Your trademark tune is Gwen Stefani's "Rich Girl".

Flirty and fun, you get a kick out of catching someone's eye (like you know who) and being in the center of it all. Good thing you've got the looks, personality, and sense of humor to pull it all off. You go crazy for the opposite sex, and it's just as easy for people to fall in love with you and your fun-loving attitude.A great asset to any gathering, you've got the confidence to strike up conversations with strangers and make anyone feel welcome. That rocks!



I'll fess up...my actual tune was Britney's "You Drive Me Crazy" but I didn't want that so I picked my own! HA! But the quiz is fun all the same!

I'm just hanging out at Grandma & Grandpa's house. AND...today is Mom's birthday!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY Mom!!

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I had a conversation tonight with the day shift supervisor as my shift was just beginning. At the end, he laughed and said, "If someone off the street heard what we just said, he'd be like, 'Huh? Wha? What are you talking about?'" And I totally agreed.

We were discussing a work issue and after he said that, I realized just how true it is. To us, everything we said made perfect sense. To someone who doesn't work here, we're speaking gibberish. I decided I'd share the conversation with you and see what you make of it.

Dan: How did you get the 657's to run without a minispec or ETR?

Me: There was a minispec. It was in Comets.

Dan: No, that was for the CMAV.

Me: But the PEMAV & the CMAV are the same thing.

Dan: No, they're not.

Me: Yes, they are. When Nancy got certified to the CMAV and then she moved on to the MCT, I wrote Debi and asked her if the PEMAV & CMAV were the same since PEMAV 04 used to be CMAV 01. She said she asked around and the engineers said yes, they were the same.

Dan: Well, the engineers today said they weren't. You know how Peter Greene* can be. Or do you?

Me: No, I've never met him.

Dan: Well, he wasn't happy that the 657's were running without a spec or ETR. But he also said he could see how it could happen and he wrote out an ETR and split the files on the PEMAV so it won't happen again.

Me: Okay. Sorry.


So! What do you think? Does any of it make sense? Even to me, and I've been here 7 years, this whole "PEMAV/CMAV" thing is confusing. I think I'm right on this issue but then again, I usually think that way! :)

I'm leaving this morning to go to Grand Junction with my folks to visit my grandparents. I'll post from there with (hopefully) fun trip anticdotes. And hopfully the Spider Batallion isn't waiting to swallow me up the second I set foot in the Haunted Basement!!

Happy Tuesday to all!

---
*= Name has been changed to protect my job

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO DEREK!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO DEREK! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR DEREK, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO DEREK!

Yesterday I was reading Derek S's blog and he was commenting about how he had made up a situation in his head and the next day it actually happened. That's also happened to me a few times.

The first time was the summer before my junior year in high school. I had a crush on a kid named Troy who was a friend of a friend who lived around the corner from me. I hadn't told anyone except my cousin Camille who was staying with us for a few weeks that summer. We were washing dishes before going to Rhonda's house and I was telling her about a situation I had made up in my mind: that we would get to Rhonda's and Wayne, Troy's friend, would be there. Somehow it would come out that I liked Troy and he would say, "Troy? No one likes Troy!" I have no idea why I would have thought he would say that - Troy was pretty cute! But there it was.

So! We walked down to Rhonda's and sure enough, there was Wayne. He started teasing Camille that another friend of his, Skip, liked Camille. She said that she liked John (yet another of his buddies) and he said that John liked me. I said that I liked Troy and Wayne says, "Troy? No one likes Troy!" Camille and I just stared at each other! Word for word, it had come true!

The second time was during my senior year. I was walking home a different route than normal because I had walked with Shanon to a friend's house after school. One of the houses that I had to pass was John's house, the friend from above. I had a vision that as I walked by, he would be coming out to check the mail. He would see me and ask what I was doing. "Walking home," I would say. "What are you doing?" "Checking the mail. Why are you walking this way?" And I would explain why.

So as I pass John's house, here he comes. "Hey, Heather, what are you doing?"

"Walking home. What are you doing?"

"Checking the mail. Why are you walking this way?"

"Becuase I walked with a friend over to house where she babysits after school and now I'm going home." We talked a little bit more after that but I was totally freaked out! It had happened AGAIN!! After that I started really making up conversations and situations that I wanted to happen but it very rarely did.

I don't what the conditions have to be to get these visions but they seem rare and they also don't seem to deal with anything of extreme importance! But it's creepy!

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I love fantasy art. At one time I spent a lot of time combing the net looking for great stuff and making desktop themes for my computer from it. During this time I ran across some amazing artists. Check out some of this work:


GYPSY MEDINA
Original Painting by David Delamare



I love mermaids (as you can probably tell by my header) and think this painting is absolutely gorgeous. David Delamare has some neat stuff at his site.

GOTHIQUE
by Jessica Galbreath



I saw a lot of Jessica Galbreath's work the last time I was at Celebrations in Old Colorado City. I loved it all...check out her site for some great faery art.

PEARL PRINCESS
by Selena French

Click to view. It doesn't seem to allow external linking.

I had never heard of Serena French until this morning when I was doing a search for this post but I really like her work. I thought this piece was especially cool.

TEARS OF WAIALEALE
by Jonathan Earl Bowser



Jonathan Earl Bowser is one of my favorite artists. I love his paintings, his use of color and the flow. I would LOVE to have some of his artwork in my home!

THE MIGHTY PEN
by Collin T Burton



And here we come to my favorite artist, Collin T Burton. How great is this picture? He's got a couple of artwork sites to check out.

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I've always got a song rolling around in my brain. Some nights are worse than others; I'll get one song stuck in there and it won't go away. The worst part is it's just one line repeating over & over & over... & over...

Since I work on a static controlled floor, we're not allowed to have radios or headphones. That means I'm stuck with whatever my brain decides to tune in to. Tonight has been a night of variety. Somewhat.

1) When I came in, I had "The Chauffeur" by Duran Duran stuck in my head which is weird because the D2 CD I had going in the car did not have that song on it. But there it was.

2) "Lovergirl" by Teena Marie popped in there while I was talking to Collin on the phone and he was reading me my comments for yesterday's post. Laura's comment got me singing it....

3) ...but only for a while. Somehow, "Sunday Morning" by Maroon 5 started running around my head. Since the Duran Duran show, I haven't listened to anything except D2 so how that one popped in there I have no clue.

4) After about an hour, I noticed that Duran Duran had returned and this time it was "Planet Earth."

5) Again, my brain freaked out and grabbed hold of a song that I haven't heard in a week: "Dare You To Move" by Switchfoot.

6) Maroon 5 was feeling left out apparently so "Sunday Morning" made an encore appearance.

7) Finally a song that made sense!! "I Wanna Take You Higher", the Duran Duran version from their cover CD "Thank You." I love that song and did everything I could to keep it going. But my brain had other plans.

8) This wasn't a bad thing, however, because as I type this, "What Happens Tomorrow" by the Duran Boys in firmly entrenched.

Those are my jukebox selections for the night! Have a great Tuesday! I know I will cuz it's my FRIDAY!! Yaaaaaaaaay!!

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It's officially Spring Break here for the kids in school. You see the shows about the college kids traveling to Cancun and Florida and places like that for sun, fun & debauchery... I never did anything like that. When I was in 9th or 10th grade, I went to California with my friend Rhonda & her parents to visit her brother & his family. They lived in Orange County (I think) and took us to Knott's Berry Farm, DisneyLand and Redondo Beach. Being at the beach was as close as I got to sun & fun. Rhonda & I walked down to the ocean, each holding a hand of her 4 year old niece, Melissa. We waded about ankle-deep into the Pacific, making sure we had a good grip on the little girl. Suddenly, a sea gull flew overhead and Rhonda yelled, "IT'S POOPING!!!" Sure enough, a big plop of bird poop was heading straight for us. We panicked and both let go of Melissa. She ended up face first in the ocean. She was a very unhappy baby after that!

When I was in 8th grade, the week before Spring Break we were doing gymnastics in Gym Class which was my 1st period class. While I was changing into my shorts, a friend asked me if that was a zit on my hip. I said it must be, it looked like one. While I was on the balance beam, I slipped and scraped my hip against the side of the beam, knocking the "zit" off. It bled for a while but then I forgot about it. Until next period: math. Renee, a friend who sat in front of me, mentioned that I looked "dotty" and that someone in our class had had chicken pox recently so I better go see the nurse. I got a pass from Mr. Bangs and off I went. There were already about 4 kids sitting in the nurse's office, waiting. When the nurse came in, she came in yelling. "YOU KIDS DO THIS EVERY SINGLE DAY! YOU HAVE GYM AND YOU DON'T WANT TO DRESS OUT SO YOU PRETEND YOU'RE SICK! WELL I'M NOT PUTTING UP WITH IT TODAY! ALL OF YOU GO BACK TO CLASS NOW!!"

"But I have a note," I spoke up timidly as the other kids were filing out.

"I DON'T CARE IF YOU HAVE A NOTE OR NOT! GO BACK TO CLASS!"

"But they think I have the Chicken Pox!" Boy, did her attitude change quick!

"Oh, dear! Let's get that checked out right away!" It turned out I DID have Chicken Pox so she called Mom and had her come get me. I had been feeling wonky that weekend and had a doctor's appointment that afternoon. Mom called them and told them that she thought that was why I had been sick, did they still want to see me? They said if I did come in, I would have to be isolated; no one in their office had ever had Chicken Pox. I opted to not go in.

I was so excited that I was off school for 2 weeks! The best part was that I ended up with a 2 week Spring Break! The worst part was I thought I'd be home alone the first week but then Derek ended up catching them, too! He was diagnosed the next day. Turns out his little friend Jamie and his sister Cindy (who was in my class) had the Pox and spread them to everyone at the Chili Supper. Bah!

I don't remember itching very badly and the only scar I have from the disease is the one on my hip that got knocked off in Gym. I do remember putting a lot of puzzles together and listening to the radio. The songs "Loverboy" by Billy Ocean & "Lovergirl" by Teena Marie were popular then and I can't hear either one without being reminded of the Chicken Pox.

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So I've decided to do another one of these


1. What song is stuck in your head? "There Must Be An Angel" - Eurythmics

2. If you were being taken to a desert island and could only take 5 cds, which ones would you pick?
1. Duran Duran "Greatest"
2. Badfinger "The Best Of"
3. Roxette "The Love Ballads"
4. Gwen Stefani "Love Angel Music Baby"
5. The Doors "Greatest Hits"

3. What was the first book you remember reading? Some Hardy Boys book, the title of which escapes my mind at the moment. Being read? Aw, geeze...ummm....Raggedy Ann & Andy. I think.

4. What is your favorite book of all time? There's never just one! Road To Paradise Island by Victoria Holt, Lightning by Dean Koontz, Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett, The Mummy by Anne Rice, Postmortem by Patricia Cornwell...

5. Which movie has left the most lasting impression on you? Far From Heaven

6. Which book have you read most frequently? Road To Paradise Island (see above). I think I've read it 4 times.

7. Which movie have you watched the most? Indiana Jones & The Temple Of Doom or A Christmas Story. I think it's a toss-up.

8. What books are on your bedside table at the moment? Amelia Peabody's Guide To Egypt by Elizabeth Peters, Elizabeth I by Alison Weir, King Henry VIII & His Court by Alison Weir, Play Dead by Leslie O'Kane, Hitchiker's Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams & Dead Famous by Carol O'Connel.

9. What CD's are in your CD player right now? At home...in the one by the bathroom is "Pop Trash" - Duran Duran. In the living room is Roxette, Sara Evans, T.Rex, Sarah Brightman & Mariah Carey. In the car is Duran Duran, Arcadia, Power Station and Linda Eder.

10. What fictional character (movie, TV show, cartoon, book) do you have a crush on? Easy!! Indiana Jones! :)

11. Favorite line from a movie? "Un, deux, trois, jump, I say! Why don't you listen to me?" Said by James Cocoa in 'Murder By Death.'

Short & sweet! Enjoy!

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I apologize in advance for the fact that I am about to regress back to being 13 years old. I'm really sorry but I have to let loose a junior high girl squeal:

EEEEEEEEeeeeeeEEEEEEEheheheheheeheeHEEHEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!

Okay, now that that's out of the way...I saw Duran Duran last night in concert for the first time in my life! I've loved them since I was 12 and finally, FINALLY, saw them live! When I was in junior high, I was madly in love with John Taylor (no, Jenn, you're not too old to do the groupie thing!!) and later I moved on to Simon LeBon. In fact, when we got our hamsters, I wanted to name mine J.T. for John Taylor but Mom said that since it was a girl, I should name her Madonna.

Anyway....Mom bought me tickets to the show for Christmas and last night was the night! It was at Magness Arena on the DU campus. We arrived 2 hours early and both had to use the bathroom. Mom walked right up to the front doors of the arena and pulled - surprisingly the doors were open! We walked in like we belonged there and used the restroom. I could hear music coming from the stage and recognized it as "Astronaut", the title track from Duran Duran's new CD. I realized that they were down on the stage doing what I thought was a sound check. I told Mom what was going on and after we used the restroom, she walked right over to the locked gate that overlooked the stage. Sure enough, there was Simon LeBon in baggy jeans and a wrinkled pink t-shirt singing his heart out. There was John Taylor in black basketball pants and a black t-shirt and thick black rimmed glasses. (Mom said he looked like a nerd.) I could see Roger Taylor behind the drum set and Nick Rhodes at the keyboard set-up. The guitarist was blocked but I assumed it was Andy Taylor. We stood there for a while and after they finished "Astronaut" they moved on to "The Chauffeur." They were only working on the music and went over a certain section about 5 times. Mom asked if the song ever ended and if it had words! After abouut 10 minutes, the guards came and informed the 5 of us that they were getting ready to lock the doors, we had to leave. I was jazzed that we got to watch them reherse!

The opening band was a 5-member group of boys called Clear Static. I had never heard of them and was annoyed that we had to sit through a no-name band to get to Duran Duran! But they surprised me. They were tight and their songs rocked! They had a cover of The Romatics' "Talking In Your Sleep" which was excellent. The crowd responded well to them and I just ordered their EP abouut 5 minutes ago! I really liked them! They have a Cure sound to them.

While we were waiting for the Duran boys to come out, the guy in front of me noticed I had the Tour Book so I was showing it to him. It's a pop-up book with two pages of pop-up Duran Duran fun, trading cards of each member, a flip-book, a stage and cardboard figures of the band so you can have your own concert!! Then in the back is the actual program and a Japanimation comic of the boys. The guy in front of me was quite impressed!

Finally, the show started and the five of them walked out onto the stage wearing Armani suits and stood there watching us for about 60 seconds. Then they went to their instruments and started to play "Sunrise." The crowd was going wild, me included, of course! After 22 years, I was actually seeing Duran Duran LIVE!!! OMIGOD!!!

They played a lot of tunes from their new CD and a ton of oldies. This is the set list:

SUNRISE
WANT YOU MORE
HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF
A VIEW TO A KILL
NICE
WHAT HAPPENS TOMORROW
COME UNDONE
ASTRONAUT
THE CHAUFFEUR
ORDINARY WORLD
SAVE A PRAYER
BEDROOM TOYS
NOTORIOUS
PLANET EARTH
REFLEX
CARELESS MEMORIES
WILD BOYS

Encore:
GIRLS ON FILM
RIO

Before "Hungry Like The Wolf" (which Mom had bet me would be their opening song. I thought it would be either "Wild Boys" or "Is There Something I Should Know" but we were both wrong.), Simon said, "Hey Colorado!! Is anybody hungry?" I about died; that's what he says on the Arena album before that song and I've always loved that! I was thrilled I got to hear it live! I told you, I'm reverting back to being 13!

Anyways...there's a song on the new CD called "Bedroom Toys" which I absolutely adore. Before they began that tune, Simon asked the crowd what they got for Christmas. Of course, I'm yelling that I got tickets to their show! :) And then he said, "Did anyone get any bedroom toys?" I started screaming in delight cuz I was sure they wouldn't play that one. Mom looked at me in shock - I think she thought I actually *did* get bedroom toys for Christmas! She ended up liking the song, though.

All in all, I think it was the best concert I've ever seen. I almost cried when it was over. I didn't want Simon & John to go away! I remember when Duran Duran were huge in the 80's, people criticized them for being a bunch of pretty boy pop stars. But you know what? They may be beautiful men but they are great musicians!! They can play the hell out of their instruments and Simon has an amazing voice! He's got great stage presence as well.

Speaking of musicians, I forgot: Andy Taylor's father was taken ill in Engalnd and he had to fly back the day before the Denver show. They got a guy named Dominic Browne to replace him. They rehersed all afternoon with the new guy - that's what Mom & I saw before the show - and he played like a madman! I didn't even miss Andy, this kid was that good. And he looked just like Prince Henry!! I was seriously impressed.

So there's my Duran Duran concert review! I'm so enamored by them again! I dug out my videos of them and bought their new DVD today!! But like I warned you, I'm 13 again! Probably will be for about 2 weeks!

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I've got nothing today. I'm so out of ideas. I've got a couple quizzes in draft but I'm tired of those for right now. I am going to see Duran Duran tonight in Denver so tomorrow or Friday I should have a fun concert review for you! But in the meantime, Happy 12th birthday to Collin's son Justin!

I've also decided that I liked that interview game Derek played on his site last week so if anyone has any questions for me, ask away in the comments and I'll dedicate a post to the answers!

Have a great Wednesday everybody!

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Your celebrity chef match is Chef Boyardee

OK, so maybe you don't eat from a can every night, but for you, convenience is critical when you're in the kitchen. Sure, cooking from scratch is nice from time to time. But with your busy lifestyle, you don't always have the time, or the inclination, to do so. For you, canned soups or packaged potatoes aren't considered cheating necessarily. They just give you a head start. And that's OK by you.

If spending less time in the kitchen means spending more time with friends, family, and on other pursuits, that suits you just fine. After all, life is too short to spend hours in the kitchen whisking, pureeing, and sautéing just to prepare something that will disappear in a matter of minutes. Our guess is that your passions lie outside the kitchen. Which is not to say you don't enjoy a good meal made as a labor of love, just as long as someone else is preparing it.

I got this from Tickle.com. They have a lot of fun quizzes. I was really hoping my celebrity chef match would be Molto Mario! I like him, he's fun!!

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The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Second Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level	Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers)	Low
Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers)	Low
Level 2 (Lustful)	Very High
Level 3 (Gluttonous)	High
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious)	Moderate
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy)	High
Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics)	Very Low
Level 7 (Violent)	Moderate
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers)	High
Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous)	Moderate

Take the Dante's Inferno Hell Test

I got this from Restless Angel. It said I'm in the same level of hell as Cleopatra. That's pretty cool. I guess I'll go talk to her!

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Derek has given me the questions now I give you the answers. Hold on to your potatos, here we go!

1. Explain how you acquired the nickname "Foot.
When Derek was little, he couldn't say "Heather."
It came out "Heado." For some reason, when I was in high school, the nickname "Heado" came back into fashion. Everyone in my family was calling me that. One afternoon, we were in the car and I was barefoot in the back seat, Derek was in the front. I had my right foot resting on the arm rest of the car door by Derek so he took a pen and wrote "Heado's Foot" on my foot. His friend Ryan saw it and starting calling me Heado Foot which soon got shortened to just Foot. My friend Troy took it one step furthur and calls me Das Footen.

2. You enjoyed eating grilled cheese sandwiches when you were a kid, but never quite learned how to produce one in a kitchen setting. Please describe the time which you were saddled with the task of preparing a grilled cheese sammich for a hunchbacked, yet paying, customer.

You would have to bring this up, punk. Okay...so I never learned to cook even though Dad is a genius in the kitchen. In fact, today he made sopapilla cheesecake and it was to die for. But I digress. I worked in the snack area/kitchen at Cherokee Ridge Golf Course when Dad ran the kitchen. He did all the cooking. All I did was take orders and money. One day, though, he wasn't there and the owner, Stu, came in and ordered a grilled cheese sandwich. I warned him that I didn't know how to cook but he poo-poo'ed my answer, probably thinking that I was lazy and didn't want to cook. Well, I showed him!! I melted butter in a skillet, toasted some bread, grilled the cheese in the skillet then scraped it off and served it with some tater chips. He took about two or three bites and tossed the rest. He told Dad the next day that it was the worst grilled cheese he'd ever had. Well, I warned him!


3. In light of the Saturn Ion's "poor" side impact crash test rating, in which car do you feel safer: your Ion or Collin's Kia? Explain why.

I feel safe in both cars, thank you. I had a Kia like Collin's for a while and felt safe in it. I trust Saturn.


4. If you had "children," what would you name them?

How many kids are we talking about here? 2? 5? 12? Here's the names I like:
Gwendolyn Stefani
Joshua Aaron
Julia Araminta
Christopher Sebastian
Daisy Arabella
Brett Travis
Summer Olivia
Aiden Hunter
Catherine Taylor
Christian Michael


5. Explain, please, your disturbing fascination with ancient Egypt and it's related accoutraments

Why is it disturbing? Ancient Egypt was cool...everything about it was cool. The way they embalmed the dead and buried them in their tombs and all the riches and art and pharohs and, and, and.....IT'S JUST NEAT! I mean, look at Senusert, here....pretty nifty looking, huh?


So there we go! Questions asked & answered! That was fun. Give me more questions!!!


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There are a few ways that I would be scared to die: fire, drowning & suffocation are a few. But the one just really freaks me out the most is beheading. I can handle watching any gory thing in a horror/slasher movie except if someone gets their head lopped off. The first time I saw The Omen and that guy's head was cut off by that sheet glass....I almost puked. And then in Wrong Turn & Emanuelle Chiriqui in that tree....bleck!

Sometimes I think I was beheaded in a past life. I'm not thinking I was Marie Antoinette or Anne Boleyn or Lady Jane Grey anyone else famous but maybe a supporter of Marie during the French Revolution or a spy or something.

I looked up the history of beheadings and apparently we have the Greeks and Romans to blame. They thought it was an honorable way to die. Whatever. Below I've included the portraits of the 3 women I mentioned just because I wanted to. Hope you all had good Mondays!

Marie Antoinette
Queen of France

1755 - 1793

Anne Boleyn

Young, beautiful and learned Jane, intent
On knowledge, fount it peace; her vast acquirement
Of goodness was her fall; she was content
With dulcet pleasures, such as calm retirement
Yields to the wise alone; -- her only vice
Was virtue: in obedience to her sire
And lord she died, with them a sacrifice
To their ambition: her own mild desire
Was rather to be happy than be great;
For though at their request, she claimed the crown,
That they through her might rise to rule the state,
Yet the bright diadem and gorgeous throne
She viewed as cares, dimming the dignity
Of her unsullied mind and pur benignity.

by William Hone (1780 -1842)
Inscribed beneath a portrait of Lady Jane Grey

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You Are 17 Years Old

17 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world.

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Yet another quizzy thing I stole from El Sid. And look at that, I'm in the country I belong in! Whoo-hoo!!

You Belong in the USA

Sweet! People either love you or hate you And you really don't care what anyone thinks Big and bold, you do things your way

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Once again, I've pilfered this quiz from El Sid. She's becoming my best source for fun things like this.

1. What time did you get up this morning? 8:20 am. I wanted to sleep later but apparently my body was done sleeping. Damn body.

2. Diamonds or pearls? If I absolutely had to choose, I'd choose diamonds. They're so sparkly. But I like me some pearls, too.

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? 'The Cinema' - that's so cute. Anyway, I believe the last movie I saw in the theatre was "The Spongebob Squarepants Movie." It was at the $1 movie and it was really enjoyable.

4. What's your favorite TV show? Dead Like Me, CSI, Without A Trace.

5. What did you have for breakfast? Nothing yet. But yesterday I had me a bowl of them new-fangled Vanilla Creme Mini-Wheats. Oh, dear God were they yummy!

6. What's your favorite cuisine? Italian followed closely by Mexican.

7. What foods do you dislike? Anything with tomatoes or mushrooms in it. And eggs from a reataurant.

8. What is your favorite crisp flavor? Now I know how Collin must have felt in England, Crisp...potato chip...my fave is Sea Salt & Vinegar.

9. What's your favorite CD at the moment? "Love Angel Music Baby" by Gwen Stefani. Oh, and The Scissor Sisters.

10. What kind of car do you drive? 2004 Saturn Ion, shadow grey, named Isabella. Bella for short.

11. Favorite sandwich? Subway roast beef on wheat w/ horseradish sauce.

12. What characteristics do you despise? Rudeness, thinking you're better than anyone else, thoughtlessness.

13. Favorite item of clothing? Hmmm....anything comfy.

14. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? England, Sweden, Scotland.

15. What color is your bathroom? White.

16. Favorite brand of clothing? I don't care.

17. Where would you retire? Here is fine but if I had to pick another place, I guess Grand Junction.

18. Favorite time of the day? Depends on the day. Sun-Tue, 7:15am when I get home from work. Wed-Fri, when Collin gets home.

19. What was your most memorable birthday? This I know I've answered before but I don't mind saying it again - my 27th birthday when the Broncos won their first Super Bowl.

20. Where were you born? Colorado Springs, CO

21. Favorite sport to watch? It used to be hockey but now it's football. At this time of year, though, I've got nothing!

24. What fabric detergent do you use? Whatever Mom's got at her store.

25. Were you named after anyone? Nope. Even before Mom & Dad were together my Mom had picked the name Heather Michelle from a baby name book.

26. Do you wish on stars? Of course I do.

27. When did you last cry? Yesterday at the funeral.

28. Do you like your handwriting? Yep. Funny enough, I used to get zero's on my penmanship in school cuz the teachers thought I wrote too fast. I still do but no one's grading me now.

29. What is your most embarrassing CD? Barbra Streisand's Greatest Hits.

30. If you were another person, would YOU be friends with you? Well, yeah. I'm sweet and I share my stuff. Heh.

31. Are you a daredevil? Not particularly, no. But thanks for asking.

32. Have you ever told a secret you swore not to tell? No. But then the person whose secret it was told Mom & Dad and they were both amazed that I kept the secret! But there are a couple more that I will never ever reveal.

33. Do looks matter? No.

34. How do you release anger? I used to kickbox but with my current laziness, it's just beem crying and listening to angry music really loud.

35. Where is your second home? Collin's place.

36. What was your favorite toy as a child? Pudding Mouse who is still sitting on the nightstand by my bed. Pudding rocks!

37. What class in high school do you think was totally useless? All of them except choir. And Foreign Foods cuz I was introduced to Jicama.

38. Do you use sarcasm a lot? Pfft. Never! Noooo...not ME!

39. Favorite movie? Funny, I was just thinking about this yesterday. I'm not sure I actually have one favorite movie; I love the hell out of While You Were Sleeping, Practical Magic, Notting Hill, Steel Magnolias, The Usual Suspects, The Goonies, Grease, Xanadu, Moulin Rouge....but if I'm ever really pressed, I choose Indiana Jones & The Temple Of Doom.

40. What are your nicknames? Heado, Foot, Breezey, Kitten.

42. Would you bungee jump? Not only no but hell no.

43. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? No. And I don't untie them to put them on either. Once I had shoes that zippered and that was the best thing ever!

44. Do you think that you are strong? Strong enough.

45. What's your favorite ice cream flavor? Vanilla. Although Baskin Robbins has this Creme Broulee flavor that's pretty darned yummy.

46. What are your favorite colors? Purple, Black, Dark Blue, Lime Green.

47. What is your least favorite thing about yourself? My weight fluxuation.

48. Who do you miss the most? John Candy.

50. What color pants are you wearing? Grey. I stole Collin's sweats cuz I had a skirt on for the funeral.

51. What are you listening to right now? "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" - Elton John.

52. Last thing you ate? Noodles w/ butter and some garlic toast. That was last night. I'm hungry and must finish this quickly so that I can eat.

53. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? This color - it's so bright & pretty!

54. Last person you talked to on the phone: Troy.

55. What is the first thing you notice about the opposite sex? Smile.

56. Favorite Drink? Alchoholic? Amaretto anything. Non? Diet Pepsi.

57. Do you wear contacts? No. I'm blessed with 20/20 vision.

58. Favorite Day of the Year? My birthday. Yes, I'm selfish. :)

59. Scary Movies or Happy Endings? Both.

60. Summer or winter? Summer. I hate driving in snow & ice and I hate having to hang up my coat and I hate having to warm up my car.

61. Hugs OR Kisses? Depends on who they're coming from. But I like both.

62. What Is Your Favorite Dessert? Anything desserty.

63. What Book(s) Are You Reading? "The Six Wives of Henry VIII" - Alison Weir, "Spindrift" - Phyllis A. Whitney & "Metro Girl" - Janet Evanovich.

64. What's On Your Mouse Pad? Invesco Field At Mile High and the Bronco head.

65. What Did You Watch Last night on TV? We finished watching the first season of Dead Like Me.

66. Favorite Smells? Right after a big rain storm, roses, coffee at Grandma Widegren's house, blueberry muffins, vanilla, sandalwood.

67. Rolling Stones or Beatles? Oh, please! There's no question - The Beatles!

68. What's the furthest you've been from home? Miami, FL.

So there you go. Hope you enjoyed it and feel free to steal it from me and do it yourself.


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I learned to read at an early age*, as I've talked about before. I was three years old and after I learned to read, I always read to myself out loud. Because Mom had read to me out loud, I figured that was the way you did it.

When I was 5, we took a trip to Grand Junction. I remember sitting on my Grandma's couch in the living room with an Archie Comic Digest in my hands. I started to read out loud and from the kitchen where the adults were playing pinochle, Mom said, "Don't read out loud. Just read to yourself."

"How do I do that," I asked, puzzled. Wasn't that what I was doing?

"Instead of saying the words out loud, say them in your head where only you can hear them."

HUH??? I was so confused. Surely that wasn't the way things worked. What was she talking about? I just knew this wasn't going to work. But it DID work! It was great! I could read faster now than before!! And the adults weren't bothered which I know now was the main objective! :)

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* = Apparently no one believed my parents when they told friends & family that I could read at 3 years old. During a trip to Jct, my Grandpa's brother Leon & his wife Betty were also there visiting. Mom & Dad mentioned that I could read and Leon scoffed. He called me over to sit on his lap and he pulled out his ever-present pocket Bible, opened to a random page and told me to read. And, haha! I did. I read everything right. His response?

"That was good, but does she UNDERSTAND what she just read?"

Some people are just so hard to impress

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I've started walking on my break again at work. I used to walk 2 1/2 miles around the neighborhood but it's been a while so I'm breaking myself back into it gently. Tonight I did about a mile and ended up taking a route that I never took before. And tonight, I ran into a skunk.

I was toodling along, listening to Evanescence when I saw something in front of me. At first I thought it was a cat and then it waddled under a street light & I realized it was a skunk! I stopped cold at first and watched him. He must have sensed me cuz his little feet sped up and his little butt was just a-waggin' as he ran away. I crossed the street and kept an eye on him, not wanting to be sprayed.

When he went underneath the next street lamp, I noticed that instead of the normal white stripe down the middle of his back, he had a white stripe on either side of his spine. He looked beautiful! Very glossy and pretty and soft. But smelly, therefore I didn't attempt to try to catch up and pet him or anything. Besides, he hid under a bush and that was that.

As I approached the main doors at work, a coworker was standing outside smoking and asked if I had been walking alone. I told her my skunk story and she asked what I would have done if I had been sprayed. "You'd have to go home," she said. "Yeah," I agreed, "but I wouldn't want to get into my car & have it all stinky. I think I'd find someone I didn't like and ask for a ride home."

Postscript: about 4 years ago, Christina & I were on our break and went to King Soopers for a snack. There was a guy there who had been sprayed by a skunk and was looking for something to help deodorize himself. I felt so bad for him - he really smelled awful! I don't ever want to be that man!

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