CyberMinions.net

Hanging with the frogs...

I'm stretched out on the floor composing music while hanging with the frogs. Baby frogs are climbing up the exterior windows and walls and I'm absolutely captivated with them. Hubby is trying to get Stephen, the Blur Minion to go outside and check them out. Noah, the Net Geek is already in the front yard scoping the little buggers but Step refuses to leave the Christmas tree (LOL).

I have to go see if Shorty wants to take a picture and do a wee people post... Will be back in a few. I have to put my studio monitors back together first. ;-)

Life With Wee People: House hunting little minion style...

If you go house hunting with Stephen, the Blur Minion the first thing you're going to discover about my 5 year old is the fact that he will expect you to pick homes he can ride his bike to. He likes having people he knows move within a 3 mile radius so he can visit (silly grin). We recently finished doing our community bike ride / mommy jog (about an hour ago) and are still spoofing about our romp through geriatric surburbia. We're trying to find something interesting for sale to photograph and send to Jen.

Tomorrow we're checking out West Melbourne and Indialantic to scope out houses and possible office space. Shorty gets there will be a car ride so I'm indulging him today by letting him play TomTom with his bike. There are a lot of For Sale By Owner properties available and a significant number of people trying to unload their undeveloped lots. Everytime he spots a yard sign Stephen automatically wants to go checkout a house. I had to explain to Shorty "Garage Sale" is a whole other kind of sale (which doesn't require house hunting photographs - LOL). Jen can figure out what she wants to see when she gets down here.

I also have to call Sana and see what she's been up to. I'm hoping I can get her and Tamara to come down here for vacation. I will be bugging Nydia, Stacey and Cindy to come for a visit too. I really miss my gal pals and my cousins. I definitely owe Yvonne and Marie several phone calls... 

The neighbors across the street stopped by to give us a Christmas card which reminded me I have to go to the post office (again). I have a massive amount of packages and cards to get out. Also, we haven't put the lights or Christmas tree up plus we're still wrapping gifts (yes, we've been mad busy and are still behind schedule - sigh).

The kids have been having a lot of fun and are clueless about what hasn't been done. Stephen has a lot of energy for a 5 year old and sometimes I wish I could borrow a little (said the hyperactive ADD mommy - LOL). Noah is riding his scooter through the house and Shorty just talked Mike into "going for a walk." Translated: he rides his bike and hubby keeps up (LOL).

Gotta go. Noah now has Rango playing in the living room so I'm taying put, blogging in the garage and going to fire up Skype so I can FB/e-mail my gal pals and see who is up for a bit of social media mischief. We have a new Kim Harrison book tour to drool over and schedule a couple of KH Events playdates for. A Perfect Blood is coming out and we have to pick our states/cities to hook up and collect more hard cover author swag. Pssst... Book club bookies have digital and physical copies of our fave books. In my case multiple copies (LOL). ;-)

Wanna come out and play? Here's the KH Signing Etiquette for the newbies: http://kimharrison.wordpress.com/signing-etiquette

I have cousins near Kim's tour stop here (and I can go see my Mom and Dad in SC when I'm done fooling around in GA):

Atlanta, GA:
Saturday, Feb 25: Eagle Eye Book Shop
2076 North Decatur Road; Decatur, GA
404-486-0307

Miami is on my bucket list. I've never been to Miami so Sunday, Feb 26 in Coral Gables, FL and Monday, Feb 27 in Palm Beach, FL look really, really good. I'm on Skype plotting a fun loop-de-loop book tour joy ride with my ActiveRain blogging buddies. We will post the Mojito get together when we figure out which Miamism review determines where we will be hanging (evil grin). When it comes to Mojito reviews Inez rules (LOL). ;-) 

Had a blast at Planet Fitness with hubby and Mona.

I like to work out twice a day if I can figure out how to twist my schedule around everyone else in my life. Today Mike and Mona caught up with me at the gym and we had fun criss-crossing machines. Hubby likes to make fun of my anal retentiveness because I have spiral perforated index cards and record everything I do. I like keeping my rep/weight record in my tiny book because I can match how effective a set and diet combination is. I have fun peeps who are gonna kick my butt on film this Spring so I gotta be able to keep up with them when we schedule a martial arts work out. We're slamming each other around (silly grin).

I host my gal pals when they come down south and they're hosting me when I hit NYC. We sometimes pile up when I visit my parents in SC (which will be very soon - I'm over due for another ActiveRain road trip - LOL).

Wait until you guys get a look at our new spot to play laser tag and paint ball. Girlie-girlie day is gonna be flippin' hilarious when we have our next pajama party at my house. Looking forward to the mutual torture of some very talented peeps. May even YouTube a few sessions. Gotta go. Time for our Skype luncheon. We're plotting and planning what to do to my garage next. The Man Cave needs more work and lots of boy toys (which the girls sometimes play with - evil grin). ;-)

In-line Skating, Man of War, Jelly Fish and strange jogs along the beach...

I'm in the process of grabbing my gym gear and running out the door so I can get a workout in and go in-line skating. We've been doing the storyboards for three music videos so I have to work out my schedule to coincide with the girls when I return to TX, SC and NY. We're recording the vocals in SC, filming one of three music videos in Tx while my martial arts training is ongoing in Manhattan and my strength/stamina training in Palm Bay.

Eau Gallie, Melbourne FL

I am fascinated with my morning jogs along the Eau Gallie shoreline because there are Jelly Fish and Man of War everywhere I look. They wash in and out with the tide creating an obstacle course of nature where I sprint around, jump over and avoid translucent blue and purple blobs with tentacles bobbing around in the ocean and washing up on the beach during my work out.

They don't die right away, which can be a wee bit of a distraction if you are a gawking New Yorker like I am (silly grin). I like running along the water's edge so I do a lot of weaving left and right (depending upon what the tide does). That means I sometimes get to see these buggers swim/float during my jog if the waves deposit and scoops them up fast enough.

My advice? Don't ever step in the sea plants... I mean NEVER. Sometimes there are greenish-purpley wormy-snakey things that get tangled up and hidden in there... Makes you run faster when they slither out or stuff starts to move. They're slow and freaky looking... very deceptive... I was flinching too much to get a photo-op of what the cartoons in my head have dubbed "the sea aliens." Maybe on my next run if I'm not still chicken I'll snap a few shots of the strange things that float out of the ocean because I'm a bit terrified of getting poisoned or stung by this stuff. I have a first aid kit in the car because there's wildlife everywhere in Florida (including the Mall - LOL). 

It's amazing how difficult these things are to spot in the water until it's almost too late. Some of the Man of War have extremely long tentacles that get partially hidden in the sand so you have to really pay close attention where you step while being curious about those colorful air sacks. About.com states: "If it's in the water, get away from it. If it's on the beach and you need to walk around it, walk above it (dune side) rather than below it (surf side), since it may be trailing tentacles. Keep in mind a jellyfish does not need to be alive in order to sting you. Detached tentacles are capable of stinging and releasing venom for several weeks."

Being a Curious George kinda gal of course I have to research how much trouble the wee people and I can get into if we're not careful while exploring Florida together. Here's a new word for you that I taught my kids: nematocysts. Here is a diagram that shows the anatomy of a nematocyst cell and its “firing” sequence from NOAA.

According to the NOAA Ocean Service Education diagram: "The cell’s thread is coiled under pressure and wrapped around a stinging barb. When potential prey makes contact with the tentacles of a polyp, the nematocyst cell is stimulated."

According to Biology-Online.org: Nematocysts are "a structure found within a specialized cell, the nematocyte (also known as cnidocytes, or cnidoblasts) consists of a capsule containing a coiled tube. When the nematocyte is triggered the wall of the capsule changes its water permeability and the inrush of water causes the tube to evert explosively ejecting the nematocyst from the cell. The tube is commonly armed with barbs and may also contain toxin.  Involved in the stinging mechanism for defense and prey-capture that is unique and present in all animals of the phylum Cnidaria (corals, sea anemones, hydrae, jellyfish, etc.)."

Here's a YouTube of nematocysts firing in a lab clip.

Here's a YouTube of nematocysts firing in a squid.

Nasty bit of business, eh? Especially the part about still being able to sting people after death... venomous cells indeed.

Life With Wee People: The thing about Mike, Stephen and Noah...

When your men are into sports you become a soccer, football and basketball mom (silly grin). That also means your role in The Man Cave revolves around gym equipment and eye/hand coordination activities.

Last week the Special Olympics kept me off-line because Mr Autism had to practice his skill drills which translated into a massive amount of playtime and kiddie virtual instruction for Noah. Mr. Autism won a blue ribbon for first place in his cty b-ball skill set division heat so we all happen to be very proud of him. 

Stephen was and is his wing man which required I do a massive amount of jogging because when the wee people say, "Lets take a walk," what they really mean is they ride their bikes while I run along side (heh heh). There's a reason why my kids are skinny: A game of catch can go on for hours and they live for the beach and yard time (LOL). We also habitually shoot balls into stacked tires in the garage (among other things like hitting tennis balls against the wall when not scooting, skateboarding, biking, jogging or inline skating somewhere). ;-)

During the skill set section of the Special Olympics Stephen, the Minion Blur was invited down onto the gym floor by Noah's coach. The boys stretched and did their wee people thing. They have an amazing brotherly connection that's mad fun to watch. Keeping my five year old in the stands was soooo not happening during the the third quarter of this event because Noah's friends are his friends and he wanted to stick with the boys and his brother. It was either give him a productive coaching task to do or cart him out of there (LOL).

I love watching them get their game face on. Lots of high-fives, head butting and mashy-the-nose going on. It's a wee people guy thing. They had my undivided attention last week. This week I've gotta play social media catch up. Will let you know what I've been up to next...

Yup. There's been some mischief afoot (I've been training, shopping for commercial space and filming music videos - LOL). ;-)

Gas stations with ocean views and fresh fruit stands... very cool pit stop.

I'm starting to understand why they named it "Scenic Highway" (LOL). I've been scoping and poking around Pensacola Florida since yesterday afternoon but now it's time for me to grab lunch and hit the road. Promised the wee people I'd be home for dinner on Thursday. We have to decorate for Hanukkah and Christmas. We also have an amazing amount of gifts that need to get in the mail that are killing the shocks and springs on my car (LOL). I've been mailing packages all over America and still have stuff that needs to go out. When I get back to NYC I have to do round two of giving stuff away because there are 35 boxes of Priority Flat Rate pre-addressed puppies that need to hit the mail. I gave away my entire law library before I left on vacation but there's more goodies sitting there for a bunch of peeps that includes custom art work, music and more books.

I don't have a book shelf at the FL house so I guess I know what I'm asking hubby for this Christmas (more furniture - LOL). A chest of draws also would be nice. Can't continue the undie wars with my gal pals if I don't have an undie draw (silly grin). Next week I shall be high-jacking stagers. Our guest room is naked. It needs furniture. At least some custom art will be going up later tonight. My back seat has 10 paintings on it (and two keyboards - happy sigh). I kind of regret giving away one of the electronic drum machines because the kids loved pounding the crap out of it but I figure I can get by with the two I have left until we pick out a new set for Noah in January. That's gonna be a fun birthday party, eh? Wedding ani is in Feb, hubby's birthday March, Stephen the Minion Blur and I are April babies and the house is half empty so yeah - fun stuff is coming down the road. 

Poor Mikey (evil grin). ;-)

BTW, I'm cooking tonight and will show you how to wreck your kitchen in ten easy steps later (happy sigh). Also, I gotta get back to spoofing on Life With Wee People (silly grin). I may have to get a bike now that hubby taught the shorties how to ride. Stephen and I are plotting our week-end-get-a-way so we can have our way with each other in a neighborhood Starbucks on a caffeine and sugar high. Little dude likes his lemon loaf and Tazo tea so we have to get back to that fun after-school habit (LOL). I'm also kinda itching to go explore Miami. We've never been there... it takes three hours so we are plotting a fun sleep over (silly grin).

We have a book signing event to attend next year so I need to go learn what's over there. Inez has a cool Miamism Blog and I've been saving my first Mojito 411 experience for a stellar occasion. That would be the Kim Harrison A Perfect Blood book tour. Yup. She's going to eventually be in Miami and this non-drinker will be hanging out with her drinking buddies taste testing Mojitos on the Miamism review list when not chasing author swag. I can only have one drink per social episode so my pals go out of their way to make sure it's a good one (LOL). I have to get a KH tour tee too before the 15th. When I hit the house I'm gonna go order 'em. If you have one you can take the group KH picture so go get one people. ;-)

I'm looking forward to my next Texas vacation. I can't wait to take the wee people exploring in the Japanese Gardens, fishing and hiking in The Colony and out for some stellar food. I had Mudslides with vanilla ice cream while hanging out in Texas and they were all yummy so hanging with the Florida crew should be a very interesting experiment.

I need to figure out what to eat while here because I like doing restaurant reviews. Ortanique on the Mile located at 278 Miracle Mile Coral Gables, FL  33134 phone: 305.446.7710 got a nice review from Inez so Coral Gables is on my places to visit list. I shall be lurking on her blog trying to figure out where else to eat so if you readers have any suggestions feel free to add links to your fave places to visit in Miami in the comments section.

Stephen, the Minion Blur and I thank you in advance. The shorties are gearing up to go day tripping with their Mama and a good referral will cut down on our random selection list. I promised him NASCAR on our Daytona outing. It's what we do in NY so it's what we'll do while in FL. My kids like playing TomTom so feel free to hook us up with some Daytona info as well. ;-)

P. S. I have NYC peeps coming down for a sleep over in a few weeks so help make my pajama party interesting. I for one enjoy being a gawking New Yorker but haven't got a clue on where to go and what to do while in Florida. I am a home body and usually vacation visiting friends and relatives while here but that's not the same if you decide to relocate and live, eh?

Um... was I supposed to admit that?

Hmm... (silly grin).

Oh well... We'll just have to get lost in what Florida has to offer together. Hunting for eye candy in southern states near water should always be a fun foodie paradise beach bum holy freakin' cow adventure so lets get this blog party started. Did I mention I like being a gawking New Yorker? I expect you FL guys to give my Sony and Nikon something cool to do while I'm invading your state. When I'm not in FL I will be in SC, TX and NYC. My kids really like SC so we have to go over there and mess with my parents and siblings soon. Our job is to help cut the grass so we can pick apples, plant trees, fly mini air planes and hit golf balls in The Minion Fields. Sometimes the neighbors get together to play soccor because we have a lot of room over there... I'm thinking private camp ground to shoot deer with my camera.

Google maps still thinks my parents field driveway is a street (yall need to fix that - LOL). Oct 2008 means you had plenty of time. Seriously... We tore down the white building last year so a "time to build the SC office" update is in order (and I'll let you guys know who gets Wordy C in FL after I hand my book over to my Editor - silly grin). I'm thinking a Mama Liz Agent Owned Realty franchise would go great for SC. She has jelly beans and my kids really like her. So do I. Even created an album for her. Just sayin' one should have fun at work... Rumor has it I need to get back to working in real estate and post my new Florida numbers. Gotta make a new Florida firm first, do 73 broker hours, open bank accounts, yadda yadda yadda blah blah blah... 

I also need a recording studio. Hmm... Maybe I'll open a music studio down here and build a coffee/bookstore free WiFi extension so I can blog in comfort and high-jack my relatives and friends to do yuppie projects. Since I had to leave my snarky gal pals in NYC (who are being enticed to visit in really devious ways - LOL) I've been wondering what I'm gonna do as a FL resident. 

Rumor has it geriatric suburbia is about to be invaded by a bunch of creative people. I better go check out so I can get home and set up the fax machine. I have work to do... like set up a home office before dinner time and publish new phone numbers next week for the crew (LOL). I have to get a SC number too. This is going to be fun. ;-)

It took an hour to get this shot... (but I finally got it - happy sigh).

Ever have a silly thought you'd like to get an answer to? I was wondering if I could catch a lull in Florida traffic to photograph an empty causeway. This is a major highway so it took an hour to get this shot (but I finally got it - happy sigh). I'm on a scenic overlook freezing my bahookies off. I doubt I'll get another clear "carless" picture but it might be worth it if I can capture this scene during the sunset... I like the way the colors are mellowing out. The concrete is starting to get a rosy glow. Very cool to watch developing... ;-)

Outlaw is a cool name. So is Battle House... Mobile, Alabama is fun to explore.

The Outlaw Convention Center in downtown Mobile Alabama is next to an interesting train crossing that doesn't have a train horn... There's irony in that because you cross the tracks to park in the parking lot off the docks.

I know because I parked there to snap the shots... ;-)

The Battle House hotel is directly across the street. Psst... Another cool name for a building (and my kids would love this place - you can walk to the park when not watching for trains and boats to pass you by - silly grin).

There are a number of interesting little parks to check out too...

The architecture of Battle House and the Outlaw Convention Center made me kinda want to go in just to see how much nautical stuff I could find but I kept getting distracted by the huge boats floating past traffic (sigh).

"Alabama the beautiful" has a lot of neat distractions. This boat was surprisingly quiet, which would be a bona fide distraction to a gawking New Yorker on vacation perplexed and intrigued by technology (yes, I'm ubergeeky - LOL). I think that's why I was sort of stunned while watching it quietly float by. Traffic appeared to make more noise than it did. Think of it as my brain locking down while looping, "Oooooooo... shiny..." (LOL).

I'm glad I decided to take a driving break and stretch my legs downtown because I really enjoyed wandering about Moble Alabama (and being awed by their quiet boats). There were a lot of nifty little surprises waiting for people to discover and ooogle (like this unusual sculpture and historic plaques/houses).

Did I forget to mention stellar snackage? My bad. Spot of Tea is fabulous people. Go check them out. It's located across the street from the Portier House.

Caffeine and sugar are a few of my fave things. Just sayin' ;-)

104,162 miles later I'm still poking around with the westies (silly grin). Texas has been mad fun. Making a pit stop in Louisiana next because I've never been... This should be very interesting. Between last minute laundry duty we're plotting and planning lunch before I go on my next photography adventure. I'm juggling my schedule to catch up with a couple of Tweet-peeps there. They were expecting me on Monday but I've been malingering in TX like the lazy vacationing blogger I am.

I've lots of eye candy to share so I can't wait to hook up with the kids and sort through a couple thousand photographs.

It's my last day to go exploring lakeside at The Colony so I gotta go... the wee people are expecting a Skype session and the shorties want lots of pictures because we're plotting going camping at Hidden Cove in the Spring. I want to take the boys fishing. ;-)

Working on my next gallery show...

Been printing photographs on my wireless HP printer at Melody's house. Picked up a few small wood den frames to highlight my vacation and have been working out what my next gallery show will be. These photographs are your big hint: I'm painitng Texas (LOL). Here's my first subject. Her name is Victoria. More Texas sketches to follow... (evil grin)

I'm drawing in blue today on 12x16 canvas paper. The art will bigger as we go along... Did I mention the car is full of art supplies? I brought a lot of stuff with me from New York. Looking forward to playing in my paint later. Texas has some amazing landscapes to explore. ;-)