Playing the "Grown Up" Card

My friend JR sent me a link to this story about "being an adult" on the Dooce blog today. (The post is about having low/zero tolerance for jerky behavior at concerts. I am so there.)

The post is prefaced with this: See if you can get through this post of his without using Google. Go ahead. Try it. See?

Uh, I didn't need to Google anything. I didn't get why people needed Google. Was it because of the bands? Clearly, I am still a hipster then! :-) A crabby adult hipster, but a hipster all the same. ;-) (Seriously, does this make me still a hipster that I knew all the band references in the article? I thought that all of them were fairly mainstream. Or maybe I just listen to the right radio stations, thank you Paul Driscoll on WFNX.)

The post though is really relevant to me today. I talked myself out of going to see The Fratellis tonight at the Paradise because I didn't want to deal with jerky concert goers in this heat.

Thanks to Diana for the caption idea

I think that I might have been taking my job a little too seriously on Friday.

Thanks to Diana for the caption idea

I think that I might have been taking my job a little too seriously on Friday.



photo by the Big Red EP

Still here

I have been ultra busy of late, with work and with life. Through the thoughtfulness of a colleague, I got to see JK Rowling do her thing over at Harvard. My favorite part of her speech was about her college friends: "The friends with whom I sat on graduation day have been my friends for life. They are my children's godparents, the people to whom I've been able to turn in times of real trouble, friends who have been kind enough not to sue me when I took their names for Death Eaters." I ended up leaving voice mail messages for a couple of my best college friends after that. JK is utterly right on that front; they have certainly turned out to be among the best friends in my life.

My friend Ellen took a photo of The Protégé in her cap and gown with her fellow Sloan grads. I missed seeing her march because I was across the street getting ready for the lunch (we were five minutes late), but I got to see it on the archived simulcast. I miss her already.

Events last week were particularly stressful. My car crapped out the day before a big work event, and I was stuck relying on cabs and public transportation. I realized during this particular occasion how much I really am a person who needs her car. Having the car is a huge part of my freedom and mobility, and having it taken away unexpectedly was a real blow. How American can you get? When I got it back, I did even blink at the cost of filling up the tank; I was THAT HAPPY to have my car returned.

I babysat this weekend for the Niblet while his PunkRockMom was out of town on business. Sitting through a Little League game in the sun and heat on Saturday I think earned me a cosmic/karmic prize. Good grief. Poor kid was not in good shape at the end of that game. Whose idea is it to play baseball in the summer, outside, in polyester? Lots of Gatorade was administered, STAT, along with some really good grapes we picked up at Shaw's.

After watching a good number of episodes of series one and two of "Doctor Who", we spent Sunday in the dark (relative) coolness of the NE Aquarium. My favorite fish was the octopus, with the turtle running a close second. The Niblet enjoyed the sharks (what nine year old boy DOESN'T like the sharks?) Afterwards, we went outside for a short walk around the harbor where the Niblet found seven decent sized jellyfish swimming right next to the dock. Yuck. I mean, cool, science.

After this weekend, I think that my maternal needs have been fulfilled for the time being. (Don't get me wrong. He was VERY well behaved, and we had a lot of fun despite the fact that many of the things I suggested we do were "strange". I did get bonus points for introducing the Niblet to Pizzaria Regina and for making a shepherd's pie that went over very well (I thought it had too much gravy.) I just have realized more than ever that I am not cut out for single parenthood.) Well, I thought that until I saw my friend D's little bibs and Onesies she customized as baby gifts for some friends of hers. Maybe I don't want children; maybe I just want dolls to dress.

I plan on spending this week in the air conditioning as much as possible and catching up on a lot of missed sleep.

Year of the Sidecar - Progress Report

Last night, I was watching a new episode of Doctor Who, and, in it, the Doctor's companion, Donna Noble, orders a sidecar to drink. I let out a whoop of joy. The message has been spread across the pond!

Not that it matters at all that the episode was set in the 1920s... nope, it is all about me bringing back the classic cocktails. Donna also mentions a Harvey Wallbanger, which is on the short list for 2009. :-)

One problem with Donna's sidecar - no sugared rim!! C'mon folks, it's part of the drink!

Kill Your Television

Every week, I watch "Lost" thinking "this is it, I am done. The last one. I am not going to watch this show after tonight's episode." And then they throw something at me like last night's episode, and I am totally sucked in for another week. Curse you, "Lost", you are like the mafia. Every time I try to get out, you pull me back in. (Thank goodness next week's is the season finale.)

Things that Make Me Happy

Lots going on at the moment, but I thought I would take some time jot down some good things going on in life at the moment.

1. Burritos from Anna's Taqueria. Seriously addictive and such a tasty lunchtime meal.

2. Muse. They were featured on "Live from Abbey Road" on the Sundance Channel, and it made me love them even more. I am nowhere near their biggest fan, but I have some serious love for this band.

3. Continuing on the theme of good things found on the Sundance Channel, I am totally hooked on Slings and Arrows and have rented the entire series from Netflix. If you are not familiar with this show, it is about a Shakespeare Theater Festival in Canada, and the ins and outs of their production seasons. It is clever; it is charming; it is a pretty accurate portrayal of the backbiting in the theater world. Makes me miss my college theater years desperately. (Plus, one of the "Slings and Arrows" writers wrote the musical The Drowsy Chaperone, which was one of the most funny musicals I had experienced in quite some time.)

4. The generic form of Veramyst nasal spray. It is totally knocking my allergies on their butts. Touche, allergies!

5. Catherine Tate on the new series of "Doctor Who". I didn't really like her character Donna when she turned up in the Christmas special before series 3, but I seriously love her right now. Donna is totally accessible. I feel if I were going to end up being a companion to the Doctor, she is the kind of companion I would be, except I would not be so up for the running. There is seriously LOADS of running. (It made me laugh when Donna mentioned all the running in the most recent episode.) I don't do running; it makes one sweaty. Yick.

6. Interred with Their Bones by Jennifer Lee Carrell. It is like The DaVinci Code for Shakespeare fans. I am having a hard time putting it down. BONUS POINTS for geographically accurate description of Harvard Square. (I had a dream inspired by this book the other night: I was at the Courtyard Theater in Stratford, waiting to see Hamlet, and I ended up sitting next to Oprah Winfrey, who engaged me in a debate about what makes a quality sandwich and the authorship of the plays written by William Shakespeare. I then went on a manic search throughout the theater desperately hunting for... a bathroom. I really need to get out more.)

7. I am really excited to see The History Boys at the Calderwood Pavilion this Friday. I totally loved the film; it will be interesting to see how it transfers to Boston, (I wonder if they are going to do it with accents.) The biggest concern I have is that it is going to be weird seeing it without Richard Griffiths because he was such an integral part of my enjoyment of the film. But the reviews are good, and I think it will be a fun evening out with my friends.