Atlanta Blogs

the unartistic conception (and, a fisher price sex toy!)

Mar 10th, 2010

Just look at this shit someone attached to our refrigerator. Apparently, I like to wear purple and blue britches on top of each other, like Punky Brewster or a homeless person, and I hop around all day on my giant johnson. Oh, and I’m pregnant.

My bride has pink hair, is also pregnant, and appears to be jumping about on a giant johnson as well.

And then there’s little Maddie. She’s wearing purple for this grand johnson-hopping event, has a horseshoe hanging on her head, and is also pregnant. In the background are crosses, because we apparently live in ancient Rome on Good Friday.

This is what we get for taking our 3-year-old to the church nursery.

And then there’s this kid:

He’s hanging out in the bath tub. He’s chill. All’s right with the world.

But then:

Found something there, didn’t we? Oh yes, you did (to be contrasted with “oh no, you didn’t”)!

He continued doing whatever he’s doing with the blue plastic rod until way past the point at which the bathwater became cold. Now that he’s asleep, I’m totally taking that blue plastic rod into the shower with me to see what all the agape expressions are about.

Posted in: Baby, bath time, children's art, syndicated.

coincidence? i think not

Mar 10th, 2010

by jessidig.

rocky votolato and i will be in seattle at the same time this week. it is FATE.

Posted in: syndicated.

I bet Hugo would send them to prison

Mar 10th, 2010

by ATLmalcontent.

Sean Penn can be such an insufferable dipshit. Last Friday, appearing in the echo chamber with Bill Maher, Penn suggested prison time for reporters who tell the truth about Venezuelan DICTATOR Hugo Chavez. “[E]very day, this elected leader is called a dictator here, and we just accept it! And accept it. And this is mainstream [...]

Posted in: Hugo Chavez, Obnoxious celebrities, syndicated.

How much disability can I get for my Atlanta workers’ compensation claim?

Mar 10th, 2010

by Michael Moebes.

Your weekly check will normally be 2/3 of your average weekly wage. However, there are caps on this. So, if you make more than $750 per week (or $39,000 per year), you will not be able to get 2/3 of your usual weekly wage in workers' compensation benefits in Georgia. You'll get $500/week. If that frustrates you, contact your local state legislator about raising the maximum rates.

Certainly, being on workers' comp disability can be frustrating if $500/week is less than 2/3 of your weekly income. The benefits are not taxed, however. If you have additional questions about Georgia workers' compensation law, feel free to call Moebes Law, Atlanta workers' compensation lawyers.

Posted in: Workers' Compensation Disability Benefits and Taxes in Georgia, syndicated.

Rain, rain, go away!

Mar 10th, 2010

by Super Mommie.

It's raining today and it will rain tomorrow but I'm not letting that get in the way of summer sandals!

I've spent the morning (you know, while working) looking at summer sandals and dreaming. A sporty pair for the baseball game, the sexy pair for the class reunion, the casual pair for nice dinners out with the fam. I didn't order any but I've made mental appointments to visit 3 shoe stores Saturday. I'll be there bright and early with cash in hand!

I also picked up 3 new bottles of nail polish!! New nail polish for a new year! They will look so nice on freshly manicured toesies. They are all shades of soft pink. My feet like soft shades of pink in the summer. I go a bit darker in the winter but softer in the summer. I don't care what the fashion trends are -- my toes like what they like!

And, this weekend, I looked at sundresses. I wanted to add to the one that I got 2 weeks ago. The Princess picked up 2 really cute skirts and I tried on a few things but nothing worked. That's okay. This weekend will be more of the same. Nice, light, summery materials only. Winter wool need not apply.

Oh, I also looked at new chairs for the patio. They were on sale and I need to have something to sit on as I read a good book while sipping on an adult slushie. The Princess can have fruit punch.

And homemade ice cream! I've been collecting recipes all winter. Nutella ice cream. Lemon ice cream. Praline pecan ice cream. OMG. I am so ready. The ice cream maker has been sitting in the corner staring at me all winter. "Open me! Play with me! Love me!". I promise little ice cream maker, it's almost time!

So rain drops, you can continue to fall on my head but I'll be thinking of summer.

Posted in: Food and Drink, Ice Cream, summer, syndicated.

Black, White and Yellow

Mar 10th, 2010

by Lindsey Lou.

The design aesthetic of black, white and yellow is really starting to grow on me. What I can I say, it's crisp, clean, it's still pretty. It's not too feminine, not too masculine. I can see why so many designers go with this color scheme.

....and everyone knows that Kelly Wearstler is just awesome. Certainly, some of her designs can go a little over the top but this design is refined, suubdued and boutique-y.

Kelly Wearstler for Viceroy Palm Springs Hotel

I am loving this spooky Bugs Bunny-type sculpture. And I love that both sculptures have the appearance of a silhouette and that they're not imposing on this space.

Jennifer Post for Architecural Digest, Nov. 2007

Elle Decor, March 2008, image via here

Domino Mag, image via here

Posted in: architectural digest, black, elle decor, kelly wearstler, syndicated, white, yellow.

Rain, Rain Go Away

Mar 10th, 2010

by Lindsey Lou.

Anyone from Atlanta knows how wackadoodle this weather is. Would you believe me if I told you about a week ago, I had a snow day off from school? That earlier this week, it was warm enough for flippies and a light cardigan? Well, now it's chilly and raining....boo. I had errands to run today, but forget it. I have got some work to do, some reading and querying to do, so I'll stay in and stay dry....and I'll lust after these umbrellas and fashionable umbrella holders:

Totes Bubble Umbrella in Claret Pink from Target $16.99
Auto Walker Umbrella in Yellow from Topshop $36
MoMA Sky Kid's Umbrella from Velocity $16 (yeah I know it's for kids, but come on, that is one adorable umbrella)
Owl Umbrella Stand from ModernPoverty.com $95.95

Posted in: rain, syndicated, umbrella, umbrella stand.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/10/A…

Mar 10th, 2010

by moviesweveseen.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/10/AR2010031001225.html

Sadface.

Posted in: News, corey haim,, death, syndicated, the lost boys.

Forget the Past…Heavenly Tiramisu!

Mar 10th, 2010

by lindaraxa.

The great thing about tiramisu is that it goes with pretty much everything. It has always been my favorite Italian dessert although I am surprised at how many people dislike it. I think it must...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Posted in: Chocolate, Desserts, Italian, syndicated.

Lost: Dr. Linus

Mar 10th, 2010

by mostlymuppet.

First off, let me say that I love the Ben Linus charcter more than almost any other character in the Lost pantheon (save perhaps Locke). Michael Emerson is a great actor and, prison guard instructional videos notwithstanding, I think Ben is his finest role.

So an entire episode devoted to Dr. Linus is a real treat. Here are my main questions and takeaways:

Questions:

Which Kwon is which?

Per a few weeks ago & repeated here, your candidates:

4 – Locke
8 – Hugo
15 – Sawyer
16 – Sayid
23 – Jack
42 – Jin and/or Sun

Locke is a wash since he’s dead, Jin isn’t looking so good now that he’s with the Temple/Not Locke team and Sayer is AWOL; Sayid is Zombie Sayid so I doubt it’s him either. That leaves Hugo, Jack & Sun.

Or, like Not Locke said, maybe Ben will be put in charge. Or maybe Widmore?

Of those two only Ben is candidate (117 on the Lighthouse dial) but he’s been crossed out.

So is the Kwon a reference to Jin, Sun, neither (their child, maybe?) or both?

Are there really sides anymore?

I’ve mentioned it here before – my naive thought that Jacob & Not Locke represent New Testament God & Old Testament God respectively – and this (old by now) ABC Promotional Poster with the Last Supper theme doesn’t help matters much, though it does feature Not Locke as Christ. Not too big of a deal if you accept a triune Christian deity, but not quite in keeping with my hypothesis either.

In misremembering the poster I had initially thought that the characters had aligned themselves by sides that somehow matched the two camps we now have, but that’s not true at all (at least not yet). At the very least the three still-viable candidates (if you believe the numbers) are on Not Locke’s left/our right and also includes Ben (117). To Not Locke’s right we’ve got Jacob’s right hand, Richard Alpert, plus Sawyer (15) and Kate (51).

Best sequence of the whole episode was Not Locke freeing Ben, Ilana giving chase, Ben confessing his sins and Ilana forgiving him. Did Not Locke know/want that to happen or was he counting on Ben to fire his weapon? Are Jacob and Not Locke really so separate or are they somehow forever intertwined. Will it matter what “team” folks have chosen OR how they chose their actions (free will)?

Did Jacob summon Widmore?

And just where in the world are Desmond & Penelope and do they matter in the story? Will they appear again in either reality?

108 on the lighthouse dial was “Wallace” which means “Welsh”. Widmore could be using a psuedonym but his accent never struck me as Welsh. Maybe a Scottish connection back to Desmond or MacCutcheon?

I’m shooting blanks.

Takeaways:

Alpert, Arzt & The Black Rock

I called it a few episodes back (and maybe longer ago than that, I haven’t searched the archives) that Richard Alpert was a passenger in some capacity on The Black Rock. Still no explanations from him (other than Jacob’s touch being the catalyst for his youth). I want to know about the guyliner more than anything else.

I also think it’s great that the episode featuring a Black Rock storyline (and dynamite) also brings back Doc Arzt who memorably blew himself up with that unstable explosive. [Smaller points for Miles knowing about Nikki, Paolo & the diamonds though, as Jenn pointed out to me, neither of us could remember how, exactly, he might know that. Did he ever feel their graves? Were their dossiers among the reading materials when Miles first came to the island in search of Ben?]

Lastly, did anyone else draw the conclusion that The Black Rock had something to do with tea, given Dr. Linus’ tutoring session covering the East India Corporation? Lostpedia says The Black Rock was headed to Siam and not India when it was lost, but I’m not expert on the tea trade.

Redemption & Forgiveness

Maybe I’m going to reveal my own struggles and problems with organized (actually any) religion, but I find comfort in the fact that maybe Ben had his priorities out of whack regarding what he thought Jacob/The Island wanted. His statement to Lapidus that “The island got you in the end” might be a bit of foreshadowing, at least I read it that way. Even though he was there all along, manipulating and being manipulated by the forces at play, it “got” him in the end via Ilana’s forgiveness and phrase “I’ll have you”.

Now this is where I part ways with Christianity (and maybe the show). Ben is certainly shown as being someone whom, it could be argued, isn’t worthy of forgiveness. One of the tenets of both of the Protestant religions I’ve semi-practiced in my lifetime is that we human beings are not worthy of God’s love or forgiveness but that it is, quite literally, divine to forgive. Or maybe I’m reading it wrong. Maybe Ben is worthy because of the confession. I don’t know. Religion makes my head hurt, but Ben not getting killed is better for the story and the themes of the show.

Now I don’t know if I’d have spared Ben’s life, but I do believe his sincerity about the guilt of his actions regarding Alex. It was nice to see that in the Flash Sideways, Ben chooses her well-being over his own and maybe, just maybe, attains some of what he was looking for in the process. He gets what he ultimately wants – History club, no detention, respect, Alex’s admission to Yale – without all that blind pursuit of power stuff.

Bonus points for the Napoleon allegory (is Ben really short?) and an Island/Elba connection. Good on ya!

Jack as the viewers’ stand-in

While I always like Locke’s character, I had to admire Jack’s search for the truth, the facts, the science and the reason of The Island. Even now that Jack is the new Locke (willing to trust the process [a little bit, anyhow], leading folks back to The Island, following Hurley/Jacob) I also dig that he remains committed to finding out the whys and what-fors.

If we can’t have The Island version of Locke, having Jack (and Jack’s transformation) and still-paralyzed Locke of the past, works just fine for me.

Now if I could only strangle those damn promo editors. Enough with promises and the hype of the post-show spots! Just give us the damn footage without the text/chyrons! I care not for your pithy promises! Give me more Jack and ANSWERS! (I can’t believe I’ve become *that* fan, but there’s only so much time left).

Until next week!

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Posted in: Divine Inspiration, syndicated.

Who gives a shit what Jenny McCarthy thinks?

Mar 9th, 2010

by ATLmalcontent.

And why did HuffPo give her a forum to spread her uninformed nonsense? Gawker took note of Arianna’s hypocrisy. The fun thing about Jenny McCarthy’s conspiracy is that if it catches on enough, it will literally lead to the death of children. Trutherism just makes you really annoying!

Posted in: Obnoxious celebrities, conservative blowhards, syndicated.

Change is good.

Mar 9th, 2010

by Super Mommie.

I'd like to update some of my 101 in 1001. Why you ask? Well, things have changed in the last 150 days. I've changed. My circumstances have changed. So my 101 has changed.

I'd like to be able to say that I'll feel the same way 1001 days later but come on, really?! I change my mind on what color underwear I'm going to put on between the bathroom and the dresser!

So, I've listed the original items and then the changes (in red).

====================================================

4., 5. & 6. - Creating scrapbooks - Yeah....no. I'm just not into scrapbooking. I like crafts but not that much.

55. Get married - No. I don't think that's for me. I've already done it a few times. And, as I was telling The Tall Girl, I don't think I am a "forever" kinda girl. I'm more of a "just for now - let's see how this goes" kinda girl. I'd like a companion but I don't know that I can promise more than 10 years or so. This could change, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

57. Get things from mom's garage - she's my mom - I ain't movin' my stuff!! (And the Arteest better keep his mouth shut! If you tell mommie, I'm gonna give you a wedgie!). I'm going to buy a new filing cabinet instead.

75. Buy a house - I would like to but it may not happen in the next 2 years. It's a great plan but I have a more important plan right now. Instead, I'm changing this to move someplace fabulous. I don't have to own it, I just have to love it.

77. Open an IRA - Yeah, I know I should. But, Sue-sue said to get 8 month savings into an account. Let's work on that first. Maybe I'll just buy a savings bond (in this time of economic craziness).

82. Volunteer 101 hours. I've downsized. There are 16 hours in a day. I spend 2 1/2 commuting, 8 at work, 2.5 each night with the Princess and 3 trying to see what's at the bottom of my wine glass. No, really, I spend as much time as I can with the Princess and the rest getting my mind right. 24 hours is good. Let's make that the starting point. We can always do more.

So there you have it. Change is good.

Posted in: 101 in 1001, The Arteest, The Tall Girl, syndicated.

A little more than hand/eye coordination

Mar 9th, 2010

by mingaling.

In another life, I would never have imagined “OMG you caught the giraffe!” would be the most exciting thing that happened today thus far.

I also wouldn’t have imagined being this happy. Go figure.

Posted in: Baby, syndicated.

my doobie list: travel

Mar 9th, 2010

by jaimes.

Mighty Girl blogger Maggie Mason started a pretty great trend with her Mighty Life List. Karen Walrond from Chookolooks is blogging about her list, too, and let me tell you, these women have some great things happening in their lives. And while lists like these are totally a mom-who-watches Oprah thing to do, I have to admit writing one is a great way to guide your day. For example, one of my items was to learn how to play drums. Something about writing that down motivated me to actually do it.

The process forced me to think about what I’d like my life to look and feel like. So, when I’m an old lady touring the U.S. in leather pants, I’ll be satisfied, proud, and full of great stories to tell my grandkids.

So, I’m jumping on the bandwagon, and I highly recommend you do the same. Start writing your list today while your baby naps, or during that marketing meeting at work. If you get caught, just shout out something like “but what about the demographics!!??”

There’s this great quote by Martha Beck that guided my list:

“My religion is called do, be, do, be.”

Because life’s not just about the things we do or accomplish but also who we are. And I don’t just mean professionally, I mean who we are in the grocery line at Publix and who we are when we tuck our kids in bed at night. When these things compliment each other, the doing and the being, it can be a beautiful thing, where all seems right with the world.

In honor of the do, be theme, I named the list My Doobie List.

Because I’m hyper-organized, the list is broken down by category. Also, I’m not going to bombard you with all 100 items at once. Here’s the first category: Places to Visit.

1. Ireland
Photograph the greenery, the ocean, and some castles.
Drink Guinness in pubs and do some dancing.
Nail down the pronunciation of Slainte! (cheers in Gaelic).
Photograph people who share my maiden name, Kelley.

2. Seoul, South Korea
Hang out with my husband’s family and visit his hometown.
Visit some Buddhist temples.
See a Taekwando demo with the kids.
Do a photo series on Mot, a Korean term for the act of creating beauty.

3. Milan, Italy
Take Satorialist style photos of all the stylish folks.
Check out The Last Supper.
Eat often and with enthusiasm.

4. Tokyo, Japan
People watch like crazy.
Have a heart to heart with a geisha.
Do a photo series on Japanese bands.
Get my hair cut in a trendy salon.

5. San Diego, CA
Patio dine for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Hang out with the kids at the beach.
Hit the zoo.

6. Memphis, TN
Check out the music scene.
Tour the Gibson factory.
Visit the Center for Southern Folklore.
I don’t care much about Elvis. Sorry. You’re welcome to visit Graceland.

7. Miami, FL
Dance my ass off.
Eat Cuban food.
Sweat out some toxins.

8. Orlando, FL
Visit Disney Land with my kids and my BFF, Melissa.
See my kids’ faces light up.
See Melissa’s face light up.

9. India
Visit yoga master Iyengar’s studio and watch him and his successors yell at his students. Sorry, folks, yoga is hardcore in India. It’s not all peace, love, and coconut water.
Watch the production of a Bollywood film.
Do a photo series on mothers and their kids.
Go to a wedding.

10. Paris, France
Eat in cafes.
Do a photo series on stylish mamas.
Learn a Francois Hardy song to sing and play on guitar.
Eat bread and cheese and drink wine in the countryside.

World traveling opens up your heart like fireworks on the fourth of July. You suddenly see yourself from a new perspective. You see your American traits, your geographical personality, your politics, and your social habits in a whole new light. What is polite in one country, is rude in another. What is scrap meat in one kitchen, is dinner in another.

Before I had kids, I traveled quite a bit. Yes, that picture of me is of the real Great Wall of China, not a prop at an amusement park. It won’t be easy to travel with my kids. Lord knows, a trip to Target is draining enough. It’s hard to imagine traveling on public transportation in a foreign country with them. But, it’s well-worth the trouble to expose them to the world outside of our little domain.

Ok, now’s the part where you tell me where you want to visit most and why!

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Posted in: Life List, My Doobie List, syndicated.

For the Coffee Lover(s) in Your Life

Mar 9th, 2010

by Lindsey Lou.

I have a thing for coffee. Like, a serious love affair. I just broke my favorite coffee mug that I got on a trip to Chicago a couple of years back. Other than the fact that I love Chi-town, it was my favoritest mug because it was like a soup bowl or one of those latte cups, ya know? Wide brim and deep and rarely ever any spillage or to much swishing. I have others, but they just aren't the same. So.....here are some that I really do like: