Saturday 9: Twist and Shout

1. In the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Ferris climbs up on a parade float and enthusiastically lip synchs this song, encouraging the entire crowd to join in. Do you know the lyrics of "Twist and Shout" well enough to sing along?
   * I find it hard to believe that was 27 years ago. Matthew Broderick is impossibly YOUNG…. yes… I do
2. What other Beatles' song do you know all the words to?
   * Help, Revolution, Hey Jude, Hard Day’s Night… I have a number of their popular and early recordings.
3. 49 years after their American debut, The Beatles are acknowledged as having a lasting impact on both music and culture. What performers on today's music scene do you think will be remembered 50 years from now?
   * I can’t imagine many of them being remembered in FIVE years. Maybe Maroon 5?
4. Paul McCartney is an enthusiastic advocate of the vegetarian lifestyle. Could you/have you tried to "go veggie?" 
   * I have tried to go veggie a couple times… in the end the enticing aromas and tastes of Pork is my siren song.
5. As a young boy, Ringo Starr suffered a severe attack of appendicitis and almost died. Do you still have your appendix? What about your tonsils?
   * I still have both, although I have long believed the tonsils should go given the frequency at which I suffer ghastly throat infections.
6. John Lennon sketched and doodled when he was bored or nervous. Do you have any nervous habits?
   * Yes… and it get annoyed when someone points them out.
7. George Harrison loved Hawaii so much he bought a 63-acre estate in Maui. Have you ever visited our 50th state?
   * No… but I’m not dead yet.
8. Yoko Ono was a polarizing character in the Beatles' saga. Has any of your friends ever dated/married someone you just could not stand?
   * Yes
9. Paul has had dogs his entire adult life, including a sheepdog, Martha, and a black lab, Jet. John was especially fond of a cat named Elvis and a tomcat he found in the snow and named Tim. Tell us about one of your pets.
   * I rescued a tragic creature who showed up at work one day. This poor thing appeared to be a yellow lab who had seen better days. He was seriously underweight, dirty and generally pitiful. I stopped by the store, got him a bag of high protein food and took him home. The girls, who were three at the time instantly loved him and dubbed him Buster. He slept a lot the first few days, after he seemed to be getting some energy I took him to the vet to see if he had a chip.. he didn’t. The vet told me that he should weigh 80-90 lbs., but he only weighed 53 lbs. We loved him and took care of him and he was a vital part of the kids’ growing up years. The vet estimated he was about five years old at the time. He lived with us for seven years before he had become so gray and frail. He had gone blind, deaf and had become incontinent before he left us. It’s been nine years, and I still miss him terribly.

Sunday Stealing: The Unlucky 13 Meme

Sunday Stealing: The Unlucky 13 Meme

1. On average, how long does it take you to get ready for work/school/a day or night out? * Shower, brush teeth, shave, run some gel through the coif and get dressed… 30-45 min.
2. If you could ask your favorite author one question about the book(s) they wrote, what would it be? * GM Ford… When are you going to write another Leo Waterman Mystery?
3. What do you think is the hardest thing about growing up? * I’ll let you know when it happens.
4. Who would you rather switch places with for a day: your favorite celebrity, or your favorite fictional character? * Jason Bourne
5. Who would you rather have point out a flaw that you weren't aware you had: a close personal friend, or a total stranger? *Wait? I have flaws?
6. Do you get jealous easily? If so, what sorts of qualities or characteristics in other people are you most likely to be jealous of? * I don’t get jealous of other people anymore. I’m working every day to make my own life better than it was yesterday.
7. Which version of yourself would you rather have a conversation with: the one from ten years ago, or the one you turn into ten years from now? * If I had a chance to talk to the 2003 version, I would ask him what’s he’s waiting for. Things aren’t going to get any better by waiting five more years to be true to himself.
8. Were you ever bullied in any way as a child? If so, how has it shaped you today? * Yes… it took a while but I learned that there are just some people who don’t deserve to live rent-free in my head.
9. What is one fear you would like to overcome in your lifetime? * I would like to truly overcome the fear of what other people think of who I am and what I believe.
10. What is one food you haven't tried yet that you would like to? * Haggis… in Scotland.
11. Is it easier to forgive someone for the wrong they've done you or to seek forgiveness from someone that you've wronged in any way?
    * Its harder to seek forgiveness. Not only do you have to overcome personal pride, but you have to prepare for the chance that the apology will be rejected.
12. Let’s go random: What did you do for New Year’s Eve for the turn of the millennium? * Dec. 31, 2000… the children were small… my x-wife didn’t see the reason behind staying up to midnight (we usually had an argument and she went to bed)… so I most likely sat on the couch alone watching the ball drop.
13. What else around here have you noticed? * I’ve noticed the sun is shining, the trees are turning green and my boyfriend truly loves me.

Saturday 9: I Don’t Want To Talk About It

Saturday 9: I Don't Want to Talk About It

1. Crazy Sam (the author of this meme) is beyond sick of all things Kardashian! What's a topic you're just tired of and don't want to talk about anymore?
   * I absolutely detest “celebrity” news and reality shows. I do not understand how pathetic your life has to be to enjoy watching someone else’s trainwreck of a life. Turn of the TV and get off Facebook … and get your own trainwreck!
2. Rod Stewart has been recording for more than 40 years. Do you have any of his music on your iPod/mp3 player?
   * I have 33 Rod Stewart songs.
3. Rod Stewart is known for his coif. How much time do you spend on your hair each morning?
   * Not much, I’m more of a wash & wear kind of guy.
4. Rod's first child, a daughter, will turn 50 this year. His most recent child, also a daughter, is 2. How close in age are your children? If you don't have any children, how close in age are you and your siblings? If you don't have children OR siblings, well, tell us what's immediately to your left as you respond to this meme. If you don't have anything to your left ... Oh, hell, I give up!
   * Wow… that’s a lot of words. I was 24 when my eldest child was born.
5. Which do you prefer -- french toast or pancakes?
   * I make wicked french toast.
6. When was the last time you lost your cool?
   * I grow weary of “parents” pretending to care about their children but abdicating responsibility every chance they get.
7. Crazy Sam once had a pet hamster she named Bart. Have you ever cared for a hamster or a gerbil?
   * No, they stink.
8. Are you ticklish?
   * No
9. Ouch! You have a headache! What's your go-to remedy?
   * More vodka, baby!

TMI Thursday: I confess…

Sean at Just a Jeep Guy started it, now all the cool kids are doing it (The ones I know about are listed in the sidebar).

I CONFESS

• My worst habit is... procrastination
• I have a crush on... a number of sexy bears I’ve befriended on Facebook and the blogosphere (I’m looking at you Buddy Bear, Cubby and Sean) It’s sometimes difficult not to be a complete stalker.
• I pretend to like ??? but actually hate??? … I try not do that anymore. I say… be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.
• I did a bad bad thing, once! How bad and what was it?… Gawd… as I scan my brain for the bad things I’ve done they have the same theme…my actions and words resulted in hurting someone I cared for . 
• My secret desire is... to find fulfillment with what I have and what I’ve accomplished.
• I don't want to ever.... pretend to enjoy things I don’t enjoy, be someone I’m not or do things just because it’s socially acceptable in order to get someone to like me.
• I often have thoughts of doing... running away to a foreign land and kicking loose the bonds of responsibility. But then that would have hurtful consequences mentioned earlier.
• My guilty pleasure is... watching lots of porn and fantasizing about being a part of the action.

BONUS

Who or what have you done sexually that you feel most guilty about? Not ashamed, just guilty. Would you do it again?
* I haven’t discovered it yet… but I keep trying. If you have a suggestion, please comment with details and how we can make it happen.

SUPER DUPER BONUS QUESTION

Confess one act or thought or fact you have never told anyone ANONYMOUSLY in the comments separate from your other answers!

Saturday 9: You Belong With Me

This version is MUCH less annoying

Saturday 9: You Belong with Me

1. Like the boy in this song, have you ever been in love with someone, but was afraid to tell them?
   * Yes
2. Taylor Swift has been known to write songs about her real-life lovers. If you were to write a song about the most recent person you were romantically involved with, what would the title be?
   *
   
3. Ms. Swift recently turned 23 and has already won VMAs and AMAs and Grammys. What were you doing when you were 23? (If you aren't 23 yet, where do you see yourself when you hit it?)
   * I was 23 in 1992/93… I was living in a christianist ghetto (attending a Christian university and working at a Christian bookstore). By mid-93 my program of self-hatred was complete when I married a woman who was/is a cruel, malevolent shrew.
4. When you were a child, did you sleep with a plush toy? (If yes, please include its name in your answer.)
   * My favorite stuffed toy when I was a child was a Mr. Peanut. Currently on eBay ones like it are going for between $15-29, I called him “Mr. Peenee”. 
5. I'm making a Starbucks run. What can I get you?
   * I’m really liking their current “special”… Hazelnut Macchiato.
6. It was 60 years ago that Clarence Birdseye first marketed frozen vegetables. Now it's your turn: Share something you learned recently.
   * Did you know that when a flock of sheep are sheared, they don’t recognize each other and will fight for a few days to re-establish hierarchy?
7. In junior high, were you class clown, teacher's pet, a geek, a jock ... or did you just melt into the background?
   * I wished I could melt into the background but I was a fat kid with ADHD so I drew the attention of tormenters.
8. Was your most recent ticket for parking illegally or was it a moving violation?
   * I was cited for “Failing to yield to a control device” in December 2009. 
9. Tell us about the last museum you visited.
   * I went to the Velveteria in Portland, OR… a museum to the history of velvet art. It has since closed, but it was really kitschy-cool.

TMI Thursday: I hate…

Sean at Just a Jeep Guy started it, now all the cool kids are doing it (The ones I know about are listed in the sidebar).

WHAT DO YOU HATE TO...?

• Smell?
  * The smell of “agriculture”… made worse by what would be a cleansing rain shower in any other part of the world. It makes the air smell like a wet dog that rolled in shit.
• Taste?
  * The taste of the sickeningly sweet fluoride treatment at the dentist.
• Eat?
  * Any cooked member of the cruciferous family of veggies… broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, and cabbage.
• Clean?
  * I hate cleaning the bathroom… but I do, because NOT cleaning the bathroom is just more than my OCD senses can stand.
• Cook?
  * I love to cook, so I would say the aforementioned cruciferous veggies…they make the house stink too.
• Watch on TV?
  * Celebrity “news”
• Do for your significant other?
  * I’m still enjoying having one, so right now everything is cool.

BONUS

• Do sexually?
  * I am a bottom… I have tried to top… I’m not good at it. Yet when I tell my partner du jour this, he still insists that I try… and then no body has fun.