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July 30, 2004
A wee bit better
By the time I left work this evening, I had moved into a full-on funk! How could life be so unjust? When I got in the car with Flouder, I was rather sullen and quite down. My Flounder did all he could to distract me from my funk, while not being overbearing with the cheerful. How did he do it? Dinner, and Spiderman 2. Perfectly diverting.
When we left the movie theater, the moon was full, huge and brighter than I think I have ever seen before. A sign of hope and better things to come? God I hope so.
Thank you Flounder. I love you too.
Posted by La at 9:56 PM | Comments (0)What the Hell!
They actually found him guilty. I really am amazed. We are talking to his lawyer about appeal. If we don't appeal (or don't win the appeal) he will have to do community service, parole and (because ths issurance agency that insuured the stolen/wrecked car got in the mix) possibly pay up to $21,000. Oh yeah, and they wanted him to write a letter of appology. Bastards!
There is another hearing in Spetember to determine how much reciprocity they believe is due. I don't think the judge even knew what "beyond a reasonable doubt" means.
Posted by La at 12:35 PM | Comments (0)
Say a prayer
Today is Micah's final hearing. Fingers crossed! I am needless to say, very worried for him.
The weather seems to be giving
I am so bummed that The Village is getting such bad reviews! I have really enjoyed all of M. Knight's other films and was looking forward to freaking out in the theater! Perhaps I will be freaking out from the comfort of my couch instead.
Quote of the Day:
"If we do not maintain Justice, Justice will not maintain us."
-Francis Bacon
July 29, 2004
Good Carma!
I am happy to report that all my car needed was a neew battery. When
So the evening ended with an up tic. I have been raelly lazy this week. Even though I consult me to do list every day, little is getting accomplished. Not good. Must try harder!
On a totally different note, I have come accross an interesting site in these tumultous times. When reflecting on the current political issues, world news, or personal struggles, I encourage you to Light a Candle.
Quote of the Day:
"When it gets dark enough you can see the stars."
Lee Salk
July 28, 2004
Comedy of Errors
Lets start at the beginning. There was no walking last night, due to torrental downpours, though if I was going to be honest, I had probably talked myself out ofwalking long before the rain started. Crispy eggplant with hot garlic sauce was dinner. Followed by laundry and The Paper Chase in TCM last night. I don't really know what made me watch it. A sick attraction to Timothy Bottoms crazy hair perhaps?
Anyway, I woke a little early this morning, planning to drive into the office. I planned to drop off my rent check afterwork (you know for the apartment I don't live in!) and pick up some of my junk. Upon checking the morning news, I saw that there were major back-ups on the Red Line. Since I was going through Silver Spring, I called KT to see if she wanted a ride. KT said yes please! Off I went to the car.
My car started very sluggishly. It had been giving me a little hassle of late, but I thought I had been taxing the battery by starting the car too often with the AC running and such. The car turned over, though it didn't seem happy about it. When I arrived to pick KT up, I had a couple minutes to wait, so I turned off the car. I am very sad to report that once KT arrive, the car wouldn't for all my trying turn over again. We rolled the car down the hill and into a parking space. It looked like we were BOTH going to have to schlep to the Metro. Blast!
I called 
Good times. It was a nice suprise in our awful commute. And no, we didn't try to talk to him! Getting off the Metro, I was a sweaty mess and a restorative Orangina was in order for sure.
Now I am at my office, finally not sweating, but dreading what the mechanics are going to have to say about my poor Saturn this time!
Quote of the Day:
"The lord is wonderfully good to those who wait for him and seek him."
N.B.: From this quote is derived the proverb, "Good things come to those who wait."
-Lamentations 3:25
July 27, 2004
I do prattle on....
Is it just me, or are all of my entries about things I plan on doing and/or have just done? Considering the dullness of my life, that can't be very exciting reading. All in all, I am pretty content. I have love, a great home, loving family. I have not found my "life's work" nor what I would deem my purpose, but of late I have gotten a strong feeling that I won't divine those things until I have a few more years under my belt.
I think I am right smack-dab in the early learning faze of my life. Figuring out what I want to know more about. I find it VERY funny that I have been a very early bloomer in anatomical ways, but a late bloomer in my education.
Classes this fall aren't going to happen. Once I figured out I wasn't getting an learning disability evaluation this summer, I missed my chance to enroll. Hadn't I worked it that way on purpose? I think so. I didn't really feel ready to go back yet. One major reason I don't feel ready is I REALLY don't know what direction I want to go in. I have kicked teaching around for awhile now, but seriously, do I really like kids all that much?
IN the meantime I have decided it's time that I make the most of my current position. If I were honest, I would have to say I probably only put in %50 on any given day. People are happy, reviews are good, but I want to raise my own expectations of my performance. There is a major merger in the works, and when/if it goes through, I want everything I am responsible for to be in perfect running order.
So until while I figure out what's next, I am going to make the best of what's now.
Posted by La at 4:47 PM | Comments (0)I need to get my
I need to get my butt in motion. Since the weather has gotten so steamy, Mi Mama and I haven't been walking at lunch nearly as often. So I decided I wanted to walk around the neighborhood after work. I didn't have any sporty shorts that would get the job done, so I ordered bike shorts. I am sure they are going to be heinously unattractive. But what can I do? A fat girl needs clothes that won't ride up when she is walking. I promise to wear nice LARGE shirts so as to hide as much of the spectacle as possible.
Despite today's rain, I am going to walk tonight unless it gets unusually dark and torrential. What's a little warm rain? That's what hats are for!
Can you tell I am trying to talk myself into this?
Micah's final hearing is coming up on the 30th, and come what may, we are approaching the end this awful drawn out mess. This last hearing will basically we the defenses opportunity to plead it's case. I really don't know what the strategy is at this point. Micah and his attorney have been pretty tight lipped. I guess we will see.
Quote of the Day:
"The artist is a recepticle for the emotions that come from all over the place: from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider's web."
-Pablo Picasso
July 26, 2004
All Robert Redford films are not created equal
Yesterday there was a Robert Redford Marathon on AMC. The young R.R. would have to be rank in my top ten most attractive men of all time. Yes, the man can act, but come on! Just look at HIM! Anyway
The to do list was all but forgotten this weekend, thought I think the house looked better Sunday night than it did Saturday morning for what it's worth.
Friday night
An now it's Monday and there are several mundane tasks to take on. Best get to it.
Quote of the Day:
Anyone can slay a dragon, he told me, but try waking up every morning and loving the world all over again. That’s what takes a real hero.”
July 23, 2004
Show me the money
My annual pay adjustment (read raise) was supposed to show up in my pay check today and be prorated back June. I was expecting a pretty little chunk of change. Nothing life changing but a little extra pocket money for our upcoming trip to New York. Sadly I must say I was disappointed. My chunk is certainly "little". I will have to chat with my boss today. I always over estimate the effect a raise will have on my bottom line. It's so cruel that they taunt us will pre-tax numbers!
Given the volatile state of the weather this weekend,
The movies I want to see are starting to mount. There is King Arthur, Spiderman 2 and the newly released Borne Supremacy, the latter I am sure Flounder and I will see this weekend.
Also, I am very curious about Garden State a film writen by and staring Zach Braff of Scrubs fame. It's looks eally interesting if nothing else. :)
Quote of the Day:
Seek not, my soul, the life of the immortals; but enjoy to the full the resources that are within thy reach. |
Pindar |
July 22, 2004
In honor of national hot
In honor of national hot dog month, I bring you...
Freaky Franks
Posted by La at 10:25 AM | Comments (0)Haiku
Habits
I awoke 30 minutes early this morning to practice a little yoga. I had forgotten how peacefully invigorating even sedate, gentle yoga can be in the morning. I am working on building some new positive habits. Taking my makeup off before going to sleep (I am notorious for waking up with raccoon eyes), keeping a schedule of To Do items and incorporating yoga back into my day are the current habits I am trying develop. One day at a time.
Quote of the Day:
We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life this is waiting for us. Joseph Campbell
July 21, 2004
YOU SPOT IT, YOU'VE GOT IT
I have come across this idea in a few different places. The premise that the things you dislike (or hate, or mock, or revile) in others really reflect more about you than it says about the people you are criticizing. Martha Beck wrote a great article about this, which has been summerized on oprah.com it's called:
I didn't go to the library last night, but will go this week, so thanks to all who sent me reading suggestions! Feel free to keep them coming.
I have three or four really tedious projects I need to tackle in the coming weeks. File reorgainization type stuff. Really mind numbing. Bleck! Alas there is no time like the present. Right now I am kind of hating the present
Quote of the Day: Hope holds the present open for an ever fresh future, for a future in time and a future beyond time.
July 20, 2004
Book Recommendations
I am going to the Library tonight and need some book recommendations. I am not sure what I am in the mood for, be it light or heavy, trivial or serious. I welcome all suggestions! Thanks!
Posted by La at 9:13 AM | Comments (0)July 19, 2004
The Report
Saturday was spent putting the finishing touches on the house. A final coat of paint here, a little art hanging there, and 12 hours later we were done.
I set off to hang with Mi Mama and search for those previously mentioned prayer towers, which Flounder greeted the Storybook Parents at our new home and break the news to them that we have decided to live in sin.
Mi Mama and I have a lovely time shopping in vain. No prayer towers to be found. We did have a lovely meal at Mon Ami Gabi in Bethesda. Vanilla French Toast. Yummers! (Weight Watchers? What Weight Watchers?) While in the restaurant I received the message from Flounder that it was all clear from my return home. The news had been broken.
Now a little background about this. Flounder and I knew that his parents would really have prefered their children NOT live with their S.O. before marrying. So there was likely to be a bit of objection. We had heard as much from
Upon arriving back at the house, everyone was upbeat and lighthearted. You would have thought no major life announcement had been made at all. As it turned out, their responses to the news were Storybook Mother -- "Ok" and Storybook Father -- "That's your business". Whoo Knew? I guess all of J truth spreading had given them time adjust to the idea. all the better I say! We chatted for a while and then went to dinner at the Tower Oaks Lodge, one of mine and Flounder's favorite local restaurants to celebrate a very belated Father's Day. It was a lovely meal. When we got home I was wheeling a bit from how darn EASY the whole thing had been. Even better, the S.P.s loved the house, and had many compliments to give, which made me feel especially good considering all the work we have been putting into it.
What's up next? This coming Saturday, if the weather holds out Flounder and I are taking a day trip to the beach. The weekend of Aug. 6th, we are off to NYC! I am very excited about visiting the Rose Center for Earth and Space! And now to work!
Oh I almost forgot. Please send out a warm LJ welcome to my friend
Quote of the Day:
"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be."
-Douglas Adams
July 16, 2004
So much to do!
I wasn't feeling so great last night, so I went to bed early and was probably asleep by 9:00. As a result I didn't get much of anything on my to do list accomplished. And that means there will be no resting on my laurels this Friday night. There are still floors to be cleaned, a room that needs another coat of paint, art that need to be hung, Laundry that needs folding and so on. Most of it will get done, and the things that don't really matter will fall by the way side the way they usually do.
It will be great by the time the S.P. arrive. I will just keep telling myself that. On Sunday while I am hiding out from the S.P.'s, Mi Mama and I are going to Bethesda to check out these really cool Prayer Towers. They are beautiful little clay sculputres that we both just love. My boss bought a couple at a art show recently and I just fell in love.
I have to do one of my least favorite "maintenance" projects at work today, which has left me a bit grumpy.
Quote of the Day:
"Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities within us and new beauty waiting to be born."
Dale E. Turner
July 15, 2004
All kinds of Pluses!
I took an hour today to call all the people who send me bills, magazines and the like to tell them that I have changed my address. Much to my delight, I just found out my car insurance will be going down $14 a month! That's a savings of $168 per year. Whoot!
I knew there was a reason I was moving in with
A visit from Condorman
Last night my good friend Condorman came over for dinner. He works at a knife shop and said he would sharpen my hopelessly dull kitchen knifes. To thank him, I offered to make him dinner. Well he did one better! As a house warming gift he brought me knife sharpening kit they use where he works and showed me how to use it. NOW I can sharpen my own knifes with confidence (it's a dummy-proof little system) and likely slice my hands open with freshly sharpened blades! Hurrah! Also while her was over, he fixed one of our kitchen drawers that was constantly running off the track. I was one happy girl.
I am SO happy the humidity around here finally broke. Today is beautiful, funny, warm but topping out at 82 degrees tremendously bearable.
I just finished the third book in the Thursday Next series, The Well of Lost Plots, and am very excited about the fourth installment coming out in August. I would recommend the series to anyone who loves literature, and enjoys poking fun at it in a slightly sci-fi kind of way. That is a crap description, so check it out anyway.
This week is flying by quickly. I had a great performance review at work which is enough to make anyone's week. My only real bad news regards my campaign to go back to school.
I was planning on having my learning disabilities revaluated before taking classes again so I would be assured the accommodations I needed to succeed. I thought I had found an organization that would do the evaluation for $350. Not a pittance, but a cost I was willing to pay. Alas I was wrong. They want $2000! So sadly that is not going to happen. I will have to call MC (the local community college) to find out what my next steps should be. I just hope my elementary school documentation will be enough to get the accommodations I need. Eek!
Quote of the Day:
To have striven, to have made an effort, to have been true to certain ideals - this alone is worth the struggle. We are here to add what we can to, not to get what we can from, life.”
July 12, 2004
Savor
This weekend was jam-packed with house-stuff, life-stuff and preparing for a visit from the Storybook parents.
I bought some wooden cut out letters that spell out SAVOR. They will be going up in the kitchen. Not to be confused with SAVIOR. Savor is meant as a reminder to enjoy each moment, and each bite. The letters came in the mail today and I am very excited to put them up tonight.
Quote of the Day:
Ideals are like stars; you will not succeed in touching them with your hands, but like the seafaring man on the desert of waters, you choose them as your guides, and following them, you reach your destiny.
Carl Schurz
July 8, 2004
Feminism
So last night I am riding the Metro home. I get on the train with two bags and a large umbrella in my hands. I fine young man stands to offer me his seat and I respectful decline -- his offer was very kind but I had been sitting all day and didn't mind standing a bit. Then I noticed in the seat ahead of the fine young man is a gentleman reading a magazine. Taking a closer look, I see that the left hand page features a multi-photo pictorial layout of a woman stripping down to her panties in "the bosses office". Several more spreads of this sort followed. The magazine was FHM, which as far as I can tell, is a cross between Entertainment Weekly, GQ and Playboy. The content seemed a little racy for mass transit reading in my view. As I was pondering constitutional rights vs. protecting the public for unwanted sexual material I marveled at what I noticed at the other end of the train. A man, was reading The Awakening by Kate Chopin. On one hand, a entertainment skin mag. On the other hand a great work of feminist fiction. The dichotomy between the two publications -- the juxtaposition of the perspectives was a little overwhelming. What a wacky world we live in. Some would say this diversity of perspective is what America is all about. Freedom of speech and such. To me at the moment, it just seems like as women we still have a long way to go. In the Awakening, the main character is unhappy in her marriage and feels shackled to her position in life. She has an affair and ends her life in depressed desperation committing suicide. In FHM, we see women choosing their own fate and making the choice to utilize (some would say exploit) their sexuality for money. Have we taken a big enough step in the right direction? Or are we still letting the world (read men) control how we see, present and conduct ourselves?
Quote of the Day:
| "Nothing can be more absurd than the practice that prevails in our country of men and women not following the same pursuits with all their strengths and with one mind, for thus, the state instead of being whole is reduced to half." -Plato, The Laws |
Posted by La at 9:41 AM | Comments (0)
July 6, 2004
Wilted
What's the point of blow-drying your hair anyway if it just going to get sweaty and sticky by the time you get in the office? Arriving in the office all Wilted in the morning has to be one of the worst parts of summertime.
This lovely long weekend was mighty nice. I got to put some of the finishing touches on the house before
Flounder seems happy to be home and playing with all the new toys he picked up at WWDC. The coffee table quickly became a mini test network for Apples latest version of it's OS. So much for keeping the tables clear of clutter. I should have realized that with the two of us around, it was merely a pipe-dream.
I always have a little trouble getting my head together for work after a long weekend. I better go give it a shot!
Quote of the Day:
Realize that true happiness lies within you. Waste no time and effort searching for peace and contentment and joy in the world outside. Remember that there is no happiness in having or in getting, but only in giving. Reach out. Share. Smile. Hug. Happiness is a perfume you cannot pour on others without getting a few drops on yourself.
Og Mandino
July 1, 2004
One more thing...
I was reading McSweeney's just now and thought I would share with you my two favorite sections
Enjoy!
Posted by La at 12:02 PM | Comments (0)
The Hearing
I forgot (how is that possible) to give you all the update on Micah's hearing. Basicly, it went as expected. He is asserting his innocents and pleading not guilty. The issue is remaining in the juvenile court system (v.good!) and his next hearing is July 30. I am not sure what exactly will be happening at that point. I will find out and report.
Posted by La at 11:52 AM | Comments (0)It's Friday!
Not really, but my office is closed tomorrow and Monday for the July 4th holiday. So it's MY Friday! And the best part of a 4 day weekend? 2 4 day weeks! Yippee!
I got plenty of sleep last night and feel pretty refreshed this morning. I was very pleased that I did manage to get the kitchen cleaned up and some laundry started as well. As per my usual, I had grand plans for all of the things I was going to accomplish while
When I was a little girl, I would periodically go away for a week or so with my grandparents. 2 or 3 times while I was gone, Mi Mama would take that opportunity to redeorate and organize my room. What a wonderful surprise it always was. Ever sine then, I have tired to be mindful of how nice it is to return from a trip to a nice home. With that in mind, I want Flounder to come home to a better space than he left. :)
Quote of the Day:
"Dream as if you'll live forever...
live as if you'll die today."
James Dean
