I signed up for a knitting class. Every Saturday morning for 6 weeks, starting November 15th. The woman who registered me said that this class will fulfill me beyond anything I know and within the first 2 weeks I will be making skull caps for the poor little children who suffer from Leukemia. When I told my mother, she saw it as a matchmaking possibility, “Women take knitting classes and women have sons and brothers who may be single!” If anything I am learning a skill that will come in handy one day. When I am an old woman, living alone in a large house, I can knit my horde of cats little jumpers to wear.

I dreamt I went to an open house. There were many people just milling about. I spotted a man who looked like a realtor.
“I usually work with Heather, is she here?” I asked.
“You just missed her but you are are just in time for MENUDO!”
“Menudo is playing?”
“They are setting up right now”
“MENUDO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” I felt an elation that has been absent from my life. My mind reeled in excitement and then I woke up.

Side Note: I have never been a Menudo fan. What they are doing lurking in my subconscious, I have no clue.

I love October. It is by far my favorite time of year. Sadly, it passes so quickly. Lisa and I went to Active Acres, Sleepy Hollow Hayride and concert last night. After the hayride, we listened to a jug band perform as we warmed ourselves by the campfires. Unlike last year’s Cooter concert, there weren’t any people drinking from communal boxes of wine and while doing line dances. There were mostly just families, roasting marshmallows and hotdogs.

Saturday To Do List
1. Clean Room
2. Do Laundry
3. Get Winter Clothes from Attic
4. Call Mortgage Lady
5. Do Dallas and October Bill Expenses
6. Pay Bills

Last night I had a wonderful meal. Barbara and George, the owners of Mieux, the cat I watch on occasion, took me to the Wycombe Inn for the Oktoberfest special. It was a plate piled high with white sauerkraut, red sauerkraut, Spätzle, Weißwurst, Bratwurst, smoked pork chop, and 2 other meats of unknown name. Although I brought most of it home with me, I ate about 3 times the amount my stomach normally holds. Each bite took me back to a meal or restaurant in Germany. The red sauerkraut reminded me of a restaurant in Dresden, the Weißwurst took me to Spreewald, the porkchop to München, and the weißbier to a biergarten in Rathan. It is no wonder I had dreams of H with all that Germanfleisch swimming in my stomach and brain. My parents went to D’Lorenzo’s and saw Mr. John Beck. For the first time I am not angry I was excluded from a trip to D’Lorenzo’s (a.k.a. the best pizza in the world).
Thanks Barbara and George for an absolutely delicious meal! See you next time, John!

I love MilkandCookies.com, where else would I find this link: Periods 101. I watched it all the way through, mouth agape; not believing this film was once shown to children. Who thought this up? Where do they find people to act in such a monstrosity? It got me reminiscing over the old “educational” films my public school education inflicted upon us impressionable students. In Junior High “Health” class (sex education in disguise), we were shown a film called: Am I Normal? It was made in the early 70’s and the characters were decked out in the grooviest polyester shirts with really wide collars and bell-bottom pants. The story concerned a pubescent boy trying to figure out sex. He wanders around asking people, “What is sex?” and “Am I normal?” He asks his coach, fellow schoolmates and finally a zookeeper who actually says: “Well, son, you picked the right guy to ask, because on this job, I see a lot of penises. Animal penises, that is.”
Mechanized Death was shown in Driver’s Ed. It was shot in the 1950’s and consisted of a policeman going from car crash site to car crash site, showing the carnage and advising the camera that had the person worn their safety belt, they might have survived. The gory finale was the policeman pulling a dead baby from a mangled Oldsmobile. It was horrific.
The worst film of all was a warning against touching power lines and walking on railroad tracks. I was in elementary school when this film was shown and let me tell you to this day I cannot come close to train tracks without panicking. The film showed a little girl walking along railroad tracks, picking daisies…POW! Hit by a commuter train! If that wasn’t devastating enough, they showed it a couple more times with different kids. Then a little boy climbed a ladder to touch the big black chord and, of course, ZZZAP! I remember wondering if perhaps the little boy might turn into Electroman from the shock but instead he just laid there on the grownd, twitching. The ending has all the dead kids sitting in a train cabin, whining and crying. A man in a trench coat appears and the kids say, “Stop this train, we wanna go home to our parents.” The man intones, “You can never go home because you were careless and walked on railroad tracks, you will never see your parents again!” The man then faced the camera and said, “Now maybe you will think twice before you touch power lines and walk along train tracks or else you will join these children on a train ride for eternity!” If I remember correctly, once the lights came back on, the teacher had to clean up a couple of kids who messed their pants they were so scared.

The following email came in from eHarmony.

Dear Donna,

eHarmony is focused on making 2003 the year you find a special person to share your life, and we’re offering this amazing one-time discount to help you do it.

Until midnight on Oct 22, 2003 we’re offering 3 months of eHarmony service for $49.95. That’s 3 months of service for the price of 1!

Love, eHarmony
I actually gave it some serious thought too! Heck, I love a bargain. But is it a bargain if you obtain no value? I have experienced 4 months of eHarmony and know that 90% of the men are on as guests and do not respond to requests for communication . I also know I find the communication process frustrating and the essay questions asinine. “Describe your own personal style” “If you could accomplish only 1 thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?” Why would I willingly put myself through this to save $100.00? Because there is a small chance I might meet someone. Well, it isn’t worth it.

My mother presented me with a used book she bought at the library last night. The title of the book: I’m so Tired of Other People, I’m Dating Myself: An Insider’s Guide to Being Single. She knows me so well.

Yahoo! News – No Cure for Songs Stuck in Your Head ALBANY, N.Y. – Unexpected and insidious, the earworm slinks its way into the brain and refuses to leave. Symptoms vary, although high levels of annoyance and frustration are common. There are numerous potential treatments, but no cure.

“Earworm” is the term coined by University of Cincinnati marketing professor James Kellaris for the usually unwelcome songs that get stuck in people’s heads. Since beginning his research in 2000, Kellaris has heard from people all over the world requesting help, sharing anecdotes and offering solutions.

I am not alone!!!!!

Adam Ant and Boz Boorer hammer out this remake of Stand and Deliver with new lyrics for the cause.

Adam, Adam, Adam. It is always something!

MIAMI (Reuters) – Tall people earn considerably more money throughout their lives than their shorter co-workers, with each inch adding about $789 a year in pay, according to a new study.

Ca-Ching!

Sitting on the plane, heading to Dallas, I had my copy of The Fountainhead sitting on my lap. “Oh my God! That is my favorite book!” said the flight attendant, “I identified with the protagonist, Roark– you see I once owned a large fortune 400 company but I gave it all up!” Oddly, he kind of looked the way I pictured Howard; except not so effete. Later, when the beverages were served, I was the only passenger to receive the ENTIRE CAN OF DIET COKE!!!