Flapper's Folly

I spent yesterday doing what I promised. There is no organized effort in this area, at least none I could find, providing any kind of aid whatsoever to California Wildfire victims. I contacted the local television stations asking if they planned any fund raisers and the anwer was "no." I was referred to their sister network affiliates in California and all of those affiliates suggest donations be made to the Southern California Wildfire Relief Fund which I listed here yesterday. I chose to contribute to it.

I listed local Californian Red Cross chapters yesterday. You can also contribute to the Salvation Army Southern California Wildfire relief effort. I found an excellent source of information to be the website of California US Senator Barbara Boxer.

I suppose we never really consider what it would mean to pack up what we could carry and leave our homes, possibly to return and find our homes and everything in them gone. I know, in my house, first in the car would be my beloved animals, but shelters for people are not equipped to handle pets, let alone horses, goats, iguanas, and parakeets. There are huge efforts being made to house and feed these displaced animals. PETsMART is helping. Countless kennels and humane societies are all donating space, food and services. County fairgrounds are housing livestock and acting as clearinghouses for lost pets. People are donating use of their trailers to transport livestock out of endangered areas. I read one place that the Red Cross was helping to fund some of the efforts involving county properties. There were many local animal shelters with nothing but phone numbers for me to offer, but the task would fill the page so I have chosen not to. I contacted PETsMART suggesting they set up a fund for the animal rescue effort. As a national chain, they would reach countless people, and frankly, it would be great PR. I have not yet gotten a response from them. Please, if this interests you, email them and add your request. Many voices are louder than one.

Have a fun & safe Halloween.

Posted by Rockelle at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Reports on the fires in California continue to be grim. More lives lost, more homes destroyed, and thousands of acres consumed. I am upset by this, but I am more upset by the way people react to it. I live in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. When a small town with maybe a population of 3000 is hit by a tornado, the local news carries stories of where to donate food, money and goods to help those afflicted. We see Christian organizations loading up trucks and heading off on their good Samaritan missions. Where are these things now?

Is it that most of us consider California La La Land? Can we not muster sympathy for the loss of a million dollar home? Even if that home is no larger than the one we live in? Perhaps it is that most people here cannot begin to imagine the scope, the sheer size of those fires. People here speak of distance in minutes. They have no understanding of miles except perhaps in the air. They certainly don't know the first thing about acres or sections.

Yes, I know, that is a generalization. I shouldn't do that. I can't help it. I was raised in a small town and there was an innate belief that city people didn't know the first thing about the rest of the country that surrounded them. No, not every person in a city. And certainly no specific city. But I've lived in the city long enough now to observe that generally it is true.

Last night I watched the local weatherman try to descibe the size of these fires in terms of the metroplex. He tried to explain what 660,000 acres would be. Do you realize it is more than three times the size of New York City? And yes, the images we see are full of trees, but there are houses in those trees. Family homes full of family heirlooms, kid's bicycles, and all the earthly possessions of people just like you and me. Not all houses are built cookie cutter style on flattened postage stamp lots.

Yes, this is a rant. This is my place to rant. I fully realize I should do more than rant. I don't intend to sit on my ass and complain about the complacency of others. I'm taking the initiative this time. Today I am calling and finding out where help is needed most and how to get it there. I will pass this information on to you. And I ask that others take this matter up at your church, workplace, or any organization you are involved in. I believe people are generous and good, they simply need direction. Contact me with information of any efforts and I will post them here and pass them along in every way I know.

More than 2,600 homes have been lost. Countless people are homeless and without possessions. Those people are just like you and me.

Update: Due to changes made since 9/11, it is no longer possible to earmark donations for specific localities to the National Red Cross. The Red Cross is a wonderful organization and providing shelters and help for those suffering in California. To assist in those efforts, donations should be made to the local chapters: San Diego/Imperial Counties Red Cross Chapter , the Claremont Chapter, the Inland Empire Chapter, the San Gabriel Valley Chapter, the Riverside County Chapter, whose office is temporarily relocated due to the fires, the Ventura County Chapter ... (more to be added as available)

Contributions to the Southern California Wildfire Relief Fund will be matched dollar for dollar
up to a total of $100,000 by the California Community Foundation. They have waived all administrative fees associated with the establishment of the fund and the disbursement of grants to permit 100 percent of the money raised to be available quickly to the disaster area.

Posted by Rockelle at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Of all the hardware that makes up a PC, the mouse is usually the least expensive and given the least thought. Yet it is the part, along with the keyboard, with which we have the most physical contact. I started out with an IBM mouse at home and never thought about it. At work, I never liked the MicroSoft mice provided, but face it, you take what you get. Only when it was time to replace the old IBM, did I pay attention to the differences in them. My hands are small. The MS mice are simply too long for me. Logitech's mouse is smaller and fits my hand better, producing less stress on my wrist. I suspect, like many things, the designers of mice create them for men and never think about a woman's generally smaller hand. It's time they did.

Gyration Ultra Gyroscopic Mouse

Recently I needed a new mouse and began searching for the perfect one. The choices now are mind boggling compared to in the past. Some mice are nearly a keyboard in your hand, replete with side buttons to control all manner of functions. There are trackballs, scrolls, regular, USB, optical, cordless and more. We had picked up a Kensington optical USB mouse for $5 with rebate a few months back just to have on hand. I began using it. The size is fine, but it has issues. When left alone a while, it sometimes simply dies and requires unplugging and replugging a couple of times to revive it. My requirements are simple. It must fit my hand, be optical, scroll, and corded to connect by USB to my keyboard. The cordless ones have batteries, and besides, I would be searching for it all the time along with the phone and my keys. The Puter Ho picked up a laptop mouse for me, thinking it's small size would be perfect. It was too small. Starting to sound like "The Three Bears," huh? However, if you have a small child on a computer, it would be wonderful. I'm happily back with a Logitech. Simple and a perfect fit. What might be the ultimate mouse is the one above from ThinkGeek. It's cordless, requires no surface, and works from up to 25 feet away. It uses high performance NiMH rechargeable batteries. Just wave the magic mouse. This would be great for giving presentations and game play. At $79.99 though, it is a bit pricey So, think about your mouse, and the next time you visit a computer emporium take the time to test drive a few. You may find there is something you would be much happier with. And please, somebody build a better mouse for women.

Posted by Rockelle at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

What a great morning! Chilly and an extra hour in bed. Mmmmm. Friday I wrote here about making bath salts and mentioned I would share recipes. Over the weekend I put together the most basic recipe and some information that might be of use, especially for a beginner. You can go here for that info and I have also added a link to the left. I'll build upon that basic recipe this week, adding variations, and also share recipes for bath bombs, milk baths, and other scented bath goodies. I'll post an update here in the blog as recipes are added. Reports this morning on the Southern California wildfires are that 14 lives and 850 homes have been lost. 24,000 more homes are threatened. I have lived where wildfires were common and know firsthand the devastation and fear they wreak. My prayers are with those who have lost loved ones, folks losing their homes, and to the brave firefighters affected in California.

Posted by Rockelle at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My stepson gave me a lotion and lip balm kit for my birthday. I had seen it at Michaels and mentioned that I would like to try it out. I make soaps, bath salts and bombs, but had never ventured into lotions or lip balms. I was so disappointed in this thing. Made by Life of the Party, nothing was labeled, so you didn't know if you were using the color meant for lip balm or lotion. The scents, apple and something vaguely reminiscent of bubble gum, were horrible. I got out my own supplies and doctored up the lotions, but made the balms according to their instructions. It's terrible.

The mixture must be heated to a very high temperature, then transferred with the most cloggable pipettes imaginable into little tubes and pots. It's hot. It's messy. And they don't give you enough containers to hold all the muck you create. I ended up pouring the rest into the garbage, but the glass containers used for heating are still setting on the counter while I figure out a way to clean the gunk out of them. Too bad pyrex measuring cups aren't disposable. This kit seems as if it would be popular with preteen girls, yet I can't imagine the mess and the danger involved with children.

The best part of the gift is that I am now inspired to start making bath goodies again. Every few months I turn my kitchen into a factory and churn out salts, bombs and scrubs for myself and my family. In looking to order some oils, I found that my favorite supplier, Majestic Mountain Sage , also has a lip balm kit. For the same price, you get a lot more and from my experience with their products, it would provide a much nicer experience and final product.

Next week, I'll try to share some of my recipes for bath goodies. It's ridiculous to spend so much for something so inexpensive and easy to make. They also make great stocking stuffers and Christmas is just around the corner.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. I plan to spend mine OD'ing on lavender. :)

Posted by Rockelle at 2:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Yesterday was my birthday. No, I'm not revealing the number. The Puter Ho's birthday was the 4th, so over the weekend we had a houseful of family to celebrate our combined birthdays. When Monday rolled around and everyone was gone, I was too tired to celebrate more. We stayed home and had takeout, vegging on the sofa. I have a wonderful husband and family. I'm soooo very lucky.

Last week I had set up TiVo to record "Second Hand Stories" which aired on PBS last Tuesday. Last night we watched it and it was just too good not to put a plug in here.

John Freyer, who sold every one of his possessions on eBay for a project called "All My Life for Sale" , met Christopher Wilcha when Wilcha was making a documentary about garage-sale culture in northern New Jersey. The two have teamed up for the ultimate road trip. Part On the Road with Charles Kuralt, part Flea Market Finds With The Kovels , Freyer and Wilcha take off to buy and sell their way across America in a 1977 Chevy ambulance bought on eBay for $2500. The pair document their adventure using second hand cameras and old records they have bought for the soundtrack. But that's not all... Much, much more than a hokey trip down memory lane, the duo interview an obsessive collector, talk to the inventor of many familiar board games of the 60s and 70s, visit with a guy selling the sole prototype of his invention in a garage sale, and are suspected of terrorism by local law enforcement as they meander through flea markets, lost baggage depots, and Goodwills across America. When money runs low, they pull over and sell some of the treasures they have acquired along the way.

Never boring, the show moves along, punctuated by interesting statistics and bits of old footage regarding their finds or sometimes just snippets of someone's home movies that have been discarded. You're even treated to tapes of incoming and outgoing messages left on old answering machines they have bought. The show is not about bargain hunting or collecting at all, it is more an archeological expedition into our culture.

Second Hand Stories will be rebroadcast at various times across the country on PBS. You can find the times here for your area.This is merely a pilot and there is no mention of future episodes, though it obviously was set up to be a series. Watch it. Then take the time to go here and leave feedback. Hopefully we will get many more Second Hand Stories.

Posted by Rockelle at 10:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

A remake of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre opens this weekend. It looks to be slick and cool. The original was anything but.

Being a fan of horror films, I've seen a lot of them, and the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre stands out in my memory. It was 1974 and in a new theatre. Up until about this time theatres were huge with balconies and cry rooms. Before the big multiplexes became common, a lot of small single theatres were opened. Not much more than an oversized garage, rows of probably ten seats and thirty rows deep, aisles on the sides, these places left you feeling like a sardine and on top of the small screen no matter where you sat. The sound was better, louder at least.

It was a Friday night and I was with a date. Obviously boys thought this was a great flick to take a girl to see. Scare her shitless and she'll be in your lap in no time. There were lots of couples. I honestly don't remember details of the film. I remember well it being gross and repulsive. At one point, at least half the audience had left. Girls would jump up and run out, their boyfriends sitting there a few minutes longer, before following. Some boys immediately joining the girl, grateful to finally get out. All adults present left early. It was a riotous scene. I remember not looking a lot.

I'm sure that today the film would seem fairly benign. It had a feel similar to the Blair Witch Project. Raw and documentary like. Too real. It was banned in the UK for over 25 years. Over time, we've all become blase about gore and violence. I want to rent the old TCM just to see what it was that shocked everyone back in '74. It's an interesting barometer of society's change. We've lost something.

Innocence? Compassion? I don't know.

Posted by Rockelle at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I read quite a few blogs and have found a huge number of blogs created for the sole purpose of planning weddings. They not only go over every detail of the planning and provide links to every baker, jeweler, etc. in a tri state area, they also let us in on what the poor groom to be thought and how he hurt their feelings and on and on and on ad nauseum. Some of these blogs are combined efforts allowing several brides to be to share resources and whine to one another If you've come across one and you're feeling a bit woozy or if you are a single girl without prospects who would like to see the bitches' hard drives crash and burn, I have found the cure. A blog/website that features an ugly wedding dress of the day, UglyWeddingDress.com is great fun. The author searches the web finding the worst of the worst, true wedding gown atrocities, and delivers them with witty and entertaining commentary. If you've ever poured over one of the bridal magazines, wondering what on earth the designers were thinking, you must go check this out.

Posted by Rockelle at 2:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I saw Kill Bill (mustn't forget_ Volume I) over the weekend. The reviews before it opened weren't glowing, yet it opened #1 for the weekend, taking in $22.7 million.

If you watch MadTV, you might be familiar with a character played by Michael McDonald named Stuart who does a spastic little dance in his whitey tighteys while chanting "Look what I can do." Very similar to what Tarantino did in Kill Bill. Watch me do anime! Watch me do Hong King cinema! Watch me do film noir! Watch me do spaghetti westerns! Look what I can do!

Oh yeah, there was lots of cool stuff. The old Green Hornet theme song. Thurman wearing a replica of Bruce Lee's yellow suit. Cato masks. Sonny Chiba. Great little things that make those who think they are cool insiders sweat. I could say how beautifully it was shot. I could describe how boring it actually was. I'll sum it all up by saying this.

It was like watching Tarantino masturbating and inviting all his best buds to join in a circle jerk.

Posted by Rockelle at 12:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Last week I wrote here about blog comment spam. Over the weekend the problem has burgeoned. Every time I sat down to quickly check email, I found new comments left here. Not the simple "Boris Rules!" of last week, these from Lolita and others all opened window after window of porn when clicked.

There is no simple way to delete numerous comment entries in MovableType . Each one must be deleted individually and the site must then be rebuilt. It's boring, it's burdensome, and it makes me mad. I can choose to accept no comments at all, but I don't want to do that. I shouldn't have to do that!

I don't know if this is primarily a MovableType problem or not. Whether it is or not, it's a sure thing that soon it will show up on all blogs. Hopefully, something called MT-Blacklist will help with this problem, at least for MT users. Created by Jay Allen, MT-Blacklist is like a plugin for MT, allowing one to block specific spammer IPs, many already loaded from lists of known offenders.

MT-Blacklist is supposed to be ready to roll today and I will be glad to have it, but ultimately something is needed that can differentiate a spamming bot from an actual human wishing to leave a comment.

In the meantime, I'll try to keep up with carrying out the garbage.

Posted by Rockelle at 10:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Root canal. Bleh........
'Nuf said.

Posted by Rockelle at 6:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Do they automatically issue handicapped plates when you register a Lincoln Town Car?

Posted by Rockelle at 4:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

As you get older, you find you are responsible, or semi responsible, for more and more people. And you wish that age truly did grant you some great wisdom, but it really isn't so. Mostly, you have experience and experience teaches you that most problems in life are dealt with and quickly forgotten. You come to realize that as long as everyone is healthy, the other stuff is not worth sweating too much about. It's very difficult to convey that to someone who is young and unsure and in a bind.

My two grown children come to me for advice in a crisis. My ex, their dad, to whom I was married for many years, is no good in these situations. If he was, I wouldn't have depended so heavily on my father most of my adult life. My father is now a victim of alzhaimers. I can no longer rely on my Dad's advice to save the day. The buck stops here. I'm always here to help. I'll do anything I possibly can, but sometimes I simply don't know what is best.

I now realize how terribly broad my Daddy's shoulders were to carry all that responsibility. He was never a know-it-all, but he listened calmly and carefully to a problem and then presented a plan. If you followed that plan, it would be okay. I realize now that he couldn't always have been sure his plan would work, but I know that he would have backed it up and made it right if it didn't. That took tremendous confidence and was a huge responsibility and he never backed down from the task.

Daddy, nobody will ever fill your shoes...

Posted by Rockelle at 5:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I know this is late, but better late than never. The trailer for the third season of 24 aired on Fox on September 7th. If you missed it, go here to see it. While searching for the trailer, I also came across a fan site with what seemed to be up-to-date facts and rumors.

The show premieres, commercial free, October 28 on Fox. It's top priority in the Tivo, but hopefully I'll be watching it as it airs.

Posted by Rockelle at 10:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Recently I've gotten some strange comments on some very old entries to this blog. Simply some person's name RULES! The email address and the URL are bogus. They are always on the same entry though. I've simply deleted them, wondering what their purpose could possible be.

Today the Puter Ho sent me this link, in which someone much more technically savvy than I discusses the phenomenon. As I understand it, the comments are markers, places the marauder can return and do evil. Probably the "attack" would likely consist of a lot of spam comments being dumped on your blog to try to get clicks from people who come to read what you wrote. In my mind, that is the most benign possibility.

Soon we could have spambots clogging up our blog comments the way spam currently reeks havoc in our email. It's actually kind of disappointing to me. So mundane compared to my visions of espionage. I was entertaining images of spies and terrorists using my blog to send secret messages. :)

Update for this entry here

Posted by Rockelle at 2:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (1)

Okay. I'm a hit whore. My September 26th post about Brooke Aldridge's shoplifting arrest gained my poor little blog more hits than any day ever. Hell, to be honest, more than some months!

So when I came across her mug shot, I had to add a link.

You have to wonder if they weighed her upon arrest, or that was the weight on her driver's license. Hmmm....

Posted by Rockelle at 3:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October is here! My favorite month. The mornings are so crisp and golden. I've already piled pumpkins and pots of mums on the porch. I love it. Now if the Allergra will just kick in..

My birthday is in October. Everything about the month was perfect until I married the Puter Ho. See, his birthday is in October too. Now before you go thinking this has to do with the perils of two Libras living together, which I can assure you would be a great idea for a situation comedy, let me explain.

This man is a great giver of gifts. He prides himself on bestowing presents that illicit tears. The perfect thing that you maybe never thought of, but now that it's here, you realize it's all you could ever want. He has stayed up all night watching for scalpers and in the end spending far too much to get a particular antique stereoscope on Ebay. He visited every retailer in the metroplex in search of the ideal leather jacket. I should be happy, right? NO!

You see the problem here is that his birthday comes first. If mine came first, I could always outdo him. If he spent too much, I would spend even more. In the rarity index, I would always top him with the most unique, extraordinary, and unusual of items. But I have to go first and most of his wishlist is available at CompUSA. I've learned to my sorrow not to go out on a limb. The beautiful Ralph Lauren cashmere sweater I bought him sits in the back of the closet, unworn except for once after a tearful display. Mine, not his.

I do the best I can. I am a faithful customer of ThinkGeek. I once scored high with a business card case made from a circuit board. At least I think that's what it was. Don't get me wrong, I try hard not to see it as a competition. I know it is because he loves me that he goes to so much trouble to surprise me.

I only hope he knows that just as much love and attention goes into the less than stellar gifts I give him.

Posted by Rockelle at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)