stands out so much in the wild, he'll have to live in a hedgehog home to survive.
Me: Not that weird and sorta cute.
Twin: Hedgehogs are cute. The end.
Me: Agreed
ECHIDNA
Named for a mythological Greek monster that was half-nymph, half-snake, the echidna seems like something that might want to whisk you away in its UFO. But these little guys are typically harmless — the toothless creatures feast predominantly on insects.
Me: Hee. Does he have a boner?
Twin: Looks like! Look how cute they get when they’re bigger, though!
Me: I must say, he’s cuter as an adult. And more nails.
COMMON-SIAMESE SOFT-SHELLED TURTLE
He may look like a spongy space creature, but this common-Siamese soft-shelled turtle can be a fierce fighter when necessary. The breed, found throughout the world, is known for a disproportionately long neck, which helps the animal to keep its body submerged in water, sand or mud while still getting oxygen from the surface.
Me: Ew. I hear a squishy sound for this one.
Twin: It looks like it’s been microwaved. Me no likey.
Me: LMAO he does looked nuked!
AYE-AYE
My, what really big eyes you have! Though its wiry hair and spooky yellow peepers give the Aye-aye a Martian-like look, the foragers — native to Madagascar — are kind of like woodpeckers, gnawing holes in wood to find food.
Me: I feel like he'd be all hyper-active. Too much sugar.
Twin: This is that thing the zoo’s getting! It’s all strung out and weird looking, like it’s been forced to survive inside of a Starbucks for a year.
Me: They are getting these a the zoo?! And yeah, totally beyond caffeine buzzed
BLOBFISH
It came from outer space! Or actually, cool waters off the coasts of Australia and Tasmania. The blobfish — literally what it sounds like — is a creature rarely seen by humans, that lacks muscle and floats just above the ocean floor.
Me: This guy looks like a loogie.
Twin: But a kind of cute loogie. I feel like he should have been in Finding Nemo, and that’s why he looks all depressed, because his part was cut for Dory.
Me: Gotta disagree here. He looks diseased. I do love that he appears to have a nose.
GOLDEN MONKEY
Though they're cute and furry, little is known about the golden monkeys, making them extra-mysterious. The endangered creatures are typically found in the mountains of Africa, restricted to highland forests filled with bamboo.
Me: Not weird! Cute! And snuggely
Twin: Not weird, just sweet!
PANGOLIN
Often compared to a "walking pine cone," pangolins have hard scales all over their bodies, and can curl up into a ball when feeling threatened. But their craziest characteristic? Tongues that extend into their stomachs!
Me: Okay the tounge part is icky.
Twin: Agreed, but I like this guy. He looks like a porcupine and an armadillo had a baby.
Me: Yeah, he’s got some cute. And more nail action…these animals could use some mani-pedi action.
HORESHOE CRAB
You know that guy who never wants to leave the party? Well, this is that guy in the animal kingdom. The horseshoe crab (with Baker) has been around for half a billion years. If you see one — they're all over the eastern seaboard — thank it for its contributions to science. "We use their blood to screen for contamination in hospitals," Baker explains. "If you've ever had an operation, you owe something to the horseshoe crab."
Me: Cool animal. Low on the cuteness scale, and I wouldn’t want to cuddle him, but he’s got charisma, no?
Twin: If by charisma you mean the ability to make me want to pee my pants, yes.
CORNISH SUCKER
Baker's love affair with this creature began in tidal pools near his home in the UK. "You flip over a rock and you see this weird fish. Yes, it's a fish!" says Baker. He explains its weird look: "Its pectoral fins have fused to form a huge sucker on its belly."
Me: EW. Sort of a speckly turd. I can’t believe this guy admits to having a “love affair” with this thing. And what exactly does it suck?
Twin: It’s an angry slug. I veto this creature.
SILKY ANTEATER
They're fun to look at, but don’t get too close — those razor sharp claws can pull apart concrete in their quest for food! Baker learned the hard way when one grabbed on to his finger. "They have karate moves!" Sounds painful!
Me: On one hand, aw, cause it looks like he’s rubbing his eyes, all sleepy-like. On the other, lethal looking. He’s a cutie though…all fluffy
Twin: “I am so sleepy… HAHAHAHAHA you fell for that! Dumbass.”
MIMIC OCTOPUS
This critter "uses its incredible muscular control to push its bodies into different shapes," explains Baker. "It can be a flat fish, it can be an eel, it can be a jelly fish." Never trust a shape-shifter!
Me: Dude, he’s kinda cool. Not very attractive. He’s like Odo on DS9 (Adam has turned me into almost a trechie)
Twin: It also looks like two naked snails doing it.
HELLBENDER
This slimy salamander — which can be as big as 18 inches! — lives all over the American Appalachians. Baker loves this animal, called a Hellbender, because of its unique gender roles. "The males guard the babies!"
Me: Ick, this guy is majorly slimy. And his tail is flat. Kinda hard to tell head from tail. I don’t get the name though.
Twin: I think that’s its head. I think God stepped on him, and tried to fix it and then was like, nah, it’s cool like that.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
HH Owie
So my mom, Tyler and I went to HH Gregg on Sunday to buy a new washing machine. Cause ours broke, of course. The agitator was no longer agitating. So we're standing their while the salesman checks stock and there is this loud crash from the front of the store. We look up and don't really see anything. I knew the sound came from the microwave display on the front wall, so I figured someone had knocked the glass turntable out and it had broken. Half right. So then all these salesmen start swarming to the front of the store. There had to be 15 salesguys. So we start thinking that someone is hurt or something fell over onto someone. But no one is around. Then everyone starting going to the front doors. So of course, we followed. On the way up, we realized that the wall, well it wasn't where it was supposed to be. It was jutting out with large cracks in it. Yep, you guessed it. Someone had crashed their car into the front of the building.
Our salesguy had been looking at the wall in question when it happened. he said that all the microwaves were thrown open, the turntables fell out (and smashed) and then all the microwaves slammed shut again.
It looked like an older couple was driving, and they were fine. Their car didn't even look bad, considering. We are guessing they mistook the brake for the gas.
It's so crazy when you witness shit like that. But it gives me something to write about on my blog that no one reads, except my dear twin, who has probably already heard the story.
Ah well, I can pretend that someone people will have discovered my blog and will read all my old posts. LOL
Our salesguy had been looking at the wall in question when it happened. he said that all the microwaves were thrown open, the turntables fell out (and smashed) and then all the microwaves slammed shut again.
It looked like an older couple was driving, and they were fine. Their car didn't even look bad, considering. We are guessing they mistook the brake for the gas.
It's so crazy when you witness shit like that. But it gives me something to write about on my blog that no one reads, except my dear twin, who has probably already heard the story.
Ah well, I can pretend that someone people will have discovered my blog and will read all my old posts. LOL
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
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