I wore capri pants today, I think for the first time in my life. I guess they probably looked fine, but I felt completely ridiculous all day. Like I forgot the rest of my pants, or was deliberately trying to even out the knee sock tan.
Contrary to popular opinion, I actually do appreciate the idea of expressing myself through my clothing. And on occasion, I even do it fairly well, in a rather clean-cut, maybe a little too laid back kind of way.
But, just like in the rest of my life, I'm in a I-know-what-I-know rut. I really don't have any idea how to a) branch out in terms of style or b) how to dress up. This has become obvious when there are events where I have to look like a grown-up. Oh yeah, and I have no taste in jewelry. Not bad taste, no taste.
I think this is probably part of the final frontier where the growing up process is concerned (I'm about to turn 26, you know). Well, that and grown-up furniture. I'm on that too though!
18 July 2008
11 July 2008
An Open Letter to My Friends And Family
Yes, I'm still alive, thanks for asking. Here's what's been up lately:
The weather has been generally beautiful this summer (and yes, the whole 'moving to Denver' thing does have a weather component to it - it's less at the forefront when it's sunny), but unfortunately the only rain seems to come when we're scheduled to play baseball. We've had eight scheduled baseball days since the beginning of June: 3 rainouts, 2 rain delays. Bad luck. But all the rest has certainly made my knees and shoulder feel better, so I guess there's an upside.
I have tried twice to get the cat to the vet and been thwarted by her sudden intelligence in avoiding the crate. It took three years to come out, but she's apparently an evil supergenius. Try #3 is on Monday, so we'll see how we go.
I also found a new apartment! It's about a half mile east of where I am now, which will improve my location in terms of transportation, restaurants, and especially work. I think I'll probably walk home from work whenever the weather's nice. Move should be mid-August so the packing begins in earnest this week. I'm getting rid of some furniture, so that should make it easier, but it's still always a process.
Other than that, work is better, or at least I seem to be doing better at it and I'm playing soccer on Tuesday nights. And I'm headed to NYC in about 10 days to be the maid of honor in a wedding, Door County the week after that, and Denver over labor day. Somewhat of a busy summer, I'd say.
So now we're back in business, eh? See you soon
The weather has been generally beautiful this summer (and yes, the whole 'moving to Denver' thing does have a weather component to it - it's less at the forefront when it's sunny), but unfortunately the only rain seems to come when we're scheduled to play baseball. We've had eight scheduled baseball days since the beginning of June: 3 rainouts, 2 rain delays. Bad luck. But all the rest has certainly made my knees and shoulder feel better, so I guess there's an upside.
I have tried twice to get the cat to the vet and been thwarted by her sudden intelligence in avoiding the crate. It took three years to come out, but she's apparently an evil supergenius. Try #3 is on Monday, so we'll see how we go.
I also found a new apartment! It's about a half mile east of where I am now, which will improve my location in terms of transportation, restaurants, and especially work. I think I'll probably walk home from work whenever the weather's nice. Move should be mid-August so the packing begins in earnest this week. I'm getting rid of some furniture, so that should make it easier, but it's still always a process.
Other than that, work is better, or at least I seem to be doing better at it and I'm playing soccer on Tuesday nights. And I'm headed to NYC in about 10 days to be the maid of honor in a wedding, Door County the week after that, and Denver over labor day. Somewhat of a busy summer, I'd say.
So now we're back in business, eh? See you soon
08 June 2008
Lost
I doubt anyone would describe me as absentminded. In fact, I tend towards the other extreme (nitpicking, of course). So sue me, I like things to be right :)
Furthermore, it's rare that I forget things and even rarer that I lose things.* I figured out recently that between the ages of 10 and 18, I was probably at about 500 softball games and roughly the same number of practices. Through all those gear transportings, I forgot my glove once (I got it back from an extremely surprised coach the next day) and my shoes never.
But in the last two months of baseball practices/games, I've left behind: my jacket, my sweatpants, my water bottle, and finally, my glove. I got all of them back except the last (and most important). I need a new glove anyway, but this wasn't exactly my plan. Plus, now I need to do it quickly, so I'll probably just have to do a stopgap.
This reminds me of one time I was listening to the radio and they had a little competition to see which caller was the most stressed out and one woman said she couldn't find her keys anywhere one morning and finally found them in the freezer. She won.
Is my suddenly losing things meaningful? And why is it always at baseball?
*Exception to the rule: winter hats. I've lost at least five of these. The little buggers just won't stick around...
Furthermore, it's rare that I forget things and even rarer that I lose things.* I figured out recently that between the ages of 10 and 18, I was probably at about 500 softball games and roughly the same number of practices. Through all those gear transportings, I forgot my glove once (I got it back from an extremely surprised coach the next day) and my shoes never.
But in the last two months of baseball practices/games, I've left behind: my jacket, my sweatpants, my water bottle, and finally, my glove. I got all of them back except the last (and most important). I need a new glove anyway, but this wasn't exactly my plan. Plus, now I need to do it quickly, so I'll probably just have to do a stopgap.
This reminds me of one time I was listening to the radio and they had a little competition to see which caller was the most stressed out and one woman said she couldn't find her keys anywhere one morning and finally found them in the freezer. She won.
Is my suddenly losing things meaningful? And why is it always at baseball?
*Exception to the rule: winter hats. I've lost at least five of these. The little buggers just won't stick around...
29 May 2008
Have Some Respect
Hiya. I was going to take a full one month break and show up again on June 1, but well, I guess this is how breaks cure writer's block.
Remember that annoying guy that does that really good impression of John Madden? His name is Frank Caliendo or something like that and his commercials were run about every three minutes during the NFL playoffs.
Recently, I've been noticing a new (well, new to me - DVR changes everything) commercial of his where he impersonates the president in an effort to sell...well, something. Dish Network, maybe? And as you might expect, he behaves like an idiot, gives that silly little Bush smirk/grin and just generally echoes all of the general criticisms of our 43rd president. While Frank whatever his name is really does an excellent impression, and I don't really like the president any more than anyone else, this doesn't really sit right with me.
Apparently, I think it's important to respect the office even if you don't really respect the president. It's one thing to tell jokes with your friends and even for a sketch show to have a 'guy' assigned to impersonate the president for a laugh. But for a business to use the stereotype as a shill? If you met the president (say you were an NCAA champ!), you wouldn't, say, throw water balloons at him, would you? I imagine it would be kind of fun in the short term, but that's a pretty big middle finger to your country, no? Let's just hope we're not really that much of a joke yet.
Remember that annoying guy that does that really good impression of John Madden? His name is Frank Caliendo or something like that and his commercials were run about every three minutes during the NFL playoffs.
Recently, I've been noticing a new (well, new to me - DVR changes everything) commercial of his where he impersonates the president in an effort to sell...well, something. Dish Network, maybe? And as you might expect, he behaves like an idiot, gives that silly little Bush smirk/grin and just generally echoes all of the general criticisms of our 43rd president. While Frank whatever his name is really does an excellent impression, and I don't really like the president any more than anyone else, this doesn't really sit right with me.
Apparently, I think it's important to respect the office even if you don't really respect the president. It's one thing to tell jokes with your friends and even for a sketch show to have a 'guy' assigned to impersonate the president for a laugh. But for a business to use the stereotype as a shill? If you met the president (say you were an NCAA champ!), you wouldn't, say, throw water balloons at him, would you? I imagine it would be kind of fun in the short term, but that's a pretty big middle finger to your country, no? Let's just hope we're not really that much of a joke yet.
30 April 2008
One Nation
I was out in Las Vegas the week before last visiting my parents. There are a lot of non-TV reasons I love hanging out with them, but HBO is certainly a perk. This winter/spring, HBO ran a miniseries called John Adams, which covered the events of about 1775-1805 from the perspective of Mr. Adams himself. Though it did sometimes hilariously remind me of the musical 1776 (Sit down, John, Sit Down!) and it had too many Hollywood types involved in it which resulted in annoying cinematography...decisions (somehow, I don't think the late 18th century was tilted...), it really was a fun and sometimes even poignant look at early American history. If they could condense the four episodes I saw into one hour (I liked it as is, but I'm a history buff...), I might even suggest it be shown to every American alive today. Seems like we could use a reminder about what it means to be an American.
Though the scenes between John and Abigail (played by Paul Giamatti and the always fabulous Laura Linney) were great, I think the most memorable moment for me involved a discussion between the second president and the third. (Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson, respectively...please tell me you knew that). Said discussion took place during the presidency of Mr. Washington (everyone in the miniseries always referred to each other as Mr. this and Mrs. that...it was kind of nice). The United States was being drawn into the seemingly unending British-French conflict and a split arose over this between two groups who had already begun to grow apart: those who believed in individualism as the guiding principle for society (the Republicans, who sided with the French), and those who saw a need for greater governmental involvement (the Federalists, who were beginning to advocate joining the war on the side of the British).
Jefferson, if you know your history, was an unapologetic Francophile and a staunch Republican, and while Adams certainly did not wish to drag the new nation into a war, he was swayed by the potential he saw in a strong federal government and the National Bank idea in particular. The two former friends were clearly headed down different ideological paths by this point and had drifted apart socially as a result, but there's a scene with them walking down the street having an honest conversation about why each believed as he did. And it was striking to me because it made me wonder if this ever happens anymore. I know that Democrats and Republicans occasionally (though rarely) work together on bills and appear together for photo ops and things, but is there any effort to understand each other, to come together?
I'm a pretty solid Democrat, but it seems to me that if I were in the Senate or the House, I'd look for the most intelligent, most logical Republican I could find and make friends. We are (or were!), after all, working toward a common goal, even if our methods are different.
Though the scenes between John and Abigail (played by Paul Giamatti and the always fabulous Laura Linney) were great, I think the most memorable moment for me involved a discussion between the second president and the third. (Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson, respectively...please tell me you knew that). Said discussion took place during the presidency of Mr. Washington (everyone in the miniseries always referred to each other as Mr. this and Mrs. that...it was kind of nice). The United States was being drawn into the seemingly unending British-French conflict and a split arose over this between two groups who had already begun to grow apart: those who believed in individualism as the guiding principle for society (the Republicans, who sided with the French), and those who saw a need for greater governmental involvement (the Federalists, who were beginning to advocate joining the war on the side of the British).
Jefferson, if you know your history, was an unapologetic Francophile and a staunch Republican, and while Adams certainly did not wish to drag the new nation into a war, he was swayed by the potential he saw in a strong federal government and the National Bank idea in particular. The two former friends were clearly headed down different ideological paths by this point and had drifted apart socially as a result, but there's a scene with them walking down the street having an honest conversation about why each believed as he did. And it was striking to me because it made me wonder if this ever happens anymore. I know that Democrats and Republicans occasionally (though rarely) work together on bills and appear together for photo ops and things, but is there any effort to understand each other, to come together?
I'm a pretty solid Democrat, but it seems to me that if I were in the Senate or the House, I'd look for the most intelligent, most logical Republican I could find and make friends. We are (or were!), after all, working toward a common goal, even if our methods are different.
22 April 2008
Why?
I don't know if anyone besides me saw the NCAA Women's Basketball quarterfinals (judging by the ratings, that's a no), but there was an incredible display of toughness, possibly even "heart". Tennessee's Candace Parker dislocated her shoulder reaching back to steal a ball. Somehow, she actually came up with the ball and proceeded to dribble halfway down the court with one shoulder hanging out of its socket. She went to the locker room shortly before halftime, where they put everything back in its place, then came back in the game! At which point, it popped out again when someone tossed a pass directly into her outstretched hand. Once again, they put it back and once again, she returned and played the last 10 minutes. Pretty bad-ass, eh?
So later in the week leading up to the Final Four, I read a shorty article on espn.com about her injury status and how likely it was that she would play (she did in fact play, and win a national championship). The article mentioned her toughness and her decision to forgo her final year of college eligibilty (she got a medical redshirt for her freshman year) for the Olympics and the WNBA. In short, it was an article you wouldn't be surprised to see setting the stage for the men's Final Four, but it was kind of nice to see it done for the women.
I never really click on the comments pages, but I do tend to read the few comments that are stuck at the bottom of the article. On this article, one said, and I quote, "yawn. i still won't watch."
Now, I realize that the internet is not known as a forum for politeness, but this seems above and beyond to me. Why even bother? Are you such a pig that you can't even stand women getting any attention at all? Do you think women's sports are inappropriate? Taking up space on espn.com? How could you not have better things to do with your 30 seconds? And the kicker? YOU READ THE ARTICLE! How bored could you be with it?
As I've said before, thanks for being rude for absolutely no reason.
So later in the week leading up to the Final Four, I read a shorty article on espn.com about her injury status and how likely it was that she would play (she did in fact play, and win a national championship). The article mentioned her toughness and her decision to forgo her final year of college eligibilty (she got a medical redshirt for her freshman year) for the Olympics and the WNBA. In short, it was an article you wouldn't be surprised to see setting the stage for the men's Final Four, but it was kind of nice to see it done for the women.
I never really click on the comments pages, but I do tend to read the few comments that are stuck at the bottom of the article. On this article, one said, and I quote, "yawn. i still won't watch."
Now, I realize that the internet is not known as a forum for politeness, but this seems above and beyond to me. Why even bother? Are you such a pig that you can't even stand women getting any attention at all? Do you think women's sports are inappropriate? Taking up space on espn.com? How could you not have better things to do with your 30 seconds? And the kicker? YOU READ THE ARTICLE! How bored could you be with it?
As I've said before, thanks for being rude for absolutely no reason.
30 March 2008
Quicker on the Draw
I was on the bus recently, sitting near the front, when a woman got on, walked just past the card reader and began digging through her bag for her CTA card. After about 45 seconds of digging, she started to look around nervously and it became clear that she didn't have that card with her.
As she started to see what kind of coins she had in her bag and everyone else on the bus (me included, unfortunately) listened to iPods and stared blankly, a woman sitting 2 seats closer than I grabbed her own card, stepped up to the reader, said "I gotcha" and swiped her own card.
A nice warm fuzzy for $1.75
As she started to see what kind of coins she had in her bag and everyone else on the bus (me included, unfortunately) listened to iPods and stared blankly, a woman sitting 2 seats closer than I grabbed her own card, stepped up to the reader, said "I gotcha" and swiped her own card.
A nice warm fuzzy for $1.75
19 March 2008
Man Up
It's possible that this is slightly colored by my intense hatred of all things Notre Dame but this article really yanks my chain.
Abstract:
Kyle MacAlarney, a guard on the ND basketball team, was caught with a small amount of marijuana at a 1:30 AM traffic stop the night of a game during the 06-07 basketball season. Apparently, he never thought he'd get caught because he had a clean record, "only one detention throughout my high school career." [Editorial note, Kyle: most of us have zero]. Like most upper middle class white kids caught with pot, he was allowd to enter a pre-trial diversion program, but it was up to the school to decide his fate on the basketball team. They dragged their feet in handing down the punishment, but ended up taking the heavy-handed route and suspending him for the rest of the semester.
He left in a huff, didn't even say good bye to his teammates and went back home to Staten Island thinking he'd never set foot in South Bend again. Luckily, a visit from his coach and phone calls from a couple team dudes convinced him to come back to show that he was the "bigger person." So he worked out alone for like three months, then went back to campus. Author Adam Rittenberg says, "he has earned the right to be cast in a new light." Notre Dame coach Mike Brey adds, "he's been a role model for other kids...great story, great kid."
[really, read the article, there's even more of this, and I couldn't make this crap up if I tried]
Ugh, even rehashing it, I'm about ready to vomit. Want a scholarship to come play basketball at Notre Dame? This is a Jesuit school, so you're going to need to keep from breaking the law. This is someone who had everything handed to him basketball-wise and threw it away, then dragged his feet and hung his head when he had to face the consequences. And when he didn't like those consequences? He was ready to leave his team without a word. This is not a role model, this is a child.
People make mistakes, I get that. But he didn't handle it well and judging from this article (and another almost copy of it that was posted on ESPN a couple of weeks ago), he hasn't even taken any responsibility for it. I would be willing to bet quite a bit that he still smokes pot. Worst of all, the article treats it like it was 'adversity to overcome', comparable to someone's brother being seriously injured in a car accident or Hurricane Katrina destroying your house. This was a choice MacAlarney made, not an unfortunate occurence.
MacAlarney's ability to hit three-pointers (when it doesn't count...zing!) notwithstanding, please don't tell us what a wonderful kid he is. There are plenty of kids working their butts off to be at Notre Dame who *didn't* try to toss it in the garbage. I'd say they have a leg up in the role model category.
Abstract:
Kyle MacAlarney, a guard on the ND basketball team, was caught with a small amount of marijuana at a 1:30 AM traffic stop the night of a game during the 06-07 basketball season. Apparently, he never thought he'd get caught because he had a clean record, "only one detention throughout my high school career." [Editorial note, Kyle: most of us have zero]. Like most upper middle class white kids caught with pot, he was allowd to enter a pre-trial diversion program, but it was up to the school to decide his fate on the basketball team. They dragged their feet in handing down the punishment, but ended up taking the heavy-handed route and suspending him for the rest of the semester.
He left in a huff, didn't even say good bye to his teammates and went back home to Staten Island thinking he'd never set foot in South Bend again. Luckily, a visit from his coach and phone calls from a couple team dudes convinced him to come back to show that he was the "bigger person." So he worked out alone for like three months, then went back to campus. Author Adam Rittenberg says, "he has earned the right to be cast in a new light." Notre Dame coach Mike Brey adds, "he's been a role model for other kids...great story, great kid."
[really, read the article, there's even more of this, and I couldn't make this crap up if I tried]
Ugh, even rehashing it, I'm about ready to vomit. Want a scholarship to come play basketball at Notre Dame? This is a Jesuit school, so you're going to need to keep from breaking the law. This is someone who had everything handed to him basketball-wise and threw it away, then dragged his feet and hung his head when he had to face the consequences. And when he didn't like those consequences? He was ready to leave his team without a word. This is not a role model, this is a child.
People make mistakes, I get that. But he didn't handle it well and judging from this article (and another almost copy of it that was posted on ESPN a couple of weeks ago), he hasn't even taken any responsibility for it. I would be willing to bet quite a bit that he still smokes pot. Worst of all, the article treats it like it was 'adversity to overcome', comparable to someone's brother being seriously injured in a car accident or Hurricane Katrina destroying your house. This was a choice MacAlarney made, not an unfortunate occurence.
MacAlarney's ability to hit three-pointers (when it doesn't count...zing!) notwithstanding, please don't tell us what a wonderful kid he is. There are plenty of kids working their butts off to be at Notre Dame who *didn't* try to toss it in the garbage. I'd say they have a leg up in the role model category.
11 March 2008
Just Ask the Chocolate
Things are still a little chaotic. Car is fixed though I'm scared to be in it and just generally need to get my driving mojo back, heat is still iffy (fear of exploding ensues), had a little argument with the insurance company, issues with tournament I pushed my baseball team into, my knees hurt like I'm 50 years old...you get the idea. And while I consider myself a fairly well-adjusted person in general, I'm not oblivious enough to think I'm not also moody, and well, these things pile up.
On an unrelated at first glance note, I keep a bag of Dove dark chocolates at work, you know the kind with the weird sayings on the wrappers? I think the funniest one ever was 'Be your own Valentine'. Recently, I kept one that said 'Keep the promises you make to yourself', which seemed kind of poignant.
Anyway though, I unwrapped one today and it said (drum roll please): 'Don't think so much about it.' Good advice, eh?
On an unrelated at first glance note, I keep a bag of Dove dark chocolates at work, you know the kind with the weird sayings on the wrappers? I think the funniest one ever was 'Be your own Valentine'. Recently, I kept one that said 'Keep the promises you make to yourself', which seemed kind of poignant.
Anyway though, I unwrapped one today and it said (drum roll please): 'Don't think so much about it.' Good advice, eh?
02 March 2008
When It Counts
Things that have gone wrong in the past week:
-2 of my car tires had nails in them
-my car broke
-my car broke again (actually it's the same problem, but it was taken to a mechanic in between, so it counts again)
-the circuit board on my furnace that controls the fan crapped out (since fixed, though part of the solution seems to be that it now makes a really high-pitched whine. awesome.)
-my iPod stopped working (since fixed)
-I found a pair of mesh shorts I liked (this is really hard for women, trust me) and the first time I washed it, the stitching came out of the hem
-my cable stopped working (since fixed)
-my CD player inexplicably shorted out (seems to be fine, but had to be reset)
This is a bad week. Really bad. The first time I've ever wished to be 17 again (weren't things easy then? no?)
One moment of clarity though. Last night, I was on my way to see a movie with B, one of those friends who generally means well, but can really get under your skin. I got about 5 miles out on the highway when the car went nuts and revealed that I had given the mechanics $480 to do something I could have done, which is NOT fix the car. I was nervous about the extra RPMs and jerky shifting, but it didn't seem to be in danger of not running at all, so I continued to her house and asked her if she'd drive to the movie and dinner. Ten minutes of venting about how there are no experts anymore and I was free to enjoy the movie (Juno - it was great!).
When we got back to her house, where my car was parked, she said, "Are you sure it will work? Do you want me to follow you?" And right before I opened my mouth to say "I'm sure it will be fine and I have my phone so I can just call you if there's any problem", I looked up and caught her eyes and saw that not only had she offered to follow me 20 miles home, she absolutely would have done it.
How many friends do you think you have that would not only do it, without complaining, if you asked, but would offer on their own? If you have more than a select few, consider yourself very, very lucky
-2 of my car tires had nails in them
-my car broke
-my car broke again (actually it's the same problem, but it was taken to a mechanic in between, so it counts again)
-the circuit board on my furnace that controls the fan crapped out (since fixed, though part of the solution seems to be that it now makes a really high-pitched whine. awesome.)
-my iPod stopped working (since fixed)
-I found a pair of mesh shorts I liked (this is really hard for women, trust me) and the first time I washed it, the stitching came out of the hem
-my cable stopped working (since fixed)
-my CD player inexplicably shorted out (seems to be fine, but had to be reset)
This is a bad week. Really bad. The first time I've ever wished to be 17 again (weren't things easy then? no?)
One moment of clarity though. Last night, I was on my way to see a movie with B, one of those friends who generally means well, but can really get under your skin. I got about 5 miles out on the highway when the car went nuts and revealed that I had given the mechanics $480 to do something I could have done, which is NOT fix the car. I was nervous about the extra RPMs and jerky shifting, but it didn't seem to be in danger of not running at all, so I continued to her house and asked her if she'd drive to the movie and dinner. Ten minutes of venting about how there are no experts anymore and I was free to enjoy the movie (Juno - it was great!).
When we got back to her house, where my car was parked, she said, "Are you sure it will work? Do you want me to follow you?" And right before I opened my mouth to say "I'm sure it will be fine and I have my phone so I can just call you if there's any problem", I looked up and caught her eyes and saw that not only had she offered to follow me 20 miles home, she absolutely would have done it.
How many friends do you think you have that would not only do it, without complaining, if you asked, but would offer on their own? If you have more than a select few, consider yourself very, very lucky
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