breakfast survey

i was lamenting to thefoo recently about my un-creative breakfasts, of late.

i need new ideas for the culinary delights that start my day! so, here's what i want you to do: post a comment and tell me what you usually eat for breakfast. please.

(my tummy will be very appreciative of your help...)

um. hi?

i feel like i need to post something, but i'm not sure what to write about! imagine that! me, with nothing to say. ha.

i'm actually sitting at home watching TV. but nothing is capturing my attention for more than 5 second blips. so i have to mix it up with some good ol' fashioned web-surfing and fucking around on the computer. ahh. luxury!

i had practice tonight so i'm a little pooped. it wasn't my most stellar performance, seeing as i'm still getting over this illness. but, i went. and that's what was important.

okay this is where my co-workers pipe up and say 'we told you not to go since you're sick!' but i didn't listen to them because i have a race in two weeks. and i'm not that sick anymore. i feel the end is near. don't worry. i swear i'm not being stupid about this.

anyways, our new apartment is looking great. oh. have i told you guys that i moved? i'm sure i did. it was like a month ago. but um, sorry if i forgot to say anything.

so yeah. i love the new place. and as i sit here on the couch, looking around my living room, i'm pretty happy. it looks good. my plants are happy too. they're flowering and blooming and our mandarinquat is about to bear fruit. (as long as that's the only thing bearing fruit around here, then yes, life is good!)

i just realized that all of the plants in here except for 3 (there are 13) were given to me. lets take inventory:

1. calla lily - gift from catfoo's cousin to catfoo to me
2. mini rose bush - thank you gift from denise
3. mandarinquat tree - gift from catfoo's mom to catfoo to me
4-6. cactus clippings from my dad that are going to be real plants soon
7. sierra? a small cute flowering plant from cynthia, who moved abroad
8. avocado tree - that belongs to conor. he grew it from a pit!
9. leafy orchid - gift from cynthia
10-11. bubbly cacti thingy and it's clipping - gift from cynthia
12. dying alocasia - i bought this one. it had a good life. alas.
13. purple flowering plant (?) - bought this one too.

so yeah. the room gets great sun, so all my plants are happy (except the alocasia, which was in transition to plant heaven long before we moved). i think happy plants are a good sign.

i mean, if the plants are happy, then they give off good vibes. and good vibes spread through a room, making all the people happy too. and since this room has plenty of good vibes anyways, it's like a giant good vibe party over here.

come on over! everyone's invited!

leaving a trail of scorched carpet & molten plastic...

this cannot be for real!
too funny.

Firefighters took possession of Clewer's jacket and stored it in the courtyard of the fire station, where it continued to give off a strong electrical current.

> power-dressing man leaves trail of destruction

sniffle

there are some germs going around my office like never seen before.

and it's taking people down one by one. tick. tick. tick.

my time in the spotlight was yesterday. and i have to say, after years of practice, i still hate - absolutely HATE - being sick.

even if i get to stay home and have conor take care of me.
and play our new playstation 2.
and eat homemade soup.
and take naps.

cuz' nothing makes up for the fact that you just feel like hell.

and i missed out on our new member orientation thingy for my running team last night. big bummer!

so - here's one sad sniffle for me and my cold.
come on, white blood cells! you can do it!

it's possible that i'm madonna.

wow i'm a blog-posting maniac this week!

okay so i just took a personality test online, and here is what it told me. make sure you read the last sentence because it's the most important lesson you can learn about me, today:

You are a Performer!
(Dominant Extroverted Abstract Feeler)

You are a PERFORMER (DEAF)— personable, self-assured, and excellent under pressure. You are extroverted and strong-willed, which, in combination means you are good with people and aren't willing to let opportunity pass you by. Congratulations. I'm sure all the peons you've stepped on never saw it coming and didn't feel a thing.

You have formidable creative talents, and you often following what your heart tells you instead of your logical mind. Your exuberance can earn you many friends and admirers, despite your ambition, or it can intimidate the less confident into keeping their distance. It's also possible that you're Madonna.

yep. it's official. my childhood hunch has been confirmed. now it's time to take over the world, one pointy bra at a time!

eureka!

one step closer to my dream of wireless buds for my ipod!

this is SUCH exciting news:



>> Wireless Headphones for iPod

no comment

>> Looks like no more Katrina for "Brownie"

My co-worker passed along this list of articles and reports about FEMA's "work" thus far on the Katrina relief efforts. Disturbing.

>> FEMA prevents Coast Guard from delivering diesel fuel

>> FEMA won't let Red Cross deliver food

>> FEMA turns away experienced firefighters

>> FEMA bars morticians from entering New Orleans

>> FEMA blocks 500-boat citizen flotilla from delivering aid

>> FEMA fails to utilize Navy ship with 600-bed hospital on board

>> FEMA to Chicago: Send just one truck

>> FEMA turns away generators

>> FEMA: "First Responders Urged Not To Respond"

ah! i'm injured! levi!

i know it's been a while since the tour de france (is it ever really over?), but... thefoo and i fell in love with a series of commercials during the tour, and i found them online yesterday, after our weekend of inspiration.

we watched the san francisco grand prix (a pro cycling race in the city that was great fun - i'll try to post some pics later on so you can see some of the hills these guys have to climb!).

levi leipheimer was racing, and so i was intent on reenacting the commercials with the help of thefoo. i was going to fall on the ground and do my schtik (ah! i'm injured!), except that i kept responding too late when the pack whizzed by. or, he would move to the opposite side of the road when my reaction time was right, so he couldn't hear me anyways. the humor was lost among the rest of the cyclists. alas.

anyways, the commercials rool, and so i wanted to share a few of them them with you. give the movies a few seconds to load, since they're each about 4 MB in size.

enjoy!

>> simone

>> levi

>> hans

>> door

btw, hats off to specialized for not only making these commercials, but for being so super nice and actually posting the files on their website. you win one fan and her name is me.

now we're on to something

my dad had an interesting idea, which he posted in his blog on friday. he might be on to something. lets officially call it the "Indirect Assistance Plan for Jazz Musicians Affected by Katrina" unless you can think of a catchy anachronym for it instead.

>> The fortunes lost in the flood included ancient instruments and old sheet music and old photos of the jazz greats in their prime.

but, he might be idealistic thinking that the record companies will pump all their revenue from the sales into hurricane relief efforts... perhaps in a perfect world. alas.

kinda like bill on capitol hill

my co-worker sent this lovely little ditty to us today! A great watch. Particularly if you're geeky, like me.

>> Get Perpendicular

when your taste buds change

ever since i left grad school, my "taste buds of life" have been morphing.

the year 2003 was the year i started to make my bed. every day. this was no small feat for a girl who prided herself on her messy room and un-made bed. ok, granted, i optimized the process so it was as efficient and quick as possible (no extra top sheet + one comforter + one or two decorative throw pillows = a quick toss, fluff, toss, fluff and you're done). but still. this was a big change for me. a lifestyle change.

apparently, the year 2004 was the year i started hating dirty bathrooms. note: i didn't say messy - i don't mind a few things on the counter. but when it starts to get grimey and the dust collects and the sink yellows and the toilet... well, lets just say i started hating dirty bathrooms. and thank goodness for the invention of the pre-wet, disposable cleaning cloths, so that the lazy-cleaner that i am can do a quick wipe down once every 1-2 weeks with little hassle. suddenly cleaning the bathroom isn't so scary. just in time for my new vice. wee.

i think the year 2005 is the year i started hating dirty feet. not other people's - what you do with your feet is your buisness. but i wear flip flops a lot, so i need to make sure my feet are in prime shape at any given time. i don't want to gross out the boss-man or my co-workers or friends, you know?

well, sometime in the last year, i started getting the regular pedicure and keeping close tabs on the toes. you know that feeling you get when your feet are a bit dusty/dirty after a day of walking around barefoot? fellow flip-flop wearers know that we get a very mild case of that at the end of a day. and MAN! let me tell you. i can't stand putting those tootsies in my bed at night if i can still feel the dust. never in my life have i been so anal about washing my feet before i go to bed.

why am i getting so weird? or, have i always been weird and all these changes are just making me normal for once?

hmm.

makes me wonder what 2006 has in store:

a lover of mops and brooms? possible. a logical step post clean-feet love.
keeping a clean fridge? ha. try again.
taking better care of my clothes? could be.
organized shoes? yeah, right.

anyways, maybe by the time i'm 80 i'll finally make a good housewife!

shoot to kill

i'm sorry i'm not blogging much this week. i think everything i would write about can be read on the news anyways, as there are so many things about the hurricane devestation in the South that is upsetting.

to be honest, it disturbs me almost equally - though for very different reasons - than september 11th. and so i'll spare you all my thoughts on why i find it hard to focus on anything at work other than reading the news...

but, i will copy a few tidbits from the news that i read today which i found interesting. or baffling. or humorous. or all of the above. i'll leave the truly heart-wrenching and disturbing stuff out - you get that enough on any of the big news sites.

1. do you really need that armani suit to survive?

from msn, in a city without rules, is looting ok? - this is by far one of the more intriguing articles i've read yet - finally a reporter is actually thinking & analyzing, not just spewing forth the same details, quotes, and pictures as everyone else. they ask, "When, if ever, is looting OK? When is it acceptable to break the law — and what happens when law itself breaks down?" and i have to agree that in certain situations, it's okay. loot away. just don't touch the luxury items. those fancy clothes won't sell if they're waterlogged anyways...

2. did they skip that problem on their engineering take-home test?

from a nytimes article, "disaster experts and frustrated officials said a crucial shortcoming may have been the failure to predict that the levees keeping Lake Pontchartrain out of the city would be breached, not just overflow.". um, were these magic levees or something!? what made them forget about the fact that they could break?

3. don't TOUCH the south's football!

from the nytimes, "Now, mindful of the dispersal of New Orleans residents who evacuated, Fox will add the Texas markets of Houston, San Antonio and Beaumont, and parts of Missouri for the Saints' opener on Sept. 11 against Carolina." well, they may not have food or water, but at least they'll get their football.

4. and we thought two-fitty was high.

just some interesting thoughts on the cost of gas out here in cali, from sfgate - "Although California uses little if any crude oil from the gulf, the cost of oil everywhere has risen after the hurricane, with prices set by the global market." or, are they pulling a fast one on us? people question. i don't know. i don't drive anyways. but it makes you think a little about how this whole 'global economy' thing works.

5. shoot to kill

um, thank you uncle sam, for sending combat trained military to save the day. from msn, "They have M-16s and they’re locked and loaded. ... These troops know how to shoot and kill, and they are more than willing to do so".

that's exactly what the residents of new orleans need. not food. not water. not homes. guns!

and i quote from the article:

"Hell no, ... I ain’t glad to see ’em, I’ll be glad when 100 buses show up.”

(my thoughts exactly)

okay, maybe i'm being a peacenik naive here - i know they do need law and order. horrible things are going on. but it's like we're trying to overcompensate for our inability to bring relief and aid to the sick and homeless people by sending in guns. is that all we have on reserve for emergency relief efforts? weapons?

at least mormons are on the right track by setting up grain silos to feed their congregation during the apocolypse. or just for general welfare. hmm. i wonder if grain silos are hurricane safe. maybe they wouldn't do so well, either.

yay guns!

6. fats, you out there?

so apparently fats domino was missing after the flooding started. and apparently he's okay, according to sfgate: "The mystery was solved when Domino's daughter saw a New Orleans Times- Picayune photograph of her father being taken from a boat by rescuers Monday night. She said that she did not know her father's current whereabouts." but, i gotta wonder... if she just saw a picture, and no one has actually heard from him, and they don't know where he is, don't you think it's presumptuous to report that he's safe?