Really?

Every morning I walk into work, our cute little office girls are always chatting up the latest broadcast on Discovery Health/A&E/ABC. I’ve heard it all: people with no bottom half of the body that still function, bizarre murder investigations and now... that Rapid City would end in 30 minutes if the Super Volcano at Yellowstone National Park were to finally erupt after 630,000 years.

My First Thought?
My Family is all here?! What If I move and I loose my whole family? What is my strategy? Crap, I really shouldn't have bought a house here... Oh my gawd!!!!

So good way to start the morning, right?

Time for some research...

This "special," titled "Last Days on Earth" was featured on ABC's 20/20 (clue #1) had me wondering, so I stopped in online to check it out.

Aug. 29, 2006- What could cover the globe in ash, plunge Earth into an ice age and end life as we know it?

The answer is found in what lies beneath: supervolcanoes. Supervolcanoes are very rare. There is no need to run out and buy duct tape and plastic sheeting for this one. The last known supervolcano was about 74,000 years ago. But they are real, and one potential supervolcano lies right here in the United States, in one of America's most profound areas of natural beauty.

Just 20 miles beneath the earth's surface lies a pressurized ocean of molten rock looking for a way out. And a massive release of that molten rock would create a supervolcano - arguably the largest natural disaster humanity would ever face.

Unlike regular volcanoes, which are shaped like mammoth cones, supervolcanoes spring from massive canyons - calderas - that measure hundreds of miles across. Underneath their surface is a vast lake of lava. When the underground liquid rock - magma - bursts forth to the surface, a series of violent, massive explosions could occur in a wide-ranging eruption that could last several days. It would incinerate anyone within a hundred miles, and layers of ash would blanket much of the earth.

"These eruptions are so big that you couldn't really see them, because you couldn't be close enough to the volcano, watching it and survive. You could watch it from a satellite and you could see the volcano erupt and see the ash cloud begin to spread," said Michael Rampino, geologist and professor of earth sciences at New York University.

The ash cloud would become so thick it could cover the sun, causing global temperatures to plummet.

Scientists say such an event wiped out almost the world's entire population 74,000 years ago, when a supervolcano erupted in Toba, near the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Only a few thousand people survived.

Supervolcanoes are little understood by scientists. Their underground canyons of molten rock are immensely vast, making their potential starting points hard to identify. It has been only in the last decade that scientists have started uncovering these deadly hot spots around the world, but they still don't know where they all are.

So far, scientists have identified nearly 40 possible supervolcano hot spots, including one right in our own backyard, underneath Yellowstone National Park. Scientists estimate that the Yellowstone area will experience a supervolcano eruption approximately once every 600,000 years. The last one occurred more than 630,000 years ago.

So how would we know a supervolcano is coming? And is there anything people could do to stop it or limit its destruction?

"We haven't seen a supervolcanic eruption, so we're not sure about what we will see," said John Grattan, a volcanologist (clue #2) at the Institute of Geography Earth Sciences at the University of Wales. "But one of the things that we would expect would be increased earthquake activity, an increase in the small geyser eruptions that you get in Yellowstone."

"The bottom line is that when one of these eruptions occurs,, it's going to be a global disaster," said NYU's Rampino. "The only question is when and where."

[I spot 3 grammar errors and two different spellings of Supervolcano(e) (clue #3)...]

20/20 puts out another hard-hitting journalistic piece!

Congratulations! Yet again, you're scaring millions of TV Viewing Americans (clue #4) (P.S. That Britney Spears Special was real classic, too). that fail to watch any other bit of news into believing that they could probably, maybe, potentially die in the very near future... especially if you live in the surrounding areas. Christ, people... start watching Project Runway on Wednesday nights instead...

So I thought...Ok... 630,000 years. That's a lot of years. Mathematically, we've got the 2006 years (current) After Christ, then 630,000 - 2006 years = 627,094 years before, there was a Massive Volcano eruption at Yellowstone... So what, they've kept track of ONE major Yellowstone supervolcano eruption in the entire SPAN of time?!

Scientists estimate that the Earth formed about 4,600,000,000. How many of those years were there men around? Ok... how many years were there intelligent men? Are they getting this from some guy that scratched a photo on the wall? If this is the case, then wouldn't that massive eruption have erased all the evidence?

I'm probably being really ignorant here... and some scientists have spent their life's work on this question. If one of them is reading this - can you clue me in, because I think 20/20 is full of horse shit.

Discipline

I think i've crossed over to the bad side.

Depending on whichever way you look at it... I could also be deemed responsible.

Last weekend, I misplaced my visa check card somewhere in Philadelphia. Actually... I think it may have been near the border of New Jersey by the Ben Franklin Bridge whilst using this card to buy a Dunkin' Donut and Small Vanilla Latte for $1.90.

Rather than tucking the card back into my card case - i think i crumpled it up with the reciept and ditched it with the bag. I'm so glad i left a piece of me out there.

But all is not lost, because it was the new NEW card, while i still had the old OLD card and was still able to afford certain things (a hotel room desperately needed for myself and said boyfriend who had not seen eachother in a month+) as well as food, gas, and the other goods...

When I returned home, I ran straight to the bank, canceled my card, then ordered anew. Lucky for me, i've been reading up on "how to start saving" and all that other responsible adult stuff because that's what you do when you're an adult... and also when you're killing time during slow periods at work - and I had started to put some $$ away in savings.

Since I have no checks - i'm completely without check card, and nad no cash (save the 1958 $2 bill I mentioned earlier, but don't dare spend because it's worth at lesat $8), i wrote out a withdrawl slip from my savings account and walked out with $100 cold hard cash.

The first $7 went fast... I think on Coffee or something... and then a chocolate chip muffin and some gasoline for my scooter.

I headed to the grocery store two days later with $86 and some change, to arrive at the register with a total reciept charge of $86.99. I dug out the change, the cashier gave me a quarter. Cha-CHING.

Since I still have no cash, and have yet to recieve my check card, I went to Borders with Teresa last night and bought a coffee and brownie with quarters and dimes that I somehow scrownged together last minute.

Classy.

I'm fighting to stay OFF my reserve line until Payday next friday and stay spend free and thrifty. Let me tell you... by $14.84 check from waiting tables two weeks ago was a god send... so much so, that I think i'm going to spend about 1/3 of that on the new Zach Braff movie or Little Miss Sunshine with Steve Carrell***

But instead of getting some chocolate (which i'm really needed a lot of lately)... i'm eating what's left of my coffee ice cream (hagen daz)...wishing that today's friday was the next... because then I wouldn't be in this predicament.


***Did anyone watch The Office last night? where it's Carrell's Birthday? You best check something out...

What's it Worth to You?

There's a time or five i can recall just nearly being caught masterbating... but i'm quick and sly and it's not like i'm embarassed i do it - but it is a rather private event, and not something i'd really enjoy having anyone sit in on... unless you paid me, oh... $50,000 a pop. (ha...a pop).

And while it's not my first option... sex toys are great. grand. wonderful. I'd guestimate every... oh... 4th american has one.

Would I talk to my mom about it?

Probably not.

But would I lie and say I had explosives in order to save face in my sexual gratification?

Ha...

Sex-aid excuse bombs with airport security
Man traveling with mother says pump is a grenade


Thursday, August 24, 2006;
Chicago (Illinois)
Crime, Law and Justice

CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- Cook County prosecutors say a 29-year-old man traveling with his mother desperately didn't want her to know he'd packed a sexual aid for their trip to Turkey.
So he told security it was a bomb, officials said.

Madin Azad Amin, 29, of Skokie, Illinois, was stopped August 16 after guards found an object in his baggage that resembled a grenade, prosecutors said.

When officers asked him to identify it, Amin said it was a bomb, said Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Lorraine Scaduto.

He later told officials he'd lied about the item because his mother was nearby and he didn't want her to hear that it was part of a penis pump, Scaduto said.

He's been charged with felony disorderly conduct, said Andrew Conklin, a spokesman with the Cook County state's attorney's office.

Amin's attorney told a Cook County judge Wednesday that Amin whispered that the component was a "pump." The guard misunderstood, and thought he said "bomb," according to defense attorney Eileen O'Neill-Burke.

"He told her it's a pump," O'Neill-Burke said. "He's standing with his mother. Of course he's not going to shout this out."

However, Judge Gerald Winiecki decided there was sufficient evidence for the case to move forward after the female security guard testified that she heard Amin "clearly" say the word bomb.

Amin is charged with felony disorderly conduct, which could bring a three-year prison sentence if he's convicted. Amin is due back in court September 13

He told the Chicago Sun-Times after the hearing that security officials did not give him a chance to explain the misunderstanding, that he would never use the word "bomb" while going through a security checkpoint, and does not consider a penis pump an unusual object to own.

"It's normal," he said. "Half of America they use it."

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Shocking...but Great.

Something I've helped work on just a tad (barely, compared to the fam), but anyone in Rapid City knows this is a pretty huge deal (and really neat on all of the family's part for the company :-) )

***
Cowboy Hill for sale
By Dan Daly, Journal Staff Writer
RAPID CITY --
It is arguably the most visible undeveloped parcel of real estate in Rapid City. And it's for sale.

Nine Liens Partnership, a Rapid City company, announced it will auction its 370-acre parcel of land that straddles Cowboy Hill, also known as M Hill, on Oct. 18.The ridge runs from Rapid Creek near the former Federal Beef packing plant to Interstate 90. It looms over downtown Rapid City and much of West Rapid. In fact, Cowboy Hill and its neighbor, Skyline Drive Hill, form a ridgeline that divides Rapid City down the middle. For years, locals have referred to the lowland between them as the Gap.Of the two hills, Cowboy Hill is by far the least-developed.

There's a television transmission tower on top and a giant white "M" adorns its east face.

Otherwise, it's a mix of grass, pine trees and rocky ridges.

Cowboy Hill has been in the Lien family for 50 years, according to Stephanie Lien. Her real-estate company, VIP Properties, has joined auctioneer Martin Jurisch & Associates to market and sell the real estate. In addition, she's one of the Nine Liens.

The partnership is owned by the nine sons and daughters of Chuck Lien, co-founder and chairman of Pete Lien & Sons, the Rapid City minerals and building materials company.

Nine Liens Partnership has been involved in a number of business ventures over the years.

Stephanie Lien said the Cowboy Hill parcel was a gift from their father several years ago. Now, the Nine Liens want to return the favor, she said.

Chuck Lien and his children are buying out Bruce Lien's half of Pete Lien & Sons. Bruce and Chuck are brothers, and over the years, each has owned exactly half of the company. In the past six years, however, the brothers have struggled - in court and out of court - to end the partnership.

Stephanie Lien said proceeds from the sale will be used to help reduce Pete Lien & Sons' debt load associated with the buyout.

The auction, set for 10 a.m. on Oct. 18 at Rushmore Plaza Civic Center, will be done in an unusual fashion.

Buyers first will be given a chance to bid on nine smaller tracts ranging from 3 acres to 75 acres. Then, the same land will be offered divided into five larger tracts from 40 to 90 acres.

Finally, Jurisch will offer the entire 370 acres in a single parcel.At the end, the combination of bids that brings the best price will be accepted.She said it's an opportunity to give a variety of buyers a chance to come to the table.

The land, in the heart of the city, offers sweeping views of Rapid City and the Black Hills. The northern end of the hill abuts both residential and commercial property.What will Cowboy Hill become?

A few years ago, the Nine Liens Partnership hired Randy Fisher, an engineer with Designworks in Rapid City, to conduct land use research. His proposal included a mix of commercial and multi-density residential uses, including some clusters of homes and some single-family home sites on 3-acre lots.

"There are really a variety of different applications, from residential to recreational to commercial," she said.

The big white M, by the way, is on a separate parcel of land owned by South Dakota School of Mines & Technology Foundation. It isn't part of the sale.Meanwhile, land around Cowboy Hill property has been the focus of recent and future development.Currently, a development group headed by Pat Tlustos and Mike Tennyson are transforming the 20-acre Federal Beef property on the southeast corner of the hill into an office park named the Village at Founders Park.

Also, Century Development of Rapid City has plans to build a 96-unit condominium complex and other residential home sites on its 49 acres north of the Executive Golf Course.Lien said the decision by Nine Liens Partnership to sell Cowboy Hill was not an attempt to join the development boom in the neighborhood. In fact, she said, the land would probably have more strategic value if the Nine Liens held it until after those projects proceed.

"It was an independent decision, really, based on an attempt by us to help ease the burden of the debt load for Pete Lien & Sons right now," she said.

*****

Mr. Green Jean and his Lawn Service Can Shove it

You would think, in times of chaos, you would take care of the surface things so that people wouldn't think you've entirely lost your shit.

But when I get slammed with work/life/12 huskies/whatever...I tend to the most important thing and leave the other stuff for later.

(some of that other stuff being my lawn).

I haven't done well this year with landscaping. I planted about 9 new bushes, and put up a few flowers here and there. Then it dried out for about 2 weeks (we’re talking 105+ degree heat) and to much effort in watering and very rare spouts of rain, everything turned brown and died, save all of the shrubbery on the east side of my house, because - I'm guessing – there's some secret growing compound in air conditioner freon - or some nice cool shade really does do the trick.

Now, I'll admit... with taking care of so many babies, I didn't always have the time to put forth on making sure some bushes lived through a drought. In fact, I'm pretty sure my negligence to my backyard will actually payoff, in that all of the natural canine fertilizer deposits over the last few months had to have some impact on the growing process.

But I do have to commend mothers that work full time, then come home, clean, mow the lawn, cook dinner, put kids to bed, etc. etc., yet still make their home look beautiful and make that job look like a big fat piece of cake (mmm... chocolate cake...).

Anyway...
It isn't easy. And this isn't an editorial on women's lib or how we should be paid as full-time moms because it is just as much work (if not more) than an 8-5er down in the city.

No, this is mostly a message to all of the lawn catering services out there (threw ya' for a loop there, didn't I?). Because every time I'm tending to all of these other 'mom-like' things - I don't really have time to stop for an hour and mow my front lawn – nor do I have the patience for some drive-by service to judge me on my bad lawn habits

I live in a 'quaint' neighborhood on the southeast side of town. I don't have the funds to install some $1000 sprinkler system to do it all for me and keep everything green. I don't have the cash to pay some lawn service $50+ bucks a week to come make sure everything looks 'pretty' on the outside, while my real life isn't so pretty on the in.

Yes, the surface is crap, but if you check all the important things, shit is taken care of!

So instead of leaving me eight fliers a week in my mailbox about how great and efficient and detailed you are about tiding up my lawn, and making it look gorgeous for an albeit "small" fee - why don’t you substitute that service for cleaning my house, feeding my pets, grocery shopping, getting an oil change, cleaning my car, organizing my closets/garage, then giving me a massage every night – because then I would have time to FUCKING MOW MY LAWN!

long time...

it seems the writing gets fewer and fewer - which is actually really sad, considering it tends to serve as a great outlet.

i think the multitude of what i would write about now all include:
1. location, location, location.
2. relation, relation, relation(ship)
3. every other category...

i find the less i talk about it... the more clarity i get. so maybe i'll just keep it to myself and then write some small novela on all the goings on of the last 6 months in a few years or so.

i really am in a mood to just move around for a bit...maybe even take that european trip i've been talking about taking for, oh... 5 years or so.

but since i'm not really contributing to the gossip mill, i did have a little bird (us weekly, mtv and more) tell me that Cheyenne Kimball got punched in the face.

and the puncher was none-other than our good friend Joe's wife. Hee hee hee.
Team Michelle! i'm not so sure she didn't deserve some good sense knocked into that vacant blonde head of hers...


*****
Cheyenne Kimball Punched In The Face By Her Bassist's WifePosted on Friday, August 18 @ 06:39:36 CDT by MusicMan A source tells Us Weekly during her MTV reality show's wrap party on August 4th, Cheyenne Kimball was punched in the face by bassist Joey Clemente's wife Michelle, who was upset about Cheyenne and Joey talking to each other at Guy's in Hollywood. "She didn't like the interaction, so she punched Cheyenne in the face," the source revealed. "Cheyenne and Joey are friends, nothing more. The poor girl got assaulted at her own party!" Kimball's mother Shannon then had the woman thrown out of the event, where she was later seen crying outside the hotspot. The 16-year-old's rep told Us, "Cheyenne was caught in an unfortunate situation. She harbors no ill will." ****


She had a bad day.... but nothin's gonna stop her anywaaaay.