New favorite quote from Dollhouse

Okay, so my previous favorite quote from a Joss Whedon production was from Firefly (of course):

"You're going to burn in a very special level of hell. A level they reserve for child molesters and people who talk at the theater."

I now have a new one, courtesy of tonight's episode of Dollhouse (more an exchange really; if you want a single quote, I'd have to go with "medicinal carrots"):

Keplar: They told me this would be the new Eden.
Ballard: Eden wasn't a prison.
Keplar: Are you kidding? The apples were monitored!

Currently feeling: hee-hee-hee

Every Day in May 2009

I got this link from a lady I follow on Twitter, and I thought it sounded like an excellent idea! It is just as simple as it sounds: pick some activity, and do it every single day in May. The author will be painting. I debated what to do, including digital scrapping (need to get back to that), but I finally settled on reading. I have really been missing reading lately, and I was already thinking of trying to set aside some time each day to do it. So I will!

Every day in May, I will read a book for at least 20 minutes. Doesn't matter which book, doesn't have to be the same book each day, doesn't have to be a new book (can be a reread). It simply has to be a book that I want to read for pleasure. Perhaps doing that for 31 days can help me get back in the reading groove.

Anyone care to join me?

Currently feeling: hopefully like reading!

April 2009 Round Up

Created using Big Huge Labs Mosaic Maker
Click mosaic to biggify, or see my April 2009 Project 365 Posts.

What books and/or magazines did I read this month?
I've picked up and put down several books. I keep trying to read, but nothing is "sticking." I have no idea what the problem is.

What movies and/or tv shows did I watch this month?
I realized that it might be more telling (interesting?) if I recorded all of the movies we watch in any given month, not just the new ones. We watch quite a few movies, even just parts of some (I have them on while I work sometimes). I won't necessarily talk about what we're watching on television every month, since that doesn't change much month over month, though we do have some shows that restarted this month.

So, movies this month - New movies: Shattered Glass (okay), Ice Age 2 (not good). Old favorites: Bolt, Chicken Little, Enchanted, The Incredibles, Bull Durham, The Birdcage, One Fine Day.

For television, we picked up Law & Order: Criminal Intent and In Plain Sight, which are both starting their new seasons on USA. Mythbusters also restarted. Most of the rest of our shows are either over already (Chuck, Heroes) or will be over in May (CBS and ABC shows). Guess we'll flex that Netflix membership this summer, since we haven't used it much for the last 6 months. Maybe we'll do a new series; that was fun when we did Heroes. I'm thinking I should get caught up on NCIS or Bones, but I'm open to suggestions as well.

What special days did I celebrate and how?
Lots of birthdays, including our niece and my two best friends, but everyone just got cards because I'm slack and sorry as a friend. :-(

What gifts did I give and/or receive?
None, I don't think, not even with the birthdays (see slackness). I have some ready to send out next month, though.

What illnesses or health concerns did I have?
I had a lot of little complaints that I finally mentioned to the doctor: an irritated back muscle, a recurring low fever, sudden sharp headaches that have dramatically increased in frequency (from 2-3 times a year to 2-3 times a month). I now have back exercises and a new blood pressure medication, and she's running blood work for the headache and fever. We'll see what that result is. In better health news, Luke saw the ENT and she doesn't think he will need another set of tubes, at least not right now. We go back in 6 months, but he is on no medicine or anything. Woo-hoo!

What fun things did I do with my friends and/or family?
We had lots of culture this month. We went to the King Tut exhibit (which was really more general Pharaoh stuff with some King Tut stuff) and the Terra Cotta Warriors exhibit. I liked them, but Luke seemed very unimpressed. I keep reminding myself that he's only 4, but I still hoped he would like it more than he did. Mom and Dad paid for the tickets to both, and they helped us to a Luke hand-off so we all got to enjoy them at our own pace. That really counts as a gift. Thank you to the best parents in the world!

Also, as a special treat for Luke, we stayed overnight at Stone Mountain. Luke loves hotels for some reason, so that was fun. We took him to the laser show, and it was so much better to just walk across the street and go to bed instead of sitting in 2 hours worth of traffic. We decided to make a whole weekend out of it, so we took him on his first picnic, took him to the top of the mountain for the first time, and rode the Duck Boats the next morning. He totally loved that!

What new foods, recipes or restaurants did I try this month?
We ate at the Stone Mountain Inn for the first time, dinner and breakfast buffets. I have a pizza sauce recipe "melding" in the refrigerator that I made today (4/30), but it has to sit overnight, so it won't be ready to try until tomorrow (5/1). I'll try to remember to report the results next month.

What special or unusual purchases did I make?
Got tickets for something fun this coming Saturday (May 2), but the actual event isn't happening in April, so I won't tell you what they're for. You'll have to wait until next month. We also got Dance Dance Revolution Disney Grooves, which I haven't really gotten to play yet. We fiddled with it the first weekend we had it, then were out of town the next weekend, and we don't do much gaming during the week right now.

What were this month's disappointments?
Still not getting much work at work, which is a little distressing. No one is talking about layoffs or furloughs (yet) for the contractors, but I don't know how much longer they can financially justify keeping us all on staff when we're not even getting one new project a week. There's plenty of work, but there are other issues to be cleared before we can get them, and until that log-jam breaks, we're just sitting around (and when it does, it is going to flood us). I also didn't post to the blog very much this month either. Technically there were two more April blog posts than are shown here. I moved the two April Disney recap posts back to March so they would be more in order and appear all together in the archives. That still only makes for 10 posts this month, though. So sad.

What were my accomplishments this month?
I did my first song on drums Medium level on Guitar Hero. It was an easy one, but still, I'm getting better. If you'd told me a month ago that I would be the designated GH drummer and I would *like* it, I'd have said you were crazy. I also kept up with my Project 365 progress, though I will admit that it is getting a little harder. And I did miss a day, darn it! Still, I've been at it 1/3 of a year already. And last but not least, I actually managed quite a few items on my 101 List this month!

38. Ride the Duck Boats at Stone Mountain.
That was so much fun! It's just really bizarre knowing that you are driving off the road and right into the lake. I'm doubly sorry we didn't do them in Boston back in 2003. Guess this gives us something to do on our next Boston trip.

46. See a special exhibition at the High Museum.
I will admit that I had the Terra Cotta Warriors in mind when I put that item on the list, but there were several other exhibits that came and went at the High in the last couple of years that I had *every* intention of seeing and didn't, so just because that was the one I had in mind didn't necessarily mean it would happen.

77. Clean the outside of the windows.
86. Have gutters cleaned.
We had the whole house pressure washed, which took care of the windows, and they did the gutters at the same time, which was really nice. When the guy said he would do the gutters, I knew that would take care of #86, but it wasn't until I as updating the list that I realized it covered #77 as well. Cool!

What were Luke's accomplishments this month?


I tried to pick some different photos that you maybe hadn't seen either here or on my Project 365 blog. Luke had a busy month! He went on his first ever picnic (and freaked out about every single bug; you know, *outside*), and he made his first trip to the top of Stone Mountain. He got a good report on his ears. And he has spent the entire month pushing his (our!) limits. He is about to drive us crazy! The lying, the attitude, the lack of response to questions or requests (demands). And he's back to sticking his tongue out at me when I fuss at him, which is completely unacceptable. Just driving us batty. Not sure if that is an accomplishment, but there it is. He did have another first, though. He spontaneously came up to me and said, "Mommy, I love you!" ::sniff, sniff:: It was so sweet.

Anything else noteworthy to record?
I feel like I'm forgetting something, but I have no idea what that might be.

Monthly Round Up courtesy of Katie the Scrapbook Lady.

Currently feeling: a busy month!

Important Wolverine Movie Info (no spoilers)

If I am still to be the Movie Muse, I guess I should provide the occasional movie news, yes? Here is some important (non-spoiler) Wolverine news, for anyone who might actually get to see it Friday (don't think I will be one of them, boo-hoo):

"Director Gavin Hood says the theatrical version of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," due out Friday, features two different "Easter egg" endings. The short bits of footage play after the credits and reveal important information about key characters. Hood says the two endings play on separate prints, so different theaters may show different footage." --quoted from this article (also no spoilers)

Just FYI!

Currently feeling: ready for summer movie season!

All Disney 2009 Photos Uploaded

Meant to post this earlier. In case you are really bored, I have uploaded all of the 2009 Disney photos to our Webshots account: http://community.webshots.com/user/warrengaston All 1600+ of them! You've been warned.

Currently feeling: overwhelmed with photos

On the Bubble for 2009-2010: Dollhouse, Castle, and Chuck

This is a post I've been meaning to write for a week or so, and based on the fact that I am currently averaging about 200 hits a day (instead of my usual 40-ish on days when I have a new post), maybe it's time. What is generating most of those hits? Search engine results for "Chuck Renewed." Apparently, there are lots of other Chuck fans out there trying to find out if NBC will bring it back for a 3rd season. I just tested it myself, and this post from Feb 2008 comes up as the second result on a Google search. Cool! But not really answering the question they are asking. (I also edited the post just now to include the year range 2008-2009 for the sake of clarity. Might cut down on some of the hits. Not that I mind, I just feel like they are "fake," ya know?)

So has Chuck been renewed for 2009-2010? No, but neither has it been officially cancelled. Yet. I've found a site I really like that analyzes the numbers. It is called TV By the Numbers (be aware that the have been having server issues the last few days, so try back if you get an error). They are really just "speculators," but I enjoy their take on things. According to them (and I agree), Chuck is just really iffy right now. Jay Leno being on 5 nights a week at 10 PM is really crunching their space for new shows. If they want to try and test out some new ones, some old ones will probably have to go, and Chuck is one of those on the bubble. Without Jay, it would probably be a lock to come back, but at the moment? Who knows. Reports are that the cast and crew have heard nothing either way, but that the sets are still intact. For now. Only time will tell.

Unfortunately, that's it for the good news. Dollhouse and Castle? Not looking so good. The numbers are just not there, especially compared to the other shows on their respective networks (Fox and CBS). It's a shame, really. Dollhouse is finally starting to get Whedon-ish (a very good thing!), and it is incredibly interesting. I hear that the network really likes it (and let's face it, they owe Joss after the whole Firefly kerfuffle), but that would be the only thing saving it, the grace of the network, not the numbers. Castle, on the other hand, is just flat out fun, and we *love* Nathan Fillion. I am so sorry it hasn't found an audience, though I think it is a little "light" to survive at 10 PM, especially against CSI: Miami, unless they are making an attempt at counter programming (which clearly isn't working). I think a different time slot might help it, but who knows. It most likely won't get a chance, though. There will be much mourning in our house if/when that happens.

So there we go. That's my take on it. And just for the search engines: Will Chuck be renewed for 2009-2010? Will Dollhouse be renewed? Will Castle be renewed? We likely won't know for a few more weeks. I sure hope so, though, on all three. I hate trying to find new shows! They always get cancelled....

Currently feeling: trying to be hopeful

Keep Juanita in your prayers

We have a family friend named Juanita. We definitely consider her a friend, as we have seen her almost weekly for over 2 years now. She is our "regular" evening waitress at Golden Corral. (Yes, we also have a regular afternoon waitress named Vicki.) She is always happy and smiling, she takes great care of us, and we tip her accordingly both because she's good at what she does and because we just flat-out like her. I hadn't seen her in about a month. I was hoping she had just changed shifts or maybe had gotten a new job. She was back today, and we waved at each other from across the restaurant.

She was stationed in a different section than where we usually sit, but she still dropped by our table. DH and Luke were in the restroom, so it was just the two of us. She asked me how we had been, and I said fine. I was tired and fighting a headache, but I was happy to make small talk. Not much going on, just work and such, blah blah. "How are you?" I asked. Okay, she replied. She just didn't seem like herself. She also looked quite a bit thinner than I remembered. "Have you lost weight?" She grimaced a little. Yeah, she said, I've lost quite a bit. I don't know if you noticed that I haven't been here (of course we noticed!). And then she spoke four words that made my heart break.

"I lost my son."

Juanita is the mother of 7, ranging in age from 20 to 8, including a set of twin "tween" girls.

"It was my oldest; he was 20."

I had no idea what to say to her. "I'm so very sorry" was all I could come up with, but that seemed so inadequate for the loss she was clearly still suffering.

"We're doing okay. It's hard. They're still investigating."

That stopped me. Obviously more to the story, but I didn't want to pry. There was no need. The rest just came tumbling out. He had just moved back home after being out on his own for a couple of years and really struggling. He was diagnosed HIV-positive at age 18, which only added to the stress on everyone, but he was finally on meds and starting to pull it together after moving back in. He decided to go away for the weekend with a friend and return the following Monday. He never came back. They found his body in a dumpster, and no sign of the "friend." The investigation is continuing, but she didn't sound very hopeful for a resolution.

And I thought I had no idea what to say earlier. I was totally speechless. I just told her how very sorry we were, and how I sincerely hoped she was doing as okay as she could be, and that I would be praying for her and her family. It was also another reminder to cherish the time you have with those you love, because you just never know when they will be gone. Tell them you love them. Tell them right now. Don't wait.

Currently feeling: so very sad for our friend