pull toyTuesday, February 9, 2010
Monday, February 8, 2010
though tired and hesitant, milton apparently did the happy dance before dissapearing into the yellow I guess I'd better post something...
...
Eugene called tonight and asked me why I was so quiet!
Dang.
I saw him last night, at Cameron's new townhouse in Mueller--first time I've ever been inside something over there. Nice.
Had a good dinner...it was his first on his new table in his new condo... his good friends Joe and Drew were there...and Eugene, Steven and me.
Cameron put together a simple, yet super delicious meal.
Then I saw Eugene the night before at his house for a birthday party for all the Aquarians in the bunch--and Marfa reunion... it was fun. Great meal, spread over a long time, lots of wine, boistrous conversation and such...
Sunday, slow and papers and laundry.
Monday, worked on Ponzi... did a few things around here, made some calls, etc.
Now... you're all caught up.
Well, I don't remember if I've blogged about Friday night, but just in case...Hector and I went to Asti that night. Caught up with him.
It's been a fun, but tiring bday season.
Tomorrow night we go to The Cactus Cafe for Robert's birthday.
And so far, that's all I have plans to celebrate.
Who knows? It could change.
Martin's play, White Tie Ball, is this weekend at UTNT. So I'll be catching that.
Meanwhile, they're forcasting sleet and/or snow...
but as of yet, it doesn't look like it will be cold enough for it to even really stick.
That's it here.
Cheers.
,m
Eugene called tonight and asked me why I was so quiet!
Dang.
I saw him last night, at Cameron's new townhouse in Mueller--first time I've ever been inside something over there. Nice.
Had a good dinner...it was his first on his new table in his new condo... his good friends Joe and Drew were there...and Eugene, Steven and me.
Cameron put together a simple, yet super delicious meal.
Then I saw Eugene the night before at his house for a birthday party for all the Aquarians in the bunch--and Marfa reunion... it was fun. Great meal, spread over a long time, lots of wine, boistrous conversation and such...
Sunday, slow and papers and laundry.
Monday, worked on Ponzi... did a few things around here, made some calls, etc.
Now... you're all caught up.
Well, I don't remember if I've blogged about Friday night, but just in case...Hector and I went to Asti that night. Caught up with him.
It's been a fun, but tiring bday season.
Tomorrow night we go to The Cactus Cafe for Robert's birthday.
And so far, that's all I have plans to celebrate.
Who knows? It could change.
Martin's play, White Tie Ball, is this weekend at UTNT. So I'll be catching that.
Meanwhile, they're forcasting sleet and/or snow...
but as of yet, it doesn't look like it will be cold enough for it to even really stick.
That's it here.
Cheers.
,m
Saturday, February 6, 2010
egg circus
[used in a sentence: Don't make egg circus, just do it!]
Okay, sorry...that was a bad yolk.
,m
Two Units Down
...
Today Drew and his cousin, Daniel, helped me move the stuff in my storage unit to a different unit, two down.
And people think government is the bastion of beauracracy!
About a month ago, I started shopping around for other rates on climate controlled storage units in Austin. I found that 10x10 units in my own building, right by Hancock center were being offered at $93 on the internet. I was paying $191, plus $20 a month for additional renter's insurance. (this week I checked around town and many places are still charging $140 and $160--I could've gotten a little cheaper with a different Public Storage facility, on north Lamar, north of 183.)
So yesterday I went to talk to them: You can get the new rate--or close--but you have to be out of the old unit by end of business day the day you sign the papers. $93 is the internet rate, which is only open to new subscribers. I'd have to get someone else to put it in their name, but the new off-the-street rate is $98--still a huge savings. On-line there is a first month for $1 for new customers, so I wasn't expecting that, but I could've gotten it, if I'd moved everything out and held it for 7 days before moving it back in. Huh?
AND, you have to move your stuff from one unit to another for any reduction in rate because until I move out and my lease is cancelled, $191 is the going rate on my old unit, but $98 is the going rate on the one, two units over. I could keep the old unit, but I'd have to move it into another unit, sign a new agreement for said temporary unit, then move it back anytime after 24 hours and sign a new agreement for my original unit and then cancel my interim new agreement. Huh? (When I'd talked to them a month ago, I was going to have to move to a different floor, but some 10x10s had opened up on the same floor, so I was very happy to not have to do that.) I did not renew insurance--my renter's insurance covers a good enough chunk of what it would be worth.
Joy.
But it only took about an hour since the unit's were right by each other and there was 3 of us and no one else was coming in and out of our general vacinity.
Oh yeah, I learned that all 10 x 10s are not the same. The new one was about 10 inches less deep--maybe 3 or 4 inches wider...we got it all to fit, but...
And I learned that my beautiful old dining table got damaged, apparently from the move, by the movers several years ago. A big crack (5 or 6 inches) on its top. Oh well...it's still pretty, just not as valuable, I guess. Actually, probably a whole lot less valuable. And if I had a place, I'd probably consider selling it. Actually, the whole experience makes me want to plan a big sale in the late spring. Then I could probably do away with the $98 per month. And a lot of that shit!
Or my lease is up here at The G in June. Who knows if I'll be able to afford to stay here? Maybe I just deal with it all at that point. But even in a cheaper place of a different layout, I might use the other table instead of this little one. Who knows? I do know this, less is better and it feels good to get rid of things. I have several different friends who purge something--usally by burning ritual--every new year's day, and they swear by it. We'll see.
cheers.
,m
Today Drew and his cousin, Daniel, helped me move the stuff in my storage unit to a different unit, two down.
And people think government is the bastion of beauracracy!
About a month ago, I started shopping around for other rates on climate controlled storage units in Austin. I found that 10x10 units in my own building, right by Hancock center were being offered at $93 on the internet. I was paying $191, plus $20 a month for additional renter's insurance. (this week I checked around town and many places are still charging $140 and $160--I could've gotten a little cheaper with a different Public Storage facility, on north Lamar, north of 183.)
So yesterday I went to talk to them: You can get the new rate--or close--but you have to be out of the old unit by end of business day the day you sign the papers. $93 is the internet rate, which is only open to new subscribers. I'd have to get someone else to put it in their name, but the new off-the-street rate is $98--still a huge savings. On-line there is a first month for $1 for new customers, so I wasn't expecting that, but I could've gotten it, if I'd moved everything out and held it for 7 days before moving it back in. Huh?
AND, you have to move your stuff from one unit to another for any reduction in rate because until I move out and my lease is cancelled, $191 is the going rate on my old unit, but $98 is the going rate on the one, two units over. I could keep the old unit, but I'd have to move it into another unit, sign a new agreement for said temporary unit, then move it back anytime after 24 hours and sign a new agreement for my original unit and then cancel my interim new agreement. Huh? (When I'd talked to them a month ago, I was going to have to move to a different floor, but some 10x10s had opened up on the same floor, so I was very happy to not have to do that.) I did not renew insurance--my renter's insurance covers a good enough chunk of what it would be worth.
Joy.
But it only took about an hour since the unit's were right by each other and there was 3 of us and no one else was coming in and out of our general vacinity.
Oh yeah, I learned that all 10 x 10s are not the same. The new one was about 10 inches less deep--maybe 3 or 4 inches wider...we got it all to fit, but...
And I learned that my beautiful old dining table got damaged, apparently from the move, by the movers several years ago. A big crack (5 or 6 inches) on its top. Oh well...it's still pretty, just not as valuable, I guess. Actually, probably a whole lot less valuable. And if I had a place, I'd probably consider selling it. Actually, the whole experience makes me want to plan a big sale in the late spring. Then I could probably do away with the $98 per month. And a lot of that shit!
Or my lease is up here at The G in June. Who knows if I'll be able to afford to stay here? Maybe I just deal with it all at that point. But even in a cheaper place of a different layout, I might use the other table instead of this little one. Who knows? I do know this, less is better and it feels good to get rid of things. I have several different friends who purge something--usally by burning ritual--every new year's day, and they swear by it. We'll see.
cheers.
,m
Save The Cactus Cafe!
...
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/06/arts/music/06cactus.html
An article in today's NY Times.
Sure, I think those UT student members of the Union Committee are correct that most CURRENT students rarely go to the Cactus Cafe. And ditto, signing up for Student Union Informal Classes. Although I did both, at least once, when I was a young UT undergrad.
The market for both the Cactus and the Informal Classes is the community beyond the campus, Austin, which is largely made up of UT Grads. It's one of the only ways that many ex-UT students can still feel a part of the University. Many can't afford the large donor fees necessary to try to buy UT football tickets, or the usually much more expensive (than the Cactus) shows of the Performing Arts Complex. Sure ex-students can walk through campus, tour the Blanton or the HRC or Memorial Museum or others, usually get tickets to sporting events other than football, etc.
The Informal classes let most of them feel like they're still learning something from UT and are still actively a part of its community. The shows at the Cactus Cafe are irreplaceable for their intimacy and their nurturing of new songwriters and performers. (The list is very long and famous!) And yeah, sometimes, the shows aren't cheap.
But both are another way for ex-students and the Community to venture onto campus and feel a part of its scene. It's just good PR from UT's point of view--or should be.
The students just voted to build a new activities center, which is nearly complete. This will open more spaces for UT clubs and such. Yet, some of the informal courses I've taken weren't even in the union. They were in other locations on campus. Perhaps the lack of space for current student activities and clubs and such is the most viable argument I've heard. I can imagine that there are times when it is very frustrating for UT orgs to not be able to find a room. But there are hundreds of unused classrooms at night. There has to be a way to strike compromise to allow both to function well and thrive.
(Also, it seems there are nice rooms in the Union, which are rarely, if ever, open to students. It seems these are reserved for special faculty/administration events and/or leased out for private functions. I may be wrong, but I'm pretty sure I'm not. Do the faculty and administration pay activity fees, like students do? Do they pay to use these spaces?)
The Cactus Cafe is also the only place I know of, open to students, on campus that serves alcohol. When I went to school the first time, the drinking age was 18 and the whole Union served it--especially the Texas Tavern, which is now cut up into a Wendys, a Chic-fila, etc. When I went back the second time, the drinking age was 21, thus professors and their students don't just go over to the union for a pitcher of beer at the end of class. But I did see students hanging out with a beer or studying or grad students, whatever, in the Cactus Cafe during the afternoons.
I personally think it will be sad to take the last waterin' hole off the UT Campus.
I think both proposals are a very bad idea, which is also making its way through the national news. (read the article attached) And within one week, two FB fan pages have sprouted up to save the Cactus--one with nearly 22,000 fans and another with about 6,000. And another to save the informal classes with about 900 fans. So it's also a largely unpopular idea. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out.
Cheers!
,m
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/06/arts/music/06cactus.html
An article in today's NY Times.
Sure, I think those UT student members of the Union Committee are correct that most CURRENT students rarely go to the Cactus Cafe. And ditto, signing up for Student Union Informal Classes. Although I did both, at least once, when I was a young UT undergrad.
The market for both the Cactus and the Informal Classes is the community beyond the campus, Austin, which is largely made up of UT Grads. It's one of the only ways that many ex-UT students can still feel a part of the University. Many can't afford the large donor fees necessary to try to buy UT football tickets, or the usually much more expensive (than the Cactus) shows of the Performing Arts Complex. Sure ex-students can walk through campus, tour the Blanton or the HRC or Memorial Museum or others, usually get tickets to sporting events other than football, etc.
The Informal classes let most of them feel like they're still learning something from UT and are still actively a part of its community. The shows at the Cactus Cafe are irreplaceable for their intimacy and their nurturing of new songwriters and performers. (The list is very long and famous!) And yeah, sometimes, the shows aren't cheap.
But both are another way for ex-students and the Community to venture onto campus and feel a part of its scene. It's just good PR from UT's point of view--or should be.
The students just voted to build a new activities center, which is nearly complete. This will open more spaces for UT clubs and such. Yet, some of the informal courses I've taken weren't even in the union. They were in other locations on campus. Perhaps the lack of space for current student activities and clubs and such is the most viable argument I've heard. I can imagine that there are times when it is very frustrating for UT orgs to not be able to find a room. But there are hundreds of unused classrooms at night. There has to be a way to strike compromise to allow both to function well and thrive.
(Also, it seems there are nice rooms in the Union, which are rarely, if ever, open to students. It seems these are reserved for special faculty/administration events and/or leased out for private functions. I may be wrong, but I'm pretty sure I'm not. Do the faculty and administration pay activity fees, like students do? Do they pay to use these spaces?)
The Cactus Cafe is also the only place I know of, open to students, on campus that serves alcohol. When I went to school the first time, the drinking age was 18 and the whole Union served it--especially the Texas Tavern, which is now cut up into a Wendys, a Chic-fila, etc. When I went back the second time, the drinking age was 21, thus professors and their students don't just go over to the union for a pitcher of beer at the end of class. But I did see students hanging out with a beer or studying or grad students, whatever, in the Cactus Cafe during the afternoons.
I personally think it will be sad to take the last waterin' hole off the UT Campus.
I think both proposals are a very bad idea, which is also making its way through the national news. (read the article attached) And within one week, two FB fan pages have sprouted up to save the Cactus--one with nearly 22,000 fans and another with about 6,000. And another to save the informal classes with about 900 fans. So it's also a largely unpopular idea. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out.
Cheers!
,m
Friday, February 5, 2010
Click and Drag Art!
...
I posted this on FB last night...
it's mesmerizing...
http://eu.wrangler.com/bluebell/#/collection/0
it's a wrangler ad (or series of them?) that you click and drag to make the model move...
i enjoy moving my mouse around to the music and watching them go back and forth or stop in funky positions...
and one of them you get to take his shirt off, in an artsy way!
Enjoy!
I posted this on FB last night...
it's mesmerizing...
http://eu.wrangler.com/bluebell/#/collection/0
it's a wrangler ad (or series of them?) that you click and drag to make the model move...
i enjoy moving my mouse around to the music and watching them go back and forth or stop in funky positions...
and one of them you get to take his shirt off, in an artsy way!
Enjoy!
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Today is World Cancer Day...
...
...or so says the email I rec'd from the LiveSTRONG foundation.
In the email, it recommended that we send out an email to our family and friends and gently nudge them to call their doctor and talk with their doctor about their family histories and their habits and their risks and get bloodwork...
I hardly imagine most of you would be able to get your doctor on the phone and have this chat and share recipes and such.
So here's my gentle nudge:
Promise me you'll have a physical once a year.
That's all. Catching cancer or whatever early, early prevention, etc. that's what's going to find it if you have it and what'll save your life.
If you don't have health insurance, check in your area for options. Here in Austin there's the People's Community Clinic and other resources, like the MAP program, and some which unfortunately don't kick in until you actually have something serious... you can also check with places like Susan Komen foundation for help with screenings for breast cancer, etc.
I've had health insurance in the past that didn't cover physicals. Isn't that amazing? (Hmmmm? Are insurance companies afraid they'll find something they have to pay for?) Anyway, my doctor at the time required a physical every year to be his patient. In helping me to rationalize this he asked me how much I spent each year at the vet. Good question. Since most people pay the vet by the visit and don't have pet healthcare, it can be expensive--especially if you have multiple or aging pets. Well, his cost for a physical was--at the time--about $500, which I had to pay out of pocket and yes, I paid that much or more per year at the vet. Still do.
The point: sometimes we think if it's that expensive we can't afford it, but we'll rush fluffy to the vet and walk out with $300, grumbling, but do it again without thinking. Our lives are as important or moreso than our pets'! (But we have to take them to get their prescription heartworm preventative and/or their prescription flea control, which are expensive out of pockets.)
If you've got something like high blood pressure that you have to be checked annually in order to get the Rx refilled, you can often see your doctor and get it payed for by insurance as a check for this problem...and then squeeze in questions and concerns and such, which then if the doctor schedules a follow-up for a specific issue, it may be covered. But consider a full physical.
You need to get checked. Every year! You and your doctor can decide what tests, if any, are necessary--these are usually covered by insurance, even if your insurance doesn't cover the actual physical. Check your insurance policy. Know your insurance policy.
Talk openly about your concerns. (List them before you go.) Be open to what he/she suggests. And along those lines re-frame the physical into a positive experience. I used to think of it as something like a 'test' I passed, I got through, clean slate. I'd want to do all I could to be sure I'd pass, which unfortunately sometimes meant not bringing up things, because they seemed silly or minor or I'm not a hypochondriac, etc. Now, I treat a physical like an opportunity. An opportunity to bounce what I'm doing off my doctor, an opportunity to check in with me, an opportunity to find something bad before it gets too complicated, an opportunity to ask my doctor about the supplements I'm taking, an opportunity to ask them if there are concerns about alternative methods I'm using to treat things, etc.
(I can always choose to reject what the doctor says: e.g. if they say supplements are a waste of money because they haven't been tested in a double blind test... well, some are... and there are a lot of variances in the strengths of supplements, etc. BUT there are a lot of them that are very beneficial that are not tested and I choose to use. The example of the policosanol/red yeast rice that's reduced my cholesterol dramatically and kept it down for 5 years is one.)
So the goal is:
Get an annual physical.
Stop smoking. (Get strong anti-smoking laws passed in your city.)
Exercise daily.
Cut all processed foods.
Cut out sugars: not just high-fructose corn syrup, but rice and sugar and honey and agave nectar, etc. It's all bad.
Drink filtered water.
Cut out white flour.
Self check yourself for lumps and bumps and unusual looking growths and non-healing sores, etc.
Sure we can't do all these all the time. Who'd want to?
I love a good cookie or piece of birthday cake as much as the next guy.
(dark chocolate is okay!)
But if you're doing these 75% of the time, then you can feel happy about your lifestyle and you're less likely to feel guilty about those other times.
I used to emulate some of the elders in my family who never saw a doctor unless something was serious and/or they were injured and they lived to very old age. They just chose to be healthy and get over a cold/flu or whatever. What I realize now is they lived in very different times. They weren't as exposed to as many things are we are. Cancer has skyrocketed in the latter half of the 20th century--and mostly because of our food and enviromental surroundings. And unfortunately, I learned the hard way, that type of thinking doesn't work.
Do it for yourself, for your spouse, your children and/or grandchildren, your parents, for me...
Thanks,
,m
...or so says the email I rec'd from the LiveSTRONG foundation.
In the email, it recommended that we send out an email to our family and friends and gently nudge them to call their doctor and talk with their doctor about their family histories and their habits and their risks and get bloodwork...
I hardly imagine most of you would be able to get your doctor on the phone and have this chat and share recipes and such.
So here's my gentle nudge:
Promise me you'll have a physical once a year.
That's all. Catching cancer or whatever early, early prevention, etc. that's what's going to find it if you have it and what'll save your life.
If you don't have health insurance, check in your area for options. Here in Austin there's the People's Community Clinic and other resources, like the MAP program, and some which unfortunately don't kick in until you actually have something serious... you can also check with places like Susan Komen foundation for help with screenings for breast cancer, etc.
I've had health insurance in the past that didn't cover physicals. Isn't that amazing? (Hmmmm? Are insurance companies afraid they'll find something they have to pay for?) Anyway, my doctor at the time required a physical every year to be his patient. In helping me to rationalize this he asked me how much I spent each year at the vet. Good question. Since most people pay the vet by the visit and don't have pet healthcare, it can be expensive--especially if you have multiple or aging pets. Well, his cost for a physical was--at the time--about $500, which I had to pay out of pocket and yes, I paid that much or more per year at the vet. Still do.
The point: sometimes we think if it's that expensive we can't afford it, but we'll rush fluffy to the vet and walk out with $300, grumbling, but do it again without thinking. Our lives are as important or moreso than our pets'! (But we have to take them to get their prescription heartworm preventative and/or their prescription flea control, which are expensive out of pockets.)
If you've got something like high blood pressure that you have to be checked annually in order to get the Rx refilled, you can often see your doctor and get it payed for by insurance as a check for this problem...and then squeeze in questions and concerns and such, which then if the doctor schedules a follow-up for a specific issue, it may be covered. But consider a full physical.
You need to get checked. Every year! You and your doctor can decide what tests, if any, are necessary--these are usually covered by insurance, even if your insurance doesn't cover the actual physical. Check your insurance policy. Know your insurance policy.
Talk openly about your concerns. (List them before you go.) Be open to what he/she suggests. And along those lines re-frame the physical into a positive experience. I used to think of it as something like a 'test' I passed, I got through, clean slate. I'd want to do all I could to be sure I'd pass, which unfortunately sometimes meant not bringing up things, because they seemed silly or minor or I'm not a hypochondriac, etc. Now, I treat a physical like an opportunity. An opportunity to bounce what I'm doing off my doctor, an opportunity to check in with me, an opportunity to find something bad before it gets too complicated, an opportunity to ask my doctor about the supplements I'm taking, an opportunity to ask them if there are concerns about alternative methods I'm using to treat things, etc.
(I can always choose to reject what the doctor says: e.g. if they say supplements are a waste of money because they haven't been tested in a double blind test... well, some are... and there are a lot of variances in the strengths of supplements, etc. BUT there are a lot of them that are very beneficial that are not tested and I choose to use. The example of the policosanol/red yeast rice that's reduced my cholesterol dramatically and kept it down for 5 years is one.)
So the goal is:
Get an annual physical.
Stop smoking. (Get strong anti-smoking laws passed in your city.)
Exercise daily.
Cut all processed foods.
Cut out sugars: not just high-fructose corn syrup, but rice and sugar and honey and agave nectar, etc. It's all bad.
Drink filtered water.
Cut out white flour.
Self check yourself for lumps and bumps and unusual looking growths and non-healing sores, etc.
Sure we can't do all these all the time. Who'd want to?
I love a good cookie or piece of birthday cake as much as the next guy.
(dark chocolate is okay!)
But if you're doing these 75% of the time, then you can feel happy about your lifestyle and you're less likely to feel guilty about those other times.
I used to emulate some of the elders in my family who never saw a doctor unless something was serious and/or they were injured and they lived to very old age. They just chose to be healthy and get over a cold/flu or whatever. What I realize now is they lived in very different times. They weren't as exposed to as many things are we are. Cancer has skyrocketed in the latter half of the 20th century--and mostly because of our food and enviromental surroundings. And unfortunately, I learned the hard way, that type of thinking doesn't work.
Do it for yourself, for your spouse, your children and/or grandchildren, your parents, for me...
Thanks,
,m
Happy Birthday, Eugene!
a toast!to Eugene Sepulveda,
one of the most wonderful people I know--
a toast in a glass like you,
stem and bulb slightly askew!
Cheers!
Hey, you finally caught up with me!
365 Days until 50!
love and kisses,
,m
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Ponzi Play
"Arrrrrrrgggggggggghhhhhhhh" to quote my dear friend, Eugene, who's no doubt out somewhere tonight enjoying his last night of 48.
Ponzi isn't a love story. It isn't about a relationship. It isn't about a family.
I keep finding myself on these cul-de-sacs...I guess 'cause they're easy.
Last fall, I got off on a tangent about it being abou the transient and Bradley. A week or so ago, it was about Jerry and Sheryl. The last few days have been realing it back in, getting back to the core, re-planning, thinking, working... and finally, some more re-writing.
Yes, it includes ALL these things, but it's not about that.
Chill, Michael.
This is what I drew today.
Tonight I work. It's cold and raining and my freakin' indoor/outdoor cat is driving me crazy.
But progress.
Yes, progress, these last few days.
Ponzi is:
A family in a modern economic depression at a metaphorical and literal cul-de-sac: Jerry, Sheryl and their daughter Christie. And the arrival of two men, two forces, two world views: The handsome transient, Brad, who is Darwinian and of the woods and a survivor at all costs, and, Bradley, their son they kicked out 5 years ago in an act of tough love for dealing drugs and haven't heard from since. Bradley has made good money in the porn industry, but is born again and fighting to be what God wants him to be. The Transient and Bradley look very much alike. Both are disturbing and comforting in their own ways, in their own times. Everything in life is a Ponzi scheme.
And it's still raining. Fernando is finally back asleep in his puffy box bed. I've made some progress. I've vented. It's out there. Now GO!
cheers.
,m
House Pizzeria Still Haunts
...
Fun time with the bday celebration for Milinda last night at House Pizzeria on Airport Blvd. Who knew they had Maine rootbeer on tap? And of course, Full Moon Rye Pale Ale! The pepperoni was very good, the sausage and mushroom was yummy--but it was still the salami that haunts. It was probably every one's top choice--but the eggplant pizza was a huge surprise (it's chopped up, like an eggplant tapenade)...we could've easily had second one. And the Subterrean moved right up into the hauntingly delicious category! (subterrean = caramelized onion, fontina, mushrooms, roasted potatoes, basil)
Also the hot olives with roasted garlic and mushrooms were delicious, but were served boiling and couldn't really be enjoyed for about 10 minutes--meanwhile we sopped up the oil with the bread. Yum!
Airport and 52nd Street. Worth it!
http://www.housepizzeria.com/
And we had a fun group too!
You know: chit and chat.
Gossip. Chummery.
Celebratory boasts.
Presents and Presence.
Shabam!
,m
Fun time with the bday celebration for Milinda last night at House Pizzeria on Airport Blvd. Who knew they had Maine rootbeer on tap? And of course, Full Moon Rye Pale Ale! The pepperoni was very good, the sausage and mushroom was yummy--but it was still the salami that haunts. It was probably every one's top choice--but the eggplant pizza was a huge surprise (it's chopped up, like an eggplant tapenade)...we could've easily had second one. And the Subterrean moved right up into the hauntingly delicious category! (subterrean = caramelized onion, fontina, mushrooms, roasted potatoes, basil)
Also the hot olives with roasted garlic and mushrooms were delicious, but were served boiling and couldn't really be enjoyed for about 10 minutes--meanwhile we sopped up the oil with the bread. Yum!
Airport and 52nd Street. Worth it!
http://www.housepizzeria.com/
And we had a fun group too!
You know: chit and chat.
Gossip. Chummery.
Celebratory boasts.
Presents and Presence.
Shabam!
,m
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Happy Birthday, Milinda!
baile de la flor azul~~
As you all know, Milinda is my dear little groundhog--er, sister.
Aunt Memsie (after a brand of wine; her initials are MEM) to Benjamin and Fernando.
Milinda lives here in town. Not too far from here actually. So we get to see each other fairly often. and we'll get to celebrate together!
Until then! Have a great birthday!
Love,
Jr.
We'll be celebrating
what a fish sees at the edge of the aquarium~~
(The above link was sent by Stephen W, inspired by this posting and is in the comments below. I recommend clicking on the official Selleck Waterfall Sandwich themesong while you peruse these offerings. Cheers! ,m)
Monday, February 1, 2010
1 Feb 10
...
kind of a blah day--literally and figuratively
ran some errands
paid some bills
never quite got into the swing of writing
tried, but it wasn't happening
mostly questions came up...good questions...things I need to solve
every time I was stuck, I'd do quick art piece, trying to loosen it...
sometimes it only meant more questions
spent a lot of time on church websites tonight...
although the play takes place in Dallas suburbs, I don't know any names of churches up there and it's not important...so I was looking at ones here...
but also spent time on ones that had piqued my interest in some little way: location, architecture, reconcilling congregation, liberal, etc.
interesting
they vary greatly in style and what info they have on there...
never thought of looking at churches on line
some even have sermons posted on there
looks like it may be starting to warm up some
cool
but not open windows warm in the foreseable future.
the last few days at the G have been mighty chilly
but I realized I'd been keeping the heater on 60-62...so hey
that might be part of it...
and it's chilly down low, when you're sitting and such, but not up high...
so thank God for my ultimate snuggler
(chug, Milinda!
go ahead, it's the last minute of 41)
that's all...
,m
kind of a blah day--literally and figuratively
ran some errands
paid some bills
never quite got into the swing of writing
tried, but it wasn't happening
mostly questions came up...good questions...things I need to solve
every time I was stuck, I'd do quick art piece, trying to loosen it...
sometimes it only meant more questions
spent a lot of time on church websites tonight...
although the play takes place in Dallas suburbs, I don't know any names of churches up there and it's not important...so I was looking at ones here...
but also spent time on ones that had piqued my interest in some little way: location, architecture, reconcilling congregation, liberal, etc.
interesting
they vary greatly in style and what info they have on there...
never thought of looking at churches on line
some even have sermons posted on there
looks like it may be starting to warm up some
cool
but not open windows warm in the foreseable future.
the last few days at the G have been mighty chilly
but I realized I'd been keeping the heater on 60-62...so hey
that might be part of it...
and it's chilly down low, when you're sitting and such, but not up high...
so thank God for my ultimate snuggler
(chug, Milinda!
go ahead, it's the last minute of 41)
that's all...
,m
Oh yeah...Changes Around the G...
...
Yesterday, Fernando's best friend that I called little buddy, but was actually named Bob (Cat) moved from the house just north of us. They'd run around and chase each other and play a lot, run under the house, hide behind trees and get the other one, etc. He's a sweet cat. His momma was nice too. But they're gone.
Today, I learned my great neighbors and friends who live in the house to the south of me (and will remain nameless in this post because I don't know who all reads this blog and sometimes the world is very small, especially in cyber land!) are moving in a few weeks--to French Place.
AND, they're expecting in July! So very sad to learn they're leaving! They moved in about 6 months after I did and it's been great having them there. But I'm very happy for them otherwise! Congrats!
...
,m
Yesterday, Fernando's best friend that I called little buddy, but was actually named Bob (Cat) moved from the house just north of us. They'd run around and chase each other and play a lot, run under the house, hide behind trees and get the other one, etc. He's a sweet cat. His momma was nice too. But they're gone.
Today, I learned my great neighbors and friends who live in the house to the south of me (and will remain nameless in this post because I don't know who all reads this blog and sometimes the world is very small, especially in cyber land!) are moving in a few weeks--to French Place.
AND, they're expecting in July! So very sad to learn they're leaving! They moved in about 6 months after I did and it's been great having them there. But I'm very happy for them otherwise! Congrats!
...
,m
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Cold, Grey Sunday...Talk of Newspapers, Books, Kindles
...
It was supposed to be about 50 and sunny today--it's still mid-30s.
I spent a good portion of the day on the big leather chair and ottoman, under a couple of wool throws with a warm kitty curled up between my legs, sipping hot coffee or ginger drink, reading the Statesman and the NY Times.
(It's a good thing I never moved to Detroit or Buffalo because I'd be the size of Kansas. I tend to avoid exercise in this kind of weather and sometimes eat heartier...oh well, winter's short here. I'm merely the size of Delaware.)
Funny how all the talk at parties and such lately has been about newspapers and their apparent demise and/or on-line vs. print and/or books vs. Kindles and/or free on-line content vs. pay... It reminds me of the late 1980s when you couldn't go to a cocktail party in this town without everyone talking about how pathetic real estate was and how vacant and boarded up everything was, etc.
Lately I've been thinking seriously about cancelling my Statesman subscription in order to save money and because their real content just keeps getting less and less as they continue to get fluffier and fluffier. Yet, two or three times a week, there's a story I'd want to know. And I don't want them to go broke and not be able to report real news--although most of their news is from the big papers or the AP. I'd miss the obits. (Reading obits on-line is totally stupid, unless you know the person you're looking for.)
Then there was the recent news item that the NY Times is going to start charging for on-line content over a certain number of free looks per month for non-subscribers. I think this is fair. I think all news"papers" should charge for say, more than two visits to their site per month--unless you're a subscriber to that paper, but I also think they should implement a system to share content/access. Thus, I could pay the Statesman and have access to all the web content of papers in their networks. Or there'd be a universal web-based news access fee, which you would pay per month, and it would be apportioned to papers based upon their readership(?), productivity (?) etc... I don't know, but it's obvious the papers as we know them are dwindling and that's not a good thing. At all. We need viable news reporting in all major cities and to a lesser extent, the smaller ones.
Then the conversations turn to reading papers on Kindles, which I'm not horribly opposed to, but I love the tactile feel of the paper on days like this (see above)...and the big ads and photos and such. And one thing lost in on-line versions that I don't know how it would work on Kindles, is the serendipity factor--the turning the page and reading an article that you would breeze past because something in the accompanying photo caught your attention or a quote jumped out at you, etc. Where on-line you're merely scrolling down a list of titles and maybe one accompanying summation sentence and if those don't grab you or it's not usually your area of interest, you don't click on something you might like and you become increasingly myopic in your news experience.
[Example: I rarely read the sports section. On-line, I never read the sports section, unless I'm looking for a particular score, which usually but not always involves the Longhorns. But today in the print version of the NY Times a stunningly simple beautiful picture of Serena Williams about to hit a back hand caught my eye. I couldn't help stare at the picture for awhile: her face never looked so beautiful and focused as confidently watched the yellow ball, her orange dress, the stillness of the motion. Because of that, I opened it and breezed through the sports section...]
THEN, the KINDLE conversation turns to reading books on Kindle. Ick. Amazon sold more electronic books (kindle) than traditional books this Christmas and Laredo Texas lost its last bookstore and becomes the largest US city without a bookstore. Yikes.
These are both very depressing things to me. Very.
Mainly because unless people start buying more traditional books, I'm afraid the e-books will win. And besides the loss of the tactile feel of a good book, that opens up all sorts of shitty problems: titles on one format, but not on another (beta v. VHS), buying something and the technology changing years down the road and you can't pick it up and look at it (how many of your old word documents from say 1992 are easily read on today's software? In 20 more years of software evolution?) My point? You know they're going to be continually upgrading the kindles or whatever and you'll have to continually upgrade to be able to buy new books and at some point your old "books" won't be able to be seen on your new reader--never mind the reptitive cost of technology that you've expended over the years!
You can go back to a book on a bookshelf decades later and read a chapter or a passage or the whole damn thing. You can look at the notes you made in the margin. Or you can loan it out. You can enjoy the tactile feeling. You can find postcards or whatever that you used for bookmarks--or your heirs can. You can scan the bookshelves of others and get a snapshot into what they like to read--notice and chuckle at say, One Hundred Years of Solitude being on the same shelf as Valley of the Dolls. You can pick up a book off another's bookshelf and ask to borrow it.
And on a Kindle, how will you ever really remember what you read? Don't believe me? Try to get rid of old books. Ouch. Sure, I go through and cull out some every so often--usually books of Toms that I'm not interested in or meant to read some snow day, but then I remember we don't have many snow days here and I have a my own section I've bought myself to read some day--which I may or may not ever get to. Everytime I shift books around, which I have to do regularly to make room on the shelf, I'm reminded of each book I pick up to move. The experience of that read comes back in one little snippet or a whole gushing river--depending upon the book and the mood I'm in.
Why have I bought multiple books in advance for someday reading? Because something struck me about the book as I perused a bookstore--usually BookPeople. Serendipity.
What will we be as a culture if we don't have bookstores? And people, they're dropping like flies. Sure, I've bought books from Amazon--usually only when they're not in stock here and it's as easy for me to order it as to have the bookstore order it and I have to drive back down there. But buying books on Amazon, pushes Austin or your town, closer to the status of Laredo.
And books on Kindle? Never!
Excuse me, I've got to go change the CD.
Cheers!
,m
It was supposed to be about 50 and sunny today--it's still mid-30s.
I spent a good portion of the day on the big leather chair and ottoman, under a couple of wool throws with a warm kitty curled up between my legs, sipping hot coffee or ginger drink, reading the Statesman and the NY Times.
(It's a good thing I never moved to Detroit or Buffalo because I'd be the size of Kansas. I tend to avoid exercise in this kind of weather and sometimes eat heartier...oh well, winter's short here. I'm merely the size of Delaware.)
Funny how all the talk at parties and such lately has been about newspapers and their apparent demise and/or on-line vs. print and/or books vs. Kindles and/or free on-line content vs. pay... It reminds me of the late 1980s when you couldn't go to a cocktail party in this town without everyone talking about how pathetic real estate was and how vacant and boarded up everything was, etc.
Lately I've been thinking seriously about cancelling my Statesman subscription in order to save money and because their real content just keeps getting less and less as they continue to get fluffier and fluffier. Yet, two or three times a week, there's a story I'd want to know. And I don't want them to go broke and not be able to report real news--although most of their news is from the big papers or the AP. I'd miss the obits. (Reading obits on-line is totally stupid, unless you know the person you're looking for.)
Then there was the recent news item that the NY Times is going to start charging for on-line content over a certain number of free looks per month for non-subscribers. I think this is fair. I think all news"papers" should charge for say, more than two visits to their site per month--unless you're a subscriber to that paper, but I also think they should implement a system to share content/access. Thus, I could pay the Statesman and have access to all the web content of papers in their networks. Or there'd be a universal web-based news access fee, which you would pay per month, and it would be apportioned to papers based upon their readership(?), productivity (?) etc... I don't know, but it's obvious the papers as we know them are dwindling and that's not a good thing. At all. We need viable news reporting in all major cities and to a lesser extent, the smaller ones.
Then the conversations turn to reading papers on Kindles, which I'm not horribly opposed to, but I love the tactile feel of the paper on days like this (see above)...and the big ads and photos and such. And one thing lost in on-line versions that I don't know how it would work on Kindles, is the serendipity factor--the turning the page and reading an article that you would breeze past because something in the accompanying photo caught your attention or a quote jumped out at you, etc. Where on-line you're merely scrolling down a list of titles and maybe one accompanying summation sentence and if those don't grab you or it's not usually your area of interest, you don't click on something you might like and you become increasingly myopic in your news experience.
[Example: I rarely read the sports section. On-line, I never read the sports section, unless I'm looking for a particular score, which usually but not always involves the Longhorns. But today in the print version of the NY Times a stunningly simple beautiful picture of Serena Williams about to hit a back hand caught my eye. I couldn't help stare at the picture for awhile: her face never looked so beautiful and focused as confidently watched the yellow ball, her orange dress, the stillness of the motion. Because of that, I opened it and breezed through the sports section...]
THEN, the KINDLE conversation turns to reading books on Kindle. Ick. Amazon sold more electronic books (kindle) than traditional books this Christmas and Laredo Texas lost its last bookstore and becomes the largest US city without a bookstore. Yikes.
These are both very depressing things to me. Very.
Mainly because unless people start buying more traditional books, I'm afraid the e-books will win. And besides the loss of the tactile feel of a good book, that opens up all sorts of shitty problems: titles on one format, but not on another (beta v. VHS), buying something and the technology changing years down the road and you can't pick it up and look at it (how many of your old word documents from say 1992 are easily read on today's software? In 20 more years of software evolution?) My point? You know they're going to be continually upgrading the kindles or whatever and you'll have to continually upgrade to be able to buy new books and at some point your old "books" won't be able to be seen on your new reader--never mind the reptitive cost of technology that you've expended over the years!
You can go back to a book on a bookshelf decades later and read a chapter or a passage or the whole damn thing. You can look at the notes you made in the margin. Or you can loan it out. You can enjoy the tactile feeling. You can find postcards or whatever that you used for bookmarks--or your heirs can. You can scan the bookshelves of others and get a snapshot into what they like to read--notice and chuckle at say, One Hundred Years of Solitude being on the same shelf as Valley of the Dolls. You can pick up a book off another's bookshelf and ask to borrow it.
And on a Kindle, how will you ever really remember what you read? Don't believe me? Try to get rid of old books. Ouch. Sure, I go through and cull out some every so often--usually books of Toms that I'm not interested in or meant to read some snow day, but then I remember we don't have many snow days here and I have a my own section I've bought myself to read some day--which I may or may not ever get to. Everytime I shift books around, which I have to do regularly to make room on the shelf, I'm reminded of each book I pick up to move. The experience of that read comes back in one little snippet or a whole gushing river--depending upon the book and the mood I'm in.
Why have I bought multiple books in advance for someday reading? Because something struck me about the book as I perused a bookstore--usually BookPeople. Serendipity.
What will we be as a culture if we don't have bookstores? And people, they're dropping like flies. Sure, I've bought books from Amazon--usually only when they're not in stock here and it's as easy for me to order it as to have the bookstore order it and I have to drive back down there. But buying books on Amazon, pushes Austin or your town, closer to the status of Laredo.
And books on Kindle? Never!
Excuse me, I've got to go change the CD.
Cheers!
,m
with the right bling, you're never really naked~~
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KELLY HOWE!
(Last night, as we celebrated, Kelly claimed more than once that she looked naked in all the pictures--she was verrry styling in a sassy shoulderless number...so I told her I was going to put a naked pic of her on Squirrels, but unfortunately this is the only one I had and as you know: you're never really naked in pearls!)
Ah....28. To a good year!
When I turned 28, Ronald Reagan was still in office, we were six weeks away from electing G. H. W. Bush to succeed him. I was about 10 days shy of quitting the only job I ever quit where I burned my bridges. Usually they'd offered me to come back--actually, I went back to an old job when I quit that one. But I was tired of being used so blatantly. And, Tom wanted me to join him in San Francisco, so I did--the day I took my keys in and quit, I caught a flight. Sometimes you just have to.
But...that was then...
Kelly turns 28 today, on a cold day in AusTex, with a President appearing to grow some guts and leadership skills over the last week, an even more partisan and bitter government, a few months shy of her Phd and Martin's MFA, and the great unknown of what comes next...tune into her space-log when she's my age and read it for yourselves!
We celebrated last night with a delicious, down-to-earth dinner at El Chile, then to Rio Rita, where a lot of UT Theatre and Dance folks showed up to celebrate and take pics of Kelly "naked"... I hope today was a continuation of the good time and she has a very very Happy Birthday!
Cheers!
,m
Saturday, January 30, 2010
And then There are Nights like Last night To throw Off good Intentions:
...
About 7:15, I'm in the kitchen, whippin' up a stir-fry and making it different than those of similar ingredients thus far this week....adding rosemary from my bush, adding a tomato, no tumeric, extra garlic, tofu, etc....just playing with it, keeping cancer-fighting fresh, and the phone rings. I'm at a critical point and can't take it, but I call them back soon.... It was Steven. He asks what I'm doing, then passes me to Eugene, who insists (practically demands) that I put it all away, they're taking me to dinner.
So I did.
We had a very relaxed night, talking about Eugene's big ADL event the night before, catching up, etc. We went to Fleming's, which is very unusual for us, for it's downtown and it's a steak house and for me at least, it's pricey. (Odd service issues going on, but they comped us some things to try to make up for it, which was nice, but then they didn't get better. Hmmm. But it was delicious!) Nice night. I was way glad I'd punted. A delicious medium-rare NY Strip with lots of peppercorns and asparagus was a fabulous change.
Came home and milled about and then suddenly I was on fire on Ponzi and wrote on it until late in the night (oh, well, I mean about 1am.; late for me this week with the new good intentions)...walked the boys and by the time I was in bed it was 2am....and today, I slipped back to about 9:20 getting up. I'm weak. But hey, it was comin' and I didn't want to not capture it. Damn. Oh well, who's setting these rules anyway? me.
Today: laundry, linens, took last night's stir-fry and made a delicious soup, tried to work, not coming, went to BookPeople and Waterloo, now I'm about to head to El Chile to celebrate Kelly Howe's bday. Maybe I'll be on-fire later? Watch out.
Have fun!
,m
About 7:15, I'm in the kitchen, whippin' up a stir-fry and making it different than those of similar ingredients thus far this week....adding rosemary from my bush, adding a tomato, no tumeric, extra garlic, tofu, etc....just playing with it, keeping cancer-fighting fresh, and the phone rings. I'm at a critical point and can't take it, but I call them back soon.... It was Steven. He asks what I'm doing, then passes me to Eugene, who insists (practically demands) that I put it all away, they're taking me to dinner.
So I did.
We had a very relaxed night, talking about Eugene's big ADL event the night before, catching up, etc. We went to Fleming's, which is very unusual for us, for it's downtown and it's a steak house and for me at least, it's pricey. (Odd service issues going on, but they comped us some things to try to make up for it, which was nice, but then they didn't get better. Hmmm. But it was delicious!) Nice night. I was way glad I'd punted. A delicious medium-rare NY Strip with lots of peppercorns and asparagus was a fabulous change.
Came home and milled about and then suddenly I was on fire on Ponzi and wrote on it until late in the night (oh, well, I mean about 1am.; late for me this week with the new good intentions)...walked the boys and by the time I was in bed it was 2am....and today, I slipped back to about 9:20 getting up. I'm weak. But hey, it was comin' and I didn't want to not capture it. Damn. Oh well, who's setting these rules anyway? me.
Today: laundry, linens, took last night's stir-fry and made a delicious soup, tried to work, not coming, went to BookPeople and Waterloo, now I'm about to head to El Chile to celebrate Kelly Howe's bday. Maybe I'll be on-fire later? Watch out.
Have fun!
,m
Friday, January 29, 2010
Happy Birthday!
something-another crashed into a purple-trunked treeor
somewhere out there, in the glow of the purple air, the two green men compared the similarity of the tatoos on their shoulders and knew the moment was destined
or
funhouse mirror
or
is it really 5:49 and I forgot to post today's birthdays?!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
~MARGARET KEYS~
~LARRY DON SHAW~
~JIM FRAZIER~
Have fun!
,m
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