For the second night in a row I've had a great dinner out. Tonight it was an incredible meal with Dad who flew in from LA on the early flight. It was hell on him getting to the airport that early but it was so nice to have him here mid-afternoon.

We went to Morton's Steakhouse for dinner (and ate way too much) and caught up on chit chat that we missed over the past few weeks with us both being so busy. The shrimp alexander appetizer was some of the most scrumptious shrimp I've ever tasted and the steak was rediculously delicious. Coming from someone who is a picky meat eater, that's saying a lot. Our wine was suprisingly inexpensive but I have not had a better pinot noir, hands down.

Dropping him off at the hotel was an adventure though - driving back we got a little geographically displaced... We found ourselves in a rather dark and sketchy and empty part of town at one point, and then accidentally driving into a secure parking lot at another... Eventually we got back to where we wanted to be though.

All around, it is good to have Dad in town... even if I will only really get to see him again for coffee before he leaves on Tuesday... damn business meetings keep getting in the way. It's not like the company paid for him to be here or anything... oh wait...

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Last night was my first official blog-meet... It was fantastic.

Thanks go to John of TexasBestGrok for being the chief organizer. He was coming to town on business and with a few e-mails managed to round us all up for dinner. In attendance were Rob from Llama Butchers, Ted from Rocket Jones, The Maximum Leader from Naked Villainy, Goddess Dawn from Caterwauling, Lysander from Lysander of Alexandria, Buckethead from The Ministry of Perfidy, and Matt the Blog-less Wonder.

Thanks to Union Street for giving us a nice room to to chill in and for serving up some good food and some tastey beer.

The conversation was great... and funnier than I ever would have imagined it could have been. I found 3 new blogs to read and got to know a little better those behind the ones I already did. If this is what a blog-meet is like, count me in for many more.

I'd love to have a beer with any one of these bloggers again, any day of the week...as long as they can explain to their wives why they are having a beer with a grad student....

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...and becoming more distinguished... At least that's the nice way to say some dude's getting older.

Today, it's none other than Blog-Dad, Eric.

Go wish him well, and send him some CDs... Fiona's been taking over the car again...

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Just as Rob of Llama Butchers is advertising...we have finally got ourselves a DC blog-meet.

Other DC/NoVa/MD folk are welcome to join us

We're planning to meet at Union Street Public House in Alexandria on Saturday, October 15 at 6:30ish. If you're in the neighborhood, you're more than welcome to stop by. ... Stalkers and moonbats need not apply. But groupies are always encouraged.

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My last apartment in San Diego had the perfect place for me to put my bed. It fit in the 'nook' under the window where I could gaze down to the courtyard on a sunny day or nap in a sweet breeze. It was a peaceful, safe, sanctuary that both calmed and inspired me. It also gave me a place to hide my magnetic poetry ... below is what one special afternoon inspired ...

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None of my teams won this week... And the Steelers winning doesn't count because they beat my precious Chargers. Apparently someone missed the memo on how that one was supposed to go ...

So, I can either cry in my beer about it or keep em coming until I forget this week's games ever happened.

Option two sounds nice...

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It's raining out right now...

Well, actually... it's more of a downpour right now...

A persistant, unrelenting, ever flowing ... constant...

I know that there is noise as I click the keys and the TV rambles on in the other room, but I can't hear anything over the millions of drops hurling to the ground only to splash away and become part of something new.

Some of those drops will become a puddle for little feet to jump in ... some of them will become mud as they saturate the earth ... some will cling for hours to a window until they are knocked down by another wanting to take their place ...

The wind is playing too tonight...

It has broken umbrellas and teases the blinds ... patiently waiting to guide the rain through the skies as it falls...

Or is it just raining here tonight ... ?

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For a long while, Thursday was my favorite day of the week. It was always the day I was most tired, most burned out, and most ready for the week to end. I grew addicted to ER and made Thursdays my mandatory lazy night of the week. I refused to write papers, I refused to go out, I refused to do laundry, and sometimes I even refused to just plain cook. Thursday was MY time and Lord help anyone that got in my way.

During my "work?-wtf-is-work?" period I forgot about the simple joy of Thursday.

But first week of doing full time school and full time job, I remember Thursday. And tonight I jumped straight back into it like a fat kid in a pool full of pudding... no cooking, no cleaning, no laundry, no papers (although one is due tomorrow), no work, and no cell phone. Just some salad, some pizza, a stolen cookie, the Apprentice and ER. Life is good...

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SAN v NE
41-17, SAN - Happy dance? No, this calls for the booty dance... Awesome work, Chargers!

SEA v WAS
17-20, WAS - Good job local boys...

DAL v OAK
13-19, OAK - stupid Raiders...

PHI v KC
37-31, PHI - I'm sorry to have missed this game. It was on in the background while other things were getting done but truthfully, I missed it. Get some rest next week Chiefies... so you can come back in 2 and show the local boys how it's done.

No Steelers this week... and they play my babies next week... Sorry PIT, but I'll be hoping to see you go down in flames when you get back. Being a Charger fan just flat trumps being a Steelers fan in my house.

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Well, I don't actually know what my horoscope for this month says but from where I sit today, October stands to be a much better month than what September was.

After two consecutive weekends of trying on every pair of pants in each store I walk into and coming home in tears empty handed, I have found pants that fit my body, fit my personality, and fit in the workplace.

The second hurdle to overcome was shoes. Unfortunately, as I have mentioned before, my feet are massive. While I didn't come home with boots to wear with skirts, I did come home with a pair of cute black heels and some classy grey heels. Two pairs of shoes for these feet in one day? I can't argue with a day like that...

Oh, and I got a great new bag to take to work since my old messenger bag is showing its several years of wear.

In the end, my credit card is tired, my feet are sore, and my mind is mush, but I have had a rare happy shopping experience... and that is enough... for now...

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Oddly enough, high school football is how I spent my Friday night. It was definitely a trip. To be back in the high school environment...and on a night that used to mean so much...

I started to miss what Friday nights in the fall used to mean to me. After school, without going home, I went to game after game after game. I was the only skilled trainer willing to oversee the freshman and junior varsity games. When it came time for the Varsity to play, every one that could convince the coach that they were a meaningful part of the training staff and not a glorified water girl and get on the field showed up. We became part of the team, travelled when they did, cheered when they did, celebrated with they did, and hurt when they did.

I also discovered, based only on this single sample experience as evidence, that high schools on the East coast are not like high schools on the West coast... ...There were no names on the back of the jerseys like there had been when I was on the field...
...There were no sideline jackets used to keep players warm and their muscles ready like there had been before...
...The trainers didn't interact with the team like we had done in my time...

It was all just a little bit surreal somehow

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NE v PIT
23-20, NE - Damn... guess it had to happen sometime though. Better luck next week, Steelers

OAK v PHI
20-23, PHI - BOOYAH! Damn I do love when the Raiders lose...

NYJ v SD
23-45, SD - Happy Dance...Happy Dance...Happy Dance... Everybody happy dance with me!

KC v DEN
10-30, DEN - Aw MAN...

The 'Skins were off this week...so another week without comment on their performance. Eh, I'll live... I'm sure you will too.

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I'm not usually one to get involved in protests or rallies since they have the potential to get a little ugly but this weekend, I just couldn't be that selfish anymore. Cindy was in town and her lemmings were doing a lot of screaming so I felt obligated to do my part and show up to this:

Support the Troops Weekend: RALLY TO HONOR MILITARY FAMILIES

I heard a lot of great speakers and saw a lot of support shown. The greatest quote was, "from the lowest Private to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, we kick ass and take names if we have to." The most moving were the Iraqi citizens that spoke of how grateful they were for America's sacrifice and how much better they see their country getting on a daily basis. The most touching were the gold star family members that talked about their loved ones and how much they believed in the mission that cost them the very life they were willing to lay down for such meaningful causes. One woman read a poem she wrote to describe her young son's viewpoint, what it was like to have lost his dad... She said he didn't understand what gone really means since he has spent several multi-month stints without his father but that since the funeral and her pointing at the flag there, he sees an American flag and identifies it with his daddy. I couldn't help but cry as she read it and held him, all the while he was trying to interject about his missing daddy.

But of course, the Cindy followers took up a post across the street and started chanting against us once they realized we were there. There were a couple of incidents where opposing people came in to cause problems but no one was hurt and they were dealt with in a generally peaceful manner. I was not shocked but still disgusted that people would disrupt something like that when they have their own forum to rant without invading ours.

One of the most amusing moments though was the closing song by The Right Brothers. They did a song written especially for the rally called "Bush Was Right." I don't have the lyrics but it had an awesome na-na-nana-na tune to it. You can guess the chorus...

After having to put up with over a year's worth of 'friends,' roommates, classmates, and professors that spew off their half cocked bullshit against the war, the mission, the troops, and the President on many different fronts...it just about damn near made my whole freakin month.

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Having worked in the receiving department of a retail establishment I found this comic to be pretty damn funny...

Luckily all our delivery guys were pretty cool ... it was only the subs that did stupid stuff

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PIT v HOU
27-7, PIT - I didn't get to watch this game but I imagine that the majority of it was somewhat boring since it was 20-0 at the half.

SAN v DEN
17-20 - Depressing but not surprising... My only upset was that the game was not televised and I actually had the time to sit and watch it this weekend. Figures...

KC v OAK
23-17 - This was awesome for two reasons: (1) KC is starting out pretty well, (2) As a Chargers fan, I simply must hate the Raiders ... so I love to see OAK at 0-2 right now.

WAS v DAL
They play tonight and quite frankly I only care because WAS is the 'home team.' But I'm not from here...and I hate living here...so I only half way care... and its only out of some odd sense of obligation that I do. Screw it... I'll catch them in next week's NFL update.

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Turns out I'm being watched. That's right, Mr. Op/Ed Professor has himself an evil, nasty, bottom feeding, scum sucking, bitch snitch keeping watch over those that dare speak out against him.

I received an email from Mr. Op/Ed Professor today protesting that he does in fact have the ability to be objective in the classroom. So did that make my experience to the contrary just a case of simple unwillingness? Since he so clearly states he has the ability...

I'll keep you updated - and if I suddenly don't graduate, I think we'll all know why...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 11:49 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Through all of the bullshit I've waded through in my past relationships, I still have one thing I can thank the men I have dated for giving me - greater cooking skill. Each one had different tastes and I did my best to cook what they liked. One taught me to appreciate sushi so I worked to make it myself. Another was a freak for anything Italian but then again, most of them loved my lasagna. One of the recipes that always won points with an ex and friends alike was my fettucine with smoked salmon & dill. Go give it a try...

Fettucine with Smoked Salmon & Dill
• 1/4 c Butter
• 1 1/2 c 35% Real Whipping Cream
• 2 tbls Vodka, optional
• 8 oz Smoked salmon, diced
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/2 ts Pepper
• 2 tbls Fresh dill, chopped
• 3/4 lb Fettuccini noodles
• 1/2 c Parmesan cheese, grated

Melt butter gently in a large deep skillet. Add cream. Bring to a boil. Add vodka. Reduce heat and cook on low 3-4 minutes until slightly thickened. Add smoked salmon, salt, pepper and dill. Remove from heat.
Cook fettuccine in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender. Drain noodles well.
Reheat sauce. Place drained noodles in the pan with the hot sauce. Toss gently over low heat until sauce coats noodles and is thick and creamy. Sprinkle with cheese if desired. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

IMHO, don't leave out the vodka.
And be sure to check for bones in your salmon!

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Little did you readers know, I am a closet football fan. And this week, I was a moderately happy one at that. Only one real disappointment among the 4 teams I follow.

PIT vs TEN
34-7, PIT - ROCK, ROCK ON!

WAS vs CHI
9-7, WAS - Good news for the home team...

NYJ vs KC
7-27, KC - well, HOT DAMN!

DAL vs SD
28-24, DAL - sad news for my babies... But the Raiders losing on Thurs was enough to keep my spirits high for my team next week.

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Maimed bodies dotted the landscape ...

Makeshift piles formed as they were tossed aside, not to be forgotten ... but saved for later.

Some missing part of their head, some the whole thing...
Others lost the top half, while still more lost the bottom...
A few were nothing left but middles...

Their kin continued to scurry about, part to avoid the carnage, part oblivious to the turn of events, part out of sheer terror...

... the monsters were still lurking in their midst ...

Feeding day in the cichlid tank ... what a beautiful moment of animalistic agression ... the struggle to survive ... a microcosm of the entire food chain, front and center in my living room.

The rosie reds don't stand a chance against the Jaguars.

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September 2 marked the 60th anniversary of Japan's unconditional surrender to the Allied Powers, the signing of surrender documents on the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, and the end of World War II in the Pacific Theater. To commemorate the event I attended a small and elegant ceremony at the World War II Memorial on the National Mall.

From my seat I could see rows and rows of proud Veterans sitting with their families up close to the portable stage. The event opened with a wreath laying at the World War II Memorial proper. Unfortunately, I couldn't see it first hand since I was in the event seating area off to the side. On the big screen I watched as Secretary Rumsfeld laid a wreath and the Director of the National Mall Parks (I think) laid a second. Various military personnel carried flags from each of our allies into the ceremony as they were annouced. It was brief, but poignant.

As the speeches began I counted myself lucky to be part of such a momentous occasion. At the same time, I was a little disheartened by the obvious lack of my generation's representation outside of uniform. But it also left me reassured that I will always have with me something genuinely unique. All in one night I was witness to the Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, R. James Nicholson, the Sergeant Major of the Army, Kenneth Preston, and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and WWII Veteran, General John Vessey. Senator Bob Dole was scheduled to be there as well but was forced to decline the invitation at the last minute.

Just before the closing fireworks they paid tribute to each individual service by asking people to stand if they or someone in their family had served under a particular branch. It wasn't until I found myself standing more than sitting that I realized how rare I was, even in that crowd, and saw just how militarily focused my life and my family has been.

It was a touching and humbling experience as today's service members honored and thanked the Veterans and the Veterans did the same for today's service members.

What came afterward was just the icing on cake ... but that is an entry for another day...

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