Archive for April, 2008

April 9, 2008

Tuesday Teaser photo verification

My apologies for the delay in getting this posted. Taxes are due and my books are a mess, so I’m putting in long hours getting them in order.

Once again I got blown out of the water.The Tuesday Teaser was barely posted before Corrin chimed in with the correct answer to the puzzle. She’s won a linky love post and will be entered into the drawing for a $10.00 gift card at the end of the month. Mahalo to you all for playing!

Technorati Tags: contest, photo puzzle, puzzle, snorkeling gear, swim gear

Posted by skeet @ 1:11 am • Tuesday Teaser, Contest, Photos • 2 comments

April 8, 2008

Tuesday Teaser for April 8, 2008

Can you identify the item depicted above? Just take your best guess and post it in the comments below. If your guess wins, you’ll get a nifty prize. Here’s how it works:

1. Write a comment giving your guess as to what the item is.
2. First person to identify the item wins.
3. The author of this blog will be the sole judge as to what constitutes a correct answer.

What will you win?

1. The author of this blog will write a LINKY LOVE POST (review) about the winner’s blog (commercial sites ineligible.) The LLP will contain the url for your blog plus at least two deep links and will be posted here on Skeet’s Stuff, a ~~PR4~~ ~~PR2~~ PR0 (bah google!) blog. Skeet writes good reviews.
2. The winner’s name will be entered into a drawing for a $10.00 gift card from Starbucks or Amazon.
3. Drawing for the gift card will be held on or about May 1, 2008, and will include all weekly winners for the month. There are five Tuesdays in april, thus the maximum number of people who will be eligble is five.

April 6, 2008

Self Portrait Sunday for April 6, 2008

It’s theatre day and I’m actually ready early. I’m wearing my not-too-fat jeans (which make my thighs look gargantuan,) a comfy tee and my designer jewelry. Okay, all jewelry is designed by someone, right? So all jewelry is designer jewelry, right? Even though I bought the bracelets at the discount store? The neckace is one that I wear almost every day. The kid gave it to me when he was ten or eleven years old, figuring that insect jewelry was the perfect gift for a mom just starting her career in pest control. It’s a butterfly, not a pest, but I still think it was a pretty smart selection on his behalf. My hair is still damp, but will be dry by the time we get there, or maybe even by the time my friend arrives to share the ride with me. I’m hoping she’ll get here early so we can do lunch. There’s an open house at her place today and she has to bring her girls with her - the beagle & the Weimaraner - so that may have slowed her down. Lance & the girls will appreciate the chance to have a playday while their moms go to town.

So what are you doing today? Did you take a picture of yourself and post it over at Midlife Musings? If so I’ll see you when I go out visiting all of the self-portraiters. If you didn’t … there’s still time. Join us!

Technorati Tags: meme, photos, self portrait

Posted by skeet @ 11:24 am • Photos, Meme • 14 comments

April 5, 2008

The Merrie Monarch Hula Festival

I started this post last night as I was watching the live broadcast of the Merrie Monarch Hula Festival. Trying to write while watching was making me miss too much, so I had to wait until this morning to finish my post. I hope I haven’t lost the intensity of feeling that watching hula invokes. I wish I had known earlier that there’s a link where you all can watch it live, but I didn’t, so you’ve missed the solo competitions for Miss Aloha Hula and the kahiko (ancient) presentations. You can still watch the auana (modern) competitions tonight. The broadcast begins at 6 p.m. Hawaii time (GMT-10) and will last up to six hours, so I hope you can watch at least some of it. I don’t think have the words to describe what an overwhelmingly emotional experience it is. The commentary that accompanies the broadcast will help you get a sense of what I mean.

Hula is a celebration of the history and culture of the Hawaiian people, and it is so much more. Every dance you’ve ever done, every song you’ve ever heard, every story ever told, goes back to the common human experience: ancient peoples preserving their heritages, remembering their ancestral history, celebrating life and paying homage to their gods. The ballroom dancers and hip-hop artists, the gospel choirs and craft-makers - all of us, when we express ourselves creatively, are connecting through the mists of time with the ancients who spawned us. Hula, while uniquely Hawaiian, speaks to and for all of us, regardless of cultural roots. Merrie Monarch is a competition among the best of the best and sweeps us up in the passion of the halaus (schools, dance groups) as they bring that connection to life. Warriors re-enact battles, Pele and her sister engage in a fiery war of wills, vouyagers eloquently describe the wonders of their journey through movement and gesture. I was struck, as always, with the wisdom of the Hawaiian people who have kept their cultural ties with the past alive, and who pass it on to each new generation through meles (songs and chants) and hula. I don’t know how my own ancient ancestors celebrated their lives and preserved their history - the details have been lost. Shards of pottery and scrawled bits of art tells us so little about them. Their songs, dances and stories must surely have been similar to the vibrant example that hula has kept alive. What a shame we’ve lost so much, and what a blessing that na kanaka (the Hawaiian people) invite us to witness their living history through hula. I am humbled.

Graphic from : KITV.com

Technorati Tags: Hawaii, Hawaiian culture, hula, hula competition, KITV, Merrie Monarch Hula Festival

Posted by skeet @ 10:51 am • Hawaii, Society & culture • No comments

April 4, 2008

Sudden Cardiac Arrest - do you know enough?

One of our local papers has one of those society columns that reports on big social events and talks about who’s been seen where, with whom and doing what. I’m not a daily reader, but I check it every now and then to see if any of my clients has been mentioned. A few weeks ago there was a report about a man who had suffered cardiac arrest while playing golf. His companions knew what to do and were able to save his life. Do you know the signs of Sudden Cardiac Arrest? Would you know what to do if you or someone else started exhibiting symptoms? Do you even know what the symptoms are? They can include sudden collapse, Irregular Heartbeat and loss of consciousness. Sudden Cardiac Arrest must be treated immediately for the person to survive. It’s a good idea for all of us to know the symptoms and to understand what should be done when Sudden Cardiac Arrest occurs. Check out the Sudden Cardiac Arrest website from St. Jude Medical Center to learn all about what it is, who’s at risk and what can be done to prevent or treat Sudden Cardiac Arrest. We all hope we never need such information, but if we ever do we’ll be grateful that we spent some time educating ourselves, don’t you think?

Technorati Tags: health, sudden cardiac arrest

Posted by skeet @ 10:12 am • Health & wellbeing • 2 comments

April 3, 2008

Tuesday Teaser gift card winner for March

I was halfway out the door this morning when I remembered that I wanted to do the gift card drawing today. I ran back inside, grabbed my list of names and the magic mug and took off for work. I had a “multi” scheduled for today - a single-family residence fronting the street and a two-story, four-unit apartment building in the back. Everyone was home - a nice surprise, because I ususally end up having access problems when I do apartments. They were all quite pleasant, even the guy in the front house who was feeling wretched with the flu or some such thing. I chatted my way through both buildings, then remembered the magic mug as I was finishing up.

My car was parked in front, but I didn’t want to bother the sick guy, so I went back to the apartment building. One door was standing open, and I recalled how photogenic Ariel and Kent looked (aren’t they just too cute?) and how friendly they are. Just what I needed to perk up my blog! I asked them if they would help me out. They would! As Ariel mixed up the slips of paper with the names I joked, “You can draw any name but Colleen’s.” I then explained that Colleen seems to have a golden touch lately, so it was someone else’s turn to win.

Ha! The winning streak continues! Ariel laughed as soon as she saw the slip, so I knew what it would say. Sure ’nuff, Colleen has won the Tuesday Teaser gift card for March. Congrats to Colleen, and mahalo to all of my players and to Ariel and Kent for keeping it fun. See you all next Tuesday!

Technorati Tags: contest, photo cotest, prize drawing, Tuesday Teasers

Posted by skeet @ 11:04 pm • Tuesday Teaser, Contest, Photos • 2 comments

Go see Corrin

You know my friend Corrin. She’s over here all the time, commenting on my posts and playing Tuesday Teasers, and she’s a fellow player of Self Portrait Sunday and Four Foods on Friday. She blogs over at oh, hey. what’s up? about her life, current events, entertainment news and lots of interesting products and services. You can learn a few things about Corrin in her recent 4 Questions - 4 Answers, where she lists jobs she’s had, shows she watches and foods she likes, among other things. I’m not so sure about someone who would say that edamame is a favorite food (I mean, there’s not much taste there, is there?) but she’s got good taste in music, so that makes up for a lot.

Corrin must spend a lot of time searching out videos, because she’s posted an impressive number of them. She manages to find the off-beat & bizarre stuff that makes you go “Huh? What was that?” Being a self-portraiter herself, she had to post the video of an elephant painting a self portrait when she found it. Huh? What was that? Yep, I watched the whole thing twice because I couldn’t believe what I’d seen the first time. I need to find out Corrin’s secret for finding such strange things (she’s got a lot of weird stuff on her blog that I’ve never seen anywhere else.) Go check her out and see if you don’t have a few “Huh?” moments, too!

Technorati Tags: blogs, blog reviews, personal blogs

Posted by skeet @ 10:07 pm • Review, Blogging • 1 comment

This is me, working

I do termite inspections. Over the years I’ve inspected everything from slum properties to a palace (literally) to the museum in the base of a well-known statue of a lady with a torch. These days I limit myself to providing inspections for the real estate market. I’m brought in to help prospective buyers make informed decisions about the homes they’ve selected. Most of the structures I inspect are typical middle-class homes, though I’ve certainly inspected my share of upscale properties. Today I inspected a seven thousand square foot house that is assessed at over five million dollars. The crawl space was about five thousand square feet. There was about two feet of clearance under most of the house, but it was tight quarters getting beneath plumbing and other utilities. I crawled some of it, but for most of it I had to squirm along on my belly, pushing with my feet and pulling with my elbows. I was appropriately suited-up, of course. I wore coveralls, knee pads, elbow pads, gloves and a dust mask, and today I finally remembered to get a picture. I asked the realtor to snap a photo before I entered the crawl space. If I’d been thinking I’d have asked him to take another when I came out. My entire front side was covered with damp sand and I had spiderwebs in my hair, which was plastered to my head with sweat. On second thought, maybe that’s a picture I wouldn’t want to share. So this is me working. Before. No after.

Technorati Tags: termite inspector, working women

Posted by skeet @ 12:12 am • Business • 4 comments

April 2, 2008

Four Foods on Friday #23

Let’s talk about food again. Val asks the questions, we supply the answers, then Val tells us how brilliant our answers are. That’s how we play Four Foods on Friday and you’re welcome to join us. Here are this week’s questions and my answers:

#1. American cheese. Sliced fresh or prepackaged processed cheese product?
I haven’t eaten American cheese in years. I keep cheddar, swiss and/or monteray jack on hand for sandwiches and cooking, and usually a gouda, munster or some other imported cheese for snacking

#2. What is your favorite cracker?

Rye Crisp. Love those things!

#3. What hot breakfast cereal do you like? Think oatmeal, farina, grits, etc.

Oatmeal with honey or brown sugar and butter.

#4. Share a recipe that uses corn.

CornFritters

1 cup flour
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 cup whole kernel corn

Cooking oil for deep frying.

Heat the oil in a deep pot or fryer. Mix all of the ingredients together, then drop golf ball-sized dollops into hot cooking oil. Cook until goldren brown - five or six minutes. Drain on paper towel

Technorati Tags: food, meme, recipes

Posted by skeet @ 11:35 pm • Food and beverage, Meme • 6 comments

April 1, 2008

Tuesday Teaser photo verification

The answers are:

A. Umbrella
B. Keys
C. Credit cards
D. Hair brush
E. Lipstick
F. Cell phone
G. The contents of my handbag

Well, folks, I think it’s time to go back to the original style Tuesday Teaser. Each of the recent puzzles has been solved pretty almost immediately, so they’re just not as challenging as they used to be. It was an interesting experiment, but I guess it proves the old adage: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! The new format gives too many clues and makes it almost inevitable that the puzzle will be solved quickly. I’ll start looking for a stumper to present to you next Tuesday, the old-fashioned way. All of that being said, Jennifer was once again smart enough and fast enough to chime in first with the correct answers. She’s won another blog review and will be entered into the April drawing for a gift card. Congratulations to Jennifer and mahalo to all of you for playing!

Technorati Tags: contest, photo puzzle, puzzle

Posted by skeet @ 4:32 pm • Tuesday Teaser, Contest, Photos • 2 comments