About sixteen years ago, I met him for the first time. My trainwreck sibling brought home this adorable puppy he had no business adopting because he had not one thing in his life that wasn’t a mess. I was furious at my sibling – he didn’t even take care of himself, how could he drag
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April 8, 2013
On a very quick visit to the Midwest…
A) I nearly shivered myself to pieces in the approximately 30 degree weather. Brrr. Brrr…. BRRRR….
B) Thankfully PiC really loves me and on a morning jaunt, scouted a Top Shop for me. Seriously, the guy remembered the one store where I like to get my leggings. My one pair of leggings I’ve ever bought. Thank goodness for the ridiculously good Patagonia jacket he found for me a couple years ago.
C) The Water Tower had a fun art exhibit and I had to document a few things for @CthulhuChick. Cthulhu-rabbit! Octo-heart?
D) What trip isn’t all about the food for me? Thanks to @aledonne for the recommendation, we stopped into Giordano’s for a few different pizzas. They were pretty good. Of course, I had to stop into Downtown Dogs for a Chicago dog appetizer ….
E) We also tried macaroni and cheese pizza, grilled chicken pesto pizza, and a fish fry. So. Good. (I want to eat mac and cheese pizza forever.)
F) My second old-fashioned with a cinnamon stick. You wouldn’t expect that a single detail like that would make a huge difference but it absolutely made the drink.
Except for the cold, I loved the city, the feel of fun and culture, and most definitely the food. We’ve been there on another quick trip in the past and were focused on Millenium Park and saw the famous Bean, etc., and I’ve worked in the city (again, briefly) and saw the Field Museum during a closed exhibit.
It feels like getting little very spaced-out nibbles of a vast and wonderful area.
Have you been to the Midwest? (I know some of you are FROM there!)
Next time, what would you recommend?
April 1, 2013
March was WAY better than February. Hoo-rah!
I’m not back in the gym yet, but have extended Doggle walks on every nice day so that we both get our Vitamin D and stretch our legs a little more.
One night, I had this nightmare that PiC signed me up for a marathon, because he decided to run even more than that, and for some reason an ex-classmate I really didn’t/don’t like was going to run with me so of course I couldn’t admit that I couldn’t do it. Yeah, toughing out a marathon when you can’t run a full mile yet – that’s an awesome idea.
It’s probably an indication of how much desperately I want to be my “normal” self. The one who could run a mile without being utterly wiped out, or work out for a few hours and actually enjoy the process. Of course, that’s getting ahead of myself in a big way. It’s as frustrating to be this thoroughly out of shape as it was to be in debt; it feels like someone’s chained my wrist to my opposite ankle. Awkward AND limiting!
It would be amazing to have a workout buddy who can hang with me in the little leagues and work our way up together. Exercise is much more fun as a cooperative endeavor.
All true and so relevant. I’ve never talked about it but I really hate doors, and heavy doors that remind me that I’m weaker than I used to be, or just plain make me look weak. This is why I “shoulder” or “hip” doors instead of pushing them when I can. There’s an amazing number of things that are much more difficult to manage b/c of pain: pocket doors, can openers, pots before food’s in, pots after food’s in, fancy cookware, lifting wet laundry in and out of washer and dryer. Round door handles suck, scissors suck, skinny pens suck. Yoga mega sucks because it’s so appealing, and not possible to do without hands/arms. Life is a strange thing viewed through the lens of what you can do or handle with only a very light touch.
It’s easier to dismiss said things I can’t do anymore or do well as jerks. All jerks. And then move right along.
Food
Using different grains and making more from-scratch recipes has been on my mind a lot lately; it seems like it’d be easier to eat more healthy foods this way. I finally had the energy (and the ridiculous need to procrastinate) to experiment with a couple recipes: Pasta and Barley Soup and Bucatini All’amatriciana.
The Pasta and Barley Soup was incredibly easy:
1 cup of ditalina pasta
3 liters of vegetable broth
1 diced onion
lots of diced garlic
1 diced potato
1/2 c diced celery*
2 diced carrots*
3/4 c barley
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil for drizzling**
Parmigiana Reggiano**
Parsley**
* I only used 1 diced carrot and substituted in one extra potato for the other carrot and for the celery I didn’t have on hand. So, extra carbalicious!
** For topping the soup and serving.
1. Saute onions and garlic.
2. Add broth and barley to simmer for 30 minutes.
3. Add the vegetables and pasta to cook for 6-8 minutes. Original recipe called for 6 minutes but I had to go to 8 minutes to fully cook through. Add salt and pepper to season.
Serve!
I played with the ingredients a bit, cutting back on some ingredients (broth, pasta) to make a smaller batch. It was perfect for the first seating but needed extra broth for the next day reheating.
Your turn: what did you do in March to be a little healthier and happier?
March 29, 2013
When I look around, it occurs to me that I have a techish problem. A plethora of devices and some strange habits to go with them.
I have:
2 PCs, one personal and one work, though the personal one gets impressed into work relatively frequently and is about to quit on me with a screen that’s been going black;
1 netbook;
1 tablet;
1 smartphone that drives me nuts w/how crap it is (Tmobile MyTouch).
Also no charger, since I managed to break mine a few months ago. PiC and I are sharing because I have (vice #1) this insane prejudice against buying replacement chargers since PiC’s “losing chargers since 2003” spree.
With some upcoming business travel, travel being kind of always the impetus for my realizing that broken down tech is probably going to be limpingly pathetic (vice #2), I panicked and shopped for a new phone and a pay as you go internet hotspot I’d meant to test.
The Phone
After some research and asking for recommendations from good friends, I decided that the Nexus 4 made sense.
Some specs
It’s a well-reviewed phone, though it has two major flaws in the eyes of the reviewers: lack of LTE and it seems to be built in such a way that you can’t use it on other carriers (T-mobile only, it doesn’t work with Sprint, Verizon or AT&T).
Major pluses:
it ships unlocked so theoretically I could change to being carrier-free with just a purchased SIM. (of course, not working on other major carriers is the drawback that sort of negates this a little)
it works internationally (as verified by a military friend overseas)
it has good expected battery life (maybe not quite as good as my original model iPhone but still more than 24 hours with use)
the OS looks to be user friendly and fast.
The price
It cost (ulp!) $380 after taxes and shipping direct from Google Play.
I had my reservations about the fact that they not only charge a 15% restocking fee, they charge MORE if you return a damaged phone. So you get punished if the phone arrives to you damaged?? Customer service, not so much Google.
Still they were $60-100 cheaper from GPlay than anywhere else so I bit that bullet after being two nerds for 2 days.
The phone plan
At the same time as the shopping, I dropped into a conversation with @singlema about our cell phone plans and how much we’re paying. We realized that Tmobile had these new Simple Choice plans that were MUCH cheaper for pretty much the same services.
+ Unlimited text / talk / data (first 500 MB at high speeds)
+ A Tmobile hotspot
+ NO CONTRACT
+ $80
+ Applies to first two lines; additional lines for $10
A couple of our phones are still on contract this year, those will just lapse and carry on as contract-less phones.
The things that drive me crazy about T-Mobile:
– Until this year, they refused to allow fee-free line cancellation for my mom’s line despite the fact she’s been deceased for over a year.
– They had a password associated with my account that I did not set, could not remember, and prevented me from talking to the CSRs about anything on my account. And said that I couldn’t reset it in any way except by going into the store. Sheer insanity. Until I realized I was talking to incompetent people who didn’t know what they were doing and wouldn’t ask anyone. Even their twitter help insisted that you had to go into the store. MADNESS. I got the best CSR ever, Greg, who actually knew what to do to give me access after 3 very frustrating hours.
– Their idiotic voice response system kept resetting my own website password when I was calling to reset a password for another account.
– If you can’t remember your password and do the password reset, even entering the temporary password they give you counts against your number of allotted tries and locks you out for 24 hours (unless you call) (wasting more time). Thereby rendering the Forgot Your Password function totally useless.
I was ready to tear my hair out and I’m still hating on most of their customer service.
But I was able to change our plans from $140 before tax ($160) to a new plan for $100 before tax (guessing, $120?) for four lines. When the paperwork to cancel Mom’s line goes through, that’ll be $10 less.
It’ll take about ten months to offset my new phone. And another ten if PiC decides he wants the Nexus too.
The Hotspot
I’d been planning to try this hotspot thing to review on the blog but I was dawdling on the ordering it thing. Finally I realized that I had to order it if I was going to take it to work with me. And lo, I ordered a day too late so that it’ll probably arrive when I’m already gone. And worse, the new T-mobile plan has this hotspot feature thing but I didn’t know about that when I ordered this device. Rather annoying.
Still I suppose it’ll be worth trying, though I won’t truly need to have access for more than myself in the upcoming months.
Put me down for another $85.
The Computer
Please, oh please don’t make me research, buy and configure yet another computer. There’s only so much patience in my life and it’s going to be severely taxed by the above new stuff. Also, taxes. Because those need filing.
Perhaps my IT friend can take a look and magic up a few more months (years? heh) of life out of this machine.
:: What are your thoughts on devices that keep you plugged in?
:: Do you have anything good to say about the Nexus 4 that’ll make me feel better about paying nearly $400 for it?
March 25, 2013
Needle aversion notwithstanding, I’ve had a long-running desire to give blood. For science?
Maybe it’s the one thing I want to do to fit in because a) Lord knows I don’t care that I don’t “fit in” anywhere else; b) it feels chumpish not to when just about everyone I know can.
Maybe it’s because these past several years, I’ve lost so many dear family and friends to dementia, cancer, heart disease, accidents and medical complications and there was never a damn thing I could do about it. “Helpless” is not a mode I play well on. So maybe giving something of myself, literally, seems to be the only thing that feels like a tangible help.
Sadly, it’s been years since I discovered that the blood bank was serious about their weight limit. And that none of my friends were willing to go along with an illicit donation – they don’t actually weigh you, after all. Apparently friends think that giving that much blood for my body weight would be a problem. Even arguing that some blood draws ordered by the doctor took at least half a pint or more didn’t convince anyone and PiC would just give me The Look. I remain unconvinced that it would be a problem. “What’s the worst that could happen?” occurs to me but I’m not totally willing to risk it alone in case I do pass out… or whatever.
Blood donation drives: the one time my weight makes me feel totally worthless. Dammit.
Then I got to thinking that…
Be the Match blood marrow donations would be a Good Thing: no weight requirement and Asian donors are lacking in the registry. Let me try to Be A Match!
But guess what? Too defective for that. ><
It feels like I’m standing outside banging on the window of society. Hullooo! Have I got today’s leprosy? Grump.
Mid-month I finally decided it was time to chop off the hair.
Tired of sitting on it, and tired of shedding a mini-me every day, I crowdsourced my new style and headed off to the salon.
@PhysicistLisa asked if I meant to donate it since I mentioned a specific length. Ah-ha! Yes indeed! It was quite long enough for that! And I never dye my hair or anything so it’s in good shape. WHEE. Even the shortest layers were about 8 inches, the longest layers measured 12 inches. And that was with the lady cutting a less generous length because she didn’t believe how short I wanted to go.
All that was left was to decide where to send it. I hadn’t made time to research the various possible organizations when this lovely post from A Practical Wedding’s team popped up: Pantene Beautiful Lengths it is!
They only accept the hair they can use with clear instructions on what that is, they give the wigs away to cancer patients and they don’t sell your hair. This is important to me.
The donation lifts a pall over my heart. I haven’t had short hair since I lived with and helped my parents directly, since I still had a mom, our last time together was when it was long, at the courthouse. Cutting it, though I’ve never been attached to hair for appearances’ sake, was a reminder of all this. But this feels right.
And since my recent changes in banking yielded a new set of checks sent in a plastic envelope actually intended for reuse, the stars were clearly aligned. The envelope’s packed, addressed and ready to mail. I’m excited. I’m finally good for something. 🙂
Can you donate blood? Are you registered for the marrow registry? (Or can you be?) Would you donate your hair if it was long enough?
March 18, 2013
This should have been written much earlier but in short: February sucked. So that probably be, meh health, no fitness.
The whole of February was positively miserable, starting from the end of the previous month, with a series of aches and pains that clung to me like PigPen’s trail of dust. I remember saying that the pain was only four days long and that was great because: “It really could easily have gone for ten times that long.”
Remind me to knock wood next time I type something that boneheaded, would you? Just quit tempting fate.
Flu-like symptoms alternated with flu-like depression of the immune system (the next step before actually getting sick); back pain, arms pain, neck pain and knees/hips aches … just to name a few. Unfortunately, that meant absolutely NO gym time. Days blended into weeks and the weeks kept slipping on by before I realized I hadn’t done any exercise except a daily Doggle walks. Every time I remembered I was a slacker, PiC had to remind me that there was really a reason for my long layoff because it’d just melded into the back of my mind. Pain, fatigue and forgetfulness? Not cool. No wonder it feels like I’m losing my mind some days!
Most of the worst symptoms seem to have worn down, though. [knock on wood]
Weight Watcher (aka Why Bother?)
Just for kicks, I started weighing myself during the month of February. Almost every night, at about the same time, and sometimes again in the morning, I hopped on the scale.
This was a really interesting experiment. My weight fluctuated up and down on a five pound range nearly every day, even if my habits were pretty much the same: drink a bit, eat a bit, walk a bit, eat a bit. It didn’t make a difference, the weight just roller-coastered regardless.
This does explain why my pants fit so strangely: too big some days, too small others.
Half a lifetime ago, gaining weight was a challenge of unimaginable proportions. Ectomorphic and somewhat perpetually undereating, I was the scrawniest thing you ever saw. For about ten years, I tried as hard as I could to put on weight because it just felt unhealthy to be that skeletal, despite my general all-around fitness. My aim was to put on muscle, not random weight but eating healthy did not a thing for me. About twenty pounds later, that quest has been largely abandoned. Feeling less scrawny, though perhaps not any healthier.
The most annoying things about being the weight I am: not being able to give blood, and having to tailor every darn piece of clothing. Tch.
:: What’ve you done to stay healthy or fit this month?
March 13, 2013
The Ferry Building is one of my favorite places to share with people. It is a tourist-traffic heavy location which isn’t usually my cup of tea but here that’s part of the fun; there’s usually some sort of performance artist(s) out front and the vendor stalls are always fresh, bright and stocked. The poorly lit photos here are down to my impromptu photography.
It’s best enjoyed at a slow meander, picking up a chip of chocolate or a taste of bread dipped in different flavors of olive oil, checking out the cheeses, desserts and fresh oysters on offer.
Food trucks line the pierside, produce and flower stalls interlock the front and back side of the Building.
The piles of fresh produce are positively enticing. Those vendors are no fools: plenty of fresh citrus wedges and apple slices were available for sampling. Even at those prices I still have to talk myself out of spending upwards of $4/lb for a bag of fruit or vegetables. They look so pretty. (Though microgreens for $24/lb? Really?)
There were canning jars that looked like a good deal at $3/jar. They’d be perfect for making ahead two-serving apple pies. If it weren’t for the thought of trying to take them home on BART without breaking them, they would have been mine.
Also, the flowers are so bright and cheerful, nestled in their big bundles, I was thistempted to buy the five bundles for $25 of tulips. Again, not being in the mood to schlep them home was pretty much my saving grace. Otherwise: flowers, jars, random veggies I’m not sure how to cook, even more chocolate…
Edit: I did go back this week to blow $100 on gifts. California honey,3 boxes of made in SF by a small business chocolates, apple butter, and a chunk of triple creme cheese. Just needs some bread and crackers to make a really good picnic. Except I can’t keep it. Drat.
March 11, 2013
I’m a total local library fan from way back. I loved the smell of books, I loved the stacks, I loved the nearly-audible hush when you walked in the sliding doors. The absence of sound creating an echo. It was so Zen.
Then they started letting kids talk, and bring food and drink. Sacrilege!
My neglect of our local one here up North can only be explained by my ridiculously hermity nature. There’s one only a mile down the road and in these three (or so) years, I’ve been there once. (It was closed.)
I blame the really strange business hours. There are a couple days when they open midmorning and stay open until the evening. There’s a couple days (not consecutively) when they open midmorning and close earlyish. There’s a day where they open late and close early. Also a day when they open late and close late.
This is too complicated for my easily combobulated brain – hard enough to recall which day of the week it is, they’ve gone and given it a good scramble for good measure!
Judging by the crowd of people milling around or sitting in their parked cars, when I dropped in for a quick peer-around on my way home from a brunch, this schedule situation is not just a problem for me. We all looked sort of stupid, I guess, but it was still entertaining to watch a man walk through the crowd, bang into the still-locked door with the schedule clearly printed on it and turn to ask the rest of us: “What? Closed? When does it open?”
Well…..
Like the vast SF Library system, the Peninsula Library System has 35 affiliated branches. (I thought it was nine.)
We’ve been to one of the more southerly branches and checked out audiobooks before, but I found their actual book collections to be somewhat lacking.
This branch was small – a single room with medium sized nooks for various sections: Children’s books, “Teen” books (isn’t that supposed to be Young Adult?), a coffee corner, and a rather large selection of DVDs and Fiction/NonFiction. Not definitively large, unfortunately.
The fiction section only housed 1 John Scalzi, 1 Elizabeth Ann Scarborough (I will not be judging her books by her website), and 2 Terry Pratchetts. That was disappointing. I didn’t have time to search further, though on my way up and down the aisles I saw two shelves’ worth of Mercedes Lackey and G.R.R.M.’s A Dance with Dragons which I will be back for.
One hopes that Patrick Rothfuss is represented somewhere in there as well because I love both him and his writing but let’s be honest, I’m quite likely to purchase the third book in his series because I will be rereading it to bits. Return? NO.
This is, by the way, how I know I’m “rich”. There was no money to buy books until college, and then it was only if I had earned enough awards from my credit card spending on essentials. Discover’s $25 worth of points translating to $40 of Borders or other bookstore money was a bookworm-saver. 17-18 years of, (ok, 16 years because I didn’t start reading until I was 2 according to the parents) of borrowing books I couldn’t keep and cherish. Now? It’s an option. I AM RICH I TELL YOU.
Ahem.
Right, so the book selection is light, but there are definitely books to read. And dope that I am, I didn’t realize that putting a “hold” on any item in the online catalog is how you request books from other branches to be delivered to your branch. It costs 75 cents per item but that’s still cheaper than driving to some of the further out branches. That’s a reminder, btw, to my cheap arse that less than a dollar to borrow a book is not a bank breaker. I’m so conditioned to think of the library as the place you only pay when you did wrong (late fees and lost books augh!) so a voluntary fee seems weird.
Their new checkout machine so I don’t have to talk to humans? Also amazing! You just stack between 1-3 books on the thingie and it scans all of them. You don’t insert them one by one, lining up the barcodes anymore! I assume it’s magic. This is my excuse for the crazy face I was making at the machine when it all went down.
And! You have the option of printing the receipt for the books or emailing them. When did the library get this crazy progressive technology? (also, could we now spend money on great books please?)
Of course I didn’t use the email function. The receipt is my bookmark and physical reminder of when the books have to go back.
Other things: they hold educational sessions for teens (I think? Teens come in that hulking size, right?) to teach them how to use the library. The librarians sounded pretty helpful to the people who were talking to them. I just assume, anyway, the library visit is, for me, a solitary, almost reverential thing and talking is not part of the game.
Must say, though, their instructions for managing e-books, online or the paper printouts they provide at the more posh branch are pretty crap. They honestly didn’t make any sense and the website had no clear information about the rules around checking out ebooks. One section suggested that ebooks could only be reserved for 24 hour checkouts! In reality the checkout period can be 7, 14, or 21 days. It’s just also unclear what those timeframes apply to.
Also, it always puts me in the happy creative mood even if I don’t have a creative atom in my body. so we’ll end with this Ira Glass piece: