Category Archives: Media/TV

7 Quick Takes: RNC Stupidity, Pokémon Go, and Baseball Commentary

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7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

*snickers* Someone has made a Pokémon Go app for moms called Chardonnay Go. In it, you can hunt for glasses of Chardonnay all over your neighborhood to collect. It’s not for me because I can’t drink but I can definitely see this being popular with other mamas this summer! (Yes, I know it’s a parody.)

— 2 —

Seriously, Cleveland? According to CNN.Com, guns are allowed at the Republican National Convention but tennis balls are not. There is an entire list of banned items and some of them make sense (bombs, lasers, grappling, hooks, and crowbars for example) while others are just stupid (ice chests and tennis balls). Guns seem to be missing from the “ban” list. Just because you *CAN* open carry in Ohio doesn’t mean you *SHOULD*, especially in a politically-charged atmosphere with large crowds of people.

I can conceive of this not ending well…

— 3 —

More Pokémon Go fun. The meditation garden at my Episcopal church in southern California is apparently a Pokémon gym and the statue of the Blessed Mother has many of the creatures gathered around it. Figuring that this was a good way to do outreach, the vicar attached a brace of VBS flyers around the neck of the statue. I’m wondering how many kiddos will be at VBS there this year because either they or their parents were playing Pokémon Go and happened across the flyers.

— 4 —

Donald, where’s your trousers? This is an interesting piece on “utilikilts”.

And just for fun…

— 5 —

They needed some meddling kids. The FBI just closed the D.B. Cooper skyjacking case. Whether or not D.B. Cooper lived, he got away with it. The event meant that airliners now have doors that can’t be opened from the inside (the device is named after Cooper) and there have been episodes of shows like Leverage which have touched on the case in some way.

— 6 —

Prerequisite baseball take #1. Was anyone else wondering what the MLB was thinking with those UGLY uniforms for the All-Star game? I mean, seriously? Yellow and brown together like that??? And the lettering? I’m thinking that they need fire whoever came up with those!!!

— 7 —

Prerequisite baseball take #2. Anyone want to guess whose baseball team has the best record in the country currently? 🙂 Yep… that would be my Giants. 🙂 I should also mention that THEY ARE 6.5 GAMES IN FRONT OF THE LOSERS FROM LA RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!! Just sayin’.

For more Quick Takes, visit Kelly at This Ain’t The Lyceum.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: July 10, 2016

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For Today… July 10, 2016

Simple Woman's Daybook

Looking out my window… dark. It was a beautiful day today with temperatures in the 70’s. I’m loving the climate here in Washington.

I am thinking… about my meeting with the insurance agent tomorrow to get my policy changed to Washington. It won’t be bad but it’s one more thing to cross off my to-do list.

I am thankful… for a good visit with my evil twin, his long-suffering wife, and her family. I’m also really thankful that after a few days of being a pill, Daniel had a pretty good day.

One of my favorite things… a day when my alarm doesn’t have to be set and I can sleep in. That’s not going to be happening for a while though.

I am wearing… jammies. Church clothes were a black fitted tee from Old Navy, a black paisley skirt from Kohl’s, and my black cardigan from Kohl’s. After church, I traded my skirt and cardigan for jeans.

I am creating… emails.

I am watching… COPS: Reloaded. I’m a cop show junkie.

I am hoping… certain emails of mine eventually get answered this week.

I am learning… where all the cool farms are in the area.

In my kitchen… tri-tip, potatoes, and salad tonight with a surprise birthday cake for my sister-in-law for dessert.

In the school room… Daniel is enjoying ESY and good reports are coming home for him each day. It isn’t surprising — he loves school and tends to be a sweet kid there.

Post Script… a friend shared this piece on why #AllLivesMatter is offensive to #BlackLivesMatter supporters. The gist: all lives *SHOULD* matter but, in practice, they don’t.

Shared Quote… “… Reading the Scriptures in church has to be an authentic proclamation of the reader’s faith. Preparation is essential – there are far too many last-minute readings in our churches.” — Olivia de Havilland on reading Scripture as a lector.

Closing Notes: I’m hoping this week to be able to write something on why I don’t weigh in on everything that happens in the media and why there is frequently radio silence from me these days after a week like last week.

Hosted by The Simple Woman.

{five favourites}: Miscellanea (LXVII)

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#5Faves

One

Grey kitties. My parents’ grey kitty Homer really wants to be Daniel’s friend. Daniel is afraid of him. If Homer is on the bed passed out on my chest, Daniel will stay off my bed. Guess how I’m enforcing the expectation of Daniel sleeping in his own room? You guessed it — lots of Homer snuggles at night. Homer seems to be a fan. 😉

Two

The MLB All-Star Game roster. While I’d prefer to have the infield all be from the Giants, I’m happy that Buster Posey is the starting catcher. The best part about the ASG starting roster? NO DODGERS ARE STARTING PLAYERS!!!! #BeatLA #GoNationalLeague

You can also vote for the final player from each league to be added. My recommendation: Brandon Belt from the Giants for the NL spot. He’s a fabulous hitter and a good first baseman.

Three

Schuh Farms. They’re a local farm that Mom and I discovered while making a run to the county recycling facility with a load of paper and cardboard. They were advertising homemade pie and ice cream. We went back to find it a few weeks later and have patronized them a couple times a week since. I normally hate pie (I loathe pie crusts) but their cherry pies are amazingly good. We also got some cheese curds there from another local farm and they were good enough that they barely made it into the house!

Four

This Stephen Colbert video. I recommend watching the original video.

Five

“Rockelbel’s Canon” by The Piano Guys This never fails to make me laugh. The embed script isn’t working so here’s the link.

Go love up Bonnie, babystylista, and the others.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: June 26, 2016

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For Today… June 26, 2016

Simple Woman's Daybook

Looking out my window… dark. It was a beautiful and sunny day with temps in the 70’s.

I am thinking… about the re-assembly of some pieces of her bedroom furniture which will be taking place tomorrow with the help of her dad and a drill. *bites thumb at IKEA* Mom might want to hide the flame thrower for another few days…

I am thankful… for the soft grey beast at my feet. He’s not the brightest cat in the world but he is a love.

One of my favorite things… Tillamook ice cream. *drools*

I am wearing… jammies. Church clothes this morning were a black patterned top, my black slacks, and my very awesome Naturalizer flats. (These are seriously the best dress shoes I have ever owned.) After church, I went with my charcoal shirt from Old Navy and my black capris from Kohl’s. (Yes, I was wearing this last week. I have a tiny wardrobe, OK?)

I am creating… this blog entry. 🙂

I am watching… Mythbusters. I heart science, engineering, and big explosions.

I am hoping… we can get my dresser and nightstand fixed tomorrow. Failing that, I’m hoping IKEA is willing to ship some new parts.

I am learning… that it’s a bit painful to pound a wire nail into one’s finger. (Don’t ask. Just don’t ask.)

In my kitchen… frozen dinners tonight. We’re still not in the groove in terms of cooking here.

In the school room… Daniel starts ESY next week. Yay!

Post Script… Here are some interesting conspiracy theories in which people believe. *goes off to make some tinfoil hats for people she knows that do actually believe that stuff*

A moment from my day… Daniel helping my mom with the yard.

Daniel helping with the yard.

Hosted by The Simple Woman.

7 Quick Takes: Assembling Furniture and Other Events This Week

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7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

Brexit. So the UK just voted to leave the European Union, Scotland voted to stay in, and Ireland is talking about unifying.

Yeah, I think the next Mad Max film will have something to do with the British Isles.

— 2 —

Furniture assembling. My IKEA furniture arrived on Tuesday so I spent Tuesday night and Wednesday assembling the furniture. I got 4 pieces of furniture assembled, managed to hammer a wire nail into one of my fingers, poked another finger with another nail, and hammered one of my thumbs. Given that my fingers are grumpy and stiff right now, my mom might want to hide the flamethrower for another few days until everything is assembled and my boxes are completely unpacked.

— 3 —

Prerequisite baseball take. The Giants are 6 games ahead of the Dodgers in the NL West standings. Just sayin’.

— 4 —

Required basketball take. I’m from the Bay Area so OBVIOUSLY I was watching the game on Sunday… and booing the Cavaliers like mad because LeBron James is seriously lame compared to Steph Curry and the Warriors still had a better regular season than the Cavs could ever hope to have. It was a close game to the last minute and I’m looking at seeing what the Warriors can do next year!

— 5 —

The Senate sit-in. Y’all, I’m proud of the Democratic Congresscritters for their sit-in (especially as it was for an actual issue instead of Ted Cruz’s filibuster which was purely for the sake of filibustering and not for any discernible reason) but seriously, singing “We Shall Overcome” was a bit too campy. Could you pick a more appropriate song?

— 6 —

Oooohhh… flannelgraph. The Babylon Bee story about Trump aides hurriedly teaching him Bible stories ahead of his meeting with evangelicals sounded a whole lot like the truth instead of satire. Again, just sayin’.

— 7 —

A big reason to move to Washington. It’s been chilly and rainy here for the last few days and every so often, I’ll look at my phone and thank my lucky stars that I’m not in northern California or southern California where it will be in the 90’s or in the 100’s in the next few days. I seriously prefer cold to excessive heat. I have found my tribe up here.

For more Quick Takes, visit Kelly at This Ain’t The Lyceum.

{five favourites}: Miscellanea (LXV)

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#5Faves

One

This piece on the origins of common sayings. If you’re into linguistics, this is pretty fascinating.

Two

This acrobatic gymnastics routine from Australia. One of the things that I have gotten addicted to in the midst of fibromyalgia-induced insomnia is watching acrobatic gymnastics on YouTube. This isn’t the most amazing routine but I love that the women are having a blast and it reminds me of a vaudeville act.

Three

This episode of “The World’s Strictest Parents”. “The World’s Strictest Parents” is another late night YouTube addiction. This one involves two Aussie teens being sent to live with a strict family in Ireland. I think I love it because the family is very chill and the Irish accent is calming for me.

Four

This piece on the autism spectrum. The autism spectrum isn’t linear — it’s spherical because not every person processes things the same way or has the same deficits.

Five

Naps with kitties. I had a purry tiger (Jethro) hanging out with me this morning and he stayed on my bed even after I got up to take his brother (Homer) to the vet. (He had an abscess.) Because he is not allowed outside EVER AGAIN for a week, Homer decided to be a lap kitty this afternoon. I think he was sick of bumping into furniture because of his cone of shame. 🙂

Go love up Bonnie and the others.

7 Quick Takes: TGIAF!

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7 Quick Takes

It’s been an insane week here and I have one more thing tomorrow before I feel like I can breathe again. Thank goodness it’s almost Friday!

— 1 —

Prayer request. The person assigned to Daniel at the Lodi Social Security Office fouled up his SSI payments and I have an appeal hearing tomorrow on some issues related to them. Please lift me in prayer around noon PDT. Thanks!

— 2 —

Climate change deniers. This video explains climate change in a way that even Donald Trump supporters can understand. 😉

— 3 —

One last political take. While I am completely overjoyed at Ted Cruz dropping out of the race and Carly Fiorina being an even bigger loser than before, I’m kind of bummed that I won’t be using this picture more often…

Thank goodness this isn't a possible combination in the White House!

— 4 —

I want this shirt! My birthday is two weeks from today and I will be your BFF if you get me this shirt in green and XL.

— 5 —

On the homeschooling front… Dawn of Ladydusk wrote this amazing piece on starting to homeschool and what she learned from it. I recommend reading it if you think you eventually want to homeschool your kids as Dawn is a mom I trust for this kind of thing.

— 6 —

Making a crossbow out of office supplies. This is kind of cool.

— 7 —

Doctrine vs. discipline. Simcha nails it with her post on Ascension, the crazy go nuts schedule of her kids, and why it actually matters to make it to Mass if it’s a holy day in your diocese. (San Jose abrogates it to Sunday.)

For more Quick Takes, visit Kelly at This Ain’t The Lyceum.