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December 30, 2005
Surfing
While reading Slashdot, they had a story about this guy who made a homepage and sold 10 x 10 pixel-sized ad space for $100 each. He ended up making about $1 million! I'm finding the Million Dollar Homepage kind of a fun way to surf--just don't stare too long at it.
Most of the ads are things like "Make lots of money!" and "Free Poker Online!", but I found some interesting personal sites, one in particular I thought was hilarious: Shitty Blogs.com.
Posted by Amy at 12:00 PM | Comments (0)
December 28, 2005
Prince of Persia 3
One of the things I got for Christmas--one of the things I wanted most--was the third installation of the Prince of Persia game for our PS2... Prince of Persia the Two Thrones. Based on how amazing the first one was and how much harder the second one was than the first, I expected the third one to be horrendously difficult.
Unfortunately, that was not so. Though it's still a decent game to play, my expectations were probably way too high. The puzzles in the game are pretty predictable and not too difficult to solve (for the most part) and the fighting doesn't really get that much harder as you move through the game. The only time it's really hard is when you have to fight the "bosses"...characters that are too difficult to fight by ordinary slashing standards. You have to know that there's strategy involved and figure out exactly what that strategy is. Like a puzzle within a fight sequence.
The first two PoP's took me days and DAYS to finish. This one I started on Monday, got quite a ways through, but couldn't save and had to start over. It's only been a couple of days and I think I'm already about 2/3 of the way to the end. True to the history of the game, the developers introduced a few new fighting techniques and moves, but that's about all. I have to say that I'm not really all that impressed with PoPTT. If PoP: Sands of Time was a level 5 out of 10 difficulty, PoP: Warrior Within was an 8 or 9. PoPTT is probably around 5. Maybe I just expected too much?
Posted by Amy at 10:00 PM | Comments (0)
December 26, 2005
Christmas 2005
It was a really great Christmas this year! It started with Don and me going to Kalamazoo to my sister's house on Christmas Eve. Everyone got lots of cool stuff. I got a great sweater from my Mom and some cool new ornaments for my tree from my brother and sister. The kids had a great time and PJ was way more friendly and social than I've ever seen him. I think he's come a long way developmentally, since the last time I saw him. We gave my brother a retro-style Atari game console which he couldn't wait to start playing with. It was like he was a little kid again. And Mom loved the color printer/fax/copier/scanner we gave her. We had turkey for lunch which was good, but we had to go soon after to make it to Farmington to visit Don's cousins.
We came home to meet Don's sister, Nancy, at the house and we all went together and got to Farmington at about 5pm. We got to see Mary's "new" house--she had gotten some extensive remodeling done to her house including adding an upstairs. She gave me a tour of the place which looks really awesome! It's a good house to entertain now. Lots of room for all the Bucks.
We did our annual "White Elephant" gift exchange. For those of you who don't know, each person brings one gift for the pile. We all pick numbers and when it's your turn, you can either pick a gift from the pile or steal from someone who went before you. It's great fun--I ended up with a REALLY cool singing kung-fu hampster. This was the first White Elephant I've done where I actually walked away with something I really wanted. Whatever I get ALWAYS get stolen! Later, we sang Christmas carols which was fun. I love hanging out with the Bucks. It's always a rockin' good time.
Then on Christmas morning, Don's other sister Jessica and her husband Brian came over to exchange gifts with me, Don and the Nance (as we call her). I gave Don a great leather jacket (which I got an AWESOME deal on); we gave Brian and Jessica a video camera--seemed only right that they have one to make home movies of Derek. Don gave me a really cool 15" flatscreen wireless TV! Woo hoo! I can take that thing anywhere and I've got TONS of new cool DVDs to watch on it including Charmed, Wonder Woman and lots more. Plus I got the Santoku knife I wanted for cooking. And Derek...what a cutie! Nancy got him a Thomas the Train that he could either push or sit on and he LOOOOOOOVES it! Kept him busy ALL day long. Brian had to wait till he was distracted to put it in the car or else Derek wouldn't stop playing with it.
Brian and Jessica had to leave to visit his family about 2pm. After they left, we cleaned up our Christmas wrapping paper mess and I put a turkey in the oven for Christmas dinner. It was Don, me, Nancy and our friend Dan--who never seems to go anywhere on Christmas. Didn't seem right that he would be alone that day so we invited him over. The turkey turned out beautifully, even better than Thanksgiving. Especially considering I forgot to thaw it out! I had to leave it soaking in water in the sink for a few hours to thaw it out. Microwave would have destroyed it. And after dinner, we watched the 40-Year-Old Virgin. VERY funny, though waaaay more graphic language than I thought there would be. I couldn't believe some of the things they were saying!! But it was hilarious, nonetheless.
Monday, Don and I didn't have to work, so we slept in and it felt soooooo good. Nancy left soon after we got up at about 11:30--she had a 3-hour drive back. After that, I spent the day "playing" with my new gifts. Watched a few eps of Charmed on my new TV and played my new Prince of Persia game! Yay! I'll be busy with that for a while!
The logistics worked out really well this year. It was really fun to have Christmas day at our house for once and not have to go anywhere! So how was YOUR Christmas??
Posted by Amy at 10:56 PM | Comments (0)
December 23, 2005
Can I Quote You on That?
All,
The all-knowing Oz, otherwise known as "Commander Mahonious", has now set up my blog so that you have to log in to make a comment. You no longer have to email me. It may not be posted right away because I have to approve everyone who wants to comment which means NO SPAMMERS! Yaaaayyy. So.....comment away!!
Amy
Posted by Amy at 06:56 PM | Comments (0)
No Chicken Pox
What a RELIEF!! I just found out from my doctor that I'm actually immune to chicken pox. It's something that's always plagued me with worry because I never had it as a child and feared I'd get a terrible case of the shingles as an adult.
When I was 5 years old, I was playing with my best friend when I actually witnessed the first few pox materialize on her skin. But even though I was there when she was the most contagious), I still never caught it. I've always been curious (worried is more like it) and now I can breathe a sigh of relief!
Posted by Amy at 12:23 PM | Comments (1)
December 22, 2005
I HATE SPIDERS!!
Last night, I had one of the most frightening dreams I've ever had. I have 2 recurring themes in my dreams. One is that I'm trying to get to where ever I live, but can't get there because the route is so convoluted or blocked.
But I also tend to dream about spiders. And you know I HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATE spiders!!!!!!!!!!
I dreamt that I was being evaluated to train with this great kung-fu/martial arts master--he was this older Chinese dude and he was a bit intimidating, much like in the movies (like Kill Bill vol. 2). I had to do three tests for him to approve me as a student and one of them was to pull this spider out from a paper bag. There were several bags, each with a different breed of spider and I had to choose which one I wanted to pull out.
But I had a panic attack and started hyperventilating frantically and crying hysterically because I was so completely terrified. So there was this battle in me to fight my fear because I HAD to become this man's student or I would be terribly shamed.
I was so fearful that I didn't even make it to the end. I woke up and before I was even fully conscious, I was crying and hyperventilating, like in the dream.
I can't figure out why I keep dreaming of spiders; if they mean something or if it's just one of those random things that your mind can't control. And I've had a few of these spider nightmares.
And now, it seems that after my dream, I'm even more afraid. I was going to put an illustration of a spider to accompany this entry, but I couldn't even look at that without feeling a bit of that same panic. And it WASN'T EVEN A REAL one...just a drawing!! GOD I HATE SPIDERS, LET ALONE DREAMING ABOUT THEM!!!!!
What's your take on this? What do you think the spiders mean, if anything? E-mail me at priori2ude @ yahoo dot com.
Posted by Amy at 11:25 PM | Comments (0)
Play with Me!
| adopt your own virtual pet! |
Move your mouse around and Hideous will play with you. Enjoy!
Posted by Amy at 09:59 AM | Comments (0)
December 21, 2005
Swing Kid
I finally got myself started on going back to swing dancing. They have lessons and open dance at the U of M Union building every Wednesday. Tonight's lesson was taught by Erin Morris, a friend of ours that we know through the dojo. (Her dad used to work out there.) Her mother, Laura was there too.
I thought that I'd be huffing and puffing since I hadn't danced in years since the Velvet Lounge in Pontiac closed down some years ago. But it wasn't as intense a work out as I thought it would be. That's the difference between dancing here and dancing at the Velvet Lounge. At the VL, I'd have to do a couple of dances just to warm up and limber up my feet. But here, I didn't need a warm up at all. The music there isn't as good; they don't play a whole lot of new swing music. In fact, they didn't play any at all tonight.
As soon as I got there, I saw one of the guys that used to do karate with me, Anthony. He quit because he'd tried to move out to California, but I guess things fell through, so he moved back to A2. I was pleasantly surprised to find that he's a very talented dancer! I thought he'd be kind of awkward, since he's not as talented at karate. But he's a very strong lead and knows his steps. He tried to teach me Lindy Hop, but I think I'm intimidated because it's confusing to me. I'm going to have to go on a night when they teach Lindy. I guess he used to compete--he said he's danced for about 6 years or so. I only danced seriously for about 2. I have to say that Anthony was definitely the strongest (and best) lead there, tonight.
Anyway, I also saw Don's old roomie, Ian, there. His wife Katherine wasn't there because she started a new job as a nurse practitioner, so I guess she didn't feel like going out. I wish I could get Don out there, but he refuses to learn how to dance. Too feminine for him, I guess!
I had a couple dances with Erin and one with Laura. They're pretty good leads too. I'm always amazed at how UNBELIEVABLY talented Erin is as a dancer. She's like the professionals you see in all those music videos. She can do just about ANYTHING! I sat a few songs out just to watch her. I was in awe.
I'm going to try to get there more often next year. I'll be switching between that and karate on Wednesdays. Maybe two nights each. I'll see how it all works out.
Posted by Amy at 11:23 PM | Comments (0)
December 20, 2005
Red Scarf
Ok, I have to admit...I was a LITTLE bad this year. My best friend and pen pal, Christy, sent me a Christmas gift and even though the note said NOT to open until X-mas, I couldn't resist! SORRY CHRISTY!!! I just couldn't help myself!
I unwrapped the packaging paper to reveal a box that said Carnation Instant Hot Chocolate. I thought, that goofball! Sending me hot chocolate!! Then I noticed tape on the opening of the box, so I realized she had just used the box to send me something. I open it up and I see something fuzzy and maroon--ooooh! My favorite color!!! Whatever it was, I KNEW I was going to like it just cause it's red!
What I pulled out was a BEAUTIFUL maroon scarf. I gasped, "I LOOOOOVE IT!!!!!" Then I read the note she included (which also said not to open until x-mas, but again, couldn't resist and figured, what the hell, I've already opened my gift!). She wrote about how she hand-knitted the scarf; that it took 3 days (though in actual hours was probably a day) and how proud she was of it. Then I thought, "Oh, I love it even MORE!!!"
Christy, you did an AMAZING job on this scarf! I really thought it was from the store till I read the note! I absolutely love it!!!!! Thank you thank you thank you thank you!!! And BTW, I have a gift for you, I just have to get it wrapped and in the mail. Yay! I love Christmas!!
Posted by Amy at 09:58 AM | Comments (0)
December 19, 2005
Peace from Within
As we approach the Christmas holiday, my friend Sheri reminds us all what's really important. I'm so very thankful that I can count so many loving people among my family and friends. Most especially Don--the sweetest and bestest husband in the world! That's really all I need. That and maybe a new BMW Z4. Just kidding!! ;-P
"Peace from Within"
As the corporations take over and the little shops close down
The last wetland gets paved leaving an asphalt ground
Our children stay inside as the television calls their name
Blasting out advertisements for the best video game
We forget there's an environment, a planet, we call Earth
We lose track of her beauty, frailty and all that she's worth
We plunder her body, her oceans, her mountains and skies
Cut down her forests, waste water, drain her resources dry
The youth look up to pop stars, and treat tabloids like Bibles
Their selfish ways producing the next round of American Idols
Americans drive around in Hummers, roll in their Escalades
Blind while the terrorists smile at all the profits they made
We worry not for the future and put faith in today's luck
We sacrifice quality for quantity in order to make a quick buck
Where does greed end? When will the love ever begin?
When will we learn from our mistakes and start peace from within?
-- by Sheri Kowalski
Posted by Amy at 03:30 PM | Comments (0)
December 18, 2005
NSG Christmas Party
We had our NSG company Christmas party yesterday. It went pretty darned well. People showed up well on time and Don was very happy to have mini tacos for hors d'oeuvres!
We all left for Champion House, a Japanese steakhouse restaurant. The chef there put on a really good show, as usual. Tossed a shrimp right into Don's mouth, but couldn't seem to get on to Tim Mahoney. heh. But he put oil on the grill and made a big flash of fire which was impressive, except it scared poor Derek. At least he's got good instincts! We all had a very good meal and went back to the house for dessert and the White Elephant gift exchange. (I was actually surprised to find out that Meijer's actually has really good pies! Mmmmmmm!)
There were some really good gifts this time. I opened up a bag with a nice candle, champagne and a chocolate-covered apple. But that got "stolen" from me. Then I opened up another bag packed with stuff for watching movies--a couple of popcorn tubs, popcorn, Twizzlers, and other goodies. But that got stolen from me again! I thought I was going to get stuck with the snarling King Kong doll, but even THAT got stolen from me. HA! I was glad for that. Don and I ended up with the two gifts we actually bought for the whole thing. Heh!! Isn't that ironic?
Jessica got the Darth Vader helmet that changes your voice. She tried it on and started talking, but it TOTALLY freaked out Derek. Poor thing started crying and couldn't even look at it without backing up in terror. So we put it in a bag for Jess to take home to give to Brian. I joked that because it scared Derek so much, Brian could only use it in the bedroom and that Jessica could be Princess Leia with the metal bikini--every Star Wars geek's fantasy. HAHA!!
Afterwards, most people had left and it was just me, Don, Danielle and Ryan. We spent some time playing with the Atari flashback game console remembering how bad the games were back in the day, yet how we thought it was cool because we didn't have anything better (or like it).
I had a great time having everyone over, playing with my cutie nephew and showing off our house all decked out in bells of holly. Fa la la la laaa, la la la laaa!! I can't wait for Christmas!!!!
Posted by Amy at 09:20 PM | Comments (0)
Unbelievable!
It's unbelievable! We were at the Creekside Grill bar on Friday and another fight broke out! Seems like everywhere Don and I go, trouble seems to follow. And it's not like we're involved or any part of the trouble; it just happens around us.
We were sitting at the bar eating dinner and watching the Pistons game and it was pretty busy. There were lots of people there. I was thinking, we're at the bar, I hope another fight doesn't break out. And JUST at the same moment I thought that, I turn to my left and see some sort of commotion. Some guy on a barstool had fallen in his chair to the floor. He got up and his head was dripping blood.
From what I could tell happened, he tried to buy a girl a drink, she didn't like it, he didn't like getting rejected and called her some really ugly names, she got pissed at him and somehow, he ended up on the floor. I don't know if she pushed him or if it was someone standing up for her or what. But the bartenders managed to separate them (we were smack in the middle). Don and I were trying to get out by going the long way around and just as we were, the whole bar started pushing and shoving each other. Don saw some short guy (who we think was a manager) get this really tall dude into a full nelson and drag him out the door.
I had to duck in by this girl sitting at a tall table next to where the whole thing started; I was trying to avoid not getting run over by the guys trying to drag people out. I saw poor Bill, our favorite waiter who's quite a large guy, get buried in the hullaballoo. We just decided to get the hell out of there. I knew it would be really ugly if more people got involved and, as Don says, if Don got into it, people would be going to the hospital. And I know he's right!
I really hate to say this, but I almost wish Don would have taken down that guy who was pissed at his girlfriend at the Quarter--I think it would have been kind of cool to see what he's really capable of in a real situation. Besides, that was happening out in the open in the parking lot. But I'm glad he didn't get involved in what was going on at Creekside. It was a really tight area and there were SEVERAL people going at it, so I know it would have been ugly whichever way it ended up.
Like I said before, Ann Arbor is a place NOT for lack of interesting things going on!
Posted by Amy at 09:04 PM | Comments (0)
December 14, 2005
Mongoola
Hey everyone! Don's finally jumped on the train and created a cool blog for himself. Please check it out! He's already written about a few very interesting subjects. Here's the link: Mongoola's Blog
Posted by Amy at 10:00 AM | Comments (0)
December 12, 2005
A Most Interesting Weekend
When our refrigerator crapped out on us this week and we found out it would cost as much to repair as it would to get a new one, Don set out on a mission to get a new one and get one fast. We shopped at Sears, but they gave us the runaround on when it would arrive, so he immediately went to Lowe's who promised him it would be here Saturday after 2pm, when we'd be home.
The delivery men came after 3pm, but made as little effort as possible to let us know they had arrived. We were downstairs watching tv. They knocked so lightly, we couldn't hear it and when we didn't come to answer the door, they didn't bother to use the doorbell! Morons!! Don had to call Lowe's to get them to come back, which they didn't until after 6pm!
After they finally hooked up the fridge, we went to dinner at The Quarter. We sat in the bar area since we didn't want to wait a long time for a table. The food was great as usual, but the whole time, I was watching these people that I couldn't figure out. There were 2 guys at the bar talking to these 2 girls behind them at a table. I thought they were just hitting on them and wouldn't leave them alone. It was apparent that both these guys had had too much to drink. Then one of the bartenders left to go home and one of the women went with her. So there was one woman left at the table seemingly alone. (She told me later her name was Donna.) She was still talking to those 2 guys, but she was crying and I didn't know why.
Then this other woman, Lisa, at the bar went over to her to "rescue" her. Lisa seemed to befriend Donna and was going to take her somewhere else, but one of the guys (Dave) followed them out. This made me worry cause I thought maybe this guy was a stalker. Don and I had finished dinner and paid our bill, so we hurried out to the parking lot to make sure this guy didn't start any trouble.
When we got out there, Lisa was yelling at Dave, "Are you KIDDING ME?? You TOUCHED her!" And, of course, Dave was yelling back. Then the manager and another bartender came out and tried to get him to leave, but he wouldn't, so they called the police. Turns out Dave was Donna's boyfriend.
He kept walking toward her and we kept putting ourselves between them to make sure he didn't take a swing at her. I was afraid that Don might have to take this guy down, but luckily, he didn't try anything. He took off and finally, the cops came. I just hope she didn't go home with him! But Donna gave them a description of his car and I think they went out to arrest him for assault. We decided to leave. Don didn't want to get involved in a domestic dispute; I just wanted to make sure he wasn't going to hit her.
At least we had a pleasant lunch on Sunday with my aunt, uncle and cousins. We had dim sum at our favorite Chinese restaurant, Shangri-La. Then we went basically finished our Christmas shopping. I got half-way done wrapping everything before I ran out of tape. Boy! I'm kinda tired just thinking about this weekend! Ann Arbor sure doesn't lack for being an interesting place to live!
Posted by Amy at 12:00 PM | Comments (0)
December 08, 2005
Japanese Steakhouse Dinner
Last night, I went to dinner with my family at Benihana's in Troy. My aunt and uncle were in town from Thailand to visit their children. Rose is about 4 months pregnant with her second child--something tells me it'll be a girl since all the Surakomol women tend to have only one boy. And Grace and Joom are getting married in a few weeks. So we had PLENTY to celebrate.
Plus, Gino was there. I swear I have two of THE smartest nephews in the world! Derek knows a little sign language and Gino speaks in Thai! Gino's very inquisitive and amazingly social. I very much enjoyed sitting next to him during dinner. He loves his Thomas the Train (like Derek) and was fascinated by the little umbrellas that came in Rosie's drink. He was also having a ball squeezing my nose so that I'd go "BeeeeeEEEEP!" What a gorgeous little guy!! His pictures just don't do him enough justice at how adorably cute he is!
Though, this is the 3rd time I've been to a Japanese steakhouse in the last 2 weeks. And we're going to go to Champion House (another Japanese steakhouse) in Ann Arbor for the NSG Christmas party. I love the food, but I hope I'm not tired of it after that. Yummy chicken fried rice and tender steak cooked on the hibachi with garlic butter and soy sauce! Mmmmmmm!! And with lovely grilled onions and mushrooms! *smacks lips* Yeah, I don't think I'll get tired of it!
Posted by Amy at 05:00 PM | Comments (0)
Superstar!
I finally got copies of the pictures from our web marketing team photo shoot. So, I'm posting it as promised. (Boy, Matt loves that bright red shirt of his!)
Posted by Amy at 02:36 PM | Comments (0)
December 07, 2005
No Comment
All,
I've had to turn off the comments for my blog...I discovered today that I've been getting spammed. I've deleted the offending spam, but I'll have to figure out how to make it like Jessica's blog so that you have to register and sign in to make a comment. Sorry folks! If you'd like to leave me comments (and I welcome them), you'll have to email me at priori2ude @ yahoo dot com for the time being.
Amy
Posted by Amy at 10:02 PM | Comments (0)
December 06, 2005
Frosty Jokes
Ok, Christy, my genius pen pal came up with some absolutely HILARIOUS
captions for that Frosty the Snowman in the Lansing La Seniorita bathroom. That thing is just wrong on SOOOOO many levels. Enjoy!!!!
Posted by Amy at 12:00 PM | Comments (2)
December 04, 2005
More Shopping
Went to Lansing this weekend. Nick was teaching a couple of seminars for Jujitsu which Don wanted to go to--I can't do that, but I wanted to hang out with Pammie. We stayed at the Marriott Hotel on Lake Lansing Road. Let me just say that the beds there SUCK! I may as well have been sleeping on the floor. The pillows were totally flat--I had two under my head and it barely felt like one. I slept for crap. Plus I forgot to pack Don's allergy medication which keeps him from snoring and the radiator kept coming on every 10 minutes making a loud buzzing sound. Needless to say I took a much needed nap when we got home.
On the bright side, Pam and I went shopping again and, as always when I'm with her, I find tons of neat things to decorate the house with. Found all sorts of cool Asian items like Chinese dog statues, painted vases, candles and other cool stuff. Plus, she and I spent about 45 minutes in the hot tub. The water could have been warmer for my taste, but the heat still felt good for my legs. Especially after we did every kick possible in advanced class and Don did all the lower series stuff (which means more kicking) in regular class earlier on Saturday before we got to Lansing.
Then on Sunday, we all met up at La Senorita after the guys finished morning training. Pam went to the bathroom and was greeted by a 7-foot tall Frosty the Snowman staring RIGHT into the bathroom window. GAAAAAHH!! He was frightening! And talk about creepy! How would you like Frosty looking in at you while you go pee? HA!! What the hell were they thinking!
Posted by Amy at 11:00 PM | Comments (3)