Anime Convention

Just yesterday I heard that there is an Anime Convention at the Baltimore Convention Center. This is not something I really 'get', however, after reading Bee's post regarding the Final Fantasy concert and realizing that she was disappointed that no one was in costume (all for the blog material folks) I thought we might coax a little trip downtown out of her so that she might share some of the gems that will likely be arriving!

Is Anime more comic book or movie genre? Not sure myself but I bet those costumes will be fabulous fodder for the blogs!

Smoking Ban

Have you heard this? Someone has decided to introduce legislation to ban smoking in the military. Now, (sigh) I understand that smoking is very unhealthy and awful and evil for I AM A SMOKER. Yes, my secret is out, please don't hate me. I don't disagree with the bans on smoking in public buildings, restaurants, etc. But really, is this a little far reaching? Come on, you have to agree with me that there appear to be some power hungry zealots out there. I mean (step up on to the soapbox) our folks in the military, God Bless you every one, are adults, with the power to make decisions (as we every day folks are incapable of doing, speaking of silly legislation) it's what they have learned to do and what we expect of them.

So load 'em up boys, we're headed onto the battlefield, I'm going to have to check your packs for cigarettes, can't have any of those you know, they aren't good for you!

Please, I beg you, share your opinion on this with all of us.

Maryland Science Center

We had a visit to the Maryland Science Center over the July 4th weekend. If you have never been there, the Science Center is in Baltimore City at the Inner Harbor. Great Spot to spend a weekend, there is so much to see and do for families. It's a great tourist spot and there were lots of people there the day we went. The weather was beautiful and it was a great day to be outside walking around.

There is a dinosaur exhibit featured now and we needed to go and see it. My grandaughter, Buggy is totally immersed in the subject of dinosaurs at the age of 5. We took her to visit the Smithsonian Museum Of Natural History back in January and she loved it. This new exhibit is called "Chinosaurs" ..... dinosaurs found in China. So it was something new for us. Of course the Science Center is so much fun for kids because everywhere you turn there are hands on exhibits. We were able to 'dig ' for dinosaur bones like a real paleontologist would with soft paint brushes to clear away the sand and, of course, we had to wear goggles as well. They had a large sand pit and rubber dinosaur feet where the kids could create footprints. At the Chinosaur exhibit entrance they had some full sized animated dinosaur models that were really exciting.

There is so much more to do and learn though, we spent about five hours inside the Science Center that day, including grabbing some lunch in the cafe. Buggy got to lay on a real bed of nails, of course she made Grandmom try it first, she's no fool. We visited the Davis Planetarium, which we enjoyed but it didn't really grab Buggy for more than 10 minutes. As we left the building that afternoon they had an area out front for kids to make giant bubbles!

We walked along the harbor watching people and eating ice cream. Stopped to watch a street performer doing juggling and unicycle riding. Buggy volunteered to be in the show so that was fun . Great Day and a great spot to visit.
Any other great spots to visit in this area?

Feeling Used

Are you an Amazon user? I am and I like it a lot. I order frequently; books, movies, gift items of all sorts. Never had a problem. Actually I still haven't had a problem with Amazon at all. The problem is with one of the sellers.

Several weeks ago my grandaughter, Buggy, received a summer reading list from school. Yep, just like most every one of your kids. There were 15 books on the list which is rather a lot of books to buy at once. I told my daughter that I would get them. I logged onto Amazon to check for used books as this would save a good deal of money and I like saving money. I found 13 out of 15 books listed as 'Used, Good'. I have bought used books before and have always been very satisfied. They have always been in like new condition and that's really what I expect. You're not getting them free.

Two days ago I finally received the last 3 books that I was waiting for. When I saw the condition of one of these books, they all came from different sellers, I thought someone had made a mistake! This book looks like it has been in a toy box for several years. Very torn up all around the edges, scribbles on several pages, it's a mess. I'm certain the pictures don't tell the whole story.

I started to leave negative feedback but thought better of it and decided to email first and give them a chance to fix this problem. That was 48 hours ago and I haven't heard a word. I'm pretty surprised that I didn't hear anything at all I guess I shouldn't be. I went back tonight and did leave feedback and I decided to warn any other buyers out there....buyers beware!

As I said, I have bought used books many times and have been very happy until this purchase. I will however, make sure that I check feedback on every seller that I consider buying from. Even if the price is only $5.00.

Would that make you angry or what???

My Mother In Law

If you live near Baltimore or have visited for any extended time you will understand when I say that my mother in law, and her twin sister, are a couple of Baltimore Hons! Google the term, I'm sure you'll get a hit. I just googled Baltimore Hon and I have this example for you...got it? My in laws live in the Brewers Hill area of the city in a row home with a stained glass transom and a marble stoop out front. The row homes in this area are fairly deep and quite narrow (12 feet wide).

My hubby and I stopped in for a visit on Sunday. His mother recently fell out of bed and cracked a couple of ribs so we wanted to see how she is doing. You walk in to their house and you are in the living room, the dining room is behind that and then the kitchen is on the back end. There is also a basement and second floor bedrooms. My in laws are "of an age" which is the age whereby the tv needs to be on around the clock and the volume on high! Doesn't change just because people come calling. There we were along with Mom, Dad, and Aunt. Uncle was hiding in the basement watching golf. At this point there is a twin bed squeezed into the living room as mil can not navigate the steep stairs for awhile.

My in laws enjoy Atlantic City, often enough that they are comped nicely when they go. They have a favorite spot and have become friendly with the casino's host, Mike. Well Mike has begun performing at the casino and was kind enough to send a DVD of the show. Yep, we were lucky enough to be treated to the show on the new DVD Player. Let me say it was simply endless (that should be in CAPS!) No one was allowed to talk and the lights were all turned down, ambiance? A little Vegas? 30 minutes into the show I grabbed my phone and began frantically texting....everyone! Only time EVER that I couldn't find anyone available for a little distraction. Ok, I've heard worse in bars during karaoke but omg my ears were oozing blood at the end of an hour and a half of the supreme lounge lizard. Mom and Auntie were simply glowing!

I'm getting my halo for that little visit. Hey, great way to punish the kids! Let me know and I'll send you a copy.

Inexplicable

I'm not a big TV watcher, nothing against it, no moral statements here. Having read some of the posts on http://readthebee.blogspot.com/ , (check it out, way too funny) I believe I am in the minority and pitifully out of the loop. Well, I have been watching some TV this evening which I don't normally do on Saturday and I've seen several commercials for (I guess) a new series on TLC. The series is titled "I didn't know I was pregnant." Huh? Maybe the Bee will check this one out and give us her take on it. I probably won't watch the show as I'll forget to tune in but I believe I would like to know what's up with that. In fact, I am inviting the bee to do a guest post right here on cuteasabuggy as soon as the series airs! What do you say bee?

Happy 4th of July!

Celebrate the day July 4, 2009!