Last month Chris and I flew down to Paradise, California (near Chico) and met up with everyone from the Koski side of my family. It was Gramma’s 90th birthday and I’m so happy that we got down there so that she and everyone else could meet Chris. For those of you who are interested, here are a bunch of pictures that I’ve posted – check ’em out!
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| Gramma’s 90th Birthday |
Alright, so our bowling league banquet night was on Saturday. It was actually ok, except for the part where I WAS TOTALLY ROBBED OF WHAT WAS RIGHTFULLY MINE (probably)!!! And by this, I mean the award for “most improved bowler”. See, apparently it doesn’t matter what your starting average was at week one, or week three (three weeks being the time you need to establish your average). No. The starting week was week 6. Tell me that doesn’t suck!!! I mean, that’s certainly not the beginning of the bowling season, that’s a month and a half into it! So, obviously, to ensure that I get this award next year, I’m going to have to bowl really sucky for the first six weeks and then kick ass. It’s ok though, because I was also disappointed to learn that there were no trophies to be given to any of the award winners. What’s up with THAT??? Plus, my chicken was dry (not to mention covered with mushrooms), and Chris’ steak was fatty (not to mention covered with gravy).
Ok, my rant is done. Actually, the nice thing about the banquet is that everyone got a prize. Chris received recognition for scoring a game over 225, and I would’ve received recognition for scoring a game over 150, but something was messed up so I’ll get my fridge magnet prize in the fall. Sad face. However, our team won the league champion award for coming in first place overall (which earned us $93.50)! Our team also came in first place during sweeps week (another $37.50 in winnings…cha-ching!)! And I won 4th place during sweeps week for the women’s singles group ($5.00 – booyah – Chris won 5th place in the men’s singles sweeps week, so he only got $4.00)! Everyone even got some money back…Chris and I took home a total of almost $300 in winnings! Plus, there were door prizes. Some of them were horrendously awful, but we actually walked away with the best prizes available: a folding camp chair, an ultra-soft snuggle blanket, a beverage thermos, and a big hanging flower pot full of purple petunias.
I’m looking forward to seeing what rewards will be reaped from participating in the summer Tuesday Superbowl league!
Last night Chris and I went to see Cirque du Soliel’s “Ovo” at the Portland Expo Center, under the Grande Chapiteau! It was a great time because acrobats + insects = awesome! I bought us pretty good seats, but tall people sat in front of us and I had to keep looking around the guy’s stupid fat head the entire first half of the show. So, during the intermission the box office changed our seats to premium – we were in row H and seated on an aisle, so no one was in front of us. Now THOSE were fantastic seats – super close, just above stage-level, and unobstructed! I didn’t take all of these pictures, so sorry copyright police.
Last week was our last night bowling with the Half-Timers league. I think our team came in first place (shhhh…it’s a secret for now), probably due to my super high awesome handicap. Interesting statistics: My overall average is a 108. However, I started the season with a 3 week average of 90, and ended the season with a 3 week average of 128. I’m hoping to get the “most improved bowler” award at our post-season banquet in a couple of weeks! When it comes down to it, I really just want a bowling trophy – I don’t care what it’s for! But Chris had better look out, since I start the SuperBowl league next week without him…when we both start the Half-Timers again in the fall I may be actual competition!
Well, hello there! It’s been a while, huh? I’ve taken a bit of a break from blogging (duh), but that doesn’t mean I’ve just been lazing about with my thumb up my butt. No sir-eeee. I’ve actually been catching up with my digital scrapbooking, which is something that I *really* fell behind in (and you thought I was bad at keeping up with this blog!). So I’ll tell you what I’ve accomplished:
– Entire scrapbook of our honeymoon cruise in the Caribbean – DONE!
– Entire scrapbook of our cruise up to Alaksa – DONE!
– 2006 Year in Review scrapbook – DONE!!! (finally)
– 2012 Year in Review – I’m working backwards, and have 6 out of 10 pages DONE!
– 2011 Year in Review – I’ve got 9 out of 41 pages DONE, and am motivated to keep going!
Here are a few examples of my work so far, just so you can see what these pages look like (from 2011 and 2012). Each one is quite a bit of work, considering that I have to choose photos, do any artistic photoshop alterations, pick a color theme and related art, and figure out a layout that will work. They’re 12″ x 12″; some of them are single pages, and others are doubles:
The Sunday after St. Patrick’s Day, Chris and I attended the Shamrock Run in Portland, along with 31,998 other people. It was sooooo freakin’ cold and rainy at first, but once we finally got moving it was rather nice. Chris ran the 8 K and I walked the 5 K Shamrock strut (or as I like to call it, the Shamwalk) with my friend Jennifer. Ok, admittedly, my event was un-timed and non-competitive, but I still got an official shirt and race bib, so it counts, right???
Last weekend, one of my secret dreams came true. I discovered that we had the opportunity to see not only: 1) about 250 (mostly) gorgeous kitties, but 2) over 250 freaky cat people! All in one place!!! Yes, the Cat Fanciers Association hosted the Oregon Cats Classic at the Portland Expo Center, just across the river from our fair city of Vancouver. In doing a little research, I came to discover that the show would feature “Championship, Premiership, Kittens, Household Pets, Veterans and Agility”. Oh yes, you read that correctly: agility. For cats. As in an obstacle course. Which automatically means that I HAD to go. And just to let you know, I did get video of a cat running the course, but it’s at the end so you have to look at some pictures first!
Nearly all the Persian kitties were wearing coffee filters around their necks. Supposedly it was to keep them from licking and messing up their fur, but I think the real purpose was to teach those cats a lesson in humility, because god knows they need it.
More judging. This cat was clearly peeking at the score card and didn’t look too happy about what he saw.
Apparently, one of the criteria for a winning cat is that it has to be alive. To determine whether the cat is simply comatose and not dead, this tool is often used to elicit an instinctual reaction.
Apparently, the requirement of *NOT* scaring small children was not considered when making the rules for what creatures can participate in the cat show. Terrifying.
Cats do obstacle courses waaaay differently than dogs. This cat decided to take a 7th inning stretch mid-way through the agility course. It was highly entertaining watching owners frantically waving feathered toys and sparkle sticks at their cats, trying to get them to move in something other than a random direction on the course.
The “Pet Me” cats were generally pretty adorbs!
So, coming back from the cat show, Chris and I decided a couple of things. First, our cats pretty much suck. We have five cats and only one or two really like to be petted (sometimes), only about half a cat could be considered a “lap cat”, and none of them would ever permit us to put them in a room with hundreds of other cats without causing a major disturbance or at least summoning an ambulance or two. We tried to trade in a few of ours, but there were no takers; we actually considered simply bringing Oliver there and just leaving him. But we’re kind of pussies too, so neither of those options worked out. And second, and keep this on the down-low…I might just be one of those crazy cat people. Shhhhh… (oh – and by the way – the cat show is coming back to Vancouver in June!!! Who wants to come with?)
Now that my 
average bowling score is firmly in the three-digit range (101, baby!), I decided to move up in the world of bowling balls. While I heart my leopard-spotted plastic ball, it’s just too light and it pretty much just bounces off the pins, especially if the pins give my ball the evil eye. The result: those dumb pins just keep standing there. My aim has really improved (I think), and I even scored a 156 a couple of weeks ago – my new high score! So, to teach those pins a lesson, I’m bringing in the big guns with a fancy new bowling ball. All hail the Pearl Panther! This orb is a swirl of pink and black pearlized ferociousness, and features a silver-glittered panther and a buzz saw blade on its surface (I don’t know why the buzz saw blade is there, because the manufacturer is Lane 1, but the buzz saw blade looks extra badass so I’m fine with it). It’s a reactive ball, weighted to hook nicely and hit the pocket just right, giving the pins no chance but to bow down to the ball’s master. And that would be me.
I will let you know what happens. I’m going to practice with my new ball on Saturday and we’ll see how it goes.
Meanwhile, since Tyleen posted about the books she’s reading, I thought I’d pass along my recent reading spree – the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. WOW!!! I read all three (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay) in quick time. They are about a post-apocalyptic society (in what was formerly North America) and the social rules that society imposes to keep order and maintain power. Very violent but captivating. I can’t wait to see the movie, which comes out in March. So, now I’m going to read Hedy’s Folly: The Life and Breakthrough Inventions of Hedy Lamarr, the Most Beautiful Woman in the World. A true story – Hedy Lamarr was a burlesque dancer in the 1920’s who invented much of the digital wireless foundation for technology we have today, such as cell phones. Pasties and weapons deals and crazy inventions…this should be a good one.
Well, I hope you’ve all been working hard to figure out the best way to survive a zombie apocalypse. I’ll give you a few minutes’ break from your weaponry training for this bit of news: we’ve crowned the 2011 Cat of the Year! Can you guess who is is? Here’s a hint:
Yes, Samantha won Cat of the Year for her many fine feline qualities. For example, she excels at purring. Plus, she’s not afraid to get right up on you to let you know that you should squidgle her so that she can pur. Additionally, she loves to lick faces! She really is the most cat-like out of all of our cats, which can otherwise be considered as: 1) a butt-sniffing wide-load oaf (Oliver); 2) invisible (Momo); 3) a cranky old man (Jesse) and 4) a demonic mayhem-inflicting bruiser (Abbey).
Congratulations, Samantha! I hope you enjoy your reign as Cat of the Year! (And maybe shove it in the others’ faces a little bit more so they have something to strive for. They really should be showing better behavior if they want to ever win Cat of the Year.)
Now. Have you figured out the best way to de-brain a corpse that you’re not sure is infected by the zombie infection? No? Well, you’d better get back to your training then. Toodles!
And happy new year, as well! I’ve taken a good hard look at this blog and have decided that it has morphed into something not very Marcilicious in recent months. I mean, who wants to just read about all the things I’ve done, places I’ve gone, and people I’ve seen? Right. So, I’m assuming that, like me, you’re much more interested in other things…like zombie apocalypse readiness. Or, like me, maybe you’re just missing fresh episodes of “The Walking Dead” (damn, you mid-season slump!). To lessen the withdrawal symptoms, I’ve been watching the “Resident Evil” movies, but I only watch one a week because I get DVDs one at a time from Netfarts. But at that rate, The Walking Dead will be back before I know it.
In the meantime, I’ve declared this week Unofficial Zombie Apocalypse Preparedness Awareness Week! Never mind that it’s Wednesday and the week started on Sunday – it’s never to late to brush up on your zombie readiness tactics; that is, unless, you find yourself in the middle of a Level 2 zombie infestation and you are not prepared. So, really, I guess its never to *soon* to brush up on your zombie readiness tactics.
So let’s start. Take a look at Figure 1, below:
It’s time to make some tough decisions. When the zombie apocalypse comes a-knockin’, what will you do? Most people will ultimately serve as screaming brain-stuffed appetizers prior to the main course of screaming brain-stuffed entree. I, for one, will choose not to be in the red zone. I will not divulge my zombie resistance survival plan here, but I strongly suggest you read “The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks, poste haste! You will want to be prepared, and if you can’t be a badass (see Figure 2):
…or if you don’t have the resources for genius (see Figure 3):
…then I suggest you start reading right away. You can also attempt to desensitize yourself by watching zombie movies as well. Some of my favorites are Shaun of the Dead (of course), Tokyo Zombie, and RoboGeisha (which is not a zombie movie, but I came across it when I found Tokyo Zombie). And, because they’re worth mentioning again, Resident Evil and The Walking Dead will provide invaluable information on how to survive the zombie plague.
Good luck, my friends, let me know how things turn out for you!
Fuzzy Undertones 
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