Small Talk: The Library

[Earl Is Dead]

The Elf on the Shelf is a creepy bastard. I'm so glad he didn't exist during my childhood.

Rib healing vibes, Annie .

One of the best parts of my weekend was the black Friday movie marathon some friends and I have been doing for almost 20 years now. This year's picks were Big Hero 6, St. Vincent, Birdman, and Intellerstellar.  Long but fun day.

Back to the salt mines today though. I vote that all weekends last 4 days and that all holidays come with a 3 day recovery time.

 

ETA: I also caught the Star Wars trailer(s?  I found two different ones on youtube) over the weekend.  I was underwhelmed.  Other than seeing Harrison Ford in his "H. Solo" shirt for 3 seconds, they didn't do much for me.

Edited December 1, 2014 by Earl Is Dead

[romantic idiot]

I watched Brideshead Revisited - the movie with Mathew Goode. Because I'm on a Mathew Goode spree after hearing about him

being cast for Downton Abbey

. Not  a TGW spoiler. I wish we got to hear his real accent in TGW though. 

 

Also, Sorkin confuses me a lot. 

[Hostile16]

My elf takes half the names and addresses, matches them, then contacts them by email and answers any questions a giver might have about the giftee.

Since we have several new people and some people have moved, can everyone just pop me their current address? I'm the last AOL subscriber at my name, LAMizell.

[Endeavour]

Glad to hear everyone had a nice Thanksgiving and weekend.

 

Vibes to AnnieF - I hope you are feeling better soon.

 

I was knocked offline by router issues for the last few days. Nice to be back.

 

Got a lot accomplished over the long weekend. Christmas has arrived at my house. The house is decorated inside and out and the tree is up.

[Chyna]

Our tree is up, but most of the decorations are still sitting on the dining room table. Can't someone come to my house and set all this stuff up so I can just enjoy it without the work? #firstworldwhining

 

Vibes to AnnieF--Chynette (who is much younger and bounces back faster than us oldsters) bruised some ribs a few months ago and it really hurt for a while.

[Endeavour]

Our tree is up, but most of the decorations are still sitting on the dining room table. Can't someone come to my house and set all this stuff up so I can just enjoy it without the work? #firstworldwhining

This cracked me up. I keep trying to enjoy all the decorations and not think about the work involved with taking them all down again in a month! These are the small signs that tell me I'm getting older and crabbier.

[AnnieF]

The ribs are really painful. Thanks everyone for vibes. :)

I have reached the point in my Gilmore Girls rewatch where Jess shows up. I thought I didn't like him before, and I didn't even have a teenage son then. Now I do, and I just can't even with the attitude. I get that shit at home, I don't need to see on TV as well. Can't wait to be done, although if memory serves there is a fair amount of Jess to be tolerated. Blergh.

Whatever happened to Milo Ventimiglia, anyway? He was on "Heroes," (and was way easier to take, I believe) but that's all I know. I know I could just IMDB him, but I don't care enough. ;)

[Chyna]

I think a lot of people got squicked out by him because while on Heroes, 30-ish Milo started dating under-18 Hayden Panettiere.

[AnnieF]

Oh ew, I vaguely remember that. I had to satisfy my curiosity, and he's been working fairly steadily, just not in anything with much of a profile. Some voice work, too. So, eh.

[Erratic]

Jess is a pretentious hipster. Ugh.

Rib vibes, AnnieF, and a hearty, "Fuck MS".

I jut survived a trip to the West Edmonton Mall and managed to buy Kory's Christmas pressies too, so yay me! I am feeling peppy :)

Edited December 2, 2014 by Erratic

[YME]

[peek]

[trudi-tru]

*waves at YME*

[Darkpool]

Hey, YME! *waves*

[AnnieF]

Hi YME! :)

[Erratic]

Hey YME.

[buffyjunkie]

Hope the ribs are healing AnnieF.

I am officially butterbeered out.

[Loandbehold]

Hi YME!

[trudi-tru]

I am officially butterbeered out.

Hee! How was it?

[buffyjunkie]

Butterscotchy.

Howdy YME!

[AnnieF]

Acute pain vs chronic pain, which is worse? (J/k, chronic pain is worse. Acute pain has an end.) I got a cold. Yeah. A headcold where there's sneezing involved. I'm becoming adept at sneeze suppression. Sometimes I think the universe entered me in a pain endurance contest without me knowing about it. And I'd rather not be competing. But I don't get a say.

Butterbeer sounds tooth- achingly sweet? Is it tooth-achingly sweet?

[Endeavour]

Hi YME!

 

AnnieF - I hope the cold is a quick one and you're feeling better soon.

 

If anyone has any vibes to spare, please send them my mom's way. She will be having tests and will need to be sedated. I'm concerned about disorientation resulting from the sedation and any lingering effects/worsening of her condition. So vibes for good test results and no setbacks would be greatly appreciated.

[Loandbehold]

Good test results and no setback vibes to Endeavor's mom. And, some more for AnnieF.

[Earl Is Dead]

Good vibes for your mom Endeavour.  Anti-painful-sneezy vibes to you Annie.  A sprinkling of vibes all around to any others in need.

 

Just the thought of butterscotchy butterbeer makes me shudder.  I'll just have a cookie please. 

[KittenPokerCheater]

Aaaaaah!  My post got eaten.

 

To recap, vibes for endavour, her mom and for Annief.

 

I worked a couple of days this week.  Yay!  Fingers crossed I can work more next week (except for tuesday when I am seeing Sideshow).

 

AND extra vibes for all who need or want them!

[Chyna]

buffyjunkie, are you in Orlando?

[Valny]

Pain free vibes for AnnieF and of course we always have vibes to spare around here Endeavour!  Vibing for your mom. Did she have the tests yet?

 

Anyone watch the live production of Peter Pan tonight?  Eh, I just tuned in every now and then to see what was going on; I'm no fan of that stuff really. Plus, watching live tv productions like that sometimes get me nervous for the main leads(and others) because I think they're going to forget line/lyrics or trip,something goes wrong with a prop,etc.  I know they've probably rehearsed it quite a few times, but anything can happen when it's live ... I tend to look for something to happen.  :) 

[trudi-tru]

Butterbeer sounds tooth- achingly sweet? Is it tooth-achingly sweet?

Not particularly, as I recall.

 

I tend to look for something to happen.  :)

You're a sick human being.

 

Yay for work, KPC. Hope Santa brings you more.

 

Vibes for Endeavour's Mom and Annie's pain woes.

[Endeavour]

Thanks everyone. We're going this morning for the tests, Valny.

 

Anyone watch the live production of Peter Pan tonight?  Eh, I just tuned in every now and then to see what was going on; I'm no fan of that stuff really. Plus, watching live tv productions like that sometimes get me nervous for the main leads(and others) because I think they're going to forget line/lyrics or trip,something goes wrong with a prop,etc.  I know they've probably rehearsed it quite a few times, but anything can happen when it's live ... I tend to look for something to happen.  :

I watched it. Christopher Walken was such an odd choice that I had to check it out. I didn't realize that it was 3 hours. How I missed that with all the advertising leading up to it is beyond me. PTV was live blogging during it and I had that open as I was watching. There were new songs added from the comments. I've seen it before but wouldn't remember if a song was original to the show or not other than the most popular. It felt long. They seemed to be having a few production issues and the breaks to commercials were very abrupt. I was surprised that, in the first major flying scene, all of the characters' clothes were pulled in the back from the harnesses. It was very distracting. I would have thought they would do something about that or shoot it from a better angle. Christoper Walken's performance was bizarre and he seemed rather unsteady. Talk about looking for something to happen - that was definitely me when Walken was on screen. I'm sure a clip or two will surface of his performance that you can check out.

More work vibes (except for Tuesday!) for KPC and continued vibes for AnnieF.

Edited December 5, 2014 by Endeavour

[Earl Is Dead]

I adore Peter Pan, always have, so I couldn't not watch.  (I fell asleep though).  Allison Williams was better than I expected.  I thought the boys playing Michael and John and all of the actual theater actors were great.  I liked Nana being played by a real dog and seeing the actors give her her cues (and slipping her training treats :o)  I didn't mind the visible flying cables since that's the way it looks on stage too. 

 

Christopher Walken though...wow.  Did he know he wasn't in an SNL skit?   WTF even was that?

Edited December 5, 2014 by Earl Is Dead

[Chyna]

Butterbeer sounds tooth- achingly sweet? Is it tooth-achingly sweet?

 

Not particularly, as I recall.

It's sweet, but the flavor is interesting--in a good way. It's kind of vanilla-butterscotch? I've had a lot of sweets in my time and I don't think I've ever tasted anything like it. I thought it was great--I had at least two a day while we were there.

[AnnieF]

Thank you all so much for vibes; you guys really are the best. :) I sneezed three times in quick succession this morning, and it was pretty much a cacophony of achooahhhowwwachooAHHAHAachooOWWWWWFUCK. Fun!

Big big vibes for your mom, Endeavour. :)

Butterbeer sounds like a thing that is not for me (butterscotch flavor has never been my favorite).

And that Peter Pan sounds...interesting?

[Erratic]

Vibes to Endeavour's mom, and anti-sneeze vibes to AnnieF.

Finished another workshop last night. Finally get our home visit with our Intake Worker next week, and after that we get assigned our Case Worker and I think we are then just a First Aid course away from being licenced as Foster Parents. At that point we can start really plowing through the 31 core courses...

There is a lot of 'hurry up and wait' here, but there is movement. I even had a pleasant e-mail from my difficult social worker this morning.

[Loandbehold]

 

I even had a pleasant e-mail from my difficult social worker this morning.

I hope that's not going to distract you from rehearsing your touchdown dance and spike.

[buffyjunkie]

[quote name="AnnieF" post="622399"

Butterbeer sounds tooth- achingly sweet? Is it tooth-achingly sweet?

Yes it is. But the cold version is like an Italian soda so not too bad. We are no longer in Orlando but rather in Boca Raton for womens' college soccer final four. And don't even think of trying to crash our house because my SIL & BIL & dog are staying there in our absence ;) Harry Potter world at Universal was fabulous but if you have any vertigo or balance issues I strongly recommend dramamine before the ride. We encountered so many people who felt like crap afterwards. Sucks to get old but sucks more not to :)

Good test and anti-sneeze vibes.

Edited December 5, 2014 by buffyjunkie

[Hostile16]

Sorry to drag this out like a live production of *Peter Pan*, but I'm still waiting for a name/email/snail mail for Buffyjunkie, and if any info has changed for Barphe, Chyna, Darkpool, Erratic, Harvester, or trudi-tru, I need that, too. And again, here are the participants:

AnnieF

Barphe

boliver

Buffyjunkie

Chyna

cko

Darkpool

dusky

Erratic

Harvester

Hostile16

journeywoman

KPC

romantic idiot

trudi-tru

Edited December 10, 2014 by Hostile16

[Chyna]

Sorry, Hostile, I thought I sent my info. I'll send again.

[Erratic]

Sorry Hostile. Bring out the Festivus pole of shame!

[Endeavour]

Thanks so much for the vibes. They really do help and mean a lot to me. The tests results are good and my mom seems to be doing well. So far so good.

 

I didn't mind the visible flying cables since that's the way it looks on stage too. 

 

Christopher Walken though...wow.  Did he know he wasn't in an SNL skit?   WTF even was that?

I didn't mind the cables but was surprised at how the clothing on the kids was pulled by the harnesses and thought they would try to minimize that with the camera angle. Does clothing looked pulled like that on stage too?

Yeah, I can't even describe Walken's performance. WTF sums it up nicely I guess.

I don't like butterscotch and never willingly eat anything with it. I know if I ever had the opportunity though, I would try butterbeer. I couldn't pass it up.

Glad things are moving along Erratic and that social worker is easing up a bit.

Are you still going for physical therapy, LnB? Has it helped?

[Hostile16]

Apologies to those who sent info via Private Message. I never even checked until some gave me a Gibbs-whack. So either way is fine. Buffyjunkie is still the holdout, but we'll work around her in another 24 hours.

Trudi-tru mentioned it twice so she's this year's elf. Thanks!

[buffyjunkie]

Hostile I e-mailed you after your first request and have e-mailed you again. Check your spam if you don't see the email.

[cko]

Continued vibes on AnnieF's ribs and sneezing. Job vibes to KPC! Mom vibes to Endeavor, and also LnB. That Peter Pan made for some very amusing Twitter tweets--I follow a lot of TV critics (as it turns out) and they are an entertaining bunch.

 

All's well here. Rainy days, which is of course great in the "yes we need the rain" kind of drought-world way, and I'm charmed by those out there who love to lie in bed and listen to the rain and whatnot, but yeah, I'm a long sunny days kinda person, which I know is really just around the corner, right?

[Loandbehold]

Thanks for asking Endeavor. I'm glad your mother aced her tests and is doing better. I saw the doctor and she gave me a prescription for more visits, and calling for an added treatment. Unfortunately, I have to submit the request to the insurance company, have them deny the request, then have the doctor and physical therapist write letters to convince the insurance company this will  be helpful. Which, it would, but try telling that to the Man. Or the Woman. Whoever makes the big insurance company decision. 

 

I went back to mom's apartment today. As I was getting into the subway station, there was a train w/ doors open, so I ran to get it. As I got to the open doors, I slipped and came down on my elbow (fortunately the left) elbow and knee. Being a true New Yorker, my first move was to try to get something into the door, so I reached w/ my umbrella before throwing half my body in and crawling the rest of the way inside. Stupid? Absolutely. Painful? You betcha'. But, I didn't have to wait 10 or 15 minutes for the next train. Me and my brother will be going back tomorrow evening to throw out all the crap we packed up today. In two weeks, the salvage people are coming. We need to have the place pretty much cleaned out by then. Then, after Christmas, I'll probably have to take some days off work to complete the clean-out. We did go see mom today. She's doing pretty well, although she kept telling people how happy she was to see us because we rarely come visit. Slowly I turn....

 

I hope everyone else is enjoying their weekend. 

[Earl Is Dead]

Ouch. Hope your elbow and knee recover LnB.

Edited December 7, 2014 by Earl Is Dead

[Endeavour]

I hope you're feeling ok, LnB. At least you got a lot accomplished. It's ridiculous you have to jump through all of those hoops with insurance. I hope it doesn't take too long and there are exercises you can do in the meantime so any improvement you may be making isn't lost. Glad your mom is doing well. Are the rarely visiting comments typical?

I decided to venture out to a few stores yesterday to start the Christmas shopping. It was pouring and crowded. I only made it to 3 stores and came back empty handed. I drove by the mall and waved at it. No way I was going in there. It looked packed. I had enough of the crowds in the smaller stores. The rest of my shopping will be done on my couch with my laptop thank you. I want to get everything decided and ordered this weekend. I have to figure out gifts from my mom as well, so I've got double duty. I usually make some kind of basket for a few people in my family but I've been doing them so long now, that I'm having trouble coming up with ideas. If anyone has an idea, let me know.

Edited December 7, 2014 by Endeavour

[trudi-tru]

Italian soda

What is that?

Sorry to drag this out like a live production of *Peter Pan*

Hee. I'm proud to wear the elf hat this year. I'm your loyal servant, Hostile.

I'm happy to hear the MM Moms are doing well.

[buffyjunkie]

Ouch LnB, well at least you still retained your NY-street creds. Maybe you will get a Hannukah-insurance miracle.

TrudiTru, Italian soda is the combination of a sweetened flavor syrup with carbonated water.

Yesterday I experienced one of the levels of hell when I accompanied my daughter and her friend to the supposedly largest outlet mall in the US. Yuck. I am still recovering.

There was also a "holiday" party for a law firm at our hotel. Everyone was in white. Lawyers down here don't dress like I would dress in front of my professional colleagues.

[Loandbehold]

 

Are the rarely visiting comments typical?

Up to now, no. Unfortunately, once she gets something in her head, she'll truly believe it and repeat it ad infinitum. I just imagine all these elderly people booing and accosting me when I walk into the facility.

[AnnieF]

Every time we visit Mr F's grandma, she exclaims "you just got here!" when it's time for us to go. Doesn't matter how long we've been there, when we leave, we're leaving too soon and we just got there two minutes ago. It's both sad and annoying, to be perfectly honest.

[trudi-tru]



Poor Grandma, she doesn't want to be alone.

 

Italian soda is the combination of a sweetened flavor syrup with carbonated water.

And it's called Italian soda because...

How did the games go? Did your daughter's team win?

 

Lo, sounds like soon you and your brother will be disgraced for good. Bring treats with you next time to win back some credit.

 

I do not understand why the foster parents licensing process has to be so exhausting. It seems like the goal is to dissuade people from going through with it.

[buffyjunkie]

...because it doesn't have cream in it which would be a French soda. Logic and the USA...sometimes it doesn't even pay to try to figure it out.