favorite movies

In case you didn't notice (and it seems likely since I didn't notice any flag that my profile was updated), I've added my list of favorite movies to my profile. Lest some of you think I have obsessive/compulsive tendencies (although, for the record, I have obsessive/compulsive tendencies), I didn't create the list from scratch. I just grabbed my Netflix 5 star rated list and, even though there are 62 in the list, posted the whole thing instead of editing down to something less on some basis (like, let's see, favorite movies I like more than my other favorite movies).

(NOTE: This post is in no way intended as a trick to get more people to view my profile and make me seem more popular. However, if that consideration is enough to stop you AND you are, nonetheless, just dying to know what my 62 favorite movies are, let me or someone else know and we'll find another way to get the list to you.)

niche services

In the course of talking to my friend Nancy yesterday, we identified a new market that is not being adequately served. The issue is people having anxiety over getting dental work done. She has reactions to Novocaine, I have sensitive teeth and am not thrilled about the injections to numb me up and, invariably, the dentist wanting to proceed before they have fully taken effect. There is a dental group in my area that has partially addressed this. They call their approach "sedation dentistry" (or something like that) and, apparently, somehow they knock you out for their procedures--even teeth cleaning. We like this idea but it seems it could go one step further for people who are anxious even at the thought of the work being done; admittedly, a smaller subset of people. The answer for them--"abduction sedation dentistry". You sign an agreement and whatever releases are necessary so that, when you least suspect it, agents of the dental group, who are privy to your normal routines and stalk you, sedate you, abduct you, transport you to the dentist for the procedure, and, upon completion, return you to the site and circumstances of your abduction, with you regaining consciousness none the wiser for the intrusion but wondering why your mouth is a little sore. I think it could catch on.

adventures in the culinary arts

I admit that most of my efforts in food preparation are fairly basic but it's not like I'm stuck there. For example, it occurred to me that instead of unceremoniously dumping my hot, cooked, multi-grain breakfast mush into a bowl I could dump it unceremoniously onto a PLATE, like so:



Then I noticed that, although it tasted great, it didn't look all that appealing due to it landing mostly flat side up. So the next time, voila, dumped on a plate, mostly flat side down PLUS drizzled with honey, like so:



Then, thinking there was nowhere else to go in the breakfast mush arena, I realized I'd been overlooking a fringe benefit of not rinsing out the cooking pot promptly--dry, translucent, mush goo flakes! Clearly these will make either a dandy garnish or an extremely light separate snack.

you may not be able to see the photos

Getting reports from people that they can't see the photos. Looks like I have to add permissions by individual (argggh) at PictureMail. I'll come up with a better plan. Thanks for the feedback.

Nope that's not it. Maybe the link moved and I had it cached. I've just uploaded the same photo here, so maybe that will be less problematic.

Okay, I've just added a picture to my profile but, immediately, that reminds me that one of my pet peeves is people adding "authority" to what someone says based upon sometimes very superficial impressions of them. I'd rather have whatever I have to say evaluated on the merits so, on the outside chance that my profile photo lends credibility, inappropriately, here's a less staged photo, from early one morning or late one night (I can't remember) when I'm in my confused and or skeptical mode (I don't remember which).

And so it begins...

Well, I'm off to my usual start but I declare this first post as a victory over my procrastinating past!

I recently promised some friends that I would set aside all of my considerations about doing a blog and just do it--just because I can. I got my primary inspiration to do this from my sister, who proposed it over a year ago, and my friend Nancy, who started her blog about 8 or 9 months ago. I've challenged myself to be as openly self-expressed as Nancy has been and not devolve into my usual "analysis paralysis" and stifling perfectionism that has kept me on the sidelines for much too long.

To give you an idea of how things typically go for me, here's how it went to get to this point:

1) coming from a commitment to being generous, I decide that blogging is the answer to my getting familiar with sharing whatever I have to share much more publicly;

2) promise my friends that, within 3 months (yes, that's right THREE MONTHS!), I'll have started blogging;

3) create a list of prerequisites to getting started (some reasonable, like researching sites, tools, and features; some not so reasonable, like finishing certain projects and chores first and, of course, staying overly involved with my job, even on my days off);

4) with just a week to go before my self-imposed deadline and being committed to honoring my word, I finally dive into getting things done;

5) last night, having indulged myself with two final distractions (creating yet another email account and setting up my Treo to synch with it), I stub out my blog page and get oh so close to that first post;

6) at 3 AM this morning, can't decide between a "first post title" of "And so it begins..." (the winner) and "Hello world!" (which comes from my computer programming experience);

7) about an hour ago, it's bothering me that I don't recall where the phrase/quote "and so it begins" comes from and I decide that maybe it's lame to start off my "self-expression" project by just repeating something that someone else said, so I'm off Googling for references to it; and

8) I realize that I'm still just stalling AND it's inconsequential AND between the two titles I've thought of "Hello world!" is as bad as it gets AND someone else (Living Photoshop blog) used the exact title to start his blog BUT it looks good--so I'm stealing it!

So here it is! Step one complete. Now I'll be getting on with making your future visits worthwhile.

Hmmm, about that posting a picture issue ...