What Fresh Hell is This?

Top Ten List

2008-06-12T13:51:00.000-07:00

Hi there! If you haven't checked this page in awhile, this post will be a nice surprise.

Lots of stuff has been going on, which I'll fill you in on later. In the meantime, I'm currently obsessed with this article in Time which I found vis swissmiss.

It's something that I've been thinking a lot about lately. Purging my life of all the crap that I once thought I needed, and making sure I only have the things that I either need or actually add something to my life--whether it be function or happiness.

This part in particular hit me:
"It comes down to the products vs. the promise," says organizational consultant Peter Walsh, who characterizes himself as part contractor, part therapist. "It's not necessarily about the new pots and pans but the idea of the cozy family meals that they will provide. People are finding that their homes are full of stuff, but their lives are littered with unfulfilled promises."

I've read a couple of books lately about consumption and what really matters and realize I'm as guilty as anyone of hoping that if I have 400 thread count sheets or nice shoes it'll make me happy or fulfill me in some way.

Lately I've been trying to focus more on getting rid of stuff and being more about experiences, but it's still a bit of a struggle.

I feel a change a-comin'.

What are words for....

2007-10-01T19:00:00.001-07:00

I was trolling through blogs recently and came across one written by a man who'd recently moved to my fair city.

In the post I read he was celebrating his one year anniversary of arriving in Seattle and looking back at the places he'd been, things he liked, etc. He mentioned some good record stores, some lovely restaurants, and then he commented on the people.

Oh, the good people of Seattle. For years I have heard what passive aggressive people we are, how we are all smiles to new people but then lack the ability to make friends. To a point I agree with this. A friend of mine has two other good friends that for the life of me I cannot get to know simply because I get the feeling I am not welcome in their inner circle. Fine. That's fine. I have friends of my own.

But what got my attention was this gentleman lamented that no one in Seattle can go anywhere without their damn iPod on. This, I felt, was an exaggeration. Everywhere? Really? With the iPod? Hrrrmmmm....

And then last week I began noticing too. People at bus stops, no problem. A woman shopping in the grocery store with the tell-tale white buds in her ears? A little odd. And at last, the woman who got out of her car at the gas station, popped her headphones in, and proceeded to fuel up.

Are we really so antisocial that you can't even risk someone might talk to you at the gas station? I prefer to think that we all desparately want a soundtrack to our lives.

Alone, At Last

2007-09-17T19:03:00.000-07:00

Dokken is gone in Taiwan until Wednesday. And I have to admit, as much as I love my husband, I am thrilled to have some time to myself.

Tonight I got home, made myself a tasty little sandwich and ate some crackers (which I did NOT eat over the sink, thank you), took a muscle relaxer for my neck, cruised craiglist a bit, and now here I am.

My plan for the evening is to gorge myself on all the design websites that I love and shop for a bunch of crap I really don't need.

The best part is the TV. Dokken hates, absolutely HATES all the crappy TV I love. Do I want to watch "The 750 Pound Man" on TLC? How about the conjoined twins show? "Mystery Diagnosis" is also on, which I love because I like to try guessing what's wrong with the person before they tell you. Answer: "The 750 Pound Man" won out. We're 5 minutes in and he's already demanding a hamburger from the facility he's been moved to. Stay tuned!

Extra chlorine in mine, please

2007-08-29T19:43:00.000-07:00

Work has been crazy lately. It sounds like there are going to be quite a few lay-offs coming this fall and everyone seems to be standing in groups of 3 and 4, talking in hushed tones in the hallway.

I can't live like that, I'm more of a "work through the pain" kind of person. So I decided to take the week off and get some things done around the house. And it is AWESOME.

In two days I have managed to:
*buy printer refill cartridges and CDRs at Office Depot
*clean the kitchen and living room
*take bags of clothes and assorted other items to Goodwill
*I finally bought some of those silly quilted zip-up thingys to put my
grandma's china in
*got some pictures framed
*weed the sideyard and planted some nice ferns and heuchera
*mixed some compost in with the soil in the front and sideyard
*cut back two trees on our front porch
*called someone to haul away a cement utility sink in the basement
*posted some stuff on craigslist
*got poked by my acupuncturist
*cooked warm spinach and brussel sprout salad with bacon one night and black bean and soyrizo soup the second night

All without breaking a nail!

I mentioned to Dokken that I was kind of liking this whole homemaker thing and I thought I'd make an excellent trophy wife.

'You'd get bored', was his reply.

Yes, I would get bored. But doesn't he realize that that's when you get a pool boy? Sheesh.

Indoor Plumbing

2007-08-10T19:21:00.000-07:00

I like to think it's a truism that there are certain equalizers in society. Things like bowling and karaoke. Seeing a gorgeous (but snooty) girl with a piece of toilet paper stuck to her shoe. Assholes with food stuck in their teeth. We all have our good and bad days, talents and lack thereof.

Along these lines, it's probably fair to say that someday, somewhere, we will all be at work and find that we have to take a poo. My friend thatgirlkelly and I have had numerous talks on this topic, mostly because she is extremely fearful of this activity. Fearful to the point that she will leave our building and go into the neighboring building where she knows there is a room with:

a) a fan to whisk away offending odors as well as any noises
b) only one crapper so she can lock the door and not have to sit next to anyone

A couple of months ago Bust magazine had an entire article devoted to the subject of dropping a deuce at work. The basic thrust of the article was that we all just need to get over ourselves, accept that sooner or later we all do it, and get a move on. Hah? Get it? Bowel movement?

Ahem.

I have a fairly healthy relationship with my movements as The Gobi can tell you. We frequently discussed the size, shape, and consistency of our poos, and he even once called me from work and described with immense glee how he filled an industrial sized bowl with one long poo. Even better? From what I remember it was a no-wiper, which I'm sure you all know is a highly coveted poo.

But still. But still. When I'm at work I usually try to find a secluded bathroom or at least wait until the coast is clear before I go.

I think it's also fair to say that we will all have a co-worker or two who we don't dislike by any means, and yet we can't really say we like them either. They're just not our cup of tea. They were possibly--ok, most likely--a sorority girl in college, don't have a great sense of humor, they talk endlessly about boring, mind-numbing things, and may even have a nasally voice. We'll call her Jen*.

Let's say we walk into the bathroom to do our business, and there is Jen, just washing her hands and apparently finishing up. Perfect timing, yes? We say hi and go in the stall, waiting for her to leave.

We take our time, put down the little paper donut, and generally rattle things around a bit so it's not totally obvious we're just sitting there, waiting for her to go. And she's still talking. Oh my God.

She is telling me about her weekend, her kids, her allergies, and how her contacts are bothering her, and she is standing right. outside. the. door.

So you know what? Bombs away, my friends. Bombs away.

She left in a hurry after that, and I am proud to say I am pretty damn sure that I wasn't the one who was embarassed. Thanks, Bust.

*not her real name. Or maybe it is.

Vitamin Chi

2007-06-07T14:41:00.000-07:00

You know it's a good sign that I'm back on the blogging trail when I can actually remember my blogger name and password. Things are on the upswing, my friends, and let me tell you why.

But first, for those of you who haven't heard my incessant griping over the last couple of years, let me get you up to speed on my neck.

I have a pain in the neck. Literally, figuratively, every '-ly' you can think of. Seriously, it hurts.

It started a couple of years ago, and I went to a chipropractor because I was having trouble turning my head for what had seemed like weeks. That is how I became addicted to crack, har, har. I went to him for several months and it wasn't getting any better so I gave up and just decided to live with it.

Then the headaches came. And then, finally, the tingling in the last two fingers of my right hand. Headaches I can deal with, but the tingling and loss of sensation in my fingers freaked me right out and so I went to my doctor. After twisting my arms around this way and that (which, incidentally, sent a shooting pain up my arm that felt like a toothache) he told me I have thoracic outlet syndrome.

As far as I can tell, it's caused by a bunch of things: poor posture (check), jobs where one or both arms are frequently held above your head (check), long days sitting at a computer, probably with bad posture (check), reacreational activities that involve lots of shoulder movement (drums, check).

I have bad posture. I know and fully embrace my bad posture. And I even know that when I get stressed out it gets worse. I will be sitting at my computer, analyzing data, and realize that I am leaning very far forward in my chair. If stress is a flight or fight response, then my head and neck have obviously chosen flight because they are leading the way out of there.

So my doctor recommended physical therapy. I went to 25 PT sessions which were painful at times but for the most part helped a lot. My headaches went away, the tingling went away, I could do almost all of my exercises without feeling much pain or tension, etc. Also? They put my neck in traction which is both awesome and hilarious at the same time.

And then I decided to go to an acupuncturist. Why? I don't know why. Maybe because I've always been right on the border of belief and suspicion when it comes to Eastern medicine. But a friend's story about how an acupuncturist cured her headaches by making her hand "sweat" made me try it. Also, the guy I go to will actually integrate Western and Eastern medicine and I am comfortable with that. See? On the border.

Anyway, acupuncture is pretty sweet. After feeling the top of my head and looking at my tongue (which amused me), the dude taps a bunch of little needles in, and then turns the lights down and leaves the room so I can just chill out and let the magic happen. And you know what? For the most part I do feel a little bit better afterwards, and I do OK for about a week or two before I go back in.

Now here is the awesome part. Every time I'd gone in he'd put a needle on the tops of my feet. Being the curious scientific sort that I am, I ask about
everything he does and why he's doing it. My friend insists I'm mocking him, but I'm really not. OK, maybe a little. But really, I don't know anything about this stuff, and isn't the patient supposed to be their own advocate? I think so.

But back to the feet. I asked why he always puts a needle in my feet, and was told that this is because my chi is blocked. And for some reason, this bugged me. Like, really bugged me. I was mad at him. Who the hell was he to tell me my chi was blocked? I was mad at my chi. Stupid chi. Who needs chi anyway?

And then, last time I went to see the pokey guy, I didn't get needles put in my feet! You are reading the words of a woman whose chi is flowing like the Yangtze, dude. I am irrationally happy about this, and when he asked if I had changed anything in my life lately I had to think about it. I'm sure he meant something like this or maybe this but in all honesty the only thing I've done lately is I started taking a Vitamin B-12 stress complex thingy every day.

I cracked up, and yelled out, 'it's Vitamin Chi, dude!'. He turned down the lights, told me he'd be back in 10-15 minutes, and let me chill out with my needles, giggling the entire time.

I Am Not Dead

2007-05-24T19:51:00.000-07:00

Holy crap, has it really been this long since I've posted? Ah well, I am at least comforted in the fact that PF fell off the radar at about the same time.

Hello, and welcome back, my friends. It has indeed been a long time since I've rock n' rolled. Since we last talked I have gone to Hawaii on vacation, headed home for my little 96 year old grandfather's funeral, and then gone to Miami Beach for a conference where I had to give a talk.

Miami Beach was...weird. In fact, when I think about it I realize it actually made me pretty cranky. I am a fan of dark, cozy, bordering on seedy little bars and punk clubs and Miami Beach had none of that. What I got was Girls Gone Wild meets Mulholland Drive. Perhaps I am exaggerating. Perhaps. But I swear to God, if I'd come across a midget odds are good he would have flashed his tits at me just as soon as talked in Swedish backwards. South Beach is just that kind of place.

I was drinking in a hotel bar one night with some colleagues when I turned around only to see Norm sitting at the bar. On our way to get dinner, a man handed my friend and I wristbands to get into a local night club. Now, I would rather gnaw my own arm off than go to a place full of half-nekkid girls in Jimmy Choos dancing with their cosmos, so we ended up tossing the wristbands. And there was my fatal, fatal mistake. If I had gone to the club I could've seen Britney Spears in concert.

For reals.

Unfortunately, it wasn't actually the night that she was caught lip synching while her CD skipped (that was the night before), but how badass would it have been to see Britney Spears? Bad. Ass.

Other than that, things are the same ol' same ol'. Spring has mostly sprung here, and I spend a lot of time wandering around my yard as if it were the back 40 and I'm checking the crops. In reality, I just have some herbs, onions, garlic, and strawberries planted, but as that is more than I've ever done in the past I am extremely proud.

The basement is basically (but not completely, ahem) wired which means two things: we can spend a bunch of money putting walls put in, and Dokken gets to go back to the garage for more welding. I am hopeful this will all be complete in time for summer so we can sleep in the basement where it's cool instead of lying in our own sweat at night.

And now look--just like that you are now up to date on my comings and goings. It's been a lot of both lately, and I am very excited to sit around my little house for awhile and do none of either.

I promise the posts will get a lot more interesting from here on out as well.
See you in August.
Just kidding.
Maybe.

You Can Say You Knew Me When

2007-02-15T19:58:00.000-08:00

We have 3 cats. Based on this fact alone it shouldn't take a statistician to tell you that at some point at least one of them will puke during the night.

It was at around 2 AM that the tell-tale gulping and retching noise started at the foot of the bed. Both of us sat bolt upright, and 4 hands groped for the offending creature in the dark.
Finally, Dokken flung one of them off the bed and we both lay back down, hearts pounding, while we listened to the poor little guy hurl up his hairball.

Any good German chemist will tell you the best ideas come to you while you sleep, and it was as I was drifting back to Slumberland that I realized how I will make millions of dollars: an alarm clock that sounds like a cat barfing. Seriously, I sleep through most anything, but will leap out of bed like a ninja at that awful awful sound.

You can all ride on my yacht.

Be Mine

2007-02-14T21:19:00.000-08:00

Tonight after going to the China Coin (not our intended destination, but that is neither here nor there) for a Valentine's dinner, Dokken and I went to the grocery store for a bottle of wine and some ice cream.

In line behind us was a young man purchasing a dozen roses and a container of man perfume.

I managed to make it out into the parking lot before giggling and yelling "Dude, if you have to Axe, the answer is no!".

I am quite certain that this is the most clever thing I will say all month. I'm glad I got it out of the way now.

Happy St. Valentine's Day, y'all.

He Even Does Laundry

2007-02-12T19:53:00.000-08:00

My husband is a wonderful, wonderful man. As I type, he is in our basement tying little wires to thingamajiggers. Why? Because we are finishing our basement.

As of a month ago our basement had a cement floor, drafty old cracked windows from the 1930's, some cement on the walls, and the rest was uninsulated wood. It is cold, it is dark, it is full of spiders, and worst of all slugs could creep in under the yucky door that was down there.

We still have the cement floor and wood walls, but we've replaced the windows, put in insulation, framed the walls, and put in a new door. So long, slugs!

As an aside, if you ever want to show before and after pictures of something, it turns out to be vitally important that you actually take the before picture y'know, before you do anything. A little bit of advice from me to you.

So we're doing this all in fits and starts as we have the money which means that it will probably take forever, but the little bit of progress we've made so far is so exciting. For awhile there it was so much fun to come home from work, throw my things down and go running downstairs to see what our contractor had done while I was at work. It's kind of like having Santa Claus come into your basement and cut wood.

Now we are at the point that wiring has to be put in and decisions must be made. Dokken decided that we should do the wiring to save money. I think that this whole arrangement of coming home to find Santa had put in windows was working nicely, and frankly don't see why he's gotta get all DIY on me.

So here is the deal. He is putting in wiring, and I am picking out sconces for the walls. Ta-daaaaaaa!

For my next number, I will figure out an inexpensive and fashionable way to hide our furnace while enabling us to access said heating equipment. I do what I can, my friends.

Look Ma, Science!

2007-02-06T21:56:00.000-08:00

Today I was the proud owner of beautiful, beautiful data. It wasn't a terribly difficult experiment or a labor intensive one, but this data was so pretty that (as I told my boss) you couldn't even fake data this good.

The thing is, it was what my friend Flychick calls a "suck it and see" experiment. You're pretty sure nothing good will come of it, but you don't have the reagent you actually need yet, so you throw a Hail Mary. And I'll be damned if it didn't work.

I'm by no means bragging here. I don't think I am an exceptionally gifted pipettor or that I have mean science skillz. This was Research Tech 101 stuff, and I'll be the first to admit I've made plenty of data that came out looking like it was from a random number generator.

Sometimes I just have to pause and appreciate that in spite of my best (or worst) efforts nature still works without any help from me.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

2007-01-29T17:41:00.000-08:00

Or in this case, HELL yeah!

My new band spent Saturday and Sunday at my friend's house recording six original songs! We got all the music tracks, overdubs, and lead vocals done in one long day on Saturday, then came back Sunday for some quickie backing tracks, handclaps, what have you.

Hopefully we'll get the rough mixes in a week or so, then we'll be ready to set up our silly MySpace band page. We've also got a photo shoot coming up in a few weeks so we can get rolling on our webpage. Oh! AND we have a logo now.

I am ridiculously happy about all of this. I can't believe how smoothly recording went and how much fun we had through all of it.

I realize this post probably isn't very exciting for anyone but Paula, Shelly, Kirsten, and I, but you will be when you hear us. Or not. Whatever, dude, it's cool.

My 15 Minutes of Fame

2007-01-26T13:16:00.000-08:00

Go here and type in my name. Last name first, then my first initial.
I wonder if there will ever come a day when this doesn't thrill me?

This Credit Card Goes to 11

2007-01-25T20:30:00.000-08:00

I was watching TV the other night when this commercial for a credit card came on. As I hummed along with the song, I thought to myself, 'self? Why do I know this song?'

Oh Christ.

Roll Call

2007-01-25T20:27:00.000-08:00

The Gobi put out a call for top ten albums of all time, and who am I to ignore instructions and turn down a list-making opportunity? After days of thought, this is what I've come up with:

1. Guided by Voices--Bee Thousand
2. The Fall--The Complete Peel Sessions Box Set
3. The Buzzcocks--A Different Kind of Tension
4. Pixies--Surfer Rosa/Come On Pilgrim
5. Sugar--Copper Blue
6. The Replacements--Let It Be
7. The Dirtbombs--If You Don't Already Have a Look
8. The Flying Burrito Brothers--Hot Burritos! The Flying Burrito Bros. Anthology (Discs 1 and 2)
9. The John Spencer Blues Explosion--Orange
10. Rocket From the Crypt--Circa Now!

Lots of oldies but goodies, but these are all albums that I can put on pretty much anytime and I am always in the mood for them. Also? I sing along loudly and badly with all of them.

It was a bit of a toss-up between Let It Be and Hootenanny, I love the song "Red Light, Red Light, RUN IT!" among others on Hootenanny. In the end it was one of my favorite songs of all time, "I Will Dare" that swayed me. I'm a little disappointed with myself that Copper Blue won out over Bob's previous work with Husker Du (how does one add umlauts?), particularly Flip Your Wig, but that's the way the cookie crumbles, my friends.

OK, tag. You're all it!

Conspiracy Hygienist

2007-01-24T12:20:00.000-08:00

For some dumb reason I've decided that it's a good idea to go to the dentist at 7 AM for my cleanings. Or at least that's what I've decided on my last 3 visits. I figure that way I'll be all done bright and early and still make it to work on time like the good, industrious employee that I am.

In reality, I go to bed the night before deeply fearful of how I'll feel when my alarm goes off. When 6 AM arrived this morning, I stumbled out of bed completely pissed at myself for booking this early appointment again, took a shower, and then tried to dress in the dark so as to not wake Dokken. I think my crashing into things and quiet cursing at not being able to find my pants was worse than my closet light would have been. Oops. Sorry, dear.

In any case, I made it to the dentist just before 7 and was even looking forward to it a little. I love my dentist. He's very nice, he's mostly bald except for a few wisps of hair that stick straight up and sway gently with whatever heat/cold is being piped into the room (and which give me something to look at while I'm in the chair), and the last time I came in for a cleaning, he actually did it. Not a hygienist, my dentist. And let me tell you it was by far the nicest, gentlest cleaning I've ever had.

This morning I had no such luck. I got a hygienist who the receptionist previously referred to as 'very...thorough' as if to apologize. Things were going fine until she mentioned that she'd watched the State of the Union address last night and I asked for her thoughts on it.

Suddenly, we took a left turn at Albuquerque. It started innocently enough, with us both questioning who's really in charge--Bush or Cheney--and moved on to a pop culture reference before she excitedly told me that she's learned from listening to a popular radio show who is truly in charge.

From there we moved on to airports built under the Denver airport which will eventually be used to control the world, disturbing artwork contained within the terminal of the Denver airport (the one above ground, that is), a conspiracy to kill scientists following 9/11, and we finally finished up with herbal supplements.

I have officially learned my lesson; don't talk religion or politics in polite conversation. This is especially true when the other person has sharp metal objects in your mouth.

Blah, blah, blah and other things

2007-01-16T19:34:00.000-08:00

The Gobi got me started on this thing years ago where instead of making one New Year's resolution that you know you'll break by February anyway you make a list of 25 things that you want to accomplish in the New Year. As he will remind me, it was actually a list of 50 things, but since I could never come up with 50 things I really wanted to do let alone actually get them done I've shaved it done to 25. And by "shaved" I mean indelicately chopped in half.

Anyway, that is neither here nor there. I've faithfully done this exercise every year since he told me about it, and on average I'd say I get 5-7 of them done. The beauty of the list is that some of the items are things that I know I will probably never actually do, but just writing them down makes me feel hopeful. As if I just might do it this year. For example, I had 'play drums live' on my list for YEARS. And lo, one year it actually happened. I've had 'be more Zen' on my list for the last couple of years. Now, as my company will tell you that is not a smart goal because it is not measurable. But it's a good reminder to me nonetheless to calm down and try to achieve some sort of balance (incidentally, it is not one of the 5-7 things I manage to get done).

I have completed my list for this year, and although I won't share it with you I figure as I actually get something done on the list I'll post it here. I'm getting close to having 2 of the items done (woo hoo!) so there should be a progress report any day now.

Moving on and apropos of nothing, I wondered today if future generations forget how to walk?

My children and grandchildren will look like boneless chicken, I just know it.

The Nose Knows

2007-01-12T16:14:00.000-08:00

There's a strange smell at my desk. Not bad, not good, just...strange.

The odd thing about that is there really isn't much that could go wrong here. It's a little U-shaped desk in a cube with 3 drawers so I'll be damned if I know what's causing it. Did I step in something? No. Do I have any funky food item thrown in my trash? No. Maybe it's me? Do I smell weird and musty and slightly papery?

So, so confused right now.

Ice Ice Baby

2007-01-11T18:55:00.000-08:00

I know compared to most of you in Colorado, Toronto, Eastern Washington, and Idaho 5 inches of snow and freezing temperatures is nothing to brag about, but over here it can shut the city down. Check out our backyard this morning!

We woke up at seven this morning, heard absolutely no traffic on our otherwise busy street, and decided that it might be a good idea to hang out around the house for a bit. After some French toast and coffee it looked like it had actually hit 33 degrees so we both went to work for the afternoon. It was sunny the rest of the day, but sweet Jeebus it's freezing out there!

It actually makes me miss Eastern Washington, it was so great hanging out on the couch and watching it snow last night.

Better Late Than Never

2007-01-09T21:12:00.000-08:00

Dear Mookie,
Happy birthday.
Love,
Your big sister

*mwah*

Weekend Update

2007-01-08T20:37:00.000-08:00

As previously mentioned, we went to Portland this weekend. The main reason for the trip was so Erik could visit a junk yard in Vancouver to look for car parts, but since Dave's bday was coming up I wanted to see him too.

The junk yard was a bust for the most part, although I did capture this sweet picture of a Pontiac hood with my cell phone:

and Erik did find a repro part for the Goat.

One of the best things about Portland is the sidewalk ponies. We didn't actually see any ponies this time around, but there was a giraffe in a turtleneck and one leg warmer right by our hotel which was almost more exciting.

We finished off the trip by taking Dave out to breakfast for his birthday. Can you tell he's a little cranky about turning 31?

Then we picked up a credenza we'd bought the day before, loaded it into the car and headed out of town. Unfortunately the sucker was about 6 inches too long for our station wagon, so we both had to pull our seats up ALL THE WAY to the dashboard to get it in the car. It was a joyous 2.5 hours in pouring rain, let me tell you.

OK, now it's time for me to read a little and wait for this crazy winter storm that's supposedly headed our way.
WINTER STORM, 2007!!! Woo hoo!

Oh! P.S.! You can now add comments without signing up for blogger. Yay!

Behold the Power of Cheese

2007-01-08T12:14:00.000-08:00

I'm eating my lunch right now and just realized I am eating cheese. With cheese.
Seriously, I got a cup of Guiness Cheddar Soup and then without thinking also ordered a grilled cheese sandwich.

No osteoporosis here, but I might have a heart attack before the day is out. Jeez!

In other news, we went to Portland this weekend, and I will post a picture or two from that later on. If only there were a biotech company down there, I would be move in a second. I love that city!

The Best News You'll Hear All Day

2007-01-05T11:37:00.000-08:00

Thank goodness it's Friday indeed. Check this out!

Happy weekend, everyone!

All Things Considered

2007-01-03T20:16:00.000-08:00

I listen to NPR every morning on my way in to work, and I'm afraid I need to stop.

Every day by the time I arrive I'm either mad as hell, or depressed out of my mind. Luckily my friend Kelly listens every morning too, so I can march straight to her desk for a quick 'Oh my GAWD, were you listening to NPR this morning?' which is somewhat of a comfort to me.

Take this morning, for example. There was a segment called "Route 50 Conversations" during which they talk to Joe and Jane American about current issues and the installation of the newest Congress.

Does the average American REALLY think we should drill domestically for oil? Do they really see so much fault with conservation of resources? I almost fell over when one gentleman said that he would 'hate to see FOOD used for fuel' when asked about ethanol in place of gas. And one admitted outright that he never votes, never has, and things seem to be going just dandy in spite of it.

At this point, I was ready to stomp my own head off. Are these people that self-centered? That thoughtless? That...that not paying attention? Gah!

Welcome to the 21st Century, step right this way....

2007-01-02T14:49:00.000-08:00

Dear friend/relative,

If you are receiving this link, it is because I love you all very, very much. And because I love you all I am also admitting defeat. I am a very, very bad corresponder. I know this and admitting it is the first step. Perhaps this makes me a bad ___________ [insert my relation to you here]. But here is where I change my sinful ways by starting a blog.

Think of this as one of those long update letters you get in your Christmas card every year, only this will probably be more boring and drawn out. Or, if you prefer, save up all the blogs of the year and read them on Christmas Eve. I'll try to include spoiler alerts where necessary.

I figure this will be a great way to let you know how mundane my life truly is, and that way you will understand exactly why I fail to email/call/write you. I have very little of interest to say.

In any case, I will try to update you on what's going on around here, post pictures, any bon mots or funny links I can dig up, etc. And if things get boring, may I suggest you send me a copy of this.

OK, yay. This is going to be awesome.
Love,
Me