Everything And Nothing

Karaoke

OK - I got talked into karaoke. It's 1 a.m. and I have to be at work at 6 a.m. My eyes are watering from the smoke. I smell like an ashtray - but we had one hell of a good time and that's all that counts.

Gambino's is serious karaoke. Those people can sing. We don't bring talent to the table, like most of these guys - but we (myself and the other six co-workers coerced into coming) are the best damn entertainers in the house, if I must say so myself. Our repertoire tonight?

1. Car Wash
2. 9 to 5
3. Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy (we were the girl singers with Josh)
4. Our grand finale: Hollaback Girl (of course)

'Cause I ain't no Hollaback girl! Uh-huh, Uh-huh. ;)

Sleep...I need sleep. And no more food. And no more alcohol. No more smiling. No more talking. No more loud music. Must go to bed tomorrow night. (If you think it's tiring to go to a convention, you don't know nothing till you put one on!)

Point Clear Report

It has been rainy and muggy in Point Clear, Ala. Thankfully, the rain has cleared momentarily - but it's still overcast. It was funny this morning to see families riding bikes and swimming at the pool in the rain. You could almost hear the parents saying in their heads, "We paid for this damn vacation. We will have fun - raining or not. We will do things together. Now get on the bike and ride and stop talking about the rain."

The Marriott Point Clear really is a great family hotel. It kind of reminds me of Dirty Dancing. You get a schedule of activities every morning - there is horseback riding, croquet, horseshoes, a huge swimming pool, bike paths, jet ski rentals for Mobile Bay. It makes me want to come back sometime when I'm not at a business meeting and fully enjoy the surroundings.

We stayed out way too late last night, drank way too much and had to get up way too early this morning. I'm way too tired, but have to go to a dinner tonight. It's a tradition to visit Gambino's for karaoke night but unless I'm extremely coerced, I think I'm going to bed as soon as possible. (Especially considering we have to get started at 6:30 am. tomorrow.)

I'm going to try and force myself to go and take some pictures tonight and tomorrow to share when I get back. It really is a beautiful place. More later...if I can stay awake.

Website spells out answers to questions about acronyms

Decipher the alphabet soup of acronyms that pepper the pages of documents and web sites of government agencies, scientific organizations, and corporate entities with the help of a new web search engine. Acronyma.com allows users to type in the acronym and the answer, or answers, will pop up. Acronyma indexes over 450,000 acronyms.

Hurricane Hunters fly first operational mission in WC-130J

The first storm of the 2005 hurricane season came a little early this year, appearing in the Pacific off the coast of Central America. Hurricane Adrian also marked the beginning of a new era for the Hurricane Hunters of the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron.

Meet the Holdouts

The Beatles are the biggest, bestest band ever. So why can’t you buy their songs online?

A Houston rapper wants me to call him

This is a neat story. It involves a self-promotion idea begun on the advice of a loving grandmother. And, best of all, it seems to be a success story!

Houston rapper Mike Jones took the advice of his grandmother and started saying his own name literally hundreds of times on his album. He also gave out his cell phone number - which he still answers (a pact he made with his fans). Dial 281-330-8004 and Mike Jones will answer. (He gets about 20,000 calls a day.)

"By now everyone should know that my Grandmother helped me with this marketing idea and when nobody else believed in me, she did. So I went with what she suggested and it worked," Jones explains.

I'm not quite sure if Grandma suggested the next part, but he got his Houston notoriety for some very unorthodox marketing practices. He started writing music for strippers to dance to...

"I'd say, 'Let me write a song about how fine you is and why people should tip you.' When she get onstage, people are looking at her, but they're hearing me. Soon, every stripper in Houston wanted a song from me."

Marketing lesson? Fan interaction (the phone number) builds a fan base and marketing buzz (who is Mike Jones?). (And strippers don't hurt either.)

Make Your Own Herbal Vinegar

Enjoying summer herbs year-round is simpler than you think, because they can easily be preserved in vinegars or salad dressings and marinades. Store the vinegar in decorative bottles that look great in your kitchen and make attractive gifts. 

What you need to have handy:
- favorite herbs
- vinegar (at least 5% acidity)
- wide-mouth jars
- decorative bottles and corks
- coffee filter or cheesecloth
- funnel (nonmetal)
- wooden spoon or chopsticks

1. With a wooden utensil, pack one to two cups of fresh clean, dry basil leaves and 3 garlic cloves into a sterile quart jar, bruising the herbs in the process. To prevent contamination, don't allow any metal or water to come in contact with the ingredients.
2. Fill the jar with vinegar that has been warmed (but not boiled) in the microwave. Use white wine or cider vinegar for the best flavor; sherry and balsamic vinegars are too strong. For safe food preservation, the vinegar must have a 5% acidity level. Cover with plastic wrap and store for two to four weeks.
3. Discard herbs and strain vinegar through a coffee filter or cheesecloth into sterilized decorative bottles. Top with a cork and label.

Source: Woman's Day, July 12, 2005

Lemonade Mojitos

In a large bowl muddle 1/2 cup mint leaves with sugar syrup. Stir in 5 cups of club soda, 4 cups vodka, 4 cups fresh lemon juice and 2/3 cup superfine sugar. Chill. Pour into ice-filled pitchers with lemon rounds and mint sprigs; serve in tall glasses.

Sugar syrup: Heat 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water over low heat, stirring with wooden spoon until sugar has dissolved. Stop stirring and increase heat to medium. Simmer 2 min. Remove from heat and let cool; refrigerate 2 hours before using.

Web Site Makes Gov't. Reports Available

A new Web site aims to make widely available to the public certain government reports about topics from terrorism to Social Security that congressional researchers prepare and distribute now only to lawmakers.

The site www.opencrs.com links more than a half-dozen existing collections of nearly 8,000 reports from the Congressional Research Service and centrally indexes them so visitors can find reports containing specific terms or phrases. For the full story from ABC News, click here.

The Tiara Club

The Tiara Club, by Beverly Brandt, is set in Mississippi. When I saw the title and the cover, I initially groaned internally, thinking "Yet another Ya-Ya Sisterhoods knockoff." But the author talks about the plot here, and it sounds like it could be interesting - and it's set in Mississippi, did I mention that yet? ;) Chapter One is available online at Brandt's Web site.

If you want to know more before reading the excerpt, here's a little blurb:

The Tiara Club, formed by best friends Georgia and Callie after a night of too many martinis, consists of five veteran beauty queens who have survived the pageant circuit. The women grew up together and have been there for each other through weddings, divorces, funerals, and a good portion of The Bartender's Black Book.

Now they've decided to broaden their scope, and allow a Yankee to become part of the Tiara Club. In fact, the ladies are prepping this virgin to the beauty pageant scene to become the new Shrimp Queen. With Callie's impending marriage on the horizon, the Tiara Club has to rely on their friendship to get them through planning the wedding, turning a Yankee into a Southern Beauty queen, and keeping Georgia's big secret from her controlling, gossip-queen mother.