Lost Kitty....sort of

So last night I lost Mandy for a period of time. I was watching TV heard a really loud THUMP. At first I thought maybe the Water Bandit was back to finish the job, but then I realized I hadn't seen Mandy in awhile. The noise sounded like when mandy tries to break down the door to the bathroom when I am in there and choose to lock her out. So, I start checking all the rooms. Not by the hall closet. Not in the office. Not in the bathroom. Not in the spare bedroom. I cannot find her anywhere! Not under my bed. I check the guest room again. Then I decide to look in my closet. And who should I find? Yup. Little Girl was in there just chilling on the floor. The funny thing is I had put a bag in the closet an hour or so earlier and just opened the closet door and tossed it in. I didn't turn on the light and thought to myself that maybe I should check to see if Mandy was able to slip in unnoticed! Dumb story, but thought I'd share it nonetheless!

Oh How I Love Thee.....

Is it wrong to love an inanimate object? I hope not, because I think I am in love with my new KitchenAid mixer. Really. I am! It looks just like the one in the picture above. It's the 5qt. Artisan series...whatever that means. I bought it because A) the price was what I was willing to pay and B) it was black, onyx to be exact. I'm sure it wouldn't surprise many that I have always had my eye on the blue mixers, but blue just wouldn't go with my kitchen.

My mixer has inspired me to bake. I made cookies on Sunday (mere hours after purchasing my mixer) and brought the goodies into work on Monday. And most recently I made something tonight. So if you are reading this before work on Thursday - you have another treat coming your way courtesy of me and my handy, dandy, ever-faithful KitchenAid mixer!! Also, be prepared for something on Fat Tuesday (February 24th) because me and the mixer plan to strike again!!

Round Up The Usual Suspects

Earlier today I saw that Turner Classic Movies would be showing Casablanca as part of their 31 days of Oscar - where all the movies on TMC are Oscar winners. I made a mental note to come back this afternoon and watch it. I totally forgot as I got caught up in the Doctor Who season finale on BBC America. But that's okay. I've seen Casablanca several times. It's a great film. However, I think I enjoy it for a slightly different reason. There is a scene in the movie that always makes me cry. And it has nothing to do with the tragic love of Rick and Ilsa. It is the scene in Rick's club where the German solidiers begin singing "Die Wacht Am Rhein" - a song about World War I. Many of the patrons at Rick are disgusted, as they have fled the Nazis. So Victor Lazlo goes to the band and begins a stirring and emotional version of "Marseillaise", the French national anthem. Soon the Germans are drowned out and eventually stop singing. It the love of a country that has inspired this act. A love for a country occupied by another nation. I could easily see this as a group of Americans joining together to sing the "Star Spangled Banner" when put in a similar situation. It's a short scene, but full of emotion and it is one of the reasons why I think Casablanca is a good movie. Here is a link to that scene. Hopefully it works!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iYbEPZVVIA&feature=PlayList&p=E0927E396BA081BF&playnext=1&index=2

I'm Just A Soul Whose Intentions Are Good....

Over the last week I have spent A LOT of time on itunes buying music. I bought a few golden oldies here and there and now I can't stop!! I have bought 31 songs since February 1st. That is more than a song a day for the month of February and it's only the 6th!!!!

I used to always to listen to the oldies station in the car with my mom. So I am pretty well versed in songs from the 50s, 60s, and to a lesser extent the 70s. Most of these songs I don't have on CD, so I went hunting on itunes for them. Who knew Gary Lewis and The Playboys were on itunes? I think I heard a song last weekend that I wanted and it Spiral Starecased from there! (note: Spiral Starecase is a group from the 60s. I suggest looking them up.)

I bought songs by the Zombies, Animals, the Byrds, the Turtles, Lou Christie, John Lennon, Three Dog Night, Bobby Darin, Del Shannon, the Contours, the Chiffons, and the Drifters to name a few. Then I bought some more recent songs: 50 Cent and two from the movie "Slumdog Millionaire." Then I got on a 90s kick: Timmy T, Tommy Page, Bryan Adams, Blind Melon. There were a few others, but those are my true guilty pleasures that I seriously won't admit to owning or knowing all the words. However, put me near a jukebox and you might, just maybe, catch me shelling out my hard earned cash on these guilty pleasures!

Mandy

Mandy posing in front of the computer. If you look carefully you'll see my blog on the computer.


I didn't really have anything else to blog about so I thought I'd share some more about my kitty. Hopefully that doesn't mean I'm turning into the old cat lady!


As I'm sure you have figured out, Mandy is a little on the spoiled side. She has 4 water dishes after all. And of course she has plenty of kitty toys. Catnip ones, ones with feathers, ones that make noise, stationery ones, soft ones, hard ones, etc. etc. However, I have recently discovered that she likes stuffed animals. After raine_days' recent visit, Mandy was granted unescorted access into the guest room. On the bed I had a little black lab stuffed animal. One day I'm in the office and who shouldI see trotting down the hallway with the stuffed animal in her mouth? So I hid the toy. Recently I put out a couple other little stuffed animals that proudly wear DEA shirts. well, this morning, Mandy comes out of the guest room with one in her mouth! The funny part is that the stuffed animal is hald her size! And it was sitting on the third shelf of a bookcase!!

Mandy looking guilty for some reason.......


I also have introduced Mandy recently to turkey. Yes, I bought turkey. It's healthier than ham sandwiches for lunch. Anyway, she practically assaulted me the first time I opened the packaging on the lunch meat. So now when I make my sandwich for my lunch, I have to give Mandy a "commission" on the turkey. Just a little piece to get her out of the way. I know this is how annoying habits and behaviors start, but how can I deprieve my little girl like that????

Facebook....sort of

I was going to write a post about the addition of my 50th friend on facebook, but think I'll take a different route. Plus, I know having 50 friends on FB is nothing. My cousin's 15 year-old son has something like 600 friends and Kristi has more than 50 friends and she has been on FB for only a couple of weeks!!

Today I received a friend request, not from some random foreigner, but from someone I haven't heard from in practically 5 years! I got a little frustrated waiting for my background check for this job and decided in early winter of 2003 to go to Prague, Czech Republic and get certified to teach English as a foreign language. It was a 4 week training/certification course in November/December. After going home for Christmas, I moved back to Prague to look for work. I shared an apartment with two other girls who also taught English. I actually never found a job and ended up with a 3.5 month vacation in Prague. I did a lot of reading in coffee shops, exploring of the city, more coffee, taking pictures, and watching crappy American tv shows dubbed in Czech. My favorites were 21 Jump Street and Walker Texas Ranger. The Czech version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire was also entertaining. Unfortunately I wasn't there long enough to develop any real language skills.

Anyway, the friend I received the request from I met through my roommates. We actually didn't know each other for very long but I always thought he was a cool guy. The last time I had any contact with him was sending him a text message on my way back to the States. I had to stay the night in Frankfurt and was having coffee and a pastry in the hotel lobby. That seems like ages ago. So much has happened since then. Wow.

I left Prague in April, right after Easter. Even though it was such a short time, it will always have a fond place in my heart. I would share photos of Prague with you, but my old computer crashed a few years ago taking all my photos with it. Gone. And I had taken some cool photos of the city that I was really proud of. I'm no photographer, but I thought these photos had an "artsy" quality to them. I really want to go back!!

Cha-Ching!!!

Today at work I was talking to someone who had recently gone out to the casinos and lost some money to the one-armed bandit. I have been in Las Vegas for 4 months now and have yet to go gamble once. In fact, I have never gambled in Las Vegas or the state of Neveda - ever! Now that is not to say I have never gambled. I have been to a few Indian casinos and have found myself in international waters a couple of times as well. I think I won $9 on a cruise once. I know that's not a lot but I was 16 and two years too young to be gambling on the ship. I'm not a big gambler by any means, but I would like to say I've played the slots once. Part of me though is disillusioned because you no longer get to pull the arm of the slot machine. That was most of the fun!! The other part also wants to see how long I can live here without ever betting a penny. I mean Smiths grocery store even has slot machines!! How crazy is that?? But I have never played any of the other games - blackjack, craps, roulette, etc.. and I would like to give those a go just once. I know I won't win anything substantial, I just want to quote Wesley Snipes once and say "I always bet on black." Well, that's a paraphrase really, but the other person in our group who most likely knows the answer doesn't follow my blog. So as far as you all know - that's the really quote! Oh wait, I told you it wasn't. Nerts. I guess I'll just have to go spend my money at Town Square instead. :-)