You're a Big Girl, Hold ItMonday, August 30, 2004
I Saved a Life Today ...
... and, oh yeah, the Republican National Convention
One of my fish had a near-death experience. He swam into the filter and then I couldn't get him out. There was my fish, bleeding, suffocating, and there was nothing I could do. Well, not nothing. I had to react quickly, disconnect the filter, and then try to coax him out the bottom. For a nerve-racking few minutes, he just bobbed there, stuck inside the plastic shaft. Finally, he seemed to figure it out.
I sort of teared up when it was over. Nerves.
But he looks OK. He hurt his tail, though.
As for the other news, the news -- I try to stay away. In fact, I noticed nothing out of the ordinary during my commute from Brooklyn to Chelsea and back. I didn't even get a seat on the train.
And I'm a little jealous. When do I get to be one of those journalists who are wined and dined and bought off? Today, I got chocolate with a press kit, but it wasn't quite the same.
... and, oh yeah, the Republican National Convention
One of my fish had a near-death experience. He swam into the filter and then I couldn't get him out. There was my fish, bleeding, suffocating, and there was nothing I could do. Well, not nothing. I had to react quickly, disconnect the filter, and then try to coax him out the bottom. For a nerve-racking few minutes, he just bobbed there, stuck inside the plastic shaft. Finally, he seemed to figure it out.
I sort of teared up when it was over. Nerves.
But he looks OK. He hurt his tail, though.
As for the other news, the news -- I try to stay away. In fact, I noticed nothing out of the ordinary during my commute from Brooklyn to Chelsea and back. I didn't even get a seat on the train.
And I'm a little jealous. When do I get to be one of those journalists who are wined and dined and bought off? Today, I got chocolate with a press kit, but it wasn't quite the same.
Sunday, August 29, 2004
My First Vacation
In less than two weeks, I will take my very first vacation since I entered the working world . And I'm headed south. I've never been to Charlotte, I've always wanted to visit North Carolina, and I haven't seen my friend Maggie since, well, New Year's weekend. Last year.
She has a swimming pool. And after we go swimming, we're going to eat pig roasted on the spit. And all sorts of other fun stuff.
In less than two weeks, I will take my very first vacation since I entered the working world . And I'm headed south. I've never been to Charlotte, I've always wanted to visit North Carolina, and I haven't seen my friend Maggie since, well, New Year's weekend. Last year.
She has a swimming pool. And after we go swimming, we're going to eat pig roasted on the spit. And all sorts of other fun stuff.
Stupid, Stupid
I do believe I'm an idiot. A bottle of wine, 75% finished, passed out in bed before midnight (clothes strewn around the room from several "costume changes" throughout the night), and wide awake at 5:45 a.m.
For the second night in a row, drank too much. I might as well be back in college. I haven't had a weekend like this in a long time.
And here I was so grown-up, I didn't even bother to update my website in a whole week. Just goes to show.
I do believe I'm an idiot. A bottle of wine, 75% finished, passed out in bed before midnight (clothes strewn around the room from several "costume changes" throughout the night), and wide awake at 5:45 a.m.
For the second night in a row, drank too much. I might as well be back in college. I haven't had a weekend like this in a long time.
And here I was so grown-up, I didn't even bother to update my website in a whole week. Just goes to show.
Sunday, August 22, 2004
Museum of Natural History, 200 Live Frogs!
Frog exhibit
Poisonous!
Frog exhibit
Slimy frog
Saturday, August 21, 2004
Power Slut
"I just love men in power," I tell her, lounging across the length of my couch, tired after work.
"If you were a White House intern, Monica Lewinsky would have nothing on you."
Maybe she's right.
Then she adds, "Doesn't your boyfriend care?"
I consider this. Sure he cares ("you are my property," he likes to tell me when he's feeling particularly romantic.) But then again ... "Nah, he doesn't care. I've been talking about marriage so much, I think he's somewhat relieved. Now I'm someone else's problem. Take her."
"I just love men in power," I tell her, lounging across the length of my couch, tired after work.
"If you were a White House intern, Monica Lewinsky would have nothing on you."
Maybe she's right.
Then she adds, "Doesn't your boyfriend care?"
I consider this. Sure he cares ("you are my property," he likes to tell me when he's feeling particularly romantic.) But then again ... "Nah, he doesn't care. I've been talking about marriage so much, I think he's somewhat relieved. Now I'm someone else's problem. Take her."
Tuesday, August 17, 2004
A Moment Like This
"Let me get that for you," he says. My hands are full of my umbrella, my lunch, my coffee and sweater. And that's when he -- my boss -- gallantly sweeps the door open. My hero. Turning a fat, ugly day into a pretty one.
"Let me get that for you," he says. My hands are full of my umbrella, my lunch, my coffee and sweater. And that's when he -- my boss -- gallantly sweeps the door open. My hero. Turning a fat, ugly day into a pretty one.
Sunday, August 15, 2004
Tally
Lonely today. It's the day before one of my close friends is leaving New York for law school. Everyone seems to be leaving within a short time. My best friend from high school, with whom I was hoping to reconnect now that we're both in Brooklyn (or so I thought), is moving to Wisconsin this week. And one of my coworkers took a new (and more enviable) job at another company, leaving the rest of feeling like ... the rest of us. A band of left-behinds.
Of course, I'm hardly alone. There's the boyfriend, and a smattering of friends outside the city. And my new coworkers, who I really do like. And my make-believe friends in my writing group. (The writing group really does exist -- but the friendships are a matter of convenience.) And my sister, who's out of the city this month on vacation. I know she's lonely. Not because she doesn't have friends -- I know she does -- but because her roommate just got married last week and moved to Israel. And it isn't quite the same without her.
Lonely today. It's the day before one of my close friends is leaving New York for law school. Everyone seems to be leaving within a short time. My best friend from high school, with whom I was hoping to reconnect now that we're both in Brooklyn (or so I thought), is moving to Wisconsin this week. And one of my coworkers took a new (and more enviable) job at another company, leaving the rest of feeling like ... the rest of us. A band of left-behinds.
Of course, I'm hardly alone. There's the boyfriend, and a smattering of friends outside the city. And my new coworkers, who I really do like. And my make-believe friends in my writing group. (The writing group really does exist -- but the friendships are a matter of convenience.) And my sister, who's out of the city this month on vacation. I know she's lonely. Not because she doesn't have friends -- I know she does -- but because her roommate just got married last week and moved to Israel. And it isn't quite the same without her.
Wednesday, August 11, 2004
Sea Lion in the Prospect Park Zoo
Rabbit
Kangaroo in Brooklyn!
Mammal thing in a box
Baboon
Monkeys
we we we we we ... all the way home
We aim to please.
We aim to please.
Tuesday, August 10, 2004
Updates
1) The super has fixed my shower. I don't need to get married afterall. What a relief.
2) While I am still in pain, I am willing to believe that perhaps I don't have a WebMD disease. Perhaps I have good old-fashioned PMS.
3) Also: my boss has not made a single flirtatious comment in nearly two weeks. Maybe he found my website. Maybe my boyfriend found him.
1) The super has fixed my shower. I don't need to get married afterall. What a relief.
2) While I am still in pain, I am willing to believe that perhaps I don't have a WebMD disease. Perhaps I have good old-fashioned PMS.
3) Also: my boss has not made a single flirtatious comment in nearly two weeks. Maybe he found my website. Maybe my boyfriend found him.
Monday, August 09, 2004
Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden
Multiple colored fish in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, Brooklyn Botanical Gardens
Feeding frenzy in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden
Fish in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden
Duck in Prospect Park
Duck in Prospect Park
Sunday, August 08, 2004
Rose Garden
Brooklyn Botanical Gardens
Tree
Tranquility
Honey Bee
Honey Bee
Hibiscus
Botanical Garden
Botanical Garden
Out in the Wild
I explored Brooklyn today, trying to shake a funk. The Brooklyn worth exploring, that is -- Prospect Park, the Zoo and the Botanical Garden. Nearly five and a half hours later, I'm back home, with a new plant. If I'm successful, I'll grow impatiens. It's supposed to be a hardy flower.
(P.S. Click on the pictures to get the full effect.)
I explored Brooklyn today, trying to shake a funk. The Brooklyn worth exploring, that is -- Prospect Park, the Zoo and the Botanical Garden. Nearly five and a half hours later, I'm back home, with a new plant. If I'm successful, I'll grow impatiens. It's supposed to be a hardy flower.
(P.S. Click on the pictures to get the full effect.)
Ouchies and Owies
My apologies to my male readers, but my left ovary has been killing me today. At least, the area where I imagine my left ovary is located is killing me. Of course, when I WebMD-ed my symptoms, I tested positive for ovarian cysts. But I do not want to walk around terrified again that I might be sick. One unexplained lump on my body is enough for one year.
It worried me for awhile. I was already looking through my new insurance paperwork, wondering who I selected as my primary care ob-gyn. But you know what? Yesterday morning my wrist hurt and it was because I slept on it funny. Maybe I slept on my ovary funny. I can live with that.
My apologies to my male readers, but my left ovary has been killing me today. At least, the area where I imagine my left ovary is located is killing me. Of course, when I WebMD-ed my symptoms, I tested positive for ovarian cysts. But I do not want to walk around terrified again that I might be sick. One unexplained lump on my body is enough for one year.
It worried me for awhile. I was already looking through my new insurance paperwork, wondering who I selected as my primary care ob-gyn. But you know what? Yesterday morning my wrist hurt and it was because I slept on it funny. Maybe I slept on my ovary funny. I can live with that.
Wednesday, August 04, 2004
The Real Reason I Want to Get Married
My boyfriend has started subscribing to militant bachelor views. Now he's effectively ruined. It makes me furious. This site is not only anti-marriage, it's anti-woman. And I'm certain it's run by the same men who had to beg high school girls to date them, played the oboe, never wore enough deodorant, were dumped in cafeterias (and on buses, and in front of their mothers), and started losing their hair at 19.
Now, I'll admit that my ideas on the marriage subject are somewhat antiquated -- like believing that marriage is something you have to do, so you might as well suck it up and deal with it. But I can be flexible on the details. The boyfriend says he "might" be convinced to have one child. I can agree to those terms! Let's have one and see how it goes!!
But I hate to think that someone I've been dating for the past 31.5 months has been toying with me. Why would you do that to someone? Why would you date that person for all those years only in the end to ruin her life??
....
The truth is, I just want someone to come fix my shower. I don't know how to use a wrench by myself. Plumbing is lonely.
My boyfriend has started subscribing to militant bachelor views. Now he's effectively ruined. It makes me furious. This site is not only anti-marriage, it's anti-woman. And I'm certain it's run by the same men who had to beg high school girls to date them, played the oboe, never wore enough deodorant, were dumped in cafeterias (and on buses, and in front of their mothers), and started losing their hair at 19.
Now, I'll admit that my ideas on the marriage subject are somewhat antiquated -- like believing that marriage is something you have to do, so you might as well suck it up and deal with it. But I can be flexible on the details. The boyfriend says he "might" be convinced to have one child. I can agree to those terms! Let's have one and see how it goes!!
But I hate to think that someone I've been dating for the past 31.5 months has been toying with me. Why would you do that to someone? Why would you date that person for all those years only in the end to ruin her life??
....
The truth is, I just want someone to come fix my shower. I don't know how to use a wrench by myself. Plumbing is lonely.
Tuesday, August 03, 2004
The Funny Thing Is
The funny thing is my shower is broken. Even with the knobs turned fully in an off position, water is still streaming out. Haha -- two messages each to the landlord and the super haven't solved anything. The contstant sound of water running through the pipes is starting to get to me. So I close the bathroom door -- but my mirror fogs up.
But at least I'm happy. My creative writing group -- it felt good to go through the day with a purpose. To be in one of those Lower East Side coffee shops, surrounded by good writing, well-dressed writers, and dog-eared books. And all kinds of rice krispie treats. Who would of thought there were so many kinds.
The funny thing is my shower is broken. Even with the knobs turned fully in an off position, water is still streaming out. Haha -- two messages each to the landlord and the super haven't solved anything. The contstant sound of water running through the pipes is starting to get to me. So I close the bathroom door -- but my mirror fogs up.
But at least I'm happy. My creative writing group -- it felt good to go through the day with a purpose. To be in one of those Lower East Side coffee shops, surrounded by good writing, well-dressed writers, and dog-eared books. And all kinds of rice krispie treats. Who would of thought there were so many kinds.
A Classic Subway Story
A crazy man boarded the Q-train this morning. He smelled strongly of horse manure and sat in one of the subway car love seats, next to a girl about my age, who was sedately reading a newspaper. Before he sat down, though, he unbuttoned his jeans and unzipped them. The girl opened her mouth in digust, but didn't move. Then he started shaking his head and making gutteral mmg mmg mmg noises.
That's when I lost it. Every time I looked at them, I started laughing.
I pretended to cough, shoved cereal in my mouth, but now people were looking at me.
The thing is, I completely empathized with her. It's exactly the kind of thing that would -- and, hell, probably did -- happen to me. But I couldn't help it.
The karma gods are going to smite me a new one for this.
A crazy man boarded the Q-train this morning. He smelled strongly of horse manure and sat in one of the subway car love seats, next to a girl about my age, who was sedately reading a newspaper. Before he sat down, though, he unbuttoned his jeans and unzipped them. The girl opened her mouth in digust, but didn't move. Then he started shaking his head and making gutteral mmg mmg mmg noises.
That's when I lost it. Every time I looked at them, I started laughing.
I pretended to cough, shoved cereal in my mouth, but now people were looking at me.
The thing is, I completely empathized with her. It's exactly the kind of thing that would -- and, hell, probably did -- happen to me. But I couldn't help it.
The karma gods are going to smite me a new one for this.
Monday, August 02, 2004
My Brush With Tourism
I'd like to report that everything in New York was business as usual today.
"Al Qaeda operatives are planning attacks on financial buildings -- and that could mean problems for your morning commute!" chirped the NY1 news anchor.
Damn morning commute, I thought.
"The Manhattan Bridge is also listed as a possible terror target ..."
And that's when -- I admit it -- I considered taking another train, one that doesn't go over the bridge.
But then this afternoon on my trip home I had a moment of what-do-you-want-from-me clarity. Because sitting three seats away was a loud, obnoxious tourist from Kansas (who at every stop would ask her boyfriend, "Daddy," as she called him, in a whining sing-song voice, "Are we there yet?") And at one point she started talking about the need for New Yorkers to prepare themselves for a terrorist attack.
And then I realized something. I am not some tourist in an oversized tie-dyed T-shirt and a large ass. And I am not afraid.
Damn morning commute.
I'd like to report that everything in New York was business as usual today.
"Al Qaeda operatives are planning attacks on financial buildings -- and that could mean problems for your morning commute!" chirped the NY1 news anchor.
Damn morning commute, I thought.
"The Manhattan Bridge is also listed as a possible terror target ..."
And that's when -- I admit it -- I considered taking another train, one that doesn't go over the bridge.
But then this afternoon on my trip home I had a moment of what-do-you-want-from-me clarity. Because sitting three seats away was a loud, obnoxious tourist from Kansas (who at every stop would ask her boyfriend, "Daddy," as she called him, in a whining sing-song voice, "Are we there yet?") And at one point she started talking about the need for New Yorkers to prepare themselves for a terrorist attack.
And then I realized something. I am not some tourist in an oversized tie-dyed T-shirt and a large ass. And I am not afraid.
Damn morning commute.
