AN EMPTY MIND

There hasn’t been much on my mind lately. Tony and I got our TV, which is pretty exciting to us but not so much to the vast majority of the human population. It is getting delivered on Saturday and I have a lot of work to do tomorrow night getting everything ready for it. Tonight I am going to see Avenue Q with Monica and Jamie and that should be wicked awesome. I suppose I’ll have more to say about that tomorrow.

Basically I have been walking around with my head buried deep within Atlas Shrugged and being a total recluse. It’s pretty cool. Atlas Shrugged is basically the same book as The Fountainhead but longer. Although I am only about 400 pages into it I can safely assume that my assumption is correct. There are people motivated by industry and construction, people who punish themselves for having sexual desires contrasted with those who revel in them, Government type folks who just can’t seem to leave those bloody capitalists alone, Sentences dripping with the absolute horror of any remotely socialist ideals, and tons of self-righteous boobs of all sorts running around. It’s wonderful.

1. We’re in the movies/ Watching some people move their mouths/ And a religious figure/ Whose not really a religious figure/ Cause he’s an actor

2. There’s a man I’ve found who could bring us all joy/ There’s a doctor I’ve found could cure the boy. There's a Dr. I've Found, The Who. Identified by, Mom.

3. It never really mattered too much to me/ That I was just too damn old to MC/ All that really mattered is if your rhymes was ill/ Girl that’s all that really mattered to me

4. Tulip Baroo/ Tulip Baroo/ The magnetic roller-skater wears a bonnet of blue/ Bonnet of blue

5. Annie’s twelve years old in two more she’ll be a whore/ Nobody ever told her it’s the wrong way/ Don’t be afraid with the quickness you’ll get laid/ For your family get paid it’s the wrong way. Wrong Way, Sublime. Identified by Mom. Mom, I'm kind of sorry that you know this one. Maybe I can blame it on Sisterhead.

THE BEST THING ABOUT MINNEAPOLIS

I haven’t had much to say lately, which is strange because I feel that I have been very busy. I guess I have enjoyed playing word games on Facebook more than blogging lately. Therefore, during my lunches I sit down to have a quick game of something and then notice an hour has passed and I have no time to write anything. Again, not that anything interesting would be said. Maybe I should change my blog name back to “I Have Nothing Interesting To Say: Read Me”.

I had a wonderful time in Minneapolis, as I always do. It is truly a great city. On Thursday I went out for Thai food with Roxanne, my oldest friend. She isn’t the oldest of my friends but I have known her since I was about 6mo old so she is really more like family than friend. I mean I’ve known her longer than my sister. It is amazing that we still enjoy each others company as much as we do. Anyway, the point of my story was that we went out for Thai food and I got to eat mock duck. I don’t know what it is about Minneapolis that every Thai and Vietnamese place has mock duck on the menu but it is a wonderful thing. Maybe there is a mock duck factory in the twin cities somewhere that I have never heard of. What I wouldn’t do to get some proper mock duck here in Chicago. Sure my family lives in Minneapolis. Sure I love the quiet vibe of an ever more cosmopolitan city. Sure I get to see old friends who mean the world to me. Regardless, mock duck is quite possibly the best thing in Minneapolis.

Of course I have no idea if the mock duck tastes anything like real duck but I do know that it tastes delicious. It’s moist and firm and chewy all at the same time. It has a fantastic flavor and it makes me incredibly happy. I ordered mock duck pad thai at a level five spicy out of five and didn’t even need to put more hot sauce on it, although I could have. It was nice and red with spice when it arrived on my plate. It even had big tofu pieces along with the mock duck! Usually they just put some little crap pieces in there if it isn't your main "meat". I have to do some research and find out where I can get some of this wonderful product and make my own mock ducky dishes. I actually just did a google search for "mock duck chicago" and found a restaurant that serves the stuff. Dharma Garden here I come. I should also mention that the first entry on google was from someone who went to college in Minneapolis and was lamenting the mockducklessness of Chicago.

On Friday the entire family (parents, aunts & uncles, cousins, and grandparents) went for dinner at Cristos, a Greek restaurant. The food there was incredibly delicious as well. I ordered dessert, which I never do, and tasted a little piece of heaven called milopita. This thing was filo dough wrapped around baked apples in a ricotta/cream cheese mixture. There was some kind of sweet wonderful sauce all around it. I won’t want another one for about five years because it was incredibly rich but it was certainly something wonderful to store in the back of my, “delicious things to eat” corner of my mind.

I also saw two movies, Iron Man and Prince Caspian, which is insane because I never go out to the movies. It was great fun even though I took a benadryl, which never make me sleepy but miraculously did that day, before going to see Iron Man and dosed a little bit. Oh well, just gives me more reason to see it again. I now have to reread Prince Caspian because, while I think it was similar to the book, if it didn’t follow the story closely it was a total Two Towers rip off. Then again, the first one was very true to the story so I’m not really sure why it wouldn’t be. If anyone remembers and will let me know so that I can continue to read Atlas Shrugged (which I am enjoying immensely although not as much as The Fountainhead) and not have to bother with minor literary distractions. Then again, literary distractions can be cool as I just read a book called Running With Walker, which was a father’s memoir of taking care of his autistic son and was incredibly glad that I did.

Now for the song reveal

2. Now for all ya’ll who ain’t heard of me/ Mr. M-O-E the Barre Baby/ I’m a South Side living legend/ A third ward /bone hard/ Street veteran. Barre Baby, Big Moe.

5. They sentenced me to twenty years of boredom/ For trying to change the system from within/ I’m coming now I’m coming to reward them. First We Take Manhattan, Leonard Cohen

I'VE BEEN THINKING

Today I had my first meeting for the campus book club. It isn’t a club that meets particularly regularly because we all have our own busy schedules, but rather is scheduled for two meetings and a screening of the movie based on our book. As I am playing with the idea of going back to school, I figured participating in this would be a good way to get my mind thinking critically again. While I believe I always read with a critical eye it is different when you know you have to discuss the work in question. Plus the book that was chosen was Native Son, by Richard Wright and I have read it many times before so it wouldn’t be too hard.

I am not a fan of Richard Wright. I find his work to be wordy, unsophisticated, underdeveloped, and full of self-loathing. However, I am always curious to see how other people feel about him because he is considered to be one of “the greats” and Native Son is seen as a masterpiece. It’s not a bad book. I find it to be rather preachy and altogether too obvious but I can see why it could be seen as relevant. It is certainly a somewhat entertaining read what with the violence and political intrigue although the lack of chapters is incredibly annoying. Either way, I figured it would make for a good discussion.

I wasn’t disappointed. Our group facilitator did a great job of asking pertinent questions, allowing everyone to express their opinion and keeping the discussion moving. He also did a good job of keeping his personal opinions out of things. I feel that I did a good job of that as well, which is not easy for me. Our next meeting is on the third of next month and he posed some challenging questions to us.

1. Do we know a Bigger Thomas?
2. Do we know anyone who resembles the other characters in the book?
3. How have race relations in Chicago changed from the 1930s until now?
4. Do we still allow the stereotypes that pervaded the community into our minds today?

The first two questions made me chuckle. If you haven’t read the book, Bigger Thomas is about the most stereotypical “poor uneducated young Black man who is stuck on a path leading to destruction” that you could ever come across, and the white characters are also stereotypical “well meaning rich liberals who think they are helping”. All I had to do was think back to my last job and realize that I knew plenty of people who fit both these categories and some of the latter weren’t white folks. I guess that is how race relations in Chicago have changed. Now it isn’t just rich white people giving ping-pong tables to the poor Black children but Black people as well. Maybe the fact that it took me .2 seconds to reach that conclusion signifies that these stereotypes are around today. However, there is a grain of truth in every stereotype so….

I look forward to our next discussion. It’s a good and diverse group of people and I enjoy people coming together and discussing things that interest me. You all know I love some good talk of race and racism.

1. I love you/ Completely/ Please I don't want you to go/ Though you are not content here with me and you feel you must go. You Feel You Must Go, Don’t Go!, Of Montreal

2 You've got a bad reputation/ That's the word out on the town/ It gives a certain fascination/ But it can only bring you down. Bad Reputation, Thin Lizzy

3. They got a committee to get me off the block. Cause I say my rhymes loud and I say them non stop. Slow Ride, Beastie Boys

4. On the corner/ We talk away/ Everybody’s older these days. Glass Conversation, The Ponies

BYE BYE BOOKS

I have got to weight in on this thing that is Kindle. As a book and gadget lover, I am both excited and horrified by this product. In case you didn’t know, Kindle is a wireless device developed y Amazon.com that can download and store up to 200 books from a database of 90,000. It can also receive magazine and newspaper subscriptions. Kindle is about the size of a standard paperback and has a very high resolution and quite readable screen. Downloads take about one minute. I hear that the color resolution isn’t the best but unless you are reading science or children’s books that probably won’t be much of an issue. You can download first chapters of books for free and the most expensive titles are $9.99.

As a gadget this thing is pretty awesome. Sure the price tag is a little high ($399) but, like most gadgets that will very likely lower in the next few years. Kindle has a reported battery life of about 6 hours and that is extended if you turn the wireless features off. It fully recharges in two hours, which is a little long but could be much worse. It is light and thin and uses cell phone networks so you don’t’ have to be in a wi-fi hotspot to download your materials and it doesn’t have any wireless charges. You can even email yourself files for reading anything you wrote or some business type stuffs on the go. Everything you purchased is stored online so if you needed to clear space for a particular book you won’t be deleting something forever. You can click on a word you don’t know and look it up instantly. You’ll never need to bookmark a page, Kindle remembers

So why does it scare me? The answer is simple. I think we may be witnessing the downfall of the printed page. Any avid reader knows there is something about holding a book in your hand. You turn the pages and new stories unfold. As you read you can measure your progression by how many pages have moved from one side of the book to the other. You can tell how loved a book is by the creases in its binding and the notes scribbled in the margins (if you write in your books like I do). All of this is impossible with a machine. Well all except the notes, you can make annotations with this thing too.

Remember the smell of old books? Cherish it. In two generations it may be gone. I will always remember the smell of Happiness is a Warm Puppy. I don’t know if they used some kind of special paper or what but no other book I have ever read has smelled that way. Think of the way libraries look, both at home and in the public. The bookshelf could become an obsolete piece of furniture. There is a lot at stake here. Sure we love our books now but what about the kids who grow up with these things. How much cheaper would getting your books for college be with one? In 20 years how hard will it be to buy a real book?

I can’t promise I will never go digital. This product looks pretty amazing. I didn’t understand how awesome mp3 players were for years but my iPod has changed my life. Kindle could do the same thing for books that mp3 players have done for CDs. Who am I to say this is a bad thing? I can’t go into the bookstore and buy a brand new book for $9.99. I am safe for now because not only are they expensive but they are sold out on Amazon. Not to mention that the thought of having one kind of makes me want to vomit. The revolution is now.

10 SNOGGABLE FICTIONAL MALES

Cassandra, Customized Training Assistant, seems to be doing well. Today we played find the files. It was not an easy game. Before we moved offices things were exactly where I expected them to be. Now, not only do I not know where files are, no one seems to know. As we have an audit coming up relatively soon and are missing a few (and I mean very few) files, this could prove to be a problem. We have some good people trying to help locate them though so it should all be ok. The Volunteer Coordinator resigned after her first day. I am really pissed. Anyway.

Blog Antagonist had this really interesting meme up a while ago about 10 literary characters that you would want to make out with. Being quite a reader, I thought that I would have no problems with this whatsoever. I actually found it to be quite hard. I could only come up with four (and that was a challenge only two were easy) so I really take no responsibility for anyone five and after. I had to push the envelope a little bit. You are all probably going to now find me a very odd individual. See, here is the thing. Most of the books I love aren’t teeming with positive male characters that I would want to make out with. In fact, many of the books that I love have pretty horrible men in them. I like books about bad people. Oh well.

1. Valentine Michael Smith, Stranger in a Strange Land
Ah, the man from Mars, a genuinely honest person who loved humanity more than anything in the universe. It was written that when he kissed or made love he was able to focus only on the person that he was with. His mind was empty of everything except experiencing that moment. It was said to be quite nice. It sounds quite nice. He understood people but didn’t understand the world in which they lived. He tried things his own way and changed people for the better. That is why he had to be my number one.

2. Howard Roark, The Fountainhead
Roark was actually the first person that I thought of but he was soon eclipsed by Mike. There is something incredibly sexy about someone who is incredibly passionate and rigid in their convictions even if those convictions sometimes make you an asshole. Roark was a sick fucker but I loved him and wish more people felt as passionately about their work as he did. Well, maybe not that passionate, but close.

3. Paul Mua’dib, Dune
Paul had powers. Really cool powers that let him lead people and guide a society. I’m not so sure I want to make out with Paul from the latter books because, if I recall correctly, he went a little bonkers but in this book he was an inspiration. He was a hero and he loved with all his heart. Wait, wasn’t he 15? Oops, I promise that I literally just remembered that while I was writing. Damn. Take my list down to three legitimate entries.

4. Switters, Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates.
Switters is a nutjob. He is a walking talking contradiction but he loves life and he loves women. He’s a real Indiana Jones type of guy who is appropriately reverent of other cultures. Yet, he still questions the validity of most social constructs. Plus, if he could get a nun to sleep with him he had to be offering something pretty good.

5. Pan, Jitterbug Perfume
Yes, I realize that Pan is a half-man half-goat. As you can see my list has gotten quite wonky. Pan loved the ladies and the ladies loved Pan. Sure, he smelled like a goat in heat all the time but that’s what the perfume was all about.

6. Hazel, Watership Down
Hazel is a rabbit. That is even sillier than a half-man half-goat. It doesn’t even make sense. However, if Hazel was a person, he would be right up there after Roark. Hazel was the best person a rabbit could be. He led his flock to a new home where they would be safe and thrive. He orchestrated a plan to liberate does from the clutches of an evil tyrant. He was incredibly smart and knew how to harness the strengths of those around him. He was a true leader because he knew when to follow.

7. Azlan, The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe
Sure, Azlan is a lion and an allegory for Jesus. I’m not trying to say I want to make out with Jesus or a lion. Azlan is just freaking cool. He is magic, just, wise, and brave. He would sacrifice himself for the betterment of the world and has no problem taking a kid for a ride on his back. Azlan would make a good dad.

8. Severus Snape, Harry Potter
Yeah, the man was not the most attractive. Granted, he was an evil wizard. However, his love for a woman was stronger than his loyalty to domination and control. To make it even more impressive it was a love that was unrequited. If he could feel that strongly about a woman who didn’t even love him back he was obviously a man with a lot to offer. Or else he was a total sicko. It really could go either way.

9. Winston Smith, 1984
What could possibly be kissable about a man who would turn his one true love over to a horrible oppressive government to save himself you may ask? Well here it is; Winston Smith tried. He really really tried. For a while he even succeeded. Sometimes society will crush someone and they just aren’t strong enough to resist. Winston Smith was just a regular guy and he couldn’t beat the system but I would give him a kiss for trying.

10. Smog, The Hobbit
Smog was evil. Smog had scales. Smog was a greedy money hungry killer. He was not a nice guy. However, Smog was really into himself and sometimes a rich stuck up guy can have something inexplicable going for him. He's like a dragon Bateman. I was really grasping at straws by this point people. Give me a break.

2. I prayed to/ Heaven today/ Bring its hammer down on me/ And pound you out of my head/ I can’t think with you in there. Missing, Beck

3. I spend the afternoon in cars/ I sit in traffic jams for hours/ Don’t push me I am not ok. Jumpers, Sleater Kinney

5. So they say I was sometimes cruel/ I don’t know if I would say that too/ Oh I/ I don’t know about that. Sixteen, Le Tigre

FOODIE FRIDAY: SOUP AND SALAD

I made this dish on Wednesday and it was totally yummy. I haven’t made soup in ages although I used to have this awesome lentil and potato soup recipe that has disappeared along with the recipe notebook I had in college. It is too bad, that thing was great. It disappeared sometime at Addison apartment. I am not sure when but one day I went to grab it and the thing was gone.

Anyway, I made a new soup and it was pretty easy to make. The only difficult part was straining it and I am sure there are gadgets out there much better than my mesh colander for straining soup. Or maybe not and it is just a pain to do. If I had a bowl the same size as the colander it would have been much easier. The soup will serve 3-4 while the salad will serve 2

Pear and Goat Cheese Salad with pesto vinaigrette
-4cups salad greens of your choosing, ideally something with a little bitterness
-1 pear halved and cored
-2tbsp herbed goat cheese (or regular if you like)
-2tbsp slivered almonds (I made more than needed because they taste good)
-8 radishes sliced into thin rounds
-Tsp garlic powder
-Salt and pepper to taste
Dressing
-1tbsp pesto
-3tbsp balsamic vinegar

-Preheat oven to 350
-Place almonds on a baking sheet and dust with spices
-Toast for 7 min (give or take) stirring occasionally
-Put 1tbsp goat cheese in the cored out section of the pears
-Place stuffed pear in center of 2 cups of salad greens
-Sprinkle radishes and 1tbsp almonds over salad
-Dress lightly with the pesto vinaigrette

Potato, leek, and cauliflower soup with asparagus and thyme
-4 spears asparagus chopped into bite sized rounds
-½ head cauliflower chopped but not all that fine
-1 potato peeled and sliced
-2 medium leeks sliced into thin rounds (only the white and light green parts)
-2tbsp butter
-3.5cups vegetable broth
-2 cloves garlic pressed
-10 small sprigs fresh thyme
-Salt and pepper to taste
-2tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese
-½ cup room temperature nonfat yogurt
-4 pieces thinly (1/2in) sliced ciabatta bread

-Put 1.5tbsp butter in a soup pot and melt
-Sauté leeks about 2 min
-Add garlic and sauté 1min
-Add cauliflower, potato, 6 sprigs thyme, and a dash each of salt and pepper and sauté 5 min
-Remove sprigs of thyme and discard
-Add vegetable broth and simmer 20 min or until cauliflower and potato are soft
-Pour mixture into a blender or food processor and liquefy
-Pour blended soup through a thin colander to strain out most of the pulp. It will take a while if you have a colander that fits nicely over the top of a big bowl it will be nice and easy
-Heat oven to 350
-Rub bread in the seasonings left in the baking sheet from the almonds and then cover one side with parmesan
-Bake 5-8 min until crisp and cheese is melted and browned
-Put the rest of the butter into the pan and melt
-Sauté asparagus rounds until slightly soft but still keep a nice crispness about 7 min
-Once the soup is strained add the yogurt and whisk until smooth
-Add asparagus rounds
-If needed heat over med-low heat but do not bring to a boil
-Garnish with 2 slices of ciabatta bread and the remaining thyme sprigs

Enjoy

1. If this world were mine/ I would place at your feet/ all that I own/ You’ve been so good to me. If This World Were Mine, Luthur. Identified by Urban Chick

2. I prayed to/ Heaven today/ Bring its hammer down on me/ And pound you out of my head/ I can’t think with you in there

3. I spend the afternoon in cars/ I sit in traffic jams for hours/ Don’t push me I am not ok

4. Pistol shots/ Gun shots/ pistol shots/ Gun shots/ Bullets from a revolver/ bullets from a gun/ Bullets through the atmosphere/ here they come. Sapphire Bullets of Pure Love, TheyMight Be Giants. Identified by, Monica

5. So they say I was sometimes cruel/ I don’t know if I would say that too/ Oh I/ I don’t know about that

A BIT OF BONNIE

This is a small slice of a piece that I have been working on and not working on for a long time. I really need to work on it more. It is very very rough. I thought that by putting a small piece of it out in the world I might be more inspired to make it better. By the way, this is my work and if I find it stolen I reserve the right to kill.

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When we were in third grade Bonnie told me that she loved me. I thought that was it. My life was set forever and ever. Like I said, I loved fairy-tales and Bonnie was my fairy princess. We would move to a mansion by the lake and have two children, either a girl and a boy or two girls but definitely not two boys, and we would be happy. We would work hard to instill the desire to change the world in our offspring and our children would be smart, talented, and beautiful. One would grow up to be president and the other would be an artist. We would be so proud. It was to be a beautiful life. Somewhere, in the back of my mind, I still believe it can come true. I can never tell Bonnie this. She would say she finds me creepy then look at me like a rooster would for a good thirty seconds and never speak of it again. I would never forget that cockeyed look and it would cause a chasm to spread between us and our friendship would tumble from the precipice into the deep dark gloomy depths of the ocean where the scary blind fish with the light bulbs dangling creepily from their heads and the creepy jagged teeth live; never to emerge again.

These days Bonnie is in love with a "cool guy" named Thomas. She met him in a yoga class that she took one day on a whim. She said she never planned to go back after the first class because the teacher was just a little too much of a hippy for her. Most people think Bonnie is a hippie but really she just doesn’t like pants. Well, she likes some pants but none anywhere near as much as skirts. Pants generally look better with skirts or dresses anyway or so she tells me. I am still not sure if she is right. Anyway, this hippie teacher had the class lay on each other’s backs and picture seascapes while he played a cowbell and told them to remember to breathe. As far as I can tell, people generally don’t forget to breathe. The body kind of takes care of that on its own. Bonnie had to lay all curled up in a ball while Thomas draped himself over her in some sort of odd arched fashion and they started breathing at the same rate and the next thing you know she decided she loved him. Maybe there was more to it than that but I don't think details are all that important. What is important is that she kept going to class and, kept loving him.

I hate Thomas. I don't even pretend to like him (except when talking to Bonnie or Thomas). I think he looks like my stress ball when it exploded after repeated squeezes. I was squeezing it and it just burst open. This white foamy stuff squirted out and there were these little balls in it. Somehow, the purple ball looked like a big red pimple. I couldn’t stop squeezing it. Actually, Thomas looked nothing like an exploded stress ball but he made me feel like the exploded ball did. I just wanted to squeeze him and watch all his ooze gush out of him and leave him a hollow shell. I don’t really think of myself as a stressed person but I must have been that day for my ball to just explode like that. I try to tell myself I'm not still in love with Bonnie but I hate Thomas enough to make me think I must be. Honestly, I know that part of me really really loves her. Moreover, I am sure Thomas is gay. Definitely gay. Because he is gay he will break her heart. I would never break her heart.

I must find someone to love me so that Bonnie will realize she belongs with me and that Thomas is nothing but a big stress ball and I am like a warm bath. Ah yes, that's what I'm like, a nice warm bubble bath with rosemary oil lightly drizzled throughout and candles strategically placed around the tub and incense, nag champa incense, that had gone out ten minutes before she entered the room and things were just nice and light and aromatic. If she knew that is what I am like how could she help but realize how wonderful I would be for her. But what if I were to fall in love with this mystery person I have vowed to find? What if they turn out to be my one true love rather than Bonnie, the girl I have based my entire existence on? If that were to happen, it would prove that my life had been based on a mistruth and therefore I would have to completely reexamine everything. Shit, I can’t do that.

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1. What if the show didn’t go on/ What if we all got jobs and got to bed before dawn/ What if Old Joe had to retire/ What if all the stagehands were let go or fired.

2. You’ve taken the fun/ Out of everything/ Making me run/ When I don’t want to think

3. Every night/ Out for love/ Get my strength from the man above/ God of pistol/ God of steel/ God is here behind my wheel

4. They love me like I was a brother/ They protect me/ Listen to me. Nice Dreams, Radiohead. Identified by Monica.

5. I said oh/ I got this feeling and it's deep in my body/ it gives me wiggles and it makes my rump shake/ I said oh

5 RANDOM THINGS

Johnny Yen tagged me for the 5 questions meme a few days ago. Wanna hear them, here they go.

1. If you could be there to change just one event in history, what would it be?
This is a pretty hard question. I mean history is a really long time. I don’t want to change anything too far back because the repercussions that would ensue could be catastrophic and I tend to like my life. I’ll go back and fix that mess in Florida. I have a feeling that things would be a lot better now if I did. I also think that my life would be the same enough that I wouldn't be messing with too much cosmic stuff.

2. If you could be any actor or actress who ever lived, who would it be, and why?
Without a doubt or a moment of hesitation I would be Audrey Hepburn. She is beautiful, funny, classy, and has roles that look incredibly fun to play. How much would I like tobe Eliza Doolittle? A lot.

3. What was your favorite Saturday morning cartoon show?
Voltron: Defender of the Universe. Voltron was the unsung hero of the 1980s Saturday morning cartoons. He was relatively busted and the shows were pretty repetitive. Most people liked Transformers or Thundercats. I liked them too but not as much as Voltron, he was my hero. I was Voltron one year for Halloween and Princess Alura (she manned the blue lion after this one guy died) the next (or maybe it was the other way around). I had all types of Voltron toys and most of them are still around.

4. Beatles or Rolling Stones?
Beatles hands down. I don’t know a lot of the Rolling Stones catalogue, just their big songs and a few others here and there. I’m okay with that. I know a lot of the Beatles catalogue and I am glad that I do.

5. If you could be any fictional literary figure ever, who would it be?
The Little Prince because every time people would read about me they would laugh hysterically, learn something, and be brought to tears. I would be loved by children and adults all around the world. It sounds nice.

I am not tagging anyone but if someone wants to answer five random questions I will ask them of you.

Yesterday Monica came over to watch Top Chef. We were all about it. It wasn’t on. We were confused. Tony, who doesn’t watch the show, looked at us like we were crazy and said, “Doesn’t that come on Wednesdays?” Crap. It was Tuesday. We watched Flight of the Concords and Rick and Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in the World instead. It was still fun.

From a day when all songs wre guessed to a day when none were. Come on, people, there are some easy ones in there.

1. What if the show didn’t go on/ What if we all got jobs and got to bed before dawn/ What if Old Joe had to retire/ What if all the stagehands were let go or fired.

2. I do it for the joy it brings/ cause I am a joy-ful girl/ cause the world owes me nothing/ And we owe each other the world. Joyful Girl, Ani DoFranco. Identified by Brooke.

3. All the world just stops now/ so you say you don’t want to stay together anymore/ let me take a deep breath babe/ If you need me, me and Neil will be hanging out with the Dream King. Tear In Your Hand, the best Tori Amos song ever. Identified by Brooke.

4. You’ve taken the fun/ Out of everything/ Making me run/ When I don’t want to think

5. Every night/ Out for love/ Get my strength from the man above/ God of pistol/ God of steel/ God is here behind my wheel

MANIC MONDAY- WIND

I have been a little lax in my Manic Mondaying and I thought people may have begun to catch wind of that fact. However, as the word today is Wind (he he), I thought I would do a special shuffle with songs that have something to do with wind. If I can pull it off, that is. I also wanted to do a meme that With Love, Fat Girl had up that was all about Harry Potter. I promise this will be my final Potter post.

1. Butterbeer or Pumpkin Juice? Butterbeer, without a doubt. I like beer. I like root beer. I think I would like butter beer. Nice creamy beer is never bad. Pumpkin juice would taste too much like pie filling I think. Pie filling is good but beer is better.

2. What's your wand? The Elder Wand of course

3. What would be your Hogwarts house? I’ve been sorted a few times by a few different hats, although we know there is really just one. Every time I come up Gryffindor

4. If you were an animagus, which animal would you be? A bear cub and I would never grow to full size.

5. Which character do you resemble best? I don’t seem to recall any Black Jews in the Potter world. In fact, I recall very few Black characters at all. The only one I remember at all is some boy. I also don’t recall any Latina characters, I kind of look like them sometimes. I’m going to have to go with Padma Patil (Ron’s date to the ball in Goblet of Fire). Indian is as close as it gets for me.

6. What position would you play at Quidditch? Bludger without a doubt. My aim is no good and I’m not particularly fast but I have a heavy hand.

7. Pet? Scabbers or whatever that rat’s name was. It just figures my petwould be some evil little shit.

8. Which teacher is your favourite? Professor Trelawney for sure. She is a total dip, although she has a little power here and there. She cracks me up and the main characters have very little use for her. She is 90% comic relief.

9. What would your patronus be? Giant Mr. Snodgrass (plecostomos) I don't think anyone else has had a fish so mine would be super cool.



10. Which disgusting Bertie Bott's every flavoured bean would you be willing to try? I might try a meat flavored one just so I could see what it would taste like

11. Which Hogwarts room would you love to visit? The headmasters office, provided I get to use the pensive of course.

12. Favourite Harry Potter moment? The one at the end of book seven where...just kidding. I am going to go real classic and say when the letters flew into the cabin in book one.

The Wind songs are here and boy oh boy are they easy.

1. Catherine liked high places/ High up/ High up on the hills/ A place for making noises/ Like whales/ Noises like the whales. The Wind, PJ Harvey, Identified by Brooke.

2. After all the jacks are in their boxes/ And the clowns have all gone to bed/ You can hear happiness staggering on down the street/ Footprints dressed in red. The Wind Cries Mary, Jimi Hendrix. Identified by Johnny Yen.

3. In the chilly hours and minutes/ Of uncertainty/ I want to be/ In the warm hold/ Of your loving mind. Catch The Wind, Donovan. Identified by Mom.

4. How many roads must a man walk down/ before you call him a man/ How many seas must a white dove sail/ Before she sleeps in the sand. Blowin' In The Wind, Bob Dylan. Identified by Mom.

5. I listen to the wind/ To the wind of my soul/ Where I’ll end up well I think/ Only God really knows.

The songs from last week are as follows:
1. Down in the cellar in the Boho zone/ I went looking for some sweet inspiration/ Oh well, just another hard time and with Negro affectations. The Boho Dance. Joni Mitchell

2. I just wanna fuck bad bitches/ all them nights I never had bitches/ Now I’m all up in that ass bitches/ Mad at your boyfriend ain’t you. Fuck You, Dr. Dre

3. Well showing how it used to be/ So hard/ This hard /Used to get those kicks for free/ But now I’m towing the line. Multiply, Jamie Lidell

4. Oh we could rock/ Or we could bomb/ Or we could try/ Like super hard. Let’s Run, Le Tigre

I MIGHT READ IT AGAIN- DEADLY HALLOWS POST

Don't worry, there are no spoilers here.

At about 10:30 this morning I was awakened by the doorbell. Tony opened the door and came back with a package. "The mail lady told me to enjoy my Harry Potter," he said. "I wanted to tell her it wasn't mine but I didn't." I thanked him and I was suddenly wide awake. It was reading time.

I sat in bed and read. I went out to the living room and read while watching the World Series of Pop Culture. I took a break to go out for brunch. I came home and read. I read for a long time. At about 9:30 I took a break to make some dinner. At 10:28 I was done.

Now I can go into the world and not worry. I was afraid that if I waited too long I couldn't help but have the ending spoiled by someone. Now I can go into every conversation without hesitation. I can open every blog and read every newspaper. When I hit stumbleupon on my browser I don't have to worry. It's all good.

I NEVER HAVE TO READ IT AGAIN

I finished War and Peace the other day. I was thoroughly unmoved. Although the book certainly had its strong points. Tolstoy was examining relatively recent events that shaped his world and he did so with grace. I actually found the War sections of the book more interesting than I thought I would. Regardless, I was more drawn to the Peace parts and the interconnections between various families. At the same time, I didn’t find either topic particularly moving. I much prefer Dostoyevsky's proletariat people to Tolstoy's aristocrats. If you haven’t read this book and plan to please be aware that there are some spoilers ahead. They come very soon in-fact. Stop reading unless you don't care.

In the footnotes of one of the first chapters, I was told that Pierre and Natasha would be the main characters in the book. Knowing how Russian Literature of the period tends to work, I assumed that this meant they would be love interests. I wasn’t surprised to find that the entire book led up to them getting married. The sad thing was that their marriage seemed to ruin both of them as interesting people. However, since they get together at the end of the book, you don’t have to suffer through much of their downfall.

Natasha was a trip in her own right. A beautiful wonderful girl whom everyone loved, she found her stimuli in singing, dresses, boys, and the occasional hunt. She was boy crazy from the beginning and, I believe, was about 9 or so when the book started. I think the boy was at least 16. I don’t really remember; it was thousands of pages ago. I think Pierre was in his late twenties at the beginning of the story. I know that differences in age were a different story in those times and that in some places they still aren’t as big a deal as I think they are. Even so, it grossed me out and made me hope that my supposition that they were to be wed would prove to be false. Throughout the book this girl did nothing but talk about boys, fall in love with Borris, go to balls, fall in love with Andrew, wait for Andrew to return, fall in love with some other Prince whose name I can’t remember but he got limbs cut off and then died, fall into a deep depression because Andrew left her, Reunite with Andrew on his deathbed and rekindle their affection, mourn his death (which was necessary so her brother could marry his sister), and fall in love with/marry Pierre (Andrew’s best friend). Those happenings took about seven hundred pages.

The other eight hundred pages were about the Napoleonic wars. While that information was relatively interesting, I could have read a history book and been spared some of the fluff. Then again, I wouldn’t have got the philosophical discussion about the nature of man and the nature of war. The idea that I found the most fun was how the people who plan for and execute wars never are truly in charge of them because victory depends primarily on the mood of the people on the front lines. It is a rather obvious premise, but interesting to explore nonetheless. The discussion of why certain battles were won and others lost was also of interest. Those looking back on history claim to see the planning and foresight that goes into turning the tides of war and tend to give generals too much credit and ignore all the chance occurrences that truly drive the course of action. It made sense to me.

I could have got all that in about three hundred pages or so. Maybe four if I want a lot of detail. No matter, I’m done now and I never have to read it again. After my first attempt succumbed to boredom I was determined that my second would be a success. I refuse to be conquered by another piece of literature. I will not have another Ulysses.

I am now reading The Areas of my Expertise, by John Hodgeman (sorry Monica I know I was supposed to give it to you). Something totally made up that I don’t even have to read in order sounded pretty good. It is.

1. Down in the cellar in the Boho zone/ I went looking for some sweet inspiration/ Oh well, just another hard time and with Negro affectations

2. I just wanna fuck bad bitches/ all them nights I never had bitches/ Now I’m all up in that ass bitches/ Mad at your boyfriend ain’t you

3. Well showing how it used to be/ So hard/ This hard /Used to get those kicks for free/ But now I’m towing the line

4. Oh we could rock/ Or we could bomb/ Or we could try/ Like super hard.

5. Waiting/ On a Sunday afternoon/ For what I read between the lines/ Your lies. Interstate Love Song, Stone Temple Pilots. Identified by Johnny Yen

MEME MADNESS

I got three tags the other day so here they go.

The first is an oh so flattering Rockin' Girl Blogger award from The Thinker

How cool is that? I also get to tag five rockin' ladies with it. I am going to tag some awesome ladies.

1. Mrs. Loquacious because she is a real nice lady who tends to ROCK out a bit. Plus, she was the first person I didn't know who left me a comment and that rocks.

2. I got to give one to my dear friend Monica because she always tells me about rockin' bands to listen to and she just ROCKS in general. Without her my instances of leaving the house would be even fewer and that would be quite scary.

3. I'm going to throw one to Blondie, and since Clark St. is real close, she might even catch it. She made me feel less nervous about turning 30 in a few years with her recent chronicle. Cheers to that, it ROCKS.

4. Mood Indigo was gone for a long time doing incredibly important work with The Africa Project but I am selfishly happy she is back because she ROCKS!

5. I also want to send one to Blog Antagonist because she writes one the three or four "mommy blogs" that I enjoy. She doesn't just post stuff about her kids that no one cares about. She has important and interesting things to say. She also recently took her eldest to a Fall Out Boy concert because they really wanted to go and that kind of move ROCKS.

The second is from Memoirs of a Fat Girl
INSTRUCTIONS: Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot, like so.
Classy & Fancy
[Cherry] Ride/
5of9erAiram
Memoirs of a Fat Girl
Almost Interesting Musings on Life

Select five people to tag: You, You, You, You and...uh...You

What were you doing 10 years ago?
I had just graduated from High School and was working at Learner New York (now NY&Co). I hung out with all the friends I knew I would keep forever (and now talk to very few) and switched from saying pop to saying soda because I didn’t want to get made fun of.

What were you doing 1 year ago?
I was finishing up my wonderful contract working with DCFS youth and getting ready to be the temporary Volunteer Services director. I am now again the temporary Volunteer Services director. If I am doing the same thing next year I might die.

Five snacks you enjoy:
1. cheese
2. popcorn
3. guacamole
4. yogurt w/various cereals and/or fruits
5. hummus

Five songs that you know all the lyrics to:
1. The Humpty Dance, Digital Underground
2. Sunshine Superman, Donovan
3. The Circle Game, Joni Mitchell
4. Disseminated, Soul Coughing
5. Tender, Blur

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire:
A million isn’t as much as it used to be so it isn’t going to last me very long. Maybe by millionaire they meant multiple millions? I took it literally. It's a little selfish but I give back every day at work so screw it.

1. Pay off my debts
2. Buy a lofty 3bed 2 bath condo
3. Buy a Smart Car
4. Take a year off to travel with Tony
5. If I have anything left (and there won’t be much after that vacation) invest it

Five bad habits:
1. cracking any joint that I possibly can
2. being a total slob
3. making decisions
4. finishing projects that I have started
5. not taking as good care of myself as I should

Five things you like doing:
1. cooking/eating fun and exciting foods
2. road trips with good people
3. sleeping in
4. all kinds of movies/ TV and video games
5. nothing

Five things you would never wear again:
1. culottes
2. sneakers with a heel (the maroon ones with a big sole don’t count)
3. shiny lycra (I’m talking about skating here people and maybe a few other times)
4. scrunchies
5. the crazy blue horizontal striped dress (but I’ll still wear it in the house)

Five favorite toys:
1. iPod
2. PS2
3. Cable
4. Scrabble
5. Monopoly

I was also tagged by Not Fearing Change for the 8 random facts meme. I think Monica tagged me with this or something like this but since I used her facts it wasn't quite right.

Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.
Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8.
Players should tag 8 other people and notify them that they have been tagged.

I am tagging the five "Yous" from above and also You, You and...um...You

Just the (Random) Facts
1. My second toe on my right foot is longer than my big toe but on the left foot the big toe is longer. I think if I can figure out why this is I will unlock my mutant toe power.

2. I am 5ft tall but think I am much taller. When I see people my height walking around I am always struck by how small they are.

3. Right now I am relatively damp because I ran across the street in a torrential downpour an hour and a half ago.

4. I used to have a severe SIMS addiction. It stopped because the downloads I had didn’t work with Nightlife and I got annoyed because new SIMS had bad hair.

5. Most of the time I would rather be sitting at home.

6. I have only 400 pages left to read in War and Peace thus completing my reading of the books on my bookshelf...I think.

7. I have just folded 50 brochures about my customer service training

8. I love lamp

This post has taken me about five hours to actually finish. I am too tired for random songs.

MANICOTTI VERDE

For Foodie Fridays I typically put up recipes that I have either made up or modified. Today is not the case. This meal was simply delicious and the only thing I changed was using some fresh herbs for the dried. I typically double (or so) the amounts when using fresh herbs compared to dried. So here it is, the Moosewood Low-fat Vegetarian Cookbook’s (this is an awesome cookbook to have) Manicotti Verde in red wine sauce. This recipe should serve 4+. It has 492 calories (not bad for dinner), 26g protein, 12g fat, and 70g carbs. I love it when they give you that info in a cookbook! They also say you can subsititute 8 whole wheat tortillas for the lb of manicotti but I haven't tasted that so it's up to you.

Filling
-1tbsp olive oil
-2 large garlic cloves pressed
-5 ½ cups chipped leeks (white and green parts)
-3 tbsp water
-20oz fresh spinach chopped
-1 tsp dried basil
-½ cup low-fat mozzarella
-1/3 cup grated parmesan
-1 ½ cup non-fat ricotta
-½ tsp sage
-1lb manicotti shells
-Salt and pepper to taste

Sauce
-2tsp olive oil
-1 med onion chopped
-2 med garlic cloves pressed
-1/4tsp salt
-2tsp ground fennel
-1tsp dried oregano
-1tsp dried basil
-1/3 cup red wine
-3 cups undrained canned tomato (28oz can)
-Salt and pepper to taste

-Boil pot of water for manicotti cook pasta al dente according to directions

While pot is boiling prepare sauce
-In saucepan warm olive oil
-Add onions garlic and salt sauté on very low heat for 5-7min
-Add fennel oregano and cook for another min
-Pour in wine and bring to boil
-While boiling, whirl tomatoes in blender until just pureed and add to pan
-Cover and simmer 20min

-Heat olive oil in large pot over medium heat
-Add garlic leeks and water, cover and stir occasionally for about 10min
-Add spinach and basil cook covered 5min stir a few times until spinach wilts
-Uncover and cook a little longer to get rid of moisture, drain if necessary
-Add cheeses, sage and salt and pepper

-Fill manicotti with cheese and vegetable mixture and place in lightly oiled 9x12 pan
-Pour half of sauce over pasta and cover with foil
-Cook 30min at 350
-Add remaining sauce after serving

Stairway To Heaven, Led Zeppelin- Although I grew up on classic rock, Led Zepplin was one of those bands that wasn’t really around for me. I first heard this song at my 8th grade lock-in when a friend sang it at karaoke. I though it was so pretty. Then I got older and cared less and less. It’s still great to hear every once in a while though.

The Chalet Lines, Belle and Sebastian- This is a little mellow for my Belle and Sebastian tastes but it will do. Even not my favorite Belle and Sebastian is better than a lot of music.

You Come Through, PJ Harvey- This is great. It’s mellow PJ but she knows how to do mellow very well. Sometimes I wish she would be mellow more often.

SEVEN THINGS

While I was at lunch with Monica today, I mentioned how I had nothing to write about on my blog. I seriously thought about writing about the trip of least tolls but I haven’t had a chance to reread the journals from that time and I don’t want to leave out anything particularly extra funny. This left me with nothing. During my lamentation regarding my lack of post motivation Monica mentioned there was something on her blog that would inspire me. I quickly deduced that she had tagged me. Wanna hear it, here it go.

1) A thing that makes me happy
As you can see from the last post, Bob makes me happy. Look at how happy I am.

This picture, by the way, was taken during the trip of least tolls.

2) A funny thing that happened yesterday
Yesterday was not particularly funny. I am really trying to think of something. Funny things happen to me all the time. Yesterday just wasn’t a funny day. I had fun yesterday, just not particularly funny fun. How lame.

3) A thing I like to eat
I love to eat cheese. Everyone knows this. I love to eat salty delicious snacks. I love to eat just about everything that isn’t meat. I even love “gross” vegetables like lima beans and brussel sprouts. I love spicy things. I love beans. I love breads. Sauces are the best. I love to eat and I can't choose just one thing.

4) A thing that bugs me a lot
People who think they are smart but aren’t and people who think other people are smart who aren’t. Basically, I hate stupids. As we were discussing at lunch today, having a lot of degrees doesn’t necessarily make you smart, at all. They have these superior attitudes and you can’t tell them a thing even when they are obviously wrong. Of course there are plenty people with a lot of degrees who are incredibly smart but I don’t have a problem with them.


5) A thing I have on right now
I have on that one skirt with all the colors and the pleats that is really cool because, depending on what color shirt you wear, it looks like a different skirt. Not really. I am just telling myself that so I have an excuse to wear it as often as I do. I love my skirt, my skirt is so comfotably lovely.


6) A thing you once did that was technically dumb but actually fine
I do a lot of technically dumb things. Many are lost to me right now. I think the thing that I did most often that was technically dumb was wear my cow shoes as my everyday shoes. I have mentioned the cow shoes before. Those things are six-inch platform sling-backs. They rule. I wore them day in and day out and walked up many hills and across uneven terrain. This was stupid because I technically should have broken my ankles many times over but it was actually fine because I didn’t.


7) A thing you plan to do today
I have absolutely no plans for the rest of the day. There is nothing on my plate. I suppose I plan on going home and hoping that the dishes are done so I don’t have to do them. Then I plan to sit on my butt and maybe watch a movie or something. I then plan to read some more War and Peace and go to sleep. Oh, I also plan on working on my budget.

After reading this post I think it has been revealed that I am the most boring person ever. How sad. I tag anyone who feels like doing this post.

Five new lyrics today!

1. No one dared to show for that shower/ When nobody turned out to be clean/ Was not even touched by the water/ Just another Nazi scheme. The Big Takeover, Bad Brains. Identified by Monica

2. Who knows how long I’ve loved you/ You know I love you still. I Will, The Beatles. Identified by Mom.

3. I said upside down you’re turning me/ You’re giving love instinctively. Upside Down, Diana Ross. Identified by Monica

4. I’m not you woman. I’m not your man. I’m something that you’ll never understand. I Would Die 4U, Prince. Identified by Monica

5. They call me the wild rose/ But my name was Eliza Day/ Why they call me it I do not know/ For my name was Eliza Day

THIS IS FOR YOU, MY DEAR

A few weeks ago I was all excited about mix tapes and was about to stage a revival of them. That hasn’t really happened. However, yesterday I plugged in my 50CD+1/tape deck that has lain dormant for so long and decided to give some old tape a try. Tony was working and I was all alone, I curled up in bed with War and Peace (I’m giving it another try as it is the one book I own that I haven’t read. At page 597 am almost halfway through!) and popped in a tape called “A Mix For Friend,” That Brooke made me when we graduated from SLC. It is an utterly awesome collection of songs, although Oasis “Live Forever,” gave me pause. It did capture the times though so I’ll let it slide. The songs were familiar enough that I could concentrate on my reading but, at times, they really started to take me back. They took me to so many different places that I can’t even begin to describe them all.

On of the places that I was reminded of over and over again was Bob. Bob was my car. He wasn’t my first car; that was The Little Red Mobile which deserves its own post. However, Bob was all mine. I paid my very own $200 for Bob and held the deed. Granted, the many hundreds and quite possibly thousands of dollars that went into keeping Bob running was primarily from my parents. They also paid for Bob’s insurance because they are good people. Nonetheless, Bob was mine.

I learned to drive stick on Bob. Dad had tried to teach me before but I crashed the car within 10 seconds (it jumped the curb into a tree, totally not my fault) and I was a little hesitant to learn after that. Since Bob was a stick, I had no choice but to learn. It was fun. To this day I prefer to drive stick. I think I owe that to Bob.

Bob was an old car, a 1981 two-door Volvo DL (not the 240 DLs you see all over the place just a regular old DL). I don’t know how many of you have seen a two-door Volvo but they are pretty funny, they have the biggest doors you can imagine. Bob was the best color, forest green with rust and Grateful Dead stickers. I could have cared less about the Dead and I removed the dancing bears from the back window. The skull in the front stayed, it simply belonged. Bob had a sun roof that was operated by crank and sometimes got stuck a little bit even though it appeared closed, you kind of had to push up on it to get it to close fully. If it wasn't perfectly closed and it rained little pools of water would form around the sunroof and as soon as you drove it would land in your hair, down your back, or in your lap. The seal around the stick shift was a little loose and you could pull it back to see the road zooming past under you. Bob had four gears and overdrive, I can still hear that hum when you hit the button and dropped him in. By the time I graduated, Bob had a tape player installed. For much of my time with him he had a tape deck wedged between the dash and the windshield. In case you can’t tell, this car was perfect.

I could fill post upon post with stories about Bob. "Bob and the Trip with Fewest Tolls," will have to be written at some point. That was a trip for the ages. This post isn’t about trips though, it’s just about Bob. It’s about who he was, and he was a good friend. He took me where I needed to go, when he would start, and I was glad that I never actually had to see him die. I left him when I moved to Chicago. I knew he was on his last legs and that I couldn’t afford $100 monthly to park him. Mom took care of him; it was the right thing to do.

As I listened to Brooke's tape, some of the songs really made me want to get Bob and drive. I didn’t care where I had to go as long as the weather stayed nice and it would take a minimum of three hours. Bob was at his best when journeying. As “If You Want To Be A Bird,” by the Holy Modal Rounders came on I had no choice but to put down War and Peace lean my head back and go OOOHHHHUUUAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUGGGGAAWWWWW, just like we used to do riding around in Bob, or Jules, or Thurman (his closest firends). It was a little strange that I was doing it by myself because singing the bird song was always a group activity. I let Brooke know what I was doing and she laughed at me appropriately. The thing is, if I was alone but driving in Bob I wouldn’t have felt silly singing it. I would have felt free, adventurous, unlimited. The bed just doesn’t do it like Bob could. As the tape drew to a close Lou Reed sang about a “Perfect Day”. Bob, I’m glad I spent so many with you.

1. Andy/ Would bicycle across town/ In the rain to bring you candy/ And John would buy the gown/ For you to wear to the prom/ With Tom/ The astronomer who’d name a star for you. The Luckiest Guy On The Lower East Side, Magnetic Fields. Identified by Sisterhead (on the last post as this one was going up so I’ll put it here to recognize how awesome she is)

2. I read the NEWS today oh boy/ About a lucky man who made the grade/ And thought the NEWS was rather sad/ well I just had to laugh. A Day In The Life, The Beatles. Identified by Brooke.

3. Nothing to here to fear/ I’m just sitting around being foolish when there is work to be done. Wednesday, Tori Amos. Identified by Brooke.

4. Life is hard/ And so am I/ You’d better give me something/ So I don’t die. Novocaine, The Eels. Identified by Monica

5. I pulled into Nazareth/ Was feeling bout half past dead/ I just need someplace/ Where I can rest my head/ Hey Mr. Can you tell me/ Where a man might find a bed. The Weight, The Band. Identified by Brooke (and yes, of course it was on the mix tape)

INTERVIEW PART 2 AND A HIDDEN FOODIE FRIDAY

Part two in the interview game comes from Johnny Yen. His questions required some serious thought.

1. You’ve been asked re-record your favorite album with whoever you want, living or dead. What album is it and who would you choose?
This was by far the hardest question. My favorite Album would have to be something so completely cohesive and wonderful that most of the newer albums wouldn’t do. I then had to think if I would want the album done by a band with a completely different style, which would be cool but could possibly suck or if I wanted to go with a similar artist that would potentially end up sounding too much like the original. I am still not sure if I have made the right decision. For the album I chose “Blonde on Blonde” because it’s pretty much perfect and although I love listening to Bob Dylan, many people don’t and therefore miss out on the wonderment. I thought about “Electric Ladyland” or “Abbey Road” but I don’t think anyone doesn’t like listening to Jimi or The Beatles. I was incredibly close to having Belle and Sebastian redo the album but then realized that, while I adore their music, I am not the hugest fan of their covers. I also thought very seriously about choosing Camera Obscura but I thought the female touch might be a little too strange for me I didn’t want to pick them just to be different. Therefore, Of Montreal will be covering Blonde on Blonde.

2. A scientist develops a machine that will allow you to be transported into the past and live for a year in any time you want. What timeframe do you choose and why?
This was by far the easiest question of the bunch, I’m going to be a total cheeseball and say 1969 because I want more than anything to go to Woodstock and roll around in the hippie filled love mud.

Chicago has built five new schools. You’ve been asked to name them. What five names do you choose and why?
I’m going to assume that they are going to be five themed charter schools because it makes my answers more fun.

The Robert Heinlein High School of Scientific Humanism- I probably chose this because I just finished rereading Stranger in a Strange Land. This school would have a science focus but also be concerned with philosophy and how to apply science to the betterment of humankind.

X Elementary- This school would be focused on radical social movements, not only African-American as the name may suggest, and would teach children the importance of speaking out for their communities.

You Are Different; So Are We High- The name comes from the brochure Sarah Lawrence sent out to prospective students. While the high school would have to have a few more required classes than Sarah Lawrence did, students would be able to plan their curriculums and classes would be taught in the conference style.

We Know Trades and Will Make Lots Of Money High School- This school will focus on getting people into the trades. It is hard to get the proper information on how to enter these lucrative fields and such a school would directly funnel low-income students who may not plan for college into high paying careers.

Natalie’s Elementary School of Stuff- I had to name one after me. This school would incorporate teaching styles from Open, Montessori, and traditional schools into one cohesive wonder of education and learning.

4. If you could have a dinner with five people, living or dead, who would it be and what dinner and drinks would you serve?
Being an incredible book nerd I’m going to go with five authors. So that I can contribute to the discussion I’ll have to pick people whose body of work I am pretty familiar with. I’ll take Dostoyevsky (and somehow he will magically speak English), Tom Robbins, Saul Bellow, Toni Morrison, and Ralph Ellison. I thought about inviting Kurt Vonnegut but since I couldn’t also invite Monica because I am selfish and that would mean one less author I figured it would be better not to include him than to ruin a great friendship. Obviously these people have very different writing styles but all of them write about the turmoil of being human. I think it would be a fantastic discussion. I would need to serve a large meal with many courses so that we can sit and talk. I find Mexican food delicious and easy to make in large amounts so that is what we will eat. We’ll have some fine Vodka to drink with various mixers. I know Vodka isn’t usually paired with Mexican food but we have to do something to make Dostoyevsky feel a little more at home.

Appetizer- Yucca Frita, I have never made it but man that stuff is delicious and it can’t be that hard to fry yucca.

Salad- (Here comes Foodie Friday) Nopalitos salad with cilantro lime vinaigrette (this recipe makes about four salads)
-Two hearts of romaine sliced in thin strips
-Two Scallions (the green part) sliced into .5 inch tubes
-Four thinly sliced radishes
-Two cups nopalitos (pickled prickly pear cactus)
-¼ cup crumbled queso fresco
Dressing-
-3tbsp lime juice
-3tbsp olive oil
-3tbsp balsamic vinegar
-1 clove garlic
-1 small jalapeno (chopped a little)
-2 tbsp cilantro
-Pinch of salt
-Grind of pepper
Place ingredients in food processor or blender and whir it up.

Soup- Gazpacho recipe from Mom

Main Course- Tacos (I made delicious and very rustic tortillas this week which was incredibly fun and easy and would be a great dinner party food) with homemade salsa and guacamole. I would cook some black beans and get Tony to prepare some meat

Dessert- Ben and Jerry’s Stephen Colbert’s Americone Dream Ice Cream.

5. Like my wife, you grew up in Minneapolis-St. Paul, and now live in Chicago. What are the pros/cons of living in each place?
Minneapolis (I did NOT grow up in St. Paul) is a wonderful place to grow up. It has a small town feel although there is enough to do so that you aren’t relegated to the two small town young person entertainments, driving around and getting drunk (not that we didn’t do plenty of that). The lakes are beautiful and you can swim in them without feeling disgusting. Chicago has some parks and obviously a huge lake but nothing to compare with the looking for fossils along the banks of the Mississippi and the general greenery. Unfortunately, the people there think they live in a much bigger city than they actually live in and that can cause some inflated assumptions about how great and cosmopolitan Minneapolis actually is. As you get older, there isn’t as much to do and you need to stretch your legs. Chicago’s hyper-segregation is the hands down worst thing about this city. Minneapolis seems to be more segregated by class than race, although the two often go hand in hand. However, the museums, theater, and shopping in Chicago leave Minneapolis far behind (not that there aren’t great places to do those things in Minneapolis, don’t get all naming places Mom). Chicago is a true big city, and if you want that type of environment it is the place to be. If you want the attractions of a big city, albeit on a smaller scale, and the ease of small town granola crunching life, Minneapolis is the place to be.

I still have two slots open if anyone else is game.

Bucktown, Smif-N-Wessun- I have nothing to say good or bad about this. It is relatively standard sounding mid 90s decent rap.

The Chronic (Intro), Dr. Dre- THis always takes me back to the summer of 92 watching MTV videos with shoshana while the parents are at work. This wasn't on the TV but it just gets me ready for all the wonders of The Chronic to take me back.

You Shook Me All Night Long, Tori Amos- Tori is another one of those artists whose covers I am not particularly fond of. Purple Rain is pretty good though. I thought about having her cover a great album but iknow exactly what it would sound like so no. However, if anyone wants to buy me a present I hear she is about to come out with a new album.

IN WHICH MONICA ASKS ME QUESTIONS

An interview meme as been making the rounds. People volunteer to be interviewed by various bloggers and then are emailed a set of fun questions to answer and post on their blog. Monica has interviewed me. I will interview the first five people that tell me they would like to be interviewed, and Monica because she asked.

1. What is the best thing about you? Would others agree?
The best thing about me? That is not an easy question at all. I would have to say that it is that I can be an incredibly good friend and really try to make my friends as happy as I can. Of course I have had arguments with friends before, that is part of friendship, but even when I am upset with someone I think that I still love them and want the best for them. i help them out when I can in whatever ways they need and truly enjoy doing it. Would others agree? I would like to think that they would. Since I tend to keep truly good friends for a while I would assume that they do.

2. If you could be great at one instrument, what would it be?
I would love to be great at the kalimba. The first time that I remember seeing one was at my Uncle Jimmy’s and he played it. Uncle Jimmy was always the epitome of cool and I thought that it was an incredibly cool instrument. It would also be something highly unusual to be truly awesome at. I would enjoy that. I bet you could use a kalimba player in your fake ass band. Ok that was mean, sorry. I know you guys are real.

3. If you had to pick between saving Cho Cho or your mix tapes from a fire, what would the choice be?
That is an easy choice. I would quickly forget all about how much I loved mix tapes in a fire. The first things I would grab would be Cho Cho, my college photo album, and my diaries. The mix tapes would be way down on the list.

4. What do you get out of making a blog?
I get a lot out of making a blog. Sometimes I get headaches from thinking about things to write and that reminds me of a time when I actually had to think produce things. I like that feeling and had missed it. I also really enjoy the greater blog community. I enjoy the voyeuristic aspect of peeking in on peoples lives. I have always been fascinated by people and what makes them work and blogs are a great way to enjoy that fascination without being totally intrusive and creepy. With a blog people put themselves out there and you don’t have to pull information from them. I also enjoy writing. Blogging gives me an excise to write about nothing and everything and I get some sort of validation from having people comment on and seem to enjoy the random things that are in my brain. Initially, I thought it would be a good way to waste time. It has become more than that.

5. What movie or book is the most like your life? Why?
I have been thinking of an answer to this question for a long long time (well the three hours since i read it). The most valid answer would be Bonnie’s Book of Beliefs (once it’s finished) because it is loosely based on my life. However, that is a total copout of an answer. To be absolutely accurate I would have to say Naive Super by Erlend Loe. One of the things that really struck me was the main character’s obsession with time and if it really matters or not. I have a strong obsession with, as well as an aversion to, the concept of time. Our main character couldn’t find any meaning in his life and was desperate for direction. Although I can find meaning here and there in my life, anyone reading this blog will see that I too am desperate for direction. He finds solace in childish games like the hammer and pegs and a rubber ball, I find solace in children’s books. I flipped through the book to see if I could find something that really explained how it summed me up; luckily I had taken a pen to it so that made finding good stuff easier. I found this, “And while dawn breaks, I sit there thinking that I’m a really good guy and never mind space and time and all the rest of it.” The thing is, he can’t help but mind space and time and all the rest of it. Neither can I.

The Stars That Play With Laughing Sam’s Dice, Jimi Hendrix- I love how Jimi Hendirx has all this music that comes out periodically. He is like 2 Pac. He wrote this song a long time ago. It was released a fairly decent time ago as well but some people will get the joke.

Master of Puppets, Metallica- UUHHHH UUHHHH this didn’t just happen. Please strike this from your memory

The Gambler, Kenny Rogers- The Muppet Show with Kenny Rogers as the guest contains a skit to the music of this song. It is relatively terrifying. There is an eerily human Muppet as the Gambler and he of course dies and then gets all ghostly and sings songs. Creepy.

NO TITLE IS SUFFICIENT

This wasn’t a particularly good morning. I had a stuffy nose, lethargic movements, and had to walk to the train in the kind of rain that doesn’t quite deserve an umbrella, until massive droplets fall in your sleeve as you reach up to adjust your headphones. Other than that, it was an inconsequential morning.

On the train, I got the nice seat in back by myself and set upon reading the “paper” to pass my commute. The headlines seemed drab. As much as I love to talk racism, I haven’t been inspired by the “nappy-headed ho’s” comment. I guess I prefer more hilarious racism. That comment was just stupid and mean. I can’t even laugh about it. I like my racism creative, like Michael Richards talking about people hanging from trees with forks in their asses, or completely off base and wrong, like Barack Obama not being “really black”. Mean racism like this just makes me mad. At least the guy is halfway fired at this point.

So, as I am absentmindedly flipping through the pages skimming over most articles, I turned the page and saw something that truly threw me for a loop. We have lost one of our literary giants. Kurt Vonnegut died last night. There isn’t much I can say about Vonnegut that hasn’t either already been said or could be said better by someone else. All I really can say is that I have genuinely enjoyed everything I read by him, even Timequake which was not one of his best works. Given that, it was still better than a lot of the crap out there. His writing touched all different emotions in his readers, from comedy to tragedy and everything in-between. He was truly one of the greats. And that’s all I have to say about that.



Thanks for everything, Kurt.

When You Sleep, My Bloody Valentine- I find myself strangely drawn to this band’s music. It isn’t typically something that I would find myself liking because a lot of it borders on noise. However, it is really soothing and nice noise.

Something’s Coming, West Side Story- I love all things musical. West Side Story is one where I can listen to most of the songs out of context. Even some of my favorites typically need to be in context. This is just great fun to listen to.

Big Eyed Beans From Venus, Captain Beefheart- All I can say to this is Venus on the Half-Shell and some people will understand. Others won’t.

IN WHICH NATALIE GETS PHILOSOPHICAL

The other day I decided to begin rereading The Fountainhead, by Ayn Rand. This has to be one of my all time favorite books. Ayn Rand, as a person, mystifies me. Although I am no expert, her philosophy, Objectivism, is both highly reasonable and completely ludicrous. However, regardless of her ideology, this book is an absolute masterpiece.

While I have a great deal of admiration for Howard Roark, our hero, I find myself wondering how horrible it would be to be the kind of person that he is. I like being a person rules by emotion and instinct. I think it would be a cold, albeit noble, existence to exist solely for self-satisfaction and pursue that with rigorous logic. As someone said to him, while trying to add some columns to his building (funniest movie scene ever by the way), “in practical life, one can’t always be so flawlessly consistent. There is always the incalculable human element of emotion. We can’t fight that with cold logic”. Nor would most of us want to.

The other facet of Objectivism that I really have a hard time grasping is the idea that all in life should contribute to making the self as happy as possible, which is fine, but that in doing so all altruistic actions are seen as detrimental to the pursuit of happiness for the self. Maybe I am one of the few that get personal satisfaction helping others, but I don’t think I am by any means alone in this. I think altruism is something many people hold dear. However, since she also says there is no place for faith in a true Objectivists life, then maybe she would find more people open to this idea. Then again, I’m not big on faith but I sure am big on altruism. The whole Capitalist thing in Objectivism is also something that makes a lot of sense to me but also something that I can’t totally buy into. But it is to a lesser extent than the others so it isn’t as important to mention.

In fact, I think I lack a lot of necessary qualities to be a true Objectivist. Not that I really want to be, but I think it is interesting that I can look at a philosophy and see so much in it that I admire and yet want nothing to do with it. I do, however want to be like Howard Roark. This presents quite a problem for me because he is a character based on the Objectivist ideal. He has incredibly strong convictions and a sense of purity about him and his passions. He cannot compromise on his work because he loves it and it is an integral part of him. He exists to create and build that which is most important to him. He would rather toil endlessly an a job where his talents aren’t used at all then to compromise his integrity and do a job in a way that compromises his true love for his creations. I find this all incredibly beautiful.

I also find it incredibly depressing. I wonder how many people of conviction with a true passion for their work have decided to stop because I wasn’t well received. How often is a true genius overlooked by the establishment and resigned to their insignificant fate, unable to create what they know they can and unable to compromise to create anything less than ideal? Such immense tragedy lies in that thought. Sadly, much art needs to be commissioned. Much writing can’t be written because no one will publish it. How many times do we hear about great works of all genres that were almost never made, published, painted, etc. because of financial problems? Far too many. I hope we can find some of those pieces. I hope we find them in their purest and unadulterated states. I hope that they come to mean something to someone. That is the true purpose of art.

Then again, maybe we should be mourning the pieces that were compromised for the sake of being put in front of the public eye? Should we look at everything we are fed and wonder if it is the creator’s intention that it come cross that way. I guess it leaves us realizing we have to create for ourselves. I think that, in a way, is what blogs, podcasts, youtube videos, etc. have become. It’s a place for us to speak out, uncensored, about what we feel is important. It’s a place where anyone and everyone can create their ideals and share them with the world. I think Ayn Rand would have been proud of bloggers, well some of them at any rate. Which is kind of disturbing to me.

1. What happened to/ The world we knew/ When we were dreaming, scheming/ Whiling the time away.

2. Megan/ She don’t eat bacon/ She never killed a sweet innocent little piggy to get bacon.

3. Fuck the police/ coming straight from the underground/ a young nigga got it bad cause I’m brown/ and not the other color/ so police think/ they have the authority to kill a minority. Fuck THa Police, NWA. Identified by Johnny Yen

4. Something’s wrong cause my mind is fading/ and everywhere I look there’s a dead end waiting/ Temperatures dropping at the rotten oasis/ stealing kisses from the leprous faces. Devil's Haircut, Beck. Identified by Monica

5. Little salamander/ Where did you go/ Edge of the yard/ I found you, you know/ All brown and hard.

REVISITED TIMES

Ok so I should probably give this memory thing a rest but Lizza mentioned in her comment yesterday about how things that were very important can suddenly be triggered by something in our life and we wonder how we could have ever forgotten. Just yesterday that happened to me twice.

The first was while reading that cursed memory book on the train. Schacter wrote about how we can hear about events in other people’s childhoods that trigger recollections in ours, for example pushing the paring brake and the car rolling. I froze. That had happened to me. I was terrified at the time. My younger sister and I were in the car and Mom had to run into the house to get something quickly. I remember Shoshana was in her car seat (although I could be wrong about that one) and I had short hair, which would make me about five. I climbed into the front seat of our Lynx and started steering. Somehow I tripped the parking brake. The parking spot at our condo was on a slight incline but to me it was enormous. The pavement leveled at the alley and then there was another parking space and a drop to a yard below. The drop seemed huge. I have no idea how big it really was maybe 15 ft? As the car started to roll I though we would gain speed as we were going down the “hill” and then roll over the edge and down the “cliff”. I knew I had to save my sister. She was far too young to die and she was my responsibility. I turned the wheel of the car and it ended up in the alley parallel to the drop, we were safe. I was still very shaken. Mom wasn’t happy. In my mind this event took a long time, in reality it couldn’t have been more than one minute. I was shocked that I had forgotten an event that had scared me so much.

Last night Tony and I were talking about “big kids” and how, when we were young, they seemed so grown up and so out of reach. I went to a K-8 school so there were plenty of big kids around and they seemed like grown-ups. Even if they had missed a grade or two, the biggest of them couldn’t have been older than 15. While in kindergarten I don’t think I came in contact with the “big kids” too often. We were relatively isolated. By 1st grade, however, I saw them much more often. I suddenly remembered that my friend Claire and I were mugged by “big kids while walking home from school. She was younger than me so I was probably in second grade when it happened. We only lived about three blocks from school so it wasn’t a far walk at all. As we were walking two “big kids” came up to us and had a switchblade and told us to give them all out money. I had no money and told them so over and over. Claire also told them that she had no money. They made us turn out our pockets and were extremely scary. After what seemed like forever, but was most likely not even a full minute, they let us go. After we were a little way away Claire turned to me and said, “I have a dollar”. I was so pissed. I couldn’t believe that she wouldn’t have given these mean kids her stupid dollar because who cared that much about a dollar anyway. We could have been killed, although I doubt that would have happened. I went home and told my mom and she called the cops and they took us back to the playground to find the muggers. I can’t remember if we found them or not, I guess that wasn’t as important to remember as the fear. What I did remember, however, was that I rode in the back of the police car to look for them. Just a few weeks ago someone (or maybe a myspace survey) had asked if I had ever been in the back of a cop car and I said no. Obviously, the retrieval clue for the experience had nothing to do with the cps, they were a second thought. It was all about the “big kids”.

It just goes to show that you really need the right retrieval clue to access some of your memories. It makes you wonder how much is stored in your brain that, depending on what you encounter, will surface and show you more about your past. If we had all the right clues would it be possible to remember everything? Probably not, things had to have a strong impact to be stored for that long or at least I would think. Both of the above memories had a strong emotional component to them and that is what made them memorable. Even so, I am sure there are things locked inside that I may never get out. That makes me a little sad.

Ok I promise I’ll get off the whole memory trip, at least for a while. It’s somewhat depressing and that isn’t cool for too many days in a row. All five songs were guessed yesterday and they weren’t even super easy. Good job people. Here are five new ones.

1. Everyone’s feeling pretty/ It’s hotter than July/ Though the world’s full of problems/ They couldn’t touch us even if they tried. Master Blaster (Jammin'), Stevi Wonder. Identified by My Parents. (on a side note I used to LOVE this song and ask for Ja-men all the time)

2. It’s raining/ It’s raining/ There’s nothing you can do/ It doesn’t only rain on you/ But you’re acting all upset/ like you’re the only one that’s wet.

3. Darling I/ I can’t explain/ Where did we lose our way/ Girl it’s driving me insane.

4. Just the thought/ Of our bed/ Makes me crumble like the plaster when you punched the wall beside my head. Out Of Range, Ani DiFranco. Identified by Brooke.

5. Ain’t it just like the night/ To play/ Tricks when you’re trying to be so quiet. Visions of Johanna, Bob Dylan. Identified by Jaclyn