Shoes, Ships, and Sealing Wax

Folk remedies

Anybody know how to make mosquito bites stop itching?

Besides cutting off the bitten appendages, that is.

Brotherly love

Those who frequent my humble blog know I have a sister, because I talk about her often, at least in the context of the mother to my niece and nephews. I also have a brother, but I don't mention him as much...not because of a family rift, but because he lives in Texas and I only see him once a year. I think about him all the time, but, you know, I get bogged down in the day-to-day, and well, we don't engage much so there's not much to say.

My brother is seven years younger than I am, and as kids, of course, he did my bidding, as younger siblings do. If I wanted a Coke, I had him fetch it. If I was bored and wanted company for a trip to the mall, I made him come. It wasn't totally one-sided...he was the only kid in his grade school who saw Judas Priest in concert...but he was my little sidekick.

Then I moved away for awhile, and when I came back he had a driver's license and a band, and he was starting to be cooler than I ever was...no longer sidekick material. Then he went to art school, and studied martial arts and philosophy, and made movies in Europe, and now he is way, way cooler than I will ever be, not to mention smarter and more thoughtful.

I'm very happy today, because my brother is moving to Philadelphia. Ok, it isn't home, but it's only a couple hours away, so hopefully I'll see him more than once a year. I'll be able to see his band play. I'll get to go to his exhibits. I'll feel really uncool, probably, and self-conscious about the books I haven't read and the ideas that I haven't considered, but I'll talk to him more often. Maybe sometimes I can go up and be his sidekick.

Though I bet I can make him fetch my drinks for me, because he is still my baby brother.

For Ted and Victor

and all the other sci-fi geeks fans out there:

The Guardian polled a bunch of scientists and came up with a list of the top 10 science fiction films.

Believe it or not, Ted's cult classics didn't make the list.

So, number one? What would you guess? I figured 2001, but I was wrong...

It's Blade Runner.

In my day...

From WTOP:

The University of Maryland business school plans to give Blackberry wireless devices to all full-time MBA students this fall, an effort to make students technologically savvy and aware that a key to business is being able to access people and information at all times.

Pah! When I was at Maryland, we had typewriters.

Seriously...I had to pass a typing test to be admitted to the College of Journalism, and when I started, most of the j-school classrooms were outfitted with IBM Selectrics.

To be fair, though, when I graduated (four years later, thank you) there were a few Selectrics in the library, but in the classrooms we had computer terminals. We were even connected to the news wires, and it was very cool, when a prof got boring, to be able to read what was going on in the world courtesy of AP and UPI.

In fact, it never occurred to me until just now, but that surreptitious news-reading during class prepared me well for the future of surfing the internet when I'm supposed to be working.

What's wrong with this picture?

I stopped by the pharmacy on my way home today to pick up a prescription refill: my Depo-Provera shot. The charge was a nasty surprise, more than double what I've been paying. Our health insurance changes every July, so I wasn't surprised that it was different, but the magnitude of the change was a bit of a shock.

I checked with the insurance company and yeah, that's the new co-pay for Depo-Provera. I asked if it'd be any different if the doctor wrote the prescription stating I was being treated for endometriosis...in other words, this ain't a recreational drug...but the answer was no. I asked for the formulary so I could see if I have any cheaper options, like maybe going back on oral pills.

I'm irked, but I can afford the prescription. It's not what I wanted to use my raise on, but it beats having to call in sick and losing a pint of blood every month.

Reading the formulary, I also noticed that my allergy medicine is in the super-high co-pay group, which is going to be annoying when the goldenrod starts blooming. But still I wasn't pissed...

Until I noticed that Viagra is cheaper than the Depo-Provera.

Positive thinking

Ted is gearing up for another season of Hockey Whoopass Jamboree. I'll be in for the Caps (of course)...provided we actually play this year. I haven't gotten my hopes up.

Today's CBA news:

OTTAWA - Bill Daly, NHL Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, today released the following statement:

"We resumed negotiations in an effort to achieve a new collective bargaining agreement today in Ottawa. As we are scheduled to meet for two days, we and the Union have agreed to comment only after the meeting has concluded tomorrow."

In the market for shoes?

Pretty much every day I get an e-mail from Avatar Shoes Trading Co. in Shenzhen, China. I delete them because I really have no interest in joining the shoe business, but for some reason today's email had some pictures of their actual products attached, and I happened to notice that they were absolutely the ugliest collection of shoes I have ever seen.

Like this:

and this:

and for guys:

But most disturbing:

Incidentally...if you think those boots are anything other than hideous and perhaps a little scary, I do not want to know.

How I got fat on my summer vacation

One of my favorite things about vacation, I admit it, is the food. The good, the bad, the ugly. I haven't stepped on the scale yet to see the damage, but do I plan to get back to the gym tomorrow.

At The Shark, a casual shark-themed (duh) place on the bay, I had dinner one night and lunch another day. From the menu, which describes it better than I can:
Granny Smith’s Bleu Cheese Topped Filet
Grilled tenderloin filet of Certified Angus Beef topped with a walnut & bleu cheese blend & caramelized Granny Smith apples & sweet onions.
and
White Pita Pizza
A delicious blend of spinach, artichoke, two cheeses, diced tomato &
onion spread atop a soft pita crust. Topped with grilled chicken.

Since the demise of the old family favorite (about which I'm still too upset to write), the Shark is now officially my favorite restaurant in OC.

Macky's is a favorite of the family, but the seafood is lost on me because of my allergies. They have seating right on the bay, though, and beautiful views...the first sunset picture in my photo album was taken there. For dinner I had (again from the menu) Grilled Chicken Breast: A plump Eastern Shore Chicken breast, seasoned with garlic and lemon peppers and grilled, served with steamed vegetables and a side salad.

The Hobbit is also on the bay, but more of a white table cloth, dressy place. I've heard the owner is trying to sell the land to condo developers, but that the restaurant will remain in some form. I hope so, because the food is lovely. This was the full-throttle, screw the diet day, with appetizers and dessert...we had roasted garlic spread (roasted garlic, pistachios, horseradish, fresh chives, Montrachet and cream cheese. Baked until bubbly and served with French bread and apple slices); for dinner I had stuffed potabello with spinach and cheese (this isn't listed on the online menu, so my description isn't as vivid, but it was excellent), then chambord cake (a moist yellow bundt cake flavored with raspberry liqueur topped with homemade whipped cream and served on a raspberry sauce).

Fresco's is a new one for us (and it may be new this year). It too is a dressier, upscale place...almost too upscale; when the hostess heard we hadn't made reservations she had a bit of a tone to her voice when she agreed to seat us despite our transgression. Again, though, the food was really nice, and again I won't do it justice because my dinner isn't on the online menu. I had ravioli in a cream sauce with pine nuts and cheese. I'm only just learning how to really appreciate food after years and years of Big Macs, and this sauce really impressed me because it had so many layers of different flavors.

While I didn't bother with McDonald's during the trip, I did indulge in good old fashioned junk food, too:

From Dumser's I got the Dusty Dumser sundae: three dips of our creamy vanilla ice cream topped with hot fudge, crushed malted milk balls, whipped cream and a cherry. When they say scoop, they don't mean a scoop like the ice cream scoop in the kitchen gaget drawer. You could use their scoop to dig a hole and plant a tree. I couldn't finish it, but damn, I love malted milk balls.

We had lunch and breakfast at The Dough Roller, which really doesn't count as junk food. One of the things I really appreciate about them is that I can get vegetarian dishes there (besides cheese pizza), and it's a good place to take kids.

And of course, I had Thrasher's fries covered in vinegar and salt, but Thrasher's doesn't have a web page. (This story about them appeared in the local paper while I was there, though.) I bought the medium tub, figuring I'd share with the family, nice person that I am. The kids didn't want them. Dad's gone low-carb. Even sharing with the seagulls I ate more than I needed, but what the heck, it's once a year.

And I really will go to the gym tomorrow.

Zooooom!

Check this out!

Seeing as I'm afraid to fly, this is the closest I'll ever get to space...

Nice work, Ted!

What I did on my summer vacation

A bit of history...my family has been vacationing in Ocean City (Maryland, that is, not NJ) since the dawn of time, or at least since before I was born. I have a hazy memory of being pushed along the boardwalk in a stroller. It isn't my hometown, but it is the next closest thing. So I do get a little nostalgic and emotional about it.

Anyway, we left last Saturday, driving into the path of Charley. This is the first summer I can remember where the westbound traffic away from the beach was heavier that the traffic we were in going toward the beach, and we made very good time. Of course that meant sitting around in heavy rain once we got there, but I'm not going to bitch about that...we have friends who live in Punta Gorda. (My sister did reach them Monday; they evacuated safely. I haven't heard about their house.)

With the wind and rain, we pretty much spent Saturday through Monday watching the Olympics, including the women's road race on Sunday morning. I'm actually not a big swimming or gymnastics fan, but it beat the Weather Channel.

Tuesday we went over to Assateague Island for the morning. I knew there were trails somewhere on the island, but we got there before the visitor center opened and I didn't know if we needed to head to the state park or the national park. Instead we wandered around the free roads, and the ponies came to see us.

So did the mosquitoes, in spite of the DEET we wore. So we got eaten alive, but who needs all that blood, right?

I'd hoped to try some kayaking on the Pokomoke River this summer, but after hearing from the outfitter that parts of the river might be flooded, I wussed out. I never have used a kayak before, and I'm not an experienced paddler with a canoe. So instead of checking out the cyprus swamp by boat, I decided we should go to Furnace Town and hike the Nature Conservancy trail there.

Swamp, August, hurricane, and we already knew the local bugs eat Off for breakfast. Not one of my best ideas, I guess. When we got there, the lady at the visitor center told us that the trail, which is partly boardwalk through the swamp, might be flooded, but we gave it a shot. The ground was very boggy and the water was up to the boards in the part we did walk, but we didn't do the whole thing. Not because we were swarmed by biting insects, but because Victor didn't have the heart to break througfh a spectacular spider web that crossed the boardwalk partway up the trail. Going off the trail would have required the canoe, I think.

Furnace Town itself was cool, particularly if you are interested in 19th century manufacturing. I hadn't realized that Maryland had any iron industry at all, but apparently for a brief period they mined bog ore and processed it there in the Nassawango creek, and now the land around the furnace is a reenacted company town and museum.

We took bikes, but between rain, wind, and my knees acting up, we only rode for a little bit Friday morning. And of course we did the usual beach vacation things, like playing with the kids in the water, sitting on the sand reading, and eating too much.

I also had another of my recurring lessons in impermanence, which I'll write about later. Now I'm adjusting to that vacation-lag, trying to remember what day it is and get ready to go back to work. I did go down to the office this morning, to sort my messages and make up a to-do list, and it isn't a short one.

Here I am, packing the car! Best vacation ever!

(Anyone remember that Bud Light commercial? I loved that one; no idea why.)

Anyway: vacation pictures.

Sunsets, sunrises, ponies, lizards, and of couse, waterfowl.

I'm back

And now I'm buried under mail, messages, and laundry. And blogs...boy, I have some reading to do!

I'll have pictures and stories in the next few days. Or Victor will have pictures and stories, then I'll have defenses and rebuttals.

I will admit...when he says "What kind of moron suggests a hike through a swamp in August three days after a hurricane?" he is just repeating my rhetorical question of the week.

Bye!

The last two days at work were busy, which was an annoyance, since I wanted to be spending my time booking spa appointments and planning which rum drinks I want to drink first. But I made it though, set up my out-of-office auto-reply without causing endless loop e-mails, and spent the afternoon running the last last-minute errands and throwing random things into bags.

I'm taking a laptop, because I am a pathetic geek. I'll have a dialup connection, though, so I may not blog. OTOH, if it rains all week and the alternative is another round of animal rummy with my niece, I may blog a lot. So, don't be surprised if you see me; don't worry if you don't...

I know I need a small vacation

But it does look like rain:

Could be worse; I could be booked on a trip to Florida. I hope all y'all* are okay down there.

*I used to live on the Gulf Coast, where "all y'all" is an accepted plural.

Do people resemble their pets?

You tell me.

Person

Pet

Another reason I'm glad I don't have kids

Discipline.

There's an article in today's Post about using hot sauce to discipline children. A kid tells a lie, or bites a sibling, or commits some other infraction and gets a taste of hot sauce to straighten him out.

When my ex-brother-in-law was a kid, his stepmother used to drop Tabasco on his tounge when he used foul language. Today he swears like the sailor he is, and he eats habanero peppers straight.

It obviously didn't work on my XBIL, and some parents and child experts find the practice...bizarre. Or at least ill-informed. But then there's this mother:

As a Christian, she believes that "children need to respect and obey [parents] or they won't learn to respect and obey God. God won't hot sauce you, but you need to learn consequences."

How does she know God won't hot sauce you? Maybe Hellfire is really capsaicin.

If Ted told me to jump off a bridge post a meme

Testing Meme Propagation In Blogspace: Add Your Blog

This posting is a community experiment that tests how a meme, represented by this blog posting, spreads across blogspace, physical space and time. It will help to show how ideas travel across blogs in space and time and how blogs are connected. It may also help to show which blogs (and aggregation sites) are most influential in the propagation of memes. The dataset from this experiment will be public, and can be located via Google (or Technorati) by doing a search for the GUID for this meme (below).

Please join the test by adding your blog (see instructions, below) and inviting your friends to participate—the more the better. The data from this test will be public and open; others may use it to visualize and study the connectedness of blogspace and the propagation of memes across blogs.

The GUID for this experiment is:

as098398298250swg9e98929872525389t9987898tq98wteqtgaq62010920352598gawst

The above GUID enables anyone to easily search Google or other search engines for all blogs that participate in this experiment, once they have indexed the sites that participate, which may take several days or weeks. To locate the full data set, just search for any sites that contain this GUID.

Anyone is free to analyze the data of this experiment. Please publicize your analysis of the data, and/or any comments by adding comments onto the original post (see URL above). (Note: it would be interesting to see a geographic map or a temporal animation, as well as a social network map of the propagation of this meme.)

INSTRUCTIONS

To add your blog to this experiment, copy this entire posting to your blog, and then answer the questions below, substituting your own information, below, where appropriate. Other than answering the questions below, please do not alter the information, layout or format of this post in order to preserve the integrity of the data in this experiment (this will make it easier for searchers and automated bots to find and analyze the results later).

REQUIRED FIELDS (Note: Replace the answers below with your own answers)

(1) I found this experiment at URL:
http://rocketjones.mu.nu/

(2) I found it via “Newsreader Software” or “Browsing the Web” or “Searching the Web” or “An E-Mail Message”: Browsing the Web

(3) I posted this experiment at URL: http://shoes.mu.nu/

(4) I posted this on date (day/month/year): 10/08/04

(5) I posted this at time (24 hour time): 17:01

(6) My posting location is (city, state, country): (city), Gaithersburg, MD, USA

OPTIONAL SURVEY FIELDS:

(7) My blog is hosted by: mu.nu

(8) My age is: 35

(9) My gender is: Female

(10) My occupation is: Manager

(11) I use the following RSS/Atom reader software: none

(12) I use the following software to post to my blog: MovableType

(13) I have been blogging since (day, month, year): 09/07/2003

(14) My web browser is: MS IE

(15) My operating systems are: Windows ME

Summer rerun

And getting ready for some football.

I just like to pull this out to show I'm not jumping on any bandwagon.

Item #1 on the to-do list

We went to a family wedding yesterday. I was harboring this delusion that I'd still have time last night to get other stuff done, but instead we stayed through the whole reception then ended up back at my aunt and uncle's (the bride was my cousin) and, well.

There's a family story about some relative, my grandfather's cousin, I think, who left his wedding reception for the honeymoon. Someone broke into the couple's car in a motel parking lot that night, so, having lost their luggage, they returned home the next day, only to find the party still going strong.

This party wasn't that wild, but...I was about to say I got nothing done, but you know, that's not true. I didn't do grocery shopping, laundry, cleaning, or packing (we go on vacation Saturday), but I visited with my aunts, uncles, grandmother, and family friends who have known me since birth.

It was very grounding...the old stories, the old pictures, the family reminded me how connected I am to so many people. It was also uplifting...the couple looked beautiful and genuinely happy, people laughed and danced and sang, and a tow-headed toddler ran around with his shirt untucked and his tiny little necktie in his mouth.

So this week will be busy, but I'm going into it feeling better than I've felt in weeks.

La di da

Being the cultured sophisticates we are, Victor and I are packing a picnic and a bottle of merlot and going to Wolf Trap to see the National Symphony Orchestra tonight.

(Um, don't look at those links too closely, because you'll notice that the theme for tonight's show is Bugs Bunny.)

I'm at the office...

...sitting at my desk, dilligently working away. I pick up my coffee cup for a swig...and I get a mouthful of paperclips.

Wrong cup. Good thing I didn't pick up the one full of pens; I'd have poked my eye out.

I need a vacation.

Henri Cartier-Bresson

Henri Cartier-Bresson has died.

I saw his Tête à Tête exhibit at the Portrait Gallery a few years ago. Beautiful work.

Said Cartier-Bresson:

In photography, the smallest thing can become a big subject, an insignificant human detail can become a leitmotiv. We see and we make seen as a witness to the world around us; the event, in its natural activity, generates an organic rhythm of forms.

Some do this better than others, and he was one of the best.

Maybe I'll order a pizza

I had my review at work today...rather informal, so at least it wasn't too stressful. I can't complain...I got some praise for some things where I did work really hard, but I'm the first to admit that I could have worked harder on other projects too. I didn't really expect a promotion offer or a big raise. (Hell, I spent half the year begging to be demoted, so I'm not exactly known as Miss Motivated.)

Anyway, after the 5-minute chat with my boss I pulled up the IRS web page and figured out my new withholdings. Take home, I'll be making an extra $12.75 every other Friday.

Party time!

*Full disclosure...one reason the take home is so low is that I'm bumping up my retirement plan contribution. If I kept that money, we could get pizza and beer, and probably some hot wings.

And I'm not bitching. Too many friends have been laid off or work for companies with no raises, and while my job may drive me nuts/piss me off on alternate days, I'm still glad to be working close to home, for a laid-back boss, in a field that interests me, and where I don't have to wear heels.

Fusion

That's the latest in cusine, right? Fusion.

Or perhaps eating leftover takeout Chinese wrapped in a tortilla just means I need to get my ass to the grocery store.

Meanwhile, in another bumper sticker

Repeating through my mind:

One day at a time.

Fake it 'til you make it.

(I'm not sure, but I think those are both AA slogans.)

Keep on keeping on.

(Usually sounding like Bob Dylan in Tangled Up in Blue, but sometimes Clapton doing Blues Power.)