Cut Scenes from Sci-Fi Faves

How have I gone this far in my life and not seen these? Maybe a couple I KNEW about, but not sure if I've seen any of them. I haven't watched them all yet, either, because there are, like, 40 of them! Yay!

If you love sci-fi, enjoy!!! (Courtesy of IO9 and http://theparkbencher.blogspot.com/)

http://io9.com/5412722/40-unseen-moments-from-your-favorite-movies

Stray Parrots?

Is there any such thing as a stray parrot?

This fellow was perched on a car in the parking lot of the restaurant we went to tonight. He was also calling "hello" to passers-by.

I figured no one would believe this if I didn't get a picture. Sorry it isn't clearer, but first, I took it with my cell phone. Second, when I tried to get close, he flapped his wings and squawked at me.

Maybe he was a low-tech car alarm.

Ah well. Rose McCauley recently commented that you never know what you'll find on this site. Apparently that's true!

A Gem From Jim Hines

Does anyone know anything about Jim Hines? It looks like he's a fantasy writer. I may have to check out his stuff, although I'm not sure if stories about goblins as MAIN characters would interest me. I'm not THAT big of a geek, am I? I like my goblins where they belong- in supporting roles.

In any event, here's his blog address...http://jimhines.livejournal.com/467074.html

Check out his poem, Slush I Read.

Hope everyone is having a grand week.

Time with Family

I have been blessed in the last ten days or so to have gotten a visit from my dad and stepmom, who were in Anaheim for a conference. And not just Anaheim, but Disneyland! They were staying in the Disneyland Hotel. And then today (Wednesday), my mother is coming for a visit! How blessed am I? I was able to go and spend three nights in Disneyland and get to visit the parks for the first time (I've been to Disney World many times, but never to Disneyland.) And I got to spend time with family I haven't seen in a couple of months. It was a really nice time. I rode roller coasters and screamed too much, ate too much, and walked what felt like too much.



And now, I am super-excited to see my mother very shortly now! I've been trying to plan what we might do. Definitely she must see Venice Beach and the pier at Santa Monica. Also, I haven't done the whole Hollywood walk of fame thing with all the stars on the sidewalk. I have been down to Hollywood and Vine, but I'm usually on my way somewhere else and have no time to stop. I think we should certainly check that out and see whose stars we can see. She's going to get to meet my roommate and see my place, and just the amazing beauty of the mountains and water around Los Angeles.



Anyone have any other suggestions for what we could do, both touristy and non-touristy? I think my roommate, who is a chef and bartender, will make us dinner one night. Oh, and I almost forgot- we're hitting Vegas over the weekend. It should be a nice drive- not to mention absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Even though a lot of it will be through the massive desert, I still think it's amazing. I've been missing the rain, but with all the flooding I'm hearing about in my home state of Georgia right now, I'm reminded to be thankful for what I have. Thank You, Lord, for beautiful weather!!!!



So, I am quite blessed to see so much of my family during these two weeks. Now, only if I can get to see Robin and my wonderful grandparents soon, all will be right with the world.

Random, but Excellent, Movie Suggestions

I was trying to think of a really great blog post topic, but I was at a complete loss. So, I decided to write a little about something I like, movies, and even more than that, sharing what I think are good movies with other people. Here is a short list of some of my favorites. It's certainly not a comprehensive list, and I'm choosing to leave off some of my favorites that I think most people probably know of already, like Star Wars. This is more of a "Hey, here are some great movies you may not know about" kind of list. Here goes...


Jesus of Nazareth- a long, but wonderful and reverent, adaptation of the greatest story ever told. Many people star in this one. Robert Powell plays Jesus. If memory serves he has a British accent, but to me that's better than American, and about as good as you can get unless they speak in the original language like in The Passion of the Christ. 1977- Franco Zeffirelli directs.


Big Fish- starring Ewan MacGregor, about a dying man whose life story seems too good to be true. His son seeks out the truth and finds some fascinating answers. Uplifting with great storytelling. 2003. Don't think there's too much to worry about here- maybe some language.


In the Bedroom- starring Sissy Spacek, Marisa Tomei, Tom Wilkinson. This is a drama about a married couple who lose their teenage son to violence (about an hour into the movie) and their struggle to deal with the aftermath. It is heavy and sad, but a very well-told story with amazing performances. I watch this when I'm in the mood for a good catharsis. 2001. Violence and adult themes.


A&E's Pride and Prejudice- for those of you participating in Melanie Dickerson's Jane Austen challenge, I highly recommend this faithful, five-hour adaptation of one of my favorite books. The Kiera Knightley version does not come close to this one. Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle star. 1995.


The Best Man- a young Italian woman, sometime around the turn of the century, is forced by her family to marry a man she doesn't love. His long-time friend arrives from America to be the best man, and she immediately falls in love with him instead. Sweet story. Subtitled. 1998.


Waiting for Guffman- a hillarious mockumentary by Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy, in the tradition of Spinal Tap, about a community theatre troupe in Blaine, Missouri who wait anxiously for a Mr. Guffman from New York to come and see their show and make them all big stars. The cast is mostly the same as in his other works- Catherine O'Hara, Guest, Levy, Parker Posey, Fred Willard, and many others. 1997. Language warnings.


A Room with a View- based on the E.M. Forster novel and starring Helena Bonham-Carter, Julian Sands, and Maggie Smith- oh, and how can I forget????!!! Daniel Day-Lewis as the foppish Mr. Cecil Vyse!!! (which proves what an awesome actor he is, that Nathaniel from Last of the Mohicans could also play this part- unbelievable!!!) I'm getting myself so worked up by this entry, I think I'll go and watch it now! 1985. Great love story set in England and Italy around the turn of the century (the last one- not the millenium). Light-hearted and delightful. There is nudity- but it's not of the vulgar kind.


If you've seen any of these, let me know what you think. If you watch any based on my recommendations, I'd love to hear your opinion!

Lost Literature Display

Sometimes I really love my job.

Where else would I get to indulge my love of a TV show, have fun with books, and help build a tent out of bamboo poles and twisties?

I've blogged before about the TV show Lost, and we recently put together a huge exhibit at my library called "Lost Literature." I wrote an article about it for the college's website and publications. I'm going to reproduce it here because I thought you'd enjoy it--and because I'm too lazy to write another version. Enjoy!




A few months ago, Macon State College’s Assistant Librarian Felicia Haywood had a fairly simple idea for a library display that would highlight a number of books in the collection. That simple idea grew into the library’s largest display to date—an exhibit that snakes around the entire second floor and includes a full-sized boat, a tent constructed of bamboo poles, and a smoke monster.

And books, of course. Books as diverse as The Epic of Gilgamesh, The Wizard of Oz, and Bad Twin. “All these titles are from the library’s collection,” says Haywood, “but they have something else in common. They also play a part in the popular ABC-TV Show Lost—along with many other titles covering a spectrum of time periods and genres.”

Lost follows the plight of the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815, which crashes onto a mysterious island and leaves them stranded—but not alone.

The island is just packed with mysteries, including a colony of people they call “The Others,” a monster that appears to be made of smoke, and a man in a hatch who swears he’s fending off an apocalypse by punching numbers into a computer.

If you’ve watched Lost (or heard your friends talk about it), you’ll know the show is a mind-bending puzzle. Through events on the island and flashbacks to the characters’ earlier lives, we discover that the Flight 815 survivors have intriguing connections to one another. Were they brought to the island for a reason?

As Haywood says, “Tiny bits of information turn out to provide important clues later on, so when a character is shown reading a particular book at a particular time, it’s probably important.”

And the literary clues abound! The survivors of Flight 815 read books to pass the time. The Others have a book club. The Hatch where Desmond holds the apocalypse at bay has a library.

Characters quote from books. Writers reference them in episode titles and character names. Sometimes story lines seem to follow famous plots.

In a strange twist of life imitating art, there’s even one Flight 815 passenger who wrote a novel called Bad Twin—which was later published in the real world, and added to the library's collection. The popular character Sawyer was seen reading the manuscript for Bad Twin in an early episode. If you’re interested in it, you can find it in the exhibit at Sawyer’s tent, along with his reading chair, Oceanic Airlines water bottles and blankets.

You can also see a replica of his bizarre reading glasses, patched together from two pairs salvaged from the wreckage.

“My original idea,” says Haywood, “was to draw attention to some classic library books. And also to the second floor of the Library. Even a couple of years after the library’s renovation, some folks don’t seem to be aware that the library now occupies two floors. Since a couple of us at the Library are Lost fans, the idea sort of snowballed. But what better way to get patrons to check out the upstairs than to provide them a recreation of the Survivors’ beach camp, Dharma stations, and even a model of the infamous Smoke Monster!”

“We’ve left clues everywhere to celebrate Lost’s homage to literature. If you’re a newbie to the show, you may just find yourself getting drawn into its world. If you’re a fan, see if you can make the connections.”

There are also plans for events, contests, and give-aways in connection with the exhibit, so watch out for more details.

“And if you find a book that you like,” says Haywood, “feel free to bring it to the desk and check it out—even if it’s the Stephen King book under the polar bear’s paw.”

You can see lots more photos at our Flickr site.

The Flickr photos and all the good pics above were taken by Felicia. The ones that have poor lighting or are blurry were taken by yours truly!

The Writer's Hokey Pokey

To be sung to the tune of Hokey Pokey:

You put the prologue in,
You take the prologue out,
You put the prologue in
And you fill yourself with doubt.
Do the writer's Hokey Pokey
As you drag the words around.
That's what writing's all about.

So...can you tell I'm having prologue issues this week?

The Great Kitten Caper of 2009

Something about this time of year seems to suck me into adventures with stray kittens. Last year I wrote a post called The Great Kitten Caper. Now, here I go again.

Last week, Kristi was visiting from California. I stayed at my parents' house visiting with her until about 10:15 Wednesday night, then decided to go home the back way, down the country roads instead of the interstate highway. At a particularly lonely spot, I came perilously close to hitting a black and white kitten that was lying with the front part of his body actually in the roadway. He didn't move as my car zoomed by, so I figured he must be hurt--maybe had already been hit by a car.

I turned around and headed back, thinking that if he was okay he would have moved by now, but at least I would be sure. Even though this was a country road with no houses in sight, it was also a throughway from one side of town to the other and there was a good bit of traffic. And there he was, still lying in the same spot. I turned around again to be on the same side of the road with him and pulled the car over right behind him to shield him from other vehicles.

At this point, of course, he could move just fine--and headed straight under my car. So there I was, now in danger myself because a steep bank kept me from pulling far enough off the road, with a kitten under my car.

I got out of the car and was trying to coax him out when I heard more kitten-squealing from behind me, and two more came out of the tall grass. Here's the odd part. (Well, one of the odd parts.) I was sure that the kittens had been abandoned here, because as I said before, there were no houses or businesses close by. But the first kitten didn't seem to have any relation to the other two. The one I pulled over for was very small, emaciated, and terrified. These two appeared to be about four months old, were wearing flea collars, and were extremely friendly. They were literally trying to climb my legs, they wanted my help so badly. I opened the car door and they promptly jumped into my car! I put them back out of the car, trying to think, and they joined the first kitten underneath it.

About this time, a deputy sheriff pulled up, lights flashing, and asked if I needed help. I think I started to babble like an idiot about kittens under my car. I figured he was about to scold me for being in the way of traffic or something, but instead, he got out of the car, blocked traffic, and helped me round up the first two kittens. By this time, I had decided to put them back in the car and get away from the side of the road and try to figure it out from there.

This left the scrawny, starved little one that I pulled over for in the first place. The kitty led the deputy and me on a merry chase from one side of my car to the other, then finally crossed the road, ran up a bank and into the field. I guess this was the deputy's last straw. He more or less told me it was over and that I should move along, so I did. Next, I did what any mature, responsible woman would do. I called my mommy and asked if I could bring the kittens to her.

My wonderful, compassionate mother lives on eleven acres of wooded land and has been taking in strays since I can remember. So she took in Fred and George, too. (That's what Kristi named them. If you've read any Harry Potter, you'll understand.)

My mother also fretted over the one that got away and asked Kristi and me to go back and look for it the next day. I figured we would never find it again, but the minute we pulled over and called "Kitty, kitty," it started squealing and came out. It was obviously starving and would dart toward us to get food but we couldn't catch it. I left more depressed than when I started, figuring I would have to make the drive out to the middle of nowhere every day to feed the ornery little cuss, because I couldn't leave it to starve.

But next day, I was better prepared. I had an upturned cat carrier in the floorboard of my car, with the door wide open. I draped a towel around my neck and took some nice smelly fish with me when I called the cat. He was so enraptured with the fried fish that he didn't notice when I slipped the towel from around my neck and dropped it over him.

He noticed then, though. I grabbed him up, completely wrapped in the towel, and you never heard such snarling and growling from such a little package. I'm sure in cat language it was very, very bad.

I've also never seen such a little package eat so much. When we got to my mother's he ate tuna fish, drank milk, and then found the other cats' food and polished that off.

This would be a great story even if this were the ending. But it's not. My mother, who has not had a stray cat show up in her yard for several years, called me a few hours later and told me that she had just looked out the window and seen two additional kittens in the yard. Can you believe that! I dump three stray kittens on her and on the SAME DAY, two more show up!

Today, a colleague at the library said she might have seen a stray kitten outside. I turned and ran the other way.

Robin's Deep Dark Confessions: Total Lack of Observation

Jasmine Showers

I have both some good news and an embarrassing story to share with you. Which would you like to hear first? Oh, I know all of you. You're eager for me to humiliate myself for your amusement, aren't you? Well, fortunately I'm good at it. So here goes.


I've been trying for a long time to open an online shop on Etsy, a wonderful marketplace to sell handmade and vintage goods. I finally sat down a couple of weeks ago to do the deed. I had gathered enough of my handmade treasures to make a start and had even photographed them with the help of the lovely and gracious Felicia of Fluffy Flowers. (Who knew there was a macro button on my camera? Amazing!)

What I didn't count on was the fact that all of the shop names I had considered would already be taken. I was in my office mulling this over when I had a brainstorm for another shop name: Jasmine Showers. It sounds like springtime, bright and refreshing, just the sort of shop I'd like to browse in. Plus, since I dabble in a little bit of everything, it doesn't tie me down to any one type of item like beads or crocheting or whatever. Lastly, Jasmine Showers is a character in one of my novels, so this ties the "work of my hands" back in with my writing. Perfect!

I'm the type that may put something off for weeks or months, but when I'm ready, I'm ready. I had allotted time to set up my shop on a particular afternoon and by golly, I intended to do it. Trouble was, I needed a photo or logo for the shop banner. I had the perfect picture in mind: Jasmine blossoms with raindrops. But where to get it? I found some on the Web, but they were all copyrighted, or available for one-time use. I wanted to take my own pictures, so I could put them on business cards or bookmarks or t-shirts, whatever.

At this point, I need to make my confessions. First, I am the most ignorant person on the Earth when it comes to plants. Also dangerous. Any plant left in my care will die an untimely death. Sometimes this happens even when it's not in my care, just near me. When I worked at Delta Air Lines as a secretary, my bosses came up with the bright idea of putting a plant on my desk so people would see it and be cheered when they entered our otherwise soulless warehouse of cubicles and desks.

I warned them not to do it. I told them what happened to plants that got too close to me. They laughed. They pointed out that I wouldn't have to care for it. Someone with actual plant knowledge would do all that.

Within days it was drooping. Then dripping brown leaves. Visitors to our department started to look depressed.

So anyway, that's confession number one. I love the fantasy concept of flowers, but I'm not so good with the real thing.

Confession number two: my powers of observation are woefully inadequate. I once had a roommate who was gone to Florida for two days before I noticed she was missing. Actually, I never noticed. One of our friends pointed it out. (In my defense, she was sort of reclusive and kept her bedroom door closed a lot.)

Now we arrive at the Thursday afternoon when I was determined to set up my Etsy shop. I wanted to take pictures of jasmine blooms, so I decided to stop at Lowe's and see if they had any jasmine. It briefly occurred to me to wonder if we already had jasmine in our yard, but how would I know? (See confessions one and two.) My husband Dave is the gardener in the family, but he was out of town on business. Besides, I hear him talk about the gardening, and I vaguely remembered him mentioning things like roses, azaleas and camellias. And even in my ignorant state, I know when the gardenias are blooming by the smell. Wouldn't jasmine have a strong scent, too? Wouldn't I remember Dave mentioning jasmine?

No, I decided. We have no jasmine. So I paid a fairly big price for a bush at Lowe's that had two or three blooms on it, sprayed it with fake raindrops, and came up with a picture for my banner.

Then Dave got home. I pointed out the jasmine bush I had planted, and even showed off my new knowledge. "That's Confederate jasmine," I said. (I do know how to read a label.)

"I know," he answered. "It's all over the front porch and the back fence. I have to keep beating it back to keep it from taking over."

A few days later, it started to bloom. And here is just a small sample of what's in our yard.

Well...how was I supposed to know when it wasn't blooming yet? It was just leaves and...oh, never mind.

The good news is I have at least gotten my shop up and running, and I've made one sale! It's called Jasmine Showers as I'd hoped, and I'm pretty pleased with it.

I'd like to share the joy, so here's what I'm offering my wonderful blog readers. If you make a purchase from my shop between now and the end of May, you can take 30% off the most expensive item in your order. (Just mention the Dimensions blog in the "Message to Seller" at checkout. You can either go ahead and pay and I'll send you a refund, or tell me in the message that you'd like me to send a revised invoice before you pay.)

Tell anyone else you think might be interested. More than making money right now, I need to make some sales and get good feedback. Enjoy!

When Your Niece Moves to L.A.

Is this typical? Is this what happens frequently when a family member moves cross country to Los Angeles?

I was fast asleep last night around midnight when my cell phone sounded off, letting me know I had a text message. Half asleep, I read this from Kristi: "Just felt my first quake. It was so weird."

There was supposedly a small quake when she was moving into her apartment, but she said she didn't feel it. Her landlord told her about it. But she felt this one. Must have been bigger. What does a loving, concerned aunt do in such a situation? If they're like me, they drop the phone and go back to sleep. I just figured, it's L.A., these little things happen.

Then I heard it on the news this morning. It made the national news! I'm a teensy bit ashamed of my lack of concern. I'd also like to tell her to take the next plane home to Georgia, where the worst that will happen to her is to have a tree fall on her during a tornado. Okay, maybe that's just as bad. So maybe I should just chill and trust God, right?

She is doing very well. I know she'll be catching you up soon, but I was impressed to check out the Big Hollywood blog this morning and see one of the writers going on about a fancy restaurant on the upscale Santa Monica pier, and know that's where Kristi's working. Here's the link if you want to check out the post, which is really funny: I, Jerk.

Kristi, have you seen this restaurant?

The Big Five-O and Cats in the Ceiling

Last Wednesday was a big day for me. The Big Five-O. Not only that, but in addition to turning 50, it was the last day for me to see co-blogger and niece Kristi before she hit the road for her move to L.A.

All you younger folks out there are probably thinking, how does a woman in this mature stage of life celebrate her birthday? As you would expect, life is more solemn and profound at this age, so it's important to commemorate it in a style that's suitable. I myself chose a Harry Potter-themed party, complete with cake and a screening of Order of the Phoenix.

Then later, my husband took me to Zoo Atlanta to see the giant pandas, especially Lun Lun and her cub, Xi Lan (Atlanta's Joy).

Yes, it's a little sad to leave childhood so far behind and do the mature thing, but I'm facing up to it as best I can.

Because it was Kristi's last day in town, it wasn't all fun and games. I was a little weepy at the idea of her leaving. Then she left her cats with me and I became downright distraught.

The idea was for me to babysit her two cats for a couple of weeks while she makes the drive across country and gets settled into her apartment. Then I would put them on a plane to her. Sounded simple enough.

The trouble started right after we let them out of their carriers. I had the brilliant idea they could stay in the basement, where they would be away from my foul-tempered cat and have plenty of room. Big mistake. They would have been much better off in my guest room, with a cozy amount of space and a bed to hide under. Trying to get away from all that space, they started climbing, and found a crawl space up in the ceiling that I hadn't even realized was there.

The pictures are from Kristi's bon voyage party and show her and her kitties, Bundles (gray) and Leo (black). I'm glad I took these pictures. For a while there, I figured it was the last time I would ever see their faces.

Bundles remained in the ceiling for three full days. Leo finally came down last night, after four days. A lot of time, energy, coaxing, climbing on step ladders, and tuna fish went into the rescue operation. One day, a colleague asked me if I had finished taking pictures of my handmade items so I could open my online shop. I told her I had planned to do it that week but hadn't counted on cats in the ceiling. I promised to try to do it the next day, if nothing unexpected happened. But then I added, "But really. In life, it's always cats in the ceiling."

She said it would make a good bumper sticker. Maybe I'll have some printed up and include them in my online shop. You can order one, if you feel like your life is just a series of cats in the ceiling.

Do Not Panic, This is Only a Test

I've been working on getting all the features into the new blog (whew!) and decided we needed a test post. If you read this, please test the comment feature so we can see if that works. There is still much to be done but I'm out of time for now.

How do you think the site looks so far? Yes, Kristi's picture is much smaller than mine, but I can't seem to find any way to resize the photos. Oh, darn. And it makes me appear as though I'm the star, too. What a shame. Tut, tut.