My Halloween Costume Problem Solved? Check out all the pics from the premiere of Party Monster. Warning: Graphic Cosmetic Surgery Content.

Meet the Red Strips Make your own band here. I served as impressario for the "Red Strips" a boy-girl group consisting of a boy drummer and a girl guitarist. It's minimalist mimicry at its best!

"Minnelli got her unusual strength from drinking vodka" Weird. Just plain sad and weird.

What's Furry, Short, and Pink All Over? For Halloween, I am trying to build a costume around a pink marabou feather bomber jacket I bought some years ago, thinking that I'd wear it every day. I've actually never worn it, but a costume party seems like a good venue for this type of apparel. I can't figure out what to go as. So far i've thought of: - home insulation - a jet-puff marshmallow - a marabou, but they are neither pink nor fluffy -- even the jehovah witnesses despise them some other suggestions have been cotton candy, a pink flamingo, and a muppet... help!

Furby Mod If I had to choose between an eccentric, an artist, or a geek, I'd choose the geek. How can you not love someone who marries a Furby to a motherboard? (Hint: Check out V3.)

Make Me Over During the broadcast of What Not To Wear, my friend A called and left two messages about the show. She had to leave two messages because I was too busy watching the show to answer the phone. This episode centred around late thirties-something Gina and her penchant for clothes that reminded me far too much of what I have in my own closet. I was second-guessing the amount of pleather, fish net, and maribou feather any girl really needs in her wardrobe. I think what got to A the most--hence, the second message--was that the "fashion victim" is not only nominated by her friends for a fashion makeover, but is secretly videotaped for an entire two weeks. The victim is then forced to watch herself, cellulite, bulges and all on always unflattering videotape. A managed to switch to another station, whereas I watched the whole thing. She saw cruel intentions, whereas I saw a Cinderella story. Shame on me! Pass me my over-the-knee boots and mini skirt: we're going out on the town!

Fun with Duct Tape, Power Tools and Goose Down It must be the cooler weather: I've been "feathering my nest" over the past two weekends mostly by insulating things. Insulating the house: Already mentioned in my previous blog, I've been spending far too much time in the basement (a crawl space, really) wrapping water pipes in foam and pink stuff and going through several rolls of duct tape. Did you know that you can get duct tape in several designer colours? -- although I thought silver *was* the new brown. Anyway, my last, and I think final, purchase was two heating coils for my basement and first floor water pipes, which I'll use when (if) the temperature dips to and stops at -18 for an extended period. Insulating the plants: I bought so may lovely geraniums and brugmansia's this summer that it's a shame to let them die outside. I've constructed a series of shelves that sit right in front of my windows so that they get maximum sun exposure throughout the winter. My favourite is a shelf I built for my bedroom window, enabling me, for the first time, to have live plants in my bedroom. The kick for me is that I bought a cheap piece of pine and some wooden shelf brackets and used my handy jigsaw to cut some more-or-less even rounded edges. The whole thing is stained and varnished a lovely honey colour. Right now, a fuscia geranium is still in bloom on my newly extended window sill and it looks smashing. Insulating me: Two years ago, I invested in a feather bed, after experiencing them for the first time in a hotel in San Jose. Last year, I invested in a 100% goose down duvet, which keeps me absolutely toasty warm. Last weekend, I completed my little nest with two 100% goose down pillows. What's fabulous about them is that they don't get smushed, so your neck is always supported, but your cheek always has something soft and cushiony against it. My bed may now conceivabley be the most comfortable bed in the world.

The Men in My Basement I'm working from home today because there are two men in my basement installing a brand new natural gas furnace. Touted to be 92% efficient, I'm hoping that this, plus the insulation I've done, will enable me to both eat *and* heat my home this winter. Last winter, my heating bills were the highest I've ever had in the eight years I've been in this house. Gas bills in the summer are about 40.00$, which is for hot water consumption--I like hot showers and consider the dishwasher the greatest labour-saving device of the 20th century. So, sue me. Gas bills in the winter went up to 400.00+$, double what they had been the previous winter. The sustained extreme cold coupled with the forgotten open basement widow coupled with a no-longer-efficient-25-year-old furnace equalled a very expensive winter. There was some worry that the new furnace wouldn't fit through the tiny trap door that leads to the basement. After sawing part of my floor away, the furnace wiggled its way through the opening and is now being attached to the existing ducts system. I'm hoping to wallow in tropical heat this weekend.

Nemo Found C'mon, kid, eat your sushi or you won't get dessert!

Q: What Else has Arnie Been Hiding From Us? A: An income from a string of Japanese ads for noodles and caffeine-laden drinks.

The Darker Side of Me I just ordered Atonement and Against Love: A Polemic. I also ordered extra strength moisturizer from my favourite cosmetic cop. Am I settling in for a long, dry winter?

Back to YulBlog Met up with fellow yulbloggers last night at La Cabane for the first time since the Spring. I met lightspeedchick for the first time in person. I think you're great, too, M-Jo! Also great to see were blasts from (my) blog past Dandruff and ni.vu.ni.connu. Joining us was Idle Words, who's lastest entry on John Titor had me Googling for more information on this bizarre story of a self-proclaimed time traveller who reveals his identuty in a series of posts to an IRC chat room. His most memorable prediction? Everyone will be able to do multiplication and division in their head. If you spend any amount of time browsing the hits Google returns, you'll discover Pamela and Darby, who battle over whether Mr. Titor is fact or fiction. There's a story in there somewhere that involves IP addresses, lost videotapes, and parents names Pamela and Darby Titor, who, in 1998, give birth to a boy they call "John"...a suivre...

10 Minute Story Written in 10 minutes during my fiction writing workshop last night. I wanted coffee. Twelve of us sat around the conference room table. We argued about budgets, strategies, and deadlines and were getting nowhere. Our boss, who had previously told us to arrive at this all-day session without cel phones or laptops, was adamant about sticking to a strict schedule that included short and structured break periods. I didn't need to pee. I didn't need to return a phone call or check phone messsgaes. I just wanted a coffee. I knew that his administrative assistant had brought a tall coffee urn and left it outside the meeting room door. I knew that she had also left donuts, bagels, and a selection of fresh fruits, but these didn't interest me. I wanted the coffee. I could smell it. It would take me less than fifteen seconds to pour a cup and return to the meeting. Instead of following the conversation, I debated whether I should defy my boss. "Where are you going?" he'd say. "Just coffee. Won't be a minute," I'd reply. "We'll waste too much time. Everyone will want a cup. We'll lose focus." "Why don't we break now?" I'd ask, looking for approval among my colleagues. They would keep their eyes focussed on the conference room table, unwilling to unite with me against my time-tyrant boss. "Union" would be the word I would write on the copy of the PowerPoint presentation in front of me and I would leap up onto the table in honour of my favourite movie heroine, Norma Rae. Somewhat stunned, my colleagues would... * * * * * * What would Maggie's colleague's do?