Current Status... I am very sleepy this afternoon, but I haven't written since the spine-tingling Inauguration, so I'll give it a go. I remember being excited about John Kennedy's inauguration, but not like this. How weary we all were! How ready for change! How relieved many of us are simply because we feel grounded again in principles we can live with. Already I feel like there's not a lot going on in the White House that we're not hearing about. How refreshing that is!
Lately I'm thinking... Another snow day seems to be coming tomorrow, so it looks like I'll get to stay home for my birthday. Maybe Stuart will build a fire and I'll wrap up in a blankey and read a book (while balancing my laptop and sending e-mails ;-)
This is really interesting... This winter I understand why so many people move to Florida. Of course, I don't care for Florida: It's flat and it's humid. But I like the idea of not having to deal with coats and colds and boots and heating bills and shoveling and skids and weak sunlight and long, dark periods when the ATVs get out on the pond ice and make it impossible to get a decent sleep, and so many layers you can't bend your arms to pick up the Terra chip on the floor of the car. And what about when your birthday is snowed out? No Defiance or Gran Torino or Slumdog Millionaire, nor even Indian food. On the other hand, it would be a great time to bake gluten-free chocolate chip cookies and make squash soup!
Currently reading... Still reading T.C. Boyle's World's End. It's long! The yarn covers about 300 years, and not in chronological order either. I can't keep track, except that it's probably significant that so many characters are named Walter or Wouter and are missing a foot. Intriguing, wot? Mostly, I like all the references to places in the Hudson Valley that I know.
The Soapbox... I read an article in the NYTimes defending us Boomer babes. Maybe we're not so self-absorbed and materialistic as we're reputed to be. Maybe we've produced some really smart, really good, really successful people. Maybe Mr. Obama will help make us a greatly prized generation. I remember that our high school principal made a big deal of the class of '66: We were the best so far. That's how I've felt ever since: We're the best yet, and we will leave a shiny trail of positive actions behind us. What do you think?
Tuesday, January 27
Thursday, January 15
On Modern Dilemmas
Current Status... "Windows" is a great idea, but it's like democracy or communism -- great in theory, but people game it and screw it up. After all these years, Windows still takes forever to load, an eternity to shut down, and when you have it up, it freezes programs, attracts viruses and crashes. I'm a Mac gal, but I have to use Windows for work. At the company office, my computer once bit the dust with what Windows folk call The Blue Screen of Death. Here at home, on my MacPro, Windows is supposed to allow me to link up with office e-mail. And once I have it connected, I can count on it crashing several times in an afternoon. I sign on again and again. I spend unproductive time reviving Windows. The other day I sat helpless as a virus entered, ran it's frustrating little course, and faded away. Can't something be done?!
Lately I'm thinking... Next January, I wanna be in Sedona/Prescott (AZ) or Santa Fe (NM). The Hudson Valley's bone-chilling cold and the serial snow storms this year are taking a big toll on these old bones. Arthritis is a bitch!
This is really interesting... I watch my new cat, Amalya, torn between curiosity, need for affection, and fear. She fears the other cat, Sara; she fears strange noises and unexpected moves by humans. She loves being scratched and petted, at times she'll even "kiss," by rubbing her nose on my nose. [Cute? It's to die for!] I watch her tentatively explore and claim one more millimeter of the house each day. I watch her decide whether to flee under my bed or stand her ground. She's just like a human in her inner struggles with hope and fear.
Currently reading... Still reading T.C. Boyle's World's End. It's long! The man's spinning a yarn covering [at least] 300 years. I can't keep track, except I know everyone important is named Walter and is missing a foot. What a mind T.C. must have to have written, in essence, three books in one. And what a vocabulary -- you know you're good when you throw in words Trish has never seen!
The Soapbox: I can't stand how long it's taking to get to Jan. 20, 2009! Can't stand it! Obama will sink or swim, but let's find out already! T'row de bums out! Let's get started with the new regime, whatever it may be. On the other hand, this is one time in the life of a woman "of a certain age," when time does not seem to be flying past at record speed. Keep the hope, Boomers, toss fear away -- t'row de bum out! Friends or relatives with unmanageable mortgages? Afraid of foreclosure? Call Seneca Debt Assistance, toll-free, for information and help bull-dogging your bank to renegotiate your terms. Are you a woman in transition? Returning to workforce? Peri-menopausal? Divorcing? Call the experienced life coach at Women in Transition. I did, and kicked fear aside and took charge of my life!
Lately I'm thinking... Next January, I wanna be in Sedona/Prescott (AZ) or Santa Fe (NM). The Hudson Valley's bone-chilling cold and the serial snow storms this year are taking a big toll on these old bones. Arthritis is a bitch!
This is really interesting... I watch my new cat, Amalya, torn between curiosity, need for affection, and fear. She fears the other cat, Sara; she fears strange noises and unexpected moves by humans. She loves being scratched and petted, at times she'll even "kiss," by rubbing her nose on my nose. [Cute? It's to die for!] I watch her tentatively explore and claim one more millimeter of the house each day. I watch her decide whether to flee under my bed or stand her ground. She's just like a human in her inner struggles with hope and fear.
Currently reading... Still reading T.C. Boyle's World's End. It's long! The man's spinning a yarn covering [at least] 300 years. I can't keep track, except I know everyone important is named Walter and is missing a foot. What a mind T.C. must have to have written, in essence, three books in one. And what a vocabulary -- you know you're good when you throw in words Trish has never seen!
The Soapbox: I can't stand how long it's taking to get to Jan. 20, 2009! Can't stand it! Obama will sink or swim, but let's find out already! T'row de bums out! Let's get started with the new regime, whatever it may be. On the other hand, this is one time in the life of a woman "of a certain age," when time does not seem to be flying past at record speed. Keep the hope, Boomers, toss fear away -- t'row de bum out! Friends or relatives with unmanageable mortgages? Afraid of foreclosure? Call Seneca Debt Assistance, toll-free, for information and help bull-dogging your bank to renegotiate your terms. Are you a woman in transition? Returning to workforce? Peri-menopausal? Divorcing? Call the experienced life coach at Women in Transition. I did, and kicked fear aside and took charge of my life!
Thursday, January 8
Current Status... Well, I mastered the Bluetooth earpiece for my cell phone, then promptly misplaced it. What else? I've become a Reluctant Webmaster. I'm learning on the fly, making lots of mistakes. I hope there's light at the end of the tunnel.
Lately I'm thinking... It's really hard to slow down and be thorough-going! When I am still, I get nervous. If I can't think of something I need to do, I get depressed. Not good. I'm back to meditating in the mornings, to teach myself that it's all right to be still.
This is really interesting... What could be interesting? I have a birthday coming, so what's to celebrate?
Currently watching... I'd had the David Lynch movie, Inland Empire, on my Netflix list for months, maybe years. It finally arrived...and sucked. I should have known from the first moments of soundtrack that I wasn't going to be able to endure this movie. Terrible low screeches and drones for hours on end; purposeful disturbance but way over the top. Then, as both director and cinematographer, Lynch bludgeons you with his theme of play within a movie within a movie -- you know, reality vs. unreality, and how do you tell the difference? But subtle he is not, he really overdoes it. So what happens is, he wastes several really fine actors by insisting on shooting their faces from various warping angles, and prevents us from ever getting into the characters. And without character, you have no movie, sir. You have a reel of surreal, meaningless photography. Blech. Watch out for this one and skip it; a classic it is NOT!
The Soapbox: Especially in a deep recession, hope is not only greater, but more effective than fear. If you know a family that fears losing its home to forecloseure, tell them about Seneca Debt Assistance: 1-888-808-1342, toll free. They'll get help. Many of us, including myself, could also be given hope by a life coach. Check out Women in Transition Coach. Find the power locked inside yourself!
Lately I'm thinking... It's really hard to slow down and be thorough-going! When I am still, I get nervous. If I can't think of something I need to do, I get depressed. Not good. I'm back to meditating in the mornings, to teach myself that it's all right to be still.
This is really interesting... What could be interesting? I have a birthday coming, so what's to celebrate?
Currently watching... I'd had the David Lynch movie, Inland Empire, on my Netflix list for months, maybe years. It finally arrived...and sucked. I should have known from the first moments of soundtrack that I wasn't going to be able to endure this movie. Terrible low screeches and drones for hours on end; purposeful disturbance but way over the top. Then, as both director and cinematographer, Lynch bludgeons you with his theme of play within a movie within a movie -- you know, reality vs. unreality, and how do you tell the difference? But subtle he is not, he really overdoes it. So what happens is, he wastes several really fine actors by insisting on shooting their faces from various warping angles, and prevents us from ever getting into the characters. And without character, you have no movie, sir. You have a reel of surreal, meaningless photography. Blech. Watch out for this one and skip it; a classic it is NOT!
The Soapbox: Especially in a deep recession, hope is not only greater, but more effective than fear. If you know a family that fears losing its home to forecloseure, tell them about Seneca Debt Assistance: 1-888-808-1342, toll free. They'll get help. Many of us, including myself, could also be given hope by a life coach. Check out Women in Transition Coach. Find the power locked inside yourself!
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