Happy Halloween!

Halloween is such a fun holiday anymore, and I find that I enjoy it now more than I did as a kid. Costumes just weren't quite so elaborate in the 80's as they are now. Mind you I object to some of the kids costumes that tart up the little girls, but I have that rant about kids clothes period.

My favorite thing about the holiday is the music though.

This year I made 2 mix CDs.

Oingo Boingo - Freak Show
Laura Burhenn - Meltdown
Judith Owen - Smoke On The Water
George Harrison - Art Of Dying
Evanescense - October
Bridin Brennan - Deep Deep Sleep
Danny Elfman - Sleepy Hollow (Main Titles)
Peter Murphy - Crystal Wrists
Dubstar - Ghost
Emm Gryner - Moorlaugh Shore
Donovan - Season Of The Witch
Midge Ure - Hell To Heaven
Danielle Dax - Yummer Yummer Man
Marcella Detroit - Art Of The Melancholy
Marillion - Afraid Of Sunlight
Cutting Crew - I Just Died In Your Arms

And here's the other one


Adam Ant - Vampire
Annie Lennox - Love Song For A Vampire
Daughter Darling -Voodoo Games
The Devlins - Alone In The Dark
The Clientele - As The Night Is Falling
Bird York - Haunting You
Elvis Costello - Weird Nightmare
Charlotte Martin - Haunted
Paul McCartney - That Day Is Done
Sleepthief w/Caroline Lavelle - Nightjar
Deathcab For Cutie - Soul Meets Body
Siouxsie - If It Doesn't Kill You
The Damned - Eloise
Boingo - Spider
The Pogues - Haunted
Mission UK - Severina
New Order - Dracula's Castle
Sarah McLachlan - Possession (Piano Version)

If you want any of these sent to you in a zip file, just leave a comment with an email addy and I'll mail you the upload links.

Happy Halloween!!!

Tuesday Tunes - Week 7

From Music Memoirs

What's your favorite "Sweet" song?
Elvis Costello - So Like Candy

You want to scare someone, what song do you play?
The Phantom Of The Opera - Overture

What's the song you associate most with Halloween?
Danny Elfman - This Is Halloween

That was a no brainer, right?

What band makes the spookiest music?
For me it's a tie between Oingo Boingo and Midnight Syndicate.

What's the best scary soundtrack?
Danny Elfman's score for Sleepy Hollow

Bye Bye Money

I never realized how expensive refrigerators were until I saw the total for the new one I bought for my family (mom and dad) last night at Lowes. The total? $633 which was slightly more than I wanted to spend, but that was because I bought the protection plan on the unit.

I know it was by no means the most expensive refrigerator there. Actually, it was most likely one of the cheapest, but hey, we have a 50 + year old one in our basement that still works and a small unit, dorm style, that mom bought last summer.

I can't believe how expensive one appliance can be. Some of the models were close to $2000.

Yikes!

That's more than I paid for my crappy little Beretta! Yes, more expensive than my car!

~sigh~

Which goes to show how cheap/poor I am.

On a plus, I'll have the $633 paid off by the end of the month, so I'm really not in debt that much.

A Spooktacular Read

If you're looking for a creepy book to curl up to this Halloween, allow me to recommend , Leanna: Possession Of A Woman by Marie Kiraly.



It's the story of a writer who ends up residing in a room in New Orleans were a murder and suicide occurred. The heroine, Hailey, becomes so intrigued by the story of the two lovers and their demise that she decides to write their story. Of course, things are made more interesting when "Leanna" decides to inhabit Hailey's body as well as telling her, her life story through vivid dreams.

It's a tale of voodoo, abuse, incest and every other nasty thing you can possibly imagine. It's also a good read. It's one of the very few novels of its kind that doesn't feel contrived or cliched.

The revelations that are uncovered as the book progresses are unexpected. This book definitely keeps you on your toes and the edge of your seat as you wait for the ending.

So if you are after a good creepy, haunting read, find a copy of this one and settle down to be surprised at how the story plays out over the backdrop of New Orleans.

Monday Morning You Don't Feel Fine

Somehow it's not fair that I only get one good day of sleep out of the weekend before the 5:30 bug returns. I wish I had never got the job a few years back that had my start time at 7:30. That was the start of the 5:30 a.m. bug that just won't go away.

I don't have to be at work until 8 and I only live about 7-10 minutes from my job, so it's not as if I have a long commute or even one that requires me to get out on the highway or in any congested areas. I just pop into my car and go.

Lord knows I could sleep until 6 or 6:30 if I were a normal human being, but the operative word there is "normal," which we all know that I am not. So instead of getting 7 hours of sleep, I get about 6. I'm still having issues getting to bed before 11. I used to be so good at crawling into bed by 10:30, I don't know what happened to me. It's not as if I have anything pressing to do.

So crawling out of bed is getting to be a chore, especially as the temperatures have dropped to near freezing. I'd much rather be huddled under my nice warm "new" comforter, with a dog and/or cat at my feet, keeping me warm for a few more hours. Alas that's not to be.

Maybe tonight I'll wise up and crawl into bed before the 11 o'clock news.

Maybe.

Random 10 - Week 129

From Music Memoirs


10 songs that sum up your weekend...or were on your weekend playlist...and one picture that relates back. (oh, and if you feel like it, tell us why you picked the songs you did)

I'm not sure I can remember half of what I listened to this weekend. No I lie. I do remember. It was a combination of stuff on my mp3 players and the musicals I ripped to my harddrive this weekend.

Avenue Q - The Internet Is For Porn
(Best song ever! It's so funny!)
Avenue Q - Everyone's A Little Bit Racist
(What? It's true!)
Avenue Q - What Do You Do With A B.A. In English/It Sucks To Be Me
(My life story!)


Phantom Of The Opera (London Cast) - Angel Of Music
(My favorite musical ever)
Phantom Of The Opera (London Cast) - The Music Of The Night
(When Michael Crawford sings this, my knees go wobbly)
Phantom Of The Opera (London Cast) - All I Ask Of You
(One of the loveliest romantic songs ever)

George Harrison - Teardrops
(We've all had our share of crying buckets full of teardrops)
Rhett Miller - Honey In My Tea
(Gorgeous song)
Girlyman - Serve It Up
(Great Indie band I discovered a few weeks back)
Three Dog Night - Mama Told Me Not To Come
(A throwback from when I was listening to 99.3 The Pickle this weekend. Damn that Pickle)

The image: Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman from Phantom Of The Opera.

~sigh~

The beauty!

The Things You Find When Cleaning

Usually cleaning results in finding 100 more cookbooks my mom forgot she owned. I'm not saying this wasn't the case last night as I started the dunging out of several areas of our ancient kitchen, but sometimes you find things that really scare you.

Case in point: 1 petrified loaf of bread from Keystone Bakery.

It was behind the refrigerator. If you missed that, I said the loaf of bread somehow made it "BEHIND" the refrigerator.

WTF!

How in God's name did this happen?

Who sat the loaf on top of the fridge in the first place? Because that's the only conceivable way I can think of for it to have ended up "BEHIND THE REFRIGERATOR"!!!!!!

I have 3 more corners to get to. Lord knows what I might find there. Perhaps the cure for cancer. Perhaps Love Potion #9. The possibilities are quite endless really.

Operation: Clean The Damn House

I've got a big cleaning project to start soon. I hate that. But I started cleaning the upstairs when I changed the bed last night. If my room looks semi-good then the rest of the house should too, right?

Blergh!

I can think of a hundred million things that I would rather be doing with my time. I am going to be responsible and do this. If I can accomplish some good cleaning when I have the time to decorate the house for the holidays, things will look so much better. At least I hope that's the case.

Oh and I fully intend to bake a cake or some brownies tonight.

Way to be domesticated! This coming after spending an hour at the gym and sweating so much that looked like I stepped out of the shower when I finished my workout! (But that's another rant altogether)

Now if I can get motivated to do this, I'll be in good shape. There are a few books that are just a tad bit more amusing than cleaning right now. Oh and staring blankly at the computer screen is tempting too! Very tempting, actually.

I Need To Do Something

I think I might take a drive somewhere after I finish up all my "home" projects this weekend. I have so much stuff to do and so little time to do it. I need to ready the kitchen for when we get the new fridge. I need to clean out the closets again. I need to vacuum. But I really need to do something for ME!

I did buy a new comforter set today at KMart for only $27! And that was with an extra sheet set.

I really want to see a movie, but I know I won't be done with my necessary tasks in time to take in a matinee and I'm cheap right now, because I'm near broke. Going somewhere tomorrow will be pushing it, as far as finances are concerned but I hate to head back to work on Mondays knowing that I accomplished nothing over the weekend that amused me.

And for those of you that may not have guessed, cleaning and exercise do not amuse me. Nope they don't. Not one iota.

At this point Starbucks would be enough, especially if I could get a Quiznos sub or salad first.

Top 5 On Friday - Week 147

From Music Memoirs

Top 5 non-typical songs that get you into the Halloween spirit.

Oingo Boingo - When The Lights Go Out
(Any Boingo song would work here, but this one is a particular favorite of mine. These guys are the Halloween band)


Siouxsie and the Banshees - The Killing Jar
(Another band that does "spooky" music well. So many choices along with the way too obvious, Halloween)


Madonna - Supernatural
(This song isn't spooky but trust me the subject matter is Halloween and it's cute, even though it's Madonna)


The Moody Blues - The Other Side Of Life
(I love this spooky Moodies tune. This one made the very first Halloween mix I ever made.)

Shakespear's Sister - Moonchild
(Another creepy song from from my first Halloween mix)

Oye! I Was Playing At Amazon

You should never ever ever let me loose at Amazon.com for more than 10 minutes unsupervised. I'm a shopaholic and a CD-aholic. I've ordered three CDs in the last 2 days, not to mention what I've got on order from BMG. (And there's still at least 1 CD I need to get from there before the holiday! Yikes!)

What did I buy?

Emmy Rossum's new one, Inside Out. The first full length album by the voice of Christin in the movie version of Phantom.



The 3 tracks that were released on Itunes in August were beautiful. I can't wait to hear the rest of the album.

The next CD was Woman & Songs Christmas, which has an eclectic bunch of female singers doing some lovely Christmas tunes.



And today I finally got around to buying Holly Cole's Baby It's Cold Outside.



I've been wanting to buy this one for a few years now. Today I caved and bought it. Yay me! The Christmas music is going to be lovely this year, I think.

Return Of The Ugly Grey Sweat Suit

Ah, at last, cool nights that make for good sleeping. It wasn't nearly cool enough to really break out the sweat suit I sleep in during the winter months, but I did. Yes, I'm all about comfort, mostly because no one sees me when I'm sleeping so why should I care what I wear.

Good reasoning, right?

I thought so.

I live for the cooler months, even though I do love summer. I like all the "comfort" things that go with the cool down in temperatures. I've been dying for a good coffee from Starbucks lately. I meant to go last night, but I ended up spending too much money at Walmart last night. Why is it anytime I go to Walmart I spend more than I intend? Huh? Just one of the many reasons I believe Walmart is the devil.

I just wish the comfort of the sweat suit and the tasty coffee etc could follow me to work.

I'd really just like to curl up somewhere and sleep just a little more, while the weather is so marvelously sleep inducing. Someone pass the blanket and the pillow, I want to go back to bed!

Look Who Came To Visit

100_0552
Originally uploaded by moodylady

This little ball of black cuteness jumped out of our maple tree today and has decided that he doesn't want to go home, much to my parents chagrin.

It seems the little black kitteh, as I like to call cats these days, has taken a shine to me. I suppose feeding the little guy helped that along, but I hate to see kittehs out and about. It's not healthy for them, and though I can't afford to take another one in, because I have 4 of my own, I will feed this little guy and give him as much love as I can.

He was hard to photograph, because he was following me purring and rubbing against my legs. As much as I hope he has a loving home to go to, I hope he comes back, cos he's just too darn cute. (Mind you I think all kittehs are too darn cute, or I wouldn't have 4 of them of my own)

Have A Cookie

Really, go ahead. I made some. Last night. Oh and people have eaten them and they have not perished. So, go me!

I had found my mom's copy of Mrs. Fields' Cookie Cookbook awhile back and I thought why not give one of them a try? So I did. I made a cashew coconut cookie last night and they turned out well, considering I had to improvise the recipe a little bit. We didn't have dates, so I used raisins instead. It didn't seem to matter. The cookies turned out a nice golden brown.

Here's the recipe for those of you that are interested.


Mrs Fields Cashew and Coconut Cookies

Categories: Cookies
Yield: 30 servings

2 1/4 c Flour
1/2 ts Baking soda
1/4 ts Salt
3/4 c Light brown sugar
1/2 c Sugar
3/4 c Butter; softened
2 lg Eggs
2 ts Vanilla
1/2 c Sweetened shredded coconut
1 c Chopped raw cashews; -unsalted
1 c Chopped dates
1/4 c Sweetened shredded coconut Reserved for topping

Preheat oven to 300*F. In a medium bowl combine flour, soda and salt. Mix well with a wire whisk and set aside. In a medium bowl combine sugar with an electric mixer at medium speed. Add butter and mix to form a grainy paste. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until smooth. Add flour mixture,coconut, cashews and dates. Blend at low speed just until combined. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets, 2 inches apart.

Sprinkle tops lightly with reserved coconut. Bake for 23-25 minutes or until bottoms turn golden brown. With a spatula, transfer to a cool, flat surface.

Woo hoo! I made cookies and they weren't a disaster and I didn't burn the house down or anything like that either. That's a definite plus.

I Want To Go To Wheeling

I'm itching to go to WV and not to gamble. I spent some time yesterday going through my 2007 travel book for the state and it gave me the travel bug.

The best part of this was discovering places in the state that weren't very far from home, since Morgantown and Wheeling are both just about an hour or so away from where I live. But Wheeling has the draw for me right now. I've always wanted to go to Centre Market and now that I've found the website, I really want to go. Look at all those yummy restaurants!! Oh and there's Artisan Center. I long to go and take pictures.

I just have to wait until I can grab a friend so I can go because these are places that just wouldn't be any fun if I went alone. I hate eating out alone, almost as much as I hate going to the movies alone.

So who is up for a trip to Wheeling?

Tuesday Tunes - Week 6

From Music Memoirs

Radio Radio 3 musical questions...dealing with ....you guessed it, The Radio!

Is radio even necessary anymore? (elaborate)
It's only necessary where I work, because my computer there is so old I can't hook up my mp3 player. If only I could have done that a year ago, I'd have saved myself so much aggravation. I'd have saved myself a lot of money too, because I'd not have spent money on concert tickets or all those damn oldies CDs I've bought as a result of listening to 99.3 The Pickle more than any human being should.


What song would make you expire from pleasure if you actually heard it on the radio?Just about any Elvis Costello song would do it. I hear some Moody Blues on Pickle. Though, come to think of it, if I heard Don't Need A Reindeer this year at Christmas, someone would be picking me up off the floor. I'm not worried about this happening.

What is the most enjoyable thing you can think of about the radio?
Erm...uh...yeah...

FISHY!! Cos he's so silly and so darn cute. He's the best looking DJ in the Pittsburgh market.



Like you weren't expecting this as my answer

An Episode Of Dorkalopeness

Something about the Fish, makes me turn from a normal 33 year old woman into the biggest dork ever.

Case in point: Today after agitating each other via email, one from me to him and one from him back. I'm ready to hunt him down and knock him upside his cute little head. All over one little song; The Monster Mash.

Not long after the email exchange, Fishy commits a tiny blunder on the air. Nothing to write home about. Nothing that if he would just shut his mouth, anyone would even notice. But no, that's not how the mind of the Fishy works. He proceeds to spend another 2 minutes going on about how you say or do things you'd usually do at inappropriate times. Uh, erm, Fishy you just said that the news would be up at 9:30. It wasn't as if the world was coming to an end.

As he's doing this, I'm getting agitated, because he's going on about NOTHING! So I pick up the phone and dial. Poor man, answered, and I told him there was no way I couldn't have called him on that little bit...and I asked him what kind of crack he'd been smoking. He assured me he hadn't done any of that...I'm not sure I believe him. Actually I do believe him, but I live to tease Fishy. It's fun.

So I tell him a funny story about mom, and how she says "are you free?" every time I call when I'm leaving work. There have been several times that she's done this and it hasn't been me.

I think I gave him a chuckle so that's good. Thus a dorkalope was born. I'm beginning to think that I'm the female version of Leonard from The Big Bang Theory..

Blah Blah Blah...Hopeless delusion about Fish...Blah Blah Blah.

Oh The Hilarity And The Horror

A friend of mine from Livejournal and Last.fm sent me a cover of Nights In White Satin yesterday. Now I've heard several covers and frankly I hate them all, with the Moody Bluegrass version topping the list.

The version I was sent was done by a punk band.

Yes, you read that right. A punk band, The Dickies, covered Nights In White Satin.

I'm not sure what kind of drugs they were on when they decided that covering this song would be the thing to do, but I'm sure they had to be good drugs.

Listen, you know you want to.

The Dickies - Nights In White Satin


This is my least favorite Moody Blues song. I can never quite grasp why Justin's received accolades for it, but that's neither here or there really. This is one of those covers that's so bad that it's good. So listen to it! Because I said so!

Random 10 - Week 128

From Music Memoirs


10 songs that sum up your weekend...or were on your weekend playlist...and one picture that relates back. (oh, and if you feel like it, tell us why you picked the songs you did)


Scary tunes that I heard at Hallowboo today:

Monster Mash (I hate this song)
The Time Warp (Kidz Bop version which made me want to cut my ears off)
This Is Halloween (Kidz Fucking Bop version that offended Sally so much she ran screaming from Story Book Forest)

The Buckinghams - Say It Ain't Love
The Buckinghams - World Without Love
The Buckinghams - Nothing To Cling To

These three songs are from the album Terra Firma, that I got in the mail on Friday. It's a great disc of newer material from this great classic band.

Gordon Lightfoot - Sundown
David Bowie - Golden Years

These 2 songs were on The Pickle this weekend. Yes, Bowie was on 99.3 The Pickle. Be still my heart!

Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Crimes Of Paris
Sarah Harmar - Almost

2 songs randomly played on my Zen this weekend.

Now for the picture...

I Finally Found It

Several years ago I spent a small fortune on a Halloween costume. I bought the Sally costume from the Disney store. Nightmare is one of my favorite movies, and yes, I intend to see it in theaters, hopefully next weekend.

But last night my nephew, Michael and I got into it, because I wasn't keen on wearing the pirate costume to Hallowboo today. He asked why I couldn't wear the Sally costume and I told him I couldn't find the wig. I hadn't been able to find the wig for years.

Well we started "hunting high and low" to make a bad A-ha pun. I tore apart my "fall" closet and low and behold, the Sally wig appeared. I was pretty sure I had looked there all the other times that I had gone hunting for this damn thing.

We spent at least 30 minutes getting the tangles out of it, since it had been in a little plastic case for over a year or more.

So guess who's going to be wearing Sally today?

And yes, I will post pictures, because I never did get a good shot of me in this costume when I bought it. I only had a crappy disposal camera then and it ended up being an "outdoor" only camera, so none of the pictures of me in the costume turned out.

So one thing I can assure you, tomorrow you'll have a good laugh at my expense, when I post the pictures!

Self Portrait

101_0587
Originally uploaded by moodylady

The beauty of shadows? How wide do my hips look? I look like I'm chugging down a beer or something equally refreshing. Sadly I was just holding the camera.

I couldn't resist taking this photo though. It was the perfect shadow.

The Gym Is Trying To Kill Me

Ok, the gym isn't but everything around it is. When I went to Curves, I'd come outside to the smells of not one, not two, but three Italian places. As soon as I started to the car all I could smell was pasta and pizza.

Going to Jack's in Rostraver is just as bad. There's a bakery 2 shops down on the strip and 3 restaurants whose smells taunt me from the gym to my car. It wouldn't be bad if the smells were unappealing. Long John Silver's doesn't appeal to me. However the scent of hamburgers from Burger King and Wendy's makes me salivate. Worse still is the smells from Sonny's Grille. Steak!

ARGH!

It's not fair that I have always had to come out of the gym, after a good hour plus workout to be assaulted by the scents of tasty foods that are going to make me FATTER!

GAH!

It's a vicious cycle I tell you. A very vicious one!

Another Funk?

GAH! I'm damn sick of all these miserable feelings. I'm not saying that I haven't had some moments of happiness or even euphoria, I'm just saying that the down times seem to be at an all time high right now.

I don't know what I want. I'm just sick of the state of my life right now. All of it. The worst part is that I have no motivation to drag myself out of this spot.

I don't want to do anything.

The things that should be making me happy, just aren't.

Even the things that make me smile turn sad after a few minutes.

I'm turning smiles into frowns.

This is just not right. It's just not me either.

I'm a fairly upbeat person. At least I like to think I am, but even my computer stuff isn't making me happy. I think I need a break..but I don't know what I need a break from.

Top 5 On Friday - Week 146

From Music Memoirs


Top 5 songs that creep you out/Any songs, that for whatever reason other than purely being bad music, make the hair on your neck rise?

I guess that leaves out Yummy Yummy Yummy and Hot Rod Lincoln. Tee Hee.

1. Dicky Lee - Laurie (Strange Things Happen In This World)
The premise of the song, teenage boy falls in love with a girl, who he finds out has been dead for a year. Uh...erm...yeah! Creepy song!

And if you don't believe me, clicky here to view the lyrics.

2. Elvis Costello - I Want You
I love this song but it creeps me out regardless. I would never want to be the woman that dumps this man. Yikes!



3. Gary Puckett & The Union Gap - Young Girl
Yeah, Gary, I know you didn't write it and I know it was a huge hit for you, but the subject matter. Yikes! The worst part is the world sings along and doesn't think about the words.


4. Paul McCartney - That Day Is Done
Something about this song has always made me feel uneasy. I think that's why it made my Halloween mix. Its so different from what Paul McCartney usually sings about.



5. J. Frank Wilson - Last Kiss
OMG WTF was up with all the kids dying in songs in the late 50's - early 60's.
This one is particularly creepy.

Clicky here to read the lyrics.

I'd like to thank all the DJs at the Pickle for the first 2 songs that creep me out a few times a week. (Well the first one only at Halloween, but that last one!! ARGH!!!)

Thursday Night Giggles

I'm in dire need of a laugh. Or a hug. Or something.



Clicky to embiggen and get a tiny chuckle. I need a bigger chuckle however.

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen things that have been on my mind a lot lately.

~ When is this warm weather going to go away? Its not that I don't love the warmth, that's great, I just have some clothes and shoes that I want to get rid of, but I'm not tossing them out until the season is over. If that makes any sense.

~ The styling product that works the best in my hair has to be something expensive. My hair stylist gave me Nexus Styling Putty to keep my ends at bay, since one side of my hair likes to flip out instead of under. I don't like paying more than $4 for anything, but damn it, this stuff works!


~ The Pickle, 99.3 is running a contest to win tickets for the Bruce Springsteen show in Nov. I don't think I realized this until I was stuck listening to him sing/scream that I truly do not like Bruce. I think this is because he screams just about everything. I'd rather listen to Dylan. (Who is a better songwriter too) Though I imagine if the seats were good enough I'd spend the show watching the veins in his neck to see if they explode. PAH. Oh and Fishy's commercials for the concert..they make me laugh.

~ I've determined that I'm one of those people that just puts on muscle when doing strength training. Yay! (That yay is sarcasm for any of you that don't know me very well)

~ Rick Sprigfield has a Christmas CD out next month. I need to figure out how I can budget it into my collection.



~ Do I or don't I want to preorder the new Duran Duran CD. I've bought the last 4 or 5 CDs on their release date, each time becoming more disappointed. (OK, not with Astronaut, but the other ones, yes)



Their work with Justin Timberlake alone leads me to believe this album is going to be crap and I shouldn't waste my money. (Something tells me I will anyway)

~ I love The Buckinghams and the current singer, Cark Giammarese is pretty darn good looking for his age. So is Bob Abrams.


Carl Giamarese


Bob Abrams (making a guitar face)

~ I put a song on the Halloween Mix I sent to someone that was on a previous mix, and for some reason that has been bugging me for the last 24 hours. I am a dorkalope.

~ Why do my cats not drink out of a normal bowl? It's either a cup in the sink or directly from the faucet!

~ I have a dream that one day I will find a camera that will take night shots without the need for a flipping tripod. (which I refuse to buy) With all the technology out there...why is this stupid thing necessary? And who carries a tripod with them when they are walking in the city at night? HUH!

~ Why isn't there a Taco Bell in my area? I crave the Bell and I don't know why!

~ For some reason I'm fascinated by Fishy's hands in this picture....



~ Justin Hayward said he was writing and recording. A new Moodies album? A new solo album? I want to know!!

Depressing Stuff

I've been having a discussion with my Grandmother about her will and how it needs to be changed. The thought of that slams home the reality that at almost 101 she's really on borrowed time, even though she's really in good shape for her age. Not many people can get around like she does at 100.

I hate thinking and planning for things like that. I don't want to think of a time when I won't have grandma.

I also know that her will has one section that would cause hardship for my mom if it remains the same. My mom has enough hardships, she wouldn't need the one that would befall her if anything were to happen to my grandmother if her will stays as it is.

I just hope we can get everything sorted out without a lot of hassle. No one needs that right now. There's been too much going on in the last few months with everyone in my family.

I Started Writing Again!

For the millionth time yesterday I started a story. This one is a bit different in some ways. Three people in my life may notice I've characterized them. I don't usually do that but I was writing in friends for my main characters...who appeared in a story I started last year but abandoned. I've abandoned at least 3 stories all around the same characters this year. Not a good thing.

This time I decided to take Danielle and Robin's story and give it a twist. I'm turning it into a romantic fairytale with a small twist.

I managed to get a whole page written last night. I'm not getting excited about that though, because that's how far I've gotten into several stories since last February, when I seemed to acquire a total block. I'm hoping this one will be the one that allows me to go on from page one.

I'm not holding out much hope though. With all the things going on in my life I don't know how I'll be able to sit down and actually try to get the story down. I just don't have the time to do that, and when I do I have no inspiration.

All I seem to be able to handle these days is blogging and that's not very satisfying to a person that loves to write. I guess the main problem I have is that I haven't had a plot I truly liked. In the past, my stories have lived in my head waiting to jump out. Not so with anything I've attempted recently. Maybe this one will be different. The idea hasn't left my head recently, it's just been a matter of forcing myself to sit down and actually write. I never thought I'd say that doing that was hard.

I guess we'll see in the coming days if I can get that ball rolling. My friends on Livejournal will know, because I'm going to be posting the story over there.

Wish me luck.

Tuesday Tunes - Week 5

From Music Memoirs

More word association: What songs do you think of when you see these words?

live: The Moody Blues - One More Time To Live (That's the song with all the lyrics ending in -ion)
heart: David Bowie - The Heart's Filthy Lesson
concert: The Grass Roots - Don't Pull Your Love Out On Me (From their Live at Last CD)
oldies: Sam Cooke - Cupid
fish: The Damned - Fish
swing: Robbie Williams - Well Did You Evah from his album Swing When You're Winning
food: The Beatles - Savoy Truffle
tired: Grey Eye Glances - Sleepy (Come to think of it, I am too)
celebrate: Elvis Costello - Party Party (The cheesiest EC song ever!)
walk: Keri Noble - Watch Me Walk (My favorite song right now)

33 Going On 13

I had a package from Snapfish in the mail yesterday. Inside were several lovely pictures of a rather stunning gentlemen (cough cough...hack hack) in a black suit.

Funny I didn't realize until I opened the envelope that again I didn't order any shots from the concert other then...yeah.

~ head desk ~

I have yet to buy prints from last year's Peter Noone concert or any of the bands from The Grass Roots show. However, the guy in the black suit, well I have a couple of those.

Why?

Actually, if you believe it or not, I bought some of them to send to Mr. GQ. However one of the shots I planned to stick in the mail for him...This one...



Only I managed to fix the vampire eye on the shot before ordering...well that shot jumped into a frame, evicting it's current resident, Gary Puckett from it's place inside, and moved onto my desk.

Ah well, a girl's got to have a little something pretty to look at while sitting at her computer desk, right?

And since the pictures came on time, I can send him a copy of the Halloween mix, which I'm also burning for my online mom, Linda and Moody Mistress.

Which now looks like this...

Adam Ant - Vampire
Annie Lennox - Love Song For A Vampire
Daughter Darling -Voodoo Games
The Devlins - Alone In The Dark
The Clientele - As The Night Is Falling
Bird York - Haunting You
Elvis Costello - Weird Nightmare
Charlotte Martin - Haunted
Paul McCartney - That Day Is Done
Sleepthief w/Caroline Lavelle - Nightjar
Deathcab For Cutie - Soul Meets Body
Siouxsie - If It Doesn't Kill You
The Damned - Eloise
Boingo - Spider
The Pogues - Haunted
Mission UK - Severina
New Order - Dracula's Castle
Sarah McLachlan - Possession (Piano Version)

This is the artwork I'm using for at least one of the mixes I'm mailing...



So yeah, I'm 33 going on 13...sending mixes and pictures (however not this one)




to Mr. GQ.

Random 10 - Week 127

From Music Memoirs

10 songs that sum up your weekend...or were on your weekend playlist...and one picture that relates back. (oh, and if you feel like it, tell us why you picked the songs you did)

There was a lot of weird music going on this weekend.

Jim Sturgess - Across The Universe
Eddie Izzard - Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite
Dana Fuchs - Helter Skelter
(For obvious reasons)

Keri Noble - Imperfect
(This is my new theme song)

Elvis Costello & Lucinda Williams - There's A Story In Your Voice
(I love to hate and hate to love this song)

Gary Puckett & The Union Gap - Lady Willpower
(I tend to change the lyrics to that one....)

Grey Eye Glances - The Me You See
(You know I love this band, right?)

Gordon Lightfoot - High & Dry
(Arrrr, Gord's a pirate)

Fountains of Wayne - I Want An Alien For Christmas
(Just discovered this..and you my friends will hear it if you get my Christmas mix this year)

Greg Lake - I Believe In Father Christmas
(Don't ask)

And the picture

Sad Times

One of my favorite rock/goth couples has split up. Siouxsie and Budgie of Banshees and Creatures fame have divorced, or so I've been hearing.

They've been together almost as long as I've been alive! 25 years. That's a long time for anyone.

~sigh~

Now I realize that most people are going, Mistress of the Dark, why are you upset by this? Who are Siouxsie and Budgie anyway?

Well, I can't help it, they just seemed like one of those celebrity couples that would be together til death do them part. Like Paul and Linda McCartney! Like Justin and Marie the Hag Hayward. (Though that one doesn't give me the warm fuzzies like Paul and Linda's marriage did)

Ah well, I guess there's very little of that anymore anyway.

I still can't help but be a little bit depressed by it. That means there's never going to be another Creatures album and the chance of Siouxsie and The Banshees reuniting again is slim to nil, and they were one of my favorite goth/punk/new wave bands.

It's Not On The Menu Anymore!!

I had a moment of pure panic yesterday when I went to Cold Stone Creamery. I haven't been there in yonks. I think the last Cold Stone ice cream I had was June 2006 when I was at Hershey Park.

So I'm all stoked to go and have Nights In White Chocolate, which is White Chocolate ice cream, caramel, white chocolate chips and whipped cream. I walk in and order and the girl behind the counter goes, "Is that on the old menu?"

I stop and stare, because I haven't bothered to even look at the menu. My heart was set on this ice cream since last Wednesday when I knew I was heading to Bridgeville to see this movie.

Thankfully they can still make the stuff.



Yum!

I'm A Loser.....

That's how I felt walking into the Destinta Theater in Bridgeville, ALONE! At least I wasn't the only loser at the theater. There were 3 other loners @ the one o'clock show. That didn't make me feel better though. There were several times when I wanted to turn to someone and make a comment about the movie, only to remember I was there, sans friends or family.

GAH!

As to the movie itself, all I can say is WOW! That's a Wow! in a good sort of way. It's a visually stunning film, though the plot is a bit thin, but truth be told, that doesn't really make much difference, it's the music that carries the story and it does. The casting was really splendid. As I've said before, Jim Sturgess is gorgeous, and he can really sing too. His Jude is impossible not to love. I'm not as keen on Evan Rachel Wood. I guess I'm having issues with the stereotypical blonde right now, but as Lucy she does well and she sings well too.

The voices that shine the most are Dana Fuchs (Sadie) who is styled after Joplin and Martin Luther McCoy who bares a striking resemblance to Hendrix.

The best visuals in the film come with the cameos of Bono (Dr. Robert) and Eddie Izzard (Mr. Kite). Eddie's sequence goes a bit Pythonesque and even gets a Yellow Submarine twist with the appearance of the BLUE MEANIES!!!! Well, a more modern Blue Meanie. Can you tell I love me some blue meanies?

Even with such a disjointed plot as this movie has at times this is a film worth seeing. The actors and actresses do justice to tunes that I believe should never be covered. If you can get past a few Beatle puns, it's darn near perfect.

If you're a Beatles fan you should definitely see this film. Heck, if you're not you should. Because it's not often that you can come out of a movie just saying, "WOW!"

Off To The Movies

I have been waiting for Across the Universe to come out for months now. The film has finally opened in Pittsburgh. It's actually been playing in select cities for almost a month now and it's been killing me.

I'm going alone too. Something I've never done in all my 33 years. I'm going to sit through a movie by myself. It's a bit unnerving. I like to have people with me when I go places. I am not an independent sort for the most part.

Besides the movie being filled with Beatles covers, there is another draw for me, Jim Sturgess. There's something about him that I find really appealing.



Oo la la, is he not a cutie? And he sings the Beatles songs well, better than I first thought. I don't know what it is about him that I love...maybe it's his slight McCartney resemblance or maybe I just like brown-haired boys that are a little on the lanky side. Who knows? I sure don't.

And have I mentioned Eddie Izzard is in the film?




The Blue Meanies are coming!!!!

Only a few more hours to bliss!

I Have A Big Mouth

Gym Hottie was at Jack's today, looking stunning and being his usual vain self. I swear I've never seen a man examine himself in a mirror more than this guy. It really does take all the willpower I have not to walk up to him and say, "Hey sweetie, you're gorgeous you don't have to keep checking. If you ever turn not gorgeous, I'll let you know."

So today I'm leaving, I walk by him...and I see his pretty SAAB is parked 2 cars from mine. I get in mine and look up and there he is at his car. And here's where I turn into a dorkalope. I look up and say, "Hi gorgeous." Mind you, I'm in my car, but he turns around and looks. I don't know if he saw me or not but I'm pretty sure he heard me. I again mutter, "Yeah I said hi gorgeous." He looks again.

ARGH!

I have foot in mouth disease badly. I know next to nothing about this guy except that he's a stock broker, he looks almost as snazzy as Fishy in a suit, he drives a SAAB, and he's obsessed with possible zits, that I don't see, marring his beauty.

So now there's no way I'll ever be able to look him in the eye.

I wonder, is there an award for all the stupid/dorky thinks I do on a regular basis. (Kinda like telling Fishy again how spiffy he looked last weekend...and not just because I was kissing up...but because I really meant it)

Top 5 On Friday - Week 145

This week's Top 5 Top from Music Memoirs is:

Top 5 songs that give you the chills

Oingo Boingo - Skin
I was introduced to this band by a former boyfriend that looked like Danny Elfman, back in high school. This song got to me then, and that was in 91, it still does.


Grey Eye Glances - Snow
The title has nothing to do with the reason for me getting the chills though, it's appropriate. This song is just so beautiful, thanks to Jennifer Nobel's beautiful vocals.


Elvis Costello - Lost In The Stars
I love EC's version of this Kurt Weill song. I fell in love with it the first time I heard it.


Charlotte Martin - Your Armor
This was the first song I listened to by Charlotte. It put me to mind something going on in my life at the time and it quickly became a favorite. I think it's because of how I related to it and still do, that I get a chill when I play it.



Justin Hayward - Sometimes Less Is More
I've wanted to live by this song so many times, but I can never seem to do it. I always rush in like a fool and come rushing back with my tail between my legs.

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen things that have made me smile in the last 7 days:

~ Being able to grab onto an extremely sexy man several times without being shooed away like a gnat! (And being able to give him a few hugs. I like hugs. The more the better)

~ The song Am I Here Yet (Return To Sender) by Billie Myers.
Lyrics ~ You wear a suit, I wear a smile. (Can't be any truer than that)

~ Having someone ask me if I've been losing weight, because my ass looks smaller.

~ Rob Grill joking that his guitar was stuck so he had to play one final song, Saturday night.



~ This picture:



~ And this picture:



~ Finding out from my favorite person that I'm going to get to see Across The Universe this weekend, at long last.

~ Trading emails with the same person about the Imagine Peace Tower in Iceland.

~ Watching the fuzzy wuzzy caterpillars squirm around the lot at work.

~ Fitting into the size 4 jeans that I didn't think my butt would squeeze into, but I can and I can breathe in them! Yay!

~ Hearing the song Let Me by Paul Revere and the Raiders while at the gym, on my mp3 player and almost bursting into song.

~ Tiramisu at Meloni's.

~ Being teased by a member of The Buckinghams and not knowing it until the band went on stage.

Wednesday Stuff

~ My brother called us late last night to tell us that Will, my niece's little boy was rushed to the ER unresponsive, after having a bad fever. Thankfully an hour or so later he called back to let us know, Will was up and sucking on a popsicle. That however will not bring the years back to my life that I lost when I thought something terrible was about to happen to my favorite little boy.

~ I slept better last night. Yay. I'm remembering dreams more lately, and I'm not even taking and Tylenol or Advil PM. Last night I was dreaming about a rather attractive guy I know, who can visit me in my dreams or real life any time he wants. (Not that he wants...but hey!)

~ I'm betting when I finally get to see Across The Universe it's going to be at the Maxi Saver in West Mifflin. The damn movie still hasn't opened in Pittsburgh and it's been out since mid Sept. This is just ridiculous! I want to see this blasted movie and I don't want to see it on DVD, because I don't have the attention span to watch stuff at home.

Yes, people, I have the attention span of a fruit fly.

~ I finally got my first round of CDs from Amazon this month. In the next 4 weeks there's still about 4 or 5 CDs that I want. I hate that it's feast or famine with music. Why can't they spread the releases more evenly so I'm not so broke? Or better still, why do I have to like so many different artists.

Tuesday Tunes - Week 4

From Music Memoirs


If you could buy one album right now, which one would it be?

I really want Queen Latifah's Travelin' Light. I've heard it and it's wonderful. I need a copy and her Dana Owen's Album as well.




Have you read any rock related biographies? If so what was the most recent one you've read? Did you like it?

The last rock related bio I read was Pattie Boyd's Wonderful Tonight. It was disappointing, to say the least. Not well organized and worse still, her facts were off, and it's her life story!!!



Right now I'm reading Donovan's The Hurdy Gurdy Man



This one is much better so far.

Oct 9th would have been John Lennon's 67th birthday. List a few things about John that you know. Random facts, songs, or just things about John that mean something to you, if you are a fan.

~ In my senior year of high school, I used a Lennon line from A Hard Day's Night to flirt with a cute redheaded guy I was crushing on. I said, "Give us a kiss." And guess what? He did!

~ I've never been a huge fan of John's solo material, with the exception of the song Nobody Told Me which I can listen to over and over again.

~ Nowhere Man is my personal anthem.

~ I always thought that Lennon specs were pretty cool

~ This is my favorite Lennon book.



~ Elvis Costello takes a shot at Lennon in the lyrics to The Other Side Of Summer with the words, "Wasn't it a millionaire who said imagine no possessions?"

Weird Night

I had one of those horrible nights where sleep wasn't worth it. My dreams were all nightmares and then I'd wake up and the cramps would start. Sorry for sharing that bit, but I felt you should know how miserable I was.

I woke up at 3 a.m. to dreams where things were blowing up and catching fire on every side of me and I was trying to get everyone out of the house before it went up in smoke.

In the next dream I was dreaming I was going down a huge flight of stairs and someone, I swear it was a husband (that I don't have) was trying to push me. Someone with me saved me and in turn killed my pursuer.

What does this all mean?

It was terribly distubing. I didn't want to try to fall asleep after the second nightmare. I've had bad dreams return after waking but I've never had 2 different nightmares in the same night.

Needless to say, I'm not well rested.

The Big Bang Theory

Oh mylanta, I laughed so hard when I watched this show tonight. I don't know why I sat down in front of the TV except that I wasn't feeling well, and I thought staring at the tube would take my mind off wanting to toss my cookies.

It was so worth it. I don't know if I'll ever remember to watch it again, but tonight it made me smile and laugh so hard my sides hurt.

Suffice to say I fell in love with Leonard.



I love geeks!

Though I love the show I can't see it lasting very long. The premise just can't last very long. Two geeks trying to learn about love and one sexy blonde neighbor. Why is it always a blonde? Huh? Huh? Still I'll enjoy it while it lasts, or for as long as I remember to watch it, which may have just been tonight.

Concert Stuff

This was the second show I've seen at the State Theater in Uniontown. They have no photography issues there so I took about 200 shots of the bands...and erm...some good-looking guy in a sharp suit. (Man he was really spiffy looking, someone should put him on the cover of GQ)

But I digress.

5 artists. I think the first 3 bands averaged 20 minutes for their set, which was good because they were all one hit/two hit wonders. Seriously, if I've only heard of one or two of your songs, then you're in trouble.

Chris Montez (sp) did a medley of Richie Valenz songs to fill in his set between his two hits, which got the rather tame audience to wake up. He also danced with a bunch of the women sitting in the aisles, when he played his huge hit, Let's Dance. (This was the first time I was happy not to be sitting on the aisle)

Next up was Brian Hyland, aka Mr. Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini. Yikes. Age has not been kind. And his partner in crime...scary woman in rubber trousers. I was waiting for the fashion police to come and cart them off. However they sounded good, so no complaints from me.

Sam the Sham was up next and he was more stand-up/monologue than music which was good, because he only did 3 songs, if my memory serves me well.

The Buckinghams followed Sam, and finally we got to hear a band that had more than 2 hits. They were fantastic. I have a rather odd Buckingham's story I'll relate at some later point, suffice to say I was teased before the show by the band's guitarist. I seem to ask for it.

They put on a great show, playing songs like Susan, Kind Of A Drag, Mercy Mercy Mercy and Hey Baby (They're Playing Our Song). Carl Giammarese still can belt out a tune and he looked pretty spiffy in his suit with a hot pink shirt. Way to be stylin' Carl!

Up last was The Grass Roots. I haven't seen them live since 1986 when they opened for The Monkees on the reunion tour. Rob is quite an ornery guy. I swear I heard him say fuck once while on stage. Woot! I was expecting a collective gasp from the very laid back audience that couldn't be bothered to stand and dance to any of the songs, including Tempation Eyes or the encore, Midnight Confessions. I always knew Southwestern PA concert goer's had sticks up their bums, this was further proof.

Along with all the great Grass Roots songs Rob and Co. did their version of Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes) a song turned down by The Grass Roots and made famous by the one hit wonder band, Edison Lighthouse. That damn song is still stuck in my head. Thanks Rob!

My only complaint on the show would be that the first three artists were almost unnecessary. Why not try to find a band that can play a longer set, rather than have everyone play 20 - 35 minutes? Someone like..uh..Gary Puckett!

Not much of a complaint but still...Rob could have done a longer show as I'm sure could The Buckinghams.

Still it was a great time. And lordy that man in that sharp black suit. Spiffy doesn't begin to describe him. Mmmmm. He made me drool.

You Might Be Asking...

How did the concert go? Did I have a good time?

Hmmm.

I had a good time yes. Mostly.

The bands were enjoyable. (I'll post more on that after I've spent a few hours with my photos)

There was this man there...

He had a black suit on....

He looked in a word....stunning.

Myself and my camera kept snapping pictures of him. I can't imagine why. OK, I can. He was gorgeous. Really gorgeous. I turned into a total giggling schoolgirl.

I was accused of giving him dirty looks at another point in the evening.

WTF?

I was trying to keep my eyes adverted because if I kept looking the parking garage would have been flooded with drool. And really that wouldn't do.

Do you want to see this man?

Of course you do.



I usually only get to stand next to a good looking man once a year. This year I got a bonus. Woo Hoo!

Today's Agenda

~ Look cute. Not sure why...but I must achieve cuteness.

~ Pray that a certain ex-friend isn't going to be there, even though they supposedly have tickets.

~ Avoid making an ass out of myself

~ Not laugh at the suit that a certain person will be wearing.

~ Take some kewl pictures of the 60's bands I'll be listening to tonight, and possibly some of that really cute DJ.

~ Buy the new CD by The Buckinghams or the Grass Roots live CD.

~ Try to enjoy the show.

~ Get home as quickly as possible and put it all behind me.

Friday Stuff

~ Bryan Ferry has an album out of Bob Dylan covers that I didn't know about.



It's great. Must obtain my copy soon. Very soon. I can't believe it's been out since the last week of June! WTF! Where was I? I love Bryan Ferry.

~ I'm reading another Dracula sequel. How many sequels are there to Bram's novel? Many I tell you. I have to read Mina, but right now I'm reading this one.



I've always had a fondness for vampires. I don't know why.

~ I spent $60 on clothes with the reasoning that my car had $140 spent on it, and it was totally undeserving. I felt that I should get something, and who doesn't need new clothes?

~ Why can't there be more normal women at the gym? Why are all the people working out little skinny shits? My self esteem doesn't need this. I feel like a heifer every time I walk through the door. Sometimes I really miss Curves.

~ Outfit 2 won...God I hope I look cute tomorrow. And right now I'm not sure what will depress me more, talking to someone or not getting to talk to them. Oh and they are getting a suit for the evening, care of Ptak's in Uniontown, so I'm going to be stunned by a certain Pickled Herring in a suit, of all things. Sweet mother of Pete, I don't know if I can stand that.

~ The neighbor's box turtle made an escape today and almost managed to get itself killed. Thank god I looked down as I was going to my car. The little guy was walking out into the street. I put him back in the yard. Turtles are so darn cute.