With the boys off at a poker game tonight, I spent my evening to myself being the most abject fifties stereotype of a woman that I could possibly be. First I handwashed some delicate laundry items and threw the rest in the washing machine. Then I settled in to give myself a home pedicure, nothing fancy or complicated, just a nice soak in hot water with some fizzy bath salts, a scrub, and some shea butter lotion. It is a nice, if temporary, way to deal with my pain issues. Then I put lotion all over my legs and arms while I waited for the dryer to finish.
I've always wanted to be able to have a routine for taking care of my skin, but I've never been able to figure out what might be good for me. I've always been prone to acne and I hate it, but Ive never managed to find some treatment that actually worked. I tried Proactiv for a long time, but it never seemed to have any connection to whether my skin got better or worse. Since I quit using it in a rage I've been a lot clearer, but I'm afraid to use anything on my face now for fear of messing that up. I'd like to find a moisturizer with sunscreen in it, as those contribute a lot to skin health and wrinkle prevention, but I'm terrified that picking the wrong one will make the acne come back. Maybe if I do get to see a doctor I'll ask to get to see a dermotologist.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Actually looking nice today
Lately getting going in the morning has been a lot harder than usual; again I blame the not sleeping well. But that has meant that getting dressed has taken a lot more effort, so I haven't been doing as good a job of it. My very conscious efforts to dress as stylishly as possible have been a bit too much for me, so things like experimenting and even accessorizing just haven't been happening. But today I actually managed to assemble something that looks really sharp. I'm wearing one of my favorite shirts, the fitted pink-striped one with the silver appliqued design on it, khakhi slacks, black leather belt, my anniversary necklace, matching silver earrings, and, as a fun and unusal touch, my silver dress heels. I feel like I look really good today, and that makes me feel good. Maybe I should spend the precious extra spoons in the mornings and go back dressing carefully; it might help me feel a little better about myself. Could use that lately.
Had the first read through for Love's Labor's Lost last night. It went well, if perhaps a little less professionally than I like, and I think i will enjoy working with this cast. I've had heavier rehearsal schedules than I'll have for this show, but even though rehearsals happen every other night I'll still need to be at pretty much all of them. I will be playing Longaville, one of the king's men who swears off women in order to pursue scholarship for a year, but ends up breaking his vow when he falls in love with Maria, one of the ladies attending the princess of France. Yet again I am cross-cast. :-) No matter, I enjoy the challenge, and it's a fairly decent-sized role. I'm still trying to get a handle on what I think I'll do with him, but I've got plenty of time to figure it out. There will be three weekends of performances, 7/24-25, 7/31-8/1, and 8/7-8.
Long weekend coming up. I don't have to work on Monday due to Memorial Day, but even with the extra day it will be busy. These will be my last couple of days with Jared before he goes home for the summer; Monday he'll be flying home. Also I'll be taking Bernie to the airport so he can go to a work conference in California. I don't want either of them to go; it's going to be a lonely few days. But on Sunday blendedchaitea* will be moving into Elsinore for the summer, and I'm very excited about that. I look forward to helping her get settled, and then having her for company. So I'll be trying to keep busy, which helps keep my spirits up.
Had the first read through for Love's Labor's Lost last night. It went well, if perhaps a little less professionally than I like, and I think i will enjoy working with this cast. I've had heavier rehearsal schedules than I'll have for this show, but even though rehearsals happen every other night I'll still need to be at pretty much all of them. I will be playing Longaville, one of the king's men who swears off women in order to pursue scholarship for a year, but ends up breaking his vow when he falls in love with Maria, one of the ladies attending the princess of France. Yet again I am cross-cast. :-) No matter, I enjoy the challenge, and it's a fairly decent-sized role. I'm still trying to get a handle on what I think I'll do with him, but I've got plenty of time to figure it out. There will be three weekends of performances, 7/24-25, 7/31-8/1, and 8/7-8.
Long weekend coming up. I don't have to work on Monday due to Memorial Day, but even with the extra day it will be busy. These will be my last couple of days with Jared before he goes home for the summer; Monday he'll be flying home. Also I'll be taking Bernie to the airport so he can go to a work conference in California. I don't want either of them to go; it's going to be a lonely few days. But on Sunday blendedchaitea* will be moving into Elsinore for the summer, and I'm very excited about that. I look forward to helping her get settled, and then having her for company. So I'll be trying to keep busy, which helps keep my spirits up.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Goals and tasks for the summer
Some thoughts on things I am planning on pursuing over the summertime this year.
Budgeting will need to be focused on. Though actually, one goal I actually have more or less met over the last year is keeping my finances in order. The old budget has been and will continue to be pretty tight, but I'm making it work, covering my bills and actually managing to put a little away. I'm now even closer to my in-case-of-emergency savings goal! Since our new lease is starting next month, I have been carefully getting ready for the expense of handing over first month-last month payment. I am extremely annoyed, however, by the fact that my landlord will not allow me to just roll over my security deposit from last year. Instead, he wants to give it back to me and have me pay a new one. Okay, this wouldn't be so bad if he could get it together to return it to me before the new one is due. If I remember correctly from last year, we got the old one back eventually, but not in a prompt manner, because frankly this guy doesn't really do anything in a prompt manner. I am budgeted and prepared to hand over first month-last month, but digging up an ADDITIONAL security deposit is going to pose a serious hardship. I just don't want to cause any trouble, so as unhappy as it makes me, I'm just going to go with it. I know I will get the old one back, but still, I dislike the notion of having twice what I owe in security handed over for any period of time.
I got into the play I auditioned for! I will be playing Longaville, one of the prince's men who swears off love for scholarship but finds he can't keep to it, in the Gazebo Players production of Love's Labor's Lost. Tonight is the first read through and I'm excited, though I have to miss a Labor Wars meeting to attend. :-( I will in the future carefully manage my schedule so this does not happen again. I think it will be good for me to have a show to keep me busy and creative this summer.
I must get back into the habit of working out. I'm barely working out at all these days, and the squishiness is starting to show it. My belly is turning to mush and my thighs are becoming monstrous. It's easier for me to keep to a workout schedule over the summer with my increased free time and my decreased responsibilities, so perhaps I can actually make a good habit of it. I will have to overcome the challenge of my sleeping badly makes it hard to get up to work out in the mornings, and yet I've never had much success making myself work out at any other time.
I would like to restart my Burn Notice campaign. We haven't played in a very long time, but I would enjoy getting back into it, if not on a regular basis, then at least somewhat frequently. Hell, we even still have a storyline to finish. I honestly have difficulty coming up with more and more story so quickly, but I liked running the game and had a great time spending it with the players. I'll have to go about figuring that out.
I must find a doctor. I recently got new health insurance, so I've got to find someone who accepts it, but honestly I haven't had a primary care provider since going away to college. I don't often need one, and when I was in school I just used the health center. But I've been convined to get checked out about how badly I've been sleeping lately, and my feet seem to be hurting an awful lot. To be honest I don't expect a doctor to be able to do much about any of the things that have been troubling me, since I think most of it's due to stress, but Jared and my mother are convined I'm falling apart, so I guess it can't hurt on the off-chance there's something concrete medical care can do.
So there's a starting point to begin my summer with. Let's see how it goes.
Budgeting will need to be focused on. Though actually, one goal I actually have more or less met over the last year is keeping my finances in order. The old budget has been and will continue to be pretty tight, but I'm making it work, covering my bills and actually managing to put a little away. I'm now even closer to my in-case-of-emergency savings goal! Since our new lease is starting next month, I have been carefully getting ready for the expense of handing over first month-last month payment. I am extremely annoyed, however, by the fact that my landlord will not allow me to just roll over my security deposit from last year. Instead, he wants to give it back to me and have me pay a new one. Okay, this wouldn't be so bad if he could get it together to return it to me before the new one is due. If I remember correctly from last year, we got the old one back eventually, but not in a prompt manner, because frankly this guy doesn't really do anything in a prompt manner. I am budgeted and prepared to hand over first month-last month, but digging up an ADDITIONAL security deposit is going to pose a serious hardship. I just don't want to cause any trouble, so as unhappy as it makes me, I'm just going to go with it. I know I will get the old one back, but still, I dislike the notion of having twice what I owe in security handed over for any period of time.
I got into the play I auditioned for! I will be playing Longaville, one of the prince's men who swears off love for scholarship but finds he can't keep to it, in the Gazebo Players production of Love's Labor's Lost. Tonight is the first read through and I'm excited, though I have to miss a Labor Wars meeting to attend. :-( I will in the future carefully manage my schedule so this does not happen again. I think it will be good for me to have a show to keep me busy and creative this summer.
I must get back into the habit of working out. I'm barely working out at all these days, and the squishiness is starting to show it. My belly is turning to mush and my thighs are becoming monstrous. It's easier for me to keep to a workout schedule over the summer with my increased free time and my decreased responsibilities, so perhaps I can actually make a good habit of it. I will have to overcome the challenge of my sleeping badly makes it hard to get up to work out in the mornings, and yet I've never had much success making myself work out at any other time.
I would like to restart my Burn Notice campaign. We haven't played in a very long time, but I would enjoy getting back into it, if not on a regular basis, then at least somewhat frequently. Hell, we even still have a storyline to finish. I honestly have difficulty coming up with more and more story so quickly, but I liked running the game and had a great time spending it with the players. I'll have to go about figuring that out.
I must find a doctor. I recently got new health insurance, so I've got to find someone who accepts it, but honestly I haven't had a primary care provider since going away to college. I don't often need one, and when I was in school I just used the health center. But I've been convined to get checked out about how badly I've been sleeping lately, and my feet seem to be hurting an awful lot. To be honest I don't expect a doctor to be able to do much about any of the things that have been troubling me, since I think most of it's due to stress, but Jared and my mother are convined I'm falling apart, so I guess it can't hurt on the off-chance there's something concrete medical care can do.
So there's a starting point to begin my summer with. Let's see how it goes.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Thoughts on Iron Man II
Last night Jared and I saw Iron Man II. It was fun, and there was a lot of entertaining stuff, but about every ten minutes I saw something about which I had to declare, "I call bullshit." I enjoyed the movie, but it was not the second Iron Man that I wanted to see.
I really like the character of Tony Stark, especially as played by Robert Downey, Jr. And I hate to say it, but I love how he's an enormous dick that still manages to be hot. And see, my favorite Tony Stark antagonist is Tony Stark. I find him most interesting when he's his own worst enemy. Basically the film I was hoping to see had that same Tony be successfully protecting the world but totally destroying his personal life, descending into alcoholism and acting progressively more reckless due to his growing arrogance and his fear for his life. I wanted him to be alienating Pepper with all his difficult behavior, the breaking point of which is being seduced by Black Widow, who was actually trying to infiltrate Stark Industries and help Whiplash, and that drives her to finally leave him and go to Happy, who I expected to be in the film for this purpose. I wanted him to be screwing up his life, and I wanted there to be consequences for it. There weren't really consequences for anything he did, even using the Iron Man suit while drunk, a moment which offended me probably more than it should. But nobody on the Earth should get away with playing with a weapon while intoxicated, and that kind of pissed me off. I call bullshit.
Then there was the very Walt Disney-style presentation of Howard Stark's city of tomorrow. I didn't mind that, but I did mind the very Da Vinci Code-like hiding of the new-element theory in the park model. Now, I totally buy that a scientist could theorize the existence of a new element before he has the technology to try and synthesize it, which later generations do. I believe that's even happened in real life science. But people leave these things in notebooks, they do not hide them cryptically in models for vanity theme parks. I call bullshit.
Did not enjoy Black Widow. Or maybe I shouldn't even call her that, because she didn't have anything in common with Black Widow except her real name. Maybe I would have enjoyed her more if I liked Scarlett Johansson (as either an actress or as eye candy) but I really don't. I found her character to be totally gratuitous. Basically, "Sexy girl. Sexy girl beats people up. Sexy girl looks sexy. Sexy girl changes in backseat of car in a scene so pornographically choreographed as to be absurd." And Tony is a complete dumbass for being a man in his position and not thinking, "Huh, this woman can do CRAZY MARTIAL ARTS even though she's supposed to be from THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT. SHE CLEARLY ISN'T A SPY, NOPE, NUH HUH." God, I wanted Pepper to be like, "If all the blood hadn't abandoned your brain right now, it might occur to you that that's a little suspicious!"
I can't believe they didn't have her be villainous in any way. I kept waiting for her to betray them and help Vanko, but nope, never happened. Natasha Romanov was a Soviet double-agent in the comics. If they just wanted a sexy secret SHIELD agent, why did they use the Romanov character? Wasn't there some other character they could have had play that role? Maybe Sharon Carter, like Jared suggested? I call bullshit about pretty much every aspect of this character.
I wanted this movie to show Tony destroying everything that was really important to him. And then have the next movie be him putting it all back together. They could have even still had the last scene kept as it was, because I like the idea that Tony manages to publically save everyone while still having ruined his life. But I felt they could have made a much deeper, more believable movie if they hadn't just let the comic-book-logic run wild and let Tony get away with whatever he wanted. He's a douchebag by nature and we enjoy him that way, but douchebags usually get some sort of repercussions for their behavior.
I really like the character of Tony Stark, especially as played by Robert Downey, Jr. And I hate to say it, but I love how he's an enormous dick that still manages to be hot. And see, my favorite Tony Stark antagonist is Tony Stark. I find him most interesting when he's his own worst enemy. Basically the film I was hoping to see had that same Tony be successfully protecting the world but totally destroying his personal life, descending into alcoholism and acting progressively more reckless due to his growing arrogance and his fear for his life. I wanted him to be alienating Pepper with all his difficult behavior, the breaking point of which is being seduced by Black Widow, who was actually trying to infiltrate Stark Industries and help Whiplash, and that drives her to finally leave him and go to Happy, who I expected to be in the film for this purpose. I wanted him to be screwing up his life, and I wanted there to be consequences for it. There weren't really consequences for anything he did, even using the Iron Man suit while drunk, a moment which offended me probably more than it should. But nobody on the Earth should get away with playing with a weapon while intoxicated, and that kind of pissed me off. I call bullshit.
Then there was the very Walt Disney-style presentation of Howard Stark's city of tomorrow. I didn't mind that, but I did mind the very Da Vinci Code-like hiding of the new-element theory in the park model. Now, I totally buy that a scientist could theorize the existence of a new element before he has the technology to try and synthesize it, which later generations do. I believe that's even happened in real life science. But people leave these things in notebooks, they do not hide them cryptically in models for vanity theme parks. I call bullshit.
Did not enjoy Black Widow. Or maybe I shouldn't even call her that, because she didn't have anything in common with Black Widow except her real name. Maybe I would have enjoyed her more if I liked Scarlett Johansson (as either an actress or as eye candy) but I really don't. I found her character to be totally gratuitous. Basically, "Sexy girl. Sexy girl beats people up. Sexy girl looks sexy. Sexy girl changes in backseat of car in a scene so pornographically choreographed as to be absurd." And Tony is a complete dumbass for being a man in his position and not thinking, "Huh, this woman can do CRAZY MARTIAL ARTS even though she's supposed to be from THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT. SHE CLEARLY ISN'T A SPY, NOPE, NUH HUH." God, I wanted Pepper to be like, "If all the blood hadn't abandoned your brain right now, it might occur to you that that's a little suspicious!"
I can't believe they didn't have her be villainous in any way. I kept waiting for her to betray them and help Vanko, but nope, never happened. Natasha Romanov was a Soviet double-agent in the comics. If they just wanted a sexy secret SHIELD agent, why did they use the Romanov character? Wasn't there some other character they could have had play that role? Maybe Sharon Carter, like Jared suggested? I call bullshit about pretty much every aspect of this character.
I wanted this movie to show Tony destroying everything that was really important to him. And then have the next movie be him putting it all back together. They could have even still had the last scene kept as it was, because I like the idea that Tony manages to publically save everyone while still having ruined his life. But I felt they could have made a much deeper, more believable movie if they hadn't just let the comic-book-logic run wild and let Tony get away with whatever he wanted. He's a douchebag by nature and we enjoy him that way, but douchebags usually get some sort of repercussions for their behavior.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Summa cum laude
As of this weekend, Jared Hite now has a bachelors of arts in philosophy with a minor in legal studies from Brandeis University, graduating summa cum laude with high honors from his thesis. I'm so proud of him.
I spent most of the weekend helping him move out of his dorm. His parents came into town to see him graduate, and Friday and Saturday were spent clearing out his surprisingly large amount of stuff for the contents of one dorm room. Some of it was packed to go back to Chicago, some of it was sent to his local storage locker. It was a lot of work for a hot day, but things went smoothly enough. The next day was commencement, and a considerably less enjoyable experience. I strongly dislike graduation ceremonies for a number of reasons, so other than getting to hear Jared's fantastic status announced to everyone, the whole business was very unpleasant for me. But we went out to a fantastic dinner in the evening, so the ended well despite it all.
Jared will be staying with me for one more week. Then he is going back to Chicago for the summer, with the intent of spending it job and apartment-hunting and then coming back to Boston in September. I think this is the best thing for him, he needs time to de-stress and have few responsibilities for a while, but I will certainly miss him. There's even a part of me that is afraid he won't be able to come back. But we'll just have to be hopeful and dilligent and pray for the best. I'll be a little down about it, but I'm going to do what I can to just hope things turn out.
I spent most of the weekend helping him move out of his dorm. His parents came into town to see him graduate, and Friday and Saturday were spent clearing out his surprisingly large amount of stuff for the contents of one dorm room. Some of it was packed to go back to Chicago, some of it was sent to his local storage locker. It was a lot of work for a hot day, but things went smoothly enough. The next day was commencement, and a considerably less enjoyable experience. I strongly dislike graduation ceremonies for a number of reasons, so other than getting to hear Jared's fantastic status announced to everyone, the whole business was very unpleasant for me. But we went out to a fantastic dinner in the evening, so the ended well despite it all.
Jared will be staying with me for one more week. Then he is going back to Chicago for the summer, with the intent of spending it job and apartment-hunting and then coming back to Boston in September. I think this is the best thing for him, he needs time to de-stress and have few responsibilities for a while, but I will certainly miss him. There's even a part of me that is afraid he won't be able to come back. But we'll just have to be hopeful and dilligent and pray for the best. I'll be a little down about it, but I'm going to do what I can to just hope things turn out.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Elsinore status update
Last night saw some progress for getting Elsinore back into order. The chef's rack has been positioned-- it was slightly too big for the place occupied by the ugly shelf being used as a pantry, so it was moved to the opposite wall, and I think I like it there. The kitchen cart instead now occupies that place. And as anxious as I was to get the new table set up, it turned out to be unnecessary. It was exactly the same size as the old table, in fact they look extremely similar to each other, and the Daves agreed to take it instead because it would save them having to break down the other one in order to pack it into the car. More than fine by me, as I am thoroughly weary of fighting with the stuff.
So the kitchen is now set for furniture, though a significant number of our appliances and utensils disappeared as well last night. It's also looking like the big coffee table in the living room is going to go, as well as the small one down in the game room. Sigh. More stuff to replace. I am not relishing the amount of money it's going to take to cover all of that, and given financial limitations, how much time will likely go by before it's taken care of. The inconvenience in the meantime is also going to wear on me.
With help from lightgamer*, the chairs that came free with the table were moved down into the basement. Probably the best use of them is to go around the gaming table down there. I am now pondering possibilities for fixing them up. blendedchaitea* very kindly offered to help with this, and dear, I would love to have you lend a hand. So I will wait until she comes back to Waltham before I start work on them, but in the meantime I'm trying to figure out a plan of attack. I'm thinking they're going to require sanding, staining, and refinishing. That could be a pretty labor intensive-process, not to mention require buying a lot of supplies. Since I'm not sure they're going to be worth all the work and effort, we'll probably just start by doing one chair, and if I don't think it's coming out nicely enough, I'll just chuck the lot. Maybe I'll try to match the color to the gaming table, since that's what they will be accompanying.
So the kitchen is now set for furniture, though a significant number of our appliances and utensils disappeared as well last night. It's also looking like the big coffee table in the living room is going to go, as well as the small one down in the game room. Sigh. More stuff to replace. I am not relishing the amount of money it's going to take to cover all of that, and given financial limitations, how much time will likely go by before it's taken care of. The inconvenience in the meantime is also going to wear on me.
With help from lightgamer*, the chairs that came free with the table were moved down into the basement. Probably the best use of them is to go around the gaming table down there. I am now pondering possibilities for fixing them up. blendedchaitea* very kindly offered to help with this, and dear, I would love to have you lend a hand. So I will wait until she comes back to Waltham before I start work on them, but in the meantime I'm trying to figure out a plan of attack. I'm thinking they're going to require sanding, staining, and refinishing. That could be a pretty labor intensive-process, not to mention require buying a lot of supplies. Since I'm not sure they're going to be worth all the work and effort, we'll probably just start by doing one chair, and if I don't think it's coming out nicely enough, I'll just chuck the lot. Maybe I'll try to match the color to the gaming table, since that's what they will be accompanying.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Shaking up the guest lists
So I tend to have the same people over for my dinner parties again and again. Of course the fact that I like those people and want to have their company is a big factor. So is proximity; people I run into regularly and who are close to me are much easier to invite and have travel the distance to come to dinner. But the primary reason is for ease of social dynamics. I really dislike it when the conversation doesn't flow between dinner guests, and someone either has to drag it along or there's lots of social awkwardness. So I tend to very carefully engineer guest lists for maximum positive interaction. That very often leads to groups with similar makeup because I know they get along and I like having them. But there are still many people I'd like to have over for dinner that I for some reason do not often end up inviting.
So I think this summer I am going to make an effort to shake up my guest list and have dinners for people who I'd love to see but have not managed to have over very often. At least every other dinner party I have is going to have at least a mostly unusual guest list. I think that will make things more interesting, as well as get to share my cooking with friends I don't as frequently get to see. I'll probably still do my social engineering in hopes that everyone has things to talk to each other about, but I want to shake things up in my social circle.
So I think this summer I am going to make an effort to shake up my guest list and have dinners for people who I'd love to see but have not managed to have over very often. At least every other dinner party I have is going to have at least a mostly unusual guest list. I think that will make things more interesting, as well as get to share my cooking with friends I don't as frequently get to see. I'll probably still do my social engineering in hopes that everyone has things to talk to each other about, but I want to shake things up in my social circle.
Comparative gaming styles
There will be BSCF at my house tonight. That is cool, although I'm not sure I'm feeling up to that much social interaction. Depending on my ability to pretend to be a human being tonight, I may have to go hide in my room. If I can manage to behave like a real person, however, perhaps I shall try to get a game of Small World going.
I heard that at WPI, when Small World is played it is considered standard practice to make diplomatic agreements with other players. At Brandeis, we tend to be geared much more toward pure strategy when we play. If the right move is not immediately obvious, everyone around the table with discuss what the most advantageous move given the situation is, regardless of what other player it may hurt, and countless times I have heard someone advise their opponent to attack they themselves because it is objectively the best move.
I find this hilarious given WPI versus Brandeis larping style. At Brandeis we are the diplomats, the ones who sit around in a circle holding hands trying to find some way to work things out, while I have found WPI larpers to be more ruthless, oriented more towards the win-condition than finding some compromise. The reversal of that situation I find very funny.
I heard that at WPI, when Small World is played it is considered standard practice to make diplomatic agreements with other players. At Brandeis, we tend to be geared much more toward pure strategy when we play. If the right move is not immediately obvious, everyone around the table with discuss what the most advantageous move given the situation is, regardless of what other player it may hurt, and countless times I have heard someone advise their opponent to attack they themselves because it is objectively the best move.
I find this hilarious given WPI versus Brandeis larping style. At Brandeis we are the diplomats, the ones who sit around in a circle holding hands trying to find some way to work things out, while I have found WPI larpers to be more ruthless, oriented more towards the win-condition than finding some compromise. The reversal of that situation I find very funny.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Love's Labor Lost and HTP history
Also yesterday was my audition for Love's Labor's Lost. I wasn't totally excited about it given how tired I was from the rest of the day, but I really do want to be part of this production and work with Shelby as a director. So I climbed back in the car-- blech, more driving --and made my way there. The audition itself went well enough; it wasn't my best, but it wasn't bad either. I think the biggest problem was how low my energy level was by that point, which probably didn't work so well with the Puck monologue I'd chosen to do because I've always liked how energetic it was. There may be a callback next week, and I should hear after that.
But the other cool thing about there was I got to meet a girl named Debbie Finkelstein, who now works at Brandeis but was a founding member of Hold Thy Peace. I knew she'd been in e-mail contact with Jared a bit, but this was the first time I'd actually met her. She told me she saw Hamlet and really enjoyed it! She even was impressed by my cut of the show. She's very nice, and according to her, I can now present a full history of the club's shows! I believe the complete list is as follows:
The Compleat Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) - Spring '01
Goodnight Desdemona, Good Morning Juliet - Spring '02
Taming of the Shrew - Fall '02
Merry Wives of Windsor - Spring '03
Much Ado About Nothing (directed by Shelby) - Fall '03
Merchant of Venice (directed by Debbie) - Spring '04
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead - Fall '04
Twelfth Night - Fall '05
Macbeth - Spring '06
The Tempest - Fall '06
Dr. Faustus - Spring '07
Hamlet - Fall '07
A Comedy of Errors - Spring '08
King Lear - Fall '08
A Midsummer Night's Dream - Spring '09
Romeo and Juliet - Fall '09
To Think of Nothing - Spring '10
Julius Caesar - Spring '10
A Winter's Tale - Fall '10
But the other cool thing about there was I got to meet a girl named Debbie Finkelstein, who now works at Brandeis but was a founding member of Hold Thy Peace. I knew she'd been in e-mail contact with Jared a bit, but this was the first time I'd actually met her. She told me she saw Hamlet and really enjoyed it! She even was impressed by my cut of the show. She's very nice, and according to her, I can now present a full history of the club's shows! I believe the complete list is as follows:
The Compleat Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) - Spring '01
Goodnight Desdemona, Good Morning Juliet - Spring '02
Taming of the Shrew - Fall '02
Merry Wives of Windsor - Spring '03
Much Ado About Nothing (directed by Shelby) - Fall '03
Merchant of Venice (directed by Debbie) - Spring '04
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead - Fall '04
Twelfth Night - Fall '05
Macbeth - Spring '06
The Tempest - Fall '06
Dr. Faustus - Spring '07
Hamlet - Fall '07
A Comedy of Errors - Spring '08
King Lear - Fall '08
A Midsummer Night's Dream - Spring '09
Romeo and Juliet - Fall '09
To Think of Nothing - Spring '10
Julius Caesar - Spring '10
A Winter's Tale - Fall '10
Furniture accomplished
Gah, long day yesterday. Yesterday was my day of "get kitchen furniture in order come hell or highwater, God damn it," and God damn it, I got it done. On Monday night my kitchen cart came in, and Jared and Charlotte so graciously put it together for me while I was cooking dinner. Monday was a really good day; Charlotte and Frances came over to Elsinore to have a little body-painting party, followed by dinner. Charlotte did a beautiful design on my lower back and on Frances's arm and shoulder. And to make things even better, beforehand she gave me one of the nicest massages I have ever had. I'll have to ask her in more detail exactly what she did, because it was fantastic. And while Frances and I made a dinner of pesto pasta and ratatouille, she and Jared undertook the surprisingly complex task of putting together the cart. How lucky I am to have such helpful, capable friends. :-) I really like the cart, too; it rolls smoothly, has a good-sized cabinet for storage, and is a perfect height to use as extra counterspace.
As for yesterday, I managed to make agreements with two sellers on Craigslist to pick up a replacement for the kitchen table and a replacement for the pantry shelf. Mission accomplished, but not easily. It involved lots of driving, more than I'd expected because on the first run neither of my two GPS devices could find the address. So that involved lots of fighting back and forth around one-way streets in Cambridge and lots of awkward calling of the seller trying to get to an address that neither my phone device or my car device recognized the existence of. But I managed to secure an item known as a chef's or baker's rack. I started looking for one as a replacement for the shelf-as-pantry we've got going on right now after seeing one in Matt and Lise's kitchen on Sunday, and very quickly I found one. I like it because it combines shelf space with a metal mesh backsplash you can use to hang things on. I've always kind of disliked the old pantry shelf; as Jared once put it, "It's a lot less kitchen than it is garage." I'll be glad to have a nicer, more versatile piece as a replacement. Though it occurs to me I'll need to buy some hooks if I want to start hanging stuff.
Getting the table didn't turn out to be too bad, and the seller was extremely helpful in getting it loaded into my car and making sure everything was set. The table is pretty similar to the one that was there, except it has a little drawer in one end. We removed the legs and it slid into the back of my car just fine. Though the table was all I really wanted, he said it came with four chairs at no extra charge. The chairs are not excessively nice, they are a bit worn and the white paint is flaking off, but I took them anyway just in case I can fix them up. They would probably be perfectly fine if they had a new coat of paint. Maybe I could sand them down and stain them. That will be a project for this summer, I think. And so I accomplished two fairly significant furniture pieces, all without spending a ton of money. Not bad.
After all of that, I was pretty exhausted, especially since I hadn't eaten all day and my back was stiff from so much time in the car. But still, I managed to get them unloaded at the house. They're not really set up yet, as the table needs to be reassembled and their predessors are still taking up their intended space, but I'm proud of getting it done. As I said, I will feel really good about everything when the place is finally all set up and ready to be used.
As for yesterday, I managed to make agreements with two sellers on Craigslist to pick up a replacement for the kitchen table and a replacement for the pantry shelf. Mission accomplished, but not easily. It involved lots of driving, more than I'd expected because on the first run neither of my two GPS devices could find the address. So that involved lots of fighting back and forth around one-way streets in Cambridge and lots of awkward calling of the seller trying to get to an address that neither my phone device or my car device recognized the existence of. But I managed to secure an item known as a chef's or baker's rack. I started looking for one as a replacement for the shelf-as-pantry we've got going on right now after seeing one in Matt and Lise's kitchen on Sunday, and very quickly I found one. I like it because it combines shelf space with a metal mesh backsplash you can use to hang things on. I've always kind of disliked the old pantry shelf; as Jared once put it, "It's a lot less kitchen than it is garage." I'll be glad to have a nicer, more versatile piece as a replacement. Though it occurs to me I'll need to buy some hooks if I want to start hanging stuff.
Getting the table didn't turn out to be too bad, and the seller was extremely helpful in getting it loaded into my car and making sure everything was set. The table is pretty similar to the one that was there, except it has a little drawer in one end. We removed the legs and it slid into the back of my car just fine. Though the table was all I really wanted, he said it came with four chairs at no extra charge. The chairs are not excessively nice, they are a bit worn and the white paint is flaking off, but I took them anyway just in case I can fix them up. They would probably be perfectly fine if they had a new coat of paint. Maybe I could sand them down and stain them. That will be a project for this summer, I think. And so I accomplished two fairly significant furniture pieces, all without spending a ton of money. Not bad.
After all of that, I was pretty exhausted, especially since I hadn't eaten all day and my back was stiff from so much time in the car. But still, I managed to get them unloaded at the house. They're not really set up yet, as the table needs to be reassembled and their predessors are still taking up their intended space, but I'm proud of getting it done. As I said, I will feel really good about everything when the place is finally all set up and ready to be used.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Resetting the kitchen
I will be glad when the upheaval at Elsinore is settled. There has been so much activity with people moving their things in and out it has not been the most peaceful place to be lately. Also, things are not exactly neat with everything ripped up with the dividing of our various personal things that had previously been for communal use. I am really looking forward to having a neat, orderly house again with random pieces of furniture and appliances and such that are not going to disappear any minute.
For my part, it seems I have secured a kitchen table from Craigslist to purchase, and will be picking it up tomorrow. I plan on bringing a tool box with me in case it fits better in the car with the legs taken off, which given my car seems like a very likely prospect. Also, my rolling kitchen cart is scheduled to be delivered today! I'm very excited. I am also looking into replacing the kitchen shelf. I never much liked that thing, it's kind of ugly and cheap-looking, but since it's useful to have there, I'm going to look into finding a nicer-looking replacement.
It's actually kind of fun to get to reset my kitchen. :-)
For my part, it seems I have secured a kitchen table from Craigslist to purchase, and will be picking it up tomorrow. I plan on bringing a tool box with me in case it fits better in the car with the legs taken off, which given my car seems like a very likely prospect. Also, my rolling kitchen cart is scheduled to be delivered today! I'm very excited. I am also looking into replacing the kitchen shelf. I never much liked that thing, it's kind of ugly and cheap-looking, but since it's useful to have there, I'm going to look into finding a nicer-looking replacement.
It's actually kind of fun to get to reset my kitchen. :-)
So much Small World
Had an excellent, busy, friend-filled weekend. Saturday there was a gaming party at Elsinore at which I spent most of the day. I made two enormous pans of what I will call baked squash in mozzarella and tomato sauce-- it's basically eggplant parmesan, except no eggplant and no parmesan --which turned out to be fortunate, as there were many more people present for dinner than I had planned. I wanted to make dinner for Plesser, who was staying a couple of nights with us before heading out. Also, Marissa came back from her year in Greece! She got too late to have dinner with us, unfortunately, but it was nice to see her again.
The next day Jared and I went to have dinner with Matt and Lise. It was so nice. Matt made the most amazing meal, squash ravioli in sage wrappers, beets with mozzarella drizzled in balsamic, and panna cotta. It was really delicious and expertly made. We put together a cornmeal cake with a balsamic glaze to take with us, as well as a bottle of chardonnay. The company was excellent, we will have to do it again sometime. The evening ended with the dessert as well as the company of Nat, Viktoriya, Kerri, and Andrew, which was so much fun.
I played so much Small World this weekend, it was great. Played two games of it at the gaming day at my place, and another at Matt and Lise's. I love this game so much. I'm still not very good at it, but I fairly consistently come in second, so I don't totally suck at it like I do at most strategy games. I kind of wish there was a solitaire version so I could play even when nobody wanted to play with me. You guys will probably find me someday camped out around a board with four different sides set up, each one of them played by me against myself. Might be a good way to practice strategy! ;-)
The next day Jared and I went to have dinner with Matt and Lise. It was so nice. Matt made the most amazing meal, squash ravioli in sage wrappers, beets with mozzarella drizzled in balsamic, and panna cotta. It was really delicious and expertly made. We put together a cornmeal cake with a balsamic glaze to take with us, as well as a bottle of chardonnay. The company was excellent, we will have to do it again sometime. The evening ended with the dessert as well as the company of Nat, Viktoriya, Kerri, and Andrew, which was so much fun.
I played so much Small World this weekend, it was great. Played two games of it at the gaming day at my place, and another at Matt and Lise's. I love this game so much. I'm still not very good at it, but I fairly consistently come in second, so I don't totally suck at it like I do at most strategy games. I kind of wish there was a solitaire version so I could play even when nobody wanted to play with me. You guys will probably find me someday camped out around a board with four different sides set up, each one of them played by me against myself. Might be a good way to practice strategy! ;-)
So much Small World
Had an excellent, busy, friend-filled weekend. Saturday there was a gaming party at Elsinore at which I spent most of the day. I made two enormous pans of what I will call baked squash in mozzarella and tomato sauce-- it's basically eggplant parmesan, except no eggplant and no parmesan --which turned out to be fortunate, as there were many more people present for dinner than I had planned. I wanted to make dinner for Plesser, who was staying a couple of nights with us before heading out. Also, Marissa came back from her year in Greece! She got too late to have dinner with us, unfortunately, but it was nice to see her again.
The next day Jared and I went to have dinner with Matt and Lise. It was so nice. Matt made the most amazing meal, squash ravioli in sage wrappers, beets with mozzarella drizzled in balsamic, and panna cotta. It was really delicious and expertly made. We put together a cornmeal cake with a balsamic glaze to take with us, as well as a bottle of chardonnay. The company was excellent, we will have to do it again sometime. The evening ended with the dessert as well as the company of Nat, Viktoriya, Kerri, and Andrew, which was so much fun.
I played so much Small World this weekend, it was great. Played two games of it at the gaming day at my place, and another at Matt and Lise's. I love this game so much. I'm still not very good at it, but I fairly consistently come in second, so I don't totally suck at it like I do at most strategy games. I kind of wish there was a solitaire version so I could play even when nobody wanted to play with me. You guys will probably find me someday camped out around a board with four different sides set up, each one of them played by me against myself. Might be a good way to practice strategy! ;-)
The next day Jared and I went to have dinner with Matt and Lise. It was so nice. Matt made the most amazing meal, squash ravioli in sage wrappers, beets with mozzarella drizzled in balsamic, and panna cotta. It was really delicious and expertly made. We put together a cornmeal cake with a balsamic glaze to take with us, as well as a bottle of chardonnay. The company was excellent, we will have to do it again sometime. The evening ended with the dessert as well as the company of Nat, Viktoriya, Kerri, and Andrew, which was so much fun.
I played so much Small World this weekend, it was great. Played two games of it at the gaming day at my place, and another at Matt and Lise's. I love this game so much. I'm still not very good at it, but I fairly consistently come in second, so I don't totally suck at it like I do at most strategy games. I kind of wish there was a solitaire version so I could play even when nobody wanted to play with me. You guys will probably find me someday camped out around a board with four different sides set up, each one of them played by me against myself. Might be a good way to practice strategy! ;-)
Friday, May 14, 2010
I am a magical housing elf
I found out today that my mother woke up to a wet nose snuffling against hers. :-) That Merlin generates the most interesting news!
Today turned out to be significantly busier than I expected it to be, but overall was quite pleasant. This summer, since nennivian* and aurora_knight* will not be moving in yet, we will have a couple of subletters, once of which is the lovely blendedchaitea*. She will be going home to Los Angeles for two weeks before she officially comes to stay with us, so today I helped her gather up her dorm room, pack it into our respective cars, and store in against the wall downstairs until she needs it again. It turned out all that carrying was one hell of a workout; I must have walked miles with my arms loaded with heavy stuff. My muscles feel pretty ripped up, but it's actually a pretty good feeling, since it's been so long since I got a real workout.
In regards to my personal housing-related interests and responsibilities, I got one out of the two communications I was hoping for today. I was told that bronzite*'s furniture is supposed to be delivered between 8AM and 12PM tomorrow. I'm glad to know, but that's a bit earlier than I was hoping; it's earlier than I get up for work. Ah, well, God knows with how I've been sleeping I'll be up by that time anyway. As to the other communication, I didn't get the e-mail I was hoping for saying I can pick up the table. I'm hoping it will come tomorrow in time for me to make the trip to get it.
Today turned out to be significantly busier than I expected it to be, but overall was quite pleasant. This summer, since nennivian* and aurora_knight* will not be moving in yet, we will have a couple of subletters, once of which is the lovely blendedchaitea*. She will be going home to Los Angeles for two weeks before she officially comes to stay with us, so today I helped her gather up her dorm room, pack it into our respective cars, and store in against the wall downstairs until she needs it again. It turned out all that carrying was one hell of a workout; I must have walked miles with my arms loaded with heavy stuff. My muscles feel pretty ripped up, but it's actually a pretty good feeling, since it's been so long since I got a real workout.
In regards to my personal housing-related interests and responsibilities, I got one out of the two communications I was hoping for today. I was told that bronzite*'s furniture is supposed to be delivered between 8AM and 12PM tomorrow. I'm glad to know, but that's a bit earlier than I was hoping; it's earlier than I get up for work. Ah, well, God knows with how I've been sleeping I'll be up by that time anyway. As to the other communication, I didn't get the e-mail I was hoping for saying I can pick up the table. I'm hoping it will come tomorrow in time for me to make the trip to get it.
On yet another sleep-deprived day...
Sleep yet eludes me. I drop like a felled tree in the evening, wake up three or four times a night, and feel like a zombie the next morning. I'm chalking it up to stress; I've never really been a problem sleeper before. I've got to give that melatonin another try. I think it made a difference; if I recall, I slept better for a couple nights with it and forgot all about taking it, and ended up right back where I started with the bad night's sleep.
We cast The Labor Wars last night. I must say, it was a fascinating experience to glimpse into the Alleged Entertainment system of casting. Unlike most other casting sessions I've seen, they've devised a way to assign value to each answer and use those values to objectively measure compatibility with a character. It's very well-thought-out, and yet they balance it well with using non-quantified answers and knowledge of players to optimizes the matches. I'm really pleased with the cast that was put together last night, and I hope the players are too. Expect character sheets very soon!
I think I have a lead on a decent kitchen table. It's pretty much what I was looking for and very decently priced, so I'm hoping that I get a response to the e-mail I sent this morning confirming that I was interested. With any luck, the seller will get back to me soon and I'll be able to use my free time this weekend to go pick it up. Also, according to the shipping tracking on my kitchen cart, that is set to arrive on the 17th. It would very much please me to have these two household items in order.
In regards to furniture for another dwelling, this Saturday I will also be helping out bronzite* on a related matter. He is in Germany right now but has a furniture delivery scheduled for this weekend, so I will be waiting at his place to let the movers in and deliver the pieces to their proper locations. I'm still waiting for them to call me with the delivery time, so I don't have to be there all day. I guess I could do that if I had to, but I'd prefer not to have to bring quite so much to entertain myself with as would be required in that situation.
We cast The Labor Wars last night. I must say, it was a fascinating experience to glimpse into the Alleged Entertainment system of casting. Unlike most other casting sessions I've seen, they've devised a way to assign value to each answer and use those values to objectively measure compatibility with a character. It's very well-thought-out, and yet they balance it well with using non-quantified answers and knowledge of players to optimizes the matches. I'm really pleased with the cast that was put together last night, and I hope the players are too. Expect character sheets very soon!
I think I have a lead on a decent kitchen table. It's pretty much what I was looking for and very decently priced, so I'm hoping that I get a response to the e-mail I sent this morning confirming that I was interested. With any luck, the seller will get back to me soon and I'll be able to use my free time this weekend to go pick it up. Also, according to the shipping tracking on my kitchen cart, that is set to arrive on the 17th. It would very much please me to have these two household items in order.
In regards to furniture for another dwelling, this Saturday I will also be helping out bronzite* on a related matter. He is in Germany right now but has a furniture delivery scheduled for this weekend, so I will be waiting at his place to let the movers in and deliver the pieces to their proper locations. I'm still waiting for them to call me with the delivery time, so I don't have to be there all day. I guess I could do that if I had to, but I'd prefer not to have to bring quite so much to entertain myself with as would be required in that situation.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
All hail Armando, dread conqueror of the forehead
Stressy-stressy. On top of everything else, had lots of work stress earlier this week and a giant zip has exploded out of my head. It's so big it's practically giving me neck strain holding the damn thing up. I am naming it Armando. You see, when the thing is STARING YOU IN THE FACE next time you see me, DEMANDING THAT YOU ACKNOWLEDGE ITS DOMINION OVER MY FOREHEAD, it will only be polite that you have a name by which to address it.
In non-facial-conquest news, I'm working on preparing for the audtion for Love's Labor's Lost I am going to on Tuesday. I'm never sure when bringing a theatrical resume to an audition displays you as professional or as pretensious. I realized I hadn't updated mine with Romeo and Juliet or To Think of Nothing, so I decided to do that, but I'm not sure I should bring one to the next audition I'm going to. On one hand, it can look like a gesture of professionalism and respect to the person you're auditioning for. On the other hand, it can make you look like you think entirely too much of yourself as an ACK-TOR.
Speaking of which, if you'd like to stage manage a Shakespeare show this summer, the production I'm auditioning for is still in need of one. Let me know if you're interested, and I'll put you in touch with Shelby Bleweis, the very cool director, and an HTP alum!
In non-facial-conquest news, I'm working on preparing for the audtion for Love's Labor's Lost I am going to on Tuesday. I'm never sure when bringing a theatrical resume to an audition displays you as professional or as pretensious. I realized I hadn't updated mine with Romeo and Juliet or To Think of Nothing, so I decided to do that, but I'm not sure I should bring one to the next audition I'm going to. On one hand, it can look like a gesture of professionalism and respect to the person you're auditioning for. On the other hand, it can make you look like you think entirely too much of yourself as an ACK-TOR.
Speaking of which, if you'd like to stage manage a Shakespeare show this summer, the production I'm auditioning for is still in need of one. Let me know if you're interested, and I'll put you in touch with Shelby Bleweis, the very cool director, and an HTP alum!
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
What the dog is doing
Being nicer, I suppose, than the average kid who has left home, I call my parents pretty much every morning. It makes my mom happy, and while sometimes I don't feel like having the obligation, it's usually more of a pleasantry than a hardship. For most of my time since leaving, the nature of my family has meant that two topics of conversation were pretty much always part of the call-- "What'd you have for dinner last night?" and "What's the dog doing?" We're funny people.
For the last two years, since Carmen passed away, that second topic sadly had to be retired, as there was no longer any dog of which to discuss the doings. Not, of course, that her doings were particularly noteworthy; we were just inordinately interested. :-) But it's nice, now that they have Merlin, we can go back to talking about canine endeavors that are fascinating to no one but us.
I learned today that Merlin likes to crawl under my dad's desk while he's working at it to lay at his feet. :-D
For the last two years, since Carmen passed away, that second topic sadly had to be retired, as there was no longer any dog of which to discuss the doings. Not, of course, that her doings were particularly noteworthy; we were just inordinately interested. :-) But it's nice, now that they have Merlin, we can go back to talking about canine endeavors that are fascinating to no one but us.
I learned today that Merlin likes to crawl under my dad's desk while he's working at it to lay at his feet. :-D
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Kitchen cart!
Yesterday I bought myself this lovely kitchen cart. I've always wanted to get one, and now that the house is getting reordered for the new year, I finally decided to go for it. It can act as mobile counter space, something sorely lacking in the kitchen at Elsinore, and the built-in cabinet makes for a bit of extra storage space. I want to tuck it under the window next to the door in the kitchen and pull it around with me when I need it for cooking. I've been calling it a "rolling butcher block," but that's not exactly accurate. It would have to have the big thick wooden chopping block on it in order to qualify as that, and as much as I would like to have one like that, they were all out of my price range. But I'm very happy with the piece I bought. It wasn't terribly expensive for what it is and got very high reviews on the website. I'm really looking forward to having the extra workspace wherever I need it in the kitchen.
Merlin dog!
My parents just got a new dog!
After our old dog Carmen passed away at age fourteen, my mom has really missed having a dog around the house, and she finally determined she was going to get another one. She decided she didn't want a puppy with all the accompanying puppy behaviors, so she thought it might be nice to find a rescue dog, who would be slightly older and in need of a good home. We'd had wonderful experiences with Brittanys because of Carmen, so she thought they might get a similar type of dog. So she contacted the Mid-Atlantic English Springer Spaniel Rescue Service and they connected her and my dad with a sweet, energetic six-or-seven-year-old boy that they just brought home yesterday. They went to meet him yesterday, saying they would get to know him a bit and decide if he was the right dog for them, and it turned out that they loved him, so he is now our newest animal family member. They didn't know what his real name was at the rescue and had given him some placeholder name, so Mom decided to call him Merlin. She always wanted a dog named Merlin. :-)
They say he's very obedient, always looking to someone for direction, though they think as he gets more used to his new home he'll be a lot bolder. He particularly loves my brother. He likes chasing balls but doesn't like to give them up once he's caught them. I wish I could meet him, but it will probably be a long time before I get a chance to visit home again. My parents, particularly my mom, are very happy with him, so I am very happy they've found him.
After our old dog Carmen passed away at age fourteen, my mom has really missed having a dog around the house, and she finally determined she was going to get another one. She decided she didn't want a puppy with all the accompanying puppy behaviors, so she thought it might be nice to find a rescue dog, who would be slightly older and in need of a good home. We'd had wonderful experiences with Brittanys because of Carmen, so she thought they might get a similar type of dog. So she contacted the Mid-Atlantic English Springer Spaniel Rescue Service and they connected her and my dad with a sweet, energetic six-or-seven-year-old boy that they just brought home yesterday. They went to meet him yesterday, saying they would get to know him a bit and decide if he was the right dog for them, and it turned out that they loved him, so he is now our newest animal family member. They didn't know what his real name was at the rescue and had given him some placeholder name, so Mom decided to call him Merlin. She always wanted a dog named Merlin. :-)
They say he's very obedient, always looking to someone for direction, though they think as he gets more used to his new home he'll be a lot bolder. He particularly loves my brother. He likes chasing balls but doesn't like to give them up once he's caught them. I wish I could meet him, but it will probably be a long time before I get a chance to visit home again. My parents, particularly my mom, are very happy with him, so I am very happy they've found him.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Show to audition for!
I have a show to audition for this summer! I will be trying out for a local production of Love's Labor's Lost next week, directed by the awesome Shelby Bleweiss. My life feels a lot less complete when I don't have a piece of theater to do and the fact that it's a Shakespeare makes it even better, so this is a very good thing for me. I don't know much about this particular play, so I am doing some research; it seems a bit atypical of Shakespeare. I shall have to prepare a decent monologue and cross my fingers.
Been reading a lot of Sherlock Holmes lately, mostly the ones I'm less intimately familiar with. I've read every novel and story at least once, but some many, many more times than others and some when only when I was quite young, so I'm going back to the ones I haven't already read to death. :-) I've always loved the character, and part of me wishes that I had some facility with observing things and being able to draw such accurate conclusions from them the way Holmes does. I'm not very good at solving the mysteries as I read-- I've only ever managed to solve a few of them ever --but I like trying. I've never been excessively bothered by mysteries that don't give the reader enough of the clues to figure it out, but in many Sherlock Holmes stories it is theoretically possible, so I enjoy trying to crack them myself.
Tonight I will make myself meatloaf, one of my favorite comfort foods. Normally I'm very much not a comfort eater-- more like a comfort not-eater --but tonight I want something nice and heavy. It also yields lots of leftovers that I can eat on sandwiches for a couple of days after. I'm usually not a big fan of kitchen-sink-type dishes, but this way to make it that I learned from my mother has always been a standby meal for me.
Been reading a lot of Sherlock Holmes lately, mostly the ones I'm less intimately familiar with. I've read every novel and story at least once, but some many, many more times than others and some when only when I was quite young, so I'm going back to the ones I haven't already read to death. :-) I've always loved the character, and part of me wishes that I had some facility with observing things and being able to draw such accurate conclusions from them the way Holmes does. I'm not very good at solving the mysteries as I read-- I've only ever managed to solve a few of them ever --but I like trying. I've never been excessively bothered by mysteries that don't give the reader enough of the clues to figure it out, but in many Sherlock Holmes stories it is theoretically possible, so I enjoy trying to crack them myself.
Tonight I will make myself meatloaf, one of my favorite comfort foods. Normally I'm very much not a comfort eater-- more like a comfort not-eater --but tonight I want something nice and heavy. It also yields lots of leftovers that I can eat on sandwiches for a couple of days after. I'm usually not a big fan of kitchen-sink-type dishes, but this way to make it that I learned from my mother has always been a standby meal for me.
No Iron Man this weekend
My parents have come and gone, taking my brother back to our hometown with them. It was a nice visit, culminating in a lovely dinner at Bricco's, one of the best restaurants in the North End. I am not as a rule a pasta eater, but the pasta at this place was authentic, homemade, and delicious, so even I couldn't resist. It's so good that Jared and I would like to buy some of the homemade pasta from the specialty store owned by the restauranteur and make it at home.
The new Iron Man movie is out now. We were going to go see it with a group yesterday, but I didn't feel well (big surprise there) and Jared wasn't done with the takehome final he had to finish for today, so we didn't make it. I still want to see it; I heard it was pretty good. Other than Dark Knight, I thought the first Iron Man was one of the best comic book movies to come out in forever, so I have high hopes for the sequel.
As a side note, I dislike when an actor plays more than one major superhero in the movie versions. I just heard that Chris Evans, the guy who played the Human Torch in the Fantastic Four movies, is up for the role of Captain America. That irritates me, especially when they're from the same comic universe. It's like they're not distinct entities. It was bad enough hearing that Ryan Reynolds was Deadpool and might be (will be?) the Green Lantern, but at least one is Marvel and one is DC. Captain America and the Fantastic Four are both Marvel. Not that it's particularly necessary, but now they can never appear together, and now they're too much the same person. I don't like that. I'm not a huge fan of either title, but still, it gets on my nerves.
The new Iron Man movie is out now. We were going to go see it with a group yesterday, but I didn't feel well (big surprise there) and Jared wasn't done with the takehome final he had to finish for today, so we didn't make it. I still want to see it; I heard it was pretty good. Other than Dark Knight, I thought the first Iron Man was one of the best comic book movies to come out in forever, so I have high hopes for the sequel.
As a side note, I dislike when an actor plays more than one major superhero in the movie versions. I just heard that Chris Evans, the guy who played the Human Torch in the Fantastic Four movies, is up for the role of Captain America. That irritates me, especially when they're from the same comic universe. It's like they're not distinct entities. It was bad enough hearing that Ryan Reynolds was Deadpool and might be (will be?) the Green Lantern, but at least one is Marvel and one is DC. Captain America and the Fantastic Four are both Marvel. Not that it's particularly necessary, but now they can never appear together, and now they're too much the same person. I don't like that. I'm not a huge fan of either title, but still, it gets on my nerves.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Parents for the weekend
My parents are supposed to be in town this weekend to help my brother move out of his dorm, so that means that pretty much all my time must be set aside to be available. That kind of bugs me, but it's true that I don't get to see them that often, so I should make an effort to be able to spend as much time as possible with them. We're all going out to an early Mother's Day dinner Saturday night at Bricco's, this fantastic Italian restaurant in the North End that my mom's always wanted us to take her to, so that will be nice.
Now that the weather's finally warming up, I am resolved to walk as many places as possible instead of driving. My getting of exercise recently has been very spotty, so I want to overhaul my schedule to make sure I make time for it. And not using my car for everything will help, I think. In the cold times I use Constantine just to avoid freezing my tail off. And to be honest, since getting a job my free time has been a lot scarcer, so I find myself not wanting to waste it in extended transit if possible, so I drive just to get from one thing to another more quickly. But that's not good for my health or my wallet. I am resolved to get back in shape this summer, and this seems like an excellent place to start.
Now that the weather's finally warming up, I am resolved to walk as many places as possible instead of driving. My getting of exercise recently has been very spotty, so I want to overhaul my schedule to make sure I make time for it. And not using my car for everything will help, I think. In the cold times I use Constantine just to avoid freezing my tail off. And to be honest, since getting a job my free time has been a lot scarcer, so I find myself not wanting to waste it in extended transit if possible, so I drive just to get from one thing to another more quickly. But that's not good for my health or my wallet. I am resolved to get back in shape this summer, and this seems like an excellent place to start.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Just out of curiosity...
I was making a list of the Hold Thy Peace shows that I know have been or will be put on to get an idea of the club's history. Here is what I know:
Twelfth Night - Fall '05
Macbeth - Spring '06
The Tempest - Fall '06
Dr. Faustus - Spring '07
Hamlet - Fall '07
A Comedy of Errors - Spring '08
King Lear - Fall '08
A Midsummer Night's Dream - Spring '09
Romeo and Juliet - Fall '09
To Think of Nothing - Spring '10
Julius Caesar - Spring '10
A Winter's Tale - Fall '10
I know that before my time Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead was done, and I have a vague memory that the Merchant of Venice was done, but I don't know exactly when, or any shows beyond that. Could any Hold Thy Peacers who came before me (like zapf* or flyingstalins*, for example?) maybe fill me in? What came before my list, and when? How far back exactly does the club go?
Twelfth Night - Fall '05
Macbeth - Spring '06
The Tempest - Fall '06
Dr. Faustus - Spring '07
Hamlet - Fall '07
A Comedy of Errors - Spring '08
King Lear - Fall '08
A Midsummer Night's Dream - Spring '09
Romeo and Juliet - Fall '09
To Think of Nothing - Spring '10
Julius Caesar - Spring '10
A Winter's Tale - Fall '10
I know that before my time Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead was done, and I have a vague memory that the Merchant of Venice was done, but I don't know exactly when, or any shows beyond that. Could any Hold Thy Peacers who came before me (like zapf* or flyingstalins*, for example?) maybe fill me in? What came before my list, and when? How far back exactly does the club go?
Good things right now
Making an effort to focus on the positive, so here's some of the good things in my life right now.
Hold Thy Peace has a show for next semester! It will be A Winter's Tale, directed by the lovely and talented katiescarlett29*. She has a full prod staff and a strong vision going in, so I'm very excited for her project. Additionally, she is will be HTP's new president for the coming year, with Plesser to be secretary and Jenna treasurer. I feel good about all three of these new elections. Steph and I will be hanging out today indulging in my personal guiltiest of all guilty pleasures, watching Sex and the City. I shall have to get some snackies for us while we watch.
I found one more grad school to apply to. It requires that I take a GRE English subject test, which I can't sign up for until at least July, but it's got both fall and spring admissions, so I just have to get it in before December. It's not my first choice, but it's nice to know that I have possibilities.
Financially I am doing pretty damn well, considering how tight my budget is. When I got my current job, I set an amount I wanted to have in my savings account at all times as a goal, and with the deposit from this week's paycheck (only seven or so months later!) I am just $117 dollars away from it! Yay! I will still keep saving once I've hit it, but I will feel a lot more secure having that financial cushion.
I may have found a possible theater opportunity over the summer. I thought I already had an acting opportunity which would suitably occupy me, but to my great disappointment it fell through, leaving me with a much emptier summer than I'd hoped. I shall have to buck up the courage to ask the director if she would mind my auditioning, since she'd previously asked me to stage manage. I was very interested, since I like her and have never had that experience before, but since I thought I'd be busier I reluctantly had to turn it down. But I hope she wouldn't mind my asking to audition instead.
Those are all very good things, hopeful things. I need to hold on to those.
Hold Thy Peace has a show for next semester! It will be A Winter's Tale, directed by the lovely and talented katiescarlett29*. She has a full prod staff and a strong vision going in, so I'm very excited for her project. Additionally, she is will be HTP's new president for the coming year, with Plesser to be secretary and Jenna treasurer. I feel good about all three of these new elections. Steph and I will be hanging out today indulging in my personal guiltiest of all guilty pleasures, watching Sex and the City. I shall have to get some snackies for us while we watch.
I found one more grad school to apply to. It requires that I take a GRE English subject test, which I can't sign up for until at least July, but it's got both fall and spring admissions, so I just have to get it in before December. It's not my first choice, but it's nice to know that I have possibilities.
Financially I am doing pretty damn well, considering how tight my budget is. When I got my current job, I set an amount I wanted to have in my savings account at all times as a goal, and with the deposit from this week's paycheck (only seven or so months later!) I am just $117 dollars away from it! Yay! I will still keep saving once I've hit it, but I will feel a lot more secure having that financial cushion.
I may have found a possible theater opportunity over the summer. I thought I already had an acting opportunity which would suitably occupy me, but to my great disappointment it fell through, leaving me with a much emptier summer than I'd hoped. I shall have to buck up the courage to ask the director if she would mind my auditioning, since she'd previously asked me to stage manage. I was very interested, since I like her and have never had that experience before, but since I thought I'd be busier I reluctantly had to turn it down. But I hope she wouldn't mind my asking to audition instead.
Those are all very good things, hopeful things. I need to hold on to those.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Nesty-nesty
Been feeling very... nesty... lately. I keep messing around with things in my space, trying to make them look nicer or get them more organized or cleaner or what have you. It started with just putting away all my winter coats and packing up all my sweaters for the summer. Then, itching to do more, I rearranged my bookshelves, organized my closet, and lined up my shoes. This afternoon, now that the sweaters are out of the way, I intend to redistribute the clothes in my dresser so that they're not so crammed into the drawers. It may get cold enough in the near future for me to need access to my sweaters again, but I'm hoping I can make do with just jackets and pashminas. I am thoroughly sick of the cold, and of the articles of clothing it has forced me to wear for so long.
I'm just feeling unusually compelled to get my living space in order. I'm not sure what brought all this on. I'm feeling particularly cramped by disorder, clutter, and stuff. It might be a reaction to stress, manifesting in cleaning, organizing, and the extreme desire to get rid of ugly and junky things. As I've mentioned before, completing domestic tasks to good effect has a soothing effect on me, so perhaps that's why.
I'm just feeling unusually compelled to get my living space in order. I'm not sure what brought all this on. I'm feeling particularly cramped by disorder, clutter, and stuff. It might be a reaction to stress, manifesting in cleaning, organizing, and the extreme desire to get rid of ugly and junky things. As I've mentioned before, completing domestic tasks to good effect has a soothing effect on me, so perhaps that's why.
Look, Ma, no meat!
Had a very nice dinner party last night, my first one in a while. It was a vegetarian meal for once, something I never do, but since it was an excuse to have Michael Hyde over it seemed like the proper thing to do. Amusingly, I had a tough time remembering who else I invited to the party, since I didn't follow my typical method of meticulously engineering the guest list in advance to maximize positive social interaction. ;-) Instead, I just kind of invited people as I ran into them, with a slight preference for people whose vegetarian sensibilities I could impress with a rare non-carnivorous meal. I made the artichoke pie that Jared likes so much, plus my favorite butternut squash soup with apples and onions, and a mocha cake for dessert. Bernie was extremely helpful with the cooking; it's nice to have someone who's good with a knife helping out with all the prep work. The time I made this pie for my parents marks the only occasion in all of history in which a dish containing tofu was prepared in their kitchen. Not normally a fan of the stuff myself, but it works well in this dish as a sort of neutral layer in the filling. Also, this is the first time I ever made this cake myself and managed to get it out of the pan without breaking it into pieces. I didn't let it cool long enough before I frosted it, so the middle layer of icing ended up melting, but it looked so good I couldn't wait to serve it. Michael brought delicious lemon squares, which Bernie warned me to anticipate; I figured he would bring a side dish for some reason, but Bernie turned out to be right. Ah, well, it was all extremely tasty. This combination, despite containing none of the flesh of the living as I prefer, made for a satisfying meal. Jared unfortunately could not be there, but I saved him some of the dinner and made sure he got to eat it.
But on the upside of him not taking time out from his work, Jared has finished his thesis! Late last night, when he finally got through all the edits he wanted to make, I read the extremely thoughtful and intelligent piece in its sixty-six-page entirety, and then he sent it in to his advisor. I'm so proud of him for doing it. He's still got work and studying for finals left to do, but this is a big important accomplishment and a quite a burden off his shoulders. Congratulate him when you see him; he worked very hard.
But on the upside of him not taking time out from his work, Jared has finished his thesis! Late last night, when he finally got through all the edits he wanted to make, I read the extremely thoughtful and intelligent piece in its sixty-six-page entirety, and then he sent it in to his advisor. I'm so proud of him for doing it. He's still got work and studying for finals left to do, but this is a big important accomplishment and a quite a burden off his shoulders. Congratulate him when you see him; he worked very hard.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Stupid obsessing over LJ stats
Did some quick calculating on my stat page yesterday across the four months of this year so far. Since it occurred to me that I'd posted so many fewer entries in April than I did in March, I decided to see how many hits I got a month for each entry that month.
8,875 hits/41 public entries = 216.46 hits/entry in January
10,324 hits/41 public entries = 251.80 hits/entry in February
12,933 hits/41 public entries = 315.44 hits/entry in March
11,271 hits/29 public entries = 388.66 hits/entry in April
That's actually a fairly significant increase. Especially if it's true that some people are reading the cross-posts in Buzz instead of coming to my LJ. If I keep my level of new entry production up, I will probably in turn keep my hit count up, or possibly increase it as the trend shows. I worry it's likely to lead (if it hasn't already, see some of yesterday's entries) to me posting stupid stuff just to increase production of new content, which is a bad idea because if people quit enjoying reading, then they won't come back for new content. But it's nice to know that people haven't gotten bored of reading me.
It's stupid that I care so much. But I haven't been feeling so good lately, and little nice things are better than none at all.
8,875 hits/41 public entries = 216.46 hits/entry in January
10,324 hits/41 public entries = 251.80 hits/entry in February
12,933 hits/41 public entries = 315.44 hits/entry in March
11,271 hits/29 public entries = 388.66 hits/entry in April
That's actually a fairly significant increase. Especially if it's true that some people are reading the cross-posts in Buzz instead of coming to my LJ. If I keep my level of new entry production up, I will probably in turn keep my hit count up, or possibly increase it as the trend shows. I worry it's likely to lead (if it hasn't already, see some of yesterday's entries) to me posting stupid stuff just to increase production of new content, which is a bad idea because if people quit enjoying reading, then they won't come back for new content. But it's nice to know that people haven't gotten bored of reading me.
It's stupid that I care so much. But I haven't been feeling so good lately, and little nice things are better than none at all.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Lightheaded rambling about my face and hair
Just took a shower so scaldingly hot I feel lightheaded. The shower at Elsinore normally never gets very hot at all, so I'm a little surprised. Maybe it just hasn't been used very much since the water warning went into effect and that's what it can do when it's not depleted. At least it temporarily cleared out my packed sinuses.
My hair is getting blah again. I probably need a haircut again. Sigh. It feels like my cuts don't last very long at all, but the most recent one was the day of the To Think of Nothing read through in the middle of January, which isn't really all that recent. I should probably just go to the salon more often, probably every two to three month at best, but my haircuts are expensive enough that I can't really afford to.
And I never feel like I condition it all that well. It's tough to specifically get the ends the way I'm supposed to, which on me split and roughen the longer they get. And then it looks flat and awful. Blah.
And I touch my face too much. I always have. I don't know why; maybe as a comfort mechanism, maybe as a nervous habit-- like I'm trying to "fix" my features and make them acceptable to look at. Every book and expert will tell you it's unhealthy for your face skin to touch it too much. Maybe that's why I'm such a pizza face. And I'm a compulsive nailbiter, so my fingers are always in my mouth. It's a wonder I'm not sick every minute of my life.
Gah. I feel funny. I should drink something. And stop touching my face with my grubby little fingers.
My hair is getting blah again. I probably need a haircut again. Sigh. It feels like my cuts don't last very long at all, but the most recent one was the day of the To Think of Nothing read through in the middle of January, which isn't really all that recent. I should probably just go to the salon more often, probably every two to three month at best, but my haircuts are expensive enough that I can't really afford to.
And I never feel like I condition it all that well. It's tough to specifically get the ends the way I'm supposed to, which on me split and roughen the longer they get. And then it looks flat and awful. Blah.
And I touch my face too much. I always have. I don't know why; maybe as a comfort mechanism, maybe as a nervous habit-- like I'm trying to "fix" my features and make them acceptable to look at. Every book and expert will tell you it's unhealthy for your face skin to touch it too much. Maybe that's why I'm such a pizza face. And I'm a compulsive nailbiter, so my fingers are always in my mouth. It's a wonder I'm not sick every minute of my life.
Gah. I feel funny. I should drink something. And stop touching my face with my grubby little fingers.
Stuff I'm doing
So I noticed that I wrote significantly fewer public entries in my LJ this past April than I did in March. I wonder if this, combined with ultimatepsi*'s suggestion that people may be reading my cross-posts to Google Buzz instead, contributed to my decreased number of hits between those two months. It would make sense.
Just finished my part of a fairly major project at work. Now I'm in the stage where I don't have anything particularly significant to do until I'm given a new assignment. It's a nice little reward for finishing. I plan to enjoy it until something new is dropped on me.
We are now at the stage of Labor Wars where we are editing sheet so that they may soon be sent out. All the first-run characters are written now, and most of the replacements too. I am very much looking forward to casting. Alleged Entertainment has a strict policy of casting "by the numbers," meaning that whenever possible characters are assigned based on how closely the numbers given on the questionnaire match up with the ratings for each of the characters' traits. It's a good system that has served them well in the past, and is probably more reliable than my occasional tendency to go with my gut. ;-)
For the first time in forever, I wore a skirt today. I've worn a skirt for the odd dress-up occasion in the past few months, but this is the first time it's been part of my regular outfit. Despite the rain today, it's actually warm enough for it, and I am sick to death of being cold. My pallid legs startle me with their stark whiteness, though God knows that's the typical state of them.
Just finished my part of a fairly major project at work. Now I'm in the stage where I don't have anything particularly significant to do until I'm given a new assignment. It's a nice little reward for finishing. I plan to enjoy it until something new is dropped on me.
We are now at the stage of Labor Wars where we are editing sheet so that they may soon be sent out. All the first-run characters are written now, and most of the replacements too. I am very much looking forward to casting. Alleged Entertainment has a strict policy of casting "by the numbers," meaning that whenever possible characters are assigned based on how closely the numbers given on the questionnaire match up with the ratings for each of the characters' traits. It's a good system that has served them well in the past, and is probably more reliable than my occasional tendency to go with my gut. ;-)
For the first time in forever, I wore a skirt today. I've worn a skirt for the odd dress-up occasion in the past few months, but this is the first time it's been part of my regular outfit. Despite the rain today, it's actually warm enough for it, and I am sick to death of being cold. My pallid legs startle me with their stark whiteness, though God knows that's the typical state of them.
"Who do you think you are, Bruce Campbell?"
Saw usernamenumber* in Evil Dead: The Musical this weekend. It was a bit of a hectic process getting to it. Since Jared and I never totally settled on which show we were seeing, we never reserved tickets, so we were forced to get on the at-the-door list which, while they told us we'd likely be in with, made the waiting process nervous. And finding a parking space was hell, necessitating me leaping out of the car to stand in the waitlist line while Jared parked the car about a half a mile away. But fortunately all was well; we parked, got seats, and very much enjoyed the show. Everything was funny and Brad was phenomenal, such a great performer and so much fun to watch. I knew he was a great singer, but wow, was I impressed getting to see him onstage for the first time. I've seen Evil Dead 2 and parts of Army of Darkness, but never the musical. Jared is a huge fan of the show, so he had a blast, and I was impressed by the blood-splatter technology. I wonder if at MIT they have a bunch of engineering students on standby waiting to build weird-ass theatrical technical effects for shows just like this. :-) I'm so glad we managed to see it.
Now I think I am coming down with something. Again. This is getting absurd. I used to get sick exactly once a year. This is the fourth time since this past winter. My stress levels must really have done a number on my immune system. I am medicating with tea, which though it seems to be soothing I can barely taste. I hope I don't infect the people around me. Jared needs to finish his thesis this week, so he can't afford to be at reduced capacity.
Now I think I am coming down with something. Again. This is getting absurd. I used to get sick exactly once a year. This is the fourth time since this past winter. My stress levels must really have done a number on my immune system. I am medicating with tea, which though it seems to be soothing I can barely taste. I hope I don't infect the people around me. Jared needs to finish his thesis this week, so he can't afford to be at reduced capacity.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
