Jeez...has anyone noticed the ridiculous amount of people who wear winter coats made from fur? Everyone who wears them think they look absolutely smashing. Blech. Millions of poor little animals were slaughtered to coat the wannabe rich people in our little Freehold/Manalapan area alone. Fur is not warmer, it is not fancy, and everyone wearing fur coats LOOKS FOOLISH. You would think that "in this day and age" people are aware of or care about how evil it is to kill just for fur. Exactly how many chinchillas were rectally electricuted for fancy Large Marge to wear a coat? What is wrong with wearing a nice coat made of something that didn't die a horrible death?

Lately it looks like more than ever people are wearing fur. How annoying. Even more annoying is the "in" item is fake fur or as designers have to call it, faux. Otherwise snobby people won't wear it without the fancy name. Who wants to look like an animal killer for a fraction of the price?

Anyone ever see Seinfeld were David Puddy wore the man fur? You too look that stupid. Jerry's comment seriously hits the nail on the head. People are so vain about their bodies. We make women shave their legs and go through painful plucking and waxing to be beautiful and hair free. Because being natural is so disgusting. And then we put them in a fur coat. What the hell.

I thought that I go the idea to read this book from Tara or Dave, but I could be mistaken. Me Talk Pretty One Day was really entertaining from cover to cover. I kept seeing it in Barnes and Chernobyl and it made me buy and read it.

I have barely read anything besides the Hitchhiker's Trilogy and numerous science and quilting magazines since college. Maternity leave has lead me to read many books about babies and nursing and stuff.

I was glad to come across the happenings and life experiences of author David Sedaris. At one moment I wanted to cry for him and the next moment I wanted to laugh out loud. There were many amusing aspects of his college experience and his never ending struggle with learning French in Paris. His eccentric Dad reminded me of *someone* I know very well. I will think of this book every time I see those "save the planet" stickers and a "tapeworm" reading.

I took away many cool things from this book which I am unable to describe due to the fact that I can only sit for ten minutes at a time and I think you just have to see it for yourself. One being comfort, as in I guess I am not all that weird for having strange thoughts and "it only would happen to me" experiences. Two, that we indeed must have friends like David Sedaris. And three, I miss sitting and taking the time to read actual novels.

A few months back, Dave had posted this about some guy suing America's #1 fast food chain because he ate there so often and blames them for his serious weight/health problems.

Exactly how much do Americans eat at McDonald's? The average fast food consumer eats 16.4 times a month. The "heavy users" eat 27.5 times. Wow that seems a bit much. Since the average meal is 4$, the average consumer spends 65.6$ and the heavy consumer spends 110$, that is, if they are alone. The average family spends 12$ each time, so that's 196.8$.

For us, that's a car payment or three bills or something nice we have to save up for.

After studies were conducted, McDonald's will be putting a serious meaning to the word "fast" in fast food. Next year and nationwide it will be possible to pay for your unhealthy meals with plastic. At every other place, purchases can be made cashless, so why not? Cash purchases can take up to ten seconds for the payment transaction, while with signature free credit or debit, customers can slide through their cards and have approval in five seconds. Customers will be guaranteed to be served in the promise of "orders in 90 seconds or less" for sure.

The result? Travel is expected to increase exponentially. Lots of people use their credit cards on everything they can to rack up credit card incentives. Frequent flier miles and cash back bonuses will skyrocket due to the amount of money people spend on McDonald's. McDonald's will be faster and more pleasant to visit. When asked, customers responded positively, "I could go to Spain," and "that's what customers want."

Scary. Sounds like America will get more unhealthy at a more efficient rate. But they will be going places.

At 35 weeks, this is what our baby looks like:

The top picture is the baby's cranium and fist.
The bottom picture is a side view of the baby. The leg and face are pretty visible.

What do you think the baby is now? It has been months since we have posted our "guess the baby stats" and perhaps you have changed your mind...

I have changed my vote to "no idea."

We also have no name chosen. We could call it "the baby" because that's what everyone else will call it. Can I hold the baby? How is the baby? The baby is crying.

New stuff from our doctor's visit:
Five more weeks.
Even though the sonogram technician said I was a week ahead in size, the doctor said that I am just fine and the right size for where I should be.
I weigh 129 lbs and right on schedule. I will not gain too much more.
The baby weighs 5.5 lbs and will be from 7 to 8 lbs at birth. Wow!

After hearing days and days of evil promises of snow, today it has finally come. When I was little, my brother and I barely got the no school phone call before we were out the door getting started on our winter colds. Now I hate snow. Sure it's pretty and I would like to play in it, but now that I am home and pregnant, it sucks. Bryan works very far away and it makes me nervous that he will be on the roads for hours, the parkway makes me nervous.

But most of all route 9 scares me. All the stupid people tend to come out the wood work with their huge, fancy SUV's driving with the confidence that the bigger vehicle is the safest and the change in coefficient of friction does not affect them. I hate how they are all impatient and annoyed with you for driving a normal sized people car and insist that riding close to you will intimidate or embarass you into driving faster and unsafely, just like them. No dice, you monsters.

Bryan has left work early today and I am crossing my fingers that he will be safe. I hope this will not be a peek into what the winter season will be like this year. I don't want to go into labor when it is snowing. What if it takes Bryan hours to get home? What if I have to drive myself and my car is frozen? And roads get closed? And my relatives are nowhere to be found? This scares the hell out of me. I can't always ask my husband to leave work when I worry about him.

I wish I could enjoy the snow this time but it just can't. And there is no chance in it bringing any Christmas spirit to our home. Bryan and I are both cranky old Christmas grinches with minimal intentions of putting up our tree.

I am utterly and completely bored. I hate maternity leave so far.

My apartment seems smaller every hour. And cleaner.

I miss work. That's all I have to say.