Happy Mother's Day to all you moms!

Both the city of Charlottesville and the Governor of Virginia have podcasts now. Hello 21st century!

It takes more than a cent to mint a penny, and the same to mint a nickel (more than a cent, or more than five cents?)

Solution? Mint the coins out of steel.

Ugh.

What is it going to take to be rid of pennies all together?

I am frustratd. The "e" key, the space bar, and th period have dcided they are only going to work when they feel like it.

This is very frustrating. I nver know when I am going to hve to go backfor corrections.

This is almost enough to convince me to look into getting a new computer.

I should also add that what I type takes a few seconds to appear on the scren.

I can afford nw computer now? Or soon?

And why do these keys work better when I am trying to show how badit is gettng? Bleah!

And why dosit takeso long for what Ityp to appearon the screen?

Do you have a LiveJournal, InsaneJournal, GreatestJournal or similar? Got ten minutes? Then fill out this survey, and help researchers understand the role visual media in Journals (including icons and layout) plays in social networking.

Ten minutes is more than enough time for the survey. It's painless and worksafe and you get to help some students in their project. I came across this in a random LJ image search and figured I'd help them out a little bit.

A blessed and joyful Beltane to all who celebrate it.

Yeah, I know. I'm a little late. I had to work.

Baby Got Book.

It is now 12:52 am, and ForecastFox is telling me that the current weather is "Mostly Sunny".

Did I accidentally change the locale to Australia?

Today, I had a customer ask me if we accepted cash payments over the phone.

We aren't supposed to say no to the customer...

*bang*
*bangbangbang*
*clatter of ladder extending*
*bangbang*
*bang*
*whine of saw*
*bangbangbang*
*bangbangbangbang*
*bangbang*

I thought they were done with everything but the nice, quiet painting. Oh, no. There is still more noisy stuff to do.

Right. Outside. My. Window.

People who do house repair just don't respect late night type folks.

I. Want. Sleep.

Now.

*bangbangbangbang*
*bangbang*
*headwall*

It's never a good sign to see a note at work telling you to keep a coworker in your heart and prayers.

On of my coworkers, I'll call her CC, is in the ICU with a brain aneurysm. She is awake and able to recognize people, but there is a tube in her head and the doctors warn visitors to "not be too optimistic." She thinks she fell and hit her head, because the doctors aren't sure how she would react to the truth.

Shit. Fuck. Bloodyfuckinhellshitgoddamnsonofabitch.

I don't even know if she will survive this, let alone if she will ever be the same person again.

Damnit.

She is going to be in the ICU for another week or so, and then, who knows what.

Fuck.

Whoever first said that life was unfair was a master of the understatement.

Get better, Christa. Please?

Here is some of what I have made recently:
( big pics, so I'll put them behind a cut )

I have uploaded a bunch of pictures. Look under "beads and jewelry" and "Washington" in my scrapbook. If I feel less lazy, I may post links when I have more energy.

Suffice to say, I love the freedom of digital photography, with no charge for developing film. I have also been enjoying learning how to work with my new camera. There are pictures of the Washington Mall, and a few exhibits at The Natural History Museum. Lots of pictures. Lots and lots of pictures.

I have purchased many beads, and my credit cards hate me. They will deal. Bruce St. John Maher has started making beads again, and I am happy and poor. I had to go back to Beadazzled after they cheated me of $50, but they have fixed the mistake. I am glad I hadn't gotten far when the new cashier's error was discovered. It was an innocent mistake, but that was too much money to ignore. It was dealt with quickly and fairly, so I have no real complaints.

I still have beads from Richmond that need to be de-strung and put away in bags. Later. I have already spent a lot of time with that.

I have finally met Anonymous in person, and took a flier. Keep up the good fight. There were about a dozen on The Mall, out numbering the Jesus freaks. Go Anonymous! Scientology scares the hell out of me.

Facebook hates me. I shall continue fighting with it tomorrow.

Later, all.

My vacation is over in a few hours. Ah, well. It was nice while it lasted.

I have the week off, and I am being a very lazy Wendy.

I got a little bit of cleaning done, and I have strung a couple of necklaces (pictures later), but that's about it. The rest of the time, I have been sleeping, reading, watching television, and surfing the web.

Tomorrow, I am going to Richmond, which will mean stuffing more beads into those overfull little drawers I keep the things in - not that kind of drawers, so keep your minds out of the gutter! Going to Washington on Saturday will mean more beads, especially with the $50 credit I have with Beadazzled.

I did get a larger cage for the hamsters, which left a perfectly good cage empty. So I got a Syrian hamster. I have named her Chomp because she like to chew on her cage. Again, pictures later.

I should be going to bed now, but my beads are calling me. One more necklace won't take more than a few minutes, right?

So, Mom wanted to go to Vivace tonight, and I was more than happy to tag along. I've always liked the place - good food, nice ambiance.

Well, the ambiance was a bit spoiled tonight.

You see, there was one other table that was occupied on the floor we were on, and one jerk at that other table. He was, it seems, an expert on everything. He spoke about the evils of universal health care, wastefulness in the computer industry, cars, lightbulbs, and the housing market in California. And he never stopped talking. I am sure that the man is still filling the restaurant with hot air as I type this.

How do I know what he was talking about? He was that loud. Was he seated at the table next to ours? Nope. He was across the room from us.

Vivace is located in an old house that is full of nooks and doorways and other odd barriers, but that wasn't enough to dampen even one syllable from our table. He was so loud that, even at our table, it was more noise than Mom and I were comfortable matching. And he never stopped talking. Ever. The guy he was talking over managed maybe a word or two every now and then, but the conversation was really a monologue. Seriously. I don't think even a windbag the likes of Rush Limbaugh could have taken over a conversation with this guy. He was amazing.

Our server was ready to spill water on the guy's head. Mom and I were trying to figure out if there was a sprinkler head over the table. I was tempted to yell at him to shut up, but he would never have realized it was aimed at him. He was that arrogant.

And neither my mother nor myself agreed with the guy at all, which didn't help matters. The server was in the same boat. The three of us had great fun mocking the guy.

And I'm sure the man is still holding the entire table hostage to his great wisdom.

Early morning
April four
a shot rings out
in the Memphis sky
Free at last!
They took your life
but they could not take your pride!

Forty years ago today, violence ended the life of one of the greatest advocates of nonviolence this world has ever seen.

I still hope that, in my lifetime, Dr. Martin Luther King's dream will be realized.

Last week, a local guy was released from federal prison.

Yesterday, he robbed a bank.

That didn't take long.

Two really stupid teenagers have been taken off the streets in the Interstate 64 shooting case. Hopefully, this is the end of the scare.

The shooter was driving a Gremlin?!