Here There Be Dragons

Happy Early 4th

Thu, 3 Jul 08 08:48:00 UT

I probably won't be posting on here again until sometime on Monday, so I just wanted to wish a happy 4th to all of my friends and readers in the States. And to those of you not in the states, how about a happy weekend?

My stomach has been in a state of turmoil over the past few days. I don't know which is more annoying, having to constantly run to the bathrom while trying to watch a 2 year old or the constant pain I'm having. Ugh to both. I think I might be under the weather. Probably a stomach bug or some bad food or whatnot. Hopefully I can get some rest and relaxation this weekend and overcome it.

I get to spend time with my Mom this weekend. Yay! I'm very happy about that. Rob has a half day of work today and no work tomorrow. So, we're heading out to her place this afternoon and will be back on Sunday. No specific plans while we're out there, we'll just play things by ear. I know when we get to her place tonight we'll be staying in and that she's making her super yummy chili for dinner. Gabriel should be happy to see her again. He's such a little Nana's boy!

How weird is that? When I was a kid I called my maternal grandma Nana and my paternal one Ma. Now Gabriel's calling his maternal grandma Nana. He calls his paternal grandma Gamma and his paternal grandpa Appa. He doesn't have a name for my Dad yet, but then again he hasn't seen him since September.

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What Your These Fireworks Say About You

You are focused, single minded, and intense.
You don't let others see your intensity often, and when they do, they are quite surprised.

You burn brightly, but you also burn steadily.
You have the endurance to get the one thing you desire most.

The Fireworks Test

Looking For Old Friends

Wed, 2 Jul 08 09:16:00 UT

Recently I've been thinking about all the old friends that I've lost contact with. It sucks. There are a lot of people out there that I'd like to reconnect with. In the hopes that people "google" themselves on occasion, I thought I'd list the names out on here. Hopefully, at least one person will find their name on here and contact me.

This list is by no means exclusive. So, if we knew each other and lost contact, then please feel free to drop me an e-mail. I'd love to hear from you. I'm sure I won't remember everyone I'd like to talk to again and I know that there are last names that I just don't remember anymore.

My e-mail address is firewolf AT earthlink.net - just replace the AT with an @. I wrote it that way to avoid spambots.

From High School (The Chicago Academy for the Arts):
Becky Figel
Michelle Klein
Cathy Noel
Dawn Mackevich
Kenya Kimball

From college (USC, I was in the Filmic Writing program):
Manny Knowles
Genny Ainsworth
Jennifer Moroney
Dan Liatowitsch
Pete Robinson
Nne Ebong
AJ Lambert
Anne Bensky

From gaming (The Camarilla in Los Angeles):
Marc Chan
Chuck Cannaday
Chris Caldwell

As stated before, this is not a complete list. There are many people who are not immediatly coming into my mind and there are many people whose last names I can't remember. So, if we once knew each other, feel free to drop me a line. Hopefully this will help me get back in touch with old friends.

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What Your Flip Flops Say About You

You are hopeful and romantic. You love many people and many things.
You aren't unrealistic, but you do imagine things in the most ideal way possible.

You are a dreamer. If something exists, you've probably thought about it.
You don't think about what is, you think about what could be.

Your ideal warm weather place: Fiji

The Flip Flop Test

Nana and Tummy Troubles

Tue, 1 Jul 08 09:27:00 UT

Ugh, my stomach has been bothering me all last night and all this morning. It's bad enough that it interfered with my sleep last night and my daily activities so far today. It also doesn't help that Gabriel has to be with me every time I'm in the bathroom. Both at his insistance and because otherwise he gets into trouble if I'm not constantly watching him. Hrm, I'm guessing one of the things that comes along with motherhood is a lack of privacy. Either way, I'm hoping whatever is going on with my stomach settles down soon. This sucks.

I don't think this could be food related, but I could be wrong. Last night Rob made pasta and garlic bread and I don't think there's any way I could get sick from that, but who knows. I think tonight I might stick with something basic like buttered noodles, chicken soup, or maybe mac and cheese. I'll have to see what I'm in the mood for and what I think (if anything) my stomach can handle.

Onto Nana news. It would seem that the doctor thought that some of her medications (specifically the ones for cholesterol and diabetes) were suppressing her appetite. Nutrition was priority number one, and so she's been taken off all of her medications with the exception of cumidin. He thinks her quality of life will improve off the meds.

On Saturday she was discharged from the hospital and went back to the Virginia. Apparently they were having a family day there and she ate some watermelon and pie and she seemed to be in better spirits. My uncle Kim is looking into seeing if they can get outside care for her if she were to go back to the Sterling House. That place is much nicer than the Virginia, but doesn't have the facilities to provide the care that she needs right now. So, right now they're looking into a hospice care (that comes to you) to see if they can speed things up and get her out of the Virginia and back to the Sterling House.

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DEAD AT 81

heart attack

Errands and Laziness

Mon, 30 Jun 08 09:58:00 UT

Saturday was our errands day. We took Gabriel to the kiddie hair cut place around here and got him a hair cut. Yet again, it was getting crazy bushy. It was cut to just above shoulder length and layered a bit to make it less poufy and to show off his curls more.

We then grabbed some lunch and went back to doing errands. I needed to pick up a prescription at the drug store. I needed some pills from GNC. We needed to get diapers at Babies R Us. I needed a few more items from a different drug store. And then we did our grocery shopping for the week.

When all that was done, we headed out to the outlet mall. Gabriel needed more short sleeve pyjamas. It's hotter than hell in here and he didn't have enough short sleeve pyjamas to last him between laundry loads and it's just too hot (even in here because the AC can't keep up) for long sleeve pyjamas. So, new short sleeve pyjamas (and a few rompers) were bought at Carter's. I took a peek in the Crocs outlet store and in the Lane Bryant outlet store, but just didn't see anything I wanted.

We then took Gabriel over to the mechanical riding Noo-Noo (the vacuum cleaner from Teletubbies) and let him ride in that for awhile. He loved it and kept smiling and giggling while it played the Teletubbies theme. We got the biggest smile from him when Rob and I started singing the theme along with the ride. It was worth the odd stares we got from passerbyers.

Unfortunately, the day also resulted in Gabriel's first skinned knee. He was running around and fell on a sidewalk at the outlet mall. He skinned one of his knees and started crying and screaming "why?". The skinned knee freaked me out, but him asking why just broke my heart.

Later that night when we got back home we watched the DVD for Stardust. I've been waiting forever to see this movie and am happy it wasn't a disappointment. I love the book and the movie was fantastic. It's one of those movies I need to buy at some point.

Sunday was a lazy day. We hung around the house most of the day and at one point I fell asleep on the couch. Gabriel spent that time sitting by my feet and playing with my toes. Eventually we made a run out to the Fresh Market to get our produce for the week and we grabbed some dinner and headed back home for the night.

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You are Platform Sandals

Funky and urban
You've got a cutting edge style that everyone envies
A little bit downtown, a little bit euro, and whole lot of sexy!

What Kind of Sandal Are You?

Mom's Visit

Fri, 27 Jun 08 11:38:00 UT

Mom's visit out here was short, but still super cool. I love having her around and Gabriel is so attached to her. Definitely a Nana's boy.

She got into town yesterday around 1pm and spent time with my Nana at the hospital. Then, she came over here around 4:30pm. When Rob got home from work we all headed out on some quick errands. I needed to make a run to the bank and the post office. We also grabbed dinner from Noodles & Company and then we came back to the apartment. She got to see my new car and thinks it looks really cool.

Last night we chilled out around the house and watched So You Think You Can Dance and Fear Itself. Fear Itself is quickly becoming one of my favorite shows. She got to try out the new AeroBed and said it was comfy (more comfy than our old sofa bed). It's amazing how easy it is to set it up and take it down.

She stayed here this morning until just before 11:00am. She then headed out and is going to spend more time with my Nana before heading back home. While I'm sad that she's gone (Gabriel's not happy about it either), it was great to have her here even if it was only for a quick visit. I don't know why, but I'm always in a better mood when she's around.

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You Are Chocolate Ice Cream

You have a flair for the dramatic and love to party.
Your personality is super strong and unique.
Many people crave you constantly - while you turn a few off.

You are most compatible with coffee ice cream.

What Flavor Ice Cream Are You?

More On Nana

Thu, 26 Jun 08 10:20:00 UT

As of right now, my Nana is still in the hospital. I don't know when she's being released or where to. We know it's not the Sterling House, in fact, I'm not sure if she'll be able to go back there at all (which sucks because it's an amazing place). It might be to the Virginia, but if she's still on a clear liquid diet and being fed through an IV, they won't be able to handle her. So, it might be to a hospice. *shudders at the thought*

She is currently having problems swallowing and walking. From what the doctor said, when someone her age (96) stops doing something (such as swallowing due to the liquids and IVs or walking due to the pain), they lose that ability and it only gradually comes back. She can barely stand on her own and can't even take a few steps with the walker.

Right now no one seems to know how much longer she'll be in the hospital, where she'll be released to, or what the treatment is for what's wrong with her.

She still has severe pain from the diverticulitus and last I heard she was having an scan done to see if the treatments were helping it at all.

Her appointment to have new hearing aids fitted had to be cancelled because no one knows where she'll be that day. So, she still can't hear anything.

All in all, she's not faring so well. My Mom's under a huge amount of stress and that's beginning to effect her physically. She's stressed because she's trying to sell her house in a crappy market and so far she hasn't had a single showing. Also, there are like 9 other houses for sale on her street all for various reasons, so even though there's really no issues in the neighborhood, it makes it look like there is. She has her house priced well below what it's really worth and she's taking a loss on it because she just wants to get out of there and move. She's also stressed because of what's going on with Nana.

She has a hard time coming out here now, because she really needs to be at home in case there is a showing. However, with the state my Nana is in she said f*ck it and is heading out here. She figures the weekends would be more likely to have showings than the weekends.

So, she's heading out here today to spend time with my Nana. She'll be crashing at our place tonight and then heading back to see Nana some more tomorrow and then she'll also be driving back home tomorrow.

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What the Beach Test Says About You

You are a loner, and you're fine with that. You find the most fulfillment in solitude. And you never feel more lonely than when you're in a crowd.

You have cold feet when it comes to love. You have a lot of uncertainty until you convince yourself to dive right in.

You are deeply passionate about several things in your life. You're not passionate about much... and the few passions you have are truly obsessions.

Your sense of humor is goofy and silly. You are good at making almost anyone laugh.

The Beach Test

Job Thoughts

Wed, 25 Jun 08 10:19:00 UT

I've been thinking as of late, I don't know what good it's going to do me, but I thought that I would put those thoughts down in this journal.

I'm job hunting for an entry level attorney position, and the going is rough. It's a bad economy to be looking for a job in and everyone wants experience. You can't get a job without experience and you can't get experience without a job. It's horribly frustrating.

I then got to thinking, while I'd like an attorney position (I worked so hard for so long with law school and two state bars, I would really like to see that hard work pay off), what about something else? Is there something out there that I would be good at doing that I would LOVE doing? Hrm.

Now, what jobs would I absolutely kill for (even unrealistically)? Doctor (unrealistic because of the schooling), Veterinarian (same reason), FBI Agent (unrealiztic because of my physical limitations), Politician (no connections), Judge (need to be an attorney first), Reporter/Newscaster/Journalist (no degree or experience).

What are my true passions? Gabriel, writing, cars (especially the Lexus brand), learning (oh to be a perpetual student), animals, the law (moreso the criminal side like working with crime scenes), gaming.

And what am I really good at? Writing, the law (I have a bit of knowledge about a lot of subjects thanks to the bar), giving advice, helping people.

What do I want in a job? I want to like it, I want to enjoy doing it and look forward to going to work in the morning. I want to have time to spend with Rob and Gabriel. I want to make a lot of money.

I don't know if any of these line up into a perfect job for me. I see a scattering of what I would love to do, what my passions are, and what I'm good at. I see what I want out of a job. But I don't see a perfect fit.

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You Should Spend Your Summer in Europe

You're in to almost all forms of culture - art, music, architecture, food...
And spending a summer at the beach sounds pretty darn boring to you.
So head off to Europe, where you can have your tiramisu (and even eat it on the beach!)

Where Should You Spend Your Summer?

Another Nana Update

Tue, 24 Jun 08 10:11:00 UT

Ugh. I now have yet another reason to hate the Virginia. Nana's still in the hospital and they found that she got a bedsore on her butt when she was there! She's had a problem with bedsores on her heels back when she was in the hospital last summer with the broken hip and now this. How many fucking negligent places are there out there? Seriously, there is NO EXCUSE for someone having a bedsore. None. Bedsore = negligence. If I had my way I'd be suing that damn place for her new bedsore.

Last I heard, she was still in the hospital. They were talking about discharging her back to the damn Virginia, but she's still on a clear liquid diet and being fed through an IV. So, I don't know what they're thinking when it comes to that. She won't get out of bed, not even to get into her wheelchair because she's in too much pain.

Gah. Can't she just get a break for once? She's been though so much in this past year, this is insane.

Not much is new with me. We ran some errands last night. It's getting so hard to do the laundry because if I turn my back on Gabriel for one second, he gets into some sort of trouble. I now know why the "terrible twos" have been named as such. But even so, he's still a cutie. Though he has been getting time outs in the naughty chair when he bites Rob. He's yet to bite me recently, but we don't want him to bite anyone because he'll need to be in daycare once I start working.

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Cattell's 16 Factor Test Results

Warmth	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	46%
Intellect	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	62%
Emotional Stability	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	38%
Aggressiveness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	78%
Liveliness	\|\|\|\|\|\|	18%
Dutifulness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	74%
Social Assertiveness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	34%
Sensitivity	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	50%
Paranoia	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	46%
Abstractness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	82%
Introversion	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	46%
Anxiety	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	58%
Openmindedness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	58%
Independence	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	50%
Perfectionism	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	78%
Tension	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	50%

Take Cattell 16 Factor Test (similar to 16pf)
personality tests by similarminds.com

Nana, Microwave, Errands, & Couch

Mon, 23 Jun 08 13:05:00 UT

My Nana is back in the hospital again. She was sent there due to complaints of pains and they found out that she has diverticulitis. Last I heard, she was still there.

Friday we finally got a new microwave. I only had about an hour's notice before the man came with it to install it. Doesn't matter, Gabriel and I are here all day anyway. It's a nice new microwave and even has a turn table. The old one is in our garage for now.

Friday night we watched the DVD of Sweeney Todd. Because we don't really see any movies in the theatre anymore (we've seen 2 since Gabriel was born), I decided to sign up for Netflix. Now maybe we can catch up on all the ones we really wanted to see.

Saturday was our day full of errands. In the morning I got my hair done (same color and just a trim to keep my cut) and then we did every errands that we don't have time for the rest of the week. We went to Babies R Us, grabbed lunch at Hardees, went to the ATM, stopped at the kiddie hair salon to get Gabriel a haircut - but they were already closed for the day, went to the drugstore, and then did our grocery shopping.

Sunday we spent the day waiting around the apartment. In the morning the people from 1-800-Got-Junk came to take our old sofa bed away. While it's nice having people to remove our old couch, they sure do cost a lot to do so! We then waited around in the afternoon for Steinhaffel's to deliver our new couch. It's about the same size as the old one and leather. We love it! Once the new couch was delivered we gave Gabriel a quick bath and then headed out to bring home some dinner.

Sunday night we watched another of the Netflix DVDs. Nick Knight. This was the original pilot that they based Forever Knight off of. Rob had never seen it and I have been looking for it for forever. Apparently it's made especially for Netflix which is why I haven't been able to find it up until now.

Today it's back to the usual.

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Which Genre Are You?
created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Country

THE GENRE ABOVE BASICALLY HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOUR ACTUAL MUSIC PREFERENCE! THE POINT IS: You: Are a very proud person. Tip: You're not always correct.

R&B

83%

Country

83%

Blues

67%

Silent

67%

Folk

67%

Pop

67%

Rock

67%

Jazz

67%

Classical

50%

Hip Hop/Rap

33%

23 Questions

Fri, 20 Jun 08 10:09:00 UT

1. What hobbies do you have other than posting on your blog/online journal? As far as online activities go, I run several games on RPOL. As far as real life activities go I love playing D&D and I also like to just play around with Gabriel.

2. What are your plans for the summer? Pretty much the same as my plans any time. Spend my weekdays with Gabriel and job hunting and spend my weekends catching up on errands. I'd like to get a few trips to the Ren Faire in as well.

3. What favorite vacations have you been on? My favorite, and only vacation in a very long time, was my honeymoon in Solvang. I really don't get any vacations. *snifflewah*

4. What is your dream vacation? If it's with Gabriel I'd love to head back to Los Angeles and be able to see all my friends and take Gabriel to Disneyland. If it's without Gabriel, I'd love for Rob and I to take a trip to Romania.

5. What is your favorite childhood memory? Sitting at the table and eating breakfast (Special K out of a white bowl with blue polka dots on it) with my Grandpa (Papa).

6. If you could be someone famous, who would you want to be? I'd like to stay myself and be famous. I really don't want to be someone else. Sure, my life has problems, but I'm sure everyone else's do as well. Besides, I really don't give a flying whoop about celebrities.

7. What is your most hated kids show? Barney and Teletubbies use to annoy the hell out of me, but I've gotten used to them. I guess the one I like the least now is Dora. Diego is fine, but I really don't like Dora. Gabriel still watches it, but for some reason I just find her beyond annoying. One of Diego's rescued animals really needs to eat her.

8. If you have children, did you get the gender(s) you were hoping for? You know, when I was pregnant I was hoping for a girl, so no. But now that I have a boy, I LOVE it. In fact, on the off chance I ever have another one, I'd be equally fine with boy or girl (and maybe lean towards a boy preference). Being a boy mommy rocks!

9. What kind of diapers do you/did you use? Pampers swaddlers when Gabriel was little. Now we use Pampers Cruisers during the day (and sometimes Pull Ups when we try potty training) and Pampers Baby Dry at night.

10. What was your most favorite song in High School and do you still love it? "Cry Little Sister" by Gerard McMann from the Lost Boys soundtrack. And while it's not my absolute favorite now, I still do love it.

11. What reality show would you like to be on? I actually would have tried out for this show, but I don't want to leave Gabriel for long... Who Wants To Be A Superhero.

12. What's the most favorite place you have ever been? Solvang, California!

13. What house chore do you hate the most? Cleaning the bathroom!

14. What was the last item of clothing you bought for yourself? I got a few undershirts from Lane Bryant's website.

15. What talent do you wish you had? I really wish I could dance like those people on So You Think You Can Dance. Wow!

16. Do you plant a garden? No. There's nowhere to plant one and I'm not a plant person.

17. Are you working in the field you went to school for? No, not at the moment. I went to undergrad for film and am not working in that and don't think I will be any time in the future. I went to law school as well, but don't yet have a job as a lawyer.

18. Do you try and keep your house very clean? I wish, but there's just not the time for it. Having a two year old means our place is a mess.

19. Summer is upon us, are you okay with wearing a swimsuit? I would be if I had one. I have yet to find one that can fit my boobs into it.

20. What time do you get up in the morning? 6:30am.

21. Do you have season passes to anything? Back in LA I used to have a pass for Disneyland and the Long Beach Aquarium. I don't have any season passes anymore now that I'm out in Wisconsin. I'm tempted to get one for the zoo sometime though.

22. What is your favorite themepark? Disneyland!

23. What is your favorite ride at that park? The Haunted Mansion!!!

The Latest On Nana

Thu, 19 Jun 08 11:06:00 UT

My Nana's alert and sassy and it seems that the hallucinatory side effects of the pain medication are now gone. She can't move her left leg much and she needs some sort of motor lift to get into and out of bed. She'll need to be able to get out of bed without the lift and with only one attendant in order to return back to the Sterling House.

Once again the Virgina has put her on a soft diet because they're a bunch of drooling ass monkeys. My Nana has a hard time swallowing pills (so do I, but I don't need a soft diet) so they put her on an soft diet. They don't understand the difference between swallowing a horse pill and swallowing food. In other words, they put her food in a blender before giving it to her. Their food is disgusting enough without being blended. She's refusing to eat any of it and my Uncle has been smuggling in food for her. It also doesn't help that her hearing aids aren't working, so she can't hear what people are saying. And if she doesn't understand what someone says, she just nods.

I also heard that it looks like she might be in thr Virginia until July. Ugh!

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Mayonnaise

You are mayonaisse! Quiet and unassuming, mayo adds texture to food without really putting in much flavor. However, it does keep things together, making you very dependable and coolheaded. Don't be afraid to let loose every once in a while and have some fun--you'll be glad you did!

What Condiment Are You?

New Car!

Wed, 18 Jun 08 09:44:00 UT

Squee! I am so excited right now! I have a new car!

Getting a hybrid isn't easy, especially when I'm picky about the color and interior. So, it took a few months, but they were able to get in what I wanted. It has one more thing on it than I asked for (a trailor hitch), but because I didn't ask for it, I wasn't charged for it.

I was able to work it financially by adding in a little more than 7k of my own money. Totally worth it!

When I took Lexus Luthor over to be traded in, I started to wonder if I had made the right choice. I've had Luthor since 2001 and loved him dearly. When we got there I said my goodbyes, told him why we were parting, gave him a kiss on the steering wheel, and cried. What? I get attached to my cars.

When I saw the new one, my mood changed and I knew I had made the right decision. There was even a bouquet of roses waiting for me on the car, how many dealers do that?

I handed my keys over to Jeff, did the money stuff and transferred my title over to the financing lady, and then Jeff took me out to play with the new car. They're handling all of the DMV paperwork and the transfer of my registration and plates. The plates stay with the car in this state.

Oh my god, this car is hot! If it had a bathroom and a bed, I could freakin' live in it!

It has a navigation system and bluetooth. I made a phone call with my cell in my purse and closed. I could hear the other person over the speakers of the car and just talk and they could hear me. Too cool.

The exterior is "brandywine mica", which is a burgundy color. Kind of a dark brownish red that looks amazing in the sun. The interior is black leather. The combo looks great. There's wood paneling inside and that's even on the steering wheel. The best part, is that it's a hybrid.

Starting the car is really weird. There's no noise when it starts. You just turn the key on quickly and a "ready" light comes on. When I showed Rob the car last night he thought it was so weird that the car was on and there was no noise. That's cause it didn't need the engine at the time.

It's a 2008 Lexus RX 400h. I absolutely love it!!! I do miss Luthor, but I know this was the right thing to do. It might take me awhile to get a name for it though, I don't even know if it's a boy or a girl yet.

Rob says his car is envious. *smiles*

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Your result for The Which SUPER HERO are you Test...

The Which SUPER HERO are you Test

Batman

Cool, calm and powerful. Whilst your actual super abilities may not be anything too dazzling, you have earnt the respect of both friends and enemies in response to your amazing fighting skills, strategic combat and experience.

Luckily you have access to the greens which can fund all your majorly cool gadgets, vehicles and weapons! Also, you're reluctant but still accepting to the idea of having a teammate/side-kick, which just makes everything a whole lotta fun, doesn't it now!

On the down side, you've probably suffered some sort of trauma at a young age (that's why we don't talk to the old man near the swings, kids). Similar to the Wolverine, your past is a base for your current motivation, undertaking some kind of personal vow in search of justice.

All in all though, you're one tough nut. There's not a lot of people who have the minerals to go up against you, and you're experienced enough not to get cocky and let the little things like never finding happiness get you down!

Take The Which SUPER HERO are you Test at HelloQuizzy

Pictures!

Tue, 17 Jun 08 09:32:00 UT

Gabriel riding in a mechanical car at the outlet mall:

Gabriel in my Mom's shoes:

My Nana:

My new haircut:

The nightmare tattoo I got back in December:

The new tattoo I got last Saturday (not yet healed):

New Tattoo

Mon, 16 Jun 08 11:09:00 UT

Last weekend was super fun, but also quite exhausting. We headed out to my Mom's place for the weekend.

Rob was able to get a half day on Friday. So, when he got home from work we packed up and headed out. The drive to my Mom's place was fairly uneventful. At one point one of the roads we were travelling on was closed, but we were able to follow the detour signs and not have any problems. I think we got to her place between 5:30pm and 6:00pm.

We spent the night hanging out around her house and we ordered in pizza for dinner. Gabriel was in toddler TV heaven because she has Noggin, which is 24 hours of the shows he loves.

Saturday I had an appointment with Gary in town. Best tattoo guy EVER. Mom stayed at her place with Gabriel and Rob and I headed in to town. We got there early and so we stopped off at the Gold Room so that he could get some lunch. We got lucky and Kay was there so I got to talk to her for a bit and show her some recent pics of Gabriel from my digital camera. When it was time, Rob and I headed to the tattoo place.

Gary worked on making up the tattoo that I wanted and Rob headed down the street to a salon to see if he could get a haircut (they were able to take him on a walk in). I told Gary what I was thinking of getting and he was able to sketch out my idea perfectly on the first try. Rob got back to the tattoo place right when the stencil was on and he was about to start.

However, just a few minutes after getting back he needed to go outside for a few phone calls. I'm not posting the specifics, but let's just say there's been a lot of drama in his family recently.

Now, you might be wondering why I've been secretive about the design of this tattoo, well, that would be because my Mom reads the journal and I wanted the tattoo to be a surprise for her. It's a dove covered in paint splatters holding a paint brush in its mouth and has a "MOM" banner at the bottom. I'll try and post a pic at some point if possible.

Eventually Rob headed back to my Mom's place to get her and Gabriel. It took longer than expected and they didn't get back until around a half hour after the tattoo was done. I had wanted her to get there and see it before it was bandaged, however I lucked out and didn't bleed at all. So, it didn't need a bandage. Whew. She came into the store and I showed her the tattoo. She seemed very surprised and I don't think she had any idea that I was getting a tattoo for her. I think she liked it. The whole paint splatter and paint brush motif is because she's an artist.

Once again, Gary proved that he's without a doubt the best tattoo artist I have ever seen. It turned out fantastic!

After getting the tattoo we all headed into Dubuque and got Chinese food for dinner. Gabriel was surprisingly well behaved all through dinner. We then headed back to my Mom's place for the rest of the night.

Sunday before we headed out my Mom's friend PK stopped by. She ooohed and aahed over Gabriel and we ended up heading our around 2pm. We already knew about the detour on the way home, so it was smooth sailing.

When we got home, we made a run out to mail something out for my Mom and then grabbed some dinner and headed home for the night. We watched Dawn of the Dead on TV.

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Fishing In My Neighborhood

Fri, 13 Jun 08 08:15:00 UT

I am so freakin' tired right now. We had horrible storms all through the night and the pounding rain, wind, and constant thunder and lightning meant that I couldn't sleep. Bad storms freak me out so I spent most of last night awake in bed and on the verge of a panic attack. I'm a tired wreck today.

The downtown area of the city I live in is completely flooded. The lake flooded out and that entire area is under water. We had to make a run to the bank last night and found out that most of the area was closed. There were also news crews around. Also, people have been standing on the streets and sidewalks of the area and spear fishing. The fish are swimming right through the streets! I think it's kind of amusing that people are heading there to spear some fish and then bring them back home to cook for dinner that night. That's probably as close to looting as my neck of the woods will get.

With the horrible storms that blew through here last night, ths flooding isn't going to get any better. It's right now that I'm so happy we live on the second floor!

We lost power for a little bit last night (luckily it was only out for a few minutes) and lightning hit the field right next to our apartment. The entire place shook so bad.

The weather channel forecast we watched before going to be last night was freaky. "Severe storms with damaging winds in excess of 70 mph, sometimes with large golf ball to tennis ball sized hail. Possibly a tornado." Jesus f*cking christ... I don't think the weather out here has ever been THIS bad.

And now, for some good news that's not weather related. I got a call the other day and my car is in! It took awhile to get in stock (hybrids are not easy to get ahold of these days), but it's here. Woot! I'll be making the deal Tuesday evening. While I'm sad to see Lexus Luthor go, he's 7 years old and it's time. My new car is going to be a 2008 Lexus RX 400h with a brandywine mica exterior and a black interior. *drools* I'm nervous and excited at the same time.

I'm also proud of Gabriel... he said his name today! Normally he just calls himself "baby". But today I finally got him to call himself "Gabe". I'm interested to see if he keeps calling himself "baby" of if he starts switching over to "Gabe".

Three years ago today I found out that I was pregnant with Gabriel. *beams*

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What Type of Alcoholic Drink Are You?

Sex on the Beach
You're sexy and you definitely like to dress your alcohol up, but youâï¿½ï¿½re still a party monster. So where does that leave you? With sex on the beach of course. This is the type of drink that can take you down, with out feeling like you're a total alcoholic. You like to dress yourself up, but deep down inside you know that youâï¿½ï¿½re ready to get out there and get wild. So grab your sex on the beach and party down party person.

Personality-Emotion Quizzes