I was feeling overwhelmingly sluggish today (I would even describe myself as "sloth-like," doing everything at 10-20%) and so I decided to buy Coke's new soft drink/energy soda, Vault at the grocery store this afternoon. And, um, wow. I had three-quarters of the bottle (a normal 20 oz. bottle, not a liter or anything!) about three hours ago and the last few swallows about 20 minutes ago, and I'm completely wired. Earlier, I was talking non-stop. Now, I can't seem to stop blinking.
I am both fascinated and disturbed. I certainly don't feel sloth-like anymore, but I'm not sure I have the willpower to channel all this excess energy into something productive. I also can't be completely confident that everything I'm writing right now won't read like complete jibberish in the morning, since my brain is working too fast for me to concentrate on one word at a time in an ordered sequence--you know, what we usually call reading.
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Friday, March 17, 2006
Food Friday #3
In honor of St. Patrick's Day and Friday in general, I made fish and chips tonight for April and her friend. It was ridiculously good, if I do say so myself--I used a Rachael Ray recipe for the fish and a Marc Bittman recipe for the fries. It was also ridiculously unhealthy (the most healthy part of the meal being the oil and vinegar-based cole slaw), and now the entire house smells like oil. But, no matter. I think next week I'll at least post the recipe for the fries (okay, maybe the fish too), since they were relatively easy to make and very good, but I didn't have time tonight to type up all the recipes.
Instead, I leave you with a really lovely pasta dish (also part of last month's Valentine's Day meal along with the Chocolate Lava Muffins). This Rachael Ray dish is very simple (not terribly low-cal, though) and excellent. The cream sauce is tomato-based and tastes quite light and refreshing considering it's full of cream, or maybe it's the vodka that makes this sauce so delicious.
"You Won't Be Single For Long" Vodka Cream Pasta
(recipe also available here)
This recipe will make enough for 4 people. If serving only 2, reserve half the sauce to freeze for another supper before the addition of basil, and only cook 1/2 to 2/3 pound of penne.
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, once around the pan in a slow stream
1 tablespoon butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 shallots, minced
1 cup vodka
1 cup chicken stock
1 can crushed tomatoes (32 ounces)
Coarse salt and pepper
16 ounces pasta, such as penne rigate
1/2 cup heavy cream
20 leaves fresh basil, shredded or torn
Crusty bread, for passing
Heat a large skillet over moderate heat. Add oil, butter, garlic, and shallots. Gently saute shallots for 3 to 5 minutes to develop their sweetness. Add vodka to the pan, 3 turns around the pan in a steady stream will equal about 1 cup. Reduce vodka by half, this will take 2 or 3 minutes. Add chicken stock, tomatoes. Bring sauce to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Season with salt and pepper.
While sauce simmers, cook pasta in salted boiling water until cooked to al dente (with a bite to it). While pasta cooks, prepare your salad or other side dishes.
Stir cream into sauce. When sauce returns to a bubble, remove it from heat. Drain pasta. Toss hot pasta with sauce and basil leaves. Pass pasta with crusty bread.
Instead, I leave you with a really lovely pasta dish (also part of last month's Valentine's Day meal along with the Chocolate Lava Muffins). This Rachael Ray dish is very simple (not terribly low-cal, though) and excellent. The cream sauce is tomato-based and tastes quite light and refreshing considering it's full of cream, or maybe it's the vodka that makes this sauce so delicious.
"You Won't Be Single For Long" Vodka Cream Pasta
(recipe also available here)
This recipe will make enough for 4 people. If serving only 2, reserve half the sauce to freeze for another supper before the addition of basil, and only cook 1/2 to 2/3 pound of penne.
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, once around the pan in a slow stream
1 tablespoon butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 shallots, minced
1 cup vodka
1 cup chicken stock
1 can crushed tomatoes (32 ounces)
Coarse salt and pepper
16 ounces pasta, such as penne rigate
1/2 cup heavy cream
20 leaves fresh basil, shredded or torn
Crusty bread, for passing
Heat a large skillet over moderate heat. Add oil, butter, garlic, and shallots. Gently saute shallots for 3 to 5 minutes to develop their sweetness. Add vodka to the pan, 3 turns around the pan in a steady stream will equal about 1 cup. Reduce vodka by half, this will take 2 or 3 minutes. Add chicken stock, tomatoes. Bring sauce to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Season with salt and pepper.
While sauce simmers, cook pasta in salted boiling water until cooked to al dente (with a bite to it). While pasta cooks, prepare your salad or other side dishes.
Stir cream into sauce. When sauce returns to a bubble, remove it from heat. Drain pasta. Toss hot pasta with sauce and basil leaves. Pass pasta with crusty bread.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
home again
So, I'm back home again after a ridiculously seamless and excellent NYC trip* which included, but was not limited to: seeing my favorite 7-year-old twins (who were not eager to see me go...their little teary eyes this morning almost made me want to change my flight); going to the Whitney Biennial (and randomly running into one of my fellow grad students there); meeting up with my friend Lisa (which was lovely) and her friend and eating the best vegetarian food I've had in a long time; having lunch with my friend T'ai.; going to Henrietta Hudson with Misa; going to see Anne Heaton (and having her ask me "have I met you before?" [which she had] when I asked her to sign my poster) at The Living Room, also with Misa; horseback riding in Central Park, on a horse named Nellie (whoa, Nellie!); shopping; eating Curried Duck Noodles and Black Sesame Ice Cream at Republic; and having my NYC direction sense suddenly improve by leaps and bounds.
That's it in a nutshell. Also, I finished a novel while I was away, which seems as much an accomplishment to me (since I haven't been reading fiction as much as I'd like) as the successful travel venture itself.
*The brilliance of my trip was only dampened a bit by three things: April couldn't join me this time because she had to work, Anna was out of town, and I almost died on the flight home. The latter was, obviously, the worst. I have travelled a lot in my life, and I can honestly say that I have never experienced worse turbulence in my life. About halfway through the flight, the plane lurched--really lurched, not just falling a bit in an air pocket, but jerking off to the side and tilting downward--so sharply that one of the flight attendants screamed (and you know it's bad if they react) and dropped a tray of cups and ice in the lap of several passengers. And then the approach into the airport was so rocky that I was convinced the pilot was going to say it was too windy to land and pull up, but he landed anyway, even though we hit the ground pretty hard and pretty wobbly. Not fun. But I'm alive. So. That's good, I guess.
That's it in a nutshell. Also, I finished a novel while I was away, which seems as much an accomplishment to me (since I haven't been reading fiction as much as I'd like) as the successful travel venture itself.
*The brilliance of my trip was only dampened a bit by three things: April couldn't join me this time because she had to work, Anna was out of town, and I almost died on the flight home. The latter was, obviously, the worst. I have travelled a lot in my life, and I can honestly say that I have never experienced worse turbulence in my life. About halfway through the flight, the plane lurched--really lurched, not just falling a bit in an air pocket, but jerking off to the side and tilting downward--so sharply that one of the flight attendants screamed (and you know it's bad if they react) and dropped a tray of cups and ice in the lap of several passengers. And then the approach into the airport was so rocky that I was convinced the pilot was going to say it was too windy to land and pull up, but he landed anyway, even though we hit the ground pretty hard and pretty wobbly. Not fun. But I'm alive. So. That's good, I guess.
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Food Friday #2
The next installment of Food Fridays--this one a bit early because I'm going to NYC tomorrow and won't be back till Tuesday.
I made these Chocolate Lava Muffins (an Alton Brown recipe, for anyone who watches Food Network)for Valentine's Day dessert this year, and they are truly incredible. They're also frighteningly easy to make, and so it's tempting to whip up a batch just to have around the house--except that they're basically pure chocolate and eggs and sugar, which isn't exactly healthy per se. Unless you count tastebud happiness as a part of your general mental well-being.
Chocolate Lave Muffins
(click here for the recipe on the Food Network site)
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 stick butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
Butter, to coat muffin tin
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 cup vanilla ice cream
1 teaspoon espresso powder
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place a small metal bowl over a saucepan with simmering water. Melt the chocolate and butter in the bowl. Stir in vanilla.
In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour and salt. Sift these into the chocolate and mix well with electric hand mixer. Add eggs one at time, fully incorporating each egg before adding the next. Beat at high until batter is creamy and lightens in color, approximately 4 minutes. Chill mixture [I chilled these for approximately forty minutes--while we ate dinner--but I think they're only supposed to be chilled for as long as it takes you to coat the muffin pan. Either way works.]
Coat the top and each cup of the muffin tin with butter. Dust with the cocoa powder and shake out excess. Spoon mixture into pan using a 4-ounce scoop or ladle. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes. Outsides should be cake-like and centers should be gooey.
While muffins are in oven, melt the ice cream in a small saucepan. Stir in the espresso powder. Serve over warm muffins.
Yield: 1 dozen
I made these Chocolate Lava Muffins (an Alton Brown recipe, for anyone who watches Food Network)for Valentine's Day dessert this year, and they are truly incredible. They're also frighteningly easy to make, and so it's tempting to whip up a batch just to have around the house--except that they're basically pure chocolate and eggs and sugar, which isn't exactly healthy per se. Unless you count tastebud happiness as a part of your general mental well-being.
Chocolate Lave Muffins
(click here for the recipe on the Food Network site)
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 stick butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
Butter, to coat muffin tin
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 cup vanilla ice cream
1 teaspoon espresso powder
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place a small metal bowl over a saucepan with simmering water. Melt the chocolate and butter in the bowl. Stir in vanilla.
In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour and salt. Sift these into the chocolate and mix well with electric hand mixer. Add eggs one at time, fully incorporating each egg before adding the next. Beat at high until batter is creamy and lightens in color, approximately 4 minutes. Chill mixture [I chilled these for approximately forty minutes--while we ate dinner--but I think they're only supposed to be chilled for as long as it takes you to coat the muffin pan. Either way works.]
Coat the top and each cup of the muffin tin with butter. Dust with the cocoa powder and shake out excess. Spoon mixture into pan using a 4-ounce scoop or ladle. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes. Outsides should be cake-like and centers should be gooey.
While muffins are in oven, melt the ice cream in a small saucepan. Stir in the espresso powder. Serve over warm muffins.
Yield: 1 dozen
Saturday, March 04, 2006
dear rachael, please come live with us...
I just bought a subscription to Everyday with Rachael Ray because what I really need in life is yet another cooking magazine. April thinks I'm a little crazy, but she's awfully indulgent of my whims when it comes to food-related things.
I would like to add that this is all my aunt Rhonda's fault! ;) If she hadn't shown me episodes of Rachael's cooking show two years ago at Thanksgiving, I would never have become so obsessed. Rachael Ray and Iron Chef America have me tuning in to the Food Network whenever I'm in the mood for TV and there's not a re-run of Law and Order or CSI on somewhere.
I would like to add that this is all my aunt Rhonda's fault! ;) If she hadn't shown me episodes of Rachael's cooking show two years ago at Thanksgiving, I would never have become so obsessed. Rachael Ray and Iron Chef America have me tuning in to the Food Network whenever I'm in the mood for TV and there's not a re-run of Law and Order or CSI on somewhere.
Friday, March 03, 2006
Food Fridays #1
I've been planning to do this for a while now, but only just got my act together to post. As of now, watch this space every Friday (I'll try to post every week for now and see how it goes) for Food Fridays (sharing the joy of food). Each week, I'll post a recipe I've really enjoyed to share with you all. Some will be fairly easy, some may be a bit more time-consuming, but I'm not a gourmand so I doubt any will require obsure ingredients (no $100 truffles or anything) or excessive/complicated preparation (I generally don't choose recipes that require more skill then the basic preparatory skills: chop, blend, mix, stir, bake, fry, boil, etc.)
April and I both love to cook and, when we have the time and inclination (which is not as often as we'd like), we enjoy seeking out fun and interesting recipes from the Food Network, Epicurious, one of my Cooking Light magazines, her Bon Appetit subscription, or one of our myriad cookbooks. Whatever recipe I post, I'll make sure to let you know from whence it came.
I only ask that if you try one of the recipes and enjoy it (or if you don't), please comment and let me know!
Today's recipe comes from Epicurious.com (click here for the recipe on their site, with pictures). It's extremely easy to make. April made it for my birthday in late January, and we loved the recipe so much that we've been making it over and over again since then (although we usually make it without the mangoes because they're more expensive, but it's excellent with or without the mangoes). I think the dressing (and the avocado) is really what makes this salad so wonderful.
We substituted Welch's frozen berry mix juice concentrate for the passion fruit juice because our grocery store isn't fancy enough for frozen passion fruit juice. And, despite our early misgivings, the berry juice worked very well.
****
Avocado and Mango Salad with Passion Fruit Vinaigrette
3 tablespoons frozen passion fruit juice concentrate, thawed
3 tablespoons minced shallot
4 teaspoons Sherry wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds, coarsely cracked
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 cups herb salad mix (about 4 ounces)
1 large ripe mango, halved, pitted, peeled, sliced
2 small avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, sliced
Whisk first 5 ingredients in small bowl to blend; gradually whisk in oil. Season dressing generously with salt and pepper. Toss salad mix in large bowl with 1/4 cup dressing. Divide salad among 4 plates. Tuck mango and avocado into salad; drizzle some of remaining dressing over mango and avocado.
Makes 4 servings.
April and I both love to cook and, when we have the time and inclination (which is not as often as we'd like), we enjoy seeking out fun and interesting recipes from the Food Network, Epicurious, one of my Cooking Light magazines, her Bon Appetit subscription, or one of our myriad cookbooks. Whatever recipe I post, I'll make sure to let you know from whence it came.
I only ask that if you try one of the recipes and enjoy it (or if you don't), please comment and let me know!
Today's recipe comes from Epicurious.com (click here for the recipe on their site, with pictures). It's extremely easy to make. April made it for my birthday in late January, and we loved the recipe so much that we've been making it over and over again since then (although we usually make it without the mangoes because they're more expensive, but it's excellent with or without the mangoes). I think the dressing (and the avocado) is really what makes this salad so wonderful.
We substituted Welch's frozen berry mix juice concentrate for the passion fruit juice because our grocery store isn't fancy enough for frozen passion fruit juice. And, despite our early misgivings, the berry juice worked very well.
****
Avocado and Mango Salad with Passion Fruit Vinaigrette
3 tablespoons frozen passion fruit juice concentrate, thawed
3 tablespoons minced shallot
4 teaspoons Sherry wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds, coarsely cracked
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 cups herb salad mix (about 4 ounces)
1 large ripe mango, halved, pitted, peeled, sliced
2 small avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, sliced
Whisk first 5 ingredients in small bowl to blend; gradually whisk in oil. Season dressing generously with salt and pepper. Toss salad mix in large bowl with 1/4 cup dressing. Divide salad among 4 plates. Tuck mango and avocado into salad; drizzle some of remaining dressing over mango and avocado.
Makes 4 servings.
Monday, February 20, 2006
indulgence
I’m starting my own meme, even though I’m well aware that the word “meme” cannot describe a single occurrence of a post. So go, re-post, tell your friends what you consider a luxury. Don’t make me a liar.
Top Ten Indulgences,
or these are a few of my favorite things
1. Buying and consuming antipasto as a meal, including some combination of the following: olives (stuffed or otherwise), French bread, expensive cured meats (prosciutto, hot coppa, Italian salami), expensive cheeses (teleggio, [fresh] goat cheese, brie, camembert, gruyere). And, of course, red wine.
2. Reading in a hot bath. (This is why Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire has now been dropped in the water twice, but it’s a paperback so it’s still intact and readable.)
3. Splitting an entire bottle of Spanish champagne (sparking wine, for sticklers) with my girlfriend (I’m a big fan of Freixenet, which isn’t incredibly expensive but still very good.)
4. Sleeping in on a lazy Sunday morning. (Even better if April’s also sleeping in, which is a rarity since she’s much more of an early bird than I.)
5. Drinking a cup of Fortnum and Mason tea (preferably Assam Superb, English Breakfast, or Darjeeling) with sugar and a little cream. I love this anytime, but it’s especially comforting on a grey, rainy/snowy day. The effect of the tea is significantly augmented by cucumber sandwiches, but I don’t have the energy (nor do I ever have the ingredients on hand) to make these.
6. Spending an afternoon/evening/day rampantly watching an entire season (or as much as I can handle) of a television show, usually while simultaneously rearranging my furniture or my closet, while wrapping presents (around Christmas), while packing, while sick, or simply when I’m feeling incredibly lazy and indulgent. This was much easier to accomplish with Sex and the City, Newsradio and Neverwhere than when I tried to re-watch the entire second season of The L Word (with some fast-forwarding, I’ll admit) in one night or than I suspect it will be with Bad Girls or Firefly (longer episodes).
7. Writing silly postcards to friends wherein I quote long passages from plays, books or films without any explanation and then sign my name and stick them in the mail.
8. Making travel plans to visit friends without other academically (or fiscally) viable reasons for traveling (museums, theatre, conferences, etc.)—like visiting Chris in MN (where we spent five days watching CSI and going to the movies) or going to LA to spend time with Hilary and her Couch.
9. Cooking elaborate meals, often with several courses (at least salad, entrée and dessert) and a bonus if it takes me more than two hours to cook.
10. Making absurd lists with no inherent use-value of their own when I should be working (this includes memes, surveys, polls and to-do lists that I will never refer to again). Part and parcel of Number 10 is spending long hours on LJ (or otherwheres on the Interweb) reading/writing fan fiction and reading/writing blog entries.
Top Ten Indulgences,
or these are a few of my favorite things
1. Buying and consuming antipasto as a meal, including some combination of the following: olives (stuffed or otherwise), French bread, expensive cured meats (prosciutto, hot coppa, Italian salami), expensive cheeses (teleggio, [fresh] goat cheese, brie, camembert, gruyere). And, of course, red wine.
2. Reading in a hot bath. (This is why Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire has now been dropped in the water twice, but it’s a paperback so it’s still intact and readable.)
3. Splitting an entire bottle of Spanish champagne (sparking wine, for sticklers) with my girlfriend (I’m a big fan of Freixenet, which isn’t incredibly expensive but still very good.)
4. Sleeping in on a lazy Sunday morning. (Even better if April’s also sleeping in, which is a rarity since she’s much more of an early bird than I.)
5. Drinking a cup of Fortnum and Mason tea (preferably Assam Superb, English Breakfast, or Darjeeling) with sugar and a little cream. I love this anytime, but it’s especially comforting on a grey, rainy/snowy day. The effect of the tea is significantly augmented by cucumber sandwiches, but I don’t have the energy (nor do I ever have the ingredients on hand) to make these.
6. Spending an afternoon/evening/day rampantly watching an entire season (or as much as I can handle) of a television show, usually while simultaneously rearranging my furniture or my closet, while wrapping presents (around Christmas), while packing, while sick, or simply when I’m feeling incredibly lazy and indulgent. This was much easier to accomplish with Sex and the City, Newsradio and Neverwhere than when I tried to re-watch the entire second season of The L Word (with some fast-forwarding, I’ll admit) in one night or than I suspect it will be with Bad Girls or Firefly (longer episodes).
7. Writing silly postcards to friends wherein I quote long passages from plays, books or films without any explanation and then sign my name and stick them in the mail.
8. Making travel plans to visit friends without other academically (or fiscally) viable reasons for traveling (museums, theatre, conferences, etc.)—like visiting Chris in MN (where we spent five days watching CSI and going to the movies) or going to LA to spend time with Hilary and her Couch.
9. Cooking elaborate meals, often with several courses (at least salad, entrée and dessert) and a bonus if it takes me more than two hours to cook.
10. Making absurd lists with no inherent use-value of their own when I should be working (this includes memes, surveys, polls and to-do lists that I will never refer to again). Part and parcel of Number 10 is spending long hours on LJ (or otherwheres on the Interweb) reading/writing fan fiction and reading/writing blog entries.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
a tedious to do
To-do lists are curious and specious creatures. Everytime I strike something off, I believe for one, blissful second that I can rejoice in my achievment, and then at least five other pressing tasks seem to take its place, swirling up out of nowhere with malevolent determination. I find this frustrating. So very, very frustrating.
My to-do list as of yesterday morning:
1. Finish L-Word Paper
My to-do list now:
1. Finish L-Word Paper
2. Prepare for Class (by 12:30)
3. Call Vet/Pick up Cat
4. Clean house (in time for April's dissertation group tonight)
5. Grade Papers (over weekend)
6. Re-read and newly read some articles/books for my dissertation prospectus (begin over weekend)
7. Rewrite my dissertation prospectus (by February 27)
I mean really. How does it do that?
My to-do list as of yesterday morning:
1. Finish L-Word Paper
My to-do list now:
2. Prepare for Class (by 12:30)
3. Call Vet/Pick up Cat
4. Clean house (in time for April's dissertation group tonight)
5. Grade Papers (over weekend)
6. Re-read and newly read some articles/books for my dissertation prospectus (begin over weekend)
7. Rewrite my dissertation prospectus (by February 27)
I mean really. How does it do that?
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
because everyone's my friend in new york city
I'm uncommonly excited about going to NYC in a few weeks (mscalculus, did you get my email?!). The Whitney Biennial begins in March, I might finally see Wicked, and I'll get to visit some of my favorite people. How excellent. The only downside is that April won't be able to come with me, but she promises to plan a trip with me later in the spring/summer. So it's not so bad if her absence means I get to go twice in one season!
Speaking of visiting, if you're going to be in New York City between Friday, March 10th and Tuesday, March 14th, drop me a line.
Speaking of visiting, if you're going to be in New York City between Friday, March 10th and Tuesday, March 14th, drop me a line.
Sunday, February 12, 2006
adjective soup for the soul
I'm quite intrigued by the pscyhology of the Johari window, so click on the link if you want to help me see how the "me"-experiment works out. :)
Aviva's Johari Window
Aviva's Johari Window
beat the day
In the spirit of good counsel, wonderful friends, productivity and general good cheer, I offer a panel of one of my favorite comic strips, Count Your Sheep. And to the artist of this strip, Adrian Ramos, should he ever happen into my LJ: no copyright infringement is intended. Consider this free publicity!
(Make sure to click on the image below for the full-sized version so you can actually read the speech ballons.)
(Make sure to click on the image below for the full-sized version so you can actually read the speech ballons.)
Saturday, February 04, 2006
imagine me & you
So, April and I went to see a special preview of Imagine Me & You the other night, and the film's officially made it onto my (short) list of good lesbian romantic comedies. (This is a very short list...right now Saving Face [still my favorite] is the only other queer comedy I'm willing to own up to liking.) In any case, Imagine Me and You is definitely worth seeing. It's cute, it's funny (some definite laugh-out-loud moments), it's quirky, and the actors are excellent (with the British accents as a bonus for an Anglophile like me). One important note: I'm a huge fan of the typical sweet, sometimes silly romantic comedy; don't go to the cinema under the (false) impression that because it's an "independent" film that it's going to break the boundaries of genre convention. Imagine is a bit cheesy, although no more so than almost every other (heterosexual) romantic comedy, and all the loose ends are neatly and happily resolved by the end of the film as has become de rigueur for the genre. But unless you really hate seeing other people happy or can't stand it when everything in a film isn't completely believable and realistic, I can't imagine why most people wouldn't enjoy an hour and half of likeable characters, amusing dialogue, and pretty girls exchanging looks full of longing and clandestinely kissing. What's not to like?
Monday, January 16, 2006
King Kong in 2005
First of all, the racial politics of King Kong are deeply, deeply disturbing. And I cannot believe that no one has commented on this (at least not in any reviews I've read). This notable silence signifies to me that there is a serious delusion prevailing in American culture that racism has been quelled to the point that perpetuating racial stereotypes is all fine and good because, of course(!), everyone understands that stereotypes aren't real and are just used for effect. Sure, the silly portrayal of the Chinese cargo foreman was mostly redeemed by the excellent performance by Evan Parke as Hayes, the articulate, heroic African American first mate (who, of course, dies), but there is nothing in the film that can make me forgive the incredibly insulting representation of the island natives. You know, many civilized early cultures performed human sacrifice rituals. Just because they're giving Naomi Watts to Kong doesn't mean they have to act like psychotic, savage animals, incapable of speech beyond screeching incoherently or mumbling incantations, and with their eyes rolled back in their heads so that only the whites show in stark contrast to the coal-blackness of their skin (which looks, although I can't be certain, to be greased and darkened for further effect). I mean, really. Peter Jackson, what the fuck were you thinking? It's sad to think that the portrayal of the native islanders in the 1933 version--where they're actually capable of having a conversation--is less problematic than their portrayal in 2005.
And while I'm bitching about the island scenes, did anyone else feel that the whole sacrifice mise-en-scene looked a little too much like the castle siege set from The Lord of the Rings?
Okay, I'm glad I got that off my chest. Now, onwards...
I thought Naomi Watts was brilliant, and Adrien Brody was pretty good, too, in a quiet, understated sort of way that was refreshing in contrast to all the flashy imagery. Jack Black irritated the hell out of me, to the point that when he first came on screen I thought: Am I really going to be able to sit through 3 hours of this guy? Speaking of length, I know that Peter Jackson is overcome with rapture for his own brilliance and the magical power of special effects, but 3 hours was just too long. Not because I can't sit still for 3 hours--I was more than willing to do so with the LotR trilogy, for example, because the stories warranted the time (for the most part)--but because at least an hour, if not more, of the film was, quite simply, gratuitous, flashy posturing.
After about the quadrillionth time Black and his merry band of expendable anti-heroes was beset upon by stampeding brontosaurs, attacked by excessively large insects or eaten by grotesquely slimly twelve-foot long water worms and about the hundredth time Watts was either carried in one of Kong’s hands as he galloped through the forest (um, all of her bones would be broken twenty times over because of the sheer impact of his knuckles hitting the forest floor with her inside whether he was deliberately squeezing or not) or protected from raging T-Rex’s and other hungry dinosaurs, bats, bugs, etc., I was ready to scream.
It could have been shorter, with less special effects for the sake of special effects and more narrative depth, and it would have been a good remake. Instead, it illustrated the core of what is wrong with Hollywood films today—a concentration on the visual which exceeds even the pretence of an interest in the story—and April and I spent at least an hour after the film bitching heatedly. I can honestly say that I have never come out of the cinema so thoroughly incensed.
On the upside—and so you don’t think I’m anti-special effects entirely (I just think they should be used for a purpose not just because you can)—Kong was a remarkable creation; his features were beautiful and realistic and obviously crafted from actual images of gorillas. And the story was beautiful and poignant in spite of its exceptionally discomfiting, exhausting and ostentatious rendering. But when Black delivered (badly, I might add) the final line—“It wasn’t the airplanes; it was beauty killed the beast”—I had to fight the impulse to jump angrily out of my seat and yell at the screen, “No, you bastard. It was the airplanes, and your fucking patriarchal, colonialist, pompous ass that killed Kong. She could have stayed or even left the island with you and everything would have been okay if you hadn’t decided to drag poor Kong back to New York City for show and tell. Argh!”
Sadly, what the film brought home to me to me most was that many people, once they catch sight of power or money or fame, will stop at nothing to achieve it. Along the way, they will sacrifice the lives of others for some fanciful notion of adventure or honor or glory that doesn’t truly exist, and they will gallantly destroy “monsters” in the name of the public or the nation or the common good, claiming that they are fighting for everyone, that the enemy is savage, when it really is an enemy of their own design, a monster that they themselves created.
And while I'm bitching about the island scenes, did anyone else feel that the whole sacrifice mise-en-scene looked a little too much like the castle siege set from The Lord of the Rings?
Okay, I'm glad I got that off my chest. Now, onwards...
I thought Naomi Watts was brilliant, and Adrien Brody was pretty good, too, in a quiet, understated sort of way that was refreshing in contrast to all the flashy imagery. Jack Black irritated the hell out of me, to the point that when he first came on screen I thought: Am I really going to be able to sit through 3 hours of this guy? Speaking of length, I know that Peter Jackson is overcome with rapture for his own brilliance and the magical power of special effects, but 3 hours was just too long. Not because I can't sit still for 3 hours--I was more than willing to do so with the LotR trilogy, for example, because the stories warranted the time (for the most part)--but because at least an hour, if not more, of the film was, quite simply, gratuitous, flashy posturing.
After about the quadrillionth time Black and his merry band of expendable anti-heroes was beset upon by stampeding brontosaurs, attacked by excessively large insects or eaten by grotesquely slimly twelve-foot long water worms and about the hundredth time Watts was either carried in one of Kong’s hands as he galloped through the forest (um, all of her bones would be broken twenty times over because of the sheer impact of his knuckles hitting the forest floor with her inside whether he was deliberately squeezing or not) or protected from raging T-Rex’s and other hungry dinosaurs, bats, bugs, etc., I was ready to scream.
It could have been shorter, with less special effects for the sake of special effects and more narrative depth, and it would have been a good remake. Instead, it illustrated the core of what is wrong with Hollywood films today—a concentration on the visual which exceeds even the pretence of an interest in the story—and April and I spent at least an hour after the film bitching heatedly. I can honestly say that I have never come out of the cinema so thoroughly incensed.
On the upside—and so you don’t think I’m anti-special effects entirely (I just think they should be used for a purpose not just because you can)—Kong was a remarkable creation; his features were beautiful and realistic and obviously crafted from actual images of gorillas. And the story was beautiful and poignant in spite of its exceptionally discomfiting, exhausting and ostentatious rendering. But when Black delivered (badly, I might add) the final line—“It wasn’t the airplanes; it was beauty killed the beast”—I had to fight the impulse to jump angrily out of my seat and yell at the screen, “No, you bastard. It was the airplanes, and your fucking patriarchal, colonialist, pompous ass that killed Kong. She could have stayed or even left the island with you and everything would have been okay if you hadn’t decided to drag poor Kong back to New York City for show and tell. Argh!”
Sadly, what the film brought home to me to me most was that many people, once they catch sight of power or money or fame, will stop at nothing to achieve it. Along the way, they will sacrifice the lives of others for some fanciful notion of adventure or honor or glory that doesn’t truly exist, and they will gallantly destroy “monsters” in the name of the public or the nation or the common good, claiming that they are fighting for everyone, that the enemy is savage, when it really is an enemy of their own design, a monster that they themselves created.
Sunday, January 08, 2006
ten ways of looking at a tooth (or teeth, as the case may be)
For all who are interested (or for those of you who have nothing better to do than read about my dental work), I present the epic chronicle of my wisdom teeth and their extraction (don’t ask why, I have no idea why this struck me as an interesting, or even worthy, topic, but, if nothing else, maybe someone nervous teenager will come across it while mining Google one day for information on wisdom tooth extraction, and my testimony will then be of some use to the general populace…I’m good at making excuses for my oddness, no?):
1. For many years, my dentist and my dental hygienist have been all but pestering me to get my wisdom teeth removed. “They’ll cause you problems,” they said. “They’ll eventually crowd your teeth,” they implored. But, due to a stubborn (perhaps misguided?) conviction regarding not having unnecessary surgery and my father’s counsel (“Dentists have been telling me for thirty years to have my wisdom teeth removed, and they’ve never bothered me!”), I held fast.
[Note about dentists and dental hygienists: they are incredibly maligned. I know many people are afraid of dentists (my own dear girlfriend included), and I really can’t begrudge them for it because there are some very scary and mean dentists out there. But, if you think about it, dentists and hygienists are mostly very well-trained; they have to do hard, thankless work (I mean, really, who wants to poke around in the mouth’s of strangers for hours at a time?); many dentists, especially oral surgeons, have as much training as most doctors and have to be as qualified; and yet everybody hates them. Personally, my dental hygienist, Bonnie, has always been extremely kind, gentle and courteous, and I feel that, at the risk of being an extreme dork, that a shout-out for hygienists and dentists (the good ones, at least) is necessary. I’m also impressed by the technological advances in dentistry, because tooth-aches suck (in short) and I can’t imagine have to chew cloves forever or go to some crazy neighbor with a good pair of pliers (what I fear qualified as dentistry in the past) to have it taken care of.]
2. About a year ago, my wisdom teeth started to cut through my gum line. Every few months, one of them would get a little pushy and start sneaking it’s way towards the surface. The pain was bearable, a little irritating, but it would go away in a few days, so I still wasn’t convinced by my dentist’s advice.
3. A few months ago, I started to realize that my teeth seemed to be shifting (the normal ones) to accommodate the ever-encroaching wisdom teeth (especially the one on the right that was coming in sideways). Ever so slightly, but even so it was disconcerting. And I developed pockets of gum tissue that would occasionally become infected (although I didn’t realize this is what was happening until recently) and I constantly had to be wary lest food get trapped in the pockets. This and the perplexing (and disturbing) shifting of my other teeth frustrated me enough that I decided I would ask my dentist if his offer was still open the next time I came home.
4. A few days before Christmas, I went to the dentist, reported my decision and, by the time my hour-long visit had concluded, I had an appointment for just after New Years with an oral surgeon and a blue referral sheet and panoramic X-ray in hand. They work fast, these dentist people.
5. Two days after New Years, I reported to the oral surgeon with girlfriend and mother in tow. I was very nervous and a bit irritable because I was hungry. I wasn’t supposed to eat anything because of the anesthetic and since my appointment was at 2pm, I had gone the whole morning and part of the afternoon without food or water. I’m sure April and my parents got tired of my whining earlier that morning, but were too polite to say anything--sweet of them, since I was starting to irritate myself (I obviously wouldn’t handle fasting very well).
6. Moments before the surgery, the doctor explained to me the risks of the procedure while April, who was supposed to stay with me in the room during the prep and then leave before they actually began any of the real work, grew paler and paler in her assigned corner. I don’t think she was taking well to the whole dental experience--probably having flashbacks and cringing visibly whenever she would hear a drill from one of the neighboring rooms. Then, she sent April to the waiting room, and the doctor and nurses gathered around me. I had some weird sort of fear of the IV and the fact that they were putting me under general anesthesia, but in retrospect I’m so glad I wasn’t awake. The laughing gas they put me on—I guess to calm me down before putting in the IV and really putting me under—was extremely disconcerting (not amusing at all), but I barely felt the prick of the needle in my hand and moments later I was out like the proverbial light.
7. About an hour later, I began to wake up and April tells me (although I do not have any memory of this) that, waiting in the recovery room, I proceeded to tell her (over and over and over) the same story about the laughing gas and how it disturbed me. Apparently I also had several panicked moments in which I realized my tongue was numb, asked her frantically if she thought that meant something was wrong, instructed her to get the nurse, and then lapsed into a stunned silence only to repeat the whole episode again moments later as if nothing had happened. I wish I remembered all this, but I suppose if I had been fully cognizant, it probably wouldn’t have happened.
8. Around 4pm that day I was cursing and snarling at my family as they rallied around me on the couch. But I was trying to be polite about it. You see, the painkillers hadn’t quite kicked in and the numbness of the local anesthetic had worn off, and my entire mouth—gums, teeth, tongue, palate—seemed to be screeching silently in pain. Everyone was asking me how I felt and if I needed anything and all I could think about was that my face felt like it was going to fall off. But I managed to grind out several terse replies of “Please. Just. Go. Away.” and then apologized later for being rude. I know it’s ridiculous, but I was feeling oddly guilty—everyone was being so nice and I just couldn’t stand to have anyone in the room. When the painkillers (Vicodin and prescription-strength Motrin) blissfully kicked in, I slept for about twenty-four hours (give or take), taking brief breaks to be fed Jello and Naked smoothies, watch television through hooded lids, and to take more medication (every four and every six hours, when my mother would pad into the room and thrust some water and a pill into my hands).
9. A day and a half later, I realized that I am a terrible patient. I can’t sit still. I appreciate the pampering, but I’m not very good at accepting it. I wanted to help pack for our trip back north. I wanted to check my email without my eyes crossing. I wanted to sleep in the same bed with my girlfriend instead of on the couch. I wanted to help my mom with the 3D puzzle I bought her for Christmas or help my dad strap the roof storage container on my car.
10. Now, I’m sitting at home. We made it back to NY safe and sound. I discovered, through dubious but fairly thorough internet research, that I probably have something called dry socket in my lower right wisdom tooth hole. This is basically a failure of the blood clot (which acts as a scab over the wound) to form (or the disruption of an already formed blood clot in the first 24 hours), resulting in, as one site called it, “exquisite pain” because the bone and nerve-endings beneath the gum are exposed instead of being protected by the blood clot. It’s fairly common, and one can treat the pain, but not the actual condition, apparently. I could be wrong—since I’m not really qualified to self-diagnose--but I fit every single one of the symptoms I found on several different medical and pseudo-medical websites. It hurts, but it’s not the end of the world. And treating it myself with clove oil (which makes my whole mouth numb and tingly) and gauze and lots of Listerine and regular doses of over-the-counter Ibuprofen seems to do the trick. That’s where I am right now. But it seems to be getting better incrementally every day (for the first time this afternoon I wasn’t watching the clock to see when I could take another painkiller, so that’s a good sign). [Edit January 9, 2006: I talked to two different nurses today, one who told me I did have dry socket and one who told me that if I had dry socket I would be in so much pain that ibuprofen wouldn't even take the edge of. I'm inclined to believe the latter since the pain's been getting less. Obviously the same symptoms look very different to different people.]
I’m glad I got it done, though, despite the trouble. I have hopes that now my teeth will jubilantly, if slowly in the manner of teeth, spread out a bit to enjoy the new spaciousness of my mouth (it would make flossing easier), and that though my teeth are now in a miniature manila envelope in my jewelry box (they were removed almost completely intact), I will have no want of wisdom in the future.
1. For many years, my dentist and my dental hygienist have been all but pestering me to get my wisdom teeth removed. “They’ll cause you problems,” they said. “They’ll eventually crowd your teeth,” they implored. But, due to a stubborn (perhaps misguided?) conviction regarding not having unnecessary surgery and my father’s counsel (“Dentists have been telling me for thirty years to have my wisdom teeth removed, and they’ve never bothered me!”), I held fast.
[Note about dentists and dental hygienists: they are incredibly maligned. I know many people are afraid of dentists (my own dear girlfriend included), and I really can’t begrudge them for it because there are some very scary and mean dentists out there. But, if you think about it, dentists and hygienists are mostly very well-trained; they have to do hard, thankless work (I mean, really, who wants to poke around in the mouth’s of strangers for hours at a time?); many dentists, especially oral surgeons, have as much training as most doctors and have to be as qualified; and yet everybody hates them. Personally, my dental hygienist, Bonnie, has always been extremely kind, gentle and courteous, and I feel that, at the risk of being an extreme dork, that a shout-out for hygienists and dentists (the good ones, at least) is necessary. I’m also impressed by the technological advances in dentistry, because tooth-aches suck (in short) and I can’t imagine have to chew cloves forever or go to some crazy neighbor with a good pair of pliers (what I fear qualified as dentistry in the past) to have it taken care of.]
2. About a year ago, my wisdom teeth started to cut through my gum line. Every few months, one of them would get a little pushy and start sneaking it’s way towards the surface. The pain was bearable, a little irritating, but it would go away in a few days, so I still wasn’t convinced by my dentist’s advice.
3. A few months ago, I started to realize that my teeth seemed to be shifting (the normal ones) to accommodate the ever-encroaching wisdom teeth (especially the one on the right that was coming in sideways). Ever so slightly, but even so it was disconcerting. And I developed pockets of gum tissue that would occasionally become infected (although I didn’t realize this is what was happening until recently) and I constantly had to be wary lest food get trapped in the pockets. This and the perplexing (and disturbing) shifting of my other teeth frustrated me enough that I decided I would ask my dentist if his offer was still open the next time I came home.
4. A few days before Christmas, I went to the dentist, reported my decision and, by the time my hour-long visit had concluded, I had an appointment for just after New Years with an oral surgeon and a blue referral sheet and panoramic X-ray in hand. They work fast, these dentist people.
5. Two days after New Years, I reported to the oral surgeon with girlfriend and mother in tow. I was very nervous and a bit irritable because I was hungry. I wasn’t supposed to eat anything because of the anesthetic and since my appointment was at 2pm, I had gone the whole morning and part of the afternoon without food or water. I’m sure April and my parents got tired of my whining earlier that morning, but were too polite to say anything--sweet of them, since I was starting to irritate myself (I obviously wouldn’t handle fasting very well).
6. Moments before the surgery, the doctor explained to me the risks of the procedure while April, who was supposed to stay with me in the room during the prep and then leave before they actually began any of the real work, grew paler and paler in her assigned corner. I don’t think she was taking well to the whole dental experience--probably having flashbacks and cringing visibly whenever she would hear a drill from one of the neighboring rooms. Then, she sent April to the waiting room, and the doctor and nurses gathered around me. I had some weird sort of fear of the IV and the fact that they were putting me under general anesthesia, but in retrospect I’m so glad I wasn’t awake. The laughing gas they put me on—I guess to calm me down before putting in the IV and really putting me under—was extremely disconcerting (not amusing at all), but I barely felt the prick of the needle in my hand and moments later I was out like the proverbial light.
7. About an hour later, I began to wake up and April tells me (although I do not have any memory of this) that, waiting in the recovery room, I proceeded to tell her (over and over and over) the same story about the laughing gas and how it disturbed me. Apparently I also had several panicked moments in which I realized my tongue was numb, asked her frantically if she thought that meant something was wrong, instructed her to get the nurse, and then lapsed into a stunned silence only to repeat the whole episode again moments later as if nothing had happened. I wish I remembered all this, but I suppose if I had been fully cognizant, it probably wouldn’t have happened.
8. Around 4pm that day I was cursing and snarling at my family as they rallied around me on the couch. But I was trying to be polite about it. You see, the painkillers hadn’t quite kicked in and the numbness of the local anesthetic had worn off, and my entire mouth—gums, teeth, tongue, palate—seemed to be screeching silently in pain. Everyone was asking me how I felt and if I needed anything and all I could think about was that my face felt like it was going to fall off. But I managed to grind out several terse replies of “Please. Just. Go. Away.” and then apologized later for being rude. I know it’s ridiculous, but I was feeling oddly guilty—everyone was being so nice and I just couldn’t stand to have anyone in the room. When the painkillers (Vicodin and prescription-strength Motrin) blissfully kicked in, I slept for about twenty-four hours (give or take), taking brief breaks to be fed Jello and Naked smoothies, watch television through hooded lids, and to take more medication (every four and every six hours, when my mother would pad into the room and thrust some water and a pill into my hands).
9. A day and a half later, I realized that I am a terrible patient. I can’t sit still. I appreciate the pampering, but I’m not very good at accepting it. I wanted to help pack for our trip back north. I wanted to check my email without my eyes crossing. I wanted to sleep in the same bed with my girlfriend instead of on the couch. I wanted to help my mom with the 3D puzzle I bought her for Christmas or help my dad strap the roof storage container on my car.
10. Now, I’m sitting at home. We made it back to NY safe and sound. I discovered, through dubious but fairly thorough internet research, that I probably have something called dry socket in my lower right wisdom tooth hole. This is basically a failure of the blood clot (which acts as a scab over the wound) to form (or the disruption of an already formed blood clot in the first 24 hours), resulting in, as one site called it, “exquisite pain” because the bone and nerve-endings beneath the gum are exposed instead of being protected by the blood clot. It’s fairly common, and one can treat the pain, but not the actual condition, apparently. I could be wrong—since I’m not really qualified to self-diagnose--but I fit every single one of the symptoms I found on several different medical and pseudo-medical websites. It hurts, but it’s not the end of the world. And treating it myself with clove oil (which makes my whole mouth numb and tingly) and gauze and lots of Listerine and regular doses of over-the-counter Ibuprofen seems to do the trick. That’s where I am right now. But it seems to be getting better incrementally every day (for the first time this afternoon I wasn’t watching the clock to see when I could take another painkiller, so that’s a good sign). [Edit January 9, 2006: I talked to two different nurses today, one who told me I did have dry socket and one who told me that if I had dry socket I would be in so much pain that ibuprofen wouldn't even take the edge of. I'm inclined to believe the latter since the pain's been getting less. Obviously the same symptoms look very different to different people.]
I’m glad I got it done, though, despite the trouble. I have hopes that now my teeth will jubilantly, if slowly in the manner of teeth, spread out a bit to enjoy the new spaciousness of my mouth (it would make flossing easier), and that though my teeth are now in a miniature manila envelope in my jewelry box (they were removed almost completely intact), I will have no want of wisdom in the future.
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
um...ow
It's certainly been an interesting week. New Years was a political and intellectual extravaganza, really fascinating and engaging. And currently I'm sitting here in a Vicodin-induced haze trying very hard to focus my eyes on my computer and ignore the lingering pain in my jaw. I spent yesterday afternoon getting my wisdom teeth removed, which really needed to be done but wasn't a particularily fun experience (especially after spitting blood for eight hours afterwards and sleeping probably for the past twenty hours, on and off). April and I were hoping to drive back home tomorrow (from my parents' house), but now I think we're going to have to wait till Friday. I'd love to be back by tomorrow evening, but I just don't have the strength to pack right now. Luckily, she seems amenable to waiting for another day and both she and my parents are being very sweet. I'm really not a good patient. I'm not good at letting people take care of me. Yesterday, I didn't mind so much because I was mostly sleeping and dazedly watching television while being woken up every few hours to take another painkiller, but today it's been hard to just lie here because I'm while I'm more alert, I still can't stand up for more than a few minutes without feeling dizzy. Sigh. Maybe I'll try weaning myself off the Vicodin tonight (and just continue taking the triple-strength Motrin the doctor also gave me); I hate the way it makes me feel.
That all said, I love you all and I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and New Year! I'll be back to my old self in no time, I'm sure. :)
That all said, I love you all and I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and New Year! I'll be back to my old self in no time, I'm sure. :)
Thursday, December 08, 2005
four things meme (why are these things so appealing?)
FOUR JOBS YOU'VE HAD IN YOUR LIFE:
1. Instructor, Freshman Composition (college-level)
2. Assistant to the Director, University of Virginia Art Museum
3. Peer Advisor Student Coordinator (don't ask, I don't even know what I did)
4. Teaching Assistant, Summer Theatre Institute, Live Arts
FOUR MOVIES YOU COULD WATCH OVER AND OVER:
1. When Harry Met Sally
2. Charlie’s Angels
3. X-Men 2 (even though I’ve never read the comics)
4. Aimee and Jaguar (even though it always makes me want to cry)
FOUR CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN:
1. Charlottesville, VA
2. Phoenix, AZ
3. Durham, NC
4. Rochester, NY
FOUR TV SHOWS YOU LOVE TO WATCH:
1. CSI
2. Medium
3. What Not to Wear
4. Law and Order: SVU (TBJ, too, of course, but I’m going for current shows)
FOUR PLACES YOU'VE BEEN ON VACATION:
1. La Palma, Canary Islands
2. Berlin
3. South Korea
4. Vienna
FOUR WEBSITES YOU VISIT DAILY:
1. www.cnn.com
2. www.yahoomail.com
3. www.google.com
4. www.livejournal.com
FOUR OF YOUR ALL-TIME FAVOURITE RESTAURANTS:
(this one is really, really hard)
1. Maas, Charlottesville, VA
2. Republic, New York, NY
3. Tazaki Sushi, San Francisco, CA
4. Piaci’s, Fort Bragg, CA
FOUR OF YOUR FAVOURITE FOODS:
(I’m fudging on the “four” part of this category a bit)
1. thin-crust, fresh, hot pizza, from Piaci’s or Pomodoro or Venetto’s (latter two in Rochester); or, alternatively, Crozet Pizza in Crozet, VA also has amazing pizza
2. French fries (I’m a French fry connoisseur) and papas arrugadas (totally different, but both potatoes)
3. Barbeque baby back ribs and korean beef (both in the “meat” family)
4. garlic fried tofu with sugar snap peas
FOUR SCHOOLS YOU'VE ATTENDED:
1. University of Rochester
2. University of Virginia
3. Mary Baldwin College
4. New York University (for a summer, but still)
FOUR PLACES I'D RATHER BE RIGHT NOW:
1. Berlin
2. Mendocino (riding on the beach)
3. Los Angeles (could it be I’m a West Coast girl at heart?)
4. New York City
1. Instructor, Freshman Composition (college-level)
2. Assistant to the Director, University of Virginia Art Museum
3. Peer Advisor Student Coordinator (don't ask, I don't even know what I did)
4. Teaching Assistant, Summer Theatre Institute, Live Arts
FOUR MOVIES YOU COULD WATCH OVER AND OVER:
1. When Harry Met Sally
2. Charlie’s Angels
3. X-Men 2 (even though I’ve never read the comics)
4. Aimee and Jaguar (even though it always makes me want to cry)
FOUR CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN:
1. Charlottesville, VA
2. Phoenix, AZ
3. Durham, NC
4. Rochester, NY
FOUR TV SHOWS YOU LOVE TO WATCH:
1. CSI
2. Medium
3. What Not to Wear
4. Law and Order: SVU (TBJ, too, of course, but I’m going for current shows)
FOUR PLACES YOU'VE BEEN ON VACATION:
1. La Palma, Canary Islands
2. Berlin
3. South Korea
4. Vienna
FOUR WEBSITES YOU VISIT DAILY:
1. www.cnn.com
2. www.yahoomail.com
3. www.google.com
4. www.livejournal.com
FOUR OF YOUR ALL-TIME FAVOURITE RESTAURANTS:
(this one is really, really hard)
1. Maas, Charlottesville, VA
2. Republic, New York, NY
3. Tazaki Sushi, San Francisco, CA
4. Piaci’s, Fort Bragg, CA
FOUR OF YOUR FAVOURITE FOODS:
(I’m fudging on the “four” part of this category a bit)
1. thin-crust, fresh, hot pizza, from Piaci’s or Pomodoro or Venetto’s (latter two in Rochester); or, alternatively, Crozet Pizza in Crozet, VA also has amazing pizza
2. French fries (I’m a French fry connoisseur) and papas arrugadas (totally different, but both potatoes)
3. Barbeque baby back ribs and korean beef (both in the “meat” family)
4. garlic fried tofu with sugar snap peas
FOUR SCHOOLS YOU'VE ATTENDED:
1. University of Rochester
2. University of Virginia
3. Mary Baldwin College
4. New York University (for a summer, but still)
FOUR PLACES I'D RATHER BE RIGHT NOW:
1. Berlin
2. Mendocino (riding on the beach)
3. Los Angeles (could it be I’m a West Coast girl at heart?)
4. New York City
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
all better
Just a little life update vis-a-vis my grumbly post from a few weeks ago:
All seems to be well again on the Northern front. Besides the fact that it is bitterly cold--right now it's 25 degrees Fahrenheith, but feels like 12, according to weather.com (and when the radio announcer says "a high of 30 today," I laugh. 30 is not a high. It's a low that just happens to be the warmest it's going to get for the next three months)--I'm feeling much more upbeat. We've started locking the cats downstairs at night, so they still have access to the litterbox, a couch and various other comfy pieces of furniture but can't come scratching at our door at 5am. The dog seems to be much better lately, and the vet told us it was probably something weird he was getting into in the yard that was upsetting his tummy. I feel like I'm getting back on track with my work, not to mention that I told my advisor today (and now she officially my advisor because I finally asked her...yay!) that I would give her a very drafty abstracty/proposal-like thing (for my dissertation) on Friday, which is scary but good because I really need deadlines to get anything done.
All seems to be well again on the Northern front. Besides the fact that it is bitterly cold--right now it's 25 degrees Fahrenheith, but feels like 12, according to weather.com (and when the radio announcer says "a high of 30 today," I laugh. 30 is not a high. It's a low that just happens to be the warmest it's going to get for the next three months)--I'm feeling much more upbeat. We've started locking the cats downstairs at night, so they still have access to the litterbox, a couch and various other comfy pieces of furniture but can't come scratching at our door at 5am. The dog seems to be much better lately, and the vet told us it was probably something weird he was getting into in the yard that was upsetting his tummy. I feel like I'm getting back on track with my work, not to mention that I told my advisor today (and now she officially my advisor because I finally asked her...yay!) that I would give her a very drafty abstracty/proposal-like thing (for my dissertation) on Friday, which is scary but good because I really need deadlines to get anything done.
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Why was this SVU episode called "Alien" anyway?
I almost had a panic attack when I thought, around 10:30pm, that SVU was going link lesbianism and pedophila. I was all ready to post an angry LJ entry, and April was gearing up for a furious email to NBC. But I should have know better. It's SVU. No plot device is ever final at 10:30pm; in fact, you can't usually be sure that a plot is certain until Dick Wolf's name appears and obscures any hope of episodic closure.
That said, I actually liked tonight's episode. Olivia was a goddess, defending lesbianism left and right, and despite a plot that rather resembled a tangled ball of yarn it was so twisty, I found myself very engaged and invested in the show. I cheered when Casey said, triumphantly, "And that's a hate crime." I swore at the television in righteous anger because I knew much earlier than the detectives that the grandmother was trouble ("It's that bitch telling the girl lies. Lies, I tell you."). Although I didn't know it was going to be all the lawyer's idea--a nice touch to avoid turning the grandparents into completely scary monsters. I loved that the moms' lesbianism was defended at every turn (mostly by Olivia), although I had to agree with that judge that it totally wasn't cool for, the second mom, Zoe, to claim that she had no legal standing one moment and then try to claim legal guardianship the next. But I suppose it's a lesson: don't try to use things you don't like about the system to your advantage. It'll bite you in the ass every time.
All things comsidered, this was an episode in which all the characters were complicated (and sometimes uncomfortable) shades of grey (except the sleazy lawyer...no mercy there). I like that. Complexity is good.
And on a completely unrelated note: Jon Stewart is love. :)
That said, I actually liked tonight's episode. Olivia was a goddess, defending lesbianism left and right, and despite a plot that rather resembled a tangled ball of yarn it was so twisty, I found myself very engaged and invested in the show. I cheered when Casey said, triumphantly, "And that's a hate crime." I swore at the television in righteous anger because I knew much earlier than the detectives that the grandmother was trouble ("It's that bitch telling the girl lies. Lies, I tell you."). Although I didn't know it was going to be all the lawyer's idea--a nice touch to avoid turning the grandparents into completely scary monsters. I loved that the moms' lesbianism was defended at every turn (mostly by Olivia), although I had to agree with that judge that it totally wasn't cool for, the second mom, Zoe, to claim that she had no legal standing one moment and then try to claim legal guardianship the next. But I suppose it's a lesson: don't try to use things you don't like about the system to your advantage. It'll bite you in the ass every time.
All things comsidered, this was an episode in which all the characters were complicated (and sometimes uncomfortable) shades of grey (except the sleazy lawyer...no mercy there). I like that. Complexity is good.
And on a completely unrelated note: Jon Stewart is love. :)
Monday, November 28, 2005
oh yeah, it's monday...
Seven Reasons Why I’m Losing My Eternal Optimism
(for the moment)
1. My favorite radio station has switched to 24-hour Christmas music.
2. Despite the fact that I didn't really have anything to do today, I managed to do very little actual work. This is becoming a trend.
3. My favorite student this semester did not turn in her partial research paper draft and seems to have dropped off the face of the earth. Another one of my students may have plagiarized (sudden lucid and articulate prose that's not really typical of his writing), but I can't figure out where from.
4. Our dog had yet another bout of inexplicable, stinky and messy digestive upset last night. We think (hope) it might be a food allergy. But it keeps coming and going without apparent cause, which makes us nervous and him sad (because he's usually so well housetrained and gets upset if he has an accident).
5. My cat, Olive, sleeps too much. To make up for all her sleep during the day, she wakes us up at 5am scratching on the bedroom door. April's a very light sleeper, and while I'm a fairly deep sleeper, I'm obviously still being unconsciously disturbed because I wake up feeling exhausted.
6. I seem to be universally behind on everything--schoolwork, my dissertation, correspondence, even my hobbies, like livejournal and karate.
And the kicker...
7. Our water heater broke last week right before we went away for Thanksgiving. It was supposed to be replaced today, but when the plumber came he announced that I'd ordered the wrong water heater and would have to ask Sears to correct the error. Then he left, and I spent the next hour on the phone with the DIY triumvirate (Sears, Home Depot, Lowes) trying to figure out which had the best deal on the type of water heater I needed and who had them in stock (since what I need is apparently less common than the normal natural gas water heater). I finally purchased one from Lowes, and now I just have to hope that the plumber is able to come tomorrow when I'm home (and that everything goes smoothly) so we don't have to go another day showering in the gym or at a friend's house (not to mention the fact that I had to wash dishes tonight--they were getting scary--by boiling lots of water).
Okay, I'm done now. After all, Monday is almost over, right?
(for the moment)
1. My favorite radio station has switched to 24-hour Christmas music.
2. Despite the fact that I didn't really have anything to do today, I managed to do very little actual work. This is becoming a trend.
3. My favorite student this semester did not turn in her partial research paper draft and seems to have dropped off the face of the earth. Another one of my students may have plagiarized (sudden lucid and articulate prose that's not really typical of his writing), but I can't figure out where from.
4. Our dog had yet another bout of inexplicable, stinky and messy digestive upset last night. We think (hope) it might be a food allergy. But it keeps coming and going without apparent cause, which makes us nervous and him sad (because he's usually so well housetrained and gets upset if he has an accident).
5. My cat, Olive, sleeps too much. To make up for all her sleep during the day, she wakes us up at 5am scratching on the bedroom door. April's a very light sleeper, and while I'm a fairly deep sleeper, I'm obviously still being unconsciously disturbed because I wake up feeling exhausted.
6. I seem to be universally behind on everything--schoolwork, my dissertation, correspondence, even my hobbies, like livejournal and karate.
And the kicker...
7. Our water heater broke last week right before we went away for Thanksgiving. It was supposed to be replaced today, but when the plumber came he announced that I'd ordered the wrong water heater and would have to ask Sears to correct the error. Then he left, and I spent the next hour on the phone with the DIY triumvirate (Sears, Home Depot, Lowes) trying to figure out which had the best deal on the type of water heater I needed and who had them in stock (since what I need is apparently less common than the normal natural gas water heater). I finally purchased one from Lowes, and now I just have to hope that the plumber is able to come tomorrow when I'm home (and that everything goes smoothly) so we don't have to go another day showering in the gym or at a friend's house (not to mention the fact that I had to wash dishes tonight--they were getting scary--by boiling lots of water).
Okay, I'm done now. After all, Monday is almost over, right?
Monday, November 14, 2005
No. It's not enough to say, "she's pretty."
For your reading pleasure (and my viewing pleasure), my top ten favorite women on television (formerly a meme stolen from LiveJournal), in no particular order:
1. Abby Lockhart, ER
There's something about Maura Tierney's acting that holds everything else together on ER. Even though I've all but stopped watching the show, I still tune in occasionally just because I miss her (and Neela and Kerry, too). I read someone describe her acting style as mise-en-scene. I agree completely; she always makes Abby an integral, if brilliantly understated, part of every scene. Plus, Abby's beautiful and quiet and a little dark, but she's also fiery and intelligent and cynical. I like that kind of complexity in a woman.
2. Kelly Gaffney, Law and Order: Trial by Jury
Again, understated beauty and brilliance. Obviously, it's a bit of a theme for me. Kelly is probably the television character I most identify with personally, although I couldn't explain exactly why. Maybe I identify with Kelly because I also think Tracey Kibre is sexy as hell and a damn fine lawyer (double entendre intended). ;)
3. Alex Cabot, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit
Because the show hasn't been the same since she left. And because the ending of "Loss" still makes me ache and her presence in "Ghost" still makes me swoon.
4. Gabrielle, Xena: Warrior Princess
Especially in Season 6 (she wasn't as feisty or as sexy earlier when she was all innocent and pure). I'm embarrassed to admit that very few of my television girlfriends have been able to come close to being as sexy to me as final season Gabrielle--she was strong and sensitive, emotional and courageous, confident, clever... It must be the short skirts and weapons, because blonds aren't usually my type.
5. Tina, The L-Word
Actually, this list is quickly disproving my assertion that blondes aren't usually my type, but let me just say this: I love Tina. I think she's gorgeous and resourceful and generous. I think she and Bette make a beautiful couple as long as Bette doesn't start being an insensitive, manipulative jerk again. However, my first love on the The L-Word was Marina (Karina Lombard)--now she could make me swoon every time she came on screen--but since Marina is no longer on the show (and, besides, my love for her was a bit on the shallow side) I had to transfer my affections elsewhere.
6. Allison Dubois, Medium
I like Allison because she's such a realistically-flawed character despite her supernatural gifts. Her visions are never wrong and yet she never interprets them correctly the first time around (you'd think she'd have figured that out by now). She's rash. She's emotional. She can be insensitive, uncompromising, and self-absorbed. She's a good wife and mother, but she's neither perfect nor obedient. She's not easily subdued. And, in the end, she's always right.
7. Sara Sidle, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
I really can't explain this one at all. She's cocky and acerbic and irritating half the time and dark and brooding the rest, but every once and a while she smiles or laughs or says something particularly sarcastic (and funny) and I find myself charmed.
8. Karen Walker, Will and Grace
Honestly, I hardly ever watch the show anymore, but Karen just makes me laugh. And laugh. And laugh. Maybe I have a twisted sense of humor, but she's by far my favorite TV sitcom character. And besides, Megan Mullally has a stunning singing voice.
9. B'Ellana Torres, Star Trek: Voyager
This one is a real toss up for me because I love Seven of Nine--and not actually for the stereotypical reasons (the leggy, busty blond thing), but because she's both laid bare and completely enigmatic simultaneously and because Jeri Ryan played her with such incredible panache. But ultimately B'Ellana trumps Seven because she was my favorite from the very beginning (before her Klingon ridges started to get lighter and lighter season after season and she got softer and less rebellious). I liked her when she was brazen and feisty and got into a fist fights with other crewmembers. I liked her before she and Tom started to get all lovey-dovey (I didn't mind them dating, only that they became mundane and romantic).
10. Willow, Buffy: The Vampire Slayer
I loved her in Season 4 when she's trying to find a place for herself--both in terms of her sexuality and in terms of her witchcraft. I liked her when she was a little more naive than end-of-show Willow, when she was just learning that she had more courage and power than she ever thought possible. There was always something about her naiveté mixed with her intelligence that was simultaneously empowering and touching. Plus, she's adorable. What can I say?
***
Mostly what this list proves is that I'm fickle and easily seduced by beautiful women. But only on television. And they have to be complex and intelligent, not merely beautiful. I do have some emotional depth after all.
1. Abby Lockhart, ER
There's something about Maura Tierney's acting that holds everything else together on ER. Even though I've all but stopped watching the show, I still tune in occasionally just because I miss her (and Neela and Kerry, too). I read someone describe her acting style as mise-en-scene. I agree completely; she always makes Abby an integral, if brilliantly understated, part of every scene. Plus, Abby's beautiful and quiet and a little dark, but she's also fiery and intelligent and cynical. I like that kind of complexity in a woman.
2. Kelly Gaffney, Law and Order: Trial by Jury
Again, understated beauty and brilliance. Obviously, it's a bit of a theme for me. Kelly is probably the television character I most identify with personally, although I couldn't explain exactly why. Maybe I identify with Kelly because I also think Tracey Kibre is sexy as hell and a damn fine lawyer (double entendre intended). ;)
3. Alex Cabot, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit
Because the show hasn't been the same since she left. And because the ending of "Loss" still makes me ache and her presence in "Ghost" still makes me swoon.
4. Gabrielle, Xena: Warrior Princess
Especially in Season 6 (she wasn't as feisty or as sexy earlier when she was all innocent and pure). I'm embarrassed to admit that very few of my television girlfriends have been able to come close to being as sexy to me as final season Gabrielle--she was strong and sensitive, emotional and courageous, confident, clever... It must be the short skirts and weapons, because blonds aren't usually my type.
5. Tina, The L-Word
Actually, this list is quickly disproving my assertion that blondes aren't usually my type, but let me just say this: I love Tina. I think she's gorgeous and resourceful and generous. I think she and Bette make a beautiful couple as long as Bette doesn't start being an insensitive, manipulative jerk again. However, my first love on the The L-Word was Marina (Karina Lombard)--now she could make me swoon every time she came on screen--but since Marina is no longer on the show (and, besides, my love for her was a bit on the shallow side) I had to transfer my affections elsewhere.
6. Allison Dubois, Medium
I like Allison because she's such a realistically-flawed character despite her supernatural gifts. Her visions are never wrong and yet she never interprets them correctly the first time around (you'd think she'd have figured that out by now). She's rash. She's emotional. She can be insensitive, uncompromising, and self-absorbed. She's a good wife and mother, but she's neither perfect nor obedient. She's not easily subdued. And, in the end, she's always right.
7. Sara Sidle, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
I really can't explain this one at all. She's cocky and acerbic and irritating half the time and dark and brooding the rest, but every once and a while she smiles or laughs or says something particularly sarcastic (and funny) and I find myself charmed.
8. Karen Walker, Will and Grace
Honestly, I hardly ever watch the show anymore, but Karen just makes me laugh. And laugh. And laugh. Maybe I have a twisted sense of humor, but she's by far my favorite TV sitcom character. And besides, Megan Mullally has a stunning singing voice.
9. B'Ellana Torres, Star Trek: Voyager
This one is a real toss up for me because I love Seven of Nine--and not actually for the stereotypical reasons (the leggy, busty blond thing), but because she's both laid bare and completely enigmatic simultaneously and because Jeri Ryan played her with such incredible panache. But ultimately B'Ellana trumps Seven because she was my favorite from the very beginning (before her Klingon ridges started to get lighter and lighter season after season and she got softer and less rebellious). I liked her when she was brazen and feisty and got into a fist fights with other crewmembers. I liked her before she and Tom started to get all lovey-dovey (I didn't mind them dating, only that they became mundane and romantic).
10. Willow, Buffy: The Vampire Slayer
I loved her in Season 4 when she's trying to find a place for herself--both in terms of her sexuality and in terms of her witchcraft. I liked her when she was a little more naive than end-of-show Willow, when she was just learning that she had more courage and power than she ever thought possible. There was always something about her naiveté mixed with her intelligence that was simultaneously empowering and touching. Plus, she's adorable. What can I say?
***
Mostly what this list proves is that I'm fickle and easily seduced by beautiful women. But only on television. And they have to be complex and intelligent, not merely beautiful. I do have some emotional depth after all.
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