Advice for the mother-to-be...

...as discussed with my co-workers today. One is officially 4 weeks from her due date, the other has two young kids under her belt (so to speak).

Advice #1
The correct response to all the unsolicited advice you will receive:

With a big smile: "Thank you for the advice!" (and do what you were planning to do anyway)

Advice #2
The correct response to yet-another-toy from grandma-to-be:

Said with complete honesty and enthusiasm: "What a great thing to have at grandma's house to play with!!"

You're welcome.

:-)

Lori

Teeth melting cuteness...

see more crazy cat pics

Just can't resist the cuteness...

I promise, a real post soon!

An engineer with 3 cats

Here's Paul and his buddy TJ, messing around with cats, in true engineer fashion:



"Like most engineers, cats are willing to eat the same thing day after day after day..."

Enjoy,

Lori

Make your own...

In case you feel the need to have a physical representation of Ceiling Cat watch you....

(Source)

Are you careful?

(Source)

I'm not concerned so much about googling someone, I'm more concerned about people googling me. But I do believe that my Internet interactions are as transparent as can be...If I were to suddenly run for office and my Internet dealings were uncovered, I'd be okay. I do attempt to write with an awareness of my audience.

But I must say, I worry about some others. I have Facebook counterparts who write the most obnoxious details of their lives in their updates. I have a friend who tells me that, working in HR in a large company, he regularly googles the people whose resumes he gets -- and has found one guy telling friends on a board somewhere that he peed in the staffroom sink at one job, and another one who bragged about stealing from a former company. I wonder how far they got in the interview?

Is your Internet face the same as your public face? Where do they differ? Curious minds want to know...

Lori

Rule #78 in Life:

(Source)

One of my favourite silly movies is Airheads...a 1994 rock'n'roll comedy. (Brendan Fraser's appearance in this film is merely a coincidence!)

And here for your viewing pleasure is the immortal Lemmy in a video with clips from the movie:



Turn up the volume and rock out!

Lori

A Wish of Mine

No, not a wish for humanity, just for me. I've always wanted to be crafty. Arty.

My inner magpie just loves looking at piles of stuff...I'm fascinated by the potential in the raw materials -- paint chips in hardware stores:

those urban recycling craft supply stores...fabric stores and the gorgeous fat quarters:

Bead stores...


But in the end, I don't have the patience, the inclination, what have you.

For those that do, here are some sites for you to play with:

Cut Out + Keep

The Imagination Factory

Make-Stuff

So how crafty are you? Make me jealous in the comments...

Lori

Doing some overtime...

I had to go in to work this Saturday, and worked a solid 6 hours, alone, listening to a blues radio station.

I wondered what would happen if anything happened to me while I was there, as I didn't have any helpful cats about:


see more crazy cat pics

(my apologies for lolcats 2 posts in a row, but you know how it is...)

Lori

RIP Gary Gygax

Enter the ICHC online Poker Cats Contest!

If you don't know who he was, ask the nearest geek.

Thank you, Gary.

Lori

Musicians...the same the world over

None can resist a great tune (by Deep Purple). Here's a Japanese orchestra doing "Smoke on the Water" (found at To Be Asian):



Besides the utter fabulousness of the music, the audience reaction is classic.

This made my day. I hope it makes yours.

Lori

Definitions of Power

Years ago, I picked up a book entitled The 48 Laws of Power (by Robert Greene) [Here are the laws summarized.] I subsequently loaned the book out, and it hasn't been returned -- it's a very interesting book that either teaches one how to be a bastard power-monger, or to recognize one...depending on your point of view. A very entertaining book though...

But if you can't find the book to help you to achieve a persona of power, you can just get yourself one of these:

The Han Solo desk (found at DVICE) has its different messages as well, depending on your point of view...Scary Guy or Enormous Geek.

(and no, I don't want one for Christmas...)

Lori

Book Snobbery

I am a book snob. I'll admit it. You won't catch me reading an Oprah Pick on a bus...(that's a link to a post on this subject at my Book Nook, good discussion in the comments).

Over at casa az, the lovely and literate az has points us all to Cabanon Press, a fun collection of pictures used on the Guardian Saturday Review page. Here's my favourite:

Life does not happen in a vacuum.

What about you? What do you do when you know someone could be looking?

Lori

A Pie Chart for Procrastination

This guy is funny...if a calm nerdy guy can be funny with a flipchart...

But he is!!



Watch all the way through...fascinating stuff you've never really contemplated before!

Lori

Polish Fans

This last week, I seem to have had a few visitors from Poland -- 28% of my visitors in fact!

I don't know any Polish, but please, stop and say 'Hi!'

(Oh, and thanks to a comment somewhere by raincoaster, this blog now comes up as the third hit when someone googles "Lillian Van der Zalm headband". Kill me now.)

My 40th

Today is my birthday. (To those who live near me, be aware that this groundhog has not seen her shadow this morning, and is not likely to -- very overcast.) In preparation for my glorious 40s (to continue on from my brilliant 30s), I'm taking the Pursuit of Excellence course this weekend. Self-examination all the way...

Here is a concept lifted from Norlinda at 30-something-media-addict, who lifted it from Life Begins at 30 (both lovely lists). I've been working on this one for a couple of days, and it has been a good exercise.

So, in no particular order, some things (25) I will never get tired of:

1. a good book
   
2. the first slow gulp of cold beer slipping down my parched throat
   
3. a purring cat
   
4. a cool summer morning and a cup of coffee outdoors
   
5. walking in a snowfall
   
6. laying down a bingo in Scrabble
   
7. standing in the dark nave of a gothic cathedral
   
8. learning something new
   
9. escaping into a delightful movie
   
10. a well-played blues guitar
    
11. dark chocolate
    
12. comprendre quelque chose dans une autre langue
    
13. a really good belly laugh
    
14. crossing things off a To Do list
15. a fresh clean sheet of paper
16. a gathering of like-minded individuals
17. a lovely meadow
18. cooking in a stocked kitchen
19. controlled retail therapy :p
20. the great design of a book or building or object
21. road trips, long or short
22. words strung together in a surprisingly insightful way
    
23. looking up at the stars
24. coordinating the Big Picture
    
25. logic puzzles

A surprisingly easy list to compile, and reminds me that yes, I do incorporate the things I like in my day-to-day existence...but that I could do it more!

Have a great day!

Lori

Appalling Absurdity of the Week

In the news...

A Spanish driver who collided with a cyclist is suing the dead youth's family $29,300 for the damage the impact of his body did to his luxury car, a Spanish newspaper reported on Friday.

Businessman Tomas Delgado says 17-year-old Enaitz Iriondo caused $20,500 of damage to his Audi A8 in the fatal 2004 crash in La Rioja region, the El Pais newspaper reported.

The mind boggles.

I can't even think of anything scathing enough for this guy. Can anyone help?

Lori

Absurd = Pointless Death

What?!? Heath Ledger is dead?

Actors are like the rest of us...they're supposed to live long lives, maybe in obscurity, then pop back into the news, and our hearts, when they die. They're supposed to inspire eulogies of long careers, family lives, community service...not die suddenly in their 20s, mid-career, mid-movie, leaving us all reeling in shock.

You'll be missed, deep man.

Lori

We meet again...

The Nag and I both have a certain je ne sais quoi for Paris...I know this because that's where we met. Or more specifically, on a train to Chartres from Paris.

Funny that we both have pictures trolled from our flickr sites for the Schmap guide to Paris. (Here's her post.) Mine is of le Père Lachaise cemetery:


I have blogged about this cemetery in the past...the best ever virtual tour is of this enormous city of the dead -- check it out!

Next time we go to Paris, Nag, we should travel together. Maybe even leave our men behind!

:-)

Lori

People...generally speaking

In the end, all people share basic similarities. I was an ESL teacher for years, and I always took comfort in the fact that everyone wants pretty much the same things: respect, love, and a good time.

And I didn't need the video below to be convinced that my friend 30-something media addict is:

"... a country-music fan who plays poker and cheers on the local ice hockey team."

I know her to be a witty writer who I can share a Viggo-fest with, who dyes her hair wild colours even though no-one sees it but her, and who is pining for a less soul-sucking job.

Anyway, this is a great video, lifted from her blog:



A tasty, stereotype smashing video. Enjoy.

Lori

Absurd in so many ways...

I feel like I'm stealing some of Metro's thunder, this is more his kind of topic, but I surfed over to the Nag, and she's featuring a great Rick Mercer video today -- how can I resist Rick Mercer?

The ZENN car -- "ZENN" stands for Zero Emission No Noise. I want this car -- and I can buy it, 'cause it's legal in British Columbia (wanna come visit, Nag? Drive mine when I get it?)



The absurdity is the fact that no one in Canada has heard of them. There's not a push on to immediately make them road legal in all Provinces, like NOW. Using one of these would reduce each person's carbon footprint by 6 tons annually.

I want one for my birthday!

Lori