Bearshorty's musings

This was a morning of chores: bank, post office, doctor’s office. My tests were fine but I need to do more since there are still some slight white cells without an infection and the doctor just wants to rule out as much as possible.

I get a house to myself again for Fourth of July long weekend. My parents left for a mini vacation in Canada (they usually like driving somewhere for 4th of July and I sometimes come along, but not this year since I just went on vacation.)

( SYTYCD Top 16 Perform )

Rhode Island passes a civil-union bill – go Rhode Island.

( SYTYCD Top 20 Results )

2nd Harry Potter trailer came out - my heart will break for Snape all over again. Looks really good. Can’t wait.

I finished “Queer as Folk US” Season 2. I think I liked it better than Season One since the characters are better established. But it is a show I like but not love. I will watch other seasons and everything but it is not must watch for me.

100F Outside. Inside day again.

( SYTYCD Top 20 exhibition )

I chose my prompt for RSGames today. Just like I knew it would work – one poem/song stood out and I could see the story in my head. Well, more the mood of it and that it will a contemplation piece. A journey of grieving, probably, but a hopeful one. I need to let it ruminate in my brain more. There is another Remus story that has been sitting in my head I need to write first.

I had a good birthday today. I like being 31 already.

I woke up in a really good mood today because presents! My parents told me where they put them before they left on vacation.

And I got a Kindle! Usually Papa gives me a book or two – this time 61 on Kindle! (Except I accidentally lost them when I re-registered my Kindle to my name, but then once I creates new categories I saw that they were still in memory, just not organized like Papa wanted). He got me a Kindle! I briefly suspected this a week ago in the conversation with Mama because she used the phrase “Dad’s Kindle” but then I dismissed the idea because why would Papa get me one, I never really expressed the interest or used his before the last two weeks – but he did get me one! With a pink cover with a night light. (I’m not really a pink person but it will match my laptop). And I can use it to read things like Burton’s travel accounts and his Arabian nights translation (which I already downloaded for free) and other free old books that are out of print. So I am happy to get one although I still prefer regular books.

My parents, who are awesome, also got me $25 iTunes gift certificate (Lady Gaga and SYTYCD music here I come), Mozart’s “Magic Flute” CD and “Torchwood: Children of Earth” DVD. And I got a Ralph Lauren orange t-shirt and green cargo pants.

In the afternoon, I went to the store to take a walk and also to get the Chinese menu in case I wanted Chinese tonight. And I wanted to get ice-cream too or some sort of desert. On the way I saw an ice-cream truck and I figured it was a perfect place to get ice-cream. Very summery. So I asked for a mixed cone with chocolate sprinkles. The guy asked me how I was doing as he made the cone and I was in a very good mood and I told him it was my birthday. He didn’t initially really believe me but I had my driver’s license with me so I showed it to him. He asked if I was doing anything special for it and I said not really. So he told me to put my wallet away and then he tossed the cone he was making and took the Big Gigantic Waffle Cone and not only filled it with gigantic amount of ice-cream and put sprinkles on it but also put the whipped cream on top! It was sugar overload! I don’t think I will have sugar for a while! And it just contributed to my happy mood. Thank you, Robert, the ice-cream guy for making my birthday great.

I decided on pizza in the evening and I invited my neighbor Laura and the kids over for it. Alexis came over earlier around 6 since she wanted my help with her school project. She is in the 3rd grade and was doing a project on Israel. Each kid in her class had to pick a country in Asia and research it. She already found many things. I showed her an Atlas and how to use it. Laura gave me very tasty tea and tea cups as a present. I got half cheese, half mushroom pizza, garlic knots and buffalo wings.

Then we watched SYTYCD and the Spelling Bee. Those kids always amaze me. It is insane what they can spell. It makes me love language and words even more.

And, of course, my favorite thing about today is that I get to speak to all my loved ones – family and friends who call to wish me happy birthday. Like my friend Sveta who called from across the world and my aunt.

Weird things customers say in bookstores . Really funny.

So apparently the Governor of NJ went insane and passed a law that only residents of NJ should be considered for public positions in the state. This includes Trenton employees, Rutgers University and other people who work for the public sector. Many people who work in NJ don’t live there because New York and Pennsylvania are so close. I know Rutgers negotiated with the state government to come up with some exceptions to this highly ridiculous law because, hey lots of professors want to live in New York City, but this law will affect many people. Not everyone can just move. The Governor calls this law “New Jersey First Act” and it even sounds stupid. I realize he is trying to reduce unemployment in the state but is it really feasible?

SYTYCD Season 8! I started watching this show in the second season and it is my favorite reality show and the only one I watch (I did used to watch “Amazing Race” occasionally). It is so representative of summer for me. And I love it. I love the choreographers and the dancers and it is just fun. And Cat is very lovely and the best host. And they learned from last year with having 20 contestants this time and only bring All Star for top 10 – that is great news. And I’m glad to see Mary back – it wasn’t the same without her. I was very excited just to watch the auditions. Now it really feels like summer to me.

Hee. Funny clip of the day. Michael Sheen rocks. He did a dramatic reading of Twilight fanfiction. It is only a minute and a half. Now I never read “Twilight” nor do I want to but this was really funny nonetheless.

SYTYCD Performance Finale - Top 3

Kent got into this great emotional space with his routine with Allison. The routine was about a marriage with perfect public face, breaking down in private. And by the end of the routine, Kent was not smiling his regular smile, he had a face of a man angry and tired from all the fighting. That was really good to see.

Mark and Robert were dancing to “Whip it” Yeah. Tyce sometimes surprises me. I still wish Sonya got her jazz hands on these boys.

I like all three finalists, but I am puling for Lauren a bit more. But I don’t care too much this season and any of the three can win, really. It is an OK season, but I it was not my favorite one. I think it was the new format. And lack of many girls.

( SYTYCD Top 4 perform )

( Highlander S3 E7, 8, 9 )

Prop 8 overturned today by a judge in California. Yay. I don’t know if this will hold, but it is something.

Startrek.com is finally redesigned. This was actually one of the first websites I ever visited on the Internet back in the mid-90s when there was still dial-up and very slow loading time.

Buffy Fashion roulette – examining fashion in Buffy episodes with actually makes you see the episodes in a whole new way.

SYTYCD One of 7 goes home. Well it is five guys to one girl. It is because Ashley was injured, but still. This show isn’t even trying this year. I hope Lauren at least stays for a while and not get injured as she is the only girl left. Jose in bottom three was nice. He needs to go home next. Guest dancers – both kids and adults were good. And musical guest based of a song used on the show and with all-star dances is a really good decision, show.

Emmy’s. They are on the lower scale of award shows I look forward to – mostly because I generally watch different kind of TV than the Emmy voters. I do look through the whole list of nominations, mainly because I want to see who gets choreography. Before SYTYCD I didn’t even care about this category. How is Cat Deeley always left out of Best Host category? This is definitely an injustice. Mia got a nomination for Addiction dance and Koop Island Blues and One from last season and Stacy Tooki got a nomination for the fear dance (which I don’t remember). Chelsie Hightower, a former contestant, got a choreographer nomination for Dancing with the Stars. Now that is awesome. I’m also excited that Andre Braugher got a nomination for “Men of a Certain Age” and that Sharon Gless got one for “Burn Notice.” “Moonshot” and “Special Relationship” got a nom for TV movie. Both movies, I liked. “Caprica” has one for visual effects. I’m disappointed that “Community” has been totally excluded. The lack of women writers is also pretty sad as there weren’t a lot of women writers nominated.

The spy exchange feels so ridiculous. The whole thing is like a big farce. Did we step back in time here?

Daily Show women respond to media stirred idea that just because there are few women writers and correspondents, women are not part of the show.

I was in a waiting room today for a while so I read an article in July’s National Geographic about Pakistan. It is nice to get a perspective of what life is like there and what people really think about religion and extremism. And this article was great in presenting multiple points of view.

( SYTYCD Top 8 )

“Friends with Money” I got this movie because Jason Isaacs is in it, frankly. But he wasn’t even in the movie too much. I had to look up the movie on IMDB to see what everyone’s name was after I watched about fifteen minutes and still couldn’t tell. The movie was alright. I didn’t like very many characters in it. I liked intellectually the issues the movie raises about life and money and economic disparities and all sort of relationship stuff – but I really couldn’t care much about most of the characters. So, in the end, I don’t think this was a successful movie.

Highlander. S1E14. Killer mimes! This was a very silly episode with some very hammy acting. It was worth it just for the adorable flashback of when Duncan meets Tessa for the first time. Still, killer mimes! Someone had to write this and think it would make a great episode. Why do two French policemen speak English to each other? This was a really good bad episode. Very silly in a lot of ways.