Entry tags:
Family, Duty, Honor
I've taken this quiz twice now, once before reading the books, and both times it's called me a Tully. Lysa is cray and Edmure's a total failboat, but Cat and Brynden are pretty cool?
I've taken this quiz twice now, once before reading the books, and both times it's called me a Tully. Lysa is cray and Edmure's a total failboat, but Cat and Brynden are pretty cool?
Entry tags:
moooooooo
Bassoonist R: Oh, I have a concert Saturday! The Early Music Ensemble.
Me: What are you playing?
R: I'm playing... well, I'm dressing up as a cow.
Yes, this actually happened. And is actually going to happen. In four days.
Me: What are you playing?
R: I'm playing... well, I'm dressing up as a cow.
Yes, this actually happened. And is actually going to happen. In four days.
NERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRD
So today I, um, watched Star Trek. Again.
Hey, Campus Events was showing it for two dollars. TWO. That is the same price as a cookie from the organic vending machine. Only twice as much as a bag of chips from the regular vending machine. And about 1/5 of what my dinner from Rubio's cost today.
I almost decided not to go, because, damn, I have so much shit to do. And I promised myself I would decide where to apply to grad school by the end of today -- which is looking unlikely. (I did have a good talk with Dan about grad school and other things today, though.)
But today kind of sucked -- tired the moment I woke up, frustrating practise, scratchy throat (o hai post-nasal drip), angry at work, dozed off in the stacks at work, didn't play well in a coaching -- and I decided that no, I needed to go to this movie. Because I need the future to be bright and shiny and beautiful and full of lens flares and french horn solos.
Seriously, this film has a great score. I hope the horn soloist got paid really well. And I love that they used the original theme for the end credits.
Honestly, Star Trek just gets better and better, possibly because now I've seen about 20 times as much TOS as I had when I first watched it. ( potential spoilers? )
BUT OMG I WANT SALT AND PEPPER SHAKERS THAT ARE SPACESHIPS. MOST ADORABLE PROP EVER. I CAN HAS?
Hey, Campus Events was showing it for two dollars. TWO. That is the same price as a cookie from the organic vending machine. Only twice as much as a bag of chips from the regular vending machine. And about 1/5 of what my dinner from Rubio's cost today.
I almost decided not to go, because, damn, I have so much shit to do. And I promised myself I would decide where to apply to grad school by the end of today -- which is looking unlikely. (I did have a good talk with Dan about grad school and other things today, though.)
But today kind of sucked -- tired the moment I woke up, frustrating practise, scratchy throat (o hai post-nasal drip), angry at work, dozed off in the stacks at work, didn't play well in a coaching -- and I decided that no, I needed to go to this movie. Because I need the future to be bright and shiny and beautiful and full of lens flares and french horn solos.
Seriously, this film has a great score. I hope the horn soloist got paid really well. And I love that they used the original theme for the end credits.
Honestly, Star Trek just gets better and better, possibly because now I've seen about 20 times as much TOS as I had when I first watched it. ( potential spoilers? )
BUT OMG I WANT SALT AND PEPPER SHAKERS THAT ARE SPACESHIPS. MOST ADORABLE PROP EVER. I CAN HAS?
quickie before I drag myself to rehearsal:
Slightly old news, but still awesome:
SHAPE-SHIFTING ROBOT.
also, The Coughing has begun. (o hai chest congestion.) Baxter hides under the bed whenever I have coughing fits.
The agenda for the rest of today:
-probably sucking in wind ensemble
-hopefully sucking less than yesterday in Mozart wind sectional
-maybe a tiny bit of contra practise to re-learn Mahler before concert tomorrow
-to Rite-Aid for prescription-filling and re-stocking on various kinds of Sudafed? (the sinus kind, primarily, although cold & cough might not be amiss either)
-that project that was due for my ed class yesterday (hey, I have at least started it!)
-reading for music ed class tomorrow? eh, maybe
shit still need to get fingerprinted for student teaching, still need to register for CBEST, still need to call vet re: kitties' final immunizations, still need to make contacts appointment with optometrist, still need to schedule dentist appointment (which will be even harder because the optometrist is at least open some Saturdays), still need to decide where I'm applying to grad school so I can get down to business.
shit shit shit
SHAPE-SHIFTING ROBOT.
also, The Coughing has begun. (o hai chest congestion.) Baxter hides under the bed whenever I have coughing fits.
The agenda for the rest of today:
-hopefully sucking less than yesterday in Mozart wind sectional
-maybe a tiny bit of contra practise to re-learn Mahler before concert tomorrow
-to Rite-Aid for prescription-filling and re-stocking on various kinds of Sudafed? (the sinus kind, primarily, although cold & cough might not be amiss either)
-that project that was due for my ed class yesterday (hey, I have at least started it!)
-reading for music ed class tomorrow? eh, maybe
shit still need to get fingerprinted for student teaching, still need to register for CBEST, still need to call vet re: kitties' final immunizations, still need to make contacts appointment with optometrist, still need to schedule dentist appointment (which will be even harder because the optometrist is at least open some Saturdays), still need to decide where I'm applying to grad school so I can get down to business.
shit shit shit
EPIC KITTEN PICTURE POST + some stuff
1. Sore throat + sniffles + watery eyes + maybe a slight fever if my baseline is below 98.6 as I suspect it is = hopefully not flu. Seriously, I am not allowed to be really sick until after next week, I have way too much bassooning to do.
2. Dear Homework I Have Not Seriously Considered Doing For The Past Four Days,
I'm not sorry.
love, Sigma
3. I have discovered the fiery green joy of wasabi peas. Uh. Or maybe I like them because I can taste them even with a sniffly nose?
4. Sci-Fi Bassoon! Well, Eigenharp. My teacher linked me to this. Awesome electronic instruments ahoy! ... Will tried to explain what the mouth-pipe does but I still don't get it.
5. Okay, NOW kittens. ( EPIC KITTEN PICTURE POST )
More kitten pictures at my Photobucket album! Seriously. TONS more.
P.S. OMG CONCERT. MOZART + MAHLER. THURSDAY @ 8.
(this is why I can't be sick. among other things.)
2. Dear Homework I Have Not Seriously Considered Doing For The Past Four Days,
I'm not sorry.
love, Sigma
3. I have discovered the fiery green joy of wasabi peas. Uh. Or maybe I like them because I can taste them even with a sniffly nose?
4. Sci-Fi Bassoon! Well, Eigenharp. My teacher linked me to this. Awesome electronic instruments ahoy! ... Will tried to explain what the mouth-pipe does but I still don't get it.
5. Okay, NOW kittens. ( EPIC KITTEN PICTURE POST )
More kitten pictures at my Photobucket album! Seriously. TONS more.
P.S. OMG CONCERT. MOZART + MAHLER. THURSDAY @ 8.
(this is why I can't be sick. among other things.)Pictures post!!!
1. BUT FIRST! a quiz. ( tarot )
2. Things I have cooked: ( cheesy bread, crepes )
Oh, speaking of cooking! That's what I did ALLLL MORNING today. Chocolate chip pancakes, which turned out a little too dry, maybe because I added some cocoa powder and it absorbed the milk? also I didn't measure the flour too painstakingly I guess. AND the little pumpkin my mum gave me was actually a PIE PUMPKIN! And I didn't make a pie with it, but I did scrape it out (with much elbow-grease) and make PUMPKIN MUSH by stirring its innards up with an egg, condensed milk, sugar, and spices (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves), pouring it into casserole dishes, and sticking it in the oven (no, I didn't measure anything here, either). I tried to roast the seeds (sprinkled half with sugar, half with salt, plus various spices on both sides, including cinnamon, chili powder, ginger, curry powder, and I forget what else) but I ended up burning them to a blackened crisp and setting off the smoke alarm and making the kittens hide under the bed. Oops.
3. Star Trek waffles! ( Also, I swear I don't hate Flatmate ALL the time. )
I do wonder how these actors feel about having their faces on waffles, and people eating them. I guess it's probably about the same as having their faces all over any other kind of promotional materials or tie-in merchandise or whatever.
4. Downtown LA and the opera costume shop sale: ( graffiti, a van, and fangirling a professor )
5. Travel fun: ( my commentary on a packet of peanuts )
I also had some napkins that were pretty great, but I have mislaid them. I really hope I didn't leave them tucked inside Dorian Gray when I returned it to the library :\
6. And some random stuff! ( YAAAAAY )
COMING UP NEXT: EPIC KITTEN PICTURES POST. (srsly, EPIC.)
BUT FIRST! btw that concert tonight? ( THIS: )
2. Things I have cooked: ( cheesy bread, crepes )
Oh, speaking of cooking! That's what I did ALLLL MORNING today. Chocolate chip pancakes, which turned out a little too dry, maybe because I added some cocoa powder and it absorbed the milk? also I didn't measure the flour too painstakingly I guess. AND the little pumpkin my mum gave me was actually a PIE PUMPKIN! And I didn't make a pie with it, but I did scrape it out (with much elbow-grease) and make PUMPKIN MUSH by stirring its innards up with an egg, condensed milk, sugar, and spices (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves), pouring it into casserole dishes, and sticking it in the oven (no, I didn't measure anything here, either). I tried to roast the seeds (sprinkled half with sugar, half with salt, plus various spices on both sides, including cinnamon, chili powder, ginger, curry powder, and I forget what else) but I ended up burning them to a blackened crisp and setting off the smoke alarm and making the kittens hide under the bed. Oops.
3. Star Trek waffles! ( Also, I swear I don't hate Flatmate ALL the time. )
I do wonder how these actors feel about having their faces on waffles, and people eating them. I guess it's probably about the same as having their faces all over any other kind of promotional materials or tie-in merchandise or whatever.
4. Downtown LA and the opera costume shop sale: ( graffiti, a van, and fangirling a professor )
5. Travel fun: ( my commentary on a packet of peanuts )
I also had some napkins that were pretty great, but I have mislaid them. I really hope I didn't leave them tucked inside Dorian Gray when I returned it to the library :\
6. And some random stuff! ( YAAAAAY )
COMING UP NEXT: EPIC KITTEN PICTURES POST. (srsly, EPIC.)
BUT FIRST! btw that concert tonight? ( THIS: )
Entry tags:
(no subject)
What I did Thursday night: ( DALEK-O-LANTERN )
All the pumpkins that happened that night (on the landing at my friend's apartment): ( six pumpkins )
What I did Friday morning: got my first ever speeding ticket. The officer kind of talked to me like I was a child, possibly because I clearly had no idea what to do when he pulled me over. (It took me a minute to even realise he was pulling me over, especially because I was almost in my parking lot.) I suppose I had it coming, though. Even if there was no one else in my lane, or even my stretch of road at the time. *sigh* Traffic school, I really don't have time for you. But here I come.
What I'm doing today:
(here's a secret: the piece isn't that good :( Our concert next week should be pretty awesome, though. Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor + Mahler Symphony No. 1. Thursday @ 8pm in Schoenberg Hall, tickets $5 with student ID!)
All the pumpkins that happened that night (on the landing at my friend's apartment): ( six pumpkins )
What I did Friday morning: got my first ever speeding ticket. The officer kind of talked to me like I was a child, possibly because I clearly had no idea what to do when he pulled me over. (It took me a minute to even realise he was pulling me over, especially because I was almost in my parking lot.) I suppose I had it coming, though. Even if there was no one else in my lane, or even my stretch of road at the time. *sigh* Traffic school, I really don't have time for you. But here I come.
What I'm doing today:
(here's a secret: the piece isn't that good :( Our concert next week should be pretty awesome, though. Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor + Mahler Symphony No. 1. Thursday @ 8pm in Schoenberg Hall, tickets $5 with student ID!)
oh god stuff. so much stuff.
1. OH MY GOD BUSYWORK CLASS WTF.
- four hours of bad-quality video to watch (srsly one of them was so damaged that the screen blanked out every few seconds and the audio was wavering ALLLLLLL over the place. WTF BUSYWORK TEACHER YOU WANT US TO LEARN ABOUT CHORAL TEACHING BY NOT BEING ABLE TO SEE OR HEAR THE CLASS?)
- "video review" that contributes to a 30% chuck of the final grade, for which we have NO GUIDELINES WHATSOEVER THANKS FOR THAT
- five (+ about four more that were SEKRITLY STAPLED TOGETHER) articles (admittedly short) to read
- ONE-PARAGRAPH SUMMARIES of aforementioned articles (which I have not done and have very little intention to)
- take-home mini-quiz which BTW WAS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN IN THE LAST CLASS WAY TO GO WITH THE TIME MANAGEMENT BUSYWORK TEACHER
- random-ass songs to learn and analyse vowels of? I DON'T EVEN KNOW.
To sum up: WTF BUSYWORK CLASS GTFO
2. OMG BASSOON. WHERE DID ALL MY TCHAIK 4 MOJO GO? I swear it's all Charlie's fault, I felt happy about that excerpt until I started working on it with him. FFFFFFFFFFFFFFF IT TOOK ME 3 YEARS OF NO CHARLIE TO GET MY SCHEHEREZADE MOJO BACK I DON'T HAVE 3 MORE YEARS FOR TCHAIK. Also: DEAR REEDS, STOP SUCKING PLS. KTHX.
3. DEAR WEATHER, WTF R U DOIN? It was cold and rainy, and then it was hot and muggy and today was foggy-but-superbright and then I was inside all day and then it was cold and I actually needed to use the heater in the car this evening. What??
4. Note to self: YOU CAN'T PEEL OUT WHEN IT'S RAINING. YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TRACTION FOR THAT. It's okay, though, it happened each time within the first 3 minutes I was driving and none of them were situations that required peeling out and there were no crashes or anything and then after it happened I remembered to accelerate more slowly.
5. ... I don't really know but I feel like there should be a 5. Look for a future post about Star Trek waffles? YES THEY EXIST THIS IS TRUFAX. I sort of wonder how Zoe Saldana feels about people eating her face on waffles. For that matter, also Chris Pine and Zach Quinto (<3 <3 <3)
6. omg i am watching so much star trek. I FOUND ALL THE CHANNELS THAT TOS AND TNG ARE ON AND I DVR THEM AND IT IS WONDERFUL. I LOVE STAR TREK LIKE BURNING.
7. I keep forgetting that having an ear infection is in fact "being sick" -- I run around doing all the things I would normally do and since I'm not coughing or sneezing or feverish or achy or nauseous, I don't actually consider it "being sick" except for the part where my ear sometimes feels funny/painful and I have to take MASSIVE HORSE PILLS three times a day. Except I keep spontaneously sleeping. On the couch in front of the TV, dozing lightly in the library in front of the VCR setup (I HATE YOU BUSYWORK CLASS), taking 3-hour naps in my parents' living room... Well, maybe that's not so unusual -- I tend to fall asleep/take extravagant naps every time I go home, it seems. But still. It's also waaay too hard to get up in the mornings. THANKS BUT NO THANKS, EAR INFECTION.
8. At least I don't have 'flu like my brother. Yeah, apparently today he has a 100-degree fever and coughing. GET YOUR FLU SHOTS, KIDS. Swine flu and seasonal flu. (o btw I was definitely misinformed about the whole "swine flu is the only flu active in the u.s." thing -- there is ALSO regular old seasonal influenza and you should DEFINITELY get flu shots for both kinds k? some of my family from norcal has already had both kinds this fall.)
9. Oh! So, I glimpsed DIAF through the door in a rehearsal for one of the youth orchestras that uses our facilities. And I, like, wanted to get mad and hurt, or I tried to, or something... but then I realised that I don't care enough to get hurt and I don't have the energy for it and, you know what? That felt good. I still kind of wanted to key his car. I didn't, though -- I wanted to go home and eat dinner more. More good, yeah? Heh.
10. My grandma has a guava tree in her back yard and it has FRUIT and some of them are RIPE and so yesterday when we were at her house for lunch my mum and I went out and picked guavas!! And persimmons! (OMG SO MANY PERSIMMON. SO MANY.) I LOVE GUAVAS. I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT GUAVAS. THEY SMELL SO GOOD. AND OMG SO TASTY. I HAVE SO MANY GUAVAS. GUAVAS ARE LOVE. (corrolary: my family is love. SO MUCH LOVE.)
11. This business of being too busy for life sucks a lot, not least because it is making all of my LJ entries freakin' ENORMOUS. OH MY GOD INTERNET I MISS YOU SO MUCH
- four hours of bad-quality video to watch (srsly one of them was so damaged that the screen blanked out every few seconds and the audio was wavering ALLLLLLL over the place. WTF BUSYWORK TEACHER YOU WANT US TO LEARN ABOUT CHORAL TEACHING BY NOT BEING ABLE TO SEE OR HEAR THE CLASS?)
- "video review" that contributes to a 30% chuck of the final grade, for which we have NO GUIDELINES WHATSOEVER THANKS FOR THAT
- five (+ about four more that were SEKRITLY STAPLED TOGETHER) articles (admittedly short) to read
- ONE-PARAGRAPH SUMMARIES of aforementioned articles (which I have not done and have very little intention to)
- take-home mini-quiz which BTW WAS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN IN THE LAST CLASS WAY TO GO WITH THE TIME MANAGEMENT BUSYWORK TEACHER
- random-ass songs to learn and analyse vowels of? I DON'T EVEN KNOW.
To sum up: WTF BUSYWORK CLASS GTFO
2. OMG BASSOON. WHERE DID ALL MY TCHAIK 4 MOJO GO? I swear it's all Charlie's fault, I felt happy about that excerpt until I started working on it with him. FFFFFFFFFFFFFFF IT TOOK ME 3 YEARS OF NO CHARLIE TO GET MY SCHEHEREZADE MOJO BACK I DON'T HAVE 3 MORE YEARS FOR TCHAIK. Also: DEAR REEDS, STOP SUCKING PLS. KTHX.
3. DEAR WEATHER, WTF R U DOIN? It was cold and rainy, and then it was hot and muggy and today was foggy-but-superbright and then I was inside all day and then it was cold and I actually needed to use the heater in the car this evening. What??
4. Note to self: YOU CAN'T PEEL OUT WHEN IT'S RAINING. YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TRACTION FOR THAT. It's okay, though, it happened each time within the first 3 minutes I was driving and none of them were situations that required peeling out and there were no crashes or anything and then after it happened I remembered to accelerate more slowly.
5. ... I don't really know but I feel like there should be a 5. Look for a future post about Star Trek waffles? YES THEY EXIST THIS IS TRUFAX. I sort of wonder how Zoe Saldana feels about people eating her face on waffles. For that matter, also Chris Pine and Zach Quinto (<3 <3 <3)
6. omg i am watching so much star trek. I FOUND ALL THE CHANNELS THAT TOS AND TNG ARE ON AND I DVR THEM AND IT IS WONDERFUL. I LOVE STAR TREK LIKE BURNING.
7. I keep forgetting that having an ear infection is in fact "being sick" -- I run around doing all the things I would normally do and since I'm not coughing or sneezing or feverish or achy or nauseous, I don't actually consider it "being sick" except for the part where my ear sometimes feels funny/painful and I have to take MASSIVE HORSE PILLS three times a day. Except I keep spontaneously sleeping. On the couch in front of the TV, dozing lightly in the library in front of the VCR setup (I HATE YOU BUSYWORK CLASS), taking 3-hour naps in my parents' living room... Well, maybe that's not so unusual -- I tend to fall asleep/take extravagant naps every time I go home, it seems. But still. It's also waaay too hard to get up in the mornings. THANKS BUT NO THANKS, EAR INFECTION.
8. At least I don't have 'flu like my brother. Yeah, apparently today he has a 100-degree fever and coughing. GET YOUR FLU SHOTS, KIDS. Swine flu and seasonal flu. (o btw I was definitely misinformed about the whole "swine flu is the only flu active in the u.s." thing -- there is ALSO regular old seasonal influenza and you should DEFINITELY get flu shots for both kinds k? some of my family from norcal has already had both kinds this fall.)
9. Oh! So, I glimpsed DIAF through the door in a rehearsal for one of the youth orchestras that uses our facilities. And I, like, wanted to get mad and hurt, or I tried to, or something... but then I realised that I don't care enough to get hurt and I don't have the energy for it and, you know what? That felt good. I still kind of wanted to key his car. I didn't, though -- I wanted to go home and eat dinner more. More good, yeah? Heh.
10. My grandma has a guava tree in her back yard and it has FRUIT and some of them are RIPE and so yesterday when we were at her house for lunch my mum and I went out and picked guavas!! And persimmons! (OMG SO MANY PERSIMMON. SO MANY.) I LOVE GUAVAS. I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT GUAVAS. THEY SMELL SO GOOD. AND OMG SO TASTY. I HAVE SO MANY GUAVAS. GUAVAS ARE LOVE. (corrolary: my family is love. SO MUCH LOVE.)
11. This business of being too busy for life sucks a lot, not least because it is making all of my LJ entries freakin' ENORMOUS. OH MY GOD INTERNET I MISS YOU SO MUCH
Entry tags:
s + tv = <3 4EVA!! also, classical music.
So I may just flat-out keep watching NCIS:LA, and not just to track the level of fail in the representation (or total lack thereof, as in the third ep) of Latinos. Because the tech guy is silly and has glasses and wears sandals and is a surfer (and reminds me of Anthony Rapp who is cute like a bunny), and I want to know his story. Still not that into Chris O'Donnell's orphan!manpain, but LL Cool J as former SEAL is cool, and I am desperately amused by the outrageously homoerotic things Chris O'Donnell says to him. (Yeah, the "we accept gays" vibe still feels like trying too hard, but I do prefer it to some of the mildly homophobic things that Tony and McGee have said. Despite their apparently going to dinner together at trendy cafes, and other scenes of obvious homoerotic bromance.)
Enough of the spinoff. I love NCIS like burning, and the new season is no exception. Also!! USA finally picked up season 6, so I will no longer feel like I... missed something there, sorry, can you stop and explain? Plus everyone has really good hair this season, which has not always been the case. And, I feel kind of silly about it, but I want more of the Tony/Ziva UST. It's just so good.
Today: The LA Opera costume shop is having a sale and I cannot wait to be there, although I won't necessary be buying a lot of stuff. I just -- costumes. You know how I love costuming. And the opera costumes are always so good, and OBTW it's opera so they'll have real people sizes and not just model-and-actress sizes. Hah. The press release stresses it as ideal for Halloween Costumes! and I'm not sure why that wasn't my first thought. My first thought was more like "OPERA!! COSTUMES!!! LOVE." The e-mail about it claims there will be "many items under $10!" but I'm thinking those will probably be, what, gloves? fans? bags? and the ones used by the chorus, not the principals. Which is fine, you know. I definitely don't have the funds to get, like, a gown from Don Giovanni or Tannhäuser or anything. I think I'm going to enforce a strict $50 limit on myself (or maybe $60, depending on whether I have a ten in my wallet right now, because the ATM works in multiples of 20, yay). And, really, I'm not expecting to find something to buy, but I definitely want to see what's there.
Related to Halloween, I think this year I'm going to be a dinosaur tamer. I have a stuffed triceratops and a bullwhip. Now, as I see it, I could go two directions here: khaki-and-pith-helmet, or a more circusy-bondagey look. THOUGHTS??? (I kind of just want a pith helmet to have a pith helmet. Um.)
Anyway. Yeah. I was going to say something about last weekend but I forget what.
Oh, hey, by the way, I am absolutely loving all of the excitement about Gustavo Dudamel. Last weekend he conducted Beethoven 9 at the Hollywood Bowl and this weekend opens the 09-10 season at Disney Hall. For the first time in the years I have been at UCLA, though, we weren't offered tickets to the opening night gala, which was Thursday. Probably because it sold out for real and they had no seats to offer us (and anyway why would they want to underwrite tickets for a bunch of students if they can sell them to actual interested members of the public?). Still, I'm a little pouty about it. Especially since I've been eaten by music ed work so I didn't even know it was happening, until I was listening to the end of Mahler 1 on the radio in the car and I was, "okay, 5 minutes of applause, whatever, I want to know what orchestra this is!" and then the radio was all, "THAT WAS THE END OF DUDAMEL'S FIRST CONCERT AS MUSIC DIRECTOR AND YOU MISSED IT BITCH" But then I got to hear him do an adorable euphoric post-concert interview with the KUSC broadcasters, in which he stole a bottle of water from their table. And seriously, this is probably one of the best things ever to happen to classical music in Los Angeles. The fuss over Dudamel is generating so much interest. Movie stars were at the gala concert! It was clear that if you were in the know, it was the place to be, and that is thrilling. (there are "viva Gustavo" posters all along the big street by my flat. I've tried to photograph them, later on when I finally upload my camera I'll show you. it makes my daily commute a happier event.)
Enough of the spinoff. I love NCIS like burning, and the new season is no exception. Also!! USA finally picked up season 6, so I will no longer feel like I... missed something there, sorry, can you stop and explain? Plus everyone has really good hair this season, which has not always been the case. And, I feel kind of silly about it, but I want more of the Tony/Ziva UST. It's just so good.
Today: The LA Opera costume shop is having a sale and I cannot wait to be there, although I won't necessary be buying a lot of stuff. I just -- costumes. You know how I love costuming. And the opera costumes are always so good, and OBTW it's opera so they'll have real people sizes and not just model-and-actress sizes. Hah. The press release stresses it as ideal for Halloween Costumes! and I'm not sure why that wasn't my first thought. My first thought was more like "OPERA!! COSTUMES!!! LOVE." The e-mail about it claims there will be "many items under $10!" but I'm thinking those will probably be, what, gloves? fans? bags? and the ones used by the chorus, not the principals. Which is fine, you know. I definitely don't have the funds to get, like, a gown from Don Giovanni or Tannhäuser or anything. I think I'm going to enforce a strict $50 limit on myself (or maybe $60, depending on whether I have a ten in my wallet right now, because the ATM works in multiples of 20, yay). And, really, I'm not expecting to find something to buy, but I definitely want to see what's there.
Related to Halloween, I think this year I'm going to be a dinosaur tamer. I have a stuffed triceratops and a bullwhip. Now, as I see it, I could go two directions here: khaki-and-pith-helmet, or a more circusy-bondagey look. THOUGHTS??? (I kind of just want a pith helmet to have a pith helmet. Um.)
Anyway. Yeah. I was going to say something about last weekend but I forget what.
Oh, hey, by the way, I am absolutely loving all of the excitement about Gustavo Dudamel. Last weekend he conducted Beethoven 9 at the Hollywood Bowl and this weekend opens the 09-10 season at Disney Hall. For the first time in the years I have been at UCLA, though, we weren't offered tickets to the opening night gala, which was Thursday. Probably because it sold out for real and they had no seats to offer us (and anyway why would they want to underwrite tickets for a bunch of students if they can sell them to actual interested members of the public?). Still, I'm a little pouty about it. Especially since I've been eaten by music ed work so I didn't even know it was happening, until I was listening to the end of Mahler 1 on the radio in the car and I was, "okay, 5 minutes of applause, whatever, I want to know what orchestra this is!" and then the radio was all, "THAT WAS THE END OF DUDAMEL'S FIRST CONCERT AS MUSIC DIRECTOR AND YOU MISSED IT BITCH" But then I got to hear him do an adorable euphoric post-concert interview with the KUSC broadcasters, in which he stole a bottle of water from their table. And seriously, this is probably one of the best things ever to happen to classical music in Los Angeles. The fuss over Dudamel is generating so much interest. Movie stars were at the gala concert! It was clear that if you were in the know, it was the place to be, and that is thrilling. (there are "viva Gustavo" posters all along the big street by my flat. I've tried to photograph them, later on when I finally upload my camera I'll show you. it makes my daily commute a happier event.)
Dear internet, this is my break from reading about teaching.
One of two things is happening. Either (a) there is WAY too much reading being assigned, or (b) there are not enough hours in the day for me to do the reading (and sometimes the associated busywork), AND practise AND live my life. I already know there aren't enough hours in the day to be in all the classes I'm in, since I have a 1-hour overlap with orchestra and one of my ed. classes on Tuesdays.
HOORAY!
p.s. why do I think it's the most adorable thing ever when the kitties carry things in their mouths? Ducky caught a ball of crumpled paper and he's prancing around with it. Eeeeee! <3
p.p.s. things I am currently practising: ( omg cut for length. srsly guys this is a fuckton of music )
FREE TIEM? WHAT IS THIS OF WHICH YOU SPEAK?
And now back toyour regularly-scheduled programming my reading for class tomorrow night: Deculturalization and the Struggle for Equality: A Brief History of the Education of Dominated Cultures in the United States, by Joel Spring. Aaaaarg it is a 150 page book, which is why they gave it all at once, but I am only on page 17 because the only reading that goes quickly for me is fiction. WHY CAN'T WE READ LOTR FOR MY CLASSES? I WOULD BE ALL OVER THAT SHIT. also i have been meaning to re-read those, because i haven't for several years. boo.
p.p.p.s. i wore my enterprise-inna-bottle shirt today and 3 people said it was awesome. win!
HOORAY!
p.s. why do I think it's the most adorable thing ever when the kitties carry things in their mouths? Ducky caught a ball of crumpled paper and he's prancing around with it. Eeeeee! <3
p.p.s. things I am currently practising: ( omg cut for length. srsly guys this is a fuckton of music )
FREE TIEM? WHAT IS THIS OF WHICH YOU SPEAK?
And now back to
p.p.p.s. i wore my enterprise-inna-bottle shirt today and 3 people said it was awesome. win!
Baxter loves me
The kitties are lying in a T-shape exactly where my ass needs to be in order for me to sleep in my bed. I don't know what to do, they're all purring and sleepy and adorable and I don't want to move them.
We're observing at Santa Monica HS tomorrow morning. Google Maps says it should take me 15 minutes on the 10 in traffic but somehow I don't believe it. I might save my "easy walk 30 min" for the evening so I can leave at 7:15.
First lesson of the year, tomorrow at 3. I still haven't decided if it will be a playing lesson or a talking lesson. (Well, it'll be a talking lesson no matter what, I just don't know if I should subject Steinmetz to how unprepared I am in advance of my audition tomorrow at 8. Forewarned is forearmed? It might lower his expectations and then if I do better at the audition it will be much better in comparison? FEH.)
Watched NCIS S7 premiere during dinner. OMG, SHOW. OMG. MY HEART ACHES FOR YOU. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH. GIBBS IS TOTES SLEEPING WITH VANCE. TONY/ZIVA FOREVER. EXCEPT FOR SOMETIMES TO ALLOW TONY & MCGEE TO HAVE MAN-DATES.
Post-practise (which was... half-okay, half-:c ) I watched the premiere of NCIS: Los Angeles. WTF, SHOW. WTF. I wish I had seen the episode(s) in which this show spun off from NCIS, because, WHAT. HOW DID THIS HAPPEN. I mean. WHAT. Someone in the comments to someone else's blog was all, "It looks like the creators watched Torchwood right before they made this," and I agree. Bizarre undercover base? Technological focus (particularly on tech that will be laughably outdated in a year)? Homoerotic undertones/banter (and okay, I know everyone so far is all, Chris O'Donnell/LL Cool J FTW!! but O'Donnell had a Look with Cute Glasses Techie during the obligatory INTRODUCE THE CAST scene and hey, that would be fine with me. Except Cute Glasses Techie seems to be kind of.... less of a player in the dynamic.) and really blatant "openmindedness" (because hey, this is LA, right??? The Navy intel guy can be gay lovers with the paratrooper if he wants! Except apparently not. BUT WE'LL TOTES TALK ABOUT IT TO SHOW HOW PROGRESSIVE WE ARE.)? I'm intending to keep a particular eye out for race!fail in this, with special attention to portrayal of hispanic people (part of this is politicized blogs I have been reading, and part of this is my new Social Justice Educator Goggles). So far, we have (1) people related to Mexican drug cartels and (2) gardeners. I AM WAITING FOR YOU TO IMPRESS ME, SHOW. And thus far, the only really favourable things are: Edna Mode (AHAHAHA srsly Linda Hunt is Edna Mode) and Hey Wasn't That Guy In Some Superhero Movie (Chris O'Donnell, formerly known as Robin/Dick Grayson in the 90's Batman films -- OMG JULIE REMEMBER HOW WE USED TO WATCH THOSE OVER AND OVER? THAT WAS GOOD TIMES) and Dude Did You Know LL Cool J Is Still Alive? Me Neither.
So yeah.
I guess I had a lot more to say about NCIS:LA than I thought I would.
The kitties have moved out of my way by now, at least. Baxter has been doing this adorable thing where he puts his front paws and his face on whatever of my body parts is nearest him, and then stares adoringly up at my face. IT'S THE BEST EVER. Well, no, maybe not, because as I explained to my bosses today, STRING is in fact the best ever. (Crumpled-up paper is almost as good as string, but not quite.)
We're observing at Santa Monica HS tomorrow morning. Google Maps says it should take me 15 minutes on the 10 in traffic but somehow I don't believe it. I might save my "easy walk 30 min" for the evening so I can leave at 7:15.
First lesson of the year, tomorrow at 3. I still haven't decided if it will be a playing lesson or a talking lesson. (Well, it'll be a talking lesson no matter what, I just don't know if I should subject Steinmetz to how unprepared I am in advance of my audition tomorrow at 8. Forewarned is forearmed? It might lower his expectations and then if I do better at the audition it will be much better in comparison? FEH.)
Watched NCIS S7 premiere during dinner. OMG, SHOW. OMG. MY HEART ACHES FOR YOU. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH. GIBBS IS TOTES SLEEPING WITH VANCE. TONY/ZIVA FOREVER. EXCEPT FOR SOMETIMES TO ALLOW TONY & MCGEE TO HAVE MAN-DATES.
Post-practise (which was... half-okay, half-:c ) I watched the premiere of NCIS: Los Angeles. WTF, SHOW. WTF. I wish I had seen the episode(s) in which this show spun off from NCIS, because, WHAT. HOW DID THIS HAPPEN. I mean. WHAT. Someone in the comments to someone else's blog was all, "It looks like the creators watched Torchwood right before they made this," and I agree. Bizarre undercover base? Technological focus (particularly on tech that will be laughably outdated in a year)? Homoerotic undertones/banter (and okay, I know everyone so far is all, Chris O'Donnell/LL Cool J FTW!! but O'Donnell had a Look with Cute Glasses Techie during the obligatory INTRODUCE THE CAST scene and hey, that would be fine with me. Except Cute Glasses Techie seems to be kind of.... less of a player in the dynamic.) and really blatant "openmindedness" (because hey, this is LA, right??? The Navy intel guy can be gay lovers with the paratrooper if he wants! Except apparently not. BUT WE'LL TOTES TALK ABOUT IT TO SHOW HOW PROGRESSIVE WE ARE.)? I'm intending to keep a particular eye out for race!fail in this, with special attention to portrayal of hispanic people (part of this is politicized blogs I have been reading, and part of this is my new Social Justice Educator Goggles). So far, we have (1) people related to Mexican drug cartels and (2) gardeners. I AM WAITING FOR YOU TO IMPRESS ME, SHOW. And thus far, the only really favourable things are: Edna Mode (AHAHAHA srsly Linda Hunt is Edna Mode) and Hey Wasn't That Guy In Some Superhero Movie (Chris O'Donnell, formerly known as Robin/Dick Grayson in the 90's Batman films -- OMG JULIE REMEMBER HOW WE USED TO WATCH THOSE OVER AND OVER? THAT WAS GOOD TIMES) and Dude Did You Know LL Cool J Is Still Alive? Me Neither.
So yeah.
I guess I had a lot more to say about NCIS:LA than I thought I would.
The kitties have moved out of my way by now, at least. Baxter has been doing this adorable thing where he puts his front paws and his face on whatever of my body parts is nearest him, and then stares adoringly up at my face. IT'S THE BEST EVER. Well, no, maybe not, because as I explained to my bosses today, STRING is in fact the best ever. (Crumpled-up paper is almost as good as string, but not quite.)
i feel very peculiar
Turns out it's no easier to motivate yourself to run in the evening, after a long, footsore day, than it is at oh-dark-thirty. The first three sets were... okay (hard but I made it, more or less). The fourth set, I had to stop and walk after 2 minutes, because my legs could not run any more. The fifth set, I managed to push through, partly because I walked most of the fourth set and partly because it was The Last One OMG. So, I dunno. I didn't ever really get to that place I found on Monday, where it felt like the top of my head came off and movement was effortless (granted I was only there for perhaps four minutes total on Monday, but still). Then again, did not need inhaler. *shrug* I guess I'll carry on with the regimen, increasing to 6:1 for Friday and Saturday, although part of me worries that it might be moving too fast. (Hopefully that is the part of me that will be gone if I lose a few pounds, eh?)
The kitties had a Big Day Out today! We went to the library and met all my bosses and friends. They stayed there all afternoon, I was surprised. I had anticipated only staying for maybe an hour or so, then taking them back home and boogieing back to work the rest of the shift, but they behaved themselves and were quite happy to let my boss dote on them all afternoon. She sent us home with some makeshift toys, too -- a travel-size dental floss tin that rattles, and a couple plastic eggs ("You can put pebbles in them, I bet they'll chase them then!"), plus a bit of string that we probably shouldn't use to tie up books now that kittens have been chewing it all up.
I can't decide if I want to eat dinner first, or practise? I wish it were not so late. (I probably should have gone running earlier, instead of watching that second episode of Star Trek.) I also wish that season six of NCIS would air on USA Network already, so I won't feel so awkward about watching the new season. (I read the season six synopses on Wikipedia, but it's definitely not the same. I've tried watching the full episodes on the CBS website, but it hates me! The videos won't load. They did on my daddy's computer. No fair :c )
Okay. I'm very very hungry, and if I try to practise without eating, I'll just play badly and get frustrated, and last night was quite enough of practise-related breakdowns for me. (I called my mum in tears and worried her half to death before she realised it was just because of a bad practise. She talked me down and I went to sleep and practising this morning was much better.)
The kitties had a Big Day Out today! We went to the library and met all my bosses and friends. They stayed there all afternoon, I was surprised. I had anticipated only staying for maybe an hour or so, then taking them back home and boogieing back to work the rest of the shift, but they behaved themselves and were quite happy to let my boss dote on them all afternoon. She sent us home with some makeshift toys, too -- a travel-size dental floss tin that rattles, and a couple plastic eggs ("You can put pebbles in them, I bet they'll chase them then!"), plus a bit of string that we probably shouldn't use to tie up books now that kittens have been chewing it all up.
I can't decide if I want to eat dinner first, or practise? I wish it were not so late. (I probably should have gone running earlier, instead of watching that second episode of Star Trek.) I also wish that season six of NCIS would air on USA Network already, so I won't feel so awkward about watching the new season. (I read the season six synopses on Wikipedia, but it's definitely not the same. I've tried watching the full episodes on the CBS website, but it hates me! The videos won't load. They did on my daddy's computer. No fair :c )
Okay. I'm very very hungry, and if I try to practise without eating, I'll just play badly and get frustrated, and last night was quite enough of practise-related breakdowns for me. (I called my mum in tears and worried her half to death before she realised it was just because of a bad practise. She talked me down and I went to sleep and practising this morning was much better.)
I amar prestar aen. (The world is changed.)
I have a friend who is teaching a music appreciation class, for children aged 6-12 (which is a biiiig spread and she's having to be creative in order to engage all of them). She told me today that she asked one of her six-year-olds what her favourite musical instrument was. The girl answered that her favourite instrument was the iPod.
We live in a crazy, crazy world, my friends.
The subject of this entry is from the (spoken (by Galadriel)) prologue to the film version of The Fellowship of the Ring. It seemed... quite fitting. The full text is:
I amar prestar aen…
The world is changed.
han mathon ne nen…
I feel it in the water.
han mathon ne chae…
I feel it in the Earth.
a han noston ned gwilith.
I smell it in the air.
Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it.
We live in a crazy, crazy world, my friends.
The subject of this entry is from the (spoken (by Galadriel)) prologue to the film version of The Fellowship of the Ring. It seemed... quite fitting. The full text is:
I amar prestar aen…
The world is changed.
han mathon ne nen…
I feel it in the water.
han mathon ne chae…
I feel it in the Earth.
a han noston ned gwilith.
I smell it in the air.
Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it.
I DO LOVE KNITTING PATTERNS. (- a.p.w.b.d.)
So I just thought of a REALLY AWESOME pattern for a scarf. Make that two, actually! Inspired by ThinkGeek <3
The power symbol, reversible in two contrasting colours. (white & black?)
Similarly, a Space Invader. (d. blue & neon green, maybe. Or some other Space-Invaderly colours)
I'm thinking just plain old worsted-weight synthetic yarn, they don't need to be anything fancy. The question is, do I do the background double-sided as well, or just with the strands of yard doubled? (translation: Solid colours, reversible, or with the colours mottled together?)
I NEEEEEEEEED TO MAKE THESE. DAMN YOU, CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME.
I bet they would go fast. Clearly I should just do it and damn the consequences and then I could have GEEKY SCARVES. If knitting didn't fuck me up so badly, I would make tons of them and give them away and sell them on the internets. I SHOULD LEARN HOW TO ACTUALLY WRITE KNITTING PATTERNS SO Y'ALL CAN MAKE THEM INSTEAD.
I just had a terrible thought. What if these scarves already exist? I have the sinking feeling that they may have appeared in Stitch 'n' Bitch. *pout*
edit;; OMG BLACK-AND-WHITE REVERSIBLE PIANO/HARPSICHORD SCARF. (the keys, yo. because lots of harpsichords have white-on-black keyboards instead of black-on-white.) OMG. ALSO, BASS CLEF SCARF??? (start simple. treble clef is much too complex. IT WOULD LOOK AWFUL.)
Dear Self: BREATHE. It's not like we have the funds to buy a bunch of yarn right now anyway.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT WOULD BE HILARIOUS? A KNIT PILLOW SHAPED LIKE A BASSOON REED. I COULD LEARN TO CABLE FOR THE TURBAN AND EVERYTHING. OH GOD I NEED TO DO THIS. !!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!
.
MAN my ideaphoria is turned up WAY HIGH right now. I have been having CRAZY Torchwood plotbunnies, too. (DISCLOSURE TIME: I probably spend more time daily reading fanfiction than anything else (except on some days, watching television). I have, at various points in my life, written fanfiction. I might do again, and soon. BEWARE.) (I sort of feel like the past year or two have been about really owning my geekery. It's an ongoing process. But the more I am honest and upfront about it, the more it pleases me.)
OBVIOUSLY THE WAY TO HAVE IDEAS IS TO NOT GET ENOUGH SLEEP, YOU GUYS!!!!!!! :D :D
The power symbol, reversible in two contrasting colours. (white & black?)
Similarly, a Space Invader. (d. blue & neon green, maybe. Or some other Space-Invaderly colours)
I'm thinking just plain old worsted-weight synthetic yarn, they don't need to be anything fancy. The question is, do I do the background double-sided as well, or just with the strands of yard doubled? (translation: Solid colours, reversible, or with the colours mottled together?)
I NEEEEEEEEED TO MAKE THESE. DAMN YOU, CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME.
I bet they would go fast. Clearly I should just do it and damn the consequences and then I could have GEEKY SCARVES. If knitting didn't fuck me up so badly, I would make tons of them and give them away and sell them on the internets. I SHOULD LEARN HOW TO ACTUALLY WRITE KNITTING PATTERNS SO Y'ALL CAN MAKE THEM INSTEAD.
I just had a terrible thought. What if these scarves already exist? I have the sinking feeling that they may have appeared in Stitch 'n' Bitch. *pout*
edit;; OMG BLACK-AND-WHITE REVERSIBLE PIANO/HARPSICHORD SCARF. (the keys, yo. because lots of harpsichords have white-on-black keyboards instead of black-on-white.) OMG. ALSO, BASS CLEF SCARF??? (start simple. treble clef is much too complex. IT WOULD LOOK AWFUL.)
Dear Self: BREATHE. It's not like we have the funds to buy a bunch of yarn right now anyway.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT WOULD BE HILARIOUS? A KNIT PILLOW SHAPED LIKE A BASSOON REED. I COULD LEARN TO CABLE FOR THE TURBAN AND EVERYTHING. OH GOD I NEED TO DO THIS. !!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!
.
MAN my ideaphoria is turned up WAY HIGH right now. I have been having CRAZY Torchwood plotbunnies, too. (DISCLOSURE TIME: I probably spend more time daily reading fanfiction than anything else (except on some days, watching television). I have, at various points in my life, written fanfiction. I might do again, and soon. BEWARE.) (I sort of feel like the past year or two have been about really owning my geekery. It's an ongoing process. But the more I am honest and upfront about it, the more it pleases me.)
OBVIOUSLY THE WAY TO HAVE IDEAS IS TO NOT GET ENOUGH SLEEP, YOU GUYS!!!!!!! :D :D
I amuse myself
The clearing-out of my school e-mail account continues. I just discovered that on the morning of 5 May 2009, I sent myself three e-mails in the space of an hour. The subject lines were:
feh
feh II
grandson of feh
Am I funnier when I'm annoyed?
edit 14:47 Deletion finished!! I got down to 7 pages, which is all of my e-mail from the last month, plus one or two pages of significant older stuff. That means of my gig of storage space, I have decreased the amount I'm using from over 20% to 8.55%. I feel so accomplished!
feh II
grandson of feh
Am I funnier when I'm annoyed?
edit 14:47 Deletion finished!! I got down to 7 pages, which is all of my e-mail from the last month, plus one or two pages of significant older stuff. That means of my gig of storage space, I have decreased the amount I'm using from over 20% to 8.55%. I feel so accomplished!
i'm not an alcoholic or anything, i promise.
Let it be known that diet tonic water is nasty. It'll be full sugar for me in the future. Of course it could also have something to do with having gotten Shasta brand diet tonic water, because I was already splurging on cheese and trusting that quality gin (Bombay Sapphire) would carry the drink (which is almost does). But I'm pretty sure the fake sugar is the main thing wrong with it.
(I had a moment where I almost wrote "not tasty" instead of "nasty" and I just thought, whoa, "nasty" could totally be a blend of "not" and "tasty." ETYMOLOGICAL TRUFAX??? Not so much. But a fun folk etymology maybe.)
In other drink-related news, the 'rents might be coming to see the flat on Monday, before we take Mum to dinner or something for her birthday. Q: Do I leave the booze out, or do I hide it? 'Rents are teetotalers and I have never told them that I drink, though they may have assumed it. Mum was at the flat briefly a little while ago and I'm sure noticed the booze but didn't say anything; Da will probably kick up a fuss, though. And I don't want to give the Munchkin any ideas, I know what kids at our HS who were less sheltered than I was got up to. I heard them talking during biology and chemistry labs.
I know I sometimes talk like I'm some kind of lush, but I drink responsibly, and not more than a few times a month. *bites lip*
In kitten-related news, they now have adorable tiny collars and look very handsome. The collars are multicoloured-striped (they match the "many bright colours" décor of our living room, which was a bonus) with mint-green plastic fasteners -- breakaway collars, so they don't strangle the cats if the collar gets caught on anything. It turns out that Ducky is an escape artist! He pulled off his collar three times before I tightened it enough that he couldn't get his paws under it. New nickname: Houdini.
They're both sleeping on my bed, one on either side of me. Baxter is sprawled more-or-less on his back, with his arms over his head. His paws and whiskers are twitching. Ducky's ear is twitching, too. I think they're dreaming. It's totally sweet.
The fleas might be back -- probably a new wave of fleas, having hatched in the warm-and-humid conditions of my apartment. I'm waiting for the Advantage to arrive in the mail (it's coming from Canada, but should have gone out on Tuesday at the latest and so should be here very soon after the holiday), and until then we have resumed daily Happy Fun Flea Comb Tiem!! I'm not restricting them to my room again, but I did get a flea collar and cut it up and put it in the vacuum bag, and tomorrow or Monday there will be EPIC VACUUMING.
P.S. O HAI HELVETICA. Now, the question is, am I or am I not too lazy to put the "font face" tag at the beginning of all my entries? WE SHALL SEE. But at least now I know I can make my emoticons not look weird. It's a matter of :D versus :D, of <3 versus <3. And also probably of me trying to be a bigger typeface nerd than I really am, but some of my best nerdery has come of actively trying to be nerdier, and typography is at least something I like. Yay aesthetics.
(I had a moment where I almost wrote "not tasty" instead of "nasty" and I just thought, whoa, "nasty" could totally be a blend of "not" and "tasty." ETYMOLOGICAL TRUFAX??? Not so much. But a fun folk etymology maybe.)
In other drink-related news, the 'rents might be coming to see the flat on Monday, before we take Mum to dinner or something for her birthday. Q: Do I leave the booze out, or do I hide it? 'Rents are teetotalers and I have never told them that I drink, though they may have assumed it. Mum was at the flat briefly a little while ago and I'm sure noticed the booze but didn't say anything; Da will probably kick up a fuss, though. And I don't want to give the Munchkin any ideas, I know what kids at our HS who were less sheltered than I was got up to. I heard them talking during biology and chemistry labs.
I know I sometimes talk like I'm some kind of lush, but I drink responsibly, and not more than a few times a month. *bites lip*
In kitten-related news, they now have adorable tiny collars and look very handsome. The collars are multicoloured-striped (they match the "many bright colours" décor of our living room, which was a bonus) with mint-green plastic fasteners -- breakaway collars, so they don't strangle the cats if the collar gets caught on anything. It turns out that Ducky is an escape artist! He pulled off his collar three times before I tightened it enough that he couldn't get his paws under it. New nickname: Houdini.
They're both sleeping on my bed, one on either side of me. Baxter is sprawled more-or-less on his back, with his arms over his head. His paws and whiskers are twitching. Ducky's ear is twitching, too. I think they're dreaming. It's totally sweet.
The fleas might be back -- probably a new wave of fleas, having hatched in the warm-and-humid conditions of my apartment. I'm waiting for the Advantage to arrive in the mail (it's coming from Canada, but should have gone out on Tuesday at the latest and so should be here very soon after the holiday), and until then we have resumed daily Happy Fun Flea Comb Tiem!! I'm not restricting them to my room again, but I did get a flea collar and cut it up and put it in the vacuum bag, and tomorrow or Monday there will be EPIC VACUUMING.
P.S. O HAI HELVETICA. Now, the question is, am I or am I not too lazy to put the "font face" tag at the beginning of all my entries? WE SHALL SEE. But at least now I know I can make my emoticons not look weird. It's a matter of :D versus :D, of <3 versus <3. And also probably of me trying to be a bigger typeface nerd than I really am, but some of my best nerdery has come of actively trying to be nerdier, and typography is at least something I like. Yay aesthetics.
How obvious is it that I typed this in segments over the course of more than two hours?
Dear Shoe Boy,
You're still gorgeous, but the after-hours drop at the library is meant to be used after hours. There is no bin there when we are open, which you could clearly see, because that wall is floor-to-ceiling windows. When we are open, you are meant to come the fuck inside and return your books in the inside drop bin.
Not as indulgent as you think I am,
Sigma
Composers, I swear.
Today when I looked out the window of my flat it was frighteningly hazy, and my chest was tight enough that I needed to use my inhaler without doing anything more than walking to the window, so I decided to delay today's run. Hopefully the air will be clearer this evening? If it isn't, I'll take today as a Day Of Rest and nudge the training schedule back a day. Or until I'm no longer afraid to open the windows. Granted, I'll likely have to regress to a smaller run-to-walk ratio, but that's okay. I'd rather not breathe smoke.
Yesterday I finally started my grad school research. I'm still running with this (admittedly baseless) idea that Chicago is A Place I Want To Be, so that would mean Northwestern (technically in Evanston but not prohibitively far from Symphony Center eh?), Roosevelt, or DePaul. From there I jumped to check out the New York schools (god the Manhattan SoM sounds fantastic but I'm a little afraid of NYC and I'd probably never ever get in anyway), and I'm working my way westwards. The idea is that I want to go to school far, far away. And apparently my parents want to have a Serious Conversation about that with me, which will be joyous, I'm sure. I know I was talking a lot a while ago about going to grad school in Europe, but... I dunno. It's proving difficult to find information on what schools are even "good," especially information in English (because I just don't have the patience to wade through real-life German right now), and I'm pretty sure I don't want to end up playing with any kind of European "sound," although the German sound is miles better than French or even English bassoon. And Europe might be prohibitively expensive right now. Plus I have latched onto Chicago-in-my-head, which is kind of undercutting my motivation to investigate European schools. Eh. Musicians (er, Amanda), where are the other schools I should be looking at? How have I studied music in college for four years without knowing this? How have my friends found out where they should apply? (Of course, now that I'm looking inside the U.S. I imagine my teacher will have a lot more info for me.)
Also! I just spent a good long while chatting with Former Dungeon Master Ben about schools and teaching and sci-fi (he's reading Asimov for the first time; I've been DVRing Star Trek TOS & TNG and overdosing on Torchwood and reading all sorts of interesting meta about Sci-Fi and Television and Issues) and just... life. And I loooooove Ben and I miss hanging out with him, but inside my head (probably not inside his) the spectre of J hangs between us and I definitely still want J to Die In A Fire. I definitely felt a lot less awkward today than a few months ago, though, which is comforting. Because we are, in fact, friends on our own merit and not just through J. I <3 Ben. (and god damn do I miss playing D&D. *pout*)
In other news, one of my fellow Library Assistants suggested putting honey in coffee, which I had never considered before (because honey is for tea!). I tried it today, and it was actually quite good. *shrug* Who knew?
To Do This Evening:
- run if the air is decent
- practise (despite kitties hiding)
- put a new bag into Mom's Badass Canister Vacuum (which is now MY badass canister vac because she got a fancy new one just like it but better and a different colour!! YAAAAY I LOVE MY MOMMY SHE GIVES ME HER CAST-OFF AUTOMOBILES AND HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES) and vacuum the shit (NOT LITERAL SHIT YOU GUYS) out of my bathroom and the kitties' scratching post and cat carrier, which have been outside de-fleaing and de-Raiding for the past week and are probably now covered in ash.
- make pesto??? -- my basil has gotten pretty large -- and pasta go to with :)
- hang out with Dory, who asked this morning if he could crash on my couch. Yay! I hope he's not allergic to cats... Not that they'll be on him or anything, they sleep with me with the door shut, but still. Dander and all.
- deal with more of my Desk Heap maybe? I got a little bit of it sorted the other night -- or at least, it's now an orderly tower of stuff on top of the printer instead of a jumble of crap all over everywhere. I'm finding myself with a shocking lack of space for papers and things, though, and I don't really know how that happened, because I can't imagine where all these papers used to be hiding. I don't know, Abergavenny? oh god torchwood in my brain
- Pow-wow with Flatmate re: rent, which is due, to find out how we're adjusting for her doing automatic deposits for the cable. (know what SUCKS though? the building manager called me this morning and informed me that the pet deposit will be $400 which is a lot more than I anticipated. Aaaaarg.)
- OMG CUT TIES WITH PAC PROMOS. Which means finding the original paperwork. Which reminds me.
PSA TIEM!!!
If you are approached by a representative of PAC Promos, Inc., DON'T LET THEM TALK YOU INTO ANYTHING. RUN THE OTHER WAY. This mostly applies to ladies who have cause to be on a college campus in SoCal, because that is where they approach people (that is where they approached me).
The discounted salon services sound really nice but they charge you $20 a month and they DON'T STOP. I ended up not even being able to make time for any of the salon trips before the offer expired. At the time, I figured, "Oh well, whatever, I am allowed to make poor choices with my own money" (and $20 a month is definitely my own money, and not my parents') and assumed that they'd stop charging me once the offer expired. NOT SO. Which I did not notice until yesterday. Fuck me. And all the reviews I've read say that cutting ties with them is a huge hassle, which I'm not looking forward to.
... Hooray! Or not.
You're still gorgeous, but the after-hours drop at the library is meant to be used after hours. There is no bin there when we are open, which you could clearly see, because that wall is floor-to-ceiling windows. When we are open, you are meant to come the fuck inside and return your books in the inside drop bin.
Not as indulgent as you think I am,
Sigma
Composers, I swear.
Today when I looked out the window of my flat it was frighteningly hazy, and my chest was tight enough that I needed to use my inhaler without doing anything more than walking to the window, so I decided to delay today's run. Hopefully the air will be clearer this evening? If it isn't, I'll take today as a Day Of Rest and nudge the training schedule back a day. Or until I'm no longer afraid to open the windows. Granted, I'll likely have to regress to a smaller run-to-walk ratio, but that's okay. I'd rather not breathe smoke.
Yesterday I finally started my grad school research. I'm still running with this (admittedly baseless) idea that Chicago is A Place I Want To Be, so that would mean Northwestern (technically in Evanston but not prohibitively far from Symphony Center eh?), Roosevelt, or DePaul. From there I jumped to check out the New York schools (god the Manhattan SoM sounds fantastic but I'm a little afraid of NYC and I'd probably never ever get in anyway), and I'm working my way westwards. The idea is that I want to go to school far, far away. And apparently my parents want to have a Serious Conversation about that with me, which will be joyous, I'm sure. I know I was talking a lot a while ago about going to grad school in Europe, but... I dunno. It's proving difficult to find information on what schools are even "good," especially information in English (because I just don't have the patience to wade through real-life German right now), and I'm pretty sure I don't want to end up playing with any kind of European "sound," although the German sound is miles better than French or even English bassoon. And Europe might be prohibitively expensive right now. Plus I have latched onto Chicago-in-my-head, which is kind of undercutting my motivation to investigate European schools. Eh. Musicians (er, Amanda), where are the other schools I should be looking at? How have I studied music in college for four years without knowing this? How have my friends found out where they should apply? (Of course, now that I'm looking inside the U.S. I imagine my teacher will have a lot more info for me.)
Also! I just spent a good long while chatting with Former Dungeon Master Ben about schools and teaching and sci-fi (he's reading Asimov for the first time; I've been DVRing Star Trek TOS & TNG and overdosing on Torchwood and reading all sorts of interesting meta about Sci-Fi and Television and Issues) and just... life. And I loooooove Ben and I miss hanging out with him, but inside my head (probably not inside his) the spectre of J hangs between us and I definitely still want J to Die In A Fire. I definitely felt a lot less awkward today than a few months ago, though, which is comforting. Because we are, in fact, friends on our own merit and not just through J. I <3 Ben. (and god damn do I miss playing D&D. *pout*)
In other news, one of my fellow Library Assistants suggested putting honey in coffee, which I had never considered before (because honey is for tea!). I tried it today, and it was actually quite good. *shrug* Who knew?
To Do This Evening:
- run if the air is decent
- practise (despite kitties hiding)
- put a new bag into Mom's Badass Canister Vacuum (which is now MY badass canister vac because she got a fancy new one just like it but better and a different colour!! YAAAAY I LOVE MY MOMMY SHE GIVES ME HER CAST-OFF AUTOMOBILES AND HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES) and vacuum the shit (NOT LITERAL SHIT YOU GUYS) out of my bathroom and the kitties' scratching post and cat carrier, which have been outside de-fleaing and de-Raiding for the past week and are probably now covered in ash.
- make pesto??? -- my basil has gotten pretty large -- and pasta go to with :)
- hang out with Dory, who asked this morning if he could crash on my couch. Yay! I hope he's not allergic to cats... Not that they'll be on him or anything, they sleep with me with the door shut, but still. Dander and all.
- deal with more of my Desk Heap maybe? I got a little bit of it sorted the other night -- or at least, it's now an orderly tower of stuff on top of the printer instead of a jumble of crap all over everywhere. I'm finding myself with a shocking lack of space for papers and things, though, and I don't really know how that happened, because I can't imagine where all these papers used to be hiding. I don't know, Abergavenny? oh god torchwood in my brain
- Pow-wow with Flatmate re: rent, which is due, to find out how we're adjusting for her doing automatic deposits for the cable. (know what SUCKS though? the building manager called me this morning and informed me that the pet deposit will be $400 which is a lot more than I anticipated. Aaaaarg.)
- OMG CUT TIES WITH PAC PROMOS. Which means finding the original paperwork. Which reminds me.
PSA TIEM!!!
If you are approached by a representative of PAC Promos, Inc., DON'T LET THEM TALK YOU INTO ANYTHING. RUN THE OTHER WAY. This mostly applies to ladies who have cause to be on a college campus in SoCal, because that is where they approach people (that is where they approached me).
The discounted salon services sound really nice but they charge you $20 a month and they DON'T STOP. I ended up not even being able to make time for any of the salon trips before the offer expired. At the time, I figured, "Oh well, whatever, I am allowed to make poor choices with my own money" (and $20 a month is definitely my own money, and not my parents') and assumed that they'd stop charging me once the offer expired. NOT SO. Which I did not notice until yesterday. Fuck me. And all the reviews I've read say that cutting ties with them is a huge hassle, which I'm not looking forward to.
... Hooray! Or not.
Entry tags:
Apparently I'm awkward and thirteen-years-old
Okay, so I really have no clue how I developed such a HUGE random crush on John Barrowman, but I have. He's just so adorable. And hilarious. I want to hang out with him all the time, except not because I'd probably explode from the adorable. Probably what I actually want is to spend all my time fangirling him and squeeing over YouTube videos of him singing standards and speaking in a Scottish accent and making dirty jokes. HE IS A GROWN MAN HOW IS HE SO CUTE???
Okay, so I was definitely hurt when Torchwood killed Ianto, but I'll keep watching S4 because, Mr. Barrowman, I'll follow you anywhere. Even to Shark Attack 3: Megalodon and How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? If you end up on Desperate Housewives, I'll be there, too.
Aaaaaaaaagh obsess obsess obsess
Kat and Malia, just so you know, if there's a Torchwood or Doctor Who panel at ComicCon next year, that is where I will be. ESPECIALLY if John Barrowman is there. (john barrowman is love)
(god i'm at work and i'm blushing so hard right now because i am thirteen-years-old)
Okay, so I was definitely hurt when Torchwood killed Ianto, but I'll keep watching S4 because, Mr. Barrowman, I'll follow you anywhere. Even to Shark Attack 3: Megalodon and How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? If you end up on Desperate Housewives, I'll be there, too.
Aaaaaaaaagh obsess obsess obsess
Kat and Malia, just so you know, if there's a Torchwood or Doctor Who panel at ComicCon next year, that is where I will be. ESPECIALLY if John Barrowman is there. (john barrowman is love)
(god i'm at work and i'm blushing so hard right now because i am thirteen-years-old)
Entry tags:
- booze,
- classical music is classical,
- domestic goddess,
- geekery,
- gratuitous motherfucking profanity,
- handbasket to special hell,
- i am a snob,
- jfc stop shouting omg,
- musings,
- popular culture is popular,
- recipes,
- she's on lj and she has a cat,
- storytiem!!,
- tl;dr,
- way too many tags,
- why am i so tired all the time?
Weekend Update!
With... well, just me, really. No Jimmy Fallon, no Tina Fey, no Amy Poehler, sorry. (Can you tell from that list when I have watched SNL?)
FIRST!! I have seen NO FLEAS for the past few days. VICTORY IS MINE, Y/Y???
I cooked a lot this weekend! and by 'a lot' I actually mean that I made Rice-A-Roni (but hey, at least it's on the stove and not in the microwave, yes?), I steamed broccoli (this time in the microwave, but it was fresh broccoli), I baked cheese bread (this link goes to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
copperbadge's recipe, because he is brilliant. I used havarti, smoked provolone, and asiago as my cheeses. I had too much salt in the herb mix, and next time I'm definitely switching the oregano for rosemary because I don't particularly like oregano, and I left it in the oven slightly too long, but the bread came out a lot fluffier than the first time I tried it (with p'tit basque and asiago) which was lovely, and anyway, my brother liked it), and I made crepes (filled with Nutella, pear slices, and peach slices. whipped my own cream, too! whipping cream + sweet vermouth (which was admittedly a little strange) + a splash of almond extract + a heaping spoonful of sugar when that wasn't sweet enough + LOTS OF ELBOW GREASE EH because I don't have an electric hand mixer and couldn't be fucked to get down the stand mixer and dirty yet another bowl okay?) for breakfast today. Plus I made myself a martini last night, and mixing is almost like cooking, yes? (I needed to finish the old gin because I bought new gin and had to justify it. don't judge me okay??)
btw, for those of you who don't know, a martini is this:
in a shaker: ice, gin (I like Bombay Sapphire but I'm too posh for my own good), "fond memories of vermouth" (I actually use a liberal splash, but I love that quote. Who said that?). And everyone says "stir, don't shake, you'll bruise the gin!" but I can't be arsed really so I stick the top on and I turn it over once or twice and then I strain into a glass (a cocktail glass, properly, but we have no cocktail glasses (they were Roomie's -- man I should get my ass some cocktail glasses, and some wine glasses) so thus far at the new apartment I have strained martinis into margarita glasses and, last night, into a coffee mug because I desperately didn't want to make even more washing up for myself after doing the washing up, then cooking, then washing up again). Garnish with olives impaled on a cocktail sword or something, I generally stick two onto a toothpick and call it a fucking night. Or if you're posh and you don't fancy olives you could garnish with a twist (of lemon peel), but honestly, who wants to make a goddamn twist? Plus I like olives.
I didn't used to like olives. Funny. I wonder when it changed?
Anyway. I had myself a bit of a Torchwood marathon this weekend, in between cooking and washing up and going to the market and attending a family function. I had stopped in the middle of the first series before Children of Earth aired in July, and now I've finished that and gotten about half-way through the second series, which is considerably less mockable than the first series. (Not mock-proof, note. Just less mockable.) And I kept getting ideas for shit, and jotting them down in my "fragments" file. So I might start writing again, god save me. Fanfiction.
No, I'm not sure I mean that the way it came out. Many good fanfiction authors are very much Good Authors In General, or at least have the potential to be should they every quit their day jobs. And it's not shameful, to have ideas and create things inspired by something you're into. It's not inferior to original fiction, but it has that social stigma, like pretty much every aspect of fandom. And I'm done denying who I am, right? I'm embracing the things that make me who I am, especially the geekery, so you know what? I am an avid reader of fanfiction. And I have been a writer of fanfiction, and I may become one again.
It's kind of crazy that Torchwood has gotten so much under my skin. I love it on a campy sci-fi level, and a Gays On TV! level, and an Actors Are Attractive People level, and a caring-about-characters level, and a fandom-makes-awesome-things level (fic, art, vids, icons) -- but then there's also the meta things: I like to read what other fans think about episodes, characterisation, themes and messages, and other fans' ideas. And I have had a lot to think about because of fandom, and because of the way I personally react to this show. It's led me to define and articulate what I think about love, what I think about relationships, and it (and even more so Doctor Who) has reminded me to appreciate the wonder of the world and the people around me. I don't think I was this consumed by Animorphs, or X-Men, or Harry Potter, or even Lord of the Rings. None of those have been so... thinky for me. Well. LotR got pretty scholarly-thinky, but not as personal-thinky. V for Vendetta and its message about integrity (Valerie, anyone?) was a step on this path, but it was nowhere near the level of personal growth Torchwood has triggered. And yet, it's a plot-holey, bad-sciencey, , campy, darker-edgier-sexier spinoff of a show that I didn't even properly watch before Torchwood sank its teeth into me. How can it have become such a phenomenon in my life?
It's very smoky in my area tonight.
The kitties were roughhousing on my bed earlier, but now they're just chilling. Baxter definitely jumped face-first into the wall a couple times, though. Uh.
Ducky (formerly Dizzy, formerly Maybe-Vasco-Maybe-Quantum) likes to sleep in the crevice that my bed makes against the wall. I guess it's probably because my apartment is hot and the wall is cold? But it worries me when I accidentally bump him or put a limp partially on top of him and he makes no complaint. What if I roll onto him in the night or something?
This morning I woke up and the kitties were curled up on either side of me, dozing and purring. It was brilliant.
I really need to practise tomorrow. I haven't since the last time I said I needed to practise. Oops.
OMG SO while driving with my family to day I heard both "Uprising" AND "Knights of Cydonia." SO. PUMPED. I was practically headbanging, with my mum and brother in the car. Honestly? Muse might be all I really need from pop music.
God I've been so tired today, and yet I've been typing this entry for nearly an hour. Priorities much? Gah.
FIRST!! I have seen NO FLEAS for the past few days. VICTORY IS MINE, Y/Y???
I cooked a lot this weekend! and by 'a lot' I actually mean that I made Rice-A-Roni (but hey, at least it's on the stove and not in the microwave, yes?), I steamed broccoli (this time in the microwave, but it was fresh broccoli), I baked cheese bread (this link goes to
copperbadge's recipe, because he is brilliant. I used havarti, smoked provolone, and asiago as my cheeses. I had too much salt in the herb mix, and next time I'm definitely switching the oregano for rosemary because I don't particularly like oregano, and I left it in the oven slightly too long, but the bread came out a lot fluffier than the first time I tried it (with p'tit basque and asiago) which was lovely, and anyway, my brother liked it), and I made crepes (filled with Nutella, pear slices, and peach slices. whipped my own cream, too! whipping cream + sweet vermouth (which was admittedly a little strange) + a splash of almond extract + a heaping spoonful of sugar when that wasn't sweet enough + LOTS OF ELBOW GREASE EH because I don't have an electric hand mixer and couldn't be fucked to get down the stand mixer and dirty yet another bowl okay?) for breakfast today. Plus I made myself a martini last night, and mixing is almost like cooking, yes? (I needed to finish the old gin because I bought new gin and had to justify it. don't judge me okay??)btw, for those of you who don't know, a martini is this:
in a shaker: ice, gin (I like Bombay Sapphire but I'm too posh for my own good), "fond memories of vermouth" (I actually use a liberal splash, but I love that quote. Who said that?). And everyone says "stir, don't shake, you'll bruise the gin!" but I can't be arsed really so I stick the top on and I turn it over once or twice and then I strain into a glass (a cocktail glass, properly, but we have no cocktail glasses (they were Roomie's -- man I should get my ass some cocktail glasses, and some wine glasses) so thus far at the new apartment I have strained martinis into margarita glasses and, last night, into a coffee mug because I desperately didn't want to make even more washing up for myself after doing the washing up, then cooking, then washing up again). Garnish with olives impaled on a cocktail sword or something, I generally stick two onto a toothpick and call it a fucking night. Or if you're posh and you don't fancy olives you could garnish with a twist (of lemon peel), but honestly, who wants to make a goddamn twist? Plus I like olives.
I didn't used to like olives. Funny. I wonder when it changed?
Anyway. I had myself a bit of a Torchwood marathon this weekend, in between cooking and washing up and going to the market and attending a family function. I had stopped in the middle of the first series before Children of Earth aired in July, and now I've finished that and gotten about half-way through the second series, which is considerably less mockable than the first series. (Not mock-proof, note. Just less mockable.) And I kept getting ideas for shit, and jotting them down in my "fragments" file. So I might start writing again, god save me. Fanfiction.
No, I'm not sure I mean that the way it came out. Many good fanfiction authors are very much Good Authors In General, or at least have the potential to be should they every quit their day jobs. And it's not shameful, to have ideas and create things inspired by something you're into. It's not inferior to original fiction, but it has that social stigma, like pretty much every aspect of fandom. And I'm done denying who I am, right? I'm embracing the things that make me who I am, especially the geekery, so you know what? I am an avid reader of fanfiction. And I have been a writer of fanfiction, and I may become one again.
It's kind of crazy that Torchwood has gotten so much under my skin. I love it on a campy sci-fi level, and a Gays On TV! level, and an Actors Are Attractive People level, and a caring-about-characters level, and a fandom-makes-awesome-things level (fic, art, vids, icons) -- but then there's also the meta things: I like to read what other fans think about episodes, characterisation, themes and messages, and other fans' ideas. And I have had a lot to think about because of fandom, and because of the way I personally react to this show. It's led me to define and articulate what I think about love, what I think about relationships, and it (and even more so Doctor Who) has reminded me to appreciate the wonder of the world and the people around me. I don't think I was this consumed by Animorphs, or X-Men, or Harry Potter, or even Lord of the Rings. None of those have been so... thinky for me. Well. LotR got pretty scholarly-thinky, but not as personal-thinky. V for Vendetta and its message about integrity (Valerie, anyone?) was a step on this path, but it was nowhere near the level of personal growth Torchwood has triggered. And yet, it's a plot-holey, bad-sciencey, , campy, darker-edgier-sexier spinoff of a show that I didn't even properly watch before Torchwood sank its teeth into me. How can it have become such a phenomenon in my life?
It's very smoky in my area tonight.
The kitties were roughhousing on my bed earlier, but now they're just chilling. Baxter definitely jumped face-first into the wall a couple times, though. Uh.
Ducky (formerly Dizzy, formerly Maybe-Vasco-Maybe-Quantum) likes to sleep in the crevice that my bed makes against the wall. I guess it's probably because my apartment is hot and the wall is cold? But it worries me when I accidentally bump him or put a limp partially on top of him and he makes no complaint. What if I roll onto him in the night or something?
This morning I woke up and the kitties were curled up on either side of me, dozing and purring. It was brilliant.
I really need to practise tomorrow. I haven't since the last time I said I needed to practise. Oops.
OMG SO while driving with my family to day I heard both "Uprising" AND "Knights of Cydonia." SO. PUMPED. I was practically headbanging, with my mum and brother in the car. Honestly? Muse might be all I really need from pop music.
God I've been so tired today, and yet I've been typing this entry for nearly an hour. Priorities much? Gah.