Reading: January 2010

Finally getting back into the reading groove. It’s something I’ve always loved, but never do enough of. Only three books this month, but a gal’s gotta start somewhere, right? Here we go:

Dear American Airlines, by Jonhathan Miles – I wrote about this a few weeks ago, so I’m not going to get into it again. Except to repeat: meh. (Goodreads review)

Pride and Prejudice and Zomibes, by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith – This was a lot of fun. I’m an Austen fan, and I do love me some zombies. A comedy of manners with some zombie ass-kicking. Good times. (Goodreads review)

Juliet, Naked, by Nick Hornby – Oh, how I do love me some Nick Hornby. Great characters, as with all of his books. Loved, loved, loved it. (Goodreads review)

Currently reading: Andromeda Klein, by Frank Portman. He wrote King Dork, which I’d like to re-read soon, since Salinger has just died, and the protag, Tom, has some fantasticly great things to say about the Catcher Cult that seems to have inducted as members all of the adults in his life. (woah, run-on sentence) I don’t, however, want to get back into the habit of re-reading things and not reading any new stuff. This year is all about reading things I’ve never read before, and I mean to stick to it for the most part.

Woah! Text on pages that are paper!

I haven’t read an actual book in an embarrassingly long while. Or so was the case until this week. I’d pick up the occasional book, but I just wasn’t in the mood, or napping seemed a better use of my energy (or lack thereof, more accurately). My normal book reading time (commuting) has been used for other purposes (sleeping) because my normal sleeping time has been usurped by commuting (from roller derby). Everybody got that?

I finally started reading again this week, and even though the first book of the year merited no more than a “meh” response from me, I’m still glad I’m getting back into the habit. I think I’m going to use Twitter to write wee book reviews as I work through my “to read” list. And maybe I’ll keep track of things using Good Reads, but we’ll see. I love systems and lists and stuff, but tend to get caught up in the organizational process that I forget what I’m supposed to be doing and then get annoyed by the superfluous stuff and give up all together. It doesn’t have to be so involved. I don’t know why my brain likes to sabotage itself, but there you go.

Right, so… no more babbling.

The first book I read this year was Dear American Airlines by Jonathan Miles.

Synopsis: A man stuck in O’Hare Airport en route to his lesbian daughter’s “wedding” (his quotes, not mine) writes a novel-length letter of complaint to American Airlines and highlights scenes of his life and work outlining how he got to where he is now. He’s a giant screw up and is counting on getting to his daughter’s wedding so he can at least say he’d fulfilled one promise in his miserable life.

Review: Meh. The protagonist (Bennie) is not supposed to be likable, but I found I didn’t really care about him or any of the characters. I just wasn’t convinced, and in the end I was sort of rooting for him to kill himself just so the book would end. SPOILER: he changes his mind. Benny is fairly witty at times, though, and his self-deprecating humor drew a few laughs. I didn’t hate it, but I wouldn’t actually say I liked it.

upcoming fun times:

Please mark your calendars with a notation regarding the following upcoming super great fun times of awesomeness:

Friday, November 20, 7:30pm – Arkham Horror game night!

Saturday, December 12, 7pm – A Birthday party for ME! YAY!

And if you’re interested in joining a book club, I’m starting one. The first book we’re reading is Dear American Airlines by Jonathan Miles, and our first meeting is Friday, December 11, around 8:30 pm somewhere in Providence, most likely. More info on that is forthcoming, obviously.

Let me know if you’d like to come to any of these! YAY!

ctl alt del

Life reboot.

Summer has ended. Fall is nearly over. Winter will be upon us shortly.

My brain is permanently wired to the academic calendar. I was a student until I was 30 and now I work at an academic institution, so September always feels more like the start of a new year than January ever does.

Every fall I get a burst of energy and I have to constantly carry around a note pad because I can’t turn off my brain. (Alas, this renewed zest does nothing for the powers of my memory, hence the note pad.) The cooler temperatures allow my brain to actually engage in thought other than “Dear God, could it get any hotter and could I feel any more disgusting?” I’m finally able to accomplish things that had previously only been vague plans. The summer is always so busy what with parties and derby business and such, that I never get the time to work on any of my other fun projects.

The fall is actually even busier for me, but somehow everything seems easier than it does any other time of year. Fresh perspective, ideas, adventures, parties… it all seems to fit together so much better than in the spring or summer. I usually just feel overwhelmed with all of my obligations, but during the fall, I feel like I can accomplish it all and still maintain my sanity.

I have a zillion and one things going on as per usual, but I think it can still be managed. All it takes is planning. And stamina.

The last year has been very busy and still managed to have a flavor of stagnation about it. It’s been a very disorganized year, to the point where I have felt disconcertingly out of control at times – as if I were treading mud – wearing myself out and not really getting anywhere. It’s been an especially non-crafty year, too. I’ve had the odd project here and there, but I haven’t spent this long away from craftiness… ever, I think. I’m finally getting my crafty mojo back, about which I’m very happy, indeed. The same with reading.

Actually, it’s been more than just this past year. Maybe the last two years. I’ve been out of grad school, and playing roller derby. Two major events (one ending, and one starting), never mind the grueling (and seemingly never-ending) job search, so it’s no wonder it’s taken me a long while to figure out a good rhythm for my life. I use my commuting time to catch up on sleep, instead of reading and crafting as I had done before. Oh, and the place is a wreck, so nothing I need for various projects is within easy grasp. My default is to just zone out on the computer rather than to actually accomplish anything useful at home.

But I’m beginning to (slowly) get my life resembling some sort of slightly organized mess. Anyway, here’s a list of what’s been going on in the recent past, and what’s planned for the near future:

1. Rollah Derby, Hey! It was a great season. The Old Money Honeys made it to the home championship, but lost to the Rats. No worries, though, because I won MVP for my team. It was a pretty sweet moment. I wasn’t able to play in the last two Bees bouts (against Rochester and Pioneer Valley), so my season ended a wee bit earlier than everyone else. We’re in the off season now, tidying up the loose ends for this season and planning for the next. We’re in the height of recruiting at the moment, and I’m on the recruiting committee. It’s been crazy. I’m answering derby-related emails at least two or more hours each day. We’ve got over 100 people on our recruiting list, and at least 40 of them have been coming to our recruiting events, and will most likely stick around for tryouts in January. Yes, we’re having tryouts this year! We’ve got so may people interested that we can’t possibly take everyone. That means that only the most motivated will stick around, which is pretty sweet. I’m definitely looking forward to the 2010 season. I’m also going to Philadelphia for the National Championships. It’s going to be so much fun!

2. Work – MIT has hired me nearly full-time (still a no-benefits part-timer, but it’s WAY better than before and I’m breathing a little easier for having the extra hours). I’m now doing more collections-type work, in addition to the reference assisting (which consists mostly of photocopying for researchers). I get to help with new accessions and some processing. So far the learning curve hasn’t been that steep, but it’s been a little wonky due to shifting work-flows and what not. The short version is that I’m really enjoying it and get to use my brain. I’m also there five days a week, and I’ve got my own desk in a cube with a big window. In other work-related news, I survived my first SeptOber working King Richard’s Faire. It was tremendously fun. I met some really great people and made a few new friends. I’ve even been invited to work at a few Cons next year (steampunk and sci-fi), which is probably one of the coolest and geekiest things ever. I plan on documenting those adventures in a photoblog of sorts.

3. Craftiness – After ages and ages of non-knitting, I’ve finally got projects on the needles (on which I’m actively working) and I’m finally back at the wheel. I ordered a bunch of fiber from Cranberry Moon Farm (a few different wools as well as a wool/alpaca blend) and have been getting back into the groove. I’ve been invited to do a spinning demo at AHA Night next week. On Thursday, November 12, from 6-9pm I’ll be at TL6 The Gallery (100 William Street, New Bedford, MA). If I get enough spun I’ll have a few skeins to sell (though I doubt I will). Maybe I’ll have some other things done up to sell (gnomes and mushrooms, perhaps?) The details are still loose at this time, but I’ve been invited to sell my stuff there, and I’ve got to put myself on a production schedule, because I’m absolutely useless without deadlines. I also borrowed a sewing machine and can therefore get caught up on some of the derby-related clothes I’ve been trying to make these last few months. I still haven’t gotten my screen printing stuff together, though, so they won’t be ready for sale until I get that all set up. Soon, though, especially now that I’m getting my work space a bit more useable. I sense an intense house-purge very soon. We have too much crap. We also have a ton of awesome stuff, which tends to get lost among the clutter. And Christmas will be upon us very soon. Luckily I’m only knitting for a few people, so it shouldn’t be too terribly taxing (she says with much trepidation).

4. Currently reading – Andromeda Klein (Frank Portman), Juliet, Naked (Nick Hornby), as well as a few others that I’ve picked up and put down in recent weeks. The first two, though, are ones that I’m actively reading. So far I love both. Portman is responsible for one of the best books about high school kids ever, King Dork. While KD was told from a teen boy’s perspective, AK has a girl protagonist, and I love her. It’s also got tarot cards, ghosts, and other spooky things. Plus it’s wicked funny. Juliet is great, too. Hornby does what he does very well, with the music and the characters and what not. I just have to remember to actually one of them on the train with me so I can actually finish reading them. I’m also starting a book club with a friend, so that’ll keep me reading. The first pick is Dear American Airlines by Jonathan Miles. It looks like an interesting read. And if I hate it, at least I’ll have something to talk about at book club. (We’re also most likely going to be a rather boosey club, seeing as how the members thus far are fellow derby gals. Perhaps I should use one of the clever names I had on reserve for my non-existent booze blog? How about the Literale Society?)

5. Socialite – I have no unplanned weekends from here until after the New Year. It’s been that way since Labor Day. It’s insane. But I love it. I am much better about keeping my calendar and planner up to date these days to keep up with all the parties and stuff. Halloween was a blast! I’m so glad so many people made it to our party. I didn’t really know how many to expect, since there were birthday parties and other Halloween parties going on the same night. The next event Chez Nous will be a game night. I want to play Arkham Horror, but if there are more people coming than can play that game, we have a bunch of other games to have several going on at once. Plus, we have darts, too. Mark your calendars for Friday, November 20, 7:30 pm. Potluck. I’ll make a Facebook event invite thingie. I also have plans to travel to Maryland for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year. I was terribly homesick last year on my birthday and Christmas, so I’m planning ahead this year.

Whew. That’s the news for now. As usual, I have a bunch of pictures from this Fall but have not uploaded any of them to any sort of photo sharing site. I’m lame. I might get to it. Maybe. Pretty sure I need a functioning Time Turner to get all this done, but we’ll see how I do. Oh, and I could use an airship. Some jerk stole mine, and I haven’t gotten it back yet.

Chrononauts AWAY!

no wonder I’m exhausted

Last Saturday actually felt like summer, which made me quite happy. (Remind me I said that when in August I’m daydreaming about October.) I do hate the heat and humidity, but I love these first few days of early summer.

I went for a run last weekend, and it was decidedly more successful than the last time. I brought along my MP3 player and that made a world of difference. Though I rather felt like the marching band people in this xkcd comic. And none of the songs really matched up with my stride, which drove me batty the entire time. But I went the whole nearly 4 miles without having to turn back because I was too annoyed to follow through. I left the house around 11:30 am, though, which was stupid of me. My route is usually pretty shady, but I forgot that at noon, nothing is shady. With nine months of winter, it’s difficult to remember how to behave when it’s actually warm out. I got pretty dehydrated and overheated and got dizzy so I only ran about half the distance and just walked the rest. But I still call it a win since I actually got my arse out the door and running. And the cross training Summah Resolution is in effect! I need to put the pull up bar back in the doorway, and really, I’ve neglected doing any sort of core work for entirely too long. It’ll all pay off when I can kick more ass at derby.

Speaking of which, I’d love to publicly thank roller derby for helping me overcome a metric shite tonne of body issues that have plagued me my entire life. I’m really not that much smaller than I was when I began derby, but my perception of my body has changed tremendously. I’m stronger and faster than I’ve ever been in my entire life, and that thrills me to pieces. I’m not running to lose weight, either. I’m running for the sheer enjoyment of the movement and to increase my strength and stamina to be able to better play the sport I love. I really don’t give a shit about how other people see me when I’m running down the street in spandex booty shorts and a tank top.

Every other time I’ve ever exercised regularly it’s been about getting stronger and gaining stamina, yes, but always looming in the back (or front) of my mind was the desire to become smaller and to lose weight. It was always there. And now I hardly have any of that crap left rattling around in my head. It’s almost entirely gone. I say almost, because no matter how hard I try I can’t turn off the voices outside of my head telling me that I should want to be smaller. I’m average size, really, but a large percentage of society, however, thinks that I am fat. And even if I was, who the hell cares? It’s my body. How it looks is no one’s business but my own.

And while I’m at it, society: Fuck you and your fascist beauty standards. I’m so sick of all of the hate-yourself bullshit that is everywhere during the summer. (Well, it’s everywhere all the time, but seems especially omni-present these days.) I don’t need 53 specials on how to get my body ready for bathing suit season, thanks. And I’m going to stop there before I get really caught up in a body issues rant. I’ll let others (more capable than I) handle that one.

Moving on.

I fell at practice this past Tuesday and my knee pad slipped. No major damage, just a bruise and some swelling, but it was a little scary. I’m going to take it easy (ie no scrimmaging) for a couple more days, but it should be good to go for practice next week. I did not run this week like I had planned, though. It was rainy most days, so I’m probably kidding myself into thinking that I would have gone out if I hadn’t been injured.

Oh and as for my other Summah Resolutions, I did see Ida Maria last week. Two local bands opened for her. I really enjoyed For What It’s Worth (who were super nice and gave PRD a lovely little shout out mid-set). And The Danger Room (while they didn’t completely strike my fancy) were decent, too. In other local news: I went to my first Waterfire last weekend! It was sruprisingly really great. I hate crowds and it was a little touch-and-go for a little while, but I settled in pretty quickly and enjoyed myself thoroughly. Plus, they had fried dough. Oh, and I also got to see the Red Sox this past week. I saw game two in the series against the Marlins. It was really fun! A friend of a friend had an extra ticket for the roof deck standing room area. It was a wickedtonnalotta fun, and half way through the game the people sitting at the $500 table in front of us gave us their seats. (And I got to have fried dough at the game, too. Nom.)

And tonight is the BDD bout against the Texecutioners. (I missed last night’s Gotham/Texecutioners bout in CT, but I heard it was phenomenal! Gotham won, but it was a close one the whole time.) And the Nuts and the Cosmos are kicking things off before the interleague bout gets underway, so it should be a pretty fun derby evening.

My last day at one of my jobs is the 30th and next Friday they’re throwing us a library-wide “assistant appreciation party.” Translation: “sorry the economy sucks and you’re all getting laid off at the end of the month.” I wonder if they’ll actually have anything I can eat. I usually end up with just juice and plain crackers at these “appreciation” gatherings. Though the following week I’m going to a separate gathering just for those of us who work in my department who are getting laid off. That should be much more fun. I went to the library summer party last Friday (though I left early due to a migraine) and it wasn’t as awkward as I had expected it to be, and there was a ton of vegan-enough-for-me food, so perhaps this Friday’s party won’t be as weird as I’m expecting it to be.

It’s still weird to think that in a couple of weeks, I’ll have five-day weekends. I know I should feel bad about my looming unemployment, but I’m actually looking forward to it. It’ll give me time to catch up on a bunch of projects, namely R’s book. Things keep getting in the way and my life keeps exploding all over the place and I can’t seem to get my act together to actually meet to discuss the work thus far. It’s really cool that I get to participate in this project, as I’ve never edited a novel before (just books of poetry and essays and things), but I haven’t been as efficient as I would like to be. It’s a pretty fun story, and I want to be able to devote more time to it. Check out the author’s new website!

That’s the news for now, friends.
Hearts and Stars.

Book meme

(From The Spinstah)

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open it to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence/ phrase.
4. Blog the next four sentences/ phrases together with these instructions.
5. Don’t you dare dig your shelves for that very special or intellectual book.
6. Pass it forward to six friends.

In April 1943 a group of around thirty of us were gathered in this beautiful place so we could discuss how to embark on the most secret of all war projects. In the early phase of our work at Los Alamos there were many questions to be answered: Exactly how many neutrons are released with each fission of a uranium nucleus? What is the speed of these neutrons? How are the neutrons absorbed or scattered around when they penetrate different materials?

That’s from The Joy of Insight, the autobiography of Victor Weisskopf, who was second in command of the Theoretical Division of the Manhattan Project. I’m assisting in the processing of his collection at the MIT Archives. It’s been facinating, really. The book is in my work bag, hanging off the desk chair.

Though, if I were to quote my favorite passage from that book it would be this one:

He was a tall, rather heavily built man whose strong body, over-sized hands, and large skull made him look like the captain of a fishing fleet rather than a scientist. He had bushy eyebrows and a sharp, straight nose set in a long, broad face. His large head almost caused his death in 1943, when after fleeing from the Nazis he was transported from Sweden to London in a British warplane that flew very high to avoid antiaircraft fire. The helmet containing an intercom between him and the pilot was too small to fit his head, so he did not hear a warning to put on his oxygen mask. Luckily, the plane descended to a safer altitude so quickly that Bohr was not seriously affected.

That’s how Weisskopf introduces Niels Borh. It’s nice to know that in addition to being a brilliant physicist, Bohr had a giant head. Probably for to keep his huge brain.

Madeline L’Engle

Madeline L’Engle, Children’s Writer dead at 88

ETA: Want to read more? Click here. (Thanks to bookshelves of doom for the link.)

A crafty weekend

Arrrrrrgh

This weekend was quite fun. And productive. I love it when a plan comes together.

Throughout the entire weekend, I finished M’s bridal shower keepsake book, pictured here. I think it came out quite well. I have to do one repair on it, and let that set, before I can pop it in the post to be sent to its proper owner. I think she will like it.

Click through for more photos of the book, and for photos of all the other stuff (crafty or otherwise) that we did this weekend. The photos have all the crafty details, etc.

Friday evening, MO came over to watch LOTR with JeT and I. During that time, I finished the yellow skirt that I had been planning for ages. (I never did get around to making the green one, nor the apron, that I had wanted to make this weekend, but oh well. Sewing always takes longer than I anticipate.) After I finished (and modeled) the skirt, I worked on the knitted bonnet. I finished the head portion that evening.

Saturday morning was absolutely perfect. I love waking up to crisp, clear, blue skies, and slightly chilly. A little taste of autumn to come. We packed leftovers and went to Massasoit State Park for a picnic and a lovely walk. It took us a while to actually find a trail, because the trails don’t really match what’s on the map. They sort of do, but it’s the difference between the trail going behind campsites, as they appear on the map, or going through campsites (with people camping in them), which was the reality. After several apologies, we found a trail whose relationship with the one depicted in the map was fairly consistent. It was a fun afternoon, though.

That evening, we had a couple of friends over (MO and Rrrrr) for brownie icecream sundaes and a fire. It was quite unplanned, hence only two friends were able to attend, but fun nonetheless. I love building fires. It’s one of my favorite things to do. Luckily for me (and everyone around me) I have a stable enough personality that my fire love doesn’t tend toward the criminal. Pyrophiliac? Is that a word?

On Sunday we had another not-so-secret-anymore meeting to finish the post-wedding gift for M and the Bohninator. We got off to a slow start, so I was able to finish the neck portion of the bonnet, as well as one of the I cords. We have our next meeting tonight, and hopefully that will go more smoothly, now that we kind of know what we want to do. Sunday night I finished the other I cord, and did all the finishing work for the bonnet. I didn’t bother washing and blocking it, though.

I’ve made a list of all the stuff I have to make for Christmas this year. It’s really long. And there are only 18 weeks until Christmas. (Don’t panic.) By my calculations I have to finish at least one or two items each week to make the deadline. And that’s not even calculating shipping times. EEK! Next year, I’m starting in May.

Voldemort can’t stop the ROCK!

It’s ours! Are you ready to READ?!

Or: Party! Like! You’re EVIL!

Here we are at 1:30 am on 21 July 2007 with our brand new Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. This photo encapsulates 12 hours of waiting, goofing around, people watching, rocking out, and general wicked awesomeness. We look exhausted, but very happy, yes? So happy, though JeT does have the crazy eyes thing going on.

Harvard Square became Hogwarts Square for the occasion. Susan and I got to Cambridge around noon and Kristen met up with us a couple of hours later. While I was waiting for people, I cased the joint, er, went into the bookstore to see if I could glimpse any hint of what was supposed to happen later on in the evening. I decided it would be a good idea to buy a book, so I wouldn’t look too obvious. I bought King Dork, by Frank Portman. (I highly recommend it. It rules.) We also scoped out Harvard Yard, where the concert was to take place. We decided the best strategy would be to get in line for our wristbands (for reserved books), get dinner, and score a nice spot on the grass for the concert.

This bit went pretty smoothly. JeT met up with us after he got out of work, and got his wristband with us. We got tasty food at Veggie Planet and settled in to watch the sound checks for the show. I walked around the Yard a bit to see if I could find where Potter Puppet Pals were, but I could not find them. Alas. (Speaking of the Pals, I tried to get a little sing-along going, but no one besides JeT responded to my “Snape. Snape. Severus Snape.” It was a bummer.) I took photos during the sound check because our crap camera doesn’t take good photos in dim light.

The concert ruled! Draco and the Malfoys are super awesome. We need their CDs. I totally want to rock out to them. Our favorite song was “My dad is rich and your dad is dead.” Oh, you Malfoys. So cruel. So funny! The Hungarian Horntails went on before the Malfoys. They were adorable and horrible. They’re probably eight years old, the three kids who make up the band. They sang songs about Hermione’s hair (and how she needs to brush it) and how awesome it is to be a dragon (ROAR!) Not to mention about how the Minister of Magic is a butt head.

Harry and the Potters aren’t as good musically as Draco and the Malfoys, but they put on one helluva show. They really get the crowd going and are super fun. They are the They Might Be Giants of the wizard rock movement. Linell-Harry plays the keyboard and saxophone, and Flansburg-Harry plays guitar. Both have Flansberg-like personalities, though. H and the Ps began a huge wizard rock phenomenon and there’s even a documentary in progress about their brand of wrock. Anyway, the concert was super fun.

We got in line for the books while H and the Ps were playing their last tune (and shouting out molecular biology terms for the audience to shout back, which I think had to do with summoning up all the energy we could to fight Voldemort, even on a cellular level I suppose). Our wristbands were pretty much useless. We thought that since we got our bands so early, we’d be able to be one of the first in line to get the book. Sadly the order in which we got our bands had nothing to do with the order in which we lined up for the book. When we got to the line, it was already going around the block. Oh, well.

We had a great time amusing ourselves in line. The bookshop printed out pages of an activity book for us, but they ran out of them long before they even got to our point in line. The people in front of us managed to scavenge one, and we had fun shouting out answers to trivia questions. I forgot to take a photo of our line buddies, though. One of them, who looked like a young Sirius (though a bit intoxicated) was having a great time trying to start the wave and running up and down the line like a madman. He was highly entertaining.

At midnight, the line began to move. Slowly. We got our books an hour and a half later. Our band of HP fans broke up as Kristen delivered us to our cars. We got to Quincy Center T station to find it quite deserted. There was only one door unlocked, and when we went inside, we found that the door to the stairs that led to the garage, was chained shut. After a brief moment of panic, we found a T employee, who unlocked the chains so we could get to our car. We got home around 3 am, thoroughly exhausted.

I tried to read a few pages, but didn’t get very far before I had to pass out. We spent the next day cleaning the house and then at the housewarming party of some friends. I didn’t start reading until 2 am on the 22nd. I finished around half past midnight on the 23rd. It was awesome. I’ll refrain from posting about the book here. I’ll save that for another post, as well as my comments on the latest movie, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

Click through to see more HP photos: people, costumes, Hogwarts Square, etc.

“There is too much; let me sum up.”

The last couple of weeks have been rather crazy. Some upsetting things, some wonderful things, and everything in between. Chronologically, earliest to most recent, this is what’s been going on:

1. We still don’t know what killed Phoebe. Rather, we know she died of internal bleeding, but do not know its cause. The Shanks has had many blood tests and will continue to take Vitamin K until his blood coagulation rate is back within the normal range.
2. In happier news, Miss Kitty and 007 got married! We’re so happy for yous! Yay! I was a bridesmaid and had a fantastic time. JeT was the DJ and rocked the house. My favorite dance was the polka with the best man. Our “secret meeting” dance was a hit. We performed our version of OK Go’s C-c-c-cinnamon Lips, and kicked quite a lot of arse, if I may say so. Interested parties can find photographs of the event here, and here. (The latter has amusing commentary.)
3. We went to Maryland to visit my family. It was great! Some of my Canadian family came to visit my parents at the same time, so that was a treat as well. My little cousins aren’t so little anymore. My nephews are growing up, too. You know, when these kids aren’t being terrors, they’re quite funny.

   We played a Newfie game called 120. I’ll have to show you all some time. I learned it when I was 15, and am finally getting the hang of it. Really, it’s not so hard, but I only play every few years or so. I actually won a couple of games this time! Much fun was also had playing darts in the garage and bocce in the lawn.

   I also brought home a ton of books from my parents’ house. ‘Cause, you know, I’m really short on books. Mostly they’re the Harvard Classics, which my mum read while they were stationed in Spain. And some of my old books from when I was a kid, which were given me by my Great Aunt Eunice, to whom I bear a great resemblance. Speaking of my aunt, I also brought back this mechanical bird/music box thingie she left me. It’s rad. It’s really old and still in fantastic shape. If ever we should encounter an “Antiques Roadshow” event, I’m taking that.

   MO was kind enough to watch the Shanks while we were gone. He was happy to see us when we returned, and I’m not ashamed to say the feeling was indeed mutual. Poor little (ok, not little, but still) guy was left on his own without The Phoebes for a whole week. We almost didn’t go on our vacation, but since he didn’t look to be in imminent danger, we decided to go. I’m glad we did.

4. There was a fantastic party at BlogSEA manor last weekend. Muchos foodies and drinks, though despite my best efforts, sober I remained. Gathered ’round the firepit (which was, of course, used for cooking, why do you ask, officer?) ’til the wee hours of the morn.

   We received a late night visitor. Stranger’s name was Andy, i think. Looking for someone called Mitch, was it? I don’t know. I couldn’t understand a word he said. I don’t do well with mumblers. He chilled for a bit, and then left. Then in the middle of the night, there was a bit of a hullabaloo in the parking lot across the way. Many officers, a bit of yelling, someone kicked our car in frustration (no damage done), a car being thoroughly searched (not ours). Bunch of savages in this town. An eventful evening, though.

   The next day was spent riverside, enjoying the sandy beach and swimming. I need to live near clean, moving water. NEED! It was wonderful and relaxing.

   On the way home, the alternator broke, and we were stranded on the side of the Mass. Pike. Apparently, our Kia Roadside Assistance doesn’t serve that particular highway, so we had to pay $80 bucks to be towed 5 miles, so that we could then phone the Kia people again to tow us the rest of the 30 miles home, which cost $13. I must mention that this song began to play just as we were being picked up by the first tow truck guy. Hilarious. The second tow truck guy was wicked funny, and laughed heartily at JeT sitting on my lap for the ride home. I told him that I was not laboring under the misapprehension that I am a small person. We finally got home more than six hours after we had left.

   I should also mention that our vet was kind enough to pop by the house and give ‘Shanks his meds and a bit of food. He’s a friend of the family, and is very good to us and our kitty.

The rest of this week has been uneventful, thank goodness. Just enjoying the not-so-hot days and eating popsicles. Tonight we resume our secret meetings for some wrap-up filming and whatnot.

Tomorrow is HP day in Harvard Square!