I don't smoke, so I barely turn my head when I hear people talking about tobacco taxes. But this article really made me look. Can you imagine? Seattle is facing a proposed espresso tax. That's getting a little too close to home.

After a long process of nomination and elimination, we came up with our list of....
The 25 Most Beautiful Men in Christian Music

I should have said that something beautiful is on the way. ;)

Hang in there, T. Babysitting a band is hard work, but you'll make it. "I think I can; I think I can." Scrape them up at the luge and then send them off to do a show in their bandages. Seems to have worked for you before. Haha.

Bossman is coming in today. Must work first. Play later.

Something brilliant is on the way -- patience.

My heart is going out to the families of the minors who are trapped in the mine in Pennsylvania. In a way, it feels like a "Baby Jessica" story for a new generation.

In happier news... Ern is coming tonight... Ern is coming tonight!

Friday Five (.org)
1. How long have you had a weblog? Since September 2nd of last year. I was visiting Jack & Manda and started it there for some reason.
2. What was your first post about? Well, you can read it yourself. It was really kind of pointless, but I did not want it to be one of those "well, this is my first post" type of entries... nor did I want it to just say "testing".
3. How many changes (name, location, etc.) of your weblog have there been, if more than one? None.
4. What CMS (content management system) do you use? Do you like it or do you want to try something else? Blogger
5. Do you read people who have both a journal and a weblog? Or do you prefer to read people who have all of their writing in one central place? I like those with a mixture of both. Straight up journals get kind of boring if I don't know the person and don't have anything invested in whether they get that job they applied for or not or whatever. At the same time, those that link to every article on cnn or salon with their own personal commentary gets a little monotonous after a while too. Yeah, you may be passionate about your views, but that doesn't make you interesting.

Friday Group Therapy 1.5
1. How well did you do in History class in school? I wasn't really into it at the time, so I didn't really want to do well. In high school I had Pfeister, which made it more interesting.
2. Who is your favorite historical "good" person? Catherine the Great
3. Who is your favorite historical "bad" person? Al Capone
4. Is there a historical event or era that has caught your imagination? The Middle Ages specifically in England and France.
5. If you could choose any historical time and place to live, where and when would you choose? Probably during the Renaissance in England. I'm not sure I'm completely cut out for all aspects of it, but I think of it as such a romantic time.
6. If you could go back in time with your present knowledge intact, where would you go and what would you do? Is this like a Quantum Leap type of question? Try to save the world by altering the course of history? That's tough. Maybe someone should go back to about 7am on September 11th and pull fire alarms at the world trade center.
7. Which version of the beginning of time do you subscribe to? (Big Bang, Biblical Creation, etc...) Biblical Creation
Bonus: Call and/or visit a friend or family member who you have not seen in a while. I haven't seen Erin since GMA Week, does that count? Actually, I have intentions of trying to get ahold of Mark this weekend... we haven't spoken in a good year or so.

Last night I was reading a book my mother had given me months and months ago. A bookmark fell out that had the following poem on it:

Just for Today
by Sibyl F. Partridge

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL BE HAPPY. This assumes that what Abraham Lincoln said is true, that "most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." Happiness is from within; it is not a matter of externals.

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL ADJUST MYSELF TO WHAT IS, AND NOT TRY TO ADJUST EVERYTHING TO MY OWN DESIRES. I will take my family, my business, and my luck as they come and fit myself to them.

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL STRENGTHEN MY MIND. I will learn something useful. I will not be a mental loafer. I will read something that requires effort, thought and concentration.

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL EXERCISE MY SOUL IN THREE WAYS; I will do somebody a good turn and not get found out. I will do at least two things I don’t want to do, as William James suggests, just for the exercise.

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL BE AGREEABLE. I will look as well as I can, dress as becomingly as possible, talk low, act courteously, be liberal with praise, criticize not at all, nor find fault with anything and not try to regulate nor improve anyone.

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL TRY TO LIVE THROUGH THIS DAY ONLY, NOT TO TACKLE MY WHOLE LIFE PROBLEMS AT ONCE. I can do things for twelve hours that would appall me if I had to keep them up for a lifetime.

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL HAVE A PROGRAM. I will write down what I expect to do every hour. I may not follow it exactly, but I will have it. It will eliminate two pests; hurrying and indecision.

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL HAVE A QUIET HALF HOUR ALL BY MYSELF AND RELAX. In this half hour sometimes I will think of God, so as to get a little more perspective into my life.

JUST FOR TODAY, I WILL BE UNAFRAID. Especially I will not be afraid to be happy, to enjoy what is beautiful, to love and to believe that those I love, love me.

I thought that was beautiful. For some reason that last phrase struck me... "to believe that those I love, love me." *sigh*

On a lighter note, I found this via The Jason Continuum:
One Hundred Albums You Should Remove From Your Collection Immediately

Let's just see how many of these offenders are in my own expansive cd family...
• U2 - The Joshua Tree
My defense: I owned War first, and it is not the only U2 album I have.
• The Police - Synchronicity
My defense: Yeah, they touch on strange topics for their happy-go-lucky songs... (anybody actually listened to the lyrics of "Wrapped Around Your Finger"?) but they are wrong about this one.
• Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
My defense: This one is not my favourite Zeppelin album either, but it's still Zeppelin.
• Pulp Fiction - Original Soundtrack
My defense: Die. That movie defined a period in my life. haha.
• Arrested Development - 3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days in the Life Of...
My defense: There are a couple keepers on there. It contains my theme-song for my move to Tennessee.
• No Doubt - Tragic Kingdom
My defense: I cannot bring myself to listen to this one, but when my brother offered it to me, I had to take it.... Ahh -- Memories of hearing "Spiderwebs" and "Don't Speak" three times a day while we were on tour.
• Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
My defense: It's okay, but it is essential if you are ever going to attempt The Dark Side of the Rainbow (aka The Wizard of Floyd). Which I did do with Greg Gilbertson, and it was weird how well things matched up.
• Sarah McLachlan - Surfacing
My defense: I have none.
• U2 - War
My defense: Crap... didn't know this one was on there too.
• Counting Crows - August and Everything After
My defense: Okay, this is going too far. Yes, I hate "Round Here" (aka Brown Deer) and "Mr. Jones and Me"... but the rest is wonderful!
• Sting - Ten Summoner's Tales
My defense: I beg to differ.
• The Doors - The Best of the Doors
My defense: Hey, I went to college. I was required listening.

Okay, that's it. I do have to give them props for putting Songs in A Minor on there. At least someone else recognizes how not-entertaining she is.

Weird Find of the Day:
Chris Kirkpatrick's Fuman Skeeto business card -- found in one of the files I was putting away today. I wonder if I could sell it on ebay.

Home of the Underdogs: A non-profit site dedicated to the preservation and promotion of underrated PC games (and a few non-PC games) of all ages: good games that deserve a second chance after dismal sales or critical reviews that [they] feel are unwarranted.

Michael wants me to go into business with him by making and selling my tie skirts. He doesn't understand that my creations are my babies, and I can't bear to part with them... especially if it means that some uncool person will be walking around in one of them. I need a skirt adoption program, where I can screen the wearers.

Huge Beings List - You can't beat huge beings. And for the record, I have actually seen the giant Pocahontas, the giant Happy Chef, and the Jolly Green Giant.

I have been listening to Jimmy Eat World's Clarity today, which I think is far superior than Bleed American (aka Self-Titled). I actually have it on shuffle with Hans's stuff. (This is the first time I've listened to it with my peripheral speakers hooked up to the laptop, and it is even better than before. He is brilliant, and I'm not just saying that.)

Speaking of stuff from mp3.com, I found out that Celldweller is on there. I first heard this stuff on Grant's producer reel last summer, and I took a liking to it for some reason.

BaldRUs.com - be sure to take note of the Hall o' Famer towards the bottom. Hehe. He doesn't have internet, so I may have to print that page out and run it over to him one of these days. That's great.

Trailer for The Two Towers gets better every time I see it.

We had a gran mal thunderstorm here this afternoon, which ended up knocking out my modem for a time. It was worth it though. Amazing.

Okay, I'm out.

Which Peanuts Character Are You Quiz

That's kind of funny actually, because the other night Beth and I were driving around. There was this rusted out early 70's chevy parked by this building, and I said, "Ahh, that is such a great car. With a little fix-up." She started giggling, so I asked her what her deal was. She said, "You are so eccentric. It's funny."

I miss Ted.

So I suppose this absence brings up the question "Is it better to blog about nothing than to not blog at all?"

I was feeling uninspired. Nothing of note has happened.

Bizarro Dream Last Night Recap:
I was stage manager for a production of The Music Man being done at my high school theatre, except the green room was more like one of those hotel rooms that has a door to the room next door. Oh... and Rob Zombie was in the chorus. Feel free to post your interpretations for that one, because all I can figure is that I need to lay off the coffee before bedtime.

Last Friday's Five
1. Where were you born? Sioux Center, Iowa
2. If you still live there, where would you rather move to? I haven't lived there in about six years. I love it there, but I would be hard-pressed to move back.
3. Where in the world do you feel the safest? My parents' house.
4. Do you feel you are well-traveled? In comparison to some, I suppose so. When I was on the road, we were in 30 of the 50 states... and I think when we were little kids my parents took us to a few others as well. However, I have yet to go abroad, and I have so many dream destinations that it isn't even funny.
5. Where is the most interesting place you've been? Hell, Michigan :)

I'm being productive today. We will return to your regularly-scheduled procrastination tomorrow.

I have spent most of today channelling my inner taoist while trying to rearrange the furniture in this office. I don't know if I'm really down with the whole feng shui thing, but certain arrangements "feel" better than others. I think it's mostly because the floor in here isn't level (God bless old houses!), so if I sit in certain places, my chair starts rolling away by itself.

city slogans: I love it. Le Mars, Iowa is the Ice Cream Captiol of the World, by the way.

I spoke to Paul about the website issues today. :) He just groaned and said they are willing to go with anything that is remotely cool. Hehe. I told him I had just the person, and that I'd get in contact with him about it. (How do you like that, Tash?)

Google! DayPop! This is my blogchalk: English, United States, Tennessee, Danielle, Female, 21-25!

(thanks Danielle & BlogChalk)

I think I watched almost 25 minutes of the Ethics Hearing for Rep. James Traficant on CSPAN last night, because I couldn't stop looking at that hairpiece.

Having worked with youth in the past, I am a bit troubled by the amount of information kids are giving out about themselves online these days. I sent out an email this afternoon after coming across a webpage by a girl who had listed her full name, age, school, and parents' names. It took me all of 30 seconds to find her address and phone number off whitepages.com. I was so tempted to call her mother, but I sent an email to her instead saying that she should be a little more cautious, because if I could find this info, so could any kidnapper. I have yet to hear back.


Which Cure single are you?

Some days I wish I understood more Spanish. But somehow I don't think this page would make sense even if I did.



Question of the day.

Door to Door, the story of salesman Bill Porter, was very well done. Quite touching. William H Macy did a beautiful job, and though I'm not normally a huge Kyra Sedgwick fan, she was lovely in the part of the friend. I had heard a story on Bill Porter some time ago. I am interestd in reading the book by Shelly Brady -- Ten Things I Learned from Bill Porter.

I found this very funny. A Guide to the Menu at Starbucks: "Approaching the counter, you will notice two things; the rabid, smiling barista behind the counter and the unintelligible menu. These people behind the counter are really quite hyper; just as you would expect from someone who spends eight hours a day drinking coffee. Some of these baristas may also exhibit a superiority complex. Don't take any notice, though, as most of them are finishing up a masters degree in art history (or something) and very well may be as superior as they think."

I am in the beginning stages of a new project. (I come up withthese new projects all the time. Or rather, I come up with the concept of these projects all the time. I don't know exactly how many I actually follow through with. Is it possible to be easily bored and easily amused at the same time?) I'm going to research famous walls... (i.e. Hadrian's Wall, Great Wall o' China, Berlin Wall, et al.) for no real purpose other than to learn more about them. Maybe I could make it my goal to get a photo on or near them.

No Friday Five last week, but I stumbled across this Friday Group Therapy thing that seemed a little clever. So I thought I'd give it a whirl.

Friday Group Therapy 1.3
1. Tell us about your first concert. I forget. My grandparents had season tickets to the shows that got brought in to the local college, and I went with them.
2. Tell us about your last concert. if I had done this on Friday, as is suggested, it would have been Dave Matthews Band last Tuesday. However, Saturday we saw Newsboys (and actually watched from the board for once).
3. Tell us about your favorite concert. I am going to have to go with Live in Grand Rapids at the then newly constructed Van Andel Arena. Their light show was spectacular, and Ed is such a beautiful man.
4. Tell us about your least favorite concert. Gin Blossoms at Luther College. What a bunch of self-righteous prima donnas! They were basically berating their sound guy the whole time I was there. (The show was in a gymnasium; I'm not sure what acoustics they were expecting.) I'm all about non-verbal communication between artists and technicians, and if you do need to say something into a mic about needing more vocal or something, be discreet about it. I left early.
5. What kind of music do you love? Anything original. I like music that is clever and intelligent... making use of interesting chord progressions and time signatures. Doesn't have to be of any particular genre. Although, I will always be a fan of classic rock. :)
6. What kind of music do you hate? I am so over all these acoustic-guitar-driven rock bands that are out right now. I don't like Creed. I won't listen to Lifehouse. I just don't dig those acoustic yet grungy bands that all sound the same. Come to think of it, I don't really like much of anything that is out on the radio right now.
7. How important is music in your life? Where would I be without it? Jobless, hobby-less, social-life-less, self-therapy-less.

Ouch.

Feeling the after-effects of the Son of Beast -- "the tallest, fastest, and only looping wooden coaster on the planet".

That's right, we were at Kings Island all day yesterday, and we only got on two rides. The lines were impossibly long, and after waiting for 3.5 hours for one, it ended up breaking down right as we were about to get on. Grr. But Chanel and I did get on Face/Off before we had to leave... thanks to a security guard who walked us up the exit.

Highlights of Girls Weekend 2002:
• The traffic jam -- I got out and took pictures of the other girls in the car. We were stopped next to a bus filled with army men. And we got to see what happens when a pick-up truck ignites.
• The Kings Island experience
• The NB show -- although an I-beam was out on stage left, and it bothered me the entire show.
• The hotel worker guy who told us how to get to Steak&Shake.
• Lunch outside on the floating Fridays.

Theme song for the weekend:
Hot in Here - Nelly

Read the beginning of Shine: Make Them Wonder What You've Got last night. I took chapters 5 & 6 of the manuscript with me to Florida, so it was nice to see how the book starts. :) Interesting perspective in there. Plus I like the glow-in-the-dark cover.

Okay fine, T. Mobiles can be useful for international calls we don't want intercepted by the bossman. :P

I have completely sold out. I am now less of a person. I'm so embarrassed.

Yesterday I had to get a cellphone for work. Thanks to Sprint PCS, I have 4000 minutes a month to blow on that crappy little device better known as a leash.

I hate cellphones mostly because they are phones. I have a telephone at my house. Do I use it? Not unless absolutely necessary. Why not? I just don't dig mindless chit-chat. Sure, if it is someone who I have not seen in ages and we are catching up on our lives, yeah, that is nice. When someone has something important to say -- i.e. birth of a child (Congrats, Seth & Marlo! You could have called me, you know!), death of a family member (sympathies to the Cunninghams), audition results (go Manda!), or anything else newsworthy... I'm all about that. I guess since I don't like talking about myself (why do I blog then? I don't know.), unless you have something to say yourself, I don't see the point in phonecalls. But that's me.

I think I am most upset because I am going to be that person. You know who I am talking about. The person in line at the deli who answers a call pausing every couple seconds to amend their order. I do not want to be, but the point of the cellphone is so that my boss can reach me whenever he wants.

Last weekend at the airport, I had to listen to this woman blab on and on with the person who had apparently just dropped her off there. Most people don't yell into their home telephones, why do they feel compelled to do so on a mobile? So it was completely distracting for those of us who were trying to read or think or whatever people do while waiting for departure.

I admit it; I had another cellphone before this one. However it stayed in my glovebox only to be used in emergencies. I never even had a clue what the number to it was. This was good cellphone useage to me. Emergencies. Good plan.

At least I'm not the only one who feels this way:

• "I hate cell phones. I hate them like I hate the guy in the log truck who doesn't pull into the left lane so I can merge. I hate them like that ten-minute commercial span between 9:25 and 9:35 during my favorite television program. I hate cellular telephones like I hate mothers who slap their children at K-Mart. Am I making myself clear? I HATE CELL PHONES."
~ Carter Online

• "It is my opinion that 99% of cell phone usage has nothing to do with emergencies, or any other functional purpose whatsoever. Rather, the cell phone becomes an excuse to discuss the very personal details of one’s life in the immediate proximity of complete strangers, and to do so loudly." ~ Maurice Marshfield

• "There you are in a movie theatre, you are watching a movie that you have waited months for and what happens? Some guy gets a call on his cell phone and begins to have a conversation about the movie that you're trying to watch. This is what I call justifiable homocide."
~ Vikar's Rant

• "I don't want to stand in line behind you at the supermarket, listening to how you couldn't find your favorite kind of ice cream. I don't want people walking around with phone holsters, ready to draw at any time." ~ Chris Jungle

Phonebashing.com - I guess I now need to live in fear of becoming a victim of one of these pranks.

Last night can be summed up in two phrases:
• Dave was amazing.
• Michael is an arse.

The concert really was spectacular. As I have mentioned before, I may not be the funnest person to go to a show with, because I get really absorbed in the music and the technical aspects of the production, and I don't really clap or sing or dance or what-have-you. But yeah, it was amazing. "Two Step" went on for about a day and a half; very cool. Though everyone was amazing, I think I was most impressed by Stefan last night. He really grooved. However Carter looked like he was having the most fun.

The only bad thing about the concert experience itself was that I was standing behind Mr. Perpetual Motion, which meant that I, too, had to sway to see around him. He did eventually move over enough that I didn't have to worry about him anymore... but then two rows in front of me, I had Mr. Raise Your Hands If You're Sure whose alter-ego Mr. Get Down With Your Bad Self revealed himself later.

So yeah, Michael announced 15 minutes before we were ready to leave that he was not going to be able to attend. Jerkface. (He had supposedly been trying to call the office.) So there I was with a $50 ticket that was about to go to waste. Fortunately, we were able to make a few calls, and I was escorted by a certain South African gentleman who truly wanted to be there. (far left) (Tash, do you think I should tell the superfans about this one??) Nick was really cool and had really wanted to go, so I like to think that things worked out just as they were meant to be. It was funny listening to the three professional drummers discussing the show on the ride home.

So yeah, that was that. Good times were had by all.

Happy Rex Manning Dave Matthews Day!

Michael is going with me tonight since Mark is out on the east coast this week with Little Big Town. Should be a good time.

Last week we finally found out the name of the band that lives a few doors down from us -- The Poolboys. They have a pretty decent bus. Impressive for a band that isn't signed anyway.

Transformers: Season One is out on DVD. I want to get it for my nephew for his birthday next month, but I'm trying to decide if I should get a copy for myself or just order it now and have it watched in time to send it out to him when I'm finished.

My EIQ (Emotional Intelligence Quotient) is 60. Average is 100. Highest is 200. The thing is, I knew what answers they wanted to hear... but they aren't necessarily what I would do. I thought a lot of the "correct" answers were a load of crap.

Song for the Day:
#41 - Dave Matthews Band

Okay... so I didn't get back online. Here's a brief run-down for anybody who cares:

Friday, July 5
• Went to visit someone else I look forward to seeing everytime I'm home -- my chiropractor. Mmm... feels better now!
• Lunch at the famous and delicious Pizza Ranch -- best pizza in the midwest.
• Went with my nephew and mom to see Lilo & Stitch. Not the best Disney flick but still cute.
• Mexican for dinner with parents and brother & girlfriend.
• Ran into Nate, so went to watch The Emperor's New Groove with him and his friends.
• Stayed up all night playing Bubble Shooter. Addictive.

Saturday, July 6
• Went sailing all day in Yankton. It was hotter than all get out, but once we got on the water, it was beautiful. I sat at the helm for about 45 minutes with my cousin Will closeby in case I ran into trouble. That was such a powerful feeling. My favorite place was out on the bowstem dangling my feet over the water. My uncle took a photo of me doing the "I'm the King of the World" pose out there.
• Then on to the races at Park Jefferson. All the racers I used to know have moved on, but my friend's husband was racing and so was this lady from our church.

Sunday, July 7
• Church
• Lunch at Grandma's.
• Home again, home again, jiggity-jig.

Friday Five
1. Where are you right now? In the basement of my parents' house in northern Iowa.
2. What have you lost recently? I can't find my black knee-length slip. Did I leave it in Orlando?
3. What was the first CD you ever purchased? Does that embarrass you now? I can't remember the first one I bought, but Cory gave me my first one. Change Your World by Michael W. Smith. No, it doesn't embarrass me.
4. What is your favorite kind of writing pen? I just don't like black ink if it can be avoided. I stick with purple or green. My favourite is my purple fountain pen with blue ink.
5. What is your favorite ice cream flavor? Mmm... tonight we had vanilla with fruit soup over it. That's the best.

Happy Independence Day!

Last night as Beth was bringing me to the airport, she suddenly turned and said that she didn't think I should be traveling. Sadly, I said that that thought had occured to me when I woke up yesterday, but I rationalized my travel with the hope that if there were terrorist events that they would at least wait until the fourth. I hate to admit that, but it is true.

Chanel was going on and on about this yesterday. She was telling me about this giant snake head that was found in Maine, but they didn't know where the body was. Not exactly true. Turns out that a snakehead fish from China was found in Maryland. It's quite an ugly thing, that's for sure. She said she saw it on CNN, but I could only find a Reuters article on it. I'm just curious to know how something like that gets out in the wild.

Fun thing I read about on the plane: The Museum of Unusual Things

Spent the afternoon riding around town with mom. Had the top down, so my face is a little rosey tonight.

I was quite impressed with our smalltown fireworks display tonight. I would say it was the best one they have ever had. We used to joke about how they would set off one at a time and give everyone a chance to savor the one before lighting the next. But tonight was really quite exciting. (Though not as exciting as 4th of July in D.C.)

Having a wonderful time. Wish you were here.

And today's Extremely Annoying Background Image award goes to..... Penseira Sinistra. Gah -- that's downright awful. I know they are going for that whole Matrix thing, but man, that's annoying.

I meant to post this profound thought yesterday, but it quite obviously did not work, eh?
"I would rather listen than talk, because I learn more that way. I already know everything I could say."

This is a funny item I found via benhuh.com. The domain introducingmonday.com was registered... but someone else (someone with a weird sense of humor) took the liberty of registering introducingmonday.co.uk.

I have to link to this person simply because their horribly punny blog title made me look: Who let the Blogs out?

I'm leaving tonight! Yay! Four days of cornfield bliss, here I come! I am even refusing to take my computer with me -- but thanks to the glories of e-mailanywhere.com, I will still check in sometime Friday to make sure the place hasn't gone into self-destruct without me. (Though today the server is down and flights for Oklahoma need to be cancelled and flights to SWC need to be rerouted through Phoenix due to the flakey promoter there who keeps going back and forth... grrr. Only 5 more hours of this!)



I'm Hello Kitty Water Fairy!
People I know might get a kick out of this: The Rockstar Game I just signed up myself, so I am not exactly sure what the point is... but hey, everybody wants to be a rockstar, right?

Song for the Day:
Ramble On - Led Zeppelin
Just the best Zeppelin song ever. Ted was just playing it until the phone rang.

6 days until DMB.

I know, I know... I should care more than I do. There was a big hoopla last night with the House trying to pass a tax-plan which didn't happen, so today 22,000 state employees did not report to work. And there is a part of me that had aspirations of going into politics... but last night we just wanted to go out and join the picketers downtown -- only we were going to make random signs promoting the bands we work for/are in. It was going to be great.

Played and conquered Metal Slug 3 with Hans last night. Nothing like playing old arcade games until 3am!


It's hot here.