Saturday, January 31, 2009

Roomba+Kittens=Enjoyment

Furthermore...


Lucky_King_Bakery-5
Originally uploaded by android land
I stopped for a small tea in this bakery on Grand Street. A small tea, with very milky milk (cream?) and sugar was $.75. SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS. It has a really nice bustle about it. And interesting chairs. I'd like to try some of their baked goods next time.

Grocery Shopping in Chinatown

Why is food cheaper in Chinatown? Fish is a bargain, meats are reasonable, and vegetables are cheap.

I bought
1/2 pound of mushrooms
along with small servings of
baby bok choi
green beans
a large head of broccolli
a smallish piece of ginger
All for $3.42

The Stepfathers


I went to UCB to see The Stepfathers perform improv tonight. They were on. It was great. Clever, creative, and funny. By far the guy with the best lines and punchlines was Zach Woods. All of the performers were great, but he stood out tonight.

For $10 it's cheaper than a movie. And, yeah, it's not 2.5 hours (more like 1), but worth it. I can't quite find the right words to contrast something live with all of the pre-packaged stuff we get day in and out on TV, movies and the internet. It's great to have a moment with a group of people that can't be repeated. It happens once only. There's a dynamic in the room - especially when the performers are in the zone - that's palpable, but hard to describe.

Friday, January 30, 2009

Watch Out.

I lost my watch last week. It's totally my own fault.

I hate that feeling of the avoidable mistake.

It must have slipped off when I removed my gloves. And I don't have the money right now to replace it with what I really want: A Victorinox Swiss Army watch.

I bought a $15 watch in Chinatown. I forgot it wasn't waterproof. It didn't last a week. I bought a Casio today for $34 at the drugstore. I dislike it and am going to try and return it. And then I bought one on Amazon that should be water resistant enough that I can wear it all the time and not worry. And last at least long enough for me to save up for a "real" timepiece.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

NYC Central Park Reservoir

I walk across Central Park along the North side of the Reservoir about 2 mornings a week from 6:30-7am. This time of year I am walking across just before dawn. (Sunrise today was at 7:06). It's my favorite time of day and year to take this walk. It is dark and cold. The wind bites my face when I reach the East side of the Resevoir. Right now the water itself is frozen over. There are footprints of small animals across it. When I am walking, sky is beginning to glow, but the lights in the buildings are still on. It feels like a magic moment. There are only a few people out, runners mostly, and there can be long stretches where you can't see another person. It doesn't feel creepy to be alone, like it does so many other places in the city. It doesn't feel dangerous.
It is immensely peaceful.
Sometimes I can see geese and ducks napping. I've even seen a raccoon. Pictures can't quite do it justice. I feel closer to God on this walk than virtually any other time during the day. It just feels right.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Forgive Me, Bachelorettes.


Watching The Bachelor with my roommates brings out the very worst in me. In the rest of my life I try not to judge people by their eyebrows, their whitened teeth, their other augmented body parts. I try to forgive them for being selfish, deluded, foolish. They are all people loved by God. Except when I watch them on this show. Somehow I feel like it's okay to mock, judge, hate, deride, and otherwise despise them. This isn't right.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Teen Magazine Pic from the Late 80's #2

Lots of times, the pictures in fashion and teen magazines in the 80's depicted styles we never actually wore growing up. They were too flashy, too revealing, too crazy, and not in dress code at my school.

Now this, THIS is how we used to dress at school. Those rubber shoes were the jam on rainy days. Actually, not the bright green ones, but the blue or brown ones.
And we for sure "pegged" our jeans. And wore enormous sweaters. And that hat would have been pretty kickin', too, had it been allowed during school hours. That would have been more for a football game or visit to the mall.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Kay Yow

I heard Kay Yow speak at an FCA meeting when I was in college. I was struck by how cool, real, and sincere she was about her faith, her cancer, and her life. It's very rare that the words of a speaker stick with me any period of time at all, but hers did.

I remember an analogy for life (and for her life) that she shaired. Imagine life as a drinking glass. That glass falls to the ground and breaks into many pieces. But God can those broken pieces and puts them together into a beautiful stained glass window. It really struck me at the time, and has stayed with me as a helpful image of brokenness and grace.

Perhaps there was also a connection for me between her battle with cancer and my own mother's battle. Both women were strong, down-to-earth, and brave. Both battled the disease for many more years than anyone would have expected. Both loved God.

I am grateful that I got the chance to meet Kay Yow, and pleased by all of the recognition she has receieved. She deserved it.

Words I Enjoy Saying, #2

Shampoo


I like giving "sham" two syllables, and extending the "poo."


MaLIA and SaSHAAAA... just kidding.
Rick Warren pronounced those names way weird in the inaugural prayer.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Oscar (Nominee) Time


Predicting the winners made easy. Click here for an "official ballot."
It's like March Madness, kind of.
(okay, so maybe I say that because there are a lot of movies listed that I haven't seen)

Teen Magazine Pic from the Late 80's #1


More on this later... but for now, just enjoy the visual.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Broken-In Leather

Some things are JUST RIGHT. It doesn't get any better than really well-designed leather boots that are well broken-in. These are Red Wing Boots. I love them. I wish I were a guy so that I could have a pair of my own. I really like well-worn brown leather goods - boots, belts, jackets, couches, handbags, suitcases...

J. Crew got it right with reviving these.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Monday, January 19, 2009

Last Days

I am on the MARTA train heading to Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta Airport. Thanks to my Blackberry, I am mobile blogging.

There's some great graffiti on view from the train on the North-South Line. In fact, Hense and Sever have got to be old men by now, because I've seen their tags what feels like all my life.

I was going to mock one paricular graffiti message but I stopped myself for two reasons. 1. See previous post and 2. I reconsidered the meaning.

This particular work is not a tag, but a message which says "The Last Days Has Arrived." Now, at first I was struck by the bad grammar. And I know, I know, correcting grammar is really annoying to people. I get it. Technically a plural noun (days) should be followed by a verb that reflects this (in this case, have arrived).

But, upon consideration, the Last Days as recorded in the Christian Bible are, in a way, one thing, not many. The Last Days is the time before Christ returns. And while it's multiple 24 hour periods, it is, in a way, one era/time unified by anticipation (and, perhaps, a lot of crazy scary stuff). The Bible promises both signs that show it's coming (as obvious as storm clouds foretell the weather) and surprise when Christ appears (like a thief in the night). I can't quite wrap my brain around it all. Maybe the graffiti artist is right grammatically and temporally and spiritually. Time will tell, I guess.

Do You Know What Annoys Me? People Like Me!

So I almost, ALMOST did the very thing I loathe. Namely, writing a post as a complaint and a rant against something/someone (in this case Rick Warren's non-humble vibe today as he preached - not a pretty thing in a Christian pastor) that I think has it all wrong, but I caught myself almost in time.

Blogs are such an easy place to mock others with derision and with impunity because probably everyone reading your words heartily agrees with you. So there's little risk of accountability.

And most of the time the thing being "pointed out" or the person being "called out" for hypocricy, heresy, or stupidity is nothing more than a strong man, a caricature of the real person or situation...

It's easy to have a one sided cultural commentary, and I know a nmber of blogs (not just the tabloidy ones) that claim to have lofty goals and pursue truth, but really, behind it, is a sense of, "We get it, they don't."

I hate that. But then, with this very post, I find myself doing the same thing to these anonymous bloggers. Let us hope it is the last time on this blog.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

But Clark Howard IS News!


I missed the whole thing. I was arriving at LaGuardia Thursday at about the same time the USAirways plane struck geese and skimmed the Hudson. I had no idea about any of it as I sat in the Delta terminal, frustrated about my flight delay.

I do remember thinking it a little odd that the TV's in the gates that usually show CNN Headline News were showing a tape of the Clark Howard Show. No news, just Clark offering a few money saving tips.

But it never quite made it far enough into my consciousness for me to realize that someone, somewhere must have pushed the panic button or flipped a switch in order to make sure that LGA passengers waiting to board their flights were not exposed to images of a plane crash. Someone out there has that job: "Quick, show them Clark Howard! That will keep them docile." I get it, but I have to say I still feel a little bit duped and slightly manipulated.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

All The Single Ladies (Put Sunscreen On It)


Another comment from my mental backlog of posts...

I think perhaps the true indicator of singleness as more than a temporary pause between relationships is the ability to effectively and completely apply sunscreen to ones entire back solo.

I have perfected it.

Monday, January 12, 2009

The M86 LIMITED...Only In My Dreams


I think they should make an M86 Crosstown LIMITED Bus. The good ole M86 is jammed during morning and afternoon commuting times often with people connecting between subway lines from different sides of town. We need a bus that stops at

1. Broadway
2. Central Park West
3. 5th Ave(I realize there's no train here, but sometimes all you need is to cross the Park)
4. Lexington
and when it's completed, 25 years from now,
5. 2nd Avenue

It would alleviate the crowding on the regular M86 and make the cross-town experience so much faster when you need to do it at high traffic times.

Why don't more people ask me what we need to do? Seriously.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Charts and Tables







If music were reduced to a diagram...





Mash It Up

I don't think it's appropriate to mix my proclamation of really important things with telling people all about temporal, less important things. It might dilute the message. This blog is for the extra, less important stuff that I want to say and share.

I like Mashups. Mashups are the post-modern musical genre of taking two or more different songs and recombining them to form something slightly different or better than the originals. It re-contextualizes some of the words or sounds of the song as envisioned by the artist. It's almost like folk-art, or found-object art. And when it's good, it's excellent.

There are a few true artists of the genre, and DJ Earworm get's my vote for one of the best.

In particular, check out If I Were A Free Fallin' Boy that combines Beyonce and Tom Petty, and No One Takes Your Freedom which includes Scissor Sisters, The Beatles, George Michael, and Aretha Franklin.

Perhaps, though, one of my favorites is by DJ Mei Lwun, Sweet Home Country Grammar, mashes Lynyrd Skynyrd with Nelly. Amazing.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

I Like To Steam After Working Out

The steam room at my gym has a sign posting warnings involving it's use.
One of the warnings is "Do not steam if you have recently exercised or consumed alcohol." Helpful. You guys know it's a gym, right?

Friday, January 9, 2009

Words I Enjoy Saying, #1

Babaganouj1


Tazer2


1. Babaganoush or Babaganoosh are also accepted spellings, but I prefer it with a "j" because it captures the "zhh" sound. And it looks more exotic. I don't like how it tastes, but I am always tempted to order it. I think it would make an excellent name for a pet.


2. Apparently "Taser" is the proper spelling. But I prefer the unauthorized "z" instead. I like how the comedian Dane Cook says, "If guys come near us, we'll Tazer them. No guys."


(ooh, a purple tazer!)

Upper West Side Fairway Supermarket

I've got a back-log of random thoughts. Here's one of them.

Sometimes shopping at Fairway makes me want to punch someone in the face.

This might be an aggressive first post.