Mall Mayhem

Have you seen the malls lately? What is with people? Do we really need more stuff just because it's cheap? Do the crowds and mob mentality seem even worse this year to anyone? I had to drive by two malls on my way from LA to San Diego yesterday, and the traffic exiting for each mall was backed up for miles. Luckily, it was mostly contained to the right two lanes and didn't slow me down much. Today I went with a co-worker to the downtown mall in San Diego. She wanted to snag some post-Christmas decorations on sale, and since not much is going on here at the office, I went with her. The place was a mob scene. The parking garage was a like demolition derby with cars going every direction possible. Yes, I have participated in the after-Christmas sales before but in previous years, it didn't feel like a dangerous situation. In the short 30 minutes we were at the mall, I was hit by a stroller, whacked in the shins by shopping bags, and almost hit by an oblivion (click here for more about Oblivions or to find out if you are one. The holiday season is prime time for Oblivions. I think it's their mating season, too.) driver who whipped around a corner too fast. I think something about 50% off drives people into a frenzy akin to sharks smelling blood in the water. Dangle that little red sale tag in front of people and they'll eat up anything not nailed down. The two stores we went in were trashed. While my co-worker was after Christmas decorations she saw before the holiday but couldn't buy them because she had too many other expenses, is one of the post-Christmas sale mongers, she's not a crazy person and wasn't there to buy just anything on sale. I'm all for a good sale and will go to them just like everyone else hoping to get a good deal, but there should still be civility. When did going crazy factor in? It's really pretty gross to watch people buy, buy, buy crap they probably don't need. I think next week will bring some wide-spread buyer's remorse.

I did get some gift cards for Christmas that I can't wait to use, but I think I'll stay away until the new inventory comes in. My life is not worth a $30 cashmere sweater. Although, that's a really good price. For cashmere.

Exciting narwhal discovery!

I haven't written anything here in ages, but I felt so compelled to let you all know about the recent discovery made about the narwhal tusk. Aren't you excited????? Scientists discovered that the tusk (a large protruding spiraling tooth) has nerves that run from the core all the way to the surface. This is feature is unique to narwhals and allows them to use their tusk to "feel" the water and their environment. Since narwhals live in freezing Arctic water, they can probably feel the cold water. "Imagine the ice cream headache that narwhals must live with ALL THE TIME," as the author who e-mailed me this article wrote.

Enjoy the article and increasing your knowledge about the mysterious narwhal. What other narwhal secrets will be found out in the next century?

In other news, in case you thought I fell off the planet because I've been a lame-o and haven't updated this dang thing in months, I'm still here. I was in Pittsburgh for a conference just before Thanksgiving. It was an English teacher conference. I got to meet and/or hang out with authors such as Yann Martel (The Life of Pi), Robert MacNeil (formerly of the MacNeil/Leher News Hour on PBS), M. T. Anderson (YA author extraordinaire), Andy Auseon (super-talented debut YA author), Lynne Cox (Swimming to Antarctica), Nina Crews (amazing illustrator), Brian Collier (one of my favorite illustrators), Kathi Appelt (a popular Aggie author), and Han Nolan (award-winning YA author). I also heard Laurie Halse Anderson, Paul Fleischman, Chris Lynch, and Nancy Garden speak during the post-conference YA workshop I attended as a publisher observer and author escort. Yes, I'm name dropping, but it's the best part of my job and I like it. There were plenty of other fantastic authors there that I ran into or listened to, but it was weeks ago and now I can't remember. Duh.

After getting back from Pittsburgh (where it was 17 degrees one night!), I worked like mad to get ready for taking time off for Christmas. I am officially on vacation now and I won't be going back until the 27th. Woo-hoo! Mom, Dad, and I are headed to Atlanta to visit David & Allison at their pad. We'll celebrate early and then the three of us will fly back and be in LA for the 25th.

And that's what I've been up to the past couple months. Let me know that you're still alive and functioning, too. Have a Merry Christmas (or other seasonal holiday of your choice), Happy New Year, and look forward to more narwhal facts!

Weekend Report

Several things happened this weekend, none of which are earth shattering, though two really did move the earth.

1. Astros are in the World Series finally. Game One was a loss, but I'm just happy they are there playing. Any good things that happen in the next four or whatever games is just gravy.

2. I drove up to LA to pick up Hobbes from the vet. He's been boarded there for over a week, poor guy, and I went to get him out of jail early. He's glad to be home and is sleeping a lot.

3. While in LA, there were two earthquakes only 2 miles from Marina del Rey. (check this link for earthquake activity in SoCal: Insta Cali Map) They were only 3.1 and 3.0, which surprised me because they sure felt stronger than that. They were about seven hours apart. Both were short, but very jarring. Jolts. The whole condo creaked but no damage. I don't like earthquakes. I've now experienced about a dozen little ones, the biggest being the 6.? that happened about a year ago offshore of SD.

4. Drove back to SD on Sunday afternoon. Dreary day and chilly.

5. Currently reading THE HISTORIAN, a creepy vampire book. It's about a woman telling the story of her father telling the story of his mentor telling the story of Vlad Dracula. Got that? It's pretty good but it is repetitive in the storytelling method. The story progresses nicely, but it's how she tells the story that's repetitive. There is a lot of Eastern European history written into the story and I'm learning about the geography and history of that region. The author must have done an incredible amount of research. Now, those of you who know me probably don't think this sounds like my kind of book. I don't like scary or horror things. I've never read any Ann Rice or seen very many vampire movies. But this book is good. It has elements of the horrific in it, but it's more of a suspense or cat-and-mouse book than a horror novel. I also read TWILIGHT, a YA novel that happens to have vampires in it, though I wouldn't call it a vampire book. It's not scary at all and it's really about a girl (a mortal) who falls in love with a vampire, and vice versa. It's a star-crossed lover book starring a mortal and a vampire in high school. Very entertaining read.

6. I found a gas station in LA where regular was only $2.71. Yee-haw!

As you can see, I had a heck of a weekend.

I scared Cleo out of the room

I don't know who I am more mad at right now: Pujols, Eckstein, Lidge, or the Fox announcers. I guess Pujols since he did the damage, but it took two. Lidge threw that do-nothing slider and wrapped it up in a bow for Pujols. Not that I like Eckstein very much either. Backe was right when he called Eckstein a pest. The announcers don't make it any easier to watch the game. They are so pro-STL it's sickening. And can Pujols do any evil? From the way these announcers talk about him, you'd think he found the cure for cancer. Give it up they hyperbole already. (They do the same thing to a lesser degree for some of the Astros players, but only when they are in a winning position.)

I can't believe Astros fans everywhere will have to watch game six when it should have been over with strike three tonight. How much more can the fans give?

And how can Biggio/Bagwell and the rest of the team possibly feel? Lidge? Deflated. Defeated. Disappointed. Disbelief. Frustrated. Furious. Stunned. Heartbroken.

Hopefully, the Astros can regroup and turn that heartbreak into elation on Wednesday night and silence their naysayers. Otherwise, I might think Astros fans will suffer for eons in the style of the Red Sox fans.

Go 'Stros Wednesday. You can come back to the couch now Cleo, I'm done screaming.

Musings of an insomniac

Last night I wasn't able to sleep due to a splitting headache. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't clear my mind and relax. When this happens, I am not usually thinking about what happened that day or what I'll have to do at work tomorrow or remember to pick up at the grocery store. No, usually the most random thoughts just pop into my brain and keep me up.

Here's the thought process I went through last night.

Mom and Dad are in Rome. They are traveling. On a journey. Most people like to travel. We love road trips. Animals travel - aka migrate. Why don't humans migrate? We probably used to. Why? Because pre-historic man had to follow the food source and seasons. Why do animals today migrate? To follow food, seasons/water, and to find mates or have offspring. So modern humans don't need to migrate because we have the means to grow and distribute food, get water from reservoirs, and invented electric or gas run ac/heat. We also have things like Match.com and hospitals. How many animals can I think of that migrate? Elephants, almost all African savannah animals, almost every species of bird, whales, butterflies & other insects, sea turtles, penguins (duh, they are a bird which I already thought of), fish. So pretty much some species in every animal group migrate. Do any of the apes migrate? Hmm, I don't really know for sure. I think gorillas will go up and down a mountain with the rainy season, but I'm not sure. New world monkeys, old world monkeys (no prehensile tail, yes! I still remember a little bit of physical anthropology), baboons, chimps, bonobos, organgs, lemurs, hmm, I don't know if any of them migrate. Why don't apes migrate? Humans are an ape. How long have humans had a fixed food source? Since they started farming. When was that? Ancient Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Incans, Aztecs, Native Americans, African bushmen, Mongols (they farmed, right, in addition to plundering?), all farmed. Wow, I don't know much about ancient civilizations. If all our corn fields or rice paddies suddenly relocated themselves to warmer climes during the winter, would we all follow them? That's a funny mental picture. Corn stalks marching down to winter in Brazil. Oh, are Snowbirds migrating? No, not really because that's a choice they make. Sure, they may not like the cold, but they could definitely survive in cold. But then what about the people who followed their food like the plains Indians, or the Inuit who obviously can't grow much in the frozen tundra. Oh, that's right. They would kill enough animals, preserve them, and make it through the winters, right? If history hadn't turned out the way it did, would there still be people following the buffalo? What about modern day nomads in Siberia? Are the they only people left on the planet who still migrate because they have to? Well, the Irish had to move during the potato famine. But was that migration? Their move to the US was a fight-or-flight reaction. Stay and have face the strong potential of death, or move and reduce that chance. Migration is an instinct. Fight-or-flight is an instinct. Does that mean all refugees are fight-or-flight? In Africa, people are moving all over the place. The difference between now and then is that there are borders now. And in Africa, water can be scarce and far away. People walk miles for water. Why do they do that? Borders between countries so people can't just move as easily. No, I don't think all refugees leave their home because they might die. Those people in Israel who were removed from their homes were not going to be killed if they didn't leave. Where am I in this thought? I starting this off thinking about Mom and Dad in Rome. I want to go to sleep. It's 1:30, arg. So do we, modern humans, still have that instinct to migrate? Whether it is activated by a fight-or-flight switch, or just the desire to see new places. Is that why we like to travel? Maybe the instinct still exists in our primitive brain stem just as our vestigial tail and gills still exist during development in utero. Evolution and man's technological advances have buried that migratory instinct.

It's a wonder I actually fell asleep last night.

'Twas the night before Game 3

The Astros have made it through game two of the NLCS like pros. After years of getting swept by the Braves in division playoffs, they seem to have finally gotten around their mental block. Now it's the Cardinals. In last year's NLCS, they went seven games against the Cardinals. It was a heartbreaker. I sort of thought last year was their only shot at the big game. It's not that I'm a fickle fan, but let's be honest, the Astros haven't always had the best record. They have spent their fair time in the basement and the WS was their Holy Grail - unattainable and it might not even exist.

But now, with the aging veterans, the Astros seem to be playing as if it is the last game of all their careers and the WS is a potential reality. For career Astros, Biggio and Bagwell, this could be the last chance. And how much longer will Clemens be able to throw at this level? I think the playing level displayed by the older players is all heart. They know they won't be able to play much longer. They are on the brink and reporters/commentators love to remind us how old Biggio/Bagwell/Clemens are with every mention. As if we didn't know. The team is playing with an energy and focus but they also seem to be having fun. They seem relaxed. Burke, Ausmus, and others are stepping up in surprising ways. Everyone seems to be earning their post-season bonus. If they all keep playing like they are, supporting their pitchers, and start hitting in RISP situations, then they have a good shot of making the Fall Classic. But the Cardinals are the best team in the majors. It won't be easy. (By the way, what's up with LaRussa wearing shades at night?)

Still, I hardly think the Astros will go quietly into that night. Not if the veterans have anything to say about it. Once they all leave it will be the end of an Astros era and the next generation of stars will come out to shine.

This is how I see them going out. Biggio belly flopping into the dirt and once again end the game with the field ground into his uniform. Bagwell swatting one into the bleachers. Clemens striking out the side.

This NLCS is going to be a brawl. Watch out Red Birds.

I want a pizza!

Update
My wisdom teeth came out without much trouble Thursday afternoon. I was knocked out completely, so I didn't feel/see/smell/hear anything. Night one wasn't too bad. I did wake up at 5AM with drool going down my arm. Ew. I was only taking OTC doses of Advil since I wasn't in a lot of pain at all. Day two was easy, too, and I ate quite a bit. Day three my jaws really hurt. I worked them too much the day before and passed most of the day asleep or woozy from Vicodin. Today is day four and I'm again feeling much better and almost completely pain free. I am going to go to work tomorrow but I don't know if I'll make it through the entire day.

I had a nice day eating soft food and watching that marathon Astros game. Hope all of you had a nice day, too.

28 teeth in the head

I'm already short four teeth (braces. needed more space). I'll be down another four by the end of the week. It's long overdue, but the wicked wisdom teeth are getting ripped out of my head tomorrow afternoon. I know most of you lucky people have already gone through this most pleasant rite-of-passage event. And I know most of you have had easy recoveries. Yeah. Hope that holds true and I'm not that one in twenty who will experience dry socket (or whatever the stat is), 'cause I've known enough people have breezed through this, so I'm on schedule to be the anomaly. Hopefully not. I'm planning on going to work on Monday, so I'm trying to think optimistically.

All the preparations have been made. My fridge is stocked with soft, gaping-hole-in-the-gums friendly food: pudding, apple sauce, yogurt, Slim Fast. The prescriptions filled. Gauze and ice bag purchased. Ice trays filled. Netflix cue resorted for chick-flicks. The Mom is on the way in the morning.

So adios until I come out of my drugged stupor and feel like typing out a few lines.

Take one down, pass it around, 24 teeth in the head.

P.S. For any of you reading this who know Tom from A&M, he and Holly are pregnant. The baby is due at the end of April.

Ten songs that played back-to-back on my iPod* while I ate lunch** at work today:
1. Witchcraft, Frank Sinatra
2. Let Me Take You to the Zydeco, Rockin' Sidney
3. Tomorrow Comes a Day Too Soon, Flogging Molly
4. Daylight, Coldplay
5. Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours, Stevie Wonder
6. Nowhere Man, The Beatles
7. Up on the Lowdown, Chris Smither
8. When I Hear My Name, The White Stripes
9. Here Comes Your Man, Pixies
10. Green Grows the Rushes, REM

*obviously set on shuffle. Don't you love variety?
**turkey on 7-grain with havarti and jalepeno ranch dressing, almonds, emergen-c, joe-joe's ginger cream sandwich cookies, granny smith apple. Everything is from Trader Joe's. They have the best stuff. Don't you love knowing this?

10086 Sunset Boulevard

One of the few movies I will break my if-I-have-the-DVD-I-won't-watch-it-on-tv-rule is on TCM tonight. Sunset Boulevard. Directed by Billy Wilder, starring Gloria Swanson and William Holden. 1950. Hold on, I'll be right back. It's almost over. Norma just shot Joe. Splash. If you haven't seen this movie, I just ruined it for you. Not that Joe is dead, because you find that out in the very first shot of the film, but how he wound up that way. Floating face down in a pool.

"The stars are ageless, aren't they?"

"Back at that pool again. The one I always wanted."

"Life, which can be strangely merciful, had taken pity on Norma Desmond."

"You see this is my life, and always will be. Just us, and the cameras, and all those wonderful people out there in the dark. Alright Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close up."

One of the best last lines in a movie ever.

Now that it's over, you have my full attention. So the cable is already not working. I have it hooked up to the tv again, low tech style. I have a cable guy coming out on Tuesday morning to try to fix it. It was working fine Thursday after I hooked it up. I set it to record a couple movies while I was at work on Friday, but when I came home that night, nada. It's like it crashed. I called in to get it auto reset/rebooted but it was still unresponsive. The DVR won't turn on. Like it's not plugged in and getting power. This is not off to a good start.

I read a book today called A Certain Slant of Light. It's YA novel, but I swear there is nothing YA about it. It could have easily been published by an adult division. Very good story. It's about a woman ghost who has been dead since before the Civil War. She has floated, or haunted if you like, in the living world since her death by attaching herself to a living being who has no idea she's there. The book takes place in present day and she suddenly meets a human who can see her. It goes on from there in a quite compelling way mixing love, religion, acceptance, and mystery. It's a sort of mix of The Lovely Bones, Ghost, and a Jane Austen novel.

I think I'll finish Jasper Fforde's The Big Over Easy tomorrow. Big plans.

Cable Guy

After two years, I have finally signed up to get "official, legal" cable. I ordered digital with DVR service and HBO on demand. Nothing too loaded, but more than what I have now. Which is ABC, fuzzy Fox, and snowy CBS. I had cable, ahem, but it's been out for two days. I think the cable company finally caught up with me. So I ordered official service.

So why does UPS deliver during the day when most normal people working normal hours are never at home? That might seem like a random question not related at all to my cable story. Let me explain.

I ordered the "Fast Connect" option instead of missing work and waiting for the cable guy. If my address is deemed "Fast Connect" compatible, which mine is, I can hook up my own cable. The cable company send me the DVR, hook ups, cable, etc and directions. Only no where did the ordering form say it would be delivered via UPS. I came home today to one of those UPS post-its saying they tried to deliver today and will try again tomorrow between 2-5PM. I also think UPS is so smart to try to deliver the same time that no one was home. Why not pick a different time? So I called and asked if it could be redirected to my office. Nope. I have to be the actual person receiving it. Can it be delivered after 5PM, which is one of the check box options on the post-it. Nope. I have to drive out to Chula Vista (14.3 miles one way) to pick it up between 8AM-6PM. Great. This cable thing better be easy to hook up myself. I can't miss CSI tomorrow night.

So all this is really boring to read about. Sorry. Here's the end of the story:

After I figured out where in Chula Vista I have to go tomorrow (decided to go at lunch), I turned on the tv and the cable is working.

Since this was so boring, here's something fun: crooning child
Make sure your speakers are on.

Since e-mail is such a pain . . .

Okay, so maybe e-mail really isn't a pain but actually one of the best, most convenient inventions ever. Think what life was like before the advent of e-mail. Wow.

I think since e-mail is such an easy way to keep in touch with friends, we tend to blow it off. Even though an e-mail can contain as much information as a real letter, it doesn't seem like it's a real letter. It's instant correspondence. Click. E-mail sent. Because e-mail is such a fast way to communicate, it seems less formal and less special. Plus, so many of us use it every day at work for hours, that coming home to write to friends just doesn't seem like fun. Even though it's so easy.

I used to be a frequent letter writer (Yes, Virginia, there were things called letters written with a pen on paper, mailed in an envelope with a stamp), but e-mail changed all that. I have kept every letter I've received from one particular friend, and I have a record of her summer vacations, boyfriends, classes, family news, and other major events leading up to about college. That's where an e-mail address started being standard issue along with dorm keys and parking passes. I have printed out and saved some more eloquent, letter-like e-mails from friends, but it just isn't the same. Too often, e-mails from friends just sit in my in-box after I've read them. It's all too tempting to hit the delete key when the "account size over allotment, delete files" message box pops up. I never delete them because it feels like I'd be deleting a little bit of history. If I delete this e-mail, who would ever know what she got for Christmas in 1999? Would she remember?

E-mails are not permanent. They can be if one prints them out, folds, ties with a ribbon and tucks away. But a stack of e-mails is all one neat size on boring, white paper without any anxiously opened multi-colored envelopes with gradually increasing in cost postage stamps affixed. I can't see how my friend's penmanship has evolved over the years in an e-mail. I might be able to tell if her typing skills have improved, but that's about it.

So why did I start a blog? Simple - I'm lazy. I love real letters and hearing from friends in any form (phone, e-mail, letter) but I've turned into a horrible correspondent. (Tangent: I enjoy going into stationary stores and looking at all the beautiful, varied, blank stationary. I never buy any of it because I know I won't use it. It's like a blind person looking at the DVD section. Pointless. I have taken my stockpile of stationary and notecards to work because that's where I find myself writing the most handwritten notes. I write notes to authors, illustrators, librarians, friends. So if any of you have given me stationary in recent years, it might have been used to write an author a congratulatory note after winning an award, or enclosed with a set of books sent as a thank you. Tangent over.) I so frequently get e-mails with the phrase, "hey, long time, no write" or "it's been too long since I've written" that I decided I needed a better way of keeping in touch with friends. I figured a blog is a step up from a mass e-mail. Of course, this will keep all of you up to date on my world, but you'll still have to write me. Ug. Get a blog of your own - I'm pretty good at reading things. Ha ha. I check in with several blogs each week just to see what's new. A blog isn't permanent either, but it will do for now.

Please post a comment if you feel inclined and check back often. If you post anonymously, be sure to include your name in your post otherwise I won't know who sent it. Anonymous means anonymous, duh. I'll do my best to keep somewhat regular posts and add photos & links.