Olympic glory

Here's the best story of the Olympics. Anything I say will get in the way. Go read.

Yep, sounds about right

Your result for The Perception Personality Image Test...

HBPS - The Optimist

Humanity, Background, Big Picture, and Shape

You perceive the world with particular attention to humanity. You focus on the hidden treasures of life (the background) and how that fits into the larger picture. You are also particularly drawn towards the shapes around you. Because of the value you place on humanity, you tend to seek out other people and get energized by being around others. You like to ponder ideas and imagine the many possibilities of your life without worrying about the details or specifics. You are in tune with all that is around you and understand your life as part of a larger whole. You prefer a structured environment within which to live and you like things to be predictable.

The Perception Personality Types:

Take The Perception Personality Image Test at href="http://www.helloquizzy.com/">HelloQuizzy

Gen Con Reports

I've made a few Gen Con posts on my livejournal blog. You can see them here and here.

Ask and you shall receive

Or more accurately, I tell you I'll do something and I do it. I present the World Con report.

Road-weary

Arrived home from Denver at around 3:30 a.m. Slept it off for about six hours and now I'm vegging in front of the TV with a laptop and a kitty in my lap. Driving to a far-off destination can be a bitch--let's face it, we spent two days on the road--but at the same time I like it. We saw parts of the country we'd never seen before, we sang along to songs, and we experienced a few truly crappy McDonald's. The drive itself was easy--only four interstates with very little construction. We stopped in Omaha to see a college friend I hadn't seen in almost ten years. We ate. We drove. We slept. And then after World Con we did it all again. Good times, but it's always good to be home.

Here's what I've learned on my summer vacation so far:

1. Omaha really is a happening place. The downtown has seen some gentrification in recent years and is pretty hip. We saw it at night, and we were going to stop on the way back through to experience some of the little shops and stuff during the day, but we wanted to get home, so ... next time.

2. People in Iowa can't drive. At least, they are incapable of driving over twenty miles an hour on a two-lane highway in the dark. You know how they put all the traffic on one side of the interstate when they're working on the other side? Well. This scares Iowan nighttime drivers so much that they come to a stand-still. I will just stay it was an unpleasant way to spend a half-hour when you're still several hours from home.

3. Apparently you have to go to an actual city if you want to see political ads. Or maybe the campaigns have already written off my area. Whatever the reason, I've seen more of McCain and Obama during the past four days than I had the previous month. And I've been watching the election coverage on the news networks!

4. Having a weird schedule + eating at weird times = weight loss. Who knew? I think I skipped a lot of meals and walked a bunch, so that helped. Whatever. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, right?

5. You know how on the map of the US, Nebraska is pretty much bare after Omaha? Yeah, they aren't lying. It's freakish. Colorado is the same way--you'll easily go fifty miles without seeing a house. Spooky. Also, Iowa is full of rolling hills, Nebraska is flat, and Colorado is hilly with brush instead of grass.

6. Being a mile closer to the sun really does mean you burn quick. We went to a Rockies baseball game on Thursday and zowie! I got a little pink. We didn't stay for the whole game, and it's a good thing, because otherwise I would have been lobsterfied. And before you say it--yes, I was wearing sunscreen. Not enough, apparently.

We leave for another convention in two days--this one much closer to home (Indy)--and so here's what I have to accomplish:

1. Laundry

2. Mow the lawn

3. Finish the current chapter in the WIP already

4. Return the rental car

5. Return the library materials

6. Knit something so I can make sure I still frickin' know how

7. Veg


I'll post a link to the Official Worldcon Con Report once I write it. Now, I must put jeans in the dryer ...

Friday night, girl's-night-in style

Tonight I knitted (one more square of baby Coop's baby blanket to go!), watched Ocean's Eleven and That Thing You Do, and ate ice cream for dinner. Right now it's almost midnight and I'm coloring my hair. The only thing missing is a mani-pedi and pop music on the radio.

I love vacation.

Well, technically I have to work on Monday, but that's just what it is: a technicality. Mentally I'm vacationing until the 18th. Hitting WorldCon in Denver and then Gen Con in Indy.

Must rinse the gray outta my hair now.

Internet fun, weekend edition

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, acts 1, 2, and 3 are available free until July 20th at midnight EDT, me thinks. They're for sale on iTunes, for those of you who want to shell out the four bucks. NPH, Nathan Fillion, and Felicia Day singing their little hearts out. Good times. Plus, it's always good to support the internet movie format.

Pandora: radio from the Music Genome Project. I love how you plug in a band, and based on the qualities of that band's music, the site pulls music from the database you'll enjoy. Put music theory to work for you! Frickin' genius.

Technology rules

The iPhone, I have it. It's pretty and shiny and useful. It surfs and plays and calls and receives and directs. Ah lurve it.

Not much writing will be done tonight, I fear.

Dr. Horrible's Sing-along Blog

Act 1 is up, and it's full of Neil Patrick Harris and Nathon Fillion goodness.

http://www.drhorrible.com/act_I.html

Cattery

Moonshine



Kahlua


Morgan

New kitty pictures, just because.

Conflict of interest

Am I the only person that has a problem with Project Runway and Ghosthunters episodes airing at the same time? Which one to watch live, which one to DVR? Oh, the conundrum.

Two movie reviews, a book review, and general upkeep

I've not been around the blogsphere much lately, mostly because I've been working on the rewrite of my Work In Progress, going to the movies, and in general enjoying the summertime. Here's a recap of my recent activities.



*Just bought Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. So much fun. I like Guitar Hero better than Rock Band, probably because Ken doesn't like playing Rock Band with me--something about my inner rock goddess embarassing him--and GH:A hasn't dissapointed me so far.



*Recently finished Codespell by Kelly McCullough. Lots of fun. It's the third book in the series, and it didn't dissapoint. The thing that intimidates me about McCullough's books is he's got three zillion characters to keep straight, so I spend some time at the beginning of the book pushing aside the cobwebs in my head so I can remember everything. Once I get past that, though, it's one hell of a ride straight through to the end. If you enjoy science fiction and looking at the legends of greek mythology in a different light, I highly recommend the series.



*Making notes for my next book. Another YA, this one science fiction. I can't wait to dive in, but lots of research still needs to happen.



*Movie review: Hancock looks at the dark side of superherodom. Will Smith plays the title character. He's a drunk who's pissed off at the world. He doesn't remember who he really is or where he came from. The only thing he knows for sure is that he's the only one of his kind, he doesn't age, and he's indestructable. Jason Bateman plays the PR guy set on changing Hancock's public persona, and Charlize Theron plays the PR dude's wife who has some secrets of her own. A decent way to spend the afternoon. Ken really liked it; I though it could have been constructed a teensy bit better, but I enjoyed it as well.



*Movie review: Wall-e is an awesome movie. Wall-e a class of robot whose task is to compress the massive piles of trash left on earth after humans have evacuated the planet. The title character is the last working robot, and over the course of 700 years has developed a personality. Eve is a robot sent to earth with a specific directive. Using very little dialogue, the movie delves into several themes: rampant consumerism, artificial intelligence, companionship, and the potential future of humankind if we don't start taking care of ourselves and our planet. I would watch this again. I dare say I'd pay full price the second time.



I leave you with a picture of my daylillies in all their glory.

Fruits of my addiction

One completed horizontal ribbed scarf, one almost completed vertical ribbed scarf, and 1/4 of a baby blanket made of seed-stitch blocks.

It's NPH, baby!

Teaser from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog on Vimeo.



Neil Patrick Harris. Joss Whedon. What more can you ask for?

New Music Friday

I've recently been introduced to Jonathon Coulton (thanks Sean Murphy!). This dude sings the geek soundtrack.

Zombie geek? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjcH2UmK1uo

Computer coder/World of Warcraft geek? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4Wy7gRGgeA

History geek? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdUUywIsIGI

Microbiology geek? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqOVYpkZ0qs

Math geek? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uluZMafXVE

Science fiction/WoW/Christmas geek? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5M9UTlDb10

Rock band geek? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAgutrkFjBQ

Guitar hero geek? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7OG2qHWMgo&feature=related


And that's just the tip of the iceberg, my friends! He's got songs about Tom Cruise and DNA! What's not to like? Go on over to his website and buy some .

Who knew?

Your result for The Fashion Style Test ...
Glamorous Soul
40% Flamboyance, 52% Originality, 63% Deliberateness, 57% Sexiness
[Tasteful Original Deliberate Sexy]
You choose your outfits carefully according to many criteria. You don't like looking cheap, dull or random and you go to great lengths to avoid this. You are successful, too. People admire your taste and sex appeal. Many try to imitate you but not many can recreate your unique style. Sometimes, however, they find you too intimidating to approach. If you don't wear retro style yet, perhaps you should consider it. It would become greatly your sexy, mysterious self.

Lessons learned

A few things I learned over the weekend:

1. Do not, under any circumstances, see The Happening. M. Night Shyamalan wrote, directed, and produced it, and it is truly terrible. The concept was good--it's a day-of-apocolypse story--but the execution was horrible. Characters and dialogue were awful and things were thrown into the plot that made no sense. Ugh. One good thing I will say about it was there were some nice cinematography. I repeat: Do. Not. See. It.

2. Driving along the edge of a severe thunderstorm is almost worse than driving right through it. Also, looking for a tornado while trying to keep the car on the road in the wind for an hour straight can be a little exhausting.

3. Reading a holocaust novel right before bed can give you funny dreams.

R.I.P Tim Russert

Tim Russert, political analyst for NBC, has died. I'm saddened and a little shocked. While I wouldn't call myself a political junkie, I do enjoy a civil political debate and fair coverage of a candidate or issue. Mr. Russert provided that. Who will host Meet the Press on Sunday? There is no replacement.

New Music Tuesday

So I just bought the new Alanis Morrisette album today. Actually, I pre-ordered it from iTunes like any self-respecting fan would. So far it's angsty and fun, which is pretty much par for the course.

My purchase got me thinking about the role music has played in my life. My parents were always into music--my mom more than my dad, maybe--and several of my childhood memories revolve around music or have music playing in the background. For instance:

Saturday was cleaning day at our house. Mom would either put on American Bandstand or turn off the TV and listen to the radio. I particularly remember listening to Laura Branigan's "Gloria" while helping mom dust. We'd sing and dance and clean and giggle. It should be noted I still do that. It's easier to clean out a closet when you can toss crap into the trash in time to the Chicago Soundtrack.

Mom listened to all sorts of music, but she especially liked country. Kenny Rogers, Anne Murray, Crystal Gayle. Dad liked music from the '50's and early '60's. Think "Leader of the Pack." My cousin (who was around mom's age) liked rock like Led Zepplin. I think she'd listen to music as she cleaned, too, and she'd wear a red kerchief over her wild blond hair.

I got a record player in third grade. I listened to mom's 45's--Jackie Robinison's "Tears of a Clown" had a heavy rotation--and Jack Wagner's "All I Need." My first full-length vinyl album was Michael Jackson's Thriller. I played and played and played that thing. It should be noted I've tried to buy the album from iTunes several times, but I can't bring myself to do it. I don't want to help pay his legal fees, ya know? Maybe I'll go to a used record store and try to snag a copy. I get a copy and support the local economy without giving any to Wacko Jacko that way.

Mom is currently on a Big Band kick.

Last time I was at Dad's I saw Abba's Greatest Hits sitting next to his CD player.

I have everything from Kenny Rogers to Kanye West on my iPod.

We all evolve; music's presence is the constant.

The reliable realist