If you don't have snow, at least you can make snowflakes.

Go here. 

Click on "Find A Flake" and type in Caltechgirl to see mine!

stolen from VW Bug

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Go see what Earthlink made Rachel go through just to NOT fix her problem.

But don't forget to call her first to verify that you are, in fact, reading her page.

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I changed out the CDs in the car today. Now we have the following as accompaniment to LA traffic:

1. Wintersong - Sarah McLachlan
2. Merry Christmas - Johnny Mathis with Percy Faith and His Orchestra
3. Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics (South Park)
4. Beyond the Season - Garth Brooks
5. Love Actually soundtrack
6. Barenaked for the Holidays - Barenaked Ladies

And from that last album, here's what may be my favorite 'new' Christmas song:

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You Firefly/ Serenity fans will enjoy this one.

"...[L]ast year a group called Booster Events held this massive Firefly/Serenity convention in California last year called "Flanvention." A lot of the cast shows up, there were panels and dinners and photo shoots and whatnot, membership was limited, and it was a lot of fun, a way for fans of the cancelled-too-soon show and because-we-demanded-it movie to talk to their favorite stars. This year's hotly anticipated event sold out months ago and it's happening this weekend, right now.

Or it would be. The organizers cancelled it. On Thursday."

"As stunned and betrayed fans began to arrive the California Browncoats jumped up to meet the frantic challenge of organizing a convention during, you know, the actual convention. Fans settled in to party among themselves anyway, mutter dark things about Booster Events, and make the best of it of the newly formed Browncoat Backup Bash.

Then the stars started showing up.

Adam "Jayne" Baldwin showed up Thursday night, knowing the con was cancelled and fans were left hanging. He hung around chatting with fans for hours and mentioned others would probably show up.

Friday Nathan "Mal" Fillion, Alan "Wash" Tudyk, Mark "Badger" Sheppard, Jonathan "Dead Guy From 'The Message'" Woodward, and Christina "Saffron" Hendricks came by for autographs and pictures and mainly just to say hi. Without appearance fees or the autograph cash that usually get stars to show up, they came anyway. Alan Tudyk wan't even supposed to be at the event due to prior commitments, and he came anyway. They knew their fans had been shafted and they stepped up to make it worthwhile. Fillion brought a box full of Firefly memorabilia and other personal loot and started passing it out to fans who had come from Australia, the UK and other far-off places."

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Merry Christmas from the First Pooches, Barney and Miss Beazley, and First Kitty Willy!

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At work or in school: I work best by myself. I like to focus on my ideas until my desire for understanding is satisfied. I am easily bored if the subject holds no interest to me. Sometimes, it is hard for me to set priorities because so many things are of interest.
With friends: I may seem reserved. Although my thoughts and feelings run deep, I am uneasy with frequent displays of emotion. I enjoy people who are interesting and of high integrity.
With family: I am probably seen as a loner because I like a lot of private time to think. Sometimes, I find family activities boring and have difficulty following family rules that don't make sense to me. I show love by spending time with my family and sharing ideas and interests.
Take this quiz!

Well, I'm certainly not that reserved or aloof with friends and family, but otherwise pretty nail on the head. And my favorite color.

h/t Sleepy Beth

Posted by: caltechgirl at 10:02 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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You Are Vixen

Sexy and sultry, you're the one all the other reindeer dream about. Why You're Naughty: That fur pulling spat you got into with Dancer over Santa. Why You're Nice: Because even when you're nice, you're still delightfully naughty!

Posted by: caltechgirl at 10:38 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Well, baby steps I say.  Here's a start, huh?

A Christmas meme stolen from Cobb:

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? Hot Chocolate.  Egg Nog is nasteeee.  NASTY.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? WRAP!!  Where's the fun otherwise?

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White is too boring to bother with.  Colors on tree and house.  The more the merrier.

4. Do you hang mistletoe?  Occasionally.  Usually the plastic variety. 

5. When do you put your decorations up?  Usually the weekend after thanksgiving.  Tree stays up until at least Epiphany (Jan 6).

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? My stuffing or latkes and bacon, our traditional Christmas eve fare

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child: Hmm, that's a tough one.  Let's put it this way, I can tell a Barbie wrapped up under the tree from a mile away....

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? You mean that Santa isn't just one dude with a sleigh and Rudolph?  I STILL believe in Santa.  Come on now.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? My Dad's side comes to our house on Christmas Eve, so we open those presents then.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? well, we have a bunch of ornaments, most of which have some meaning for us from characters to tradiational ornaments, as well as colored globes and glass icecicles.  Big Gold Star for the top.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it? I love love love snow!  I hate the idiots who don't know how to drive in it.

12. Can you ice skate? Nope.  My ankles are too weak.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? My favorite gift I ever got was DH getting holiday leave from Basic Training.  The best gift I ever gave was the microwave we got Mom last year.  She was shocked!

14. What's the most important thing about the holidays for you? The time to relax and enjoy, to sing songs and smell pine trees.  To act like a 4 year old.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Peppermint ice cream.  My favorite all year round, but much easier to find at the holidays.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Christmas Eve at my parents' house.

17. What tops your tree? This year, a big gold star.  Previously a Winnie the Pooh Angel (which makes a better table decoration since it is usually to big for the HUGE ASS TREE we always get).

18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? I love giving.  I'm very good at it, and I love to watch people's faces light up at the surprise.  I'm terrible to buy for because I want to be surprised and blown away like they are, but no one has managed it yet.

19. What is your favorite Christmas song?  All of them.  The songs are the best part!

20. Candy canes: One is generally enough.  Really.  Give me the ice cream!

21. Favorite Christmas movie? 1. White Christmas 2. A Christmas Story 3. Love, Actually

22. What do you leave for Santa? Whatever Santa asks for.  Usually popcorn and fudge and a glass of milk.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 09:17 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 Favorite Christmas movie... The Desk Set. *grin* Guess I'll have to get hold of Love Actually since I've never seen it.

Posted by: Teresa at December 06, 2006 06:20 AM (5UR9t)

2 1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? Egg nog, no contest 2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? depends on how my family was feeling when I was a kid... of course, I never believed, but I played along for the presents... 3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? neither 4. Do you hang mistletoe? If I thought someone would be dumb enough to actually kiss me, I'd nail bushels of the stuff all over my ceilings... then invite them over to my place... 5. When do you put your decorations up? I don't decorate 6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? hmmmmm.... cranberry sauce 7. Favorite holiday memory as a child: when "Santa" tripped over and crushed the Hot Wheels city my brother and I received... and he was asking what happened... I knew my grandmother had gotten up in the middle of the night and forgotten about it being in the floor... 8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I've always known Santa was someone in the house; mom asked me when I was six if I believed, and I told her no; she told me not to tell my brother... too many illogical things happening where the Santa myth was concerned, and I wasn't a child who took anything at face value 9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? I don't do Christmas, although I buy for my kids while secretly awaiting their realization that Christmas is BS 10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? blah 11. Snow! Love it or dread it? snow? no such thing anymore... global warming killed it all out... unless you live in or near the Arctic Circle or near the South Pole... anyway, I like snow 12. Can you ice skate? no 13. Do you remember your favorite gift? no 14. What's the most important thing about the holidays for you? When they're over 15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? pumpkin pie 16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? hiding in a closet until everyone's gone 17. What tops your tree? what tree? 18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? are we still talking about holidays? 19. What is your favorite Christmas song? Christmas Time is Near ~ Chipmunks (I think that's the title) 20. Candy canes: ack! no 21. Favorite Christmas movie? 1. Die Hard 2. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Boris Karloff rocks) 3. nada 22. What do you leave for Santa? a loaded bear trap...

Posted by: Thomas Warlock at December 06, 2006 04:00 PM (qeZ2A)

3 White Christmas is my all time favorite movie. LOVE IT.

Posted by: wRitErsbLock at December 07, 2006 08:21 AM (MwQOF)

4 Thomas, my husband also swears Die Hard is a Christmas movie. And it's one we watch on Christmas Eve.

Posted by: wRitErsbLock at December 07, 2006 08:22 AM (MwQOF)

5 Well, Die Hard 'is' a Christmas movie... sort of. It takes place at the appropriate time.

Posted by: Thomas Warlock at December 07, 2006 09:30 AM (NvS/T)

6 I'm not arguing with you. I was backing you up, in case people in your life give you the hard time my husband gets.

Posted by: wRitErsbLock at December 07, 2006 07:34 PM (0Pi1o)

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Barenaked Ladies Tickets: $130.00
Gas, Dinner, and T-shirts: $121.50
Finding out that the tickets you thought were at the BACK of the floor were really in the FOURTH ROW: Priceless

No really, 4th row.
From our seats before the show:

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Well, ok, not the wizard, but we are off to see BNL tonight

Yay!  Pictures later if I get any good ones (they generally don't mind cameras, not to mention that they often come out before the show and take pictures with fans)

In any case, here's a little bit of what we're going to see tonight:

Did I mention I love YouTube?

Posted by: caltechgirl at 10:27 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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About the Hobbit?  MGM is PISSED:

In the most recent flurry of events, Peter Jackson and producing
partner Fran Walsh posted a letter Sunday night on the "LOTR" fan site
Theonering.net saying that New Line told them last week that it was
going to make "The Hobbit" without their services.

The letter
also reiterated in detail Jackson's stance on "The Hobbit" -- that he
is not willing to have a serious conversation about directing the film
until his ongoing lawsuit with New Line over what he considers improper
accounting practices over "LOTR" profits is settled.

New Line's
given reason for proceeding sans Jackson is that the studio's rights to
the pic are about to expire, and seeing as the lawsuit with Jackson
isn't moving ahead, well, the message was that New Line is.

All
of this has riled MGM, which in recent weeks has been openly touting
the fact that the newly revamped studio is serious about making "The
Hobbit" -- with Jackson.

An MGM spokesman said that "the matter of Peter Jackson directing 'The Hobbit' films is far from closed."

Though
New Line no-commented inquiries about Jackson's statement, the
mini-major's move is a loud statement to both MGM and Jackson that the
studio is in the driver's seat when it comes to "The Hobbit."

Big studio $$ vs little studio  $$.  Gee, I think the winner will be all of us.

h/t Anwyn at EV

Posted by: caltechgirl at 09:15 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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1.  Best Buy.  They put the laptop I wanted on sale enough that A. I could afford it now and B. the sale also paid for the "Oh Shit" warranty.  You know, the one that includes dog teeth and sand.

2.  The dudes at Mozilla.  I have over 200 blogs in Sage and dozens of buttons and book marks, not to mention about a dozen extensions and not a few passwords (like for the blog and some news sites, not the bank or anything).  Literally one click and a few keystrokes and VOILA! I was able to get everything going on the new laptop!  SWEET!  The last time I tried to do that (with my work computer) it took me HOURS.  Even with a cheat sheet....  I shoulda known there was a shortcut.  Just go to firefox help and search for profile.  Then click on the bit about restoring or moving your profile.

I've been wanting a new laptop for a while, as my trusty old Fujitsu gave up the ghost about 3 months ago (after SIX years!!!), and DH and I have been sharing his laptop ever since.  Well, he got grumpy with me eating his laptop time and I wasn't a fan of how much space his games took up, so we decided a compromise was in order.  I would get a new laptop for me since the last new one was his.

Also, the Dell Inspiron we have weighs 9 lbs and about 11 if you include the power cord, so it's not much of a traveler.  And my RA makes it hard for me to carry it around, so I went for a small, light laptop.  More pricey, I know, but it's a MUST for me.

Aside from cleaning the house for Thursday, I've spent the majority of tonight getting this baby street legal: transferring files, downloading programs, and installing them.

Not to mention re-learning a smaller keyboard.....

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He's not going to make The Hobbit. Not because he doesn't want to, but because of studio business bullshit.

Fuck New Line. Fuck them up their Fucking Asses.

h/t Ith

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Milton Friedman, economist, Nobel Laureate, and Patriot is dead at age 94.

Friedman offered blunt advice on subjects as personal as laws against prostitution (he saw them as incursions into individual choice) and as sweeping as the international system of relatively fixed exchange rates, which he sought to overturn and which did collapse in the early 1970s.

He became the human face of the influential "Chicago school" of economics, emphasizing the role of monetary policy, which affects interest rates, and the benefits of laissez-faire or free-market approaches to the economy.

Political leaders listened, granting almost unparalleled influence to a capitalist icon whose free-market emphasis had once seemed out of step with his times. The rise of Ronald Reagan and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher brought Friedman fans to seats of national power.

Later, some would see the inspiration of Friedman behind moves of former Soviet governments, the People's Republic of China and other nations to stake more of their future on a private sector.

And, like he needs MORE linkage, but Insty has a nice round up with links to some writings and several interviews with Dr. Friedman. Also, Steven Leavitt (yes, that one) has some thoughts up at the Freakonomics blog.

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We don't have rules about messing with your door. And skillz like his come in handy on Ditch Day.

When's Ditch Day, you ask? It's tomorrow, Froshies. Go to bed early!

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The house where the most Awesome Christmas Movie Ever (tm) was filmed is being turned into a museum.  Like the Bedheaded One, I too hope this will be available in the gift shop, although you can get it online, anyway....

Notafinga!

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Over the last several years professional teams and colleges alike have been tripping over themselves in a rush to sell the "naming rights" of their home stadiums and arenas to corporate partners for a boatload of cash. Because of this a number of historic stadium names have been lost. Some examples: Candlestick Park, long home of the Giants and 49ers is now Monster Park, it's 3rd or 4th name; and New Jersey's Brendan Byrne Arena, long home of the NHL's Devils, is now the Continental Airlines Arena.

Colleges too are jumping on the bandwagon. Syracuse plays in the Carrier Dome (which ironically enough has no air conditioning!), and the University of Missouri briefly named its on-campus arena Paige Arena, after Elizabeth Paige Laurie, a Wal-Mart heiress, at least until her roommate at USC (that's right, she was not a U of M student, either!) revealed that Miss Laurie had engaged in academic dishonesty and subsequently left the university.

But the trend has now come full circle. Officials in Glendale, AZ announced today that the naming rights to the new Cardinals Stadium have been sold. To the University of Phoenix.

Now I know that U of P is a corporate entity more than a school, but it is deliciously funny to see a corporation pay to call a stadium "University of [anything] Stadium".

Posted by: caltechgirl at 10:26 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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Courtesy of Weird Al:

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