Day 30!

Last day! I made it, bay-bee!

Last night, I ate waaaay too much sushi. Do I regret it? Heck no! It was awesome! I've missed sushi, and can never get enough. Do I regret what it cost? Well, yes, maybe a bit. Ah well, water under the bridge. Want more, though.

Now I'm watching Bones and resting my hands (spent all day knitting). Later I may sleep. Woot!
Polgara on 11.30.07 @ 08:19 PM PST [link]

:-D I am full of SQUEE! today

I'm feelng ridiculously pleased with myself right now. I just automated at task at work that's going to make life easier for at least three people (myself included) and will insure that the task isn't done incorrectly (which has been about 50% of the time in the past). Whee! I also told one of my coworkers about something he does regularly that makes me feel inadequate, which I knew wasn't his intention but still drives me bugnuts crazy, and he apologized and promised to stop doing it. I remembered to copy a bunch of Xmas music to my flash drive this morning to transport to my work laptop. AND! Something I bought for myself on Black Friday arrived today that I've been greatly looking forward to.

So, I'm having a good day. My skin is actually tingling from my joy. Here's hoping it lasts!
Polgara on 11.29.07 @ 11:55 AM PST [link]

Two more days...

The presents I ordered last week on Black Friday have started arriving. On the one hand, yay! Presents! On the other hand, I can't help but feel, This is it? This is all I ordered? And it cost *how much*?! Every year, the dollar shrinks a little more, and my family's agreed upon limits* just don't go as far as they used to.

There's also the problem of seeing something you've been wanting for awhile, but weren't willing to pay full price for (for example, the Superman Returns dvd hasn't dropped under $20 since it was released....until Black Friday!), but you can't buy it for yourself now, not during "holiday shopping" season. And you just know the price will jack itself back up as soon as Christmas is over. Phooey.

Of course, these are all first-world problems. We have roofs over our heads, food on our tables, and usually family and/or friends to spend the holidays with. Everything else is gravy, but the incessant holiday commercials can make it easy to forget that. Someday I hope I can rise above my petty material desires and spend my holiday cash on charities and donations while urging others to do the same with whatever they'd spend on me, but if there is such a day, I suspect it's very far from today.

*People sometimes ask why we have dollar limits on our Christmas spending--it makes more sense if you know that I used to spend $300 on each person in my immediate family before they reined me in with limits. I still cheat, though.
Polgara on 11.28.07 @ 03:02 PM PST [link]

Home stretch!

It's the 27th! Only three more posts after today, and I'll have accomplished the "post every day for the month of November" NaBloPoMo challenge! Woot!

Hopefully I won't then go back to my "post once a month" ways. I'll try very hard not to, I swear. In the meantime, I....have no news. :-D Well, I'd have work related news, but I've heard of companies that fire employees for mentioning anything work related in a public blog, and I'm not taking any chances.

Oh, but only vaguely related is the fact that December 1st is the Day Without Art, when museums all over the world cover a work of art in remembrance of all the artists the planet has lost to AIDS. This year we'll be covering a statue that you can't possibly miss, as it sits on the steps leading from the tram to the museum--no hunting for the shrouded painting this year! The accompanying web page will go live Friday night.

That's all I've got for today. :-)
Polgara on 11.27.07 @ 03:10 PM PST [link]

I got nuthin'

I'm only posting because I've made it 25 days, and I'm going to finish out the month, but I'm too tired to write a real post. The short story--visited both babies yesterday; had lunch today with my much-missed former coworker visiting from Georgia; spent the rest of the day at the hospital with a friend.

I'm cross-posting this with my knitting blog, because I'm too tired to write a real post for that blog, either.
Polgara on 11.26.07 @ 10:24 PM PST [link]

The best things happen while you're dancing

Bogglific is refusing to load on Facebook. Phooey.

I'm deeply immersed in the holiday season--I've downloaded 27 new Christmas songs from iTunes (including classics from Dean Martin, Burl Ives, and Bing Crosby); I watched White Christmas and A Muppet Christmas Carol yesterday; I wrote out 28 holiday cards (although they still need sealing, return addresses and stamps). And it's only November 25th.

I started a knitting project yesterday, worked on it for three hours, then frogged it 'cause it just wasn't working for me. Which sucks, because the yarn is a PITA to work with, and now I have to start all over again. *sigh*

My plan for today is to make several trips to the dumpster, try to make a dent in the pile of dirty dishes, and visit Gracie. Maybe in that order, maybe not.
Polgara on 11.25.07 @ 09:21 AM PST [link]

I can see my desk!

music: Christmas music!

Holy crap! I can't even remember the last time I was able to see my desk! I've been doing Christmas cards--for the first time since my mom died, so it's kind of a big deal to me--and my hand is tired from writing out addresses and Merry-Christmasses, so I was looking for labels with my return address. You know the ones--they're usually sent by charitable organizations looking for donations, and you open the envelope and think, Oh cool, these'll come in handy someday, as you throw the rest of the contents away, and you put the labels in a drawer somewhere. Then, when someday arrives, like today, you go looking for those labels and can't find them anywhere! I swear they have little sensors on them that self-destruct when you ignore the plea for a donation. But on the bright side, my desk is, while not clean, a hell of a lot clearer than it's been in years.

Yesterday, as I mentioned, I put up the Christmas tree. Last night, when I returned from the tree lighting ceremony in Old Town Pasadena and the Festival of Lights at Griffith Park, I put it up again--didn't take the cats long to knock that sucker down! At least they didn't break anything this time. I've moved it to the middle of the room, where hopefully they won't be as likely to knock it down. It was still up when I awoke this morning, so that's a plus--although two ornaments were knocked down.

I have more cards to write out, so I leave you with one of my favorite displays from the Festival Lights:

And if you'd like a holiday card and you have my email address, send me your snail mail! I've got a bazillion cards and not nearly enough addresses to go with them! :-D
Polgara on 11.24.07 @ 12:38 PM PST [link]

Pie! Pie! Pie!

It's the day after, and I'm regretting saying no to leftovers. Ah well. There's yogurt in the fridge.

I just finished assembling and decorating my little four foot tree (three and a half, really). I'm too tired and lazy to upload a picture right now, so I've posted a picture of it from last year instead. I decided to forgo the star this year, because it's heavier than the tree and makes it wobble in a scary way, so I'm in the market for a new treetopper. Not quite sure yet what I'm looking for.

Yesterday was good, btw. Had dinner with friends and an adorable baby, had PIE, and made plans for tonight to view fun Christmas lights. Spent this morning using up my iTunes credit on new (to me) Christmas music to augment my growing sappy Christmas music collection.

That's about the it. I may go nap now.
Polgara on 11.23.07 @ 02:17 PM PST [link]

Happy Thanksgiving!

Things I am thankful for:

• My family, particularly my sister and brother-in-law, but also my uncle and cousins and aunts and half brothers and stepbrothers.
• My friends, particularly those I consider my second family.
• The good health of Noah, and the improving health of Grace.
• The snuggles of my kitties.
• That I have a job I still love even after seven years.
• The roof over my head, even though it's riddled with termites and rain damage.
• That I can pay my bills, even though there are so!many!of!them!
• My own general good health.
• That I have people I love with whom to spend Thanksgiving.

Have a good turkey day!
Polgara on 11.22.07 @ 09:01 AM PST [link]

A BWAH! and a Boo!

WGA Strike: A Love Story (A YouTube video)

As was said elsewhere, this is what happens when people who are paid to be funny have too much time on their hands.

On the not funny side, WGA picketers put the home address of a studio exec on their signs for yesterday's big rally down Hollywood Blvd, which then got posted online. That's not cool, yo. It's disrepectful, and doesn't win points for the cause.
Polgara on 11.21.07 @ 08:46 AM PST [link]

Dreamin' my life away

I have that song stuck in my head, the dreeeeeeam, dream dream dream, dreeeeeeeam, dream dream dream song. It's the last song playing on the ipod this morning before I got out of the car, which was quite apt at the time, given I'd daydreamed my way along my commute. It's a wonder I didn't cause an accident.

The Christmas confusion has started, wherein I feel happy and joyous for all things Christmassy and cheery, except for when I feel depressed and stressed about presents and shopping and packing and missing Christmasses past. It's a topsy-turvy time of year. Sometimes I'm sad that I don't have "that special someone" to share it with, who might help take some of the pressure off while at the same time adding to the special joyousness of the season, but I try not to dwell on it, since I'm unwilling to take steps to change anything.

Hmm. I think that stupid song has to come off the ipod.

In other news, I had Thanksgiving-themed nightmares last night, which is odd since I'm not hosting this year, nor am I doing the bulk of the cooking, so really, what the hell? Nightmares be gone!

And speaking of, when I was a kid, I suffered from frequent nightmares that scared the bejeesus out of me. I even became frightened of the very word "nightmare", and would flip out anytime anyone said it in my presence, convinced that the word caused the dreams. I can't remember when I stopped fearing the word, but it obviously happened at some point. I still get nightmares sometimes, but the really bad ones are usually only once or twice a year. (And a hallelujah! to that!)
Polgara on 11.20.07 @ 01:27 PM PST [link]

Yesterday could've gone better

Gracie's back in the hospital, with a respiratory infection. Please think good thoughts for her speedy recovery.

Since I couldn't visit Grace, I hung out with her family and the visiting Sara instead. Noah's as cute as can be, with such a sunny disposition it's hard not to smile when you're around him. The "Planet Earth" dvds were less sunny, and I had to leave before witnessing more nature at work. Nature sucks.

I was unable to reach my goal of 1200 calories, but I almost hit 1000, so it wasn't as bad as previous days. I went grocery shopping, got lots of fruits and veggies, and I've planned my menu for the day, and yet? Still can't reach 1200. I have to figure what I'm (still) doing wrong, 'cause that just doesn't seem right. Surely not all calories come from evil carbs?

Must stop thinking of baby elephants.
Polgara on 11.19.07 @ 11:41 AM PST [link]

1200 or bust!

I was torn on what to talk about today. I was planning on sharing my Scrabble/Scrabulous strategy tips, because I'm starting to feel like a Scrabulous bully and I was thinking it might level the playing field if I explain how I play.

But really, what's freshest in my mind is my current calorie dilemma. As I mentioned two days ago, my caloric intake has been rather low lately--after some research, I've learned it's starvation mode low--and it's been totally by accident. The fact is, I'm horribly LAZY. Why does this matter? 'Cause I hate to cook, so I buy foods that require little to no cooking. And sometimes, I'm too lazy to go grocery shopping, so I just eat what few protein bars remain in the house. I don't feel hungry, but I do feel tired, which means an even stronger aversion to grocery shopping and preparing any food that requires, well, preparation, and it becomes a big ugly circle of SLOTH.

Ok, so I'm lazy. Which means my average calorie intake over the past week (excepting Friday, when I binged on a calorie heavy brunch) was around 800 calories a day--400 less than the recommended healthy minimum. Isn't that insane?! I mean, holy crap! I'm starving myself! I don't think I've ever felt more stupid.

I consider this a breakthrough, though. Now that I'm tracking this stuff, I'm aware of the problem, which should mean I can fix it, right? The first step is always recognizing and owning the problem. To that end, my goal today is to eat at least 1200 calories--without resorting to Chinese or pizza or a double cheeseburger. Sounds hard, and I'm not sure how to do it, but that's my goal.

Maybe tomorrow I'll give away my Scrabulous secrets. :-)
Polgara on 11.18.07 @ 11:16 AM PST [link]

Picspam

I don't really feel like coming up with a topic to discuss, so I chose a picture at random from my Flickr stream. This picture comes from page 217. It's a picture of the entrance plaza at the Getty Museum, all lit up special for our holiday party last year. Our next holiday party is only a few weeks away, and all I can think is, holy carp, how did it already become the holiday season?! I'm also thinking, I shall miss my coworkers who have departed in the year since this picture was taken. The party won't be the same without them. :-(
Polgara on 11.17.07 @ 12:08 PM PST [link]

Strike that!

Today my friend Allyson and I got up way too early and visited the striking WGA members at FOX Studios. Our friends at buffistas.org had collected money for gift bags for the picketers, which Allyson put together last night. We met up with our friend Kristen, one of the coordinators for her picketing area, and distributed half the bags at the back gate, and the other half at the front gate. One of the picketers at the back gate was Sarah Fain (below, right), formerly a writer for Angel, and now co-show-runner for Women's Murder Club.

Afterwards, Allyson and I had brunch at Mel's, my first time there in well over a month. I had the largest meal I've had all week, which isn't saying much. Completely by accident, it appears I've been starving myself. I've started entering my daily food intake information at the Spark People website, which has helped me realize that no, I don't take in nearly enough calories by living off of protein bars and low-fat cheese. In fact, yesterday I survived on a mere 531 calories--apparently my minimum goal should be 1270. ?! That's not good. Thanks to the ham and cheese omelet with a side of bacon at Mel's, today I've doubled yesterday's calories, which doesn't seem fair when now I'm craving Chinese food.

I swear, I have no idea how to eat anymore. I've completely lost my common sense when it comes to food. I need my own private chef.
Polgara on 11.16.07 @ 04:36 PM PST [link]

Weekend!

Today was my virtual Friday, because tomorrow is my off-Friday--woot! Almost forgot to update today, and man, that would've sucked after posting everyday for two weeks. That's what I get for finding a new game to obsess about--this time it's Bogglific.

I've got nothing interesting to report. Had boring meetings today. Obsessed about my diet (I don't know what I should be eating anymore). Knitted some on my bag during lunch.

That's all I've got for today. Until tomorrow!
Polgara on 11.15.07 @ 07:23 PM PST [link]

It's Wednesday. Yay?

Yesterday was a bad day, the kind of day that meant I had to apologize to someone today. I hate apologizing, because I hate it when I do something that merits an apology. The apology recipient let me off the hook, and now I feel guilty for accepting that, because I think he was just trying to ease it all over, when really, an explanation was totally warranted.

Ah well. I'm kinda stuck with the situation now, and hopefully I didn't lose his respect, but I would totally deserve it if I did.

In other news, my landlord has decided my termite problem is not a high priority, and I have no ETA on when he'll be sending someone to kill the bastards. I'm thinking of mailing him my termite-filled dustbuster so *he* can empty the damned thing.

Sucky week.
Polgara on 11.14.07 @ 02:48 PM PST [link]

100 Things About Me: 25-36

I'm way behind on my Things About Me list, so here are the entries for the past four days:

25. I studied German for three years in high school.

26. I studied Spanish for two semesters in college.

27. English is my only fluent language, despite my best efforts. *sigh*

28. I love Christmas. I love it so much that I don't even mind that the season starts before Halloween, although I'll bluster along with everyone else. It's a struggle to not listen to Christmas music until the day after Thanksgiving.

29. Ever since 9/11, I can't watch "disaster" movies--any movies where mass groups of people are killed--without having a panic attack. Even old favorites like Independence Day can trigger it.

30. I'm so afraid of confrontation that I still go to the same dentist who tortured me during a three hour wisdom teeth extraction, rather than ask for my records to go elsewhere.

31. Sob stories usually make me sob. Mistreated puppies, homeless children, victims of misjustice or government bureaucracy, even unfair treatment by someone's boss--doesn't take much.

32. I'm a packrat.

33. I still have the report I wrote in sixth grade about the Greek gods and goddesses.

34. I'm a slob. Actually, that should be SLOB. I hate housework and do it as little as I can possibly get away with it, which I manage by rarely inviting anyone to my home.

35. I'm not terribly good at relationships.

36. I love to wrap presents.

Breakfast today: Protein bar and tea
Weather today: Looks sunny. I hear it's gonna be 70s.
:-D

Polgara on 11.13.07 @ 08:36 AM PST [link]

Mondays. Blech.

My building can't decide if it wants to be too hot or too cold. It was a sauna when we got in this morning, but now it's cold enough for the space heater. Plus I'm cranky, from hormones and work stress, so I'm not really enjoying today all that much, despite a pleasant dream last night and a marvelously light commute this morning (the upside to working on a holiday).

I fell off the yarn wagon yesterday and spent too much at the sale at Michael's, but since it's all feltable yarn to be used for Xmas presents, I gave myself a pass. After the fiber gorge, I went to visit Miss G and dropped off the cute Pooh jammies I picked up at Target last week. She seems more aware than ever, doesn't get as cranky as she used to, and even looks directly at me when I sing to her. Such a cutiehead, she's still the highlight of my Sundays.

Today I had to lock the cats in the bedroom--someone's supposed to spray the termite-infested window today. *fingers crossed* Please oh please oh please let it work! After doing some cleaning yesterday, I don't hate my place as much as I did Saturday, but it would help a lot to minimize the termite invasions.
Polgara on 11.12.07 @ 03:28 PM PST [link]

Isn't it done YET?

My Day of Laundry has turned into my Weekend of Laundry. Seriously, I did TEN loads yesterday, and 11-14 are currently occupying the washers and dryers downstairs. I'm *almost* done, but there's still two blankets, one couch slipcover, one winter jacket, and the linens from my bed. Damn good thing I picked up two extra rolls of quarters at the bank yesterday! Sheesh.

However, the reason I had so much is because I finally cleaned out my closet yesterday, and I managed to cull four bags and a box worth of clothes to go to Out of the Closet (which I also did yesterday--it was a very productive day!). All the winter clothes that I had left went into the wash (some moths were discovered in the closet, so I'm taking no chances), and anything that doesn't fit after a stint in the dryer will also go to OotC.

Now, in the bad news department, my living room was invaded by termites yesterday afternoon, when the sun got hot enough to drive them from the wall and onto my couch (which is right under the window where they live). The rest of my afternoon was spent in a depressed funk, for several reasons:

1. My landlord doesn't "fix" the wall, he patches it up. It started with the rains about three years ago that got into and destroyed a lot of my south wall--cracks, holes, you name it. Even the AC unit nearly came crashing down. But instead of finding where the water was coming from and fixing it, they just patched up the visible damage. This has led to years of leaky windows and, yes, termites, which I'm sure is making the damage that much worse. I fully expect the ceiling to cave in some day.

2. I live in a rent-controlled city, which means that I'm currently paying only about 2/3 of current rents, which means I can't afford to move, unless I want to move somewhere that would increase my commute by about 30 miles.

3. Money is tight enough that I can't even really replace the couch. (Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the part where the couch is under the infested window/wall, so when the sun forces the bugs out, they crawl all over my couch). The couch is old (and has a wooden frame, which I try not to think about to hard) and hurts my back, so I rarely even sit on it anymore. What I'd like is a convertible love seat--the full sized couch is so big, the only place for it is under that window, but a love seat is small enough to go in the middle of the room without overpowering it, and hence, away from that cursed window. I should just toss the couch and live without until I can find another solution, but I've never lived without a couch, and it just seems so, I dunno, college student-y. I'm too old to not have furniture without feeling like a failure.

So, that was yesterday--some triumphs, some defeats. Also, I need someone to empty my dustbuster for me. I can't bear to see all those termites in there.
Polgara on 11.11.07 @ 11:37 AM PST [link]

7am?! WTH?!

I was up and outta bed at 7am this morning. Why? Beats me. Trouble woke me around 6:30 and I couldn't go back to sleep, and worse, I was wide awake, so I figured what the hell, I'd get up. Had myself a cup of tea, and NOW I feel sleepy. *sigh* Whatever.

I actually have a plan today, but it's a plan born of necessity. The mountains of laundry and dishes are calling to me too loudly to ignore, and singing backup are the fridge and car that desperately need clearing out.

And maybe, if I can motivate myself and decide I'm willing to risk it, I may attempt to hand-felt one of the bags that's awaiting felting. I bought a bucket (eat it, Walrus!), plunger and strainer last week specifically for the task. I fear failure, which would suck considering the work that goes into knitting one of these babies up, but the machines downstairs aren't very good at felting--the water doesn't get hot enough, and the wash cycle is so short it takes at least three washes to get the job done. At a dollar a wash, that's a lot of quarters to waste.

An example of a purse waiting for felting:

We'll see. Given the amount of laundry I have to do, it might just be easier to keep throwing the bags in with the rest of the laundry until everything is properly felted.

And I should probably get started, otherwise I'll be wasting my early 7am start.
Polgara on 11.10.07 @ 07:48 AM PST [link]

To see, or not to see

I'm trying to decide what to do about my eyes. I need new contact lenses and new lenses for my year-old glasses--my prescription is way out of date, and focusing on a computer screen is becoming harder. I also have $800 to kill from my pre-tax medical spending account, so money is not the issue. The thing is, I haven't really been happy with my optometrist. He's nice, and I've been going to him for seven years, and he's within walking distance, and I even know his assistant's name, but my prescription rarely seems, well, right. My optometrist back home always got it right, but this guy? Hardly ever. My latest pair of glasses took me six months to get used to, and I wonder if my eyes were affected by trying to get used to the wrong prescription.

So yes, I'm thinking I need a new doctor. But, I've known this guy for seven years. And it's hard to go out there and find a new doctor--there's not even a guarantee that new guy/gal would be better. I'm almost inclined to hit a LensCrafter or Pearl Vision or some other big chain of impersonal care.

I don't know. I'm undecided, but I have a time limit--five and a half weeks, to be exact--and I need to make a decision and act on it before then. Phooey. I hate making decisions. And breaking up with doctors. Well, and breaking up with anyone. But that's a whole 'nother post.
Polgara on 11.09.07 @ 08:55 AM PST [link]

100 Things About Me: 22-24

22. I graduated from Umass Amherst with a degree in English Lit and a minor in Classical Civilizations.

23. I would've majored in Classics, except it required four semesters of either Latin or Greek, and I was tired of languages.

24. I studied French for four years in high school and two semesters in college. I suck at it.

Polgara on 11.09.07 @ 08:46 AM PST [link]

100 Things About Me: 19-21

19. I love to play pool, and I’m not half bad at it. I used to play in the basement of my dorm, usually around 2am when all the guys who'd been monopolizing the table finally went to bed. If I don't get enough practice, though, I can suck pretty spectacularly.

20. I won a pool tournament once, also at my last company. First prize was a Batman mug, because they expected the winner would be one of the Vice Presidents.

21. My favorite drinks in college were fuzzy navels and Bacardi Breezers.

Polgara on 11.08.07 @ 08:56 AM PST [link]

100 Things About Me: 10-18

10. I'm slightly obsessive-compulsive. This means I get really into TV shows and hobbies.


11. I'm a bit flaky, which means I can drop a hobby I was previously obsessed about, and never look back.


12. One TV show I was obsessed with was MacGyver. It was pre-internet, so the only way to truly show my devotion was to watch it twice a day (7 and 11 on USA!), and make it my mission in life to see every episode ever featured in the opening credits montage.


13. I was a finalist for a spontaneous essay contest in high school. I think I blew it when I had to write an essay that wasn't spontaneous, i.e. I had more time to work on it than an hour, and they saw that there wasn't really a difference.


14. I'm a master procrastinator (which kinda helps explain #13).


15. I received a perfect score on an essay I wrote in junior high for a state test. It was apparently very rare to get a perfect score on that test, so, yay me! The topic was, Where Would You Rather Be Right Now? I wrote about Narnia.


16. I was the first person in my generation of my family to receive my Bachelor's degree, and the third person ever (two uncles beat me to it).


17. I'm a big fan of practical jokes, and was (in)famous for them at my last job.


18. I used to write humorous poems and songs, mostly\ for my (previous) company's annual Secret Santa ritual. Cleverness was highly regarded, both for the gift itself and for the note that accompanied it. One year, I ghost-wrote poems for five other people's gifts.

Je suis desolée

I removed the commenting option. The only "people" using it were the spam engines, so there was no real need to keep them. Someday, I'll get around to upgrading myself to a Wordpress blog, which has better spam and comment control. Until then, I'll just be talking to myself, wondering if anyone's really hearing me out there. And you know what happens when a person talks to herself for too long, right? All kinds of crazy stuff starts to come out!

In not so crazy stuff (or maybe it is?) I have lost motivation yet again to clean my apartment. There was a chance I'd have a houseguest later this month, which is always the *perfect* motivation for all kinds of things, but now the houseguest is not so much, so my tolerance for untidiness has returned to its usual very high levels. Very sad. Also sad that I won't get to see said houseguest, for that matter.

But! That leaves more time for knitting for Christmas. :-D See? Bright side to everything!

And in other news, I owe about a gazillion "things about me", so let me go get started on that.
Polgara on 11.07.07 @ 06:34 PM PST [link]

Oh goody

Someone's been trying to break into my system. There have been numerous failed login attempts in the past couple of days, usually overnight, but one just 30 minutes ago. Oh joy. The spam attacks on the comments I expect, but trying to hack your way in? That's just malicious. Their mothers must be so proud.
Polgara on 11.07.07 @ 09:01 AM PST [link]

Feeling sick to my stomach

An old Japanese man is removed from a train for taking pictures of pretty scenery

Why have we let our country reach this point?
Polgara on 11.06.07 @ 11:28 AM PST [link]

Ok, I lied, I do have more!

Check this baby out! My friend Allyson's book was featured in Unshelved's Sunday edition yesterday! Squeeeeeee!
Polgara on 11.05.07 @ 06:02 PM PST [link]

Almost forgot!

Yikes, one busy day at work, and I nearly forgot to post! I have nothing earthshattering to share, I'm afraid, as I'm *still* busy at work. The heater is on because the office is like a freezer. I had evil, stabby thoughts about a coworker today who "seriously annoyed" me (I say it like that in case my uncle ever finds this blog, but what I really want to say is much more uncouth), but after venting to my supervisor, I downgraded my thoughts to just evil.

The changing of the clocks hasn't sunk in yet--woke up way too early. But I stayed in bed, and the cats, rather than pester me for food, decided to hunker down with me, or more to the point, ON me. I think I still have a crick in my neck from the way Jack settled on my head.

That's it for the now. I know I promised to post pictures, and I owe three more things about me, but those'll have to wait. Later!
Polgara on 11.05.07 @ 05:18 PM PST [link]

100 Things About Me: 7-9

7. I'm addicted to Scrabulous, which is a problem because the more I play, the better I get, and some of my friends are threatening to stop playing with me. :-(

8. I have five Celine Dion cds. I know! There's no way to defend the state of my musical taste when I was in my twenties. If it helps, I have them all unchecked in my iTunes.

9. I'm in a lifetime struggle to the death with my weight. Nov 2006, I weighed 15 pounds less than I do today in Nov 2007. However, in Oct 2007 I weighed five pounds more than I do right now, so you see--constant struggle. The up and down is probably what's going to kill me in the end.
Polgara on 11.04.07 @ 10:49 AM PST [link]

I'm not wearing underwear today!

Ok, that's not really true, I just have that song from Avenue Q stuck in my head today:

I'm not wearing underwear today,
No I'm not wearing underwear today
Not that you probably care
Much about my underwear
Still none the less I gotta say
That I'm not wearing underwear today

Right now I'm procrastinating getting dressed and out of the house to visit Miss Gracie. Not that I don't want to visit Gracie, of course, 'cause she's usually the highlight of my weekend; it's the getting moving part that I always have a hard time with. It didn't help that my morning started off with trying to figure out why my desktop wallpaper didn't appear when I booted up. Usually that means my external drive needs rebooting, but this time the drive was fine. Turns out, when I went to properties, the only images in the wallpaper selection screen were the defaults, and oddly, the images I'd deleted yesterday. Weird. Still, not a great way to start the morning.

In other news of my terribly exciting life, I spent yesterday knitting my first Christmas gift of the season while watching Buffy dvds. No clue yet who it'll go to--it actually turned out so nifty I might find it hard to part with it. At least that's one I can check off, though. Friday night, I sorted my wool yarn by color and pattern so I can just knit through it all without much thought (a rip-roaring Friday night, that was!), so I'll be starting number two when I get back from Gracie's.

I also managed to get off my duff last night and took a walk to Best Buy. I was motivated to do so by a desire to go hiking today--I found a nifty site that describes hikes local to my area, and one of them seemed to be not too difficult. Sadly, even though the round trip to BB is barely over a mile, my injured hip was still pissed off before I got back, which means no hiking for me yet. It felt good to get out and moving, though; I'm planning to give it another try tonight (must remember to stretch this time, though). On the plus side, my knee, while tired and cranky after the walk, did not spasm like it usually does. This is very heartening news.

In blog news, I'm going to try to remember to post a photo every day. Everyone likes photos, right? This is a picture of me with my sister, my cousin Kerry and her daughter Korina, taken last month when I went home for my cousin Cindy's son's wedding reception. (Didja follow all that?)

Weather: 61F with an expected high of 73F
Breakfast: South Beach PB&chocolate protein bar, two cups of tea

Polgara on 11.04.07 @ 10:40 AM PST [link]

100 Things About Me: 4-6

4. My closest friends are people I met online, specifically at The Bronze and Buffistas (both Buffy the Vampire Slayer communities).

5. I first started wearing glasses when I was eight, and I was very happy about it, because the most popular girl in class also wore glasses, so I considered them very "in".

6. When asked, I usually say my favorite color is purple, and yet my favorite nail polish (and hair) color is blue, and most of my yarn purchases are in shades of green, and my bedroom is decorated in pinks, oranges and yellows, so I've recently come to realize that I really don't have a favorite color--I just like all of them!

Weather: 59F, with an expected 81F high for the day

Breakfast: Same as the last two days--protein bar and tea (only one cup so far, 'cause even though I remembered to pick up a box of Lipton yesterday, I didn't realize how very low the milk supply was)
Polgara on 11.03.07 @ 10:44 AM PST [link]

Scooby-dooby-doo!

One of my favorite online comic strips is Unshelved, about life in a public library. I met the artist last summer at Comic-Con in San Diego--he was very nice, signed my book with a cute drawing of Dewey, the lead character. He said one of the things he'd learned that weekend was that Unshelved had a larger number of non-librarian readers than he'd realized, which I think is cool. After all, librarians aren't the only ones who love libraries. :-)

For the past few months, they've been featuring a contest called Pimp My Bookcart, which is exactly how it sounds--pimp your bookcart, send in a picture, and the best wins a brand new bookcart (actually, second best does too!). I've been ignoring this contest because, let's face it, I may love libraries, but I don't work in one. But today, they posted a link to a pimped bookcart that was featured in the news in Rockford, IL: Decked-out library cart is beyond cool.

Look at that picture! Isn't that the cutest thing you've ever seen?? But more importantly--and this just proves what an enormous sap I really am--is the story of how the welding class at the school turned it into a class project, and worked together to create something so adorable--and functional--for their school library. I love stories like that; they're the medicine to all the stories of the apathy of today's kids that are usually more common.
Polgara on 11.03.07 @ 10:03 AM PST [link]

100 Things About Me: 1-3

You know that meme that goes around sometimes, the 100 Things About Me one? I've always had a hard time coming up with 100 things. I know there are at least 100 things to share, 'cause let's face it, I wasn't born yesterday--I've lived 38 years of things to share. So I think I'll use this NaBloPoMo challenge to try to come up with at least 100 things, by sharing three new things a day. At least I shouldn't run out of topics, right?

1. I am a Virgo. Sometimes I think I don't fit the description at all--orderly, organized, reasonable and responsible. Sounds like the most boring person in the world. Then I look at my alphabetized dvds, and my sectioned sock drawer, and my to do lists with sub-categories, and think maybe it's not *so* far off the mark. However, I'm a cuspy Virgo, so perhaps that explains my other, more childlike qualities that maybe I'll get into elsewhere on the list.

2. I love balloons--big ones, small ones, round ones, long ones; and the more brightly colored, the better. They make me smile, and if there are enough of them, they can make me giddy.

3. I hate white foods. Actually, that isn't as all inclusive as it used to be. When I was five, I threw up my macaroni and cheese lunch in the parking lot of a store where we were going to see Santa. Needless to say, Santa had to wait. Ever since then, white sauces and creamy stuff freaks me out. As I've gotten older, I've learned to accept and even love some white foods--cream cheese and clam chowder come to mind. Cadbury eggs, mayonnaise, sour cream and white macaroni and cheese are still on the no-freaking-way list. (Orange mac and cheese from a Kraft box is ok, though--as long as it's sticky, and not runny.)

There, that's my three for the day. :-)

Weather for today: 62F, with an expected 74F high
Breakfast: Protein bar, two cups of emergency backup tea (ran out of Lipton yesterday, phooey)
Polgara on 11.02.07 @ 11:03 AM PST [link]

'Tis my day off today, whatever shall I do?

Today's my day off. That's one of the coolest perks at my company--we get every other Friday off, all year long. Normally, I'd have PT today, but I've been downgraded to "schedule as needed" instead of "once a week", so it truly is a day off.

I toyed with going to visit Gracie today (my friend's baby girl), but after thinking about it, I realized I was already planning to stop at the nearby yarn store, and that's just too risky, so the Gracie visit will have to wait until Sunday, when the yarn store is closed.

Instead, I shall endeavor to wash more dishes (the situation is seriously out of control these days), visit Target (for necessities only, I promise!), and maybe photograph more yarn and projects for my Ravelry database. There's a purse, many scarves, and 12 granny squares that need to be recorded for prosperity. I also have to choose what I'm going to make for the company's Holiday Charity Auction. And perhaps I'll watch the tv shows I missed earlier this week. My life is so exciting, isn't it?

In other news, Big Papi was on Regis and Kelly this morning--woot! He's so adorable. The players' voices always take me by surprise, as they never sound as I expect them to. I watch them up close and personal on my tv, the camera shots so close you can practically count their freckles, but it's rare that I hear them speak. Papi, on the other hand, sounded pretty much as I expected--except for the accent. I'd somehow managed to forget that he wasn't born here. His English was excellent, though, and he said nice things about the fans, which is always nice to hear.

On a more somber note, please send prayers/warm thoughts/be safe vibes to Jimmy C., the best man at my sister's wedding, who is currenty deployed somewhere overseas. Earlier this week a member of his team was killed 15 feet from him, which means Jimmy is way closer to the action than we'd like him to be. My condolences go out to the family of Jimmy's friend, and my wish for a safe return goes out to Jimmy and the rest of his team.
Polgara on 11.02.07 @ 10:18 AM PST [link]

NaBloPoMo

Welcome to National Blog Posting Month! In an effort to kickstart this stagnant blog, I've committed to updating this blog every day for the month of November. I've even enabled comments for the time-being (and already got one spam attempt!), although I had to remove the email field 'cause the code was broken and I couldn't figure out why--you can add your email to the homepage field, if you'd like.

For those new to the site, allow me to introduce myself. I'm female, well past my twenties and closing in on the big 4-0. I work as a web programmer for a museum in Los Angeles. I have two cats, Trouble and Jack, and we live in West Hollywood. I'm originally from Massachusetts, where my family still lives, so I visit there frequently. I collect yarn (to support my knitting and crochet habit), dvds, books, and iTunes' free download of the week. I adore the Red Sox, particularly El Capitan, Jason Varitek. And, that's all I've got for this early in the morning when I'm only halfway through my first cup of caffeine.

Feel free to introduce yourself in the comments. :-)

Weather: 54F right now, with a high of 74F expected today
Breakfast: chocolate chip protein bar and a cup of tea
Polgara on 11.01.07 @ 08:23 AM PST [link]