vu’s Neighborhood

time to make the scones...

"That most people who have absolutely no idea what they’re doing, have absolutely no idea that they have no idea what they’re doing. It explains a great deal of life. It explains, particularly, Hollywood.” http://ping.fm/wNueD

just made 2 special holiday cards, hilarious! i hope the recipients enjoy them.

To do before M-----l arrives tomorrow for a visit:

• Finish my job work for the week - I have to do that tonight before going to sleep. 
• Vacuum - I'll do that in the morning.
• Shampoo rug - er, that's just not gonna happen.  I finally put the rug shampooer together, though, after four months of sitting in the box in the closet.  Maybe you will be inspired test it out while I'm at work next week.
• Remove hair from cat "tree" - um, maybe if I get up early enough tomorrow.  Try not to breathe near it, though;  that's where Muki does most of his shedding.
• Change out litter in box.
• Clean bathroom - I'll scrub the toilet seat and the sink... in the morning.
• Wash sheets and blankets - if there's a load in the washing machine when you get here, that counts, right?
• Wash hair - I kind of let it go this week, but am about to do.
• Wash dishes - maybe in the morning.  I'll at least run the dishwasher and try to scrub out that one pan that's been sitting on the counter for three days.
• Take out the recycling and "yard waste" - in the morning.  It's too dark and scary out there now.
• Take the comforter that the cat pooped on, since before your last two visits, to the cleaners (did you ever wonder what was stuffed in that giant blue Ikea bag in the closet?) - maybe in the morning.  (I've been meaning to haul it to the laundromat. It is machine washable but requires a jumbo front-loader, and I only have an apartment-sized top-loader.  Since it's pretty clear I'm never going to the laundromat, I decided to spring for a professional cleaning, and finally get it out of the closet.  I did hand-wash the pooped-on part at the time of the incident, though, just so's you know I haven't been knowingly storing cat poop in the closet.)
• Sort through that crate of random papers, old bills, receipts, etc.  - maybe next year. or, if I wait two more years, I can probably just dispose of everything in that crate.
• Also balance my checkbook for the first time since, oh, May?  Fail.  (The bills are paid, though.)
• Reserve the community TV room for 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Sunday
• Finish knitting the black and orange scarf -- I'll need something to keep myself entertained during the game.
• Clean the front of the kitchen cabinets and fridge -- um, maybe if I get up early enough tomorrow.  Oh, who am I kidding?  FAIL!

So... I have decided: I am no longer going to hide my slovenliness from M-----l.  The truth shall be revealed. 

.....

Another truth that must be revealed: despite all the misanthropic bluster, Hotrod really is nice, and also a fun person to hang out with even when there is no karaoke or live music.  He was in town for a few days on business, and we met up at the Elysian for beers last night.  Thank you, Hotrod!  If I make it out for Karaoke to the Death, I owe you a couple of rounds.

Ms. Marvel

When I was first introduced to Ms. Marvel, I have to confess I didn’t find her very interesting, and as a matter of fact, thought that the Red and Blue Captain Marvel costume looked absolutely ridiculous cut into  a bad one-piece swimsuit. But I had a friend who absolutely loved her, (and I mean LOVED her!) and insisted on sharing,  so I was exposed to her comic whether I liked it or not! This actually worked out to my benefit as I was able to filter through the stuff I didn’t like and appreciate the stuff I did, and eventually I came around and started picking up some of those issues myself!

Ms Marvel 1

The biggest part of what turned me around from a non-believer to a general fan of the comic was, of course, THE NEW COSTUME! Now THIS was what I liked! Rendered by a master of sexy super-heroine costumes was the mighty DAVE COCKRUM, and YES, the new outfit looked EXACTLY like a variation of Jean Grey’s revamped PHOENIX costume, but HEY, when you’ve got a winning formula, you don’t mess with it…

Ms Marvel 20

 So, anyway, gone was the horrendous red and blue outfit, in was the sleek ‘n’ sexy blue outfit with the lightning bolt and golden sash , and just in time for a  return slugfest against super baddie Deathbird (who would go on to give Hawkeye a run for his money in AVENGERS #189) then onward to my favorite arcs of the series, where Carol dukes it out with a civilization of super Lizard Men! Ah, trust me, it’s cooler than it sounds.  And THEN…

 Then the Comic got cancelled. Yep. GEEZ! All that coaxing and convincing me to get onboard the Ms. Marvel Fan Ship, and then the voyage was abruptly ended! But the best was yet to come with the aforementioned AVENGERS stint, all lovingly rendered by John Byrne, who was TOTALLY in his PRIME at this time!

 At this time we started trying to buy all the back issues of old Avengers stories, and when we got our hands of the epic KREE-WARS stories, got to see exactly where Carol Danvers had come from in the first place! It was kind of nest to realize she actually had a bit of “history” within the pages of those old Silver Age Marvels!

 So yeah,  I was a fan there…but after that surrealistic ( and highly controversial) AVENGERS issue  (196?) where she gets pregnant in some convoluted cosmic drama, I kind of lost interest and drifted away again. Next time I checked, for some reason the character named “Ms Marvel”  was a big female version of  the Thing! I didn’t know if this was supposed to be Carol Danvers or some OTHER character, and I  DIDN’T WANT TO KNOW! (Okay, I found out later it was some OTHER gal, but still, the shock…!)

  In fact, it was only with the arrival of Frank Cho’s cool and sexy MS MARVEL revival did I breathe a sigh of RELIEF, for here once again was that awesome dynamic costume, proving it could stand the test of time! The Ms Marvel of Old was back! ( and MAN, let’s hope she STAYS that way!)

  A funny side-story that always makes me smile is remembering when my friend picked up a new issue of Ms Marvel and saw that Carol was dating some dude with a beard, he mock- angrily declared war against all bearded men, and set about cutting up every picture of a bearded man in the daily newspaper. I sat on the couch howling with laughter as he jokingly destroyed all the pictures, until he got into trouble when his father scolded him and said “What are you DOING to the Newspaper? I haven’t even READ it yet!”

Ahahahahahaha!!!

Ms. Marvel / Carol Danvers

First Appearance: Marevel Super-Heroes #13

By Roy Thomas and Gene Colan