Monthly Archives: November 2008

Nightmare

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If I dream, I usually don’t remember doing so. I don’t know why. But there are rare exceptions.

I don’t know exactly when it happened, but at some point last night, I had a nightmare. I dreamed we had a 2-hour delay at school, and I used the time to have coffee at my breakfast table with my parents. La-dee-da, nothing wrong there — except 1) Dad and Mother passed away in 1995 and 1996, respectively, and 2) I don’t have a breakfast table in my tiny little kitchen.

Bizarre, to be sure, but I was enjoying it, apparently. Then the weird thing happened: I forgot to go to school.

The rest of the otherwise-pleasant dream experience was horrifying. I couldn’t find a phone. Anywhere. All I could say to everyone around me (and I didn’t even know some of the people) was, “I’m gonna lose my job! I’m gonna lose my job!” I remember trying desperately to come up with an outfit, and flinging open closet door after closet door, only to find the closets empty.

Then, for the pièce de résistance, I happened to find a phone and called the school. The middle school secretary said, “You can come in, but Terry [my principal] has reassigned all your kids to other teachers.” Great. Not only am I in trouble with my bosses, but I’m a permanent pariah to my colleagues. I’m dead to them.

The nightmare must have faded away, because I remember nothing more after that.

What does this mean, my clever fiends? Any Josephs out there want to interpret? I promise I won’t throw you in jail.

:-)

Fink out(ta here, because there’s no 2-hour delay and I have to get to school on time!)

Over 40 and fabulous

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Yesterday I saw a picture of Kurt Russell, and I thought, “Wow, he looks good for 57 years old.” Then I wondered how many other actors, say, over 40, still look great (and by “great,” I mean “not necessarily drop-dead gorgeous, but really good”). Here’s my list, in somewhat ordered fashion (especially the last 2).

Still Got it After 40 List

And just for my friend Bando:

A couple of these photos, admittedly, were taken before the actors were 40 (both Hughs, for instance), but I liked them, so I posted them.

So who are your favorites? Who else in Hollywood has kept it basically together without destroying his face with cosmetic surgery? Let’s stick to men this time — I’ll do a post on girls later.

Photo credits: Time, Vanity Fair, Universal Pictures, GQ, imdb.com, Associated Press, AMC-TV.

There’s freakish…

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….and then there’s truly freakish.

Freakish:

Ok what is THAT all about? I mean, I understand it’s a “kissing shield” or whatever, but why? Why not just hug or shake hands? And what do you do with the thing after you’re done with it? Ewww.

Sheesh. Only in Hollyweird.

Disclaimer to the skittish and easily riled: I make no religious judgments. Rather, I just comment on what I think is strange, creepy, troubling or simply wacko. So, if you’re a Scientologist, rock on. To each his own, and all that.

Truly Freakish:

The religion is Scientology. Its scripture: the writings of L. Ron Hubbard. According to Scientology’s official website, the religion is based on an individual’s personal and spiritual growth. Fine. They list in their “Creeds and Codes” that all humans have a right to their own ideas and goals. Fine again.

But then, there’s the Xenu weirdness, wherein Hubbard postulates that 75 million years ago, an alien named Xenu came to earth, and…well, just click the link and read about it. Apparently, the Xenu documents were hidden from view until people began extricating themselves from Scientology (because, among other things, one has to buy one’s way to the next level of “clarity”). They have since become public record.

And somebody has gone to extreme research lengths to produce this site. It’s fascinating reading for sure; I spent 2 hours last night lost in it. The links are flipping endless.

The whole “E-Meter” thing is totally weird, too:

Of course Travolta’s an “OT III” level. He paid six figures to get there. The consistent thread I observed in all my reading was that many of the Scientology members interviewed are celebrities, business executives, TV and movie producers, doctors, attorneys; in other words, people with money. And you need money to advance through the levels. It’s a flavor of bizarre around which I am having trouble wrapping my reptilian brain.

That’s ok though. I get that a lot. I think I’ll read some more today, in hopes of having a Tom Cruise moment of ultimate clarity. Then, perhaps, I won’t come across as so terribly glib.

Fink out.

Photo credit: Associated Press; LA Times

Things That Make Me Happy

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(First, let’s assume that the top of the list is occupied bigtime by my family, my friends, and my students.)

Last night and this morning, I realized there are lots of things that offer me comfort, fun, relaxation, convenience — and interesting reading, if nothing else.

Things That Make Me Happy (in random order)

  1. The Wal-Mart Photo Center. How cool is it to upload your Jakey photos, check a few boxes to order different sizes, and have them ready for pick-up a few days later? I know lots of folks wail on the Wally, and for some good reasons, but you can’t beat this service for convenience, unless you have a really good photo printer at home (which I don’t).
  2. Online shopping. Truly, during the Christmas insanity that rules my life and job, it’s spectacular.
  3. Quiet time. The Thriller stays up late and sleeps in usually till around 8 a.m. That leaves me with the 4:30 – 6:00 a.m. slot for coffee, reading, returning emails, and most importantly – Rockin’ the Bourgeoisie.
  4. Getting prezzies in the mail. Books, especially. But a recent amazing gifty contained two other great loves of my life: software and coffee. (Wave to BoomR — how are you feeling, luv?)
  5. Cooking and baking for the holidays. Mostly because I hope to get to spend some fun time with the girls in the family. Not that the boys can’t cook or bake — we just don’t want them in the kitchen with us, getting in the way, changing the subject, putting their fingers in stuff and generally being pests.
  6. Giving gifts. And wrapping them up all pretty beforehand. My fam will tell you I’m relatively good at it.
  7. Reading before turning out the lights. It’s the last thing I do every night; I don’t think I could go to sleep without it.
  8. The last day of school before Christmas break. It’s stress-free, usually, and everyone’s happy and in the holiday spirit.
  9. Snow days. Not because I want to get out of school (I’m usually too obsessive about missed rehearsals for that), but because of the quiet in the early morning, before the snow plows get going. My street and yard look peaceful and pretty, and since no buses run, there’s not as much activity on the roads.
  10. My good fortune. I’m not wealthy, God knows. I’m a public school teacher with a semi-retired husband. Most of the time, I’m in a panic about school loans, rising fuel and food costs, and whether or not the Mighty Ford Ranger is going to make it another school year of 22 miles one way to work. But still, I have family and friends who love me, and isn’t that what it’s about, really?

So what are some things that make you happy? I covet your lists.

Fink out.

Dangling the carrot

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So last night around dinner time, #1 Son text-messages me:

Watchin NBC news-theres a rumor the browns want to hire Cowher-8 million contract

“Whaaaat?” was my response. So the Thriller and I turned on the set, and when the sports report came on, sure enough, there it was, albeit just a few words about it. Hmmm.

Philomaths, start your search engines.

What I learned was both interesting and disappointing. See, I don’t think Romeo’s the guy. He’s a class act, but after what — 4 seasons now? — with the team, they still can’t make it happen. Any GM (even Browns General Manager Phil Savage, who, by the way, got into a little trouble of his own a couple of days ago) needs to believe that after giving a coach a fair shot and the team still can’t win, other plans need to be considered.

So here’s the deal. The rumor says that someone “close to the organization” has reported that:

  1. The Browns front office is talking to former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher, and is prepared to offer him a contract between $8 and $12 million.
  2. Cowher has just recently purchased a home in Strongsville, a suburb of Cleveland.

Well now, I just had to check all that out. And here’s what I found:

This particular rumor has been around for awhile. Last night, I read posts on forums about it dating back to September of 2007. The earliest mention of it was in 1998, when the Browns were poised for reinstatement to the NFL after being ripped away from Cleveland and given to the highest bidder out there in Maryland somewheres. Says the New York Times article from ’98:

Last week, Pittsburgh Coach Bill Cowher, at an impasse with the Steelers over a contract extension, indicated he might try to be general manager and coach of the Browns.

Well, as we all know, that didn’t happen — just like it probably won’t happen now, at least in the foreseeable future, for a minimum of two reasons:

  1. The Rooney Rule, which states that any team looking to hire a head coach must interview at least one minority candidate. If everyone knows the Browns are after Cowher, who’d sign up for an interview?
  2. Cowher will want to run the show, and there’s been no indication from what I can find that Savage has been threatened with termination.

Personally, I’d like to see Angry Man With Strange Looking Chin come to Cleveland. (And apparently, so would a lot of other people.) We haven’t had a decent coach since Marty Schottenheimer.

Fink out.

PS – a Friday extra: Peter Pan Gone Horribly, Devastatingly Wrong

Friday extra #2: “It’s all Rousseau’s fault, Grammie.”

Image credits: AP Photo/Peter Diama, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Theo Wargo, wireimage.com