YM beta version

okay, so Yahoo Messenger beta version isn't that great..
suppose there's a reason why it's a "tester version" ;)
now I'm on my sister's laptop (she's gone out)..
guess I *can* have ICQ diversion after all..
there'll be some imminent good chats.. wooyeah :)

oh, and dish minimalism rules! :)

Kick-butt movies

well, I've just seen the first Charlie's Angels movie..
definitely more plot to this one than Full Throttle..
but at least now I can say I've seen 'em both ;)

I thought that the usual gang of ICQ denizens would be around to distract me and provide diversion.. (like the people I alluded to in the last entry)
but for some reason, ICQ2Go isn't working tonight..
(some problem with the server / connection)
however, I did discover that Yahoo Messenger had a beta version..
("no download needed" is just what the doc ordered)

so I guess I *can* go nuts on Yahoo and MSN..
just not ICQ, which is bad in a way..
(I want to talk to a particular person on there..)
oh well.. maybe next week or something!
I'm assuming that Vernon won't be done with my computer yet..

Parental interference

well, the word has come down from on high..
(otherwise known as my parental units)
no, I CAN'T stay home alone today..
(which I was REALLY looking forward to..)
my sister has to pick me up so I can go there..
they'll brook no interference or "nonsense," either..

guess I can watch the first Charlie's Angels movie..
(it was on TV the other day, and Mum taped it..)
and maybe I'll also watch Guinness World Records Primetime..
that is, if it isn't a total rerun from something I've already seen..

man, I wish I could have the day to myself here..
at least my parents are going out tonight..
so hopefully no bollocks quite yet..
whether they happen (or even if they don't)..
I know I'll have help / diversion / distraction..
among other people, Corey will certainly help!

in other news, it is now 30° out..
not approaching your idea of a heatwave quite yet ;)
but it is certainly very humid and oh so hot..
that oughta be enough, eh?

Hard-driving music rocks!

the movie was so very cool..
very much a "kick-butt" kind of thing..
I'm not going to spoil it for you..
but it was soooooo action-packed..
(with a lot of cameos.. not telling who)
not a sappy chick flick like I was ranting about..

the hard-driving music ROCKED the house!
(trust me to focus a bit more on the music, eh?)
it included Prodigy and the Chemical Brothers..
not saying the music carries the movie..
but the tunes are a definite complement to the film..

afterwards, we all had Samurai Sushi for dinner..
we took it out to eat at the church..
Steph thought I was brave..
I dared to try the church soya sauce..
it was still good, though.. (till March 2004)
(Jen thought it "classic" when I used way more than they did..
that was an accident, though.. I poured out too much)
lots of wasabi is sure great for your sinuses.. wooyeah ;)

Eunice was telling us about Eddie's Europe trip..
seems he got an eyebrow ring today..
he's working at an Edinburgh restaurant..
he was a hair model in Glasgow..
yes, he did the runway thing after a free haircut..
(got free beer and everything, too..)
might even go to Dublin later on..
sounds like he's having a good time..
it'll be cool to see him again when he gets back!

after Fellowship, a bunch of us were teasing Ty..
just coz he's Caucasian and we're all Chinese..
one gweilo against at least 35 Chinese people?
there's absolutely NO contest at all, baby.. ;P
our 1987 Toyota Camry doesn't qualify as a "rice rocket"..
but it was all good.. nothing malicious..

so yes, it was indeed a good day..
dunno what I'll do tomorrow..
have my Saturdays back again for now..
(Awana's cool, but a break is also good..)
who knows? might even read some books..
(haha.. who am I kidding? I'll be on this computer!)
but it'll be good to (hopefully) be by myself..
not having to deal with certain bollocks will be awesome! :)

Open up, box office!

right now, I'm killing time at the library..
waiting for the box office to open..
I need to buy five tickets pronto!
(yes, I am impatient.. live with it :P)

actually looking forward to this movie..
it'll be cool to see, I think..
so if only the Oakridge box office would open..
I'll be one step closer to seeing the film!

(HURRY UP and open, dammit!)

Chick flicks and Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle

going to see Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle today..
it's a departure from the movies I'd usually watch..
I don't normally go for chick flicks, really..
but it was my sister's idea, NOT mine..
so just don't look at ME like that, mmmkay?
and since I *do* want to go to Fellowship tonight..
I'll go, coz it won't involve being at church 90 minutes early..
(or at least, I'd very much hope NOT)
it'll be time spent with Steph, Jen, Eunice, and Becky..

Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood? (watched it at Melia's with a bunch of girls at New Year's.. their idea, not mine)
Runaway Bride? (watched that in the cinemas with Elizabeth and Lisa.. again, their idea) [or anything with Julia Roberts, really]
How To Make An American Quilt (watched that one on video for some strange reason.. I think my mom rented it; she expected me and my sister to go watch it with her.. wasn't TOO bad, but STILL!)
How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days? (I didn't watch that particular movie, thank goodness.. though my sister did)
(just to name a few..)

yes, I *know*.. I am a female,
so "should" watch these things..
however, I don't like them on that basis.. so there! :P
but I'm not rabid over them..

(it's not like I'm my sister and go: "OH MY GOODNESS! I *HAVE* TO SEE THAT MOVIE BECAUSE IT HAS (insert name of "chick flick" actress) IN IT! IT'S SOOOOO SAPPY, AND IT'LL BE *SO* GOOD FOR GIRLIE BONDING TIME!" every single time one of these things is released unto the world..)

heck, I don't even actively seek them out..
I don't say: "Oh, this is a chick flick.. a MUST-SEE movie!"
(um, no.. my head would explode if I did that :P)

so I'm not really your stereotypical chick..
or at least, I'm not hankering for sappy / romantic stuff..
EMBRACE THE NON-CONFORMITY!!!
(mwahahahahaha... that's all I gotta say for now..)

No more BootyBase!

Aiya! I can't believe I trashed all my documentation of the past three years over an utterly stupid error in judgement. The other day, I was trying to save my files from the hard drive to a floppy disk. I cut and pasted them to the disk, instead of COPYING and pasting them like I should have done. My disks apparently all have problems, and the files lost serious amounts of data. Damn.. I do wish I'd actually THOUGHT about what I was doing.. well, I did. But obviously not hard enough!

So there's no more BootyBase.. I could resurrect it, but that would take ages. Maybe I should have put it all online in a place where only I could see it.. but of course, I didn't think of that either. I am SUCH a gooberhead.. *sigh*

Eliza McCardle Johnson

Eliza McCardle Johnson

"I knew he'd be acquitted; I knew it," declared Eliza McCardle Johnson, told how the Senate had voted in her husband's impeachment trial. Her faith in him had never wavered during those difficult days in 1868, when her courage dictated that all White House social events should continue as usual.

That faith began to develop many years before in east Tennessee, when Andrew Johnson first came to Greeneville, across the mountains from North Carolina, and established a tailor shop. Eliza was almost 16 then and Andrew only 17; and local tradition tells of the day she first saw him. He was driving a blind pony hitched to a small cart, and she said to a girlfriend, "There goes my beau!" She married him within a year, on May 17, 1827.

Eliza was the daughter of Sarah Phillips and John McCardle, a shoemaker. Fortunately she had received a good basic education that she was delighted to share with her new husband. He already knew his letters and could read a bit, so she taught him writing and arithmetic. With their limited means, her skill at keeping a house and bringing up a family -- five children, in all -- had much to do with Johnson's success.

He rose rapidly, serving in the state and national legislatures and as governor. Like him, when the Civil War came, the people of east Tennessee remained loyal to the Union; Lincoln sent him to Nashville as military governor in 1862. Rebel forces caught Eliza at home with part of the family. Only after months of uncertainty did they rejoin Andrew Johnson in Nashville. By 1865, a soldier son and son-in-law had died, and Eliza was an invalid for life.

Quite aside from the tragedy of Lincoln's death, she found little pleasure in her husband's position as President. At the White House, she settled into a second-floor room that became the center of activities for a large family: her two sons, her widowed daughter Mary Stover and her children; her older daughter Martha with her husband, Senator David T. Patterson, and their children. As a schoolgirl, Martha had often been the Polks' guest at the mansion; now she took up its social duties. She was a competent, unpretentious, and gracious hostess even during the impeachment crisis.

At the end of Johnson's term, Eliza returned with relief to her home in Tennessee, restored from wartime vandalism. She lived to see the legislature of her state vindicate her husband's career by electing him to the Senate in 1875, and survived him by nearly six months, dying at the Pattersons' home in 1876.

Heat melting my brain / peanut butter

It's official now.. I think that the heat has done a very good job of starting to melt my brain. Granted, I was only outside for about ten minutes total... but it's at least 27° out there! It's not quite as bad as my sister says Hong Kong is... where you'll have to take at least three showers a day (sometimes you feel like jumping into the tub to cool off after only having been outside for five minutes), but I guess I should be very happy I'm not a guy in a tux or even a model wearing all the winter fashions for a photo shoot. ;) So if I don't make sense for the next few days (or all of summer, really).. just blame it on all this heat here in Vancouver, NOT my usual stuff and nonsense.. thanks muchly. :P

Also.. is it just me, or does peanut butter taste really salty to all of humanity? Yes, I *know* I can get unsalted peanut butter.. I saw some at Save-On Foods just now, in fact. But I swear the stuff gets saltier as you reach the bottom of the jar. Maybe they just reserve the "salty punch" for those of us who are thrifty enough to actually finish ALL the peanut butter before the expiry date.. "yeah, it'll be our little surprise for those consumers who do insist on finishing the whole jar.. mwahahahaha.." Who knows.. but if I have that slightly off-kilter experience again, it's unsalted peanut butter for me next time. (and if that tastes off, I guess I'll figure out what to do with my peanut butter cravings then :P)

New-and-improved Blogger?

Yes! Finally! This thing is back from its maintenance downtime (which lasted all day), so now I can edit it again. It was being moved to a "new-and-improved" version of Blogger.. guess we shall see if it's really easier now, eh? ;)

Playland commercials

Oh, and does anyone else hate the new Playland commercial which features some people (co-workers, probably) in an elevator? One of them asks someone else (named Tom) how his weekend was.. he begins to answer the question, saying he took his wife and kids somewhere. Then he starts puking in the elevator, and everyone else comments on how disgusting / smelly it is.. very nearly makes ME want to upchuck, too. I like the other commercials much better.. as long as they don't feature vomiting for most of the commercial, everything will be copacetic.

Vernon, Yazmine, typos, Eric, ambiguity

Random notes of a weird mind:

1. Congratulations to my friends.. I'm very happy for them. :)
2. Will my computer be a lot faster by this time tomorrow? Maybe.. we shall see what happens when Vernon gets done with it. Should have told him to install Trillian on the new hard drive, perhaps.. oh well. Not sure, but probably that's something I shouldn't bother to try, though.. especially given what happened the last time I tried to download the program! (for anyone who may be mildly interested: it crashed everything out)
3. Will it be actually sunny on Monday when Yazmine and I attempt (for the second time) to see the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal? I do very much hope so.. send us all the prayers you can spare for good weather on that day, please. :P
4. Why doesn't anyone scan this thing for typos or other errors and report back to me if they found any? I mean.. I am a pretty good typist, and I do check for typos (as well as other stuff).. but I type too fast, and sometimes the odd one slips by me. Even the Word spellchecker has its limits.. I just happened to find a typo from two weeks ago, which it didn't catch coz it was in all caps. Oh well.. just keep pluggin' along, I guess. ;)
5. Ambiguity rules (thanks, Eric!), misinterpreted pranks don't. :P

Sayings, axioms, and remedies

Posted in LJ / GJ on September 24, 2006.

Some sayings / axioms / remedies from A Millennium Primer:

Sleep with a mirror under your pillow for three nights (the third a Friday), and you will dream of your true love on the third night.
Dream of kisses, and you dream of treachery.
Married in the merry month of June, life will be one honeymoon.
If you touch your little finger and forefinger behind your two middle fingers, you can have any sweetheart you like.
If you don't want anyone to know, don't do it.
Never descend to flatter, or withhold a deserved compliment.
To cure a headache: Lean your head against a tree, and have someone else drive a nail into the opposite side of the tree.
To cure a headache: Rub cow dung and molasses on your temples.
The Sun in your dream bestows favor and health to the sick.
To make a wart go away: Rub it with seven kernels of corn, then feed the corn to your neighbor's chickens.
To cure a headache: Soak your feet in hot water to draw blood from your head.
Potatoes, tomatoes, and hot spices are foods for fidelity.
If you suffer backaches: Empty your pockets, wear looser clothing, and don't cross your legs.
The color green can help to soothe the nerves, and can promote general healing.
It's of no use to carry an umbrella if your shoes are leaking.
Plow deep while the sluggards sleep, and you will have corn to sell or keep.
Procrastination is the thief of time.
When sheep collect and huddle, tomorrow will become a puddle.
Bats flying late in the evening foretell a fine morrow.
Dream of birds, and you dream of friends and fortune.
Cows give more milk and the sea more fish when the wind's from the west.
Dream of a cow, and you will receive favorable news.
If fowl roll in the sand, rain is at hand.
The sharper the blast, the sooner it's past.
There'll be one snow in the coming winter for every fog in August.
St. Swithin's Day if thou dost rain, for 40 days it will remain.
To dream of a calendar is a sign of good fortune.
When the new Moon falls on a Saturday, the following 20 days will be wet and windy.
Neither fear to die nor refuse to live.
Unlooked-for often comes.
You must shift your sail with the wind.
Proverbs contradict each other. That is the wisdom of mankind.
Don't ride the high horse; the fall (when it comes) is hard.
It is not clever to be always wise.

Some of those contain profound wisdom that I could use and apply to my own life. (not all of them, of course) I'm taking the others under advisement, though.. ;)

Figuring out stuff about the 486

How in the world does this happen? I have my Call Block firmly ON (or thought I did).. yet, I *still* got disconnected from the Net just now! Yes, the operator can get through if it's an emergency.. but I somehow don't think that's what happened. Oh well.. back to Call Block.. hope it definitely works THIS time.. (and this has happened before on the odd occasion.. *sigh*)

At least I called Vernon just now, and he says he'll come here after work tomorrow. He says that to prepare, I should know what files I want to transfer off this 486 hard drive. Only one question: How the heck would I know?!? Oh well.. I'll make vague guesses as to which files are actually important. ;)

Hiccup cures

Wow.. I really can't believe I slept for 13 hours (from about 1:40 AM to 2:45 PM). Suppose I needed it though, what with the way things have been going. For now, I'd say I'm feeling a bit better.. but man, is this ever a distraction from my usual weirdly humorous mood. I hope that things will definitely improve.

On a lighter note, here are various cures and remedies for hiccups that I found in my copy of A Millennium Primer from the Old Farmer's Almanac: Timeless Truths and Delightful Diversions:

"The hickot is cured with sudden feare or strange newes." (1584)
"Sneezing doth cease the Hiccough." (Francis Bacon, 1626)
"You must (in the very instant that the Hickup seizes the Party) pull his Ring-Finger, and it will go off." (1727)
Cover your head with a pillow.
Spit on a rock, then turn it over.
Hold your breath and stick out your tongue.
Pant like a dog.
Bite your thumbs and blow hard against them for a minute.
Drink a glass of water with a pencil in your mouth.
Eat a spoonful of peanut butter.
Eat a spoonful of sugar.
Eat a spoonful of salt.
Eat a spoonful of vinegar.
Eat a spoonful of Worcestershire sauce.
Eat a spoonful of crushed ice.
Drink nine swallows of water from your grandfather's cup without taking a breath.
Drink water through a folded handkerchief.
Drink from the wrong side of a cup.
Drink water while holding your ears and nostrils closed.
Take a mouthful of water and swallow it in three gulps. Repeat this three times while standing perfectly still, and breathing through your nose.
Breathe into a paper bag.
Stand on your head for 5 minutes.
Stand on your head and drink a glass of water.
Lay over a chair on your stomach and drink a glass of water.
Put the head of a burnt match into your ear.
Place a matchstick on top of your head and count to nine.
In a baby, place two broom straws in the baby's hair.
Lay a broom on the floor (bristles to the right) and jump over it seven times.
Lay a broom on the floor and jump over it three times. Walk around it once, then leave it where it lies.
Hold your left elbow for 7 minutes.
Hold a dime against the roof of your mouth for 30 minutes.
Wet a piece of red thread with your tongue, stick it to your forehead, and look at it.
Accuse the victim of something he has not done.
Turn your pockets inside out.
Stand nose-to-nose with the victim and stare at him.
Tighten a belt around your chest.
Stick your head under water and count to 25.
Place a wastebasket on your head, and have somebody beat on it.
Say, "Nine sups from a cup cures the hiccups" three times without taking a breath.
Say, "Hiccups, hiccups, stand straight up; three sups in a cup are good for the hiccups" three times without breathing.
Stand in the middle of the road and say, "Hiccup, stickup, not for me; hiccup, stickup." (note: keep an eye on the traffic while doing so, or the cure is likely to be permanent)

Everything is about Corey... haha, not!

HILARIOUS QUOTES OF THE WEEK (2)

"I didn't see anything else that related to me, and things about me are all that are ever important. Didn't they ever teach you that in school? Everything is about me, and it's all supposed to be good things only.. no bad stuff." -- Corey, after I asked what he thought of this site. (Saturday, June 21) [dude.. not EVERYTHING on this site can be about you, no matter how much you'd like it to be.. otherwise, I might as well rename this site "The Corey Site" or something similar :P]

"Isn't her shirt forensic pink? And isn't that fragrant fruit called a foie gras?" -- my mom, asking weird questions at breakfast time. (Sunday, June 22) [my shirt was fluorescent pink.. and the fruit she was referring to was a guava, not duck liver.. yup, her English is REALLY top-notch sometimes.. :P]

luckily, church provided a great distraction for me..
hugged a couple of people (little Jennifer and Danielle)..
talked to some of my friends..
spent time with the babies..
gave out gum to the kids..
yup, lots of good stuff there :)

then afterwards, I had a great Japanese lunch..
there was SO much sushi and stuff.. wooyeah!
guess you could call it a lupper ;)
the music at the restaurant was really cool, too..
some kind of 80s hair metal rockish stuff..
maybe it was Japanese rock or something..
it was definitely awesome listening to it..
my brother didn't know why they were playing it..
(you'd expect Japanese music from a Japanese place..)
but he'd go back there again just for the music! (me too!)

Aspersions

I am NOT going to ignore anything any longer..
so for those who would cast aspersions on me..
you know where to go! (deep fiery pit)
I'm not the rude one.. and people should know better!
(don't bug me when I've just gotten up on Sundays..
especially not with attacks on my eating speed!)

and just coz it's your house..
does NOT give you carte blanche..
to say whatever you want to me..
and not expect a reaction in kind..
I'm not going to talk to you if I can help it..
wouldn't go so far as to say I *hate* you..
but right now, I definitely dislike you.. how's that?

(no, this has NOT been a good start to the morn..)

I should have waited for Eunice?!

oh, and my sister thinks I'm kinda wasting money..
Eunice could have bought it at a MEC discount..
that one, I sort of agree with.. but not really..
her other objections involve my going bankrupt..
somehow, I don't think that's going to happen!

New knapsack

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SAM.. I hope you have a good one today! :) It was great knowing you years ago.. hope you're doing well.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PETE.. I hope you have a great one today! :) It's been good getting to know you.. cheers!

Had to get myself a new knapsack (after having the old one barely 9½ months).. why, you ask? The previous one had bubble gum on the bottom of it, which I didn't notice till this afternoon. Good thing that MEC is on the way to church.. since I was in there anyways, I got myself a wallet as well. (the old one was falling apart, after barely fourteen months.. no, I'm not a destructive lass when it comes to my possessions; really!)

So why did the knapsack have gum on the bottom of it? I blame the unclean tables at Kingsgate Mall, and my not being observant. Otherwise, I would have SEEN that the tables had bubble gum on them. (but more the tables than myself.. gotta absolve myself of a bit of the blame, eh? ;) ) Therefore, I wouldn't have had to throw away a perfectly good knapsack / T-shirt / pants / jacket. My mom recommended putting them in the freezer.. well, I don't have that much space in my freezer! This afternoon, Phil and Melia advised me to keep the backpack, and go at the stuck-on gum with water and a toothbrush. I could, but that would be arduous work.. not something I'd necessarily have time for. :P Besides, it was already in the trash by then..

Oh well.. I needed the new wallet anyways, and the new backpack has a few more pockets and things than the previous one did. (my rationalization for it) And no.. I don't think I'm wasting my money. It's there to spend, right? ;)