Invasion of the Looney Birds

There were all kinds of idiots running around Salem last week. Unfortunately my favorite couple were a pair of them: Steve and Kayla. First Kayla wants Steve committed then she doesn't. Steve wants Kayla to turn him in for domestic violence after he tried to choke the life outta her when he was dreaming about choking EJ but she refuses. OK. Why doesn't he turn himself in??? Instead he goes right to EJ and pretty much says, "Here I am! Do with me what you will!" IJIT!!!! Which is to kidnap John from the hospital. Then Kayla calls Marlena who basically told Kayla to just let Steve go because he's not "Steve" anymore but a Dimera Pawn. Now that was TOTALLY stupid because HELLO? has Marlena NOT been fighting for John all this time even though the doctors keep telling her there's no hope? She refuses to put him in a nursing home and is totally convinced they communicate through her dreams and yet here she is telling Kayla that Steve is crazy and there's nothing she can do about it so just move on. IJIT! The whole stealing John from the hospital was stupid too because Steve disguising himself as a doctor was just silly. Yeah, "Hello, I'm your doctor with one eye and I'll be operating on your spleen today!" Dr. Patch at your service. My question is how did John not just die right there after Steve took him off all the life support?? Maybe John is the Six-Million Dollar Man in disguise.

The lunacy of the Shawn/Belle/Phil the Psycho continues with Shawn and the girls jumping overboard into a lifeboat. HAHAHAHA. Yeah. Right. I must say that Shawn looked really good in the stolen uniform. Probably the only thing I've agreed with Willow on. And yep, Phil has become Numero Uno Psycho cause he dangles Willow over the side of the ship after she gives him too much lip. On one hand, I was like, eh just go ahead and drop her but then on the other, I kinda felt sorry for her. And for somebody who's "pregnant" and supposedly already showing, that was quite a tight little nothing of a dress she had on. Actually it looked like she forgot to put a dress on and was just prancing around in her underwear. And I really hate all that pork chop lip gloss she wears. I swear I can just imagine her gnawing on a ham bone and getting the greasy lips. BLEEEEH. After Phil dangling Willow over the side just for her being lippy, I was shocked that he didn't rocket her to outer space when he found out that she saw Shawn and the girls leave and did nothing to stop them. That whole lifeboat joyride didn't last long cause the misfit Brady family washes up on some island shore and all I can think about is Blue Lagoon but unfortunately there's no permed Christopher Atkins running down the beach just in a loin cloth. Instead we have Belle running around like a banshee because she LOST Claire in the OCEAN. I have to admit that I truly felt her pain but I'm also sitting there wondering why that kind of dramatics because when Shawn finally finds Claire whom he claims was "just sitting there in a pile of sand playing", we all know in reality there is NO WAY a 12 month old baby could have survived the riptides they kept referring to in between Belle's screeching. But all's well that ends well. Oops. Nope. We suddenly get, "Shawn! She's BLEEEEEEEEEEDING!" Good Lord. How much can this poor kid be put through with her incompetent parents? Claire was really pitiful with her limp hair bow and she's being all fussy and I'm sure it's because she's thinking, "Why must I have such tortured life?" Of course it was a superficial cut and Shawn (who has been nothing but completely calm and collected the duration of this idiotic journey) fixes her up and is trying to start a fire while Belle screams and screeches, "Her lips are turning BLUUUUUE!" and this was after she wanted to put Claire in the water to stop her finger from bleeding. I wish Belle's lips would turn blue and fall off cause I'm tired of hearing her dramatics.

I thought it was awesome how Celeste confronted Sami on the speeding ticket with the attached picture of Sami and EJ and Sami confessed everything to her and Celeste was there to comfort and support her. Now, if Sami would've just done that with Lucas. If I was writing this show, I would've had the part where Lucas is badgering Sami about why she has this "irrational" fear of EJ and instead of her lame excuse, she would've blurted out, "Because he RAPED me! That's why! He raped me in exchange for helping me save your life at the cabin!" Now, that would've knocked the socks off Lucas and totally foiled any plan of Kate's doing to break them up. But instead we get the usual drippy soap excuses that in the end will be Sami's undoing instead of EJ's. For all of EJ's evil ways though, he still amuses me. I loved how he stole Sami's trash but very unimpressed that this was the only way he could figure out she's pregnant. And once again, I'm lost in the Lucas employment vortex. Now EJ's offering him a month off and use of his private jet for Sami and Lucas's honeymoon. I'm assuming now he officially works for Mythic. I had to laugh though when Lucas told EJ about his reluctance in working with his "old lady" now that he's disowned her once again and EJ's like, "I'll keep her in line." now that's a switch. Yeah, Kate tried once again to convince Lucas that Sami had help in saving his life -- specifically EJ's help but Lucas got acid ingestion from all her tripe and told her to get lost. Hmm. I think that makes the 247th time he's done that.

Boy, Chelsea sure is Miss Holier Than Thou. Nick makes one little mistake and she refuses to hear him out, forgive him and give him a chance to make amends. How soon we forget what a biotch we were only 2 months ago and what it felt like to be ostracized and hated (for good reason on her account though). Talk about the huge dutch oven stove calling the 2 quart sauce pan BLACK. I think it's really gross how she was totally using that Dr. Rebert to make Nick jealous. That's what she did to Max all the time and look where it got her with him. Dr. Rebert unfortunately turns out to be Dr. Creep who preys on young thangs. I loved it when Maggie told him to take his "underage" date for a Happy Meal instead of gracing her establishment again. I am getting tired of Nick continually defending Chelsea's idiotic actions. He tries to tell Dr. Rebert to leave Chelsea alone -- that she's not like he thinks -- and Rebert replies by punching him in the gut and saying, "I know. That's why I'm going after her," or something to that effect. Nick is still doubled over when Maggie comes back over and she says something to the effect that "girls aren't impressed by guys who let themselves get punched in the stomach". And Chelsea, being the idiot that she is, gets in Rebert's car and suddenly realizes that he's the Big Bad Wolf getting ready to have him some little Redriding Hood Pie and all I can think of, "Time for Marty McFly to come out and kick some ass". Some writer was watching a lot of 80s flicks while writing these episodes.

So this week we meet a new guy by the name of Jed and he has the unfortunate sense to ask Abbey for help in a class they have together and she snipes at him for not doing his own work even AFTER he explained he'd transferred in late. Ugh. She is still Miss Priss and 1/2. It's also no mystery that this is Willow's college-aged brother who she gave the $10,000 to for his tuition. Looks like another Nicole and Brandon Walker. White Anglo Saxon girl with extremely dark and Latin-esque brother. Yawn. But let me tell you. Ol Jed ain't got nothing on Brandon Walker. Meanwhile, Max and Mimi are over at the police station and Bonnie's confessed to her dad's murder. Blah blah blah. Mimi's got the pork chop greasy lips too. What's with slathering a bucket of lip gloss on these girls? Mimi wants to go back to Max's place but he's all squirmy and says he's got work to do or some such nonsense but when really he's interested in what Abbey's suddenly up to. Geesh. This is so far-fetched. He calls Abbey and leaves a message basically saying he's checking in and misses talking to her. Didn't they just see each other last night? This is all so contrived on his part but we know it's to set up the Jed/Abbey/Max triangle of 2007. Zzzzzzz. Wake me up when it's all over.

(All Pictures courtesy of Days2)

DrOOL-- Summer Breeze Make Me Feel Fine . . .

So JoJo and MarMar finally meet up in her dreams and boy does JoJo look ooooold. Never mind the fact that he has been in a coma for a while but you'd think in this dream paradise, he'd be looking a little better. All he gets to tell her is that Steve's coffin was stolen long ago and that he was tortured and brainwashed by the Dimeras. However, for those viewers who remember when Steve "died" we remember that Lawrence Alamain was the main villain at that time and presumably it would've been his cartel that would have stolen Steve's body. I still remember Kayla sitting by his bedside and holding his hand, saying, "You're so warm . . . so warm." John's telling Marlena the rest of what EJ told him the night he was shot but of course that dumba@@ doctor has to come in and wake her up. GEESH.

Steve goes all berserk-o on EJ again --this time in Chez Rouge and they end up flying out the window. Ej's got a nasty black eye that could use a good rib-eye. Steve gets thrown in the clinker and Kayla does everything but kick and scream to get him to commit himself to the psych ward at University Hospital. First he says yes, then no, then yes, then no again, then yes, then maybe, then hell no, then all right. I lost count after the 200th time he changed his mind. Benjy shows up with his tail tucked between his legs and Steve drills him a new one. I can't believe Steve didn't know that was a tarot card that Benjy gave him that night. Plus what happened to it anyway? Benjy runs away after a good chastening by Steve and being frowned at by Kayla. Unfortunately for him, he runs into brother EJ upstairs who bullies him around for old times sake.

How amazing was it the speed that EJ's black eye disappeared? LIGHTNING!

Finally dumb ole Shawn and Belle escape psycho Philip and end up on this cruise ship bound for Australia. Only they would. And Nick pawned his Rolex to get them the money since stupid Shawn had to get himself arrested and they had to use all the money that Kayla gave them to post his bail ($8,000!!!!) IDIOT! To further demonstrate his stupidity Shawn wants to gallivant all over the cruise ship while Belle says that she and Claire are not leaving the cabin until they dock in Australia. Kinda smart there Belle. Too bad you don't LISTEN to YOURSELF. Shawn goes on about Claire having fun and how they can't live their lives being paranoid all the time and I'm sitting there with my mouth hanging open and thinking, "Whu-whu-whu-WHAT?!" Now is NOT the time to be hanging out by the pool when you have basically kidnapped your own child no matter what you think is right or wrong. And HELLO? Is this not what Steve lectured them on when Shawn came up with the hair-brained idea of running away? Never settling down, always looking over their shoulders? I must comment when a few weeks ago Shawn called about the whole money thing and Steve's standing there cackling, "HAHAHA!! They need money, right? I TOLD THEM!!! N'YAH N'YAH!" That just totally cracked me up.

Anyway, Belle lets doofus Shawn talk her into parading around so everyone can see them. I love it when she's reading the paper on deck and lookie lookie there's a picture of them with the caption "Couple Sought in Child Abduction" and she starts freaking out. Shawn's got that look on his face that says, "Aw man, no more fun man." When he finally gets back to the cabin, she's already changed and in a packing frenzy, screeching that they're getting off at the next docking. Oh yeah and I forgot to mention they just HAD to call the ship's doctor for a fever Claire was having the night before. No baby aspirin, didn't even think it could be because she's teething. So they've got him all suspicious anyway because Claire's passport didn't have any immunizations recorded. Yeah, they've had all this figured out from the get-go. NOT.

Kate sets up this phony hero show to prove that Sami couldn't lift that beam off Lucas's legs. She brings in some geeky physics professor from MIT to prove her point along with some anthropologist or some gibberish she spouted off. What was really stupid about this whole thing was after Sami was unable to move the fake beam, Kate sashayed over and moved it with no problem. So what made HER be able to move it and not Sami? Kate's not exactly She-Hulk. And if there were a second person (as we know there was) what's the big frikkin' deal? If I'd been Sami , I'd told everyone that some mountain man showed up and helped me and he didn't want any kind of publicity so he disappeared back in the mountains. Or even Bigfoot. Also Kate and everyone is forgetting that Sami DID drag Lucas to the road BY HERSELF. However I think Sami should've just left it all alone and not got back at Kate. I had to agree with Roman when he said that she hadn't change at all with pulling low-class stunts of that nature. Yeah, during Kate's stock holder presentation, she switched the presentation DVD with the surveillance DVD of Kate and EJ doing the nasty. It really wasn't that dramatic, IMO, and EJ turned it all around to benefit the company. Made it out to be a big CGI production. For someone who thinks super quick on his feet like, he sure is stupid about knowing when someone's hiding they're pregnant.

I felt sorry for Steve being in the psych ward especially when he was talking about eating breakfast with the other "patients" and the one guy in a straitjacket and being spoon fed the applesauce and spitting it all over himself. Kayla's doctor friend comes in and they get started with the psychotherapy. He puts Steve under and we see him in the room with the bright lights and strapped to the table. I find it extremely hard to believe that a grown up EJ was there to watch him receive electric shocks and flash the tarot card in front of his face. The only way I can believe this is if it happened right before Jack found him in that hospice house. Otherwise we are talking about a MAJOR and COMPLETE rewrite of Days history. What they SHOULD have done was have Stefano in the shadows and him laughing and a garbled voice saying, "You're one of us now!" Then I would've believed all that happened right after his body was stolen. When he comes out of the hypnosis, he lies and says he doesn't remember seeing anyone in the room with him. He wants to go home but Kayla reminds him for the umpteenth time he committed to two weeks. He relents and says that he hates to get rid of her but they had a thing where he has to "bead by the hour" which I thought was pretty funny. However he doesn't plan on making any bracelets. He's all about breaking out with the dime in his pocket.

I thought that was really low of Billie accusing Sami of still having of thing for EJ when Sami was trying to warn Billie to stay away from him. And BTW, WHY does Billie need to store boxes at Lucas' when she has her own apartment now? That makes NO sense whatsoever. And how funny that no sooner she gets moved in, that Victor evicts her. But I'm getting ahead of myself. ALSO Billie finds out that Sami's pregnant when Sami gets sick after she plays that trick on Kate and Billie has the audacity to suggest that baby is not Lucas's! Where in the world does she get off even thinking that? What is WRONG with her? She's all flirting shamelessly with EJ and has this weird idea for home security systems and jumps at the chance to go into bidness with him and has not one but THREE people warn her about him, but she's just like "WHUTEVER". And I thought it was all over the radio that night EJ fled the coop when John was shot. How did Billie not know about this?

I had to cackle when Sami beat Lucas with that kangaroo when he said, "At least I'll know the baby's mine from the beginning." That was a pretty stupid thing to say. Of course we know that Sami is completely freaked out over this because she's 100% sure EJ's the father.

OK I'm totally confused with Lucas's employment. One minute he decides to take EJ's offer but then doesn't sign the contract and then we have to listen to all the reasons from EJ on why Lucas should take the job. And he still says no. Then after Steve attacks EJ, EJ is ordering Lucas to call the lawyers and get down to the police station and all this other job related stuff and I'm thinking, "OK, he must've taken the job." Then suddenly Lucas is over at Victor's asking Philip to see if he can get his job back cause he doesn't want to work for EJ making it sound like he hasn't signed any contract. What the frick is going on?? Is he employed or not??? And Philip is such a slimeball but did make a good point when he said Lucas hadn't even come to visit him until he wanted something. BUT considering the way Philip's been acting who would want to visit him? I was impressed that he pointed out to Victor that they did put Lucas in the middle but of course Victor squashed that like a bug. And that whole "Call security Philip, we have an intruder," was just ridiculous. At least Philip had sense enough not to follow through with that. Oh yeah and then the next time we see EJ and Lucas together, EJ's reminding him of some conference! OMG!!!

That whole thing with Max and Abbey was just kinda bogus and really reaching. There is NO way he ever had a crush on her. Never has he given any indication he ever thought of her as anything more than a puppy dog or a kid sister which he said as much when he gave her that Christmas gift. I thought it was mature of her to admit her feelings for him. She is so weird anyway. I've always thought so. Hesitant, shy, booksmart, holier-than-thou, extremely pretty but totally BLAAAAH. How she is Jack and Jennifer's daughter beats me. Nick has more personality in his little finger than she does in her entire hand. Oh yeah and what's with the girly thumb rings that Max and Bo are wearing. Really Queenie if you ask me.

So the bones are Mimi's dad, David Lockhart. Big surprise. What's shocking is Mimi's hair is blond again. But not as shocking as BRITNEY SPEARS GOING BALD!!! GOOD LORD. That girl has gone completely nutso. One day of rehab is not going to do her any good. She needs ONE YEAR! But I digress. I'm curious as to what they're going to do with Bonnie and Mimi. They're going to be leaving pretty soon. Are they just gonna disappear like Tek and Lexie? What about Mimi and Philip's baby? You'd think Vic and Phil would be all hot to get their hands on Phil's actual heir. Maybe when they said "terminate" the contract, they actually meant "terminate" the pregnancy??? After all, Philip was all ready to terminate Belle's pregnancy since it wasn't his baby. Who knows. I'm really bored with all the Lockhart junk anyway. Unfortunately, Patrick may be in the hoosegow but he's still causing trouble. Especially for Chelsea.

Yeah, just when she thought it was safe to go back in the water she gets two big hunks taken outta her in one day. First she makes an absolute fool outta herself when she sees Dr. Rebert at the hospital and of course thinks he's Dr. Shane Patton. Chelsea immediately throws herself in his arms and starts kissing him all over his face while he stands there like a statue. Dr. Rebert is a cutie but let's face it has NO personality whatsoever. Mr. Brickwall should be his name. Billie is standing over to the side with her face in her hands bemoaning the fact that her daughter is a fruitloop. Chelsea finally realizes her mistake, apologizes profusely, turns three shades of purple and red and flees the premises with Billie hot on her heels. Billie tries to tell Chelsea that it's not as bad as it is (HAHAHAHA) but Chelsea knows better and says she's going to find Nick so he can get to the bottom of this cruel cruel joke. Uh-oh.

Meanwhile, Nick of course is freaking out because Dr. Rebert advertised in the paper that lab assistant job and he just knooooows that Chelsea is gonna see it and apply for it. Yep. Freak on out, Nick. Abbey tells him it's time to tell Chelsea the truth but before he can, Chelsea goes over to Maggie's where she tells her to go upstairs and make herself comfortable in his room. Who does that? I don't know, but that's kinda invasion of privacy doncha think? Chelsea's looking around his room and he's got the typical science geek stuff -- Albert Einstein posters, computer (which I thought she would log into and find his lonelysplicer account), science posters and then lo and behold she sees a movie poster for Patton and a movie poster for one with "Shane" in the title and it immediately clicks. That's one smart cookie. I betcha she would figure out Sami's pregnant just by looking at her. Unlike EJ. Needless to say she is devastated and when Nick shows up she gives him both barrels. I felt sorry for both of them because she kept saying he'd lied to her which he really didn't and there is no way the old Chelsea would've let him profess his feelings for her. She would've laughed his face and ground his heart in the mud. And that's a fact.

So after finding out her lonelysplicer is actually Nick she goes over to Bo and Hope's to cry on their shoulders. They offer their sympathies and Hope is even being really nice to her. Hope explains that maybe the emails was a "shy guy's" way of professing his feelings without getting hurt and Chelsea kind of leans toward that but then stiffens up again. Bo gets a call from Roman and leaves to go downtown. Lo and behold we actually get to see Doodlebug. Are they EVER gonna name that kid? That's one HUGE baby! Hope and Chelsea have this really nice talk and Hope tells Chelsea that she forgives her for Zach's death and all the other pain. In the meantime, troublemaker Roman just has to show Bo page 286, line 17 of Patrick's 500 page confession which states how "Chelsea helped him on occasion". One particular occasion being the night Patrick kidnapped Hope and he had Chelsea call Bo to tell him she saw Patrick and Hope headed out of town. All of this was extremely stupid and contrived. Bo goes barrelling home and starts going off on Chelsea and let me say that HELLO? if she HADN'T called Bo then what would've happened to Hope THEN?! HUH HUH Mr. Bigshot? I mean Patrick was all ready to KILL Hope! So once again Bo disowns Chelsea for absolutely no good reason this time. And obviously he totally forgot how she and Nick took money to his ijit son Shawn -- does that not count for anything? What about everything she has done presently? I think she's proven that she's changed and plus NOW he's going to believe Patrick just because he's in prison and presumably has nothing to gain? UGH. Chelsea once again leaves in tears and while Hope tries to talk sense into Bo's thick skull he replies, "Duuuuh. Me not gonna forgive her! Me stubborn ijit like Shawn! Gug."

Oh yeah I almost forgot to mention that after Steve escaped the hospital he went immediately to confront EJ about being tortured and EJ whips out that tarot card and Steve falls under the spell. EJ is really evil. He threatens Steve that if he doesn't do what he's ordered then people he loves will be hurt namely Kayla or Stephanie and STEVE will be the one that hurts them. He continues to taunt Steve until Kayla and Bo show up and he quickly hides the card in his jacket. He pretends like he's all concerned for Steve's welfare but Kayla just slaps his a good one and says that if he hurts Steve, she'll kill him herself. Later on at the police station, EJ drops the charges against Steve and of course we all know why -- so Steve can start doing his bidding. Gak.

Well, there you have it folks. Two weeks worth in a nutshell. If there was something I didn't mention like Willow and her stupid smirking, then I didn't have any interest in it. For the record I can't stand her. Feel free to leave comments!

Gaaaawwwllleeeee! Finally Gonna Update!

Just to let you know that I'm finally caught up on Days for the last two weeks. It has been a struggle this last week to watch the show while dealing with my other stuff. For those of you that have been reading my other posts, I finally did hear from my art instructor regarding that on-line exam that I got kicked out of and I'm going to be able to get back in and take it. I tell you, I was stressing big time this weekend over that. You can ask the Husband and he'll tell you that I was completely nutso.

Anyhoo. I have computer class to go to in about 15 minutes so hopefully when I get back I'll be able to work on my witty commentary. If everything goes well, I should have it posted by this afternoon.

Amy

Bettas are Good Stress-Relievers

If any of you have noticed that I haven't updated in a few days, it's because I still CAN'T GET IT TOGETHER!!! Yes, people, still behind on everything. I now have TWO weeks of Days to watch and guess will do that this weekend along with everything else that needs to be done. This morning Victor, my nine-yr old, says, "I don't have any clean pants." Never mind that he didn't have any yesterday either. "Go through the dirty ones and pick out the pair that's the least dirty," I tell him. Of course, he picks out the pair that has the big rip in the knee. I swear do I have to do EVERYTHING? I'm stressing too because last night I sat down to take my online art history exam and it's set up that you only have one chance to take it. You can't save it and come back later and continue. So, I log in, click on the link and the first question has an image which is broken. I try doing the "Show Picture" by right-clicking but that doesn't work. I then click Reload but that kicks me back to the course home page and GUESS WHAT? When I try to get back to the exam, it says "Assessment completed, click OK to see results"!!!! AAAAGGGH! Then when I click OK, it tells me, "Assessment not complete, results not available". WTF?!?! So, now I'm waiting for the prof to respond to my plea left on the discussion board to reset my exam considering I didn't even get past the first question.

My stress level did come down somewhat after watching my Thursday night shows. Earl, The Office, Scrubs and 30 Rock. While watching 3o Rock I set up the new 2 gallon aquarium I got at Wal-mart for my Betta. I've had him in one of those flower vases but have been reading that those are actually horrible for them. They need to be in a minimum of 2 gallons of water heated to at least 80 degrees. From About.com: "Bettas, also known as Siamese Fighting fish, originate in the shallow waters in Thailand (formerly called Siam, hence their name), Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and parts of China. They are found in rice paddies, shallow ponds, and even slow moving streams. Although many fish keepers are aware that Bettas come from shallow waters, a key factor that is often overlooked is the water temperature. These countries are tropical, which means the water temperature is quite warm - often reaching into the 80's. Bettas thrive on heat, and will become increasingly listless when the water temperature falls below 75 degrees F. Water temperature is perhaps the biggest argument against keeping a Betta in a tiny bowl (which cannot readily be heat controlled)."

Another thing about Bettas is they don't like the bubble makers especially if it's in a small aquarium like I got for my greenish-blue Betta. Too much activity on the surface. They prefer still water. This morning when I got up, he was at the bottom and when I turned off the air pump and after the surface cleared he was right at the top nosing around at the bloodworms I dropped in. I have a pink Betta that is in my 30 gallon goldfish tank and he's been doing fine. Victor has a red Betta in a fishbowl in his room and I'm thinking of getting a lamp to heat the water cause the bowl is actually a pretty good sized one. The picture of the Betta I have posted looks similar to mine. I have been thinking about purchasing a female Betta but I really don't want to contend with the breeding. If any of you have Bettas and have noticed the bubbles they make on the surface, those are bubble nests for breeding. They are letting you know they are good to go!


It is a proven fact that watching fish swim to and fro in a tranquil aquarium significantly lowers blood pressure and heart rate. That is why a lot of doctor and dentist offices have them. I love to sit and watch my fish and they will even come up to the glass and look at me but I know they are just wanting food. :) The only thing I don't like is the water changes but if the regular maintenance is done right then these are done only once a month. If you love fish and have always wanted an aquarium but don't want the hassle of a large one, I really encourage you to think about getting a Betta and a 2 gallon desktop aquarium. You'll be asking yourself why you didn't buy one years ago. Take it from this Betta junkie. You won't be sorry.

Can't Get it Together

Well, I am back from Nashville and I swear I feel like I've been gone for a week. Still haven't watched last week's Days so that means I'll probably be two weeks behind now. The picture above is of me and David standing next to this really big gee-tar on Broadway in downtown Nashville. I had a nice visit with him and miss being around him on a regular basis. It was really cold there this weekend and we 'bout froze our patooties off. Went in a few of the shops which included Ernest Tubb's Record Shop. Ate lunch at the famous Wildhorse Saloon and I had me a Wildhorse Cheeseburger. Saw the Tennessee Titans stadium and kinda yawned at that cause I'm totally not into football or any sports at that but it was still interesting to see.

After milling around downtown and driving past the capitol, David drove us over to Centennial Park where the Parthenon is. It is an exact replica of the one in the Athens, Greece hence the nickname "Athens of the South". Unfortunately, we didn't have time to go inside as David had a second interview to go to for one of the many jobs he's applied for (and guess what? he got it!). I told Jimmy (the Husband) that I would like us to go there on a visit so we can visit the places that David and I didn't get to and actually go inside the Parthenon cause there's a statue of Athena and the Nashville Art Museum is housed there as well. We also drove up Music Row (which is just the recording and publishing companies) and there's a statue at the top of the hill called The Muse which I took a picture of. It is very pretty and you have a really nice view of the downtown skyline. Of course, there's the other side of Nashville which includes the vagrants and the weirdos whom I saw plenty of. David drove me down "that side" of town (before dark of course) and after that little excursion, I said, "Well, I'm disappointed. That wasn't at all as exciting as you made it out to be." Maybe it was too cold and it kept them off the streets.

Saturday evening we went back downtown to eat dinner and ended up at Demo's Steak and Spaghetti House which was pretty good. I guess a whole lotta people thought the same thing cause the place was packed when we got there and we had to wait a good hour before we were seated. Our waiter was a guy named Matt and he was really nice and totally on top of everything. I got their speciality which was the spaghetti and I chose meat sauce. It was actually angel hair pasta and a large portion at that. They served these garlic rolls with the meal and they were nice and soft and goooood. David got the 6 oz steak and side of spaghetti aka angel hair.

Sunday was a much warmer day and David took me to this local burger joint called Fat Mo's. It was pretty good though the ambiance was less than stellar. David mentioned that he had only come through the drive-thru during his previous visits and now he didn't know if he'd be going back at all. Of course, David's like that. See one little bug . . . No, seriously there were no bugs there. The decor was just seriously lacking -- they certainly didn't care if the furniture was the cast offs from the previous establishment or that their main feature was sheet metal drilled to the wall instead of painting it or wallpaper.

I left that afternoon at 3:30 EST and made it back home in 4 hours. I am always glad to get home even if I've had a swell time. I hate unpacking though. I swear both packing and unpacking are torturous and this trip was the worst for me in packing. I forgot a total of 4 things and that's totally unlike me. The most I've ever forgotten is like ONE thing.

Well, hopefully I can get back on track in the next few days. Don't hold your breath though. I have a test tomorrow in visual basic that I have to study for tonight. This weekend I'm going to a friend's house pretty much all day Saturday.

Too many things to do. Too little time.

Going for a Little Visit to Nashville

Well, folks I'm leaving on the midnight train to Nashville, TN. OK -- not the midnight train -- actually, the 1:00 SUV. My best friend David moved there last November to pursue other opportunities and to be with his SO. So, I'm finally going down to stay with them. Having lived in Tennessee 95% of my life (5% was spent in Orlando, FL) I have never been to Nashville! I have driven through it on my way to Memphis (took my mom to Graceland for her 60th birthday in 1993) and when we went out West in 2004. So I'm excited to finally get the chance to see my state's capitol, Music Row, the Parthenon, the Grand Ole Opry and whatever else. I definitely want to go to Tootsie's Orchid Lounge. That's where Doolittle Lynn got into that big fight in Coalminer's Daughter. I will be coming back Sunday evening. Since I haven't had time to catch up on the soap this week, who knows when I'll get to post my witty comments! HA!

Here's to all you hip, cool cats

These days I rarely listen to mainstream music. There are a few artists out there that I think are really good -- one being last year's American Idol contestant Chris Daughtry. I'm actually glad in a way that he didn't win cause he's been able to go his own way and break free from the American Idol stigma. But I am really getting off my original subject. I am not a fan of the current hip-hop, gangsta rap, R&B, screechy-Beyonce-to-the-left-hoochie-mama music that's currently being broad casted across my local Top Twenty stations. Instead I usually listen to CDs from my extensive collection that includes everything from the Beatles, John Mellencamp, Aerosmith and Alan Jackson to Dean Martin, Neil Diamond and AC/DC among many, many others. One of my absolute favorite series is the Ultra-Lounge series that my long-time friend, David, turned me on to. It takes you back to days of dry martinis, the atomic age of the 50s, cool cats, Martin Denny's Exotica, Vegas baby and cocktails for two. There's a total of 28 CDs in the series. I don't have all 28, but I have acquired quite a few. My favorites are Mambo Fever, Bossa Novaville and Mondo Exotica. Another great CD in my part of the collection is Christmas Cocktails. It has a lot of the classics such as Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer, Winter Wonderland, Jingle Bells but they are jazzed up. Other CDs in the collection that I have are Space Capades; Organs in Orbit; Bachelor Pad Royale; Wild, Cool & Swingin'; Bottoms Up; Vegas Baby and Ultra-Lounge Fuzzy Sampler (a great way to be introduced to the series). I just love this series and I mainly listen to them in the car which is where I spend most of my listening time because once I get home either the TV is blaring with Cartoon Network, Nick or some Samurai movie the Husband may be watching. So check out the Ultra-Lounge website or go to Amazon.com where you can listen to the sound samplers. I guarantee you won't be disappointed!

Blast From the Past

For those of you who remember me when I manned AmyCougar's Salem, USA website and for those of you who are just tuning in, here is the link to my old archives of Days weekly recaps from July 1999 to December 2003. I thought you might get a kick out of re-living some of the not-so-good ol days. The show truly has stunk at times, but we dieharders have stuck through thick and thin. I have been a fan since the early 80s when Bo and Hope came on the scene along with Pete and Melissa and the original Roman and when the "What Da Hell" Roman was still Chris Kositchek. Steve and Kayla have always been favorites of mine and I wasn't watching for a while but when they came back, I was totally back on the scene. Only a resurrection of that nature would bring me back. Now if they can bring my Steffie back I'll be a completely happy camper!

http://www.geocities.com/amycougar/Days/Archives/archives.html

DrOOL -- All She Can Do is Cry, Cry, Cry

I don't know about anybody else, but Belle was driving me absolutely bonkers last week with her screechy crying. If I was there with her, I would've slapped her a good one across the face. And Shawn in the biggest IJIT in the entire Thunderdome. Who gets themselves ARRESTED when they're on the run from the police?!?!? Plus, that whole "raid" was absolutely ridiculous anyway. With Belle screaming, "Shawn! Shawn!" and Clair crying, how could the police not hear that there were people inside; and HELLO why didn't they have police stationed at the back of the building? Obviously the Candanian cops are just as smart as the Salem PD. Then you have Shawn-meister pretending to be all drunk to "buy the runaways some time". Well to me, it looked that rag-a-muffin bunch just hung around in the back alley until the cost was clear cause they were right back in that room by the time Nick and Chelsea arrived.

Speaking of Nick and Chelsea, they were cracking me up on the plane when Chelsea was harrassing Nick about his virginity and him loudly proclaiming he wasn't and the whole cabin getting really quiet. However I don't know why he just didn't tell Chelsea that "yes it was Marge aka Margot. She was my next door neighbor, yada yada" and leave it that. Then she would've shut up and left him alone. Of course, this is Chelsea and she's never satisfied even when she does get an answer. And I can't believe I'm saying this but I'm actually liking her. I think it all started when she called Bo and let him know that Patrick had kidnapped Hope. Of course we all know that's when the writers were in the process of desperately trying to redeem her. It's been a long road to tow but I think we're finally seeing the horizon. Now watch, she's going to something to completely screw it up.

The only time I liked Philip was when he was putting Willow in her place and the only time I liked Willow was when she was putting Philip in his place and the only time I liked Victor was when he was putting BOTH of them in their places!

Oh yeah. Did you notice that after Victor told Philip to go in stealth mode that as soon as he got to the Canadian jail, he was all over Shawn and sqawking like some mad hatter bird?

I really like this new demure Sami. I'm glad EJ finally shaved that beard. It was doing nothing for me. And why all of a sudden Lucas deciding not to work for Mythic really didn't make sense. All that groveling on EJ's part was kinda over the top but I guess it's just because he wants to be as close to "Samantha" on a legitimate" basis.

I REALLY wish Will would cut that mop!!! At least get it out of his eyes. How in the world he will be able to see to play his new PlayStation3 is beyond me!

Mommy, this Coke tastes like butt!

My doctor recently prescribed 50mg of Topamax as a mood stabilizer for me. Topamax is FDA approved for migraines and epileptic seizures. However, it has also long since been used in the treatment of bipolar disorder. Side effects of Topamax include a tingling sensation in hands and feet, memory loss, confusion with words, weight loss, appetite suppression. However, there is one side effect that I don't think doctors really make patients aware of though it is extremely prominent. My doctor only told me about the tingling sensation, possible leg pains and the weight loss. As with any medication I start taking, I research it on the Internet because let's face it the Internet is a goldmine of information -- unless of course you're reading Bubba Ray's theory of relativity on Wikapedia. Anyhoo . . . all the websites that were coming up were only stating the treatment for migraines and epileptic seizures. Even the official Topamax site mentioned nothing about the drug treating mood disorders, but I suppose this is because it's not FDA approved to do so. I finally found this site called crazymeds.org run by this guy who is bipolar with a touch of autism and he had a wealth of information on just about every antidepressant, mood stabilizer, stimulants, etc out there. Here Topamax was listed as a mood stabilizer and he had listed the pros and cons, side effects, etc. What I found interesting is this: "Sodas and other carbonated beverages will utterly taste like ass, so you may as well give them up now if you're considering Topamax."

And people. THEY DO. It took about two days of taking the drug for me to notice this effect. Now I have never tasted ass before but if I'm sure it would taste like a Coke does to me now that I'm on Topamax. Once that carbonation hits my tongue, this bitterness just expunges from my mouth and my face draws up like I just sucked the juice from a lemon. BLEEEECH. It's no different if it's regular or diet -- it's all the same bitter taste. It's sad for me cause I love Diet Sprite and Diet Pepsi -- especially with buttered popcorn. I can still manage to drink them but it's certainly not with the same enjoyment. ::burp::

Okay, I'm wearing diapers, but what happens when the car runs outta gas?

So, I guess everyone has heard about the crazy astronaut chick that tried kidnapping the other astronaut chick that she thought was fooling around with their fellow male astronaut? She was actually a pretty attractive lady . . . until they arrested her and now she resembles some psycho b*tch. Maybe it was when she decided that wearing diapers so she wouldn't have to stop on a 900 mile road trip was a good idea. Or actually it probably was when she decided that kidnapping her fellow astronaut was the right thing to do to keep her man focused on her. Never mind the fact she's already married and has kids. I swear I have no clue what makes supposedly rational people suddenly do completely asinine things but I can tell you one thing, you will never catch me wearing diapers on a 900 mile road trip.

Days of Our Lives for the Week of Jan 29 - Feb 2

I am finally catching up on last week's episodes. Man, Lucas is looking really old. He's carrying some major luggage under his eyes. I like how he always looks so annoyed. Maybe he has a permanent cob up his butt or something.

OK. What was with the whole phone call thing?? Shawn's waiting on Bo to call him and then here's Bo standing around waiting for Shawn to call HIM?? DUUUH?? And then Shawn says to Belle, "Let's call my dad and see if he'll send us some money!"

HAHA-- Leave it to big mouth Maggie to tip off Willow and the rest of Chez Rouge to what Nick and Chelsea are up to. "WHAT?! YOU'RE TAKING MONEY TO SHAWN AND BELLE IN CANADA?! WELL HOW ABOUT THAT? NO! I WON'T TELL A SOUL!"

Willow is an idiot. She actually thinks Hope is going to welcome her and her fetus with opened arms after she lied on the stand about Shawn and took a $10,000 bribe from Victor?

I loved it when Steve was driving the runaway Trio and he says, "You all need to get some sleep," and they settle down to take a nap. Steve then proceeds to turn the radio on to this Alice Cooper/Marilyn Manson headbangers ball station -- at full blast! Riiiight. Yeah, I always catch quite a few Zzzzz's listening to those lullabies!

Why doesn't Steve tell Kayla about the tarot card that Benji gave him???

--More later. I actually have to do some work now. HAHA

Welcome to My First Post!

I have thought about creating a blog for a long time now and lookie here . . . I finally did! I had a website a few years ago which I closed in 2004. It's actually still out there floating haphazardly in space. It was devoted mainly to the daytime soap Days of Our Lives which I still do watch. I plan on having a section here commenting on the show but I also plan on having other things to talk about too. My blog may be slim pickin's until I get things situated and the way I want them to look. So, in the meantime, bear with me. Or is that "bare" with me? Just don't be naked with me -- I can't handle the whole nudist colony thing!

Peace out
Amy