Mishmash Musings

Well, I try, I really do. But Howard, my neighbor from two doors down is so annoying that I try to avoid him whenever possible. He’s one of those retired guys who is always around, always out in the yard or garage tinkering with something — and he always comes by to chat even when he can clearly see that I’m busy (like when I’ve got an armful of groceries or am on my way out of the house). This drives me absolutely nuts!

I know he’s just trying to be nice and friendly, but seriously, I could use with a little less chatter. He talks about everything from typical elderly afflictions like arthritis and hearing loss, to the type of auto insurance policy he has, his search for an attorney for a potential lawsuit, and whatever his 10-year-old grandson’s latest accomplishments are.

It’s so hard for me to stand there nodding politely with a fake smile plastered on my face while I pray for him to just. finish. already. Ugh!

And no, I don’t think it’s a case of an old man feeling lonely. He has a wife, and they often have friends over for cards (I see them playing on the deck in summer) and dinner. He’s just a chatty Cathy. What can I do to get out of these unwanted conversations?!

I do a lot of work from home, so I need the ability to stay connected and stay mobile no matter where I go. I hate my huge old laptop, and had been looking at netbooks for a long time.

Well, I’m happy to say that I finally did manage to save up enough money to buy one! In the end, I went with an Acer Aspire, which set me back more than $300. But I absolutely love it! It’s fast and functional, while being extremely light and portable at the same time. I love being able to carry my work around with me in my backpack (instead of that massive laptop case)!

Oh, it’s gonna be great sitting out on the deck this summer with my little Aspire as I type out blog entries and update my Facebook status!

Have you heard about what happened at LAX yesterday? A Japan Airlines Boeing 747 was backing out of the gate at the international terminal in preparation for takeoff to Tokyo when one of the plane’s 4 engines sucked in a baggage cart! I guess it’s a good thing none of the handlers was standing near the cart, huh?

The 245 passengers and 18 crew members were given other flight arrangements, and JAL of course took the damaged plane to a hangar to be inspected and repaired.

Even though that happened on the ground, it sounds like a pretty scary incident. The crazy thing for me is that I’ve actually taken that flight from LAX to Narita. If I’d been on that plane, I probably would have freaked out because I’m kind of a white-knuckle flyer to begin with — at least during takeoffs and landings.

Have a look at a screen-grab from video of the incident. Yikes!

I’ve seen lots of people doing this meme on Facebook recently, so I thought I’d play along on my blog. What are five movies that make you cry, no matter how many times you’ve seen them? For me, the answers are pretty easy:

1. Forrest Gump — usually when Forrest is talking to Jenny at her grave under their tree and says that their son wrote her a letter, but he’s not allowed to read it.
2. ET — when is looks like ET is dead, and then again when he leaves Elliot at the end.
3. Rudy — when Rudy finally gets into Notre Dame, when the players turn in their jerseys so he can play in the last home game, when he finally gets into the game, and when he’s carried off the field on his teammates’ shoulders. Awesome!
4. Terms of Endearment — when Emma (Debra Winger) has to say goodbye to her kids before she dies. OMG, so sad — especially now that I have a son of my own.
5. Life is Beautiful — When Guido is caught by the Nazi guards and even as he is being marched away to be executed, manages to keep up the charade for his young son and make him laugh one last time.

As I was surfing around today, I noticed that lots of websites were talking about Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt allegedly getting back together. This rumor stems from a story in tabloid In Touch, which claims that the once-married superstars have been, well, in touch again.

According to the magazine article (which I have not read), Jen and Brad started texting each other, then calling, and then had a meeting in New York City, where Jen is currently filming. The magazine cover proclaims that the two met on the night of April 23, and further states that Brad was essentially “defying Angelina” by going.

Oh, and the cover shows Pitt and Aniston allegedly wearing matching necklaces that Jen bought.

First of all, I can’t believe all the mileage this story is getting. I’ve seen it being discussed on numerous blogs and message boards, as well as everything from news sites and gay travel agencies. Seriously, it seems like everyone’s interested in Brad and Jen!

Of course, I don’t know what really happened, but if I had to guess, I think In Touch is blowing the whole thing out of proportion. Maybe the two did meet, but if they did, I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t have been in defiance of Angelina.

There must have been a good reason and Angelina must have given the green light for the meeting. The three of them — and their connection — is far too big a subject for tabloid fodder for them to have tried doing this behind someone’s back.

Arlen Specter is the latest politician to change allegiance while in the middle of serving a term. The senator from Pennsylvania had served as a Republican since 1981, but recently declared himself a Democrat.

Now, I’m not saying that Specter can’t have a change of heart like that, but what a slap in the face to people who have supported him over the past few decades.

I hate when pols change party affiliation in the middle of serving their term. I know the label is just a formality really, since they can vote whichever way they want no matter which party they belong to, but still…. It just reeks of disrespect to voters and bugs me to no end.

Oh, well. On the bright side, it’s not as though Specter had the most conservative voting record anyway. Plus, he’s ancient… 79 years old or something, so it shouldn’t be long before he relinquishes his seat!

Ready for a great freebie? The Oprah Winfrey Show and KFC are teaming up to giveaway FREE chicken dinners! This giveaway is to promote KFC’s new grilled chicken menu items, and all you have to do to get your FREE dinner is click the following link:

http://media.oprah.com/sterm/KFC_Coupon_OprahWebsite.pdf

It’s a PDF file that contains the coupon that you can then print and redeem at KFC. You’ll get a two-piece Grilled Chicken Dinner, which includes 2 sides and a biscuit. Offer is valid from May 5 until May 19 (excluding Mother’s Day), but the coupon is only available for download until tomorrow night (9 a.m. CDT on May 5, 2009, to 9:59 p.m. CDT on May 6, 2009).

Get yours now!!

I was browsing through random blogspot blogs today and came across this one called Sunday Stealing. I’ve never heard of it before, but apparently, they “steal” all different kinds of memes from the blogosphere and social networking sites, making it easier for people to find the “interesting” ones. Their meme for today, called “Twenty Firsts”, looked pretty fun, so I thought I’d play along. Here goes!

First Job: I worked as a cashier at a convenience store the summer before I went off to college.

First Real Job: Printing press operator at a place that put out weight loss pill review brochures and sales fliers.

First Favorite Politician: Richard Nixon. Unapologetically, Richard Nixon.

First Car: 1986 Ford Taurus in 1993.

First Record/CD: Bryan Adams, Reckless (for Summer of ’69, which I loved).

First Sport Played: Softball.

First Concert: I was not much of a concert person, but my first one was, embarrassingly enough, the George Michael Faith tour.

First Foreign Country Visited: Canada. First one that required a passport was France.

First Favorite TV Show: Cagney & Lacey. Sure, I watched the Brady Bunch and stuff like that when I was younger, but Cagney & Lacey was the first show I begged to stay up to watch, and the first show where I thought about the characters even when the TV was off.

First Favorite Actor: Michael J. Fox

First Favorite Actress: Sharon Gless

First Girlfriend/Boyfriend: Dan M.

First Encounter with a Famous Person: When I was 8, I attended a baseball camp put on by Bill Buckner of the Chicago Cubs.

First Brush With Death: Got into a car accident on the highway while on my aforementioned trip to Canada.

First House/Condo Owned: The one I’m currently living in. It’s a condo.

First Film Seen: I recall seeing the first Star Wars in a theater — and being so bored that I fell asleep until the medal ceremony at the end!

First Favorite Recording Artist: Whitney Houston.

First Favorite Radio Station: Hmm, don’t remember that one.

First Book I Remember Reading: Sylvester and the Magic Pebble.

First Meme You Answered on Your Blog: I have no idea!