"Divorce and the Holidays" written by Janelle on estrip.org

Category: family

10/11/07 09:08 - 49ºF - ID#41589

Divorce and the Holidays

As many of you have read on this blog, my parents are in the process of divorcing. Yesterday was their first court hearing. Although I haven't heard the outcome, I'm pretty sure that by Thanksgiving or Christmas, the parents will not be sharing the same roof anymore. So I will be transitioning into that weird situation of how to handle the holidays. I think they'll both be living in the same town, so that will help. I'll be in IL with them for Thanksgiving and doing Xmas here in Buffalo. My plan for Xmas is to invite everyone (brother and both parents and grandmother) in the family to celebrate here and let them decide who wants to come.

Any advice from those with experience in juggling divorced parents and holidays?

Permalink: Divorce_and_the_Holidays.html
Words: 130
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: sims

10/09/07 10:48 - 63ºF - ID#41567

Sims Update

My sim was in a bit of a rut.
Work, study, work socialize, work, study, work, socialize.

So she treated herself to a pool now that she makes the big bucks as a specialist:

Yeah, I look that good in a bikini in real life too.

She also acquired a lover to shake things up:

It's just a matter of time before she seduces Joey Johnson into marriage.

Permalink: Sims_Update.html
Words: 72
Location: Buffalo , NY

10/07/07 02:09 - 65ºF - ID#41534

The parable of the Greedy Sim...

... in the Gospel of Janelle

Drew wanted the good life right away and bought a big mansion with no money to fill it....

He had no money left to buy a smoke detector or buy books to learn how to cook, so....

Despite his best efforts...

But greed has now led to....

Now, Janelle who started modestly, studied hard, and saved her money, is living the big life....

Permalink: The_parable_of_the_Greedy_Sim_.html
Words: 78
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: sims

10/06/07 04:59 - 78ºF - ID#41521

The Sims

I've had some time on my hand so I've reinstalled the ole Sims game. I take pride in starting from scratch and not using the money cheat code.

Here's my modest new dwellings:

And here I am:

I'm in the medical career and I just got a promotion to intern. It's been hard to do all the socializing and studying I need to be a resident.

Not much interesting now, but I have three potential boyfriends lined up that I'm courting. More on that later, peeps....

Permalink: The_Sims.html
Words: 90
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: television

10/04/07 07:46 - 75ºF - ID#41496

Gotta give props to....

America's Next Top Model.

I started watching it out of curiousity. Why was this a competition? Don't you just take a tall, pretty woman and take pictures and voila, she's a model?

It turns out that it takes some serious skills to be a high fashion model. You really have to be in tune with your body and comfortable with your body. You have to engage in the scenario. You have to express the designers purpose behind the outfit, but do it with your style. You're bringing your personality to the photograph, so you need to know who you are and be confident in it. You have to be willing to go outside of your personal comfort zone and trying something new that might make you feel scared or vulnerable.

The other cool thing about Top Model is that Tyra in the past few seasons has emphasized having plus sized models. Now, I have to admit, the plus sized contestants on the show don't seem very plus sized to me, but it's still a positive step forward for an industry where people starve themselves for years to stay the right size. Oh, and there's also a contestant on the show right now with Asperger's syndrome which is way cool.

There have been plenty of women on the show who appear to me to be unattractive or average attractiveness, or have acne or have cellulite and you see them transformed into this blemish free product. So you see that they aren't naturally the way they appear in the photographs. I think it helps chip away at the idea that women could look like these models if they just exercise more or diet more or get liposuction or whatever because these models don't naturally look the way they do in photographs. You understand that it's an image and not a reality. They get there with make up people; hair people and wardrobe people.

All that being said, there is still plenty to critique the modeling industry on and plenty that concerns me, but it's still been a pleasant surprise that the show has challenged my views on what modeling is and who a model is.

drew writes at 11:12:37 10/06/07 - Comment #25846: Oh yeah, and without 5 years of de-sensitatization, you'd never be ready for this stuff.

tinypliny writes at 01:42:06 10/06/07 - Comment #25834: For some strange reason, this makes me glad I gave up TV about half a decade back.

lauren writes at 11:01:35 10/05/07 - Comment #25797: Oh jeez Janelle..you touched on one of my most favorite-ist shows ever! Hehe...I watched and entire season in one sitting once on accident :) Of course...part of me wants to vomit with rage and the other part of me is endlessly fascinated. But I agree with you...a lot of the women aren't exactly gorgeous, but they don't have to be, they just have to take good pictures, and there is some talent involved with that. What I don't like is when they walk into the judging booth and Tyra tells this one or that one to take off her shoes or her earrings because they don't look like a model.
Also...I dunno if you saw this one, but they did one where they were supposed to be dead...murdered by another model. That was disgusting and I am sorry I am rambling in your comments but the fact that we can find a supposedly dead woman's body sexy is outrageous. The end.

museumchick writes at 10:10:08 10/05/07 - Comment #25794: It actually is a better show than I thought it would be. Something that I was also impressed by from the earlier seasons was when they had they had a contestant with lupus who ended up winning. It was inspiring to a lot of my friends who have the disease, because we often feel unattractive from the effects of it on our bodies. We thought it was cool to see her succeed as a model, and then do campaigns for the Lupus Foundation of America.

fellyconnelly writes at 11:05:09 10/04/07 - Comment #25782: tyra banks is a beast.
THE Beast even.
also she is starting to look like RuPaul.
I cannot watch that show based upon her alone.
Sad really..

Permalink: Gotta_give_props_to_.html
Words: 368
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: gordon ramsey

10/03/07 09:43 - 66ºF - ID#41482

Gordon Ramsey's Tip of the Day.....

"Don't point at the customers. We're running a restaurant, not a fucking zoo"

screamed in a cockney accent*

Permalink: Gordon_Ramsey_s_Tip_of_the_Day_.html
Words: 18
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: sex

09/22/07 08:40 - 69ºF - ID#41257

The three S's

Scrabble

Sake

Sex

what a great night

Permalink: The_three_S_s.html
Words: 7
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: wo rk

09/21/07 02:58 - 81ºF - ID#41235

Janitor for the day

My supervisor wanted me to go out with one of the client work crews to their place of employment and actually work side by side with the clients to get a better feel for the work the clients do.

I didn't really feel it was necessary. I'm not sure that I needed to clean toilets and sinks at a warehouse factory with my clients in order to understand it. I've cleaned plenty of toilets at home. I get how it works.

But, I'm a compliant employee and so I went out with the crew that cleans at a warehouse. I spent two hours cleaning sinks, toilets and urinals. I had the lovely experience of scrubbing the urine off the walls around the urinal. Sometimes up to a foot or more away from the urinal. How does that happen? Are they just flicking their stuff around when they pee with no regard to the urinal?

It was also my first experience with Maxims and Penthouses in the workplace. There was a stack of them in the various mens bathrooms. Now, I haven't been in many men's bathrooms, so maybe I'm naive and I don't realize that Maxim and porn is standard fare for mens bathrooms. I always figured that those magazines fell into the category of "Things that are inappropriate to bring to work from home".

All was well at the end though when the young woman I was working with turned to me with a grin and informed that I was a "hard worker".

Permalink: Janitor_for_the_day.html
Words: 254
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: gum

09/19/07 10:26 - 67ºF - ID#41202

More gum than can fit in my mouth

If you're at Wegman's on Amherst.
And you're eyeing the candy vending machine.
And you see the fruit shaped gum the size of a fist,
I recommend you have a sound jaw and a strong will to conquer that bad ass piece of gum.

Permalink: More_gum_than_can_fit_in_my_mouth.html
Words: 44
Location: Buffalo , NY

09/18/07 08:52 - 51ºF - ID#41173

Killing Puppies

On the way home from work I ran into construction and turned up a cute little residential road when a dog bounded in front of my car. I hardly saw him coming. One moment the road was free from hazards, the next moment there was a curly haired dog standing in front of my car. He froze in place. I slammed on my brakes. I came just inches from hitting him, just inches. His owner was outside and had him off leash when he eloped. It was a good reminder to keep my own dog on leash, even though I admit that I'm guilty of letting him off the leash from time. And I just thank God I didn't hit the dog. I was in a car once with a driver who accidentally hit a coyote that ran across the interstate and I cried for the rest of the drive.

mike writes at 09:15:43 09/18/07 - Comment #24742: ugh, i hit a dog once that ran into the street. It was the worst thing ever!

jenks writes at 08:22:11 09/18/07 - Comment #24738: Ugh. don't get me on my irresponsible dog owner rant.

So glad you didn't hit the pup though- for his sake and yours. I hit a squirrel once that was bad enough.

mrmike writes at 03:03:43 09/18/07 - Comment #24718: Even worse, Josh, on my scale are the dog owners who are holding the leash like a prop, but it's not attached to the dog. Lease law protects both the dog and somebody who they interact with, but a lot of owners are dumber than their pets when it comes to that stuff.

Glad you had what space was there between you and puppy Janelle.

joshua writes at 12:20:11 09/18/07 - Comment #24713: Why are dog owners so god damn stupid when it comes to keeping their dogs unleashed? This is a pet peeve of mine. Everyone thinks their little smooshie wooshie won't do what "those other dogs" do, but they are wrong. I see dogs unleashed on Elmwood and know that one of these days I'm going to see something gross.

lauren writes at 11:49:06 09/18/07 - Comment #24710: Oh my...I can't imagine hitting a dog or cat. I hit a skunk once and that was traumatizing enough, especially considering I don't like skunks very much. Way to be an alert driver :)

james writes at 09:53:59 09/18/07 - Comment #24696: Glad you didn't hit the dog.

I was moving across town once in a uhaul van filled to the brim. On a grassy area next to the road a group of guys were playing with a puppy. Just as I got out of Gates circle the puppy bolted onto Delaware, full with traffic. He ran in front of my van, in front of the next lane and the two incoming lanes. He turned around and ran through all four lanes again back to his frantic owners.

Even nearly hitting a dog is traumatizing. I am glad everyone turned out unbruised for you.