The Jeanners and I are both a bit grumpy and discombobulated today. Apprehensions about the people at the title company not getting our renovation loan shit in order in time to close by the end of the month (which is when we need to close by), frustrations choosing hallway lighting, and an impending visit from Jeannie's Dad and older brother that we're both a little anxious about. Things just don't seem to be smooth or easy today. An uphill day.
It's windy as hell here. If you know me well, you know I don't like wind.
Tonight I dumped a good amount of pasta on my shirt while attempting to eat it. The pasta. Not my shirt. I was attempting to eat pasta and instead dumped it on my shirt.
Yesterday was a beautiful day and I heard 'Where the Streets Have No Name' on the radio while driving home from the liquor store with the sunroof open. It doesn't get much better than that. Especially since it was followed up by Prince's 'Let's Go Crazy.' Also, it got up to 65 degrees inside our house, which is the warmest it's been in several months.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Reality
Two facts that I have always known, but that over the last day or so have sunk into my gut to a level where I realized that, although I knew them (the facts), I did not necessarily TRULY KNOW THEM:
1. Bert and Ernie are puppets. They are not real people. The rest of the muppets and sesame street casts always seemed like puppets, but for some reason those two never did.
2. The word 'spankin' ('If you keep that up, you're gonna get a spankin!') is not a word. It's a bastardized version of 'spanking.'
1. Bert and Ernie are puppets. They are not real people. The rest of the muppets and sesame street casts always seemed like puppets, but for some reason those two never did.
2. The word 'spankin' ('If you keep that up, you're gonna get a spankin!') is not a word. It's a bastardized version of 'spanking.'
Monday, February 14, 2011
Jobs.
I have realized over the last week or so that I like Michelle Obama. Since we've been sans TV for awhile, I'd never really seen her speak much or anything, but I've caught a few things here and there online and at work during the last few days, and I have cast my vote. Pro Michelle.
Today I was thinking about the different jobs I've had. I can't remember why. This is what I remember: It was about 2pm, and I had just gotten out of the shower. I was sitting on the edge of the bed (in the dining room), putting on my shoes, and sunlight was coming in through the blinds. It was windy and I could hear thr trees outside blowing in the wind, and I could see the shadows of their branches moving around in the room. Anyway, here's the list of jobs I remember:
1. ticket-taker at high school hockey games.
2. worked for a lawn-care company, mowing lawns.
3. worked for a sod company for 1 day and then quit.
4. grocery store. Started smoking regularly while I worked there.
5. worked for a contractor for a few weeks, maybe a month.
6. worked on the Goldenrod Showboat. 75 performances of Hello, Dolly!.
7. Scenic carpenter at Stages St. Louis.
8. Auditorium Manager at Truman. I still have nightmares about this job.
9. Power Plant. Many jobs at the power plant. Laborer, Coal Gang (bulldozer driver, tugboat worker, and a cushy job sitting at a computer and operating belts), Plant Oeprating Engineer. I still have nightmares about this job.
10. The Nobes. After 8 years of working there, I have finally started to make what I made when I started at the power plant.
Had an inventory at work last night. Relatively uneventful. I got home around 3am and then worked this afternoon at 3. Unfortunately I have to go in tomorrow at 7, and I should really be in bed right now, but I needed a little while to wind down, aka drink a gin and tonic and eat most of a baguette with a ton of butter.
Had a tasty dinner for jeannie's birthday at The Hellmand, a place where we had never been but was nice and cute and good food. I got her a manure fork for her birthday, which is what she had asked for. A manure fork is pretty much the same thing as pitchfork, but ergonomically designed specifically for picking up and throwing ("pitching") feces, I guess.
Highlight of the week, probably: got an e-mail from the Beej on Friday night - "Are you working tomorrow" - Saturday morning at work he magically comes strolling through the door and we get to catch up a little bit. He was in town for a lightning visit in order to take care of in-law familial obligations with his ladyfriend. Always good to catch up with the Beej. Just thinking about getting to see him makes me happy inside my head.
Today I was thinking about the different jobs I've had. I can't remember why. This is what I remember: It was about 2pm, and I had just gotten out of the shower. I was sitting on the edge of the bed (in the dining room), putting on my shoes, and sunlight was coming in through the blinds. It was windy and I could hear thr trees outside blowing in the wind, and I could see the shadows of their branches moving around in the room. Anyway, here's the list of jobs I remember:
1. ticket-taker at high school hockey games.
2. worked for a lawn-care company, mowing lawns.
3. worked for a sod company for 1 day and then quit.
4. grocery store. Started smoking regularly while I worked there.
5. worked for a contractor for a few weeks, maybe a month.
6. worked on the Goldenrod Showboat. 75 performances of Hello, Dolly!.
7. Scenic carpenter at Stages St. Louis.
8. Auditorium Manager at Truman. I still have nightmares about this job.
9. Power Plant. Many jobs at the power plant. Laborer, Coal Gang (bulldozer driver, tugboat worker, and a cushy job sitting at a computer and operating belts), Plant Oeprating Engineer. I still have nightmares about this job.
10. The Nobes. After 8 years of working there, I have finally started to make what I made when I started at the power plant.
Had an inventory at work last night. Relatively uneventful. I got home around 3am and then worked this afternoon at 3. Unfortunately I have to go in tomorrow at 7, and I should really be in bed right now, but I needed a little while to wind down, aka drink a gin and tonic and eat most of a baguette with a ton of butter.
Had a tasty dinner for jeannie's birthday at The Hellmand, a place where we had never been but was nice and cute and good food. I got her a manure fork for her birthday, which is what she had asked for. A manure fork is pretty much the same thing as pitchfork, but ergonomically designed specifically for picking up and throwing ("pitching") feces, I guess.
Highlight of the week, probably: got an e-mail from the Beej on Friday night - "Are you working tomorrow" - Saturday morning at work he magically comes strolling through the door and we get to catch up a little bit. He was in town for a lightning visit in order to take care of in-law familial obligations with his ladyfriend. Always good to catch up with the Beej. Just thinking about getting to see him makes me happy inside my head.
Monday, February 07, 2011
Guitaw Hummin'
My poop for the last couple of days has looked and smelled remarkably like what it was in its former life: rice and cream of broccoli soup and corn and peas.
Sorry about that. I needed an intro. Something to get me started when I don't have much to write about and what I really want to write about (the house and what we've been doing with it over the last couple of days) I've decided that I don't want to write about anymore because I've become a little obsessed and it's the only thing I seem to be able to think or write about. Like somebody who's obsessed with their job or their kids or their new girlfriend or something, and there ain't much more boring than that. So I'm going to try and not write about that very much anymore.
Which leaves a big nagging hole in the "topics to write about" area. There's always poop. There will always be poop. So there might be even more writing about my poop than usual in here over the next, oh, 5 years or so.
What else is there? The Jeanners has a birthday coming up. Card and present purchased, baked goods baking will commence over the next day or so. Her birthday's on Saturday, and unfortunately I have to work during the first part of the day, so that kinda sucks a little but not too bad. We'll do something fun that night. Maybe watch a 'Thirtysomething' AND a 'Mad About You.'
The Jeanners and I looked over our finances the other day, and the past few months have been one big fiesta of money-spending (especially with the new (used) car purchase, which was in our price range but definitely at the very tip top of our price range), so we have decided to make a conscious effort to save some dough. Our usual method of saving money is just getting our paychecks, buying whatever we want or need during the month and then whatever's left over goes into savings. That has worked pretty well up until now (we don't really have expensive tastes), but with all the money we've been putting into Mr. X (I think I'm going to start saying
'Mr. X' instead of 'house' now) and the money we spent on the car, it seems like a good idea to make a bit more of an effort.
Starting to reread Kerouac's Desolation Angels. Definitely one of my favorite books.
Some things that I've always wanted to write in here but have never found the right context in which to insert them:
1. Every time I cook with garlic (which is about 2 or 3 days a week), I think of Drew H.
2. Along the line of human development, I'm guessing there was a year in which human comfort and the level of negative human impact were relatively balanced. That is, at some point human comfort started costing the earth a whole lot to maintain, and I'm wondering when was the last time that it didn't cost the earth a whole lot to maintain, but comfort levels were still relatively (within the context of all of human history) high. Just before the industrial revolution? Is that the type of lifestyle we should be shooting for in order to minimize our impact on the planet? Or is there a futuristic, high-tech solution?
3. I have bunions. I think it is karma for publicly making fun of a former girlfriend's fucked up feet. Although, in my defense, I only made fun of her feet long after we had broken up, and to people that didn't necessarily know who she was.
Lately I've been wishing I had time to really put some serious work into recording, but then when I do scrape together an evening to head down to the basement, the stuff I record is boring and well-trod and pedestrian. Ugh.
Today I am off to Lowe's in Hunt Valley and Second Chance. Every time I go to Second Chance I think to myself, "I'd skin awhile and cry awhile." Which if you're a This American Life buff you might get but if you're not then you just think I'm stupid. I'm guessing that 99% of the four people that read this think I'm stupid.
Sorry about that. I needed an intro. Something to get me started when I don't have much to write about and what I really want to write about (the house and what we've been doing with it over the last couple of days) I've decided that I don't want to write about anymore because I've become a little obsessed and it's the only thing I seem to be able to think or write about. Like somebody who's obsessed with their job or their kids or their new girlfriend or something, and there ain't much more boring than that. So I'm going to try and not write about that very much anymore.
Which leaves a big nagging hole in the "topics to write about" area. There's always poop. There will always be poop. So there might be even more writing about my poop than usual in here over the next, oh, 5 years or so.
What else is there? The Jeanners has a birthday coming up. Card and present purchased, baked goods baking will commence over the next day or so. Her birthday's on Saturday, and unfortunately I have to work during the first part of the day, so that kinda sucks a little but not too bad. We'll do something fun that night. Maybe watch a 'Thirtysomething' AND a 'Mad About You.'
The Jeanners and I looked over our finances the other day, and the past few months have been one big fiesta of money-spending (especially with the new (used) car purchase, which was in our price range but definitely at the very tip top of our price range), so we have decided to make a conscious effort to save some dough. Our usual method of saving money is just getting our paychecks, buying whatever we want or need during the month and then whatever's left over goes into savings. That has worked pretty well up until now (we don't really have expensive tastes), but with all the money we've been putting into Mr. X (I think I'm going to start saying
'Mr. X' instead of 'house' now) and the money we spent on the car, it seems like a good idea to make a bit more of an effort.
Starting to reread Kerouac's Desolation Angels. Definitely one of my favorite books.
Some things that I've always wanted to write in here but have never found the right context in which to insert them:
1. Every time I cook with garlic (which is about 2 or 3 days a week), I think of Drew H.
2. Along the line of human development, I'm guessing there was a year in which human comfort and the level of negative human impact were relatively balanced. That is, at some point human comfort started costing the earth a whole lot to maintain, and I'm wondering when was the last time that it didn't cost the earth a whole lot to maintain, but comfort levels were still relatively (within the context of all of human history) high. Just before the industrial revolution? Is that the type of lifestyle we should be shooting for in order to minimize our impact on the planet? Or is there a futuristic, high-tech solution?
3. I have bunions. I think it is karma for publicly making fun of a former girlfriend's fucked up feet. Although, in my defense, I only made fun of her feet long after we had broken up, and to people that didn't necessarily know who she was.
Lately I've been wishing I had time to really put some serious work into recording, but then when I do scrape together an evening to head down to the basement, the stuff I record is boring and well-trod and pedestrian. Ugh.
Today I am off to Lowe's in Hunt Valley and Second Chance. Every time I go to Second Chance I think to myself, "I'd skin awhile and cry awhile." Which if you're a This American Life buff you might get but if you're not then you just think I'm stupid. I'm guessing that 99% of the four people that read this think I'm stupid.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
H A M
The Jeanners is off helping Katie the North American Traveler pack up her shit and get ready for another move, this time up to Gettysburg to farm with her sister. She's (Jerns) been gone most of the afternoon, and I've spent the afternoon working on wiring. Up in the attic a lot, eating a lot of insulation, not wearing the proper PPE (Personal Protective Equipment), not a good idea. I'll probably be coughing a lot tomorrow.
Yesterday I was at the grocery store and I bought some ham, which is a big deal cause since the J-Dog don't eat the meat we generally don't have any meat at home. So last night I made some delicious mashers for dinner and tonight I had a tasty meal of ham, leftover mashers, and some crusty bread that the J-Dog bought this morning.
What should I do tonight? The Jeanners probably won't be home til a bit later, so I have awhile to entertain myself. Maybe a little Civ III, maybe a little recording or remixing. Who knows. Maybe watch somethin' on Netflix.
Because a co-worker of mine changed his availability to being only available on weekends to work, it means that I have had quite a few weekends off lately, which has been awesome. The Jeanners and I have been able to make some good progress without driving ourselves crazy.
Another weird tidbit: a coworker of mine who is in his mid-40's had a seizure the other day, went to the hospital where they found a brain tumor and did an emergency surgery on him the next day. Jeez. You never know what's going to happen to you over the course of a week, I guess.
Yesterday I was at the grocery store and I bought some ham, which is a big deal cause since the J-Dog don't eat the meat we generally don't have any meat at home. So last night I made some delicious mashers for dinner and tonight I had a tasty meal of ham, leftover mashers, and some crusty bread that the J-Dog bought this morning.
What should I do tonight? The Jeanners probably won't be home til a bit later, so I have awhile to entertain myself. Maybe a little Civ III, maybe a little recording or remixing. Who knows. Maybe watch somethin' on Netflix.
Because a co-worker of mine changed his availability to being only available on weekends to work, it means that I have had quite a few weekends off lately, which has been awesome. The Jeanners and I have been able to make some good progress without driving ourselves crazy.
Another weird tidbit: a coworker of mine who is in his mid-40's had a seizure the other day, went to the hospital where they found a brain tumor and did an emergency surgery on him the next day. Jeez. You never know what's going to happen to you over the course of a week, I guess.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Don't Think Twice, It's Alright
I had a dream last night that my brother and I were chaperoning Bob Dylan at some sort of lodge. Lodge isn't the right word, it wasn't like a ski lodge or anything, it was more like a non-expensive woodland resort. Anyway, he was going to be performing there, and my brother and I were charged with hanging out with him, making sure he had everything he needed, and basically being his handlers. And then my brother started making all these anti-semetic comments, using the word "jewed" as a verb, etc. Bob Dylan got upset, and I was totally embarrassed. And Bob Dylan started being really aloof and pissy, which is generally how he is decribed as acting in real life. It was very strange, and it taught me that I never want to be on the wrong side of Bob Dylan's disappointment.
In other news, the J-Dog and I have gotten lots of good work done over the last week or so. The snow that we got this week gave her two unexpected days off, so we were able to get some shit banged out in the evenings.
She's home from work now so I'm gonna go.
In other news, the J-Dog and I have gotten lots of good work done over the last week or so. The snow that we got this week gave her two unexpected days off, so we were able to get some shit banged out in the evenings.
She's home from work now so I'm gonna go.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Radio Silence
I am procrastinating. I've been doing a mix of easy errands/jobs and procrastination all morning long. At the moment my two choices are: work on some wiring stuff so that Jeannie and I can start putting up drywall in the middle bedroom this weekend OR go sit in the bathtub and read a DFW short story that I started while taking a shit and that I remember not liking that much when I first read it but I was getting somewhat interested in while shitting. Or I guess there's an unspoken third option that I'm currently taking advantage of: write in the fucking blog, which you (I) haven't done in a million yrs.
The Jeanners and I bought a new used car last night, after a relatively unstressful but still stressful search. I mean, it felt stressful, but I'm sure it could've been a whole helleva lot worse. We ended up buying a 2004 Honda Civic Hybrid that we got a too-fucking-good-to-be-true deal on. So either the car is stolen or it's going to conk out in about 15 minutes. I'm hoping for stolen. Anyway, we weren't looking for a hybrid, but like I said, it was sitting there with this too-fucking-good-to-be-true price and it's a Honda and it was within the mileage range and price range that we were looking at, so we said "why the fuck not?" So I guess now we are officially capital 'L' Liberals, which I feel uncomfortable about because I don't like to identify myself with any sort of camp or tribe. I feel about politics the same way I feel about fraternities or the military: if I spent any amount of time with anybody who's supposedly on "my team," I would probably want to punch them in the face and then go join the opposition. Where the process would repeat itself. So anyway, in order to balance the potentially political statement of our car purchase, I'm going to start sending a weekly turd to our local NPR station, and start throwing away mass quantities of plastic bags at work. If I can round up any endangered animals I will grind them up into felafel balls and have a big vegetarian dinner party.
Hey, it's 2011! We did not make contact in 2010, as was previously advertised. Balls. There were a few decent albums that came out, though. Here's some of my favorites:
1. Beach House, Teen Dream. Yes, they are hipster darlings, but I really love this album. I can listen to it all the way through, I can't understand the words which means it takes longer for me to get sick of it, it's kind of lush but kind of lo-fi, and I like the lady's voice.
2. Laura Viers, July Flame. I think she's kind of like a female Josh Rouse. Great weird songwriting, nice instrumentation, good stuff.
3. Arcade Fire, The Suburbs. I'm usually pretty hit-and-miss with the ol' Arcade Fire, but this album is definitely my favorite of theirs. I don't like every song, but I like enough of them that I consider this album to be a winner. The whole thing hangs together well, it conjures a mood without having every song sound the same, and it's got a few lines that reach out like diamonds.
I think those are my 3 favorites for the year. In semi-related news, I got The Very Best of the Staple Singers on Stax awhile ago, and I've really been enjoying it. I think that I would rate Mavis Staples as my #2 favorite female singer, behind Emmylou.
That's all I got for right now, I guess. I'm gonna go poke around.
The Jeanners and I bought a new used car last night, after a relatively unstressful but still stressful search. I mean, it felt stressful, but I'm sure it could've been a whole helleva lot worse. We ended up buying a 2004 Honda Civic Hybrid that we got a too-fucking-good-to-be-true deal on. So either the car is stolen or it's going to conk out in about 15 minutes. I'm hoping for stolen. Anyway, we weren't looking for a hybrid, but like I said, it was sitting there with this too-fucking-good-to-be-true price and it's a Honda and it was within the mileage range and price range that we were looking at, so we said "why the fuck not?" So I guess now we are officially capital 'L' Liberals, which I feel uncomfortable about because I don't like to identify myself with any sort of camp or tribe. I feel about politics the same way I feel about fraternities or the military: if I spent any amount of time with anybody who's supposedly on "my team," I would probably want to punch them in the face and then go join the opposition. Where the process would repeat itself. So anyway, in order to balance the potentially political statement of our car purchase, I'm going to start sending a weekly turd to our local NPR station, and start throwing away mass quantities of plastic bags at work. If I can round up any endangered animals I will grind them up into felafel balls and have a big vegetarian dinner party.
Hey, it's 2011! We did not make contact in 2010, as was previously advertised. Balls. There were a few decent albums that came out, though. Here's some of my favorites:
1. Beach House, Teen Dream. Yes, they are hipster darlings, but I really love this album. I can listen to it all the way through, I can't understand the words which means it takes longer for me to get sick of it, it's kind of lush but kind of lo-fi, and I like the lady's voice.
2. Laura Viers, July Flame. I think she's kind of like a female Josh Rouse. Great weird songwriting, nice instrumentation, good stuff.
3. Arcade Fire, The Suburbs. I'm usually pretty hit-and-miss with the ol' Arcade Fire, but this album is definitely my favorite of theirs. I don't like every song, but I like enough of them that I consider this album to be a winner. The whole thing hangs together well, it conjures a mood without having every song sound the same, and it's got a few lines that reach out like diamonds.
"Now you're knocking at my door
Saying please come out with us tonight
But I would rather be alone
Than pretend I feel alright"
I think those are my 3 favorites for the year. In semi-related news, I got The Very Best of the Staple Singers on Stax awhile ago, and I've really been enjoying it. I think that I would rate Mavis Staples as my #2 favorite female singer, behind Emmylou.
That's all I got for right now, I guess. I'm gonna go poke around.
Thursday, January 06, 2011
G's & T's?
We no longer own Reverend Al. I did get a chance to go and clean him out and say a proper goodbye. I will admit that I had not cleaned the reverend al in quite a few years and found lots of interesting things in the back seat. In addition to lots of garbage. A random sampling of some of the things found: 2 pairs of combat boots, a curtain rod, a shower curtain rod, a propane camping lantern, numerous play programs, a pair of flip flops, and a mini maglite case filled with drywall screws. That's just the back seat. Other shit in the trunk.
Today at work I was scanning out product that was getting sent back to the warehouse. A mostly physical task that leaves my mind free to wander. Today I was trying to figure out the best plural version of "gin and tonic." Gin and tonics? Gins and tonic? Gins and tonics? I think I like the last one the best. Which one do you like?
I might be getting a cold.
I am definitely eating cheese and crackers.
Today at work there was a turd in one of the toilets that was a real monster. I would like to emphasize that it was already in the toilet when I arrived in the stall, I did not put it there. But anyway, it was massive and it ABSOLUTELY REFUSED TO BE FLUSHED. It kept getting stuck sideways and just hung out while all the water swooshed around it. Anyway, after several fruitless attempts to flush it I had to give up and try a different stall. And no, I'm not proud that I just left it there, but I really try to only clean up poop at work when I absolutely have to.
DFW's last (and unfinished) novel being published in April. On tax day. Cause it's about IRS workers. I am looking forward to reading it.
I think the Jeanners is home!
Today at work I was scanning out product that was getting sent back to the warehouse. A mostly physical task that leaves my mind free to wander. Today I was trying to figure out the best plural version of "gin and tonic." Gin and tonics? Gins and tonic? Gins and tonics? I think I like the last one the best. Which one do you like?
I might be getting a cold.
I am definitely eating cheese and crackers.
Today at work there was a turd in one of the toilets that was a real monster. I would like to emphasize that it was already in the toilet when I arrived in the stall, I did not put it there. But anyway, it was massive and it ABSOLUTELY REFUSED TO BE FLUSHED. It kept getting stuck sideways and just hung out while all the water swooshed around it. Anyway, after several fruitless attempts to flush it I had to give up and try a different stall. And no, I'm not proud that I just left it there, but I really try to only clean up poop at work when I absolutely have to.
DFW's last (and unfinished) novel being published in April. On tax day. Cause it's about IRS workers. I am looking forward to reading it.
I think the Jeanners is home!
Sunday, January 02, 2011
R.I.P. The Reverend Al Crawford Slater
Well, the insurance company decided to total my car. So the Jeanners and I will start looking for a new used car. Which is kinda sad because I liked the ol' Reverend Al Crawford Slater, but kinda not sad because it was really only a matter of time before he developed some major health problems, plus the cd player/radio had pretty much stopped working well at all. I do most of my music listening in the car, so when the cd player conks out it makes me sad.
Jerns and I got some real good work done on the house over the last few days:
It don't look like much, but it's a nice start to the middle bedroom. Now in that room we just have to rip out the old wiring, cut trenches for new wiring, run the new wiring, add some drywall nailers, drywall the ceiling, wait for the insulation folks to insulate the exterior walls, and then drywall the walls. Then add doors and trim and all that bullshit.
Not looking forward to going back to work tomorrow, but all in all it's been quite a decent weekend. I feel bad for the J-Dog, who will be returning to work on Tuesday after a two week hiatus.
I'm currently reading The Corrections, and I'm enjoying it. It's been on my list for awhile, so it's nice to finally be able to scratch it off. I'm about three quarters of the way through it, and I'm kinda ready to be done with it, though. I've liked it enough that I'll probably read his latest book when it comes out in paperback.
We had a real fun New Years' Eve the other night, and I actually stayed up until midnight for the first NYE in quite awhile, I believe. Katie the North American Traveler and her sister Anna and Anna's boyfriend Chris came over and we played Carcassonne and ate chili and baked macaroni n' cheese and drank tasty beer.
That's all I got fer now.
Jerns and I got some real good work done on the house over the last few days:
It don't look like much, but it's a nice start to the middle bedroom. Now in that room we just have to rip out the old wiring, cut trenches for new wiring, run the new wiring, add some drywall nailers, drywall the ceiling, wait for the insulation folks to insulate the exterior walls, and then drywall the walls. Then add doors and trim and all that bullshit.
Not looking forward to going back to work tomorrow, but all in all it's been quite a decent weekend. I feel bad for the J-Dog, who will be returning to work on Tuesday after a two week hiatus.
I'm currently reading The Corrections, and I'm enjoying it. It's been on my list for awhile, so it's nice to finally be able to scratch it off. I'm about three quarters of the way through it, and I'm kinda ready to be done with it, though. I've liked it enough that I'll probably read his latest book when it comes out in paperback.
We had a real fun New Years' Eve the other night, and I actually stayed up until midnight for the first NYE in quite awhile, I believe. Katie the North American Traveler and her sister Anna and Anna's boyfriend Chris came over and we played Carcassonne and ate chili and baked macaroni n' cheese and drank tasty beer.
That's all I got fer now.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Serious Slacking
Where to even begin? Let's try here:
So a couple of Sundays ago Jeannie's brother Jake and her Dad arrived from Detroit (Jake lives in Detroit and had driven to St. Louis to pick up her Dad and then back to Detroit to work on his [Jake's] house and then to Baltimore (The Mo')) for a few days of visiting and hard work. We attempted to go to Hamilton Tavern for tasty burgers but the wait was too long, so then after a few false starts and wild chases of goose we headed over to Pappa's for some relatively forgettable seafood. Then on Monday and Tuesday Jeannie and Jake and Roger (her Dad) worked on the house while I went to work and ran my ass off in the pre-Christmas busyness. They worked mostly on electrical-type work. Sorting through the old crummy stuff and figuring out how to run new pretty stuff.
Then on Wednesday I was off work and we were all able to work on the house together. It was good times. We hadn't seen Jake in like 3 years, and in addition to being handy as hell he's fun to be around. So that was cool. And Jeannie's Dad was fairly calm and chill the whole time and probably one of the hardest workers I've ever seen and super-knowledgeable. So we had a real good time, and we talked about merkins and eventually made it to the Hamilton Tavern for a real long wait and some tasty burgers.
Thursday morning the Jeanners and Jake-o and Roggie drove off early in the morning and headed to the Lou for Christmas vacation. I stayed home and worked a long, busy day. Then on Friday morning I headed to work for a half-day and then drove to the airport when I was done around noon. Unfortunately, I was in a bit too much of a hurry to get to the airport and I rear-ended a small SUV a short distance from work. So I hurriedly exchanged information with the other folks (their car was fine, the front end of mine was a bit busted up) and dumped the car in the employee lot at work (it was drivable but leaking fluids). Took a taxi home from work ($27!) and jumped in Jeannie's car and headed off to the airport. Made it to the gate with 20 minutes to spare. No need to have hurried in the first place.
Christmas vacation was busy and mostly fun and a little bit of a blur. Saw lots of family members, got to hang with Ricky Elz finally and also got to see Karista and Drew, which was a most pleasant surprise. Also got to spend some quality time with Richie Rich, who introduced us to the Big Chief. I will leave that entirely open for interpretation. Ice skated, ate way too much, drove around a lot.
On the last day I was in town, I headed over to see my parents, who had bought a computer for themselves for Christmas. I spent the afternoon teaching them some basics and then headed to an AT&T store to set up their internet service and order a modem/wireless router for them. When I say the basics, I mean THE BASICS. This is what a left click is. This is what a right click is. This is what a file is. This what a folder is. This is called "the desktop." It was pretty funny. And also fun. They are funny.
Then the Jeanners and I flew back on Tuesday morning (a large snowfall narrowly missed The Mo' and landed just north in Philly and NYC and such) and I headed in to work on Tuesday afternoon. We shopped for some new pants for me, we took care of taking the car to a shop and getting a rental car while the insurance co. figures out if they're going to fix it or total it, and we did some work on the house. Which brings us to right now. Jimmy Smith is playing on the CD player, my butt is falling asleep, and I think I'm gonna have a G&T made with gin given to me by a co-worker.
My shoes are horrendously stinky. I think they are the worst smelling shoes ever. Must buy new shoes.
So a couple of Sundays ago Jeannie's brother Jake and her Dad arrived from Detroit (Jake lives in Detroit and had driven to St. Louis to pick up her Dad and then back to Detroit to work on his [Jake's] house and then to Baltimore (The Mo')) for a few days of visiting and hard work. We attempted to go to Hamilton Tavern for tasty burgers but the wait was too long, so then after a few false starts and wild chases of goose we headed over to Pappa's for some relatively forgettable seafood. Then on Monday and Tuesday Jeannie and Jake and Roger (her Dad) worked on the house while I went to work and ran my ass off in the pre-Christmas busyness. They worked mostly on electrical-type work. Sorting through the old crummy stuff and figuring out how to run new pretty stuff.
Then on Wednesday I was off work and we were all able to work on the house together. It was good times. We hadn't seen Jake in like 3 years, and in addition to being handy as hell he's fun to be around. So that was cool. And Jeannie's Dad was fairly calm and chill the whole time and probably one of the hardest workers I've ever seen and super-knowledgeable. So we had a real good time, and we talked about merkins and eventually made it to the Hamilton Tavern for a real long wait and some tasty burgers.
Thursday morning the Jeanners and Jake-o and Roggie drove off early in the morning and headed to the Lou for Christmas vacation. I stayed home and worked a long, busy day. Then on Friday morning I headed to work for a half-day and then drove to the airport when I was done around noon. Unfortunately, I was in a bit too much of a hurry to get to the airport and I rear-ended a small SUV a short distance from work. So I hurriedly exchanged information with the other folks (their car was fine, the front end of mine was a bit busted up) and dumped the car in the employee lot at work (it was drivable but leaking fluids). Took a taxi home from work ($27!) and jumped in Jeannie's car and headed off to the airport. Made it to the gate with 20 minutes to spare. No need to have hurried in the first place.
Christmas vacation was busy and mostly fun and a little bit of a blur. Saw lots of family members, got to hang with Ricky Elz finally and also got to see Karista and Drew, which was a most pleasant surprise. Also got to spend some quality time with Richie Rich, who introduced us to the Big Chief. I will leave that entirely open for interpretation. Ice skated, ate way too much, drove around a lot.
On the last day I was in town, I headed over to see my parents, who had bought a computer for themselves for Christmas. I spent the afternoon teaching them some basics and then headed to an AT&T store to set up their internet service and order a modem/wireless router for them. When I say the basics, I mean THE BASICS. This is what a left click is. This is what a right click is. This is what a file is. This what a folder is. This is called "the desktop." It was pretty funny. And also fun. They are funny.
Then the Jeanners and I flew back on Tuesday morning (a large snowfall narrowly missed The Mo' and landed just north in Philly and NYC and such) and I headed in to work on Tuesday afternoon. We shopped for some new pants for me, we took care of taking the car to a shop and getting a rental car while the insurance co. figures out if they're going to fix it or total it, and we did some work on the house. Which brings us to right now. Jimmy Smith is playing on the CD player, my butt is falling asleep, and I think I'm gonna have a G&T made with gin given to me by a co-worker.
My shoes are horrendously stinky. I think they are the worst smelling shoes ever. Must buy new shoes.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Sweet Little Jesus Boy
It seems like every year I find one Christmas CD at work that just pumps my nads for the season. Last year: Phil Spector. This year: Andy "Fuckin' A" Williams. It is a bit overblown and schmaltzy, but whatever. I personally like his rendition of "O Holy Night" and a song that I had never heard before, "Sweet Little Jesus Boy." I also like the title "Sweet Little Jesus Boy." Perhaps I will steal it for my autobiography or auto-biopic.
Jerns and I have done some good work during the last week. We're doing some more demo, tearing out a wall between the kitchen and the future 3rd bedroom. As a result, there is now a little plastic bubble-room in our kitchen. It looks like this:
Also featured in that picture: Jeannie wearing a towel on her head. There, now you've seen it.
Tearing down the wall also involved moving a water line for the refrigerator ice-maker (which kinda sucked), some phone wiring, and a doorbell + wires. I enjoyed tinkering with the doorbell, and tinkering with it makes me want to invent and build a fully-electric xylophone. Perhaps when I have free time again (and after I have perfected the art of playing the pedal steel guitar) I will devote my life to the pursuit of the EX. (Electric Xylophone).
Getting back to the plastic-bubble room: It is fun to turn off the lights in the kitchen and then turn on the work lights in the bedroom behind the plastic bubble room. Kind of a weird theatrical lighting effect. Maybe in a future set I'll incorporate the plastic bubble room.
The Jeanners and I both have the day off tomorrow. The plan: lumberjack breakfast and then mucho worko.
I bought a backgammon set the other day. I just said what the hell.
Jerns and I have done some good work during the last week. We're doing some more demo, tearing out a wall between the kitchen and the future 3rd bedroom. As a result, there is now a little plastic bubble-room in our kitchen. It looks like this:
Also featured in that picture: Jeannie wearing a towel on her head. There, now you've seen it.
Tearing down the wall also involved moving a water line for the refrigerator ice-maker (which kinda sucked), some phone wiring, and a doorbell + wires. I enjoyed tinkering with the doorbell, and tinkering with it makes me want to invent and build a fully-electric xylophone. Perhaps when I have free time again (and after I have perfected the art of playing the pedal steel guitar) I will devote my life to the pursuit of the EX. (Electric Xylophone).
Getting back to the plastic-bubble room: It is fun to turn off the lights in the kitchen and then turn on the work lights in the bedroom behind the plastic bubble room. Kind of a weird theatrical lighting effect. Maybe in a future set I'll incorporate the plastic bubble room.
The Jeanners and I both have the day off tomorrow. The plan: lumberjack breakfast and then mucho worko.
I bought a backgammon set the other day. I just said what the hell.
Wednesday, December 08, 2010
Slacker
My 700th post.
I have been a slacker lately and not written in nearly 2 weeks. Apologies. No good reason, I suppose, just busy and haven't really felt like writing.
The other day I took a poop and it was the largest turd (girth-wise) that I've ever dropped. Just thought you should know. I felt a little violated afterwards.
Worked on mixing Spiff's song for the week after Thanksgiving. Sent it off a few days ago. I was mostly happy with the results, although when I was mostly finished I went back and listened to the rough mix that they had sent tom me along with the tracks, and realized that there were definitely things about their guitar sound that I liked better than mine. Not a fun thing to realize when you've put in a few days worth of work. Nonetheless, I think the song sounds good, and I also got to work out a bit of a Diddy-style remix. There's talk of maybe adding a little bass part at a future date.
Tami's production of A Raisin in the Sun opened last night, and the jeanners and I went to the show. The kids did a pretty great job and the show went well. It was great to see how excited they were at the end during the curtain call when all the people in the audience were screaming and clapping for them.
After the show, I headed up to the Rec Room for a little gathering to celebrate the promotion and impending departure of one Brian G from the Towson B&N. He will be taking over as the receiving manager over there in Pikesville. Best of luck, G-Man.
I haven't heard Car Talk in weeks. Sad faced.
I have probably contracted mesothelioma while working on our rear bedroom. But we got some good work done. Hopefully more good work will continue as we get closer to the end of the year.
Work has gotten busier but not crazy yet. Today it seemed like everybody and their mother wanted to tello me their life story. Why? Why? I'm still working on perfecting my "I'm sorry, I'm sure you're a very nice person and I'd like you to continue coming here, but please stop telling me things about yourself because I really don't care, and I just want to put away those CD's over there behind you" facial and body language.
Waiting for Jerns to get home.
Ugh.
Hm.
Hmmm.
I have been a slacker lately and not written in nearly 2 weeks. Apologies. No good reason, I suppose, just busy and haven't really felt like writing.
The other day I took a poop and it was the largest turd (girth-wise) that I've ever dropped. Just thought you should know. I felt a little violated afterwards.
Worked on mixing Spiff's song for the week after Thanksgiving. Sent it off a few days ago. I was mostly happy with the results, although when I was mostly finished I went back and listened to the rough mix that they had sent tom me along with the tracks, and realized that there were definitely things about their guitar sound that I liked better than mine. Not a fun thing to realize when you've put in a few days worth of work. Nonetheless, I think the song sounds good, and I also got to work out a bit of a Diddy-style remix. There's talk of maybe adding a little bass part at a future date.
Tami's production of A Raisin in the Sun opened last night, and the jeanners and I went to the show. The kids did a pretty great job and the show went well. It was great to see how excited they were at the end during the curtain call when all the people in the audience were screaming and clapping for them.
After the show, I headed up to the Rec Room for a little gathering to celebrate the promotion and impending departure of one Brian G from the Towson B&N. He will be taking over as the receiving manager over there in Pikesville. Best of luck, G-Man.
I haven't heard Car Talk in weeks. Sad faced.
I have probably contracted mesothelioma while working on our rear bedroom. But we got some good work done. Hopefully more good work will continue as we get closer to the end of the year.
Work has gotten busier but not crazy yet. Today it seemed like everybody and their mother wanted to tello me their life story. Why? Why? I'm still working on perfecting my "I'm sorry, I'm sure you're a very nice person and I'd like you to continue coming here, but please stop telling me things about yourself because I really don't care, and I just want to put away those CD's over there behind you" facial and body language.
Waiting for Jerns to get home.
Ugh.
Hm.
Hmmm.
Friday, November 26, 2010
The Magic is in the Math
"The Magic is in the Math" was the official slogan of this year's fake Thanksgiving visit to Ohio, which this year happened to be held on real Thanksgiving. It is a seriously good thing to be a thousand or so miles closer to the Schluetermetz', and the trip proved to be totally fun and relaxing and the emotional battery recharger that it has been in years past. The only thing missing was the wit and wisdom of one Uncle Rico. The trip included: card tricks, psychic connections, living room defecations, pants ejeculation (sic), spades, tasty food of all sorts, Oregonian visitors via Kentucky, massive downloading, smoked cheddar, toddler beat boxing, and Ok Go videos. The trip did not include Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire or, suprisingly, stinky farts.
This morning Jeannie and I woke up in Columbus a little after 5, left around 6, got home a little after 1, then I headed to work for Black Friday. It was fine. Uneventful.
While I was in Ohio, Sean and his buddy posted some tracks that they had recorded that I will be mixing down into a song. I got a chance to do a little preliminary work, but I think I'll really jump in with the wrenches and screwdrivers tomorrow before work. So I'll spend some upcoming free time working on that. Also hope to get some work done on the house, work on the final Hamlet matinees, and finish the lighting for Tami's Raisin in the Sun. So there's a lot to do in the coming week, but hopefully it will all fit together like a nice little puzzle.
Jeannie and I started drywalling the ceiling of our future bedroom, and I would just like to take moment to praise Allah for the invention of the drywall lift. Seriously. I don't know that I have ever appreciated the usefulness of a tool as much as I did when that fucker lifted those sheets of drywall right up to the ceiling and held them there. I think it has saved our marriage and our shoulders.
Currently: my stomach is rumbling. There's no ice in our freezer (we used it all to transport a super healthy turkey to Ohio in a 5-gallon bucket) so I can't have a gin & tonic, I'm eating popcorn, and I think my arse is gonna 'splode soon.
This morning Jeannie and I woke up in Columbus a little after 5, left around 6, got home a little after 1, then I headed to work for Black Friday. It was fine. Uneventful.
While I was in Ohio, Sean and his buddy posted some tracks that they had recorded that I will be mixing down into a song. I got a chance to do a little preliminary work, but I think I'll really jump in with the wrenches and screwdrivers tomorrow before work. So I'll spend some upcoming free time working on that. Also hope to get some work done on the house, work on the final Hamlet matinees, and finish the lighting for Tami's Raisin in the Sun. So there's a lot to do in the coming week, but hopefully it will all fit together like a nice little puzzle.
Jeannie and I started drywalling the ceiling of our future bedroom, and I would just like to take moment to praise Allah for the invention of the drywall lift. Seriously. I don't know that I have ever appreciated the usefulness of a tool as much as I did when that fucker lifted those sheets of drywall right up to the ceiling and held them there. I think it has saved our marriage and our shoulders.
Currently: my stomach is rumbling. There's no ice in our freezer (we used it all to transport a super healthy turkey to Ohio in a 5-gallon bucket) so I can't have a gin & tonic, I'm eating popcorn, and I think my arse is gonna 'splode soon.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Twice the Phlegm
Well, the J-Dog is now officially sick as well. I think that my illness is in the last quarter of its life, but I fear that hers is just beginning its upswing into serious drainage territory.
I have the day off today. It's my first day off in a few weeks that I haven't had to work on CSC set stuff or Tami set stuff. In fact, it's the first day off in a long time that I really have nothing on my plate. It's like a day off like in the olden days. Here's the lowdown of the day so far: woke up, took a bath and read some On the Road Original Scroll (not too crazily different than the final published version, but the parts that are different I like better), called my mom, did the dishes. I am now listening to tunes and eating eggs, toast, fauxsage and juice. Mental note: we are now out of eggs, fauxsage, bread and juice.
I would like to propose that if you don't like the song 'Train in Vain,' by The Clash, then there is something wrong with you. Perhaps something deep and dark that goes all the way back to childhood.
Still on the agenda for today: run the bathroom wiring into the basement. Maybe some drywalling, although this whole 'sittin' around doing nothing' is feeling so nice that I might say fuck the drywalling.
Now playing: David Bowie's 'Life on Mars'. I came to this song late but it's pretty damned good.
Thassall.
I have the day off today. It's my first day off in a few weeks that I haven't had to work on CSC set stuff or Tami set stuff. In fact, it's the first day off in a long time that I really have nothing on my plate. It's like a day off like in the olden days. Here's the lowdown of the day so far: woke up, took a bath and read some On the Road Original Scroll (not too crazily different than the final published version, but the parts that are different I like better), called my mom, did the dishes. I am now listening to tunes and eating eggs, toast, fauxsage and juice. Mental note: we are now out of eggs, fauxsage, bread and juice.
I would like to propose that if you don't like the song 'Train in Vain,' by The Clash, then there is something wrong with you. Perhaps something deep and dark that goes all the way back to childhood.
Still on the agenda for today: run the bathroom wiring into the basement. Maybe some drywalling, although this whole 'sittin' around doing nothing' is feeling so nice that I might say fuck the drywalling.
Now playing: David Bowie's 'Life on Mars'. I came to this song late but it's pretty damned good.
Thassall.
Monday, November 15, 2010
Junip
Junip is a new band/cd from Jose Gonzalez. It's pretty good.
I have been sick for the last few days. Nothing bad enough to keep me from going to work or anything, just a little cold. I think that I tend to get sick when I've inhaled too much sawdust, as I most likely did while I was working on Tami's set last week. Still, everything got built, and on Friday I headed over to her school and set everything up. Everything came together nicely and worked well. Still, it was a lot more work than I had expected. We had a meeting on Tuesday to figure out what everything should look like, I built it all on Wednesday after work and Thursday, and then on Friday loaded it in. A lot of work in a couple of days.
Saturday was the anniversary of me and J-Dog being hitched. Jeannie didn't want to hang out with me. Sad face.
However, on this Friday we will be heading out to Frederick, MD for a tasty meal, a concert with Emmylou Harris, and a romantic one-night stay at a Holiday Inn. Cue the Barry White.
Then next week we head to Ohio, about which I am exceeding pumped. Don't even get me started about how pumped I am.
Noodle soup is probably starting to get cold there on the stove.
This GoodEarth 'original' flavored tea is pretty damned good, but Jeez, don't try and brew a second cup off of the first bag. Weak ass. It must shoot it's tea-load in the first cup.
Big Spiff Chambers sent me a message the other day about mixing some songs that he might record up there in Alaska. Sounds like a pretty fun project. I like working on long-distance projects. I also like the fun of mixing songs without the pressure or work of writing or recording them.
Today I had a meeting at work at 7 this morning, then I go back this evening at 5pm to work a short shift. I have spent the 8 or so hours in between attempting to sleep.
Tonight after my short shift I will be stopping by a 30th birthday party for my co-worker and friend, Abbey. When I die, Abbey will be the one who takes over the music department and leads it into the 22nd century. Or maybe the 23rd. I'm banking on higher life expectancies by then. I'll need the extra time to finish working on the house.
I have been sick for the last few days. Nothing bad enough to keep me from going to work or anything, just a little cold. I think that I tend to get sick when I've inhaled too much sawdust, as I most likely did while I was working on Tami's set last week. Still, everything got built, and on Friday I headed over to her school and set everything up. Everything came together nicely and worked well. Still, it was a lot more work than I had expected. We had a meeting on Tuesday to figure out what everything should look like, I built it all on Wednesday after work and Thursday, and then on Friday loaded it in. A lot of work in a couple of days.
Saturday was the anniversary of me and J-Dog being hitched. Jeannie didn't want to hang out with me. Sad face.
However, on this Friday we will be heading out to Frederick, MD for a tasty meal, a concert with Emmylou Harris, and a romantic one-night stay at a Holiday Inn. Cue the Barry White.
Then next week we head to Ohio, about which I am exceeding pumped. Don't even get me started about how pumped I am.
Noodle soup is probably starting to get cold there on the stove.
This GoodEarth 'original' flavored tea is pretty damned good, but Jeez, don't try and brew a second cup off of the first bag. Weak ass. It must shoot it's tea-load in the first cup.
Big Spiff Chambers sent me a message the other day about mixing some songs that he might record up there in Alaska. Sounds like a pretty fun project. I like working on long-distance projects. I also like the fun of mixing songs without the pressure or work of writing or recording them.
Today I had a meeting at work at 7 this morning, then I go back this evening at 5pm to work a short shift. I have spent the 8 or so hours in between attempting to sleep.
Tonight after my short shift I will be stopping by a 30th birthday party for my co-worker and friend, Abbey. When I die, Abbey will be the one who takes over the music department and leads it into the 22nd century. Or maybe the 23rd. I'm banking on higher life expectancies by then. I'll need the extra time to finish working on the house.
Monday, November 08, 2010
Don't Bring Home Herpes
Well, the J-Dog was home for one day, and now she is back out of town, this time in Talladega, Alabama. She'll be gone till Friday. For work. So she says. I say it smells like a big sweaty man affair to me.
It was good to see her while she was here, though. It's really quite boring and depressing being home without her. On Friday and Saturday I watched all three Back to the Future movies. BTTF #2 did not hold up as well as I remembered, even though the second half was much better than the first half. Still, though, I always judge how bad the world is getting by how much things look like the bizarro 1985 where everything was seedy and casino-like and gangs of bikers ravaged the city and set everything on fire. Sometimes the world seems a lot like that and sometimes not as much.
At the moment there are three shitty, five-dollar doors sitting in the living room that are waiting to be put into some flats that haven't been built yet. For my friend Tami's show. Tomorrow I meet with her after work to figure out exactly how the set should work. Then Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday I'll build shit.
I should really go to bed, as I have to get up early tomorrow. But I'm not tired. I will regret this tomorrow.
Oh-so-close to being done with IJ. Probably less than 30 pages. I think I'm going to read the original "scroll version" of 'On the Road' next. Then "The Corrections".
That's about it for now, I guess. Looking forward to this week being over...
It was good to see her while she was here, though. It's really quite boring and depressing being home without her. On Friday and Saturday I watched all three Back to the Future movies. BTTF #2 did not hold up as well as I remembered, even though the second half was much better than the first half. Still, though, I always judge how bad the world is getting by how much things look like the bizarro 1985 where everything was seedy and casino-like and gangs of bikers ravaged the city and set everything on fire. Sometimes the world seems a lot like that and sometimes not as much.
At the moment there are three shitty, five-dollar doors sitting in the living room that are waiting to be put into some flats that haven't been built yet. For my friend Tami's show. Tomorrow I meet with her after work to figure out exactly how the set should work. Then Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday I'll build shit.
I should really go to bed, as I have to get up early tomorrow. But I'm not tired. I will regret this tomorrow.
Oh-so-close to being done with IJ. Probably less than 30 pages. I think I'm going to read the original "scroll version" of 'On the Road' next. Then "The Corrections".
That's about it for now, I guess. Looking forward to this week being over...
Wednesday, November 03, 2010
Squat 'er on the Water
It's been a long time since I last wrote. Things have been a bit busy around here. I find that bullet points are handy for bringing everything up to speed:
* A friend of the Jeanners' from college passed away on Sunday from breast cancer. A terrible, terrible tragedy. She was our age, 33-ish, with two small daughters. The Jeanners is (understandably) pretty bummed and flying to St. Louis tonight after work for the funeral tomorrow.
* House work is on hold for two weeks because I'm currently working on the set for the CSC show at Goucher College (which is tomorrow), and then next week the Jeanners is out-of-town at a training/conference thingie in either Alabama, Arkansas, or Georgia. I don't think it's Georgia, though. Anyway, between her unexpected trip to St. Louis and the work trip, she'll be gone almost a week and a half. Sucky. However, I will be busy while she's gone because I have agreed to half-design/build a set for my friend Tami's middle-school production of 'A Raisin in the Sun.' Should be relatively easy, but time-consuming nonetheless.
* Then we go to Ohio, then Thanksgiving, then work gets busy, and then there's another CSC show at a high school somewheres.
* I've been able to build the set for CSC at home. It's been really nice having somewhere to build and not be working outside or on a parking lot somewhere.
* I have finished with the stripping/sanding of the doors for our future bedroom. I'm tired of doors, and I'm gonna take a little break before starting on the doors for the other bedrooms and the linen closet. The last door was a real pain to work on. The paint DID NOT want to come off. At one point I actually said to the paint "The power of Christ compels you to come off this door!" It did not seem to help. The only thing that did seem to help was using about 20 sanding discs and just sanding the hell out of it.
* I am hungry. I should probably have some dinner.
* Almost done with Infinite Jest. About 150 pages to go. So good. Next up: The Corrections.
* Been working on music at night when I get the chance. Pretty abysmal results.
* A friend of the Jeanners' from college passed away on Sunday from breast cancer. A terrible, terrible tragedy. She was our age, 33-ish, with two small daughters. The Jeanners is (understandably) pretty bummed and flying to St. Louis tonight after work for the funeral tomorrow.
* House work is on hold for two weeks because I'm currently working on the set for the CSC show at Goucher College (which is tomorrow), and then next week the Jeanners is out-of-town at a training/conference thingie in either Alabama, Arkansas, or Georgia. I don't think it's Georgia, though. Anyway, between her unexpected trip to St. Louis and the work trip, she'll be gone almost a week and a half. Sucky. However, I will be busy while she's gone because I have agreed to half-design/build a set for my friend Tami's middle-school production of 'A Raisin in the Sun.' Should be relatively easy, but time-consuming nonetheless.
* Then we go to Ohio, then Thanksgiving, then work gets busy, and then there's another CSC show at a high school somewheres.
* I've been able to build the set for CSC at home. It's been really nice having somewhere to build and not be working outside or on a parking lot somewhere.
* I have finished with the stripping/sanding of the doors for our future bedroom. I'm tired of doors, and I'm gonna take a little break before starting on the doors for the other bedrooms and the linen closet. The last door was a real pain to work on. The paint DID NOT want to come off. At one point I actually said to the paint "The power of Christ compels you to come off this door!" It did not seem to help. The only thing that did seem to help was using about 20 sanding discs and just sanding the hell out of it.
* I am hungry. I should probably have some dinner.
* Almost done with Infinite Jest. About 150 pages to go. So good. Next up: The Corrections.
* Been working on music at night when I get the chance. Pretty abysmal results.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Solo Banjo
Sheesh, it's nine-thirty already. And here I was gonna get an early start to the day. I just finished a tasty day-off breakfast of eggs, fauxsage (I just coined that expression, perhaps? Must google it now), biscuits, and juice. I have been very motivated and hard-working lately, and I hope that today will continue that trend. The Jeanners and I started drywalling in the bedroom (oo la la!) last weekend, and today I would like to drywall the linen closet. I have not done any solo drywalling before, though, so I hope it works out OK. I picked the linen closet because I figured that the drywall pieces would be small enough for me to maneuver them by myself. We shall see.
Apparently, I did not coin fauxsage. Balls.
Things I have realized lately:
1. I've been spending a lot of time alone. I enjoy spending time alone.
2. Really loud music makes nearly everything better. Work ceases to be work when you are listening to really loud music.
Last night Jerns and I went on a really nice long walk. Talked about all sorts of shit.
Karista bought a horse.
The remount of Hamlet at Goucher College is approaching rapidly, and I have done no prep for it. Must find out what Ian wants for a set. And then build it.
It was 56 degrees when I woke up this morning. Inside.
We're going to Ohio around Thanksgiving this year. Can't freakin' wait. It's been a long time since we've seen our friends Ye Olde Schluetermetz,' and the time has come for some reacquaintancing. Mashers, G&T's, Bowls of Meat, Trash Talk, Spades/Phase 10, here we come!
Alright. Procrastination over. To the linen closet with me!
Apparently, I did not coin fauxsage. Balls.
Things I have realized lately:
1. I've been spending a lot of time alone. I enjoy spending time alone.
2. Really loud music makes nearly everything better. Work ceases to be work when you are listening to really loud music.
Last night Jerns and I went on a really nice long walk. Talked about all sorts of shit.
Karista bought a horse.
The remount of Hamlet at Goucher College is approaching rapidly, and I have done no prep for it. Must find out what Ian wants for a set. And then build it.
It was 56 degrees when I woke up this morning. Inside.
We're going to Ohio around Thanksgiving this year. Can't freakin' wait. It's been a long time since we've seen our friends Ye Olde Schluetermetz,' and the time has come for some reacquaintancing. Mashers, G&T's, Bowls of Meat, Trash Talk, Spades/Phase 10, here we come!
Alright. Procrastination over. To the linen closet with me!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
"...As lucky as lucky could be..."
Do you like looking up chimneys? Then you are sure to enjoy this post:
I like the last one the best because 1) it was taken on a rainy day (today), and there's not as much water coming down the chimney as in the 2nd one, which was taken on a rainy day a week or so ago, before I did some work on the chimney; and 2) there's a cricket hiding somewhere in the picture. The first person who finds it gets a gold star and a bucket full of chimney water.
The Jeanners is not home tonight, and won't be home til late, which means I am left to my own devices. How I do I spend an evening alone? Eating burritos and Guinness and listening to music really loud, apparently. I am considering working on some tunes tonight, although not feling very inspired. At some point, I should swing by the bank and deposit some checks into senor ATM. "Senor" is supposed to be spanish and should have a tilde (~) over the 'N', but I can't figure out how to do that.
Is today Wednesday or Thursday? Whatever day it is, it's my dad's birthday. Thanks to my brother for calling me on the phone and reminding me because I had straight up forgot. It's because I've had nothing on the brain lately but housework and training a douchebag from another store at work. The guy wasn't really a douchebag, but anybody who makes me step outside my daily routine at work gets slapped with a fun new nickname. Anyway, sorry I forgot your birthday, Pop. I love you! If you're reading this, congrats on your advanced navigation of the Internet!
The house is quiet, and most of the lights are off, except for two little lamps on either side of the bed (which is unfortunately still in the dining room so I can see them from where I'm sitting in the living room), and I think the lighting is probably best described as 'soft.' It's probably not the best for the ol' eyeballs, but I've always preferred a good, dim, softly lit room to a bright one. A Brian Eno song just came on, and I turned the receiver up from 17 to 21. I am considering going downstairs to trim my moustache so it stops hanging over my lips. Also need to take laundry out of the dryer and put it away.
A month or so ago I bought an amber LED bulb to put in our front-door light so that it wouldn't attract bugs. During the summer, whenever I would leave for work in the morning and the old porch light was still on I'd have to walk through a swarm of franticly wheeling and diving moths.
I really should go by the bank.
The first chimney pic, by the way, was taken on a dry day, and it's my control picture. When the rainy day pics look like that one, then I'll be happy.
Seriously, have you found Goldbug yet?
I like the last one the best because 1) it was taken on a rainy day (today), and there's not as much water coming down the chimney as in the 2nd one, which was taken on a rainy day a week or so ago, before I did some work on the chimney; and 2) there's a cricket hiding somewhere in the picture. The first person who finds it gets a gold star and a bucket full of chimney water.
The Jeanners is not home tonight, and won't be home til late, which means I am left to my own devices. How I do I spend an evening alone? Eating burritos and Guinness and listening to music really loud, apparently. I am considering working on some tunes tonight, although not feling very inspired. At some point, I should swing by the bank and deposit some checks into senor ATM. "Senor" is supposed to be spanish and should have a tilde (~) over the 'N', but I can't figure out how to do that.
Is today Wednesday or Thursday? Whatever day it is, it's my dad's birthday. Thanks to my brother for calling me on the phone and reminding me because I had straight up forgot. It's because I've had nothing on the brain lately but housework and training a douchebag from another store at work. The guy wasn't really a douchebag, but anybody who makes me step outside my daily routine at work gets slapped with a fun new nickname. Anyway, sorry I forgot your birthday, Pop. I love you! If you're reading this, congrats on your advanced navigation of the Internet!
The house is quiet, and most of the lights are off, except for two little lamps on either side of the bed (which is unfortunately still in the dining room so I can see them from where I'm sitting in the living room), and I think the lighting is probably best described as 'soft.' It's probably not the best for the ol' eyeballs, but I've always preferred a good, dim, softly lit room to a bright one. A Brian Eno song just came on, and I turned the receiver up from 17 to 21. I am considering going downstairs to trim my moustache so it stops hanging over my lips. Also need to take laundry out of the dryer and put it away.
A month or so ago I bought an amber LED bulb to put in our front-door light so that it wouldn't attract bugs. During the summer, whenever I would leave for work in the morning and the old porch light was still on I'd have to walk through a swarm of franticly wheeling and diving moths.
I really should go by the bank.
The first chimney pic, by the way, was taken on a dry day, and it's my control picture. When the rainy day pics look like that one, then I'll be happy.
Seriously, have you found Goldbug yet?
Wednesday, October 06, 2010
In my skin-tight jeans
It's about 10:30 in the morning, and I just finished a tasty breakfast of black beans, salsa, fried eggs and greek-style yogurt. All mashed and mushed up together in a bowl. I'm listening to a couple of Tom Waits albums, shotgunned together. Just finished swordfishtrombones and have moved on to Nighthawks at the Diner. It's gotten cold in the house over the last couple-a days, and I've got my brown stocking cap on, maybe until March or April. The mountain man beard is coming back in nicely, thank you very much.
I've got two days off in a row, which hasn't happened for quite awhile, and I have to say that I'm at a bit of a loss as to what to do. I could definitely start sanding the door that I finished stripping the other day, or I could work on some music, or I could listen to Tom Waits and play Civilization III all day. I could go up on the roof and see why we still have water coming in around the chimney. I should probably brush my teeth. Take a shower. Who knows how the next 48 hours will roll by...
The Jerns has been putting in some serious hours at work for the last week or so. Haven't seen her a ton. But Jimmy Carter was there yesterday, and things went well, so she might get to come home earlier now. Maybe even get a day off here or there.
The J-Dog has gotten in the habit of listening to a radio station called 104.3 on the way to work, and 104.3 plays top-40 party dance fluff. She (J-Dog) says it helps pump her up for the work day, and then at the end of the day it helps get the work day out of her head. Well, in my car most of the buttons on the radio don't work, and as a result there are 3 stations that I'm able to park the receiver on, and one of the stations is 104.3. I have to say, I've gotten a little hooked on it. I swear to god, every time I get in my car, they are playing Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream." Every time. They also play a lot of Ke$ha, and a song called "I Like That," by Static Revenger and Richard Vission (ft. Luciana). As well as Rihanna, Eminem, and "Airplanes," by B.O.B (ft. Hayley Williams [from Paramore]). I haven't really listened to Top-40 radio since my public school days in, like 8th grade. It makes me feel good and bad at the same time. Much like eating 10 or 12 rolls of SMARTIES does. It gives some little buried part of your brain a little buzz, and makes the rest of your body feel like it is filled with ashes and mud and bile.
Anyway, the world is large, and there's definitely a place for pop music in it, but I think my diet needs to be based on other things. Eggs and rice and Tom Waits and wood and fire and gin.
I've been enjoying my new glasses. The Jeanners has been telling me she likes them (which I hope is true), and it's been really interesting seeing the world through clean lenses. Everything seems crisp and fresh and slightly wet. And it's been pretty nice having the prescription sunglasses, too.
I've got two days off in a row, which hasn't happened for quite awhile, and I have to say that I'm at a bit of a loss as to what to do. I could definitely start sanding the door that I finished stripping the other day, or I could work on some music, or I could listen to Tom Waits and play Civilization III all day. I could go up on the roof and see why we still have water coming in around the chimney. I should probably brush my teeth. Take a shower. Who knows how the next 48 hours will roll by...
The Jerns has been putting in some serious hours at work for the last week or so. Haven't seen her a ton. But Jimmy Carter was there yesterday, and things went well, so she might get to come home earlier now. Maybe even get a day off here or there.
The J-Dog has gotten in the habit of listening to a radio station called 104.3 on the way to work, and 104.3 plays top-40 party dance fluff. She (J-Dog) says it helps pump her up for the work day, and then at the end of the day it helps get the work day out of her head. Well, in my car most of the buttons on the radio don't work, and as a result there are 3 stations that I'm able to park the receiver on, and one of the stations is 104.3. I have to say, I've gotten a little hooked on it. I swear to god, every time I get in my car, they are playing Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream." Every time. They also play a lot of Ke$ha, and a song called "I Like That," by Static Revenger and Richard Vission (ft. Luciana). As well as Rihanna, Eminem, and "Airplanes," by B.O.B (ft. Hayley Williams [from Paramore]). I haven't really listened to Top-40 radio since my public school days in, like 8th grade. It makes me feel good and bad at the same time. Much like eating 10 or 12 rolls of SMARTIES does. It gives some little buried part of your brain a little buzz, and makes the rest of your body feel like it is filled with ashes and mud and bile.
Anyway, the world is large, and there's definitely a place for pop music in it, but I think my diet needs to be based on other things. Eggs and rice and Tom Waits and wood and fire and gin.
I've been enjoying my new glasses. The Jeanners has been telling me she likes them (which I hope is true), and it's been really interesting seeing the world through clean lenses. Everything seems crisp and fresh and slightly wet. And it's been pretty nice having the prescription sunglasses, too.
Friday, October 01, 2010
My right foot is asleep.
The Jeanners is working late tonight, a result of Jimmy Carter's expected visit to her place of employment next Tuesday. Damn you, Jimmy Carter! As a result, I've had the evening all to my lonesome, and I have spent it eating cheeseritos (just cheese), drinking Blue Moon, and reading old e-mails from 2002. Reading the e-mails made me nostalgic for the days when I used to send and receive e-mails from folks that I cared about, but then I remembered that one reason that I started writing this blog was that I was tired of writing the same e-mail to like 5 or 6 different people, filling in everybody on what's been going on. So I guess I shouldn't be nostalgic, although the blog is definitely much more of a one-way street, not as much feedback coming back (except PKP telling me that he didn't like Infinite Jest -- YOU FOOL!).
Another thing I noticed from reading those e-mails was that recording songs was a really big part of my life then. Definitely less so now, but I've still been tinkering around every now and again. I guess the difference now is that the stuff I tinker around on these days rarely develops into anything listenable.
I had the day off work today, and it was a pretty productive day -- got up around 8:30, went to the Home Depot, hit the gym, hit the grocery store, came home and caulked the top of our chimney (we had some water coming down the chimney during the last day or two of torrential downpours), went back to the Home Depot, swapped out some electrical boxes that weren't going to work, and then stripped one side of a door. I think I've gotten a lot better at stripping. The process hasn't been nearly as painful as it was last winter when we were stripping the bathroom trim and door.
Read on the internet a rumor that U2 might be playing Baltimore in June. I'm a sucker, and I'll probably end up going, and I'll probably end up standing in line for a very long time and getting a very good spot in the crowd. I am a sucker.
I am missing Jerns. She has been working a lot lately, and working very hard, and she's been ill. Still though, when we get to hang out it's been nice and fun, and last night before we went to bed we had a little sing-a-long, and I was strumming the guitar and laying in bed and we were singing.
My mom's birthday is either tomorrow or Sunday. I can never remember which. Either way, the card's been mailed and my rear is pleasantly covered.
Another thing I noticed from reading those e-mails was that recording songs was a really big part of my life then. Definitely less so now, but I've still been tinkering around every now and again. I guess the difference now is that the stuff I tinker around on these days rarely develops into anything listenable.
I had the day off work today, and it was a pretty productive day -- got up around 8:30, went to the Home Depot, hit the gym, hit the grocery store, came home and caulked the top of our chimney (we had some water coming down the chimney during the last day or two of torrential downpours), went back to the Home Depot, swapped out some electrical boxes that weren't going to work, and then stripped one side of a door. I think I've gotten a lot better at stripping. The process hasn't been nearly as painful as it was last winter when we were stripping the bathroom trim and door.
Read on the internet a rumor that U2 might be playing Baltimore in June. I'm a sucker, and I'll probably end up going, and I'll probably end up standing in line for a very long time and getting a very good spot in the crowd. I am a sucker.
I am missing Jerns. She has been working a lot lately, and working very hard, and she's been ill. Still though, when we get to hang out it's been nice and fun, and last night before we went to bed we had a little sing-a-long, and I was strumming the guitar and laying in bed and we were singing.
My mom's birthday is either tomorrow or Sunday. I can never remember which. Either way, the card's been mailed and my rear is pleasantly covered.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Electric Avenue
After a weekend of having big plans but not actually getting much done, the Jeanners and I finally were able to get crackin' on some housework yesterday afternoon. We were able to run a good portion of the new wiring in our future bedroom.
One step closer to putting up drywall. We've still got a bit more wire to run (lights, ceiling fan) and then we can start drywalling. Woo-Hoo! This week, I'll be doing more stripping after work, so that once we've got everything drywalled we can move right into putting up trim and doors and stuff.
Last night I came up with a new nickname for the J-Dog: Jerns. It doesn't mean anything, but I like the way it sounds. So now I have to spend the next few days calling her Jerns all the time so that it sticks.
We've been catching mice by the hatful lately. Not literally in a hat, it's just an expression. Ok, maybe it's not an expression but it is now. Anyway, you know what I mean. The other day we caught two baby mice in the same spring-activated-swift-metal-bar-snaps-down type trap, the logistics of which I'm still having trouble figuring out. Did they both happen upon the trap at the exact same time? Was one mouse playing a practical joke that went horribly awry? We'll never know. Anyway, I feel more than a tinge of guilt when dumping dead mice into the trash. I really don't like killing things. Jerns has even gotten me to the point where I don't step on crickets anymore (there's been numerous crickets in the house, too, by the way - annoying as fuck) but rather scoop them up an take them outside. I do, though, still enjoy killing mosquitoes because I HATE MOSQUITOES. Mainly because mosquitoes seem to love me. I HATE MOSQUITOES.
One step closer to putting up drywall. We've still got a bit more wire to run (lights, ceiling fan) and then we can start drywalling. Woo-Hoo! This week, I'll be doing more stripping after work, so that once we've got everything drywalled we can move right into putting up trim and doors and stuff.
Last night I came up with a new nickname for the J-Dog: Jerns. It doesn't mean anything, but I like the way it sounds. So now I have to spend the next few days calling her Jerns all the time so that it sticks.
We've been catching mice by the hatful lately. Not literally in a hat, it's just an expression. Ok, maybe it's not an expression but it is now. Anyway, you know what I mean. The other day we caught two baby mice in the same spring-activated-swift-metal-bar-snaps-down type trap, the logistics of which I'm still having trouble figuring out. Did they both happen upon the trap at the exact same time? Was one mouse playing a practical joke that went horribly awry? We'll never know. Anyway, I feel more than a tinge of guilt when dumping dead mice into the trash. I really don't like killing things. Jerns has even gotten me to the point where I don't step on crickets anymore (there's been numerous crickets in the house, too, by the way - annoying as fuck) but rather scoop them up an take them outside. I do, though, still enjoy killing mosquitoes because I HATE MOSQUITOES. Mainly because mosquitoes seem to love me. I HATE MOSQUITOES.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Stripping
My project for the week has been stripping paint off of window trim that we will then put back up on newly-drywalled (once we drywall them) walls and repaint. It has led to me posting numerous "stripping" and "stripper" puns in my Facebook status. I actually had to stop myself from doing it again and am making myself write this post instead. The world only needs so many stripper puns before you become "that guy." It's actually a job that I don't mind too much. I'm down in the basement, and I've got the mp3 player fired up, and I've got a little system going, and the stripper smells nicely like orange sherbet while it slowly kills my remaining brain cells. And it's giving me a nice sense of accomplishment for the week, like the hours that fall between the time I get home from work and the time Jeannie gets home from work haven't completely gotten squandered on baths, tangrams, the internet, and Infinite Jest. Got about 80 or so pages read at work today, by the way.
Last night I headed to an open rehearsal for TITUS. Just to see how it's coming along, and because usually I enjoy watching a mid-to-late rehearsal more than a final performance. Things usually seem a lot less fake. To me. Anyway, I'd never read the play, so I was seeing it with virgin eyes, and while I'd say that the play as a whole is not one of Shakespeare's most, uh, sublime works, there's definitely a few speeches in there that are pretty beautiful. And the gory blood-type special effects that folks have been working on look like they'll be pretty amazing, especially in such close quarters.
What else?
I might try and convince the Jeanners to go out for some greek food for din-din.
I have come close to pooping in my pants/shorts several times during the last week.
Jerry Orbach's Cousin came into the store the other day. He made sure that Jerry Orbach (and the fact that he was Jerry Orbach's Cousin) casually came up in the conversation, as he always does.
Last night I headed to an open rehearsal for TITUS. Just to see how it's coming along, and because usually I enjoy watching a mid-to-late rehearsal more than a final performance. Things usually seem a lot less fake. To me. Anyway, I'd never read the play, so I was seeing it with virgin eyes, and while I'd say that the play as a whole is not one of Shakespeare's most, uh, sublime works, there's definitely a few speeches in there that are pretty beautiful. And the gory blood-type special effects that folks have been working on look like they'll be pretty amazing, especially in such close quarters.
What else?
I might try and convince the Jeanners to go out for some greek food for din-din.
I have come close to pooping in my pants/shorts several times during the last week.
Jerry Orbach's Cousin came into the store the other day. He made sure that Jerry Orbach (and the fact that he was Jerry Orbach's Cousin) casually came up in the conversation, as he always does.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Northwest Passage
Took the ol' bike out for a spin after work today, and I think I've found a decent route to work that's not too terribly hilly and not too long. It took me about an hour to get there and an hour to get home. So perhaps I shall start biking to work again in the near future. Getting a two-hour workout in under the disguise of transportation is a pretty decent thing, I think.
I got me some new glasses last night, as my old glasses had broken and were being held together by superglue, or, as the brand we bought was called, "future glue." My old glasses also had lenses that had yellowed and were so scratched and generally fucked that the world that I saw through them had ceased to resemble what the real world in front of my face actually looked like. Plus, as I mentioned before, they finally broke. So I got new glasses. And the place where I bought them was having a "Buy One Pair, Get a Second Pair Free" sale (what we at the B&N call a BOGO), so I also now own a pair of prescription sunglasses. I picked out a pair of frames for the sunglasses that I hoped would make me look like Ray Charles, but I'm not quite sure I've achieved the look. I did, however, while wearing the sunglasses, make Jeannie lead me out of the mall as though I was blind. She sucked at it. She let me walk into trashcans in the middle of the mall thoroughfare and all sorts of shit. I hope I never actually go blind. So anyway, if the next time you see me I seem somehow cooler and you can't quite put your finger on what might be causing the surge of additional coolness, it's probably the prescription sunglasses that I'm wearing.
The doctor that gave me my physical called the other day and left a message with the results of my bloodwork. She said my cholesterol looks 'terrific' but that I'm low in Vitamin D. Fuck her.
My mouth tastes terrible.
I'm about halfway into Infinite Jest. Boy, it's good. I'm nearing the part where it all starts to just roll downhill.
The Jeanners and I have both been feeling an autumnal burst of home-improvement motivation. I think we're gonna get some good shit done in the next month or two. Getting geared up for a semi-major roof/chimney repair and waiting for some electrical-planning advice from my super good electrical engineer and all-around smart guy brother-in-law, Tom.
I got me some new glasses last night, as my old glasses had broken and were being held together by superglue, or, as the brand we bought was called, "future glue." My old glasses also had lenses that had yellowed and were so scratched and generally fucked that the world that I saw through them had ceased to resemble what the real world in front of my face actually looked like. Plus, as I mentioned before, they finally broke. So I got new glasses. And the place where I bought them was having a "Buy One Pair, Get a Second Pair Free" sale (what we at the B&N call a BOGO), so I also now own a pair of prescription sunglasses. I picked out a pair of frames for the sunglasses that I hoped would make me look like Ray Charles, but I'm not quite sure I've achieved the look. I did, however, while wearing the sunglasses, make Jeannie lead me out of the mall as though I was blind. She sucked at it. She let me walk into trashcans in the middle of the mall thoroughfare and all sorts of shit. I hope I never actually go blind. So anyway, if the next time you see me I seem somehow cooler and you can't quite put your finger on what might be causing the surge of additional coolness, it's probably the prescription sunglasses that I'm wearing.
The doctor that gave me my physical called the other day and left a message with the results of my bloodwork. She said my cholesterol looks 'terrific' but that I'm low in Vitamin D. Fuck her.
My mouth tastes terrible.
I'm about halfway into Infinite Jest. Boy, it's good. I'm nearing the part where it all starts to just roll downhill.
The Jeanners and I have both been feeling an autumnal burst of home-improvement motivation. I think we're gonna get some good shit done in the next month or two. Getting geared up for a semi-major roof/chimney repair and waiting for some electrical-planning advice from my super good electrical engineer and all-around smart guy brother-in-law, Tom.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Wizard is about to die.
The title of this post is a reference to the 1980's video game 'GAUNTLET.' Check it out.
My parents were here this past weekend. It was going along fine until yesterday. We did some stuff around the house, we took a day trip to Gettysburg, we played some cards, ate some meals, etc. And pretty much most of the weekend my mom was making little "suggestions" of things we (Jeannie and I) could do around the house, or things that we could do to take better care of our possessions. After smiling and nodding or lightly telling her that we wouldn't be heeding her suggestions through most of the weekend, yesterday I had about as much as I could take and I really blew up at her. I don't blow up well. I'm not really a blow-up type of guy. I usually hold stuff in pretty well and it takes about 10-18 years before it builds up enough to where I blow up. So anyway, I blubbered and yelled awhile. Then a large tree branch fell outside in the street so Jeannie and I my dad and I went and cut it up. Then my mom and dad went to dinner. Then we all played cards. Then they left this morning. I've never been so relieved to have them leave before. I'm usually ready to get back to regular life by the end of their visits, but this time I was, like, do-a-little-dance happy to see them (her) leave. I feel bad for my dad who it seemed understood where I was coming from and why I blew up and who was generally helpful and fun to be around all weekend. Anyway, that's been occupying my headspace all day and it probably will for awhile. They're continuing their trip down to North Carolina and get back to St. Louis on Friday.
I went to the doctor for a physical today for the first time in a very long time. It was very fast. After all the paperwork and vital-signs-taking was done, she came in, looked in my eyes, looked down my throat, whacked my knees, listened to my breathing, listened to my heart, felt my tummy, felt my throat, rummaged around my junk, and I was out the door. At one point, she told me I have a beautiful body.
We have lots of tree rubble in our yard, to be chopped up and bundled. It's probably how I will be spending my afternoons. I went out this evening to do a little bundling, but the mosquitoes were out in full force. I will be glad as the weather gets colder and the mosquitoes go away.
One sentence in this post is a lie. Can you spot it?
My parents were here this past weekend. It was going along fine until yesterday. We did some stuff around the house, we took a day trip to Gettysburg, we played some cards, ate some meals, etc. And pretty much most of the weekend my mom was making little "suggestions" of things we (Jeannie and I) could do around the house, or things that we could do to take better care of our possessions. After smiling and nodding or lightly telling her that we wouldn't be heeding her suggestions through most of the weekend, yesterday I had about as much as I could take and I really blew up at her. I don't blow up well. I'm not really a blow-up type of guy. I usually hold stuff in pretty well and it takes about 10-18 years before it builds up enough to where I blow up. So anyway, I blubbered and yelled awhile. Then a large tree branch fell outside in the street so Jeannie and I my dad and I went and cut it up. Then my mom and dad went to dinner. Then we all played cards. Then they left this morning. I've never been so relieved to have them leave before. I'm usually ready to get back to regular life by the end of their visits, but this time I was, like, do-a-little-dance happy to see them (her) leave. I feel bad for my dad who it seemed understood where I was coming from and why I blew up and who was generally helpful and fun to be around all weekend. Anyway, that's been occupying my headspace all day and it probably will for awhile. They're continuing their trip down to North Carolina and get back to St. Louis on Friday.
I went to the doctor for a physical today for the first time in a very long time. It was very fast. After all the paperwork and vital-signs-taking was done, she came in, looked in my eyes, looked down my throat, whacked my knees, listened to my breathing, listened to my heart, felt my tummy, felt my throat, rummaged around my junk, and I was out the door. At one point, she told me I have a beautiful body.
We have lots of tree rubble in our yard, to be chopped up and bundled. It's probably how I will be spending my afternoons. I went out this evening to do a little bundling, but the mosquitoes were out in full force. I will be glad as the weather gets colder and the mosquitoes go away.
One sentence in this post is a lie. Can you spot it?
Saturday, September 04, 2010
Biker's Ass
It's been awhile since I've signed in to write in the ol' blog and had nothing to write about. I guess lately I've been waiting until something interesting happens before I would sit down to write. Not that you could tell. But not tonight. I just got home from work, and people were a bit crazy at the ol' Nobes tonight. Large crowds of loud, unruly teens. Damn kids. Damn back to school time, when the weather's still nice enough that teens roam and terrorize on a Friday night. Although it's Saturday night. Nonetheless, you get the picture.
This week, I got my bike out of the basement and got it back in working condition. After the great Weight Loss Extravaganza of 2008, my bike sat outside for a year and a half and got rained, iced, and snowed on. And probably peed on by some of the drunks in Charles Village, who knows. So since we moved into the house, I've had it down in the basement, but the other day I got it out, dusted it off, put some air in the tires and lubed up Mr. Chain, and took it out for a spin. I was attempting to find a good route from our place to my place of employment, and I was relatively unsuccessful. I mean, I eventually made it to work, but it took like an hour and a half, and the way I took was full of long, gradual hills, and it just generally sucked. And then on the way home I got a flat tire, so I ended up having to walk my bike the last 2 miles or so. So although it sucked, it did conjure a little bit of bike fever back in me, and I have ordered new tires and tubes on the internet, and I think I have found a better route. So be on the lookout for a pale, sweaty, slow biker in a neighborhood near you. Soon. By the way, my bike is a Huffy.
The weather here was beautiful today. We were supposed to get some rain from hurricane earl, but all we got was a bit of wind last night and this morning. But seriously - sunny, cool, and low humidity with a nice big breeze. Sat out on the porch with the Jeanners before work today and boy, did it make me want to not go to work.
The parents are arriving in T-minus 5 days.
This week, I got my bike out of the basement and got it back in working condition. After the great Weight Loss Extravaganza of 2008, my bike sat outside for a year and a half and got rained, iced, and snowed on. And probably peed on by some of the drunks in Charles Village, who knows. So since we moved into the house, I've had it down in the basement, but the other day I got it out, dusted it off, put some air in the tires and lubed up Mr. Chain, and took it out for a spin. I was attempting to find a good route from our place to my place of employment, and I was relatively unsuccessful. I mean, I eventually made it to work, but it took like an hour and a half, and the way I took was full of long, gradual hills, and it just generally sucked. And then on the way home I got a flat tire, so I ended up having to walk my bike the last 2 miles or so. So although it sucked, it did conjure a little bit of bike fever back in me, and I have ordered new tires and tubes on the internet, and I think I have found a better route. So be on the lookout for a pale, sweaty, slow biker in a neighborhood near you. Soon. By the way, my bike is a Huffy.
The weather here was beautiful today. We were supposed to get some rain from hurricane earl, but all we got was a bit of wind last night and this morning. But seriously - sunny, cool, and low humidity with a nice big breeze. Sat out on the porch with the Jeanners before work today and boy, did it make me want to not go to work.
The parents are arriving in T-minus 5 days.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Karaoke Neck
It's been a decent week. Had changeover at work today, which means that work hasn't been mind-meltingly boring for the past week, and it won't be mind-meltingly boring for the next week, and then I'll have two weeks of mind-melting boringness before the next changeover prep work starts.
Had a good weekend. On Saturday CSC had its annual picnic/strategy meeting, and it was a beautiful day to sit outside. Plus, a few of us who are guitar players brought guitars, and though we've been talking for a long time about getting together and playing, we'd never actually been able to coordinate our schedules enough to get together and play before Saturday. So we sat outside as it got dark and played for a few hours. It's been a long time since I've played that long (my fingers were hurting), and an even longer time since I've played with other people. It felt pretty good. Unfortunately, sitting outside for that long left me vulnerable to a series of attacks from some mutant-strain of mosquitoes that live in Lesley's backyard, and I have been one hell of an itchy bastard ever since.
After the get-together on Saturday, Jeannie and I ended up going to the hotel bar at the Ramada Inn at Joppa and Loch Raven, where a coworker of hers who is moving to Canada was having a little going-away shindig. Karaoke was involved. It was a little bit like an urban version of Kirksville karaoke, in that it was an interesting mix of folks and everybody seemed to get along and not give a shit about what they looked/sounded like. I sang karaoke once right after we moved to Baltimore, and it wasn't that great an experience, so I haven't sung since. Saturday night, though, felt quite a bit like the karaoke days of old. It took me a couple of songs to get warmed up, but by my 4th song ("Jump") I was feeling un-self-conscious enough to flail around a little bit. I also learned that "Punk Rock Girl" is one hell of a good karaoke song. It's got a nice strong ending, and not much down time. Unfortunately, I have become reacquainted with the tremendously sore neck/back that I used to get all the time after singing karaoke or doing any sort of head-banging. I'm starting to feel normal again, though. Anyway, they do karaoke there on Thursday and Saturday nights, so next time anybody feels like visiting B-more, bring your drinky singin' pants.
The Jeanners' new Americorps recruits started today. I'm waiting for her to get home so I can hear how her day went. Should we go out to eat?
Had a good weekend. On Saturday CSC had its annual picnic/strategy meeting, and it was a beautiful day to sit outside. Plus, a few of us who are guitar players brought guitars, and though we've been talking for a long time about getting together and playing, we'd never actually been able to coordinate our schedules enough to get together and play before Saturday. So we sat outside as it got dark and played for a few hours. It's been a long time since I've played that long (my fingers were hurting), and an even longer time since I've played with other people. It felt pretty good. Unfortunately, sitting outside for that long left me vulnerable to a series of attacks from some mutant-strain of mosquitoes that live in Lesley's backyard, and I have been one hell of an itchy bastard ever since.
After the get-together on Saturday, Jeannie and I ended up going to the hotel bar at the Ramada Inn at Joppa and Loch Raven, where a coworker of hers who is moving to Canada was having a little going-away shindig. Karaoke was involved. It was a little bit like an urban version of Kirksville karaoke, in that it was an interesting mix of folks and everybody seemed to get along and not give a shit about what they looked/sounded like. I sang karaoke once right after we moved to Baltimore, and it wasn't that great an experience, so I haven't sung since. Saturday night, though, felt quite a bit like the karaoke days of old. It took me a couple of songs to get warmed up, but by my 4th song ("Jump") I was feeling un-self-conscious enough to flail around a little bit. I also learned that "Punk Rock Girl" is one hell of a good karaoke song. It's got a nice strong ending, and not much down time. Unfortunately, I have become reacquainted with the tremendously sore neck/back that I used to get all the time after singing karaoke or doing any sort of head-banging. I'm starting to feel normal again, though. Anyway, they do karaoke there on Thursday and Saturday nights, so next time anybody feels like visiting B-more, bring your drinky singin' pants.
The Jeanners' new Americorps recruits started today. I'm waiting for her to get home so I can hear how her day went. Should we go out to eat?
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Halorama. Halation.
News, bullet-point style.
* PKP & T have birthed their second child, a masculine child. Well, T specifically did the birthing. PKP, I assume, watched. Or perhaps occupied and entertained their #1 masculine child. Who knows. Regardless, #2 child arrived a month early, and after a little bit of time in the NICU, everyone is doing well. They named the boy Henry, but don't call him that cause he goes by Hal. I can only assume that because they named the boy after the main character (or at least the character I feel is the main character) of Infinite Jest that Pat is planning on a well-deserved second attempt on the book sometime in the near future.
* Speaking of, I am in the midst of an IJ re-read myself. A little over 200 pages in. The is probably my 4th or 5th full re-read of the book, and I have experienced no diminishing returns. If anything, the opposite. Amazing. Love it. Love it. Love it. Love it. Love it. Like jumping into the ocean when you haven't been to the ocean in awhile.
* Bought tickets to see Greg Brown up at the Recher Theater in September. Right next door to where I work! Pretty exciting stuff. Haven't seen him live since March of 1999, when I saw him in Vineland, NJ and Easton, MD on spring break with Seanyboy.
* Work is exceptionally slow. Scarily slow.
* The Jeanners and I did some good work this past weekend. Ripping out some of the existing electrical system, mapping out what remains of the existing electrical system, and getting ready to run some new electrical business in our future bedroom. We're also getting ready to submit some paperwork for some loans and grants and whatnot. Getting quotes for insulation and porch work, etc. Fun stuff.
* My folks are going to some out for a visit in early September. Should be a good time. We'll hang out a bit, maybe do a little work around the house (cut down more trees?), and head out for a day trip somewhere. We usually enjoy their visits quite a bit.
* PKP & T have birthed their second child, a masculine child. Well, T specifically did the birthing. PKP, I assume, watched. Or perhaps occupied and entertained their #1 masculine child. Who knows. Regardless, #2 child arrived a month early, and after a little bit of time in the NICU, everyone is doing well. They named the boy Henry, but don't call him that cause he goes by Hal. I can only assume that because they named the boy after the main character (or at least the character I feel is the main character) of Infinite Jest that Pat is planning on a well-deserved second attempt on the book sometime in the near future.
* Speaking of, I am in the midst of an IJ re-read myself. A little over 200 pages in. The is probably my 4th or 5th full re-read of the book, and I have experienced no diminishing returns. If anything, the opposite. Amazing. Love it. Love it. Love it. Love it. Love it. Like jumping into the ocean when you haven't been to the ocean in awhile.
* Bought tickets to see Greg Brown up at the Recher Theater in September. Right next door to where I work! Pretty exciting stuff. Haven't seen him live since March of 1999, when I saw him in Vineland, NJ and Easton, MD on spring break with Seanyboy.
* Work is exceptionally slow. Scarily slow.
* The Jeanners and I did some good work this past weekend. Ripping out some of the existing electrical system, mapping out what remains of the existing electrical system, and getting ready to run some new electrical business in our future bedroom. We're also getting ready to submit some paperwork for some loans and grants and whatnot. Getting quotes for insulation and porch work, etc. Fun stuff.
* My folks are going to some out for a visit in early September. Should be a good time. We'll hang out a bit, maybe do a little work around the house (cut down more trees?), and head out for a day trip somewhere. We usually enjoy their visits quite a bit.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
33 sucks so far.
I've been feeling poorly lately. I thought I might have cancer because one of the lymph nodes in my neck has been swollen and painful and I haven't really had any other symptoms that might suggest a cold or infection or anything. But after a phone call with my sister (a longtime nurse) last night, she assured me that it is most likely not cancer and that I don't need to move up a doctor's appointment that I currently have scheduled for mid-September. Just the fact that I scheduled a doctor's appointment should be proof enough that I was concerned, as I have not been to a doctor for over 10 years. I tend to not trust situations in which you pay a single person to discover, diagnose, and fix a particular problem. Plus, I think I have just inherited my dad's views towards bodily preventative maintenance.
The Jeanners and I had a fun, semi-impromptu date night on Tuesday after discovering that a local movie theater (the rotunda) is offering $5 movies on Tuesday nights. They were showing Inception, about which I had been on the receiving end of so much Facebook hype that I was interesting in seeing if it was any good, and the Jeanners was, too (and it ain't too often that the J-Dog is interested in an even borderline sci-fi type movie), so we decided to go see it. Picked up some Chipotle and met the J-Dog at the theater, and although we both agreed that it did not live up to the hype, we both had a real good time and thought it was worth the ten bucks.
I'm thinking of re-growing the mountain man beard.
We got some work done on our chimney on Monday, so now when it rains, rain doesn't come into our living room. At least not through the chimney. Yay!
I am finishing up a long stretch of work. Tomorrow will be the 12th (and final) day in a row without a day off. I've been doing that to myself too often lately, but it really helps me get in a full 40-hour week without cutting anybody else's hours.
Just waiting for Jeannie to get home from work/gym. (translation: affair.) Cooked up some quinoa salad this afternoon, and I was planning on some fake burgers to go along with it but I think we might be out of them.
The Jeanners and I had a fun, semi-impromptu date night on Tuesday after discovering that a local movie theater (the rotunda) is offering $5 movies on Tuesday nights. They were showing Inception, about which I had been on the receiving end of so much Facebook hype that I was interesting in seeing if it was any good, and the Jeanners was, too (and it ain't too often that the J-Dog is interested in an even borderline sci-fi type movie), so we decided to go see it. Picked up some Chipotle and met the J-Dog at the theater, and although we both agreed that it did not live up to the hype, we both had a real good time and thought it was worth the ten bucks.
I'm thinking of re-growing the mountain man beard.
We got some work done on our chimney on Monday, so now when it rains, rain doesn't come into our living room. At least not through the chimney. Yay!
I am finishing up a long stretch of work. Tomorrow will be the 12th (and final) day in a row without a day off. I've been doing that to myself too often lately, but it really helps me get in a full 40-hour week without cutting anybody else's hours.
Just waiting for Jeannie to get home from work/gym. (translation: affair.) Cooked up some quinoa salad this afternoon, and I was planning on some fake burgers to go along with it but I think we might be out of them.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Jesus Year
Yesterday I turned 33, Jesus' age when he died. Therefore, the coming year will be my Jesus year. Whatever that means.
I worked during the day, then the Jeanners and I headed downtown for a mediocre Chinese meal in a cool building. On the way home, we stopped in at a little dinner get-together that some of her former Americorps recruits were having. The first year that she was recruiting, she put together one hell of a team, many of whom became roommates and involved romantically, and they've stuck together after their Americorps service year was over. A good group of folks. So anyway, it was a low-key but highly enjoyable birthday. Oh, and we're planning on going to Frederick in November to see an Emmylou Harris show and spend the night at a bed n' breakfast as a combined birthday/anniversary gift. Should be fun.
The J-Dog has started working a 4 ten-hour day work week, and it seems like it's gonna work out pretty well. By the luck of this week's scheduling, she's got a four day weekend, which is pretty cool. We're going to be shelling out a bunch of money this weekend, getting some car work done, some chimney work, and some energy testing done on the house. So it'll be an expensive weekend, but money spent on things we need.
Work this evening. A long stretch of work this coming week.
Car talk is funny sometimes. Time for eggs n' fake sausage.
I've been pooping a lot over the last couple'a days.
I worked during the day, then the Jeanners and I headed downtown for a mediocre Chinese meal in a cool building. On the way home, we stopped in at a little dinner get-together that some of her former Americorps recruits were having. The first year that she was recruiting, she put together one hell of a team, many of whom became roommates and involved romantically, and they've stuck together after their Americorps service year was over. A good group of folks. So anyway, it was a low-key but highly enjoyable birthday. Oh, and we're planning on going to Frederick in November to see an Emmylou Harris show and spend the night at a bed n' breakfast as a combined birthday/anniversary gift. Should be fun.
The J-Dog has started working a 4 ten-hour day work week, and it seems like it's gonna work out pretty well. By the luck of this week's scheduling, she's got a four day weekend, which is pretty cool. We're going to be shelling out a bunch of money this weekend, getting some car work done, some chimney work, and some energy testing done on the house. So it'll be an expensive weekend, but money spent on things we need.
Work this evening. A long stretch of work this coming week.
Car talk is funny sometimes. Time for eggs n' fake sausage.
I've been pooping a lot over the last couple'a days.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)