I Need Dessert

I'm hungry now for dessert. Thinking about Rum Raisin Haagen Daz. Trying to think of something else, too. I may go to the grocery store in a few minutes.

Disney World Trip Postponed

In the airport on Sunday morning, while I was waiting for my flight to San Francisco (for the opening of The Walt Disney Family Museum), I decided to postpone my Walt Disney World trip. I figured that I was doing a big Disney thing on Sunday, and I figured (and hope) that I will be in a better situation financially in December. (I put myself on waiting lists for Disney in December, and I changed my airline flight).

That Chantix Commercial Is Too Long!

Today I was watching "The View", and then this Chantix commercial came on. It was too long! There are many drug commercials that come on TV, both in daytime and night, but this one really brought it home just how amazingly long these things can be! It sounded like a timeshare sales commmercial to me, with the pretty music and the announcer with the nice voice, who explained EVERYTHING to you. You sat there watching this old man talk occasionally about his smoking, and then he's in the background with this older woman while the voiceover announcer tells you all these things, some of which are pretty funny. When they talk about how the drug can give you strange nightmares, for example. The pretty music kept my attention, though- we didnt' change the channel. It was so amusing. And too long!

Health Care in America- Unaffordable

Today I saw the movie, "John Q" with Denzel Washington. It's a riveting movie, and calls to attention how difficult it is to have adequate, affordable health insurance, in times when nobody is hiring for any good jobs and everyone is working part-time hours. I recommend this movie. I rented it from Netflix.

New Public Storage Ad For Addicts

Have you ever seen that show on cable called "Hoarders"? Well, it seems to me that Public Storage's new ad no longer tries to hide the fact that the people who need Public Storage are idiots. It's for people who don't want to throw away anything. If you have to store so much stuff for the future, it's idiotic!

Their old commercial with the lady who goes into the garage and can't find the car- that commercial made it a little less obvious that she was an idiot. The new commercial calls the idiocy into the picture immediately. I guess all people can be a bit challenged when it comes to getting rid of stuff. I know that I've inherited the collector and clutter gene. However, I've seen my evil ways, and I have changed.

Well, the fact that money is so tight for me and my customers nowadays keeps me in line.

So, today's message is this- stop wasting your money on storing things you don't need. Give some of that stuff away if you have to, but get rid of it!

I'm Going to Disney World!

Yes, sir, I'm going to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida next week. I will be staying at the Villas at the Wilderness Lodge (a Disney Vacation Club Resort), which is my favorite resort at WDW. I am trying to change one of my nights for a stay at the new Bay Lake Towers, but I only want to get a Studio accommodation.

Anyway, I'm excited about going, but cash is kind of tight right now. I don't want to postpone this trip- I've done that once already. This will be the last time I can go to Disney World until next July probably- when I get out of my Acting school.

More about this trip later.

Macy Gray Not Talking

Tonight Macy Gray was eliminated from "Dancing With The Stars", one of two contestants that was eliminated tonight. After the show, she refused to comment or be interviewed by the media. Macy seemed really shy to me; she seemed really shy on Tuesday night's show- and kind of reserved. You have to have lots of confidence and show lots of personality to survive on that show. You have to have lots of energy to win. Macy didn't show that.

I understand her not wanting to talk, though. It's not sour grapes- it's in her most famous song: "I try to say goodbye and I choke. Try to walk away and I stumble. Though I try to hide it, it's clear- my world crumbles when you are not here". Something like that.

The U.S. Postal Service is Amazing!

I mailed a letter to Puerto Rico on Saturday with just regular U.S. first class postage. I simply dropped it into the mailbox inside the U.S. Post Office here in Los Angeles. My customer in Puerto Rico emailed me back on Monday morning thanking me for sending it to him, saying that he got it.


Wow.

Quick Thoughts

Really fast....Rush Limbaugh (who I don't really know a lot about, but Kareem Abdul Jabbar's Twitter page made me know that Rush Limbaugh is an idiot) is a fucking idiot. I hate people who make everything negative about race, and blame Obama for stupid things.

I hate one of my ex bosses. No, Pat, not you. Another one. No, Brian, not you either.

Tomorrow the Villas at Disney's Grand Californian Resort and Spa open for the first time to the public. I don't know if there will be a public event of some sort, but it would be nice to go if there is. I'll call in the morning to find out. I just hope I don't run into that bitch ex-boss of mine if I go.

So many scams and waste of time on the internet. Focus on what you want to do, and do it. Don't be sidetracked. Money is tight- focus that, too. Time is tight- don't waste it.

Time for bed now.

A Disneyland Plan

If I were to go to Disneyland tomorrow, this is what I would do, in this order:

1. Ride the Disneyland Railroad around the park twice.

2. Get off the train on Main Street, go into the Main Street Bakery and buy 1 Nestle Tollhouse Cookie and some nonfat milk. I'd sit down and eat the cookie and drink the milk.

3. Go over to Space Mountain, get a Fast Pass, and head over to "Big Thunder Mountain Railroad" and ride it.

4. Ride "Pirates of the Caribbean".

5. Get in line for The Haunted Mansion, and ride that.

6a. Eat at the French Market- something with chicken in it. And, I'd get a Mint Julep.

6b. Head over to Innoventions, check out the Home of the Future.

7. Go back to Space Mountain with the Fast Pass, get in the Fast Pass line! Woo-hoo!

8. Ride the Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin.

9. Get a Fast Pass for the Indiana Jones Adventure.

10. Over to Adventureland for the Tiki Room.

11 Ride the Jungle Cruise.

12. Walk over and Ride the Winnie the Pooh ride.

13. Ride the Indiana Jones Adventure.

14. Ride the Mark Twain.

15. Walk over to the Golden Horseshoe, get a snack, see a show if possible.

16. Go to the Opera House on Main Street, see the movie about Disneyland's 50th anniversary.

17. Ride the train to Fantasyland. Get off there.

18. Ride It's A Small World.

19. Go in the Toy Shop next to It's A Small World, look at the toys.

20. Stand in line for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. Ride it.

21. Ride "Alice in Wonderland".

22. Ride the Matterhorn Bobsleds.

23. Hop on the Monorail. Ride it round-trip.

24. Get in line, and ride "Submarine Voyage- Finding Nemo".

25. Eat at Redd Rockett's Pizza Port. Have pizza and a Coke.

26. Ride the Autopia.

27. Ride the "Casey Jr. Circus Train".

28. Ride "The Adventures of Pinocchio".

29. Ride "Snow White's Scary Adventures".

30. Ride the King Arthur Carousel.

31. Ride the "Peter Pan Flight".

32. Walk to Snow White's Wishing Well. Listen to her sing "I'm Wishing" about 3 times. Make a wish or a few, throw some coins into the well.

33. Walk to Splash Mountain. Ride it.

34. Take the Disneyland Railroad to Main Street. Get off and go into the Emporium to look around for 15 minutes or so.

35. Head for the gate. Take the tram to the parking lot.

Boy, it was fun thinking about doing all this!

Census Bureau Jobs for 2010

The U.S. Census is coming up, and the U.S. Census Bureau is looking for workers who can work for a few weeks, collecting data for the U.S. Census. I took the test in order to be a worker for the Census, and I did pretty well on it. How did I hear about it? My sister told me, "Why don't you work for the U.S. Census Bureau? I'm applying". I said to myself, "Why not? I'm a Notary, things are kind of slow, I need the money, so go for it!" Well, after I took the test, I didn't hear from them for a few weeks. Believe it or not, I started to worry. I wondered if I had enough class. Finally I decided to call them up to see what my status was with them- was I being considered, or did I get disqualified? What they told me was this- I passed the background check, and they just had me on their list as a possible future candidate. "Cool", I told myself. I tell myself "cool" when I feel good about something.

One thing that had me worried when I went in was this: they said that anyone under the age of 50 needed to be registered with the U.S. Selective Service in order to be considered for a U.S. Census job. The lady who worked for the Census told all of us applicants: "If you are not registered with the Selective Service and you are between the age of 18 and 50, you need to do it today". What I found out was this: you can only register for the Selective Service if you are a man between the ages of 18 and 25 (it's the law). If you don't do it within these ages, you can NEVER register with them, and thus, you can NEVER be employed in a U.S. Government job. Wow. I do remember this: I registered when I turned 18- I was concerned that I never gave them my forwarding address when I moved. That didn't matter, I found out today- they can find you if you move, as long as you're alive, so you don't need to worry about that.

Do you know if you are registered with Selective Service? Anybody can find this out- just go to www.sss.gov to see if you are registered.

n'sync I Drive Myself Crazy

This is n'snyc's "I Drive Myself Crazy". I like this song, OK?

"Shout" - Tears For Fears -Acapella

This is so cool- just Roland Orzabal signing without the music- you can hear him clearly in this song, "Shout", by Tears for Fears.

Reminder Of Things That I Need To Do

Check out www.solarcity.com to find out about leasing solar panels. Check out Assurant Health, at 800-291-0587, or at www.AssurantDirect.com. Find out about Encore Dental, at 800-736-1692. I found out about all of these companies on cable TV.

Discover Card Has Pissed Me Off

I have had a Discover Card as a credit card longer than any other credit card that I have. I have their Platinum card. I have always been a loyal customer. I wonder, then, why they recently sent me a notice that said that they are going to increase my (already high) interest rate from 15.99% to 19.99%. I was so upset that I called them on the telephone, and a nice customer service person told me that all Discover account holders are having their interest rates raised. She sounded like she didn't want to do it, that it wasn't her fault, and that she was just doing her job by answering the phone. She said that it was a bad economy and that they needed to raise the rates. I told her: "The economy is bad when people get their work hours cut. When people lose their jobs. Discover Card wants to raise peoples' interest rates on them when they are earning less money?" It seems that President Obama's recent meeting with the credit card companies might have only made some of them decide to stick it to the customers even deeper while they still can. They told me that I do have the option of canceling my card, and I am seriously considering this. It's ironic, though, that they run a commercial that says that they have online tools to help you with your finances, and that they suggest that you could cut back on your Starbucks coffee purchases. How dare they! They are suggesting that people cut back on their Starbucks or Peet's Coffee, just so that you can afford it when they raise their interest rates! I mean, they are charging pawn shop rates, right? Discover Card has pissed me off, and I'm looking for an exit strategy.

Words That I Hate: "In This Economy..."

I am so sick and tired of the cliche words used so often on television by news reporters and other people who are trying to sound smart: "In this economy...." These people are so....tired and played out. Can't they think of something more positive to say, or more original? I used to like the news, but now I don't like it so much, because people keep on using those same old dumb words. "In this economy..."

Let's turn it into something fun and exciting.

"In this economy, there are lots of wonderful opportunities to be discovered."

"In this economy there are thousands of people who are thriving..."


"In this economy, now's the time to load up on stocks that you've always wanted and could never really afford. Disney looks really good at the current price..."


"In this economy there are hundreds of people who will decide to start their own damn businesses...."

Now, let's just take away the words "in this economy" and substitute "right now":

"Right now there are lots of wonderful opportunities to be discovered. Right now there are thousands of people who are thriving. Right now is the time to load up on your favorite stocks, like Disney. Right now there are hundreds of people who will decide to start their own damn businesses". Sounds a lot better than all that negative shit that you hear on the news and from politicians.

Geico Gecko Commercials

I'm gonna do this dude in my acting class, so I'm putting some of these Geico Gecko commercials here so I can study them for practice.

Put Your Money in Google Now!

I just looked at the top of my Google page today when I signed in to notice a message about something named "CADIE". Artificial intelligence has come to Google in a big way- you should go to their website and read about this! Google even has an application that can be used with your iPhone or Blackberry that can help you to remember things that are on the "tip of your tongue". Google's computer somehow communicates with your brainwaves through your phone, and helps you to remember things (things which you have memorized). This whole thing is amazing, and kind of scary, too.

It's not surprising that Google is coming to the forefront in this area- they have hired so many smart people at that company, after all.

Did you know that this CADIE has also started blogging? Check out cadiesingularity.blogspot.com to see her blog. Remember, she's a thinking computer which actually can do things, and is conscious of herself!

Captain Eo Video From Disneyland Starring Michael Jackson

This is the Captain Eo Video that was once shown at Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Paris. It stars Michael Jackson, and was produced by George Lucas, and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. It was also produced by Walt Disney Imagineering. The top is Part 1, the bottom is Part 2.

A Good Surprise From Chase Credit Card

Last month I called Chase credit card company to complain about changes that I saw in my billing. I was upset because they started charging me crazy fees- $10 per month to keep my account open, and charging me 5 percent of the balance each month. They said that they had sent me notice that they were going to do that, unless I agreed to let them change all of my transferred balances to 8.99 percent, then they would let my minimum payments go back to 2 percent of the outstanding balance and I wouldn't have to pay that $10 per month. I lit into them so badly- I called them twice. "You guys are getting bailout money, and you are screwing taxpayers!" , I said. The people on the other end of the phone were amusing, with their East Indian accents. "Can I offer you protection in case you become unemployed or disabled and cannot pay your bill? It's only 99 cents per 100 dollar balance that you have, each month..." Well, I almost told them to go to hell with that (Michael Jackson- remember what I advised you to tell Gloria Allred)? I ended the conversation by telling them that I was going to do my best to never do business with them again.

This month, I just reviewed my next payment, and I noticed something very interesting....

First, the ten dollar per month fee is gone.

Second, I was refunded the ten dollar per month fee for last month.

Third, my minimum payment is back to 2 percent.

What happened?

I'd like to think that public backlash and the Obama Administration had a lot to do with it. But even if I'd not like to think that, I'm sure that these ARE the reasons. What do YOU think?