I loved Star Tours. I’m sorry to see that it’s leaving Disneyland. I wonder if that is true for Disney World as well. I think I rode that ride 10 times. I know that when I took my son to Disney World, we rode it 3 times. I think we rode it twice at Disneyland. Disneyland isn’t that exciting, and Star Tours was the best.

I would love to generalize and say that this list is what everyone learns, but it would be the truth. I’m only providing 10 lessons for brevity.

Here’s what I learned:

1. Relationships must complete you as a person.
2. There is a such a thing as “the one,” and when you meet this person you will know absolutely.
3. Men and women do not want the same things. Men want sex. Women want commitment.
4. Once you meet the right person, you will live happily ever after.
5. Marriage is the end-all goal. Anything else is just plain crazy.
6. True love consumes you–every thought is about the other person.
7. Bad boys can be tamed.
8. If you’re not in love, you’re miserable.
9. Prince Charming will come.
10. Love conquers all.

Nothing on this list has made my life any easier.

Dr. Demento broadcast his last show this weekend. Did I find this out from listening to his show? No. I didn’t know he was still on the radio, but his silliness will be missed. I found out from Salon.com. I have to agree with the article’s author that with YouTube, it’s no surprise that Dr. Demento is off the radio. I own a boxed set of Demento classics. My son and I laughed ourselves silly many times. Thanks to Dr. Demento for bringing silly music to everyone…well, almost.

Here’s my favorite: Star Trekkin

Here’s my son’s (at least years ago): Boot to the Head.

He also thought Fish Heads was funny, but had no idea that it was on MTV when MTV started.

My mother knows all the words to this one: Witch Doctor

It finally arrived after waiting just over two weeks. I thought I would be able to walk into the store and get one then. I was wrong. I used my son’s iPad until his graduation when I gave it to him. It wasn’t terribly useful at the airport the day I was there–too many people on the wi-fi.

I finally saw Ricardo on Nurse Jackie. The “Bleeding” episode. He was wheeling out a “dead” body when Zoe yells. I have been watching closely for awhile.

Okay, so it has been forever since I last posted. A lot has happened. Mostly the job. Since this blog is public, I don’t want to post about the job. I’ve been too distracted to remember to write.

I watched Gravity on Starz tonight. I wanted to check out this new series. If you haven’t seen it, it’s worthwhile. It’s quite good.

Frankly, I’ve been trying to get in all my shows somehow. I don’t always get to watch them the night they are on. I have been going to bed before most of my shows come on. It’s a shame that so many shows begin at 10 pm. I’ve been watching Nurse Jackie–another excellent show–looking for another blogger on that show, but I haven’t seen Ricardo yet.

When I considered ballet, I thought I would have a lot to say about how a bumbling, stumbling, doesn’t-know-her-right-from-her-left, would-be dancer got through dance class with graceful, seasoned dancers. I was wrong, which is why I haven’t written about any ballet mishaps. Of course, I forget the order of the moves. No big deal. It’s easy. Easier than I imagined. I’m not klutzy. I’m naturally quite turned out. I should have taken ballet as a child. Hula and Tahitian dance have given me the strength to do all the ballet moves without breaking a sweat. I know that the easiness of ballet isn’t that interesting. Even I would rather read about someone’s mishaps and missteps. In fact, I think after only 3 ballet classes my hula dancing has improved. I have wanted the gracefulness that I see in experienced hula dancers. It seems I found it.

This cold has really kicked my butt. I have been since since early Thursday morning, so I haven’t been doing any interesting cooking. I have been eating soup with doctored up chicken broth according to the directions in Julia Child’s cookbook. It definitely makes a better tasting soup. I went to both ballet and Tahitian practices. I nearly passed out in Tahitian class after 1 1/2 hours. In spite of being sick, I have kept the various appointments I have had. Recently I had a phone interview, which turned into an in-person interview on Monday. I have been certain that my cold would be gone by then, but so far that isn’t the case. These things usually last 3 days, but I’m on my fourth day and still not feeling better. The cough has started, and my throat isn’t much better compared to Thursday.

Tahitian dance class kicked my butt yesterday. For those of you who don’t know, I spend 2 1/2 hours every Saturday in Tahitian dance practice. The first hour is easier than the next 1 1/2 hour session–usually. This was a typical Saturday where the second class was harder. We worked on a specific move. I was lucky to walk out of the dance studio. I tried some similar movements today, and I’m still sore. Nothing like being barely able to move on my birthday. However, I didn’t make any plans this year. I wasn’t sure what to do, and then it got too late for my friends to be available. I was too tired after dance class on Saturday eto even consider going out.

I have had quite a few birthday wishes–more than I expected. Thanks to all!

I finished off the last of the boeuf bourguignon on Thursday, which meant that I needed to cook again. This time I cooked boeuf a la mode, which isn’t beef with ice cream. It’s beef braised in red wine. Actually, it’s a beef roast marinated for hours in red wine with vegetables and spices. The marinade was surprisingly fragrant. After letting my roast (all I could get was bottom round) marinate for six hours, then it had to be browned on all sides and then put in the oven with the marinade and additional beef stock. Again, this takes most of the day. I thought I would have time to do other things while the roast cooked, but I was wrong–again.

The recipe called for carrots braised in butter, which I had made before, so I was confident I could have those turn out. I also had to make brown-braised onions–also made before. I burnt the carrots. They were fine, nearly done, so I turned down the heat. I have no idea what happened, but when I went back to check them, they were burnt. I saved most of them, but a few were a lost cause, stuck to the bottom of the pan in the brown muck. The onions turned out much better. I even blanched them properly, so the skins came off. I love the taste of the onions, but I hate the little suckers. Blanching and peeling tries my patience. I nearly bought jarred onions, until I saw the salt content.

The roast turned out rather well. I expected the roast would be funny colored from the wine, but it looked normal and tasted wonderful. After cleaning, it was time to bake. My birthday is this weekend, and for months I have had a Betty Crocker gluten-free cake mix. I got a coupon to try it, so the mix was free. I also added Julia’s butter cream with powdered sugar. I’m used to butter cream frosting, but I have never seen the recipes in French Cooking. This butter cream had butter, of course, and egg yolks. It’s the fluffiest frosting I’ve had. My chocolate cake required chocolate butter cream. The great thing about these butter creams is that they can be flavored with anything.

Oh, the gluten-free cake mix is excellent. It has the perfect sponginess that you expect in a cake. Gluten-free baked goods can often be very heavy. I did add the ingredients differently than it said on the box. I beat the butter with a small amount of mix. I whipped the eggs separately until they were frothy, and added those to the creamed butter and beat that good. I added more mix until the butter was fully creamy and then added the water slowly. When it got too watery, I added more mix. When it got thick, I added more water until all the water was in. Then I put in the rest of the mix and beat it for several minutes.