Movies at Home

DH and I have always loved movies. We've been film buffs since we were kids. Unfortunately, it's hardly worth going to the movies anymore. People take unruly or bored children to see films that are way over their heads, they get phone calls, they even make phone calls during the movie. They converse like they're at home on the couch instead of in a theatre full of people who paid good money to hear what the actors have to say.

That's why we stay home. We watch movies at Hulu or on DVD. We watch TV shows at the network websites. Oh, I guess I didn't mention that we dropped our satellite service in 2004, because it had gotten so expensive. You can get packages cheaper than $70 a month, but they're designed for people who like sports and home shopping.

That's why I was really excited today to learn about the Roku, a device that lets you download movies from Netflix and watch them on your TV. Of course, I'm always a bit skeptical of new technology and monthly fees. I want to try things out first, and 5 Minutes for Giveaways might just be giving me that chance. They are, as you might have guessed from their name, having a giveaway, and the winner gets a Roku and a six-month membership to Netflix. How cool is that? Visit 5 Minutes for Giveaways if you want to put your name in the pot. Or just wish me luck!

Since when did silver kill a vampire?

Growing up, I watched all the old Universal horror movies and I read a lot of books about creatures of the night. You killed vampires by staking them with a wooden stake. You can keep someone from returning as a vampire by cutting his or her head off and stuffing the mouth full of garlic. You can repel a vampire with a cross (although I will accept Fright Night's premise that you have to believe).

Werewolves were killed with silver. Shoot it with a silver bullet. Bludgeon it with the silver head of a walking stick (as Lawrence Talbot did, but not before he got bitten). I believe I saw one film where a silver candlestick was involved.

At some point, I think it was in the '90s, the two myths got intertwined somehow. Now silver is associated with killing vamps. At least in Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series, a silver bullet only slows down a vampire; it won't kill one.

It's just kind of irritating.

Scroll down a little bit...

A little ways down the page, you'll see a banner for writer Annette Blair. I made the banner and posted it here as part of a contest Annette is running on her site, and in the first drawing, I WON!

Here's the good part for you -- you still have a chance to enter and win. Just visit AnnetteBlair.com. If you don't have the ability to create a banner, you can still enter to win, so visit the site, check out the details, and while you're there, get the scoop on all her delightful books!

Do you save your receipts?

I do. It comes in handy when you find something on sale or clearance a few weeks after you pay full price. I also try to save all the receipts from purchases of Star Wars collectibles. Someday, my goal is to get everything catalogued (I started once, then the program crashed on me; I think I overloaded it) with price paid, current value, etc. Unfortunately, many stores use thermal paper now, and the receipts end up fading until you're left with a stack of blank pieces of paper. Paper that isn't even useful to write notes on, because pens don't tend to like thermal paper. Now there is a way!

Check out ChicShopperChick for a review of Neat Receipts, a scanner and software specifically designed to make sense of all your receipts. You can also register for a chance to win one (wish me luck!).

Introductions

This HP Magic Giveaway has introduced me to a lot of interesting new blogs, like Geeks!, where I have found a lot of new friends. I've even learned about some Spanish language blogs, which I normally wouldn't go to, but thanks to Google's Translation page, I'm able to check them out for the contest and find some cool discussions.

On CiberPrensa, I found a great discussion about Twitter vs. RSS feeds. I've heard a lot about RSS feeds, and I'm still not entirely sure how they work. Maybe you have to have special software. Twitter, I'm using at work and some in my personal life. It is kind of fun to be able to post a quick update about something special going on. A lot of people use it as a moment-to-moment diary, which I still find kind of strange. I don't need to know that you just went to the bathroom or had a snack. I hope I can get some more Twitter followers, both for PLT and for my personal account, so I can reach more people when I have something of some kind of importance to say.

I do agree with the article, which says that it's easier to carry on a conversation via Twitter, instead of just referring people to a post or having a one-way conversation via a feed or a blog.

Here's the link to the CiberPrensa article in its original Spanish.

Here's the information on how to participate in CiberPrensa's HP Magic Giveaway. You can take part whether you have a blog or not.

Joy of Giving

HP is giving away hundreds of thousands of dollars of computer equipment this Christmas. Some of the sites that has a giveaway going on now are Stop, Drop, and Blog, Living in Theory, and Geeks Room.

My husband and I are very blessed. We both have decent jobs (so far, at least), and we’re only in debt for the house and our single car. I'm lucky enough to be working in a community theatre, which touches the lives of patrons, volunteers, and students every day. Tim and I can afford to buy Christmas gifts, go out to eat, and take very good care of our eight rescue cats. We cannot afford to buy, or at least we can’t justify buying, a laptop computer. That’s the main reason that I am trying to win one of these HP Magic packages. Also the Media Connect would be really cool to have.

I would like to give one of the computers to my in-laws, who don’t have a computer at all. Maybe it would be the desktop or maybe the HP mini would be enough for them. I figure they will mainly use it for e-mail with their three children and only granddaughter, and perhaps they’ll occasionally check out a website. They have complained that companies, organizers and the news media just assume everyone has internet access and they can’t follow the links to get more information or fill out forms. I’ll give them the printer, too, so they can print photos that are e-mailed to them. It would be so nice to be able to e-mail them information about a recall, or a promising cancer treatment (FIL has cancer), or just to send photos. They live in a small town, sort of near their oldest son, but hours away from DH and his sister.

One of the computers I will donate to Pensacola Little Theatre. It’s a non-profit organization, and I happen to work there. The computers we have are decent, but they are slow and sometimes lock-up. A laptop computer could also be used to run sound effects for the traveling shows we take to schools and the productions we do in our black box theatre. It would give a lot more control to the sound operator than trying to hit the cues just right on a portable CD player.

The fourth computer in the package, I will give to a deserving young person. I will ask around at the theatre and contact friends who work at other non-profit organizations. I would like to find a young person who does well in school, is respectful and a contributing member of his or her community, someone whose family just doesn’t have the money to provide a home computer. Not only will the gift help that person, but it might show others that being a good person can lead to rewards “just because.”

When I was a child, Christmas was all about what I got. Now, I buy for myself most of what I want. I enjoy the pleasure of watching someone else receive something special. As I said, we’re doing okay financially, but I’m not really in a position to surprise total strangers with really nice gifts, especially not something like a computer. This competition would allow me to play Santa and give someone else a very special Christmas. You can’t buy joy like that.

Toys for Christmas

If you live in modern America, religious teachings aside, Christmas is all about Santa Claus and presents. Geeks!, Chris Pirillo, and Sears are teaming up to give away bundles of Christmas toys, which you can keep or give away. Choose from a LEGO package, a Star Wars package, or a Games package. Just visit the site and comment on the giveaway and which package you'd like best -- that's one entry. Tweet about the giveaway for entry #2. Blog about it (like I'm doing right now) for entry #3. It's a random drawing. What have you got to lose? Visit the site today to sign up.

I'm dreaming of an HP Magic Christmas.

Seriously, I keep having dreams about the various HP Magic Giveaways going on. They all have different rules and regulations for the entry, and my dreams are always the same. I'm trying to read through the blog to make sure I'm doing everything correctly to get my entry, and my cats won't leave me alone so I can concentrate, and then I wake up, and Wicket and Kali are tag-teaming on my head to wake me up for a midnight snack.

It really is a magical promotion. When it's all over, I'm going to have to find someone from HP to come speak to my chapter of the FPRA. Hopefully they'll be agreeable, because it's a really fascinating promotion and I'd love to know more about how they pulled it together.

A Star Wars Camera! This I've gotta have!

I've never made any secret of the fact I'm a major Star Wars fan and collector. When I first saw the adorable Star Wars digital camera, I wanted it desperately. Of course, my husband points out we already have a digital camera, and the Star Wars one would not be carried around anywhere it might be damaged, so what's the point? He's very cynical about the Star Wars collection. So, now there's a chance to WIN a Star Wars Camera, thanks to the lovely folks at Sakar (the manufacturer) and MommaFindings. So, head over and check out the giveaway, but don't covet the camera too much, because it's mine!

The Holiday Season

My husband brought up a news story about a woman who was going out of her way to say "Merry Christmas" to people at stores in order to see what they replied. My mom responded that she was going to say "Merry Christmas" to people, and she doesn't care what religion they are. See, I think that's just rude. Of course, it would help if people wore buttons that indicated what holiday(s) they celebrate. If someone is wearing a Christmas Tree pin or sweater, I feel confident in saying "Merry Christmas." If someone says "Happy Holidays" to me, I appreciate the sentiment. Heck, I'm happy if my sales clerk thanks me for my business or asks me to come back again, rather than just grunting and moving on to the next customer.

Businesswomen and Bitches

Here's an interesting story about a woman who started a business and bilked a lot of moms out of their hard-earned money. Did she deliberately rip them off? Or was she just following standard business practice? The discussion is on Composite: thoughts of poetics and tech

From the same blog: a discussion of bitchiness. I think the attitude is overrated. What do you think?

Finally, is the businesswoman in the first post a bitch to be condemned or a bitch to be admired for her bitchiness?

Cell Phones

Several of us in the office today had a good chat about the overuse of cell phones and how rude some people are. A bunch of audience members who came to see Rocky Horror at PLT were using their phones to take photos and send text messages during the performance. One person complained of people coming to her home and in the middle of the conversation, they'll answer their phone, usually for something trivial. Another person complained of getting phone calls when he's trying to have a nice dinner out. That's why not many people have my cell phone number!

My pirate name is:

Mad Charity Rackham

Every pirate is a little bit crazy. You, though, are more than just a little bit. You have the good fortune of having a good name, since Rackham (pronounced RACKem, not rack-ham) is one of the coolest sounding surnames for a pirate. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

I wrote eight pages on a screenplay over the weekend.

I figure if I write eight pages every weekend, I'll have a completed screenplay by the end of the year. Then I can re-write it. Hey, it's better than what I was doing, which is not writing at all.

I have been entering sweepstakes, and I found another good one. I would absolutely love to have the prize -- a digital photo frame. Sure, they're fairly common and you can get them for under $100 bucks (not the one they're giving away, that's $249), but it's a cost I cannot justify, but I really would like to have one. We have so many digital photos and it would be great to be able to display them like this.

The giveaway is at Lisa Reviews (hey, maybe if I actually updated this blog more often, people would actually read it and I could give stuff away, too). Anyway, go to the Sony site, look at the digital photo frame, then go back to Lisa's site and comment on what you love about the frame, and you may just win a frame of your own. And if you win I will be so, so jealous.

I am so tired.

Okay, so it's midnight. I had a function after work, then we had to go eat, then we had to come home and give Indy his insulin shot, then we had to go back out to Wal-mart and Home Depot, and then I had to change the litter boxes, and only then did I get to sit down for some quality time at the computer.

I really think I wouldn't be so tired if I could just get six or seven hours straight of good solid sleep, even once or twice a week. I can't even remember when the last time was that I slept more than four hours without something waking me up. The cat. The dog next door. The garbage truck. Gotta go to the bathroom. The phone. A bad dream. Always something.

Sure it wouldn't help block out the noise, but I sure would like to have a Sleep Number Bed. At least I could be comfortable when I'm lying there not sleeping. I'm trying to win one from beds.com -- (the link I had here is dead now).

I'm just a little frustrated.

At the holidays, I won an overnight stay at the Hilton on Pensacola Beach. I decided to give it to my in-laws. I made the reservation on Saturday, with them arriving at our home on Sunday. Sure, it's only one night, but it's on the beach, it'll be nice. I had a different certificate for Sunday and Monday night, and they went along with that one okay. So my husband tells me Tuesday morning, the day they're supposed to check in to the Hilton, "They don't want to stay at the hotel." Great. Our diabetic cat Indy hides every time they walk in the front door. I don't know how we're going to give him his insulin while they're here. Remy needs to take heart medicine first thing in the morning. He's likely to be under the bed. With Indy.

Here's another thing. I told them yesterday, "Hey, the Blue Angels practice on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings between 8:30 and 9:30. You can probably see them from the hotel, across the water."

"Oh [father-in-law] can't get around well. He probably won't want to go."

Okay, it's his own fault he wouldn't get his knees replaced years ago, but all I say is, "You don't have to go anywhere. You can probably watch them across the water."

So, DH calls at 8:30 this morning. "We're heading over to the house now."

By 9:15, they were parked on the living room futon and we hear this wooosh overhead.

"What was that?"

"It's probably the Blue Angels. You can't see them from here for the trees and buildings. You could have seen them from the hotel." Which you didn't have to check out of until 11am.

It's not that I dislike them. I don't have anything in common with them except my husband, but I don't mind spending time with them. It's just this whole stubborness of we don't want to or cannot physically do anything.

So, I called and cancelled the hotel reservation, and since it was the last bloody minute, I had to mail in the certificate or get charged a cancellation fee. I should have gone out there myself, but I figure DH is going to have to shepherd his parents somewhere while I give the cats their medication. I also didn't want to be rude. I'll never do that again, though. If I win a night at a local hotel, I'm going out there by myself. DH and I can't both go, because of the cats needing the medicine. But I could go out there alone and get a good night's sleep without Wicket (the needy cat) waking me up at 4am.

Okay, no more ranting. I'm really angry at losing the hotel stay, but there' s no point in dwelling on it. Live and learn.

Technology That Rolls

If you read this blog regularly, you know we have more cats than Indy, Remy, and Wicket. There's Trickster, Misha, Presto, and Jynx, too. Dyson has a new vacuum cleaner that sounds heaven-sent for a household like ours. Lots of hair and dander, and both DH and Trickster have allergies (not to each other). You can read more about it at An Ordinary Life. Sounds awesome, doesn't it? I would totally love to have this instead of the old hand-me-down vac we have now. It'd be more useful than a night at a hotel, too. (I just can't give it up, can I?) Anyway, you can even win one, by visiting the An Ordinary Life website. Can't beat that!

Finding the Silver Lining

I was in front of the mirror, plucking away with the tweezers, when I realized that one benefit of aging and going gray is that the hairs above my upper lip aren't as dark anymore. Gotta find something positive, right?

I want a laptop so bad!!

I can't afford to buy a laptop, so I keep trying to win one. It's not impossible. Someone has to win, and maybe someday it will be me.

The latest win-a-laptop contest I've found is on The Tech Don, a really cool site with all kinds of reviews and articles about tech stuff. They are giving away three (3) laptops, each valued at $3,000. That is awesome!

Here are the prizes:
Toshiba Portege R500-S5004 - a lightweight computer great for traveling
Dell XPS M1730 - designed with power for gamers
HP HDX - a portable entertainment system that plays Blu-Ray discs

Great options, huh? I would be thrilled to own any of these machines.

So, I signed up at The Tech Don and you can, too, up until Sunday April 27. Maybe we'll both win.

What are you waiting for??

Ever read a book so good, you wish it had more chapters?

This morning, I finished reading the book Hidden, by Eve Kenin. This evening, I was thinking how I wanted to lie down and keep reading, and I was sad when I remembered that I'd finished the book. The author did a great job creating a believable futureworld with compelling characters. Hidden is mostly told from the point of view of Tatiana, a human with genetic enhancements that make her a superwarrior. She's already killed one evil genius. Now she's after two more, before they can implement a plan to kill thousands, if not millions of people. A loner by choice, she unwillingly teams up with Tristan, a seemingly capable warrior with secrets of his own. Dorchester Publishing describes the book as "action romance." I say it's one of the best science fiction or "futuristic" romances that I've ever read. It's the sequel to Driven, which I haven't read, but I'm definitely going to be picking up a copy and delving back into Kenin's dark futureworld known as the Waste.