Meet Harper

Check out this article. It's likely the only article you'll read containing an interview with Harper Lee. Ms. Lee, with only one published book to her name, is one of the most important authors in American history. She won the Pulitzer Prize for To Kill A Mockingbird. This is my favorite graf from the article.

"Ms. Lee lives with her 94-year-old sister, Alice, a lawyer who still practices, and keeps an apartment in New York. She is not a judge in the essay contest, nor does she make any formal statement at the ceremony. Her one stipulation for the contest was that children who were home-schooled be eligible to compete."

Priceless. The whole article makes me smile.

TeleSermon

This morning my office phone rang and I answered it to hear a recorded greeting. I was about to hang up, but stopped when the recorded voice launched into a sermon over the phone! This guy started talking about how we so often look for God to show up in ways that we want or expect. He said we should not look for Him to come in a particular way, but we should still look for Him. Then he started reading from Galatians! It was so cool! Unfortunately I had to hang up because I was in the midst of editing something...I really wish I was able to hear the rest of what he was going to say and whether he presented the gospel. Maybe the recording will call back...:)

Does it have four blades?

I soooo want one.

On My Plate

James Blunt again. Seriously, check out his album Back to Bedlam. So good. Today's song is "No Bravery." Before Blunt became a professional musician, he served in the armed forces in Her Majesty's Army. Part of his service included time as a recon officer in Kosovo in 1999. "No Bravery" is the only complete song he wrote while in Kosovo. Blunt kept his guitar strapped to the outside of his tank and wrote the lyrics of the song during his down time.

No Bravery ~ James Blunt

There are children standing here,
Arms outstretched into the sky,
Tears drying on their face.
He has been here.
Brothers lie in shallow graves.
Fathers lost without a trace.
A nation blind to their disgrace,
Since he's been here.

And I see no bravery,
No bravery in your eyes any more.
Only sadness.

Houses burnt beyond repair.
The smell of death is in the air.
A woman weeping in despair says,
"He has been here."
Tracer lighting up the sky.
It's another family's turn to die.
A child afraid to even cry out says,
"He has been here."

And I see no bravery,
No bravery in your eyes any more.
Only sadness

There are children standing here,
Arms outstretched into the sky,
But no one asks the question why
He has been here.
Old men kneel and accept their fate.
Wives and daughters cut and raped.
A generation drenched in hate.
Yes, he has been here.

And I see no bravery,
No bravery in your eyes any more.
Only sadness.

Reason # 137 Why I Love My Job

All day long we get press releases via mail, fax and email. One just popped into my inbox and reminded me why my job is so great. The subject line says "BELLYDANCE SUPERSTARS~Houston." It's a promo for an event featuring this "internationally renowned bellydance troupe." This email is not a joke and is not spam...they are serious.

Greatness.

Dreamweaver

Those of you who know me well know that I have some odd dreams. Some of them I take seriously (Travis, where is Travis??!!). Some of them don't really mean anything (Sam, give us that house back!). Today I got an email from a dear friend. The subject line was "worst dream ever." The dream was about me. Here's the transcription of the email.

"I had a dream last night that we were all going on a trip somewhere on Southwest. Our plane got delayed so we all waited around, but you snuck onto an earlier flight. We watched it take off and then all of the cargo dumped out of the bottom of it. It fell several hundred feet and we thought it was going to crash. It regained speed, but then fell straight down and crashed. It was horrible. We had grief meetings all afternoon."

My friend told me the dream was so real that she woke up and started crying. There's no way to answer if this dream "means" anything or not. We've been studying the book of Daniel in Sunday School and we know that no man can know or interpret dreams, only God can do this. But I don't discount the importance of dreams. At the very least, dreams often reveal to us our deepest fears, desires and faults. Does it concern me that my friend dreamed of my death? No. I am secure in my Savior and have no cause to fear death. Death has no sting! But it does remind me that I should never take a day for granted. I don't know what this day will result in and I don't know when the Lord will choose to call me to Himself.

Come quickly, Lord Jesus.

Tell Me Why

I've been meaning to post this link for some time. You simply have to check out the Asian Backstreet Boys. Most of you have probably seen their original hit on Google Video, but this includes their complete collection. Be sure to check out videos 4 & 6. I can't wait until they releasse their album in the U.S.

Coming to Theaters

Bet you didn't know I'm a movie star as well as a famous radio personality. If you'd like an autograph I'll connect you with my agent Scott Sumners, he has the glossies ready for my signature.

Geico for your Mo-nay...

I took my car into the shop today and met up with the Geico insurance adjustor. Ummm, he was really cute. When he walked out to the car and saw the damage he looked at me and said "They hit you really hard, you didn't get hurt did you?!" I suddenly found myself wishing I had been slightly injured. Something minor, a little neck pain or, even better, some bruising. No such luck. Sigh.

Copycat

Apparently I have to do everything my director does. I'm taking my car in to the body shop tomorrow after being involved in a minor accident last week. I'm looking forward to finding out what kind of rental car I'll get. :) For the record, the accident wasn't my fault. I was parked in a parking spot, completely stationary...not even in the car at the time. One week and $1,000 later we should be back to normal.

The Way I See It

So most everyone knows about the little quotes found on Starbucks cups. I had to be at work at 6am today, so I made sure to swing by International Starbucks on my way in to the office. Of course, I was still half alseep when I got my coffee, but on my drive in I glanced at the quotes on the cup. This quote is PERFECT for me! It exactly sums up what I have tried to convey to many people.

The Way I See It #49
Baking may be regarded as a science, but it's the chemistry between the ingredients and the cook that gives desserts life. Baking is done out of love, to share with family and friends, to see them smile.

For all of you who partake of my baked goods...that is exactly how I feel about baking. :)

News Flash

For those of you who have been anxiously awaiting this news...I will be anchoring live tomorrow morning. You can tune in to 88.7FM any time between 6am and 11am and chances are, if you stick around for 15-20 minutes, you will hear moi! I'll try to throw a shoutout or two...;)

Confessions

If you read the title of this post and immediately thought of Usher...you are my new best friend.

So I got this piece of mail yesterday. It was from DSW. That's the Discount Shoe Warehouse for those of you who aren't in the know. I opened it up and out came a $25 gift certificate. Sweet! But what's the catch? I proceeded to read the enclosed letter. I'll transcribe it for my 2.7 readers.

"Dear Laurie,
It really does pay to love shoes! We're sending this Reward Your Style certificate because you spent $250 at DSW."

I did what?!? Yes, that's right folks. It appears that over the past year, I spent $250 on shoes. Granted there was a pair of black leather boots that counted for about $60 of that total...but that's still a whole lotta money to spend on shoes. In one year. Oh, and let me not forget to confess that I have purchased shoes at stores other than DSW as well. Which puts me in the $300 range. Maybe more. But let's look at the bright side. That works out to a mere $25 per month. And may I remind you that my shoes are frequently the subject of much conversation, compliments and admiration in various circles.

So really my shoe indulgence is a good thing. It brings joy and happiness to so many. Numerous women have been inspired to expand their shoe horizons because of me. Even guys have benefited. One male friend has commented on my "sassy" shoes in the past. Others have been able to explore the intricacies of the female psyche as prompted by discussions of the delight of cute shoes.

So I spent $250 on shoes last year. Just doing my part for this little corner of the world. You can all thank me later.

Mr. Right

I think I've found him.

Glued to the Screen

There is one thing that will draw people to the tube like no other. One thing that holds everyone spellbound around the tv, regardless of race, creed, color or religion. One thing that has the power to promote world peace through the unifying properties of mesmerizing images. I speak of the car chase.

It is a beautiful thing, the car chase. No one can resist the allure. No one can refuse to take part in the great human tragedy played out before our very eyes. There is no turning away. There is no changing of channels. There is no walking back to one's desk and waiting until later to find out what happened. Oh no. The car chase reigns supreme.

Thank you Mr. Fugitive Man, for making this day the Day of the Car Chase. We salute you.

Deception

I was at Target yesterday and was involved in a fiasco which I won't bore you with here. Suffice it to say I found several items to purchase and left with none of them out of sheer principle. While I was shopping I noticed an Issac Mizrahi skirt on display. The skirt was designed to look like a plank of wood. The spirals of wood grain are printed onto the fabric. This picture doesn't do it justice, but up close and in person it was quite evident. Ladies, do not be deceived! Just because Issac himself designed this thing does not mean it was a good idea! A word of caution, if you wear this you will end up looking less like a willow and more like a coffee table. The general impression will not be one of natural beauty, but one of tongue and groove flooring. Don't do it! Don't fall prey to the numbing power of the designer allure of Target! If you already bought the skirt, take it back! Don't say I didn't warn you.

Google is Your Friend

This is one of the funniest commercials I have ever seen. Make sure to pay attention to the details.

On My Plate

In today's episode of On My Plate we'll be discussing what is on my...umm...plate. Go figure. This morning I had the unavoidable urge to support local businesses by opting for a coffee at the Java Cup around the corner instead of the Starbucks where everyone knows my name. Every once in a while I like to pretend that I am a bleeding-heart, tree-hugging, sustainable crops, locally-grown only type. I may not wear Birkenstocks, but by golly I want to stick it to The Man! Sometimes.

I digress.

As I was saying, this morning I purchased a cup of coffee from Java Cup. As I stood near the register, a lovely little croissant beckoned to me. "I'll take a croissant as well," I casually said to the barista. I paid for my breakfast, walked to my car and took a sip. Hmmm, not great coffee. Not bad, but not great. Oh well. Now for a bite of croissant. That's cwuh-sahn for those of you who have never been to Europe. Ok, back to the bite. As my teeth sunk into the flaky goodness I was startled to realize this could be the best croissant I have ever tasted...ever. It was just the right balance of soft to chewy to flaky. It was just the right shade of golden-brown. It was brushed with a light egg wash with just a touch, nay, an essence of honey. I wasn't expecting that. The honey flavor was so subtle as to be almost undetectable. Almost, but not quite. This was, quite literally, the perfect croissant. Woe to you, oh purveyors of corporate croissants! Woe to you, mindless supporters of The Man! Fie upon your tasteless, greasy croissants!

Blog Proposals

If Kirk has rings to throw around here is a picture of the one I want...

Feeding the Beast

Today I am reminded of one of my earliest entries regarding the nature of blogs. My hypothesis was that the people who actively write and maintain blogs must be extremely self-absorbed. I realize I lump myself into this category. Of course, I was being somewhat facetious at the time. But today I realized how true it may be (at least in my case). You see, I was greatly concerned all day long because I couldn't think of anything good to blog about. This led to dismay at the thought that my faithful 2.7 readers would be disappointed by the lack of new material. Which further led to the idea that, horror of horrors, my readership might decline because there is nothing on here to keep people coming back for more. You see how sick I am really am. Then to further compound my illness, I decided to blog about it.