80 Things I Learned from Pop-Up Videos.

If you grew up in the '90's, you watched Pop-Up Videos. Period. No questions asked. This is a list of things I've learned from all those times of mindless entertainment.

1. It takes police a minimum of 2 minutes to trace a stolen motorcycle.
2. 15% of people meet their future mates while at work.
3. The Vikings terrorized Norway until 1000 A.D.
4. Tetanus shots are recommended every 10 years.
5. There were 240 pedestrian fatalities in NYC in 1994.
6. It's against NYFD regulations for firefighters to wear blue jeans.
7. The NYC sanitation department picks up 13,000 tons of trash a day.
8. The average women's boxing match lasts 3 rounds.
9. 1% of defendants act as their own lawyer at trial.
10. Most lawyers have attended 4 years of college and 3 years of law school.
11. 40% of weddings take place at a courthouse.
12. 65% of New Yorkers are single.
13. A messy room can be a warning sign of deep depression.
14. In 1992, a psychologist argued that happiness is a psychiatric disorder, and claimed that happy people "have a defect that prevents a true understanding" of life.
15. 55% of motorcycle accidents happen on weekends.
16. Excessive hairbrushing can cause premature baldness.
17. 9% of people report having been in the presence of a ghost.
18. Boys cry as much as girls until the age of 12 - by age 18 girls cry 4 times as much.
19. Chameleon lizards can turn red, gold and green.
20. Gambling was illegal in 1870 in Mississippi.
21. Odds of getting a straight flush are 649,739 to 1.
22. Corn Flakes was Kellogg's first product in 1906.
23. The first answering machine weighed 10 pounds and required earphones.
24. Pong first appeared in arcades in 1972.
25. Excessive exposure to sunlight can lighten hair.
26. Cryogenics labs will freeze a body for $50,000. Just a head costs $30,000.
27. The first cellular phone network was installed in 1979.
28. Seasickness is caused by rhythmic movements of the head.
29. Seasickness can be prevented by eating ginger.
30. Rio de Janeiro is one of the 7 Wonders of the Natural World.
31. 31% of all Americans who travel overseas travel alone.
32. The flush toilet dates back to 2000 B.C.
33. Toilet paper wasn't invented until 1857.
34. The first stall is the least often occupied by bathroom users.
35. 54% of Americans prefer to "fold" their toilet paper rather than "wad" it.
36. The largest item ever found in an LA sewer is a motorcycle.
37. American buffalo have never been on the endangered species list.
38. It's legal for men to ride motorcycles topless in Indiana.
39. 7am is the most popular time for a wakeup call.
40. 48% of Americans snoop in medicine cabinets.
41. Lassie was a "laddie" but was used for his thicker coat.
42. "Brandy" is the most common name for a female dog. (In the '90's, anyway.)
43. Visitors with knee and wrist injuries are advised not to climb the Statue of Liberty.
44. Russian law prohibits objects fabricated before 1945 from leaving the country.
45. Rain in Los Angeles has high concentrations of sulfuric and nitric acids.
46. Scientists have found that male gnats will swarm a tuning fork vibrating at a pitch of high C.
47. High C is the note that a female gnat plays when she rubs her wings together.
48. San Diego Sea World's Shamu weighs over 8000 pounds.
49. Sumo wrestling started about 23 B.C. in Japan.
50. The first Mr. America contest was held in 1939.
51. The "Ken" doll was introduced in 1961.
52. On average, female models are paid 50% more than male models.
53. Women were banned from the Japanese stage from 1629 to 1899.
54. Repeatedly shaking one's head can be a sign that a person is severly autistic.
55. Tonsurphobia is the fear of haircuts.
56. The number of twins has increased more than 30% in the past 30 years.
57. Average miles a person walks in their lifetime: 275,000
58. Average miles a person flies in their lifetime: 175,000
59. 1 in 5 Americans is functionally illiterate.
60. 60% of holiday gifts are baked.
61. Women receive on average 3 more gifts than men at Christmas.
62. And return two of them.
63. An ant can carry 10 times its weight.
64. Copernicus was the first to say that the whole world revolves around a star.
65. The average American has 8 friends.
66. 2.5 million Americans say they have no friends.
67. 1 in 3 friends think their friends can be too demanding.
68. Steven Seagal is a Buddhist who claims to be a reincarnated llama.
69. An open hydrant wastes 1000 gallons of water per minute.
70. "Ungrammatical" is a word.
71. Twisters kill 73 people in the US each year.
72. The Jaguar XJ220 is the fastest car in mass production - its top speed is 217 mph.
73. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for persons age 5-27.
74. 2 out of 5 Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related car crash during their lives.
75. An average of 115 people die in a motor vehicle accident every day.
76. A Blow Pop is 2/3 pop and 1/3 blow.
77. It takes 11 hours to drive from Cleveland to Boston.
78. The fastest car could get you from Cleveland to Boston in one hour.
79. Scalped front row tickets to a U2 concert can cost over $1000.
80. Michelle Pfieffer was Miss Orange County in 1977.

I could probably get 100 things but that's just silly. I love this show and I wish they would bring it back!!

Finally!

Okay, I feel like if I don't do this now, I'm never going to do it! I'm finally posting pictures from our youth group lock in on November 30.

So, our lock in was from 7pm to 8am. What did we do that whole time, you ask?

First of all, we played LOTS of basketball. My arms hurt for days after this lock in!!

We sat around playing the guitar and singing songs. (And no, we did not sing Kumbaya)

We had chair races:

We played "Sliders", or "Cliffhanger" with a guitar pick. This was 5:30 in the morning, and took LOTS of concentration!

But I did it!

Some kids got delirious:

Some were dragged down the hall while they were sleeping:

We played Bible Jeopardy:

Unfortunately, girls lost.

And, of course, we played tons of Dance Dance!!

People passed out wherever possible (she's right underneath the basketball goal)

I got to see the beautiful sunrise:

These are our boys:

Okay, these videos are probably pretty lame and embarrassing, but trust me... at about hour 20 of no sleep, it was hilarious!!!

#11: Go to the First Friday event in Southern Pines.

Last night, I ventured to my first First Friday event in Southern Pines. I went to Artist's Alley after work, and was thrilled as soon as I walked in the door. It was better than I thought. It seemed very homey, and everyone was so incredibly nice. Jean, the owner, was nice enough to show me around and let me take pictures. This event happens the first Friday of every month with some sort of theme. I am absolutely, definitely going back in January, so everyone is invited to go with me and Jenn!

This is where it all starts...

There are tons of interesting items for sale, such as:

Funky shoes!

Cute purses!

Gorgeous artwork!

Beautiful jewelry!

Pretty ornaments (just in time for Christmas!)

Outstanding glass artwork!

Look at these beautiful framed pictures!

Incredible pottery!

What a wide variety of stuff! These are local artists, and there is so much to choose from. I really think we should make it a point to go to more of these local events and support these people. Also, there was one time that Jenn and I went with Libba to her friend's art gallery, and the one problem there was that everything was so expensive. Here, there are things in everyone's price range. Look at the awesome ornament I got for only $6!

I only wish I hadn't had to rush through it all. We had dinner plans at Bonefish last night so I was kind of in a hurry. I can't wait to stroll through it all.

#73 - Take old cell phones to be donated.

I finally remembered to do it! Thank you, Verizon, you ARE worthwhile! I was able to take my old cell phones to be donated today while I was out for lunch with this hot chick. Just in case no one knows, you can take any old cell phones and chargers to Verizon stores (and probably other cell phone stores) and they will clear them out and set them up to call 911. They are then given to women's shelters for domestic violence victims. Just so you know, for the future.

Boo-yah!

Alright, it only took us pawing through the attic 6 times over, but we found it! So maybe the box wasn't as big as we remembered...

Anyway, we got it done, and in record time!!

Plain Tree:

Stephen working diligently:

These are our ornaments. They are smooching and talking. One is named Amanda and one is named Stephen. I mean, literally. That's what they say.

Stephen's favorite ornament (it came from mom):

Our favorite 1st Christmas (it came from my sister with good taste):

And we're all done!

Stephen refused to pose. What a Scrooge! But I will - I ain't ashamed! Now let's see if we can get the rest of the house in order.

Halt.

We interrupt this regularly scheduled decorating until we find our Christmas ornaments.

That's right, we have planned all week to decorate our Christmas tree tonight. It's not going so well, considering our tree is three feet higher than last year (all our garland and beads are too short) and we seem to have lost our ornaments. Except for Stephen's old Sesame Street ornaments. How could a huge box just disappear? If anyone has seen a huge box that may or may not say "Christmas" on the side.. we'll take it. Even if it's not ours.

101 in 1001

Okay, I can no longer resist. I am following in Jenn's footsteps and attempting to do the 101 in 1001.

The Mission:Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.
The Criteria:Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).
Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Jenn says she actually pondered over hers. Mine, I did today, and without much thought involved. I'm not sure yet if this is good or bad. Some of these are pretty far-fetched, and some are absolute freebies, but all are things I'm interested in. So, here goes!

Purchases:
1. Buy a Wii
2. Buy a dining room set
3. Buy lamps for the living room
4. Buy the movie Love Actually
5. Buy a really cheap and "fauxbulous" silver ring to match my silver jewelry instead of wearing my gold wedding ring
6. Buy one lottery ticket
7. Buy some sort of exercise machine
8. Buy a pair of close-toed shoes for work

Go:
9. Go to at least 2 concerts
10. Go to any hockey game, even if it has to be the Fire Ants (or whoever Fayetteville is)
11. Go the the First Friday event in Southern Pines
12. Go to See You At The Pole with my youth group members
13. Visit Boone again
14. Go to another Monster Truck rally
15. Go back to Las Vegas
16. Find a drive-in movie theater and go to it.
17. Go to the Georgia Aquarium
18. Go back to Pennsylvania
19. Go to a SunEvent at Sunrise Theater
20. Go to a comedy club, or see a stand-up comedian live
21. Find something to do here that I miss from Boone and always forget we have (poetry reading, lectures, play, art show, live entertainment while eating (like dad does), karaoke)
22. Visit another country (not in North America)

Movies or books:
23. Read the Dark Tower series
24. finish my crossword book, word search book, and Sudoko book that I’ve had for YEARS now
25. watch all 10 seasons of Friends
26. Finish reading my Bible for the 2nd time
27. read 3 banned books
28. Watch the Lord of the Rings series and actually give it a chance
29. Watch 5 movies of Ebert's Must See list.
30. Finish all the books that are in two paper bags in our closet.
31. Host a movie marathon.
32. watch 100 movies on my Must See list (I have 285 movies on there now)

Cooking/eating/kitchen:
33. Cook a ham
34. Eat out at the Melting Pot
35. Make yeast rolls that are fluffy and edible
36. Organize my pots and pans in the kitchen
37. Finally make crème brulee
38. cook 50 new recipes (0/50)
39. make homemade spaghetti sauce
40. find one cheesecake recipe I love; get rid of ALL OTHERS!!

Craft-ish:
41. Make back-ups of all my pictures that are online
42. Finish our photo collage
43. Make more jewelry
44. sell one of my “Todd” pictures
45. make a pocketbook
46. sell at least one crafty thing I make

Miscellaneous:
47. Mail a secret to PostSecret
48. Donate plasma
49. Get in the habit of working out
50. Start talking about children
51. Be responsible for one person getting saved
52. See Rachel
53. Spend a weekend with Nenah and Papa
54. Spend a Saturday at a local vineyard, walking and tasting
55. Get rid of all songs on my iPod that I don’t use or even realize they are on there until my youth group members are looking through and going, “What is THAT!?”
56. Make a final decision on if I will ever get a tattoo or not. (It will be itsy bitsy tiny)
57. Say no to something I would normally say yes to but feel burdened.
58. Find a part time job
59. Get a passport
60. Win a contest (I realize this is totally luck, but surely…)
61. Beat Guitar Hero (on easy, medium, and hard!)
62. Beat Dance Dance
63. DON’T be last place in the March Madness pool.
64. get my bike back into riding condition
65. bike somewhere I would normally walk to
66. Do something with friends or family at least twice a month (preferably game nights!)
67. Get waxed with Jenn, for no reason whatsoever
68. get up to level 42 on FreeRice
69. become CPR certified
70. quit hitting the snooze button
71. really understand the 2008 election and vote
72. get a library card
73. Take my old cell phones to be donated
74. Make a final decision on if I want to get my Masters or not.
75. Invite one family from our neighborhood to church
76. Improve my golf game
77. Quit complaining.
78. Memorize 20 different scriptures
79. Learn enough hymns on the piano that I could play at church
80. Dye hair – MYSELF – do not pay anyone to do it!
81. Savings account up to X amount
82. Have my eyes examined
83. Do something with Habitat for Humanity
84. Walk the dogs at Moore Humane Society
85. Go through all my stuff at mom and dad’s
86. play bocce ball in our back yard
87. try to say “yes” instead of “yeah”
88. sing with Stephen at church
89. get some sort of indoor pet
90. go one full day without looking in the mirror
91. cancel my Verizon account
92. sell all yard sale stuff
93. figure out how to look 25 instead of 16
94. finish all the herbal tea I have – don’t buy ANYMORE except Echinacea and throat coat
95. Bring my violin and clarinet to my house
96. don’t raise my voice
97. beat my time riding the mechanical bull (9 seconds)
98. learn sign language again
99. watch a meteor shower
100. complete at least 70 things on this list
101. Donate a dollar to charity for each unfinished task at the end of the 1001 days.

I might read through this list later and kick myself, but we'll see!! My list should be completed on August 31, 2010.

Well, now.

I was going to post pictures and videos from the weekend, but we're really close to going to bed. We've decorated some tonight, and now we're about to pass out and I don't think I can do a whole post before we fall asleep. But after NaBloPoMo, I feel REALLY strange not posting for a day. I'm going to have to teach myself again that it's okay not to post. Anyway, so, except pictures soon.

Edit: I actually wrote: "Anyway, so, except pictures soon." THAT'S how tired I am. So you can ACCEPT pictures soon.

Edit: I cannot believe how awful my brain is working. Will you PLEASE, for goodness SAKE, EXPECT pictures soon!?!?!

Test run

This is just to make sure I know how to insert a video. I plan on posting our lock-in pictures and videos here over this week, but there's like 100 so I don't know yet how I'm gonna do it!!

This is one example of things we did at the lock-in. This was chair racing. I'm interested to see if this video works.

Locked in but thankfully not locked up.

We had just the most absolutely insanely fun time last night. I cannot even describe what a blast we had with the youth group last night. We had our first lock-in with them last night, from 6pm to 9am. Fortunately, the principal of a local elementary school goes to our church, and allowed us to use the entire facility!!! Oh my goodness, it was so hilarious. I can't wait to post the pictures, and I hope I can figure out how to get some videos up here as well. Wooooo!! Stephen and I were the only leaders to stay up all night (go us!) and about 10 kids stayed up with us. We came home and took showers (we were SO nasty!), ate brunch, and then just completely passed out for a couple of hours. We'll go to bed early tonight and try to catch up on that sleep.



Also, Stephen reminded me this is our 8 year dating anniversary. Time flies, eh?