Date:	2009-03-19 10:18
Subject:	Well, this is novel
Security:	Public
Mood:	still sick

Woo! I'm at work today - unavoidable, with two meetings to run and a presentation to give this afternoon - and I have a MAN VOICE.

Date:	2009-03-18 20:50
Subject:	Ugh (Content-free)
Security:	Public
Mood:	sick

I've been home sick this afternoon, and feeling sorry for myself. I've caught that cold that's making the rounds, and it has reduced my brain to mush. (It sucks. I have already popped my floating rib with the coughing, giving me days of fun to look forward to.)

[Oh, hey, ayb2 just called me! I hacked up a lung at her so, um, sorry about that, ayb2! I'll call back when I'm human again...]

I've been doing load after load of laundry because that's mindless, but I'm currently trying to watch Lethal Weapon II and it is just way too challenging for me to comprehend right now, never mind that I've seen it about a dozen times already. (Although Joss Ackland IS pleasingly evil, as ever.)

[And this is a contribution from the cat, who is being unusually lovey: mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm]

Apart from the whining, I also wanted to say that it was really, really great to see so many lovely LJ folks on Monday. I'll try to upload some of my photos of the Palimpsest reading when I find my brain and a card reader. In the meantime, avoid the plaguey folks like me, and stay healthy!!

ETA The over-abundance of parenthetical asides are actually pretty representative of my current state of mind. View them - and me? - accordingly.

Date:	2009-02-24 00:23
Subject:	*yaaawwwwwn*
Security:	Public
Mood:	out like a light!

Just made this recipe for hot milk punch (with an extra teaspoon of sugar, to suit my own tastes.) The Wondrich take is not wrong.

*passes out*

Date:	2009-02-12 13:19
Subject:	Happy Darwin Day!
Security:	Public
Mood:	geeky

Let us all celebrate scientific rigor, intellectual honesty, personal quirkiness and simple decency by honoring the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin today.

(Also, we must not forget the Chainsaw of Natural Selection!!)

Date:	2009-01-29 15:44
Subject:	Bibliophile (2008)
Security:	Public
Mood:	contemplative

Better late than never and all that... but it's well past time for me to make my annual book post. Compared to the last few years, I was a little lax this year about keeping track of what I read and when (particularly when), but I did manage for the most part. As usual, my numerical goal was 100 books, and as usual, I missed.

This year I made it to 75 in total, which is one more than last year. Unlike last year, however, I don't have a Masters thesis to show for it. I can only blame the mental vacation I took. ;-) I did a lot of re-reading this year, but I'll still count those books towards the total. In a couple of cases, that happened because I carried the same e-books on major trips at the beginning and end of the year. There were also a half-dozen books that I made major progress in before stopping for no reason - most of those books are on my bedside table so I can revisit them.

This year, I'm presenting the breakdown of first-reads and re-reads before I present the complete list with commentary; I think it's a little easier to follow this way, for those who care to try.

Date:	2009-01-19 16:50
Subject:	*grump*
Security:	Public
Mood:	grumpy

There are (quite a, to be honest) few things more disheartening than being home sick on a work holiday. It's even more of a gyp than being sick on a weekend. And trying to get work done during that holiday just makes the whole experience vaguely insulting.

That said, I'm going to take advantage of enforced idleness to catch up on some LJ chores, maybe sort a few photos, and touch base with some of you - I've been lax about reading lately, let alone posting.

In the meantime, I hope you're all enjoying our lovely winter weather! I'm thinking soup and a fireplace are in order...

Date:	2008-12-30 18:02
Subject:	Quick hello
Security:	Public
Mood:	tired
Music:	Philip Glass - The Light (1987) For Orchestra

So this is a quick post just to say, hello LJ friends! I've been offline for almost a month here, so I'm feeling waaaay out of touch. Therefore, and because I am too jetlagged/tired/lazy to actually make my way back through a month's worth of updates (y'all are prolific!!) I'm going to make the usual request: if anything of import or interest has occurred to you in the past month that you think I should know about, please point it out!

I may make some inroads on my Friends list backlog, but am dubious.

In the meantime, Merry Christmas, Happy Boxing Day, Happy Hanukkah, and a Happy Happy New Year to you all!!

Date:	2008-11-18 21:54
Subject:	Interesting day
Security:	Public
Mood:	tired

I've had better mornings.

( Car travails )

( Rental car travails )

Work was work, and I got a full day in despite my very delayed arrival.

( Delicious beer )

So, to summarize: bad morning, lovely evening. Let's hope tomorrow morning is better than today! And with that, to bed!

I just came back to my computer and iTunes was playing Imani Coppola's "30th Birthday" (AKA, '30th Birthday: You're Over the Hill,' full of so many swear words that I can't play this on the radio)

That's a helluva coincidence, iTunes.



(Yes, today is my birthday. I get an election and 70-degree weather for my birthday!)

Date:	2008-10-21 15:57
Subject:	Produce-arrific weekend
Security:	Public
Mood:	well-fed

Saturday morning rolled around and, since I was up before 8, I decided to swing by the Farmer's market to see what there was to see. Upon arriving, I tripped and fell upon temptation, spent all of the money in my wallet and came home with the mother lode of autumnal produce!

Date:	2008-09-13 00:42
Subject:	Exercise log for 9-12
Security:	Public
Mood:	accomplished and tired
Music:	West Side Story: Symphonic Dances

It's been a long time since I've made an exercise post, but I can legitimately make one now...

( exercise log! )

Date:	2008-09-12 22:45
Subject:	This was going to be an exercise log post (!!), but first...
Security:	Public
Mood:	amused

Overheard from the kitchen: "Goodness me, this is unusual!"


Supper clubbers - I hope you're looking forward to dinner tomorrow. I know I am!

Date:	2008-08-15 14:06
Subject:	A meme I can get behind: FOOOOD!
Security:	Public
Mood:	Well-fed

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

"Below is a list of 100 things that I think every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all..."

( My, what a good little omnivore I am! )

Date:	2008-08-06 12:18
Subject:	*whimper*
Security:	Public
Mood:	sore and tired. also whiny.
Music:	drilling from upstairs?

So, one of the many things that I haven't told you about, land of LJ, is that I've been learning how to sail this summer. It's great! There's this women's racing league that focuses on teaching and encouraging new sailors, so even though I'm learning by being thrown into the absolute deep end, it's quite fun. There's a lot of yelling by our skipper(s), frequent confusion, and periodically piles of bodies on one side of the boat or the other that make it look like we're attempting to play tackle football when really we're all just lunging to grab the same lines.

Thus far my greatest triumph for the summer is that I haven't succumbed to seasickness, a near-miracle given my susceptibility.

Races are held approximately every two weeks, on Tuesday nights, which is a nice schedule, except that right now we're racing every week in an attempt to make up for some early summer bad weather. Last night was a make-up race night and it turned out to be one of the physically hardest things I have done in years!

Things started a little ominously, with lowering clouds and choppy waves on the lake, but the wind was brisk and we weren't rocked too much. The wind then became very brisk, making the race rather exciting. My task for the night was to help run the jenny and the spinnaker, along with another newbie, Erin. This is what we've been practicing, but we haven't ever practiced with as much wind as we had last night, and it was HARD to get the sails in. Lots of pulling, lots of cranking, lots of precarious standing on the low rail to get a grip on the winch handle... By the end of the race, my hands were cramping and my lower back was starting to spasm. And then the race committee announced that they'd be starting a second race five minutes later! A little numbly, we reset the boat and headed back to the starting line for another race. (A second race in one night is nearly unheard-of in the women's league. We were all surprised.) The second race was faster than the first, but we didn't race quite as well: we were tired, there is no doubt.

All in all, we actually did reasonably well. We probably placed second or third in both races. The predicted wind speed was 5-10mph, but the nearest weather station reports wind speeds of 16mph and gusts of 23mph and I'd believe it. We never lost control, but some of our tacks got preeeettty tippy. I never had a foot entirely in the water while cranking, but my feet did get wet.

All that excitement and adrenaline have left me a wreck today, though. My hands are surprisingly fine but my arms hurt, my legs are sore (like a good workout would do), I feel somewhat hungover, and I have a stunning collection of bruises and welts all down my knees and shins. The worst, though, is the muscle I have clearly strained or pulled in my lower back. I can't sit up straight, I walk like my left knee is locked, and I can barely bend over.

And what am I doing tonight?! Sailing AGAIN.

Date:	2008-07-18 16:21
Subject:	Exercise Log for July 18
Security:	Public
Mood:	tired

Whoops, I missed last week's exercise log. Mea culpa! I worked with Sean on Friday, got in 30 minutes of vigorous cardio and then a really good workout session. I felt vigorous and accomplished. But that was last week...)

( Exercise Log )

Date:	2008-07-09 16:59
Subject:	Why I love Uwe Schmidt
Security:	Public
Mood:	giggly

Taking a dose of my own advice to yuki_onna (about the joys of college and independent radio), I was wandering the WFMU website, found their list of whacko MP3s and found this gem by 386 DX, aka Senor Coconut, aka Lassigue Bendthaus, aka Atom Heart, aka Lisa Carbon...

I nearly blew tea out my nose laughing.

Date:	2008-07-09 10:28
Subject:	Whining, a little
Security:	Public
Mood:	amused

I ran through a monsoon to the get to the radio station, after discovering that I didn't have a functional umbrella. My raincoat saved most of me, but not all, leaving me damp from the neck up and knees down...

But this wasn't entirely bad because the air studio was 95 degrees this morning, a situation not improved by the previous programmer(s) turning off the fans. By using one to draw air out and one to blow air in, I got the temperature down to about 90 by the time I left...

Only to go outside and find that it was 99% humidity and warm outside. My clothes were sticking to me by the time I got to work.

And our DA just told me that I have HUGE bags under my eyes, accompanying the statement with hand gestures to convey their enormity. *sigh*

I am not at my best this morning, but most of this amuses me now. I think that's the tea and Arabica muffin bolstering my spirits.

Another session with my ass-kicking personal trainer today.

( Read more... )

Thanks to a dental appointment this morning, I couldn't go to the gym either before work or during lunch. Feeling both guilty and annoyed about this - I was scheduled to lift weights - I decided to do a little bit at home after work. Thanks to leaving work late and stopping at the grocery store on my way home, I didn't get started until 7:45. Boo. Must work on that!

( Exercise Log )

(I'm back-dating this, to put it in the proper place)

( Exercise Log )