EGG white diamonds, blogging, cruise dream, MSN

At some point yesterday, I got a Bookworm white diamond in Level 19 by using three gold / yellow tiles to make the word "EGG." The E white diamond was used for the word "VET." Gotta love those extra bonus points! :D (also gotta love thinking about accommodating people's obvious limitations tomorrow, haha)

Checked blogs: Dawn is now addicted to Facebook, but it seems that the people there have decided to make each page into sensory overload. (horoscopes! blinky crap! ads! cluttered pages!) She's back to Xanga for now, heh. Randal has musings about Jesus' driving, and that skit yesterday. If I know Diven well enough (and I believe I do), he'll have something to say about that if he keeps up with it. Oh well, 'tis par for the course! ("My Bible Woman must know my Savior as well, even if my mom's eager to see me get married!")


Had a weird dream which was set on this opulent cruise ship. For some reason, I couldn't find my room key, so couldn't get in there. I explained my predicament to Connie, who immediately offered to let me stay with her / Jenny / Winnie / Mimosa / Tilia / Ficus in their large room. Took her up on the offer, and hauled my stuff to their quarters. Later, I was wandering around the ship by myself when Eric joined me. We saw Sheena, Christon, Vivian, and others in the hot tub / outdoor pool. Eric had a question for Vivian, who was wearing this revealing bathing suit - the only covered areas were those that strictly NEEDED it, if you know what I mean. She answered him, and he decided to join them in having fun among the rocks and environment... I decided to continue my wanderings in solitude.

My sister joined me later since she was looking for a ring somewhere on the ship, and we saw Auntie Tracy. She said that Vania was traumatized over the death of her (Caucasian, white-haired!) grandfather, so we went over there to watch videos and remember his life. After that, we went to an upper floor (meeting Randal on the way) where a choir was practicing amidst white pews and decorations. (someone's mother was the conductor!) Then my dad told us to hurry and go to the dining room, where we had to look at the food and menus. After doing that, we flipped over staircases in an effort to quickly reach our brother, who was on an even higher floor with Mom. We found them in a room with a lot of class lists and intake forms / schedules tacked to various bulletin boards. A few people were taking exams at the computers stationed in one area, so we had to be sufficiently quiet since they didn't want to be disturbed. The person overseeing this room had found my sister's ring as well as my room key - both items were returned to us promptly, and my mom inquired about the possibility of us going back to school. Thankfully, I woke up at that point before it could get any more weirder!

Possible triggers: (not really) talking to Randal yesterday (I suck!), Steph saying that Auntie Shirley was the choir conductor while Uncle Johnny is away ("Yu-bay-hay!"), and seeing Sheena and Christon yesterday by the church as we looked for Jon via car. Frances, Andrea, and I were also discussing the church botanist / aphid expert who named his kids after plants (Mimosa / Tilia / Ficus) - ah, the perks of being old-timers! (Eric, Dylan, Jeremy, and Raymond had almost no idea who these people were :P) Then Dylan was saying that the Su sisters were interesting - Winnie went to be a doctor in school all the way; Jenny initially took engineering, but switched to the medical field; and Connie was in engineering all the way through school. Heh, that IS interesting! Other than that, I can't think of anything else that would trigger this one!


Korey just messaged me an hour ago, too. I also talked to Eric about stuff which needed to be said. Technology is great, haha. Henry hasn't called, so I called him only to get voicemail. Of course I called Melia and apologized for being not there for the third week in a row. I think I'll read for a while or something...

"He doesn't live with me - God bless email" / RED LOBSTER TARTAR SAUCE

Eric picked me up at about 7:25, and told me that the bad traffic was my fault. Yeah, I don't think so! We discussed that annoying Bookworm error (I explicitly told the thing to SAVE!), the CFL game (BC LIONS!), "less amount" of something that a commentator said (stupid errors!), orange, things somehow not working out in Vernon for Korey (so it's Kelowna / Kamloops instead in a few weeks - yay for his being at the barbecue next week!), tonight's plans, and our friends. When he told me that he was messing with my head, I decided to put on a mock attitude of "why me?": "You mess with my head, Corey messes with my head... what is WRONG with you dorks?!"

Of course, he thought I meant Korey since we were discussing him a few minutes earlier. (I had to say "your Korey" and "my Corey" since they sound the same when said out loud!) Haha, no... although Corey insists I'm cheating on him since my newest friend has a name that's spelled slightly differently than his! (and not Cory, either) Eric wondered how I could be cheating on Corey since I'm not with him in that way - don't ask me, I have NO idea! (maybe I'll ask him later if he's ever on - his sleep schedule is all over the place these days, I'm thinking!) I'm crazy and my mind is going since I mishear / misread a lot of stuff... at least hanging around the kids keeps me young! Eric says I'm only 30 and shouldn't be saying all these things - true, but I can feel my mind going! Yikes. :P

Pastor Edward directed us to next door when we got to the church - good thing, since we were about to go inside... and Eric had written the Fellowship email, too! Oh well, he'd eventually have remembered! Once next door, I said hi to Andrea / Peter / Raymond / others and took a seat next to Jeremy's stuff. Found out Peter's last name, which somehow reminds me of a person who used to go to our church a long time ago! (as well as Calla!) Signed a couple of birthday cards for Alan and Randal, and watched as Ivan told Jeremy how to work his digicam. He and Karen did a skit for Alan and Randal's birthdays, incorporating their way of speaking into a "secret identity" type of thing: Garbage Al wasn't Alex in that basketball game, haha. It was pretty funny! Afterwards, we all took a couple of pictures with the cake and new shirts - Alan wasn't there (despite saying he would be), so Kevin had to stand in for him, haha.

Karen asked me where Korey was since she'd gotten his favorite chip flavor (cheddar and beer?), so I told her that he wasn't feeling well. For some reason, she thought that he lived with me... haha, no. Of course I'll tell him that we had those chips, but not in a "HAHA... I WILL RUB IT IN" sort of way! Dylan asked me where Korey's aunt lived, and Karen told me that she'd been looking for me / us at the Pho restaurant earlier. If there wasn't a need for me to meet Eric at the usual place, it's easier for him to pick me up even with the traffic! People asked if Eric wanted cake, but he didn't since he can't eat it - Andrea said he was SO GOOD, haha. No cake, no Coke, no other things for him except some chips! (Dylan's going on the Grouse Grind tomorrow - the huge amount of chips he polished off will certainly help him - NOT!)

At Bible Study, our group combined with Frances and Raymond - yay for big tables! Raymond told us that he conducted prayer meetings at work: yes, very much against corporate policy! He doesn't know what will happen if they got caught... PM in emails, and various other careful measures have ensured their cover so far. Dylan said that he HAS to go camping on July 6, and I had to clarify Eric's answer as to whether he could lead Bible Study that time: YES! Since I couldn't find my stuff before I left the apartment, I got Eric's big Bible - those sidenotes are fun things to read! Corporate worship (whether with proselytes / converts or not) is important, for sure! (as well as lots of LOUD music - drums, smoke machines to simulate clouds covering the church, Eric's trumpet from Band, etc.)

We discussed various types of salad for next week (pasta / bean / Caesar / potato), having NO durian / bitter melon / other gross stuff to cover loopholes, Jeremy's jazz gig (I'll be fine next week with others!), Jeremy's family traditions, borscht night, hot pot night (not in the middle of summer), chilies, homemade Pho, "fusion" cuisine in Toronto, and whether I could shred lettuce for Caesar salad if Eric bought some - I can certainly try, since I did offer to help Andrea! Jeremy mentioned that he'd heard about some New Yorkers who didn't know when 9/11 happened: someone in a video was asking the average person on the street the day, month, and year of that event. ("Um... October 10, 2002?") Frances figured that they should know, of all people! Meh, maybe those stupid people move too much or something - or really succeed at forgetting about it entirely! Then there was the question of how many died in that event: 3000 people / 30,000 people / 3 million people. Everyone asked chose the last two options, haha. Could you even FIT 3 million people in those towers?! HAHAHA.

Then Frances said that this was the most she'd ever heard Jeremy speak - just get him going on the topics of food, beer, George Bush, and economics! Jeremy then made some uncomplimentary remark about George Bush, which Dylan was willing to let slide. Frances said that she'd seen a comic where various monkey faces were made to all look like George Bush, haha. I told Jeremy that I should send him the link to this George Bush quote site, and I agreed that some of those quotes are very scary! (this was in reference to the fact that Biblical leaders should be well-spoken... and not quarrelsome / pugnacious!) One of Frances' friends is currently taking up the bongo / conga drums, and we spent some time discussing the difference between those types. Later, Jeremy told me and Peter that McDonalds French fries seemed to repel mold for some reason: he'd seen a deleted scene from SUPERSIZE ME that featured an experiment with McDonalds fries and regular fries where the regular ones went bad within a week, and the McDonalds fries stayed identical throughout! Yuck!

I asked Randal what he was doing for his birthday, and he said he didn't know - his parents will take him to lunch or something. Karen suggested having a party again, but it's a Saturday AND Phil's wedding! She amended that to drinks after Fellowship the night before: I'm not sure if I'll go if such a thing comes to pass, but there's plenty of time to think about this hypothetical situation! Not sure when I should give him his gift, though - maybe the day before, too! (I just realized that Phil and Grace's wedding is the day before his ex Megan's birthday - haha, good times!) It was around this time that Eric found out that a worship practice tomorrow was at 8 AM instead of 2:30 since Emily couldn't make it - YIKES was pretty much Jeremy's reaction, too! To spite Eric, I should have gone back to the church with Jeremy even if I did help him with something else... oh well, Randal decided to check around the corner for stuff in the dark, hehe. Quirky humor IS him, no matter how he tries denying it! :P

After Eric and I said goodnight to Randal, we went back to the church and discussed various things with Citrus / Danielle / Vanessa / Stanley / Jon / Jeremy / Sam / Michelle. Steph wanted to go early because she was meeting a Toronto friend for bubble tea - he wants her to meet his fiancée, and he's only 19 or 20! She also told us that she was confused on the Skytrain because a lot of people were wearing orange, and she wasn't thinking about football - "Why are these people wearing orange for the GWEN STEFANI concert?" That reminded Eric about someone in our group being at the concert - he asked me who it was, and I momentarily couldn't remember - it was BILLY! Hahaha, you're a dad and shouldn't like that kind of thing! (but as Steph said, maybe Stella dragged him to the concert) Discussed Harmony's workout routine, bicep curls, excuses to check out the Ng muscles on our dad ("I want to see God's creation!"), tie pins, wedding season, the brain matter in UGANDA RISING, dropping off a Gamecube for Korey, gas prices (107.9 vs. 112.9), people taking a long time to pre-pay, sitting through a piano recital by Harmony, the indifferent / wounded relationship Steph has with the piano, magic mushrooms helping Harmony write (joke), steroids helping Harmony bulk up (another joke), birthday cards, Father's Day card (Steph will try to get one) / doings (we're so indecisive - but no sushi, crowds, loud places, etc. or he'll get cranky), Foundation (vegetarian stuff vs. big brunch), our family not needing to celebrate Father's Day the last few years (which could contribute to our not knowing what to do), Cordia and Mike talking about defenestration (YAY!), Eunice and hair, Christon checking email on Steph's laptop, etc. I also noticed a spelling error on a taxi while we were waiting at a red light: you'd think a taxi company would spellcheck their logo! (think "Coquitlam Taxi" with the T and L interchanged)

Eric asked Korey by phone how he was doing, and Korey must have asked him why he wondered that, because the next thing he said was: "Leslie told me that you're not feeling well." I had the irrational thought that Eric shouldn't have told Korey that - I know it's not reasonable to assume that Korey's going to be less than happy about my telling Eric about it, but it still flashed through my head for a second. Must still be the childhood conditioning, ugh. Then again, I only let Dylan / Peter / Karen / Eric know because Karen asked where Korey was... perfectly reasonable, for sure. Karen's misconception about his living with me was amusing, though - the only reason I knew why Korey wasn't there is because he emailed me! Hahaha, interesting! Now I'm just curious to see whether Henry will make it to Awana tomorrow or not - I will sit waiting for his phone call or lack of one, hehe. Steph says I shouldn't rely on him and that it's not his FAULT - I know, but I did talk to him last Sunday! (and the Sunday before that, we said hi: although I kinda felt like hugging him then because he suffered the loss of his great-grandma, I didn't since I don't know him THAT well!)


RED LOBSTER TARTAR SAUCE

Recipe By:
Serving Size: 1 Preparation Time: 0:00
Categories: Sauces, Seafood

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

1/2 cup Kraft's mayo
1/4 cups Sweet pickle relish
2 tablespoons Miracle whip salad dressing
1 tablespoon Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Dry minced parsley
1/4 teaspoon Onion powder

Mix all and store in the fridge.

22.8 million points in Bookworm! / RED LOBSTER SWEET AND SOUR SAUCE

UGH. SO NOT IMPRESSED WITH THE COMPUTER. I had a really high score on Bookworm (over 22.8 million points on Level 63!), which took me 7.5 hours over three days to accomplish, and then the computer decided to delete that game from its memory once I restarted it! Yes, of course I left the game by proper means before restarting the computer. HOW ANNOYING! (and here I was looking forward to accumulating an ever-increasing number of points in levels that take 15-30 minutes to complete...) I didn't even know I'd surpassed my previous high score of 10.7 million last night until I looked at the level number I was playing. Now I have to do it all again, and not even a screenshot to prove it! (like it needs proof, but that's what I had LAST time, darn it all!) I even went up to the FIVE-LETTER WORD bonus level, too! How annoying!

I just had another weird scammer phone call, this time from Ontario: 416-924-0280. Manitoba's been calling me pretty often, too... good thing my phone is off most times, except when I'm expecting a call. Haha, I'd be no good in emergencies! But then again, I don't answer the phone unless I recognize the number / name. Safety first! ;)


RED LOBSTER SWEET AND SOUR SAUCE

Recipe By:
Serving Size: 1 Preparation Time: 0:00
Categories: Sauces, Seafood

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

1 can Tomato paste -- (6 ounces)
2 tablespoons Lemon juice
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons Horseradish cream sauce

Mix all ingredients together well. Refrigerate, tightly covered, to serve as an accompaniment to marinated chicken or with shrimp as a cocktail sauce.

Simple afternoon observation

Friends rock, both old and new - even if they surprise you at times!
Since it's 5 and Eric hasn't called or buzzed me on MSN, I think I can safely assume he'll be picking me up at the regular time. (someone's told me that he isn't feeling well... aiya!)

365 Stupidest Things Ever Said: June 2007

365 Stupidest Things Ever Said: June 2007

These stupid quotes are from The 365 Stupidest Things Ever Said Page-A-Day Calendar 2007.

Page-A-Day Calendars

Friday, June 1: Extraordinarily Strange Government Officials

"Umberto Bossi. Been born, 1941. Conjugated, 4 sons. In 1979, enters into contact with the world and ne she becomes the flagman... Journalist, is founding of various various journalistic heads and average.. he comes to an agreement himself with the Pole of Freedoms."

- from the listing of government officials on the official website of the Italian government, later removed (the official excuse was that they were using a machine translation software as a trial run, and not for general consumption)


Saturday, June 2: Do We Get Cut Rates For Urns?

ADULTS: 1 USD
CHILD: 50 CENTS
CADAVERS: SUBJECT TO NEGOTIATION
- sign at ferry terminal in Davao, Philippines


Sunday, June 3: Being Too Honest

"Miss Charlene Mason sang I Will Not Pass This Way Again, giving obvious pleasure to the congregation." - in a church bulletin


Monday, June 4: The Yolk's On You, Cyrus!

"The entire cosmos... is like an egg. We live on the inner surface of the shell, and inside the hollow are the sun, moon, stars, planets, and comets. What is outside? Absolutely nothing! The inside is all there is. You can't see across it because the atmosphere is too dense. The shell is 100 miles thick..." - visionary Cyrus Reed Teed, in the 1860s


Tuesday, June 5: Long Childhoods

"We have been boyhood friends all our lives." - Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley


Wednesday, June 6: Thank Heaven We Have Scholars

"The biggest problem with earthquake prediction studies is that you don't know when there'll be an earthquake." - Alasdair Shelton of Stockholm University, Sweden (thanks to Leah Dvorak and Bill Cumming)


Thursday, June 7: Ungracious Dance Schools

"DEBBIE'S SCHOOL OF DANCE
20 WATER ST., NEWARK VALLEY, NY
RESENTS ITS 4TH ANNUAL DANCE RECITAL
SUNDAY, JUNE 14, 3 PM"
- ad in a Newark Valley, New York, newspaper


Friday, June 8: Ah, Now We Get It

"It's not just money. There's financial problems as well." - soccer star Gerry Francis


Saturday, June 9: Can't Argue With That Department

"[He is] one of the great unknown champions because very little is known about him." - sportscaster David Coleman


Sunday, June 10: Toxic Sludge, The Good Side

"[The dumping of toxic sludge into the Potomac River] actually protects the fish in that they are not inclined to bite and get eaten by humans, but they go ahead with their upstream movement." - Army Corps of Engineers, 2002


Monday, June 11: Our Inquiry: Why The Sign?

"THIS PROPERTY IS NOT FOR SALE
FOR INQUIRIES, CALL EG AGUIRRE TEL: 832-2371"
- sign in the Philippines


Tuesday, June 12: Those Hefty N'Awlins Gals

"Later, a tow truck also got stuck in the canal while trying to help the other two vehicles, [S&WB spokesman Joe] Puglia said, adding that the land was probably unstable because of the recent dry weather. A flatbed truck equipped with wenches rescued all three vehicles in the late afternoon." - from the New Orleans Times-Picayune (thanks to Brian Hughes)


Wednesday, June 13: Dates We Don't Want To Go On

"... my philosophy of dating is to just fart right away." - actress Jenny McCarthy


Thursday, June 14: Not So Pithy Pundits

"[This is] a place that would be pretty much like the place that I would have grown up in, I think, if I had have grown up here." - political pundit Alan Keyes, on the Chicago neighborhood he chose to rent in after moving to the state to run for the U.S. Senate


Friday, June 15: Absolutely Fascinating Hurricane Facts

"HURRICANES UNHEALTHFUL" - headline in the Rapid City (South Dakota) Journal


Saturday, June 16: Not Pregnant Referees

"When he makes a decision, there's no arms thrown in the air and no gestating." - Irish soccer star Niall Quinn, on a referee


Sunday, June 17: Dad-Like Dads

"I wish my dear departed dad was here because he was like a father figure to me." - contestant on The Weakest Link


Monday, June 18: That's Why Quotation Books Are So Vitally Important

"Heartworm is an infectious, life-threatening cardiovascular disease spread by misquotes." - in a medical article


Tuesday, June 19: Dangerous Actresses

"How to protect your neighborhood against crime and Jennifer Beals, star of The Bride. Live at five." - from a tease on CBS-TV, New York


Wednesday, June 20: Painful Clichés

"Everybody is putting their hands to the grindstone." - Ken Allen, Australian consul general in New York


Thursday, June 21: Not Alluring Hair Stylist Ads

NEWBURY STREET COIFFURE.
AFFORDABLE.
AN ALTERNATIVE TO LOOKING GOOD.
= ad for a Massachusetts hair salon


Friday, June 22: Those Oh-So-Technical Questions

Customer: I'm an educated man, so don't you talk down to me!
Tech support: Okay, sir. Do you have a desktop or tower case?
Customer: Don't use that technical s*** with me!
- actual call to a computer tech support line


Saturday, June 23: Necessary Dewordification

Title of a U.S. Postal Service plan to get more letter carriers to deliver mail on foot: ROUTE DEMOTORIZATION


Sunday, June 24: Take A Left At The Next Burning Bush

"We're going to the land of milk and honey. Anybody know the way?" - an Israelite about to leave Egypt, in The Ten Commandments (1956)


Monday, June 25: New Verbs

"We had four must-win games, and we musted." - Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, explaining his team's win in the 2004 American League Championship Series (thanks to Mike Curtis)


Tuesday, June 26: Enigmatic Secretaries of Defense

"Things will not be necessarily continuous. The fact that they are something other than perfectly continuous ought not to be characterized as a pause. There will be some things that people will see. There will be some things that people won't see. And life goes on." - Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, during a Defense Department news briefing


Wednesday, June 27: No Wonder They Keep Running Out Of Booze

HOTEL BAR.
NO DRINKING.
PROHIBITED.
- sign in a Turkish cocktail lounge


Thursday, June 28: God, You Must Be Popular

Question: We've heard you like throwing drinks in people's faces and then walking away.
Actress Lara Flynn Boyle: The people I hang out with have sense. They'll just say something like, "Thanks. I was getting a little thirsty."


Friday, June 29: A Little Too Specific Testimony

Lawyer: I would like you to turn to the next page, dated June 9, 1993.
Plaintiff: Yes.
Lawyer: Do you recall this incident occurring?
Plaintiff: Yes. The night before that, I had eaten at Beachcomber's Restaurant. And I had crab. And I had vomited in the -
Lawyer: I assure you on this question, a simple "Yes" or "No" will do.
- recorded in court testimony


Saturday, June 30: Problems Understanding The Concept of Half

"We started with 53,000 people. Half are gone, but surprisingly, most are still here!" - sportscaster Jerry Coleman

Kingsway certainly smells like Pho!

To my surprise, Vivian S. picked me up along with my mom and brother. We talked about Korey still being here, violins, strawberries, Frances and Randal's birthdays, Mom's bad interpretations of a certain random birthday card and the polar bears sticker on it, being fluent in Hebrew / Yiddish, spicy lollipops from Mexico, restaurant reviews about the curry and the 65-day-old chicken being killed, Mexican papayas, pedestrian-only villas, car-free zones, the third POTC movie (refresh yourself - jumps right into the plot!), wedding rehearsals, and upcoming trips to Israel. We found House of Dosas pretty quickly, and could smell the Pho when we got out of the car. (this is Kingsway, so of course there are a lot of Pho places - mmm, tomorrow's dinner... must tip better!) There was a Cedar House coffee shop which Jon wanted to check out for a bit, and it looked pretty nice!

Steph got there after we did, and Jon had to remind Mom that she was at the mercy of the bus so couldn't be on time necessarily! The curry and yogurt was pretty good, and so was the chicken with all those peppers! The papadam and roti were also pretty crunchy, and definitely a treat! Cindy and Dianne said that the place was good (they live two minutes from the restaurant), and they were right! When Steph heard that Mom and Jon had also eaten out for lunch, she was bemused. I told her that Korey was in town still, so things should be interesting tomorrow! We talked about Sam and Mike saying that Ivan drove really fast (140 on the bridge?), family drama causing Big G to come home two months earlier than scheduled (end of July), Steph's Toronto trips and weddings, Daniel and Nathan driving fast but not recklessly, Uganda movies, Gmail chat, Bible Study two weeks in a row, the upcoming barbecue, Karen going all out, Sean coming back for Hon and Eva's wedding in August, Phil's wedding, Eunice moving to Burnaby in two weeks, her dad's eye operation, teaching people and knowing certain neighborhoods well, and birthday cards. I gave Eunice's birthday card to Steph since she'll see her on Saturday for a hair appointment (the last one ever from us!), and Jon told Mom that our water had been filled up many times. (that's a good reason for more tip!) Definitely an interesting time out!

Dream of Celebrian and Sean / Email, MSN, and Gmail chat / No cars

Had a weird dream last night that involved Sean being ecstatic that his mom was gone, because then he could do forbidden things. We also noticed that Mrs. Tee (Melissa's mom) wasn't there, which was fine with us because we could read comics in the newspaper all night long. Someone got on the computer and noticed someone with the screen name Celebrian, which reminded me of Corey's ex's sister. The only thing was that this person was a male and not a female, which caused us much confusion. We had to email that person to sort things out, haha. Not sure what triggered that one!

I'm more happy than I should be right now, haha.

Steph emailed me about going to some East Indian place called House of Dosas on Kingsway for dinner - sounds good to me! Called Jon since she said to do that, and then fielded a "who is this?" from Korey on MSN... more Netspeak, ahoy! (bleh!) He's still here, and I'll see him tomorrow. (we'll definitely talk then!) Imagine my surprise when my computer made a noise while I was reading a while later - it was my brother on Gmail chat! I wonder how he knows certain things, but we'll figure it out in time. He says that I can bus over or they can pick me up in the courtyard at 5:20 - I misread the time on my computer as 3:30 instead of 2:30, so I responded with "not going there 2 hours early!" Then I reread it - I'm especially not going over there THREE hours early! (I need to finish certain things over here too...) He figures that I can get the Father's Day card since I have a lot of time on my hands - true, so maybe tomorrow if I have to meet Eric at the usual intersection! If not, then I'll delegate my sister to do so! (I think we will meet since we have to pick up Korey, unless he's at Eric's tomorrow - I don't think that'll happen, but WHO KNOWS!) At any rate, I should walk slower - like I don't do that enough already. Oh well, good for the patience and such! ;)

Speaking of email, Jon just sent this to us:

Car-free Commercial Drive on Sunday

I'm planning to take part in this. It's really cool walking around the streets without having to worry about getting hit by a car or truck (some might say it adds to the thrill and excitement, but still).

To recap, Commercial Drive from 1st Ave-Venables will be car-free this Sunday from 12-6 (car traffic itself will be closed from 10-8). There should be lots of stuff to do and see, and Dave Diewert (Regent prof) has a group doing some sort of civic demonstration, which should be thought-provoking for sure.

Anyone want to walk the streets with me?

Steph's said no on the grounds that it's Father's Day AND she'll be packing for Toronto, which is her gift this year. Hahaha, nice. ("Happy Father's Day, Dad! I'll be gone soon!") I've expressed reservations about walking around a lot, but I could be in if anyone else is, heh.

Your Pick-Up Line Is

See my friend over there? She wants to know if you think I'm cute.

What Pick-Up Line Will Get You a Man?

You Are a Tomboy

You're having too much fun to bother with nail polish and crazy diets. Guys are instead impressed by how much you know and do!

How Feminine Are You?

You Are Medium Maintenance

You aren't as hard to deal with as some girls. But you aren't the most laid-back chick, either. You're easy to deal with 90% of the time, but watch out for that 10%! If the guy you are with has good intentions, then calm down a little. But if he's really screwing up, don't waste your breath - move on. :)

Are You A High-Maintenance Woman?

Reminds me that I was joking with Korey last Friday about being high-maintenance. He said that he pitied my future husband, haha.

Your Family Is 58% Dysfunctional

Your family definitely has some problems, but probably nothing that can't be overcome. You don't have the greatest past with your family, and bad feelings may arise when everyone's together. It may take some individual or group therapy to work everything out. And that means your family has to admit there's a problem. If your family isn't ready to change, you may need to give them some distance for a while.

Is Your Family Dysfunctional?

You Are 65% Real

You know who you are, and you're pretty darn comfortable with yourself. Like everyone, you struggle with the parts of yourself that aren't so great... But you're good at accepting who you are and not dwelling on your faults. As a result, you're confident, optimistic, and very real.

How Real Are You?

Which Pokemon are you? Blaziken you are impulsive, but always willing to fight. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

Twelve signs you DON'T love someone / Red Lobster Shrimp Scampi

Note: What my LJ friends are really thinking / LJ Graduation blogquizzes. (by Koree)


Hahaha. I got this from Kaitlin via Myspace bulletin:

Twelve signs you DON'T love someone:

1. You want them to die.
2. You walk as far away from them as possible.
3. You think they're ugly.
4. You think they're stupid.
5. They offend you morally, spiritually, or intellectually.
6. As you're reading this, you're frowning.
7. You want to bite off their face.
8. You want to hire an assassin to kill them.
9. Every time you see this person, you become incredibly hostile.
10. Every time you THINK about this person, you want to break the noses of everyone around you.
11. Whenever someone mentions this person around you, you have the urge to throw them out the window.
12. While you were reading this, you had one person in mind.


Red Lobster Shrimp Scampi

1 cup White Wine
1/2 cup unsalted Butter - do not use Margarine
3 Tablespoon minced Garlic
1 lb. Shrimp, peeled and deveined

Bake in 350°F oven for about 6 to 7 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp. The shrimp are done when they turn pink. Thanks to Greg, former Red Lobster Chef.

Etiquette hell, class, anti-climactic fortune teller, energy drinks, and more quizzes

Etiquette Hell... hahaha. My gosh, all the stories! :P

You Are Upper Middle Class

You're stuck in an interesting middle area between upper and middle class. You're wealthy enough for most people to call you rich (or at least comfortable), but you don't feel rich! Climbing your way to the top is hard work. And you often feel stretched for time and resources. If only you had a little more money! You can't help but wish you had the lifestyle of the upper class. You may end up: A manager, high school teacher, or accountant. Other people who share your class: "White collar" professionals and business people

What Class Are You?

Your Anti-Climactic Fortune

Deep into your future, I foresee: A somewhat sickening first kiss

The Anti-Climactic Fortune Teller

Yikes! Oh my! o_O

What mystical animal are you? Dragon You are a dragon: you are fierce and competitive. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

Haha, that certainly fits! :D

Which Naruto character are you? Sasuke Uchiha Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

Do you have a dirty mind? PG-13 Your mind is definitely a little dirty. You're naughty, but not trashy. You don't shy away from a dirty joke, and you're clearly not a prude. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

What's Your inner power animal? Your inner animal spirit is a Cat You're elegant, understanding, and intuitive. Often deep though, you're an empathetic person with a big heart. At times, you can be rather lazy. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

What kind of weather are you? You are Rain You are introverted, feeling, sensitive, and spiritual. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

What Element are You? Water Thoughtful, spiritual, and emotional. Has a tendency to get depressed easily. Appreciates natural beauty, and is wise. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

What type of candy are you? Skittles Congrats, you are Skittles. You are sweet and friendly, but when someone gets on your nerves, that might change. Don't worry, that's how most people are. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

What`s Your Kissing Style? Sweet Kisser You're a private person, and so are your kisses. You like your smooches to reflect the tender moments between you and your lover. They're very special to you. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

Works for me, even though I don't have a lover yet! :P

Which Energy Drink Are You? BAWLS You are an important individual. You like hanging to hang out with friends and crack funny jokes. Sometimes you are mistaken for someone you're not. You are kind towards others, and extremely generous sometimes. You have quite a lot of stamina, though sometimes you can dwell on certain things too much. Also, you are quite caring, and people like to come to you with questions. And when you need help, you tend to ask other people what to do. Click Here to Take This Quiz

Quizzes and Personality Tests

Two white diamonds! / RED LOBSTER GARLIC CHEESE BISCUITS (LIGHT)

Jon emailed us to remind us that Father's Day and the two weeks of the Jazz Festival will affect his making the Sunday dinners for three weeks. Of course, that depends on whether Father's Day is celebrated with lunch or dinner, and whether anyone will volunteer to make stuff for the two weeks afterwards. I probably won't, as I don't really have much skill that way. We'll see if anyone else does, haha.

I got two white diamonds in the same Bookworm game! First, I constructed the word LOB using three yellow / gold tiles; I used the resulting G white diamond on the word GAG. Later, I made the word HAGS using three yellow / gold tiles on the H, A, and G. The resulting T white diamond was used on the word JUT, resulting in 9520 points for a single word. :D


RED LOBSTER GARLIC CHEESE BISCUITS (LIGHT)

Recipe By:
Serving Size: 12 Preparation Time: 0:00
Categories: Breads, Muffins, Low-Cal

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

2 cups Minus 1 Tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon Plus 2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking soda
1 Pinch salt
3 tablespoons Stick margarine, chilled
3/4 cup Low fat (1.5%) buttermilk
1 1/2 oz Sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/4 teaspoon Garlic powder

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Line baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper; spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a medium bowl... sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add 2 tablespoons of the margarine and blend with pastry cutter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add buttermilk and cheese; combine with fork, handling dough as little as possible. Drop by spoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet; bake until lightly browned, about 8-10 minutes.
3. While biscuits are baking... in a small microwavable bowl, add the remaining tablespoon of margarine; microwave on high until margarine is melted. Stir in garlic powder; set aside.
4. When biscuits are done, remove from oven and brush margarine mixture evenly over the warm biscuits. Remove from baking sheet and serve immediately. Serving (1 biscuit) equals 3/4 fat, 1 1/4 bread, 15 calories. Per serving 83 calories, 2 gm pro, 9 grams carb, 4 grams fat, 338 mg sodium, 4 mg cholesterol, 0 grams fiber.

Misreading things: my brain sees what it wants to!

I hate misreading things, as I most recently did with Korey's email address. His handwriting was clear enough, but the "O" was not an "A"... neither was the "C" a "CE." I was wondering about the "mailbox not available" error in Hotmail to Corey, who said that I probably had the wrong email address. So then I looked at it again with a foggy brain, and actually read it properly! Whoa. At least this email wasn't promptly spat back at me, haha. My brain probably saw what it wanted to see on Friday. :P

Thanks to going through my Gmail contacts, I now know Isabel and Justin's middle initials. Then again, I also have been reminded of Eric's Hotmail address: he once asked me whether I even knew his Hotmail address, and now I do. (although it's at the top of every MSN conversation we have) Or maybe it was his work email address he was asking about, but I have no reason to know that one! I also know the middle names of two sets of sextuplets recently born, thanks to the bad baby names forum. Yay! Now I'm going to read the new Twinstuff forums. At least I'm used to this kind of board software! (Invision Zone) Apparently, I've been on there for six years now as of May 17 - man, 2001 was a long time ago!

VIG white diamond, failed test emails, RED LOBSTER CREAMY CAESAR DRESSING

Got another white diamond on Bookworm tonight: I used three yellow / gold tiles on the word "fad," and the resulting white diamond on the V in the word "vig." I used to use stickers for depilatory purposes. It's no good most times, and wastes the sticker. Suppose I gotta get a Father's Day card this week, as I've been reminded by my sister - my brother's got the parents' anniversary card somewhere, heh. (it's only two weeks late or so... :P) Tried emailing Korey at the address he gave me on Friday, and promptly got it spat back at me: "mailbox not available," indeed. No, I wasn't reading it wrong... I should have given him my info when he gave his to me! Crap. I'll sort things out with Eric later, haha. (that SHOULD take care of the other angle I'm thinking about... yikes!)


RED LOBSTER CREAMY CAESAR DRESSING

Recipe By:
Serving Size: 12 Preparation Time: 0:00
Categories: Salads, Dressings, Cake mix

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

3/4 cup Bottled Italian dressing
1 tablespoon Parmesan -- grated
1 tablespoon Sugar
1/3 cups Mayo
1 tablespoon Anchovy paste or Soy sauce

Combine all with wire whisk. Keep refrigerated. Use in a week.

SCARECROW reminders, weird Maryland phone calls, shuffle on myself

I clicked on Heavy Metal Radio earlier today, and heard a song that reminded me of someone on Our Place. SCARECROW (Mike) used to listen to Nevermore's The Godless Endeavor all the time, and it made me wonder where he is right now! Haven't seen him around in some time, heh. I also got a weird phone call from Maryland while I was sleeping: 301-392-8228 are probably scammers! Have replied to barbecue Evite, but haven't emailed Korey yet since I can't think of a subject line that doesn't sound like spam. (so very important for a first email, haha)


Got this music shuffle meme from the bad baby names forum. As usual, I'm using Corey's DVD for this.

What is your name? Or what should your name be?: Dee Dee King, The Crusher (I wish!)
How is your life going?: Jack Off Jill, Girl Scout
What is your nickname?: Genitorturers, Lesser Gods
What is your theme song?: Cradle of Filth, Amor E Morte
What is your best friend's theme song?: Jack Off Jill, Bruises Are Back In Style
How is your life going to turn out?: Iggy and the Stooges, I Need Somebody
Will you get married?: GWAR, The Private Pain of Techno Destructo
Will you have kids?: Ramones, Pinhead
What will your job be?: Children of Bodom, The Nail
Did you / will you finish school?: Bad Brains, The Regulator
Who is your best friend?: Bad Brains, Fearless Vampire Killers
Who is or will be your significant other?: White Zombie, Knuckle-Duster (Radio 1-A)
Who do you like?: In Flames, Morphing Into Primal
How will you die?: Death Piggy, Nympho (oh my...)
How do you feel right now?: Siouxsie and the Banshees, Ornaments of Gold
What is your favorite song?: Death Piggy, Ceramic Butt
How could you describe your parents?: GWAR, You Can't Kill Terror (HAHAHA!)
Your best friend[s]?: Siouxsie and the Banshees, Turn To Stone
Your teachers?: Dead Kennedys, Police Truck
Your significant other [or crush...]?: Nina Hagen, Making Monsters For My Friends
Yourself?: Rancid, Rats In The Hallway
What is your best feature?: Pere Ubu, Non-Alignment Pact
What will you be / should you be, profession-wise?: Rancid, Ruby Soho
How could you describe this survey?: Lords of Acid, Marijuana In Your Brain
What makes you angry?: Pantera, Mouth For War
What makes you sad?: Sex Pistols, Silly Thing
What makes you happy?: Dave Brockie Experience, G-O-D Spells God
What makes you dance?: GWAR, The Morality Squad
What is your favorite color?: the Avengers, Crazy Homicide
How would you describe yourself?: Cradle of Filth, From The Cradle To Enslave
Who is your worst enemy?: Rancid, Junkie Man
Who do you hate?: Lords of Acid, The Real Thing
Who do you love?: the Misfits, Earth A.D.
Who do you lust after?: Children of Bodom, Needled 24/7

Finish the Sentence

I wish: GWAR, Golden Showers (um, NO... just NO!)
I want to: Danzig, Twist of Cain
I want to kill: GWAR, Abyss of Woe
I want to eat: Lard, Can God Fill Teeth?
My head: Dave Brockie Experience, I Saw Three Forms
I am: Buzzcocks, Time's Up
My best feature is: GWAR, Technosong
My eyes are: Yngwie Malmsteen, Black Star (not quite... they're brown!)
My hair is: Thrill Kill Kult, Devil Bunnies (no comment... maybe it is!)
My face is: Tool, Prison Sex (I certainly HOPE not!)
You should: GWAR, Jiggle The Handle (definitely do so on your toilet, hahaha)

Random

Words of advice: Lords of Acid, Young Boys (I am not a weird sexual deviant, thank you very much!)
How do others see me?: Lords of Acid, I Sit On Acid (Original) (I most certainly do NOT!)
How do I see myself?: Suicide Machines, DDT

Surreal movie and the Whip / RED LOBSTER CLAM CHOWDER

Told Jon to bring the cooler out, which he did... however, he neglected to bring any dry ice to protect my strawberry cream cake! Oh well. He talked to Harmony about the "I LOVE COUGARS" shirt he saw recently, the Korean word "harmony" meaning "grandmother" (thanks, Korey), physical touch being important in relationships, falling asleep as he was driving (I'd scratch him for that), and beer with Jeremy later. We met Jeremy at the Whip and had some cask ale while talking about various things such as Hon's wedding / hops / IPA / plans for shopping. Found spinach and lettuce selling for very cheap at a small grocery store. (two bunches for a buck?!) They were impressed by Jeremy's Eco-Diversity bag (whereas Safeway people will just stare at you blankly), and told us that some avocados weren't very ripe. Eh, we were planning to use them right away anyhow - and then two of the three dropped on Nathan's kitchen floor later, go figure! I told Jon what Eric had thought of my Wrigley's purple gum this morning: "It smells like grape Dimetapp, but isn't quite as nauseating as Purell!" Haha, very funny! :P

Nathan's dad was actually home, which was unusual: he'd just gotten back from Victoria doing stuff for the Special Olympics, where the Saturday rain did a number on the planned events. Found out that Eric and Korey wouldn't be able to make it out due to timing issues: oh well, I'm just glad I got his email address on Friday then! Nathan decided to go really random for dinner: old wine used for cooking, fish, random marinade, mustard, mushrooms, cashews on salad, etc. Plenty for tomorrow's worship meeting, for sure! Jon, Jeremy, and I were all ready to take the credit for the things in the dishwasher... but we were too honest and said that his dad had done that. Everyone laughed when I read the back of both movie DVDs: yay for bizarre events! The nectarines in the fridge looked like they had nipples on the ends, which reminded Jeremy of a classic slip: "this woman has pretty nipples" is NOT "this woman has pretty dimples"! (not in FRONT of her too!) I had a banana and Jeremy had a nectarine while we helped make stuff (I washed the spinach): we ate at 9-ish, but at least it didn't take three hours to make like last week's production! Peanut butter on a knife would not be too good for Jeremy - yay for the back of his fork! Talked about farts, partially-dressed salad (ideal woman?), sneezing, guys eating salad, pizza, prayer, etc. So funny!

Afterwards, we decided to get started on watching Songs From The Second Floor: MovieMartyr's analysis and Roger Ebert's interpretation helped us to better understand the Swedish / Scandinavian film afterwards. (such different humor!) An immigrant getting attacked and no one across the street does anything, major traffic jams, demonstrations, a magician sawing someone open, someone getting fired after 30 years, and this man who set fire to his own shop hoping for insurance money: very weird and surreal, especially if you forgot to read the subtitles like Jeremy did a few times! ("Why can't I understand anything? Am I that tired? Turn it up!")

Jeremy wrapped himself in Nathan's pink workout sheet, and thought he must look like a giant pastry - perhaps a cupcake. Haha, it would have been really funny if Isabel had come through the door and seen it! (not sure she's staying now since her room looks cleaned up) Nathan didn't notice until I said something about it, haha. We also had cake: Nathan thought it was deceivingly light. I told him he could have the rest of it: believe me, I do NOT need even more temptation! Jeremy left soon afterwards, and I decided to use the downstairs bathroom since he brought it up. Early mornings, oh my! Briefly checked my email: "hon," indeed. Might as well respond in kind while NOT FLIRTING, haha. Watched some of SAMURAI FICTION and then looked at Nathan's amazing collection of burned DVDs. Then Nathan decided to change his settings in some NHL video game, so Jon decided we would leave. Fair enough! Interesting day, haha. Now I sleep!


RED LOBSTER CLAM CHOWDER

Recipe By:
Serving Size: 6 Preparation Time: 0:00
Categories: Chicken, Sandwiches, Salsa

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

1 quart Clam juice
1 cup Non-fat dry milk powder
2/3 cups Flour
1 can Chicken broth -- (14 ounces)
2 Ribs celery -- chop fine
1 tablespoon Dry minced onion
1 can Clams -- (10 ounces, minced well)
1 pinch Dry parsley flakes
2 Baked potatoes -- cooked, peeled, crumbled

Put clam juice, milk powder, and flour in blender... blending smooth. Pour into 2.5-quart saucepan and stir in chicken broth, stirring constantly on medium-high heat until thick and smooth. Turn heat to low. Stir in celery, onions, clams, parsley, and potatoes. Keep on low heat up to an hour and season with salt and pepper. Freezes well.

Accidentally hitting me with your water bottle is still wild and crazy!

I'm feeling numb, and I'm listening to the Sex Pistols' No Feelings. Har har har.

This morning, I automatically wanted Eric to let me in the backseat of the car - only twice, and I'm already learning that Korey needs the front seat! The only thing wrong with that was Korey wasn't feeling well, so had stayed home. Oh well, I had a good time freaking out Eric anyhow while he thought that he wasn't on Jon's abbreviated Sunday dinner email list.. maybe. He also thinks the Fellowship committee should assume he's going to the Daniel-David BBQ, and so shouldn't send him an Evite - perhaps, but we both need to respond to it! (I need to give my info to Korey too, by way of a test email) When we got to church, we'd been discussing Randal on and off. Eric noted that he'd parked right in front of us, and told me so - I was like "That could be anyone's red Hyundai Accent!" Clearly, I am not a pro at being observant in the morning / when I haven't had enough sleep, because guess who stepped out of the car? Of course, Eric had to tell him that I hadn't seen him at all - so of course I had to explain things to him later when I sat by him in service. (the early people were blocking the first few rows, yay...)

The PULSE had definitely changed its look, and Randal remarked on that to me. He also told me about some blind date he'd gone on, that "my single self should die" blog post (I know it wasn't literal, but at least he IS alive!), seeing Andy at Kits Beach (of all the people), walking around, and wondered who had won the Memorial Cup since he noticed my newest hat. Seems his only exposure to it was at the townhouse that time, so I told him who had won while waving to Danielle - she's back from her trip! We later figured that between the cruise and her trip, we hadn't seen each other for more than a month. At least we're both back now! Jeremy came in later, and we laughed when we saw the sermon acronyms: HABITS, haha. (J.I. Packer says "Hang Time With God?! Haha.") The Awana slideshow was pretty cute, too! Ah, the kiddies! Briefly talked to Henry later, who says he'll be back next week: we shall see, although my sister says not to rely on him because of his family situation which is no one's FAULT really. All he has to do is give me a call, haha.

When Auntie Rebecca asked the Awana leaders to stand up, I noticed Lainey looking around - haha, I wasn't going to be the first, either! Because of enunciation issues, Jeremy thought Pastor Edward said that we'd inhabit the new church building in 40 months! Haha, no... that would be a little on the long side for a construction project, as he'd actually meant 14 months. I patiently waited for Jeremy to get his stuff together so we could leave, and I saw Tony outside after saying hi to Sophia - he immediately told us that he'd done something terrible. ("Who did you kill?" was everyone's first reaction, haha) What he meant: "I've gone back to my old job at Wal-Mart!" While he was telling us, Mike, Steph, Isabel, and whoever else was around about it, Randal hung just back of the umbrellas. After a bit, he tapped me on the shoulder and said that he was going off to Sunday School. Fair enough, so I waved bye... he COULD talk to us if he wanted, but maybe he's shy. That, or he needs introductions even though he knows everyone already - except maybe Tony. Meh, maybe I'll talk to him about that later. It's nice to know he's around, though... all he has to do is insert himself into our circles! (and I mean that literally, haha)

Tony then said he felt guilty if he moved since Jeremy and I were under his umbrella, but the rain was bearable - Jer had a full hood on his biking jacket, and I'd survive with my hat! We moved to where Jon and Calla were discussing coral reefs and environmental changes: she'd know stuff with her environmental engineering! Jon introduced Calla and Jeremy to each other, and she seemed surprised that he knew who she was because she's been away for school a lot. Chris and Ivan hung around till our last group left: we congratulated Chris on being valedictorian, and told him NOT to do any Hitler impersonations if he had a Jewish teacher around! The toddlers in Sunday School were kinda hyper, except maybe little Sean. He had a blast with the rainbow book and stickers, saying the words "rainbow" and "Z"... and he proved to be smart with the foam interlocking puzzle featuring various letters and numbers. So good! (he liked red and blue today, too!) Asked his brother Ian to hold his things afterwards, and he said that he was holding FOUR things! Yup, he was: his brother's jacket, two pieces of Sunday School stuff, and his own Sunday School things. Cute kid, and he actually talked to me on his own! (and he hasn't seen me for a couple of weeks, either!)

Recognized Amos by his hairstyle, so went to the basement corner where he and his friends were looking at someone's PSP game. Asked him how it had gone yesterday: apparently, there isn't much to write down in the record books now because the kids are focused on their year-end ceremony songs. Gave him his birthday card and stickers, which he thanked me for. I went outside after interacting with some of the younger kids a little. Everyone had finished Sunday School already: they were discussing Bible Study / BBQ at Winnie's, tonight's plans at Nathan's (no outside BBQ for Nate!), the weird movies Jon wants to watch, and Facebook. Danielle said that my brother (and I) should get a Facebook account, so I relayed that info to him after he'd come back out from the church. He prefers face-to-face interaction (and has no time for it or MSN because his work will suffer), even if his own girlfriend has an account there! ("I'm resisting it!") Nathan has one for the elementary school memories, and Danielle likes planning events on there... social networking! Andrew came outside later with his brother Adam, and (completely independent of the other conversation) told me that HE had gotten a Facebook account last week - "I'm already addicted!" Oh, dude... he also said he got "smited" yesterday. Simple solution: DON'T EAT DURING AWANA TIME! (I bet that's what he was doing, since he always does that!)

Ran errands with the parents after lunch at Mui's (grad banquet is Sunday, August 12... the public bathrooms at Lansdowne take me back to when I was a kid and walked down that long hall to get to them!), and now I'm home since Jon will let me know what's happening tonight. Jokingly threatened Nathan with not bringing my cake tonight since he accidentally hit me with his water bottle: Christon termed that a "wild and crazy antic," which is an apt descriptor! Nate's finished all the chocolate / Smarties fusion ice cream I brought last weekend, so he can have the cake if he pays for it! (Jon was collecting tabs from people, but I already paid him back - Mom says Nathan shouldn't let Jon run up a tab, but we'll see!) Steph will see Melissa in Toronto soon enough, so she'd better give me back a bunch of cards! (and I have more.. eep!) Jon asked me some question about the babies that Cindy would be better equipped to answer: it's true that baby Hannah is the most musical of the bunch if she bops along to the rhythm of the worship music instead of just randomly doing so! She's definitely the cutest, with her dad Lee's eyes and these long eyelashes! (her little wave goodbye is so cute!) I haven't seen David's younger son Gabriel yet, but his older one is huge already! Ah, more babies! :D

Jon just called, and said he has no idea where Nathan is right now. He's still meeting Jeremy for beer and stuff, though - as long as he gives me a call before he leaves, I'm going to bring my cake for the movie night even if it's not really a dinner thing! I knew there were advantages to leaving certain people out of the loop on things. ;)

Also forgot to add that my mom thinks Steph and I are bad for deleting some forward she sent us: Andrea Bocelli and Celine Dion's rendition of THE PRAYER?! Jon could sing that to her, haha! We tried explaining to her that some forwards are just useless junk (but tried putting it more politely), and also tried explaining the concept of forwarding as inline text vs. an attachment since Steph sometimes just gets headers instead of text from her. Then we tried telling her not to assume we knew what she was talking about when it came to episode names of TV shows and such. (I should tell my sibs that once she got mad at me for not knowing what a certain Harrison Ford movie was called when "[I] obviously know, and [I'm] just being difficult!") Then there was this exchange...

Mom: *talks about how Uncle Eric (Erin's dad) was her and Dad's boarder when they first got married, and she had to cook him dinner almost every night*
Steph: So I guess you had no alone time...
Mom: What? Me and Uncle Eric?! We weren't romantically involved!
*pause as Dad chuckles to himself and the three of us look at each other in the backseat*
Steph: No, Mom. I meant when you and Dad were newlyweds, before you had your firstborn. If Uncle Eric was always there, you didn't have any time to yourselves!
Mom: OH! Well, he lived across the hall from us...

Haha. Gotta know your audience, and listen for subtle nuances in conversation! (this reminds me that Eric thinks I selectively mishear inappropriate things - that is SO NOT TRUE!)

Red Lobster Cheesecake

Time to go with Eric and Korey to church soon! Decided on a change from the usual ride with my parents, because new company can be very invigorating, indeed. It also helps that I know this will be positive, despite my not getting a lot of sleep when I went to bed at 12:30 or being a morning person in general. ;)


Red Lobster Cheesecake

Filling:
16 oz Cream cheese
8 oz Sour cream
2 large Eggs
2 tablespoon Butter
2 tablespoon Cornstarch
1 cup Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Cookie crumbs

Crust:
10 oz Package Lorna Doone cookies - crushed
¼ lb Butter - melted
¼ cup Sugar
1 Envelope Knox unflavored gelatin

Mix crumbs with butter, sugar, and gelatin. Pat out evenly over bottom of greased 9" springform pan. Bake at 350°F exactly 8 minutes. Beat these with electric mixer: cream cheese, sour cream, eggs, butter, cornstarch, sugar, and vanilla. When the filling is perfectly smooth and creamy, pour into crust. Return to 350°F oven and bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack 20 minutes before releasing springform from the cake. Cool another 20 minutes before cutting. Sprinkle top with cookie crumbs.