Thunderstorm!

Brenda left just a little while ago and I fed the dogs, let them out, and then let them back in within a much smaller timeframe than usual as it was very dark and gloomy, much different from the mild, sunshine-full day we'd had so far.  Now the thunder, lightning, and rain have really started, so I'm glad they've come inside.

We didn't wind up playing the game.  We did go to the Indian restaurant Masala, over in Beaumont, to celebrate a belated birthday for me and something else that is a bit private, but let's say was a long time coming (really, and that's why the celebration was belated) but represents a very, very good turning point in one of our lives.

We stopped by our friend's house to say hello (Brenda had not seen him in quite a while), and then came back to play the game, but we wound up watching Batman: Gotham by Gaslight instead, which we have out from Netflix.  It was fun.

I'm working on laundry.  I've almost finished YKWIA's, and I have started on mine.  I don't think I'll get to the bedclothes today after all.  But I did the cat boxes, took out all the trash and recyclables, and cleaned the bathroom.  We knew it was going to rain later, so I didn't touch the tile, as it was just going to get muddy tonight.

It is so humid! YKWIA opened a couple of windows in the living room/study, but while there's a breeze it's not really making it in here, although the cat, satiated from his meal, is happily watching out the window.  I'm sweating and considering going into my room/the library to put the ceiling fans on. I've had quite a bit of caffeine today, so I'm not really sleepy or anything, just hot.

Okay, I should go check the dryer.  Have a good night.  I may write more, but for now I'm signing off.

In Spain on June 6th? Let the devil jump over your baby to banish evil

Be sure to catch this in the town of Castrilla de Murcia:


Thanks to @lbgilbert as retweeted by @JustinLibrarian for the link to Neato Bambino's mention of it. Then there was this great tweet:

RT @effinglibrarian: @lbgilbert the baby jumping t-shirt says: Conseguí saltado encima y toda lo que vi era la grieta del asno del diablo.less than a minute ago via TwitterGadgetLauren
lbgilbert

HAHAHAHAHA

Put it through Google Translate if you don't get it.

An irreverent look

at the history behind Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Bonfire Night (November 5th; I'm a little behind):

Happy Independence Day!

The small falsehoods and great truth of the Fourth of July: A lot of the lore that surrounds the holiday isn't accurate, but its meaning and power are undeniable

National Geographic's 'Exploding the Myths'



(Warning: it's a 45-minute video)

Unfortunately I didn't make it to the festival this morning; my ankle was really hurting last night and I'd asked off long before I went into the boot. I didn't want to walk all over downtown in that condition. Plus, I was up until 5 am to take a friend home from work, and needed more sleep, because I'm working from 2-10 pm today. That means I wouldn't have been able to watch the parade anyway, and I'll miss the fireworks, too.

But I still can wish the country a happy birthday. :)

Just in case you can't watch fireworks tonight (a lot of communities are cutting out displays due to the recession, for example), here's one from New York from last year:

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I got this from Steven over at Library Stuff, who in turn got it from someone else. I suspect it's making the rounds:



PS If you need to know how to make sure animated .gifs display through Blogger pages hosted on Blog*Spot, check out this post.

My schedule is tight from Thursday through Sunday

but I get to watch 'Heroes' on Monday after all. I need to go to the website and watch the episodes I missed. I hear it was awesome, especially this week's.

I'm working Thursday (truck) night for 4 1/2 hours, Friday for 7, and Saturday for 10 at the store. Then there's the game on Sunday. But I'm off Monday-Wednesday from the store, so that's nice.

I don't work at the store tomorrow, either, but I'm going to go into the hospital, work until about 11 am, go to the store for a celebration (one of my co-workers who has been with the company 32 years is retiring), spend a long lunch there (having okayed it with my boss at the hospital), then come back and work a little later than usual to make sure I can finish up the grant work by Thursday.