Today was the second day I encountered this random guy wearing pink Converse sneakers on the way to work. You have to be pretty secure with yourself to wear pink, but a guy in pink sneaks? Ah well. If it makes him happy...

But in case you're wondering about the title of this entry, the book to the side I purchased on Christmas Eve while I was out at Chevy's with my mom. I started reading it that night and finished it late Sunday morning. So I read a little over a hundred pages a day. Not spectacular pacing, but better than I usually do, and I have the excuse of a holiday in there as well. But this writer, Robin Hobb...her previous two trilogies are amazing, and the trilogy Golden Fool is a part of is wonderful as well. You just keep reading and reading, wanting to know what happens but not wanting it to end...or that's just me, perhaps. But it is inspiring read such books, it makes me want to write something that would move people that way. I hope that someday I can see my name on the cover of a book that I'm proud of. Wouldn't it be nice if my New Year's resolution was to finish the book? Hah. I need new computer before I'd feel comfortable doing that. And I still need to figure out how it ends Any ideas? Take a look at what I've got so far (for public viewing, anyway... there's more chapters that only special people see. You have to email me if you want access for them...) and let me know what you think! Last night I turned on the comp only to just reread some of what I'd previously written. I do sound much different now than when I started. I'll have to go over the whole thing someday and change lots...but for now, just get a draft. A huge draft. I wonder how many pages it is already. All the chapters are at least ten pages long, typed single-spaced, and there's six plus a prologue finished...many thousands of words already and so much left to go. Would be nice to finish chapter 7 before the end of the year, but as that's in a little over a day I don't think it will happen...

I want the third book of the Tawny Man trilogy to come out now! Sigh. If only I lived in England it's already out there, but here we have to wait for February. So impatient am I! Better get writing on my own in the meantime...

Posted by Jen at 4:02 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Since it's late I'll just mention that I'm happy with what I got this year (no keyboard, but then again, I wasn't really expecting anyone to get me something that expensive) and I did clean up on the LotR stuff. Whee! LotR Trivial Pursuit and Monopoly, a Legolas&Gimli on horseback toy, a HUGE calendar, and a Weapons and Warfare book. Also some books Dad got at auction at work.

Finally got Mom a copy stand, pasta maker, and smoothie blender...and I hope Dad likes what he got. He liked the flipbook of Albert Pujols anyway...

Hope your Christmas went well! Enjoy your gifts/day off/just plain day. And happy Boxing Day to the British

Posted by Jen at 12:54 AM | Permalink |

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Grown-up Christmas List from Amy Grant's Home for Christmas album

Do you remember me?

I sat upon your knee.

I wrote to you with childhood fantasies.

Well, I'm all grown up now,

But still need help somehow.

I'm not a chile but my heart still can dream.

So here's my lifelong wish,

my grown-up christmas list,

not for myself, but for a world in need:

No more lives torn apart,

and wars would never start,

and time would heal all hearts.

Ev'ry one would have a friend,

that right would always win,

and love would never end:

This is my grown-up christmas list.

As children we believed

the grandest sight to see

was something lovely wrapped beneash the tree.

Well, heaven surely knows

that packages and bows

can never heal a hurting human soul.

No more lives torn apart,

and wars would never start,

and time would heal all hearts.

Ev'ry one would have a friend,

that right would always win,

and love would never end:

This is my grown-up christmas list.

What is this illusion called the innocence of youth?

Maybe only in our blind belief can we ever find the truth!

There'd be...

No more lives torn apart,

and wars would never start,

and time would heal all hearts.

Ev'ry one would have a friend,

that right would always win,

and love would never end:

This is my grown-up christmas list,

this is my only lifelong wish,

This is my Grown-up Christmas List.

God bless us, every one.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor 13:13

O star of wonder, star of night,

guide us to thy perfect Light.

Merry Christmas!

Posted by Jen at 2:20 AM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

but I'll answer some questions anyway. And yes, I did see RotK again this past weekend, and it was quite good, again. My parents liked it too, though my mother is quite sure she knows why the movie won't win best picture at the Oscars. Ah well.

Q: Does billy Boyd sing in the Soundtrack? A: Yes, yes he does, and quite well too, on track #5, The Steward of Gondor. Quite a moving scene in the movie. I just love his accent. Go Scotsmen. Also, Viggo Mortensen sings in Elvish on track 17, The Return of the King (a ten minute long track! Viggo only sings a short bit in it.)

Q: Inama Nushif A: Well, if you want to anything about it, I suggest you look at this post or this post (first is better, since it has a link to the composer's website). Then you should rent the Children of Dune miniseries and watch (and listen) for the scene it's played over. Such a good scene.

Q: Will Orlando Bloom answer my letter? A: Now how am I supposed to know that? I mean, if I had ever written him a letter mayhap I would know if he responds, but alas, being neither Orlando Bloom nor his publicist I can't help you.

And in the same vein: Q: Does Billy Boyd fancy me? A: I honestly don't know, but to make you happy, I'll say of course. I'll be sure to pass that onto him the next time I see him... yeah.

I should mention that the midnight premiere started at 12:17 am on 12/17 (by my watch, anyway) and that the reason I see the midnight premiere is because the atmosphere is so much better. For instance, you knew people were going to cheer at the appropriate moments at the MP, but there were only two places for cheering at the saturday matinee...Legolas' Mumakil moment and Eowyn vs. the Witch King. And there was some polite golf-clapping at the end, vs the rather thunderous applause at the MP...so much more fun at the midnight showing. Where else are you going to find all these people in cloaks yelling at the screen?

Posted by Jen at 5:07 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Aspyr is going to release the RotK game for Macs next year! Whee! Now all I have to do is get a computer that can play it. sigh. I really want a new computer...

I really need to balance the gifts between my parents. I have about seven gifts for my mom and two for my dad, and those two are pretty small. sigh. what do you give your dad? He never asks for anything and really hates it when people spend money on him.

It's weird wrapping presents by myself. I mean, I suppose I can wait a little bit, but it's still weird. And sort of a pain. And messy. But pretty

Want to read Return of the King but don't have the time before you see the movie? Check out this site and you'll be all set. I like things that make me laugh. There's lots more great stuff where that came from.

I want to see Return of the King again this weekend! Really! I want to subject myself to three hours and twenty minutes of butt-numbing stupendousness! I do, really! I'll shut up now.

Posted by Jen at 2:17 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Well, I'm officially tired now, and I really need to go christmas shopping still. and pick up something for the lab lunch party tomorrow. and tape smallville and angel. are they even new tonight? I don't know. Blast, I forgot to tape 24 last night. That's the first episode all season I've missed. Too bad I don't still have bit torrent on this computer. takes up too much bandwidth.

Happy Birthday to Bernard Hill! He's 59.

I wanna see it agaaaiiinnn...meh. Soon, grasshopper. I've listened to the RotK soundtrack so many times today, and I still don't know the names of the songs. Beautiful stuff.

So I'll be going now. If you actually made it through all the tripe I wrote today, I salute you. Bed never sounded so good.

Posted by Jen at 6:24 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Heee. Foxtrot is funny. So is this one. Gotta love it when comic strip writers go pop culture. Especially when it mentions my favorite actor.

Did anyone else notice the scar on Viggo's lip? I guess cause I was seeing his face up close and personal...makes you wonder how he got it. Or maybe that's just me. And Orlando sure does like the pursed-lip mug for the camera. Cute though.

I can't wait to see the Mumakil scene again! lol. You have to love it when you can see on his face that he's deciding to do this outrageous thing that no one else would even think of, and then he does it! Whee!

Posted by Jen at 2:55 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Are you a LotR Expert? Hee. I am and some interesting statistics.

Spoiler thought...

At Aragorn's coronation, he communes with the remaining members of the fellowship, and you get to see Lego in a crown...of sorts. Makes him look a little poncy, but I was like, hey, Prince Legolas of Mirkwood! And then he does this cute little eye flick and directs Aragorn's attention to a banner behind him...and lo and behold there is Arwen, with Elrond the proud pappy looking on. Now this sounds cheesy, but it works.

You see all the people of Minas Tirith on the Spike of Ecthelion (er. I think it's the Spike) and Aragorn passes Faramir and Eowyn...they look happy, standing close together, but I wish they would have put in a little of the romance for the two. But I guess that will come with the Houses of Healing sequence. That just makes the EE a must-see. And what about the seedling of the White Tree? I hope that gets addressed in the EE as well.

I cannot wait to see this again. I didn't really care for the beginning, what with Smeagol and Deagol, but I suppose it's nice to see how Smeagol became Gollum, so that's sort of a pain to sit through, but once you get past that, it's spectacular. A spectacular piece of cinematic history.

And yes, I wore my costume. I did have a coat on outside as it was in the twenties and very windy. But once we got in the theater I had full costume...minus a belt. I can't believe I forgot the belt! Luckily we didn't have to wait outside long...they let us in over an hour before midnight, good thing. Maybe they felt sorry for us There were some people in costume, a lot of people in cloaks, mostly at the beginning of the line. You could tell some people had been camped out there a while. We should have gotten there a half-hour earlier and we would have been closer to the front of the line...but we got good seats anyway. We sat in the fifth row this time, not the third...still a little bit of a crick in the neck, but right in the middle of the theater. Good stuff.

You WILL have to go to the bathroom at the end of this movie! It's amazing how three hours and 20 minutes taxes your bladder

Some more questions that need answering (there's been an influx of questions in the last few days...I guess I'm showing up on some weird searches...but feel free to ask anyway!):

Q: Sound track the return of the king. A: If you want to know where to get it, check out lordoftherings-soundtrack.com or

Amazon. If you want to know my opinion...I'll have to listen to TTT again, which I think is my favorite, but I've been listening to the RotK soundtrack for at least a week straight, so it's my favorite right now. Sweeping sounds, reprises from the first two movies, beautiful symphonic stuff that makes you want to be a composer. I would have to say the LotR music as a whole is my favorite soundtrack work at the moment...Howard Shore is still not my favorite composer, though he's high on the list. But behind Hans Zimmer and James Horner still, I think. I highly recommend the RotK soundtrack. Of course, I also highly recommend the FotR and TTT soundtracks as well. Spring for the deluxe versions if you can get it. They're just a little more fun.

Q: Trailers before RotK. A: There were a couple of not so good trailers and a few interesting ones. Spiderman 2 and The Butterfly Effect are trailers that stood out...I assume you know what I'm talking about with Spidey2...if not, search the web and I'm sure you'll find the trailer as it went online on Monday. The Butterfly Effect stars Ashton Kutcher and Amy Smart, neither of whom I think are great actors, but the movie sounds not half bad. There was a sort of stupid teaser for the 2nd Mask movie. Something about a baby born with the Mask's powers? Eh. Go see the movie. I liked the trailers but that was not why I was there

The credits of RotK are pretty neat. For each actor's name there's a pencil sketch next to it of the character they play. I didn't stay for the whole thing but I will next time. I want to hear the whole "Into the West" song in theaters. Sigh. Theoretically I might still be able to make it to a show tonight, but that's probably pushing it. I want to see RotK again! Right now! lol. At least I know I'm guaranteed at least two more showings, possibly three...and I'd have no problem with that at all.

Today is the 100th anniversary of the first flights at Kitty Hawk. Whee! So glad the Wrights were smart

I'm sure there will be more later.

Posted by Jen at 12:35 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

TheOneRing.net Fan Reviews

Here's my review that I submitted to TORn. You can read it here and see how I rated things, or just read the text below...

!!!SPOILERS!!!

The word that describes my viewing of the midnight premiere is 'breathtaking.' Even though I've read the books several times before and knew what was going to happen, I still felt myself carried along with the story and waiting (or dreading, depending on the mood) to know what was going to occur next. The way the story is told is original...using the book as a guide, but done in its own way.

First off, a few gripes...I realize that with a story with so many different characters and arcs that there's going to be a little discontinuity, but some of the jump cuts were disconcerting. This bothered me in the Two Towers as well, but it's something I can live with. Sometimes Howard Shore's beautiful score was drowned out by the action onscreen, but that's not a terrible thing either. I miss the Faramir/Eowyn relationship and the Houses of Healing. I want to see Aragorn work the magic of the King. But at least they'll be on the dvd.

It was interesting to finally see the promo stills and trailer clips in their proper context, strange to see how they had changed since we first saw them.

Now the highlights: I'll admit my fangirl status by saying Go Legolas! His taking down the Mumakil singly got the loudest cheers during the whole movie. And a funny part to boot. Thank you PJ for listening to the fans. And he's knowledgeable about the Paths of the Dead, eh? lol. And finally making note that he's a prince of the Woodland Realm...good stuff.

Aragorn. Wow. Viggo, my hat's off to you. Aragorn seems so real, so human, I believe I would follow you too. Gandalf: nice to see you for most of the movie. I'm glad you got to kick butt with your staff and stave off a couple of Nazgul. Pippin! I love the accent, and the lighting of the signal fires was a wonderful cinematic moment. The soaring music and sweeping vistas...one of these days I'll go to New Zealand and see it for myself.

Eowyn/Merry vs. the Witchking! Yay! Women/Hobbit power! Don't those bad guys ever learn that just because 'men' can't kill them they can still be killed? The battle scenes! Huges shots of the armies coming together, when you know that it's hopeless...they're willing to make the ultimate sacrifices just for the chance one small hobbit will make it to the Cracks of Doom. And the final fight between Frodo and Gollum. That part stayed with me from the book, and I will always remember it from the movie as well.

I'd heard this one could be a tearjerker, and there were some times that I almost cried. This is pretty impressive, because I never cry at movies. But everything just feels so realistic, so immersive, that you can't help but emphasize with the characters.

I was worried at the beginning with the slowness of the movie, but I got into it quickly. I never looked at my watch the entire 3 hours and 20 minutes. I do remember thinking just about the time when Frodo and Sam were at the foot of Mt. Doom that there was still a lot to go...but I'm glad they wrapped it up. I'm glad the Hobbits got new suits.

I was sad to see it end (for real, after the several fade-to-black frames), and a little numb. What an amazing experience. I'll need to see it at least two more times to get the full impact. Thank you PJ, cast and crew for making such a wonderful, touching, moving, action-filled, workout-for-your-subwoofer film. Hannon le.

Final analysis: I loved it, can't wait to see it again, so-THAT'S-what the silver frock is supposed to look like, yay Lego in a crown, Aragorn: the fans have found their captain, Arwen: ok, she's very pretty and not as silly in this movie as TTT, read the last two pages of RotK, and walk out smiling. I'll be listening to the soundtrack all day, and coming back with more thoughts as they come to me...now to work, now for wrath, now for ruin and the world's ending! er. Still excited.

Posted by Jen at 9:43 AM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

And this will be my last post before I go home, try to sleep, eat something, watch the 2nd disc of TTT, read the last two pages of RotK, and go wait in line! Egads!

btw, that buffer I was working on all day? Out of the 20 liters the bottle can hold I made 10. Yeesh. Took me all freakin' day to do that...I so hope it doesn't take as long to fill the bottle!

Tomorrow is gonna be whacked out, man, so don't expect too much from me.

See you on the flip side...and expect to see a familiar title to tomorrow's post.

Posted by Jen at 6:46 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

and questions, questions that need answering.

Q: Where can you buy Legolas's Bow? A: You can't. At least not an official replica and at least not yet. Hopefully they will sell one soon. You can buy an 'inspired-by' Mirkwood bow here and his daggers here.

Q: Graham Coulton A: Well, all I know about this band is that they opened for John Mayer during this past summer's tour. I believe the website is www.grahamcoulton.com, could be wrong. Pretty good band from what little I heard of them, since we got to the venue late because of traffic. Silly I-70.

Q: What is everyone in the cast going to do after the movie? How do you feel that you might never get to see each other again? A: For the grand scheme of things I refer you to TORn because I know they have the plans of the fellowship in their archives. I personally am looking forward to seeing the cast in different roles, especially Orlando, if that had escaped your notice. I'm sure the cast will get together often in the future, just nothing on the scale of LotR. And I really hope you know that I have nothing to do with the cast. Just a fangirl living too far from Hollywood to ever have met any of the cast.

Q: How does your Joseph Sugarman quote apply to Survivor? A: For those of you who aren't sure what this person is talking about: Each time you are honest and conduct yourself with honesty, a success force will drive you toward greater success. Each time you lie, even with a little white lie, there are strong forces pushing you toward failure. --Joseph Sugarman. This is a quote you'll occasionally see on my webpage, somewhere near the top, with the rest of the quotes. Obviously this quote has nothing to do with Survivor, and I'm sure Mr. Sugarman never intended it to be used in such a context, a context where lying is rewarded and honesty is ridiculed. Why are you asking me to think so hard?

Q: Buddy icons. A: I'm sorry, your answer must be in the form of a question. Yeah. If you're looking for a small collection of Legolas buddy icons, check out The Realm. Two of them are mine, the others are taken from site, which, I have no idea. Otherwise, try searching the web. Lots of people make avatars. Or you could visit Orlando Bloom @ FF and look for the avatar thread, or any of the boards there.

Q: why am i asking a question? A: I dunno, cause you were bored and clicked the button?

Q: isnt legolas/orlando bloom fit A: Yes, of course he is. All elves are naturally slim. And if he wasn't, I bet he wouldn't be such a heartthrob. Eh. Call me stereotypical.

THIS JUST IN! Q: sneak preview anywhere in CT A: Now why would you expect me to know that? Do I look like movietickets.com? I wish you luck and hope you find a place showing the midnight premiere.

Posted by Jen at 6:01 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Seven hours, really. Another hour spent making buffer and pHing it. Still haven't read the last two pages of RotK, which are apparently closely hewn to in the movie, said to be ending with the exact same line. I like that.

Eeggh! Can I go soon? Gotta watch the second disc of TTT still...

Posted by Jen at 5:05 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Egad. I've been making buffers all day. What a joy. Until you have experienced the fun of a pH meter, you haven't lived. *strong injection of sarcasm there* Someone tell me again *why* we need so much 20x TBS? (Which will be 200 liters of TBS when its used at 1x. Whee! Gaah.)

Some links for you: USA Today's sort-of review

MSNBC's 'Triumph' review

Posted by Jen at 4:06 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Just so it's not another boring countdown entry, thought I'd let you know that it's Mirando Otto's (Eowyn) 36th birthday today. Nice present, eh? I can't wait to see her character kick ass.

Also, the official LotR site has finally put up a new interview with Orlando Bloom, with new downloads! Whee! Know what I'm doing on my (very late) lunch break...

Do you think I should try to make it to my cousin's graduation this friday? it's at 12:30 pm. Sigh. Why do they always make graduations in the middle of the day on a weekday? Sigh. Early congrats, Corey! *mwah*

Posted by Jen at 2:01 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Wouldn't you know it that it's supposed to get cold tonight? Last year it was surprisingly warm for December. And yesterday it got up in the 50s. But tonight, yes precious, tonight, it's supposed to get down to 26....eep!

Don't forget to vote for me in the Enchanted Realms...check out the sidebar! This is a topsite so it keeps going, through holidays and premiere dates...

Posted by Jen at 12:59 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Welcome to the first countdown to RotK for the day! Rest assured there will be more throughout the day

I still haven't decided whether to wear my costume or not. It would be really neat to, and if you look into last year's December entries, you'll see I swore I would have a costume ready to wear for the last one...er. I'll have to see how many layers I can fit underneath the silver frock and tunic...cause it's gonna be a cold one tonight. 26 and windy, if the forecast stays the same...your thoughts?

Ed. Note: In case anyone actually reads the time on these things, I really did post this around 9:15 am. For some reason the server clock thought it was an hour ahead...ah well. Hopefully it works now. Seriously. I can add.

Posted by Jen at 10:19 AM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

If you go to Google and type in "miserable failure" (be sure to include the quotes) and hit 'I'm Feeling Lucky' just look at what comes up.

CSS is fun. All you aspiring web designers should check it out. I'm currently obsessed with how to get a picture to underline a link when you hover over it. Yeah.

and did you hear about this guy? Microsoft fired him for taking a picture of Mac G5s being delivered to their loading dock...silly MS. If they didn't have a better browser and the omnipotent word processor I would not use them! bah!

Posted by Jen at 7:24 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Two days! Two days! Eek! I'm excited, can you tell? lol. Tomorrow at 10 we'll be standing in the cold, waiting for the doors to open...hopefully this year we won't have to crane our necks from sitting too close to the screen...hopefully we'll get good seats. RotK here we come! Expect an hourly countdown tomorrow

I meant to mention this last night when I was waiting for Survivor to finish, but thank goodness they finally captured Saddam Hussein. I do hope he gets what he deserves. Now if they could only catch Osama bin Laden and get the hell out of Iraq I'd be happy. Why does Bush think that spending money and troops so lavishly and continuously (still!) that the place is going to get any better? Eh. I hate politics.

btw, the Spiderman 2 teaser trailer is online. I saw it off a link on yahoo.com but I'm sure that it's several other places on the web. Whee!

Posted by Jen at 11:08 AM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Three days till RotK. I'm quite excited. They're showing new tv commercials. "Starts Wednesday." Whee! Wonder if I'll make it though the books before I see the movie. Perhaps.

It snowed all day yesterday. I got up at 6 am to help my mother with her last art show of the year (visit BSPA) and by the time we finished setting up around 8:45 it was snowing steadily. It didn't stop until sometime this morning. A nice smooth blanket that probably would be good for sledding. Alas I have no sled. I should have picked one up last night when I had dinner with the 'rents after the show, but I wasn't able to. Hopefully I'll be able to sled some other time...Art Hill is the best sledding hill ever. Really. Especially if it's icy.

Went to the StL alumni party last night at the City Museum. Alex and Leo were busy so I went by myself. Glad I went though, as the place is so cool and saw some of my friends from my class who are still in StL.

Did I already tell you that my Matrix name is Winter? Probably. I can't remember.

If you are a friend of mine and know that I don't have your address or you would like some mail, let me know and I might be able to send you a christmas card.

We still have to finish watching the first two LotR movies. I know that it's gotten good reviews but the anticipation is killing me. Still haven't heard from anybody about wearing the costume for the line. Sure would be nice if I could find out anyone else going in costume. I'm sure there will be. Perhaps I'll just wear the cloak over my coat. (This is your hint to comment.)

By the way, OMB means Oh My Bloom or Oh My Buddha, depending on which fanclub you're at (LotR and Roswell, respectively).

Survivor spoiler:

Sandra just won. I figured. Not who I wanted, but ah well. Congrats to her...and I'm glad I didn't have to do it.

Thank goodness we're having a lab lunch on wednesday. I'll be pretty well useless after the midnight premiere, and I won't be the only one. Too bad Mark isn't seeing RotK at Esquire. Side note: Ross and I have a sort-of date to see RotK at a later time... whee!

Goodnight, folks. Maybe I'll answer some questions later.

Posted by Jen at 10:48 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

or at least that's what empire magazine gave RotK in their review. Whee! Five days...less, really, given that this day is closer to being over with and I'm seeing it at midnight...last night during my shows there were two new commercials for LotR...it's so nice to see 'Starts Wednesday' instead of the farther-away-seeming 'December 17.' So nice that the last one ends on a date with one of my favorite numbers it it...

Entertainment Weekly also gave RotK an A, which is cool. You can check out ew.com if you're a subscriber or I think you can buy the issue today.

LotR viewing tonight??? I hope so! It's been a while since I've seen FotR, extended or otherwise. It'll be nice to see it again. Wanna join us? lol. Happy weekend!

Posted by Jen at 7:08 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Well, color me surprised. It is actually snowing! I believe this is the first official snow for the StL area...or at least that's reached the ground. It's not sticking, of course, because it's been around 50 the last few days, but still. Snow! Whee!

This is cute: Newsweek's Mail Call, with letters from readers about their recent LotR article.

I'm so happy that I got rid of some spyware thing that was making any url I typed into IE change to some stupid search page. Thank you Spy-Bot. Free is good.

I hope it keeps snowing. I can't wait to go sledding on Art Hill. We could practically walk there. Yay snow!

Posted by Jen at 4:25 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

I just found out that the University College at my alma mater is offering an english lit class on Tolkien. Of course, registration started quite a while ago and the class is full. sigh. I could have gotten excited about that one. Maybe they'll offer it again, as this is the first time there's been a class like that...maybe next fall. I just love how I can't take anything that doesn't require a previous semester of class or that damn Organic Chemistry that I should have taken when I was in school. Gaaah! I don't want to be late anymore.

Perhaps that's why I ran...because it was something I could be first at. Something I could win. As long as you ran the race there was no way you could be late. Just last. and thank goodness I was never that.

Well, there's always tap dance, but I somehow doubt that the lab would like paying for that one. Having nothing at all to do with science, etc.

I want to take advantage of the tuition remission benefit that I get for working here...though since I (and my parents) have put so much into the school already doesn't it make sense that I should be able to take a class or two for free?

Mom keeps saying that if I paid as much attention to the things I do at work and back in school as I do to the Lord of the Rings I'd be much better off, and it's true. *sigh* Tell me again why no one wants to just pay me to write? Oh yeah, my standards are too high. Blah. I'm getting that scared feeling again about work. You know, am I doing well enough, am I working hard enough, am I learning anything that's worth what they're paying me? I even had a dream with some of my coworkers last night. It was a little offputting and for some reason had the gold medallion from Pirates in it. Go fig. I wasn't even watching Pirates last night. Foreboding.

*forlorn* why isn't the layout working?

Posted by Jen at 6:35 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Take a look at this article...I was amused. Too Clever By Half :: SPIN MAGAZINE ONLINE

An excerpt:

In any group of people, each member often develops a particular identity -- the brain, the jock, the drama queen. Did that happen to you?

Monaghan: Once, when we went back for reshoots, the four hobbits were riding horses.

Boyd: Elijah was having a lot of trouble with his horse, but he was trying to be a leader, and Sean was having an allergic reaction to the ?horsies. Dom was in a bad mood --

Monaghan: -- I was grumpy because of certain technical things that were pissing me off about the scene.

Boyd: And I was just in stitches watching all of them. It was so funny. And a girl from the special-effects team was standing there with a friend, and she looks at us and says, "Sneezy, Happy, Grumpy, and Doc" and walked away.

And happy belated 27th birthday to Mr. Monaghan...he celebrated yesterday. By going to a premiere, perhaps?

Random thought...Orlando Bloom is a Capricorn. I'm supposed to get along nicely with Capricorns. hey baby, what's your sign? er. yeah.

Posted by Jen at 2:42 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

yes, that's right. In exactly 7.5 days I'll be sitting in a theater anxiously waiting for the opening credits of RotK.

Just as I was leaving for work I caught the tail end of a radio promotion where you call in and they were giving away tickets to some movie sneak preview. It took them all the way until the end of the promo to say the name of the movie, but of course it was RotK. How cool would it be to see a sneak? sigh. The last winner was a secretary calling in for her boss who was in a meeting. How's that for dedication? Just once I'd like to win something like that...passes to a movie I'd really like to see. Anyway.

I love how no one says anything about the new layout...mmph. just me being glory-seeking I guess. and I can't get that stupid picture to move up for the life of me. what is wrong with my tables? sigh. Any clue as to why there's that little break in the middle of the blend? Please look at the code and tell me.

The RotK soundtrack arrived last night...mucho happy is me. Pretty stuff. At first listen I think TTT might be better...but this one sure has a much better ending credits song, sung by Annie Lennox. If you go to lordoftherings.net or lordoftherings-soundtrack.com you can listen to it, I believe. It's fun because Billy Boyd and Viggo Mortensen sing some of Tolkien's songs on here...it will be nice to hear them in context come next week!

Whether or not the time on this thing actually says noon is up to debate, but know I posted this at noon according to my clock. And that's all that counts.

Posted by Jen at 1:03 PM | Permalink |

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Q: What's the highest mountain in Ireland? A: According to Ireland - EnchantedLearning.com, the highest point in Ireland is Carrauntoohil, which is 3,414 feet (1,041 m) tall. Carrauntoohil is located in southwestern Ireland, near Killarney.

Q: Where is Legolas' dress up game? A: I'm assuming you mean the one at the Orlando Bloom Files...? At any rate, that's the only thing I can think of...

Q: Merry Christmas in Chinese? A: If you mean the translation, here it is:

Sing Dan Fae Lok (Cantonese) or Shen Dan Kuai Le (Mandarin)

And whoever asked about 1975 pop culture...I wasn't alive then, so I'm probably not the best person to expound about high points of the hippie age...talk to your mother.

Posted by Jen at 8:49 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

...for a new layout, anyway. Still working the kinks out, as usual. But at least the front page is pretty!

Nine days till RotK. Can you believe it? Perhaps I should run a poll...should I really dress up for the premiere? I wonder who else will come in costume...my thought is that it's going to be rather chilly. Not that the costume isn't warm, but it's not as if I'm an elf who does not feel the wind's bite...thoughts?

Posted by Jen at 5:52 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Extreme Caloric Restriction Dieters

You know the calorie restriction stuff I was working with Luigi on? Still am, sort of...well, there's going to be a 20/20 special on ABC tonight where they talk to a couple of the dieters, and amazingly enough, they're people we work with. I guess it's sort of a small group anyway, but it seems funny that out of all the people they could have chosen, I know them in sort of an abstract way. Just by blood, but still...

Don't forget, Orlando Bloom on Jay tonight as well! Whee!

Posted by Jen at 10:58 AM | Permalink |

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

The Mind of a Man

Just thought I'd share.

Don't forget about the ABC Primetime Return of the King special tonight at 10 ET/9 CT! Whee! And Elijah Wood was on Jay Leno last night, and Orlando Bloom will be on Jay tomorrow...yay publicity

Posted by Jen at 2:30 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Or actually, 13 days. I was going to mention the fact that the movie I've been waiting all year for is coming out in two weeks yesterday, but what with learning the ropes in the glucose transport lab I've not been able to goof off as much at work Got to talking about LotR with the guys in the lab and I of course showed off my geekiness in knowing exactly when the movie comes out and that I've already got my ticket for the midnight premiere...ah well.

Did I mention how I don't have a dvd player in my laptop? This is probably a good thing in the long run as it cuts down on procrastination. I still want a comp with a dvd drive though. But it wouldn't help me all that much anyway as even if I got a new one as it would only be good for watching a movie, say PotC, which has lots of enhanced PC dvd features. Meh. This is where I, defeated, admit I would like a PC for some reasons. Sigh. Silly people. Don't they realize that Mac-lovers are movie-watchers too?

Anyway, it's late, so I'm off to bed. Two weeks! I can't believe it. Must run dhea. Don't ask.

Posted by Jen at 3:01 AM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Thanks for voting for me, guys! And thanks Rebecca for making a great site and using my voting plaque

I'm off to get Pirates! Whee! I love having a dvd player

Posted by Jen at 7:02 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |

Pirates of the Caribbean comes out on dvd today, and as soon as I get people voted for I'm heading out to get it! Whee! I know what I'm doing tonight

Now for some pirates nostalgia:
Here they come:

The publicity shot that makes women drool

of course, the kiss:

and who can forget the shirtless pirate!

whee...gotta vote so I'm outta here!

Posted by Jen at 6:31 PM | Permalink

vote for ATTS: ER | Wishlist: {Amazon} |