I am testing out w.blogger, since the interface in Moveable Type does not give the the ability to easily to do this, _this, or ^this.

And to have link open in a new window.

Texas played Mizzou at Missouri. We were not able to line up a sitter, so we watched it from home. I really hate watching Texas play when we are at home. We are more comfortable and my husband is more comfortable in expressing his dissatifaction. Add to that two young girls who don't understand when to not ask questions. I was ready to go run some "important" errands with the girls. We made it through and the 2nd quarter Texas did better and so did we.

I can not believe how in tune my girls are. Oldest told me at half time that the refs were not watching the game and did not give us our points. She picked this up from my husband and I talking about some close plays that could should of been touchdowns and were not reviewed.

I ended up not watching most of the game since it is not the same as being there. At least I don't have to put up Mizzou's logo on my blog!

Updated: Favoritism in play, I will let my hubby have the last word. Comments now closed.

~~~~~~~~

I forgot it, but today I was reminded that I don't like conflict. Let me clarify, conflict can be good..... Let me give you a prime of example of what I don't like. Now I will admit up front that I am writing about this on my blog for selfish reasons. I would like for people to comment and say stuff like "Dang, that was not very nice." or "I hate when people act like that also." But if I don't get that response and I get something like "You are just being a whiny baby." or "They are TOTALLY right so I don't know what your big deal is!", I am OK with that. I will take this as a venting post.

So the story begins with my stumbling on a link that made fun of the BCS rankings. (Many opinions here about it not being fair.) I tracked back. Then someone commented on my post with "Steers & Queers baby." An insult given to Texas fans quite often. I wondered who was saying it and figured out it was someone who comments on Annika's site, but does not have a blog. I went on to read the comments on the BCS post and the commenter was commenting about how Ohio State dominated Texas.

One good this did come from this. Annika has a cool blog.

Note to self: Don't cross with people you don't know.

Sissy has turned over her blog to a few of us while she is moving. She has been very busy and had put the Word of the Week on the back burner. But I have brought it back this week with an apropos word. Check it out and see if you can participate.

Oldest to Youngest: "When you have a baby... When you get big and have a baby, you will be able to snap your fingers."

(This will be the last entry for the Karnival of Kidz. It has been suffering a slow death. Harvey will be hosting the last Karnival of Kidz until VW decides to bring it back. If she ever does....)

I submitted another photo from the Rice Game and it made it to the Fan Photo Slide Show. It is a picture of Rice's Clement fumble in the second quarter. Okam recovered it for a TD. Woo hoo.... The slide show is here. and my photo alone is here.

The Karnival of Kidz is up at Harvey's. And VW is looking for a moderator. I tried it, but it was not as fun as I thought. I love the entries, but I did not have motivation to really make it work. I hate asking people to host and there were not enough volunteers. I faltered in my duties, so I kicked it back to VW. Maybe one of ya'll could make a go of it.

Presenting this week's PreGame Summary for the Novices.

Mascot: Sooner

Colors: Per the OU site: "Even though the school colors have evolved to red and white over the years, you can ask any self-respecting Sooner what the colors are and they will proudly announce "Crimson and Cream." "

Location: Norman, Oklahoma. But when Texas plays OU, they do not trade for home games. They both meet at the Cotton Bowl for the Red River Shoot Out. (Coming post on this....)

Main Rival: Texas

Unique Tradions: They love to do the upside down horns. Even when they are not playing Texas. OK, so you won't find that tradition on thier website, so offically it does not count. But they do it enough to make it a tradition in my book. Other traditionshere.

Famous Players: Adrian Peterson, Sophmore Running Back. In 2004 he finished 2nd in the Heisman balloting. That's a big deal. More on Adrian here.

Spread:-13 1/2 (If you bet with a spread on Texas, they have beat OU by 14 points for you to win.)

How they have been playing: OU has lost quite a few of their good player to graduation and is struggling. They lost their first game to TCU, with TCU being in a lower conference than the Big 12. (Teams might play out of conference schools the first few games of the season. The other teams make good money and the better teams get to improve their stats and get some practice.) They beat Tulsa, another out of conference team. Then a loss to UCLA. And last Sunday, OU 42, Kansas State 21.

What we have to watch for: We need to pass when they try to stop our running game. And DON'T. TURN. THE. BALL. OVER. No mistakes. Nada. Zilch. Zip!

I will be posting more this week on our game with OU, the Red River Shootout, and playing at the Cotton Bowl. Great blog fodder it is!!!!

Oldest has a loose tooth, bottom left. She is very excited about it and for some strange reason, so am I.

What is the going rate from theTooth Fairy?

Matthew McConaughey is a Texas fan. He is at the games and they show him on the Jumbo Tron every once in awhile. But I did not realize he was a HUGE fan until I read this.

The game this weekend is HUGE!!! Meaning we have to win it. If we lose to OU after they lost to TCU, then we will be shamed. I won't rehash the going on's of the Cotton Bowl and State Fair, but here are links to the related posts from the last two seasons. They are still on my old blog.

Season 2003
Red River Shootout - Pre-game
6th game OU 65, Texas 13
Where do I start?

Season 2004
Red River Shootout
Today's Game
Cotton Bowl - Pregame Summary
Oklahoma beats Texas, 12 to zero

Maybe even an Ouch! and a Owwwww!

With planning, yesterday Sissy drove from Atlanta, GA to Fort Worth on her way to Arizona. She called when she was in Dallas thinking she was real close, but she had to go to Fort Worth. So if she tells you she drives fast and average 80 mph, believe her!

Since it was way past the girls dinner time we went on to the restaurant and Sissy arrived later. I kept watching the door, thinking of her post about her short haircut. So I am looking for a chic with blondish short - Hallie Berry like hair. You know like a boy. Like she said. If she had not called as she was coming in the door, it probably would have taken me awhile to figure out it was her. But I just have to say.....

Sissy! PUUUUULEASE!!! You do not look like a boy! And your hair is nothing close to a guy cut. It looks good!!! I think it is even longer than mine.

It all worked out since the restaurant brings your food out fast and it gave us more time to visit. And to add to the pot, my Mom and Dad had flown in from their vacation and were able to eat with us. Sissy got to meet two bloggers!

This may sound funny, but Sissy matches the aura that comes from her blog. She is even more funny, nice, and cool in person. And to me it felt like we were old friends, and I guess you could say that we are since we have been reading each others blogs for awhile. My Mom was asking Sissy questions and I was able to explain some things from what I had read in the past. I am glad that Sissy understands this whole blogging friendship thing, cause I could see it freaking someone out. She showed the girls a picture of Kiki and said she would bring her the next time she visits. Youngest even went out of her way to give Sissy a hug. It was so cute!!!!

Sissy had to get some studing done and the girls needed to get to bed. I hope the next time we get together we have more time to visit.

Thanks, Sissy, for going out of your way and making time to visit!

The girls are spending the night with the anti-INLAWS since we are up early to head to the Cotton Bowl. So that meant we had Friday night to ourselves. We ate at my 2nd favorite Mexican restaurant, Mi Cocina. A little upscale, but the service was lacking a little and we almost walked out. I did not want that since I really like their brisket tacos and we only go about once a year. So I made sure we had a waitor.

After a great meal and a very strong margareeeeeeta, we walked over to Central Market to browse. Lost the hubby for awhile, but found him the the bulk candy section getting a suprise for the girls. The other day we were in the car and they asked him if he like gummy bears. He said he liked gummy worms better. They both exclaimed "GUMMeeeeeeY WORMS???!???!??" Can you guess what the surprise is?

We were home by 7 o'clock. Wild night!!! But we need the rest. Today is a busy day and was be up at 4 am ready to go. Thankfully he let me sleep until 6. He is like a kid at Christmas.

I am excited and nervous. I hope that OU fans are decent and things don't get out of hand. And that we win!

I am waiting for my pictures from the OU game to copy and thinking about my post about today. And falling asleep. More details tomorrow, I am off to bed.

WE WON!!!!!

This turned out to be a great day. Thankfully my husband let me sleep in until 6 am. That gave us enough time before the game to look at the New Car Exhibit and get a Fletcher's Corny Dog.

The game itself? Good. No major stress moments or rollercoaster of emotions. We pretty much dominated. However, this was the first game that I actually had an upset stomach before it started. I have heard similiar complaints from more fanatic fans than I, so I must be moving up a notch as a fan. (Yes, it is possible.) The couple we sat with are always fun and I got to catch up with my friend.

After the game we headed back to get the girls to meet our friends for dinner. They did a great job for being worn out at the anti-INLAWS. We took the girls back to the anti-INLAWS since they wanted to stay another night. No arguments here, I got to sleep in on Sunday until 10:30 am. Ahhhhh.....

I wish all the OU games were like this.

Summary of the game here.

Presenting this week's PreGame Summary for the Novices. Texas plays Colorado at Austin.

Mascot: Buffaloes. They have a real buffalo named Ralphie. At home games, he leads the team out and when they score they run him around the field. He runs in a horseshoe shape. They lead him out of his cage on one side, run him around right into a different cage on the other side. Kinda neat to see in person. They also have a mascot named Chip, but I could not find a picture of him.

Colors: Gold and Black

Location: Boulder, Colorado

Main Rival: Colorado State University, next is Nebraska.

Unique Tradions/Misc: Other than Raphie, I could not find any others.

Misc: Wikipedia has an interesting article on the school here. Colorado recently completed their penalties for recruiting violations.

Famous Players: Looking at their 2005 PreSeason Records, Mason Crosby is a good Place Kicker (PK). Crosby is the nation's leader with six 50-plus yard field goals last year and has won various awards.

Spread:-17 1/2 (If you bet with a spread on Texas, they have beat Colorado by 18 points for you to win.)

How they have been playing: Colorado is ranked #24 in the AP Poll. They have won 3 games and lost 1. The three losses were to poor teams and their loss was to Miami (FL), who is ranked #7 in the AP polls. (Texas is still at #2.)

What we have to watch for: As long as Texas does not blow off Colorado and come to play, we will win.

Update: I forgot to give credit to CalTechGirl for her help with the rivals question. Thanks!

My anti-INLAWS went to Colorado for vacation last month. My anti-MIL took some great pictures that you will most likely enjoy.

Check it out here.

I was going to pick out a favorite, but I can't. Can you?

I have posted in the past about my dislike for "Parents" magazine. (See the final topic on the post.) It still comes to us free and my husband reads it when there is nothing else to read. He pointed out a question asked in their Manners Q&A section.

Uh, ya! That is rude. But there is nothing wrong with letting them know you are pregnant. They might even return the items on their own.

Here is the magazine's reply: (emphasis mine)

Don't ask me how I know, but the Tooth Fairy might get mad at you for putting your oldest daughter's first tooth is a ziploc bag. It can be very noisy in a quiet room and has the potential to wake your oldest up.

Luckily, my oldest is a heavy sleeper and I the Tooth Fairy can hold my her breath long enough to get the tooth from under the pillow.

Q: Anyone have any tx/ou pics, specifically of the stadium full of our crowd, or the big texas flag before the game on the field?

I have a friend back in Germany who i'm trying to help understand the magnitude of the game and I can't do it very well without a few photos.

Thanks in advance
KingKoopa

A: Here is what I have from this year's game. I suck at getting panoramic views, but you get the idea. But to really help your friend get an idea, have him watch this. (Requires QuickTime)

Click on the link for the pictures:

Panormamic view

Texas/OU Split - 1st quarter

Texas/OU Split - After the Game

A funny picture was emailed to me by my friend Heather. Gave me a good chuckle!!

View image

This game is a blur and nothing really stands out. We had two CU fans in front of us that did not get in my way of picture taking. I got to catch up with my seat mate who had not made a game this season. We had a whole year and a few months to catch up on. Kinda pathetic since we were done with the major stuff by the end of the first quarter.

Even though we won, we did not go out to eat since they were closing 35 north for construction. Darn it!!! But we will next week.

For my pre-game summary on CU, I could not find a picture of their mastcot, Chip, but I got one at the game. I also had a hard time finding out who their main rival, but we had some CU fans at our tailgate and they clarified it for me. Their major rival is Nebraska. In past years Nebraska would play CU and beat them like a drum. They would run up the score with no mercy. So now if CU beats them, they are really happy. Also, Colorado State is not really a rival for them since Colorado State is a smaller school. CU is expected to beat Colorado State and Colorado State makes a bigger deal of it then they do. Kinda like Texas A&M are to us.

With MovableType, you don't have as many formating shortcuts as others. So there are a few things I like to do on a regular basis that I have to manually type in. I really like to have my links open in a new window. This way you can read whatever is in the link and then return to the original blog. This tip will work with any blogging software since it is plain HTML.

Make links open in a new window: After you have put in the URL, add the bold part to your code:

< a href="http://prochienamy.mu.nu" target="_blank" >This is a link

I have added extra spaces to keep the code from actually being used, so you would need only one space after the quote for the link, then put target="_blank". Are you confused?

Presenting this week's PreGame Summary for the Novices. Texas plays Texas Tech at Austin.

Mascot: Red Raiders: The Masked Rider and Raider Red: Prior to the 1971 season, the Southwest Conference passed a rule that prevented members of the conference from taking live animals to non-home games unless the host team had no objections. So Jim Gaspard, a member of Saddle Tramps, created Raider Red from a drawing by the late Lubbock cartoonist Dirk West as an alternative to the Masked Rider when the horse couldn't travel with the football team. Raider Red's student persona is kept a secret from the Tech community. Red is a public relations mascot who shakes hands with the crowds at athletic events and poses for pictures. Raider Red fires his two 12-gauge shotguns using powder-filled shells after every Tech touchdown and field goal. (My note: his is kinda scary looking. His head is real big and he is unshaven.)

Colors: Red and Black

Location: Lubbuck, Texas

Main Rival: A&M. It really came to light in this incident.

Unique Tradions/Misc: GUNS UP -The hand sign of Texas Tech was originated by a Tech graduate who was attending law school at Texas in 1972. It is made by extending the index finger outward while extending the thumb upward to form a gun. The idea is that Raider Red will shoot down his opponents. (My note: if you turn it just right, it looks like an L for loser and it is even funnier if you put it on your forehead.)

Misc: Tech fans used to throw tortillas on the field to celebrate touchdowns or if they got mad. It got so bad that if someone does it now, Tech gets an automatic 15 yard penalty.

Famous Players: Texas Tech senior QB Cody Hodges (Hereford, Texas) was named the SBC Big 12 Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Monday for his 643-yard passing performance against Kansas State over the weekend. The passing yards represent the fourth best single-game total in NCAA Division I history and sixth-best total in all divisions.

Spread:-16 (If you bet with a spread on Texas, they have beat Tech by 16 points for you to win.)

How they have been playing: Tech is ranked #7 and is undefeated. There is some dispute over them being over rated since they have played easy teams so far. But if you talk to a Tech fan, they are going to beat Texas and are proud to wear this t-shirt.

What we have to watch for: As long as Texas does not give the game to Tech, we will win.

Additional Comments: I am sure you can guess that I do not like Tech that much. We have been to several of the games in Lubbuck and I am always amazed at their fans. They are not as severe as the Ohio State fans, but they can be nuts. I have watch the student section rip their bleacher seats off and pass them to the top of the stadium. After each game, they take down the goal posts to prevent the students from knocking them down. I guess this saves the school money. It is neat to watch the fancy pulley system they use. The first game we went to in Lubbuck, we were waiting for a shuttle bus to take us to where we parked. Texas had lost and many Tech fans were screaming at us, calling us losers. One lady told us "Spend your money before you go!" So for all the future game we went to, we made sure we had enough gas and would not have to buy any in Lubbuck. We went in for the game and left. Our money will not be spent there. (Note: we did buy some beer at a local bar that was sponsoring our tailgate. But that was it!!!!)

And this week all the Tech fans are coming out of the woodwork. Everyone at my company knows that I am a Texas fan. But I learned that there are several Tech fans at my company also. How do I know? They went out of their way to let me know that Tech is going to beat Texas this week. Cocky, eh? I hope we beat them and we beat them bad. But I will take the high road and not rub it in their face. Winning is good enough for me.

All of my Tech fan co-workers are possessed when it comes to rooting for their team. Normal they are all nice, but when the say the phrase "Go Tech!"or anything similar, it is like an evil spirit has taken over them and they are spitting it out hatefully. And this Friday is the first time I have seen any of them wear Tech related clothing. Oh please, Texas, please win! I don't want to have to face these people on Monday.

Did you know that someone passing you on the left will make you go 15 mph faster? Yes, you will be plugging along at 75 mph but as soon as someone tries to pass you on the right, you speed up to 90. It is an amazing, but I have seen it happen enough to know that it is real. Gotta be a name for this.... Speed-zilla? Lead-zilla?

And the Tech fans are Tech-zillas!

I opened up a shop on one of the most popular Longhorn fan boards. I am getting the stuff printed at cafepress.com since I can't afford to buy in bulk. So far I have sold 2 stickers and a tshirt. Woo hoo! Now I need to come up with some good ideas. I scammed the sticker idea and the Super V is a modified version of someone of another shirt I have seen. The V stands for our quarterback Vince Young, who is really great. The I survived shirt was all mine. Check it out here.

I am excited about this and have dreams of major sucess! But the reality is I have a small target market. But I do know that market, huh? Using cafepress.com makes it easy since I don't have to spend any money upfront. I just order it when I get an order.

I can say this here, but will be very calm, cool, and collective when I go into work today. That is IF the Tech fans come by. But I just got to say this:

"We woooon, we won, na, na, na, naaaa!"

OK, good to get that out of my system.

...for this week at least. The BCS has us ranked #1, but it won't last. The hubby says that the rest of our schedule is to weak to keep us there. A link to the rankings is here. You can see how close we are to USC. An explanation of what the BCS is here.

I am extremely busy at work and it is overflowing into the rest of my life. Blogging will be light this week. Oh, and it was fun at work today.

From a co-worker:

"I can fix a lot of things, but I can't fix stupid."

If you get grossed out easily, don't read this story. More here.

This guy could get probation or 2 - 20 years in jail. I say 20 years.

Presenting this week's PreGame Summary for the Novices. Texas plays Oklahoma State at Stillwater, OK.

Mascot: They are the Cowboys (or girls) with Pistol Pete, the lengend Frank "Pistol Pete" Eaton and Bullet, the horse. (My note: Last week, I got Oklahoma State's mascot mixed up with Tech. This is the one that is kinda scary looking. His head is real big and he is unshaven.)

Colors: Orange and Black (Sometimes called Highway Orange, since that is what color prisioners wear when picking up trash on the highways.)

Location: Stillwater, OK.

Main Rival: A&M. It really came to light in this incident.

Unique Tradions/Misc: They have several traditions, but my favorite is "The Walk": A tradition that began with head coach Les Miles continues with head coach Mike Gundy. The night before football games, the team stays in the Atherton Hotel at the Student Union. On game day, two hours and fifteen minutes prior to the start of the game, the team walks down Hester Street to Boone Pickens Stadium. Coach Gundy leads the spirited parade, followed by the OSU Marching band, the spirit squad, and, of course, the players. Fans already at the stadium gather on the side of the road and cheer their Cowboys on to victory. This tradition quickly became a favorite of Cowboy fans, creating a new and exciting way for the team to enter the stadium.

Misc: OSU is a really big basketball school and there is a larger fan base for that sport. One year we were tailgating after a game and there was a quarter of a mile line to get into the basketball court to watch a scrimmage. Not even a real game.

Famous Players: None of note.

Spread:-37.5 (If you bet with a spread on Texas, they have beat OSU by 37.5 points for you to win.)

How they have been playing: They have one 3 games and lost 4 games. They have not beat any of the Big 12 conference teams.

What we have to watch for: As before, as long as Texas does not give the game to Tech, we will win.

I was not keeping up with the Supreme Court nomination since I was not really happy about it. You know I like to avoid problems. Many are talking about it, but Paul at Right Side of the Rainbow has a good quote within a quote that sums it all up for me:

"Letter to My Wife" Hat tip to tryingtogrok.

J and B

"Father-Daughter Picnics Aren't Just For 7 Year Olds"

In Case You Were Wondering

I'm a cartoon character. Read the comment from her husband John.

1st quarter sucked, but we came back at the 2nd quarter and beat them. Went to Mexican food restaurant after and had two margaritas. Good football day.

Oklahoma State Summary coming this week.