This past weekend I made my first trip out of Belgium, to Maastricht in the Netherlands to take part in the Carnaval celebrations. The first festivities began on November 11 (the 11th day of the 11th month) and culminated in the parades and balls taking place from Sunday until today.
It was a fabulous experience, the city was full of people of all ages dressed up in weird and wonderful costumes. I took tons of picture and they are in my flickr uploadr just waiting for me to add the proper captions, so I will share those later.
Today I just want to share my favorite float in the entire parade, I couldn't stop laughing at the ridiculous-ness of it. I have no idea who this is supposed to be, but now I really want to make something like this for Burning Man.
I could watch that every day and still laugh. Just thinking about those little feet shuffling along under a GIANT HEAD makes me LOL.
And now Lent begins. I am thinking about giving up speaking English (to people who speak French) for Lent. Either that or Nutella.
Or just not do anything since I don't really practice any specific religion.
But, I do need to work on my French and probably shouldn't be so free about eating Nutella by the spoonful, so Lent kinda comes in handy.
Showing posts with label absurdity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label absurdity. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Better than the Fanta Girls
Saw this on Youtube today and loved it. I think the DJ teacher is my favorite. But a close second is the Soap Opera teacher.
The way the student says "That hurt" with so little expressiveness just killed me.
My own personal teaching style is probably most like Dragon, making things exciting but no so dramatic as Soap Opera (although the kicking the desk was classic).
The way the student says "That hurt" with so little expressiveness just killed me.
My own personal teaching style is probably most like Dragon, making things exciting but no so dramatic as Soap Opera (although the kicking the desk was classic).
Friday, November 21, 2008
Cash in the Garage
Last weekend I helped my dad have a garage sale
I manned the cash register and watched over the customers. It was quite fun, as I haven't had a garage sale with dad in over 20 years. We had much fun and we made about $200 bucks total. I was amazed at how much cool vintage stuff dad had, and was happy to take a good amount of stuff that no one else bought.
My favorite find was this space heater. It has two settings: plugged in (on) and not plugged in (off). It was made way before things like "safety" went into the design of small heating appliances, so it could totally burn the house down if left unattended.
But there were also some great items from my past for sale that made me a little nostalgic. This is what I used to type my papers up in high school before I got my first computer. It was so cool to be able to type in a paragraph and preview it on the little screen sentence by sentence before hitting the 'print' button!
And then I found my pac-man phone from when I was a kid! Turns out dad had 3 of these, so I snagged on in the original box, in case I decided to eBay this someday...
I remember thinking this phone was the coolest thing ever, especially since it played a tune when you put someone on hold, I felt so grown up putting people on hold.
I also got this super cute speaker that still works! I won't be taking it to Belgium, but I will keep it for my next apartment in America.
The biggest sellers on the day though, were these little doorstops for ten cents each. Almost everyone that got something usually picked up one or two of these. I suppose that this is the season for home improvement projects.
I manned the cash register and watched over the customers. It was quite fun, as I haven't had a garage sale with dad in over 20 years. We had much fun and we made about $200 bucks total. I was amazed at how much cool vintage stuff dad had, and was happy to take a good amount of stuff that no one else bought.
My favorite find was this space heater. It has two settings: plugged in (on) and not plugged in (off). It was made way before things like "safety" went into the design of small heating appliances, so it could totally burn the house down if left unattended.
But there were also some great items from my past for sale that made me a little nostalgic. This is what I used to type my papers up in high school before I got my first computer. It was so cool to be able to type in a paragraph and preview it on the little screen sentence by sentence before hitting the 'print' button!
And then I found my pac-man phone from when I was a kid! Turns out dad had 3 of these, so I snagged on in the original box, in case I decided to eBay this someday...
I remember thinking this phone was the coolest thing ever, especially since it played a tune when you put someone on hold, I felt so grown up putting people on hold.
I also got this super cute speaker that still works! I won't be taking it to Belgium, but I will keep it for my next apartment in America.
The biggest sellers on the day though, were these little doorstops for ten cents each. Almost everyone that got something usually picked up one or two of these. I suppose that this is the season for home improvement projects.
Saturday, November 01, 2008
Happy Nevada Day! Oh, and Halloween too!
On this date in 1864, Nevada was admitted to the union of these great United States. And so in all my years growing up in Las Vegas, we got Halloween off from school. Today the holiday is observed on the last friday of October, which this year happens to fall on actual Halloween.
So BFF and the family went off to enjoy their long weekend in a cabin in the mountains, and I am here with her mom and the pets giving out candy on Halloween for the first time in years. So far there has only been 1 set of trick or treaters, but it has only been dark for about half an hour so we'll see.
Part of my Halloween celebration involved getting some fabulous wigs to wear throughout the weekend*
The cat was very interested in the wig trying-on process, he wanted to get in all the pictures.
BFF was kind enough to leave a pumpkin behind for me, and I got to use my mad carving skills that I perfected at the pumpkin carving parties I used to go to in Pennsylvania. I am a big fan of the classic triangles and funny teeth look.
Of course the best part about carving a pumpkin is getting the messy yet delicious seeds, yum!!
I also put the spooky skull by the door to lend to the aura of halloween-ness and the cat certainly seemed intrigued by this new addition to the porch.
There have been a couple more sets of trick-or-treaters while I have been writing this post. I have noticed that when they say "Trick-or-treat" I say it back. Each time it seems stupid, like when you are at the movies and the ticket person tells you to enjoy the show and you say "you too".
Happy Halloween everyone!
*and especially to wear at Burning Man next year!
So BFF and the family went off to enjoy their long weekend in a cabin in the mountains, and I am here with her mom and the pets giving out candy on Halloween for the first time in years. So far there has only been 1 set of trick or treaters, but it has only been dark for about half an hour so we'll see.
Part of my Halloween celebration involved getting some fabulous wigs to wear throughout the weekend*
The cat was very interested in the wig trying-on process, he wanted to get in all the pictures.
BFF was kind enough to leave a pumpkin behind for me, and I got to use my mad carving skills that I perfected at the pumpkin carving parties I used to go to in Pennsylvania. I am a big fan of the classic triangles and funny teeth look.
Of course the best part about carving a pumpkin is getting the messy yet delicious seeds, yum!!
I also put the spooky skull by the door to lend to the aura of halloween-ness and the cat certainly seemed intrigued by this new addition to the porch.
There have been a couple more sets of trick-or-treaters while I have been writing this post. I have noticed that when they say "Trick-or-treat" I say it back. Each time it seems stupid, like when you are at the movies and the ticket person tells you to enjoy the show and you say "you too".
Happy Halloween everyone!
*and especially to wear at Burning Man next year!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
quality time with my dad
I've been helping my dad out a bit while I am in Vegas. It has been good times, but occasionally I am dumbstruck by his politics.
Today he told me that public schools teach communist and socialist propoganda.
I had to laugh because he told me this while were were collecting bread to donate to local charities.
I told him that I hope he appreciates the irony of that statement, since donating food to the needy is about as socialist as you can get. If he really wanted to be anti-socialist we should take this bread to the needy and then burn it in front of them while taunting them for not working hard enough to put food on the table. Don't talk the talk unless you're prepared to walk the walk.
We still brought the food to the needy, so I think he saw my point.
Today he told me that public schools teach communist and socialist propoganda.
I had to laugh because he told me this while were were collecting bread to donate to local charities.
I told him that I hope he appreciates the irony of that statement, since donating food to the needy is about as socialist as you can get. If he really wanted to be anti-socialist we should take this bread to the needy and then burn it in front of them while taunting them for not working hard enough to put food on the table. Don't talk the talk unless you're prepared to walk the walk.
We still brought the food to the needy, so I think he saw my point.
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
civic duties and lapsed memories
I got my ballot! Yay! I'm sending it in before the end of the week.
Today I finished going through 2 and a half giant boxes of high school and college memorabilia and condensed it down to 1 box. I packed those boxes a good 10-12 years ago, and have just moved them from my dad's storage unit to my own storage unit. So I decided to go through them.
It is so interesting what we decide to keep forever when we are 20 because it is so important, and 10 years later I have no idea where it came from. I was surprised at the number of birthday and holiday cards from people I have no recollection of were in those boxes.
I saved the obviously important things, like my yearbooks. The 8th grade book from 1991 was a spectacular example of teenage insanity and angst. Apparently I was filled with some serious hate for some of my classmates, since I WHITED OUT both their names AND their pictures. Wow. I am so glad I grew up.
Luckily the other years' books were not as horrible.
Of course I found my mortar, and guess what? It still fits! woot!
I decided that since I have gotten 2 more degrees since then, I could part with the mortar.
There were tons of notebooks and planners filled with my daily activities and gossip with friends. I was a pretty active traveller in high school, going on as many school trips as my parents could afford, and kept every single little bag and brochure I found. Because at 16 riding on the Washington DC subway is new and interesting so I had to keep my metro ticket. At 31, on the other hand, I've been on many metros, and DC's metro several times. I can throw away the ticket.
Some of the doodles in my notebooks gave me a chuckle before tossing them in the bin.
My naive younger self also felt it was crucial to keep citizenship award from 1991, my driver's manual, a tiny plastic ballerina, a high school memory book, a champions for Jesus sticker, and a wooden dowel.
Because, you never know when you could use a dowel.
Today I finished going through 2 and a half giant boxes of high school and college memorabilia and condensed it down to 1 box. I packed those boxes a good 10-12 years ago, and have just moved them from my dad's storage unit to my own storage unit. So I decided to go through them.
It is so interesting what we decide to keep forever when we are 20 because it is so important, and 10 years later I have no idea where it came from. I was surprised at the number of birthday and holiday cards from people I have no recollection of were in those boxes.
I saved the obviously important things, like my yearbooks. The 8th grade book from 1991 was a spectacular example of teenage insanity and angst. Apparently I was filled with some serious hate for some of my classmates, since I WHITED OUT both their names AND their pictures. Wow. I am so glad I grew up.
Luckily the other years' books were not as horrible.
Of course I found my mortar, and guess what? It still fits! woot!
I decided that since I have gotten 2 more degrees since then, I could part with the mortar.
There were tons of notebooks and planners filled with my daily activities and gossip with friends. I was a pretty active traveller in high school, going on as many school trips as my parents could afford, and kept every single little bag and brochure I found. Because at 16 riding on the Washington DC subway is new and interesting so I had to keep my metro ticket. At 31, on the other hand, I've been on many metros, and DC's metro several times. I can throw away the ticket.
Some of the doodles in my notebooks gave me a chuckle before tossing them in the bin.
My naive younger self also felt it was crucial to keep citizenship award from 1991, my driver's manual, a tiny plastic ballerina, a high school memory book, a champions for Jesus sticker, and a wooden dowel.
Because, you never know when you could use a dowel.
Monday, September 08, 2008
getting on top of things
It has certainly been a trying time getting all of my stuff packed up in PA and then moving across the country to hamsterdad's house.
I haven't lived with hamsterdad for about 20 or so years. My parents got divorced when I was about 9 or 10. There was the usual divorce drama (dad was sleeping with my friend's mom, and knocked her up, it was quite a soap opera). In the end, hamsterdad wanted joint custody, he wanted to be a part of my life, which is a great thing, considering other people are not so lucky.
So, the plan was that I would spend night's with hamsterdad (my mom worked the graveyard shift), and then days at Mom's and weekends were split or something, I don't remember it much since it did not last terribly long. Turns out stepmom was not happy at all with the arrangement, she was mean to me and constantly yelling at my dad about the living arrangement. After one particularly traumatic morning where stepmom yelled "you are not her babysitter!!!" to my dad, I had enough. On the way to school, I told my dad never to bring me back to that house again. He asked why, and I told him "Because she treats me like shit and you don't do anything about it".
It was the first time I had ever sworn in front of my dad. I was 10 years old.
And I never set foot in the house again until a couple of years ago when I came to visit Vegas on vacation and I couldn't stay at my friend's house that week.
Now that I am an adult, I can look at the situation from a different perspective. I now understand how difficult it is when relationships end and how hard it is to build new ones. I can see that stepmom had her own issues with her divorce and the fact that her ex basically disappeared from his daughter's (my stepsister's) life was not fair to anyone. I have alot of sympathy for her at that time, and I can understand that she was in alot of pain.
But that doesn't make her behavior acceptable. I did not cause any of the drama in her life, and it was not appropriate for her to take out her frustrations on me. Nor was it appropriate for my dad to sit idly by and let the emotional abuse occur.
20 years is a long time, and in that time I worked through the issues that were born from that time in my life, and I feel that I have forgiven both my stepmother and my father, and also have forgiven myself. Nobody is perfect, and I have grown and changed and learned, and so I felt that I could move into my dad's house temporarily no problem.
Unfortunately, stepmom and halfsister appear to see it differently. I have repeatedly tried to put a forward a friendly face and lend a hand, etc, but have received essentially nothing in return. Things are not quite hostile, but they are no where near civil. Today, I said good morning to stepmom, and she started talking to her dog, not even an acknowledgement. I just don't understand it.
All I can do is keep on truckin' and being friendly, and perhaps eventually they will loosen up. If not, at least I know I only have to put up with it for several more weeks, and I can escape to friends' places.
There is a bright side: Larry the Cat is quite affectionate and appears to love having me here. He especially seems to love me most when I start trying to work on my computer on the couch. And he leaves tons of cat hair on me to make sure I know how much he cares all day long.
Today I am getting a storage unit, since there is not enough room in my tiny room and the cluttered garage for all of my stuff, and I won't be taking all the stuff I brought here with me to Belgium. Not having to step over boxes to get around my room will make me feel much more comfortable.
I haven't lived with hamsterdad for about 20 or so years. My parents got divorced when I was about 9 or 10. There was the usual divorce drama (dad was sleeping with my friend's mom, and knocked her up, it was quite a soap opera). In the end, hamsterdad wanted joint custody, he wanted to be a part of my life, which is a great thing, considering other people are not so lucky.
So, the plan was that I would spend night's with hamsterdad (my mom worked the graveyard shift), and then days at Mom's and weekends were split or something, I don't remember it much since it did not last terribly long. Turns out stepmom was not happy at all with the arrangement, she was mean to me and constantly yelling at my dad about the living arrangement. After one particularly traumatic morning where stepmom yelled "you are not her babysitter!!!" to my dad, I had enough. On the way to school, I told my dad never to bring me back to that house again. He asked why, and I told him "Because she treats me like shit and you don't do anything about it".
It was the first time I had ever sworn in front of my dad. I was 10 years old.
And I never set foot in the house again until a couple of years ago when I came to visit Vegas on vacation and I couldn't stay at my friend's house that week.
Now that I am an adult, I can look at the situation from a different perspective. I now understand how difficult it is when relationships end and how hard it is to build new ones. I can see that stepmom had her own issues with her divorce and the fact that her ex basically disappeared from his daughter's (my stepsister's) life was not fair to anyone. I have alot of sympathy for her at that time, and I can understand that she was in alot of pain.
But that doesn't make her behavior acceptable. I did not cause any of the drama in her life, and it was not appropriate for her to take out her frustrations on me. Nor was it appropriate for my dad to sit idly by and let the emotional abuse occur.
20 years is a long time, and in that time I worked through the issues that were born from that time in my life, and I feel that I have forgiven both my stepmother and my father, and also have forgiven myself. Nobody is perfect, and I have grown and changed and learned, and so I felt that I could move into my dad's house temporarily no problem.
Unfortunately, stepmom and halfsister appear to see it differently. I have repeatedly tried to put a forward a friendly face and lend a hand, etc, but have received essentially nothing in return. Things are not quite hostile, but they are no where near civil. Today, I said good morning to stepmom, and she started talking to her dog, not even an acknowledgement. I just don't understand it.
All I can do is keep on truckin' and being friendly, and perhaps eventually they will loosen up. If not, at least I know I only have to put up with it for several more weeks, and I can escape to friends' places.
There is a bright side: Larry the Cat is quite affectionate and appears to love having me here. He especially seems to love me most when I start trying to work on my computer on the couch. And he leaves tons of cat hair on me to make sure I know how much he cares all day long.
Today I am getting a storage unit, since there is not enough room in my tiny room and the cluttered garage for all of my stuff, and I won't be taking all the stuff I brought here with me to Belgium. Not having to step over boxes to get around my room will make me feel much more comfortable.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
the invisible hand of fate
Today, after much fretting and some deep breaths, I emailed the place I interviewed in California to see what the status is with me going there for a post-doc. No word back yet, but I am hopeful I will hear news within the next couple of days.
Also our intramural softball team had a fun practice today, which we probably need since we have not been very successful at winning all of our games. The weather was pretty exciting, with distant peals of thunder and ominous clouds adding to the excitment of slow-pitch softball practice. When it was my turn to bat, I tried the fancy new bat that impressed me with its sleek rubber grip and flames on the sides, I think it was called the Talon. Ultimately, the Talon failed to impress me, so I switched to the trusty black Powercell we got last season. After the switch, the wind kicked up and leaves and small branches started swirling around us, and the several hits I made that barely passed the pitcher made me feel compelled to yell, "FEEL MY WRATH!!! POWERCELL!!!!" The rest of the team was mildly amused, but I found it very satisfying to yell about my wrath. and the POWERCELL!!! I highly recommend it.
In geekier news, the newest version of Firefox is set for official release tomorrow! I am very excited about this because I heart firefox, I heart it good. So, if you also are a fan of easy internet browsing that is much sleeker and uses a hell of alot less memory than clunky, error prone old IE7, download firefox 3 tomorrow with me and help make Mozilla's dream of a Guiness World Record a reality!
Lastly, since I haven't quoted my horoscope lately:
Part of my horoscope this week from astrobarry:
I am going to keep this advice in mind this week when my advisor and I go over the final edit of my most recent manuscript and try to figure out a date for my defense.
Also our intramural softball team had a fun practice today, which we probably need since we have not been very successful at winning all of our games. The weather was pretty exciting, with distant peals of thunder and ominous clouds adding to the excitment of slow-pitch softball practice. When it was my turn to bat, I tried the fancy new bat that impressed me with its sleek rubber grip and flames on the sides, I think it was called the Talon. Ultimately, the Talon failed to impress me, so I switched to the trusty black Powercell we got last season. After the switch, the wind kicked up and leaves and small branches started swirling around us, and the several hits I made that barely passed the pitcher made me feel compelled to yell, "FEEL MY WRATH!!! POWERCELL!!!!" The rest of the team was mildly amused, but I found it very satisfying to yell about my wrath. and the POWERCELL!!! I highly recommend it.
In geekier news, the newest version of Firefox is set for official release tomorrow! I am very excited about this because I heart firefox, I heart it good. So, if you also are a fan of easy internet browsing that is much sleeker and uses a hell of alot less memory than clunky, error prone old IE7, download firefox 3 tomorrow with me and help make Mozilla's dream of a Guiness World Record a reality!
Lastly, since I haven't quoted my horoscope lately:
Part of my horoscope this week from astrobarry:
Don't let your pride get the best of you, even if the other person is missing your point or having trouble grasping where you're coming from. The extra aggressiveness one or both of you is feeling could be a red herring—that is, not really as big a deal as it seems at the time. Sure, you may think they 'should' understand your line of thinking by now… but if they don't, just be a sport and (patiently!) explain it to 'em for the third or fourth time, rather than jumping down their throat. Believe it or not, your position is not as self-evident as you're making it out to be. (Furthermore, you might not even be so damned sure of it yourself, if you'd just calm down for a moment and examine the fine print.)
I am going to keep this advice in mind this week when my advisor and I go over the final edit of my most recent manuscript and try to figure out a date for my defense.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
groceries and a nightmare
I was at the store today and saw one of the chefs dressed in his chef coat and chef hat, pushing a shopping cart containing a big cardboard box that had the words "CHEFS HATS" printed on it. It struck me as very absurd and made me laugh out loud at the grocery store.
Also, this morning I had the most revolting dream while I was hitting the snooze button on my alarm clock*.
I must warn you, it's vile.
If you have a thing like a phobia about bugs, don' t read this.
If you are eating right now, don't read this.
If you hate hearing about people's dreams in general, don't read this.
OK, you have been warned.
I warned you that it would be gross. But anyway,
I woke up completely grossed out about the idea of BUGS UNDER MY SKIN! YUCK!
Sorry, but if anything deserves unabashed use of capslock BUGS UNDER SKIN sure does.
*shudders*
I went to sleep worrying about not doing enough work this weekend and enjoying myself too much. So I suppose my dream punishment for hanging out at the dream beach with dream freinds was bugs under my skin.
The internet tells me that insects and spiders in dreams symbolize worry, so perhaps my worried thoughts when going to sleep started it.
Also I had just read the story in the Onion about a caterpillar on a rampage. My bugs looked an awful lot like a hairless, flesh-eating caterpillars. I'm just sayin.
Well, I hope your days and nights have not been filled with flesh eating bugs.
Sweet dreams.
*for the, like, 10th time
Also, this morning I had the most revolting dream while I was hitting the snooze button on my alarm clock*.
I must warn you, it's vile.
If you have a thing like a phobia about bugs, don' t read this.
If you are eating right now, don't read this.
If you hate hearing about people's dreams in general, don't read this.
OK, you have been warned.
I dreamt that I was at the beach with some friends, we were laughing and enjoying the ocean, boogie boarding and surfing and such, and then it was time to get out. I started swimming for shore, and then got to the end of the ocean, which was surprisingly tiled like the edge of a swimming pool. I was trying to hoist myself out of the water next to a couple who were starting to make out. I was attempting to get out and not disturb them but I accidentally bumped the guy and disturbed their, ahem, activities. At first they were irritated (as expected) and then they noticed some small bumps on my arm.
"Oh, you swam through sea spiders" she said and pointed to my arm. I looked and there were three little bumps on my wrist, that kind of looked like fire ant bites after they pop.
The woman grabbed my wrist and then sucked on the bites. I was disconcerted that a complete stranger was sucking some bug bites on my arm, but that was only the beginning. After she sucked on the bites for a few seconds, she stopped and then spit out the TINY BUGS that were INSIDE the bite on my skin. (UGH!!).
She then told me that I would need to suck the rest of the bugs out of the other bites that were on my other arm because they could grow there and be dangerous.
I warned you that it would be gross. But anyway,
I thanked the lady for telling me about the sea spiders and then noticed that there were some stairs out of the ocean so I could get out of the water easier than hoisting myself up and out over the pool ledge. I went to the beach house with my friends and while they all took naps I attended to my bug bites.
By this time the bugs were bigger and I was squeezing little centipede like creatures out of the bites. I found one large bite that had about 10 creatures in it, and they flew out of the bite on one arm and onto my other arm, where they magically grew into inch long centipede-y creatures that started trying to BORE INTO MY ARM!!!! I had to keep these centipedes from rearing up and boring their heads into my skin, being careful to get their head out so it wouldn't go into my arm and get lost in circulation. Also, if I accidentally took the head off of a centipede before it bit me, the next segment would automatically become the new head. I kept peeling the bugs off of me and throwing them in the sink, trying to be very quiet because my friends were napping.
I woke up completely grossed out about the idea of BUGS UNDER MY SKIN! YUCK!
Sorry, but if anything deserves unabashed use of capslock BUGS UNDER SKIN sure does.
*shudders*
I went to sleep worrying about not doing enough work this weekend and enjoying myself too much. So I suppose my dream punishment for hanging out at the dream beach with dream freinds was bugs under my skin.
The internet tells me that insects and spiders in dreams symbolize worry, so perhaps my worried thoughts when going to sleep started it.
Also I had just read the story in the Onion about a caterpillar on a rampage. My bugs looked an awful lot like a hairless, flesh-eating caterpillars. I'm just sayin.
Well, I hope your days and nights have not been filled with flesh eating bugs.
Sweet dreams.
*for the, like, 10th time
Friday, June 06, 2008
travelling shoes
Before Basil's demise, I spent much of last week and last weekend trekking to major metropolitan areas for work and fun.
For fun I went to Philadelphia and saw Eric Hutchinson with Frogweiler. She and I first saw him at the Tin Angel as an opening act. It was just him and his guitar, and we liked what we heard. Now he has a band and we heard one of his songs in a promo before the Sex and the City movie. I talked to him after the show and told him that we had been going to his shows for a while and it has been a good time seeing him grow in his music and success. I am thinking that the next time I see him (in California *fingers crossed*), he'll be too big to hang out at the merch table after the show. Who knows.
I also ventured near the city of brotherly love for work. I was at the Villanova campus, which was quite lovely, even with the crucifixes in the classrooms. Then later I went to Arcadia University (formerly Beaver College, heh, heh, beaver). That university had a gorgeous campus, centered around this castle.
I decided that if I ever build a university, I will definitely have a castle put in. And, as far as castles are concerned, the one at Arcadia is very well designed because I could not get into that place! Every time I turned a corner expecting a door, there was none. I felt a bit like I was disappointing my viking ancestors by not instantly gaining access to that fortress. Perhaps my true talents lie in seafaring.
Frogweiler and I again joined forces to journey into Manhattan to see Sondre Lerche. The drive in was pretty smooth, with the usual hold up at the Holland tunnel because Frogweiler still does not have an EasyPass! The music at the show was great, Sondre Lerche give such a positive energy to the crowd that I always love. What I don't love, however, is lower Manhattan when it is warm and humid on a Sunday. Warm and humid in any place on any day does not make me happy, but this is a special case.
You see, the music Frogwieler and I love is usually played at places in Manhattan below, say 14th St. Oh yeah, we're downtown girls. Also, many of the shows we have seen also happen to fall on Sunday nights. Sunday night also happens to be garbage night in the east village and everywhere between there and the holland tunnel. So, the warm, humid weather kind of, shall we say, accentuates that special 'city smell'.
It makes the stickiness that everyone feels in the humid weather feel extra dirty, so it is not my favorite.
The garbage on the streets is not something that tourists flock to see, so we decided that this weekend we will venture into the city again to take a photographic tour of weird places to see while in New York (this time on Saturday). For example, I think we may start at Canal Rubber because if it's in rubber, they have it! Basically we are trying for off-off-off-the beaten track, but not so off the beaten track that we get mugged.
Plus, I am bringing the zombies, so if you have any suggestions for where we must go, let me know! Dingo, do you have any tips?
For fun I went to Philadelphia and saw Eric Hutchinson with Frogweiler. She and I first saw him at the Tin Angel as an opening act. It was just him and his guitar, and we liked what we heard. Now he has a band and we heard one of his songs in a promo before the Sex and the City movie. I talked to him after the show and told him that we had been going to his shows for a while and it has been a good time seeing him grow in his music and success. I am thinking that the next time I see him (in California *fingers crossed*), he'll be too big to hang out at the merch table after the show. Who knows.
I also ventured near the city of brotherly love for work. I was at the Villanova campus, which was quite lovely, even with the crucifixes in the classrooms. Then later I went to Arcadia University (formerly Beaver College, heh, heh, beaver). That university had a gorgeous campus, centered around this castle.
I decided that if I ever build a university, I will definitely have a castle put in. And, as far as castles are concerned, the one at Arcadia is very well designed because I could not get into that place! Every time I turned a corner expecting a door, there was none. I felt a bit like I was disappointing my viking ancestors by not instantly gaining access to that fortress. Perhaps my true talents lie in seafaring.
Frogweiler and I again joined forces to journey into Manhattan to see Sondre Lerche. The drive in was pretty smooth, with the usual hold up at the Holland tunnel because Frogweiler still does not have an EasyPass! The music at the show was great, Sondre Lerche give such a positive energy to the crowd that I always love. What I don't love, however, is lower Manhattan when it is warm and humid on a Sunday. Warm and humid in any place on any day does not make me happy, but this is a special case.
You see, the music Frogwieler and I love is usually played at places in Manhattan below, say 14th St. Oh yeah, we're downtown girls. Also, many of the shows we have seen also happen to fall on Sunday nights. Sunday night also happens to be garbage night in the east village and everywhere between there and the holland tunnel. So, the warm, humid weather kind of, shall we say, accentuates that special 'city smell'.
It makes the stickiness that everyone feels in the humid weather feel extra dirty, so it is not my favorite.
The garbage on the streets is not something that tourists flock to see, so we decided that this weekend we will venture into the city again to take a photographic tour of weird places to see while in New York (this time on Saturday). For example, I think we may start at Canal Rubber because if it's in rubber, they have it! Basically we are trying for off-off-off-the beaten track, but not so off the beaten track that we get mugged.
Plus, I am bringing the zombies, so if you have any suggestions for where we must go, let me know! Dingo, do you have any tips?
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Hilarity ensued
On Sunday night, Frogweiler and I went to see the Kids in the Hall doing a live performance in a nearby town. It was so funny, it was good to see the gang together doing comedy. The majority of stuff was brand spankin' new and they mixed in some old classics as well. I was sad when the night came to an end.
I watched the Kids in the Hall way back in the day when they were on HBO, and promptly fell in love with it. It was my favorite show during my teenage years and I loved it so much that I taped every single episode.
Lately I have been thinking about this particular KITH skit because I feel like I have so much I am trying to keep track of in my life. Whenever I start getting overwhelmed I try to narrow down all the things I need to do to the 7 most urgent things, then I repeat to myself, "I have 7 things to do today. 7 things to do". Then, like the guy in the skit, I try to stay focused on those 7 things even when everything around me starts going to shit.
And this evening I had the pleasure of seeing Eddie Izzard's new standup act. I am still smiling from the experience and I am sure that tomorrow my stomach will be sore from the laughter. His stage presence and ability to act out so many different parts of an imaginary conversation at the same time is genius. Even in the cheap, nosebleed seats you could follow everything very well, it was priceless.
For any of you who are not fortunate enough to be familiar with the comedic greatness taht is Eddie Izzard, I offer this humble sample:
In zombie news, I am still a slack-ass when it comes to getting pictures off of my camera so I have no pictures from our Star Wars exhibit adventures. FTL.
But, the post office is raising the price of stamps next week, and as a consequence, all zombie postcards that I have made from some of these pictures must go!! So, if you would like to get a zombie postcard from me this week, simply drop me an email at laszy77 at hotmail dot com with a mailing address and I am happy to send one along! Zombie postcards FTW!!!
Ok, that is all for now, it is time for bed and I am reading Swiss Family Robinson at the moment (yes, I was inspired by the Emerald Nuts commercial). On the whole I am enjoying the book, mostly because of the immense irony of the family being very religious in their island home but every time they come upon a new animal or group of animals they kill as many as possible, more than they need to fulfill the requirements for their survival. A typical chapter begins with one of the family encountering a creature, the father explaining to the children what the creature is, and then the swift killing of the creature and a stew is made from the meat and clothes from the skins. I think their constant drive for building things is just a way to prevent becoming obese from eating everything on the island that isn't human*.
I understand that supporting a family of 5 on a tropical island must be rife with challenges, but seriously, it has become too predictable.
*so far there has been no cannibalism, but I haven't finished the book, so there's still an outside chance that it could happen
I watched the Kids in the Hall way back in the day when they were on HBO, and promptly fell in love with it. It was my favorite show during my teenage years and I loved it so much that I taped every single episode.
Lately I have been thinking about this particular KITH skit because I feel like I have so much I am trying to keep track of in my life. Whenever I start getting overwhelmed I try to narrow down all the things I need to do to the 7 most urgent things, then I repeat to myself, "I have 7 things to do today. 7 things to do". Then, like the guy in the skit, I try to stay focused on those 7 things even when everything around me starts going to shit.
And this evening I had the pleasure of seeing Eddie Izzard's new standup act. I am still smiling from the experience and I am sure that tomorrow my stomach will be sore from the laughter. His stage presence and ability to act out so many different parts of an imaginary conversation at the same time is genius. Even in the cheap, nosebleed seats you could follow everything very well, it was priceless.
For any of you who are not fortunate enough to be familiar with the comedic greatness taht is Eddie Izzard, I offer this humble sample:
In zombie news, I am still a slack-ass when it comes to getting pictures off of my camera so I have no pictures from our Star Wars exhibit adventures. FTL.
But, the post office is raising the price of stamps next week, and as a consequence, all zombie postcards that I have made from some of these pictures must go!! So, if you would like to get a zombie postcard from me this week, simply drop me an email at laszy77 at hotmail dot com with a mailing address and I am happy to send one along! Zombie postcards FTW!!!
Ok, that is all for now, it is time for bed and I am reading Swiss Family Robinson at the moment (yes, I was inspired by the Emerald Nuts commercial). On the whole I am enjoying the book, mostly because of the immense irony of the family being very religious in their island home but every time they come upon a new animal or group of animals they kill as many as possible, more than they need to fulfill the requirements for their survival. A typical chapter begins with one of the family encountering a creature, the father explaining to the children what the creature is, and then the swift killing of the creature and a stew is made from the meat and clothes from the skins. I think their constant drive for building things is just a way to prevent becoming obese from eating everything on the island that isn't human*.
I understand that supporting a family of 5 on a tropical island must be rife with challenges, but seriously, it has become too predictable.
*so far there has been no cannibalism, but I haven't finished the book, so there's still an outside chance that it could happen
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
It's April Fool's Day
I think of all of the interesting ideas I have seen for harmless April Fool's pranks, I love these Firefox pranks the most. LOL! I almost installed the addons onto my own computer just to make the day more interesting.
I've been trying to burn candles in my apartment, not only to make it smell nice, but to use up the zillion candles I seem to have collected during my time here in PA. Today I decided to try lighting the 'Boots and Saddles' scented candle that a friend got for me long ago. The unlit candle does not smell very good to me at all, but I thought that perhaps if I lit the candle it would smell better, more like new car leather smell.
But no, I still think it is pretty much the worst candle I have ever smelled.
That being said, I know that everyone's tastes (smells?) are different. So if any of you would like a free, practically unused (I burnt it for only like 15 minutes), leave a note in the comments and I will gladly send it to you.
Just don't invite me over when you're burning it.
I've been trying to burn candles in my apartment, not only to make it smell nice, but to use up the zillion candles I seem to have collected during my time here in PA. Today I decided to try lighting the 'Boots and Saddles' scented candle that a friend got for me long ago. The unlit candle does not smell very good to me at all, but I thought that perhaps if I lit the candle it would smell better, more like new car leather smell.
But no, I still think it is pretty much the worst candle I have ever smelled.
That being said, I know that everyone's tastes (smells?) are different. So if any of you would like a free, practically unused (I burnt it for only like 15 minutes), leave a note in the comments and I will gladly send it to you.
Just don't invite me over when you're burning it.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Not the site you're looking for *waving hand*
I was checking my visitor stats a second ago, and discovered that in the last 6 hours, 5 people from all over the country have stumbled upon this humble blog by typing the following term into a search engine:
Monkey Bar Champion
The last time I thought about monkey bar champions was back in september. I input the same term into search engines and found nothing but disappointment.
Instead of helping find the answer to the immortal question "Is there a world monkey bar championship?" I have contributed no useful information whatsoever.
Twice.
Monkey Bar Champion
The last time I thought about monkey bar champions was back in september. I input the same term into search engines and found nothing but disappointment.
Instead of helping find the answer to the immortal question "Is there a world monkey bar championship?" I have contributed no useful information whatsoever.
Twice.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
I wouldn't put up a fight if you'll meet me tonight
If you aren't watching Liam Lynch's podcast, Lynchland, you really should be. It's free on his website and on iTunes, and totally worth the wait between episodes.
Every episode makes me laugh out loud, and there is usually a song or two that sticks in my head and makes me smile whenever I think of it.
The above video is from the most recent episode, which for many reasons is outstanding.
If I were stranded on a deserted island and could only have one video podcast to watch it would be his.
Every episode makes me laugh out loud, and there is usually a song or two that sticks in my head and makes me smile whenever I think of it.
The above video is from the most recent episode, which for many reasons is outstanding.
If I were stranded on a deserted island and could only have one video podcast to watch it would be his.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Yeah, I laughed out loud
I hope that one day I can live like happy chair.
see more crazy cat pics
The html code for the image doesn't let me resize it, it says "enjoys life to fullest!"
see more crazy cat pics
The html code for the image doesn't let me resize it, it says "enjoys life to fullest!"
Friday, March 21, 2008
eyes, hands and feet
Today was an interesting day. It was the first day in many where it was not overcast and rainy or gloomy in any way.
It was also the day I went to the eye doctor and got a glaucoma test. When I was done my super-dilated eyes made me believe that our sun had decided to go supernova this afternoon, and also made me look like I really liked everything.
One of my pupils recovered faster than the other, but sadly I did not have my camera with me.
In the evening I went to belly dancing, and as I was changing into my dancing clothes in the ladies room, I scraped the back of my hand against the corner of the toilet paper dispenser. OUCH. It hurt like a motherfucker, and I actually lost the ability to move my fingers for a few minutes. It didn't bleed or anything, but it will likely become quite a bruise. I plan to watch the progression of the injury and depending on how gruesome it becomes, I may post pictures.
I know, you must all be so happy that I started posting again.
It was also the day I went to the eye doctor and got a glaucoma test. When I was done my super-dilated eyes made me believe that our sun had decided to go supernova this afternoon, and also made me look like I really liked everything.
One of my pupils recovered faster than the other, but sadly I did not have my camera with me.
In the evening I went to belly dancing, and as I was changing into my dancing clothes in the ladies room, I scraped the back of my hand against the corner of the toilet paper dispenser. OUCH. It hurt like a motherfucker, and I actually lost the ability to move my fingers for a few minutes. It didn't bleed or anything, but it will likely become quite a bruise. I plan to watch the progression of the injury and depending on how gruesome it becomes, I may post pictures.
I know, you must all be so happy that I started posting again.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Title happy
I was having dinner tonight with a couple of friends, fellow grad student the future Dr. H, and Frogweiler. As the waiter refilled our beverages, he called the future Dr. H. "sir", and then walked away.
Future Dr. H: When I get my Ph.D., I will have to say, "excuse me, it's not 'sir', it's 'Doctor'"
Me: The thing I am excited about is when I get my Ph.D. I can go to TX and visit my friend that is a pediatrician and my other friend who has his Ph.D.in astrophysics and we can all have lunch and call each other doctor.
Frogweiler: Heh heh heh. You just had an imaginary conversation with other people in your head out loud, you know that, right?
Me: Yeah.
And then we all laughed at how weird I am.
Good times.
Future Dr. H: When I get my Ph.D., I will have to say, "excuse me, it's not 'sir', it's 'Doctor'"
Me: The thing I am excited about is when I get my Ph.D. I can go to TX and visit my friend that is a pediatrician and my other friend who has his Ph.D.in astrophysics and we can all have lunch and call each other doctor.
Doctor, Doctor.
Doctor, Doctor
I was thinking, Dr. Pediatrician, that we could share an appetizer, perhaps some mini-egg rolls?
Well, Dr. Hamster_grrl, that is a fabulous idea! What do you think, Dr. Astrophysicist?
I completely concur, Dr. Pediatrician, good idea Dr. Hamster_grrl
Frogweiler: Heh heh heh. You just had an imaginary conversation with other people in your head out loud, you know that, right?
Me: Yeah.
And then we all laughed at how weird I am.
Good times.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Halloween Hijinx!
This Halloween has been mellow, but still exciting.
Frogweiler and I went to a Pumpkin Carving Party (PCP) which was loads of fun. I decided to have a split personality pumpkin, with a different mood on each side of it's head:
Happy Pumpkin
Sad Pumpkin
I had forgotten how fun and difficult carving a pumpkin was, but I think it turned out alright in the end. One of the best things about carving pumpkins is that you unlock the treasure of deliciousness that is kept inside those orange gourds. mmmm....pumpkin seeds.....
Everyone did a fabulous job on their pumpkins, there were probably about 20-30 of them in the yard when we left, I felt bad for the neighbors who only had one or two lonely looking jack-o-lanterns.
The next week I dressed up. I decided on a 70's style character, called Luscious Cracker.
And I fell in love with the afro a little bit. I kind of want to wear it all the time. My eyes have been opened to the wonderful world of costume wigs. I am totally going to the Halloween store tomorrow to get as many new hairstyles as are available.
Have a Spooky Day!!!!
Frogweiler and I went to a Pumpkin Carving Party (PCP) which was loads of fun. I decided to have a split personality pumpkin, with a different mood on each side of it's head:
Happy Pumpkin
Sad Pumpkin
I had forgotten how fun and difficult carving a pumpkin was, but I think it turned out alright in the end. One of the best things about carving pumpkins is that you unlock the treasure of deliciousness that is kept inside those orange gourds. mmmm....pumpkin seeds.....
Everyone did a fabulous job on their pumpkins, there were probably about 20-30 of them in the yard when we left, I felt bad for the neighbors who only had one or two lonely looking jack-o-lanterns.
The next week I dressed up. I decided on a 70's style character, called Luscious Cracker.
And I fell in love with the afro a little bit. I kind of want to wear it all the time. My eyes have been opened to the wonderful world of costume wigs. I am totally going to the Halloween store tomorrow to get as many new hairstyles as are available.
Have a Spooky Day!!!!
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Textual humor
While I was waiting at the airport for the new plane to arrive I had this text conversation with JayAre:
Me: The irony is that had the flight been on time, I would have missed it. I ran late and got here 10 minutes after the check-in cut off
JayAre: Dude
Me: I know
Then I had to laugh out loud because I realized that you can take the girl out of the west coast, but you can't take the west coast out of the girl.
-----------------------
Once I got to DFW, sanestperson and I went to Sonic, since I love Sonic and there aren't any near me (even though we get the commercials, which is just not fair at all).
I decided to try the cranberry iced tea, since the commercial for it just cracks me up. Since I was just telling Sparkle about that particular ad, I had to text her and tell her how my tea was crantastic.
I wrote out the message "I am at Sonic and I must say that my iced tea IS crantastic", but I use predictive text, and apparently crantastic is not in the phone's dictionary. So instead of the message I wanted, it read:
"I am at Sonic and I must say that my iced tea IS brantastic"
Brantastic? What?
Now I can understand that "crantastic" would not be in my phone's text repertoire, but why the hell would "brantastic" be? Does my phone have a secret love for high fiber cereals?
Who knows.
Me: The irony is that had the flight been on time, I would have missed it. I ran late and got here 10 minutes after the check-in cut off
JayAre: Dude
Me: I know
Then I had to laugh out loud because I realized that you can take the girl out of the west coast, but you can't take the west coast out of the girl.
-----------------------
Once I got to DFW, sanestperson and I went to Sonic, since I love Sonic and there aren't any near me (even though we get the commercials, which is just not fair at all).
I decided to try the cranberry iced tea, since the commercial for it just cracks me up. Since I was just telling Sparkle about that particular ad, I had to text her and tell her how my tea was crantastic.
I wrote out the message "I am at Sonic and I must say that my iced tea IS crantastic", but I use predictive text, and apparently crantastic is not in the phone's dictionary. So instead of the message I wanted, it read:
"I am at Sonic and I must say that my iced tea IS brantastic"
Brantastic? What?
Now I can understand that "crantastic" would not be in my phone's text repertoire, but why the hell would "brantastic" be? Does my phone have a secret love for high fiber cereals?
Who knows.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Living Right
I am in TX for the weekend to attend the wedding of an old friend.
I decided to drive myself to the airport this time, since I'm only away for a few days. I was planning to be ready and leave my house by noon to get to the airport in time for my 2:20 flight, becaus I thought it took about an hour to get to the airport.
At 12:15 I actually left my apartment and realized that it is better for me to have other people drive me to the airport because I would always be on time.
I forgot that it actually takes a little over an hour and a half to get to the airport, and it also takes time to park in the economy lot, wait for the shuttle, and then check in and go through security.
When I was about halfway to the airport I realized that I would likely miss the half-hour cut off for check in and was in real danger of missing my flight. But the weather was foggy and rainy, so I secretly hoped that there would be a small weather delay, just enough to prevent me from having to buy another plane ticket and explain to my friends in TX that I was a moron because I lolly-gagged around in the morning and didn't leave my house on time. I got to the airport, parked, grabbed the shuttle, and went to check in at a kiosk. It told me:
Check-in time has closed. See attendant.
Luckily, I was in the smaller, commuter terminal and there was no line, so the attendant got to me quickly. I explained that I was a little late (7 min, be exact) but I didn' t have to check any bags so please please please let me on the plane. She looked up my info and told me that there was a 20 minute delay on my flight. I told her that's good, since I was only 7 minutes delayed.
She didn't find that as amusing as I did.
I got my boarding pass, and she told me the flight was actually in a different terminal, so I went through security and then shuttled to the other terminal. I was racing, thinking I would be the last person on the plane and that I was a grown up and should not be so flaky to almost miss a flight. Seriously, I didn't really NEED to watch the last 15 minutes of that Dr. Who episode. I raced to the gate, and
they hadn't even started boarding. In fact, the plane wasn't even there yet. So, I sighed a huge sigh of releif and waited.
And waited.
And waited.
You see, the plane arrived, the people de-planed, and then there was some sort of delay. They actually told us it was for 'unknown reasons'. There was some murmuring about smoke in the cabin, but that was never confirmed. All I know is that they eventually told us (after a 2 hours of waiting) that we were getting a new plane, and had to switch gates. We went to the other gate, and then eventually boarded. But this new plane did not have as many rows as the other one, so even though we all had tickets and they said nothing was changing, there weren't actually any seats for everyone.
Now MY assigned seat was actually on the plane, which was good, but there was already someone in it, which was bad. The flight attendant said it was because some of the seats were overbooked and that the other passengers and I needed to go back to the ticket counter to sort it out. I left the plane, but the other people didn't.
Hm.
I waited in line but no one seemed to know anything about anything so I was just going to get back on the plane, but the agent had a problem with that. Luckily, a manager type person was walking up just as I was waking down the ramp, and I explained my situation, and they gave me the LAST ticket for the plane.
Whew.
As I was getting settled in and the flight attendant went through for the pre-flight checks, she said that I must be living right, since I got the last ticket.
I told her that I think it was probably that I was lucky, and the loudest.
I decided to drive myself to the airport this time, since I'm only away for a few days. I was planning to be ready and leave my house by noon to get to the airport in time for my 2:20 flight, becaus I thought it took about an hour to get to the airport.
At 12:15 I actually left my apartment and realized that it is better for me to have other people drive me to the airport because I would always be on time.
I forgot that it actually takes a little over an hour and a half to get to the airport, and it also takes time to park in the economy lot, wait for the shuttle, and then check in and go through security.
When I was about halfway to the airport I realized that I would likely miss the half-hour cut off for check in and was in real danger of missing my flight. But the weather was foggy and rainy, so I secretly hoped that there would be a small weather delay, just enough to prevent me from having to buy another plane ticket and explain to my friends in TX that I was a moron because I lolly-gagged around in the morning and didn't leave my house on time. I got to the airport, parked, grabbed the shuttle, and went to check in at a kiosk. It told me:
Check-in time has closed. See attendant.
Luckily, I was in the smaller, commuter terminal and there was no line, so the attendant got to me quickly. I explained that I was a little late (7 min, be exact) but I didn' t have to check any bags so please please please let me on the plane. She looked up my info and told me that there was a 20 minute delay on my flight. I told her that's good, since I was only 7 minutes delayed.
She didn't find that as amusing as I did.
I got my boarding pass, and she told me the flight was actually in a different terminal, so I went through security and then shuttled to the other terminal. I was racing, thinking I would be the last person on the plane and that I was a grown up and should not be so flaky to almost miss a flight. Seriously, I didn't really NEED to watch the last 15 minutes of that Dr. Who episode. I raced to the gate, and
they hadn't even started boarding. In fact, the plane wasn't even there yet. So, I sighed a huge sigh of releif and waited.
And waited.
And waited.
You see, the plane arrived, the people de-planed, and then there was some sort of delay. They actually told us it was for 'unknown reasons'. There was some murmuring about smoke in the cabin, but that was never confirmed. All I know is that they eventually told us (after a 2 hours of waiting) that we were getting a new plane, and had to switch gates. We went to the other gate, and then eventually boarded. But this new plane did not have as many rows as the other one, so even though we all had tickets and they said nothing was changing, there weren't actually any seats for everyone.
Now MY assigned seat was actually on the plane, which was good, but there was already someone in it, which was bad. The flight attendant said it was because some of the seats were overbooked and that the other passengers and I needed to go back to the ticket counter to sort it out. I left the plane, but the other people didn't.
Hm.
I waited in line but no one seemed to know anything about anything so I was just going to get back on the plane, but the agent had a problem with that. Luckily, a manager type person was walking up just as I was waking down the ramp, and I explained my situation, and they gave me the LAST ticket for the plane.
Whew.
As I was getting settled in and the flight attendant went through for the pre-flight checks, she said that I must be living right, since I got the last ticket.
I told her that I think it was probably that I was lucky, and the loudest.
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