I obviously did not win.....

Well,
there were three winners in last nights jackpot and sadly, I was not one of them.

Better luck next time : (

What would I do with all that money?

Just for fun....
Let's say I won.

I would help out all my family with erasing their debt and my own.
I'd buy all the little things that I've always held back on like my Juicy charms, Dept 56 pieces,
all the scrapbooking stuff I could find....oh and all the Halloween decorations I needed.
I'd probably have to buy a new house to hold all this new stuff in and new car that doesn't need so many repairs.
I'd hire a lawyer in anticipation of lawsuits and someone to help me invest my money as well.
I'd hire a masseuse, a full time make up artist, and hair stylist.
I'd get some new jewelry.
Get my own personal trainer and chef, and nutritionist.
I might even buy a private jet so I wouldn't have to worry about flights at the airport.
I also think I'd go back to school and get a few more degrees.
I'd travel all over the world and the United States.
I'd also donate a lot of money to the Humane Society and other animal organizations.

That's a good start.

What about you?

What kinda' plans would you have for over 600 million dollars?

Mega Millions drawing now up to $640 Million Dollars?!

Mega Millions jackpot increases to $640 million

By MARGERY A. BECK

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Lottery ticket lines swelled Friday as players drawn by a record $640 million Mega Millions jackpot cast aside concerns about odds to take a chance at becoming an overnight millionaire.

From Arizona, where a café worker reported selling $2,600 worth of tickets to one buyer, to Wisconsin, where a retired soldier doubled his regular weekly ticket spending to $55, people have been willing to test their luck for a shot at instantaneous wealth.
"I feel like a fool throwing that kind of money away," said Jesse Carter, whose two tickets purchased Friday at a Milwaukee grocery store brought his spending to $55 for the drawing. "But it's a chance you take in life, with anything you do."
With a jackpot so large, someone theoretically could buy up every possible number combination, thereby guaranteeing a winning ticket — but doing so would mean putting up millions of dollars on the front end.
Then there's logistics. First, if it takes five seconds to fill out each card, you'd need almost 28 years just to mark the bubbles on the game tickets. You'd also use up the national supply of special lottery paper and lottery-machine printing ink well before all your tickets could be printed out.
A jackpot this large also means a greater chance of multiple winners. And if you have to share the jackpot with even one other winner, you'll be down tens of millions of dollars.
Such uncertainty has been little deterrence to players converging on convenience stores in 42 states and Washington, D.C., where Mega Millions tickets are sold.
Many in Indiana were further encouraged by the promise of freebies: Hoosier Lottery officials were giving away one free Mega Millions ticket to each of the first 540 players at several outlets around the state Friday.

In Indianapolis, college student Chris Stewart said he showed up at the lottery's headquarters at 6:30 a.m., two hours before doors opened, to be first in a line of about 60 people who wanted to claim a free ticket.
"I've never seen a jackpot like this before," said Stewart, who bought five additional tickets for the drawing. "If I won — I mean wow! I just don't know what I'd do. I'd really have to think what I could do with it."
Mike Catalano, chairman of the mathematics department at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, S.D., concedes the math is clear: The more tickets you buy, the better chances you have of winning. Better long-shot chances.
"You are about 50 times as likely to get struck by lightning as to win the lottery, based on the 90 people a year getting struck by lightning," Catalano said. "Of course, if you buy 50 tickets, you've equalized your chances of winning the jackpot with getting struck by lightning."
Based on other U.S. averages, you're about 8,000 times more likely to be murdered than to win the lottery, and about 20,000 times more likely to die in a car crash than hit the lucky numbers, Catalano said.
"You might get some psychological enjoyment from playing the lottery, but from a financial standpoint ... you'd be much better off going to Las Vegas and playing blackjack or the slot machines," he said.
For David Kramer, a lawyer in Lincoln, Neb., buying his Mega Millions ticket Thursday wasn't about "the realistic opportunity to win."
"It's the fact that for three days, the daydreaming time about what I would do if I won is great entertainment and, frankly, a very nice release from a normal day," he said.
Everett Eahmer, 80, of St. Paul, Minn., said he's been playing the lottery "since the beginning."
"If I win, the first thing I'm going to do is buy a (Tim) Tebow football shirt, and I'm going to do the Tebow pose," said Eahmer, who bought five tickets Thursday. "I'm with him in honoring a higher power."
Lottery officials are happy to have Friday's record Mega Millions jackpot fueling ticket sales, but even they caution against spending large amounts per person.
"When people ask me, I just tell them that the odds of a lottery game make it a game of fate," said Chuck Strutt, executive director of the Urbandale, Iowa-based Multi-State Lottery Association that oversees the Mega Millions, Powerball and other lotteries. "Just buy a ticket, sit back and see if fate points a finger at you for that day."
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I have to buy some tickets now.
Who could pass up on the opportunity to win all that money, even a tenth of that money would be all I need!!!!
I'll be dreaming all day of the possibilities!
Good luck everyone!

Let Me Share with You - the joy......

I've been looking very hard for a certain craft punch.

The Martha Stewart Ice Cream Cone Punch made in 2009.

Her punches are manufactured for awhile and then put out of production, or retired, in other words.

SO, if you find something you want when it comes out, you should probably buy it then or else pay much much more on the secondary market like Etsy or Ebay.

I don't remember when the first time was that I saw this punch.  I only know I thought it was super cute and I had to have it.

SO, I started looking for where I could purchase it.  Turns out, it was no where to be found.  The last one that sold on Etsy was in September of 2011.  I couldn't even find out when the last one was sold on Ebay recently.

It wasn't in any of the normal stores I would shop at for scrapbooking stuff, it wasn't at any of the new stores I found while hunting for it.  All I could do is find images of it on Google and longingly drool all over my keyboard.

I had recently seen a punch go for $120.00 on Ebay that was retired and was afraid that my punch would have to be purchased at the same ridiculous price.  I had all but given up.

I had put posts up on multiple scrapbook forums looking for someone who was willing to sell theirs.  I had exhausted my searches on Etsy, Ebay, Google, Amazon, and everywhere else on the web.
I had made some new friends on the web and asked them to help me hunt, but to no avail.
I was hopeless thinking I would just never find one, especially, not new.  But that was ok, I was getting used to the idea of buying a slightly used one.

When suddenly today, everything changed.

I was doing my normal Google search.  I do one daily.  The results are always filled with stupid blog entries, people showing off their projects with this punch, etc.  Old product descriptions on scrapbooking stores that no longer have any stock.  I was just messing around and hit the page 10 button, nothing,  page 15, nothing new, and for no reason skipped to page 18.

There was something, oh, but it was probably nothing......but still.....I have to check this one out.  I know, it usually leads to a dead page or something.

BUT

What's this?!

There's a store page showing my punch and having an inventory of 1 available.....Could it be?

It's in British pounds, ok, so it's not local.  But it looks legit. 

Is this a dead store site, let me refresh the page,...........

No, it's still says it's available.  Ok so I'll put it in my basket and try to purchase it to see when the bad news comes along.

So far so good......it's in my basket, I give them all my shipping and payment info.

I press the confirm purchase button and.................................

Oops, sorry, something is wrong with your transaction.
We apologize.

Oh, I almost believed there for a minute it could be mine.  Well, maybe it did go through.  Let me check my email.
Yes, it says thanks for your order and they've given me a confirmation order number.  I go back to the website and click on the listed product.......now it says it's out of stock.  So that means, I got the last one?!

I check their shipping and company policies.  They say they ship internationally so maybe it will really be mine?

I dare dream.

I'll keep you updated.

But in US dollars with shipping it ended up costing me (after the exchange rate) about $20.00.  Very reasonable.....but I just can't believe it yet.  I still think it's a trick. 

BUT


I want to believe.

You'll know as soon as I'm positive it's for sure.

In the meantime, here's a picture of the little cutie......

127 Hours

Released: 2010
Biography, Drama
Director: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire, 28 Days Later...)
Starring: James Franco, Amber Tamblyn, Kate Mara
Rated: R
Running Time: 94 minutes

The breakdown:
This is the true story of Aron Ralston terrifying adventure of getting trapped in a remote Utah canyon alone for 5 days with his arm pinned under an immovable boulder.  It's based on his book Between a Rock and a Hard Place.


First of all, let me say, I don't like James Franco.  I wish I could go back in time and take him out of all the movies I've ever seen him in like this one and Spiderman.
Second of all, let me say, I respect what Aron went through.  It had to be scary, incredibly difficult, life-changing, and depressing all at the same time for him alone in that canyon.
His story would have made a great I Survived episode on tv or a show like I Shouldn't Be Alive...It could've been absolutely phenomenal, but this movie sucked.

James Franco isn't a good actor.  He didn't pull off this character and his bad acting got in the way of an incredible story.  The movie was shot great.....if you suffer from ADHD or ADD, otherwise, it's annoying.  The screen gets split into 3 different shots often and you're trying to pay attention to all of them and lose the information from all of them.  When I'm watching a movie I want to devote all of my attention to it, not multitask and it shouldn't feel like work.  It should be entertaining.  You should get something out of it.

I love survival stories.  I watch shows like that all the time.  I knew of this story back in 2003 when it happened and was all over the news.  I felt bad for the guy.  I can't imagine what he went through or how it felt.

His story is fascinating, but the movie fails to deliver.  Instead you get annoying characters, people you don't ever care about, awkward acting, and too many gimmicks.

Overall it. just. doesn't. work.

But, I will give you the main plot points.
This guy Aron goes out looking for adventure all the time alone without telling anyone where he's going.  This weekend, he's going to Utah to explore some canyons and look around.  He meets a couple girls and shows them around a bit.  They go for a swim in some natural pool deep in the earth, they have fun and part ways. 
He's out on his own and is navigating a large crack in the earth when the boulder he's put all his weight on gives way and he falls far down into the slot and the boulder pins his arm against the canyon wall.  He tries for days to free himself in all sorts of ways.  He had little water and food on him and was not prepared for the cool nights wearing a t-shirt and shorts.  He has a video camera with him and records messages every so often for his family.
After 5 days, he knows no one will find him alive so he does something I'm not sure I could ever do.  He breaks his own arm bones, because they did not break in the fall, cuts off his arm with a small Swiss Army knife, makes a tourniquet, and gets out of the canyon he's in.  He finds help somewhere along the canyon trail and is airlifted to a hospital.
See, the story sounds unbelievable and could've been a great movie, if in the hands of maybe a different director, and with a better lead actor.

I give it a 1 1/2 out of 5 because I kept checking my watch to see when it would be over.  So disappointing.  Don't waste your money.

Face Transplant

Face Transplant Operation is "Most Extensive in History"

by Lisa Collier Cool

A 37-year-old Virginia man severely disfigured by a 1997 gun accident has received the most extensive full-face transplant in medical history, according to University of Maryland Medical Center surgeons.
Hospital officials report that Richard Lee Norris, of Hillsville, Va., is recovering well after an amazing, medically unprecedented 36-hour surgery that not only gave him a new face—from the hairline to the neck--but also teeth, a tongue, and upper and lower jaws. (See before/after photo above, right.)
A week after the full-face operation, Norris’ improvement has exceeded his doctors’ expectations. He can open and close his mouth and is already brushing his new teeth and shaving the whiskers growing on the transplanted face. He’s miraculously regained his sense of smell, which he’d lost after the accident.

15 Years Hiding Behind a Mask

After the gun accident destroyed his face—robbing him of his lips, nose and teeth and limiting use of his mouth—Norris underwent many lifesaving and reconstructive surgeries. He remained so disfigured that he became a recluse, hiding in his home by day and only venturing out at night to shop, wearing a mask to conceal his face, according to a report by MSNBC.
"It's a surreal experience to look at him. It's hard not to stare. Before, people used to stare at Richard because he wore a mask and they wanted to see the deformity," said lead surgeon Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez, associate professor of surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center. "Now, they have another reason to stare at him, and it's really amazing."

A Groundbreaking Medical First

Norris’ doctors say that the two-day operation is the world’s first full-face transplant performed by a team of plastic and reconstructive surgeons with specialized training and expertise in craniofacial surgery and reconstructive microsurgery.
In all, more than 150 doctors, nurses, and medical staffers were involved in the groundbreaking procedure, which used innovative surgical and computerized techniques to “precisely transplant the mid-face, maxilla and mandible including teeth, and a portion of the tongue,” as well as underlying muscles and nerves, said Dr. Rodriquez in a news release.
“Our goal is to restore function as well as have aesthetically pleasing results.”
Breakthroughs in Tissue and Eye Surgery

A Rare Operation

Norris is only the 23rd person in medical history to receive a face transplant since surgeons began doing the operation seven years ago. The first full-face transplant was performed in France, on a woman whose face was severely mauled by her dog. The first US partial face transplant was done at the Cleveland Clinic in 2008, while the first U.S. full-face procedures were performed last year at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) in Boston.
Recipients include Dallas Wiens, a 26-year-old Texan who accidentally struck a power line while painting a church; Mitch Hunter, 30, of Indiana, disfigured by a car crash, and Charla Nash, who was famously attacked and mauled by a neighbor’s pet chimpanzee, Travis. The three patients’ results were described in a recent New England Journal of Medicine study.

What’s Involved in a Full-Face Transplant?

"Unlike conventional reconstruction, facial transplantation seeks to transform severely deformed features to a near-normal appearance and function that conventional reconstructive plastic surgical techniques cannot match," NEJM study author Dr. Bohdan Pomahac, director of the plastic surgery transplantation program at BWH, reported last year. "It truly is a life-giving procedure."
Before a full-face transplant, patients must undergo rigorous medical and psychological exams to determine if the person is physically and mentally ready for the grueling and life-altering surgery and its potential risks, which including infections, anesthesia reactions, severe bleeding, and the possibility that the transplant may fail.

How risky are full-face transplants?

In the NEJM study, Hunter and Nash had “single episodes of rejection,” which were successfully treated with immunosuppressant drugs so their bodies wouldn’t reject the new faces. All three patients in the study got infections, with Nash developing both pneumonia and kidney failure after the operation.
Nash’s doctors also tried to give her new hands (from the same donor) to replace those lost in the chimp attack, a procedure only attempted once before, in France. In Nash’s case, the hand procedure failed and the new hands had to be amputated. However, the full-face transplant took and she has regained sensation, but not movement, in her face, according to CBS.

What might be ahead for Richard Lee Norris?

In the NEJM study, the three patients who received full-face transplants all regained partial sensation in their new faces in a few months. The researchers also reported promising results in 18 patients who received face transplants since 2005, but most were to repair partial disfigurement.
Based on these cases, Norris’ appearance is likely to gradually transform over time to look like a combination of his new and original face, and he may regain at least partial sensation. Dr. Rodriquez is hopeful that Norris, who is unemployed and has lived with his parents since the accident, will now be able to have a full life.
"This accidental injury just destroyed everything,” Dr. Rodriguez told Associated Press. “The rest of his friends and colleagues went on to start getting married, having children, owning homes.” After 15 years behind a mask, “he wants to make up for all of that.”
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I'm speechless.
All I can say is God bless the organ donors in the world.

I just have to say it...

I already miss The Walking Dead!!!!

I have to wait until what, August for it's return????

AArrrggggghhhhhhhh!

The Invention of Lying

Released: 2009
Comedy, Fantasy
Director: Ricky Gervais, Matthew Robinson
Starring: Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner
Rated: PG-13
Running Time: 100 minutes

The breakdown:  In this world, no one ever lies.  No matter how painful, no one can lie about anything...until one man tells a lie and things change forever for him.

This is where I fell in love with Ricky.  He's so smart and funny in this role I couldn't resist him. 
This movie is actually a big statement on religion wrapped up in a comedy format.  Ricky Gervais is a proud atheist so if you don't have an open mind, especially on your religious beliefs, you will not enjoy this movie.
I'm agnostic myself, leaning towards atheism all the time, so I loved this movie and thought it was very funny and thought-provoking.

Gervais plays a bit of a loser who's in love with Garner.  A woman who will never love him because she says he's fat and has bad genes for making ugly children.  He tries to be a good person, but out of circumstance he tells something to someone that just isn't true.  He realizes, and is the only one, that he can make stuff up that isn't true and tell people.  He tries it with cops, women, everyone, and he makes himself into a really wealthy and successful man.  Although, he can't lie to Garner because he really doesn't want her to love him unless she likes him for who he really is.

It's a fantastically fresh inventive movie that really entertains.

I give it a 5 out of 5 for being an unexpected gem.

The Book of Eli

Released: 2010
Drama, Fantasy
Director: The Hughes Brothers (whoever they are)
Starring: Gary Oldman, Denzel Washington, Mila Kunis
Rated: R
Running Time: 118 minutes

The breakdown: 
In a post-apocalyptic tale, Washington plays a man who is travelling across a dangerous America with a book he must protect at all costs that could save mankind.


I love post-apocalypse or end of the world movies a lot so I had to see this one.  Overall, it's pretty good.  What's left of the population after the end of the world is dangerous and violent.  Washington, who plays Eli, is a lone wanderer travelling west across North America for the past 30 years.  He carries with him a book that he thinks can save humanity and he reads from it as much as he can.  He survives on small animals and searching abandoned houses for food or supplies.  He eventually ends up in a little village run by Gary Oldman.  He is impressed with Eli's fighting abilities and asks him to stay and join his gang.  Eli declines, and is ready to leave peacefully or by force.  Oldman pressures his blind lover to send her daughter, Kunis, to Eli to "convince" him to stay at least overnight.   Eli talks with her overnight, but does not sleep with her.  She sees he has a book and the information gets passed along to Oldman, though not on purpose.  Once Oldman finds out Eli has a book he wants it desperately.
Books are a bit of a guarded commodity in this world.  Most of them have been destroyed so a lot of people can't read because they've never seen books at all...and a lot of them have been purposefully destroyed by people in power.

The rest of the movie unfolds with some action and twists, so I won't ruin it for you, but I think you'll enjoy it.  It's thought-provoking, and well done.  You will certainly have something to talk about once it's over.

I give it 4 out of 5 for being a nice change of pace from the regular plot ideas lately.

I don't think this is the answer....

Judge: Sea Lion Killings to Save Salmon Can Resume

By JEFF BARNARD AP Environmental Writer  

Oregon state authorities can resume killing California sea lions that feast on endangered salmon bottled up at a dam on the Columbia River, but fewer than one-third as many as federal biologists previously had authorized, a judge ruled Thursday.

U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg in Washington, D.C., denied the Humane Society of the United States request to stop the killing at the Bonneville Dam while a lawsuit challenging the program goes forward. But he limited the killing to 30 animals a year instead of the 92 authorized by federal authorities, and ordered that none of them may be shot.

"The case will go forward, and we feel we have a very strong case in the end," Humane Society marine program leader Sharon Young said of their third attempt to permanently halt the killings since they started in 2008.

The floating traps are out and if any of the 92 California sea lions branded as regular salmon eaters are seen inside them, the gates will be sprung, and the animals killed by lethal injection, said Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman Jessica Sall. She said they have no plans to shoot any animals. California sea lions that hang around the dams eating salmon, and refuse to leave despite hazing by rubber bullets and firecrackers, go on a kill list.

AP

FILE - California Sea lion

FILE - California Sea lion C404 is seen in the fish ladder at Bonneville Dam, in a file photo taken March 21, 2006, in Cascade Locks, Ore. A federal judge ruled Thursday, March 22, 2012 that state authorities can resume killing California sea lions that make a habit of eating salmon at the dam while the Humane Society of the united States continues its court challenge of the program. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File) Close

Adult salmon and steelhead returning to spawn get bottled up at the fish ladders over Bonneville, located east of Portland, Ore. California sea lions, which are federally protected as marine mammals, but not as threatened or endangered species, swim about 145 miles upriver to the dam to feed on the fish in the spring.

The limits imposed by the judge should not pose a problem, Sall said. The department did not anticipate killing more than 30 animals in any one year. Over the past four years, only 41 have been trapped and killed or sent to a zoo or aquarium. The current authorization from NOAA Fisheries Service is good for four years.

The Humane Society lawsuit contends that the NOAA Fisheries Service erred when it decided that sea lions eating up to 4.2 percent of the fish passing over the dam amounted to a significant obstacle to the restoration of endangered salmon, when fishermen are allowed to take up to 17 percent. It adds that killing sea lions will have no effect on restoring salmon, which face a greater threat from fishermen and predation by walleye and bass introduced into the river for sport fishermen to catch.

The department, a co-defendant in the case, counters that while sea lions kill some protected salmon, fishermen are only allowed to kill hatchery-bred fish. The department says it is able to estimate how many wild fish die after being released, and to shut down the season if necessary.

Salmon returns to the Columbia Basin in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana have declined steadily from harm caused by dams, logging, agriculture, and urban development since settlement of the region began in the 1840s. Only a small percentage of the fish are wild, with the great majority produced in hatcheries. There are 14 different types of wild salmon and steelhead in the Columbia Basin protected by the Endangered Species Act.
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I don't know, personally, if the Humane Society is saying that people are responsible for taking 17% of the fish, over the sea lions 4% then shouldn't the humans be the one to stop overfishing?

And why do they have to kill the sea lions????
Can't they just take all of them and either re-locate them or put them in a zoo or something a bit less fatal?

Never Let Me Go

Released: 2010
Drama, Sci-fi
Director: Mark Romanek
Starring: Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightley, Andrew Garfield
Rated: R for partial nudity
Running Time: 103 minutes

The breakdown:  Based on the book by Kazuo Ishiguro, this film is a downer, so you have to be in the mood for it.

So there's not a lot I can tell you about this film without ruining it for you.  I can give you the notes I read from the quick summary for the film though:
Three people's stories are told as they start out in what looks like an idyllic English boarding school, but have to prepare what awaits all three of them in their early 20's.

This is a science fiction distopian story as well as an alternate history drama because it starts off with a caption at the beginning of the film that says a medical breakthrough has happened in 1952 that makes the human lifespan over 100 years old.

The movie mostly starts with the kids in their school in the late 1970's and follows them into their late 20's around the mid-1990's.  There's Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy.

Kathy likes Tommy even though most other kids just make fun of him and tease him.  Kathy and Ruth are good friends.  The three kids could not be closer as they grow up in this school and eventually get transferred together to a place called The Cottages when they are all 18.  Problem is, Ruth goes after Tommy when they are very young for a relationship and it turns sexual when they enter The Cottages.  This puts a strain on everyone and things are no longer comfortable between the three people.

I just can't say much more...it's a good movie, not great, and certainly not a pick me up or feel good movie, so you have to be in the mood to watch it.
The only problem I had with performances is Garfield.  I think he was a bit out of his range in this movie and wasn't convincing enough, but the two ladies did very well.

I give it a 3 1/2 out of 5 for a strained performance from Garfield and an overall depressing storyline.  I could not watch this movie again, simply because of it's tone, not that it's not good.

Papillon

Released: 1973
Drama, Biography
Director: Franklin J. Schaffner
Starring: Steve McQueen, Dustin Hoffman
Rated: PG
Running Time: 151 minutes

The breakdown:
Based on a true story of the life of Henri Charriere, this stunning drama will keep you riveted.

Henri Charriere, who is also known as Papillon, which is French for butterfly, is an imprisoned petty criminal, who has always claimed innocence.  Whether this is true or not is never realized in the film or real life.
Anyway, in France he's accused and convicted of murder and sentenced to life in a penal colony in French Guiana, South America.  He must travel by boat to these 3 tiny islands in the middle of nowhere to fulfill his sentence.  While on the boat there he makes friends with Dega, who is small and weak.  Papillon agrees to protect him from others as Papillon is in great shape, tall, and tan.

Dega is supposed to be a renowned counterfeiter and is said to have hidden a large amount of money before he was arrested.  Most of the other criminals want to kill him and I guess take his money, though I'm not sure how they would know where to find it, if it exists at all.

When they get to the islands, some men can't handle the idea of living there and either fake injuries to get into the hospital, or one simply walks out into the ocean until he is shot dead.

At the camp, they are told the first attempt to escape means two years of solitary confinement, the second attempt, five years of solitary, and on the third, guillotine.  At the end of the announcement a prisoner is walked out and executed in front of them.

This movie tells an unbelievable tale of Papillon trying to escape from this island prison over the course of many years.  It's even more unbelievable if he was innocent all along.

In all honesty, I had no interest in watching this film, but after a few minutes, I was hooked and had to know what was going to happen to Dega and Papillon with all their plans of fleeing.

It was hard to imagine someone going through the experiences the prisoners did on the islands.  Very difficult things had to be done to survive in some instances and I really don't know if Papillon was guilty, but it felt like he wasn't.  He might've been a petty criminal, but not a killer, certainly not deserving the kind of punishment he suffered in this film.

I won't say anymore about the plot because you should really be shocked for yourself, but it's a good film.

I give it 5 out of 5 stars.

Hot in the City, Hot in the City Tonight!

I'm glad to report with the beginning of Spring here we had an 80 degree day.

I'm going to have a picnic tomorrow with my husband.....Spend sometime outside and....

Sneeze my ass off as my allergies are getting to be pretty annoying this week.

Good luck to us all with allergies, it's going to be a bumpy season!

I have a lot to discuss with The Walking Dead season finale!

I'm actually writing this Tuesday night but retro posting it to Monday because I really wanted to take it all in and think it over.

I can't believe most of my predictions were right for the show.  I also can't believe that Sunday night's show drew 9 million viewers (the show's highest ever).

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT WATCHED THE SHOW YET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!







On my halloweenforum.com website a whole bunch of morons are being picky and saying that the writer's either aren't any good or are inconsistent.  They say stuff like they're glad Dale died or want Lori to die or they actually like Andrea.

I've just about given up completely on that thread because those people are sooooo ridiculous. 
I should just tell them to try and write for a series and see how many viewers they get.  It's not easy to write as well as this show's writers do.

I'm fine with the fact that a couple nobody characters like Jimmy and Patricia died since we never got around to knowing them or caring.  I LOVED that Andrea got left behind!  I had only wished she got eaten instead of getting rescued by the new character Michone (who's apparently well loved in the comic books).  And she looks pretty interesting with jawless, armless zombies on chains attached to her.  I only hope she isn't like some weird anime ninja character....we will see.

I can't believe that Lori reacted to Rick the way she did at the end when he told her about Shane.  She was the one egging him on and being manipulative to him in the first place.  He did need to be put down, he was asking for it, and he was a trouble-maker.  Shane totally deserved it.

I like that they finally said what Jenner told Rick at the end of season 1.  That was cool.  So they will all turn when they die.  Interesting.....

I felt bad for Rick near the end.  He was so tired and stressed out.  It's not easy being a leader and being expected to always make the right calls.  I don't think it was fair for the group to go all crazy on him when he told them what Jenner said, or about Shane.  Of course, he didn't pick the best time to tell them all that either.....but he's really stressed.  Poor baby.  I just wanted to give Rick a big ol hug and tell him he's doing a good job.

Anyway, it took me a while to figure out that it was a prison behind them.  I'm not sure what's going to happen in there, but it depends on who's holed up in there as well.  Is it prisoners?  Bad guys?  Cops?  Good guys?  A lot of people, or only a small group?  No matter what happens, I'm pretty sure the group will fall into the fold of people in there and Rick will lose his leadership role.  Someone else will take over somehow.....hopefully without killing any characters I really like.

I can't wait for next season and it's shaping up to be quite the roller coaster from the season finale.

Well, I hope you enjoyed the show and this season.  I've been addicted since the first episode and I'm going to have to find a way to make it through the spring and summer without my weekly fix......

The Walking Dead season finale!!!

TONIGHT!

THE WALKING DEAD SEASON FINALE!

THAT IS ALL!

CAN'T WAIT!!!!!


My thoughts:

SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Do Not Read If You Have Not Watched The Show!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Another couple cast members might die (although I think they'll be from Hershel's farm family).

I would love for Andrea to die a horrible death or maybe Carl.

They'd better not mess with Rick, Daryl, Maggie, or Glenn.

The previews for tonight's show make it look like they are about to take on, not a mob or mere group of zombies, but an ENTIRE ARMY!!!!!

I think they'll (the survivor group) be run outta' the farm because they just don't have enough ammo.

Sorry for all the CAPS, but I'm really that excited!

I think that Randall's group is going to be contained in this huge assortment of zombie invaders, AND maybe Michael Rooker will make an appearance again tonight (Daryl's brother because remember they never showed him dead, just his hand he cut off was left behind.)

I think that Shane was a carrier for the zombie virus while he was still alive.  He infected himself by stabbing a zombie with his knife and then using the same knife to cut his hand.  Once he died he went full blown zombie, but not before passing it on to Randall, who had no bite marks or scratches.

Hopefully they will reveal what the doctor told Rick at the end of the first season.  Perhaps he knew the virus would mutate?

PS - I have to wait until my husband gets off of work at midnight, just so I can watch it with him.  So I'm going to have to wait a little longer than most.  : (

Help to stop Ag-gag bills from being approved

Ag-Gag Legislation

In late 2011, the organization Mercy for Animals released a video shot inside a North Carolina turkey factory farm owned by Butterball. The video shows acts of animal cruelty and neglect—in it, frightened turkeys are hit with what appear to be metal rods, violently kicked, thrown hard against the side of a truck and dragged across the floor. The video also shows birds suffering with bloody open wounds, broken bones and diseased eyes.

As a result of this critical video evidence, five Butterball employees have been charged with felony and misdemeanor animal cruelty. But if big agribusiness had its way, the person charged would have been the investigator who captured and reported the abuse.

In the last few years, the farm industry has been driving the introduction of "ag-gag" bills in state legislatures across the country. The purpose of these bills is to criminalize acts related to investigating the day-to-day activities of industrial farms. Such investigations have previously formed the basis of animal cruelty prosecutions and spurred reforms to protect the safety of our food supply.

"Ag-gag" or "whistleblower suppression" bills take many forms. What they all have in common is they threaten not only to cover up horrific animal abuse and food safety problems, but also other illegal or unethical behavior including environmental and labor violations. Animals deserve to be protected, and the public has a right to know how its food is produced.

It is important to let our state legislators know that we do not support the passage of ag-gag bills or any other legislation that would allow animal abuse to be covered up.

• What activities do ag-gag bills criminalize?
• Why are ag-gag bills being introduced?
• Why are ag-gag laws dangerous?
• Do any states already have these sorts of laws in place?
• Which states have introduced ag-gag bills?
• How can I help?

What activities do ag-gag bills criminalize?

Ag-gag bills may seek to criminalize the recording, possession or distribution of still images (photos), live images (video) and/or audio at or upon a farm, industrial agricultural operation or "animal facility." Bills in some states seek to bar potential investigators from gaining employment on farms.

Why are ag-gag bills being introduced?

As noted above, many successful animal welfare investigations have revealed severe abuses of animals and raised additional concerns about industrial farms, such as the potential contamination of eggs and meat. Such revelations are damaging to the animal agriculture industry and have led to product recalls, decisions by retailers to drop suppliers, legal prosecutions of employees and hard questions posed to the animal agribusiness industry.
It is worth noting that the use of exposés to reveal abuse has a long and storied history in America dating back to journalist Upton Sinclair's 1906 book The Jungle, which revealed atrocious conditions inside America's meatpacking plants and led directly to the passage of the federal Meat Inspection Act, the Pure Food and Drug Act, and the eventual formation of the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Learn about a few investigations that occurred more recently:

• Watch a story aired on ABC news program 20/20 about an undercover investigation at an egg farm that revealed both animal abuse and unsanitary, disease-promoting conditions.

• In 2008, a video shot by The Humane Society of the U.S. of workers at a California slaughter facility mishandling downer cows prompted a mad cow disease scare and the largest meat recall in U.S. history.

• In 2011, secretly recorded footage captured extremely disturbing and illegal treatment of pigs at Iowa Select Farms, the state's largest pig farm.

Why are ag-gag laws dangerous?

Ag-gag laws pose a threat to a wide spectrum of values and issues Americans care about. Because of this, many highly respected national organizations representing a range of public interests, including the ASPCA, have signed a statement in opposition to ag-gag bills. View the statement [DOC].
Social issues potentially impacted by ag-gag laws include, but are not limited to:

• Animal Welfare. Ag-gag laws are a direct threat to animal welfare. We know that animals are often cruelly treated in factory farms and slaughterhouses. Documentation of this treatment not only helps educate the public about farm animal abuse, but also influences industry and government entities to make real changes for farm animals.

• Food Safety. Ag-gag laws threaten our food supply: Various exposés of factory farms and slaughterhouses have revealed the extent to which our meat, eggs and milk are mishandled. Mishandling animal products, including mishandling farm animals while they are alive, invites health risks including salmonella, mad cow disease and other potentially fatal illnesses that may be transmitted to consumers.

• Control over Food Choices. Ag-gag laws are a direct threat to marketplace transparency. At a time when Americans are increasingly invested in knowing more about where their food comes from and how it is made, these laws threaten our ability to control what we bring into our homes and the food we put in our bodies. All Americans should have the right to know the basic conditions under which their food is produced.

• Workers' Rights. This legislation often seeks to criminalize the recording of sounds or images in animal facilities, no matter the content. Factory farms, slaughterhouses and meatpacking facilities are physically and emotionally difficult places to work. Farm investigations have the potential to expose serious worker abuse and other illegal or unethical conduct on the part of employees or supervisors.

• Free Speech. Some ag-gag bills seek not just to criminalize recording, but even the possession and distribution of images recorded on animal facilities—and some seek to criminalize misrepresenting oneself on job applications (which, while possibly an act warranting termination of employment, should generally not be a crime). These provisions pose serious First Amendment threats.

• Environmental Damage. In the United States, 99 percent of food animals are raised in factory farms, where large numbers of animals are housed together, generally in close confinement. Huge amounts of waste are generated, the improper storage and disposal of which threatens our soil and water. While state and federal laws require large farms to minimize their environmental damage, farms have been found flagrantly violating these requirements. Undercover investigations offer an effective way to expose such violations.

Ag-gag laws are also troublesome because they do not reflect the public's will. Polls consistently show that the majority of Americans favor humane treatment of farm animals. A 2012 poll conducted for ASPCA by Lake Research revealed that 94 percent of the general American public agrees that "from every step of their lives on a farm—from birth to slaughter—farm animals should be treated in a way that inflicts the least amount of pain and suffering possible." The same poll also revealed that 71 percent of American adults support undercover investigative efforts to expose farm animal abuse on industrial farms, and that 64 percent oppose making such investigations illegal.

Do any states already have these sorts of laws in place?

Three states (Kansas, North Dakota and Montana) already have "ag-gag"-type laws in place. Many others have related statues that are sometimes called "eco-terrorism" or "animal enterprise interference" laws.
It is important to remember that these laws, while crafted to appear reasonable, are largely designed to prevent the exposure of troubling practices at agricultural facilities. Click your home state on the U.S. map posted here to see if it currently has an ag-gag law on the books.

Which states have recently introduced ag-gag bills?

The following states introduced ag-gag bills in 2011 or 2012. None of the bills introduced in 2011 (marked with a *) passed that year, but all have either carried over into 2012 or been reintroduced in the states' 2012 sessions.
Florida* This bill has been dropped.
Indiana This bill is dead for the year.
Iowa* This bill was signed into law by Governor Branstad on March 2, 2012.
Minnesota* Take Action Now!
Utah Take Action Now!
Illinois This bill has been tabled.
Missouri
Nebraska
New York*
Tennessee

How can I help?

• If you live in a state that has introduced an ag-gag measure, please visit the ASPCA Advocacy Center online to take action now.

• Be vigilant in your state—keep an eye on the local media for any news regarding the introduction and/or progress of ag-gag bills. Talk to your friends and neighbors about why ag-gag legislation is a bad idea.

• Join the ASPCA's Advocacy Brigade, a group of more than 2 million advocates who use their voices for animals! As a member of the Advocacy Brigade, you'll be alerted by email when we need your help with animal-related legislation pending in your state and in Congress. Taking action is easy and very personally rewarding. Join the Advocacy Brigade now.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Got an email from the ASPCA and had to pass it along.

Again, Animals dying for no good reason...

I saw this on the news the other morning and it sickened me. I hate Fox News and anything to do with them, but this story was worth watching. With so many other viable options for the Native American tribes, why is the government allowing this?

Our government is so self serving and broken already I have no hope of the American government ever actually helping and serving the American people again.

http://news.yahoo.com/video/us-15749625/permit-to-kill-an-american-symbol-28621180.html

Beware the Ides of March!

Yes, today is indeed the Ides of March.

I just like saying that phrase on the actual day itself.

No real reason to panic, just goofing off today on the blog.

The weather finally looks nice outside and I think I'm going out there to take advantage of it.

Hope it's nice where you are!

It took a third horse to die for this show to be cancelled

HBO cancels horse racing series 'Luck'

By LYNN ELBER

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The horseracing series "Luck" was canceled by HBO after a third thoroughbred died during production of the drama starring Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte, the channel said Wednesday.

"Luck," about the seedier side of racing, will air the final two episodes of its first season now in progress, HBO said. But the series won't return for the second season that began production last month, it said.

"While we maintained the highest safety standards possible, accidents unfortunately happen and it is impossible to guarantee they won't in the future," the channel said. "Accordingly, we have reached this difficult decision."

The move was made with David Milch, the show's creator, and Michael Mann, his fellow executive producer on the drama that brought film actor Hoffman to series TV. It was a high-profile project for the premium channel that stakes its reputation on such fare.

HBO said it was "immensely proud" of the series and those involved in it, and the producers said in a joint statement that they "loved this series, loved the cast, crew and writers."
Retired jockey Gary Stevens, who co-stars on "Luck" and was in the racehorse movie "Seabiscuit," tweeted his support to the HBO series: "So bummed. Peace out to all my family in (hash)luck."

The American Humane Association, which oversees animal welfare on Hollywood productions, said that in light of the three deaths "this is arguably the best decision HBO could have made."

The group said it will work with HBO to ensure that horses used on "Luck" are "retired properly."

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which had been sharply critical of the production, welcomed the cancellation and offered advice to HBO and the producers if they decide to resume it.

"PETA will be calling on them, as we have done from the start, to use stock racing footage instead of endangering horses for entertainment purposes," the group said in a statement.

On Tuesday, a horse was injured and euthanized at Santa Anita Park racetrack, and HBO agreed to suspend filming with the animals after the American Humane Association issued an immediate demand "that all production involving horses shut down" pending an investigation.

The animal was being led to a stable by a groom when it reared and fell back, suffering a head injury, according to HBO. The horse was euthanized at the track in suburban Arcadia.

During season-one filming in 2010 and 2011, two horses were hurt during racing scenes and euthanized. HBO defended its treatment of the animals, saying it's worked with the humane association and racing industry experts to implement safety protocols that exceed film and TV industry standards.

The humane association had called for a production halt at Santa Anita after the second horse's death. Racing resumed after new protocols were put in place and proved effective, Karen Rosa, the AHA unit's senior vice president, said in February.

On Tuesday, Dr. Gary Beck, a California Horse Racing Board veterinarian, said he had just examined the horse as part of routine health and safety procedures before it was to race later in the day. The horse passed the inspection, the AHA said.

When the horse was injured, an attending veterinarian determined that euthanasia was appropriate, he said.

Dr. Rick Arthur, medical director of the state racing board, said such injuries occur in stable areas every year and are more common than thought. A necropsy will be conducted, he said, which is routine with all fatalities at racing board enclosures.

The necropsy and toxicology testing will be done despite the show's cancellation, the board said.
The first two horse deaths drew criticism from PETA, which said that safety guidelines used in filming failed to prevent the deaths "so clearly they were inadequate."
Kathy Guillermo, a PETA vice president, said at the time the group didn't consider the matter closed.
"Racing itself is dangerous enough. This is a fictional representation of something and horses are still dying, and that to me is outrageous," she said.

On Tuesday, Guillermo said PETA sent complaints about "Luck" to Arcadia police and an animal humane society in nearby Pasadena.

___
Associated Press Sports Writer Beth Harris contributed to this report.

___Online: http://www.hbo.com

http://www.peta.org http://www.americanhumane.org

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I complained about a week or two ago about this show's obvious neglect to keep their horse actors safe.  After two separate horse accidents where the horses were so badly injured they had to be put down, I was livid, and so were a lot of others.  They should've cancelled productions then, but I see it took a third innocent creature to die before they finally ended this brutal torture for horses, calling it entertainment.  I'm so glad no more animals will die for no good reason (at least on this show.)
A small victory in an on-going battle for sure.

The Bridges of Madison County

Released: 1995
Director: Clint Eastwood
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Meryl Streep
Running Time: 135 minutes
Rated: R

The breakdown:
In 1965 Iowa, a lonely married Italian woman and a National Geographic photographer fall in love and have a brief affair.

This movie I had heard a lot about and finally had an afternoon to kill so I watched it.

It starts off with two children meeting with their deceased mother's attorney about her final wishes and will.  This starts them on a journey of discovering that their mother had a four day love affair with a man who came into town only briefly for his job.
The rest of the movie is a flashback to tell the story of how they met and all that happens after.

This is a very good romantic movie and I do not want to spoil anything for you.  (By the way, me telling you that the woman is dead at the beginning of the movie doesn't affect anything in the story so don't worry).

Anyways, if you love dramas, or romance movies this one is a winner.

I haven't read the book, but now, I might have to.  It is made to look like it would be based on a true story, but it is a complete work of fiction by the author.

I give it 4 out of 5 stubs for being surprisingly sexy and intensely romantic.

The Walking Dead

Hello out there!

I know I'm mentioning this tv show a lot, but we're getting into some really good stuff here!

Last night's episode was great, really good stuff happening and leading up to the season finale next Sunday night.

You know where I'll be - watching the Walking Dead and then the Talking Dead right after.

There's a good discussion going on about the show on my Halloween forum called:
Halloweenforum.com (not owned by me, just a member of it)
go to the Horror Discussion section and look for The Walking Dead TV Show link.
I'm BooBear on that forum and I'm currently getting aggravated at some moron called Bruzilla who thinks he/she knows everything about the television show because they've read the comics.

I bring up points and then he/she says no I'm positive that's not right because........

I can't stand know it all's who never talk as if it's strictly their opinion.  It's stated as fact by them and it just drives me nuts.

I Have Mass Effect 3!

Just wanted to say I now have Mass Effect 3 in my hot little hands and I can't wait to play it.

Well, I kinda' can because once I start it and finish it, there aren't anymore to look forward to after that.

Bittersweet really.  But I'm looking forward to what's in store for this game, the last one was just simply amazing.

But, I gotta' finish Skyrim first.  I've had a bug problem with it and now have lost 5 days worth of work and exploring just to realize I have to go back to that point and start over from there.  I'm dragging my feet since I've had a LOT of problems with this game and just don't want to deal with it again.

I feel a bit silly now.....

Ok, so I consider myself a well educated person.  I research A LOT for this blog alone before I post most things.

I went to college; I took an astronomy class, but I'm still a wee bit embarrassed by admitting this.

I never really thought about the rotation of the moon and whether we see all sides of it or just one face.

Just think about it........
Have we seen all sides of the moon from Earth?  But the moon does rotate on an axis like Earth doesn't it?
See, that's where I was confusing myself....I was thinking....does the moon ever look different?  Yes, no, wait, I'm not positive....

Recently, I was watching a television program about the universe and the question arose as to whether I've seen only one side of the moon and if the "dark" side of the moon had been explored.

I sat and had to think on it, then realized I had no recollection of seeing more than one view of the moon.  I actually had to look it up today and found out......

a lunar day is 27.3 of Earth days.  So their day lasts almost one of our months and it's in a synchronized rotation to our orbit so that means.....

It is tidally locked to us.....which also means....

It is almost always showing us the same face when we can see it.  There is a slight spin on it's rotation where we don't see exactly the same side of it all the time, but it might as well be, the change is so little.

And I DO remember from my astronomy class that eventually (in 100,000's of years) the moon will eventually slow down so much from it's own orbit that it will "lock" onto one spot on the Earth....that means.....
maybe somewhere far off in the future if you and your sweetheart wanted to see the moon on a date you would have to travel to Paris, France to see it (or Italy, Spain, England, Australia, or wherever it stops).


Just for reference - here's the side we always see....the near side of the moon.



Here's the far side that we on Earth never see.

Also as a tidbit, the first time the far side was photographed was by an unmanned Russian orbiter in the late 1950's (1959).

The first time human eyes saw the far side of the moon was astronauts aboard the American mission Apollo 8 in 1968 when they orbited around the moon.

Scrapbooking

I don't know about you, but I love crafts and being creative.

About 10 years ago I was introduced to scrapbooking by an acquaintance and the bug bit me.  I had always known of it, but I started learning about all the tools available and I thought it was a perfect (and cheap) outlet for my creativity.
Granted anyone who knows me knows I mean to take pictures of the events in my life, but I'm usually having such a good time that I forget to take pictures.
The only scrapbook I ever did make was for my wedding and I made a real one out of paper and a second one on the internet (a digital scrapbook that can be printed like a real book).  Both I enjoyed making very much, but since then I haven't really had much to scrapbook.

In fact, I don't really like to scrapbook per se.  I like to use scrapbooking tools to make things like decorations for the house or confetti, or something I could use for a party. 
So, my focus has turned towards using scrapbook related materials for paper crafts and decorations for my upcoming Halloween party in October.
There's a ton of stores online that you can learn about and purchase products.

I'll talk about some of the stuff I use here:

Adhesives - there's a long list of stuff you can use to glue down items (mainly paper is what I'm talking about)- dots, paper glue, rubber cement, and tape:



This is a cross between a pen and tape so you can position the tape without getting your hands sticky.


   
Plain old regular double stick tape, though, I wouldn't be surprised if it turned yellow over the years, if it starts out clear.


 
Photo squares - one of my favorites, these are pre-cut tiny little double-sided white squares that you can stick most papers down with.  I've used them a lot and I really like the control they provide.

 
Glue stick - never liked these much.  Always felt like I was a kid in school again not trusted with scissors or sharp objects.  I don't use it, so I can't recommend it.  They are good though, if you're not sure of your measurements or alignments and want time to adjust it before the glue dries.  If that's the case, this and rubber cement are good slow glues.


Paper - the most basic foundation can be anything from construction paper (though it tears too easily for important things), cardstock, or scrapbook paper.  There are so many choices out there for every season, holiday, and occasion.
The main thing to remember is construction paper is good for laying out ideas and experimenting with.  Don't use it for real professional looking projects.
Cardstock comes in all different textures and finishes like glitter or foil, embossed and smooth, so you are not limited by your imagination.
Scrapbook paper and cardstock, to me, are the same thing.  Some may be a bit thicker than others, but they both get the job done.  Both also come in a ton of colors, patterns, and textures.

         


Stickers - if you're going to use them for something important like family photos make sure they are safe to use for scrapbooking.  You can't just use normal kids stickers for important family album pages.  Stuff that's safe for photos or scrapbooks are labeled a couple of ways.  Things like acid-free, lignin-free, or safe for scrapbooking.  Within stickers there are also a ton of different kinds.
There's chipboard - which are very sturdy papers almost like cardboard that may or may not have adhesive on the backs.  There's dimensional - which stand up a little so you have something to pop off the page.  Unfortunately though, these tend to be delicate as only a small portion of the sticker is actually stuck onto the paper, so you have to be mindful of that.  Puffy stickers - which are as they sound.  Puffed up like little clouds or pillows off the page but they are more sturdy then dimensional since the entire backing is usually glue.  And of course, there's flat plain old stickers that may have stuff like glitter or foil to make them shiny.
 
      

Extras - Die cuts, cut outs, and other embellishments that are not stickers - all sorts of stuff here: brads, cabochons, die cuts, ribbon, and buttons.
Brads are almost always meant to stick through paper and they have two little arms behind the main jewel or stud that bend out so they stick in place. 
Cabochons may or may not have the arms and if they don't they might just be flat backed and you can attach them using glues to anything you like.
Die-cuts or cut-outs may or may not be a paper shape with adhesive on the back.  Sometimes they are used as a paper shape made by a die-cutting machine you have at home, but we'll talk about that later.
Ribbons and buttons are self explanatory.  You stick the glue on the back and use them as you see fit.

      
Paper punches - this is my favorite category.  There are so many things you can do with punches these days.  Not only can you punch out shapes like pumpkins, cats, and witches, you can also cut your paper with special trimmers that make interesting edges to your papers.  The many kinds of paper punches are in categories like borders, edgers, punch around the page, punch all over the page, corner punches, minis, embossed, and double.
In the case of borders, edgers, and punch around the page, it is what it sounds like; you can take a punch and make a border or edge around the entire page with it to make it look more professional.
   
Punch all over the page are usually long necked or magnetic and allow you to make a punch right in the middle of a page without cutting it down to get there.
 
Embossed just carves some lines into a punch like eyes on a teddy bear or details that help the shape look more professional.
 
Double punches create one punch inside of another punch simultaneously.
 
Corner punches can only be used on the corners of papers.
 
And minis are just extra extra small punchers.  Trust me, if you're really shopping mini punches they will come out less than an inch around.  Some as small as 1/4".  Make sure you read descriptions when you're shopping online to get the size you want.
   

Stampers - Another really fun category.  Stamps are not just for kids anymore.  They have a ton of different kinds for just about everything.  They also have two kinds now: rubber wood mounted, and clear clingy that require a separate acrylic block to attach them to to use properly.  I personally prefer the clear ones because they are much easier to store with a low profile, and often times they are cheaper than wood mounted...plus they are much easier to clean.

   

Commercial Die Cut Machines - These are machines like Cricut, Sizzix, and Cuttlebug brands.
They are in the hundreds of dollars to buy and then they have cartridges you have to buy with shapes on them to cut out, but so far, I really like mine.  I can cut out a small 1/4" Halloween cat or a 23" halloween cat anytime I want out of paper, vinyl, or fabric.  It's very versatile and fun to work with.  If you're in the market for these make sure you shop around before buying one.  I got mine at Overstock.com for $170.00 instead of $300.00 like some other stores were selling it for.
  
Alright!  So that's your quick guide to what I do with some of my free time.
Do any of you out there scrapbook or use paper crafts to decorate?
Let me know!  I need more friends that I can talk shop about this stuff!

What does happen if you leave your phone on during a flight?

'Turn Off All Electronic Devices:' And What Happens if You Don't

By Scott McCartney

 

It happens on just about every flight now, say flight attendants. The plane's door closes and it's time to turn off personal electronic devices.

And there's always at least one person who keeps talking, texting, tweeting, playing, watching or emailing—and ignoring stern orders to power down.

On rare occasions, a confrontation erupts, such as actor Alec Baldwin's widely reported removal from an American Airlines plane in December. Although airlines say they don't keep track or won't disclose how many passengers get bounced off planes for refusing to switch off devices, flight attendants say it's now the No. 1 spark for unruly behavior.

"People have become so wedded to these devices, and a lot of people really question whether they need to turn them off," says Southwest Airlines flight attendant Thom McDaniel.

Travelers who "think 'it's no big deal' or 'the rule doesn't apply to me'—those are the hardest," says Kelly Skyles, an American Airlines flight attendant. "Most passenger misconduct cases now deal with noncompliance with electronic devices."


Airline rules backed by federal laws allow crews to turn a plane back to the gate and toss passengers off flights to prevent disputes in the air.

In most cases, it isn't the initial issue that gets people kicked off planes, whether they've been told to pull up their saggy pants, clean up their language or stop playing "Words With Friends" on their iPhones. Instead, it's the ensuing argument.

Flight attendants at American reported 1,306 incidents of customer misconduct to their union, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, in 2011, up slightly from 1,248 in 2010. Most didn't escalate into confrontations or get reported to law enforcement. The numbers have been going up for three years, with most of the increase related to electronic devices, flight attendants say.

Ms. Skyles, who is the APFA's safety and security coordinator, attributes attitudes toward electronics to "speed limit" psychology—everyone knows there's a speed limit and yet every driver at one time or another will exceed it.

Lots of passengers are skeptical of the danger of leaving devices on—one call or text message or game isn't going to bring down the plane, they figure. And who hasn't left on their BlackBerry and lived to tell?


Indeed, there's no firm scientific evidence that having gadgets powered up for takeoff and landing would cause a problem, only that there's the potential for a problem.

The Federal Aviation Administration allows pilots to use iPads and other electronic devices to replace charts and manuals in the cockpit, powered up during takeoff and landing. But the FAA says it can't test all the different gadgets passengers may bring on board. The agency worries a multitude of devices could pose more danger than a single iPad for pilots.

Crews have anecdotally reported numerous issues linked to computers or devices on board, such as erroneous warnings on collision-avoidance systems, heavy static on radio frequencies and false readings on instrument landing systems, according to NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System, a database to which crews submit voluntary incident reports.

In some instances, crews caught passengers talking on a phone or using a computer when they weren't supposed to. The crews were able to end interference by shutting down the device. Turning it back on recreated the problem, suggesting a possible link. (Even if you are far from the cockpit, you may be sitting near an antenna.) But attempts to duplicate interference with cockpit gear in laboratories failed.

In a study published in 2006, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University who rode 37 airline flights with a radio-frequency measuring device found emissions from cellphones that could interfere with global-positioning satellite systems. And the nonprofit RTCA Inc., which advises the FAA on technical issues, said in a lengthy study in 2008 that emissions from transmitting personal electronic devices, or T-PEDS, could interfere with critical aircraft systems.

Regulators believe there is a chance that electronic emissions from passenger devices could interfere with navigation instruments, and if even the remotest possibility of disaster exists, it's better to turn them off for takeoff and landing.

That rule is backed by a sweeping federal law. Passengers must comply with crew instructions on board commercial airplanes, or face potential fines and jail time. And it involves an often-overlooked safety concern: Passengers must be able to hear flight attendants in an emergency, so no headphones are allowed during takeoff or landing.

"The problem is taking flight attendants away from their jobs, and they have to be ready for an emergency," says FAA spokeswoman Alison Duquette.

Cellphones are banned during entire flights—not just during takeoff and landing—because they can interfere with ground-based antenna capacity.

The Federal Communications Commission, along with the FAA, bans in-flight use because a phone flying at more than 500 miles per hour, six miles above the ground, connects with lots of cell towers, hogging bandwidth. Connecting at that speed and altitude also takes lots of power from the phone, yielding stronger emissions that could interfere with instruments.

There is a technical solution to the cellphone problem. Small cell antennas on airplanes could link to onboard phones and transmit between the ground and the plane safely. These are similar to the small antennas on airplanes that provide Wi-Fi service.

Several international airlines said they would offer cellular service in-flight; Emirates Airline and Etihad Airways have planes in service equipped for cell connectivity. U.S. passengers complained loudly to the FCC when it considered lifting its ban in 2007—they didn't want to have to listen to calls on airplanes.

Flight attendants say one or two people on almost every flight don't seem to think the device ban applies to them.

"There's a lack of awareness of what the rules are, why the rules are there and what the flight attendant's role is," says Veda Shook, an Alaska Airlines flight attendant and president of the Association of Flight Attendants.

Airlines say they train flight attendants in methods to calm confrontations. They also give pilots and attendants leeway to judge whether a passenger should be removed and put on another flight.


Last year, Southwest saw tempers flare with summer's scorching temperatures. The company is currently working on a plan to keep cabins cooler during short airport stops.

"If we keep the air cool, hopefully we'll keep tempers and discomfort as cool as possible, as well," says Mr. McDaniel, president of the Transport Workers Union local that represents Southwest flight attendants.

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