Skip navigation.

June 2009

( Monthly archive )

STICKY POST

Welcome!


Welcome!
hi Come right on in. Great to see you finally made it HERE! Your search is over. You've arrived at Suntana’s Blog Trek Blog. No more, "Are we there yet? Are we there yet?" :lol: You must be tired. So, just get your favorite beverage and snack ... sit back and relax. THERE! Much better, right? Now feel free to leisurely peruse through my adventures, stories, flashbacks, observations ... or whatever it is that I am writing. :D Hopefully you'll be entertained.
Thanks for stopping by! :up:
Feel free to drop by again whenever to check for New Blog Entries or to reread if you wish. And don't shy away from Commenting ... Uhhh, that is, if you were entertained. p: Don't forget to buy a Suntana's Blog Trek T-Shirt at the Gift Shop. Just Kidding! :jester: bye

Butter Up … Works Every Time!

That's it. Go ahead. I'll give you a couple of seconds to try and figure out what my Post is going to be about. C'mon! I dare you to predict the gist of this week's story. Is it going to involve some patented, revolutionary, gourmet recipe for making Toast that's been in my family tree for 100 years? No No, you Silly Goose! :D I don't mean my family has an actual tree and up on some branch, there's a loaf of bread that's been up there for a 100 years, weathering the elements … and now we're going to make Toast for breakfast. :lol: Nah! I meant the recipe had been in my family circles for 100 years. Oh never mind. That's NOT the deal here anyway.

Is my Post gonna involve buttering up a turkey? Uhhh, Ummm, well … Wooooooo! I have to be careful here because with part of my story, I can confidently say, "YES! It involves buttering up a turkey!" But, with the other part of my story, turkey is such a strong word … mainly because it involves :left: :right: ME!

What inspired this week's story? It was a couple of incidents by my Norwegian Flirting Buddy new friend, Mette. p: She recently purchased a new computer. I believe the very next day, her computer crashed. Her first inclination was to go all Rambo :furious: on the Geeks at the store where she purchased her pride & joy. Instead, she ended up calming down, behaving and treating the Computer Geek who helped her out the next morning, with respect. My friend Mette … Buttered him Up, if you will. :chef: And VOILA! Her computer was fixed! That was Exhibit A that you have to choose carefully on which situations you're gonna figuratively Chuck Norris chuck norris the snot out of some Service Person … and when you're gonna skillfully and subtly Butter Up a Service Person so as to get what you want. :whistle:

Exhibit B --- About 2 days ago, my friend Mette asked my friend Peppermint how she could fix up, Pimp Up her Blog if you will. Peppermint matter-of-factly suggested, advised Mette that the process was simple as taking candy from a baby. Peppermint told Mette that all she had to do was to stroke my arm, stroke my ego, tell me how great my Abs are, flirt with me and conceivably blow Cyber Kisses at me, I guess. Right! Exactly! It was to be Operation: Butter Up Chuck. :no: Peppermint guaranteed Mette that if she followed that plan step by step, by the numbers, she'd not only have me hilariously soaking up all that flattery like a sponge, but she'd also have herself a New Blog Theme Design. So, Mette put on some Lipstick and Makeup. She curled up her eyelashes to optimum Eyelash-Batting Flirting efficiency. She brushed her hair to the perfect Sparkling Shine & Smoothness. :devil: Mette then went to her fridge and got a gallon of butter and a butter knife from a drawer. :eyes: She then went over to one of my Post's Comment Boxes and started spreading butter all over me. I mean a really thick coat of butter. The next thing I knew, I had her scheduled for a New Blog Theme Design. Damn! Buttering Up worked again. :o:

Exhibit C --- It was around 2003 or 2004. I had taken my Isuzu Rodeo to this Kwik Lube place for a Full Service Oil Change, Etc. I specifically asked for Mobil 1 10W/30 Oil. After a little while, I was told that they only had 5W/30 Oil and if that was all right. They added that actually, that was what the Service Info for my Rodeo recommended. I could vouch for that. Nevertheless, I told them, "That may be true, but in the Summer, I use 10W/30 because of the heat. If you don't have any, I can take it elsewhere." They quickly informed me, "Oh, no. No need for that. We can go across the street to Kmart and buy some." I went, "Okay, Cool! Do it."

As I waited in the Waiting Room, I did notice that some dude did go to Kmart and came back with some oil as per our agreement. They changed the oil and finished servicing my Rodeo. I was informed that my Rodeo was all ready to go. I was getting ready to pay when I noticed the oil bottles of the oil they had put in my Rodeo. They were 5W/30, as in the type of oil that I specifically told them I did NOT approve to be put in my Rodeo. :irked: So, I went, "Whoa Whoa Whoa! What is this? Y'all put 5W/30 oil in my Rodeo … after I specifically told y'all I didn't want that? I saw the guy go to Kmart. What happened?" All sheepish at having been caught red-handed, I was told, "Well, you see, they didn't have any 10W/30 oil at Kmart. And since 5W/30 is the actual recommended oil for your Rodeo, we figured there'd be no harm." I went, "First of all, I go to that Kmart all the time and I KNOW for a fact that they do have Mobil 1 10W/30 oil there. Secondly, WHY would y'all put oil in my Rodeo that I specifically said I didn't want, regardless of what's recommended for my vehicle?"

The Kwik Lube Manager was then called. Things started off civilly with him inquiring, "What seems to be the problem?" I told him the whole scenario of what I specifically asked for and what oil my Rodeo ended up getting poured into the engine. Calm and collected, the Manager reiterated that that was actually the proper oil that was recommended for my Rodeo. I countered with my reiteration, "I don't care what's recommended. I specified something. Y'all agreed to do it. Then y'all went against my wishes." The Manager finally fessed up, "Well, it's that the guy we sent over to Kmart bought the wrong oil. And since that is Synthetic Mobil 1 Oil, it is very expensive, thus we can't just throw 5 quarts of that away. We just ain't gonna do that." Not getting fazed by the Manager's tough stance, I went, "Well, I don't care what you do with that oil. It just ain't staying in my Rodeo because that's NOT what I wanted in there. Expensive or not, it wasn't my mistake. So, it's coming out!"

By this point, diplomacy and civility had officially exited Stage Left. The Manager was now officially Pissed. He goes, "LOOK! :mad: I have a Degree in Auto Mechanical Engineering! I have designed engines and transmissions. I've been in this business for many years. I happen to know NOTHING is going to happen if that 5W/30 oil stays in your vehicle because that's what it's supposed to have!" Not blinking and standing my ground, I shot back, "I don't care what Degree you have or that you have designed engines and transmissions. I asked for a specific weight of oil. Y'all agreed to comply with my request. Then error or not, y'all reneged on what was agreed."

Then suddenly, I got an idea. :idea: I was gonna take a shot at using some Psychology … Ummm, Guilt Trip, whatever. :lol: With surgical precision, I quickly added, "I had always heard that the customer is always right. I believed that. I guess I was mistaken. I learned my lesson. I know better for next time. I guess I'll take the loss this time." The Manager goes, "No No, wait. That IS correct. The customer IS always right. I just didn't like that …" I can't quite remember what the Manager said after that. But, I recall definitely sensing that with my Guilt Trip, Errr, Psychology, p: I had wobbled his legs of his tough stance. So, sensing victory, I suddenly out of nowhere, slipped out a Butter Knife and some Butter. Hey, just go with the flow. Humor me. Pretend that I did get some butter out. :chef: Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, I strategically decided to tell the Manager what he wanted to hear. So, I went something like, "Oh, I didn't mean to sound disrespectful. I'm sure with your Engineering knowledge, you're no doubt right. Nothing will happen to my Rodeo with that oil in it. It's just that …" I believe at that point, the Manager didn't even let me finish. He had already heard what he wanted to hear. I think at the end, he was just Pissed Off that I had pretty much ignored his Engineering Degree into insignificance. So, once I Buttered him Up, that is to say, once I acknowledged his Engineering Degree and agreed that he was right that nothing would happen to my Rodeo, he changed his tune. He shouted at his employees, "Okay! Drain the oil from the Rodeo into a clean pan so we can put it in my car. There's nothing wrong with that oil. Go to Kmart and get some Mobil 1 oil and make sure it is 10W/30. Put it in the Rodeo." Sure, the Manager had some definite sarcasm in his voice as he was barking his orders while trying to convey that everything was now peachy. But, WTF … I got my way and my Rodeo got its 10W/30 oil. :yes:

Sump’m Sump’m Bizarro at the Movies

Whew! I've been running ragged since Friday, working feverishly, trying to keep up with my Opera Community News Feeds. Since the Friday morning Opera Community MOTW selection Cool surprise, it's been hectic. Earlier that morning, I hadn't exactly counted on writing a Post that day. It was possible at the time that I might decide later that I WOULD write my weekly Post on Friday evening, but it was a low likelihood. Once I found out about my being selected MOTW … while NOT required, I certainly felt it was preferable and appropriate that I write an official MOTW Post. Yeah, I had to scramble and improvise a Post, yet without compromising on coherency just because of the impromptu nature of the writing task. Oh sure, I could have then subsequently declared that Post as my Post for the week. But, Nay, I say! That would be cheating. That would be taking the easy way out. I'm guessing I was selected MOTW because of my stories. So, if my stories are what got me this honor, then another story is what I shall deliver. :yes:

Those of y'all who read my last week's Post, are aware that I alluded to originally having planned that Post as a Double Feature at Chuck's Drive-In. :D I didn't end up needing the 2nd part of that Double Feature as the space would NOT be available. I of course then ingeniously … or perhaps in a perturbing manner, :whistle: planted the seed and built up the anticipation for this week's Post by letting on that this 2nd part of that original Double Feature was similar in outrageous nature to the 1st part. :insane:

As I promised or at least loosely advertised, this week's Post involves another story, which recounts another odd situation featuring yet another of various Bizarre-behaving girls / women that I have encountered in my years.

This story is circa early 90s. As is typical for us all, it had been a long, tiresome week. The weekend was now upon me. It was time for relaxing, unwinding, decompressing. It was a hot day. So, what better idea than to go take in a matinee in a nice and cool theater? After all, the pre-show slogan used to say, "Escape at the Movies." :happy: On matinee days, I wouldn't even eat lunch. The large popcorn and large Dr. Pepper would be my lunch. Ahhh, yes, it was always great, enjoyable to escape at a matinee. Just go to a matinee where no one knows my name, where no one's even aware I came. Just forget about stress and any and all negativity. :yes:

I had my popcorn and Dr. Pepper and was already seated in the theater. I can't remember what movie was playing, but it was probably NOT some huge Summer Blockbuster movie because there were plenty of seats still empty. Now I don't know about y'all, but I believe there is an unwritten rule. When there is plenty of seating available in a theater, you should NOT go and sit right next to some stranger. You should at the absolute minimum leave at least 1 empty seat between you and them. However, preferably, you should leave more than 1 seat of space. You should allow them plenty of personal space if it is there to spare.

There I was, minding my own business. The movie hadn't started yet. I was already well into wolfing down my popcorn lunch and drinking my Dr. Pepper. I had already commenced making the methodical transition into Escape at the Movies mode. I was already In the Zone. A woman then happened to turn into the row where I was sitting. She was entering from my left. I thought, "No Biggie. She's no doubt going to go sit in the middle of the row." What to my surprise should happen? With probably 80% of the theater empty, the woman decides to sit on the seat to my immediate right. WTF? I didn't say it, but I was thinking, "Ahem! Uhhh, excuse me! Are you NOT aware of the unwritten rule about NOT seating next to a stranger if there is plenty of seating?"

I decided to just keep calm and NOT worry about it. After all, what could possibly happen? I'm sure she was just a woman who was there to mind her business, relax and enjoy a movie. I mean, it's NOT like she could possibly have some other plan, agenda, ulterior motive, could she? :left: :right:

The movie began. While I can't remember what movie was playing, I do know that it was some Suspense / Thriller type of movie. Why do I remember that? Because it was the catalyst for what was about to happen. The movie got to a suspenseful scene. Suddenly catching me completely off guard, the woman makes some sound of being scared and grabs my arm. :eyes: And I don't mean slightly, but rather a full-fledged GRAB like as if she had come there with me. Logically, I would have thought that she would have noticed her inadvertent odd behavior and gone something like, "Oh, I'm sorry! Just force of habit." Then letting go of my arm would have followed, right? But, Nooooooo! She remained latched on to me. :left:

Then on the next scary scene, with her already having a solid grab of my arm, she now assigns herself carte blanche to mediumishly dig her nails into my arm and put her head on my shoulder! :devil: I wasn't freaked out. It was more of a combo of me being definitely perplexed, mystified and … Okay, slightly smile-eliciting being entertained. :lol: By then, I don't think I was even concentrating on the movie. I was focusing more on the extreme liberty, which this total stranger woman had taken on me. p:

So yeah, as the movie progressed and the suspenseful and scary scenes continued, this mystery woman's head was already camped out on my shoulder. :jester: And her fingers and sometimes Claws nails were apparently part of my Right Arm. Mind you, NOT once did she remotely inquire, "Oh, I hope you don't mind. Is this OK? It's just that I'm scared." And no, it doesn't end there. As the movie moved along, she felt even more comfortable with me. Now the arm grab would alternate with caresses of my Right Arm. :whistle: She then masterfully, with extreme finesse, subtly laid one of her hands just above my Right Knee. Heh Heh Heh! :devil: Oops! I mean, :sherlock: "Whoa! Hey! What's going on here?" :lol: Then with her Right Leg crossed over her Left Leg, she now proceeded to unmistakably gently massage my Right Calf with her Right Foot! :cool: I kid y'all NOT! :eyes:

I tell you, the comfort into which she seemed to have settled with her BOLDNESS disguised as being scared, was really odd. By then I had probably lost the plot to the movie. I was now like some Psychologist Researcher studying this woman's behavior. Cuz you KNOW that had the tables been turned, I would at the very least have gotten slapped. On the more extremes, I would have been banned from the theater and the Police would have very likely been called. :insane:

The movie finally came to the end. The lights came on and Clingy Caressing Woman and I parted ways as if nothing had gone on. Yep, mysteriously I seem to attract these Weirdettes who don't play with a Full Deck.:insane: - :lol:

MOTW (Member of the Week)



Friday – June 12, 2009 … What a Great Day! Oh, well sure, there's that bit about today is the switchover to exclusive Digital TV Over the Air Transmission here in the USA. But, that's NOT to what I am referring. :lol:

Nah! I'm referring to the more important event. What a surprise to find out this morning that I was selected as MOTW (Member of the Week) in the Opera Community. I had no clue. :ko: I logged on today later than usual. There was a vague PM from my friend Andrew (Southern Cross). There was nothing, but a quick link. Lo & Behold, where should that link lead me to, but none other than the Opera Community Home Page. I had to do a double and triple take to make sure of what I was seeing. :eyes:

It is really mind-boggling when one considers what it's like to be selected MOTW of the entire Opera Community. :yikes: I mean, there are 2 Million Members! There might NOT necessarily be 2 Million active Blogs out there on the Opera Community, but I'm sure there are a LOT! So, to be selected MOTW of a Global Blog Community that is the Opera Community, it is a Great Honor! :yes: My debut Blog Post was back in July 31, 2008. And I didn't even set out to have a Blog. It was supposed to be for my oldest niece, but she didn't want it. So, I took on the Gig … the Mission Impossible. :jester: So, to have been selected MOTW in less than a year after my debut Blog Post … feels Great! :happy:

I want to thank my Director, my Producer, my Manager, my Press Agent … Oops! Wait a minute! :eyes: What the heck? Awww Man! Sorry about that. I got the wrong speech out. Homer: Doh! :wink: :lol: That was supposed to have been for when I won a Grammy Award. :wink: p:

But, seriously, I wanted to thank some people. Since early on after I joined the Opera Community and on to present day, a couple of people have helped me out. They have helped make my Blog Trek smoother.

First, there is someone who needs no introduction – Tamil. Now who on the Opera Community doesn't know Tamil? As if. p: He has helped me on many occasions with answers to my questions and solutions to my problems regarding Opera Browser and the Opera Community. Thanks, Tamil! :up: :up:

Then there are a couple of people who have helped me with CSS Code, Tips, Help and ideas that allowed me to customize my Blog as well as the Blogs of various other Opera Community Members. Thanks to:
Andrew (Southern Cross), Mik Furie, Lorenzo Celsi, DrLaunch and Vy (Class 10a1). :up: :up:

And of course, a Super HUGE Thanks to the Friends that I have made on the Opera Community and to the various Loyal Readers, Regular Visitors who have allowed my Blog to carve out a little niche on the Opera Community. :yes: :headbang: :hat:

Those of you who have for the first time taken a sample perusing of my stories in my Blog Posts and liked them, are of course, welcome and encouraged to keep on following my Blog. :up:

The Odd … Bold, Shameless Girl Encounter

As we all know by now, the Opera Community was down for some time last night … well, that is to say, last NIGHT for some of us, depending on which side of the globe we reside. For others, the OC was down during the day. Nevertheless, I just thought I'd issue another apology for the delay in releasing my weekly Post. With the Opera Community playing Hide & Go Seek and me having some project with which I finally had to stop procrastinating and take care of it, I thought it best to postpone my Post till today rather than rush things.

So, my Opera Community Peanuts Gang Honorary Texan friend Lucy (lovinmalamutes) commented last night that because we all endured such frustration, stress, anxiety, panic and hardship in general last night because of the OC being down … I should turn those frowns upsidedown with some typical Carlos Adventure entertainment. Lucy put in an order for some thigh-slappin', howling, hilarious FUN. :jester: :yes: Let me see if I have the ingredients to cook up that order. Let me look in the fridge. Ahhh! Why yes, I do have some eggs … some Silly Putty Eggs, that is. Perfect! :headbang:

On this week's Post, I will regale y'all with a short story, another one of my flashbacks.

I was at a concert at the coliseum here in the Big City back in the early 80s sometime. I was chilling out way up in the bleachers. A couple of my favorite Biggie Tejano Bands were playing that night. While the floor was packed with people, there was plenty of spacious seating available in the bleachers. I was minding my own business enjoying the great music. With my propensity for detail, as my friend Peppermint would confirm, somehow I scoped out way in the distance what were these 2 girls and a guy unmistakably looking in my direction. :left: :right: Yes, even though I was way up there in the bleachers and they were down on the floor. I thought to myself, "I could be wrong, but that certainly looked like a very curious, up to who knows WTF, gawking at me Alert." I kept enjoying the music, while at the same time out of the corner of my eye keeping tabs on the mysterious trio's whereabouts. After a couple of minutes, there was no mistaking observations now. The trio was definitely making its way up the bleachers and towards me. I did my best to remain conveying an aura of nonchalance and Coolness :cool: … so Cool I could have cooled the entire coliseum. :lol:

The mysterious trio of 2 girls and a guy was finally right next to me. One of the girls just up and gets to the point in about the most blunt, point blank, in yer face manner that anyone could get with anything. Speaking in Spanish, the girl goes, "¡Hola! ¿Me puede dar un beso?" Translated into English, that means, "Hi! Can you give me a kiss?" :eyes: Yes! Just like that. :yikes: No beating around the bush. No sugar-coating. No innuendos or metaphors. No let's play 20 Questions. No playing Charades. She just let'r Rip, I tell ya! :D Keeping it in Spanish, not certain that I heard the catching me completely off guard, odd, BOLD and intrepid request, I inquired, "Excuse me?" Unfazed, without hesitation, without any second thoughts as to what she might have gotten herself into, the girl looked me in the eye and with full confidence reiterated, "¿Me puede dar un beso?" Yep, she again eagerly served me a Big Bowl of "Can you give me a kiss?"

Now, while my intrepid, Carlos Kiss-seeking, Carlos Kiss-needing Secret Admirer wasn't a Dog … a Hot & Sexy, Nice-BOD-ed, irresistible, Sit on my Lap, Toss your Wild Hair all over my face and let me make your Kiss Wish come true as we hear Dream Weaver in our heads … BABE, she wasn't. :lol: I'll keep it translated in English now. So, my instinctive response to her succinct request was a simple, "Just like that?" Still a bundle of determination, undeterred and her eyes with nary a blink of wavering confidence, the girl adamantly replied, "Just like that!" As my Post's title indicates, the whole scenario was just sooo odd, bordering on suspicious. If I didn't know better, I'd swear that someone had put her up to it like with a dare. I sure didn't sense that she wanted to actually get to know me. Otherwise, she would have used some more appropriate line than, "Hi! Can you give me a kiss?" She didn't seem to have any interest in dancing. Nah! Her whole stunt just smacked of, "Look! Just give me a kiss and I'll be out of your hair." I mean, the other girl and guy with her were just standing there so weirdly, as if some audience expecting to get some cheap thrills by watching some Porn scene or something. :insane: I even asked the girl if someone had put her up to this. She swore that wasn't the case. I asked her why then was she so obsessively intent on getting a kiss. She just gave a less than inspiring, "Just because." :rolleyes:

I don't know. On a certain level, that encounter with the girl's out of the blue, explicit request would theoretically be flattering. To think that she scoped me out from 50 yards away or whatever lengthy distance it was and she was instantaneously infatuated with me p: and magnetically drawn to me with more gravitational pull than a galactic Black Hole. :jester: And her life's purpose and meaning suddenly became to get a kiss from Prince Charming me. Was she on drugs and perhaps a talking rabbit told her if she got a kiss from me, she'd turn into Cinderella?

The reality was that Osculation Hungry Girl and her cheap thrill-seeking Entourage Duo were starting to freak me out. I finally had to be more overt in expressing that they were now officially invading my personal space and were no longer welcome there. Not that they were to begin with. The Stalker Trio finally left.

There ya go, Lucy! :smile: I hope that quenched your thirst for some thigh-slappin, howling, hilarious FUN. And hopefully everyone else was also entertained. :happy:
June 2009
S M T W T F S
May 2009July 2009
1 2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 11 12 13
14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27
28 29 30