Slightly Cracked

Random Lyrics

2009-09-22T19:26:00.000-07:00

For Me This Is Heaven

The first star I see may not be a star
We can't do a thing but wait
So let's wait for one more
The time such clumsy time in deciding if it's time
I'm careful but not sure how it goes
You can loose yourself in your courage
The mindless comfort grows when I'm alone with my 'great' plans
This is what she says gets her through it:
"If I don't let myself by happy now then when?"
If not now when?
When the time we have now ends
When the big hand goes round again
Can you still feel the butterflies?
Can you still hear the last goodnight?
Close my eyes and believe wherever you are, an angel for me

A Jimmy Eat World song.

Invitation

2009-07-27T19:20:00.001-07:00

You and your smile

Hold a strange invitation

Somehow it seems

We’ve shared our dreams

But where?

Time after time

In a room full of strangers

Out of the blue

Suddenly you are there

Wherever I go

You’re the glow of temptation

Glancing my way

In the gray of the dawn

And always your eyes

Smile that strange invitation

When you are gone

Where oh, where have you gone?

How long must I stay

In a world of illusion?

Be where you are

So near yet so far apart

Hoping you’ll say

With a warm invitation

Where have you been?

Darling, come into my heart

Alice in Wonderland Quotes

2009-07-19T18:01:00.000-07:00

"Twinkle, twinkle, little bat! How I wonder what you're at." ~The Hatter

"Take care of the sense, and the sounds will take care of themselves." ~The Duchess

"Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop." ~The King

"If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?" ~Alice

"It was much pleasanter at home, when one wasn't always growing larger and smaller, and being ordered about by mice and rabbits." ~Alice

On Insanity

2009-06-12T22:55:00.000-07:00

"The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four people is suffering from a mental illness. Look at your 3 best friends. If they're ok, then it's you."
— Rita Mae Brown

"The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept."
— George Carlin

"It is sometimes an appropriate response to reality to go insane."
— Philip K. Dick

"I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity."
— Edgar Allan Poe

"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me."
— Hunter S. Thompson

"Love: A temporary insanity curable by marriage."
— Ambrose Bierce

"I'm seventeen and I'm crazy. My uncle says the two always go together. When people ask your age, he said, always say seventeen and insane."
— Ray Bradbury (Farenheit 451)

Random Fact

2009-06-09T18:34:00.000-07:00

An armadillo can be house-trained.*

*Found on How Stuff Works.

On Insomnia

2009-05-21T22:10:00.000-07:00

"Insomnia is a variant of Tourette's--the waking brain races, sampling the world after the world has turned away, touching it everywhere, refusing to settle, to join the collective nod. The insomniac brain is a sort of conspiracy theorist as well, believing too much in its own paranoiac importance--as though if it were to blink, then doze, the world might be overrun by some encroaching calamity, which its obsessive musings are somehow fending off."
— Jonathan Lethem (Motherless Brooklyn)

"I've always envied people who sleep easily. Their brains must be cleaner, the floorboards of the skull well swept, all the little monsters closed up in a steamer trunk at the foot of the bed."
— David Benioff (City of Thieves)

"The World is Very Flat, There is no doubt of that. (Night Thoughts of a tortoise suffering fom insomnia on a lawn)"
— E. V. Rieu

"The artist (I suppose) usually pays for the privilege by some sort of partial insomnia, by the possession of one faculty that will not be controlled nor put to sleep. In a poet this must often be the visual imagination, bringing before his eyes a succession of images which he never summoned, and of which some (it is only too likely) will be ugly or pitiful."
— Mary Lascelles (Jane Austen and Her Art)

"In its early stages, insomnia is almost an oasis in which those who have to think or suffer darkly take refuge."
— Colette

On Music

2009-05-14T20:37:00.000-07:00

"If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph:
THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED
FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD
WAS MUSIC"
— Kurt Vonnegut

"It's no good pretending that any relationship has a future if your record collections disagree violently or if your favorite films wouldn't even speak to each other if they met at a party."
— Nick Hornby

"If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music."
— Albert Einstein

"Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent"
— Victor Hugo

Mosaic

2009-05-14T18:23:00.000-07:00

My turn for the photo mosaic (please be warned, I have no skill with formatting):

The Rules:

a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.

b. Using ONLY the first page, pick an image to represent your answer.

The Questions:

1. What is your first name?

2. What is your favorite food?

3. What is your favorite color?

4. Favorite drink?

5. Dream vacation?

6. Favorite hobby?

7. What you want to be when you grow up?

8. What do you love most in life?

9. One word to describe you?

Favorite Authors, Part 2

2009-05-10T19:29:00.000-07:00

Sherri S. Tepper

Of her many books, I have read A Plague of Angels, The Companions, Beauty, and The Margarets. I picked up A Plague of Angels at the library simply because I liked the title. I found the beginning of the story a bit slow, but I kept reading anyway, and I didn't regret it. I read The Companions next. A SciFi mystery of sorts with a very detailed set of worlds. The same could be said of The Margarets. Both are very much worth reading. Beauty is very different from the other three. It is all your standard fairy tales, retold in one book and in a very unusual way.

My only complaint: In one aspect of these stories, I found them a bit unoriginal. For those unfamiliar with SciFi, I will explain. A somewhat common theme in this genre is what will happen to the Earth if humans don't take care of it. It seems a popular idea to have humanity living in squashed highrises with hundreds of stories (buildings made possible by the technology of the future, of course) with population control laws in effect. Sherri S. Tepper apparently agrees with her peers. This doom and gloom approach gets a bit tedious after the 6th book from the 3rd author...

And I do suggest, if should decide to read one of her books, to start with The Margarets or The Companions. Of those I've read, they're my favorites.

Ovreall Rating: Several Stars

I Get It, But I Don't Get It...

2009-05-09T20:06:00.000-07:00

What would possess someone (a doctor, paramedic, or police officer) to say "GSW" instead of gunshot wound when the initials have more syllables than the words themselves? I know, I know, I'm sure it began when the written word was involved, but is it really that hard just to say the words when you're speaking? Abbreviation backfired in this instance, and it kinda bothers me. That's all I have to say on the matter.

Random Lyrics

2009-05-05T20:18:00.000-07:00

The more I see you
The more I want you
Somehow this feeling
Just grows and grows
With every sight
I become more mad about you
More lost without you
And so it goes
Can you imagine
How much I love you
The more I see you
As years go by
I know the only one for me
Can only be you
My arms won't free you
And my heart won't try

Random Fact

2009-05-04T20:43:00.000-07:00

The first television show to show any portion of a toilet was "Leave it to Beaver."

Found on How Stuff Works

Spring Cleaning

2009-05-01T20:19:00.000-07:00

Every year, about this time, I get all energetic and decide to straighten my life out. By that, I mean clean everything (car, room, desk, etc.), get in better shape, and go on a vacation and come back all zen-like. Most of these projects are begun and abandoned like clockwork. A few days on a project, a few days of laziness and/or busyness, a few days on a new project, more procrastination...I think you get the idea. So this year, I have decided to post my goals here, in the hopes that my potential embarrassment will keep me going.

Goal 1: Clean My Room

Sounds simple. Not so. I'm not just talking tidying up, I'm talking major overhaul. Giving things away, removing wall decorations (and by that I mean posters), painting the whole room (aside from the wall that's covered in bookshelves), and painting the furniture I got from the thrift store (and from my basement). And it doesn't end there. Expect more posts on this in the coming days...

Goal 2: Get Back in Shape

I started taking Krav Maga last May and loved it. The classes can be very physically demanding and it's impossible to get bored when you're constantly learning new techniques. And it's just plain fun to punch things. I had to quit in the fall due to some health problems, but I'm almost ready to go back and I can't wait!

Goal 3: Take a Vacation and Come Back All Zen-like

I am going to Charleston for a week at the end of May. I planned my trip to visit my uncle, not knowing that there is a huge music and arts festival in town the week that I will be there. Since I am taking a friend that I met through my jazz singing, it couldn't be anymore perfect. We can be music geeks for a week with no one thinking we're crazy... Again, more posts to follow.

So please, help me buckle down and get things done. Shame me into finishing what I start. Future blog posts depend on it.

Favorite Authors, Part 1

2009-04-30T23:27:00.000-07:00

Brandon Sanderson

His first book, Elantris, was a solid sci fi/fantasy story. Nothing grand, but very entertaining with a few twists thrown in. The most impressive thing about it, in my opinion, is that it is not part of a trilogy or a series. It is just one book. I don't remember the last time I read a novel that was not part of an epic tale spanning several years and what seems like endless books. (Not that there's anything wrong with three...or four...or five books, but sometimes the unusual is refreshing.)

The second book I read, Mistborn, was (you guessed it) the first book of a trilogy. But oh, what a trilogy. The world he created for this series (Consisting of Mistborn, The Well of Ascension, and Hero of Ages) is so very detailed it boggles the mind. (Yes, I said it. There will be boggling. Deal with it.) There is an amazingly thought out magic system (complete with a chart in the back, for those who like that sort of thing), an amazing variety of creatures, and of course, an evil nemesis. And in the midst of all of these details, there are twists. Think jaw dropping twists. Especially in the third book, where the origins of everything (and I do mean everything) are revealed. One slow, agonizing piece at a time...

This is the very same author who has been chosen to finish Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time Series (now on book 12. 12. What is that all about?). Before I discovered this fact, I thought I might, maybe, read book 12, just so I wouldn't feel as if I'd wasted all those hours reading the first 11. Just for the sake of closure. But now...I will certainly read it, because I know it will be a book I won't be able to put down.

Random Fact

2009-04-29T20:43:00.000-07:00

The animal responsible for the most human deaths worldwide is the mosquito.

Random Lyrics

2009-04-28T19:59:00.000-07:00

Everything about you is a picture worth a thousand words
Try as I may I try in vain
There's more to you than I could ever hope to explain
I don't think you know
I'll never be the same again
Purity stood in front of me and said "I'm clumsy and my back hurts"
And I thought "you're about as beautiful as God's creation gets"
And I've seen oceans and sunsets that took away me breath
And you remind me of everything that's precious in His sight
And I don't think you'll ever realize just how much you've touched my life
Everything I thought I knew
Redefined in the light of you
Though the white
It burns my eyes
All my shadows fall behind me
I don't think you know why I'll never be the same
Try as I may I try in vain
There's more to you than I could ever explain
I just can't find the words for you

Brandston, "Words for You"

So I Read This Book...

2009-04-27T20:11:00.000-07:00

...and you know how one thing can lead to another. The book review shall appear later as I do not have the time or the inclination to do it justice at the moment. But the thing it led to, that you can see for yourselves. In the quest to discover the details about the sequel (not out yet, so sad), I discovered the author's website, which included a link to a blog, Merry Sisters of Fate. The blog consists of 3 authors posting fantasy-ish short stories. Each author used to do one a week, but it appears they recently changed that to 1 story a week. The only author I have read is the one who's trail I followed to said blog, Maggie Stiefvater, but the other two look to have interesting stories as well. Of those I have read, here is one of my favorites:

Mama's Angel

Enjoy!

Random Poem

2009-04-26T20:08:00.000-07:00

Sonnet 17

by William Shakespeare

Who will believe my verse in time to come,
If it were fill'd with your most high deserts?
Though yet heaven knows it is but as a tomb
Which hides your life, and shows not half your parts.
If I could write the beauty of your eyes,
And in fresh numbers number all your graces,
The age to come would say 'This poet lies;
Such heavenly touches ne'er touch'd earthly faces.'
So should my papers, yellow'd with their age,
Be scorn'd, like old men of less truth than tongue,
And your true rights be term'd a poet's rage
And stretched metre of an antique song:

But were some child of yours alive that time,
You should live twice, in it, and in my rhyme.

I am receiving a poem a day through Daily Lit and this one struck my fancy. Appropriate, since my book club is reading Much Ado About Nothing for May.

Random Quote

2009-04-25T21:39:00.000-07:00

"Britt ate lots of chocolate but never got fat - a sure sign of demonic possession."

Erica Long

Random Lyrics

2009-04-24T20:44:00.000-07:00

I Love the Way You're Breaking My Heart

I love the way you're breaking my heart
It's terribly, terribly, terribly, terribly, terribly thrilling
I love the way you're breaking my heart
Although you're gonna ruin it
It's heaven while you're doing it
I love the way I feel when we kiss
You're terribly, terribly, terribly irresistible
Lie to me and sigh to me
You really know how
It's gonna hurt tomorrow but it feels so good now
So darling just keep playing your part
Take your time and really finish
The things that you start
Cause I love the way you're breaking my heart

Info: Peggy Lee sang it, and I know she was at least a co-writer. She may have been the only writer, but I haven't been able to find much info. It's a pretty obscure song. Thanks Regina!

Where's My Happily Ever After?

2009-04-23T20:54:00.000-07:00

So I just finished all three books that are currently in the Vampire Academy Series by Richelle Mead (the fourth book is scheduled to come out on 8/25/09), and here is my complaint. There is no happy ending. And no conceivable happy ending in sight. Do I expect every book to have a happy ending? Of course not. Some of my favorite books have bittersweet or downright depressing endings. But this time, I was looking for fluff. Not serious reading or great literature, just a quick read with an entertaining plot. Fluff, to me, includes a satisfyingly happy or, at the very least, ambiguous resolution (side note: is ambiguous resolution an oxymoron?). The end of the third book? NOT HAPPY*. Where's my warm fuzzy feeling that usually comes with fluff? Fuzz and fluff are relatives after all...

*Now, this is not to say that I am unhappy with the series as a whole...I liked it...I would consider reading it again...dependent on the outcome of the 4th book, which I am planning on reading. I hope my warm fuzzy feeling is not lacking this time, but I'll be sure to let you know...

Shotgun Rules

2009-04-22T20:04:00.000-07:00

Every Tuesday, as we leave the office for lunch, someone calls shotgun. Apparently, there are rules for this sort of thing that my coworkers and I knew nothing about. We shall have to study as there are a lot of amendments to said rules. This gives a definite advantage to those of us who have no concrete plans this weekend. Study hard, my lunching friends. Next Tuesday, it's on like Donkey Kong!

The Vacation Curse

2009-04-21T17:44:00.000-07:00

Every time my parents go on vacation, something bad happens. This complicates what would ordinarily be (and often still is) a wonderful time for me. I can watch what I want on TV, sit wherever I'd like, feel free to be grumpy and antisocial, and, perhaps the best thing (at least for my procrastinating self), I can always clean later. And then disaster strikes...

Three years ago when my parents went on their annual trip, they left a newly redecorated house behind them. Then the roof began to leak. The freshly painted hallway ceiling began to sag and drip. My older brother decided not to ruin the last few days of their vacation with bad news, so he put a bucket under the drip and did nothing. I was hardly home at the time, so I let him deal with the problem (or not deal with it, in this case). Needless to say, my parents were not happy.

Two years ago, same annual trip, different issue. The air conditioner broke. I'm sure it was at least 100 degrees that week. It was so hot, my dinner one night was a watermelon. I couldn't bear the thought of eating anything else. I was too hot. My brother, not having learned his lesson, suggested we do nothing until my parents got home. I called the AC people. My parents were much happier when they came home that year.

Last year, my mother went on vacation by herself. My father couldn't leave town for several reasons. Apparently it takes two to activate the curse. Nothing happened.

This year, oh this year...My grandmother had been having fainting spells. Turns out she had a heart condition and needed a pacemaker. This was discovered, of course, while my parents were on vacation. This time, my brother and I both pitched in and, with some help from our uncle, made sure everything was taken care of both before and after her surgery.

My mother also has a habit of breaking her teeth on vacation (as if the problems at home aren't enough). So, if they want to avoid disaster (and broken teeth), the solution is simple: they should never go on vacation again. Somehow I don't think the threat of impending doom will stop them.

So I Think I Can Dance...

2009-04-20T19:57:00.000-07:00

I don't dance. Ever. It's not that I don't have rhythm (and if you don't believe me, ask my voice teacher. He called me a human metronome), it's just that the rhythm is all in my head. The rest of my body is left to it's own devices. Which apparently don't work so well. But anyway...

A friend of mine does all sorts of fun things like swing dancing and playing violin and she asked me to go dancing with her. Contra dancing. This dancing, I can do. It has steps and a caller who tells you what to do (yes, like in square dancing, but this is different). My feet, fortunately, are not rhythmically challenged, so I was able to keep up. I had a ridiculous amount of fun. I would not recommend this for the antisocial, however. You dance with everyone in the room, at least for a few seconds. There's not much time (or breath) for chit chat, so making small talk is not an issue, it's just that dancing with the world might be a bit intimidating. My advice is to be brave and give it a shot. Grab a group of your friends and head out to the dance floor. You won't regret it.

Random Fact

2009-04-19T21:07:00.000-07:00

The average U.S. resident eats 10 pounds of chocolate every year.*

*This fact was discovered on How Stuff Works and may, in fact, be factual.

Random Quote

2009-04-18T21:46:00.000-07:00

"Outside the window, a bright blue summer sky and billowing white clouds. A beautiful if secondhand sky showing telltale signs of wear. I took another sip of whiskey to toast the brand-new sky it once was. Not bad Scotch. Not a bad sky either, once you got used to it."

~ Haruki Murakami, A Wild Sheep Chase

A Few of My Favorite Things

2009-04-17T20:07:00.000-07:00

Thing One: C. O. Bigelow Chapped Hands Remedy

My hands have a tendency to get dry in the winter. Really dry. Painful, cracked, and bleeding dry. I tried every heavy duty lotion I could find, I put on thick layers of said lotion and slept in gloves, and applied the icky stuff multiple times a day (I hate the feel of most lotions). Nothing worked. Until this. I put on a thin layer of Chapped Hands Remedy every night and it works wonders. I don't even have to reapply during the day. It smells nice too. Kind of lemony, and definitely non-girly, so if your man has rough hands, buy him some. It's a bit expensive, but one bottle lasts for quite a while. Of course, I do have abnormally small hands, so that might have something to do with it...

Thing Two: Gaelic Storm

Think traditional Irish music meets Blue Collar Comedy Tour. The music is well played and some of it is quite funny, but the band members themselves could make a living as a comedy group, never mind the music.

Thing Three: Maggie Moo's

For those who haven't been, Maggie Moo's is like Cold Stone Creamery. They take whatever ice cream you want and mix in whatever combination of toppings you would like to add. As someone who prefers ice cream of moderate richness, I find Cold Stone too creamy. Maggie Moo's is just right. I also appreciate that they have ice cream cupcakes. I love ice cream cake, but I will eat way to much if I get a whole one (I don't believe in wasting desert). Even if you love Cold Stone, you should give Maggie Moo's a shot.

Random Quote

2009-04-16T20:24:00.000-07:00

"When I was a child my grandmother often took me about with her. I was a quiet boy already in poor health, and she found me at least as easy to manage as a small dog."

~ M. John Harrison, from A Young Man's Journey to London

Random Fact

2009-04-15T09:48:00.000-07:00

Elephants are the only mammals that can't jump. *

*This fact may not, in fact, be factual. I did not research this supposed fact, but feel free to do so if that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

What's in a Name?

2009-04-13T19:55:00.000-07:00

I was in a little shop on vacation when I stumbled upon a paperweight that read

"You're my friend because even though you know I'm slightly cracked, you think I'm a good egg anyway"

I found this to be a very interesting thought. I know I am cracked and I'm perfectly happy with that. It just so happens that I have been blessed with friends who think I'm a good egg anyway (I hope).

Yes, I Caved (Again)

2009-04-13T19:43:00.000-07:00

I said I would never be on MySpace or Facebook. I meant it too. I really did. But ever so slowly, my friends began to drift away to foreign countries like Germany, Texas, and California. I can hardly manage to keep in touch with people who live in the same state! So I did what any good friend would do. I caved. They were all on Facebook, now I was on Facebook.

Then all of my friends got blogs. I considered it...for about half a second. I didn't think I had enough to say. But after sending daily emails of funny or interesting tidbits to my friends, I was advised that I should just suck it up and start a blog. Not in so many words, but I felt like that was the gist of it.

So here we go. Expect quotes, trivia, rants, and reviews...I think. I really have no idea.