No spoilers here. The movie is dark. BRILLIANT, but dark. I love that there's debate about taking your kids to see it. DUH. PG-13 anyone?

People are dumb.

Everyone was rude, talking over the ceremony. I didn't recognize many people, and those I did were people from high school that I didn't like very much. Our venue switched at the last minute, and was a cross between an old school house and a bedroom. We had someone to play the pre-made CD and as soon as dinner was finished, they cleaned everything up and turned on the lights. I was trying to give out the 'consolation prizes', and they were way too complicated, with color coded claims tickets. Almost everyone was running out the door anyhow. No one was grateful or excited to have come. It was totally strange.

TEH Brad will be moving here on September 22nd. He needs a ride with his stuff from Missoula to Seattle, and possibly a place to store items that are not electronic for a time.

Start your engines. He has a place to stay until November 1st. He will need a job and shared housing after said point. Please brainstorm with me, peeps?

I wonder if it wouldn't be a good idea for him to start a photography business? Hum.....

Wedding seating arrangements.

We could just do the obvious…. Seat people with other people that they know and/or are related to. That’s so much safer….

We thought it would be nice to try to mix and match by personality. We have to go with seating arrangements due to the pre-ordered menu, and again because I think lots of our friends and family will get on with lots of other friends and family that they might otherwise never chat with….

So, we spent 4 hours setting up 10 tables. By personality. This means my parents are sitting at different tables. I’m sitting my mom with her friends and a few relatives. I’m sitting my dad with some of Erik’s relatives and some of our relatives. I’m mixing up the cliques of friends that I have with other friends. I’m sitting the fun people together, the people with the same tastes in music and politics together, etc.

My mom ran her mouth to my aunt and uncle…. They would love E’s dad and step mom and D & V. LOVE. Now they know they aren’t with family, and we have to TOTALLY rearrange all of the tables. All of them. This is not exaggeration. We had it down to 10 per table, and to move 2 means we have to play hopping electrons with everyone, because I don’t think E’s super conservative and really shy mom would like to sit with his dad. So, the game begins.

Thing is, I’m finally feeling a bit pressed for time.

So, I totally told my mom off. I told her to stay out of the seating arrangements and that she didn’t have my permission to so much as discuss them with anyone else. She said “Well at Jody’s wedding… blah blah” and “I wouldn’t… blah blah”…. And I told her that this is MY wedding, and I WOULD… etc etc.

I think I hurt her feelings and I want to apologize, but I don’t want her thinking that she can mess up my plans that we’ve carefully laid. Especially because I’m really only taking control of a few things.

So, fuck. Now I get to arrange everyone. Again.

Excuse me? Did you say "terrorist fist bump"? Puhhhh-leeeaseeeee....

Anyone need a horse? My sister is selling hers....

http://montana.craigslist.org/grd/747539189.html

Ursa is peeing on things. This is no sign of protest (clean litter, no fireworks, lots of attention), this is urinary distress!

Just when I think I'm at my limit.... yet another test. And another charge. S***.

Brunch with pumpkinkingx, Mia and Charlie was REALLY needed. Stopped at cost plus - how did I not know about that store?? Did all errands we needed to do - grocery shopping, pet food shopping, FedEx stop, Paper Zone stop, Scarecrow stop, night time tea and cough drops stop.... wrapped remaining attendant gifts for wedding.

Now to watch a movie and go to bed early!

YAY!!! So, although they didn't stay for the evening, they did bring their bird and have lunch treats and feed us cake.... thank you to the lovely sweetpotatopop and handsome blackpiral66 for making the long drive!

We've decided on Carrot cake with an amaretto soak and amaretto/creamcheese filling, spice cake with rum soak and rum/(something else) filling and pumpkin cake with maple/(something else) filling. It was all so tasty that I can't keep it straight!

Today, brunchies with pumpkinkingx, Mia and Charlie. YAYY!

Please donate $25 to the Obama campaign by midnight tonight. Clicky for details. Thanks!

Started with a lovely bridal shower hosted by the sweet and talented beaugirl the theme was ninjas and sumo, I received tons of gifts that were appropriately themed. The company was excellent, the drinks were strong, the food was fresh and tasty!! The photo booth was a hoot : Check it out!! Spent the rest of the day on the couch reading and drinking tea getting over the last of my cold. (PS - I hate going places sick, if it hadn't been my shower I wouldn't have exposed my dear friends to the icks!!)

Today I got up, read more and went to the SAM then walked around downtown. I like that summer has arrived.... but it'd be nice if I had a Seattle Thermostat to max out at 77 degrees. Finally the wind off of the sound picked up.... Grocery shopping at the Top Banana left us with lots of great fruits and veggies for the week. I think I'll try gazpacho again - along with fresh roasted peppers and avocado!

Sign - back to work tomorrow. Nice that we've got a short week.

No peloquyn, blackpiral66 and sweetpotatopop today. Bummer, sweetpotatopop feels the ick!! Get well soon sweetie!

Other than that, I have a bridal shower in... 2 hours... hosted by the also recently married beaugirl - I'm so touched that she offered!

How interesting, though. It's odd when you have those once in a lifetime things and you don't know what to expect. Birthdays, Check. Christmas, Check. Bridal shower? Uh..... wa....???

Wedding - main event - still don't know how to handle that. Want to be VERY in the moment and not feel overwhelmed....

Better go put my face on so I don't scare the locals!

For peloquyn, blackpiral66 and sweetpotatopop.... are you coming out Friday or will you be in Saturday morning? Just checking for dinner and house cleaning scheduling!

Had a fantastic weekend with spontaneous road trip due to the amazing generosity of peloquyn! Got to meet gaeba, chicabel and glammastar and get to know mphasis better.... partied at the loverly house of blackpiral66 and sweetpotatopop and even chatted it up with pumpkinkingx, who also made the long haul from Seattle. The Best!! The Fun!!

Got up earlier than expected and busted it home... since the man has not yet returned from the hunt with the food, will nap before party #3 gets under way at 4!

Thanks again peloquyn! *SMOOCH!*

In PORTLAND!! WOOT! Thank you for the sweet and beautiful peloquyn for hosting me for the weekend... *smooch!*

and, yes, I know that's not a word...

I left my wallet at home, and I'm trying to do some final purchasing for the wedding. Irksome.

We have purchased all of the gifts for the wedding guests, but I still need to get the packaging.... I need to schedule a dress fitting, get the wedding hair done, have a mock of the bouquet done, get extra length of the ribbon for the ice guys, pick out music to play, finish paying off the wonderful lady making the cake.

Actually, looking at the knot website, I have about 300 things to do. Geez, they're going to make me totally neurotic.... er. Neurotic-er.

Anyone out there have the CS3 Adobe Suite Premium? How about InDesign? How do you like/dislike it?

R: Oooh tough call. If your goal is subterfuge, silent attacks and masked identity, then ninjas are SO better. But if you're just looking for a good, loud brawl, then pirates be yer choice.

E: But, hypothetically speaking, couldn’t a ninja just pretend to be a pirate (since they’re masters of disguise), and get in a drunken brawl too?

Let’s see what old-school economist Adam Smith would say on the matter:

A ninja has an absolute advantage over a pirate in producing a high level targeted strike, if the ninja can produce said strike using fewer resources than the pirate in question. For example if one fully trained ninja in Japan can produce 80 bar brawls or 75 assassinations a week; while a Spanish pirate can generate 50 bar brawls or 20 back alley stabbings, then the ninja has an absolute advantage in assassination and the pirate has an absolute advantage in producing brawls in public watering holes. The ninja can get more stealthy slayings with its labor by specializing in this area and trading the services for pirate distraction (by way of brawls which draw the cities legal enforcement resources), while the pirate can benefit by trading it legal flaunting for the ninja’s ability to take care of powerful enemies. (Adam Smith, Wealth of Nations, Book IV, Ch.2.) The benefits to nations from trading are the same as to individuals: trade permits specialization, which allows resources to be used more productively.

Damn it Adam Smith! Thanks for leveling the playing field!

Pirates or Ninjas? Good question. I asked a few friends, and they said:

A: No brainer - Ninjas.
K: Are you crazy? Pirates rule. We eat ninjas for happy hour.
E: Yeah – I have to agree [with Ninjas]. I mean, ninjas are far stealthier and feared and respected on a global level. Really, if a ninja wanted, s/he could infiltrate a pirate group and become a pirate… only to kill all of the other pirates and take over the ship for the ninja clan.
Me: I don’t know… I have to agree with "K". Ninjas make a tasty snack after the grog and before the plunder…
E: The only reason we have a Pirate calendar at home is because there are no ninja calendars. You know why? Because no one ever sees any ninjas to take pictures of for the calendar. Hopefully they will never sign a treaty…but if they did it would look like this…

Me: Pirates: Tan, Stylish, Burly. So manly, in fact, that they nail their furniture to the floor. And they have attack parrots.
Ninjas: Sissies in tights hiding from the world. No man looks good in tights.
E: Maybe we should rethink our marriage. You said Christian Bale looked good in tights.
AS: How did you even SEE the ninjas?