All of Friday

Four for Friday
(Link in blogroll)

Q1 - Notables: Many famous and noteworthy people died this year, including the ones listed here: Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Arthur C. Clarke, Michael Crichton, Beverly Garland, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Yves Saint Laurent, Christopher Bowman, Eartha Kitt, Sir Edmund Hillary, Jeff Healey, Bobby Fischer, Bo Diddley, Jeremy Beadle, Isaac Hayes, Paul Scofield, Heath Ledger, Guillaume Depardieu, Michael Lee, Paul Newman, M.C. Breed, Sydney Pollack, Charlton Heston, Albert Hofmann, W. Mark Felt, Sunny von Bulow, Odetta, Kenny MacLean, Tony Hillerman, Dee Dee Warwick, Don Haskins, Kevin Duckworth, Gene Upshaw, Stephanie Tubbs Jones, Sandy Allen, Bernie Mac, Skip Caray, Estelle Getty, Tony Snow, Bobby Ray Murcer, Michael DeBakey, Jesse Helms, Dody Goodman, George Carlin, Wilbur Hardee, Tim Russert, Charlie Jones, Jim McKay, Harvey Korman, Hamilton Jordan, and Brad Renfro. Which notable person's death affected you most in 2008?

Probably the one that hit me the hardest was George Carlin. I'm sure he's...wherever...rolling his eyes at that.

Q2 - Credit: In the midst of the current global recession, credit card companies have cut back on credit lines even to good customers. In addition, according to The Atlanta Journal Constitution, some credit card issuers have gone beyond looking at how much their customers spend or how promptly they pay and are now evaluating where they live and where they shop. In other words, redlining is apparently alive and well, aided and abetted by the very companies which could not restrain themselves from blindly offering credit cards and balance transfers to anyone who opened the mailbox, even if they were underage and without visible means of support. Do you think credit card issuers should be able to adjust credit limits and rates based solely on your zip code or shopping habits?

No, but what I think credit card companies should be doing is clearly not something they care about or they wouldn't have been offering me millions of dollars of credit for the past 30 years. Nor would they have offered by 15-year-old credit pretty much since he was born. Idiots.

Q3 - Hot: From California to Florida, an increasing number state departments of transportation are allowing single occupancy vehicles (SOVs) to pay a premium toll to use HOV (high occupancy vehicle) lanes. High-occupancy tolls (HOT) are criticized by some as being nothing more than "Lexus lanes" that allow drivers with deeper pockets to buy special treatment on highways built using fuel taxes collected from everyone. What do you think? Are HOT lanes a good idea?

Oh for God's sake...we don't have enough to worry about? Please. OK, seriously: the carpool lanes should be left as carpool lanes. Expensive cars should pay more. And, since I'm obviously living in my fantasy world, mean people would be shot.

Q4 - Theatre: When you watch a movie in a movie theatre, do you like the theatre filled to capacity, halfway full, or nearly empty? Does your answer change depending on the type of movie you're seeing or do you feel the same way regardless of the movie or genre?

I don't like crowds, so I'd prefer to sit in a nearly empty theater.

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Friday 5
(Link in blogroll)
End-of-Year Positivity

1. What’s one really cool/useful/nice thing you purchased for yourself this year?

Since it's fresh in my mind, I'm going with the Wii.

2. What’s one area of your life you really improved this year?

I'm getting much better and refusing to carry guilt unnecessarily.

3. Who or what was a regular source of encouragement or inspiration to you this year?

Amy, Jenny, the youth group kids, and the Bible.

4. What’s something nice you did for someone else this year?

I didn't beat Beast up all those times he was nasty. Patience and understanding and all that....

5. In what way was 2008 better than 2007?

I don't think it actually was; I just got better at handling the shit sliding down the cesspit. And I didn't have to deal with Sirsi at all!!

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Food 4 Thought Friday
(link in blogroll)

Breakfast
Was there a special moment for you during Christmas day (or Eve) this year?

Seeing all the 'regulars' at the Chinese restaurant on Christmas Eve cracked me up.

Lunch
What was served for your Christmas dinner this year?

Ham, mashed taters, mixed veggies, Texas sheet cake....buffet style.

Midnight Snack
How are you feeling right at this moment? Relieved it's over or sad it's over already?

I'm trying to figure out what to do about my retardo-headed niece and her lack of social grace, but otherwise I'm quite pleased with the holiday. I'm so relaxed I'm a noodle.

Recipe for this Week(instead of your recipe for life - what is it for just this week?)

STAY relaxed!!

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Friday Fill-Ins
(link in blogroll)

1. I must finish all the books on my reading list before I die.

2. You can't stop a speeding bullet.

3. I wish I never had to buy anything myself again. [holding out for a personal shopper, and chef....]

4. God and Beast has have helped me change my life.

5. I know the songs from The Sound of Music and My Fair Lady (all of them) by heart.

6. If I weren't so afraid, I would do things differently.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to last night I played on the Wii for a couple of hours, tomorrow today my plans include included figuring out how to manage the iminent demise of my music account, and Sunday, I want to do some more Wii-ing!