197 - Meet ur neighbors

OMG I found this hilariously sad. Someone has been drinking too much moonshine.

So... anyone feel just a little bit bad for Toyota? Man oh man... what a mess. But as bad as I feel for Toyota, I feel even worse for the owners of the cars... what happens to them while their cars are being repaired? What happens to the resale / trade-in value of their cars? And how much faith will they have in their cars when they get them back? Once something breaks I start to doubt it, so I wouldn't feel very confident...

Today I met my new neighbors. They seem pretty cool. I may even get a friend out of the deal because the woman (Kristina) is my age, and seems to have similar interests. I stepped outside to get the mail and say hello, and we probably chatted for 30 minutes. They apparently moved here from Dallas, so they don't really know anyone, and since she doesn't work (outside the home), and home schools her son, it's probably hard to meet people. He's a firefighter, so hey... maybe some hot firefighting men could start hanging out next door... *drool* And cook for me... *drool* And model for me. *double drool* Talking to her made me realize that I make most of my friends through work... even if I don't work with the people directly, I still met them in some form or fashion through my job. If I didn't work, I don't know how I'd meet people, because I've never been a 'joiner'... no clubs, no sports, no organizations, no church... I'm not very sociable... I'm lucky to have friends, really...

The Olympics are about to start and it got me thinking... I am one of the unravelling threads in the fabric that is America... I used to watch Miss USA... I don't anymore... I used to watch all the shuttle launches... I don't anymore (of course there are way more launches than there were when I was a kid...)... I used to watch the Olympics (figure skating and gymnastics)... I don't anymore. It hasn't been a conscious choice, it just happened over time. Little patriotic things that keep you connected to your country and give you a sense of pride... Don't know what it means, just an observation.

Attempted level 3 of the Shred tonight... oh lordy. But I don't think I did any worse on level 3 than I did when I started levels 1 or 2. Each time I took shortcuts or rested a little, so I shouldn't beat myself up. Hell, last night I did Gilad and then did circuits 1 and 3 of Jillian's level 2. (That's right... I did Gilad and then I did Jillian -- spread that around, will you?) So anyhoo... progress is being made and I'm starting to look forward to working out. I finally realized (lots of realizations happening tonight, lol) that I need to work out every day. If I skip even one day, the chances that I will quit altogether increase exponentially. It's that easy for me to drop a good habit. One day. So I just have to push myself and do it until it's second nature.

Probably shouldn't admit this... I watched New Moon tonight. You're probably realizing that the dvd isn't available until next month... Now... I didn't pirate the copy, and I don't approve of pirating movies... but I borrowed a copy from someone who borrowed it from someone else who pirated it... and I feel bad about myself. It's not one of my better moments. But... let's get past my moral transgression and get to the meat of the matter: Cheese Whiz is less cheesy than New Moon was. There's something about seeing the book put into action that changes everything... Bella seems pathetic... Edward is always so solemn... Jacob is incredibly moody and childish... and Jasper... poor Jasper... he looks like a cartoon (see LiLa's recent post for a visual). Alice... her personality just isn't allowed to shine... and I love Alice... not only is her character the coolest character, but my friends agree that if I were a Twilight character... I would be Alice... As long as the character is already cool, hearing that endears me to the character even more. That said, I felt the same way about Twilight and watched it three times, then got inspired to write the book that had been brewing inside me for ten years, because it set a mood (and my book was, unfortunately, about vampires). So I will probably give it a second chance (and I'll pay this time). I think the thing that bugs me the most is that ridiculous makeup they slop onto R-Patz. It looks ridiculous and it's distracting.

Speaking of pirating... how the hell do people find this shit? I don't have the balls to do it, not only do I not want to get caught, but I'm afraid of computer viruses, and also, as I said... it's not right. As someone who produced something artistic (I tried my hand at screenplays and wrote a book), I don't want to be cheated out of the revenue generated by it just because someone feels entitled to a free copy. People scoff and cite the ridiculous salaries that movie stars make, and -- agreed -- the money is ridiculous. But the money doesn't just go to the stars... you have the director, all of the film crew, the screenwriter, the author, the agents, agent staff, the producers, the office staff in the production studio, the production crew, the star's staff (security, agent, publicist, accountant, assistant), film editors, composers, hair and makeup artists, wardrobe, prop construction and/or rental, scouts to find shooting locations, extras, stunt doubles, the guys who put the sets together, the guys who set up the wires for some of the stunts, materials to produce the dvd, cases and liners, food to feed all these people, people to cook the food, lodging for on-location shoots, revenue generated to the city where the film is shot even afterward as fans flock to see where K-Stew and R-Patz snogged... and I'm sure that's only half of what goes into a movie. There are a lot of people involved in a film, and they each get a cut of the take. That's what I think about when I get the urge to just take something, and that's why I feel the way I do. (stepping down from soapbox and wiping tomato guts off)

P.S. ABAO, I didn't watch CFC, but I do have it DVR'd and I notice there are two episodes. Since tonight is almost over and it's Paranormal State night (which I can't miss), I will probably watch it tomorrow. But if I have time, I may get it in tonight. I take it, it was good?