A great big cheer for 8 big years!

This week, my dog Nanna celebrated her 8th birthday!



OK, she didn't do all that much celebrating. I suppose we spearheaded most of the celebratory activities. But she did turn 8, and she received a new shiny red Kong! Yay, Nanna! Here's to 8 more years!

Shake, Rattle & Roll

So about 25 minutes ago, we had an earthquake. I don't usually feel earthquakes, but I sure felt this one: 5.9! I was sitting at my desk, and I started feeling nauseous, and then Arthur and Brian both pointed out that one of the potted plants by the door was shaking. Having attended K-12 in Bay Area public schools, I immediately dove under my desk and clasped my hands behind my head: duck and cover! (Note to self: train the dogs to dive under a table or desk and stay there when the command "Duck and cover" is given...) The fact that my body responded with a queasy sensation before I had any clue that anything was going on caused me to contemplate the whole thing about our bodies being 98% water, and how that relates to tide tables, gravity, motion sickness, all that stuff.

And I guess that was your accomplice in the woodchipper.

First of all, Ozzy's doing fine. He seems to be back to his normal self: naughty, but endearing.

I spent some time on the internet over the weekend trying to track down a snowglobe that I wish I'd purchased when I saw it 6 years ago at a Tower Records but didn't. A limited edition special release of Fargo on VHS was being sold with an equally as limited special edition Fargo snowglobe. Apparently there were 2, but I only saw (and uncontrollably covet) the one with the over-turned car and Marge leaning over a dead body in the snow. The other has the wood chipper scene, which would be super fantastic to own as well, but for now I'm keeping my eyes on the prize. I did find 2 for sale on eBay: one with the current bid at $35.00 (totally reasonable), but the water in the globe "is a pale shade of yellow," and one for $9.95, but with no water at all (these aren't the refillable kind either.). But I'll keep looking...

However, I did find this handy guide to one of my all-time favorite roadside attractions.

Show us those pearly whites

The root canal was a success! Ozzy went from this:



to this:



Thanks, Dr. Holmstrom! Thanks, Stacey! The therapeutic cuddling will now commence.

Ozzy's trip to the doggie dentist

Today my precious baby Ozzy dog is getting a root canal. Poor guy broke one of his teeth (one of the pointy front top ones) and now he has to get it repaired. So he's spending the day at the friendly neighborhood animal dentist.



Here's the Oz in the exam room, looking fearfully up at the stainless steel table top. Actually, he's probably wondering why he hasn't been fed any breakfast yet, and when exactly breakfast will be served. I'll pick him up this afternoon, and I'll most likely spend the evening cuddling him while the anesthesia wears off.

C'mon a my house

I'd like to officially invite everyone to take a gander at my Lomohome. This is where I upload, organize, and in some cases animate my lomographs for all to enjoy! Enjoy!

Creative genius, and Swedish to boot!

"I love her and she loves me, and we hate each other with a wild hatred born of love." -August Strindberg



Ever since I studied existentialism in high school, I have loved August Strindberg. He possessed that same intense Nordic perspective--combined with just the right amount of absinthe and alchemy--that drew me to Edvard Munch and Karin Boye. His outlook on life and the world was, in my eyes, equally as bitter and contemptuous as it was exhilarated and reverent. Besides, we share the same birthday.

My minor field of study in college was Swedish Language & Literature, and I read many of Strindberg's plays, short stories and essays. Though I really found myself drawn to his paintings and photographs. He painted a number of dark, brooding landscapes; canvasses thick with densely layered oils. His photographs were mostly self portraits and role exploration, and always make me think of Cindy Sherman and Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. There's a real voyeuristic tone there,but it's more comfortable because the artist is inviting--if not demanding--you to take a look. Maybe it's my delightfully eccentric sense of humor. Maybe it's my notoriously short attention span. Personally, I like to think that it's my deep sense of respect for Strindberg's written and visual arts that make it so very easy for me to enjoy this link that was randomly stuck at the very bottom of a They Might Be Giants newsletter... After all, what good is anything in life if you can't poke a little fun at it every now and then? This is just one more way to enjoy the melancholy prose of a Scandinavian Superstar--with Flash animation!

Reunited (and it feels so good!)

Huzzah! My lovely Lomo is back where it belongs!



BBQ at Crissy Field last Saturday with Max's workmates.



Fall into the Gap: shopping for slacks. The Gap's current ad campaign with Sarah Jessica Parker makes me feel awkward and uncomfortable. I told this to the sales girl, and she agreed.



The awkward and uncomfortable ad campaign didn't stop me from buying this smart new jacket.

Guilty pleasures. So very guilty.

First of all, I hope everyone had a pleasant and productive Talk Like A Pirate Day yesterday. I know I did. I must have said "aaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrr" like 57 times.

Actually, I spent a good chunk of Sunday afternoon on the couch. I like to devote a bit of time each weekend to catching up on the week's animated series that I have Tivo'd. These consist mostly of half-hour gems from the Cartoon Network's "Adult Swim" block of cartoons. Goodies like The Family Guy (once cancelled by Fox, it has enjoyed such success on Adult Swim that it has now been uncancelled), Futurama (score another one for Fox), and my absolute all time favoritist show ever, Home Movies (also recently cancelled, and I say it's a CRIME against humanity). Of course, once the new season of The Simpsons starts, we'll add that sucker to the list as well. Oh, and the one weekly show with actual actors as opposed to cartoons in it that makes the cut: Arrested Development (you go, Fox!). Hey, congrats on that Emmy, guys!

But the real story here is what came about as I was preparing to watch the aforementioned parade of quirky and intelligent animation. When I turn the TV on, there's this guide screen with which I'm sure you're all familiar (it accompanies any sort or digital cable or satellite service subscription in order to make your viewing time more enjoyable and productive.). So the guide is tuned to somewhere near the lower 200's, where the only things worth watching are Court TV and Fox Sports Net (when it's hockey season...don't even get me started on that right now.). But apparently there's also a channel dedicated to soap operas, and apparently, for certain shows, they run all 5 of the previous week's episodes on Sunday afternoon. Back to back.



Not many people know that I used to watch Days of Our Lives. It was a long time ago, back in the glory days of the late nineties. I was a senior in college, and the stress of school just pushed me over the edge! I found solace in the 3 pm time slot on NBC, and soon became hooked. I had to keep watching, had to find out if Sammy would be found innocent--she had been jailed for the murder of Franco, for which she had been framed by her ex-mother-in-law, of course. Of course. I simply had to know if things would ever be OK between Bo and Hope, despite that dang Billie Reed and her delusional love for Bo. I HAD TO KNOW what Stefano had been using John Black and Hope for when he had them brainwashed for all those years in Europe! Of course, after college ended, and the real world began, I ended my 6 month love affair with Days (it doesn't take long to get super addicted, believe you me.), and soon forgot all about Victor's coma and Nicole's fake marriage to Lucas. I forgot all about Roman's undying love for Marlena, and Marlena's undying love for John Black, and John Black's undying love for his eyebrows.

Until yesterday.

One week's worth of episodes may not seem like much, but it was enough to keep me on the couch--well, at least in vicinity of the TV in the living room--for five hours yesterday. Of course, my boyfriend is out of town. He would never stand for the monopolization of the only TV in our apartment by these particular fictional characters in this particular fictional town (now video games, that's another story...). And I wouldn't do that to him, not unless he really deserved it. I haven't set my Tivo to record Days of Our Lives. Yet. I still relish my freedom from daytime drama. But I have a feeling that this guilty pleasure may be back every now and again. Just to say hi.

New Tech Toys

Hooray for me! This week, I got a new computer. I've begun to travel more for work, so when the time came for me to get a new computer, we opted for a laptop. And not just any laptop, but a super fantastic Sony Vaio! I swear, this thing weighs less than a bagel (the toasted kind, with cream cheese, tomatoes and capers.). And it's got this new monitor technology called XBrite, and I'm pretty sure that this is how they do it: the people at Sony have hired hundreds of thousands of tiny little creatures, and they each have one of those purple-ish blue-ish lights that you sometimes find on after-market, souped up Honda Civics. Behind my laptop's screen, there are a couple hundred of the little guys, shining their crazy reflective super bright lights through the screen, so it's, like, 100 times brighter than any other computer screen you've ever seen before.

Or maybe they've developed some sort of reflective synthetic material, who knows.

But it's an awesome computer and I'm just thrilled to pieces about it. Not that my old computer wasn't great, but it was needed elsewhere. Poor Brian's been using the world's slowest computer forever, and he was about ready to kill someone...and I sit nearest to him. So he has taken possession of the Dell desktop, and I don't think I've ever seen his smile so big! And then Arthur's got a new iPod, so he's on cloud 9. And Rhonda's test driving the NEW new Sony Vaio laptop--the one that's so light it actually floats--so we're a technologically happy company this week. *sigh*

Oh, yes: my replacement LC-A should be here today...

Blog Neglect

Wow, it's been a long time since I've posted to my blog. I suppose that it's a good thing, as it means I've been too busy working and talking to actual people.

Actually, my camera broke a few weeks ago, and I'm waiting for it to be fixed. Yes, the shutter button on my precious, precious LC-A just popped clean off, and I had to send the whole thing to Brooklyn for repairs. As it turns out, I'm much more of a visual blogger than I am a verbal blogger. After all, you know what they say about a picture being worth something or other.

Getting in touch with my feline side

Did I mention that I have cats? Poor things, they're so often overlooked. But full of love and fur--and more than a little spite--just the same.



Up top is Milhouse, a feisty little devil also know as "Pure Evil." He came from the back of a pick-up truck in the parking lot of a mall in Eugene, Oregon one hot summer day in 1998. The orange guy below him is Cassidy, who sadly passed away in January of 2002. He was adopted from the San Francisco SPCA in 1991. He was chosen because the pound had dubbed him "Pizza Man" and had thusly placed a small name tag bearing said monicker on his cage. Being the 15 year old girl that I was at the time, I had a tremendous crush on a boy who delivered pizza: obviously, a match made in heaven.



Miru is the oldest of the pack, dogs included. He's a 9 year old fluff ball who likes to eat house plants and flowers. He also likes to hunt rubber bands, clothing tags, coasters and other household items all night long--oh yes, and he finds it absolutely necessary to shout about it when he's caught the dreaded twist-tie. He is, as I said, fluffy, and a bit on the pudgy side, hence his nickname: "Fatty fatty fat fat."

That's 42 in dog years

Ozzy used to be teeny tiny!



His 6th birthday is coming up next week, and now he weighs close to 65 pounds.



But he's still my baby dog. And once he was made to wear a space helmet.

Urban Weekend

Greetings from the land of Garibaldi, the West Coast Swing, and the Desert Tortoise! Find Yourself Here.

If you're like me, when you meet people from other states, you like to greet them with trivia about their home state. I prefer the state motto, but sometimes (especially when the motto is in Latin) I go for the state nickname. For instance, when I met Joyce from Connecticut, I remarked, "Ah. The Nutmeg State." When I talk to my friend Dedi on the phone, I say "She flies with her own wings." Dedi lives in Portland, Oregon. For my Canadian chums, I'll employ their nearest National Hockey League affiliate. When Jean from Drummondville, Quebec called the other day, he was greeted with friendly salutations of "Jean from Quebec! Home of the Montreal Canadiens! How the hell are you?" We were both quite pleased.

If you're like me, everyday you get just a little bit older (as portrayed perfectly in the They Might Be Giants song Older.). And as you get older, you may not be able to keep all 50 state mottos and 50+ state nicknames (not to mention the state birds, flowers, songs and mammals!) ready and available at the forefront of your mind. Plus, with all of the phony top ten list-esque state slogans going around, it can be tricky to differentiate them from the real ones. Never fear! This State Insignia website will help.

Hello, Lomo

Meet my newest passion: Lomography. It's amazing what a wide angle Russian lense can do to your world.



Even APV's old Honda Civic looks exciting with a little help from Lomo.




Indian food in Lower Haight will never be the same!



A little post-lunch break with Nanna...



One of the many beautiful historic buildings in downtown Palo Alto, this one is right across the street from our office.

Sarah Vowell on Thanksgiving

I recently read Sarah Vowell's newest book, The Partly Cloudy Patriot (she's my favorite author, along with Daniel Handler.). I just love to conjure up her distinct voice in my head as I read her books--she also does radio commentary on This American Life. I found this passage to be extra insightful, and I thought I'd share:

"Our great-grandmother Ellen passed through here (Ellis Island) on her way from Sweden. We watch a video on the heath inspections given to immigrants, walk past oodles of photos of men in hats and women in shawls. Though no one says anything, I know my father and mother and sister are thinking what I'm thinking. They're thinking about when we moved away from Oklahoma to Montana, how unknown that was, how strange and lonesome. I read a letter in a display case that says, 'And I never saw my mother again,' and I think of my grandfather, how we just drove off, leaving him behind, waving to us in the rearview mirror. And here we are in New York, because here I am in New York, because ever since Ellen's father brought her here, every generation moves away from the other one.

"It is curious that we Americans have a holiday--Thanksgiving--that's all about people who left their homes for a life of their own choosing, a life that was different from their parents' lives. And how do we celebrate it? By hanging out with our parents! It's as if on the Fourth of July we honored our independence from the British by barbecuing crumpets."

How the...? What the...?

A joy to behold, someone has finally created a web page of classic films shown in 30 seconds, and re-enacted by bunnies. Honestly, it's about damn time.

And once you're bored of that, feel free to satisfy your voyeuristic tendencies in the greater, whiter North with the North Pole webcam! Also a joy to behold.

Arrrrr, ye land lubbers! Pieces of eight!

I've had to post a link to this site everytime I've had a blog (yeah, this isn't the first time I've done this whole dedicate-an-entire-website-to-myself thing. I swear I'm not (much of) an egomaniac.). So here it is, the official What's My Pirate Name? website.

Yours Truly,
Mad Prudence Rackham
"Every pirate is a little bit crazy. You, though, are more than just a little bit. You have the good fortune of having a good name, since Rackham (pronounced RACKem, not rack-ham) is one of the coolest sounding surnames for a pirate. Arr!"

P.S.
You may also refer to me as Dis Oakengoat.
"You're a fearsome Viking, but you aren't completely uncivilized. The other Vikings make fun of you for that. You have a thirst for battle, and tend to strike first and think later. You might be able to hold your own on the battlefield, but you're no 'berserker'.

You might grumble a bit at the lack of amenities on board a Viking longboat, but you can handle it. Vikings make fun of you all the time. Not always behind your back, either.

You have a fairly pragmatic attitude towards life, and tend not to expend effort in areas where it would be wasted. You sometimes come off as a bit of a snob. Vikings are not snobbish people -- they either like you, or they kill you. Try to be more like a Viking."

Click here to find your Viking name (I did, after all, minor in Scandinavian Studies in college. Always did love a good Icelandic Saga.).

Now THAT'S patriotic!

Actually, it's the Captain America costume that I wore for Halloween last year when we went to the Hotel Utah to see the Extra Action Marching Band. My friend Ira's mom made it! I guarantee that this was the only time in my life that I've ever worn a spandex bodysuit.