Kontan’s Place

I erased my rant/ramble and will simply say…Remembering is so important…

Great game! I was able to go to the game with Djembe and had a great time. Auburn gave up more than they should but still played a great game. MSU is a weak team. Everyone knew it going in. A frustrated, and likely intoxicated, MSU student around us decided the only way to defend MSU’s pathetic showing was to insult Auburn’s success at putting down the worst offense in the nation. Sorry that your team sucks kid, but it shows zero class to point this out in an attempt to insult your opponent. Almost amusing. Next week, LSU

VS

In other football news…The “university” of Alabama gave up ten points to Vanderbilt, but was able to pull out a 13-10 win. Next week they take on another slightly better than high school team, Louisiana-Monroe.

VS
I would cheer for the warhawks, but so far cheering for Hawaii and Vanderbilt didn’t help them gain a win over AL. Scored more than I thought they would though.

It’s Friday, and pep-rally day. I don’t even have to wait until tonight to know that it is also a full moon. OMG. Ever have those days that would be great, if not for one defining bad-day making event? Welcome to my Friday.

I teach high school. If you teach/attend high school you will eventually see a fight. Unfortunately this one took place in my classroom. One student mouthing about another’s momma. The other throws a binder, the first throws a backpack and then it’s on. Usually students will challenge up to each other demonstrating their size and machismo, maybe throw a punch if someone doesn’t pull them apart. Eh-eh. These guys tore into each other and were all over the room. The rest of the students weren’t cheering like you have seen or would imagine. They were terrified and trying to stay out of the way. Desks were pushed into each other, a chair or two upside down, and students cowering.

I tried to diffuse it before it started. Students were supposed to be studying for the test that day. The kid who threw his binder was, but he couldn’t help responding to the mouthy kid. Both were warned to get quiet and study. I had no idea what mouthy kid was saying. He wasn’t saying where I could hear. When binder kid stood up I told him to step out of the room…that’s when things went flying. While telling them to back down I hit the call button. They tie up. I call for security and continue to try to talk these guys apart. They both are significantly taller than me and throwing some serious punches. I sent a student for admin and continue to instruct the other students to get to the wall and out of the way. Other teachers hear and step in to either make sure I am not caught under it and to help. The boys are wrestling in the floor. When they stand and separate a little I cautiously grabbed the shirt of binder boy and pull him to me trying to coax him to back down. He started backing toward me as I pulled him. I think he was ready for the fight to stop and saving face while backing down.

We get in the hall and I take him by the elbow to go to admins office. He was still VERY angry, but at least listening to me. I was trying to get him to calm down so he didn’t make it worse for himself when security got there. IMO he is a good kid who just didn’t like someone disrespecting his momma. I won’t comment on the other student, but I will say he was showing a gradual improvement by not totally disrupting class on a daily basis.

Crazy day.

You’ve probably read/heard this before, but still a giggle. Our Friday morale booster:

A woman brought a very limp duck into a veterinary surgeon. As she laid her pet on the table, the vet pulled out his stethoscope and listened to the bird’s chest. After a moment or two, the vet shook his head sadly and said, “I’m so sorry, your Duck Cuddles has passed away.” The distressed owner wailed, “Are you sure?” “Yes, I am sure. The duck is dead,” he replied. “How can you be so sure,” she protested. “I mean, you haven’t done any testing on him or anything. He might just be in a coma or something.”

The vet rolled his eyes, turned around and left the room, and returned a few moments later with a black Labrador retriever. As the duck’s owner looked on in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his front paws on the examination table and sniffed the duck from top to bottom. He then looked at the vet with sad eyes and shook his head. The vet patted the dog and took it out, and returned a few moments later with a cat. The cat jumped up on the table and also sniffed delicately at the bird from head to foot. The cat sat back on its haunches, shook its head, meowed softly and strolled out of the room.

The vet looked at the woman and said, “I’m sorry, but as I said, this is most definitely, 100% certifiably, a dead duck.” Then the vet turned to his computer terminal, hit a few keys and produced a bill, which he handed to the woman. The duck’s owner, still in shock, took the bill. “$500!” she cried, “$500 just to tell me my duck is dead?!!” The vet shrugged. “I’m sorry. If you’d taken my word for it, the bill would have been $20, but with the Lab Report and the Cat Scan, it’s now $500.00.”

First, lets talk about Mr. Linky. GREAT tool if you do a meme and you want to link back to other participants. However, it is HIGHLY rude to stop by, link yourself and not say anything. If you don’t want to comment, that’s your biz! However, it’s just rude to stop in, link yourself, and not even say hi.

Now on with the list…

I took this image while flying home from LA. It is now my desktop wallpaper. I offer you today thirteen things I see in this photograph…

2. Softness of clouds. They are so much fun!

3. Power. The tremendous power of a building thunderstorm.

4. Relaxation. Combine the above three things and for me relaxation is natural. It is a beautiful setting. One could become lost in the random highs and lows of the clouds expanding. What seems so soft holds so much more. A good thunderstorm, not severe, I find relaxing as I drift to sleep.

5. Imagination. You know I can’t get out of this list without playing the cloud game.

6. Top left. Is that the man in the moon blowing a party favor?

7. Or, is it a witch sticking out her forked tongue?

8. Center. Hungry hungry hippo?

9. Or, the flying dog from Neverending Story?

10. Bottom center. The dark shadows make it look like an angry Ord from Dragontales.

11. To Ord’s left, I think I see what he is angry at. It reminds me of the back of Tiki’s head as she is annoying the big dogs…floppy ears and all.

12. Right side. If you stare at it long enough it looks like a big dog with poofy fur wearing sunshades. You really have to stare though.

13. I won’t say a giant marshmallow…although, on my desktop, it does somewhat look like a toasted one that was too close to the flame. Top right, center of the cloud brush strokes…is that a cloaking spaceship? Or a terradactyl eye with wings only slightly visible?

You see anything?

Just sit right back and you’ll read a tale, a tale of a beautiful trip…that started from this humid hot place, aboard a tiny ship. The mate was a mighty handsome man with his lady by his side, exploring the land of glitz and glow, the joy you’ll never know…

I spent Saturday in LA exploring the city on a full day tour. If you have to go somewhere like LA and you have limited time, the grand tour is the way to go. You get a taste of everything and can use it for future plans. I had to reserve a spot on the tour, which was not a problem. The concierge will take care of anything if you just ask. He called in the reservation and told me to be back no later than 9. No problem, and no other instructions. So I’m there a little before 9 AM along with 15 or so of my closest non-English speaking friends. We’re standing at the door waiting for our bus and someone decides to light up. I take a few steps back and hear the sound of English! Woohoo! Granted it is with an Aussie accent, but it is English. She wasn’t too thrilled about the smoke either, calling it disgusting for those who are not used to it. We strike up a conversation about her plight. Her and her husband were on their “BIG” trip to tour the western US only they had somehow managed not to connect with their tour. In our chat I discovered her and her husband were retired teachers…no wonder the conversation was so easy. Teachers have a way of finding each other no matter where they happen to be. We’re like magnets, really! As they get ready to move on I notice that others have a slip of paper in their hand so I go to the concierge to ask if I am supposed to have something for this tour. It is a different guy this time and he said that it was past time for the tour to leave. I told him I was early and had been there the whole time, no bus. He makes a call and finds out it is on the way and is quickly completing the sheet that I had NO idea I was supposed to have when the tour bus arrives. I go out and just as I get to the bus the driver closes the door. I knock but he doesn’t stop. I turn to the concierge who was going back inside and call to him about what had just happen. He and the security guy whistle the driver. Concierge goes to him and does a silent argue back and forth until the driver opens the door. I climb on, standing room only, and am greeted with a head shake by 15 or so of my closest non-English speaking friends. Now this was not in a bad way at all. In broken English the guy I was standing beside said the driver was crazy. Great…thankfully we didn’t have far to go to the tour station. Good thing, because I didn’t speak Italian and the guy beside me didn’t speak English so our efforts at communication were less than successful. At the tour station I go to the counter, a little overwhelmed by the morning, and greet the agent who made everything better. He was very friendly and then felt the need to direct me to a fellow Alabamian in the office…in fact she was from Birmingham which is family home for us. We speak for several minutes when a security guy points out that for someone from Alabama I don’t sound like it, expressing that his friend still hadn’t lost the accent…and OH she hadn’t.

On to the bus the driver gets on and I’m very happy that he speaks perfect non-accented English. Woohoo! Guys, if you haven’t been to LA you really need to understand that English is apparently not the primary language. My tour guide was Mark and he was nothing but straight forward letting people know that the tour would be in English and if they expected anything else they needed to depart now. He cracked several jokes, and really harped on the English deal. Apparently he had complaints from previous tours b/c they expected it to be in their language and English was all he had. Over the course of the day he turned out to be a pretty likeable guy.

As I stated in my T13 about the trip: We did a circle of the city seeing Venice Beach, Marina Del Rey, The Walt Disney opera house, MOCA- Museum of Contemporary Art, Hollywood, The Farmer’s Market and Grove, and Olvera Street. Truly enjoyed this day and now have a good idea of many things I want to see when we return.

Not much else to say really so let me tell you my thoughts of some of the places…

Marina del Rey and the canals were really spectacular. Venice Beach on the otherhand was a surprise. Honestly, it seemed pretty ghetto. Vendors were set up flea market style, not a bad thing, but it just did not strike me as a cool, clean, place to be…especially if it was night time. The best part about that stop was this picture:

Mark said the steel used was from the twin towers…I can only go by his word, but I thought it was cool.

You know, the thing about tours…these guys could tell you anything and you wouldn’t know any different.

Venice beach, not my favorite stop, but cool memorial.

I did enjoy stopping at the LA Farmers market and Grove. So many opportunities to shop, if you are interested, and many opportunities for a great meal and unique shopping. I love the unique.

We also spent a half hour in Hollywood where I was able to witness the arrest of Batman. He kept yelling, asking why he was being cuffed and I’m thinking “b/c you are being a complete and total tush wipe” but hey, that’s just the way I see it. The hand/foot prints in front of Grauman’s were uncovered. Really cool to see, but too crowded to truly appreciate. The people watching was a hoot though.

There isn’t much else to say about the tour. If you have ever been on one you understand that you ride and listen, having only brief stops…unable to fully appreciate everything. It is a great way to get a glimpse of what you might like to see on your next visit. Next time I want to spend time taking in the history aspects, visiting the Avila Adobe, the oldest existing house in LA (built 1818), spending some time in Santa Monica, and doing a few studio tours.

It was a weekend…can’t do everything.

Bodygetta Bodygetta Bodygetta Bah
Rah Rah Rah
Sis Boom Bah
Weagle Weagle
Warrrrrr Eagle
Kick em in the butt, Big Blue
Hey!

Auburn 40 Washington State 14

Contrary to most other games on the kickoff to college football season, this one was actually interesting to watch.   Worst move of the game goes to Washington State who put in their second string quarterback then immediately take him out after he ran some pretty impressive plays.  Kenny Irons made several impressive scores almost stepping out of bounds and giving up a touchdown to show-boating in response to Washington State trash talk, a move he regrets, but thankfully the touchdown remained after review.

Looks like the Auburn Tigers have gotten off to a great start, ranked #4 in AP polls, #6 in the USA Today poll, #4 in ESPN.com poll, and #5 ESPNU AllState standings.  The other “major” AL university barely ranks in the top 25 at #22 in the ESPNU and #24 for USA Today.

Next week, Auburn takes on Mississippi State at Mississippi State.  MSU may have paid my graduate tuition, but I’ll still be in the stands pulling for AU.  WAR EAGLE!

If you’re interested in another way to waste spend time on the Internet let me tell you about a site I enjoy.  Mississippitalks is a forum that I frequent.  Despite the name there are discussions concerning national as well as state issues.   Lately I spend more time in the arcade.  With hundreds of games, there is something for everyone.  If you enjoy friendly competition then you will enjoy the points/ranking system.  The operator is in the process of updating the enitre forum and has added a casino feature where you earn points to use as money.  There is also a blog feature where members can link to their external blog or write a blog within the forum.  Now, like everything, there are some who do not like MStalks.  Of course these are likely the people who have been banned b/c they have issues with respecting others.  Discussion/debate is fully OK.  Baiting, insults, and disrespecting other members is not.  Anyway, if you are looking for a good arcade or just a place to post thoughts for discussion, check out Mississippitalks sometime.

You know, I really thought the waves would be bigger at the beaches in LA. Tiny-tiny. I spent day 2 exploring Manhattan beach. Fortunately a free trolley ran from our hotel to the beach area. It was a great day to walk around and shop. Lots of sidewalk sales and really good deals too. I found a thing or two for the girls and spent most of the time just walking the beach, watching people. Yes, I’m a people watcher. It’s interesting…the fishermen on the pier waiting patiently and then skillfully bringing in their catch…or the guy with a jug of water pouring it in low area of the pier watching the pigeons play in it…most fun is watching small children run at the pigeons making them scatter. I also watched a pretty intense volleyball game. I really liked the bike paths along the beach, even though crossing had the potential to be hazardous. I found myself comparing the beach to what I know. It had it’s charm and did not have the touristy feel of other beaches I’ve been to. In fact, the whole area did not feel touristy. Most of the time I felt like I was exploring a neighborhood. Mostly true. When we returned that night the entire area had taken on a new look. All of the places that were closed during the day turned out to be nice places to enjoy a cozy dinner. We chose a place called the Rock-n-Fish. Even though it was pretty crowded the wait was minimal. I have to resist the urge to people watch in a place like this. Have you ever been sitting near someone who obviously needs to be cut off from the drinks? I’m not talking falling out drunk, not at all. I’m talking about their voice just keeps getting louder and louder as they attempt to be the center of attention at their table. Again, not falling out stumbling drunk, but over the limit. We were near such a table. Talking loud, hands adding accents, with three other conversations going on at the table. It was almost amusing. As I mentioned before in a T13, the ride home was highly amusing….

After dinner we made our way back to the trolley stop to go back to the hotel. As I said before, traveling in LA was an experience in itself. There were several singing Italians on the trolley home. They did not let on that they spoke much English. However, they knew many of our favorite childhood songs. Old McDonald’s Farm being the one that will NOT leave my head.

Not exactly what some would call a tremendously exciting day, but for me great. I enjoyed shopping at the unique places, walking the beach searching for great camera shots, having a grilled chicken baba ghanoush wrap at a cute cafe, and being away from the stress of school.