Randomosity: Let’s Get Personal
Jan 20, 2013 Randomosity
One thing I’ve been carving out time for lately is reading more of my friends’ blogs. You’d think I would just naturally do this, seeing as I met so many of them online and was so happy to have our virtual friendships turn into real ones (sorry fake girlfriends, if I haven’t met you, we’re not actually friends, no matter how much we talk on twitter). But days are short, and there’s so much to do, and…and nothing. I’ve got the time, so included in this post are some of my favorite personal blog posts from this week (and an awesome – if non-personal – bonus).
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My friend Charlene, who has run seven marathons and is probably in better shape than most people on the planet, has to get abdominal surgery because of a rare condition caused by her last pregnancy. I can’t even imagine how much this situation sucks. Let’s give her some support!
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While I don’t know her anywhere near well enough to call her a friend (have we had more than a conference elevator meet-up? I can’t remember), I have a feeling that Mr. Lady and I would get along very well if we lived closer. Especially after reading this post about her daughter’s reluctant but growing independence.
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This post from one of my favorite blogs, the Busy Dad Blog, is about what happens when a toddler learns the subtle art of manipulation. Read it, you won’t be sorry.
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My friend Cristie needs help on this hardest of days.
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My friend Jennifer wrote (more than a) cookbook, Homemade with Love, and it can be pre-ordered on Amazon. I’m so over-the-moon happy for Jennifer, and can’t wait to get my hands on this book!
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And last, we’ll call this personal because I’ve seen Toy Story approximately 2,035 times. If you have two spare hours (yes, I said hours), somebody made a shot-for-shot remake of Toy Story, using real people and toys and puppetry and stop-action and it is AMAZING. There’s some background on this two year project here, and they’ve been chronicling the whole thing on facebook.
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Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 0. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Personal Blogs
Randomosity: Crazy Politics Edition
Aug 22, 2012 Randomosity
Can’t tell whether your rape was legitimate or not? This song can help you figure it out!
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Two old ladies got into a bit of a fight at a “Women for Mitt” event. Stay off their lawns.
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Soledad O’Brien has gotten a lot of credit lately for standing her ground against untrue talking points, but here’s the really sad thing: this shouldn’t be noteworthy. This is what journalists should be doing all the time.
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I thought this was really fascinating: What The Gun Control Movement Can Learn From Gay Rights.
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So the lead singer of Megadeth said that President Obama staged the Aurora, CO theater shootings. Whether that was an ill-advised stunt to remind people that his band still exists, or he’s just that much of a moron, I don’t know. But either way, it isn’t good.
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And last, here are a couple of quizzes. I scored surprisingly low on the first one, surprisingly high on the second. Not sure what that means about me. Perhaps that I need to watch less C-Span and more E!?
How American are you? Take the quiz.
Could you pass an American Citizenship test?
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Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 0. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: politics
Randomosity: Olympic Edition
Aug 9, 2012 Randomosity
I have not paid anywhere near as much attention to the Olympics as I could have, but I’ve watched NBC’s prime time coverage most nights. And while I do have some problems with how they package and present things, it’s a testament to the excitement of the games themselves that I knew the winners of every single sport that I cared about before I watched, and it was all still damn exciting.
I also tried to catch up online with whatever twitter told me was important/inspiring/unbelievable. Here are some of my favorite links and videos.
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This is one of the best commercials I’ve ever seen, about anything, ever.
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Congratulations on that Olympic medal! Now pay the IRS, please.
Tags: Olympics
Randomosity: Gangnam Edition
Aug 8, 2012 Randomosity
I just don’t get this video, and yet I think it’s fair to say that I’m obsessed with it. From the cheesy 80s dance moves and the doughy South Korean rapper to the unintentionally hilarious “Sexy Lady!” refrain, it’s completely awesome.
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I love this: instead of prescribing drugs to people whose eating habits have gotten them into trouble, some doctors have been writing prescriptions for more veggies, and a not-for-profit program helps out with the cost.
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Of course, moving around is just as important as what you eat. Even if you don’t have a huge backyard (we don’t) you can still get active with your kids. Here’s a post I wrote about small space play ideas, as part of my ambassadorship for Let’s Play, an organization started by Dr Pepper/Snapple Group that helps fund playgrounds.
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Plus, more of me: I’ve got a new advice column for tweens (and their parents) over on KidzVuz.com! If you’ve got a tween, I would love to have your questions (or theirs). I can’t promise that I’ll help you, but I’ll at least try to make you laugh.
Tags: Advice, Japan, KidzVuz, Let's Play
Randomosity: Bad Ernie Edition
Jul 17, 2012 Randomosity
This just shouldn’t make me laugh as hard as it does. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Do not click play if you don’t want to hear things coming out of Ernie’s mouth that just shouldn’t be coming out. However, do click if you’re a fan of Casino. The end just kills me.
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Continuing with the Muppets – but a more family-friendly version – is this spoof of the song everybody loves to hate this summer, Call Me Maybe. (For the record, even though everything about my musical taste tells me I should hate that song, I never turn the station when it’s on. And I sing along. Loudly.) I just can’t stop listening to this version though. Of course, I’ve always suspected that Cookie Monster was my soul mate.
Tags: Muppets
Randomosity: Starry Night Edition
Jul 6, 2012 Randomosity
I’ve always loved watching dominoes fall, but this video is especially cool for several reasons. One, I just love Van Gogh’s Starry Night. It’s one of the rare pieces of art that doesn’t make me say “blech!” when I see it on an umbrella. Two, I’m fascinated by the method this person is using to place the dominoes. She seems to be holding a ruler on a little copy of Starry Night and placing the dominoes by color. No complicated charts or anything. And she makes it look so easy! Three: she shows her mistakes. Enjoy!
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There’s a lot of misinformation out there about health care reform. Before you spread more of it around, take this health care reform quiz and see if you know what you’re talking about. For what it’s worth, I got 9 out of 10 right, but I think one of the questions is worded badly so I’m counting it as a perfect score. :-)
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Tags: health care reform, Starry Night, Twitter
Randomosity: Repetition Edition
Jun 30, 2012 Randomosity
I’ve been telling my husband for years that I was going to make a video of all of the recycled lines from Aaron Sorkin’s shows Sports Night and West Wing (I didn’t want to include Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip because I didn’t want to watch it again). Well, someone went way further than I would have, including just about everything Sorkin has ever written. Enjoy.
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I admit that when I see a really driven, almost robot-like Olympic athlete I assume that somewhere there’s a parent threatening to kick her out of the house if she doesn’t bring home the gold. I mean, I’m sure that’s the exception and not the rule, but I do wonder how much of the choice to compete is left to the kids. So, it was refreshing to read this interview with Michael Phelps’ mom. Kind-of restored my faith in that whole area.
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How cute are these Toy Story cupcakes? Yes, they’re adorable. But what makes them postworthy is the fact that they don’t require the skills of a pastry chef, like some over-the-top cupcakes I see online. The most complicated thing you have to do is cut something into the shape of a leaf. And it’s for an alien’s ear, so it doesn’t even have to look that good.
Tags: Aaron Sorkin, Flight Attendants, Toy Story, WaterWineTravel
Randomosity: Incestuous Family Comedy Edition
Jun 25, 2012 Randomosity
So first of all, I didn’t know there was an adult kickball league. Second of all, this guy gets serious style points.
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This is just awesome: An Open Letter To All Parents From A Non-Parent. And thanks to my friend Gabby for posting it on Facebook.
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This story about the family that’s considering suing because their daughter wasn’t valedictorian makes me sad in about twelve different ways, but let’s concentrate on just one: How after working really hard to get excellent grades, this poor girl’s parents called her a loser. I sincerely hope she gets out of that house and realizes that her parents aren’t normal.
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Tags: helicopter parents, Ryan Gosling, Windows Tablet, Woody Allen
