cucking-stool noun
Historical. A chair to which disorderly women were tied and then ducked into water or subjected to public ridicule as a punishment.
? origin Middle English: from obsolete cuck ?defecate?, of Scandinavian origin; so named because a stool containing a chamber pot was often used for the purpose.

That is definitely an obsolete word.

To Kim and Chris and Lin Fan and everyone else up north:

Happy Canada Day!

Please enjoy your celebrations. I don’t mind sharing my day with our Great Enemy to the North. And if you decide to hold a parade or have fireworks for me, that’s fine too.

This is for Nathan.

decimate \DESS-uh-mayt\ verb
1 : to take or destroy the tenth part of
*2 : to cause great destruction or harm to

Susan is here for a brief weekend visit.

I may be in and out today. Or I may not.

Make yourselves at home in the meantime.

For putting this song in my head.

(Because)

Forgetting my office keys is not a good way to start Friday. That’s much more of a Monday move.

Luckily for me, there is a key to my office here, I just had to borrow a key so I could get into the locked room where the spare key to my office is.

Let’s hope that’s the only thing that goes wrong today, or my class this afternoon might be ugly.

Why yes, something has changed at Escapism, and that is because erin is pregnant! She’s started blogging again, and I’m hoping for lots of strange food and mood swing stories.

While we’re waiting for those, please go over and congratulate her!

Maybe if we’re lucky we’ll get pictures after her next ultrasound. (HINT! HINT!)

The ball girl video was fake. Boo hiss!

However, here’s something that isn’t fake, and why I was willing to believe the ball girl video was real.

Parkour and free running.

Attacked by Animals!
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I tend to ignore Technorati (I realize this is blasphemy for some) because it doesn’t usually give me any useful data. Instead, I occasionally look through my referrer logs.

It’s interesting to see who is coming from where and how often (Nathan, you’re my biggest referrer right now, but I have lots of links in from the UCF. YAY!).

But it’s also interesting to find new blogs who are linked here.

Book Fetish
Hillbilly Savant
Mythusmage Opines
Useless Drivel

I really don’t see myself visiting Useless Drivel, as the first thing I read was a pro-Bush post, but there you are!

Yes, it has in fact been a year since I severed the artery in my finger. My how time flies when you’re having fun!

For anyone interested, I’ve got a nice pale crescent moon scar along the side of the finger, but other than that, no ill affects. And really, with my hands, one more scar was hardly noticeable. I had trouble bending the fingertip initially, but the scar tissue loosened up within a month, so it’s been fine since then.

However, every time I go to cut onions, Michael asks, “Do you want me to do that for you?”

Incredible Catch - Watch more free videos

Pretty awesome, ‘eh?

Sometimes, the Internet brings awesome into your life!

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That economic stimulus check? We just blew through it and then some.

We finally ordered a new wood stove (back in April I shattered one of the glass panels on the old stove, and it really was not worth trying to repair). We went to a local business that sells pools and wood/gas stoves, and ordered a Vermont Castings Encore. Compared to the old stove, this thing will be amazing. Burn time of 10 hours, swing out ash pan, it can be loaded from the front AND the top, and it has a griddle on the top for cooking if you so desire. Plus I think it’s about a third the size of the monster we have right now. AND it’s the cleanest burning non-catalytic stove, which was also an important consideration. So that was more than the stimulus check for the deposit, and then another thousand in August when it arrives, and then installation. BUT this should heat the basement–and the rest of the house–much more efficiently, and with a whole hell of a lot less smoke.

Then if that wasn’t enough, I bought shoes for Kim’s wedding in September in Wyoming. (TRAIN RIDE!) Now, you have to understand that I hate shoe shopping, and I have a hard time finding shoes that are comfortable. So I went straight to the lady who specializes in comfortable shoes, and found a shoe I liked straight away. It’s leather, it’s black, and it has a heel, but it’s also comfortable enough that I should be able to wear it again and again (even with a pants suit).

Of course, I’ve now paid three times as much for the shoes as I did for the dress, but there is nothing worse than hurting feet to ruin a good time. And as I said, I can wear ‘em again.

Then since I hadn’t apparently spent enough money, I got a new pair of work shoes.

Of course both pairs of shoes had to be ordered, because she didn’t have my size in black (I tried on a different color) but since the wedding isn’t until September, I’m okay. And that meant I only had to pay half for those as well.

And OMG! The website has an AWESOME pair of boots! Want! Want!

So now I have spent a disgusting amount of money. But I’ll have wood heat in the winter, and an awesome pair of shoes to wear at the wedding and onward form there.

Because it’s embarrassingly bad.

This ad has been sitting on top of paper boxes ALL WEEK.

Woman: “Excuse me, do you know where the morgue is?”

(I do and was able to direct her accordingly.)

That’s right! It’s World Sauntering Day!

Everybody go saunter!

Yes, Eric is a fan of the God of Tapeworms.

Please, ask him how much he adores tapeworms.

For the past couple months, the passenger’s side window has been making a strange clanking noise when you open it. As it did nothing but rain for most of that time, we didn’t worry about it. But last week when temperatures skyrocketed along with gas prices, it suddenly became a concern. Since Morgantown gets more rain than Seattle, having a window that won’t go up or some other problem is right out.

So last week Michael and I both said that we needed to get the window fixed, which is usually the start of a couple weeks of discussion before something actually happens.

Well, something happened Friday.

That was a letter from Toyota saying that there was a recall (or whatever the heck it is) for the listed model years of Corollas, because bolts in the front windows could work loose and cause problems. I believe the letter said something about how the window could “shatter, distracting the driver.”

You think?

So the car is at the dealer right now, getting the window(s) fixed. And then we’ll be able to unroll both front windows without fear of “distracting the driver”.

Assuming it ever stops raining.

I was trying to figure out how to do a couple things today in Photoshop (I had a class this morning and got some new questions) so I made a UCF logo while playing.

I still find text/type frustrating, but at least I understand it a bit more now.

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Last week temperatures were in the 90s. The week before it was rain. Now we’re back to rain:

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As I mentioned yesterday, we have a collection of postcards on our refrigerator. Postcards from various places all over the world (although we’re lacking China and Japan and South and Central America), postcards from all over the US, and postcards simply because I like them or am amused by them.

So here is proof for Anne that I received her postcard. Also? S? In case you were feeling left out, your postcard is up there as well.
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What is the coolest starship?

OK, so, I’ve actually had this discussion with myself. Let us say no more about that.

My biggest problem is that they are missing all kinds of ships. No Moya from Farscape. No Star Furies from Babylon 5. And most importantly, no Defiant from DS9. How are we supposed to determine the coolest starship when they have all these gaping holes in their poll?

Jeesh!

Oh, my ranking for coolest ships?

Defiant
Moya
Serenity
Millennium Falcon
Nebuchadnezzar

For Janiece:

That was the incoming mail sound on my computer for many months.

Before I found Dax saying “Incoming Message”

I think I fixed it, but if the link above still doesn’t work, try this: Patrick Stewart.

…that I ought not to take Dayquil any more.

Please remind me of this in the future, if the case arises.