Happy Earth Day!

So I am not the most 'green' person around, I am a print graphic designer for gawd sakes. I do try to do a few things to help reduce my carbon foot print. I also do lots of stuff that are against the no-nos of the 'green' world. I hope I can balance stuff out, if not, maybe you can suggest a few tips for me. Here is the good, bad and the horrific planet killer stuff I do!

GOOD: I use recycled paper for my invitations.

BAD:
LOVE my plastic water bottles (BTW, don't suggest to drink filtered water. I won't do it. I don't like @ss water. I also won't drink Arrowhead water.....again @ss water. It was bottled here in Phoenix. I don't like the @ss water much!).

GOOD: Ryan (now I) invested in a plastic recycle machine. One-of-a-kind in the United States.

BAD:
Since we live in the "county" and not the city, they don't offer a recycling program.

GOOD: I am too lazy to wash my own car (hey, I save water by either 1: not wash it at all or 2: I let the pros do it.....they use less water).

BAD:
I use airsol hair spray. I am sorry....it just works better for my hair. On a good note, I hardly do my hair.

GOOD: I wash our clothes in cold water.

BAD:
I like long hot showers.


The list could go on and on. I do try. And I think if everyone "try's", I think we can make the world better! Happy Earth Day!

Ryan Was On TV!

Ryan did an on air TV interview for his website: PhotoRadarScam.com about the photo radar vans. http://www.kpho.com/video/19244971/index.html.

He looked good. I just wish the HORRIFIC florescent green trash can was out of site. That thing is hideous!

He is getting a lot of publicity lately about the site. He was on a few radio talk shows in the last few days.

I wish this was helping him get a j-o-b!

New Business Plan!

So the invitations was a love / hate relationship. I really LOVED the idea of them.....hate the idea of putting them together. It got to the point....I would just freak out of the idea getting a client. Overall, I wasn't making money on the labor side of it. I did a spread sheet (which I hated in itself...Ryan made me do it....fought him every step of the way). The hours I spent, the drama. I just wasn't making money.

So my new plan is to market them as DIY (Do It Yourself). I will provide all the supplies....the brides will put them together themselves. I will only market ones they can do and need very little guidance.

I am very stoked at my idea and hope that I can make this profitable. Make them enjoyable again.

Off to make a business plan and pricing sheet!!!!!

Best April Fool's Joke!

The best April Fool's joke got played on Ryan. I couldn't even come up with a better joke than the one that was played on him.

It was 5:30am and he comes busting in the bathroom while I was in the shower. He just kept saying that he was SO MAD. He was really fuming. I am sure if they did a blood pressure test on him, it would be extremely high.

Ryan gets alerts on his Black Berry when a story breaks on Photo Radar. There was a story that was just published about Photo Radar Cameras and how Phil Gorden (Phoenix's mayor....biggest a-hole out there) approved to place 350 new cameras around the valley with Federal stimulus money. I asked him how can he approve such a thing if he is just the mayor of PHX? How the Governor would allow that....knowing she is against them. He said there was a 1-800 number to call to get more details.

He called the number of course.....APRIL FOOL'S!

Heeehhhheeee! Best joke ever played on him!

**TiVO Update**

TiVO is fine. He had some sort of "foreign object" inside of him. His body was just producing a layer of stuff to protect him from what ever was inside of him. It could have been a bee stinger or cactus needle, anything.

Wall Street Journal, Valium and Lumps - Updates

First off.....Ryan was quoted in WALL STREET JOURNAL! How cool is that! He has been working SO hard on Photo Radar Scam dot com. He has researched the subject and put together a pretty neat website. It has articles that have been published, ways to get around photo radar cameras and what to do if you received a ticket. He is VERY passionate on the subject. So if you are for or against the cameras, go on and read the articles! You need to get informed on the subject!

To read the Wall Street Journal article, click here! Yay for Ryan and Photo Radar Scam dot com!



On to me. On Tuesday I started my teeth process. LONG story about my dental issues, but I am finally starting the process. It is going to take about 2.5 years to complete, more money than I have, but in the end, I am going to be extremely happy and have the smile I wanted when I was 9.

Tuesday's appointment was better in one way, bad in another. I have extreme anxiety when it comes to dentists. Tuesday's appointment was going to be a biggie. I received Valium and nitrous oxide (laughing gas), not to mention I just ate Chick-Fil-A. I guess they don't go well together and lets just say I had nothing left in my stomach after the appointment! The good news is, the first appointment went well. I only remember bits and pieces. I am in pain. My teeth at the moment are EXTREMELY sensitive and have to drink out of a straw. Hopefully the soreness goes away soon.

Here is a quick schedule of what is to come (without going into detail):

Tuesday's: Removal of bridges, Gum and other teeth check, minor restoration
Beginning of May: Semi permanent bridge on, minor gum restoration
Middle of May: BRACES! I can't believe I am getting braces on again. I should be a better patient as an adult than I was as a teenager know-it-all. The braces will be on for around one and half years to two years....possibly longer.
After braces: Start the implant process. Titanium rod / bone, you get the picture. Possible bone graph.
Implant part two: More drilling, more drama. Gum graph.
Implant part three: Rod extender.
Final: Dentist will put on the final crowns and bridges.

Ok, so I went into detail. Freaked everyone out. It is not going to be pretty. PLEASE bare with me for the next few years. I'll be under construction.



On to the lumps. So our fantastic dog, TiVO has a lump on his side. It has grown in the last few weeks. I am worried. I hope it is nothing. Ryan is taking him to the vet this afternoon. Poor little man! I'll update later on.

TiVO has been really good. We (actually Ryan) installed a doggie door. He loves it. He sticks his head out all day. He doesn't use it often, just sticks his head out.....looking/sniffing around. He also like to torture the baby bunnies by running them off each time they try to feed. The crazy bunnies are still staying put.

No-Theft Day

Let's all of us citizens take a vow to not steal for one whole day. We already have a Smoke-Free Day, a Secretary's Day, a Mother's Day, a Grandmother's Day and Valentine's Day. Let's have one more holiday: a Don't Steal Anything Day. The benefits will be immediate: There will be bumper stickers that read, "I didn't Steal Anything Today." The Hallmark cards will have their usual holiday bumper crop and, best of all, the huge flow of unfilched cash will send the economy soaring.

This holiday will only work if it is observed by big thieves, not just small fry. Cookers of books, Ponzi schemers, scrupleless traders, and accountants addicted to drugs and gambling will need to observe the day as much as petty cashiers, banking clerks, parking-meter attendants, coin-laundry collectors, slot-machine operators and traffic court judges. Not everyone will observe — just like not everyone stops smoking on Smoke-Free Day — but if enough people try, the results will be palpable.

Theft-Free Day will get better every year until we can eventually expand it to a Theft-Free Week. Imagine! A whole week during which no one steals anything. Hard to imagine, I know, but everybody used to smoke, too.

I know that I'm a dreamer, but what if we had a whole Theft-Free Month, like Poetry Month? April is traditionally Poetry Month, but there is no reason why it shouldn't double in the future as Theft-Free Month. Well, I'm not going as far as to suggest that everyone should observe a whole month without ripping anything off — that's probably a bit visionary. Certainly, professional thieves will be exempt: That's their job, after all, and they have enough problems with something called the law.

Still, even if we left out the people who make a living at it — muggers, bank robbers and the like — it would still be something if all the rest of us so-called law-abiding citizens — regular folks like Wall Street tycoons, CEOs and just-plain professionals, contractors and workaday drudges — would take our hands out of the till for a day, a week or a month. We would simply quit taking bribes, faking receipts, padding expense accounts and inflating budgets for that short time.

I know that a certain amount of thievery is built into the general economy and accounted for, but it's gotten out of hand. If it doesn't work and it wrecks the economy instead, we can just go back to Poetry Month. - Andrei Condrescu

Texas Hold'em Nicknames

Here are a few of my favorite poker derivative nicknames for your pocket cards in Texas Hold'em.

Single Cards

A: As-Nas, Bullet, Spot, Mastercard, Eye, A of spades: Death Card or Tax Card
K: Cowboy, Knight, Monarch
Q: Cowgirl, 2 Titties, Dame, Slut
J: Boy, Jackel, Valet, John, J-Boy,
10 (T): Dime, Bo Derek, Big Casino
9: Niner, 9 of diamonds: Curse of Scotland.
8: Fat Lady, Snowman
7: Beer Card, Hockey Stick, Mullet
6: A Boot, Sex
5: Five Spot, Nickel
4: Boat, Four Spot, One Legged Ace
3: Crab, Trey
2: Deuce, Duck, Dewey, 2 of spades: The Curse of Mexico

Pocket Card Nick Names

AA: Eyes of Texas, American Airlines, Pocket Rockets, Snake Eyes, Black Aces: Banditerna, Red Aces: Visine
AK: Big Slick, Big Ugly, King Aurthur, Korean Airlines
AQ: Big Slut, Mrs. Slick, Anthony & Cleopatra
AJ: Apple Jacks, Ajax, Black Jack, Hijack
AT: Bookends
A9: Rounders Hand
A8: Dead Man's Hand
A7: Slap Shot
A6: Mile High Club
A5: High Five
A4: Transvestite
A3: Ashtray
A2: Acey-Ducey, Little Slick

KK: King Kong, Gorillas, Knights, Cowboys
KQ: Royal Couple, If wins: Marriage (suited) or Mixed Marriage (off suit), Doesn't win: Divorce (suited)
KJ: Bachelor's Hand (off suit), Starkey and Hutch, Kojak
KT: Big Al

QQ: Ladies, 4 Tits, Bitches, The Prostitute
QJ: Maverick
QT: Cutie, Q-Tip

JJ: Brothers, Fishhooks, Jaybirds
JT: TJ Hooker

TT: Dimes, Audi

99: Pothooks, Wayne Gretzky, Popeye's

88: Snowmen, Racetracks, Two fat ladies

77: Mullets, Hockey Sticks

66: Route 66, Boots

55: Speed limit, Presto

44: Luke Skywalker, Black Fours: Dark Force or Darth Vader

33: Treys, Crabs

22: Ducks, Quack Quack


You can see all of the nick names at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_poker_hand_nicknames

Quote For Thought

“The difference between a boss and a leader: a boss says, ‘Go!’, and a leader says, ‘Let’s go!’”.

E. M. Kelly

Wow! Some much to update on/not enough time. I have/had some many ideas about my blog. I just don't seem to put it all together like I wanted to. These last few weeks have been long and I wish I kept up more on the blog. I have tons of ideas.....I just don't seem to execute them properly. So instead, I'll give you a mini update and go from there.

Ryan and I just got back from Vegas! We were in a $100,000 Black Jack Tournament. We could have been better in the tournament. We keep learning and growing our skills in black jack tournaments. Ryan did great in the gambling world. He came back with money. SCORE! Me, AKA The Cooler, well, I lived up to my Vegas nickname. Walked up to a craps table..... "7". Bad. Ryan bet against me (hoping I would roll 7s). He didn't win. I just have BAD luck sometimes and effects the entire table around me. The Cooler, I cool down hot tables. It is an old superstitious casino thing.

Ryan surprised me with tickets to go see Le Reve (which means “The Dream” in French) at Wynn for our "February Gift" (we don't celebrate Valentines day...we call it February day). LOVED it. Cirque du Sole never lets me down! It is our 4th major show we have seen in Vegas.




I have also been reading TONS lately. I never really read books, as you can see from my grammar - HORRIBLE!

I just finished the "Twilight" series by Stephenie Meyer. First of, I am OBSESSED (Ryan reading this right now is probably thinking "obsessed" is an understatement). I think about the characters NON stop. I have dreams about it. I compare my life to the stories and characters. I am telling you OBSESSED!! I am just in love with the idea of love that is shared with the main characters, Bella and Edward. It is so rare to find love like theirs.....it is making me obsessive. I know, I know, it is just fiction. It is a story about vampires for God-sakes, but I am just so fascinated by the impossible love story. I want more Stephenie Meyer. I WANT MORE! Don't leave me hanging in this Twilight hangover today (I just finished Breaking Dawn yesterday....the 4th book). I just REALLY want more, I am showing signs of withdrawal today.

Hopefully, I'll get over it and get back to reality. I have my Edward....I have Ryan.

Kudos to Stephenie Meyer, a local Valley resident for making such a fantastic series. I am just starting on The Host today, I am sure you won't disappoint. At least the book is for Adults, not teens.

I also finished The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. FANTASTIC! I also really got "emotionally" involved with the book. It just changed my entire point of view of Afghanistan and why our troops are fighting for the citizens of Afghanistan. Khaled is a fantastic story teller and he make you want more and make the characters so alive....with emotions and feelings. I wish him the best of luck and I hope he produces more literary work and spread the word and charity to help the true citizens of Afghanistan. Help share the pride and the true meaning of what it means to be a Afghani citizen.

Other recent books was The Reader by Bernhard Schlink. It was good.....I just never really got into it, but it was good. I am sure I will like the movie more. I haven't read the last few pages, that might change things for me. Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin. Very good! Another movie that I would like to see. I am also reading Confessions of a Shopaholic at this time.

Look at me! A little bookworm! Do you remember when you where in school and you got "star" sticker for a button? Once you filled all the spaces, you got a free personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut. I wish I had that now. I could really go for a pizza right now.

Now that I bored the few readers I do have, I'll update more later.

The case of the Blair Witch Rock Pile: Solved!

The mysterious case of the Blair Witch Rocks in my backyard has finally been solved. There were these very bizzare rock piles forming in my backyard. Several little piles of rocks that didn't belong there. Every once in while, another pile would form. It just wasn't making sense. I didn't think Ryan was doing that. Who has that much time on their hands to go get the rocks, bring them in the corners of my yard and pile them in these mini piles of rocks. Each time I would discover another Blair Witch pile, I was getting more and more paranoid, my mind was wondering in all direction.

Well the mystery has been solved. Case closed. Paranoid thoughts over. Ryan and I left to go for a walk with TiVO and the second we open door, our neighborhood kids was on our front porch. Dressed in camouflage, with some type of weapon. Uhhhhhhh WTF are you doing on my property? Hiding? If they are that bold to do that, I am sure they would go in our backyard and do crazy stuff, like Blair Witch piles. So I asked Ryan about the rock piles. After a year (did I mention at least a year) of my mind running and crazy thoughts would merge. I finally ask my husband about Blair Witch rock piles.

"Oh, those piles, I did them." Ryan said casual.
"Uhhhh, really, why....WHY?" A entire year of emotions built up.
"I find the rocks that don't belong in the yard, stack them, and keep meaning to go pick up all the rock piles."

Blair Witch Rock Pile Case: Case closed.