A self-portrait Christmas card that my father's father's father sent out. He had a mobile photography studio. Dad has some of his blackroom equipment.My father, our dog & me, when I was 4 years old. Come to think of it, that may be my grandparent's dog, and we might have been at their house. I don't really remember it.

I'm trying to add a photo to my profile & I'm trying to decide which one (or maybe a more current picture) to use. Probably the latter, at least I'm in that one.

Had supper with Joe last night (Living Greyhawk Gran March's newest Triad member). We went to Q-shack and talked about the whole end of LG thing. LG ends next year (year 8 of the campaign) so Chris came up with a bunch of 'year 9 adventures'. They were pretty funny.

The end of LG is all part of the D&D 4.0 release (warning link is to YouTube). The company plans to focus on the Forgotten Realms setting instead. My first thought on hearing about 4.0 was: 'well, I know they're trying to make a profit but now they're just money-grubbing'. Frankly, unless it rocks my socks off, I'm not going to bother. My 3.5 books work just fine & I see no reason to convert. Unless the GMs of my home games decide to go that way, I don't have to. My home game GMs feel the same way.

After Qshack (I had the chopped beef brisket, with fried okra & sweet potato fries -leftovers for lunch today), we went to Edy's to get ice cream. I know I should have had the sorbet but frankly, I've been very good about not having ice cream and I really wanted some. It was delicious.

books: I finished Night Shift & Night Shadow last night and sort of re-read part of Rapture in Death. I just wasn't in the mood for it. I celebrated paying off my dentist bill by buying Thirty Nights with a Highlander Husband at lunch. I read through most of it.

I was glad to sit in the bookstore and read. It was way too hot (100F and rising) to sit outside & do anything.

tatting: I'm turning the next to last corner. I did some at supper last night while we talked & tried to do another ring this morning. Just too humid.

Ran into the new neighbor while walking to the bus stop this morning. We talked on the way into work again.

clothes: black ~slippers (I'm having to spray them with febreze every night, they get sopping wet by the time I get home), black & white print cotton gauze skirt, white texture plaid shirt, silver dome ring, silver bracelet, hematite band, labradorite pendant, onyx earrings & braided hair.

Weather: big shock & surprise, it continues to be hot & humid. I'm fairly certain that we've had 19 days of 90F+ so far this month. We're about 2" low on rain for the month & 4.77" low on rain for the year; just in this area. Farther west in the state, it's worse. Even here, you can see the effect that the drought is having on the trees.

books: Finished The Four Forges. It's really good and there were a couple surprises. I'm looking forward to the next book, because this one is obviously book 1 (even besides it being mentioned on the cover). I re-read Pyramid Scheme. That's a really good adventuresome, and sometimes thought-provoking, romp through mythological Greece with a short visit to Egypt. I also found & re-read Accidental Goddess. I really need to find some more of Linnea Sinclair's works. Mom has discovered Catherine Asaro. I brought Nora Roberts Night Shift & Night Shadow (2 books, 1 volume) to read on the commute, etc.

Ran into my new neighbor again this morning. She's going to try to get her bus pass today. We had plenty of time to talk on the bus as we had a short breakdown this morning. The back doors wouldn't close so we had to have someone from TTA come out to fix them. I made it work before my office door unlocked but I didn't have time to stop & get a soda or my usual granola bars. At least I had a bite of danish & part of my soda from last night to sustain me.

Movie: Went to see Stardust last night after coming back from seeing Mom. Wow, what a great movie. It had adventure, romance, humor & a little magic. Chris & I have both decided that we want a copy of that movie. Robert deNiro was fabulous in this movie; he plays a pirate captain. It was also nice to see that none of the women were OMG beautiful. They were attractive, but also human looking. Maybe it's all my exposure to British tv but I get really tired of all the 'perfect' actresses & actors that you see in Hollywood productions.

tv: Watched Dr. Who and not much else. I was quite tired Friday night. Mom & I watched a couple episodes of her Christmas/Mother's Day present: Last of the Summer Wine, one movie from her birthday present (10 Hollywood classic movies set) My Favorite Brunette & a couple episodes of the Irish RM that she had checked out of the library.

clothes: This weekend it was all t-shirts & jeans. Saturday I wore a Red Cross blood drive t- & on Saturday it was my Trinic*con 8 t-. For jewelry: paui shell pendant & ring, ~filigree earrings, moss agate bead bracelet, red silicon Ronald McDonald House bracelet, flower band, hematite band, navy loafers & plaited hair.

Just as an aside: my mom & brother argued over 11 years ago. They still haven't made up. They don't speak to each other. My mother has never met her granddaughter. She didn't recognize my brother when she saw him on Saturday. I want to shake both of them until some sense falls into their heads. The really sad part? I'm the one in the family without common sense.