:))))))))))))))))))) Dr. Horrible

I love Neil Patrick Harris as he is a very funny and talented man. I also love cheesy and clever musicals. Also, if you are a Sci-Fi geek you should recognize Dr. Horrible's nemesis. I hope you enjoy this gloriously geeky and fun Sing-Along Blog. I was happy to have discovered it via a music blog. :)

http://www.drhorrible.com/index.html

:)

Sparklers and such...

On July 4th, I was invited to cavort with some friends. My favorite picture is of Dave with his sparklers. The other fiery picture is of cavorting :) It was a nice relaxing time and I have to remember to thank the hosts again!!!!

Here is the majestic Maevis :) Not a post without a cat picture. :)

In April, I went to Kerbey Lane, on Kerbey Lane, and while eating I looked up and on the wall they had some new artwork. A week later I was there again and I looked up at the artwork and did a double take. I tried to remember if the face had been there before. It took a while for me to figure out what the extra part was but after two waitresses and I discussed it long enough, I concluded that it wasn't a child's crayon work, but an adult had consciously decided to go up to the chalk board, grab the chalk and then defaced the artwork. Regardless of my opinion of the artwork, it really bothered me that someone would deface some one's work. Click on the picture to see the added drawing.

I participated in another Austin Photography Meet-up and this time we did Light Painting. It was fun but I have a lot more to learn. I hope to plan a group outing to do some more elaborate Light Painting. Get a group together to go eat and then go forth and paint. :) I already have a few people ready to paint!

I went to the HalfPrice Bookstore tonight (7/14, I started this post a couple days ago) and grabbed a new book. Going to try out a new mystery writer that one of the nice employees suggested. :) I'll let you know if it is a hit. I like reading Patricia Cornwell but she doesn't churn them out fast enough :) and her last three books or so seemed odd. Like she lost her focus or who her characters are. Anyway, I would like to find a few more authors that I like and hopefully they have a couple books already out.

Last Friday I met up with my friend Mary and we had dinner at Mother's and then went and saw some improv at the Coldtowne Theatre. It was a rather fun evening. It is a tiny theatre, and seems very upstart. I hope that they have success as they have some really talented people. :) Next time I plan on trying one of the restaurants across the street from Mother's, one has coffee and gellato. Yum!

I am thinking about taking a vacation and that is about as far as I have gotten. I don't even have a destination although I am leaning towards going back to LA as it makes a nice long weekend. Hawaii keeps popping in my head but I have read about how expensive it is right now, the groceries alone. If I really had the time off and money I like to pretend that I would go to New Zealand. I think I might look at New York again. Next week I hope to enroll in some photography classes. If the classes happen then I am about to get really busy doing something I love. I look forward to it.

Symphonic Led Zeppelin

So last night I had the chance to go see a show at the new Long Center. Cobi got some comp tickets that ended up being amazing - the second row. So we were sitting to the right of the stage in these wonderful seats. The show starts and there was the band and a full symphony playing Led Zeppelin. Now for some reason I didn't put together that there would be a singer. So when the singer started to walk out onto the stage I was mentally chanting, "please be good...don't suck". Zeppelin songs are not easy to sing, you have to be an amazing singer to really pull it off. We lucked out last night. The singer was awesome!!!

So we are sitting in our awesome seats and the show starts and this young twenty something sitting right behind me was rather excited and expressed it by yelling "Rock and Roll" etc.. Which was cracking me up because well, there was a whole symphony. So he also started clapping out of time but he would only clap about four times in a row and then stop. Then the top of the lungs wooos would start. Directed to the back of my head. That and he would sing, poorly, even during a quiet solo. We were feet from the actual singer so it was pretty bad. This young man was sitting next to his dad and his mother and her friend were sitting behind him so it wasn't like they were oblivious to his actions. At first it was a bit funny but progressively became annoying. I found myself leaning forward to try to distance myself.

Well he left for a bit and I could smell the alcohol upon his return. Cobi and I moved to the center part of the second row, which was empty, taking a new friend we had met with us. I was tired of the yahoos behind us. So after the intermission I looked over to our old seats and the guy who had been so loud and animated earlier was passed out. Geez. Later his parents had to help him walk when they left.

Regardless of the loud drunk behind us, the show itself was great!!! Cobi and I met Chris who sat with us and we all had fun by watching the show - the guitarists were awesome. We were also highly amused by the craziess who had moved up to the front to rock out and generally make sure everyone else could see them. When the show was over we met Chris' friends Larry and Allison. I haven't laughed that hard in a while. So it was neat to meet new people and hit it off so well.

Hmmmmm. What else. I had some good conversations this weekend with various friends and it is awesome to be able to have honest connections with people. To learn that you aren't alone and sharing experiences.

I need to vote this week so that I can help ACC be in the Round Rock area and that I can take classes for a reduced price. :)

I have been taking pictures of a lizard in my backyard. I am not sure if it is the same one but I like to pretend it is. :) It hangs out on the same part of the trellis with the roses. He is pretty cool!

Time Filler

I got the the below idea from http://themarshalogues.blogspot.com/index.html

Only requirement: one word answers.

1. Where is your mobile phone? Table
2. Your significant other? MIA
3. Your hair? Growing
4. Your mother? Two
5. Your father? Trying
6. Your favorite thing? Family
7. Your dream last night? Forgotten
8. Your favorite drink? Latte
9. Your dream/goal? Clarity
10. The room you're in? Living
11. Your ex? Silent
12. Your fear? Failure
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Hmmm
14. Where were you last night? Friends'
15. What you're not? Fake
16. Muffins? Berries
17. One of your wish list items? :)
18. Where you grew up? Encinitas
19. The last thing you did? Shower
20. What are you wearing? PJs
21. Your TV? Good
22. Your pets? Cats
23. Your computer? Crappy
24. Your life? Progressing
25. Your mood? Indecisive
26. Missing someone? Yes
27. Your car? Dirty
28. Something you're not wearing? Yes
29. Favorite Store? Waterloo
30. Your summer? Wonderful
31. Like someone? Sorta
32. Your favorite color? Blue
33. When is the last time you laughed? Today
34. Last time you cried? Forgot

Bring me your speakers...

Maevis sticks her tongue in your general direction!

Quit licking the speakers!

Maevis has mastered the art of waking me up. I have accepted that I have enabled this behavior and many days it doesn't last long. However, some early mornings it is an epic battle. There are numerous things that she does but the thing that just drives me up the wall and out of bed is the sandpaper sound of her licking my computer speakers. So the other day we tried something new, which had to be repeated this morning. I grab the pain in the butt fur ball and put her on the back porch. I just leave her out for just a few minutes as she is a bit scared. So far it has worked. She stopped licking the speaker and let me sleep the rest of the morning with out interruption.

I went to Art City Austin today and saw some neat artwork. Overall, the work was rather good. One artist in particular I have come to recognize from sight. I have an appreciation for Jay Long's work. If I ever have a chunk of change that I can spend on art I would like to get one of his pieces. http://www.jaylongstudio.com/ He is based out of Austin and I like the color/tones he uses as well as the mediums he chooses to work with. Here is a link to a piece of his work I really like...
http://www.jaylongstudio.com/Pages2006/SecretBirdPage.html

Music I am listening to right now would be new albums by Steve Earle, Carolyn Wonderland, and also Michael Franti's Yell Fire, which is great.

It looks like I will have to go to New York again for work next month. I wish I had time to go into downtown New York. Maybe something will work out.


The above is a picture of Simon, not the speaker licker.


This weekend was nice and filled with lots of things. Saturday I participated in the SafePlace walk with my parents and Sarah and then we went and had lunch at Kerbey Lane. It was yummy. I then went to Whole Foods for some gelato, Waterloo Records where I got a new CD, some free CDs and a cupcake with lip balm in it. :) Theeeeen I went to the Half Price bookstore up near my house, met some friends for dinner and thennnnnnnnnn went home and mowed the lawn. Later that night I watched Eastern Promises, which really wasn't very good and it could have been awesome. So Saturday was a full day.

This puppy had it's ears trimmed and I wished his owners hadn't had that done to him. He was very sweet and was happy to be at the walk.

Today I slept in a bit, had breakfast/lunch with Cobi, and then I headed downtown to the Art City Austin and was there for a couple hours. I then went home for a bit, had a photo shoot with Simon and then headed to return a chainsaw I borrowed and ended up playing cars, collect the acorns and mow the lawn with Jackson. :)

GQ Boy...

So, I met the Sray's earlier this evening at a local park. Jackson and I played while I took some pictures. He is a fast moving boy! Then the lot of us went and had a substandard dinner at a local Mexican restaurant. Jackson was a big boy and sat next to me at the restaurant. Well, he stood for quite a while. The patrons at the table next to us were impressed with his ability to feed himself so well, especially while standing. :) He didn't use a high chair or anything!

I have been sick since last Friday and I am now on antibiotics and steroids. I was proactive and went to the doctor earlier in the week, as quite a few people around me have been miserably sick. So far I am doing better. Yay!

I took a few more pics last weekend and the Herod bunch was nice to pose for me in the shed, before going on to do their thing. I really enjoy taking pictures of people who aren't shy.

So the other day my desktop decided to stop connecting to the Internet. Lovely. I would say it was the router but my wireless is working. I am going to attempt to fix it and then probably start looking at laptops as a replacement. :) Too bad they aren't free. I am gonna see if I can at least wait until I get my government check in May. :) Laptop suggestions would rock. :)

Jesus Christ Super Star...

is currently showing at The Georgetown Palace Theatre. They have done a great job and the cast and crew are really talented!! That and they are very tolerant of my camera. :) I call the above Jesus in Blue Jeans/Etheral Jesus. :) I like playing with the slow sync flash. Anyway, I have really enjoyed practing my photography and the dancing is something I like to get good shots of. (I know I ended with of, I will fix it later or just ignore it.) :)

One of my favorites to shoot is the Herod scene. :) Although it has been a challenge with the equipment I have etc and I am still learning. But the group is very talented and brave/very comfortable with their bodies. I am curious to see what the fine folks Georgetown think. Go see it. The singing in the show is awesome and I haven't seen a Jesus look so much like Jesus. :)
If you haven't seen the show most of it is in period clothing but there are some scenes with modern clothing. Above is a picture of my friend Cliff who plays Judas.

I was able to cast my vote early. I noticed the early voting sign at the local Rec center and thought I might as well as get there will I have time. This is your friendly reminder that if you haven't voted yet, don't forget to do so!

I will try to blog more this weekend.

I can take a message...

I tend to get all kinds of calls to my house phone and most times it is a stranger trying to speak with Elaine or the man of the house regarding a "thank you". They want to thank me alright and take my money. I have learned that if I do not recognize the voice then my standard reply is that I can take a message. More often than not, the caller gets off the phone as fast as they can or they proceed to ask for the man of the house. I realize that at some point in history this was probably proper etiquette but frankly it is an archaic request and some days it just pisses me off. Other days, I wish Simon could meow on command, as he is the man of the house. Mostly, I find the offer to take a message allows me to circumvent an out right lie and it isn't like I haven't give them the option to leave a message.

So the other day someone called my house phone and asked to speak with Elaine and I dutifully offered to take a message. She asked again, and I said I could take a message. For some reason it wasn't frustrating me, perhaps because she wasn't being rude/pushy and frankly I just lucked out. By the forth request I could hear my sister in the back ground "saying that is her, she is home". I promptly replied to the lady on the line that my sister wasn't going to get any money from me. :) The phone was then handed to my sister. Turns out that my sister had misplaced her phone and didn't want to leave the store parking lot to have to turn around if it wasn't somewhere in the car/on her person. It was rather funny. Fortunately, the lady understood my technique for answering my phone. So I proceeded to call Amy's cell phone. When the phone was located it was with the help of Luke, who started yelling when it started to ring. He was able to locate it as it was under his hiney. Heh.

~E

Let me see your tooth...

Yesterday I went to visit my sister and we hung out and organized her craft supplies. I had fun hanging out and while I was there one of the neighbor kids lost her front tooth. It was pretty cool and she was happy t0 have something to exchange with the tooth fairy. I heard her talk about it while she was on the phone sharing the exciting news with her father.

So, right before the below video started, everyone was showing me their teeth. Some had brand new holes in their smiles and some are about to add another, as one of my nieces has a veeeeeeeeeeery loose front tooth. :) Luke was the last to show me his "tooth" and also the most interactive. :) The upload isn't the best quality but you get the idea.

I had a really good weekend and I will post a bit more later but I need to eat and I want to watch a bit of my football team's game. Any guesses as to who I am rooting for? In reality, I also have chores to get cracking on and I have quite a few things I would like to read. :)

~E

Slacken Napper

I spent a chunk of time working in my backyard Saturday. Simon hung out with me and on more then one occasion I had to remind him not to eat grass. Well, I like to listen to music and I had my stereo setup to play out the open windows of my house. So while Simon and I were in the yard Maevis decided to get on the forbidden chair and pass out. I came inside for water and when I saw her on the chair I grabbed my camera. I love the fact that the song that was playing on the radio seems to fit the video. :)

Here is to the New Year!

New Years Eve was fun! I was originally going to go to a house party but then I re-evaluated and since I do not drink and that was probably the theme, I decided to just hang at home. Then the Sray's mentioned that they might be up for something. That turned out to be a lot of fun as we made dinner, had a yummy dessert, played some Wii and then cards (Flux). I had never played a Wii before and I watched Jen play a few games and then Cliff and David bowled. I was going to try the bowling but then I discovered that there was boxing. David and I went a few rounds and it was hilarious. I had to strip a layer as I was starting to sweat and then I had to stand outside for a bit to cool down once we were done. It was pretty funny, I was trying to side kick David as he was able to do side punches but for some reason it wasn't working for me. Oh, my side kicks weren't via the game console but my actual foot. I had to try something different. :)

I think David and I entertained those who were watching. It was a nice little workout. My biceps hurt the next day. I remember shifting gears and trying to think as to why my arms hurt. :) I think that might be something that I would do for 20 minutes a day to get a little cardio. Although, I suspect it would be more fun playing someone then the machine. I would hate to spend all that money and lose interest. The card game was also fun as well as everyone played and it had some funny results. So New Years Eve was my kind of gathering. It was so successful that we are going to try to do it again this weekend before the Butler folk get too busy with shows.

I have been using my fireplace and I love it. Especially with the cold weather. Maevis is currently laying on a pillow in front of the fireplace. I am making sure the two combustibles are safe. Whereas Simon is sitting on my belly as I type. Such a helper. :)

Over the holidays I went to a few movies and thought I would share some thoughts on them. SPOILERS.............The first one, Walk Hard, I saw with Sarah and Mitch and it was better than I thought. It is pretty much a Spoof of Walk the Line. When I initially saw the commercial I wasn't too impressed. However, the acting is really good and the music is too. There are a few jokes that run throughout the movie that are pretty funny. Also, male frontal nudity is just frigging hilarious. I know it made people uncomfortable and that made it even funnier. If you can handle some cheese and know that it is a spoof, I think you may like it. If you are easily offended I do not recommend it. Anyway, if you have seen it I would be curious to know what you think. It isn't amazing but it is funny.

I saw Sweeney Todd with Sarah and I found that I liked the version I saw on PBS better. The opening of the movie had me worried as Johnny's voice was rather rough but that was done on purpose. The singing is actually pretty good. I didn't expect Helena Bonham Carter to have an amazing singing voice so I didn't expect much and she did fine. Overall, the singing was fine but had there been some different casting it could have been better. Really though, I didn't take issue with the singing. Where the movie failed was in the lack of expressing the humor. There is one moment when Helen gets the point across but that is how a majority of the movie should have been, not just a moment.

I recommend the 2001 version that I saw on PBS, "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Concert" it will give you an idea of what the movie could have been. Not the same type of singing style but you can see what I mean about the humor etc. Johnny Depp is a great actor, yes, but the movie should have focused less on how much blood could shoot about and focused more on the acting and singing. It was missing a level of humor and cleverness that I know could have been there. The brilliance of Sweeney Todd is that, although it is a very dark story, there is humor laced throughout, this was barely evident in the movie.

On a side note, the actor (Jamie Campbell Bower) who played Anthony Hope, Johanna's love interest, looks a lot like Garrett Pounds. :) I mentioned that to someone else and they agreed. I think it was Cliff or Jen. Anyway, that wraps up Sweeney Todd.

I saw Juno with Marsha and I really, really liked it. The dialogue is great but made amazing by the delivery by the cast, particularly Ellen Page, who plays Juno. Allison Janney is in the movie as well as other actors that I really like. They have an innate since of timing and delivery. Anyway, it is a quirky movie with odd dialogue and interesting characters who on a whole are ultimately kind, which I appreciate.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets, well I watched that with a bunch of strangers. :) I was surprised at how full the theatre was but it was the holidays. :) That and the fact that it is rather wholesome-ish compared to most of what is out there. I rather enjoyed it and found it to be better than the first one. The actor (Justin Bartha) who plays Riley the sidekick, is very humorous and adds a lot to the movie. It was also Baby Day at the Drafthouse and they all behaved rather well.
.................................................................. SPOILERS OVER ..............................................

I am waiting on getting my camera until after I find out if my contract at work is going to be renewed. I should find that out by the end of the month, if not, then in Feb..

What else can I tell ya? Heh, I went to town on the volunteer trees in my backyard. I need to get the chain back on the chainsaw so I can cut down one more tree but I got a lot done. So I have a lot of tree parts that need to be bagged up - feel free to come over and help out! I need to do a lot of work everywhere but I am getting there.

I thought of somethings that were funny that I should post but that usually happens when I am trying to go to sleep so of course, I forgot what those thoughts were. :) I will try to remember.

Um, Amy's girls bought me a pink squirrel for a Christmas present. I suspect it has to do with the fact that they knew I was bitten by one when I was little and then there is the influence of their mother. :)

I have a book on lighting on its way which I cannot wait to crack open and I am probably on my way to hang out at Barnes and Noble tomorrow as there are some magazines and books I am interested in. Magazines on decorating etc so I can get some ideas for my place and there are some various books I am interested in. It is my understanding that tomorrow it to get in the mid 70s, that is wild! YAAAAAAY!

I have been watching the British Robin Hood series via the magic of Netflix. The Sray's recommended it and I am watching disc two right now. What I have surmised is that it has a good cast and amazingly low budget. :)

I have been spending time with friends and family and it has been good.

I hope everyone had enjoyable holidays and that this year is truly a good one.

~E