"I'm Down with T-Town"

You know what it's like when you go out of town for a week? And your pets are left on their own? And you know that one of your friends or siblings will be stopping by to feed your pets, but ya still kinda worry about them anyway? Well, that's kinda the way I've felt about Tulsa since we moved. And now I feel that I have even more reason to be concerned. Check this out.

TulsaChannels.com

And no, that is not "channels" as in television stations. These people are proposing that islands be built in the Arkansas River. For some reason, this idea makes my nose wrinkle (probably because it sounds expensive). I mean, it could be good, but it feels a little gimmicky. What do you think?

In other news, I found a couple of L.A. citizens (who are not george or Derek or even Tara) who like Tulsa just fine as-is. Granted, they were only there for one night, but it's still nice that they had such positive things to say.

Movin' on up!

Just wanted to say congratulations again to george an Derek! They finally get to leave Hell-Ay and move on up to Seattle. Marvelous! Granted, I hear that Seattle has its own bunch of freaks, but hopefully they will be freaks that seem more, uh, normal(?) compared to what they've faced in LA.

What's funny is that in the last couple of weeks since george told me they were going to move, I have seen sooooo many things that make fun of the shallowness of the LA Lifestyle. The ads for the county fair in LA are hilarious, but I think I like the elegant simplicity of the above graph better than anything else.

So how have you all been? I'm getting by okay. Somebody on my favorite message board is vomiting hateful, racist comments all over the place. And I read that LonelyGirl15 on YouTube was all a big hoax. And, as you can probably tell from my post earlier this week, I was pretty emotional over the whole 9/11 anniversary. So it has been an odd couple of days.

But!
But but but!
I went out with my New Friend last night. Eeeeee!!!! We had drinks again and talked and talked and talked. Have I mentioned before that this woman kicks ass? Because she does. Here's some proof.
1) She loves Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" series.
2) She likes Jane Austen stories, so she can easily tolerate my girly tendencies.
3) She has a weakness for cheesy movies like "Bring It On".
4) She thinks we need to have a charades party.
And we have similar political views and we tend to hang out with crazy artsy people and and and and. I told her that george already suspects that I'm going to suck friendships off of her like the pathetic, lonely person I am. Luckily, she said that she is happy to be the host for this sad little parasite. So it's all good.

In other news, my parents are in Hawaii! Wee! And it feels like autumn has arrived in our area. Which means it will soon be pumpkin season! And I looooooooves me some pumpkins!

Five years later

My life on September 10, 2001: I had recently returned from my study-abroad trip to Cambridge. I was preparing to apply to grad schools. I felt strong and inspired. My mind was full of creative ideas. My heart was full of hope. I knew that my life would never be the same.

My life on September 11, 2001: Horror. Crippling terror. I couldn't tear myself away from the news for weeks. I was afraid to leave the house. I knew that my life would never be the same.

The Science of Sleep

I'm still thinking about this template. I kinda like it. And it was such a nightmare to set it up that I'm reluctant to change it for a while. Feel free to comment on it, though. I appreciate the opinions of all of my readers. Even the few strangers out there. Hi, strangers!

I found a movie that I really want to see. It's called "The Science of Sleep" (or La Science des Reves which actually translates to "The Science of Dreams", yes?). I saw a trailer for it tonight and it looks goooooood. Kinda weird and quirky and magical and all that good stuff. It's from the director of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind", so if you didn't like that movie, you may be out of luck (Derek).
See the trailer in Quicktime or on YouTube.

In other sleep related news, Tim did not get up until around 1pm today. And then he went back up to bed at 9pm because he was falling asleep while watching poker. A bit concerning, no? I suppose it's just as well since we have to wake up early for the F1 race tomorrow.

And in completely unrelated news, I decided that kittens are cuter than babies. Tim agrees. So maybe we aren't cut out to be parents afterall.

Do not be alarmed!

Today I decided that I might need a new template for my blog. I'll probably be trying out different things for a while, so don't be surprised if things look different, mkay? Mkay!

So here's my week thus far.

Monday: Went on a mini road trip with Tim. We drove up to Virginia for no particular reason. On the way home we stopped at a Sonic (Sonic!!!) and had happy beverages and tater tots. Yum.

Tuesday: Tim got off of work early. And he brought me flowers. Just because. Aaaaaww!!

Wednesday: Mom announced that we will be going to Florida in June next year (more on that later). I met my new friend, Pam, for dinner. We had the best time! And Vincent finally got kicked off of Project Runway. Glorious!

Thursday: Went out for Indian food for dinner. Lamb Biryani. Yum!

Friday: I decided that my blog might need a new template.

So I guess we're all caught up now. Tell me what you think of the new looks!

Edited to add ...
Here are a few more that I really like.
Tub Time
Happy forest
Lacey
Daisies (which feels a bit too prissy)
Blue flowery things

Quirks of marrying a foreigner, Part 2

Due to our differing accents, Tim & I still occasionally struggle with a slight language barrier. In the following snippet of conversation, Tim is telling me about a book he just purchased.

Tim: The first book in the series is called "Pawn of Prophecy".
Me: Did you just say "Porn of Prophecy"?
Tim: No. Pawn.
Me: Porn?
Tim: No ... [takes out book to show me the cover] Pawn! Pawn of Prophecy.
Me: Ooooooooh ...

Sucking ... in a good way

About a month ago I made the "suckage" post. It was a bad time. I had lost hope in finding any friends. I needed a vacuum cleaner. And although I don't think I mentioned it at the time, I was bleeeeeeeeeding. There was a massacre going on in my pants. Not at all fun.

Now, I know that one of my brothers reads this blog so at this point I'm going to apologize for reminding him that his sister has Girl Parts that are used for making Babies and that those Girl Parts bleed occasionally. Sorry Ray!

Anyway, that was a sucky day. A sucky time. But now it is one lunar cycle later. I feel as though I've been smacked across the back with a cricket bat. I am bleeding again. Hemorraging practically (I'm reeeally sorry, Ray!). And yet, that is the only thing that today has in common with that sucky day from last month. Because I, dear friends and strangers, am HAPPY.

1) I met a friend. She recently started posting on the on-line community where I hang with my on-line peeps. We've written back and forth a bit. Talked about going out. Then on Friday I got a message from her that said "I will be working at Such-&-Such on Saturday from ThisTime until ThatTime. Stop by! I'll give you free wine!" Well, how could I refuse? So I put on my Le Tigre shirt (because george has a matching one & I feel better when I have George Power on my side). And I met her. And it was great! She is fun and nice and we have lots of similar interests & I like her a looooooooooot. A lot a lot. And we're going to have dinner together on Wednesday. And I really hope that I don't seem too desperate or lame because she kicks some major ass & I think I would really really like to have her as a friend. I mean, even if I were back in Tulsa & surrounded by loved ones & I met this woman, I would still reallyreally want to hang out with her. Which is an excellent sign.

2) I have a vacuum cleaner. And no, it isn't a Dyson. Tim thought he really wanted one of those $600 Dyson things, but then we consulted Consumer Reports. Oh, how I looooooove Consumer Reports. It's just one of my favorite-est things. Many thanks to Dad for exposing me to the glories of CR. Anyway, we went with CR's favorite bagless vacuum: the Hoover Windtunnel. Cost? $160. That's right, kids. I just saved us $440. What kicks ass? Consumer Reports kicks ass. Remind me to get a subscription. By the by, there are fancier and more expensive versions of the Windtunnel, but we just went with the model CR recommends. The others are too heavy, anyway. In the end, I think Tim is pleased because he can go back to his English vernacular & refer to "vacuuming" as "Hoovering" ... as in "I should hoover up all the black lint that Tim's socks have scattered all over the house".

So there you have it. I'm smiling and happy. And because I want you to smile ane be happy, too, I urge you to watch this video about the Penguin Man from Belgium. Yes, george, even you.