[Shrek] Learn Something New Every Day

One of my goals in life is to learn something new every day. There is an adage that says "all knowledge is worth knowing", and I firmly believe that's true. Sure, some of the stuff we learn is worthless unless we're playing Trivial Pursuit, but in general having a wide base of knowledge is a good thing. For me, learning something new when you least expect it is the best...and that's what happened to Fiona and I Friday afternoon.

We were heading out to the Super Walmart in Leicester after work when our "low fuel" light came on. We were planning on stopping for gas anyway, but the idiot light served as a good reminder for us to not forget. As we pulled into the gas station, we saw a man filling what looked to be milk cans with gas. It turns out the man was an inspector for Irving Oil (the company who owned the gas station), measuring the pumps to make sure they were dispensing the correct amount of gas.

We've all seen the stickers on the pumps certifying they pump the correct amounts, but who here has ever seen someone actually checking them? It seems Irving Oil checks every pump once a quarter, while the state only checks once a year.

It turns out there's more than one test. First they check to make sure it pumps exactly one gallon by, you guessed it, filling it to a line in the can at one gallon. That part seemed obvious enough. But then they weigh it, and depending on the temperature and humidity (I'm pretty sure he said humidity), it has to match what the chart says it should weight, within 2 grams. Then on top of that, they do it again, this time using a two gallon measurement. They do that for every octane the fuel pump dispenses.

Fiona asked the guy why hardly anyone ever sees this being done, and he replied that it's usually done on Sunday mornings when traffic is light, but because the weather was going to be so nice he wanted to get the job done as early as possible so he could enjoy the weekend with his family.

So the next time you're out on an early Sunday morning, take a peak at your local filling station to see of you spot the guy with the milk cans. At least you'll know what he's doing. Oh, and how often to pumps fail the measuring test? According to the guy, unless they're tampered with, just about never.

So I guess that's two things I learned on Friday.

[Fiona] Love is...

I started taking my Dad to church on Sundays sometime in September of 2008. He was just in car accident and was a little unsteady on his feet. I told myself that I was doing it for his own good and for my peace of mind. My pops worked a physically demanding job his whole life. Needless to say that now in his "leisure" years he is often in pain from arthritis and old injuries.

Isn't aging grand?

In the beginning I would drop him off at the church steps and then go run errands. Slowly something started to change. I found myself thinking that I should go with him. One day my Dad stumbled coming down the steps so the very next Sunday I started going to church with my dad. I am a lifelong non-practicing Catholic. It is not something I am proud of. It is just that the Church has never really spoken for me or the things that I believe in.

I may never resolve all of the issues that I have with the church as an entity but for now I think I get why it is such a big draw for my Dad. There is love. It exists quietly and waits patiently. The parish priest, the deacons and the sister genuinely love their flock. I see it. In the way they greet those that come to Mass and in the questions they ask about your loved ones. I look forward to taking my dad to church. Love is...right where it has always been waiting for you to find it.

I love my dad. It is my job alone to make sure he is ok. I take him to the doctor, to the bank and pretty much eveywhere and everything else he has to do. He is memory challenged and so he is in need of my involvment. I think we make a good team. Sometimes we argue. We are both stubborn. I would do anything for him. He has done so much for me in the course of my life.

[Shrek] Some eBay Tips For Sellers

Lately I've been surfing eBay to fill in some holes in my bookshelf. I hate to read a series out of order so if I'm missing a book or two from a series I prefer to grab them at Annie's Book Swap or eBay.

One thing I've also been doing is going through the wholesale lots on eBay to grab whole series from authors I like. In doing so, I see a lot of things sellers are doing wrong in that category. Even though I doubt any of those sellers will read this, I feel compelled to offer them some advice.

1) Look to see what everyone else is selling.
The number of sellers listing the same things are pretty high, and it's funny to see a bunch of sellers staring their lots at a low price and another couple starting nearly identical lots for five to ten times more. Unless you've got something different, don't expect to make a fortune selling book lots.

2) If you have romance books to sell, save your time and throw them away.
Don't take my word for it, use the search function. People that read romance books must not know how to use the internet, because the vast majority of lots don't get bids. Yours won't either, trust me.

3) Learn your genres
Science fiction and horror/suspense are not the same thing. Political thrillers and war novels aren't the same thing either. Don't put them together and expect bids. And another thing you shouldn't mix together: male and female writers of any genre. Lots of readers have a preference for one or the other. Mixing them, unless you find the right reader, reduces the number of bidders you get.

4) List the books in the lot, and have a picture of the covers
And don't do just one or the other unless you have no choice. I have a list of books I'm looking for, and if you don't list the books in the lot I can't decide if I'm going to bid or not. Having a picture of the covers helps for the folks that are more visual.

5) Multiples of the same book is a no-no
Listing a lot of four of the same book is dumb, even if it's a book people might care about. Listing a lot of four of the same book that no one cares about is just a waste of time and money.

6) Don't bother listing your book as "HTF"
When there were thirty listed in the last month, and a hundred available in the eBay stores, "hard to find" seems like a silly thing to say. Plus if it's a paperback released in the last ten years, it ain't "HTF" under any definition of the phrase.

There's a ton more stuff I could list, but as I have to snipe an auction in 3 minutes I'll have to leave it at this...for now.

[Shrek] I Couldn't Care Less

Lots of people totally mangle the English language when they speak. Part of it is laziness, part of is regional dialect, and I'm sure there's a small amount of wanting to sound more educated/intelligent than they really are. When I hear someone butchering the language I usually just smile inside and don't correct the person. I couldn't care less how someone speaks, only that they can clearly communicate what they are trying to say.

What I could care less about is writers, especially professionals, that can't spend just a few precious seconds making sure they're using their idioms correctly. If you're going to spend time putting thought to words, how about trying to express yourself in a manner that makes at least a little sense.

Do you see what I did there, or could you care less?

[Shrek] One Year; Ten Thousand Pages

I have recently accepted a wager that I could read 10,000 pages worth of novels, biographies, etc. It's not a significant amount of money, and it all goes to charity, but seeing as I was planning on reading at least a little this year it seemed like a pretty easy bet to make. The person I'm wagering says it's not possible considering the schedule I keep. He should have taken a closer look at the math:

10,000 pages / 365 days = 28 pages per day.

I read more than that now.

The rules are simple, I can only read books that I would have read if I weren't involved in a bet, and magazines and newspapers don't count; it's only about books. So everyone can follow along, I've listed the books I've already read and the total number of pages. Check back fairly often for updates.

Since I was adding stuff to the layout, I finally got around to adding a couple more links the the list. The first is a list of book reviews The Outlaw Josie is doing as part of a project called "Cannonball Read", which is an attempt to read 100 books in a year and write reviews for each one. The second is a blog based on David Lynch's fiction.

[Fiona] OMG Facebook

Okay so I am a weenie. I should know better. The true definiton of stupid...doing the same thing over and over hoping for a different outcome when there is only one solution. I could not get out of high school fast enough. Small town girl, small time world. I wanted bigger and better. I wanted to be accepted for who I knew I was. Kids can be so unkind. Put you in a box and glue the lid down.

What the hell was I thinking when I joined Facebook. On the surface it seemed harmless. A person sends out a few be my friend requests to relatives and some kids from back in the day who "got" you. The next thing you know people you don't remember find you. Or better yet the ones who still want to step on your neck find you,try to throw you back in the box and glue the lid back on.

It took me almost all of my adult days to come into myself. To like me. I will never know why I didn't measure up in their eyes. Why I wasn't good enough for them. For real it doesn't even matter. In spite of their best efforts I survived. They don't even know what they missed.

Surprise! I am not the same girl from high school and then again in some ways yes, I am the same girl. Today I was pleasantly rewarded with the company of someone from my past. Someone who "got me" even back then. We reconnected through the courtesy of Facebook and made plans to meet for coffee and chat and catch up. I will wholeheartedly admit I was beyond nervous. Twenty plus years has a way of changing people. I know I have changed.

We met at Friendly's in the town we grew up in. I felt like that gunslinger you see in bad westerns walking into a saloon. I just wasn't sure what to expect. What was I going to say. I don't remember all the things we talked about. I can tell you we laughed and almost cried and I know from my side of the table I saw that same friend from days gone by who still "gets" me. Sometimes it is difficult to articulate to someone what they mean to you or how they have affected your life. I just want to say thank you for being the great person you have always been.

[Shrek] A Message For My Conservative Friends

OK folks, this message is really just for my friends who are on the "right" of the political center line. I didn't think I'd need to make a post like this, but recent talk radio comments and political blogs have shown to me that you conservatives need some helpful advice:

Learn which battles to fight.

Remember how silly the liberals looked when they fought every single battle they could find while the previous administration was in the White House, no matter how dumb or trivial it was? That's how silly you look now.

What's raised the ire of the conservatives here in the Commonwealth lately is our governor, Deval Patrick, going on vacation to the Caribbean and taking his State Police body guards with him. The State Police body guards are, not shockingly, paid with tax dollars, and many folks think we shouldn't be wasting tax dollars on protection for our traveling governor.

Well, our two previous governors, both Republicans, also had State Police protection when they traveled. Was money being wasted in those cases, especially when one of those two was running for President and was spending lots of time in New Hampshire and Iowa?

No one will find it odd that these folks that are complaining are saying that the issue they now have is that in our current economic situation we should be cutting all wasteful spending in light of all the projected drops in revenue for the state.

The obvious conclusion is they think wasting money when there isn't an economic crisis is OK.

So you see, not exactly the point people are trying to make.

Listen, if people want to give Governor Patrick crap because he gave State Senator Marian Walsh a $175,000-a-year job as an assistant director at a state bonding authority, a position that had sat vacant for more than a dozen years, I'll stand with you.

If people want to give Governor Patrick crap because he wants to add 19 cents per gallon to the current gas tax, making it the highest in the nation, I'll stand with you.

If people want to give Governor Patrick crap because he wants to raise the tolls on the Mass Pike...well, sorry, you're on your own there. I don't use the Pike, so that's a battle I'm not going to fight.

See, it's a lesson I've already learned.

[Shrek] John Stewart Is Teh Awesome!

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

CNBC Gives Financial Advice

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Joke of the Day

[Shrek] Why I Love Hockey

People ask why I love hockey, and sometimes it's hard to answer that question without sounding like a raving lunatic. But I will do my best here...

People generally see hockey as grown men beating the crap out of each other, and every once in awhile trying to score a goal to win a game. While fighting is a part of the sport, it almost always isn't an expression of violence, but an expression of their passion for the sport and the intensity of the competition.

Hockey is the fastest and most violent of the major sports, but it can also be the most beautiful to watch.



But, yes...as I have mentioned above passions do occasionally spill over. And those passions never run higher than when representing your country. So I now present to you the coolest hockey story I have read in a long while. It's a story about the US Sledge Hockey team at the Hockey Canada Cup.

There is a video after the text.

Canadian victory over U.S. includes line brawl

VANCOUVER - They may be missing legs to amputation or birth defects. Some are paraplegics or have other lower-body afflictions that have rendered their legs useless.

But they never said they were choirboys. And their fists still work - as a crowd of 1,200 learned Wednesday night.

An emotion-charged Canada-U.S. sledge hockey game at UBC Arena featured a line brawl with 1.7 seconds remaining after Canadian goaltender Paul Rosen was rammed by American Taylor Chace after he froze the puck.

"I just thought he was going to peel off a little and I would just kill the clock," said the feisty, 48-year-old Rosen after Canada's 2-1 win in round- robin play of the Hockey Canada Cup.

"Once I looked up and realized how close he was," added Rosen with a wry smile, "(well) I love physical hockey."

Captain Jean Labonte immediately came to Rosen's defence and pretty soon all the players on the ice were in a big scrum, some clearly throwing punches with their gloves still on.

"Very nice guy. Dear friend of mine," Rosen, tongue firmly planted in his cheek, said of Chace. "Going out for Christmas dinner."

Two Canadians - forwards Billy Bridges and Greg Westlake - were landing punches, but were only assessed roughing and misconduct penalties, while Chace got a double minor and a misconduct. American Andy Yohe was inexplicably not penalized, although he did come in from behind on Bridges at one point with his fists flailing.

Under IIHF rules, players assessed fighting majors are suspended for the next game and one Team Canada official figured referee Derek Berkebile of the U. S. was showing a bit of leniency in not handing out any majors.

After the final second ticked off the clock - and Canadian defenceman Ray Grassi tried to get at an American as the buzzer went - Berkebile went to both teams separately and talked to them for about a minute before the teams, somewhat reluctantly it appeared, went through the traditional post-game handshake.

Bridges, who scored both Canadian goals in the first period, said Chace "two-handed" Rosen and "we've just got to protect our goalie."

"It was a good scrum," added Bridges, who said he didn't think the melee would sully the sport's image.

"We're fighting day and night to proclaim ourselves as a good sport. Obviously that doesn't define our sport, but it's a part of it. We play a physical game and we're very competitive and that's what it's all about."

Canada will play Japan in the final round-robin game Thursday. The Japanese are also 2-0 after beating Germany 4-1 on Wednesday

.



After watching that, how can you not be a fan?

[Fiona] Today is for Brenda

Today...I used to dread the arrival of this day. Yes, this day, during this month for the past four years. Today is her birthday. Today I celebrate her. My kid sister, Brenda.

She died almost five years ago in a car accident. It has taken me a long time in my grief to get to this point but I think I finally understand. It is okay to let go of the pain and hold onto something worth having. It is more important to remember who she was. I am certain in my heart that someday we will be together again,laughing in the sun. I feel it in my very being.

Brenda had a huge capacity for love. She loved with her whole being and if you belonged to her there was no question over how she felt about you. She had a beautiful smile and a contagious laugh. She was fair of face with locks of flame. She was my best friend and my sister. The joy she gave me goes on and on.
Whenever I dream about her we are laughing, just happy to be.

This winter I decided on my own that I needed to stop being angry and hurt over her death. She is gone but lives on; in my heart, in my memories and in the memories of the people she knew and loved. I was truly blessed to have her in my life for as long as I did. She helped me to become the person I am. She taught me so much: not to be afraid, to be patient, to have compassion, things too numerous to list here.

I miss her still. I think I always will.

LIVE, LAUGH, LOVE words she tried to live by, actions she tried to teach me. For her I will carry on.