We are going on vacation tomorrow. To the mountains. I have meant to plan this thing for ages but have been procrastinating for months, now it is one day away and I am sort of scrambling to plan it. However, I am also of the opinion that setting off in the car and just seeing what happens is also a good thing, so which is right? I know that I want to go to Transylvania County to see the waterfalls, I want to go to the NC Raptor Center to see the birds of prey, I would really like to spend a night in a "jacuzzi under the stars" , we want to go where there is snow and stay in a cabin, but other than that it is going to be an off the cuff vacation. We are probably going to get so lost.

As you know I just bought a brand new flat screen 19inch monitor, it is wonderful, except it has a dead pixel, just one, right in the center of the screen. I am torn right now, it is of course still under warranty so do I want to send it back and be without a monitor for a while or do I live with it?

Just a random thought, how many kids who are home schooled are diagnosed with ADHD? I am curious as a percentage of government school kids and a percentage of home school kids how many are diagnosed with ADHD? My guess would be that home schooled kids are not diagnosed with ADHD, it is an invented disease which allows parents and teachers to drug normal children to keep them quiet... but then that is just me......

So today (thanks to Christmas bonuses) we bought a flat screen monitor for my computer and we bought the DH a flat screen HDTV. While it took me about a couple of hours to hook up my new monitor as we speak DH has been working on the new TV and surround sound system for about 5 hours. There are wires, and there are more wires, and then there are more wires. To begin with one has to understand that DH is a musician, which means that mechanical or technological things are alien to him. We are going to be here til midnight at which point DH will no doubt watch a very loud movie on his new surround sound.

I actually laughed out loud at this one.

Colin was bragging to his boss one day, "You know, I know everyone there is to know. Just name someone, anyone, and I know them."

Tired of his boasting, his boss called his bluff, "OK, Colin how about Tom Cruise?"

"Sure, yes, Tom and I are old friends, and I can prove it."

So Colin and his boss fly out to Hollywood and knock on Tom

Cruise's door and sure enough, Tom Cruise shouts, "Colin! Great to see you! You and your friend come right in and join me for lunch!" Although impressed, Colin's boss is still sceptical. After they
leave Cruise's house, he tells Colin that he thinks Colin's
knowing Cruise was just lucky. "No, no, just name anyone else," Colin says.

"President Clinton," his boss quickly retorts.

Yes," Colin says, "I know him, let's fly out to Washington ." And off they go. At the White House, Clinton spots Colin on the tour and motions him and his boss over, saying, "Colin, what a surprise, I was just on my way to a meeting, but you and your friend come on in and let's have a cup of coffee first and catch up."

Well, the boss is very shaken by now but still not totally convinced.

After they leave the White House grounds he expresses his doubts
to Colin, who again implores him to name anyone else. "The Pope," his boss replies.

"Sure!" says Colin. "My folks are from Poland , and I've known the
Pope a long time." So off they fly to Rome . Colin and his boss are assembled with the masses in Vatican Square when Colin says, "This will never work. I can't catch the Pope's eye among all these people. Tell you what, I know all the guards so let me just go upstairs and I'll come out on the balcony with the Pope."

And he disappears into the crowd headed toward the Vatican .
Sure enough, half an hour later Colin emerges with the Pope on the
balcony but by the time Colin returns, he finds that his boss has had a heart attack and is surrounded by paramedics.
Working his way to his boss' side, Colin asks him, "What happened?"
His boss looks up and says, "I was doing fine until you and the Pope came out on the balcony and the man next to me said "Who the @%$@'s that on the balcony with Colin?"

so says simpering female in jewelry store ad, "he found the right one." Meaning of course something in a jewelry box. Personally I think the right way is early on a Sunday morning, snuggling, when he wraps his arms around me and says "I love you so much" now THAT is the right way to say I love you, sod the bloody diamonds.

My birdies were very impatient with me this weekend. You see by the time I get home from work during the week it is dark, so I am not able to see if my bird feeders are full or empty. Now, let me point out that I am not talking about a single feeder here, I have a total of 16 feeders, platform, lantern, thistle, suet you name it. So I like to think that they manage to stay pretty stocked even when I am not able to fill them up every day. In any event by Saturday morning they were empty so my birds were, not to put too fine a point on it, annoyed. I went out there, in my slippers, and thereby freezing my feet off in the frosty grass, armed with seed and suet cakes to fill up the feeders. First of the complainers was the Mocking bird who landed on a branch about an inch from my head and began berating me from his perch. "About time too woman" he chirped (I have a very good bird - english translation book) "I have been sat here waiting for these feeders to be filled up for what an hour now? This is just not acceptable" I began filling up the feeders and the Mocking bird immediately set upon the large suet cake. "Don't let this happen again" he said to me as he was stuffing his face, which actually sounded like "domf lef vis happen agan" as his beak was full of suet. I went out back and set about filling up the feeders out there. Immediately two Chickadees landed and glared at me, "cheee cheeee cheee cheee" they screamed which translated to "get the food out there now woman, we have waited long enough, it is cold and we weigh about an ounce, we need food" as the Chickadees were giving me a hard time either a) the same Mocking bird or b) another Mocking bird with the same attitude landed on the posing table branch and glared at me. I poured a cup of food onto the posing table and before I had even removed my hand he was down there stuffing his face with peanuts. "You are slacking on your job woman" he clucked. I shook my head and continued to fill up the rest of the feeders including the suet feeders. After I had got back into the house the Carolina Wren came down and realized that there was fresh suet out there. Yet another happy bird.



I suppose I shall have to get up early in the morning and fill up the feeders before I go to work. Don't want to get the birds upset at me, I've seen the movie.

Which reminds me I went to PetSmart this weekend and they have the most wonderful selection of wild bird food, heretofore I have been buying my bird food at Lowes but PetSmart has a much better selection, hmmmmmm a shopping spree is in order I think, I got paid some extra money today for some work I did for another attorney, can we say bird food mad money? Mwahahahahahahahah.


My co-worker has put nest boxes in the finch cage at work, two pairs have "paired up" and are obviously going to mate, there is one poor little boy however who does not have a mate as one of the females died, he is in a separate cage right now, lonely. The poor little boy is just desperate to find himself a girlfriend. ELIZABETH FIND THE DAMN BABY A GIRLFRIEND OR I AM GOING TO BUY THAT FEMALE FROM PETSMART DESPITE THE FACT THAT YOU DON'T LIKE HER! Okay so that is said. Don't you just love sending personal messages through a blog.