contest by fellow internet dweller

Tahereh, a young adult novelist with a super-kewl blog, is having a contest for free dollars to buy books. Who doesn't need new books? Visit her blog to enter. And read some of her stuff, too.

We have a connection- she writes young adult fiction, and I read it.

various and sundry delights

Listening to: Kate Rusby, Ten

My last post was just so depressingly optimistic.  So this one is just going to be a collection of happy thoughts.

I love music. I love singing.

I made a very delicious dinner today- gouda grilled cheese and sauteed zucchini.

The weather has been simply marvelous.

in the Barn

I got to go out to Winedale on Saturday for the AFTLS performance of Midsummer.  It was the perfectest day (aside from the angry flying insect that had it out for me- 3 days later and I'm sitting here trying NOT to think about how much it itches).

Now listening to: Neko Case, Middle Cyclone
Yeah... my internet connection is slow and I'm uploading pictures.

guest photographer: Isto

I love people. I love living in Austin.

Sunday I had lunch with Joey.  I like him.  It's cool to be friends with your family.

Monday I had dinner with Candace.  I love spending time with her.  I'm going to be a bridesmaid at her wedding in December.

Today I went for a walk around Town Lake with Emilio. We had fun and saw lots of cool stuff.

 
  

snake!

Then I enjoyed a Pecan Porter and conversation at Dog & Duck with Ania, Sonia and Graham. 

I'm wearing my new cozy sweatshirt with the STS 133 patch.

And now I'm on my way to bed. 

Idle Time

This is idle time and what could be better
Than a writer's life to live as you please
And a bright, fine day no matter the weather
Time to take some time at your ease
-Jez Lowe & the Bad Pennies

I am coming to terms with the fact that I need to improve my use of time.  Even if I don't find a job, there are plenty of things I could be doing.  I don't know why, but the scene from Clueless keeps popping into my head- when Cher is making over Tai.  She insists on not only improving Tai's hair and makeup, but also her mind and body.
 Tai's Makeover (at 4:40)
  So I think that's what I need: a makeover.  Some time each day for: spiritual (Bible, prayer, theologians); mental (books!); studying (GRE...); work (finding it, literary assisting); physical (essercise); art (photos, design); fun...
Because nothing will make you feel super lame like sleeping through most of the day (especially when they're as pretty as they have been).
Here's to big goals and small steps. Cheers.

my great-grandmother's handkerchief

I hear the drizzle of the rain

I do.  And Kathy's Song is my favorite right now.  It often is.

I hope that all of my dear readers did a little something to celebrate International Talk Like A Pirate Day on Sunday (September 19th every year).

Another fun fact about me: I always sprinkle parmesan cheese on my popcorn.
 I've been eating a lot of popcorn recently- it's a great, cheap snack. And while I adore real parmesan (the kind you grate onto pasta or cut pieces of to savor), I also have a thing for Kraft sprinkle cheese.  According to my parents, I used to eat it plain out of a bowl.  This brings me to today's topic:  
Things that are similar, but are in fact very different.  
Observe:

(I'm finding it very hard to format on this freakin' thing. I wanted to label the above photos, but when I did they moved away from each other, and they really need to be together for the sake of comparison. So let's just say that under the picture on the left it says: Figure 1 and under the picture on the right it says: Figure 2)

FIGURE 2 IS NEVER AN ACCEPTABLE REPLACEMENT FOR FIGURE 1.

Look at them. The containers are the exact same shape and the fluffy white stuff inside looks pretty much the same. But why, oh why, did I think that I could eat something called "Parmesan Style Grated Topping"? Oh, this hunk of plastic is parmesan-style. We'll just grate it and sell it as reduced-fat. GROSS.
I only bought it because the grocery store was out of Figure 1 (our HEB has serious restocking issues because it's plagued by college students 24 hours a day). Luckily, there was some more Figure 1 when I went yesterday and I bought some. But I am poor enough to want to use all of Figure 2 before I open my new canister. 

Also on today's list: Bryan Fuller. I have great respect for the imagination residing inside of Bryan Fuller. He (and his imagination) are a great man. This brings us to the next comparison:
Pushing Daisies vs. Dead Like Me.
Sure, these two may seem equivalent at first glance. Netflix wants me to watch both based on my interest in "Quirky Television."  Both deal prominently with death and ways to escape it (I think Bryan Fuller may have a complex), while at the same time bypassing this topic to deal mainly with everyday issues that even normal people face.  Both have wonderful character development and both keep me entertained for hours. 
But. Where Pushing Daisies had me swooning over Lee Pace and wanting to be Chuck, Dead Like Me characters are sort of a train wreck.  In a good way.  Pushing Daisies is technicolor bright and happy and musical andIwishthereweremoreepisodes.  Dead Like Me makes me cry almost every episode.  And it also makes me want to LIVE. And Mandy Patinkin is amazing. I wish I could see him on Broadway.
I read an article about the possibility of a Pushing Daisies movie. The article called it "pulling a Firefly."  But I think the more apt description would be "pulling a Dead Like Me," since this canceled Bryan Fuller series also made a movie (which I will watch, once I finish Season 2).

 

Yes, this is my trash can. But I was struck by the unintentional parallel.  I like straws.

there's a tiny little boat, faith is keeping her afloat

Fun fact about me: I love watching movie trailers online. I only end up watching a very small percentage of the movies,  but I enjoy knowing what's going on in the world of film.
Yesterday I watched a trailer for a documentary about Harry Nilsson- Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him).  I really want to see that one (although it's not current, as appletrailers led me to believe. It was made in 2006).
Anyway, it reminded me of my most favorite Nilsson song: Blanket for a Sail, which was on one of my most treasured childhood albums: Disney's For Our Children.  I listened to the tape on my walkman until it fell apart, but I got the CD a few years ago.  This isn't quite as good as my version, but you should still give it a listen.

Lyrics:
 

Way out on the ocean

Far beyond the seven seas

There's a tiny little boat

Faith is keeping her afloat

And a tiny little skipper, with his worn and tattered coat

You see the law of the ocean 

Says you shall never fail

Use your heart as a rudder

Faith as a compass

And a blanket for a sail

Sleep for the weary

And dreams for us all

Rest your head on a pillow

And I'll tell you a tale

Use your heart as a blanket

And a blanket for a sail 

Way out on the ocean

Far beyond the seven seas

There's a tiny little boat

Faith is keeping her afloat

And a tiny little skipper, with his worn and tattered coat

You see the law of the ocean, yeah

Says that you shall never fail 

Just use your heart as a rudder

Faith as a compass

And a blanket for a sail 

It's actually still one of my favorite albums. I love most of the songs, but a few highlights for me are: Meryl Streep singing Gartan Mother's Lullaby, James Taylor singing Getting to Know You, Pat Benatar singing Tell Me Why and Sting singing Cushie Butterfield. 

Speaking of music, I finally have the new Weepies (Be My Thrill) and it is just delightful.  Favorite so far: Hummingbird.

Doesn't this doll bring a smile to your face? My grandmother recently sent me a care package full of canned salmon and a few odds and ends.  This is what she wrote:

Now comes the challenge to me to try and fill every corner; I hope you 

enjoy the choices.  I was nearly done but I had this one hole in the top corner.  

Then I laughed and decided to send you the tiny doll. Her face may be sad 

but she makes me laugh.  She's been sitting in a tin can for several years now.  

I'm sure she'll enjoy the fresh air.

I absolutely love her.  She is sitting on some tinned clams and oysters which have wonderful boxes (I won't eat them- I will probably give them to brudda- but I may keep the boxes).

 

and I want to invite the gypsies to the ball!

Well, I feel better post-Ever After.

Enough about my most weak pia mater.  I wanted to talk about gmail and how awesome it is. Well, everyone knows that (proof).  I tried out the new Priority Inbox feature, and I am a fan so far. Also, if you are a gmail user, you should be sure to go through the Labs every once in a while... I just added one that vastly expands your emoticon options. They remind me of kidpix stamps (man, I miss kidpix. I loved making certain images specifically because they looked cool when you hit the dynamite button).

Speaking of awesome design software, I had to give up and initiate my 30-day trial of Pages today.  I was helping mom create an invitation for dad's pre-launch party and Microsoft Word was giving me palpitations.  My former boss (current mentor/friend) opened my eyes to the wonders of Pages and, as is becoming a sad refrain these days, I cannot afford my own copy.

From NASArobonaut's flickr stream (creative commons)

I just had an "I'm surrounded by nerds" moment. I had heard of a tool called yubnub through a media blog that a friendly acquaintance writes for.  It's basically a command portal that lets you do cool stuff (like a one-step flickr search for photos within creative commons, which is how I found above photo of dad and pals).  But when I googled "yub nub" I found that it also is something else. An Ewok song.
And the robot in the photo is named R2.  Right. I don't have anything against Star Wars (well, I quite like it) but this was an overload for me. (I actually really like Ewoks. I have probably seen the made-for-tv Ewok movie more times than the original series. I have a stuffed one somewhere in my parents' house... I should dig that little guy out). 

Speaking of Star Wars nerds, I recently saw When Harry Met Sally for the first time.  But when I see Carrie Fisher I think of her with a giant machine gun (a la Blues Brothers) rather than as Princess Bunhead.  I really enjoyed WHMS.  It was clever and Billy Crystal's genius made up for the inevitably predictable ending.  What's-her-name wasn't bad, either. Meg Ryan! Right.

Ugh it's 2 again.  I am currently on what I imagine to be the sleeping schedule of an adventurous vampire (more Anne Rice explode-in-the-sun than Stephanie Meyer can't-risk-anyone-see-me-glitter!).

Yes, I just used glitter as a verb.

I have more to say, but since I have lunch plans tomorrow, I should attempt sleep.

I have a beautiful city.  Took this one on the Candace & Eric photo shoot (they are tiny, but you can see them)

I used to be able to stamp my current music with foxytunes, but I can't figure it out so I'll just write it.
Currently listening to The Weepies-I Was Made For Sunny Days (pre-release from their new CD. see previous entry for my laments on this subject).

bump

I feel like a big ball of frustration.
I need a good cry. Naturally, I would just put on Ever After and climb into bed. But it's after 2 am and I can't quite justify that to myself since I actually need to get things done tomorrow.
My next step would be to put on The Weepies, because they are exactly right for listening to when you feel funny.  Unfortunately, that just makes me think about how they have a new CD out and I don't have it since I had to put my emusic account on hold because I am poor.  This step also means I don't have the new Sufjan music (on the plus side, I am going to the Sufjan concert in Austin on Oct. 19, thanks to Jacky and her extra ticket). 
I am semi-consoling myself by streaming the new Weepies on their website.

 (from the Vatican Museum, June 2008)

I do have some pretty great friends, who I am very thankful for.  I probably don't say enough how much I like them.