Monday, December 31, 2007

2007: How I Did

This is how I did on my Annual Big List. Not great, but not terrible. I had a lot of trouble with momentum this year; for the first six months I was miserable because of my work situation, so I didn't do anything, for the next two months I was broke because I quit my job, and for the last four months I was exhausted because of my new job. There are a lot of things on this list that I should have done but didn't, and I'm trying to make next year's list more manageable.

Personal Development
1. Make a sincere effort to introduce more calm into my life Sort of. I think I'm calmer, but I can't point to a specific reason.
2. Find a church I like; attend as needed Nope.
3. Personal No, damnit.
4. See my work in print under my own name, either in hard copy or online No. I wrote this and this, among other things, but as you can see, I got none of the credit.
5. Personal No.
6. Write a first draft of a novel, no matter how much it sucks No.
7. Take public transportation as often as possible No.
8. Write a letter to someone No.
9. Sew something No.

Household
10. Find an apartment I truly like Not an apartment, per se, but I found an awesome living situation.
11. Cook one new thing each week; record in the cooking blog I set up and have hardly used No.
12. Cook one good thing from each cookbook, or throw it away No.
13. Make sushi No.
14. Give the FlyLady method a serious effort for at least one month No.
15. Do not leave dishes sitting in the sink overnight Hahahaha.
16. Have a completely clean house on the 1st of every month Um, no.
17. Personal Nope.
18. Have a completely clean car on the 1st of every month Yeah, right.
19. Get my car washed every other month Nope
20. Buy my produce at a farmers' market as often as possible No.
21. Buy local whenever possible I did ok with this, but not great. I tended to buy locally only when it was convenient instead of going out of my way to do it. I plan to do better next year.
22. Plant an herb garden Yes, but I need to choose my herbs more carefully next year. The basil was delicious, but who the hell needs that much parsley?
23. Go antiquing Yep. Didn't buy anything, though.
24. Make Christmas cookies Yes, three times.
25. Put up and decorate a Christmas tree Yes. The first project of the new year is to take said tree back down.

Career/Education
26. Find a new job or make peace with the one I've got Done, thank God.
27. Get organized at work and stay that way Yeah, right.
28. Re-join WIN Not yet, but I still plan to do this.
29. Go to bed by 11 p.m. on work nights This was marginal, at best.
30. Be on time to work every day I did terribly at this for the first half of the year, then I found a job where punctuality is mandatory. I've been late once or twice, but I've been doing really well on this one.
31. Take six classes and get As in at least four I took seven classes and got As in six.
32. Have all class assignments done two days before the due date Yeah, right.
33. Do all reading for every class Did I mention that a couple of those classes were pointless and stupid?

Culture
34. Try a new restaurant (January) Kelsey's Irish Pub
35. Try a new restaurant (February) Buca Di Beppo
36. Try a new restaurant (March) Asian Bistro
37. Try a new restaurant (April) No.
38. Try a new restaurant (May) Faryab
39. Try a new restaurant (June) Olney Grille
40. Try a new restaurant (July) No.
41. Try a new restaurant (August) Ardeo
42. Try a new restaurant (September) Pizzeria Paradiso
43. Try a new restaurant (October) No.
44. Try a new restaurant (November) No.
45. Try a new restaurant (December) Pho Real
46. Get my Netflix queue below 200 Not even close.
47. Go to a play I went to see Wicked at the Hippodrome as part of my Christmas present from my parents. I highly recommend it.
48. Go to an event at the Kennedy Center
49. Attend a formal gala I knocked out #s 48 and 49 at the same time by going to a formal gala at the Kennedy Center. Microsoft may be the evil empire, but they throw one hell of a party.
50. Go to an art museum I poked my head into one of the Smithsonian art museums, but I don't think you can really call this one done.
51. Attend a classical music concert I saw an awesome show at Strathmore; they played The Wizard of Oz on a screen above the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and the orchestra played the entire score.
52. Join the Young Benefactors of the Smithsonian Not yet, but I do intend to do this.
53. Take a duck tour No, for like the fourth year in a row.

Financial
54. Pay off all of my credit cards I paid off one, and another is close.
55. Stick to a strict budget No.
56. Record all money spent No.
57. Roll my Fidelity plan over into the new IRA No, but I now have an actual financial advisor who is hounding me to do this, so it's on the menu for early next year.
58. Have my taxes done by March 1 Yep.
59. Deposit my tax refund directly into my IRA No. However, I did spend it wisely, splitting it between a financial cushion and credit cards.
60. Have $400 in my vacation fund by the end of the year I actually did away with the vacation fund altogether.
61. Withdraw money for the week on Mondays; do not use debit card No.
62. Personal No.
63. Continue to make regular payments on my student loans despite the deferral No.
64. Personal Yep.
65. Personal Yep.
66. Do not use my credit cards at all, except for automatic payments that must be paid off every month Oh, yeah right.
67. Make three charitable donations this year I think I made one.
68. Personal No.
69. Personal Not practical.

Reading
70. Read four short stories per week. No.
71. Read a book on the beach Yes.
72. Read the entire Bible No.
73. January/February Classic: Pride and Prejudice No.
74. March/April Classic: Vanity Fair No.
75. May/June Classic: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court No.
76. July/August Classic: Dubliners No.
77. September/October Classic: Frankenstein No.
78. November/December Classic: Don Quixote No. And this one pisses me off, because I was determined to finish it before the end of the year, it was really getting interesting...and I lost it. It's somewhere in my house and I can't for the life of me find it. How do you lose a book that size? It weighs as much as a brick!
79. Read the ALA's 2007 Notable Books Not a one. I did read several of the Notable Children's Books, however.
80. Read all of the Persephone books I own Not a one.
81. Buy four more Persephone books I told myself that I wasn't allowed to buy any more until I read the ones that I have, so...

Health/Fitness
82. Get dental insurance Yes.
83. Handle my most pressing dental issues Yes.
84. Take my lunch at least 4 days a week I had good weeks and bad weeks, but altogether I take my lunch far more often than I used to.
85. Limit eating out to once per week Not even close.
86. Go to the gym at least once a week No.
87. Kayak three times this summer O. and I went once.
88. Buy a bike Yep.
89. Personal No.
90. Wear a size 8 Not even close.
91. Ski at least once No, but this is in the plans for early next year, when I chaperone the ski club trip.
92. Play tennis three times No.

Personal Care
93. Learn how to apply makeup No, for at least the fourth year.
94. Wear a bikini I wish.
95. Personal No.
96. Find "my" perfume No.
97. Develop a skincare regimen that I stick to religiously No, but I need to do this next year, before I start looking like a wrinkly old woman.
98. Get a haircut at least every three months No.
99. Get professionally fitted for a bra Yes. I got poked and prodded by an old lady with a measuring tape, and I finally have one that fits.
100. Personal No.
101. Get a massage Yes, twice!
102. Get a facial Yes, twice!

Travel
103. Go away for the weekend by myself No.
104. Spend a weekend at the beach I spent a day at the beach...didn't quite make a weekend.
105. Visit two states I've never been to before I visited Ohio. And technically I visited Massachusetts, but I flew in, spent four hours in a meeting, and flew back out. I saw only what I could see between the airport and Cambridge from the window of the cab, so I'm not counting it.
106. Go camping No, but the number of people who have told me that they want to do this strongly suggests that it will be done next year.
107. Visit Rochester twice I made it once.

I'm looking forward to next year. I think it's going to be an awesome one.

Monday, August 6, 2007

Why is it...

...that even now, at 28 years old, there is nothing in the world more comfortable than my dad's pajamas?

I steal O.'s clothes all the time, but it's just not the same...

Sunday, August 5, 2007

An interesting dichotomy...

t's weird how things progress in life. Today is yet one example.

I'm in Pennsylvania right now. When I got into Hanover, I stopped at a convenience store. The clerk who helped me was quite pleasant, but he was wearing a Confederate flag belt buckle. I found this offensive. I refrained from pointing out to him that, no matter how you slice it, Pennsylvania was never a part of the Confederacy. I was still offended. I pondered writing a note to the company suggesting that they revise their dress code guidelines.

Now, six hours later, I find myself in posession of interesting information. As many of you know, I am about halfway through a Masters program that is costing me a significant amount of money. A few hours ago, my mother handed me a family history document that proves that several of my ancestors fought for the Confederacy, to the point that their unit was called "The Osborne's Ford Independents." My grandfather's mother's maiden name was Osborne.

This does not come as a huge shock to me. While my father's family is from Iowa, and was notably absent during the Civil War (family history tells us that a distant Kelly ancestor hid in the barn to avoid being conscripted by the Union army), my mother's family is from southern Virginia. When I have visited the towns my grandparents came from, I have heard people--including my relatives--refer to the War. There is no doubt that this word is said with a capital letter, and there is no doubt to which war they are referring.

What is my point here?

The Daughters of the Confederacy offer a scholarship to those who can prove that a direct ancestor fought on the Confederate side during the Civil War. At this point, I don't know that I could prove that; from what I have in my hands it looks like my great-great-great uncles were the ones who fought, and my great-great-great grandfather was not involved. However, this family history covers only one branch of my family tree; I suspect that were I to investigate further I could find at least one direct ancestor who was a Confederate soldier. I don't know that I care to do that.

Were these two things to happen separately, I don't know that I would have taken much notice of either, but because both happened on the same day it's made me think. What would I do for money? If the document that I now hold in my hands definitively proved that one of my ancestors was a Confederate soldier, would I use that to get a scholarship? I certainly don't believe in their cause. While I've lived below the Mason-Dixon line for most of my life, I certainly don't consider myself a southerner (anyone who would like to hear my monologue on the fact that Maryland is NOT a Southern state is free to call me) but could I fake it?

Not sure. I'll get back to you.

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Here there be spoilers: What I thought of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

These are my thoughts on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, and it contains serious spoilers. If you haven't read the book, but intend to, DO NOT READ.







SPOILER SPACE















It's over, and Fred Weasley is dead.

I'm really upset, but I also find it odd that of the many people who died in the book, that one affected me the most. In the very beginning of the book, when George lost his ear, I thought that meant he and Fred were safe. I knew that she wouldn't go ahead and kill George after he had his ear cursed off, and I thought it was an all or nothing thing--either both twins would die, or both would survive. The only other death that affected me that much was Dobby.

In retrospect, it's not suprising that one of the Weasleys died. It even makes sense that it was one of the twins. Charlie hasn't had a prominent enough role in the series to make his death as affecting. Bill had just gotten married, and he was attacked by the werewolf in the last book; I thought he was a long shot. I considered Percy the most likely--I assumed he would realize the error of his ways and return to his family, and be killed in the final battle. I was half right.

I couldn't imagine her killing either Ron or Hermione, though I did think it was a good possibility that Harry would die, so I thought Ron was safe. And Ginny--I just couldn't see Rowling killing off Harry's love interest.

I was thrilled to see Neville take such an active role in the final battle--only in Harry Potter could he attack the enemy with plants and be successful. And it seemed very fitting that he was the one who destroyed the last Horcrux. I almost expected Harry to tell him that he was the other person to whom the prophecy could refer, but I can understand why he didn't. And the image of Trelawney beaning Death Eaters with crystal balls from a balcony was priceless.

I was suprised that Rowling killed Tonks--Lupin didn't come as a huge suprise, but I didn't expect them both to die only months after having a baby. And I was shocked when Snape died.

I love, love, loved Snape's story in this book. I couldn't decide whether or not he was truly a traitor or not. I went into the book thinking he was acting under Dumbledore's orders, but his actions in the beginning of the book--including cursing off George's ear--convinced me that he was evil. I was so wrong. The scenes with Lily and Petunia even before he and Lily went to Hogwarts--the true reason that Petunia hated wizards--the fact that Snape tried to save Lily's life--the fact that he was in love with her--it was all so incredible. I loved the revelation that when Petunia made reference to "that horrible boy" books ago, she was likely talking about Snape and not James. I loved that Harry and Ginny named one of their sons for him. I loved that Harry cleared Snape's name after he was dead.

I also liked Kreacher's arc, and the fact that Hermione's endless harping on elf rights had a point. I had read that the screenwriter for the fifth movie originally cut Kreacher out entirely, and Rowling hinted strongly that he had to at least make an appearance in order to facilitate the filming of the seventh movie. And I absolutely loved that Molly Weasley was the one to kill Bellatrix Lestrange. She's always been portrayed in the kitchen, or in stereotypically motherly roles, and I felt like this was a perfect break from that. I was a little suprised that Rowling used the word Bitch in what is still technically a kid's book, though. It will be interesting to see if she gets any flack for that.

I did think the epilogue was a little corny--not finding out what happened to them, exactly, but it read like a bad fanfic. I liked the fact that Neville was teaching Herbology at Hogwarts, and I liked the brief mention of Draco, but all in all it seemed very--I don't know. Badly written, maybe?

I also actually wanted to see more of the Dursleys in this book. I would have loved to see more of Dudley's evolution, to see if Petunia was affected at all at being exposed to the wizarding world again, and to see if Vernon completely lost his mind. I think that could have been some fairly good comic relief, and I'm curious.

I get that this is basically a coming of age story, and Harry is now more or less an adult. But I would love to see some post-Hogwarts books--I don't think it's incredibly likely, but I want more details on what happens next. Unfortunately I suspect I'm going to have to turn to fanfic. Luckily, there's some really good Harry Potter fanfic out there--if you're willing to pick through all the crap. So in the spirit of helping you get started on that, I'll leave you with this, which is an extremely amusing, extremely NOT work-safe story that was written several books ago, so it doesn't follow canon. In more ways than one.

Thursday, June 28, 2007

Six Years...

How much have you changed in 6 years?

***** Six years ago *****

1.) How old were you?:
22 + 1 day

2.) Where did you go to school?
I was out of school.

3.) Where did you work?:
Communications department at Goodwill.

4.) Where did you live?:
Laurel. Actually, at this point in 01, I was in the process of moving from an awful apartment into an awesome one.

5.) Where did you hang out?:
I don't think I had discovered Champion's yet, so I have no idea.

6.) Did you wear glasses?
Nope

7.) Who was your best friend?
Jackie

8.) How many tattoos did you have?:
None.

9.) How many piercings did you have?:
Just ears

10.) What car did you drive?:
1988 Chevy Nova...the only non-Toyota car I've ever had.

11.) Had you been to a real party?
I'd even thrown a few.

12.) Had You had your heart broken?:
No

13.) Single/Taken/Married/Divorced?:
Single


***** Today *****

1.) How old are you?:
28 + 1 day

2.) Where do you go to school?
Catholic University

3.) Where do you work?:
I have 1 1/2 days of being a PR professional left, then it's unemploymentville. Thank God.

4.) Where do you live?
I'm in the process of moving from an awful apartment in Takoma Park to an awesome house in Burtonsville.

5.) Where do you hang out?:
Oh, here there and everywhere. I still haven't found a hangout to rival Champions, but I'm trying.

6.) Do you wear glasses?
Nope.

7.) Who are your best friends/close friends?
Jackie, Joan, Tracy, McCay, O.

8.) Do you talk to your old friends?:
Sometimes

9.) How many piercings do you have?:
Just ears.

10.) How many tattoos?:
None. I'm not really a tattoo kind of girl.

11.) What kind of car do you have?:
1992 Toyota Camry

12.) Has your heart been broken?:
No

13.Single/Taken/Married/Divorced?:
Taken

Monday, June 25, 2007

A Few Words For My Professor...

1. I don't care about your cat. In fact, I may require therapy to erase the memory of that incident yesterday in which you impersonated your cat, complete with meowing.

2. As an adult, I do realize that cats are incapable of speech or typing. As such, I don't need to get an email from your cat.

3. I would appreciate learning something in this class, aside from the names of your cats and their behavioral habits. So far, this has not happened. If I will continue to learn nothing, I would prefer that my $2,500 be refunded.

4. I will not critique your fashion choices. I will, however, request that you begin brushing your hair. Or at least washing it.

5. Way to reinforce the stereotype of librarians as frumpy old women with no social skills and an unnatural obsession with cats. Thanks for nothing.

For once in my life, I think I'm going to enjoy doing a course evaluation.

Monday, June 4, 2007

Procrastination by Evite

I sent an Evite today. If you didn't get it, don't worry. Check out the bulletin that I posted. But that is not my point today. My point is that once I send an Evite, I check it compulsively. Like, every ten minutes compulsively. And the feeling of joy that I feel when I see the screen that says that I have new responses...well, let's just say that I understand that it's an overreaction and leave it at that.

Please somebody tell me that I'm not alone in this.

Friday, June 1, 2007

I hate this time of year

I have resigned myself to the fact that I'll be sharing my kitchen with baby praying mantises for the time being. But as of tonight, the crickets are back.

I can't wait for moving day.

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Things I learned today while gardening...

1. No matter how much soil you buy, it's not enough. Go ahead an invest in the 100 lb. bag--that tiny little 5 inch pot will take all of it.

2. There's something very soothing and satisfying about planting vegetables. For about twenty minutes, I was a pioneer woman out in the fields, planting a garden to feed my family. Then I came inside and made a frozen burrito for dinner.

3. Basil is such a drama queen. I'm maybe two hours late with the watering, and it's all "I'm wilting, I'm wiiiillllting," until I expected to see a teeny-tiny Judy Garland standing next to it in ruby slippers, clutching a broom.

4. My house is apparently a prime spawning area for praying mantises. I've removed six little 3/4-inch long babies from my kitchen since I got home from work. I keep putting them on my peppers, hoping that they'll eat whatever little fucker is chewing the hell out of them. Also, I feel guilty about the fate that befell the first one, before Owen told me what they were. In my defense, who knew they started out so small?

5. That is all. Come over for dinner in about two months, when we see what I can make with an eggplant, basil and a habanero pepper. With parsley for garnish.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

For a really crappy song...

...There are certainly a lot of people analyzing it. I dispute the fact that This Is Why I'm Hot by Mims is the worst song on the air now; I think all of the dreck that Gwen Stefani's been churning out lately is far worse. (Gwen! What happened to your awesomeness?!?) However, I can say that I have heard of no other recent song that inspires the textual analysis that this one has. First:

Found in Translation, where you must download the translation. Seriously, I nearly peed myself.

And then the Village Voice got in on the action. Not quite as funny, but still fairly amusing.

So now that that's all analyzed, we can turn our attention to another matter. Can we, by analyzing her songs, determine exactly when Gwen Stefani was replaced with a pod person?

Sunday, April 1, 2007

The flag at half mast...

When I was in the fourth grade, Marlo M. showed me a gun in the back of Mr. Dukluski's math classroom. It was small, in a black case, nestled into a foam cutout. I didn't tell a teacher. I didn't tell my parents. In fact, I think this is the first time I've ever spoken of it, because at the time it didn't even cross my mind that it might be real. I was in college by the time that I thought about the incident and realized that, hey, we were in the middle of Baltimore City, most of the kids I went to school with came from fairly rough neighborhoods, and yeah, it was probably a real gun. I was a naive kid.

Thus begins and ends my one and only personal experience with weapons in schools.

In high school, we had to fill out a survey on weapons, drugs and sex, and I remember being shocked at two of the questions. The first was do you think there are people in your school who bring weapons, and the second was do you feel safe in school. It had never occurred to me that someone at Spring Grove would bring a gun to school. Remember, this was well before anyone had ever heard of a little school in Colorado called Columbine. Of course I felt safe. Maybe it had occured to others that schools were vulnerable, but not to me. Hell, we had a kid threaten to blow up graduation and nobody did anything but gossip about it endlessly. I was a naive teenager.

I watched Columbine unfold on the little TV in the ECTV office. That TV attracted quite a crowd that day. It certainly wasn't the first school shooting, but it was the one that grabbed everyone's attention. Suddenly schools were locking their doors. Metal detectors and security guards began to appear. And it was horrifying and scary, but I was past high school and didn't feel the personal threat that I'm sure students and teachers did.

Today I was on the Catholic University campus in the early afternoon, for the first time ever. There were students everywhere. For the first time I felt vulnerable. For the first time, I felt like it could happen here, to me. If I want to work in a high school, I think I'm going to have to get used to that feeling. I'm not naive anymore.

My heart goes out to the students, faculty and families at Virginia Tech.

Monday, March 12, 2007

Yip, yip, yip, yip

Ok, not that I want my blog to become an endless progression of links to things I find amusing, but...

Go here.

I got it immediately. Did you?

Thursday, March 8, 2007

...Freaking Minnesota.

This is pretty cool. Also, hard. Here's how it works. Once you click on the link, you have ten minutes to type the names of all fifty states. No map included. I got 49 in about 4 minutes, then had to watch the next six minutes run itself out while I tried desperately to remember Minnesota. See, there? I gave you one already. Go try it, and let me know how you did.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Heh. (Part II)

Sad but true.

Who would have thought I'd laugh at math humor? And more importantly, who would have thought that Kevin Federline would start to look like the responsible parent?

Thursday, February 8, 2007

Well done, CNN.

At this moment, the headline story on cnn.com is Anna Nicole Smith's death. Relegated to smaller type over to the right are the following headlines:

"Palestinian talks yield power-sharing pact."

"Prosecution rests, Russert challenged in Libby trial."

"Hooded, dancing kidnappers show off hostages."

"Iran: We'd strike back at attacker."

None of these stories are more important than the fact that the inevitable has befallen Anna Nicole Smith? Did anyone actually think she was going to live to see gray hair? I would never wish her ill or anything, but doesn't her death seem somewhat less newsworthy than, I don't know...everything else that has happened in the news today?

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Good old Spring Grove

Fill this out about your YEARS of high school! The longer ago it was, the more fun the answers will be.

1. Who was your best friend?
Eh, I've always hated this question. I didn't really have a best friend in high school.

2. What sports did you play?
None, but I was the manager for basketball and volleyball. It was a way to get involved without actually having to have athletic talent.

3. What kind of car did you drive?
Silver 1983 Celica...still my favorite car.

4. It's Friday night, where were you?
Probably working.

5. Were you a party animal?
No.

6. Were you considered a flirt?
No

7. Ever skip school?
Yes

8. Were you a nerd?
I was not particularly socially well-adjusted, let's just say that.

9. Did you get suspended/expelled?
No

10. Can you sing the fight song?
Did we even have a fight song?

11. Who was your favorite teacher?
Mr. Gault. Or Mr. Shue.

12. Favorite class?
English or Social Studies, depending on the year.

13. What was your school's full name?
Spring Grove Area Senior High School

14. School mascot?
We were the Rockets. And the Rockettes.

15. Did you go to Prom?
Yes

16. If you could go back and do it over, would you?
I think if I did, I would have a much better time of it given the shifts in my personality. But really, no.

17. What do you remember most about graduation?
There was a beach ball that got confiscated.

18. Who was your high school sweetheart?
I only dated one guy in high school, and I wouldn't call him my sweetheart. Honestly, I don't think I even liked him all that much.

19. Where were you on senior skip day?
I don't remember. I probably just stayed in bed all day.

20. Did you have a job your Senior year?
I worked at a movie theater in Hanover, following a long family tradition.

21. Where did you go most often for lunch?
We weren't allowed to leave campus, so the cafeteria.

22. Have you gained weight since then?
Yes

23. What did you do after graduation?
Went to college. Got a degree. Got a job. Hate the job. Back in college.

24. When did you graduate?
1996

25. Who was your Senior prom date?
I went with a group of friends.

26. Are you going to your 10yr class reunion?
It was this past summer, and I missed it because I was in Ireland.

27. Who was your home room teacher?
Hmm. Freshman - Mr. Moore; Sophomore - the art teacher, whose name I can't remember--Mr. Waugh, maybe?; Junior - Mr. Gault; Senior - Mr. Black.

28. Who will repost this after you? Kristin, probably.

Harry Potter like you've never seen him before.

Good Lord. (scroll down)

The fact that I find him so hot makes me feel like a dirty old woman.

Friday, January 26, 2007

Heh.

http://xkcd.com/197/

What century are we living in again?

Today's Carolyn Hax column quite frankly made me want to vomit. It is not her advice that I object to--in fact I think she answered the question correctly for once. It's the fact that the question was asked at all that makes me want to scream.

The topic is the "tradition" of asking a woman's father for permission to marry her. Don't get me wrong--I love my Dad, and I respect his opinion a great deal. But if any man is ever stupid enough to ask his permission to propose to me, my answer will be no. I have no idea what Dad would say in such a situation--my guess is that he would be fairly bewildered at being asked. I would hope he would be fairly bewildered at being asked, because both of my parents raised me to be an independent woman. And while I do seek their counsel on many occasions, in the end my life is my decision.

I don't take offense easily. People don't always have to be politically correct around me. But the fact that this does still happen does offend me, and the fact that some women like and expect this tradition makes me sad.

In closing, I will leave you with one of the most awesome exchanges on TV ever, from the very first episode of Alias:

Danny: I'm calling because I'm planning on asking Sydney to marry me and... I was hoping to get your approval.
Jack: Danny, let me ask you a question.
Danny: Sure.
Jack: How well do you know my daughter?
Danny: Um, we've been dating for two years...
Jack: Because if you feel the need to ask me about this scenario, I have a sense you don't know Sydney at all.
Danny: Sir, I love your daughter and I want to marry her. That's why I'm calling.
Jack: First of all, Danny, the truth is this is just a courtesy call. Like when you say to your neighbor, "We're having a loud party on Saturday night if that's all right with you." What you really mean is, "We're having a loud party on Saturday night."
Danny: Mr. Bristow...
Jack: Sydney doesn't give a damn what my opinion is. What interests me is that you do.
Danny: It's just a custom to call the father, that's all this is...
Jack: Well, then, I'll tell you what. I may become your father-in-law, that's just fine. But I will not be used as part of a charming little anecdote you tell your friends at cocktail parties so they can see what a quaint, old-fashioned guy Danny really is. Are we clear?
Danny: Yes, sir...
Jack: Good. Then welcome to the family.

Friday, January 19, 2007

Reading Recommendation

I had a huge crush on Wil Wheaton when I was a kid. I was addicted to Star Trek, and Wesley Crusher was the character I could relate to. Sure, 98% of Star Trek fans wanted him dead, but he was my age(ish) and he was kinda cute.

Flash forward a few years. Now older and wiser, I understand why most Star Trek fans hated Wesley. He was freaking annoying, and he often served as an incredibly obvious deus ex machina. Frankly, while Star Trek was (mostly) reasonably well written, you could tell that a bunch of middle-aged men (and women) were sitting around in a room trying to write a teenage character, and failing miserably.

However, it turns out that Wil Wheaton is still pretty freaking cool. I happened upon his blog a few years ago, and I'm quite impressed. He's a great writer, and he seems to be remarkably well adjusted for someone who spent his formative years on the Starship Enterprise. And of course, he writes things like this. It's that particular post that prompted me to post this blog. It captures my thoughts on the matter pretty exactly. In fact, I find myself agreeing with him fairly often. I highly recommend reading his blog.

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Navigation

I hate driving in Baltimore. As much as I love the city itself, driving there stresses me out.

Take last night, for example. My directions for getting to the Ottobar were simple. Get on Howard Street. Stay on Howard Street. Park. And since Howard Street is one of the few streets in Baltimore I can find without trouble, it should be a piece of cake, right? Well, sort of.

I didn't get lost. I'll give it that much. But I had forgotten (or more likely, blocked it out to preserve my sanity) that cars share Howard Street with the lightrail. I hate sharing the street with the fucking lightrail. On the one hand, I'm sure that the city's transportation department has all of the lights correctly timed and that it's perfectly safe. On the other hand, this is the same transportation department that's had a sign that says "Stairs to Charlers St." at the Charles Center Metro station for the past ten years, so maybe I'm right to be apprehensive.

Whatever. I made it to the Ottobar on time, the show was great, and I made it home with a minimum of difficulty--though I should note that Howard Street also becomes one way halfway down, which made my exit a bit more difficult, but I survived. Give me DC driving any day.

Saturday, January 6, 2007

Things I have encountered this week that I would like to share. (Part II)

MI-5, aka Spooks
I love Netflix. It lets me get addicted to awesome shows that I never would have seen, and I don't have to pay for cable. This show popped up as a recommendation at some point, and I added it on a whim. Now I'm addicted. Matthew McFayden is hot. And so is his accent. And you have to love a show where you know from the very beginning that anyone can die or otherwise be removed. The last five minutes of the second episode of the first season was like a punch in the gut.

The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things, by Carolyn Mackler
Read this book. No, seriously. I don't care if the last young adult book you read was a Baby-Sitters Club book. Read this book, and marvel at the blunt honesty. See also, Tangerine, by Edward Bloor.

Wednesday, January 3, 2007

107 in 2007

I started this ritual in 2004--rather than making New Year's resolutions, I make a list of things to do in the coming year. That way, it's less of an ongoing thing and more something I can stretch out over the full year. In 2004, it was 104 things. In 2005, 105. And so on.

This year, I mentioned my list at a New Year's Eve party, and many people expressed interest in it; therefore I decided to post it here. I don't really intend to keep a running tally of completed items on my blog; I do this in my paper journal, but I may post a round-up at the end of the year.

That is, if we haven't all moved on to the next big thing. I mean, really. MySpace is so 2006. (Kidding.)


Personal Development
1. Make a sincere effort to introduce more calm into my life
2. Find a church I like; attend as needed
3. Personal
4. See my work in print under my own name, either in hard copy or online
5. Personal
6. Write a first draft of a novel, no matter how much it sucks
7. Take public transportation as often as possible
8. Write a letter to someone
9. Sew something

Household
10. Find an apartment I truly like
11. Cook one new thing each week; record in the cooking blog I set up and have hardly used
12. Cook one good thing from each cookbook, or throw it away
13. Make sushi
14. Give the FlyLady method a serious effort for at least one month
15. Do not leave dishes sitting in the sink overnight
16. Have a completely clean house on the 1st of every month
17. Personal
18. Have a completely clean car on the 1st of every month
19. Get my car washed every other month
20. Buy my produce at a farmers' market as often as possible
21. Buy local whenever possible
22. Plant an herb garden
23. Go antiquing
24. Make Christmas cookies
25. Put up and decorate a Christmas tree

Career/Education
26. Find a new job or make peace with the one I've got
27. Get organized at work and stay that way
28. Re-join WIN
29. Go to bed by 11 p.m. on work nights
30. Be on time to work every day
31. Take six classes and get As in at least four
32. Have all class assignments done two days before the due date
33. Do all reading for every class

Culture
34. Try a new restaurant (January)
35. Try a new restaurant (February)
36. Try a new restaurant (March)
37. Try a new restaurant (April)
38. Try a new restaurant (May)
39. Try a new restaurant (June)
40. Try a new restaurant (July)
41. Try a new restaurant (August)
42. Try a new restaurant (September)
43. Try a new restaurant (October)
44. Try a new restaurant (November)
45. Try a new restaurant (December)
46. Get my Netflix queue below 200
47. Go to a play
48. Go to an event at the Kennedy Center
49. Attend a formal gala
50. Go to an art museum
51. Attend a classical music concert
52. Join the Young Benefactors of the Smithsonian
53. Take a duck tour

Financial
54. Pay off all of my credit cards
55. Stick to a strict budget
56. Record all money spent
57. Roll my Fidelity plan over into the new IRA
58. Have my taxes done by March 1
59. Deposit my tax refund directly into my IRA
60. Have $400 in my vacation fund by the end of the year
61. Withdraw money for the week on Mondays; do not use debit card
62. Personal
63. Continue to make regular payments on my student loans despite the deferral
64. Personal
65. Personal
66. Do not use my credit cards at all, except for automatic payments that must be paid off every month
67. Make three charitable donations this year
68. Personal
69. Personal

Reading
70. Read four short stories per week.
71. Read a book on the beach
72. Read the entire Bible
73. January/February Classic: Pride and Prejudice
74. March/April Classic: Vanity Fair
75. May/June Classic: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
76. July/August Classic: Dubliners
77. September/October Classic: Frankenstein
78. November/December Classic: Don Quixote
79. Read the ALA's 2007 Notable Books
80. Read all of the Persephone books I own
81. Buy four more Persephone books

Health/Fitness
82. Get dental insurance
83. Handle my most pressing dental issues
84. Take my lunch at least 4 days a week
85. Limit eating out to once per week
86. Go to the gym at least once a week
87. Kayak three times this summer
88. Buy a bike
89. Personal
90. Wear a size 8
91. Ski at least once
92. Play tennis three times

Personal Care
93. Learn how to apply makeup
94. Wear a bikini
95. Personal
96. Find "my" perfume
97. Develop a skincare regimen that I stick to religiously
98. Get a haircut at least every three months
99. Get professionally fitted for a bra
100. Personal
101. Get a massage
102. Get a facial

Travel
103. Go away for the weekend by myself
104. Spend a weekend at the beach
105. Visit two states I've never been to before
106. Go camping
107. Visit Rochester twice