babies_stole_my_dingo

Pygmy anteaters on Cute Overload!!! *dies*

So. We went and saw "Tropic Thunder" last night, as my Robert Downey, Jr., obsession continues apace.

I have...mixed emotions about it.

On the one hand, the fact that it left no Hollyweird trope unskewered filled me with unseemly glee. All the actors were brilliant, and Robert especially (I may be a teeny bit biased) blatantly stole every single scene he was in.

On the other hand, the language was incredibly, over-the-top, filthy. This detracted a lot from my enjoyment of the movie. Seriously, it was worse than KKBB, in which the last line is "And, to people in the Midwest, sorry we said 'f***' so much."

So...yeah. I knew it would have a shit-ton of bad language. I just didn't know it would have that much. I mean, I'm not shy myownself about using a bad word here or there *points at previous sentence*--except there are a few words that make extremely rare appearances on my LJ, and a couple that don't appear at all. And the f-bomb is one of the rare ones that make people blink when I use it. Most of the time, I think it's just sloppy writing, although I do believe there's a time and place for it.

Final verdict: I don't know, honestly. If I could get an edited version of it, I'd probably buy it. As it sits, it's not appealing enough to me to stick in the DVD collection.

However, blond!Aussie!Robert? *slobbers* Ohyesgivememoreofthatplease. It's the accent, I think. Especially blond!Aussie!Robert who is confused over who he really is. Also "I only break character after the DVD commentary" is GOLD. GOLD, I say.

Yes. Yes, I can.

In other news, remember the blogging deal F&SF runs occasionally? Sometimes they have extra copies, they post on their website that they have them, and bloggers can have freebies if they promise to write about the issue? I am holding, in my formerly nicotine-stained fingers, the July 2008 issue of the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. I haven't actually dug into it just yet, other than one story (which was delightful), but as soon as I'm done reading it, you'll hear about it.

Also, they sent me a link to a special subscription offer for bloggers, which they said to feel free to pass around, so this is me, passing it around. $27.97 for a year, which is $7 off the normal subscription price. And the normal subscription price saves you $16 off the newsstand price already, so...yeah. I sort of jumped on that with both feet, because (a) I enjoy the magazine, and (b) it's always a good idea to see what a market you're subbing to on a regular basis is actually buying.

to the lovely and effulgent myfeetshowit! May your day be filled with prezzies and calorie-free cake, hon.

We spent the day at Antelope Island. We saw, in no particular order:
pronghorns
bison (with babies)
jackrabbits
California gulls
Franklin's gulls
ring-billed gulls
avocets
yellow-headed blackbirds
red-winged blackbirds
regular blackbirds
meadowlarks
loggerhead shrikes (new to my life list!)
chukars
burrowing owls
long-billed curlews (new to my life list!)
barn swallows
ravens
a ring-necked pheasant
horned larks
Canada geese
cormorants
eared grebes
a cinnamon teal
several different raptor species I couldn't identify
some sort of little gray tweety bird I also couldn't identify
two species of lizards
numerous different species of butterflies
white-lined sphinx moths
a snake tail disappearing into the grass-type stuff that passes for vegetation

Yes, I took pictures. No, you can't see them yet.

Seriously, y'all, when you go to your state and national parks? Get out of the car and hike at least one pretty long path. You'll see things that you totally would have missed.

Of course, I have new blisters now. But it was a very satisfying day.

kantayra, did you see this? I nearly died of cute.

Whilst we were out grocery shopping (speaking of which, OUCH, grocery bill)...

That I just garnered my 50th rejection.

Of course, it had to happen sometime, right? And I've got two sales. So, the ratio isn't horrid, is it?

Someone, please reassure me that my ratio isn't horrid.

In other news, my sick, sick obsession, let me show you it. I bought a Hot Wheels Road Beast Antruder Monster Truck today.

Because it has an anteater on it. Get it? Anteater--Antruder?

The Hubby thinks I'm insane. He may be right.

Also, it's snowing. Again. *loathes* We were going to go to the drive-in tonight to see "Nim's Island" and "Horton Hears a Who," but with the weather being such a crudfest, I don't know if we will. Blah.

I did two half-hour sessions on my new recumbent stationary bike today and burned (according to the little readout doohickey) five hundred calories, total.

That's good, right?

In fic-writing news, I've done a whole paragraph in my random_urges ficathon entry. Go, me?

We did a day trip to Moab yesterday. Bought some pretties for the front room, which is coming together nicely. Wandered about some furniture stores today, looking for coffee and end tables. Found a set we like, which we'll probably grab next paycheck or so. Yay.

*headdesks* Remember how I said I wasn't going to break into my WriterCon fund anymore? Well. I found a teeny tiny echidna carved out of bone in one of the little shops in Moab. How could I say no to that? Will post a pic of him soon. His detail is incredible; I'll never find another like him. So, now I have to save an extra $15 from each check from the two we're getting between now and then. But, but...ECHIDNA! And...echidna that CAN'T POSSIBLY BE MISTAKEN FOR A HEDGEHOG.

*headdesks again* I spend my money on the strangest things.

We've lived in our current house for five years. In all that time, we've had no furniture in the front room. We spend most of our time in the family room anyway, so it hasn't really been an issue. However, we're finally getting furniture anyway, because it's the first thing people see when they come over and it's kind of weird, you know? We hit several furniture stores and picked out a leather sofa and loveseat set that are actually comfortable. We still need tables and wall art and a lamp or two, but progress of a sort is being made, so, yay.

Two anteaters ended on eBay last night. I couldn't afford them both, so I decided that I would bid on the second one. The first one ended with no further bidding action and went for less than I would have paid for it. And then I sniped the second one. And lost. *sniffles* [Soup Nazi Voice] No anteaters for you! Ah well. The local Firefly Meetup is Saturday, and it's in the vicinity of a bookstore I haven't been to in awhile, so perhaps I'll console myself with books. Or I might snag Fray and the new Harry Dresden at Buy.com. Or (this would be shocking) maybe I won't spend it at all. Maybe I'll hang onto it. There's a notion.

I've written over 500 words today in my two_of_us_ficathon entry. This...is going to take a deft hand to pull off. I'm not really sure I'm up to it, but trying new things is a good, right?

Baby anteater born in Tokyo Zoo!



*flails some more* AAAAHHHHHH!!!

ETA: OMG Another one!!! It's an excess of anteater-y goodness!



*is ded from cute*

By request of kantayra. But first...iconses!






A couple I did for icon comms:


( Click here for...ANTEATERS! Dialup users beware... )

I'm putting the finishing touches on the commentary for the last chapter of "Pottage." Since I know three of you are waiting for that with bated breath, it'll probably get posted later this evening. In other news, the Hubby has five days off in a row starting Friday, so we're heading out to Sacramento for a few. Which means I've got a ton of stuff to do tomorrow, including getting DingbatDog up to date on her shots so we can board her, and buying Da Boy a swimsuit.

*flails* The Sacramento Zoo has ANTEATERS!!!!! *ahem* We'll also visit the train museum and ride the train too. Grahr. I should make a list of stuff I need to do before we go.

Anyway, appomattoxco asked for this:


So there it is.