more fun questions

1. Have you made or experienced any major life changes in the past year? Nothing comes to mind so I guess not.
2. Do you like watermelon? Yes, I do.

3. Who is your favorite male vocal/musical artist? It's hard to say but I'll go with Johnny Lang. That's subject to change at a moment's notice.
4. Who is your favorite female vocal/musical artist? Another hard one - I'll go with Susan Tedesci. This is also subject to change.
5. Do you have a CD burner on your computer? Yes and a DVD burner too.
6. What was the very last thing you watched on television? The Cat House - it's series on HBO about the Bunny Ranch brothel in Nevada. They're an interesting group to follow.
7. Do you subscribe to any magazines? If so, which one(s)? Reader's Digest and Vanity Fair
8. Seafood - yum, yuck or OK? Depends on what kind but for the most part, I'll say ok.
9. When was the last time it rained in your neck of the woods? Last week maybe - I can't remember but it wasn't that long ago.
10. What time do you usually go to bed? Usually around midnight - after I watch Jay Leno's dialogue or whatever he has before his first guest. I especially love Mondays when he does headlines.

TIVO/VCRs

Now, this may surprise some of you but even in this age of TIVO and VCRs, I never tape anything. I've only taped maybe 3 or 4 things in my entire life. To me, if I miss it, I miss it. If 2 shows I want to watch are on at the same time, I flick back and forth between them. If I completely miss it, I may ask someone or come online and look for a recap.

I can't imagine taking the time to tape a show and then going back to watch it.

I've never liked watching tapes anyhow. I feel like I'm missing out on something. It's the same reason that I just about never listen to CDs. I always listen to the radio. I feel like I'm cut off from the world. It's like the whole world went somewhere and they left me behind. I need to always feel connected.

I feel the same way with the time zones. To me, everything happens in EST and whenever I've been in a different time zone, i.e. California, I obsess with the time. I feel like they are so behind the rest of the world. To me, everything has already happened and we're late to the party.

Does that seem strange or neurotic?

facial hair

Speaking of facial hair...

One day, while doing mirror, mirror, on the wall, I could see I had a moustache. Don't get me wrong, I'm Italian; I've always had a moustache but just not this dark.

I quickly went out and bought something to bleach it. Well, I'll be hogtied because afterwards I could still see it. Desperate times call for desperate measures so I moved onto Plan B. I Naired off the whole thing. I didn't want to do that because of the whole 'it grows back darker scare'. Well, this time, I had to be bulltied because I could still see it.

Upon closer inspection, I could see that hair wasn't my problem. My skin had darkened in that area. In all the gin joints and bars in the world, my body had to pick that place to turn dark.

Truth be told, I have a dark patch of skin on my cheek that I noticed like 6 months ago. No one ever notices it unless I point it out. The doc said it was pigmentation that rose to the surface(?). He gave me this creme to use. A very expensive creme that cost way over $100.00 (Insurance doesn't cover it because it's considered cosmetic).

I used it faithfully for 2 months and then went back to see him. The strangest thing happened. For that one day, the dark spot went away. I tried telling him that it didn't really go away but he didn't believe me so a month later, I made appointment with a different doctor. He gave me the same dog-gone creme to use. It's now been another 2 months and it's still there and it's now moved onto to my moustache. Yuck!

The doc said this creme can sometimes take up to 9 months to work. I only hope that when I see him later this month, it doesn't do that same disappearing act.

Six Feet under

I've watched the show since the beginning but the last 2 years haven't been as enjoyable as the first few seasons.

I thought Nate died last week. Since he was alive at the beginning of the show, I just assumed he'd live. They gave me a pretty good shock.

Nate and Brenda (his wife) have each screwed their relationship up over the years. I did feel bad for Brenda though. First she finds out Nate was in bed with Maggie before he got rushed to the hospital and then Nate breaks up with her right before he dies. She's pregnant with his child to boot.

I agree with the mother being selfish. She drives me crazy. That woman will never be happy.

I think they killed Nate off simply because it's the last season and there aren't many episodes left.

I definitely recommend the DVDs. The first few seasons, I almost felt like I was part of the family. That is how much in depth you got to know the characters.

moms

I wish I had a good story to tell but since my mom died when I was very young, I have few memories of her. When she died, we moved from the house and she wasn't spoken of until many years later. It was too painful, I guess.

I know of quite a few ladies around town that were friends of hers so I at least know she must have been a good friend.

My dad told me the main thing she liked to do was shop, which I find to be amusing for some reason. She used to go into NYC to get her hair done and buy her clothes. I'm sure she'd die at some of the stuff I wear.

I really wish I knew her but at least I was blessed with such a kind father.

pups

I have a dog that is very attached to me. Every time I leave, he tries desperately to leave with me. I'm like a goalie trying to match his every move. If he slips outside, he goes underneath the side porch and sits all the way in the back where I can't reach him. When I finally coax him out of there, he sits there and won't budge. The dog trainer told me that if anything ever happened to me, he would just break down. I thought he was crazy at the time because he was so young but I can certainly believe it now.

drink

Have you ever been to Chicago? I did spend a few hours at the bar while on a layover once but that's about it. I would love to go to see the beautiful architecture.

Have you ever been the ‘surprise gift’ for the birthday gal/guy? No, but I'm sure I've shown up at a birthday party or two uninvited.

Do you like Mexican food? Not much beyond Taco Bell.

Do you eat dessert? Just about never.

Sangria or beer or Margs? It depends on my locale. I usually drink beer unless I'm somewhere where Margs are more appropriate.

Do you order an appy and an entrée or just an entrée or several appys? If it's a la carte, I get salad. If not, I still get salad and then my entree. Appys means I won't eat my dinner.

When you go out w/friends do you split the check evenly between all or do you each pay your own part plus tax/tip? Split it or one person pays and then someone else gets it next time.

Do you get embarrassed when the waiters sing Happy Birthday? No, I love the attention.

Have your friends/family ever put those trick candles (the ones that do not go out no matter how hard you blow) on your cake? No, only the regular boring kind here.

Did you know there’s going to be a New England Get-Together in September? No, I didn't but since I'm a New Englander, that's good to know.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. I'm told we're going to have some great weather this weekend. Feel free to have a Margarita or two on me.

weekends

I'm at my usual place on the weekends - work. I've been wanting to switch to the usual M-F hours for a long time so...guess what finally happened this week? My boss asked me if I wanted to switch to weekdays, and me, the weekend whiner, turned it down. All my dreams of once again having a social life have vanished.

I couldn't do it. I couldn't bring myself to give up my 3 days off during the week. I work 40 hours between Friday and Monday and then get Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday off. This means I will be second guessing myself every weekend and knowing I made the right choice on the weekdays.

When I get home tonight, which won't be until about 08:30, I have to finish mowing the backyard. I was out with some friends last night and I rushed home to start mowing the lawn. I started about the same time - 08:30. I finished the front lawn and started on the back lawn until it was too dark. This morning when I left for work I noticed a big strip of grass I missed in the front. I had to laugh. Yep, I had given my lawn a mohawk.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend - whatever your plans may be.

food

1. What’s the most exotic vegetable dish you’ve ever eaten? I love nearly all vegetables but I can't think of anything exotic at the moment.

2. What’s the most exotic meat dish you’ve ever eaten? Buffalo burger at a Pow Wow.

3. What’s your favorite seafood? Lobster

4. What’s your favorite dessert? I'm not big on dessert. I'll go with ice cream or a few spoonfuls of cheesecake since it's very filling.

5. Prunes or raisins? I've never tried Prunes but I do like raisins. I only eat them out of the box. I hate when they are baked in anything.

6. Apples, pears, or oranges? I like all three but I'll go with oranges.

7. Coffee, tea, soda, or water? I'm not a coffee drinker although I have tried. I mostly drink bottled water.

8. Who does the dishes? I guess that would be me or my dishwasher.

9. Do you eat out often? Favorite place? I eat out very often. I'm only able to see my friends during the week and that's usually what we end up doing. A sure sign of getting old, I suppose.

My all time favorite place to eat is Mahmoun's in New Haven. It's a Middle Eastern restaurant that is open 365 days a year until 4:00 (?) in the morning. It's small and dingy but it has the best chicken kabobs in the land.

shopping

Have you ever bought anything that you have seen on TV (informercial or Home Shopping/QVC)? Yes, I'm a sucker for infomericals. I've bought a few things on the Home Shopping network and QVC over the years.

What was the first car you bought like? It was a 1974 (?) red Capri. I have a lot of good memories of that car.

Do you prefer to shop at the mall, online, or in catalogs? I like to buy my clothes at the mall although I have bought from L.L. Bean and Victoria's Secret. I don't mind buying anything else online or from catalogs.

What is your favorite website to shop from? Ebay

How much does gasoline cost in your area? I think around $2.40.

When was the last night you bought flowers? Either for yourself or for someone else. I'm not sure but I'd say for myself. I buy them from time to time for my dining room table.

Do you buy office supplies or "borrow" them from work? 'Fess up, I used to steal pens all the time! There is nothing to steal at my job. I work for one of the largest, most profitable companies in the world but there are no, none, zilch, nada office supplies. You have to bring your own. They may be sending them to Brazil or India since everything else is being sent there.

Oh yeah, I used to take pens from my last job but not on purpose. They just seemed to follow me.

Have you ever bought anything at a vintage/second-hand store? I love antiques so yes, I have.
Have you ever had a yard sale? Or do you like shopping at yard sales on the weekend? I did have a yard sale once and people were sooooooo rude. They just came into my house and went room to room. I told them over and over that the stuff was not for sale but it didn't faze them. One lady looked in my buffet and grabbed an old flag I had. She unfolded it, threw it back and then asked me why I had the thing for sale if it had all 50 states on it. I told her that it wasn't for sale but she still kept looking.

When was the last time you got carded when you were buying beer or wine? Maybe a couple of years ago. I really can't remember.

Are there any commercials that you have seen that were so bad or offensive that you said, "I will never buy that"? I'm not too fond of Bob who has been living 'large'.

Is there anything that embarrasses you to have to buy? Not anymore