Sunday, July 31, 2011

Equal Air Time for All

I like sharks as much as the next person. I happen to be a big fan of all animals, not just the fuzzy cute ones. I'm fascinated by all species. So what's up with the umpteenth Shark Week on Discovery?

How'd these guys make it to the top of the list? I'll watch an episode or two once in a while, but shark week usually means I'm going to find an alternative default network on TV. We get it. They are not our enemy. They are not monsters. They are just acting on instinct. Message received. Thumbs up. What else ya got? Ah, yes, twenty two episodes on people feeding sharks.

This would explain the large amount of Netflix and Hulu watching I did this weekend.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Guilty Pleasures

I'm not sure how or under what circumstances, but a long time ago, mom came to acquire some flatware that's actually silver. As much as she's gung-ho about appearances and likes to go all out when entertaining, the silverware has been gathering dust in the hutch, likely because it's gone gray by now.

This morning she has brought me some polish, a couple of rags and two pieces: one flat-handled butter knife with little decoration and one slotted serving spoon, embellished all up the handle. I've since polished both and presented the results to her. She's ecstatic. She has told me that she found them at a thrift store when I was still in primary school and just never got around to keeping them up. I'm going to be looking up the pattern and the make when I get a chance. These are the kinds of things I get side-traced with. A few years ago, after doing the research for the three collections of a large museum in order to prep for their insurance, I very seriously considered getting an appraisal license. I'd gotten deep enough into the process to know what it entailed, I just never made up my mind about it.

For the time being, I'm going to be polishing silver as I prop myself in front of the TV with my latest guilty pleasure: USA network dramas. Specifically, White Collar and Suits. White Collar speaks to me because they're always going after the latest art heist or some antique from a dead dynasty. It's fun to hear them talk about the provenance and the historical context. I've been impressed with the research that must go on in the preparation of each episode, much of it being right on target except for in one instance when I argued something as being pre-renaissance and they claimed it to be renaissance. I'll let it slide since the onset of The Renaissance has long been hotly debated. As for Suits, I think I just really like the idea of intelligence paying off, whatever shape it comes in. I think TV caters too overwhelmingly to the lowest common denominator and if I can find a sharp mind that also makes me think, I'm in.

Still, I refer to them as guilty pleasures because for all the great premises that they put forth, they still have some polishing to do. As new series, they are going to have to hone their product, demanding better acting, in some cases, or steering from predictable characters, in others. The writing is surprisingly smart and even witty, but can get dismissed when it's not delivered correctly. I don't know who the directors are for either of the series, but I do think that they have promise.

At the moment, these are marginal shows. If anyone is watching them, I'd be surprised. I'm comforted, however, that dramas are still being made and have not completely stepped aside for reality shows about wealthy and inconsequential socialites.

I'll always be a fan of good story-telling.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Dear Diary...


Today I watched men lift things.

Hey, look, I work in the offices of an industrial building where the estrogen far outweighs the male population. From left to right, the offices belong to: The owner of the company, the Controller, and then me. They are the only two men in the near vicinity. The bull pen is full of women, whether from accounting, sales, customer service, or the executive assistant. There is an overabundance of hen talk on any given day.

This morning, I arrived at the office and walked onto a floor full of men. There were two that had come to install our new printer/fax/scanner, one who was there to coordinate the new toy to our intranet, our Controller was back from a week’s vacation, our resident mechanic was hauling things and our immediate supervisor was just wandering around, but he doesn’t count. Latter participant notwithstanding, there was much testosterone being strewn about. I immediately got on the phone to fellow female colleague downstairs, informed her of the abundance of burly voices and concocted a thinly veiled pretext for her to visit my office. I do believe I heard galloping.

The day was a pretty much shot to hell, the way days are when routine gets tossed out the window. It was like assembly day at a junior high. The activity was distracting and eventually put a halt to our actual work when the new machine was declared installed and then proceeded not to print, scan, or fax anything. Everyone’s systems had to be set to default to a second printer which promptly decided to jam, leaving us with no further options until we banged on, cursed it, and walked around to dilute tempers. It eventually came back to life but by then it was so late in the day that we were all pretty much just going with the flow anymore, and watching as the assembly of men slowly trickled down to one.

The last guy left with the rest of us at the close of the work day, with our brand new gadget plugged in and completely useless. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Cry Me a River

So, I’ve been noticing these “articles” about how everyone hates Netflix now. I don’t get it. What’s the problem? I’ve had Netflix for a couple of years now and am quite the happy subscriber. The hubbub seems to be centered around the recent price increases. Seems that the initial $9.99 per month for unlimited DVDs (one at a time) and on-line streaming has been done away with and in its place you have the option of $7.99 for unlimited DVDs or unlimited streaming. Lower price, but only one or the other. If you want the combined package, you have to pay $15.98 now. Six bucks more. This is what all the fuss is about.

I’ve been on the same plan since I initially signed up. I get unlimited DVDs (3 at a time) and unlimited streaming. I was originally paying $18 and now I’m paying $24. When I got the email notice, I didn’t bat an eyelash. I read it, made a mental note to adjust my excel spreadsheet for my monthly budgeting, and then deleted the email.

I think that anyone who knows me knows that I’m not made of money. I don’t have limitless bags of cash stashed anywhere. I’m not married to some sugar daddy. I have a job that pays the bills and leaves me enough to – when carefully budgeted – inject various forms of entertainment and indulgence into my life. Let’s look at the plan that I have. I chose three DVDs at a time for one very simple reason. On Monday I watch DVD 1. On Tuesday I watch DVD 2 and return DVD 1. On Wednesday I watch DVD 3, return DVD 2. On Thursday I watch DVD 4 which starts the cycle all over again. Mathematically, I can watch one movie per day without counting Sundays (no mail service) all month.

Let’s talk round numbers. On a 30-day month, that means 30 movies, minus the four Sundays which brings us to 26. But wait. Remember, I get unlimited streaming. If I were jobless, needed no sleep or had a house full of people all on some rotating schedule to watch movies, we could argue that streaming could happen 24 hours per day. At a 30-day month, that’s 720 hours. Again, using round numbers (I’m not one to get too prickly about exacts) if we imagine that the average movie is an hour and a half, you could – technically - watch 480 movies in one month. If you add the 26 that you got on DVD, and that’s 506 movies. For 24 bucks. That’s about 4.7 cents per movie.

But I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking there’s no need to get hyperbolic about this. No one watches movies round the clock. Ok. So let’s be a little more realistic, while still being indulgent. Assuming the aforementioned 26 DVDs per month and one streamed movie per day (all 30 days), you could rack up 56 movies. That’s a whopping 42.8 cents per movie. That’s if you’re on my very frivolous $24 monthly plan. If you were less inclined, you could do similar damage on the $16 per month plan, getting DVDs less frequently and making up for it with more streaming. If you still stick to the two movies per day, you’re getting 56 movies for 28.5 cents.

By the way, I haven’t even mentioned that you could always make up the lost Sunday delivery with another streamed movie, therefore, getting your full 60 movies per month. But we’ll leave that alone.

Forty-two cents for a movie is pretty good. Last weekend I went to the movies with a friend and paid 12 bucks. No one seems to have a problem with that. Yeah, I know: Netflix doesn’t have the movies that are out NOW. You gotta pay for that with the big bucks. But I’ve had no problem waiting two months more for it to come to my home. I’ve suffered no pain or embarrassment for watching a movie after many have already seen it. And when I do go to the movie theaters, it’s still fun to do. I still factor it in for the stuff I think is worth it. So why is a six dollar increase such a catastrophe? In a whole month the entire extra spending you are doing is six dollars. You can barely get a hamburger for that. Most people spend more than that on their daily lunch.

Netflix is easily the most economically sound expense in my budget. If things get really ugly and I have to cut out the theatrical productions, the dinners out, the coffee dates with friends, or even the specialty groceries for experimental cooking days, I can still fit in the $24 for all the movies I can watch. I can still get a month’s worth of entertainment for about the cost of six gallons of gas.

I think we need to stop complaining and realize that Netflix provides a non-essential service. If this were about potable water in a third world environment, yes, I’d have a problem with price haggling. But we’re talking about the fringe benefits of a stable economy. Yes, I said stable. When you have the luxury to complain about non-essentials at these prices, you clearly have food on your table and a roof over your head. There is economic stability when you can think of entertainment. Don’t tell yourself otherwise.

I don’t think Netflix’s prices are at all unreasonable. I think the opposite is true. I think we got away with some extraordinary prices before the price increase and we should shut up and be grateful that the ride was as good as it was for a while. And now, I think we should acknowledge that $16 is an embarrassingly small amount of money to be whining about when we live in a world of $300 phones and $200 jeans. Perspective, people. Don’t lose it.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Calling All Techies

See the pretty flower? It’s lovely, innit? Mm-hm.

In April I was fiddling with my cell phone and in the spirit of April showers I put up a picture of water drops on glass as my wallpaper. That was going on 4 months ago, now. I’ve not changed said picture. I’d like to. I’d like to put up that pretty daisy.

I have absolutely no idea how to.

I’ve tried everything within my imaginative and logical thought processes, all to no avail. I’ve emailed it to myself, I’ve searched for (and found it) on my phone, I’ve attached it to my email, I’ve embedded it in an email…

What gets me is that I clearly managed to do this once before. Refer to the image of raindrops, please. I guess this would all be easier if I had one of those schmancy, latest-model gizmo phones. Mine is not a smartphone. At best, it’s somewhat clever. I can make and receive calls. I can text. I can even check my email and respond to stuff. I can perform some searches, but I usually can’t open any actual web pages. I don’t have a data plan, so even if the gadgetry allowed for it, it’s not something I’ve signed up for.

This is not a complaint. I actually don’t use my phone enough to justify the kind of bills that a data plan and smartphone would rack up. I know this because I’ve been coasting on rollover minutes for about 4 months now, with little need to bump up my monthly plan in the near future. I’m quite content with my phone. It’s low maintenance, not designed to impress anyone, serves its purpose, and keeps my bills down. It’s like me.

I just can’t seem to get the dang flower to stick to the dang screen so I can have a pretty screen to look at.

Which brings me to my next point. I know it’s not a phone problem. I’m a big girl. I can say it. I’m technologically inept. Not completely, mind you. Just have some blind spots, is all. It’s almost like I’m an informed luddite. I get it, I just don’t get all of it. As much as I’m a relatively educated woman and can dance circles around much of the basic 21st century techno-novelties, this phone is kicking my butt. In this I have conceded victory and am ready, willing, and able to accept some form of tutorial so as to move on, for the love of God, and not be crushed by a mere piece of plastic with cyber-guts.

If you live near or around me, please come to my rescue.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

"With Love, With Patience, and With Grace, She'll Make Her Way" --Natalie Merchant


Today I saw Bridesmaids with a friend. It wasn’t as funny as everyone was making it out to be. To hear all the noise, it would have me rolling in the aisles, and rolling, I was not. That’s not to say that it wasn’t funny. I did have quite the chuckle at many of the scenes, and I did very much enjoy the movie.

In general, though, I think it brought out the thought process the way moments in my life do. You all know how I over-analyze my life at the slightest jiggle. This movie made me think of the women in my life. I’ve been pretty blessed in this as in many aspects of my life.

I have the newest “acquisition” in the friend department, a client from my tutoring classes who’s interests, intelligence, and emotional generosity has transitioned her firmly into the “friend” category. Our classes evolved from structured lessons to casual conversations over coffee. Now, our weekly meetings are more social than educational and we’ve delved into activities outside of our schedule. Our friendship is all about theater productions and cultural events. We’ve discovered near identical interests and being the same age, a renewed energy for the coming decade.

Friends that I’ve made at work, both past and present, are slightly younger and keep me from taking myself too seriously. They can simultaneously share in my passion for nerdy interests, and then insist I step out of my comfort zone. These are the people I’ll lighten up and have a beer with even though I hate beer and am more of a wine girl with a big ‘ole stick up my butt. These are the women I can call up at a moment’s notice and pretty much know I can meet in half an hour. Just as single and uncommitted as I, we don’t have to check with husbands and children; we just slip on some shoes and head out the door.

Within that group is the very specific number of friends who share one particular bond. There are three of us. There used to be four. Losing one of us has been an experience that unifies us in a way few other experiences do. A second one of us has recently moved far enough away that socializing has been compromised. So the two of us that are left are holding on and reminding ourselves that we’ve been through some stuff together that no one else will ever understand. We knew someone once… You would have loved her.

Lastly, there are the cousins who double as sisters. I hate that we live so far from each other because we are finally at those ages where numbers don’t mean much anymore. All of my life, they’ve all been so much older than me that we were all going through very different stages in our lives. When I was in high school, they were getting married and having babies. When I was in college, they were dealing with mortgages and time-outs. As much as we’ve been in each other’s lives during holidays and events, for a long time it has felt like we have to start over every time we see each other. Getting caught up and getting the latest. But the babies are all grown up and some even have their own babies now. A whole generation has come along and we are still in each others’ periphery. I can see that having progressed into new chapters has the potential for a different relationship. We are all just women now. Women who have been through both difficult and blessed lives. Not only do I love them for being my family, but I actually like these women. I find them fascinating and inspiring. I respect what they’ve accomplished and am proud of their strength. I’m comforted that there has been a new effort to get back in touch and that there is more communication now.

Everyone should have someone they’ve known all their lives. It’s humbling. And everyone should have someone that challenges their status quo. It expands your life. I don’t plan on getting married, and I’ve always discouraged any friends to ever consider me for a bridesmaid. I cringe at the slightest hint of formal ceremony. But I do know that I like to look around, occasionally, and recognize the Kodak Moment of a day at the theater or sitting across from a friend at a dinner table. I think of my life as a series of really great little stories and I very much like my cast of characters.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Speak and Ye Shall be Heard

Cousin of mine emailed me and asked about the origins of the title of this blog. I'm not sure I've explained it, so I thought I'd share it with those of you who read regularly:

N
epenthe is one of my favorite stops along Hwy 1 when I do the inevitable, occasional road trip. I always make it a point to stop there before dark so as to get the views. It's a beautiful restaurant and shop that butts up against the cliffs of the pacific, with a terrace that hangs over the flora and provides some truly serene views.

But, the title I gave my blog is a direct quote from The Raven: ..."respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore".

I used to know about 7 stanzas of the long poem, now it's kind of fuzzy. But I remember that line just came to me when I was creating the blog. I wanted it to be a place of solace, comfort. A place to invite only people who were going to be sources of support and positivity. Mostly it was going to be a place to write about my favorite things: books, music, art. So I saw it as a bubble of happiness where the bad stuff could not enter. The words respite and nepenthe, coming from my all time favorite poem, and with their meaning encapsulating the ambiance so well, just seemed perfect.

As I write this, I've come to realize that more people are reading than is reflected on the little "followers" list. Most of you respond by email, only a couple of you ever really post a comment. And some of you just pick up the phone or wait till we see each other in "real life" to give me your feedback. Knowing this is a sort of mixed blessing: on the one hand it's mortifying to scramble and try to remember what I've written lately and whether anyone has taken offense to either content or my expressive [read: questionable language] style. On the other hand, I keep telling myself that if you've been invited to this little corner, it's because I've already reflected and consider you to be someone who knows me well enough to know that I'm neither perfect nor entertain any claims to be so. I've already identified you as someone that I feel safe being myself with. Thank you for that.

I'm glad you're reading.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

I'm Not Kidding

I'm pretty crabby right now.

Hide the puppies.

I Need a Dartboard

I feel like throwing things. I'm taking a break from work. I've been putting out fires all day and I'm tired of problem solving other people's problems. I'm tired of fixing things I didn't break. I'd like to do MY job before the day is out.

I need to sit under the sprinklers with my dog.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Stream of Consciousness

One minute in the life of this brain:
  • How does one consolidate three boxes worth of files into a one-drawer filing cabinet? I see a bonfire in my future.
  • I should really wash that glass I used for dinner.
  • Tomorrow: mani/pedi... I have no business showing up to work looking like this on Monday.
  • Trying to sit through a whole episode of In Plain Sight is acutely discomforting.
  • I like doing laundry. It's the folding and hanging up that's the turn-off.
  • I think I should go in to work early on Monday. 6am. An extra hour to get a headstart.
  • Need to get that new hammock tomorrow.
  • There has to be something worth watching on TV.

"So, how did the lesbian handle her caulk?" - John

It's a long story but if you ever meet Dina, she tells about the adventures of caulking her bathtub with her butch lesbian neighbor really well. This is one of the many shared stories as we stood in line outside the Jon Lovitz Comedy Club last weekend.

I'd been wanting to see the show, an informal Hollywood-tabloid-type set up with Ralph Garman from KROQ's morning radio show, and Kevin Smith, of various independent films. I finally managed to draft a few friends into making the trek to the far reaches of Los Angeles with me. There was much laughing, as there ought to have been, but not nearly enough drinking, as I'm not really one to booze it up in any extreme way. What surprised me was that even the two hefty portions of vodka tonic had little effect.

Nonetheless, there was happiness to be had, and had it was. Laughing is good. I highly recommend it.

I'm going to go harass the fridge now.

Keep Reading, Ladies

This one is taken from an email that was shared at work today. I just thought it was so appropriate for my little haven, here, where books are idolized and readers are immediately considered friends:

Never Argue with a Woman

One morning, a husband returns the boat to their lakeside cottage after several hours of fishing and decides to take a nap. Although not familiar with the lake, the wife decides to take the boat out. She motors out a short distance, anchors, puts her feet up, and begins to read her book. The peace and solitude are magnificent.

Along comes a Fish and Game Warden in his boat. He pulls up alongside the woman and says, 'Good morning, Ma'am. What are you doing?'

'Reading a book,' she replies, (thinking, 'Isn't that obvious?')

'You're in a Restricted Fishing Area,' he informs her.

'I'm sorry, officer, but I'm not fishing. I'm reading.'

'Yes, but I see you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start at any moment. I'll have to take you in and write you up.'

'If you do that, I'll have to charge you with sexual assault,' says the woman.

'But I haven't even touched you,' says the Game Warden.

'That's true, but you have all the equipment… For all I know you could start at any moment.'

'Have a nice day ma'am,' and he left.

MORAL:

Never argue with a woman who reads.

It's likely she can also think.

Carmageddon


Seriously, people. Stop it.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

AAAAAAARRRRRGHHHH!

A spider bit me on my boob!

This is catastrophic. It was a tiny bugger, but it did its damage quite thoroughly. This is the second spider bite in the last week. I'm guessing it's due to the sudden heat wave we've had and the scurrying to close windows and crank up the AC.

Now I've got a great big 'ole spider bite on my boob. As if I weren't already deformed enough in that department.

Yeah, I killed it, by the way.

Dragging


Once in a while, life catches up with me. I have no other way to explain it except that. I start to slow down. Sometimes it's a simple iron adjustment, as I remember to add liver to my diet and make a point to review whether I've had red meat lately. Sometimes it's not quite the simple fix and it requires a check up with doc and a med adjustment.

I'm not sure which one this is. I hope it's just the need for more iron. Tomorrow I'll stop at the grocery store for some liver and broccoli. Hopefully, that should do the trick as I get back into the swing of things.

I just spent the day completely exhausted, achy, and lethargic. I'm nowhere near ready to go back to work tomorrow. I could really use a week off, yet, the way I feel I suspect I'd need another after that. This is how I know something's off and it's time to shift the usual mode of operation.

The saving grace is that I did get some chores done today. Otherwise I'd really feel bad. I don't like me like this.

Monday, July 4, 2011

...And, So it Ends

  • The dogs are appeased (actually, Coco thought the whole thing was pretty since he's gone deaf).
  • The cats have yet to be dragged out from under the bed.
  • My bedroom windows have been re-opened (yay for fresh air!)
  • Annoying sibling has left (yay for silence and an end to negativity!)
  • I've donned my bear hug pjs
  • I've pinned my hair up and taken it down about 11 times this evening
  • I finally decided on the next book I'll be reading
  • It's too hot to sleep
  • I could really use another 3 days

Friday, July 1, 2011

Thus Begins Our 3-Day Weekend


I have absolutely nothing noteworthy planned for the long weekend. I'm perfectly fine with that. Sitting in the yard, under the sprinklers, with a slurpy and my dog is about as elaborate a thought as I've come up with. Anything beyond that, I'll have to play by ear. I do know that extended sleeping bouts will be involved, as will some semblance of exposure to the sun, since I've become yellow over the winter.

And air conditioning. I suspect the AC will be worn to a nub by the end of the three days.