I wrapped it up with a birthday dinner for my friend Prabhu. I'm lookin' a little tired at this point of the weekend ...

In the middle was a series of Halloween parties. I am a kitty cat. A guy dressed as Dick Tracy dared me to change my nametag to "Make me Purr," and so of course, I did.
There's Volel in the brown hat, Ellen as a Mexican maid, Pimp Daddy Prabhakar, Eva as a witch, and one of the party hosts, David. One of the pics is blurry, but it would have been really cute so I posted it anyway.

So much stuff this weekend!
It started with a comedy show Friday night. Here in the red shirt is one of the comediennes who was just hilarious - Joy. And turns out, she's famous, too. She's on Oxygen and Comedy Central and all that good stuff. I'm the head poking out from behind. ;)

Happy Howl-O-Ween!

Updates on the weekend to come later today!

Game Night

I went to a fun game night last weekend where we played Taboo, Catch Phrase, and Cranium over wine and pizza. There were about a dozen of us, mostly people I didn't know well, and it turned out to be quite a lot of fun. I am having my own game night next Friday, and I am really looking forward to it. It is definitely not something everyone would want to do, but it is very much fun for those who like that kind of thing! I plan on having Twister, too, for after everyone has had a few drinks. ;)
My sister came down this past weekend, too. We did a little shopping, went out to eat at a Japanese restaurant near me that cooks your food in front of you, went to the new Whole Foods, and also checked out Mount Bonnell, which has an excellent view from the highest elevation in Austin.
And, my sister's 20th birthday was yesterday so HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MARY ANNE! :)

Too Bad, Harriet Miers

I don't understand this whole Harriet Miers thing. Why weren't conservatives happy with her? It seems she is Pro-Life, and I think it is pretty clear her thinking is in line with Bush's. It is unfortunate that she was put under pressure by those in the political arena to withdraw her nomination. She hadn't even gone through the hearings yet!! How is that a fair shot??
The inexperience argument to me holds no merit. Anyone with a good understanding of the law and a fair mind able to weigh and ration both sides of an argument could make a good Justice, and I see no reason why she wouldn't fall in that category.
I will make this one (additional) comment, though. When Bush announced her as his choice, he did look rather uncomfortable, like he had sold someone out or shortchanged someone. Maybe now he will revert to who he really wanted, which is presumably a clear-cut conservative. Of course, that means we are surely up for a big fight.

Small World

Last week, I wrote an article on a middle school that held a pep rally benefiting hurricane victims. I was just talking to the principal, and she told me part of the money was going to West Orange Stark in Orange. That is really, really neat because some of my aunts and uncles went to that school. As a kid, I caught someone breaking in to it, too, and got to call the cops on them. (Woo hoo!) How crazy that it is going there!
What I was talking to her about is pretty cool, too. When I went that day to the pep rally, they asked for my driver's license, which I have never had happen at a school before. They scanned it against the sex offender databases and then printed out a nametag with my picture and name on it. Very cool!

Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia

This is the beginning of a new column I wrote this week for the paper & a link to the full article:
About a year ago, I wrote a column on the trend of Pro-Anorexia and Pro-Bulimia societies congregating on the web and supporting each other in what they consider to be “lifestyle choices.” That column is now on my blog, and I am finding a lot of people are searching for Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia and ending up on my site. I hope it is people who only want to learn more about it to stop it, but it worries me that it might be people trying to get involved with it.
When I mentioned it to a friend, she had never heard of Pro-Ana/Pro-Mia, and so I thought it probably would be a good time to remind the community about them so we can prevent anyone we care about from getting caught up in their hype. The mainstream media is finally picking up on these stories, but they are a few years too late, in my opinion.
The column is in Kids and Teens about halfway down the page & titled "Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia."

Searching for Candidly Caroline

A lot of people keep finding my site by searching for "Gonna Be a Bear," that cute picture and poem I posted a while back, so I thought I would put a link to it up here. I also get some really strange searches - like "lactating nipples," from my "Why DO Men Have Nipples?" entry and "chest compressions," from my entry on seeing a woman presumably die when I was working at the Red Cross shelter. Then, of course, there are searches on teens and kids and recipes because of all my links. The only searches that concern me are for Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia. If you're not familiar with that, I'll be posting more later. It is a Pro-Anorexia and Pro-Bulimia movement that I wrote a column on about a year ago. I'll re-post it with some commentary because it seems like it is about time to remind people of the problem.

Hum Dee Dum

I have no idea what I am going to write my column on for the paper, and it's due tomorrow night ... so I thought I'd toy around with my computer instead.
Here are some pictures from the Gypsy Party I went to last week. It's me, then my friend Jefre (who obviously has no idea he is getting his picture taken - Sorry, Jefre!), then Ellen.
Jefre is a cancer survivor, and I am going to a benefit dinner for him tomorrow night at Changos's on South Lamar. They are donating a portion of the proceeds to help him relieve some of his medical debt.

Pretty Woman

Ahhh ... I just watched Pretty Woman. I'm in a dreamy mood now. :)

Particularly Painful

* Here are some pics from the Mediterranean Festival. I met up with Prabhakar and his very nice friend Billie and Ellen. And, look who we ran in to -- Vin Diesel!! ;)




Today ended up becoming a particularly painful day. It started out well enough - I was really excited because I had borrowed a hedger and was going to go crazy with it in my jungle of a backyard.
Part way through it, though, I got stung by a bee on my right palm. It hurt like hell, and the pain spread in a line all the way down my forearm to my inside elbow. My right hand is now swollen and red and splotchy.
I made myself keep going and finally quit hedging after about two hours and 15 minutes. Then, I came inside and realized upon getting in to the shower that my back was sunburned - I had a sports bra emblazoned on my back. After my shower, I felt really tired all of the sudden so I decided to take a nap. The last thing I dreamt before I woke up was that I couldn't move my arms. Then, I woke up and realized I couldn't move my arms. Literally. Well, almost. They were so sore from holding the hedger for over two hours that I couldn't move them, particularly my left one, which hurt all the way deep inside, deeper than the kind of sore you get from working out too hard. It hurt(s) so so so bad! All day I've been holding my arm like it's broken.
I went to a Mediterranean festival this evening and had to have someone else zip my purse for me, which I couldn't even hold with my left arm! * All night I have been balancing not using my left arm with not using my right hand because of the bee sting!! We'll see how it is in the morning when my sunburn will be set in enough to start hurting!
Anyway, after the festival, we went to Mozart's for dessert. I got a piece of dark chocolate cake that was disappointing. It tasted store bought. One thing I know is my chocolate, and that cake made me pine for a piece of my mom's chocolate torte. Big sigh ...
Well, now I'm watching the Saturday Night Solution on Court TV so I'm happy. :)

Busy, Busy

Usually I don't do a whole lot during the week socially because it's just too hard to fit it in, but since 'tis the season (or the beginning of it at least), there have been a lot more events to attend.
Earlier this week, I went to a Happy Hour that the Young Adult Group at a church I go to (St. John Neumann) held at the Ginger Man on 4th. I haven't been there since college, I realized. I don't drink beer so the 3 gazillion choices of beer aren't a draw for me. Anyway, I had a Coke, one of those cute little glass bottles that you never see anymore, and we played darts. I pretty much suck. On another note, I also volunteered at their church festival a couple of weeks ago. I was the "Lollipop Pull" Girl.
Last night I went to the Young Men's Business League Fall Fling held at the Umlauf Sculpture Garden. It was a benefit for Austin Sunshine Camps and a pretty good crowd. I am going to look in to joining the Young Women's Alliance, which I believe is their sister organization. I think they have a lot of events together. They have some kind of an "Austin Under 40" Awards Banquet in the Spring. I'm sure I'll be up for consideration. ;)

My Dad

My mom said my dad is on a morphine drip and valium so I suppose he is feeling just fine at the moment. ;)

You Know You're PMS-ing When ...

You know you're PMS-ing when ... you find a way to make a s'more out of household food items at 11 o'clock at night.

Photos

I've just created a Photos Link.

Randomettes

My Dad is in the middle of surgery right now so I am very nervous and will ramble about some random things.
~ I've decided to go organic for breakfast. I had been eating organic cereal before, but it was really expensive so I reverted. Now, I've decided that I want to eat one meal a day organic, and breakfast is the easiest way to do that since I have cereal every single morning. I bought my first organic milk yesterday, and it is so so good!
~ My roommate is back from Italy, and she didn't freak out when she saw her cat had a shaved butt. (Whew!) She brought me back a cute magnet with a whole bunch of kitties chilling in front of an Italian villa. I put it next to the other magnet she bought me a while back that has the words, "It's my cat's world. I merely open the cans." So true, so true.
~ I filed the CPS report on the girl with the black eye. I have no idea if anything will ever come of it or if anything will ever be required of me. Hopefully, though, I will never have to file another one.
~ Hurricane update: My aunt's in-laws in Port Arthur have three trees on their house that caused damage, but the house will not have to be demolished. It is a similar situation for my godmother in Orange. My old house is okay. One family friend will probably have to have her house demolished. All in all, it wasn't as bad as it could have been.
~ My friend Erin will be coming in to see me from San Diego in about a month. I am very excited about that. I have been thinking about having a game night at my house, and I am trying to decide if I should have it the weekend she is here or if I should use the time so she and I can talk alone.
~ I did a homemade facial last night. I was really worried I was going to wake up this morning with a crazy looking face, but it's just a little red.
~ Speaking of red, I will be able to post some pictures from a party I went to last week, but my friend is trying to get the red eye out of them.
All for now ...

Catch Up

I'll be catching up on my blogging Monday. ;)

Interesting Day

1. To the guy who mooned me as I drove past Mr. Gatti's: You are so freaking lucky I didn't have a camera with me. Your ass would be soooo displayed for all the world to see right now.
2. I bathed and cut the hair off the rear of a cat who isn't even mine (very long story with a very funny looking result.)
3. I spent the afternoon with a dog who is a regular patron at a local bank.
4. A young girl I know has a black eye that she received at home, and I found out how to file a claim with Child Protective Services.
Perhaps when I tell people I have an uneventful life, it is all just relatively speaking.

Lance Armstrong Party with Sheryl Crow

I went to the Lance Armstrong Congratulatory Party this Sunday. His fiancee Sheryl Crow played a concert at the end (which actually, was the only part I was there for.) Anyway, it was pretty cool. Lance proclaimed Austin the "greatest city in the world" and gave the mayor a big plaque saying as much and also a signed yellow jersey for the city to display.
It was funny because when Sheryl Crow was playing, Lance's daughter kept coming out on to the stage. She would just run out there randomly and stare at the crowd. Then, sometimes she would dance. Sheryl Crow went along with it really well and invited the other kids, including spectator kids, to come up on the stage, also. She said something to the effect of, "In the old days, we used to bring a keg and bring a bong. Now we're all family friendly."
I think she might not have realized there were still plenty of people living the good old days. The "Keeping Austin Weird" crowd was out in full effect. There was a guy behind me smoking his bong and parents in front of me letting their little (but not so little) girl run around without a top on.
If you haven't figured it out from previous blogs, I have always thought that purposely trying to be weird is kind of ... weird. But maybe that's why I don't really fit in to this town.

Date or Soul Mate

~ Forgot to mention that my "Must Haves" and "Can't Stands," based on the book, are below on August 19.
I just posted my column on “Date … Or Soul Mate? How to Know if Someone is Worth Pursuing in Two Dates or Less” in "Single and All That Implies."