Saturday, January 20, 2001

Oh, _good_. Not that Kasparaitis got hurt, but that he was okay. I was watching the game, and I've never been more concerned about a player (well, okay, maybe about Jay Pandolfo, when he got smooshed into the end boards and ended up with 84 stitches... And then Ftorek dragged him out of the locker room, still bleeding, to show the ref...). It was just a scalp wound, which explained all the blood. Still scary, though...

I don't know why I like Kasparaitis, since he's usually one of the more grinder-ish¹ guys on the team. But he and Kovalev, Moran, Lang, Straka, and a few other guys whose names escape me are a -lot- more interesting to watch than Jagr and Lemeiux. Not that either of them aren't -good- at the game, but... I've seen them. I've heard _more_ about either of them in the last three weeks than I have in my life, and it's just about enough, thanks.

1) To me, a 'goon' is someone that is on the ice for the sole reason of creating physical chaos and diversion without touching the puck. A grinder is a guy that chases the puck along the boards, or tends to mix it up in front of the crease for a scoring chance, rather than to protect another player. Kind of a... What do the announcers call them? Lunch-pail guys. Workhorses, maybe. Something like that. I got about 4 hours of sleep night before last, so I was a little punchy. Hee.

Posted by: Shannon M.: 11:20 AM |

Had an INCREDIBLY good day, yesterday. *Grin* Art was fabulous -- Lazarus spent the entire day in the office (he's been horrible, lately, and Norma and Gail have decided that he's going to be 'in trouble' until they think he's learned his lesson... It's not quite as black-and-white as that, but anyhow.), AztecBoy didn't show (which was more of a sad thing), Arthur was -calm-, for Arthur, and Aster was actually pretty well-behaved. People did _great_ art; I salvaged a kid's painting for them, -and- drew a half-way decent horse for them; cleanup went smoothly; I got comp number four to run the Solutions software and run it right; I helped Gail figure out where to stash a couple of rolling typing stands (we're big on rolling carts around ECA); I talked to a near-hysterical mother and gave her hope for her son (and I hope she had a good meeting with Gail...); and we figured out why (probably, anyhow) Aster has been so damned unpleasant to me.

Last Friday, she and I had something of a breakthrough -- I snapped at her as usual about her being disrespectful (I think that making the little 'rrrreeeern' cat-sound is rude and disrespectful, particularly when females are involved or concerned, sue me.), and she muttered something that was obviously impolite, so I pointed out that she'd been rude to me all year long and I was tired of it. She said something about not liking me as the reason for her lack of respect, and I thanked her for her honesty.

I mean, really. I can deal with people that don't like me, that's no big deal... I don't really like her much, either. So I figured we were on pretty even footing for the time being.

 

Recently, her mom asked me if I would check her e-mail account for personal email (biiiiiig nono), so I said sure. I'd been feeling faintly guilty about it, kinda puttin' it off, etc, until last friday. If she doesn't like me, then checking up on her won't be a big deal. In fact, I even relished it a little... Which is probably no healthier a reaction than guilt, but hey. I gotta take my victories where I can. So I found some stuff, printed it out, and handed it to her mother in person.

Then, this morning, Gail pulls me aside and says, "Y'know, I think I know what's up with Aster. I bet she doesn't like you because -you- are keeping her from doing what she _really_ wants to do: personal email and general goofing off."

Aha! She resents me because she feels guilty about what she's done, and as a result is angry at me, and takes out her anger by 'dissing' me. (Well, that and I think that -she- knows that I -try- to treat everyone as well as _I_ want to be treated, which leads to her thinking that she'll never be as 'good' as me, and compensates by acting like she thinks she's better than I am. If that made sense... Congratulations.)

So that was a good thing to know.

Then, -after- school, I get a hold of Barbara and make a date with her to install her keyboard. I get there, and she's kind of a fretter... I think that she's just not confident enough in her skills. She _knows_ how to use a computer, but she's a little intimidated, I guess... Anyhow, she was concerned that her computer had been damaged during a power outage. I said nah, it probably hadn't been. Sure enough, I turned it on, ScanDisk ran as usual, and all was right in the world.

So I plugged in her keyboard (MS ergonomic split keyboard with a zillion hot-buttons), popped in the software, installed it, set up her buttons for her, and even showed her a few things with cookies and her cache. She paid me! *Grin* That was cool. And I think I'm her new Computer Guy, 'cause she used to get tech support from this outfit called 'The Computer Guy', until her Guy moved to Texas. (I'm sure he wasn't from Texas, but Texas wanted him any way...) All Lyle Lovett refs aside, I think I like this arrangement.

I have four jobs, now: housesitter, TechnoGoddess, Computer Guy, and Mme. Jean chauffer. The two steadiest are TG and MJC, at least for nine months of the year. And I get a few perks -- my own pencil sharpener, all the DBZ and Tenchi I can handle, faux cuddling... The rare compliment, and the joy of watching kids succeed...

It's been -great- to watch Lynne. We're doing Web Page Publishing as part of putting together our online yearbook, and she's just been one of those people that you teach a few times, then stand back and let them go. She needs a little encouragement, I think, in the creativity department -- she does beautiful things with text colors and backgrounds, but they're a little rigid. I think once she learns to relax and have fun with the way things go together,she has something she can build into a career, later. If she doesn't end up on a women's pro hockey team, first. *Laugh*

Posted by: Shannon M.: 11:25 AM |

*Blink* SPEAKING of Barbara! I keep meaning to mention that I showered while housesitting... This is only significant because she has a showerhead with massage option. And I only noticed this because of -someone's- corruption. *Lilting voice* I never would have registered it if I were still young, and innocent... Okay, so that would have been when I was about eleven. *Snicker*

Posted by: Shannon M.: 11:27 AM |

Yeeeeee! *Grin* I think I may have to go see Vertical Limit, just for the approximate two minutes of screen time that Nicholas Lea gets. Yes, -that- Nicholas Lea. So I have a soft spot for him. So? *Snerk* Er, and I have no idea how much screen-time he gets. It just seems like however much it is, it's not enough... I'll stop there, so you can quit gagging.

And Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is playing at C16! I want to see that...

Posted by: Shannon M.: 11:28 AM |

I have two pairs of Faded Glory Woman jeans. In a 20 petite. I really, really like them... They have no elastic, five pockets, and they fit! The part that I particularly love is the five pockets. Hip pockets are just so _handy_, I don't understand why most "plus-size" jeans don't have them. It's ridiculous!

I found my jeans at the ultimate bastion of American consumerism: Wal-Mart. For about 17.00 a pair. (With the seven pairs of socks and the underwear I bought, too, my total came to something like 60.00, which is the most I've ever spent on _new_ clothes for myself in the last three or four years. *Blink*) So anyhow, WalMart seems to be my next store-of-choice for clothing after Value Village. Who knew?

Posted by: Shannon M.: 11:29 AM |

Like I said: random choice gets me gay, Brit, or both. It's not bad, just... weird.

Posted by: Shannon M.: 11:34 AM |

Okay, I got it mostly figured out... Marc has Derian Hatcher's mouth and chin. And his hair, kind of -- Marc's is a dirty blond and curly, but nowhere near as wild as Hatcher's. *Small smirk* At the very beginning of Friday's Stars/Pens game, there was a -good-, lengthy closeup of Hatcher's face, and as he'd shaved before the game and wasn't scowling, snarling, or beating anyone up, he was actually rather fetching. His mouth, though, reminded me of the description of Marc from that horrible, horrible bit of RPS I wrote... Having little to no idea of what Marc _really_ looks like, I was happy enough to swipe a few features from a living example.

The rest of Hatcher is not a good match for Marc, though... For one thing, Hatcher is about seven inches taller, and far more lanky and...er...sprawly? Marc's shorter than Vic, fairly compact, and I honestly have no idea if his ass is cute and round or not. *Innocent smile* *Waves a hand* Anyhow, you can see a few examples of Hatcher here, at the Derian Worship page.

Posted by: Shannon M.: 12:13 PM |

Mmph... I think tomorrow will be Whine About My Father day. Just so you're warned an' all. Oh, and also The Fresno Falcons Beat The Aces Day. I'm going to bed.
Posted by: Shannon M.: 11:45 PM |

Thursday, January 18, 2001

Oh, good Lord. It's amazing how 9K worth of data and a box in the mail can bring joy into a joyless land. All cliché aside, I mean it. I'm _still_ beaming and giggling over an email I got, and the first of my Vash figures came in the mail today. *Bounce* I love Vash! He was actually Ev's Christmas prezzie, but I got one for me, too. Now to find Ryoko for Mme. Jean...

Posted by: Shannon M.: 8:45 PM |

I wonder why I like the potential for life-threatening conflict between Marc and Dom. Maybe it's the whole adreneline rush/alpha-male supremacy/fun of antagonizing that I like. Or maybe it's something else entirely...

But I really do want to see them bristling at one another. I don't want Dom to kill Marc (obviously), or even really hurt him, but... I've got it. I want to see them in a verbal fistfight. I already know how Marc will react if anyone threatens Victor, but I'm not entirely sure of how well he defends himself...

 

Speaking of Victor, I think that as he's gotten more comfortable with admitting that he loves Marc (and that he wants him), he's gotten a lot more comfortable with running interference for Marc, too. Well, moreso than before, because he's one of those Do-Right guys that tells other people to quit talking trash about their friends...

I can see the both of them getting more comfortable with letting their home-relationship (the closeness between the two of them, the way they move together, talk to one another, maybe even touch one another...) slip out a little more in public, which scares me... *Rolls eyes* I know, I know... But I don't want to write about the about the aftermath of angry fans accosting them, or angry/fearful/stupid opposing players hurting them deliberately during a game, or someone going to the papers (or just The Paper) and saying 'They molested my kid'... Particularly that last one. Broken bones heal, and they can always retire, but the last one leaves a black streak a mile wide and a thousand years long on one's reputation, and they don't deserve it.

Particularly since they'd both rather die than touch a kid in an inappropriate manner. Hell, they've got one another to molest, why would they want a child? (And yeah, I know the answer to -that-, too. This is all very rhetorical...)

 

*Blink* The new coach's name is Alonzo Henele. I have no idea who the assisstant coahes are, but they're probably Czech or Finn or something. *Grin* I like Czechs and Finns. They usually have really fun names... Although, if I were Alpo, I'd consider changing my name to Jyrki or something. Maybe people would confuse me with Lumme, but... Of course, I also doubt that anyone's going to make fun of his name to his face. He probably played a -lot- of hockey, when he was younger, and I doubt he's forgotten how to give slashes or crosschecks.

 

So anyhow. I really like writing about Marc and Vic, even if they do only seem to have three subjects to discuss... Well, okay, four, now that they've discovered RPS. (Which, I've just noticed, could stand for Real Player Slash...) They don't particularly love -me-, any more, but I can deal with that. *Pats Marc and nearly gets bitten* *Shoves him in the direction of Victor*

Posted by: Shannon M.: 8:48 PM |

The same day Reesa posted the thing about Tom saying now they could look at girls together, I was thinking about that phrase and trying to remember where I'd read/heard it before. Creepy in that oh-so-cool way that I love... Bed. Now. Going...
Posted by: Shannon M.: 10:02 PM |

Okay, I fixed the time. _NOW_ I'm going to bed. Honest.
Posted by: Shannon M.: 10:05 PM |

Wednesday, January 17, 2001

My brother and I bought some new cassette tapes last night, including BNL's Maroon.

'Never Do Anything' and the verses of 'Falling For The First Time' are probably my new theme songs.

Sigh.
Posted by: Shannon M.: 2:03 PM |

Tuesday, January 16, 2001

Bwahaha... My characters hate me. They've got good reason to, of course. *Snerk* And I'm so unrepentant that... Well, I'm just not sorry, that's all.

Added a new section to Tums: Tums For The Brave, which I need to tweak a little more.

 

I sometimes wish I were a more pushy person. I can't ask the questions that burn deep in my already-fevered brain... I mean, it's _really_ none of my business, isn't it? Yep. So I'll just keep on watching and waiting... *Small snicker* You can learn a hell of a lot more than anyone ever -dreams- of learning that way. I'd probably make an exquisite stalker...

Posted by: Shannon M.: 10:06 PM |

Monday, January 15, 2001

From the T&C of TopCities.com:

h) Material that (i) depicts sexual content or nudity; (ii) is contrary to customary standards for material suitable for public display; and (iii) lacks serious literary, artistic, political, educational, or scientific value.

Ummm.... So, if it's -scientifically- significant sex, can I keep it up? *Blinkle* Er, you know what I mean. I _hate_ clauses like this on webspace provider's' sites. I also hate the one about limited copyright... It's really confusing the first four or five times you look at it, but once you realize all they're asking for is your permission to copy it and host it somewhere else in case of hardware failure, it's not so bad. However, they should just _SAY_ they're going to do that, or ask permission (with an explanation of why it's a good idea), instead of going into legalese-ie detail.

Hmmph. Crosswinds lost my stuff in the giant RAID upgrade/fight. _ALL_ of it. I have to reupload _everything_... And their FTP access sucks, normally. But at least it gives me the opportunity to fix a few links, and get most of my other stuff sorted out... Sorta. If I get my ass in gear and -work- on it...

Posted by: Shannon M.: 8:29 PM |

Heeee! *Grin* A new Jay and Silent Bob movie! It sounds, from the casting, like it's going to be something of a sequel to MallRats, though with the way Kevin Smith's mind works, God only knows -what- it'll be about. I like all of the KS movies I've seen, even Chasing Amy, though -I- wanted it to end differently. I think it's primarily because they appeal to my love for the normal juxtaposed with the bizarre (i.e. the fortune-teller at the fleamarket in MallRats, the rooftop hockey game/funeral stuff in Clerks (never -mind- all the between-scene stuff, such as the word 'Denouemont' just before the end...)).

I want to see Clerks again, all of a sudden.... I wonder if the mall is open today?

Posted by: Shannon M.: 8:30 PM |

Speaking of today, I didn't have to go to work! Hooray! It's a really, really bad sign when you begin living your life, counting down the days until the weekend or the next vacation...

But as I've said, what else can I do?

 

Have to talk to my dear faaaaaather some time soon... About my car. I do NOT want to, because I can just -hear- him... You should have heard him on Christmas Eve when I accidentally let it slip that I'd had someone else replace the radiator.

He sounds like I'm somehow betraying him. It's really stupid. And then I feel bad because he's so disappointed, even though I _know_ that it's not my fault that he chooses to see it as betrayal or whatever. Grrrrr.

Posted by: Shannon M.: 8:31 PM |

*Snerk* I was going through some of my notebooks last night, and I discovered a couple in which I'd written some...rather -steamy- little passages. I'd forgotten about them... I wonder where I got the idea that I hadn't had much practice writing smut?

Despite CrossWinds' attempts to keep FTP users an elite and oppressed group, I have _finally_ managed to get a chunk of my site in mostly-working order in less than a week! For the brave: http://Ladys_Secret_Life.tripod.com/tums/

The 'tums' links won't work -- they're still set up for use on CW. But you can always use your back button!

I've been looking for new server space with no ads (or at least fewer ads)... Haven't found anything, yet. I'm going to look into Tripod's new AdSkin thingies to see if I can't at least tone the ones I get down.

Speaking of J&SB, and of smut... I dunno can understand the reasoning behind writing J/SB slash, from the quasi-homoerotic dialogue/behaviors, but... Maybe it's just 'cause I'm a silly, sappy little weasel, but sometimes I just can't _believe_ that SB would let Jay talk to him like that. *Smirk* Although... No one ever said he wouldn't be silent behind closed doors.

The other thing is, does it count as Real-People slash?

I have this idea of Marc and Vic finding RPS about themselves (or, and now I'm getting dirty looks, themselves and _teammates_... *Snicker* Furnier/Grigio! *Hides* *Very far away*) bouncing around in my head... And they -couldn't- sue because it's not slander if it's true. (Well, obviously _not_ the M/D stuff...) I'm a sick, sick puppy.
Posted by: Shannon M.: 8:38 PM |