A House Isn't a Home Without a Tree

Hubby and Tree 

This is hubby with the lovely live oak tree we received for a wedding anniversary present from my parents. We had just finished planting it. Somehow my parents got that home in my dad's Avalon. Could you see that going down the road sticking out the back? I wish I could have had a photo of that one! We came home from work and there it was...I like it!

I am on a quest to find more plants/trees too. Found a local women who is a master gardner with the county extension office who is willing to splint plants with me. How cool is that? And a friend has a tree the city is about to chop down to make room for a sidewalk...we think we'll try to dig that sucker up too. I don't know much about plants and gardening..but I'm learning.

Moi? Mean?

I've been told I've been mean writing about Randy, the co-worker who sits next to me at work. See, I'm not trying to be mean. Just explaining a situation and a guy who offers something different to talk about. Heck, he makes fun of himself too for being disorganized and how he constantly looses things. It's kinda funny actually because I have gotten to kinda like the guy. He cracks me up at times and I admire that he doesn't sit around at home but likes to travel a lot and has seen more of Florida in the past 3 months than I have in years.

So tell me. Am I really being mean? Should talk of the Randimonium cease? Although I was reminded this morning that my motto is "If you don't like it, get your own blog."

Quote of the Day

"If you have a job without aggravations, you don't have a job."
- Malcolm Forbes

Oh Malcolm, this is soooo true.

Our hair's better than your hair?

Ok, this is just silly.

CNN.com - Our hair's better than your hair - Jul 8, 2004

Why did they even go there?

Politics Please

Ok, so I try to stay out of politics here. I am so sick of hearing from all of them frankly. They all lie and say what they think you want to hear so they will elect you. Most are rich, old white men who have very little to do with what I believe. So I stay away, until now.

I've added a cool new blog under But Seriously... It's called WatchBlog. What's different is that it doesn't just concentrate on one side or the other. It is split three-ways. To your left (how appropriate) is the democrats, the middle the Independents and on the right all about Republicans. A variety of topics are covered. And it's actually kinda of funny at times.

Back to the Grind

Almost forgot how lovely having two days in a row off was. I was telling hubby that I actually felt refreshed last night and I didn't fear falling asleep at the desk at work. Wonderful. The bummer? I don't know when the next day I will get off. There's no holidays till September and it's on a Monday so it's a single day. Although a friends wedding is that Saturday afternoon and I will not be working that day. So I have to look forward to right now is lots of work Monday-Friday and hot weekends. Kinda depressing really. I guess I have to get sick to get a day off now.

It's 4:20 and I Wanna Go Home

Man, it's the afternoon before a holiday weekend that I actually get some of it off and I don't want to be here anymore. It's hard to concentrate on work when all you want to do is play, and the guy next to you is mumbling on about whatever and stuffing his mouth with food as usual. Well...at least it's not that long left.

I'm ready. Are you?

Reason to Love/Hate the Commute

While crossing the Howard Franklin Bridge the other day I was thinking how it's not that bad of a drive, really. I get home in the same time as many who drive to Brandon, North Tampa, even Plant City sometimes. I mean, I get to look out my window and see a body of water (this picture can't do it justice).


Could Be Worse Eh? 

But then I realize, there's still traffic. And on this day lots of it.

Traffic! 

Have You Met My Good Friend Stanley?

Ok, so I wasn’t feeling too hot last night so I didn’t get around to putting these babies up. Yeah, I know I’m behind the Daily Dave and Side Salad, but here we go. We’ll Call this…Sarah’s Quest for the Cup!


Quest for the Cup 
This is some of the line waiting to meet Stanley. But hey…is there a better way to spend a half an hour of your workday?


Daal, Dave and Britt 
These are the guys and baby elephant I endured the line with. Well, it was mainly enduring the sickening sweetness of the two lovebirds. And Daal getting sooo excited at the thought of finding peanuts in the Stanley Cup that he almost jumped for joy out of Dave’s hands.


Daal climbs Stanley 
Here’s Britt helping Daal climb Mt. Stanley. The excitement is high here!


I love that guy! 
Here I am from farther away me with Stanley. It was hard not to kiss him.

And FINALLY!


Say Hello To My Little Friend...Stanley! 

Happy Birthday to Youuu!!!

A VERY happy birthday to friend and co-worker Dave Simanoff! He turns, well I know it's not nice to reveal older folks ages, so I won't. There is yummy cake in his future today as well as some really bad singing from our staff.

Other famous people's birthdays:

Princess Diana, Twyla Tharp (choreographer) and Carl Lewis (famous athlete).

Famous things that happened on July 1, besides Dave being born, which is huge to begin with:

1863: The Battle of Gettysburg started, which was the turning point of the Civil War.

1963: Post office first started using 5-digit zip codes.

1997: After 156 years of British control, Hong Kong was returned to China.

I Hugged the Cup!

Lord Stanley's cup is downstairs. I just got back from visiting it and getting my photo taken with it. Shared the journey to the cup with Dave and Britt, the baby elephant Daal and a host of Media General employees. Even though it is my second visit with the cup, it was here during the NHL All-Star game a few years back,it was still awesome. So much history in one trophy.

Pictures to come tonight.

Overheard in the Newsroom

"No, I was not pregnant, I was just retaining lots of water." - Dave Simanoff

I Know the Secret of the Da Vinci Code..

The Da Vinici Code  

The The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown is truly two books.

First it is a masterful mystery novel. Second it is a political book that has a very specific agenda.

The story is good and the author did a really good job with writing a book with lots of twists and turns that keeps the reader interested. It does get a little long at times and unfortunately I guessed the family secret early on but I still enjoyed it. It was intelligently written and had lots of interesting things to say.

With that said I do see Brown's agenda, it is to discredit the Catholic Church, and in turn takes down all Christian religions, in any and every way possible. I do understand there were/are many bad things the church has done...but I also am Catholic and this book has not changed that or my practices. But I knew understood that when I got into reading this book. So I will go with the fictional story Brown told and say it was a pretty good mystery. You have to read it yourself to find out where to find the Holy Grail.

Breaking Potter News

According to the AP the next Harry Potter book's name is Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. So it's about someone 1/2 magical and 1/2 muggle I imagine. There's no word on the release date yet. Hopefully it's soon. I am terrible about waiting patiently.

Also, the Stanley Cup will be in the newsroom tomorrow. Will be taking photos. Nothing like touching the People's Cup! Yes Laura and Greg, you MUST be soo jealous!

The Randyman Can...

Here's a tribute to my neighbor Randy at work as created by the Mistress of the Doodle, Pat...sang to Sammy Davis Jr.'s Candyman..

"Who can lose his cell phone? Eat a bag of goo? Buy a bag of pretzels and demolish it by 2? The Randyman can ...."

She's very talented that one..

Harry's Growing Up

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azcaban 

Saturday night we went and saw Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. This was different than the other two movies. This Harry is getting older and bolder (as well as more handsome I think, but that's another story.) Harry meets his godfather Sirius (said like serious) Black and more about his parents and their past. This is a really building a bridge to the next installment where serious stuff starts to happen.

What is cool about this movie is that the new director brought a new set of eyes to everything. You see so many parts of Hogwarts that were not shown. It was visually stunning. From Harry's ride on Buckbeak, the exciting Quidditlach match played in a monster thunder storm to the freakish dementors, it was a feast for the eyes.

I was a little disappointed though. (I know, anytime you read a book first it happens)I felt some of the charm of the book was really missing. I just felt more satisfied with the first two on how true they were to the book. I thought that the explanation at the end was too brief and was left to ponder if you hadn't read the book would you really know what is truly happening. I'm not sure you would. But never-the-less, this movie was entertaining. From the purple Knight Bus that squeezed between two buses to Emma Thompson's wonderful portrayal of Prof. Trelawney, there were some gems to be found. You know I'll be looking to pick up a copy of it when it comes to DVD.

I finished the Da Vinci Code the other night. Will give my impressions soon.

It's Randimonium!

I had an editor stop me in the mailroom to tell me that she is concerned for my safety. She's afraid the pile on my deskmates side of the desk is going to consume me. I am little worried too. Who knows what may fall out of the pile? Or what? When you leave food wrappers sitting around...you just NEVER know.

Overheard from him today: "I thought I had yesterdays Times on this desk. Have you seen it?" I don't know where even to begin looking I told him.

I would like to take a photo, to show the rest of the world what I sit next to, but he's been her most mornings when I remembered my camera. May a friend with a phone camera will take a picture for me, so the flash won't be so noticeable.

Run! It's Randimonium!

I'm Arthur, King of the Brits!

Found this cute quiz. Makes me want to watch the movie!

"Bring out your dead!"


You are King Arthur of the Britons!
You like to hear yourself talk a lot, namely about
some damn grail. Those closest to you are just
there to serve you and bang your coconuts
together. For some reason Mystical beings come
to you and set you out on quests. If only more
people understood you, perhaps you'd get that
grail afterall.


What Monty Python Holy Grail Quest Character are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Genealogy of my Scarf

I love scarves. I don't think I have the right body to wear them all the time, especially around the neck like I would love to, but I love em' anyways.

Today I woke up and thought, I want to wear a scarf! I pulled out a long, relatively thin one, with green bands on the outside and some flowers towards the ends that come to a point. First around the neck it went. It looked cute, but too constrictive for me today. Then I started playing with it. I have never tried to wear one in shorter hair (since I haven't had short hair that many times the chances of my trying it aren't as high). Today I am. Very summary with the long ends trailing down the back.

This is a special scarf to me. It was my Grandmothers. My mom's mom. After she died we were in her apartment going through her things. It was sad, but interesting. You really learn a lot about a person when you sift through their belongings. Really you are sifting through their life in a way.

I chose to bring home this scarf. It's not beautiful and it has a small stain. But to me it is beautiful because who it belonged to. So I'll continue to try to find different ways to wear it and enjoy it because wearing it makes me smile.

Oh No, Make it Stop!

The other night hubby and I were watching a little TV and he stopped at a show called Pride on A&E. It's a made for cable movie about a "pride" of lions that talk. It stars actually some big stars including Kate Winslet. It looks like those TV commercials that show talking animals, but it's longer and kinda obnoxious. It's like the Lion King but not really.

Picture of the Day

Oh Mrs. Mophead, Your Scarf is Lovely! 

I was crusin' eBay looking at vintage scarves and came across this. Apparently Mrs. Mophead is used in all this sellers pictures. Just a little something for everyone to smile at.

Any other suggestions for a title for this picture?

Never Know What You'll Find!

The Wall Street Journal had a great article today about a used bookstore in New York City called the Strand. It seems that people often forget to flip through books before selling them. It talks about all the interesting things the clerks find in them.

From naughty photos, birth certificates, famous writers notes, arrest rap sheets and letters to historical documents and photos. Here's some fun excerpts:

At the Strand's main desk, Richard Lilly said, "Let this be a warning to those who don't look through books before they sell. Bored clerks see it all." He laid open a copy of "Diverse Images - Photographs From the New Orleans Museum of Art." Lodged between pages 62 and 81 was a spent bullet. "Another piece of a life that can't be tracked," said Mr. Lilly, who runs the Strand's art department. "It could be worse. At least there's no blood."


"Yesterday, I found this really cool picture of this naked wrestler guy," Ms. Thompson says. In the fiction department, Ben McFall says: "I have a collection at home, which I can't bring in, of men in negligees. How do these things get away from people?"
Easily. A letter from Mrs. Robert E. Lee once dropped out of an old novel at Main Street Fine Books in Galina, Ill., birthplace of Ulysses S. Grant. Books from the Crypt in Gaithersburg, Md., found a 1933 horse-race tip-sheet in a 1938 copy of "Astounding Stories." Christmas Every Day, a used bookstore in Dallas, acquires leftovers from Christmas dinners in leftover Christmas books.

and

Snippets caught in books never solve these mysteries, but a while ago, Will Bobrowski did add up some clues. He was shelving a book on the Third Reich when an envelope dropped out. Two letters were inside: one from a woman to a Dr. Muller in America; and one signed by an Albert Kesselring. There were two snapshots: one of a group of Nazi officers standing at a table, and another showing one of them leaving a building with Benito Mussolini.
"I went crazy doing research," Mr. Bobrowski says. Soon he knew that Field Marshal Kesselring led Hitler's forces in Italy, was convicted of war crimes in 1947, was pardoned in 1952 - and was the man walking out of that building with Mussolini.

Just a reminder to flip through those books before donating or selling them. You never know who'll be reading you personal papers.

Quote of the Day

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. - Eleanor Roosevelt, 'This Is My Story,' 1937

I saw this and I really liked it. I see this happen so often where people base their self worth and base it on how others tell them it should be. The allow people to put them down so often and never fight back. Also, I am a big fan of Eleanor Roosevelt. That women should have been president. She was way ahead of her time.

Happy Dad's Day!

Father's Day 04' 

Happy Father's Day to all Dad's out there! Spent a nice evening with my father tonight. A nice dinner, lovely conversation and some yummy drinks.

The picture is him with a lovely shirt that came from one of my sisters. Very nice.

I wanted to take this moment to thank MY dad for all the awesome things he has done for me and my family. I didn't understand why he did many things when I was younger, but now that I am an adult I am seeing it and hearing myself saying things that have come out of his mouth. I am very lucky to have a Dad like I do. And in case you haven't heard it enough, thanks Dad, I love you!

Wife Carrying Contest

According to a NY Times article, the World Wife-Carrying Championships is July 2-4 in Finland. Yes, I typed correctly, wife-carrying. The husbands carry their wives for 250 yards through a land and water course. And the winner received the wifes weight in beer. Apparently the Estonians have won more than anyone else and the event is incredibly popular.

Sounds like a redneck sport to me. It's good to know there's rednecks everywhere in this world and not only hiding out in Plant City, Lakeland and Pinellas Park Florida.

Overheard in the Newsroom

"You're not going to use the good bacon are you?"

If all of you could have seen the face on the guy who said this to his wife and how serious he was, you would see just how funny this is.

It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better

Rocks Anyone? 

These are all the rocks that came out of my front yard. And hubby said there were a couple that will remain in the ground. Which is fine. He got the liner to the pond up yesterday and was very happy with himself. I would be too. It was grueling and he did the really hard part. Now we have to move all the dang rocks!



flower 

This is one of the canna lilies from my front yard. It's blooming like nuts right now. These were one of the suprise plants to show up.

This just in, Madonna's now Esther?

Saw this from a wire report this afternoon...

By Daniel Rubin
Knight Ridder Newspapers
(KRT)
From this day forth, Madonna shall be known as Esther.
So sayeth the 45-year-old Material Girl-turned mystic in an interview scheduled to air Thursday night on ABC.
From the mother of Jesus to the Queen of the Jews - we're kvelling!
The singer formerly known as Madonna, a student of the ancient Jewish Kabbalah, told the news magazine "20/20" that her mother, also Madonna, "died when she was very young, of cancer, and I wanted to attach myself to another name. ... This is no way a negation of who my mother was. I wanted to attach myself to the energy of a different name."
The Old Testament's Esther saved her people by appealing to her husband, the Persian King Ahasuerus, nearly 500 years before the New Testament's Madonna gave birth to Jesus.
The modern-day Esther is now on her Re-Invention tour, appealing to Madison Square Garden fans this week in a glittery bustier, black short-shorts, and thigh-high boots.


You know, you think she would have learned from Prince and the whole changing your name thing? But noooo... And Esther? Sounds like an old Jewish lady, well, I guess with her studying the Kabbalah so much, she's just about there.

America's Favorite Cat??

I don't know about that, because I am partial to my lovely cat Tiger, but I do know that Watson the cat is pretty funny. Visit his new web site at
America's Favorite Cat - The Good Life in Alabama. The cat has pretty good computing skills and a way with words. I'm adding him under distractions.

Favorite Posts from the Past...

Monday, August 25, 2003
Feelin' Perky!
Well, after a monstrous cup of crappy office coffee I am feelin' fine. I am typin' really, really, REALLY fast right now and am getting LOTS of work done. Maybe I should drink bad coffee every day so I could get all of my work done by the end of 2 days instead of 5! Sounds fabulous to me.

I always love to read what I wrote when I was hopped up on the coffee. It's like I'm a different person.

And this story cracked me up too.

Friday, August 01, 2003
Can Stupid People Kill You?
Thanks to Skippy Simanoff for pointing out this great article from the Weekly World Report.

Here's the great opening:
Idiots in the office are just as hazardous to your health as cigarettes, caffeine or greasy food, an eye-opening new study reveals. In fact, those dopes can kill you!

Well, as with anything in the Weekly World Report, take this with a grain of salt. :-)

Oh! And a BIG thanks to Skippy for bringing me in the COOLEST pen ever! When I get home I will have to take a picture of it and post it. Do you have a Rockem' Sockem' frog boxer pen? I do! Thanks again!

Very funny. I still have the Rockem' Sockem' light-up frog boxer pen. And it's still the coolest pen on my desk.

Quote of the Day.

Saw this one on the Bloomberg machine this morning and thought it was funny...

"No man goes before his time--unless his boss leaves first." - Groucho Marx

How silly. It doesn't work that way around here being bosses come and go in my department. I'm on my third main boss and been through 4 sub-bosses. People go when the new bosses come usually.


And a quick thanks to Pat for the cool plant she brought in for the new house. It's cool. We're not sure what it is, but she says they really grow well. Another plant note, one of my red plants out front not has a beautiful bright orange flower on the top and it looks like there's more to come. I took a picture this morning and hope to get it up here soon.

Post of the Day

This is another of my favorite posts from the past year.

Friday March 5, 2004
Ding Dong the Witch is Dead!
Omorosa got fired last night on the Apprentice. Yeah! Finally the manipulative, nasty bitch got the can. And apparently she is thinking about suing Trump because she was subjected to unsafe conditions when the tiny piece of plaster fell on her head and gave her a "concussion." And I loved her little piece at the end in the cab where she trying to teach to the nation. But man she must have low self esteem..."I know that I am a good person..." Ha! Bye bye babe...

On a nicer note, I wanna welcome back Skippy to work, we are glad he is feeling better. Work is just not as fun without him.


I liked it because it reminded me of watching The Apprentice this Spring and chatting about it with friend Cherie at work. I also liked it because someone had the gumption to accuse me of being a racist just because I said I disliked Omorosa. I disliked Katrina too, and thought that she was mean and manipulative too. Bad joke if it were one.

And it still stinks when Skippy's out from work, cause it isn't as much fun. Even more so since there are fewer fun people left.

Well Done

The Five People You Meet in Heaven 

I finished Mitch Albom's The Five People You Meet in Heaven last week. I had lower expectations for this book from other reviews I read but I cam away pleased to have spent time with this book.

The premise of this book is simple, and luckily Albom stays true to it by not dragging it out too long or making it more complicated.

Eddie, the 83 year-old main character works at a small theme park by the Atlantic Ocean and has spent the majority of his life growing up and working there. In a freak accident he dies. The author contends that when you die the first thing you will do it meet five people from whom will make sense out of why certain things happened in your life. And for Eddie it explained why some life altering this happened to him and how some things that happened to those around him ultimately affected him. And what it comes down to is that we are all connected even though we are not often aware of it. And when you are done with your people you will provide comfort and understanding to those who you affected.

Simply written and simple ideas. It's a nice change to read something like this. This is a nice summer read.

Friends who have left...

Looking back over Sarah Says I am amazed at how many people have come and gone from my place of work. Sarah Says is a chronicle of this fact. Since last year:

I have lost 2 bosses, gained 1.
Jo-Ann, Cherie, Andrew, Katrina and Jerry have left. (I am the last woman standing.)
Alan and Randy have joined us. One is in the wings...hopefully he comes.

Notice we are not replacing as fast as they leave. Is this an indication of the problems here? Probably. Wonder who's next?

On a better note, I finished The Five People You Meet in Heaven, review coming soon.

Sarah Says Turns 1!

Cake seems appropriate 

Sunday will be Sarah Says' first anniversary. I thought I'd get a head start with a look back at some of my favorite posts. I'll be revisiting the past year of Sarah Says for the next week. But here are some of MY favorites.

Remember the first post?

June 13, 2003
Howdy!
Well, since it seems everyone is doing it, I thought it was time that I did too, have my own blog! While I am trying to figure this whole thing out it might not be that pretty or interesting, but wait, it'll happen. Oh yeah! So sit back and enjoy and if you have suggestions get your own blog!

I still say if you don't like it, get your own blog!

Sickness in the workplace....

June 24, 2003
SARS Could Be Sitting Next to Me
Co-worker Andrew Meadows just got back from Toronto (SARS Central). He was attending his brothers nuptials. I told him that the first cough or sneeze from him and he's outta here. Wonder if I bought him one of those medical masks he would wear it?
Hey, I only have 2 sick days left, I have to be cautious.

Now I just have a sweaty guy from New Jersey sitting next to me, don't know which is better...

Personal Grief...

Wednesday, September 24, 2003
One Year Ago Today.
One year ago today my family lost a son and a brother, a cousin, a nephew, a grandson.

One year ago today many lost a friend, a confidant, a leader, an organizer, a listener.

One year ago today my brother Paul died unexpectedly. One year ago today parts of my family's hearts died too.

It still hurts. A lot.

There are so many times I read things or hear things I would have wanted to make sure I told him. Jokes and goofy stories and breaking news that I thought I would have heard first only to be told he knew. Although the one thing I didn't get to tell him before he died is how much I thought of him. How much he meant to me. How much I love him.

Paul I miss and love you.

I miss him more than ever.

and last for tonight Pancakes!

Nov. 6
From Cheese to Pancakes
Dave and his very complimentary spouse Britt seem to have gotten a little food poisoning from eating at I-Hop over the weekend. Sister Chef says most likely it had to do with some cross contamination, with some meat or something.

This set off a range of pancake songs. I have to say I love breakfast foods. So it's not too hard to come up with songs like:

when you're feeling hungry...
... for breakfast food ...
... what ya gonna eat?
... hot pancakes!

Pancakes are tasty ... pancakes are fun ... if you don't eat a pancake
... your breakfast isn't done!

Pankcakes...sticky, warm and buttery pancakes, I love the way they are...

It's a pancake life for me it's a pancake life for me! Instead of cereal we get pancakes, instead of waffles it's pancakes I-I crave...it's a pancake life!

There's others...but I sent them yesterday and I can't remember what I wrote...but you get the idea...Pancakes are yummy! I don't know if as yummy as cheese, but up there! Especially the ones my mom makes...she's really talented in breakfast making department.

You can't go wrong with pancakes.

Join in the celebration! Have a favorite memory/post? Let me know. But if you're like me, you won't remember either, I had to go back and read the archives. Help yourself and lets celebrate one year of what I had to say!

Holes, holes everywhere!

See all the lovely rocks? 

This is only halfway. 

This is how my front yard looked after I began digging it up last week. Thanks to hubby's help it's even better. On the second photo you can see the small tree in the back ground...that's where the hole stretches to and there's lots of water down there along with large rocks and lots of stones. We have to move most of it to get the pond liner out. It's hard work. We have started calling it the beginnings of our moat. We're worried what else is down there...maybe we'll find Jimmy Hoffa?

Say Hello to My Little Friend...

Denise and Baby Amy 

Meet my good friend Denise and her new daughter Amy Lynn. I got the chance to drive over to Valrico to visit with them last week while on vacation. Amy was born the Tuesday evening before Easter. We had a blast. Denise made me grilled cheese, which is a fav. of mine and I got to hold her precious girl. She didn't scream actually, which since I am not often around small babies was an honor, so I must have been holding her OK. We had a chance to catch up which was nice. We have been friends since high school and I am so glad we still are.

Coming soon to a Sarah Says near you...the holes in my front yard. I have to take some new photos to show the true scope of how many large rocks and amount of pond liner is buried in my flower garden area...you guys will LOVE it!

What's In a Name?

Was crusin' the net this afternoon and came across this great little article about naming children and all the craziness surrounding some of the horrendous and too typical names out there. I just thought I'd offer up this guys silly article as some fun reading.

Hatch Magazine - What's In a Name?

Scattered and Unclear

Sometimes I Dream in Italian 

I finished reading Sometimes I Dream in Italian by Rita Ciresi last night. I have mixed feelings about this book.

The first 1/3 of this book was really good. It was often funny and touching. It started out about life of Angel and her older sister Lina growing up in an dysfunctional Italian family. But then Ciresi seems to lose her way. Suddenly you are in different time frames which aren't explained and you are continually dropped into scenes this way. The books sinks into crude commentary and too many stereotypes at times. I really wanted to like this book because it started so well. I can see the potential. But the author seems to have lost her sense of which way the book should have gone and it never came back around. Even the ending didn't really bring any closer and left we thinking what the heck? I didn't get the reference on the last page that the author seemed to expect everyone would.

Next I'm reading The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Album. He's the acclaimed author of Tuesdays at Morries.

Lightning Lose??!

According to the Tampa Tribune's editorial page today the illustrious Lightning did us proud but lost. So now the Tribune is the talk of the town, but in a bad way. Here's the appology from the editorial page editor:

Dear Readers,
We took a puck in the gut this morning when we published the wrong editorial about the Tampa Bay Lightning, who won the Stanley Cup final on Monday night.
We apologize to the team and to the fans for our terrible error. And we apologize to our colleagues at the newspaper, who got it right in every other way.
In advance of the final, we had prepared two editorials, one for either outcome. When we saw that the Lightning had won, we placed the proper editorial on the computerized page, printed it out and eliminated the other version. Still, somehow, the other version appeared in the paper. We are checking our systems to ensure we learn from our mistake.
It is so important to us to get it right. And today we failed you. We extend our heartfelt apologies.

Rosemary Goudreau
Editorial Page Editor


Here's the correct one:

Lightning Gave Community More Than A Championship

The Tampa Bay Lightning's 2-1 victory last night didn't just win National Hockey League's Stanley Cup. The team's championship run also expanded the Lightning's fan base and bolstered its financial standing. But the team did something else. It generated excitement and pride throughout the community.

Two years ago few could have imagined the Lightning making the playoffs, much less winning the cup. Before last season, Sports Illustrated rated Tampa Bay as the worst of the NHL's 30 teams. Defying the experts, the team went on to win its division. Now the Lightning has proved itself the best team in hockey in one of the quickest turnarounds in league history.

The Lightning's victory should quiet critics who claimed the NHL expanded too fast and argued that teams would never survive in the Sunbelt. The two previous Stanley Cup runners-up have been Carolina and Anaheim, further proof that hockey can succeed where the temperature seldom falls below freezing.

The thousands who gathered outside of the Forum to watch Stanley Cup broadcasts for both home and away games reflected the depth of local fans' support. Such devotion is usually reserved for ``traditional'' American hockey towns like Detroit or in Canada, where the sport is considered the national pastime. It also shows how sports can bring people together in a positive way.

The entire Lightning organization - especially coach John Tortorella, general manager Jay Feaster and owner Bill Davidson - deserve credit for this remarkable transformation.

The Lightning's Stanley Cup win won't change people's lives or solve Tampa's problems. But its exhilarating season has brought fellowship and joy to our community - no small accomplishment. Thanks, Lightning. You've made us proud.


So today it really is:
Lies. Printed Daily.

It's Awesome Ba-by!

Stanley's Getting a Tan! 

Yes, read it again! The Tampa Bay Lightning are the reigning Stanley Cup champs! We were on the edge of our seats the entire game with our fingers crossed hoping that they would pull it off. With the first goal we were smiling and hopeful. By the second we knew we were gonna win. But then the third period came and the Flames got a little fight back. But we held on and we won! All those who doubted the Lightning (yes Aaron, I remember you saying you didn't think that they could win) it's time for you to shut up and acknowledge the Lightning for what they did.

Go Bolts

It's Monday...Again

I came back to a desk full of mail and other stuff (lots of other stuff that's the Great Randu's (as a friend calls my neighbor))3,000+ e-mails, newspapers piled high and lots of work.

But see that's OK. Because I have the Stanley Cup final to look forward to tonight. I want to see the Lightning win this one. So finally the national media will stop talking about every other team they play rather than how awesome they are. From the get go there's been a lack of belief that the Lightning could or should win.

I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed for them tonight. It is appropriate that the sky's are darkened now and it is rumbling outside. Cause Lightning is ready to strike in Tampa tonight.

Go Bolts!

Lady of Leisure...Kinda

I have some photos I want to share but I am having some hardware issues and can't connect with my camera for the moment...will get those soon I hope.

Been keeping busy during my time off. I have enjoyed this leisurely lifestyle. Got a haircut, went shopping and bought some drapes for the living room (they are lovely I think), did lunch, beat my mom TWO times in 500 Rum (those who know the card shark better known as my Mom know it's a BIG deal to beat her in cards), had my hair colored, shopped, visited a good friend and her new baby and did some decorating around the place. Oh yeah, am getting my Oprah fix too. Can't say that waking up around 9:30 is a bad thing either.

Although I have started digging up the pond that is in my front yard. I have a great picture of the hole I have created, it'll be twice the size when I'm done with it. See the people before us had a pond and when the house was foreclosed on the company that renovated it just folded the thing into itself and covered it mostly with mulch. So I can't plant anything much there because of the large liner. You wouldn't believe the large rocks down there and there's water down there! More of that tomorrow.

I really have separated myself from work this week. I have glanced at the newspaper, mainly so I don't get behind with my favorite comics and read a review of the new Harry Potter movie. But very little attention to anything even related to business to be truthful, and it feels lovely.

Well, back to my life of leisure, I have one more day and then it is back to the flea market and then to the real world. If only I could figure out how to become independently wealthy then I could enjoy this life of leisure for real... :-)

Glorious Appearing..Not Really

Glorious Appearing...Not a Glorious Read. 

I finished reading The Glorious Appearing by Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins last week. I thought that if I let it digest a little longer I might make a little more sense of it. It didn't help. I still didn't like this book that much.

First. This book, as were many of the others in the 12 book series, was too long. It could have been at least 1/3 shorter, if not more. What takes up a huge portion of this book is straight scripture. Which I really didn't think added to this book. It made it drag on. They didn't just take the passage where they were recounting, they took too many of the surrounding ones. I read the Bible and if I wanted to read the Bible I can do so, that's not what I was reading the book for.

Second. It was a cheesy ending. I felt that the authors reached too far into some passages to come up with what they did. I just don't buy it. I've read the book of Revelations and didn't see what they did at all.

Third. I wasn't happy with how Jesus was portrayed. He was not the loving God that I have come to understand. He's really pissed off in this book. Also, I don't feel that he would return saying the same things he said the first time he was here. If you are God don't you think you might come up with something more original?

Anyways...to sum it up. Too long, cheesy and a bad ending to a series that has been dragging down for several books. It seems that the authors and publishers were just trying to get the most money out of their audience. And since they are talking a prequil and sequel, I see that is the truth most definitely.

Next book Sometimes I Dream in Italian by Rita Ciresi. So far it's pretty funny. Will let you know.

And I am pondering reading ...Anna Korenia by Tolstoy which Oprah's reading for her summer book club...I know it's Tolstoy...but it sounds interesting. I'm glad to see someone on TV pushing more difficult literature. We need more of that

Paranoia can lead to a clean house...

Tomorrow we are hosting our official first shin-dig. My father-in-law's birthday was last week and we weren't able to all get together before this so we thought Memorial Day would be perfect.

So the in-laws are coming. Mom was here one time before early on when it was OK to be such a mess. Now, 2 1/2 months later, there's still boxes and few pictures on the walls and a dirty house to boot. I know we have an excuse, 7 day work week. But yet in the back of my mind I hear...Sarah, they see a gross house what will they think of the woman their son married? (Hopefully that she's tired and her hubby could clean too) but I didn't hear that. I hear must clean the bathroom, sweep the floors and clean the bar. And do the laundry cause you're running low on the clothes....So I did. The house is cleaner. Still boxes, but they are more generally hidden.

Now in the back of my head...no matter what we (hubby and I) cook, the food'll never be as good as mom's...

I am soooo paranoid!


On a good note, I got to see friends Denise and Mark's new 8 week-old daughter Amy for the first time. I was driving by her parents home on the way home from visiting my parents and saw they car...had to drop in. What a doll. Gonna go visit later this week, hope to have some photos. Congrats again you two!

And another great note! Friends Dawn and hubby Jarred are now expecting in January. Congrats you two. We are very happy for you!

Vacation starts NOW

Well, I got to go home a little early today...boss was being nice. So I have a little over an hour to relax to home before heading out to church. I have been attending a bible study on the book of Isaiah. It has been fascinating..And then off to something else. But for right now, relaxing feeols good. I mean I could to laundry, I could do this or that. But you know what? I don't wanna!

Right now I'm gonna sit back and enjoy myself!

Bye-Bye Jo-Ann

Today is Jo-Ann's last day with the Biz department. She's going to work up in Dade City. I will miss her. She's a talented reporter who knows how to break down the most complicated stories. I wish her luck. Now I'm the last lady standing...

You know you want to,,

Ok, you know you have always dreamed of smashing your computer when it crashes or some other issue comes up. Now you can. I stole this from my friend Joe's tagline on an email. I know, it's in Spanish, just use your mouse and click on the area to hit, keep doing it...it makes you feel better...really...

Smack the PC!!!!Best Flash Game!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"I need a hero..."

Thanks to Dave "Skippy" Simanoff for making me a copy of his newest compilation the Nashville mix. It is awesome and so hard not to sing out loud and dance to. I told him he could be a DJ cause he knows how to mix a mean CD. Hopefully I will have some more meaningful thoughts coming in the next week. My brain is truely shot at this time.

Go Lightning!

Too hyper!

Because of coffee and some booty-shakin' music I am all hopped up! I started typing faster than I knew I could. I had to change to some Vivaldi to calm myself down. I was beginning to almost shake. Whew! Is it Friday yet?

"When I was Young and Didn't Give a Damn..."

So far today I have listened to John Mayer plus the most excellent jam Skippy Simanoff put at the end of the CD he made for me, Cyndi Lauper and now onto the Cranberries. I must resist the urge not to sing out load during some of the songs.

Days here at work have been hellish...taking a brain break to write this. So Aaron won't be disappointed that I didn't blog and of course all my other fans. ;-)

I am still bummed about the Lightning's loss last night. But that's Ok because they can still redeem themselves and I expect them to.

Back to work...so much to do and so little time!

This is Dedicated to My Aunt Pat

I got this e-mail forwarded at work today. This bad math teacher joke is dedicated to my Aunt Pat who is retiring from teaching high school math at the end this week. Wish we could be there to celebrate with you! Congrats

A man later claiming to be a public school teacher was arrested at New
York's Kennedy airport today, trying to board a flight while in possession
of a ruler, a protractor, a set square, a slide rule, and a calculator.

At a morning press conference, Attorney General John Ashcroft said he
believes the man is a member of the notorious al-Gebra movement. He is
being charged by the FBI with carrying weapons of math instruction.

It's Been a Hard Days Night!..

Finishing up the day with One by the Beatles which is a good selection of their #1 hits. And this song I seem to relate to well.

"It's been a hard days night, and I've been working like dog. It's been a hard days night, I should be sleepin' like a log.."

Very productive day and the music made it much happier. When I was listening to the Best of Cher I told a co-worker it was like having a dance club in my head and I found that it was very hard not to get up and shake my booty.

What what tunes I'll select for tomorrow...hmmmm...

"Hold me, love me...eight days a week.." Gotta love the Beetles.

You've Gotta Groovy Thing Goin' Baby!

Listing to the Simon & Garfunkel Old Friends CD's at work today to keep me a little more focused on all the work I have this week so I won't be getting involved in the conversations going on around me. Especially with Lightning Fever overtaking the newsroom.

..."And the leaves that are green turn to brown..."

Let's Go Lightning!

Coming to a Town By the Bay Soon...The Stanley Cup! 

Congratulations to the Tampa Bay Lightning for beating the Philadelphia Fliers tonight 2-1 and advancing to the Stanley Cup final. This is our hocky teams first and very well deserved trip to the finals. We are looking forward to this series and know that you will be bring the Cup back to Tampa where it should be!

(Psst. Aaron, hopefully this will quench your thirst for more Sarah Says for the day. I will be working Sunday, so it may not be until later when I get to post again. ;-)

Now Why Would you Do That?

The Funniest Mayor's Name of Them All 

So I am going through my picture files on my computer tonight and see this photo. I know, you are thinking what's soooo funny about this sign? Well, this is a sign from up in Ft. Wayne, Ind., my mom's families and my birthplace. H.W. Baals is a previous mayor of the city. His name? Harold W. Baals, but everyone called him Harry, so it's Harry Baals (pronounced Balls).

This is especially funny because my mom's mom, Josephine Kinder, always thought it was the funniest thing. Give her a glass of wine or a beer and she would be chatting on and on about how who in their right mind would name their child Harold when their last name is Baals??

If you have a funny real life person's name let me know. Besides the baby Apple.

Call in Exhausted?

Getting out of bed was really hard today. When hubby started poking me imploring me to get up I wanted to "reach out and touch someone." After I got up and got dressed he says to me, why don't you call in sick. I knew I couldn't, too much to do in preparation for getting the privilege of getting time off, I had to do the work for that week ahead of time (how many other jobs require that?)

I did want to call in exhausted. It could have gone something like this... "Boss, it's me Sarah, I'm calling in exhausted so I'm not coming in today. Working seven days a week has caused my brain and body to basically shut down and I need a break."

I am thinking coffee is in my near future.

Just a Test of the Emergency Cat System...Only A Test

Say Hello Tiger! 

Am just trying out this new Blogger photo program..while you're at it you can AWWWW at my lovely little kitty Tiger. (Don't know how old the photo is.)

$1,000 Omelet?

A New York Restaurant has added a $1,000 omelet to its menu according to a story at CNN.com. So what makes it's worth the big grand? A lobster and lots of $65 an ounce caviar. Probably more of a gimmick then anything I suppose, but I could never imagine spending that much money on one item of food. I think twice about a $10 bottle of wine and spending $3.50 on a gallon of milk. I guess no ones ordered it yet, big shocker. But maybe Trump hadn't heard about it yet. You can check out the article below.


CNN.com - Pricey omelet costs $1,000 - May 17, 2004

Apple?!

Ok, the end IS coming. People are now just naming their children after objects that they might have had for lunch.

If you haven't heard or read Gywneth Paltrow gave birth to a daughter Friday and named her Apple. As if that wasn't bad enough headline writers had a heyday with the name.

Now Apple, next it'll be telephone or maybe even Water. Why not? As if that poor child won't have a strange enough time growing up in the home of a movie star and a rock star, now she's got to be named APPLE!

Am I crazy? Please, do tell me.

Jesus Hasn't Come Yet...

Started my next book the other night. The Glorious Appearing by Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins is the conclusion to their wildly popular Left Behind series of books, this one is #12.

Mom and I started reading them for the fun of it, you know a fictionalized account of what these guys feel the end of the world will be like. Boy, we had NO idea what we were getting ourselves into.

First off, it took 12 books to write about 22 short chapters. It gets a little drawn out at times. I also think that too many times the "fictional" books drag too much into preaching. (I skim those parts often) I want to know what happens, I can read the bible to get all the quotations they often use in them.

The final installment has the last few originals (2) of the Tribulation force and other believers waiting for the coming of Jesus and the beginning of his "1,000 year reign." I'm more than 100 pages in and Jesus hasn't come yet although I've been treated to a visit from Satan. I imagine there'll be lots of fighting between the good and bad guys and there's supposed to be a huge earthquake and huge hail store to come.

So far the book is ok. It seems to drag out the invitable with long scenes. My Mom read this one first. She said she liked the beginning and the end, but the middle was too preachy from Jesus. (But being he's the son of God, that's understandable, I am just curious what words these two fundamentalists put into his mouth.)We'll see. I'm sure he'll be appearing any page now.

Will let you know...

Earn Your $$

Saw an interesting story today on the wires. It said there is evidence that people who had to earn their money rather than being given it (whether inheriting it or winning it) found more satisfaction in spending it than their counterparts.

An excerpt:

Lottery winners, trust-fund babies and others who get their money without working for it do not get as much satisfaction from their cash as those who earn it, a study of the pleasure center in people's brains suggests.
Emory University researchers measured brain activity in the striatum - the part of the brain associated with reward processing and pleasure - in two groups of volunteers. One group had to work to receive money while playing a simple computer game; the other group was rewarded without having to earn it.
The brains of those who had to work for their money were more stimulated.
"When you have to do things for your reward, it's clearly more important to the brain," said Greg Berns, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral science. "The subjects were more aroused when they had to do something to get the money relative to when they passively received the money."
Berns and other researchers said the study has broader real-world implications, particularly in the age of multimillion-dollar lottery jackpots.
He said that other studies have shown "there's substantial evidence that people who win the lottery are not happier a year after they win the lottery. It's also fairly clear from the psychological literature that people get a great deal of satisfaction out of the work they do."


It makes sense to me....although I have to say I wouldn't turn away a fortune that has fallin' in my lap. I'd just have to think of all the ways of spending it that could make me happy. Starting with a honeymoon...I work a lot now, so having more free time would make me very happy.

Story of the Day

Fellow Biz staffer Alan Snel had a great article on the Tampa Bay Lightning's attempt at getting more people to buy season tickets next year by offering all you can drink beer during the playoff games when they signup.

Check out his exclusive here. The story showed up on Yahoo's top news stories for the day so you know it's being talked about nationwide. Would you be guessing that they are rescinding the offer? If so, you would be right.

Three Years and Counting

Happy 3rd Anniversary to sister Laura and bro-in-law Greg. Three years ago today you guys were all gussied up and gettin' hitched.

It was a great day as I remember. Lots of good family, food, and friends.

I know there was something about you two sitting up in the honeymoon suite sipping champaign on the balcony watching our inebriated family swim the Gulf...and lots of fun at the bar afterwards.

Congrats and here's to many more!

You Can Cover Up the Noise - But NOT the Odor!

Ok, thanks to co-worker Pat I am featuring one of the funniest dang web sites in a long time. Flatulence Deodorizer.

This "invention" purports to help those with "gas" issues control the smell. And the best part? The Thong and Diaper for your dog! Because you want to spare your pooch the embarrassment of smelling you or your guests out of the room. (Don't count the embarrassment you will put him/her through when you have to explain what that thing is on your dog everytime.)

It's a charcoal filter that either fits in your underwear or in a pad you sit in on a chair.

I can think of a few friends and family who should be getting this for Christmas!

Belated Wishes and Caviar Dreams

I wanted to wish all the moms out there, especially my mom, a Happy Mom's Day.

For all they do for us we, and I, appreciate it all.

DoughNUTs

Krispy Kreme's stock offering was a Cinderella story. They made tons of money and enjoyed an increase in stores and sales.

Then came Atkins and the South Beach Diet. According to the Associated Press shares of the wonderful glazed donut-making dudes and dudettes fell 23 early today on news that they were lowering its earnings forecast. They blame all those who are cutting carbs in America. They announced in March they are planning to introduce a low-sugar version to get those people back in their drive-thrus.

It's amazing how much can change in a short period of time. First KK was everywhere (including in my papers pages) with KK wedding cakes and parties. Now they are being shunned by the carb Nazis. I was amazed that they were soo hot to begin with, I mean a doughnut is fried fat basically, you don't need Dr. Atkins or the South beach diet guy to tell me that it's bad for you. You just can't eat them daily and multiple number of them.

It's common sense to me.

They Say It's Your Birthday!

Happy birthday to long-time friend and college roomy Kathy! She turns the BIG 3-0 today, even though she looks 24 still, maybe that. We had lots of great times. This is also a big year for her, she's getting married in Sept.

Happy birthday Kathy! You get to be 30 first!

Viva Cinco di Mayo!

Happy May 5. For a history lesson behind the Mexican holiday check out this site.

Just thought I'd have a little history lesson today. ... Ok, there it was, not get back to your drinkin' festivities.

Hilarious Read

Finished Seven Up by Janet Evanovich this weekend. What a fun read!

I guess it is in the series of character Stephanie Plum. Stephanie is a bounty hunter. She became one when she graduated from college because she couldn't find another job during an economic downturn. She kept the job because she liked it, and I think because it drives her mother nuts.

This one she is looking for Eddie DeCooche, an old guy on the run because he missed his bond hearing. Stephanie can't do anything right when it comes to this guy. There's plenty of funny situations that come out her trying to bring him in. There's lots of mob humor. Stephenie's Grandmother Mazure is one of the highlights. This spunky lady says just about anything, including how she should get a Harley because when she was riding on one she was awakened down there and she liked it. Lots of twists and turns and a nice surprise, I didn't know what the outcome would be half way through, which really ticks me off!

Next up? Dunno. My mom is finishing the last Left Behind Book Glorious Appearing and I'll prob. get my hands on that one soon. Will keep you up to date.

Rainy

Woke up to the sound of rain drops on the roof. I love the rain. Especially when it's not the monsoon ones that we often get in Florida. It was a little cool and very dark. I wanted to stay in bed and enjoy listening to those sounds. It was tempting to call in "wanting to listen to the rain and that's why I couldn't come in." But I didn't think that would fly.