.turn.

.so.


i am unable to load my pictures from my canon eos 20d. apparently, the camera is incompatible with windows vista 64. why aren't all cameras compatible with all operating systems? it just doesn't make sense to me.


anyway, so i had to download my pictures onto j's computer, then put them into our shared network folder, and get them onto my computer that way. a big pain in the neck, i tell ya. c'mon canon, make a vista 64 compatible driver for the eos 20d! please?

ah, oh well. i guess this will work for now. on another note...


...it is definitely fall here.


which is fine. i love fall.


but that means it will soon look like this. boo.


.sigh. oh new england.


.cheers.

.wealth.

.articles like this just make me angry.

first of all, i'm just plain tired of our whole drawn-out election process. just get it over with! sheesh! i mailed in my ballot yesterday, and am ready to be done with all this crap and know who our next president will be.

second, i'm tired of sarah palin. seriously. tired. people were all excited about her when she was first announced as john mccain's veep running-mate, but she doesn't know what she's doing. she's in way over her head.

and then there are issues like the above. it drives me nuts, how she pretends like she is more in touch with the 'common man.' yes, you're from alaska, which is off in the boondocks. but that doesn't mean you are "just like everyone else." i don't get to drop 150,000 on a new wardrobe. i realize that most politicians spend ridiculous sums of money on things like this. but 150,000? in one day? that's a little absurd. what is also absurd is charging thousands of dollars of your children's travel expenses to the Alaska. sarah, do you really think that you are like 'joe the plummer' when you stay in $700/night hotels in nyc? i don't think so.

this is why politics bother me. because all of them say that they're 'just like us,' and 'for the people,' but really, they're not. they stay in nice hotels and get nice clothes. period.

stupid politics.

.cheers.

.the.big.easy.

.some pictures from my short-but-sweet visit to nola.

pretty fountain! the water looks kind of gross (although it's a cool green), but i loved the little birdies taking their baths

there were beads hanging all over the place!

the view from my hotel room - i loved watching the barges!

jackson square at night. i love this picture - it makes me think of something from cinderella, with the horse-drawn carriages!

and, during the day

paddle boat!!

i loved this pub sign

beautiful wrought-iron balconies. they were all over the french quarter. very classy

more balconies

and, of course, no trip to nola would be complete without a trip to cafe du monde. mmm so so good. there was powdered sugar all over the floor, and musicians playing outside. a really fun, casual atmosphere

this one's for you, mom!

mmmm, i want more beignets...soooo good!



you didn't think i'd go an entire trip without taking a macro shot, did you?
one of the beautiful flowers in jackson square

unfortunately, windows vista is not compatible with my eos 20d (damn you, vista!), so more adirondacks pictures will just have to wait... the suspense is killing you, i'm sure!

.cheers.

.at.last.

.a taste of what's to come.

.continuing with my fungi obsession.

.cheers.

.word.

.i know, right?

due to the sparseness of posts recently, i know it is shocking to see two posts in one day. but, i had to share this amazing distraction with everyone. i've seen these masterpieces here and there, and maro (check hers out here) prompted me into action. wordle has this awesome thing where you can type in any number of words, or type in your website, and they will randomize a list of the most commonly used words, and display them in an artistic way. you can tweak the colors, the layout, the font. it's awesome. my blog is, obviously, boring. apparently i talk about days, people, and go alot. and santa? don't know when i talked about santa, but that's cool. anyway! lots of fun, so check it out! maybe yours will be more interesting than mine.

by the way, i had a ridiculously difficult time trying to save a copy of this. maybe it's just me, and i am computer-deficient (which clearly is true anyway), but i just could not make it work! i just ended up pasting the code into my thing, but the image is so small. they really should make it easier to just save a copy of the image that you make.

.cheers.

.lenovo.

.it shipped!.

it wasn't supposed to ship until the 28 - seriously, how long does it take to get parts and put a computer together?! - but it shipped yesterday! yay yay yayayayay! wow, can you tell i am excited? i will finally have a computer again, and won't have to steal j's. and it will be beautiful and new and shiny and big-screened. and will have sweet graphics.

so psyched.

in other news, dad is in town this weekend! he's rowing in the head of the charles, and i'm skipping out of work a bit early to meet up with him (is it pathetic/sad/evidence of us ea's being overworked that even skipping out a few hours early, i will be working overtime hours this week? yes). i'm going out to dinner with him and sue and his rowing buddies tonight at an italian restaurant. rowers need to load up on carbs before the race, and i need to load up on wine and tiramisu, so it works! should be a fun weekend, and who knows, maybe i'll be able to blog about it from my new laptop! we'll see.

and, in more news, alaska cancelled my flight home for christmas.

don't freak out, all you people who love me and demand that i come home for christmas!

i was just as shocked when, upon signing into my alaska online account, it said "due to scheduling conflicts..." blah blah. so i had to call, and the morning flight was cancelled, but i realized that this could actually work out for the best (as alaska has the same flights to/from boston/seattle every day), so, instead of staying on the night flight they put me on that same day, i requested the night flight for the day before! so i have a whole extra night in seattle to drink wine and eat ice cream cake with mary, and maybe fulfill some of my 101 in 1001 - walks around greenlake and discovery park, mom and dad?

so that's about all that's new with me. i've worked for two weeks straight (this is why conferences = bad), so i am ready. for. the. weekend!

.cheers.

.101 in 1001.

.and so it begins.

i have caved in to the blogging frenzy that is 101 in 1001 - essentially, i must complete the below 101 tasks in 1001 days. should be fun!

go ahead, create your own list. and check in periodically, as i blog about my completed tasks, and check them off the list - just click the number to go to the relevant post (only on completed items, that is)


The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.




start: 14 october 2008
end: 12 july 2011


body and soul

1. drink nothing but water for 2 weeks
2. drink no alcoholic beverages for 2 months
3. get a professional massage
4. be in bed by 10pm every day for a week
5. eat 100% vegan for an entire day
6. fast for an entire day
7. go to a religious service for a faith other than catholic
8. do not use a computer for 48 hours
9. floss every night for 2 months
10. go to the gym 5x a week for a month
11. read the bible every night for two weeks
12. take a yoga class
13. find a good catholic church in cambridge
14. take 2-minute, cold showers for a month
15. turn off my cell phone for a day
16. do a run/walk for a cause
17. donate blood
18. stop pulling out my eyebrows. seriously. stop (keep them patch-free for 2 months)

all about the brains
19. read 8 books in 5 months - DONE! (completed 2 feb. 09)
20. finish anna karenina
21. read another jeannette winterson novel
22. read 3 books from the banned books list
23. become proficient in japanese
24. take a swedish language class
25. take a photography class
26. take a cooking class

finances
27. go one week without spending any money at all
28. bring a packed lunch to work every day for 1 month (excluding work lunches) - DONE (completed 17 nov. 08)
29. buy a blender - DONE (completed 19 jan. 09)
30. buy nice leather boots
31. buy a nice winter over-coat - DONE (completed 1 dec. 08)
32. buy a quilted barn jacket - DONE (completed 18 oct. 08)
33. donate $100 to world wildlife foundation
34. buy a nice work bag
35. upgrade our loveseat to a nice couch
36. buy a bike
37. get a promotion, or find a new, higher-paying job
38. put aside $20 from each paycheck, just for me, for 1 year - in progress

oh so cultured
39. go to a musical - DONE (completed 3 jan. 09)
40. go to a play
41. go to an outdoor concert or play
42. watch 5 “classic” movies in 5 months - in progress

out and about, or around the house
43. go to the lilac festival
44. go apple-picking
45. go to a cranberry bog
46. make cupcakes from scratch
47. make sushi
48. make an ice-cream cake
49. go skiing
50. go camping
51. go wine tasting
52. make 2 new recipes a week for 2 months
53. make homemade jam
54. bake bread
55. make another bouche de noël
56. go out to high tea - DONE! (completed aug. 09)
57. do an overnight hike of at least 2 nights
58. host a dinner party
59. host a wine and cheese party
60. throw a surprise party for someone
61. use at least 1 different spice in a meal each day for a month
62. organize my recipes - DONE (completed 8 mar. 09)
63. recycle old/unused magazines
64. clean out my room at mom’s house
65. make all of my christmas gifts and cards 1 year
66. get prints made of some of my photos and have them framed

jet set
67. visit a continent that i haven’t been to yet
68. visit 3 of the 21 us states that i haven’t been to yet - DONE! (completed aug. '10)
69. visit kristin and kyle in hawaii
70. bake with kristin
71. visit claire in santa clara
72. go on an scu alumni trip

73. go on a road trip through at least 4 states (no more than 1 can be a new england state) - DONE! (completed aug. '10)

74. go to a world cup game, a world series game, or an olympic game
75. go to a pro-football game, a baseball game, and a basketball game in one year
76. continue the fall foliagefest tradition each year

people who matter most
77. contact an old high school or grade school friend
78. write 10 personal letters – mail, not email
79. force Mary to visit - DONE! (completed jul. 09)
80. fly my mom out to visit me in boston - DONE! (completed 10-19 jul. 09)
81. take a vacation with just claire - DONE! (completed 18 - 22 dec. 09) (part 1, and part 2)
82. walk around greenlake with mom
83. walk around discovery park with dad
84. write a letter to each of my cousins (maternal and fraternal)
85. make j a 3 course dinner
86. babysit maia and torin (before they get too old!)

just for fun
87. play poker and win (not online)
88. climb a tree
89. have a candlelit dinner
90. blog every day for a month
91. take at least 1 photo of something that interests me every day for a month
92. grow a plant that actually bears fruit/vegetables - DONE (completed 1 jun. 09)
93. watch the sun rise
94. photograph a barn. don’t ask. i just love barns
95. photograph the moon
96. get a dog
97. paint 5 watercolors
98. meet someone famous
99. finish the quilt i started at dad’s a long time ago
100. go on a picnic
101. have a glass of wine with one of my santa clara professors - DONE (completed 26 mar. 09)


we'll see how this goes...

.cheers.

.beignets.

.all right, all right.

i haven't posted in forever - yes, i know this.

let me tell you: it sucks not having a computer. i realize that this is silly - people got on perfectly fine without computers. however, in this uber-connected, digital age, it is difficult to survive without my trusty laptop.

actually, it's more like i am missing my right thumb - it's not completely necessary, and i can get along fine without it, but it very much blows that it's not there. and i mourn its absence.

so, i would upload all of my fall foliagefest '08 pictures, and all of my pictures from my new orleans trip for the SHA conference, but alas. it shall have to wait until the 30 of october, or so. doesn't that seem like a ridiculously absurd amount of time for a laptop to be put together and shipped?? i ordered it several weeks ago, and it will take that long to arrive at my apartment. maybe it's just me, and this crazy instant-gratification world that we live in, but that seems long.

oh well.

my trip to the big easy was fun! i'll post about it a little later when i can actually upload some pictures, but it was nice - i've never been to the south before! we didn't have too much time to go exploring during the day, as we were in the exibit hall all day, but that in and of itself was fun. it was really neat meeting a bunch of our authors face to face.

katherine and i had some great dinners, particularly at muriel's in jackson square in the french quarter. the inside is beautiful - lots of exposed brick and mirrors, and apparently there is some ghost history there? anyway, the food was fantastic: a roasted golden-beet salad, sweet-apple glazed pork chop, and creme brulee (which i couldn't finish because i was so stuffed. i know - me, not finishing dessert?!) very good. we had good southern food the previous two nights, and figured it was time to go to a nicer place. i had a great merlot there too, and i'm not generally a red wine fan.

jackson square itself was really beautiful, and very lively, with lots of tarot readers setting up tables. another thing that i loved about new orleans was the music - i swear, there was a jazz band or a solo trumpet player on almost every other corner! and the beignets! mmm. cafe du monde was fantastic, both for the food, and all of the people and musicians that crowded around the open (but covered) seating area.

the whole city seemed pretty run down and dirty, but it was so much fun - people were lively, and the french quarter, with its beautiful shutters, vibrant colors, and delicate wrought-iron balconies with trailing plants draping over the sides, was beautiful. after our sophisticated dinner last night, we decided to take a walk in an attempt to walk off some of our dinner (no such luck), and ended up walking down bourbon street, which is insane! so many people. scratch that. so many drunk people. stumbling around. drinking hurricanes. dancing in the street. people up on balconies throwing beads down. drunken males on the street yelling to a wedding party on a balcony "show us your boobies!" i love it. people are so hilarious. there were way too many drunk old women and men, but i guess they need their fun too.

all in all, a great trip. i'm glad that i went - the conference was great, and it was neat exploring the city. even though it is pretty run-down from all of the storms passing through, it was great to wander around and take in all the history. because that city has so much history! i wouldn't mind going back there some day, when i have more time to explore during the day.

particularly for beignets.

.cheers.

.failure.

.i suppose the title is a bit of a double-entendre today (except not risque...because when is my life risque?).

first - i am a failure at blogging. period. it's not completely my fault though: i blame my lack of a laptop.

the dang thing keeps giving me the blue screen of death. or the black screen of death with lots of white letters and essentially the message 'eff off, i don't work anymore.' i may be paraphrasing there, but really. we know that's what it means.

second - failure of our economy. can we say melt down?

i was bringing some contract in to my marketer to look over yesterday, and i was like, oh, yeah, how's it going, blah blah, and he just looked at me and i'm watching the market crash.


ahhh, i see... so of course i rushed back to my cube and pulled up all of the great news outlets (what what seattle times!) and low and behold BAILOUT PLAN DENIED splashed across every news website. ever. in huge letters. well, if there wasn't an economic freak-out beforehand, obviously there was one after everyone saw that there could be one. stocks plummeting, etc. etc. i really wouldn't be surprised if we were in for another great depression. i just imagine tumbleweed blowing through my office, pilling up on top of all the manuscripts and books that are already crowding me out of my cube.


no, i don't know. i don't know what to think about this. all i know is that it makes me furious that those ceos make over 1 billion dollars a year. oh wait, silly me, i forgot to add a 0 in there. oh wait, again, silly me... most of them make over 30 billion a year. billion. that is absurd. no one needs that amount of money, particularly people who so royally screw up.

i had a good shot of the nytimes website, but for some reason, that one didn't turn out. oh well.

anyhoo. i baked cookies today. for some reason, i love baking. it is just so soothing. i would have taken pictures, but i'm still using j's computer (god love him)


hopefully, my new computer will arrive soon, and i shall have pictures galore to share. for now, screenshots will have to do.


.cheers.

.farewell.

.my computer is dying.

it has been on the fritz for the past few days, and i have no idea what is wrong with it. (i have no idea where that phrase comes from, or even what that word means, really, but i love it and thus will continue to use it)

and after my billion dollars worth of repairs a year and a half ago, it is definitely not worth it to try to fix it again. i'm sad, i love my little guy. so, i've ordered a new lenovo. should be good, we'll see! meanwhile, i am on j's computer, so can't really post. i wanted to post about new england autumn, and about the red sox game we went to, but that will have to wait.

thankfully, every once in a while, it lets me actually turn it on, and last night was one such night, so i was able to get all of my files off onto an external hard drive. yay.

rip compaq presario, rip. you shall be missed.

.cheers.

.fall.

.apparently, it is fall now.

i don't know how/when this happened, but one day it was 80 out and i had to wear skirts to work, and now i wake up and it's a nippy 46. what happened, boston!? where has summer gone?

now, i love fall. the colors are beautiful, particularly here in new england, the cooler air is nice and fresh, i love wearing big sweaters and cuddling up under a nice comforter, i love halloween and thanksgiving, i love pumpkins and gourds of all colors and sizes, the list goes on. what i don't love, however, are frigid boston winters, where the snow is piled as high as the first story of a building, and people have to dig their cars out in the morning. where my nose freezes on the way to work. etc. etc. that is what fall means to me - the coming doom of a boston winter.

i caught these flowers with a bit more light on them today. love them. they actually smell pretty good, too!

although today was actually really warm and nice and sunny, here is a little farewell to beautiful summer.

there are acorns all over the place. i didn't really notice last year - too busy settling in and trying to find a job, perhaps? but now, i notice them all over the ground. i definitely have been jacked in the head a few times walking underneath the trees to work in the morning. they're like little missiles - watch out! but to me, acorns definitely = fall.

i love these flowers. i pass them every day to/from work, and they're beautiful. they're just starting to die off, so i thought i'd snap a picture or two before the real onslaught of fall and winter.

i love the way the afternoon light hits the flowers in these shots.

hopefully i'll get some good foliage shots soon - there isn't too much red in the leaves yet, but i'm sure it will get there soon, particularly with this cold snap we just got.

.cheers.

.family.

.i'm thinking about christmas and, in my mind, christmas = family.

my beautiful cousins

just got off the phone with k, and it made me miss maui, but, even more so, it made me miss my family? or fambly, if you're into grapes of wrath.

the requisite 'behind the counter at sanch's house' pose

let me explain. lots of normal families live far apart from each other. they see relatives - aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents - maybe three-four times in their lives. they meet cousins once or twice. they have massive family reunions where they go to retreat centers and have potlucks and games and make "johnson family reunion 2009" tee-shirts. they pinch your cheeks. maybe you see them once a year at christmas. if you're lucky.


not my family.

my amazing cousins. minus k and b

growing up, my entire extended family was basically like a slightly extended immediate family. they were a constant fixture in my life, from birthday parties, to new years day parties, to summer weekend get togethers, to easter, to christmas, to caroling, to you name it. l and i were born a day apart, so her and i were basically raised like sisters - twin sisters, might i add, in matching outfits and all. k i wasn't so close to - she's so much older! and when you're 5, older cousins seem much wiser and cooler (now, i know better...ha! love you). i'm glad we're so close now.

possibly my favorite picture of all time. b looks like she has to pee. l looks adorable. k looks like she's on vicodin. a just looks like a happy fat baby. and i look like i'm ready to get away from these crazy people. has anything really changed? just kidding. i wish i had more old pictures uploaded onto my computer.

oh, and i forgot chinese food. every time our family gets together, i swear we go and get chinese food. at least it's good chinese food - thank goodness for linda and her connections.

l and i flying the space shuttle at seattle center. always young at heart.

did i mention that i love the diversity of my family? we're swedes and norwegians, but we are also thai and taiwanese. how awesome is that? although people don't believe me when i say that half of my family is asian.

anyway, my family is awesome, and i'm so glad that we all lived so close growing up. except for doug and sukanya's clan...they were a bit further away (i.e. thailand and japan). but still, we saw them at least once a year, usually more. i'm so grateful too that i grew up with my grandparents so close, both maternal and paternal.

grandpa leland. he is a tough old cookie!

the only problem arises during family gatherings, when you say, hey, will you take a candid shot of me? within 4.6 seconds, the entire family has swarmed around you, and the 'candid shot' has turned into a 5 minute long, strained photo shoot. yee viz.

thank god for fambly.

.cheers.

.tired.

.i am so exhausted today.

no particular reason, i don't think, and i have actually been sleeping really well recently. probably just drained from work, and i think i need to be working out a bit more. ah, geez.

j and i just finished 'no country for old men' - i think within the first five minutes, we had seen approximately 6 murders. maybe more, i lost count.

it's a dark, heavy, depressing movie, but very well done, and beautifully shot - pun potentially intended, i haven't decided yet. good movie, but have to be in the right frame of mind to watch it (i.e. ready to see lots of people die. and i'm not ruining anything when i tell you this. like i said, first five minutes.)

nothing else much new here. i have become a little obsessed with looking at people's photography sites. i think it may make j nervous that i am consistently looking at wedding photography, but whatever, weddings provide great shots and (generally) willing models.

as i type this, there is a raucous party of some sort going on in an apartment either above, below, or next to ours. since we're on the side with another house facing our window, the noise just echoes, too. it's terrible. i thought i left noisy neighbors behind when i left the dorms?

since i'm feeling a bit blah right now, and since the movie was so, well, dark and gloomy, i thought i'd try to liven things up a bit with some bright colors. i love the purple-y, red-y, pinkiness.




.cheers.

.alps.

.by the way, every since m posted about adobe's photomerge feature, i've been itching to try. in adobe's photoshop, you just go to file>automate>photomerge, and it will cobble a panorama shot together of images that you have taken. it's really sweet, and is great for large landscape vistas, and i was poking through my study abroad pictures today, and came across a series of pictures of the swiss alps, from my trip to murren. bingo!

so i had photoshop cleverly stitch together this shot. it's not the best panorama shot, for sure (check out m's blog for some sweet panorama shots), but it's decent, and photoshop does a great job. if you have enough shots stitched together, it gives you a fish-eye lens look. very cool. (i only have the 30 day trial of photoshop cs3, but it allows you to do some pretty neat stuff. i've been a bit hesitant to bite the bullet and buy it, i guess because i'm a bit of a purist - i don't like messing with my pictures).



by the way, recognize the tallest peak? yep, that's jungfrau, the mountain from my head picture above!

anyway, thanks for the sweet tip, m! i'll have to start using this more often.


.cheers.

.home.

.it is official - i'll be home for christmas!

booked my flights last night, and almost gagged due to the ridiculous price of tickets. and there i was, hoping that i could upgrade to first class via saved miles. tough luck. ah, oh well.

for those of you who care (and, i know, religiously follow my blog), i'll be getting into seattle the morning of 18 december, and will be leaving on the same early-morning flight that i always do on sunday, 28 december. so, that will be nice to have so much time at home. (kristin, will you be coming home for cmas?)

nothing else new here. tonight, j's friend from l. school is hosting a dessert party with his wife (i think she's the one that is hosting, really). they just had a baby, so i think it is mostly to introduce everyone to the baby. i'm going to make my dark and light brownies. mmm.


one thing that i think is funny - j decided to order pizza (apparently playing im football out in the rain makes you hungry...who knew), and he felt the need to order via the world wide web. so he ordered his pizza, and on the confirmation page, it shows you when the pizza is in the order, prep, bake, box, and delivery stages. so, we could see that fabio was prepping j's pizza, that it went into the oven at 2:14, and that omar is delivering our pizza. now that, my friends, is an example of way too much information.

a few more macro shots (told you i'm obsessed). flowers are even awesome when they're all shriveled and wrinkly. i love the visibility of their veins, and the texture of the petals - all leathery and dry.



.cheers.

.macro.

.i have decided that i am obsessed with macro.

macro photography, that is (as opposed to the computer science - but really, was there any question?)

for some reason, i just love getting really up close to tiny things - is that strange? i guess i just love flowers. and bugs. but it's fun shooting things that are so small, as you can often see things that you wouldn't notice with the 'naked eye.' i hate that phrase, by the way. don't know why i just used it.




these pictures are all taken with my little canon powershot sd800. i love that little sucker, and it's way easier and less-clunky than carrying around my nikon. don't get me wrong, i love the weight of the d-slr, and the feel of the lense in my hand, and actually putting my eyeball up to the viewfinder, but alas, dad has still not found the time to send the battery charger and installation cd, so i have all of these pictures and no computer to upload them onto.

anyway. so yes, i love macro. the last two images were taken today with fairly low lighting, so the pictures are a bit fuzzy, but these flowers are like weeds - they are all over the fences in the blocks surrounding our apartment. they are so pretty and dainty. and i just had to throw the hydrangeas in there. love hydrangeas.

due to my love of/obsession with macro, i really should get a sweet macro lens, but 1. they are expensive, and 2. i haven't really gone out and done 'shoots.' (although obviously, my bee photo shoot should count for something. he was an excellent model. very sexy.) clearly, i am no professional, nor am i an advanced amateur. i just love macro. is that a crime? no.


in other non-related news, i got together with a friend from hna last night! i haven't seen her nor really heard from her since graduation (i know, i'm such a terrible friend), but we finally got together. we live one t stop apart, so there really is no excuse, except that she travels all the time for work (can we say jealous?? japan? australia? c'mon, i should be travelling to these places for work too!), and i am somewhat of a grandma/recluse and for some reason seem to think that staying home and reading is socially acceptable, and that going to bed by 10pm is normal behavior. next, i will be eating dinner at 4pm and investing in velcro shoes.

anyway, it was really great to see her - we went to john harvards, got some drinks and dinner and caught up, which was really nice. it's great to have a friend in boston that is not either a. work-related, or b. a j/law school friend. so, we have vowed that we will make the attempt to get together more often (in between her ridiculous travel schedule, that is).

so that's about it. anyone else have any sweet macro shots they would like to share?

.cheers.

.work it.

.dear lord.

on sunday, i went to the gym while j went to play volleyball. i love the harvard gym, and the harvard law school gym. it's absurd, the amount of money those schools have - every single cardio machine has a little tv attached to it. ridiculous. but that's how i get my food network in!

anyway, so i worked out for an hour, which was nice, because i feel like i never have time to work out, and it was sunday, so it was fairly empty.

then, i went up to wait for j, and got 'roped into' playing. and by 'got roped into,' i mean i was dying to play, and j must have seen the longing in my face.

anyway, so we ended up playing vball for two hours. so much fun - i miss vball so much! even disorganized vball where some of the people look like they've never picked up a ball in their life.

i'll admit, it was a bit of a rusty start. hey, give me a break, i haven't played in over a year! but it was a lot of fun, and i got my groove back. obviously, because i'm the bomb. not really, but still. not too shabby, if i do say so meself.

i'm a bit sore still, though, as i haven't really used my vball muscles in a while. oh, and i have a massively disfigured left arm bicep now, because some guy on the other team somehow got around j's massive block and i got the ball up, but, as i haven't played vball in forever, my arms are not used to that level of passing (or any form of passing - out of shape, much?), and i literally felt my muscle slide over as the bullet-hit slammed into me. because at that point, i was not so much passing the ball as standing there and letting it hit off of me. ouch.

but still. lots o' fun. and i have hopefully weasled my way onto j's intramural team. which would be so much fun. cross the fingers!

not much else new here. apparently j got us tickets to an upcoming sox game, so that should be fun as well. i've only been to one so far, although i can't complain - it was a world series game! (thanks doug!!). so i'm excited about that.

my life is boring, basically.

.cheers.

.hurricane.

.these past two days have been incredibly muggy and sweaty. not that boston isn't always muggy and sweaty in the summer, but this is a different mugginess. it's much more dense and damp. like walking outside in a sopping wet, but still hot, comforter on. scratch that. shag rug.

thank you, hurricane hanna.

so i was walking to the store today, seeing as we badly needed milk and frozen blueberries, and was pleased with the air-conditioned goodness of shaw's. however, on my way home, it started to rain. in all fairness, i was somewhat hoping that it would rain, as i was already sweating as it was, and thought the rain would cool me down.

no.

it was that wet, tropical rain that is hot and not at all refreshing. like big shag rugs just falling on me. like walking home in a sauna.

thanks again, h. hanna.

so now there is a torrential tropical downpour outside that has been steadily falling for at least three hours, and the storm hasn't even hit us yet.

lovely.

i just hope that another hurricane does not disrupt my conference travel plans to new orleans for the sha in october. i need some beignets!


by the way, funny story:

as i was on the orange line coming back from work the other night, just minding my own business, doing my usual after-work-sudoku, i see a guy sit down one seat away from me. mind you, it was a fairly empty car (shocking, for rush-hour), so i was like, weirdo, and kept at my sudoku. then i see him, out of the corner of my eye, just staring at me.

naturally, i thought pervo/creepo/crazy man, and started looking around the car for large men, in case this guy grabbed me and tried to rape/stab/who-knows-what me.

he mumbled something.

excuse me?
i said, did you ever live in south africa?
um, no.
ah. you look like a girl that i went to school with there. who did a homestay in south africa.
i see. no, i have never lived there. i haven't even visited, although i would love to. i've heard it's beautiful.

he went on to explain that he was from south africa, was a pediatrician there, and spent all of his time off travelling. he had been in the states for two months. didn't like massachusetts at all, liked san diego and california, liked seattle. apparently he was forty - he did not look forty. at all.

to be honest, a lot of his story seemed a bit weird/shady/not true, but it was kind of neat that he was just a random chatty-kathy on the t. i feel like people get so wrapped up in their own little bubble that there is not enough of that human interaction.

.cheers.

.fiscal.year.

.this week is budget week.

.the bane of my existence.

well, not really. but it's pretty annoying/frustrating/eyebrow-pulling inducing/least fun part of my job. (i may be exaggerating, but only a little)

basically, i have been trying to determine what will be in our budget year for fy10 (and don't even get me started on this whole 'fiscal year' thing!).

and it astounds me how late some of these authors are! seriously, many of the projects on the classics list had contracted delivery dates from 2005 and 2006. three years ago! some even before that! it's ridiculous! and these are academics. i swear, they need to be herded, like sheep or children. these are the people that i so looked up to as a student. don't get me wrong, i still greatly admire those in academe. but honestly, people. i never turned papers in late. never! not even a day! and your manuscript is three years late? seriously? it makes me very cynical. i understand that emergencies pop up, i do. but there are only so many times i can take the excuse of "my wife and i had a child 8 months ago so i still am unable to work on the script." c'mon people.

it also astounds me how often people just don't respond to my emails or calls. how can you not respond to someone who has essentially hired you?

granted, we have many many amazing authors and editors who do get their scripts in on time, are very responsive, and are a joy to work with. it's just that other crowd that drives me nuts. it just is incredible to me how people who are under contract will be so late. i found one script that was supposed to come in 1997. still isn't in. sheesh.

in other news, yesterday was 'every student in the world pile back into boston day.' mayhem and turmoil, i say. so many people moving in! so much junk on the sidewalks! so many moving vans! ah, the good ol' days of college. how i miss thee.

i wish i could put up some of my pictures from my d-slr, but alas, dad still has the installation software, and without it, my computer doesn't recognize my sweet sweet camera. (c'mon dad! send it and the batt. charger already!)

*sigh* life is so hard.

.cheers!.

.family.

.for some reason, bristol palin's teenage pregnancy is incredibly ironic.

i know it is terrible for me to chuckle at a family's embarrassment and, some could say, misfortune, but it just seems so fitting that the teenaged daughter of the republican vice presidential hopeful is five months pregnant.

this obviously gives sarah palin the chance to pander to staunch social conservatives by espousing her anti-abortion views, but it just seems laughable to me that this would come up right on the heels of her candidacy.

i applaud the family for being so supportive of bristol, i do - apparently she has decided to keep the baby and marry the baby's father. but really, what else could they, or she, do? nothing. if she had done anything else, it would have imploded the republican campaign. as it stands, it still seems like the situation is slathered in irony - the party that generally promotes no pre-marital sex, etc. etc. has spawned this situation. it is a bit hard to take a tough moral stand when the teenaged daughter of the republican vice presidential hopeful is knocked up.

if anything, this just goes to show that we really do need more/better sex education in the u.s. none of this "abstinence only" education nonsense.

i just hope that the democrats don't start attacking the family, as it will just make them come off as sympathetic victims.

let's see how this all plays out.

.cheers.