I have a weird

How ya doin', kids? Welcome to March. Remember to go play my trivia game. It's a brand new month and a brand new game, so hit it.  Maybe one of us can knock Limpy off the big board.

So about three times this past week I had a thought that began with "I have a weird..." Since there is no such thing as an original meme anymore, I figured I would post a derivative meme. Meaning, I've seen some like this, but not exactly. Huh, what? Anyway, here goes:

• I have a weird head.  I look at other people and they seem perfectly comfortable wearing winter hats.  They put them on and it appears that they stay on.  You know the ones I'm talking about.  A plain old woolen hat that you either pull down over your ears or just have sitting on your head.  Me?  Nah...doesn't work that way.  My wool hats don't like to stay on.  I pull one on and it stays there for about a minute.  Then it slowly begins to creep up until it is barely sitting on my head and I look even stupider than I normally do.  Frustrating.  I have a weird head.
• I have a weird body.  You know what never works for me?  Wrapping a towel around my waist after I shower.  It won't stay.  I see movies and TV shows where guys walk around for 15 minutes with a towel wrapped around their waists.  Not me.  I can't even just stand there blow-drying my hair (shut up!) without the thing falling down around my ankles.  Maybe I'm just too well-endowed.  Maybe not.  I dunno.  I have a weird body.
• I have a weird sense of humor.  While visiting some members of my family over the weekend, my 7 year-old niece fell down and hurt herself.  Not badly, but she did cry for a while.  I know most people laugh when other folks fall down, and some especially love when children fall down.  I'm one of those people.  But I still got a kick out of it even after I realized that she was kinda hurt.  Maybe it's because she was being annoying right before that.  I dunno.  I have a weird sense of humor.
• I have a weird sleep disorder.  I swear, before the dawn of the Internet I thought I was crazy.  I have Restless Leg Syndrome.  Sounds like something that hypochondriacs make up, but there it is.  A real thing.  Or so says the Internets.  Even describing it to someone sounds crazy.  "Well, it's like there is a mouse or some small creature running INSIDE my leg.  Like under the skin.  I know...crazy".  I have a weird sleep disorder.
• I have a weird dream life.  When I finally do fall asleep, you wouldn't believe the crazy shit that pops out from my subconscious in the form of dreams.  Really detailed movie plots with a soundtrack and character development and popcorn and guest-stars, both from my real life and from the entertainment world.  I tried describing just one of them to Gia the other day and she just shakes her head at me.  Apparently, I have a weird dream life.

I also have a weird cat and a weird friend named Slyde, but we'll get to those another time.

How about you?  What's weird about you?

___________________________________________________

Note: Remember to play the Bug-Eyed Trivia Challenge every day. Seriously, if we team up we can beat Limpy.  I'm sure of it.

Writing

So I started writing something last night. Out of the blue and with no preparation at all. I just sat on the bed with the Cubs game on in the background and started typing. I looked up a couple of hours later and I had written the first two chapters of what may actually turn out to be a novel. Then I moved onto the Yankee game and I kept on a typin'.

I'm not quite sure how this happened.

I've always wanted to write, but I've also always been far to lazy to commit to the process. A few years ago I went as far as to research some things for a Horror novel I wanted to write, and I even drafted an outline. It never went anywhere.

One of the reasons I started contributing to Slyde's blog all those years ago (and eventually starting my own) was so that I could write something other than financial reviews and interoffice memos. Something that would hopefully use whatever nugget of creativity that might still reside in my addled brain.

It just never happened.

Then last night Gia went to bed early. She wasn't feeling very well and she needed to lay down. Before she retired she mentioned that she was running out of books to read (she has been on a tear lately) and that she was going to head to the library today to look for something new. Something in her favorite genre. Coming of age books.

So I sat down and started writing my own. Maybe I'm writing it for her. And the words and characters and the situations just came to me. Effortlessly. It was strange and heady stuff.

I'm gonna head on down this road for a little while and see where it takes me.

Very odd.

Any advice I can ignore from my fellow bloggers?

PS - I used Blogger's new Blog Roll add-in to import my Google Reader feeds over to my sidebar. I'm likin' it! - Earl

Jumpers (see below) - a musical meme

Before I get to the heart of the post, we (finally) have a new movie review on MovieGrenade. This time complete with boobs! Go check it out.

So I got tagged again, this time by Paige. Another one of them Canadian ladies. See...they are everywhere! It goes a little something like this:

1. Put your iTunes/ music player on Shuffle (use a stereo or a list of your favorite songs if you don’t have an iPod)
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER WHAT(this is in capital letters, so it is very serious. No hiding your show tunes, folks!)

After you’ve answered all of the questions, tag 5 other people and then let them know they’ve been tagged to do the meme themselves!

(OK...I have to make one thing clear. I omitted all Jimmy Buffett from my answers unless it wound up being from Havana Daydreamin' - my favorite of his albums. So I did forward past some Buffett, because if I didn't then about half the answers would have been his songs. Everything else is honest. And there was one really weird moment in here. Incredibly weird, ridiculously weird, almost "he had to fake that shit" weird. You will see. - Earl)

IF SOMEONE SAYS “IS THIS OKAY” YOU SAY?
"Tiny Dancer" - Elton John. Actually, I say "Tony Danza". It's very confusing.

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
"Words and Guitars" - Sleater-Kinney. I don't play guitar, but ok.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
"Me-Jane" - PJ Harvey. Me-Tarzan. Hmm? A little role-play would be kinda nice.

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
"Awfully Quiet" - The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. There are times I do, but today wasn't one of them. Too bad. The title really fit the question. First one. Yay!

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
"The Dirty Jobs" - The Who. I'm a cleaner for the Mob. Well, not really...no. This one makes no sense.

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
"Willin' " - Little Feat. Not really a motto, per se. More of a mission statement.

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
"100%" - Sonic Youth. That's right, mother-fuckers! I'm 100%, er, um, me!

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR PARENTS?
"My Life" - Mary J. Blige. Um, I think this is one of Gia's songs. Really.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
"Havana Daydreamin' " - Jimmy Buffett. Hey...he showed up. And it kinda fits. I'm a big day-dreamer. Usually has to do with boobs not Cuba, but whatever.

WHAT IS 2+2?
"Left of Center" - Suzanne Vega. I actually laughed when this one showed up. Funny answer even though I forward past it every time it pops up on my iPod. Been meaning to delete it forever.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
"Is This Love" - Whitesnake. Another one of Gia's songs. Really.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"Rub 'til it Bleeds" - PJ Harvey. It hardly ever gets that far. Well sometimes. OK, she likes it rough. Too much info?

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
"The Metro" - Berlin. Can't even think of anything funny to say here.

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
"Helpless Dancer" - The Who. I never wanted to be helpless or a dancer, but weird that the answers keep fitting the questions.

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"Ooo Child" - Five Starships. Great song, but I certainly don't think of it when I see Gia.

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
"Oh, Lonesome Me" - Neil Young. Hope not.

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
"Romeo and Juliet" - Dire Straits. OK...this is the weird one. I saw the question and thought to myself "Wouldn't it be weird if Romeo and Juliet came up?" Gia and I, from our first date, said that if and when we ever got married that "Romeo and Juliet" by Dire Straits would be one of our wedding songs. I know, lyrically it's not really a "wedding" type o' song. It's more about regret and love lost and maybe getting back together, but its still a beautiful song and one of my favorites. One of Gia's too! With that I mind, I hit the "next" button and BAM...it happened! I'm not shitting you! Something truly cosmic going on here.
Sidenote: I actually think that I am a bit psychic or something, but only in one or two situations. I often call home runs while watching Yankee games right before they happen. I don't do it often, but when I do a home run always follows. The other situation is that I can often predict the next song to play on the radio, or in this case, my iPod on shuffle. I do it all the time. Wish it pertained to the lottery.

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
"Simple Man" - Lynyrd Skynyrd. Makes a little sense. Always considered myself to be a fairly simple guy in a complicated world. And Gia joined a local band for one song down in Key West to sing it to me once. Nice!

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
"So What'cha Want?" - The Beastie Boys. Huh?

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
"Italian Leather Sofa" - Cake. That's right fuckers! Italian Leather Sofa. Try and figure that shit out!

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
"Beercan" - Beck. Another answer that made me laugh out loud. Now I'm not saying my friends drink a lot. Ok, I'll say it...they drink a lot. Funny.

WHAT SHOULD YOU POST THIS AS?
"Jumpers" - Sleater-Kinney. I don't get it, but rules are rules. I'll put this in the post title.

I think I will only tag Slyde, because he is soooo into music. Ha!

PS - Oooh, you have to go check out Spinning Girl on this topic. This is what the internet was created for folks. Holy Kellie Pickler!