Darlene Steelman

CD Review: Piranah - Piranah

2012-03-01T06:41:00.001-05:00

Piranah - Piranah
Released: 2009
Orchestrated Records

As a heavy metal music lover, I jumped at the chance when Chris Higgins, drummer for Piranah, asked me to review their CD. One of the great things in this day and age of social networking is having an opportunity to review a band that lives in Tennessee when I live in Pennsylvania.

Music City, USA, better known as Nashville, Tennessee conveys notions of The Tennessee State Fair and The Grand Ole Opry. The home of the Country Music Hall of Fame, you would think a metal band in the land of straw hats and honky-tonk would be ostracized. Think again. There is a metal scene in Nashville, and Piranah is right in the middle.

Piranah

The band hails as “Blue Collar" metal. Their gritty sound is hard and in your face. It is nothing I have heard before, so "blue collar" may be a new genre pioneered by the four guys who make up Piranah.
And yes, that is spelled with the A and H transposed on the end. When I asked the band about the spelling, Matt answered, ""Piranah is spelled different 'cause we didn't want it to be spelled like the fish."

At first I though this was silly. But then, I thought of other bands with "unusual band spellings" like: STAIND, MERCYFUL Fate and Limp BIZKIT. Despite the need for a spelling lesson, these three bands have done very well for themselves.

I asked Chris what some of the bands influences are. He said, "Metal that grooves with a lil thrash like a combo of these bands and a few more- Early Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera, Sabbath, AC/DC, early Motley, BLS, Clutch, Godsmack, Acid Bath, Rush and soooo many more."

Yeah, yeah, but what have they done?

In Nashville they have taken over THE BUZZ (102.9 WBUZ) radio station, winning the Nashville Independent Music Awards in 2011 as well as being crowned the Buzz Battle Champs for three months in a row in 2009. This feat gained the band into the Local Buzz Hall of Fame. I could list all of the Band Battles and competitions they have kicked ass in... ok. Here goes:

12th most requested band in 2008 in the Middle Tennessee area.
10th most requested band in 2010 in the Middle Tennessee area.
won Round 2 in 2011 on Metalsanaz.com (this is a good thing!).
placed 17th out of 13,179 artists in the Toyota Music Rock This Space competition.
placed 15th out of hundreds of bands across the country in the Project Independent Contest.

But don't take the props from the Tennessee locals word for it, go listen to songs like "Slowly the Rot" which starts off with a funky groove and then slaps you in the face with grizzled vocals and a throaty guitar. Then check out "All Along (Step by Step)" with a killer bass guitar/drum intro. "Visions of the Damned" slows it down in the middle of the CD. And isn't always fun when there is a cover song in there somewhere? Piranah covers Prong's "Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck." Lead singer Darren Andrews hits four different voices on their version.

Their self-titled third release (produced by Grammy winner Voytek Kochanek - score!) is available on iTunes. Look for new music from Piranah in the coming year!

Into The Pit - Philly Metal. Thrash is Back!

2012-02-21T22:57:00.006-05:00

I didn't get into heavy metal until my twenties. I did listen to bands like Motley Crue, Judas Priest and Triumph when I was a teenager. Yeah some of them are considered heavy metal - but not all of them.

I have always been a late bloomer - always. Music, make-up, driving. Everything and anything I have ever done I have always done six months to ten years later than the average bear.

It seems that Thrash is back. Thrash innovators like Slayer, old school Metallica, Testament, Exodus and the like kind of disappeared for a while (well - old school Metallica seems gone forever) but they never died. Did they lay dormant? It doesn't matter.

Thrash is back.

Thrash is back and it is everywhere. All over the country. All over the world!
Turn off the damn stations plaguing your ears through the radio in your car or office. They play the same rubbish every forty - sixty minutes. There is good metal music out there. Thrash, Death, Speed - tune into an internet radio station and find that awesome music.

There is a huge music scene in Philadelphia and people need to know about it!

Bands like: Citadel, Faith or Fear, Condition Critical. These are kick ass thrash bands from the Philly area that play their hearts out. Get on Facebook and find them. You can thank me with cookies...

But Darlene! Where can I find a kick ass internet radio station that plays kick ass metal? Well it just so happens my good friends Timm Dougherty & CM started the perfect internet radio show for metal heads everywhere.

Into The Pit Radio plays every Sunday night from 5pm - 8 pm. Kick ass music, band interviews, mayhem and antics. They play slightly popular bands like Slayer, too! Yes. Exhale.. it is true.

Oh! You say you are busy on Sunday night and there is no way in hell you can tune in? Well, just hop your cute butt on over to iTunes and download the Podcast for FREE!!

Yes. free. You can pick yourself up off the floor now.

Stay tuned in the upcoming weeks! I will be covering The Damsels of Darkness tour in March.

METAL UP!

New York Motorcycle Show

2012-02-03T22:20:00.000-05:00

Sunday, January 22, 2012. A new month, a new year. A bunch of new, bad ass motorcycles at the Progressive Motorcycle Show. We took the train into New York City from Princeton.
The train is the only way to go, really.
So.. without further ado...
Here are some pictures from The Big Apple and the Motorcycle Show.

You can find all of the pictures on my Flickr Page

The crowd was great. I kept forgetting I was in New York and was a little confused at all the Giants jerseys. Fortunately for myself I kept my thoughts to myself.
The train station was interesting. There were a couple guys singing and playing acoustic guitar. I threw a few bucks in the case in front of them. They sounded good. :) I wanted to take their pictures, but my camera battery died. >:(
There was a dude there with at least seventy face piercings. I totally had juice in my camera to get his picture, but my boyfriend felt uncomfortable about me taking his picture. I don't think he'd have minded. I mean, all those face piercings.. if not for attention, then for what?

It was a good time. We went last year too, and will probably make it a yearly thing now. Do you go to shows? Motorcycle? Boat? Car? Gun? Some other kind of shows?

Thanks for stopping by...

Too Fast... Too Fast For Love!

2012-01-19T20:09:00.003-05:00

Yes. I LOVE THE 80's! Motley Crue was one of the first bands I fell in love with that had anything to do with the 80's. I bring this up because I'm not sure if my readers know I have an 80's blog. It is called The Great 80's. Go check it out! A wonderful writer/blogger by the name of Sharon Howard is going to guest post there in February. She will share a fascinating tale of growing up 80's in England! It is such a great story. You will want to read all about it.

Going on this weekend: I am going to the Annual Motorcycle show in New York, NY on Sunday. Be sure to check back for the latest on hot new bikes, gear and gadgets. I'll have plenty of pictures up as well.

This month stay tuned for my guest post over at Marcia Richards' blog. It will be about goals and how to keep it simple. I It is tax season, so you won't be seeing much of me. But know that future blog posts will contain mega content.

SIMPLE GOALS = ACHIEVED GOALS

I'll see you soon.. until then remember:

It's long road to success... though not always straight! It's important to take it as it comes, but not let it get you down. There is a lesson learned in everything we do. Sometimes those lessons scream at you. Other times, it is a slight whisper. In those times, be sure to stop talking and listen.

Peace.

Happy New Year Everyone

2012-01-02T18:39:00.000-05:00

Yep. I'm sure you don't need me to tell you it is a little more than half way into day 2 of the infamous year 2012.

2012 is infamous because for all of 2011, tales of apocalypses and Hostile Zombie Takeovers plagued the cable networks.
Oh, and how Aliens lived here before we did, or we are aliens, or some crap like that.

So at first I was thinking... I'll quit my job, hike across the country earning a living as an amateur mime with a hat strategically placed in front of me on a street corner while I search for places to hide during the zombie/alien/marshmallow man takeover.

Then I thought.. if I do that, I'll be kicking my own ass on 12/22/12.

My year went like this:
*I celebrated five years of sobriety in May.
*I regained custody of my daughter in June.
*I won a guest blogger spot for Cycle World Magazine for the entire summer as I got to cruise a 2011 Kawasaki Ninja courtesy of said magazine.
*I finished NaNoWriMo in November.

There is some other stuff in there too.. but these are the biggest highlights.

So to start the year off - - -

January 1 - went skiing for the first time.
January 2 - started the revision of my NaNoWriMo work.
January 3 - is a mystery.

Happy New Year you wonderful people you!

Who Is Ready For Christmas?

2011-12-17T17:43:00.001-05:00

As 2011 comes to a close, I have been trying to tie up some loose ends as far as finances and first drafts go.

Yes! I wrote a 50,000 word novel in November for the infamous NaNoWriMo. I met many cool people and learned a few things about what a lot of writers do when rushed for wordage and have no idea what to write.

DREAM SEQUENCE!!

It's funny to me because I happened to hit my 50,000 word count without a dream sequence, but I want to throw one in there just for the sheer hell of it. I see alot of dreams in movies, and I read them in a lot of books.

At first I had a hard time trying to stay on track because I have a mild undiagnosed version of A.D.D. which gets me acting like a kitty cat and a pen light.

What was that??

Anyway.. I did manage to get a plot idea and ran with it.. I threw my draft in a drawer until January 1, 2012 (which thankfully is a Sunday). I will then go through it with a highlighter and a red pen. I am actually looking forward to going through it because I once read that anyone can write. The real work is in the editing. I have quite a bit of faith that I can pull it off.

Right now I am outlining a memoir type book.

Christmas!! Got almost all the presents I need for my loved ones and co-workers. We got a tree this year. We put the little stuffed penguin under it, we went to the store and got ornaments and pretty lights. And yes, if you look closely at the top of the tree that is Jim Morrison. My daughter made a Jim Morrison tree star!

I didn't even notice it until she said something and I cracked up. Only my sixteen year old daughter would think of putting Jim Morrison on the top of a Christmas Tree! I still am a littel floored that my teenage daughter is so in love with many of the bands from the early 70's. I mean, I was at her age as well (I grew up in the 80's). I loved Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Doors, Hendrix... I loved them all. My parents listened to all of that stuff so I by default did as well. I guess the default carries from generation to generation.

So Happy Holidays to everyone. I hope you get everything you ask for! May you and your family be blessed in the coming year.

Whatcha Gonna Do?

2011-10-02T17:36:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow is my last vacation day of the year. I always take my last day in October. There is something about the early stages of fall that I am in love with.

I will have the house to myself from approximately 7:30 am until 3:00 pm.

In this time I plan on doing much writing. I am also going to put together a reasonable writing schedule. I always wind up making a schedule I cannot stick to and then feel deflated when I don't meet my goals.

I will keep my goals small and attainable. If I surpass them... yay me.

This week we bought a really nice camera off Amazon.com. I am excited about this! I love photography and prefer adding my own pictures to my blogs as opposed to pictures I find off the web. I always feel so dirty about adding web pictures. I mean, I am using someone's hard work for my own gain. The photographers are impossible to contact and when I manage to contact someone, they take a long time to get back to me... if they ever get back to me at all.

I like taking pictures of architecture and nature. I am not big into photographing people. This picture is from a church in Pennsylvania. We call it the "Pyramid Church" because of all the buildings that look like this. My friend Joe went to one of the sermons there a while back. All he could say was that it was "interesting." Now, the sermon does not take place in one of these actual pyramids. How cramped would that be?

I mostly like old dilapidated buildings. People ask me why. I don't have an answer. Who really has an answer for the odd things we like.

The other night I was sitting on the step, smoking a cigarette when I heard this loud fluttering. Suddenly, something was sitting on my chest with prickly feet. I looked down to see a huge Praying Mantis. They are supposed to be good luck or something.

That would be nice.

The ABC's of Me

2011-09-09T23:53:00.000-04:00

A - Always on time.
B - Battle. As in I battle anything and anyone when I am sure I am right.
C - Cats. I love them. I have two and when I hit the lottery will be a rescue kitty woman.
D - Darlene. My name that I hated until I turned 28.
E - Eggs. Love them. My favorite go to protein food.
F - Freak. I get called this a lot for a lot of reasons.
G - Goofy. As in - Darlene you are so goofy! And I am. Really.
H - Highways. I looove to drive and ride. On the road = Happy. Another H!
I - Ice Cream. Not a big fan.
J - James. Half the men in my family have this name.
K - Kickoff. Football. Fall.
L - Long walks. In the park. I'm serious.
M - Momentary Lapse of Reason = awesome Pink Floyd song.
N - Nerd. That's me! Deep down inside and slightly on the surface.
O - Overreact. I do this a lot; have a few books on how not to do this.. but I do it anyway.
P - Pickles! My cat's alter ego.
Q - Quintessential.. a word I use often.
R - Rabid Wolf Spider. Love spiders. The Rabid Wolf Spider is neither rabid nor wolf like.
S - Sleep. I do not do it enough.
T - Take It To The Limit. A song by the Eagles that makes me smile. Every time.
U - Under achiever. A curse that I am still trying to break.
V - Violin. I played for four years while in grade school.
W - Writer. I finally tell people I am a .. gulp.. writer.
X - Xylophone - I played the xylophone in the 5th grade Christmas concert.
Y - Yak - I had a stuffed one with green fur when I was 8.
Z - Zippo. My other cats name. He is named after the song by Corrosion of Conformity... not the lighter.

Thanks to Little Miss Nerd Girl for this idea. Click the link and check out her ABC's.

Perspective and Story Ideas

2011-08-07T18:01:00.000-04:00

Ha.. ok, bad title. But hey..
So this week was interesting. I do not have the Ninja 1000 much longer.. maybe 3 weeks? My daughter's 16th birthday approaches.. must make plans for that.

Today Andy and I put the bicycles on the car and headed down to Kelly Drive/West River Drive/Art Museum area in Philadelphia. It was a great day to be outside and we took full advantage.

We did an 8 mile loop and I was sad that I do not have a camera at the moment. There were so many great shots!

There was a line of people to get a picture with the Rocky Statue. I thought that was interesting.

I also made a comment to Andy about an interesting story idea I got when we rode down Kelly Drive and off to the right was a bathroom and a trail that led back into the woods.
Andy told me I was demented, to which I replied "I guess all writers are then."

My novel is coming along nicely. I was glad to be in and driving through Philadelphia today. I got a lot of points of interest for my book and came up with a potential subplot.

My goal for this week is to write a total of 5000 words. Which days that gets done is of minor importance. I'll do a little more mapped of a schedule tomorrow.

In very sad news, my co-worker Nancy, who has Stage Four Colon Cancer, is back in the hospital. She is so sweet to everyone and does so much for so many. I am saddest for her daughters who are 19 and 16. I was talking to my youngest, who will be 16 this month. She told me how devastated she would be if I got sick and then eventually died.

I didn't know what to say. Knowing someone who has their life put in an unimaginable perspective puts a spin on things. I often get wrapped up in the day to day mindless crap. But then, I see Nancy at work. She looks like she'd blow away if a strong breeze came along. She looks so tired.

And I think.. "what the hell am I bitching about?"

Have a great week everyone.. stick to your guns and never give up.

Getting The Mojo Back

2011-07-31T11:19:00.000-04:00

This week has been pretty ho hum. I made a lot of progress on my WIP. I did some chapter outlines and posted the very rough draft of the first chapter to Writer's Digest Critique Corner and got a few feedback comments. I amvery excited with the path I want to take the story in.

In motorcycle news... I did go out on the Ninja 1000 yesterday. I rode with Andy and Chris. We decided to just do a loop through Doylestown and stopped off at Five Guys Burgers And Fries out there. I didn't wear a jacket or gloves... I know, I know.. I am very bad. But the frame on the bike gets so damn hot I literally feel like I am going to pass out from heat exhaustion if I wear gear. A very big drawback to the otherwise excellently put together 2011 Kawasaki Ninja 1000.

Book I am reading: Nikki Sixx - The Heroin Diaries. Gripping, sad and eye opening. Nikki Sixx of the famed Motley Crue and Sixx A.M. published his diary. I guess I am kind of living in a cave or something because apparently my sister read it two years ago.

My goals for the week are quite simple.
Continue writing. Continue blog commenting.

It's Getting Better... All The Time!

2011-07-24T10:30:00.000-04:00

Alright... wow. This week was a blur in a way. I drove my daughter to Warp Tour on Thursday, she had a blast. The heat was insane, it hit like 100 that day. I had my concerns, but she and her friend each took a big bottle of water and the concert venue had a free refilling station.

I got "The Heroin Diaries - A Year In The Life of a Shattered Rock Star" by Nikki Sixx in the mail last week. I am having a hard time putting it down. It is sad, funny, troubling and surreal to sum it up. As a recovering addict/alcoholic myself, I can relate to a lot of things he writes about. So far I have only cried twice.

I have a book idea! Yay me! I pulled out my BIAM spiral book that has been collecting dust for the last six months and finally started using it. I did start writing a part of my life about the worst ten years of my life, but it is pretty painful to go through. I might not be ready for that. The book idea I have a ran across Andy and he said it sounded pretty interesting, so I am stoked as I do my outline.

I never really did an outline before. I would just write and then lose interest. I think the losing interest was due to having no direction.

I rode Thor a couple times this week. Honestly, it has just been too hot. The temperature has gotten to well above 100 degrees a few times this week. The heat is sickening. Since I was about 32 years old, my body just cannot handle the heat like it used to. I get real sick with a wicked headache. Heat stroke? Not sure.

Well, time for me to go wake Andy up from his morning nap. We are going to his mother's today.

Peace!

Motley Crue and Motorcycles!

2011-07-18T22:13:00.000-04:00

Does it ever end? This last week was nuts. Driving my daughter back and forth to her friends, trying to write in between working, blogging, riding my motorcycle, and walking. *sigh* exhaling now.

We went on a few motorcycle rides this week and even went on a short one today!

Oh... the best thing? I went to the Motley Crue/Poison concert Saturday night! It was a blast. My friend Katie took my picture and there was a message to send in fan photos. Katie sent it in and when Motley Crue did Home Sweet Home they put up all the fan photos one by one as they played and mine was one of them!

Katie, her sister Amy and I started screaming and pointing like school girls. It was awesome.
Shortly after that, Tommy Lee did a drum solo on his drum kit while the drum kit was spinning around! Very cool.
But it got better. Vince Neil, the lead singer, called this guy named Tony up on the stage and he got to go on the drum kit with Tommy Lee!

Sunday a bunch of us hopped on the motorcycles and rode over to Princeton, NJ for smoothies and a light lunch. The weather was a little warm but it felt so good to get back out and ride.

This week I am going to give you the link to Sonia G. Medeiros. She is very talented and super funny. I met her through an online class hosted by Kristen Lamb, who I will be profiling soon. I love Sonia's blog. She keeps it real and always has very interesting information. Keep up the good work, Sonia!

Until next week my little tiddlywinks.. be merry, take chances and make those dreams a reality!

Getting Jiggy With It

2011-07-10T18:43:00.000-04:00

Ha!! Getting jiggy with life. This week was great. Work was kind of awful in a few spots, but my writing is flowing very well. My Great 80's blog is coming along nicely. I have a few posts up. My friend Rich Concannon (who is obsessed with the 80's like me) will be doing a guest post shortly on a great 80's mash up band called Rock Sugar. You'll want to check that out!

In Ninja News, I haven't rode Thor, The Ninja 1000, yet because the registration is expired and I am waiting on it to come in the mail from Cycle World. So today I took my green machine out for a nice 150 mile ride through Pennsylvania. We stopped off at Gabriel's II Pizza for a late lunch.

Each Sunday I will be putting up one of my blog followers for you to check out. Today's blog to check out and follow is LJ at LJ Writes. Her blog is entertaining and informative. You owe it to yourself to drop by. She has a great style and makes me laugh. Thanks, LJ!

Saturday I will be going to the Poison/Motley Crue concert with my friends Katie and Amy. I will be doing a write up about the show on my 80's blog. If you love hair metal... go on over and sign up for updates.

Until next Sunday.. keep it real and stay true to yourself.

Ending On A High Note

2011-07-03T12:19:00.000-04:00

I gotta tell ya.. I can be lazy. I lack serious self-motivation quite often. But when I do a job, I do it to the best of my ability. I cried in work this past week because my boss decided to scream at me in front of two co-workers. Yeah, not fun. I refused to cry in front of him, took the berating and walked away with my head held high. I stormed down the hallway, to the bathroom, shut the door sat on the toilet (with the lid down) and cried. It is moments like these that I ask myself, "what are you waiting for, Darlene?"

Seriously. What am I waiting for? There is no magical fairyland of publishers, no winning lottery ticket in my midst. There is no fairy godmother that is going to tickle my nose with fairy dust in my sleep and take me way to the life of my dreams. I have to earn it. I have to own it.

I have been writing... a lot. I have noticed in my writing that I am developing my voice and I kind of like it. I'm a little bit of a smart ass and I am okay with that.

This week is finally over. *stars, whistles, a cheering crowd*

We rode up to New Hope Friday night via the motorcycles to drink iced coffee and watch fire works. The weather was perfect and the company great, too. Andy (my boyfriend) and Joe rode along on their own bikes with me. I was able to relax and really reflect as I rode - well, in between slowing down for the umpteen deer that stood on either side of the road.

I believe in animal totems. I believe that every animal I see on a given day is trying to tell me something. You can call me crazy or childish. But that is what I believe. I listen to these animals.

The deer totem signifies the gentle lure of new adventures.

Sounds great to me!

Blog Lovin'

2011-06-27T22:58:00.000-04:00

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Just testing to see if this thing really works! I am super tired, was sick all day.. yeah yeah, boo hoo. preachin' to the choir I am!

In between being sic and trying to rest I managed a few words on my novel. Okay, more than a few. I have a 500 minimum word count limit a day.

Peace homies!

Moving Right Along

2011-06-26T18:46:00.000-04:00

Well, this week hasn't exactly been the most exciting week ever, but it has been a productive one. I took the bike into Bucks County Kawasaki for it's 600 mile service. I am plugging along at the rough draft of a novel I am creating. I did an outline which is pretty meaty. Now I have to pick that apart. So far I am at Chapter 3.

I started a new blog. It is all about the 80's. So far it has been loads of fun reliving the past. Sometimes I miss the 80's until I look at a picture of 80's clothes. *shudders*. Certainly do not miss that part. So far it is a very fun blog to write and I am enjoying it much. The Great 80's is the name of it. Stop on by and check it out! It will be chock full of 80's culture, fashion, history and most of all ...music!

Today Andy and I took an 80 mile ride on the motorcycles. It was great getting back out on the road. We are planning to ride up to Hawks Nest, NY soon.

Off any kind of topic.. if you haven't tried the new Klondike Caramel Pretzel Ice Cream bars... I suggest you do. They are very very yummy!

What Am I Supposed To Say

2011-06-19T19:26:00.000-04:00

Did you ever just have a moment where your brain just flat out turned into that fuzz that used to come on the television after the Late, Late Show back in the early eighties? You'd be watching some cheeseball movie you never had an inkling to watch before and fell asleep during, only to be awoken by the loud CHHHSHHH of a live ant race.

I am there at this moment. I sit here and realize as I am about to enter my weekly Sunday rambling that no one really gives a shit. No one cares what I had for breakfast this morning, or that I went on a 150 mile motorcycle excursion today and loved it. No one cares that last month I celebrated five years sober. No one cares that my daughter, who is now 15, finally came home to live with me after those five years.

But that's okay. I am very grateful for the people who do follow my blog. I know that there is no overnight success in my writing cards and I am okay with that.

I have wanted to chronicle my life for a while now. It is more interesting than a lot of movies I have seen. The thing is, I didn't want to write my whole life story for a few reasons:

1) I am only 38 years old. Yes, only.
2) My life has only been exciting in a couple blocks.
3) I am not famous so no one cares about my life story.

So instead of writing about the whole thing, I picked the part that was brutal and that, if people read it, could actually learn a thing or two on how to pinpoint unmanageability in their own lives. Maybe since I like to help people, God gave me these hurdles to jump and help others.

I did an outline last night and I gotta say... wow. I really got lucky in a lot of spots.

I Need The Legion Of Doom!

2011-06-12T16:45:00.000-04:00

I love when it rains... between 12 midnight and 6 am. Since I have not obtained the blueprints from the Legion Of Doom for the weather machine to change the rain that has been falling off and on for the last week I cannot alter the drops into bursting sunshine beams. Damn.

Lots of rain equals little riding. I did get to ride to work last week a couple times which was nice. There is going to be better weather this coming week. More motorcycle riding... yes! I really have to get the bike to 600 miles to get it in for the service. I'll probably get to that at the end of the week. I feel slightly embarrassed that I have not even gotten to the 600 mile mark, but I can only do what I can do. Two jobs, writing, preparing for my daughter to come home and wicked thundershowers are impeding on my ride time...

Speaking of writing, I am totally slacking. I have all these ideas and they just melt away... :( I get them down and I just can't get them to meld. To be blunt, it sucks.

Tonight after my nap, I am sitting down for an hour to do some free writing.

Lynn-Ann comes home Friday. We are very excited. The cats are exited too. Andy's mom has a great little bookshelf for her room. We are totally snagging it next weekend!

Thor: The Wicked Ninja From The West

2011-06-05T09:28:00.001-04:00

Now, when I say wicked, I don't mean an evil, manipulative wench that wants the world it's way. Wicked in this sense means fast, mean and downright bad ass. I am riding Thor courtesy of Cycle World Magazine which is on the West Coast. Hence, the reference.

Thor and I are getting very well acquainted as we wrap up our first whole week together. We didn't get much riding in due to work and some weather issues, but we have plenty of time for that.

Andy and I rode out to Wharton State Park in New Jersey on Saturday.

I am 100% comfy on ol' Thor baby at this point. I thought it would take longer. I am documenting my time well spent with Thor at Thor & Darlene if you are at all interested.

In other news, I got my Lamb Of God decal and t-shirt in the mail. I think the shirt is a little tight, but that gives me incentive to work out a little harder. Right now, I am working out at a 0% capacity.

Yeah, I've been a lazy duck these past couple months. I'll be posting some video soon!

Digging the 2011 Kawasaki Ninja

2011-05-29T21:29:00.000-04:00

What a great bike! The seat is a little uncomfortable... but other than that, it is a well put together machine. It handles beautifully. So far I have put 160 miles on it. My boyfriend, who has a Suzuki Bandit 1250, and I rode up to Furlong, PA Friday night. I was able to show the bike off to a couple fellow rider friends of ours, Chris & Joe. They love the bike.... How could someone not?

Today Andy and I rode up through New Hope. That is where we met this young chickie who sounded great as she sang and played the guitar. Her name is Corey Hite.. keep your eyes out for her! She was very good.

That is me on the bike the day I picked it up. I had a lot of fun that afternoon with the guys from Bucks County Kawasaki. They were so friendly and helpful.

I was mailed a Contour GPS Video Camera that I am having some problems with... but I am sure I will work out the bugs.

I will probably ride this beautiful machine, who I have taken the liberty of naming "Thor" a half dozen or so times to work. The more I ride it the more I like it... and wow, does it ever sound mean.

I'll be tweeting about my experience as well as blogging and updating my Facebook status.

Stay tuned for more action!

Darlene Steelman 0527

2011-05-28T21:53:00.000-04:00

Darlene Steelman 0527

Wordle

2011-05-25T13:05:00.000-04:00

This is my first attempt at a Wordle. I like this concept. This one I did in a couple minutes, only because I am on the tail end of my lunch here at the office. No playing on company time! he he....

I plan on doing a much more indepth one later on in the week with much more color.

Happy Wednesday!

Ride To New Hope Equals Trains and a Parking Ticket

2011-05-22T16:09:00.001-04:00

Andy, Chris, Brittany (Chris's daughter) and myself decided to get breakfast at Back To The 50's diner in Furlong, PA. A small place plastered with pink, James Dean and Marilyn Monroe, they have great food. I recommend it to anyone traveling through the Bucks County area.

We then rode up to New Hope. We parked our bikes outside the old Lulu's (we used to get breakfast there - but it is no longer Lulu's), put a few quarters in the parking meters and hiked up the road for coffee.

After going to Starbucks and waiting in a ridiculous line for over priced coffee we decided to ditch the old SB and head across the way to Dunkin' Donuts. Good call.

There was this little street by an old vintage store on the corner there and we walked up and made a right to go past the train station and back by the old rail cars.

I love old stuff. I am not sure why... but it stirs me. Old houses, old cemeteries, old rail cars. There was even a gentleman dressed as a conductor from the 30's or 40's. He didn't want me to take his picture.

Where this train is, we were able to walk all the way back into an old rail yard. There was a tow path back there and some really neat looking old trains.

After all the train hullabaloo, we went back to New Hope to hop on our gas-filled steeds and head home. As we approached, we noticed all of the motorcycles - roughly fifteen including our three - had little yellow papers on them. At fist I thought it might be some sort of flyer for a new fangled clothing boutique in New Hope.

Unfortunately, it was a parking ticket for an expired meter! Now, the way the parking for motorcycles is in New Hope, about four cycles can fit in a spot. And it is customary for each biker to put at least one quarter in the meter. We all put a quarter in, but I guess none of the other bikers did.

Oh well, we all got a $20 ticket. At 15 bikers, That is $300!

It was still a great day. I had a blast. I have chalked the parking ticket up as parking in an overpriced parking garage. Next time I'll make sure I have way more quarters!

Stay tuned for an update on the Cycle World Ninja 1000 Experience. I should be getting the bike any day now... :)

Slim Jims and No Water

2011-05-20T22:38:00.001-04:00

Okay.......... stop me if you've heard this one before: The world is going to end. The good will be saved and the evil will go through hell. You have heard it? Ahhh.. so I'm not crazy.

Me thinks all the peeps in on this Rapture thing and the Myan Calendar and all this stuff need to get on the same page. Right now I am watching CNBC and the show is talking about the Myan Calendar and how it depicts the end of the world. Apparently a guy named Michael tied some books together and the calendar.

Oh, and let's not forget the guy who says we're living in a computer program. This guy is going to jump off a rock at 11:11 AM into a hole on 122112. I guess if he is right he is a genius. If he is wrong, well, he's dead.

I'm really hoping that I do not have to hole up in my abode because I am totally unprepared. I have no bottled water. I do, however, have Slim Jims. How long can a human being live with a stockpile of Slim Jims sans water?

As I sit here and am pretty sure that the whole "Rapture" day will come and go without a hitch (mainly because I am not living my dream yet). Yes. Didn't you know that everything is all about me?

So here is what I have so far for the Rapture:

*half assed batteries in size AAA.. AAA batteries are useless. Strike one.

*Sprite, a half gallon of 1/2 & 1/2, cheesesticks... and yes, Slim Jims.

* more windows than we really need. If Zombies are part of this Rapture, we are in a deep load of something that doesn't smell pleasant.

*I do have knives. And no, I don't mean kitchen ones.

Are you prepared for the Rapture aka Zombie apocalypse? Is this another load of dookie?

Feel free to chime in and give me your thoughts. I'd love to hear from you.

First Things First

2011-05-15T14:17:00.000-04:00

We all have people in our lives that we care for or answer to. We go to work, get our kids off to school and do a whole lot of other stuff for other people. Now, I know our children depend on us to take care of them.

There comes a point when we just need to stop.

I work with a woman who for some reason thinks she would be a terrible mother if she let her kids (14 and 18) get their own dinner, wash their own clothes or clean their own rooms.

I work two jobs and my fifteen year old daughter will soon be coming to live with me permanently. Andy and I are very excited about this. My daughter will be washing a lot of her own clothes and will probably have to cook a meal or two for herself. This is okay with the both of us. This does not make me a terrible mother. I like to think of it as making me practical.

We have to put our own well being ahead of others more often than we realize. If we don't take care of us, how will we take care of everyone else?

We must learn how to say, "I need some me time!" And yes. I need it right now.

If you are one of those people who feels that the weight of the world is on your shoulders, and you have to do everything for everyone, I suggest rethinking your logic.

Sunday is my day... I need at least one day for me to get in most of my writing and one good nap. So get a day, a night or even an hour. And make sure it is uninterrupted!

First Things First!

To Do List For The Day:

Blog
Food Shopping
Nap
Fold Clothes
More Napping
Write
Snacks!