Got the "hair-do" redone...can't wait to retouch the color in a few weeks. I'll probably use the Intense Auburn Red. I was at the salon for 5.5 hours. All the while I was IMing DramaKween with updates from the SideKick on the s-l-o-w progress. Had a good time with DramaKween & JigNeNe this weekend. DramaKween's school had its annual fun fair on Saturday. Three goldfish ("Alan" named for Iverson of the 76ers, Smokey, and Spongebob Squarepants) were graciously "donated" by DramaKween's school croonies. We went to PetCo looking for an aquarium for our little fishies...They say the Spongebob Squarepants aquarium but it was only a 1.5 gallon tank. The girls also asked if they could have a bird as a pet. I said let'[s see how well you take care of the fish first and then we'll see later on.

It felt like dejavu because my boss had been sharing one of his many family tales the week before. His twin sons also have goldfish and he bought he Spongebob aquarium for their fish, but they outgrew it. The wife made him buy a bigger tank although he said he wouldn't previously.

I even had time to get the Odyssey washed. (I gotta stop eating sunflower seeds, it's very messy...or not eat anymore until I buy a DustBuster). I got $3 off the carwash courtesy of www.hotcoupons.com. We stopped at Baskin-Robbins for double scoop @ $1.99 (normally $3.29) also courtesy of www.hotcoupons.com. I went to Good Guys to price an amplifier and subwoofer ($500 includes case and installation) and said...hmmm...maybe next year when company results sharing check is handed out.

On Sunday, we went to see "Holes". I'm a big fan of kid-friendly movies...while my husband prefers either not to go with us or sleeps 15 minutes after the movie starts. Holes was telling a story within a movie. I thought the interracial plot was interesting and at first I couldn't figure out the relevancy until later on. My girls love that song that they play constantly on the Disney Channel where the characters, Caveman, X-Ray, Armpit, Zero -- RAP. So far, they haven't asked me to buy the soundtrack. JigNeNe asked me if *I* wanted to see the "Lizzie McGuire" movie for my b-day. I'm like...umm...not really but I'd be glad to take them to see it. Lizzie, X-Men2 and a few other movies open on my b-day which is Friday, May 2nd. I'll be 38....wow.

I then dropped the girls (with DramaKween's friend in tow) off at Gameworks @ Ontario. I had $5 coupon off for each $20 admission courtesy of Gameworks website. They tried to "sell" me the unlimited play where you can't play ticketed or prize games. I had to show the counter guy that the coupon clearly was for "game play" not unlimited play. In the meantime, I had walked around the mall twice and then after picking up the girls, we walked around the mall again. It's amazing how many stores have opened in the short time span that Ontario Mills has opened. The only need I (personally) see for going to Los Angeles is either to visit the cemetery where my Mom and Grandma are buried or to get a "fly" hairstyle....other than that...they have everything in the Inland Empire. I had wanted to go to Upland's Lemon Festival, but by the time we left the mall it was after 7:30 pm. Maybe next year.

http://www.hiplog.com/hiplog/read/4/102/ -----End Original Message-----



http://www.hiplog.com/hiplog/read/4/102/

Ben &

Jerry's Free Cone Day is on Tuesday, 04/29 from noon to 8 p.m. at their Scoop Shops ....Pistachio Pistacho, Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Orange & Cream are potentials. I'm waiting for Togo's, Baskin & Robbins, and KFC to have their "customer appreciation days" later this year.

Maria I Am

lobster is beta testing prototype of the color HipTop camera.....yeah, right ;).

http://www.hiplog.com/hiplog/read/4/102/

On sr40 in the mohave desert on the way back home....we've gone 149 miles and another 150 to go...gonna stop at the next rest stop. I didn't bring any $$ home from laughlin :( we stayed @ harrah's and gambled @ the riverside casino while the girls hung out in the arcade.

Me & my hubby and obviously my kids are nonsmokers. We had the roughest time just walking through the casinos with all the smoke. It gets in your clothes...you can smell on your skin. I even smell it inside my purse. Yucky...and what an $$ habit it must be. I'm slammin' on cigs because my mom died when she was 39 and smoked @ least 4 paks of cigs a day....

...hmmm...seeing quote a few posting from lobster@bedope.com...are we testing out some sort of color prototype device or something??? What's up with TechTV -- video, but no audio...I know it's TechTV with the problem because I just changed to another channel and the audio does work. The pic is of my coworker who is a Canadian who has been in the U.S for several years....still getting hassled and cannot change jobs within the company until she gets her work visa stuff all straightened out. She was in my cubezone because the restore point in time for some critical application databases isn't workikng. This is the second time i about a month that we've gotten burned when it came time to do a restore but the data wasn't being backed up.

We had a company wide evacuation drill at all the sites simultaneously today. We were in the middle of a staff meeting when they made the announcement to "duck and cover". My boss and two of my coworkers didn't quite get under the desk but sat on the floor while myself and other coworkers looked at them, like we're not geting under there...we then went outside for the other part of the drill and my SK with me and browsing, checking email...the usual stuff.

So when we got back to my cube zone, my coworker asked me questions about what I use the SK for and asked me if it had a camera. I retrieved the camera from my key ring and took a picture of her while she was still quizzing me about what the SK does...I sent the picture to her and we were looking at it online within a few minutes.

Latest "toy" additions: DVD Burner; Dazzle Video Creator USB Adapter so that we can "create" movies to watch while mobile from Icon DVD/MP3/CD Player with Icon's overhead plasma screen. I was able to splurge because my employer gave us a hefty "results sharing" aka year-end bonus. Even had some $$ left over to pay some "real" bills. They definitely made up for the financial crisis it was in a few years ago.

I tested the DVD Burner last night....the video and audio play on my PC and home DVD player, but the audio can't be heard on the mobile DVD. I wanted to try to "create" a couple of movies for the kids to watch on our 4+ hour road trip tomorrow to Laughlin, NV.

I'm getting comp'd for the rooms from my stay in Las Vegas last November and because I spent a fair chunk of change at the Rio. Looking forward to getting away for a few days. It's been a while since we've taken a mini-vacation. DramaKween and I were just talking about the mini-vacations we've taken and which ones were the most memorable. We decided the local trips we've taken over the years -- where we didn't have to fly -- are the most memorable and we had the most fun.

Right now, I'm burning all my MP3s to "test" on the mobile thingy in my ride. I really gave the salesperson where I bought the mobile stuff a hard time. I was upset because they installed the equipment but didn't tell me about the "things to watch out for" when trying to use some of the functions. I probably embarassed DramaKween during my "rant" but she was very quiet. In retrospect, I shouldn't have ranted at the guy.

I apologized to DramaKween for my behavior (as an adult) and she didn't have much to say. I apologized to her & will later apologize to the salesperson because after I got home and tried their suggestions on the "gotchas", I still felt crummy because of my rantings.

I'll probably post some pics of our road trip along the way as it progresses.

AIM: BustAGrooove

Latest "toy" additions: DVD Burner; Dazzle Video Creator USB Adapter so that we can "create" movies to watch while mobile from Icon DVD/MP3/CD Player with Icon's overhead plasma screen. I was able to splurge because my employer gave us a hefty "results sharing" aka year-end bonus. Even had some $$ left over to pay some "real" bills. They definitely made up for the financial crisis it was in a few years ago.

I tested the DVD Burner last night....the video and audio play on my PC and home DVD player, but the audio can't be heard on the mobile DVD. I wanted to try to "create" a couple of movies for the kids to watch on our 4+ hour road trip tomorrow to Laughlin, NV.

I'm getting comp'd for the rooms from my stay in Las Vegas last November and because I spent a fair chunk of change at the Rio. Looking forward to getting away for a few days. It's been a while since we've taken a mini-vacation. DramaKween and I were just talking about the mini-vacations we've taken and which ones were the most memorable. We decided the local trips we've taken over the years -- where we didn't have to fly -- are the most memorable and we had the most fun.

Right now, I'm burning all my MP3s to "test" on the mobile thingy in my ride. I really gave the salesperson where I bought the mobile stuff a hard time. I was upset because they installed the equipment but didn't tell me about the "things to watch out for" when trying to use some of the functions. I probably embarassed DramaKween during my "rant" but she was very quiet. In retrospect, I shouldn't have ranted at the guy.

I apologized to DramaKween for my behavior (as an adult) and she didn't have much to say. I apologized to her & will later apologize to the salesperson because after I got home and tried their suggestions on the "gotchas", I still felt crummy because of my rantings.

I'll probably post some pics of our road trip along the way as it progresses.

AIM: BustAGrooove

DramaKween was somehow inspired to walk around the house to capture before & after pictures of herself, sis' JigNeNe's & me when JigNeNe was less than a year old, and of course our dog, Bingo who is almost 13. Bingo was not friendly with the camera. DramaKween kept throwing the ball to him to get him to come closer but he was not being cooperative.

We also captured her visit to the orthodontist last Saturday. She was giddy with joy to confirm that her braces are going to be removed next month. The orthodontist's office has an internet cafe for the kiddies, oops...I meant teenagers...and they have a service called OrthoSesame where you can check on patient account balances, next appointment, etc.



BustAGroove, I Am http://www.hiptop.com/hiplog/read/4/102/

From a mutual Jill Scott Fan: "I am such a huge fan of yours! When I first heard your music I felt a sense of pride and strength, because to me you are a strong black woman who doesn't feed into the commericalized, sterotypical hype most artists do. When I watch your videos, you look so pretty and so confident in yourself that it's helped me feel confident in myself. I hope to meet you one day and tell you thanks for being natural, beautiful and overall, you!" Fave: 'He Loves Me (Lyzel in E Flat)'

Lenny Williams is still best-known for his three years as the lead singer of Tower of Power, one of the top funk/soul bands of the '70s. Fave: 'This Day, This Minute, Right Now'

....getting ready to pile into the Odyssey to take DramaKween to the orthodontist. She's anxious to get her braces removed in a few weeks. I'm on call this weekend so not too much "play time" outside today.

From a mutual Jill Scott Fan: "I am such a huge fan of yours! When I first heard your music I felt a sense of pride and strength, because to me you are a strong black woman who doesn't feed into the commericalized, sterotypical hype most artists do. When I watch your videos, you look so pretty and so confident in yourself that it's helped me feel confident in myself. I hope to meet you one day and tell you thanks for being natural, beautiful and overall, you!" Fave: 'He Loves Me (Lyzel in E Flat'/a>

Lenny Williams is still best-known for his three years as the lead singer of Tower of Power, one of the top funk/soul bands of the '70s. Fave: 'This Day, This Minute, Right Now'/a>

....getting ready to pile into the Odyssey to take DramaKween to the orthodontist. She's anxious to get her braces removed in a few weeks. I'm on call this weekend so not too much "play time" outside today.