better than just staring at the screen, I suppose

Will I ever again have anything even remotely interesting to say? Doesn’t look promising. And there’s no avoiding writing tonight by posting a zillion pictures instead, as I’m on dial up. Yet I feel like I have to write something. Otherwise I’m going to have to get off the couch, and that will mean disturbing the cat. And if I disturb the cat she’s going to decide she wants out and then she’s going to decide she wants back in and then she’s going to immediately decide she’d really rather be out and as soon as she’s out she’ll decide she wants in again… etc.

And it’s my last chance for an entry this weekend, as we’re going to be away again, for the third weekend running. I don’t foresee internet access, unless my parents surprise me with a shiny new wireless connection. Also not too promising, as they have no computer. It hasn’t been all that long since they parted with their rotary dial phone.

We’re actually going to Morganton first, sadly to a funeral. Baker B’s aunt died yesterday, and the funeral is tomorrow. She was 94 and in very bad health so it was no surprise, but now his mom is the only surviving sibling out of eight kids. He wants to spend the night with her, and I’d already sworn to my father that we’d spend the weekend with them, and pick up the Outback he got us. He was quite disappointed that we couldn’t make it down last weekend, when we went on our Second Charleston Vacation In Two Weeks instead. So we’re going to M’ton in the morning, going to the funeral at 3, Baker B will then drive me to Asheville, leave me there, and go back to M’ton, and I’ll drive the Outback home Sunday. As usual, it’s a maze of plans.

Since I have nothing to say – other than those last three paragraphs, of course – I’ll do this OD survey swiped from Seafarer:

1.  When did you start your present OD? October 19, 2001. I guess that one counts as my "present" one. That was on the original "Free OD" not long before the coming of Not-Free OD and all the accompanying strife and trauma that ensued when the two OD’s split and it wasn’t all seamless and integrated like it is now. Free and Not Free were like separate sites and Free OD was pretty much blocked from even visiting Not Free OD. I think I changed to Not Free after six months or so on Free. At the time it was kind of traumatic – there were virtual wars between the riff-rafff and the hoity-toity. I kept two journals for awhile, one free and one paying, because I didn’t want to lose all my non-paying friends. Finally, though, the sites merged.

Bet you weren’t expecting an OD History Lesson.

2.  Have you had a previous OD? I believe I pretty well covered that in the previous question.

3.  If so, what was your OD name? I kept the same name. Which actually was SwordfishT. I switched to Edna Million later on. Same diary, name change. Not interesting enough to go into.   

4.  How many entries have you written in your present OD?

895 total. Public-831    Private-60    Favs only- 4

And all the private ones are stuff like saved surveys and notes about things I want to write about.

5.  Have you ever left a nasty, critical, or unfriendly note? No, although I have to admit I’ve been tempted a few times. I like to avoid Diary!Drama, though. And I’m really not a nasty note kind of person.

6.  Have you ever received a nasty, critical or unfriendly note? Very few. I can only think of two – and I can’t even remember what the first one was. It was from someone I didn’t know. Then I had an unsigned note letting me know that my profile picture looked like an ass. Which was a little perplexing, as it was that cool arty multicolored glass sculpture thing with all the swirly pointy bits which no matter how I looked at it, wasn’t the least bit ass-like. Perhaps the noter was from the Planet of Peculiarly Shaped Asses, though.

7.  Have you ever met another OD writer? I’ve met Smile and Sideler – and of course Cousin E, who I’ve known my entire life. I think I’ve answered this question very recently. I hope I didn’t do this survey like, last week. That  would be embarrassing.

8.  Have you ever been in contact with another OD writer by email or telephone? Several by email; Cousin E by both.

9.  How many OD’s are on your FAVORITES list? SEVENTY ONE. That’s just nuts. And I just pruned it by five or six. No wonder I can never catch up. Of course, I have a lot of faves who don’t update much. And some people are on there just because I like to check in on them every few years.

10.  On your favorites list, what is the date of the oldest entry that hasn’t been followed by another entry. Oddly enough, I have the same two as Seafarer at the bottom of my list – 10/30/04: Chuck, AKA Queen Blather, the OD Institution who died and I just can’t bring myself to delete him, and then the Diary Mistress on 11/10/04.

11.  Have you ever deleted an OD entry of yours for any reason? Not an actual entry. I’ve deleted notes and saved surveys.

12.  Have you ever written a FAVORITES ONLY or PRIVATE  entry?  Already discussed.

Oh, that’s it – how sudden. Good timing, I need to get off the computer. NOW.