You do not fool me Squirrels bouncing like bunnies Evil is inside To continue my squirrel argument, I present a series on running squirrels. First, I want you to know that I really wanted to embed this video to prove my point , but MLB wouldn't let me. So have this cute video instead, but definitely watch the linked one. Seriously. Do it. I hope everyone has a great long weekend. Also, Ya Highway's having their final installment of giveaways . It's fun stuff like food and crafts, so go check it out. ________ Last.fm hit of the day : Electric Gypsy by LA Guns

Zombie Thur sdays is a weekly feature with guest blogger, Miranda. You can read more about her here . This past week I decided to open up a Netflix account. I've been talking about getting one for ages, but it took Netflix to have instant streaming on the Wii for me to finally make the plunge and sign up. And after blowing through the first two seasons of Dexter instantly on my gaming console (in just three days), I'm so glad that I am now paying nine dollars a month for the unlimited privilege of never having to leave my couch to watch a movie. Not only can I get instant streaming, but I can also get movies the old fashioned way by DVD through the mail, one at a time. So what was the first movie I had delivered to my house? George Romero's Diary of the Dead . It may shock you to learn that I hadn't previously seen this amazing film! It was released to limited theatres back in February of 2008 and had pretty favorable reviews. And after seeing it, I have to say that...

By calling all writerly people. By writerly, I mean you guys that write with the goal of publishing. YA Highway's giving away different types of critiques. So, follow the directions and check it out . Now, back to your regularly scheduled Zombie Thursday. Entry forthcoming. ___________ Last.fm hit of the day : Voodoo by Godsmack

These titles not included in contest. Of course you do. Now's your chance to win some. Really, how? Go to YA Highway and enter their one year anniversary contest - Read! They have a handy dandy form you fill out. You up your chances if you follow the blog, if you tweet about the contest, and if you pimp them out like yours truly. I didn't click the link. What books can I win? Some awesome young adult books by some great authors. Suzanne Collins, Maggie Stiefvater, John Green, etc, etc. Just click the linky and see for yourself. ________ Last.fm hit of the day : Tattered and Torn by Slipknot

Image courtesy of Zappos.com I got new shoes this past weekend. They're not for summer, but they were a buck. How can anyone pass down shoes for a dollar, especially when they're Rocket Dogs ? No one.* With my awesome shoe find still in recent memory, I'll confess that I love shoes and own way more than I wear. DSW and Off Broadway shoe fill that shoe-need in a way that the mall shoe stores can't touch. This holds true to the mall next door where last week they opened up their seventh shoe store. This mall isn't big - it has about twenty stores and lists T Mobile as a flagship, so why so many? Mall moguls think we need two shoe stores dedicated to sneakers and two others for tacky, overpriced flats. And that B Dalton where I encountered B Lite ? Now a shoe store called FURY - home of the ten dollar shoe. For those with a love shoes, come and confess. Talk about how a pair of hot pink crocodile booties turns your head. Share stories about how your Chuc...

Welcome to the final non-Holiday Monday of my company's fiscal year where I spent the last three business days tapping my foot with impatience and my boss silently freaked out while waiting for a million dollars in purchase orders. This week looks like it will be just as insane, but I hope to have blog time with you. Nothing original today. As you can see from Deadpool, my brain has failed me. That can only mean one thing. (Actually, it can mean a few things, but I do have one thing on my mind.) Goal update. We're about four weeks away from the calendar start of summer and I'm nowhere near completing any of my goals. I've resigned myself to the fate that it won't happen by mid-June. Goal 1: Complete the most recent FALLING TO NORMAL revision before conference time. Status : I'm typing up all my longhand and still in the middle. Once that's typed, I need to go back and do a quick read through since all my plans got dropped and all I did was restructur...

Subject: end of year Hello parents, We are rapidly approaching the end of the year. It's hard to believe. The year has gone by so fast. Our next quiz will be on Tuesday, May 25th. It will cover investigation 8 "adaptations". The format this time will be all multiple choice using a scantron form. It will be brief. It's been quite a while since we've taken a test or quiz in this format. Part of the final will be on scantron, so this will be good preparation. The science six final is scheduled for Wednesday, June 16th. The review packet has gone out for photocopying. I will post a copy on the eBoard shortly. The final will cover material from the entire year and will count as 25% of the fourth quarter grade. I will be in touch shortly regarding the possibility of children taking the organisms from our aquariums/terrariums home, with parent permission, of course. Warm regards, B. Fisher It's so hard to believe it's been almost a full school ...

Just a week ago was the last contest I wanted to win, but do I care? Nope. Because I'm greedy and I. Want. To. Win. Where's the contest? Kathleen Ortiz's Neverending Page Turner . What's the prize? Books. And a cracker jack surprise. Do you really need more books? Um, not really. If you won, what would you do? Say "yippee" for one. Then, I'd read the books. You wouldn't give up Bejeweled? ...

Zombie Thur sdays is a weekly feature with guest blogger, Miranda. You can read more about her here . I'm going to start right off by saying, "I'm a Mac." I've been a Mac my entire life. I've been a Mac before they were even called Macs. I grew up completely on the Apple product line; in fact, our basement is full of old Apple IIs, among other outdated Apple computers, that my dad has been buying and tinkering with since before I was born. But trust me, this blog isn't about which is better, Apple or PC. I love Apple. And I'm not a fan of Microsoft or Windows. And yes, I have used many a PC. If you're a fellow Apple fan, than I'm guessing that the Microsoft commercials bother you a lot, as they do me. Especially the new Windows 7 commercials. Most Apple users watch these commercials and lamely stutter... but... but... my computer has already been doing that... for years... Again, not the point of this blog. Even though I'm not interest...

Every Wednesday, YA Highway asks their readership a simple question for you to answer on your blog. Once you answer, you leave your link in the comments for other readers to hop on board. This is Road Trip Wednesday. My current tattoo wards off sneak attacks Today's question: What tattoo would you get to pay homage to a favorite book or celebrate the success of your own?   I'll get it out there right now: I have a tramp stamp. I got it before the term "tramp stamp" became popular.  It's a Wedjat eye done in black and I got it on vacation in England about ten years ago, which is a different, wine-buzzed story. Lately I've been thinking about another one. By lately, I mean six years. (You do need time to consider these permanent things.) It took me ten years to figure out my first tattoo, so it'll probably take just as long for Tat the Second. Just in time, maybe, for my book to be picked up. In honor of that, I'll get a second tattoo a...

Like most writers, I'm a bibliophile. And like most bibliophiles, I spend a lot of free time where all things books lie. The place I haunted with the highest frequency was the now-defunct B Dalton in the mall with the Dunkin . The bookstore wasn't large. It was the size of a shoe store, actually. But it carried most new releases and had a decent Sci-fi/fantasy section. If I wanted a bodice ripper, I could've spent a week in there. And it's location was right next to work - ideal for my lazy ass. Date Tuesday, June 26, 2007 The Incident Disgruntled Cantibridgian The Story I needed to preorder and pick up a book. When I got to the store, there was a line. The fact that there was one should've told me to come back another day, but I stood in line anyway. I was the 3rd in line when you count the customer at the counter, an older black woman who reminded me of a lesser version of my education core professor sophomore year. I'll call her B Lite (even t...

RIP, RJD For those who don't know, Ronnie James Dio passed away yesterday from stomach cancer. He had been the voice behind several bands - Rainbow, Black Sabbath (once Ozzy left), Dio, and most recently, Heaven & Hell. But this isn't going to be a blog post chock full of what Dio brought to music, how much he meant to the metal scene, or how the world will be less without his talent. People out there have said it already and with more flair than I possess in my baby toe. This blog's actually for Hubby, who found out the news after a fun-filled day with yours truly. Hubby loves all things Dio and took the news hard. This morning I asked Hubby to give me his all-time favorite Dio song. He came back with ten. (Hubby's explanations in italics.) Hubby's 10 Favorite Dio-associated Songs 10. Walk Away by Black Sabbath: Self-explanatory. I'm going to get my pen and cape and lip-sync this with my foot up on a stool... (Reader, you'll get what he mea...

In addition to squirrels taking over the world, they're evil. I can prove it. Note the red eyes. Yes, it's albino, but that doesn't change it's true nature. The menacing eyes glare at the photographer while it curls an arm around well, erm... something . The bushy tail isn't meant to be cute - it's a threat.

Zombie Thur sdays is a weekly feature with guest blogger, Miranda. You can read more about her here . Ribbons, ribbons, ribbons! Every organization and society has a colored ribbon representing something-- pink, yellow, red, blue, and on and on. When and why did this whole ribbon thing start? I have no idea, but like anything where people can proudly display a ribbon or ribbon shaped magnet on their car without actually doing any sort of real work to combat whatever issue they are representing, the idea has clearly spread faster than the upcoming zombie plague. ((Which is not to say that they're aren't individuals who do actively support causes, and they do so much more than just sport a ribbon!)) Well, add grey to the list of ribbon colors now! And what does it represent? Zombie Awareness Month! Much like my cynical post from back in February about the dubious "I Love Zombies Day," the old Grinch in me is showing his ugly head. The first place where I heard abou...

Nope, this isn't a Zombie Thursday entry - Miranda will tackle that later. This entry is to enter a contest. Suzie Townsend has a contest to win Deception by Lee Nichols on her blog. What Deception is about ( according to Barnes & Noble ): When Emma Vaile’s parents go missing while away on a mysterious business trip, she’s left all alone in her creepy old house. But her brother’s very cute best friend, Bennett Stern—Emma’s knight in J. Crew armor—arrives unexpectedly to whisk her away to New England. There, Emma settles into his family’s museum-like mansion and enrolls at an old-fashioned private school. She quickly finds friends in the popular legacy crowd at Thatcher and spends her free time crushing on Bennett. But the eerie visions she’s been hiding from everyone have gotten worse. Emma has memories of Thatcher that she can’t explain—it’s as if she’s returning home to a place she’s never been. Finally, Emma confides in Bennett and learns she is a ghostkeeper, a perso...

Every Wednesday, YA Highway asks their readership a simple question for you to answer on your blog. Once you answer, you leave your link in the comments for other readers to hop on board. This is Road Trip Wednesday. Today's question : Whose Tweets Would You Follow? This is entirely in a literary way. So, who would I follow in the Twittersphere? @GeorgiaNicolson . She's already on Twitter, but she has tweeted since October. I loved the Confessions of Georgia Nicolson. Her sense of humor is great and she's come up with a lot of slang that I admit to using in conversation. (I have also known to Disco Inferno Dance in Nordstrom.) @CheshireCat . Because he's crazy but profound. "We're all mad here." Have truer words been spoken? @GunslingerRoland . I would totally die if Roland tweeted his journey to the Tower. @TheRealBillyShax . We don't know who The Bard truly is, so this would be a group Twitter account. Chockful of Shakespeare quotes, a...

In the last couple of years of college and the first few of the real world, I spend a lot of time telling people that I was on a beach in Tahiti - my nice, funny-ish way to say I was stressed and needed to be somewhere else. Not exactly a beach, but definitely Tahiti. It's crunch time in the office as well as on the editing front and I'm envisioning fruity umbrella drinks and crystalline oceans. I gotta tell you, I'm heartbeats away from closing my eyes and saying "I'd love to help you, but I'm on a beach in Tahiti." Amidst the crazy, where is your (real or imagined) happy place? _______ Last.fm hit of the day : Embrace The Gods of Suffering by Shade Empire

Subject: upcoming quiz and event Hello, Just a quick note to let you know that the Dolan Harbor DNA Labs in school field trip will take place on Monday, May 10th.  Thank you all for making collection of permission slips and program fees as easy as a task like that can be.  Our next quiz will cover Investigation #6 in our Populations and Ecosystem unit.  The topic is "Populations".  The quiz will take place on Thursday, May 13th .  A review sheet is currently being developed and will be available shortly.  Finally, page 33 of your child's lab notebook will be collected and graded as a lab.  We will work on this in class tomorrow.  Please remind your child to make sure it represents his/her best work before turning it in on Friday .  Warm regards, B. Fisher Phantasma had her rip off of a internal field trip today , but she liked it. She called to tell me all about the mini CSI like thing they did as well so the kids can better relate to ...

In case you didn't know, there was a big flood in Nashville . Some writerly peeps are helping out at Do the Write Thing for Nashville . If you just google "do the write thing for nashville," I'm sure you'll find tons of hits, so I'm not even going to talk about it. But they do have some awesome auctions going on, so go. Why are you still here?

Zombie Thur sdays is a weekly feature with guest blogger, Miranda. You can read more about her here . We all know the stereotype-- rotting flesh, blood dripping, eye balls falling out, and green skin. Wait! Green skin? I get everything else, but the more I think about it, what's up with the green zombie skin? You all know what I am talking about. Just do a search for any sort of zombie image and much more often than not you're going to find a picture of the undead with a sickly green hue. I'm so guilty of this. When drawing a zombie, skin just seems to mean green. Even the Zombie Thursdays banner you see up top every week features just a bit too much green! Many months ago I had a friend working on a zombie knitting project and she came to me asking my advice on yarn color for her little zombie dude. My advice? While a greyish beige color would be far more scientifically accurate, I told her to go with more of a greenish-grey, if not just green entirely. Because although ...

In Boston, there's a writing community called Grub Street . I've been taking seminars and classes through them since 2000/2001. Most recently, I attended the Muse & the Marketplace conference this year and had a pretty kick ass experience. Needless to say, this place has helped lots of writers for lots of years. But it's a non-profit, and like all non-profits, they're usually strapped for cash. This year fellow Grubbie, Catherine Elcik, is doing some fundraising. She's currently in training for her first marathon where all proceeds will go to a scholarship for people new to Grub Street. In her blog, Catherine gives training updates and interviews other Grub Street members on how Grub Street has impacted them. I'm learning a bunch about running (which I'd never find out on my own) and I'm learning about other people who belong to the same writing community I do. Overall, it's very neat. You can read all about Catherine's experiences a...

Yesterday in the comments section , I mentioned how the mall has a massage place. If you're like me, your brain instantly takes you into the gutter at the word "massage." This place used to be in the middle of the mall floor with two chairs but within the last month, opened up in a space that used to a few stores. Why It's Creepy The space where this is now, had a Spencer's Gifts back in the day. Spencer's always has that "naughty" section in the back. (The section that I'd tiptoe through since I was too prissy to handle it.) This happens a few weeks after a prostitution ring got busted. Watertown figured into this . You do the math. _________ Last.fm hit of the day : Blackout in the Red Room by Love/Hate

In my town, we have two malls across the street from each other. Neither are impressive, but one does have the DMV, so I guess that's useful. The other has Dunkin, which is necessary. So necessary, that I'm there every work day. (Except during our boil alert.) The Dunkin in the mall opens at 6, which is uber convenient since I try to be at work by 7 most days. The mall shops, however, don't open until 10ish. This means 4 hours of silent mall creepiness. I'm rating this right up with abandoned carnival creepiness. Speed Boat Tigger Two and a half shops away from Dunkin is a few kid rides that used to be outside supermarkets and a few department stores when I was little. One of them is Tigger. He sits in a speedboat that you steer and keeps his pinned out expression on you the entire time. Right behind the steering wheel, a light blinks illuminating him campfire ghost story style. Why It's Scary First off, anything is scary in the tomb of an unpopulated mal...