Drink up...

Phantom

2009-11-08T21:08:25Z

It always surprises me what captures Nick's attention. In most ways he's a typical 10-year-old with the attention span to match. But right now he's sitting on the couch, quiet as a church mouse, listening to the soundtrack to "Phantom of the Opera." And he's clearly listening, because periodically he asks a question about what's going on. JR is filling him in on the story line.

A few days ago Nick came to me and said he wanted to see Phantom. I think they are learning about it in his music class at school. Coincidentally, it's playing here in Tempe right now. When I first heard it was coming I thought about going with JR, who is a huge musical theater fan. But then in typical fashion I never looked into tickets. At this point I just assumed it was sold out.

But after Nick's request I thought, "Hmm, why not look into it?" Money is tight right now, but I had wanted to go to the Nutcracker for Christmas this year so maybe I'll just do this instead. I've never seen Phantom, which is just silly, so why not? The lady at the box office said the tickets are nowhere close to sold out (thank the economy for that) and that if I wait until Monday, the ones I wanted will probably come down in price.

red_girl_42 @ 2009-11-02T21:03:00

2009-11-03T04:07:24Z

It's 9:00 at night and I'm in my PJs and I'm going to drag my ass to the store because I am desperate for cranberry juice.

Just tell me I'm not pregnant...

red_girl_42 @ 2009-11-02T20:59:00

2009-11-03T04:01:56Z

Yet another new layout, now that Halloween is over. This one suits me, yathink?

This won't make any sense to y'all, but I wanted to remember...

2009-11-03T03:40:57Z

Images...

white fur
red velvet
the black night of winter, and stars sharp as icicles
pomegranate seeds

an uncontrollable craving for cranberry juice

An overwhelming abundance of red

What does it mean?

We are all the same

2009-10-30T06:35:43Z

There is this question thing on FB and I was playing with it tonight out of boredom. Today's question of the day was "what are 5 things you want to do before you die?"

What was interesting was reading all the answers other people had written. 95% of the answers were all variations on a small handful of themes.

1. Family/relationships--get married, have kids, spend time with my family, fall in love...
2. Financial/career--buy a house, get rich, get my dream job...
3. Creative expression--write a novel, learn to paint, play in a band...
4. Adventure/travel--skydive, go to Greece, climb a mountain...
5. Giving--end global warming, make people smile, take care of my parents...

When it comes down to it, we all want the same things. We want love and family. We want security and prestige. We want to express ourselves. We want interesting experiences. We want to make a difference. The details may differ. I want to go to Spain. You want to go to Japan. I want to write a book. You want to play the saxophone. But ultimately, we are motivated by the same basic drives.

red_girl_42 @ 2009-10-29T20:15:00

2009-10-30T03:18:30Z

From solar_diablo:

Walmart sells caskets.

There are no words.

red_girl_42 @ 2009-10-27T20:29:00

2009-10-28T03:33:06Z

From today's horoscope:

The activity level is so high that you wonder if you'll be able to keep up with it all. Fortunately, you won't have to because things should begin to settle back down by tomorrow. In the meantime, do the best you can to pace yourself to sustain your energy throughout the day.

Understatement of the year, particularly the first line. Will things really settle back down by tomorrow? I just don't see how that's possible.

This week is one of those weeks that you just have to hold on for dear life and hope you survive it.

Apple picking

2009-10-24T06:35:48Z

We went apple picking at Atkins Farms the first day I was in MA:

A view from Atkins orchards:

Nick in an apple tree:

Have some forbidden fruit:

Apple pie. I wanted to make a fancy crust, but my mom's cookie cutters are limited. Also, my first experience with a convection oven and I'm sold:

I <3 Christmas

2009-10-23T17:33:31Z

OMG CUTE

http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=1940&f=9455

My husband rocks, as does Bonnie Tyler

2009-10-21T16:07:24Z

This morning I got halfway to work when I realized that I left my coffee sitting on the counter at home. I was really annoyed with myself and cursing up a storm.

When I got to work I was walking to my office with JR when I heard someone yell. JR said, "Is that dad?" It was. He had found my coffee before he left the house and brought it to me. Totally made my day. :-)

Another thing that totally made my day was singing (screaming?) "Total Eclipse of the Heart" with JR at the top of our lungs in the car this morning (with the windows down, no less). It's really just one of those songs you have to belt out with an extra helping of melodrama, you know? I think I ripped my vocal cords.

Where is Bonnie Tyler now?

We are supposed to swim this afternoon. Currently it is 66 degrees, and the high is only supposed to be 84. I'm going to die.

Okay, I guess it's time to get some work done.

QOTD

2009-10-20T16:01:28Z

"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go."

--T. S. Eliot

Home again

2009-10-20T02:10:05Z

I'm back from MA. Had a great time. Got lots of pics but I'm too damn lazy to post them. I'll get around to it eventually. :-P

red_girl_42 @ 2009-10-08T20:34:00

2009-10-09T03:37:55Z

I have me a new LJ layout for Halloween. :-)

As of 5:00 tonight, I am officially on vacation. w00t!!!

And, I haz a new orange iPod. Rob gave it to me for my trip.

red_girl_42 @ 2009-09-26T20:11:00

2009-09-27T03:16:35Z

Today I:
* swept and mopped the floors
* vacuumed the living room
* washed the bedding
* cleaned out the fridge (kinda)
* bought groceries
* loaded the dishwasher
* cleaned up cat diarrhea and cat puke (in our bedroom. Lovely.)
* took the dog for a long walk
* practiced piano
* did some research

I think I've earned me some trashy TV, don't you think?

red_girl_42 @ 2009-09-20T11:16:00

2009-09-20T18:22:15Z

Penny: But you know, everything happens...
Billy: Don't say "for a reason."
Penny: No...I'm just saying that everything happens.
Billy: Not to me.

Congratulations to Joss Whedon for snagging an Emmy for Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

Crazy random dog attack

2009-09-20T04:48:45Z

Tonight I took Frieda out for a walk. While we were walking down the street, an unleashed dog came running out of nowhere, straight at Frieda and barking like crazy. I looked around hoping to see its owners, but there was not a human being in sight.

The dog would get right up in Frieda's face, barking, then run off a few feet and then come back again. Frieda never barked, but she was pulling on the leash trying to get at this other dog. I tried to walk us slowly away when the dog would run off, but it would always come back at us.

By this point I didn't believe the dog would really attack us. It never actually snapped at Frieda and while it barked a lot, it never growled. I was just trying to edge us down the street towards home. But we were on the sidewalk, and the dog was in the street, and periodically a car would come by. It was dark out and the dog was black, and I started worrying that it would get hit. I tried gently calling to it to come up on the sidewalk, but it wouldn't come to me.

Finally a car pulled over and a couple of guys asked if I needed help (two young guys in white shirts and ties, which would have meant nothing to me before I moved to AZ, lol). I explained the situation and they managed to get hold of the dog. She didn't have a collar. We didn't really know what to do, so they said they would hold the stray while Frieda and I left the area. I think it was just seeing another dog that had her so riled up. I said I would call animal control as soon as I got home.

I called the local animal control and after listening to their interminable phone message I finally got the point where they said, "To report a stray dog, press one." I pressed one and got a message telling me to call back during normal business hours!!!! Because, you know, dogs only get loose during normal business hours. ARGH.

I don't know what I would have done if those guys never showed up, and I don't know what they ended up doing with the dog. I felt bad just leaving, but at the same time, there was no way that dog was going to calm down while Frieda was nearby. :-(

Also, Frieda is my hero. She never once barked back at the other dog, but she kept herself between it and me the entire time. I never really worried about my own safety with her there, but I was terrified I was going to lose my pup.

Because sometimes you need to dream

2009-09-16T03:13:57Z

ideealisme made a post about all the things she's going to do when she's really, really rich, and asked her flist what we are going to do when we're really, really rich as well. Here's what I posted:

When I am really, really rich, I am going to travel the world and see EVERYTHING. I will finally learn to speak French...by living in Paris for a few months. And I'm going to learn to scuba dive...in Tahiti.

I am going to set up a fund to sponsor our children's science magazine, the one that EVERYONE loves but nobody has any money for, and so we barely manage to eke out one issue a year. I'm going to take it national, too.

I am going to keep my small house, but hire people to clean it for me.

I am going to take piano lessons and go from proficient to really, really good. I could afford piano lessons now, but I don't have the TIME for them. When I don't have to clean house anymore, and working becomes optional, I will have lots of time to practice piano!

I'm going to build Nick the underground laboratory he asks Santa for every year.

So friends, what will YOU do when you are really, really rich? The only forbidden answers are those that involve paying off debt or making sure your loved ones are cared for. I mean...duh...if you didn't plan to do that I don't think I want you on my friends list. But once that's taken care of, then what?

It's like Christmas, only smellier

2009-09-13T20:54:27Z

I got two delicious surprises today: puddles of cat puke AND a steaming heap of dog shit on my library carpet! Is it my birthday already?

And what the hell do they put in Meow Mix to make it stain the carpet that badly? Seriously, folks, my cats do NOT care if their food is a delightful shade of orange, but I DO care that my carpet ISN'T.

Another pet peeve

2009-09-10T17:11:30Z

I hate when I get letters or emails addressed to, "Dear Valued Customer..."

Calling me a "valued customer" doesn't automatically make me feel valued, and frankly, getting a letter with such a generic greeting kind of contradicts what you're saying.

I feel like I'm living in a Hitchcock film

2009-09-10T03:42:21Z

Today I had an exterminator come out to take care of some bees that have been swarming around our yard. They were actually living in our neighbor's yard, under their shed. But the shed is up against our fence, and guess where they were entering and exiting the hive? You got it--our side yard, right near Frieda's doggie door.

What I didn't know about bee removal is that some of the bees escape and they will hang around for a couple more days, totally pissed off. And instead of hanging around the neighbor's shed, they have decided to surround our house.

While we were eating dinner tonight, we heard buzzing. A bee had gotten into the house. Rob whapped it with a shoe. Then after a little while we heard more buzzing. And more. And more. We started freaking out--how were they getting in? It turns out that they were slipping through the teeny tiny crack below the sliding glass door. Rob sprayed Orangeguard around it, and wedged some shirts in the crack, and they seem (knock on wood) to have stopped coming in.

Bees in general don't scare me. If I'm outside and a bee is flying around my head I don't care. But swarms of bees? Hell yeah, that's freaking me out. I don't like killing bees, either. If I find a lone bee in my house I will usher it out the door. But these ones aren't getting ushered. I'm sure my karmic bank account is dwindling.

And Rob has my immense gratitude for taking on the role of bee-whapper, considering he's allergic to them. The man's pretty handy with a shoe!

I sure hope they've calmed down by tomorrow, although I suspect poor Frieda will have to spend the day in her kennel rather than roaming the yard. The bee guy said it could take a couple of days for the escapees to head off.

red_girl_42 @ 2009-09-05T21:48:00

2009-09-06T05:09:34Z

I wanted to write down a couple of passages of interest from The Keepers of Truth, by Michael Collins. The book is about a young man who works as a newspaper reporter in the '70s in a dying auto manufacturing town, where a gruesome murder has just taken place.

"And it passes itself off, this violence, this madness, as nothing to do with politics. Somehow we are an apolitical nation. There are no collective actions of warfare. Everything can be dismantled to the level of the individual. Each act of violence is isolated; it forms no mood; it feeds into no general rebellion. It's maybe the greatest secret we possess as a nation, our sense of alienation from everyone else around us, our ability to have no sympathy, no empathy for others' suffering, a decentralized philosophy of individual will, a culpability that always lands back on each of us."

"It was getting to be like that all over, this new currency of appreciation, where you didn't get a raise. What you got were accolades, awards, and certificates of merit, your name up on a neon sign or on a plaque. It was weird as hell, how it meant so goddamn much to them, how money was eclipsed by a need for respect, an insatiable need to be honored. People were being robbed of a decent living, but they didn't even seem to understand that. Managers and trainee managers were presenting so many goddamn certificates and plaques, it was just plain hard to complain. People were being appreciated and honored every time they opened their mouths....Our Orwellian nightmare had arrived, the newsspeak of postindustrialism. Who among us was equipped to understand that serf and prole were now manager or trainee manager, in this world?"

Have you hugged a pup today?

2009-09-06T04:49:55Z

I am on several dog communities, and once in a while someone posts that their beloved pet has passed away. And every single time I am compelled to hunt down my own smelly, hairy beast and give her a hug.

I need to make some new Frieda icons. She is not this small anymore.

Are you dying to go to Mars?

2009-09-03T16:55:51Z

An interesting P.O.V. (slightly tongue-in-cheek) from Lawrence Krauss.

"While the idea of sending astronauts aloft never to return is jarring upon first hearing, the rationale for one-way trips into space has both historical and practical roots. Colonists and pilgrims seldom set off for the New World with the expectation of a return trip, usually because the places they were leaving were pretty intolerable anyway. Give us a century or two and we may turn the whole planet into a place from which many people might be happy to depart."

Would you volunteer for a space mission, even if it meant you would never return?

red_girl_42 @ 2009-09-02T21:31:00

2009-09-03T04:35:08Z

I really love this article about universal health care from a Presbyterian minister.

"I can't believe I am standing today in a Christian church defending the proposition that we should lessen the suffering of those who cannot afford health care in an economic system that often treats the poor as prey for the rich. I cannot believe there are Christians around this nation who are shouting that message down and waving guns in the air because they don't want to hear it. But I learned along time ago that churches are strange places; charity is fine, but speaking of justice is heresy in many churches. The late Brazilian bishop Dom Hélder Câmara said it well: "When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a Communist." Too often today in the United States, if you talk about helping the poor, they call you Christian, but if you actually try to do something to help the poor, they call you a socialist."

red_girl_42 @ 2009-08-31T22:51:00

2009-09-01T05:54:39Z

I found the old BBC episodes of "Hitchhiker's Guide" on Netflix and I am now busy reliving a happier time.