.charlestown.

.yesterday j and i decided to make an excursion to charlestown.

first, we got sidetracked by st. anthony's feast, this massive festival in the north end that was basically an excuse for all of the italians in boston to come out and celebrate their italianness.

the statue of st. anthony, with garlands of money hanging off of it. who knows where all that money went. hopefully to charity.

i had actually heard about the feast, but didn't know when/where it was, and i think i didn't really understand how huge it was, either. to give you an idea - j and i walked down the length of a block, and thought that we were approaching the end. nay. the festival definitely spider-webbed over several blocks, and continued on ahead for another few blocks as well. massive. there was a live band (as opposed to a dead band) that was playing some pretty sweet oldies covers, and lots of old ladies dancing.


apparently it is a huge deal, and it was really fun to be in that kind of artery-clogging food, shoddy carnival games environment. no, really, it was fun, and neat that we just happened to stumble upon the celebration. so many people, though!


i was most excited to come across the stand selling torrone, possibly my favorite food in italy. it's a type of nougat, and i generally don't like nougat, but it's just so darn good. creamy, sweet, usually with almonds in it. there was one really amazing place that sold it on the via dei servi in firenze, but i don't remember what it was called. so amazing. i haven't had it since i left florence, so i really wanted to get some, particularly in such an italian setting, but i didn't really want to lug it around all day. sad times. maybe next year i'll stumble upon st. anthony's feast again. i was actually a bit surprised to see it, since it's mostly a christmas treat, but oh well. i'll eat torrone any day.

.yum.

mmm. terrible but amazing food. too bad we weren't hungry. probably a good thing, actually.

so that was a fun and random stop on our excursion.

after the st. anthony's feast, we continued on across the bridge to charlestown, which is quite the quaint little area. it's right across the river from boston, but it was so quiet. the houses were beatiful - lots of brick and colorful shutters.

we ducked into the warren tavern, which is over 225 years old. it was built in 1780, and includes paul revere and george washington among its list of frequenters. it's a really neat old building, with beautiful wood walls and beams. i was very excited to see boddington's on tap. the atmosphere was really fun and laid back, and the beers were great. it was very cool to have a pint where george washington and other such company dined and drank! on the whole, a very fun tavern, although if you do go, please do not order the food. at least don't order the shepherd's pie. shepherd's pie is possibly my favorite food in the whole wide world, and i thought that such a fine establishment as warren's would serve good, english-style shepherd's pie. no. the meat was incredibly oily, the three peas and two carrot slices that were in there were over done, and the mashed potatoes were (i am positive) from a box. so, the food was not so great. the atmosphere and the beers, however, were fine, and i would go back there for another drink.


j and i did the freedom trail last year, but had left off the bunker hill monument for reasons that escape me now - perhaps it had started raining? who knows. so it was fun to wander around charlestown, and then see the bunker hill monument.


as we approached the monument itself, there was a demonstration going on, and a revolutionary war soldier was definitely firing a musket. dang, those things are loud! so so loud, and it was just one musket going off. i can't imagine being at an actual battle with those things, and having hundreds and hundreds of them going off. it would have been deafening. and it was a little disturbing to see how long it took for the 'soldier' to re-load. definitely enough time to get your head blown off. ah, the good old days of warfare.

he looked a bit like fr. art. i miss him.

the monument itself was, well, a monument. nothing too special in terms of architecture, i don't think, but j and i climbed all 294 steps (what a workout!) and the views from the top were awesome. there was also a grate at the top landing where you could see all the way down to the light shining below - a bit eerie to have a measly who-knows-how-old grate as the only thing separating you from a 221ft. free fall.

i thought it was funny that people somehow snuck coins out through the window and onto the ledge. it's not a fountain, people, it won't bring you good luck!

the lovely city of boston

all in all, a very good day.

.cheers.

.candidate.

.i dislike mccain's choice of v.p.

no, that's not the right word.

i am offended with mccain's choice of v.p.

don't get me wrong - i am more than happy to see a woman in such a high spot in the government. it is great that sarah palin is the second u.s. woman to run on a major party ticket.

but, i fail to see how palin as a running mate would benefit mccain's campaign. it seems obvious that mccain is just trying to pander to the strong hillary supporters. and that is not going to work - for one, palin is staunchly pro-life.

to me, palin is a 'token female' that the republican party threw out there. for god's sake, she was a beauty pagent winner.

she is a member of the nra. she is a strong supporter of drilling in the arctic national wildlife refuge.

in my opinion, she was not the best choice for mccain. as i said, i am all for women in strong positions of power, but those women have to be prepared for those positions of power - or else they perpetuate old stereotypes. but palin has been the governor of a state - teensy in population - for two years. two years. actually, not even. 20 months. that seriously restricts mccain's ability to continue attacks on the lack of experience on the democratic ticket.

her voice also grates on my nerves.

i'm sorry, but when she talked about shattering the glass ceiling, all i could think was that hillary had already done all the smashing for her, allowing palin to rise up through the rubble with her beauty pagent smile on.

and let's be honest - we do need to consider that mccain is 72 years old. 72 years old. should anything happen to him while he is in office, palin would be completely unprepared to take on the presidency mantle.

.cheers.

.comfy.computer?

.i realize that due to my position, i am slightly biased in regards to this subject, but i don't care. i felt this way before, and i will continue to feel this way after i leave my job (which is hopefully a ways down the road!).

i read this article in the l.a. times today about how free online books are beginning to replace the "costly textbooks." i realize that book prices are pretty high - i do not miss the days of shelling out around $400 for textbooks. ouch. (i'm not talking so much about smaller publishing companies, like w-b, but the massive ones that gouge you for all you're worth)

however, it would be a real shame if computers ever replaced books. things like this article. the kindle. the crazy book retrieval machine in the santa clara library. they all make me sad, because there is nothing like curling up with a good book. or browsing the dusty shelves in the back corner of a library, cocooned in the dark, surrounded by weathered tomes. i love it. i love libraries. i love books. reading from a computer screen makes my eyeballs hurt.


there's almost nothing i like more than curling up with a good book.

and that definitely cannot be said about a computer.

.save the books!

.cheers.

.clouds.

.don't think i actually posted a picture of the view from mt. monadnock, so thought i would do that here. the clouds were awesome.



so gorgeous. i miss hiking around, climbing around like a little kid on the rock climbing walls down at uw. so much fun.

sheesh that trip was fun.


we saw tons of crazy mushrooms while we were hiking, particularly at molly stark state park.
big bright red ones,
pale orange ones,
some crazy spiked yellow ones,
even one or two purple ones.
these were just some ordinary fungi growing on a tree, but i always think that they look like little fairy steps.

.speaking of steps -
climbing up the
rickety
firetower
on mt. olga.
good thing we
didn't blow away.

and: the view from the top

lovely!

.cheers.

.cheese.

.i fail miserably at life. and by life, i mean blogging.

apologies, loyal readers.



this weekend, j and i went to vermont, via new hampshire, and it was ridonc. (ridonc = ridonculous = ridiculous)

first off, having a car is great. i mean, i as much as i enjoy not having a car (no "boston bumper" marring the back/front bumpers of my lovely bug, not paying 3.99+ per gallon, not dealing with insane boston drivers, riding the t with people with shopping carts that smell like urine, etc. etc.), it was really great having a car. you know, getting somewhere in 10 minutes that on the t takes an hour, randomly driving to little towns, etc. but i digress.

new hampshire is sweet. j and i got up extra early on saturday (no sleeping in for the crazies!), and drove up across the border. the drive is very picturesque and lovely. the entire weekend, as we were driving around, jeff kept commenting on how gorgeous it was, and i couldn't help but think that it looked very similar to washington! (although washington is obviously way more beautiful).

essentially, we drove a lot. peterborough, jaffrey, keene (sweet little town that i want to retire to, open up a cheese farm, and make quilts at). hiking mt. monadnock was probably the highlight, though. possibly one of the most difficult hikes i've done (c'mon, i'm a novice here, people). we went up the 'white dot' trail, and essentially we were scrambling up sheer rock-faces the entire time. not kidding. it was awesome. i am such a mountain goat. love it.


and the view from the top was spectacular. so gorgeous, with green mountains (more like big hills, compared to views in washington) as far as the eye can see. beautiful. and to our right, a massive thunder/lightening ball of storm that was fast encroaching upon us. a park ranger was like, uh, you all need to leave now. so, we definitely tried to race the storm down the mountain.

took the 'white cross' trail back down, which was supposed to be less treacherous. (it was only barely so)

about ten minutes into the hike (i.e. scramble/slide) down, it started crackling thunder right above us, and two minutes later, it was pouring. a little scary, but mostly exhilarating and fun. i loved every minute of it. had if not for the massive blisters (i really need to invest in some hiking shoes) and crowds of people, it could have possibly been a prefect hike (or rock climb, if you will). still, it was incredible.

after our thunderous hike, the weather was perfect for the rest of the weekend - perfect blue skies, nice and sunny. we visited lots of new hampshire towns, drove into vermont, sampled some cheese, visited more picturesque towns, had dinner and drinks. went to bed. brattleboro is a pretty neat town too.

i really wish we had camping equipment, because all of the parks we went to had sweet campsites. *sigh* it seems silly to have all that stuff without a car, though. someday.

sunday we hiked around molly stark state park, which had a cake-walk hike compared to monadnock, but an awesome view from the firetower at the top. i felt a little like it was going to blow over (i think it was built around the 1950s) - a bit rickety, but a very cool view.

i will let the pictures do the rest of the talking...

the white dot 'trail'
(boulders that we had to climb)


beautiful mt. monadnock. so many hikers!



beauteous vermont



crazy view from the inside of a covered bridge


awesome vermont church

.cheers.

.creme brulee.

.i love visitors.

colin is in town until friday, so last night him, j, ero and i went out for dinner and drinks at the sunset grill and tap, and then met up with hagan and toby at charlie's. mmm. i love charlie's. and the selection of beers at sunset is awesome.

it was great seeing colin, and hanging out with ero as always - it reminded me a bit of durham. ahh, how i miss those days.


at sunset, since i am obsessed with creme brulee, i figured that the southern tier creme brulee imperial milk stout would be a good idea. it wasn't. it could have been decent, but it was possibly the sweetest drink i have ever had in my life, and that include mike's hard lemonade. man, it was tough finishing that drink. but i did it. but please heed my warning and do not order. the only upside was that it is 10% abv.

great seeing hagan and toby again. all around good night.




.cheers.

.cayuse.

.flashback.

i would have to say one of the best parts of being a young'un was going to summer camps. although some experiences were more traumatizing than others (thank god gabs went with me to 'rockin' out!' the geology camp - which actually turned out to be fun, i'll admit it now), summer camp was awesome. those lazy hazy days of long sun hours and water moments were great. and nothing beats camp don bosco. i loved horses when i was little - still do, but get far fewer opportunities to ride now - and horse camp was possibly the best thing ever.

waking up at the crack of dawn as a teenager in the summer was tough, but it was so worth it to walk into that corral and pet those horses, and jump up on those horses and just ride. i was always a little bummed that we didn't get to canter, but oh well, c'est la vie. it was still awesome. and the people at those camps were always so much fun. the camaraderie of summer camp just can't be beat.

anyway, as i was walking home from getting j sick materials (low-sodium soup, gatorade, applesauce), i caught, just for the briefest moment and it was gone, the scent of the biffy.

ah, the biffy.

that lovely little outhouse that was the bane of campers' existence. i remember many a night, waking up in cayuse village when the night noises were loud and the moon was veiled by the maple leaves, having to slink through the dark to the biffy, praying some crazed bear wasn't hiding behind the open door, that some venomous snake or pervy man wasn't lurking in the disgusting depths of the hole. and the smell. oh the smell.

when i caught the whiff today, i didn't know whether to vomit, or start singing 'bang bang choo choo train, c'mon cayuse do your thing! ahhwoop *clap clap clapclap*'

i love campfire songs. man, i miss summer camp.

.cheers.

.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!