Dear car Fates:
I don't know if you have looked in on Sally Saturn recently, but she is not doing well. Last night as I was driving home from Athens, all of a sudden her coolant temp lights started flashing! I of course freaked out- I can't let my baby overheat. So we pulled off at the closest exit and let her rest. As soon as I started driving again, the lights came back on! So we drove home so that Sally could cool off. When I took her for a checkup this morning, she needed coolant and a new water pump!
Sally Saturn has lived a nice long life car fates. She has been with me for six years, and seen 99 thousand miles of the southeast United States (and parts of Ohio). She has been a good tournament car, and good kid car for picking them up, and a good city car. But is her time. No matter what happens, she just seems to hang on. She needs to go to car heaven. So if you could possibly allow her to die a quick and natural death, she (and I) would greatly appreciate it.
Love,
Loopy
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Feel-good Sports Movies
Recently I was at the YMCA working out, and to make my cardio go by faster I was watching TV. And what happened to be on but Rudy! I love this movie-- it doesn't matter that I've seen in a thousand times or so, I can always watch it again. And inevitably I always cry at the very end of the movie, when Rudy gets to play in the game, and is carried out of the stadium on the shoulders of the other players. I mean seriously, if you don't get a little choked up at this point in the movie, you don't have a heart.
So, I was thinking about how much I LOVE feel-good sports movies. Like Rudy, they all make me want to watch them over and over again. So here is my list of my favorite sports movies (in no particular order:
Rudy: already mentioned this one. It is about a boy who's dream is to play on the Notre Dame football team, despite coming from a steel area, small stature, and not being a natural academic, he works hard and eventually not only gets into Notre Dame, but makes the football team as a walk on.
Miracle: The story of the 1980 US Olympic hockey team. So good. This is definitely a must see- the ups, the downs, and if anyone has ever played any sport ever, you get the feelings of being the underdog and the high of winning a big game.
Mighty Ducks (any and all): Another hockey movie, but this one is about kids. The first one is about a rag-tag team of kids playing in a city league in Chicago (i think) and they are taken over by Amillio Estevs who is preforming community service by coaching. The second movie tells the story of the same group of kids plus a few new faces, and they have become the Junior Olympic (i think) representatives for the US. The third movie is about how the entire team is asked to become students at a very elite private school and become their JV hockey team.
The Legend of Bagger Vance: Golf movie, starring Will Smith as Bagger Vance, a caddie who guides a down and out golfer back to his glory.
Remember the Titans: Another football movie, this one about the integration of a high school and in effect the football team during the 1960's.
I realize that I am missing many many good sports movies on here, least of which is Hoosiers. I haven't seen this, ever. I know, sacrilege as someone who loves sports movies. Maybe one day. But this is my list so far. Funnily enough, these are all Disney movies. Huh- weird.
So, I was thinking about how much I LOVE feel-good sports movies. Like Rudy, they all make me want to watch them over and over again. So here is my list of my favorite sports movies (in no particular order:
Rudy: already mentioned this one. It is about a boy who's dream is to play on the Notre Dame football team, despite coming from a steel area, small stature, and not being a natural academic, he works hard and eventually not only gets into Notre Dame, but makes the football team as a walk on.
Miracle: The story of the 1980 US Olympic hockey team. So good. This is definitely a must see- the ups, the downs, and if anyone has ever played any sport ever, you get the feelings of being the underdog and the high of winning a big game.
Mighty Ducks (any and all): Another hockey movie, but this one is about kids. The first one is about a rag-tag team of kids playing in a city league in Chicago (i think) and they are taken over by Amillio Estevs who is preforming community service by coaching. The second movie tells the story of the same group of kids plus a few new faces, and they have become the Junior Olympic (i think) representatives for the US. The third movie is about how the entire team is asked to become students at a very elite private school and become their JV hockey team.
The Legend of Bagger Vance: Golf movie, starring Will Smith as Bagger Vance, a caddie who guides a down and out golfer back to his glory.
Remember the Titans: Another football movie, this one about the integration of a high school and in effect the football team during the 1960's.
I realize that I am missing many many good sports movies on here, least of which is Hoosiers. I haven't seen this, ever. I know, sacrilege as someone who loves sports movies. Maybe one day. But this is my list so far. Funnily enough, these are all Disney movies. Huh- weird.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
When traffic lights go out
OK... so I have had so many things that I want to blog about but haven't done it for sheer undecidedness. But today, I made the decision for the blog, at least for today's subject.
What should happen when traffic lights go out, and what actually happens.
So... way back when we were all learning to drive, for me at 15, every once in a while parents would ask: "What happens when (insert situation here)?", testing the knowledge of the soon to be 16 year old driver and their knowledge of as many situations as possible that would/will/do arise while driving alone in the big bad world.
Parent: "What happens when you get to a traffic light that isn't working correctly and is blinking (either red or yellow... just blinking)?
Teen Driver: Well, you treat as a four way stop. Everyone, as they come to the intersection, stops. Then the person to the right of the previous car that went through the intersection is allowed to go, continuing around to the right.
Now obviously this is the best case scenario. I seriously don't think these words ever came out of my mouth in that order for this particular question, but at some point we all learned that this is how you are supposed to treat a blinking traffic light-- as a four way stop.
This unfortunately doesn't happen. At least not in Atlanta.
In the last few days, lots of parts of Atlanta have been without power due to high winds and massively crazy storms on Monday and early Tuesday morning. This caused lots of tree limbs and trees to come down on power lines, as Atlanta is a city of above ground power lines. it happens. Lots of roads closed and/or partially blocked, and hence lots of traffic lights out and blinking.
In Atlanta, apparently blinking traffic lights are not the equivalent of a four way stop. It can, if you are smart and a courteous driver. Or, it can mean whatever the hell you want it to mean, as the case is for 95% of the drivers in Atlanta. I mean seriously: how is someone supposed to get out of a parking lot at a light and a major road if no one will stop?
Needless to say this has caused me much stress being that person trying to get out onto any and all major roads, and has caused large amounts of expletives to be yelled at a very loud volume from my mouth when someone else won't let not only me, but others out (even if I am on the major road-- I have been stopping trying to let others out).
I mean seriously people-- it's OK if you are late to work. Everyone understands. Just because a light is out doesn't mean you have to be a douche.
*I have just been informed that I am apparently wrong and not all blinking lights should be treated as 4 way stops. It depends on what color the light is blinking at you. Bullshit. It should always be treated as a 4 way stop to keep confusion and asshole-ery at a minimum.
What should happen when traffic lights go out, and what actually happens.
So... way back when we were all learning to drive, for me at 15, every once in a while parents would ask: "What happens when (insert situation here)?", testing the knowledge of the soon to be 16 year old driver and their knowledge of as many situations as possible that would/will/do arise while driving alone in the big bad world.
Parent: "What happens when you get to a traffic light that isn't working correctly and is blinking (either red or yellow... just blinking)?
Teen Driver: Well, you treat as a four way stop. Everyone, as they come to the intersection, stops. Then the person to the right of the previous car that went through the intersection is allowed to go, continuing around to the right.
Now obviously this is the best case scenario. I seriously don't think these words ever came out of my mouth in that order for this particular question, but at some point we all learned that this is how you are supposed to treat a blinking traffic light-- as a four way stop.
This unfortunately doesn't happen. At least not in Atlanta.
In the last few days, lots of parts of Atlanta have been without power due to high winds and massively crazy storms on Monday and early Tuesday morning. This caused lots of tree limbs and trees to come down on power lines, as Atlanta is a city of above ground power lines. it happens. Lots of roads closed and/or partially blocked, and hence lots of traffic lights out and blinking.
In Atlanta, apparently blinking traffic lights are not the equivalent of a four way stop. It can, if you are smart and a courteous driver. Or, it can mean whatever the hell you want it to mean, as the case is for 95% of the drivers in Atlanta. I mean seriously: how is someone supposed to get out of a parking lot at a light and a major road if no one will stop?
Needless to say this has caused me much stress being that person trying to get out onto any and all major roads, and has caused large amounts of expletives to be yelled at a very loud volume from my mouth when someone else won't let not only me, but others out (even if I am on the major road-- I have been stopping trying to let others out).
I mean seriously people-- it's OK if you are late to work. Everyone understands. Just because a light is out doesn't mean you have to be a douche.
*I have just been informed that I am apparently wrong and not all blinking lights should be treated as 4 way stops. It depends on what color the light is blinking at you. Bullshit. It should always be treated as a 4 way stop to keep confusion and asshole-ery at a minimum.
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Spring Break 09!
It's been just over 3 years since I graduated from college (undergrad). And yet, somehow, I have managed to obtain a decently long winter break, spring break, and summer (or sorts) since then. Part of the current break has to do with being under-employed, and Claire being in the same position. But the rest, I guess, have been pure luck and the fact that I have been back to school for another degree and finished in the last year or so. But whatever, I believe in taking the opportunities that life provides, good and bad. So I took the opportunity of going on spring break with Claire and her family and going to Pawleys Island, SC.
First off, this is the most beautiful place I have been in a long time. It's funny, because I tend to say any place I visit on some version of vacation is beautiful, and truthfully they all are beautiful, in completely different ways. The house we are staying in belongs to one of Joe's clients (he's a tennis pro at the Buckhead YMCA, and Carly's husband... or Claire's brother-in-law). It is amazing, and apparently worth millions. And it looks like it-- I have my own bedroom and bathroom, it is on a private beach, has a view to die for, and is seriously amazing. So amazing that when I go to Savannah in a month I'll feel like I'm slumming it, even though I LOVE our house for Savannah. It is that good- pics to follow soon.
And the beach is so pretty. There is definitely something to be said about Atlantic coast beaches. For me, they are just so prettier than Gulf beaches, and I don't know if I can describe why. They aren't as touristy (or at least the one's I go to aren't). They don't have lots of sand-- when the tide comes in, it comes all the way up to the dunes, and I love that. We have our own entrance to the beach, and the stairs drop us off on the beach. It is all hard sand because of the tides, and makes it easy to walk on. During low tide it is easy to find lots of tidal pools, and there are all kinds of little things living in them. I love it. To me, it is a less obvious beautiful than the Gulf, and I like to think I can relate to that sometimes.
Besides all the obvious reasons for loving being here, I'm not in Atlanta. I'm not thinking about my under-employed status, or stressing out about tests or making my bills this month, or anything. I'm just being. I'm just being here, eating when we want, walking on the beach, reading on the deck chairs on the boardwalk to the beach, taking pictures, watching pelicans dive (which is awesome), and just kinda contemplating life without actually having to do anything about it. And it's nice. I've also gotten to hang out with people that have known me for far too long for us to still be friends, and talk about how we've all changed since high school and they understand. It's nice for someone to see how different I can be, and not only understand, but can relate to it. I can talk about the things that bother me, the things I miss from the past, and the things I don't. I get to just be me without any explanations for my words or actions.
There will be pictures to follow soon of this amazing place, but I just can't bring myself to download them off my camera yet, as that will also require me to download work pictures that I need to upload to my boss. But it will come. Otherwise, I'm going to continue to check out of life for the next three days, and return to Atlanta just in time for league on Saturday (if it doesn't rain out again!) and bar golf that night.
Best spring break yet :)
First off, this is the most beautiful place I have been in a long time. It's funny, because I tend to say any place I visit on some version of vacation is beautiful, and truthfully they all are beautiful, in completely different ways. The house we are staying in belongs to one of Joe's clients (he's a tennis pro at the Buckhead YMCA, and Carly's husband... or Claire's brother-in-law). It is amazing, and apparently worth millions. And it looks like it-- I have my own bedroom and bathroom, it is on a private beach, has a view to die for, and is seriously amazing. So amazing that when I go to Savannah in a month I'll feel like I'm slumming it, even though I LOVE our house for Savannah. It is that good- pics to follow soon.
And the beach is so pretty. There is definitely something to be said about Atlantic coast beaches. For me, they are just so prettier than Gulf beaches, and I don't know if I can describe why. They aren't as touristy (or at least the one's I go to aren't). They don't have lots of sand-- when the tide comes in, it comes all the way up to the dunes, and I love that. We have our own entrance to the beach, and the stairs drop us off on the beach. It is all hard sand because of the tides, and makes it easy to walk on. During low tide it is easy to find lots of tidal pools, and there are all kinds of little things living in them. I love it. To me, it is a less obvious beautiful than the Gulf, and I like to think I can relate to that sometimes.
Besides all the obvious reasons for loving being here, I'm not in Atlanta. I'm not thinking about my under-employed status, or stressing out about tests or making my bills this month, or anything. I'm just being. I'm just being here, eating when we want, walking on the beach, reading on the deck chairs on the boardwalk to the beach, taking pictures, watching pelicans dive (which is awesome), and just kinda contemplating life without actually having to do anything about it. And it's nice. I've also gotten to hang out with people that have known me for far too long for us to still be friends, and talk about how we've all changed since high school and they understand. It's nice for someone to see how different I can be, and not only understand, but can relate to it. I can talk about the things that bother me, the things I miss from the past, and the things I don't. I get to just be me without any explanations for my words or actions.
There will be pictures to follow soon of this amazing place, but I just can't bring myself to download them off my camera yet, as that will also require me to download work pictures that I need to upload to my boss. But it will come. Otherwise, I'm going to continue to check out of life for the next three days, and return to Atlanta just in time for league on Saturday (if it doesn't rain out again!) and bar golf that night.
Best spring break yet :)
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