Could it be.... Satan?

You are The Star

Hope, expectation, Bright promises.

The Star is one of the great cards of faith, dreams realised

The Star is a card that looks to the future. It does not predict any immediate or powerful change, but it does predict hope and healing. This card suggests clarity of vision, spiritual insight. And, most importantly, that unexpected help will be coming, with water to quench your thirst, with a guiding light to the future. They might say you're a dreamer, but you're not the only one.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Geeks of the world, unite and take over!

According to Wheaton, November 3rd is World Wide D&D Gaming Day.

WOOT! WOOT!

As per our regular schedule, it's one day before my regular gaming day. I love life!


PS-still no campster.

when you're smiling

I got a little froggy today.

I was going through some old paperwork a couple of weeks ago, preparing to shred a year's worth of junk mail when I discovered two things:

1. Mister's government-issued credit card had expired and I had no way of getting him his new one in less than 24 hours so he could use it to get home [thank my lucky stars I'm a saver (occasionally)], and
2. I had 4 points added to my license for "following too closely" and smashing up Mister's car back in January 2005. (Y'all remember that month: I mailed a clock that was mistaken for a bomb and Mister got put into protective custody by the Army, I crashed the car, the computer and the washing machine died, my living room furniture needed de-puking, and my team didn't make the Super Bowl.)

Discussing this a few days ago with my neighbor who had just crashed her car earlier, she said not to worry, the points will drop off my record after awhile, or I could just take a defensive driver class and get it done sooner.

Before I checked the prices of those classes, I decided to check out the time it takes for points to drop off your record here in the lovely "commonwealth" of Virginia. Turns out that tailgating nets you 4 points for 3 years. That means after January of 2008 (coming up shortly-stay tuned!) I'll have a points-free license!

[time to cabbage patch--bbs]

That was fun! I'm so excited that I don't have to take that class after all. Now, if that dealership would just finish with my van so I could do a celebratory parallel parking maneuver.

"Five" is right out!

Still no campster.

I got a late voice mail today. There are "more problems" with the van/gas tank/economy/world, and I need to call them to "discuss things."

Oh goody.

The End is Nigh!

Wait, what?

Mister has returned. It was a long slog which nearly didn't end. The pre-scheduled airlines couldn't find him a flight out of Baltimore for at least 16 hours. Mister bought a ticket on a second airlines and was home in less than 2 hours.

We dropped off his restricted equipment and then scooted on up to the football game to surprise The Girl, who couldn't go with us to pick up her dad because she had to march. We arrived just in time to see the half-time show. It was fantastic, but then again, I'm biased.

It was a very long week that ended well. A good night's sleep and he's right as rain today.

Feel free to call or stop by to say hello this weekend.

As World Turn

So I get the family campster back today. I notice that the dealership kindly put gas into the new tank that was roughly equivalent to a large loogie, so I stop off at my local "Arm and a Leg" to fill 'er up.

$45 later, and I'm about to pull back onto the main road when I notice two things:

1. an intense reek of gasoline, as though I had spewed gas inside the van, and
2. the gas gauge itself hasn't registered the proper amount inside the tank.

So I call the dealership back and tell them the gauge isn't working. He said, drive for about 250 miles and then bring it back in on Monday, he can't look at it until then. I forget to mention the smell.

Six miles later, the smell is so strong, I have all the windows open and I'm still about to pass out. I make it home, and a neighbor tells me to put something under the van and then run the van for about 20 minutes to see if it's leaking. I could only take 10 minutes because of the smell, but it didn't matter since the gas was dripping out of the tank like crazy.

I call the dealership and tell them to pick up my van, and to do it before 7 pm. The tow truck arrives (I love them, too, btw) and the tow operator puts my van up on the truck. While the van is tipped forward, gas leaks out of the van so fast it's unbelievable. A quick check of the tank reveals that the fuel lines were not put on properly. In fact, one part was just hanging there.

This, after the dealership representative told me he had his "top men" working on it. Top men, eh? As in Raiders of the Lost Ark "top men"?

I'm so ticked off, I even said, "Feck!" in front of my kids. Actually, what I really said while I was jumping up and down like Yosemite Sam was, "Feckfeckfeckfeckfeckfeckfeck bugger!!"

Stay tuned. I should be hearing from them tomorrow.

And stop calling me Shirley!

Today was a trip: bizarre and yet surprising not really too far out of the ordinary.

Journey with me as I go back in time.... /doodly-doo, doodly-doo, doodly-doo/

I woke up later than I wanted to this morning after tossing and turning all night. Just as I'm finally with-it, the phone rings. It's The Girl, and she needs a "please before school starts" rescue of forgotten gym clothes. I get there with only moments to spare, and The Girl is saved. Yay, me!

The Boy gets to the bus on time, but not until he's dumped a bunch of flour on the table (school project) and forgotten breakfast. At least he brushed his teeth.

The Baby gets to the bus on time, but that was because she missed being able to walk to school with her friends. Don't get me started about this bus thing.

I get ready for school and, with absolutely perfect hair, leave early enough that I just might make it to class with time to sit and study a little. Yay, me! Only along the route, I got side-tracked by an errant piece of metal shelving in my driving path that decided my gas tank needed an extra hole. So I missed an entire day of biology, lecture and lab. Boo!

The state patrol sends out their "motorist assistant" who informs me that there is nothing The State can do about it, act of god, blah blah blah, don't abandon your vehicle. My insurance company is very accommodating and sends out probably the fastest towing service I've ever experienced in all 18 years of my driving experience. If you're in my area and need a recommendation, email me--this company rocks!

My lovely friends arrive to rescue me, one still in her pyjamas and with a daycare kid in tow. I love them so much!

A local dealership kindly finds me cheaper parts for my car vs new, while my insurance company kindly reminds me that I have to pony up the deductible first, and then they pay whatever is over the deductible. Boo! If you want to know what a used gas tank and install costs, email me. Put down your coffee first.

However, they'll have it done and back to me by Tuesday at the very latest. Yay, I guess.

Onward home so that I may tighten my budget and squeeze the blood from every last penny we possess, which was not as difficult as I thought since I had forgotten that I had already paid a number of this month's bills. Yay, me!

The Boy returns with his loaner trumpet and says his band instructor insists he is to never return with that particular trumpet again, meaning I have to go get another loaner from the music shop. Before I leave yet again, I decide to check the mail box. I'm expecting packages, you know.

I didn't find my packages, but I did find my grant rebate from the college, which will pay for the van, an upcoming band trip deposit, and our trip to the mountains. Yay, my college! (BTW-the music shop is in possession of no other loaner trumpets, so The Boy must use one from the school until his own is repaired--this is not why I pay $5/month for instrument insurance!)

When I saw the numbers on that check, I hyperventilated. All I have to say about that is, "Yay, my kids!" They remembered what to do for me whenever that happens!

There is hope for the future, and so all is well with my world. Tonight I can sleep (I use that term loosely here) and start my daily drama over again tomorrow.

West Virginia Surf Report

I found this little gem courtesy of my dear friends at Fark. You absolutely must visit this site. If you're trapped in a cube farm or visiting the public library, I suggest waiting until you're home because you might get your sanity questioned or at the very least thrown out of the building.

It's called "West Virginia Surf Report." And it's as funny as you'd expect!

A sample from the post, "Alli Side Effects In Layman's Terms":

While no one likes experiencing treatment effects, they might help you think twice about eating questionable fat content. If you think of it like that, alli can act like a security guard for your late-night cravings

You see, when you think about it, shitting yourself is actually a positive.

Boldface is the company's wording, the rest is Jeff's people-speak.

This site is just so darn funny! There are other funny reports, such as his reviews of KFC's dinner bowls and Wendy's Baconator sandwich. This guy is completely fried. And so therefore, I'm going to add him to my links. Well done!

you like me--you really like me!

To my very special friend, Beav, who inadvertently reminded me to save my changes in order to activate them by offering some html advice, I extend a very warm fuzzy and a cuddly thank-you.

Sometimes, I really am a 1st level Barbarian with a combined Wisdom/Intel score with modifiers of +1.

Anyhoo, it is plain to see that my "new" site is mostly operational. Or at least it's more operational than most NCC-1701's at the beginning of most Star Trek movies. No need for Scotty here, although I could probably benefit from a good night's rest and/or a margarita. Since for me the sauce is a no-go, I'll just grab myself a good kip and call it a night.

Thanks for the patience!

PS: Good news, good news!

I have recently discovered the secret location of my Jackass: The Movie(s) research notes. They were right where I had left them, although I can't actually recall where that was right now. I have them with me now, and will be organizing them in some sort of chart so that they may be posted to the other website, which I have just remembered is not on my links list right now. Dammit! More work. Freakin' Blogger!