This morning, a small Asian man with a Christmas-green sports coat got on my subway car. Once the doors closed, he said, "Excuse me," and then burst into a heavily accented version of "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" (I think) through two subway stops.
When he finished, he thanked us and then left the car. WITHOUT asking for money!
For a moment I felt like I was back in NYC (barring that whole transit strike they have going on today), but then, with a whoosh, I was brought back to earth. The man didn't want any money! And I would have gladly given it to him, seeing how inappropriate for the cold his coat was.
But this situation proves exactly what the holidays are about: celebrating with family and friends, and being kind to strangers.
His song certainly lit up my corner of the world.
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Monday, December 19, 2005
Absolut Insanity
You don't know where you've been until you see the pictures. At least, I'm sure that's how several of us felt after spending Friday night, of all things, celebrating Eric.
Yes, yes, he has finally passed into his 26th year, and just in time for 2006.
In any case, we came, we saw, we drank Jameson, we grabbed each others' nipples, and before you knew it, we were feeding Eric water through a straw. It was GLORIOUS.
There are many pictures illustrating the event, as can be seen through Kodak Gallery if you quickly make friends with either Dave or I. The only other problem (i.e. other than being friends with us) is that we have a difficult time sending them out because they make both of us look awful. As in "we never should have brought these cameras" awful. Basically, I reign as Queen of all Things Experienced with Eyes Closed, and David is the King of Nostril Hair. Enough said.
In other news, I went to see Derek's band play on Saturday night and redeem myself for missing his gig last weekend (which was merely 5 blocks away from my house). I'm not entirely sure what happened, except that the first band that played lost their drummer for about a half hour, the bartender(s) stole our money right in front of our backs, and Derek's band took an hour to set up. By the time they went on, it was after 1AM. WAY past my bedtime. Like the whiny little girl I am, I checked out early. Maybe next time I can see their entire set, but that night wasn't in the cards. I needed my down pillow - and fast.
Sunday was spent pretending we were going out of the house. Okay, so it did happen, but that wasn't until around 4:30PM so we could check out a junk shop before meeting Eric and Jeff at Ben's Chili Bowl. After buying a homeless guy a half-smoke, Anthony joined Peco at the hockey game and the boys and I visited my apartment. Which is the site of one good old-fashioned Scattergories timer disassembly.
Eric insisted that the timer needed batteries (it didn't), unscrewed the back, and all the gears fell out. He and Jeff then spent the entire game of Trivial Pursuit (obviously, Scattergories was out of the running) putting the darn thing back together. But that's just because they didn't want to admit defeat. Damn you both and your ambition.
So now I'm one Scattergories timer richer. And boy, is that rich!
We ended the weekend with a jaunt to our local hotspot, the Black Cat, to attend a garage sale. That's what they called it anyway. The lighting was awful, but we managed to pick up a handblown glass vase, a handblown glass necklace, and a blankety-blank for Eric's mom (I can't tell you what it is - what if she finds my site and discovers her gift before Eric has a chance to be seen as the giving son he is?!). It was, for all intents and puposes, a success.
And by success I mean I only had to deal with Eric calling my holiday card "slightly creepy" once.
Yes, yes, he has finally passed into his 26th year, and just in time for 2006.
In any case, we came, we saw, we drank Jameson, we grabbed each others' nipples, and before you knew it, we were feeding Eric water through a straw. It was GLORIOUS.
There are many pictures illustrating the event, as can be seen through Kodak Gallery if you quickly make friends with either Dave or I. The only other problem (i.e. other than being friends with us) is that we have a difficult time sending them out because they make both of us look awful. As in "we never should have brought these cameras" awful. Basically, I reign as Queen of all Things Experienced with Eyes Closed, and David is the King of Nostril Hair. Enough said.
In other news, I went to see Derek's band play on Saturday night and redeem myself for missing his gig last weekend (which was merely 5 blocks away from my house). I'm not entirely sure what happened, except that the first band that played lost their drummer for about a half hour, the bartender(s) stole our money right in front of our backs, and Derek's band took an hour to set up. By the time they went on, it was after 1AM. WAY past my bedtime. Like the whiny little girl I am, I checked out early. Maybe next time I can see their entire set, but that night wasn't in the cards. I needed my down pillow - and fast.
Sunday was spent pretending we were going out of the house. Okay, so it did happen, but that wasn't until around 4:30PM so we could check out a junk shop before meeting Eric and Jeff at Ben's Chili Bowl. After buying a homeless guy a half-smoke, Anthony joined Peco at the hockey game and the boys and I visited my apartment. Which is the site of one good old-fashioned Scattergories timer disassembly.
Eric insisted that the timer needed batteries (it didn't), unscrewed the back, and all the gears fell out. He and Jeff then spent the entire game of Trivial Pursuit (obviously, Scattergories was out of the running) putting the darn thing back together. But that's just because they didn't want to admit defeat. Damn you both and your ambition.
So now I'm one Scattergories timer richer. And boy, is that rich!
We ended the weekend with a jaunt to our local hotspot, the Black Cat, to attend a garage sale. That's what they called it anyway. The lighting was awful, but we managed to pick up a handblown glass vase, a handblown glass necklace, and a blankety-blank for Eric's mom (I can't tell you what it is - what if she finds my site and discovers her gift before Eric has a chance to be seen as the giving son he is?!). It was, for all intents and puposes, a success.
And by success I mean I only had to deal with Eric calling my holiday card "slightly creepy" once.
Thursday, December 15, 2005
Quizzes Are For Those Of Us Who Are Busy Avoiding Everything Else
You rule. in 15 years, you won't be as known as you
are now, but most of the people that will know
you then will like you (or else I'll beat them
with a stick). You're nice to listen to.
What band from the 80s are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
Anthony Would Be So Proud
Congratulations, you make it until the end! You
are the strong, modestly good looking man or
woman who doesn't take it from anybody.
How fast would you die in a cheesy zombie flick?
brought to you by Quizilla
More Online Quizzes to Clog My Time
I found this one on Mumbles' journal, which I just found (see sidebar) today by looking through Erin's friends on livejournal. In any case, this is kind of wacky because it's sort of accurate. I don't want to say how much, just so you can't make too much fun of me. So without further ado, my quiz results:
Ryan, your hemispheric dominance is equally divided between left and right brain, while you show a moderate preference for auditory versus visual learning, signs of a balanced and flexible person.
Your balance gives you the enviable capacity to be verbal and literate while retaining a certain "flair" and individuality. You are logical and compliant but only to a degree. You are organized without being compulsive, goal-directed without being driven, and a "thinking" individual without being excessively so.
The one problem you might have is that your learning might not be as efficient as you would like. At times you will work from the specific to the general, while at other times you'll work from the general to the specific. Sometimes you will be logical in your approach while at other times random. Since you cannot always control the choice, you may experience frustrations not normally felt by persons with a more defined and directed learning style.
You may also minimally experience conflicts associated with auditory processing. You will be systematic and sequential in your processing of information, you will most often focus on a single dimension of the problem or material, and you will be more reflective, i.e., "taking the data in" as opposed to "devouring" it.
Overall, you should feel content with your life and yourself. You are, perhaps, a little too critical of yourself - and of others - while maintaining an "openness" which is redeeming. Indecisiveness is a problem and your creativity is not in keeping with your potential. Being a pragmatist, you downplay this aspect of yourself and focus on the more immediate, the more obvious and the more functional.
Ryan, your hemispheric dominance is equally divided between left and right brain, while you show a moderate preference for auditory versus visual learning, signs of a balanced and flexible person.
Your balance gives you the enviable capacity to be verbal and literate while retaining a certain "flair" and individuality. You are logical and compliant but only to a degree. You are organized without being compulsive, goal-directed without being driven, and a "thinking" individual without being excessively so.
The one problem you might have is that your learning might not be as efficient as you would like. At times you will work from the specific to the general, while at other times you'll work from the general to the specific. Sometimes you will be logical in your approach while at other times random. Since you cannot always control the choice, you may experience frustrations not normally felt by persons with a more defined and directed learning style.
You may also minimally experience conflicts associated with auditory processing. You will be systematic and sequential in your processing of information, you will most often focus on a single dimension of the problem or material, and you will be more reflective, i.e., "taking the data in" as opposed to "devouring" it.
Overall, you should feel content with your life and yourself. You are, perhaps, a little too critical of yourself - and of others - while maintaining an "openness" which is redeeming. Indecisiveness is a problem and your creativity is not in keeping with your potential. Being a pragmatist, you downplay this aspect of yourself and focus on the more immediate, the more obvious and the more functional.
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
Time Again for Happy Harry the Hannukah Bush/Christmas Tree
It's either that or the fact that last night I finally ventured out to see my first movie since the Thanksgiving marathon: Harry Potter. If you haven't yet done so, the Harry Potter series is practically required reading. And two hours after you've started the books, which you will now have invariably finished reading (I assure you, they are THAT addictive), you MUST go see this movie. Yeah, yeah, the first three were fun and PG-rated and all, but the latest installment actually stands alone as a GOOD MOVIE and not just a visual treat for fans of the books. The child actors they hired are actually starting to ACT, and director Mike Newell makes the whole adventure POP with dread, melancholy, and fair share of wit.
You'll notice (if you've been watching the previous movies) that the outlook for Hogwarts has changed, but I believe Newell's vision is more accurate to the book. I prefer Richard Harris' more kindly version to Michael Gambon's Dumbledore, but you can't have everything, now can you? All in all, I really liked this movie. So on the Netflix scale, I give the movie 4 out of 5 stars.
In other news, my coworkers are looking for mention of their names in my Blog, which is highly amusing to say the least. I guess when you work with a group of professional computer geeks, as I lovingly refer to all high-tech employees, they are going to sniff out any mention of you on the internet. So, Mo, Bill, this mention is for you.
Slightly more important on my list of things to discuss is the fact that I have been quite remiss in blogging lately. Much of that has to do with the fact that I am studying for the GRE and writing grad school applications at the same time. That and coddling Anthony (and his not quite yet formulated flu) seems to zap up all my free time.
Oh sure, there's been ice skating at the Sculpture garden and mad attempts to see Derek's band, but for the most part I've been a homebody with no particular attachment to my Blog lately. I suppose you will just have to forgive me or hate me forever. Totally up to you.
And that, my friends, is all I have to say about that.
On a high note, my 5-year college reunion is happening in May. I've been dreading this and looking forward to it. Part of the dread is due to the hope that the alumni association never really finds me so they can't send me requests for donations (damn you and your money-leeching!), but I've also never been all that good at revisiting the past. As my mom can tell you, I only visit my hometown once a year, and that's only because she lives there (and because it's happy turkey day, which, as you all know, is my favorite holiday of the year - although mom, if you don't get your act together and start serving up my regular homemade fixin's, I'm a-gonna stop that tradition)!
The upside of getting older is that the college reunion gives my friends yet another excuse to make a special effort to hang out with one another. Las Vegas was only the beginning, baby.
You'll notice (if you've been watching the previous movies) that the outlook for Hogwarts has changed, but I believe Newell's vision is more accurate to the book. I prefer Richard Harris' more kindly version to Michael Gambon's Dumbledore, but you can't have everything, now can you? All in all, I really liked this movie. So on the Netflix scale, I give the movie 4 out of 5 stars.
In other news, my coworkers are looking for mention of their names in my Blog, which is highly amusing to say the least. I guess when you work with a group of professional computer geeks, as I lovingly refer to all high-tech employees, they are going to sniff out any mention of you on the internet. So, Mo, Bill, this mention is for you.
Slightly more important on my list of things to discuss is the fact that I have been quite remiss in blogging lately. Much of that has to do with the fact that I am studying for the GRE and writing grad school applications at the same time. That and coddling Anthony (and his not quite yet formulated flu) seems to zap up all my free time.
Oh sure, there's been ice skating at the Sculpture garden and mad attempts to see Derek's band, but for the most part I've been a homebody with no particular attachment to my Blog lately. I suppose you will just have to forgive me or hate me forever. Totally up to you.
And that, my friends, is all I have to say about that.
On a high note, my 5-year college reunion is happening in May. I've been dreading this and looking forward to it. Part of the dread is due to the hope that the alumni association never really finds me so they can't send me requests for donations (damn you and your money-leeching!), but I've also never been all that good at revisiting the past. As my mom can tell you, I only visit my hometown once a year, and that's only because she lives there (and because it's happy turkey day, which, as you all know, is my favorite holiday of the year - although mom, if you don't get your act together and start serving up my regular homemade fixin's, I'm a-gonna stop that tradition)!
The upside of getting older is that the college reunion gives my friends yet another excuse to make a special effort to hang out with one another. Las Vegas was only the beginning, baby.
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
And on That Day We Gave Thanks
Thanksgiving
Originally uploaded by Pookah.
Thanksgiving…was…interesting.
Let me preface that by reminding you all that I go home every Thanksgiving, without fail. It is my absolute favorite holiday. Any holiday created solely for the purpose of hanging out and eating all day is okay in my book.
This Thanksgiving started out the same as any other. I flew home, my family picked me up, and the next day there were piles of turkey.
However, this year, the entire meal was on order from Shaw’s. We spooned food items out of plastic containers into aluminum pans to reheat and serve. There was turkey, ham, broccoli au gratin (that da’ Momma managed to burn to the pan), squash, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls and lumpy cranberry sauce (knowing how much I love the cranberry sauce in the shape of the Ocean Spray can, da’ Momma also purchased some of that for me). There were even two apple pies. It sounds like a lot of traditional food, but without the same love that enters into all my recipes, it wasn’t the most outstanding dinner I’ve ever consumed.
Auntie Thomas brought the stuffed artichokes (mine are better!), Uncle Dana the edible pies, and Ilana and Scott brought the appetizers (roasted nuts, scallops wrapped in bacon that existed for all of ten seconds before Preyasha and Dan inhaled them, veggies and hippie dip, and chestnuts). I think I actually ate so little that this was the first Thanksgiving I ever survived without feeling the need to fend off a tryptophan nap.
Honestly, the best food was the leftover food. I fried up the potatoes in butter, made ham and pepper eggs, and da’ Momma used the bones and leftover gravy to make a really tasty tortellini soup. What we didn’t eat we bagged for Anthony.
Yes, my friends, Anthony spent Thanksgiving alone. Because of work, he couldn’t leave town, so he ended his Thanksgiving eve watching football with some friends of his AT WORK. I still can’t believe he went into work on his night off, even if it was the kind of holiday you aren’t supposed to spend alone.
Anyway. Dan showed up for all of ten minutes this year, much like he does every year despite all his promises not to come. He threatened me with a sleepover at his house, which usually means he intends to get me so drunk that I can’t find my way off the barstool, but somehow that never happened and those ten minutes were all we saw of him last weekend.
My partner in crime, Christy, was also supposed to see me while I was home, but guess what?! She just recently found out that she’s pregnant…AGAIN. After swearing up and down that she never wanted to have another child after Sarol, Christy has gone and surprised us all. Sarol says the new baby will be a girl, and that they should name her Sarol, too. Christy tells me that when she asked how she and Matt would differentiate the two if they named the new baby Sarol, Sarol said, “When you want me, you call for Sarol. When you want her, you call her name twice.” Oh, that Sarol! She’s in for quite a different ride, I tell you.
So, after the day full of family, I saw no one. Instead, I spent a whole day at the movie theatre and then another whole day shopping with da’ Momma. Since Anthony doesn’t like what he terms “chick flicks,” we rented Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Fever Pitch, and then I went to see Walk the Line, Pride and Prejudice, and In Her Shoes. My absolute favorite: Pride and Prejudice. What can I say? I’m a diehard Jane Austen fan. And eighteenth century Georgian repression is just so HOT! The second in line had to be Traveling Pants. The rest were just dressing – they were good, but I’m not in love with them.
After spending so little money during the trip, I lost my head when we went to Target and Michael’s. I ended up purchasing so much that I had to borrow a piece of luggage from da’ Momma and could barely pick it up! I even had to check it on the plane. Ugh.
All in all, it was a nice weekend, what with the first snow of the season and all, but every time I’m away from home (i.e. DC – for the time being), I am constantly thinking of all the things I COULD be doing, instead of enjoying the fact that there is nothing to do. I am happy to be home, but already I am tired and wishing I had caught up on more sleep so I could get these applications (Peace Corps, grad school) together, find a martial arts studio and start going back to the gym, and all the little chores in between, like laundry and cleaning the bathroom.
Ah well, another Thanksgiving bites the dust.
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