Here's how to know you're done for: When you are wandering around your house muttering to yourself, "Stop wandering around muttering to yourself, you look like a crazy person!"

At least I was right.

Leave me a comment and I will give you a letter.
Then, write 10 things that you love starting with that letter.
Post the list in your journal.
Give out letters to your commenters in return.

cyloran gave me S:

( Here they are. )

My sister had the bright idea to go up to the supermarket parking lot on top of my mountain and watch the fireworks at McIntire Park. About five hundred other people also had this idea.

It was a good idea! We found a good spot and watched a lovely fireworks show. We were high enough to see fireworks in the distance from towns 10 and 20 miles away, too.

I can't remember the last time I watched fireworks on the 4th. I never wanted to fight the traffic. Now, I can drive three miles from my house and have the best view possible.

Happy "We're not British!" Day, fellow Americans!

My house is clean! Wow. Three ladies in 30 minutes made my house cleaner than I've ever gotten it, at least all of it all at the same time. This was totally worth it, and I'll be doing this regularly.

Had a lady come out today to give me a quote on cleaning my house. I can feel my grandmother's scorn on the back of my neck, but let's face it; I hate cleaning and I don't do a particularly good job of it when I do it - saying I should clean my house isn't getting the house clean, and neither is feeling ashamed of not doing it. I'd rather spend the time I'd be cleaning on reading or taking a walk in the park. For that matter, I'd rather be working. And that should tell you just how much I hate cleaning.

Are those who twitter twits, then?

11:27 Leo is trying to get into a box that's narrower than his head. Perhaps I gave him too much catnip.

14:19 @Zoyx Who set your duck on fire?

17:57 @Zoyx Ha! I forgot about that!

18:02 CNN scrawl says Obama wrote a letter to MJ's family. Good PR, but I think not quite right. Did he write a letter to those who loved Farrah?

18:08 Billy Mays died too. Pitch Man! I muted him whenever he came on my tv. Now I'm gonna be sad every time I see OxyClean.

Automatically shipped by LoudTwitter

You know, the problem with Facebook is that you end up with a lot of "friends" you don't really give a shit about, and they're always the ones that post eleventy billion times a day with things like what they ate for lunch and where they're standing right now. ... like people who used to work where I do and who are REAL friends with people I know from there, and I friend the people I know, and then their friends want to friend me because they heard my name once, and it feels rude not to do it... but I swear I don't even know some of these people.

It's just an overwhelming flood of trivial information. It's a casual chat that you'd have with a friend (where did you eat lunch? yeah, what do they have there? oh, my kid did this cute thing! here, look at my new cat!) except it's with a hundred people all at once. I can't care that much about the minutiae of that many people's lives; I don't have the energy. Maybe I'm just too old to think that someone I met once at a party is my "friend".

And then there are people who I'm interested in and care about, but I'm not that close to. An email would sit for weeks unanswered, probably. Facebook is the perfect way to keep up with people you care about but aren't very invested in.

One thing I like about LJ is that people rarely post "I'm standing in line at the DMV" type posts. One thing I like about Twitter is that they do. Maybe it's the way Facebook is set up, so that it seems that all the information is thrown at you all at once, that I don't like. It's Short Attention Span Theater, and once again - too old. I don't like an onslaught of unsorted data.

Are those who twitter twits, then?

18:03 @NathanFillion I heard the same ??!! about Seattle SciFi Museum last weekend from friends: No Firefly WTF? So I didn't go. So there, museum!

18:23 Have been on low-carb diet for five days. Have lost 4 pounds. I am an idiot for not doing this MUCH sooner. Because I KNEW IT WOULD WORK.

18:26 I can have more carbs than I expected. Probably because I've been working out and put on some sugar-chompin' muscle. Off to eat steak!

Automatically shipped by LoudTwitter

Are those who twitter twits, then?

21:19 Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson, in one day. Ed McMahon yesterday. I'm watching the icons of my youth die.

21:56 Jeri Nielsen, the doctor who treated herself for breast cancer at the South Pole, has also died.

22:24 Started the low-carb diet again yesterday. Already feel tons better. I can haz extended lifespan nao, plz? Mortality, leave me alone awhile.

08:50 @lilibat No more braids?

Automatically shipped by LoudTwitter

CNN's got a big Michael Jackson obit on its splash page. Olbermann's entire show was about Jacko last night. When I popped into Maddow, it looked the same, but I didn't stay. Come on, now. His life was amazing and sad and his death unexpected (though hardly surprising), but other important things were going on in the world yesterday, too. You couldn't spare a minute for Farrah, who deserves better than to be overshadowed by Jacko? Did Iran stop imploding for a day to mourn? I bet Sanford is glad to be eclipsed, though.

Are those who twitter twits, then?

09:46 Landed in Richmond to find my luggage destroyed. Luckily no items missing, just a big rip in the side of the bag and a handle dangling loose

09:47 I didn't like that bag anyway. AirTran gave me $50 for it.

09:49 The trip was fun. Ate good food, hung out with good folk, walked around a lot. Seattle is almost like SF in the verticality of its streets.

Automatically shipped by LoudTwitter

I upgraded to a business class seat on the trip home, because I couldn't face the idea of another five hours crammed into a tiny seat, rubbing body parts with strangers. My ass has expanded beyond the confines of Continental's seats. Or the seats have gotten narrower. Probably both; now there are six seats in a row instead of five, and the plane surely has not gotten bigger. Naturally, comfort being my prime objective, I got the seat next to the mouthbreather who coughed and hacked and snorted *without ever covering his mouth* for five solid hours. In between his brief bouts of noisy sleep, he would open up his laptop. It was bright. The light from the galley fridge was directly in my eyes as well. It's hard to sleep when you're concerned about catching the plague; intermittant lights in my eyes don't help. If I ever fly first class again, I'll try to get a seat on the side behind the galley. But, despite my grouchiness, the problems were transient. The extra width, of both the seat and the distance between me and the other person, and the extra leg room make it likely that I will fly first class again, whenever possible. Coach is just too damn uncomfortable, now that airlines have crammed more seats into the same space in order to make more money. I understand their business model, I just don't like it.

The hostess came around to ask if I wanted a drink before the other passengers had even finished loading. (If this is usual for first class, they need to stop; it's stupid. People were having trouble getting on the plane because the hostess was in such a hurry to pander to the people who ponied up a few extra bucks to not be uncomfortable. Please. Even the old lady behind me could have waited for her Bloody Mary until everyone was on the plane.) I was still bleary from drinking and not sleeping much and walking around a lot more than usual. Good sense stopped me from ordering another alcoholic beverage but my overtired brain didn't immediately provide an alternative. I stammered for a second and asked for soda. She gave me the stink-eye and asked what KIND of soda. A reasonable question. I asked for a Coke, figuring everyone who carries soda has either Coca-cola or Pepsi, which they'll substitute as if it tasted the same. (Coke is drinkable. Pepsi is disgusting.) She brought it, and then as she was adjusting something for the old guy in front of me, reached into my seat-back pocket, pulled out the airline magazine, flipped to the back page, folded it, and handed it to me, all without looking or speaking to me. Impressive, really. The page had a list of the airline's beverages. I wasn't sure if she was being sarcastic or helpful. Possibly both. For the rest of the flight, she spoke to me with special solicitousness, as if she thought I might be a little slow. When I came back from the restroom, she asked if I was okay. WTF? I was in there for just long enough to pee and take out my contacts. Do I look like I was barfing or something? I really hate it when people ask if I'm okay when I've come out of the restroom. Maybe the fact that I couldn't focus my eyes on anything (I have really bad vision without lenses) made her think I was sick, but whatever. If something was wrong and I wanted you to know about it, I'd tell you. It's a rather personal thing to be inquiring about.

Landed in Richmond to find that AirTran had destroyed my lugggage. Nothing inside was damaged, just a huge rip in the side and a handle dangling loose. Filing the claim and getting compensated took an hour. Is AirTran the only airline that accepts no liability for soft-sided bags, or is that SOP? They gave me a $50 voucher for my next flight. Apparently that was the least they were prepared to offer me; the lady seemed apologetic, as if she thought I wouldn't be okay with it. I was perfectly fine with it, but I sure wouldn't have been if I'd lost what was in the bag. I wanted to replace that bag anyway. It wasn't square, and if left with handle out but unheld, it would immediately fall over and make a loud whack. Very awkward. Hard to look like a sophisticated traveler, when your bag keeps fainting. I plan to replace it with hard-sided luggage.

Then, a sad search for my car in the parking garage. Sad, not simply because I lost it, but because I *wrote down* exactly where I'd parked, and I *still* couldn't find it. I was really tired. Finally I found it, drank the rest of the soda that I'd left in there Friday morning (it was cold, if flat, and I was thirsty, okay?) and drove 1.5 hours home.

To find one disconsolate cat and one cat missing. A quick search revealed that the catsitter had closed the door to the downstairs bathroom, probably simply out of habit, because she'd also cleaned the catbox there, and Wilson had gotten trapped in there. He was hiding behind some crap in the little storage room where the catbox is, but came out after a little coaxing. He had the litterbox and water and was probably in there less than a day, so I wasn't too worried, but still, the next time I need a catsitter, I'll put up "check for both cats before you leave" signs.

This morning the two cats were eating from the same dish at the same time. I guess they're friends now, and I can stop worrying that Leo isn't letting Wilson eat.

Being home feels surreal. I'll write about the trip itself later. Now I need to get back to work. Maybe that's what feels surreal: work. Wandering around having fun is Real Life; Work is just what we do to pay for it.

Are those who twitter twits, then?

23:26 Sitting in SeaTac airport typing on my little netbook keyboard. Enjoyed the weekend in Seattle, but I'm ready to get home now.

Automatically shipped by LoudTwitter

Are those who twitter twits, then?

04:59 Sitting in Richmond airport. Haven't slept at all. Hope I get some food before I have to board the foodless plane. Desperation.

Automatically shipped by LoudTwitter

My little eeePC didn't know what time it was on my last post.Now I've reset its brain. I think my post went to yesterday. I'll fix it later.

I'm at Richmond airport, connecting with my eeePC! This feels like quite the achievement. The darn thing wont connect at home. It's 4:15am, I think. I have had 0 sleep, and yet am awake.

I'm used to Newark. This airport -- security isn't even *open*. They must not have flights going out 24 hours. Nothing else is open either, so I'm left starving. However, it is nice and quiet.

I need coffee and bacon, nice quiet people. You don't understand the situation here.

Are those who twitter twits, then?

15:02 Flight leaves Richmond at 6am. I should be there ~4am because I don't know the airport parking sitch. So I should leave home @2am. No sleep.

15:02 Also? Not packed yet. I live on the edge.

19:18 Got my hair cut. Short hair now. I like it. Suppose I should go pack. Cat is howling as if he knows I'm going away.

Automatically shipped by LoudTwitter

If there is one person or more on your friends list who makes your world a better place just because they exist and who you would not have met (in real life or not) without the internet, then post this same sentence in your journal.

Leaving for Seattle at ~2am. My hair is dyed and cut, my car is filled with gas for the trip to Richmond airport, and catsitting has been arranged with my niece. All that's left to do is pack. I really don't want to check a bag, especially for a 3-day trip. I'll have to curb my tendency to bring everything I *might* want.