Okay I’m not sitting here with my laptop all bloodied and bruised but still, these damn spammers are making blogging and podcasting a real pain in the ass. Of course if I pull my webring and disable comments, then the terrorists win and baby Jesus will cry.
Not only has my webring been overtaken by freaks and geeks with small penises and a penchant for beastiality, but I’ve had a few spam comments sneak through my web of doom designed to keep them out. It now seems that one of them or just the sheer volume of them, has managed to corrupt my database. I can no longer access the comments to edit or delete anything and I’m not even sure if the rest of you fine, decent, upstanding citizens of the innerwebs can even see/read/comment either.
I’m very hesitant to go in and start mucking about with my database. The last time I did that almost a years’ worth of high caliber writing (snort!) was lost to the ether. So until I have time to calmly sit down and back everything up to my removable hard drive, I’m going to have to leave you all with the mess as it stands. I’ve fired off a Bat Signal to Yahoo Small Business to request a database repair. If that doesn’t fix it later today I’ll get back to y’all with something better I hope.
In the mean time, tomorrow is Little E’s 10th birthday and we’re celebrating today. At around 1:30 this afternoon (right about when it hits 95 degrees) we will host 8 other 10 year olds for a snake themed extravaganza (and pool party.) At 2:00 Dave’s Wild World of Reptiles arrives to tantalize and teach us all about his menagerie of creepy, crawly critters. I’m excited to see the crocodile and Burmese Python. We’re going to see if we can double dog dare Mr. Mess to handle a big, hairy tarantula (I’ll be sure to get pictures!)
E wants to be Jeff Corwin or Steve Irwin when she grows up (minus the stringray through the heart I’m hoping). She’s always been fascinated with odd and exotic creatures. Last year she campaigned for a ferret for over 10 months. But finally gave up when numerous PetCo employees counseled her against it. It also helped that her animal friendly Mom resolutely refused to house, feed and fund any form of rodent. This year she turned her attentions to the reptile world and finally settled on acquiring a snake, specifically a Ball Python. I gave her the (I thought) daunting task of researching the needs and necessities of becoming a novice snake owner. She volleyed back with a well researched and thorough treatise on the exact needs of a snake and a comparative list of different species and their relative ease of care. Since then it has been a daily exercise in honing her natural sales technique and liberal use of her innate cuteness factor and puppy dog eyes to persuade her father and I that now is the time in her life to begin living out her dreams.
Friday she and I went back to PetCo (where the employees really are as helpful and knowledgeable as they appear in their commercials!) to buy the tank and other accroutrements required to house a juvenile Ball Python. While there we also had the opportunity to once again do a little mystical snake handling. I must admit that even this once doggedly (pun intended) resolute “fur and four feet” pet person can see the charm in owning a snake. They are very intriguing creatures and the coolness factor can’t be beat. Tomorrow morning after the sleep over guests go home and E finishes up at gymnastics practice, we will again return to PetCo and bring home number six in our menagerie.
