Year-end post

And so the Year of the Something has drawn to a close. Well, here on the Left Coast it's got a few hours of partying left in it, but I'm scared of New Year's Eve drivers (having lost a friend to one in high school) so we're hiding at home and listening to interesting music, making a yummy dinner, and relaxing. I have a glass of White Truck (Red Truck is better but this is quite tasty) and the hubby is on zucchini duty, so all is well. My carpool home took me past Colorado Blvd (Rose Parade route) which is in full Running Amok mode already, including caravans of VW microbusses and idiots blocking the intersection and getting out of their cars to make angry noises at each other. I think when we finally own a house one thing that would be fun to do would be to have a New Year's Eve slumber party. I like New Year's parties but I don't want my friends driving around with lunatics on the streets. Well, okay, drunk lunatics. I realize the lunatics are there every day of the year, but they are particularly bad this night. So a New Year's Slumber Party seems like the right answer, but most of us have outgrown sleeping bags on the living room, so I'm going to need some more bedrooms.

But my point was going to be to reflect on 2007. It has been a good year, I think. We attended three weddings. Friends had babies (on purpose). I didn't have to take any big exams. I didn't clonk any heads together. Vocational things progressed for both me and my hubby. We got to do a lot of travel and fun things like that. We have a lot to be grateful for - a warm home, plenty of food, clean water and medical care at our beck and call, and most of all, one another. Yes, I would say it was a good year. I even exercised some - and kept a log of it all year, which I'm a little afraid to look at, although the last quarter of the year was pretty strong on that front.

We joined a newly-started book club and made new friends. I got a new car (because I totaled the old one with a baby in the back seat but let's stay positive here - the baby is fine and her parents are still my friends - yet more for which I can be grateful!) I read a lot of books, and enjoyed most of them. I started a blog, which I even write in sometimes. I baked a lot of bread. I rode my bicycle twice (an opportunity for more progress in 2008). I outlined a book I want to write. I sang in front of my whole company (upon request- long story) and they appear to have liked it. I got to know my sister-in-law and her honey better (and like them even more!) I can think of more things, too.

Thank you all for your contributions to my well-being in 2007. I lift my glass to you and look forward to a lovely 2008!

Spendy Jeans

There are a bunch of new boutiques in Claremont, so that now I have at least three options for stores that would love to charge me over $100 for a pair of blue jeans. I don't get this. I know I'm not a fashionista, but seriously, $178 for a pair of jeans? I have trouble bringing myself to spend $100 for dress slacks, where it's arguably worth while. Jeans I put on to be comfortable, not scared of puddles. One of the newer shops is also offering a pair of very comfortable-looking pajama pants type things for $84. This is the sort of garment that I would spend half the weekend in and get covered in cat hair and possibly various food products. Eighty-four dollars. Did togas get really high-end and expensive before Rome fell?

Dorking Around on Facebook

So, I have been kindly invited by a few friends to join Facebook. This has been interesting. Most of my work on the Facebook page I have created has been accomplished while nursing an upset stomach. I wonder if I'll go back and look at it later and be horrified at what I posted when I was too ill to know better? I also wonder if there is a selection bias towards geekiness (geek is sexy!) in the sub-group of friends who are using Facebook? Coming from me, this is a compliment, so please remember that before bristling, o dear ones. For example, one friend of mine appears (judging by his friends list, which is one female) to have joined just to be friends with one chyck. Probably a strategically wise move. And then there is one guy, whom we shall call KON, for King of Networking. He has a ridiculous number of friends. Next we see GooberJock, who is one of my favorite people ever. He immediately sent me six widget requests of some sort or another, involving alcohol, hotness, and werewolves. I called him and asked why he had so much time to be dorking around on Facebook.

I'm starting to feel a bit like the cyberworld of Ender's Game is upon us. Not the war part, but the part where his siblings are writing stuff on the net, or whatever they call it. Hey, maybe that would be a good book for bookclub. Nothing to get political about in there, right? ha ha. Anyway, it feels like there is a whole universe in there, which of course only exists in a couple of really huge servers in Virginia? No, that can't be right. I have a lot of resistance towards learning how the internet actually works - because it sounds terrifically boring to me - but it seems important, like knowing how to change a tire. Maybe a responsible adult should know the rudimentary workings of the internet. Although unlike the tire, I am not going to be called upon to fix it ever. But it seems like I ought to know how it works, like I know how the electoral college works, or where the food I eat comes from - you know, Jeffersonian Citizen sort of thing. Come to think of it maybe I should look that up... But I'm a little afraid, like if I learn too much I'll get sucked into it a la Tron, and be forced to wear glowing spandex and throw frisbees to save my life, neither of which I would want to be called upon to do under even less dire circumstances.

Interestingly, I used to have a similar level of resistance towards learning how the stock market works... Hopefully this doesn't mean we'll find me making my living at something to do with the Internet in ten years.

So, I better go find something to eat that won't worsen my tummy.

Apostrophe Catastrophe

Okay, I don't know what hit the fan recently, but it seems we have had a sudden epidemic of people thinking one uses an apostrophe to pluralize something. For example: "Shopper's serve as the eyes and ears for those clients as part of their efforts to enhance the quality of the customer's experience." Ack. This bugs the foo out of me. It's bad enough with its and it's. Or maybe I'm confused - maybe the country has just been feeling really possessive recently. And Lord help us if we need a plural possessive - what then, quote marks? 'Worker's"~_* Compensation'?

Feeling grammatically isolated today.

Partial Victory

So, Courtney and Ben did not win the Starbucks Music Makers competition... but they DID win the online vote! So thanks everyone for your help! As I pointed out to Courtney, while a free trip to Hawai'i would have been awesome, the popularity they can demonstrate with this accomplishment should be very appealing to record labels and other biz folks. Congrats to KaiserCartel!

Vote for Courtney!!!

Notice the cool "widget" I added to this page - with this, you can vote for Kaiser Cartel in the Starbucks Music Makers Competition and help my sister-in-law win!!! You have to enable pop-ups to get the verification screen. We only have until 10/11/07 so please vote now!

Yay!

Braindead.

So. Completely. Comatose. Seriously people, if ever my nose was in danger it would be now, from the imminent threat of hitting my keyboard. My intestines seem to have decided that not only will I be utterly unable to consume coffee, now tea is getting a little too strong for me. Tea. This is the drink that genteel English ladies whose ribs were being crushed by corsets and thus were prone to fainting would drink. Not whiskey. Tea. I am old before my time. I've been greying since I was 15, and apparently my intestines are joining in the line of stuff to go early. Next will be something equally weird no doubt, like my toenails. Ooo, actually, my knuckles have been getting stiff and achy... but that's probably from my secret double life as a vinyl-catsuit-clad Woman of Mystery. Too much punching bad guys.

So that's enough random stream of consciousness for one afternoon when I'm supposed to be working, I suppose.