AmYaz

The saga of the West Elm daybed

2008-12-17T19:58:00.002-05:00

Over the past few month, I had what was probably the strangest customer service experience of my life. I managed to stay amused the whole time, but finally decided to write the company a letter. We'll see if they do anything :)

How many bed kits from West Elm does it take to make one bed? Two and a half, apparently.

Dear West Elm,

I want to report a rather frustrating experience at your Cincinnati-area store. Last summer, I placed an order for an overlapping squares daybed. The bed arrived at the store several weeks later than expected, but it was not a major issue. I purchased it on August 16.

When I got the kit home, I discovered that 4 small parts were missing. I called the store, and was told that S---, the customer service rep, would call me back. She did so the next day, and told me that the parts would arrive in about a week. 2 weeks later, they had not arrived, and I called the store. S--- promised to investigate the mix-up and call me back. After no call-back, 2 days later, I called again. She apologized and told me that the kit had changed, and that they were freight-shipping new back and front pieces, which would arrive in a week.

2 weeks later, the box arrived. I opened it to discover that, not only were the 4 pieces not built-in as promised, but that using the new pieces would produce a 2-legged bed. After several more phone calls (partly due to a major power outage in the area), S--- promised to order a new kit, which they would ship to the store and then deliver to my home. She called to inform me that it had arrived while I was on vacation.

I called back about a week later, and was told that S--- would return my call. She did not.

After another week, I called again and was informed that S--- no longer worked in the store. The night manager promised to check on whether they still had my replacement bed and return my call. She did not.

2 days later, I called and spoke to another manager, M---. M--- apologized and called me back to tell me that they had the bed and could deliver it in a week. It arrived on schedule, and the delivery people were very professional. By this time it was late November,

None of your associates were rude to me; however, I found them EXTREMELY unresponsive. Your parts department allowed a very minor problem to snowball into a major issue. I wound up with a room filled with bed parts and no bed for over 3 months! I was never offered compensation for this bad experience. I feel that this reflects poorly on West Elm, and the Williams-Sonoma Company. I would be unlikely to purchase furniture from you again (which is too bad, as I enjoy your designs, and have purchased several non-furniture items in the past).

Sincerely,

Amyaz

43 Things I did in Argentina

2008-11-12T17:41:00.003-05:00

In (sorta) order:

Saw the Niagara on Viagra (aka Iguazu Falls).
Got rained on in a sub-tropic climate.
Hiked in the jungle.
Climbed a rock wall in the rain.
Discovered that I was covered in red mud.
Saw Paraguay & Brazil from a boat.
Ate tea for lunch.
Found out maps of Buenos Aires don't have a North.
Watched a bird poop on Olga.
Visited Recoletta Cemetery & found Evita's grave.
Spent a day at a HUGE street fair (at least 20 blocks) in San Telmo.
Bought stuff.
Met a German experiencing culture shock.
Visited a very strange art museum.
Went to a movie.
Got rained on in a city.
Caught a cold (aka Google Virus).
Landed in a crazy beautiful airport.
Went horseback riding at an estancia in El Calafate.
Failed to sleep in a super stuffy (but cute) hotel.
Stopped at a hotel where Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid once holed up.
Drank throat healing Patagonian tea (con miel y limon).
Climbed a mountain & saw the lovely Fitz Roy on my birthday.
Celebrated with a bday dinner of pumpkin soup (thanks, Olga!) and half a brownie.
Got rained on in a sub-arctic climate.
Wasted a day.
Snuck into a Flamingo park.
Saw todos los glaciares!!!!
Found out my grandma had passed away over email.
Got stuck in a crazy beautiful airport for 3 hours.
Made it to the end of the world (Ushuaia).
Called my mom.
Visited the most bizarre museum in the world. Saw large statues of former prisoners and and former prison wing filled with community art projects.
Visited los penguinos on a small island. Got to be the first to stand next to one on our tour.
Made fun of the people who took the boat tour & couldn't get on the island. Ruined their pictures by standing in their photos.
Saw sea lions on a boat tour. Hopped on bouncy flora & fauna.
Climbed a mountain to see a glacier, only to discover that we needed snow shoes to make the final assent.
Felt intimidated by the Ski Magazine guys who were climbing with their equipment to ski down, and walking much faster than Olga and me.
Saw the mountains of Chili across the bay.
Got a haircut in Buenos Aires from someone who did not speak English.
Went to a grunge tango concert.
Visited La Boca.
Got a lesson in Argentinean expressions from the front desk guy at our posada.

Olga's pictures (featuring me)

My pictures (featuring Olga)

hurricane fun

2008-09-19T19:41:00.002-05:00

From my sister in Houston, TX on Monday:

Hey everyone-

Well physically, I am no worse for wear from the hurricane. Emotionally and spiritually - a little beat up. My apt still has no power or water, so I am now coordinating my baseball caps with my polos, jeans and work boots I will be wearing to work for at least probably the next two weeks. I am looking hot. =) Good news no damage to my home and belongings and my business suits get to go unworn for the interim.

The office building I manage lost its roof from the wind and opened up two giant holes that acted as sieves into the building dumping what we estimate to be 10 inches of rain early Sat morning during the hurricane. The winds were still at 90-100mph when they hit the area. I was there at 3pm and we had a restoration crew in Sat afternoon by 5pm to start the cleanup process, but they had no way of securing the roof at that time. We proceeded to then get 5-6 additional inches of rain starting at approx 4am and lasting until 8am, making all of the work on Sat for naught. I got to the building at 6am and was stranded there because the streets had then flooded. We have full loss on the top three floors of the building and minor damage on all of the floors below where the water ran down the stairwells. We will have to completely gut those areas and start fresh. Good news - I have always hated the carpet in my office and now will get to chose new stuff myself. Yay.

I hope my Houston people have faired as well, if not better, and perhaps even get a little paid time off from the storm. I am working like a fool. LOL

For all of my non Houston people - keep the area in our thoughts because there are a lot of people in desperate situations and FEMA has been acting very Katrina like with their crew of dunces and refusal to give straight answers. We can have a war in two entirely different countries and they cannot help out people in the 4th biggest city in the US. Where are all those oil revenues from Houston going?? Don't they want us to be able to keep pumping out the liquid gold?

Off my soapbox. Oooo I miss soap and showers. =( Maybe today??

Love (My big sister)

(Update: Laurie has finally showered. Yeah!)

I didn't want your freakin' hurricane

2008-09-19T19:37:00.002-05:00

So I went to see "Tell no one" Sunday afternoon. Bit windy on the way there, a few traffic lights were out. 10 minutes in, the theater looses power. We wait 20 minutes before they hand out passes & everyone leaves. My internet-enabled phone with itunes kept me happy during the wait. I go out to my car. Two car lengths in front of me, a tree is down across the road. Could have totalled my car, which would have sucked since I just got new shocks & struts. I think "crazy" and snap a photo.

The whole way home there are trees and power lines down. My car is literally rocking in the wind. The power is just coming back in my building when I get home. I make a quick meal (it was 3pm and I hadn't had lunch), then decided to run out and get food that didn't require cooking in case it goes out again. I see more trees & lines down. The brick roof has come off one building. People are out with chainsaws cutting up 100-year-old downed trees. The grocery store is closed and guarded by police.

I find an open gas station & run in to grab foodstuff. The power goes out, but comes right back on again. I go home. Garage door is shutting, then freezes. The power is out again. I find a spot on the street that is not near any trees. Sit in the semi-darkness. Check the internet on my phone. Then I find out that Findlay market is on fire. That's just not right (damage is now said to be minimal).

Later, I went to Starbucks in Rookwood Commons to charge my phone. Since that's the only spot in the city with power, everyone & their grandmother is there. No phone charging for me. I just grab my coffee & return to my dark house to read a book with 8 candles and a mini flashlight. I was very jealous of my neighbor who had an electric torch.

Power is still out this am, but fortunately the high is only 72. Work has power, so that's where I am now (though many of the other locations are out of power and a lot of people are not in the office).

There are over 600,000 people in the Cincinnati area without power. It may take up to a week to get our power back. We had gusts of up to 75mph.

Now, I realize that Houston is WAY worse of. But seriously, I soo did not want your freakin' hurricane, big sister.

(PS I wrote this on Monday. I had power back by that afternoon. Over a million people were out in Ohio at the hight of the storm - they've got it down to about 100,000 at this point. Crazy).

Sidney

2008-09-19T19:34:00.001-05:00

John McCain's middle name is Sidney.

Sydney is a large city in Australia.

That's UN-AMERICAN.

Just sayin'.

RNC day 2 peanut gallery

2008-09-02T21:49:00.003-05:00

lieberman just called himself a democrat

liar

republicans applaud line "country matters more than party."

liars

911! terrorists!

"john mccain is his own man" [creepy chuckle]

does creepy chuckle imply "and i am his bitch?"

lieberman: i like john mccain. we enjoy war together.

lieberman tells reps to vote for what is best for the country, not what is best for his party. doesn't that mean obama?

was mccain putting his country first when he & cindy were having their 9-month affair?

bush called the hurricane "gustaff"

bush: "i read threat assessments"

i thought he only issued threats?

"the lessons of september 11th, 2001"

can republicans make speeches without mentioning 9/11?

apparently we should like mccain bc he was tortured

note to gitmo detainees: run for office when you get home

palin apparently tried to fire the wasilla (pop 5000+) librarian when she refused to remove books palin didn't like. town fought back, librarian stayed. snap!

Toby Pics

2008-07-31T19:28:00.003-05:00

Taken with my macbook's camera, I can get funny looks on his face.....

The PC Police

2008-06-10T19:16:00.003-05:00

Did you hear that the Republicans have "found out" that fist bumping is secretly terrorist?

This after exposing pro-jihad scarves in Dunkin' Donuts ads (you know, the same scarves our soldiers wear to keep dirt out of their faces in Iraq), and after telling us that anything anti-war is anti-American for the last 5 years.

Am I hallucinating, or were these the same people complaining about the PC Police for all of the 1990s?

And where does Glenn Beck get off claiming that electing Obama would be the end of free speech in America? Seems like GWB already made that happen.

To my Google & Microsoft Friends

2008-04-01T16:08:00.001-05:00

This sounds exhausting:

http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2008/03/17.html

Makes me glad I work in old-fashioned consumer products :)

b-ball

2008-03-29T19:37:00.002-05:00

So I'm watching two games right now. Oddly, they seem to keep having the same point spread. When UCLA was beating XU by 14, the Pistons were leading the Cavs by 14. Around the time the Pistons ran up their score to a 20 point lead, UCLA had a 20 point advantage.

It's amusing, since I'm rooting for the Pistons (always) and XU (marginally). I get to see both sides of a** handing in the same night....

Quote of the Day #457

2008-02-11T20:43:00.001-05:00

"The verb to pimp dates from the early 17^th century."

From A History of Pimping.

Couch!

2008-01-29T08:27:00.000-05:00

My new couch finally arrived! I was so excited, that I went out the same day & bought a rug, a throw, and a couple pillows to go with it. Jjamesz was nice enough to take the old one away. And I totally rearanged the furniture. I think the room looks totally new (and bigger).

Toby wasn't sure he liked the new couch, but it's growing on him. He does like the rug, as he enjoys all soft things that stay on the floor.

Bonus couch feature: it's as big as a twin bed if you take off the back pillows.

Bad move, Michigan

2008-01-15T21:01:00.000-05:00

Picked Mit. Blech. Flip-flop-lying-roboman. 'Nuff said.

At least they didn't pick "make-the-constitution-match-God's-law" Huckabee. I wonder if he realizes that that would require banning mixed blend sweaters? "I'm sorry sir, we cannot hear your appeal on your conviction for wearing cotton pants with a wool sweater. You may return to your cell." Imagine what it would say about Polyester!

On a brighter note, my eyes are getting so much better. I haven't had to put in eye drops today since the middle of the afternoon. And every morning, when I wake up, I can see!!!! Amazing. I've been using the computer all night with no eye strain, too.

I want a MacBook Air. Super light = super great. But, I'd actually like a regular MacBook or MacBook Pro made lighter. A four pound computer around one inch thick with more ports/some drives would work better. I don't need a computer that I can put in an envelope.

On Saturday, I managed to cut Toby's nails without upsetting him. Normally, he turns into a vicious wild animals the instant I bring out the clippers. The secret? I put him on the table. That was it. I think the combination of not being able to escape & not being held down (I let him stand, he was so calm) kept him comfortable. Instead of trying to bite me, he actually licked my face. The only problem was that he moved his back paws a bit, so I couldn't safely cut off as much. But, now that it's no longer a horrible ordeal, I can trim his nails more often. Sweet.

Okay, I know none of that made any sense, so I'll summarize. Rom-bot bad. Vision good. Air good. Non-vicious-nail-cutting good.

Better already

2008-01-06T10:31:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a slow progression for my eyes - getting better and better as the day wore on. I was a little weepy all day (maybe the sedatives did that?). But, after my mid-day nap, my eyes really weren't hurting much. They progressed from "oh-my-goodness-these-contacts-are-so-dry-i-must-get-them-out-right-now" to "hmm-i-think-i-could-use-some-eye-drops." I was comfortable enough to use the computer a few times & even read for a few minutes before I went to bed.

This morning, it didn't hurt at all to open my eyes. They were dry, for sure, but I was able to walk the dog with only eye drops and no pain/swelling drops (I have to put in three types of drops four times per day). Yesterday, I was desperate for the pain drops as soon as I woke up.

The other bonus is that I don't think that I will need to take any more Vicodin. It makes me feel really weird. Calm. Cold. Floaty. Like all my limbs are falling asleep, on at a time. Tingly. Plus, all these random hallucinatory thoughts come floating through my mind.... Nothing I can remember, I was just conscious that my thoughts were disconnected & nonsensical.

This morning I've been looking at the books on the shelves in my living room, testing which ones I can read from across the room. Verdict: just about all of them. Hooray!

I keep thinking that I'm wearing contacts. When my eyes feel dry, I think, hmm, maybe I should take my contacts out. Oh, wait.... When I'm sleeping, I think the goggles are my glasses. The last two mornings, I've been eager to take the goggles off, too make sure that I can really see without them. It hurts to take them off, since I have to tape them on to make sure that they don't move/I don't move them to rub my eyes in my sleep. I wake up with funny imprints on my face, but they are actually pretty comfortable, even sleeping on my side.

My vision is still a bit blurry on & off. Today's adventure: taking a bath (not a shower) & not letting any water get into my eyes. I'm SO glad that I got this done on a Friday - I think I may be ready to go back to work tomorrow. But I won't be catching up on any work today.

Brand new eyes

2008-01-05T10:27:00.000-05:00

I know - I haven't updated in FOREVER. But, now, I actually have something to write about that I think might be helpful/interesting.

I've wanted to have Lasik eye surgery since I was fifteen. At the time, I was doing a lot of babysitting, and both members of one couple I worked for had had the surgery with great results. I had just developed dry eye syndrome, which made wearing contacts uncomfortable & full of hassles. But I knew that I would have to wait - until my eyes stabilized, and until I had enough money to pay it.

When I moved to Cincinnati, wearing contacts suddenly became impossible. It's very dry here (great for my hair) and I couldn't keep contacts in comfortably for more than a few hours. So you'd think - great, time for the surgery, right? But, my prescription suddenly changed, for the first time in four years. So, I splurged on a fancy pair of "corporate librarian" eyeglasses. Thick, nerd frames - but made by Coach! These glasses are so great, that, after a year, I was almost sorry that it was time to finally go for the permanent fix.

I made sure that I was eligible for the surgery last fall, so that I could put enough money in my 2008 health spending account to cover the surgery (tax free, baby). I also scheduled the surgery during my mom's school vacation. I didn't expect any difficulties, but I thought, big stress situation, great time for mom support.

Then, last Wednesday, two days before the surgery, I got a call. From my dad. Dad never calls, so I realized pretty quickly, that my mom wasn't coming. He distracted me with small talk for a bit, then I asked. He confirmed that she was "having car trouble." I barely slept that night. Big scary surgery. Deposit already paid. Money already in the health spending account. Damn it.

I went to work the next day and started asking people for rides. I asked Kathy, who is always willing to offer help to drive one way. She offered to drive two. But I didn't want to disrupt her day that much. Megan, another fabulous coworker, who also lives in the city near me, agreed to drive me to work in the morning. And I thought of the perfect person to drive me home - Marcia, my former boss, works early days, so she wouldn't have to leave early, and she loves dogs, so she could help me out with Toby.

The surgery itself was just as scary as I thought it would be - but not in the way I thought it would be. It was difficult not to move my eyes during the pre-surgery scan that would determine how they would correct my vision. Then, the process of anesthetizing my eyes was horrible! All kinds of things being jammed into my eyes.... The laser bit was easy by comparison, though I was again stressed about being able to concentrate sufficiently on the red light.

BTW, the people at Lasik Plus were great. They talked to me almost the whole time (except when the procedure required me to be still). I just have problems with things being jammed into my eyes.

After the surgery I called Marcia to tell her to pick me up - but she was already there. Which was great, because I was super stressed. We had to stop to pick up a prescription, and I realized that I had forgotten my health card. Marcia again saved the day and agreed to come back & get the prescription with my card. I was crying at this point, from the combination of stress and pain in my eyes. For some reason, I didn't really realize that this would hurt. I was concentrated on the fact that the surgery would be scary but quick.

Marcia got me home & took Toby (always happy to make a new friend) out for a walk. I tried to go to sleep while she went to pick up my prescription. I couldn't lay still. I wanted to open my eyes. Every time I did, it hurt. I was miserable. I took two generic Vicodin, left over from my oral surgery, since I knew that it was part of what was in my prescription. The medication calmed me down considerably, but I was still in pain. I also felt like I was freezing to death for some reason. Marcia came back with all my medicine and a loaf of pumpkin bread - comfort food. She took Toby for another walk (this was amazingly helpful, since, he didn't ask to go out again for the rest of the night & I'm not sure if I could have handled taking him out again).

I managed to keep my eyes closed for the required two hours. Then I started to using the drops. I'm not actually sure what they do, but I decided that they were relieving the pain. But that might have been the Vicodin. I dozed off for about an hour with the tv on. I stayed up until about 10:30 so that I could fit in three cycles of the drops. Then, I went to sleep with a pair of goggles taped securely to my face.

I woke up this morning for my post-surgery check up, and most of the blurriness was gone. But my left eye HURT. I drove myself in to the office, worrying that I had messed something up. Strangely, my vision is better (for now) in the eye that hurts than in the other one. And my vision is 20/20. We won't know how it will stabilize for a few months. The doctor told me that everything is in the right place, including in my left eye.

I went over to Trader Joe's to pick up some food, since I might not leave the house for the rest of the weekend. The check out guy chatted with me about my surgery. I'm actually having trouble talking - I feel shaky, almost like I might faint (but I'm not a fainter).

I drove home with no problems. I think knowing that everything is okay made my eye feel a bit better. But I'll be glad when the burning sensation goes away.

It's weird feeling so bad because of something that I chose to do. I'm still sure that it's all worth it. Time for another nap, I think.

I need to leave the country

2007-09-24T20:39:00.000-05:00

For some reason, I feel the need to leave the country roughly once per year. No, I haven't managed to keep this up - I've made trips outside the USA only in 2000-2001, 2002, and 2006 (Canada doesn't count).

But...

In just a few weeks, I'm off to the UK & Switzerland. We'll spend a few days in London (and I'll have my b-day there) then go to 6 Swiss cities on the whirligig tour. Then, my friend will go home & I will meet an old roommate in Edinburgh, my one-year home. When I booked the ticket to Edinburgh, which I have not visited since I lived there in 2001, I nearly cried.

(Ironically, the old roommate was not my roommate in Edinburgh. Neither is she Scottish - she's from Mexico. I find this amusing.)

I've been hoarding vacation time - so far I've only taken the days I didn't use last year - so I'll get to go for nearly 2 weeks :)

Anybody want to go to Argentina next year?

Congress & NPR

2007-09-12T21:00:00.000-05:00

Congress passed a bill to help students finish school with a smaller loan burden & to get them extra aid while they are in school.

This makes a nice change, since the last Congress passed a bill DECREASING available aid.

NPR, sadly, screwed up their reporting. To demonstrate the rising cost of college they mentioned - Princeton & Stanford. Now, in the context of student aid, this makes no sense. Like all uber-elite private institutions, Princeton & Stanford provide 100% to make up the difference between their students' "need" and what the government provides. So, if a student gets an additional $500 Pell grant, Stanford will probably just reduce their internal grant by $500. The students who really need & will benefit from additional government grants are the ones at local colleges and elite public schools, which give out (too much) money in merit-based grants & scholarships.

Of course, all students will benefit from lower interest rates and extra relief when their income is too low to make the high payments.

In other news, I only kept Lola the JR Poochie for 4 days. She cried all the time - all night & all day. And she HATED Toby. So he wasn't eating.... But I found her a better home, and now I am extremely happy to be a one-dog person again :)

Name my Mutt

2007-08-19T16:42:00.001-05:00

Toby has a sister! Her name is Lola, and she is a mutt. But she is what a coworker christened a "pedigree mutt." We know what her ancestors were. So, what with the big mutt as designer dog craze, I believe that Lola's "breed" deserves as name.

Her mother was a jack-chi, meaning she was half Jack Russel Terrier and half Chihuahua.

Her father was a miniature Poodle.

What should I call Lola to confuse the people at the dog park?

Pictures to come. Lola is black, with long Poodle-y legs, floppy Poodle ears and a terrier face. So far, her hair is wavy, but that could change as she gets older.

Unlike her parents, Lola will be fixed as soon as she is old enough (just as Toby was). As Bob Barker would say, "Control the pet population, have your pet spayed or neutered."

Now, I'm off to the pet store to get Lola some of her own toys and food!

Broke

2007-07-29T11:44:00.000-05:00

The engine light came on on my car. Cost to fix: $200.

I found out that I'm getting a new boss. Uncertainly level: Elevated.

I need to have a mucocele (sp?) removed from the inside of my mouth. This requires surgery to cut out the glands. Cost: $200. The oral surgeon provided me with this news on the same day that we got the news about having a new boss. Day that I now hate even more: Wednesday.

The engine light came on in my car. Cost to fix: $300.

My one-year-old hvac system broke AGAIN. Proposed cost to fix: $570, with the expectation of a $170 rebate on the parts from the manufacturer. I called my builder to tell him that he sucks. He told me that he would fix it for free. I paid $155 for the service call and decided to risk it with the builder. They "fixed" & I went back to work. By the time I got home from work, it was broken again. When I called the builder to complain, he informed me that he was "just trying to save you some money" by doing the work for free. Of course, it would have saved me more money if he hadn't installed a defective system. But I shouldn't mention that. That would be UNGRATEFUL. So, the A/C has been broken all weekend. If the builder's people can't fix it on Monday, I will have to pay the HVAC company (who at least know how to fix things). And, it will have cost me an additional $70.

I hate my builder. Never buy anything from The Gates of Eden Park. They SUCK.

Unexpected bills for the month of July (so far): $955.

!#@%&*!#@#$%@%

Random Observations

2007-07-05T20:06:00.001-05:00

Nothing shocks me anymore:

Apparently, everyone lies or twists the truth to their own advantage. From now on, I'm getting everything in writing. And I'm going to ask questions about things that seem obvious. Because trusting people (save perhaps family, true friends and good coworkers) does not work.

My best friend is now a 26-year-old great aunt. Damn.

My oldest niece is tougher than I thought. She just moved to Colorado to work with horses (something she loves). I thought it was unlikely that she would ever leave West Michigan, let alone head out west on her own. I'm impressed.

Toby is better at killing bugs than me. He killed a silverfish and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Ikea is building a store in China on ancient burial grounds and tearing down the tombs to do it. While it's not their motto or anything, the chain is not meant to be evil - it is, after all, a Swedish non-profit. Bad Ikea!

Clinton criticized Bush for commuting Libby's sentence. Bush's talking head criticized Clinton for pardoning Marc Rich (sp?) whose lawyer was... Libby.

Update #1

2007-06-12T19:49:00.000-05:00

Stretching into the past....

So, for that long-ago, four-day weekend, I decided to do some driving. I didn't feel motivated to take off on Saturday, but I did on the Sunday. Loaded Toby in the car & drove until I felt like stopping, in Asheville, North Carolina.

The drive through Kentucky & Tennessee (I so would not have spelled that right w/out the new automatic spell check on this thing-y) is actually really beautiful. Rolling hills and strange bubble trees in KY (plus the horses). Enormous mountains in Tennessee. Toby fussed for the first hour of the drive, then only when he needed a pee-break. After I checked into the Day's Inn, I drove around Asheville, which was less exciting than I would have hoped.

With the free hotel wireless, I found out that my reason for stopping in Asheville, the Biltmore, allows pets on the grounds. The Biltmore is the largest private residential house in the United States, and something that I knew about from watching "America's Castles" while folding my employer's laundry in high school. (I was basically a combination babysitter-maid, and I've never had as much disposable income since - or maybe it's that my big expenses then were all hair products, makeup & chocolate).

The house is pretty nifty, with an amazing view as you walk up. It was a slightly chilly day, so I felt safe leaving the puppy in their secure parking lot. But still, I made my trip around the house a bit quicker to rescue him sooner. Toby liked the grounds, especially when a group of students walked past us and told him how cute he is.

The dog had to wait in the car again while I did the complimentary wine tasting (which turned out to be better than the wine tasting that Olga & I did in Sonoma the next month).

A note of advice here: if ever driving east out of North Carolina, don't assume that you will get gas after you get into Tennessee. Because there is none. For an excruciatingly long time. And you are driving through mountains, so there is nowhere to go if you run out. I was convinced for about an hour, driving with my gas light on, that I was going to run out of gas & get both me & my dog killed. No fun.

On the way home, we took the VERY scenic route. I had wanted to drive through the Rocky Mountain National Park. I had no idea that going through Gatlinburg would add so much time - but it was a site to see in and of itself. It's sort of like a cross between Vegas & Disney World, as interpreted by people from Tennessee. Needless to say, I did not stop. The scenic route through the mountains is amazing. Weird bit though, the overlook is no prettier than the 1-hour drive to get to the overlook. Plus, once you get on the 7-mile overlook circle, you-no-can-leave. And everyone drives very, very, very slowly. Like, it took 1.5 hours to go 7-miles, slowly. A bit much for me. But still, I was glad that I made the drive. The middle of nowhere is lovely.

As heard at CHI

2007-05-03T17:21:00.000-05:00

"I would also question which persons you let vibrate you."

In response to a comment on the pheasability of a tug-based haptic output.

What should I do with a 5-day weekend?

2007-04-11T19:19:00.000-05:00

I have 3 days of leftover vacation from last year that I have to use or loose next week. I don't want to stick around here & I don't want to board the dog, which means that it has to be a driving tour.

Any suggestions? I'd rather go south, east or west and try not to drive more than 3-4 hours each day.

There's strong & then there's army strong.

2007-04-02T20:05:00.000-05:00

Sounds like a paper towel commercial.

Does the US Army share a marketing agency with my employer? And do the guys in uniform get a discount if they buy the slogans other clients have rejected?

Florida & Ohio

2007-04-02T20:02:00.000-05:00

Can 2 NCAA championship showdowns erase the memory of how these 2 states (messed) up the last 2 elections? Me thinks not.

Situation Neutral

2007-03-22T20:52:00.000-05:00

So, in regards to my previous post:

The real estate agent paid for someone to look at my heater.
The heater guy diagnosed a defective unit.
The builder paid the excess charges on my electric bill. And paid to have mhy heater fixed.

Mostly all better. And I'm sleeping, except that Toby-the-dog keeps waking me up an hour early every morning.

I've been getting out a bit more as well, which is good. Sadly, on my first very late night out in this city, our designated driver got very, very drunk. Being the most sober person, I had to wait an hour to be able to do all the driving (at which point it had been 3 hours since my last drink), then do all the driving home. Including taking one person home to Kentucky. I didn't get to go home until 5:30am! But, until the not-so-auspicious ending, I did have a good time.

My sister has me reading a book about corpses, called "Stiff: The Curious lives of human cadavers" or some such thing. She told me that it was funny and not gross, which is half true. It is funny. It makes for rather grim reading, but it can't hurt to consider mortality. And, in the scheme of things, it's much less disturbing than, say, "A Problem From Hell" (on genocide in the 20th century). Or "Emergency Sex and Other Desperate Measures" (on the UN cleaning up after genocide in the 1990s). Or even certain history books.

Toby needs a haircut!

Electric Anger

2007-03-02T18:45:00.000-05:00

Hi T----,

Please forgive me if this is long - it's been quite a struggle.

I received my first electric bill in early February. The bill, which covered only 16 days, was for $107 and claimed that I had used over 1400 kilowatt-hours of electricity. When I spoke with F--e upstairs about her bill, she told me that it was only $40 for the same period. I checked the usage calculator on Duke Energy's website (which allows you to imput your kinds of appliance, type of heater, square footage, etc) and it indicated that I should have used about 1200 kilowatt-hours for the full 31 day month of January, based on temperatures.

At this point, I called Ed to explain the problem. He did not answer, and he never responded to my message. I also called the power company, and they told me that they would check the meter next time, but could do nothing more.

Around the time of the next meter read, early last week, I started checking Duke's site. I misread the numbers, thinking it said that I had used about 3200 kilowatt-hours in February. I read it incorrectly - I just recieved my bill, and apparently my meter read shows that I used 4632 kilowatt-hours, for a total cost of $327 for only 28 days. My grand total between the two bills is $435!!!! For 45 days!

When I called Ed last week, he tried to convince me that it was "just because of the cold weather." Having done my research, I knew that this was impossible, so I refused to follow his recommeded path & simply wait for my next bill. I got the number for the electrician, who agreed with me that I would have to be a major drug lord in order to cosume this much power. He had Sean, one of his employees, verify that the meter was attached to my unit. On Thursday, Sean & I verified that the meter reading did match what the power company said it did.

I am fairly certain that there is something seriously wrong with my heat pump. The meter read has gone up by under 1000 kilowatt-hours in the week since the meter read, a significant reduction over the 1125 that I was apparently using in the coldest weather. I have complained to Ed on at least 4-5 occassions that something is wrong with my heat pump. He has had it fixed twice & told me to just change the filter & dismissed me the other times. I started January with a fresh filter.

Whatever happens, I believe that Ed needs to be responsible for the $435 electric bill. Assuming that the heat pump is the culprit, he should also be responsible for replacing it with a model that I approve that won't break & cost $327/month to run.

This situation, combined with the giant piece of medal that I hear echoing as people drive over it in the garage every morning at 5am, has put my on edge. I appologize again for the length of this e-mail, and I hope that you can help me. The only thing stopping me from calling the local news is my regard for my property value. The only thing stopping me from calling a lawyer is that I may need the money to pay this ridiculous electric bill....

Kind Regards,

Amy

PS I believe that L-----'s bill will be even higher. When we looked at the meters, hers read over 7000 kilowatt-hours. Faye's was under 2500 for the same 1.5 month period. I suspect that L----- & I may have the same defective heat pumps, since we closed around the same time.

5 things you didn't know about me

2007-02-12T19:08:00.000-05:00

Better late than never, right? Amy beat me to it, but Noor apparently got a 2-for-one deal on this bit of tagging.

I visited almost all the capitals of Europe before I ever went to NYC. During our trips, my friends and I never booked a single hotel or hostel room more than 3 days in advance. I still haven't been to California or Mexico.
I used to sort my skittles. Someone once gave me a three pound bag, and I sorted the whole thing (into sets with one of each color, then one of the remaining 4 colors, ....) before I ate any.
My best friend and I have only ever had one fight, over whether or not her favorite color was ever pink. We threw milk at each other. The next day, we didn't mention it. We've been best friends since 1987, and I wrote my college entrance essay about her.
People pay my mother for psychic readings. Apparently, she talks to spirit guides. She raised my sister and me backstage at the theater. She and my father are Republicans. I find this combination very strange.
I like the smell of damp basements, coffee, gasoline and cranberry body wash.

Now, I'm tagging Autumn, Jenn, Sylvie&Jeff, and Mickey.

Christmas with the fam.

2007-01-04T19:50:00.000-05:00

Dad with Toby (5 points to anyone who knows which book he's reading. Hint: it's one of mine).

Mom with Toby. Doesn't he look proud of himself?

My sister & me. I like that we look vaguely evil.

Sunset in a park near my house. Laurie & I walked all over the park, to the conservatory & the art museum in the mild December weather.

In the distance, you can see Kentucky across the river. How exotic.

PS Since everyone keeps asking, Toby now weighs 15 pounds. That's full grown for a Westie, but he may get as big as 20lbs without being an overweight puppy dog.

Happy Holidays

2006-12-16T12:58:00.000-05:00

I'm trying to not be political here, but I just can't stop myself from pointing out irony.

Certain conservatives (who claim to be Christian, but do little to deserve the title) are apparently upset yet again this year that those of other faiths might not like the greeting "Merry Christmas."

To crystalize their cause, they have launched a war on the greeting "Happy Holidays."

So, a group that believes that other groups should suck it up and accept their holiday greeting (because this is America!) are very upset that other people would use a different holiday greeting. How rude to try to impose your holiday greeting on others! Hmmm....

Can't we just pick our own holiday greetings? I thought it was fun in college to wish my Jewish boss a Happy Hanukkah and my Wikkan coworker a Happy Winter Solstice. They responded in kind, wishing me a Merry Christmas.

But then, I don't think religion is the right issue to treat peoply poorly over. And my best friend from high school (a Muslim) was the person who started our Christmas gift exchange (her family celebrates Christmas as both a secular American holiday and a day to remember Jesus, who is, for them, a prophet of Islam).

What the dog did

2006-12-06T21:00:00.000-05:00

Toby, now nearly 7 months old is/has:

Peed on my bathroom rug three times. He is now not allowed in the bathroom while unattended.
Rolled off the couch while chewing on his treat ball. He loves that thing. It makes him almost happy to go into the laundry room when I'm leaving for work, since he gets a full ball-o-treats each day.
Formed a relationship with my couch pillow. And he's fixed!
Chased & tackled my shoes in an odd game of puppy-on-shoe football. Fortunately, the shoes were unharmed.

Work is rolling along. Only 11 more work days until Christmas vacation! My sister Laurie will be here for 9 days & we will have lots of fun (so long as it's free). And my parents will be here for 3-4 days, where they will take us to a play & dinner. And Laurie & I will cook a very fancy dinner.

I've been crazy cooking lately. On Sunday, I made Butternut Squash soup, with red potatoes, parsley, and curry powder. The only tricky part was getting the skin off the squash after I finished baking it. But, I got four meals out of one 1.99 squash.

Tuesday I made carrot soup. Similar ingredients to the Squash one, but the carrots never quite cooked down, so I had to run it through the blender. After that, it was very tasty & creamy, though not as good as the Squash.

Today, I turned a slightly brown pear into a sauteed pear desert, with dried cranberries ans walnuts. Healthy, if you don't count the butter!

I think I'm going to try to cook squash ravioli over Christmas, since my mom got me a pasta maker a few years ago (manual, so lovely & old school). All my recipes are from the super awesome book, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, which I highly recommend :)

Duurr....

2006-11-28T18:39:00.000-05:00

As heard on Lou Dobbs:

"The e-mail generation cannot write, spell or communicate."

Maybe I should say:

"The emal genration cant rite, spel, or comunicete."

Durr....

But have hope! Lou doesn't believe it. He blames the corps who did the study, who are surely trying to create an excuse to send more jobs overseas.

(Me, I think the study was probably poorly designed. And Lou is a bit, um, paranoid....)

On a brighter note, I had a very happy Turkey Day. My sister cooked a yummy (and surprisingly healthful) dinner, with all the fixings at my aunt's house in Texas. It was 75 degrees! And it is in the 60s now here in Cincinnati. For today, at least, I heart global warming.

A sample recipe:
Sweet potatoes, soaked overnight to reduce the starch, with 2tbsps of butter for the whole dish, splenda brown sugar, and walnuts. Delicious! I've never even like sweet potatoes before :)

We saw two movies: Stranger than fiction (which was awesome - I wish that my wrist watch cared so much about me) and Running with scissors (which sucked, but sometimes you have to humor your sister, particularly after she makes a delicious dinner).

My sister took me, my cousin, and his super-cool new girlfriend pottery painting. I painted a giant mug, Laurie (my sis) decorated a planter, and Allison (Eric's gf) painted a snowflake ornament. Eric (my cos) chose to be original, and painted the "Everybody poops" version of a monkey mug, complete with floating feces on the inside. Won't he make a fun lawyer?

Other highlights:
Cincinnati airport is the most expensive one in the nation. So I had to fly out of Dayton to save $200 (one hour north of me). Then, I had to sit through a three hour layover in Cincinnati, both ways. I spent more time in a layover at an airport a half hour from my house than I did on either flight (1/2 hour Dayton to Cincy, 2.5 hours Cincy to Houston). Why is this? It can't be good for the airline (Delta) to put my on the extra flight, can it? I spent about $20 total in the Cincinnati airport on food & magazines, but I spent $20 on parking in Dayton, so that must be a wash. If anyone can figure this out, the people of Cincinnati would be grateful (since most of the people on my flight out of Dayton were, in fact, from Cincinnati).

I slept on an air mattress for 2 of the three nights. Unfortunately, the mattress had a hole in it. The first night, it deflated in about 1/2 hour, but I was too tired to be bothered until about 7am. The second night (with the addition of duct tape) it lasted about 2-3 hours, but I had to move at 5am. That, combined with my redeye on the way out (the one night we stayed in a hotel, for the sake of the airport shuttle) meant that I got very little sleep. But it was still worth it!

Toby was happy and confused to see me. He actually barked at a really big dog before we left the boarding place. I think four days at puppy camp with other small dogs has emboldened him.

Go Blue!

2006-11-07T21:30:00.000-05:00

I moved to a Red State.

But it's turning Blue!

(I've been waiting to say that for months)

And it looks like no smoking in public places. Fancy.

Dems and Independents shouldn't flee to Canada - they should move to Ohio. I could use more company.

And I love the Tigers for winning the AL Championship. If the Red Wings are any guide, they will get their World Series title in a few years.

So far, a pretty happy fall.

New things to worry about:
Can the Dems figure something out to improve the situation in Iraq?
Can someone do something about the genocide in Darfur? Anybody recall the words "never again"?

(I realize that this is all over the map, but still)

Toby denies attacking houseguests

2006-10-28T20:00:00.000-05:00

"I take these accusations very seriously."
"And I state emphatically that I am a good dog. See how nicely I can sit?"

(He's growing into his ears, dontcha think?)

Toby Attacks

2006-10-28T19:54:00.000-05:00

Here's Toby about a month ago, looking very cute. He recently discovered that he can climb on the couch on his own, and now he likes to spend all his time there. If I'm not on the couch, for some reason he likes to sit where I usually sit.
You can't quite tell (all the good picks came out blurry) but Toby is actually in the process of attacking Leticia here. In his defense, she was encouraging him (she can't have a dog at her flat in Newscastle) but still....
Here's a better view of him, clearly sneaking up on Autumn from behind. This went on for a rather long time....
Probably neaking up on another victim (while promoting his corporate sponsor)....

Mmm, Cincinnati Chilli

2006-10-28T18:12:00.000-05:00

Before her move to DC, and before the (in)famous SI reunion, Autumn came to visit me in Cincinnati. Being a good sport (and on advice from Jon) she helped me use my Skyline gift card, which had been burning a whole in my pocket (er, glove compartment) since last summer. Would you like some chilli with your highly-processed-you-tell-me-what-it-looks-like cheese?
We also attended Tall Stacks, a tri-annual Cincinnati event, with old-style tall ships (most of which are younger than me) and decent bands. And, apparently, the friends of coal.

No $5 beer (or $10 bloody Marys) for us....

CNET calls librarians valuable, tools

2006-10-03T18:57:00.000-05:00

Feel the love

read more | digg story

No love for (or from) the DMV

2006-09-24T19:30:00.000-05:00

The coolest thing about my new home (at least in my mind) is that it's a swing state. Which means that, unless the Secretary of State does something off kilter, my vote might actually mean something.

Now, Ohio claims that I was supposed to switch my license & registration over as soon as I accepted a job here (last November) or took up a residence (last July). They also require that I have a copy of my title, which took over 6 weeks for me to obtain from the state of Michigan.

Since the sky wasn't falling, my motivation to go to the DMV was pretty low. I do, however, need to register to vote at least 30 days prior to the election, which means the end of next week.

I decided that Friday morning would be the day. When I reviewed the requirements online, I realized that I needed my social security card (it was at home - far from work & the DMV location that provided written driving exams). My passport (in my car) would not suffice, in spite of the fact that 1) I needed a soc card & a birth certificate to get it and 2) it actually has a photo & would be much harder to fake than a soc card. Whatever. We don't approve of travel in this here state. And, you can use your pilot's license instead! Your boating license! Grrrr.

But I still wanted to get this done, so I drove home from work to fetch my card. Then, I drove to the DMV and, without study, bs-ed my way though the written test & passes. Happily walking to the other room (past the sign endorsing one political candidate for governor, thanks to some "pro-family" agency renting space next door) to get my shiny new license & registration.

I was immeadiately informed (along with a room of 25-35 sad, degected looking souls) that the system was down. For the entire state of Ohio. No idea when it would be back up. *You should all go home.*

Having been warned by a coworker that she has NEVER accomplished her goal with one trip to the DMV, I burst out laughing and walked to my car. I giggled for about half a mile, then used some of the Panera gift cards that I won from the United Way (I won 2 contests - one for showing up at the department fundraising kickoff meeting & another for pledging in the first week) to get myself some free lunch.

I lost 2 hours of my work day and about 2 gallons of gas (but I stayed late & worked through lunch to make up a bit of the time). No license, no vehicle registration, no voter registration.

I'll try again on Monday. Wish me luck!

Death before breakfast

2006-09-22T18:08:00.000-05:00

Nearly every morning, while I'm getting ready for work, I watch CNN. Generally, the only thing that annoys me is Miles O'Brian's habit of making pointless remarks ("Why doesn't GM just make cars consumers want to buy?" OMG, Miles has solved it! Thank you, o idiot savant savior of the auto industry!).

But Tuesday and Thursday this week were different. Tuesday and Thursday, I was threatened with - Death!

Bum Bum Bum

In an ad that should have been produced (as satire) for the Daily Show or some YouTube version of The Onion, the horrible folks at one of those We're-not-a-political-party-so-we-can't-mention-them-by-name-but-it's-pretty-damn-obvious-who-we-support type organizations informed me that

Terrorists Want to Kill US

(cue pics of twin towers and evil, freedom-hating terrorists)

and, just in case you missed it,

They Want to KILL US

Appartently, we did nothing to stop the terrorists for all the of the 1990s. (I think they want me to blame our last president for this. However, though they certainly don't mention it, I happen to know that the same party that now controls Congress has been controlling it since 1993 - and, um, they were more interested in stopping sex than stopping terrorists.)

Did we mention

THEY WANT TO KILL US.

So, um, I guess if I don't vote the way the ad people want me to vote, Imgonnadie.

And I haven't even had breakfast yet. Damn it.

Octoberfest

2006-09-17T19:34:00.000-05:00

Last week was a busy one for me. I went to a baseball game on Wednesday with other new employees from work, which was fun. Saturday, I played phone/e-mail tag with my cell-less former roommate (Leticia), who was in the country on a business trip. We finally managed to get ahold of one another, and then we attended my city's Octoberfest celebration - aparently the biggest one in North America.

And here's the part that will make everyone jealous. We got to participate in (eat your hearts out) the World's Largest Chicken Dance. Oh yeah. Na-na-na-na-na-na-na, Na-na-na-na-na-na-na, Meep-Meep-Meep-Meep. Plus, there was struedal (sp?), and some very good German beer. Like all of this town's many festivals, it was all about the food. Then, I got to show Leticia my new place, and my dog got to attack her. I think she liked the dog more than the place (he is adorable, after all).

Today, I walked across the Purple People Bridge to Kentucky with an old friend from high school, who just happened to move here (for a boy, it's always either a job or a boy) a few months before I did. I really like the bridge, and it's great to have an old friend nearby, but I don't understand why people pay money to climb the bridge- the climbers are only about 15 feet above those of us who take the walk for free....

I also pulled one of Toby's teeth (he still had a loose baby tooth in front of an adult one, and the adult one was a bit crooked as a result. Hopefully, it will right itself now). I'll put some pics of Toby attacking Leticia up soon.

Just Kidding

2006-09-11T18:08:00.000-05:00

4:21pm Receive e-mail with links to various organizational news stories.

4:22pm Open link to story on (anticipated) reoganization of my department. Expect that it will say that changes for my organization have not yet been determined.

4:24pm Read that my organization will be broken up into 2 parts, part going to an IT group, the other going to a business group.

4:25pm Commence asking coworkers "did you read this e-mail?" while printing and forwarding the e-mail for those who have not yet received it.

4:29pm One coworker at my site calls a coworker at another site to see if she knows more. She has not yet received the e-mail.

4:31pm Discuss the implications of the split and the move. Generally agree that it might be a good move.

4:46pm Continue to discuss implications of reorg plan.

4:52pm Inform coworker seated at site, but away from group, of the move. Repeat discussion of implications/motivations for/minutia of split.

5:03pm Go back to my desk to finish up for the day.

5:12pm Receive e-mail stating that posted story is untrue. Details of reorganization have not yet been decided.

5:22pm Go home to walk dog.

The many moods of Toby

2006-09-01T20:25:00.000-05:00

These are a few weeks old. Enjoy :)

Feeling bummed, mellow & curious

2006-08-29T18:28:00.000-05:00

I had a good/bad weekend.

Good, because I spent all day Saturday helping to do landscaping in front of my local library. The other volunteers were great, and now I can say "hey, I planted that shrub!" every time I check out a book. Plus, I got to learn some neighborhood history from some of the locals who stopped by.

Bad, because my dad's blood counts are not so good. Red and white. And, even though he will probably be okay, I hate cancer. Still, we knew it would probably come back (his kind almost always does, but it's rarely fatal).

Bad, because my power went out on Saturday night. One more hour and I would have been asleep (removing roots from the ground is tiring). It was especially freaky since, during the earlier volunteer work, I saw some of the not-so-nice parts of my neighborhood. No fun to think about in the pitch black dark.

Good, because Toby-the-dog was there to comfort me.

Oh, and today, at work, I found out that my department is being reorganized. No idea how. Might be a good thing. Might be a bad thing. Not sure what to think. I'm still adjusting - I haven't even been here for 3 months yet!

But my condo is *almost* done. Only took them 2 months after closing.

Enough being sad. My dog has a funny habit. About an hour after he eats, he flips his dish over. He will nose it around until it flips. Since both the bowl and the tile are ceramic, this makes quite a bit of noise. He won't let me see him do it, but I have caught him with the bowl standing on its side. Is my dog obsessive compulsive?

Mirror attacks puppy

2006-08-18T18:41:00.000-05:00

Toby learned an early fascination with the tall mirror in my bedroom just a few days after we moved into my condo. And, since he follows me wherever I go when I'm home, he gets to play with it any time I go in my room. But, a few days ago, the mirror attacked him. I'm not sure how it happened, all I know is that Toby screamed (yes, my dog can scream), the mirror wound up on the floor, and Toby wound up under the couch in the living room.

I thought this incident might keep Toby out of my room, or at least end his fascination with the mirror. But no. Toby decided to go to war with the mirror. Barking at it and stalking it every chance he got. I think he's formed some kind of truce with the mirror at this point, but he's still got his eye on it. He even forgets to follow me out of the room sometimes.

Good news - they may FINALLY finish my condo. I sent an "extremely frustrated" e-mail to the real estate agent, and enlisted the help of the other agent durring the weekly open house for the building. The next Monday, I had shelves in my closet, hardware on my cabinets, and no more gaps under my doors. They did a walkthrough with me on Wednesday to verify what still needs to be done and promissed another next week to stay on things. I'm feeling hopefull for the first time in weeks.

My sister called me last weekend with a strange question. Did I realize that a formerly kidnapped journalist (currently writing her story in the CS Monitor) was not just from AA, but also the daughter of our high school English teacher, Mrs. C? I followed the story last winter, but I missed our teacher on CNN (as did my sister) and never made the connection from the names and geography. Mrs. C was a truly excellent English teacher - she helped organize the Humanities program at PCEP, a class that is probably the reason I just *had* to study abroad during college. You know a class is good when you get home from school, list the five things that you have to do as homework, realize that they are all for the same class, and are still glad to be in the class. And, we got to read Hamlet.

Work is starting to pickup, which is excellent. I saw a local production of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Abridged. The show was pretty good, though I'd still like to see the original in London (not sure if it's still on stage there, or for that matter, when I'll be back over there). Disturbingly, the smirkiest & most pretentious of the characters in the show looked just like a smirky, pretentious computer geek from SI. Any guess on who I mean?

More India pics

2006-07-29T14:10:00.000-05:00

Elephant in front of the temple in Pondicherry. I didn't realize how close I was to him until I saw the picture.

Indian ladies at the beach by the Gandhi statue, preserving their complexions.

Fancy Catholic church. Even Jesus wears flowers.

Tree with branches that grow back into the ground at the Auroville center.

Condo Pics

2006-07-16T15:32:00.000-05:00

Per Noor & Sylvie's requests, here are some pics of my new place. It still needs alot of little things before it will be finished, but it's starting to feel like home.

Shiny kitchen - still needs hardware on the cabinets.

Funky entryway.

Greatroom desperately in need of furniture.

Funny, it seemed like I had plenty of stuff at my place in Ann Arbor. But I still need to get rid of some things....

Puppy!

2006-07-15T18:53:00.000-05:00

Toby on my pretty hardwood floors.

Looking misleadingly calm.

Not peeing on the floor!

2006-07-01T11:40:00.000-05:00

The hallway outside R's grandma's house. The building is almost brand new. I got to pick the winner of the monthly "chick" drawing - women pool money for their own monthly lottery.

A self portrait in captivity (after 4 days of going nowhere). At this point, I felt like an inmate in the house. Well cared for, but unable to leave.

Rasika and her best friend (at the friend's house) talking on phones. Everyone thought R needed to get a cell phone for her 3-month visit.

A cow in the street. The driver closed the car door just as I took the picture. The cow is tied to a 4 foot leash on a busy street - he can't even turn to get out of the sun.

India: First 5 Days

2006-07-01T11:32:00.000-05:00

Me & Rasika, waiting in the lobby of a hotel in Mumbai for our flight to Chennai after about 22 hours of flights & airports. The airport is under construction, so the airline sent us to a five-star hotel for the 5 hour layover.

The view from one of the porches at R's house. I like the blue door.

Beta Testing Best Practices

2006-06-27T15:50:00.000-05:00

No I'm not kidding.

Is Beta testing a new website a best practice for site design?

Are there any standards for how best to go about Beta testing?

C'mon smart kids, tell me what you know :)

We have... More Indecision?

2006-06-22T20:12:00.000-05:00

So here's an e-mail I sent to my family a few days ago:

Me: I don't think they will finish on time.

My Mom: They'll finish on time.

My Dad: They might not finish on time.

A Coworker: Um, he may finish on time. But he might not.

The Builder: I still think we can finish on time.

The Real Estate Agent: I'm starting to think that he might not finish on time.

Me: Damn it.

But, if it's not done, he will pay to keep my rates down and to keep my storage, and to keep me in the ExtendaStay. However, closing at the beginning of the month will cost me more in terms of pre-paying my interest rate.

And it's a hastle.

Arrg.

After that depressing revelation, the next day the real estate agent called to say that we could close... Friday instead of Thursday. After an additional day of worrying about the delivery of my stuff (scheduled for my new closing date, would have to be moved to a week later if it had to be changed, at a cost of $3/day for extra storage), my I-always-say-yes-of-course-wecandoit! builder said that I can have the stuff delivered before the close. So all, at least for now, in my constantly changing new home purchase appears to be going well.

And I have walls! Oh, baby! They just need a bit more plaster. Cross your fingers that I'll have cabinets when I stop by tomorrow for my 3 times weekly ritual of peering in the windows.

I went home last weekend. Friday I stayed over at Jenn's, since I didn't get to say goodbye to her, Adam and the kids before I left. We just hung around the house, but it was really nice to spend time with them. The baby, Hannah, has developed an attitude. Jenn says she doesn't know where she went wrong, I said, um, of course your kids have attitude! You have attitude (to spare).

The next day I hung out with my dad, who shocked me by offering to cook me lunch. I kept my request simple (scrambled eggs and cheese, with the brown eggs that I left them when I moved) and happily ate the (from the freezer) pie that he baked me too. And I didn't even have a father's day gift for him - unless you count the stuff I brought him from India (a shirt, coffee, and - don't ask - toothpicks).

Then I hit my hometown's new Ikea with Autumn and Madilyn. It took us four and a half hours to get through the place, but I got a damn good parking place. And some cute glasses, pretty storage boxes, and cork pot holders (2 bucks). Also, it was nice to hang out with people my age who I know and can joke around with in i-schoolese.

In other news: Who has a super-successful former 622 group? I do, I do! But, looking at Noor's blog, it doesn't look like she's made the announcement yet, so I'll stay silent (I can, you know). Let's just say they are lucky to have her!

Coworkers continue to be cool, I'm learning a bit about patents and financials, still sick of the ExtendaStay....

Tomorrow is Friday! And, it may be my last weekend not in my own place, where I will have my own Westie puppy. So cute. And I can walk it in the great park that's about two blocks from my new place. This weekend, I get to see tons of bands at Cincinnati's Desdemona Music Festival. I don't even mind that I'm going all by myself :)

We have a date

2006-06-15T19:58:00.000-05:00

For the closing on my condo! Woohoo!!! It's later than I wanted (since it's not, um, tomorrow) but it is before the end of the month. And my rates for the mortgages will still be good, and I won't have to pay anything for storing my stuff. Coolio.

Meanwhile, I'm still stuck in the Extendastay. Which is still a little depressing. I have no motivation to buy or cook real food, since the kitchen and pans kinda creep me out, and I don't want to move anything. So I'm eating 1) goldfish crackers 2) ice cream 3) frozen meals 4) bananas and 5) oreo cookies. At least the food in the cafeteria isn't bad. And the room here has Showtime, so I got to watch the awesome movie Saved yesterday.

Every time I visit my new place, I am happy about the trees and the views in the neighborhood. Plus, the police are doing a big ole' crime crackdown there right now, so maybe it will only be the murder capital of the city for one year. Something to hope for.

Apparently my place will have walls by Monday. Cross your fingers for me....

Sleepy in Cincy

2006-06-03T21:47:00.000-05:00

I made it to my new home city today. After 1) 4.5 hours of sleep (combination of partying and a late night call from my sister) 2) leaving about 3 hours after I planned and 3) hitting my one (and only) traffic jam as soon as I got on the highway in Ann Arbor.

My real estate agent showed me the state of my condo first (it doesn't have walls, but should still be finished in time to keep my interest rate - cross your fingers). BTW, if you are buying a rehabed condo, seeing the insides of the ancient walls is not pretty. Then, we looked at the unit in my building where I was going to stay until it was finished. After about 10 minutes, my agent decided (without any protests from me) that I should stay in a hotel instead. Most of the lights in the unit either didn't work, or had no switches, there was no place to put the windo A/C, and the footprints of the last person to enter looked like the ones you see in museums telling you where to go. So I will be in a hotel for a few days, then hopefully I will move to a another of my builder's complexes on my street, with units renovated four years ago (rather than before I was born).

I'm okay with this arrangement, except for two things. I did not pack to stay in a hotel. I have no idea where my toothbrush is, and I had to carry in baskets of my clothes. Tomorrow, in daylight, I will try to make sense of the mass of stuff (which I would have just carried in and sorted in doors had earlier plans worked out) in the hotel parking lot. Also, I now feel even less settled than I thought I would. I'm not only in temporary accomodations, I'm in temporary accomodations awaiting my move into the second set of temporary accomodations. And, I will likely have to do my next move after my first or second day of work. Arrrg.

At least I know my way around town. And I know that I have a nice boss, a good job, and friendly coworkers. So I'm actually pretty lucky. Mostly, right now, I just feel tired....

R-O-C-K in the USA

2006-05-28T21:02:00.000-05:00

It's Sunday night and I've been home since Thursday. Jon's having a bbq and a bunch of people are heading to Meijers, apparently to purchase a kiddie pool and some jello (!). Not sure how that's going to work out - should at least be entertaining.

I promised an update on our trip to Coorg. We took a sleeper train on our way out, and I managed to sleep for most of the 9.5 hour journey. Upon our arrival in Mysore, we ate breakfast (Indian coffee and local bread & dips) and started on a long car journey to a town in Coorg. The car trip was over two hours long and increadibly bumpy. Most of the roads were only one lane and not exactly smooth, so the trip envolved alot of swerving. As I told R right after we arrived in Madras, driving in India basically means ignoring every instinct that you might have while driving in the US. Near death is a normal experience. We finally got to our hotel around 2pm, in time for a lunch of tasty North Indian fare. R was a bit too queasy for lunch, since she sat in the back of the car with all the luggage.

We hung out around the hotel and took in all the beautiful views of the hills and towns. Coorg is much cooler than Madras (70s & 80s instead of the 90s) and less humid (60 percent instead of 80 percent) so we could sit without fans or AC and feel comfortable. We also visited a fantasitic waterfall and several temples nearby. The walk from the car to the waterfall was several miles down steps in a bright, green forest, which was difficult for R's mom and grandma. When we arrived, people were bathing in the sacred (but probably dirty) water at the base of the falls).

On our second day, we started with what is likely the one of the best temples that we visited. There were views of the surrounding mountains from inside the temple, and the wood carvings 0n the roof are quiet unusual. I also managed to check my e-mail at the tiniest internet cafe that I have ever visited. The connection was high speed, but also really slow, and cheap! Irony abounds in all things.

We left the first town and took another bumpy ride to Mysore on our third day. We visited an amazing Budhist temple & school on our way, as well as a lovely woodland resort. The temple, which is not listed in most guidebooks, contained 60 + foot high golden statues of three important Budhist teachers, including Budha himself, along with hundreds of paintings of gods. I started feeling sick the night before, so I started my diet of bland food (which lasted until the end of the trip).

In Mysore, we checked into a great hotel. In India, most of the bathrooms have a drain for the shower, with a bucket and a tap and sometimes a showerhead. Because of this fact, most of the toilets get soaked every time someone washes up. This hotel actually had a bath tub, which made me feel really at home. The hotel owner even sent someone out for toilet paper (most people in India douche) when he saw me. The night of our arrival we checked out the fountain light show in a garden famous in the Bollywood movies of the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s. Like the train station in Chennai, it was increadibly crowded. Like, OhmyGodIcantbreathfromallthesepeoplewhatifIgetlost crowded. But the light show was pretty neat.

We saw the beautiful palace at Mysore the next day. The palace has a lovely temple next to it, along with some rather sad-looking elephants and camels for childrens rides. Being sick meant that (in part from desperation) I used my first India-style-hole-in-the-ground-toilet, which really isn't that bad (doesn't matter if it's dirty, since only your feet touch the thing). We then went to a summer palace of a famous, 1800s Indian warrior king (fought the British). The palace, composed of intricate paintings on every wood surface, is crumbling, but it must have been beautiful in its day. I imagine that some of the great monuments of Europe reached this state before they were revitalised in the last century. I hope that India's riches can be restored, but I also hope that the poor of India recieve the attention that they need & deserve first.

Our train back to Chennai was also a night train. It was good that I decided that Indian toilets were okay, since I had to use another one (with a handle for balance) on the train back. I slept on the top bunk this time, wich was fine, except that the air vent freaked me out a bit (I kept thinking something would crawl out of it, since it was right next to my face).

On our first day back in Chennai, we went to the wedding of R's second cousin. I wore a salwar kemis (spelling?) to the first ceremony. At the second, R & her mom dressed me up in a blue & pink silk sari, along with excellent safire jewlery. I have to show my parents the picture's, since R's mom was excited to hear their reactions. Everyone who saw me seemed amused, and R's mom said that it was hard to drape a sari on someone so tall (I'm only 5'7", but that's tall for South India).

The next day was my last in Chennai. We took care of some last minute shopping (a shirt for my dad, some bangles for a friend). R had to spend the afternoon taking care of her passport so that she can return to the US in a few months. Her mom was really nice, and she took me to the airport in the late afternoon. I had a nice chat with some of the family before I left, along with a renewed invite to visit some really nice people in Dehli if I make it out to Sylvie's wedding this December.

Getting through the airports was a bit rough. I forgot that I had to get my checked baggage examined by security before I could check in and check the baggage for the flight. In the baggage line, several people just walked in front of the people waiting for no explicable people. In spite of only having a few people in line, the check in line took over 45 minutes. A nice guy from Burma, who turned out to be in a group of 6 after I got in line behind him) let me go first with my one bag.

I had to stop in Dehli on my way to Amsterdam. I made the mistake of going through security for my flight right away, so that I had to sit in the area with no shops or magazines of 3.5 hours before my flight (the area just outside had some stuff to do).

I'll write some more about Copenhagen (my next stop) soon. I have mixed feelings about India. It was beautiful and too hot. Eating with your fingers is not so bad (but I had to lick mine off after each bite, while the locals let the food pile on). A motorcycle can apparently fit 3 adult men or a family of five, but that doesn't seem safe to me. I like that they have saved the trees, but I'm not sure that it's worth compromising safety to let them stand in the middle of the (mostly lane-free) roads. I think that, if they can do something about the intense poverty & the disparity between the rich & the poor, and fix the infrastructure (safe roads & public transportation) and clean everything up, South India could be on a fast track to being something amazing. I guess I just didn't realize that it was still so far from being a developed nation.

Oh, and Sylvie's taste is downright subtle by Indian standards (giant plastic rubbies surrounded by fake diamonds are shiek). :)

Chennai to Coorg

2006-05-18T12:03:00.000-05:00

All things in India, or at least in the lovely household in which I have been residing these last few weeks, are decided by committee. And these decisions, which require significant time and noise in the making, are subject to change. Without notice.

These requirements led to my staying in Madras without seeing anything for four days. Now, normally I would have gone out to entertain myself. But, I was warned, such an action would not be safe here, as tourist spots are challenging places to get around. So I remained an (increasingly frustrate) inmate of the house for a few days. We finally ventured out on Wednesday for a whirlwind tour of Pondicherry (former French port with Ashram and temple and lovely beach + gandhi statue) and Mamallampuram (decently old damn cool stone carvings). My hosts then informed me that I had seen nearly everthing that Chennai has to offer. So I changed my plane ticket, so that I leave the day after we return from Coorg & Mysore. I will be spending 4 days in Copenhagen, where I can regain my role as a fully independent travelling girl.

After that decision, my trip improved significantly. I spent the day on Thursday at Tamil Nadu's version of Greenfield Village (homes from all over South India). It needs some docents, but the waiters at the restaurant convinced me to order a huge meal, and then teased me when I ate it my own way, which I found amusing. On Friday we went shopping and I bought some nice stuff for my family and myself (silk scarves, silver jewlery that is priced by the ounce, etc). All really great stuff from R's family's favorite stores, some of which even extended the family's discount to me.

I also got to hang out with R's friends and listen to them evaluate the new fiance (via arranged marriage) of one of the girls. And fall asleep on the table at the bar of a very exclusive boutique hotel (my body wants to sleep from 10pm to 6am here - I think that I have adjusted to the time change too well). R and her circle frequently dine at the restaurants of 5 star hotels, where they are guaranteed a clean and overpriced meal.

Things got even better during our trip to Coorg, which I will try to write about in the next few days. I'll be leaving Chennai tomorrow for Copenhagen (via Dehli and Amsterdam). I've had a really interesting trip and I am very grateful to my wonderful hosts. Today they dressed me up in a gorgeous silk sari to attend the wedding of R's second cousin, which was pretty funny. Pics to come!

Two more days in Chennai

2006-05-08T23:25:00.000-05:00

Monday, 8 May

Madras is urban and not urban. Brand new flats on one street, fancy billboards all over the place, but then there are piles of debris on nice streets (broken bricks and garbage), and stalls (selling various products) made of sticks all over.

Rasika's house is very nice. Three floors with different parts of her extended family on each floor, and each floor has its own kitchen and living areas. So each family has their own space, but they can hang out pretty easily.

Everything is a bit less modern than I expected, but I guess we all make that mistake from watching movies. We don't live like they do in American movies, and they don't live like the people in the Bollywood movies.Almost no one stares at me - it's less noticable than it was in Italy. Might be because I'm always with lots of locals. But I am the only white person that I've seen.

I think that this all would have shocked me more when I was 18, but at this age, it doesn't seem all that strange.We've mostly been hanging out with Rasika's family so far. They have been extremely nice to me.

I feel bad that I have put out her sister - Rasika and her sister and cousin have been sleeping in the living room while I sleep in their bedroom with her grandma. I'm looking forward to getting out to see more things soon.

Tuesday, 9 May

The technology is all pretty western. Everyone seems to have a flat screen tv much nicer than my used tv/vcr. The new national news channel has borrowed heavily from the bbc in the cut ins & teasers. I think alot of the furniture has to be different because of the climate. No one wants a big, overstuffed couch or matress with this much humidity. It would never dry, and neither would the people sitting on it. The beds I've seen are basically raised boards with a thick pad. I'm so tired that I have no trouble sleeping. I wake up ackey, but the pain faids really fast.

They are feeding me Indian food. Lentils, curries, rice, dosas, chutney, all that stuff. Which I like. In fact, there is too much to eat. I was allowed to go to a family ceremony where they spend the whole day cooking, then eat on the floor on top of banana leaves. Rasika insisted that I use a plate and sit at the table, but I would have liked to sit on the floor like everyone else. All the food was sooo good, and they kept putting more and more on my plate. I could barely eat at dinnertime.

I finally bumped into some food that I didn't want to eat. It was a thin pancake with spices and (big) onions mixed in. I got one down, but I had to admit that I didn't like it to avoid eating another. Too bad - I've been pleased with my ability to eat everything put in front of me so far. Aparently, a lot of Indians who return from the states 1) complain constantly about the heat (thankyou Greenfield Village - a summer spent in a sealed room with a hot stove means that I can stand it) 2) refuse to eat with their hands (I'm not ready to leave silverware behind, but it's fine, as long as I wash first) and 3) insist on eating western food (I'm in India - shouldn't I eat Indian food?)

I still haven't seen much. I feel really dependent on my hosts, who have been busy observing the one year anniversary of the passing of a family member. Usually, travelling makes me feel super independent and self sufficient. I'm not sure if it's because of the signs of poverty, the fact that I'm a lone woman, or the result of arriving on a plane and going straight to Rasika's house (no chance to orient myself) but I don't feel comfortable venturing out on my own. I should talk to Rasika to find out if she thinks I can manage.

We'll be spending 5 days in Coorg next week. It's a hill station, so it should be cooler out, and we can go for walks in the coffee plantions and woods. I'm looking forward to it. We'll also be going to Pondicherry to see the old French fort and the religious sites, as well as Mallampuran for the Tamil Nadu version of Greenfield Village (Indian homes from all over the state) and the ancient stone carvings. I'm hoping that we will make it to Bangalore as well.

India first impressions

2006-05-06T01:43:00.000-05:00

after over 30 hours of travel, i'm in madras. it's hot! i feel like i'm siting in front of a fire with the wind blowing the flames in my direction. did i mention that it's hot? i'm waiting for r to take a shower so that i can take one, because 30 hours of travel and this heat make me feel the need to wash.

musings thus far:

families everywhere have the same issues. discussing jewlery, r and her mom sounded just like me & my mom. seriously, i felt like i was in my own house. except for when they spoke in tamul. and offered me chai.

traffic lanes are helpful, but not necessary.

7 meals in 30 hours is too many.

ok, i know, not very many musings. but i just got here, and i haven't seen much outside of r's house

write me some comments so that i feel connected to my home :)

11:30pm

2006-05-01T22:36:00.000-05:00

Not exactly late night. Been up for less than 12 hours. And I'm eating toast. Because I'm tipsy. And, since I'm eating the toast too fast, now I have the hickups.

I graduated on Friday, and I said goodbye to alot of nice people, who I may or may not ever see again. Very strange. I bought a nice condo in my new town, and I'm headed out to India this Thursday. Once I get back, I'll have about a week to move and a week and a half before I start my new job. It all feels rushed, but I know that I will get bored (like, sleeping until noon bored) if I don't do it all this way. But still, it's all a bit strange. I got pretty comfortable here. And the rose-colored glasses always come out about this time. I hope that I can make a nice home for myself in C.

Right now, I'm thinking furniture and dogs, since the friends/people part is clearly out of my control. I hate starting over. Maybe I'll have more control over my life now that I'm a tax-paying realt-estate-owning adult. Not sure if that's a good thing or not.

Now I'm drinking water and getting ready to read a bit (Field Notes from a Catastrophe or the Book Theif).

Laundry: Done
Dishes: Done
Ride to Airport: Arranged
Suitcase: Located
Phonecalls: On the to-do list
Packing: Soon

Frienzied Suspended Animation

2006-04-16T21:06:00.000-05:00

I want to stay. I want to go. Don't want it to be over. Can't wait for it to end. What's next? More of the same forever, only new for a short time? Will I love it, will I hate it? Will I go broke or be okay for good? Will I find the perfect place to live? Somehow fail my classes and not graduate? Disappear in India? Bored, happy, miserable, scared, freaked out, want to sleep, stay out all night.

At least I have a two month plan.

Finish school.
Find a condo.
Graduate.
Go to India.
Sleep for a week.
Move.
Start work.
Buy dog.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack.

Definitions

2006-04-11T23:17:00.000-05:00

Condominium (aka "condo"): Home, frequently occupied by the young, first-time home-buyer, that may resemble a house or apartment. Such abodes require monthly fees in exchange for freeddom from lawn care and snow shoveling.

India: Large country in South Asia. Suitable place to visit when it's time for something completely different, particularly when funny friends invite you on the journey.

Cincinnati: Medium-sized city in Southern Ohio, borded by Kentuky. Contains many very green parks, along with numerous hills and vallies. Site of the Lily Pad Project, which aims to provide free wireless internet at sites around the city. Future home of yours truly.

Restless Ennui: Feeling that overtakes soon-to-be graduates, who have both too little and too much to do, all at the same time.

Dog: Furry friend. Makes life better. Excellent companion for new home in new city.

Reagan Democrat: Democrat who, in the early and mid-1980s, for some reason chose to vote for a sunny, California actor-turned-politician.

Bush Democrat: Former moderate who, shocked by the oh-my-God-we're-all-gonna-die, deficit and spend tactics of our current president, becomes (at least for now) a loyal Democrat.

Are you kidding me?

2006-03-22T00:17:00.000-05:00

N Boortz carries a story today claiming that "Clinton Justice Department" warrent requirements stopped the FBI from pursuing hints of 9/11. it's a double hitter for the republicans - clinton caused 9/11! we need to be able to search whoever we feel like whenever we feel like it! down with the fourth amendment!

it's too damn convenient. this sounds like a rumor on the level with the one claiming that the democratic vp nominee was responsible for high medical insurance.

do you seriously think the republicans wouldn't have used every opportunity to blame clinton for 9/11? they blame the democrats for everything now, while the dems control NO branches of government.

meanwhile, there is no doubt that republicans are to blame for raising the cost of higher ed for the middle class (slashing the student aid budget), destroying bankrupcy protection, and giving BILLIONS OF DOLLARS to oil companies (no strings attached) and paying only lipservice to fixing education and finding alternative fuels (unfunded mandates, anyone?).

i'm not saying the dems are much better, but the republicans deserve your disgust, not your loyalty.

Being mean

2006-03-15T17:54:00.000-05:00

Is it wrong that I love the sinking approval ratings (last clocked at 33%) of the present administration? I'd gladly trade them for, oh, I don't know:

a positive resolution (for all parties) of the war in Iraq
real help and relief for the people hurt by Hurricane Katrina (particularly those in New Orleans)
no more free tax breaks (think 7 billion) for oil companies
or even no more cuts to student financial aid (does anyone else think this is a real TAX on the middle class - for those people pulling on those lovely bootstraps of theirs?)

Too bad I don't think the plummeting ratings represent a real understanding of why we should never have elected this guy in the first place. More like war fatigue.

Someone else commented recently, on the break-up of a family member and his less-than-stellar girlfriend, "I'm thrilled. Is that wrong?"

I say no, as long as what really motivates you is the happiness of the family member. The girlfriend sucked (in pretty much every way), but what really made her unacceptable was the fact that she didn't make him happy. So what's not to be thrilled about?

Bad things, Good people

2006-03-12T22:42:00.000-05:00

Shouldn't go together.

Say a little prayer, for my friends, my sister, and everyone else who needs it.

Michigan

2006-03-07T23:23:00.000-05:00

It's my home. And I love it.

Do you have to love it?

No.

But you don't need to feel superior about not loving it.

And you don't have to live here (in fact, if you actively dislike it, you probably shouldn't). No one is making you stay.

Calm. Down.

It'll be okay.

New York - Dirty, Loud and Cool

2006-03-07T15:59:00.000-05:00

Back to reality after a week in NYC.

I have always marvelled at the way a new reality can just take over your life. After one day working at the UN, I felt like I had been doing it forever. My normal life in Michigan seemed like a distant dream.

It was my first time in New York. The city was loud - like 24/7, sleep-with-your-earplugs-in loud. And it was dirty - like three-pieces-of-garbage-in-one-tree and garbage-bags-every-day-of-the-week dirty. But it was also pretty damn cool. We walked to work every day (0ne of my favorite things to do in a big city) and wandered around every night. I saw: Times Square, Rockefeller Center, the UN (included the employees-only parts), the Statue of Liberty (from far away - too windy to go in), 34th Street shopping & Macy's, Chinatown, and a bunch of other stuff.

Highlight of the week: seeing the Conan O'Brien Show. We went early in the morning two days and got tickets on the second try. It was pretty darn funny, including a great comedian that I had never heard of (Dwayne Perkins) who told the audience to buy him cake instead of drinks.

The people at the UN library made great hosts, although the organization as a whole seemed a bit too apologetic/defensive about the recent scandals. I bought my dad a hat from the UN. As a republican, he hates the place, but he likes hats, so I think I can get him to wear it.

Now I'm back in Michigan, caught up on sleep, and ready to finish my last eight weeks of grad school.

I feel happy and free

2006-02-24T14:18:00.000-05:00

Why the sudden good spirits?

Well, it's vaguely warm outside, and next week is spring break. I had some extra vacation since I didn't teach today (no way the students would have shown up the afternoon before vacation started, with no quizzes or papers approaching the week after break). And, soon, I'm headed off to NYC. It's been a few years since I left the country, and I think NYC almost qualifies as such a trip. And, while I'm working at the UN for the week, I'll be in "international territory." (It's so not New York there that they can even smoke indoors, not that that appeals to me.)

In celebration of the approaching trip, a friend and I had a "grocery store dinner" last night. A grocery store dinner, most commonly occurring over long trips, involves going to the grocery store and picking up some items that can be eaten without cooking or utensils. Our menu included: a loaf of Italian bread, Australian cheddar cheese (yummy), and some very tasty cannolis (did I spell that right?). Very filling & satisfying. Who needs a fancy restaurant?

Reverting to Childhood

2006-02-19T13:54:00.000-05:00

About a week ago, I performed in a little talent show for school. This show was pretty much my first since high school, which ended for me in the late 90s. Since I now live close to my childhood home, my parents attended. Chatting with them in the hall after, I flashed back to my old choir concerts. But, instead of meeting my friends for ice cream, I said goodnight to the rents, and headed out to drink beer at the afterparty.

Not so childish, you say? Well, yesterday, I went on a fieldtrip. While the bus was not yellow, our hosts provided snacks, including: granola bars, juice-in-a-bag (now easy to open, since I have nails), and oreo cookies. We also used to budy system to make sure that everyone was on the bus. If only they had served ants-on-a-log, the flashback would have been perfect.

Librarian Shushed by Patron

2006-02-16T23:03:00.000-05:00

Proving once and for all that libraries just ain't what they used to be, a patron recently "shushed" me at the library. I was chatting with a coworker and fellow libary student about the joys of foundations courses, when our noise prooved too much for an old fashioned (and probably undergraduate) patron. Being service-oriented, as well as on my way out, I chose to end the conversation, instead of informing him that he was on a "loud" floor.

It was a very man-bites-dog moment for me.

Happy New Year's Random Thoughts

2006-01-04T18:18:00.000-05:00

My sister hates it when i say things are random. But i like it. So I'm gonna use it.

2005 was a good year for me. I enjoy school, have good friends and stuff to do on the weekends, had a nice internship that means i will have a good job for after graduation, and i have a school job that allows me to be non-poor prior to graduation. Good stuff.

But....
I think 2005 was a bad year for the world. Too much craziness, bloodiness, and general angry-ness. I hope 2006 is better. It's an even number year, so at least that's a start.

Testing

2005-07-19T18:57:00.000-05:00

Hmmm