Clay Aiken's Sex Life

Poor Clay Aiken's sex life is in the news again. This time there is debate about whether he is asexual or just tired. I have my own opinions about it, but I'll keep those to myself. What I won't keep to myself is my complete and utter disgust that every part of a celebrity's life is considered fair game, especially Clay's. What difference does it make who he sleeps with or if he sleeps with anyone at all? The last time I checked, I wasn't waking up next to him in my bed, so it doesn't really concern me. I do know that he's in a strange city performing eight shows a week. Just thinking about it makes me too tired for sex.

I know people say that by being in the public eye stars ask for this kind of scrutiny, but I don't buy it. A star's sex life doesn't make their music any different, their TV shows any funnier or, in Clay's case, his run on Broadway anymore successful.

Excedrin Migraine

Okay, so I don't know that the headaches I've had the last few weeks are migraines, but they feel like I've been hit upside the head with a hammer. We're talking serious, knee-walking pain. I can't go to the doctor because I am one of the 47 million people in the US without health insurance, but I've been taking Excedrin Migraine and it helps so much.

Pleo Dinosaur by UGOBE

Have you seen the Pleo Dinosaur? It's a robotic pet and it's so cute. It responds and develops its own personality. It has over 40 sensors and can see and sense objects and motion. It is one of the most sophisticated pieces of worthless (who really needs a pretend baby dinosaur?) engineering I have ever seen. I want one, but they are over $300.

A NKOTB Reunion?

People Magazine is reporting that New Kids on the Block are reuniting and that an official announcement is due next week. My only response is WTF? I will admit to being a huge (and I do mean huge- I had the dolls, the bedspread, the phone, the lunch box, the $90 NKTOB Tour jacket and many other things that I am too embarrassed to admit. They could live comfortably the rest of their lives on what I spent) fan, but the time for a comeback is past. Jon (the shy one, in case you're keeping track) is almost 40-- not old by any means, but a leeettle past boy band prime. Donnie is a succesful actor. Jordan had a semi-decent solo record. Joe's been active in theater. Why would they open themselves up for this kind of ridicule? I don't have a good feeling about this, but I wish them the best of luck.

Ruins Metropolis ToC

From Eric T. Reynold's Blog:



Cover Art (c) by Debbie Hughes

The stories are set in the ruins depicted in this cover art. In each story, the woman in the image is the protagonist. How similar are the stories? Ah, that was the experiment. You decide.

Coming soon . . . .

Ruins Metropolis

Adele Cosgrove-Bray adele_cb	"Old World Magic"
Ahmed A. Khan ahmedakhan	"End"
Alycia C. Cooke	"Sumari's Solitude"
Anna D. Allen	"Mrs. Kelly's Ghosts"
Barton Paul Levenson	"City of the Dead"
Brenta Blevins	"A Haunting in Giza"
C.L. Holland	"In Search of Camanac"
Camille Alexa littlebirdblue	"Veilsight"
Chris Benton die7fox	"For Sale: One Gold (plated) Eye Of Horus"
Christine Poulsen	"The Eye of Re-Atum"
Erin M. Hartshorn abennettstrong	"By the Pool of the Blue Lotus "
Gene Stewart	"The Name and the Shadow"
Gerri Leen	"Seeker of the Dead"
Gianna Robbins bookend_2	"Goddess Reborn"
H.F. Gibbard	"Chamber of Illusions"
Heather Kuehl malevolent_dead	"The Final Goodbye"
Jacqueline Seewald	"Amulet"
Jennifer Moore	"The Return of the Queen"
Jonathan Shipley	"When Love Dies"
Jude-Marie Green saycestsay	"Dancing On the Corpse of the World"
K.L. Townsend	"Convergence"
Kari Livingston	"Kehmet's Curse"
Kate Kelly	"In the precinct of Amun-Re"
Kimberly Vandervort writerknv	"The Librarian of Talimbourne"
Leslie Brown and Sarah Totton	"The Amulet of Passages"
Lyn McConchie	"Children of the City"
Meg Swanton	"The Memory"
Megan Arkenberg	"Panthanatos"
R.F. Long rflong	"Carrying Keptara"
Ransom Noble	"Qui's Contract"
Rob Rosen	"The Great Sleep"
Sarah Wagner shade53	"The Tomb of Setankan"
Stephen Graham King chronicpaint	"Burning Stone"
Victoria Kennedy	"The Deserted City"
Willis Couvillier will_couvillier	"Haroeris's Favor"

From what I've seen, the stories are much more diverse than you would expect given the tight constraints of the submission call. My entry, "Kehmet's Curse," is set in the ruins of the legendary city Nagdala. Lucia is the sole survivor of the city's destruction more than 3000 years ago. There should be a release date soon.

Tabloid Journalism

Wow- you know, when I was in high school, the National Enquirer was a joke. So was the Star. No one took anything they reported seriously. Now, not only are these "newspapers" quoted on reputable websites, the major news organizations are changing their coverage to closely mimic the tabloids. There have been rumors and innuendo in the death of Heath Ledger and it just makes me sick. How about not publishing something until it's confirmed? Why print every whisper or hint if a rumor? Don't these people have any shame? Any decency? A young man died. He had friends. he had a family that loved him. I wish that some members of the media would remember that before they take off and run with rumors..

Heath Ledger

Heath Ledger is dead.

I am devastated.

Such a waste of talent and life.

The Georgia Human Life Amendment

There is a new amendment up for consideration in Georgia that reclassifies exactly when life begins:

"the word 'person' applies to all human beings, irrespective of age, race, sex, health, function, or condition of dependency, including unborn children at every state of their biological development, including fertilization."

In other words, anything that stops a fertilized egg from implanting itself in the lining of the uterus would be considered abortion. We're not talking about the abortion pill, which aborts an egg that has been implanted, but things like the pill, the birth control patch, the Nuva ring and IUDs would all be considered abortion. The only legal forms of birth control would be condoms and abstinence. What about tubal ligation? Tubal ligation keeps fertilized eggs from reaching the uterus. Would tubal ligation still be legal in Georgia if this passes? You can read all about the amendment here. Scary stuff. It goes without saying that Mike Huckabee plans to throw his support behind the amendment today.

The Oscars

The Oscar nominations were announced this morning and I absolutely think that the Academy got it wrong. There has been much talk about whether the actors would attend because of the writer's strike. At this point, I couldn't care less. How the hell do you nominate "Atonement" for Best Picture and not nominate the director, the lead actor or the lead actress? If the movie is great, it's because of those three people. I am such a big fan of James McAvoy and I am so disappointed that his name was left out.

Signs of Life

I found this website today: Signs of Life.

You should go check it out. It has pictures of absurd signs from all over the world. It's great!

Patriotism

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or
that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
- Theodore Roosevelt

"If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy."
- James Madison

The Book That Changed My Life

I signed up for (and subsequently dropped) a creative writing class at our local community college. One of our first assignments was to name a book that changed our lives and explain why the book was so important to us. For the life of me, I couldn't come up with a single title. I could name a hundred books that I cherished, that I could still quote from many years after I closed them for the last time, but I couldn't remember a single life-changing moment that occurred while I was reading a book. I never hit a sentence and yelled "Eureka! My life has been changed."

Apparently, I was thinking too hard.

There were books that changed my life, but it was a process. I was in Target yesterday and I found "The Lost Case Files of Nancy Drew." It's one of those big books with flaps and letters and diary pages- much like the very popular "Ology" books. I giggled with unabashed glee. I bought it without hesitating. The books that changed my life- don't laugh- were the Nancy Drew books.

Yes, I know they are hopelessly dated. I know that the plots are recycled and that there was never a real woman named Carolyn Keene. Most of the original books were written by Mildred Wirt Benson and were revised in the 50s by Harriet Adams. But they were the first books I truly loved. I loved reading about Nancy and Bess and George. Nancy traveled to New Orleans and Scotland. She drove a convertible. She solved mysteries that had stymied adults, using only her wits and a magnifying glass. As hokey as the books may be, I read them over and over. I have read all 56 original stories and loved each one. They were the books that made me love reading, which lead me to writing. I firmly believe that I am a writer today because I picked up "The Clue in the Diary." I see bits of Nancy in my heroines. I see her strength, her intelligence and her courage. I see bits of Nancy in myself.

Of course, I wasn't able to think of this answer in time to turn in the assignment before I dropped my class. But I wish I had. A life-changing book doesn't need to be deep or particularly meaningful. It can be an ordinary book about an extraordinary girl that nudges you down a path you may never have seen without it.

Huckabee Loses SC

Thank goodness that people are starting to see through Huckabee. He's creepy-scary and is carrying so many skeletons around with him that it's a miracle he doesn't rattle when he walks.

West Memphis Three

This hasn't been a good week on the West Memphis Three front. First, our idiot of an Attorney General (who, BTW, I voted for, but I won't EVER again!) said that there was no new evidence pointing to the WM3's innocence. WTF? No- no evidence at all, except for a complete lack of DNA from any of the accused and DNA from two other men. Of course, with secondary transfer, it is possible that the DNA found were deposited by innocent means, but if that DNA stuck, surely the DNA of someone involved in such a violent crime would be left behind. Cripes, McDaniel- pull your head out of your ass and form an original thought. I swear, you make the rest of Arkansas look stupid.

In other news, the WM3 Innocence Project, led by Mara Leveritt, who has made quite a bit of money off sales of her book and from speaking fees related to this case, launched this week and immediately tried to ingratiate themselves with Damien by attacking his wife. The gist of their claims is this: the WM3.org site has raised millions of dollars and have provided no account of the money or how it was spent. Most of the money was funneled to Damien and left Jason and Jessie out in the cold.

It has never been a secret that the bulk of the legal funds have been directed to Damien's defense. Damien is on death row, so his case is the more urgent of the three. What the WM3 Innocence Project failed to mention is that all three men benefit from the new evidence that has been uncovered, they all benefit from the DNA analysis and they will all benefit from the public outcry that WM3.org has fueled. Damien and Jason have both disavowed this group. You can visit WM3.org to read their statements.

Yay for Hillary!

Hillary Clinton won the Nevada caucus. I don't hold out much hope for a win in South Carolina, but I am savoring the night. Her win comes after some reports of voter intimidation by some union bosses. Allegedly, the union bosses threatened to give anyone who didn't support Obama shifts where they couldn't attend the caucus, which begs the question, how fair and private are the caucuses? In caucuses, you go stand in a certain part of the room to support your candidate and everyone knows who you support. If your boss supports one candidate and you support another, it is within the realm of possibility that you could find yourself in for some retaliation. I really think this is something that needs to be done away with. You should be able to cast your ballot in private and support whatever candidate you want without being made to answer for it.

Poor Britney

The Associated Press revealed that they are working on an obit for Britney Spears, just in case. WTF? I know that it is standard practice to have obits ready for people that are on their last legs, but Britney is a young woman, even if she isn't healthy right now. I think most people have come to accept that Britney is seriously ill and in need of medical help and a large dose of compassion from the public. I think the release of the information from the AP is irresponsible and unethical. When someone has a mental illness, anything can send them over the edge. Who knows if seeing this news might push the poor thing to harm herself?

Ruins Metropolis

My story "Kehmet's Curse" has been accepted for inclusion in the anthology Ruins Metropolis. The book is the third in the Ruins series which has been getting great reviews. The anthology is being edited by Eric Reynolds and published by Hadley Rille Books. No word yet on the release date, but I'll let you know. This is a peek at a preliminary version of the cover:

Should Carly Hennessy Be on American Idol?I

If you haven't heard of Carly Hennessy, you will soon. Carly auditioned for American Idol on San Diego and her audition will be shown next week. The problem is Hennessy isn't exactly an amateur. Granted, a lot of Idol contestants have some singing experience. They play bars and bar mitzvahs, they perform in theme parks and some of them have actually recorded CDs that they sold out of the trunk of their car. Carly Hennessy also recorded a CD, but she didn't fork out the money herself. MCA Records forked out $2.2 million to sign, record and market Hennessy. Return on their investment? 378 copies. Yep- that's right. She sold just 378 records with a huge record label and millions of dollars behind her. Even Diana DeGarmo sold more than that. I haven't heard Carly sing yet and I'm all for people getting a second chance, but what of the people who won't get a first chance because Carly took a spot? She's not the only person in this year's AI that has a suspiciously strong resume. What happened to finding a diamond in the rough? Elliott Yamin and Clay Aiken would never have been given a chance if not for Idol. Carly Hennessy has had her chance. She should step down and let someone else have theirs.

Blaming the Victim?

San Diego Police now say that three men who were attacked by Tatiana the Tiger were drinking, smoking pot and taunting the tiger before she jumped out of the enclosure. I am in no way excusing what these three did. It was stupid and sometimes people who do stupid things meet sticky ends. Paul Dhaliwal told Carlos Sousa's father that he stood on the three foot rail and yelled at the tiger. The police found shoe prints on the rail that matched Dhaliwal's shoe. How stupid can you be? The victims (IMHO) definitely bear some culpability in the instance because it's a fairly safe bet that if they didn't aggravate the tiger, the tiger wouldn't have jumped out of the enclosure. However, if the wall separating the tiger from the public had been up to standards, Tatiana wouldn't have been able to get out, regardless of how badly she was taunted. The victims are planning to sue the SD Zoo, but I hope it gets thrown out. When I took Intro to Law (when I thought I wanted to be a paralegal), my professor talked about a concept called "contributory negligence," where someone else may have bore some responsibility in an accident, but if the victim contributed to the circustances, they were held just as liable. I think this is a good example of that.

Open Letter to Barack Obama

A Clinton supporter wrote this open letter to Senator Obama. I agree with every word and I would love for Obama to respond. I don't think he will, but still, I can dream. I think some people are forgetting that things in the U.S. were so good in the Clinton years that the only thing we had to do was concentrate on whether Bill got a BJ and lied about it or not.

American Idol-Dallas

I watched this with one eye last night- I was working on writing some. I liked the meth-addict girl, whose name escapes me right now. Her mom looked so proud and proud moms always make me a little misty. I also liked Brandon Greene, gross habits notwithstanding.

I turned both eyes to the screen when Drew Poppelreiter showed up. What a cutie! He has to be the most precious little thing ever on Idol. I was a little pissed at Simon's abrupt no. If Drew had been a cute blond girl singing country, he would have sent her right through. Anyway, I think he had a great, rich tone and a song with a bit more range and emotion will help a lot. Spoiler websites have him making the top 50. If he hits top 24, I think he will do well. There are already a ton of females of all ages swooning over him on the message boards. It seems that the show got his age incorrect, BTW. He's 19, not 24.

Happy Birthday to Me!!

It's my birthday! My 8 year old got me a copy of "Hairspray." I loves me some James Marsden.

Huckabee the Zealot

Mike Huckabee has made it this far by playing the nice, easygoing, funny populist. he has managed to deflect any criticism with a joke, and let's face it, the guy is funny, but geez- he's a little on the creepy side, too.

He recently said that the U.S. Constitution should be amended to more closely match "God's Laws." Um, 'scuse me? How is this any different than Islamic fundies wanting to set up Islamic states in the Middle East? Anytime you mix religion with politics, this is what you get. What if Romney wins? His religious beliefs are little different than mainline denominations. Would the Constitution require us to wear funny underwear and give up coffee?

For more scariness from the Huckabilly campaign, just check out this post from Think Progress detailing statements of Huckabee's "senior advisor" James Pinkerton.

Disney Shopping!

Disneyshopping.com is having their semi-annual sale! I orderd a ling sleeve Tinkerbell shirt, a long sleeve Nightmare Before Christmas t-shirt and an 18 inch cream and gold Eeyore. Eeyore was $5 and the shirts were $4 each. They came via UPS today and all of it is awesome! I love,love,love my Tinkerbell shirt, even if my eight year old is mortified. She thinks I'm too old to be wearing Tinkerbell. Well, guess what- I'll be 37 tomorrow and I'm wearing the shirt! :)

Paula Abdul and Chronic Pain

There's an article about Paula Abdul and her struggle with chronic pain on ABCNews.com

There has been speculation that some of Paula's loopy behavior has been caused by using pain meds. As someone that has been around a chronic pain suffer, it's not a joke. I'm incapacitated when I get a hangnail, so I have a lot of admiration for someone that can function while in that level of pain.

American Idol Returns with More of the Same

American Idol returned Tuesday night with a line-up that’s familiar to anyone who has watched any of the previous six seasons. There were the weirdos (what’s up with the Hairy-Man Genie Guy?), the melt-downs (Alexis, I’m talking to you), the sweet, but horribly off-key crier (Temptress, I cried right there with you) and mixed in with all of the mayhem and bad auditions were inspirational stories, laughs and an impressive array of talent for this early in the season.

Full Article

Macbook Air

The Consumer electronics Show just wrapped up in Las Vegas, but the real show started today when Apple’s Steve Jobs stepped onto the stage at MacWorld and introduced the Macbook Air, the thinnest laptop ever. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Air promises to be to the laptop what the iPhone is to the cell phone market. A 13.3 inch screen and a full sized keyboard is folded into a package that about 3.4 of an inch thick and will weigh just three pounds. The Macbook Air boasts an 80 GB hard drive and a built-in webcam. Of course, as is the case with all of Apple’s “I want that!” items, innovation doesn’t come cheap. The Macbook Air will retail for a whopping $1800 when it hits stores in two weeks.

Full Article

New Make-up

I haven’t gushed about my make-up lately, so I feel like I’m due.

I think by now, most of the make-up I wear is mineral make-up. Now that I know what is in most of the crap that you can buy at Wal-Mart, I just can’t see putting that mess on my face.

Anyway, I’ve switched to Everyday Minerals, who have great, great products- lots of colors and four foundation formulas so it works for all skin types. They are also cheap and they always have great specials. I was almost out of foundation, so I placed an order for the six piece custom kit. It was $32 and I got to pick six products that I wanted. It isn’t like the kits where you have to pick two foundations, one blush, one finishing powder and two brushes whether you need them or not. Ironically enough, I did order two foundations, one blush and one finishing powder- but I only ordered one brush and got a container of Pick Me Up Pink Concealer. The brush I got was the Premium Flat Top Brush. I firmly believe that if everyone who tried mineral make-up used this brush, everyone would switch immediately. It is as soft as anything I’ve ever felt on my face and it applies the foundation evenly. I absolutely love it! I also love my new blush.

I may be in the minority, but I can remember my first make-up. My first blush was from Cover Girl and it was called Natural Glow. My new blush from EM is called Natural and it looks a lot like my first blush. It’s very light with a subtle shimmer. I used it as an eyeshadow base yesterday and it worked great.

I also ordered the Green Tea Everywear cream that is doing a number on my scaly elbows. With all of that- I got a free bonus gift. I love free stuff! I got three brushes and two full sized eyeshadows. Gingerbread Man is pretty but it looks almost just like Comfy. Tinsel Time is gorgeous! It’s an antique gold with a greenish tint. I use it as a lid color with In the Garden in the crease. All of that cost me $38, including shipping.

Wordpress!

Did you know that you can't monetize Wordpress blogs? I've had a blog in Wordpress for over a year, and I never bothered to put an ad on the page because I mainly used it to drive traffic to my articles elsewhere on the web, but a lot of sites are cutting payments so I thought I would put an ad or two on my site to help make up the difference. Big Mistake! I can't! That sucks. A whole year's worth of work is more or less down the tubes.