Wallet Woes

My wallet was lifted out of my bag this morning, somewhere between 28th/5th and 28th/Broadway.

I had only had about 2.75 in it, my debit card, some old UFT ID and insurance information, an expired Driver's license, some receipts, library cards for both Queens and NYC, maybe a moth - so it was no great loss, except. . .

The beautiful earrings that Jon gave me our first night in our new apartment were in my wallet.

Why was I carrying them around? Because no matter how fine the earrings I wear, my earlobes get irritated and sore. I carried them around because I couldn't wear them all the time, just some times.

I'm not big into jewellry but those really meant something to me.

Well. At least my robbery didn't involve any physical violence. I am thankful for that. I just feel a little violated, I guess.

Put His Money Where His Mouth Is

Here it is and believe me when I tell you it is good.
Why We Must Not Re-Elect President Bush, by George Soros.

Billion Dollar Ball$

Billionaire George Soros is spending his money on an anti-Bush election campaign. He is distributing his pamphlet, Why we must not re-elect President Bush, to 2 million voters. He is travelling to 12 cities to speak with local news and media about why we must not re-elect President Bush. He also plans to run ads in several US papers including the Wall Street Journal.

(From Turkish Press.com) "This is the most important election of my lifetime," Soros writes in the brochure. "I have never been heavily involved in partisan politics but these are not normal times. President Bush is endangering our safety, hurting our vital interests and undermining American values. That is why I am sending this message."

It's probably not a good idea to get on Mr. Soros's bad side. Dennis Hastert suggested on Fox News Sunday (link here for transcript of show) back in August, that Mr. Soros has been earning his billions through illegal drug activity (link here for Slate article).

What will happen next? Will George Soros run a successful anti-Bush campaign? Will the undecideds (if they actually still exist) issue their one vote for a viable candidate like John Kerry or give their votes to candidates that don't stand a chance in hell of winning like Ralph Nadar or Homer Simpson? We'll just have to wait until November to find out.

Update

Progress Apartment
Jon and I added a new piece of furniture to the living room - a day bed that we placed amidst our bookshelves for our library corner. Also, we've been enjoying the kitchen table we bought two weeks ago and assembled ourselves.

Weekend
Friday - worked, played, drank, slept
Saturday - slept, awoke, prayed, slept, ate, watched Glengarry Glenross
Sunday - slept, awoke, cleaned, rearranged, brunched, rented movie, cleaned, played Scrabble, watched The Passion of the Christ, slept.

About The Passion of the Mel
Not having a deep and abiding understanding of the stories, fables and fantasies surrounding the death of Jesus, I had a hard time understanding the movie beyond this one point. Jesus suffered. Who was there when he suffered and why he was suffering, I couldn't tell you because nobody in the movie spoke to each other or addressed each other by name. Well, Mel did seem to go out of his way to paint Pontius Pilot in a sympathetic light or at least I think it was Pontius Pilot. Mel also really seemed to stress that the leading Jews of Jesus's day were very much against him and were adamant that he not only be tortured but crucified and humiliated as well.

I don't know any more about the Jesus coming out of the movie than going into it except that he sure could take a beating.

Yom Kippur

Today is the day of atonement and boy did I atone. Jon and I went to services this morning at our local synagogue in Astoria through my bad hangover. Don't look so surprised. Amidst the overwhelmingly Christian Orthodox and Muslim population of my neighborhood, there exists a Jewish congregation on Crescent Street called The Astoria Center of Israel.

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Last night, I convinced young Sarah to leave her borough for a second night a row. Once in Astoria, we had difficulty deciding what to do. It's always very exciting when a friend visits your house for the first time. I wanted to show her all my stuff and she wanted to see it. After a tour of our movie collection (Jon's and mine) we decided to watch a movie. I wanted to show Sarah A Star is Born, starring James Mason and Judy Garland. That got boring really quick. There is a feature before the movie, of the premiere for A Star is Born. Quite a large number of stars were brought up to a podium to be interviewed before the movie started. They basically all said the same thing - that they were looking forward to seeing the movie. Stars interviewed include Liberace and his mother, Ricky and Lucy, Janet Leigh and some guy. Then after getting through that interminable pre-movie feature, the movie opens with a premiere, which was just as long and winding as the one before the movie. BORING!!! We were too antsy for that.

So then we tried to watch a movie starring Judy Garland where she was a lot more innocent, because in A Star is Born she was quite boozy and over the edge and a little too thin. So we put in The Wizard of Oz, which is absolutely on my list of favorite films. We made it all the way "out of the woods" to the gates of the Emerald City. Maybe we have just seen the movie too many times, because we turned it off and moved on to something else. That something else was hanging out with my neighbors until 3 in the morning. Hanging out in this case is synonymous with drinking gin with key lime juice and gin with cassis.

That is why when I woke up this morning at 9 to attend services with Jon, my head felt as heavy as a led zeppelin. Jon was already ready to go by the time I awoke but I managed to throw together a nice outfit in 5 minutes or less. We were off to services.

We got there 15 minutes into the service so we didn't miss too much. Everything was going swimmingly. Granted the songs were unfamiliar to me, but that happens when you go to a new temple, except in the case of the prayers surrounding the torah ceremonies. Usually those songs are the same from temple to temple. We were sitting in the back, under this overhang, when everyone rose for the removal of the torah for ceremonial march around the temple (giving everyone an opportunity to kiss it) and then the reading. That is one of my favorite songs. It's the Kee Meetzi-ohn and it's quite a lovely tune, quite enjoyable to sing along with. Being under the overhang, we didn't know that above us was an organist and a choir being led by the cantor from below.

Well, that killed it for me. How do you sing along with opera singers that are butchering your favorite prayer? The answer is you don't. We left shortly after the torah was replaced, just before the Amidah service.

The moral of this story is that organs, choirs and synagogues don't mix. If I wanted to go to church, I would go to church.

It was jarring.

After the services, I came home and slept until 7:30, pretty much giving the day over to my endless need for sleep.

Please write to me about your own Yom Kippur experiences and your views about attending synagogue as an adult as it compares with your childhood experiences. You can send those to genxmisanthrope@aol.com or comment below.

Huh?

Dogs sniff out bladder cancer.

Why?

Random Links

Cupping
Plating

Forking
Knifing
Spooning

More Trivia?

Yes. The answer is always yes. Tonight, I'll be attending Drinking and Thinking at Dempsey's on the Lower East Side. Jon is c0-hosting tonight and has been preparing his questions in secret all week. I'm really looking forward to attending because, gosh darn it, he's just so good at hosting trivia and I'm dying to know what he's been working on.

Something To Think About

Last night Michael and I hosted trivia for a modest crowd. There were 8 team present and a lot of new faces.

• Winning team - can't remember but they had 35.5 points, out of a possible 50. If you remember their name please mention it in the comments section.
• Funniest team name - Capitalism Stole My Virginity, although Michael and I were the only two who thought so.
• Last place prize - went to Hungry Girls - they won a granola bar.

Michael ran three excellent rounds. His top ten list was to name the first 10 Democrat Presidents. Audio round was to name the artists covering various Beatles songs and naming the Beatle song - songs ranged from William Shatner's version of Lucy in the Sky to George Burn's cover of a Sgt. Pepper's song. The visual round was merely to name the entertainer pictured but the theme was that all the entertainers had alliterative names.

I took on the General Knowlege and Current Events Rounds. For fun, I've listed my egg themed general knowlege round below.

1. Varieties of this vegetable include the large and purple; the skinny, lavender Japanese variety; and a small, white version. Name the vegetable.
2. What great novel takes place in New York City, the valley of ashes and East Egg and West Egg, Long Island?
3. Do you remember Egghead? He was the super smart bad guy whose brain was too big for his head was rumored to be the world's smartest villain. Who played him in the 1960's Batman TV show?
4. When I was a child, my younger brother and I used to create many adventures for these little egg shaped people utilizing accessories like their tree house and their cars. What were the names of these little toys that wobbled but never fell down?
5. Which Czar commissioned the first Faberge egg as a gift for his wife the Czarina Maria in1884?
6. According to Martha Stewart.com "these small, white, stringy pieces help anchor the yolk to the thick white, and are most apparent in fresh eggs. They are harmless, but can be removed through straining for aesthetic purposes." What part of the egg is she defining?
7. How often do chicken lay eggs?
8. What are the three ingredients in an egg cream?
9. How bird lays the smallest egg coming in at .02 ounces? You can put 4700 of them into an ostrich egg.
10. Hard boil some eggs, removing the yolks, mixing with mayonnaise, paprika and spicy seasoning -- then scoop the prepared yolk back into the eggs. What have you just made?

Tuesday Night Trivia

I am hosting Tuesday Night Trivia.
Please come down and bring some friends.

A Theory to Poop On

Did you hear they have found methane in the Martian atmosphere? Scientists (see article) are arguing whether or not this is proof of life.

Just think, someone or something could be pooping on Mars.

The Weekend

Every time I try to write about the weekend, I get interrupted.

So, I'm linking here and here so you can get an idea of what I did and where I went.

3 books purchased at Cranberry Bookworm
Are you There God, It's Me Margaret
A Journey to the Center of the Earth
A book on greek mythology

Cranberry, NJ

After visiting Cranberry, we continued on to Princeton, our final destination. Having attended a state university in New York and not having even the closest exposure to a school like Princeton, I was pretty envious when I saw what the campus. I can't even imagine what my school experience would have been like amidst the beautiful environs of ivy colored walls as opposed to the brick on brick existence of SUNY Purchase. Do you see the picture on the right? This is the campus of an arts college. The building on the right was the library. The building on the left, the school store. There were 8 other buildings on campus and they all looked the same. Brick. Our paper was called The Load . . . as in "one brick short of a". . .

Tiger Tiger Saved My Life

Roy Horn is talking to the press 1 year after his tiger Montecore mauled him during a performance. He insists that the tiger was trying to save his life after Montecore witnessed what Roy described as a stroke. He felt dizzy and fell down. Montecore dragged him to the edge of the stage because he knew that was where Roy would be able to get help.

I don't know how much of that is true but I do know that a lot of people were concerned about Roy Horn after this happened. For those of you who are fans, I'm sure you are relieved that Mr. Horn is doing well considering the extent of his injuries.

For those of you who aren't fans, I'm sure you are relieved as well. If you're like me, you're not a fan but were concerened just the same. I was pretty amazed when I read this article at the PEOPLE website at how well he is doing.

Welcome back to the media circus Roy Horn.

The Red Train

Did anyone else notice that the red train doesn't run on the 7 line anymore? All of the red trains are being replaced by newer trains.

Here is a link to Kevin Walsh's FORGOTTEN NEW YORK where he explains what is happening in his article Bye Bye Redbird.

I think it is a little bit sad that this old and familiar bit of New York folklore is being replaced.

R.I.P. Johnny Ramone

Johnny Ramone dies in sleep
At his bedside were Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder and Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante.

Johnny Ramone of 'The Ramones' Dies at 55
Johnny Ramone, Member of Punk Legends 'The Ramones,'
Dies at 55 After Battle With Cancer

Punk guitarist Johnny Ramone dies
Johnny Ramone, guitarist in punk band The Ramones, has died at the age of 55 following a long fight against cancer.

Punk legend Johnny Ramone dies of cancer
Johnny Ramone, lead guitarist of The Ramones, the punk band that influenced a generation of rock musicians, has died in Los Angeles after a five year battle with prostate cancer. He was 55.

Johnny Ramone, member of punk legends 'The Ramones,' dies at 55

According to MTV.com, Johnny Ramone died of prostate cancer last night.

Love The Bunny

Sarah did a good job last night co-hosting trivia. Yes. Her audio round was very challenging. I mean who ever heard of the musical Pal Joey except for two or three people there last night. Thank goodness one of those people was on my team. Well, the whole game couldn't be as easy as the visual round, where we had to identify the characters from the movie versions of the Harry Potter books. Our team got 12 out of 12.

Speaking of our team, which last night was named 4 Words or Less, we achieved the highest score of all the team, making us the 1st place winners.

But that isn't the good news. The good news is that Candy Blue Kite did not make the bunny cry.

You're Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile

Does a smile have to be genuine? Does it really matter? How important is smiling to getting along with others? Cosmic Zephyr wrote a nice piece about the importance of smiling in Western culture and how it contrasts with some Asian cultures. He writes:

"But, the cynic in me does wonder how genuine [smiles] are. I suppose I [have] to attribute that to the Asian way of upbringing which is to keep a mindful distance, and speak only when spoken to. Sadly, this behavior has often been misconstrued by most foreigners as being cold or rude. Hence, I've made a conscious effort to dispel that notion by initiating a gentle smile and acknowledgement to strangers or people I know. Thanks to increased Westernization, the Asian culture is slowly evolving (and vice-versa) into a more globally accepted one."

Living in the melting pot (I know, trite) that is New York City, I've picked up that different cultures have different ways of showing respect for one another. In some, direct eye contact is rude. In some, not making eye contact is rude. This leads to a lot of anger and misunderstanding (e.g. Korean shop owners vs. Brooklyn during Mayor Dinkins administration). It's a shame we aren't more culturally aware of each other. I don't think it's because we're mean people or anything, I just think that, especially in the case of New York City, there are so many people living together from so many different countries, it's impossible to understand the cultural mores of each country represented.

Anyway, Cosmis Zephyr linked to a great BBC quiz that allows you to see how good you are judging whether a smile is real or not. You can link to that here.

Twosday

Good morning. Let me start his post by saying that over the last two nights I watched The Menagerie from my new Star Trek DVD. Awesome. Just awesome. Not only is it a prime example of 60's science fiction but it's laugh out loud funny. If you've seen it and agree that it's funny, please write to me. If you don't think it's funny, you can still write to me. My address for all matters concerning or relating to this site is genxmisanthrope@aol.com

It's early Tuesday morning and the garbage men are making their bi-weekly rounds. The trucks are noisy and smelly. The work of throwing our trash into their truck is loosening up pungent trash odors and releasing them into the air.

I don't know why I'm up so early. Maybe it's just because I miss listening to Howard Stern (go to his website to register to vote) so much. Nah, that's not it. I'm listening to his show now and it's like I didn't even miss a day never mind 2 months. He's arguing with his producer Tom about what a bad job Tom is doing; how he can't wait to leave the show; how he only has so much time life on his contract; how he is responsible for everything that is holy on the radio. What a kvetcher!!! He's became the most successful DJ in the history of radio by complaining, every day, about being on the radio. Isn't it ironic? Don't cha think? It's not the seemingly pornographic content I don't like. It's his constant whining. Oy!!!! The whining about his job and the constant arguing with his staff is the reason I stopped listening to the show and I've been listening since 1985 (that's a long time for those of you who are bad at math).

Tonight should be fun. Sarah is hosting Tuesday Night trivia tonight at 7:30 p.m. to be exact. She is hosting with Neil. Besides . . . I have to go. We all do. It seems that the people at Candy Blue Kite are holding a bunny hostage and if we don't go, they are going to make the bunny cry.

Oprah's Amazing Give Away

Say what you want about Oprah but I think she is just about the nicest talk show host out there.



Talk show host Oprah Winfrey sits atop a Pontiac G6 outside her Chicago studios Monday, Sept. 13, 2004, surrounded by some of the 276 people from her audience who each received one of the new cars at the start of the show to celebrate the premier of her 19th season. Winfrey said the audience members were particularly chosen because their friends or loved ones had told the show about their need for a new car. (AP Photo/Harpo Productions, Bob Davis)

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

Perhaps it's bad form to wish myself a Happy Birthday on my own blog but then again, if I don't mention it to people, how can anyone deliver Happy Birthday sentiments to me? Last night, for the first time in my adult life, I threw myself a birthday part. I invited my friends to join me for dinner at Doyers Vietnam, a fantastic little hole in the wall place on Doyers Street in Chinatown.

I had a really good time. I haven't had a birthday party with friends since I was a teenager and I forgot how much fun it could be.

Do you remember a few weeks ago when I posted that I wanted the Star Trek Season 1 DVD for my birthday? Well, so did my friends. I was so excited when they handed me the present I read the card second which I know was really impolite, but they seemed to forgive me when they saw the jubillation on my face. Or hopefully they did.

So, thank you to my friends for helping me celebrate the end of my 37th year of life and the beginning of my 38th year. For those of you who are confused, I just turned 37. The year I was born was a very interesting year. Read about it here.

Mona Lisa - Hottie or Has Been

The writer Tom Utley expressed his disappointment with seeing the Mona Lisa for the first time in his 50 years of life. He claims that seeing La Jaconde at the Louvre was hardly any different than seeing one of her many, many reproductions on mugs, postcards, key chains, etc. He thought that if the curators of the Louvre had attached the price tags to the paintings at the Louvre, perhaps people would be more interested in the Mona Lisa and the paintings on the way to her gallery. He didn't seem to get what the big deal was about seeing a painting that he can buy a copy of for say 10 pounds (I think he's British). I couldn't figure out if he's pro reproducing art, con reproducing art or just anti art. I guess some people just have a hard time understanding why some art objects take on such great value.

With regard to reproductions, I say "Huzzah. Keep them coming." It is through cheap reproductions that people get to see artworks they may never have an opportunity to travel to and visit with. It is such an opportunity for those of us who aren't fortunate enough to travel the world to see artworks that in the past have been primarily seen by those who could afford to buy or be in the circumstances to see them. I saw the Mona Lisa and I couldn't have been more excited even though I'd seen her in text books, on mugs, on notebook covers, etc. If anything, that much exposure to the painting gave me even more of an opportunity to appreciate it. The Venus de Milo. I saw her there too. Even though I'd seen her image oodles of times before, it still made my heart jump a little to see Venus just standing there on a pedestal in the middle of a gallery.

It's such a strange article. Please read it and tell me what you think.

Steppin' Out

The author of this article attended a blogger party that sounds suspiciously like the one we all attended this weekend.

What do you think? Could there be a connection?

Apres Le Deluge, Moi or Wet Wednesday

Yesterday, in New York City, we were struck hard by the remnants of Frances, the hurricane I vowed to never again to discuss. So for the remainder of this posting Frances will be referred to by other weather terminology about water falling out of the sky. We reportedly received three inches of rain between 6 and 9 in the morning, screwing up subway service in four of the five boroughs - I'm sure it would have been screwed up service in Staten Island as well if SI had a subway.

Here is a description of my commute which is most likely typical of everyone elses.

train
I arrived at subway platform at 8:15 in the morning. Remember my train is an elevated train. When I arrived I saw there was an "N" waiting in the station. At first I was excited because how often, during rush hour, do you happen upon a train waiting for you with its doors open? Not often - is the correct answer. I read Memoirs of a Geisha while people piled on to the platform. Once I saw the train was really delayed, about 8:30, I called into the office. It wasn't so bad outside. It was drizzling and it was about 70 degrees. I looked around. People didn't seem upset or angry, just puzzled.

I certainly wasn't either upset or angry. If the train was stuck on my way home, I probably would have been on the verge of tears. But on the way to work - just more time out of the office. By 9:15 I was on a train on it's way to the big city. I had to get out of it at Queensboro Plaza because it was just too darn packed in there. The 7 train was running beautiful and wasn't too crowded for a change. At Grand Central Station I transferred for a 6 train. I had a let a couple of those go by because of the crowds and finally I was able to catch a ride down to 28th Street. The whole process took about 90 minutes. I walked into the office about 10 minutes after 10. Everyone was there already and of course they all came from the suburbs.

It was kind of a hum drum day at work. The tasks were the same but I guess the weather was bringing everyone down. Everyone had a story. Last night, I went to the RussianTurkish Baths as if the streets of New York weren't steamy enough, I needed more. I was accompanied by Sarah who didn't need much convincing. I used the same masseuse as last time and got a pretty decent massage although I won't say it was the best one I've ever had. The masseuse seemed rather obsessed with working on my hips and right buttock saying that the muscles are just very tight there.

Down in the saunas one can find many different body types. For the most part they are the types you might typically find at a County Fair and of course there are your ridiculously gorgeous women with the impossible to achieve bodies. There was one woman there last night who I've seen on both of my previous trips. She's old, skinny woman - a pile of bones held together by some loose fitting skin. I nicknamed her Grandma Death because she looked like that character from the movie Donnie Darko. She looks like how Grandma Death would look if she was almost naked and soaking wet. Weirdly enough she punched Sarah in the arm.

More relaxing than the massage was jumping into the ice cold pool after sitting in the hottest of their four saunas, the Russian sauna. That sauna is so hot that you have to dump buckets of ice water over your head in order to stand it. I got really hot twice and jumped into the cold water twice. Amazing. My ankles felt as though they were chilled right through to the bone. 2 hours in that place will make anyone feel like a million bucks, even without the massage. Just going back and forth between the four different saunas is all you need to feel relaxed. The massage definitely helps.

Tuesday Night Trivia

Our Blogger Meetup fun continued last night as we all gathered at the Baggott Inn to include Wes and Wendy in an evening of Tuesday Night trivia.

Before trivia we met up for dinner. Sydney took Wendy to BLogo or Vego or something like that. It's a vegan place somewhere in the Village.

Our group included Chris, The Anonymous Blogger (yes, I'm still speaking to him), Sarah, Caren and of course Wes.

Our group, feeling more carnivorous than Sydney's group chose Harry's Burritos for our evening repast. Sarah and I weren't as peckish as the others and split an order of nachos and guacamole while the rest the gang ordered meat and cheese filled delights. One of our group even ordered a shrimp something or the other which she let everyone taste.

When the bill arrived we were all surprised when Wes decided to treat. He wouldn't even allow us to tip. I have to say, that was pretty nice of him and I hope he realizes how much we all appreciated the gesture.

By the time we got to trivia we were ready for some competition. Wes played on my time while Wendy played on Sydney's. We were called OB/GYN Kenobi for Bush. Playing on our team were Chris, Barry, Jason, Roslyn, Phil, Wes and Robert. Not to brag (okay, to brag) we scored a total of 40 out of 50 points leaving the other teams not too far behind but far enough to win first prize. Wes and Chris totally dominated the visual round, devised by Caren's co-host Brad which was identifying cartoon characters and the shows they were from. The audio round done expertly by Caren, were 10 songs about school to coincide with school being back in session.

Brad's top ten list were Woody Allen's first 10 theatrical releases in reverse chronological order. Current events and general knowledge were just that. I am proud to say that several of us on our team knew that Locutus was Picard's name when he was abducted by the Borg.

We won a prize for having a silly answer which was a sippy cup with a picture of a donkey in the center of "New Jersey Democratic Campaign Action Team". I had to fight Robert for it but once I told him that Jon had lived in New Jersey he finally relented.

What else can I say? We had fun.

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It was so lovely meeting Wendy I was sad to say goodbye last night as the younger folks ventured further into the W. Village to visit the Magnolia Bakery.

Wendy is gone now, having parted ways with Sarah earlier today at Port Authority.

I hope she has a safe trip home and writes all about her incredible visit over the days to come.

More Blogger Meetup

I gave you an idea of what was seen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, when we met up on Monday. Originally, we weren't going to meetup with everyone at the museum and I told everyone that Jon and I were going to be working on another project. After listening to Wendy talk about the Met's collection of Van Gogh, I got caught up in her enthusiasm and changed my mind about going. It was very exciting when Wendy first glimpsed the paintings she had been studying for some time. She showed me her goose bumps upon approaching the gallery and it felt really special to be a part of that. I love to show people New York City, especially when I can show them museums.

Our Very Own Blogger Meetup (cont'd)

As you know, Sunday night found many of my little blogger community partying at Sarah's Entertainment Spot (in this case her apartment). Members of the community have started circulating pictures, allowing us to create a visual record of what occured that evening. You can already see pictures at Sarah's Entertainment Spot, and Phil's Spin Zone.

Here is one, sent to me by akachris of Candy Blue Kite and myself and of course the birthday girl, Zoey.

Au Musee

As promised we met up at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We saw the Van Goghs, the Gaugins, the Monets and the Manets, the Picasso, Lichtenstein, the Courbets, the Cot.

We saw Washington crossing the Delaware, a woman with lute, and we saw Aristotle Contemplating the Bust of Homer.

We visited The Oxbow, the Parthenon, and the Gulf Stream.

Then we visited the museum restaurant and then we called it a day. We certainly would have continued looking at all of the great art but by the time we were done gabbing over lunch the museum was closing.

Our Very Own Blogger Meetup

I've heard about other meetups, where bloggers from a certain community arrange to meet face to face. Tonight I attended my first. Sarah of Sarah's Entertainment Spot was kind enough to host 20 or so bloggers and friends in her lovely apartment. This evening I met up with the people responsible for akachris, Blog of Wes, Candy Blue Kite, Caren Lissner, Dave, Diva Who, Evil Twin Theory, Brain Spew, Phil's Spin Zone, and Wendy Fournier.
I was particularly happy to meet with Pam, Wendy and Wes because they came in from out of town for the party.

We were also celebrating the birthday of Sarah's wonderful Lhasa Apso Zoey who turned two years old today.

Sarah did a wonderful job hosting as there was plenty to eat and more than enough to drink. I bet you wouldn't think bloggers could drink so much or perhaps this wouldn't surprise you at all. We drank and some of us were what some would consider drunk, even pie eyed or shit faced!!!

The party doesn' t end. The out of towners are staying for a few more days. Tomorrow we're heading over to one the larger museums in town, which I am not naming for purposes of privacy. One of our guest did some research and really knows where to go and what to see at the museum. They are pieces with which I'm familiar so I'm looking forward to sharing the experience, in this case, seeing the museum's permanent collection of Van Gogh.

Quiet Friday

It's a quiet Friday night at the ranch and well deserved.

Something incredible happened on the subway ride home tonight. I was sitting by the subway door minding my own business when all of a sudden a knight in blue armor came riding through the car on a silver unicorn. Chasing this knight was a 3 headed bull with 6 horns and 3 rings through his 3 noses.

He was breathing foul smelling steam but in all fairness the smell could have been eminating from the bum sleeping half way across the car. They continued like this for 20 steps when all of a sudden the blue knight stopped turned around and started charging the 3 headed bull. He stabbed the beast 47 times with the tip of his peppermint striped lance. The loser next to me, not realizing that this was all happening in my imagination pulled the emergency break. It turns out he was veterinarian and he wanted to save the life of this rare 3 headed bull saying over and over again, how he could become rich by selling its sperm. Anyway, after the 1/2 hour delay, the train started moving again. When I got out at the station nearest my house, I thought "Isn't it wonderful that I live in New York City and that I get to see amazing things like this."

I Would and I Did

I both watched and listened to the President's speech last night. I watched it until 11 and then when I went to bed and I turned on the radio, I heard him there too.

Well written speech, well delivered.

I hated the constant chanting from the GOP everytime he paused to take a breath and I found the FLIP FLOP chant both distracting and interesting.

Those were grownups in the crowd, right?

Will I or Won't I

It's Thursday night, 2 minutes to 10:00. I've spent the last two hours roasting a chicken, surfing the internet, doing a facial and watching television. Most of that hour was spent watching my new DVD of South Park Season 1.

Here is the question.

Now that the chicken is roasted, I'm bored with the net, my face is as clean as it's going to get and the television is still glowing, will I or won't I watch President Bush' acceptance speech for the GOP's nomination. CNN is on. Wolf Blitzer is wrapping things up and I'm balanced on the edge.

Will I or won't I?

Tune in tomorrow to find out if I did or I didn't.

Yeah . . . I Know Him

Met this guy again last night, he played on my team at Wednesday night trivia. Second time in as many weeks, that I seen 'im.

He's a little fuckin' ray of shine, let me tell ya'.

Strange but True

This little baby girl survived for days on her own.

Is It Really Thursday?

I can't believe it's really Thursday.

Work, this week, has been like watching paint dry. Of course the others don't feel it because they are the ones actively applying the paint while I followup on all of their incredibly mundane and tedious efforts to sell our clients marketing services.

But while the work week drags by, the non-work week seems to go by quickly. I feel like I exist in parallel temporal zones; one where time is measured in painfully slow increments and the other where time flies by so quickly it can't be quantified.

Speaking of temporal mysteries, I am reading a book called The Science of Harry Potter by Roger Highfield. In the book he talks about the scientific possiblities of recreating the magic that takes place in the books with explanations from Quantum Physics and Physics. It's a great way to get general overview of some of the more advanced advancements in the above two fields.

I'm enjoying it and learning quite a bit.

If it weren't the mathematical figuring part of it, I'd probably be pretty good at physics.