Holy crap!  It's been about a year since my last post.  I guess being gainfully employed will keep you from aimlessly rambling on about the random jetsam and flotsam that floats by during the day.  Now, I'm jobless again, and so, I'm baaaaack!  Yeah...woo!

I guess it's not a bad time to recap what's happened in the year that was.  Well, on the suck-butt side, Benghazi, Hurricane Sandy, Michael Clark Duncan died, and some disenchanted immigrants from MY OWN NEIGHBORHOOD decided to blow up the Boston Marathon (punk-asses).  Oh, and somehow I picked up whooping cough.  Yeah, I KNOW!!!

In the 'Not Great, but we'll take it!", category: Meteor exploded over Russia (more cool videos), a new less stick-up-the-butt Pope, a new British prince, and someone invented the Cro-nut (half croissant, half donut, that I've not had yet, but seriously, how could it not be awesome?).

I'm sure some awesome things happened, as well, but like all things wonderful, you won't see them on the news.

So what have YOU been doing this last year?

"Street" Art - Stony Brook Fine Arts- JP

Here is some awesome art I saw on my way to an
early morning drinking session tour of Sam Adams Brewery with my friends, the Multers! We passed the Stony Brook Fine Arts School on our way up to the brewery from the Orange line, and were amazed by these incredible sculptures!  Love the anatomically correct David!  I was also dazzled by these polar bears.

Check out the full album here.

Oh yeah, I TOTALLY recommend visiting the Sam Adams Brewery!  The tours are free and incredibly informative.  They teach you all about how they make beer and how many competitions they've won.  They're understandably proud, but the absolute best part of the tour is the tasting.  I must say I have NEVER tasted such fresh tasting beer!  It was like pure yum.  You'll never tolerate skunky yuk beer again.

After Sam Adams, we realized that we needed to keep the buzz going, so after lunch at Quincy Market, we mosey'd on over to Harpoon Brewery for it' 2pm tasting.  Again, YUM-TASTIC.  If you're not familiar, these guys make tons of different varieties, including IPA, UFO, and special "100 barrel" varieties: meaning small batch special beers.  My fav: Pumpkin UFO.  Again, super fresh (duh, they just made it...), and not crazy overwhelming with the pumpkin and spice.  Subtle.  Yeah.

So, this started about "street" art (not really street art, but visible from the street), but ended up about how my friends made me do ungodly things to my poor liver on a weekday.  Nope, not complaining!  It was an AWESOME day in Boston!

In the News: What REALLY happened

courtesy the Huffington Post

This is the first in a series of weekly news recaps.  Not the news as it is reported on CNN, FOX, etc., but as it REALLY went down.  And I gotta say....this week was a doozie!  Let's begin!

First: The failed art restoration in Spain.  Ok, after you've seen the before and after images...and you've stopped laughing, you have to think, "this is sooooooo fake!".  Yeah, nope.  It's real!  Some genius asked a reandom 80 year old parishoner to "restore" a priceless church artifact, and then was surprised when it came out looking like a capuchin monkey with a broken neck! (see Marcel from Friends ).  Seriously, the picture is so horrible, I can't even look at it anymore.  Ok, one more...*giggle* time!

What the mainstream media thinks happened: Unsupervised church worker misinterprets instructions and destroys priceless art.

What REALLY happened: 80 year old woman is going straight to hell. Seriously, they have burned people at the stake in Spain for less...

Second: Lance Armstrong has given up the fight agains doping charges.  As a result, he'll be stripped of all of his Tour de France titles and banned for life.

Um, yeah.  Everyone in the top tier of cycling dopes.  Even the men who came in second the years that he won have all been involved in their own doping scandals.  Hell, if they eliminated ALL the cyclists that have been caught or accused, they'd be forced to give the trophy to me!  Seriously, I have never doped.  Ok, maybe that one time in college...

In a nutshell, Someone long suspected of cheating decided not to deny it.  He didn't admit it, but since he already got to live the glory, and he's been retired for years anyway, he's decided to go on counting his money and throw the finger at the world.  You know, pull a Manny Ramirez!

What the mainstream media thinks happened: Another American hero, fallen from grace.

What REALLY happened: Not much, really.  It's the equivalent of hearing that there's no Santa Claus, when you're 35 years old.  If you didn't already know, well...I gotta bridge for sale, in Brooklyn.


Finally: Todd Akin: opened his mouth and his stupid ass brain fell out.  Sadly, it was moldy and could not be repaired.  I can totally respect a pro-life person who says, " I believe life begins at conception, and that abortion is murder.  Period.  Although rape and incest are horrible crimes that can and do result in unwanted pregnancies, I still hold fast in my belief that abortion is wrong." But when some old fuddy duddy starts saying things like "If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.", that's just indefensible.  Dude, you're ignorant, and should have drank a little Red Bull before dozing off during Health/Biology class!

What the mainstream media thinks happened: a pro-life Senate hopeful opened his mouth, said something stupid, and probably killed any chance of winning this upcoming election.

What REALLY happened: dumb people go far in America.  My prayer: that this dorkus malorkus does NOT get elected.  Praying REAL hard....

Now don't you feel enlightened?  I'll try to do another next week, if Hurricane Isaac doesn't wipe us all off the face of the earth in the next week. :-)

When you think things can't get worse...

Photo Courtesy of Discover Magazine

...they usually do!  

2012 has been a crazy year.  At the beginning, I thought all the Armageddon stories were just crazy talk!  But now, I'm not so sure.

Since the beginning of the year, I've seen so many of my friends, including myself, struggle.  Lost jobs, spouses, pets, relatives, self-esteem, by the bucket load.  One day, a dear friend lamented on the fact that everyone around him seemed to be struggling, then a day later, he called to tell me his brother was in the hospital, at death's door!  Fortunately, he's been stabilized, but one can't fault a person for thinking things are going to hell in a hand basket!

But, I choose to stay positive.  It's not easy, but life is hard enough.  I'm not going to help the universe hold me down.  Everytime you get knocked down, it gets a little harder to get back up, however, the alternative is staying down.  Yeah, not liking that option.  I hope and pray that 2012 gets better for everyone.  If not, please Mayans, let's get this over quick!  ;-) Just kidding.

Hand-written

These days, writing seems so quaint. Quite old fashioned, putting pen to paper. However, it also seems so much more real and authentic - an extension of your thoughts, direct from your brain, down your arm to the wrist, fingers, then out through the pen. A minute alteration of motion between your wrist and hand determines whether your words are legible or chicken scratch. Changing pressure against the pad indicates emotional swings the words are ill-equipped to convey. How differently we write when we know someone else will need to decipher our codes.

I guess I could wax poetic on the benefits of the hand-written word vs. the cold uniformity of the computer screen. Especially easy while sitting out in a sunny spot, pad & pen, scribbling away. How much easier it is to lug this pad around than my laptop. Glare is not an issue when the sun shines brightly down upon my pad. It feels right and natural, like a laptop never could. And so I write and feel and write. Ah, the old callus between my middle and ring finger on my "write" hand is long gone, but after a few minutes clutching this pen, I feel its ghost. Nothing light and gentle about my grasp.

Click HERE to see/read the handwritten original.

How HOT is it?

...Hotter than two goats in a pepper patch
...hotter than a half-bred fox in a forest fire.
...hotter than an armadillo's hide at a West Texas picnic on the Fourth of July.

You get the point! Add one in the comments!

You will do as I ask! Mouuahhh!

Nettie has the mid-summer blues. Nettie needs ideas. What should Nettie write about? On what issue would you like to know Nettie's opinion? Oh, she'll share! Obey and make a suggestion! You may be disappointed, but probably not. Nettie is pretty awesome. ;-)

Chill the F*ck Out!

Black History Month 2010 - Part Deux

Feb. 8 - I professed my love for Olivia Newton-John. Wait for it...there's a reason I mentioned this! Also, notice, my daily disciplined posting went bye-bye after day 4!

Jeff just reminded me it's day 8 of Black History Month. Remember us Black folks in New England! It's cold as heck, and we're not designed to be this far north of the equator. If you see a black person on the train, give them your scarf. Keep your hat. That's gross. Thanks!

Feb. 9 - Day 9, Black History Month. Whew, it's longer than I thought!!! Anyhooo, I've been told, recently, that black people are loud. OK, then, today, BE LOUD! Turn up your ipod really high so the guy next to you can't help but tap his foot. Call your baby daddy and tell him about himself in the middle of a crowded train. It's liberating, and generous to share your life with everyone around you.

You're welcome!


Feb. 10 - 10 days into Black History Month! Holly told me it's also Heart Month. Did you know that although African American adults are 40% more likely to have high blood pressure, they are 10% less likely than white folks to have their blood pressure under control. PUT DOWN THE SALT for Black History Month.

Feb. 11 - My first Black History Month present arrived! Jeff never lets me down!!! (it was a DVD of Xanadu (a movie starring...YOU GUESSED IT: Olivia Freakin' Newton-John, people! The pink head and wrist bands came later.)

Day 11 Black History Month. Also 02/11/11, which is 211 day in MA. Not sure what that means...gotta google it, I guess. Today, just rock it out. Back in the day, we used to have 3pm Disco Break. Someone would blast out some SexyBack from their desk, and everyone would jump up in their cube and bust a move. Try it. If you don't get fired, you'll be the office hero. Disco ball suggested, but not required.

Black History Month Extra: Do NOT start telling Yo Momma jokes around black people without FIRST asking permission. We are very sensitive about our momma's and can't be held responsible for the violence which may ensue. I'm just sayin....

Valentine's Day - Black History Month...Day 14....Celebrate Black Love today! I'm not gonna tell you how to do that. Do what feels right, and obey the laws of the community in which you reside. I don't want to see y'all on CNN tonight, you hear? ;-)

Then I got really really lazy....

March 1 1am Eastern time - Its still Black History Month in CA and AK and HI! This is your last chance to hug a black person before we turn back into pumpkins!

Thanks 4 laughing along.

Let's remember Black History Month 2010!

Now that it's March, I thought it would be fun to look back on Black History Month! Every year, I take the time to share with my non-Black friends simple ways to bring joy to the Black people in their lives during their extra special, shortest month of honor!
Here's a recap of some of the suggestions/ideas I shared for Black History Month 2010:

Feb. 1 - Woot! 1st day of Black History Month! Hug a black person today! But make sure you know them first, AND ask permission. Or else,
you may have one hell of a situation on your hands!


Inappropriate Black History Month Comments: "Yeah, I don't think of fried chicken as a black thing. That's watermelon!" "Colonel Sanders wasn't black, but the person he stole that recipe from probably was.."

Feb. 2 - 2nd day of Black History Month! Today, think of a question you always wanted to ask a black person, but were a little afraid. Ask away! I can't promise black people won't look at you funny, and walk away, muttering bad things about you, but you just don't know until you try! No questions about the n-word, though. If you don't know by now, we really can't help you. ENJOY!

BE CAREFUL: Black humor is twice as potent this month. A so/so joke nearly killed one of my coworkers. Please crack jokes with caution. You've been warned. Let's keep the Black History Month casualty list to zero this year.


Feb. 3 - Day #3 Black History Month! Whew, it seems like it began just yesterday! Today, your challenge is to watch at least an hour of programming on one of the Black-themed Networks (BET, CENTRIC, TVONE). I know you have cable, so, just flip a little further down the menu.
They are there. I recommend shows like Girlfriends and Cosby Show reruns. But Keiysha Cole's show is interesting too...

Feb. 4 - Day #4 Black History Month is all about FAMILY (i got all my sisters with me). End each call with your family members with "I Love You!" It may feel weird at first, if you're not used to doing it, but keep it up. After a while, they'll do it, too, and it'll be natural. I promise.

...TO BE CONTINUED!

Snow Angel for Jose

Disclaimer: I was neither high or drunk during this escapade. I was, however, kinda bored. Do not dare me to do things when I'm bored...

SABOTAGE!

Proof: Sammy Da Cat is not a fan of blogging....

At least he's not puking...or pooping....HE'S OLD!

Goodbye 2010, Hello 2011

It's early: 7:25am to be exact. Admirable wake up time for a weekday, but it's Sunday, and I don't go to church. Football pregame shows ae 3.5 hours away, and even the dog is in no hurry to get out of bed to do his morning business. All in all, I'm thinking it's a good time for my first post of the new year, 2011.

This isn't about RESOLUTIONS. I don't really believe in making resolutions. Truth is if I really wanted to change something, I'd wouldn't wait until the day after a night of hard drinking to embark on that journey. The one resolution that I was serious about, was actually broken on day one, soooooooo, boom: disappointment. I guess I may have had a better chance at accomplishing the goal if I had spread the word to my friends and colleagues...but I know me...seems unlikely. No biggie, as I'm working on that resolution right now. In the end of the day, it's not about keeping the new year's resolution, it's about keeping any resolution, following through with any personal goals. I think the real resolution may be, or should always be, to follow through, at least with the promises you make with yourself, especially those that will be to your benefit in the end. Hmmm, maybe this post is about resolutions after all?

Right now, it's about being up way too early. I've beat the alarm clock, and the sun isn't all the way up yet, either. It's super quiet on the street, and I feel pretty calm. Seems a good time to think back on the year. 2010 was a bumpy ride. Many changes, both for myself, and those around me. Friends got engaged, married, had kids, lost kids, went through rehab, relapsed, came to visit, moved away, got new jobs, lost jobs, grew their hair, shaved their heads, had surgery, went into remission, came into my life, drifted out. Some of these things, I learned via Facebook, but I think it's a win for me,that most of these events, I did experience, and/or witness in the real world, through face to face interaction. As much as I love being online, I'd quit it in a heartbeat if I thought it put distance between myself and the actual people represented by those avatars. Some people put it all out there in their profiles: deaths, divorces, disappointments, beefs (both urgent and trivial), as well as births, marriages, joys, and loves (both urgent and trivial), HOWEVER, there are still those who keep the most important milestones for select transmission: only to be shared with those close enough to meet up with over a beer, or a delicious bowl of pho (or chicken tikka masala, depending on the friend). I was blessed enough to have quite a few of those interactions, as well, this year. A cyber poke is a sad substitute for a real bear hug, or a kiss on the cheek from a dear dear friend. Though, I'd never resolve to remove myself from online endeavors, I would make a promise to follow through with the promise to increase the amount of offline interactions with my friends, especially those living here in the same dangburned city as I do!

While I've been typing, the street has begun to stir, though it's pretty cloudy, I think the sun is pretty well up above the horizon, and my dog has just barked at his first passerby...and shows signs of being ready to go outside for his morning constitutional. Even Sammy da cat is giving himself a cat bath. Pregame show is still 3 hours away. Nettie is ready to go boom again, in 2011. LHM. :-D

Nettie Thinks...

• Saw photo of Bret Michaels and Mama Cyrus, and couldn't tell one from the other. Think I'm joking? See for yourself (tanorexics!!!)
• Why are people trippin' over Kevin Garnett verbal jabs during a game? Obviously people are a little unclear on the concept of TRASH talk...
• TV question: Why isn't G4 on DirecTV anymore? Sure, most of their programing was lame-o, but NINJA WARRIOR, PEOPLE!!! I need my Ninja Warrior. Also, Sister Wives? Really? Who the hell green lit that train wreck? Let me stop, I haven't, nor will I ever watch that dreck. TLC, new low.
• Why do they show national election coverage when there's no Presidential election? Why do I need to know which teabag....I mean Tea Party candidate was elected in Kentucky? Doesn't REALLY matter who ends up in Congress. Special Interests run the show anyway. We don't get to vote on that!

Those are my thoughts of the day. Nothing particularly deep or important.

Time to Start Over AGAIN!!!

I've picked up my toys and left the room so many times, I've lost count. Obviously, I don't know what the heck I'm doing. So, I'm reaching out to you, my friends, coworkers, and probably a stranger or two! Basically, I'm in a RUT! If you look at my relationships, finances, living situation, etc. you'll notice, not a hell of a lot is DIFFERENT in my life than it was TEN YEARS AGO!!! That's WHACK!

I need help... Advice... A kick in the pants! What do I need to be doing that I'm NOT already doing to move forward (in your opinion)? I'm don't know what I need to break out of this funk, so I'm doing what we should all do: Leaning on my friends!

Holler at me on Facebook or Twitter @hotnettie.

Lemme have it!!!

Bells ringing in Salzburg Austria

NO HOMO PART 2

I love Twitter. So many ways to be entertained. I told you in a previous post about the NO HOMO phenomenon. It's where someone says something that might be even remotely construed as "gay" , but affirms their raging heterosexuality by throwing the words "NO Homo" on the end. Once it was brought to my attention, I immediately searched the term on Twitter to see how it was being used by other netizens. It's nice to see some Tweets making fun of the phrase...like these:

"Everytime I tell my pops tht I luv him, I feel like I have to add "no homo" @ the end."

"When this guy says "No homo" they all just nods their heads like everything's okay. I would seriously point and laugh at the guy."

"Not cuz Im hatin, just bein honest! Sayin "no offence" after that is like sayin "no homo" after u get caught ……imma let u fill in the blanks"

"Did this dude just say "no homo" before eating a hotdog.. #takingittoofar"

And many are still using it incorrectly. Like these dumbasses:

"R.I.P To Da Fajitas I'm Bout To Kill!! (No-Homo)"

"I have sex like 1nce a month too much sex is not good for my brain no homo"

"Everytime I tell my pops tht I luv him, I feel like I have to add "no homo" @ the end."

"I'll have 1 tall caramel macciato no-homo. Thanks. "

Don't forget to Wear Purple tomorrow to support Gay teens.

Dogs are Berlin's babies

German German Shepherds. Doerte says they have more dogs in Berlin than babies! I can attest to seeing A LOT of dogs.

Green Bay Escapees

Kid you not, I was behind a car on I 95 today, and one of the passengers was wearing a cheesehead cowboy hat. Seriously! I tried to get a pic with my cell camera but couldn't get close enough. Yes, it was as odd as you would imagine. It's not even Sunday, people!

Scabs part 2

I peeled it. Stupid. :-(