Book of Randomness

I grew up with cats, dogs, turtles, etc. Not all at the same time, and not in mass quantities, but…

I never thought it would be weird to not have a pet in my home. I was doing fine in college with friends and roommates always present, and never seemed to feel alone. My junior year was a little different since I was living off campus with a biology major (with classes AND labs to deal with) who also had a part time job AND a boyfriend. Needless to say we rarely saw each other.

…and then one fateful night when I was roaming off to the library on campus, I crossed paths with a roughly 7-8 month old cat who was meowing like crazy under my stairs. I felt bad for the clearly distraught little animal, but I had to go, and what on earth was I going to do with a cat that HAD to belong to someone? After a few hours I returned to my apartment only to find the same little cat, who by this time was throwing up from dehydration. I took her in fed her, gave her water and waited for the owners to come and get her.

It’s four years later and I’m still waiting for someone to pick up my crazy little cat. The night I found her is the last time she willingly followed me around. She is what I would consider a ferrel cat (not a mean one). She is afraid of EVERYTHING.

I’m not sure what is going on up in her tiny little head but it is pretty funny sometimes.

Anyway. The point of this post was to talk about how even though I live with people, and other animals, the fact is that sometimes the cat is the thing that cheers me up.

People can make you happy, sad, mad, etc. but pets really only know how to make you happy. Sometimes the cat seems like the only person on my side, and sometimes it is just nice to know I’m not completely alone.

Hey I’ve even had a fish do that before. No matter what your animal of choice is, I highly recommend finding a companion you can live with. And since there are so many out there, please check into local animal rescues or humane societies. You can find cats, dogs, bunnies and birds at most of them.

Make sure you find a pet that will fit with your lifestyle too.

Good luck finding your new friend!

~~For you wannabe winos!~~

Who says good wine has to be expensive??

Whoever they are, I am definitely NOT one of them. I drink Two-Buck-Chuck! There I said it!
(for those of you unaware, I am referring to Trader Joe’s $2 Charles Shaw wine)

Photo from Making Memories.org (more info at the bottom!)

I do not seek out two-buck-chuck, but it is a great thing to have around the house for the last minute wine needs or to add to a dish. It is never GREAT but it is also never AWFUL. It usually is decent tasting wine and you can stock up on it at the $2 price (although I hear it is $3 in NY… bummer). Apparently, Trader Joe’s can afford the cheap price since the wines are left over from different wineries… which is why some are better than others. That could be a rumor though….

So on to the moderately priced wines that everyone should give a shot.

Sidenote: I am not a wine connoisseur (and in fact, I didn’t even know how to spell that), I am just a girl who is trying to learn more about wines by experiencing, tasting and listening to people who think they know what they are talking about. Also, I typically lean towards white wines, but I am open to just about any… red, white, pink, sparkly, bubbly and you name it. Just keep that dessert wine away from me. Especially one flavored like a peach.

Back to the wines…

When I need to bring wine for a special occasion or I just do not want to be thoroughly embarrassed by my poor wine picking skills, I try to be loyal to these brands.

• Beringer-Smooth tasting wines. My favorite is their Chardonnay
• Barefoot-Love the wine AND the bubbly (champagne peeps)
• Yellowglen Sparkling Wines- Pink is one of my favorite wines/champagnes. Smooth tasting with lots of bubbles. The bottle is adorable and who can fault the pink color of the liquid!
• Kendall-Jackson-Always a decent taste!
• Francis Ford Coppola Winery-What can I say? They are a talented family!

The gadgets!!

Opener! – Plus this one comes with a foil cutter and a sweet box!

Keep track of your glass for crying out loud!

The helper – Clinton’s book helps explain wine pairings in a simple manner!

Other books:

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Starting and Running a Winery

Wine All-in-One For Dummies (For Dummies (Cooking))

California Wine For Dummies (For Dummies (Cooking))

Yellowglen Pink and Yellow are supporting National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October) by giving $1 for every bottle sold during the month! Check in out on Making Memories.org and support them in their quest.

That means drink people!

Also, BevMo! has great deals on wine and champagne, especially during their 5 Cent sale. I can usually find Pink! I believe the sale is about to start again!!

Orienteering… despite how it sounds is not going from sushi bar to sushi bar. You can thank our “beginners instructor” for that awesome joke! Just kidding on the awesome part…

Orienteering is defined as a family of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain (Wikipedia definition).

It turns out there are several “sports” such as car, ski, bike and foot orienteering. Who knew?

A few of my friends are doing an adventure race in about a month where they are required to kayak, swim and run while orienteering. They had never been orienteering before, so yesterday they dragged me along for their practice day.

It turns out yesterday was National Orienteering Day, and although I participated in it, I’m still not exactly sure what it meant.

We arrived at the state park around 9:30 in the morning. After gathering our gear (I will list suggestions below) and putting our shoes and sunscreen on, we walked towards the check-in. We were greeted by some very nice gentlemen who helped us newbies through the process.

When you go orienteering, you are given a race number, a map, an electronic key or punch and for beginners, a cheat sheet. Once we had everything, we were sent over to the instructor who is retired military and was trained in orienteering by the US Government. While he was old and a little crazy, he knew exactly how to explain orienteering to us in a clear simplistic manner.

The fundamentals of orienteering are being able to read a topographical map (where squigily lines represent the incline or decline of a mountain), using a compass and recognizing key attributes of the land. Orienteering maps have far greater detail than a regular topographical map.

You will soon become familiar with symbols that stand for “distinctive tree” or “Y in the road.” My friends and I were wondering though… what qualifies a tree as distinctive?

He described orienteering as a three step waltz. The first step is your brain, second is the compass and third is the map. The compass is used to link steps one and two.

Keep in mind that I am not an expert, and since I have only had one experience with orienteering, I am definitely NOT an instructor. So this is where my instruction will end. Go out and find an orienteering club near you, and they will undoubtedly be able to teach you better than I could ever possibly try. The clubs usually host an event once a month, and most never EVER repeat a course twice. Even REI (and possibly other sporting goods stores) offer classes.

Once we finished our first course, we decided we wanted to do another! Not only did it only cost us $2 each for our first course, but it only cost $2 TOTAL for our second. Can we say CHEAP! Great way to spend time with friends or family. Plus it is a great way to exercise. It is two days later and my legs are still a little tired!

Everyone who is semi-active, outdoorsy or likes to camp or hike should hit up an orienteering class or event. You never know when or what could happen in the forrest or dessert, and you may find yourself using orienteering techniques.

Things you will NEED

• Clothes meant for hiking or camping (you will want to make sure you are covered – long sleeves and pants (many people use special bottoms to ensure the undergrowth does not get in their pants or shoes))
• Sunscreen of course
• Compass
• Water

Usually you will not need to bring a map since they will hand it to you just before the event starts…. just to ensure fairness.

You WILL have fun orienteering. Bring a few friends the first time you go and you are sure to have a blast. Keep in mind 4 heads are better than 1 (well usually).

HAVE FUN!!

Orienteering… despite how it sounds is not going from sushi bar to sushi bar. You can thank our “beginners instructor” for that awesome joke! Just kidding on the awesome part…

Orienteering is defined as a family of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain (Wikipedia definition).

It turns out there are several “sports” such as car, ski, bike and foot orienteering. Who knew?

A few of my friends are doing an adventure race in about a month where they are required to kayak, swim and run while orienteering. They had never been orienteering before, so yesterday they dragged me along for their practice day.

It turns out yesterday was National Orienteering Day, and although I participated in it, I’m still not exactly sure what it meant.

We arrived at the state park around 9:30 in the morning. After gathering our gear (I will list suggestions below) and putting our shoes and sunscreen on, we walked towards the check-in. We were greeted by some very nice gentlemen who helped us newbies through the process.

When you go orienteering, you are given a race number, a map, an electronic key or punch and for beginners, a cheat sheet. Once we had everything, we were sent over to the instructor who is retired military and was trained in orienteering by the US Government. While he was old and a little crazy, he knew exactly how to explain orienteering to us in a clear simplistic manner.

The fundamentals of orienteering are being able to read a topographical map (where squigily lines represent the incline or decline of a mountain), using a compass and recognizing key attributes of the land. Orienteering maps have far greater detail than a regular topographical map.

You will soon become familiar with symbols that stand for “distinctive tree” or “Y in the road.” My friends and I were wondering though… what qualifies a tree as distinctive?

He described orienteering as a three step waltz. The first step is your brain, second is the compass and third is the map. The compass is used to link steps one and two.

Keep in mind that I am not an expert, and since I have only had one experience with orienteering, I am definitely NOT an instructor. So this is where my instruction will end. Go out and find an orienteering club near you, and they will undoubtedly be able to teach you better than I could ever possibly try. The clubs usually host an event once a month, and most never EVER repeat a course twice. Even REI (and possibly other sporting goods stores) offer classes.

Once we finished our first course, we decided we wanted to do another! Not only did it only cost us $2 each for our first course, but it only cost $2 TOTAL for our second. Can we say CHEAP! Great way to spend time with friends or family. Plus it is a great way to exercise. It is two days later and my legs are still a little tired!

Everyone who is semi-active, outdoorsy or likes to camp or hike should hit up an orienteering class or event. You never know when or what could happen in the forrest or dessert, and you may find yourself using orienteering techniques.

Things you will NEED

• Clothes meant for hiking or camping (you will want to make sure you are covered – long sleeves and pants (many people use special bottoms to ensure the undergrowth does not get in their pants or shoes))
• Sunscreen of course
• Compass
• Water

Usually you will not need to bring a map since they will hand it to you just before the event starts…. just to ensure fairness.

You WILL have fun orienteering. Bring a few friends the first time you go and you are sure to have a blast. Keep in mind 4 heads are better than 1 (well usually).

HAVE FUN!!

My FAVORITE book EVER! Ok maybe it is my favorite possession….? I guess that could be stretching it, but this book is definitely WAY up there.

So what is it you may ask?

Freakin’ Fabulous by Clinton Kelly. I feel hesitant to share this with everyone because, well if I share, then you may become more fabulous than I am… oh well. The more fabulous people the better!

Everyone has seen the TLC show What Not to Wear on at least one occasion (and if you haven’t, you must be living under a rock). Clinton is half of the hosting duo, Clinton and Stacy. Clinton is also touring the country’s Macy’s stores for Make Over America (sadly I was not chosen ) He is undoubtedly funny on the show, and it translates perfectly into his book. He had me laughing cover to cover.

Freakin’ Fabulous is like my new life bible. I have only had the chance to read it all the way through once, but I frequently refer back to it. I actually began to annoy my friends and family by saying… “Clinton says….” or “According to Clinton…” I even had my DAD quoting the book!! Weird.

By the first few pages of the book you will wish Clinton was your best friend!

Freakin’ Fabulous is the book that you need if you want to know “How to Dress, Speak, Behave, Eat, Drink, Entertain, Decorate, and Generally Be Better than Everyone Else” according to its sub-title!

Highlights of the book… according to moi!

• Dress: Includes everything you need to know from accessories, to tailoring, dressing for certain occasions and a page of very ugly shoes (clearly the DON’T page)
• Speak: Definitely the section I need to read again… and AGAIN. The proper use for words. My greatest accomplishment so far has been taking the “s” off of the end of anyway! The pretty pictures and doodles help my learning… what can I say, I’m a visual person!
• Behave: Don’t butter the entire roll!! Holding wine glasses, eating oysters, texting with company and even a section on “bodily functions.” This section is definitely a must read. Did you know you should never bring your own food item to a party unless requested? I did not know that one, but you can ruin the theme/atmosphere.
• Eat: Four recipes you should MEMORIZE, cutting onions and other great recipes.
• Drink: I was laughing from the first page of this section as Clinton says, “Gin has made me do a lot of stupid things, but I forgive it.” Obviously there are drink recipes in the section, but my part is the section on wine; descriptions, how to serve, how to order and which wine pairs best with your food.
• Entertain: Plan for 1 bottle of wine per person!! Now that sounds like a party! Covers food to serve, music, booting people at the end of the night and making the potty smell nice! The “Mac and Cheese with Bacon” looks and sounds delicious… although it reminds me of the overeating experience I had at Yardhouse.
• Decorate: I cannot wait until I have my own house to be able to do all of this!! Room by room tricks, organization (“Kill the Clutter”), and fresh flowers. Never include baby’s breath or ferns IN an arrangement! Clinton suggests using Flowerbud.com for flowers.

  The book is full of color and information. Clinton has done an amazing job with this book balancing entertainment and information. I suggest it to EVERYONE. Give it to your girlfriends for their birthday or as a bachelorette party gift.

  You don’t NEED a reason, just get the book for crying out loud!! You will thank me later!

My FAVORITE book EVER! Ok maybe it is my favorite possession….? I guess that could be stretching it, but this book is definitely WAY up there.

So what is it you may ask?

Freakin’ Fabulous by Clinton Kelly. I feel hesitant to share this with everyone because, well if I share, then you may become more fabulous than I am… oh well. The more fabulous people the better!

Everyone has seen the TLC show What Not to Wear on at least one occasion (and if you haven’t, you must be living under a rock). Clinton is half of the hosting duo, Clinton and Stacy. Clinton is also touring the country’s Macy’s stores for Make Over America (sadly I was not chosen ) He is undoubtedly funny on the show, and it translates perfectly into his book. He had me laughing cover to cover.

Freakin’ Fabulous is like my new life bible. I have only had the chance to read it all the way through once, but I frequently refer back to it. I actually began to annoy my friends and family by saying… “Clinton says….” or “According to Clinton…” I even had my DAD quoting the book!! Weird.

By the first few pages of the book you will wish Clinton was your best friend!

Freakin’ Fabulous is the book that you need if you want to know “How to Dress, Speak, Behave, Eat, Drink, Entertain, Decorate, and Generally Be Better than Everyone Else” according to its sub-title!

Highlights of the book… according to moi!

• Dress: Includes everything you need to know from accessories, to tailoring, dressing for certain occasions and a page of very ugly shoes (clearly the DON’T page)
• Speak: Definitely the section I need to read again… and AGAIN. The proper use for words. My greatest accomplishment so far has been taking the “s” off of the end of anyway! The pretty pictures and doodles help my learning… what can I say, I’m a visual person!
• Behave: Don’t butter the entire roll!! Holding wine glasses, eating oysters, texting with company and even a section on “bodily functions.” This section is definitely a must read. Did you know you should never bring your own food item to a party unless requested? I did not know that one, but you can ruin the theme/atmosphere.
• Eat: Four recipes you should MEMORIZE, cutting onions and other great recipes.
• Drink: I was laughing from the first page of this section as Clinton says, “Gin has made me do a lot of stupid things, but I forgive it.” Obviously there are drink recipes in the section, but my part is the section on wine; descriptions, how to serve, how to order and which wine pairs best with your food.
• Entertain: Plan for 1 bottle of wine per person!! Now that sounds like a party! Covers food to serve, music, booting people at the end of the night and making the potty smell nice! The “Mac and Cheese with Bacon” looks and sounds delicious… although it reminds me of the overeating experience I had at Yardhouse.
• Decorate: I cannot wait until I have my own house to be able to do all of this!! Room by room tricks, organization (“Kill the Clutter”), and fresh flowers. Never include baby’s breath or ferns IN an arrangement! Clinton suggests using Flowerbud.com for flowers.

  The book is full of color and information. Clinton has done an amazing job with this book balancing entertainment and information. I suggest it to EVERYONE. Give it to your girlfriends for their birthday or as a bachelorette party gift.

  You don’t NEED a reason, just get the book for crying out loud!! You will thank me later!

It may be a little late in the season to discuss boating safety, but since I am fresh off of a boating trip I thought I would share a little bit about what I know and just learned. This is definitely not a complete (or anywhere close to it) list, so check out some boater safety sites before you go on your trip.

Obviously the key thing is to put kids in a life jacket!! It doesn’t matter if they think they look stupid! We ALL look a little silly in them!

Orange Flag You HAVE to have an orange flag up when you have people in the water. Whatever you do, do not forget this and have a friend run over. Major party pooper.

Remember to turn off the prop when your friends and family are getting in and out of the boat.

Drinking High on the list of things NOT to do. Drinking and driving anything is a bad idea. Places that are frequented by “partiers” like Havasu have a zero tolerance policy, meaning if you test positive for ANY alcohol, they are sending you to the big house.

No Wake Zone Always obey this rule. You never know who is watching. Breaking the “No Wake” is like rolling a stop sign… it just gives the cops a reason to pull you over. (My friend was almost arrested because of this)

Wave Runners The passenger is always supposed to wear the safety key. Luckily the cops who almost arrested my friend gave us this lovely tidbit. It makes sense, how else would you know if they fell off?

Also remember that people do not pay attention to wave runners. Keep an eye out for boats in your area.

Lights Boat lights are very important. It is illegal to have a boat out in the water without having lights on it.

Sunscreen Wear it, re-apply it. There is nothing worse than a burn – they make you feel like an idiot because you can’t do something so simple. Plus peeling and skin cancer are hidious side effects.

Other helpful ideas…

• Wear boardshorts when you are wakeboarding or tubing (no one wants their bottoms coming off or going up there tush).
• Take your earings out when tubing. Not only can they fall out, they can go right through your earlob.
• Take plenty of food and water. Boating (especially in the sun or doing activities) can be physically exhausting.
• If you are riding wave runners, or on a boat, make sure the plugs are in… you don’t want to sink.
• Did I mention sunscreen??
• If you rent a boat make sure it has an anchor, large bimini top and a sound system.

  If you do rent a boat, or borrow it, make sure it is in good working condition. Nothing can ruin a boating trip faster than a dysfunctional boat.

I’m not exactly sure what I expected when my friends took me to see the movie “9″. All I knew is several people were interested in seeing in. It was also a successful short movie (short as in 11 minutes and never should have been more) I never even took the time to watch the trailer…

And now I find myself asking…. why?!?! Why did I NOT watch the trailer?

It happened. It’s over. I wasted $10.50 on a weird pointless movie.

I will now try to walk the fine line between telling you why not to see it, and trying not to “ruin” it IF you decide to see it.

Review

Keep in mind this is a “consumer review” and not a “critic review” so this will not be a technical movie guru p.o.v. I am no expert, just someone who (usually) enjoys going to movies.

The question here is: Is “9″ worth seeing?
The answer: I don’t think so.

“9″ is a movie about a puppet named 9 who comes to life in a post apocolyptic world. All of the humans have been killed and the surroundings have been destroyed. 9 quickly discovers the only other “living” things are other puppets created by the scientist (all named 1-8) and the “machines,” who ironically were also created by the scientist.

The movie becomes a fight between the puppets and the machines. The main machine is somehow smart enough to create other machines… who knows what is up with that?

Long story short, here is how I felt during the movie.

The first 15-20 mins seemed to have no point. I found myself wondering if they were ever going to develop a story line. When it FINALLY came, I was pretty dissapointed. About 45 minutes into the movie I started thinking… this can’t be it, there HAS to be more. But there really wasn’t. There were a few shining moments where there were some exciting fights between the machines and puppets. A few sad moments when some of the puppets became “trapped” inside the main machine. The end was just as boring as the beginning. At that point I was still thinking there should have been more, but still, nothing!!

There was very little talking in the movie, and on the rare occasion when there was, it was little more than a “no 9 don’t do it.” Talking becomes VERY important in a movie when you are already bored with it…

The description of the movie says, “They must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.”

I’m not sure there is ever a “reason” why the machines want to destroy them… More importantly, the future of civilization??

***SPOILER***

There are only 4 puppets left at the end of the movie, and as far as I know, puppets do not have reproductive organs… let alone ones that can produce humans. So how exactly is the world supposed to have a future…?? Yeah, I didn’t think that worked either.

The animation is good, and there are times when you can feel for the puppets. Overall, for a Tim Burton (one of four producers) movie, it was undeveloped and dissapointing.

When I asked my friends what they thought of the movie vs. what they expected, they thought it was grossly misrepresented in the trailer.

Final Thought
It seemed as if the creators were more interested in creating a movie that would be able to open on 9.9.09.

I’m not exactly sure what I expected when my friends took me to see the movie “9″. All I knew is several people were interested in seeing in. It was also a successful short movie (short as in 11 minutes and never should have been more) I never even took the time to watch the trailer…

And now I find myself asking…. why?!?! Why did I NOT watch the trailer?

It happened. It’s over. I wasted $10.50 on a weird pointless movie.

I will now try to walk the fine line between telling you why not to see it, and trying not to “ruin” it IF you decide to see it.

Review

Keep in mind this is a “consumer review” and not a “critic review” so this will not be a technical movie guru p.o.v. I am no expert, just someone who (usually) enjoys going to movies.

The question here is: Is “9″ worth seeing?
The answer: I don’t think so.

“9″ is a movie about a puppet named 9 who comes to life in a post apocolyptic world. All of the humans have been killed and the surroundings have been destroyed. 9 quickly discovers the only other “living” things are other puppets created by the scientist (all named 1-8) and the “machines,” who ironically were also created by the scientist.

The movie becomes a fight between the puppets and the machines. The main machine is somehow smart enough to create other machines… who knows what is up with that?

Long story short, here is how I felt during the movie.

The first 15-20 mins seemed to have no point. I found myself wondering if they were ever going to develop a story line. When it FINALLY came, I was pretty dissapointed. About 45 minutes into the movie I started thinking… this can’t be it, there HAS to be more. But there really wasn’t. There were a few shining moments where there were some exciting fights between the machines and puppets. A few sad moments when some of the puppets became “trapped” inside the main machine. The end was just as boring as the beginning. At that point I was still thinking there should have been more, but still, nothing!!

There was very little talking in the movie, and on the rare occasion when there was, it was little more than a “no 9 don’t do it.” Talking becomes VERY important in a movie when you are already bored with it…

The description of the movie says, “They must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.”

I’m not sure there is ever a “reason” why the machines want to destroy them… More importantly, the future of civilization??

***SPOILER***

There are only 4 puppets left at the end of the movie, and as far as I know, puppets do not have reproductive organs… let alone ones that can produce humans. So how exactly is the world supposed to have a future…?? Yeah, I didn’t think that worked either.

The animation is good, and there are times when you can feel for the puppets. Overall, for a Tim Burton (one of four producers) movie, it was undeveloped and dissapointing.

When I asked my friends what they thought of the movie vs. what they expected, they thought it was grossly misrepresented in the trailer.

Final Thought
It seemed as if the creators were more interested in creating a movie that would be able to open on 9.9.09.

First off, thank you to Nicole at Teleflora for actually taking the time to respond to my post on Flower Deliveries. I think it shows something about a company who takes their time to stay in touch with their customers.

On another update note, and not to take away from Teleflora, but when one receives sage advice, one shares.

I received the suggestion from Clinton Kelly (yes that one) to use a website called Flowerbud.com. I immediately trusted the suggestion because according to Freakin’ Fabulous, (which I will write about later this week) Clinton believes in always having fresh flowers in your house (even if it is only in one room). So he is clearly familiar with the website.

Flowerbud.com offers more unique arrangements than some of the others. The site offers detailed descriptions of why they named it the way they did, and which flowers will specifically be in the arrangement. You can still search by occasion like the others offer.

My Favorite Arrangement

What I found most interesting about the site is the “grand boxes” they offer. The boxes are the wholesale options that are perfect for parties or weddings. You can choose from many different flowers such as roses, tulips and sunflowers. Flowerbud.com even has a DIY Wedding Flowers section. If you do decide to do your own wedding flowers, they also offer a 10% discount on flower samples.

While I have not had a chance to use Flowerbud.com, I highly recommend that you give it a try!

Thanks Clinton!!
Freakin’ Fabulous: How to Dress, Speak, Behave, Eat, Drink, Entertain, Decorate, and Generally Be Better than Everyone Else