Excitement

Here's my holiday rundown, for those interested....

We had a nice holiday with our family. It was uneventful but filling. Tasty foods seem to have been particularly prevalent in our house recently, with leftovers being heaped on us as we enjoyed tailgating/babysitting/cold-fighting leftovers or a good shared meal with friends or family followed by the other party leaving town. Thus Italian food, Indian food, pizza, chili, ham, and more ham crowded the refrigerator after months of spaciousness. I loved that our holiday dinner with my dad featured ravioli and a green frosted cake (both of which we inherited). I didn't make cookies or candy this year. instead my own contribution to the holiday food haul has been an homage to my recent obsession with Omega-3's and fiber, in the form of a yummy trail mix I made to give as gifts, consisting of nuts, dried fruits, and dark chocolate. Mmm. I think good food makes up for lack of excitement any time, which probably says a lot about me.

We seem to have cemented a new Christmas tradition these past few years where we watch whatever DVD I got, right after David's family eats goose and I eat whatever else is on offer. I think The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou started the trend, or maybe it was Arrested Development. I know last year we watched Amadeus. Repeatedly. This year it was The Color Purple. A much longer standing tradition continued the evening before at my place with the viewing of White Christmas. David and my mom rolled their eyes at my exhilaration over the prospect, but I don't care. I love that movie. I also love Miracle on 34th Street (Natalie Wood is so cute), and It's a Wonderful Life but I missed both this year. At least I saw one holiday movie, that's what matters most. I had no shortage of other holiday media though; David had no fewer than five South Park holiday episodes stacked on Tivo at one point, and we had the holiday specials for The Vicar of Dibley from Netflix. That and the peppermint Peeps we had with hot chocolate meant a quite fun Christmas Eve, I'll tell you. Seriously, aren't you jealous? Actually, the most exciting moment on Christmas came when we nearly got run off the road by a Hummer en route to my mom's. That kind of excitement I can do without. I'll stick with having a marshmallow in my cocoa, thank you.

New Year's Eve is one of those times when we are supposed to manufacture excitement, but I've never been one to follow tradition, more less be associated with excitement. The most fun I can recall having at New Year's in the past 20 years was a dinner party we put on back when we were still in college. It was good fun, but the memory is fading. Not that I've done much to top it. One year in Texas we went to a movie that started at 11, ensuring we'd actually be awake at the New Year. Last year we played Guitar Hero at Tara's, which was quite fun, but not particularly festive. Then there was the millenium year, spent with Tara and friends in a rented house in Lake Tahoe. Sounds good, right? Except that two members of our party (my brother included) had recently been to the emergency room, and two others had medical conditions preventing their participation in much revelry. We watched each New Year around the world take place as we waited for word on the second hospital patient. While I suppose we could have seen our own West Coast midnight as a renewal of sorts, instead I was too tired and sad to care. A few years later we spent another New Year's Eve day in the Tahoe hospital after my brother had a rather spectacular sledding accident. We spent that New Year's packing our stuff for a hasty return drive home. these are my New Year's memories. So is it any wonder that it isn't my favorite holiday?

Tonight I'll probably be watching something on Tivo when the calendar flips, drinking Martinelli's, definitely, and possibly waking David up to let him know he can go to bed. My mother accused me of being quite unexciting, which I can't argue with. I'd rather be happy than exciting, I suppose. For some reason (and I'm sure you are drawing more conclusions about me as I say this), I can't imagine myself as both. C'est la vie.

Happy New Year to you all, whatever you are doing to entertain yourselves tonight.

Gynopower

Okay, these two movies might not seem likely candidates for a women's rights convention, but I am thrilled nonetheless to recommend them as they feature wryly clever, modern, female-centered storylines featuring two good young actresses with nary a boobjob or bleachjob in sight. My version of gynopower, perhaps. :)

Enchanted
I saw this being filmed last summer in New York, creating a commitment to see the finished product regardless of its quality. Thank goodness for me that it's thoroughly delightful. From the silly hyper-Disney animated opening to the song and dance routines and predictable romantic ending, Enchanted is adorable. More specifically, Amy Adams as Giselle is utterly adorable and truly the best reason to see the film (much like she was in Junebug). Enchanted also stars Patrick Dempsey as cynical lawyer Robert, a man who simultaneously helps the out-of-this-world Giselle while trying to instill in his own fairytale-seeking daughter a sense of cold hard reality. James Marsden is funny as a stupidly earnest prince in search of his intended. The lowpoints are a relatively poorly developed evil queen/stepmother, a bit of excessive silliness involving the queen's hapless helper, and a ridiculous dragon showdown atop skyscraper. A better ending to this movie might have brought it near perfection as a family friendly romance. Recommended overall.

Juno
Sweet, edgy, and occasionally dark with a romantic spirit a world away from Enchanted and yet remarkably as innocent in the end. Remarkable because it's a film about 16-year old Juno, who becomes pregnant after having sex with her friend and bandmate (played achingly well by Michael Cera), then decides on her own to deliver the baby into the hands of a couple she found in the Penny Saver. The childless couple, played by Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner, clearly aren't as perfect as they seem, but nothing ever is. Over the course of a school year, Juno deals with, as she tells her caring and obviously lenient father, "things way beyond her maturity level". Again, an adorable movie, even more consistent in quality than Enchanted, and again made fabulous by its female star, Ellen Page. Highly recommended.

Festivus

Today is my half birthday, which might explain why I woke up so cheery this morning (to David's chagrin). Or maybe I'm happy today because the holiday spirit is finally hitting me. Okay, it might be a bit late to mail those holiday cards, and apart from one relatively mass produced holiday present, I've obtained virtually nothing for gift giving. But still, there's a crispness in the air, blinking lights everywhere, and old friends coming to town.

Winter solstice and yuletide greetings to you all! Technically the solstice is tomorrow, but I wanted to give you time to prepare--get the fire ready, get some evergreens into your home, hang the mistletoe, etc. Reading up on various winter solstice and Christmas traditions (whether they are your own or not) can be a nice antidote to the consumerized frenzy that overtakes much of the US after Thanksgiving. After all, the shorter days and ancient celebrations that marked this time of year are the real "reason for the season", so go ahead and embrace those roots. It's something we can all share in, and sharing is nice, right?

Too often people stress out preparing for this holiday break--the travel, the shopping, the family togetherness. That won't go away, so I hope you find time in the day to look for simple pleasures and enjoy them...a nice warm cup of cocoa with marshmallows, the clear ringing of bells, the fluffy trim on Santa's hats, the smell of fresh cut evergreens. Give the gift of your complete presence and a genuine smile. It's environmentally friendly, costs you nothing, and is good for your health. Mmm, I'm officially ready for winter.

(P.S. Above image is one of many fabulous quotable things.)

IPO

NetSuite went public today. Read more about the NetSuite IPO here or here. According to Investopedia, "going public" means:

The process of selling shares that were formerly privately held to new investors for the first time. Otherwise known as an initial public offering (IPO). When a company "goes public," it is the first time the general public has the ability to buy shares.

Alas I did not sit and watch for ticker tape item "N" all day, which I suppose makes me a bad Silicon Valley life partner. David received a bag of "N" goodies, dated today, and he came home feeling his continued employment outlook is strong. The second of these was the better gift, I'd say. :)

Holiday in Handcuffs

Attempting to kickstart the holiday season or just fulfilling a desire to be lazy for one evening and watch something comforting and mindless and cheesy, who knows, but I enjoyed ABC Family's Holiday in Handcuffs this weekend. David might not admit it publicly, but I think he did too. Apparently we weren't alone, as this show broke ABC Family's ratings record. I do love being one of the people. :)

Presidential

Know who you'd like to become the next President? Willing to bet on that? The Washington Post gives you the opportunity to do a blind check of the candidates based on their issue statements with this candidates issues quiz. For each topic (social security, Iraq troop withdrawal, energy, immigration, etc.) you are given the candidates' positions; but you aren't told who said what. You indicate how important the issue is to you when you vote, then you are shown who said it and points are attributed. Pretty cool, huh?

And if that doesn't float your boat, how about spying on your neighbors? Check out who's contributed at least $200 to presidential candidates here or here.

Revised

Sometimes I read through old postings and, although I crack myself up, I see that there's room for improvement. I know, big of me to admit, eh? Anyway, I often end up making changes in such a way as to make the revision practically a new post (for example, today I significantly added to this one). It's not a new post, truly, but I fear loyal readers will miss out. Then again, maybe I am deluding myself, for I know not whether you all even read enough of this blog to make it matter to anyone other than me. Hmm, that's sort of depressing. Maybe just a new tag--revised--and a little moving on is in order. :)

Free the rice

Next time you are looking for something to do on the web, check out the simple to use, free vocabulary quiz FreeRice. It may feel like test prep all over again but this time the stakes are higher, so check your answers before submitting. Each correct answer generates a donation of 20 grains of rice. Read more about the project or just go play. (And if you need help, that's what a dictionary is for.) Thanks to Lisa for pointing out this webgem.

Nov 30 update: Apparently I am de rigeur (and you can be too!). The latest issue of Rolling Stone listed the FreeRice site in its what's hot on the Internet section.

Thanksgiving

November brings thoughts of politics and thankfulness, not usually in the same moment. But today I am feeling thankful for the opportunity we in the U.S. have each day to express ourselves and our political views, no matter how in or out of the mainstream we may be. Why so patriotic? I discovered yet another wacky political website, natch.

Irregular Times discusses current events through a fairly spirited progressive/anti-establishment political lens. They refer to themselves as "Progressive Patriots". Their merchandising arm, Irregular Goods offers bumper stickers, t-shirts ("I am Barack" Obama says, while Bush states, "I am an island"--take a look; do you get the reference?), and even underwear with political messages.

The thing that drew my attention today was their holiday stuff (I am engaged in my annual find-the-perfect-year-end-message card hunt). I didn't find the right card but I did spot a holiday tree ornament which reads "Peace on Earth is not just for the holidays" and a holiday card clarifying that "the solstice is the reason for the season". Fabulous!

Tribbles

Anyone who grew up watching Star Trek should check out Wired's list of the 10 Cheesiest Classic Creatures. The original Enterprise gang faced some pretty silly villains and the Wired folks have given each a nice tribute, including the episode in which the creature was featured as well as a list of its powers and weaknesses (Tribbles "make Klingons edgy" but can presumably be done in with hammers, though the latter is an assumption on the editors' part). Very good fun. Thanks Boing Boing, for pointing this and other amusements out to me.

Bizarre

I'd already tracked down the quote below, which is quite worthy of being shared regardless, when I forgot why fate was to be tied to bizarreness (real word, I checked). It was a brilliant thread, no doubt, but it is lost. And so I ask a bit of patience with my all-over-the-mapness in today's posting. Many thanks. :)

I was introduced recently by Last.fm to a band whose style is alternately labeled indie, alternative, punk, folk, psychedelic, progressive rock. Black Mountain are compared to Velvet Underground, Neil Young, and early Pink Floyd. After listening to a few of their songs I'd say it can be wrapped up as stoner music (which you need not be stoned to enjoy, as I can attest). It's a throwback to 70's album rock. Recommended.

Based on a recommendation from someone (I don't even recall who; things do linger on my wishlists for years), I put Tangerinephant on my Amazon wishlist. Amazon now thinks I might like to read The Haunted Vagina (you read that right) by Carlton Mellick (author of, among other "bizarro fiction", Satan Burger and Razor Wire Pubic Hair). "It's difficult to love a woman whose vagina is a gateway to the world of the dead," declares the book summary for The Haunted Vagina. Before you go all "What?!" on me for seriously contemplating this recommendation, consider that the book is described by one Amazon reviewer as "an exploration of the female body and the power it can hold over men (figuratively and literally)". Is it fated that I read such a book?

Last night we watched The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard, about a regular person who runs on her own Purple Alliance platform for British Parliament and becomes Prime Minister based on little more than a desire for change. It's a political fantasy that does a passable job of portraying the realities which would surely come with a dream come to life. I like to dream, but I do enjoy reality more. As fortune would have it, this morning in the newspaper came news of the "There Oughta Be a Law" initiative by California state senator Joe Simitian. If you live in California and have an idea for legislation, go to Senator Simitian's webpage and submit it. In the six years he's hosted this contest, 11 citizen-initiated bills have been signed into law.

Finally, from A Room With a View by E.M. Forster comes this conversation between Reverend Beebe and young George Emerson:

"[C]oincidences are much rarer than we suppose. For example, it isn't purely coincidentally that you are here now, when one comes to reflect."

To his relief, George began to talk. "It is. I have reflected. It is Fate. Everything is Fate. We are flung together by Fate, drawn apart by Fate--flung together, drawn apart. The twelve winds blow us--we settle nothing--"

"You have not reflected at all," rapped the clergyman. "Let me give you a useful tip, Emerson: attribute nothing to Fate. Don't say, 'I didn't do this,' for you did it, ten to one. Now I'll cross-question you. Where did you first meet Miss Honeychurch and myself?"

"Italy."

"And where did you meet Mr. Vyse, who is going to marry Miss Honeychurch?"

"National Gallery."

"Looking at Italian art. There you are, and yet you talk of coincidence and Fate. You naturally seek out things Italian, and so do we and our friends. This narrows the field immeasurably we meet again in it."

"It is Fate that I am here," persisted George. "But you can call it Italy if it makes you less unhappy."

Don't say I give you nothing to think about when you read my blog. :)

Voting

Not that you asked, but...

And he's coming to San Francisco next week, the evening of the day I will be volunteering in a disaster drill. November 14 is looking to be much more fun than my average Wednesday.

I'll add more to this later.

FOLLOW UP...
Okay, so the disaster drill was not inspiring (we would all be dead or super ticked off after a real biohazard) and I did not make it to see Obama. But I did get to share my views in a political opinion poll by phone, which always perks me up.

My day as a quarantined pretend concert attendee was one of several reminders I've been given lately to practice preparation and patient self-reliance. There was that earthquake a few weeks back, the largest in this area since Loma Prieta. Then I spent an evening in the emergency room last week with my mom (fear not, everyone is now okay). This last experience also served as a good reminder of the need for advocates, people in this case who know what your medical issues are. That and a current list of prescriptions. The hospital is good for immediate life threatening treatments; it is practically useless at making sure you are well.

In the end all of these remind me that I can depend on no one but myself, as there may be no one else around with greater knowledge or preparedness in the event of an emergency, whatever the scope. (Can political disaster be counted? Yes, I believe so.) No man is an island, to be sure, and we can count on others coming to our aid where possible, but first and foremost I need to make sure I am okay and I cannot--or certainly ought not--assume that the world will drop everything to see to my needs. At the same time, acting selfishly does nothing for the greater good. Being well means more than meeting my own short term desires. There's that whole karma issue of what goes around comes around. But I digress...

I will leave you with a happier thought (I hope). Thich Nhat Hanh points out that "Until we are able to love and take care of ourselves, we cannot be of much help to others." Taking care of yourself is about being kind to yourself, accepting and letting go. When you do that, you will be available truly to take care of others, those you love first and extending outwards. That's a nice idea, don't you think? Much nicer than being a hater and letting that be what extends out, right? :)

Grrrrr

Recently on Christopher Moore's MySpace blog, the always funny author posted a slightly worked up letter to Santa and asked readers to post their own requests in the comments. Alas the spirit of replies ends up being not so merry and Moore subsequently comments "evidently my books appeal to people with anger issues." Tonight listening to Last.fm I was offered a pleasant little song that I came to realize was not all that happy, yet it was a decent song. Thus I present the Angry Song of the Week award to "Baby Bitch" by Ween. You can check it out if you like (here's a concert clip and the song's lyrics). Because I believe in balance and as an antidote to the anger I offer you these tips on dealing with anger. I also give you what might not immediately seem relevant but in fact is quite in line with not getting into situations where you will become angry, this nice little list on Making Ethical Decisions. Now go deal with your anger. :)

Fallback

Thanks to my dad for sharing this website about the practice of Daylight Saving Time. Read about how it's managed in other parts of the world, the rationale for the law, and most important this year, read about changes to the date on which clocks will "fall back" by an hour.

Smart

The Smart car is coming! The Smart car is coming!

My mother worried there was something terribly wrong when I gasped loudly over the phone. Unbeknownst to her, my eye had alighted on the front page of today's Mercury News. It featured the adorable little two seater which is being shown off around the country to auto reporters in advance of a 2008 rollout. I was positively overcome, practically swooning and hyperventilating in turns.

I fell in love with this teeny little car (106 inches long, compared to the 145 inch long Mini Cooper) on our first trip to Greece in 2000 and have coveted it ever since. Some people prefer trucks and mansions. I'm more of a small space dweller myself (with lots of windows, whether in a car or a residence, not that you asked). The Smart car is as small as a four-wheeled, two person vehicle can get, I'm pretty sure. (I also dream of riding a motorcycle, but that is the subject for another posting.)

I won't actually buy the mid-teen priced Smart next year, for I am not such a consumerist as to act upon every product urge (else I'd have a house full of Porsches and peanut butter cups). I am content to simply admire things I covet (does that mean I am not truly coveting?). Yet again I digress.

The coming Smarts are Fortwo models, so-named because they are for two passengers (as opposed to the Forfour, which is a mouthful and thus thankfully not available). The car, sold in Europe for nearly a decade, will be available in the US starting next year through special Mercedes dealerships (like BMW did with Mini Coopers). I encourage you to go check out the Smart car's features, availability, a first-look review, or a test drive report. Isn't it just too adorable?

P.S. Is anyone else slightly disappointed that the Red Sox might go all the way again so soon after ending their century-long drought? I'd rather like to keep that 2004 come-from-behind World Series winning season special. There's nothing sadder than a really neat thing becoming trite, is there? *sigh* Maybe I'm just jealous because--let's be honest about this--my baseball and football teams suck. I've chosen wisely what to dream of these days. A Smart car, unlike a championship home team, is at least within my reach.

P.P.S. You will find that from here on forward, when you click on a link in my blog it will open a new browser window or tab. I'd hate to have you leave me and never return. :) Wanna do this on your own site? Here's how.

Lefties

Random quick amusement...
Courtesy of the Freakonomics blog comes a left-brain, right-brain (aka lateralization of function) check: Which direction do you see this dancer moving, clockwise or counterclockwise? Can you eventually see it going either direction? I alas have thus far been unable to change my direction (can you guess which it is?). Give it a try.

Movie review: The Kingdom
Starring Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Chris Cooper, and Jason Bateman, The Kingdom is about a team of FBI agents who travel to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in order to investigate a series of attacks on an American facility there. The team, led by Foxx, has a tough time gaining approval in Washington and must pull strings to get 5 days on the ground. On the scene they face intermittent bureacratic stonewalling, a skeptical local police babysitter, and a few significant gunfights with locals. In the end the lesson is about the similarities among us (though not necessarily in the way you might imagine).

The film's pace is good, location filming (albeit in UAE) lends authenticity, and there are sufficient comic and action moments to prevent any drag. I had a few complaints, most notably the inclusion of an emotionally understandable but implausbily unprofessional desire for vengeance imbued in the characters. The female team member never covers her head, most notably when venturing out into neighborhoods (um, is it not a bit odd, to make no concession whatsoever to local custom thereby sticking out like a sore thumb when you want to find clues to a sensitive crime?). These are supposed to be high level trained professionals in forensics, bomb detection, etc, yet they don't always act like it. Bateman's character--nominally an analyst--is present only for laughs. Fortunately, these easily remedied/explained quibbles do not influence the significant events of the movie.

Overall The Kingdom is a decent popcorn action flick and will appeal to most audiences (yes, it's got violence, but there is a point to the story, for which I am appreciative). Whether you want to see this movie or not, I do recommend the opening credits, which offer a stylish, concise history of modern Saudi Arabia and US relations there. And for a fuller treatment, I highly recommend the Frontline documentary House of Saud, from which some of the narration for The Kingdom's opening was borrowed.

Literature

Apparently I was tagged in a crazed meme game and didn't even realize it. Herein I make up for my tardiness with a fabulous personal statement on my reading habits.

Total number of books?
Too many. As in, we had a personal library and it was a room. I dunno, hundreds, thousands?

Last Book read?
Can You Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella. And (not that you asked, but) I loved it. It was perfect airplane reading. The main character is fun and silly but not pathetically stupid. Possibly my favorite by Kinsella, and I've read all her books. Wow, I am feeling so girly right now. I do enjoy disrupting assumptions from time to time.

Last Book Bought?
Atonement by Ian McEwan. I look forward to seeing the movie and I hate reading a book after seeing its movie, so I put this to top of my bedtime reading stack (Alongside Sharon Kay Penman's The Sunne in Splendour which I also purchased secondhand recently and which is also wonderful). Atonement is slow moving and sort of absorbing. Languorous describes the style and mood quite well. You feel from the get-go that something bad is going to happen, see it all being set up, but have no control. You continue because you sense eventual redemption (um, the title?). Of course I also sense the redemption will in most cases be too late. C'est la vie. Read an excerpt on Powell's.

Five meaningful Books?

1. Notes to Myself - A gem shared with me by David (who got it from his mom) many years ago, this collection of personal reflections by Hugh Prather has served in times of need as a blissful reminder of not being alone or excessively weird or an idiot for what I feel and think. There is little we can do to control thoughts, nothing to control feelings, so spending days or years worrying and beating ourselves (and those we love) up over what goes on in our heads is such a waste. Make note of it and go on with your life. This is a beautiful book in the best tradition of self help literature--earnest, amusing, grounded; it doesn't beat you over the head, though it will give you a soothing mental workout. Read an excerpt on Amazon.
2. Being Peace - I recall standing in a Buddhist bookstore in San Francisco one day in 1989, discovering the work of Thich Nhat Hanh. In college I kept with me little snippets from this book as reminders for self acceptance and joy in living at peace with oneself and the world. A fabulous introduction to mindfulness. Read excerpt. Right up there is Peace is Every Step, by the same author and a bit more practical.
3. Angle of Repose - When asked what my favorite book is, I often list this one first, and I've written plenty about it elsewhere if you want more of my opinions. I found this only after I was well grown. I had seen most of the places mentioned in the story and I love local history. Take all that into account and maybe it explains why I felt so deeply for this book; or maybe it's because it is just amazingly well written. Wallace Stegner put into this Pulitzer Prize winning book a little of everything--history, romance, family drama, a multi-generational saga, tragedy, travel, and above all beautiful prose. Another languorous story, but with enough different characters and storylines to keep a rewardingly slow pace. Read an excerpt on Powell's. Here's a reader's guide, if you feel so inclined. Or read another fan's views.
4. Free to Be You and Me - If I ever have kids, they will be made to read this book and embrace it whether they want to or not. :) A collection of stories, poems, songs, and pictures chosen for their acceptance of human differences, this book helped shape the way I view the world. It's a quintessential 70's nonsexist children's book, in support of the Ms. Foundation. Some might point out the agenda associated with the creators, but I see nothing wrong with the content of this book which I believe makes essential reading for children. You can read opening pages on Amazon or get some more background at Wikipedia.
5. Forever - Speaking of life lessons, Judy Blume books were for me, like many others, the safest, warmest possible welcomer to all things girl growing up. Contrary to what you might think of my education and childrearing views, I don't believe contemporary literature is always the best choice for children's reading. (Read more on the history of children's lit.) In too many cases literature written these days for young people is like empty calories. It's fine as a supplement to a steady basic diet of complex, nourishing foods. Unfortunately, that's not generally the case. Where was I headed with this? Right, Blume is exceptional in the Children's and Young Adult literature genres. Her writing is modern, honest, open, and informative--not-so-simple calories that happen to go down easy. In real life, kids make some smart choices and some dumb ones. Blume reflects this in her writing, and never seems to pass judgment. She also holds up no rose colored lenses. Life is lived, and lessons, hopefully, are learned. As it should be. Goodness, don't you love that I am so non-moralistic? ;)

Studying

I see today that my dissertation topic (individual- and environmental-level predictors of Latino student achievement, not that you asked) isn't nearly as tantalizing as what other people get paid to investigate. How rigorously did researchers have to prepare academically to conduct this study of owners' emotional attachment to their Roombas? I bet they have PhD's. I wonder how many social sciences doctoral students are inspired by after-the-fact revered researchers like Kinsey, who broke some of the most fertile ground in academia by pioneering research in sex. We all realize sex isn't the subject he started his career out with.

A little digression, which possibly this entire blog could be called...
Paul Ehrlich points out that studying sex is "a lot more interesting than studying the pollination of plants." He also observes that "being human beings, scientists, too, are fascinated by sex"; how sad that we need reminded. Of course this makes me wonder about those who do choose to study plant pollination, but I wish not to pass judgment, lest they tell me to cast the first stone. I won't bore you at present with what else Ehrlich has to say about the way scientists study sex and other topics, and the inevitable bias that comes into alleged "scientific" studies. But I will tell you that the rest of his book Human Natures is quite worth a read.

Back to the serious matter of scientific research...
Here's a transcript of a very interesting discussion about the need for, and misunderstood nature of, basic research (aka, research that doesn't appear immediately useful). Hmm, I wonder if the people engaged in that discussion would think differently about research if they owned--and loved--a Roomba. I see a study in there somewhere. In the meantime, read the results of a study on "friends with benefits" here. Or take a look at this study on spousal arguments (women argue most about children and housework, men about sex, money, and leisure). Wow, research can be fun. That's my cue to get back to work....

Slogging

Work on my dissertation is dr a a a gg i n g. I've taken it on as my job to get this thing done. The longer I spend on this, the further off (and more pressing) all of life's other challenges and goals become.

I've long had a fixation on the gap between possibility and reality, as well as between what has been and what is. Being "capable" of doing something does not mean I will actually do it. Having been capable of something in the past does not mean I can do it now. My dissertation is something I am capable of doing, and am, on average, in fact doing. I am encouraged by others' faith in me as well as my self confidence and stubbornness to follow through. There's also the reward of being done, accomplishing a goal, and having another item for the old job resume.

But sometimes the belief that I am capable holds me back at times. I sit and think, oh I know it will get done. Certainty without action is delusion. Thinking and doing are two different things. Awareness, control, and discipline of the self, in varying orders, must come into play for my belief to become action. Sigh. Back to work...

In happier news, we got new sheets for the bed and they are fabulous. They're deep red and soft. At least one red thing gave me pleasure this weekend, unlike this red thing. Hmph. Best get back to work before I start stewing again.

Argh

I can't believe I didn't realize--and no one told me until dinnertime--that it was Talk Like a Pirate Day yesterday. This is made more unbelievable by the fact that the woman I was sharing a bed with at the time and my own dear hubby both knew! Oh well, there's always next year....

Bonds away

Did you think that once Barry Bonds broke the homerun record you'd heard the last of the story? There's more, and this time it's interactive. The successful purchaser of Bonds' 756th homerun ball would like to hear from you! Your votes will decide whether the ball he paid $750,000 for goes to the Hall of Fame or into space. Space, people. Barry Bonds has some things to say on the subject. (If I was Bonds, I'd totally take Ecko up on the t-shirt offer.) Check out your choices for the ball's fate and vote here.

Back to Beaumont

For my 200th post, I will redirect you to Virginia's blog to read about our adventures in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park. That's right, after a full day of school/work and even waiting until after dinner we drove 90 miles--each way--to Beaumont, Texas mere days after the city was hit by an unexpected hurricane to go to a cemetery. Oooh, a cemetery at night. If that doesn't encourage your reading on, how about these tidbits?

1. We were pulled over not once but twice by police ("But officer, we're not doing anything illegal").
2. I saw a lot of cockroaches.
3. I sort of cursed Jesus. His wasn't the life-size statue we were seeking in the dark of night, but from a distance we couldn't tell that.
   
4. We never located the gravesite we were looking for (the desire to see this started with a Beaumont journalist's blog postings I read earlier this year).
5. We passed through Babyland and lived to tell the tale.

If that doesn't motivate you, I don't know what will.

We called my brother afterwards, still on our mad adventure high, and I was counting on him singing "No more scooter rides in the cemetery...", but he didn't. A missed opportunity indeed.

Summer

I finally processed a bunch of my pictures from this summer and posted to my webpage. Pictures run the gamut, from Houston to Virginia's and my road trip, the family adventure aboard a gulet in Greece and Turkey, to a few recent ones of my nephew here in California. Go now, or you might end up in a fog, like Virginia....

Undisciplined

Here's what's going on in my life, for those who want to know...

No, I've not yet found a job. (I won't say "Not that you've asked, but..." because, yes, you have asked. I thank you for your concern and well wishes.) I have submitted resumes for various positions in the Bay Area for which I am eminently qualified. I've heard back from two, one before I left Houston (was very encouraging, then...nothing) and the other a standard "You're nice, but no thanks" reply. I need to work my contacts to get in with organizations. I'm not comfortable with schmoozing and working people, thus I am not a good networker, and I need to be. I always like having something to work on.

No, I've not yet finished resizing pics from my recent travels in order to post them here. Believe me, I am more sorry about this than you are. Must do, must do, must....

In the meantime, I have indulged in some delightful amusements which I would like to recommend.

• Little Children by Tom Perrotta is a riveting novel about life in suburbia among restless stay-at-home adults. It was turned into a movie last year, and I look forward to watching it, but I suspect book is better.
• On DVD now is the movie version of another book, this time a nonfiction piece about Northern California's own Zodiac killer. The movie Zodiac stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, and Robert Downey, Jr., in a good dramatization of the seemingly random series of killings begun in 1968, as recounted by Robert Graysmith in his two books on the subject.
• If you've not yet seen The Bourne Supremacy, go to it. Yet another book based on movie, though I'd guess this is the loosest translation of the bunch. The movie is action packed and just suspenseful enough to keep you entertained throughout. Come on, do we ever think Jason Bourne is really in jeopardy? The Bourne movies are all about seeing how he will manage the latest onslaught of bad guys (he's extremely good at it). And no, you don't need to recall what happened in previous 2 films to understand this one.
• If you're in the mood for something more fantastical and sorta sweet, go see the movie Stardust, based on book by Neil Gaiman. It's a romantic fantasy that David described as incredibly cheesy, and yet he smiled all the way through it. Claire Danes' character is a tad grating, but the male lead is adorable and Michelle Pfeiffer plays wicked with glee. Memories of the goat guy still brings me a chuckle.
• Finally, in music I highly recommend The New Pornographers to alternative/indie pop music fans. Unfortunate name if you are a timid listener, but the music is definitely not from the adult film industry and it is often just heavenly. A former obsession of mine, alt country singer Neko Case, is one member of the oft-changing lineup of musicians associated with the band. TNP might be old news to many music fans, but I am slow to find new music these days and tend to fixate for a long while before seeking anything different. Anyway, I recommend their album Challengers. Naturally TNP will be playing in SF when I am in Houston. Virginia, you must keep me very entertained that evening so I will not think about it. (The perfect night to get started on your 30 Things to do list!)

I hope this note finds you well (body and soul), amused with your own entertainments (do share), and content with life (or doing something about it).

Discipline

More news about how overweight/obese we are (do you need to read it to know this is a problem?). Here's news, people: The only sure-fire way to lose weight is through an increase in calorie burning and/or a decrease in calorie consuming, ideally in fulfilling not destructive ways. Hmm, that's probably not news either. Okay, how about this: Some people will never have a weight problem no matter what they eat or do (get over it), and some people who think they have no health problem, in fact do. Your wellness is about more than just how much you weigh. I like the public health campaign that asks people to "know your numbers". Do you know your blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and BMI? And how would you hold up under a stress test?

I wonder, if you or I had this guy as our doctor, would we be healthier (weigh less and exercise more on average)? Certainly my health is much more about what I do than what my doctor does, but I appreciated Dr. Lerner's comment on the role of the doctor in a patient's struggles with health, however futile they might seem given what we know or believe now about willpower, genetics, lifestyle changes. "Somehow it still seems to me that part of a doctor’s job is to push patients to try harder." Amen.

I could say lots more about this. About individual vs. shared responsibilities. About the time and place for economies of scale. About the need for--and benefits of--people learning to establish and maintain meaningful, honest, constructive relationships with family, friends, coworkers, doctors and so on. About why people make obviously dumb (aka unhealthy, unhappy) choices, every stinkin day of our lives. About the key role of self awareness and self acceptance in all of this. But I won't. Not today, anyhow.

Here's a good quote (among many) from 19th century philosopher William James:

Believe that life is worth living and your belief will help create the fact.

Amen to that, too.

Community

Not that you asked but...
In real life I have friends, many people I stay in touch with, and I think I do a pretty good job of it. But in the virtual world of connections and links and "community" I am a total loser, capital L. I have accounts (or identities or whatever lingo label is applied to one's membership these days) on MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn (see link over on the right there, below my profile), Netflix, Amazon (look further down below my profile for another link), and many more. Did you even know that? Apparently between 4 and 9 people know these things. Actually, let me correct that, between 1 and 5 people and 4 authors and bands know I exist in online communities. I even have, nominally, another blog. But that qualifier word in there, that's the trouble--my presence in these places tends to be nominal.

Even with Netflix, from whom I have rented nearly a thousand movies since the service began, I have a strictly business interaction. Nope, no movie reviews or comments from me, and merely one friend. ME, who loves to write reviews! Who loves to share opinions and recommendations for fabulous movies! So I'm going to launch a campaign to attract virtual friendships. Okay, virtual versions of my real friendships. I wouldn't want to go and branch out, meet new people (shivers). ;-)

I'll start with this: Are you a Netflix subscriber? Will you be my (and David's) Netflix friend?

Resignation

The architect/evil genius is leaving the White House. I'm sort of sad. [Don't worry my liberal friends, keep reading.] There's so little these days to get excited about in domestic politics. Yes, there's lots to be frustrated or sad or potentially hopeful about, but not much blood boiling excitement. Even Rove has been off his game lately, which has made politics a lot less, hmm, fun is not the word, but less stimulating certainly. Karl Rove and other great political strategists both impress (through their skills) and nauseate me; like 'em or not, they do tend to create some excitement in politics, definite stimulus for better or worse. So it's a bit of a sad day. I said a bit.

Not that you asked but...
Does anyone else sense that there is an informed apathy about our times? Maybe it's information overload, but that makes it no less distressing. We are bombarded daily with images from Iraq. People saw Hotel Rwanda and still hear this "genocide" bandied about, maybe you read that little snippet in the print news last week about how the latest civil war events in Sudan have hurt both sides. Or what about that little military prison we maintain down in Guantanamo, Cuba, anyone remember that place? [Just an aside that intrigues me: We apparently can't let some of the people we've warehoused there go, as they would be in more danger at home than in prison. Not that this is a new concept with prisons and parolees, and there's always a risk of letting "bad guys" go if nothing else, but it seems a tad ironic in this case.]

All of these unhappy, deadly, life- and dignity-affecting events bring about a moment's distress, an hour or two, maybe even an hour each week, when we actually pay enough attention to hear about it in the first place. But what do we do? We put a "Save Darfur" link on our facebook page (a marginally do-good thing for an obviously big problem) then electronically poke our friends (a mindless fun thing). We tune in for a few minutes to Live Earth (a marginally do-good thing) then complain about how hot/cold/rainy it is or how bad the traffic is while driving alone in our car and how expensive the gas while driving an overly large car or a poorly maintained one. [Just an aside: check out gas prices in Europe, where they're paying 2-3 Euros per liter. Do the math, 3.875 liters to 1 gallon.]

Don't get me wrong, I am not claiming all innocence. I do a bit to help the world, but probably far more that hurts. Maybe I should turn my attention inward rather than outward. In truth I usually do. [I am racked with guilt as a result. ;)] But that was not my point. Right, what was my point? Ah, yes, that apathy seems on the rise but in a new form. People seem to feel they are informed on various sad issues, sympathetic to them as well, but just as un/involved as ever. Being informed and doing nothing makes such a person's apathy more distressing. What does it mean when you willingly acknowledge things as bad and then let them continue? Ah, yes, accesory to the crime. Or maybe that's human. We can only do so much, after all. (This is a bitter pill which I refuse to swallow, but I pay it lip service from time to time.)

This brings me back to good old Mr. Rove and his fellow truth filterers. I think they are the granddaddies of this informed apathy as I will call it, or at least should be the honorary captains. These people have learned to accept that there is good and bad in the world and that the voting public doesn't always know what's good for them or care what's good for others, things I regretfully accept as true. Plus, they know that people take action when and if they feel compelled to do so, and external motivators can be so much more powerful than internal ones. Rove, Luntz, et al know people will generally do what seems the best choice among what also happens to be the easiest or most popular choice. So their work becomes the retitling, rebranding, renaming of distasteful choices into favorable sounding options (and yes, it's almost all in the point of view. Check out Frank Luntz's book Words That Work, subtitled "It's not what you say, it's what people hear"). So those in control present us with their slate of desirable choices that hint at doing good for the world over the terrible undesirable choices of "other people" (bad people, naughty people, those who disagree with us). What we get in the end are a bunch of one-sided political decisions made on our behalf without imparting the feeling that we participated in anything distasteful. After all, I was an American for freedom and justice and individual rights, etc. Who can argue with that?

In theory this is not a bad thing. It only becomes a problem when you turn over real control to those people and they use their powers for evil. Worse still, evil in the name of good. Alas, we tend to realize this kind of thing occurring only after the fact (um, can anyone name a few good examples in history?). I'd prefer not to get to that point in my own personal experience, and I prefer not to live in denial either.

All of this has evolved into one of my standard messages: Inform yourselves and get involved, people. Work for good, after having thought about what good is. And never count on someone else to do good for you. Now go read Bowling Alone.

Wow, a farewell comment to Karl Rove in the White House turned into a meandering rant about social engagement. My initial comment was wrong. It seems there's always something to get me excited about in politics. Soapbox done.

Fertile

It's late and this was a random thought; if I have missed anyone's cute offspring, I apologize in advance....

Apparently it is the year of the baby. Among those I know, six have had babies born in the past few months. Welcome to Maggie, Owen, Mia, Sienna, Harrison, and Chaya. Correction, seven. Welcome Avi! They join their fellow 5-and-unders born to my friends and family: Kyle, Victoria, Tobias, Tony, Riley, Frances, Gavin, Justin, William, Terrence, Kaylia, Olivia, Kiera, Kiera (or is it Keira?), and the most adorable nephew ever, Mikey.

Travels

Last published June 29?!?! Sorry. In my defense, I only just got regular access (in other words, more than two minutes at a time) to an Internet connection and working computer yesterday. Considering the number of job applications I have put out today before getting around to the blog, I am not going to feel guilty.

My countdown clock says it's been 20 days since I left for Greece. I'm glad someone is counting, because I could not tell you the day or date today. I know time in relative terms these days. It's been a little over a month since I left Texas, a little less than a month since I went to DC. As I now have no other date to attach meaning to, I will have to begin calculating time in terms of return from Greece. It is now 4 A.G.

I had planned to post pictures from my recent travels (four states, one district, two foreign countries, and counting), but the cables for my picture reader machine are currently MIA. I think I know where they are but am currently too lazy (and housebound-undermotivated) to find them. You'll just have to wait a day or two. In the meantime, here are a few passing memories or lessons from my travels.

Turkey is not a scary country to travel to for Americans, particularly when you stick to the Turkish coast in the height of summer vacation season. I say this for the benefit of those of you out there who think Turkey is a strange and exotic world where foreigners are the enemy (not true--they want your money the fair way, through capitalism), bombings are rampant (not true, though there have been incidents, the government publicly punishes any and all found threats), and that women must wear headscarves (only a few do, and almost none in western Turkey). Turkey is an interesting place and worth exploring. It's a rather large country with rugged, mountainous inland terrain, and lots and lots of coastline, both accessible and non. For the record, Turkiye is a Muslim country, though the vast majority of the population are secular and not particularly observant (again, especially in western Turkey), though mosques are certainly prevalent. It is vying for EU membership though it is (mostly) in Asia. Its membership application is stymied partially by the fact that Turkey is the Mexico of (almost-) Europe; its citizens form a goodly proportion of the cheap labor in Europe, especially Germany, including illegal immigrants and guest workers who are no longer treated as guests. If Turkey gains entry to the EU (against France's express wishes), it would be the first Muslim country to do so.

The Greek islands are full. If you wish to go there during the idyllic height of quiet summer sunshine and romance, find a time machine and go back about, oh, 25 years to the time of that Daryl Hannah movie. If you want nightclubs, swarms of fashionable (and smoking) people, and megayachts, go now. Right now. Nah, I mean nothing bad in my comments. I absolutely love the bustle of the Greek islands in summer, there is nothing like it in my experience. Fabulous people watching, great food (on local diet, not tourist diet--blech), amazing deep blue water. Sleepy islands, desolate, dull, and unfashionably damp or dry the rest of the year, come to life with out of towners in late July. Populations increase by a factor of 10 in some places. All of Greece and fair portions of Germany and England have relocated out to the islands for a few weeks of sun and fun. There is an entire industry catering to the 6 weeks out of the year when this happens. In the past I have seen the busiest and most popular of the Greek islands (the ones close to Athens, the far out ones with near-mythic reputations, like Mykonos and Santorini, the historic ones near Turkey, such as St. Paul's Patmos and crusaders' Rhodes). This time we went to one new island--Tilos. It has that pre-tourist explosion feel to it, where there's a single bus that makes the rounds of the island, goat trails that lead to isolated beaches for camping out (and whatnot), and very little to do other than walk/scooter around or lie on the beach. It was quiet, unassuming, slightly developed, a bit dull. When we hiked to the top of the town (Megalo Horio), a woman in the church asked where we were from. "We don't get many Americans here." She wanted us to come in and see her art exhibit. "You don't have to buy anything."

Everywhere we went, people spoke English or had information posted in English, both in Greece and in Turkey. In Greece this was just a matter of business. The Greek alphabet had been translated into Roman letters for purposes of commerce, primarily, because as I said, the Greek islands are the place to be in the summer, whether you speak Greek or not. In Turkey the use of English was a default second language. Many tourists there were from Russia, and the Turks did not speak Russian, so English it is. In one small town, three children followed David and I up a road. "Hello, how are you?" one asked quite formally and offered his hand to each of us. After he received David's response to "What is your name?" the boy repeated for his friends (many times) "My name is David." The kids were quite pleased to accompany us up the mountain and were more amused by our attempts at Turkish. When in town, especially Marmaris and Bodrum, it became a bit of an amusement when people thought we were something other than American. Never did we encounter any animosity, either personally for our behavior or for our homeland. David pointed out to others on our boat that Turkey likes the USA and the USA supports Turkey, so maybe it had little to do with us personally. Still, I like to think it was because we were well behaved tourists.

I feared that I might have missed out on what was going on in the rest of the world while I was gone. While on my boat adventure I found out two things from the local newspapers: the results for the Turkish election and the marriage status of an over-the-top Turkish transsexual tabloid star. Asked about the latest haps in the US of A upon my return, Ben informed me that Lindsay Lohan's career is over. I guess this means I did not miss much.

Moving

I got a whole lot of this going on lately...


Thanks to Brian for the from-the-Subaru view of I-10. :)

My blog, email, and other electronic communications will be slowed or halted over next 5 weeks as I am in transit and/or vacationing. In case you care and/or need to be in touch with me, I will be in Northern California and mostly reachable July 12-18.

Wanderlust

I'm sure there will be no shortage of people to oblige me...

Next time I decide to move--no, next time I decide to drag out moving over a matter of weeks and months, just kick me. Or shake me. Or take the keys out of my hand and drive the car to wherever it is next headed and get on the phone and cancel all services that keep me complacent.

I would feel a heck of lot better on this particular move if either David or I had paying jobs to look forward to when it ends. But no, we each have job searches and further housing decisions to make. And both of the cars have had lots of little things needing fixing, only reminding me of their mortality, which is not a good time paired with above reality. So the move is only part of larger issues. Ack!

My venting sounds worse than I actually feel (most of the time), but it has been a bad few weeks. I don't mean it to sound like I'm miserable--I'm a fundamentally happy creature. And I certainly am not any closer to hating moving. As David can attest, even with all the hiccups of our latest cross-country "relo" I do not swear off another major move. I will, however, admit that moving is very tiring and tedious and requires a lot more shedding and compartmentalizing of belongings in a timely manner than is my natural preference.

So, I am stressed and anxious. I desperately want more of a routine and predictable places to be and sleep. I want a functioning computer. I want to load my music onto my new iPod. I want a bathing suit that is not becoming see-through. I want the rest of my life to get going.

I'm going to take a nap now. :)

Dying young

News came recently that the Sci Fi channel's version of Battlestar Galactica, which at first I could have cared less about, may end after its next (fourth) season. Sad news now that I'm so into it, but better that it end early than late. I've long been upset that My So-Called Life and Freaks and Geeks and Arrested Development and countless other fabulous shows were cut off due to low ratings. But then, their early departure leaves them remembered in their prime. There is no keeping a show after it has faded into a shadow of its former self, no awkward aging among young casts, no cousin Oliver joining the family, no shark jumping, no finding out it was all a dream ending.

Carrie Bradshaw ended up with Mr. Big on Sex and the City. The MASH gang for better or worse went home. Aeryn Sun and John Crichton got together; granted their love was fulfilled, if you will, during a horrid Farscape follow up finale movie but still, it ended in the right place, the expected place, the fulfilled place. The Lost crew have called their own end date. I can appreciate that--know when to quit and how to get there. This is how endings are supposed to occur, no matter the twists and turns along the way.

I don't require perfect endings, but I admit it's tough to grieve for a show or cherish for eternity a movie that ends on an illogical low note, or which just sputters to a hasty conclusion of sorts. A tragic ending done right is a good thing and satisfies that part of me which acknowledges life is not all about happy endings. Closure is a good thing.

David and I used to watch The Sopranos. I'm somewhat thankful I have had only limited access this final season. The episodes I saw were too depressing, with too little (none?) of the occasionally silly, oft amusing tidbits thrown into dialogue and storylines that I so reveled in in the early seasons. Now after a depressing season, the finale is vague about Tony's future, doesn't create closure.

The nebulous closing out of The Sopranos works for me, primarily because it offers me the chance to hope. The show was based in a violent, sexist, vengeful, self destructive existence. Do I really want to see how a mob boss's life ends out, no matter how sympathetic a character he may be at times? Okay, it's better to leave Tony alive, ailing as he was at the start of the show, than to kill him off or imprison him and leave his family in limbo as reality might dictate. That would be too depressing. I couldn't easily watch reruns without thinking, "What's the point, he dies anyway?" But it doesn't leave you crying in your wineglass either, so I suppose on balance it actually ends on an up note, a hopeful note. (Clearly, I am in a glass-half-full kind of mood.)

Hmm, maybe I truly yearn for endings that are going to be overtly happy or at least let me live with delusions of happiness. Goodness, what an escapist sap I've become. :)

Snappy

I have not seen Pirates...At World's End because I inadvertently read the entire plot online and spoiled the story for myself. I am not a fan of knowing endings before the end. Hmph. Luckily there are other box office temptations to kick off my summer. Herein I offer reviews of two other likely-big summer movies. Enjoy.

Knocked Up
Judd Apatow is at it again, offering up a mix of semisweet storylines and clever adult humor that doesn't assume your funny bone is stuck in seventh grade. Knocked Up tells the story of the coupling of Alison (Katherine Heigl, aka Izzie), a reporter for E! entertainment news, and Ben (Seth Rogen), a man-child trying half heartedly to make a job of spotting nude scenes in movies. While the drunken-stranger-sex-leads-to-pregnancy plot is run of the mill, there are some hilarious moments and characters. David and I both enjoyed Ben and his friends (most are Apatow film/tv vets) busting on each other, and Alison's fantastically deadpan work competitor, Jill. I would happily watch this movie once more on DVD for the dialogue. Most of the characters are reasonably compelling and/or amusing, but the highlight here is Seth Rogen's Ben, who's insecure and cynical but good hearted. I don't agree with the critics who seem to want to have Apatow's baby for making Knocked Up, but it is certainly solid summer fare, an extension of those great 80's teen summer flicks. Knocked Up is recommended to those with a tolerance for crude humor seeking slightly grown up entertainment with no commitment.

Alison Scott: I'm pregnant.
Ben Stone: Pregnant... with emotion?

Ocean's Thirteen
Atrtactive from beginning to end, the latest in the casino heist movie chain is a visual feast. Should you care about the storyline, it might please you to know this one's much better than the last; it's also, I might add, prettier than the first. The entire male gang is back, from dishy smooth Danny Ocean (George Clooney) to the inventively troublemaking Malloy brothers (Casey Affleck and Scott Caan). This time the guys have taken it upon themselves to cheer their bedridden mentor, Reuben (Elliot Gould), by seeking revenge on his behalf. Al Pacino and Ellen Barkin join the cast (the latter as the only significant female in the story). Does anyone care why or how the story unfolds? There's a strong "What happens in Vegas..." feel to Ocean's Thirteen. The length, pace, and plausibility each have their decided ups and downs here; there are enough fun moments and Hollywood in jokes (Clooney tells Pitt to settle down and have a couple kids) to keep you chuckling. But it's the look of the movie that I enjoyed most--varied camera angles, striking colors, gorgeous actors. Not a bad thing to stand out, all in all.

[Virgil is attempting to hack into a computer system while Turk looks on]
Turk Malloy: Are you in yet?
Virgil Malloy: I hate that question.

Boston

Last week in Boston with the family (that's Ben, right, at pre-graduation dinner -- pondering future?) I picked up this magnet entitled "The tahp ten things to look out foha in Bahstun". I achieved two of them on this trip: #10 "Pahl Reveah's silvah at the Museum of Fine Ahts", and #5 "Fenway Pahk" (both self explanatory, I hope). I spent a fair amount of 1994 in "Summahvul" (part of #3, aka the city of Somerville) but in all my stays in Beantown I've missed out completely on #4, "Bahgins at Neiman Mahcus" (you'll have to figure that one out on your own). Anyway, if you'd like to see pictures from our recent jaunt to Boston, go to my picture pages.

The Big O

Thanks to Virginia and nostalgic vowel-buying amusements, I have a letter obligation to fulfill. She has challenged me with an "O" and I have to list ten items I love that begin with that letter. I could just as well tell you "O" things I do not love (onions, Oreo cookies), but that is not my task. Herein I present my "O" preferences, in no particular order...

1. The Office - Brilliant original comedy from Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. I've loved how the American version was able to first copy then extend the British show and remain hilarious. Very excited that next season in US is to be super-sized.
   
2. Orange drinks - I couldn't drink the stuff all the time. I love it because it's a rare treat. The high brow version would be (San Pellegrino's) Aranciata or Orangina, but I could just as well savor an orange Fanta (especially the European recipe). Actually, this ought to be extended...
   
3. Orange foods - I love eating orange foods and drinks together. That sounds more than a tad odd. I did not just make this up, ask David. My favorite beverage with cheese is orange juice (yum). I can imagine little better as a guilty pleasure than a bit of boxed macaroni-and-cheese with a bit of sweet and tangy orange-colored beverage. Yes, very odd.
   
4. Outlander - this book and its sequels by Diana Gabaldon captured my (romantic) imagination a few years back and I've often found their characters in my thoughts since then. Though I have been frustrated by many of the events, and the basic premise is implausible (it involves time travel between 20th and 18th centuries), the story reads so very true and fascinating that it's hard to shake once you've entered the world. I suspect diehard fans of Harry Potter feel the same about Rowling's work.
5. The ocean - the sights, smells, feel. I love the water, especially from a coastline or on a boat. Relaxing in a row boat streaming my fingers in the water beneath, dipping my feet over the side of a sailboat as we heel, or sitting on a beach as gentle waves lap around me...ahh. Bliss.
   
6. The outdoors - much like the ocean, only without the inherent wetness associated with it. Fresh air is at the core of this love of mine, but I also love the expansiveness of the outdoors, the sense of endless possibilities. I get antsy and down when I'm cooped up inside for too long. Look back over my early Beaumont existence and you will see what I mean. My dream home and lifestyle incorporates indoor/outdoor living. Again, bliss.
   
7. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - a beautiful story. Yes, it's depressing in parts, but there is also a lovely hopefulness to it. OFOTCN is one of several examples of 20th century literature that puts me in a mood and place in my mind that is youthful, fairly simple, engaged about the realities of life but not despondent about them. Sigh. I feel similarly about Steinbeck's Cannery Row, Stegner's Angle of Repose, and the various short stories and novels of Salinger. There is hope and acceptance intermingled in such stories, and they remain my most cherished reading.
8. Onomatopoeia - I love the little sound I make to mimic David's computer when he is "pinged" - bloop! Or the feel of saying "bzz" like a bee. Again, I'm not just making this up for purposes of a list here. Ask David.
   
9. Orlando Bloom as Legolas in Lord of the Rings. I'm not sure this falls into love level, but I definitely liked him there and I need a ninth "O". Sometimes Orlando can be a bit too pretty in movies (though sometimes that prettiness is quite nice to look at). And in real life he seems to prefer that not-filled-in-enough facial hair thing going on. But in LOTR his Legolas is lovely and fierce, kind of a marvel to watch, ethereal, which works for the character. I want to be able to fire arrows as he does.
   (FYI, I had contemplated putting as my #9 the story of Orlando, which is a book by Virginia Woolf then a mesmerizing movie starring Tilda Swinton, each of which is fascinating in its own way. But as my time spent with either work was long ago, my infatuation might not hold up at this moment. I'd rather not express love now only to have to withdraw it later. That would be fickle and cruel.)
   
10. Oddity - my own, especially, but I do appreciate it in others as well. Note that I did not say "outrageous" or "obnoxious". Oddity is on the edge of things, outside the mainstream but not completely alien. It's got a fun side, and as an often all too serious sort of person, I embrace fun where I can.
    

That's all. Were you looking for another O item? I am sorry to disappoint if that's the case, for I am spent. State your own "O" preferences in comments, please.

Tasteless

Truly I shouldn't even honor the following news story or the incident behind it with a link. But something about its utter repulsiveness makes me want to share. Share the feeling of being repulsed, that is. It involves salad dressing at the school cafeteria and a teenage boy. Let your imagine go, then...
Read at your own risk.

Television

Not that you asked, but...

I am not one of those Lost viewers who has abandoned faith or interest in the show. Sure its tone has changed, but I'm still hooked and forming grand theories to explain it all. I honestly don't get why so many people are decrying its supposed demise. Yet again I find myself holding what in the public sphere appears to be a minority opinion (my phrasing there hints that I don't believe myself to be significantly alone, in a variety of views, but I digress...). So imagine my delight when I came across this thoughtful analysis of the philosophical underpinnings of Lost and its main characters (naming on the show is not random, with characters like Sawyer, Locke, Rousseau, etc). Highly recommended reading for all viewers. [PS The season finale was great!]

In other television news, I will admit to getting a tad verklempt at the conclusion of Gilmore Girls. Sure the final episode drew on the show's cliches left and right, but it was touching and earnest and I liked it.

Big Apple

Now posted on my picture pages are photos of last week's jaunt to New York. What I didn't include were the unpeopled pics, such as World Trade Center site all lit up at night and bustling with construction, or the shots I took of Statue of Liberty, New York skyline, and Yankee stadium (old and new). If anyone cares I can put up a few of those. I'm trying to chronicle my year and more specifically the people in it, so hopefully you'll find new pics there on a regular basis in months to come. Do visit. I like visitors, of the real and virtual variety.

Nested

Check out the falcon family (parents and three recently hatched chicks) living atop San Jose's City Hall with this fabulous webcam. Oh my goodness, I could sit and watch them for hours! Blast it, I do not need new obsessions. :)

Dumb

Did you hear this news story about a Michigan police officer who called 911 after ingesting Alice B. Toklas brownies made with stolen evidence? Go to the link for the story or listen to the 911 call yourself--listen as the guy says time is going "very, very, very slow" and states repeatedly that he thinks he and his wife are dying. I'll just say this: if you've ever in your life found the antics of mind-altered people amusing (admittedly the "laughing at" rather than "laughing with" variety) then this story is for you. Sadly hilarious. As you'll see, the officer in question ended up quitting and neither he nor his wife were charged.

Thirds

At long last, I have returned to the movie theater. I know you were worried, waiting anxiously over the absence of new cinema in my life. I appreciate your (pretend) concern. ;)

Spiderman 3 is a logical and stylistic continuation of Spiderman 2. (By the way, if you saw neither 1 nor 2 or are just a bit shaky on what happened last, watch the credits and you'll get all the necessary plot events from parts 1 and 2.) In part 3 we find Spiderman has been embraced by the city and attained hero status; even the cranky newspaper editor is dragged into giving praise to Spidey's heroic efforts. What ought to be even better for Peter Parker (Spiderman) is that he can now be honest with his love, Mary Jane Watson, about his alter ego life. Alas Peter gets a bit too drunk on hero worship at the same time M.J.'s promising stage career takes a turn for the worse. She finds a ready listener in old friend Harry, who harbors a grievance with Peter/Spiderman going back to movie 1. Added to all this are several new and in some ways nuanced bad guys: a thief who becomes a sandman and a competitive photographer who is consumed by aggression due to a body-covering alien symbiote (you read that right). But really Peter/Spiderman's greatest enemy in this movie is himself.

On the good side Spiderman 3 makes sense from beginning to end, with a mix (albeit jumpy) of light and serious moments a la part 2. Peter Parker is in a funk but he's as likable as ever (though the black eyeliner and floppy bangs on Maguire during Peter's dark phrase really didn't work for me). On the downside, there were few truly dramatic moments. I never got the sense Spiderman was really in danger, even though he was in very dangerous situations. There seemed to be too many characters and subplots at a few points in the film, even though all were logically incorporated. Finally, the movie felt long to both David and I. So I recommend S3 to those who have been following along if for no other reason then because it is a logical extension of the story. But for someone just arriving at the franchise or with lukewarm feelings about S2 (which was a good fun action/romance movie in my opinion), I hate to say it, but you won't miss anything if you skip this film.

SOLD!

Our Beaumont lives are officially ended. We pulled out the last of our things from the house, turned over the keys, and signed all the forms. The day was largely uneventful, a bit sad. I got teary eyed as I waved goodbye to the sites which, unless I find myself taking the deep Southern route cross country, I am not likely to ever take in again. Farewell kindly neighbors, Grant and Mickey, good bye to the Wal Mart with crazy squawking birds (inside), tootle loo "Apoplectic" church (David misread Apostolic). The people we knew there are basically all elsewhere, so the lingering memories we have seem to be of restaurants. We drove by and I waved at the fabulous Frankies, IHOP, Rao's, Novrosky's, the pecan farm, even the Janis Joplin sign (I never actually went to the museum). Apropos of our time in Beaumont, we had a surreal moment on our final day there, as David brought the (pregnant) notary to tears. I'm still scratching my head over that one. Anyway, goodbye cute little comfy Beaumont house. I enjoyed our time together.

Utopia

No single place in the real world is perfect.

I long to return to California, and I am now preparing for my return there. The fact that it's "home" produces an eternal magnetism for me. But my longing for California living is fickle. I have already as an adult twice moved away, and I could easily imagine myself doing so again someday (though David would prefer to settle down, and I must consider that). I'd pick living in the San Francisco Bay Area over anywhere else in the world if given only one choice, but I recognize that it's not Utopia.

While living in Texas I've often made comparisons to my home state, but that's not fair. When I moved to Texas I was lost. I knew no one here, felt like a fish out of water, and was regularly faced with a point of view that to me seemed narrow and limiting. But this did not make Texas a bad place, just an unfamiliar one. As I have lived here, as I've become involved in school and work and explored my neighborhood, I've found people and places that I treasure and will miss dearly when I leave. I could simply accept that I used to not like it and have grown to like it, but I feel there's a lesson here.

First the obvious one, which is that old cliche of absence making the heart grow fonder. In my case, California living is never sweeter than when I'm in residence elsewhere.

And second, a reminder I include here for my future reference, for when I find myself in that part of the world I never dreamed of (Beaumont, anyone?). Remember Michelle, there are delights to be found even in places you least expect them; it's your job to find them.

Finally, I post here a very interesting article in today's New York Times about an experimental farm community set up for Hurricane Katrina evacuees on former sugar cane fields in rural Louisiana. The wealthy guy who bought the land did so with a somewhat Utopian vision. Naturally reality has not been so idyllic, but I was excited to hear someone making an attempt. Perfection is not possible, but when we strive for it, we can reach higher than when we impose limits.