Anyone????
Laxone, You may have won our Cat & Mouse Game, But you don't really think that I'd just.... hand this one over to ya...
Did ya??
This is a little different than Cricket. I hope you can read the directions.
P.S.
Be prepared to get spanked! hehehe
Wine Slushies, Sugar Waffles, deep-fried S'mores, Grilled corn, Chicken Bacon Ranch Wrap, and Grandma's Apple Dumpling! OMG!...I needed Tums when I got home! :)
The initial start of my day was a little rocky at The Great New York State Fair. A friend picked me up and we stopped at the bank so I could get money and then off we went. As soon as I get to the fair, I realize I no longer have my debit/credit card with me! OMG....I must have left it in the ATM machine! My anxiety level went thru the roof, as this dawns on me. This was especially very nerve wrecking for me due to my 'refund' coming in from the LFProgram that I wrote about in my July 12th post, and having several thousand dollars in that account! If it wasn't for the calm and levelheadedness of my friend Nicole, I'm sure I would have went into a panic! (Thanks Nicole!) :)
Anyway, contacted the 800 number and had the card voided immediately. No other transactions on there since my withdrawal, Whew! The woman in customer service was very helpful with this. She did inform me that a card left in the machine can only be left in there a minute or two before the machine sucks it back in and destroys the card. Good safety measure, that's probably what happened.
Before anyone starts thinking I'm a little ditsy, There's a reason why this most likely occurred.
This is a bank that I've been going to since I've been 16 years old. It has changed hands several times over the years from one bank to another, but I've been with them all along. With in the last few months they have replaced all of the ATMs at that location. Before this update, the transaction order went like this: Card in, Request, Card given back, Money Given, other transactions, receipt. NOW, the very last thing given is your card back. The order had changed.
I tend to be, like other human beings, a creature of habit! As I explained this to customer service, the woman completed a form for me, suggesting they put this safeguard back in place. I hope this helps. (Has anyone else forgotten their ATM/Credit card before???)
Anyway, Crisis over! On with the Fair!
You can view a live camera of the fair, from Time Warner....here.
It was semi-cloudy through out the day, but it didn't rain. I was happy the weather wasn't super hot. I couldn't believe they actually had a "Spammobile" out there! They were giving away free samples (audience goes "ohhhhhh")..........AND THERE WAS A LINE OF PEOPLE WAITING FOR THIS...THIS...THIS GELATINOUS ALTERNATIVE MEAT PRODUCT!!!!! UGH!! I got a shiver just typing that! And these people in line were ALL younger than 60! It was first conceived in 1937, Depression-era. According to Wikipedia, SPAM stands for Shoulder of Pork And haM. For those brave souls out there (read: eccentric), there is a list of actual Spam recipes... here!
I do find humor tho, that there is an actual Broadway show based on this...Stuff. It's described as A new musical 'lovingly' ripped off from the motion picture Monty Python and the Holy Grail. It's called: Monty Python's Spamalot, and it's on Broadway right now! Check out the site tho, pretty funny.......Broadway show. hehehe
One of the things I tried, I really liked. The stand was called Wrap It, and is located directly across from the Dino BBQ Stand. I had this Chicken Bacon Ranch Wrap, which I thought was incredible! Your choice of fillings, and several sauces to choose from. It was wrapped in an herb-flavored large wrap and simply wonderful! Yumm!!
I'm sure I'll be going at least 2 more times before the end. It just saddens me a bit to know this has become the 'unofficial' benchmark for the end of summer. It went by too quick!
What's your favorite food, activity or thing to do at the fair? And if you have a story or other interesting fair-going-experience to share, let's hear it! :)
While perusing some of the listed sites on the website of one of our own: Fellow-Blogger-Websitee-Yada'r-Often-Banned-Sometimes-Poked-In-The-Belly-But-Never-Mistaken-For-Non-Union Friend of ours....Doboy, I came across a neat little gadget that I though I'd share here. OKOKOK...I can hear you all sigh!!
I like finding neat little stuff on the 'Net. I just think this one is really neat! Kudos to you Doboy for having it on your site to begin with. :)
It's a flight simulator, using Google Maps (This is NOT the link.) But it's not just a regular, run of the mill Google Map! One - It's a satellite view, and Two - It's not just a satellite view of anyplace, USA...but of MY Neighborhood!!! I have it set up for my coordinates!
Before going to the link, below, a couple of quick instructions to get you started.
Please read ALL first BEFORE going to the link, located at end.
- Once on the site, hit the Start button. (Don't choose "select a location" yet, or you'll change the coordinates)
- There is an airplane that 'flys' over my neighborhood. You have control of this plane
- The A key will make the plane go faster
- The Z key will slow it down
- And the Space button will make the plane fire bullets! (Sorry folks, but I'm not giving you the exact location of my house, so you can't riddle it with bullets!!) :)
My suggestion is once you hit the start button and it loads, you may want to use the Z button to slow you down right away. This will give you time to orient yourself to where you are and where you want to go.
Once it starts, you can use the arrows to navigate your way around.
- The down button actually makes the plane go up higher (opposite of what you'd think)
- The Up button makes it go lower
- The left button makes the plane go to the Left
- The Right button, to the Right
And the kicker of this whole thing????
The satellite picture is of MY NEIGHBORHOOD!!!
Once that picture loads, what you are actually seeing is the intersection of
James Street and Teal Ave. In EASTWOOD! Teal Ave. is the street that you see that runs North/South. That's James Street that crosses over it and runs East/West.
To help orient you a bit more, the plane begins its travel West on James Street, heading towards downtown.
-If you change the direction of the plane to go North instead, you will be traveling down Teal Ave. heading towards Shop City and Court Street.
-If you go the opposite direction of where the plane first starts, you'll be traveling East on James Street, heading towards Wegmans and East Syracuse.
-If you go South, Opposite of Shop City, you'll be traveling Down Teal Ave. towards Burnet Ave, Erie Blvd and SU area.
I got the biggest kick of actually being able to locate my house and houses of others that I know in the area.
After checking this out, go back and change the location to see places like: London NYC, Disneyland, LA, The Moon, Mars, etc!! It's a great site!
Let me know what you think!
Check it out:
My Neighborhood
"Please Hear What I'm Not Saying"
Addendum!
Thinking about this poem, by Charles C. Finn, I wanted to share a bit about it's history...or rather....my history of how I obtained it.
However, rather than post it here, I thought it would be more fitting....and respectful, if I had posted my thoughts on this, where it truely belonged: On the Site of the Author Himself!
If interested, the author's website can be found here. Once on the home page, click on "Stories of the Poem's Journey" and then click on the Guest Book's View Entries. You'll see my entry listed there!
PS
Marge, Thank you for sharing this with me, so many years ago!! :)
~ZZ
Being Passionate. About ANYTHING! It matters little to me, What someone is passionate about, just as long as it's there. It could be their job, their hobby, a cause or belief. An idea, a goal, or a feeling. I look for that in others, and when it's there, it's unmistakable! I've touched on this a bit in a prior post.
To me, that person really comes alive. And what I find soo incredibly attractive about that is, they are usually completely oblivious to how they look, or the energy they give off.
It's in their voice when they talk about it.
It's in their facial expression.
It's in their eyes.
It's in their soul.
You can sense it.
You can feel it.
You can almost taste it.
There's an energy that, to me, draws me like a moth to a light.
It's beautiful.
And the best part?
They usually are naive to the energy they are exuding.
I am reminded of something I learned in my professional life.
Look into the adult. Find their child.
Below is a poem that I've had since I was a teenager.
Though the meaning is slightly different than what I wrote above, both share the common theme:
Looking Beyond the Obvious to See the Core.
Please Hear What I'm Not Saying
Don't be fooled by me.
Don't be fooled by the face I wear
For I wear a mask, a thousand masks,
Masks that I'm afraid to take off
And none of them is me.
Pretending is an art that's second nature with me,
but don't be fooled,
for God's sake don't be fooled.
I give you the impression that I'm secure,
that all is sunny and unruffled with me,
within as well as without,
that confidence is my name and coolness my game,
that the water's calm and I'm in command
and that I need no one,
but don't believe me.
My surface may be smooth but
my surface is my mask,
ever-varying and ever-concealing.
Beneath lies no complacence.
Beneath lies confusion, and fear, and aloneness.
But I hide this. I don't want anybody to know it.
I panic at the thought of my weakness exposed.
That's why I frantically create
a mask to hide behind,
a nonchalant sophisticated facade,
to help me pretend,
to shield me from the glance that knows.
But such a glance is precisely my salvation,
my only hope, and I know it.
That is, if it is followed by acceptance,
If it is followed by love.
It's the only thing that can liberate me from myself
from my own self-built prison walls
from the barriers that I so painstakingly erect.
It's the only thing that will assure me
of what I can't assure myself,
that I'm really worth something.
But I don't tell you this. I don't dare to.
I'm afraid to.
I'm afraid you'll think less of me,
that you'll laugh, and your laugh would kill me.
I'm afraid that deep-down I'm nothing
and that you will see this and reject me.
So I play my game, my desperate, pretending game
With a façade of assurance without
And a trembling child within.
So begins the glittering
but empty parade of Masks,
And my life becomes a front.
I tell you everything that's really nothing,
and nothing of what's everything,
of what's crying within me.
So when I'm going through my routine
do not be fooled by what I'm saying.
Please listen carefully and try to hear
what I'm not saying,
what I'd like to be able to say,
what for survival I need to say,
but what I can't say.
I don't like hiding.
I don't like playing superficial phony games.
I want to stop playing them.
I want to be genuine and spontaneous and me
but you've got to help me.
You've got to hold out your hand
even when that's the last thing
I seem to want.
Only you can wipe away from my eyes
the blank stare of the breathing dead.
Only you can call me into aliveness.
Each time you're kind, and gentle, and encouraging,
each time you try to understand
because you really care,
my heart begins to grow wings --
very small wings,
but wings!
With your power to touch me into feeling
you can breathe life into me.
I want you to know that.
I want you to know how important you are to me,
how you can be a creator
--an honest-to-God creator --
of the person that is me
if you choose to.
You alone can break down the wall
behind which I tremble,
you alone can remove my mask,
you alone can release me
from the shadow-world of panic,
from my lonely prison,
if you choose to.
Please choose to.
Do not pass me by.
It will not be easy for you.
A long conviction of worthlessness
builds strong walls.
The nearer you approach me
the blinder I may strike back.
It's irrational,
but despite what the books may say about man
often I am irrational.
I fight against the very thing I cry out for.
But I am told that love
is stronger than strong walls
and in this lies my hope.
Please try to beat down those walls
with firm hands but with gentle hands
for a child is very sensitive.
Who am I, you may wonder?
I am someone you know very well.
For I am every man you meet
and I am every woman you meet.
By Charles C. Finn
FOOTNOTE
To read the full account for yourself, or simply to enjoy more of Charlie's poems, visit http://www.poetrybycharlescfinn.com/
Taken from Page C-2 of Today's Syracuse Post-Standard
Ask The Entrepreneurs
Blogs help make your business more personalQ:I finally have a Web site for my business, and now everyone is talking about
blogs. Am I still behind? Tracy:According to www.webopedia.com a blog is short for Web log a Web page that serves as someone's publicly accessible personal journal. Blogs are traditionally updated daily and reflect the personality of the author. But blogs aren't just for individuals; companies and organizations are using them, too.
When I started Women TIES, my marketing consultant suggested I start a blog since one of our main services includes writing and sending weekly educational and inspirational messages to our female entrepreneurs. Since I already dedicated time writing these business advice messages, it would be easy and time effective to create a blog to help cross-promote the Women TIES Web site.
Blogs can be useful to promote a business, but honestly they take time, and time is valuable to entrepreneurs. I'd suggest learning more about blogs and talk to other business owners who have had financial or marketing success using them.
Julie:Well, I've jumped into the blogosphere with both feet. I recently started blogs for my business and the Women Business Owners Connection. A blog is intended to give businesses a personal "voice" and to let the public peek behind the scenes. They also improve search engine rankings and are much easier to update than Web
sites. The WBOC site, WBOConnection.blogspot.com, was created to connect our members with business resources and events they might be interested in. We will have the ability to gauge their reactions to new ideas we're working on because we'll invite feedback on the posts. We can also download pictures from our meetings and events.
In my business, we recently had the opportunity to send our gifts to Los Angeles to appear in a Tom Hanks movie. It's an interesting story, so I created the blog, SyracuseGiftBasket.blogspot.com, to tell the tale. I've gotten great feedback and a few suggestions to write a book. You never can tell . . .
Ann Marie: My Web site is my business, but blogging was a little more foreign to me. I did finally do it. Having a blog is not critical but it can be a useful tool and it can help your Web site ranking in search engines. There are places you can go online to set one up for free, and it's easy. I guess you have to ask yourself if there is an additional message you want to get out or more information you would like to receive. We get a lot of calls at the agency about the modeling business. My blog is a great place for to me to get information out to people and for them to ask questions. Having a blog helps because we have a place to refer people for more
information. They can think about more questions and make comments whenever they like. Like everything else on the Internet, it's open 24/7.
You would think, that for someone who was so enthralled with the original book that I didn't want to put it down, would have seen this movie the first week it came out!
I was supposed to see it with K. who had first introduced the book to me, saying it was perfect for me to read. Unfortunately, K. had a lot going on in her life the day we planned, so that was put on the back burner. This week it came out at The Palace Theatre on James Street. J. and I went to go see it earlier in the week. Unfortunately, we sat in the balcony, which didn't have speakers there. No speakers, combined with the French accent of Sophie, made it difficult to understand. Thinking back on it.....Why didn't we just move and go down stairs???? duh!
Anyway, I went to see it again tonight, and understand what everyone was talking about! :)
I really liked the premise behind this story line. I think Dan Brown is a genius in his own right. He's taken a fictional piece and has interwoven enough truths, half truths, and real history into the fabric of this highly controversial film. What better way to create such drama and elicit such focus, then to create his own 'grassy knoll'.
Dan Brown's website has some real interesting facts. Among them:
The Secret Life of Leonardo da Vinci
A prankster and genius, Leonardo da Vinci is widely believed to have hidden secret messages within much of his artwork. Most scholars agree that even Da Vinci's most famous pieces—works like The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, and Madonna of the Rocks—contain startling anomalies that all seem to be whispering the same cryptic message…a message that hints at a shocking historical secret which allegedly has been guarded since 1099 by a European secret society known as the Priory of Sion. In 1975, Paris's Bibliothèque Nationale discovered parchments known as Les Dossiers Secrets, identifying numerous members of the Priory of Sion, including Sir Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, Botticelli, and Leonardo da Vinci. French President, Francois Mitterrand, is rumored to have been a member, although there exists no proof of this.
243 Lexington Avenue, New York
The Vatican prelature known as Opus Dei is a deeply devout Catholic sect that has become controversial recently due to allegations of brainwashing, coercion, and a dangerous practice known as "corporal mortification." Opus Dei has recently completed construction of a $47 million, 133,000-square-foot American Headquarters at 243 Lexington Avenue in New York City.
Someone is watching you...or are they?
The Louvre Museum in Paris is one of the longest buildings on earth. Walking around the entire perimeter of this horseshoe-shaped edifice is a three-mile journey. Even so, the Louvre's collection of art is so vast that only a fraction of its works can be displayed on the walls. Inside the galleries, a multitude of security cameras watch over visitors. The number of cameras is so great that a staff of several hundred wardens would be required to monitor all of them. In fact, most of the cameras are fake.
To even lure you in deeper into the mystique and wonder of this movie, and for those who may not have even been aware, there is a mystery to be solved...right on the book itself! There are hidden clues and riddles to be decoded by the reader! One such challenge can be reached here!
I love mysteries.
I always will!
| You Are a Cappuccino |
 You're fun, outgoing, and you love to try anything new. However, you tend to have strong opinions on what you like. You are a total girly girly at heart - and prefer your coffee with good conversation. You're the type that seems complex to outsiders, but in reality, you are easy to please |
I found this neat site that can convert any photo I have to a puzzle!
Why not give it a try. You can write what it is in the comment section.
FYI ~ You don't need to try to turn the pieces a different way. they are all in the right direction. Also, you'll know it is in the right place when it locks in place and you can not move it anymore.
I tried to post the actual puzzle here, but I think it is too big for the space that I have. So, You can find it here instead.
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