Tonight's utterly useless bit of trivia...
Since 1952, there has only been ONE Presidential election in which someone named either: Nixon, Dole, Bush, or Clinton, has not been on the ballot. Can you name the year? I'll wait...

Tic, toc, tic, toc...

Mmm, hmmm...

The answer is...

1964.
Johnson/Humphrey defeating Goldwater/Miller.

'52, '56- Eisenhower/Nixon; '60, Nixon/Lodge; '68, '72- Nixon/Agnew; '76, Ford/Dole; '80, '84- Reagan/Bush; '88, '92- Bush/Quayle; '92, '96- Clinton/Gore; '96, Dole/Kemp; '00, '04- Bush/Cheney.
And if Hillary Clinton or Liddy Dole end up on their respective party's tickets in '08...

"It ain't me, it ain't me/I ain't no fortunate one, no, no, no..."

Minute Rice.

So I'm making stuffed peppers the other night (and BTW- if you're not going to use lamb, don't even bother- hamburger just does not cut it!) and part of the recipe calls for rice, and when I make them, I usually use, yes, the alleged "Minute Rice." And as I was waiting for the water to boil, and then for the rice itself to cook, I got to thinking...someone should be sued for lack of truth in advertising here- this rice does not, nor did it ever, cook in one minute! How about "Five Minute Rice," instead?! (OK you sticklers, yes, on the top of the box, in MUCH smaller print, it does say "Cooks in 5 Minutes." But you get my point- why not call it Five Minute Rice? Are people going to be THAT put off by the honesty of that extra 4 minutes?!) On the positive side, they were delicious! :)

After two weeks, I'm currently tied for last place in my fantasy football league. What stinks is that, points-wise, I'd be about in 4th or 5th (it's a 10 team league) it's just that, so far, each week I've lost my head-to-head match up, even as my team has generated decent points. Oh well, it's a long season...last year I sprinted out to like a 9-0 record, no one could touch me, and I still didn't win the whole thing (lost in the championship game matchup if I remember correctly.) At least the Pats have gotten off to a better start, 2-0 going into their bye week this week. They need to address their run-defense a lil bit, but 2-0 is 2-0.

Fall starts today. Fall- my favorite season and truly the nicest, prettiest time of year in New England. Autumn in New England almost makes winters here bearable (almost! I'd still rather spend the winter in Vegas, or some other warm, dry, sunny clime. But...) The nice weather, the cool days and chilly evenings, the foliage, the autumn produce, football, all of the things that make fall a truly special time of year ("these are a few of my favorite things?!" Yikes, Kellie!)

I haven't been sleeping well lately. I've never slept great anyway- it takes me forever to fall asleep, no matter what time I go to bed. Some folks can drift off 10 minutes after hitting the pillow; me, it takes close to two hours, again, no matter what time I go to bed. And sleeping in? Forget it. No matter what time I go to bed, I can almost never sleep past 6am at the latest, never have. But lately, I've been sleeping even less well. Not sure why, but just not sleeping well, not being able to fall asleep, waking up thru the night even more than usual. I dunno...maybe I need more nocturnal activities...

"This one's for the girls/Who've ever had a broken heart/Who've wished upon a shooting star/You're beautiful the way you are..."

Not for nuthin', but...

I have a friend who frequently gives me a- good natured!- hard time over my dearth of knowledge re. television shows. And it's true- I don't watch a lot of television; when I have the time, I often prefer to read or surf the 'Net, and when I do watch TV, it's often either news, sports, documentary-type programs, or the occasional movie. When I actually watch a series, its either something on HBO, like the late, lamented Sex and the City, The Sopranos, etc...or else reruns of something like Law & Order. But, two things. First- WHO is "Dr. Phil?" I've seen ads and such for this guy- who IS he? What is he a doctor of? Is he an MD, a psychologist, does he have a Ph.D. in primitive cultures, what? I bring him up only because he's but one example of something I don't quite get, the- what?- familiarization of people. Doesn't Dr. Phil have a last name? Is it assumed that EVERYONE knows him? OK, Oprah has been around for ever, I guess she can get away with using just her first name. But SO many people on TV, the powers-that-be act as tho' everyone knows who they are and that they are everyone's best bud...I've seen a woman on a local news program, she does the medical segments, same thing, just "Dr. Malika," again, as if everyone should automatically know who she is. Hype...Second; "reality" shows. I know, I know, they've been the hot thing for a few years now. I don't get 'em. There's nothing "real" about them. Really, there's not! It goes back maybe to MTV's "The Real World," there was NEVER anything "real" about it! How many folks do YOU know who, just out of college, are given a trendy pad in a hip city to live with a bunch of folks they've never met? Hmmmm...?? None in MY real world! In all of these programs, I gather they put a bunch of people into various stressful situations, trying to create drama. C'mon...

The Sox start what most likely will be the pivotal series of the season vs. the Yankees tonight. As anyone who has read this for awhile might be able to tell, I'm not the biggest of baseball fans (most likley cuz I was never too good at it!) but I do follow it some, and I certainly wish the Sox well, I want to see 'em win. And I'm NO fan of the Yankees (or any New York teams) but...the whole "Yankees Suck" chant- wrong. Whatever else we may think of the Evil Empire, clearly, obviously, they do not suck. I know it's just fans havin' a lil fun, but still, it makes us look foolish. Jes boo 'em!

Another sports-related one...I was working out today and on the television at the gym (yes, I do watch...sometimes! :) one of the sets had on ESPN Classic, running an old college football game, and it got me to thinking...what are the best college fight songs? My top 10 (and maybe I'll add this list to my site:)
10. "Fight Mass," UMass. (HAD to include it; it's not bad, really! :)
9. "Screaming Eagles Fight," Minnesota State. (OK, actually the theme from "Coach!")
8. "Fight the Team," Ohio State. (Woody Hayes once got to dot the "I")
7. "Sons of Westwood," UCLA. (And the Rose Bowl as home field? Not bad...)
6. "Fight On State," Penn State. (And I love that lion roar thing they do, too!)
5. "On Wisconsin," Wisconsin. (Of course)
4. "War Chant," Florida State. (And Chief Osceola riding Renegade...)
3. "Fanfare, Tribute to Troy, and Fight On," Southern Cal. (With regards to Tommy Trojan)
2. "Victory March," Notre Dame. (Waking up the echoes...)
1. "The Victors," Michigan. (Go Blue!)

Yes, Kellie desperately needs to get a life!

"Hail! To the victors valiant/Hail! To the conqu'ring heroes/Hail! Hail! To Michigan, the leaders and the best..."

God bless America.

Perhaps the last word on this topic...(tho' probably not, as I'm a self-flagellating, obsessive whackjob!) But...as of today I'm a free woman, at least in the eyes of the Commonwealth; my court case from last year was finally dismissed today (actually, it would have been the 5th, but as that was a Sunday, and the following day was Labor Day...) I completed all of my obligations to fulfill the plea I entered last year and, as my case was continued without a finding for one year, pending the successful completion of said obligations (including the one year's worth of probation) it was to be, and now is, dismissed. I still have an arrest and an arraignment on my record, but no conviction.

I should be happy and feel a sense of relief, and to a degree I do. But more, I just feel an incredible sense of waste, of wasted time, money, opportunity, good will, etc...In a very real sense, I lost a year of my life, at least in terms of doing many of the things I had hoped to do. Due to the considerable financial straits my stupid actions placed upon me, I was unable to pursue almost all of the things I had hoped to over the last year or so. Certainly in terms of "this," I had hoped to begin to make FAR more strides (for those who have read it, my "To Whom It May Concern" page on my site- which was written prior to my stupidity last summer- addresses this somewhat) but I did not. Similarly, I was fearful of jeopardizing what little $ecurity I possessed, not wanting to risk losing the means I had/have, especially since much of my plea agreement was based upon making court- and other- payments in a prompt and successful manner, hence I was extremely unwilling to take any chances there, even as I lived a life of self-imposed drudgery, based solely upon my own stupid actions. I burnt up a fair amount of good will, from folks near and dear to me, disappointing those who actually knew what happened, causing or creating distance with those who didn't know, but whom I was unable to see or visit as I would have liked, due both to my schedule as well as to certain terms of my probation. I feel so bad that I was not the person I wanted to be, and that others may have been inconvenienced, disappointed, or put out due to my selfish actions. And I'm angry with myself- for being such an idiot, for putting at risk so many things for such a foolish reason (why, oh WHY couldn't I have simply taken a cab or public transportation that night?!) for being such a selfish, stupid, reckless person, and also for the sense of loss, of lost time, of missed chances, fun, and opportunities, this last year has proven to be.

I have to begin to at last really, truly move forward from here, begin to make some of the things happen that I've wanted to for so long (in so many ways, in so many areas, of my life.) Short-term it's still going to be a bit difficult, as financially this whole thing set me back considerably, and still does (read: increased auto insurance premiums) but longer-term hopefully I can move forward, financially as well as forgiveness-wise, and begin to lead a more fulfilling life, free from excessive guilt and monetary-related obligations from my own stupidity. My deepest apologies to any and all who are owed them. But I am a free woman once again, to come and go whenever- and wherever- I wish, no more monthly reporting to a PO, no more fines, fees, or simply fearing another shoe to drop, no more sword hanging over my head, etc...whew!

"I'm free to do what I want, any old time..."