Quoth the Raven

On the subject of dogs

I have been sick as a dog since Christmas! I really cannot believe it. I decided to take a week of work to recuperate and just unwind before the craziness of 2005 begins, and look what happens.

I have only left the house once and that was on Wednesday. I thought I was feeling better so I went to the gym...not so well after all. As soon as I arrived home my throat starting hurting and the headaches began, again.

No, hang on a minute, I did leave the house today. Well I walked out to the curb to leave a couple of garbage bags of clothing for Goodwill. It think it counts. I still left the house?

I have to say that it hasn't been all bad? I have managed to tidy up my study and read a few books, I even started studying for my class that begins in a week. I also made some time to watch some dvd's. Joel received the first season of Dead Like Me for Christmas and I totally love it! He did tell me not to watch it without him,  so we can enjoy the show together. But what he doesn't know won't hurt him, and my memory is so bad that I could probably watch the show a dozen times and still laugh.

A dog's life?

I love dogs, actually I love all kinds of animals but at the moment I think a dog could really make my life worth living. I know that after 9 years of marriage maybe I should be thinking about having a child, but a dog sounds more exciting to me, at the moment anyway.

I thought I had my life mapped out? I would get married, which I did. At the time we had a pet rat we called Jonte, so it just seemed natural that once Jonte moved onto to that better place in the sky, then we would get a cat? Ok, so I must admit that I am not a huge cat fan, I actually like cats that act like dogs, all macho and nasty, with lots of attitude. Just as a side note, Joel and I did come across a cat just last year that we could have easily adopted, it was a Sphinx.

I was just about to rush out and buy one until I researched the price that these sweet little cats are going for, a mere $1200. So I decided that I would buy myself a little fish. I love watching fish swim around the tank, it is very calming. Of course, I didn't want just any ole' fish, I wanted a piranha! All was going well. I found a place online that distributes exotic fish throughout the United States, but then I noticed the small print and was informed that it is illegal to own these fish in Washington, so there goes that idea. Really, I didn't want a whole tank full of the little suckers, just the one would do. How much trouble can one fish be? Of course, there are certain breeds that prefer to be alone, much like myself and piranha are definitely one of them. I envisioned myself feeding the little sucker raw junks of meat and even training it to leap out and grab it from my hand...oh, such sweet visions.

So I failed to mention that after losing Jonte we did rush out and buy Zonk (the angry ferret) who turned out to be a real sweety! After moving to the USA we soon adopted another 3 ferrets, I guess we have alot of love to give?

So this morning I received an email from Joel with a link to puppies for sale. I have always wanted an American Pit Bull terrier. I must add that we are not allowed to own a dog or cat in the house we are renting, and that if we ever wanted to go back to Australia the government would not let an American pit bull into the country, due to the bad reputation they have been given by ignorant people. But maybe we could stay here for a little longer than expected? Or just move to England?

So where do we go from here? Do we adopt a sweet American Pit Bull, an American Staffordshire Terrier or a Doberman? Time will tell...

Bloginality

My Bloginality is ISTJ!!!

As an ISTJ, you are Intraverted, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging.
This makes your primary focus on Introverted Sensing with Extraverted Thinking.

This is defined as a SJ personality, which is part of Carl Jung's Guardian (Security Seeking) type, and more specifically the Inspectors or Duty Fufiller.

As a weblogger, you may will have a dependable form of posting. You may be more likely to be judgemental toward others who aren't as dependable. You may get taken advantage of in group situations because you are known as not being able to say no. Because of your respect for facts and information, you may need multiple blogs to keep all of the information sorted in your head.

For more info:
Typelogic - ISTJ
Personality Page - ISTJ
Hale Online - ISTJ
Personality Page - ISTJ and your career
Personality Page - ISTJ and your relationships
Socionics.com - ISTJ
Personality Type - ISTJ

search for more ISTJ information!

Rapture by David Sosnowski

I just finished this book and was not at all disappointed...

Inititally, I wasn't sure just how exciting a book about people who grow wings could be? Which is why the book sat on my bookshelf for a couple of weeks after I purchased it. How would the story unfold? Could you; Mr Sosnowski, keep us; the audience enthralled for long enough to finish the book? You proved that you can, you accomplished all of the above and more.

It was a thorougly interesting book, in regard to the 'what ifs' and 'what do I do now' type questions. Honestly, "what would you do if you just started sprouting wings?" Talk about quite the inconvenience. I mean, yeh so you can fly, that is surely a bonus but what are you going to wear with those huge wings growing out of your back? And make sure you don't own a compact car, that would really cause some problems? Any car actually.

Well our main character, Zander Wiles managed to adjust, not without some minor, and not so minor hiccups. 

Powells had this to say 'A wonderful, terrible new virus is stalking America: Angelism. It starts like the flu, turns your skin green, and ends...in wings. As the virus spreads, it creates both a new race of people who look like angels but certainly don't feel like them inside, and wing-free Pedestrians, who are left behind to wait and worry. And while the wing-inflicted play tag with the seagulls, the Peds grow envious, some even going for the jugular — either for harm's sake, or to contrive their own infection. In this new world, who will fly and who will falter?

In David Sosnowski's Rapture, Zander Wiles is the first victim of Angelism to go public. But his status as celebrity quickly turns to pariah; his experiences at the hands of his disapproving parents and a fickle media machine turn the world's first flesh-and-blood Angel into a bitter recluse. Alone and grounded, Zander doesn't understand that the first step to flying is throwing yourself at the ground...and missing. Zander's life is in utter eclipse until he meets bestselling Angel therapist Cassie O'Connor. Using skates and tough love, Cassie teaches Zander how to face, squarely and deeply, just what he is. Along the way, she also teaches him how to fly.'

Merry Christmas

A huge Merry Christmas to everyone in the big wide world of blog!

This is our tree, obviously. I have to admit that it could do with the addition of some tinsel but we forgot to buy it and then I couldn't find any that I liked. It appears that during the christmas period people go nuts for tinsel. Being that christmas is literally just around the corner, then I think we have missed out. Oh well, there is always next year!

Notice the unopened present underneath the tree? Yes, they are still under the tree...and still remain unopened...for now!

The Visionary

You Are a Visionary Soul

You are a curious person, always in a state of awareness. Connected to all things spiritual, you are very connect to your soul. You are wise and bright: able to reason and be reasonable. Occasionally, you get quite depressed and have dark feelings. You have great vision and can be very insightful. In fact, you are often profound in a way that surprises yourself. Visionary souls like you can be the best type of friend. You are intuitive, understanding, sympathetic, and a good healer. Souls you are most compatible with: Old Soul and Peacemaker Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

I am a Giver

As if I didn't already know this? sheesh

You're The Giver!
by Lois Lowry
While you grew up with a sheltered childhood, you're pretty sure everyone around you is even more sheltered. Suddenly, from out of nowhere, you were tapped on the shoulder and transported to the real world. This made you horrified by your prior upbringing and now you're tormented by how to reconcile these two lives. Ultimately, the struggle comes down to that old free will issue. Choose wisely.
Take the Book Quiz at the Blue Pyramid.

I don't know about sheltered but I do recall that my mother always told me "never to take candy from strangers". And maybe I was a little old for this conversation at the ripe age of twenty-one. But by that time she also added "not to accept any alcoholic beverages from strangers as they may spike my drink". Looking back I think she was way ahead of her time?

Gadgets make the world go round

I love gadgets! This year has very much meant the advancement of gadgets in my world. I think it started with my new Nokia 3650 cell phone.

Then came the Sony Clie organiser, which I could in no way live without. It has everything; calendar, address book, Microsoft Word & Excel program, camera, video, voice recorder, internet and even an MP3 player.

For my birthday this year my husband bought me an MP3 player. I know that I have one on my Sony Clie but I didn't want to use that at the gym, just in case I dropped it while working out on the treadmill. We could have gone for an overpriced Apple Ipod but decided to get a Creative Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra

I am now the proud owner of a laptop. I would love to tell you all about it but I know very little about them, in layman terms; it is fast, has a cool widescreen, and looks great. What more could a girl ask for?

Ok so maybe you want some more information? I now own a Hewlett-Packard Pavilion Notebook with Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor 3.2GHz. Enough information? Gee you people are hard to please...

• It has a 15.4" WXGA high-definition widescreen display with BrightView technology and 1280 x 800 resolution
• 80.0GB ATA/100 hard drive (4200 rpm)
• ATI Mobility RADEON 9000 IGP graphics with 128MB shared DDR video memory; built-in Harman/Kardon speakers; S-video TV-out
• 3 high speed USB 2.0 ports for fast digital video, audio and data transfer
• Built-in 54g high-speed wireless LAN (802.11b/g) with 125HSM/SpeedBooster support; 10/100Base-T Ethernet LAN with RJ-45 connector; high-speed 56K modem
• Weighs 7.9 lbs. and measures just 1.8" thin for easy portability; lithium-ion battery and AC adapter
• Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 2 (SP2) operating system preinstalled; software package included with RecordNow!, InterVideo WinDVD, InterVideo Home Theater and more

So I think that just about covers it?

The anxious wait by a silent phone

has come to an end...for now anyway

After an anxiety filled weekend, I awoke on Sunday morning to voice mails from both my mother and a friend. Both calls came through at about 2 am, unfortunately, we still only have the one phone in the house and I forgot to bring it upstairs which is why I didn't hear the phone ringing.

When my brother went missing I emailed a friend to let her know what was going on, just in case he happened to call them. Which was great, as he did call them. Admittedly, only in the hope of getting my number so he could call me to say goodbye. No, he was not talking about the 'see you later' kind of goodbye, but the more permanent, as in the 'I will never see you again' kind.

Mark and Barbara tried to coax him into going to their place, or meeting somewhere, but his mind was made up? After hanging up they managed to trace the call and locate the address of the hotel he was staying at. They then called the police, and my parent's rushed to pick him up. Fortunately, my dad arrived before the police, past experience has shown them that it is better for a person's physical well-being to deal with friends/family and not the West Footscray Police Department.

I have a great respect for law enforcement, but have to admit that not all police officers are wearing that badge of honour. Last time the police were involved in finding my brother, it didn't end well. My brother was fully compliant and did what they requested of him, and the outcome still equaled back and head injuries, and an extended stay in hospital.

So after returning to the psychiatric ward, yet again, my brother has now returned home and appears to be back on track with his medication.

For how long, only time will tell...

* I would also like to say thank you to those of you who have left me comments or sent me emails, they do mean a lot to me. Thanks!

Fetal position sounds nice in theory

It does sound nice doesn't it? Curling up in a cozy little ball of human flesh in a dark corner in the house, maybe the basement; yes the basement sounds ideal.

As much as I would love a vacation from my problems at this moment in time, life does and will go on with, or without me. So today after work I went for a quiet drive to Shoreline Community College to pay tuition fees for my first course which begins in less than a month!

Unfortunately, my first course is nothing exciting. I am starting with Maths, Algebra to be exact, being that maths is my weakest subject I thought I would get it out of the way first so I can move on to all the interesting subjects.

Initially, I was going to earn a degree in Criminal Justice but after talking to an Advisor I have decided to major in Psychology. The Criminal Justice degree would be too narrow, while the Psychology degree would enable me to take some courses in the field of Criminal Justice and Sociology.

But for now I will take things one step at a time and diligently study my Algebra.