domain dephal

DC

2010-07-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

I'm in Washington, DC this week for meetings related to next year's adventure in Zagreb. Spike accompanied me for a little tourism.

The US Supreme Court

The Capitol, from atop the steps at the US Supreme Court.

Well, yeah.

Meeting the Pres.

Getting ready for our trip.

Caterpillar

2010-07-04T21:03:00.000-07:00

Knatolee has posted some lovely bug pictures lately, and look what I found munching on my tomatillo plant this evening. I think it's a sphinx moth caterpillar of some kind. It's about 3 inches long.

It has very impressive teeth!

Look! I did something crafty!

2010-07-02T14:20:00.000-07:00

When is the last time I knitted? Forever ago, sadly. But I recently acquired a Kindle and decided to put my minimal sewing skills to use making a cover for it. The pattern is here. I owned the fabric and other supplies already, so my cost was zilch. The results?

This is one side of the cover when it's closed. It's less than an inch thick even with the Kindle inside.

Here's the other side. Pink is normally not my thing, but I really love this fabric.

And here it is open. You can fold it flat or prop it like an easel. Spike and Angel approve, I think, as does John Steinbeck.

2010-06-21T23:20:00.000-07:00

The first one is hysterical, isn't it?

2010-06-21T15:13:00.001-07:00

Thank you

2010-06-12T10:35:00.000-07:00

I really appreciate all the kind words. We just came back from a trip to Hawaii, and the house is so empty without Ruthie. This is my first time petless since 1985! No plans for another pet now, though, especially because Thing1 and I will be in Croatia for 6 months next year.

Thank you

2010-05-27T18:17:00.000-07:00

Thank you so much to all of you for the very kind words. Your thoughts mean a lot to me.

Ruthie

2010-05-26T08:56:00.000-07:00

We had to put Ruthie to sleep this morning. She could hardly walk, she was pretty much blind, and she just wasn't happy. It was the right decision. She was 11 1/2, a good age for a Saint. She was the sweetest dog in the whole wide world.

I'm alive!

2010-04-28T16:58:00.000-07:00

Long time no hear, huh?

So, all my books are currently in print. I'm trying out this new Amazon thingy; the links should be in this post. I'm about to begin work on co-writing another textbook as well. So no, haven't done any knitting in a long time.

My other big news is I was granted a Fulbright scholarship to Croatia. I'll be spending Spring 2011 in Zagreb, and DD1 will be going with (DH and DD2 will visit). I'm pretty excited about it, to say the least. I hope to get in as much travel around Europe as I can while we're there, so if anyone has any tips, I'd love to hear them.I just ordered some Croatian language CDs; we'll see if we can pick up a little of the labguage before we get there!

Book complete

2010-01-19T16:45:00.000-08:00

This is the textbook my co-authors and I have been working on for an eternity. Finally, the 1st Edition is in print. Hooray!!

The 2nd edition of my hate crimes text will be out this spring as well. I'm just in a publishing frenzy, aren't I?

2010-01-04T15:37:00.000-08:00

Amazon's discounting my book, Stasis, to $10.08 right now. My royalties remain the same, and I'm donating 100% of the royalties to Doctors without Borders. So now's a good time to buy. :-)

Back from the dead?

2009-12-18T17:37:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted here for months and months. One thing I did in that time was write a novel during NaNoWriMo. And I self-published it so now you can buy it at Amazon or CreateSpace. All my royalties go to Doctors without Borders.

Hummer

2009-08-10T17:16:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the comments on my new tattoo! :-) I'm very happy with it.

We're back home now.

See this little guy? He (she?) has decided that this particular spot on the tomato cage is where he wants to spend most of his day. He periodically flits over to snack on the California fuschia you can see in the background, but then he always flies back, and he perches there a long time. Sometimes another hummer comes along and dive-bombs him, bu he chases it off. It's nifty because he either can't see us through the window or doesn't care, so I can get within about 3 feet of him. I love hummingbirds.

Not sure what variety this is. Possibly a female or juvenile Anna's humminbird. or possibly not. :-)

Still Alive!

2009-07-27T16:50:00.000-07:00

We're on vacation. Spent last week in Vancouver (which we liked a lot) and this week is in Portland. The kids and Spike came with us, and today I got a new tattoo. :-)

Summer

2009-07-10T10:42:00.000-07:00

Thing1 flew all by herself to Oregon, for visits with relatives and then camp. See how grown-up she looks, in this pic I took at the airport?

Meanwhile, T2 celebrated Crazy Hair Day at school.

I am stuck with book revisions and emergency budget meetings. Bleh!!

I'm alive!

2009-06-30T22:56:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I haven't posted in a really really long time. Not too much exciting going on here, really. But Thing 2 is now somewhere in the middle of the 4th Harry Potter book, which is pretty impressive for a kid who hasn't yet started 1st grade. Here she is posing with the book and no teeth.

Thing 2 is finishing up the series for the second time. She's off to camp on Saturday, where she'll be for 3 weeks. It's going to be very quiet around here.

Here's T1 and Spike enjoying lunch at Red Lobster to celebrate a good report card (for T1, that is. Spike didn't get one). T1 has a thing for eating shrimp.

Student Video

2009-05-25T19:22:00.000-07:00

Want to see a video some of the students in my Hate Crimes class made? Here it is. They did a nice job. There's even a blooper reel at the end.

2009-05-14T15:37:00.000-07:00

Last night was the last ceramics class until fall. I had two things to bring home. A spider tile:

I like it because I actually drew the spider, which is the limit of my drawing ability. And a sun:

Four of the rays had fallen off by the time it was bisque fired. So I glazed them separately, knowing I could glue them on later. And even though I used the same glaze on everything, as you can see, 3 of the rays turned out a totally different color. I guess they were in different spot in the kiln. In any case, I really like the the end result anyway, so it was a happy accident.

I plan to sign up again in the fall.

Garden

2009-05-11T22:01:00.000-07:00

Thing 2 is very happy with the cherry tomato plant she planted in the Topsy Turvy thing. At least it'll give the snails a challenge to find it.

Ceramics FOs

2009-05-07T17:45:00.000-07:00

Haven't had any pottery things to show in a while, so here's an odd little collection of ceramics projects. First there's this happy little guy. I'd meant him as a wall hanging, and he has holes in his head for nails, but he actually turned out to be a good size and shape ro become a cheese plate. But maybe I'm the only one who'd like to eat cheese off a skull:

I was thinking knitting needle holder when I made this, though it could be a vase, too. I think it looks kinda like a tree stump:

Here they are together, for scale:

Finally, I made a bowl I really like, but I can't seem to get a decent picture of it:

Ahoy, mateys!

2009-05-03T12:36:00.000-07:00

Got the roof graphic for Mick and Hubby installed it last night. Here, for your viewing pleasure, are pictures:

I think it's safe to say I have the only car like this in town. :-)

Yet another note from T2

2009-04-28T20:49:00.000-07:00

My Mom recently visited, and was discussing some distant cousins with the Things. I think that's what prompted this sweet note Thing 2 wrote today.

Dear cusens:
Wat is your names? I wont to play with you. Can you have a play dat with
me? How old ar you? Wat is your favrit color? My name is [T2] I am six years
old. I have a sister named [T1]. Wate grad are you in? My favret couler is
purple.

My kids don't actually have any first cousins, and no relatives at all close enough for a play date. :-(

Strawberry Pie!

2009-04-26T21:12:00.000-07:00

This weekend we were gifted with a half flat of strawberries from the berry stand down the road. Several of us are berry fans, but even we can't eat that much, so tonight Thing 1 and I made strawberry pie. This is a recipe I got at a berry farm in Oregon in 1987. I know the year because it has the date on the recipe itself. It's a delicious pie, a fave of mine and Hubby's, but I hadn't made it for years. I forgot how good it is! T1 has announced it's the most delicious food in the world. T2 will have a taste tomorrow. Strawberry pie for breakfast?

Lolich's Fresh Strawberry Pie

1 baked 9" pie shell cooled
1 3-oz. package of cream cheese
1 quart fresh strawberries
3/4 C sugar
1 C whipping cream
2 Tbs corn starch
1/4 tsp lemon juice

Blend cream cheese and 3 Tbs cream until smooth. Spread over baked pie shell. Wash and hull the berries. Set aside half (the prettier ones). Puree the rest of the berries with the sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice. Cook the mixture in microwave on high for 6 min.s, turning and stirring twice, until mixture is thick and transparent. Pour 1/2 of puree over cream cheese mixture. Slice remaining berries in half and arrange in shell. Pour remaining puree over berries. Whip cream; add 1/2 tsp sugar. Top pie with whipped cream and chill. Gobble.

PS--The pink and blue spots in T1's mouth are fillings. Yes, they come in colors. Yes, we made sure she brushed her teeth well tonight!

Worms

2009-04-23T20:30:00.000-07:00

I've bought and read all 7 Harry Potter books, and about 2 years ago I parked the set in Thing 1's bookshelf and gently urged her to read them. I knew she'd like them. Well, she's just recently decided to listen, and has zoomed through to the 4th book in about 3 weeks. And the other day she asked me if I had any recommendations for her after she finished the series. That was very satisfying.

Even more satisfying, this morning I discovered the first HP book propped open in Thing 2's room. She told me her sister had let her borrow it. I asked T2 if the book was too hard for her (she's 6 and in kindergarten, after all) and she said no and proceeded to retell the plot thus far. Cool.

I can't tell you how pleased I am to have bred bookworms. :-)

Left

2009-04-20T14:05:00.000-07:00

These results don't surprise me a bit. I'm too libertarian to be a Commie, I guess, so what does that make me?

My Political Views
I am a left social libertarian
Left: 7.08, Libertarian: 6.28

Political Spectrum Quiz

My Foreign Policy Views
Score: -7.14

Political Spectrum Quiz

My Culture War Stance
Score: -9.64

Political Spectrum Quiz

Water Rescue

2009-04-17T15:52:00.000-07:00

It's Spring Break. My Mom's visiting, and today Hubby took the day off, too, so we went for a picnic at Yosemite Lake. Spike went too, and when he actually fell in the lake, Thing 1 had to mount a rescue operation:

Apparently, vampires don't float. Fortunately, they don't have to breathe, either, and the rescue was successful.

Thing 1, Vampire Rescuer.

Momentarily Sorta Cool

2009-04-09T21:02:00.001-07:00

I'm in LA for a couple days for a meeting. Drove down in Mick the Mini, listening to my new iPod Nano, so I didn't mind the drive at all. I picked up a colleague 100 miles down the road, so I had company 2/3 of the way, too. Even people in LA think my car is cool. They let me in when I have to change lanes, in a way they rarely do when I'm in my SUV. And two young guys driving a Mini with the exact same color scheme flashed me smiles and peace signs as I passed them.

Video to watch

2009-04-08T10:24:00.000-07:00

Someone sent me a link to this YouTube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UE3CNu_rtY

It's at the central station in Antwepr, and it's really great. Nothing like this ever happens here.

Grading is Fun

2009-04-02T10:18:00.001-07:00

I was grading essays this morning while my students were taking an exam. As I got to one particular essay on the history of policing in the American south, I had to stifle a fit of the giggles. Here's the sentence that set me off:

They would also patrol for African American semen that came from the North;
the semen would have to stay on the boat and were not allowed to walk on the
street.

Snort!

Happy Day

2009-04-01T20:54:00.001-07:00

Today was a very good day. I finished one major project at work and one moderate one, got good feedback on a project I finished a couple weeks ago, solved a student's thorny problem, and had a meeting that went very well. And when I returned to my office from the meeting, I discovered a former student had left a box of See's chocolates in my mailbox as a thank you for writing her a letter of recommendation. Let me tell you, of all the things I could find in my mailbox, it's hard to think of anything that would be nicer. :-)

And tonight I had ceramics class and made a big bowl and a spider tile.

Another note

2009-03-28T19:32:00.000-07:00

I have the latest note from Thing2 to share. She wrote this Wednesday evening, when I was at ceramics class. She's supposed to be tucked into bed by the time I get home, and I think Hubby's been threatening her with my wrath if she isn't:

Dear Dad:
I wont to stay up lat. Asck Mom if she found me stayying up lat would she
be angy or happy. Is she ses she wold be angry, tell me thet she would be angry.
And if she sais she would be happy, tell me she wold be happy.
From: [Thing2]
To: Daddy

Obviously, I'm ecstatic when she stays up lat.

T2 had yet another birthday party to attend today, this one also 45 minutes away. But I didn't mind, actually, because it was at a park, and it was 78 degrees out with a tiny breeze, and I got to sit at a picnic bench and do some work on my laptop for 2 hours in perfect weather. The drive was down a bunch of country roads, and that's fun in my Mini. And all the cows and horses and goats have babies now, which is fun, too. We saw a big bunny, too. Plus, somebody we drove by keeps 3 camels (Bactrians--2 humps!) in a corral by the side of the road. I have no idea why.

Ceramics things

2009-03-26T17:27:00.000-07:00

Here are two things I recently made in ceramics class. The back one is a round box with a swirly top. The other is...I dunno. A pencil cup? I was experimenting with textures and glazing. I actually quite like it, even if I'm not sure what it is. Spike, however, seems skeptical.

Here I am

2009-03-24T20:22:00.001-07:00

Contrary to appearances, I have not disappeared off the face of the Earth. This has been the spring semester from hell, and I'm going to be so happy when June rolls around. We just planned out big family vacation for the summer. While the kids are at camp, Hubby and I will visit Vancouver and Victoria. Because although I've been to places like Warsaw and Zagreb and Bratislava, I've never been to Canada. And that's weird. Then we'll all have time to visit with the family in Portland. Yay!

I had a birthday last week. Got some great loot. Hubby gave me an espresso machine, which I'm very excited about, but haven't had time to learn to use. I could use intense caffeine. Thing 1 gave me her favorite book and coupons for things like cruises and a trip to Disneyworld. :-)

Thing 2 has had 5 birthday parties to attend in 7 weeks. Social butterfly kid. And they're all in the town where her kindergarten is, 45 minutes away.

The building next to my office has sort of a zig-zag roof. Today a pair of mallards kept flapping to the top of each peak, then sliding down the other side on their ducky butts. It was vastly entertaining to watch.

I haven't knitted in ages. I do have a couple new pottery pieces; I'll post pics soon.

Hi there

2009-03-07T15:09:00.000-08:00

I've been kind of MIA, haven't I? Too much life happening, I guess. I had several days worth of meetings in Washington state, and now I'm totally buried in work. But it's spring outside today, and I thought I'd share this pic. Thing 2 is showing off her brand new haircut and the freakishly huge orange we just picked. All the other fruits on that tree are normal-sized. Very strange.

Note

2009-02-21T17:44:00.001-08:00

I found this note outside my bedroom door this afternoon:

Dear Mom and Dad. Ples. Let me and [Thing 1] do wat ever we want. Pleas! If you
do I will give you geys hugs and kissis evry day and evry niht. From [Thing 2]
to Mom and Dad. And buy the way look on yuor bed now! And I men it!

She'd wrapped up a toy treasure chest in a kleenex and left it on our bed.
So, is this a good deal? We let her do what ever she wants and we get hugs and kisses every day and night. Incidentally, this is the same child who just this afternoon had a birthday party, attended by 15 kids, at the gymnastics place. Deprived kid.

Today We Are Six

2009-02-12T22:05:00.000-08:00

Today was Thing2's sixth birthday. And because she'd asked for it repeatedly and her parents went temporarily insane, this is what we got her:

When I bought it, the lady at the store said, "Oh, this must be for someone else's kid." Sigh. But she was very happy with it and she and T1 and the neighbor kids spent a good portion of the afternoon outside, creating an impromptu marching band.

San Francisco treats

2009-02-02T13:40:00.000-08:00

I love San Francisco. Seriously, it's one of my favorite places in the world, and I feel incredibly lucky to live less than 2 hours away.

This weekend, I took Thing2 for a little trip to the city. We watched the ferries and visited Yerba Buena Gardens and rode the F-line streetcar (not the cable car--hate the lines for those things) and had ice cream for dinner at Ghirardelli:

And we spent the night at our timeshare and had a big breakfast and drove back early, before traffic got awful and it would have taken closer to 4 hours than 2 to get home.

I like SF because it's beautiful and unique, but also because it's really quirky. There are always strange surprises, like the time I was walking down the sidewalk in the middle of the afternoon near Union Square behind a person dressed in an elephant costume and another person dressed in Elizabethan costume. Or the time there were dozens of men, all dressed in white wedding dresses, one of whom was making out with a woman (who was not in a wedding dress) while waiting to cross the street. Or the streetcar driver who was in a rush and told us to hurry, hurry to get onboard, and then wouldn't let us pay. This visit, I was waiting to cross the street opposite our timeshare when I happened to glance in the trash, and this is what I saw:

You may have to enlarge the picture (ha ha! Enlarge!) to get the full effect (snicker!). I'm so glad I had my camera handy.

I want to know the story behind this trash. Why did someone feel the need to open this item on the street? Why was the person in such a hurry that they tore the box? Was the discarded shoe theirs, too?

Oh, I love San Francisco.

Legal Amusement

2009-01-26T11:06:00.000-08:00

Today the U.S. Supreme Court decided an immunity case involving a plaintiff who was convicted under the false testimony of a jailhouse informant. The informant's name was Fink.

Just thought you ought to know that. :-)

The case, for those legally inclined, is Van v. Goldstein.

Evaluations

2009-01-23T00:00:00.000-08:00

One of my tasks as department chair is to read the teaching evaluations of the faculty in my department. They're often pretty amusing, and today I came across one that's a new favorite:

Professor X is very organized, but only in his head.

Ha ha!
One year, when I was pregnant with Thing 1, an entire class of mine conspired, and every one of them wrote:

She's a great professor. Give her a raise because she needs more money to buy
diapers.

My number one choice of all time, though, is a comment a student in my Psychology of Criminal Behavior class once wrote:

It's an interesting course, but there's too much psychology.

Toothless Annie

2009-01-20T18:46:00.000-08:00

Looks like the Tooth Fairy will pay us another visit tonight. Mommy the Dentist pried this one out with an ice chip. Oh, and don't blame me for the terrible bangs--those were self-inflicted.

Home again

2009-01-19T08:32:00.000-08:00

I'm back home. :-) I can definitely recommend the Sofitel at Terminal 5 at Heathrow. There was a tv in the bathroom. I got to watch a documentary on Robert the Bruce on BBC-2 while I took a bath. :-) My flight home was great because the plane was only about 2/3 full and I had empty seats around me. That certainly makes all the difference in a 10 hour flight.

My camera decided that Polish winter weather doesn't agree with it, and a lot of my pictures turned out like this, or worse:

Oh well. At least some did turn out. Here's the mermaid statue in Old Town in Warsaw:

Old Town isn't really old, because it was completely demolished during the war. They rebuilt it to look like the original, though, and it's very pretty. And here's the main square in Cracow:

Cracow wasn't as badly damaged, so the square, one of the largest in Europe, is authentic. That pretty building on the right sits dead center, so this pic shows only half of the square. We had a wonderful dinner on the square at a place that's been a restaurant since the 1790's.

This is a pretty town I saw from the train. I have no idea what it's called:

And this is Nowa Huta, which is just outside Cracow, and which we visited with the Crazy Communism tour:

It was built by the Communists as a steel mill town, and intended as a centerpiece of Communism. It ended up becoming the site of protests and an active location for the Solidarity movement. The square to the left is Ronald Reagan Square. Really:

Here's the view from my friend's apartment in Warsaw:

It's a great place in a perfect location. Thanks for letting me stay with you, Agnes! :-)

And finally, a sad picture:

This wall is outside a 17th century synagogue in Cracow. Another part of the wall had graffiti which said (in German, interestingly) "Jews out of Palestine." Some things never change.

2009-01-17T07:30:00.000-08:00

I've left Poland and travelled westward--I'm now all cozied up in my hotel in London. Tomorrow morning I head home. Yesterday I was sick and didn't do anything, which is disappointing, but at least I feel better today! And I had a great time the rest of my time there. It was snowing this morning, which of course is no big deal to Poles, but was a bit of a treat to me. I like snow I can visit for a while. :-)

Back in Warsaw

2009-01-15T11:11:00.000-08:00

Cracow was great. We toured the old Jewish quarter, took the Crazy Communist tour, drank vodka, saw a da Vinci that I like better than Mona Lisa, and ate very well. And the train ride from Warsaw to Cracow, about 3 hours, is quite nice, too. They have really wonderful drinking chocolate here. I will be forever spoiled. I can say a couple words in Polish--at least enough to order tea. But when the train conductor came around and asked us to close the window in the overheated car (I think that's what he wanted, anyway), I was ignorantly monoligual enough for him to give up and go away. Overall, most Poles seem to speak at least a little English, and they're very tolerant of those of us who don't speak Polish.

Warsawa

2009-01-12T14:12:00.000-08:00

I love my clapotis scarf. Perfect for walking around Warsaw in January. :-) And I like Warsaw a lot. Today I ate potato pancakes and bliny and I learned to say thank you, and I gave a lecture to my friend's students. And I bought a Polish punk CD, by a band named Dezerter. It was sunny and maybe 30-ish outside today. Right now at 11pm it's 9 degrees.

2009-01-11T10:55:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post from chilly Warsaw. Heathrow is not my favorite airport today, but I made it. Haven't seen much yet, but I like it so far. And we decided to spend a night or two in Krakow this week, too! :-)

Travel

2009-01-09T17:18:00.001-08:00

I'm off to Warsaw tomorrow. Think warm thoughts for me! :-)

Furgood Marshall

2009-01-06T09:52:00.000-08:00

Sad post today. This morning I had to send Furgie the cat to the Bridge. She would have been 20 (!) in March. She'd been doing quite well, but over the weekend she had an abrupt decline. Do cats get strokes? She was very confused and unhappy and not eating. And this is the first time in nearly two decades she didn't want to eat, so I knew it was time. She went very quickly and peacefully.

Furg's full name was Furgood Marshall; like my other pets, she was named after a Supreme Court Justice. She was born sometime in March in Lincoln, Nebraska, and I adopted her from the humane society there in March 1989. She was older than some of my students. She was a smart cat who learned to open our French doors and loved to play fetch with plastic milk rings. She put up with 3 huge dogs and 2 unruly children.

Snaggle-tooth

2009-01-05T11:51:00.001-08:00

Looks like the tooth fairy will be paying us a visit tonight.

Science Friday

2009-01-02T23:17:00.000-08:00

We took the Things to Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley today. We met up with some friends there, too. A fun time was had by all. Here's the Things with Zee and Zee's Dad, Hu:

Thing 2 helped build an archway. Or supervised, anyway:

And Thing 1 learned about tectonic plates while holding a paper airplane:

And this is the view, once the fog cleared. You can see SF, the Golden Gate, and a good part of the Bay from up there:

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T11:10:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to all!

Had a quiet night last night. Hubby went to his friend's house for a poker game, Thing 2 turned in early, and T1 and I stayed up and watched the Twilight Zone marathon.

I'm leaving for Warsaw in a little over a week. I'm pretty excited about it! Have to dig up some of my warmest clothes, though.

Anyone know any good recipes for lemons? I have a good crop of Meyers this year. If you've never tried them, they're much better than the Eurekas you get in the store. Bigger and sweeter, with a bit of a floral taste to them, almost. Last year I made a nummy lemon custard cake, the year before that I mixed up some limoncello. Need ideas for this year!

Love

2008-12-31T14:57:00.000-08:00

I'm in love. My new love is British and quirky and fun and fast.
His name is Mick.
Seriously, my new car is so much fun. It's a zippy little thing to zoom around town in. I still like my old car--an Acura MDX. It's comfortable and roomy and easy to drive. But it's no fun, which is why I'm now practicing polygamy with Mick. Plus, despite its tiny size, the Mini actually has some bells and whistles the MDX lacks, like a secret storage compartment and mood lighting, the color of which can be changed on a whim (really!). And I can plug in my iPod. My X is an NPR sort of vehicle, but I listen to the Clash and the Sex Pistols and the Outcasts in Mick.
Also, I gotta say, I have never had a car dealership spend so much time on customer service after I've bought a car. Nothing obnoxious, just one follow-up call and then several friendly little emails with info on the car's features. Mini is really doing their marketing right.

Tuesday

2008-12-30T12:43:00.000-08:00

The Things are on vacation, and I'm trying to find ways of keeping them busy. Yesterday we made a giant gingerbread man:

Today they're sorting their bookshelves to weed out the outgrown books. I think we'll tackle their ~~black holes~~ closets tomorrow.

We had Chinese for dinner the other night. Here's my fortune:

Q. What is H20? A. Caring, 2 parts Hug and 1 part Open-mind.

Okay, first off? That's not a fortune. It's a--I'm not sure what the hell that is. And second, what on earth does it mean?? Who writes these things? The back of the paper was more helpful. It informs me that Chinese for beer is pi jiu. No clue how to pronounce it, though. And is that Mandarin or Cantonese?

Meet Mick

2008-12-20T16:03:00.000-08:00

Some of you have apparently known about this since early November and have done a really good job of keeping your mouths shut.

We went to Sacramento today to order my Mini. And look what was waiting for me:

Hubby ordered it 8 weeks ago and kept it a secret until today. My whole family knew. Everyone at Hubby's work knew. The entire Mini and BMW dealership staff in Sacramento knew. Hubby isn't usually a secrets guy and the last time he really floored me was when he proposed to me over 20 years ago. This was a doozy. :-)

He even decorated it:

And he drove the 100 miles home with the kids in my old car, and I had much quieter company, also supplied by Hubby:

Hubby had also planned ahead and brought an appropriate CD for me to listen to on the ride home: the Sex Pistols. And I listened to it twice because I couldn't figure out how to switch to the radio while I was driving on the freeway.
I think Hubby's a keeper. And Mick is way, way fun. Here it is in our driveway:

I have to say, it's a pretty good Hanukkah present. :-)

Happiness

2008-12-16T17:19:00.000-08:00

Hubby, who likes to car shop (yes, he's crazy) promised me a new car back in March. Today he finally struck a deal he's happy with. So we'll go order my car this weekend, and it should arrive from England in 6 weeks or so.

I'm going to keep my SUV, but just use it mostly for longer trips when we have the whole family on board. My new car will be my daily commuter (not that I have much of a commute), and my taxiing the Things car.

Have you guessed what I'm getting? One of these in chili red with a black top and black bonnet stripes.

Yay!

Literary Efforts

2008-12-08T21:51:00.000-08:00

I am trying to wade through 37 term papers on serial killers and mobsters. But the Things have graced me with much more interesting reading material. First, a story Thing2 wrote today at kindergarten, all by herself:

ONes A PONNA TiM sAr WAS A PONE NAMeD [THing2] AND SAr WAS A PONE NAMeD SPCKOLS. IF YOU. No SPorcKoLS iNttrrupt.

T2 is in bed now so I'll have to wait for the explanation of who Sparkles the Pony interrupted, or was interrupted by. T2 recently attended a birthday party that involved pony rides, so ponies have been much on her mind.

And here's a note that Thing1 left on our bed last night:

Dear Mom and Dad,
I want to go to camp again. I want to be surrounded by Jews, not
Christians! Sorry, ran out of ink [she changed from pink to red]. Anyway, what I
am saying is ever since first grade I have been the ONLY Jewish kid in the
class. And I am not sure about pre-school and kindergarten because I don't
remember. And I don't think anybody in school likes me because 3 reasons: #1
Nobody sits next to me on the bus. #2 Nobody ever pays attention to me. #3 I
can't think of number three. So I want to stay at camp for 3 weeks so you guys
can send letters to me.
Love,
Jewish [Thing1]
P.S. p.s. stands for post script.

Poor kid. We're not at all observant, but I guess it sucks when you're the only one not celebrating Christmas. Well, you and the Sikh kid or two in your class. As for the nobody liking her, this is a child who spent the entire weekend at her friend's house.

Okay, back to serial killers....

December 4

2008-12-04T17:38:00.000-08:00

The end of the semester joy continues. I have 37 twenty-page term papers sitting on my desk, and the damn grading fairies have not yet come to do their work!

So of course my mind is thinking ahead, to travel. I'll be off to Poland in just over a month. I may get a chance while I'm there to visit the town where my grandfather was born. That would be pretty cool. Well, and cool is probably the operant word here. I've got my scarves and boots and things all lined up, though.

Memo to My Students

2008-12-02T11:14:00.000-08:00

Memo to My Students

If the syllabus says, in all-cap, bold, underlined letters that there will be no makeup tests, and if I said in class at least 3 times, beginning on the very first day, that there will be no make-up tests, you cannot take the final early so that you can go on vacation in Mexico.

Remember that 20 page term paper? The one I've been nagging you to work on all semester? The one that's due today? If you emailed me questions at 11:34 last night about how to cite things or how long the second section is supposed to be, I didn't answer you.

It's December. Even in California, it's December. Flip-flops with parkas or, alternately, uggs with shorts look stupid.

I'm sorry your transmission died/you got pulled over by the cops/you had to drive your brother to the airport/you got called in to work/you had training to attend for work. No make-up tests. See Item 1.

The paper is due today. If you'd tried printing it out at some point earlier than 5 minutes before class, it wouldn't have been such a tragedy when the printer broke/you ran out of printer credits/the computer ate your file.
I advise over 80 students every semester. When you come to see me for advising, if you can't remember what classes you've taken/are taking this semester, don't expect me to know.
I don't live in my office or on my computer. If you call on Saturday morning or email at 2am, don't expect an immediate response.
I'm happy to write you a letter of recommendation. Please ask me more than 2 days before it's due.
I know it's waaaay too much to ask that you actually proof-read and edit your own papers. But for goodness sake, please at least run a grammar and spell check.
Grammar and spell check will not catch all your errors. For example, statues are rarely violated or unconstitutional, except in term papers.

Baked Things

2008-11-23T14:16:00.000-08:00

Thing 2 and I made sugar cookies yesterday while T1 was having a playdate.

I remember when I was a kid, how much I enjoyed decorating them. T2's have lots of sprinkles. :-)

And I brought a bunch of things home from ceramics class on Wednesday. Some I can't show you because they are destined to be gifts (but I'm really pleased with how they turned out). But I can show a few:

The thing with holes is just a little candle holder I made. It's certainly nothing special, but I do really like the glaze, which turned out a lovely coppery-brick color. And the mermaid is by request, for T2. T1 already has one. I'd made T2 a different one, but it fell apart in the kiln, so this is actually my 3rd mermaid. I also made T1 a monkey, but it cracked into pieces, too. So I've made her another, but it's not glazed yet. I'm better at mermaids than monkeys.

I also like the glaze on this piece, which was my first attempt at a lidded jar. The glaze is kind of irridescent green and purple.

Stone Soup Day

2008-11-21T17:26:00.000-08:00

Here's a really cute pic of Thing 2 and her friend Tiffany at school today. Tiffany has the most adorable blonde ringlets, which T2 covets. T2's adorable, too, of course, but not her hair, which she took it upon herself to cut last Saturday morning before her parents came downstairs. Sigh. At least this time she wasn't playing outside in her pajamas.

T2's school has Stone Soup Day every year, and today was it. Each of the kids brings a particular food item (we contributed onion rolls this year), the teachers make soup and other things, and parents get to join the kids for lunch. I never get to go because T2's school is a 45 minute drive from my office, but Hubby, who works only 3 blocks from her, does get to go. So he took this pic.

And here's T2 (who, as you can see, is currently into tatts) decapitating her dessert.

Baking

2008-11-16T16:42:00.000-08:00

It doesn't feel very fall-like today, as the temps topped out near 80. Still, Thanksgiving's drawing near, and I refused to spend the day agonizing about my department budget (although I did get an email from the Dean today indicating the cuts won't be as bad as feared). So I've spent the day making multiple batches of onion rolls, my Thanksgiving staple.

Hubby is going to take the Things to visit his family this year, leaving me to stay home with the pets (there was no room at the doggy inn for Ruthie). That's okay--I'm looking forward to a few days of rest and quiet, actually. But I will roast myself a turkey breast, because it just wouldn't be the same without turkey and cranberry sauce sandwiches on onion rolls (yes, I prefer the leftovers to the actual main meal). And I'm making extra rolls so Hubby and the Things can take some with them.

And while I had the flour and the yeast and everything out anyway, I dragged out the bread machine this afternoon and made a loaf of brioche. I'm going to make it into French Toast for dinner tonight, and won't that be yummy?

Is there any better smell in the world than baking bread?

Work woes

2008-11-14T19:58:00.001-08:00

We're having a miserable, horrible budget emergency at work. I'm faced with a bunch of crap decisions that will make everyone angry. Blargh!

So I posted on LiveJournal an old essay I once wrote. It has nothing to do with work or budgets. So there.

Post-election

2008-11-05T10:56:00.000-08:00

Okay, first off, I'm thankful for a few things. The damn election is over. Yay! I am, of course, pleased about Obama, and even more pleased that there are only 75 days left of President Stupidhead. I'm also happy about a couple of the ballot measures.

On the other hand, I'm deeply disappointed that Prop 8, the anti-gay marriage measure, passed. Whatever people's own views might be on the issue, why on earth should they care so much about other people's marriages? After all, I can think of lots of straight couples that I don't think should be married, but then that's really none of my frigging business. I'm also appalled at how much time, energy, and money the Yes on 8 people put into this, especially the local churches. If you think gay marriage is a bad idea, fine, but aren't there much more pressing issues? Things like poverty, abuse, war, and inequality?

I'm officially off my soapbox now on this issue.

Joys of Parenthood

2008-11-02T16:15:00.000-08:00

So yesterday morning Hubby and I slept in a bit. Thing 1 was still at her friend's house, and all was quiet at ours. Too quiet. Hubby got up and went searching for T2 who, it turns out, was outside, still in her jammies, playing with the neighbor kid. We had a little talk about leaving the house without permission and without appropriate clothes.

Then last night around 11pm, T2, who had been fast asleep, came downstairs crying. She had chewing gum in her hair, on her arm, and on her jammies. She steadfastly denied taking any gum into her room, and insisted T1 had left it on her pillow. While I cleaned T2 up, Hubby questioned T1, who denied any involvement. We decided to leave it for the morning. I interrogated them both this morning and soon got the culprit to crack. The result? T1 will be cleaning T2's room for a while.

Monsters

2008-11-01T15:31:00.000-07:00

The little monsters and their parents had a good Halloween yesterday. The vampiress went trick-or-treating with a friend, and then ended up spending the night at her friend's house at an impromptu slumber party. The pirate hit every house in our subdivision and filled her pumpkin literally to the brim. We went through 2 and a half Costco-sized bags of candy. Our conservative estimate is that 150 kids came to our house last night. There are a lot of kids in our neighborhood anyway, and then families import whole minivans full every year. My favorite costume was two girls dressed up as Thing 1 and Thing 2.--the Dr. Seuss versions, that it. :-)

It was rainy yesterday, but by evening there was only an occasional drizzle. And the cloud cover meant it stayed quite warm, so most of our block ended up spending the night outside in a sort of block party.

I think my favorite visitors was a group of 3 boys in their mid teens. Too old for trick-or-treating, really, but they all had on elaborate costumes and they were very polite. I gave them candy and little toys, and as they walked away, I heard one of them say happily to the others, "Dude! She gave us bouncy balls!!"

New Story

2008-10-29T14:42:00.000-07:00

Every so often, morbid inspiration strikes me. Did yesterday. New story here.

Election Blues

2008-10-28T16:08:00.000-07:00

I have studiously avoided all network television for months, in part so I don't have to watch campaign ads. I've hung up politely on all the people who've been calling to solicit money or votes for various causes or candidates. I've restrained myself from pulling over and shaking the "Yes on Prop 8" ladies who have been stationing themselves near Target. I have placed in the recycling bin all 9--count 'em, 9--separate fliers our household received in the mail today trying to tell us what, or whom to vote for.

ENOUGH ALREADY!!

Hubby and I have already mailed in our ballots. Now everyone else needs to get off their butts and vote, and then the campaign people can LEAVE US THE HELL ALONE!!

I feel better now.

Happy Birthday Ruthie!

2008-10-26T18:53:00.000-07:00

Thing 1 isn't the only October birthday girl around here--Ruthie turned 10 on Friday! I tried to get a pic of her, but she was more interested in sitting on my feet. Thus, this crappy portrait:

You'll have to take my word for it that she looks very pretty, having been groomed on Monday. Ten is a pretty ripe old age for a Saint, but, other than arthritis in one hind leg, she's doing well. And, happily, Ruthie did not request a slumber party for her birthday (although she sure did enjoy Thing 1's).

I'm finding it hard to believe it's nearly Halloween. It's been in the mid 80's, so the kids are still running around in shorts, and we had dinner tonight on the back patio. Not that I'm complaining. One year when we lived in Nebraska, the mayor of Lincoln cancelled Halloween because there was a blizzard!

I spent the day grading mid-terms. You have no idea how many wrong ways there are to spell catharsis.

Disnification

2008-10-21T19:02:00.000-07:00

We had a good time at Disneyland. October's a great time to visit--lines were short and the weather was perfect. And they redo the Haunted Mansion in a whole Nightmare before Christmas theme which is pretty cool. We rode all our favorite rides. I like Tower of Terror best, personally. I also enjoyed people watching. I love how Disney turns everyone--young, old, tough guys, hipsters, cool dudes...just everyone--into goofy Disneyfied people. I say heavily tattooed, muscle-bound guys in Mickey ears. My favorite was the one totally gangster-looking man who was patiently waiting for his wife and kids outside Space Mountain, sporting his daughter's pink, flowered backpack. We made good time on the road, too, and arrived back home at 1am today. Today it was back to the real Mickey Mouse world of work.

Here are the Things and me with some villians. I always like the villians best.

Oh, and the remarkably observant among you might notice that I'm now sort of a redhead. I asked my hairdresser to do something different.

I finished something!

2008-10-18T09:41:00.001-07:00

Look!! An actual FO!

If you can't tell from the pic, this is a funky wall pocket thingy. I quite like it. And here's a secret. See those oh-so-artistic-looking cracks? Those weren't intentional. Apparently this batch of clay tended to crack a lot in the kiln for some reason. But that's okay, because I think the thingy actually looks better with the cracks than without. Serendipity, I guess.

We're off to Disneyland in the morning. It's a little over 300 miles from here. We're hoping that this time of year the lines will be short.

We survived!

2008-10-12T13:35:00.000-07:00

Thing 1 turned 9 on Friday and celebrated with a slumber party last night. She had 5 guests, but only 3 actually spent the night. Which is good, because the small group we did have made plenty of noise and stayed up till nearly 4 am. They had fun.

But I need to rant about parents. Several didn't RSVP at all. One kid's parents (whom we've never met before) not only failed to RSVP, but showed up to drop the kid off 2 hours early yesterday, and then picked her up nearly 2 hours late today. The girl actually is very sweet and I like her a lot (when Thing 2 was crying about having to go to bed and "miss all the fun," this girl read her a bedtime story). But what are these parents thinking??

Next weekend we're off to Disneyland, which was our present to T1.

Thanks for the feedback on my Poland trip. I'm excited about it! Knatolee, there is no excuse for my having never visited The Great White North. We're considering a drive up the west coast to BC (with stops in Portland and Seattle) as our major family vacation next year, though. Although certain members of the family have been lobbying heavily for Hawaii instead.

I mentioned a couple weeks ago that I've started watching True Blood on HBO. I'm still really enjoying it. And it has what I personally think is the best ever opening credits sequence. Perfect music, even.

Poland

2008-10-09T16:36:00.000-07:00

I just bought my tickets to Warsaw. This follows several days of agonizing, because there actually aren't many convenient ways to get from San Francisco to Warsaw. I wanted to avoid any plane changes in the US, because the weather in January in places like Detroit and Chicago and Newark can be iffy, and if I'm going to get stuck somewhere due to a storm, I'd prefer for it to be a tad more exotic than Newark. On top of that, the flight costs have been swinging up and down by as much as $200/day, so deciding when to buy is like playing the stock market.

So...I'm flying via British Airways, which means connections at Heathrow. I don't get to spend any extra time in Europe because Hubby needs me back here, but I do end up with one night in London, probably somewhere thrilling like the Heathrow Sheraton. I'd hoped for Paris, where I've never been outside the airport, but c'est la vie. On the plus side, BA lets you choose from a long list of interesting titles to call yourself, so if you've ever fancied yourself a viscountess or marquise, this would be your chance to declare it.

You know, my trip to Poland will mean that I've made a pretty decent circuit of central and eastern Europe, but I've never been to Canada, and my one trip to Mexico consisted of a few hours in Tijuana when I was 3. Strange.

Yesterday I got an issue in the mail of Verena Knitting, "Europe's top knit magazine." I dunno why. I subscribe to a few US knit magazines, and I assume that has something to do with it. I'm never one to look a gift magazine in the mouth, anyway.

More bragging

2008-10-01T18:20:00.000-07:00

In my last post, I bragged on T1 and my students. Here's two more brags.

Today the director of T2's school mentioned that T2 is reading at a 3rd grade level. She's two months into kindergarten. The advanced reading is currently just great, because she's at a Montessori school, where kids sorta go at their own speeds. But it should be interesting next Fall, when T2 attends public 1st grade. I hope her teacher can keep her gainfully occupied, because a bored T2 is a dangerous T2.

Last night, I sent Hubby to the store with the Things to get two items: shoelaces for T2, and ginger ale for me, because that's what I like to drink when I'm sick. He came home with shoelaces, ice cream, cookies, potato chips, and a mop. No ginger ale. So then--without my making a fuss or asking him to do so--he went back to the store and got ginger ale (and Reese's Pieces for him, but nobody's perfect).

Wednesday

2008-10-01T16:12:00.000-07:00

T1 did very well in the spelling bee; only about 6 kids remained after her. And considering that she was up against 5th and 6th graders, that's really good. She bombed out on indebted. I took her out for ice cream after.

Still have that stupid cold. Yesterday a student emailed to ask for an exam grade, which I couldn't give her because I was at home and the grades were at work. Look at this sweet message she sent back:

YES! I know how you feel. Hope you feel much better. Remember home is just one
call away. You should stay home for a while and visit your family. Get well soon.
See you on Thursday. :)

At least she and the other students in my Intro class will be pleased tomorrow when they get their tests back. They kicked butt. Average was 85, and two students got perfect scores. Yay! I've taught them something!

One thing I hate about parenting is the amount of pimping for fundraisers you get stuck doing. A few weeks ago T1 was selling wrapping paper for her school. Now T2 is selling frozen cookie dough for her school, while T1 is selling magazines, candy, and nuts for Girl Scouts. And we're still nowhere near Girl Scout cookie time yet. Anyone need magazine subscriptions? Sich.

Tuesday

2008-09-30T10:49:00.000-07:00

I have a cold. And I always feel sorry for myself when I have a cold, but this time even more so, because it's been hot out (we were near 100 for a few days), but Hubby insists we not run the AC because it's the end of September and we shouldn't need AC at the end of September. And I'm too sick too argue, so I've been sick and hot. Blah!!

In other news, Hubby and I have been watching Six Feet Under on DVD. I missed this series when it was originally on, and it's fantastic. We're in season 2 now. We're also actually following 2 current series, which I haven't done since the writers' strike. One of them is Dexter, which just started Season 3 on Showtime. I don't normally watch cop shows, but this one's too good to miss. And now we're hooked on True Blood, which debuted a couple weeks ago on HBO. True Blood is about vampires in Louisiana. It's based on the Sookie Stackhouse novels by Charlene Harris. Those novels are great fun, so when I heard about the series, and heard it's produced by the same guy who did Six Feet Under, I subscribed to HBO. And so far, the tv series has been way fun, too. And if you notice a certain theme to my favorite tv shows, what can I say? I have a macabre sense of humor. It's one of my eccentricities. :-)

Thing 1 is participating in a school spelling bee tomorrow. They gave out the list of words ahead of time, so she's been preparing. There are several hundred words and most of them are really hard for a 4th grader (reconnaissance, rheumatism, and antimacassar are a few). I know I can't spell some of them correctly. But T1 is a good speller and she's been working hard. She won't win--she'll be competing with 5th and 6th graders as well--but I'm sure she'll do great.

Okay, I'm back to my Kleenex now.

Eccentric

2008-09-24T10:37:00.001-07:00

This morning, one of my students was complaining that another one of her professors is pretty strange. Actually, he is. But being a professional, I just told her that a lot of academics are eccentric. Her response? "No, professor. You're eccentric. He's crazy." I've decided to take it as a compliment.

Tuesday Miscellany

2008-09-23T11:47:00.000-07:00

A few comments today:

Am considering buying another pair of Docs. These. Can't make up my mind. Input?
Shout gel will do a reasonable, if not complete, job of removing black magic marker from beige/tan microsuede upholstery. Ask Thing 2 how I know this.
I'm going to go to Warsaw in January (yes, I am slightly insane), and I've begun pricing plane tickets. There are no direct flights from San Francisco to Poland, and, since I have to connect somewhere anyway, I figure maybe I can swing an extra couple days in the connecting city. Right now London's looking like a good bet, but I've been there a couple times already. So maybe Paris. If any of you have been to Paris, I'd surely appreciate tips. Is it worth it for, say, 2 days? What should I see in that short time frame? Where should I stay?
Thing 1's 9th birthday is next month and--shhh!! Don't tell her!--we're going to take her to Disneyland. Plus she wants a slumber party.
On Sunday we hired an actual babysitter and went to see a movie without Things. We saw Dark Knight, and both really enjoyed it. Lots of stuff blows up. So nice to have occasional grownup time.

I wouldn't have done it....

2008-09-14T20:20:00.000-07:00

I've completed a draft of the story I wrote in response to last week's contest. You can read it over on LiveJournal. I hope you like it, and I would prostrate myself in thanks for feedback. :-)

Thursday

2008-09-11T22:23:00.000-07:00

I made a tiny bit of progress on that story today. I'm only getting in about 2 words at a time, before those pesky work-related interruptions interfere.

Today one of the students in my Intro class, which is 90 minutes long, came up to me after class. "Wow! Time went by really fast today!" he said. Which was nice. Always glad to know I'm not boring them all to death.

Yesterday evening when it was time for Thing 2 to go to bed, I told her to get her jammies on while I put some things away in my bedroom. When I went to find her a few minutes later, she was in her bathroom. She was stark naked, standing in her sink, bent over double and looking between her legs toward the mirror behind her. "I'm looking to see if my butt is sandy," she explained. Ooookaaay.

My students have been noticing my tattoo. They're impressed. Yesterday I had a whole tattoo-related conversation with one student who got a tat this summer on his forearm. It's his mother's name and dates of birth and death, in Aramaic. Which is sweet, but as a parent, I'm not sure I'd want my offspring to memorialize me by inking their arms.

Happy today

2008-09-10T13:02:00.000-07:00

I am happy today.

I learned this weekend that there's a new Thai restaurant in town. Our previous only Thai place, which was really good, closed several years ago when, in the process of "redeveloping" downtown, they tore it up so much that for months it was pretty much impossible to get anywhere the businesses there. Looks pretty now, I guess, but no Thai has made me very sad. So I checked out the new place today for lunch, and it was quite good. Mmmm.

It was cool enough this morning that I could wear my new Docs without risking baking my lower extremities. I'll have to wear them with thicker socks next time, because they rub a bit in the heel, but they're otherwise comfy. I've had a request for a pic of me with boots, so here you go:

I think blue hair would've completed the look nicely, but the dye's washed out. ;-)

Fall Knitty's up.

And tonight is ceramics class.

See, doesn't take much to please me.

Future Noise

2008-09-09T18:27:00.000-07:00

Oh, no.
Look what we're in for now:

Could be worse, I guess. At least it's acoustic and not electric.

Really, the main worry I have is what kind of music she'll want to play on the thing. Kids seem to want music that annoys their parents, and, considering that this Thing's parents have been listening to The Sex Pistols and Tool, respectively, what's she going to choose? Shudder.

On another note, I've actually written the first couple paragraphs of the "I wouldn't have done it" story. Now I know exactly what I wouldn't have done. Once I get the story poured out of my brain and into the computer, you'll know, too. [chuckles evilly]

And the winner is...

2008-09-07T13:02:00.000-07:00

"I wouldn't have done it under normal circumstances."

Thanks for voting, folks! As soon as I get something written, I'll post it. I'm anxious myself to find out what happens. :-)

Wednesday

2008-09-03T20:05:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the votes so far--only 3 more days to get your vote in. And I promise, no Alaskan governors will be involved.

The semester has begun, so this was my third consecutive weekday of solid meetings. I think that, in general, meetings could be reduced by 90%, and the world would continue to function just fine. Better, maybe. Classes begin tomorrow, so tomorrow at 9:40 am I expect to have 100 or so freshmen all ready for me. Heh heh heh.

I decided on which pair of Docs I wanted. I ordered them last night, and--score another big one for Zappos--I already have them in my possession. I got these. They're comfy and they come with regular laces and ribbon laces. It's going to be 99 degrees tomorrow so I won't get to wear them yet. Now I'm really looking forward to cooler weather!

Thing 1 has taken to writing me notes at bedtime, which she leaves on my nightstand. Here's a recent one:

Dear Mom,
I'm not tired. I'm upset because you're not helping with this Toontown
thing. Neither of you. By the way, I want to go to Hawii, not Canada and Death
Desert/Valley. And my stomach is STILL hurting so, CALL THE DOCTER! Plus, I want
a computer in my room. And I want a phone. Why? Because almost EVERYBODY has a
phone at my school. And don't forget, CALL THE DOCTER! And I'm half tomboy and
half girl. Tomboy = tough. girl =hates dead worms and flies.
Love,
Thing 1

Oh, the joys of preadolescence. Dad, remember when you used to accuse me of being melodramatic and I'd get angry? Well, you can laugh now.

Inspire Me!

2008-08-28T22:25:00.000-07:00

Way back BC (Before Children) I used to like to do some creative writing. I've posted some of my old stuff on Live Journal, if you want to read. But in recent years, my responsibilities have been piling up and I haven't done anything but academic writing. I miss the fun stuff.

I used to also keep a journal of sorts, and, as a self-prompting exercise, each entry would include just the first sentence of a story. Some of those sentences eventually made their way into stories I wrote. Most didn't.

So...I thought maybe I'd try to get some creative juices flowing again, and maybe I'd start with those old sentences. Here's the deal: I'm going to write 5 of those sentences below. You vote in the comments for one. Whichever gets the most votes by September 6 gets turned into an actual story. I have no idea yet where any of these sentences will go. So, folks, please. Vote and inspire me. :-)

She had her own web page.
He was going to have to start over.
As always, she burned her tongue drinking her hot chocolate.
Nick Ford was stopped at a red light on Ninth Street when he decided to become a woman.
I wouldn't have done it under normal circumstances.

Blue

2008-08-27T11:04:00.000-07:00

Okay, by popular demand, I present my blue hair:

Thing 1 took the pic a couple days ago. The blue has faded, but it was still definitely there yesterday when I met with the police chief. Oh well. My boss, the Dean, was there, too, and it didn't bug her any.

Saturday Update

2008-08-23T13:43:00.001-07:00

Thanks so much for the comments, you guys! Keep them coming! :-)

So Thing 1 started 4th grade this week, and seems very happy with it. I'm not too thrilled with the school district, though, because (without notifying anyone!) they messed with the bus schedule. Now, instead of being the last stop of the morning, T1 is the first. That means I have to get her out the door nearly an hour earlier, and that means we have to get up nearly an hour earlier. Joy.

Thing 2 officially becomes a kindergartener on Monday. No bus problems with her--she commutes to school with Hubby.

I have been dealing with a moderate administrative crisis at work. And yesterday I attended a freshman orientation. One of the girls there was wearing a Ramones shirt, which amused me because I owned a Ramones shirt back when I was in high school, probably 6 years before this kid was born. I even almost went to a Ramones concert, but it was on a school night, and my cruel, mean parents wouldn't let me go.

Today I dyed my hair blue. It'll probably wash out before classes begin. I don't know what reaction 100 plus freshman Intro students would have if their professor showed up with blue hair, black fingernails, and a tattoo. Oh, and I have a meeting with a police chief coming up, too. I rather like the blue, though; it's almost the same color as my eyes.

This week I finished the last season of Angel, and we've now begun season 2 of Dexter. I don't usually watch cop shows--too much like work--but Dexter is really fun.

Hubby has two--count 'em, two--fantasy football drafts this weekend. So in exchange, he has taken the Things for the day. They are currently at the movies. This is why I had time to finish line editing a chapter, dye my hair, polish of the next Anita Blake novel, and post this update. :-)

Lizzie and Lizard

2008-08-16T15:42:00.001-07:00

Thanks for the comments yesterday, Sharon and Angela! :-) No, I haven't finished Lizzie yet. Still need to block and assemble, and it's too hot to think about afghans right now.

But, speaking of Lizzie...or at least lizard...look at what Hubby rescued from the pool this afternoon:

Isn't this the cutest thing ever?!? Look at those itsy bitsy claws and those bulgy little eyes! (click on the pic for a close-up view of the lizard and my hairy arm). I think it's a baby of the same species I fished out of the pool earlier this year. From nose to tail-tip, this little guy was shorter than my index finger. He (she?) was just fine, and seemed perfectly happy perched on me. In fact, when I tried to put him down in a nice sunny spot next to my orange tree, he tried to climb up my arm. I wonder what kind of critters such a tiny thing eats? I wish I'd been able to get a better picture, but it's hard to get a good shot with a tickly lizard on one arm, the sun shining brightly on the camera viewscreen, and two pool-wet Things helpfully dripping all over you.

I'm baaaaaack

2008-08-15T14:53:00.000-07:00

Wow. I sort of disappeared off the face of the earth, didn't I? So what have I been up to?

I am currently mourning the near-end of the summer. Although I am not mourning Thing 1's return to school on Monday. And lest I seem cruel, I'll point out that she's anxious for school to start, too.
Thing 1's feet are now only 1 size smaller than mine, so she has been stealing my shoes all summer. I don't mind as long as she sticks to the flip-flops.
A few months ago, I began making a concentrated effort to Eat Healthy. I'm eating way more fruits and veggies, and way less fat, carbs, and processed crap. I've lost over 20 pounds and I have a lot more energy. And I don't feel deprived. Still, I've decided to reward myself soon, I think with a new pair of shoes. I've wanted a pair of Docs for some time, but the question is which one: these are awfully cute, but I kinda like these too, or maybe these? I told you I've reverted to my punk period.
My co-authors and I finished the second draft of the Textbook We've Been Working on Forever. Hallelujah! And next week I'll complete the line editing for a chapter I wrote for someone else's book. My desk will be momentarilly cleared of writing projects, just in time for the new semester.

I haven't been knitting. Dunno why, really. I have been reading, though. Specifically, I've gotten myself hooked on the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series. I just finished the 9th book in the series. They're perfect summer reading, for me: just enough blood and monsters, and minimal intellectual value. My only complaint is that the editor deserves to be shot with a silver bullet or something; there are an inordinate number of typos and grammar errors, as well some minor but annoying plot holes. Argh.
Remember how I gradually worked my way through all 7 seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Well, I'm now in the last season of Angel. Then I'm going to have to pick another series to watch (although Season 2 of Dexter comes out next week). I haven't watched any actual tv since the writers' strike. And I am sad, sad that nobody commented on the Spike doll I knitted. :-(

We drove down to San Diego a couple weeks ago, and visited Legoland and Seaworld. It was fun. The weather was perfect, as it nearly always is there. Here's Thing 2 at Seaworld and Thing 1 at Legoland.

So there's a quicky update, and I promise not to disappear again for so long, if you all will just do me the favor of leaving a quick comment, so I know I'm not just writing to myself. :-)

Finally an update

2008-07-16T17:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the lack of blogging. I'm teaching a summer class right now that's short but intense. It'll be over on Sunday afternoon. :-)

I finished the outfit for that doll I knitted. Here he is, completely dressed and posed with some of his favorite music. Which I've been listening to a lot lately, too. Maybe I'm having a midlife crisis and reliving my youth.

Do you recognize him? I don't seem to be able to get a really good picture of him. Well, maybe vampires don't photograph well, sorta like they don't cast reflections.

And, here for your entertainment, is another picture:

This, my friends, is what your house might look like if you had a Saint Bernard. That attractive splotch on our 9-foot ceiling is dog fur, cemented in place by slobber, and flung there by Ruthie.

Back in California

2008-07-05T12:36:00.001-07:00

We're back in California now--flew back yesterday afternoon. But here are a couple pictures from our trip:

Here's Thing 1 as she was getting on the bus to camp.

And here's Thing 2 enjoying pirate day at her camp.

This building is where I lived for 3 years during college. It was my first apartment, and it was a quirky one: the tiny bedroom had 2 doors but no windows. But I liked living there. There's a big park right behind the building, and it was within easy walking distance of campus. See the third window from the left in the front of the building, on the first floor? That was my living room.

I promised the other day that I would post a pic of the knitting project I was working on. This is a pretty crappy pic, but here ya go:

Can you guess who this is? The object he's propped against is a hint, actually. I adapted a pattern from Stitch 'n Bitch Nation, the same pattern I'd previously used to make Joey Ramone and Sigmund Freud. I'm still planning to make a shirt and coat for this guy. The knitted version is buffer (hint, hint!) than the real guy, and you'll have to click on the pic to be able to see his very light-colored hair, but I'm pretty satisfied with how he turned out.

In other news, I came home to discover two fun surprises in my pile of mail. First, there was a thank you note from the place where I got my tattoo, which I think is very nice. And second, there was a gorgeous skein of Hand Maiden Sea Silk, sent as a surprise from a generous friend. :-) Boy, that yarn is really scrumptious!

And one more thing. Have you noticed that the Bush Countdown on the left of the screen is now under 200 days?

Wednesday Night

2008-07-02T23:17:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the nice comments on my fused glass plate. You are very kind. :-) I think glass fusing is one of those things where you can make something that looks pretty good even if your talents are limited!

On other creative fronts, I've posted another story on LiveJournal, and I'm finishing up a fun little knitted project. I'll fill you in on the details and post pix when it's done.

Thing 1 made it back from camp. She had a great time, and sustained only minor injuries. She received a certificate for being the "Most Athletic," which actually isn't surprising for her, but is seriously ironic for my offspring. She lost her backpack and disposable camera, but both were found. She got a sunburn on her nose (despite the sunscreen I packed). She decided, after discussing the matter with the other 4th graders in her cabin, that she now needs a bra. :-)

We're down to our last couple days in Portland. I have managed to make 4 separate trips to Powell's this time, including 3 different locations (I went to the main downtown one twice). And tonight I went to this place, because it's one of those stores I've passed a zillion times (it's a block from Powell's), and always been curious about, but never managed to visit. Turns out it's way fun (I scored glow in the dark skull and crossbones stockings!), and the heavily pierced and tattooed sales staff are really chirpy and nice. Who knew?

Glass Class

2008-06-28T20:56:00.001-07:00

My Mom, my sister, and I took a glass fusing class the other day. We made plates. Here's mine. I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out. I love working with glass.

Letter from Camp

2008-06-28T14:25:00.001-07:00

Received a letter from Thing 1 today; she's away at camp until Monday. Here's what it says:

Dear Mom,
How you doin'? I'm having a great time. You know about bug juice and how
thier isn't really any bugs in it? Well, mine did actually had a bug in it! By
the way, can you send me letters and stuff.
Love,
Your caring daughter,
Thing 1

Please send me my Webkinz and bunny

Tagged Too

2008-06-26T16:39:00.000-07:00

Angela tagged me, so here goes:

What was I doing 10 years ago?

Actually, pretty much the same thing as now. But I was kidless then and had just been tenured.

5 snacks I enjoy:

Biscotti
Ice cream
Grapes
Cookies
Chocolate

5 things on my to-do list today:

Take T2 to day camp
Attend glass fusing workshop
Have lunch with Mom & sister
Catch up on email from work
Pick T2 up from day camp

5 things I would do if I were a billionaire:

Travel, travel, travel
Give lots to charity
Hire my own driver
Buy big houses for relatives
Write more

5 jobs I have had:

McDonalds
Take and bake pizza place
Law clerk
Teaching assistant
Professor

5 of my bad habits:

Eating junk
Not exercising enough
Interrupting people
Overspending on books
Overspending on yarn

5 places I have lived:

Bolingbrook, Illinois
Beaverton, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Lincoln, Nebraska
Turlock, California

5 people who I'd like to get to know better (this means you're tagged!):

If you're reading this, consider yourself tagged!!

5 random things:

I went through a punk period when I was a kid, and my iPod is still loaded with the Clash, the Ramones, the Sex Pistols, Iggy, etc., etc.
I hate scallops. Ick.
I am a klutz.
I'm going to Poland next January!
Maybe someday I'll get another tattoo. :-)

Tattoo Me

2008-06-25T19:51:00.001-07:00

So, I am now a tattooed woman. It didn't hurt as much as I thought it would, and was actually a pleasant experience. It's just a little sore now. An explanation of the design? Of course, we have the scales of justice, because of my law degree, but the scale itself is shaped like the Greek letter psi. Psi is a shorthand symbol for psychology, which is what my PhD is in. And the whole thing is on top of a law book. It's kinda geeky and I'm very happy with it.

Tuesday

2008-06-24T12:59:00.000-07:00

I've posted another story on LiveJournal. This one is short and sort of strange.

I'm having a nice visit with my family. We sent T1 off to camp yesterday. She was excited--it's her first time at sleep-away camp. Wonder what she'll look like when she gets back on Monday? Meanwhile, T2 is enjoying her day camp. She conked right out at bedtime last night.

And tomorrow I get my tat. I'm going to tease you by not telling you yet what it will be, but here's a clue: it's related to my academic life. :-)

Away from Home Again

2008-06-22T22:02:00.000-07:00

So now I've taken the Things for a 2 week visit with my family in Portland. Even better, Thing 1 will be spending 1 of these weeks at summer camp, while T2 spends the same week at day camp. In other words, I get a vacation! And I'm planning to get a tattoo, too. Been wanting one for a while, but with work and travel and the Things, haven't been able to manage it. But now I have an appointment for Wednesday. :-)

The Ring

2008-06-20T22:37:00.000-07:00

I've put a second story up on LiveJournal. It's another one I wrote some years ago, and it's called The Ring.

Story Online

2008-06-18T19:52:00.000-07:00

So I recovered from jetlag just in time for Hubby to head off to Las Vegas, leaving me with a book writing deadline and the Things. Now he's back, but in a couple days the Things and I are heading north to Oregon. So June has left me very little downtime. I haven't picked up the knitting needles in a few weeks. :-( But I did accomplish something today: I set up a LiveJournal account, and I posted to it a short story I wrote several years ago. I like to write short stories, but haven't found much time in a long while. But this story is one of my favorites. I hope to post some other old stories shortly, and--who knows?--maybe someday something new. In the meantime, please click on over, and I'd love feedback!

Pictures from Zagreb

2008-06-10T16:20:00.000-07:00

I made it home and am mostly recovered from jetlag. I had a tight connection at Charles de Gaulle, which is possibly the most annoying airport I've flown through, but I made it. Somewhat regrettably, since I wouldn't have minded a day in Paris. Oh well, it's good to be home. So here are a few images from my trip.

This is Tkalciceva Ulica (pronounced Tkalchichayva Oolitsa), a long pedestrian street lined with cafes and shops. I had espresso at a couple of these cafes.

And here's another street in the Upper Town, in the rain.

This is the view from the funicular.

This is Lotrscak Tower (there are supposed to be marks over the s and c, but darn if I know how to do that on Blogger). It's at the top of the hill over the funicular, and it's 900 years old. It's where they shoot a cannon every day at noon. And when they do, every dog in Zagreb barks.

And this is a statue of Josip Jelacic (Yosep Yellacheech), a governor of Croatia who fought the Hungarian empire in 1848. The statue is is Ban Jelacic Trg, Zagreb's main square (and that's a beer tent or something set up next to it). The statue was built in 1866, and Jelacic's sword faced north, toward Hungary. It was taken down in 1947, when Croatia became part of Yugoslavia and the Communists didn't approve. In the early 1990's, Croatia gained independence and the statue was re-installed. But now the statue faces south, toward Bosnia. Ya gotta love Balkan politics.

Last Day in Croatia

2008-06-07T06:58:00.000-07:00

There's a funicular in Zagreb. It's very short--the whole ride takes less than a minute--and because it runs only every 10 minutes, you could porbably just walk up the hill in less time. But it's fun, and costs just 4 kuna, which is about 80 cents or so. At the top of the funicular is a tower, and every day at noon they shoot a cannon on the top of the tower. I'd forgotten about that and happened to be at the bottom of the hill today at noon. That noise'll make you jump out of your skin! And it makes all the dogs bark, too.

The area at the top of the hill is called Kaptol. The big cathedral is there, and also a long pedestrian street lined with cafes and shops. Most of Kaptol is very quiet, though, and I meandered for an hour or so among winding cobblestone streets and old houses. Very pretty.

I had lunch today with a couple people from the university, at a restaurant across from the cathedral. There was covered outdoor seating, which was good because it's raining today. Again. I had some local food--mushroom soup and a zagorski strukli, a sort of pastry filled with cheese. The strukli are delicious--they taste quite a bit like the cheese knishes my grandmother used to make, although the look and texture is sort of lasagne-like. And we had red wine with water, which I guess is traditional with lunch, and of course espresso. Boy, have I been drinking a lot of espresso. :-) Tomorrow very early I leave Croatia. I have a very quick layover in Paris this time, so we'll see whether I make my connection. If not, well, I guess I'll be stuck in Paris. Quelle tragique!