How did I miss this one?

It's from Viggo's most recent book. Started to bid on it on ebay yesterday, then realized it would be cheaper to just order it from the publisher. Duh!

In other news, as I suspected, it's becoming pointless to keep this blog in addition to the other group blogs I'm a part of *and* my LJ, so I will probably phase this one out as I move my LOTR site to its new subdomain over the next two months.

OMG, Les Mis is closing on Broadway

in March. And I never saw it there. If I get to NYC for the TT premiere, I'll have to try to go. Article in People.

I *knew* it

Which Famous Homosexual are you?

Eleanor Roosevelt! Nice to see you.

A Roosevelt yourself, you married your fifth cousin Franklin; despite the obvious incestuous overtones, your six kids were happy and healthy.

When Franklin got elected, you became perhaps the most controversial first lady ever - you spoke out for the rights of women; for the rights of the poor; for world peace. You were even a member of a union while your husband was in office - and when he died, you were the head of the UN Commission on Human Rights.

All of which is pretty kick ass, but to top things off you had a hot and steamy relationship with the lesbian journalist Lorena Hickok, who was so madly in love with you that she halted her career for you. Unfortunately, you couldn't give up your public life that easily - leaving her heartbroken.

Bitch.

From Saturday night's dinner

As per our usual, this is Dargie taking a photo of me taking a photo of her.


Still life

New Amazon link!

I, for one, have stepped up my ordering lately. I try to use other people's associate links--let me know if/where you have one!

Gizmodo -- the gadgets weblog

Gizmodo -- the gadgets weblog

PayPal Targeted by Scam Artists

PayPal Targeted by Scam Artists. Be careful if you use PayPal (which I do--continually) and receive any e-mails allegedly from them, requesting that you re-enter any information. Don't follow those links--if you do need to check your PayPal account, log in to it directly.

Personally, I've also got a lot of fake Ebay e-mails lately, none of which requested any kind of personal info, so I have NO clue what that was all about, other than harrassment.

Lovely, BIG screencaps -- Sam and Frodo

Read Comments. Gakked from Andraste_oz's LJ courtesy of sternentochter and Rohan.

Orli's latest shoot

icThewharf - BACK INTO THE RING

Picasso movie update from Fox News

Picasso Film Picks Up Steam

Tobey Maguire will not be joining Steve Martin, Kevin Kline and Ryan Phillippe in Fred Schepisi's film of Martin's Picasso at the Lapin Agile.

"We've never been able to cut through the wall in front of him," Schepisi told me at the IFP Gotham Awards last night.

Ditto Reese Witherspoon, who has elected also not to join the troupe opposite her hubby, Phillippe. "They don't like to do projects together," Schepisi reported with a shrug.

Nevertheless this terrific film is due to start production in February. The hunt for an actor to play Albert Einstein is on, but offers are out and a name should pop up in a short time, Schepisi reported. Elijah Wood, meantime, is considering the role.

Do you do a lot of digital art?

Taken from The Screen Savers (TechTV)

FASTER PERFORMANCE FOR GRAPHICS
Charles in Ontario, Canada, is a graphic artists and uses Photoshop, Quark Xpress, and Illustrator. He has a 1.4 GHz Pentium 4 with 128MB of RAM and Windows Me. Should he upgrade his processor to get faster performance?

Digital artists usually handle very large files, which require a lot of RAM. Your PC will benefit from adding more RAM. Without the RAM, your PC is using the hard drive for memory, which is slow. By adding more RAM, you should see a significant increase.

To figure out how much RAM you should add, take an average of the size of the files you create and edit. Multiply that by four, and you'll have the amount of RAM you should add. For example, if you typically handle 100MB files, you should have about 400MB of RAM. The more RAM, the better.

MailWasher - help stamp out SPAM in your inbox

MailWasher

Just what I needed: A smart alarm clock

BBC NEWS | Technology | Smart alarm clock lets you lie in. Of course, my current alarm clock isn't all that stupid--it's only the OWNER that is.

Julian Clary

Contents Thanks to Alys and Cordelia for telling me the gorgeous guy with Serena at the 1997 Golden Globes was Julian Clary. I don't think I've seen any of his work, but judging from the webpage, I hope to do so in the future!

Fun (not stupid) police tricks

Definitely one of those jobs where you need to (somehow) retain your sense of humour.

• So, you don't know how fast you were going. I guess that means I can write anything I want on the ticket, huh?
  
• Warning! You want a warning? O.K., I'm warning you not to do that again or I'll give you another ticket."
  
• "Yeah, we have a quota. Two more tickets and my wife gets a toaster oven."
  
• "Life's tough, it's tougher if you're stupid."
  
• "The answer to this last question will determine whether you are drunk or not. Was Mickey Mouse a cat or dog?"
  

Slightly Ghoulish List from TechTV's "Screen Savers"

Online Options for Life After Death

+ Launch your ashes into orbit with Celestis.com:
http://www.celestis.com.
+ Spend eternity under the sea at Eternalreefs.com.
http://www.eternalreefs.com
+ Give your loved ones something to remember you by -- diamonds made out
of your ashes from www.lifegem.com.
http://www.lifegem.com
+ Chill out until the world is ready for your return using cryonics.org
http://www.cryonics.org
+ Indulge your horror film fantasies and become a mummy with the help of
summum.org
http://www.summum.org

Reporters Find New Outlet, and Concerns, in Web Logs

Article in the NY Times Online (registration required).

Midge Ure is coming back to Chicago!

Saturday, November 2 at the Abbey Pub (Grace and Elston), 7PM show, ages 21 and up. Woo hoo!!!

Ever need to create a .pdf but you don't have Adobe Acrobat?

Well, here's a program that will allow you to do it. For free, too.

BTW, I highly recommend the Webattack site. I have subscribed to their premium service, MyWebAttack, for over a year now, and I love it.

Friday Five

1. Would you say that you're good at keeping in touch with people?
No, in fact, I'm pretty hopeless. My time always seems to limited to do everything I want and need to do, especially in the summer when I work two jobs, and keeping in touch with any but my closest friends is one of the first things to go. And I always, always regret it, but I don't seem to be able to change the pattern.

2. Which communication method do you usually prefer/use: e-mail, telephone, snail mail, blog comments, or meeting in person? Why?
I think I communicate best by IM... I'm a fast typist, if not always that good a one (but at least I can spell). Failing that, e-mail and blog comments. Love to meet up with people, and surprisingly enough, I usually find that I *do* like people in person that I've liked online--I didn't realize that would be the case quite as often as it has been. I hate, detest, and frankly, fear, the telephone. There are maybe 3 people I don't mind chatting with on the phone--the rest of the world can just lose my number. I've had a phobia about phones since childhood, and since I have to work with them full-time, I'd just as soon avoid them entirely when I'm on my own time.

3. Do you have an instant messenger program? How many? Why/why not? How often do you use it?
I use AIM, mostly because it worked well for me initially (when most of my friends either had AIM or AOL) and I've never had a reason to change it. I like ICQ, especially it's skinnability, but I had lots of problems with it crashing, and just never went back to it. Maybe once I upgrade the computer. I've used Yahoo Messenger, but it seems like just a riff on AIM. Eventually, I imagine I'll go to one of compendium programs that works with the major IM programs--I forget the name of the current most popular one.

4. Do most of your close friends live nearby or far away?
I have a few close friends who live relatively near---none so near that I see them every day, but close enough that I could see them every month (although since I don't drive and we're all busy, that doesn't always happen). At least 3 of those folks would be amongst my best friends wherever they lived, and a few would probably fall into the "good friends but not bosom buddies" list except that they're close enough that I get to spend more time with them and thus get to know them better than I might have otherwise. I also have a slightly larger number of close friends who are scattered all over the country, and a few of them all over the world. As stated above, I regret that I don't keep in better touch with them.

5. Are you an "out of sight, out of mind" person, or do you believe that "distance makes the heart grow fonder"?
I tend to move from B to A as time passes--I miss folks like crazy for a while, but I will eventually move on if I have to.

It's been far too long since I've done a pointless quiz.

Which Izzard Are You?

Slut Izzard: You'll crawl into any duvet any time of the day. You get to shag everyone, and wear all their clothes. You're concerned with appearances, whether anyone will shag you, or whether you'll shag anyone else. Rejoice!! For you are a fashion queen.

LOTR **Popcorn** Bags???

Lord of the Rings Movies Information | TheOneRing.net™ | News Archives

A List Apart: 10 Tips on Writing the Living Web

A List Apart: 10 Tips on Writing the Living Web Great site!

Yes, I'm finally writing the "Try Seventeen" summary and review

For some reason, I've been totally no-energy since I got back, and just can't get back in the swing. I'll try to finish it tonight or tomorrow morning and get it posted. Then I have to write the more analytical one for IMDB.

I finally did it, I think

I created a page where I'm going to compile my past Rings-Thing entries, and maybe eventually my notes from viewings 1-30. We'll see. It should be here.

WireImage Photos

WireImage: Listings I saw this film, "Dirty Deeds" in Toronto, and it was a blast. Then again, how could you go wrong with Bryan Brown, John Goodman, and Sam Neill?

On another front, I missed "Evelyn" because it conflicted with the rare free time my friend Anne (who just started working as an ESL teacher in Toronto) had. Because of that, and because the Joseph Fiennes movie I was going to attend in its stead after she went home was sold out, I was in the Four Seasons killing time and met Elijah....

Here are more from Evelyn. I saw this press conference on Rogers TV "all TIFF all the time" channel in my hotel.

OK, go LOOK at this guy. His name is Alessandro Nivola, and he plays Frances McDormand's love interest in Laurel Canyon. He does his own singing in the movie (and his accent is British, fyi). How cute is he? I actually watched him **as much as I did Christian Bale** in the movie. Impressive, huh? Unfortunately, I went to the second screening and Frances wasn't there. I think Alessandro was, but the director was the only one who stood up and spoke. I would definitely recommend the movie.

All the "talk" at the time I arrived was about White Oleander, and most of *that* centered on Michelle and Alison. It's pretty rare for a "big" movie to get that positive a mention from the TIFF in-crowd.

Good golly, Orli!

Orlando Bloom Multimedia Orli article in Rolling Stone. I love this look on him.

Toronto photos & Monday Mission

Most of my Toronto photos are up now--mine and Anne's are on my webpage, with the movie recap and journal entries to follow.

In other news...
1. Do you have a favorite piece of poetry or prose written by someone else? Care to share it?
I'd like to list something really clever--I was an English major, after all. I love Shelley, and Wordsworth, and especially T.S. Eliot. But my favorite poem is the one my mother used to read to me when I was little, so often that I can still recite it from memory, "The Highwayman" by Alfred Noyes. I found a nice online version here. My favorite passage (there is NOTHING like melodrama, is there?):
Tlot tlot, in the frosty silence! Tlot tlot, in the echoing night!
Nearer he came and nearer! Her face was like a light!
Her eyes grew wide for a moment, she drew one last deep breath,
Then her finger moved in the moonlight--
Her musket shattered the moonlight--
Shattered her breast in the moonlight and warned him--with her death.

2. In High School, did you enjoy creative writing? Do you currently do any other writing in addition to your Blog?
If by Creative Writing you mean an actual course--I've never been into writing courses. I *have* written my entire life, first doing more nonfiction until about 15 years ago, when I finally started writing a little fanfic. I'm theoretically writing fanfic now, although I must emphasize the word "theoretically" since it's not actually happening.

3. Have you ever noticed that the Blog entries you least expect to get the most comments do, and those you expect to generate a lot of feedback don't? Which Blog entry of yours surprised you by getting a lot of comments? Which one did you think would generate a lot but didn't?
For the most part, no. I don't get a lot of comments at the best of times (except for stuff like posting photos of Elijah Wood...). I've gotten used to that.

4. Sometimes you get a chance to make a lifestyle change that has a huge impact on the course your life takes. That is, a moment where something became very clear to you, and that realization changed your life, such as: the need to leave a relationship, to stop an addiction, to bond with someone, to start a new career, and so on. Have you ever had an "awakening" moment in your life?
No, nothing sudden like that, really. The only two major changes in my life were 1) when I dropped out of college for a year, after suddenly realizing that wouldn't end my life, and 2) when I figured out that by the time Chicago offered me a "real" teaching job, I'd be so entrenched at my current (23 years now) job that I wouldn't bother to change, and that after a lifetime of planning to teach. Latest change isn't a huge one but HAS made a difference in my life--moving out of the figure skating fandom mainstream and back into SF fandom.

5. Then there are other times where you can have a huge impact on someone else's life. You suggest they see a doctor, stop them from taking that last drink, or maybe just say some kind words at the moment. Have you made a lasting positive impact on the life of someone else?
Don't think so, no. And I'd rather not, really. Too much of a wimp.

6. Are there any charities or organizations which you support? How did you come to be involved with them?
Not particularly. I give, on and off, to Amnesty International, NOW, and I used to give to NARAL (until the phone calls got too frequent). I have a policy of NOT giving to charities that solicit by telephone--I feel they've given up the right to expect my support by taking up my time.

7. Care to collaborate with me? Help me out and write the rest of this poem:

I drifted though a dream last night,
visions full of colors bright.
My thoughts began to drift to you,
and in an instant we were two.

I touched your hand,
We began to blend,
Filled with a feeling
that should have no end.

Nope, can't do it. Mondays are awful enough as it is--I barely found the time to do this at all!
....

BONUS: Hey cutie, what's up with this attitude?
Attitude? You call this ATTITUDE? I'll give you attitude!

Friday Five

1. What was/is your favorite subject in school? Why?
Depends on the grade, really. I always liked literature, so at some levels, that was my favorite. Different teachers made different things interesting. All things being equal, English and History were my favorites, especially when woven together. I was always more interested in people than in places or things.

2. Who was your favorite teacher? Why?
I think it would have to be Mrs. Wasilewski, my third grade teacher. I was just crazy about her. She made everyone feel special. After I left her grade, she moved near me and I kept in touch for several years. I was devastated when she died young, of cancer, leaving a young daughter.

3. What is your favorite memory of school?
Well, moving from my small town to an even smaller, rural one suddenly made me the big-city, sophisticated girl at age 10, and that was a heady feeling. The flip side of that was moving BACK to my hometown later and finding that I was suddenly *totally* out of the loop, and never managed to get back in.

Aside from that, I remember having a modern dance segment in PE in middle school, where I choreographed a piece to "One Tin Soldier." It wasn't particularly well-received, but *I* loved doing it. Also, in high school, I was involved in drama club for a little over a year, won an award, and for the first and last time felt like I was a part of something. Didn't last, of course.

4. What was your favorite recess game?
Jacks.

5. What did you hate most about school?
Being painfully shy and unable to make new friends or insinuate myself into groups I was interested in joining.

I only just got home, and I'm DEAD

Here's one of Anne's photos to tide you over until I can get everything else up. I think I'll just do a whole page of hers and mine, and maybe another of the WireImage ones (courtesy of Anna) and whatever else turns up. I hope my friends from the autograph line got one of Elijah's arrival! If you're reading this, ladies, drop me a line and ask your dad to send me the shot if he got it! As you know, I had just left the line and couldn't get ANYTHING from where I was.

I'm still incoherent...

What little I was able to write is in my LJ. Here are just a few photos of Elijah and Jeff Porter. Got some nice ones of Aaron Pearl too.

OK, so I lied

It's easier to do photos here than in LJ. Today, after Four Feathers, I saw Laurel Canyonn (Frances McDermond, Christian Bale, Kate Beckinsale), did a quick tour of the celebrity hotels (no hobbit sightings), then went down to take photos at the gala premiere of Spider (which I hope to catch a screening of tomorrow). A few of the results follow--two of my fave actors, Ralph Fiennes and Gabriel Byrne.
      

Live and Direct ...

(yeah, I'm a Max Headroom fan -- so sue me!) Toronto going fine so far, and I actually have tickets to 3 movies and have seen one. I'm on a 28k modem and local calls from my hotel are NOT free, so I think I will only post to my LiveJournal. You can find the link on the right of this page, or go to www.livejournal.com/users/lilithlotr

Leaving for Toronto in the morning...

but taking my laptop (not the handheld) with me, just in case I have photos to edit (wishful thinking). I *should* be online most evenings, except possibly the first night when I'm staying with someone I met on the Adult Elijah Fans list (to save a few bucks, and feel less alone!). After that, I'll be in a downtown hotel. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Go see photos of cimorene and waxie!

self-satisfied self-indulgence with extra eyeliner All dressed up in theor goth gear. Waxie in her travelling clothes and glasses and bandana was another person entirely--but I like both of her!

Tolkien Art Gallery

Tolkien Art Gallery Another link I got from the Atti group. That group has a LOT more fringe benefits than I expected!

LOTR related pics

This one is from our Lord of the Rings DVD release party, held at a hotel in Rosemont (more or less Rosemont, anyway). It's Dargie taking a photo of me taking a photo of her... I'd like to do this again for the extended DVD release--it was a blast!

Is this the definition of a fan, or what? Having your photo taken with a LOTR standee in a store in Evanston, and while in a partial Cubs uniform besides! Yeah, that's me. Still hoping either Heidi or I can GET this standee. Laurie managed to snag one, of course--because she wanted the Legolas one! She says there's a new Aragorn, but I haven't seen it yet.

This one is Heidi, with her elf. I got standee envy after taking this photo, and ordered the "Happy Pants" Frodo standee. If you're coming to Zebracon next year, you can pose with it there.

Friday Five

1. What is your biggest pet peeve? Why?
People who build entire constructs, assumption on top of assumption, to "prove" something based on a bunch of guesses. That their construct might actually be close to the truth is not the point--it's the way they are, in fact, slotting someone into a box based on a series of probabilities (none of which may apply in the particular case). They are doing what they decry others (including the media) for doing, but it's OK because they're geeks, or fans, or otherwise "OK."

2. What irritating habits do you have?
I'm shy and arrogant simultaneously, which is horrifically aggravating to others. I find it almost impossible to approach a stranger, make a cold call, or otherwise do some of the simplest things that the average person has little or no problem with. I also lick my lips when nervous, to the point where it can drive people crazy.

3. Have you tried to change the irritating habits or just let them be?
I've worked a little on the shyness, but with little success. I try to keep the other nervous tics under control, but that only works when I'm aware of them!

4. What grosses you out more than anything else? Why?
Personal grooming in public places.

5. What one thing can you never see yourself doing that other people do?
Be comfortable and assertive on public occasions (other than those with which I am closely associated).

Need any webspace?

I share an unlimited bandwidth/unlimited space website with a friend. It's $300/year, for up to 6 domains and 10 subdomains. (LilithOfSherwood is part of that space) I haven't had any major problems with it, but I must say that load/response times (both pages for viewers and uploads via FTP) are slower than average--but the price is pretty incredible.

We're just about to renew, and one of our sublessors is getting separate space, so we have space for one domain available. We have been charging people $50 per year per domain, and that's what we're looking for again. If you wanted to look at the webhost, the name is FeaturePrice and you can find them at http://www.featureprice.com/?c=2&p=6 If you're not looking for anything fancier than the ability to host a domain and subdomains, FrontPage extensions, CGI bin, and e-mail, this could be a good option for you. If you want a lot of support, fast load times, and maybe some fancier stuff, you might want to look elsewhere. (I do highly recommend my other webhost, OLM.net). One more caveat: no adult content

Lord of the Rings guided tours of New Zealand

Lord of the Rings guided tours of New Zealand They are now taking reservations for their special "The Two Towers" tour which includes the premiere. I'm going to book the "Return of the King" one when they announce it.

Strange and fun links I got from the Atti list

Bored.com - Links to the most interesting sites on the internet

The Rock Ate My Balls! includes a GREAT Insult generator

Rotten dot Com ewwww

New Andre Schneider fansite, at this point only in German, soon to be in English: Andre 'til it Hurts

Great photos on this site, including Japan mag scans

"In Dreams..."

Sony unveils Net-connected hard-disk video recorder

Sony unveils Net-connected hard-disk video recorder. ooooh, gimme!

Results of the August Caption Contest are up

Caption Contest

I'm taking recommendations for a September photo--hope to get one up this week.

I did my rings-thing

in my LiveJournal again this week, as I will probably continue to do. I should also be posting the winners of the August caption contest tomorrow--I just had to work too many hours this weekend to get it done.

Reposted with permission from a Frodo list

as posted by Angie, dialogue that one would never read on a Frodo hurt/comfort list:

• Frodo – “No, I feel fine. Didn’t hurt a bit.”
  
• Orcs – “Nah, lets have a hobbit tea party today and be nice to them all.”
  
• Gollum – “Nah, keep the ring, my dear Baggins. I found a better one in a yule cracker.”
  
• Female healer - "Here's a sponge Frodo - wash yourself."
  
• Elrond – “Yes, you’re right, purple is really NOT my colour.”
  
• Frodo – “Bring it on – I can take it!”
  
• Legolas – “Do you think my bum looks big in this?”
  
• Female healer – “No, I don’t think Frodo really needs a bath.”
  
• Frodo – “No, give me the really BIG axe.”
  
• Female healer – “No, I can take care of this injury with out taking Frodo’s clothes off.”
  
• Elrond – “No, Frodo will be fine. Now, who wants to hear some really good jokes?”
  
• Frodo – “I will save you Aragorn!”
  
• Pippin cheerfully – “So, he is going to live then?”
  
• Female healer - "Oh, just stick a plaster on it."
  
• Sam (muttering) – “Sam, do this. Sam, fetch that. Sam, cook my breakfast. Sam, carry me. Bl**dy useless upperclass twit.”
  
• Frodo – “Hey everyone, I went a whole day with out falling over!”
  
• Farmer Maggot – “No, go ahead young hobbit, take all the mushrooms you like.”
  
• Aragorn – “Here’s a sword Frodo, take care of yourself.”
  
• Bilbo - "Oh Frodo, just take an asprin and stop acting like a wimp."
  
• Frodo - "I hate strawberry bubble bath."

Friday Five

1. What's your favorite piece of clothing that you currently own?
It's a sort-of twinset, I suppose. A silky rayon tank top with matching long, mostly-cotton blazer with cutwork, in a sort of dusty rose with a hint of a blue undertone. The color is good on me, I like the style, and thanks to the layers, it's good for most temperatures from 60 to 90.

2. What piece of clothing do you most want to acquire?
I used to have a pair of canvas jeans, that I could dress up or down. Wore those out. I'd like something like that again, and khaki's (at least the ones I have) just don't quite make it.

3. What piece of clothing can you not bring yourself to get rid of? Why?
My huge and almost-untouched collection of skating t-shirts and sweatshirts. I was the same way about my 30-year-old collection of Manilow t-shirts, but rats made a nest in that box when it was in storage, so those are gone now.

4. What piece of clothing do you look your best in?
Well, that varies on my mood, my makeup, and my weight. I have a sleeveless black crepe dress that I adore, and another one in lavender that I recently wore in San Francisco and was fairly pleased with the result.

5. What has been your biggest fashion accident?
Probably my hair. I just refuse to do anything with it, and at my age, I really need more of a "hairdo" than a "wash and go".

Be very afraid...

Yet MORE new icons on my site, including the one at the left. For those of you who loved the Orlijah leap, I give you the Frodalf... Gando... oh, well, a wizard and his hobbit.

I was ogling this in Borders--of course, a Legolas standee was holding it...

and Amazon has a good price, and has lowered their minimum for free shipping, so it would ship free! If you want it, and use my photo link, I get a commission, too (nudge, nudge, wink, wink).

Relational psychology test (gacked from Housemouse, who got it from Darkie)

Make sure you list your first and immediate response. Don't give it too much thought.

1. You are not alone. You are walking in the woods. Who are you walking with?

2. You are walking in the woods. You see an animal. What kind of animal is it?

3. What interaction takes place between you and the animal?

4. You walk deeper in the woods. You enter a clearing and before you is your dream house. Describe its size.

5. Is your dream house surrounded by a fence?

6. You enter the house. You walk to the dining area and see the dining room table. Describe what you see on AND around the table.

7. You exit the house through the back door. Lying in the grass is a cup. What material is the cup made of?

8. What do you do with the cup?

9. You walk to the edge of the property, where you find yourself standing at the edge of a body of water. What type of body of water is it?

10. How will you cross the water?

IMPORTANT: Don't read the next part until you've answered the questions I think I'll do mine up as a separate entry, and backdate it so it shows up on the page UNDER this entry rather than ABOVE it.

This has been a relational psychology test. The answers given to the questions have been shown to have a relevance to values and ideals that we hold in our personal lives. The analysis follows:

1. The person who you are walking with is the most important person in your life.

2. The size of the animal is representative of your perception of the size of your problems.

3. The severity of the interaction you have with the animal is representative of how you deal with your problems. (passive/aggressive)

4. The size of your dream house is representative of the size of your ambition to resolve your problems.

5. No fence is indicative of an open personality. People are welcome at all times. The presence of a fence indicates a closed personality. You'd prefer people not to drop by unannounced.

6. If your answer did not include food, people, or flowers, then you are generally unhappy.

7. The durability of the material with which the cup is made of is representative of the perceived durability of your relationship with the person named in number 1. For example, styrofoam, plastic, and paper are all disposable, styrofoam, paper and glass are not durable, and metal and plastic are durable.

8. Your disposition of the cup is representative of your attitude towards the person in number 1.

9. The size of the body of water is representative of the size of your sexual desire.

10. How wet you get in crossing the water is indicative of the relative importance of your sex life.

My answers

1. You are not alone. You are walking in the woods. Who are you walking with?
Strangely enough, the Fellowship (and Haldir). Yes, that's what immediately came to mind--most particularly Frodo and Aragorn and Haldir. Officially obsessed (tm).

2. You are walking in the woods. You see an animal. What kind of animal is it?
A deer, specifically a doe.

3. What interaction takes place between you and the animal?
She's hesitant at first, but I don't move and eventually she goes about her business of grazing. I just watch her until she eventually wanders off.

4. You walk deeper in the woods. You enter a clearing and before you is your dream house. Describe its size.
My *real* dream house is much larger, but the one I picture for myself in a clearing in the woods is much smaller, more of a cabin than a house, with just basically one room with cooking and sleeping areas divided off from the main living area.

5. Is your dream house surrounded by a fence?
Not this particular one.

6. You enter the house. You walk to the dining area and see the dining room table. Describe what you see on AND around the table.
I'm not actually big on dining areas. Since you're telling me I see it, it has a lacy runner down the center with some small ceramic items (maybe a vase or two, an empty carafe) and a salt and pepper shaker. There are stacks of other "works in progress" covering much of it, and at least one chair is pulled out and piled with "stuff."

7. You exit the house through the back door. Lying in the grass is a cup. What material is the cup made of?
Tin. I think it came from the well.

8. What do you do with the cup?
Pick it up and, if it's from the well, put it there. Otherwise I probably put it outside the door until I next go in that way.

9. You walk to the edge of the property, where you find yourself standing at the edge of a body of water. What type of body of water is it?
A small spring, with not terribly clear-cut borders, which is deeper or shallower depending on recent rainfall.

10. How will you cross the water? Usually can just cross it using boulders, but if it's particularly deep or muddy that day, I'd walk to the nearest good crossing point.

A LOTR site I hadn't visited before...

:: The Lord of the Rings - brought to you by 2madcows :: Run by one of the bb.net loons (so be warned).

Rings-Thing

Assuming I ever manage to do Rings-Thing today at all (it's not looking good at the moment), it will be in my LiveJournal--first link under the photo of Ian and Lij at the right.

Writing rules to live by

1. Always avoid overuse of alliteration.
   
2. A preposition is not a word to end a sentence with.
   
3. Avoid clichés like the plague. (They're old hat.)
   
4. Comparisons are as bad as clichés.
   
5. Avoid ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
   
6. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are not recommended.
   
7. Remember to never split an infinitive.
   
8. Contractions aren't necessary.
   
9. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
   
10. One should never generalize.
    
11. Take care to use apostrophe's correctly.
    
12. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
    
13. Employ the vernacular and eschew obfuscation. (While a transcendent lexis is laudable, one must, nevertheless, maintain incessant surveillance against such loquacious, effusive and voluble verbosity that the calculated objective of communication becomes ensconced in obscurity.)
    
14. Don't use more use words than necessary, generating redundancy; it's highly superfluous.
    
15. Most of the time, it pays to be more or less specific.
    
16. The passive voice is to be avoided.
    
17. Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be hunted down and liquidated.
    
18. Who needs rhetorical questions?
    
19. In a sentence, the verbs has to agree with their subjects.
    
20. Don't use no double negatives.
    
21. In writing, few things are, so to speak, more infuriating, than,say,commas, at least when there are too many of them, or when they should be, say, semicolons.
    
22. Proofread your work to make sure you don't leave some out.
    
23. Run-on sentences are really bad because they are hard for the reader to follow and what you really should be doing is using commas and semicolons and maybe even full-stops to break the sentence up into more digestible chunks.
    
24. About sentence fragments. Writing carefully, these and dangling participles can be avoided.
    

Yes, there is pretty much a blog for everything...

U2 : U2log.com - weblog - news - info

Playing Shakespeare

I found my copies of the broadcasts, and wanted the pro tapes. Well, the tapes (if available, which they aren't currently) are over $900, for 11 tapes of just under an hour each. Assuming they turn up anywhere as pro tapes (rather than copies), anyone want to go in with me on them? I'd gladly go up to a couple hundred dollars myself. My copies are horrendous--we got it on WYCC Channel 20, on which I got terrible reception. Parts of my tapes are pretty much unwatchable (but not, luckily, unlistenable).

Who's in it, you may ask? Directed by John Barton, including: Peggy Ashcroft, Tony Church, Sinead Cusack, Judi Dench, Susan Fleetwood, Mike Gwilym, Sheila Hancock, Lisa Harrow, Alan Howard, Ben Kingsley, Jane Lapotaire, Barbara Leigh-Hunt, Ian McKellen, Richard Pasco, Michael Pennington, Roger Rees, Norman Rodway, Donald Sinden, Patrick Stewart, David Suchet and Michael Williams

Fanfic survey gacked from Torch

1. What fandoms have you written in?

Pretty damn short list, for me. Published fanfic: only Blake's 7. Unpublished and/or unfinished: Lord of the Rings, Doctor Who, SeaQuest, Robin of Sherwood. And Duran Duran, sort of.

2. Which fandom(s) do you think are your strongest? Why?

Blake's 7. I felt like I knew it backwards and forwards. And I certainly understood the characters.

3. Which fandom(s) do you think you're not as strong in? Why?

LOTR - not a Tolkien expert, by any means, nor do I want to be.

4. What fandom(s) do you wish you could write in? Why?

I'd love to be writing LOTR *right now*, not just playing around with it. And maybe Highlander (I love Methos, Richie, Joe, and Amanda). Or Buffy.

5. In your opinion (as opposed to what you get told in feedback) what are your strengths as a writer?

Only wrote one really good story, and its strength was its characters. The plot was OK, but secondary. The dialogue was pretty good for me (that's not generally my strength), but that's because I knew the two main characters' speech patterns pretty well.

6. In your opinion, what are your weaknesses?

Finishing anything! And showing, not telling. And dialogue. And description.

7. Have you ever gotten feedback about either your strengths or weaknesses that you disagreed with?

Not that I can recall. Or, wait. Was a co-writer of one humourous story that got negative feedback because the dumb reader didn't *get* that it was funny. Now, I'd assume that we just didn't carry off the humour, only everyone *else* seemed to get it...

8. Overall, what's the worst piece you've ever written? (Meaning you look back on it now and cringe, not a piece you deliberately wrote to be badfic)

Published? I don't publish it if I don't think it will hold up--that's why I've had only 4 pieces published. Unpublished? I suppose the several Doctor Who pieces I began but discarded. Possibly the Robin of Sherwood, but I thought it had real potential.

9. Overall, what's the story(ies) that you're proudest of?

Strangely enough, the title just left my head (dealing with a migraine today). It was my first published B7 piece, that won an award at a con in the UK. Servalan piece, with "Phoenix" in the title. Wait... Shattered Phoenix?

What Flavour Am I?

Mmm, I am Lemon Flavoured. I am bitter and twisted. Expect from me acerbic humour and sharp commentary. While I may seem nasty at first, I'm actually quite good company if I like you, so long as you don't mind a bit of cutting to the chase. What Flavour Are You?

LMFFI: Character Quiz: Eponine

I'm Eponine!
Spunky, resourceful, and fearless, I don't take a lot of guff from the world, and sometimes I'm kind of freaky. Secretly, though, I just want to be loved in spite of my attitude and my goofy hat. Which Les Miserables Character Are You?

OR, here's my Mary Sue (Marie-Suzanne) character:

I'm Adorine l'Etoile. I have eyes of piercing amethyst. My hair is a boyishly short titian. I am endowed with fetching cleavage. I am a kindhearted prostitute, recognizeable by my mismatched eyes. I am actually Javert's adopted daugher, but I'm not a Mary Sue because I'm not *really* drop dead gorgeous.

Friday Five

1. What is your current occupation? Is this what you chose to be doing at this point in your life? Why or why not?
I am the supervisor of a call center (basically, that's switchboard, reception, and answering general questions) for a trade association. It's about the 5th major job I've held at this organization over the past 23 years. I didn't so much choose any of this as drift into it. When I started here, in college, it was supposed to be until the Chicago Board of Education offered the NTE in my category (English), so I could get a full-time teaching job. Unfortunately, by the time they did that, it was like 5 years later and I no longer felt like going that route, despite having planned, for the first 22 years of my life, to be a teacher.

I do enjoy my problem-solving role here, and I like the people I work with. I am not, however, crazy about our membership, nor am I happy with the inertia that keeps me here. But with no particular skills beyond spelling and typing, any move would mean a cut in pay, and I already work two jobs to support my "habits."

2. If time/talent/money were no object, what would your dream occupation be?
A professional photographer, and occasional writer.

3. What did/do your parents do for a living? Has this had any influence on your career choices?
My father was trained as a plumber and pipefitter, and while that was blue collar, we didn't want for the necessities when I was growing up. My mother took occasional factory work when I was small, then began working full-time in human resources when she was divorced. She recently retired from her job as crowd control at Wrigley Field.

My parents always told me to go for whatever I wanted. Despite that, I chose a traditional "woman's career" and ended up an a different traditional "woman's job."

4. Have you ever had to choose between having a career and having a family?
No, and at my age, neither of them (family or career) is likely to happen.

5. In your opinion, what is the easiest job in the world? What is the hardest? Why?
Lots of jobs are easy--no way to tell from the outside what's easy, and often that depends on the individual's temperament. I think being a policeman is the hardest job--not only is it demanding both mentally and physically, but the public is very ambivalent about it. At least if you're a firefighter, you're almost always the good guy.

Fellowship of the Ring

You must do your own personalized LOTR here. Mine is:

The Personalised
Lord of the Rings

Book 1 - The Fellowship of the Ring

Many years passed in Sherwood and Lilitho spent his time as all hobbits do: eating and drinking and sleeping. One late afternoon, Lilitho was raised from his bed by a rap at the door. It was an unusually harsh rap by Eminem so Lilitho hurried to see who it was making such a noise.

Lilitho opened the door to a grizzled figure in a tall felt hat. It was Coop the wizard.

Coop, is it really you? cried Lilitho in delight, bordering on disgust.

Do not put on the ring! warned Coop. I was not going to, replied Lilitho.

Coop appeared pale and wan. You are carrying the One Ring. It comes from the land of South Chicago and was created by the hideous evil wanker, the Dark Lord Magneto. It will kill you and suck out your soul.

AAIIEE! said Lilith, I shall give it to you.

Yes, thanks a bunch. But rather you should take it to those who dwell in that magical place, Wellington, NZ. They will know what to do with it, lied Coop. Turning to the window with lightning reflexes Coop thrust his body through it and grasped the sexy little torso of a small hobbit.

Aha! cried Coop as he tried to pull the small creature through the now broken window, How much have you heard?

Nothing at all Mister Coop, except all those things you said.

Dargie, laughed Lilitho as Coop mangled Dargie's sexy little torso, What are you doing?

Begging your pardon Mr. Lilitho sir, I didn't mean any harm by it, whimpered Dargie, I haven't told anyone else and I would dearly love to see Wellington, NZ.

Coop gave Dargie's sexy little torso one last shag and said Then you at least shall accompany Lilitho, as shall Snoo and Jeff who are also outside.

You complete wankerhead, Dargie! laughed Snoo and Jeff unmerrily.

Lilitho, Dargie, Jeff and Snoo began the journey to Wellington, NZ. Coop had to go and speak to the boss wizard, Ted Casablanca and so would meet the hobbits later. He left them with a cautionary warning, Avoid using the road and do not, whatever you do, go anywhere near the barrow downs.

On the barrow downs, the hobbits were looking for shelter from the dark. Let's go in this tomb said Jeff. They all agreed that this was a good idea and got attacked by barrow wights.

Just as the hobbits were about to have their sexy little torsos removed by the undead fiends, a door of light opened out of nowhere and out popped a gaily-dressed man. He began to sing:

I am Tom Bombawankero
You naughty barrow wights
I'll cordwangle-o your nadgers-o
On a cold and frosty night
Twangdillo gorillo brillo padillo

The hobbits all lost consciousness at hearing this glorious song that spoke of the eternal power of nature. They awoke next day in the sunshine. The barrow wights were nowhere to be seen and neither was Tom Bombawankero. Fortunately. Let's get on the road where it's safe said Jeff.

Coop arrived at the tower of Ted Casablanca the White, the boss wizard. There is evil afoot! said Coop, There are tidings of badness and stirrings from South Chicago that cause my sexy little torso to stand on end

So I see, said Ted Casablanca. But enough of such things. I have become evil. Where is the ring? Ted Casablanca parted his robes, For I have become Ted Casablanca OF MANY COLOURS!

What is this? cried Coop, aghast at the naked form of Ted Casablanca beneath his robes.

Oh what a wanker, I forgot to put my many-coloured robes on said Ted Casablanca, quickly replacing his cloak. Now get to your room on top of my tower, and don't come out until you decide to tell me where the ring is

I hope the hobbits are alright thought Coop. Just as long as they've avoided the road

On the road, the hobbits were hiding from a dark rider. It was one of the dark homophobic fanboys from South Chicago. Do not put on the ring warned Snoo. I was not going to said Lilitho and the black rider buggered off.

Soon the hobbits arrived at the shaging wanker, an Inn for travellers such as themselves. Lilitho signed his name as Mr Not-Lilitho to avoid being recognised.

Greetings Lilitho said a hooded man in the corner of the Inn. I am called wankerer by folk, but I am also known as Ravenagorn, son of Ravenathorn. You can call me Raven. I have come to protect you. No evil doers may avoid my sword-that-was-broken! and he pulled out a stump of a sword, If they get close enough.

Dargie said How do we know we can trust this wankerer, Mr Lilitho? I mean Not-Lilitho.

I think that servants of Magneto would seem fairer and feel like more of a wanker said Lilitho. Whereas I feel fairer but look like a wanker! laughed Raven. Yes said Lilitho. Oh. said Raven.

Raven led the way to Wellington, NZ. On the way the companions heard a sound of hooves, a tinkling of bells, and the refrain of Dancing Queen by Abba, sung by a gay and jolly voice. Ah! called Raven, It is Dom the elf.

Raven coo-ee. said Dom as he flounced off his horse and the two friends hugged for more time than was strictly necessary.

Dom began to impart his news, Ooh, let me tell you, you wouldn't belieeeeve it. Those naughty homophobic fanboys are on your trail. What a pullava! Oh no, here they come. And he was right, for in the distance the forms of the nine homophobic fanboys were bearing down on them.

Fly, Lilitho, fly said Dom, Or better still, get on my horse and ride. Ooh what a bitch. And don't put on the ring.

Lilitho leapt onto Dom's pink horse. My horse is fleet of fetlock. They will not catch you. cried Dom as the homophobic fanboys caught up to Lilitho and stabbed him.

Sorely wounded, Lilitho escaped the clutches of the homophobic fanboys and spurred his horse on to the ford. He reached it and crossed, but had to stop, exhausted. The homophobic fanboys watched from the other side of the river. Come back, come back, to South Chicago we will take you. called the homophobic fanboys with grim voices. Your sexy little torso, your sexy little torso, we will shag it with a poker. Oh, and give us the ring.

You shall have neither the ring nor my sexy little torso screamed Lilitho as he fell off the horse. Nothing can stop us now except the very river rising up against us said the unlucky homophobic fanboys as they crossed the river which then rose up against them and swept them away like homophobic fanboys-shaped leaves in a river.

Lilitho woke up in Wellington, NZ's intensive care to see a familiar face smiling down on him. Coop, is it you? he murmured. Indeed it is, wankerish one. replied Coop kindly. You have been healed by the elves of Wellington, NZ said Coop and went on to describe what had befallen him since last they met. But how did you get away from the tower of Ted Casablanca? asked Lilitho. I escaped explained Coop inadequately. Also I went to look for that pathetic creature Stuart Townsend. It was he who first held the ring and was corrupted into the weasely little wankerer that told the evil Magneto of its location and e'en now seeks it again.

It was a pity said Lilitho, that the little runt Stuart Townsend was not slain earlier. Coop sucked on his pipe for a few moments and concluded Yes it was indeed a pity. Stuart Townsend is a worthless shit.

At the Council of Wellington, NZ the free peoples of Middle Earth gathered together to decide what should be done.

A tall man of the south called Ragapuffin spoke up. You should give the ring to me and I will become ruler of the world. Did I say that out loud? and he sat down sheepishly.

A short stumpy dwarf called babycakes said You must destroy this weapon of Magneto and he set about whacking it with his axe, which was a bit inconvenient for Lilitho as he was wearing it round his neck at the time. Stop this foolishness said Coop. Magneto has heard of hobbits and Sherwood at last and wants the ring back. But it will corrupt any of us who wield it. We must destroy it in the fires of Mount wanker in South Chicago where it was created. There shall be nine of us on this dire mission, to match the nine homophobic fanboys who ride. These nine shall be myself, Lilitho for the hobbit folk, Raven and Ragapuffin for the men, babycakes for the stout dwarves, Dom for the girly elves and Dargie, Jeff and Snoo for cannon fodder.

And so the stout band began their perilous journey to South Chicago. They tried to cross the mountains but it was a bit snowy so they turned back. Raven said Magneto's sexy little torso has grown long indeed if He can throw snow at us all the way from South Chicago. Coop agreed, His sexy little torso has grown long. We cannot go this way, we must go another way. A way that I have walked before but the memory of it is evil.

What way did you walk? asked Jeff Was it worse than the way you walk now? Coop set Jeff's sexy little torso on fire and continued, We must go through Moria, the abandoned Kingdom of the Dwarves!

I will not go through Moria gnashed Ragapuffin, What does the ringbearer say? Lilitho thought for a moment, We should go through Moria he said. Who gives a wanker what you think? Give me the ring and I shall destroy all before me and become King of the World! Kneel down before Ragapuffin, HAHAHAHAAAAA! Coop began to have doubts as to the wisdom of bringing Ragapuffin along.

At the doors of Moria was a sign. It read Speak wanker and enter. Hmm hmmed Coop, But what to speak? Raven ponced up to the door, Aside gnarled one. I have reforged my sword-that-was-broken. It has been mended anew. No mere door shall stay my sorcerous blade, wielded by my awesome sinews. I shall smite it thus! And thus! And... oh no I've broken it again. And he began to cry. You are an utter wanker, Raven said Coop. At that the doors opened.

All you had to do was speak the word wanker and it would open said babycakes. That figures said Dom gaily, You Dwarves are a bunch of wankers.

The fellowship entered the dark empty halls of Moria. Be very, very quiet commanded Coop No Jeff, don't juggle next to the well/burglar alarm! But it was too late as Jeff dropped his juggling balls and unicycle down the well. You wanker of a Jeff! said Coop, kicking him in the sexy little torso.

We must be swift, intoned Coop as the knob on the end of his staff began to glow, Follow me and my glowing knob. Did I say something funny Snoo? Right, I will lead you from danger into the light. he said, walking into a room full of orcs. Oops! said Coop.

We must run from this place, cried Coop, turning to see the rest of the fellowship disappearing into the distance. Coop ran after them.

Hotly pursued, they reached a great stone bridge over a mighty chasm. The horde of orcs stopped. Raven, who was hiding behind Dom's prancing form, strode out. Ha ha! They are afraid. Afraid of Ravenagorn and his sword-that-is-knackered! See how they cower before my manly chin.

Then a most monstrously hideous creature with a disgustingly awful visage, leapt over the thronging throng of orcs. It filled the cavern with its loathsome bulk, its unwholesome face contorted in a rictus of bestial rage. Raven wet himself.

AAIIEE! mentioned Dom. A Bob the cave trollrog is coming. We are all going to DIEEEEEE!

This is a foe beyond all of you. said Coop, Fly you wankers, fly! Coop turned to see that again, the fellowship had already hopped it. As the pig-ugly Bob the cave trollrog smashed Coop through the bridge and into the abyss, Coop thought bitterly Actually I could have done with a bit of help.

About a mile from Moria, the fellowship stopped running. Raven was hysterical. They're going to get us and cut our sexy little torsos off. I'm too beautiful to die.

Dom minced forward. Tell you what. The Elven forest of Lorien is near here. We could stay there until things blow over. They're a lovely bunch of boys.

That is not what we say in Gondor. growled Ragapuffin. Then you are wankers in Gondor. said Raven, I've spent many a gay night in the company of the Elves. No one sought to challenge him on that.

In Lorien, the fellowship were made very welcome and were given magical pastel-coloured cloaks with lovingly sewn-on sequins and black leather SS caps to stave off the cold in the coming quest. Lilitho was asked to come before Lijah, lovely Queen of the Elves. She was beauteous indeed. The very sight of her caused Lilitho's sexy little torso to swell.

Greetings, my lttle Lilitho. said Lijah, I have a gift for you. And she gave Lilitho a most-favorite CD.

Thank you, my lady Lijah. said Lilitho when he got his breath back. Whenever I am cold and lonely, the thought of that most-favorite CD will sustain me.

The fellowship left the glitterball-infested forest of Lorien. Oh dear said Dargie, Are we going to that 'orrible South Chicago place Mr Lilitho? Lilitho considered a moment and said I need to think about this by myself. I will go up on that hill to think alone on my own without anyone else.

I will go with you. said Ragapuffin.

On the hill, Lilitho was in deep thought. Then Ragapuffin appeared. Give the ring to me Lilitho and I will use it to be King of the Universe, get loads of money, girls and drugs, get shit-faced every night and destroy utterly, anyone who gets in my way he said. I'm sorry Ragapuffin but I can't help but think you might misuse it, replied Lilitho. That does it. yelled Ragapuffin, unsheathing his sword, I'm going to slice your sexy little torso off. Lilitho became alarmed at this and put on the ring. He disappeared from sight.

What have I done? cried Ragapuffin. Lilitho, you have misunderstood me. Come back! Then Raven appeared, What has happened here? he asked. Nothing, honest. said Ragapuffin. May I be shot full of arrows if I'm not telling the truth.

Thus ends Book One of the Lord of the Rings

Upgrading my YACCS comments box...

and mulling over the latest in the Domlijah news. Not sure whether any of it IS actually news. Same old observations, still an interpretation. Not sure if this changes anything or not.

Finally saw "About a Boy" at the Brew and View

What can I say about Hugh Grant in this? I like Hugh anyway, even at the times when he seems to be endlessly playing the same charming British cliche over and over again. But here he is NOT playing that guy, but the evil twin of that guy. Will does *nothing*. Literally. He lives off the royalties of his father's hit single, and spends his days being trendy, shopping, getting his hair done, and dating a continuing succession of women with whom he doesn't form relationships. What makes him different from the type of loser characters we've seen done the same thing is that he *is* the hero of this piece--he knows exactly what he's doing, and can articulate it to us, in brilliant internal monologues that had most of the audience laughing out loud.

The other fantastic performance of this piece is Nicholas Hoult as Marcus, the other "boy" of the title (which could refer to either of the two guys, really). He reminds me a bit of Elijah Wood--round face, dark hair, big eyes, and an acting style that is so believeable and natural that you can never catch him "acting." He projects, simultaneously, both innocence and wisdom, which is no mean feat for an adult actor, let alone a child.

I would definitely recommend seeing this movie, if you can still catch it in the theatre. Otherwise, it should hold up quite well on TV if you have to wait for Pay-per-View.

Hooray for Canada's Royal Bank

GaySports - Games/Olympics

From the article: The Royal Bank, last year, refused to open an account for the "No Committee 2006" saying it believed the committee was violating the human rights of gays and lesbians.
...
"The principle of freedom of opinion is one that we wholeheartedly endorse. However, there is a world of difference between having an opinion and inciting discrimination and we will not knowingly enter into a business relationship with an organization whose express purpose is to incite discrimination against minorities, contrary to the principles of the Canadian Human Rights Act."

Doesn't it figure?

My Favorite Male Part Is: The Butt: Round and firm. Thats where I branded him. Find out your favorite male body part!

Will Lilith Survive A Pit Match Against Clinton And Bush?

. 12% chance Bush would kill you. . 0% chance Clinton would kill you. . 0% chance he would sexually harass you. . 88% chance you would kill them.

Enter Combat

Rings-Thing

This week, I've done it in LiveJournal again. Go here.

My final visit (for now) to the land of Ed Burns

I saw the one movie of his I'd missed, "No Looking Back" (NLB), last night. I had heard it compared to "Ash Wednesday" (which remains my favorite movie of Ed's), but I'd say that's true only in that it isn't comedic. It *does*, very much, have a romantic relationship at its center, though--the Claudia (Lauren Holly)/Michael (Jon Bon Jovi)/Charlie (Ed Burns) triangle--although the theme of the movie isn't really that. (I think you could say that "Ash Wednesday" is the only Burns movie since "The Brothers McMullen" to place the relationship of the brothers, rather than lovers, as the focus of the movie.)

NLB was Ed's third movie, after McMullen and She's the One. If there seemed to be a progression from the first to the second, NLB was a change of pace in many respects. It does continue to trend of exploring inter-twining relationships: Claudia, who was once in love with Charlie, is now living with his best friend, Michael. (Only best friends this time--in other movies we quite often see brothers dating the same woman.) The strangest part of this movie was that Ed, who is playing the sort of likeable guy he always does, it not the person I see as the real Ed Burns stand-in in this movie--Lauren Holly is. Claudia seems a lot more like the ambitious young Ed Burns who escaped his suburban roots to make good, than does the charismatic but basically shiftless Charlie. Or maybe Charlie isn't worthless--but all we know about him is that he made his escape, and has now slunk back, a failure. His mother insinuates that this has happened before. We don't know what he was trying to do, or how he failed. He tells us he's only going to be home briefly, but we don't see any concrete plans from him. Claudia, although she is finally pushed out of her routine by an outside influence (Charlie's return), seems like she is making a concerted effort to get away, and we suspect she will be successful.

Maybe Ed left Charlie intentionally vague, to keep the emphasis on Claudia. But that backfires: to understand and emphathize with Claudia, we need to see her struggle with her choices. And Jon Bon Jovi makes his Michael so much more attractive than Charlie, that you have to wonder about the woman who walks away from that relationship. If the primary strength of McMullen was its characters, the lack of strong, interesting characters here is the biggest flaw of the movie. You're happy with Claudia's decision, in the end, but only academically. It doesn't really involve you. I think Ed really missed the mark with Charlie, especially since that's his part: people who like his acting will be disappointed in the character, and people who don't will find no redeeming features in his performance at all. In every other movie of his, his portrayal of the protagonist (whether you are a fan of his acting ability or not) has at least been truthful, and helped you understand both the charcter and the filmmaker. Here, it doesn't.

So... I'm glad I saw the movie. I liked it, maybe even a little better than some of the fluffier ones. But it certainly wasn't great. The backdrop is dismal and grey and uninteresting, and unfortunately the characters seem to take their cue from their surroundings. That might be realistic, but it's not very involving. I'm still waiting until I can see "Ash Wednesday" again and see if it holds up as his best work (as I remember it in retrospect).

Monday Mission

1. Many children have blankets, or a favorite nubby stuffed animal that they like to keep near them for security. Do you recall what you had for your "security blanket" as a child? When did you finally give it up? What brought that about?
Mine was an actual blanket. I had it for years and years, well into my teens, I believe. Strangely enough, I don't remember it disappearing, so maybe it lasted until I went to college, when pretty much everything that didn't go with me got tossed.

2. Now that you are a big kid, what do you have to give you that same sense of security?
In social situations, my camera. Gives me something useful to do, is a good topic of conversation, and also gives me something to do with my hands! And I know I'm pretty good with it, although I do get "performance anxiety" when I know a lot is riding on the results. I don't know that I have an equivalent at home--maybe my computer would be closest.

3. With a little over four months left in 2002, have you accomplished everything you wanted to for the year? Is there anything that you would like to accomplish before the year is over?
When I've allowed myself to be spontaneous, things have actually worked out better than I planned. But still, I get *so* little done, especially in that half of the year where I work two jobs. I'd like to put lots of stuff on Ebay (dolls, books, magazines, batches of clippings) to both get rid of them and make money. I'd like to do more LOTR-related travelling. I'd like to get caught up on website work, both on lilith but more particularly on my other sites, which have fallen woefully behind.

4. I don't know about you, but it seems to me children have it pretty good these days. Game systems, computers in the home, microwaves, cable TV, the internet, cell phones and pagers, they certainly have a wider variety of technology than most of us did as children. What modern convenience, if any, do you think it would be good for children today to do without? What would they gain?
A case could be made for any of them, depending on the family's (and the child's individual) circumstances. I think kids should use these "toys" responsibly, and preferably have them budgeted or rationed. If the child then decides to use the entire "budget" up surfing the web, so be it.

5. Many of us have one thing in which we believe we excel. What do you do better than most?
Strangely enough, I think it's photography, although I'm not technically very good. I'm willing to put a lot of time and effort (and money) into it, I will look through the lens for hours on end waiting for that perfect shot, I take a LOT of photos, and I take the time (and have the software) to make the best I can out of what I took.

6. In the United States, and possibly other countries, teenagers in High School usually wind up falling into several social circles or "cliques." Stoners, Rich Kids, Jocks, Cheerleaders, Band, Drama, Goths, and so on (though the names are probably different today). What High School "clique" did you find yourself in? Was it by choice or did it just happen? Did you look down on other groups? (Aw it's ok, it was/is High School, we all did dumb stuff)
I went to a very small high school, a very long time ago, and we didn't have a lot of cliques. Basically, you were either in or out. The rich kids, the cheerleaders, the jocks, and the otherwise just attractive, overlapped to a large degree and were all the "in crowd." The rest of us, whether poor, geek, band, or whatever, were just "not in." While there were maybe 5-6 people I knew well enough to talk to regularly, I had only one close friend in high school.

7. (it begins) I have great news! I won the contest and we now have plane tickets to anywhere in the world. The bad news is we have to pick a place now and leave in the morning. I can't decide where to go, so you get to pick. Where should we go, and what is the first thing we should do when we get there?
Well, first of all, who are you and what do *you* like? I have several different places I wouldn't mind going, so you might very well be the deciding factor. An easy one would be London, because there's just SO much to do there--I usually start off by dropping my bags and heading off to Kensington Gardens and the Serpentine, just to relax and unwind from the trip. I prefer not to do that during tourist season, though. Hmmm, is it Spring in New Zealand now? That might be another option. Start in Wellington and go off in search of LOTR locations. I love San Francisco and New York any time of the year, any occasion.

BONUS: Must I beg you?
Nah, just gimme some kind of sign, girl.

Why not Rivendell, dammit?

If I lived in Middle-Earth, it would be in: Gondor, The White City You enjoy the entropy and feeling of a city that never sleeps. The need to have fun and mingle with others is a necessity to you, as well as feeling the spirit of the urban life rushing around you. There is nothing in nature that excites you as much as technology, over-population, and the sight of skyscrapers at dizzying heights. Take the "Where in Middle-Earth Would I Live?" Quiz by skepticism

Woo hoo! Can I get some vodka?

If I were a Dead Russian Composer, I would be Dmitri Shostakovich!

I am a shy, nervous, unassuming, fidgety, and stuttery little person who began composing the same year I started music lessons of any sort. I wrote the first of my fifteen symphonies at age 18, and my second opera, "Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District," when I was only 26. Unfortunately, Stalin hated the opera, and put me on the Enemy Of The People List for life. I nevertheless kept composing the works I wanted to write in private; some of my vocal cycles and 15 string quartets mock the Soviet System in notes. And I somehow was NOT killed in the process! And Harry Potter(c) stole my glasses and broke them!

Who would you be? Dead Russian Composer Personality Test

Hobbit Interspecies Fic List

Courtesy of Baranduin. Yay, I've been waiting for this!

I finally saw "Restoration" last night

Ian was a joy, as always, and Sam Neill was perfect as Charles II, but the movie belonged, without doubt, to Robert Downey, Jr. I'm not the only one who is in awe of his talent; read Sir Ian's comments here. If only the restoration of Robert's character in this movie could be mirrored by something similar in his own life--the plot itself is all to familiar: a brilliant, outrageous, talented man is singled out for fame and fortune, but his success leads him to forget what it was he did best, and concentrate only on his own pleasure. Eventually, this leads to his fall from favour, but with the help of the right people, he is eventually restored both spiritually and materially.

I know it's posted everywhere, but I love it...

Courtesy of Shawna and the Bag End Inn

Chicagoans - sign up for this NOW

Chicago Transit Authority | Chicago Card

smattering.org >> From December 21, 2001 (since there is not a new one)

smattering.org >> small & s c a t t e r e d I chose a random Friday Five from December.

1. What is the weirdest thing you've ever eaten? Well, when I was in Scotland, I got very brave and ordered hagis. Luckily they were out. I have to admit, I'm not very adventurous in the food area, nor do I eat out often, nor does my local Dominick's (I live in a rather economically depressed part of the city) cater to outlandish tastes.

2. Name one (material) thing you can't live without. Hmmm. I go without a TV for months at a time. Digital camera use is sporadic. I play most of my CDs on the computer, read on the computer, watch news on the computer. So I guess--the computer!

3. Name something you've always wanted to do but didn't have time for. Go back to school. Not necessarily for a graduate degree, but just to continue to learn and grow. I still miss it, more than 20 years after I left.

4. What outrageous thing do you wish you had the nerve to do? Nearly anything. I'm basically a mouse.

5. How do you plan to spend your weekend? Working, in the rain, at Wrigley Field. And *gosh* aren't I looking forward to it. This time I swear, it really *is* my last year. I can't live through another summer like this one.

The Memory Hole > Work Kills

The Memory Hole > Work Kills I knew it! So there!

Idiot Page - people who think student John Holmes is THE John Holmes...

despite the fact that the porn star died in the 1980s. More proof that people are too stupid to live.

Idiot Page

Really great digital camera site

Digital Camera Reviews and News: Digital Photography Review: Forums, Glossary, FAQ

Caption Contest Results

Caption Contest Results and the August photo are finally up on my site. Sorry for the delay!

Plush Frodo?

Something very odd-sounding about that. Not that he isn't cuddly and I don't want to take him to bed... But this one has that evil-eye look. Must be post-Gollum. However, the Sam and Frodo figures two-pack looks great (I ordered it). I wish I could see a better photo of the Merry and Pippin with Treebeard--I suspect I'll want that one as well.

http://www.funtocollect.com/ftcollect/twotowers.html

People.com | News Article | Osbournes Take in Son of Late Friend

People.com: Osbournes Take in Son of Late Friend You know, I've always liked Sharon, albeit I didn't feel I "knew" her as well as I do now, thanks to seeing her and her family on TV. But this is just the sort of thing I'd expect of her (as is her comment at the end of the article).

I hate it when the rabbit dies...

How did I not know about Alba, the glowing bunny, until she was no more? Very sad!

I Swear this woman knows my cat...

More from Tomato Nation

Congrats to Sean and Christine Astin

On the birth of their baby girl, Elizabeth Louise, on August 6. She has the same initials as me!

If you're looking for Rings-Thing, I did it on my LiveJournal this week.

80s Song Quiz

Gacked from buffett. I'm trying this again, despite being god-awful at it--I remember more than half these songs, but I'm too brain-dead to come up with either a song title OR artist. Plus, I had just finished the damn thing, lost my internet connection for the umpteenth time today, and the whole damn thing disappeared.

1. Suckin' on chili dogs outside the Tastee-Freez
2. I've done no harm, I keep to myself
3. There's a freeway runnin' through the yard
4. I've seen a million faces and I've rocked them all
5. Your mom threw away your best porno mag
6. Can you hear them? They talk about us, telling lies, well that's no surprise
7. One that won't make me nervous, wonderin' what to do ... I Want a New Drug, Huey Lewis and the News
8. Are you more than hot for me, or am I a page in your history (book) Hot for Teacher, Van Halen
9. I can hear you comin', I know what you're after
10. And it's true we are immune when fact is fiction and TV reality
11. Don't go around breaking young girls' hearts Billie Jean, Michael Jackson
12. I've got my back against the record machine Jump Van Halen
13. You take me by the heart when you take me by the hand Mickey, Toni Basil
14. A cloud appears above your head, a beam of light comes shining down on you
15. I'm lying in the rain, but I never wave bye-bye Modern Love, David Bowie
16. He's the one that makes ya feel alright –
17. Are you happy, are you satisfied, how long can you stand the heat –
18. I think I thought you were someone else
19. I tried my imagination but I was disturbed
20. I tell you one and one makes three
21. I'll be stretching my mouth to let those big words come right out – Big Time, Peter Gabriel
22. And though she will mess up your life, you want her just the same
23. You can listen as well as you hear The Living Years, Mike and the Mechanics
24. Think of the tender things that we were working on –
25. They gave you life and in return you gave them hell –
26. Knew he must've been about 17
27. I am the maker of rules, dealing with fools I Can Read Your Mind, Doobie Brothers
28. Can't get food for the king
29. Step on a crack, break your momma's back
30. Her hair reminds me of a warm, safe place where as a child I'd lie
31. You're like the sun chasing all of the rain away
32. Everyone you meet, they're jamming in the streets –
33. I'm not internationally known, but I'm known to rock a microphone
34. Every time I see you falling, I get down on my knees and pray Bizarre Love Triangle, New Order
35. We'll take your car, yes we will, we'll take your car and drive it –
36. I said to my reflection. Let's get out of this place?
37. Easy ready willing overtime
38. The five years we have had have been such good times
39. Didn't know how lost I was until I found you Like a Virgin, Madonna
40. People of the world today are we looking for a better way of life
41. You in that dress my thoughts I confess verge on dirty
42. I'm about to lose control and I think I like it I Get Excited, Pointer Sisters
43. Write it on a pound note, pound note Goody Two Shoes, Adam Ant
44. We are strong, no one can tell us we're wrong Love is a Battlefield, Pat Benatar
45. Out on the road today, I saw a Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac – Boys of Summer, Don Henley
46. Caught up in the action I've been looking out for you The Heat is On, Glen Frey
47. An invisible man sleeping in your bed
48. But somewhere sometime when you're curious, I'll be back around –
49. I know her love is true but it's so damn easy makin' love to you -
50. Oh mother dear we're not the fortunate ones Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Cyndi Lauper
51. And incidents arose from circumstance
52. You know I like my girls a little bit older Forget title, but it's by The Outfield
53. You always live your life never thinking of the future
54. Now we're sharing the same dreams, and our hearts can beat as one Caribbean Queen, Billy Ocean
55. She don't need a man's touch - Glamourous Life, Sheila E
56. She'll get a hold on you, believe it Easy Lover, Phil Collins
57. You're everywhere, but you're so hard to find
58. You want your percentage, but I'm the fool paying the dues
59. No April rain, no flowers' bloom, no wedding Saturday within the month of June I Just Called to Say I Love You, Stevie Wonder
60. There's a skeleton chokin' on a crust of bread
61. With my body and soul I want you more than you'll ever know
62. I used to think maybe you loved me, now I know that it's true – Walking on Sunshine, Katrina and the Waves
63. Animals strike curious poses When Doves Cry, Prince
64. Religion is a light in the fog
65. I don't know where I'm goin' but I sure know where I've been something by Whitesnake?
66. If you want to find all the cops they're hanging out in the donut shop
67. And there's a heart that's breaking down this long distance line tonight ... Missing You, John Waite
68. I'm always workin', slavin', every day
69. Feel like I could run away, run away from this empty heart
70. Kick off your Sunday shoes
71. Daddy says she's too young, but she's old enough for me
72. He turned to me as if to say, "Hurry boy, it's waiting there for you"
73. You're not naive, you must be strong
74. Darken the city night is a wire, steam in the subway earth is afire
75. She had the body of a Venus, Lord imagine my surprise
76. I can't help recalling how it felt to kiss and hold you tight
77. Will you meet him on the main line, or will you catch him on the rebound? Gloria, Laura Brannigan
78. Watching every motion in this foolish lover's game
79. You make the sun shine brighter than Doris Day
80. Loving would be easy if your colours were like my dream, red, gold and green
81. They threw an American flag in our face
82. When I'm dancing close to her, I can smell the chemicals
83. She told me to come but I was already there
84. Streetlight people, living just to find emotion
85. It belongs to them, let's give it back Band Aid
86. Everything you do is quite angelicate
87. Rolling like thunder under the covers I Guess That's Why They Call it the Blues, Elton John
88. I don't know what you expect staring into the TV set
89. My eyes dilate, my lips go green
90. I touch you once, I touch you twice
91. To have you with me I would swim the seven seas
92. Crazy little woman in a one man show
93. Went the distance, now I'm back on my feet
94. Got in a little hometown jam, so they put a rifle in my hand
95. There is freedom within, there is freedom without Don't Dream It's Over, Crowded House
96. But whatever road you choose, I'm right behind you win or lose Forever Young, Rod Stewart
97. I need fifty dollars to make you holler
98. So let's sink another drink cause it'll give me time to think
99. Goddess on the mountain top Venus, Bananarama
100. Couldn't see how much I missed you (now I do)
101. They even bother my poor father 'cause he's down with me
102. Where can I find a woman like that Jesse's Girl, RIck Springfield
103. Paul, I think I told you I'm a lover not a fighter
104. Mine's an ordinary life, working when it's daylight and sleeping when it's night
105. I had a whiskey on the rocks and change of a dollar for the jukebox
106. Just don't ask me how I am
107. Your lights are on but you're not home
108. Take your passion and make it happen What a Feeling, Irene Cara
109. That little faggot he's a millionaire Money for Nothing, Dire Straits
110. I was wrong, now I find just one thing makes me forget Red Red Wine, UB40
111. So if you're feeling low, turn up your radio
112. It's no better to be safe than sorry
113. Darlin' in my wildest dreams I never thought I'd go Harden My Heart, Heart
114. The road is long, there are mountains in your way
115. The Salvation Army band played and the children drank lemonade
116. The more you live, the faster you will die
117. I've got a secret I've been hiding under my skin
118. I love you though you hurt me so
119. Wouldn't wanna be swept away, far away from the one that I love
120. The sheik he drove his Cadillac
121. She showed me the beach, gave me a peach, and pulled out the suntan lotion
122. Two silhouettes saying goodnight by the garden gate
123. Have some more chicken, have some more pie
124. I asked the doctor to take your picture so I could look at you from inside as well
125. Well it's all right riding around in the breeze
126. I'm just going to keep on counting until you are mine
127. Every time you call my name, I heat up like a burnin' flame
128. This is it boys, this is war
129. I can't understand what makes a man hate another man
130. I can't sleep at night, I toss and turn
131. I know you really want to tell me goodbye
132. Food is served and you're stone cold munchin'
133. Don't let go while I'm hangin' on, 'cause I been hangin' on so long
134. We can dance, everybody look at your hands Safety Dance, Men Without Hats
135. I know a place where we can dance the whole night away underneath electric stars ...Rhythm of the Night, DeBarge
136. I know a good thing must come to an end but it's hard to take losing a friend
137. Well, Superman looked up at me, he said "You rock so naturally"
138. You can say anything you like, but you can't touch the merchandise She's a Beauty, the Tubes
139. You want a piece of my heart, you better start from the start
140. But when the wrong word goes in the right ear, I know you been lyin' to me
141. I follow where my mind goes
142. What's your definition of dirty, baby
143. We'll leave the TV and the radio behind
144. All you sittin' in high places, the rain's gonna fall on you
145. I turn the switch and check the number, I leave it on when in bed I slumber
146. So when the night falls, my lonely heart calls I Want to Dance with Somebody, Whitney Houseon
147. So you better go back to your bars, your temples, your massage parlors
148. Did you really think about it before you made the rules
149. So you think my singing's out of time, well it makes me money
150. Across the north and south to Key Largo, love for sale
151. Bermuda, Bahama, come on pretty mama Kokomo, Beach Boys
152. I swear that I could see forever in your eyes
153. Nothing had the chance to be good, nothing ever could Holding Back the Years, Simply Red
154. Take my license and all that jive
155. Well by the force of will my lungs are filled, and so I breathe
156. Dreams stay with you like a lover's voice fires the mountainside In a Big Country, Big Country
157. No huggin' no kissin' til I get a wedding ring
158. I don't worry 'cause my wallet's fat
159. Sister's sighing in her sleep Our House, Talking Heads
160. Better make it fast or else I'm gonna get pissed
161. Wish I knew what you were looking for
162. What's your price for flight
163. I know a guy who's tough but sweet
164. And I had a feeling I could be someone, be someone, be someone
165. Why do I find it so hard to write the next line, oh I want the truth to be said True, Spandau Ballet
166. Every time he pulls me near, I just wanna cheer Let's Hear it For the Boy (Footloose)
167. Put the needle on the record
168. Whoa no, I've got to keep on moving
169. Once upon a time there was light in my life, but now there's only love in the dark Total Eclipse of the Heart, Bonnie Tyler
170. I stain my sheets, I don't even know why
171. There were incidents and accidents, there were hints and allegations You can Call me Al, Paul Simon
172. I can't get any rest, people say I'm obsessed
173. She dances like she's never danced before Maniac, Michael Sembello
174. Do your fancy dances
175. Your moves are so raw, I've got to let you know you're one of my kind
176. Get up, get up, get up, get up, let's make love tonight
177. But when I win your heart, I'm gonna paint it cherry red
178. All the doors I closed on time will open up again
179. Dream of better lives, the kind which never hate
180. You can feel the punishment but you can't commit the sin No One is to Blame, Howard Jones
181. I'm not the one to tell you what's wrong or what's right
182. He wants me, but only part of the time Voices Carry, Til Tuesday
183. People don't you know, don't you know it's about time
184. You were the first, you'll be the last
185. You think you're mad, too unstable, kicking in chairs and knocking down tables
186. Your heart's been achin' but you're too shy to say it
187. The only one who'll hang out with me is my dear old granddad
188. Things are going great, and they're only getting better Future's so Bright, I gotta wear shades; Timbuk 3
189. So you better treat her right
190. It's time to bring this ship in to the shore and throw away the oars forever Can't Fight this Feeling, REO Speedwagon
191. We are the ones who make a brighter day, so let's start giving We Are the World
192. We could dance and party all night, and drink some cherry wine
193. Dressed up like a million-dollar trooper
194. You've got to find a way, say what you want to say
195. Sail away with me to another world
196. I'll be your friend, I'll help you carry on Lean on Me, Bill Withers
197. Welcome to the big time, you're bound to be a star
198. Yo no soy marinero, por ti sere, por ti sere, por ti sere La Bamba, Los Lobos
199. Work all day to earn his pay, so we can play all night
200. Ever since you've been leaving me, I've been wanting to cry
201. Baby baby when I look at you, I get a warm feeling inside
202. And when we hear the voices sing, the book of love will open up and let us in Broken Wings, Mister Mister
203. Some of them want to abuse you, some of them want to be abused Sweet Dreams, Eurythmics
204. He's licking his lips, he's ready to win, on the hunt tonight for love at first sting
205. I have a picture pinned to my wall Hold Me Now, Thompson Twins
206. I can see a new horizon underneath the blazin' sky
207. You'll flow down her river, she'll ask and you'll give her
208. Earth below us drifting falling floating weightless Major Tom, ??
209. Ooh baby, do you know what that's worth?
210. I know when to pull you closer and I know when to let you loose
211. Let me hear your body talk Physical, Olivia Newton John
212. Won't you pack your bags, we'll leave tonight
213. The beating of our hearts is the only sound I think we're alone now/remake, Tiffany
214. And if this world runs out of lovers, we'll still have each other
215. Is it so wrong to be human after all?
216. There is good and bad (mmmm-hmmm) in everyone
217. Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken? What's Love Got to Do With It, Tina Turner
218. It's gonna take money, a whole lotta spendin' money Got My Mind Set on You, Travelling Wilburies
219. I'm not the kind of girl who gives up just like that The Tide is High, Blondie
220. It must've been some kind of kiss, I shoulda walked away
221. You see it all around you, good lovin' gone bad Hold on Loosely, 38 Special
222. Ronny, Bobby, Ricky and Mike, if I like a girl, who cares who you like

Well, OK, except for the Barbie part

I'm Penny, which ambiguous dyke are you? Quiz by Turi.

PromoGuy's Monday Mission 2.32

1. If I could guarantee that the Fashion Police would not lay the smackdown on you, which favorite out-of-style article of clothing do you wish you could wear right now? (and if you have photos of you wearing it, post 'em)
Hmmm, I can't say there's one thing I'd bring back that hasn't already *been* back at least once. Maybe those loose, floral hippie-type dresses? Those were really comfortable. And dashikis.

2. In your opinion, who is famous but shouldn't be?
Josh Hartnett. Of course, I'm exaggerating here. He deserves to be famous, I guess. But I can't understand just how popular he is, or why he made the recent People list of great actors. I just don't think his work (quality *or* quantity) supports that, at least not yet.

3. Are there any new movies or TV shows that you are forward to this fall?
I am *so* out of TV that I have no clue what's no now, let alone in the fall. Movie for fall would, I guess, be the second DVD release of "Lord of the Rings" with the extra half-hour of footage. If I can put in what I *am* looking for in the fall that isn't a new TV show, it would be the return of Anthony Stewart Head to "Buffy."

4. If you had a time machine that you could use only one time (there and back), where would you go and what would you do?
Ask me next month and I might have a different answer, but for now, I wish I'd gone to San Diego ComiCon the first weekend in August.

5. What cologne of perfume do you like to wear? Which brand do you prefer that your partner wear?
I generally like the spicier orientals and the victorian florals--no particular brands preferred. I used to have a favorite cologne for men, but I've forgotten its name! (for friends: it was that one Praedy used to wear)

6. Do you recall your first "French kiss?" Tell me about how that felt, and how it came about. Do you like them?
I was a sophomore or junior in high school, dating an older guy for the first time. It was on the sidewalk outside of my house (while I was wondering who in my house or neighborhood might be watching). I was so caught up in finally *being* kissed that I can't say I remember if I actually liked it or not.

7. Excluding your partner...If you had the opportunity, who would you most like to French kiss?
Hmmm.... Because he has a reputation for not being a good kisser and I'd like to find out for myself (and, I hope, be able to report that the reputation was WRONG): Elijah Wood

BONUS: Can't you see that it's late at night?
This is two weeks in a row I haven't understood the bonus question! I am *so* out of it...