Moire has joined the Bride-to-Be Club! Go congratulate her. (And Amy, you might be interested in the comments discussion about changes in the Fort Wayne shopping landscape…)

There’s a Metafilter discussion about skydiving that I’m participating in. I did a tandem jump back in May 1999 to celebrate graduating college. (It was a present from Dad.) I’m feeling a little freaked, though, reading about the many recent fatalities at Skydive Chicago, where we jumped.

Recent Search Requests at this Site:

– coriolus effect northern southern hemisphere drains
Ah, the classic science experiment. My friend Pat and I tried it back in February. It really does go the opposite way here.

– james marsters workout
I imagine it involves kicking, punching, and faking a British accent all while wearing a leather trench coat. It’s tough, but it’ll give you great cheek bones.

– movie office space bill lumbergh license plate
Umm, yeahhh, I’m gonna need you to come in on the weekend, okay?

– Nigella Lawson pictures nude
I haven’t seen any of these, but if they exist I bet she’s lasciviously eating phallic-shaped food in them. She’s always doing that.

– “andy roddick” nude
Again, no nude pictures here, but he does look incredibly like my brother. And no, I won’t give you nude pictures of Antny.

– “goldfish euthanasia”
Waaaaah! Rest in peace, Admiral Ackbar.

– photos of jesse bradford and his boyfriends
Is Jesse Bradford gay? Does it matter? Hummina hummina. Yes please.

– vintage buddy icons
How vintage can they be? IM’s been around for, what, less than 10 years? Ding dong.

– rice krispie chocolate balls
I’ve never tried ’em, but I bet they’re salty.

I’m thinking of making a peasant blouse. Yes, I know they’re a fad, but I still kinda like the way this one looks. It seems simple enough. I’m just wondering at the lack of shoulder material though. Specifically, can one wear a bra with a shirt like this? (And not have it show? I’m not one of those girls.)

As John put it, Best. BBC. News. Online. Graphic. Ever. I really have to agree.

Wow! An earthquake hit England! I can’t believe I missed it! I’ve never been in one before, and apparently Australia is so geologically old and inert that I’m not likely to experience one here. Did any of you feel it?

I’ve been doing some reading on Irish Travellers, the group that the Indiana child-beater mom belongs to. I suddenly remembered that they’d actually been through our part of the state (the northeast) before. Back in high school when I was working at the local grocery store, we got a fax through from some of the other IGA branches warning us to watch out for a group of “gypsies”. Apparently they would swarm the store in a big group and distract all the employees while someone raided the safe in the office. I remember being pretty fascinated with the concept at the time. Not the scam, but the idea that there were actual nomads living in Indiana. They never hit our store though.

My nose is a very blunt instrument. That’s what I learned from our wine course (which just finished). When I smell wine, it smells of wine. I can’t discern anything else. Mention that it smells of bread or mushrooms or apricots, though, and instantly I identify them. In fact, I’ll start smelling them in every wine. My sense of smell isn’t objective; it responds too much to the power of suggestion. Maybe it’s from growing up out in the country. Smells in Indiana are uncomplicated. Manure, butter, fish… those I can identify. Elderflower petals? Not a chance. The dream of being a wine connoisseur has been shattered.

I did like drinkin’ all the champagne tonight though. Yum yum!

Emmy Awards Reflections:
(No, I didn’t watch them. They weren’t on here. I’m looking at the pictures and pretending.)

• Matthew Perry is looking much, much better than he used to. Good for him. In fact, all the Friends men look pretty good. The ladies are showing their age though, and not in a good way.
• I like Allison Janney and all, but is anyone else going to have nightmares about this photo? Can’t sleep, Allison Janney’ll eat me.
• Stockard Channing is a goddess, but even goddesses should deep condition their hair every now and then.
• The Sex and the City ladies look fantastic, especially Cynthia Nixon. I always thought redheads couldn’t wear red? *shrug* Kristin Davis should give the tanning bed a rest for a while though. She looks orange next to the other two.
• Oprah, Oprah, Oprah. It’s the 21st century. We don’t have to wear whalebone corsets anymore. You’re scaring the feminists.
• I really don’t like Tom Hanks’s suit combination. It’s not flattering at all. In the last ten years he’s lost whatever sex appeal he ever had.
• Rachel Griffiths looks smashing. The Aussies were all hoping she’d win, but popular opinion said she hamstrung herself by submitting one of her crappiest episodes. At least her dress looked good.

Okay, so what did I miss by not seeing the show? Any wild and wacky antics that aren’t getting mentioned on various news site recaps?

I’ve been doing tons of work over at my Dahl site lately. Check it out if you’re bored. And don’t forget, it’s Banned Books Week! Celebrate your freedom to read. (I still can’t get over the fact that some school tried to ban The Lorax because it “criminalizes the forestry industry”.)