Oh happy day!
So I'm flipping through the new May Vogue...and my 2002 has been made! "Say goodbye to your belly button: high waistlines are back. Say goodbye to low-riders. Bigger, slouchier bottoms ground the look. Empire-waist dress raises the bar..."

What does this mean? I won't have to flee Old Navy screaming because the jeans that won't even go over my hips when zipped also land 4" below my ass-crack. Pant legs might actually fit over my thighs without envoking water balloon jokes. We won't be forced to see every 12-year old in the mall's belly ring whether we want to or not. God bless fashion. I knew this day would come again. I never gave up hope!
posted at 03:52 PM | link--it | mail it | (17) shout it

He is, he is, he is Superman

And he can do anything!

The Dallas Cowboys have just selected an Oklahoma Sooner - Mr. Roy Williams - as their first round draft pick. You go Royeeee! You will notice upon close inspection of the above photo that Roy's legs are not visible. That's because he was airbound. You will also notice that Chris Simms is facing the wrong way in his own endzone. That's because he was just about to complete a perfect "pass" to OU's Teddy Lehman for a Sooner touchdown. Roy's going to be a thing of beauty to watch in the NFL. Keep your eye on 'im!
posted at 01:49 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (3) shout it

In the good ol' summertime
I just submitted my mom's recipe for funnel cakes over at The Red Kitchen. Bon appétit!
posted at 12:29 AM | link-

-it | mail it | (3) shout it

Gonna dress you up in my love
"He does a lot of nice things for me."

"Girl, I know he used to do nice stuff for you, but what has he done for you late-leeeey?"

Well there's your answer. Can you feel the love tonight?

posted at 07:57 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (3) shout it

Shrinky dinks
Ever want to reduce a huge image on your site so it loads faster, but just don't have the graphics program or know-how to do so? Adobe to the rescue! You can upload the image off your own harddrive, and they will "optimize" it for you -- giving you a few different options/sizes to choose from. You can also pick .gif, .jpg, or both. Then just right click and save the image you like best after Adobe has worked their magic. It even gives approximate download times on a 28.8 connection. Try it out!
posted at 07:23 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (3) shout it

Baby steps
In order to make David happy, I've decided to finally tackle CSS as I can... There's a new beach skin up now that's pretty bare-bones and plain as far as my skins go -- and so far I've only figured out how to make it pretty in 1024x768. But if you're on a slow modem, moving everything out of tables should start to speed things up for you. So have at it if you so desire!
posted at 05:26 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (12) shout it

You're in good hands with Alstott
Finally good news out of the Bucs camp, rather than news of yet another cut...it appears we've signed Mike Alstott to a new 4-year extension on his contract. Look out -- the A-train is about to roll on!
posted at 02:25 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (1) shout it

"Get Your Buddha on the Floor"

Abercrombie & Fitch has a lot more to deal with than irate customers over their nudie-catalogs these days. Their latest t-shirt campaign, pictured above, is causing quite an uproar. The shirts have caricatured faces with slanted eyes and rice-paddy hats, and such slogans as, "Wok-N-Bowl -- Let the Good Times Roll -- Chinese Food & Bowling."

Well "White or Wong", in this day of political correctness, what kind of dumbass approved these for mass-print? "We personally thought Asians would love this T-shirt," said Hampton Carney, with the public relations firm where Abercrombie referred a reporter's call. Get yours on eBay while supplies last! (Link snagged from Daypop.)

Coming soon, the Abercrombie & Fitch American Indian tribute: "Red Cloud's Barber Shop - Shave and a Scalping, 2 bits." -and- "My chief sold Manhattan and all I got were these lousy beads."

posted at 07:19 AM | link-

-it | mail it | (8) shout it

Rotten Apples
From day one I have had problems with IE 5.1 auto-closing on certain sites on my iBook (running OS-X). Poof! Everything's just gone at once. For example, I've never been able to open imdb.com on here since the first day we brought it home. Ever. IE just crashes and closes before the page even loads.

I know it doesn't have to be this way. I'm the only person having this problem I've ever run across. Most people roll their eyes like we're insane and tell us we're just using it wrong. That Macs never crash. But they don't tell us how to use it right. And since my husband is a Windoze expert, he's stumped and isn't exactly willing to dig deep to help me find a solution. That is until I throw a mega-sized hissy fit over a $1800 computer in my lap that I can't use properly...and make him post this. If you're a Mac user/expert, please HELP! And don't suggest Opera as a quick-fix. He can't even get that to open, much less run, for me on here... THANKS in advance!
posted at 09:56 PM | link--it | mail it | (17) shout it

Pour some sugar on me
So that's my problem! Mosquitoes prefer blondes and redheads. Who knew?! I should have tested that theory with the pink though...
posted at 05:13 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (5) shout it

I'm still the king of me

I'm gonna soak up the sun
Gonna tell everyone to lighten up
I'm gonna tell 'em that

I've got no one to blame
For every time I feel lame,
I'm looking up...

I'm gonna soak up the sun
I'm gonna soak up the sun
posted at 03:12 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (9) shout it

Again?
Ugh. A lawsuit was just filed in the Tampa one...
posted at 02:20 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (2) shout it

Mo' money mo' problems
My Puffy mailbox was starting to pile up and get out of control, so I've put up new entries starting here a bit earlier than usual. Select quotes from this latest batch o' mail include:

"...You people are such big fucking haters. P. Diddy is the best around you probley just jealous because he beat all them stupid old shit crappy music back then. Stop hating just because he look good got the money and can sind better that you plus dress better than you doesn't mean you gotta hate...."

"...stop hating on p diddy.........YOUR A BIG FAT UGLY BITTER HATER. Just cause you won't ever be able to achieve what p diddy has doesn't mean you have permission to hate. But p diddy loves people like you because I bet p diddy is ALWAYS on yo mind..."

"...Your just mad puffy get get more girls and money then you(yes i meant girls) And Don't you know hate kills! it killed biggy, pac and all the people in the world trade center. Hate needs to be stopped, and although making an anti puffy site isnt exactly gonna kill, hate will. So I think speaking for myself and millions, ur a grown women for crying out loud. Get a life and a man or sumthin to occupy your time(and if the guy in the picture with you IS your man, I Pity u)..."

I'll let you read the rest for yourselves. I take great pride, and find much amusement, in the fact that this site was created in 1998 as a joke -- and except for the mailbag -- has been updated exactly once since then when Puffy changed his name to P. Diddy. And the hate mail still keeps pouring in... I must be doing something right! I won't take it down as a matter of principle now.
posted at 01:51 AM | link-

-it | mail it | (13) shout it

That's six! Six lovely blog entries! Ah, ah, ah!
And I was afraid I'd have nothing to say today... I don't believe I've had a chance to pimp the Scripty Goddesses yet. All sorts of cool tips and tricks for your blog/site. Like this one by Kristine on how to put the code to syndicate your site through Wander-lust right in your Movable Type "MTEntries tags". The Wander-lust icon is over in the sidebar now -- and you'll also notice I added an XML link as well. Might as well use it since MT generates it anyway. Thanks Kristine!
posted at 11:05 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (2) shout it

Goin' to the chapel
Kathy just sent me the link to an old pal from college's site. Hannah lived in the OU Honors Dorm the same year that I did (and the year after Todd did). Ironically, she's chosen wedding website design as her career path, too -- but she kicks my l'il fledgling arse at it! Stop by her site at aboutthewedding.com. And if that's not enough "wedding" for you, look through this photographer's wedding portfolio. Stars spotted were Christina Applegate and Jennie Garth. Very beautiful work there!
posted at 08:39 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (4) shout it

If a tree falls in the rain forest
Heads up to Amazon.com affiliates... They have just introducted an XML Platform! "By putting Amazon.com XML directly into your hands, you'll now have the flexibility to display dynamic product information in any way you choose. XML gives you the power to:

Choose which product attributes to display

Control how product attributes appear

Perform multiple product line searches

Build lists from multiple product categories…and much more!

Eventual features include price and availability information, different image sizes, authors and artists, customer ratings, and the ability to specify the number of products and select attributes you want to receive." They're even looking for help from developers to expand and build their XML platform, so check it out if you are so inclinded.
posted at 05:33 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (3) shout it

Money, money, money, mon-ay
Whoo hoo -- Todd will be happy when he gets home tonight! We just got paid by two advertisers at WM! (one new, one a renewal) for multiple 90-day contracts. Go check out "A Custom Engraver" and "GetawayWeddings.com".
posted at 04:10 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (3) shout it

Just like riding a bike?
It's too early to be thinking. Last week I was going to bed right about now. Looking over the week before last's archives, I sit here wondering just how I managed to write so much crap each day. Where did all that time come from? Yesterday might as well have been 2 hours long for all I seemed to accomplish. Ahhhhh...to be reminded there is life going on outside these four walls, and then have it snatched from your grasp much too soon... Excuse me. I think I need to look over my beach photos again.
posted at 08:02 AM | link-

-it | mail it | (10) shout it

To be continued...
May sweeps and season finales are almost upon us, so E! Online put together a quiz to test just how much you recall.
posted at 07:35 AM | link-

-it | mail it | (2) shout it

April Featured Wedding
The new April "Fifteen Minutes of Fame" wedding is online! This one is just beautiful, if I do say so myself...
posted at 09:56 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (2) shout it

May we see your photos please?
Kathy sent copies of her vacation photos today, so there are two new categories at Shutterblog now (16 new photos total).
posted at 06:35 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (1) shout it

Pork rinds or sardines?!?
Easin' back into regular-daily blogging with the new "This or That Tuesday".

Do you eat food if it hits the floor? Yes or no? I also follow the 10-second rule. Besides, what are a few extra minerals?
Chinese food or Italian? Tough call, but gotta pick Italian for the cheese-factor.
Ice cream or yogurt? We all scream for ice cream!
Do you eat breakfast? Yes or no? Not usually. Stomach isn't settled enough yet.
Have you ever eaten a bug? Yes or no? Not on purpose, but they say the average human eats 6 lbs. worth of them in a lifetime. Ick.
Soft drink from a can, bottle, or glass? Depends on the drink. Diet Coke from the 16 oz. bottle. Ginger ale in a glass.
Do you consume 5 fruits and vegetables a day? Hate veggies. Blech. So no. Try to eat fruit often, but 5 a day is a bit much...
Apple or orange? Why, Apple, of course! Orange sucks!
Pork rinds or sardines? Are you on crack, Ashley? Ewww! Ewww! Ewww!
Caviar or grits? I have tried to like grits. Honestly. But no matter with sugar, syrup, butter, cheese, whathaveyou -- never could learn to like 'em no matter which way I tried. And caviar is just plain ol' stinky.

posted at 01:43 PM | link-

-it | mail it | (3) shout it

The day after the night before
I hate that "empty" feeling in the house after company is gone. Kathy's visit was much too short -- a true whirlwind four-day weekend. Todd even got so bored tonight that he cleaned the inside of the washing machine with a toothbrush -- the boy needs help! And poor Claire must have snuck into the guest room a good 25 times before buying that Kathy really was gone. I just snapped this pic of her in the computer room and the flash didn't even make her flinch.

Does anyone else get that way after company leaves? On one hand it's nice to have your house back and know a more normal "daily routine" is on the horizon. But on the other hand, it's so much more fun just to play. Kathy and I haven't had this much time together since late high school and early college. (She went to New Orleans for our wedding but I was in such a blissful daze that weekend I really don't remember much that wasn't photographed or on video.) I really hope we'll be able to do it again soon!

Our dance card won't be empty for long though... One of Todd's friends from high school gets in town later this week on the 18th. Then Joy and Ryan will be here in early May. And after that, Robbie has rescheduled his visit for mid-May. Good thing we've got a vacation coming up in August. I'm going to need a vacation from everyone else's vacations. That's one great thing about living in Florida though. Eventually everyone will come and see you!

posted at 01:30 AM | link-

-it | mail it | (12) shout it

Back to life, back to reality
Well Kathy was leavin' on a jet plane earlier this evening, meaning things are slowly getting back to "normal" (or at least as close as we'll ever get to it) around here. I'm sure I'll be updating, revamping and tweaking this a lot more as time goes by...but for now...here's my new project. All of the photos from this weekend can be found in "Shutterblog". Enjoy!
posted at 12:01 AM | link-

-it | mail it | (5) shout it