Winter symbiosis

What goes better than peanut butter with pancakes, hot cocoa with whipped cream, macaroni with cheese?

Heavy snowfall and a day of baking, in comfy clothes and a Santa hat.

We are in for a Winter BONANZA! Yippee!! Starting tonight after the peoples are nestled all snug in their beds, mother nature will bestow upon us mortals 11 inches of snow in less than 24 hours. Now if the weather people actually have their predictions right, this is looking to be a prime opportunity to "work from home". (forgetting the fact that, yeah, I probably could walk to work)

And by "work from home", I mean finally getting my Christmas baking on. I plan to be making all sorts of delicious goodies that include some cookies, candy, cheesecakes (yes, that's a plural!), and lasagna.

It's a perfect storm of a semi-legit reason to stay at home, procrastination, and a gigantic sweet tooth.

:) LJS

It's the end of an era!

I am less than 12 hours from my last class that I will ever *have to* take. After 11 years of on again/off again classwork, this is a most-welcome conclusion. It's the end of an era folks! And, now I am one step closer to the point where my mom can't pick on me for being a professional student.

I'm also working on a paper for a conference proceeding. It is very tempting to make the whole thing a beta version, because I don't think anyone reads them. But said paper has to be vetted by The Chief, and beta versions simply will not do. I have a reputation to maintain (I think). I just wish I could work in the word "awesome" into one paper..just once.

Watched "Step Brothers" last night. That was one funny, but foul, movie. But I love me some Will Farrell. Seriously, I'd watch that guy read the newspaper.

Stop on over at the Monkey Barn. Hyperion has gift suggestions and a video that is guaranteed to make you smile.

Mostly Tepid Person

David Gregory!?!? {sigh}
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I decided to join up with the Shrinking Piggies-a nice group of fellow bloggers who are trying to lose some poundage. Marital bliss and I are getting along very well and, as a result, 15 pounds of happiness have found their way to my...everywhere.

It's never too late or too early to start changing life habits, setting goals and making choices that will make my life better. Me? I enjoy seeing the amazing battle of will power and the couch of doom. Of course, the couch of doom will LOSE. Hahahaha.

My ambitious 2009 goals? Well here we go:
1. 3 half-marathons in the spring (Martian, Cleveland, Ann Arbor-Dexter).
1a. 15-20 miles running/week with consistency, by the end of Jan.
2. Working out 6 days/week. Even if it's *just* a 2 mile walk to the library and back.
3. No desserts except on the weekends.
4. Eat out only 1x/week. 1 mid-afternoon latte/week.

Of course 1 and 1a is all predicated on healthy knees. But, that's what PT is for right?
:) LJS

Christmas Baking

For a few happy Christmas seasons, Hea and I would play hooky, dress in our most comfy jammies and bake cookies all day long. We made anywhere from 6-8 different kinds of cookies and, at the end of the day, we had a 1 foot layer of cookies on her kitchen table. It was all sorts of yummy. At the end of our day, we'd order cheese pizza (extra well-done please) and ogle over our favorite spygirl: Jennifer Garner. I miss Hea all the time, but especially this time of year. Hopefully, she and Yaz will make their own cookies!

Anyhoo, THE MAN and I will be creating our own traditions this year. It's our first year together (as in we're not separated by 1000 km!) and we're planning on making candy and baked goods. I'm thinking of breaking out of the cookie mold, but it will mean that the goods will not last as long. So it'll mean I'll have to share the baked love more quickly.

Some candidates for the Christmas goodies? Gosh, go over to Dragon's kitchen and take your pick! I'm excited about her Caramel Cake with Carmelized Butter Frosting, and Cheesecake Pops. I think I'll still make the Michigan Treasure cookies since they were so yummy.

As for the candy? We're thinking hard candy-maybe some toffee, or peanut brittle, or a ginger/cinamon concoction.

Dunder NASA

Update on Dr. Purr

An update on Dr. Purr: 

I went to the Ann Arbor Cat Clinic on Monday to pick up a copy of Howie's rabies certificate and was so happy to see Dr. Purr. 

He has gained weight and his coat is shiny and pretty. He has some grey in his fur, so he's probably not just 2 years old. And he is playful! 

This is a nice story of what some good food and love in a safe home can do for a cat. Miracle workers, that clinic. He still needs a home. Maybe if I work on the MAN a bit more, Howie can have a brudder. 

:) LJS

Lost in Translation

So with all this news lately about pirates, I've decided to give my pirate crew the holidays off. I have complete faith that they will hijack a nuclear submarine, nuke the bastards that are giving us a bad name, and then return all the stolen booty to their original owners. (Including returning the submarine, DESPITE my oft wanderlust about having such a sub in my fleet.) 

That's my crew. Righteous limeys. The Robin Hoods of the open seas. {sniffle} I'm so proud of them. 

In light of my crew's holiday, I've decided to take a break also. No, the break is not from my already sporatic written musings, which may one day be used against me in a court of law. 

Instead, the break is from being shy. I'm about to get all hate-filled Twinkie here on you, dear reader so I will forgive y'all if you decide to stop reading here. (legal notice: the "hate-filled Twinkie" is a registered trademark of KaplyInc...whom I love dearly and fear regularly)

I've noticed that I'm pretty freaking sick and tired of being the evil genius behind the curtain. I'm pretty darn smarht and cute and charming and personal. When those don't work, I can amaze you with the power of a wooden peg leg. Anyhoo, why should I let people speak for me when I know that I can do just as well or even better? 

(Oh sweet Garfield, I'm not about to invoke Hillary am I? Oh yes.)

I fear that I've lost my voice. And by golly, I'm going to find it. Slackers, dissenters, and asshats watch out. Here comes Lady Jane. 

Something new

Thought it'd be nice to have change here in the Den.
:) LJS

Anything is a nutritional supplement

This is one for all the chemists out there to enjoy a little chuckle:
"Systematic review of the nutritional supplements dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) in the treatment of osteoarthritis"

LOL. Nutritional Supplements.

Thanks to our Heroes

more animals

Go-TV

Hey everyone,
I used to think that GOTV was a television station. Heh. It's not. It means 'get out the vote'. In my support of Go-TV, I am letting all of my officers and ship crew off the boat for the whole day.

I would like to encourage everyone to go out and vote on Tuesday. The lines are going to be long, but be prepared! Bring a water, a puzzle and patience.

Wait in line.

Either way you slice it, this year's election is very important. Your vote, your voice, needs to be heard. There are local, state and federal issues that needs your input.

Wait in line.

:) LJS

LOL Cattery

My late Sunday mewsings....

1. No, 'obligations' was not about anyone anyone knows. Especially not you Dragon. You know I love you.

2. I'm still too enthralled with LOL cats to be bothered with reality.

3. I know that you, too, are waiting with baited breath for my 2008 Detroit post-race post-mortem. It is coming.

4. The man is playing a game where he shoots bubbles. Bubbles. At least zombie targets are...potentially useful...someday.

5. GO AND VISIT HYPERION AND GIVE HIM LOTS OF LOVE. Do it now.

hee hee hee...btw. I just came up with 'mewsings'. Isn't it fab and clever?

Five times 13.1

Welcome, LJS fans, to another edition of "half marathon post-mortem"! I'm your complainer-in-chief, LJS, and I'll be your host for these next thirteen miles...and then some.

Let me first mention how much lactic acid accumulation sucks ass. OK. There. It's said and done and I still can't walk down a flight of stairs without a grimace.

First, let me give major love to Lord Mullett who was roused from a peaceful slumber at 4:30 am to drive me and GM to the race. Thanks honey.

Onward with the program we go!

Pre-race: 2008 has been a long journey of blind ambition to desolation to resolution to accomplishment. It was simply enough to be there and to feel ready to run. It was a cold, dark morning in downtown Detroit. I woke up before 5am. A group of over 25,000 people gather in and it was so exciting.

Before the bridge are miles 0-3. I call them the innocent miles: This is the point where my body doesn't realize I'm about to ask it to run 13.1 miles. It is happy to just be out there running. Little does it know!
So things started off slow, it was about 6 minutes for our section to hit the start line. There were lots of people and we were all running in sync, so imagine thousands of heads bobbling at the same pace. It was cool. We got off to an easy pace and I felt good, aside from some tightness in my right leg. Energy was high and I really was just happy to be out there. The entertainment and fluid stations were great, as always.
The first mile marker is at mile 2. Now, runners are sort of an anal bunch when it comes to time. YES even for those like me who say they aren't. We are. We just try to lie about it. So, at mile 2, we're at a good starting pace.

Miles 3-6. Bah. These miles are so boring, with the exception of watching the sun rise over the Ambassador Bridge. Getting onto the bridge was slow because of construction. At mile 5, I noticed that our 'good starting pace' has lasted too long. It's pretty evident that we'll have to work harder to make up some time. Loaded up on Gu here.

Miles 7-9. These miles are sort of painful because you go from high energy to some weird la-la land of surviving. This stretch finishes our time in Windsor, we run under the water and make it back to Detroit. Here, I was starting to get tired. The tunnel was really warm and I took off one of my shirts. Big mistake because when we hit the surface, man it was cold. Our pace was better, and I was having fun. I wasn't feeling as wiped out as I usually do at this point in previous races, so I take that as a sign I did something right.

Miles 10-12. Oy. These are the miles when your body knows it can finish but your brain begins to revolt. Constant fighting between my body and mind. I knew on a body/cellular level that I was OK, I was trained for this and I can finish the distance. But my brain kept on telling me that I really should stop and sit down. Stupid brain! I just told myself to hang on. And, hopefully next time someone will tell the crowd "less cowbell".

Mile 13: Gosh, the only thing I really remember about this last stretch was a nice old man telling us "last turn, you can see the finish line". And we did. But it was sooooooo far away. Finishing the last 0.2 miles with people all around you and cheering you on is great. We saw Francis in the midst of all of those people, and it made me smile so much because this was my first race that I was running toward him because he was there. It was great, the first of many I hope!

Post-race: some hobbling around and trying to get hydrated and some nutrition.
Thanks again for a great run, GM. Next destination: MARS!
:D

Obligations

Open letter to the over-promising, under-delivering twit:

Yes yes yes I know that what you are doing is overwhelmingly time consuming. But you should know that also and, as a result, NOT volunteer for other things. Let me tell you that I do not care that you are busy. Do what you said you were going to do. Dammit. If you do not fulfill your obligations...I will bear down on you with consequences and fury. Or at least make other people do it for me.
No, I don't think that your boss will be happy to learn that you volunteered to do something and now are backing out at the last minute.

Sincerely yours, the drill instructor LJS
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Folks, I know I've complained about this sort of thing before here and on the Monkey Barn. But I am a very strong believer in doing what you say you are going to do (aka following up on your word). For starters, often times your word is the only thing you have and it better be good or else your reputation is in the gutter. Another view is that your reputation is not built on the promises you make but on the promises you deliver. Now, this kid's reputation with me is on shaky ground, at best, and when I ask for volunteers in the future I will remember this unfortunate event. I will not tolerate the "I'm busy" excuse because WE ARE ALL BUSY, dammit. And most of us still find time to fulfill obligations and promises.

The G word

I believe that government is not a dirty word. I believe that government is made of people like US and can make lives better. I've experienced this on a very personal level: I would not be able to have gone to college if government did not give me a low-cost loan. I believe that it is morally and socially responsible to make sure that everybody has the right to lead a healthy happy life. Moreover, it makes economic sense to invest in education or preventative medicine instead of building more prisons or spending money to treat diseases that could have been avoided by simple preventative measures.

I see that my tax dollars, while not always spent in a manner I agree with (Iraq), are spent so my cousin, who is a single mom, can get free health care for her son. I see that people's lives are made better. I've seen people fed and housed; poor people having access to careers, education, transportation. Police now have armor vests and better technology to keep us safe. Research gets supported. Small businesses get start-up grants. How are these things bad?

So what that the government spends money on things you don't agree with? Do you really think that 300 million people are going to agree on anything? I think that government tries its best to help as many people as possible (when they're not "shock and awe"-ing them, but I digress).

I don't believe that if people were taxed less, they would necessarily donate that money to charitable causes. Look at tithes, as an example. Ask: How many people do you know tithe? How many churches are always asking for more money? Every church I know of is always underfunded, understaffed; always in danger of closing. Why? There is an unfortunate disconnect. Do you really think that they'd support other agencies if they can't/don't/won't even support their own church?

I'm not arguing for tax increases. I'm simply stating I recognize that government can be (and is generally) an agent of good. It's not a dirty word.

Can you adopt a loving cat?

Howie KATT had his annual vet visit last week. I wish it had gone well, but we got stuck with Dr. Inept Newbie because I forgot the name of his regular vet (never again, shall I forget her sweet name).

One GREAT thing about Howie's vet office is that they love cats. In fact, they are a cat-only clinic. Their adoption program is wonderful and I like to come to Howie's appointment early so I can play with all of the cats waiting for a loving home.

This year, one just nearly broke my heart. Meet Dr. Purr. Let me tell you about him. He was found in a dumpster at a local hospital along with some insulating foam. He's had a rough start! When I first met him at the cat clinic, he was shy and tired. But I opened his cage and started to give him "feeder love" and he instantly became a purring monster-wanting more attention and cuddling. Dr. Purr is so sweet and so kind and is one of those cats that will always love his feeder. He reminds me so much of Howie when I found him-a bit in rough shape but very affectionate, very mild mannered and very much ready for a good home.

I wish I could bring home Dr. Purr, but I think Lord Mullett would not be pleased.

Can you?

:) LJS

Elect Nietzsche!

Depressing times calls for a depressing leader. What is little-known this year, what with all the association issues, is that Nietzsche is running for President on the "Well-Preserved" ticket.
Never mind he is not an American, or even still alive.

Here is some thrilling sound bytes from the "recession is the new tech bubble" wave that's taking this country by storm!

"When you gaze long into the economy, the economy gazes back."
"Terrorist" (oops, wrong campaign! my bad)


And, for those of you concerned about Supreme Court nominees, Herr Fred has this to say:

"Although the most acute judges of the witches and even the witches themselves, were convinced of the guilt of witchery, the guilt nevertheless was non-existent. It is thus with all guilt. "

If you missed all 20+ of the Democrat party debates, you'll find this statement a stunning admission of his sexism!

"Behind all their personal vanity, women themselves always have an impersonal contempt for pigs with lipstick."

Dante found a new job!

see Sarah Palin pictures

Top 10!

Thanks to RandyO for:

The top ten reasons to buy a Honda Nighthawk

1. It looks like a motorcycle.

2. It doesn’t look like a lime green fish.

3. Nobody will steal it for parts.

4. It’s not a Harley.

5. You won’t wake up your neighbors if you ride in at night.

6. You don’t need an electric motor to back out of your parking space.

7. If you drop it in your driveway, your ego is the only thing that gets damaged.

8. You can ride it like a squid if you’re in the mood.

9. You can ride it like a grandmother if you’re not in the mood.

10. You don’t have to dress up in a neon colored kevlar clown suit to go riding.

Friendly bacteria, my ass

(the title is for, TL. hope you're feeling better)
I'm still seething at the stupidity of the punk ass bitch who just so happens to be my TA for the semester. Watch me grit my teeth as I pretend to be nice to the soulless bastard. Instead of walking down to his office and beating him to a pulp using my awesome hybrid ninja-pirate skills, I choose to take out my aggression on consumer goods.

My therapist calls this progress.

I was reading the contents on the container of my Dannon yogurt and found something silly. There’s a list, a top 7 if you will, of the “reasons to enjoy Dannon today and for tomorrow”.

I present to you dear reader, verbatum...the reasons.

1. Be fit. Contains calcium which can help with weight management
2. Be vital. Is a good source of protein for muscle maintenance
3. Be comfortable. Has active cultures that help milk digestion
4. Be strong. Has calcium, essential for strong bones
5. Be nourished. Contains important nutrients for children’s growth
6. Be proactive. Provides friendly bacteria for your digestive tract
7. Be happy! Is a great-tasting and satisfying part of your healthy diet.

Read carefully.

Now, here are my issues. (allow me, once again, to get all John McLaughlin on you good people)

Issue 1: Numbers 1 and 3 are arguing for the same ingredient, calcium, just in different ways

Issue 2: The active cultures ARE bacteria, so numbers 3 and 6 are the same.

Issue 3: The important nutrients? Calcium and protein. So, there goes number 5.

Thus the actual number of reasons to eat Dannon yogurt are three.

1. Has nutrients
2. Has bacteria
3. Tastes yummy

Don’t let them fool you. Bastards, each and every one.