Day Of Prayer For New Orleans

For those of you expecting to read something funny or sarcastic, or read about something bizarre that happened on the way home yesterday, I hope you're not disappointed.  Something did happen last night, but it wasn't really bizarre, and it wasn't funny.  I spent most of the evening quiet (hard to believe, I know) and at times, sick to my stomach, as I thought about the devasation in New Orleans and the other cities hit hard by Katrina.  Before I went to bed, I heard on the news that the main levee had broken in New Orleans, and soon the entire city would be flooded.  Louisiana's Governor has asked that today be a national day of prayer for New Orleans and it's people. 

I'd like to ask you, my faithful readers, to take the time that you would have spent reading an entry in TWIT and use those minutes to pray for those affected by the hurricane. 

I Was A Dealer

It's an all-too familiar site on school playgrounds and parking lots these days - the students gathered around a drug dealer, handing them their lunch money and allowance in exchange for a joint or pills or powder or crystal rocks in a little plastic bag. The dealer is always smiling; they're getting a wad of cash and are making a hefty profit, at some poor kid's expense.  I have a secret to share with you, my faithful readers.  Back in elementary school, I was a dealer. We didn't even know what pot or crack was back then.  We dealt in a much hotter commodity: I was a cinnamon toothpick dealer.

The cinnamon toothpick lab was our kitchen counter.  It was a very simple process: soak wooden toothpicks in cinnamon oil.  The finished product would then be wrapped in aluminum foil and tucked into my purse or book satchel for transport. Most would be sold on the bus before we would even get to school.  I made some good money on these, since I had no overhead and no production costs, since the toothpicks and cinnamon oil came from our kitchen cabinet.  When my supply would be getting low, I'd simply toss a box of toothpicks or a bottle of cinnamon oil into the grocery cart when Mom was doing her shopping, and she was none the wiser.

The kids liked my cinnamon toothpicks the best, since they were stronger because I soaked them in the cinnamon oil longer. They all knew not to give me away if they got caught with them in class; they were loyal clients.  But I never heard of any of my clients getting in trouble with the teachers over having cinnamon toothpicks during class.  I'm sure they must have thought they were teaching a classroom full of James Deans or Marlon Brandos, seeing us kids sitting there chewing on toothpicks.

The longer you would chew or suck on the cinnamon toothpicks, the hotter they would get.  Only the wusses would spit them out when they got hot. Some of the real tough kids would take this one step farther - they would take Kleenax or toilet paper, and wad it up to about the size of a big pea, and then put the cinnamon oil on the wad and then put it between their cheek and gum, just like snuff or chewing tobacco.  Talk about hot. You had to be one real tough kid to do this and not have the tears start flowing like water.   I never did this; I kept my covetedbottle of cinnamon oil at home in the kitchen cabinet, and I would have never even thought of bringing it to school, for fear some other dealer would hit me and steal it. 

I kept my personal stash of cinnamon toothpicks in a very cool old glass spice bottle that Grandma gave to me.  It even had a cool glass and rubber stopper on it, so they would stay good and fresh.  I came across that bottle the other day in the cabinet when I was looking for some corriander. When I opened it, you could still smell a hint of cinnamon.  I looked some more, and found the old bottle of cinnamon oil.  Maybe I'll make a batch tonight and take them to work tomorrow.

Winners From The 2005 Kentucky State Fair

The blue ribbon for the Most Over-Priced Item At The Kentucky State Fair goes to the folks at the Coco Bongo booth for their $8 Monkey Nut.  For those not familiar with this tropical delicacy, it's a fruit smoothie served in a coconut shell carved to look like a monkey. I'm pretty sure I saw the coconut monkey cups at Everything's A Deal or at Big Lots. (On a side note, the Most Over-Priced Item Sold At Slugger Field is a smoothie served in a plastic tiki glass, also for $8.)

The prize for the Most Reasonably Priced Item At The Kentucky State Fair (reasonably priced by state fair gouging standards) goes to the few booths selling cold bottled water for only $1.  Concession stands sold bottled water for $2.50 or $3, but you could find a few booths in the east wing selling it for a buck.  Last year, one of the bigger churches in the county was giving away free bottles of Dasani water.  This year, they only gave you a free bottle of water if you asked for information on joining their church.

The award for Best Free Item At The Kentucky State Fair goes to the healthcare group that was giving out free purple yo-yos.  They couldn't open the cases and hand them out fast enough.

Rockstar: INXS - Round 8

Suzie - sang "Start Me Up" by the Rolling Stones.  Excellent arrangemt.  Good stage presence.  You could feel the rock and roll.  Props for stage diving.
J.D. - sang "Cold As Ice" by Foreigner.  Acted too cocky.  The song sounded like it should have been in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.  Missed some notes.
Deanna - sang "The Truth" written by her.  Bad ass song.  Sang with power. Very cool clothes. A very well written song.
Ty - sang "Proud Mary" by Tina Turner. Good showmanship.  Sang with soul. Good arrangement with backup singers. Screamed too much, but at least didn't use big Broadway voice.
Mig - sang "Do Or Die" written by him.  Good well written rock song. Good stage presence. Stayed on pitch on high notes. Looks and acts like a rock star.
Marty - sang "I Alone" by Live.  Looked scarey.  Stayed on pitch on soft, low parts but was weak. Lost pitch when he screamed.
Jordis - sang "Dream On" by Aerosmith.  Bluesy on intro.  Focussed on hitting the high note too much that she seemed to muddle through rest of the song.  Should not have even attempted to hit the high note.

The voting results were revealed and the three that received the least amount of votes sang an INXS song.

Ty - sang "What You Need."  Good stage presence.  Didn't scream too much, and didn't use big Broadway voice.  Had fun with the song.
Deanna - sang "Elegantly Wasted." Sounded like Melissa Etheridge singing INXS.  Had good stage presence, and had fun.  Had trouble with pitch on the chorus.
Marty - sang "Don't Change." What was up with the fake British accent? Props for not screaming.  Trouble with pitch on chorus.

Another female rocker is eliminated as INXS tells Deanna she's not right for the band. 

Link Of The Week

There's been some major online search engine work this week.  In preparation for our upcoming trip to Graceland in a few weeks, The Divas have been trying to find info about an episode from "Coach" where Luther is at some convention, and is wearing pajamas that look like one of Elvis' jumpsuits.  During our searches, we came across an awesome TV site that you've got to check out.  It's simply http://www.tv.com.  You can find episode guides for practically every TV show ever shown - on regular TV and on cable.  The Divas highly recommend it.

You Go, President Niyazov

President bans lip synching in Turkmenistan

ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AP) — He has outlawed opera and ballet and railed against long hair and gold teeth, but now Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov is determined to wipe out another perceived scourge: lip synching.

Niyazov has ordered a ban on lip synching performances across the tightly controlled Central Asian nation, citing "a negative effect on the development of singing and musical art," the president's office said Tuesday.

"Unfortunately, one can see on television old voiceless singers lip-synching their old songs," Niyazov told a Cabinet meeting in comments broadcast on state TV on Tuesday. "Don't kill talents by using lip synching... Create our new culture."

Under Niyazov's order, lip synching is now prohibited at all cultural events, concerts, on television — and at private celebrations such as weddings.

Niyazov has led the former Soviet republic for 20 years, creating a vast personality cult around himself and issuing decrees regulating behavior in all walks of life.

In 2001, Niyazov banned opera and ballet as not corresponding with the national mentality. Last year, he called for young people not to get gold tooth caps and urged authorities to crack down on young men wearing beards or long hair.

 

Wow.  I bet President Niyazov watched Ashlee Simpson on "Saturday Night Live" last year.  If this were to happen here in the U.S., we could eliminate about 99% of the rock, country, hip-hop and rap stars. 

Ten Things I Have No Use For

1.  Any entertainer who smashes a guitar on stage
2.  Sushi
3.  Gum chewers who pop and/or smack their gum
4.  Black ink pens
5.  Frogs
6.  Cigarette smoke
7.  Drug dealers
8.  The thick, white core pieces of lettuce
9.  Celery
10. Someone who cheats on their spouse/partner

Let's Hear It For The Naked Ladies

Some of you have asked me about The Compound, and requested that I share more pictures of The Compound with you.  Not being one to disappoint my faithful readers, here is a picture taken last night of our beloved Belladonna lillies, aka Naked Ladies. I first heard my Grandmother and our neighbors refer to these lillies as Naked Ladies when I was a little kid, and I thought the name was just hilarious.  Now that I'm in my 40's, I still think the name is hilarious.  In fact, even today, my family and neighbors still call them Naked Ladies.

We were sweating it out this past few weeks, because our Naked Ladies always bloom at the end of July. The Naked Ladies were out in full force across the street but ours and Miss Rosemary's were just being stubborn, I guess.  I kept a vigilant watch over the ground, just waiting for the bulbs to start poking through.  But the weeks went by and we resigned ourselves to the fact that maybe the weather had some affect on them. But this past Sunday, they started to come up, and how they're finally here. Aren't they beautiful?

More Crime In The Street

I'm sorry to report even more news of crime in my peaceful, quiet 'hood.  Neighbors gathered in our backyard last night to talk about yesterday's meth lab drama, each family having some different piece of information to contribute.  The main theme of the evening was how nobody knew it was going on; nobody suspected a meth lab was in operation just up the street.  As we were chatting about the meth lab, some neighbors down the street walked up and gave us more news: this past Thursday, police raided a house just four doors down from us, and found a small field full of marijuana plants.  Techinically, the pot house was four houses down from The Compound, but it's actually it's a bit farther than a standard four-houses-down distance due to it being below the miniature horse farm and store.  But it was four houss from us nonetheless.  And once again, as with the meth lab, we all were clueless.

One neighbor said they saw the police helicopter flying low over that area last week.  We didn't think much of that, since they usually fly low over the Riverport area any way.  But I guess the police copter wasn't flying low just to get a look at the donkeys.  Another  neighbor was an eye witness to the raid, and said she saw them haul away a few of the plants.  Her daughter, who is not the sharpest crayon in the box, rolled her eyes and said "Mo-therrrr.  Please. It was only a little bit; it's not like they had an acre planted or anything." Well that brilliant reasoning makes us all feel a whole lot better.  A little or a lot; the last time I checked it was all still illegal.

I've thought a lot about woman that was shot to death last week, and the meth lab up the street and now the pot bust down the street.  I'm far from a naive person. I'm usually as opposite of naive as you can get about most things.  But this is something you just don't want to believe.  Shootings and drug raids are things we see happening in other parts of the city; not on our street.  As I think about this, I also think about two weeks ago, when the cities all over the country sponsored a "National Night Out", urging people to turn on their front porch lights, and gather outside with their neighbors and take back their city from the clutches of drugs and shootings.  That night here in Louisville, there were three murders within a twelve hour period.  So much for that.

Rockstar: INXS - Round 7

Jordis - sang "Knocking On Heaven's Door" by Bob Dylan.  Good arrangement, especially with the string quartet.  Put emotion into the strong parts of the song.  You could feel it.
Jessica - sang "Torn" by Natalie Imbruglia. Sounded like Top 40 karaoke.  Shakey on the intro. No passion or emotion.
Ty - sang "Maggie May" by Rod Stewart. Good arrangement.  Had bun with the song.  Used big Broadway voice. Screamed too much.
Suzie - sang "Bring It On Home To Me" by Sam Cooke.  Good arrangement. Nailed it.  Should do more R&B.  Was very Janis Joplin-esque.
Marty - sang "Baby One More Time" by Brittany Spears. Excellent.  Good arrangement. Loved the darkness he into the song.  Clothes were very rock and roll.
Deanna - sang "I Can't Make You Love Me" by Bonnie Raitt.  Voice was shakey.  Lost pitch on low parts.  Seemed very uncomfortable with the song.
Mig - sang "Baby I Love Your Way" by Peter Frampton.  Excellent version with just the strings and him playing piano.  Felt it.  Showed emotion.  First standing ovation of the show.
J.D. - sang "As Tears Go By" by the Rolling Stones.  Too breathy. No control over voice. Talked instead of singing. No passion or emotion.

The voting results were revealed and the three with the least amount of votes sang an INXS song.
 
Suzie - sang "By My Side."  Stayed on pitch.  Built the song with each verse until the peak - showed her full strength and control. 
Jessica - sang "Mystify." INXS reminded her this was the 4th week in a row she'd been in the bottom three.  Stayed on pitch.  Another good version of an INXS song.
Deanna - sang "Never Tear Us Apart."  Didn't use her rock and roll voice - toned it down a bit.

The fourth time was not the charm for Jessica.  She got the boot when  INXS told her that she wasn't right for the band.

There Goes The Neighborhood

I'm sad to report that crime has once again entered out peaceful, quiet 'hood.  Early this morning, police raided a house with a meth lab about 3/4 of a mile from The Compound. The raid happened at about 3:00 this morning, and as 6:00 this evening, they are still there removing the chemicals and paraphernalia.  Imagine our suprise this morning when we found out.  The house is on Greenwood Road, where The Compound is located.  Our company president and old family friend lives directly across the street from the house where the meth lab was.  In fact, my parents and his parents were friends with the family that lived in that house before the meth cooks moved in. 

The police said that the meth lab was "huge", and that it appeared to have been in operation there for "quite some time."  That makes us feel real good.  I think back to all of the times that either Mom or I went up to our friend's house to get his mail and newspaper while he was on vacation.  I was just up there about a month ago. His mail box and paper box are right in front of the meth lab house.  In fact, if traffic is coming, you have to stand in the meth lab house's driveway so you don't get sideswiped by a car before you go back across the road.  I remember looking at the house, thinking how quiet it was there.  Little did I know what was going on behind those brick walls.

I started thinking about the couple that was allegedly making the meth in the house (we must remember that they are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law).  Did I ever pass by them in the store while they were buying a dozen boxes of Sudafed?  Did they go to the Walgreens up on the corner to buy batteries to get the lithium?  Did they go to our Home Depot to buy the big buckets and containers?  I guess I'll never know.  And somehow, even as curious as I am about things like this, I don't think I really want to know.

Top Ten Things Seen At The 2005 Kentucky State Fair

This is also titled "Top Ten Things Seen At The 2005 Kentucky State Fair That Should Been In Gretchen Wilson's 'Redneck Woman' Video"

1. Older model Bronco with giant tires and the back cut off,making it look like an El Camino sans the back window.
2. "Save A Horse, Ride A Cowboy" t-shirt
3. Airbrushed thongs (note: the booth had one on display that was airbrushed with   "Kentucky State Fair 2005")
4. Woman (using term loosely) wearing jeans with a Skoal ring
5. NASCAR mini-blinds
6. Four year old with a mullet
7. Wind chimes made from Vienna Sausage cans
8. Do-rag imprinted with "Hell Yeah"
9. "If It Ain't Country, It Ain't Music" license plate frame
10."Nothing Runs Like A Deere" large area rug

Link Of The Week

As most of you know from reading TWIT for the past year, I've got a pretty decent collection of celebrity autographs.  Most of these were obtained in person; some I've gotten from eBay. 

If you'd like to get a celebrity's autograph on a cool photo, you can do it and help out the celebrity's favorite charity.  Just go to http://www.autographedtoyou.com.  Don't expect to find Brad Pitt or Reba McEntire on there, but they do have over 1000 B-List celebrities. For about $30-$50 you can get a photo of the celebrity, personally autographed to you.  I just ordered a personally autographed photo of my beloved Donna Mills, the star of "Knots Landing." 

If any of you, my faithful readers, would like a personally autographed photo of me, just leave me a note in comments.  I'll send it to you for free.

Another Email Questionaire

1. How many keys are on your keychain? 13 - for the BMW, Blazer and the Odyssey; for home, work; church and for a couple of friends' houses;and one for the trunk that holds band and musical stuff.
2. What are your favorite pizza toppings? Olives and mushrooms (sorry, Stacy)
3. How did you first learn about the birds and the bees? From my Mom.
4. Are you a Harry Potter reader? Uh, no. Couldn't tell you a thing about it, except that some friends said my old glasses made me look like Harry Potter.
5. You've just won a 3-week vacation, which option do you pick: a cruise and a resort stay, or an adventure trip through the Amazon? It would be a resort stay, hands down.  Divas are born to be pampered.
6. If forced to choose, would you rather eat a bowl full of live cockroaches or a bowl full of cat puke? Hmmm not much of a choice here. I'd go with the roaches. They can get kinda big, so hopefully there wouldn't be too many in the bowl.
7. When was the last time you cried?  Getting personal here, aren't we? In all honesty, it was about a half hour ago.  I can blame it on the paramenpause.
8. Where do you see yourself living and what do you see yourself doing 5 years from now? I still see myself in Louisville, hopefully having received a major promotion at work.
9. Have you ever asked for a raise? How? Did you get it? Yes.  I gave my boss a list of my accomplishments and responsibilities for the past year, and simply said that I felt I deserved a raised based on my performance.  And I got it.
10.What was the last thing you ordered from a catalog/online? Smart Media card for my digital camera.

24 Hours

It's been a very twisted twenty-four hours. Other words could be used to describe the past day - disgusting, frightening, sad, etc.  But for now, we'll stick with 'twisted.'

Louisvillians would have to be living under a rock to not know about the scarey number of murders this year in Louisville.  To narrow it down even more, just this summer. Yesterday, we had three homicides in a twenty-four hour period.  One yesterday morning happened less than a mile from The Compound. A sicko shot his wife to death in the yard of her 80 year-old mother's house.  It happened a stone's throw from the corner convenience store and the Kroger's that we visit just about every other day.  I'm being a bit melodramatic here - it's not like his homicide was a random shooting, but it still happened less than a mile from where I live.  After the sicko killed his wife, he went about a mile to his house, where he had an arsenal stored.  He was holed up in there until 2:30 this morning, when the police caught him as he was trying to sneak out of the house.  This scene happened in the shadows of an elementary school, which was on lockdown all day long.  Stuff like this isn't supposed to happen in our quiet neighborhood. 

While this guy was still barracaded in his house, the second homicide happened. A guy was shot to death in one of the 'hoods on the outskirts of downtown.  This particular homicide didn't get very much air time on the news stations, as it's something that happens all too frequently here in Louisville any more. 

The third homicide in the twenty-four hour period got a bit more coverage on the news channels and in the newspaper.  It happened just about a mile from where I work at a boarding house.  A man got his throat slit because a guy accused him of using his cast iron skillet.  Please - I am not making this up. A witness said the two guys were arguing over a cast iron skillet for an hour. The witness said the killer, who remains at large, was angry because he was convinced the victim used his cast-iron skillet. So he just slit his throat.

I know it's the full moon, but this is ridiculous.

Here's The Boys

I've had a few requests over the past few weeks to post a recent picture of my boys, aka Pancho and Pedro. I've also had several faithful readers inquire about how the boys sleep - do they sleep standing up like horses, or do they lay down?  Not being one to disappoint my faithful readers, here's a picture taken early this morning when they were just waking up.  That's Pancho with the white nose, and Pedro with the black nose.  Aren't they adorable?

 

School Days

After numerous emails and phone calls last night and this morning, I'm hapy to report that the children of friends and co-workers all had a great, drama-free first day of school.  There were no reports of tears or nervous stomachs, thank goodness.  Other than a couple of school bus issues, the first day of school went well.  It brings to mind my first day of school.

Actually, it was my first day in the first grade.  I had gone to kindergarten the year before, but this was my first day going to Big School on the Big Bus.  The ride to school was smoothe and uneventful. The bus came right on time, picked me up at the end of the driveway, and deposited me safe and sound at Greenwood Elementary.  Once there, Miss Stucker, my first grade teacher, took over and made sure I had a safe and fun first day of school.  When the bell rang, it was time to reverse the process and head back home.  Or so I thought.  I remembered what the bus driver looked like and found her and got on her bus, ready for the trip home. What should have been a 15 minute jaunt slowly evolved into a two hour trip. You see, I assumed that the bus driver knew where I lived.  She didn't. She must have had bad periphreal vision, because she didn't see me sitting there about 6 rows back behind her.  So I got to ride around Pleasure Ridge Park for two long hours, while she picked up students at another school and took them home.  I didn't panic; I was just enjoying the ride. At one point I did wonder if it was going to take this long to get home every day.  When her last riders were dropped off, she finally looked back and saw me and then she was the one to panic.  This was in the days before cell phones, and even before the buses used CB radios.  She drove to a payphone and let me call home to let them know where I was.  By now, my parents and grandparents were also panicking.  Thank goodness I knew my phone number.  And thank goodness I knew my address.  Or else I might have never made it home.

I Need My Head Examined

Every day for the past month, I've passed by a billboard on my way home from work that was advertising a very cool pair of Skecher shoes. Ever since I saw them on the billboard, I've been jonesing for those Skechers.  Yes, I'm well aware that teenagers wear Skechers and I'm 42 years old. But the shoes are very cool and I wanted a pair of them. 

Instead of ordering online at Zappos.com, I finally took the time last night to go up to Shoe Carnival, as they are an official Skechers dealer.  I was on my second trip through the entire shopping center parking lot trying to find a parking space when it occurred to me that I was attempting to go to a shoe store on the night before school started.  Let me add that Shoe Carnival is situated in between Target and Value City, all three of which are back-to-school meccas.  What was I thinking?  Evidently, I wasn't thinking at all. 

I finally found a parking spot probably 100 yards from the Dairy Queen, which is in the farthest part of the shopping center parking lot.  I could deal with all of this, because I really wanted those shoes.  I trudged to the store, which was packed. Once inside, I had to dodge tons of shoppers, all who looked disgusted. As I was looking for the Skechers aisle, I wanted to run up to the booth and grab the microphone from the annoying salesman and yell "Why in heaven's name did you wait until the night before school starts to get your kid school shoes? It's not like this was a date they just sprung on you.; 'Oh, by the way, your child starts to school TOMORROW.'"  These people knew months ago when school would start, and damned if they all didn't pick the one night I decide to go shoe shopping.

I finally found the Skechers and rummaged through the boxes till I found THE shoes.  I tried on my usual 8 1/2.  I could hardly get my big toe in the shoe.  I then tried on a 9.  Still no luck.  After trying a 10 and still not being able to get my big foot into them, I put the shoes back on the shelf and quietly left, cursing the  procrastinating parents and Skechers for evidently putting the wrong sizes on their shoes. 

Oh well. I'll just be content to wear my trusty Doc Martens.  Those Skechers weren't that cool any way.

Rock Star: INXS - Round 6

Suzie - sang "Losing My Religion" by REM. Awesome peformance.  Good arrangement. Stayed on pitch on the strong vocal parts. Really has improved.
Mig - sang "All Right Now" by Free.  One of my all time fave rock songs.  Good stage presence.  Made the song his own.
J.D. - sang "Crazy" by Seal.  Still using big Broadway voice. Struggled to stay on pitch on the screaming parts, and had trouble singing the soft parts.
Jessica - sang "Come As You Are" by Nirvana. Good stage presence and looked like a rock star, but had no passion.  Sounded like Cher singing Nirvana. Lost pitch on the screaming parts.
Jordis - sang "Layla" by Eric Clapton. Strong voice. Good arrangement.  Didn't lose pitch on high notes.  Took a risk with the song and won.
Brandon - sang "It's All Over Now" by the Rolling Stones.  Good arrangement with a gospel feel. Still screamed too much instead of singing. Sounds the same each week regardless of the song.
Marty - sang "Mr. Brightside" by the Killers.  Screamed, even though it was an acoustic performance.  INXS is looking for a lead singer, not a solo performer.
Deanna - sang "Long Train Running" by the Doobie Brothers.  Good stage presence.  Strong voice.  Liked the band interaction.
Ty - sang "No Woman No Cry" by Bob Marley.  Didn't use big Broadway voice.  Good arrangement. Excellent performance - put emotion into it.

The voting results were revealed and the three with the least amount of votes performed and INXS song.

Jessica - sang "Disappear."  Good version.  Didn't sound like Cher singing INXS. Awesome job.
Brandon - sang "Don't Lose Your Head." Totally off key.  Screamed.  Had trouble with the lyrics. 
Suzie - sang "Bitter Tears."  Good stage presence.  Sang with control. 

The band reminded Jessica this was the third week in a row she'd been in the bottom three, but that she has sang all of the INXS songs as if her life depended on it.  In the end, INXS told Brandon he just wasn't right for the band.

Welcome, Old Glory

You know by now that I always try to grant requests by you, my faithful readers.  Today's special request is by my Dad.  He asked me to post a picture of our new flag, proudly flying at The Compound. Long may she wave.

Link Of The Week

My Old Man loves to work the crossword puzzles in the daily newspaper.  He inherited that from his Mom and Dad (my Grandma and Grandpa). They would work diligently in the afternoons, thumbing through their dictionaries for help with words.  Grandpa's crossword puzzle dictionary is one item that I was sure to save in this weekend's Reclaiming Of The Basement.  But today, Dad doesn't have to solely rely on the dictionary for help with the puzzle.  He can fudge a little, and go directly to the site of the puzzle and find the answers to the puzzle. 

If you work the Sunday puzzle, or the week-day puzzle in your newspaper, chances are it's the same one printed in the Los Angeles Times.  Just go to http://www.latimes.com and sign up (it's free, and there's no obligation nor will you get a ton of spam) and you can get the daily crossword puzzle AND the answers.  If you're like me, I leave the print edition of the paper at home for Dad to read, and I go to the L.A. Times website and print out the daily crossword puzzle to work during my lunch break. You can get the answer to one word at a time if you get stumped. 

Some consider this cheating, but to us, it's cheating only if there's a competition.  If you're doing the puzzle by yourself, it's all fair game.  Good luck.  And go find me the answer to 42 down. 

 

Cleaning Day At The Compound

It's a bittersweet day here at The Compound.  It's a Saturday, and that means I don't have to work today nor tomorrow; but it is also Cleaning Day. Actually, it should be called "Throwing Out The Contents Of The Puddin Museum."

For the past few weeks, the 'rents have worked downstairs, in what Dad calls "Reclaiming Our Basement" in preparation for Monday's arrival of our new washer and dryer. I don't think I need to mention the gory details - you probably get the picture.  Imagine if you will an unfinished basement full of 37 years worth of memories from this house. Those memories are very space-consuming. I'm ashamed to admit that I still have school papers and books from kindergarten all the way through to graduate school.  I won't even scare you with how many boxes of magazines I've kept from the years.  I'm sure I could have probably put them all on eBay and made quite a few bucks.  But for some reason, I couldn't. I had to haul them all up the basement stairs and outside to the garbage cans.  In between cracking the whip to keep me motivated, Dad did move the garbage cans to the side door, so I didn't have to go all the way through the house and out to the backyard.  What a guy. 

I actually started throwing away last Saturday, and have been down in the basement since after breakfast this morning.  It's been a major walk down memory lane.  Of course, I couldn't just throw a folder or stack of things away; I had to look through each and every folder, box, and sack, just in case there was something in there that would break my heart if I threw it away. I'm not keeping very much.  Out went all but 3 or 4 magazines in my country music collection. The same with my Charlies Angels magazine collection.  I did, however, have to keep my X-Files and Elvis magazines.  I draw the line somewhere.

I came across some old greeting cards, photographs, and other momentos that actually made me misty-eyed.  At the same time, I found concert ticket stubbs and other momentos that made smile and laugh out loud.  A picture of me and Grandma really hit me hard, and a few minutes later I laughed when I found a picture of Stacy and me at our high school ring ceremony when we were just young thangs. So it all evens out I guess.  The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, though, for Mom was across the basement in another corner doing the same thing.  She really got misty when she found the little white plastic bells that they would fasten to my white baby shoes.  All in all, a small portion we kept and the majority will be hauled away by Dixie Sanitationon Monday.  But we'll have the memories, good and bad, forever. They don't take up nearly as much room as the stuff did in the basement.

The August Of My Youth

It's bad enough that our gas prices are steadily approaching three bucks a gallon - now the FBI thinks that Al-Qaida is going to target some of the biggest cities in the country using fuel tankers.  It's just too much to deal with right now.  I wish I could go back to the August of my youth. Even though August meant summer vacation was almost over, it was one of the most exciting months of the year for me.  When I was a kid, in August, all I had to worry about was going to the state fair.

First of all, I had to worry about when we would go to the fair. Traditionally, my family would go to the fair on one of the two Saturdays during the fair's ten-day run.  So really, I knew when we would be going to the fair; but technically, I didn't know when we would be going. Would we go early in the morning so we could get there when everything was opening?  Would we go later in the day so we could stay through the evening and attend the rodeo?  I needed to know. Not that it mattered; it wasn't like I had something else to do on a Saturday. But I still needed to know when we would go.

Secondly, I had to worry about bringing enough money.  Did I save enough money from my allowance, or would I have have to rely on the kindness of my parents or grandparents? Grandma and Grandpa knew how much I loved going to the fair, so regardless of how much allowance I'd saved up, they would always slip me some money.  Once at the fair, I had to worry about budgeting.  I couldn't spend the bulk of my wad of cash on the first cool thing that caught my eye.  I had to make the money last the whole day.  Mom and Dad would buy the tickets for the rides on the midway, and would buy my lunch, but everything else came out of my purse.  I was a very good shopper at the fair.  When I saw something that I just had to have, we would make note of where the booth was, and then walk around and see if we could find it at a cheaper booth.  If we didn't, then we'd go back to where I saw it first and buy it. Keep in mind, whatever it was that I bought at the fair, I could have probably bought it at a store for half the price.  But it wasn't the same; it had to come from the fair.

We also had to worry about what we were going to eat and drink at the fair.  Another family tradition at the state fair is this unspoken rule: you have to get a corndog at one of the booths in front of the fairgrounds on your way in.  Regardless if we got there at 9:00 in the morning or at 2:00 in the afternoon, we always stopped and got a corndog slathered in mustard.  We would also buy a lemon shake-up at the corndog booth to split between the three of us. To this day, whenever I go to the fair, I still do the same thing.  I could have just gotten up from the dinner table 30 minutes earlier, but I still have to get a corndog as soon as I get to the fair.

Another thing I worried about was what to take in my purse.  Sure, I had the prerequisite wallet with all of my money, Kleenax and a Chap-Stick.  But other things had to be packed for my trip to the fair.  One of the most important things I took was another tradition, handed down from Grandma and Mom: a wet wash cloth inside a plastic bag closed with a twist-tie.  I don't remember going anywhere with Mom and Grandma when they didn't have a wet wash cloth in their purses.  It could have been the dead of winter on a Christmas shopping trip, and Grandma and Mom would whip out the wash cloth and wipe my face or hands if I'd gotten messy. So in the event that they let me go off by myself for a bit,  I brought my own wet wash cloth just in case.

A lot has changed since the August trips to the fair.  We never go on a Saturday, because it's way to crowded, and to stay all day is totally out of the question.  If we do go together as a family, it's on a week day, where we get there at 9:00 just to get a decent parking space, and we're usually back home worn out by no later than 1:30.  We still get our corndog when we first arrive, too. I still wonder if I've brought enough money to pay for parking and the high-priced food. But the wet wash cloth has since been replaced by little packs of wet wipes. 

Farewell, Lorena

We got a phone call Saturday morning, one that we'd been expecting and dreading for about a year now - it was our pastor telling us that our church's oldest member, Lorena, had just died.  She was 102 years old.  As you'd expect with someone over a hundred years old, her health had declined over the past few years.  But she never lost her spunk. 

At her funeral service today, I was sitting there in church reminiscing about Lorena, and my fondest memory of her was on the the Sunday that we joined Fourth Avenue Baptist. She was the first person after the service to welcome us to the congregation, and she went on to say how long she,and others in the church, had been praying that my family would move our membership there.  That meant more than she knew.

Since the news of her death this past weekend, I thought about that she's witnessed and experienced in her 102 years - things that we've only read about in history books, she lived through.  Lorena and her husband Ralph both dedicated their lives to taking care of the church; a parallel that I see today in my parents. 

At every funeral I've attended where Bro. Jerry, our pastor, has spoken, he's always mentioned something about the deceased that others probably didn't know. At my Grandmother's funeral, he mentioned about how she would make pancakes at midnight on Thursday nights when my parents would come home from their 2nd shift job.  True to form, today, he mentioned how in 1943, Lorena was the Kentucky state archery champion.  How cool is that?

Lorena, I'm confidant that when you arrived in heaven Saturday morning, you heard the Lord say "Well done, good and faithful servant." You were such a positive role model for hundreds of young women that have attended Fourth Avenue over the years.  Your work is over, and now you can rest. 

Whatever Happened To . . . the Yugo?

I'd like to introduce a new regular feature in TWIT titled "Whater happened to . . . ?"  We'll take a look at a person, place, thing, idea, or fad that was once popular or trendy, but has since faded out.

Today, let's find out whatever happened to the Yugo.

I'm sure we all remember the Yugo - the boxy little Yugoslovian-built car that you could buy for under $4,000.  The Yugo was imported to the U.S. in 1985, and it sold for the unheard of price of only $3,990.  Unfortunately, the low price didn't help sales; it was discontinued on our side of the pond just seven years later.  The Yugo contained a Fiat engine, and got awesome gas mileage, but you always heard stories about them breaking down frequently. They quickly became an icon for all things cheap. 

Auto critics laughed at the Yugo, and branded it more of a toy than a car. They also pointed out a series of flaws, and as it happens many of the flaws were valid. Many owners complained of mechanical problems including premature engine failure, bad brakes, poor shifter and transmission, and faulty electrical systems, and terrible dealer service. The insurance industry faulted the cars crash worthiness, which didn't help matters.

In early 1989, Yugo went bankrupt.  Ten years later, the factory where the Yugos were built was destroyed during NATO airstrikes.  The factory has been rebuilt, and today they manufacture the new Yugo ZMW. But due there are exportation problems, so the cars can't be exported to the USA.  Yugoslavia can't export products and import to and from USA and countries, which are member of EU.

The Yugo was the subject for a lot of jokes in the late 80's.  Here's my favorite:

Why does the Yugo have a heated rear window?
To keep your hands warm while you're pushing it.

You Don't Mess With A Powerful Man's Ol' Lady

 

Maybe this wouldn't have happened if his wife hadn't been roughed up a couple of weeks ago. 

Rockstar: INXS - Round 5

Mig - sang "We Will Rock You" by Queen. Flawless performance. Even though he sang this song hundreds of times on Broadway, he made it sound fresh and new.
Deanna - sang "I'm The Only One" by Melissa Etheridge. Hard time hitting the higher notes, but was powerful on the chorus. Props for walking through the audience over to where INXS and Dave were sitting.
Marty - sang "With Arms Wide Open" by Creed. Tried to hard to sound like Scott Stapp. Needs to lose the flailing spaghetti arms.
Ty - sang "Everlong" by Foo Fighters. Sounded like a true rocker - didn't use big Broadway voice again.  Props for learning the song.  Stayed in rhythm on the tricky parts.
Jessica - sang "Blister In The Sun" by Violent Femmes. Good stage presence,but had trouble staying on pitch.  Too whiney.  Sounded like she was rapping a folk song. 
Brandon - sang "If You Could Only See" by Tonic. Very in control over his voice. Stayed on pitch.  Note to Brandon: Don't fall down on stage unless you faint or have a heart attack.
Jordis - sang "The Man Who Sold The World" by David Bowie. An awesome arrangement. Vocals were soft but so powerful. Felt her pain. Gave me goose bumps.
J.D. - sang "The Letter" by Joe Cocker. Was too rough and gruff. Didn't use his natural voice. Needs to lose the growl.
Tara - sang "Message In A Bottle" by the Police. Stayed on pitch but seemed lost. Props for wearing a shirt with the symbol of Louisville, the fleur de lis, on it. 
Suzie - sang "Get Back" by the Beatles. Nailed it. Good quasi-funky arrangement. Props to her for letting the band stretch out on the solos. 

The voting results were revealed, and the three with the least amount of votes performed an INXS song.

Brandon - sang "Devil Inside." Stayed on pitch. Got the audience into it.  Needs to sing instead of talk. Tried to hard to sound like Michael Hutchence.
Tara - sang "Beautiful Girl."  No passion.  Didn't show her strength. Said this was her fave INXS song; couldn't prove it by the performance.
Ty - sang "Kick." Didn'g use big Broadway voice, and used the power instead. Sounded like a true rocker. Props for stage diving.

The band reminded Tara this was her third time in the bottom three.  The third time was not the charm for her. INXS told Tara she was just not right for the band.

Farewell, Peter Jennings

Along with many others, I set my alarm for 5:00 this morning so I could watch the space shuttle land.  I turned on the TV and expected to see Commander Collins landing Discovery, but the news story I heard wasn't from NASA; it was news that Peter Jennings had died yesterday.  He was only 67.  He shocked "World News Tonight" viewers in April when he announced on the air that he had lung cancer. 

Peter Jennings delivered the news to Americans in five decades.  He was the face of ABC news whenever a big story broke. He was on their air for more than 60 hours during the week of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.  My family and I kept the TV tuned to ABC that week, and like millions of viewers, we found a bit of comfort and reassurance from Jennings. He was criticized by the media for his display of emotions on the air after the attacks, and for his comments about why the President didn't come directly back to D.C. when the heard about the attacks. 

Broadcasting was in Jennings' blood.  His father Charles was the first person to anchor a nightly national news program in Canada.  It must have rubbed off; Peter had a Saturday morning radio show in Ottawa by the age of 9.  He never completed high school or college, something that he regretted.  He said he made up for it by being a student of the world, studying cultures and their people for the rest of his life.

When he was 26, he was hired by ABC to be their evening news anchor.  The critics tore him apart because of his inexperience.  ABC had hoped his youthfulness would attract the younger viewers.  After 3 years, ABC pulled him from behind the news desk and assigned him to a position as a foreign correspondent.  He blew away the competition.  He became an expert on the middle east, and won a Peabody Award for a 1974 profile of Anwar Sadat.

My first memory of Peter Jennings on the news was his coverage of the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre.  I was only 9 years old, and didn't pay much attention to the nightly news, but I remember watching Jennings give reports about the Palestinian terrorists holding the Isreali athletes hostage and eventually killing them.  I can still visualize the film footage from his report, showing one of the terrorists, said to be a PLO member, wearing a ski mask. I found out later that Jennings and his film crew were hiding in one of the dormatories, just feet away from where the terrorists were holding the athletes hostage.  I remember his voice being calm, almost soothing, when he gave the reports.

"World News Tonight" will never be the same.  We'll miss you, Peter Jennings.

Link Of The Week

I got a spam email a few weeks ago offering this very cool Paloma Picasso bracelet (sold supposedly only at Tiffany's, I might add) free of charge, after I joined something and fulfilled my obligations.  Whatever.  I did some quick online searching and found the bracelet for sell at a very cool site.  It wasn't an auction; at this site, a price was set by the seller, and you contact them and make them an offer. They either accept or reject your offer.  It's that simple.  After a couple of emails, the bracelet was mine for a very reasonable price.  I'm hooked now. 

When you have a few minutes to spare, check out http://www.ioffer.com and check it out.  The site is easy to use, and the format is very similar (OK, almost identical) to the Big Online Auction Site.  Sure - I still go to the Big Online Auction Site first when I'm looking for something, but I'll admit that the things I've bought at ioffer.com were things I didn't find on the Big Online Auction Site.  Good luck.  Happy offering.

That Must Have Been One Heck Of A Note

Bank robber gets cash with message sent through drive-up tube system

Reuters
Updated: 7:12 p.m. ET July 12, 2005

CHICAGO - That was easy.

A bank robber behind the wheel of his car Tuesday sent a note through a vacuum tube to the teller at the drive-through window at a branch of Chicago’s LaSalle Bank, and the teller obliged, returning an undisclosed amount of cash, police said.

The exchange was completed through the bank’s pneumatic tube communications system, in which canisters are passed back and forth between motorist and teller.

The FBI said it was investigating the drive-through theft.

The bank is owned by ABN AMRO Holding NV.

 

I wish this bank robber luck if he went to the bank drive-thru that I normally use.  For the record, this is the financial institution where I do the church's banking; for my personal banking needs, I patronize our company's credit union.  The credit union doesn't have the convenience of a drive-thru, but they have excellent customer service.

I've been making the weekly church offering deposit for over a year now, and I rotate between a branch up on Dixie Highway in my 'hood or a branch on my way home from work, referred to as the bank in THE 'hood.  Sometimes I have to go in person to take care of business; in which case I go to the branch across from church.  That's a whole other story for another time, faithful readers.  For the past few months, I've been stopping at the bank branch on my way home from work and going to the drive-thru.  Keep in mind our church is small, and it's not like the zippered bank bag is bulging. I've always just rolled it up and stuck it in the plastic tube and then sent it on it's way pneumatically to the teller inside.  Well, not any more.  Yesterday, the teller that I affectionately call "Rip Taylor" was working at the drive-thru.  He caught my eye a few months ago when I had to go inside the bank to ask a couple of questions.  He was working feverishly at the drive-thru window. He looked just like Rip Taylor.  I expected him to throw a bucket of confetti on the bank customers.  So anyhoo, yesterday he processes my deposit, but then tells me that they don't accept deposits "like that" at the drive-thru window, and that I'll have to come in next time.  I wanted to say "If you don't accept deposits "like that", why have you accepted them for over a year now?  I didn't argue, for fear that confetti would shoot out of the pneumatic tube. I guess from now on, I'll have to go inside the bank in the 'hood.

The Perpetually Disgusted Chef

The Super Kroger's in our neighborhood has a very cool "gourmet shoppe".  Yes, the sign actually spells "shop" with an extra "pe".  If you know much about the south end of the county, this is an oxymoron.  But at any rate, in addition to their deli, this Krogers does indeed have a gourmet shoppe that sells ready-to-eat/heat food. Their rosemary pork loin is to die for, and I could eat a bucket full of their spinach artichoke dip.  The gourmet shoppe even has a real chef, complete with the white chef coat and [sometimes] the white chef hat. 

On my first trip to the gourmet shoppe portion of the store, I saw a big sign hanging above it with a picture of the new chef. I immediately recognized her.  We went to the same school, and even though she was a year or two older, we had a couple of classes together.  I remember then seeing her in class thinking "I sure don't want to piss her off.  She always looks disgusted." Even though she was smiling in the picture in the store, when I saw her behind the counter, she still looked disgusted.  She had become the Perpetually Disgusted Chef.  When she asked if she could help me, I introduced myself with the usual "You probably don't remember me, but..." True to form, she said she didn't remember my name, but that I looked familiar.  Yeah, right.  Other than my blue eyes, I don't look a thing like I did when I was in high school.  I wanted to blurt out "Oh, with that look of perpetual disgust, I'd recognize you anywhere."  She gave off a bad vibe the first few times she waited on me, and some times I would go out of my way to avoid the gourmet shop just because I didn't want her to wait on me.  Just as in high school, I guess I didn't want to piss her off.

My love of the gourmet shoppe's blackened chicken breasts drew me there yesterday morning before work.  I have to drive about a bit out of my way to get to this Krogers on the way to work, so you know I really wanted the blackened chicken bad enough to get up a few minutes earlier. I went to the store incognito. I didn't sleep well, and tossed and turned all night so I looked like I'd been on a two-week binge.  I had on black J-Lo nylon pants with the white stripes up the side, a red U of L t-shirt and I kept my sunglasses on to hide the bags under my eyes. As I walked to the gourmet shoppe, Isaw something that made me stop in tracks: there, behind the counter and cases was the Perptually Disgusted Chef swatting at flies with an old-school flyswatter. The sight was a true Kodak moment.  If she'd had on her white chef hat, I would have ran over to the photo department and bought a disposable camera and taken some pictures of the scene. She put down her flyswatter and asked if she could help me.  Yes, she did wash her hands first. She didn't recognize me, and I didn't make any small talk; all I wanted was my blackened chicken. 

 I wasn't grossed out about the chef swatting flies in the gourmet shoppe - it's summer, and even in the most-sanitary places, flies are going to get in, just like they do in our homes.  Plus, the blackened chicken was in an enclosed case far away from where the flies and flywatter were, so I didn't even worry about the food. The scene was just priceless, though - the Perpetually Disgusted Chef looking pepetually disgusted as she was chasing flies with a flyswatter.

The Great Squash Debacle

It's been a while since I've gotten riled up at work.  But it happened yesterday at what we named The Great Squash Debacle. It all started early this morning.  I was attempting to cram my can of Coke Zero into the filled-to-capacity refrigerator, and I noticed 3 big squash on one of the kitchen tables.  As mentioned previously in TWIT, any food left on the tables in the lunchroom is up for grabs.  A co-worker and I were going to go back later in the day and get a squash if nobody else had taken them; we both have gardens, and didn't want to seem like hogs.  But if they were still there, we felt there's no sense in letting home grown produce go to waste. 

I came back to the kitchen after our 9:00 break to get a cup of coffee, and imagine my shock at what I saw: someone had cut both a zucchini and yellow squash in half, and left the pieces there on the table.  WTF?  They were sliced perfectly - it's not like someone hacked into it, nor scooped any of it out.  After a brief investigation, it seems that someone was curious about what the inside of squash looked like, so they just cut them in two.  Their apparent justification was "The squash were big, and probably didn't have much flavor any way."

Personally, I could have not cared less about not getting one of these squash; it was the principle.  The two co-workers that brought in the squash grew them in their gardens, and brought them to work to share with their co-workers.  They didn't go to the trouble of planting and watering and cultivating their vegetables for someone's entertainment. I'm sorry, but you'd expect that from a pre-adolescent boy in the junior-high school cafeteria, not from an adult.

Another Email Questionaire

1. What is the best thing about being your age? I can blame my moods on paramenopause.
2. What is the worst? The above mentioned paramenopause (aka "the change before the change")
3. What do you think is the most undeserved stereotype about your gender? That we don't know a thing about what society has deemed "manly" subjects, like plumbing and carpentry.
4. Would you rather go a month without the internet or a year without your favorite food? I could handle going a year without steak.  In fact, I probably should. But I couldn't go a month without being able to blog.
5. What is the most embarrassing CD you own? John Denver's Greatest Hits
6. Do you sing in the shower while making shampoo mohawks? Of course I sing in the shower, but I don't make shampoo mohawks. BTW, "Vision of Love" by Mariah Carrey is still one of my favorite shower songs.
7. What did you have for lunch today? Homemade lasagna and a fresh peach.
8. Do you prefer to use a pen or a pencil? Pen, and it has to be blue ink.  I refuse to use black ink. 
9. Would you rather solve a crossword puzzle or a difficult riddle? A crossword puzzle.  You can always use a dictionary if you get stuck.  There's not too many reference books out there for riddle solving.
10. What was the last thing you worried about? Too personal to mention, but for public viewing, I worried about this morning's space walk.

 

Fire Up The Wayback Machine

I heard a very interesting story today about a friend of a friend.  The story is so friggin' far fetched, that even if I regularly used names in TWIT, I would leave this guy anonymous to protect his identity just because the story is sheer lunacy.  Let's just refer to him as "This Guy."  On with the story.  This Guy says he's going to build a time machine.

I don't know if I can say anything about this.  The first thing that comes to mind is Mr. Peabody and Sherman and their Wayback Machine.  The Wayback Machine was a huge contraption with all sorts of dials and buttons.  In case you don't remember, the Wayback Machine was in Mr. Peabody's den.  I'm not sure where This Guy is going to put his time machine.  I don't even know where This Guy will find all of the components for the time machine.  As I said earlier, it's sheer lunacy.

This Guy that says he can build a time machine is the same Guy that held onto his dog's leash and let the dog pull him along while he was on rollerblades.  I swear in court.  I saw the videotape of this disaster.  Everything was fine for a minute then the guy just totally wiped out.  It's a wonder he wasn't killed. 

Faithful readers, this is so out-of-here that I honestly can't think of anything funny or sarcastic to say.  But This Guy is totally serious about building a time machine.  He's all into Nikola Tesla and quantum physics, and of course, the Conspiracy Theory.  "It's all about science," This Guy says.  I'm sorry.  That's just too far gone.  TWIT does not endorse any of the above mentioned theories. 

After talking to the friend who has a friend of This Guy, a bit of the fog has lifted.  It seems that This Guy likes to drink.  If you've had a 12-pack, maybe quantum physics and time travel makes sense to you. Because it makes no sense to me.

Way To Go, Detroit Demolition

TWIT would like to congratulate the Detroit Demolition on their victory this past Saturday in the NWFA Championship game.  In case you don't remember, NWFA is the National Women's Football Association.  The Demolition pummeled the Pensacola Power 74-0.  From what I read in the newspaper and saw on the local news, the Power didn't even come close to scoring.  That's 9 touchdowns and some change, sports fans.  This was the Demolition's fourth consecutive championship.  Three more championship victories and they can tie Lance Armstrong's record. By the way, the Detroit Demolition has never lost a game in the team's history.  Their record is 41-0. 

The NWFA must really like the 'Ville - this is the second year they've had the championship game here at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.  Unfortunately, not many people came to this game.  If I hadn't had plans, I would have been there with hopes that Hip Kitty would have performed for the half-time show.  Hip Kitty was actually here in town this weekend - they performed at Phoenix Hill Tavern on Friday and Saturday nights, but I didn't find out about it until Sunday.  They could have left Phoenix Hill during a set break and traveled 15 minutes over to Cardinal Stadium and performed their hit "Girls Rock" at the half-time show, like they did last year at the championship game. Heck - they could have lip-synced and nobody would have been the wiser.  Hip Kitty herself could have even thrown in a wardrobe malfunction to liven things up.  They're going to be back at Phoenix Hill in September and I'll be there.  Maybe we can even get a picture of Hip Kitty for TWIT. 

Incidentally, this year's NWFA championship game was sponsored by "Chic Sports Radio" - the only nationally syndicated radio show covering women's sports. Nuff said. hic Sports Radio, the only nationally syndicated radio show covering women's spChic Sports Radio, the only nationally syndicated radio show covering women's sports has orts has