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2008/1/31 I Heard It Through The GrapevineAnd I'm just about to lose my mind...ooops I didn't know anyone was listening! I'm sorry for singing on my blog again. Maybe I'll host karaoke night sometime, but for now I have rumors to spread and miles to go before I sleep...
I can't (won't) cite my source, but I was told something today that probably amounts to being a great rumor or wishful thinking on some lunatic's part. For all those Pink Floyd fans old and new and young and old, I was told that due to the writers strike, Roger Waters is going to perform Darkside Of The Moon in its entirety on SNL (Saturday Night Live) this week. I think I'll tune in, turn on and drop out...that is, if what I heard is the truth...
Here's a "just out of curiosity" question...what's your favorite Darkside song? or do you hate Pink Floyd altogether? Here's a chance for all you Country music lovers to speak up.
The lunatic is in my head 2008/1/29 Dude, Where's My Blog? (Part Two)Below is the original entry, I posted when MSN deleted a blog I created named "What Women Want". It was a candid look at women and their needs. Yes, some of the discussion was sexual in nature, but it went beyond that. It wasn't nasty. It wasn't pornographic! It was my honest attempt to talk about some issues that women find difficult to discuss sometimes. The men who participated seemed honestly intrigued to be able to finally sneak a peek into their female counterparts without being bashed for doing so. "Someone" reported What Women Want as being offensive. The blog lasted only 8 days before falling victim to MSN's blogging guidelines. Needless to say, I was livid and did some heavy verbal foot stomping as a result of my feeling I had been unfairly treated. In the end, what difference did one voice make? You tell me what you think...does one voice matter?
How The Grinch Stole The First Amendment
I'm not here tonight to share some partially digested romantic interlude regurgitated to soothe my own psyche like I did in Insomnia -- Part 1. I couldn't sleep, so I let The People vs Larry Flynt be my companion. As always, watching it made me proud to live in a country where the powers that be actually get it right from time to time. The decision made by the Supreme Court in 1988 involving the First Amendment humbled the self-righteous moral majority because the Court ruled in favor of a deviant smut peddler over a pillar of the religious community. It just goes to show that "right" is right regardless of your political or religious affiliations.
2008/1/28 Dude, Where's My Blog? (Part One)As I troll the blogosphere, I find many common threads that tie us all together and make us one big dysfunctional family. I see friendships in the making and people struggling just to learn how to use all their new bells and whistles as they explore the grand world of blogging. They quickly find out that blogging is more complicated than just sitting down and writing about some topic. There's things to consider like what color fonts look best and whether or not to add a picture to a topic. And just when a person seems to think they have it all figured out, the cyber police come along and shut you down. Actually that does happen, but cyber police leave most people alone. So just when the majority thinks they have it all figured out, the site they use changes everything just because they can. You gotta love those programmers for doing that sort of stuff! I liken it to cleaning house and moving the furniture around. For awhile after you get everything rearranged, you may stumble over the footstool every now and then, but for the most part the arrangement looks better and it usually works better after you get it all figured out and spray Raid to remove all the bugs that always seem to appear after things have been rearranged!
The more I explore, the more apparent it becomes that I've been around here for a long time. In fact, as MSN opened their doors to all this literary madness called blogging, I found myself caught up in their fever as I entered these hallowed corridors of MSN Spaces. Like many, I tried my hand at writing and decided to have more than one blog at a time. You talk about delusions of grandeur! Unless a person has a great deal of free time, maintaining more than one blog at a time can be chaotic and demanding to say the least. Each time I try to do the same thing, I get the same result. Failure and fatigue! So does that mean I'm hardheaded and a glutton for punishment?
As I read comments on other blogs, I always smile when I come across a comment alluding to the fact that MSN deleted someone's blog. Yes, it can and does happen all the time. Just ask one of those unfortunate souls who logged on to find their blog gone. Should they have known it was going to happen? Probably not the first time because who reads all the fine print when they sign up for anything? And who takes heed at the warning to change the content within 48 hours or extinction will happen? It's amazing that people don't realize that MSN owns their blog and its content. When you sign on that dotted line, you take the MSN oath to adhere to their moral standards. afteral it is their space you use so why can't they have their own Hose Rules?
For some, adhering to those rules is a rather difficult task. I know I've walked a fine line at times, but always seemed to manage to stay on the right side of MSN morality. I guess MSN finds it easier to delete a blog than to offer the option of "adult" blogs. I use the word "adult" loosely because it can cover so many areas. Most immediately think of adult as being pornographic in nature when in reality an adult blog would simply give the person more leeway to express themselves in a way that isn't permissible at this time. Did you know that if a person comes to your blog and they find it offensive, they can report you to MSN? The likelihood that your blog will be deleted as a result of complaints is relatively high. Does MSN give you a chance to have your say? Nope! With a wave of the magic wand, anything that you had on your blog is gone forever .
With that said, I highly recommend that people save any material that they don't want "lost" inadvertantly due to something happening like an alien invasion or the cyber police knocking at your door and you rush in haste to flush before thinking. Some people put a great deal of time and effort into the creation of their blog and it's a shame when or if it disappears. How do I know these things...well, I speak from experience and know you can't fight City Hall. In this case, City Hall is MSN. I always thought the option of age related blogs would keep the "kids" out of material that isn't meant for younger readers. To me, it just seemed to make sense. I'm sure some of my material could be viewed as questionable, but there is a simple solution to it and that's to give a wider variety of options. Perhaps even offering things like language options so that people surfing through blogs don't have to view hundreds of Non-English speaking blogs before they stumble upon one they might like to read or can read. Just another suggestion to go in the suggestion box wherever that box is!
2008/1/27 The Invisble MeI know when dealing with anything that has to do with the internet there are no rules carved in stone, but I was wondering how others handle certain situations when they arise. Recently, I was attempting to chat with one of my new blogging friends, but I discover each time I log on to any me instant messenger and show my online status as being "available", I start getting bombarded with IM's. It doesn't seem to matter to people if I tell them I'm chatting already or that I'm busy, they just seem to ramble on like I hadn't said anything or that they're so important that ofcourse I want to chat with them. I don't want to be rude and just tell the person I'm not interested in chatting with them, but sometimes I feel that's the only thing I can do. These aren't people who I know or chat with on a regular basis. They're just random strangers who have "found" me online and have the same intelligent questions to ask time after time...ASL or things like "do you want to watch me mastubate?" None of them ever say 'Hi are you busy? And if not, would you care to chat?"
Yes, I know I can "ignore" the person and block them from sending me any messages and I usually end up doing exactly that, but it still makes me wonder why anyone would try to force themselves someone especially when the person is clearly not interested. Can't they read between the lines when the person they are attempting to chat with only gives one word answers or doesn't respond to them at all? How much plainer does "I'm not interested" have to be? Sometimes being bold and telling a person "I'm not interested" doesn't stop the IM's. Sometimes that only makes the person more persistent and ask questions like "why don't you want to be my friend?" or "why won't you turn your webcam on and let me watch you?" You don't have to chat with me...just let me watch you." I even thought that showing my online status as being "busy' would help, but it usually doesn't. It only makes me wonder if people can read. They always seem to think "busy" means that I'm busy except from exchanging IM's with them. It just amazes me that as soon as I log on, these people start firing IM's at me. They are relentless and they're everywhere!
No, I'm not popular like the person I was attempting to chat thought when I expressed my frustration with the way people act. I don't think popularity has anything to do with it. I think these people have nothing better to do than trying to make online friends with people who aren't interested. They seem immuned to rejection and have the attitude that if I keep trying eventually she'll lower her guard and find out she can't live without me. I've asked myself many times why I'm not interested in such a display of eagerness to get to know me and I always find it rather smothering to have someone monitor my online presense as to know the moment I log on and feel like it's mandatory to send me an IM within the first 10 seconds. This is primarily why I have just about stopped chatting online or remain "invisible" while I am online. I know this is a silly thing to be frustrated over, but I'm sure it's a common complaint among people who chat online. So what annoys you most about chatting with people online? 2008/1/23 Name That SongTonight on my drive home work, I found myself deeply engrossed in the lyrics of a song that came on the radio. Zap! Instantly I was taken to a time in my life when I identified with a certain line in the song. Okay, everyone are you ready to sing along?
The words in yellow are the ones which always seemed to make me say "YEAH!". How many times in our earlier years did we overlook those obvious redflags? You know, the ones that hot chick or handsome dude we just had to have told us and like fools we believed that person...well at least half-assed believed them anyway. I think we all just heard what we wanted to hear and then went along our merry way. Now, years later when that song started playing the lines that jumped out and made me say "YEAH!" were:
Simple...concise...what more could you ask for in good advice? But somehow I always just blazed through that line until today. Yeah, "don't let fire rush to your head". Don't get caught up in the heat of the moment! Once again hindsight is 20/20 and if I could take back all the things in my life that I said and didn't really mean, I suppose that would make me a mute from about the age of 15 to 35. I get alittle better after that period of delving into what I lovingly call "the abyss". How times change! Or is it us that changes with time? Whichever...it still felt good to go back even if it was just for a moment and hear the message I should have heard many years ago. 2008/1/22 Spring CleaningAs I went through my list of links now titled "The Road Not Taken", I suddenly realized that nothing is constant but change. Many of the old familiar faces are no longer out here in the blogosphere. Maybe they hit that dreaded writer's cramp that most of us experience from time to time or maybe life's demands had caught up with them and blogging fell to the bottom of their list of priorities. While some take brief vacation from Spaces, others pack up and find a new homes elsewhere. I often wonder what other sites are like compared to MSN Spaces and how these people like their new homes.
As I brought out my feather duster and cleaned up my list of links, it gave me a moment to reflect upon each person before I deleted their link from my list. I remembered how my list itself has gone through a metamorphosis. Once titled , "The Clique" as a joke, I had some people bash me because of its name. Those people obviously were not a regular to my blog or else they would have seen the name as my New England sarcasm at play. I also remembered the list being named "Blogs To Avoid" and having some well-meaning soul going around to each person on my list and tattling on me. That person warned each person of Red Kitten blackballing their blog. That made me laugh til I cried. A few people corrected that person by telling him/her that it was an honor to be on my list of blogs to avoid. The rest simply ignored the person as being just another person out here trying to stir up trouble amongst the masses. Finally, the list has had rather sedate names like, Blogland Safari and now, The Road Not Taken. Like most things around here, it will change as the spirit moves me and hopefully, with each change it will grow in number.
What I would like ultimately on my list are blogs not only of people who participate here and actually leave comments, but also of blogs I have discovered and find worthy of mentioning to others. The ones I have deleted are simply blogs that either don't exist any longer or have become dormant from having no new entries posted. If I deleted anyone in error, please feel free to publicly humiliate me and tell me I acted much too hastily with the DELETE botton.
My 2008 House Rules:
First, I want to point out that this is my blog and I don't have the policy of unconditional acceptance. I expect people to treat others with respect and to behave like an adult, not like a bunch of children on the playground!
1.The people I add to my friends list will never be flamers or people like the guy yesterday going from blog to blog leaving spam by inviting people to attend an orgy. He sent me a request to be added to my friends list...like that's ever going to happen! I wonder if he was going to buy everyone's plane tickets.
2. The people I add will be people who actually participate and leave comments here. This doesn't mean you have to agree with me on anything I write. I want people to be honest and express their opinions.
3. The people I add will be people who have blogs worth visiting and like me, they enjoy feedback on the things they write. Sending someone a private message is great, but blogs are supposed to be interactive so everyone has the opportunity to throw in their 2 cents worth.
4. If you want to act out your bad boy or naughty girl fantasy, do it somplace where its appreciated. I have a great rule of thumb...if you won't do it in real life, don't do it on the internet! 2008/1/19 Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road?For ages this mystifying question has remained unanswered. Now, not only do we discover the answer is merely a matter of perspective, but we also get a rare glimpse into the psyche of each person who dared to follow the chicken across the road in order to boldly go where no man has gone before..
DR. PHIL :
The problem we have here is that this chicken won't realize that he must first deal with the problem on 'THIS' side of the road before it goes after the problem on the 'OTHER SIDE' of the road. What we need to do is help him realize how stupid he's acting by not taking on his 'CURRENT' problems before adding 'NEW' problems. OPRAH : Well, I understand that the chicken is having problems, which is why he wants to cross this road so bad. So instead of having the chicken learn from his mistakes and take falls, which is a part of life, I'm going to give this chicken a car so that he can just drive across the road and not live his life like the rest of the chickens. DICK CHENEY :
Where's my gun? AL SHARPTON : Why are all the chickens white? We need some black chickens. GEORGE W. BUSH : We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road, or not. The chicken is either against us, or for us. There is no middle ground here. COLIN POWELL : Now to the left of the screen, you can clearly see the satellite image of the chicken crossing the road... ANDERSON COOPER - CNN: We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet been allowed to have access to the other side of the road. JOHN KERRY : Although I voted to let the chicken cross the road, I am now against it! It was the wrong road to cross, and I was misled about the chicken's intentions. I am not for it now, and will remain against it. AL GORE : AL SHARPTON :
Why are all the chickens white? We need some black chickens. BILL GATES : I have just released eChicken2007, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your check book. Internet Explorer is an integral part of eChicken. This new platform is much more stable and will never cra...#@&&^(C% ........ reboot. ALBERT EINSTEIN : Did the chicken really cross the road, or did the road move beneath the chicken? BILL CLINTON : I did not cross the road with THAT chicken. What is your definition of chicken? 2008/1/17 The Story Of Janice ContinuedRarely do we get the opportunity to follow up any potentially tragic story with a happy ending, but I'm pleased to be able to do so with a story that personally touched my life. Back in 2005, I wrote an entry asking people for their help. This is something I wouldn't normally do, but the situation I wrote about was an urgent one which called for drastic measures. My sister in law, Janice was having difficulty getting disability benefits from Social Security. Perhaps some people who have followed my blog remember the story and remember how sick Janice was at that time and what a horror show Social Security was being. She had filed for benefits, had been denied and had appealed the decision several times. Each time the process brought the same result. At the time I posted the entry regarding her plight, she had just been placed on a liver transplant list and had been told most people die waiting for a compatible match. A few months later, Janice finally was approved for disability benefits which would help with the tremendous medical bills she had accrued as a result of all her medical problems.
As time went by, Janice's condition gradually worsened to the point of not only needing a liver transplant, but a kidney transplant as well. Although most of us felt she might not live long enough to receive new organs, her faith never wavered. She truly believed she was in God's hands and that whatever happened he would be with her. She told me each time we talked that she believed she was going to make it through all this and live to resume a normal life. I wanted to share her faith and prayed she was right, but I have to admit I wasn't as optimistic as she was. In July 2007, Janice finally received the phonecall she had faithfullyand patiently awaited. It was time to go to the hospital and be prepped for surgery while the transplant team awaited the arrival of her new organs. Barely alive, but still optimistic Janice arrived in New Orleans to take a giant leap of faith that would virtually allow her to have a new life or at least resume one she hadn't had in many, many years.
Now almost 6 months later, Janice has that new life she believed she would have. Not only did she make it through a double transplant, but she says she feels better than she has in 20 years. Janice has been in my family for over 30 years and started a tradition of making wedding cakes each time someone got married. Janice is one of those naturally talented and creative people who can do just about anything and do it as well as any professional. When she first offered to make the cake for my daughter's wedding next month, we all were hesistant to accept her offer because we felt it might be too much for her. No one wanted to see her push herself and possibly do anything that would jeopardize her recovery, but she assured us that she felt great and it was something she really wanted to do. So next month as we celebrate my daughter's marriage by eating the cake Janice makes, my best wishes and love will go to the newly married couple as I will think of the person who died in order to give Janice life. What greater gift is there than the gift of life? That person whoever it was, not only gave Janice the gift of life, but they gave each person who knows and loves Janice that gift as well. 2008/1/12 My First Blonde Moment of 2008My last entry was probably an excellent way to start the New Year. Instead of making a bunch of useless resolutions only to break, having a few bad ideas is definitely the way to go and you know why? Well, because the only place to go from there is UP! Therefore, with that said, my newest venture appears to be learning how to be fickle and to be more aloof and mysterious. My aim is not to appear to be totally brain dead.
Hey, what can I say...I'm a blonde now and I have a certain image to uphold. I guess I'll hang out here with the abnorms and meander over to One Voice every now and again when I feel philosophical or intellectual...or better yet when I feel like being a glutton for punishment and need to be reminded how flawed people really are. OMG...people can be such wankers at times!
Geez, what better way to accomplish my goal than my talking about politics or religion...or by falling in love again? LOL Hmmmm...now there's a truly bad idea. Perhaps after having a truly serene break from passion and matters of the heart, I'm ready to take the leap again. I've licked my wounds for a few years and have managed to stay blissfully unattached. I’ve forgotten what the pain of being broken-hearted feels like…but I’ve also forgotten what that magical high feels like that only the chemistry of love can produce. maybe some well meaning friend or relative will fix me up with what they feel is Mr. Wonderful or perhaps Mr. Righter than Wrong is right here lurking in the underbrush of cyberspace. To be quite honest, i know I joke around about matters of the heart, but in those moments of truth, it probably would be a nice thing to have happen again. That or winning the lottery...I wonder which has the better odds of happening.
So what does 2008 have in store for me? Perhaps nothing or perhaps one new adventure after another. I'll have to roll the dice and see...
2008/1/10 One Voice - An ANP BlogHAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!
Just so people won't think I disappeared (again), I wanted everyone to know that I'm taking a little hiatus from Abnormally Normal People. I've started a strictly political blog to cover the issues, the politicians and to help get everyone motivated enough to actually vote in the upcoming 2008 Presidential Election. Unlike most political blogs, I wanted to start one where people of differing views can come and discuss the issues without a bunch of negative hoopla. Please let this serve as an invitation to come check it out and to participate by throwing not only your two cents worth in, but your fifty cents also. I look forward to reading everyone's points of views. Please visit me at:
A place where politics are scrutinized and each voice is heard... |
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