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[Sep. 25th, 2008|07:58 pm] |
1. If you're on my friends list, I want to know 35 things about you. I don't care if we never talk, or if we already know everything about each other. Short and sweet is fine ... you're on my list, so I want to know you better.
2. Comment here with your answers and repost the questionnaire on your own journal, for your friends to fill out. :)
3. All comments are screened and won't be posted.
01) Are you currently in a serious relationship?
02) What was your dream growing up?
03) What talent do you wish you had?
04) If I bought you a drink what would it be?
05) Favorite vegetable?
06) What was the last book you read?
07) What zodiac sign are you?
08) Any Tattoos and/or Piercings? Explain where.
09) Worst Habit?
10) If you saw me walking down the street would you offer me a ride?
11) What is your favorite sport?
12) Do you have a Pessimistic or Optimistic attitude?
13) What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator with me?
14) Worst thing to ever happen to you?
15) Tell me one weird fact about you.
16) Do you have any pets?
17) What if I showed up at your house unexpectedly?
18) What was your first impression of me?
19) Do you think clowns are cute or scary?
20) If you could change one thing about how you look, what would it be?
21) Would you be my crime partner or my conscience?
22) What color eyes do you have?
23) Ever been arrested?
24) Bottle or can soda?
25) If you won $10,000 today, what would you do with it?
26) What's your favorite place to hang out at?
27) Do you believe in ghosts?
28) Favorite thing to do in your spare time?
29) Do you swear a lot?
30) Biggest pet peeve?
31) In one word, how would you describe yourself?
32) Do you believe/appreciate romance?
33) Favourite and least favourite food?
34) Do you believe in God?
35) Will you repost this so I can fill it out and do the same for you? |
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| PSV'ing and Photo Booth'ing at the Black Drop |
[Dec. 11th, 2007|10:18 am] |
I miss LJ -- I never get to read or post these days. But even more, I miss the Black Drop. I haven't been to my favorite coffee shop in over a year. Ridiculous! But here I am now, laptop in hand, with X at daycare, my client meeting over, and some time to just sit and surf. And best of all? ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) hastapeanut and duffy61 are behind the counter today! This makes my week. It's exactly like the old days, when X wasn't even crawling yet, and we'd come to the Black Drop a couple times a week so I could be around people during the day who, you know, could actually talk. I'm so happy.
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| (no subject) |
[Mar. 29th, 2006|01:01 pm] |
For days I've felt a need to pop in here and write something. There seems to be a lot to write about these days. Or, at least, to reflect on. But there's never time and there's always a stack of email to respond to and Netflix is starting to feel like a job (a fun one, though) and my father was here for a week and work starts up again next week and there's a baby shower this weekend and a trip to Seattle the weekend after that and before I know it, the day is done and I feel unaccomplished and the least of my worries is my silly little online journal.
The phone was ringing in the other room while I typed that last paragraph, and even though Xander's down for a nap, I didn't dive to grab it; I just let it ring. I don't want to talk to anyone else today. Just M and X. That's it.
Speaking of the phone, we made the switch from our antiquated landline to digital-voice Vonage about a month ago and I flipping love it. Love. It. I finally have caller ID and call waiting and digital voice mail and free long distance, for just $25 a month. Suck it Qwest, and all your ridiculous charges for features like voice mail.
For someone who can't stand to use a cell phone so never got to enjoy its unimited long distance, this has been life-changing.
Saw the New Pornographers at the Nightlight last week and it was phenomenal. I didn't think anything could top the first time I saw them (at the Croc in 2001 with Neko, who had requested Kate's band to open for them that night, which is why we were there in the first place). I was wrong. I so rarely see live music these days. I needed to be reminded just how fantastic it can make me feel. |
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| I carry your heart |
[Mar. 12th, 2006|10:06 pm] |
A weekend getaway to Seattle + M out of town for several days = that weird mix of happy and sad. It's always fun to be on my own for a few days, but at the same time, M is in D.C. and that feels so damn far away. Friday won't get here quite soon enough, I'm sure.
Had a great time in Seattle this weekend. A visit to Kate and Jessica's always means good food and exceptional wine, topped with great conversation. They spoil us. Xander and I headed home early today; I needed a Sunday afternoon to putter around the house to re-ground myself, I think. He fell asleep 30 minutes into the drive, and then stayed asleep for two hours after we got home.
I watched a total chick flick tonight, which isn't my usual M.O. "In Her Shoes" was recommended by a friend whose taste I trust. I really liked it (though that could be the red wine talking a little). But it was freaky to have the whole finale rest on the ee cummings poem that I chose to read at Kate and Jessica's wedding, though. It means so much to me, but seemed a bit cheapened by being used in a movie starring Cameron Diaz.
I need movie suggestions for the rest of the week. "Diner" is already here from Netflix (don't know if it will live up to my memories), but I think having a week to myself warrants a trip to the dreaded Blockbuster to pick up some extra rentals for late-night viewing. I always love foreign films and almost anything indie.
Oh, an aside: Saw "The War Within" this week and can't get it out of my mind. I highly recommend it.
Off to an early bedtime. Lots to accomplish this week on top of doing the single parent thing. Goodnight, friends! |
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| (no subject) |
[Feb. 27th, 2006|09:04 am] |
Life lately has been nothing but interrupted nights with a feverish Xander and trying to catch up on sleep whenever I can during the day. He's better now, mostly -- poor baby. It's a relief.
With M out of town awhile back and then the various illnesses around here, I haven't been going out much. Thank god for Netflix. Recent rentals:
The Aristocrats
Metropolitan
Thumbsucker
The Object of My Affection
Omagh
Broken Flowers
The Triplets of Belleville
Grizzly Man
Junebug
Favorites? A tie between Junebug and Thumbsucker. I now have an irrational crush on 20-year-old Lou Pucci. Makes me feel like a dirty old woman. ;) |
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| (no subject) |
[Jan. 26th, 2006|10:11 pm] |
Sometimes it seems, because I write for a living, that I just don't have the brain power to write here (a living -- ha! I publish 10 articles a year, if that; I'm a full-time mama and a part-time freelance writer, no doubt about it). And I know I'll regret it. When I go back and look at old entries -- the night Kate and I drove to Portland and back so she could play her last show, for instance -- it's like having a living diary. The memories are so vivid and so immediate.
So I go weeks and weeks without posting here, and I don't record the memories that would be so fun to re-read in a decade: Xander doing the dozens of cool things he does every day; K & J (finally!) finding out they're pregnant and sharing the news with us immediately (hard to keep this one quiet); phone calls from J that still strike me as surreal in their normalcy; the quick visit to the Drop to see Stephanie, who brings more to my life in the tiny snippets of time that we spend together than would ever possibly make sense to her. And on and on.
Time just gets away from me. And it's a damn shame, because I'm having one of those times in my life when everything seems to carry so much meaning and I know I'll be crazily nostalgic for it in a few years. I want to remember what it felt like to be the mother of a 15-month-old. I want to remember what it felt like to have B & L over for dinner and serve them an amazing meal (so rare for me! M is the unafraid chef) that was overshadowed by even more amazing conversation and connection. I want to remember our little bungalow and our walks to the park.
There's a chance we could be moving away in the next year or so. I can't really think about it. I don't actually believe it will happen. But it might, and the thought makes me nostalgic for something that may not even come to pass.
I can't imagine what it would be like to live far away from this sleepy, foggy, waterlogged, fabulous college town, and to only be able to remember how amazing it is.
I live so close to the water, yet I go weeks without walking down there and taking it in. If there's even an inkling of a chance that we could be moving this year, I must go appreciate the beauty of this place more often. How will I forgive myself if I don't? |
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| (no subject) |
[Jan. 17th, 2006|07:47 pm] |
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The driver's side seat belt stopped working in our car today. The part costs $150, and it'll be labor on top of that. Dammit! Just when we start to get ahead, we fall behind. More than the money, I'm frustrated that this may mean no trip to Seattle this weekend. I was counting the days... |
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| (no subject) |
[Jan. 14th, 2006|10:13 pm] |
I got to be an adult today and it felt so damn good.
Wait, scratch that -- I'm an adult every day, because I'm a mama and a damn good one. What I mean is that I got to put on my "professional writer" hat, leave Xander with his Daddy, and go to an amazing home to interview the homeowners for an article I'm writing at the last minute for the spring issue.
Then I got to come home, hug my giddy little boy who was having a blast with his dad, and then hole up in my office and continue using my brain for something other than child rearing.
It was exactly the kind of break I need, just every once in awhile, so I can remember that I'm really good at this.
And to top it off, I got myself up and ready early enough that I could pop into the Drop to see Steph and have a cup of coffee. Yay! Makes me pine for April days when I could take a still-immobile Xander to the coffee shop and just relax.
Steph looked stunning, by the way. I'd kill to be able to apply eye liner like that! ;)
The rest of my day just continued on its unexpectedly perfect path. As I was walking in from the car, Brian drove by and honked. I burst into the house and, becuause the sun was shining (unbelievable after -- what? -- 25 straight days of rain?), I made M and X go for a walk to Toad Mountain for hot chocolate. While walking through the neighborhood, another long-lost friend drove by and yelled a greeting. It was a day of connections.
Later, after X took a three hour (!!) nap, I hung a shelf in the his room and that made me feel accomplished and organized and good with a level and drill.
Then, tonight, I finally watched a movie Netflix sent almost two weeks ago: "Dear Frankie." It's exactly the kind of movie I love to watch with a glass or two of red wine.
Now I'm headed to bed to pick up where I left off in Ian McEwan's fantastic "Atonement." Tomorrow probably can't top today, but I'm excited by the slight chance that it might. |
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| Yakety Yak |
[Jan. 12th, 2006|02:43 pm] |
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The flu swept through our house a week ago, knocking all three of us down one by one. I think I'm finally ready to resume normal living... |
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| (no subject) |
[Dec. 19th, 2005|07:21 pm] |
For the past several years, a friend has sent me wonderful holiday gifts as thanks for helping her out with web stuff and promotion and such. One year it was a huge box of Godiva chocolates. Last year I got a massive assortment of fruit and other yummies from Diamond Organics -- we still use the basket in our kitchen, where it's now home to garlic and onions and things. Sometimes, while I'm working at the stove, I'll run my hand along its rim and feel fortunate all over again for these thoughtful gifts.
I'm always excited to open these yearly packages, because my friend has great taste and sends things I won't buy for myself -- unnecessary splurges. Today the mailman arrived with a smallish, square, very heavy box wrapped in brown paper and addressed to me in her familiar handwriting.
I carefully removed the brown wrapping and found a package carefully wrapped in paper adorned with modern Christmas tree ornaments in silver, white and gold. I ripped through this second layer and uncovered the most stunning fabric box, which was held closed by a thick decorative band and chunky silver clasp. Inside the beautiful box was an array of fabulous bath things -- scrubs and bubble bath and perfume and cream and so on. The perfect gift, as always.
This little box will undoubtedly find a useful purpose somewhere in my house -- as a jewelry box on my nightstand or perhaps a spot to stash favorite Xander photos in the study. Wherever it ends up, just seeing it will surely brighten my day just the tiniest bit. |
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| (no subject) |
[Dec. 1st, 2005|12:11 pm] |
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It's snowing! I'm so pleased. Unless it snows enough to somehow ruin celebration plans for M's birthday tonight. Then I will be so not pleased... |
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| (no subject) |
[Nov. 17th, 2005|07:36 pm] |
Tonight was M's turn to be an adult and stay out past 7 o'clock, while I brought the boy home at 6:30 and put him to bed. M's at a dinner party around the corner, enjoying a vegetarian feast and red wine.
But it's more than fair, since two weeks ago he took Xander home early from a wedding we were attending, before the reception even got started. Me? I didn't get home until 1am. Who got the better end of that stick, eh? |
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| (no subject) |
[Oct. 8th, 2005|10:34 am] |
I'm throwing a 1st birthday party today for the boy. I don't really know how to do these sorts of things. I got all Martha last night and made him a party hat. (I hate that all the hats in the stores have licensed characters on them, like Dora, Spiderman, Elmo, etc. Gag.) I think it turned out pretty good, considering I'm no crafter.
Is it bad to serve beer and wine at a baby's birthday party? There's only one toddler on the guest list (and he's straight edge, I'm sure LOL) -- all others are adults. Bring on the red wine, I say... |
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| (no subject) |
[Sep. 25th, 2005|06:23 am] |
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The baby has been sick and last night was the first he's slept through in a week. Yet I've been wide awake since 5am. Grrr.... |
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| (no subject) |
[Sep. 20th, 2005|10:13 pm] |
Latest meme making the rounds
- brak:
If you don't know who Brak is, then I can't help you. - death cab for cutie:
Local boys done good. From sleepy little Bellingham to the cover of this month's Spin magazine. - feminism:
Not a dirty word, though many would lead you to believe otherwise. - husker du:
College memories. Hearing Bob Mould sing an acoustic version of "Makes No Sense At All" in a tiny club is one of my all-time favorite live music moments. - kids in the hall:
Reminds me of late nights with M in high school. - nada surf:
A favorite band 10 years ago, whom I then promptly forgot about until 2003. A favorite band again. - sarah vowell:
Amazing writer with that sexy "This American Life" lisp. - tanya donelly:
Throwing Muses. Belly. Solo. Love love love. - the lemonheads:
Favorite live show of 1990. - travel:
I can't wait to take M and X to Ireland and Northern Ireland someday.
Enter your LJ user name, and 10 interests will be selected from your interest list.
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| (no subject) |
[Sep. 19th, 2005|08:44 am] |
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The copy chief from a major publisher just cold contacted me about possible freelance work. I know better than to get my hopes up too high, but Mondays aren't supposed to start off so potentially promisingly... |
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| (no subject) |
[Sep. 13th, 2005|09:23 am] |
Starting my birthday with a large, sweet, jolting "Monkey in a Tree" from the Black Drop is not a bad way to begin.
Xander has a double ear infection -- ouch. I knew it was inevitable, but wish he wasn't so miserable. Poor boy. We were all going to have a picnic down at the bay tonight -- the only bit of celebration I agreed to allow M to throw -- but now I think I'd rather keep the boy warm at home. We'll see.
I said this to M this morning, and it encompasses everything about why I'm sad today: Why can't birthdays always feel as special as they did when you were 12 years old? It used to be: 'Hey, it's MY day and I'm finally a year older and I can't wait to open my presents and take cupcakes to school for everybody!' Now, it's: 'Ugh, I'm halfway to 70, and is this the year the aches and creaks start?'
Oh good god, the melodrama! :P I realize I'm wallowing and it's all completely silly. So many of the coolest, most lively people I know are in their 40s and 50s (and beyond!).
I'll get over it. At exactly midnight tonight. |
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| Red red wine |
[Sep. 9th, 2005|09:02 pm] |
I hate that song.
But when I went to see UB40 in 1986, at least a couple years before that song emerged as one of the most annoying ever recorded, that show became a turning point for me. I found myself finally listening to music that wasn't played on the radio (The Smiths, The Cure, R.E.M. (pre-"Stand"), The Bolshoi, Sigue Sigue Sputnik, New Order...). I met one of the band members on the street before the show, which seemed so cool at the time, but now just seems ridiculous. And when I heard opening act Fine Young Cannibals that night, at the Civic Center in podunk Des Moines, Iowa, I was transformed. Wish I had a turntable so I could play the FYC 12-inch of "Johnny Come Home" that's in the basement.
(Funny how the silly charge I get from hanging out with pseudo-famous folks has followed me into adulthood: J. Mascis, Evan Dando, Ben Lee, Ben Gibbard, the list that means nothing to almost anyone but me goes on and on...)
Oh, wait. Where am I going with this? I dunno. I just drank a good portion of a bottle of Smoking Loon Cabernet Sauvignon on my own and I'm a little tipsy and that's the thought that popped into my head.
When do I do the drunk posting? Usually when M is out of town for work stuff (which he is, until Sunday). Jess was supposed to arrive earlier today, but had to postpone until tomorrow, so tonight is being spent watching saved episodes of Kathy Griffin's "Life on the D-List" and drinking vino. Heavenly.
(Xander went down like a dream hours ago, as per usual. Don't think I don't feel a teensy bit bad about getting a buzz on while my baby sleeps in the other room. But no worries: If he were to have a medical emergency of some sort, I'd call an ambulance to drive us the three minutes to St. Joseph's.)
I feel like lots is going on these days, while at the same time, nothing much is happening. I start working part-time soon. Wow. The extra income will be fantastic, but I'm a bit worried about figuring out day care for X. I know it'll all work out. I'm working on another home feature and a local restaurant article -- but that's not really true, as I haven't lifted a finger yet to get the ball rolling. I guess I trust it'll all come together just in time, as it usually does.
Xander turns one in exactly a month. I turn 35 in a handful of days. I'm equally freaked out about both. How can he already be one?? How can that crazy string of days that culminated in the coolest little baby in the world coming to live with us have been so long ago already? And why on earth did I wait so long to have him? Because now, with this awful birthday hanging over my head, I'm thinking it's too late to take my time deciding if I want another. |
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