I got a package from Sephora a short while ago (gift card for Christmas) but I think my rabbits appreciate the package more than I did. I was pretty damn excited, but they are having a blast because I gave them all the packing tissue from the box. I haven't heard the rip-rip-riiiiiipping stop since.

I am LOVING, capital-letter-style, bareMinerals Matte. I'm not exactly a girly girl, but this makeup makes me very happy. I also love the fact that this company distinguishes between "ghostly pale" and "general North/Western European-heritage pale ruddy skin". I have to wear the palest shade of most other brands, which tends to wash me out or be TOO pink, because the second-palest shade always has too much gold/brown to it and I end up looking like a Jersey Shore wannabe. PALE AND PINK != GOTHERRIFIC, GOT IT? I also got the hydrating mineral veil, instead of the original, and I will see how the two compare.

I'm not excited about the fact that one of the free samples -- a men's cologne that I didn't order and am not sure what to do with -- was leaking and now I reek of it. The bad memories this inspires are making me want to go scrub myself to death.

I would like to applaud today's UPS delivery driver, as he is the first to have ever bothered to ring the effing doorbell. Hunting down packages at the distribution center because I didn't hear a delivery man barely tap on my door is a pain in my ass and I'm glad I didn't have to do it this time.

Just because someone wasn't beaten to death, shot, carved up, etc. does NOT mean that they died from natural causes of any kind. It is absolutely ridiculous to hear/read this phrase with regards to someone dying very young of no outwardly obvious foul play. If Brittany Murphy died of a heart attack, that is still not a natural cause for a 32-year-old woman.

Today I'm reading reports that one of the Johnson & Johnson heirs died at 30 and it's again being touted as "natural causes". Excuse me, but this woman was known to have done a lot of drugs, she was Type 1 diabetic and displayed tons of outward psychologically disturbing behavior. I had no idea who this person was, but a quick Google search will show anyone both reputed and tabloid sources saying all of this ad nauseum. This means that while her death is at a shockingly young age, it's really not all that surprising.

There's obviously nothing natural about either of these situations I've mentioned and I'm sick of PR personnel dumbing things down like this. A drug overdose is not a natural cause, damage ravaged on the body due to a combination of drugs and diabetic non-compliance (not adhering to strict use of diet and insulin) is not natural, even deprivation of proper care of one's body due to psychological deficits is still not natural. This phrase is used deceivingly as a blanket term and I don't like it.

What's funny is that both of these autopsies are now waiting for the full toxicology screening results, but the deaths have already been referred to as having been from NATURAL CAUSES. I'm sorry, but I think I'd prefer to label a situation once all the facts are in. What if either of these women had been poisoned? What if either had died from shock due to toxin exposure?

I could bitch about semantics all day, but ultimately I think it's a disrespect to the person who has died to soften the details of their death with words that don't really describe the situation at hand. Young women dying, even if by their own unintended destruction, is highly unnatural in general and I find that the verbal tip-toeing takes something away from the seriousness of the matter.

To those of you crazy enough to want to stand in Times Square with less than a square foot of personal space in 20F weather and sleet: Party on, Garth. It'll be like a giant frozen petri dish! Rhinovirus and swine flu for all! Hooray!

(That rant started as a comment to a friend and ended up being my full sentiment for tonight. Sorry if you're reading it for the second time!)

I hope like hell that 2010 is better than 2009 was. To that end, I'll stop verbally pissing on the partygoers and say HAPPY NEW YEAR. You know, with an hour and 10 minutes left in this one.

♥ to all!

Time is your most precious gift, you only have a set amount of it. Time is your life. That is why the greatest gift you can give someone is your time.

Normally I always celebrate at home with the kids and as they got older, their friends. I also invite my friends and their kids. I make alot of snack type food, like little sausages and cheesball, summer sausage and crackers, chips and dip, mushroom roll ups and such..
I have always had sparking cider for the kids, and champagne for the adults, {the cheap kind} although now mine want to drink the real champagne...
But we do fireworks most of the night, esp at midnight and also watch the New Year come in all over the world on TV...We also watch football if there are games on, and New Years Day we watch football all day also.
I do call most everyone who is not here and tell them happy New Year..Sometimes I wait and call New Years Day if I am drunk...LOL champagne gets me FAST.
That's the plan for this New Year's eve.
I think it is interesting to see what everyone else does.....

"Wishing you a joyous Holiday Season and a most prosperous and Healthy New Year"