Another Time Suck

Charlie likes YouTube, particularly bird videos and puppies and/or kittens wrestling, especially if they make a lot of noise.

So, yeah, I joined Facebook. Poor John was invited to join, then kind of inundated with messages from people he hasn't seen or heard from in years. I remembered my friend Lisa mentioning it, and thought I'd join to say "Hi" to her, and give John a connection there as well. Turns out a lot of people I know are on Facebook; there were fewer people in my phone book (Gmail) who weren't in it than who were. I "friended" the ones I recognized (you know gMail puts every one you email into your contacts list). A few have responded, and I spent some time putting in photos, etc. (like the above), plus profiles for all the cats. (If I know you, and missed you, it's because I a) don't have the email addy in my book that matches your account, or b) didn't recognize the entry.)

One of the first things I did was find a couple of people that I don't want to hear from and block them. That was strangely satisfying! (I mentioned them in the "church" post a couple of weeks ago.) To prove I'm a complete geek: my favorite app so far is Flair.

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An Office Supply Geek's Dream Come True

Better put, a Sharpie geek's dream come true, but both myself and the birthday girl are office supply geeks as well as Sharpie geeks. Hinted at here, I have no idea where I first saw this (Personalize Your Sharpie!), but it was at least three months ago. I posted something on my gift ideas blog, but couldn't put a link anywhere else. It's been killing me! I put off ordering for financial reasons, then thought I might have waited too long. Nope! They promise shipping within 7-10 days. Whew. ETA: If the first Sharpie link doesn't work, try www.mysharpie.com.

Anyway... for my birthday a couple of years ago, Jdub got me Sharpies: tons of them. I wanted to return the gesture, without duplicating it.

I ordered six hot pink Sharpies with her name on one side (last name blurred here for her privacy) and paw prints on the reverse. I would really have liked to have something more creative on them, but the only quote I could think of at the time was too long (and kind of obscure). Asking her what she wanted on them would have totally given away my plan. This is classic, and reminds me the personalized pencils my fourth grade teacher, Mr. Schweitzer, got for every student in the class that Christmas. (I think it was fourth grade. He was one of the coolest teachers I ever had, and I'm pretty sure he was the one who did that.)

The price isn't too bad, considering that you can order as few as six markers (limited color selections). Totally worth it for the thrill of giving someone personalized Sharpies, especially when they are among her favorite things. (Places that offer better prices usually require the purchase of several dozen pieces.) I absolutely plan on ordering the lime green ones, just as soon as I can figure out what to put on it.

8/24/08: I wrote the above some time ago, but couldn't post it until Jdub had her present. I gave it to her yesterday since her birthday is in the middle of the week and we don't get to see each other often enough. Verdict: she loved them! They are NOT going to work with her, even though she uses Sharpies a lot there, because them being personalized won't stop people from stealing them.

Speaking of geeks, I added a button to my side bar for the Dr. Why web comic. I believe I've mentioned recently becoming a Dr. Who fan. The comic contains some spoilers for a newb like me, but not so specific that they'll ruin an episode for me. Great fun!

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Duh!

I just ordered a personalized item for a friend's upcoming birthday and had her maiden name put on it. She's been married for something like 6 or 7 years, but I still slip and call her by her last name all the time (how we used to refer to each other a lot). Luckily, the confirmation email included a phone number for making corrections, and I spoke with a very nice young man who promised to call back as soon as he verified that the change had been made. (Jdub, you know this is for you. It is not pale pink (your answer to my vague query yesterday), because they don't offer that. I did get a darker pink, though.)

I'm DYING to post all about this cool thing, but am waiting until it arrives and I present it. Then I'll share.

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Quickie: Calling All Joss-fan Crafters

Crochet-me is trying to convince Joss Wheden that he should be interviewed on the site. They've asked Joss-fan crafters to post their Angel, Buffy, Firefly, etc. crafts. I just posted some of my stuff: the Tall Card deck and the Jayne hats. If you've crafted anything inspired by one of Joss's shows, comics or movies, please consider sharing.

(Thanks to Cate, for putting me onto this!)

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Lunchtime Drive-by

IH Contest
First, a quick reminder about the IH Contest. I've received a couple of pictures of already-shipped packages, and have heard from several folks who have packages in the works. Thanks to everyone! I also just heard from Stacie, who has also held IH Contests, and she is offering up a spiffy prize featuring some hard-to-get Ravelry items.

Some Time Sucks
I've been trying to catch up on Bloglines again, after being sick, and found a couple fun goodies to suck up some of your time: Big Red Button and thisissand (both via How About Orange...).

Firefox Spell-check
We need to talk, Firefox. Until recently, you weren't recognizing most contractions as words. Today, you tried to tell me that I spelled "bandana" wrong. (Still are, as it happens.) It does not have two Ns at the end. I'm afraid I can't trust you, which is sad, because I get typing too fast and misspell words too frequently.

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Happy Friday!

I've been sick for the better part of the week; I hope to return with a new Crafty Fun Friday next week!

In the meantime, here is some randomness:

Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog is further proof that Joss Whedon is just brilliant. (Edit: It was free, but is now available only through iTunes.) I also now have a tiny crush on Neal Patrick Harris. I heard about this awhile ago, I think while we were watching the new Futurama commentary, but didn't go looking for it. Yesterday, two different people sent me the link. Part 3 is due out tomorrow.

Worst movie ever made.
John found a big sale on - I think - Amazon, and ordered a bunch of old movies he remembered from his childhood. We watched Super Fuzz the other night, and I wanted to pour bleach into my ears. Bad doesn't begin to cover it. One (horrible) piece of music, over & over & over again. Oh, just awful! I didn't know if it was possible, but it has kicked Muriel's Wedding out of the top spot.

Problematic
Firefly fans will appreciate this set of directions for making the problematic Ice Planet(s).

I hope to return to the blogging world Sunday or Monday, with tales of my day at Silver Leaf tomorrow. Since all my garb (from last summer) is still in the trunk, packing isn't going to be that hard.

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Thumbcat

This is our Cass, who steals snack food out of bags and bowls. She almost never eats "face first," preferring to pick up the bits with her paw. Sometimes she drops her treasures before eating them; sometimes, she lifts the food to her mouth.



I shot several clips of her yesterday, and John edited them together last night. All told, she probably ate 7 pieces of popcorn in an 8-hour stretch - it's not something we let her do all the time. She's also been known to steal french fries in this fashion, and loves cheese dip.

In other news
I got out yesterday to visit a few of the thrift stores in the area. No real spectacular finds (I only made it to three, and the pricers at two of the stores live in a special fantasy world where empty salad dressing bottles are worth $1). I did pick up:

• Tombstone cookie mold pan ($2)


• S'more Maker ($4) -- I couldn't resist!


• Apple peeler/corer


• 4 wood plates


• 2 pairs of shoes


• 2 huge glass mugs (for John)


• A couple of books for Heather's kids. I've been meaning to get some books for them, although not necessarily at the thrift store; however, two books about sharks - the very subject M. (the girl) is most interest in - fell off the shelf and hit my leg. Had to buy them.

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3 AM

You find the coolest things when you find yourself wide awake at 3 AM and check your Bloglines. This post has a video as well.

The book isn't real, by the way: it's a spoof, and the video is a spoof of the bios on VH1. Dave Lowe is a friend of Vickie's (he's worked on her show) and this isn't the first time I've run across knitting on his blog. The first time I read it, I scanned back a few days and found this: "Don't buy Knit Aid" (Vickie Howell's new book). Because she has a sense of humor, I'm thinking I will buy the book.

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Pork and Beans; Robots

This is such a fun video! I was happy to hear it on the radio recently -- wish they'd play it more.



For a bit of extra fun, check out this page, which has all of the memes referenced in the video.

Firefox 3
John showed me a cool trick with the newest version of Firefox (downloaded it yet?) because he knows I like robots. Enter about:robots (no space) in the URL bar.

Can you name all of the references?

Click the link below for the answers and to see what happened when I clicked the button.

You get a button that says "Please do not click this button again." When you click that button... well, you should try it for yourself.

Tab/Page title: The Day the Earth Stood Still
Vist you in peace...: The Day the Earth Stood Still
Robots may not injure...: Isaac Asimov's first rule of robotics
Robots have seen things...: Bladerunner
Robots are Your Plastic Pal...: Hitchhiker's Guide to the galaxy
Robots have sniny metal posteriors: Futurama
...And they have a plan: Battlestar Galatica (?)

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