Photo-A-Day #418 05/31/06

Photo-A-Day #418 05/31/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

The summer movie season has started (Well it actually started with MI3 but who want's Tom Cruise's crazy to rub off on them?) And te Da Vinci Code came out a week or so ago but we didn't see it. But we did go and see X-MEN 3 The Last Stand. Awesome! That is about the size of it. What a great addition to the franchise. If you go make sure that you stay till the end of the whole movie and the credits. It is worth it. Allison was so excited.

There was a bunch of new movie posters out at the theatre, one was for Snakes on a Plane. A Samuel L. Jackson vehicle. Here is the synopsis: "On board a flight over the Pacific Ocean, an assassin, bent on killing a passenger who's a witness in protective custody, lets loose a crate full of deadly snakes." I could think of a few more effective and focused ways to get the job done but it is creative. The picture is terrible, I know, fuzzy and whatnot.

My pedometer shows 3576 steps. Pretty pitiful, gotta up that number.

Rescue Me, Last Comic Standing is back

Last night brought with it the return of Last Comic Standing and Rescue Me.

First up LCS4. The worst thing about LCS4 is the two talent scouts. Ross Mark looked like he had somewhere better to be the whole entire time. He was not enthused about any of the performers and some performers whom they would have known about they clearly pretended not to know. They are talent scouts, you'd think they would have seen a Comedy Central Presents sometime in the last 8 years. Bob Read at least tries to be enthused. I think Ross is pissed that he's no Simon Cowell, just a pissed off guy who is locked into having to watch a bunch of no talents to find those few that are actually good. His "Get the hell out of here!" is neither funny, ironic nor endearing. At least when Simon insults you he has the accent. I found myself watching the reactions of Ross Mark and wondering why he agreed to do another season, he looked so pathetic. Even when they did the judging at night he was so un-enthused.

Some good points of the show. Buck Star finally got to perform, he didn't move on but he did get a chance to perform. I knew that he would get a chance to perform and that he would be a little funny. He had to be, he spent another year prepping for this and he followed the guys to every audition. He even has his own IMDB entry.

Gabriel Iglesias made it to the next round, this is a funny guy. It annoyed me that Ross and Bob pretended not to know who he was, they had to have heard of him.

At the Last Comic Standing 4 website you can vote for an online comedian who gets to perform during one of the later episodes. There are five different comedians each week. These are the folks that didn't make it to the semi finals.

Rescue Me came back tonight. Tommy Gavin continues to screw up his life and those of the people around him. Some very interesting things are happening in the show however. One of the biggest things is Lenny Clark's tremendous weight loss. Lenny Clark's character has been in prison since the end of last season where he gunned down the drunk driver that killed Tommy's son Connor. Rescue Me is like LOST in that when a character dies they end up still having some air time by showing up in Tommy's hallucinations. This season looks to be just as tumultuous of the previous two. We should be seeing some good, and some tragic things coming our way.

Photo-A-Day #417 05/30/06

Photo-A-Day #417 05/30/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Doing the hippy, hippy shake. Because I work for a great place that gives me some good benefits like health insurance from Blue Cross Blue Shield I can take advantage of some cool programs. What I am holding is a pedometer that they sent me because I am taking advantage of Fit Blue. What is Fit Blue? Fit Blue is a weight loss program by Blue Cross Blue Shield. They sent me a pedometer, a measuring tape and a food journal. I also have a health coach that I talk with every couple of weeks.

I've heard that many people are also doing some weight loss blogs. I'm not going to turn this into that but I will probably try and put up the number of steps I took that day. Since starting the travel thing the airplane seats have gotten tighter, stairs have gotten higher and I've missed the gym as few times. Well, I am trying to get back on track and hope that Fit Blue will help out with goals and keeping me honest with myself.

Current goals are walking 45 minutes at least 3 times a week, rollerblading at least twice a week and making better eating decisions while on the road. (Allison takes good care of me at home.)

TRANSFORMERS: THE MOVIE - 20TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL EDITION

Sony is releasing TRANSFORMERS: THE MOVIE - 20TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL EDITION to coincide with the G1 Classics line of toys that are due out this fall. I wonder what the special features will be?

Photo-A-Day #416 05/29/06

Photo-A-Day #416 05/29/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Flowers today. We went to a great cook out but I didn't take any pictures. I must be slipping.

Update on The Whale Trail. One of the whales has already been stolen. I can't find any news articles on it yet however. It was on the radio this morning.

Photo-A-Day #415 05/28/06

Photo-A-Day ..415 05/28/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

"Whale Come to Cape Cod" is the title of this art piece. "Whale Come to Cape Cod" is part of The Whale Trail art exhibit that is being shown all over Cape Cod this summer. There are 50 whales out at various locations all over the Cape that visitors can search for on The Whale Trail. Some whales are in pods. The pods are named for towns on the Cape. Since we are in Falmouth we saw "Whale Come to Cape Cod" which is whale ..1 of the Falmouth Pod. Some whales are not in pods either just like in nature. Male whales sometimes travel alone. The Whale Trail's website has maps of where to find all 50 whales but the exhibit also includes a mystery whale that is not on any map. If you find the mystery whale and have your picture taken with it you can submit the picture to the The Whale Trail website to be entered into a mystery drawing.

My Uncle sent me the link to The Whale Trail yesterday and today when Allison and I went out for short rollerblading excursion we saw "Whale Come to Cape Cod" out in front of the flying bridge. And since Allison knows me so well, she knew that it would be photo-a-day. And why not, it is a great art project and a neat way to see places all over the cape as well as to learn about whales. I may keep a separate gallery for the whales we find on the trail.

Photo-A-Day #414 05/27/06

Photo-A-Day #414 05/27/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Today Allison and I were at the Cape. We slept in till 9:00 for the first time since te end of last summer. Being on the Cape is very conducive to good sleep.

We went to see my cousin Nick pitch in his Babe Ruth baseball game. He was doing some very good pitching. After that we had lunch and then went to the beach where we enjoyed a very sunny afternoon and the opportunity to get some reading done. I'm reading Skinny Dip by Carl Hiaasen and Allison is reading Track of the Cat by Nevada Barr, I'm gonna get her hooked on this series too.

Then we went and visited my Grandparents for a little while. After that we had a backyard BBQ and enjoyed the latest backyard addition, some all weather speakers that Dad picked up and installed under the porch. So we had cheeseburgers and hot dogs to the tunes of Jimmy Buffett.

Then we went for a walk and I saw this umbrella still sitting on the beach at 8:00 at night, thought it was a nice beachy scene. And now we are going to watch National Treasure.

Photo-A-Day #413 05/26/06

Photo-A-Day #413 05/26/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Tonight Allison and I drove to the Cape after work. We went to the house and got our sheet into the wash (It was our first time down for the summer so the sheets needed to be cleaned.) then we turned around and headed over to the Courtyard to have dinner with Neil and Andrea and Andrea's mom. Dinner was very good. I think we figured out that we've had a meal together for each year on Memorial Day weekend for the past couple of years. But a quick check on past blog entries tells me that it wasn't Memorial Day weekend but I know that we have had a few meals at the Courtyard each year with Neil and Andrea.

After dinner we went to Somerset Creamery for their great ice cream.

Photo-A-Day #412 05/25/06

Photo-A-Day #412 05/25/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

tonight Allison and I went for a walk after dinner. Something new we are trying, to stop sitting on the couch watching TV after dinner every night. It'll be a thing, it is gonna catch on. It is a lot easier to do now that the shows are all over and the nice weather's back. We watched the LOST season finale last night and can't wait for next season. A lot of people are getting annoyed with the pacing of the show but I think that it has been done so well. And now next season looks to be filled with all new twists and characters. Some major revelations that occured in the finale, lots of loose ends and some tied up nice and neat. Such a great show.

Anyway when we were out on our walk the grass in certain places looked like crop circles, except they were in a straight line. Can't say I really delivered with today's picture. I'm still running on little to no sleep in the past few days. I did take a nap after work and was out like a light till Allison came home.

Photo-A-Day #411 05/24/06

Photo-A-Day #411 05/24/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Our company's Swans had Cygnets.

From the Plane.

The flight from Salt Lake has been good so far. The movie that was shown was Glory Road. I had forgotten that this was a movie I wanted to see. It was a very powerful movie. Josh Lucas was well cast in this as coach Haskins was very well cast. I am sure that I have seen Josh Lucas in other movies but cannot remember which ones. Now he seems to be everywhere.

I was unable to find Hunting Season by Nevada Barr. I went to every bookstore and news store in Salt Lake airport and only found 2 of Barr's books. I found her first Anna Pigeon novel, Track of the Cat and the book after Hunting Season, Flashback. So instead I picked up the book, Skinny Dip, by Carl Hiaasen. Carl has written many books, they are funny and interesting. I listened to his book, Tourist Season on CD a while back. It wasn't until today that I realized that he wrote Hoot and some other kids books. Not that I have read much past chapter 2 because I keep falling back asleep.

I was looking forward to soaking in my spa tub last night after my drive but seeing those bugs squashed any desire to do that. Now I wish I had just sucked it up and grabbed the two bugs and then filled the tub. My quads are so sore. They are sore because of the walk around the hot springs. I pushed myself straight to the top, forgetting about the altitude difference. I had left the water in the car and the damage was done by the time I turned around to come down. So now on the plane I am hurtin'. Dang bugs and their ability to give me uncontrollable itchiness.

The best part of this trip was getting to see two National Parks an picking up 3 states I didn't have on my map: Idaho, Wyoming and Montana. I'm not sure how many I have left to get but it is under 20.

Photo-A-Day #410 05/23/06

Photo-A-Day #410 05/23/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

I should be going to bed but I'll have to get back up in 2 hours anyway. So I'm going to stay up. Last night I got no sleep because I found two little bugs in my bed (one was on my sheets and the other on the mattress). Oh man I thought that they were bedbugs, real honest to goodness bedbugs, but what I came to find out after some research that these tiny little bugs were not bed bugs. I probably can't find out what they really were but they skeeved me out so bad that I called the front desk for them to change my room. They moved me to the room next door. The night guy said that they would give me a break on the room but I just got the bill and no changes were made. I'll be writing a letter. Usually I can get more done with a simple, sternly worded, but nice, letter. But I unfortunately woke up every hour on the hour till I left for the demo. I had checked the bed and the bugs were never on me but I couldn't shake the feeling that they were. I was thinking about soaking in the whirlpool tub but I noticed a couple of little black flecks and upon closer inspection they were actually two of the same bugs from last night. That is going with the letter too.

Enough about that, Yellowstone was awesome, I mean really I was in awe of what I was seeing. There were buffalo, elk; I even saw a bald eagle and a groundhog. The fact that these animals were so close was also inspiring. I would have really liked to have seen a bear or a wolf but they would most likely have required me to get a high powered set of binoculars or at least a telephoto lens. The landscape had so many different variations. There were mountains, Waterfalls, Forests, Rivers, and then there was this huge Canyon and the Hot Springs. Yellowstone has a very unique landscape. I didn't even get to see any of the geysers because I ran out of time. As it stood I got out of the park just as the sun was setting.

Today's photo is of a herd of Buffalo in the Yellowstone National Park. They were making their way from the river to the other side of the road during sunset. I was able to get about 300 yards away. It was amazing.

As I drove through Yellowstone National Park I made a couple more recordings.

yellowstone1.wav

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yellowstone4.wav

I am now back at the hotel and it is 2:00am mountain time. I have 249 pictures to go through. I am getting them set up to post into their own folders on Kodak. I edited the Grand Teton ones earlier today and they will be in their own folder.

Grand Teton Pictures

Yellowstone Pictures

Photo-A-Day didn't go up on time today but that is okay since I posted over 100 pictures between today and yesterday's trips..

New Video of the Week

This week's video was suggested by Maureen. Mo and her N'syncerator past are spotlighted with the featured video "Bye, Bye, Bye".

Photo-A-Day #409 05/22/06

Photo-A-Day #409 05/22/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

FRom the Grand Teton's National Park.

Written on the Plane

I'm in the air again, headed out to Idaho Falls, ID. I have a brief demo tomorrow and then it is back home for me.

On Friday, Allison's car had to be towed to the shop. It was making some nasty rumbles and shakes. The car was towed to our Volkswagon dealer to be serviced. That left Allison with no car. I picked her up after work on friday and took her home. Good thing too because the Pike was shut down and it would have taken forever to get home that way. So when we got home I snapped a quick shot of Allison looking forlornly at an empty parking spot. We had just enough time to quickly post the photo and then head out to Amy and Ryan's.

I just finished Nevada Barr's book Blood Lure. It was a good read. The next book, Hunting Season seems to be one that we are missing. So I will try and find it while out on the road. I'm headed to Yellowstone when I land in Idaho. It is a 2 1/2 hour ride but should be well worth it to see sights like Old Faithful. I wonder when Anna Pigeon is going to get stationed at Yellowstone. I have the book that comes after Hunting Season, Flashback, but probably won't read it till after I get Hunting Season. There are 4 books left, Hunting Season, Flashback, High Country and Hard Truth. I'm not sure if there is another in the works yet. I will have to check at Nevada Barr's website.

So because I am particular about reading books in order I picked up a book from a series I read about 2 years ago. The series is by Laurell K. Hamilton and the main character is vampire hunter, Anita Blake. I've read all the books in that series except for the latest one, Micah, I picked up at the Borders at the airport. They did not have Hunting Season.

The flight's movie was Hoodwinked. That is a pretty funny and clever movie. Allison and I had taken my cousins to see it when it was in the theaters. There is some great one liners that adults can enjoy.

Recorded while riding through the park.

Ramble1.wav

Ramble2.wav

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Ramble4.wav

Ramble5.wav


I took over 100 pictures in the park, these are the ones I consider the best. Enjoy.

Okay I'm done. It is 12:00 pm here. 2:00 am by my internal clock, even though the Vault kicked in about an hour ago and I'm buzzing like a hummingbird, I need to get some sleep.

Photo-A-Day #408 05/21/06

Photo-A-Day #408 05/21/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Keeping with the trip down memory lane theme from yesterday, Allison and I went to Capron Park Zoo in Attleboro, MA. I told her we were going on a surprise trip to the zoo. We stopped and picked up some subs and then had a picnic lunch.

Capron Park Zoo is right near the Attleboro High School. I used to go there as a child. I took art lessons at a building at the zoo when I was really young. I loved going to the zoo. I always have.

Today brought back some great memories of the times my parents took me to the zoo over the years. At that time there were some polar bears, and some buffalo. But Frosty died long ago. Capron Park Zoo is another thing I can't wait to do with our "future kids" (Kids not in existence or even glimmering in existence yet, and yes I'm gonna write that every time).

Allison fell in love with the Civet, the Snow Leopards, Ocelots and the Sloth Bear (pictured above). I loved taking Allison to the zoo. It was a great way to get outside and have fun and it was very inexpensive, great for families. I took a bunch of pictures from the day. They can be found at my Flickr account.

Photo-A-Day #407 05/20/06

Photo-A-Day #407 05/20/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

I went to school long ago. Old School.

Does anyone remember this? This was R.O.B. (The Robotic Operating Buddy). With R.O.B. you could play Gyromite and Stack Up. R.O.B. is a little dusty from little use in the past 17 or so years.

I began moving some of my stuff from the basement up to the "future" office. My sister Tara began moving some of her stuff out of her room in the house and my sister Shelby will be moving her stuff from her old bedroom. And sooner or later Allison and I will be doing some remodeling of the second floor.

I moved a few boxes of Transformers and I moved my box of old Nintendo stuff. Including all of the issues of Nintendo Power magazine (actually I don't have all the issues just the first ones from way back when, the magazine is still being published.) I'm pretty sure I have all the way back to issue ..1. My first Nintendo had serial ..000001 on it. I kid you not. Unfortunately it ended up dying and I sent it back to get fixed and get a new one. I didn't know about things like low serial numbers and whatnot at that time.

I picked R.O.B. today because back in the day I was a huge Nintendo fan. I had about 50 games (Actually I still have all of them) and finished every one of them. I was playing X-Box 360 last night with my friend Ryan and man I just can't play console games anymore. I'm going to have to get back into practice before I have kids because I don't want to be that adult who can't figure out simple maneuvers on the game. That would just be lame.

Last night Allison and I went to our friends Amy and Ryan's house. Alison and Amy went out to dinner and I brought pizza so Ryan and I could watch a movie. We watched Lord of War. A very interesting movie. It was funny in parts, it was sad in parts, it was downright horrifying at other parts. I do like watching Nick Cage work though. I think he's a very good actor. We just got the Wide Screen edition of National Treasure from the Disney Movie Club the other day. Looking forward to watching that again.

Also we stayed over at Amy and Ryan's and had a very nice breakfast this morning. Amy made biscuits and gravy. Very tasty. I could have gone for about 10 of them but I was good and had 2 biscuits and a little gravy.

Amy and Ryan have an adorable little boy. He is almost 2 and is beginning to learn to say people's names. I guess that my name was the first one outside of his parent's that he was able to say. He said it as Allison and I were walking up to the house. He pointed and said "Drew". Gotta love kids.

Photo-A-Day #406 05/19/06

Photo-A-Day #406 05/19/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Allison is in the passenger seat looking sad. Heidi (her car) had to be towed to the shop today. We are not sure what is wrong.

Photo-A-Day #405 05/18/06

Photo-A-Day #405 05/18/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

I guess this means that I'll have to still wait till "future kids" (Kids not in existence or even glimmering in existence yet) have turned 5 before they can play with alot of the toys I've been saving for them. This was a special Harley Davidson pack that had this truck and a few other cars. I gave the rest to my Dad with another gift a while ago.

It is a Hot Wheels truck. I was never big into toy cars like matchbox and hot wheels. I suspect that there are some rabid collectors out there like there are with Transformers. I hope they still have Hot Wheels stunt sets when "future kids" come along.

I did see that the upcoming movie Cars has some toys out now that look like the cars from the movie. I think I'll look inot putting together a set so when "future kids" are old enough they can play with the cars after the watch the Cars movie.

Photo-A-Day #404 05/17/06

Photo-A-Day #404 05/17/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Tonight Allison and I went to dinner with our friends Autumn and Kenny. We went to the Funway Cafe for Pasta Night. When Kenny first told us about going to Pasta night at the Funway Cafe his eyes kinda glazed over and you could tell he was thinking about the awesome food. He was certainly right about the food being awesome.

For $12.95 a person you get salad, a glass of wine, breadsticks and then you go to the pasta station to get specialty cooked to order pasta from Joe the Chef.

First off you chose what type of pasta you wanted, ziti, gemelli, or spaghetti. Then you choose the meats, you could have chicken, shrimp, scallops, sausage, meatballs, or swordfish. You could choose one or all of them. Then you pick your sauce alfredo, marinara, pink, and fra diavlo. You could also choose vegetables, broccoli, peppers, zucchini, carrots, and mushrooms. Again you could choose from one to all of them.

Joe cooked everything right in front of us. He had four portable gas burners going at a time. This guy was a master. We each were only able to eat half of our meals so there's lunch for tomorrow. Awesome!

Now the bad news: Pasta night is only around till the end of June because another restaurant is taking over. So if you haven't been out for pasta night you got to do yourself a favor and get over there some Wednesday before Pasta Night disappears forever.

So guys for guys night we may want to do a wednesday and expand our horizons beyond boneless buffalo wings and fries.

Site Changes

It is that time again. You may have noticed that I have made some site changes. First off I edited the header. I changed the graphic to now include a photo of Allison and me. The title is no part of the graphic and you may notice a (period) before the word The. The reason for this is that without some text in title section of Blogger the graphic gets too small. I haven't figured out how to put in invisible text so the (period) is pretty unobtrusive. Also if you were to click on a specific post and go to that posts page then you can click the (period) to get back to the homepage.

Next up I got rid of the South Park Characters. They were cute and all but they have had their moment and are now gone. I also got rid of the imood settings, I couldn't keep up with changing the moods and some days I had no mood at all. I still add a mood to my MySpace posts where I post copies of Photo-A-Day.

I added the latest posts to the top of the page so you could just click and go rather than have to scroll down to the stories.

I added a graphic link to the Flatwater BookStore. I have many ideas to make that a better place. It will be where I will review books I've read and movies I've watched. Also items I have purchased from Amazon.com.

I'm only putting one recommended Amazon item up on the main header as a opposed to the three I used to have up there.

Videos: I'm going to put up videos each week, probably mostly 80's stuff but you can click and play them right from the blog.

The buttons for feed subscription were moved to the sidebar under the I Power Blogger button.

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think of the changes.

Improv Everywhere Mission: Best Buy

Has anyone ever heard of this group. The mission was pretty funny. Get a group together dressed in identical Royal Blue polo shirts and kahkis, black shoes and a belt. Everyone goes into Best Buy, total confusion begins. Improv Everywhere Mission: Best Buy

Photo-A-Day #403 05/16/06

Photo-A-Day #403 05/16/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

It just keeps raining. So, another picture of Duncan. I liked his expression in this picture.

So I sent the crappy camera back to the person I bought it from. I used FedEx Kinkos to ship it out. Here is a concept I cannot get behind. Putting two really frustrating services together in one place and let some really inept folks run it. That is Great! Argh, so frustrating.

Full Throttle with the Blue Angels.

Andy told me about this guy. http://alt.coxnewsweb.com/ajc/swf/blueangels/blueangels.swf

Funny Wedding Vows

While talking with Andy and Rondi last night Andy told us about the Funny Wedding Vows - Humorous Wedding Vows Inspired by Dr. Seuss. Here they are.

Pastor: Will you answer me right now
These questions, as your wedding vow?

Groom: Yes, I will answer right now


Pastor: Will you take her as your wife?
Will you love her all your life?

Groom: Yes, I take her as my wife,
Yes, I'll love her all my life.

Pastor: Will you have, and also hold
Just as you have at this time told?

Groom: Yes, I will have, and I will hold,
Just as I have at this time told,
Yes, I will love her all my life
As I now take her as my wife.

Pastor: Will you love through good and bad?
Whether you're happy or sad?

Groom: Yes, I'll love through good and bad,
Whether we're happy or sad,
Yes, I will have and I will hold
Just as I have already told,
Yes, I will love her all my life,
Yes, I will take her as my wife!

Pastor: Will you love her if you're rich?
Or if you're poor, and in a ditch?

Groom: Yes, I'll love her if we're rich,
And I will love her in a ditch,
I'll love her through good times and bad,
Whether we are happy or sad,
Yes, I will have, and I will hold
(I could have sworn this has been told!)
I promise to love all my life
This woman, as my lawful wife!

Pastor: Will you love her when you're fit,
And also when you're feeling sick?

Groom: Yes, I'll love her when we're fit,
And when we're hurt, and when we're sick,
And I will love her when we're rich
And I will love her in a ditch
And I will love through good and bad,
And I will love when glad or sad,
And I will have, and I will hold
Ten years from now a thousandfold,
Yes, I will love for my whole life
This lovely woman as my wife!

Pastor: Will you love with all your heart?
Will you love till death you part?

Groom: Yes, I'll love with all my heart
From now until death do us part,
And I will love her when we're rich,
And when we're broke and in a ditch,
And when we're fit, and when we're sick,
(Oh, CAN'T we get this finished quick?)
And I will love through good and bad,
And I will love when glad or sad,
And I will have, and I will hold,
And if I might now be so bold,
I'll love her my entire life,
Yes, I WILL take her as my wife!

Pastor: Then if you'll take her as your wife,
And if you'll love her all your life,
And if you'll have, and if you'll hold,
From now until the stars grow cold,
And if you'll love through good and bad,
And whether you're happy or sad,
And love in sickness, and in health,
And when you're poor, and when in wealth,
And if you'll love with all your heart,
From now until death do you part,
Yes, if you'll love her through and through,
Please answer with these words:

Pastor and Groom: I DO!

Pastor: You're married now! So kiss the bride,
But please, do keep it dignified.

Google Humor

Type french military victories into a google search and hit the I'm Feeling Lucky button.

Photo-A-Day #402 05/15/06

Photo-A-Day #402 05/15/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Don't believe the hype. This camera is not worth the box it came in. That is why I am returning it. Sure it looks like t has some great stats but the reality is that Fisher Price can make a less toylike camera. Imagine trying to take a picture while looking through tomato soup and mud. That was what it was like to use this camera. Just about the worst pictures ever. Luckily I can return it for almost a full refund (restocking fee.) A lesson learned.

So tonight we went to dinner with Andy and Rondi at Chilis. We had a very nice dinner and great fun conversing and laughing at some funny stories. Thanks for calling to see what we were up to tonight Rondi.

These are just two of the 10 pictures I took with the camera. Pretty much the worst pictures ever.

Photo-A-Day #401 05/14/06

Photo-a-Day #401 05/14/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Allison's friend T.R. came by today to measure the rooms of the apartment; as well as the rest of the top floor of the house. She is an architect. And she'll run the measurements through a CAD program and get us a nice layout of the space that we are eventually moving into. Allison gave her a hand with all the measurements.

Happy Mother's Day.

Cookout - Eat in With Derek and Michelle, Neil and Andrea

Last night Allison and I along with Neil and Andrea went to Derek and Michelle's house to have a night where the couples could get together because we hadn't seen each other since February and that was before we knew that Michelle was pregnant. So we got to see the mom to be and be excited for them. And we are very excited to have a baby on the way among our friends here near us.

So we arrived with a garden salad and the Sparks famous pasta salad. Pasta with a bottle of Catalina dressing (One bottle per lb of pasta) and cut peppers and sometimes onions or whatever veggies make you happy at the moment. Derek and Michelle had an assortment of Omaha Steaks treats like Bugers, Hot Dogs (Gourmet Franks) and Brats. Neil and Andrea brought a fantastic spread of sundae fixin’s. They brought not only Edy's Vanilla Ice Cream but Edy's French Vanilla as well. So I'm not sure if we ever were able to discern whether or not there was much of a difference in the tastes of the two. Andrea even made homemade chocolate sauce and caramel (deadly caramel).

So the guys went out to the garage and we all contributed to the cooking of the meal. Derek adjusted the heat to perfect cooking temp, Neil and I ran back and forth to the house for additional items. There was only one casualty (A rogue Hot Dog leaped off the grill to the floor, and it was a damn shame because as I learned later they were the best Hot Dogs I ever had.)

Then we had dinner and talked about old times, (And we never do that.) Then we debated about what movie to watch and eventually we let that conversation die and then had the Sundaes. Andrea and Neil brought the two ice cream flavors (Vanilla Bean and French Vanilla to see if there was a difference we could taste, I don't think anyone could.) and so many great fixin’s. The idea was to make a few mini sundaes. Andrea brought miniature brownies that were to be used as the bases for the sundaes. A miniature ice cream scoop to choose either French or Bean Vanilla. That was a great idea. You got to have little tastes of all the toppings on multiple mini sundaes. There were peanuts, pretzel pieces, sprinkles, Oreo cookie pieces, chocolate sauce, caramel, fluff, mini M&M's, and whipped cream (I'm sure I missed something, here was such an abundance of choices.)

We ate our Sundaes and then talked about watching a movie again. We debated about the final picture on this page about whether or not the guy on the right side was me or not. Turns out that the more we looked at it we realized that it was me. I saw this picture at New Year's and figured that it was not me, and was adamant about it. But turns out that it was me, It looks nothing like me now, I had really short hair and a full styled beard and bigger glasses, but I was there with the guys at Grumpy's for karaoke that night. And I used to have the watch and I sit with my hands like that in pictures. But look at how wide across I am. I can't remember being that wide across. Anyway In the picture there is Neil, Bill, Jeff, Derek, Mike and Me. We also discovered last night that the short Neil was wearing in the picture is the exact same one he was wearing last night. That is 10 years. He keeps his clothes in very good condition. So I scanned the picture in so I could post it today per Derek’s request. The man has a memory you would not believe.

The guys went to the den and watched this clip from Robot chicken. Then we went and tried to figure out what movie to watch. The wives were talking in the kitchen so we put in Death Race 2000. This is a Roger Corman classic and “The Greatest Movie Ever” (according to Derek).

The premise of the movie is a satire on the world and love for violence. A world that tunes in to watch a cross-country road race where the drivers score points by mowing down pedestrians. The movie stars David Carradine, and Sylvester Stallone at is unintelligible best. It also had Martin Kove. Who is that you may ask. He was John Kreese from the Karate Kid. The characters are totally clichéd like Matilda the Hun, Frankenstein and Nero the Hero. The cars are supped up corvettes and other fast cars but are painted garish colors and have spikes and giant knives on the front of them. Stallone’s car even has some Tommy guns but they are never used. The racers have to actually mow someone down to score points. All through the movie there are these people from a resistance to the dictatorship type government and the sanctioning of this race, they attempt to kill the drivers to put a stop to the race. This movie was basically a Mystery Science 3000 candidate. But it wasn’t too bad. And IMBD still shows a 2008 movie called Death Race 3000.

There were however two nude scenes in the whole movie, two interspersed between that “awesome” driving action. Guess when the wives decided to come ask us questions? Yep at the exact moments. First was Michelle and the second time Andrea came in to see how much longer the movie was going to be. We figured that if there was another scene that it would be Allison’s turn to come in to ask us something. It is like they had a sixth sense or something. The same thing happened to me in junior high when I was watching 18 Again at my friend Jonathan's house. His dad came down at the one scene where the main character (George burns in Charlie Schlatter's body) is taking an art class and they are doing nudes. It was a 30 second scene and the only one in the whole movie but Jonathan's dad came down at that moment and saw the screen and took the movie away from us. Sixth Sense I tell you.

So we finished watching the movie and then it was time to get home. We had a great time talking and laughing and sharing a great meal. Good times, good times. Here are some pictures from the night. You can click on them (except for the last 2) to see a bigger picture.

Photo-A-Day #400 05/13/06

Photo-A-Day #400 05/13/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Neil and Derek give the Roger Corman classic Death Race 2000 two emphatic thumbs up.

"It was the greatest film of all time," says Neil.

"The acting was superb," Derek glowingly stated.

More about our night at Derek and Michelle's will be written tomorrow plus bonus pictures.

Photo-A-Day #399 05/12/06

Photo-A-Day #399 05/12/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Today it has been six months since we got married. And tonight Allison and I had tickets to go see Catie Curtis at TCAN. These were tickets I bought for her for her birthday not really knowing that today was a six-month-a-versary. We had dinner at the Naked Fish and then headed to TCAN. Meg Hutchinson opened up for Catie and she also sang on a few songs with Catie. It was a very good concert. I took quite a few pictures but there were only three that came out well.

Bonus Pictures

Meg Hutchinson

Meg, Stephanie, Catie and Kevin.

Great, another one I can't watch without nightmares.

It is an M. Night Shyamalan movie and I like them, The Sixth Sense was great and I liked Unbreakable. I haven't seen Signs or The Village yet. However, I have just seen this trailer and I can tell you why I probably won't see this one, Lady in the Water. It is the wolf thing that is in the movie. There is a part of the trailer where it busts through a wall.

You see, there was a movie based on a Steven King book (Cycle of the Werewolf) called Silver Bullet. In one part of the movie a werewolf busts through the wall of a house. You see werewolves are not like vampires, they are ferocious and won't be stopped by mere doors and the lack of an invitation. Only a silver bullet can stop them. That is it. Werewolves can come crashing right through walls without you least suspecting it. That scares the crap out of me. I happened to see this scene in Silver Bullet when I was younger and that was it for me. No werewolf movies for me. And I bet I would really like Underworld and Underworld - Evolution. And I like wolves. It is just that werewolves scare me beyond good sense and reason.

But Lady in the Water does look like it will be another classic Shyamalan flick. And Paul Giamatti is a good actor. This will probably be very interesting and also very scary, not so much for gore but rather for suspense and shock value.

Also the movie Eragon will be coming to theatres on December 15th, and Jeremy Irons plays a good guy, can you beleive it. But John Malkovich plays a bad guy, not surprising. No trailer for this yet, oh well. But there is a unique video game coming out for the playstation that allows up to 4 players to get into the action including areas where on player can be Eragon and the other his dragon Saphira.

Evolution of Dance

Maureen sent me this clip and it is fantastic. It is 6 minutes long but so worth it. Evolution of Dance

This is gonna be in IMAX!!!!!

Superman Returns

Photo-A-Day #398 05/11/06

Photo-A-Day #398 05/11/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

I doubt I have ever taken a picture of the camera that I use to take the daily photos. Well this is it, it is a Sanyo Xacti C4 straight from Japan. And it is dying. I have a replacement camera on the way. It is in Chelmsford now according to the UPS tracking number. It is a cheap intrem camera until I get a digital SLR camera. I haven't decided to get a Nikon or Cannon or some other kind. I have used my sister's camera often and it is a Nikon D70. If I get a Nikon as well then we can share lenses.

Vote Now

Maureen sent me this link. Use it to vote for Boston and Fenway Park to be on the new Monopoloy Board. The place with the most votes gets to be the highest priced piece on the board. Monopoly.com - The Official Site of Monopoly by Parker Brothers

Cars - Trailer

I am really excited to see this movie. I love Owen Wilson's delivery of lines and to see him as a hotshot race car will be fun. Apple - Trailers - Cars - Trailer 2

Photo-A-Day #397 05/10/06

Photo-A-Day #397 05/10/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

It has been a very long time since I was last on the west coast. This week's trip was a quick one. I spent an inordinate amount of time on airplanes this trip. Most of the flights were very benign and I had one delayed flight, Cincinnati to Boston. I don't know if I get more annoyed when I am going to my destination or when I am returning home when this sort of thing occurs. I probably wouldn't be as annoyed if I was heading to Providence but I am going to Boston and once I get picked up I need to drive home from Canton. I'm annoyed that prices are too high to go out of Providence. I am annoyed that I couldn't even fly on an airline I am actively accumulating points with. From a purely status attaining standpoint this trip was a waste for flights. I am slowly getting closer to actual status at Marriott but still have over halfway to attain Gold. I have missed that by very little each year. Oh well, just keep on doing what I am doing and I will get there.

I have come to realize that I spend more than my fair share of time staring at the backs of people's heads. Standing in line to go through security, standing behind people getting on and off the planes, and then when I get to my seat the person in front of me always reclines their seat so I get a good look at the back and top of the head in front of me. What I have learned from this is that when I start balding in the back I will most likely shave my head down to a four day old stubble length. It looks neater. The elaborately coiffed trump-like heads Iâve been staring at just look like folks are trying to hold onto something that got away from them long, long ago.

Today's photo is another one of Mt. Hood. I took it during my first flight of the day. Luckily the person at the window seat was slumped over passed out and not blocking the view.

During my flight to Oregon the airline played King Kong. I was too wrapped up in finishing Countdown to bother watching it again and besides Kong just looks silly on a 9 inch airplane TV screen. My flight from Oregon to Ohio showed Big Momma's House 2 and since I wasn't yet invested in my new book Blood Lure (another Anna Pigeon novel by Nevada Barr) I decided to watch. I have two sets of headphones that I carry with me. I also have the Delta Airlines adapter to get sound in stereo. Unfortunately that is in my desk at work. So I used both sets of headphones to get the stereo sound.

But never mind about that. Why are these Big Momma movies still being made? They are ridiculous. Who can't tell that Martin Lawrence is wearing a fat suit? And how does he change out of and back into it so quickly. This should not annoy me so much but it does. What also annoyed me was that Emily Proctor was in it and it is hard to see her in a role like the one she plays in BMH2. She is ridiculously clueless and so unlike her CSI : Miami role of Calleigh.

After the movie I dove into Anna Pigeon's latest adventure, Blood Lure. This one has her helping research grizzly bears in Glacier Peace Park in Montana. I'm about halfway through the book now and it is really good so far. Another solid mystery from Nevada Barr.

I've also noticed that most of the series I have been reading and enjoying have been written by women with female main characters. I really like the different series that I have read in the past 5 years. Kay Scarpetta, Anita Blake, Anna Pigeon, Jo Beth Sidden and Eve Duncan, they are such strong characters. I look forward to each new adventure that they have. I am looking forward to getting to know Dr. Temperance Brennan in the Kathy Reichs novels. I already know her a bit from the TV show bones and am sure that I will be picturing Emily Deschanel when I read this show.

I haven't been able to find a good male character other than those from Clive Cussler like Dirk Pitt and Kurt Austin for my reading entertainment. I am going to start with some Lincoln Rhyme Novels soon and those should be pretty good.

Fat Man Walking

I saw this on My Yahoo and it sounds pretty interesting. He has made his journey and lost 100 pounds. I'm interested in reading his journal. Steve Vaught walks across America to lose weight and regain his life

Photo-A-Day #396 05/09/06

Photo-A-Day #396 05/09/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

From my hotel room I can see Mt. Hood, the highest MT in Oregon. One of the folks from our team took a ride up there today. I should have done that tomorrow when I had the chance but I didn't even see it yesterday because of the fog in the air.

Apple - Trailers - Superman Returns - Large

Kevin Spacey is so Lex Luther. He's totally channeling Hackman. Can't wait to see this movie.

Apple - Trailers - Superman Returns - Large

Photo-A-Day #395 05/08/06

Photo-A-Day #395 05/08/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

This is the Great Salt Lake. Is it weird or should it not be red?

Also today I went to find the rich stuff in Astoria Oregon and all I got was a lot of driving done. Around 3:30 PST I decided that Astoria was not far from Portland so I took the trek out there in search of The Goondocks. If you were a child of the 80's you missed out if you never saw The Goonies. Well, that movie was filmed in Astoria Oregon. I wanted to drive out there and see the place for myself. It really is an interesting place. It lies at the mouth of the Columbia River it is where Lewis and Clark stopped their journey because they had found the Pacific Ocean.

I wanted to find that beach that the kids ended up on at the end, but I was pressed for time and didn't find it. (I just found that is was not in Astoria, so I could have looked all dang day. Pretty much the only place I was even near was the Bowling Alley that Chunk was at. Of course I figured that I would find it easily, you know how you get a picture of a place in your head but when you get there it is nothing like you pictured. It was like that. However I did notice that the houses could have all passed for Mikey and Brand's. I kept looking up on the hillside and wondering which one of the houses was the right one.

So now Iâve stopped at a restaurant called Humps Family Restaurant in Clatskanie, OR. A nice little place off of Rt. 30. Had a diner feel to it so I got some diner faire. Bacon Cheeseburger and crinkle cut fries that were perfect and a chocolate shake that is halfway done and still holding a good grip on the straw. Good stuff, much better than my terrible lunch at a crappy Chinese restaurant. You know how when you walk around a food court and the Chinese food places give you samples of their chicken on a toothpick? You have that bite and think, 'I think I'll get a plate of that, it is pretty tasty.' But it doesn't end up a tasty meal. It becomes a terrible culinary decision. Don't be enticed to buy more than that free sample, you will be disappointed.

I haven't been on the west coast in so long. I am out of practice and don't have the sitting stamina I used to. All that east coast travel has made me soft and it is killing my airline statuses.

Oregon is also the second home of the Transformers. In the cartoon and comic they crash landed into Mt St. Helens but they said it was in Oregon, however it is in Washington. The town of St. Helens is in Oregon though.

Some bonus shots from aorund Astoria, OR.

On another note. I am finally on the west coast and the upload time for buzznet is finally the right time.

Photo-A-Day #394 05/07/06

Photo-A-Day #394 05/07/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

What a beautiful spring day today. Allison and I walked to my Aunt Corrine and Uncle Jeff's house for my cousin Haley's First Communion Party. We had a very nice time spending the day with our extended family.

The photo today is of one of Jeff and Corrine's friend's kids. It was his first time on a motorbike. And he loved it. He was scooting around the backyard at 2 1/2 miles and hour and loving it.

Photo-A-Day #393 05/06/06

Photo-A-Day #393 05/06/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Today Allison and I did a little shopping and we even went to the comic book store because it was Free Comic Book Day. There was a free G.I. Joe and a Transformers and an X-Men one and I found a CSI one for Allison. Randy moved things around at the shop and much more room for back issues.

Because I only took one book with me last week I ended up picking one up at the airport. It was Iris Johansen's Countdown. I like her books but it is hard to know which one is the next in a series. The last book I read the main character was about 10 years old and in Countdown she is 21.

These are flowers that are blooming on a tree in our front yard. Dad put it in abot 6 or more years ago and each spring it becomes more beautiful.

We also went to a spagetti dinner at church that was sponsored to raise money for the Relay for Life teams at our church. We met some very nice people who knew some of my teachers and their kids from when I was in High School. We had a very nice time.

Photo-A-Day #392 05/05/06

Photo-A-Day #392 05/05/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Happy Cinco De Mayo. We had a low-key CDM this year. Taco bell and margaritas at Jenn's.

Photo-A-Day #391 05/04/06

Photo-A-Day 3391 05/04/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Met a couple of new folk rockers tonight. Laura & Steve Franklin.

I checked out myspace this morning to see if there were any folk shows happening in Bricktown. Bricktown is this cool area in Oklahoma City. It has great nightlife and restaurants.

There was one for Laura Franklin at a place called Nonna's. The show was scheduled for 7:00pm and I did not make it for 7:00pm. I was stuck in Atlus till 6:00pm because the demo ran late (137 miles away). Then on the way back to OKC I took an alternate route (40 miles out of the way, so read 177 miles). I had a map. Besides when will I be back in Oklahoma with plenty of time to drive around and see tons of cows. I figured I would miss most of the show anyway so I did not rush (didn't want to get a ticket, but the speed limit is 75mph around here.)

I got to the hotel at 8:45pm and hoofed it to Nonna's hoping to catch the end of the set, but instead I caught the whole show because they didn't start till 9:00pm. I grabbed a seat and ordered dinner. It was a very tasty wild mushroom and sausage lasagna.

During their break Laura came over and said hello and thanks for coming. I explained that I searched for shows and found that Laura was playing and I checked out her profile and music. I liked it a lot and went to add her as a friend only to find that she already was. I think I found her through Amber Rubarth. I told Laura that and she said that she was supposed to play with Amber but some wildfires prevented that gig from happening.

Laura is playing with her husband Steve and they are called Dolce. I explained that I was from MA and on business. Laura told me that they are going to be playing in Waltham later this month. They are also playing a house show in Somerville and invited me to go. Pretty cool. Very nice couple.

Laura did a great cover of Damien Rice's "Blowers Daughter". It was an excellent cover, very well done Laura.

During the second break Steve came over to say hello. We talked for a bit and then I bought their EP's. Steve had one and so did Laura (under her maiden name of Wilhite). I asked them to sign the CDs and they did, that was really nice of them. Today's photo a day is of the CD's with Laura and Steve playing in the background. I had to crop most of Steve's CD cover because it picked up my hand rather than the CD cover itself.

They have a new CD coming out as Dolce in 5 days so I missed getting it. If someone goes to the Waltham show please pick one up for me, I'll pay yah back. The Waltham show is on May 24 2006 at 9:00pm at The Skellig, Waltham, MA. Check out their music.

Here are some other Pictures I took today.

The Harley Davidson shop in Oklahoma City

Atlus Air Force Base

A view from I-183

The Bricktown

Oklahoma City Historic Bricktown

I'm staying in Oklahoma's Historic Bricktown district of Oklahoma City. I have to tell you that last night as I drove to the hotel from the airport it didn't look like I was going through a desirable place. But this morning with the light it looks like a cool place to explore. Which I will be doing in a little bit.

Here are a couple of pictures from my hotel room.


The view.


The coolest clock radio I've seen in a hotel yet. I was able to plug my MP3 player into the radio to listen to it as I went to sleep. So awesome. It is a zenith. My MP3 player is a Machspeed TRIO. Never heard of them before? Neither had I until I started looking for groomsmen gifts. I got each of the guys one of these and loaded it with some songs. It also doubles as a storage device and a voice recorder. Pretty sweet set up. It is no IPod but it does what I need it to do. I don't have to carry all my songs with me and podcasts and whatnot, nope just a couple of songs to block out the surrounding noise from the plane and passengers while I read.

Well off to shower and then find the first Harley Shop of the day (The second one is on the way to site), then a 2 1/2 hour drive to site for a 2 hour demo just to turn back around and come back to the hotel. Hopefully I can find someplace good to eat around here tonight because my gourmet airline choices yesterday left much to be desired. Actually I think I can see where I want to eat right from my window. The Bricktown Brewery.

Looks like one of my myspace friends is playing a show in the bricktown tonight. Laura Franklin, if I get back in time, I may try and catch the show.

Photo-A-Day #390 05/03/06

Photo-A-Day #390 05/03/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

2:35pm Charleston, SC

The other day I had a flight where the flight attendant was pretty funny. She was going through the safety spiel that anyone who flies often knows by heart. But when she got to the part about the seat belts she said, "And for anyone who hasn't been in a car since 1957 this next part will seem like magic." And from there proceeded to explain how to use a seat belt. It is sad that this sort of thing needs to be explained to people. Seat belts are nothing new, you are expected to have them on BEFORE the flight attendant explains how the work. So what is the point. I'm not sure. One of life's mysteries. If anyone is a flight attendant or knows one and would like to find out the answer to this puzzle please let me know.

So I was in Clarendon County South Carolina, a nice enough place. The folks at the hospital were very friendly. Everyone and I mean everyone said good morning to us as we walked around. I had an early start and had time for breakfast so I got off the highway and went to a Cracker Barrel to have breakfast. Now I know that there are some politics around this eating establishment but I didn't bring this up to get into that. You want to talk politics check out Fox news or CNN. I'm talking about food. I these fantastic strawberry pancakes and eggs, bacon and homefried potatoes. I have to say that Cracker Barrel had the best bacon in the world, the absolute best. Why? It is thick and cooked to perfection. It is flat and stands up when it is picked up. It does not fall limply down and it is not covered with big chunks of fat. It is the perfect slice of bacon. They sell their bacon at the store that you can bring home. It is $9.99 for 2lbs. Seems a bit much but man is it worth having.

Last night I went to the downtown market area of Charleston. We had dinner at the Charleston Crab House and sat out on the patio. And we could look down on some brick buildings that had lots of tables set up inside. It is a market and I guessed that they have a market day or farmers market often. What I did not realize but was informed of later was that I was looking at the old slave markets. Yes, market street and the whole area was were the slaves were sold when they came off the boats. I totally felt like a Yankee and out of my element when I heard that one. I had a similar, but not as strong feeling when I was in Charlotte, North Carolina. As we were walking down the street Peter saw a plaque on the ground that commemorated the exact spot where Jefferson Davis was when he learned that Lincoln was shot. Seems a weird thing to commemorate. But there it was.

5:15pm In the Air to Chicago

Today's photo is that of the plane that I am now on. It is a brand new plane that had to have some mechanical work done on it before it could leave the airport. And it was supposed to take off at 12:42pm. I was not scheduled for that flight but rather for the 5:32pm flight from Charleston to Chicago. However, the 12:42pm flight was going to be practically empty when it finally took off that passengers from the 5:32 flight were asked if they had not checked any bags then they could take this earlier flight. Granted it was 15 minutes early but it is so nice being on a plane where I can actually take out my laptop and do some typing, crop my photo a day and relax without being crammed next to some guy who has no flying manners. What are flying manners? It is a term I just coined that means that you stay in your own assigned space on the plane, you don't read a newspaper (totally out and unfolded and spilling into my space, folded up neatly into the size of a long paperback is fine), you don't slam your seat back that 3/4 of an inch to recline and thus slam me in the gut with my laptop. These are just some flying manners that some folks have not been able to grasp and maybe never will. I just noticed that my new ticket for this flight has my correct last name but not the correct first name and does not have my frequent flyer number on it. They changed my ticket at the gate so I hope that I can get the missing credit somehow. It is hard enough to get status on these airlines when I'm being shunted around to many different ones that I want to make sure I get the credit for each and every flight I take.

Anyway I am reading Deep South by Nevada Barr, fittingly enough I travelled to the south on this trip, not the deep south but the south none the less. The story takes place in Mississippi in the Natchez Trace parkway. I am really enjoying Nevada Barr's writing and her heroine Anna Pigeon. She is really growing on me. I wasn't thrilled at the first couple of books but I am a completist so I made the mental investment to stick with the series and see where it goes. I am glad that I did. I love the National Park aspect of these books and the interesting mysteries that are happening. I also love that I don't know who the killer is till the end of the book. I can usually figure it out with other books but I never know where Barr is going to take me. If you want a good series to get into try these books by Nevada Barr. I only have about 3 or 4 left to go and I'll be totally caught up, then it is either on to the Kathy Reichs series that Allison got me or to the Clive Cussler series about Kurt Austin. Time will tell. I'm headed to Oregon next week so I'm sure I can finish another Nevada Barr book on my next trip. I should have brought a second book with me on this trip. Oh well I will find something for Friday's flights.

8:15pm Somewhere over the Midwest.

I'm now on my flight from Chicago to Oklahoma City. I just finished Deep South and am really regretting the decision to take only one book with me. I contemplated picking up the book that is tied loosely to the TV show Lost called the Bad Twin or something like that. It is pretty interesting that this show has spawned so many outlets for other media. Today began the on-line game that ties in with Lost but has a separate storyline.

While in Chicago I had some time to kill and was having dinner of a poor excuse for an Uno's pizza. I say over by the Lt. Cmdr. Edward Henry "Butch" O'Hare, namesake of the World's Busiest Airport display that is over by the E and F concourses. It has a F4F-3 Wildcat, today's bonus Photo-A-Day, set up to look like it has landed on an aircraft carrier. The base is filled with history about Butch O'Hare. This guy was a real flying ace and the first "Top Gun". I'm surprised that there isn't a movie about him and more isn't know in our mainstream consciousness. I have passed that display many times and have wanted to take a picture of the plane and read the information but I was always rushing from one terminal to the next to catch flights. I'm glad I stopped today and read about it. I'm interested to research and find out more about O'Hare. He really sounded like an amazing guy.

So it looks like I won't be getting this up before midnight East coast, but luckily I'll be in Oklahoma so I am getting this posted before midnight here. I'm so glad my demo isn't until 3:00pm tomorrow. The 2 1/2 hour drive there and 2 1/2 hour drive back isn't exactly something I am looking forward to however. And apparently there are tornadoes happening down here. Don't worry I won't be doing any amature storm chasing.

11:25pm - Oklahoma City

I am finally at the hotel. And I have to tell you I felt like mini royalty getting in here. Both TV's were turned on to MSNBC, I had a fruit plate with a special chocolate disk, a card by the bed, a bottle of water and two packs of Lorna Doone's and a newsweek on my bed. It made me think about the concert we saw last Friday night. Antje Duvekot said that on Dick Cheney's rider (A list of things that a performer or in this case a politician of high power requests to be in their room when they arrive, things like yellow M&M's and whatnot, I guess that before Dick goes into a room the TV must be set to Fox News). Well I am toasted and ready for bed, but I've got to get the Photo-A-Day posted. Night All.

Photo-A-Day #389 05/02/06

Photo-A-Day #389 05/02/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

I'm in Charleston, SC and I stopped at the Low Country Harley Davidson shop to pick up some pins. They have a really nice shop, including a wall of motorcycles displayed like a museum. It was pretty cool. And outside they had this revolving silo with a couple of bikes in it. Once I figured out the correct direction to head in off the highway I was able to find this place without problem. A really nice shop.

Here is a bonus picture from my hotel in South Carolina, I'm right on the river and unfortunately my room is facing the highway. Just my luck too. When I arrived here the room wasn't ready and they said that they could switch me but my room preferences wouldn't be the same, I ask for foam pillows and a refigerator on my frequent stay profile. So I waited, turns out that there wasn't even a fridge put in this room. Not sure exactly why I was waiting.

See the crane?

Saint Anselm College - Father Michael Custer, O.S.B., Senior Monk at Saint Anselm Abbey, Enters Eternal Life at Age 95

My friend Becky sent me news of this yesterday. Fr. Michael was the first person I met at Saint Anselm College in the fall of 1992 when I went up for my interview. He was a credit to that institution. He will be fondly remembered.

Saint Anselm College - Father Michael Custer, O.S.B., Senior Monk at Saint Anselm Abbey, Enters Eternal Life at Age 95

I loved the 80's

One of the things about the 80's that I really loved (besides for Transformers) was Tiffany. I'll admit it, I had a crush on her. I had her poster and I saw her in concert with the New Kids on the Block. Well, she is one of my "friends" on myspace and I got her latest blog post that said that the video for I Think We're Alone Now is up. I wanted to share it with you folks. Tiffany is still making music these days. Check her out at http://www.tiffanymusicsite.com/

Video:Tiffany - I Think We're Alone Now (Music Video)
by tiffanymusic

Another great thing was Poison. They had some great songs. I even did a report for english on the song Something to Beleive In. Every Rose Has Its Thorn was one of those songs that you wanted to make sure you were dancing to when they played it at the school dances in the cafeteria.

Remember the video. Maybe this will jog your memory.

Video:Every Rose Has Its Thorn - Poison
by Phaedrus

And the movie Footloose. That was one of my favorite movies. Chris Penn we miss you.

Video:Footloose - Kenny Loggins
by Phaedrus

Photo-A-Day #388 05/01/06

Photo-A-Day #388 05/01/06
Posted by: abennett96 on Buzznet

Guess what, no cats, no flowers, but rather some Hard Candy, Jolly Ranchers and Chupa Chups lollipops. I cannot eat them anymore. They are in my candy dish here at work but I can't enjoy them. My recent dental excursions have shown me that Jolly Ranchers cannot do anything but harm my precious chompers.

I have been checking out some packages for some new Digital SLR cameras on E-Bay and one of them had an image of some candy using a macro lens. So I was inspired to take one of my own.

Trivia Winners for April

Congratulations to my uncle Jim for winning trivia this month. He certainly made a ton of points with the Lucy trivia. I do have to say that I don't recognize the names of anyone else on the list.

67 players played during the month.

1. Jim (499 points, 6 wins)
2. zerry (475 points, 4 wins)
3. GabbyA (427 points, 2 wins)
4. angel11 (381 points, 1 wins)
5. Richmar (365 points, 3 wins)
6. samjan (364 points, 1 wins)
7. prrthd (360 points, 1 wins)
8. ArubaHM (358 points, 1 wins)
9. whaleo (298 points, 0 wins)
10. Sbowl (289 points, 0 wins)