Monday, September 23, 2013

something tastes different/maybe it's my tongue...

...something tastes different/suddenly I'm not so young.

I've been awash in so many goings on, both in and out of my own mind, that I've been too inundated to do much more than keep my head above water, show up at obligations, drink the more-often-than-occasional whiskey, have important conversations, and occasionally zone out at Z'otz. Which is where I currently am, sipping an iced lavender mocha, because sometimes a girl needs a fancy drink to type out her pithy thoughts.

Getting engaged has really messed with my psyche, y'all. On so many levels. One of them is coping with the idea of getting engaged. When Ravi and I broke up, it was partly because he was steadfastly opposed to the idea of ever getting married. I never thought I was ready to get married when we were together, but I thought for certain it was in my future. And somewhere along the way, I stopped believing that. I don't mean that in a morose way. I mean, I lost the insistent belief that I would one day get married. Even when Richie and I decided we wanted to get married, even when we got the rings from my parents and had them repaired, even when I gave them to him, knowing their purpose...I never fully embraced the idea that I was now someone who wanted to get married. The morning Richie proposed, I told Erin, Christie, and A.L. how BIZARRE it felt. How I had honestly asked Richie to repeat the proposal, because I felt like I'd flubbed it (my response was a slack-jawed "umm...okay. yes. okay. I'm sorry, I totally screwed that up.")

Every day, I ask myself if this is something I want to do. I know that sounds awful, but I think that's a question worth asking. An affirmation, if you will. Because the answer is always yes. I just need to...familiarize myself with the situation. But on the other hand, there is the pressure of bliss. As in, I feel like a fraud for not being constantly blissed out about my engaged state. I'm not. I'm happy, I'm excited, I think about other things, I am occasionally sad, I'm indulging in nostalgia on unprecedented levels, I'm opening what are apparently some delicately healed wounds with regards to my family, I'm on flirting with some dangerous thoughts in regards to eating habits (but working very hard to keep them in check). I am a bundle of emotions. I suppose it makes sense that I've spent a lot of time reflecting on my early college years, because that's the last time I really felt that exhilarating mix of joy and depression. 

Because, there is something sad about going into another chapter. I try and tell myself that I'm still me, that I don't change in relation to my married state, and that's fine, but it's still A Big Change. I want to honor that and I feel like honoring that comes with a certain amount of pathos. 

Along with all that are a slew of other weddings, travel, wedding planning, the truly nightmarish task of shopping for a wedding dress (which has pushed me to accept A.L.'s offer to make my wedding dress), my hair is falling out (no, for real. like, bald spot falling out!), being really busy (but really happy) at work, trying to carve out time to be a well-rounded person (i.e. I read books late into the night and don't get enough sleep), yelling at myself for falling prey to the rat race of corporate life, still being happy, dancing to the point of dehydration at wedding receptions, filming silent movies, feeling guilty about missing out on dance parties and dinners, feeling guilty about not writing here, having so much on my mind that writing here seemed impossible...you know. All that. 

I don't know who still reads this (or who is still reading this truly mangled entry), but if you are, thanks. Maybe now that I've barfed all over the page, I'll feel a little less like there's too much for me to even get into here. I hope it's like getting back in the habit of writing in general...you get all the bullshit out of the way, so you can get to the good stuff. (This is why you should never turn in your first draft of a paper! Unless you're me and you procrastinate, then stay up rewriting the same paragraph five times. But don't do that. It gives you ulcers.) 

Thursday, September 12, 2013

101 in 1001 - August update

2) Read ten canonical works from the Bloom canon.
1) James Wilcox Modern Baptists

23) Ride bike to work at least 2 times a month. 
I'm amending this to riding my bike at least twice a month, because things have come up where this isn't feasible every month. I'm also going to make up August's rides :)

26) Join a gym.
Done! I'm excited to get back on a regular workout schedule and I really like my gym. The only downside is that it's across town from home (but close-ish to work), thereby impeding my bike ride to work plan (because I'm not going to the gym 4-5 times a week, THEN riding my bike 5 miles back home.)

38) Eat at three-old school New Orleans restaurants.
1) Tujague's

54) Sew five things from a pattern.
1) Burda Style Chill Dress


Thursday, August 22, 2013

birthday coincidences

This seems especially apropos after my drinks date last night:

I think that there is a place where she [Scarlet] realizes that people come in and out of your life. Sometimes for a day, sometimes for longer. And all of them make you what you are. You can't separate these people out of you. They form who you are. Even the ones that you kind of say well... you know, I don't know if I wanna be formed by them anymore.(laughs) But you are in some way. You are. That's why, maybe, you don't have to look at them so harshly because they have affected you. At the end, though, you know... it's us as individuals with our... mm... with our love for the land. For something intangible, that when soulmates come and go, you're never alone even when you're standing just you in your shoes, because you carry them with you.
-Tori Amos, Scarlet Stories, re: "A Sorta Fairytale"


Happy 50th, Tori Amos. Oof, I feel old.

Monday, August 5, 2013

Motley Monday Links

(Ten links this time to make up for the extended absence!)


The biggest fantasy of every record digger, or the biggest heartbreak? (hat tip to Ann)

Life-changing religious experiencs may better your life, but they could also shrink your hippocampus.

No matter how bad you have it, you probably don't have it worse than this guy.

I just don't understand why Joe Pesci's rap career didn't take off.

"He is four. We think he might be a boy." A lovely story of a family growing up with a possibly transgender son.

A sad reminder of hatred and homophobia, "...but Hill and Weimer were busy setting up two new pride flags, on either side of the gap left in the crime's wake. 'We're doubling down,' Hill said."

"I am a radical, card-carrying feminist, and still I put out smiles indiscriminately, hoping to please not only friends and family but also my son’s orthodontist, the barista who rolls his eyes while I fumble apologetically through my wallet, and the ex-boyfriend who cheated on me. If I had all that energy back — all the hours and neurochemicals and facial musculature I have expended in my wanton pursuit of likedness — I could propel myself to Mars and back. Or, at the very least, write the book “Mars and Back: Gendered Constraints and Wasted Smiling.”

Would you eat a lab-grown burger? I'm...not sure.

It's Curiosity's one-year anniversary on Mars!

Hilda, the plump pin-up!

Thursday, August 1, 2013

101 in 1001- July update

So it begins--updates for the new list!

9) Watch one movie for each of AFI's 50 screen legends.
Note: I'm only counting movies I haven't seen before. I'm also only counting one movie per star, so "The Gay Divorcee" won't count for Fred AND Ginger
Bette Davis- Deception
Marilyn Monroe- Some Like It Hot
Fred Astaire- The Gay Divorcee

23) Ride bike to work at least two times a month.
July '13- XX

36) Can/preserve five foods.
1) Fig preserves
2) Yellow heirloom tomatoes


46) Get a new car.
This one got expedited when my Mazda decided to finally go for broke and blow out the engine and the radiator on the interstate. Nothing like having to get towed out of a blind curve on the interstate, 2 miles from your house. My mom gave me her Mercury and now everyone feels happy and safe. 

64) Redesign guest bathroom.
Richie actually surprised me by taking care of this one. He turned it into my bathroom. Now we look less like hoarders and you can walk in both bathrooms! 

Full list here

Monday, July 22, 2013

old tweets/new you

One thing I've been working on lately is crafting a more professional image of myself. I've joined some philanthropic list serves, looked into attending a few classes, signed up for the Emerging Philanthropists of New Orleans, etc. I've also decided to brush off my long-dormant Twitter account, since many nonprofits use Twitter. Needless to say, I need to revamp the entire thing.  In going through old tweets (and deleting them), I found some gems that I wanted to preserve here.

Planning a breakup and my mom wants me to lie to a priest. I need a nap.

Why the fuck does someone need a cake picked up at 9 am? Breakfast cake?
I like it when the ladies at work all talk about "what [they] would have done". I don't think they're so threatening in real life.

I love the astonished responses to my blood orange from people who have all likely eaten roadkill.

I like to think I'm fun at a party.

Places where it is legal for people and burritos to marry: My mouth. My stomach.

Nancy and I are watching "Her Married Lover" on the Lifetime channel!
All women in this movie wear long ugly prairie dresses with sheer long-sleeve shirts underneath.
...and hightop sneakers.

Choice quote from my dad: "I walked in that bathroom and man...what I did in there oughta have been a CRIME."

I am the worst person ever at putting in eye drops.

Ravi: Where does a one-legged waitress work? Me: Where? Ravi: IHOP.

Rajasthani Buttermilk Curry for the soul totally trumps Chicken Soup for the soul.

My face is peeling. I hope it reveals a new face underneath.

Remember that Fastball song- "The Way"?

Someone in my office smells like mothballs and that is mixing with the smell of porkchops in the breakroom. This is very unpleasant.

The Dutch apparently put chocolate shavings on their toast. I think I need to have the kitties sent over because we're moving.

Ravi: "My neck. My back. My pussy and my sac. I'm a hermaphrodite."

I wish I was better at making friends.

"...and then I kind of made scrunch face, where I raise one eyebrow and and kind of smirk glumly" #attractivefaces

Every time I adjust my nose ring, someone walks by and I know it looks like I'm picking my nose.

I love Marxist lit. crit. It makes me feel frisky.

"Just drinking and loudly singing Jewish lesbian songs."

If we don't love language, God quits loving us, and then we are fucked."- Andrei Codrescu

fave comment of the day: "you make my mind dirty."
followed by: "i base my knowledge off of experience. like schrödinger's cat. does she have a box if she's in a box?"

Oh jesus I am blindly drunk.

I think I flirted with a boy today. I think.

New Delta Review bsns card: "You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you." Ray Bradbury

I exchanged names w/ the dreamy tattooed boy in my class, but nothing will ever come of this bc I nearly threw up on my shoes in anxiety.

"Everything in it's Right Place" always makes me feel deeply disturbed.

I hate it when people spell "weird" as "wierd." (SERIOUSLY, I REALLY HATE THIS.)

ice cold ghirardelli chocolate chips, from the freezer to my mouth. I have lost all self-control.

not nom: http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/natural-harvest---a-collection-of-semen-based-recipes/5198959

Postlady: Hey! 'scuse me! Are you waiting on a postcard from someone who might be named Juan?! Me: ha, no. PL: Damn.

Trying to channel depression into productivity. Have only succeeded in making wine. Not boding well.

Oh Maredsous, was it worth it?

my new lesbian pick up line: "hey girl, how fancy is your feast?" Especially effective when used with a cat lady. (DOUBLE ENTENDRE.)

Sunday, June 30, 2013

101 in 1001

Time for a new 101 in 1001 list! This time around, I've opted to keep the list free from my explanations. for why particular things are on the list. I'll probably go into those in more detail as each month passes, or in a yearly check-in.

This list will finish on March 27, 2016.

Without further ado:

Reading, Writing, and Watching

1) Read all of Shakespeare's works.
All's Well That Ends Well
Antony and Cleopatra
As You Like It
The Comedy of Errors
The Tragedy of Coriolanus
Cymbeline
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
The First part of King Henry the Fourth
The Second part of King Henry the Fourth
The Life of King Henry the Fifth
The First part of King Henry the Sixth
The Second part of King Henry the Sixth
The Third part of King Henry the Sixth
The Life of King Henry the Eighth
The Life and Death of Julius Caesar
The Life and Death of King John
King Lear
Loves Labours Lost
The Tragedy of Macbeth
Measure for Measure
The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Merchant of Venice
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Much Ado About Nothing
Othello, the Moore of Venice
Pericles, Prince of Tyre
The Life and Death of Richard the Second
The Life and Death of Richard the Third
Romeo and Juliet
The Taming of the Shrew
The Tempest
Timon of Athens
Titus Andronicus
Troilus and Cressida
Twelfth Night
Two Gentlemen of Verona
Winter's Tale
A Lover's Complaint
The Passionate Pilgrim
The Phoenix & The Turtle
The Rape of Lucrece
The Argument
The Sonnets (154)
Venus &Adonis

2) Read ten canonical works from the Bloom canon. 
1) James Wilcox Modern Baptists (August '13)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)

3) Memorize seven great poems. 
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)

4) Read the Bible and the Qur'an.

5) Read at least six major philosophers from different schools of thought.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)

6) Read five biographies. 
1) Former U.S. president
2) Foreign leader
3) Activist
4) Game-changer
5) Someone else!

7) Submit one poem and one piece of non-fiction for publication. 

8) Write or expand a Wikipedia article. 

9) Watch one movie for each of AFI's fifty screen legends.
Humphrey Bogart
Katharine Hepburn
Cary Grant
Bette Davis Deception (July '13)
James Stewart
Audrey Hepburn
Marlon Brando
Ingrid Bergman
Fred Astaire The Gay Divorcee (July '13)
Greta Garbo
Henry Fonda
Marilyn Monroe Some Like It Hot (July '13)
Clark Gable
Elizabeth Taylor
James Cagney
Judy Garland
Spencer Tracy
Marlene Dietrich
Charlie Chaplin
Joan Crawford
Gary Cooper
Barbara Stanwyck
Gregory Peck
Claudette Colbert
John Wayne
Grace Kelly
Laurence Olivier
Ginger Rogers
Gene Kelly
Mae West
Orson Welles
Vivien Leigh
Kirk Douglas
Lillian Gish
James Dean
Shirley Temple
Burt Lancaster
Rita Hayworth
The Marx Brothers
Lauren Bacall
Buster Keaton
Sophia Loren
Sidney Poitier
Jean Harlow
Robert Mitchum
Carole Lombard
Edward G. Robinson
Mary Pickford
William Holden
Ava Gardner

10) See ten films from foreign countries. 
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)

11) Read an etiquette guide.


Culture and Creativity 

12) Go to the opera.

13) Paint a picture.

14) Take dancing lessons. 

15) Take some sort of creative class (painting, sewing, photography, etc.). 

16) Complete 5 photo projects. 
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

17) Learn to use camera in manual mode. 

18) Learn to correctly shuffle a deck of cards. 

19) Learn to play poker. 

20) Go to Plan B bike workshop/Ladies' Night. 

21) Learn to play basic chords on guitar. 

22) Become a certified SCUBA diver.

Health and Fitness 

23) Ride bike to work at least two times a month:
July ’13- XX
August ’13-
September ’13-
October ’13-
November ’13-
December ’13-
January ’14-
February ‘14
March ’14-
April ’14-
May ’14-
June ’14-
July ‘14
August ’14-
September ’14-
October ’14-
November ’14-
December ’14-
January ’15-
February ’15-
March ’15-
April ’15-
May ’15-
June ’15-
July ’15-
August ’15-
September ’15-
October ’15-
November ’15-
December ’15-
January ’16-
February ’16-
March ’16-

24) Run a ten-minute mile. 

25) Lose thirty pounds. 

26) Join a gym. (August 2013)

27) Participate in ten 5Ks. 
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)

28) Do a seven-day cleanse. 

29) Complete a fitness program. 

Food and Cooking 

30) Cook an entire cookbook. 

31) Learn to break down a chicken. 

32) Make a recipe book. 

33) Have a tasting contest of something. 

34) Host a holiday dinner. 

35) Bake ten cakes.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)

36) Can/preserve five foods. 
1) Fig preserves (July '13)
2) Yellow heirloom tomatoes (July '13)
3)
4)
5)

37) Learn to boil crawfish from my dad. 

38) Eat at three old-school New Orleans restaurants. 
1) Tujague's (August '13)
2)
3)

39) Make and serve a seven-course meal with recipes from famous chefs.

Family 

40) Get married. 

41) Make a family tree that goes five generations back. 

Financial 

42) Create a joint budget. 

43) Save at least $1500 a year. 

44) Pay off all credit card debt. 

45) Pay off half of student loan. 

46) Get a new car.  (July 2013)

47) Start house-buying search. 

48) Start a new 401k. 

Volunteerism 

49) Organize a drive for a shelter. 

50) Donate $100/year to charity. 
2013:
2014:
2015:

51) Volunteer somewhere new.

Crafting and Home Improvement 

52) Crochet a granny-square a day for one month. 

53) Complete ten Pinterest crafts. 
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)

54) Sew five things from a pattern. 
1) Chill Dress (August '13)
2)
3)
4)
5)

55) Knit a blanket.

56) Make throw pillows. 

57) Restore a piece of used furniture. 

58) Reupholster dining room chairs. 

59) Build a piece of furniture. 

60) Embroider pillow cases. 

61) Learn calligraphy. 

62) Make a set of jewelry. 

63) Keep a tree alive for at least one year.

64) Redesign guest bathroom. (July 2013)

65) Catalog all books. 

66) Catalog all records. 

67) Catalog all DVDs. 

68) Clean out basement.

Technology

69) Learn a programming language. 

70) Move blog to webpage. 

71) Organize ALL computer files. 

72) Donate desktop computer. 

Beauty

73) Buy a piece of designer clothing. 

74) Buy and wear a bikini. 

75) Try five new hairstyles. 

76) Enter entire wardrobe into Polyvore and edit. 

Local 

77) Ride a riverboat. 

78) Pick berries at a farm. 

79) Join a Mardi Gras walking krewe. 

80) Buy local or DIY all Christmas presents one year. 

81) Visit every bookstore in New Orleans. 

82) Join a community garden. 

83) Go to ten new Louisiana festivals. 

84) Visit a new town in Louisiana. 

85) Go to Mass at St. Louis Cathedral. 

86) Memorize every Louisiana parish. 

87) Get a "I'm a Cajun" driver's license. 

Travel

88) Visit another country. 

89) Visit three state parks. 

90) Visit a National Memorial.

Random Fun and Self-Improvement

91) Learn all football positions.

92) Ride a horse.

93) Make a habit of sending small gifts to friends (at least twice a year). 

94) Get another piercing. 

95) Get tarot cards read. 

96) Complete a book of crossword puzzles. 

97) Complete a 5000-piece puzzle.

98) Buy a lottery ticket twice a year. 
2013-
2014-
2015-
2016-

99) Learn the alphabet in ALS. 

100) Learn to say one phrase in seven different languages.

101) Host a fancy hat party. 


Thursday, June 27, 2013

A letter I can't or won't actually send.

Mama,

When I told you I was engaged, you rolled your eyes. Literally, you rolled your eyes. This was a better outcome than what I expected, which is shocking to most everyone to whom I've told that story. 

Usually my response is to just say something along the lines of, "That's just my mom. She gets stressed out easily. She's still happy for me." The thing is, I believe that. I do think you're happy for me, or maybe I just need to believe that you are. But your happiness for me is blurred by a lens that has only gotten more opaque as the years have passed.

I wonder a lot lately when was the last time you were happy. I realize I can't remember anything in the past decade or so, so I wonder if you do. Was it when Paw Paw was still alive? I can think of times when you've had fun, but I don't remember the last time that you were deeply, joyously happy about something. That is a surprisingly difficult thing to admit. 

It has taken me many years to come to terms with your unhappiness. I'm probably still not there, but at least I have the perception and the toolkit to explain some of it and rationalize it to myself. I'm not quite sure WHY it's there, but based on things you've told me here and there, I have a feeling it began with a string of loves in your teenage years and really took root when you decided that you'd thrown away a lot of opportunities by marrying Daddy. You've told me countless times what you might have been if you'd gone to school--an art teacher, an architect. Even after going into the medical field, a kid at home and a drunk husband made you feel like you needed to be at home after work, instead of going to school for nursing. But even in my childhood years, I feel like you were happy sometimes. I remember dancing with you in the living room and I feel like that was happy. I want to know what broke and why it can't or won't be fixed. 

We've been fighting a lot about the wedding and it occurred to me that I'm a disappointment to you. You'd balk to hear this. You'd tell me how proud of me you are and how much you love me. I don't doubt those things, but I have to reconcile them with your disappointment. I am not who you want me to be. You rolled your eyes at my news because you imagined differently for me. Someone who could "take care of me," to use your words, someone with money who might support me while I got that Ph.D that you're still on me about. To you, my marriage means the end of my possibility too, means getting stuck in a rut that I will spend a lifetime sitting in, a rut so deep that it's not even worth it to expend energy to get out of. Is that how you feel? It's the closest I can imagine. 

You told me once that you wanted me to get my Ph.D because you knew, when I was a baby, that I would go on to do great things. You don't want to hear that people can do great things without a Ph.D, or that a Ph.D in my field would be useless to me, monetarily. You don't really even have a defined vision of "great," beyond "better off than me." You are not great, except through my achievements. I need to be great to somehow be worth all those lost opportunities. I don't think I'm capable of being that great. 

In a way, I think you think my marriage will make me sink lower than you, because I will still be worse off financially than you are. I think your desire to dictate every aspect of this wedding comes from the idea that you can at least make it what you want to see. Maybe that will be enough to make up for that potential greatness I'm flushing down the toilet. You are upset with me that I won't wear your wedding dress. I couldn't think up a better metaphor if I tried. Somewhere along the way (or maybe from the moment I was born), I turned into a vessel for all your lost hopes. I'm not the only person this has happened to--at this point it's a cliche. But it doesn't hurt any less to be held to a standard that judges me as unworthy for not meeting standards I've never been invested in. I quite honestly feel as though you love me less for not being good enough. It doesn't hurt me to not be good enough--I think (with the help of years of therapy, a lot of love, and the power of literature) that I'm just fine. But it hurts to think that you feel that way, that I have somehow thrown away the key that could even possibly unlock your door to happiness. 

Even before I could put those thoughts into words, I knew them on an instinctual level. It took me years to tell you I was going to therapy, because I knew you'd be disappointed in me for being so flawed and for thinking I was flawed. For not just getting over it. It is sickeningly ironic that you live in the kind of unhappiness you do without any help, just so as not to have to admit that you actually are unhappy. 

Years ago, you used to joke that you would never ask your patients, "How are you?" because it would turn into them rattling off their various ailments and complaints. I don't know how to tell you that you've turned into those people, without meaning to, without being old enough to be that damn miserable with life. 

I've had a buzzing tension headache for two weeks now. I suspect it has a lot to do with trying to shove down this rush of emotions and words that have come out of wounds long scarred, now ripped open. These are words I don't want to say to you, because I know you would only see them as a further burden, without ever acknowledging their meaning. I know you would cry and maybe you'd yell. I don't want to hurt you. I love you so much. I just wish that I could make you see. To see that your life is so rich, so full of love. To see that all I want from you at my wedding is to see you happy, for you to celebrate without barriers of anger, fear, and disappointment. You talk a lot of making the most of life, because you never know when you'll die. I don't understand how you can believe that, but treat every day like another step to the grave.

If anything, you've taught me that lesson. I don't always achieve it, but I try not to live in misery, because I don't want to bring down that burden on those who love me. I try to celebrate, to love, to experience, to be my very best, to see the best in people and in life. And I will always try, however useless it may be at this point, to make you see it too.

Love, me

Monday, June 24, 2013

Motley Monday Links




A capybara hugging a cheerful cat. My heart sings. (also, I may have started following the capybara on Facebook. :x) (also, here are more pictures of Gari the capybara! Yes, I'm obsessed.)

The merriest cemetery in the world!

Did the Catholic Church once sanction same-sex partnerships among monks in a type of marriage ceremony? The evidence for this theory is fairly strong, but not definitive.

Marlene Dietrich, Madonna, and "Double Drag." 

“Music journalists like Elvis Costello because music journalists look like Elvis Costello.”--catty!

everyoneeverything

"I am the sum total of everything that went before me, of all I have been seen done, of everything done-to-me. I am everyone everything whose being-in-the-world affected was affected by mine. I am anything that happens after I’m gone which would not have happened if I had not come."
Salman Rushdie, Midnight’s Children

Thursday, June 20, 2013

resonate

Being raised in an unstable household makes you understand that the world doesn’t exist to accommodate you, which is something a lot of people struggle to understand well into their adulthood. It makes you realize how quickly a situation can shift, how danger really is everywhere. But crises when they occur, do not catch you off guard; you have never believed you lived under a shelter of some essential benevolence. And an unstable childhood makes you appreciate calmness and not crave excitement.
-Curtis Sittenfeld

 The decision to be positive is not one that disregards or belittles sadness that exists. It is rather a conscious choice to focus on the good and to cultivate happiness - genuine happiness. Happiness is not a limited resource. When we devote our energy and time to trivial matters and choose to stress over things that ultimately are insignificant, from that point, we perpetuate our own sadness and lose sight of the things that really make us happy and rationalize our way out of doing amazing things.
-Christopher Aiff

Monday, June 17, 2013

Motley Monday Links



Instead of focusing on the disgusting jokes some shitsmears in Atlanta made about Steve Gleason, check out Gleason's story in Sports Illustrated about living with ALS, not dying from ALS. Quote: "We cannot measure, verify or confirm meaning. We, as humans, create and apply meaning. When something happens to us, we become the author of meaning. The best philosophy I have adopted is to apply a useful and productive meaning."

Grandma's Kitchen, all over the world.

Apparently, Dame Judi Dench is a fan of subversive cross-stich, you fucking shit.

Yvette claims that the store had accommodated employees with minor disabilities in the past. "One woman, she hurt her shoulder," she says, angry tears filling her eyes. "They gave her a job re-shelving lighter items." Yvette says she also offered to work at the cash register or in the office of a different branch, to no avail. Eventually she was given meager disability payments for a portion of her pregnancy, and she spent the remainder on unpaid leave. Last month, Yvette left her job at the grocery chain.--why working class women are better off being disabled than pregnant.

Will the Krewe of Freret stop throwing Mardi Gras beads, in favor of locally-made throws?

Monday, June 10, 2013

Motley Monday Links


From creepy crusty to celebrated photographer: the Miroslav Tichý story.

I love illicit Old Hollywood gossip. Today: Rock Hudson's gay confession, Marilyn's death, Judy Garland's secret pill stashes, and more!

"Defendants’ motion is not supported by any affidavit or other evidence providing even one example of improper interference with an execution caused by or related to the dissemination of the current or any previous Louisiana execution protocol, or which shows that the defendants’ security concerns and the asserted risk of manipulation are more than mere speculation or conjecture"--Louisiana must reveal its lethal injection practices.

More evidence that childhood poverty should be treated as a disease, with all the political outcry and social movements to stop it that such a designation justifies.

A thoughtful meditation on the meaning of work from generation to generation and the search for fulfillment.


Friday, June 7, 2013

we know what we believe


Hanging out at Z'otz, drinking some mint iced coffee, mapping out my budget and guest list for THE WEDDING, and jamming out to the above on repeat. I was thinking earlier that I felt very collegiate. I couldn't quite place the feeling...was it just coffeeshops and summer and Mirah (always a collegiate throwback, despite the fact that I didn't start listening to her until mid-2008). But I think it's just that feeling of overwhelming newness. No frame of reference, fresh, exciting, a little nerve-wracking  but, at the heart of it, calm in my ability to steadily navigate.

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

all the news, period.



You know how I keep hinting at big news? Most of my readers probably already know, but since more things keep happening, I'm just going to give you a blunt post and hopefully something later with details!

I got a new job. I'm now working for the Greater New Orleans Foundation and I love love love my job. I love working for a nonprofit. I love constantly learning. I love the people I work with.

I got engaged. I kind of can't believe it either. We used my great-grandmother's ring and everyone is happy and I'm currently drinking prosecco in my bed, because that's what fancy engaged ladies do, right?

Richie's going back to school. A gout flare up (yes, my fiance (AHHH) has gout and is clearly EIGHTY) convinced us that he's not going to be able to do manual labor forever, so it's time to move on up in the world. We'll see what construction management is like.

I got some sweet new sheets. Yeah!

Monday, June 3, 2013

Motley Monday Links



John Bunker is an apple detective, identifying obscure American apples and attempting to save varieties from extinction via industrialization.

Pretty sure the dolphins are going to eat these misguided hippies' baby.

A 10-15k year old mammoth was found in Siberia, with blood and muscle tissue intact.

Another reason to love living in Louisiana: Getting to put "I'm a Cajun" on your driver's license. 

Iraq's pavilion at the Biennale is sure to be fascinating. I can't even imagine how ten years of war and terrorism has manifested itself into Iraq's art.

Monday, May 27, 2013

Motley Memorial Monday Links

Oh hai, guys! I'm about to make a bunch of updates, but I figured I'd kick things off by getting back to Motley Monday Links. Happy Memorial Day!

Do you sometimes just need your finger to be a bird? Make it happen with free finger puppet printables!

Horrible Monsanto finally found guilty of some awful stuff in at least one country. Get on it already, U.S.

I can't describe this any better than the headline already: Physicists create quantum link between photons that don't exist at the same time. What.

Really excited to see this year's Palme d'Or winner, "Blue is the Warmest Color." 

"I admit to being, at times
Suddenly, and without the slightest warning,
Exceedingly happy."

101 in 1001 2010-2013 Final Update

I finished my first 101 in 1001 challenge on April 1, 2013. At that time, I was having a bit of a rough go of things, so I never got around to updating the blog. So, here you are. The final list of completed, half-completed, and not completed. With notes! Some of the not completed ones will be going on my next list (yes, there will be another list! It never ends!).

1) Go Cajun Dancing.
Despite finding places that offered Cajun dancing, time conflicts (and, let's be honest, an increasing unwillingness to dance in public that was in direct correlation with the time elapsed from when I had lessons) got in the way. I'd still like to go at some point. After a few stiff whiskey drinks for courage.

2) Sing Karaoke. (June 2011)

3) Write a letter to a celebrity and ask for an autograph.
It turned out that I didn't much care about doing this. I never settled on a celebrity that I was dying to write. Ani DiFranco came close, but I felt weird about asking for an autograph from her.

4) Eat at a 4 or 5 star restaurant.
The problem I ran into with this one was bad research. I didn't realize at the time I made the list that the only 4-star restaurant in Louisiana is Bayona. Which just so happens to be the restaurant that Richie quit, so going there for dinner wasn't going to happen. I almost went during the Coolinary last year, but it didn't work out. I still hold out hope that Erin and I can one day afford to go to Alinea.

5) Learn to play Guitar Hero on Hard.
I quickly lost interest in even attempting this and then the Xbox died. Oh well.

6) Design a new tattoo or get some color in my existing one. (March 2012)

7) Buy one piece of art.
I actually almost completed this one, but Richie and I have been talking about buying a house and I decided I'd like to wait until we buy something and decorate, before investing in art. Hopefully sooner rather than later!

8) Grow my hair below my shoulder blades. (December 2012)

9) Attain a Master's Degree. (May 2012)

10) Get straight A's FAIL

11) Apply to 5 MA/Ph.D programs that I really want to attend. (January 2012)
I'm probably going to apply to 1 or 2 copout schools, but I don't want to cheat myself out of applying to some good schools on the off-chance I could get in.
1) The Ohio State University (December 2011)
2) Louisiana State University (December 2011)
3) Stanford University (January 2012)
4) Indiana University Bloomington (January 2012)
5) Rutgers'(January 2012)
6) Vanderbilt University (January 2012)

12) Adopt an animal from a shelter.
So, as it turns out, Marla hates other animals. Then she got it into her head that change should equal PEEING ON ALL THE THINGS. Richie and I would still like to get a dog (okay, we want about 3 dogs, another cat, some fish, and an indoor rabbit), but we're very hesitant about it and it (obviously) hasn't happened yet.

13) Learn to change the oil in my car.
Richie showed me HOW to do this, but we couldn't find a wrench to release the nut holding in the oil, so we had to take it to a professional. I'm marking this one as a half-completed, because I know what to do, just haven't had the hands on experience.

14) Finish my correspondence course. FAIL

15) Brush up on my French enough to hold a short conversation.
I don't even know why I put this on here. Lofty goals. I knew it wasn't going to happen.

16) Donate $100 a year to charity. (March 2013)
I have a few charities I'd like to donate to, so this won't be a lump sum anywhere, but donating a little here and there is better than nothing at all.
2010-2011
Planned Parenthood- $25 (Feb. 2011)
New Orleans Food Cooperative- $20 (May 2011)
STAIR- $20 (June 2011)
ARNO- $15 (July 2011)
Covenant House New Orleans- $10 (July 2011)
Amnesty International- $10 (July 2011)

2011-2012
NARAL- $20 (August 2011)
Louisiana Partnership for the Arts- $10 (October 2011)
STAIR- $15 (January 2012)
The Hunger Project- $15 (March 2012)
World Wildlife Fund- $16 (April 2012)
RAINN- $35 (June 2012)

2012-2013
STAIR- $20 (January 2013)
Doctors Without Borders - $30(January 2013)
NOLA's Most Badass Assault Survivor- $20 (February 2013)
Planned Parenthood- $30 (March 2013)

17) Get another ear piercing. (November 2010)

18) Read 10 books from the Bloom Canon.
I'm going to allow these to include assigned books but not anything I've read before.
1) Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice (October 2010)
2) Voltaire Candide (January 2011)
3) Mark Twain A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (April 2011)
4) William James The Varieties of Religious Experience(June 2011)
5) D.H. Lawrence Sons and Lovers (August 2011)
6) Carson McCullers The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (March 2012)
7) Ernest Hemingway A Farewell to Arms (March 2012)
8) Fyodor Dostoyevsky The Brothers Karamazov (June 2012)
9) Virgina Woolf Mrs. Dalloway (March 2013)
10) Gertrude Stein Tender Buttons (March 2013)

19) Read 1 unassigned book per month.
July '10- Ann Patchett Run
August '10- Alice Munro Lives of Girls and Women
September '10- John Berendt Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
October '10- Stuart Berman This Book is Broken: A Broken Social Scene Story
November '10- Paule Marshall Praisesong for the Widow
December '10- Richard Yates Revolutionary Road
January '11- Neil White In the Sanctuary of Outcasts
February '11- Terry Moore Strangers in Paradise, Vol. 1
March '11- Terry Moore Strangers in Paradise, Vol. 2
April '11- Milan Kundera Slowness
May '11- Margaret Atwood The Penelopiad
June '11- Linda Olsson Astrid and Veronika
July '11- John Knowles A Separate Peace
August '11- T.C. Boyle The Women
September '11- Molly Wizenberg A Homemade Life
October '11- Stephen King Hearts in Atlantis
November '11- Moira Crone A Period of Confinement
December '11- Carson McCullers The Member of the Wedding
January '12- Jonathan Franzen Freedom
February '12- Pam Houston Waltzing the Cat
March '12- George Saunders Pastoralia
April '12- Kim Edwards The Memory Keeper's Daughter
May '12- Susan Orlean The Orchid Thief
June '12- Julia Reed Queen of the Turtle Derby and Other Southern Phenomena
July '12- Poppy Z. Brite Liquor
August '12- Poppy Z. Brite Prime
September '12- Joan Didion The Year of Magical Thinking
October '12- Philippe Aries Western Attitudes Toward Death: From the Middle Ages to the Present
November '12- Jeffrey Eugenides The Marriage Plot
December '12- Larry Watson Montana 1948
January '13- Susie Bright The Best American Erotica 2003
February '13- Sharyn Graham Davies Challenging Gender Norms: Five Genders Among Bugis in Indonesia
March '13- Gertrude Stein Three Lives

20) Get a spa facial.
Turns out a spa facial that isn't LASERS and microdermabrasion and shit is actually difficult to find. And the aforementioned isn't at all what I had in mind.

21) Go to The Dinner Bell with a group of friends.
Schedules :/

22) Make a family tree.
I got some of the research done for this, then never finished it. I still can't make up my mind about parameters.

23) See 26 movies I've never seen, starting with each letter of the alphabet. (February 2013)
I saw this idea on the Day Zero Project website. I need to make a list of movies I want to see now!
A- Ajami (2009) (October 2010)
B- The Blind Side (2009) (January 2011)
C- Citizen Kane (1941) (August 2011
D- Date Night (2010) (August 2010)
E- Effi Briest (1974) (October 2010)
F- The Fighter (2010) (May 2011)
G- The Girl on the Bridge (1999) (November 2010)
H- How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) (August 2010)
I- Inception (2010) (July 2010)
J- Jakob the Liar (1999) (November 2011)
K- Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) (September 2012)
L- Louder Than Bombs (Glosniej od bomb) (2001) (September 2010)
M- Men Who Stare At Goats (2009) (July 2010)
N- Nine to Five (1980) (December 2012)
O- On the Waterfront (1954) (November 2012)
P- Pickpocket (1959) (November 2010)
Q- The Quiet Earth (1985) (February 2013)
R- Raising Arizona (1987) (July 2010)
S- Storytelling (2001) (July 2010)
T- There Will Be Blood (2007) (October 2012)
U- The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964) (October 2012)
V- Volcano (1997) (October 2010)
W- Walk the Line (2005) (January 2012)
X- X: Night of Vengeance (2011) (December 2012)
Y- Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001) (February 2013)
Z- Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008) (November 2011)

24) Learn 1 new word a week.
I don't mean reading the Word of the Day on dictionary.com and promptly forgetting it. I want to really learn a new word. That said, I might use Word of the Day to discover new words.
2010 words
2011 words
2012 words
Accouchement- A confinement during childbirth; a lying-in
Vagulous- Wayward, vague, wavering (also coined by V. Woolf)
Zenick- A South African burrowing mammal (Suricata tetradactyla), allied to the civets. It is grayish brown, with yellowish transverse stripes on the back. Called also suricat
Aliquot- a method of measuring ingredients below the sensitivity of a scale by proportional dilution with inactive ingredients
Ephebophilia- the primary or exclusive adult sexual interest in mid-to-late adolescents, generally ages 15 to 19. The term was originally used in the late 19th to mid 20th century.
Thalassocracy- dominion over the seas, as in exploration, trade, or colonization.
Poioumenon- a term coined by Alastair Fowler to refer to a specific type of metafiction in which the story is about the process of creation
Mainour- a stolen article found on the person of or near the thief
Lucubration- laborious work, study, thought, etc., especially at night
Orectic- of or pertaining to desire; appetitive
Myrmidon- a person who executes without question or scruple a master's commands
Bibelot- a small object of curiosity, beauty, or rarity.

25) Find a lipstick and liner that I like. (February 2013)
Did it! Revlon's Teak Rose! WINNER.


26) Take all my medication exactly as directed for 2 months. (April 2011)
This sounds pretty self-explanatory and some of you are probably like "Two months?! What about always?!" But I'm on a whole load of medication and I'm terrible about taking it as directed, not only due to forgetfulness but because sometimes the side effects are too discouraging. I'm hoping that a 2 month period will sort of lead into a longer period (but not forever, because I hate this shit.)


27) Regularly volunteer somewhere. (October 2012)


28) See all of these Mindfuck movies.
Spellbound (1945)
Rashomon (1950)
La Jetee (1962) (December 2011)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Solyaris (1972)
Videodrome (1983)
The Quiet Earth (1985) (February 2013)
Jacob's Ladder (1990) (June 2011)
The Game (1997) (July 2010)
Abre los ojos (1997)
Cube (1997)
Dark City (1998)
Memento (2000)
Mulholland Dr. (2001)
Donnie Darko (2001)
Primer (2004) (January 2012)
Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) (February 2012)


29) Go on a date. (November 2010)

30) Make a recipe book.
Never got around to this one :/ I got the book, then thought maybe a box system would be better and, basically, my indecisiveness strikes again. Definitely one for the next list. 

31) Have a slumber party. (March 2011)

32) Go to a major sporting event. (February 2012)

33) Donate blood twice a year. 
Unfortunately, my low iron levels got in the way of this goal.

34) Lose 30 pounds.
Easily the most frustrating item on this list. I was well on my way to this goal right after I move to New Orleans. Within 10 pounds of it. Then I got regular employment, went off all my meds, fell back into bad eating habits, stopped walking as much, got frustrated with exercise attempts that weren't working (in large part because I had gone off my meds), diets that caused my already screwed up blood sugar to plummet (were you wondering what happened to the cleanse? It stopped because my blood sugar levels went insane and my already low blood pressure plummeted, to the point where I was medically advised to stop). Also, in general, I have bad exercise and eating habits. So now, I'm back on my way, but I have a ways to go. Still trying.

35) Give up soft drinks for 2 months. (November 2011)

36) Do 200 sit-ups in one sitting.
Yeah, that just didn't happen. I get so worked up about completing an exercise goal, that I psyche myself out and don't do it. Not sure if this will go on the next list.

37) Learn to use the weights at my gym.
See above.

38) Run 5 miles.
I didn't quite make 5 miles (again, see above), but I got to two on the treadmill and I'm still working toward it.

39) Make a cheesecake. (February 2012)

40) Have a Sazerac at The Roosevelt Hotel. (March 2012)

41) Go fishing. (June 2011)

42) Take some photos of my brother and me for my parents. (December 2012)

43) Write a letter to myself to open in 10 years.
This is another one that I just...lost interest in. I still think it's a neat idea and I'm not opposed to doing it, but I feel like I'm keeping a pretty decent record here. Plus, if I wanted to go more in depth, it would take more than one letter. More like a journal. Then, where would I keep it that I wouldn't forget about it in ten years? Logistics, man.

44) Organize my iTunes.
I switched computers, started working on this, got fed up with how much didn't transfer and now IT'S EVEN WORSE. Definitely an item for next list.

45) Go to at least 3 states I've never visited before.
Preferred states are Oregon, Montana and Maine.
1) Indiana (July 2011)
2) Michigan (July 2011)
ONE SHORT. Dammit.

46) Walk in a second-line parade. (August 2011)

47) Build 1 piece of furniture for myself.
I could never decide on what I wanted to build. Richie even bought us a circular saw and it still didn't happen. Maybe one for next list.

48) Host dinner for my parents. (December 2012)

49) Delete my Myspace, LinkedIn and OK Cupid profiles. (July 2010)

50) Go to the Christmas Eve bonfires in St. James parish. (December 2010)

51) Have a palm reading.
That shit is expensive.

52) Open a new bank account. (August 2010)

53) Submit at least 7 poems for publication.
No excuse. Just haven't much felt like writing. I did a little, but nothing worthy of publication and lacked motivation to do more.

54) Write 2 non-fiction pieces, Brevity-style.
See above.

55) Cook 10 challenging dishes from celebrated chefs.
Challenging meaning some combination of difficult ingredients, new techniques, fussiness and long periods. The chefs I have in mind, so far, are Thomas Keller, Julia Childs, Alice Waters, James Beard and Suzanne Goins.
1) Devil's Chicken Thighs over Braised Leeks from Suzanne Goin's Sunday Suppers at Lucques (August 2010)
2) Julia Child's Chocolate Mousse (July 2012)
3) Susan Spicer's Vegetable Polenta Gratin with Garlic Confit (January 2013)
4) Thomas Keller's Cornish Hens with Swiss Chard, Nuts, and Raisins
5) Judy Witts' Panna Cotta


56) Cook a dish with one ingredient I've never used. (May 2011)

57) Make 3 food items I'd normally buy ready-made. (June 2012)
1) Harissa (February 2012)
2) Yogurt (May 2012)
3) Duck Sauce (June 2012)

58) Visit another country.
Just wasn't in the cards, money-wise. But going on the next list :)

59) Learn to play my guitar.
Another item where my intimidating about failing kept me from doing anything at all. Stupid.

60) Grow a vegetable. (June 2012)

61) Start a herb garden. (April 2012)

62) Visit 10 historical sites in New Orleans.
This may or may not include revisiting Marie Laveau's grave.
1) Preservation Hall (September 2010)
2) Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop (September 2010)
3) Antoine's Restaurant (December 2011)
4) Old U.S. Mint (March 2013)

63) Make 1 item of clothing for myself. (March 2013)

64) Make an apron.
When I told my grandma I wanted to make an apron, she gave me some. Then Erin gave me an apron for a birthday. Suddenly, I didn't need another apron.

65) Make some curtain sets. (March 2013)

66) Fly a kite.
DO YOU KNOW HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO LOCATE A KITE IN THIS CITY? WTF.

67) Learn to make 6 different cocktails from memory. (February 2013)
1) Pimm's Cup (October 2010)
2) Jack and Ginger (August 2011)
3) Pinewood Drifter (March 2012)
4) The 1st Jewel (June 2012)
5) Jasmine (June 2012)
6) Stormy Nights- Kraken Rum, Mango Ginger simple syrup, club soda (February 2013)

68) Have a well-stocked home bar.
Overall, I met this goal, but never at one time. We keep drinking everything :/

69) Buy a set of lingerie. (October 2011)

70) Discover 5 new-to-me poets. (March 2012)
Recommendations welcome!
1) Dan Beachy Quick (May 2011)
2) Kate Daniels (July 2011)
3) Marie Howe (October 2011)
4) Juliet Cook (March 2012)
5) Naoko Fujimoto (March 2012)

71) Get rid of all my non-stick cookware (except one pan). (December 2011)

72) Make a piece of pottery.
Another one that I lost interest in shortly after adding it to the list.

73) Create an organized filing system for important documents. (October 2010)

74) Get a framed copy of my diploma.
I blame my mom for this one! She's been telling me since 2010 that she'd get my diplomas framed, and they're still in drawers. One day.

75) Get a New Orleans library card. (August 2010)

76) Take one really great photo to display in my home. (July 2011)

77) Write at least 5 letters (each) to Erin and Mike.
Erin- 1 (August 2011)
Turns out, I talk to those two enough that letters aren't necessary. :p

78) Learn to belly dance.
Classes for this are way too expensive for me to afford. I was going to get a DVD, but I decided to spend that money on going to the gym instead.

79) Visit The Museum of the Gulf Coast.
I would've done this if I had gotten a new car when I was supposed to, but the Mazda isn't going to make that trip.

80) Update and start reusing iCal. (September 2010)

81) Write down all purchases for 1 month and look at where I can cut expenses. (May 2012)

82) Pay off my Visa and find a card with lower interest rates. (May 2011)

83) Review 20 places on Yelp! and/or Urbanspoon. (December 2011)
I always check these sites for reviews but rarely review things myself. If I'm going to use them, I should contribute as well.
1) Oak St. Cafe (Dec. 10)
2) Dooky Chase (Dec. 10)
3) GLUE Clothing Exchange ( Jan. '11)
4) Elizabeth's (May '11)
5) Z'otz (May '11)
6) The Massage Emporium (May '11)
7) Pal's Lounge (May '11)
8) PURE Yogurt Culture (May '11)
9) Cowbell (April '11)
10) Maple St. Patisserie (June '11)
11) Little Tokyo Noodle Bar ( June '11)
12) Azalea Lakes Veterinary Clinic (June '11)
13) The Ruby Slipper Cafe (October '11)
14) Oak (October '11)
15) The Lucky Ladle (October '11)
16) Back To The Garden (November 2011)
17) Cochon (November 2011)
18) Hey! Cafe (December 2011)
19) Katie's Restaurant (December 2011)
20) Verti Marte (December 2011)

84) Go 1 month without buying coffee.
Yeah, no.

85) Attend at least 1 music festival a year. 
2010- Pitchfork (July 2010)
2011- Festivale International (April 2011)
Voodoo Fest (October 2011)
2012- French Quarter Fest (April 2012)
2013- French Quarter Fest (April 2013) (counting it, because it's difficult to get a music fest in with such a short period!)

86) Crochet or knit a scarf for myself. (February 2013)

87) Drink 2 liters of water a day for 2 months.
Still a habit I can't consistently keep.

88) Go to all the major Mardi Gras parades. (February 2012)
I've been to many of these but not all and no better time to do this than while I'm living in New Orleans.
Krewe du Vieux (Feb. '11)
Carrollton  (Feb '12)
Muses (Feb '12)
Endymion (Mar. '11)
Thoth (Mar. '11)
Bacchus (Mar. '11)
Proteus (Feb '12)
Orpheus (Feb '12)
Zulu (Feb '12)
Rex (Feb '12)

89) Visit a National Memorial or Site.
Money and time were against this happening. And a faulty radiator.

90) Go back to San Francisco.
See above.

91) Upload and organize all my digital photos.
This project suffered the same fate as the iTunes organization. When I got a new computer, everything got scattered again. The prospect of dealing with both is almost nightmarish in scope now. Eventually.

92) Print out some photos for framing and scrapbooks.
Didn't happen because above.

93) Become more familiar with local and federal politicians and vote in all major elections. FAIL (sorta)

94) Visit family graves once a year. FAIL.
See: radiator.

95) Take a road trip to an unfamiliar city and spend at least 5 hours there. (August 2011)


96) Attend 10 cultural events. (December 2012)
I'm defining this as plays, ballet, renowned musicians and art shows.
1) No Exit (from the Zombie Apocalypse) (December 2010)
2) Macbeth (January 2011)
3) Save Our Souls (October 2011)
4) Baton Rouge Gallery's Surreal Salon IV (January 2012)
5) Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra- Shostakovich Sympony No. 1 (February 2012)
6) Reinventing Radio: An Evening With Ira Glass (March 2012)
7) The Lion King (March 2012)
8) "A Brief and Sensational history of 'The Mascot,' Notorious Newspaper of New Orleans' Gilded Age" (May 2012)
9) "History of Prostitution in New Orleans" (August 2012)
10) The Nutcracker (December 2012)

97) Take the GREs, both the general and the literature. (November 2011)

98) Pay off my 1st student loan and 1/4 of the 2nd one.
I paid off the first one, but didn't quite get to 1/4 of the second one.

99) Go on a camping trip.
This was planned a number of times and fell through for various reasons. It's still something I'd like to do.

100) Don't eat out for 1 month.
I hold that this is almost impossible to do in New Orleans.

101) Host a fancy dress party. (November 2011)


So, there you have it! What have I learned from this? That I'm indecisive, afraid to fail, need a new car, need to maybe manage my time better, and keep my expectations in check. On a happier note, I'm happy that I achieved what I did. This list pushed me to do some things that I wasn't motivated to do otherwise and provided a measure of accountability. It was also just fun to do. I love lists, so the whole process of monthly updates was something I enjoyed doing. I never expected that I would complete the whole list. I would have liked to get more done, but maybe that'll happen with the next list. That list is better planned than this one was, and hopefully I'll see more progress with it.

Until next time!

Monday, April 8, 2013

Motley Monday Links

Some big stuff has been happening (updates tomorrow!), and I keep neglecting my Motley Monday Links. As reparation, I offer you not five, but ten links. 




This collection of The Shining "conspiracy theories" is totally blowing my mind (and sending me down hours-long Wikipedia rabbit holes). Especially number two.

Ever considered what fashion mags might say about the outfits of Disney princesses? Wonder no more.

This site is, at turns, mesmerizing, therapeutic, and (after watching it for awhile) kind of disturbing.

A Vietnam POW returns to North Vietnam as an ambassador and works to improve the lives of the very people who captured and held him for four years.

Portraits of Syria's only all-female fighting unit. I find these photos somewhat haunting, ordinary portraits juxtaposed with weapons and war. They need no words.

Did the Pinochet regime have Pablo Neruda murdered? His body will be exhumed to further investigate.

I know this commits the double blog sin of two links from the same site and reposting something that's been all over the internet, but this is so. damn. adorable. that I cannot resist.

Thomas Keller's perfect poached egg.

"Can we talk about the “u” in your name? Are you British? It’s affected, and you should be ashamed." Food is Gross is the anti-foodie blog.

"The Kissinger Cables comprise more than 1.7 million US diplomatic records for the period 1973 to 1976, including 205,901 records relating to former US Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger. Dating from January 1, 1973 to December 31, 1976 they cover a variety of diplomatic traffic including cables, intelligence reports and congressional correspondence. They include more than 1.3 million full diplomatic cables and 320,000 originally classified records. These include more than 227,000 cables classified as 'CONFIDENTIAL' and 61,000 cables classified as 'SECRET'. Perhaps more importantly, there are more than 12,000 documents with the sensitive handling restriction 'NODIS' or 'no distribution', and more than 9,000 labelled 'Eyes Only'."