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Dear teenage theater worker
May. 26th, 2013 12:26 amFirst of all, I'm sorry. I hope I didn't startle you too badly. You looked a bit taken aback as you groveled your way back down the aisle and disappeared.
But you have to understand, this was Star Trek. It has a lot of meaning in my life, many years of it, say... 38 or so. My tribe is made of trekkers. I met my husband at a Trek fan club. My BFFs are all borne from Trek-interests.
I'm hardcore.
Also, we only go to the movies a couple of times a year, and I'm still taken aback that it costs me $8 each despite the comfy chairs and the digital picture and the Dolby Surround Sound. I do, after all, watch everything else online the entire rest of the year.
So when you and your cohort decide to clean the theater while the credits are still rolling, and the almost-Trekkers have left already, I got a little twitchy. You probably didn't even really notice me until I leaned forward over the chair in front of me and rasped, "Still watching the movie!" in my best cross-this-line-and-you-die voice. I really didn't mean to sound quite thathomicidal vehement, it just kind of happened.
Hope you didn't pee your uniform pants. That would be a shame.
Live long and prosper. _\\//
Me
But you have to understand, this was Star Trek. It has a lot of meaning in my life, many years of it, say... 38 or so. My tribe is made of trekkers. I met my husband at a Trek fan club. My BFFs are all borne from Trek-interests.
I'm hardcore.
Also, we only go to the movies a couple of times a year, and I'm still taken aback that it costs me $8 each despite the comfy chairs and the digital picture and the Dolby Surround Sound. I do, after all, watch everything else online the entire rest of the year.
So when you and your cohort decide to clean the theater while the credits are still rolling, and the almost-Trekkers have left already, I got a little twitchy. You probably didn't even really notice me until I leaned forward over the chair in front of me and rasped, "Still watching the movie!" in my best cross-this-line-and-you-die voice. I really didn't mean to sound quite that
Hope you didn't pee your uniform pants. That would be a shame.
Live long and prosper. _\\//
Me
Today, I rock
May. 24th, 2013 01:02 pmI just finished something I've been spontaneously fiddling with in the last 24 hours, something I'm not ready to talk about just yet, but that has unexpectedly given me more perspective on my life and myself.
There is a time and a place to pass opportunities down to the next generation, but there is also a time and place to stop thinking of yourself as slowing down and coming to an eventual, inevitable end. Accepting the present has a lot going for it, but it's not necessarily synonymous with living in the present. I've come to terms with limitations I have that didn't affect me when I was younger, but that doesn't mean those limitations define me, or my future.
Hey look, vague statements are vague!
I rock.
There is a time and a place to pass opportunities down to the next generation, but there is also a time and place to stop thinking of yourself as slowing down and coming to an eventual, inevitable end. Accepting the present has a lot going for it, but it's not necessarily synonymous with living in the present. I've come to terms with limitations I have that didn't affect me when I was younger, but that doesn't mean those limitations define me, or my future.
Hey look, vague statements are vague!
I rock.
Catherine Chancellor is not dead
May. 9th, 2013 08:51 amShe'll show up at her own funeral.
That's how it happened in the late 70's, when I got hooked into the gawd-awful silly world of daytime soap operas. I saw that starting to happen, and I thought "this is stupid... how are they gonna pull this off?"
And that was that.
Along came Tom and Margo on ATWT, and the rest was my soap opera history.
At least we still have Victor.
That's how it happened in the late 70's, when I got hooked into the gawd-awful silly world of daytime soap operas. I saw that starting to happen, and I thought "this is stupid... how are they gonna pull this off?"
And that was that.
Along came Tom and Margo on ATWT, and the rest was my soap opera history.
At least we still have Victor.
Eye-yam what I eat, eye-yam (VERY long)
May. 7th, 2013 07:49 pmOne update, sorry for the delay!
I've been making a few life changes (surprise!), and one of them is showing great results.
For those of you following along at home, three+ years ago I suffered through a Vitamin D deficiency of great proportions. It affected my ability to work, to play, to think, to do anything I enjoy. Even though I recovered from the physical deficiency, I've had lingering difficulties that I attribute to that and the physical burnout from overworking my whole life. I've had to accept that I now have limitations to my ability to just plain DO. I've cut back on the amount of activities my days hold, including work, and deliberately chose a job that I neither bring home (in theory) nor am married to. I work four days and am off for three, and while those four ten-hour+ days can be difficult, it's in trade for the time off I need to recuperate.
My dream job would be three days a week, no longer than 8 hours. Someday.
But even though I made hard choices -- good choices, those -- I still had more hardship than success. I woke up with great difficulty. I had to have two to four hours of "getting ready time" before I felt awake. I often needed a nap. I was wired when I came home from work, taking several hours to be able to fall asleep. I had insomnia. Most days my energy was sadly lacking, or reserved for things that absolutely had to be done. Fun was often on the ass-end of my allotted time, not by choice (I'm relearning that task) but because things need to be done, like self-care and budgeting and the bare essentials around the house. My weight was on the rise, I was ravenous and yet never happy with what I ate, stuffing my face compulsively out of emotional eating. I had no control over my body no matter what I did. It played me every day.
I began to think that maybe this was going to be life after fifty, that I'd never feel better, never be healthier... because when I tried to follow everything I'd been taught in a lifetime of nutrition/expert information/government sanctioned do-this, it worked for a while but then it didn't. I was beginning to lose hope for myself, thinking I'd damaged my brain and body beyond repair.
( Fast-forward sixty-nine days later. )
I've been making a few life changes (surprise!), and one of them is showing great results.
For those of you following along at home, three+ years ago I suffered through a Vitamin D deficiency of great proportions. It affected my ability to work, to play, to think, to do anything I enjoy. Even though I recovered from the physical deficiency, I've had lingering difficulties that I attribute to that and the physical burnout from overworking my whole life. I've had to accept that I now have limitations to my ability to just plain DO. I've cut back on the amount of activities my days hold, including work, and deliberately chose a job that I neither bring home (in theory) nor am married to. I work four days and am off for three, and while those four ten-hour+ days can be difficult, it's in trade for the time off I need to recuperate.
My dream job would be three days a week, no longer than 8 hours. Someday.
But even though I made hard choices -- good choices, those -- I still had more hardship than success. I woke up with great difficulty. I had to have two to four hours of "getting ready time" before I felt awake. I often needed a nap. I was wired when I came home from work, taking several hours to be able to fall asleep. I had insomnia. Most days my energy was sadly lacking, or reserved for things that absolutely had to be done. Fun was often on the ass-end of my allotted time, not by choice (I'm relearning that task) but because things need to be done, like self-care and budgeting and the bare essentials around the house. My weight was on the rise, I was ravenous and yet never happy with what I ate, stuffing my face compulsively out of emotional eating. I had no control over my body no matter what I did. It played me every day.
I began to think that maybe this was going to be life after fifty, that I'd never feel better, never be healthier... because when I tried to follow everything I'd been taught in a lifetime of nutrition/expert information/government sanctioned do-this, it worked for a while but then it didn't. I was beginning to lose hope for myself, thinking I'd damaged my brain and body beyond repair.
( Fast-forward sixty-nine days later. )
Springtime!
May. 7th, 2013 01:11 pmPullin' espresso shots from Aspera, yay! (Had to wait until we could turn off the basement heater... long story, involves a Green Acres episode about electricical.)
Refining our technique -- yes, said "ours" because our recent visit to kidlet before said kidlet's move across the country to Portland included a couple of hours at the Dogwood Coffee Roasterie where both hubby and I were taught the finer techniques by My Child The Currently Nonworking-Barista. Will post pictures as soon as I can figure out how to get them off of my tablet.
Hubby amazingly took to it like a fish to a puddle. I'd say water, but he enjoyed doing it over and over and getting better and better at it. Of course, that was with fresh, excellent espresso and on a several thousand dollar Synesso with a built-in timer, and a Mahlkoenig grinder. My little Baratza Maestro needs a Big Brother to properly dial in the espresso grind, and Aspera is great but everything is more manual so you have to think a bit, not just push a button and watch the digital display. So until we can find our sweet spot, he's leaving the home-pulling to me. Which, yay!
Shooting for possibly giving away drinks during the city-wide garage sales, which would hopefully give both of us practice as well as avoid the whole keeping-track-of-sales for just that day. Nobody expects greatness out of free stuff, and if it's really great anyway, all the better! Consider it part of guerilla marketing. :D
However, we'll see if we can get a set-up by May 18. Lots of factors, working on it!
Refining our technique -- yes, said "ours" because our recent visit to kidlet before said kidlet's move across the country to Portland included a couple of hours at the Dogwood Coffee Roasterie where both hubby and I were taught the finer techniques by My Child The Currently Nonworking-Barista. Will post pictures as soon as I can figure out how to get them off of my tablet.
Hubby amazingly took to it like a fish to a puddle. I'd say water, but he enjoyed doing it over and over and getting better and better at it. Of course, that was with fresh, excellent espresso and on a several thousand dollar Synesso with a built-in timer, and a Mahlkoenig grinder. My little Baratza Maestro needs a Big Brother to properly dial in the espresso grind, and Aspera is great but everything is more manual so you have to think a bit, not just push a button and watch the digital display. So until we can find our sweet spot, he's leaving the home-pulling to me. Which, yay!
Shooting for possibly giving away drinks during the city-wide garage sales, which would hopefully give both of us practice as well as avoid the whole keeping-track-of-sales for just that day. Nobody expects greatness out of free stuff, and if it's really great anyway, all the better! Consider it part of guerilla marketing. :D
However, we'll see if we can get a set-up by May 18. Lots of factors, working on it!
Birding books are better for identification than an app or a website.
( Wait, there's an app for that? )
( Wait, there's an app for that? )
Dear Not Primetime Author
Apr. 30th, 2013 09:08 pmI'm a dunce. A busy one, too. XD
I meant to give fuller descriptions of my requests, but life got hella busy and I wasn't able to make it back in time. Ergo, I will attempt to make it up to you here.
( Read more... )
I meant to give fuller descriptions of my requests, but life got hella busy and I wasn't able to make it back in time. Ergo, I will attempt to make it up to you here.
( Read more... )
I've been adjusting my food choices during the last two weeks, which I'll share more on in another couple of weeks (too much on my plate, er, so to speak, lol). I feel amazing, btw. Definitely a change for the better.
But I just had to gush over being late to the party on something as simple as real meat, instead of those I just pick up at the grocery because it's what's on sale and available at the store I'm in. Real as in buzz-word "organic," hormone- and antibiotic-free. At least Coborns carries some things, so I picked up a pair of pork loin cutlets, a pork roast, and a whole chicken from Just Bare.
Let me tell you, the chicken is amazing. I'm amazed that it's so amazing. Hubby dropped it in the crockpot just for ease of making... and the size of the bird, the amount of meat, the texture... we've had several meals off of it, and now I'm making some stock from the carcass. What sets this one apart from other chickens I've just picked up on a whim is the quality of the drippings. Despite being juicy and falling apart, there was very little fat in the juice, and an absolute TON of gelatine-y broth! Other birds have given me just the opposite -- too much yellow fat and lots of runny juices that didn't congeal.
This is a revelation to me. I can't wait to see how the stock turns out. And at only eight bucks... what an affordable delight!
The pork loin cutlets were also fabulous... seared in a pan with onions, balsamic vinegar, and a couple of handfuls of spinach. I want more.
Making the pork roast tonight. :) And so far, the cage-free eggs are impressively tasty. I hope to find a local source for those come spring.
Cage-free, grass-fed, pastured, free range... those are hard to come by in these parts -- I have no Whole Foods or Trader Joe's in the entire state -- but that doesn't mean that I won't be searching for CSAs and local farmers (they are out there, I've found my resources, including personal recs for the Hutterite Community about an hour from here).
Just felt like sharing!
But I just had to gush over being late to the party on something as simple as real meat, instead of those I just pick up at the grocery because it's what's on sale and available at the store I'm in. Real as in buzz-word "organic," hormone- and antibiotic-free. At least Coborns carries some things, so I picked up a pair of pork loin cutlets, a pork roast, and a whole chicken from Just Bare.
Let me tell you, the chicken is amazing. I'm amazed that it's so amazing. Hubby dropped it in the crockpot just for ease of making... and the size of the bird, the amount of meat, the texture... we've had several meals off of it, and now I'm making some stock from the carcass. What sets this one apart from other chickens I've just picked up on a whim is the quality of the drippings. Despite being juicy and falling apart, there was very little fat in the juice, and an absolute TON of gelatine-y broth! Other birds have given me just the opposite -- too much yellow fat and lots of runny juices that didn't congeal.
This is a revelation to me. I can't wait to see how the stock turns out. And at only eight bucks... what an affordable delight!
The pork loin cutlets were also fabulous... seared in a pan with onions, balsamic vinegar, and a couple of handfuls of spinach. I want more.
Making the pork roast tonight. :) And so far, the cage-free eggs are impressively tasty. I hope to find a local source for those come spring.
Cage-free, grass-fed, pastured, free range... those are hard to come by in these parts -- I have no Whole Foods or Trader Joe's in the entire state -- but that doesn't mean that I won't be searching for CSAs and local farmers (they are out there, I've found my resources, including personal recs for the Hutterite Community about an hour from here).
Just felt like sharing!
(no subject)
Mar. 4th, 2013 01:03 pmI'm still doing my MOOC but work has been kicking my ass time-wise... last week only two days off and they fell into the crapper, then an extra day Thursday so I'm coming up on my last day now... three days off this week but one of those is in Next Big Town for appointments and shopping, so we'll see.
I'm reading, though, and watching videos as I can. Just not doing the participatory stuff, although I am diving in and reading other's stuff once in a while.
That's the nice thing about this -- I can do it at my pace or theirs. :D
I'm reading, though, and watching videos as I can. Just not doing the participatory stuff, although I am diving in and reading other's stuff once in a while.
That's the nice thing about this -- I can do it at my pace or theirs. :D
OMG coffee my old friend
Feb. 28th, 2013 02:37 pmDespite all the good stuff the last few weeks (and weathering some really odd stuff), I've felt a bit off the last week or two. Now I know why.
When my Craft Coffee subscription didn't come when I expected it (which varies sometimes) last week, I wrote them to inquire. It seemed to me that my monthlycrack selections were coming later and later -- last month it was around the 25th if I recall. I wasn't complaining, I was just trying to figure out if living the hinterlands there was anything they could do to help me get a time-sensitive perishable to me faster.
Turns out, they'd somehow missed my mail-out last week. They got it out first thing Monday morning, apologizing and following up all over the place, complete with tracking number. I'm now settled in for a few moments with a Columbian microlot from ASOCEAS Cooperative (smack dab in the middle of FARC country, so it took a lot to get it to ND, heh), roasted by Sightglass Coffee out of San Francisco (awesome roaster, they also offer subscriptions). I opted for a "double" of my usual amount, brewed with my Clever Dripper (easy and pretty foolproof if you have the Fab Four -- great coffee, grinder, scale, and temp-controlled kettle), and sitting here next to my window overlooking the snow on my driveway, I feel like I'm cuddled up with an old friend.
I've had to "make do" -- which isn't even the right word -- with supermarket "coffee" for two weeks, after I ran out of my initial batch from January. I'd have ordered some fresh from Stumbeanos Coffee out of Fergus Falls, MN, or from one of the lots from January, but I didn't want to overlap my new offerings from Craft. So I opted for caffeine over quality, and I didn't realize how much my own quality of experience and morning moments was suffering until I'm sipping this.
I'm all zen now. Complete with ocean waves from Calm.com.
Now that I know they ship on the third Monday of every month, I can make plans for filling the gap. 'Cause it makes that much of a difference to my quality of life.
I don't even mind going in to work OT today. *ooooommmmmmm*
When my Craft Coffee subscription didn't come when I expected it (which varies sometimes) last week, I wrote them to inquire. It seemed to me that my monthly
Turns out, they'd somehow missed my mail-out last week. They got it out first thing Monday morning, apologizing and following up all over the place, complete with tracking number. I'm now settled in for a few moments with a Columbian microlot from ASOCEAS Cooperative (smack dab in the middle of FARC country, so it took a lot to get it to ND, heh), roasted by Sightglass Coffee out of San Francisco (awesome roaster, they also offer subscriptions). I opted for a "double" of my usual amount, brewed with my Clever Dripper (easy and pretty foolproof if you have the Fab Four -- great coffee, grinder, scale, and temp-controlled kettle), and sitting here next to my window overlooking the snow on my driveway, I feel like I'm cuddled up with an old friend.
I've had to "make do" -- which isn't even the right word -- with supermarket "coffee" for two weeks, after I ran out of my initial batch from January. I'd have ordered some fresh from Stumbeanos Coffee out of Fergus Falls, MN, or from one of the lots from January, but I didn't want to overlap my new offerings from Craft. So I opted for caffeine over quality, and I didn't realize how much my own quality of experience and morning moments was suffering until I'm sipping this.
I'm all zen now. Complete with ocean waves from Calm.com.
Now that I know they ship on the third Monday of every month, I can make plans for filling the gap. 'Cause it makes that much of a difference to my quality of life.
I don't even mind going in to work OT today. *ooooommmmmmm*
School in the Clouds
Feb. 27th, 2013 05:25 pmNot part of my MOOC, but wow.
TED Talk: Sugata Mitra wants to build something
ETA: I don't understand why neither DW or LJ will embed TED talks. Whatev.
TED Talk: Sugata Mitra wants to build something
ETA: I don't understand why neither DW or LJ will embed TED talks. Whatev.
What the internet taught me today
Feb. 25th, 2013 01:09 pmThere are Mongolian Boy Bands. And they are exactly like ours.
Also, I now have a deep abiding desire to visit Mongolia. (And Iceland. And Scotland. There's a surprise theme here, can you spot it?)
I hear many of you saying, Kay, even for you this is -- well, not surprising, but -- er, different. Ish. From whence did this arise?
One of the circles I joined on a whim in my LCL class has a woman from Mongolia, which is partly one of the reasons I chose it. I'm getting exposed to all kinds of things, in a real world way.
Plus, I've always had an interest in learning Cyrillic (and not for LJ, lol).Maybe I'll look into online courses for that! Strike that, I'll do it the Creative Learning way -- the Boy Band is Camerton (in Latin alphabet), and I can jump off from there! BWEEEE!
Also, I now have a deep abiding desire to visit Mongolia. (And Iceland. And Scotland. There's a surprise theme here, can you spot it?)
I hear many of you saying, Kay, even for you this is -- well, not surprising, but -- er, different. Ish. From whence did this arise?
One of the circles I joined on a whim in my LCL class has a woman from Mongolia, which is partly one of the reasons I chose it. I'm getting exposed to all kinds of things, in a real world way.
Plus, I've always had an interest in learning Cyrillic (and not for LJ, lol).
Needs moar tiem
Feb. 22nd, 2013 02:46 pmSession 3 of my MOOC will be culminating with a livestream on Monday, and I've been delving into the readings and such. That said, time is fleeting this week -- Session 2 was a day late due to the holiday, I took a day off to give my brain a break, then spent all day yesterday out of town. Today I go back into my work week.
But I do intend to keep posting something about what I'm reading/doing in Learning Creative Learning!
This week's session is about Constructionism and Making -- which is possibly my weakest area. Doesn't mean I'm not enjoying the reading, on the contrary it's been equally fascinating. But while I may play with the activity -- making a Scratch program about me -- something like that takes longer for me to go through the "messing around" phase and into the "oh lookie what I did" phase.
Great info, though, on the Maker Movement (MAKE Magazine founder is involved) and hands-on learning/exploring.
I'll leave you with this video, which... made me want to run out and get copper tape and a conductive pen! Do they do these things in kindergarten? If not, WHY. NOT?
Absolutely TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL!
But I do intend to keep posting something about what I'm reading/doing in Learning Creative Learning!
This week's session is about Constructionism and Making -- which is possibly my weakest area. Doesn't mean I'm not enjoying the reading, on the contrary it's been equally fascinating. But while I may play with the activity -- making a Scratch program about me -- something like that takes longer for me to go through the "messing around" phase and into the "oh lookie what I did" phase.
Great info, though, on the Maker Movement (MAKE Magazine founder is involved) and hands-on learning/exploring.
I'll leave you with this video, which... made me want to run out and get copper tape and a conductive pen! Do they do these things in kindergarten? If not, WHY. NOT?
Absolutely TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL!
