Site update

Urgh... Been sick today from bad restaurant food yesterday. Fortunately, I've been trying to make lemonade of lemons by updating this site and spiffing up the templates and stuff. This template, with its parchment and brown, appears to be the easiest read of all the blogger templates.

I'm waiting on my huge new fish tank to finish cycling. The bottom is covered in fine, white sand like the beaches in Cancun and heavily planted. Right now, its at a junction where one of two decisions can be made. Should I raise clownfish (the fish in Finding Nemo) or electric yellow cichlids (very smart and social, but highly aggressive fish)? Can't do both because clownies are salt water and cichlids are fresh water. Decisions, decisions!

Thanksgiving Reflections

Oh man, what a Thanksgiving! Cajun-style deep fried turkey, sweet tater pie, and all the other goodies from the south-land were passed round and round my table. Oh, and don't forget buckeyes (an insanely sweet peanut butter and chocolate confection). God bless Alabama and Lousiana style cooking!

Stayed in town this Thanksgiving, so the holiday was a welcome respite from my busy schedule. Unfortunately, few of the remaining maternal relatives I have are still living or in a state they could travel, so we couldn't invite anyone down to visit. My sole maternal uncle enjoyed his first Thanksgiving with his new wife on a huge farm her parents have in Missouri. I heard from my mom that my grandmother was asking about me. Grandma wanted to know when I was going to finish with junior high. (Sadly, my grandmother has very advanced Alzheimer's and doesn't remember that I am 24).

On my dad's family, I have a strange vacuum. For whatever reasons of his own, my father hasn't been in any sort of communication with my paternal relatives since I was a tiny girl. I know I have relatives living on his side of the family, I just don't know how many or even their names. Sometimes it kind of trips me out that I could be walking down the street past grandparents or uncles or aunts or first cousins and never even know it. But anyways, kin is kin and I hope they had blessed Thanksgivings as well, even if I don't know their names or faces.

Spent lots of time with Charles and his family too, which was one of the best parts of the holiday. :) Time to bust out the gift wrap and holiday spirit and get ramped up for Christmas!

Biscuit of the Day - The Incredibles

Today's Biscuit of the Day is the movie The Incredibles! A charming and apt portrayal of family relations, you almost forget they aren't real people. I'm not going into detail on the plot, but I will say it does have a lot of Ayn Rand-ian debates over mediocrity versus your personal best. If you liked The Fountainhead, you'll like this movie.

3 cheers for Pixar! Disney's going to hurt when they finally sever distribution ties with Job's latest success, especially since it seems they've only been releasing sequels to existing titles. Bambi 3: Return of the Mother, anyone?

Biscuit of the Day - More Modern Jazz

More iTunes links to jazz albums I want to get. This is an eclectic collection that spans the 20s onward.

1. John Coltrane - Another inspiration to the evolution of jazz in the 60s. My favorite albums are A Love Supreme and Blue Train.
2. Wayne Shorter - Juju (Remastered) . Lively, upbeat album.
3. Sonny Rollins - A Night at the Village Vanguard (Remastered). Bluesy jazz, a deeper lead sax than most of the other albums.
4. Coleman Hawkins - Body & Soul. This album has more of a swing influence to it.

On another note, I sure am glad (as we probably all are) that Kerry conceded the election with grace. The election proceedings were great to watch....they were televised almost like a football game! (Up to the minute coverage and instant replay of the hanging chad!)