Today's "Already Did" List

Ok, so it's not even noon yet and I've accomplished the following amazing feats:

- hemmed a pair of pants (and wearing them now)
- left the house without coffeeing up (oh, sweet regret)
- gave advice on healing fractured ribs (owie owie owie)
- terminated and unterminated two employees (uhh, oops)

What a life.

Life is like a root canal (sometimes)

The other day, a friend of mine likened the difficult times in life to a root canal.

She said, "It's exactly the same, if you think about it."

And I said, "How... exactly?"

She pointed out the following interesting similarities, and the more I think about what she said, the more I know that her assessment is right on the money.

A root canal...
- starts with intensely painful symptoms
- will be more painful before the procedure is over
- is more expensive than you thought it would be
- cannot be avoided and cannot be postponed, lest things get worse
- may require narcotics (and/or other numbing substances) to endure

From here, it's easy to extrapolate a viewpoint wherein the emotional messes of life can be lumped into the same category as dental procedures. I can see where each point on her list is not just valid but truly true, in the deepest sense of trueness. And I've accepted that, despite the difficulty.

Life is full of difficult things, like root canals. It's also full of wonderful things, like friends who use dentistry to comfort you in times of distress. I've never had a root canal (knock wood) but I've got tons of friends who care enough to draw these wild similes and make me smile.

Dear patient readers,

My sinus cavity is a mess. My histamine blocker is not blocking. I'm a sniffly, sneezy, itchy-nosed, watery-eyed bundle of tired.

Thus, very little is getting done on the school/blog front. I hope to recover quickly, and rejoin the world in some sort of human-like fashion.

The Plan

What am I doing here?

We've all asked the question, I'm sure. I ask myself frequently, but for the purposes of this conversation, I'm not asking about my place in the universe, my reason for living, or anything quite that esoteric. What am I doing here, with this blog?

The idea is to document, explore and reflect on my very last quarter as a college student. In two weeks from yesterday, I will take on the last chapter of the challenge I issued to myself oh-so-many years ago. In this, my last 10 grueling weeks, I face the challenge of not just completing but blowing out of the water a full 21 credit load. (Note: 12 credits is considered full time. On my campus, most full timers are enrolled for 3 courses, totaling 15 credits. So there.)

I'll use my remaining two weeks of "freedom" to get a jump on things. I'll be reading and writing, and generally doing everything I can to lessen the shock of this huge workload. During these two weeks, I'll check in and share what I'm up to. Once the quarter begins on September 24, my intent is to post two or three entries a week for the duration of the quarter. I'll share some details of what I'm working on, reflections on my final courses, and a little bit of my thoughts for the future.

My entries are likely to range widely in frequency, length, content and style. Think of this project as something akin to a box of Cracker Jacks. It will always contain a prize, but none of us know beforehand what that prize might be.

That said, I encourage you to visit often and share with your friends.

Be well.

Turning the page...

I'm not leading a double life. I'm leading a triple life.

I always wanted to be able to say that. But as with most things we wish for, I didn't really understand what I was getting myself into.

In one of my three lives, I am the dutiful cog in the machine of a large investment firm. It's not exactly representative of my life's hopes and dreams, but it's close to home and affords me a myriad of benefits that I suddenly can't imagine living without. And perhaps most importantly, it enables me to partake in the second of my triad of lives.

My second life consists of wide-eyed dreaming, unchecked curiosity and debate in the vast universe of academe. By my calculation, I've spent more time inside the classroom walls than asleep in bed, and far more time than in any other avenue of my life. Being an adult student, though, gets you thinking not only about the staggering number of hours you spend at school, but also the enormous costs-- both financial and emotional-- that come with the status of "nontraditional student."

Among the costs is the immeasurable impact on my third life-- the as-yet private one. In this life, I am a poet and a would-be collage artist. I'm a chef and an author. I take care of animals and they, more often than not, take care of me in return. This private life is not the one I intend to unfold before you, although hints and glimpses are sure to show through from time to time. All I can ask is that you, dear reader, be kind with your consideration of what is and should remain a quiet affair.

My initial intent-- my impulse here, my experiment-- is what I will share more about in my next entry.

This says it all.

100 Things you should eat

Very Good Taste, a UK website, published and made famous the Omnivore's Hundred. It's a list of the 100 things every omnivore should eat in their lifetime. I heard about it a while back, but not being an omnivore in any sense of the world, it didn't pique my interest.

Now, Hannah at Bittersweet has published the Vegan's Hundred list, and I'm in.

In true meme style, I've decided to post the list below and make some indications for my dear readers. In bold are the items I've already eaten. I've crossed out the things I would never consider putting in my mouth.

I absolutely encourage all of you, vegans and omnivores alike, to check out these lists and consider posting this as a meme yourself.

*Note that this list does not contain exclusively vegan items, but many items that can be "veganized." I reserved the right to argue that some things should NEVER be veganized.

*Note2: I've retained many of the links that Hannah used in her original post, so if you're not sure what a certain item is, just clicky-clicky and you'll have the answer.

Without further delay, the list:

1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme brulee
7. Fondue
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic soba noodles
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice and beans
25. Knish
26. Raw scotch bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate
31. Wasabi peas
32. Chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Mango lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Mulled cider
37. Scones with buttery spread and jam
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Fast food french fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk
45. Wine from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Stroopwafle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi
49. Glazed doughnut
50. Seaweed
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese
55. Cotton candy
56. Gnocchi
57. Piña colada
58. Birch beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob chips
61. S'mores
62. Soy curls
63. Chickpea cutlets
64. Curry
65. Durian
66. Homemade Sausages
67. Churros, elephant ears, or funnel cake
68. Smoked tofu
69. Fried plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho
72. Warm chocolate chip cookies
73. Absinthe
74. Corn on the cob
75. Whipped cream, straight from the can
76. Pomegranate
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed potatoes with gravy
79. Jerky
80. Croissants
81. French onion soup
82. Savory crepes
83. Tings
84. A meal at Candle 79
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds
87. Macaroni and "cheese"
88. Flowers
89. Matzoh ball soup
90. White chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch chips
94. Yellow watermelon
95. Chili with chocolate
96. Bagel and Tofutti
97. Potato milk
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Raw cookie dough

Today's "Already Done" List

So far today, I have accomplished the following:

-contemplated metal babies
-misplaced my phone in my office
-carried a 40lb box of papers around when I didn't have to
-cut my thumb
-broke a stapler (it's not even a Swingline)
-gotten the lyrics to "Love Shack" stuck in my head
-envied a man who works 4 hours a week and makes more money than I do

And it's barely past noon... wtf.

Through the canyon

Last week, I spent several days hiking through the Needles district of Canyonlands National Park in Utah. It was hot (clear, sunny, 70+ degrees) and wide open, as one expects the desert to be. This was my first backpacking trip in the desert, and probably the last. I'm not built for it. But while I was there, I saw some spectacular views, listened intently to the deafening silence, and breathed deeply enough to clear out any bad juju I had been carrying along with me until then.

One foot in front of the other is the best form of therapy for a gal like me. It's my chance to step outside the words, structured sentences, carefully constructed paragraphs and meticulously placed semi-colons. I step one foot and then the other outside each syllable, and replace it with something a little more... organic. I find something uniquely comforting about the deep reflection that comes when words are set aside. I didn't go to the desert to think. I went into the desert to be.

Far from home, I often find myself. It's the journey back that is the most difficult, as exhaustion sets in and I sometimes feel overcome by the urgency to return to the rest of the life I left behind. But, it's all my life. It's all my life, and most days I'm glad to set foot in any part of it.

This complicated world in which we live

Warning: Political and legal discussion to commence in T-minus 3, 2, 1...

I'm currently involved in a multi-faceted debate about national security, constitutional law, executive prerogative, torture, and the like. It's been raging for weeks, and today's edition was particularly thought-inducing and troubling. Today, I face the unanswerable question that has robbed me of sleep many a night.

Is it better to set up guidelines to deal with the "lesser evils" currently carried out by the administration, the military, et al or... is it better to stick to your guns, apply Utopian principles to our legislative processes, and hope that the damage can be reversed?

If these questions plague you as they do me, I'd love to suggest some arguments for you to read. However, "most" Americans (and likely most citizens of the greater world community) shy away from these topics at first mention. Isn't that precisely why we elect representatives to our state and federal governments? So we, the people, do not have to dirty our hands with such matters? Yes, I believe that's exactly the response many would submit. Regardless of that claim, I still have to contend that it should be different.

People (ahem, Americans) are far too eager to shift responsibility to someone else - whether that party is correct or not, regardless of their relative lawfulness, and often irrespective of whether the resulting action or policy reflects anything that resembles what the electorate, the people, wanted in the first place. Too much power is given away, and too often the structure of our representative democracy is falsely blamed.

The presidential election campaigns are upon us, and this is no time to forget our responsibilities as citizens of this liberal democracy. It's not our job to pass the buck to our elected officials, at any level, and turn a blind eye to the impact on the rest of the world. Quite the opposite, our responsibility is to keep those officials in check at every step, inasmuch as we can, and to limit their abilities to act outside of the boundaries of U.S. law, human rights, and common decency.

Moving forward, I hope that we can all observe what happens closely and carefully. A keen eye to the past is essential as well. There's no excuse for inaction at this point in the game, and no mercy left for those who opt not to play.

You

You are the insanity I crave...

and you bloody well know who you are.

You probably didn't know...

My toenails are always painted red or black. I rarely paint my fingernails because it makes me feel like I have something stuck on my fingertips.

I'm desperately addicted to coffee, but I drink herbal tea all day long. I prefer to wear men's shoes over women's. They don't squish my toes.

I hate makeup but I always wear eyeliner.

Even though I live alone, there is enough food in my house to feed an army for several weeks. I miss the Waffle House. It's incredibly difficult for me to leave the house without something on both wrists (bracelet, watch, bandanna, I'm not picky).

I don't think I've ever been comfortable for more than an hour.

I like to drink Kahlua and cranberry juice in the same cup. I love death metal music. Sometimes I think I should have joined the circus when I had a chance. I've recently developed a strange adoration of 'chick rock.'

Now it's your turn.

This post idea was shamelessly stolen from This Fish.

It'll be a cold day in hell...

...when it all makes sense.

I'm sure of it. The terrible thing is that it does make sense to me. I'm fine. I'm feeling rational, comfortable, even sane despite the chaos.

My poor brain, as with my calendar, is overflowing. I'm working on a number of interesting projects right now, not the least of which is myself. I wish I was in any condition to offer a progress report, but I haven't even set my objectives. My "one day at a time" philosophy works for me, but seems to be troublesome when I actually decide to interact with others. "Doesn't play well with others" perhaps? Could be.

Bwahahahaa!

If there was ever a question about the ridiculous nature of our government agencies, this article oughta take care of it.

It can't all be wedding cake.

It's true what they say.

It really can't all be wedding cake. But there's a perfectly good explanation for it. If you're tempted to question my position, I'll hope you'll hang in for just a moment until you've heard it all.

Here goes.

She's so beautiful,
I can hardly stand it.
It's nearly painful.
The softness of her nature impresses me.
I think I'm jealous.
She loves so deeply and so hard--
it feels like a movie.
The lights are on.
She's got eyes like a hurricane
and hands like pudding.
My attention is diverted.
She's not mine.

It really can't all be wedding cake. There's got to be mud and rocks, and ice and rain, and can openers and socks. But it's all the same. The mud and the cake. It's all the same.

I'm shrinking, maybe?

I've never been one of those gals who obsessed over her weight, was addicted to deadly diet fads, or who spends hours scrutinizing her body in the mirror. I don't "watch what I eat" or "count calories" or keep a food journal. My vegan diet pretty much keeps me out of the danger zone where that's concerned. In fact, I've been pretty comfortable in my own skin for as long as I can remember. I'm no super model, but I'm healthy and active and what more could I really want, right?

So, it comes as a big surprise to me today when I slipped on my brand new pair of corduroy pants. I tried them on at the store before making my purchase last week, and I was surprised at that time to find that I was walking out with a size smaller than my "usual" size. At the time, I assumed it must be one of those quirky manufacturer things. All the women out there know exactly what I mean. Size 8 from one company equals Size 14 from another. It's really a mystery where they come up with these numbers!

At any rate, my one-size-smaller pants are fitting so loosely today that I will definitely require a belt before venturing out in public. They're big at the waist and even a little loose through the hip area (where I don't have much "going on"). I am officially perplexed.

If I've lost weight, I hadn't noticed. I don't own a scale to confirm or deny this theory. So, the mystery will persist. I think a more likely explanation is that I must have, somehow, stumbled upon the cousin of the infamous Traveling Pants. This is obviously the pair they opted not to make a film about, and I can see why. It's difficult to be inspiring when your drawers are falling down.

Do you ever feel...?

...like you have just *lost* your *damn mind*? Ever wonder if the most wonderful thing may just have been poison in disguise? Do you ever think that your best judgment isn't worth its weight after all?

I feel these things. I wonder these things. I think these things.

I'm restless in my own head today. It's been coming on for a few days but came to a head shortly after waking this morning. I don't think it's a "wrong side of the bed" thing, but I suppose there's room for me to be wrong. That's what this day has really been all about, in retrospect.

I tried a few of the usual things to settle my mind. I skipped the news, I had some tea, I went for a walk. The restlessness did not fade. If anything, as the day passed, it grew stronger. I preoccupied myself by worrying about others. I waited to hear from a dear faraway friend, but didn't. I wonder if she's out there, if things are really ok. I busied myself with mundane tasks, to no avail.

I even tried to drown it. It turns out, it can swim.

Seattle no longer the most literate U.S. city

Maybe we're too busy at the coffee shop or shopping at REI. Or perhaps we Seattlites just spend too much darn time in the woods. Whatever the case, Seattle has fallen from the #1 slot among the rankings of most literate U.S. cities.

The details of the study are really interesting, in my personal lit-head opinion. For instance, did you know that Seattle, Minneapolis (our current #1), Denver, Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., have all been in the top 5 since the first study in 2003?

All you Clevelanders out there will be interested to hear that the study ranked C-town highest for library resources. Cleveland ranked a fairly respectable #13 in the overall scoring.

For a look back over previous years, including commentary on what has changed and why, you must clicky-click right here.

School's out for this guy...

Hmmm.... maybe I should be playing the lottery instead of paying my tuition bills like a good little school girl...

Panties for Peace

Heard about what's happening in Burma (aka Myan Mar)? The unchecked power of the military regime there is not new, so activists are getting creative. Really creative. If you've been looking for a new and interesting way to act globally, here it is. Send your panties to Burma. For peace.

Why underwear? Good question.

For starters, the junta has perpetrated countless crimes against women, such as rape, as a large part of their war strategy. The Panties for Peace campaign, which is largely unorganized, is a way for women around the world to express their outrage to the Burmese embassies.

Additionally, according to Burmanet.org, Burma's superstitious generals believe that contact with any item of women's wear actually deprives them of their power. I knew the right pair of undies had a mighty powerful effect on a man, but I had no idea!

So, get on board, ladies. Ship your panties to your favorite Burmese embassy. It's for a good cause.