Another Tasty Read

Diane Mott Davidson did it again. I'm dying to get a paper copy of The Cereal Murders since I listened to it. The treats and desserts sound absolutely fabulous once again. While making treats for the Elk Park Prep seniors, Goldie Bahr solves the murder of Keith Andrews, the top student in the year's graduating class from the exclusive prep school. Goldie is caught in figuring out who is threatening not only the seniors, but also her son, a 7th grader at the school. The stress of college acceptance exams and letters of recommendation are getting to someone. But who benefits most? Julian Teller, Goldie's boarder/assistant? Or someone who needs to make it into the top 5% to get the college of their dreams?

If this is real...

Then the next election should be interesting. Walken for President. The site claims to be a grassroots movement. I don't know much more than what it says about his views. via J-Walk

Just in Time Fee

My mortgage was recently switched from Flagstar Mortgage Company to Net Bank. I fully comprehend that this sort of thing in normal in the course of mortgages and have no problem with it. My issue comes with Net Bank and their idea of convenience and just in time. I pay as many of my bills online as possible for two reasons.

1. I'm bad at remembering to mail a letter.
2. I like paying a bill and have the money disappear instantly rather than hanging out in my checking account deceptively.

With Flagstar, it was never an issue. I could schedule a payment for any time I liked for free. I repeat: FOR FREE. Pardon the rudeness, but let's review the facts. I schedule a payment online, saving me time and stamp money. The institution receiving the payment saves processing time and the related costs to pay someone to process. I'm happy; the bank saved money. Saving money by automated payments is not enough for the folks at Net Bank. I have to pay them a "Just in Time (JIT)" fee to make my payment on line. If I schedule my payment (due on the first of the month, as is yours, I'm sure) on the 2nd of the current month for the payment of the following month, they will charge me a "just in time" fee of $2.99. What the f--- is their idea of just in time??? I'm scheduling as early as their set-up will allow, yet it is just in time? This fee continues until the due date, at which time it switches to $9.99 for paying during "grace." After that additional fees apply for actually being late. If I was honestly going to be late, I'd pay $10 to avoid a late payment and the credit report ding. But if I'm going to schedule my payment up to one month early and to come out of my checking account with a process that is known to save you money, I sure as hell am not going to pay for it. Just in time, my foot. Just in time for the post man more like it. End rant. End rudeness.

Cheap Fame and Notoriety

J-walk, the site of 1000+ viewer a day is offering to link to his readers sites, provided that they link to his post: Attention Bloggers! I'm a cheap internet link whore. I'll do it. Being superbly confident in his internet skills, J-walk is challenging his readers to put him to the test.

This is an experiment to see how "findable" blog references are. Put me to the the test, fellow bloggers. All you have to do is post a link to this particular blog item (i.e., the one you're reading now). Just call it J-Walk Blog Link Experiment or something like that. After a few days, I'll post a list of every blog I found that linked to this item. If you're not on the list, I'll invite you to send me the link to your entry. I'll post these unfound links, and we'll try to figure out why I didn't find you.

He even admits that it is a cheap way to get some linkage.

By the way, this is not just a cheap way to get some linkage (although it won't hurt). I really think it will be a useful experiment. I'll reveal all of my sources and, hopefully, learn about some new ones. I think other bloggers and the blog tracking sites may benefit from the results.

I'm in.

Writer's Blocks

Of course by now I've forgotten where I read that writer's block doesn't really exist; it just means that the writer really wants to work on something else. That may be the case. Or it just could be that the ideas stream has dried up. Either way, the Oshkosh Area Writers has a recommendation for those in need of a new spark. The Official Movie Plot Generator by Jason and Justin Heimburg is a funny, funny book that deserves a much better review than I am giving it. That review would be here.

The City of God Series

Transgression and Retribution by Randy Ingermanson are the first and third installments in the story of two modern day scientist stuck in first century Jerusalem. Each novel of Mr. Ingermanson's that I read improves. His talent for imagining and bringing the stories of the early church to life is amazing. He writes beautiful stories using what little we know about the people who shaped the beginnings of the Church. While major players from the Bible are a part of his telling, the focus is on those who were impacted by these great men. Read my thoughts on Premonition and Double Vision here.

Update on the Family

My husband still has a job since the fire that destroyed the warehouse didn't take the company down with it. As the summer draws to a close, sales are picking up again - always a good thing for the store and us. He finished all but the smallest details in refurbishing his boat. It looks great in blue with silver decals and numbers. Now it needs to sit for a week, preventing either of us from using it. The oldest is thrilled with the current exhibit at the Public Museum - "Pirates!" He and the youngest have taken to saying "Argh!" and "Aye, me hearties" in their very best pirate voices. No one has been asked to walk the plank. Yet. The youngest has really gotten into his routines. Any variance means that we show up early to daycare or the planned event. He has taken to saying "Sure" instead of "Yes" and "Umm" when he is thinking about it. Yesterday he answered a request for a hug with "Not now." He sounds more like his brother every day. I am still trying to hold everything together and get people to where they need to be. The story is coming along slowly as I spend precious writing time on reading. You'd think I'd be smart enough to read my own story and commit it to paper, but it is so much easier and tempting to read what others have written. My mother found a new job in the most unlikely of places - the same store as my husband. While this might seem like a recipe for disaster, it works rather well as they seldom interact as she is the office manager while he manages the sales staff and store front. In fact, we are pretty sure that she is ill, as she has complimented my husband a couple of times on his management abilities. Thomas is finally finding acceptance in our house. Other than this morning's antics of disappearing for a 30 minute bathroom break, he has been a good puppy. Elle likes him being around and peered anxiously out the window for him. I'm looking forward to the end of summer and a return of cooler weather, which always means time at the YMCA for swimming and other indoor activities like drinking hot chocolate with marshmallows. Best wishes to you as well.

Opportunity for the Other side

Dorothy's deepest desire to return to Kanas lead to the demise of the Wicked Witch. In Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire tells how the witch became the evil woman we know from Frank L Baum's stories and MGM's production. Elphba, the witch, was born with green skin. Ever think of suffering through childhood with that affliction? The reader discovers how she deals with that, along with her sexually promiscuous mother, her fanatically religious missionary father and her armless sister. She desires to be her own person, to make her own choices. Inspite of her father's teaching, she grows up believing that she has no soul. Mr. Maguire incorporates charming elements that will tickle the fancy of fans and adds layers to the story that make it more than the cut and dry tale of MGM studios. Definitely worth the time.

Pilates with The Baby

This is the video that I was using when the Baby decided to do Pilates with me. I am under the assumption that it works since my abs are KILLING ME today. Hey...wait a minute...Overstock is working again. Screw posting. I'm shopping! Seriously, they have $1 shipping. How can you go wrong?

My Apologies

The plethora of strange postings is due in part to this error message combined with the fact that the baby goes to bed early on Monday nights and my husband is communing with nature by resorting the hunter/fisher role for the village that is raising my kids. He returns tomorrow and normal (for me) posting will resume.

Things that You Wish I Wouldn't Say

As I watered my tomato plants tonight, I thought to myself, "Self, why doesn't Glade or Bath and Body or one of those other smelly companies come out with a room freshener that smells like my tomato plants? I like it. I'm sure I can find others that do too." Things like this keep me from having a successful career in marketing.

Google balances privacy and reach

This CNET article doesn't scare me as much as Google's reaction to it. I am aware of the multitude of information Google knows about me, if someone cared to look. I use their email, Blogger and typically, it's the first place to go if I'm looking for information, whether it is work related, writing related or personal. My main priority at work is to monitor the shipping patterns and habits of a multi-million dollar freight spend. I know all sorts of things about Susie Q and John P that they don't realize that I am watching. I can only imagine what sort of things Google could find out about people, if they really wanted to know. Right now, I can think of several scenarios, each scarier than the last. But they all seem to be the fodder of a literary twist that the likes of John Grisham or Robert Ludlem would come up with and not real things. Of course, I could tell you what my neighbors' paid for their houses and how much it is worth. I bet they don't know that. Should that be scary? Absolutely. Am I afraid of it the way I am of terrorist or Nazis? No. What does scare me is that Google black-balled the reports. Can we really trust a company use a slogan - "Don't Be Evil" - to keep its ideologies pure? Is violation of this basic human deceny the reason CNET reporters are being punished? How much evil is Google allowing to happen every day? As a country, don't we rises to arms when our freedom, and that of others, is being violated? Yet, Google is allowed to keep massive databanks that violate my privacy. If they were to attack us as a whole, instead of allowing the pieces to be attacked, would we care then? I like Google. Their email is great. The provide the best search engine for my needs. Blogging is something I really enjoy. Why are they keeping data? What purpose, other than pushing ads, does it serve? Questions need to be raised, especially as Google is now a public company and accountable to its stock holders. The Board of Directors needs to define what purpose the databank serves and that people can expect a reasonable amount of deceny. CEO Eric Schmidt has felt the violation of privacy that his company provides. His response, or lack their of, is as telling as if he had held a press conference.

Antics of the Youngest

This weekend I was extremely motivated to work on my abs. My pants fit great in the rear and thighs, but often prove to be excruitating by the end of the day in the waist. I picked up a Pilates video that targets specific body parts in 10 minute segments. The segments can then be used separately or in combination through some built-in programming features. Pilates focuses on the torso and abs as the basis of all other exercises. The very first move learned is called the one hundred. If you aren't familiar with this move, this pictoral should give you an idea of what position your body should be in. What you don't see is in the third picture; the arms beat up and down towards the floor very quickly. Since I planned to only do the ten minute abs section, I figured that it wouldn't matter that my youngest was awake and in the same room as me. I was wrong. As I lay on the floor, attempting to keep my body in the position and move my arms, he lays down next to me, feet in the arm and beats his arms up and down too. He didn't know what game we were playing, but he sure thought it was fun.

This is why I love reading blogs

I feel as if I know these women when really it's only pieces of their lives. But I laugh my ass off anyway.

My Latest Writing Slogan

"I like it short and sweet and sassy, alright?" If you can figure out where I got that quote from, I promise you kudos.

Bad Slogan Choice

To my Oshkosh area readers: Have you seen a Winnebago County Sanitation Truck lately? Not the garbage truck, but the other one? Glaring down the side is the subtitle "Liquid Refuse Hauler." Quite a vivid description and one that I can do without. Now the back end of them reads "Used Food Hauler." Seriously, they need someone with an ounce of decency in their marketing department. Apt taglines they may be. I don't want to think of it in that manner.

Relationships

U2 has a lyric that I especially like. A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle. During one of my numerous years in a dormitory, I had this phrase on my message board. Most likely it was defense against my boyfriendless status, but I loved the way it sounded. One of my fellow dorm-mates commented to me, "That doesn't make sense. Why would a fish need a bicycle?" As I laughed, I knew that I couldn't explain it. She looked at it too literally, taking it for the letter, but not the spirit of the declaration. Or perhaps, she couldn't imagine being without a boyfriend. I, on the other hand, never had a problem with that. During high school I had my share of crushes and friends who were boys. If I hadn't gone to a parochial school, rumors probably would have floated about my sexual tendencies since I didn't have a boyfriend once during the four years. Looking back, there might have been one or two that were interested, but I was a geek and it wasn't cool. (Note: write to producers of The OC and thank them for making Seth Cohen a geek, but uber cool anyway.) College was slightly better. I dated a few guys during my first year, before I dropped out. The year inbetween lead to one serious boyfriend. That relationship ended when I returned to the parochial school system and the higher calling of public ministry as a teacher. Once again immersed in the world of church combined with schooling, I was a social outcast. Oh, I had friends, but not that special person that so many of us crave. It never bothered me, especially when I was often the confidant that heard the horrors of having a significant other. Eventually things turned for the better and I did find someone that I love and loves me. My husband and I have a good relationship, I feel, yet that phrase sticks in my head. A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle. A friend of my husband recently complained about how his wife often times her returns from shopping expeditions with his own arrival at home so that he can carry in the products of the trip. His complaint was mild-mannered. He just wished she would take more initiative in other areas rather than rely on him so often. My husband responded with a laugh and a description of my last shopping trip. I carried in four or five bags from the grocery store, juggled a kid, his back pack, my work briefcase while opening and closing various doors. Unfortunately, this is the norm, not the exception. I have theories as to my inability to ask for help. But could it really be a simple as taking a lyric from a song to heart at the tender age of fourteen?

Free MP3s

From Amazon. No tricks or gimmicks and some titles that you might even want. Free Music is here. via J-Walk

Tales of the Future

In a world where every aspect of life is controlled by corporations, select individuals earn the opportuntity to test their skills and strength in the Outback. Getting Back by William Diedrich promises that they will get back, only to find that the exit is not there. I purchased this book at a rummage sale and loved it. I tried to find out more about it - website, other books by the author - only to come up short. I loaned my copy to a friend, who did the same. Now it is lost to me. I really would have liked to keep this on my shelf.

Bookworm Report, July 2005

My youngest turned two this month and the oldest is asking for two babies for Christmas - one boy and one girl. Since my husband agrees with him, they talk about it and pick out names even. Evidently his has decided that the youngest is okay, now that he is older. Just wait until they have to share a car. Then they'll regret it. For the month of July, I read 4,216 pages or 11 books. In 2001, I read 2,795 pages/7 books; 2002, 2,439 pages/6 books; 2003, 1,222 pages/3 books; 2004, 2,006 pages/5 books.

• Getting Back by William Diedrich
• Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
• Transgression by Randy Ingermanson
• Retribution by Randy Ingermanson
• The Cereal Murders (Audio) by Diane Mott Davidson
• The Closers by Michael Connelly
• Chore Whore by Heather H. Howard
• Girl's Poker Night by Jill A Davis
• Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson
• The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman

For the year, I've read 61 books, or 21,945 pages, which averages to 9 books a month, or 3,135 pages per month, and an average book length of 360 pages. Here's to another good month of summer!