Monthly Archives: May 2010

Sabotage

May 25, 2010

I don’t really do diets.  I seem to only have two modes when I’m “dieting”: not good at it at all and beating myself up about it, or way too good at it let it take over my thoughts and my life.  Neither of these is a particularly good state of mind, so I try to avoid it entirely.

I do, however, occasionally make and enforce silly rules to try to make sure my pants still fit.  Because the only thing I hate more than diets is the mall.  I’ll cut out all drinks except water, or give up candy for lent, or go vegan for a few days- something random that feels like a fun short-term challenge rather than a diet, but still helps keep the pants-fitting on track.  So a few weeks ago, after a few weeks of too many burgers and beers, I decided it was time to Get Serious.  I would limit myself to one dessert a day, and I would not bake any treats for a month.  (I know, I’m so hard core, right?  I read about people doing Atkins or the caveman diet or what have you and I just marvel at them because MAN I do not have that kind of willpower.)

There was a reason for this: I have a couple of fancy events to go to in the upcoming weeks, and the fancy dress that I currently own was bought during what must have been a post-stomach-flu period or something because it is snug.  Very snug.  Not everywhere, just in the tummular region.  And I refuse to buy a new dress.  So! Month-long baking hiatus!

But then, this organization I’ve been meaning to volunteer with for months sent an email, begging people to sign up for their spring bake sale.  “We have too few participants!” they wailed.  “The sale will fail! Please help us!”

So I relented.  Over the weekend, I baked three dozen of the most delicious chocolate chip cookies in all the land.  I wrapped them up nicely in tupperware and made my little index card describing them for the bake sale table.  I had them all ready to go, and was just waiting for instructions from the organizer about where to send them.

Some of you have already heard the punchline of this story, and the rest of you can guess it.  I heard nothing.  I sent the organizer an email Sunday night asking where I should take them.  Radio silence.  At 4pm yesterday, 6 hours after the sale was supposed to start, I got an email: “I’ve had a slightly sore throat so I’ve been resting.  We didn’t have enough people for the bake sale, maybe we’ll try again in a few months.”

And that was it.  No apology, nothing.  Which I find kind of remarkable.  New person volunteers to help your organization after you plead with her to do so, then you cancel the event without telling her and don’t even bother to apologize?  You can bet that when they finally reschedule the bake sale, I won’t be rushing to help out.

Meanwhile, I have three dozen cookies in my house, taunting me with their delicious craggy tops and dark chocolate chips.  This does not bode well for my “fit into my outfit” plans.  I should probably go buy some Spanx.

Posted in cooking | 9 Comments

Thanks, John, for calling the locksmith!

May 19, 2010

Jury Update:  I sat in an overcrowded room with a static-y tv blaring for 8 hours and did not even get called to a courtroom, let alone selected for a jury.  TOTAL BUST.

Moving on.

Am I the only one who spends an embarrassing amount of time crafting elaborate backstories for near-strangers?  Like, if I find myself in a crowded restaurant, it takes actual effort for me not to listen in on the conversations of those around me.  Or! On the train? I can spend an entire commute imagining what combination of factors conspired to create that guy who wears dockers and Mephisto shoes with a Boblbee backpack and huge hip-hop style headphones.  (True story.  I see that guy regularly and he is a total puzzle.)

But by far the greatest source of fodder for this hobby is our building.  There are some weird people living here, y’all.  Nice! Very nice! But WEIRD.  Remember the disappearing dress?  Yeah.  Weird.

Most recent case in point: Neighbor 1 just sent out an email reminding us that our windows are being washed tomorrow, so we need to remove our screens.  No more than five minutes later, Neighbor 2 sends an email saying “great, thanks for the reminder, I’ll do that tonight!  Thanks for setting this up, [neighbor 1]!”

Normal, right?  Except Neighbor 2 is married to Neighbor 1.  They live in the same unit.  They actually both work from home, and thus (presumably) see each other fairly regularly.  Why, then, the reply all to thank her husband for setting up the window washing?  SO ODD.

And don’t even get me STARTED on the girl who recently purchased a new stroller.  For her dog.

Posted in buying a condo | 9 Comments

Summoned

May 14, 2010

So, I’ve been summoned for jury duty in Illinois for the first time.  (I still get summoned for jury duty at least once a year in California, where I have not lived for five years. They seem to be a little short of jurors in California.)

I realize that many people loathe the very idea of jury duty, that it makes them grumble and groan and think awful thoughts about bureaucracies.  But in my job I get to interact with juries fairly regularly, and I think it’s an incredibly important and cool aspect of our legal system (particularly civil juries, which virtually no other country in the world uses).

I’ve been called as a “standby” juror, so I have to call in the night before to see if they’ll need me, and the language of the summons leads me to believe that the answer to that is probably “no.”  Even if it’s yes, my background and particularly my current job make it kind of unlikely, I think, that I’ll actually be selected for a jury.  And (here’s where you all shake your heads in disbelief and wonder what the eff is wrong with me): that kind of bums me out.   I’m kind of hoping that I’ll be empaneled.  I’d like to see the system from that side for a change.

That’s pretty much a guarantee that I’ll be dismissed immediately, isn’t it?  Murphy’s Law of juries: the more you don’t want to be on one, the more likely you are to be selected.  Perhaps I should go in there all sullen and slouchy and acting like I’ve got better places to be.  Maybe then they’ll choose me.

Posted in miscellany | 8 Comments

Favorite Songs: a Partial Timeline

May 10, 2010

I wrote a few weeks ago about one of my current favorite songs, and it got me thinking about the wide variety of songs that have held the title of “favorite” in my heart over the years.  I have had phases where certain songs burn hot and bright and I listen to them on repeat until the cassette breaks or the cd scratches or the spouse begs to please put something, anything else on the ipod.  Some have been a slower burn, a deep affection that makes me smile with pleasure any time it comes on the radio, even years later.  And some are just embarrassing, but what is this space for if not to embarrass myself?

Here, then, a partial list of songs that have spent some time on repeat on my boom boxes, discmans, and ipods over the years:

1985 (ish): Morning Has Broken, Cat Stevens.  My first favorite song.  My dad and I would listen to it as we drove around in his late-70s Mercury Cougar.

1987: You Can Call Me Al, Paul Simon.

1989: Free Fallin’, Tom Petty.  My best friend introduced me to this song, having discovered it on the radio.  She had a radio in her room, people.  Her OWN RADIO.  I seethed with jealousy.

1991: American Pie, Don McLean.  I came back from three weeks at camp having memorized all the words, then made my parents play the song on repeat for weeks.  They must have loved that.  I still know every word by heart.  All eight minutes of them.

1992  Paradise City, Guns N Roses.  This one was a popular “fast” song at junior high school dances.

1993: Lady in Red, Chris DeBurgh.  Older, wiser, and in the 8th grade, I’d moved on to this junior high “slow dance” classic.

1996: A Long December, Counting Crows.  A boy I liked put this on a tape for me. Smooth.

1997: Romeo & Juliet, Dire Straits.  I still love this song beyond all reason.  It came on Pandora the other day while I was at work and I couldn’t help but sing along.  I think my officemate was afraid.

1998: Torn, Natalie Imbruglia.  Let us never speak of this again.

Later 1998: Philosophy, Ben Folds Five

1999: Closer to Fine, Indigo Girls.

2001: Tangerine, Big Head Todd and the Monsters.  A truly great cover.

2002: La Cienega Just Smiled, Ryan Adams.

2005: Music When the Lights Go Out, the Libertines

2006: More Adventurous, Rilo Kiley

2007: South Texas Girl, Lyle Lovett.  I first heard Lyle Lovett play this song at Ravinia, before it had been recorded, and I waited anxiously for months until he released it on an album so I could hear it again.  It’s that good.

2009: Casanova, Baby!, Gaslight Anthem.  Seriously, if you’re not listening to these guys, I highly suggest you start.

There are so many more- several per year, really- but these are some of the ones I played so many times I could sing them in my sleep.  I can’t be the only one who falls hard for songs like this.  Please tell me what some of yours are.  I need some new inspiration.

Posted in Uncategorized | 9 Comments

Braises and simmers and stews, oh my!

May 6, 2010

I had a birthday over the weekend, a lovely, low-key affair featuring a baby shower and dinner at a favorite restaurant.  For my birthday, John got me a crock pot and a Nike+ sensor thing and a lethally miserable cold.  Thanks, honey! Except for that last one! For that one you can go to hell!

Yes, team, I am now the proud owner of a crock pot.  I know, right? Who gets excited about a slow cooker?  Well: I do.  I have these visions of perfectly-cooked beans and lovingly-prepared stews and dinners eaten before 9pm on a weeknight.  Dare to dream, people.

So now that I’ve admitted that I’m old and the sort to get excited about kitchen appliances: anyone have any good slow cooker recipes to share?

Posted in cooking | 13 Comments