Word for Wednesday

Word for Wednesday: Extant

Take a guess what does it mean? Put your answer in comments and then come back and see around 3:00.

TERRIFYING TUESDAY - UNDEAD Series

Okay, if you’ve looked over at my sidebar under “Books I’ve Read in 2009” you know I have a thing for Vampire stories. Can’t help it. Always have.

Stephen King introduced me to Salem’s Lot and I’ve been hooked ever since. Shame on Stephen.

I read the Twilight series in no time, followed it with the Sookie Stackhouse True Blood novels, so much fun!

Now, I’m onto the UNDEAD series by Mary Janice Davidson and, believe me, she is a hoot. Anyone who can mix death with romance and make me laugh along the way is a horrifically talented author. I just love some of her phrases in the books. In fact, I had to read a couple of them OUT-LOUD to my husband because I thought they were so funny.

He is definitely not a FANpire like me, but even he smiled.

SPOILER ALERT: Don’t read on, if you are going to pick up the books and read them yourself. Oh…these aren’t big spoilers so you could still pick up the books and read them—and you won’t be disappointed. REALLY.

I love that the Spawn of Satan is a goody-good ‘cuz she wants to rebel against her parent. How funny is that? Pretty funny, if you ask me or if you're the parent of a teenager.

I love that “Elizabeth Taylor” is the Queen of the vampires – no relation to the movie star. ;)

I love that she (ET - no connection with the alien) gives us makeup advice – and she’s an undead woman. You'd think she'd have other things on her mind, I mean who cares that “you shouldn’t wear true black mascara because it makes your eyes look small and squinty.”

Maybe most women--that's all. And, now we know, even the undead care about makeup.

Or the fact that she talks about “…the holy grail of footgear.”

She even considers selling her soul for a pair.

She says, “Would I sell my soul for shoes? Of course not. The very idea was absurd. And the gleam of the garnets didn’t call to me, the very idea of selling my teeny little soul wasn’t a bargain at any . . . no!”

Now, I’ve never been a girl who was ever interested in clothing, handbags or footwear (maybe I was meant to be a boy—who knows, I mean give me a fast wakeboarding boat or…but I digress from the story) so I have to use my imagination a little—okay, maybe a lot, but I thought the idea of selling your soul for a pair of shoes, even if they were garnet heeled shoes, was hilarious.

Okay, I’m a little sick, I know. But, I thought this line was so funny:

“And a real”—the corners of his mouth turned down, as if he was contemplating a fresh dog turd instead of getting married—“wedding…would help you feel it?”

Maybe I thought that was so funny because when my husband asked me to get married—I got a little sick to my stomach. I had to lie down. Right there. On the floor. He was so excited. He wanted to call everyone and tell them. I said, “Hold on. I think I’m going to throw up.”

Okay, we’ve been VERY happily married for well over 26 years—so don’t make any assumptions here. I’m just saying it made me sick. The idea of getting married. It was just the commitment—I think. It Freaked me out—with a capital “F”.

I also loved the line:

“But I—I—” I managed to wrench it out. God, this was hard! “I love you.”

“Of course you do,” he said, totally unsurprised.

“What? I finally tell you my deepest, most personal feelings and you’re all, “Yeah, I already got that memo’? This, this is why you drive me nuts! This is why it’s hard to tell you things! I take it back.”

“You can’t take it back,” he said smugly.

“I do, too, take it back! And don’t you dare kiss me again!” I cried when he leaned forward. “Why do you have to be so annoying and smug all the time?”

“Because with you by my side, I can do anything.”

(I think these books are so funny—well apart from the vampire killings, those aren’t the funny parts)

But you should read them. They are page-turners for sure.

Here's a list of the one's I've already read:

Undead and Unwed

Undead and Unemployed

Undead and Unappreciated


So many books :) so little time :(

Pints to Pasta - Fundraiser RUN

It was an early run, which might be a good thing because it wasn't hot-yet. I had to get up at 6:00 a.m. to meet up with my sister and Melissa to head to the starting point.

It was Sunday, September 13, 2009 and this was the second time I've done the run to help raise money for a couple good causes. It's the Pints to Pasta. The bad thing was I wasn't prepared. I hadn't run for a loooooooooooong time. Luckily I made it to the finish. Of course it was only a 10K run or 6.2 miles. But. . . there's always next year.

I am going to be so much more prepared for this run, next time. No. REALLY.

The run helps raise money for The Raphael House of Portland and The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's TEAM IN TRAINING. A huge thanks is owed to the sponsors: Adidas, Widmer, The Old Spaghetti Factory, Jamba Juice and Portland Running Company for making this event happen.

Lost Lake - Mt Hood

Jake and Luke went camping up on Mt. Hood. They went to one of the Lakes. There are so many beautiful places up on Hood and they even had the birds eating out of their hands.

Word Usage - (John Potter Strikes Again)

Here are a couple helpful hints:

among/between: Among is used for three or more entities: Many local runners are among those training for this weekend's race. Between is used when two entities are involved: There is an intense rivalry between the two schools.

fewer/less: Fewer refers to people or objects that can be counted; less refers to general amounts: Fewer technicians means less work will be done today.

its/it's: Its is the possessive form: The board forwarded its recommendations. It's is a contraction of it is: It's time for a party.

Earth-Friendly Friday WIND FARMS

Photo thanks to OregonLive
If you're interested in wind farms, you might be interested in this article.

Answer to Thought for Thursday

Answer: Catherine Zeta-Zones and Michael Douglas share September 25th as their birthday. She was born in 1969 and he was born in 1944.

BTW: My husband and I share the same birthday - only one year apart though: September 21st.