I learned a few things from my blogging every day challenge. First of all, I learned that there isn't always something to write about. Some days don't need to be blogged. However, I also learned that blogging doesn't need to be a big-to-do. Sometimes even just a little thought here and there is better than being out of the loop for weeks at a time. I also learned that people like photos on blogs, and even though this takes a little more effort, I think it's worth it. And I found out that more people than I thought are actually reading this little blog. Thanks for the comments and emails!
So I guess, overall, it was successful, even thought I didn't get to do it every day, I did learn something which is always good. I hope you all enjoyed it, too. Here's to better blogging for the rest of 2008 (and beyond)!
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Chicago Weekend!
OK, so I really fell off of the blogging-every-day boat, but for good reason. I was in Chicago this past weekend and classes started on Tuesday. So here's all about my weekend in the Windy City:
Anyone who ever visited me in Chicago, undoubtedly had the pleasure of eating at Huey's Hot Dogs. Above you can see the remains of my Veggie Dog (No Onions, No Hot Peppers!) with Fries and a side of cheese. The fries are the best around and the hot dog was great, too. Jerri, Suz and I started there and Mark and Dan showed up shortly thereafter. Everything was going smoothly until Jerri, with her ever-expressive arms, accidentally spilled a full glass of water all over me. When I asked what she was trying to say, she commented on one of the buttons on my bag. It says "Future Librarian". Jerri's always creative mind thought that is said "Future Lesbian". Hate to break it to you folks, but I'm really a future librarian, not a future lesbian.
After Huey's, Suz and I headed down to Intuit Gallery to see a show of Henry Darger's work. If you don't know anything about Henry Darger, he was a reclusive artist who lived in Chicago and created a 15,000+ page graphic novel about seven sisters called the Vivian girls. You can check out the movie In the Realms of the Unreal to find out more about him. The show consisted of some of his watercolors, pages from the book and a re-creation of his apartment. It was great to see. There was also a collection of mug shots that was pretty interesting.
Suz and I then headed down to the Loop and paid $0.25 for every 5 minutes of parking in order to run around Millennium Park for 25 minutes. One of my favorite things in Chicago is the public sculpture known as The Bean. It's officially called Cloud Gate by Anish Kapoor. Above is a photo of just a small part of it with ice formed on it.
That night we got to have dinner at Yes Thai and I got to eat two of my favorite things: Tofu Satay and Rama Special with Tofu. It was wonderful, and Jerri and Mark and Dan and Ali joined Suz and I and we had both good food and good conversation. After our meal we headed to The Hopleaf to meet up with some of friends and finish off the night.
Sunday started out with a trip out to Oak Park to meet up with my good friend Nate. I got to see his beautiful house, meet his new wife and their kids! It was a relaxing morning with a great breakfast, good conversation and good laughs as always.
After Oak Park, Suz and I headed back into the city and straight to the Old Town School to enjoy the rest of the day immersed in Jug Band music. At 2pm, we saw a new documentary called Chasin' Gus' Ghost. It was great. Once that was over, we went to the Jug Band Jam in the basement. There were so many different instruments in attendance: banjos, guitars, fiddles, washtub bass, jugs galore, kazoos, a banjo uke, mandolins, washboards (yes, plural), and too many homemade percussion instruments to talk about. It was just great.
The highlight of the day was the evening benefit concert. Our good friend Arlo put together the Will Shade Gravestone Benefit Concert. It brought together a collection of great Jug Band performers including what for me was the highlight of the show: The Carolina Chocolate Drops. It was awesome to see them live.
Here is Suz, Sally, Me, Jerri, Mark and Arlo after the concert. We then headed over to The Grafton to finish off the night with curry fries, drinks and more good conversation. For me it was the end of a perfect weekend. Suz and I headed back to her place and my flight left early on Monday morning. Overall it was an AWESOME weekend! I'm so glad I made it out there, even if it was for such a short time.
Anyone who ever visited me in Chicago, undoubtedly had the pleasure of eating at Huey's Hot Dogs. Above you can see the remains of my Veggie Dog (No Onions, No Hot Peppers!) with Fries and a side of cheese. The fries are the best around and the hot dog was great, too. Jerri, Suz and I started there and Mark and Dan showed up shortly thereafter. Everything was going smoothly until Jerri, with her ever-expressive arms, accidentally spilled a full glass of water all over me. When I asked what she was trying to say, she commented on one of the buttons on my bag. It says "Future Librarian". Jerri's always creative mind thought that is said "Future Lesbian". Hate to break it to you folks, but I'm really a future librarian, not a future lesbian.
After Huey's, Suz and I headed down to Intuit Gallery to see a show of Henry Darger's work. If you don't know anything about Henry Darger, he was a reclusive artist who lived in Chicago and created a 15,000+ page graphic novel about seven sisters called the Vivian girls. You can check out the movie In the Realms of the Unreal to find out more about him. The show consisted of some of his watercolors, pages from the book and a re-creation of his apartment. It was great to see. There was also a collection of mug shots that was pretty interesting.
Suz and I then headed down to the Loop and paid $0.25 for every 5 minutes of parking in order to run around Millennium Park for 25 minutes. One of my favorite things in Chicago is the public sculpture known as The Bean. It's officially called Cloud Gate by Anish Kapoor. Above is a photo of just a small part of it with ice formed on it.
That night we got to have dinner at Yes Thai and I got to eat two of my favorite things: Tofu Satay and Rama Special with Tofu. It was wonderful, and Jerri and Mark and Dan and Ali joined Suz and I and we had both good food and good conversation. After our meal we headed to The Hopleaf to meet up with some of friends and finish off the night.
Sunday started out with a trip out to Oak Park to meet up with my good friend Nate. I got to see his beautiful house, meet his new wife and their kids! It was a relaxing morning with a great breakfast, good conversation and good laughs as always.
After Oak Park, Suz and I headed back into the city and straight to the Old Town School to enjoy the rest of the day immersed in Jug Band music. At 2pm, we saw a new documentary called Chasin' Gus' Ghost. It was great. Once that was over, we went to the Jug Band Jam in the basement. There were so many different instruments in attendance: banjos, guitars, fiddles, washtub bass, jugs galore, kazoos, a banjo uke, mandolins, washboards (yes, plural), and too many homemade percussion instruments to talk about. It was just great.
The highlight of the day was the evening benefit concert. Our good friend Arlo put together the Will Shade Gravestone Benefit Concert. It brought together a collection of great Jug Band performers including what for me was the highlight of the show: The Carolina Chocolate Drops. It was awesome to see them live.
Here is Suz, Sally, Me, Jerri, Mark and Arlo after the concert. We then headed over to The Grafton to finish off the night with curry fries, drinks and more good conversation. For me it was the end of a perfect weekend. Suz and I headed back to her place and my flight left early on Monday morning. Overall it was an AWESOME weekend! I'm so glad I made it out there, even if it was for such a short time.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Sick Day, numero dos
Yes, I took today off, too. I went to the doctor and she verified that I do not have strep throat, I was running a fever (100.8!) and that I need rest and fluids and lots of it if I think I'm going to make it to Chicago on Saturday. So that's what I'm going to do.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Sick Day
I stayed home from work today. I woke up yesterday with a little scratchiness in my throat and it just got worse throughout the day. I didn't sleep well last night, and decided I should just take the day to rest and feel better. The bummer of all this is that I am traveling to Chicago this weekend and I really hope I'm feeling better by then!
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Veggie dinner & vegan cupcakes
Last night I had the pleasure of once again getting together with my veggie dinner club for a great dinner at Ann and Lee's. We had homemade gnocchi, Parmesan encrusted tofu, green beans and carrots, and the most amazing vegan cupcakes. Ann is a super-fan of this one cookbook titled Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World and I have to say, I wish they would. I've had maybe five different varieties that Ann has made and they've all been great. It has totally changed my perception of vegan baked goods. It was a fun night, as always, and I'm already looking forward to February at Paul and Trinity's!
Monday, January 21, 2008
Good Day, Yesterday...
Well folks, I did it. I missed a day of my "blogging every day in January" goal. But (I think) it was for a good reason. Basically, I didn't want to turn my computer on last night.
I had a great day getting some stuff accomplished around the house in the morning. And then around 1pm, Sylvie picked me up and we headed to Salem to go to the Peabody Essex Museum. The exhibit I really wanted to see, Accidental Mysteries, was wonderful. It is a collection of vernacular photography, or people's snapshots, but ones that had a story to tell. One of my favorites was this:All of the photos are from the John and Teenuh Foster Collection of vernacular photography and this one is titled Girls with Watermelon c. 1955. In the gallery, it was enlarged to probably about 2 x3 feet. The expressions on the girl's faces are priceless and it's just funny to think about what's going on here. It also made me wonder who took this photo. It obviously had to be someone close to these girls, and it made me think that it may have been one of their friends, another girl at the same party or summer camp just excited about photography and taking photos of everyone and everything. To read more about the show, you can get the original press release here.
After to museum, I got to see the hotel where I'll be staying for Sylvie and Miriam's wedding. It's beautiful and right in downtown Salem, only a block from the museum. After that Sylvie and I headed to a DSW that we spotted on the way up to Salem and both got some great deals on shoes. I got 2 pair for $22! and Sylvie's one pair ended up being less than $5. Totally worth stopping.
After a nice day of shopping and museum-going, we picked up Miriam, headed back to my place for dinner, Yahtzee and watching the finale of The Amazing Race. It was a wonderful evening. So wonderful, that by the time they left I didn't even think about turning on my computer to write about it. So here I am this morning, writing about yesterday...
I had a great day getting some stuff accomplished around the house in the morning. And then around 1pm, Sylvie picked me up and we headed to Salem to go to the Peabody Essex Museum. The exhibit I really wanted to see, Accidental Mysteries, was wonderful. It is a collection of vernacular photography, or people's snapshots, but ones that had a story to tell. One of my favorites was this:All of the photos are from the John and Teenuh Foster Collection of vernacular photography and this one is titled Girls with Watermelon c. 1955. In the gallery, it was enlarged to probably about 2 x3 feet. The expressions on the girl's faces are priceless and it's just funny to think about what's going on here. It also made me wonder who took this photo. It obviously had to be someone close to these girls, and it made me think that it may have been one of their friends, another girl at the same party or summer camp just excited about photography and taking photos of everyone and everything. To read more about the show, you can get the original press release here.
After to museum, I got to see the hotel where I'll be staying for Sylvie and Miriam's wedding. It's beautiful and right in downtown Salem, only a block from the museum. After that Sylvie and I headed to a DSW that we spotted on the way up to Salem and both got some great deals on shoes. I got 2 pair for $22! and Sylvie's one pair ended up being less than $5. Totally worth stopping.
After a nice day of shopping and museum-going, we picked up Miriam, headed back to my place for dinner, Yahtzee and watching the finale of The Amazing Race. It was a wonderful evening. So wonderful, that by the time they left I didn't even think about turning on my computer to write about it. So here I am this morning, writing about yesterday...
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Volunteering
Today some friends and I decided to volunteer at the Prison Book Program in Quincy, MA. The program provides books to prisoners who write letters to the program requesting some titles that they might like, or genres that they enjoy. Many of the letters requested dictionaries, GED study books, yoga and meditation guides, classic fiction and books on law. The letters varied greatly. Some were wordy with lots of requests or describing the prison library (generally in a negative way), or the ones asking for legal texts went a little into detail about the poor representation they received and that they wanted to gain a better understanding of the legal system in which they are so intimately entangled. It was fun to fill the orders, but I felt really bad when I couldn't quite find what they were requesting. I did my best and I know that my few hours of volunteering touched quite a few people's lives.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Film frenzy
So I went to another movie tonight. The plan is to movie myself out this weekend because I never see movies during the semester. Tonight I went to see Persepolis and it was really amazing. As Jerri told me: "Run, don't walk!" The animation was amazing, it was nice to hear French being spoken and the story was wonderful. Sorry this is so short, but I saw the late show and I'm pooped. Good Night, reader!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Two Movies, One Day
I went to see I'm Not There this afternoon. I enjoyed it, although it was hard to follow, once I gave up on trying to follow it, it was more enjoyable. I was one of 4 people in the theatre, so that was nice. When I got home my Netflix movie came in the mail, so I decided to pop it in while I ate some dinner. It's the Diane Keaton movie Because I Said So. I really like Diane Keaton and even though this clearly falls into Romantic Comedy, it's enjoyable.
Can I say "enjoyable"one more time? Wow, I need to start writing these entries before right before I go to bed.
The best part of the day was that all the snow finally fell off my car. It happened in quite a dramatic fashion, too. When I stopped at a stop sign, all the snow from my roof came sliding onto the windshield. I could just see over it and was about 10 feet from parking my car, so I just did a good little parallel parking job and finally got to brush all the snow away. It's only January and I'm already sick of the snow. It snows way more in Boston than it ever did in Chicago... I'm just sayin'...
Can I say "enjoyable"one more time? Wow, I need to start writing these entries before right before I go to bed.
The best part of the day was that all the snow finally fell off my car. It happened in quite a dramatic fashion, too. When I stopped at a stop sign, all the snow from my roof came sliding onto the windshield. I could just see over it and was about 10 feet from parking my car, so I just did a good little parallel parking job and finally got to brush all the snow away. It's only January and I'm already sick of the snow. It snows way more in Boston than it ever did in Chicago... I'm just sayin'...
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Dinner with friends
One of the best parts of living in Massachusetts is that I'm close to two good friends from college: Christa and Mark. Tonight we decided to meet somewhere in the middle. Tonight this meant meeting at John Harvard's in Framingham. This would have been fine if I had known where I was going. It was supposed to take me about half an hour to get there, but an hour and 15 minutes later, I finally parked found Christa and Mark and ordered a beer. After the trouble of getting there, it was a perfect evening with old friends. Lots of laughs, some serious discussions, too, hugs all around and good times. I'm already looking forward to the next time we get together.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
"I want to be an alchemist"
My phone rang at 7:45 this morning and my nephew, Nathaniel was on the other end. He had recently sent me a comic book of his creation and he wanted to get my reaction to it. I said I hoped I'm on the subscription list and I'm already looking forward to the next installment. Then we had a nice conversation that went something like this:
B: Do you have school today?
N: Yes, we're learning about tornadoes.
B: Wow, that's cool, what about tornadoes?
N: Well, really about all kinds of weather, but tornadoes are cool.
B: Oh, I see. What else are you learning about?
N: Well, we're going to be learning about dinosaurs soon.
B: Great!
N: Yeah, I really like dinosaurs.
B: Cool, maybe someday you'll be a paleontologist.
N: No, I want to be an alchemist.
B: Really? Where did you learn about alchemy?
N: Mom.
B: So what are you going to do with that?
N: Well, you know, make potions and stuff. I heard that alchemy is kind of like cooking because you start with ingredients and then make something out of them. But cooking might be better because you get to eat what you make.
B: Well, that's true. Maybe you'll be a famous chef.
N: No, I just want to be an alchemist.
Clearly kids these days know how to dream big. Did I mention that Nathaniel just turned 6?
B: Do you have school today?
N: Yes, we're learning about tornadoes.
B: Wow, that's cool, what about tornadoes?
N: Well, really about all kinds of weather, but tornadoes are cool.
B: Oh, I see. What else are you learning about?
N: Well, we're going to be learning about dinosaurs soon.
B: Great!
N: Yeah, I really like dinosaurs.
B: Cool, maybe someday you'll be a paleontologist.
N: No, I want to be an alchemist.
B: Really? Where did you learn about alchemy?
N: Mom.
B: So what are you going to do with that?
N: Well, you know, make potions and stuff. I heard that alchemy is kind of like cooking because you start with ingredients and then make something out of them. But cooking might be better because you get to eat what you make.
B: Well, that's true. Maybe you'll be a famous chef.
N: No, I just want to be an alchemist.
Clearly kids these days know how to dream big. Did I mention that Nathaniel just turned 6?
Monday, January 14, 2008
Movies in January
So this January I decided to up my Netflix to one-at-time, unlimited per month! I know this is just one step up from the very basic, but it's still a step up. I've also been supplementing my Netflix movies with movies from the library, seeing movies in the theatre and movies from my friend's Netflix and On-Demand. Here is just a sampling of movies I've seen in the past 2 weeks:
The Great Debaters - a good way to spend a sloppy snowy afternoon.
The Simpsons Movie - wish I had seen it on the big screen, but still enjoyable
Down From the Mountain - This is a documentary about the music from the movie "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"
Patty Griffin, Live from the Artists Den
Helvetica
Much Ado About Nothing - an oldie but a goodie, in fact I slept through part of it, but it was totally worth it.
Notes On a Scandal - creepy, but good.
I'm hoping to squeeze in a couple more movies in the theatre before school starts at the end of the month. We'll see how that goes. I'd love to see I'm Not There, Persepolis, Walk Hard and a couple others. I'm always open for recommendations...
The Great Debaters - a good way to spend a sloppy snowy afternoon.
The Simpsons Movie - wish I had seen it on the big screen, but still enjoyable
Down From the Mountain - This is a documentary about the music from the movie "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"
Patty Griffin, Live from the Artists Den
Helvetica
Much Ado About Nothing - an oldie but a goodie, in fact I slept through part of it, but it was totally worth it.
Notes On a Scandal - creepy, but good.
I'm hoping to squeeze in a couple more movies in the theatre before school starts at the end of the month. We'll see how that goes. I'd love to see I'm Not There, Persepolis, Walk Hard and a couple others. I'm always open for recommendations...
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Mid-winter Skee Ball
Every once in a while I start craving summery type things in the middle of winter. Nothing says summer to me more than boardwalk arcades, and nothing says boardwalk arcades like skee-ball and mini-golf. I couldn't find any mid-winter mini-golf, but I did find skee-ball and rare books. Yes, only in Roslindale, MA! The place is called Pazzo Books and aparently pazzo means "crazy" in Italian. This place lived up to the name! They had a great selection of used and rare books, some new graphic novels, coffee and hot cocoa and SKEE-BALL! It was wonderful. The Skee-Ball was a little smaller than the standard boardwalk arcade variety and fit into the basement of the bookstore, wedged into the bargain book section:
Unfortunately for Cole, Max and Tim, Sylvie and I had some pretty good games. I set the bar a little higher with 250 as my high score, and Sylvie tied the younger competition with a high of 210. Just to make it clear, Sylvie and I were the only people playing today, Cole, Max and Tim just left their scores on the chalk board:
After a few good games of Skee-Ball and some good book browsing we headed out of Roslindale in search of fried pickles. We headed to a neighborhood near school where we used to get fried pickles at a bar that has since closed, but we were hoping for the best. We struck out at multiple places, and finally decided to settle for fried zucchini. After realizing that the batter that was used to fry the zucchini was very similar to the batter used to fry pickles, we went out on a limb and decided to ask our server if they might be able to fry some pickles. He looked at us like we were crazy, but his fellow server said they should try it out (they weren't very crowded). So a few minutes later and plate with 3 fried pickle spears showed up and we were so excited. They were really good and I think we convinced the waiters to try it out themselves on their next break.
If you, dear reader, have not had the pleasure of having fried pickles, I'll say it's worth it at least once. You can decide for yourself. As for the Skee-Ball in a rare book store, I'll say it's worth it more than once. I think I'll find myself back there sometime soon, possibly to challenge my friend Mark who lives in Roslindale... Mark, are you ready for a Skee-Ball throwdown?
Unfortunately for Cole, Max and Tim, Sylvie and I had some pretty good games. I set the bar a little higher with 250 as my high score, and Sylvie tied the younger competition with a high of 210. Just to make it clear, Sylvie and I were the only people playing today, Cole, Max and Tim just left their scores on the chalk board:
After a few good games of Skee-Ball and some good book browsing we headed out of Roslindale in search of fried pickles. We headed to a neighborhood near school where we used to get fried pickles at a bar that has since closed, but we were hoping for the best. We struck out at multiple places, and finally decided to settle for fried zucchini. After realizing that the batter that was used to fry the zucchini was very similar to the batter used to fry pickles, we went out on a limb and decided to ask our server if they might be able to fry some pickles. He looked at us like we were crazy, but his fellow server said they should try it out (they weren't very crowded). So a few minutes later and plate with 3 fried pickle spears showed up and we were so excited. They were really good and I think we convinced the waiters to try it out themselves on their next break.
If you, dear reader, have not had the pleasure of having fried pickles, I'll say it's worth it at least once. You can decide for yourself. As for the Skee-Ball in a rare book store, I'll say it's worth it more than once. I think I'll find myself back there sometime soon, possibly to challenge my friend Mark who lives in Roslindale... Mark, are you ready for a Skee-Ball throwdown?
Saturday, January 12, 2008
A note on the re-design
First of all, yes, I dropped the other Junebug. However, the address will still remain twojunebugs.blogspot.com, unless someone knows how to change that address without losing the whole history of the blog. If you do know such magic, please let me know. While the other Junebug has plenty of blog-worthy material from her daily life, she's just too busy to dedicate the time to writing about it here. I'll keep you posted on any particularly silly goings on in her world as they pertain to mine. You can watch this video to see the silliness that ensues on a daily basis (although only 3 of these kids are hers).
The photo at the top is of me in the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis. It's a beautiful building on the banks of the Mississippi River down where the mills used to be (and some are still standing). The photo was taken by Jerri in the Dowling Studio Lobby, or the big yellow/amber box stuck on the side of the building. You can see it in this photo:
I didn't take this photo, there was 2 feet of snow on the ground when I visited, it's from this blog.
I'm still working on getting the blog completely up to snuff, so you might notice some minor details changing here and there. If you have any suggestions, don't hesitate to let me know.
As always - Junebug B
The photo at the top is of me in the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis. It's a beautiful building on the banks of the Mississippi River down where the mills used to be (and some are still standing). The photo was taken by Jerri in the Dowling Studio Lobby, or the big yellow/amber box stuck on the side of the building. You can see it in this photo:
I didn't take this photo, there was 2 feet of snow on the ground when I visited, it's from this blog.
I'm still working on getting the blog completely up to snuff, so you might notice some minor details changing here and there. If you have any suggestions, don't hesitate to let me know.
As always - Junebug B
Friday, January 11, 2008
Annoyed at the dentist
So I went to the dentist today. It wasn't so bad until I stopped in the bathroom on the way out and realized that I had the debris of a dental visit all over my face. If you were a dentist, or a receptionist at a dentist's office and noticed one of your patients leaving the office with goo on her face, would you not mention it!?! Seriously people. They didn't even tell me to look in a mirror or anything. Thank god I had to pee before I headed back to work.
Moral of the story: If you ever see me with stuff on my face that looks like it shouldn't be there, PLEASE just let me know. I will only be slightly embarrassed instead of mortified later on. Even if it's a booger, please just be ballsy enough to let me know.
Thank you.
Moral of the story: If you ever see me with stuff on my face that looks like it shouldn't be there, PLEASE just let me know. I will only be slightly embarrassed instead of mortified later on. Even if it's a booger, please just be ballsy enough to let me know.
Thank you.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Trusty sandwich
I treated myself to a sandwich tonight. Anyone who reads this blog knows about my love for sandwiches in my neighborhood. Well, I went back to the All-Star Sandwich Bar tonight and fell in love all over again. This time with their Eggplant Parm. It was the veggie Sandwich of the Day and I have to say it was good. Real good. And this is coming from someone who grew up in a town full of Italians who know how to make eggplant parm. It wasn't served on the traditional hoagie roll, instead it was grilled panini-style on sandwich bread, sourdough I think. The breading was perfect, not too much marinara and the cheese was a mix of mozzarella and parmesan, just enough, not overwhelming. I'll be keeping my eye out for it on the specials menu. And hopefully we'll run into each other again soon!
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Not a painter
There are some things in life that I know are not my strong points. I would say that baking is one of those things: Brownies out of a box, yes. Homemade bread, not so much. I think I can safely add painting to the "needs improvement" list of my skills. Yes, I can paint objects, such as Christmas tree ornaments, but when it comes to sitting down and filling an empty canvas (even if it is just posterboard) I could use some help, and frankly, it's harder that it looks. I had big plans to make some art to hang in the entryway of the apartment, but I did one panel and just wasn't happy with it. So I totally changed gears, washed out the paintbrushes and moved to working with paper and glue. I think it turned out OK. At least, I think it looks better than the empty wall. I also hung some photos in the kitchen. The apartment looked nice for my dinner guests, but mostly because I threw all the clutter into my room. Cleaning the room and doing laundry is a job for this weekend.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
A moving experience
After a slightly frustrating day at work, I can home with all intention of working on this art project I'm thinking up, but instead decided to do the furniture moving on my own. I think it turned out pretty successfully, Sylvie said it makes the room look grown up. That works for me.
Tomorrow I'm having guests for dinner and looking forward to doing some cooking and showing off the new set up.
UPDATE: Yes, the roommate DID figure out the audio! And I did get a longer cord, and instead of going up and over the doorway, I took it over the fireplace, a much easier solution. All is well!
BEFORE
The toughest part of the whole moving process was trying to move the TV, VCR, DVD and audio equipment. I unplugged a lot of stuff and managed to get everything plugged back in, although the audio only comes through the TV instead of through the extra speakers, but I'm sure my roommate will be able to figure that out. I also have to get a longer cord so the cable can go up and over the door, but so far so good. I've been watching the NH primary results and it's been working out.
Tomorrow I'm having guests for dinner and looking forward to doing some cooking and showing off the new set up.
UPDATE: Yes, the roommate DID figure out the audio! And I did get a longer cord, and instead of going up and over the doorway, I took it over the fireplace, a much easier solution. All is well!
Home improvements
My roommate left for the Bahamas this morning at 5am, and my other roommate is in India for a couple weeks, so I have the house to myself for a couple days. I decided I might as well enjoy a clean house, so this morning I woke up and cleaned the bathroom and kitchen, organized the pantry, did the dishes and cleaned out the fireplace. I've been meaning to do this since I got back from vacation and I just had the energy this morning. As a result, I'm exhausted now and it's only 10:30pm.
After work I had to head to Simmons to take care of some financial aid business, and on the way back I stopped at Bed, Bath and Beyond and picked up some candles, some new sheets which were crazy on sale, and a candle holder thingy (see the photo) to put in the fireplace. It looks way better than the cluster of big old candles that has probably been hanging out in the fireplace for the past 10 years. I have big plans to make some art to hang in the front hallway and I'd love to rearrange the furniture, but we'll see if I have time for that.
After work I had to head to Simmons to take care of some financial aid business, and on the way back I stopped at Bed, Bath and Beyond and picked up some candles, some new sheets which were crazy on sale, and a candle holder thingy (see the photo) to put in the fireplace. It looks way better than the cluster of big old candles that has probably been hanging out in the fireplace for the past 10 years. I have big plans to make some art to hang in the front hallway and I'd love to rearrange the furniture, but we'll see if I have time for that.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Obama in New Hampshire
Last night my friend Miriam called to see if I wanted to go to New Hampshire to volunteer for Barack Obama. The NH primaries are on Tuesday and this weekend was the big push to get people to vote, and specifically to get people out to vote for Barack Obama. There was a rally in Manchester at 9am, so we decided to leave Cambridge around 7am to be in Manchester around 8am and stand in line. Our plan worked perfectly. There was a little bit of a line when we got there, but not much and we got parking right across the street from the theatre. We ended up standing in line with a guy from New Jersey and behind some people from California and in front of a group from the AARP. When we sat down in the theatre (only 7 rows back and in the center section! Yes, I took the above photo.) we were sitting next to a man from Massachusetts who grew up in Chicago and a group from Chicago that was students and teachers from Chicago Public Schools who were there to get kids interested in the democratic process. It was pretty awesome just to see how many people traveled from so far to participate in this process. The people from California were talking about how the only way they get to see candidates is to pay $1,000 a plate for a fundraiser dinner. They were making a vacation out of it, planning on seeing all of the democratic candidates and hanging out until the primaries.
It was also so interesting to see the process of putting together a rally. There were so many people from the press and tons of volunteers and at least a few hundred supporters. We had to wait a while and then finally, Barack showed up and his speech was so great. I'm sure it was his standard stump speech, tweaked to include the Iowa caucuses and last night's debate, but I have to say it was still inspiring to see him live and to be there with so many other people. After being swept up in the whole process, we headed to the Obama for America headquarters and volunteered by calling folks for about an hour, and scoring free lunch and some buttons while we were there. :) Overall, it was an interesting day. I had never done anything like that before and I learned a lot about the primary process in a state where the primary actually matters.
It was also so interesting to see the process of putting together a rally. There were so many people from the press and tons of volunteers and at least a few hundred supporters. We had to wait a while and then finally, Barack showed up and his speech was so great. I'm sure it was his standard stump speech, tweaked to include the Iowa caucuses and last night's debate, but I have to say it was still inspiring to see him live and to be there with so many other people. After being swept up in the whole process, we headed to the Obama for America headquarters and volunteered by calling folks for about an hour, and scoring free lunch and some buttons while we were there. :) Overall, it was an interesting day. I had never done anything like that before and I learned a lot about the primary process in a state where the primary actually matters.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Recent music in my life
The past couple weeks have been full of great music for me. For Christmas I got the Songs of America CD set, produced by Janet Reno. I got to listen to most of it while hanging out with Jerri and Mark in Minnesota for New Years. Some songs are better than others, but for the most part it's an interesting and broad collection. Highlights include performances by Andrew Bird, The Blind Boys of Alabama and Old Crow Medicine Show among others.
Also during my time with Jerri and Mark, we had the chance to see live music two nights in a row! The first night we went to The Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis and saw 3 local bands: Roma di Luna, Jeremy Messersmith and The Pines. We scored front row seats and had a great time. The stand out act for me was Jeremy Messersmith. He had a fun stage presence, witty lyrics, cool looping techniques (but not on every song), and good tunes. The other bands were also enjoyable and the night ended with The Pines and Roma di Luna coming together for Goodnight, Irene, one of my favorite songs.
The second night we went to the Turf Club in St. Paul to see legendary Spider John Koerner and Tony Glover. Again we got front row seats! It was quite a special show, clearly these guys have been playing together for years and years and they made decisions about what song to play seemingly just by glancing at each other. These two closed their set with Midnight Special (every guitar student at the Old Town School knows this classic) and then, amazingly, Goodnight, Irene! It was neat to hear a different version of the same song two nights in a row. The second act of the night was Charlie Parr. He played guitar and was accompanied by a great washboard player. They were fun to watch, too. It was just so great to see such wonderful live music with such good friends.
To continue the great music extravaganza, I volunteered at Club Passim last night for the Jim Kweskin and Geoff Muldaur show. It was a sold out show, so I didn't get to see the entire show, but some highlights included Rag Mama with Kweskin singing and Muldaur on kazoo. A big group sing-a-long ensued with Stealin', but sing-a-longs are pretty typical at Passim. 2008 is Passim's 50th Anniversary year and tomorrow they are having an all-star hootenanny with Kweskin, Muldaur, Spider John Koerner and many others. Understandably, tickets were outrageously expensive, so I'll just have to hear the stories about it the next time I'm over there.
Just when you thought the great music must be over, I have one more thing to talk about. The netflix movie I got in the mail today was Patty Griffin: Live from the Artists Den. She is one of my favorite performers and this DVD has a lot going for it. The sound quality is amazing, and her performances are great. My only issue with it is that there were about 9 cameras during the taping and the shot changes about every 5 seconds. It made the whole thing seem a little choppy, but I would say that it's worth putting on your queue if your a fan. The actual venue is beautiful and again, she doesn't disappoint in her spirited performance, or her choice of shoes.
Whew - well, I think that covers it. I'm looking forward to getting the Juno soundtrack in the mail sometime soon, and hopefully the recording of the Josh Ritter show I saw at Passim in December. Once those both get here, I'll be putting together my contribution to this round of the M6 mix-CD exchange. It should be a good one! Here's to tons more good music in 2008!
Also during my time with Jerri and Mark, we had the chance to see live music two nights in a row! The first night we went to The Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis and saw 3 local bands: Roma di Luna, Jeremy Messersmith and The Pines. We scored front row seats and had a great time. The stand out act for me was Jeremy Messersmith. He had a fun stage presence, witty lyrics, cool looping techniques (but not on every song), and good tunes. The other bands were also enjoyable and the night ended with The Pines and Roma di Luna coming together for Goodnight, Irene, one of my favorite songs.
The second night we went to the Turf Club in St. Paul to see legendary Spider John Koerner and Tony Glover. Again we got front row seats! It was quite a special show, clearly these guys have been playing together for years and years and they made decisions about what song to play seemingly just by glancing at each other. These two closed their set with Midnight Special (every guitar student at the Old Town School knows this classic) and then, amazingly, Goodnight, Irene! It was neat to hear a different version of the same song two nights in a row. The second act of the night was Charlie Parr. He played guitar and was accompanied by a great washboard player. They were fun to watch, too. It was just so great to see such wonderful live music with such good friends.
To continue the great music extravaganza, I volunteered at Club Passim last night for the Jim Kweskin and Geoff Muldaur show. It was a sold out show, so I didn't get to see the entire show, but some highlights included Rag Mama with Kweskin singing and Muldaur on kazoo. A big group sing-a-long ensued with Stealin', but sing-a-longs are pretty typical at Passim. 2008 is Passim's 50th Anniversary year and tomorrow they are having an all-star hootenanny with Kweskin, Muldaur, Spider John Koerner and many others. Understandably, tickets were outrageously expensive, so I'll just have to hear the stories about it the next time I'm over there.
Just when you thought the great music must be over, I have one more thing to talk about. The netflix movie I got in the mail today was Patty Griffin: Live from the Artists Den. She is one of my favorite performers and this DVD has a lot going for it. The sound quality is amazing, and her performances are great. My only issue with it is that there were about 9 cameras during the taping and the shot changes about every 5 seconds. It made the whole thing seem a little choppy, but I would say that it's worth putting on your queue if your a fan. The actual venue is beautiful and again, she doesn't disappoint in her spirited performance, or her choice of shoes.
Whew - well, I think that covers it. I'm looking forward to getting the Juno soundtrack in the mail sometime soon, and hopefully the recording of the Josh Ritter show I saw at Passim in December. Once those both get here, I'll be putting together my contribution to this round of the M6 mix-CD exchange. It should be a good one! Here's to tons more good music in 2008!
Friday, January 4, 2008
Caffeine or not
I've gone through stages in my life when I've been completely addicted to caffeine and then some points when I've gone off it completely. College was my lowest point, drinking regular Pepsi for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I thought I was invincible. Then it just hit me one day that I didn't need it anymore. From that point on I've been back and forth, trying out new things in either caffeine or caffeine-free varieties. For a while I was addicted to unsweetened iced tea (my dentist noticed no cavities, but a little bit of staining...) Right now I'm pretty much caffeine-free, except for the occasional soda with pizza (nothing tastes better with pizza, except maybe beer...).
Right now I'm drinking herbal tea. It's alright. I let it steep too long so it got a little bitter, which is the worst thing. I'm feeling a little sluggish, too. But hey, it's Friday after the holidays, so it's OK, right? Basically what I'm saying is, I wish I had gotten at least a white or green tea with a little kick to it. Oh, Caffeine! You evil temptress! It's tough when you know what you're missing...
Right now I'm drinking herbal tea. It's alright. I let it steep too long so it got a little bitter, which is the worst thing. I'm feeling a little sluggish, too. But hey, it's Friday after the holidays, so it's OK, right? Basically what I'm saying is, I wish I had gotten at least a white or green tea with a little kick to it. Oh, Caffeine! You evil temptress! It's tough when you know what you're missing...
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Looking forward to 2008
There is a lot I have to look forward to in 2008. One of the biggest events in my life will be turning the big 3-0. Currently there are some good plans in place to make this a memorable milestone. First is a trip with two wonderful girlfriends from college. We are in the process of planning a retreat weekend in mid-March meant as a getaway to help us connect and look forward to crossing this milestone together (officially in May, June and July for each of us). I also have some plans up my sleeve to visit a friend in London and throw a big party closer to my actual birthday.
The other big event in 2008 is that I will be graduating with my Masters in Library Science in May. This will also involve a party, but probably on a (slightly) smaller scale.
More immediately I'm looking forward to having January as a time to gather some thoughts, organize my life, clean up from the holidays, read some books and watch as many Netflix movies as possible. I'm already working on this. I watched Helvetica last night. It's a documentary about the font. I know this sounds ridiculously boring, but it was pretty interesting. Some people really love it and some people hate it. One thing is for sure. Once you see the movie you notice the font everywhere! It's a little crazy.
As for the rest of the year, we'll have to see how that pans out. My job is guaranteed through August (it's a project position), so if it works out that my contract is renewed, I think I would stay there, but if the funding doesn't pan out, I'll be on the job search this summer. That should be interesting...
So we'll see. Lots of wonderful things are on the horizon, and some things are still a mystery. 2008 should be an interesting year...
The other big event in 2008 is that I will be graduating with my Masters in Library Science in May. This will also involve a party, but probably on a (slightly) smaller scale.
More immediately I'm looking forward to having January as a time to gather some thoughts, organize my life, clean up from the holidays, read some books and watch as many Netflix movies as possible. I'm already working on this. I watched Helvetica last night. It's a documentary about the font. I know this sounds ridiculously boring, but it was pretty interesting. Some people really love it and some people hate it. One thing is for sure. Once you see the movie you notice the font everywhere! It's a little crazy.
As for the rest of the year, we'll have to see how that pans out. My job is guaranteed through August (it's a project position), so if it works out that my contract is renewed, I think I would stay there, but if the funding doesn't pan out, I'll be on the job search this summer. That should be interesting...
So we'll see. Lots of wonderful things are on the horizon, and some things are still a mystery. 2008 should be an interesting year...
Five Silly Boys
Here is a funny video of my 5 nephews just running around my parent's house. They aren't playing a game, not even tag. They literally are just running around in circles. It was great to watch, and obviously made for interesting viewing on all ends, you'll see my brother wander in from the other side with his new video camera. Gotta love those kids.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
I just finished reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. It's about her family's decision to eat locally for one year. I enjoyed it. It made me want to get a share in Boston Organics and be a little more intentional about my farmer's market spending. I don't have the space to grow too many of my own vegetables, although I'd love to have tomatoes and basil again this summer. It's kind of a bummer to read this book in the middle of winter (the high tomorrow is 17!) but it reminded me that spring is on the horizon and fresh, local veggies will be back soon. It also made me realize how much I depend on bananas as a staple of my breakfast and how far they have to travel to get to my kitchen.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Day 1
Here we go. Day one of blogging every day for the month of January. I started the day today in Minneapolis with Jerri and Mark. I got to celebrate New Year's Eve with them and some of their friends. It was great. I had a great time with the fam over Christmas. I will try to post more photos and videos soon.
Here's my thought for the day: The only redeeming quality to LaGuardia Airport is the view of Manhattan as you fly in and out. Otherwise it looks and feels like a bus station with low ceilings, dirty carpet, too many people and crappy food options. Here is my view of Manhattan flying in from Minneapolis:
Here's my thought for the day: The only redeeming quality to LaGuardia Airport is the view of Manhattan as you fly in and out. Otherwise it looks and feels like a bus station with low ceilings, dirty carpet, too many people and crappy food options. Here is my view of Manhattan flying in from Minneapolis:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)