Thursday, January 26, 2012
Curmudgeonly goodness
If you have not yet done so, run immediately to watch Stephen Colbert interviewing Maurice Sendak. It's in two parts, one on Tuesday and one on Wednesday, and it is AMAZING. Sendak is possibly the greatest curmudgeon I have ever seen, plus they talk about In the Night Kitchen, which I loved as a child.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Sunday, Sunday, Someday!
Today I am wearing the Tunisian jebba that I received as a Chanukah gift in 2010 and have not worn since. I tried to look up the word for it, but the usual source failed me and I had to synthesize information from both Google and Wikipedia to lead me to the Google Image Search that confirmed the proper term. Research is hard!
It turns out that the garment that barely squeezed over my hooded sweatshirt thirteen months ago is now actually quite loose and baggy when worn on its own. Very comfy, and also very not-wearing-this-out-of-the-house-until-I-am-more-used-to-how-it-looks-on-me.
Had a lovely weekend (so far) with various friends from college and from UAW. Went to Santa Barbara for the first time yesterday, where I got to be the timekeeper at a six-hour meeting. Bundt cakes and string cheese made it all fairly pleasant. Playing with adorable kittens upon my return made things first more and then less pleasant (itchy eyes! bad!), but in the balance, a good weekend—especially since I went to a different farmers' market today that still had blood oranges. I think the thing I will miss most about living in LA when I leave will be blood oranges. Or bok choi. Something from a farmers' market.
For the rest of the day I plan to read some student writing and then some stuff about nostalgia for my dissertation chapter, listen to all the podcasts I've skipped this week, and watch some Golden Girls. Anybody who wants to join me, come on by! Pardon my jebba.
In re: the title of this post—I think I will never get tired of Homestar Runner references.
It turns out that the garment that barely squeezed over my hooded sweatshirt thirteen months ago is now actually quite loose and baggy when worn on its own. Very comfy, and also very not-wearing-this-out-of-the-house-until-I-am-more-used-to-how-it-looks-on-me.
Had a lovely weekend (so far) with various friends from college and from UAW. Went to Santa Barbara for the first time yesterday, where I got to be the timekeeper at a six-hour meeting. Bundt cakes and string cheese made it all fairly pleasant. Playing with adorable kittens upon my return made things first more and then less pleasant (itchy eyes! bad!), but in the balance, a good weekend—especially since I went to a different farmers' market today that still had blood oranges. I think the thing I will miss most about living in LA when I leave will be blood oranges. Or bok choi. Something from a farmers' market.
For the rest of the day I plan to read some student writing and then some stuff about nostalgia for my dissertation chapter, listen to all the podcasts I've skipped this week, and watch some Golden Girls. Anybody who wants to join me, come on by! Pardon my jebba.
In re: the title of this post—I think I will never get tired of Homestar Runner references.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Tea
Tonight I am my mother. I made a cup of tea, sat down on the couch, and completely forgot about the tea for the next four hours. It is now cold, over-steeped, way too caffeinated for this hour, and entirely unappealing. Pretty soon I'll start discovering half-empty cups in the bathroom, in the microwave, all over the house...
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Money, money, money
From the New York Times' interactive graphic on household income, I learned that my annual income from TA-ing, plus summer research funding (optimistically assuming I receive some), plus money from Mom's life insurance actually puts me in the top half of incomes...in Flint, MI.
By way of comparison, that total puts me just barely above the bottom third in Los Angeles, CA (where I live), and New York, NY (where I lived until July).
In Washington, DC, where the boyfriend lives, and on Long Island, where I grew up and where my dad still lives, my income places me squarely in the bottom fifth.
If I did not have money from Mom's life insurance and relied entirely on my income as a graduate student, I would be in the bottom 38% in Flint, bottom 24% in NY, bottom 21% in LA, and bottom 10% in DC and on LI.
Forgive me if I don't have much compassion for some of the folks in this article who are uncomfortable discussing their magnificent wealth with a reporter.
By way of comparison, that total puts me just barely above the bottom third in Los Angeles, CA (where I live), and New York, NY (where I lived until July).
In Washington, DC, where the boyfriend lives, and on Long Island, where I grew up and where my dad still lives, my income places me squarely in the bottom fifth.
If I did not have money from Mom's life insurance and relied entirely on my income as a graduate student, I would be in the bottom 38% in Flint, bottom 24% in NY, bottom 21% in LA, and bottom 10% in DC and on LI.
Forgive me if I don't have much compassion for some of the folks in this article who are uncomfortable discussing their magnificent wealth with a reporter.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Thursday, Thursday
Today I did a good job. I went to yoga class, fed some cats (not just random cats; cats I am supposed to feed until their owner returns), re-read a chapter of a book that needs to go into my current dissertation chapter, met with my advisor for tea and scheduled our next meeting, made specific plans to attend a musical event next week that needs to go into my current dissertation chapter, set up the new hedgehog wheel, and did all the dishes. I am about to go volunteer at the Gay and Lesbian Center, then going to feed the cats again.
Tomorrow: first discussion section, first meeting of the Early Music Ensemble whose vocal portion I am co-directing, and hopefully writing up the portion of my chapter based on the book I read today. Momentum is happening! Must keep flossing!
Tomorrow: first discussion section, first meeting of the Early Music Ensemble whose vocal portion I am co-directing, and hopefully writing up the portion of my chapter based on the book I read today. Momentum is happening! Must keep flossing!
Sunday, January 8, 2012
New year
I am back on the blog for the first time this year. Feeling ready for the quarter that starts tomorrow, and feeling excited about being back in warm LA with its bountiful opportunities for outdoor exercise. Not that the east coast was cold at all, but LA has canyons! With dogs!
Also, LA now has my hedgehog, successfully smuggled over the border on the train, in my backpack. It is very nice to come home to an apartment with a living creature in it, instead of an empty one. As long as that living creature isn't a fruit fly.
Goal for the year: finish writing dissertation and be done with graduate school. Remember that goal, Internet. Hold me to it.
Other goal for the year: participate in shit-ton of weddings. So far signed on to be best man, bridesman, officiant, and (potentially) cellist, in addition to attendee. Super excited about these things. Hope the as-yet-unscheduled one doesn't fall on the date of any of the others.
Third goal for the year: keep up the good health habits I've started. Flossing daily, for the first time in ever. Trying to exercise at least every other day (fell off of that wagon over the holidays). Not eating ALL THE JELLYBEANS IN THE WORLD when I feel stressed. Not drinking when home alone (still 100% on this since moving back here, if you don't count finishing a mostly-drunk beverage after guests leave).
Fourth and last goal for the year: be awesome to the people in my life who are awesome. Which is most of the people in my life. I know it's the wrong holiday (okay it's not any holiday at all because this is late), but I am so very thankful for my colleagues, my friends, my family, and my wonderful boyfriend. Y'all are what make life worth living.
Well, y'all and the chocolate mousse marsala crepes from Hugo's.
Also, LA now has my hedgehog, successfully smuggled over the border on the train, in my backpack. It is very nice to come home to an apartment with a living creature in it, instead of an empty one. As long as that living creature isn't a fruit fly.
Goal for the year: finish writing dissertation and be done with graduate school. Remember that goal, Internet. Hold me to it.
Other goal for the year: participate in shit-ton of weddings. So far signed on to be best man, bridesman, officiant, and (potentially) cellist, in addition to attendee. Super excited about these things. Hope the as-yet-unscheduled one doesn't fall on the date of any of the others.
Third goal for the year: keep up the good health habits I've started. Flossing daily, for the first time in ever. Trying to exercise at least every other day (fell off of that wagon over the holidays). Not eating ALL THE JELLYBEANS IN THE WORLD when I feel stressed. Not drinking when home alone (still 100% on this since moving back here, if you don't count finishing a mostly-drunk beverage after guests leave).
Fourth and last goal for the year: be awesome to the people in my life who are awesome. Which is most of the people in my life. I know it's the wrong holiday (okay it's not any holiday at all because this is late), but I am so very thankful for my colleagues, my friends, my family, and my wonderful boyfriend. Y'all are what make life worth living.
Well, y'all and the chocolate mousse marsala crepes from Hugo's.
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