Am I Just Imagining...

2011-11-18T16:04:00.000-08:00

I'm thinking about dropping my current hair person. This probably isn't surprising to anyone. ThisI feel like I'm always going through this inner conflict with hair peeps! I've been seeing this one for probably almost a year. She does a good job very quickly (I'm usually out of there in a half hour to 45 minutes), which works well for my busy grad school schedule, and her prices are reasonable. The space she works in is cool. Also, she's nice. What's not to like, right? Well. Even though I always end up liking my haircuts, I feel like she and I do not communicate well. She asks what I want, I tell her, and then I get something slightly (or majorly) different from the last time. It's like she doesn't remember my hair at all. And, she likes reality tv shows. Cons.

A few days ago, I went in for a cut, and I say how much I liked the last one. I just want to have that again, taking off no more than ONE INCH. Off we go!

(Snip-snip, snip, snip, snip-snip, snip. Snippity-snip, snip, snip. Snip.)

OK, so the end product looks pretty good from the front, maybe a little bit shorter than I'd asked for, but oh well. Then she asked me, "Do you want me to shave your neck line?"

Me: Wait. What? Do I need that?

Her: I would.

Me: Oh, um, ok. We've never done that before. Is it shorter?

Her: (shrug) Don't think so.

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Neck line shaved.

Me: I like it. I just think it's quite a bit shorter than last time.

Her: Hmmmmmm.

I swipe my card through her handy-dandy iPhone gadget, and this time I decide to not be as generous with the tip. Along with the inconsistent cuts, she's isn't one for putting much time or effort into the dry and style. The funny thing is that I still ended up liking my hair. So do lots of other people. It's just short. Hair grows back so no biggie. I just feel nervous going in there, because I don't know what's going to happen to it before I come out. I wondered to myself if she purposely took off some extra length after we appeared to have a disagreement about the show Sister Wives. She's creeped out by polygamy while I'm all, "Hey, you know, it's not my thing, but people are going to do what they're going to do, so whatever. That's fine."

Snip, snip, snip-snip, snip, snip. SNIP!

2011-11-16T10:25:00.000-08:00

Most Awkward and Entertaining Exchange With a Classmate This Quarter (so far).

School of Social Work ladies room. Break in evening class. I had just finished washing my hands when a friendly classmate (who I had just met) emerges from the other stall and starts washing her hands. I'm drying my hands when suddenly she bursts out with, "Meg! You look like you should do roller derby!"

Me: Huh? What? Why? (pause) Do I look mean?

Her: No. You just look like you should do roller derby. It's cool! That's my dream. I really want to do that someday.

Me: Well...thanks.

Another awkward pause and then we both exit.

2011-11-13T21:53:00.001-08:00

So...TBF moved in today. Yes, we've decided to take our relationship to the next level by officially squeezing our two lives into my one smallish apartment. So far, it's been a pretty painless transition. We've spent a lot of time together here over the past two years, and we knew we were ready to move forward. With my current school and not working situation, and his situation with his house, the choice to stay at this apartment made the most sense, financially, for the time being. Logistically, this would be a difficult time for me to move, and I don't think 18 year old Kitty would be up for a change right now either. So, here we are.

Of course, I wondered if I would freak out at all when faced with the reality of TBF's stuff. As you know, I've been on my own for a long while, and even though we've spent the majority of our time here these past couple of years, I've still been in control of this space. Making the transition from "my" to "our" is taking some time to process. Luckily, both of us have been working hard on paring down our stuff so that we can fit pretty comfortably here, and I think that's helped a lot. Overall, this move feels very right, and I'm excited and happy that we're doing it.

I can't even talk about school and practicum right now. That is its own very special brand of stress that, I must admit, I haven't handled very well lately. I will be acquiring a few therapy patients in the near future (from another therapist who is leaving the clinic soon), and I'm both excited and nervous about that. I really need and want the experience while at practicum, but I'm also concerned about effing someone up. Not to mention, it's kind of tough being a good listener for 50 minutes while attending to both your own responses and your client's feelings all at once. Know what I mean? Give it a whirl. I dare ya.

It's cold and wintery here. Kitty is back to her old tricks of holing up in her cabin in front of the heater until she gets hotboxed out. At that point, she stumbles out of her cabin and collapses on her side on the carpet a few feet away. Other times, she wanders out, stops, sits, and stares at the floor for a couple of minutes. I'm always like, Kitty! Learn to take a break BEFORE you feel like you're going to pass out.

I suppose it's no surprise to anyone that I'm a supporter of the Occupy movement. I've wanted to write about that lots, but sadly my time and energy is limited these days with school. I haven't been able to really get involved, and I'm hoping to do that soon. It's the one movement I really believe in, and it stinks that I'm not able to carve out the time to participate in the ways I'd like. But, you know, lots of people are writing and talking about it way better than I could, and I love them for it! One of the best things that's come from OWS is all the conversations happening about where we're at and where our society is heading. My favorite video on the movement is Jay Smooth's (who is the creator of another fave, How to Tell People They Sound Racist) Outing the Ringers. Check it out below! Another recent fave is this Rolling Stone piece.

The one thing that is baffling and disappointing to me, in many cases, is the media response to the Occupy movements happening around the country. Last night, my sis and I were both watching the stand off between the protesters and supports of Occupy Portland, since the camps were evicted from the parks starting at 12:01am this morning. Of course, the media was there reporting on each passing second, as hundreds of supporters flooded the streets. Instead of seeing this as an act of solidarity for the cause, or even discussing the cause at all, the media insisted on referring to the surge of participants as spectators hoping to catch a glimpse of the eviction drama. I'm like, REALLY??? They also paid an inordinate amount of camera time and discussion to the trampled grass in the park from the tent communities. It all boils down to ruined grass and people joining in for the fun of seeing people arrested. Yay.

Before I bolt, a couple of drive-by movie recommendations: 50/50 and Margin Call. Both really well done with great acting!

And, congratulations to friends Amy & Keith on the arrival of their adorable baby Oliver!

2011-10-18T22:45:00.000-07:00

Hello from the Tri-Cities! I'm here for a conference on Asperger's that's being led by my expert crush Dr. Tony Attwood. I'm lounging around in my hotel room after a workout at the gym and stuffing myself with delicious food from PF Changs. I should be doing work, but my lovely and persistent procrastination trait has taken over. It never fails. I'll rally and get something done before bed, I'm sure. Truth be told, peeps, I've been struggling with all the transition this past couple of weeks. I've had a little bit of lonely mixed with a bit of depression followed by one nearly sleepless night (which led to some 2am tears of frustration. I have drama moments). I write blog posts in my head that I never type out. I'm terrible about writing when inspiration hits. At practicum, I felt like people were questioning why I was there, and it started to get to me. I'm no longer competent woman. I'm the newbie intern. I struggled with going to my (really lovely and fun) goodbye party at work. And I love parties. The finality of saying goodbye turned out to be more difficult than I anticipated.

Then, suddenly I was better yesterday. Meditation helps, so does late night melatonin. Delicious dinners and back rubs by a wonderful boyfriend make things better, so do outings with good friends. Over the weekend, I took some walks in the pretty fall sunshine, and something about that really made a difference. Some things are still overwhelming, but I'm feeling more ok with that. I'm finally calming down a bit. Maybe I'll be able to say something real soon.

Unemployed!

2011-10-04T18:45:00.000-07:00

Hello, party people. Welcome to my land of glorious transition. My job is dunzo. I'm unemployed! I've started practicum. And, it's back to classes for me. I planned to take just two this quarter but now I've added a third. It's going to be a busy one. I am reading books called Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, whatever that means. Well, to be honest, I'm thinking about reading the book Psychodynamic Psychotherapy. I'm not doing too great keeping up with all the required reading so far. Off I go!

On the ocean trip with my aunt and Bryn, I had a lot of time to think about all the looming changes. I got a little freaked out.

First I went to a zen place.

Then, I became very introspective and decided to think carefully in the sand.

I figured I might as well do a few leg lifts while there.

Suddenly, I was in the grieving stage.

Which quickly turned to anger.

So then I did what any normal person would do...I took up smoking.

This led me to the final stage: Imagined Bad Assery.

The End.

**This narcissistic photo post was made possible by pictures snapped by Brynna R.**

2011-09-19T23:07:00.000-07:00

Today I packed up my office. I separated recycling from shredding. I organized my email and I put a vacation message on my account that essentially says, "I don't work here anymore. Go bother someone else." My new voice mail recording says I'm a former not a present. I put stuff in bags. My goal was to be done today, but let's be honest here. I didn't make it. After 9 years on the job, an office accumulates a lot of crap. Even after TBF helped me schlep home a bunch of stuff this weekend, I have another hour or two of cleaning to go. I wouldn't be me if I wasn't running late.

It's a hard happy day. I am 100% certain that leaving my job is the right thing to do. It's time. But, letting go is tough. Not only am I letting go of a stable (if meager) income and great benefits, I'm releasing the security of place. Over the years, I thought about that every now and then when walking into my building in the morning. Someday I won't be here any more. I got teary when getting ready this morning, dragging my feet to head out the door, because I can't believe this nearly decade of my life is drawing to a close. Just a little more dusting and sorting to go, and it's a real goodbye.

Family Time

2011-09-13T22:34:00.000-07:00

This is how it goes. Aunt, sister and I spend an afternoon at the outlet mall shops and the main strip of Lincoln City. Once we realize we're extremely hungry, we head off to a Mexican restaurant that comes highly rated on Yelp. Not much in Lincoln City is highly rated on Yelp, to be honest. We snack on warm, salty chips that we dip into tangy green salsa and earthy mole. Margaritas and white wine arrive. We take sips while we dig into tortillas and melted cheese, beans, and rice.

After lunch, we walk over to the Christmas Cottage and enter a cramped space packed full of ornaments. This is not an exaggeration. Ornaments of all kinds dangle from the walls and the green, fake garland draped from ceiling. Any potential open space in the shop is occupied by displays of ornaments. It smells musty and stuffy and old. It's mildly suffocating. There are some Christmas lights and a few shelves with Santa statues and, inexplicably, jigsaw puzzles. My sister and I wander over to a wall to examine mini bingo cards. Ballet Dancers. Bud Light Cans. Frogs. Suddenly we hear "Psssssst!" behind us. We look up from a toaster on a hook and see my aunt's eyes peering at us over one of the shelves. "Hey," she says, "Have you seen this Santa? It reads The Night Before Christmas. The whole thing!" We glance over at a rosy cheeked, bespectacled, grinning tabletop figurine staring vacantly at...nothing. Sure enough, lines from the Night Before Christmas boomed fuzzily from its direction. "Wow," we respond blandly, "Cool." My aunt stares at the Santa in wonder.

Lil sis and I go back to exploring the tight quarters of the shop. My aunt wanders off. In the second small room, we look at and discuss the different types of mini-motorcycles when we hear the familiar "Psssssst!" A quick look to my left, over another display of ornaments, reveals my aunt holding up an ornament of a woman. It looks like some sort of fantasy novel character dressed in nature. Her gigantic breasts are covered with green leaves. Vines and other foliage make up the rest of her outfit. My aunt looks at the ornament and then looks back at us. "Obviously she's had some work done." She hangs scantily clad nature girl back up on the display and marches back to the other room. We're all giggling, and then Bryn and I head back outside to wait. Wine. Margaritas. They make the Christmas shop even funnier.

We're sitting on red, plastic, gigantic hand chairs in the cool afternoon greyness when my aunt emerges from the shop. We walk into the candy store next door, and my aunt buys me a caramel apple. Then we head off to the casino.

2011-09-10T23:58:00.000-07:00

Hello from Portland! I'm hanging out with Ms. Molly en route to Lincoln City for a few days at the beach starting tomorrow. My youngest sister, B-Note, and I are meeting me aunt on the coast for relaxing girl time. I'm ready for just that during this last little burst of summer. TBF is also on an end of summer motorcycle trip with the guys. We're soaking up every last bit of summer while we can! I'll be wrapping up my job a few days after I get back, and school starts in a couple of weeks. It's hard to believe that it's all winding down so fast, and the craziness will begin again soon.

I'm a runner now, folks. "Runner" is probably too generous of a word. Determined Jogger is more like it. Have I told you about that? As part of my Get in Shape and eat healthier second half of summer plans, I started going for runs on a regular basis. My level isn't anything to brag about, but it's very good for me since I've never identified as a "runner." I've tried in the past and developed bad news shin splints, and, lets face it, I don't love the exercise. This time around I started to develop pain in my lower legs that now seems resolved with better stretching and a new pair of Sketchers Shape-up training shoes. And no, I didn't buy the shape-up trainers (a slightly less bulkier version than the running shoes) for their arse sculpting technology, although that would be a bonus. They were by far the most comfortable pair I tried on, and they are not bright white, so I was sold. At this point, I can usually go for about 2-2.5 miles, but I don't seem to be progressing past that yet. It's a plateau. I would like to improve but I can be slow to do that. I feel like it's a lot easier to run and go a greater distance on a treadmill than road, but I'm really liking the outdoor running for the most part. Kinda. It's a new challenge.

I've also started walking all the way home from work some days, which is about a 5 mile hike. I like it, but it's time consuming. For winter, I'd like to get one of those foldable mini-trampolines because I like to bounce and I hear it's good exercise, but I'm thinking carefully about that purchase. Even if I can fold it up and tuck it under the bed, I'm concerned about accumulating more stuff unless I'm really going to use it. One of my big projects this summer has been going through all my current stuff and purging a ton of it. TBF and I took a big pile to Goodwill last weekend, and it felt great to let it go. I've sold a couple of things on craigslist which is fun. And, I no longer have any of the exercise equipment I once owned. I want to be very careful about acquiring more things, especially since it's looking like the room I'm clearing out will be going to TBF's stuff in the near future. Letting go, growing, moving forward, trying to figure out how TBF and I can peacefully coexist in my smallish apartment. It's not the ideal set up for us, but it's doable, and we're feeling ready.

My latest project is DIY household cleaners. I'm practically an earth mother now. One of my sister's friends asked, "Is your sister a big hippie or what?" I wish I could say that I was going greener just for the sake of the environment, but I'm also thinking about the financial benefits here. The rent just went up! So far, the dishwasher detergent works, and we'll see about the batch of laundry detergent (thanks to a video on the Urban Farming Guys site) that's brewing right now. These little projects are interesting and fun so far. My baby toe is off the grid!

The past couple of weeks have been the annual stretch of birthday madness, in all its glory:

Happy Birthday, Shannon! (Your birthday present will arrive before November this year. Really.)
Happy Birthday, Finley!
Happy Birthday, TBF!
Happy Birthday, Jen!
Happy Birthday, Lindsay!
Happy Birthday, Steph!
Happy Birthday, Travis! (I'll actually see Trav on his birthday when I swing through Portland on my way home from the ocean. I get to be a surprise guest at dinner. Yay!)

We had a great time at TBF's impromptu birthday dinner at Brouwer's. Lots of friends were able to show up, and it was a night of laughter, good food, and fun chats. Lindsay, Em, and I went to the always delicious La Carta de Oaxaca for a birthday dinner and then enjoyed after-dinner coffee and convo at Verite. It's a little overwhelming, but I love all this birthday celebrating for my favorite people!

2011-08-24T17:45:00.000-07:00

You may remember my post last year about my decision to not buy new clothes for exactly one year. Faced with a shrinking student budget, and just as an interesting experiment, I went on a new clothes fast. Thrift stores and consignment shops were ok, but even those I wanted to keep to a minimum. Well, I made it. I did a decent job with this task, although I cheated a few times. I can count on one hand how many new items I bought, two are, inexplicably, jackets. That's a little strange since used jackets aren't hard to find, but it's just what happened. Overall, I found a lot of cute items out there in the thrift world, and I'm glad I did it. I rarely went shopping last year, but I ended up getting a number of things the five or six times I went.

Here's what I learned (disclaimer: I realize these lessons, one in particular, may be unique to me):

- Thrift store shirts and sweaters are usually a good deal. I've found cute, good quality t-shirts and sweaters out there, and I haven't had any major problems with these.

- Check your items thoroughly for holes and other blemishes before your buy! A few of my purchases were duds when I realized their flaws after arriving home.

- Used jewelry is hit and miss. It's interesting stuff for sure, but a lot of it is cheaply made. Even if a piece looks in decent shape, it tends to fall apart quickly. I don't mind this so much when it comes to fun earrings or necklaces I don't plan to wear forever, but I don't like rings that lose pieces right away.

- I never have an umbrella because I always lose them. I gave up on umbrellas a long time ago, in fact, which I guess makes me more of a true Seattlite. However, I've found that sometimes a girl could really use one, so I picked up a secondhand one I really like for just a few bucks. It's a win-win. I have rain coverage when needed, and I won't feel that bad if I lose it.

- OK. Here is the biggie. Used jeans are not for me! I'll tell you why, but I'm not excited about it, because it's embarrassing. Here it goes. No matter how they fit in the butt (loose, tight, just right, lower riders or up highers) I always end up with holes, specifically in stitching of the back pockets that give a nice view of unders or skin. Yes, I have a problem with thrift jean ass holes! I'm an unknowing peep show in my pants! I don't know why. There is no rhyme or reason for it (except for, you know, the possibility that I also unknowingly have a giant arse!), but I'm afraid the holes go undetected by me for far too long. Aaaaaaaaah, I can't even think about it! So...I'm dunzo with used jeans. Lately I've been fortunate to find a brand of moderately expensive jeans I really like dirt cheap in the clearance section of a local department store, so why would I spend $8 on used when I can get brand new for less than $20? It's just better for everyone.

If I think of any more, I'll add to this list.

In other news, I've planned what I think will be a great little mini-getaway to celebrate TBF's birthday and our two year anniversary later in September! I'm very excited about it, but I can't tell you all the deets in case he looks at the blog. I'm going for surprise. He always does such a great job planning little trips and things for us. In fact, he's normally the planner in that department, so it's definitely my turn. It will be nice to have a little escape right before school starts back up again. Only a month now. Part of me is like, noooooooooooooooooo, but the other part is saying, let's just get this over with.

It's finally feeling like summer in Seattle! Woohoo! I've been on a cooking and exercising kick lately. I guess you could call it a bit of a health kick, actually. I've cut way back on coffee and upped my intake of water. I've cut back on sweets and my portions of heavier foods (most of the time; I am not any sort of saint), and I've increased my intake of healthier options instead. I made yummy lettuce wraps out of tofu salad (kind of like egg salad) one night, and a tasty tortilla soup the other day. Smoothies make a regular appearance at breakfast. I go running three or four times a week, and I'm fitting in other exercise on my non-run days. While I'm feeling good running between 2-2.5 miles, and that is actually a big accomplishment for me, I really want to start increasing that. It's tough. I think my speed on the shorter run is improving, but I haven't made significant strides on the mileage yet. TBF and I plan to go for a hike this weekend which will be good for an exercise shake up.

Since it looks like I'll be in town over Labor Day weekend, I'm considering going to Bumbershoot one day. I haven't been in a few years now, but I'm debating about whether or not I'm up for it. Maybe yes. Maybe no. On one hand, I'd love to see Broken Social Scene, the Kills, and the School of Seven Bells, but on the other....crowds, madness, etc. Normally, I'm ok with braving the crowds, but during a period when I'm trying to keep stress to a minimum, I'm wondering what the smart choice will be?

Pizza!

2011-08-15T15:47:00.001-07:00

The other day, for the first time ever, I made my own pizza at home! Look at it. It's beautiful.

In my world of limited culinary adventures, this is A Very Big Deal. The pizza wasn't made completely from scratch, however. I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Crust mix, although I added my own touches (sprinkling of parmesan cheese) to it for baking. I can eat wheat and don't have celiac or anything, but I've noticed that I tend to feel better when I don't over-do it on the wheat. I'm always interested in the options. Good gluten-free pizza crust is hard to find, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it. Even TBF liked it. Well, he just might have felt like he had to say so, but more on that later. I bought a canned pizza sauce, but I also doctored that up with herbs from the garden, garlic, and a few sprinkles of red pepper flakes. I used tomatoes and basil from my garden as toppings, in addition to olives, marinated artichoke hearts, mushrooms, and a sprinkling of leftover tomato Field Roast the TBF and I had used for sandwiches. Delicious!

Another reason why making my own pizza was A Very Big Deal is that TBF and I had just arrived home after a lovely sunset motorcycle ride on the Uly through Leschi to Seward Park. On the way back, we ended up on a back road up a hill that overlooked the I-90 bridge across Lake Washington. The view was gorgeous in the evening light with the huge, faintly orange moon making an appearance in the distance. By the time we got home, it was on the late side for dinner, and I felt even more pressure about the pizza turning out. By the time it proved to be a dud, our dinner options would be limited.

Luckily dinner came out as lovely as it did, but there was one problem. Even though I heavily greased the pan, the crust still stuck rather firmly to it in places. It was a chore to cut and serve the slices. It added serious time to the overall preparation. Destruction was imminent. I had come so far to nearly see my hopes dashed by sticky crust. So, naturally, I freaked out a little bit.

TBF came into the kitchen to see if he could offer assistance, and I ended up snapping at him, "It's sticking! I don't want you to watch me do this!" I continued to wrestle with the pan with my various tools while he retreated back to the safety zone: The Couch. A few moments later, I looked over and noticed him huffily flipping through my Lucky fashion magazine. I could hear him thinking, I bet Jessica Alba doesn't get all neurotic over pizza! Among other things.

Can you get a good look at the pizza pan in the picture? It's one of my parents' throwaways from my childhood. I'm positive it's at least as old as I am. Ancient. After this little fiasco, I figure I should pony up for a new one if I want to make pizza again. Every day I'm still learning these little life lessons. Rustyoldbattered pizza pan = Bad.

Summer Happenings

2011-08-14T11:20:00.001-07:00

Last week, Mols and Trav were in town for five days so Molly could do some work in Seattle. This gave me two whole days of solo time with Trav. Our adventures included...

A visit to my work to catch the Blue Angels practice for Seafair. Hey, there's a fountain coming out of my head!

Forced child labor. :-) It's crunch time for finishing up my job duties before I leave in September (after nine years!) to do school full-time, so I need all the help I can get.

I rewarded Trav for his hard office work with beach time at Golden Gardens. Sadly, no pic, but I can give you a quick overview. The day was sunny and gorgeous, and Trav had a blast digging around in the sand with other kids. The two of us also played frisbee on the grass and this other ball game where you try to catch a tennis ball on these discs that have velcro. We played both of these games for about 45 minutes to the tune of Luther Vandross's Here and Now, which one gentleman beach-goer had looped and blaring from his own boom box. Awe-some. You'd think the song was finally over, but no. It would seamlessly start over again without missing a beat.

There was a moment during the sand play time when my attempt to help wrangle a woman's runaway beach umbrella (flying toward the group of kids - gah! I thought someone would end up impaled by that thing or clocked on the head) distracted me from watching Trav as closely for about 30 seconds (normally I worry about hovering TOO much), and suddenly I didn't see him any more! Feelings of panic, panic, panic while trying not to panic. It didn't take me long catch sight of him again, but I felt like *minutes* had gone by. He'd moved down the beach to help other kids build a little waterway in the sand, but geezopete. I had flashes of mini-nightmares, imagining telling Mols that I lost her son. I know this kind of thing happens with kids sometimes (they're quick). I wandered away from my parents in stores when I was a kid, but I was freaking out on the inside for a bit there. Yikes.

The next day we hung out with dinosaurs. This one spit water!

Trav & a T-Rex, neither one looking very impressed.

And a hippo.

Trav and I raced all the way to the zoo. Four hours (!!!) and one ice cream cone later, we headed home. He was all ready to race back, while I was moving at a slower pace. How do kids have so much energy?

Trav got into my game obsession on the X-Box 360 (as he likes to call it, by its full name). Peggle! He quickly became very good at the game, and we had lots of fun playing multi-player together. When a shot would go nowhere, we would say, Aw man, you threw it all away!

It was a great time. I love my nephew so much! One of my favorite moments happened when Trav was talking to me from the back seat of the Scion upon our arrival at Trader Joe's. I had just teased him about something a minute ago, and he climbed out of his seat to stand up saying, "Bacon. You're kicking my leg." I was like, What??? because I was sitting in the front seat still, and he was standing in the back, so I didn't understand how I could possibly be kicking his leg. It was physically impossible. Something wasn't adding up. He repeated, "You're kicking my leg." After another brief, confused pause, I realized he was using a line I'd said to him before to indicate that I was joking. Trav, I'm just pulling your leg.

:-)

This and That

2011-08-03T12:53:00.000-07:00

First of all, how dare anyone sue my beloved Nutella??? Ridiculous. As I started reading the article, I was thinking, Has anyone looked at the nutritional panel on a box of Cocoa Puffs lately? Come on! Happily, the article addresses that, but what's next? Are people going to start suing juice companies for touting their products as "healthy" when there is usually tons of sugar in juice?

I've also enjoyed Slate's wedding series topics (good ones like I Hate Your Wedding Website). My bride-to-be friend shared this one with me, and they are entertaining and sometimes even thought-provoking. I'd never thought of the history of the engagement ring before or why some men go for public proposals. I've been to a few weddings where speakers could have benefited from some tips on how to give a wedding toast.

This article pretty much sums up how I feel about the debt ceiling crisis and what's happening in Congress. Boo. Thank you Irish Times.

The article Will You Be My Black Friend? is not new but it was new to me, and timely based on some things happening in my work life. It's made me think a lot about my own social circle, namely the whiteness of it.

Trav and Mols will be here these next few days. I'm getting a couple of days of alone time with my nephew. Yay! More soon!

It's all a mystery...

2011-07-28T10:04:00.000-07:00

This morning on the radio AND on my player I heard Flight Test by the Flaming Lips. It's one of those songs that, as I listened to it, it just made me inexplicably cheerful. I've decided I heart it, even with the weird robot voice at the beginning and the end. Now I will probably commence listening to it over and over until I'm thoroughly sick of it. That's my way. I always considered the Flaming Lips on the fringes of my musical taste, but it's time to admit to myself that I really like them.

Yesterday I had what I thought was a sinus headache throughout the day (which I think was brought on by the mold I discovered growing around a sliding glass door in my apartment. I am attacking said mold with various mold-killing solutions, and I will win. I could go on about the mold because I'm obsessed with it, but I'll stop there. Who really wants to hear about mold?), but it turned into a full-blown migraine in the evening. Bleah. I went home a bit early from work (when I couldn't stand looking at the computer any more) and took a nap. When I woke up, it was major migraine time, so I took some of my meds and spent the rest of the night relaxing, willing it to go away.

After I started to feel much better, I played Peggle on the Xbox. I am a Peggle junkie and being "sick" gave me the perfect excuse to plop down on the couch and play level after level of peg bopping. It was a relief when the pain eased, but I was awake until all hours of the night due to the nap and meds. It's awful to feel awful, but in spite of my lack of sleep, I feel great today. The absence of pain overshadows any sleepiness, and I feel refreshed. AND, I have a massage scheduled for this evening. I'm making the most out of prescription massages, because they will be going away once I switch from work insurance to school insurance in October. :-( What can you do? I will cram in as many as I can between now and then!

In one of those I Love My Life moments...

2011-07-27T22:55:00.000-07:00

...today I met with someone who, in addition to the normal kind of advice I give, decided to consult me on the decision of whether or not to change his last name to Robot. More good times!

2011-07-26T11:07:00.000-07:00

I said it once on Facebook, and I'll say it again here: Boyfriends who spend 5 hours putting together an IKEA dresser for you are amazing. Now, it's true that said dresser will hold both of our items and is to help contain the mess that accumulates in one room of my apartment, but the bottom line is that I spent the majority of those five hours sitting in the evening sun with Kittay and a glass of lemonade, chatting on the phone with friend Chris, my mom, my sister. It was very relaxing. Friend Em says TBF gets a cookie, but he would probably prefer a good brewski. Although, hey, he is a fan of cookies too.

This past weekend finally felt like summer in Seattle. TBF and I took a ride on the Uly out to Port Orchard to help friends with their move. After, we enjoyed a nice lunch at Silver City Brewery and a pretty ride on some remote roads in the area. Sunday was a bit frustrating. We made the trip to IKEA and decided on a dresser only to find it was out of stock when we went to the warehouse area. So, we ended up settling on a different, functional dresser, which is fine. Then, we tried to go out for a late lunch, and we kept having issues of places being closed or too full, so late lunch turned into early dinner when we finally ended up back at a El Chupacabra in my neighborhood. Followed by a beer and pretzel at Prost. The highlight of our day. Then, TBF had the five hour dresser assembly to complete the remainder of his evening.

Good times.

It's Looking a Lot Like Summer, For Today

2011-07-18T08:31:00.000-07:00

It appears that the weather *may* be heading in a summerly direction, but I kid you not peeps, over the last week I've worn a hat and jacket to work on more than one occasion, and at least a couple of nights I had the heat on in the living room. In the middle of July!

Oh, Seattle, how I once loved you. We had a long, extended honeymoon period. It used to be that when I went away I was always super excited to come back home. Looking down at the city from a plane, I used to feel a deep sense of contentment and belonging. Like Carrie Bradshaw who seemed to feel a never ending affinity for NYC, I thought my love and devotion to Seattle was undying. It turns out I was wrong; my feelings have definitely cooled. It's even to the point where TBF and I are talking about the possibility of moving to warmer spots after I finish school. The thought of one more winter here is a major downer, but there are other reasons. All the bus routes I take are either on the chopping block or under examination for reduction. Lots of grey. Traffic. The cost of living. The depressing financial climate that's causing tuition to skyrocket, public schools to fail, and social services to plummet. I know other places are facing similar, if not worse circumstances, but if the world is going to fall apart, could I at least see it all happen in warmth and sunshine? Since I'm starting to feel suffocated by the city I once held so dear, I'm thinking it's a sign that it may be time to go. Of course it's not a easy decision to make considering friends, family, and the aspects of Seattle I still like so much (political views, great restaurants, farmers markets, arts & culture...). What's that one book called, Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay? Maybe I need to consult that for assistance in dealing with my troubled relationship with Seattle.

This is one of my secrets at the moment. There are others. Like, lately I've been craving bbq like nobody's business. I heart RoRo! And, while I could be eating the bbq portobello to maintain my vegetarian status, I've opted for chicken a few times instead. It's not like I can pretend to be the the strictest of vegetarians anyway since I love sushi and eat fish occasionally, but I tend to avoid all other meat, so this is a change. I've decided to give the portobello a whirl next time, however. The meat isn't appealing to me as much now, and I want to get back on track. This weekend I made a delicious veggie taco salad using veggie ground round and beans. Yum, yum!

Another secret is that I'm a bit terrified by the big changes ahead. Starting school last year was a big step, but I managed to say on at my job part-time for the year. At the end of this September, I'll be leaving this job of 9 years to do school full-time. Working 20 hrs/week is not going to be an option while I'm doing three days of practicum and two days of classes each week. I'm going to try to work somehow, but my income in going to be small and my school expenses high. Scary! I know it's worth it, but in the short term I sometimes get sad about finances and the fact that money has been a concern most of my life. I know I'm privileged in many ways and others have far worse circumstances than I do, but my world is what I know, and at moments I think about how great it would be to have a big, fat trust fund :-) so I could simply enjoy school and put my all into it without having to constantly worry about the money. In my worst moments, I get all huffy about having to make sacrifices, and I feel bad that finances are a barrier to the things outside of school that I want. And then I feel guilty for feeling bad about that, like I shouldn't want what I want because I'm blessed with so many wonderful people and lots of love in my life, and I'm fine, so why can't I just be happy with that? Blahbitty, blah, blah. I have regular guilt about those feelings, and then I have a special kind of social worker guilt, I think, because I see and work with people who are facing far greater challenges than this. And I think about everything I've learned in social worker school, and I go aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! in my head.

So, yeah. I could go on and on about THAT. But, alas, there are so many (more interesting) things to discuss.

I was relieved to find out the other day that my memory going isn't early on-set Alzheimer's, it's this. Stressful academic year + Google = Forgetful Bacon R.

Operation Portion Control is going well. The trip to Santa Fe Cafe went pretty much as expected, although I had two margs (fresh strawberry!) and no dessert, so that's an ok trade-off, right? It was delicious deliciousness. But, I've been pretty good since then. I haven't hopped on a scale in the last couple of weeks to see if there is an impact, but overall I feel better with the changes I've made to my eating habits. Since returning from vacation, I'm inspired to cook more and make my own lunch for work. I'm trying to keep up with smaller, healthier snacks throughout the day so I don't get crazy hungry. And exercise. My energy is up and I'm just feeling happier in the bod overall. I don't know about you, but I think the key for me is finding a way to continue eating the kinds of foods I love in order to come up with plan that is sustainable.

I'm finding a lot of inspiration in the My Journey to a Healthy Berg blog. I saw a blurb about it on MSN, and it came at exactly the right time. First of all, I love super success stories, and the author Krista's experience so far can only be described as a success. She includes great meal, recipes, and exercise ideas, and I love, love, love that she posts pics of what she eats. The best part to me, though, is that while she makes a lot of healthy choices, she also incorporates in regular yummy food and treats. It's fantastic to see someone have success without completely depriving themselves. That's what is going to be sustainable for me. Mindful eating but not some totally strict diet of deprivation.

To prove my point about my love for success stories, TBF and I watched the documentary Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead over the weekend, and I got teary when I saw the transformation the two people in the film underwent on their vegetable juice diets. Both lost a gazillion pounds over a short period of time, and the impacts on their health were hugely positive. I just feel so happy for them. It was amazing and inspiring to watch. Unfortunately, the film overall rang of a subdued infomercial for a product, a high-end juicer to be exact. That I didn't love so much. There's no doubt that it worked and there were tremendous health benefits to both people, but I don't feel like that's the kind of diet I could sustain. I love good veggie juice, and I can see incorporating that into my diet more overall (I'd like to) along with the big amount of fruits and veggies I eat already, but I also have to the face the reality of who I am as a person. I love food. I love a lot of different kinds of foods. And, I think my greatest path to success will be in making more healthy choices and portion control. So, off I go!

Back to Real Life

2011-07-13T13:35:00.000-07:00

Here is what I'd rather be doing.

Look at those bubbles! Domaine Carneros was my favorite stop on the do-it-yourself wine tour this vacation. Picture sitting on a beautiful balcony in the warm sunshine, sipping on these gorgeous wines and eating delicious cheeses. It was *AMAZING.* I ended up in some sort of happy wine trance. I was so mesmerized by the beauty of the experience that I even ponied up for a bottle of La Terre Promise to take home. It was by far the best pinot noir that I've ever tried. And that's not saying much. I hardly ever drink pinot noir...but still. Normally, I'm not that much of a red wine fan, but I realized this one was a must after the first sip.

Now I'm back to the summer chill of Seattle, watching my lightly tanned arms fade to pasty white as I type this. Grump. And, I'm on a diet. I've noticed that every time I set foot in a classroom I manage to gain the Freshman 15 (or, you know, some number up around there) all over again. When you've gone back to school a few times, you can imagine the unfortunate direction this takes. It's time for damage control before Year 2. Booooooo. Actually, the healthy eating, cleansing green tea drinking, and additional exercising feels great so far. After nine months of being a stress ball, I'm beginning to feel like my old self again. The bod approves. However, avoiding the dozens of delightful french pastries up for grabs in the kitchen at work today was a true test to my willpower. I won this one. Tonight is dinner out at one of my faves, Santa Fe Cafe, with my good friend Elizabeth. We have a lot of catching up to do. And, it's Margarita Wednesday. And, they make this delicious avocado salsa in the summer. And, there is the always fantastic mocha cake.

I can see where this is going.

Kittinski's wonderful pet sitters took this fun pic of her while I was away. She's nearly 17 and still going strong, even though she pretty much always falls over when she shakes her head, or if she is surprised, or if there is a slight breeze. I still love her cute little rickety self though.

2011-07-07T10:03:00.000-07:00

This is a pic TBF took at Lake of the Woods Sunday evening. We spent the day at the cabin on the lake swimming, sunning, bbqing, and watching a fireworks display over the water. The time with my family was really, really great. Sunny and hot. Lots of laughter and fun. TBF fits in well with the fam which makes so happy. We're an "interesting" and sometimes dramatic bunch, and he takes it all in stride with humor and an easy attitude. It also turns out that he is an excellent photographer. I'll post more snapshots from the trip soon.

Napa is beautiful. Yesterday we spent the afternoon visiting Chandon (fantastic reserve champagnes!), St. Supery, V. Sattui, and Castello di Amorosa. We started with Chandon, and the champagne went straight to my head, of course, so I spent most of the day feeling buzzed after my other tastings. We purchased a couple of wines, and we had a very good lunch from the deli of V. Sattui. But, let me tell you, the place to eat in Napa is ZuZu. Slightly slow service, but every single thing we ate was amazing. I have 11 words for you: Shaved Artichoke-Portobello Salad with Lemon-Truffle Vinaigrette & Sao Jorge. TBF and I joke about going back and plunking down a $100 bill for as much of that salad as we can get. It's the kind of joking with more than a small hint of seriousness.

Today, Sonoma. Ferrari-Carano, here we come!

2011-07-01T15:36:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm going to pretend that March was not the last time I posted to the blog. It was much more recent. In fact, while we're at it, we're also going to go with the idea that I've been posting finely crafted, entertaining updates all year long. Or, you know, forever. Chattygirl has really taken off! It blog blossomed! I have tons of dedicated readers and am practically an internet sensation!

It's this kind of thinking that is getting me through life right now. OK, peeps?

School is out. Summer is (kinda) here. I'm loving life right now. I spent the past nine months writing academicky crap on topics like poverty, food security, psychosocial rehabilitation, No Child Left Behind, research, research methods, and cognitive behavior analysis. And on and on and on. I'm no longer normal. My brain is in an entirely new space, down to basic rudimentary thoughts. My memory is suddenly crap, and I obsess daily over whether this is from stress and exhaustion or early onset of dementia (which may stem from the fact that my geriatric cat now has bouts of apparent dementia). When I look at a blank blog screen, all I can muster are lines like, "This is Spot. See Spot run. Spot likes True Blood...Spot's house is a disaster...Spot is so very, very tired...Spot needs a vacation."

Speaking of which, Spot is heading off on vacation! TBF and I are road-tripping it down to K Falls for the 4th of July and then continuing southward for a few days in Napa. After that, we're taking our time driving through the redwoods back up the coast home. This will be the longest vacation TBF and I have taken together yet, and we'll spending hours and hours together in the car. It could be a true test to our relationship. I'm thinking it's going to be great. We travel well together. Plus, so much to look forward to on this one. Warm weather. Sun. Hotels with jetted tubs. Family time at the lake. Yummy wines. Warm weather!

YAY!!

2011-03-25T12:05:00.000-07:00

Spring Break! Woohoo!

This past week TBF and I took a much needed mini-break to Las Vegas to visit friends. I made those four days a computer-free vacation, which was also needed. It was great! The muscles in my neck, shoulders, and back become like slabs of granite from the stress of school and nearly constant computer use, and I do not care for that. My lovely friend Shannon booked us massages at one of the locals' spas (my one request for the break), and that turned out to be incredibly relaxing. The spa included a steam room, sauna, and pools, and it was so nice to just lounge around and detox a bit. I needed to take winter right out of my system! The weather in Vegas did not cooperate for winter removal, however. It was chilly and windy the entire time, which was the only blemish in an otherwise fantastic getaway. I still wore my flip-flops around though. Nothing short of a blizzard was going to get in my way of THAT.

We drank coffee and chatted, watched movies, visited the new casinos on the strip (loved the Cosmopolitan!), ate good food (of course!), and TBF and I took a motorcycle ride out to Red Rock to try out a different kind of bike. The scenery was so pretty, but the chilliness prevented us from stopping to enjoy it much. We got off the bike at one lookout point, and I took about five steps around before hopping back on to motor away.

School and practicum start back up on Monday. I'm feeling just about ready for that. Mostly, I'm anxious to complete this first year of the MSW, so I'm all, let's get on with it already! On the other hand, it's hard to believe that I'm almost done with my first year already. Right now, I'm busily working on the plan for next year for practicum. I have some promising leads in the works, so fingers crossed that it all comes together.

Honestly, I can't wait for summer to arrive. This is the first winter in Seattle where I've had a really hard time with the weather. I'm feeling such a need for warmth and sunshine. I'm longing for Hawaii. I'm looking forward to an extended break from school that includes long walks in the sun, farmers markets, gardening, and vacation. TBF and I are considering a road trip in July to visit the parents and see Napa. We always have the best time wine tasting, even though we know very little about it. We do not try to identify ingredients via swilling and sniff testing. We take sips and either say, Yum! or Eh or Ugh. That's it. If we like something, we buy it and enjoy, but then we usually forget what it was a few months down the line. I know I like Bordeaux. Does that count for anything?

I have to say that I haven't been in love with much music lately, and that is a serious bummer. Yet, I think I'm falling a little bit in love with Elbow's Build a Rocket Boys! We're in the early stages, so it's hard to tell for sure. I'll keep you posted. I'm also really into listening to M.I.A.'s Maya album, which isn't similar to Elbow at all, but it's very satisfying. It Iz What It Iz.

Vulnerability

2011-03-09T17:29:00.000-08:00

Check out Brene Brown's talk on the power of vulnerability. She's a researcher who spent years studying the link between vulnerability and connection, trying to transform the messy into neat and tidy. She tells the story of her process with relatable honesty and humor. While her findings aren't exactly new and probably make sense to us logically, the sticky point is, of course, in the doing. I feel like you have to embrace the fact that it's going to be scary and tough sometimes, or maybe always, to be vulnerable. Yet, no matter how hard I try to keep this in mind, I feel like I have a long ways to go. I may be fine with sharing my emotions and opening up in other ways, but showing vulnerability by asking for help or admitting imperfections is a whole other story! Resist, resist, resist. I don't need help! I'm tough...and perfect!

This talk was another valuable reminder of how the things that we often resist the most inside are exactly what we need to be challenging to create greater fulfillment in our lives. I feel like that's been one of my biggest life lessons so far. I needed that reminder today, and I hope you enjoy it, too.

P.S. One more paper to go, and winter quarter is dunzo!

Broken

2011-03-05T16:39:00.000-08:00

It's the Inequality, Stupid

This is something that's been on my mind a lot over the past six months. The charts on this page do an excellent job of highlighting the disturbing and growing income inequality in the U.S. This is something that we've studied from every angle in my grad program in social work, and there is no way around the fact that the gap between the super-rich and the rich and, well, the rest of us, is ever widening. Something is so incredibly wrong with this picture.

If the site above doesn't hit the point home for you, here's another way to look at it. Someone in my department emailed this out; it's from The Economist (via Andrew Sullivan's blog):

Giants Of Finance by Zoe Pollock

The Economist reconfigures an old way of picturing inequality:

Imagine people’s height being proportional to their income, so that
someone with an average income is of average height. Now imagine that
the entire adult population of America is walking past you in a single
hour, in ascending order of income.

The first passers-by, the owners of loss-making businesses, are
invisible: their heads are below ground. Then come the jobless and the
working poor, who are midgets. After half an hour the strollers are
still only waist-high, since America’s median income is only half the
mean. It takes nearly 45 minutes before normal-sized people appear.
But then, in the final minutes, giants thunder by. With six minutes to
go they are 12 feet tall. When the 400 highest earners walk by, right
at the end, each is more than two miles tall.

*************
This is so frustrating to me. We're operating within a broken system that has and continues to blatantly create and perpetuate inequality. So much is happening to protect the ultra-rich while everyone else struggles more. How did we get here? This is what makes what's happening in Wisconsin and other states so critical. The poor have been pushed so far down, so up next the already squeezed center of the hourglass, the middle class, is about to disappear.

I wonder when the bottom 90% of us are going to fully grasp this and get to the point of doing something about it?

A few minutes later...

It's funny. Just as I hit Publish on this post, Rage Against the Machine's "Take the Power Back" came up on last.fm. I've never even heard this song before, but it's pretty perfect for this post. You've gotta love the universe sometimes.

2011-03-04T17:36:00.000-08:00

Winter quarter is just about dunzo, and I didn't get any better at writing during this round either. I miss it. And, when I sit down to create a post, my mind is swirling with all the things I'd like to put out there. Mind swirling is a common occurance these days. Often, I'm running from one place to another (between work, school, practicum, and home), and my mind can't keep up. When it does catch up, it quickly feels overwhelmed and has a mini-freak out. A freak out of any size cannot be contained in the brain, so I willingly share it, usually with the TBF. I'm a really fun person to live with right now! I promise! He is a trooper.

Although I have lots of work to complete by next Friday, I'm feeling pretty excited right now. Two quarters down, four to go. Spring will be a bit lighter workload-wise in classes, but I'll be busily working on figuring out my practicum placement (three days/week) for next year.

Over spring break, TBF and I are going to visit our good friends in Vegas. We're both excited about this trip! We see these friends individually most often, so this will be our first real "couple time" get together, and it's an intensive, all-weekend-retreat-style hang out. Yay! I've asked friend S if we could please schedule in some sort of spa time during the visit, and she has given me a nice short list of options. One place is a Korean spa that has a lot of great services and amenities, but she informed me that they have been investigated quite a bit for...well, you know. After the 4th of July "foot massage" adventure with Monice, I'm doubtful that anything will faze me in that department, but there is S to consider. I'm also drawn to the sauna options with that spa, and the photos on the site sure do look nice. But, ultimately, S and I have to decide whether or not we want to risk a potentially dodgy scenario at this point or not. Part of me thinks, Why the hell not? I've resigned myself to the fact that I am a situation magnet. It is inevitable, and that's not always a terrible thing. Life is interesting. So here we go!

Quite a bit happened over the past few months. I turned 34 and realized it's go time for coming up with real answers to the bigger life questions that I've had on the back burner for a long time. Namely, do I want to try to have my own children or not. That window is starting to drop, and, at some point, you just have to decide before biology decides for me. I've leaned toward no for a long time, but it's not a definitive no. I'm just not sure. There are lots of reasons on both sides of the question mark.

My birthday was really lovely and lowkey, although I ended up sick for a stretch of a few weeks before, on, and after the day. Still, it was great to be out with friends at a local pub and catch up with people, especially the few I hadn't seen in ages. The week after my birthday, TBF took a few day trip out to Friday Harbor. It was wonderful! We stayed at a great little hotel with fireplaces and big jetted tubs, and there was an incredibly delicious little Italian restaurant just across the way. We spent lots of time walking around town, visited the local winery, and we lounged around the room enjoying the fire and bubbles with champagne, strawberries, and chocolate. Perfect getaway! But (you knew this was coming based on what I said above), we also had one little issue crop up.

TBF and I have gotten in to going for jogs at least one morning on the weekends. So, on our one full day in Friday Harbor, I skipped on over to the reception desk, as the handy little guide book in the room recommended, and asked about routes for a nice "little jog." The receptionist was very helpful, pulling out a map and tracing a route for us near the water. I didn't bother looking at the scale because I thought, this is a small island, so no problem. Well. 6+ miles later, we finally made it back to the hotel. We didn't realize until mid-run what we'd gotten ourselves into with this little jog. We ran and ran and walked and ran and walked some more and ran and walked. We might push two miles on a regular jog, not seven. On our way, we found a woman's lost wallet and managed to call her, run some more, and have her come by to pick it up while we still had miles to go. We were considering asking her for a ride but nixed that idea, since she had a small child with her. We ran by a field where people were clearly having shooting practice, so I picked up the pace. We ran by people decked out in professional-style running gear and thought hmmmmmmm. But, clueless as we were, it didn't dawn on us until much, much later what the fancy duds signaled. Afterward, TBF referred to the experience as the six mile death march. I said, that wasn't so bad! I said that as soon as Friday Harbor was back in sight. I won't tell you what I was saying before that, but the tone might have been slightly different.

Here's a fun little vid for the people who love the LCD Soundsystem and the muppets.

2011-01-09T22:34:00.001-08:00

Writing is getting harder and harder while I'm in graduate school. I think partly it has to do with the fact that I'm reading and writing so much for school every day. The other part is that I'm simply overwhelmed with ideas and topics to write about all the time. Sometimes I want to talk about things like my delicious pre-New Year's dinner out with the girls at Carmelita and the incredibly yummy Trader Joe's lava cake that Monice recommended, and other times I want to talk about things like balancing work and school and practicum, liberation theology, topics mentioned in my social justice posts, and my feelings about the term "case manager." I want to wish everyone belated happy holidays and a Happy New Year, and I must say again that I'm so very grateful and touched by the wonderful support, in many forms, given to me by the amazing people in my world. Then, sometimes I want to talk about the the magnificence of Veuve and the warm beaches of Maui, which I fear I may not see for quite a long time (but I did enjoy a bottle of Veuve with TBF for new year's; his awesome gift to me). Did I mention that I visited the fam in K Falls over xmas break and had a lovely time?

The holiday break wasn't quite long enough, though. I'm better rested, but I could have used an extra week or so to get truly caught up. I'm pleased by how everything turned out for autumn quarter, but...off we go again. Winter quarter is now in full swing. One quarter down, five to go. I continue to find myself simultaneously energized and exhausted. Sometimes one more than the other. Right now, I'm tired.

Has anyone seen The King's Speech? It's a fantastic movie. Great acting by Geoffrey Rush and Colin Firth, engaging (I related to the Duke of York's basic fear of public speaking) and surprisingly funny. I also saw Blue Valentine today, which was incredibly well-acted but also terribly depressing. Still, I got totally wrapped up in the story. I recommend both. After a parade of bad movies in 2010, it's refreshing to see some good work appearing.

I ordered a Kindle the other day to give my tired, old eyes a break. I'm doing tons of reading on the computer for school, and I started to feel the strain by the end of last quarter. It should arrive soon. I'm looking forward to giving it a whirl.

TBF and I have sporadically gone jogging together over the past couple of months, and now our main new year's resolution is to go together at least once on the weekends (am also trying to cut back on coffee and sugar, and attempt to be less of an academic perfectionist (I can invest a lot of time and limited energy to school), and take time for friends and family and myself AND...). I'm glad to be doing this. As much as I struggle with liking exercise, and I know I'll never be a star athlete, it feels really good to get out there and work the body. I'm actually enjoying it. I think partly because when exercising my mind can't focus on anything else. It's turning into one of those self-care kinds of things.

Oh my, still so much more to say, but I must go off to bed. I have to be at my practicum site at 8am, which is earlier than early for me. I haven't figured out how to cope with that yet. Working on it...

SJ Project: One final thought

2010-12-07T13:13:00.000-08:00

Today in our last social justice class, we talked about what we're grateful for from the class, from the MSW program, and from others. There is a lot to say. Often lately, I find myself focusing on the negatives or what I wish was different, but for all the cons, there is a huge pile of pros. I am so very grateful to my cohort and the faculty for the learning I receive from them through personal stories and class work. I'm grateful for the new connections I've made with such a diverse group of people. I'm thankful for the time to pursue this goal, to think, feel, and share in my learning with others. I'm thankful to feel so passionately about so many aspects of the field, and I'm thankful for this life-long learning process.

But, most of all, in sharing what I'm thankful for today, I'm so incredibly grateful to my family and friends who support me in pursuing this field. They show up in numerous forms, through long distance phone calls and funny emails, and in their presence and understanding when I'm distracted or have little time or energy to give. All of them remind me to think with my heart as well as my head, and knowing each of these people gives me strength. In particular, TBF has been amazing this quarter. I felt emotional talking about him in class today, because I feel so lucky to have his ongoing love and support, even when I'm a bit of a nightmare (which is more than a little this quarter!).

Our discussion in class reminded me of one other piece I wanted to include in these posts, but I got wrapped up in talking about messier stuff. The posts got really long. Last week, when walking to the bus stop listening to my player, Nada Surf's Always Love came on. I hadn't heard the song in a while, and it came at the perfect time. I've written before that I feel Love is the whole point. It's the foundation for how I choose to live my life, and I wish to hold on to my love for others and myself in my work. Lately, that hasn't been at the forefront of my mind, but I knew I wanted to incorporate the song into my project. And now, I was reminded again today.

So, here is Nada Surf's Always Love. While I think some of us are given taller, rockier mountains than others in our society, how we choose to approach and climb those mountains are often matters of choice. I'm choosing to operate from a place of love.

The End is Near!

2010-12-06T23:56:00.001-08:00

This is the last week of the first quarter of my MSW program! Hip-hip-hooray! Only five more quarters to go!

This week is going to be a doosie, though. So much to do. I feel like I made some space in my brain with my social justice posts, so now I can think about other stuff, like the 50 bajillion other assignments I have to turn in by Monday. I hope to return to regular posts in the very near future. Or, I might return to whine. We'll see.

Social Justice Reflections - Part 2

2010-12-06T10:49:00.000-08:00

Project Posts
Intro
Part 1
Movies with Social Justice Themes

One Final Thought

This is another attempt to continue my process of articulating what I've learned about social justice in my first quarter in the MSW program, and how I see applying this knowledge in my life and work. I have to say that I'm feeling a bit uncomfortable, because there are things I should talk about, and want to explore to some extent, but I feel resistance. Basically, it comes down to fear of judgment or of being misunderstood. I'm passionate about my beliefs, and I realize they are uniquely my own. For the most part I'm confident in them, but sometimes I have the irrational fear that someone is waiting in the wings to tell me I'm wrong or silly or stupid. But, for the sake of honesty and fully embracing this project, I think it's important to address my fears, goals, and own internalized oppression to fully integrate my experiences and goals of social justice.

In my final readings for another class, we were assigned the epilogue of David Gil's Confronting Injustice and Oppression: Concepts and Strategies for Social Workers. I found that this short reading hit home on so many things I've been thinking and feeling throughout the quarter, so I'm going to use quotes from this work in directing my discussion here. I'll properly cite the reading at the end of the post. :-)

Operating with an agenda of social justice...

"It means therefore exchanging the 'bliss of ignorance' for the burden of holistic social knowledge along with difficult new choices, conflicts, and fears."

Yes. In another paper I wrote for my social justice class, I relayed that confronting issues of social justice brings to mind a scene from the movie The Matrix. When I'm feeling frustrated or down or overwhelmed by social injustice, I think, "Someone hand me the blue pill so I can plug back into the matrix and forget about this whole thing!"

The problem is there's no going back. Once you know something in the depths of your being, you can't un-know it. Sayonara, blue pill. So, what does that look like for the future? I don't know for sure yet. Right now, I find myself thinking about systematic structures of oppression, racism, homelessness, poverty, cultural competence, and environmental injustice pretty much all the time. I'm the life of any party right now, let me tell you. I notice more now in my day to day activities. Honestly, it's exhausting. But, a significant number of people have to live these things every day, and I know that thinking about it is nothing in comparison.

"In unjust and oppressive societies nearly everyone is a victim, as well as an agent and beneficiary of domination and exploitation, depending on one's position and roles in hierarchically organized, competitive institutions. In other words, nearly all people are now part of the problem, regardless of personal philosophy, and would have to change their ways of life to become part of the solution."

Ugh. I don't like the word victim. I don't think of myself as a victim, and I don't want anyone to see me as one either. I think this is a barrier of my own creation in talking about ways I've experienced oppression, like sexism. It doesn't happen very often, and I prefer to brush it off when someone gives me a "...for a girl" compliment, or implies some sort of weakness or incompetence or dismisses me for my gender. Except...I don't always really brush it off. I remember. I question. I ruminate over intentionality. Often, I wonder if I've interpreted the situation correctly. The weird thing is that almost always I'll call anyone else out for making a comment or behaving in a way that I think is sexist or discriminatory toward another, but my compass pointing to what's right doesn't always apply to myself. To this day, I sometimes think about a situation in business school where I was on the receiving end of implicit "boys club" behavior during a group project, and I still wonder what that was about and if my perception of their behavior was correct.

Looking beyond personal philosophy is a big one. I'm not a religious person, but my spiritual beliefs are very important to me. Over the past several years, I've grown to know myself better and live in accordance with who I am. I'm committed to having my actions and life choices reflect my understanding of inner truth. Yet...in thinking about the structure of our society and institutional oppression, I realize that even my spiritual belief system is shaped by my privilege. Well, that's not entirely true. At the core, I think my spiritual foundation is, well, pure, but aspects of my outward expression of my spiritual beliefs and how they shape my life philosophy are filtered through a very, um, white lens. Ultimately, to a yet undetermined extent, I think I'm able to have this belief system and live in alignment with it at least partially due to external circumstances. That's a scary thought, and this realization has brought up many questions. Talk about resistance. I'm learning that I have to move beyond just simple personal philosophy to make a difference in issues of social justice.

And, I feel like I'm explaining this poorly, so I'm not sure I'm making sense. I hope I can find a better way to clarify these thoughts. Argh.

"Commitment to activism for social justice, motivated by the search for meaning, is, however, unlikely to be free from ambivalence. Rather, doubts and dilemmas may continue along with, and in spite, of commitment."

It would be lovely if once you make a commitment to social justice all the complexities would fall away and the right thing to do would immediately become crystal clear. It doesn't, not by a long shot. But, I'm learning that you continue on anyway. You do your best. You and others hold you accountable. You'll make mistakes. You'll question and doubt. You won't always know the right thing to do.

My wonderful friend R. is years younger than me, and he's incredibly wise. I love talking with him about social justice issues. He has a wide variety of personal and professional experiences. He's a person of color who identifies as queer, and his work in school and now professionally addresses social justice. When we get together, he listens to me air my frustrations about world. He listens to my hopes. He listens to my doubts and fears. He shares his perspective. He corrects me when I'm wrong. And, when I question what the point of it all is anyway, he tells me that at the end of the day, at the end of my life, I'll know that I tried to make a difference. A small difference is better than no difference. And then he tells me to keep a sense of humor, because you can't survive without a sense of humor in this field.

"Participation in social justice movements does involve risks of being isolated and of being perceived and treated as unrealistic, utopian, and even un-American."

I'm very familiar with this one. I'm passionate about my views, and I express them to people in my world. I've been called unrealistic, a wishful thinker. I've been told, "if you don't like it how it is here in America, why don't you go live somewhere else?" I've been told that racism no longer exists, and, many years ago, I was once a person who said that. I've been told that people living in poverty have only themselves to blame. I've had people look at me suspiciously when I talk about the problems I see with capitalism and globalization. I've been told that with enough hard work anyone can succeed. I've been called overly sensitive. I've been snidely called a "bleeding heart," as if that's a terrible thing to be. That one really irks me. Funny, I always thought that caring about people's well being, wanting equal rights and access to education, health care, and opportunities for all, advocating for peace, voting for policies to correct unfair tax structures (WA State has THE most regressive tax structure in the U.S., by the way), and generally hoping for a greater sense of community and solidarity among humanity was called being a decent human being.

I was called all of these things before becoming a student in social work. I think I'm going to have to become ok with that fact that working toward social justice, and being vocal in challenging the mainstream norms, is going to be uncomfortable sometimes.

"Moreover, they (social workers and social justice advocates) need to realize that their goals may not be attainable during their lifetime, as there are no assured outcomes in struggles against oppression."

What can I say? This is true. I know it. You know it. For some reason, though, I felt strangely comforted reading that. Like, seeing that written on paper means it's ok to accept the possibility and continue the work anyway.

****************
This post, along with the others, is a work in progress. I hope to add more and update it as my thoughts continue to take shape.

Article source for quotes: Gil, D. (1998). The intellectual paradox of social work. In Confronting injustice and oppression (p.129-134).

Movies with Social Justice Themes (that I've watched)

2010-12-05T11:21:00.000-08:00

I'm including this list of movies related to social justice that I've watched (so far) as part of my collection of project posts.

Project Posts
Intro
Part 1
Part 2

One Final Thought

I plan to continue adding to this as time goes on, and, for some, I'll write mini-reviews or comments.

Unnatural Causes
For a project in my social justice course, I decided to show In Sickness & in Wealth from Unnatural Causes to friends and coworkers and facilitate discussions on the topics presented in the hour-long segment. The documentary is a total of four hours with additional shorter segments on more specific issues. I highly recommend. It's interesting and well done, and, honestly, the post-film discussions led themselves. After my showings, I drove my classmates nuts by continuously bring up Unnatural Causes in class discussions.

I thought about posting some pieces of the reflection paper from that experience, and maybe I will at some point, but all I can say is watch it. Unfortunately, I couldn't find the film on Netflix, but I was able to easily reserve it through the public library.

We Shall Remain
The boyfriend (TBF) and I have just started watching We Shall Remain, so it's a bit early for a review. So far, although some of the acting is a bit cheesy, the historical perspective presented is fascinating and informative. This one is available through Netflix streaming. I have to say that Netflix has a wide variety of interesting documentaries available, which is really cool.

The Garden
I watched this one in a different class during autumn quarter. I'm not sure what my feelings are about this one yet. It was tough and sad.

Battle in Seattle
OK, so I'm pretty embarrassed to say I watched this one. I finally did just the other day. It was recommended recently for its depiction of the WTO protests in Seattle in 1999, but the acting and story lines are, well, cheesy beyond words. I remember seeing the previews in the theater and thinking, interesting topic but the movie looks terrible, and I was totally turned off the by the presentation of the title, BATTLE. IN. SEATTLE. (Enter random explosions and dramatic, ominous music here.) Plus, too rhymey. It was scratched off the list. But, curiosity finally won out and I hit play on the Netflix menu.

Yeah, I can't say go watch it. There are some interesting scenes and real footage from the protests, but those are few and far between. The stories of the characters are contrived and lack depth. I've seen that there are a couple of other documentaries out there, and I'm going to try to watch 30 Frames a Second soon. I did enjoy reading through The Real Battle in Seattle site after the movie, though.

OK...and this one isn't a movie but a short called How to Tell People They Sound Racist. We watched it in a couple of classes, and I like it so much that I want to share. In fact, I liked it so much that I promptly went online and watched a bunch of other Jay Smooth videos on YouTube. AND, after I made my beeline to the interwebs to find these other goodies, I then forced the boyfriend to watch them with me.

Social Justice Reflections - Part 1

2010-12-05T09:12:00.000-08:00

*These posts are just flowing along as I think about them. The order of the parts might change as I go.

Project Posts
Intro
Part 2
Movies with Social Justice Themes

One Final Thought

Here I'm going to attempt to cover answers to these questions in Parts 1 & 2:

What has been key learning for you in this social justice course?
How will you continue to deepen your understanding of social justice issues?
What will your involvement in social justice issues look like beyond this course?
How do you envision incorporating social justice issues in your work?

The experiential learning in my social justice course definitely has the greatest impact on me. Visiting the Duwamish Longhouse and learning about the pollution and clean-up of the Duwamish river made me think a lot about the oppression and injustices to the First Nations people. It's unfathomable to me that the Duwamish, like other tribes, who signed the Point Elliot Treaty in 1855 are still not recognized on a federal level and did not receive what they are entitled to under that treaty. To me, that feels supremely unfair and wrong. In another class session, we participated in caucuses based on our racial identities, and I found it useful to talk with a group of other white people about our experiences and ways we can work toward ending institutional racism and white privilege. From this I realize that it's important for white people to educate other whites on this issue and to be held accountable as allies in this effort. I'm interested in learning more and possibly becoming involved with Seattle's Coalition of Anti-Racist Whites (CARW).

The readings and class discussions were also helpful in developing a language and environment for discussing social justice issues. While many of the concepts weren't new, I learned new terms, like microaggression. I also appreciated thinking about different ways to frame an issue in social justice work.

While reading, watching, and listening to different forms of media are good ways to learn about social justice issues, taking the next step to truly deepen your understanding means becoming involved beyond a surface level. Not everyone has the time, energy, or resources to join every organization out there, or to dedicate their lives to activism, but there are numerous ways to do more than just read an article and either brush it off or think "yeah, that sucks" and become paralyzed in the enormity of the problem. I often feel immobilized by this paralysis, wondering what impact I can possibly have as one person. Stopping there, though, just perpetuates the problem and minimizes the impact one person can have through various channels.

Ideas for continuing my own learning and encouraging others...Talk with people working directly in social justice efforts. Volunteer! Visit places, like the Duwamish Longhouse, that may not normally be on your list. Examine and *vote* for legislation that addresses inequality. Personalize what experiences of oppression actually feel like beyond an abstract concept. Go to a meeting for an organization like CARW. Be constantly aware in every aspect of your life where you are privileged and where you are oppressed and seek to change that.

My career plans are for individual mental health practice, and, specifically, I hope to work with people who have autism, not only individually but in the creation of transition programs (higher education, work, etc.). This class peaked my interest in community organizing, but I feel like I have a lot to learn about that work, and I intend to explore that further.

Social justice issues that may not seem to impact us directly do have lasting consequences for all people. This point has become increasingly clear from all of my classes throughout this entire quarter, not just this one specifically focused on social justice. One of the most frustrating aspects of white and class privilege (and pretty much all privileges), in my mind, is having the choice to not see, think, or feel about injustices if you'd rather not. In most cases, there isn't an immediate impact if you don't when you are privileged. Sure, I can hear that 14.3 percent of all Americans are living in poverty (1 in 7), or read on the National Center for Children in Poverty site that "Nearly 15 million children in the United States – 21% of all children – live in families with incomes below the federal poverty level – $22,050 a year for a family of four." But, what do those numbers actually mean to me when I'm curled up on my cozy bed typing this in an apartment in a well off neighborhood in Seattle? Do I understand what that looks like and what that means for outcomes in health, education, family, and chances for breaking out of poverty? Do I take into account the accuracy of those numbers and that the data comes from the census bureau? Who may not be represented there? Do I take time to comprehend what $22,050 for a family of four actually looks like, because, really, I don't know how I'd get by on that number for my family of one + Kitty? Do I actually understand or care about income inequality in the U.S.? Do I think about where I fit into all of this and how change will occur? Or, do I think, "that sucks" and go back to picking out Christmas presents for my family? It's the path of least resistance vs. you know, going to the trouble to take a harder look at myself and the world.

As a related side note, one thing that's really getting to me right now in holiday TV commercials is corporations using poverty numbers to SELL THEIR PRODUCTS! I've seen a few of these already. They aren't examining poverty and talking about how to put an end to it. They're giving a statistic (or wait, sometimes celebrities are giving the statistics) and saying, buy our highly processed food packed with chemicals and sodium, contribute to our bottom line, and we'll donate a paltry amount to help a poor child!"

Yay. I have another idea for you.

On one hand, at least advertising tactics like this will help raise awareness about poverty, but I wonder, in our highly individual-focused culture, how far that awareness will go beyond purchasing another product.

I recently made a mixed CD of songs, and one in particular seems to trigger these thoughts, especially while driving in my car for some reason. It's Metric's Twilight Galaxy. I don't know the intended meaning behind the lyrics (but, please, check them out!); all I can tell you is how they inspire me. The lines "I'm higher than high, lower than deep. I'm doing it wrong, singing along" are the most meaningful to me.

So, what have I learned? It's time to stop drifting with the mainstream and live consciously with social justice values deeply ingrained in my being. I'm done singing along to the same old tired tune.

Reflecting on Social Justice

2010-12-04T00:08:00.000-08:00

The end of my first quarter in the MSW program is drawing to a close. For my social justice course, we're asked to create a final project reflecting on what we've learned and our own commitment to social justice as we move forward. Creative expression is encouraged and possible choices include:

- Photo-voice journal
- Collage
- Dance, song, theatrical performance
- Personal reflection journal
- Mixed CD
- Brief movie on DVD
- Website
- Poetry, spoken word
- Something with food
- Poster presentation
- Creative essay on your reflection

Yeah. So, those of you who know me, may have had the unfortunate pleasure of seeing me sing and dance in informal settings before. I've heard the words "Elaine from Seinfeld" more than once in descriptions of my "moves," so I'm not going there in the classroom. I wrote some bad poetry a couple of times in high school. I've made a collage or two in my time, but I wasn't feeling very inspired on that one for this. The thought of sifting through magazines and pictures sounds exhausting at this point in the quarter. Nor do I feel the urge to make a mixed CD, even though I heart music, primarily because I don't think I have a good collection of music in mind related to social justice. For a while, I felt a glimmer of interest in creating a social justice diorama, simply because dioramas are *awesome*, and I know that would make friend Em very proud based on our history of diorama ideas, but I got tripped up in envisioning a concept. My expertise in the kitchen extends to french toast. And, frankly, while creative at times, my artistic record is pretty spotty. I created a Culture Chest as a first assignment for this class, and here is what I came up with:

As you can see, I am not a fan of leaving any blank space open. Gaudy clutter is more my style. The culture chest project was a starting point in helping the class understand each other's social and cultural identities, and the dynamics around these identities. We were asked to put three items inside of our chest that represent/describe our own membership in various social/cultural groups (race, ethnicity, gender, religion, social class, etc.) that are meaningful to us. The second part was to decorate the chest with images, words, and phrases that describe how we think other people see these aspects of ourselves and our social groups. We made short presentations on our culture chests to the class. I had fun with this, decorating the outside with words and images that represent how people describe me or what is reflected back to me based on perceptions of my identity, and things people commonly know about me or my interests. The cool-friendly at the top is meant to show that people usually find me friendly enough but will also say that I seem a bit cool or standoffish at first. I've heard that a lot through my life, and, while I don't mean to do this, I think it's a result of initial shyness and wanting to feel out new situation.

On the inside of the chest, I placed an item that signifies my alternative spiritual identity and connection, which is incredibly important to me. I had a symbol that represents female characteristics and strength throughout every phase of life, and stands for the important female relationships in my life. And, finally, I have a Yoshitomo Nara postcard of one of the more straightfaced grumpy girls to portray my exasperation/confusion with social injustices in our world. On the back, I included a Dr. Seuss quote from The Lorax "Unless someone like you cares a whole lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." I firmly believe that, and I'm sure that concept will come up in later posts since I operate with that belief as one of my life truths. Sometimes it's really tough. Hence, the straight face.

Anyway, with all of that in mind, and after my culture chest tangent, I've decided to write a series of blog posts on my reflections from class and on social justice. I like to write. I process best through writing. And, this way, I can also include pictures, songs, poems, quotes, and links to more completely integrate my ideas within my posts.

The questions I'll be answering in my reflections are:

1. What has been key learning for you in this course?
2. How will you continue to deepen your understanding of social justice issues?
3. What will your involvement in social justice issues look like beyond this course?
4. How do you envision incorporating social justice issues in your work?

Project Posts
Intro
Movies with Social Justice Themes
Part 1
Part 2

One Final Thought

So, uh, when I'm right, I'm right...

2010-11-28T20:53:00.000-08:00

Revisited.

Some of you may remember this post about my 4th of July foot massage adventure with Monice. Uh huh. Well...please see the update on our favorite massage parlor.

This is one unhappy (although unsurprising) ending, Mommy.

A real post is coming soon, kids.

2010-09-14T08:23:00.000-07:00

(old pic of my now five year old guy!)

Happy, Happy Birthday to Travis! It's hard to believe his littleness is five years old, but it is true. He is officially a big guy, no longer a baby. Trav likes being little, though, and is having trouble coming to grips with the prospect of becoming an adult. He's a little afraid. Yesterday, Molly was talking with him about all the things he has to look forward to about growing up (might as well let him think it's cool for now), and she mentioned having kids. Trav was like, "yeah...if I even have kids."

Aaaaaaah! Hahahaha-HA! I love how he is already considering these big life questions. Clearly, Trav has important world issues, like over-population and carbon footprints, on the brain.

It is Virgo madness lately. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I am a Virgo magnet. I heart all my Virgos, even though we're not supposed to be all that compatible. Within the Virgo window, I must say (in order):

Happy Birthday, Shannon!

Happy Birthday, Finley!

Happy Birthday to my love, TBF!

Happy Birthday, Jen!

Happy Birthday, Lindsay!

Happy Birthday, Stephanie!

Happy Birthday, Travis!

This weekend, we'll be celebrating the T-man at a pajama, bowling birthday party. In the usual R family style, the guest list is an awkward combination of adults (old loves, new loves of exes, tattoo shop coworkers that no one knows, etc.) and even youngsters (a kid from school that Trav dislikes and is dismayed that he plans to attend), which should make this the partay of the year! I tend to be a fan of the awkward and may even embrace the opportunity to participate in some awkwardness myself (piano fingers).

I have a feeling...

2010-09-11T10:04:00.000-07:00

that once school starts, this blog is going to change outfits once again. Over the past few years, I've gone on about books, movies, travel (Paris! Isreal!), heartbreak, sad sackness, fun moments, cute nephews, weird things that happen to me on the bus, you name it. Actually, I'm the weird one on the bus who talks to anyone who will listen about how summer in Seattle never really arrived, and now all of a sudden it's fall, and now I'm sitting here wondering what happened. I could also tell you about how I accidentally flushed my contacts, case and all, down the toilet this weekend. Or, about how there was a matchbook perched on the wall outside of Smarty Pants that said "Read Me" so I did. I opened it up and on the left it said, "I am not a racist," and on the right it read, "but you are kalvin clein." Confusing. I closed up the book and placed it back in its spot for the next Read Me victim.

The point is that the blog has had a few themes over time based on my general state of mind and...well, my energy to write. Now, as I get ready to march on to what I think will be my last adventure in higher education (a Ph.D. is not for me), I can see this site quickly shifting focus again to the perky topics of social work. Welfare. Poverty. Justice. SW Practice. It will be a scintillating read that will bring my viewers from 2 to 0 in no time flat. While doing my required quote-unquote "summer reading" (that we were assigned less than two weeks ago. Yes, the program starts in autumn yet...), I realized that I have things to say about these things. But, believe me when I tell you that I've had lots to say about "summer reading" and overnight orientations scheduled over three days right before school starts and things. I'm very excited about the classes, though, and I love my mentor who has dished all the ins and outs of the program with me. She is in the know. And now I'm in the know. And I can't believe that school starts in two weeks. Gaaaaaaah!

This week I'm enjoying...

2010-08-25T19:04:00.000-07:00

a whole lot of nothing. I finished my class last Friday, and then I decided it's time to vacation it up. I took a break from real life for a while, because, in about a month, I'm going to have more real life than I can probably handle. Saturday afternoon, Monice, Jen, her boyfriend Brandon, and I hit up the healthy living fair at PCC. It was great! Lots (and I mean lots) of free samples and interesting info on products. It was fun to have a chance to try things I know very little about. And, I joined the Vegetarians of WA. I'll see you all at Vegfest next year!

Saturday night-Monday, I spend a couple of fabulous days with best friend Shannon at Port Townsend. There was a lot of talking, talking, talking, which I find completely energizing, but I do need to take a couple of days after to process it all. She lives in Vegas and, while we see each other for dinner and things during the year, it was wonderful to have a couple of days of solid, uninterrupted friend time. Loved it! Plus, the trip was pretty much issue-free, which is really saying something for us. Usually, there are at least one or two significant problems that come up. Outside of some communication problems with the Edmonds ferry workers from inside my car, which actually led to a lot of jokes after, we were A-ok. All I can say about that is: In my world, a green arrow in my lane means go!

After returning from PT, I've spent a few days doing not much of anything. TBF and I went out for happy hour one night and had a great time together. We went for a drink at King's Hardware in Ballard and played skeeball! I ended up liking that a lot. I've read. I've lounged. I've played Chime on the Xbox. One day I didn't end up leaving the house at all, and it was pretty awesome. I've needed some real down time, and that's what I'm getting. Last night, we bbq'd with friends, and I realized that all the foods I made were green. Tomato salad with green basil dressing and smoked mozarella - yum! I made guac for the first time, and it was tasty. Green salsa. Asparagus. I was going to make some pasta with mint pesto and peas, but then the green got to me, and I held off. GREEEEEEEEEEN! Next week, on to the pesto.

Today, TBF and I are heading down to Portland for a couple of days, because I'm having very serious nephew withdrawals. I miss that guy. We'll have some fam time. We'll have some hotel gym and steam room time. We'll have some hanging out downtown time. I'm really looking forward to it.

I have a lot of catching up to do on the old blog. More soon!

2010-08-06T07:58:00.001-07:00

I'm writing to tell you that I haven't been posting lately, but you already know that (duh!), so basically I'm writing to tell you nothing. Life and my class have been keeping me busy lately, but I haven't completely given up on the old blog. I'll return with a real post sooner or later. My class ends in a couple of weeks, so then you probably won't even be able to keep me away from the blog which could get annoying. But, in the meantime, I must go work and study. I must go enjoy the portable dishwasher I bought cheap off of craigslist and that my landlords installed for me as a regular dishwasher (grad school = no time for dishes, even though TBF does them most of the time to pay his boyfrent, but I don't think that's a good use of his time. I'll come up with other forms of boyfrent!). After several years of no dishwasher, I love the dishwasher. I must go try to give away or sell things I don't want any more on craigslist. That's kinda fun. I must take my little, old cat to the vet, because she hasn't seemed like herself lately. We also had a minor flea infestation that we caught early, so I started to refer to her as "fleabag" again, but thankfully that is now under control. I must learn every detail about the water and fat soluble vitamins for an exam. I'm not in Minneapolis even though I want to be to celebrate my cousin's wedding and see my good friend Chris. :-( It just didn't work out this time. I must take long walks with TBF in the sun when it's out and watch episodes of True Blood. I'm celebrating Em getting a job at my work! OMG, that's gonna be fun! i'm happy to see the Blue Angels and will watch them through the clouds at lunch today. I'm working on planning an overnight trip to Port Townsend with my lovely Shannon when she's in town in a few weeks (post-class madness). I'm looking at taking more time off this summer so I can rest up before grad school starts. This summer is whizzing by!

2010-07-23T07:39:00.000-07:00

TBF and I just returned from a mini-vacay to the Olympic Peninsula. We had a great time with lovely weather and lots of relaxation. One day we went to the lavender festival in Sequim and visited a few of the farms. Another day we lounged quite a bit and spent an afternoon in touristy Poulsbo. On our third full day, we went to Port Townsend and walked around town, visiting the interesting shops. Then we spent a stretch of the late after and early evening walking on the beach at Fort Worden and up in the hills to look at the old bunkers and other remaining military structures. It was gorgeous and peaceful up there, with lots of wonderful foresty tree smells. We had a lot of fun exploring, climbing down rusty ladders from the tops of bunkers and things. We then returned to Port Townsend to have THE MOST DELICIOUS DINNER at Silverwater Cafe. I highly recommend it to anyone who will be visiting PT. We started with the artichoke pate, and I had the incredibly good Mediterranean polenta for dinner with a glass of crisp cranberry-esque rose.

The remainder of our time was spent taking walks, exercising in the fitness room, hanging out in the steam room, hot tub, and pool, and just enjoying each others company for a few days of uninterrupted time together. Very nice.

The only thing I can warn you about is taste-testing the honey at the lavender farms. They are very particular about how you take your sample from the jar. Once you dunk your toothpick in, you are commanded to "Twirl! TWIRL!" to avoid having honey drip anywhere outside of the jar. One older lady manning a stand got really mad at me when I dared to rub my toothpick on the inside of the jar to stop the honey. I got a huffy "No, no, not on the jar!" followed by a sigh. These peeps are seriously into the twirl.

I really love spending time out on the peninsula. According to TBF's GPS, it's only 15 miles away from Seattle, but it feels so different in many ways. Driving along one of the main one lane roads, we zipped by a sandwich board advertising an upcoming roadside stand. The background was white with black letters painted on. It read:

Swords
Wildlife
Knives

TBF was like, "I understand what I'm going to get if I want to buy a knife or sword, but what if I want to buy some wildlife?"

Needless to say, we did not stop.

2010-07-06T19:19:00.000-07:00

This weekend, TBF was away on a motorcycle trip. I spent hours and hours getting caught up on the distance learning nutrition class I added late (to fulfill a biology requirement for the MSW, more on that later). And, I celebrated the 4th of July with Monice and her lovely family in the traditional American way: Dinner out at a tasty Vietnamese restaurant. After, we stopped at a local bakery to pick up treats for dessert. We hung out and chatted at Monice's for a while. Then, when the kids went to bed, our adventure into the seedy world of cheap Chinese massage began.

A little back story here. In planning our 4th of July evening together, Monice mentioned a new Chinese massage place that she's tried a couple of times. They give foot massages for 20 bucks, but the foot massage is really more like an hour-long, full body, massage. While fully clothed. If we had time after dinner, we ageed via email that we could check it out. Share in a little 4th of July pampering. 8:30 rolls around and, as the kids are getting tucked into bed, we motor over to the shop. Sure enough, it's open, so we pull into the (surprisingly full) makeshift parking lot/alley through the entrance of a chainlink fence.

Right away I had feeling about the place. The feeling was: Welcome to the House of Happy Endings. We stepped through the front door directly into the dimly lit foot massage area. It reminded me of a long living room with three pairs of captain-type massage chairs lined up from one end to the other, with their backs to the main door. I felt like I'd entered an alternate reality. A slightly musty reality. The shop is part of a larger building that's next to nothing of note. Maybe a bread factory? The walls were painted dark colors, and the room was lit with those torchiere-type floor lamps, some with a reddish hue. The music coming from the speakers was slower Asian instrumental stuff that I don't know how to describe. On top of the small front desk sat a light basket with red and white mint candies littering the bottom. The only decoration on the main wall was a poster of a woman's face, her head wrapped in a white towel, with a turquoise background. Clearly, her role is as a spa guest at an exotic resort. Big white letters across the bottom read SPA. "Spa" is more like it, I thought. We're not in Hawaii!

Monice and I ended up side by side in the middle set of chairs. As we settled in to the cushyness and started to soak our feet in the tea-infused warm water, I noticed a wall clock ringed in gold in front of me. A large waving gold cat figurine sat on top of it. Distracted by my surroundings, I spent time focusing on these two objects when needed.

Our massage therapists (for lack of a better word here, since I saw no proof of training. What should I call them? Masseuses? Massagers?) appeared, and without any fanfare or introductions, they abruptly started their work on our arms and necks. My therapist was a compact, muscular, Asian man with black hair swept across his forehead. He was dressed in a blue and white striped button down shirt and black dress pants. When I first saw him, I thought that perhaps he was the manager or company accountant, but no. He was a man of few words who had a habit of putting his foot in his mouth during failed attempts at conversation.

A few minutes into my arm and shoulder rub, I was still sitting there pretty alert. My massager was digging into my forearm while peering over at Monice, who looked quite a bit more relaxed in her chair with her eyes closed. He looked at me and said, "Mommy?"

Me: What?

Him: Mommy? (looking pointedly at Monice)

Silence.

Me: Are you asking if she's my mother?

Him: Yes.

Another pause.

Me: Um, no. She's my friend.

Him: OoooOOooooh. Friend.

Monice overheard the whole thing, and we both started giggling. My masseuse ended the conversation with a brief "Sorry!" as he moved on to my feet. The idea of Monice looking like she could be my mother is preposterous, and we both had to laugh at the absurdity of it all. We're around the same age, and we look it. The laughing was natural, but the problem is that it was difficult to stop. I reclined in my chair, eyes still wide open, snort-chuckling to myself. "Focus on the gold cat! Gold cat!" my brain ordered me sternly.

If you have any curiosity about the happenings of this establishment, the front door serves as a distraction from your potential relaxation. You're sitting with your back to it, and, with no way to see the comings and goings, you hear what you hear, and you try to make your best guess about what's up. The traffic roars by. The door bangs open and shut. People talk, laugh, and tease the customers. On this day, fireworks went off from behind the shop. At times, this limited perspective not good enough for me, and I tried to sneakily crane my neck to catch a glimpse of the people hovering by the front door. I was jealous of our therapists facing all the action while they worked, because they had a full view of all front door activities, and they seemed deeply interested at times. Sometimes they even exchanged amused glances. Monice and I were the only ones on what we referred to as the "legit" foot massage side of the parlor; everyone else was there for the full body. I wondered about my fellow patrons. Let me tell you--surprise, surprise--they were all men. And, from my slightly paranoid, quick glance perspective, I would say at least one looked furtive and shady.

My observation time was interrupted, however, when my masseuse shook my leg and commanded, "Relax!" A bit later, it was interrupted once again when Monice's massager (a small, middle-aged Asian woman) let out a loud buuuuuuuuuuuurp!

Oh no. Gold cat! Gold cat!

Later, when my therapist moved on to my stomach and hip area, he asked another of his one word questions.

Him: Baby? (looking pointedly at my stomach)

Me: What?

Him: Baby?

I had worked out that he was asking me if I'm pregnant, probably to avoid doing any rigorous massage harm to my unborn child. I answered him with a quick, quiet, and firm, NO.

But then I got all insecure about it in my head. Why is he asking if I'm pregnant? Do I look pregnant? Does he have a special Chinese massage way of telling that I am, and I just don't know it yet? I don't think so, but what if...My stomach might be pooched out some, but I had a bowl full of pho for dinner and a strawberry bubble tea for dessert. How rude. I'm full of liquids! Maybe I really do look pregnant. Oh God. It's time for a diet. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

Gold cat!

At that point, we turned over on our stomachs for the back massage. With all those liquids sloshing around in my bladder, I realized I really needed to pee. I wasn't going, though. I was unwilling to separate myself from Monice, or venture off to some unknown destination to use a toilet. Who knows what I might have seen? I decided to just tough it out and relax. As my therapist crawled around on my back, digging his knees into my muscles, applying pressure to my bladder, I thought, well, I feel better.

Our massages ended, mine slightly before Monice's. I sipped on a tiny paper cup of water while I waited. We took the few steps to the front desk to pay up where I offered Monice my measly six bucks in cash, since it's cash only. She spotted me the rest. We bypassed the mint basket, stepped out into the cool, rainy night, and made a beeline for the car, laughing and talking about the awkward moments on our drive home. I invited myself in to use her bathroom before heading back north to Phinney. Driving home on I-5, I was in time to see the gorgeous fireworks going off over Lake Union, and I smiled and smiled.

You see, I've painted this scenario as an icky ordeal, but ultimately I had a great time. I enjoyed experiencing another reality for a little while. I know the deal with $20 massages in hole in the wall "spas." I handled the Gold Cat moments. Actually, the massage itself ended up doing me a lot of good. I had a pain in my leg that's pretty much disappeared. At one point during the intense foot rub, in spite of my difficulties relaxing, I felt a ball of tension in my core muscles release. I immediately felt lighter and breathed easier.

I can see going back there again sometime with Monice...during the day. Maybe.

I loved that my 4th of July was filled with random funnyness, shared with a good friend who sees the humor. I won't ever forget it. And, best of all, Monice and I now greet each other with "Hey Mommy!"

2010-06-28T12:15:00.001-07:00

I don't think The Boyfriend likes me referring to him as TB in the manner of tuberculosis...or Taco Bell. Hrm. Maybe I will call him TBF. The. Boy. Friend.

Cherries. I'm in love with cherries right now. I gobble them up! On Sunday, TBF and I went to the Ballard Farmers Market, and the first thing I bought was cherries. Yum, yum, yum.

I'm gonna run with my food topic here. The other day I made these tasty butternut squash enchiladas, and I whipped up avocado hummus for the first time this weekend. "Whipped up" might be too strong of a term, because my blender is old and wimpy, so I spent some time hovered over the glass pitcher stirring and blending. For a first attempt at hummus, I think it turned out alright, but it could still use some work. The enchiladas will definitely show up again. If you try it, be careful with the chipotles if you're sensitive to spicy. I used two, and it turned out pretty hot (and I like spicy!). I think I may even cut back a bit next time. The leftovers are delicious, but they get more intense as time goes on. Also, to make the dinner quicker and simpler, I grabbed a bag of frozen squash.

It's avocado salsa time at the Santa Fe Cafe!

These days I'm motoring around listening to LCD Soundsystem's This is Happening. Quirky goodness. I think LCD Soundsystem decided that all songs must be a minimum of 8 minutes. Lengthy, quirky goodness. I'm not complaining. I'm charmed by the variety in the music and lyrics throughout the album. No predictable sounds from song to song. Plus, my favorite lyrics go "Pow! Pow-pow! Pow! Pow!" Who doesn't love that? It's like a little verbal punch in the air that I find satisfying. Pow!

(TBF may not find it all that satisfying when I'm running around the apartment repeatedly shout-singing the pows.)

Have I mentioned that I'm in the middle of reading The Food Revolution by John Robbins? I can't remember. It's an interesting, fast read for a book that's about the potentially dull subject of food production and sources, diet choices, and the potential effects of certain foods on our health (namely, animal products). I may be a little bit biased, because I'm already very focused on this topic and deeply disturbed by what's happening in the US. So, yeah, I'm painfully aware of the horrors of factory farming and the senseless cruelty toward the animals humans will ultimately eat for dinner. And, I choose to eat a primarily plant-based diet that's advocated for in the book. I'm far from perfect in my choices, of course, but I'm very clear on my moral and health reasons for being a vegetarian. At this point, I can't unknow what I know, and I'm committed to making conscious choices about the food I put into my body.

So, the book isn't teaching me a ton new about that, but I'm learning a lot of specifics about the links between food/diet and particular diseases (cancer, heart, diabetes, etc.). While I have a vague grasp on how these things are related, I had absolutely no idea about the statistical data. In some cases, the wide chasm in the rates of diseases between vegetarians and meat-eaters is truly astounding, from incredibly low to shockingly high. There is overwhelming evidence that patients with issues like heart disease experience vast improvements in health--complete turnarounds, in fact--with a shift to a plant-based diet. I guess I'm surprised this information isn't really out there and in our faces at this point. Isn't heart disease the #1 killer in America? While I believe it's ultimately an individual's responsibility to educate him/herself on self care, I feel like we are led to believe through advertising that certain foods aren't that bad, or are even healthy and desirable. I mean, this book came out 9 years ago, and John Robbins isn't the only one spreading the word about food, I'm sure. I know our awareness of nutrition is slowly changing, but now we're seeing commercials for cereals infused with whole grains and 32 grams of sugar, not for foods that will ultimately contribute to a healthier and greater quality of life overall. I guess this isn't that surprising when you follow the bucks to Got Milk? and It's What's for Dinner. But, seriously. With so many lives on the line, big change is needed, and it's like we're slogging through thick mud. It's frustrating.

Pow! Pow-pow! Pow! Pow!

Date for One

2010-06-23T20:41:00.000-07:00

Tonight I went on a dinner and book reading date with myself. Em was going to meet up with me, but she ended up not being able to make it, so off I went. I took a book and ate a tasty veggie burrito at a fast and cheap Mexican place, and then I walked over to the local bookstore to hear the lovely and very funny Sloane Crosley read from her new book Where Did You Get This Number. She is a witty and engaging speaker, with a great reading voice. I found myself totally absorbed in her chosen essay, and I realized how much I miss going to stuff like this. I get some glowy energy rush from being around such incredibly talented people. It's inspiring, and I try to soak it up. Plus, I mean, who else writes essays about the silly game Girl Talk that ladies my age played in our pre-teen years? (Check out her site.) AND, she makes dioramas. Dioramas! Em and I have lots of ideas of our own for shoebox dioramas.

This past weekend, I had a lot of Megan time while the Boyfriend was out of town on a motorcycling adventure. The weather was crappy, so I lounged around reading, watching movies, and playing sudoku on the Nintendo DS that I've stolen from TB. Stolen might be too strong of a word since he loaded it up with games for me, but, you know. It's mine, and I don't share. I took a long walk over to Em's and back to visit with her and Jack. I bought myself flowers and cherries. I met up with friend Amanda for lunch and shopping. She brought a packet of pictures her mom gave her of the two of us in elementary and middle school. We liked to play dress up, and apparently we had a lot of exotic options between our two houses. Many I don't remember, but nearly all of them were hilarious. I ended up laughing so hard in the middle of the restaurant that tears were literally rolling down my cheeks. It always feels good to laugh like that, but it's awesome to share in the moment with an old friend.

Another project this weekend was going through some of my journals from the past 8 years or so. I have a stop and start problem with journals. I have a pile of pretty little books that I began writing in at some point over the years, but, then, I inexplicably drop one to start another. I have a commitment problem. It's like I can't resist the blank pages of another. New mood, new journal. I started with one that my friend Elizabeth gave me at Christmas in 2002. My idea was to go through them to condense and get rid of the old past, but I got sucked into reading this one, and I discovered that I don't have the heart to ditch any of it. I want to hang on to my closed chapters in this form. BUT, I haven't written in a journal in ages, so I wrote a long entry in the blue 2002 book, and I'm going to make that my one for now. I will have one completed journal somewhere!

I have to say (mom, don't read this) that I've gone on a couple of motorcycle rides with TB, and I'm into it. A few weeks ago, we went for one on his Honda street bike something-or-another. We rode out on back roads near Carnation. It was an idyllic scene. Sunshine and lots of open spaces. Farm houses. White picket fences. A deer munching on grass in someone's front yard. It was beautiful, and there was something so freeing and happy about seeing all these things zoom by out in the fresh air. I could be hooked.

It's finally starting to feel like summer around here, which is good news. I have one less thing to complain about. I'm at the point where I'm enjoying my walk into work to see a fountain, a mountain, and beautiful rose gardens. I can stop turning on my heat. Sunny days means more faux tennis playing opportunities with Amy, more trips to the farmers market, more garden time, more walks at places like Carkeek park with TB. More summerness!

After the mess that was SatC2, it was fun to see Get Him to the Greek. Very entertaining. I think the Forgetting Sarah Marshall fans will enjoy.

Tomorrow is what I like to call Monice Day. Happy Birthday, Monica!

Oh. The Jimmy Kimmel Twilight Saga Eclipse special is on. I gotta go!

As I mentioned on the Facebook today...

2010-06-10T17:21:00.000-07:00

It's unfortunate that SatC2 had to be so unfortunate. I really wanted to like it. And, while I caught a couple of glimpses of the girls and types of scenes I liked so much on the series, this was a far, far cry from what I love about the show. I almost wanted to cry about how bad it was, but I chose to laugh instead. Well, except when I was sitting there terrified that Liza was going to collapse during her performance of that one Beyonce song about putting a ring on it. Liza singing Beyonce = Disturbing.

There isn't much to say that hasn't already been said in countless reviews. The movie was silly. It was culturally offensive. It was wasteful, and it shows extreme wastefulness. It didn't feel like an escape to anything, except embarrassment. It turns out that rich, bored wives with nothing better to do than create needless and immature drama aren't all that likable. The ladies seem olderish in this movie, which I appreciate, but it makes their shenangins look way too young for their age. Grow, dammit! And...there was a karaoke scene. In SatC3, maybe the ladies will sing into hair brushes in the assisted living center. I am woman, hear me roar. Not.

I don't regret seeing the movie. I just won't see it again. I had fun with my friends. The theater was nearly empty, so we could comment freely, and I sent out some text messages. Getting caught up on correspondence felt good. We danced Irish jigs in our seats when Irish music accompanied certain scenes. Em and I glommed on to the term "interfrention" and are going to add that to the side of my Intervention van, so that's a plus. :-)

2010-06-04T08:20:00.000-07:00

Bend was awesome. I love that town! Lots of fun little restaurants and wine bars. The hotel was incredibly cushy in its greeness (don't even get me started on the awesomeness of the bed and pillows), with excellent exercise facilities, including a steam room, sauna, and hot tub. The Boyfriend did a good job meeting the family. He got the thumbs up from the 'rents. He very sweetly took over my driving duties when I had meltdowns over traffic. It turns out that I really don't like driving long distances all that much, but I make an excellent passenger. The Boyfriend also scored major points by surprising me with a bottle of Veuve! He, Mols, and I enjoyed drinking that before heading out for a delicious sushi dinner our last night in Bend. And, both the Long Winters and Rad Snafu were fantastic as always. It was so good to see those boys and hear their music live again. JRod (as Em likes to call him) is no longer missing a tooth, but he is now sporting Adult Braces which is arguably just as distracting. He was hilarious as always, and Mols even got a Super Fan pic with him.

It was really great to see the family and just hang out. I definitely want to return to Bend again. Now, the BF and I are on to planning a long weekend away for the Lavender Festival in Sequim (something I really want to do) and a couple of days just relaxing on the beach.

I'm also in search of a cheap flight to Minneapolis in early August! If anyone notices good airfares, let me know.

Curses! I found out that Linda Carter is making an appearance at a casino in Spokane one week before I'll be there! Rotten timing, Wonder Woman.

Have I mentioned the autism super conference happening here in July? I'm getting really excited to attend. It turns out I'm over my starry-eyed obsession with rock stars, and now I just want a book signed by...Temple Grandin.

Oh, but wait, have you seen the Capitol Hill Block Party line-up? Dead Weather! MGMT! Yeasayer! Blue Scholars!

Another Bad Word

2010-05-27T17:53:00.001-07:00

I remembered that another yucky word that rates right up there with "moist" is "smear." I heard the word smear several times in a meeting today, in reference to course content, not grossness, yet my mind always goes to unhappy places when I hear that one. Nothing good can come of it. "Schmear" is no better. I don't want to smear or schmear anything on anything!

WW + SB

2010-05-27T08:38:00.000-07:00

After the recent Linda Carter Jr. shouting comment, the Boyfriend admitted that the only "super hero" type character he has been compared to is...Silent Bob. I can see it a bit in the face with the beard. Ultimately, this information is very good news. As the B pointed out, this means we have our Halloween costumes for this year worked out already. I will no doubt end up wearing some overly skimpy and ridiculous Wonder Woman costume (since we all know that Halloween costumes for women only come in "sexy"), and he can wear a trench coat, backwards ball cap, jeans and sneakers. Heh. Think of the photo opps for that one!

2010-05-26T21:56:00.000-07:00

Tonight the Boyfriend and I tried Paseo at Golden Gardens. De-li-cious! And no line at all! I tried the scallop sandwich, and next time I'm going for the tofu delight. I don't see how they could go wrong. I've heard only rave reviews of this place, and I highly recommend it, although I will say I think it's fine to go ahead and skip the corn on the cob. It's only eh.

I may be saying that because the B cooks up some delicious corn on the bbq. His parents gave us a great little gas bbq for my deck, and we've been cooking up salmon, shrimp, veggies, and field roast sausages. So good! I'm a little obsessed with the bbq right now, if you must know.

Speaking of field roast, I'm still a big fan. And now I can't wait to try out the Georgetown Liquor Company. Yes, they have booze (it's not just a clever name), but they also have an all veggie menu that's "strong enough for a carnivore, made for an herbivore." It looks like a Megan food paradise. Although I'm probably best described as a "selectatarian" (whatever that means; I'm still unclear on the definition), since I will eat fish occasionally, my primarily vegetarian tendencies makes me love that a restaurant like this exists! Who knew this would be the neighborhood for veggie lovers?

Wonder Woman?

2010-05-25T20:37:00.000-07:00

Tonight, while walking through the parking lot to the tutoring center, a thuggy-looking teen (who's probably very nice) driving a beater car shouted out to me, "Linda Carter Jr.!"

That's right. I am Wonder Woman...2!

I wish. The whole thing made me turn his way laughing, and he flashed a smile before motoring away. To answer the questions that are no doubt running through your mind, no, I was not dressed up in my superhero tiara, cape and tall boots. I was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt.

I love random stuff like that. I wanted to ask the guy, "Aren't you a bit young to know who Linda Carter is?" But, there was no opportunity, and I'm pretty bad at ages. For all I know, he's 40, not 16.

Operation Depoof seems to be working. I hate stepping on the scale, so I haven't done that yet, mind you, but my pants definitely have more room. The Boyfriend is noticing similar results for himself. This is a major Woohoo! I'm sure all of this healthy eating and exercise are going to be blown away during our long weekend getaway to Bend (beer and wine tastings!), but our hotel claims to have a state-of-the-art exercise facility where we can hopefully keep the poofing under control. No poofing!

This weekend is also going to be full of good music. Friday night, it's the Long Winters in Portland, and Monday is Nada Surf/Rad Snafu at the Croc. I could also go to She & Him and Band of Horses in Bend, and then it'd practically be like I was at Sasquatch, but I think going to all of these shows would be going a bit overboard. I want to have a lot of energy for Monday night. Wonder Woman needs her beauty sleep.

Don't let the dogs...

2010-05-10T07:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, the Boyfriend and I spent most of the gorgeous day outside walking. We did a few errands in the early afternoon, and then spent a good chunk of the day walking down to Green Lake and hanging out there before walking back home. It was fun lounging around in the grass by the lake, people watching and chatting.

In the morning, we walked to the very delicious Honore Bakery in residential Ballard. Many of the houses in the neighborhood have the messy kind of gardening that is typical of Seattle. On the way back, we noticed something special at one house. In the middle of all the plants, there is a small area near the sidewalk surrounded by pieces of cardboard with writing in somewhat faint black magic marker. Upon closer inspection, we read: Don't let the dogs piss on the mint.

Clearly, someone had a bad mint experience.

It's a funny sign on so many levels. The Boyfriend pointed out how the people obviously wanted to use harsh language by their choice of "piss," but then maybe they felt like that was mean enough already, so they changed the language to the non-accusatory "the dogs" rather than the finger-pointing "your dogs." It's a delicate balance in terms of the tone. He summed it up by saying it's as if "random dogs were showing up and peeing on the mint, and they'd like everyone's help in stopping these unsupervised dogs."

Ha! Love it!

2010-05-04T22:43:00.000-07:00

Tropical islands are a lot of fun until your nephew gets seasick on a snorkel boat trip AND until you have to help revive an unconscious man with no pulse on the hotel lawn. The good news is that both the nephew and the man survived.

This was after snorkeling. The water turned really choppy while we were out there, so it was a rolly, bumpy ride back to shore. Getting into the water to snorkel was a bit of a debacle as well. Trav found the water too cold, and he didn't want to put on his gear. He sat perched on the bench at the back of the boat insisting that he wanted to go back up top while Mols and I tried to coax him into the water. He became very upset and, at one point, turned to me to say while sobbing, "I told you this was a bad idea!" But then he got in the water with a boogie board and had a blast.

Sorry, no pics of the unconscious guy. I don't even know what to say about that situation. No more medical emergency! Em suggested that I start keeping medical equipment in the Intervention Mobile. We'll see, but I think some CPR training would be helpful. The last time I took a class was about 12 or 13 years ago, and I didn't really know what I was doing with my chest compressions. I was with Bryn and her boyfriend Foxy Sam. This was FS's 30th birthday, and we were running late to the luau for his celebration. As we were zooming out of the parking lot we noticed the man flopped on his back, not moving, on a little patch of lawn. FS called 911. I ran to the front desk for help, and unfortunately the people there were pretty much just unhelpful. I returned to the scene to take over the CPR from Bryn. Luckily, we flagged down a man who had more recent experience than me, and he was the one who revived the guy. We were very grateful to him for his help, and it was the first time I've shaken hands and introduced myself to someone over the bod of a brought-back-from-the-brink dude. Very strange.

Returning home from a warm, sunny island with gorgeous beaches is just ok. I missed the Boyfriend and my friends, but it's freakin cold! Spring needs to arrive right now! I've also been really tired in the mornings since returning, dragging myself up out of bed. Strangely, I think the time change is giving me a problem this time.

The Boyfriend and I are also taking the next few weeks to eat healthier and exercise more. It's a continuation of the brief pre-vacation detox for me. So far, so good. I feel like I'm depoofing a bit, which is very nice, and he is doing an excellent job sticking with his program. We're both trying to eat lighter, healthier foods. That means dining at home more and going out less. No drinking. More fruit for dessert rather than things like chocolate. Less sugar overall. That sort of thing. It's nice to be working on this together, until we go to Bend with my family over Memorial Day weekend. Then we get a break. Good food and strong drink may be necessary for that. :-) Heh.

This new diet also means I'm actually cooking more! This is big news since I am Not a Very Domestic Person. It's a whole new me. In Maui, I bought a Longhi's cookbook and made the Longhi Salad the other night. Tasty! I tried to make the steamed artichoke from the book yesterday, but that turned out tasting pretty bad. I think the artichoke itself was off, but I was bummed and obsessed just a teensy little bit about it not turning out. Just ask the Boyfriend. Boo. Did I mention the tasty rice and beans dish I made recently with lime, cilantro and spices? And then last night I made butternut squash with whole wheat penne and fried sage. Yum, yum, yum. I'm still a huge fan of the Field Roast, and I use that quite a bit for sandwiches and pastas.

Up next...agave banana bread, also inspired by Maui. We had extremely good banana bread from a stand on the road to Hana, and I came home craving more. I searched online for a healthier version that uses agave, rather than sugar, and whole wheat flour. Now I just need to wait for the bananas to ripen.

I'm getting very sleepy, so I'm going to wrap this up. The garden is coming along nicely. I added compost and planted things. I accepted my offer to graduate school while away! I'm really liking the song Give a Little Love by Noah and the Whale right now. I hope to see the Long Winters and Grand Archives later this month, and possibly She & Him while in Bend. Watching beautiful sunsets on the beach while brushing your feet along the sand and listening to the waves has got to be one of the best things ever. I must go brush my teeth. Good night!

2010-04-27T15:58:00.001-07:00

Of course one of my favorite things about vacation is incorporating in good food. And, we've made a point of doing that so far. Upon arrival, we indulged in delicious key lime pie martinis (featuring KeKe, which cannot be found in the northwest), the hummus plate, and the edamame salsa at Mala. So good! Last night, we had fantastic appetizers at Longhi's, mine accompanied by an incredibly refreshing limey Mojito. Tonight, we had another delicious dinner of sushi at Sansei's. All old faves. All still as wonderful as before.

Oooooo. And today, while walking on Front Street in Lahaina, I had a scoop of Tutu's Anniversary. It's coconut ice cream mixed with passion fruit and raspberry sorbet. Yum! Yum! Yum!

Life on the island is good! I'm soaking up the sunshine today. Yesterday, we took the long and winding drive to Hana. That was all well and good, until the drive home when Trav drank all the water from my water bottle, because the spout makes a sound like a chirping bird, and then we had to stop five times (literally!) for him to pee at mostly side-of-the-road locations. It got rocky at moments trying to find suitable places to pull over. We were ready for a cocktail by the time we got to Longhi's for an early dinner. Trav and I caught sunset from the rock wall while Mols caught up with old coworkers. Today, we were going to do a snorkel boat trip in the morning, but we didn't plan well for that, and Molly had a paper due, so we took it easy instead.

I'm loving the relaxation aspect of this vacation. I haven't been to Maui in a few years now, but it's basically the same. It's familiar and comfortable, and I enjoy the slower pace. While Mols worked today, Trav and I spent a lovely morning down at the beach and at the resort's pool. This gave us the more time together that he's been demanding recently. Trav is adorable and kooky. We took a walk by the ocean to some seaweedy rocks, and the entire way he picked up handfuls of sand to toss into the waves while shouting, "Do you want a piece of me?!?!" It was all very Lieutenant Dan of Forrest Gump. We dug a big hole in the sand to watch the waves fill it in. He also showed me his bubble blowing and face-in-water skills that he learned at swimming lessons in the pool.

Our suite here is really great. The kitchen is about the size of my apartment. My bathroom has a spacious open shower, with one of those big raindrop shower heads. The shower is one of my favorite activities. Molly and Trav have a big jetted tub in their room, too.there's cable! I'm enjoying using the gym in the evenings. My bed is comfy, and it's easy to get a good night's sleep. When I wake up, I like just pulling my hair back in the morning and tossing on my suit before heading out for the day.

The trip is going fast, and on Thursday Bryn and her boyfriend Sam will arrive to overlap with us for a couple of days. We're going to a luau to celebrate Sam's 30th on Friday.

I will try to post pictures soon. Sometimes the flash on my camera goes off on random shots, and every single time this happens, the resulting picture ends up looking like I've super-imposed myself and whoever into a fake tropical background. Every single time. It's hilarious in a way.

Off to bed!

In Flight

2010-04-25T22:32:00.000-07:00

Aloha from the flight from Maui! There isn’t any wireless service on this flight, but there is plenty of turbulence. This post will be put up once I get to my room the resort, which is—get this—one of the VIP suites. That’s right. Mols, Trav, and I are living it up for the next six days. It’s hard to believe, but as I sit here sipping on my hot, sweetened tea, I feel incredibly lucky. We are lucky. Our good room fortune is entirely out of our hands and is an extreme act of generosity. I'm sure you'll see some pics soon.

There are still a couple of hours to go on this flight. The last time I flew, I typed away on my resume and admissions essays for graduate school. It’s strange to think about that and how, very soon, life as I know it will shift from a 9 to 5 office routine to hours in a classroom and evening spent typing up assignments and papers. It’s terrifying and thrilling that soon I will be on my way to becoming…a social worker.

This is my first time wearing shorts in—I don’t know—ages. For the past few years, skirts and capris have comprised my standard summer year. This year, I’m saying Yuck! to capris and moving on to Bermuda shorts. That sounds sort of grandma on a cruise, I know, but I’m charmed by their shortyness that doesn’t expose too much. I can spruce them up with a cute pair of strappy sandals and feel somewhat hip and cool, literally, yet covered.

The movie Up in the Air just started. I saw that one in the theater, and I didn’t love it in the way I thought I would. But, I found the “interviews” with the unfortunate people losing their jobs both timely and powerful in this economy. I’m watching while typing. The Boyfriend is a total sweetheart. He loaned me his pair of noise-cancelling headphones and a carry-on suitcase for this trip. This is my second trip packing light, which isn’t The headphones have been particularly helpful with this child-packed flight. Kick! Kick! Kick! to the back of my seat. The flight isn’t full, though, which is giving me extra space to stretch out and a bit of privacy.

I’m finally reading The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs. I read an article about it a few years ago and intended to read it then, but I never got around to it. Friends have since recommended it to me, so here I am. It’s a fun and entertaining read. I laugh a lot. Spending a year learning all you can about the Bible and living in accordance to the often kooky rules is a fascinating experiment to me.

Jacobs discusses the freedom from choice vs. the freedom of choice, reminding me of Elizabeth Gilbert’s thoughts on this in her book Committed. They’re similar in the examination and acknowledgement that sometimes too much choice can actually be limiting. You can become paralyzed or overwhelmed. People make bad decisions when faced with too many options, opting to jump to a path that appears smoother rather than stick with the original, tougher road. I’ve been thinking about this concept a lot again lately. It’s a repeated theme: The Negatives of Too Much Choice.

I’m used to viewing choice as a positive. I’ve never liked the idea that by committing to one path, you ultimately close the door to unexplored possibilities. This sometimes freaks me out, and I'd want to stick my foot in the closing door. But, lately I can see another point of view. Limitless choices may allow us to endlessly turn to new doors, which is exciting in many ways, but deciding to commit to certain choices can give us the opportunity to truly explore the depths of our experiences and ourselves. The freedom to do this bring a richness to our lives.

I’m also realizing that I’m not just a little bit terrible at crossword puzzles, I’m really terrible. I love working on them, though, so I continue to plug away, leaving a trail of half-completed (or less!) crosswords behind me. Back to work.

2010-04-19T12:42:00.001-07:00

Lately I've developed an interest in early 80s romance/rom-coms movies. I don't know why, but I just have this urge to watch them. I've always liked the Sixteen Candles types, but that's not really what I'm going for here. I guess now I'm drawn to films that are a bit more adult. During my girl time this weekend, I watched Best Friends and Crossing Delancey and liked both. Now I just need to find more like that.

Last night, against my better judgment, I watched Julie & Julia. I Did Not Like It. The Julia parts were fun and entertaining, but the Julie parts were highly annoying, and I felt like the whole thing went on and on. I like Amy Adams, but I didn't like her character. She was completely self-involved and whiny, and, frankly, I don't understand why anyone would give a damn about her blog. Obviously I'm in the minority here, because she had a huge following and got a book deal out of the whole thing. It's all a mystery to me, but I can scratch that one off the list.

Less than a week until Maui! I'm getting really excited for sun, warmth, beach, gorgeous sunsets, and all the tasty food at our favorite places. Oh, and Lava Flows! Bye-bye, detox. It's going to be really great to be back, and I'm looking forward to time with my sisters and Trav. When I saw him briefly in Portland last, he said to me very seriously, "Bacon, we need to spend more time together." He's a funny one. This weekend I did some major cleaning in the apartment, and I talked to him on the phone a bit about it. He told me that they'd be cleaning at his house, and he was a big help. Well. I informed him that he should come to my house, because Kitty is no help at all. He got a kick out of my stories about how she refused to push the vacuum cleaner around, wouldn't help with the dishes since she doesn't like water, and doesn't like to dust or do laundry.

My mini-detox has been going pretty well. I'm far from perfect on this one, but I've managed to cut way back on dairy, bread, sweets and fats, and incorporate in more fruits & veggies. I'm feeling better with this change. With that being said, I'm committed to eating healthier, but I'm also committed to the delicious foods at Bastille and Wild Mountain Cafe. Thanks to friends Elizabeth and Jen for fun dinner and brunch outings this weekend.

My post-brunch outing with Jen turned a bit weird. We decided to head to a local outdoor mall to do some errands, and we ended up helping a woman having a small medical emergency. It started out in the bathroom with Jen and I getting her supplies and tracking down her kids who were waiting for her at a store. I ran into a yoga shop next door to buy her new pants, and I'm sure the saleswomen thought I was crazy since I entered the store, made a beeline for the sale rack, and grabbed and purchased one of the first pairs I found.

Once things were squared away in the bathroom and seemed ok for the moment, Jen and I went into a shop with the plans to check on her in a bit. When the woman emerged from the bathroom and started talking with us more, it became clear that immediate medical attention was needed. She called 911 for herself, and then I ended up talking with a family member on the phone for her, since she got dizzy and ended up needing to lay down on the ground. We gave her a jacket for a pillow and helped keep an eye on the kids. A security guard was nearby, but he wasn't alerted to the situation until the paramedics came. After that he kept saying, "I saw her laying there, but I thought she was just taking a nap!" Um...really??? How many people lay down on the cement next to a table and chairs at the mall to take a nap? And, I mean, you said it once, dude, why keep repeating it? It doesn't make you look competent in any way.

The situation was a little intense, and once everything was done, Jen and I looked at each other and were like, "Well, do we just go back to shopping now?" It was very surreal, and the rest of the afternoon felt strange. At this point, I'm concerned about how the woman is doing. While it seemed like everything would probably be ok, I don't know. I gave them my number, and I have hers, but I hesitate to call her directly too soon when she's probably dealing with a lot. If I don't hear anything in the next day or two, I'm going to follow up.

2010-04-15T22:27:00.000-07:00

Now that I'm done celebrating getting into grad school, I'm trying to figure out how this will work and face the fact that, if I decide to do this, I'm going to be a poor graduate student for the next couple of years. Boo. But...yay! I'm really excited about the program.

The Boyfriend is out of town for a few days doing boy stuff. This is good for him, a needed trip. AND, while I miss him, it's also good for me to have some Megan time and girl time with the friends. I have plans. Maui is nearly only a week away, and there are things to do for that. I've been in swimsuit shopping mode, which is--I have to tell you--an exhausting, roller coaster ride. There is laughter (guffaws), there is tears. But, it must be done. My old one is in tatters. I am still in gardening mode, and I've been researching how I want to do my food container gardens. I checked out a Reader's Digest gardening book from the library, which gives me the scintillating air of a little old lady. It's also giving me good ideas on what to do. I'm excited to get started on this project, and I hope to make some progress this weekend. I definitely have cleaning around the house to do, along with laying on the couch, eating popcorn, and watching movies through the Netflix on the Boyfriend's Xbox. Please note, this is the only way an Xbox makes it into my apartment. It has to have some benefit to me outside of the dweeby video games. First, it was trivia, and now it's watching Netflix on demand on TV. My car is a disaster, especially after shuttling the sisters around for Molly's 30th birthday haunted hotel celebration in Oregon last weekend. And then, there are plans for shopping and outings with the ladies. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day at work, but I'm so looking forward to the weekend.

I'm also doing a bit of detox diet right now. I don't believe in doing any sort of hardcore cleanses, but I've been eating lots of heavy foods lately, and I started to feel the need for a break. So, I'm cutting way back on fat, sugar, dairy, and processed foods for a few days. I'm drinking lots of water and herbal/detox tea, remembering to take my vitamins, trying to get good rest, and just letting the bod chill out for a bit.

Now it's time for my food recommendations. Yum, yum, yum. I've had a lot of good food lately. Friend Shannon and I had a delicious dinner at Toulouse Petit that included a delicious crab salad on fried green tomatoes and a very rich and extremely good cheese plate. The Boyfriend and I had a fun evening at happy hour at The Shelter in Ballard. Who knew that peanut butter and jelly jalapeno poppers and avocado fries could be so delicious? We're also fans of the Traveler, the Elysian, and now the Barking Dog, in addition to Gainbourg. While making our trek out to the coast last weekend, my sisters and I stopped at several cute wineries and enjoyed delicious cheese at Tillamook (a real tourist attraction!) and the Blue Heron. We bought smoked brie at the Blue Heron, which was the centerpiece of our champagne and snacks dinner in the common room of the Old Wheeler Hotel.

So yeah...detox.

2010-04-06T00:15:00.000-07:00

I'm overdue for a regular post, but this is a shortie to tell family and friends that I got into graduate school! Yay!

2010-03-22T12:09:00.000-07:00

I think I have to face facts that the blog seems to be winding down. That's the trend lately. Maybe it's time for another hiatus, or maybe I will fall into a groove of posting intermittently indefinitely. Who knows? Life got busy, and this blogging thing has been going on for years and years, so maybe it's about time for it to wrap up. I don't know yet.

What I do know is that Saturday was gorgeous! In spite of having colds (the Boyfriend is now way worse off than I am), the B took me for a motorcycle ride to Alki where we had a delicious lunch and nice walk on the beach in the warm sunshine. This week will mark our 6 months, and we're going to celebrate with an outing for sushi. Life is calmer this week with a little break in busyness at work, and I'm still on the short break from volunteering with the AS group. This is very nice. I feel like I need some time to re-energize, especially with the cold/allergy business that's been happening the last week or so.

My good friend Chris sent me flowers last week, which was a lovely surprise. They're remaining beautiful and fragrant in my office. It cheers the place up!

At work the other day, friend Jen and I had an entertaining encounter with a young, tall, frat- boyish looking guy ahead of us in the Subway line. He was talking pretty loud and was very friendly. When I ordered the garden patty for my sandwich, he turned and asked me, "What is that?"

Me: It's a garden burger.

Him: Oh, I thought it was meatloaf. That would sure be good. But, your thing is like the opposite of meatloaf.

Me: Yep. You're right.

I continue to order, and he continues to make comments/jokes about my not-meatloaf sandwich.

Him: Wow! This place is great! I'm not from here. I'm from Colorado, and we don't have anything like this there! This is great!

Me: I see. How come you're here then?

Him: I'm here to talk with people about Jesus and stuff...without being weird about it, ya know.

I thought about this for a second, and then I said: Hrm. Well...that's hard to do.

Boy, THAT was a conversation stopper. Jesus guy turns away, finishes his transaction, and then takes off. The loud talking had caught the attention of others waiting in line behind us. After he walked away, they asked, "What's his deal? Why is here?"

Jen and I turned to them and said "Jesus!"

There were a few amused smiles and "Ohs" from the crowd, and then everyone went about their business. The funny thing to me about this isn't the fact that people are pitching for Jesus where I work--that's an everyday occurrence--but I can't wrap my mind around someone coming from Colorado for this purpose. I mean, in my mind, the God Squad has plenty of local members spreading the word. Do they need Colorado's assistance? Is there a problem here? And, who decides Seattle is the place to ship reinforcements? Is there someone overseeing the whole operation to determine where to send the reserves?

This seems complicated. It's a pity. He was kind of cute.

On a completely unrelated note, one of my big, ongoing projects lately is sorting through and getting rid of stuff. It's a chore, but it feels good to be making some progress on this. I'm becoming an organization addict, which I believe others would call an uptight neat freak. It's hard to curb that, though, when you get going and realize how much better life is without the things you don't use around. You know how people say it takes a special kind of person to become a doctor or a teacher or any kind of do-gooder? Well. I think it takes a very special person to work at a place like Goodwill. I can't imagine sorting through other people's crap all day. I feel totally overwhelmed just thinking about it.

2010-03-11T12:11:00.000-08:00

So, the Boyfriend and I are going on six months together. This is a very Big Deal to both of us. Since the end of my ten year relationship several years ago, we all know that my recent track record with long-term dating has been pretty...dismal. Crash-and-burn failures that we call "learning experiences" to cast each emotional debacle in a positive light. Frankly, even saying that I've had a relationship that's lasted six months is a bit of a stretch. So, finally being in a healthy relationship that shows every sign of growing stronger each day, at a point in life where I feel healthy and at peace with myself (i.e. just the right time), is a tremendous success story. I feel incredibly blessed and lucky. I've found a guy who doesn't mind my quirks, like when I decide to wear a scarf to bed, and who takes my looks of annoyance over his soup slurping in stride. He is a truly wonderful man who I love very much. We travel well together. We're happy. It's something to celebrate!

After that emotional outpouring, I must also say that lately I'm really into Field Roast. I crave it. I'm obsessed with looking at recipes to make new things out of it. Left to my own devices, I would like to center my world around the field roast. I'll keep you posted on the recipes I try. The Boyfriend made a really delicious pasta with FR sausage one time, and I've mentioned my love for the FR Reuben at Smarty Pants, but there are so many other possibilities out there.

To further highlight my weirdness, another recent fave is Guinness floats. Yep. I've always felt like Guinness and ice cream should come together, so I was excited to see this listed on the menu at the Traveler. I didn't order it there, though. Nope. I decided to go home and make my own. A little ice cream. A little Guinness. A dollop of chocolate sauce. And then you have a not-so-sweet root beerish type float. Yum! (No one else I know likes this, by the way.)

Oh, and Big Sky organic ginger ale = yum. It's extreme ginger goodness, if you're into that sort of thing.

In addition to Maui in April (yay!), I'm really looking forward to the lavender festival in July! Last weekend, I managed to spend some time out in my little garden flower beds, and I moved one of my lavender plants to a new spot. They are starting to sprout, which means they are starting to smell delicious. Combine that with the rosemary, and I was in scent heaven. I just wish my allergies would stop acting up. I've been sniffling lots lately.

Leading the AS group on Monday went pretty well. Unfortunately there was some general chaos and disorganization to deal with before and after the group meeting, but my session itself went ok, especially for a first time of leading on my own. The group did a pretty good job of handling the change of leadership for the session. The energy was a bit scattered at first, and there was definitely some boundary challenging, but, once we got going with our topic, we had a positive and engaged conversation. The topic of the night focused on touchy subjects and insults. Given my recent interventions/meddling, I felt completely comfortable and at one with this theme. We talked at length about verbal and non-verbal cues for recognizing when you may have said something insulting or brought up a touchy subject, repairing these situations, and boundaries for giving out personal information about ourselves. This was very good experience for me, and even though I was nervous about trying it, I'm pleased I had the chance to lead a group discussion.

2010-03-04T18:30:00.000-08:00

Yeah. So, I would like to post updates, but now it's been so dang long that does anyone even really care about Port Townsend, or the trip to Portland, or whatever else I said I'd talk about? Prolly not. Maybe I should just start the blog from scratch. Declare it a do-over, because I'm doing a terrible job keeping up with it lately.

Let's see. In Megan news...

- Monday night is going to be my first time leading the AS group on my own! I'm a little nervous but excited to give it a whirl. I'm feeling comfortable with the group and the format this time around, so I just need to come up with enough topics to cover the hour session if things get awkward and stilted. Luckily, I have Ideas. I think it will be fun and hopefully useful for the young adults.

- A few of my friends and I are planning to start an autism related reading group with dinner outings to discuss the topics. I'm in charge of putting together the readings, and I'm excited to work on that. So much to choose from! (piano fingers)

- I encourage you to check out the HBO Temple Grandin movie. It's excellent! I've seen a couple of TG interviews, and Claire Danes seemed very Temple to me. It's the best movie about autism that I've seen so far.

- I'm tired.

- I'm really enjoying Committed. I feel like I could write a post on the thoughts and observations about marriage in the book, and maybe I will once I've finished it. I have a lot of mixed feelings about marriage, and this book touches on many of my own thoughts and opinions. I'm truly drawn to having a partner in life, and I love the idea of a ritual that seals and celebrates the commitment of two people, but I have complicated feelings about the institution of marriage itself and its social implications. I like that Committed examines these things. Add it to the recommended reading list for those about to take the leap! I hope to talk about this topic in more depth when I'm not so sleepy.

- Speaking of weddings, congratulations to my cousin Alan and his wonderful fiance Laurie! Soon they'll be heading off to Jamaica for their nuptials. Yay!

- I've been on a Having Difficult Conversations With People roll lately. Emily commented that it's good to see I'm dusting off the Intervention Mobile (it was in storage for a while) and getting out there to intervene (some might call it meddling) in people's lives. For better or worse, it's what I do.

-Oooooooh. A highlight of this past weekend was getting a cool new texting phone. My flip phone never quite recovered from its near death experience at Christmas and had started to take a turn for the worse. I couldn't even close it anymore because the display light wouldn't come on when I opened it up. I was constantly having to restart the thing, so I'd just leave it sitting open in my purse, or wherever. It wasn't working out.

- I'm getting really excited for Maui at the end of April! Sunshine! Beach!

- Strawberries and chocolate and good company makes me happy, happy, happy.

- I've had some delicious dinners with friends lately at places like Sutra, Wild Mountain Cafe, Bastille, and tonight the Kingfish Cafe with Monice. So much fun catching up with good friends, and, of course, I enjoyed spreading out the birthday celebrating. February = Birthday Month. Month!

- With the weather turning nicer lately, I've had the itch to get out and garden. I find it invigorating to work in the dirt, and my flower beds are in needs of some clean up. I'd like to do more this year, though, and expand my gardening to growing my own veggies. The problem is that I don't get enough sun on my little flower beds/garden space, so I've been looking into local p-patches. The waiting lists are long, so I need to consider other options.

- This weekend is all about doing NOTHING. I can't wait for nothing to start.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Off to bed.

Quick Updates

2010-02-24T19:07:00.001-08:00

I still have a thing for the steam mop. It's named The Monster.

New band (to me) that I'm also totally loving: Yeasayer. I haven't bought a CD in ages, but I caved last night and bought a copy of their latest while out with Em at Sonic Boom.

New lunch time option that I'm loving, because it's like a cup-o-noodle without all the fat and salt, and they actually have some nutritional content and taste good: Dr. McDougall's soups.

Trip that I'm really looking forward to at the end of April: Maui! We're going in honor of Molly's 30th. Sun! Sun! Sun!

Trip I'm taking today for bday celebrating with the fam: Portland!

2010-02-16T23:35:00.001-08:00

Oh, and while I love the Boyfriend, I have a new infatuation: The Steam Mop. I can't help it. It's lovely. No scrubbing! No chemicals! It just makes my floors so clean and shiny.

2010-02-16T23:14:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was a hair coloring "model" at the new salon I'm trying. I really like my new hair person so far, and she asked me several weeks ago if I'd be interested in doing this for a hair coloring class. Free hair coloring under the supervision of a professional? Sure! My favorite part of the whole experience was overhearing the instructor comment about this big wooden chair he was sitting in. He busted out with a breezy, "I'm really digging this chair...I feel like Vin Diesel in it."

Hahaha-HA! I was not expecting THAT. I sat in my salon chair, with my hair saturated with dye, pretending to look at my book while giggling to myself.

I've decided I'm in love with Port Townsend. Love. It. I'm going to giving up my life here, peeps, to move there and work at the big New Agey store on the corner. It's got an awesome vibe. Come visit me!

There is so much more to say, but soon. Right now I'm going to go curl up with my new copy of Committed. Yay! (A gift from good friend Elizabeth. I'm still committed to reading my own dang books this year, but I accept gifts to add to the collection). I just know I'm going to devour it.

2010-02-10T12:47:00.000-08:00

I know. I haven't been posting again lately. I'm lame.

Life is just nutso, man! I've been a busy lady.

This week is a lot of fun, though. This past weekend I had good girl time with sister Molly, and dinner at Six Seven with Mols and Meg T. was delicious and a lot of fun. We were there for about two and a half hours chatting, laughing, and eating. Although, we were lucky in that we had a gift card Meg T. got from her hotel, because the food was definitely over-priced for what it was. Our server Matt was very helpful and quirky in a charming way. We tried to get Meg T. interested in him, but that was a no go. Still, we talk about Matt fondly now.

I finished watching the first season of The United States of Tara. Loved it.

This week is volunteering and birthday celebrating with friends and my Eiffel Tower Lighting Party tomorrow! Lindsay (the awesome of the awesome) gave me a bottle of Veuve to have at the party, and I'm super excited to share it with everyone. Plus, I just want people to eat good cheese and Oooooo and Aaaaaaah over my lights. Then, we're going to Sutra for a birthday dinner. Looking forward to trying that very much.

And then there is the weekend. Oh weekend, how I'm looking forward to you. Work and life is busy-stressful right now, so a few days away are in order. So is the wine and chocolate tasting festival in Port Townsend. I'm looking forward to my birthday, and generally I don't have any issues with aging, but the other night I dreamed that my sister was talking to me about my hair. She said that my mom and her had noticed that huge amount of gray hair that had cropped up on my head, and my sis said people she knew had started referring to me as "that older woman" which was weird for her. Aaaaaaaaaaah! I was like, This is not true! She said I wasn't noticing because the offending hairs are all in the back. So, in my dream, I became obsessed with examining my hair.

Sigh. It was a pretty funny dream, incredibly vivid. I wondered what it was about, since I'm fine with turning 33. I think the problem is that while I'm not worried about getting older, I don't want to show signs of aging earlier than I should.

Timing is working for me on this one, since on Monday I get to be a "model" at the Aveda salon I go to and have free hair coloring done as part of a class. This is perfect.

I can squash my paranoia about the grays for at least a little while.

Wishing you all a Happy Eiff Lighting in Megan's Office Day tomorrow! Drink some champagne or eat some French cheese or chocolate in its honor. Here's to gaudy beauty and unsophisticated Americans!

2010-01-31T22:58:00.000-08:00

So the other day I pull into the Emissions Testing Facility to have the test done before my tabs are due at the end of the month. I went shortly after they opened in the morning to avoid long lines. While sitting in my car waiting for the person ahead of me to finish up, one of the guys who works there headed over purposefully to ask me a few pointed questions. "Are you supposed to be here? What year is your car?" he demanded. Although acting as though he meant to be helpful, his tone stung of "What are you thinking you stupid, STUPID girl???" I answered matter of factly that, yes, I am supposed to be here since my car is now five years old and my tabs are due. And then he walked away. In the moment I found the exchange kind of weird, but I carried on. After, as I thought about it more, I found the whole thing funny. What does he think, that people just show up for no reason to have their emissions checked?

Yeah man, I was just driving north on Aurora this Saturday morning, and I saw your sign, so I thought I'd pull on in and have my emissions checked for FUN!!! I have nothing better to do. I like crawling out of my warm bed bright and early to show up here. I've heard this is a good place to meet guys. Didn't you know that people obsess over their emissions going awry in their 2004 vehicles so they randomly stop by to have it checked out. It's worth the 15 bucks every time!

Right.

I have a friend--we'll call her Shmemily to protect her identity--who wrote the words "Blood Suckers" in the notes section of a check to her slumlord-landlord. This is awesome. Shmemily's landlords are terrible with their miscellaneous charges for things. They nickel and dime their tenants like nobody's business. The latest is their decision to charge her pet rent for an entire month after she got her dog at the very end of it. So she got her revenge with blood suckers.

The Boyfriend and I got the first disc of The United States of Tara from Netflix. I watched all of them Friday night, even after the BF fell asleep. He finished them Saturday morning. I do recommend! It's a funny and interesting show. Looking forward to the next disc and season two.

Did I mention that I finally ditched cable and went back to the basic stations? So far, so good. Not missing it at all. Sure, I have pangs for Millionaire Matchmaker and Real Housewives of New York and other things I'm forgetting at the moment, but when all is said and done, it just wasn't worth it.

I'm looking forward to Molly's visit next weekend! She won't bring Trav this visit, so it will just be girl time. I think we're going to have dinner with her friend Meg T. at Six Seven at the Edgewater Inn, which should be fun. The following weekend The Boyfriend and I are off to Port Townsend for a birthday weekend adventure. We're going to stay a couple of nights and do the red wine and chocolate tasting tour. I'm very excited for a little getaway, and this sounds like perfect birthday celebrating to me.

Sleepy time, peeps.

BOYFRENT

2010-01-20T12:20:00.001-08:00

For various (good) reasons, the Boyfriend and I usually end up spending most of our "at home" time together at my place. This tends to work well for both of us. My neighborhood in Seattle is pretty cool, with easy access to yummy restaurants and fun hang-out spots. Many are within walking distance of my apartment. Friends live close by. Overall, the location provides us with lots of options.

And, honestly, I just like being at my house. I'm not there a ton with my often busy schedule, and although improvements are needed (an updated tv, for example), it's a cozy, happy place to be. I'm totally content to shut out the outside world and just enjoy being there. Plus, I like having access to my full wardrobe and products. :-) Schlepping that stuff around is not appealing.

So, there we are, happily spending many days and nights at my pad. It's great! But, things get messy, dishes get dirty, clean-up is required. When my mess-detector reaches high levels, I get stressed. I like the calm of a relatively clean environment. Messy leads to edginess and huffy interactions, which, as you can imagine, doesn't set a great tone for a relationship. Megan Grrrrrrr Mode is not appealing.

I have to say that the Boyfriend is a real pro at dealing with this. For one thing, he's an excellent communicator. This has taken some getting used to on my part. It's a novelty, and I don't always know how to cope. Over the past few years, as long-time readers know, I've dated the exact opposite of good communicators. I'm most familiar with Run-Away-at-the-First-Sign-of-Conflict Guy or Prefer-to-Sweep-All-Problems-and-Emotions-Under-the-Rug Guy or Pretending-to-Listen Guy, who has the charming habit of making all the right noises when you speak, but then inevitably taking a wrong turn with his actions. "Huh?" is the motto of these guys. Not for the Boyfriend. He listens and tries to see things from both of our perspectives. He wants to find mutually agreeable solutions to potential issues. It's a refreshing change. I finally feel like I'm part of an adult relationship, and it's lovely.

Secondly, the Boyfriend cleans up. Hurray! This is key. You can talk and talk and talk, but the truth is in the actions. He understands what needs to be done to keep us both happy at my place. And, while it's greatly appreciated by me, it's felt pretty seamless to get to this point of balance. We're figuring out what works and jokingly call the tasks he does his "boyfrent." I often come home to find the dishes done (no small task since I don't have a dishwasher). Many days he grocery shops and prepares dinner (vegetarian options!), including fun little treats like chocolate, and Crazy Taxi. When preparing to have friends over, he's whipped out the vacuum to push over the floors while I handle other stuff. While I was stressing out about getting my grad application done, he upped his help so I didn't have to worry at all about the little things. It was incredibly...helpful.

Oh yeah, and he's nice to my annoying cat who likes to stand around the bed meowing on weekend mornings. He even calls her "buddy," which is pretty funny for a 7lb Russian Blue.

This boy goes above and beyond with his boyfrent. I still like to tease him about upping the rent, though.

2010-01-14T22:19:00.001-08:00

MSW application is done!!! Now, I just have to wait a few months to see if I get in. Woohoo. :-)

It's good to be done, though.

More Yay/Boo Madness

2010-01-08T12:14:00.000-08:00

Yay to the James Mercer (Shins) and Danger Mouse collaboration Broken Bells! I heard a song on KEXP this morning, and I *loved* it. I haven't been this excited about anything new in a while. After that, my heart filled with love for John in the Morning for playing "In the Ghetto." Happy Birthday, Elvis! Even though I've cut off my collection...once a fan of the king, always a fan of the king.

Boo to NBC for even thinking about replacing Conan with Jay Leno. I hope that's just a rumor. In the battle of funny vs. un-funny, Conan is the clear winner of funny. Give him some time, peeps!

Yay to Nada Surf for the three album shows scheduled in NYC. I wish I could go to at least a couple of them. Boo to them for not doing this in SEATTLE! I don't understand. How many times do I have to go over this? It's like no one is listening.

Maybe I should write a letter. I finally wrote in to the End asking them to stop playing so much Red Hot Chili Peppers. I never do anything like that, but I reached my limit. I needed an outlet. I needed to be heard! Every time I turn on the radio, one of their damn songs is playing. I'm not joking at all, and I don't listen to the End regularly. Yet, when I flip to that station, it's inevitable that I'll hear a RHCP song. Argh! It would be funny if it wasn't so aggravating.

My question is how many old songs about California by them (just look at the list, see who dominates) do we need to hear on a daily basis? The station sent back a nice reply telling me that they hear me (yay, thanks. I've been heard), but the reason why they play so much RHCP is because of the overwhelming positive feedback they receive from it.

Huh. The RHCP proponents must be the same people who are for bringing back Leno.

Yay to the special effects in the movie Avatar! I enjoyed seeing it in 3-D (my first time seeing a movie in 3-D!), and I was entertained the entire time, even though most of the dialogue was pretty terrible. Cheese-o-rama. It sure was gorgeous, though. It's funny to me that one of the most expensive movies ever made highlights the wastefulness of humans and makes a case for living simply in connection with nature.

Boo for the horrid song "I See You" at the end of Avatar. Really??? Are we on the Titanic? I feel like this ship is going down. "I See You" = I'll see you to the trash.

Yay for the movie It's Complicated. I saw that on Christmas with the family (a tradition of ours), and it was probably one of the best movies I've seen Christmas Day in a long while. Love Meryl Streep! Love Alec Baldwin! Love Steve Martin! Great cast and good fun. I'd love to have Meryl's house in that movie.

Yay for Friday! I'm ready! More essay writing ahead this weekend.

2010-01-07T22:41:00.000-08:00

Yay for Nada Surf playing on KEXP (in New York) this morning! It was great to hear those guys. I've missed them. They're on a break.

Boo to Nada Surf for not playing a show in Seattle for so long! I can understand being on a break, but I can't understand being on a break from Seattle. Come on! The good news is that they have a new album of covers coming out and an upcoming tour. The bad news is that while Portland is currently on the list, I see no Seattle on there. What?!? How can this be??? I'm going to be watching that schedule very carefully, and if Seattle isn't added, I guess I'll be heading down to the Wonder Ballroom on May 29th, dragging my sisters to the show.

Ok, ok, and even if a show IS added here, I may end up going to both like a true super-fan freak. Because that is what I am. It's how I roll.

Yay to This Emotional Life! Like a fully-fledged old person, I watched PBS three nights in a row to catch this special, and I enjoyed. Monice's husband made cracks about how I'm a young, free-spirited lady who should be out on the town doing shots, not watching PBS. Well. Little does he know that actually I'm more like a prudish librarian than a fancy-free single girl who downs shots of tequila on a Tuesday night. I embrace my PBS.

Parts I & II were my favorite; the third night on Happiness was ok. It looks like there is a DVD available out there, so if you missed the program on the tube, keep an eye out for that.

Boo to my cable not working properly lately! I can't watch my very important Real Housewives and things if Bravo no worky. Get with the program, Comcast!

Yay to me for working hard on my MSW application essay! It's coming along, but I'm going to have to work hard on it over the next week to wrap it up before the deadline. That's right. It's due in a week. Don't boo me for being a procrastinator! I just can't work too seriously on anything until there is some pressure to get it done. For better or worse, it will get done. Probably with some tears.

Boo to me for getting water on and in my cellphone! Serious boo. The phone still works, but it's all twitchy and unpredictable now after its near death experience. It seems dicey, and I have a ways to go on my T-mobile contract. Waaaaaaaaah!

Yay that Elizabeth Gilbert's new book is out! I haven't ordered it yet, though. I have a dilemma. Like Em, I decided that this year is going to be about reading all the unread books laying around on my shelves. There are a lot of perfectly good options right here and, yet, I still end up buying or checking out new ones regularly. I'm all about recycling and composting and saving the earth. I need to shift this 'tude to reading material, too. It's unacceptable that I'm letting these interesting books just sit. They will not go to waste!

So yeah, it's the Year of Reading My Own Damn Books. Yay me.

Boo to me and the Boyfriend having really bad memories. Seriously bad. Completely checked out bad. Here's the deal. Last night, lovely BF picks me up from work, and we proceed to have a lovely evening together. We run some errands and go to Temple to play pool and have dinner. It's fun. The BF remembered to return luggage I borrowed to our friends, and he brought all the little items needed for our errands (shirt to return, movies, etc.) without any reminding. Very good. Yet, at the end of the night we zip home without a care, unaware that we're forgetting something important, so I can watch This Emotional Life. We watch. After that, we go to sleep and morning comes. The BF gets up and goes to work, I sleep a little bit more. La, la, la. A short time later, I wake up to start my day. I'm just about to step in the shower when I realize, "Oh crap! We totally forgot to pick up my car in Wallingford!"

That's right. We remembered shirts, luggage, and movies, but totally forgot about a CAR sitting far away from where I live. It never crossed my mind. You may recall that I park in a neighborhood near work and either walk or bus in, since parking is so expensive where I'm at, and I have a thing about walking. After the BF picked me up last night, the subject of my car never even came up. We just happily went about our business (the BF beat me at pool, so some of us were happier than others). After realizing this morning what had happened, and having a moment of internally thinking "Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!" I had to speedily get ready and race out the door to take a convoluted bus route to the office. 50 minutes and quite a bit of walking later, I was there. I even had the chance to crane my neck to see out the window that my car was still where I left it as the bus sped by.

The bad news is that I was late. And, I felt like I had to explain my lateness, especially since we're really busy right now. I opted for honesty. If you think the "I forgot to pick up my car last night" excuse is a good one, think again. People clearly believe you're a complete dope, even though they're expressing understanding. You know they're wondering what kind of person forgets their car. They laugh and shake their heads. Coworkers tease you and call out "Don't forget about your car!" as they leave the office to head home. You can't even make a snippy retort, because it happened once so who's to say it won't happen again. Hmph.

Back to essay writing.

This Emotional Life

2010-01-04T21:31:00.000-08:00

I'm watching This Emotional Life on PBS, and I gotta tell ya I'm super excited about this program. It's a three-part series running January 4th-6th, and tonight's is on relationships--family, friends, lovers. I love this kind of stuff (psychology, the concept of happiness, relationships, how people process emotions, etc.), and I'm particularly interested in this one, because it has a segment on Asperger's. So far, I think it's very well done, and I like the people who participated. It's even made me a bit, ahem, emotional at times so far. I hope to catch all three parts over the next few days. Check it out! Then we'll have something to talk about.

Happy New Year, everyone! I survived Disney madness and one (just ONE) go around on It's a Small World. It's still the creeping boat ride from hell. It just goes on and on. You round a bend thinking it's about over, but no. Suddenly, you're in a gaudy, musical Egypt or Switzerland or Africa. It doesn't matter where you're at, because you're going bonkers Aaaaaaah!

Trav loved it, and the whole experience, though. At four, he barely cleared the height requirement for many of the roller coaster rides, but he the attendants took care of that by squeezing his big head so the very top touched the height marker. Worked like a charm, and Trav darted on to rides like Thunder Mountain with us, loving every second of it. One of his favorites was Pirates, which made me very happy. He liked the hill at the beginning and the whole scene inside, although he got a little afraid at the part where the dog is guarding the pirates in the jail, and the cell mates are trying to coax the keys from him. I'm not sure why that worried him, but I could tell when his little voice said to me, "Bacon, this part is fun not scary....right?" Right, my little monkey.

The whole trip was really great. It was nice spending time with the family. We enjoyed each other's company and laughed a lot. The Hotel Menage is cool with a fun restaurant called K'ya (which inspired me to run around saying "Key-ya! Key-ya!" all the time) and a perfect view of Disneyland's spectacular fireworks. The weather was lovely and sunny most of the time, and I soaked it up. Now it's back to Seattle's grim gloom.

I was happy to welcome in 2010, but I realize that I'm a fan of 2009. It was a good year. At work today, someone wondered if people will call it two thousand ten or twenty-ten. Bets are on twenty-ten.

Megan's 2009 Highlights (I'm sure there is more than I'm listing here):

- Obama taking over as president. Relief!
- Paris! Reims! Going to that goofy cabaret show with my sister, hula hooping on stage. I guess.
- Tasting Birthday Cake ice cream at Molly Moons.
- Hearing Elizabeth Gilbert talk with Jen and Elizabeth. Great night! Looking forward to reading her new book Committed.
- Celebrating Mother's Day with my mom at the Queen Mary, and my parents' visit in May.
- Summer road trip with Bryn and Trav to K Falls.
- Further discovering my interest in autism spectrum disorders and piecing together the path to my next step in life. Taking classes, finding a program, attending the conference, reading books, volunteering with the young adult group, etc.
- Being present at the birth of Finley. A biggie!
- Falling in love. Another biggie!
- Finding Gainsbourg in Greenwood. Yum.
- Weekend away at the ocean. It was lovely in every possible way.
- Holidays with my fam and Disney!
- Drinking Veuve (a gift from the Boyfriend) with Em and the bf on New Year's Eve. A good night with people I love, even when Em kicked my ass at Seinfeld Scene It. Twice. Hmph.

This is what it looks like...

2009-12-28T11:49:00.001-08:00

to be stuck on the Matterhorn Bobsleds with funny light-up ears on.

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-27T18:26:00.000-08:00

And good evening from Disneyland! I want to share some pics, but they're kinda hard to organize in blogger, so here they are in a mostly random order.

Trav with his new step-dad.

Getting ready to board It's a Small World.

The start of It's a Small World.

The middle.

The end.

Spinning tea cups!

First ride of the day, Peter Pan. Trav looks a little freaked.

Piggy-back time!

Normal happiness at being at Disneyland.

Trav insisting that I wear some ears too. Not so normal.

First night dinner. Trav, Mom, and Aunt K.

Parade time!

This holiday season I'm grateful for...

2009-12-21T10:27:00.000-08:00

...A day off to catch up on rest and holiday errands and blogging. Much needed!

...Beach! I had a fantastic time in Westport! I wish I was still there. It was a lovely time relaxing, walking on the beach, and even being good and going to the gym. For anyone who visits the area, I recommend checking out the Westport Winery. The Boyfriend and I got a yummy bottle to have with our delicious dinner of cheese, bread, hummus, veggies, olives, smoked salmon, and pop tarts. The red we bought is called Night Watch, but the desserty one that tasted and smelled so perfectly delicious of chocolate and raspberry was the Red Sky at Night. Yum!

We stayed at a condo at Westport by the Sea. For those of you who stay there, don't be fooled by the cop car and doll cop parked by the four way stop. It is not real.

...Being, by far, the oldest and most immature people in the theater when Em and I went to see New Moon. We were worried about screechy young girls, and we ended up being the snickering ladies disturbing the show.

...Spending the holidays with my family. I'm so freakin excited to go to Disneyland with Trav!

...Christmas trees! It's hard to get a good pic of mine because, frankly, I don't really even know how to use my camera, but here you go. You get the idea. The cozy lights and bubblers make me happy.

What you can't see from this photo is how the Boyfriend decided that the ornament of the Skiing Hot Dog should be placed on the side and height of the tree that is directly in your vision the moment you walk in the door. He thinks an ornament of a Skiing Hot Dog on the tree of vegetarian is funny stuff.

....All the bad dates I went on this year (and, hell, let's be honest here, years past). They make me see and appreciate the good in a huge way. I know, without a doubt, that I'll always be ok on my own, but I also know without a doubt that I'm an incredibly lucky girl to have such a wonderful man in my life.

...My fabulous friends who always equal laughter.

...Laughing hysterically with Em once we saw that the terrifying, zombie-ish preview we were watching at the theater is for the upcoming movie called "The Crazies." Really??? The Crazies?

...Sharing in the birth of Baby Finley. And, my friendship with Monice that totally grew from our shared hatred of the word "moist."

....The song Viva Sea-Tac by Robyn Hitchcock. Chris and I heard it while motoring around town during her visit, and all I can say is yeah. That about sums it up. Viva viva Sea-Tac!

...Getting to go to Paris with Lindsay and Molly!

...The folks.

...Volunteering. There have been ups and downs, but I'm learning a lot from my two volunteering gigs. The students in both are fantastic, and I look forward to continuing to work with them.

...Cupcakes. I'll take Cupcake Royale over Trophy any day. I know Chris will back me on this one. Lavender!

...The return of birthday cake ice cream at Molly Moons! (Really, I do more than just eat!)

...Oh fine. Good food in general. That's always on my list.

Laundry List - Updating Slowly

2009-12-05T09:24:00.000-08:00

- This is my weekend to get a Christmas tree. I'm sure of it! Update: Lovely Christmas tree is purchased and decorated, and it smells delicious. I heart it. I'm sad to leave the tree to go to work in the morning. It's painful.

I will try to post a pic soon, but it's hard to capture its beauty, and, frankly, I don't even really know how to use the camera to make that turn out.

- Trav and Mols are here this weekend. I'm going to be keeping an eye on Trav this afternoon to tomorrow. I've been informed that he's having a bit of a lying problem, and he claims that his lying is teasing. Well. We will nip that in the bud at Bacon R. boot camp. Boot. Camp. Update: Visit with Trav was excellent. He's such a sweetie. We had lots of fun playing at home and at the park, eating good foods, and checking out the Phinney Neighborhood Center's Winter Festival (lots of crafts and clog dancing!) with Mols. Trav got along fabulously with the Boyfriend...when he wasn't trying to put him to bed or in time out in my room. You see, Trav really likes alone time with his aunties. He was even hustling his mom out the door to maximize on his time.

- Photo Time!

This is Jack smiling:

I've ordered some lights for the Eiffel Tower in my office, and soon I will have an unveiling. The celebration will include champagne, baguette, and cheese for my coworkers who show up to say, "Woo." I ordered the lights off of eBay, and it turns out they are coming from Hong Kong, so we may be in for a bit of a wait. Until then, the Eiff sans lights ("after" picture coming soon...I hope):

Every once in a while I like to better Kittay's situation, and my own. My recent improvement is a "Kitty Cabin" that is heated and will, hopefully, reduce her time under the covers on my bed. No one is very optimistic about this working. The Kitty Cabin arrived yesterday. So far it's going ok.

How could you not love this face?

- This upcoming week is the last for both tutoring and the AS group for a little while. While I'm enjoying both activities, I'm ready for a break. I'm kinda worn out. I must be honest and say I'm turning a little bratty lately. The Boyfriend can confirm this. For sure. Update: Last AS group meeting was really nice and festive feeling. I'm going to miss the students until we start up again in January. One of the aspie girls and I played Scrabble, and I got my arse kicked. It was humiliating. I will use this break to work on my grad school application and to practice my Scrabble skills.

- Next weekend, the Boyfriend and I are off for a little ocean adventure. He found an awesome looking condo that's steps away from beach front and has a fireplace, jetted tub (yessssssss!), and a full kitchen that I can spend hours slaving away in to make us delicious food. Hahaha! Just kidding. About the cooking. I'm getting super excited to be all cozy at the beach!

- I love the Charlie Brown Christmas special. Trav and I watched it this weekend, and my favorite part is when Lucy says to Charlie Brown, "You do think I'm beautiful don't you, Charlie Brown?" And then, without skipping a beat and with her finger wagging she says very seriously, "You didn't answer me right away." This makes me laugh and laugh, and so then Trav found it hilarious too. We ended up rewinding and playing it back over and over, and then re-enacting the scene between the two of us over and over, which drove the Boyfriend bonkers. Kids (and Megans) like repetition of funny Lucy lines. I need to find a still of her doing the "finger dance" as Trav calls it, because I truly identified with Lucy in that moment. It was perfect. I shall start calling people blockhead.

-Oh, how I love the bus. Today, everyone had to get on the bus using the back door. I guess the front door wasn't working, and the driver apologized and explained that many of the buses aren't operating due to the cold. Really??? I mean, Really?? Dear Seattle Metro, It is now winter. December comes around every year. It's not a surprise, and there is a handy tool online called weather.com that you can use to prepare for cold days. Try it. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

The bus system in Seattle is, sadly, pretty inefficient and not all that reliable. One morning a couple of years ago, I was waiting at the bus stop with a group of people, and no buses were showing up. Finally, one of the girls called a cab, and me and another girl chipped in to get our arses to work. A cab!

Anyway, after giving the cold weather explanation, the driver followed up with, "You are my back door people today. Hahahaha!"

This was at my stop, so I hopped off the bus shaking my head. I love the bus! Sigh.

I'll continue to add more to this list soon.

2009-11-27T17:23:00.000-08:00

Happy Belated Thanksgiving, everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday. My day was very enjoyable. Case and I went to his family's house in Snoqualmie for Thanksgiving dinner (meeting the family - yikes! They were great, though. I especially enjoyed meeting the grandmas, and we managed to sneak in a quick visit to the Snoqualmie Falls) in the afternoon, and then I had a few friend over at my apartment in the evening. It was lovely. I had fun making my favorite holiday time Chex Mix in the morning, and then we made mulled wine in the evening. It was my first time trying that, and I'm happy to report that it turned out delicious. Now that I have the ingredients, I think that will become a regular winter drink. And, I finally got my Charlie Brown Holiday collection, so we watched The Great Pumpkin the other day and the Thanksgiving special last night. Lots of good laughs, food and drink, and fantastic friends. Who could ask for anything better? Well, I miss my family, but I'm looking forward to celebrating a very Disney Christmas with them.

Friend Em got a dog! He's a 10 year old wiry fox terrier who looks like a stuffed animal and is named Jack. I call him Jack White. He looks like Asta from the Thin Man movies, which is awesome.

Next weekend, the Travman will be here to spend a day and night with me while Mols is off celebrating friend Meghann T's birthday with her. I can't wait! Yay! One on one nephew time is the best. There is a winter festival thingy happening at the neighborhood center, and I'm itching to pick out a Christmas tree to decorate this year, so Trav, Case, and I may be on our way to Swanson's to see what we find.

More to report soon!

2009-11-14T23:35:00.000-08:00

Friend Chris is in town! Actually, she leaves tomorrow afternoon; the visit has gone by really fast. We've been busy. We've had delicious food and drinks at places like El Chupacabra, Smash, Wild Mountain Cafe, and Brouwer's, often with peeps like Em and Casey. We saw Chungking Express at the Metro! I still love it. We've compared Trophy and Cupcake Royale cupcakes and agree that Cupcake Royale's are better (we may be in the minority on this one, but I stand by my lavender cupcake obsession!). We've spent time walking around neighborhoods like Ballard and Wallingford, checking out the fun shops, and we walked on the beach at Golden Gardens. The other day, Casey, Chris, and I went to see the Bodies exhibit downtown. I'm a bit squeamish and wasn't sure if I'd be able to handle it, but the exhibit is incredibly interesting and well done. We all liked it. Yesterday, after a visit to Pike Place Market, Chris and I jetted down to Portland so she could meet Trav. We had a nice dinner out with Mols and Trav at a Mediterranean restaurant, where Trav suddenly announced to the dining room, "I have to go potty! I went a little bit in my pants! Just a little bit. That's ok? Right?" Molly responded with, "Oh. My. God. Let's go right now!" The whole thing was urgent but hilarious.

Today we spent time at the Japanese Gardens in Portland before heading back to Seattle. Very, very pretty. Pictures below, but they don't capture the loveliness and peacefulness of being there.

The best thing about the Market was trying the crepe place and discovering they do the Nutella crepe. My favorite treat in Paris! I was in heaven. Yum!

Japanese Gardens!

At Golden Gardens....

2009-10-29T08:12:00.000-07:00

The blog has gone dormant recently with my intermittent posting. I lied when I said I'd post more, and I'm full of excuses. I'm busy, and my life is busy in a way that means I don't have a lot of interesting things to report. For whatever reason, I'm still struggling to get in the groove with my new routine, even though I'm already a couple of weeks in. I'm trying to figure that out. Also, honestly, I'm distracted lately by a boy in my life who, in spite of my general weirdness, and the fact that I accidentally gave him a shiner while sleeping the other night, still seems perfectly willing to spend time with me. He takes it all in stride. We always have fun together, and he makes me laugh every day. He's great and lovely to me, and I'm very happy with all aspects of life right now, which I guess is taking an unfortunate toll on the blog. I want to write, but my thoughts aren't coming together in any cohesive, entertaining way, and I'm lacking my usual kind of material. Why is it that there is more to pour out during difficult periods than good ones?

Maybe it's just me. I don't really gush when things are going well. That's not my style. I can't help but think I'm like Miranda on Sex and the City in this respect (always relating to the SatC ladies - heh), although maybe not quite as extreme. I can show happiness, but no gushing allowed! Understanding that life is a series of ups and downs, I'm more comfortable quietly enjoying the peace and goodness when it comes my way. I also have a tendency to be private and protective of the positive things, and I'm not sure what exactly that's about. All I know is that it makes me a dud blogger.

With regard to the inadvertent shiner, friend Jen laughed and commented this morning, "Too funny. People can't even mess with you when you're sleeping!" It's true! Argh.

As I continue to make progress toward my school/professional goals, I'm noticing that there is a lot more happening internally on that front at the moment. I don't have a lot to express outwardly about that yet. I'm motoring along, and I like the direction, but everything is still a bit muddled and finding its place. I'm working to figure things out.

I'm very much looking forward to a visit from my Minnesota friend, Chris, in a couple of weeks. I'll be taking some time off for fun Seattle adventures and belated birthday celebrating with her, and I think it will be great to have that time. We haven't visited in person for a couple of years now, I think. Gah! I'm hoping to catch the showing of Chungking Express at the Metro while she's here. That's my favorite Kar Wai Wong movie, and I think it'd be excellent to see it on the big screen.

I still don't know what I'm going to do about Halloween, peeps. I like coming up with costume ideas, but I'm not so great at following through with them, so who knows? There are parties to go to, but I'm always kind of "meh" about Halloween. I'm enjoying participating in a lot of autumn/Halloween festivities lately, though, especially the ones that include hot apple cider with brandy. :-) Em and I are determined to make mulled wine this year, and that sounds more and more delicious to me as the Seattle weather is turning decidedly more wintry. Brrrrrrrrrrrr.

2009-10-20T08:37:00.000-07:00

I started my volunteering with the AS program last night, and I had a blast. It was a lot of fun! True to his flighty and somewhat unpredictable form, the coordinator decided to "shake things up" (on the first day), and instead of running a nice, calm study hall, I suddenly was assigned to working with the theater group. I envisioned sitting quietly with a bunch of studious teenagers, and instead I found myself skipping along and making a dun-duh-duh-duuuuun! noise before shouting out MEGAN! Then, I had to pretend to die a choking death and collapse on the floor. And I am not an actor. So, I mean, that's cool. I guess.

I signed up for study hall!

I thought I died a pretty impressive choking death, really. But then one kid said I was like Buzz Lightyear when his helmet comes off, so...

The students are all very nice and interesting. I learned a lot about different languages and linguistics from one guy. Another one is very into the desert and does great impressions and accents. I feel like I bonded a bit with one of the teenage girls. She was very sweet and funny. We had just had a conversation about some of her specific challenges when the coordinator sent us off to find the theater group. I do not know my way around the center yet, but we started to wander off.

Me: So, do you know where we're going?

Student (giving me a look): Oh sure. Ask the person with dyspraxia where we're going...

Me: Good point.

We were cracking up about that.

And, I'm back to tutoring! It was so great to return to the center. I'm incredibly happy to be working with my favorite student again during the second hour, and I'm tutoring a cute sixth grade girl during the first hour. She's the oldest of five kids, and she's very observant about life and how people interact. I'm already enjoying my conversations with her.

Mols, B-note, and Trav are in town for a couple of days. I'm having a great time hanging out with them, and tonight I'm doing to visit them at their hotel in Bellevue. Molly is here for work, and we're going to lounge around their room this evening to watch bad tv and eat Frankie's pizza, which we haven't had in years and years. Yum! It will so remind me of high school. I'm super excited! Have I mentioned that Trav is pretty much the best kid ever?

I saw the movie Whip It with Em the other day. Totally cute and fun. I think for Halloween I should be a roller derby girl. I was going to go as my musical hero, Jack White, but now I'm not so sure. The only downside to RDG is that I'm horribly uncoordinated on skates. Maybe I can just put on a costume and carry around skates or something. That would be a lot safer for everyone. We shall see. Often, I'm not that big on actually doing anything for Halloween, but I like to think about potential costumes. What could be my roller derby name?

2009-10-13T08:01:00.000-07:00

I was giggling to myself while thinking about the purchase of my coffee table/trunk with friend Jen. Oh, here it is by the way. It's great! All I can say is, thank god for my friends like Jen. While we were out shopping, she was the one who encouraged me to take another look at the table, and she even gave me a coupon to put toward the purchase. I can be a bit commitmentphobic when it comes to purchasing bigger items, but with her support, I made it through the process. But then, there was the ordeal of getting the trunk into the Scion. Conveniently, we were able to pull up to the back entrance of the Pier 1 so the little wiry manager could struggle out the door with the giant box containing the trunk, and she pretty much single-handedly loaded it in the car herself. Jen and I adjusted the box, closed the door, and got back in the car. Then, we both turned around, looked and said, "Oh." Ginormous box was totally blocking my view out the rear window. For some people, this may not be a big problem, but this is me. I tend to have driving issues period. Backing out of a parking spot can be dicey even with a clear view. Really. Ask any of my friends who have no doubt been on a driving adventure with me. Chris can tell you about the yellow car phase. Shannon can tell you about....well, Shannon has a lot of stories filed away. Sadly. We've had a few mishaps.

Anyway, Jen and I discussed the driving issues briefly then scrambled out of the car to figure out the sitch. We decided to remove the trunk from its packaging and ditch the box. This required effort. My keys were used as a tape removing tool. We wrestled the trunk out of the box, figured out good placement in the car for minimum scratching risk, and broke down the cardboard to toss in the giant recycling bin. That was handy. We giggled a lot. All in all, I'd say we only spent about a half hour in the alley behind Pier 1 to work this out. I decided Jen is awesome. I'm forever grateful for my fabulous friends.

Sunday, while at the mall, I was leaving JC Penney when strange things started happening. First, let me stop and explain that I don't normally shop at the JC Penney. I went in there on a whim while passing by, because I remembered I'd seen a JC Penney shirt I kind of liked in a magazine, so I figured, I'm here. Why not? As I headed out of the store, I bumped into a former coworker who I hadn't seen in a while, but who Em had recently met up with again and had coffee. Small world stuff. She and I chit-chatted for a few. I learned that she had just celebrated her 44th birthday, and I told her she looks much younger, like in her early 30s, and she said thanks and proceeded to tell me about her birthday. At that point I noticed she was holding a fake fur coat, leopard print, I think, presumably to purchase, and I got totally distracted. I was like, is she going to wear that around? Maybe it's part of a Halloween costume or something.

We wrapped up our convo, and I once again continued to make my way to the door. Just as I was about to exit, a woman stopped me to say that she's a psychic and she noticed that there is a lot going on with my energy. She handed me her card and proceeded to explain that I have many things happening--changes-- with new choices to make. My spirit is trying to help me with my decisions. I should come in for a reading. I took her card and thanked her. Sometimes weird stuff like this happens, but it hadn't for a while, so I forget. Also, I think it was just talk to Megan day at the mall. I had a couple other random exchanges with strangers while I was there, so I decided I just have to embrace the weird vibe of the day. I doubt I'll go in for a reading. I mean, as much as I believe in these things, I'm not sure I want a psychic telling me what's what.

Casey and I watched the Brothers Bloom the other day and it was, well, strange. Not terrible, but odd. The cast is likable, and they did some unique things in terms of playing with time periods throughout the movie, blending the present with fashions and objects from times past. But, the story was so-so, and I had a hard time getting into it. I don't recommend.

Man, I'm annoyed with me. Now I've gone and lost my recent favorite rings. I have no idea what I've done with them. They are MIA. At least it's not as bad as the poor woman on our flight back from Phoenix who discovered she left her engagement ring on a little shelf in the airport bathroom. There were some heartbreaking sobs and sympathetic looks throughout that flight. But still. I don't know what my deal is. Now I'm accusing people of stealing things when they visit my home. Maybe I'm going bonkers.

2009-10-08T23:08:00.000-07:00

The eating fest in Tucson came to an end on Saturday. All in all, the conference was a fun time. I continued to stuff myself...then headed to the gym. I don't think any amount of running could offset the calories packed in, but whatever. I attended lots of interesting sessions. I enjoyed soaking up the warmth during my free time, and I'd love to return to Tucson sometime to check out the city. The one part I didn't really love was when the hotel doorman had to give me a ride one night to pick up the dinner I ordered (thinking it was from a restaurant in the hotel, not across the golf course), and the whole thing ended up feeling like a mini-date with awkward chit-chat in the Suburban and having doors opened for me at every turn. I couldn't wait for that ordeal to be over. I don't know how I find myself in these situations, but it seems to be my m.o. It was a relief when he dropped me back off at the hotel front door, and I darted back to my room to hide out for the rest of the night.

Happy Birthday, Chris!
Welcome to the world, Baby Lucian! (I hope I'm spelling that right.)

New. New, new, new. My theme right now is new. Lots of newness. Newer friendships and exploring new dimensions of existing relationships. New items and new experiences. It's a brand new school year, and I'm busy. In terms of stuff, I have new glasses that I love, as well as a new winter coat and a pretty coffee table. Bye-bye college table I've had since I was 18. I made a fuss about the return of the Mighty-O donuts at the coffee stand at work--demanded, actually--and now they're back! Today was the first day of Mighty-O goodness, and I did a happy dance at the coffee counter. That isn't really a new thing. I'm starting to think about and work a bit on my graduate school application for the MSW. I'm into new shows like Bored to Death (love it!). A new year of tutoring will start for me next week, but luckily I will get to work with one of my favorite students from last year again. Yay! I'm also undertaking a new volunteer experience running a structured study hall for young adults with AS who are either in high school or attending community college. This is right up my alley, and I'm super excited! The study hall is part of an evening program, and the goal is to provide a calm, distraction-free environment for students to focus on homework. I went to a training tonight, and I think I'm going to participate or observe in other aspects of the program that teach independent living and social skills as well. I feel like I have a lot to learn from the people in charge there, and I got along well with the woman who is leading the young adult group. I'm drawn to this program. All new. All good.

Actually, to be honest, I'm a little bit overwhelmed by all the new things happening right now. I'm happy about it all, but it's feeling like a lot at once as I transition into the new routine. Sometimes I can get a bit out of sorts as I adjust, and I'm doing my best to ease into it so I don't turn into a total grouch.

Casey and I went to see Capitalism: A Love Story the other day. I liked it a lot. It wasn't too Michael Moore over the top, although it had its moments. Even though I don't always agree with his methods, I think society must always have a Michael Moore. He uncovers the bs out there and provides some balance to our skewed perspectives. He makes so many important points by saying the things no one else will say. I admire his courage, even if he can be a bit nutty. I learned a lot, and one of the most disturbing things that's stuck with me from the movie is the Dead Peasant policies.

Now, I'm looking forward to the movies Oh My God and New York, I Love You.

More to say, of course, but I'm sleepy. I'm afraid that is the norm lately. After training for the AS program, I spent a lovely evening visiting Monice to catch up and see the adorable kids. Baby Finley is still as pretty as ever, with fun black hair that sticks straight up. I love it!

I will be back, sooner rather than later, because I'm all about trying something new.

2009-10-07T22:49:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm writing nothing tonight because I'm tired! Friend Elizabeth had her baby this evening, and I spent a really fun day hanging out with her little ones while it was hospital time. They were very cute and great. But now, I'm ready for sleepy time. Someday I will return. Someday.

2009-10-07T08:14:00.000-07:00

I feel like I have things to say, and I'm not getting them said. I will write a real post very soon-- hopefully tonight!

2009-10-02T00:24:00.000-07:00

Ah, Tucson. I'm actually really liking it here. I forget how much I'm drawn to the warmth of the desert and the beautiful terrain. It looks sparse, but you know there is so much life within it, and that makes it seem mysterious to me. There are cactus plants everywhere. The resort is gorgeous, and I love my room. I like to sit out on the balcony in the evening to soak up the warmth and just listen to the desert noises. I have a big, cushy bed with piles and piles of pillows. Hotels are great for the fact that there isn't a bunch of houseworky things you should be doing while in them.

The conference sessions are interesting so far. I always like being here and hearing different perspectives from people at companies and universities all across the country. It's one big eating fest though. All day. Eating, eating, eating. Tonight I decided to skip dinner and hit the gym after catching up on work for a while, because I couldn't eat another heavy thing. An apple for dinner was fine! After that, it was bubble bath and book time. So lovely and relaxing.

I'm so into The Speed of Dark! I'm excited about that, because it's been a while since I've really gotten into a book. Bye-bye, last Twilight. Hello something with substance. Well, I should be honest and say I'll still probably skip ahead and read the end of Twilight.

Em is watching her royal mehness, Kittay, while I'm away. That's lucky for Kitty, because Em is so sweet to her, but I'm sure she'll still hurl somewhere to punish me. That is Kitty's method when anything is out of whack in her world. She likes to alert me to her huffiness by throwing up. So nice.

Weird things have been happening lately. A dude at the Seattle airport called me "sugar," and I was really taken aback. I mean, we're not in the south, and I'm not a secretary in the times of Mad Men, so I don't know what that was about. I "lost" another jacket. I don't think I mentioned the one I lost about a month ago while walking to work. It was my favorite hoodie, and I had it draped over my purse under my arm. I guess it fell off and I didn't notice. Sometimes I get lost in thought listening to my music. The next day, on my usual walking route, I saw it laying on the ground next to this white rug thing. I contemplated picking it up, but the thing looked like it had been on a wild ride, and I didn't know if I could come to terms with what happened during our separation. So, I continued walking. When I passed by the spot again on my way home, the jacket was gone, but there were strips of toilet paper in its place. I knew I made the right decision.

The latest missing jacket was actually in my car. I don't understand what happened. One day it was on the passenger seat, the next it was not. I really have no idea. I wondered if I had accidentally left my car unlocked, by not hitting the clicker or something, and someone took it, but nothing else is missing, so that doesn't seem right. A couple of people suggested that maybe a chilly person walked by and decided to help themselves to my jacket. I don't know...It's a mystery.

Tomorrow is another busy day. Off to sleep!

2009-09-27T16:59:00.000-07:00

In the land of the once again healthy (finally), today was another fabulous massage day. The whole weekend was lovely and relaxing actually, which was so nice since this week is going to be the start of crazy-busy again, especially at work. It's all good, but I don't feel prepared for the end of quiet summer. I'm not ready. It's sped by too fast. Next week I'll go back to tutoring and, while I'm excited to see the girls again, I'm just, you know, shocked that it's time to go back. Already.

This week I'm heading to Tucson for a few days for the Grace Hopper Conference. I haven't travel-traveled since Paris, so this will be a definite change of pace for me right now. On one hand, with the upcoming busyness of work, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed about going, but on the other, I always enjoy this conference, and I'm looking forward to it. I'm also looking forward to the hot weather for one last blast of summer and the fact that the hotel has a gym, because I really need to get myself back to the gym on a regular schedule. I feel better when I do, and it's time.

Today felt so much like chilly fall. After my massage, I dropped off a bunch of clothes for the Northwest Center, and then I headed off to have the oil changed in my car at Jiffy Lube. It wasn't busy at all, so that was awesome, but I ended up having this bizarro stilted conversation outside with the guy handling the transaction. When he asked me about my oil preference, and I dug out the information on what I've been using from the glove box, he examined the forms, noted the type and price, and decided to knock ten bucks off the oil change. Okaaaaaay. Then, while talking with me about something else, I commented that the weather seemed cold today. He replied with, "Well, that's because you're standing in the shade." I was like, I guess. So weird! Then he wanted to talk about the Scion for a while. They were nice and all there, but I couldn't wait to leave. This is how I feel when I have to do anything related to cars. Last time I was at the dealership, they told me that I'd need to have my brakes changed soon, so that stressed me out. I had my brakes checked this summer, and they are fine. Hmph. I want to know who you can trust when it comes to cars?

I'm still making my way through the fourth Twilight book, Breaking Dawn. The reason is that it's reached a point that's kinda hard to get through. I find myself starting to skip sections to get to the end, and I realize I have about zero interest in finding out what happens. And yet, I've come this far, so I'll at least read the end. I still have a big pile of books to read, but I think I'll start Elizabeth Moon's The Speed of Dark next.

Friend Chris in Minneapolis is coming for a visit in November! We haven't seen each other in a long while now, so I'm looking forward to that a lot. This year, the fam is going to have a very merry Disney Christmas at Disneyland. We decided to forgo the usual gift exchange and just take a trip together, which is good news to me. I think Disneyland with Trav is going to be lots of fun, and I'm ready to ditch the stress of gifting for the fun of Space Mountaining. But, I will not go on the It's a Small World ride. That thing is like a terrible nightmare. I have the urge to jump ship and just end it while drifting through that colorful disaster while the song plays over and over again. Aaaaaaaaaaah! No can do.

Trav's birthday was lots of fun! The entire fam met up in Portland last weekend for Trav's pool party. It was really cute. One of Trav's little friends, Ava, didn't have anyone to swim with since her mom forgot her suit, so I changed to take her into the pool. I automatically liked Ava for her name, due to my childhood fascination with Ava Gardner, but she was just the sweetest little three year old. Very affectionate. She liked jumping in and being in the water kicking, splashing, and blowing bubbles. She always wanted to be on the go. It was great! When we passed Molly and Trav swimming, I had to giggle. He was overly decked out in a life jacket, one of those floating tube thingys, and orange goggles. Crazy. I couldn't help but say, what a geek! Yes, I called my nephew a geek. You would have too. He's a very cute geek, but, man, his get-up was cracking me up. But, I had a fun time swimming with him in his geeky glory.

Now that I'm coming to grips with end of the season of True Blood, I need something to fill the void. Em and I have started to watch the new Bored to Death on HBO. It's looking pretty good so far. Not sure it's a TB replacement, but I always really like Jason Schwartzman.

Whew, it's been a long time since I've written much. I will get back into my writing mode again soon. I know it!

2009-09-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

I wish I was more exciting, peeps, but it turns out I'm not. I know. You're shocked.

It's weird. Life is the usual good busy, yet I don't feel like I have too many stories to tell at the moment. I'm a bit foggy from another effing cold. This is my second one this summer, although I don't think it's going to be anything like what happened in July. I'm being proactive in ending it before it gets going, crossing my fingers that this works. In July, the sickness took me by surprise, hit me hard, and stuck around for weeks. I had a difficult time breathing for a few days, and I'd be awake in the middle of the night feverishly thinking about how, if I fell asleep, I'd probably die. You know. The usual rational thinking of the sick and exhausted, but...I'm not going there this time!

More soon. Good night!

2009-09-13T11:20:00.001-07:00

It's been birthday madness around here. My life has been about birthdays, birthdays, birthdays. Casey says I'm a Virgo magnet, and it appears this is very true. I can't complain. I love my Virgos. And, because I haven't said so to any of them on the blog, here it is in one swoop:

Happy Birthday, Shannon!
Welcome to the world, baby Finley!
Happy Birthday, Matt!
Happy Birthday, Casey!
Happy Birthday, Jen!
Happy Birthday, Lindsay!
Happy Birthday, Steph P!
Happy Birthday, Travis! (am heading off to Portland for his pool birthday party this upcoming weekend)

My friend Elizabeth is about to have a baby any day now, so it's likely there will be one more Virgo to add to the mix. Aaaaaaaaah! It's all good, though. Virgos and Aquarians can be a compatible match, and my own experience shows this is true. More is better.

Birthday celebrating is fun times. This week I had a lovely dinner out with Jen and Lindsay at Bastille. So delicious! The place also has a great vibe. We sat outside, and there was something so cheerful about the warm lighting and animated bustle coming from inside the restaurant.

Do you ever have a moment when the world just looks sharper somehow? Everything is so clear, and you truly notice the contrast between tones and light and dark. It's like suddenly you're noticing everything. It's difficult to explain. Sometimes this happens to me to signal the start of a migraine. It's a beautiful thing that is followed by intense pain. But, sometimes it just happens. Last night I headed out the door to my car at a time when the sun had mostly set, but there was still faint light. The neighbors across the driveway were playing some godawful country music and barbecuing, so the air smelled slightly smokey. From a house across the street I could hear someone, either young or new to this instrument (screechy sounds I recognize from my own days), practicing violin. A few houses down a bunch of kids and a few adults were playing basketball. Nearly everyone had their porch lights on, casting a soft glow on everything. The street just felt so alive, and I realized, in that very moment, I'm happy. Then I heard the Cure's "Close to Me" while driving along, and that made me even happier.

I had a fantastic time at Bumbershoot! The day started off so rainy but changed over to pretty nice an hour or two in. I hung out with the WB and his friend. The guys were sweet about going to see the Black Eyed Peas with me, even though I know it's not their kind of music. It's not really mine, either, but I thought they'd put on an entertaining show, and when else would I see them? I wasn't disappointed. They are high energy with lots of impressive dancing. I was into it! Franz Ferdinand and Metric were excellent too. All in all, great company and great day.

I recommend It Might Get Loud to all of you. As I may have mentioned before (harhar), I'm a fan of Jack White, and this movie only added fuel to the fire. Extract was pleasantly funny and entertaining, but definitely not a must see. I'd wait for dvd.

I misspoke in a previous post. Tonight is actually the finale of True Blood! Very excited, but also boo. Will miss it. Good night tiny humans.

2009-09-06T19:57:00.000-07:00

Mols and Trav are off visiting my parents in K Falls this weekend. Mols texted me today to tell me that last night Trav woke himself up in the middle of the night laughing over his dream that I had jumped up on to something and then had fallen off to the ground. Geez. The kid isn't even four yet, and it's like he really knows me.

Molly said he was laughing so much when he woke that she had to ask him what was up, and he said, "I just loved that!" Molly replied with, "Loved what?" and he said, "Bacon!" Then he told her about the falling part as he was falling back asleep. Aw. I love that. I love that kid.

He's still determined that I'm the green-eyed man, though. I keep trying to reason with him, but no go. Hmph.

2009-09-05T11:46:00.000-07:00

It's starting to feel like fall! On one hand, this is lovely. Autumn is my favorite time of year, and I'm all about cozy sweaters, colorful leaves, and the crispness in the air. But, I also love the warmth of fleeting summer in Seattle, and it's sad to say goodbye. We all know what's coming month after month once the beauty of fall fades out and the gray settles in. Argh. This summer has really zipped by.

And, another fun weekend ahead. Today I'm going to see It Might Get Loud with friends. Tomorrow is fall fashion shopping with friend Jen and plans to see Extract. Monday is Bumbershoot! Franz Ferdinand! Metric! Lots of good local bands, and comedian Nick Swardson is performing too. I've wanted to see his comedy live for a long time, so I hope I can! Comedy shows are more difficult to get in to at Bumbershoot.

Last weekend I reconnected with new-old friend Amanda for an afternoon at the Ballard Farmers Market and lunch at Bastille. Delicious! It was really good to see her (knew Amanda as a kid in MN, hadn't seen her for years and years, but now she's moved to Seattle) and the Market was so nice. There is so much there right now. I bought some corn and fancy hummus and nectarines and...lots of good stuff. For all the locals, Bastille is incredibly yummy Frahnch food. I recommend. Amanda and I were there for the Sunday brunch menu, but I'll be returning this week for dinner to celebrate friend Lindsay's birthday. Yay!

Oh, Casey and I went to Gainsbourg in Greenwood the evening after baby Finley arrived, and it's another one I recommend. Food is delicious and affordable, and they have an interesting cocktail menu. Adored the Edith Piaf, which was basically a lemon drop with creme de violette. I think you have to friend them on Facebook to see the menu. The atmosphere is cool and pretty laid back, and they have games! Casey taught me different types of poker, and, well, I won't brag about who ended up with the most chips at the end of the night.

Em and I saw Cold Souls last weekend. Another goodie. The concept is kind of Eternal Sunshine-ish, but the story is original with its own clever spin on what life would be like if we could extract our souls. Paul Giamatti is excellent, of course, and there are quite a few funny lines.

This week I haven't been writing on the blog, because I've been shamefully obsessed with getting caught up on Season 2 of True Blood. Really. It's an addiction. Lucky for me, Em has HBO On Demand, so I just show up and we settle in to watch episodes. Also lucky for me is the fact that Em has seen the episodes, so she can warn me when something horribly gruesome and violent is coming. She's great. She sits there with the remote poised to hit mute or fast forward during the bad, and then she narrates what's happening while I hide in the couch cushions. "OK, so now he's ripping out her heart..." I think I'm up to episode 10 now, so almost there. In spite of the gross factor, it's just so good. My favorite character this season is vampire Eric. I think he's stealing the show. First, he wore a track suit to the mall, which was hilarious in itself, but he's proven funny on a regular basis, sometimes awkwardly weird, and even charming with his lispy lines. I'm so into it! This Sunday is the season finale. Boo.

Must jet to get ready for It Might Get Loud. More soon!

Special Day

2009-08-28T15:48:00.000-07:00

Today I got to help my very dear friends Monice and Martin welcome their new baby girl into the world. It went quickly (thankfully for Monice; she did so well), and it was an amazing experience for me. In fact, I didn't have to do much at all, but it was just so awesome to be there. I'm so honored and grateful that I got to share in this with them. I get teary thinking about it.

I'm sure they'll be sending out their own announcements, so I'm not going to give away very many details here for all of you who know her. I'll just say that she is a healthy, beautiful, and very sweet baby with a full head of dark hair. Gorgeous! I got to hold her for a stretch of time and couldn't stop staring at her perfect little self.

Surprisingly, I found myself very curious and into checking out different aspects of the birth process. And...I got to cut the cord! This was incredibly exciting to me! Very special day.

And now, off to celebrate!

- Meganar

P.S. I forgot to mention that a while after labor the nurse said the ever-dreaded word to Monice: moist. Looks were exchanged between Monice, Martin, and I indicating that the conversation had suddenly taken a turn. Monice and I started giggling to ourselves, since the nurse would have no idea why we we were laughing. I was holding the baby while shaking with laughter, trying to suppress it. It took me a long time to stop. Classic. Of course someone would end up saying the word 'moist' at the hospital. Of course!

2009-08-24T20:19:00.000-07:00

My thoughts are in a jumble. Nothing is coming together in my head, so I'll just list off a bunch of random stuff for the sake of posty-ness:

- Massage day (yesterday) is the best day of the month!

-Pukey upped his cool factor, after the hurling in a bag incident, by singing and dancing the robot with me to Spoon's "I Turn My Camera On" the other day. We'd returned to the red house after spending a couple of hours at Bryn's pool, and we were hanging out in the car while he finished coloring a picture. The song came on the radio, so I turned it up, and he hopped out of his seat to stand in the middle and feel the music. It was great. For the line, "hit me like a tom" he decided it was "hit me like a tongue," and he'd stick his tongue out at me. And then we'd practice our robot moves.

- Pukey does not like it when I call him Pukey anymore, so I guess it's back to Trav.

- Trav has a very rich imaginary life right now. One thing he really likes to do is make up scenarios based on movies he likes, namely Bolt, and recently Aladdin since he watched it at my mom's. In these "scenarios," I am:

The Green-Eyed Man (the bad guy in Bolt; Trav explained all the other roles were taken)

Abu (Aladdin's monkey, who at one point turns into an elephant, as Trav likes to point out)

Lucky me.

- When I call Trav "Pukey," he gets huffy and yells at the Green-Eyed Man. He likes to tell on me to "Penny" (his mother). "Don't call me anything, Green-Eyed Man!!!"

- Trav/Pukey had this delicious Puffins Peanut Butter cereal at his house. He was stingy about sharing it, though. If a pleaded, or threatened to get my own from the box, he'd give me the teeny tiny broken bits from his bowl. Hmph. After I got home, I went out and bought my own, and now it's like the Nutella (obsession is going strong, on to another jar).

- My garden has been ridiculously pretty lately. I love it in the summer.

- Did I ever say that I love my new room arrangement? The smaller bedroom is fantastic, because there is only room for my favorite things, so it's a cozy little sanctuary. All the junk is in the big room now. I even hung up new roman shade bamboo blinds to spruce up little room. That was a challenge. It involved drilling. I don't even own a drill, so I had to borrow one. And then I realized that I'm not particularly good at drilling. I found it taxing, so soon I was on the One Hole a Day program. THEN, the shade didn't want to fit in the window frame, so I ended up beating on it with a hammer until it fit. It worked, and it's cute. That's my last little home improvement project for a while.

- I'm having another one of those plans-every-night kind of weeks. I'm super excited about it though. I get to do birthday celebrating with my kindred spirit (twins 'til the end) Shannon, while she's in town. I'm going to see Adam again with friend Lindsay. And, I'm spending time with more of my favorite people. Yay! Fun week!

- I didn't think I'd ever say this, but it's been a year now since I was in Israel, and I miss it. I've been thinking about the trip lots over the past few weeks, wishing I could go back and do it all over again with the group exactly how it was. Rosemary would still be alive. My stuff would still be stolen. I'd learn more than I could ever imagine in a few weeks. I'd still hike freakin Masada in the 100 degree blazing sun, convinced I would pass out at any moment. Well, maybe not that.

- I'm reading the 4th Twilight book, Breaking Dawn, right now. It's a good summer trashy read, but I feel like I need to choose something else to balance out the dramatic vampire sex. I think I'm going to do that with Elizabeth Moon's The Speed of Dark. I've been funny about reading lately, which is weird, because usually I'm a big reader, and I have a pile of books.

- I'm rambling on and on here, folks. I'm going to wrap this up by saying that I think I've found the graduate program for me! I'm decided that I'm going to apply to do a master's in social work, with a focus on mental health. After all my searching and talking with people, I feel like this is truly the right thing. This is a very good feeling. Of course, it might be because I had a little "moment" during the introductions at the info session, where I expressed my frustration at trying to figure out next steps in terms of education, and hearing "this isn't quite right" from so many people. After that little freak out, it's possible that they were like, "Ok, ok. Just tell her to pursue the MSW. Clearly, she's on the edge!" Clearly.

The program is really competitive, so who knows if I'll get in. But, I'm going to try and see what happens. I'll go from there. I'm looking forward to it!

2009-08-19T00:11:00.001-07:00

Well, Boxing Glove/BG is now known as "Pukey" after an incident in my car today. Yes, he hurled. Carsick. Luckily, I had some warning. Brynna was driving, and he told me he thought he might throw up, so I handed him a plastic grocery sack. Next thing I know...Most of it landed in the sack, but there was a bit of a mess, and we were about 12 miles from Eugene, OR still. So, I ended up holding on to a bag of throw up, with the car windows rolled down, until we happened upon a Chevon. Thank god! Then, I was walking around the parking lot, holding the bag away from me, looking for a garbage can, which I didn't immediately see. This guy who was filling up his truck must have noticed my desperation because he was like, "Are you looking for a garbage can? It's right there!" How did he know? Heh. We spent a little time at the gas station sorting things out, changing Trav's clothes, and then we were back on the road again. Good times.

Once we were on our way, and the car was aired out, I couldn't stop giggling about the whole situation. It was a debacle, but it could have been a lot worse. It was really great to me that Trav could alert me to what was about to happen, and manage to throw up in the grocery bag. He's only almost four, so I was impressed. Otherwise, we would have had a huge mess on our hands. Trav definitely doesn't like big messes, and neither does my car.

Anyway, overall the trip back to Portland was very smooth. It was a beautiful day, and the drive seemed pretty quick on the way back. Tonight, while Mols was at school, Trav and I got thai food and watched a Charlie Brown dvd, which I loved. I am a total CB fan! He got a kick out of Snoopy and Lucy calling CB a blockhead (which is a favorite of mine too). Tomorrow, I think Trav and I will have lunch with Mols, and then head over to Bryn's for pool time, since the forecast predicts hot temps. In the evening, Mols, Trav and I will have some qt before I head back to Seattle Thursday morning. Vacation is wrapping up.

This entire week flew by. I've loved spending time with the family. We had a wonderful day at the lake on Sunday. Trav and I swam in the very cold Lake of the Woods. The forest there smells so incredibly delicious, and we just enjoyed the hours by the water. I should have a few pics to post for family and friends soon.

2009-08-16T11:22:00.000-07:00

Today is Lake Day. Soon we'll be heading off to the cabin at Lake of the Woods for beach time.

Travis has a message for everyone:

beeeeeeeeeeee ssssssssssstinnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnng

bolt

That was a very important one. Yesterday, Trav's hand blew up like a boxing glove (I started calling him Boxing Glove, or BG for short, much to his dismay. "Don't call me BG!!") after either a bee sting or an allergic reaction to some rose bush thorns. Luckily, his mom is used to this sort of thing with him and packed us some Benadryl. But, I'm sad not to call him BG anymore.

And Bolt is his favorite movie.

i9]k].\9.i-;vh ,luycnh

And with that, we're off!

K Falls Bound!

2009-08-12T09:25:00.000-07:00

After a very rainy drive to Portland last night, and a pretty good night of sleep, the Travinator and I are getting ready for the long drive down to K Falls. We're going to meet up with Bryn a bit later and hit the road. Looking forward to getting there!

So, on Saturday I got my hair cut from my new stylist who I love. She does a great job, and I feel like I've known her forever. We talk about interesting stuff and she tells great stories. For example she told me about one of her clients whose girlfriend lives in New York. The gf was house-sitting for these people who had a couple of Great Danes. Sadly, one of them died while she was there. The owners were totally ok with that, but they asked her to take the body to the vet, and she said sure. The gf didn't have money for a cab, so she thought about what to do, and ended up putting the dog in a suitcase to take on the subway. Needless to say the suitcase was very heavy. A guy very nicely offered to help her with the bag as she boarded, and he ended up sitting near her. He was curious about what she was carrying that was so heavy. The gf didn't want to say a dead dog, so she said computer parts instead. When they reached her stop, the guy very chivalrously offered to help her get the bag off the train. She accepted his help, and suddenly he was running off with the bag. He'd made off with the "computer parts." All I can say is karma, baby.

Anyhoo, during one of our convos, hairstylist K said, "Speaking of changes..."

Me: Uh oh.

Her: Yes, well, I have to tell you I've decided to go back to school full-time.

I gave her a blank stare.

Her: I know, I know. You said this would happen. I feel bad. I just feel like I'm really needing to make a change.

Me: Yes, well, I know how this goes. I understand being restless. You have to do what you have to do.

Her: Yeah...thanks. You totally called it! It's like people say, "there's that Megan girl. Peace out."

Me: Story of my life, dude. But, I'm happy that you're going to do what's best for you. You just better give me some recommendations! I'm not starting from scratch again!

So, she did another great job with my hair and loaded me up with free samples (out of guilt). And I left with names of two other good stylists. K's last day is at the end of September, so I'm scheduling one last appointment. Boo!

More from a very small town in southern Oregon soon!

2009-08-09T21:28:00.000-07:00

Food, Inc. was very good. I think everyone should see it to better understand where their food comes from, and to understand what actually happens in the food industry in America. To put it bluntly, it's a disturbing business in too many ways. I spent a lot of time hiding in my jacket while "watching" the film. But, it's an industry that's so consumer driven it seems possible to make significant changes, if people start making more conscious choices in the food they purchase. Of course, it's a problem that it's less expensive to buy a dollar menu hamburger than it is to buy broccoli. But, perhaps we should be saying no to overrun feed lots and beef from corn-fed cows. Or, hamburger mixed with a corn filler doused in ammonia to kill E coli (which wouldn't be much of a problem if cows were grass fed). Or, pitch black chicken houses with the chickens piled up on top of each other, and their beaks clipped as babies to keep them from killing each other in close quarters. I couldn't even watch the segment on the pig slaughterhouses. My Just Say No policy is far reaching. What I don't get is how big business can live with its greedy self. Animals are not part of a machine. They deserve some respect. And, if the argument of human decency toward other living things doesn't carry any weight, then let's think about the saying "you are what you eat." I don't know about you, but who wants to eat an animal that has lived a miserable, stressed out existence? Outside of hormones they're fed, or god knows what, think of the effects stress has on our own bodies.

Obviously, I have a lot of thoughts about this. I also say no to soybean monopolies (how is this happening?), and to all the bad for us things made of corn (no more high fructose corn syrup!). And laws saying you can't say anything negative publicly about specific foods. And treating farmers like crap, nickel-and-diming them, and bullying them into poverty.

I say yes to re-examining how our food is made and processed. Let's take a step back and think about going back to the basics. I don't think we need to utilize technology to complicate the system, or to fix problems created by the technology in the first place. This very simple thing that nature has largely designed for us is getting bogged down in man-made process that ultimately makes our food worse and worse for us. It's like people get so lost in the process that they forget the bigger picture. This isn't ok. To me what's happening in the food industry is another stark example of humans on a collision course with self destruction. It's upsetting. I could go off on an even huffier, preachier rant, but I will refrain (for now). Instead, I encourage you to see the movie, and think about what you eat. Try to buy organic and locally grown. Pay attention to what's on the ingredient list of the food you choose. If you eat meat, look into the practices of the companies behind the brands you choose. Please!!!

Whew.

On a lighter note, I can't wait to see It Might Get Loud! Jack White! Musical genius!

I'm hitting the road this week, peeps. I'm going to swing by Portland to pick up littlest sis Bryn and the Travman, and the three of us are going to head down to K Falls to visit the 'rents for a while. I'm looking forward to it. I asked Mols about bringing Trav with us the other day. She talked it over with Joe, and they decided that would be fine. Molly called Trav at his dad's today to tell him about the invite. He instantly replied with, "I'm going. Yeah. I'm going!" Now he's on her case to get him packed and ready to go. :-) Trav is so cute this way. He totally loves his parents, but he also likes having his own adventures. This will be fun.

2009-08-06T19:28:00.000-07:00

Whew. I'm having one of those weeks where I have plans every single night. It's mostly all fun stuff that I want to do with people I totally want to see, but, as happy as I may be about all of that, I start reaching a point of burnout when I don't have enough "me" time. When I take Myers-Briggs type tests, I usually end up on the border between introvert and extrovert. I can go either way. As much as I like social butterflying it, I need a significant amount of down time to recharge. Otherwise I get kind of tired and cranky and stressed. I can feel me shrinking into me. I know this, but I also know that I have a hard time saying no to fun plans. I like to be busy. I feel energized, and I have a great time while out. It's just later that I take a turn and get a bit "edgy." My apartment suffers.

But, tonight is not my night to slow down! In a few minutes I'm off to meet Monice and a friend for Molly Moon's and the movie Food, Inc. Who can say no to that? I'm glad we're having Molly Moon's first though, because I think it's entirely possible that I may never want to eat again after the movie. I'm sure I'll be compelled to share many scary facts about food with you later. That's the kind of thing I do. It will be on mind, so I will make it be on yours too.

Adam Update

2009-08-05T08:02:00.000-07:00

For more thoughts and details about Adam, see friend M.'s blog The Incipient Turvy. As he mentions, we both posted very different impressions about the movie at roughly the same time, which led to a more in-depth discussion. It's been fun to talk about it, and I think it's beneficial to understand varying perspectives about the film.

Adam

2009-08-03T21:46:00.000-07:00

Tonight I saw a screening of the movie Adam at the Seven Gables. I really, really liked it. I'm still processing everything I think about it. I think Hugh Dancy did a fantastic job in this role. His voice and timing, his mannerisms, the way he carried his body, his expressions when Adam was confused or clearly trying to work something out...all were excellent. The film is visually pretty with a great soundtrack. The story is intriguing; the two hours flew by. I'm glad I ended up going by myself, because it allowed me to just fully absorb what was happening on the screen without distraction. I got into it. There are laugh out loud parts, and there were moments I felt pretty emotional--from the movie itself, and from my own thoughts about the relationship between Adam and Beth. And, best of all, the ending wasn't tied up neatly with a far-fetched rom-com fairy tale finale.

Side note: I was particularly glad about this, because I saw 500 Days of Summer with Casey a couple of weeks ago, and it had one of those endings. I was really excited to see it, because I thought it would be different, and I was on board with how the movie defied the rom-com formula...until the very end. Suddenly we were in lalaland. Oh yes, that's exactly how things work out immediately after you have your heart broken. Not.

After the movie, Hugh Dancy and Max Mayer were there to talk about the movie and answer questions. That was a fun surprise! And, I mean, homina. It was interesting to hear about the story, filming, and the role of Adam from their perspective. Great night!

Family Time!

2009-08-03T21:33:00.001-07:00

Super fun weekend with the fam! Had to love the moment when we're all hanging out by the pool at my sister Brynna's apartment complex, and I met her neighbor, a nice 20-something year old guy.

Him (jokingly, I think): So, are you as mean as your sister?

Me (totes serious, of course): Actually, I'm meaner.

Him: Really?

My whole family sits there nodding in agreement to confirm my claim. No protests!

With my favorite kid in the whole world! We were splashing each other with water from fountain.

With the B-Note

Plus Mom..

2009-07-31T12:45:00.001-07:00

I think my letter posts are starting to sound like those "Real American Heroes/Real Men of Genius" Bud Light ads, so I should probably give it a rest.

Are there real things to say?

In the land of me, Me, ME!...

- I'm going to head to Portland for a small dose of nephew time this weekend. Yay! My mom and aunt are going to be in town, so I'll get to see them, Trav, and both my sisters. I'm feeling the need for some family time, so I think this will be good.

- I really want some chocolate.

- The Blue Angels are in town! I so like watching them practice. People can say what they want, but I think they're amazing. I love the sound of the planes.

- Marie Claire magazine rated Seattle #1 as the best place to meet men. All I can say about that is...Hahahaha!

HA.

Not to be a total Neg Nancy about this, because I've gone out with some very nice men (and a fair share of poozers!) here in Seattle, but as Erika Hobart's Fuck You, Marie Claire and WTF! points out, the survey criteria and findings are ridic. And, I smell vaguely like an Aveda salon most of the time! Actually, I should just come clean and say that I don't think the ladies have it easy in finding a good match here, especially if you're looking for a relationship. When discussing this article with Seattle women--single or formerly single--I haven't found one yet who agrees that we're #1. In fact, many expressed the same thoughts as in this King 5 article. There's a collective "Pshaw!" echoing throughout Seattle. One of my friends even said, "Did they actually talk to any of the women in these cities?" I'm thinking no.

So, I guess I am a bit of an NN, even though I remain hopeful and optimistic to the core. I'm not alone, though! Google this topic, and you'll see much more hmphyness about our ranking. It's all so, I guess.

BUT, there is one redeeming quality about the article. A friend gave me a copy of the actual issue of MC, and the Seattle section starts with the line: "Hunting guys here isn't easy, thanks to persistently dank weather and the Vulcan-like standoffishness typical of Emerald City's comp-sci hordes." Vulcan-like standoffishness typical of comp-sci hordes! This is hilarious to me for many reasons. Heh.

- I'm loving my monthly massages. I got a prescription from my doc to help in the treatment of my migraines, and my therapist and clinic are great. The jetted whirlpool tub before the massage is the best. Overall, I'm seeing good results so far with the things I'm doing to better my mental and physical health, and stave off the MMM. This is making me very happy.

- Yesterday I visited a local day camp for kids who have AS (primarily). I had a fantastic time and wasn't ready to leave at the end! I spent half of my time observing the teenagers, and the other half with a younger group (my guess is in the 8-12 year old range) who I interacted with a bit more. Neither seemed fazed by my presence. In fact, the teenagers didn't acknowledge me at all, which allowed me to just sit back and watch them interact with each other and the camp leaders while they were hanging out. I'm fascinated by human behavior, and it was interesting to me to see the kids, at different times, behave in ways that might be expected given the characteristics of AS, but I have never seen. I saw "typical" teen behavior, of course, and I observed quirkiness. The thing about me is that I'm most at home in quirkiness. I like the quirky vibe.

The younger kids engaged in a team-building activity. Before attempting their task, we all sat in an area covered with wood chips on logs arranged in a campfire-like circle. The director talked through the instructions, and then went around the circle asking each person to say one quality that will make them a good team member. Most of the kids said things like, listen, cooperate, help each other, I don't know...but then one of the last boys to go said, "Don't throw wood chips." That made me smile, and I wondered if sailing wood chips had been an issue before.

While sitting on a log waiting as the second group of kids came over to the activity area, a blond-haired boy with light blue eyes, who was probably about 10, plopped down next to me. He was very still, seeming lost in thought. I looked at him in his dark red shorts and deep blue t-shirt, but he didn't look my way. We sat in silence for a few moments before he slightly turned his body toward me to say, "I've noticed that kids who are autistic all look very different. They're all different." He made a motion with his arm to indicate the group. I was taken aback for a couple of beats, but then we had a brief but interesting conversation about how people look different. That is, until a scrawny kid with brown hair and silver wire-rimmed classes ran up and wedged himself between me and blondie on the log. And there he remained pressed up to my side. Lucky for me, my personal bubble is a lot smaller with kids.

The funny thing about the how people look conversation is that I had been thinking about a blog post by John Elder Robison on the "look of autism". It was a new concept that I hadn't considered before.

I enjoyed talking with the director, and although I'm no closer to determining what graduate program will be right for me (aaaaahhhhhhhhhh!), I hope to volunteer during the school year for their program on social skills for young adults ages 18-22. I'm excited!

- And, finally, I have a two and a half foot Eiffel Tower in my office now. It's truly beautiful and so well made. My friend Lindsay found it for me in Port Townsend. She's been on the watch for one since our first trip to Paris in 2004, because I was so in love with the tower and wanted one. None that we saw were ever quite right, though. But this one is absolute perfection. Lindsay is awesome!

My plan is to find lights for the tower (serious internet research is happening here, folks), and then I'm going to get someone at work to rig up a timer so they go off on the hour for 10 minutes. It's gonna be authentic. Once it's ready to go, I'm going to have a special Eiff lighting celebration in my office with champagne, baguette, and french cheeses. It will be an Event that my coworkers will be forced to share in with me. If nothing else, I think the champagne will lure them in, but everyone will be forced to clap and ooooo and aaaaah over its beauty.

Prepare yourselves for the pics.

Perplexed

2009-07-28T23:34:00.001-07:00

Dear Former Next Door Neighbor Across the Driveway Who Still Comes Around to Visit His Kids,

Actually, I know your name. I guess I could have just written that, but it seems like a good idea to try to maintain your privacy. I know the roughly five people who read this blog (Hi Mom!) can probably keep your identity under wraps, but after receiving emails from city commissioners and restaurant owners as a result of previous posts, I've learned you can never be too careful.

So, first we had the uncomf conversation about your previous apartment-in-house experience, when you revealed how you made the neighbors upstairs laugh with the sound of your loud farts traveling through the ceiling. We both walked off awkwardly after you shared that little tidbit at the end of the driveway. It was a real treat, and I kinda hoped I wouldn't see you for a while after that. Who knew it could get even better?

Well, it has!

Every time you are visiting the old place nowadays, I see you, AND I notice the Best of Journey blasting through the windows of your place. I'm making the connection. You = Journey. I didn't foresee listening to Faithfully 16 times in one day from inside my own apartment as a highlight of the summer, but life has a way of surprising us. Open Arms always brings a tear. Meditating to "Don't stop...Bee-lie-ee-ven!" is a new fave. I'm ambivalent about when the lights go down in the city. It's like it's the only CD you own, and I find it surprising. You don't seem like the type.

It's also really cool when I dart outside to chuck the garbage in the bin, and you appear to talk-shout at me over the music. I'm not quite sure how to respond when you gesture toward my garden and say, "You've got some really nice foliage going on there." It takes a lot of energy to holler back. Uh...THANKS!

Rock on, my friend.

-MMR