Old Friends

A friend from my undergraduate days called today. Thanks for the wonderful conversation, Maureen. There's something about the fall that seems like a good time to connect with old friends, especially ones I have met through school. Maureen and I met, I think, in an Honors Political Science class. If it wasn't in that class, it was right around that time (which is also when I met Nedda, Heidi and Becky). I just took a look at my transcript, and that would be fall 1993. 13 years ago. Zoiks!

We spoke for an hour about nothing and everything, which means it was perfect. Friends we have known have lost parents, had children, or moved into/out of Michigan. I love catching up, though I am not the world's best correspondant (just ask my friend Maureen in London). But as I told Geoffrey the other day, and Maureen today, as long as I know where people are and that they are doing well, I'm good.

Which is one of reasons I really like MySpace. It's established enough at the moment that some of my classmates are starting to post their pages, and Geoffrey figures it will be about two years before the whole thing collapses under its own self-importance. In the meantime, I can find some of the people I haven't spoke with or thought about since I graduated from Bishop Foley.

The nostalgia jones are bad enough that I am typing and watching a very old VHS of my high school graduation. It's pretty much the same as most high school videos - footage of a pep rally, prom and graduation. I just watched myself cross the stage. I had long hair and a sprial perm. It's pretty darn funny. I'll have to scan in a prom photo sometime.

If I were the drinking sort, I would probably be bleary-eyed from a mist of nostalgia. But you know, by the tiime I was a senior, I had already been though a house fire, three months living in a Residence Inn (which, I assure you, is not a glamorous as it sounds), and my father passing away. My yearbook entries my senior year were pretty bland, and I slept for a week after graduation. And I really liked high school. I am happy to say I am still in touch with many good friends (shout out to Patti, Lori, Doug, and my newly rediscovered MySpace crew), I just felt like I couldn't relate. I am not saying this was anyone's fault. I imagined myself as the maiden aunt and resorted to extreme sarcasm to keep boys at bay who I thought wouldn't like me anyway. I didn't give myself the chance to find out.

By the time I got to WSU, it was time for a fresh start. I got involved in Student Council and made up for the fact that WSU was (and probably still is) 98% commuter. I say probably it's probably still 98% ccommuter since many of the res hall students go home on the weekends. But this was 1993, and we moved into the offices in the Student Center and made it our home for three or four years.

Oh man, it's at the part of the graduation ceremony where I led a small crackpot choir in our Alma Mater. I grafted the start of a song in "Sing" to the beginning and then we went into the Foley Alma Mater.

One more time
Sing the song
There's a power in our voices
Hopeful and strong

Years from now
Somewhere down the line
We'll remember and we'll all sing
One more time

And then, oh the horror!, Jeff C. and I sing "Just for a Moment." Many of you know the song as its instrumental version "The Love Theme from St. Elmo's Fire." Dan created the instrumental on the computer, and it went just a touch too fast. Oh, I'll have to digitize those parts of the video, at least.

I'll try to post more on this later. The big thing is, I am so completely blessed. I married a friend I grew up with during those undergraduate and graduate years, and I have kept many of my friends from high school, some of whom I have known since kindergarten.

I'm pretty sure this is just the start of a (hopefully) short maudlin phase.

More later!
^_^

Blogthings

I have to admit, this is yet another guilty pleasure. When did this blog becoome a list of my vices and time-sinks. Oh right, it's what I do when I'm supposed to be typing up yet another e-mail or alphabetizing my socks. Anyway, here are a few blogthings whose results I particularly thought turned out well (except the "dimpomatic" thing - maybe it means I smile a lot?):

You Are a Peacemaker Soul

You strive to please others and compromise anyway you can. War or conflict bothers you, and you would do anything to keep the peace. You are a good mediator and a true negotiator. Sometimes you do too much, trying so hard to make people happy. While you keep the peace, you tend to be secretly judgmental. You lose respect for people who don't like to both give and take. On the flip side, you've got a graet sense of humor and wit. You're always dimplomatic and able to give good advice. Souls you are most compatible with: Warrior Soul, Hunter Soul and Visionary Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

You Are a Natural Flirt

Believe it or not, you're a really effective flirt. And you're so good, you hardly notice that you're flirting. Your attitude and confidence make you a natural flirt. And the fact that you don't know it is just that more attractive!

What Kind of Flirt Are You?

Guilty Pleasures

Ok, so I was up in East Lansing and picked up the soundtrack to a movie titled, "Swing!" in a cd store that was closing up shop (RIP, Wazoo's). The movie got so-so reviews (think "The Committments" - "The Full Monty" X "Brassed Off" and you get the general idea) but get this - Lisa Stansfield sings most of the songs. You probably know her from "Around the World," which was a major single for here in the US. Many people couldn't believe she was this little petite English girl singing with the large, bluesy voice.

You can hear sample clips at artistdirect.com. Not all of the songs are winners, but it definitely counts as a guilty pleasure. This should make a great addition to a brunchy playlist.

My other guilty pleasure has been Charlotte Church's new pop album, "Tissues and Issues." Yes, that-little-girl-who-sounds-like-a-castrati-Charlotte Church. Seems she's gone all Melissa Joan Hart on us, looks-wise, though that's not a bad thing. She looks like a beautiful big 'ol friendly girl, with a phenomenal voice. The album has an early 90's R&B flavor (which I guess are still fairly popular over the pond) so I am debating about importing it, but then again, it might be easier than grabbing each track individually from iTunes UK. You can listen to samples from the album and hear commentary on the tracks here. Her speaking voice sounds like Helena Bonham Carter with a head cold and a teenaged vernacular.

Cool trivia: Charlotte explains that "Even God" was written by a 17 year old Boy George. I am hoping that someone releases the sheet music to it soon.

There are microsites for two of the releases from the album, which so far are the ones I like best:
Moodswings
Even God Can't Change the Past
The videos are great - good for her, I say!

On the main site,www.charlottechurch.com, you can find videos for two other songs, Crazy Chick and Call My Name, which are catchy, but I don't like them as well as the other two.

Which, brings me to my third guilty pleasure - staying up way too late blogging. Bedtime for bonzo! At this point, the dogs have given up trying to get me to go to bed at a decent hour.

^_^

Like riding a bike...

Actually, there was no "like" about it - after three long years in storage at the back of our garage, Geoffrey and I actually took our brand new bikes for a spin around the block on Sunday. When we first moved into our house, my mom agreed to get both of us new bikes, so we went all out and got outfitted with a six speed Huffy for me and a seven speed Eddie Bauer for Geoffrey. We also picked up bike chains, water bottles and helmets, though I grew up never wearing one. So on Sunday, we were cleaning out the garage and the weather had fiinally started to feel less humid, so we went around the block. There were quite a few false starts and stops - adjusting the height of the seat, tightening the handlebars, pumping air into the tires. It seems like ages since I felt the wind blowing past me and felt like I wanted to bike somewhere, anywhere.

When I was growing up, our house was on a cul de sac. There really weren't sidewalks, but the street was extra wide to allow for parked cars and, I suppose, us kids to play outside. Let me tell you, when you are one of two Catholic school kids on the block and no one really wants to play with you, riding around the block in an endless circle gets boring really quick. I wasn't a very athletic kid (can you tell by my comfy pillow-ness?) and my dad didn't really want us going out of the block without his permission, so I stayed indoors a lot. So much so that I didn't even know that the mall near my house used to be cool, with a GAP and other stores until it really began to die out, which it has verrrrrrry slooooooowly been doing since 1992 or 1993. But there was at least a Winkleman's and a Woolworth. Now Universal Mall just has a bunch of discount and craft stores and imported boutique stores in improvised store fronts. There is a 16 theatre dollar show, but it's decorated like a giant neon watermelon, so I woudn't say it adds class to the venture.

I used to work in Universal Mall, at a coffee shop where I met my good friend Sonia. I learned how to make espressos and cappucinos and iced mochas. There are many days where I miss the simplicity of that job. We didn't have tables or anything to clean up, and there wasn't a whole lot of prep work. It was a good time people watching and gossiping and OD'ing on coffee-flavoring syrups. There was also a brief stint selling novelties (meaning a LOT of those plastic little trolls) for a Hallmark store spin-off called "Today's Trends" or something like that. Since we got a discount for working there, I spent a lot of money on some fairly useless crap. I didn't manage to buy the "Where's Elvis?" glitter wand, though. Darn.

After that, I worked right next door in a Perfumania, where the goal was to earn a higher commission by trying to substitute name brands for perfumes and colognes that were in the same family. Not a bad gig, but I only sort of miss it. It was kinda fun, seeing the new merchandise and learning how to properly fold tissue for gift bags (the trick? find the center of the sheet and pull the ends out, like a large hankerchief. Stick the pointy end in the bag. Oh, and if you want to add another nice touch, staple a bow to the bag so it doesn't fall off). I was a "third key" which is a sort of third or fourth level assistant manager deal where I could open and close the store almost by myself. Heady times, I must say, or was that the fumes? Hahahaha.

Anyway, I didn't start working in the mall, which is literally across the street from my mom's subdivision, until I could drive myself there. It just wasn't an option to ride a bike there for some reason. And I had a couple of great bikes, too. The first one was sky blue with a banana seat (remember those? You could fit two people on them) and my mom won it for me selling gift wrap and stuff like that to her coworkers. You pedalled backwards to break. I was a bit of a late bloomer, and my parents worked opposite shifts, so there wasn't a whole lot of instruction on how to learn to ride the darn thing. I remember my dad helping me, and I remember very painfully scraping my toes on the pavement, and I eventually got the hang of it. I don't remember what happened to it, it probably went to a cousin when I moved up to a 10 speed. The problem with going from a banana seat to a 10 speed is that your butt is pretty sore after being on a 10 speed. Once I could drive, that was it for the bike. Even after spending almost $100 (which was a pretty big deal at the time) to get the bike tuned up and have the tires replaced.

I should also say that I get hopelessly lost at times, and this was the pre-cel phone era, so I guess it's understandable that I didn't want to go for a ride up to the store to then find myself out in another city or state. My other biking memory was renting bicycles on Mackinac Island and being able to go almost anywhere. It was as though we couldn't get lost (and we probably couldn't, there are two main paths around the island, as I recall).

So happily, I have mostly good memories of being on a bike and Sunday brought that back to me. Hopefully, it won't be another three years until I get that feeling back again.

^_^

Well played, CLERKS

Well, it wasn't opening night but it was full price and included popcorn, humongous pop and $1 Buncha Crunch. Craig, Nicole, Shad, Geoff and I went to go see Clerks II. I don't think there was a moment when I wasn't reacting in some way - revulsion, attraction (Dante has a nice set of puppy dog eyes, but not as cute as my honey's), breathtaking anticipation about where in the heck this crazy thing was going next, all while laughing my butt off (don't worry, it's still there - there's a bit to laugh off and don't forget, I did have Buncha Crunch with my popcorn),

If you've seen the trailers, you know that one of our heroes is in love. A gooey sloppy sort of love. However, I will say that the sugary coating is more than enough to help the nasty stuff go down easy. Kinda like a coney dog with extra chilli and onions with a great big glass of fizzy pop. In fact, the stuff that my brain was saying, "ewwww...that's kinda gross" was exactly the stuff that made the funny stuff funnier. I could analyze this crap all day, but I won't. Somehow, a good analogy occurs in the first third of the movie when Becky says, "in the heat of passion, it's sometimes okay to go ass to mouth." The passion and love for these charaters plus the potent combination of some of the best slapstick, pop culture riffing, and exquisitely timed comedy creates a hedonistic frenzy where the scatalogical jokes and potty humor take that premise to a figurative, if not literal level ("I miss my donkey...")

Please do not take all this as an endorsement, 'cause there is something to offend everyone in here. I would hate to say, "Good God, what do you mean you haven't gone? Get thee to the theatre - NOW!" And then have you absolutely hate it. I did that once, and it was Ally Sheedy in Maid to Order. Since then, I don't recommend movies to anyone. But I will say, as Buddy Christ is my witness, that I had a fantastic time. To quote SNL, "I loved it. Much better than Cats. I'm going to see it again and again."

^_^

More Blogthings!

My birthdays on the cusp of Libra and Scorpio, so I thought the juxtaposition of these two things were kinda interesting:

You are 73% Scorpio

How Scorpio Are You?

You are 73% Libra

How Libra Are You?

73% on both - what does that mean? I'm apparently 146% a bit of both! I did think it was interesting, because many of the questions asked for each blogthing really did seem to capture my Scorpio side and my Libra side. I think I am more of a Libra though - it includes more of my flirty personality that has started to emerge in my late late 20's and 30's.

Ok, I have to get to bed. I stayed up late to finish a report and now it's way to late to be up playing with blogthings and not sleeping.

^_^

Random brain fart

It's funny - you would think that having to memorize words and notes would be more difficult than just words alone. But we remember thousands of song lyrics and tunes and can't recite the Gettysburg Address or the Nicene Creed. And sometimes, those songs come unbidden, unrelenting, and incomplete. I have one song from choir that's been kicking around my head for almost 15 years. I don't know who wrote it, and the last time I tried to smuggle a copy out of the old music room, the box was there, but the music was gone. I've tried to Google, but the lyrics are fairly basic and so many things come up as similar. Plus, a lot of websites that sell choral music reference the music, but don't necessarily show you the goods.

Anyway, here are the lyrics I remember, and if you know who the composer is, drop me a line. I think it was written for SSA, and it sounds a lot like something from the Sound of Music...

My Shining Hour
I have heard it said, that into each life there comes a time
A time to laugh, a time to learn and a time to love
To each their own, to each their day, to everyone their time
And when that day is here and now, you will hear this song

Chorus
This is my shining hour
This is the best of times
This is my finest day and this day is yours and mine
This is my shining hour
This is best of times
This is my finest day it belongs to you and me

I am sure it's very popular at graduations.
^_^

Kickin' it old school

Fall is usually my more my nostalgic time - it's the start of a new year, friends seem to come out of the woodwork and there's something kinda exciting about fresh school supplies (if you ever doubted my geekiness - doubt no more).

But like everything, nostalgia is quickly become a 24-7 commodity. Pop culture seems to be trolling through its high school yearbook, trying to answer the age old question of "Where Are They Now?" (And really, that question is almost an age old - the show premiered in 1998). Just look at our movies - the comic book characters we could only dream of seeing in real life are now on their third or fourth sequel (Geoff and I went to see "Superman Returns" Saturday night, mom and I saw X-Men III a few weeks back). Even the Transformers are coming back with a live-action movie directed by Michael Bey. I doubt they are going to include the universal greeting, though (and if you Google Transformers and universal greeting you get "Bah Weep Granah Weep Ni Ni Bong" - gotta love it!)

And to put it in print to my ever-lovin' husband, Geoffrey - you were right, babe - we should have bought stock in Marvel when we had the chance. I'm very sorry about that.

I am finding increasing evidence on the web of people I would have been in high school with (who would now be anywhere between 28 and 35), posting pieces of their childhood online, demanding their favorite songs on iTunes and writing tributes to their glory days of eating Froot Loops and watching He-Man (or She-Ra). From IMDB to TV.com to the growing number of TV series available DVD, we are cataloging to an amazing extent the things we grew up with and loved. We're not waiting for the experts to remind us of what life was like growing up in the 80's and 90's. We're basically making fun of ourselves and celebrating the best and worst of it all before someone else gets the chance to. There are pros and cons to this, of course, but I'll leave that to another time.

On Friday, rather than working on work (too obvious), I was digging up the following list of songs I loved to dance to, but I either haven't had the cash or inclination to buy a bunch of dance compilations or the original cds and they haven't yet shown up in iTunes. And not only could I finally look up the lyrics without having to buy a copy of "Song Lyric" magazine (I am not kidding, and I think it's still in publication), I could listen to 30 seconds of it, or watch the video on YouTube and remember if it was actually a good song or just the pixie sticks talking:

Come on and Get My Love
Cathy Dennis and D Mob - Cathy's solo career didn't last, though this track was quite popular. She's more known now for writing hit singles (such as "Can't Get You Out of My Head" with Kylie Minogue) and co-writing the "American Idol" theme song.

It Takes Two and Joy and Pain
Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock - Blame my brother for these two. He had 12" LPs of both of these. If someone says they hate rap, they very well might still dance to either of these tracks.

Show Me How to Dance
BingoBoys with Princessa - The video for this is on YouTube. We didn't get cable in my house for a really long time, so I didn't see it when it first came out in 1991. Did you know that this year's incoming freshman class was three years old when this song came out? THREE YEARS OLD!

Ditty
Paperboy - This song that went platinum in the US in 1993, and the reviews for Paperboy's first album are actually pretty funny (I can't tell if they're serious or not). All I will say is this: when you find yourself in a sports bar type place in the middle of a seriously suburban outlet mall and you think you're there to dance, know your audience before you place those requests at the dj booth, kids. You may find that you and your friend are the only ones on the floor. Props to Becky for not leaving me alone on that dance floor!

If all five of these songs were to be played in a row, I would need to sit down and catch my breath, so I think I'll stop here for now. Have a great weekend and hopefullly you don't have to work on Monday!

^_^

Long day

I feel compelled to post, even though there really isn't any new news. Perhaps I could start with a weather report - it is currently damp, a little on the cool side, and overcast here in Michigan. This has to be one of the longest spring-like stretches in recent memory (yes, I know it's now officially summer, it just usually goes from freezing to blazing in a matter of a day). It's been great - the lawn has not required watering, and I am hoping the lake levels won't be nearly as anemic as they have the past few summers. If I wasn't still full from dinner, I would say a pot of darjeeling with cream and sugar and some toast with marmalade would be very nice indeed.

I am leaving for a conference in Lincoln, Nebraska next week - I am not sure what all there is in Lincoln, Nebraska other than the University of and this conference, but I am hoping it will be useful. Despite my constant movement, I am finding that I am not by nature the most disciplined of people and I am, sad to say, rather lazy. I can't even begin to tell you the number of articles I have set aside to be read, or piles of documents to be sorted or shredded, or winter wardrobes that should be put away for summer wardrobes, etc.

At any rate, I am off to play a video game and perhaps turn in early. I hope this post finds you good and well.

^_^

Sentimental lyrics, part 3

Ahhhh...so I am a bit late jumping on the Jonathan Coulton bandwagon, but I was sidetracked following every bit I could read about John Hodgman (he's more than just a PC, but that's another post). Coulton does this amazing, "Thing a Week" post where he tries to write a song once a week to keep the creative process going. This particular song is number 28. He is currently much beloved by artists and web geeks because he become an unofficial champion of creative commons. Coulton allows other folks to use his work, within certain parameters, without the need for contracts and lawyers and the impending doom of endless court costs and so on.

Anyway, that's just the quick background. Check out his website and Google the guy. Go to iTunes and subscribe to his Podcast. And while you are on his website, look for this lovely tune:

When You Go

Only a moment ago we had nothing but time
Everything lasted forever and you were all mine
Only a dream I know
Thinking you’d never go
Tearing off pieces of myself
Just for the time it buys me

Fold my heart up small
Or break it into pieces
Find somewhere and keep it there
Take it when you go

There in the frame of your face in the cast of your eyes
I saw this coming but still I am caught by surprise
All of this time I knew
That I’d be losing you
That doesn’t mean that it’s OK
That doesn’t mean I’m ready

Fold my heart up small
Or break it into pieces
Find somewhere and keep it there
Take it when you go

Some things we always remember, some things we forget
No way to make it up now no room for regret
That’s no good for anyone
And so I come undone
Now I am less than what I was
Whatever’s left is yours now

Fold my heart up small
Or break it into pieces
Find somewhere and keep it there
Take it when you go

I would say that this ranks right up there with "Adieu" as one of my all-time sweetest songs. It takes a few tries for it to really bloom and take hold, but now I can't stop listening to it.

^_^

Song Sung Blue

You Are Indigo

Of all the shades of blue, you are the most funky, unique, and independent. Expressing yourself and taking a leap of faith has always been easy for you.

What Color Blue Are You?

Race for the Cure 2006

Just a quick post - today I volunteered as a photographer for Race for the Cure down at Comerica Park. I've been volunteering for this thing with my mom since it started at the Detroit Zoo. Since the office was nice enough to purchase a Canon Rebel XT for office events, I figured volunteering as a photographer would be great practice and more interesting than distributing t-shirts (which mom enjoys for various reasons). Mom wasn't able to make it this year, the 7:00 am call time would have been a long day out in the sun and on her feet, since you can't leave the area until the race is over around 11:00 am. I took about 200 photos, but they are going to be used for various promotional things, so I haven't posted more than a few images on my flickr site (www.flickr.com/photos/kodamakitty)

The event is a humongous undertaking and very moving in terms of the number of people who participate to support friends and loved ones who have battled breast cancer. I had a great time getting people to smile. For more information about Race for the Cure, including a link to where the photos from this year's event will be available, please visit the website at www.karmanos.org/detroitraceforthecure

^_^

Blogger Karaoake

I am going to cue you with a song lyric and you have to sing the next line -- it's fun for the whole family (provided said family was listening to the radio in the 80's and felt the need to jam to songs like this)...

Don't call me when your toaster won't pop up
Don't call me just to cut your lawn
Don't call me when your radio cuts off
In the middle of your favorite song
Don't call me when your shower just went Uh-uh, no, baby, don't call me
I think I told you this about a million times
You know, it's not my cup of tea

If you suddenly busted into "Baby, I can rocket 2 U..." by The Jets, you win! Double bonus points if you can hit the falsetto in the chorus!


^_^

New Photos in my flickr

I've been busy with picture taking lately, including this pretty one from the backyard:


To see more, including our three cats and two dogs, please visit here.

^_^

Memorial Day weekend

So, not really knowing any of my relatives that have served in any military, I am not very familiar with Memorial Day, other than having the day off and knowing that it's a good day to work if they pay overtime. I happened to notice that there is an actual Memorial Day and an observed Memorial Day. Digging around on the 'net, I found that Memorial Day became a three-day weekend in 1971. I am not sure I have enough information to set my conviction about the matter, but I find it interesting that there is a movement out there to move the observation of Memorial Day back to May 30, and to consider it a national day of mourning and solemn respect, rather than a holiday.

Which of course, brings me to the idea of a holiday, or holy day, and how we observe these dates. This is similar to the debate about the "War on Christmas" or I suppose to a larger extent, the supposed death of our morals and values. I guess we could stage a fight by pittting crass commercialism ("President's Day Sales" make me giggle) against the idea that holidays are a chance to take time off to spend with family and friends. I don't know which argument would win or if anyone would even attend the fight. It certainly wouldn't be on pay-per-view.

As for Memorial Day, like I said it's hard to relate. I don't think anyone should be forced to serve, and yet I know some sort of call to serve the greater good should be something that we, as a nation, do togther. I admire those to decide to enlist and to challenge themselves mentally and physically. I hope that we as a nation are not taking them for granted or assuming that the right choices are being made on how to use the talents and stength of these brave men and women. I don't know if there is any true way to pay our respects, and I certainly don't know if once a year is even enough.

I think that if there wasn't a need for war or military force the price they have paid might barely (and just barely) be considered an even exchange.

Lookout, sidewalk, mom's clear for take off!

Hello all (and you know who you are!);

I am happy to report that mom is definitely on the mend. She was given the all clear to start driving again. It's always such a good thing to know that you can leave your house and go somewhere, even if it's just to the corner store or to the dollar show right near her house. It's definitely a good milestone and I am very proud of her. This is a very sweet Mother's Day for me because anything could have happened between my mom not having surgery at all, which would have probably led to either a stroke or heart attack, to any combination of other complications or additional issues. So, this Sunday I will be kicking back with my mom, having dinner, going to mass and being grateful that she's here.

Now, don't get me wrong, my relationship with my mom has not always been a mutual admiration society. I have certainly had my emotional baggage packed by things we have said or done to each other that would not have made for good family tv (unless you're talking a reality show, and even then...). There was a period of about 4 - 6 weeks where my mom wasn't talking to me (long story, not worth repeating here) and I had to make some decisions about how to handle myself. I decided not to beg for forgiveness of whatever she thought was the problem, but I didn't make her grovel either. It was definitely a sea change in how we regarded each other. When we finally cleared the air, I think we both realized that nothing says we have to have a relationship with each other unless we wanted to work at it. I would like to think she respects my ability to take care of myself, and I would say that I don't take her presence in my life for granted.

On a much lighter note, if you haven't seen LEGO Star Wars, I highly recommend seeking it out. There is going to be a sequel, based on the episodes IV, V and VI, and the poster is a riot! Check out the minisite at LucasArts

More later! ^_^

Home again, home again

Ok, so we've been home for almost a month, but hey, I have spiffy new photos!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kodmakitty

This is going to be a really short post, as I spent all of my time uploading photos last night, but I wanted to wish my hubby a Happy-Day-After-His-Birthday!

Geoff's birthday was fairly low-key, as we had run around like mad on Monday buying a new Subaru Forrester (pics to follow) and getting the dogs to the vet. He was able to sleep in just a little bit and then we needed to run errands. We ended the day with a great dinner at Steve's Back Room in St. Clair Shores.

Anyway, there are still more photos from Las Vegas that I will add to my flickr site and I will try to post more later.

^_^ Liza

Greetings from San Diego

Well, here we are in week two of our vacation. I've touched base with mom almost every night since we have left and I am just now starting to feel the fatigue of the last couple of months lifting. Just in time to get on a red eye on Wednesday and fly into Detroit at 5:00 am. Wheee - at least I can sleep in almost any moving vehicle. Poor Geoff will have been awake for nearly 24 hours when we do get home.

Don't get me wrong - hotels are great and I am enjoying being on vacation. I have managed to reduce my compulsive e-mail checking to an average of once a day and I haven't spent more than an hour answering messages since we arrived in LV last week. Mom has been doing her best to sound upbeat and comfortable, but I will be happy to get back and help share the responsibility of spending time with her. My brother has been shouldering all of that for the past week and a half and I really admire the way he has stepped up.

Mom is still in the hospital, but she thinks that her care team is really working to have her go home soon. Her hemoglobin has increased, which means that her bone marrow is returning to normal and she doesn't sound like she's nearly in as much pain as she was in right after her third surgery. The poor dear has been in the hospital since February 25. She's had a triple bypass, an abraidment of her chest wound, and a muscle flap to fill in the gap between her sternum from where the bone infection wore away her bone. It's been a long 6 weeks and I can't imagine what it's been like for her.

Geoff and I did discuss not going, or delaying our trip, or even just having him go for his conference here in San Diego. Mom wouldn't hear of it. I am glad she insisted we go, I was starting to feel the stress and I knew it would only get more intense as time went on. Geoff's sister is staying at our house during the vacation to watch after the pets. I wasn't able to get the house as cleaned up as I would like, but when the time came to leave, there wasn't anything I could do but apologize and get on the plane.

When all is said and done, I can't help but be grateful for so many things - the love and support of family, the ability to wash my own hair and take a shower, the finanacial ability to take a two week vacation (partially sponsored by work). I know that when I get back there will still be mountains of paperwork to sort through and tons of chores to get done, but I think I will be better centered for this time off.

^_^

End of March, already?!?

It's now been a little over three weeks since mom had her triple bypass. Her heart seems to be doing well, but now there are a whole ton of other complications. She actually has not been home since February 25. She had the bypass on March 1, after which she had a prolonged stay in ICU because her lungs were not recovering the way they should. Mom apparently has pulmonary hypertension, which combined with the diabetes has meant a much slower recovery time. Plus, being a 34-year veteran of the hospital you are staying in does earn you a break in the whole, "okay, you're not openly bleeding so off you go" sort of approach. Eventurally, mom was discharged from the hospital and tranferred to a rehab center for continued PT and OT. We were just about ready to take her home when she wound up with a fever and a quick trip to the ER.

Essentially, mom wound up with an infection in her sternum. There was some erosion of the bone, so right now her chest is open and she has a pressure pack keeping the area closed off from the air. She's back in ICU and the doctors hope to close her up on Monday. Unfortunately, they won't be able to bring the bones back together, so there will be something called a muscle flap, which is essentially grafted muscle bringing her chest together. I am cringing even as I type this, and needless to say mom can't quite imagine how the whole thing is supposed to work either.

For the most part, mom seems to be okay, she's being given drugs for the pain, but she can't sit up and she drifts in and out of consciousness. I was pretty near to collapse on Thursday and couldn't stop from crying when I spoke with her during my lunchtime visit. I had to sleep close to 12 hours on Friday to get myself back together. Of course, it's now allergy season, which leaves me in a constant drippy state which is not very conducive to visiting the ICU. I must have washed my hands 10 - 15 times today.

Mom is still insisting that we leave for Las Vegas as planned this Friday. I am a little scared to go, but I almost feel as though I need to. Never have I been more grateful for cel phones and the instant connectivity they bring.

There is so much to do, so little time. Mom will be okay, I know it, but it makes stupid insignificant things seem even more asinine. And big, important projects feel almost overwhelming in light of what little mental energy I have. Of course, in times like this, it is the love of family and friends, the aid of coworkers, and the solid partnership of my husband that keeps me from true dispair. I am grateful for all of my blessings.

^_^

March already?!

Oh dear, what a long two weeks since Valentines Day!

First off, our office found out that a dear colleague had suddenly passed away from a heart attack. We will miss you, Guy, and the work will continue. Put in a good word to Ganesh for me!

The afternoon after the funeral, one of our best men from the wedding called to say he and his wife have welcomed Abigal Dee-Ann into the world. Everyone is now home and resting comfortably. Much like the Jewish way of celebrating baby showers, the baby will be able to go to the party next weekend - I have a choir concert that afternoon, so we'll be sending along our gift with an additional bonus.

But then, in the wee hours of Saturday morning, my brother called to say my mom was having chest pains. Mom's a nurse, which means that she tends to ignore a lot of her own symptoms, so something had to be seriously wrong for her to ask to be taken to emergency. This was also the weekend I needed to be at work from 8:00 - 12:00 Saturday and Sunday, so I dressed for work and met them at the urgent care center. You have probably heard a lot of ERs advertising 29 minute or less waits in the lobby - which is true - they just can't guarantee you won't spend 5 hours once you are in one of the beds and waiting for a doctor to come and diagnose the problem. And in this case, mom needed to be admitted so they could make sure nothing was wrong and run a whole lot of tests. She had had a stress test late last year and knew there was a blockage, but I guess she figured it was fairly small and could wait. Now seemed to be as good of a time as any to get that taken care of.

So I spent the weekend bouncing back and forth between work and the hospital. On Sunday, Alex called to say that there was a lot more blockage than expected and mom would require a triple bypass. Yikes. Monday and Tuesday were spent getting paperwork together (mom had recently met with a lawyer to document her estate and draw up a will) and make sure that if anything drastic happened, we would have said what we wanted to say. It was very emotional and heart-wrenching, but I think it was good. To be sure, mom was in very good hands - after all, many of her friends and my brother work there. The cardiologist and heart surgeon both had good reputations amongst everyone who worked there. Mom was pretty popular - with each shift change a new wave of well wishers would pop through the door. One of my cousins came by - she and several other members of our extended family are expecting in the next six months. We're still trying, so keep your fingers crossed!

The surgery went decently well. It took from approximately 10 am - 2:30 pm. Geoff has been calm and supportive and I have received lovely notes and e-mails from friends. Mom spent an extra day on the ventilator, but it's finally out and she can start to talk, though it is very quiet. I didn't like all of the crazy machinery noises, so I brought in a cd player and some quiet music to play continously. Since everything went well (thus far), it's hard to truly grasp the surreality of the situation, even as this portends what it will ultimately look like when we do have to say our final goodbyes. But thankfully, it looks like mom will be around for a good long time and I would be willing to bet she comes out of this feeling better than she has in years. Her heart blockages were at least 80 percent or higher for three of the ventricles - she was essentially a walking time-bomb.

So, I am still bouncing back and forth between work, home and the hospital. It's actually very difficult to concentrate on any one thing, but that's an easy problem to have compared to how tired my mom is at the moment. I'm pretty much ready to sleep at the drop of a hat (more so than usual!!!).

All I can say is, thank God she's ok, and that we have amazing friends and family to show their support and love.



^_^

My love is like a big hard...book

Happy hearts day, all!

This has been a decidedly non-sentimental Valentine's day, but by design, so I'm okay with that. I only sent out a couple of Valentine's day cards and made decadent chocolate cupcakes for my office mates. Geoffrey picked up two dozen donuts for his staff (if you have a Tim Horton's near you, I highly recommend the Cream Cheese Croissant).

Geoffrey and I decided that with finances being a little tight we would share a gift. This year, it's The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes: the Complete Short Stories, a big beautiful hardbound set. It's slightly oversized and very heavy. I love it! We also had lunch together and grabbed a yummy bit of carryout from the on-campus Middle-Eastern restaurant on campus for dinner (there are serious advantages to working on the same campus).

In addition to displaying yet another piece of evidence of my geekiness, I would like to use my corner of cyberia to proclaim my love for my husband Geoffrey.
I love you!

And now, here's my pick for "Ladies Choice" at Skate World and the accompanying sentimental song lyric, dedicated to my love:

The Luckiest by Ben Folds

I don't get many things right the first time
In fact, I am told that a lot
Now I know all the wrong turns, the stumbles and falls
Brought me here
And where was I before the day
That I first saw your lovely face?

Now I see it everyday
And I know
That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

What if I'd been born fifty years before you
In a house on a street where you lived?
Maybe I'd be outside as you passed on your bike
Would I know?
And in a wide sea of eyes
I see one pair that I recognize

And I know
That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

I love you more than I have ever found a way to say to you
Next door there's an old man who lived to his nineties
And one day passed away in his sleep
And his wife; she stayed for a couple of days
And passed away
I'm sorry, I know that's a strange way to tell you that I know we belong

That I know
That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

^_^

More sentimental lyrics

At one point, like a lot of people my age, I made a lot of mix tapes. Geoffrey once noted that this Toad the Wet Sprocket song seemed to make it onto every one of them. It's a beautiful song, very simply arranged, and I love the lyrics:

"I Will Not Take These Things for Granted"
One part of me just wants to tell you everything
One part just needs the quiet
And if I'm lonely here, I'm lonely here
And on the telephone
You offer reassurance

I will not take these things for granted

How can I hold the part of me that only you can carry
It needs a strength I haven't found
But if it's frightening, I'll bear the cold
And on the telephone
You offer warm asylum

I'm listening
Flowers in the garden
Laughter in the hall
Children in the park
I will not take these things for granted
Anymore

To crawl inside the wire and feel something near me
To feel this accepting
That it is lonely here, but not alone
And on the telephone
You offer visions dancing

I'm listening
Music in the bedroom
Laughter in the hall
Dive into the ocean
Singing by the fire
Running through the forest
And standing in the wind
In rolling canyons

I will not take these things for granted

Many of my romances had a very strong telephone component. Nothing thrilled me more than hearing that a fellow normally wasn't one for talking on the phone and lo and behold, two hours have gone by. Even now, I love talking on the phone with my husband - his voice is so sweet to me. And yes, he did once tell me that he wasn't all that great on the phone.

^_^

Here Today

Urgh.

I am sleepy. I called in sick today because I know it will be a full week next week. It's oddly warm outside (well, for January, anyway). And one of my bestest friends, Lori, called me last night because she was reading through a bunch of my old high school looseleaf notes. Apparently they fill an entire GAP bag. Those notes are more than 15 years old. Yikes. So, in honor of old memories and nostalgia, here is one of my favorite Paul McCartney poems/songs. On the Tug of War album it's simply, "Here Today," but in Blackbird Singing: Poems and Lyrics 1965 - 1999, it's actually titled, "Here Today (Song for John)."

And if I said
I really knew you well
What would your answer be?
If you were here today.

Well, knowing you
You'd probably laugh and say
That we were worlds apart.
If you were here today.

But as for me
I still remember how it was before
And I am holding back the tears no more
I love you.

What about the time we met?
Well I suppose that you could say that
We were playing hard to get,
Didn't understand a thing
But we could always sing.

What about the night we cried?
Because there wasn't any reason left
To keep it all inside,
Never understood a word
But you were always there with a smile.

And if I say I really loved you
And was glad you came along,
Then you were here today,
For you were in my song
Here today.


^_^

Bad chicken(pox) leftovers

I wouldn't believe this if I had read it.

Or if a fortune teller had predicted it.

Or if someone had written about it in a blog and I thought, wow, that could be me!

But it happened: I, ladies and gentlemen, have managed to reawaken the dormant chickenpox virus that apparently has been hitching a ride in my spinal column, and now have a case of the shingles. Right on my left keister.

This is not something I would wish on anyone. Now thankfully, it's not as though I "caught" it from somewhere or that I could really give it to someone else unless they had never had chickenpox before (and came in contact on an open sore on my usually very covered butt). But it's not pretty and it kinda hurts, like being burned with a curling iron. And it takes a while to heal - two weeks on an anti-viral waiting for the shingles to scab and fall off. Mmmmmm-hmmmm tasty! I should go suck down a pound of tomatoes 'cause I don't think I'm getting a cold sore anytime soon.

So, sorry if this is more personal than you ever wanted to know about me, but it's just kinda funny (this usually happens in older people) and I am bound to ruminate on it in at least a couple more posts.

Oh, and for more information. not that you can do anything to prevent shingles really, I recommend this site: Shingles, an Unwelcome Encore

kodamakitty.com!

How's this for a cool Christmas present? The hubby decided to immortalize me on the web by securing the following:
kodamakitty.com
kodamakitty.net
kodamakitty.org
all of which currently link to this site until I can figure out how to create my own webspace.

I also received my very own pro-Flickr account with with to inflict my camera mania on an unsuspecting public:
www.flickr.com/photos/kodamakitty/

It's a lot like being given my own little plot of land for a garden. Now I just need time to grow something other than weeds!

^_^

Holiday Blogthing

Ack - Christmas is only a week away. I can't even end that with an exclamation point because it's so odd and bewildering to me. Most of my shopping is done, so that's not it, and the kiddies at work have been mostly quiet, so that's not it - hunh. Maybe I'm actually mostly prepared for this Christmas and thus my lack of overexcited panic. I have a tendency to try to do too much the night before and it's really starting to be a drag, so for Christmas this year I started around Thanksgiving to pack up the gifts I buy all year round. It pleases me to no end to find the perfect gift for someone and find a way to pack it up for maximum "ooohs" and "ahhhs."

The only gifts I don't have, and am not even sure I will have, are for my myriad of cousins. My mom is one of nine siblings and each of them has at least one child, if not four. I am one of 22 first cousins, and we have started to reproduce, so I have second cousins as well (is that right - they're my second cousins? I never quite understood how that worked). Needless to say, getting more than just a trinket or candy for all of my cousins has been a pain in the rear. Not because they expect anything, but because I don't want to leave anyone out. I suspect that next year we older, professionally employed cousins will have to be part of the name draw for a gift exchange.

Anyway, here's a bit of fun, in the form of my Elf Name:

Your Elf Name Is...

Ditzy Sticky Fingers

What's Your Elf Name?

^_^

Blue Man Group in London!

Ah, this would be veddy veddy cool, indeed:

Blue Man Group opened at the New London Theatre in London on November 10. To celebrate, we’re giving away a trip to the United Kingdom for one lucky winner and their guest.

The prize package includes hotel accommodations at the Jurys Great Russell Street Hotel, as well as airline tickets and ground transportation for the grand prize winner and one (1) lucky guest of his/her choice.

Prize Package Details:

Round trip airfare for two (2) from one domestic U.S., Canadian, or European location to London, United Kingdom
Three (3) nights stay at the Jurys Great Russell Street Hotel
One (1) breakfast for (2) at the Jurys Great Russell Street Hotel
One (1) dinner for two (2) at Origin Bar and Dining Room
Two (2) tickets to Blue Man Group at the New London Theatre in Covent Garden, London.

To enter the contest (there's also one for the new show at the Venetian in Las Vegas) click here.

Here's crossing my fingers that I or Geoff are randomly chosen! ^_^

We hold these truths to be self-evident....

*chuckle* It would be interesting to see what happens when e-mail forwards are dissected as folklore and common wisdom. In the meantime, here's a thought-provoking one forwarded to me by my good friend Ann:

Ten Thoughts to Ponder

Number 10 - Life is sexually transmitted.

Number 9 - Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

Number 8 - Men have two emotions: Hungry and Horny. If you see him without an erection, make him a sandwich.
(Hey! Who's going to make me a sandwich? How's my hubby supposed to know which of the two I am?)

Number 7 - Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day; teach a person to use the Internet and they won't bother you for weeks.

Number 6 - Some people are like a Slinky.....not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you see one tumble down the stairs.

Number 5 - Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.

Number 4 - All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.

Number 3 - Why does a slight tax increase cost you two hundred dollars and a substantial tax cut saves you thirty cents?

Number 2 - In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

AND THE NUMBER 1 THOUGHT FOR 2005: We know exactly where one cow with mad-cow-disease is located among the millions and millions of cows in America but we haven't got a clue as to where thousands of illegal immigrants and terrorists are located. Maybe we should put the Department of Agriculture in charge of immigration.

^_^

Just wanted to share the silliness....

A long lost idol of mine sent me an e-mail with this link and I just have to share:
The Llama Song
As the composer puts it, "Not suitable for people who dislike Llamas."

In other news, there really hasn't been any other news. I sing in the Detroit Archdiocesan Chorus (an Archdiocese is an entity that encompasses a number of local Catholic Parishes). The Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, where we perform for various masses and ceremonies, is governed by Cardinal Adam Maida. I generally don't think too hard about the politics of the Roman Catholic Church, which I know is not a good thing, necessarily. The truth of the matter is, I started in this Choir when I was 15 and have been a member off an on now for more years than not. I love my choir director and I love the music we perform. This time, our next concert is Dave Brubeck's "To Hope!" which is a jazz-infused mass. I don't think the choir parts are as challenging as the score, which is good, and it means that the jazzier stuff will happen with the instrumentalists.

This weekend passed way too quickly. We stopped by Alex's house to wish his girlfriend Kara a happy birthday. Seeing my brother with his friends and living on his own (with a roommate, but still...) was a little odd, like watching episodes of the Rugrats All Growed Up. I am very proud of my little brother. He really seems to have found his footing with Nursing. Saturday was spent lazing around in pjs and working on clearing the huge amounts of paper I have covering the dining room table. So many plans - so little time. Today sped by too - Geoff spent time with his grandfather and I worked on our household budget before going out and buying groceries. We've been eating out way too much lately.

Oh - and I got my digicam back. I had accidentally injured it and the Geek Squad at Best Buy clucked their collective tongues and promised not to promise anything (it's very difficult to think of them as single units - they're really Borg/Agent like in their demeanor - do they train that into you, or are you hired based on your ability to speak in clipped monotones while smiling mirthlessly?) Apparently, the warranty I had purchased was merely an extension of the manufacturer's warranty and really, at the end of the day, didn't do squat for me. You know, if I can mangage not to break something within the time frame of the manufacturer's warranty, then dollar per day I've probably broken even.

Ah well, I need to head off to bed. I have some pre-work work that should have been done during the time I spent not working on stuff Saturday.

^_^

Big giant bags of candy

I really like giving gifts.

That's probably the understatement of the year, if you ask anyone who knows how much I love shopping for people, figuring out the proper presentation and then watching them "ooooh" and "ahhhhh." So, it makes sense that I really do like giving out candy on Halloween. This year, I bought five ginormous (giant + enormous = ginormous) bags of candy. I can't remember which one of us decided this last year, but in the Lagman-Sperl household you get both chocolate and non-chocolate candy. Oh, and if you're older than say, twelve, you have to explain what the heck you are. Be creative! I'd give up candy for someone saying they're a cog in the corporate machine or soul-less cube farm lackey.

Choir rehearsal has been moved to Sunday night, probably to allow those of us with candy dispensing tendencies can go home and spread sugar induced joy throughout the land.

The other upside of Halloween? Those giant bags will be on discount the very next day and it will keep my office candy dish supplied. I'll be able to pimp that stuff out for weeks!

^_^

I am truly blessed!

Today is my birthday, but we started the celebration early by having a small dinner party yesterday. Actually, if the celebration includes receiving roses from Geoff's brothers and family in the mail (always a classy way to receive flowers) and the frantic cleaning that occurs before one has people over, then the partying began Friday afternoon. Geoff and I did some errand running, including gathering enough stuff for a triple batch of his mom's chili recipe. Being OCD about having people over, I shooed Geoff to bed and continued cleaning for the rest of the night and grabbed a short nap on the couch while waiting for the giant monster batch of chili to cool down enough to be put in the refrigerator.

We started Saturday's festivities with a trip to the Westview Apple Orchard out in Romeo. It's more geared towards kids, but it was kinda fun to watch kids run around and be, well, kids. The place doesn't have the whistles and bells of a mall or an arcade and it was nice to see that it didn't need it. It was a little chilly and I was dressed more for style than comfort, but it was a beautiful day and I got to nap in the car while Geoff and our friend Doug sat up front. We brought home Red Delicious apples, cider and pumpkins and donuts. Geoff doesn't like apples any other time of year and we haven't managed to get out to an orchard for a few years with crazy schedules, so it was well worth the drive and the cold to visit one.

When we got back, Sara joined us, bearing the most adorable birthday cake - it was yellow cake with white frosting and a hunormous Hello Kitty! I unfortunately bumped my brand new digital camera a little too hard at the cider mill (thank goodness for the extended warranty), so I don't have a digital image to share at the moment, but when I get the film developed, I'll have to show it off - it was absolute genius.

The full dinner party started at 6:00 with the arrival of more friends: Lori and Steve, Patti and Ann Marie, Curt and Fern and Sonia. We had a log in the fireplace and I got to pick the music (a mix of stuff on my iPod, the soundtrack to "O" from the Bellagio in Las Vegas, and the Barenaked Ladies's Stratford soundtrack to "As You Like It"). There was chili, burgers, salad, and of course, cake!

Everyone stayed for a good long visit, including a few rounds of "Dance Dance Revolution" (Geoff's present from my birthday last year). Then it was hugs all around and promises to get together soon. My brother Alex called at midnight to wish me Happy Birthday (he never fails to amaze me by remembering to do that every year) and I collapsed around 12:30 am. I got to sleep in today until 1:00 in the afternoon. Geoff's present to me this year, in addition to our buying a new camera and printer set up as a shared item (but it's mostly for me) was a great book on digital photography. It looks like it will be a great read and I can't wait to improve my skills.

My mom met us at the house and then we took off for Windsor for my Goddaughter Amara's birthday party. She is now five and was dressed up as a pirate queen (think Snow White embellised by Treasure Island). My cousins gave me a beautiful basket with a big bunch of Starbucks goodies and I had the traditional Filipino pancit (noodles are eaten for long life). Geoff and I took tomorrow off so we won't have to rush around after a busy weekend.

So I am now 31, but that doesn't bother me. Life is very good and I am grateful for everyone and everything in it.

^_^

So...very...tired

Ok, so I'm not raising a child (the puppies are a mere preview to what will hopefully someday be more than just a nice idea) and I'm not taking night classes, but goodness - three nights of rehearsals for tomorrow's choir concert, plus talking with a dozen or so students a day makes me one pooped pooch.

But, if you are in the Detroit area and have nothing to do, here's one idea for Thursday night: http://www.media.wayne.edu

I'll be the one lip-synching stage right.

^_^

Greetings from Vegas!

Hello and howareya from Las Vegas, aka Lost Wages, aka Sin City!

Mi madre and I are on our way to see magician Lance Burton, using comp tickets we earned by sitting through a time share spiel (more on that later). The weather is nice and not very humid. There's a strong wind that will knock you over. But, as my mom pointed out, at least the obnoxious naked lady fliers have been toned down to little provocative business cards.

More later!

^_^

"No really, I'm not as addicted to Blogthings as I look...

...I can stop at any time, this is my last one, I swear..."

Ok, maybe not, but this one was so funny, I thought it actually deserved it's own post:

You Are a Schoolgirl!

You're not quite as wild as a "kogyaru", but with your short plaid skirt and silly white socks, you're still a sexual fetish object. You can usually be seen hanging out in the girly section of the video game places, collecting photobooth stickers of you and your friends. You may not be as innocent as you look. Did those vending machine panties once belong to you?

What's Your Japanese Subculture?

We will return to regularly nonscheduled blogging after these commercial messages...

^_^

Another Blogthing and more Blogthings

Heh - I'd like to think this one is true!

You're an Expert Kisser

You're a kissing pro, but it's all about quality and not quantity You've perfected your kissing technique and can knock anyone's socks off And you're adaptable, giving each partner what they crave When it comes down to it, your kisses are truly unforgettable

What Kind of Kisser Are You?

Your Kissing Purity Score: 40% Pure

You're not one to kiss and tell... But word is, you kiss pretty well.

Kissing Purity Test

Your Seduction Style: Au Natural

You rank up there with your seduction skills, though you might not know it. That's because you're a natural at seduction. You don't realize your power! The root of your natural seduction power: your innocence and optimism. You're the type of person who happily plays around and creates a unique little world. Little do you know that your personal paradise is so appealing that it sucks people in. You find joy in everything - so is it any surprise that people find joy in you? You bring back the inner child in everyone you meet with your sincere and spontaneous ways. Your childlike (but not childish) behavior also inspires others to care for you. As a result, those who you befriend and date tend to be incredibly loyal to you.

What Kind of Seducer Are You?

ARRRRGH

Ok, I know that there is a very high likelihood that I am the lone reader of my blog. And I am okay with that, really I am. I am sure it is a sign of some burgeoning narcissistic disorder that I like reading about me as if I didn't write it myself.

Anyway, knowing that I am writing about me for me does not detract the joy of finding a comment about one of my posts (I am not so far gone that I will post in response to myself). But so far, 50% of the posts on my blog are from advertising! The last one was for some newfangled way to trade and barter in order to establish an "Interim Monetary System of Heaven on Earth" WTF?????

It's aggravating and certainly discouraging as a blogger, though unfortunately, I think it may be par for the course.

bah

Blogthings

I've posted a few (!) of my Blogthing results off to the right of the page. I was looking at them and realized that there really isn't anywhere for someone to tell me what results they got if they took any of the blogthings. So, if you take one and want to share your result, comment on this post! I always take these short surveys with a HUGE grain of salt (and some of them are just short of being absolutely random) but it cracks me up when they seem more dead on than not. This one kinda cracked me up:

You Are 30% Weird

Not enough to scare other people... But sometimes you scare yourself.

How Weird Are You?

Oh, and for the first time in my life, my mental age is lower than my chronological age! If you were always "four going on forty" you understand how much of a relief that is. Now, when I am 50 acting like a 20-something, then you have my permission, nay my demand, that I be slapped to reality with.....A FROZEN HERRING!!!!

^_^

On a more serious note...

There are a good many places that need our donations. Of course, you should go with one that fits your philosophy and hopefully becomes the one place you concentrate your efforts, rather than a dollar here and a dollar there. Geoffrey and I have decided to send our donation for the Katrina disaster efforts to America's Second Harvest.

We are making a second donation to Unicef, to help with the Tsunami efforts.

The biggest challenge in response to a natural disaster like Katrina or the 2004 Tsunami is not just to respond as generously and as quickly as possible, but to also realize that these efforts are ongoing. They don't end once the donation is sent and the fickle news coverage moves on to other things (note I did not say bigger and better). Even if it means parcelling out the donation and sending only half each time - it's the constant flow of funds over time to the groups that need it that helps.

I am not saying that you should or should not make a donation, or even that you should or should not care. I'm not patting myself on the back and saying, "yay me" for making these donations because I know I could be doing even more. It's just that Geoff and I are often asked for advice and I thought this would be a good time to use that clout. Geoff actually gets all of the credit because he's the one who looked at the different organizations out there and determined that these were two that really seemed committed to getting the job done.

Be safe and be well, people.

L.

Preparing for the start of school

Funny how I haven't taken classes in three years (geez...) and this time of year is always the start of school. I even think about going in to work as "going to school." It's probably because I work at the same University where I completed my undergrad and grad degrees. Maybe because so many other milestones happened within it's landscaped borders - I met my husband there as well as many great friends, some still with me, many dispersed to who knows where. It was a place where it didn't matter that I wasn't the skinniest, or the prettiest, or even the funniest - I could try on a whole bunch of personas and make mistakes. Oh, so many mistakes. But, then again, so many good choices too!

This was also where I got my first job with benefits and my first full-time job. Basically, I have spent all of my adult life "at school." I must say, working where one effectively grew up has an odd effect on one's perception of time. I was never good with timelines (just ask anyone who has ever waited at least 10 minutes for me to arrive anywhere), but this one really screws with my head. The campus is ever changing and new students come in year after year, but I sometimes have to do the math to realize just how far I've come. And, to be honest, I have no intention of leaving anytime soon.

And now, to share with you just how old we really are:
BELOIT COLLEGE'S MINDSET LIST®
FOR THE CLASS OF 2009

Most students entering college this fall were born in 1987. <--I was in the SEVENTH grade, for the love of God!

1. Andy Warhol, Liberace, Jackie Gleason, and Lee Marvin have always been dead.
2. They don't remember when "cut and paste" involved scissors.
3. Heart-lung transplants have always been possible.
4. Wayne Gretzky never played for Edmonton.
5. Boston has been working on the "The Big Dig" all their lives.
6. With little need to practice, most of them do not know how to tie a tie.
7. Pay-Per-View television has always been an option.
8. They never had the fun of being thrown into the back of a station wagon with six others.
9. Iran and Iraq have never been at war with each other.
10. They are more familiar with Greg Gumbel than with Bryant Gumbel.
11. Philip Morris has always owned Kraft Foods.
12. Al-Qaida has always existed with Osama bin Laden at its head.
13. They learned to count with Lotus 1-2-3.
14. Car stereos have always rivaled home component systems.
15. Jimmy Swaggart and Jim Bakker have never preached on television.
16. Voice mail has always been available.
17. "Whatever" is not part of a question but an expression of sullen rebuke.
18. The federal budget has always been more than a trillion dollars.
19. Condoms have always been advertised on television.
20. They may have fallen asleep playing with their Gameboys in the crib.
21. They have always had the right to burn the flag.
22. For daily caffeine emergencies, Starbucks has always been around the corner.
23. Ferdinand Marcos has never been in charge of the Philippines.
24. Money put in their savings account the year they were born earned almost 7% interest.
25. Bill Gates has always been worth at least a billion dollars.
26. Dirty dancing has always been acceptable.
27. Southern fried chicken, prepared with a blend of 11 herbs and spices, has always been available in China.
28. Michael Jackson has always been bad, and greed has always been good.
29. The Starship Enterprise has always looked dated.
30. Pixar has always existed.
31. There has never been a "fairness doctrine" at the FCC.
32. Judicial appointments routinely have been "Borked."
33. Aretha Franklin has always been in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
34. There have always been zebra mussels in the Great Lakes.
35. Police have always been able to search garbage without a search warrant.
36. It has always been possible to walk from England to mainland Europe on dry land.
37. They have grown up in a single superpower world.
38. They missed the oat bran diet craze.
39. American Motors has never existed.
40. Scientists have always been able to see supernovas.
41. Les Miserables has always been on stage.
42. Halogen lights have always been available at home, with a warning.
43. "Baby M" may be a classmate, and contracts with surrogate mothers have always been legal.
44. RU486 has always been on the market.
45. There has always been a pyramid in front of the Louvre in Paris.
46. British Airways has always been privately owned.
47. Irradiated food has always been available but controversial.
48. Snowboarding has always been a popular winter pastime.
49. Libraries have always been the best centers for computer technology and access to good software.
50. Biosphere 2 has always been trying to create a revolution in the life sciences.
51. The Hubble Telescope has always been focused on new frontiers.
52. Researchers have always been looking for stem cells.
53. They do not remember "a kinder and gentler nation."
54. They never saw the shuttle Challenger fly.
55. The TV networks have always had cable partners.
56. Airports have always had upscale shops and restaurants.
57. Black Americans have always been known as African-Americans.
58. They never saw Pat Sajak or Arsenio Hall host a late night television show.
59. Matt Groening has always had a Life in Hell.
60. Salman Rushdie has always been watching over his shoulder.
61. Digital cameras have always existed.
62. Tom Landry never coached the Cowboys.
63. Time Life and Warner Communications have always been joined.
64. CNBC has always been on the air.
65. The Field of Dreams has always been drawing people to Iowa.
66. They never saw a Howard Johnson's with 28 ice cream flavors.
67. Reindeer at Christmas have always distinguished between secular and religious decorations.
68. Entertainment Weekly has always been on the newsstand.
69. Lyme Disease has always been a ticking concern in the woods.
70. Jimmy Carter has always been an elder statesman.
71. Miss Piggy and Kermit have always dwelt in Disneyland.
72. America's Funniest Home Videos has always been on television.
73. Their nervous new parents heard C. Everett Koop proclaim nicotine as addictive as heroin.
74. Lever has always been looking for 2000 parts to clean.
75. They have always been challenged to distinguish between news and entertainment on cable TV.


For the mindset lists of previous years, go here

^_^

Brain Test results

Hmmmm - no big surprise on this one - but the test itself is very visually pretty and interesting. ALMOST worth the $4.95 to see why my answers led to my being classified as Left-Brained as opposed to Balance-Brained or Right-Brained....


Liza, you are Left-brained

Most left-brained people like you feel at ease in situations requiring verbal ability, attention to detail, and linear, analytical ability. Whether you know it or not, you are a much stronger written communicator than many, able to get your ideas across better than others.

It's also likely that you are methodical and efficient at many things that you do. You could also be good at math, particularly algebra, which is based on very strict rules that make sense to your logical mind.

The Brain Test by Tickle.com

Yet another senseless quiz

This one tells me which Daily Show correspondant I am:


You're Lewis Black. You're mad as hell, and
probably going to take it some more so that you
can use it in your segment.


Which Daily Show persona are you?
brought to you by Quizilla


YES!!!!!


^_^

New use for Google

Directions: Type "(your name) is" with the quotes, into a Google search then pick out your favorite 10 responses. Copy, then repost your responses:

The fact that Liza is the victim of her mother's fashion sense, also doesn't help.
Forget foreplay, Liza is about climax.
Liza is a healthy girl, available for adoption.
Liza is a god of the Fon people of West Africa.
Liza is feeling Change is the end result of all true learning.
Understandably, Liza is confused, thrilled, scared, dazed, and excited, all at once.
Liza is a downer of industrial-strength Nyquil proportions.
While her demeanor is often child-like and naive, Liza is, after all, no dummy.
Liza is compelled to begin playing, which she does brilliantly, despite never having had any talent before.
And Liza is the Super-Bitch who is out to give them all what they have coming.

Special thanks to Janel for the bulletin on myspace.com

^_^

Free smile!!!!

Well, it is if you have a computer and a decently quick way to see trailers online, that is.

My friend Becky gave me the heads up that the trailer for RENT was online. Now it's available in iTunes with an exclusive track from the movie soundtrack. For the official site, go to http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/rent/.

I was a little trepidacious when I heard about plans for the movie. Ok, good, the original Roger (Adam Pascal) and Mark (Anthony Rapp) are back to reprise their roles, as are many of the other original cast members (Taye Diggs and Jessie Martin). But, having seen RENT again recently, I can't help but feel as though the stage musical is stuck in 1996, which is understandable, considering that the creator of the musical, Jonathan Larson, died shortly after the play opened, due to an aeortic aneurysm just before his 36th birthday. It can sometimes be hard to convince people to see a musical where the music is heavily influenced by the late 80's/early '90's, so perhaps the movie will provide a better visual context for more people to understand the heart and story of RENT.

But the trailer assuaged my fears. It looks as though the movie takes the story and makes it bigger, while retaining a few images of the stage and the wonderous, anarchistic setting the musical invokes. I was a little afraid that Adam and Anthony were looking a little old for their roles, but everyone looks great. The director is Chris Columbus, recently of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban fame, so he should have no problems working with such a large ensemble cast. The costumes have been updated (which they have not in the stage version, so Roger has to endure what I can only say look like Skidz-style plaid baggy pants, and Mimi is still wearing a glitter/patent leather/leopard/spandex thing that may have been lifted from an old Prince video). I am not sure I am a fan of Roger's 'do, but I can live with that (what is that called, anyway? Is it a shag cut? A blow and dry?).

But it will be a great experience, I am sure. It looks beautiful. If you get the chance, see the stage musical. Listen to the soundtrack and then start the countdown to November.

^_^

PS, for the original musical website, go to http://www.siteforrent.com

Oogh - tired...

Geez - when did it go from May 3 to August 3? One of the major downsides of working for a university is that while people think you have the summer off, you're actually working your bum off with new student orientation. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice change of pace and when everything works, it's all good, it's just tiring. I am really only blogging because I have a spare moment and noticed that I hadn't posted anything since last week. Of course, staying up waaaay past my bedtime just to surf around on the 'net or play video games probably doesn't help much.

Not a whole lot is new in my little corner of the world. Mostly work and trying to keep up with the laundry and the dishes (oh yeah, I'm living on the wild side now!). I bought a few new plants for the front yard that desparately need to be planted so they won't completely burn to a crisp (it may be too late - yikes!). I should post a photo of the house at some point. Just promise that if you track it down and show up on the doorstep that you at least bring a dish to pass for dinner, ok?

I guess that's it for the moment. Time to go home, anyhow. Till next time!

^_^

Simply lovely

Last night Geoffrey, his sister Carey, Geoff's former co-worker Boe and I went to see "Dear Friends - the music of Final Fantasy." The performance of Nobuo Uematsu's score to the long-lived role playing game (RPG) was great. The concert purposely chooses songs that would show off an orchestra to its best advantage - sweeping strings, crisp percussion, and a very talented high school chamber choir as well as score high recognition points from the audience. The house was almost completely packed, with the exception of some high end front row seats. And clearly, this was a major coup for the DSO - in the gift shop, a young women commented that they had driven from New Jersey to attend (and this was the Sunday night performance). I hope they left Michigan with a good impression of Detroit and Michigan in general. Our DSO certainly did the music justice. Arnie Roth, the conductor who is traveling with the Dear Friends tour, looked absolutely delighted with the performances. He had the entire orchestra stand up after a couple of the songs and applauded enthusiastically when he felt they had really nailed the music.

It was really cool to see so many different age groups crossing Woodward (and 8 mile, in many ways, not just geographical) to come to Orchestra Hall. Many people were dressed to the nines, others were more casual. Young adults were bringing their parents. There's always someone lamenting the death of classical music, but maybe this is the classical music of our time. And hopefully, there's a band geek or two out there who decide to continue to play, enjoy and share their music, knowing that orchestral music can be cool and can be applauded with all the enthusiasm of a rock concert. Kudos to the DSO for bringing the concert to Detroit.

For the official Square-Enix website of Uematsu, go here.

Kelley L. Carter of the Detroit Free Press puts a bit of context on the amazing response to the tour in the July 22, 2005 Detroit Freep. Unfortunately, despite being one of only a few cities to get the tour, local post-concert write-ups are nonexistent - bah!

Gotta love those random personality tests...

How Smart Am I really?


Wow, you get this ending cause you got over half
the questions right, and I am surprised! You
might actually be smart. You might actually get
a good job. You might actually lead a good life
unless you turn out to be like the majority of
the Brainiacs out there on the streets with no
job because of their lack of motivation,
laziness, and boredom with the world because
they are too smart. Let's hope you aren't like
one of those and succeed... We shall see, shalt
we. (By the way, if you are as smart as you
seem to be, you would notice that the person
above is Albert Einstein)


The IQ Test! How smart are you really?
brought to you by Quizilla


Which Hogwarts student am I most like?

You are most like Hermione Granger, smart and
witty. You are against breaking rules but you
always let your friends talk you into breaking
rules. Not only are you good at school work but
you have lots of common sense and your very
good at solving problems


Which Hogwarts student are you most like?
brought to you by Quizilla


What's my Cowboy Bebop Theme Song?



what's your cowboy bebop theme song?

Adieu Lyrics

Been a fool, been a clown, lost my way from up and down,
And I know... yes, I know...
And I see in your eyes that you really weren't surprised at me
At all... not at all...
And I know by your smile...
It's... you...

Don't care...
...for me
Don't cry, let's say goodbye.
Adieu...

It's time to say goodbye,
I know... that in time,
It will just fade away.
It's time...
...to say...
...good bye.

I stand alone,
And watch you fade away
Like clouds.
High up and in the sky,
I'm strong,
And so cold,
As I stand alone.
Goodbye,
So long,
Adieu...

Oh how I love you so,
Lost in those memories,
And now you've gone.
I feel a pain,
Feeling... like a fool...
Adieu...

My love for you
burns deep inside me
so strong...
Embers of times we had,
And now,
Here I stand,
Lost in a memory,
I see your face... and smile.

Oh how I love you so,
Lost in those memories,
And now you've gone.
I feel a pain,
Feeling... like a fool...
Adieu...

My love for you
burns deep inside me
so strong...
Embers of times we had,
And now,
Here I stand,
Lost in a memory,
I see your face...
...and smile.

Back from New York and Stratford

Hello all!

Geoff and I rented a car and drove out to Elizabeth, New Jersey last Sunday, then met up with my Detroit Archdiocesan Festival Chorus on Tuesday. The city tour was great, though exhausting and by no means as comprehensive as anyone would have liked (there was a very blink-and-you'll-miss it view of the Statue of Liberty through some trees as we happened to drive past). Our performance at Carnegie Hall wasn't bad, it was more enjoyable for the adrenaline rush of performing more than anything else. We did better at St. Patrick's Cathedral the next day, maybe because we were in the choir loft and no one could stare at us. Geoff and I then drove out to Syracuse, NY and then onward to Stratford.

All I can say is, I love the Barenaked Ladies. I have no doubt that much like Anderson and Ulvaeus (you may know them as the two gentlemen from ABBA) Robertson and Page could go into scoring musicals and plays if they wanted to. Steven Page wrote most of the material, but it's promoted as a BNL project. For excellent media clips, go to the Stratford website. And as much as I love the Ladies, the fellows they have performing the material do it fine justice. Check out the Lover and His Lass video - just amazing. I wonder if Wm. Shakespeare would be tickled at the idea of a group of guys dancing the hustle to his lyrics.

We drove back this morning and all was very quiet and green and beautiful. I do love flying, but a good road trip is well worth the extra time spent enclosed in a car. Well, that and a trusty iPod (or two, since we had both Geoff's and my mini). And now it is back to reality and budgeting and work starting on Wednesday (I took an extra day off which I will probably need just to get through all of my e-mail).

If you can get to Stratford before the show closes in October, do it. Get a big group of folks together and go see the show. If you can't get to the show, buy the CD or the MP3 (you can also purchase downloads of past concerts).

Later! L.

Ok, it's not really a post...

...'cause technically I am not the one really writing the bulk of this. I want to share with you some of the incredible lyrics of songs I love. And who are you? Well, I don't know, even if I am the only one to read this regularly, it will still make me smile to see them, so it's ok.

This first one is "Blue" by Yoko Kanno. I swear, if you don't know Cowboy Bebop, please please please check it out. It's brilliant, funny, full of pop culture and space noir and is one of those magical mystical convergents of music, art, story and pixie dust (courtesy of Ed!)

Never seen a bluer sky
Yeah I can feel it reaching out
And moving closer
There's something about blue
Asked myself what it's all for
You know the funny thing about it
I couldn't answer
No I couldn't answer

Things have turned a deeper shade of blue
And images that might be real
May be illusion
Keep flashing off and on
Free
Wanna be free
Gonna be free
And move among the stars
You know they really aren't so far
Feels so free
Gotta know free
Please
Don't wake me from the dream
It's really everything it seemed
I'm so free
No black and white in the blue

Everything is clearer now
Life is just a dream you know
That's never ending
I'm ascending

Why lalagma?

I once made a really rash decision to think I was madly in love with someone and run off to another country to pursue it. A lot of really good things came of that, but there were darker results as well (including hurting my then boyfriend, now husband). One of the upsides was meeting my friend Christopher, unabashedly British, thoroughly charming, and I don't think he would mind my saying this - plays for the other team. When the relationship imploded (if you could really call it that), Chris and I were fast friends for life. At any rate, he once commented that he liked my then e-mail name, which was assigned by the University as a first name, first initial, as many letters of your last name as space would allow = lalagma. I am sure I still have the letter somewhere, but I imagine it went something like this:

lalagma. what a wonderful name. It sounds exotic and delicious.
Like a lalagma cocktail, or perhaps a lalagma torte.

So, while kodamakitty is my current attempt at a life outside of my public persona as staid academic advisor, lalagma is a salute to the impetuous younger me.

Goodbye, Lola

Well, this past Wednesday marked the end of an era. My maternal grandmother, known primarily to us grandkids as simply, "lola," was buried. It was a very long twelve days for me, and I wasn't nearly as close to her as some of my cousins. I don't tend to cry at funerals, don't ask me why, it probably seems fairly cold and callous for me to not be at least weepy when everyone else around me is wailing, red-nosed and sobbing. Even when my dad passed away, 14 years ago, I didn't really break down until at least two weeks later.

It's not so much that the person is gone, really. I think when I do cry, it's out of a sense of selfish loss. Funerals mark the ends of things - times, places, feelings of security/insecurity. I rarely miss the person in question. Most likely I have yet to lose someone I will truly miss in my life.

Maybe it's because I can be such a sentimental person on a day to day basis that when the time is up, whether because the person dies or because I decide to break off a relationship, I'm mostly ok. I have found lately that the only relationships I get nostalgic for are the ones where we didn't get to say goodbye, or the parting didn't have the sanity and perspective that time and distance affords.

Anyway, I did the best I could to try to help keep my family together and to contibute to Lola's funeral services. She was a beautiful person, and I regret not having talked with her more.

Happy Birthday!

hippo bird day to ewe
hippo bird day to ewe
hippo bird day
hippo bird day
hippo bird day to ewe!

Lots of love and kisses to my favorite ffxi taru ever-lovin' star wars sweetie, Galfridus!

Never read the bottom of a chicken pot pie

I mean it, folks. Just don't do it. Especially if you are waiting for said pot pie to finish baking its lovely self in the microwave, only to idly look at its packaging and realize you are about to eat a heart attack in a box. And it serves two, no less.

But did I eat it anyway? Darn tootin'

I am completely grooving on Sting's, "Whenever I say your name," from "Sacred Love." It's 5 minutes, 28 seconds of beauty and bliss. I can't even really explain it well. It just makes me happy. Not bad for a song from 2003. There are quite a few songs like that. I love them very intensely, listen to them incessently and then forget them for a long time. Yaz's "Only you" is one of those songs. I didn't even remember how much I love that song until it showed up on The Office (BBC version, thank you very much).

Well, at this point I am rambling and there is much to be done. I will most like post on Geemu.com to update how Ms. Kodamakitty is doing. Bye!