My nerdy-ness knows no bounds.

Sadly, I've devolved really far into fangirl-dom.

How, you ask?

I've stalked the local dollar theater.  They started running Eclipse today.  I'm wondering just how many times I can go see it before my husband thinks that I'm clinically insane. 

I had planned to take my stepdaughter to see it.  However, we've had some serious behavioral issues lately ... starting with lying and finishing with forgery.  She lied about homework, lied about her planner assignment at school, and then forged my husband's signature to the pages where a parent signature was required.  So unfortunately, this causes her to not be able to go to Disney with us.

Although I understand why she can't go, I'm not happy at all.  I've put tens of hours - maybe hundreds - into planning this trip.  And she couldn't stop the lying long enough for us to be able to take her.  I'm so pissed.

I'm more pissed that I won't get my anniversary dinner at Narcoossee's with my husband, more than anything.  I'll enjoy my week with my FusserBug (my daughter), but it'll be bittersweet for sure.

Off to bed.  Fighting a nasty cold, and tomorrow is September 1st.  I plan to go balls to the wall and post SOMETHING every day in September. 

Dear Twiverse:

I know that it's going to be a while - a good long while - until Breaking Dawn is released.  Consequently, I know that there's only a finite amount of Twilight-themed news to share.

But I swear to Gaga, if I have to read one more story that invites me to watch video of Nikki Reed pontificating about her experience as Rosalie, I'm going to cut someone and let Jasper have his way with them.  For holy hell's sake, she's a MINOR CHARACTER.  I'd rather listen to RPatz mumble something unintelligible or have KStew stand there and look fabulously disinterested in ... well ... everything. 

End of rant for the night.   The Sam Cat keeps walking on my keyboard and she's not bloody helping me much.  I'm in a bad mood anyhow.  My printer died, leaving me 7 transfers to print for my Disney t-shirts.  I had planned on making them this weekend.  So yeah, I'm twenty shades of pissy right now.

Inspiration.

subtitled: get off your ass and do something already.

My buddy Lunasea suggested that a few folks challenge ourselves to write something - anything - every day during the month of September.  I think that's a smurfy idea.

Right now, however, I think I've gotten lazy again.  For some reason, I just haven't felt much like writing the past few days.  I've had plenty going on, just don't feel like writing.  I have no excuse.  None.  I can even blog from my beloved Droid (thanks, Blogaway!), but my lazy ass just hasn't.

I have, however, started re-reading Twilight.  Twilight BFF tells me that I have now officially crossed over to the dark side.  Whatever.  Just don't call me a Twi-Hard, or I'll have to cut you.

I'm spending a lot more time actually concentrating on the story line and the character development with this run-through.  As a mom of a preteen with questionable self-esteem levels, I find it a challenge to like Edward.  I find him pushy, overbearing, domineering, and bordering on emotionally abusive.  That said, I understand him a lot better now.  Knowing what I know now ... and considering the fact that he's actually 117 not 17 ... makes a lot more sense. 

Also, since vampires have heightened senses and emotions on all levels after the conversion ... it stands to reason that Edward would be quite a bit more emotionally invested in Bella. 

But do you know of a single teenager or young adult with the cognitive ability to analyze a character's actions that deeply?  Didn't think so.

Off to read a bit and then crash out.  I'm quite tired lately.  Back to school is every bit as tough on the momma as it is on the kids.

Speaking Of The Matching T-Shirts ...

I'm working on getting the t-shirt transfers created over the next few days.  I plan to print them and take them with me to iron on over the weekend.

Usually, several friends and I go to the cabins to scrapbook the weekend away.  And by "scrapbook" I mean "drink".  But instead of working on my woefully inadequate scrapbooks, I will be spending the weekend working on our matchy-matchy t-shirts for Disney.

I finally finished my shirt design for the Halloween party:

Yes, that's the Twilight font you see.  I couldn't leave the opportunity to join a few of my favorite things - Twilight, Mickey, and video games (for those uncultured heathens, the artwork is actually from a Game Informer cover).   So now I need to figure out what to do with Panda's shirt ... I have the paint Mickey from the Epic Mickey game, and I just don't quite know what to do with it yet.  I have a few days to decide.

The kids go back to school tomorrow - WOO HOO!  For the last three months, Panda hasn't really dropped the hammer on bedtime.  So sadly, this means that my alone time (and "alone time", giggedy) has been severely curtailed.  I really am looking forward to having the necessary peace and quiet after 9 PM.  I love my kids.  And I love them a lot more when they're well-rested and not stalking me all evening, thanks.

37 more days.  Well, in about 20 minutes, about 36.  But hey ... who's counting?

So, fellow Twilight fans, you've been vindicated by those snooty academic types.

Via my friends at GeekOSystem ... may I present ... your ammunition.
  
Twilight To Be Taught in Cambridge Literature Class

Soon, students at Cambridge University will be getting a new supplement to their educations: books from Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight series.

According to BBC News, a newly-opened Cambridge center for the study of children’s literature (they call it a “centre,” naturally) will cover, among other things, Twilight, the Harry Potter series, and video games as works of literature.

In an interview, the soon-to-be director of the center/centre dismissed suggestions that Twilight and other contemporary series are “trash,” and even said that academics had something to learn about the ethical development of young people from children’s series and video games: BBC News:

Professor Maria Nikolajeva, who will be the centre’s first director, said it was important to get an understanding of what was influencing young people.

She said: “It’s easy to say that these things are just kids’ fashions or that they’re trash, but I don’t believe that’s good enough.

“If what we regard as trash is popular with young people, we need to know why and whether, as researchers and teachers, we can offer them something that addresses the same needs but also deals with these themes in a critical and ethical way.”

She added many trainee teachers did not understand the significance of the latest children’s books or films when they went into the classroom.

“Studying this can help us deal with questions which are important not only for the children themselves, but for adults as well,” she added.

Playing catch up, and more.

According to the Twilight Examiner, Nikki Reed hasn't yet seen a script for Breaking Dawn.  She also wants to join the cast of True Blood.  Well, seeing as how I don't watch that show, she can just go there.  I won't miss her. 

The kidlets have their shoes, all their supplies, and are officially ready to go back to school.  I think I need to pick up a few new shirts (they have jeans that they haven't grown out of yet), but other than that I think they're good for school.

I picked up all the remaining t-shirts that were needed for our Disney trip.  Panda's digging in his heels that he isn't going to wear matching shirts on a few of the days.  So, in honor of his refusal to wear said matching shirts on a few days, he'll be the proud owner of one of these.

So there.

Off to finish consolidating our iPods.  I got a new-to-me Touch.  Panda will get my old Nano (a few generations ago) and the kids have new Nanos.  I just backdoored Panda's old Shuffle (heh heh that sounds so ... kinky) and pulled his old files off of it.  Fuck you Steve Jobs and your DRM bullshit.  You are no match for my mad Windows-based computer skillz.  iTunes won't see the file structure on the super-old shuffle?  Eat a bag ... I'll just backdoor in.  SO there.

OK now that I've gotten that off my chest ... I still have a flaming burning hatred for Rosalie.  And hey, while we're at it ... I wouldn't mind shagging Charlie Swan. 

More tomorrow. 

Slacker

I have really tried to make a point of writing every day. However, I am simply exhausted these past few days.  Between work and back to school activities, I am drained by the kids' bedtime. 

I'm going to go snuggle my Sam-Cat and my hubby. 

A Fortnight

We are officially 40 days away from our Disney trip.  So much time, so little to do! Wait - strike that. Reverse it. [/Willy Wonka]

That New Computer Smell

Ahhh, heaven.  My brand spank-me-new Dell Studio 1558.  It's super spiffy.  And pink.  Let's not forget pink.

The kidlets are inheriting my old Inspiron 1525.   It is also pink.

Gonna go enjoy my new toy. 

Unicorn Watch, Day Two.

So, this lovely news story came out today, courtesy of SBNation.com.  As told to my Panda ... real men read Twilight.  To which he scoffed, and was quickly reminded that his righteous indignation might be better served by someone not wearing a "Ghostbusters" t-shirt.

Anyhow ... off to the article ... Enjoy.


Patrick Kane Reads "Twilight" Book In Bed, Gets Sold Out By Mom

by Andy Hutchins • Aug 15, 2010 4:08 PM EDT 

Even though he won a Stanley Cup this year, it's hard to forget that boyish-faced, mullet-wearing, cabbie-miffing Patrick Kane is still really young. It makes sense for him to be into the same sorts of things "the kids" are into these days. Like, say, the final installment of the Twilight saga. Take it away, Patrick Kane's mother!

It was his mother, Donna, who caught the 21-year-old in the act — of reading a book. While the fourth installment of the "Twilight" series isn't exactly Tolstoy, the image of Kane in the bedroom of his Buffalo childhood home, curled up with a book instead of carousing on the streets of his hometown, is fairly startling.

That will probably get brought up during training camp. I wonder, can young Patrick save himself with a good reason for reading Breaking Dawn and figuring out what happens to Bella and Edward?

Uh, no.

"Ohhhh," Kane said with a laugh after regaining his composure. "She would throw me under the bus like that. I watched the first three movies and was really interested … so I decided to read the fourth book. I kind of snuck it in there, and she walked in a couple of times with me reading the book. I tried to hide it, but it wasn't happening."

Now, a 21-year-old hiding a book from his mother is probably cute to someone, somewhere, and it is nice that Kane owned up to his taste. But a tough hockey player reading a book about the consummation of an epic vampire love story—and only after being intrigued by the mopey, angst-ridden movie adaptations—is a recipe for ridicule.

I have a confession to make.

My inner snarkasaurus just loves Twilight Sucks.  Some of their "hate mail" is hysterically funny.  And you know that I'm always up for a hefty dose of snark.  Give the forums a read - some of the mail they post is hilarious, and some of the responses are funny.  Some are just trolltastic, others are witty, and still others are just "YEAH MAN TWILIGHT SUCKS ZOMG THEY'RE DUMB TWITARDS".  The wit and snark is worth wading through the imbicilic and quasi-offensive posts.  Give it a read.

Honestly, the vitriol spewed by teenybopper fangirls is the main thing that turned me off from the Saga from the beginning.  I'm a mom to a third grader and custodial step mom to a fifth grader - I hear more than enough self-indulgent whining, thanks.  Oh and the "txtspk" needs to go.  Who told these morons that it's socially acceptable to communicate in poorly constructed sentences marred by spelling errors?  Holy jumping jeebus, those kids need a role model.

I suppose that my bottom line is this:  I don't regard the Twilight Saga as the be-all-end-all of literary works.  By her own admission, the author writes for pleasure - for her own, for her fans, and for her core projected audience.  She's self-taught, if I remember correctly.  I started reading because I kept getting told that the books were better than the movies (correct).  I then realized that there were holes in the plot (surprise), missed character developments, and essentially things I liked to dissect.  And really, the biggest draw for me?  Books about random crap really are a mental sorbet.  I don't need to constantly read things that make me think, or books that make me question my very existence.  Life's hard enough.  A bit of trashy fiction is OK, people.  Really.  No need to be obsessed with it, no need to hate those that enjoy it ... just let it be. 

Unicorn Watch, Day One.

I attempted to gauge the possibility of revealing my husband's inner Unicorn today.  I'm not encouraged, but I'm not entirely discouraged either.  Loose transcript of the conversation:

Me: You know honey, I think I'm going to go out to STL to see Breaking Dawn with TwihardBFF.  That'll mean two trips out there next year ...

Panda: You're going to fly.  On an airplane. To see your silly vampire movie.

Me:  It's not silly, and it's not all about vampires you know. 

Panda:  Really.  Because Cedric Diggory brooding about a whiny brunette isn't silly.

Me:  Oh, this judgment is valid from YOU?  The man wearing an Iron Maiden t-shirt?

Panda:  At least it's not a bullshit teenage movie series.  I hate that crap.

Me:  There's a thin line between love and hate.  Just sayin'.

So there you have it.  I am a firm believer that hate and love are both passionate emotions, and the opposite of both is apathy.  Panda's not apathetic.  Hmm.  Maybe I'll turn him while on the airplane to Disney ... if I only have Twilight in the carry-on to read, it'll either be that or a two-plus-hour flight of listening to his daughter say ARE WE THERE YET ARE WE THERE YET OOOH CAN I HAVE A DRINK ARE WE THERE YET?

Unicorn Watch continues ...

And then we continued blissfully into this small but perfect piece of our forever.

Today is August 13th.  Oddly enough, it is Bella and Edward's wedding day.  How fitting that today is Friday The Thirteenth, no?

I know this is a bit of a shock to those who know me in real life ... but I'm kind of a planner.  I am a bit of a "Type A" control freak.  Stop that laughing.  Anyhow, I love all things wedding.  I suppose that feeds into my need to control/plan things.  I suppose, of all the characters, I'm very Alice after all ... I like to drive fast and flashy cars, plan all sorts of things, and have an uncanny ability to know what will happen if I just follow my gut.

Anyhow.  Wedding.

InStyle Magazine did a huge "Plan The Wedding" spread.  Some of the stuff I liked (invitations and flowers), some of the rest of it was NOT what I envisioned at all.  I simply adore Reem Acra's philosophy and style, and I think that she's probably the most likely to create the gown for the Breaking Dawn movies.  Maybe Lhullier, I did note a very suspicious looking gown (albeit more lacy than I think Bella would wear) in her Spring 2011 collection.  At any rate, I'm interested to see how the vision I have in my head will play out on screen.

It's also been decided - I'm going to STL to see Part 1 with my Twihard BFF.  I bet her hubby will go with us, he's a Unicorn*.  I've seen the official release date as 11-18-2011, but I'm failing to understand why they're not going with 11-11-11.  Maybe they will eventually choose to do so, but I suppose for now that it's going to be 11-18-11.

I've also decided to try a little experiment with my In The Closet Unicorn ... my Panda.  I think I'll rack up my Twilight Saga books and see if he touches them.  I'm interested to see if he can resist the draw of the pretty black covers ...

And in case you wondered where the "unicorns i love them" tag came from ... check out this YouTube video / song.  Heh.

* Via my current favorite TwiSite, Letters To Twilight:  Unicorn: The name given to the mythical creature of that of a man who loves Twilight. We write about them all the time.

I’ve decided that if I’m going to Hell, I might as well do it thoroughly. - Edward Cullen

Ever have one of those days where everything you touch is just ... crap?  It seems like you just can't do right by anyone (or anything), and you're thisclose to being reduced to a blubbering crybaby in your office?

Yeah, me neither.  ***innocent blink***

Everyone around me is just "off their feed" today.  My kids were more bickery and bitchtastic than usual.  Most folks at work were exceptionally mean and "gimme gimme gimme NOW".  Even Panda and I got into a nasty little tiff about total bullshit tonight.  And really, I have no reason to be whiny.  Lots of good things are happening right now, including:

1. We leave for Disney in 47 days.  Well, today's almost over, so let's call it 46.  Hell, 45 and a wakeup.
2. The trip is 100% paid in full.  In cash.  Our hotel room (at the Polynesian, no less), all meals, all non-alcoholic drinks, all snacks, all park tickets - EVERYTHING including $50 per kid spending money - is paid for, in cash.  I only have to worry about spending money for chotchkies and other random crap.  Of course, I'd like to have about another $500 cushion, but whatever.  I could have downgraded the hotel to a Moderate, but the idea of being crammed into a small room with my stepdaughter and her recent proclivity to whine for no damned reason is just too much for me.
3. You People will eventually learn about number three.
4. I am not Rosalie Hale Nikki Reed, therefore I am not a frigid bitch that appears to be in a constant state of lemon-sucking. In hindsight, maybe this should have been number one.
5. School starts on August 23rd.  Not soon enough - my kids need SOMETHING to do.  I have a theory that their piss-poor decision making and the increase in whine-ocity has something to do with their complete lack of any project of substance.

Indicative of my kids' behavior today, this conversation transpired just prior to dinnertime:  "Hey kids, what do you want to eat - ravioli or hot dogs?"  ..... pause to hear kids' answer .... and they say, in unison ... "OH TACOS! TACOS SOUND GOOD!"  To which they were told "Look, only one of you is actually hard of hearing.  The other clearly enjoys the sights and scents of having her head up her own ass."  (credit to my Twihard BFF for that one, told you I'd use it later.)

Whiskey. Tango. Foxtrot.

At any rate, I think I'm just going to go to bed. Alone.  Panda is happily snoring on the couch in the basement, and really a deluxe pillow-top queen sized bed all to myself sounds pretty damned good.  And if that means I'm going to hell ... so be it.  I'll enjoy it, and like Edward ... I'll do it thoroughly.

Today's Randumb Observations

Lots of "happy" today, and some random bitching.  Let's go to the tape, shall we?

Regarding my ongoing burning hatred for Rosalie, I figured out one of the reasons I don't like her.  Ready?  It's Nikki Reed.  Here's my disjointed and ADD-raddled thought process.  Try to keep up.

• Nikki Reed isn't a blonde.  How the hell did she end up being Rosalie?  
• Rosalie is described as being blonde, exceptionally beautiful (even for a vampire), and statuesque.  That doesn't fit Nikki.
• I've seen her someplace before.  Where?
• Let's go to Wikipedia.  Oh yes.  There's why.  I hated her character (Sadie) on The OC.  I wanted to bitch-slap her.  Bohemian beauties don't cake on the war paint, snarkasaurus rex.
• Oh lookie.  She's BFFs with Catherine Hardwicke (see yesterday's screenplay rant).  They wrote a screenplay together and OMG TA DAH Reed shows up in the Twilight films.  Really.  REALLY.

And there you have it.  I equate Rosalie with Nikki Reed.  I must purge this from my brain.

After discussion with my only Twihard BFF (at least the only one that's out of the closet), I've decided that the lovely Shandi Finnessey would have made a FAR better Rosalie.  See?

So there you have it.  I hope this resolves some of my totally unjustified loathing for the character of Rosalie, as I should be able to refocus my mind's eye onto whom I think SHOULD have gotten the part instead of ... She That No Longer Shall Be Named In An Effort To Avoid Hysterical Violence On My Part.

In other news, I ordered a brand spank-me-new laptop tonight.  I got a Dell Studio 15 series, in Promise Pink (of course) with an Intel i5 processor and a Radeon video card.  If it were possible, I'd have quite the stiffy over this.  Dell says it'll be delivered on the 25th, which is good.  I'll have my new toy for my scrapbooking trip with my girls on the 27th.  Hooray! So glad that Panda talked me into upgrading the shipping - I'd have been PISSED if I didn't have it to take with me after blowing some serious coin on it.

Oh, even better ... 48 days till we're at Disney.  Can't wait.

Random New Moon Observations

If you're lucky (or unlucky, as the case may be) enough to know me personally, you have either reverence or hatred for my numbered lists.  Considering the fact that I'm a big huge ball of raging ADD right now, it's just about the only way I can organize my thoughts into a manner that others can understand.

1. I noted the rampant product placement.  As discussed with one of my BFFs today, if the wolves destroy their clothing every time they phase, why are they wasting money on Levis?  To which she noted "wow, spending a lot of time looking at wolf ass last night, eh?"  Busted.
2. Billy Burke (Charlie Swan) is one damn fine looking man.  The cop-'stache needs to go, but he is quite tasty.  If anyone's wondering, this is the beginning of a new label ... i want to shag charlie swan.
3. There is never a number three.  I put this here to see if anyone's actually reading my mindless drivel.
4. I still don't think that KStew is Bella.  I'm not sure who IS, but I know she's NOT.  I also don't buy Rpatz as Edward.  However, the casting of Jacob was right on.
5. I still don't like Rosalie.  I just ... don't. 
6. Back to Edward.  As discussed with my Panda, I think that James Franco would have made a far better Edward.  In my mind, Edward is smooth, wise, and very stylish.  Almost like a James Bond type person.  But when Bella's around, he turns into a stuttering mess that has a hard time controlling himself.  Anyhow, James Franco would have made a better Edward.  At least he doesn't look like he's about to drop a deuce when he says his lines.   
7. Let's talk about the screenplay, mmmkay?  I know that cutting down a  600+ page book down to a two hour movie is tough.  But damn.  I had hoped for a bit more character development.

 Off to watch one of my favorite movies of all time ... Major League.  Time for sleep, after that.

Ridin' Dirty

Look what's ridin' dirty with me.  Yes kids, that's my cap and gown.  Giggedy.

The Results Are In.

hose damned My final grade is ready to go.  I can't believe that my undergraduate career is finally over.  After sixteen years ... I'm done.  Sixteen years.  Relocating 150 miles from home.  A marriage.  A child.  A divorce.  The appearance of my Panda.  The loss of my mother.  The disappearance of my Panda.  The reappearance of my Panda.  Marriage in Jamaica.  Becoming insta-mom to my now 10 1/2 year old stepdaughter. Three jobs, five cars, and a partridge in a damned pear tree.

Anyhow, sixteen years are up.  And I'm done.

Until, of course, I start back to pursue my MBA in November.

I thought that I'd feel differently than I feel today.  I thought I'd be jubilant, ecstatic, even giddy.  But no.  Right now, I feel almost ... scared.  I guess that I've been at this for so long that I don't know what to think.  As a good friend said, sometimes we prefer the evil that we know to the possibilities that we don't.

My lovely husband relinquished the TV tonight for 130 glorious minutes.  I got to watch New Moon in 61" of hi-def 7-channel surround-sound glory.  Ahhh, it was lovely.  I got my Pack on in peace.  I think that it's likely my favorite book and movie so far.  This runs counter to most of my other Twi-types, I know.  But I really like the ancillary stories ... the Quileute tribe, the Volturi, and even the rest of the Guard.  I think they did a great job casting Aro.  And I still want to donkey punch Rosalie.  I know I'll like her better in Breaking Dawn (but not all that much after all), but I still want to grab her blonde hair and crack her one.

Off to watch Top Gun for the eleventybillionth time, and to crash out.  I'm rather sleepy.

Dear Twilight: I'm Cheating On You.

So I actually stopped at Blockbuster tonight, and re-upped my membership.  Why?  Because they're having a "$3 For 3 Nights" sale.  I can rent any BluRay for 3 nights for $3.  (warning: rationalization follows ...) I figure when Eclipse is released this Christmakwanzakkuh season, I can pick up the movies up to own for a cheaper price than I can find for now. And since I'm finished with school till November 8th, I have some free time.  And really, who wouldn't want to spend their newly-found free time with the Quileute Wolf Pack?  (/rationalization)

So anyhow, yeah.  I picked up New Moon on BluRay for three nights.  I gleefully paid my $3.18 (including tax) for the delicious Pack in BluRay.  61" worth of muscley boy toys in the privacy of my living room.  Hey, Lautner's legal now.  Don't you dare judge me.

Anyhow, I brought it home and put it on the table.  Why?  Because there's football to watch!  Yes, I know.  It's the Hall Of Fame Game.  Yes, it's preseason.  Yes, said football is shitty.  But it's been soooo long!

HOF Game = Slumpbuster.

Work tomorrow.  Blah.

Lazy Girl

It is Sunday morning, and I'm lying in bed.  Currently, I am auditioning Blogger apps for my Droid.  See, I'm a bit of a nerd.  And honestly, I am all but married to my Droid.  You'd think that Android, being a Google joint and all, would have software linking their flagship mobile device with Blogger (another Google joint).  But noooooo.

I wrote this post with BlogAway.  It seems to be OK, but lacks a few things I prefer. Like, putting in a period when you double-space, auto-capitalization of I, etc. 

I hear the dulcet tones of my daughter ... more accurately, the whining that always ensues when she first gets out of bed.  This means it's time for me to roll over and go back to sleep.

Second verse, same as the first.

A little bit louder, and a little bit worse.

When I split from my ex-husband, my original blog was meant to be a healing exercise.  After I got over myself, it then morphed into a sordid tale of love, lust, loss, tears, joy, anger, frustration ... and ultimately, redemption.  

I've went back and reviewed the archives.  You know, I'm just not the same woman I once was.  Life's pretty good, and I think the original journal just ran it's course.  It's not you, it's me, and all that.  That's why I picked the cover art from  Breaking Dawn ... at one point in my life, around October or November of 2003, I was the pawn; the weakest piece on the chess board.  Eventually, much like Bella Swan, I found my "place" and my voice; and became the queen.  The strongest and most powerful piece on the chess board. 

So, here I am.  I figured that I need a place to "talk", aside from my poor husband and my overwhelmed friends.  Enjoy.