Weblog

Saturday, 04 April 2009

Sunday, 28 October 2007

  • Chat Room -- Signs of Life!
    Well... Lana's comment kicked me back to into updating my Xanga here. Thanks for the kick to my literary butt, Lana.  :)
     
    So, what's new? Well, ChatterBee's Chat is really filling up with lots of chatters these days. For the first couple of months after the school year started, main chat was REALLY dead. However, over the past month or so, we seem to have between 15 and 19 people in the chat room during most evenings. It's really nice to see the chat room buzzing again!
     
    Peahens
    The other day, I was sitting on my porch just taking in a nice South Florida day. Then, out of nowhere, a couple of peahens (female peacocks) came right up to me. I mean, they came to within about 6 feet of where I was sitting. I have no idea where these two large birds came from: I had never seen them before. Anyway, I figured that I'd try to feed them. So, I ran inside and came out with a slice of bread. I tossed some small, stamp-sized pieces to them and they wolfed it all down quickly. That was two weeks ago. The two peahens stop by my porch almost every day now. They're so comfortable with me that they now both eat out of my hand. I refer to these two peahens (they go everywhere together) as "The Ladies."   :)
     
     
          
            "The Ladies" scarfing up inexpensive bird food by the pound!
     
    I have to say, my neighborhood is getting pretty interesting, animal-wise. It has iguanas, hummingbirds, cardinals, mockingbirds, ring-tailed lizards, chameleons, storks, bats, tree frogs (VERY green ones at that), and now it has peahens. Sometimes, it's almost like I'm living INSIDE a zoo exhibit *with* the animals.

    PT Cruiser Air Conditioner Recharge
    Two weeks ago, the air conditioning (AC) in my PT Cruiser went kaput. It started blowing warm air. Well, actually, it just started blowing the typically warm Florida air, not it's typical cold air. Clearly, the refrigerant in the AC had run out. Anyway, as the sun beats down mercilessly here in Florida, the inside of my car -- even with the windows down -- felt like a furnace. So... I stopped by PepBoys and bought an AC recharge kit. The kit came with a can of refrigerant and some hoses. Best of all, it came with a "how to" manual. Anyway, before you can refill a car's AC, you need to make sure that the AC refrigerant's pressure is low. Why? Well, if you add refrigerant to an AC system that's already fairly high in refrigerant pressure, you can damage your car's AC system. The "how to" explained it all. So, I hooked up the hoses and the refill can to the AC port and... found that the AC pressure was normal. Ugh! When that happens, the "how to" manual advises you to take the car to an "automotive professional" to let them recharge your car's AC system. Okay. Well, the refill kit that I bought cost only $25. I was sure that having a pro refill the AC would cost a bit more. So... I took my PT Cruiser to the shop. And, $116 later I had my AC working again. Needless to say, I was floored by how much it cost to get the AC working again. Heck all the shop did was add refrigerant to the AC system -- the same thing that I could have done. As it turns out, the AC was LOW in refrigerant after all. So, the pressure reading that I received was in error. Grrr. That was one heck of an expensive error!
     
    PT Cruiser Flat Tires
    Okay, here's another PT Cruiser thing. I seem to be attracting nails. No, not nails as in those things that pretty girls have at the ends of their fingers. I mean nails as in the kind that puncture your car's tires. In the past three months, I've had three flat tires -- all due to running over nails. The situation got so familiar that I now have a portable air compressor and two cans of Fix-A-Flat in my PT Cruisers trunk. Hey, don't laugh: That combo actually saved my butt one day on the way home from work, allowing me to get home safely after I found myself stranded in the middle of nowhere with a flat. Like they say in the Boy Scouts: Always be prepared!
     
    Target End Caps
    I've discovered end caps. What's an "end cap"? Well, you know the display aisles in Target, K-Mart, and other department stores? Well, the ends of those aisles -- the ends that face out from the end are called end caps. Recently, I've become an end cap fanatic. Why? Well, because one day I was wandering around in Target and I came across an end cap that had all kinds of clearance items. And they were great clearance items too. I'm talking stuff like computer game going for just $4.89 (down from $29.95) and really huge "Super Soaker-sized" water guns for just $5.00. So, I filled up my little red Target basket with all kinds of end cap clearance items. Then I noticed another end cap with great clearance items. Then I noticed another -- and another -- and another. Dang! Target is awesome! Long story short: I've bought so much stuff over the past few months from end cap clearances that I could almost open up my own little Dollar General store. What's the moral of the story? Simple: If you stop by a Target every now and then, be SURE to check every end cap in the store because every few weeks, you'll find really amazing bargains! Whooooo-hooooooo!
     
    Well, that's my Xanga update for this time. Have a great, um, whatever!
     
    Okay, bye.
     
    Senior-Admin
     
     
     
     

Sunday, 17 June 2007

  • Avril Lavigne, Iguanas, and "Man vs. Wild"...


    Well, again it's been ages since I updated my Xanga. But... I'm finally getting around to it again. So, what has happened to good ol' Admin over the months? Here's a rundown:

    • I Love Avril Lavigne
      Yes, it's true. I love Avril Lavigne. I know, I know -- she's married. But I don't care. She's soooooo fine! I had pretty much forgotten about her for couple of years. Then her song "Hey, Hey, You, You" hit the airwaves and I started falling for her. Then I saw the video for that song -- and my fate was sealed. I adore her. I want to be her slave. I want to paint her nails. I want to lick her toes. Avril, if you ever nix your hubby, just remember that ChatterBee's has a great guy who's waiting for you!

    • An Almost Flattened Iguana
      Last week, I was driving to work in my trusty PT Cruiser (said cynically) and, as I pulled into the company parking lot, a two and a half foot long green iguana ran across the the road in front of my car. I slammed on the breaks and managed to miss squashing the big lizard. At least, I think I managed to miss squashing it. I didn't look back. There's probably little in life that looks worse that squashed iguana. And I didn't want to find out for sure.

    • Man vs. Wild
      If you have cable TV or satellite TV, then you've probably seen that show called "Man vs. Wild." It's a great show. Honest. The premise of each episode has this British guy who's an expert at surviving in the wild getting dumped in some God-forbidden Hell hole (like a jungle or a desert). Then he shows you how to get out of it alive. In every episode, he carries only a water bottle, a knife, and a flint. That's it. The guy is awesome. He even has an awesome name: Bear Grylls (pronounced "Grills"). And the dude really knows his stuff. His show is absolutely fascinating and totally educational. I have to say, though, that I get a kick out of his lame excuses at the beginning of each show regarding why he always has to jump out of a helicopter to start his survival adventure. I mean, his excuses are really dreadful. You just KNOW that they can land the helicopte or -- at the very least -- come within a few feet of the ground and just let Bear jump out to get the adventure started.

      Anyway, lame helicopter-jumping aside, I find myself learning a lot from each episode of "Man vs. Wild." However, some of the things that Bear does to survive are really, really, really, well... disgusting. Oh, I know, you're not turned off by a guy eating maggots off of the carcass of a dead antelope. Okay. Fair enough. You impress me. And you don't go into "barf mode" watching Bear slurp down the wriggling meat of a freshly killed, still bleeding raw snake. Okie dokie. Well, like you, I can handle watching that too. But the other night, Bear really went too far, gross out-wise. What did he do? Well, he was in Africa wandering around for water. He couldn't find any water anywhere. So, he was getting desperately thirsty. Then he comes across a big steaming pile of elephant poop. He turns to the camera and says something like "If you're really desperate for water, you can grab a clump of freshly laid elephant poop, hold it over your mouth, squeeze it and water will drip into your mouth." Then that's exactly what Bear did!!! Oooooooh myyyyyyyyy Godddddddddd. It was the most disgusting thing I had ever seen in my life. I'd rather die of thirst than drink the water that's trapped inside of some fresh elephant poop. I'm being totally serious -- I'd rather die. And you know what else gives me the chills? Bear is married. What's my beef with his being married? (And, no, I'm not gay. Don't EVEN go there.) Well, think about it. If you were Bear's wife, every day you'd have to kiss a husband who had gulped down stinky, crappy water (literally) that he squeezed out of a steaming clump of freshly dumped elephant poop. Ugh. I sure wouldn't want to be Mrs. Bear Grylls, that's for darned sure. I mean, I'm sure Bear's probably a great guy and a terrific husband -- but I think he's just asking a bit too much from his woman! That poor gal. All over the world, she's known as the Poopy Water Husband Kisser. Like I said, poor gal.

    Well, that's pretty much it for now. Please leave comments (I love 'em)!

    Okay, bye.

    Admin

Saturday, 24 February 2007

  • Britney, Chrysler, and Eternal Love

    Britney Loses Her Hair (and her mind?)
    I'm sure that you saw the pics of Britney Spears with her new shaved head. A lot of people think she's lost her mind. But I'm not so sure. I mean, yeah, shaving your head -- especially when your career depends on your looks -- is a nutty thing to do. However, I think it's all just a publicity ploy by Britney. I mean, think about it: She hasn't had a hit in three years. So, the only way she's managed to stay relevant is to act like a looney. So, she goes partying with Paris Hilton. She flashes her naughty bits in front of the paparazzi for all the world to see. She passes out in various New York Clubs. She enters rehab -- for ONE day -- and then skips out. And she's done all of these things in front of television cameras and gossip photojournalists and reporters. Then, she shaves her head in front of the whole world. I mean, she could have shaved her head in private and NOT right in front of everyone. But nooooooooo... she chose to make sure that EVERYONE could see her shaving her head through the big glass window of the hair salon. Yup. I'm convinced it was all just a publicity stunt. She's not as dumb as she looks (and she still looks kinda hot even bald-headed).

    A Very Different Britney
    Speaking of Britney Spears... I came across this one site the other day that has some pics of when Britney was younger. Dang! She sure looked good even back when she was her teen years! If you don't remember what she looked like back then, check out this pic:

    Britney in her younger days. Well, not really..

    She certainly looked better back then than she does today! Wouldn't you agree? I thought so. Well, I have news for you. The picture shown above isn't Britney Spears. In fact, it's not even a picture of a female. That's right. It's a pic of a guy. Amazing, isn't it? Well, being that the real Britney may have lost her mind, I'm sure Hollywood is looking for a new Britney. I say we give this guy a chance! You can see more pics of this most unusual Britney Spears look-alike by clicking HERE. 

    Arrigo Chrysler = Silence
    Well, as you may know from my last Xanga entry, my PT Cruiser had a problem starting up over the past several months. The Chrysler dealership here in Palm Beach County, Arrigo Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep, fixed the problem -- but only after charging me hundreds of dollars to replace parts in my car that, as it turned out, had absolutely nothing to do with my ignition problem. Well, I sent a registered mail to their service department asking them to contact me about my getting a refund. That was back in early January 2007. It's now nearing the end of February 2007 and I haven't received ANY reply from them. Mind you, Arrigo Chrysler is supposed to be one of the nation's VERY best Chrysler dealerships in terms of customer service. Well, that reputation -- based on my experience over the past two months -- is quickly unraveling. Anyway, I'm going to contact Arrigo Chrysler again and give them a second chance to get back in touch with me. It'll be interesting to see if they ignore me a second time...

    Kelly Biro
    Well, my birthday was a week or so ago. No, I'm not giving away my age. And don't even bother to ask. Anyway, on my birthday a few years ago, I was thumbing through the local newspaper and I browsed across -- of all things -- the obituaries. One of the obituaries caught my eye as there was a picture associated with it. The picture was of a pretty young girl named Kelly Biro. I had no idea who she was. I'd never met her or anyone associated with her. And yet, the image of a young person who passed away so early in life made me focus on her obituary entry. As it turns out, she died on the very day that I have my birthday. I read her entire obituary. It included some truly beautiful words by Ms. Biro's friends and family as well as a touching poem that had been written by Kelly herself.

    So, here I was celebrating another day of my life and yet out there on that very same day, a family was mourning the death of their young daughter. My heart sank. The next year when my birthday rolled around, I stumbled across the obituaries again. And, guess what? Yup. Kelly Biro's image and a short eulogy were in the obituaries again. Here family and friends clearly missed her and, it seems, they wanted to send a message, spiritually, to her on the day of the year on which she passed away. Needless to say, I was very touched by this and I read her obituary closely, feeling -- in some odd way -- a sadness that made me feel a sense of loss as well. So, one year ago, I made it a point to check the obituaries on my next birthday. Sure enough, on my birthday this year, there was a picture of Kelly Biro. And below her picture were more words of love from her family.

    So, why am I writing this? Why am I mentioning a girl who I had never met and a family that I don't know? Well, I suppose it's because -- in reading their words of love to their deceased daughter -- I finally found out that love really does transcend death, that it can out last the physical, and that some of us love others so much that we want those lost loved ones to know we love them even if they're gone. Maybe all those words of love that her family place in the obituaries every year really are reaching Kelly Biro in some way. I certainly hope they are. All I know is this: I thank the Biro family -- where ever they are and whoever they are -- for showing me how strong true love can be. And I thank the spirit of Kelly Biro for having caught my eye those few years ago in the newspaper. Although I'll never meet the Biro family, they've all made me a kinder and better man. And for that, I thank Kelly Biro in particular and all those who loved -- and who continue to love -- her.

    Well, that's all I have for now.

    Okay, bye.

    Admin

     

     

Sunday, 21 January 2007

  • Crappy New Year

    Well, the month of January 2007 is behind me now. All I can say is "Thank goodness!!!". Why? Well, the start of 2007 was the worst New Year's that I've ever had in my life. I'm not kidding: Everything that could go wrong did go wrong. What am I talking about? Okay, here's what happened...

    On New Year's eve, I was watching (all alone I should add) Dick Clark's "Rockin' New Year's Eve" on ABC. Well, the ball dropped in Times Square and everything seemed great. After all, the new year was here! Well, that good luck lasted about all of 20 seconds for me. Why? Because twenty seconds after the ball dropped, my television died. The screen went black. Dang!? I tried to get it to work -- but nothing could get a TV picture back. As I could still change channels and see the channel listing (I have cable TV), I figured that the cable service must have died. Well, I figured that I could just burn some time by hitting the Internet and surfing around. So, I cranked up my computer and... nothing. My Internet service was dead. Yup. Both my cable TV and my Internet connection died on me just 20 seconds after midnight on New Year's Eve. So, I called up the cable company. They told me that a "Level One" interruption had occured. That's as bad as it gets. I was told that it could take several hours for them to repair as one of their main cables had been accidently cut. Wonderful.

    So, I decided to go to bed. The morning rolled around and I dressed up for work, got into my car, turned the ignition key and... nothing. My car wouldn't start. I tried everything to get it going. Nothing worked. I called my boss and told him that I probably couldn't make it to work because I had no car. So I then called a towing service to take my dead car to the local Chrysler dealership for repairs. I rode in the towing truck to the dealership. Fun. At the dealership, a technician looked at my car and said that the starter was bad and it would take a day to replace. So, I had to rent a car. Oh joy.

    The next day I drove to work in the rental car. At work, I got a call that my car had been fixed. So, after work, I stopped by Chrylser and picked up my car (and paid $90 in rental fees among other things). The car seemed to work fine. When I got home, I found, however, that I still didn't have cable TV or the Internet. Both had now been out for two days. Grrr. As I had nothing to do, I tinkered around with some games on my computer just to try to quell my boredom. After a while, I ended up getting bored anyways. So, I decided to call the cable company to find out when my cable TV and Internet would be back online. They told me "soon." So, I went to sleep. Anyway, the next day, guess what? Still no Internet. Gahhhh!!!

    Finally, on the fourth day of no cable TV or Internet, both of them finally came back on line late in the evening. Yay!!! So, after catching up on my e-mail, monitoring the chat room for a while, and just doing some time-wasting surfing on the Net, I went to sleep. The next morning, I went to work. The car worked fine. When work ended for the day, I drove home. However, on the way home, I decided to stop into a local Target department store to pick up a few things. When I got into my car to drive home from Target, I turned the ignition key in my car and... nothing. It wouldn't start. My car was dead again. Now I was stranded seven miles from home. I called a taxi to get home. That ended up costing me $20. Then I had to call the car towing company (again) to get my car out of the Target parking lot and deliver it to Chrysler. That ended up costing me $140 in towing charges.

    Anyway, Chrysler finally did fix the car (it wasn't the starter after all, it was a defective cable leading from the ignition key to the battery that caused the car not to start). However, the Chrysler dealership charged me for a starter -- something that I didn't need as my original starter, obviously, wasn't the cause of the ignition problem. So, now I'm trying to get a refund for a starter that was put in my car that never should have been put in my car in the first place (they charged me hundreds of dollars for it). Mind you, all this happened to me during the FIRST WEEK of 2007.

    So, if your New Year's sucked, tough noogies. Mine sucked a lot worse!

    Well, that's all for now.

    Okay, bye.

    Admin

     

     

Top Tags - Weblog

[no tags]

Starcastle

  • Visit Starcastle's Xanga Site
    • Name: Senior Admin
    • Country: United States
    • Gender: Male
    • Member Since: 2/4/2005

Weblog Archives

Don't worry - your calendar is here… to see it in action just click "Save" above and refresh the page.

About Me

  • I'm just an ordinary guy. Nothing particularly fantastic. I like helping people. That's important to me. I also think it's important that people try to live their lives with dignity and good taste. Personally, I'm big into science. I'm not into superstitions or anything like that. I mean, if something doesn't have scientific proof behind it, why bother to believe in it? I hate spiders. I don't dance (wish I could though), I can't cook at all. That last one is kinda tough 'cause I live by myself. So, I usually end up eating lots of junk and frozen dinners. Yes, I live the life of a lonely computer nerd. By the way, being an admin at ChatterBee's has really been great. I've met (well, "met" in the sense that I've spoken to them online) a lot of really cool people there while doing the admin thing. And regarding girls, well, I love 'em! Thank goodness the world has girls in it. If it didn't, I wouldn't even want to be around at all. Yaaaaaaaaaaaay for girls!!! ;)

Blogrings

[no blogrings]

Pulse

Starcastle has no pulse!...

Recommended

[no recommendations]