Friday, May 30, 2008

they stole my idea.



They must read my blog. I am convinced. grrr, boston.com. I shake my fist at you.

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Walleteer Wednesday (Week 5).

I've been waiting for suggest this number. In fact, I'm kind of surprised it wasn't suggested sooner. Anyway, here it is. Things you can purchase with $12.34 (a number chosen "for obvious reasons"):

  • A "DEG Mouthpiece adapter for cornet and trumpet" (???!?):




  • An unframed NBA all star game picture



  • Really sketchy looking headphones from "Silk Vertical":



  • A "Jellycat" stuffed animal:


  • 14-Channel Car FM Transmitter and MP3 Player with USB Port and Remote



Oh, I almost forgot. For $12.34, you can also order the "Beef with Oyster Sauce" dish from the Palm Beach Hotel Restaurant in Jamaica. If you happen to be in Jamaica, that is.

*By the way, I'm out of numbers to post about! Leave more :)

Monday, May 26, 2008

On Idioms.

I've been meaning to blog about idioms for some time now. (No, enoch, not dumb people. "You idiom!") I think I've been thinking about it every day for the past... 2 or 3 weeks. Now, I have no idea what in fact I want to say about idioms... I just want to blog about them, hammer something out. So now that finals are over, I'm back on my feet. And since I've gotten everything squared away, here goes nothing.

Let's start from square one. What is an idiom?

id·i·om (noun),[id-ee-uh m]: an expression whose meaning is not predictable from the usual meanings of its constituent elements.

Now, I'm not one to use many idioms in my daily speech. I do so only once in a blue moon. And when I do try to use one, it usually comes out kind of skewed. I never actually hit the nail on the head. You know, it's always a "close but no cigar" kind of situation.

OK, OK. Hold your horses. I really do have a point here.

Idioms are the kinds of things that you have to play by ear. You can't really force them, because then people start noticing. Can't pull the wool over anyone's eyes nowadays.

When you do use them, you've got to make sure you use them in the right context. And you just have to bank on the fact that someone knows what you're talking about. For example, this weekend, while hanging out with some friends, I said, "A stitch in time saves nine." They looked at me like I had two heads.

As I mentioned above, I'm not an authority on this matter. I probably won't try to correct you on your misuse of idioms, because that'd be like the pot calling the kettle black.

Lalalala...

Alright, fine. So maybe I don't have a real point. I should stop babbling. Clearly I'm beating a dead horse here (excuse the graphic nature of this one).

I'll just cut to the chase: Idioms are cool.

Marauding Monday: amazing animals.

Animals! pictures from snopes.

  • A giant rabbit (3 feet, 17 lbs).



  • A bird stealing quarters from a carwash (he's a smart one):



  • A puppy born with a heart-shaped pattern on his coat:



  • A black bear with her white cub:



  • A horse with a prosthetic leg:


Thursday, May 22, 2008

please pray!




Many of you know that I've recently (in the past year) become quite fond of the music of Steven Curtis Chapman. I've been following with his family's blogs in the past few weeks and am just amazed by their love for God and each other. Steven & wife MaryBeth have 6 children-- 3 biological and 3 adopted girls from China.

Their youngest daughter Maria (age 5) was struck and killed by an SUV last night. My heart is really aching for this family and I hope you'll join me in praying for them. If you click on the 2nd link, you can see Maria and her Dad doing dishes together (4/2/08 post).
---
*edit*

SCC wrote this song for friends who had lost a child. Thought it would be appropriate to share here:

"With Hope" - Steven Curtis Chapman

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Marauding Monday: Random Facts

I know, I know. It's Tuesday. My b.

Some random facts for you, from randomfunfacts.com*:

  • The only letter not appearing on the Periodic Table is the letter “J”.

  • In the year 2000, Pope John Paul II was named an "Honorary Harlem Globetrotter"!

  • Licking a stamp leads to the consumption of 1/10 of a calorie.

  • TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.

  • Donald Duck's middle name is Fauntleroy.

  • There are only four words in the common English language that end in "-dous": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.

  • Hershey's Kisses are called that because the machine that makes them looks like it's kissing the conveyor belt.
*Validity not guaranteed.

Saturday, May 17, 2008

assist me.

Dear readers, I write to you with a humble request. It has come to my attention that the name of my blog ("just my musings...") has become painfully inadequate. Thus, I need a new one. The new appellation will then be followed by a new layout. I trust you, dear readers. Name my blog.

Friday, May 16, 2008

blood cake.

Since I was a child, I have had an unnatural (and perhaps irrational) dislike of chocolate cake. I mean... yes, I'll eat it sometimes. But most of the time, if I look at a slice of chocolate cake for too long, it makes me shudder. Today, the reason why I don't savor this widely enjoyed dessert was finally unearthed. My dear friend made me a cupcake. A chocolatey, "red velvet" one. I was staring at it and, as I slowly entered a trance-like state, it hit me. It was Matilda's fault that I don't like chocolate cake!

Remember the movie Matilda? In it, there's a slightly overweight, plump child by the name of Bruce. The headmistress of the school catches him stealing a piece of chocolate cake and punishes him by forcing to eat an entire gigantic chocolate cake in front of the whole school. When Bruce politely refuses, Ms. Trunchbull (blech!) insists: "But you'll hurt Cook's feelings! She made this cake just for you, to have on your very own. Her sweat and blood went into this cake, and you will not leave the platform until you have consumed the entire confection!"

So, there you have it. I've figured it out. Since the time that I saw this movie (12 years ago), I've forged this strange connection between blood and chocolate cake in my mind. Thus my unusual aversion to this food...

One of the kids at the afterschool program I volunteer at pointed out to me today that the cake did not actually contain blood, that "sweat and blood" was meant only to be a metaphor for hard work. I beg to differ. That Ms. Trunchbull was evil, and I'll bet my lunch money that was something nasty in that cake.
---

See the vileness for yourself:

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Walleteer Wednesday (Week 4).

I have returned, and so has Walleteer Wednesday. Today, I draw my inspiration from Kanye (my iTunes is currently playing Gold Digger).

The next number in the line is one zillion. However, because one zillion is a fictitious number, I cannot feature it in a Walleteer Wednesday post. If you insist that your question be answered, please post it to Melody's blog, to be answered on a future Supererogatory Sunday.

Moving on to the next amount, then. $46.91.

It sounds like a hard number (very exact), but I actually found a bunch of products that cost $46.91. I took screenshots as evidence:


  • A "Human Torso Model":



  • A book on French Philosophy:



  • A "flowery" men's cologne:



  • An Irish "lucky" doorknocker:







So there we have it. Five items that cost exactly (down to the penny) $46.91.
---

Leave more numbers!

Also, to answer Emily's question: I do take numbers in the order they are suggested. However, if one person offers multiple numbers, I am apt to answer his first one and then take others' numbers before returning to his other ones.

Monday, May 12, 2008

1,000!

Today, when I returned to my dorm room after completing my last final exam of the semester, I noticed that a grand happening had occurred. The counter (located at the bottom of my site) alerted me that I had officially gotten over 1,000 hits on this blog! To quote our former high school principal (I can't remember who she was, but she wore jean skirts and long black boots and her first name was Jean): "holy moly COW!"

I just happened to check my StatCounter account at the moment I received hit #1,000. I took a screenshot as evidence:



Wow. 1,000. And no, I didn't sit in front of my laptop and hit refresh repeatedly!

How to celebrate such a joyous milestone?

I decided to post a celebratory image that really conveys the significance of the number 1,000. And how did I go about searching for such an image? Google Image Search, of course. I entered "a thousand", and hit the search button. Here are some of my results (I couldn't pick just one!):

  • "A Thousand"-year egg.



  • "A Thousand" pennies! ($10)



  • "A Thousand" Different Ways.



  • "A Thousand" dollar ice cream sundae (Serendipity 3 restaurant, NYC). Served in crystal goblet, with 18k gold spoon.




So, I just wanted to say thanks to my faithful readers! Hope you will continue to visit and read. For now, my brain is fried, but be not afraid! I have plenty that I have been wanting to blog about in the past weeks, and as my heap of neurons slowly recovers from the assault that was final exams, you will be presented with much new knowledge and insight.

on the brink of summer.

well, folks, i'm nearly done. 1 more final left (in a little over an hour), and another year of college will have concluded.

as I scramble to do some last minute cramming, I am hit with an overwhelming feeling of guilt for not having posted more frequently in the past week or two, and for having missed not one, but two Supererogatory Sundays. and so, I dug up something for you. I leave you with this to ponder while I am taking my exam.

You know that sound Scooby Doo makes when he's confused? "AARRRgh?!?" That's the sound that I made when I found this.



ok, so it's not a shot from the movie (notice cleaning personnel in the background). but, think with me for a moment... what if it was?

Friday, May 9, 2008

followup.

a steel penny?

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

walleteer wednesday: postponed.

Sorry, guys. I've got to push it back again. I'm in the midst of finals....you know how it is. Everything should be back to normal by next week. Fear not, faithful readers.

Anyway, in honor of Walleteer Wednesday, I bring you this news story:

Did you know that the penny costs more than 1 cent to make?

Monday, May 5, 2008

Marauding Monday: shopping bags.

Another Monday is upon us, friends. To celebrate, I found some cool shopping bags to show you. Yes, these are indeed real:

Panadol headache relief:




Jewelry:




Reach out to children with autism:




Jumprope!:




Nailbiting? Stop 'n Grow helps!:




Gun:


---

Oh, and I promised to reveal the answers to the last post. You got most of them, anyway =)

  1. Shape of My Heart (Backstreet Boys)

  2. You're the One That I Want (Grease)

  3. Because You Loved Me (Celine Dion)

  4. This Is Why I'm Hot (MIMS)

  5. Behind These Hazel Eyes (Kelly Clarkson)

  6. Holy (Nichole Nordeman)

  7. Spyrtle the Turtle (SteveSongs)

  8. Breathe (Michelle Branch)

  9. Gettin' Jiggy With it (Will Smith)

  10. Just Got Paid ('N Sync)

And the 3 clips?

  1. Happy Day (Tim Hughes)

  2. Gettin' Jiggy With it (Will Smith)

  3. Bad Day (Daniel Powter)

Friday, May 2, 2008

a break from studying.

During these last few weeks of final papers/studying, I've been quite attached to my iTunes. I mean, how else would I stay sane, right? I have recently come across many songs that I forgot I ever listened to... and some songs that I'm (almost) embarrassed of. I wonder if you know any of them. So here you go--a "random" selection of the music that I've listened to in the past 2 weeks.

Guess the song & artist based on the lyrics (no google searching!):

  1. Looking back on the things I've done/ I was trying to be someone/ I played my part/ Kept you in the dark

  2. You better shape up/ 'Cause I need a man/ And my heart is set on you

  3. You gave me wings and made me fly/ You touched my hand; I could touch the sky/ I lost my faith; you gave it back to me/ You said no star was out of reach

  4. I'm into driving cars/ Push 'em off the lot/ I'm into shutting stores down/ Just so I can shop

  5. I told you everything/ Opened up and let you in/ You made me feel alright/ For once in my life

  6. How many roads did I travel/ Before I walked down one that led me to You/ How many dreams did unravel/ Before I believed in a hope that was true

  7. She likes to eat shellfish but she's not very selfish/ So she shares 'em with her fellow reptiles

  8. So just give me one good reason/ Tell me why I should stay/ 'cause I don't want to waste another moment/ Saying things we never meant to say

  9. What?/You wanna ball with the kid?/ Watch your step/ You might fall tryin' to do what I did

  10. Check the mirror, lookin' fly/ Round up the posse, jump in my ride/ Radio rockin', hottest jam/ Feel the rhythm, pump up yourself

I guess some of these are hard. I will be surprised if you get #4. I'd be impressed if you get #10. And I don't think any of you will get #7 (unless you're cecilia or e).

You know what would be fun? If I posted different audio clips for you to guess, too. Hmm... brb.

OK back. Here's some more for you to guess. They're intros from songs (not necessarily the ones above). Guess away!

Clip #1:

Clip #2:

Clip #3:


Answers will be posted on Sunday.