Irish win!

Today was the first game of the 2013-2014 Notre Dame football season, and man, were we both psyched, or what?!

We were not quite as psyched about the weather forecast, which was originally calling for temperatures close to 90° and high humidity, which would have made for a pretty miserable day at Notre Dame Stadium. However, the forecast moderated a bit, and it ended up being not quite as warm, but still very humid. It wasn’t a huge surprise to see dark clouds move in and we got a little rain. It wasn’t a total disaster, because we sat in the truck and ate our lunch, and by the time we were ready to head into the Stadium, it was starting to let up. We were bummed that we didn’t get to hook up with some of Ken’s coworkers, though, who were tailgating in the parking lot. It would have been great to stop by and say hi and have a beverage with them, but the weather just didn’t cooperate with that. Hopefully next game!

It was great to be back at ND for football, and our new seats were quite good. Another of Ken’s coworkers sold us his and his Mom’s season tickets for this year (face value, no shenanigans there!), so we actually have ND season tickets...at least for one year! We are about a third of the way up in the end zone opposite the Notre Dame student section. Good seats!

The woman sitting next to me was from (I think) New Jersey, and it was her first time at Notre Dame. Her daughter, Lucy, was right behind us, and Lucy is thinking of attending ND. Ellen had lots of questions for me, and we enjoyed chatting. It was nice to hear her say that her and Lucy have had a great experience at ND, and that everyone has been very nice. She said she really enjoyed talking to me and appreciated me trying to answer her questions as best I could. It was my pleasure, Ellen, and I hope we see you and Lucy in the future!

The sun finally came back out, and let me tell you, it got hot and humid! It wasn’t like I had heavy clothes on, but I was still getting overheated. I can’t even imagine how bad it was for all the players. Ouch! After we got home and got stuff unloaded, we both took cool showers just to rinse off and get cool. Felt great...I bet the players enjoyed their showers, too!

Of course, the best thing of all was that we got the win. ND is 1-0 on the season, as is the Lucky Underwear (yes, it’s back!). I can honestly say that they have a lot of work to do, because the defense was a little porous, Tommy Rees didn’t always read the openings well, and we struggled a bit on offense. We’ll see what happens in the coming games, but I’m guessing that Brian Kelly is going to work the hell out of them this week. Love you, Irish, and I’m looking forward to seeing you all season...and seeing you WIN!

I have to say that I am about wiped out. Game Day is always fun, but it’s quite a hike into the Stadium from the parking lot (no guilt about skipping my workout today!). With today’s heat and humidity, it just about did me in. The next home game is September 21st against Michigan State, so maybe it will be a little cooler for that game. Fingers crossed!

A fun day, and Football Fangirl is very happy!

Tomorrow is a tour of the State Theater with Drew, and yes, there WILL be pictures of the pink-tiled women’s bathroom!

It’s only love

Before I get to today's topic, a few programming notes.

1. Sheeba asked me to tell you all that he appreciates the worship and well-deserved appreciation, but would like me to remind everyone that "I am not a GIRL!" Long story short, the person Ken got him from thought Sheeba was a girl (no comment), and Ken named her Sheeba, after his very first cat, Shee. (I think that's right--he'll correct me if I'm wrong.) We saw pretty quickly that Sheeba the girl kitty had a couple of extra body parts that she shouldn't have had, and we realized that Sheeba was a Heeba. And yes, he's very lucky (and very spoiled) to have a personal masseur.

2. Notre Dame-Michigan State coming up in about an hour. I'm already feeling agitated and nervous, so I'm working some of that out by writing. [Update as I get ready to post this: ND 7-MSU 0...now it's 7-3. Now 13-3. 13-10! Guess I'd better post this soon! Stop with the penalties already, Irish—they’re killing you!]

3. Scott the Botanist has posted his entry about Swamp Angel Nature Preserve. It's an excellent write-up, and I especially enjoyed the part about the parasitic plants, including the pitcher plant I mentioned here. I hope you'll stop by and see the viewpoint of a professional, rather than that of just a casual observer like me.

Now, to the topic at hand!

A Facebook friend posted this picture today, and I loved it. I've been pondering an entry about this for a while, and decided it was high time I did so.

I grow increasingly impatient with those who would legislate their own version of morality based on their religious views. Morality is a vague and subjective term based upon many criteria, including societal and philosophical. There can also be a religious element in there, but when it comes to legislation, it must also be vague and not predicated on any one religion or faith. People can quote the Bible or any other sacred text they want to, but in looking at this collection of Deuteronomy verses, I think most of us would agree that we cannot take much of this literally. If we stoned every woman who isn't a virgin when she gets married, we could very well be looking at the end of our species!

One of the great things about where we live is that we have the freedom to believe whatever we want to believe. Even if we don't want to believe anything at all. Whatever we believe, it doesn't mean that religion can be forced onto anyone else, or that it should shape our laws. Societal morality is one thing; religious morality is quite another. In other words, it is against the law to steal from someone because you are taking what is rightfully theirs—not because the Bible says it's wrong.

So when it comes to gay marriage, I look at it as a civil rights issue, not a religious one. Our country prides itself on equality for all, although we often fall miserably short of that worthy goal. Let me put it to you straight (so to speak): I don't care if you quote scripture at me until you're blue in the face. Your religion has no place in this debate. You are trying to force your religious beliefs on what is an equality and civil rights issue, and that is wrong. God doesn't approve of gay marriage, you say? So what? Apparently he doesn't approve of women who aren't virgins entering into marriage, either, and I don't see us trying to legislate that. I'm exaggerating to make a point, but I believe it's a valid one. It's time to get beyond this argument, because we don't legislate based on any religion or any religious tenets.

In the past, I was one of those who felt, okay, let marriage be between a man and a woman, but let civil unions—with all the benefits conferred to hetero couples—be okay for whoever wants them. I explored my thinking on this a little further, and realized that I had no good reason why that should be the rule. I believe completely that people are born the way they are, and love who they are wired to love. It's based on genetics, nothing more. (I still laugh at the Homosexual Agenda that so many people talk about. I'd be interested in getting a copy of that, if anyone has one.) If that's the case, that it's genetic, why should marriage be denied to anyone? Simple answer: it shouldn't. Don't even get me started on that "pray away the gay" bullshit.

I worked with a guy in Indianapolis who spent many years with his "husband" (not legally married here in Indiana, obviously, but that's the way they thought of each other). He stuck with his husband through years of severe illness; stuck with him as he suffered amputations, became confined to a wheelchair, and went blind due to diabetes. His husband was an artist, and his blindness made him angry and hard to deal with, but my friend stuck by him all the way to the very end. His sense of loss was as profound as anyone I've encountered who has lost a spouse, and their commitment to each other was every bit as real. They should have been allowed to marry...for real.

It's time to set aside objections based on religious grounds—they have no place in this debate. As far as I'm concerned, there is no debate. Gay marriage will soon be the law of the land. It will happen. It is inevitable, because it is the right—and only—thing to do.

All buzzed out

[hic!] No, not in that way. I've been a busy bee today and earlier this week. This weekend, Ken's stepbrother and his wife are coming to visit from Illinois. They'll be staying with Ken's Mom and stepdad, but we're going to have them all over to our place on Sunday for a cookout--it will probably be the last one of the season. *sniff* So I've been working on getting things tidied up and looking a little nicer, cleaning the bathroom, vacuuming, all that jazz. The place wasn't a pit by any means (I've seen much worse...believe me), but more of a sort of "controlled chaos." I needed to get it done, because on Saturday, we have the Notre Dame game, and I definitely won't feel like coming home and cleaning that evening! I'm happy with the results, and the things that are left on my list are minor ones.

Then I spent a little while drafting letters to our Senators, Richard Lugar and Evan Bayh, about health care reform. Dang if I didn't choke myself up a little bit! I sent essentially the same letter to both, just altering them a bit here and there, and maybe I'll post one of them in the coming days. Now I'm taking a breath (and smelling the balsamic pork tenderloin in the crock pot...mmm), doing an entry, then I'll get some reading in. I haven't read much in the last few days because of other things going on, like my lunch with my mother-in-law yesterday.

One of the things we talked about was how sometimes people bring out the best in you, and others bring out the worst. I've experienced both. In my relationship with Borderline Personality Disorder Boy, man, did he ever bring out the worst in me. Almost to the point where at the time, I thought to myself, "Who is this person I've become?" When in a situation like that, I think most reasonable people will simply react. When someone is in your face, telling you what an effing cee you are, I believe it's a natural reaction to go into defensive mode. I have to say, though, that I'd rather be the type that gives as good as I get, rather than a cowering, weepy mess. I may have been yelled at, but I was never broken...hell, I never even bent, and I refuse to be mad at myself, because I did what I had to do.

I hate the bullying of others, and I also hate it when others try to bully me. I'm not sure what it is about me that makes some people think they can do so, but they find out pretty quickly that they picked on the wrong gal.

Anyhoo, it's unfortunate that I was in such a situation, because it was a little damaging to my psyche. When you are forced to become someone you don't care for, or do things that go against your very nature, it is profoundly disturbing. While I was in the situation, I even went to a few counseling sessions. I'm cool with admitting that, and I don't think there's any shame in talking to someone when you're going through a tough time or experiencing a bad situation. It was also kind of nice to get a little validation; she had me take the MMPI, a comprehensive personality test, and I hate to break it to you all, but I'm pretty normal. A slight tendency towards addiction, but I smoked for 20+ years, so no surprise there. Of course, the person I was with at the time said, "I might have known she'd tell you that. I've heard that before...it's always my fault." Talk about cognitive dissonance! Dude, she sent the test out for interpretation...she only gave me the results. Deal with it.

So that was my experience with someone bringing out the worst in me. Fast forward several years, and I'm hooked up with Ken. My life then and my life now are like night--almost literally--and day. I've said this to Ken before, and I said it to his Mom yesterday, but he brings out the best in me. He'd had similar experiences in his life, and we've sometimes talked about "Can you imagine me doing such-and-such?" or "Can you believe I once did whatever?" It's funny, because it's so far removed from what we are together that neither of us can imagine doing such things in each other's presence. I don't think you'll see me pushing Ken and yelling, "Don't call me stupid!" anytime soon! Ha!

It also leads me to wonder about interactions with others outside of relationships. Do you consistently bring out the worst in others, or do you feel that you bring out the best? What will be the sum of your life...will others remember you fondly, even those from many years ago, or will they rue the day they met you?

Party planning

How is everyone today? Happy and healthy? I hope both!

Today I had a meeting with the event coordinator at the place who is doing the catering for our dinner at the Studebaker Museum. Debbie was incredibly helpful and I believe they will do a really good job! Here's our menu (a buffet dinner):

BEER, WINE & SOFT DRINK PACKAGE
5:30pm

Bud & Bud Lite
Copper Ridge White Zin, Merlot & Chardonnay
Includes Bartender

HORS D'OEUVRES
5:30pm

50 each Vegetable Tray & Dip
50 each Cheese & Cracker Tray
50 each Assorted Finger Sandwiches
50 each BBQ Meatballs
50 each Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

DELUXE DINNER BUFFET
6:30pm

Mixed Green Salad with Mango Chardonnay Vinaigrette
Rosemary Chicken Breast
Homestyle Roast Beef
Vegetable Lasagna
Herb Roasted Red Skin Potatoes
Rice Pilaf
Roasted Vegetable Medley
Whole Green Beans Almondine
Rolls & Butter
Coffee Station, Iced Tea & Ice Water

DESSERTS
75 Brownies & Cookies

I think it all sounds pretty good. We were going to get fish instead of the veggie lasagna, but we needed a couple of vegetarian meals, and with a buffet they don't have an easy way to do that, so I made an executive decision and went with vegetable lasagna. Why? Because I like it! And yes, it's an open bar (beer and wine only). Anyone want me to sneak them in? Now it's just a matter of getting the final count, getting the signed contract to them, and paying the balance. And we did it for less than was budgeted! That should make the powers-that-be happy.

I was up late last night because of dealing with some...unpleasantness...so I felt really tired this afternoon. I stretched out on the couch and covered up with my penguin blanket, and Sheeba hopped up and lay on my stomach. He was like a little furry furnace! I had a most excellent nap, and I feel very refreshed!

As for last night's unpleasantness, I was starting to feel like I was in a soap opera. "I loathe you, Jessica." "You'll never get away with your little scheme, Amanda." "*gasp* Derek?!" (That last one is usually when you catch your man in bed with your arch enemy.) Oh, the drama! I see that I've received no emails, and neither has Ken or Dirk. Not surprising.

You know, I'm generally a positive person, and I try to maintain that tone here. I have my feisty moments, but one of my favorite things to do is laugh, and that's a lot more fun than having someone try to turn Nutwood into "All My Children." ("All My Squirrels." "As the Possum Turns." "The Young and the Furry." Okay, I'll stop.) When I encounter someone like my troll, I feel like I've encountered an alien species. I feel like I've been slimed. I would think it would be a sad existence to have that effect on people. I don't think I'm inspirational by any means, but I know it makes me happy when I make someone laugh. Why and how is it that someone would derive happiness from the opposite, from angering people and being nasty? It's like in "Star Trek," when matter meets anti-matter. Good things do NOT ensue. Last night it was Beth and anti-Beth. I know there are no answers to my questions, and all I can do is shake my head in amazement.

If I can get a little mushy here, I want to thank each of you who left a supportive comment and sent me emails. I appreciated it more than you can ever know...you guys are the best. Group hug!

Ken called a few minutes ago and asked how the meeting with the caterers went. I told him that all went well, and I had sent him the contract. He asked, "So...would you say that you've enjoyed planning this?" Uh-oh. I told him I don't know if it's something I'd want to do full-time, but it's been relatively easy. He said that for the meeting he's at (PMI), they don't have a host for next year's meeting. He proposed South Bend, and it would involve planning a 3-day meeting at a hotel. That would probably be relatively easy, too. A couple of evening receptions, a dinner, arrangements for a meeting room...the downtown Marriott does conventions all the time, so it wouldn't be anything unusual for them. What would be fun would be putting together information about things to do in South Bend. I would recommend the Studebaker Museum, the College Football Hall of Fame, and a visit to the Notre Dame campus. (Even if you don't like the school, it's a beautiful campus.) This won't be until the spring, so there's plenty of time. And it should be nice weather!

College football and death by elevator

Notre Dame lost to Pittsburgh today in...get this...FOUR overtimes. Ken and I were trying to remember if we've ever actually watched a game that went into four overtimes, and we don't think we have. I'm not upset about it, because Notre Dame had every chance to put the game away and win the thing, but they were unable to do so. Pitt won fair and square. Next week's game is at Boston College, and anyone who knows anything about Notre Dame football knows that Boston College ROBBED US of a championship several years ago, and of course, we've never forgotten it! And there is no way in hell I'm tagging this entry with Boston College, because I just don't want to hear it! Ha ha!

On the upside, Illinois beat Iowa, so one of our teams (Illinois is Ken's alma mater) won! And my Ball State Cardinals are still 8-0, and currently ranked #18 in the country (although they didn't play today)! I am sitting here proudly wearing my new Ball State sweatshirt that I picked up this week when we bought the exercise equipment. They had a table with kid-sized sweatshirts, and I found a Ball State one. While there are certain disadvantages to being of small stature, I've learned to embrace my small size and enjoy being able to buy a few things in the kids' department! We're talking a $10 difference in price when it comes to sweatshirts, so viva lá miniscule! (I know that's not a French word. I just liked phrasing it that way.)

Last night we watched "Thirteen Ghosts," and I have to say that I was a little disappointed. It had its creepy moments (and the Cagehead ghost running down the hallway sort of gave me the willies...okay, that definitely gave me the willies!), the house itself was very cool, eerie, and masterfully engineered (I loved the mosaic mechanism in the floor--great visual), but I just didn't find it all that scary. Maybe I'm inured to mildly scary and need really scary in order to feel that I've gotten my full fright's worth.

But I have to give "Thirteen Ghosts" a big thumbs-up (if not for the entire movie) for the guy who gets...well, how shall I put this? Imagine stepping part way out of an elevator, and before you can get all the way out, the doors slam shut. There is no sensor, no bounce-back...they just slam shut. Forcefully. While you are halfway through the door. Are you getting me? It took me a moment to realize what had happened, and I looked at Ken and said, "WHOA!" Yep, that was a good one. Nicely done! It rivaled the split dog scene in "Return of the Living Dead." (If any of you know what I'm talking about, you get double bonus points!) My friend Marty had a recent brush with a killer elevator. It could have been much, much worse, Marty! If you've seen this scene, you'll know that you escaped with nothing less than your back half!

So tonight's movie--which was already next on our scary movie queue--is "Hostel II." I suspect that might be a little more...intense, shall we say? The first "Hostel" creeped the hell out of me. Let the fright begin! HahahaHAAA!

"You couldn't write it, could you?"

First things first: Happy Birthday to Karen! Go over and wish her a good one!

Notre Dame and Pitt are tied up at 3 at the start of the second quarter. It's a home game, so Ken and I got to see the fighter jets (I think they're usually Navy jets out of Chicago) that do the flyovers at the stadium fly over our house! For those of you that live on base, it's probably old hat, but I find it an awesome sight and sound to have these jets fly over, and to hear their afterburners kick in. Wow!

Last night, we were watching Keith Olbermann's show. John Cleese was on, and I was so excited! As some of you may know, I love Monty Python, and it was great to see him. (I also love "A Fish Called Wanda." Michael Palin [no relation to that Alaska woman] is great in that. "Cathcart Towers Hotel!" Ha ha!) Those of you that are firmly in the McCain camp can skip this, because you won't like what is said. For the rest of you, it's a little long, but Cleese is always so funny. I just love how he completely cracks up over some of the things that have been going on in the campaign! How can you not? Oh, and if you want to find out what a "berk" is, look it up in the Urban Dictionary. My apologies to my readers from the U.K.--I know it's not a nice word, but sort of interesting that it can be used on U.S. television, isn't it? I actually learned this word the other day in my Yahoo group about The Godfathers, when it was used by one of the posters. It's always good to learn new vocabulary, isn't it?

More later! Here's the John Cleese interview.

Saturday Roundup

I think I'm caught up! Six o'freakin' thirty, and I'm finally caught up!

First I got caught up on AOL alerts. Those seem to be way down, which shows that we're all moving along and trying to get comfy in our new digs.

Next was getting caught up on everyone's Blogger entries, and it was great to see that people are starting to write more here and enjoy our new format. I think it's a lot of fun to play with the settings, and although I'm sure I'll be tweaking things for a while, I'm happy with things at the moment.

THEN it was catching up on emails. I had several from friends and I apologized for neglecting them while I dealt with this big mess with moving our blogs. It was great to hear from everyone, and it sounds like all is well. One is working on buying a house, one is planning on an election night party, and all are well!

And a big congratulations to my pal Jim, who successfully passed his Medical Technology registry! I'm an MT, too, and you can read about our profession if you follow the link provided. Did you know that 80% of diagnoses come from laboratory results? Although we're trained in all departments of the lab, many of us focus on one area, and for the last 20 years of my career, I worked in Microbiology, because it was always the most interesting to me. Be sure to hug an MT today if you get a chance, and Jimi, I'm sending you a virtual hug! Jim got his MLT degree (a 2-year degree) several years ago, and he's been working full time and taking online courses to get his Bachelor's degree for the past couple of years. Why does it matter? Well, it gives you a broader depth of knowledge, for one thing. And with a four-year degree, you get more money. Right now, I'd guess that the latter trumps the former!

I've already received one big benefit from this switch to Blogger from AOL. I sent out a mass email telling almost everyone on my email list that my blog was moving. I was thrilled to hear from my friend Bruce in Indianapolis. He wrote back, "Hi Doll!" How can you not love that?! It was wonderful to hear from him. He lost his long-time partner a while back, but has just started to move on, get back into the dating scene, and is trying to rejoin the world in general. Bruce is also a wonderful writer, and I asked him if he's considered writing a blog...? I still remember his column about the infamous Dumpster Dive, and believe me, if he starts posting anything anywhere anytime, you'll find the link here. He's a peach.

Hope you're all having a wonderful Saturday! Notre Dame beat Stanford (and looked good doing it) and Illinois beat Michigan very decisively. Good day for our teams!