5 Things: 0.2 Seconds, SHRUGGED!, And A Moment Of Silence........

1. Does it annoy me when people make their point in the form of a series of yes or no questions? Yes.

2. Am I super, super, super, super excited that ATLAS SHRUGGED comes out in theaters on April 15th? YES.

3. Did I just witness the greatest 0.2 seconds of basketball in my entire life???? YESSSSSSSSS



4. Am I sounding like Kate Gosselin by phrasing today's 5 Things in yes or no questions? Yes. Ugh. SO annoying.

5. Am I heartbroken for the country of Japan and the millions of devastated people there and around the world who lost loved ones, homes, entire families, entire villages, and more today? .......Very. This is a good place to stop and pray for them and honor them in a moment of reflection. You should do it, too.

5 Things: Tar Heels & Redheads.... Boom. Winning.

1. Carolina Tar Heels have tiger blood. ACC CHAMPIONS.... Boom. Winning.

2. If you don't have red hair, you don't have red hair. Period. Don't dye it. It doesn't work. And you're giving us naturals a bad look. Jussssssst stopppppp itttt (please).

3. The next time you make tacos for dinner, garnish them with diced cucumber. Heaven. Trust me. Thank you, Lord, that Mo's mom made tacos for dinner one night when I was at her house in middle school or I would never have discovered what a gift a lil cuke can be.

4. Oprah voted for George W. Bush. Who knew?

5. Is the new Old Spice guy blind?????? Kathy Griffin?? Really???
On second thought, sometimes natural redheads give us natural redheads a bad name...

(I realize you may think I'm on crack after reading this post. I'm not. Really. If you don't understand the references, my apologies. And a tip of the hat to Charlie Sheen.)

5 Things: TEN Things. For Hugh.

I haven't felt like writing/blogging/anything for a while because I've been really sad.... which, thinking about it, should be a great time to write. But I just can't. Or couldn't. This is at least an attempt, even if I don't post it. A man I love like a father died about a week ago. I didn't get to say goodbye, and though I was kind of "ready", I wasn't ready. I had a lot to say to him that I didn't get to say, but I believe in my heart he has heard me now. These ten things are things that made him "him"; but only in a superficial way. What truly made him "him" was his family most of all; followed by his friends, his love of people, his love of doggies, and his huge charitable heart. He never met a stranger and went out of his way to make people feel welcome in any situation; not even just welcome...he made people feel like family. Anyone who knew him would only have to read this list once to know it's about him. Actually, #1 would do it. I love you, HAF. Thank you for being in my life.

1. Hood ornaments. Labradors, to be exact. On every car (trans: Ford Explorer) he owned, to be exact.
2. Brooks Brothers. With monogram, of course.
3. Dewar's Scotch. Period.
4. "Pahdnah" (trans: Partner)
5. Jack Russell doggies. The kind that eat toast and get fat.
6. "Hey, I'm vertical." ...his trademark response to "How are you?"
7. Golf. Golf golf golf golf golf.
8. "(Insert whatever word applied)-meister."
9. Beach dancing with his daughter. My best friend in the world.
10. The Great White Biscuit.

Thanks for touching the world, Hughmeister. It's already different without you.

5 Things: Asians, Chainsaws, and a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Daddy / HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to Mom!!!

1. I recently told a friend of mine that I was going to pimp out her blog and asked if she would do the same for mine. Her response: "Translation? You're speaking to a 44 year old Asian immigrant." Hahahahahaha. Okay, I added the Asian part, but just so you wouldn't be stuck wondering what kind of immigrant. I should also add that in addition to being Asian, she's of the LEGAL persuasion as well. Those are my favorite!
Her blog is amaaaazing (if you love food...but who doesn't?) and the pictures will make you droo-oo-ool with want. Check it out: http://thechurchcook.blogspot.com
And while you're there, check out her daughter Anna's essay entry for a college scholarship and give her a vote!

2. In middle school we carpooled with probably more kids than was safe to have in one car (but whatever) and one day it was our friend Jim's (really his name was Eric, but I'll call him Jim for the sake of anonymity and all that) dad's day to drop us off and pick us up. School ends for the day, we wait outside on the sidewalk, parents show up and pick up their kids.........about an hour goes by....we're the only kids left on the sidewalk....then the school secretary comes out and says Eric's (oops, Jim's) dad is on his way. He had a minor accident and had to go by the ER; it took a little longer than he thought it would, but he was leaving the hospital and would be at the school in about 15 minutes. Awesome. .....................
Fifteen minutes later, Eric's (Jim's) dad pulls up COVERED -and I mean COVERED- in blood, with his t-shirt cut all the way down the middle. It was a white undershirt. I know it was a white undershirt because he said it was. COV. ERED. IN. BLOOD. His ENTIRE chest was wrapped in thick layers of gauze and tape. Eric, I mean Jim, was full on flipping out; actually I guess we all were. I just remember I was stunned into silence (*rare). So there we were, 5 or 6 or 7 kids standing on the sidewalk, speechless, watching our friend go ballistic at the sight of his father covered in blood and bandages, and all the while, Eric's (Jim's) dad was just smiling as always, hands on the wheel, waiting for us to get in. We hopped in and I swear, it was as if everything were completely normal. He asked about our days, yada yada, not at all worried that he looked like he had just taken a chainsaw through the chest. When Eric (Jim..whatever.) calmed down enough to actually ask what had happened, the answer came as nonchalantly as if he were answering a question about the weather. The minor accident? HE TOOK A CHAINSAW THROUGH THE CHEST. Seriously. He was cutting wood, the saw kicked back, SPLIT HIS CHEST IN TWO, he "stopped by the ER", and then went to pick the carpool kids up from school. Really???? Yeah, really. Chew on that, Chuck Norris.

3. Did I mention I started a political blog? http://pollytickchick.blogspot.com
Dig it.

4. Tomorrow is my daddy's birthday :o)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DADDY!!! I love you more than any other daughter has ever loved her daddy ever, ever, ever!

Cool fact: My friend Susan and I have the same birthday. I know, not super rare, but here's the thing.. Tomorrow is her daddy's birthday, too! We have the same birthday and our daddies have the same birthday! Crazy, no?

5. Tomorrow is also my mom's & stepdad's anniversary :o)
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, MOM & PAPA NOO! I lovvvvvve you!

Annnnnd it's my stepsister's birthday and it's my aunt's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SISSA and AUNT NEECIE! LOVES YOU!

5 Things: Well, Really Only 1, Because It's Long. It's About My Friend Stephen King.

I remembered today that I know Stephen King. Ok, "know" might be stretching it a little. When his movie The Green Mile came out, a group of us went to see it at the HA E movie theater in Boone. If you aren't a local, the HA E theater is the CHALET movie theater, except the C, L, and T lights were operational for a minute, maybe two, then burned out and they never bothered to change the bulbs. Anyhoo... We were sticking to - I mean sitting in - our seats before the movie when a group of maybe 8 people came in and sat 2 rows in front of us (the row between was empty). Upon first glimpse of one of them, I thought to myself, "Whoa. That dude looks like Stephen King." so I said to my friends, "Whoa. That dude looks like Stephen King." in my whisper-loud-enough-so-the-three-people-I'm-with-can-hear-me-but-the-dude-two-rows-ahead-of-me-can't voice. Unsuccessfully, as it turned out, because the dude turned around and stared right at me. And it was Stephen King. Staring into my eyes. My very wide, amazed, freaked out eyes. And yes, it was creepy. Like he was staring into my soul and putting some kind of voodoojoodoo on me. At first I thought I wet my pants, but then I remembered I was at the HA E and it was probably already in my seat to begin with.
Stephen King. In Boone. At the HA E, no less, where you need a crowbar to pry your feet off of whatever has accumulated on the floor for 20 years. Stephen King. Yeah.
I know.. you're wondering why Stephen King was in a tiny movie theater in a tiny North Carolina town. Well... Part of The Green Mile was filmed at Moses Cone Manor on the Blue Ridge Parkway (about 5 miles from Boone) and locals were hired as extras in the film, so the night the movie opened in Boone, Stephen King came back to watch it with them. I thought that was pretty cool, especially given the theater in which he had to watch it. It was shortly after he was randomly run over by a dude in a van while walking on the side of the road, so he was using a walker. And if Stephen King's creepy factor isn't high enough on its own, Stephen King hunched over a walker with a limping stride... Ew.
Anyway, I just remembered this today for some reason and the memory of looking into his sinister eyes is a disturbing enough memory that I thought it was worth sharing.
Please don't tell him I said anything. I don't want to die.

5 Things: I Heart The Avett Brothers, Jr Reid, & Ariel Tweto

1. Today is the birthday of someone very special to me. Today also marks the 2 year anniversary of a really sad, tragic day...
2. Some dolt just wasted years of his life writing & creating an opera that just opened in London. Why do I use terms like "dolt" and "wasted"?
ANNA NICOLE: THE OPERA
Some gifts are just too good.
3. The Avett Brothers just shared the Grammy stage with Bob Dylan and Mumford and Sons. Did you process that? Theeeee Avetttttt Brotherrrrrrs shared the GRAMMMMMMY stage with Bobbbb Dylannnn!!!!! The jam could maybe have sounded a little better when Bob had 8 brain cells, but I gotta say, he didn't do too bad with the 3 he has left.
4. I have recently become friends with Jr Reid and increased my cool factor by maybe 20%. Yep. THE Jr Reid. #34 Carolina Tar Heels Jr Reid. I'm shamelessly bragging about it and I don't care. Go Heels.
5. New obsession: Ariel Tweto. LOVE her! Flying Wild Alaska on Discovery Channel, Friday nights at 9pm. Do it. (Twitter: @arieltweto) LOVE, LOVE, LOVE her! She'll make you laugh, for sure.

5 Things: Blah, Blah, Blah.

1. Free Tip: If you foresee MURDERING your daughter some point in the future in the name of "honor killing" for being too westernized and not quite Iraqi enough, perhaps you should raise her, oh I don't know... in IRAQ, NOT ARIZONA!!!!!

2. Border control. It's fun. Try it.

3. In honor of tonight's address, the state of our union is......fail.

4. It takes 1,000,000 gallons of water per day to make Canada Dry Ginger Ale.

5. If Australia won't change its time zone, they need to start having the Australian Open in Brazil (or any other country in a reasonable time zone). I'm not down with staying up till 3am to watch live tennis and I HATE, HATE, HATE finding out the outcome of a match (or any sporting event, for that matter) before I have seen it. Grrrrr.

5 Things: Chocolate, Strippers & Terrorists

1. I'm a methodical eater. Everything has a certain order in which it should be eaten. Or is that OCD? It can't be...if I were OCD, my house would be a LOT cleaner. So I guess it's just food...and really, now that I think about it, it's all candy. Before I open the wrapper on a Hershey's bar, I break all the bars into individuals.... Twix & Snickers: eat the coating on each end, then off each side, then eat in layers from the top down.... Reese's Cups: eat the edges first... PayDay: eat the peanuts one by one and then eat the center.... so on and so forth... So yeah, I guess it's just candy, not actual food that I eat methodically. I rephrase: I'm a methodical eater of candy.

2. Who decided all of a sudden the stripper look is a good thing? I mean, it's not even like haute stripper. It's like skank stripper. It isn't enough that we already paint our faces and do God knows what to our hair before we go out in public, now I'm supposed to glue fake eyelashes and cheap extensions to my head? And no thanks on the cake-up, I mean make-up, either. If I want black eyes, I'll have someone punch me, thank you. And the lips??? Wasn't there a reason huge lips were given a rather suggestive (not in a good way)nickname back in the day??? Now we're SUPPOSED to look like that??? Ehhhhhhhhh, no thank you, please. Plus, my frosted Mary Kay pearl lipgloss ran out in high school.....yours should have, too.

3. I recently read this quote: "I have learned from history that we do not learn from history." I couldn't agree more. I'm usually dismissive of philosophical quotes because I find them, well, dumb... but this struck a chord in my heart. So sadly true.

4. Today is an extremely sad day for Moscow and all of Russia. Have terrorists not learned that suicide bombings don't further their agenda? They only fuel the fires of hatred towards them and strengthen their enemies. If martyrdom is as noble as the leaders teach young, naive men & women, why haven't they done it themselves instead of just preaching it to others? A great example of the "Do as I say, not as I do" mindset. I pray that today's tragedy will serve to save at least one (if not more) young person from being recruited into that disgusting way of life.

5. Quit complaining about cold weather. It's winter. Duh.

5 Things: One Way Ticket To Gitmo, Plz. With Tanya Harding And Pork On The Side.

1. It baffles me that people pay good money to hear Sugarland. Really? Maybe the dude singer is worth it, but I wouldn't know because I can never get past the squawking of Jennifer Nettles. I hear her sing and it's the train wreck scenario....I can't NOT listen; I have to hear it just to confirm that yeah...it's that bad. I mean, can a person be born with that much nasal, inbred twang or is it an acquired annoyance? And it's a total catch-22.... surely one's voice isn't created that way....but why on Earth would you choose to develop your God-given voice into THAT? I don't know what's worse...the actual voice, or the fact that people PAY to hear it. It's like paying to be tortured, except that waterboarding HAS to be less painful.

2. I bet Tonya Harding & Kellie Pickler like Sugarland.

3. A few days ago someone put a box of sausages & cheeses (sealed) by our mailbox... no note, no phone call.... NO idea who left it there. Is that weird? I feel like it's weird... I mean, I would leave a note or card or something... Wouldn't you leave a note? I hate questions that are never answered. For the rest of my life, I'll be trying to figure out who left a Johnsonville Meat & Cheese Set With Bamboo Cutting Board and Serving Knife by my mailbox. Just like one time 3.5 - 4 years ago, a girl said hi to me in the meat (omgz, irony alert!)section at Lowes Food; she called me by name. I STILL try to figure out who she was and it drives me craaazy. So if you left a Johnsonville Meat & Cheese Set With Bamboo Cutting Board and Serving Knife by my mailbox or said hi to me in the meat section at Lowes Food 3.5 - 4 years ago, kindly tell me who you are, thank you. Or if you accidentally left a Johnsonville Meat & Cheese Set With Bamboo Cutting Board and Serving Knife by my mailbox and it was actually intended for someone else, you can let me know that, too. It's still sealed. Unfortunately we don't eat pork. :o(

4. I miss pork. Pork chops, pork tenderloin, pork roast, pork link sausage, pork sausage patties, pork country ham, pork any other kind of ham, pork bacon, pork livermush (no comments), porcupine (ok, just kidding), pork pork pork pork pork pork pork.

5. Tonya Harding is a dumb porker.

5 Things: 5x5, The Faves

1: Musicals: (list subject to change daily)
A Chorus Line
RENT
Phantom Of The Opera
Bye-Bye Birdie
Wicked

2. Movies:
Pretty Woman
Notting Hill
Runaway Bride
Shopgirl
Four Weddings And A Funeral

3. Bands:
The Avett Brothers
U2
Alison Krauss & Union Station
Nickel Creek
Diamond Rio (I know... don't ask.)

4. Artists:
Van Gogh
Dali
Natalie Anthony
Noyes Capehart Long
Jennifer Long de Herrera

5. Passions:
Music
Dance
Tennis
Family
Any and all things wedding

5 Things: This One's Boring. Don't Read It.

1. I don't own a microwave. Never will.
2. I don't believe in psychics. And even if I did, I wouldn't understand why people visit them.... Where's the fun in knowing everything ahead of time? Does knowing what lies ahead make people manipulate what otherwise would have happened naturally? And really.... just like with horoscopes, give me 10 different psychics' descriptions / predictions / whatever and I can make it fit my life.
3. Sharapova should have stuck with Prince racquets instead of switching to Head.
4. I wish Mitch Hedberg hadn't died.
5. I LOVE animals. LOVE.

5 Things: Bananas

1. Bananas. I love everything bananas.
2. My mom once fell out of a chair lift when she was skiing and broke her leg.
3. The Australian Open is herrrrrre!!!!!!! Helloooo, grand slam season!! I LOVE the tenises.
4. I wish Gilda Radner was still alive.
5. Bananas.

5 Things: Tiny Little Miracles (A Few Days Late)

Forgot to actually post this on Friday. Erps.

1. THREE years ago today, God and my best friend brought two VERY premature little miracle babies into the world.... Hayden weighed 2 lbs and Kolby weighed 1 lb 14 oz. Now they're beautiful, happy, potty-trained toddlers! Time fliiiiiiiies!
2. Why is it that the only excuse people can give for hating Sarah Palin is "because she's stupid," without providing any reference or example? Really??? The President thinks there are 57 states in America and those same people think he's the smartest person ever elected to office. Hmm.
3. Did I mention Dook lost to Florida State? Yeah. They did. Happy, happy, happy, happy day. (And yes, I do know I already mentioned it.)
4. The Miss America pageant is tomorrowwwwwwwww! LOVE me some Miss America. Love it. But why??? I mean...is there really a point anymore? Does the platform actually better anything or serve a purpose? I hope so...and I'm pretending it does, even if it doesn't.
5. Girl Scout Cookie Tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime!

5 Things: Pickles & Weaves

1. You know it's going to be a good episode of Police Women of Memphis when the cops roll up on a domestic call and the first thing they discover is two different colored weaves laying in the middle of the road. Ahh yeeeah.
2. Dill pickles, Gatorade, and Yoohoo do not mesh well in one's stomach.
3. I'm staring at 3 feet of snow. The thought that God created each single solitary snowflake that has ever fallen and none of them look the same is incredible! If He took that much care in creating each snowflake, imagine how he felt creating you :oD
4. Did you know you can actually eat the berries that grow on Dogwood trees?
5. Florida State beat Duke last night. I can't begin to describe my elation... It's like I got a pony for Christmas!!

5 Things: Van Gogh, Capehart, and My Lil Sissy

1. Vincent Van Gogh is my favorite artist. Well, dead artist. My favorite living artists are my sister and my stepdad...and not because they're my sister and my stepdad, but because they're amazing (Photos below... Top piece is one of my stepfather's paintings, bottom is one of my sister's.).
2. I used to have a snowmobile. Three, actually. Miss 'em. Bigtime. ESPECIALLY this winter.
3. I have 3 cats, but I can't ride them in the snow. They're pretty awesome other than that.
4. I love Sharpies. SharPIE, not Shar PEI. Shar Peis are cute, but they don't come in green or purple.
5. Every state in the US except Florida has snow right now. Pretty rad.

5 Things: Di and I

1. I know everyone was in love with Princess Diana (how couldn't you be?), but I LOVED her... everything about her. Everything. And that's ok...I could have had a worse role model.
2. I have (safely tucked away) a (real) copy of Princess Di's - and now Kate Middleton's - sapphire & diamond engagement ring (photo); passed down to me by my mother. (Darn you, ugly $19.90 imitation now being sold!!!!)


3. As a little girl, I always had whatever hairstyle Diana had at the time.
4. My mom used to live in London and have tea in the Royal Garden with the Queen. Gloves, curtsies, hats, and all. I'm serious.
5. In Paris on our honeymoon, we unexpectedly stumbled upon the spot where Princess Di was killed... Ironically, it was the one year anniversary of her death and there was a huge makeshift memorial in the street (photos). It broke me into pieces and I couldn't tear myself away...I hated it and loved it at the same time. It's an extra special memory of mine...the kind that has its own place reserved in my heart and mind and soul, and will never, ever die.

5 Things: I May Be Old, But Keith Olbermann Is Dumb.

1. Gulf Coast Highway by Nanci Griffith & Darius Rucker (from her album Blue Roses From the Moons, 1997). An all time favorite song... especially this arrangement with strings & Darius. It's one of "those" songs... one I have been singing at the top of my lungs (I actually just typed logs. Go brain.) for 13 years in my house, in my car, in my mind, or wherever the urge may have presented itself.
2. A friend from my high school graduating class became a grandmother today. I'm 35. Ugh. (Congrats, Willie! :o) )
3. Blaming a gun for a crime is like blaming a pencil for a misspelled word.
4. Elaborate? Sure... statistics have repeatedly proven that cities & states with strict gun laws have high gun-related crime, while the citiies & states with the fewest gun laws (ie Vermont) have the lowest rates of gun-related crime. Hmm...
5. Keith Olbermann is lower than the pus that infects the mucus, that cruds up the fungus that feeds on the pond scum... Name that movie. ..well, except the Keith Olberman part. I added that.

5 Things: This

1. Stomach
2. Virus
3. Is
4. SO
5. Awful.

5 Things: Old As Dirt

1. My brother turned 37 today. 3 years away from 40. That depresses me to no end. I remember our parents turning 40. That's just wrong.
2. My friend Thad came home from the hospital today!!!!!! One large intestine and one partial small intestine lighter, but hey... lose weight the fast way, right? What matters is that he is home and he is ALIVE! Chemo starts in 6 weeks.
3. A family friend was buried today....a great patriarch. Without fail, every time I think of him, I think of a pink house and a statue of a horse's but with a long tail sticking out of it.
4. I'm designing a prom dress for my little cousin Mandy.
5. Dates and Craigslist. Just say no.