Despite valiant efforts to save him… Admiral Ackbar died this morning. *sniffle* He was a good fish.

Misquoting French with Jann reminded me of Better Off Dead, one of John Cusack’s finest 80’s movies. One of my good friends in college, Erin Fair, did a wicked imitation of the paperboy. (“Two dollars!”) I was amused to find this drinking game based on the film: Better Off Drunk. Hee!

Day One of the “Low-Carb Diet” hasn’t been easy. I’ve been doing well at home, but the Snook is having trouble at the office. I think he’s losing it.

krisinsydney: have you had any lunch? what’ve you eaten today?
roddsnook: I had a chicken salad and water for lunch. Apart from that I’ve had a caffelatte, 1/2 glass of OJ and those couple of dried apples I snarfed this morning.
krisinsydney: wow! you’ve done well.
roddsnook: Yeah, but I’m still bloody hungry.
krisinsydney: hmmm. i had eggs and sausage (no carbs!) and i’m actually less hungry than usual.
roddsnook: HUNGRY! I’m looking at the potted-plant here with a less-than-innocent eye…
krisinsydney: Go get something!
roddsnook: no shops!
krisinsydney: You’re five minutes walk from the city, dammit.
roddsnook: Yeah, but I already took an hour for lunch
krisinsydney: Then drink a lot of water!
roddsnook: NEED SNACKY CAKE! 🙁

I’m going to have to start packing his lunch.

Birthday shout-outs all around! I’m just gonna do one big post to cover everybody. Happy birthday to…

• Kristen of krisalis.org on July 6th
• Tara D of Hijinks, Shenanigans, and Tom-Foolery on July 9th
• My sister Amy on July 10th
• Max of Lots of Co. on July 11th

Whew! Did I miss anyone? All my friends are Cancers or Virgos, I swear. I’m gonna go bankrupt buying presents for you all!

Bill pointed out that Joey Fatone (from N’Sync) will be joining the cast of RENT soon. I figured, given the pop star connection, that he’d be playing the role of Roger (the tragic HIV-positive sexy musician). Instead he’s playing Mark, the nebbishy asexual narrator. Hello, producers? Not the best way to satisfy the screaming girl crowds.

On a sadder pet-related note… Admiral Ackbar is sick! You remember him; he’s our black goldfish with the bulgy eyes. He’s been floating on his side for the past day or so. (No, he’s not dead!) He’ll occasionally swim around, but he keeps going in circles. I went to the pet store in a panic today and was informed that he’s probably got a swim bladder infection of some kind. So I bought antibiotics and aquarium salt and all this other stuff that we’re supposed to have been dosing them with every week (but in reality, haven’t). He’s all medicated now, but the patient’s chances don’t look good. The pet store lady also recommended we use a rubber band to attach halves of a wine cork to either side of him, thus forcing him to float upright. Seriously! Now I’m starting to feel sorry for the little guy. It’s like those people who sign DNR’s, not wanting any violent or invasive attempts to prolong their lives. Maybe he’d prefer to keep his dignity and not be shackled to a cork. Maybe he’d be happier if we just let him go. Can you believe I’m contemplating the ethics of goldfish euthanasia? God forbid I should ever get anything more complicated for a pet.

Do you live in Seattle? Are you looking for a pet? Announcing DogBlog! Well, it’s not actually a dedicated blog or anything. It’s more like a regular feature at Jeff‘s site. He’s on the “dog running” team at his local animal shelter. These folks take the dogs out to the park and run with them. He’s going to post pictures of each dog he partners. The first one has already found a home!

For the Aussies: If you managed to catch Life Support on SBS tonight, the gym used in the martial arts segment is my gym in Newtown! Man, is that a pathetic reason to get excited or what?

Holy crap! Jann is moving to France. The south of France, to be exact (the lucky bastard). His babies are gonna be FRONCH! You know, all the coolest kids are expats. 🙂

Are any of you on one of those low-carb diets? How’s that workin’ out for you? Historically I’ve been a scoffer of Dr. Atkins and his many imitators, but this article has made me rethink. It doesn’t argue that Atkins is necessarily right, but rather that the “low-fat” solution we’ve been indoctrinated with for the last 25 years isn’t scientifically proven either. The Snook and I are now seriously considering giving carbs the boot. We’re both moderately active (he walks a lot and I’ve been running more and more), and we eat a lot better here than we did in England (fresh veg, less takeout, etc.). But we don’t *feel* any healthier. I know my own weight loss has stalled. Perhaps this might be a viable alternative for us. My biggest concern is just what to eat. I mean, take away the pasta and potatoes and bread and what’s left? So again I ask, have you ever tried anything like this? What does a low-carb daily menu look like?