It's fun to make fun of the Kansas coach, but they are 10-0 for the first time since Kansas started hanging up peach baskets and throwing leather balls through them. Yes, leather balls through peach baskets, Mr. Naismith. There is a certain sportswriter, Dennis Dodd for CBS Sportsline, that says "Right now, Kansas is the clear No. 1." He touts proudly the fact that there are 3 Big 12 teams in the BCS top 6. What a jerk. Do you even watch television on Saturdays? Can you open your eyes? But back to coaches eating players. That is funny.

The number 121 has three factors: 1, 121, and 11. Tony Hawk was on that crazy show about being fifth graders at answering questions. Questions that you haven't even thought of since the fifth grade. For example ... How many factors does the number 121 have? Or, directly from the mouth of an eight-year-old ... What continent is Estonia on? Who knew that the man that contributed "You might be a redneck" jokes to the world would one day host a show about being smarter than fifth graders. I love how he reasons with the adults in between questions. I love how they glance over at the fifth graders.

Speaking of fifth graders, do you know Stephen Compston? Well, he lives in Colorado. If you talked him during the world series you might have heard that he considered, perhaps, maybe, stopping his crazed love for the Boston Red Sox. Old Mr. Fenway would roll over in his grave. You may know them as the BoSox (as opposed to ChiSox), or just plain, the Sox. Depending on your age, you may know them as the The Old Towne Team or the pre-1908 "Boston Americans." Or, from the mouth of babes, the 2007 World Champions. To think that the "Curse of the Bambino" was lifted because of the pining of a young fan in Arkansas is now a joke to me. I publicly challenge Stephen's so-called "commitment," for I've a bone to pick.

Speaking of bones, I had some toothbones cut out of head a couple weeks back. Thanks for all of you (more like none of you) that brought me soup and ice cream. I ended up having a weekend, or Saturday-to-Monday, as British people said in films in the 40's, full of college football, David Fincher films, and CPA studying. I am slowing, but surely, healing thanks to my lovely, caring wife, a nucleus of caring, Bible-believing Christians, and a syringe (a simple hand-powered piston pump consisting of a plunger that can be pulled and pushed along inside a cylindrical tube, known as the barrel, which has a small hole at the end , so it can suck liquid in and then squirt it out by the same hole) for cleaing food out of the holes that remain in my head.

Speaking of hand-powered pistons, God told me in a dream that the 2007-2008 Detroit Pistons would win the NBA Finals, the whole sh-bang, shoot the moon, if you will. Now, this divine knowledge was planted in my toothbone-hole of a head for a reason. To win lots of money gambling on this knowledge. But now that I've told you, or, rather, I've typed it on a screen and you've read it on a screen (funny how that works), the odds of gambling my way into retirement are diminished. What a might God we serve. I type that on this screen in a sincere manner.

Speaking of manners, I wouldn't have any unless I left you with a list of movies that I've seen in the last month that I do highly recommend (listed in chronological order, because it is logical to list them this way, in chronological order that is, in case you were confused about which way I was propositioning to be logical - oh, thank goodness that is cleared up):

Kind Hearts and Coronets, dir. Hamer (1949)
Strangers on a Train, dir. Hitchcock(1951)
The Night of the Hunter, dir. Laughton (1955)
Zodiac, dir. Fincher (2007)
The Darjeeling Limited, dir. Anderson (2007)
Michael Clayton, dir. Gilroy (2007)

Thanks for reading. Well, you wouldn't be reading unless I was typing, and I wouldn't be typing unless I knew you were reading, and I wouldn't know you were really reading unless we talked about it later. And we wouldn't talk about it later unless we talked later. And there wouldn't be a later unless I stopped typing. But seriously, thank you for reading. I wish this whole thing made me, in some way, feel like I was better friends with you, but these keys are cold, and they don't talk. And you don't talk either.

"It is so difficult to make a neat job of killing people with whom one is not on friendly terms." - the actor Dennis Price, as Louis Mazzini, in Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), voted the best British comedy in the history of the world by some crazy consumers of BBC media, a world news organization, of which representatives spent this current week in Springdale, AR doing a piece on Mexicans in the area. That's what they call news bits on BBC, "pieces." I think.

It's fall! I really like the cold and rainy weather that we have had the last couple of days.

This is funny and slightly disturbing at the same time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMnk7lh9M3o

We are watching the World Series. I am interested.
Adam is getting his wisdom teeth out tomorrow. I am making soup!

This update is probably not everything that you were hoping it to be. sorry. Actually, no one probably even reads this, so I guess everything is A- okay and I am not sorry.

happy halloween everyone. eat lots of candy.

Who can own a tree? Who can own a rock? Only the Great Spirit.

To better deliver my point, I will quote Sandra Bullock's character, Annie, in the 1997 film Speed 2: Cruise Control, "Who's ready to party on the big boat besides me?"

That is the feeling that Meredith and I have as we prepare to embark on our seven day journey through the Caribs. The Lesser Antilles won't know what hit 'em when they see Captain Argo, his wife, and their Argonaut sailors pillage their port authority, torches in hand.

They'll feed on the roe of sturgeon all night long, and after they're popped full of one too many hors d'oeuvres, they'll try their luck with some morning Bingo aboard the Queen of the Sea, the Carnival Conquest!

'Twas caviary to the general," the general public, that is.

the gift that keeps on giving

I went to Rick's Bakery today because I had found an old gift card that I received freshman year and I wanted a study break. I didn't know how much was on the card, but I though it was surely enough to have a muffin, donut, cookie, etc. For some reason or another, they couldn't figure out how much was left on my card. I told them that I had thought it was worth $5 when given to me, and I couldn't remember what I had bought on it. The manager man said "Let's just make it ten." He put $10 on the card, and gave it back to me. I bought a cake in a cup. And now I still have eight dollars left on the thing.
:D
I kind of want to go to bonnaroo. But, instead I think I will be trying to pass my boards.

*edit* I don't feel too good now after eating that entire cake in a cup. But I think it was still worth it- eating all of its' tasty goodness.

I am trying to grow dill, parsley, basil, cilantro, and jalapeno peppers. So far, they seem to be doing pretty well. I am amazed though, because I have no experience at all with growing things.
Our fish, Trexler and Charlie, are alive and well. I am so glad because they are our only pets. :)
I feel like we are almost responsible adults now! We are keeping our plants and fish alive and we are about to graduate and move.

Dining table with 4 chairs

Meredith and I are selling our dining table and 4 chairs on eBay!

..and grace my fears relieved!

This was a really wonderful movie.



I am in Jonesboro right now, away from my husband. I am ready to be back in Fayetteville with him.
I also had to get two fillings today. I have always been a person of pride when it comes to my teeth. I never have cavities, and never have to get fillings. I went to the dentist yesterday and was told that I had two "potential" cavities and that I needed to get them filled. The entire right side of my face was numb/paralyzed for the better part of the day. I'm sure I was an amusing sight trying to carry on conversations with people.

energy-saving

I found an article about saving energy in a magazine. There was this energy-saving checklist in the article, and while it is some of it is too expensive for us to follow at this point, it is still interesting and something that we can work towards.

-Instead of setting your thermostat to 70 degrees in the winter, set it to 65 degrees. (save $80-$100 per year)

-Instead of setting your water heater to 130 degrees, set it to 120 degrees. (save $15 per year)

-Instead of using a 75-watt incandescent lightbulb, use an 18-watt CFL lightbulb. (save 4 cents/hr, or about $88 per year if bulb is lit for 6 hrs perday)
-Instead of using a traditional computer monitor, use an LCD monitor. (save $20 per year)

-Instead of washing clothes on a hot/warm cycle, switch to a warm/cold cycle- or better yet, cold/cold cycle. (save 10 cents a load)

-Instead of washing several times a week, wash and dry your clothes back to back in one stint. (save $1 a session, or $52 per year)

-Instead of using a top-loading clothes washer, use a front-loading washer.(save as much as 40 cents a load)

-Instead of using a pre-1993 refrigerator, use a new Energy-Star rated refrigerator. (save $120 per year)

-Instead of rinsing dishes before placing them in the dishwasher, load dishes into the dishwasher as they are. (save 6,500 gallons of water or $30 per year on average)

-Instead of leaving gaps in your ductwork, seal your loose house "shell." (save $300 per year)

There are obviously so many more things than are on this list, but I just thought it was interesting, and can you imagine if everyone made an effort...how much energy and- not to mention- money would be saved?

We went camping this past weekend. It was cold. But it was a great time.

Contest madness continues!

Ladies and gentlemen, it's every basketball fan's favorite time of year: MARCH! March means the SEC Basketball Tournament and the NCAA Basketball Tournament.

2007 SEC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT CONTEST

Moments ago, the SEC tournament bracket was released and I want to see who can pick the winning teams.

Click here for details and to enter.

NCAA tournament contest will be put on hold until the bracket is released on Slection Sunday (March 11).

Grand prize winner...

Stephen Compston, Oskar Winner

Congratulations, Stephen Compston

And the winners of the Oskar Contest are ...

1. Stephen Compston (17 points)
2. Adam Argo (14 points)
3. James Miller (13 points)
James Bushey (13 points)
Andrew Dodson (13 points)
6. Todd Habiger (12 points)
Meredith Argo (12 points)
8. John Schellhase (11 points)
Jessica Bridges (11 points)
Andrew Poole (11 points)
Crosby Hipes (11 points)
Kendall Moss (11 points)
13. Sawyer Beaton (10 points)
14. Spencer Lee (9 points)
15. Jacob Martinka (6 points)
16. Jon Anderson (5 points)

Here were Stephen's picks, I think he cheated:
bestpicture: The Departed (2006): Graham King
bestactor: Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland (2006)
bestactress: Helen Mirren for The Queen (2006)
bestsupportingactor: Alan Arkin for Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
bestsupportingactress: Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls (2006)
bestdirector: Martin Scorsese for The Departed (2006)
bestoriginalscreenplay: Michael Arndt for Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
bestadaptedscreenplay: William Monahan for The Departed (2006)
bestcinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki for Children of Men (2006)
bestediting: Thelma Schoonmaker for The Departed (2006)
bestartdirection: Nathan Crowley, Julie Ochipinti for The Prestige (2006)
bestcostume: Milena Canonero for Marie Antoinette (2006)
bestmusic: Gustavo Santaolalla for Babel (2006)
bestsong: Henry Krieger, Willie Reale("Patience") for Dreamgirls (2006)
bestmakeup: David Martí, Montse Ribe for Laberinto del Fauno, El (2006)
bestsound: John T. Reitz, David E. Campbell, Gregg Rudloff, Walt Martin for Flags of Our Fathers (2006)
bestsoundediting: Alan Robert Murray, Bub Asman for Flags of Our Fathers (2006)
bestvisualeffects: Mark Stetson, Richard R. Hoover, Neil Corbould, Jon Thum for Superman Returns (2006)
bestanimatedfeature: George Miller for Happy Feet (2006)
bestforeignfilm: Laberinto del Fauno, El (2006)(Mexico)
bestdocfeatures: Davis Guggenheim for An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
bestdocshorts: Ruby Yang, Thomas Lennon for The Blood of Yingzhou District (2006)
bestshortanimated: Roger Allers, Don Hahn for The Little Matchgirl (2006)
bestshortlive: Ari Sandel for West Bank Story (2005)

Stephen, send me a picture of you so I can put it here for a week.

Oskar Contest 2007

Hey peoples. If you plan on entering the Oskar Contest, you only have until tomorrow (Sunday) at 6:59pm CST. There have been 15 entries to date. I'd like for there to be at least 5 more to make it 20. You know who you are.

Oskar Contest

when two hearts race, both win.

-dove chocolate wrapper

Tomorrow is my last day at the elementary school where I work! Or, 'have clinicals,' I guess I should say. But I should be getting paid..all in the name of education, right? haha, even though it doesn't sounds like it, I love it there and will miss it very much when I do not go anymore.

There is a movie called 'The best years of our lives' that we watched the other night. I think that it is a great movie. It was touching, sincere, sweetly funny, and it is about three different soldiers who come home from WWII and their families.

I hope everyone is having a great week. Adam is excited that you have been entering his contest.

We love you all.

Adam Argo's Oskar Contest 2007

*Update 2/20* There have been a total of 13 unique entries to the contest to date. 5 days to go.


click here to enter, play, and win!

and, if you'd like to stimulate interest,
post a link on your own blog.

p.s. am i allowed to enter my own contest? the contest outcome is completely independent of my capability, power, and authority. i think i should be allowed to if i post my entry to the general public prior to the official oskar winners announcement has been made via the telecast. i would be interested in your comments.

Man and Wife: It had to be you ...

Happy Valentine's Day

(It's snowing.)

We can make it better ... pull ourselves together ...

Today, I went to the Washington County Courthouse, walked through a metal detector, and assessed my Honda. The clerk handed me a pink slip of paper, steered me down the hall, past the guards, and to the tax officer, where a teller stamped my pink piece of paper and directed me to the Revenue office on Razorback Road. There, I paid for the sales tax, license plate/tags, and registration on the Honda. Ellen was the sweet little lady that helped me there. She and I discussed how when we were children, we didn't give much thought to taxes and couldn't wait until we were "all grown up, because then there would be lots of money everywhere and no bed times." I agreed with a chuckle as I listened to the sound of my hand tearing a check from the book. "Thanks, Ellen, have a nice day." Now, I am an adult.

A gentle touch speaks volumes.

It's raining, it's pouring, the old man is snoring

Give a listen: Beirut Lon Gisland EP

I can't tell you how impressed I am by Mr. Beirut, Zach Condon. He's 20 years old, and he's from New Mexico, but now lives in New York. 20!

This is my new car. It's raining so you get a shot from the balcony. It's a 2002 Honda Accord LX. I am excited about it. Freddy Argo went through a lot to help me buy it.

Have a great week.

"Writer's Block," seriously, dude.

It's Friday night and we're going to the movie store. I laugh more often now.










Domestic life has been good to us.










Ginger cookies. A little baking soda goes a long way. Don't forget the molasses.

Albums I have recently listened to (alphabetical by artist):
Air Pocket Symphony
Animal Collective Here Comes the Indian, People EP, Prospect Hummer EP, Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished, Sung Tongs
Arcade Fire, The Neon Bible
Beirut Gulag Orkestar
Cat Power The Greatest
Coleman, Ornette Sound Grammer
Deerhoof Friend Opportunity
Deerhunter Cryptograms
Dylan, Bob Modern Times
Explosions in the Sky All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone
Knife, The Silent Shout
Loney, Dear Loney, Noir
Long Winters, The Putting The Days To Bed
Magnolia Electric Co. Fading Trails
Malkmus, Stephen Face The Truth
Menomena Friend and Foe
mewithoutYou Brother, Sister
Mountain Goats, The Get Lonely
Music From The Motion Picture, Barry Lyndon
Newsom, Joanna Ys
Of Montreal Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
Panda Bear Person Pitch, Young Prayer
Peter Bjorn And John Writer's Block
Rolling Stones, The Beggars Banquet, Exile On Main Street, Sticky Fingers
Shapiro, Sally Disco Romance
Shins, The Wincing The Night Away
Soft Drugs, The In Moderation, Family Of Four
Spektor, Regina Begin to Hope
Springsteen, Bruce Nebraska
Van Dyke Parks Song Cycle
Various Artists Eccentric Soul: The Deep City Label
Yo La Tengo Electr-O-Pura
Young, Neil Prairie Wind
Ward, M. End of Amnesia

Ok. This is number zero, Gary Ervin, shooting the 2. This shot goes in. But that's my head to the right of the basketball. Adam Argo. Front page of the sports section. Right there. Bud Walton Arena. Third row. Boo yah.

today.

7:00- I thank the Lord for the hot water in my shower and for my husband who loves me.
8:00- I arrive at Vandergriff Elementary School. My nurse is not in a good mood, but I feel like I am going to have a pretty good day.
9:15- I teach 120 5th graders about scoliosis and tell all of the girls that they will be getting tested next week. I am able to command their attention fairly well and they listen to me intently. Their reactions to the video are priceless. They all ask me good questions at the end, which hopefully will give me some "good job" points in my instructor's eyes. :)
12:00-I really love these children. After spending so much time talking with them and with my nurse, I have learned many of their stories, and my heart both breaks and fills with love for them.
1:30- An autistic boy in the 5th grade comes to the office in tears because he is scared that he has scoliosis. I almost cry because he is so worried possibly due to something that I had said, and I take him to the back room and check him so that I can help calm his fears. I desperately just want to hold him and tell him it is ok. I want to hold all of them. Everytime one of them comes in, crying over something that is seemingly tearing them apart, I want to hold them.

There are so many children here that need someone to show them love, and what the love of the Father looks like and feels like. I pray that just for the small amount of time that I see them, I can convey that love to them and that they will know there is a Father who loves them more than any person on this earth ever will.

Bob Dylan's "The Man in Me" covered by David Bazan

This is a photo of my fingerprints, for which I paid $5. I am also going to have to pay $47 for a background check to prove that I am not a criminal, in order for me to become a nurse. I hope they don't find out about that time in 1988 when I snuck into Die Hard at the Malco in Jonesboro.





This is a picture of me visiting the coffee mecca earlier this evening. This FLAVIA machine is full of delicioius choices to choose from and is sure to whett the curiosity of the most keen coffee drinker. Even Adam, my coffee loving husband, enjoyed the visit. Thank you, The Cliffs, for not spending all the money you had in erecting the icey ziggurat.

This is evening is full of much cajolery.

Blackgammon

It doesn't bother me that Spencer and I spent the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl playing Backgammon. Because, as John noted after Prince's light show finished, we "got what we came for." I promise this is not a blog about board and card games, but if it were, I would be okay with that. This game is so new and foreign to me, but I love it. You roll the dice, move the pieces, put your opponent "on the bar," and try to move off all of your pieces before your opponent can move her's. The pieces are called "checkers," and each move is called a "pip." So try not to lose all of your pips, genius. Here is a picture of the set I receive for my birthday.

I want to rent Antoniono's 1975 film, "The Passenger." It was re-released recently and The Movie Gallery (of all places) has a copy of the DVD to rent.
Meredith and I have been drinking a lot of tea lately. It's a nice change from coffee for a little while. My favorite kind is Bigelow's Green Tea with Lemon.

NCAA Basketball is heating up. It's February, so that means March Madness is right around the corner. After a disappointing display of turnovers Saturday, the Razorback's tough loss to Kentucky at home, Arkansas have put themselves in a situation that will be an uphill road to 65 from here on out. It may even be an uphill road to the NIT for that matter. We playhost the Auburn Tigers in Walton Arena on Wednesday night. Ticketholders with seats to spare usually stick their extras on the wall outside Bud Walton. I may take my chances with that plan. If not, LFS will have coverage of the game on the ol' ears. Until then, I've got to read some Business Law.

Why not help me do it?

As you can see, the red peg (Adam) is all the way to the right. The green peg (Meredith) is lagging far behind. Yes, I have won the championship outright: 7 games to 3. Cribbage. A gentleman's game. A game not to be associated with riff-raff games played in taverns and boat dock shacks. No, it is a riff-game played by white-collar workers in country club bars. A game shared by pharmacists, lawyers, and doctors while smoking cigarettes after retiring from their practice. A game played every Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas by Argo families far and wide. "The stink hole is a dark place. It's a dirty shame," Bill Argo would say. And that is exactly where he'd leave you.

vandergriff is fun-deriff

Today, I got to take care of sore throats, hurting tummies, itchy eyes, headaches, and one bloody lip. I took many temperatures, and even managed to explain what "engaged" means to a 5 year old who told me that I looked awesome after she rearranged my hair. (She asked me this after a series of questions about the two rings on my finger.)

I like taking care of people. and playing with kiddies.

School is going to be hard this semester, but hey..I'm on my way out. "It's all in how you handle it."

a lot to be thankful for.

It is an icy day, but our hearts are warm and we are blessed.

Adam's birthday was on the 7th, and I made a chocolate cake!

Our friends are wonderful to us, and our lives are all the more merrier with them around. Thank you, friends. We love you.

We recieved a digital camera for Christmas, so hopefully we will liven up this blog with a few pictures every now and again.

Happy 2007 everyone!

I need to make a list!

• Spades
  
• BCS
  
• Modelo Especial
  
• Patrick Beverly
  
• Samsung
  
• Auditing
  
• "W.F.A. 8-1-81" Measuring tape
  
• Little Rock, AR
  
• Carnival
  
• Cribbage
  
• President Bush speech
  
• Billy Wilder
  
• Work Schedule
  
• ERI
  
• Hog Haus
  
• Lawrence, KS
  
• Explosions In The Sky
  
• Taxes
  
• NCAA Tournament
  
• Indianapolis
  
• David Lean
  
• John Norwood
  
• $545.00
  
• Amtrak
  
• According to Jim
  
• Treadmill
  
• "Drop trow"
  
• Olives