Jazzmin is a Juice Taste Tester

I do online surveys for this website Mindfield - most of the time they're just online or I don't qualify for the survey. About once a year they ask me (and/or Jazzmin) to participate in product testing. I've product tested for companies like Perdue and Chef Boyardee. I'm not sure if we're allowed to say the name of the beverage company but it rhymes with fun and it's a very well known brand of juice.

The first batch we got was last week - fruit punch flavor. It was good. We decided to buy the juice in the store and then compare with the juice we were testing. It turns out the test juice is less sweet - but still very tastey. Today they had me relay Jazzmin's opinion of the juice in an online survey. And, as it turns out, they want to send another batch of the juice. Maybe they'll give us a different flavor??? We'll see!

It's kind of cool to do product testing such as this - feeling like you're having an impact in the way they make a product or choose to market it. And free stuff - everything tastes just a little better when it's free (unless it's liver or cream corn - which can never taste good).

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"Zits" Comic

Today's "Zits" comic reminded me of Brenda - her love of technology and need to stay busy.

CLICK HERE to view larger ver. of comic.

I'm a Copy Cat - What Can I Say!?!

Hillary posted this on her blog and the video had me laughing out loud at my desk, making my co-workers think I've gone a little nutso (or maybe they already thought that??). So I am posting it on my blog, for those who don't read Hillary's blog (because they don't know her), and want a good laugh! Enjoy!!!! Watch it all the way through!

My Old Cats Listed on ASPCA Site

Azucar and Arecibo have been posted on the ASPCA site as "available for adoption". So that's good - at least they weren't considered unadoptable and put to sleep. I feel bad for them in a way. But if they find homes - then it was for the best.

They put them back with the names they originally had when I adopted them, Murphy and Domino. Ho-hum - such boring names. Oh well.
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"The Argyle Sweater" Comic

Fruity Want Some Chocolate

There was an article in the paper this morning stating that chocolate (esp. dark chocolate) is beneficial for fetuses and pregnant women. So, Hillary, give fruity what he/she really wants - CHOCOLATE!! YUMMY!!!

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Asthma - Rhymes with Plasma

I don't think I am going to tae kwon do tonight - I am afraid of going and then 5 min. into class being crazily out breath and then having to turn right back around and go home. Plus it's raining - I don't like to go anywhere when it rains.

Jazzmin is going to be with her Grandma Simon Wed. - Fri. due to school being closed. Maybe I will go to class on Wednesday when I don't have to deal with picking Jazzmin up. I was also thinking about waiting until Saturday to start back up with classes. Saturdays tend to be more tranquil, which is not to say that I won't have to work out just as hard as the other days. It's just on Saturdays there are a fewer students and it doesn't have the boot camp atmosphere. I really should go on Wed. though instead of putting off the inevitable. We shall see.

I think I am going to take Dawn up on her offer to take my remaining cat for the summer. I'd like to see if I feel normal again. I'd like to know what it feels like to feel normal again. Every day my asthma is on my mind - everytime I approach a staircase (which is often), I wonder how out of breath I am gong to get going up. Lately, it's not uncommon that if I lay flat in bed that I feel a slight tightness in my chest from the asthma. Asthma, asthma, asthma - I am so over it.

I have an appt. with the pulmonary doctor on Friday - we shall see what comes of that. If they can work some magic then it looks like Nova (cat) is stuck with me. I am so annoyed that I stayed with the allergist I initially went to when the onset of allergies reared it's head. A quack, no doubt, that should not be allowed to practice medicine. My first hint should've been when they did the allergy test to see what I am allergic to and cat did not come up positive. Let's see - without cat I was OK, with cat I have allergic reaction - obviously their test was wrong. Instead they told me I was allergic to 2-3 things that I have never had a reaction to (ragweed, etc.). But I didn't care if I got shots for those as long as I got shots for the cat allergies. When I started with the shots they didn't even have cat allergies as one of them - I had to request it. Even after having told them I have cat allergies at previous visit. There are several other things that happened that lets me know this place is only interested in milking people's insurance for immunatherapy shots and don't really care about the health of the patient.
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Tae Kwon Do on Monday

I am starting back to Tae kwon do on Monday. I am nervous about going because I am not sure how my asthma is going to hold up. I have good and bad days since taking the prednisone - I don't think my asthma is completely under control. I still get out of breath over things I should not. But I think I am well enough to take class, I hope so at least.

I have an appt. with the pullminary doctor next Friday. Hopefully all this drama will be resolved soon so I can breathe like a normal person and not have to worry if something is going to make me out of breath and unable to function properly.
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Bring Your Child to Work Day

Yesterday, Thursday, was 'Bring Your Child to Work Day" - they did much the same thing they've done every year. Classroom for about 2 hours, lunch and then fun time until around 4pm. This year, in the classroom, they taught the kids about handling their money. Talking about saving, budgeting and several other things. I like that they always try to teach the kids something valuable every year.

For a couple hours out of the entire day Jazz was with me at my desk. She failed to understand that I actually do work on my laptop and wanted to take it over so she could play on the internet. I let her play with it a little bit just to get her off my back. lol

It was a good day.

My Other Boss Remembered

Well, as stated in my post yesterday, I thought my other boss would end up just not doing anything for EA Day. Which is totally fine because the Christmas money is the most important thing for me - that's always the time I could really use it. But as it turns out he did get me something today to make up for missing yesterday. He gave me a card (see photos) and..... $150!!! YIPPPEEE!!! I was so happy about that - and it was totally unexpected. I don't know what I am going to do with the money - spend it on practical things or a treat for me. We'll see!

Happy EA Day to ME!

One of the Partners I work for remembered it was EA day today! This is the new Partner who I was assigned to this year. He sent me this beautiful flower arrangement and a box of chocolates!

I was very surprised to get them because the other Partner I support is very forgetful (and never gets me anything on EA Day) and the Partner who ended up sending the flowers is out of town on business. But he said he was reminded it was EA day on the radio during his drive to the airport.

It was a pleasant surprise!

****UPDATE****

One of the of the Sr. Assoc. that works with the Partner who didn't get me anything (and sits near me) sent him an e-mail reminding him it was EA Day today. The Partner then forwarded the Sr. Assoc. e-mail stating, "Sorry I am a loser I had no idea. I will fix tomorrow. " He'll probably forget anyway - but it's OK. As long as I get the $500 at Christmas time I'm not really concerned if he remembers EA Day. Though I certainly do enjoy getting flowers, etc.! :)
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Pinch Me I Think I Am Dreaming

I randomly keyed in "Korean Movie Rental" into google and found this site that rents out Korean dramas like Netflix! Maybe I'll suspend my Netflix subscription for a while and use this service for a while. YIPPEE!! It costs $30 a month for unlimited DVD rental - 3 at a time. It's more then Netflix but at least I'll get my dose of K-dramas! Of course I may have to bring my laptop home to watch them since they might have a code on it - blocking it from being played outside of Korea, but it's worth it. ;)
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Korean's Different Approach to Male Fashion

I can't believe what they made "my" Kim Jeong Hoon (aka John Hoon) wear in this fashion show! I guess it's been kinda obvious that male Korean fashion is a little more in touch with it's "feminine side" from watching the k-dramas (they even have clear mascara catering to men) - but geesh... The white suit at the end isn't so bad - esp. since you don't notice the knee-high white boots over the pants.

Check it out and see it for self - somebody on YouTube.com put together a slide show of he things he wore.

Running Out of Korean Dramas to Watch

Sad, but true, I think I'm on the last Korean drama (K-drama) that Netflix has to offer. ::sigh:: I just got through watching "Goodbye My Love" and the last one I'll have to watch (see photo) is "Shoot for the Stars". I'll have to join some K-drama 12 step program to be weaned from my addiction.

I had e-mailed Netflix a while back with a list of suggested titles for them to buy. Maybe at some point I'll see an increase in K-dramas?? The problem is that K-drama DVDs are so expensive - that's probably why they don't have too many. On YesAsia.com they cost anywhere from $95 to $150 just for one series - and YesAsia.com is probably the most affordable way to buy K-dramas.

I wish they had carried more that featured Kim Jeong Hoon (aka John Hoon) - he's such a cutie. :) And I know he's done a lot of K-dramas. I've searched him on YouTube.com and a lot of people have posted segments from these dramas. Only problem is no English subtitles in these postings. :(

One interesting I noticed about the K-dramas is when any of the few shows that had a white person in it they were an obnoxious person who didn't speak Korean and was giving the Korean person a hard time for not speaking English, as if they expect all Koreans to be able to speak it. I guess this means that it's not uncommon for English speaking people to live in Korea and not speak the language. But why would you move to Korea and not make a concerted effort to learn the language?

I think I am going to start working my way through Korean movies and see how that goes. lol But it's not going to be easy 'cause most of the movies Netflix carries from Korea are horror, action or period movie/martial arts ones. We'll see how it goes.

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"The Argyle Sweater" Comic

Nova Adjusting to Being Sole Cat

Nova has been clinging to me since the other 2 cats have gone. He is always on the couch with me sleeping. Sometimes he'll lay right next to me trying to initiate a petting session. His new thing is he meows for me to go over to the scratching board to pet him. I guess he likes the combo of getting high on cat nip and massaged/scratched at the same time. Ahhh now that's the life!

What I never noticed about him due to the fact the other cats ate like pigs, is that he's not a major fan of wet cat food. He likes to lick the gravy off and some food might get eaten. But he doesn't eat much more then a teaspoon at a time, at best. If you give him more the rest will just get left there to dry and crust up. And if the wet food has no gravy at all - he'll have nothing to do with it.

I got him a few toys to play with to pass the time when I'm gone but he broke it the first day. I had this bird hanging from the doorway for him to at around. He loved it so much that he chews the elastic until the bird came off. But he does still play with the string that dangles there.

It's too early to tell if even having just one cat is going to be too problematic for me. We shall see. Hope I can keep him - he's a sweetheart.

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FREE Blackberry & Svc. from My Job!

They are in the planning stages, but they are going to offer FREE blackberry devices and FREE service from my job once they iron out the details. YIPPIE! I love me some free stuff!

The down side is I just got a new cell phone complete with e-mail access, internet, etc. and my contract isn't up for another 1.5 years. But, oh well - if I get a free blackberry from work I can just take off the extra services from my phone and wait out the end of my contract with T-mobile. Then I'll just hold on to the phone in case (God forbid) I stop working for PwC at some point. But - then again, the blackberry they give us is ours to keep. And they'll be giving me a new device every 1-2 years. May be if/when I get the blackberry from work I'll give Brenda my T-mobile shadow phone? She needs a new one.

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"Close to Home" Comic

Sean Lennon, so much like his Dad

Perhaps Julian sounds more like John but Sean looks just like him and his style of music sounds like something John would be creating if he were still alive...

My Doctor Appt Today

I went to see my general practitioner (see picture) today - I have been a patient of hers for approx. 10 years. I have come to trust her a great deal because she is forthcoming with information when you want to know what's going on and why. When she treats an illness - it works and everything is as she said it would be (you'd think that'd be a given with all doctors, but is not). I also feel she actually thinks about her diagnosis because she walks you through her thought process. And during the course of conversation sometimes she'll mention a seminar she went to or some medical journal she read about recent developments - so I know she is keeping current with medical developments. With other doctors it often feels like they don't really think about it and they just diagnose things because it's "most likely" that illness instead of really knowing definitively.

So this is why I opted to go see her about my asthma issues and the residual effects in my bronchial tubes, etc. I wanted her to hear what I've been through and know what I am experiencing now so she can give me her opinion on the matter. She said that she found it very odd that after getting the immunetherapy shots from my allergist for nearly 2 years my asthma started getting worse once I went on the monthly shots (when before it was manageable). She also said that there should be some plan of action for me to eventually get off the daily inhalers and that I may be on too many meds. She said that while it seems I'm getting better from the problem I've had the past couple weeks, perhaps I'd like to go see a pulmenary doctor to do a full test. One that is really indepth and takes hours to administer. This way there would be comprehensive data on what's going on and I'd have a grasp re: what's going on with me. Basically a measure to make me feel better and more secure about what my asthma and the course of treatment. Then the pullminary doctor can advise on whether I'm being given the proper course of treatment.

My appt. with the pullminary doctor is on May 2nd as this particular doctor is not available until then. Which is fine, since it seems things are under control for now. I will feel much better once I have a real grasp on what's going on. Asthma can be a scarey thing because if you can't breathe properly it effects all aspects of life and if you get a serious enough attack of it you could die. I want to do everything in my power to ensure this is addressed in the best possible way. Especially after what I've experienced these past several weeks.
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"Strange Brew" Comic

Confusion about my health status

I called my allergist on Monday to find out the results of the chest x-ray I got on Thursday. Imagine how it feels to wonder if you have walking pneumonia or something and your doctor takes so long to clue you in on it? One would assume that if it was bad that she'd have contacted me ASAP, so the results were probably good. But this is my health we're talking about, I'd like the verbal confirmation. I called the allergist early in the morning on Monday and mid afternoon she finally called me back to tell me that my x-rays didn't show anything wrong with them.

I proceeded to tell her that I felt something in my bronchial tubes (like how you'd feel running in cold weather and you get out of breath) and that I had a fever. In a very lackadaisical fashion she told me that maybe I have a cold and take medicine to 'see what happens'. Did this lady really complete medical school? It was like she wasn't really sure but she had done her part and that was it for her. Having bronchial problems is not something one wants to approach in a careless and unconcerned way. Because, as it turns out, I need them to breathe and I need to breathe so I can not die.

This whole breathing issue for the past 2.5 weeks has been very disconcerting. Getting so out of breath just walking 3 blocks, even while on a dry inhaler. Going to a new allergist and the first round of meds she gives me really doesn't have much of an impact. Then being put on prednisone and feeling really optimistic the first couple of days only to be put on a higher dose and prolonged use of it because on the 3rd day I had labored breathing. During that office visit she gave me this treatment where I took in medicine through a cool (temp) vaporizer mouthpiece. It was my first time with such a treatment. Then the next day I had spotting (never had that happen before). I think around Friday is when I started experiencing the bronchial issues. Noticed my jaw would get sore halfway through a slice of pizza. On Sunday Jazzmin and I were running to find out where the piano recital was moved to (recital never took place) and I so easily got completely winded and my leg muscles felt like they were carrying twice the weight they're used to. I liken it to what they call "feeling the burn" when you exercise - that' show my thighs felt with slight running.

I was out sick on Monday and Tuesday because Jazzmin was sick and I was having the bronchial issues. I started taking Robitussin on Monday afternoon - am still taking it. Not sure if it's helping, but I'm still taking it just in case. I made an appt. with my general practitioner tomorrow morning so I can go over with her all I've been through and what I am feeling now. This is the only doctor I truly trust and am confident she's going to let me know exactly what's going on, how to treat it and what to expect. Wish I could see her today but her schedule is completely booked.
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"That's Life" Cartoon

Red Sox Fan = Neo-Maxi-Zoom-Dweebie

A Red Sox fan here in NYC is trying to curse the Yankees, Red Sox fans like these is the main reason I don't like the Red Sox. Their focus is more on being childish and petty then the actual game. A friend of mine (Ivette) said that the difference btw. seeing a game at Fenway and a game at Yankee Stadium is that we actually are into the game whereas Boston fans' main focus is giving opposing team fans a hard time. Do they love baseball or just love taking their frustration out on others?

Anyway - read link to see what I am talking about.

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Chest X-Rays

I went to the allergist yesterday for a follow-up. I was feeling fine on the medicine she prescribed me up until 2 hours prior to my appt. Then I started having labored breathing - my natural breaths were very small and about every 5th breath I had to take a deep breath to feel like I was taking in enough air.

The doctor checked to ensure that my blood was oxygenated enough (who knew you could check that w/o blood sample) and did a breathing test on me. She then did this treatment which I have never had before. Basically it was a mouthpiece with cool vapors bringing up liquid medicine as a breathed normally through the mouthpiece. That helped to a degree.

She said she was going to prescribe a little more prednisone for me so instead of stopping tomorrow - I'll be on it until Tuesday. Turns out she never called in the prescription as it wasn't there when I went to pick it up this morning. I called into her office but she is in a conference until mid-afternoon. ::sigh:: Yesterday she also told me to go to a different facility to get a chest x-ray. She just wants to make sure that it is the asthma causing this and not something else. So I am awaiting the results from that.

I took 2 prednisone pills today even though I'm supposed to take 4, I will take the other 2 once she calls in the prescription. I feel about 70% OK now. Slightly labored breathing and slight tightness in chest. I hope this can get resolved ASAP - I just want to find out what the deal is and fix it.
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Starbuck's New "Pike's Place" Brew

A friend of mine at work got me a card from Starbucks yesterday (when they were giving out free cups of their new brew 'Pike's Place') that allows me to get a free 'tall' cup of their new coffee every Wednesday until the end of May. Perhaps you saw news items about this promotion.?

It's supposed to be a less bitter coffee and likely trying to garner more customers. Targeting people like me who hate their bitter brew. So I got a free cup today to try it and it's nothing special. It's certainly a great alternative if you're at Starbucks but it tastes like any coffee you'd get in a street corner bodega. But I'll continue getting it free as long as the promotion lasts.
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"Strange Brew" Cartoon

"Reality Check" Cartoon

Asthma Saga Continues

Yesterday the allergist prescribed Prednisone for me and also different emergency inhaler. The Prednisone is supposed to be for severe allergies, asthma as well as other things. I am supposed to still use the daily inhaler she gave me last week - the Prednisone is just supposed to calm the asthma/allergies to a manageable level. I have to take it for 5 days, lowering the dose each day. Yesterday I took 5, today 4, tomorrow 3 and so on.

I noticed immediate results after yesterday's dose because my chest was tight from the asthma all day and then it went away. Hard to gauge today's dose until I walk up stairs or something.

I'm going for a follow-up visit tomorrow. Hopefully everything will be resolved by the end of the week. .

Jazz's Sister, America's Next Top Model?

Jazzmin's sister, Jeanette (see picture), auditioned for the TV show "America's Next Top Model" about 3 weeks ago. Apparently all she did was appear before them listing her name, height and weight.

It would be really cool if she got on the show! But I think she's a size 6 and models are usually a size 2 - so we'll see what happens!
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Mas L'oreal

Back in late March L'oreal contacted me again to participate in a focus group regarding one of their hairsprays. But I couldn't do it as I wasn't going to be at work that day so I could watch Jazzmin since her school was closed.

They contacted me again today to go to their offices next Monday and fill out a 15 minute survey there. The great thing about participating in these things is the free bag of goodies. I look forward to seeing what I get!

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2 Cat's Down and 1 to STAY!

I dropped of Arecibo and Azucar yesterday. It was a relatively painless process - I didn't know what to expect but I expected something more involved then what was actually required of me. All I had to do was fill out a paper asking questions about the cats' behaviors, etc. and that was it. The most "difficult" part of the process was the long-ish train ride I had to take into Manhattan to do it. I was a little disappointed that I did not get a chance to tell them all I went through to try and keep them re: taking allergy shots, etc. So they would see that I didn't just irresponsibly adopt 2 cats and bring them back when it was inconvenient to have them.

When I got home, Nova wouldn't let me come near him for the first hour. I think he thought he was going to be the next to go. He seems to be adjusting to his role as sole cat pretty well. He's even started sleeping differently, normally he lays outstretched on his side but now he sleeps curled up in a ball looking happy and cozy.

A friend of mine was not too happy about my giving them to the ASPCA because they do eventually put cats to sleep if they don't get adopted after a while. But when you adopt from the ASPCA they require you return them to them if you decide not to keep them. Also, it doesn't bother me if cats are eventually put to sleep, as long as it'd done humanely and there is a real effort to get the cats adopted out. There are just so many cats who need homes - it's basically mission impossible to find homes for all of them. All you can do is try your best.

It feels wierd not to have them around - the apartments feels a little emptier. Jazzmin is already asking if we can get a second cat - 2 cats wouldn't bother me the way 3 did. But I did my darndest to squash any glimmer of hope that it would happen. Jazzmin is EXTREMELY persistant when she wants something.

I called the allergist today because the medicine samples she gave me were not working. I spoke with her assistant and am awaitng a call back. Hopefully the next meds she give me works! Would love to know what it's like to go to Tae Kwon Do and not have asthma be an obstacle to my doing well in class. As it stands now sitting in one place I am feeling the effects of asthma. It's crazy.
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Argyle Sweater Comic

Meow!

Memoriam for Mom in Newspaper

I saw in the death notices in a NY paper that they had a small chunk dedicated to a memoriam for anniversaries of people's passing. Wanted to do it for mom and dad. I already contacted the Concord Monitor about pricing. I was thinking of putting:

"Beatrice Pineo Holloway - 18th year in heaven. Greatly loved and sorely missed. Love, Jennifer"

I was thinking of putting it from Brenda, Vallerie and Hillary also but I don't think anyone would be cool with not putting Gendron as her last name. I have zero interest in putting Gendron as her last name.

Here is the photo I am going to use (unless you have better):

I have to let them know if I'm going to do this by Monday - April 14th. I'm going to think about it.

Finally got the John Hoon CDs!!

I ordered my John Hoon (aka Kim Jung Hoon) CDs about a month ago and got them this week! Was excited to get them and finally listen to songs I have not heard before. He's a really great vocalist! I'm trying not to listen to them too much - I don't want to listen to them to the point where I get sick of it. I think he'll be releasing a 3rd album in Japanese soon - he has a new single out called "Sakura Tears", but they do things a little differently there so he really may just be releasing that one song. Who knows.

Here's the video for Sakura Tears:

Here is a video of him from a Korean TV show - this is the portion where they get spoken to in English and they have to figure out what's being said and respond appropriately back in english. It's cute - there is a running joke with the 'english teacher' and John Hoon that he is her husband...

Meow!

Went to New Allergist Yesterday

So I went to a new allergist yesterday, since my old one wasn't properly addressing my asthma issues. The bad part is I was kept waiting for about an hour. The good part is I like doctor - I don't know why I went to a male doctor when there was a female one also near by. Blue Cross must've updated their website or something since I started seeing an allergist.

She gave me a breathing test and said that the results weren't really bad. Of course I was still on the Advair (daily asthma medicine) when I took the breathing test. So really it was just measuring the effects of asthma that Advair wasn't helping. With each test I coughed like crazy after the fact due to the asthma. My asthma has been super bad for the past week, I got out of breath just walking at a normal pace 3 blocks to the doctor's office.

She thinks that because I feel the effects of asthma even when I'm not near the cats, that maybe I just plain have asthma. And perhaps it was just a coincidence that I became symptomatic when I was dealing with the new allergies from the cats. But considering Brenda had similar symptoms to me when she had her other cat - and they went away when that cat left, I still think it's allergy related asthma.

I was given some free samples to try for 2 weeks to see if they work. I was given Singulair as my allergy pill because it also addresses asthma symptoms (which the one I'm taking now, Zertec, does not), I got a new daily inhaler which is an aerosol instead of powder and the emergency inhaler I need to use when I workout is a dry inhaler. That one is unique - you have to insert a capsule in the device, break it and then inhale. This one is supposed to help for 12 hours whereas most emergency inhalers only last 4-5 hours. So we'll see what happens. As it stands now - the Singulair is not doing a great job with my allergies. Have had slightly itchy eyes, itchy throat and sneezing today. Maybe the problem is she told me to take the Singular at night and the medication has since worn off? Maybe I'll start taking Singulair in the morning instead.

I spoke with Dawn last night and she said that if getting rid of 2 of my cats doesn't help my asthma that she'd take Nova. If I still have issues without Nova there then we know it's not him and I will take him back. If it turns out I get better without him there - then Dawn generously offered to keep Nova. It was super nice of her to offer that! So at least if I can't keep Nova - I can still visit him. He is a really great cat - very easy going, loving, patient and playful. I've never seen him hiss (even when being hissed at) or do anything remotely aggressive. Hopefully he's a keeper. ;)
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Happy Birthday Dad!

Dad,

You're not here on earth and are now an angel in heaven. Never-the-less, even though you're not physically here - this day is no less special or happy. We are all happy that 71 years ago today this great guy, David G. Holloway, was born. And we are grateful for the time God let us spend with him.

But all is not lost, we will see you again in heaven one day. In the meantime, we know you're always here with us in spirit.

Genjer loves her Dad! (shoulder squeeze)
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Jazzmin's Mechanical Physics Fun

I bought, eh-hem, Santa brought Jazzmin some activity kits he knew she'd like - one of which was this physics kit:We hadn't gotten around to using this "Physics Discovery" so I brought it with me to Brenda's over Easter weekend. Just thought I'd show you a couple of the projects Jazz and Aunt Brenda put together. The first one utilizes gears to move the "windmill blade(s)" around when the string is pulled. The other is a project demonstrating velocity - it was like a stationary sling shot.

Flight Deck

Selena - RIP

The anniversary of slain Tejano superstar, Selena, was yesterday - 13 years since her passing. I am posting videos in her memory...

The first one is of Selena singing "Bidi-bidi Bum-bum"

Actual news coverage of her death from when it happened


Video of pictures of Selena and her husband - I think the song is being sung (and written) by her husband about losing her.

I Made the Call to the ASPCA

I made the call to the ASPCA this morning regarding returning 2 of my cats (Arecibo and Azucar) and they said that since I got the cats from the ASPCA I could drop them off at any time. Otherwise, they only take new cats on Tuesdays. So I am going to drop them off on Sunday.

I feel bad about returning them because there are so many cats in need of homes and these cats will have a hard time being placed. I am going to tell the ASPCA that Arecibo really shouldn't be adopted out - he is to traumatized by humans and everything makes him nervous. He'd be happiest staying in the ASPCA. He likes small rooms and no contact with children. Azucar has her trust issues but she is perfectly adoptable. She loves to get pet while she eats (which makes me think she was in the shelter for a long time), she'll let you pet her (but on her terms) and she likes to sit on a human's lap once she's established a certain amount of trust. Though she'll never be OK with being held.

I am going to be so happy to only have one cat. I hope that my allergies calm down and am able to keep Nova. Crossing fingers!
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For Birthday 71... Thinking about Dad

This is the poem I read at Dad's memorial - I was lucky to find this one as it fits Dad.

The Road Not Taken
by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth.

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same.

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubt I should ever comeback.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I --
I took the road less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
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Pearls Before Swine

CLICK HERE to make it larger (and legible):

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