Friday, April 25, 2008

New Truck

Yes that is correct I have purchased a new truck. I settled on the gold 2001 SporTrac and it is nice! I paid $3,000 USD down and my monthly payments are $145 USD a month for 30 months. Not a bad deal! Not only that I traded my green monster in for $200 USD from the dealer and this is the sad part - the dealer said "It would cost more to fix it that what it is worth." and I agree with him 100%. While the green monster was pretty beat up she was more reliable than she looked. The sad part? Her blue book value was less than what I make a week at work.

Pic of the green monster the only one I have on photobucket:


And photos of my new ride: a 2001 Ford SporTrac






I am very happy with it. It handles well and rides very smooth. I love the bed extension as well as the power point in the truck bed, the power windows and even the back glass is automatic. It is an automatic v6 engine and gets 21 mpg, not bad for a sport utility truck or SUT. I love everything about it. I have gotten compliments on it ranging from cute, sweet, and sexy which is giving me mental visions of a Victoria's Secret model, lol. Now that I have a vacation coming up the week of May 26th I will have some time to enjoy my new ride. Im very proud of it.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Truck Shopping Day 1

Yesterday was day one of truck shopping. We found not one or two of what I was looking for, but four of them. One of the models we looked at was a supernice 2004 model SporTrac, XLT edition, cloud white in color and very few miles. Asking price $19,995 - way outside my budget range - but the sting of the price was enough to turn me off to it.

Second model was a 2001 SporTrac, metallic tan in color 97000 miles on the sucker and not to mention a few dings and dongs in the body. It is obviously used but not abused. Asking price is $6,995. Very affordable - we are looking at monthly payments of less than $200 a month for 30 months. Considering the damage Ive done to my current vehicle I can live with a few dings and dongs and high mileage. I test drove it and it runs smoother and is perfectly aligned unlike what I have, but it's stuff I can live with if need be.

The third one is one that the dealership has not yet put out on the lot for sale yet, but rather one theyve had for about 2-3 days and are waiting to have it detailed and checked before it goes on the lot, normal car dealership stuff, but I am going to keep an eye out for that one for the next week or two.

The fourth one we we looked at was a 2005 SporTrac, black in color, 35000 miles, asking price is $18,500 - sales tax paid. It was very clean and very few dings and dongs but one problem, the battery was dead in it. That right there put some red flags up Im tempted though thinking I can get the dealer to replace the battery but it could be more than just the battery so Im mentally pinching myself everytime I think about it. I dont want a lemon on my hands.

So far that is what we have found and the one we are looking the closest at is the 2001 tan color model going for $6,995. We have already made an offer but we are going to let them sit on it for a day or two and see what happens next. Dad will be contacting them about it tomorrow.

My heart isnt set on anything yet until I find an exceptionally good deal that would be ludicrous to pass up. We have also looked on the Internet as well as newspaper ads and I have suckered an uncle into looking around Little Rock for me. Hopefully in one of these avenues something will turn up.

I will continue to keep the progress posted as we go along.

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Sick

Update: I have finally been notified of a source confirming that this in fact a hoax, but it sure did get a lot of upheaval. I feel like my pants have been pulled down and my posterior slapped in order to make some sort of cheap point that people will react to what they are told to like sheep. G. Vargas ultimately did feed and water the dog and was released to the streets where it was originally captured. This could have had a better ending, but maybe somone in Costa Rica has spotted this dog on the streets and taken it in. At least it would be one less starving dog on the streets.


G. Vargas, also known as 'Habacuc' has garnered worldwide attention for using a dying dog as an art form. Story goes that he paid two boys to capture this malnourished and sick dog from the streets and he took it to a museum to be a part of an art exhibit.

His exhibit was titled 'You are what you eat.' The letters were made entirely of dog food. He tethered the dog into a corner and left it there for days without food or water and in obvious need of urgent medical care.

Was this an exhibit to bring awareness to the starving and abandoned animals in his country? NO. The exhibit was entirely done to memorialize a criminal that was mauled by two Rottweilers that were trained to protect property.


This man is sick and twisted beyond comprehension. Despite pleas from exhibit visitors to free the dog, he refused the release of the animal.

Why does an innocent creation of God have to suffer so needlessly at the hands of humans? He has been invited to represent his country of Costa Rica at the 2008 Bienal Centroamericana Honduras and repeat this act of cruelty as an art form.

Please sign the petition to ban him from the event - the more signatures the better!
Sign the Petition


Below are photos of this so-called 'art exhibit' *WARNING - photos may be graphic to some audiences*






Get the word out - make sure everyone you know, also knows about this disgusting form of abuse, conveneinently disguised at 'art'.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

The silliest things people have said...

OK this is something I can no longer ignore. Over the course of the last several weeks I have heard many stupid comments in abundance from random people. Some of the best I've heard recently? Read on.

1. Them:'I am thinking about getting a part-time job at the hospital working just one day a week for some extra money.'
Me: 'Oh you are huh?'
Them: 'Yeah, but I just feel so tired, I hope Lisa (last name witheld) lets me go home today though.'
Me: 'Wouldnt it just be easier for you to work everyday at your one job rather than try to get a one day a week part-time job along with your 5-6 day a week job?'
Them: 'What?'

2. Them: You know what was wrong with the baby?
Me: What?
Them: The doctor said she is allergic to eggs.'
Me: Oh that's too bad then, no green eggs and ham for them, eh?'
The next day- Them: (same person) You know what was wrong with the baby?
Me: She's allergic to eggs?
Them: No, she had an infection.
Me: Oh well I hope she gets better.
The next day - Them: (Same person) You know what was wrong with the baby?
Me: No - but Im sure its different than the last two maladies.
Them: The doctor said she may have a stomach virus and she threw up all over the bed 5 times last night.
Me: Well then I feel sorry for the both of you.
The next day - Them: (Same person) Do you know what's wrong with the baby?
Me: Yes I do - she suffers from an overly dramatic and incompetent caregiver that cannot assimilate the truth and may or may not suffer from a mental disorder in which she uses untruthfulness and storytelling to gain sympathy and pity from others.
Them: What?

3. Them: I think I may be pregnant
Me: Oh, thats not good.
Them: Yeah a guy tried to rape me.
Me: Oh, did he actually penetrate?
Them: No but he tried to take my clothes off and he beat me with a cane pole from down by the river.
Me: Oh was this an immaculate conception?
Them: No, I was on birth control!

4. Also after having read a certain blog which I will not name for privacy reasons, the author stated that earning a doctorate degree was likened to having a job - only problem is this - the author to my knowledge has never held down a job, nor even needed to hold down a regular 40 hour per week job. Uhhh the only rebuttal I can offer is this - come down to PJP with me bud and work line 10 cutting shoulders for a while, then let's compare that sitting in a chair reading books all day to standing on a stretched aluminum stand on concrete floors for 8 hours a day 5-6 days a week. And you have to cut shoulders all day - there is no rotation of line jobs each round like there is at other companies. Oh and by the way your surrounded by non-English speaking immigrants and crabby middle aged menopausal women for line bosses. I don't know about you, but I would much rather go for earning the doctoral degree rather than spend my life cutting poultry.

Thats my top 4 for now. I will add more silly sayings as I get them. There must be something in the water though because Ive been getting alot of them as of recently.

Monday, April 7, 2008

I'll Bet He Was Cool

The other day while listening to this song on the iPod via the car stereo I got to thinking - what would Jesus be like today?

Darren Hayes took a funny twist on that - but I can honestly see Jesus doing some of that.

Darren asks "What would happen if He just passed you by?
Would you be scared?
Would you believe in Him?
Or would bust your asses to get him institutionalized?"

What would I do? Hmm Id would probably turn into a teenaged girl again, point at Him and say "OMG - Its JESUS!", and then fall over flat. LOL.

Would I be scared? Probably not since He comes in peace - at least for me anyway.

Would I believe in Him - I'd be pinching myself or having my occipitals checked but yeah I would believe in Him!

Would I try to get Him institutionalized? Well if I didnt know I was looking at Jesus then yeah I would probably think he's just another religous nut walking down the street and would be better served in the State Hospital. We have alot of religious nutcases walking around today claiming to be Jesus, so Im hoping he can differentiate himself from the rest of them or risk being put in jail.

Would he wear Tommy Hilfiger or Urban Outfitter? No, I dont think so, both of those are outdated and so 90's. Would he like Gaultier? Them high-dollar threads, yep! Who wouldn't? But knowing Jesus, we would never find him in that, but he'd like it if he tried it.

Would he be good looking? Uhh as the son of the most beautiful Man in the universe, uhm hands down He'd be way better looking than George or Brad. Would he smell divine? Well I dont know but Im not sure if Jesus would be the type to wear cologne, but if he did what would He wear? I know what he wouldnt wear and thats anything by Britney! HA!

Would He movie star? I think so - but one of those that donates to charities and spends time in 3rd world countries during vacations - kind of like a male counterpart Angelina Jolie. I can see Him adopting kids from the worst situations in the poorest countries. I can see Him working in soup kitchens to bring awareness to the homeless problem in developed countries. I can see Him working as an ambassador to end the violence in the Middle East.

He was a celebrity in His heyday - what makes anyone think He wouldn't be celebrity now? At least He would be one of those sane celebrities, the ones you never read about in the grocery store tabloids.

What would it feel like to stand next to Him? Darren compared it to standing next to Elvis Presley - but Elvis is dead and not returning. I think standing next to Jesus would be like standing next to Hillary Clinton but multiply that feeling by one million. Everyone knows Hillary, not everyone likes her, but most people wouldn't mind meeting her just for the simple fact she's something of celebrity.

Yeah I bet He was cool. Can't wait to see Him in this life.

Sunday, April 6, 2008

Drama and more drama

IF you are a member of AllDeaf.com forums you probably know what this post is about. Now I admit I am not one that likes to post about 'he said she said junior high' type drama, but because this seems to be the highlight of everyone's day why not?

A year ago myself and others had sent donation money to AllDeaf to help make improvements and to keep it running. However one member has gone to say that the donated money was used to purchase a Les Paul guitar. The fact that we sent him money and he comes up with Les Paul guitar isnt necessarily evidence of fraud, however if the money he sent was never used towards the forum and instead used for personal recreation then that would be where the problem lies. That just means the person I sent my money to for a donatio towards the forum was not a good steward of the trust placed in them. There is no way of proving or disproving this theory. If its a false claim thats what it is, a false claim and nothing more.

In the last 12 months there has been alot of drama going on behind the scenes that I and other members were not aware of. I knew that the AllDeaf Caucus and the AllDeaf cruise had been cancelled 'due to not enough money raised'. I never really had any serious intentions of attending either one due to my personal financial limitations - I simply could not afford it. That was fine with me. I wished everyone who were able to go a good time.

Appearently someone was stuck with a large bill. When I heard about this I felt bad, but I did nothing nor did I say anything because I did not want to become involved in the mess.

Well recently Alex posted a thread that there would be additions made to the moderating team, three new mods were introduced after much waiting then just like that 3 other mods were abruptly demoted and banned. No warning, no idea that anything was going on, just poof and they were no more.

I received an email tha AD (AllDeaf.com) had come 'under attack' and that it was dubbed 'Black Wednesday' You may find more on this here: DreamDeaf's Blog.

After reading the vlog's, blogs, posts, and chats with other members I have concluded that this was all over a $100.00 debt. $100.00?!?! Come on! There are worse things to have a fit about. Sure $100 is $100. In buisness you just have to take a loss and move on. Nothing more.

It sounds to me like all of this could have been avoided had someone take better records of finances. All of this could have been avoided had someone just let it go and not hold on to a grudge for so long that it has allowed them to become bitter. All of this could have been avoided had someone just realized that you are going to have to take some losses in life and just move on.

In the meantime I am not going to take sides as I feel that I have not yet gotten the complete story from all sides. When I do I will then decide my future on AllDeaf.com.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Anything and Nothing

I've been in sort of a funk lately in regards to my spirits. It's like Ive been muted emotionally. There are several things to chalk it up to, but mainly it is because of a person that is so irritating that it actually stresses you out just thinking about them. I have one of these people at work. Every morning I walk into work to start the day and automatically they are within three inches of my face. On Monday of this week, I was assigned a different workstation for the day due to absentee workers and I felt relieved to actually have been moved from one side of the building to the other to get away from this certain person.

No, this wasn't enough to keep them at bay. They came to me on their break and searched me out to converse with me. For a normal person just wanting a quick chat about something actually important it wouldn't be so bad. BUT this person was standing so close to me, I was moving over a few inches to gain a little bit of space. But everytime I moved to the left a few inches, the person in question also moves over to the left a few inches. Eventually I was wedged between the machine and a lug of product (wet raw product mind you). My right foot was on the edge of the footstand, and my left foot was on the foot of the machine. I finally got to the point I could not move over anymore so I started leaning over a bit. Finally this person said they gotta go but not without a slap to the back. If this was a significant other, I really would have not minded the bonus opportunity to cuddle a bit but when it's someone you try to avoid - it's very abrasive I guess you could say.

If this person was given the chance they would spend all day every day with me and fry my brain quite thoroughly. It is bad enough I have to spend 8 hours a day with them - but 24, 48, forever? No thanks, I'll pass on that.

Short of elbowing them sharply in the diaphragm, does anyone out there have a suggestion in dealing with this type of person?

I try to be nice, and nicely drop hints but this person is simply not getting it. I wish I had my spine when I need it most when I could just tell this person off and be done with it. But oh no this person is the type that needs to be handled delicately. Yup that kind.

So with the thought of that I have started thinking about 'getting away'. If it weren't for the financial reasons - I would be far from here living my life in London. Yes London. Im a Brit at heart despite my Southern American upbringing.

My style of clothes clearly depict that inward Brit. I consider myself Southern with a touch of English delicacy thrown in. In recent months I have come to realize that clothes do matter, and I like clothes that are made beautifully. Like, used to I would be content in jeans and a t-shirt and maybe flip-flops. As late as 3 years ago, my style was maniac like you really couldn't figure out what I was trying to do. But to be honest most days I would roll out of bed and throw on the nearest thing that smelt clean and went out.

Now - I stil do the same for my work clothes, but for my going out clothes it's different. For instance right now I am wearing a light blue tuxedo shirt underneath a black Beatles t-shirt, with the blue shirt tucked in. Along with that are a pair of dark colored khaki pants (Levi's) and a pair of leather oxfords in brown. I have it nicely accented with a watch that has a wide leather strap but the face sits over the strap rather than between two seperate straps (which I refer to as 'traditional timewear') - the stlye is contemporary I guess you could say. I top it off with a plaid ballcap from American Eagle or style up my hair in a messy but clearly meant to be that way sort of look.

My wardrobe is stil undergoing a renovation though - but Im finding that more times than not my choosings from the store have an English look to them whether it is leather oxfords, a sweater, or a Beatles t-shirt - but the way it is put together however is American.

While we are on the thought of England - I have a travel map I inserted (hoping this will work) to show you where I have been in the Lower 48 states and where I want to visit in those states and abroad.