.seattle.

.hmm. apologies for the recent lack of posts. my seattle trip and the return of the boyfriend has caused some serious jams in the system.

but i will hopefully be blogging more often as my routine settles back into a more normal ebb and flow!

some highlights from my seattle trip:

• the blue angels! i have seen them every single year since i was teeny tiny, and i still get all excited when i hear that familiar rumble as they scream across the sky

• wandering through the wallingford farmer's market after my haircut. the abundant fruits and veggies were gorgeous, and although the market is small, i think it's a hidden gem. the market is on wed. from 3-7pm. you'll probably have to get street parking, as they close down the parking lot for the market.

• which brings me to....my haircut! i went crazy! my hair has been long for so long, i figured that it was time for a change. and i must admit, it is easier to take care of, and lots cooler for the summer. so short!

• a strapping young lad who was at least 5 years younger than me flirting with me at trophy cupcakes. it made me feel like an old woman. back off, buddy! i could be your grandma.

• trophy cupcakes. their cupcakes are amazing! the farmer's market blueberry, which they make on wed. in the summers in honor of the wallingford farmer's market, is great. my favorite is still the green tea, which is absolutely incredible. the vanilla chocolate is probably my second fav. i recommend all seattleites to go their at least once. it was even featured on marthastewart.com! it's funny, because i went there on wed. after my haircut, and then it turned out that shannon had their cupcakes are her wedding reception!

• while i was driving through the arboretum with all my windows down and my sunroof open, minding my own business and enjoying the (somewhat cloudy but beautiful nevertheless) seattle summer, i realized two seconds before that the sprinkler ahead was jetting out into the street. so my car interior got a nice little bath. as did i. it was awesome.
  

• seeing an old man in a really nice mercedes in, where else, madison park, primping while waiting at a red light. i'm pretty sure he trimmed some nose hairs, and all while holding a cigar in one hand and taking the occasional puff.

• walking around greenlake with my mommy, who apparently is ms. super-walker now. it was a beautiful day. i miss greenlake. snapped some good pictures. i love the one with the massive amounts of lily pads. if you look closely, you can see the turtles hanging out on the log.

• getting to see the fam. i miss mom, bear, and dad when i'm not home! so it was nice spending time with them. okay, and the cousins too. and aunts. i have an awesome family. we missed you kristin!

• finally getting a dslr! canon eos 20d. dad never used his camera, so he gave it to me. just had to buy a lens and memory card. awesome. i am so psyched. although i have never taken a photography class. i should probably read a book or something.

• holding a less-than-a-week-old kitten. no joke. i went to visit my mom at work, and she took me into the kennel area, where there was a pile of new born kittens. only two had their eyes open, and even then, they were still milky and cloudy. i got to hold one, and it was smaller than the length of my hand from fingertip to the end of my palm. it was so adorable, and soft, and i wanted to stick it in my purse and take it home to boston. it was mewing and snuggly and so so cute. i wish i had had my camera.

• seeing mary! yay! i miss my buddies when i'm gone.
  

• seeing sara and shannon at shannon's reception, and catching up with mary jo and jim. i really wish we still had our book club going; that was so much fun.

• being in seattle. period. i love that city (aside from the snarled i-5 traffic. that sucked. i don't miss traffic)

so, all in all a good trip!

last night, jeff and i watched the olympics opening ceremony. so crazy! china went all out for it - it was so incredible how so many of the displays had hundreds of people moving in unison. particularly the martial arts masters - was it tai chi? i don't remember. but there were over a thousand of them, and they formed all of these perfect circles as they were doing their routines. no marks on the floor or anything. it was crazy. and a bit disturbing. some of the things sort of reminded me of old wwii footage, with the rows and rows of goose-stepping nazis. but overall, it was an incredible show. bravo, whoever directed that! so impressed.

and it is always fun to watch all of the countries walk past! although there were some countries i had actually never heard of in my life, it was still so neat. those people have so much pride, even if they only have one or two athletes. the u.s. of course had a massive contingent, as did china and russia. the olympics are just so darn fun!

okay, enough for today.

.cheers.

.south.

.because i am a good girlfriend, i accompanied jeff to the bus station today to see him back off to new york. it was sad to see him go, but it's good to know that he'll be back for good next saturday. unfortunately, this means i will have to relinquish the desk and my sprawling-across-the-entire-bed habits. we'll see.

anyway, i was waiting for the red line with the requisite mob of people who have just transfered from the silver line, meaning that they just came from the airport. i was standing waiting for the train, and i see a very large, rotund woman with a red sox hat on, with a man and woman (most likely wife and husband), a teenage girl with very dark roots and very bleach-blond hair, and two small, tow-headed boys (probably 5 and 11 respectively, although i am terrible at age-guessing) trailing behind her. i think that the family was probably visiting a sister/aunt/etc. so the larger woman and the family settles their luggage near me, and the older boy, lagging behind a bit, finally catches up, and starts a convo with the larger woman.

boy (talking in a loud whisper that i could hear): i just saw two guys kissing back there!
the woman didn't hear, so he repeats, a bit louder
boy: there were two guys kissing back there!
woman: yep
boy: why?
woman: well, that's what they do up here
boy: what?
woman: well, it's legal here
boy: what do you mean legal?
woman: gays are allowed to do that up here. they can even get married
boy: ew
woman: you're not in the south anymore, buddy! gays can do that up here.
boy: i know, it's weird

i am so glad that i was raised in such a liberal, accepting environment. it appalls me to think that people with that mindset still exist today, particularly in america. thank god that my parents raised me with a staunch belief in tolerance and acceptance.

although let's be honest, i don't like much pda - either from homo- or heterosexuals. but, you know, to each his own.

it just makes me sad that there are places in our country that still aren't as accepting as seattle/san jose/boston.

.cheers.

.produce.

.well, i have been meaning to post on farmer's markets for a while, and sneaky little mary beat me to it! let this be a lesson on procrastination. ha. i'm actually glad that we're getting the word out there - particularly as supermarket prices climb higher and higher. besides, mine gets to be the east coast version.

as much as i love the joys of the fremont market and of course the ever-popular pike place market in seattle, alas, i am stranded on the east coast. it's okay, though, because farmer's markets are alive and kicking over here as well.

copley square is perhaps my favorite - there are a bunch of different vendors, and it's right in front of the beautiful trinity church. the market kicks off on 20 may - although i am fairly certain that we were still getting snow in may here - and lasts through 25 november, every tuesday and friday 11am - 6pm.

(i have found that a lot of markets are open only until 5 or so, so it has been frustrating trying to find a good one that is open after i get off of work. i also haven't really found many that are open on weekends, but there are a few that i still need to check out.)

there are quite a few bakery vendors, tons of the requisite fruit and vegetable stands, fresh eggs, goat cheese, flowers. i love it. there are also a few stands that sell herbs and plants, which is how i ended up with my tiny tom tomato plant. which reminds me - i am totally yearning for a garden so that i can grow some heirloom tomatoes. i keep reading articles about them, and i am just itching to try to start growing! the weird colors and funky stripes are just so cool - i think my favorite and first attempt at growing them will either be the mini 'green grape' or 'sungold', or the big daddy 'mr. stripey.' they're all so cool-looking!

anyway. so farmer's markets are awesome. they are also fairly cheap, which i was a bit surprised about. i got a bunch of carrots, some green beans, and a massive zucchini for about 5 dollars. not too shabby.

perhaps my favorite vendor at the copley market is cook's farm and bakery, which is out of vermont. they make the most kick-ass raspberry pie i have ever had, although their strawberry-rhubarb is a close second. the best part - they make regular-sized pies, small pies, and mini pies, which have approximately the circumference of a cd.

other farmer's markets in the boston/cambridge area:
boston city hall (28 may-26 november): 11am-6pm, mondays and wednesdays
davis square (28 may-26 november): 12pm-6pm, wednesdays
central square (21 may-19 november): 11:30am-6pm, mondays
cambridge charles square (20 may-18 november): 12pm-6pm, fridays; 10am-3pm, saturdays

now, if only i could find a farmer's market that sells kittens...

.kampai.

.spark.

.it has been thundering and lightning all day.

.glancing out of the windows every once in a while at work, the gray just never stopped, and the clouds kept sloughing rain onto the sopping pavement. i thought this was summer? at least it was warm enough to forgo the jacket today.

anyway, i hopped into the shower about half an hour ago. it was still lightning like crazy out, and for a split second, i though hmm, is it weird taking a shower in a thunder and lightning storm? then i decided that it was way too cool to miss. there's a window in our shower, about crotch level and up. the bottom part is frosted so you can't see through it, and although the top part is clear glass, it generally fogs up pretty good. after about 3o seconds of seeing the lightning go nuts outside, i decided to turn the light off and shower in the dark. the light show outside was spectacular! best shower ever. hands down. and don't worry, i am 99.9% sure no one could see in - that small percentage being the off-chance that the google earth satellite was circling above and captured it on film. i'll have to search google earth tomorrow and check.



.anyway, so that was fun.

.cheers.

.s.o.s.

.as i sit here typing clickityclack, i am listening to abba's 's.o.s.' - their music is so dang catchy! 'so when you're near me darling can't you hear me s.o.s.!' i swear, it has been on repeat in my head for about a week. i even woke up at 4am with 'lay all your love on me.' don't ask me why. but really, so amazing!

but let's get serious. mamma mia is awesome, and all of those negative reviewers need to take a few deep breaths, hold something cuddly, and recognize the movie for what it is - a movie with an incredibly stellar cast, fabulous choreography (mostly from the musical, might i add), and based on abba songs. i mean, honestly, did they expect 'star wars' or 'gone with the wind'? i don't think anyone went into that movie expecting a masterpiece, but the songs are so darn good - 'mamma mia, there i go again! my my how can i resist ya?' you can't resist the songs, i tell ya. meryl streep is incredible. i love her. i wish she was my mom. just kidding, mom, but i wish she was a quirky aunt that i got to hang out with. one more thing - every time pierce brosnan sang, this idiot girl in front of me laughed. it was an ugly laugh that made her sound like a goat stuck in between two fence posts, and it made me want to punch her in the face. or at least spill my popcorn on her. really, did anyone think brosnan was doing this movie to further his career? no. and honestly, he's a pretty good singer! i have no idea why she was laughing, but it made me mad. and i can say with about 98 percent certainty that i have a better understanding of singing than that girl did. wench. anyway, i highly recommend the movie - it was just so feel-good! and the three older women (played by streep, christine baranski, and julie walters - mamma weasley from harry potter) were amazing. they were hilarious, and reminded me of older versions of maro, gabs and me. although i don't know who is who (i call not the one who is a four-time divorcee with plastic boobs and a plastic face! ha). really, an excellent movie.

and......dark knight. oh. my. god. amazing. i don't even know why it was so good, but it was. i was a bit worried that all the hype would get to me, and i would be disappointed.

i wasn't.

christian bale was awesome as batman, though i have had a mini-crush on him since seeing him as laurie in little women. (by the way, did you know that his father married gloria steinem?) michael caine was dapper and witty as always. but the person who really stole the show (and gave you little goosebumps on the back of your neck) was heath ledger's joker. he was stunning. what an exit from this world. he was the joker - he was flawless. so neurotic, so disillusioned with the world, so, well, creepy with his smudged make-up and shifting eyes and tongue. hunched back. oh man. brilliant. i just wish he could reprise the role.



...as a completely random sidenote...

i again started listening
to my japanese earworms
book on tape today in the subway
(and got the requisite 'you're crazy,
lady' looks as i mumbled
'i would like a beer please'
in japanese to myself)
and i came to the realization
that our number system
is ridiculous.
the japanese got it right.
ten is "jū."
eleven is "jū ichi" - or "ten one"
twelve is "jū ni" - or "ten two"
and so on.
twenty is "two ten"
etc.
it's so simple.
i wish we had a comprehensive numbers system.

.cheers.

or should i say kampai?

.seeing red.

.the summer 2008 olympics hype has drawn an incredible amount of attention to china. many things have been argued recently - by both the chinese government and outside media sources - but perhaps the most disturbing part of all of this frenzy regarding china is what is not being said.

first and foremost, let me clarify - my beef is not with the majority of the 1,330,044,605 chinese people, the majority of which are rural peasants. no, my problem with china lies in the government and its policies of suppression. communist china has long quelled the media and the freedom of the chinese people. while this has been most recently highlighted with the often brutal suppression of tibetan buddhist protesters and the systematic lack of media coverage of the 2008 sichuan earthquake (69,197 officially confirmed dead), it seems as though the government has long had a gag over the mouth of the chinese people. what comes most readily to mind for me is the vicious suppression of the falun gong movement, often involving brutal torture.

the wide-spread pollution in china has also been pointed to in terms of the upcoming olympics - athletes have been trying to acclimatize themselves to preforming in more polluted environments, some even running behind cars to get the exhaust. cases like this are a bit extreme, but it is troubling to note the belching smokestacks of china's factories, and the raw human sewage and debris clogging china's rivers. while many people welcomed factories into rural villages because they would provide people with opportunities for employment, the people are now facing increased health problems due to the pollution-spewing factories, including an increase in cancer rates.

another thing that worries me about china is the treatment of women there. the government crackdown on family planning has led to a disparity between males and females - their 'one child' policy applies only if the first child is a male; if the first child is a female, you can try again in the hopes of getting a male. orphanages are full of female infants whom parents did not want. the literacy rate, too, is somewhat telling: 95.1% of males are considered literate, whereas only 86.5% of women are. the practice of the woman moving into her new husband's family's home is also detrimental to women - it can lead to the woman feeling ostracized and alone, particularly if her marriage was arranged, and not rooted in love. china has one of the highest female suicide rates in the world. perhaps more disturbing - in a country dominated by men, it is the only country where the suicide rate of women is higher than men. one every four minutes.

i am by no means saying that china is a bad place. i think the rich cultural heritage of china is incredible, and i hope to visit some day. but there are clearly problems in the industrialization of this behemoth. i think that things are slowly starting to change as more and more women leave rural areas for the better jobs in urban centers. however, i think that the mentality against women is still prevalent, and that the government does little to change this. the government also does little to change the environment. the government basically does little, except deny that there are problems. there is no system to which the people can take their grievances.

the rest of the world should keep an eye on the rapid industrialization of china. i think that it is providing people - particularly women - with increased opportunities and independence, but it is also unearthing some disturbing facts about the communist country. what this one-party country needs is a way for people's needs and grievances to be addressed.

let's just see how the olympics play out. i am not boycotting the olympics, as some people are doing due to the human rights abuses there. i do, however, have my eye on you, china.

.cheers.

ps. i love kristin

.film noir.

.this weekend will be a good one for movie-goers. okay, so not exactly film noir, but one of them is un peu 'noir'.

let's see. first we have mamma mia!, to which i have a personal affinity because i saw it on broadway. which was awesome! i must admit, it was not technically the best "musical" i have seen, as for the most part, the songs often did not gel with the storyline - it was sometimes almost as though the plot was going along, and then the writers were like, oh, this is a musical, we need to throw an abba song in here. but let's be honest - they wrote the musical around the abba songs, so what can we really expect? regardless, the musical was great. it was hilarious - with very adult humor - had great costumes and sets, and the songs, though not necessarily the most well-suited, were great. c'mon, how can you beat 'dancing queen?' you can't. and i swear, the title song gets stuck in my head almost every day. except i don't know the whole thing, so basically i am like that creepy old man in the downtown crossing t stop who plays his keyboard and sings about four lines of 'i'll be missing you' over and over. creepy.

so i am very excited about that coming out! the movie looks beautifully done, and it has an absolutely stellar cast. i love meryl streep. and that the dense blonde from mean girls plays sophie. love it. but really, the music is fabulous and the film looks gorgeous.

on to darker themes and palettes, the dark knight looks, well, dark. but spectacular. i have read rave reviews about heath ledger, and if the trailers are any indication, he gives a very impressive performance. and i'm not just saying that because he recently passed (too soon?). seriously, though, i think that he was an actor very similar to leonardo dicaprio - did a few cheesy blockbusters that cast them as actors in specific bland parts. but really, they are both incredible. i still can't get over how perfect dicaprio was in what's eating gilbert grape. he just cloaks himself in his roles - and i think ledger does the same. sure, he may be overlooked because of insipid parts in the patriot etc. etc., but he is fantastic. i can't wait to see him as joker.

these movies both look very well done. the former will definitely be the more fun, light-hearted of the two, but either way, you should get a great film.

.cheers.

.b.

.i love being outside. i really can't imagine myself living anywhere 5 years from now that does not have a place where i can make a nice little vegetable patch.


walking home from the t earlier, i came across this little guy. we hung out for a little while, although i think he was a little camera-shy - he got grumpy after i took too many pictures.

i know i posted about this before, but i thought it worth reiterating for my little friend here. for those of you who haven't heard, there has been a rather disturbing disappearance of honey bees lately. no one really knows why. no one really knows where they go. but it is important, and should remind us how truly fragile this earth is. honey bees are responsible for pollinating over one third of the foods we eat. one third.

haagen-daz will donate money to research on the honey bees every time you buy their limited edition vanilla honey bee ice-cream, as well as any other flavor that is h-b pollinated. so, you can support a good cause while eating ice-cream. what could be better?

.cheers.

.again.

.as a follow-up to a previous post regarding greg mortenson and his schools in pakistan and afghanistan. it makes my heart glad to see that some people will do anything to help the world in any way that they can, and that there are people out there who reach across borders and conflicts to help others in need. and his story is so inspiring, not only because of what he is doing, but in that it also shows us that sometimes our greatest failures can lead to our greatest successes. corny, i know. but true. he was even captured by the taliban in its infancy, so they let him go.

mortenson particularly has endeared himself to my heart because he is so focused on educating women, with the belief that educated women will influence their sons, who would otherwise be pulled into the orbit of the taliban.

it does raise an important issue - that we are not going after the root of the problem when we attack places like this. i know i said this before, but i will say it again. violence breeds violence. in educating people, we not only show them respect, but we also provide them with an alternative way of thinking.

i am actually jealous, because apparently he spoke at holy names. i wish i could have been there to shake his hand.

.cheers.

.arsenic.

.when i really think about it, i am surprised that people smoke.

i mean, i suppose it is addictive, but you would think by now that enough people would understand the grave health concerns associated with smoking. no. people are idiots. not only are smokers inhaling ridiculous amounts of toxins and carcinogens, they are also releasing those toxins and carcinogens into the environment. into my already sickly, fragile lungs. did you know that second-hand smoke contains formaldehyde, benzene, vinyl chloride, arsenic, ammonia, and hydrogen cyanide? did you know that concentrations of many cancer-causing and toxic chemicals are higher in secondhand smoke than in the smoke inhaled by smokers? it is sick. the fact that smoking has not been banned outright is baffling to me. smoking kills an estimated 440,000 americans each year. it's sad how much influence the tobacco industry has over society/the government/etc.

at least it is summer and beautiful out. it's no fun when you're cooped up inside all winter. i love this picture of joey, and for some reason it just screams summer to me.

.cheers.

.earth.

.let me clarify, because apparently my last post needs clarification.

in terms of the environment, i am not saying that little efforts do not help. that is not what i meant at all. i am saying that our mindsets need to change about the environment. we need to teach our children to grow up with a respect for the earth, and living things, not a blatant disregard. our society is based so much on material things, and excess, that we fail to see that the thing that sustains us is dying.

regardless, my last post was about womens rights, not really about the environment.

.cheers.

.tavern.

.i'm reading founding myths, which seeks to debunk some of the common misconceptions about stories that we consider to be patriotic truths, such as paul revere, molly pitcher, etc. etc. it's pretty interesting so far, but what strikes me so far in reading about the revolutionary war is the spirit that was imbued in everything at the time. people were so passionate about everything. they discussed the issues of the day in taverns, in the streets, in town meeting halls, with strangers. they belonged to societies, published pamphlets, gave long, eloquent, fiery speeches.

i wish that we were still like that today. instead, we're mentally lethargic. sure, we pride ourselves on holding convictions and ideas, we pride ourselves on belonging to a political party, or pride ourselves on being not mainstream. but really, we collect issues and beliefs like designer clothes. taking up a cause is the "in" thing.

so many of these people bother me. they claim to support various issues, but really, they hurt it. people who proclaim that they support womens rights, or the environment. they are the "but" believers. they believe in issues and causes, but only to a point. after that point, they start making concessions. when we start making concessions, particularly on women, on the environment, we start chipping away at the foundation that the passionate believers fought so hard to solidify. when we start making concessions, we deny the scope of the argument. these are not gray-area issues, these are not "well, i agree, but with such and such a stipulation" issues, these are not issues that you can believe in half-heartedly. when you start adding stipulations, you are in essence disagreeing with the fundamental issue. there can be no partial rights, there can be no partial women's equality, there can be no settling for some rights, or certain rights, or chalking things up to tradition - my favorite argument.

if you are not fully for, you are against, because half-rights are as bad as no rights at all - they perpetuate the notion of settling, and promote the idea that women are not worth full rights, that they should be fine with partial equality.

.cheers.

.wampanoag.

.today, i orchestrated an excursion to plymouth.
or plimouth, as they like to call it.
i love excursions, by the way.
anyway, plymouth is beautiful. i expected a corny little bum of a place, and although the town was slightly kitschy (everything was 'pilgrim this,' 'pilgrim ale,' etc), it was a really quaint little town with lots of fun shops.

and the surrounding harbor and islands and forests were beautiful. it was a great day; it was warm, but not excruciatingly hot like it has been, and the sun kept peeping out and giving us bright blue smiles. lovely.

we took a harbor tour, which was fun because we could see some of the surrounding islands. very pretty. plymouth rock was bigger than i imagined, but the portico around it was under construction, so we couldn't get very close. oh well. still cool.

i love this picture! i love the colors. it looks like watercolor paints.

we also happened across some crazy festival in the middle of the main street, and there was irish dancing going on, so we stopped to watch. so awesome. it made me think of dublin. except these people all had crazy colors on. their hair is out of control too. so crazy! i love curls.

little marys!

crazy curls.

so, all in all a very satisfying day.

.cheers.

.slr.

.and another post. i'm crazy!

but i felt like posting some more galapagos/ecuador pictures.

i love flag pictures.

cheers.

.ice.

.and to continue my earlier rant about the state of the world today/americans specifically/humanity in general...

why is no one else freaking out about the possibility of the north pole melting??? has our society become so immune to these massive frightening changes to our fragile world that they just completely ignore the fact that boats may be able to cross the north pole? for the first time ever?

maybe that's the problem. our world is not exactly fragile, it's pretty much a beast, but in the span of about, oh, 200 years (industrial revolution, anyone?), we have pretty much shot it to hell. seriously. the weather is out of control, species are dying off, honey bees are disappearing, and no one seems to care. or notice. that's a lie, actually - they do notice. for about three seconds. and then other things come along and they forget all about the fact that the planet that we inhabit, the planet that sustains us and has sustained us for thousands of years, is slowly suffocating.

and that's why wall-e is so disturbing. because it exposes (in a children's movie, for god's sake!) a very grim, very real future for us if we continue on as we are now. sickening.

at least i have my plants.

cheers.

.wall-e.

.saw wall-e with constance and tiffany last night.
best
movie
ever.
well, maybe not the best, but
it was pretty dang good. there were probably
20 lines of actually dialog in the entire movie,
but it worked. it was very cute,
but it was actually sort of disturbing.

a world where the world is so polluted and full of
junk that everyone has to go live on a massive
spaceship? where they become so obese and
lackadaisical that they drink every food
from a cup and everyone has to use a
hover-chair to get around? it makes my skin
crawl.

but all in all, a very sweet movie. i love pixar.

cheers.

.beast.

.there was another
beast in the bathtub
this morning, crouching
low against the white curve.
his long feelers and whispy legs
hardly moved but i knew he was
watching me. half-asleep at 5am (i
should have been up but i need my
beauty sleep) i stood there still in
the morning heat that tingled
my skin with a veneer of
sweat. he knew i was
there. i could feel his
eyes watching.
not cowering.
i was cowering.
in my stupor i
grabbed jeff's nice black shoe.
peered over the edge, looking
down at the splotch of brown
against white.
the shoe fell
as quick
as lightning and
with an echoing groan that

probably
woke the neighbors

a miss.



he ran eights
in crazy figure

as i slammed the shoe
again
again
again
and worried he would escape.




finally a direct .hit.
and his legs were scattered
like eyelashes along the bottom
of the tub.


.cheers.

.light.dark.

.by the way, although i love
photography/
taking pictures/
cameras,
i have never actually
taken a photography class.

could someone tell me why so many
of my pictures (example in first one below)
wash out the sky? what do i need to adjust?
or is it just because my digital camera
is not as good as a D-SLR/ SLR?
advice
much
appreciated.

.cheers.

.the day the music died.

.another uneventful and awesome trip to the big apple. or the big onion, as they used to call it - i imagine because of the stench? or maybe the many layers of the city. who knows. (which reminds me - sue, if you read this, the reason why we missed the walking tour is because the harlem one was at 11am that friday; i checked the schedule online.)

for the actual fourth, we met up with
a friend of jeff's from work
who goes to
yale law and went to
prospect park to
toss ye old frisbee
around
(don't worry
he was very nice and not
pretentious).
then went to a bbq
at a friend of jeff's from work/
harvard.
we hung out in her backyard
for a while with a bunch of their friends.
it was fun. a little awk at first,
but toby was there after being
deathly ill with a stomach virus,
and he drank an entire bottle of
$6.99wine.

keep in mind that $6.99 wine here
is not as good as
$6.99 west coast wine,
and not nearly as good
as $6.99 vino d'italia.
obviously, the terrible wine killed
all of the viral cells in toby's body,
plus a few of the good cells, i'm sure.

after that, we went to a party of
jeff's friend from yale's friend,
and basically, i was gossip girl.
it was at the most ridiculous
brownstone/flat/whatever
they're called. seriously,
this place was definitely worth more
than i will ever make.
we walked in and there were
crystals or geodes or something
gem-like all over, and himalayan
rugs and tapestries.
it was beautiful.
and a stocked bar, and
heaps and heaps of food.
and the best guacamole i've had
since the west coast.
(i think it was just because it was homemade - but still)

i almost felt like i was in college again,
except i've never been to a party
as ridiculous as that.
not that it was ridiculous-wild; there really
weren't that many people there,
and here parents were mingling and
chatting.

saturday, we went to the statue of

liberty and ellis island
in honor of our country
and my ancestors
(jeff thinks his ancestors were too cool
for ellis island,
apparently).
it was so cool being there,
particularly ellis island,
but we got drenched.
absolutely soaking.
it looked like jeff pushed me into
the water.
so wet.
emma lazarus got it right with the 'huddled masses' - we
were all definitely huddled
in the registry room of ellis island.

all in all, a very fun trip.

i got home and my plants
survived my absence. those
marigolds are greedy for water, though.
sheesh.
and there was another successful
fruit-fly massacre
today, this time via
zap! fly paper (amazing).
just ate an entire carton of
blueberries,
and an entire carton of
raspberries.
one last ode to ye olde us of a.
now to go eat corn.
i
love
summer.

- one of the original torches -

- and, for us numismatics geeks out there (ahem *mary*),
some of the currency from ellis island -

.cheers.

.quinoa.

.so basically, w-b is amazing.
yesterday, we left work around noon.
we got to sel de la terre, and there were little personalized w-b menus.


so here is what i had for lunch yesterday:

1. eggplant-goat cheese puree with olive oil and toasted walnuts (on bread)
this was amazing on bread
-2002 westport rivers, "brut rjr," westport, ma

2. chilled cucumber soup with citrus creme fraiche
the soup was nice and light, and it smelled very cucumbery and summery. the creme fraiche was surprisingly a little heavy and overwhelming in the soup
- 2006 chardonnay, hook & ladder, russian river valley

3. skillet roasted scottish salmon with black quinoa, grilled zucchini and baby carrot-tendril salad; curry creme fraiche
apparently this place likes creme fraiche. but the salmon was awesome. i had never had quinoa before - it looked like caviar, but it's a small grain, a little more firm and chewy than couscous. very yummy
- 2004 merlot, benziger, sonoma

4. assiette de fromage

5. vanilla creme brulee with fresh fruits and homemade cookies
i'm getting hungry again just thinking about it

amazing. it was the only meal i ate yesterday, and i didn't eat again until lunch today. so full. but it was awesome. halfway through the meal, we all got up and changed seats so that we could mingle with different people. it was so much fun; great ambiance, wonderful food. so awesome. i know you're jealous. it was fun too because they had someone come in with each course to talk about the wines.


so, it was a bit difficult going back to work this morning. let's just say that, with this four-day weekend coming up, it felt a bit like the last day of school.

after work today, i met up with frank, diana, kelsey, and connor. while i was waiting at harvard square for them, there was a 'free tibet' rally going on. it was kind of cool, with lots of flag-waving, painted signs, and 'no more communist china!' apparently they are there every wednesday.

i need to go to more rallies.


so it's off to nyc again this weekend! should be a fun 4th, although who knows what we're going.

i hope my plants don't die while i'm gone.


cheers!

.north korea south korea marilyn monroe.

.to be honest,
i am a huge nerd for posting pictures of
my plants. but, since i don't have a kitten or a puppy,
plants will have to do.

Deirdre got her kitten this weekend from the
shelter. well, she couldn't take him home yet, because
he needed to be neutered, but we saw pictures.
adorable.
i want one.

this week is going to be amazing, and by amazing,
i mean
i will need to pack in as
much work as i can in basically
20 hours. tomorrow we have
our little summer celebration
lunch. apparently wiley-blackwell
(particularly the blackwell
social sciences and humanities - ssh - book part)
did extremely well this year. so,
we get to leave work around
11:30 and go to Sel de la Terre,
a sweet restaurant in downtown
boston right on the water.
i am very excited.

then, full day on wednesday, and
again, since w-b is amazing, we get
thursday off.
and friday
off.
i love life.

on another note, i made a
kick-butt bolognese sauce last night
but my fingers still
smell like garlic.
which is annoying.
i read, though, that a
little bit of garlic every day will
help keep arteries from clogging.
which is great, although
i don't think i want to
eat garlic every day. apparently
the chemicals in garlic that fight the
clotting is activated
by crushing/cutting the garlic.
so make sure you cut the garlic
as much as you can before using it in food.

also, kung fu panda was the best movie i've seen in a while.
somewhat silly/predictable, but awesome.
just thought i'd throw that out there

skadoosh!
and cheers.

.shem and japheth.

today at work, i would have to say around 3 onwards, there was torrential rain.
wind
wind
rain
lighteningthunder
it was all there. well. maybe not hail.
but it was rainy and wet.
and when i got off work promptly at 5pm (when does that happen?!)
the streets, the sidewalks, the cars - everything was bone-dry.
new england is so weird.

cheers

.legs.

i walked into our bathroom last night around 10pm and pulled back the curtain to wash my feet. perfectly innocent and unsuspecting.

and sitting there by the drain, hardly moving, was the most monstrous millipede/centipede/some-kind-of-pede ever. ever. it was the grossest thing, and on top of the recent fly infestation, i couldn't help but think about all of the insects that could be crawling into my open mouth while i sleep, all the eggs that could be in the food i eat or on the dishes in the drying rack.

and so i just stood there, sizing up the miniature monster for a good three minutes - trying to figure out what to do with it. trying to figure out if he had seen me. trying to figure out how i could defeat something one hundred times smaller than i. he had totally seen me. he was plotting his escape that very minute - ready to mount an attack. what if i turned on the water and it leapt up and crawled into some crevice and multiplied into millions of baby monsters? what if i tried to smoosh it with toilet paper and it bit me? so i ended up grabbing jeff's shoe (he left me; what else am i going to do with his stuff but kill bugs?), and set about to kill the beast. but it didn’t die. with the first whack, it was squished, but it was still flailing around against the white porcelain. so, i wacked it again. and again. and it was still alive and moving and its little tentacle feelers were taunting me with little waves and winks. after about 5 whacks, there were enough pieces of it smeared around the bathtub that i was sure it was dead, so i turned on the water and washed it away.

now i'm worried about a massive millipede uprising originating in the tub. if no one hears from me for a while, they may have gotten to me in my sleep.

cheers.

.swift.

.i was making dinner today
and as i was slicing the chicken
for a nice burrito, i thought wow
this chicken is almost as white as
i am. and of course, as any normal person's
thought process would naturally progress towards,
my next thought was i could be chopping up human
meat and never know the difference. that was
when i decided that i didn't want a burrito
anymore. it still grosses me out. and
that is my lovely cannibalistic,
modest proposal-esque
thought of the
day.


in slightly more happy news, i walked over to the pea patch near our apartment. i love pea patches. well, i don't think that i actually love pea patches, but i love gardens and plants, and it made me feel at home. my little basil and tomato and marigold plants are awesome, but they are definitely not the same as a full-sized garden. speaking of, i transferred my little marigold seedlings today because they're hardly seedlings anymore and their roots were taking up the entire mini-bucket that they were in, but i'm wondering if i did it too soon. hopefully they'll buck up tomorrow in the sun.

mary, for your basil, make sure they're in the direct sun/light for a long time. it helps when you first plant the seeds to put a little saran wrap over it to kind of give it a greenhouse effect. i started mine off under a hot lamp; that gives them a direct source of light consistently for a good few hours.

also, apparently i have a picture in the 2008-2009 national geographic expeditions catalog. it's underwater, with a sea lion, covered in snorkel and wetsuit, but i swear it is me and scott. so now i can tell people that i've been in national geographic. (expeditions)

ha.


Cheers.

.sprouts.

.mary's blog has inspired me -
i know that my public clamors for more more more (moulin rouge style), so
i should probably update more often.


-nyc this weekend-
walking tour of harlem. central park. mamma mia on broadway. walk across the brooklyn bridge. worked our way upstream of a horde of asian protesters in orange shirts; they literally spanned a quarter of the bridge. metropolitan museum of art. lombardi's. pinkberry. st. Patrick's cathedral. top of Rockefeller center. Jeff.


i am excited because my plants are finally sprouting and growing and amazing. when i rub the little basil seedling, it smells so good. it makes me want to dive into a kiddie pool of fresh basil leaves.

i love plants. and my camera. just imagine what i could do with a D-SLR!










Cheers!

korphe

.It is truly amazing what one person can do to change the world.

I have almost finished reading Three Cups of Tea, and I think that every American today should read this book, which tells the story of Greg Mortensen's struggle to build schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

I find it fascinating (and disturbing), when I come across people who are under the impression that we need to obliterate the Middle East, because all people in the Middle East hate Americans, and we need to eradicate terrorists. Don't get me wrong, I am all about getting rid of terrorism and terrorists. But there is a vast difference between carpeting an entire region in bombs - killing innocent children, fathers, and mothers in order to get at a select group of individuals (especially when etremist groups, such as the Taliban, often are making life extremely difficult for the local civilians anyway) - and eradicating terrorism by digging out the root of the problem. Do we really think that we can fight our "War on Terror" by creating more terror? It hardly seems logical that we will gain the respect and admiration of the Middle East by killing innocent civilians, failing to provide adequate relief aid, creating poorly equiped refugee camps, etc. These things only cause more animosity towards Americans.

People ask why they hate Americans. The answer is: because they are taught to hate Americans by extremist Muslims in madrassas funded by wealthy Saudis. As these madrassas are often the only education that impoverished children in the rural areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan can get, male students (because madrassas do not educate women) grow up listening to the ravings their extremist teachers, who often have little to no education themselves. They get not a moderate education, with regular teaching of history, math, etc., but lessons in extremist Islam.

Greg Mortensen is combating this extremist upbringing that breeds terrorism by starting schools all over Pakistan and Afghanistan, specifically focusing on educating the women. If only we could take our cue from Mortensen, and concentrate on helping those in the Middle East, modernizing them, build schools and hospitals, instead of fostering an atmosphere of hate and distrust. And you know what? With all of the money that we are spending on the military, we could have opened many, many schools.

Only in this way will we win the war on terror. Can we please focus more on empowering women and educating children than dropping bombs and encouraging hate?

Ciao

birthday suit

....and at 3:02am 23 years ago today, I entered the world naked and covered in nasty goo. gross...

..boston burning?..

I have decided that I have only seen one cat the entire time I've been in Boston. Is that strange? Maybe I'm used to Seattle, where the cats roam freely in herds down the sidewalks. Okay, that's an exaggeration. Obviously, cats are more solo creatures than dogs. But still, I usually can't walk outside in the summer without stumbling over some cat lazing about in the shade of a maple tree. So why is there only one cat in this city? Methinks that Jeff's mention of a YouTube video of a man chucking cats off a cliff may have something to do with it...


And how could I not start off with the most exciting event of the night? Who knows

Last night, I went out for drinks with Nick and Craig, from my Syracuse program in Firenze. We went to this fun little hole in the wall place; Tiger Lily? Or something. It was attached to a Malaysian food place, and they serve these massive chalices (chali? what is the plural of chalice?) of some sort of concoction of alcohol and juice. The flavors were: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, black. And they were good. Anyway, so we were coming home, and our entire street, which is somewhat of a main thoroughfare, was blocked off by a police car and a fire truck. Which was odd. So I turned onto our street, and the entire street was LIT UP with flashing red lights. Mind you, this was around 1:30 am, so this was no small feat. There were literally 8 firetrucks outside my building, with one of them having its ladder extended up onto the roof. WTF mate?!? So, of course, I freaked out and thought Jeff was lying inside the apartment dead, and that all of our things had been burnt to a husk (ie my computer). I called Jeff, and he was like, hm, it smells like smoke.

Apparently, some idiot had left some kind of pan with plastic handles on in the oven, with the oven on. So, the firemen literally had to axe down their door. Who knows why they needed all those firetrucks, but whatever. Our apartment still smells all disgusting and smoky. Yuck. But at least we're both find and there was no damage. At least, not for us. The door of apartment 13 is a different story...

Cheers

.and the greatest of these is love.

...heretical rantings of the day...

Today, I was thinking about religion, and it astounds me to think how shocked some of my more conservative religious acquaintances/friends/family members, etc. would be at the state of my piety currently. I can see myself from their eyes, and what I look like from the outside is, well, the epitome of a heretical agnostic or even *gasp* an atheist. I have not been to mass since Christmas, I haven't read the Bible in who knows how long, etc. etc.

It's funny, though, because I find it hard to find God (or god, or Allah, or Gaia, or Zeus, or whatever, because, really, let's face it, they are all the same thing) sitting on an uncomfortable pew, or in the pages of a text that spouts genealogies and tries to warn me of the second coming. Don't get me wrong, there are many good stories in the Bible, and I love the psalms, and parables. I just find it hard to find God in a text that claims that women are the chattel of their husbands/fathers/brothers.

No, I find God in the purple crocuses I saw peeping up from the crusted New England soil. I find God in the splash of reds and oranges I saw in the Adirondacks this fall. I find God in my family. I find God in my friends. I find God in Claire. I find God in hugs and smiles and kisses. I find God in the still moments watching a movie on the couch with friends or family. I find God in snorkeling and seeing a massive sea turtle pass by. I find God in the worn pages of my books that I have read over and over. I find God in a song from a musical that gives me goosebumps. I find God in the smell of rain and snow. I find God in everything that I see, every day. Why would I need a specific religion to tell me where or how I should see God? And yes, I do find God in church, because I love the songs, and the community. And I do find God in the Bible, because I know that, in the end, "these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love."




Cheers

tanzania & belize

I still have the travel itch, the kind that makes me want to go out, buy a sweet SLR digital camera and go take pictures of the sunrise on Easter Island and wildebeasts rhomping in Kenya. I don't even know if there are wilebeasts in Kenya, but hey, I'm not too picky. And getting National Geographic every month doesn't help either, with it's glossy full-page spreads of the calloused and cracked feet of salt-miners in Africa, the Sahal, was it?

Sometimes I just want to get lost on some South Pacific island, or in the Andes, and wander around with only my camera for company. And maybe a change of clothes. And deodorant. But besides those necessities, I would be set. It's really too bad that I never took a photography class, or I might actually stand a chance of doing some sweet photography-related travelling.

But alas. Easter Island and Madagascar will just have to wait a little longer.

Cheers

recycling

The other day at work I was walking by the massive recycling bin near the mailroom and saw that there was a treasure trove of books in there.

Apparently they should not have been there, and the editors took the majority of them back, but I got so excited. I wanted a million new beautiful books! There are a few left, and I think we'll probably be able to take one or two home. Awesome. It's sad that this is what excites me at work. Books in the recycling bin.

There are always journals in there too, but they're boring ones, like "Animal Opthamology" and "Wound Repair and Regeneration." Who on earth subscribes to that kind of stuff? So ridiculous. There was also a copy of "Sexual Medicine" in there, and I stole it to put on Margot's desk. She thought it was hilarious. But the funny part was when I was stealthily sneaking it out of the mailroom, and some random people came by and saw the journal I was taking. I got the strangest looks.

Ciao.

the office and philosophy

Well, nothing new and exciting here, but I realized that I have not posted in a very very long time.

Yesterday, I got to send a book to the Mayor of Scranton, who provided an endorsement of one of the books on my philosophy list, The Office and Philosophy. Pretty sweet, although it would have been way better if I could have sent it to Steve Carrell or Jenna Fischer or something.

Half-heartedly looking at History M.A. programs; right now, Brown is looking like the best option. Who knows, though, really.

Right now, all I want to do is travel. It's kind of a problem. I just sit here all day planning trips to Cappadoccia, Madagascar, Easter Island, Bhutan, Norway, Iceland, Antarctica, the Maldives, etc. etc. etc. It makes me want to try out for the Amazing Race, but sadly, no one wants to be my partner. It also makes me want to get a sweet Digital SLR camera so I can take close-ups of New Zealand Birds of Paradise and Victoria Falls at sunrise. *sigh*

On a separate note, I woke myself up this morning by poking myself in the eye. I then proceeded to freak out, thinking that I had blinded myself. Turns out it was just dark out.

Even stranger, as Jeff and I were walking in search of frames for my posters last week (frames are so dang expensive!), I was like, hmm, that tall man looks like Erik Knechtel. Low and behold, I looked him up on facebook, and apparently he is living in Cambridge, a few blocks from our apartment! Such a small world. I think we're getting together on Friday.

Meanwhile, I will continue to be obsessed with cameras, The Office, and travel.

Ciao

rufus

Yesterday I got some seeds, which I was really excited about. Our kitchen was lacking in the plants department. So hopefully those will grow into nice big beautiful flowers soon.

Also, I have become obsessed with getting a puppy and naming him rufus. Or a kitten. Kittens are easy to take care of, huh. I just want a pet. Maybe a goldfish for now.

And put some Galapagos pictures up, because I am bored.

Interview on Wednesday, wish me luck!

Ciao

major problems in american environmental history

Some things I have learned thus far about the East Coast:

1. They do not share our love of health food. Well, more specifically, our (MY) West Coast love of Jamba Juice. Or smoothie places in general. Apparently the only Jamba Juice in the state of Massachusetts is on the BC or BU campus somewhere, and I just cannot justify spending more on transportation to Jamba than I would spend on the actual smoothie. Ah, woe is me, now I do not have my daily nourishment that I get from having a Jamba (or two) a day.

2. Their driving habits are foreign and alien to me. I saw a woman honk at a car the other day before the light even turned green. BEFORE it turned green! They honk at you for everything when you're driving. And yet, time and again I have seen pedestrians cross when they are clearly crossing illegally against a red light, and the cars just let them go. No honk, no nothing. They might even wave at them. So strange. At least I know that I will probably never get hit in this city.

And those are my wise wise observations of the Eastern seaboard. Oh yeah, and the Boston accent is incredible. Jeff and I got a ten minute tutorial on the "Chahlie Cahd" for the T by a Bostonian the other day. I swear, it's like something from the Departed.

ciao

malecon 2000

So, this is from the first part of my trip to Ecuador, and the Galapagos. Amazing.

Well, so far our trip has been amazing. After a very delayed flight on Tuesday night from Miami to Guayaquil due to thunder/lightning storms and a malfunctioning bathroom, we finally got into Ecuador around 2am! On Wednesday, we walked down the very modern, new, nice Malecon 2000, a boardwalk along the riverfront in Guayaquil. It is very nice, and I am pretty sure I saw more people cleaning the boardwalk than tourists! There are also Tons of police and security guards around.

Thursday, we took a car up north. We went to Salinas (through Santa Elena), which is considered the "resort" city of Ecuador, though it is a resort resembling Seattle's Rainier Beach. No, I'm just joking, it is very nice, but it is still hardly at a level with any of the "resort" areas in the United States, and really is an eye-opener for anyone not experiencing poverty like this before ( i.e. Claire :) It is so interesting; the huge white hotels are very clean, and the beach area is very nice, but just two or three blocks away are dirt streets and houses with corrugated-iron roofs. Montanita, up north, is also very nice; it has kind of a rasta feel to it, very Bob Marley.

Today, we hiked up the 400+ stairs of Santa Ana and Las Penas, a beautiful hill with brightly painted houses perched on the side. However, it is kind of "disney-esque," in that the facades are beautiful, but if you look through archways and down alleys, you can again see the dirt roads and one-room houses. Everywhere you turn here, it reminds me of how blessed and spoiled, really, we are in the states. The top of the hill offered great 360degree views of the city, as well as a church, a lighthouse, half a pirate ship (fake), and crumbled ruins of an old fort that harken back to the days of pirate attacks on Guayaquil. A very nice climb, very beautiful.

I have learned some things about Ecuador that you may (or may not) like to know. One is that they have an entire language of car honks, and they will honk at you if you are not rolling a little before the light turns green. Very quick to honk, which brings me to my next pearl of wisdom: there are no rules of traffic. There were several times in our taxi trips around the city that there were 3-4 cars lined up next to each other across a two-lane street. Somewhat unnerving, and leads to many a honk. My dinner tonight, too, was great: I had to wear a huge bib, as my steak was served on a sizzling piece of rock. Too bad I hadn't brought my camera! I looked ridiculous :)

Virginia Tech

I'm still having a little trouble digesting everything that happened yesterday. It just makes me so sick to my stomache that someone could just shoot 32 people. Can you imagine how it would feel if a guy with a gun just showed up in your class and started shooting people? Man.

It's made me all skittish, too. I was outside reading by the fountain today, and someone popped a balloon across the lawn. My heart stilled slightly as I saw everyone peer nervously in the direction of the sound; I think we all were thinking about the same thing.


On a slightly lighter note, I started my workout class today. It was great, but honestly, my limbs feel so weak now! It's a good feeling, though.


Now, time for a shower and reading.

And continuing to think about and pray for those at Virginia Tech.

Ciao

progressives and progressivisms

Well... I haven't written in a while. Mostly, this is due to the hermit-mode I went into last quarter, a result of my Ireland class, and particularly because of my Thesis. The beast.


But, the thesis is DONE! Yaaay.


So this quarter is looking up. Waaay up. Spring break in Maui was incredible. Hiked around Haleakala, went and visited Kristin and Kyle on the Big Island, swam with SEA TURTLES!!!!! and had a good amount of frou frou drinks with umbrellas in them (most notably the amazing Guavatini).

The only problem with this quarter is: I need to figure out what I am doing next year. *sigh*

At least this quarter should be fun! And my birthday is in two days! Awesome

cheers!