Well, it was nice knowing y'all

Headline in the USA Today online news:

Tanning beds now listed among top cancer risks

"LONDON (AP) — International cancer experts have moved tanning beds and other sources of ultraviolet radiation into the top cancer risk category, deeming them as deadly as arsenic and mustard gas."

Really? Because I'm pretty sure if I inhaled mustard gas or came in close contact with arsenic I would be dead within a week, if not a day or an hour. And now you're telling me that the tanning bed that I have frequently visited as a child and young adult is now going to knock me over dead because they are in fact just as deadly? RIGHT. IF this story is true, and I have no reason to doubt their research, then 7/8ths of my high school friends should all be dead right now. Or at least dying. I wouldn't know, because I ditched my 15 year reunion tonight. (For way better reasons I assure you.) My sister Kelly is, in fact, counting down to her last days. I love you Kelly!

Growing up with a swimming pool in your back yard pretty much guarenteed a tanning competition between me and my sisters. Kelly would go out for an hour and be as tan as I would be after 1 month in the sun without ever going inside. BUT- This article isn't talking about laying in the natural sunlight.... NO, this is talking about the actual tanning beds that I regularly visited to get myself a "base tan" before we went on any family vacation or at the beginning of the summer season. We reasoned it because we didn't want to get burned badly the first time we went out in the sun! I had tanning passes. My passes had passes. I bought the super duper this-lotion-will-make-you-look-like-you-just-stepped-off-the-plane-from-Tahiti. I also took that free heart sticker they have there and put it on my stomach to get a tantoo. Boy I was freakin awesome!

I wouldn't say that I have been into tanning at all since Brendan's been born. I am more worried about pre-mature wrinkles and age spots than I am cancer. There was an old Oil of Olay (or other skincare line) ad and it went like this (yes, I remember it word for word) "I do not intend to grow old gracefully. I intend to fight it every step of the way!

Now I use a self tanner that I absolutly love and I don't have to waste time laying out to be tan. Although, now and again it's nice to relax and soak in your Vitamin D.

So, are any of you going to be dead soon? Do tell.

DWTS: A totally unprofessional opinion.

Okay Cassy, you asked for it. I wanted to wait a couple weeks so that I could watch the Stars in action before I talked about it. I am totally and 100% ticked off that people are voting for Mr. Apple just because he is representing the "geeks" of the world. SO WHAT!? HE SUCKS! Jason said he looked like a gopher on the first week and now I can't look at him without thinking that. And now that Max is gone (not that Denise was any good) there is nothing great to look at. For the women at least. Oh- wait. Giles. My new boyfriend... goodbye Max, it was nice knowing you this season. I am really surprised with Melissa. She is really good. Shawn, also great. This is going to be hard to pick a favorite out of the top three this week. Everyone else can go as far as I'm concerned. I swore last season that I would quit watching if Cloris kept staying, but somehow I couldn't not watch. I feel the same with Steve Wozniak this season. I don't know if I can handle it. However, being pregnant this is a good way to count off the weeks until due date. Something to look forward to every week. Also- if there is one more dramatic ambulance scene I am going to rip my hair!
What do you all think? Who is your favorite so far?

A run in with the Animal Mafia

I have never known any organization who actively pursues people to make force them see their way. I don't know about you, but even as an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints I don't come and knock down your door and force you to see my way. That is just not the way anything works. That's the beauty of this country. No one can force you to do anything! It's all about the freedom of choice. That is, unless you piss off PeTA. Then they come after you and just like a terrorist organization they will make your life hell unless you do things their way. Bloody Fur Fashion shows anyone??

My dad works at the same Stock Brokerage firm that I do. He has been Trader all my life. In fact, he is how I first got my job. A broker at the firm needed another assistant because he was getting so busy. I worked there for several years and then eventually got licenced myself. He makes his living making money or "spreads" as a trader in the stock market. (Google it) If someone wants him to become a Market Maker for their company, and it trades well then he will normally do it. This one particular company- and I don't think he could even tell you the name of it- asked him to be a market maker. The company was based in London, and had good activity. Do we care what the company does? I'll be honest when I say that a lot of the penny stocks we deal with we have no idea what the company even does. As long as we can buy it from this guy at a price and sell it to this other guy at a different price then you can make some money. Most of the time. (a stock market lesson another time perhaps) He picked up this one particular stock first thing in the morning. The next thing we knew the phone lines started ringing like crazy and we would answer them and they would have a screeching sound on the other line, thus effectively tying up all our phone lines. A guy called our CFO at HOME and threatened his wife! They didn't know WHO was trading the stock, other than a guy named Neil. They would call and talk with another owner, of whom thought we shouldn't drop the stock just because they were bulling us to do so. They asked if they could come to the office and show a video of what this terrible company did. Apparently this company had a product for which they did animal testing. What the mafia didn't know was that this company was actually merged off and didn't even do the same thing anymore! They kept asking our firm to drop the stock. By this time our firm had called the police. The FBI had come later that day with a huge file on this guy. He was part of an animal rights group back east that was wanted for a different type of corporate terrorism. That's right... car bombings. Neil finally dropped the stock after the FBI suggested it would be best. They told us that it could have been a lot worse and to consider us lucky. Of course Neil was afraid to start his car after work that day. And I had to ride home with him!

What irks me the most is that these people can get away with this! They are using their "Freedom of Speech" rights in order to conduct this type of terrorism. All except the car bombings, of course. Does anyone else have stories about the animal crazies? Are YOU an animal crazy?? Let's discuss.