A Little Intro ...

Welcome to the Daily Snooze -- my new Blogger.com blog. The Daily Snooze has been in existence for about a year over at AOL's Journals community and you can get read the archives there(use the link) to get a feel for who and what I am. This site will be a mirror of the one at AOL for a while before becoming my regular site sometime in the Fall of 2004. I look forward to meeting and greeting this new community and hopefully ending the access problems involved with AOL Journals for non-AOL members.

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Convention Bloggers Aggregation Site

In case you don't read John Scalzi, up there's a great location to read what the Bloggers are saying from the Democratic National Convention. Give it a try.

Wild Cats And Colleens

Wild Cats And Colleens


O Sweet Mother Ireland, now where have ye gone?

You've left and abandoned your poor weeping son

You cooked bacon and spuds in your own modest way

We laughed and we cried, oh yes, many's the day



Now you're in the ground and all covered in earth

Your rosary beads, they are wrapped round your girth

Once you were alive wearing diamonds and pearls

At seventy-six, still a helluva girl!



You were Mother Ireland, my own mammy too

There'll ne'er be another will ever match you

With your tidy red hair all tied up in a bun

Oh how I miss you -- your desolate son.

© 2001 Morag Prunty

Morag Prunty. Now there's a name to conjure with, isn't it? Morag Prunty is the author of three published novels, Painted Arrows, Disco Daddy and Dancing With Mules (renamed Wild Cats and Colleens: A Novel by her American publisher, HarperCollins Publishers).

I'm reading her first novel, Dancing with Mules, hereinafter shortened to Colleens. Set in Dublin and New York City, it's a romantic comedy inspired by the current crop of reality shows on TV. "Irish-American Billionaire seeks bright, beautiful, independent, but, above all, Irish wife. Please send photo and three-hundred-word essay about yourself to P.O. Box NY 14786. Looking for genuine love. No time-wasting money-grabbers please."

Hilarity ensues.

I am getting a real kick out of this book. The POV is most definitely Irish. She has excellent characterization skills -- you understand where her people are coming from and why. Her narrative could use a little punching up, but that's an editorial fault as much as anything.

Based upon my reading the first quarter of Colleens, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend picking up any of her books and giving them a whack -- you'll be glad you did.

Oh. That poem up there? The satirical lyrics to an imaginary Country-Western Dirge by an even more imaginary Irish band written and performed at the behest of the billionaire in memory of his mother. Really. I will go to hell for failing to obtain permision to use it, except it's the start of Chapter 4, so in that sense, it's an excerpt under the "Fair Use Doctrine." Still, it's so gag-me-with-a-spoon, don't you think?



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Polly wants a duvet!

Friday, January 16, 2004
4:50:00 AM EST

A refreshing change...

I know - you're bored with me kvetching about how cold it is. I am too. So here's a breath of fresh air that came to my email box this morning:

Dear List Subscriber,

During the recent change-over of our Web sites, a security breach occurred by accident. In normal operation external mail connections are prevented to the Woodtips email list. However, during the change, a mistake in firewall rules meant external mail was let in to the list.

Some external mail sent to the list contained copies of a worm virus.
During the few hours the breach occurred, our Woodtips email list was
exposed. This incident was confined to a problem with our mail list.

We have prevented the continuation of the virus by closing the security
breach and removing any further out going infected emails from our system. We advise that you do not open any emails that contain unknown attachments.

We apologize for any inconvenience caused by the incident.

Sincerely,
Anne Smith
Internet Marketing Manager
Shopsmith, Inc.

Way to go, Shopsmith. A mistake is made in Corporate America and they actually took responsibility, explained how it happened and apologized. Now why couldn't Worldcom, Enron, even big brother, AOL do that?

BTW, -18° at 5:00 AM. Shiver me timbers, Aargh! Polly wants a duvet!

Brrrrr.....

Thursday, January 15, 2004
7:45:00 AM EST
Feeling Chillin'
Hearing Ice Age soundtrack

Water pipes are frozen and busted, requiring the complete shut-off of water to keep cellar from becoming an indoor rink with no headroom. Feral kitties simply perch on highest objects to be found in cellar and glare. Willow the Wonder Dog minces across the icy drive way to the fecal repository, turns, raises one paw in a bid for pity from her cruel master who makes her use the outdoor facilities and then glares while she freezes her nipples off. SWMBO glares at the lack of a functional toilet & shower and supreme injustice of luring her away from Louisiana. It's cold folks, and no respite on the immediate horizon. Hope yours is a warmer, happier life today.

I awoke to the following cheery broadcast from the National Weather Bureau:

Wind chill warning through Friday morning.
Today. Mostly sunny. Highs near zero. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph. Wind chill readings 35 to 40 below zero.

Tonight. Mostly clear. Lows 13 to 18 below. Northwest winds 5 to 15 mph. Wind chill readings 35 to 45 below zero.

Friday. Becoming mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of light snow. Brisk. Highs 10 to 15. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph increasing to 15 to 25 mph in the afternoon. Gusts up to 40 mph. Wind chill readings 35 to 40 below zero in the morning.

P.S. It was -16°F when I went out to start the car this morning.

Good God That is freakin cold!!!!! where do you live? Antacrtica? Brrrrrrrr.. Im cold just thinkin about it!!!! lol
Comment from areochic99 - 5/15/04 8:26 PM

Now THAT'S cold. The boogers in my nose are freezing just at the idea!

Comment from andreakingme - 1/15/04 3:34 PM

man, glad i live in wisconsin... compared to you, i'm in the tropics! okay,thats a definite exaggeration, but hey... your journal's fun to read and i know i like getting comments left from visitors.
Comment from brianswife7378 - 1/15/04 9:58 AM

Welcome To My Deep Freeze

Tuesday, January 13, 2004
11:54:00 PM EST

The northern third of the U.S. extending from Minnesota and the Dakotas east to little old Maine and south as far as Connecticut is in the metaphorical deep freeze. Tomorrow's forecast calls for actual temps hovering at or below 0° F. for the day's high. Add in the 35 mph wind with gusts to 50 and that gives us a wind chill forcast of -60° F, predicted to last right through Friday morning.

To put it in real terms you can get your mind around, an egg cracked onto the sidewalk will be frozen solid inside of 20 seconds under those conditions. Here at La Casa Loca, it'll take a 5 gallon can of kerosene for each of three stoves to maintain an internal temperature at or above 60° -- that's $30 per day for heat. For under 1000 sq.ft of living area - only 4 rooms including the bathroom. THAT is just one of the many downside issues of living in a pre-civil war era house.

So welcome to my deep freeze. As the temperature drops below -25° outside, so too does it drop inside - at a rate of one for one. When it's at -30° outside it'll be 55° inside. And downward it will spiral. Makes one long for the deserts of Arizona and New Mexico this time of year...

Stay warm friends. Beware of carbon monoxide poisoning and may those of you sharing this gift of coolth from Canada stay as warm as you desire.

This entry has 2 comments:

Ah yes, but I remember freezing my patooties off on Fisherman's Wharf with an air temp of 58° and a breeze off the Bay..... it's all relative. Just bit more relative in your direction at the moment ;)

Comment from olddog299 - 1/15/04 7:49 AM

now i know why i still live in california .. i cant take anything less than 72 degrees inside or 55 degrees OUTSIDE lol
its just unnatural :)
pamela
Comment from his1desire - 1/14/04 8:00 AM

Cold Feet

Saturday, January 10, 2004
10:18:00 AM EST
Hearing James Taylor - Greatest Hits (1982 version)

Mood: Foul

My feet are cold. Not a little cold but somewhere around frozen. Stove went out in the cellar this morning about 6 AM and it wasn't noted until my wife's bare feet froze to the bathroom floor after stepping out of the shower (they were dry when she went in so she didn't freeze to the floor then, silly).

I know and sympathize with all of us that are cold today but this is ridiculous in the extremities: it's -10°F with a +20 mph breeze blowing out there and the temp at floor level is an icy 23° while at waist level the room temp is 70°. I need to move to Iceland. At least there the floors are warm!

Written by olddog299 . Link to this entry | Blog about this entry | Notify AOL

This entry has 1 comments: (Add your own) Move south!!! It was about 60 today in Georgia!!!!
Comment from karensull12 - 1/12/04 8:23 PM

The Friday Five - According To Andrea

1. What's on your feet right now?

Polypro socks (black) with knit cuffs and Dr. Scholl's knockoffs of Morrell Jungle Mocs

2. What's your mood like at this moment?
Annoyed... The Friday Five is amongst the missing, it's bloody cold outside, hot water is frozen to the tub and I need to shower before going to town. No shower = no town visit as I'd be mistaken for a vagrant, arrested and shipped out on a bus (that's what we do with vagrants - make them someone else's problem).

3. Are you a Pepper?
I used to be a Pepper. Actually, I started out like most kids as a hard Kore Kool Aide Kid, then graduated to ginger ale. Later, as a nerdy teen I was a Fresca. Then came a stint where Coke was Me and I was Coke. The came my term as a Pepper. Followed quickly by a 20 year stint as a Coffee & Bourbon, depending on the time of day. I devolved into just a bourbon for a while there. After rehabbing myself I came back as a Coffee until I became a zipper-chest; then I was demoted to a Decaf, which I am as we look at each other's silliness today.

4. Do you dot your I's with smileys?
Nope. I prefer mascara....

5. What kind of a laugh do you have?
It varies a lot, depending on the situation, mood, etc. Sometimes its a big belly laugh. Very appropriate, as I have a big belly. Often it is sardonic laughter - I have little use for the other monkeys inhabiting this cage. Occasionally its only a chuckle as laughter, while the best medicine, is often viewed as inappropriate at your enemy's funeral. There's the maniacal howl emanating from my study on the night of the full moon. The jackass bray at the inanities of George W. and his handlers. The school boy snicker at a joke at another's expense and there is my favorite, that low, throaty laugh I get when making love to a woman.

Written by olddog299 . Link to this entry | Blog about this entry | Notify AOL

This entry has 3 comments: (Add your own)

" What's on your feet right now? " gotta tell ya, i'm glad your answer wasn't some kind of fungus lol
#4 *almost* went over my head .. almost lol so where did YOU learn about mascara anyway? hmmmm?
pamela

Comment from his1desire - 1/12/04 8:21 AM

OK I AM GONNA ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS
1 NOTHING I AM BARE FOOT.
2 MY MOOD IS QUIET. A LIL AGRAVATED BUT MAINLY I AM QUIET.
3 AM I PEPPER, UMM NO ... I DRINK PINK LEMONAID.
4 NO, I DO NOT. I USUALLY WRITE IN CAPS FOR IT EASIER ON ME TO READ.
5 LIKE YOU IT DEPENDS. MAINLY A SILLY LAUGH.
I WILL RETURN BACK TOYOUR JOURNAL ..~BERLY
Comment from wayoutdacloset - 1/12/04 3:03 AM

Oh, very well done! This is actually what the Friday Five questions are supposed to do -- to draw the journaler out, to make him talk, to make him share.

And I predict that no one's going to be able to top your answer to number 3 (Are you a Pepper). It's GREAT! I love it.

Thanks for sharing, Wil.

Comment from andreakingme - 1/9/04 4:41 PM

Belated Friday 5

What one thing are you most looking forward to . . .

1. ...today?
Bangers and mash ( that's sausages and potatoes for the illiterati)
2. ...over the next week?
Hoping it'll be slow, weatherwise. Nothing of import scheduled until baby brother's birthday on Jan 18.
3. ...this year?
I'm looking forward to ice-out so I can get back on the water in my kayak this year
4. ...over the next five years?
Just continuing to breathe will be a major accomplishment in the next 5 years. Anything else is gravy.
5. ...for the rest of your life?
See above. Long life is not anticipated.

I apologize for the delayed posting. Not for lack of trying last Friday... but new questions hadn't been posted when I checked around 3AM and haven't been online since, until now. Had to check weather as sound of sleet on the window woke me from an obviously unsound sleep. Had to be sure it 'twernt a blizzard that escaped my ken. According to the Pettybees (PTB's or Powers that Be, in bureaucrateze) we're only expecting 1 to 3 inches of sleet with a heavy icing component. Humph! I'll believe it when I see it. My back throbs at the thought of picking up a 100 lb bag of salt today.

Cheers! May all your champagne dreams come true. Here's hoping you and yours have a happy, safe and prosperous New Year!

Written by olddog299 . Link to this entry | Blog about this entry | Notify AOL

This entry has 5 comments: (Add your own)

A dedicated Friday Fiver! I'm impressed.

Comment from andreakingme - 1/9/04 4:43 PM

I love a good bargain, but don't know of anyone who died from imagining an aching back. You're not having any chest pains or shortness of breath, are you? Any radiating pain down the left arm? Mayhap your back wouldn't throb if you just pick up the 100 lb. bag without thinking. (I just love it when you say "'twernt' and 'escaped my ken.')
Comment from rbushu - 1/7/04 9:35 PM

True, smaller bags could be had, but at a much bigger price. I'm buying it from the wholesaler, Robin. 100 pounds costs the same there as the little 25 pound bags at the grocery or hardware store. Besides, living forever is overrated... ;)

wil

Comment from olddog299 - 1/7/04 12:46 PM

Curmudgeons that frolic and fornicate by the light of the moon are not known to have long life spans. Pack it all in while you can, Old Dog. Buy the salt in 50 pound bags. Not so hard on the throbbing back. Remember to lift from the knees.
Comment from rbushu - 1/5/04 11:19 PM

and a very happy new year to you too !! amazing, if you're breathing, it makes life just that much more enjoyable eh? lol
pamela
Comment from his1desire - 1/5/04 9:00 AM

Vocabulary

I've had a few comments suggesting my vocabulary tends to fly over the cuckoo's head. So for the benefit of all of my erudite readers (all four of you) I share this little gem of a blog entry over at The Primal Purge entitled "Post Coital".

You can call me erudite or just plain rude. Either way, I'm in. How's the back, Olddog?
Comment from rbushu - 1/4/04 8:59 PM

Tempus Fugits

Tempus Fugits

by Wil

Phew!

Woke up this morning with a start!

Overslept, I had.

Panicing I am, yup, yup.

To town, lickety split.

Dropped off the anchor,

to toil amid the bone fields.

While I a langorous breakfast took,

surveying news with coffee and cream.

Thence to the druggist with script in hand,

seeking this and that for ills and chills

and rushing pell-mell to the grocery,

to see what's doing there,

paying fat cat canadian power brokers

for the energy that brings this

stinking poem home to you.

The Friday 5 Does 2003

1. What was your biggest accomplishment this year?

Getting out of bed?
2. What was your biggest disappointment?
The day the ATM ate my card...
3. What do you hope the new year brings?
Fewer bills, more checks.
4. Will you be making any New Year's resolutions? If yes, what will they be?
Nope... from past experience I know it is futile.
5. What are your plans for New Year's Eve?
A quiet evening at home with my wife..... if she has to work the next day. Else she'll be off to an orgy and I'll be entertaining my mistress at a fancy hotel in Montreal... NOT!

This entry has 2 comments:

2003 must have been a most fulfilling year for you :) Cute entry!

-Emily
http://journals.aol.com/popitart/cosblog
Comment from popitart - 12/28/03 10:03 PM

lol ya know .. i've never made a new years resolution .. not one .. maybe i should make a resolution to make a resolution .. some day .. hmmm .. maybe i'll just put it off till next year when i have more time to think lol
pamela
Comment from his1desire - 12/28/03 8:40 AM

Christmas Hangover

The ringing in my head is gone. Ahh R-E-L-I-E-F spells Rolaids..... Time was, the day after Christmas was a head pounding, body aching, stomach churning event to be avoided at all costs if there was an inch or ten of whiskey left in the bottle. Now, we venture forth all alone, unbuttressed by ethyl alcohol, and STILL manage to slip on the ice and fall on our butts! What's up with that, anyway?

The bells, the bells... that is, the Salvation Army solicitors have packed up their buckets and bells for another year. All stores were closed here save convenience stores under 1500 s.f. (part of Maine's "Blue Laws") so traffic into town on Christmas Day was nil. Not so in the evening - seemed like everyone just HAD to go to the movies, or Grandma's, or out to eat. For a major State and National holiday, as well as a seemingly major event in the lives of those who participate in the dominant religion hereabouts, there sure was a bargeload of traffic for a non-work day.

On the road this morning I came swooping along in the snow flurries and flew over a hill and into a valley and Whoopsadaisy!!!! there was no traction left as I slid across the culvert and up the other side. As fast as you can say "Bob's your Uncle," little one, I was back onto wet pavement and fishtailing along as the traction had returned with a vengance. Once we'd managed to remove the seat covers from our bottoms and slowed for the stop sign onto the main road, it was "No hassles, mon," all the way into Bangor. This little bit of snow flurry has covered all of the ugliness exposed by the inch of rain and snow-eating fog of gargantuan proportions which consumed us on Christmas Day. The cellar has about 4 inches of water (nature abhors a vacuum, don'tcha know, and what else is a cellar but a stormwater collection basin to Mother Nature?) so the feral kitties (aka "The Dirty Dozen") are all huddled on the porch for warmth in a vain attempt at staying dry. Willow-the-Wonder-Dog daintily minces through the mud in the dooryard to the old snowbanks left by plowing to make her deposit on the "Universal Excrement Exchange Formerly Known As A Lawn."

That's life down here on the funny farm. Hope Santa fulfilled your wishes whilst he emptied your pocketbook. And may all your spirits be on ice!

Merry Christmas

Sorry I haven't blogged lately. Nothing new here that hasn't been covered in the evening news. I do wish one and all a hearty Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year. May all your dreams come true in the fullness of time.
If you are feeling extra specially charitable, the Derosset Family lost their home and pets to fire last weekend. Visit the web site and make a donation, eh?

This entry has 2 comments:

Merry Christmas wil !! i feel bad for anyone who experiences a great loss .. especialy during the holidays .. i understand her community is really coming through for them and i think its awesome that a few aol journalers have created a way for the journal community to help out too
my best to you wil
your friend
pamela
Comment from his1desire - 12/25/03 9:13 AM

Merry Christmas to you! I'm killin' time waiting for the family to be ready for 10:30 candlelight service and have stumbled upon your journal... I'll be back!

~ Karyn
Comment from karynetaylor - 12/24/03 9:06 PM

Take The Test

Get over to 'That Happy Chica's' Journal and take the referenced political spectrum test

Bah Humbug!

Too much snow to shop - back is out and the plow truck is still down. Computer decided it couldn't find the AOL dialer so have been incommunicado until I managed to fire up an old copy of AOL 8 which doesn't make use of the dialer. More to come but off to bed - 5 AM comes way too early when you have to shovel snow to get the car out of the drive. Ciao!

This entry has 1 comments:

wil .. my daughters computer is having the same issues with 9.0 so we have to use 8.0 .. not sure what is up with that but it sure is frustrating
pamela
Comment from his1desire - 12/17/03 8:19 AM

Christmas Decorations For Light Days

Tampon Angel Pattern - make your own Christmas angels using tampons, talk about a feminine touch! Plus it gives the recently menopausal something to do with that box of leftovers.

A Special Gift For The Guy On Your List

At a loss for suitable gifts for those redneck cousins? Something for Uncle Cletus, perhaps? Get what every guy needs, the Underwear Repair Kit ... You'll be glad you did!

This entry has 1 comments:

Hey olddog we might be redneck cousins, but we don't have to shovel snow. Its short sleeve weather down here in Texas. Like your journal. Paula
Comment from plieck30 - 12/27/03 9:03 PM

The Friday Five

1. Do you enjoy the cold weather and snow for the holidays? While it often seems like it wouldn't be Christmas without snow and frost bitten nose, toes and fingers, the fact is, I could really do without the winter weather.

2. What is your ideal holiday celebration? How, where, with whom would you celebrate to make things perfect? My ideal holiday celebration would involve swim suits, scuba tanks, Jamaican Rum and hot women. I'll settle for ersatz eggnog at home with my wife as we toast our toes on the kerosene stove.

3. Do you do have any holiday traditions? Nope, other than only 1 in 5 years sees us with the desire to put up a tree. All of our children and grandchildren live so far away that we rarely bother decorating.

4. Do you do anything to help the needy? What do you mean? I AM needy.

5. What one gift would you like for yourself? World Peace. No, really. Just once in my lifetime I'd like to go to sleep without war or the specter of impending nuclear doom hovering over our heads.

This entry has 1 comments:

#1 -- i can so relate .. christmas isn't the same without the snow .. even though i hate the cold !! my son, in hawaii, is still surfing .. something about THAT just isn't right !!
pamela
Comment from his1desire - 12/12/03 9:08 AM

Christmas in Australia

Christmas in Australia

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oy, Oy, Oy! Christmas in Oz is often a joy. Take the the Aussie version of "Jingle Bells" fer instance:

Dashing through the bush,
in a rusty Holden Ute,
Kicking up the dust,
esky in the boot,
Kelpie by my side,
singing Christmas songs,
It's Summer time and I am in
my singlet, shorts and thongs

Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way,
Christmas in Australia
on a scorching summers day, Hey!
Jingle bells, jingle bells, Christmas time is beaut!,
Oh what fun it is to ride in a rusty Holden Ute.

Mayhap you wonder what brought this on? It was -5º F. this morning when I got up. Wife complained the seat was solid when she went out to start the car as both of us (me and the car) are slow starters in the morning. Driving her to work I remarked on our "SpongeBob square tires" as we thumped up the hill leaving out of the driveway on tires with Aramid belts which have taken the profile of the ground they rested upon overnight in the cold. On mornings like this, I check out the weather reports of warmer climes, like Western Australia to ease the ache in my bones.

Thanks and a tip of le chapeau to "Lockergnome Windows Fanatics" newsletter which referenced the "Christmas in Australia" site this morning.