elkit in wonderland

Out With The Old, In With The New

Have a great, successful, healthy, joyous, merry, bodacious, fabulous, awesome, outrageously fantabulous New Year, and may most of your wishes come true!

Three Dog Night

That is, if you count me as one of them. :-)

I spent the last couple of days in Campbell, dogsitting for friends. They have two big dogs: Cloe, a Golden Retriever, and Mojo, who must be some kind of pointer, judging from his looks. They're the sweetest canines you can imagine. Cloe just wants to retrieve and retrieve and retrieve all day, and Mojo just wants to be petted and petted and petted, and they just love and love and love you.

Puppy spoiler that I am, I encouraged them both to sleep on my bed with me, and spent the nights happily squeezed in between the two of them. Cloe talking in her sleep, and twitching so hard in her dreams the whole bed was shaking, and Mojo with his head on my arm, and his nose in my armpit, breathing contentedly. It wasn't easy turning around and getting comfortable, and I didn't really sleep all that much and all that deeply - but I was happy.
Life sure is good with a little bit of cuddling.

Lord of the Rings, by Mickey Spillane

I was sitting by the fire, puffing on a pipe, still nursing a hangover from the ale-fest the night before, when HE walked in.

He had a long white beard, a magical staff, and legs that you'd like to eat on toast.

"Are you Frodo Baggins," he intoned.

"I might be," I said. "Who's asking?"

"My name is Gandalf, Mr. Baggins. And I need your help."

I looked him over. "Lots of people need my help. What makes YOU special?"

"Well, Mr. Baggins... there is a certain piece of jewelry. If it fell into the wrong hands, it could prove... troublesome. I need someone to take this ring to Mount Doom, where it can be destroyed."

I stuck some more weed in my pipe, and said, "Look, doll, let's get one thing straight- you can't come into my hole, tell me a fairy-tale about a magic ring, bat those pretty eyelids, and have me fall at your feet. I stick my neck out for nobody."

This and a whole lot of other brilliant versions right here.

One Down, 252 To Go

So, if I eat 3 apples a day for 12 weeks .. that's 252 apples. Not bad, ey? I'll start my official count tomorrow, but I already ate one, just now, and dinner's almost ready ...

Three Apples A Day Keep The Doctor Away

I don't think I'll enter the $500,000 Gold Gym Challenge (and the site doesn't really say what exactly it is, what the rules are, what the goal is, etc.), but I like the 3 Apple Plan part of it. Sounds like an easy-peasy way of eating better conveniently, and losing weight as a side benefit.
Do I think I can do this for 12 weeks?
Yeah, sure. I'm on. Three apples a day for the next twelve weeks, starting tomorrow. That's my promise to you, and you heard it here first.

Gather No Moss

I spent a half hour this afternoon browsing around the Simpsons section of the Rolling Stone site. Too much fun, entirely.

But then I had to tear myself away to go to the movies and see The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. For the second time, actually, I already saw it on Christmas Day. I guess that means I liked it. :-)

A New Holiday

I really like Metagrrrl's idea:
"I've decided to invent a new holiday called Discardia. It takes place in the time between the Solstices & Equinoxes and their following new moons. Discardia is celebrated by getting rid of stuff and ideas and habits you no longer need. On the Discardian new moon you don't buy anything or bring anything into your home and enjoy the fact that you have enough. We have a nice long Winter Discardia currently, lasting until the new moon on January 2nd."

Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire

I am seriously tempted to put a Duraflame Screensaver on my Mac. But which one? Decisions, decisions ....

[Update: You can't turn off the sound. I hate it when that happens! Never mind then ... I'll look for another screensaver. If you know a fine screensaver for Mac, let me know - I still haven't gotten over the fact that After Dark doesn't run on Mac OS 9.2.]

Mirror, Mirror, On The Wall

I've said it before, and I know I'll say it again, and I gotta say it right now: I just love the Mirror Project.

Third One's The Charm

A very merry blogsprogging Christmas and congratulations to the Matrullos, and a Wonderland Welcome to young Sawyer James.