This one's for the kids - you know who you are.

I'm back.

It was a wonderful 2 weeks that unfortunately ended with a heck of a stomach virus. This is my third day with it and I'm still in bed. Well, at least I can know with some certainty that any weight I might have gained during my vacation has been "lost"!

And speaking of LOST, I'm browsing YouTube while lying here and look what I found:



The Orchid? A new name for the scientist? More time and space shenanigans? Yay!

OK, time to try to get some sleep. I just wanted to share that with you guys before I zonked out again.

I'll be back as soon as I can with some photos from the trip. It's good to be back - I've missed you guys!

thisisgina on hiatus

On our beach, originally uploaded by gina64.

We interrupt our regularly scheduled nonsense for some much needed rest and relaxation. I'll be gone for 2 whole weeks (!). Do try not to miss me too much.

Have a good couple of weeks, everyone, and please try to remember to come back!

He's oh so ronery.

This is for Jill, who will be left sadry arone when all of her friends leave her and go on vacation.



PS It's also for me. I freakin' love it.

Ricky Gervais: Was he really David Brent all along?

Ricky Gervais has lost it from Guardian Unlimited: "It's hard to say exactly when Ricky Gervais stopped being the endearing, ingenious wit behind The Office and became the tiresome embarrassment he is today."

Wow. I didn't see him in any of the performances Shelley mentions, so I can't really speculate on the matter, but the comments are an interesting read.

Inspection Time!

Huh.

Courtney Love and I were born 2 days apart.

She's older. I'm just sayin'.

Just Two more days and I'm there.

Well, maybe two and a half. I shot this last year from the beach in front of the cabin.

Sheila made these, too.

Blueberry Tart Cupcakes, originally uploaded by gina64.

Blueberry Tart Cupcakes, in lieu of a birthday cake for me. Thanks, Sheila!

Oh, and Happy Birthday to me!

Let the cuteness begin.

Danny Deckchair

Man flies 193 miles in lawn chair - CNN.com: "With instruments to measure his altitude and speed, a global positioning system device in his pocket, and about four plastic bags holding five gallons of water each to act as ballast -- he could turn a spigot, release water and rise -- Couch headed into the Oregon sky."

I saw that movie recently.

I bet that's the last time she offers to clean up after dinner.

Dinner Party Ends in Chilling Discovery: "'After washing the dishes, she took the leftovers of the meal down to the basement,' Christine Wilwerth, the Verviers public prosecutor, told reporters. 'Once she opened the Deep Freeze, she discovered the body.'"

Blast from the Past

In honor of the Live Earth concerts and the fact that it's Monday.



Remember the optimism we all felt that day? It's 22 years later now, and things haven't really changed all that much, have they?

Here's another one from that day in 1985:

Better than the one with Lorne Green.

Just had to post this, especially after watching all of season one this weekend. There may be a couple of spoilery shots, but only slightly. It's worth the risk.

The Buffy the Vampire Slayer Musical Big Screen Extravaganza

For real.



For 'Buffy,' it's Fandom of the Opera: "Last weekend, several hundred fans crowded into Seattle's Egyptian Theater for a chance to sing, dance, and shout down Buffy's blabbermouth little sister, Dawn, while the show's Emmy-nominated musical episode, 'Once More With Feeling,' unfolded on the big screen."

It just hit me how much I miss that show. I think it's time I started buying the DVDs.

Sheila made these.

At the beach on the Fourth of July, originally uploaded by gina64.

And they were delicious!

Wait, one more.

My favorite part of So I Married an Axe Murderer:

Here I go again.

I'm taking off for the weekend again, this time to visit friends in Massachusetts. Well, "visit" isn't really the best way to describe what I'll be doing there...more like indoctrinating them! We're going to have a Battlestar Galactica marathon tomorrow. I'll finally have someone to talk about the show with!

I'll leave you all with this little gem, called "Bedtime for Pugs".



I cannot even IMAGINE.

Have a good weekend, everyone!

Can I get an AMEN?

We live in a "culture of excessive doting": "... American students often view lower grades as a reason to 'hit you up for an A because they came to class and feel they worked hard,' says Prof. Chance. He wishes more parents would offer kids this perspective: 'The world owes you nothing. You have to work and compete. If you want to be special, you'll have to prove it.'"

You'd like to think that you're immune to the stuff

Oh yeah!

(thanks, Mike!)

Happy Independence Day from the boys.

Happy Independence Day from the boys., originally uploaded by gina64.

Speaking of Poop.

Diet Drug Raises Hopes, Fears: "Alli (pronounced al-EYE) went on sale for the first time about two weeks ago - a stronger prescription form, Xenical, has been available since 1999 - and its promotional material alone makes for strong medicine: The drug, which helps people lose small amounts of weight, can cause oily discharges, uncontrolled bowel movements and gas if you eat too much fat.

Its marketing effort makes an impression by telling users to wear dark pants and carry extra clothes in case they soil themselves."

No amount of weight loss is worth the risk of "fecal urgency", I'm sorry.

All Ages Admitted

"This rating was determined based on the presence of the following words:

* poop (1x)"

I'm sorry, but "poop" is not the worst thing I've said on this blog!

Blasts from the Past

God, I loved David Bowie when I was in college. LOVED him.

I'm going to try to make this a regular feature, concentrating mostly on stuff from the 80s. That I liked.

Until I can think of a less lame title, they'll be called Blasts from the Past.

Enjoy!

Three Cheers for the Red, White and Blue

Brought to you by, the letter "A", originally uploaded by gina64.

Happy (Early) Independence Day, people!

(at my age, you've got to do stuff when you think of it, or you'll never remember!)

Oh, don't EVEN get me started.

Bush commutes Libby's prison sentence: "President Bush on Monday spared I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby from prison, commuting the former White House aide's 30-month prison term."

Just when I think this administration can't get any more insulated, corrupt and "old boy", they go an do something that reminds me that oh yes, it can.

Whatever tiny, infinitesimal scrap of trust that the American people may have still had in politicians, well, it's about the size of a quark right about now.

This sort of reminded me of a Monet painting.

My Monet, originally uploaded by gina64.

Sort of.

They also spent a lot of time in the pool.

They also spent a lot of time in the pool., originally uploaded by gina64.

Lakeside

Lakeside, originally uploaded by gina64.

Hannah and Zachary came for the weekend, and we did a lot of fun things. One of them was geocaching. The photo above was taken at Longmeadow Pond in Middlebury, a location I was unaware of even though I lived in that town. As you can see, it was a gorgeous day.