And just a bit more randomness...

1) Yesterday, we finally broke down a bunch of boxes that had been scattered in the condo and hauled them down to the recycling bins. I think most of them were leftover from Rick's new computer build. He prefers to buy his own components and assemble computers from scratch... this results in many empty boxes and mysterious random metal and wires. I never know what can be thrown away and what needs to be stored in case of computer emergency. But we definitely don't need any extra boxes cluttering up this place... it's nice to finally see the floor behind the couch again...

2) I have a weird thing about people reading things that I'm writing before I'm finished writing them -- I don't like it. Rick thinks it's bizarre... he was just standing behind the couch, commenting on the fact that I'm writing for the blog, and I instinctively turned my computer screen away from him so he couldn't see the words. I don't know why -- but I've NEVER liked people to read anything that I'm in the process of writing. Until I'm finished with it. Don't ever read over my shoulder...

3) So I'm not normally very political on my blog (or anywhere else, for that matter). And, to be honest, I haven't been paying a whole lot of attention to this year's campaigning -- I've sort of gotten a little sick of politics over the years. But I did hear about Newt Gingrich's plan to colonize the moon by 2020, an idea which has received a lot of criticism from all ends of the political spectrum. (Cue whiny voice): Ohhhh, what a stupid idea... it's too expensive... it's so unrealistic... what a waste of money... Um, hello??? It's a COLONY on the MOON!! How freakin' awesome would THAT be??? A MOON COLONY!!! We could be living in space! My kitchen could have a view of EARTH -- not "earth" as in "dirt"... Earth, as in PLANET EARTH!! You'd better believe I'm voting for that... I'm voting Gingrich/Moon Colony in 2012. (I have a suspicion that Faisal thinks I'm being serious... I will expect a text message in 3...2...1...)

4) Speaking of Faisal, I've been TRYING to convince him to watch the movie "Ronin" for weeks now, without success. Before I saw this movie, I absolutely refused to buy a four-door sedan-type car, because I was convinced that they were "boring" and only for people with kids who needed easy access to the back seat of their car. And then, not too long after I'd seen Ronin, Rick dragged me to an Audi dealer to test drive a four-door sedan. I was convinced that there was nothing that could convince me to buy the car... and then, as I pulled onto the interstate and quickly accelerated, I noticed that the car sounded EXACTLY like the Audi in Ronin. I mean, I assumed that engine sound was some kind of special effect that was added after the fact... but no, those cars actually SOUND like that! What's more, it was fast and nimble -- I could picture that little Audi on a cobblestone street in Europe, rounding corners at high speed with surprising agility...

Needless to say, I bought the Audi.

I hope we can drive Audis on the moon...

It's a random kind of day...

I am (or rather, I WAS, when I started writing this last night) waiting for Rick to return from a Dell event with carrot cake in tow... actually, I don't think he's TOWING the cake. Although if he WAS towing the cake, that would be awesome -- because how big would that cake have to be in order to require towing??

Is it funny that I love carrot cake but I hate carrots? Or is it just proof that with enough butter and sugar, just about ANYthing will taste good?? (Except fish... nothing makes fish taste better...)

Once again, I am startled by how quickly another year is passing. January is almost gone already??? At least this is a leap year, so we get ONE extra day. Twenty-four extra hours. February 29th is like a bonus day... shouldn't it automatically be a holiday or something? Maybe "Free Coffee at Starbucks Day"?

I just cleaned my bathroom with a bleach-based cleaner, and, consequently, even though it's only 37 degrees outside right now, I have my balcony door open to get some fresh air into the condo to counteract the sickening bleach smell. Ick. Perhaps bleach isn't the best thing to clean with. I should add baking soda to my shopping list... (By the way, my cats LOVE the smell of bleach. It's the weirdest thing. Every time I use it to clean something, they start flipping around on the floor like they're high on catnip...)

It has been super foggy here in Chicago lately. Isn't it supposed to be super snowy? I can only see buildings about three blocks in the distance... the Hancock Building is totally gone. I prefer my sunny-day view to this blanketed view. Or at least snow. I really hope we get more snow soon...

And yes, by the way, Rick DID get the carrot cake home -- and it WAS a rather large piece, but he didn't have to tow it...

Hours of entertainment...

Usually, my view looks something like this:

Today, however, it looks like this:

Snow!! It took long enough, but Chicago is finally delivering on its promise of snowy winters.

I can't believe how many people are out driving in this stuff right now...

I love all the dogs in their little sweaters... :)

For some reason, our street has not been visited by a snowplow yet, even though it's a popular route to get to the interstate and, therefore, very busy. This has resulted in some entertaining traffic-watching this afternoon:

Usually, you'd be able to SEE the yellow line dividing this street into different directions. It's NOT a one-way, but with the lanes covered, many people have started ASSUMING it's a one way. You can see the headlights of a car right under the Office Depot sign -- that person was attempting to make the turn onto this street, but was blocked by the cars that were creating a new one-way street...

ALL of these cars are heading the wrong way...

At last! Justice for the cars driving in the correct direction!

I'm off to jump on the treadmill... hopefully exercise will help me warm up...

Still missed...

Sometimes, when it's late at night and there's nothing good on TV and you're alone and contemplating life and surfing the net for melancholy poems, you stumble across something completely unexpected. (And I have to make a side note here -- is it any wonder that so many kids are being diagnosed with "ADD" these days? The internet makes it pretty much unavoidable for everyone -- you can start out searching for information on the American Revolution and end up on some random website clicking through pictures of zoo animals. Not to mention the fact that every TV has 500 channels, cars come with complete entertainment systems, and every kid and their dog has a cell phone. ADD?? Yeah... sure... THAT'S the problem...)

Tonight, for instance, my deficient attention span led me to randomly click on various websites and to search for various people, places and things. And it was through one of these random searches that I stumbled upon a site I'd never seen before -- one that has been around for almost ten years. Someone created this website back in September of 2002 -- right after Aimee died. (For more about Aimee, check out this post.)

And even though it's old, and hard to read, and some of the links don't work anymore, I spent about an hour crying after I found it -- because I had no idea that it even existed, and I have no idea who created it, and I found it very sweet that someone cared about her enough to go to the trouble of creating a website in her memory. And how many times over the last ten years have I wished that my sister was still in my life?? More than I can count... sometimes it surprises me how much I miss her, considering I only knew her for a few years. I've wanted sisterly advice many times over the last ten years... thank goodness I can still ask for brotherly advice any time I need it... :)

One of the best things about the website I stumbled upon was the discovery of a few pictures I'd never seen. There were only a few, and when I clicked through all of them I was wishing for more. But isn't that the way life goes sometimes? The very best things in life are fleeting moments... the most we can do is hold on to each one as long as possible, until the moment passes and we move on to something else. And then just be thankful that we HAD that moment in our lives...

I'm thankful I had Aimee in my life for a short time...

 

 

This weekend...

*We got our first real snow of the season here in Chicago, and it finally feels like winter...

*Rick and I tried a new kettlebell workout, and I can no longer walk up stairs thanks to all the squats and lunges...

*I read some melancholy Edgar Allan Poe stories just because I wanted to (have I mentioned that I really love Edgar Allan Poe??).

*I tested out mom's theory that tea made with water boiled on the stove tastes better than tea made with water boiled in the microwave. (My verdict -- I can't tell the difference. :))

*I finally ordered a pair of boots that I hope will keep my feet warm in the Chicago-winter-sub-freezing-temperatures, after walking a couple 17-degree miles in boots that were NOT designed for cold weather. (After your toes go numb, how long, exactly, does it take for frostbite to set in??)

Hope everyone had a good weekend, and, like Riff, is looking forward to the week ahead. (Okay, so maybe he's actually staring at falling snowflakes...)

Because I have nothing else to say at the moment...

I started writing something else for the blog this morning, but was promptly interrupted by laundry and dishes and a walk down to Starbucks to buy coffee beans... etc, etc. And since (so far) it's a little more thoughtful and insightful than my usual nonsense, I figure it deserves my full attention some day when I have nothing to do but blog and analyze my weird life. (Oh, wait -- I analyze my weird life 24 hours a day... :))

But in the interest of posting something -- I just found this unfinished questionnaire thingy in my list of drafts. So I think I'll finish it and post it. Hooray! So here we go:

What was your first job? My first job actually began as a volunteer gig at the Sparta Public Library in Sparta, NJ. After I'd been there a couple months -- helping patrons and shelving books for free -- the library director called me into his office and asked if I'd like to be PAID for what I was doing. (You had to ask?? No, I hate getting money for doing work. Keep that stuff to yourself.) That job was great because I was surrounded by books... when things got slow, I had plenty of reading material.

Have you ever seen a stand up comedian? Um... I don't think so... oh -- maybe on a cruise ship once? (Does that count?)

When was the last time you played mini golf? Wow... I can't even remember. A looooooong time ago. I think Rick and I may have played mini golf once when we were dating? Maybe??

What was the last picture you took? I took this picture of the moon rising behind some buildings last night... but it turned out kind of blurry:

Burnt food: yes or no? I'm not a big fan of burnt food, but my dad loves it. Every time I make cookies for everyone, I have to make sure to burn some for dad. :)

If you have a pocket full of change, what do you do with it? I keep all my change in my wallet, so I never have a pocket full of change. (But when I start to accumulate too much change, I put some of it in one of the random jars of change we keep in the closet... Someday, we'll have to figure out how much random money is in the closet...)

Can you touch your tongue to your nose? Uh, no... (can anyone actually do that??)

Do you scrapbook? No, although I made a couple scrapbooks years and years ago when the whole scrapbooking trend was taking off. But eventually, I realized that I had neither the time nor patience to make a scrapbook of every semi-interesting event in my life...

Do you buy lottery tickets? The only time I've ever bought lottery tickets is when the jackpot reaches some ridiculously huge amount... and then it's usually Eric and Faisal's idea, and we all pool our money and buy tons of tickets and never win a thing. What an unlucky bunch we are...

Do you prefer to be in front of the camera or behind it? I guess it's obvious from all the pictures on my blog that I love to be behind a camera. I don't necessarily MIND being in front of one, either, but seeing as I'm an extremely insecure and self-critical person, I only like about two percent of the pictures that are taken of me...

Scruffy or clean shaven? Uhhh... me?? Or are we talking about men here? Because if we're talking about men....

Oh, hello there Jason Momoa... what's that?? You want to run away with me to a tropical island and live on the beach? Well, if you insist...

(Hey, it's Rick's fault that I even KNOW who this guy is... If it weren't for Stargate Atlantis, I would be totally ignorant of Jason Momoa's existence. ;))

But to answer the original question (was there an original question???) -- actually, I'm usually more partial to clean shaven... but there's always an exception to the rule... 

What’s your favorite sundae topping? It depends on the ice cream -- if it's just plain vanilla, then I guess I'd go with hot fudge. But I LOVE chocolate ice cream with marshmallow topping. It can be hard to find a place that actually offers that combo, though...

Do you own slippers? I don't... I just wear a lot of socks...

Did you ever have a tree house? No... but when we were kids in Austin, we lived in a new housing development and were across the street from a bunch of empty lots... I remember Eric and I and some friends collected random scrap wood from the houses that were being built on the street and made our own little fort in the woods. I used to hide out in there and read books...

How you do relieve stress? Exercise -- it's pretty much the ONLY thing that works for me. If I didn't have my treadmill, I'd go insane...

What’s your favorite Dr. Seuss book? You know, this is probably some sort of blasphemy, but I've never been a huge Dr. Seuss fan. I mean, some of his books are a little bit creepy -- all the psychedelic colors and weird characters and made-up words... and the only reason you should ever eat green eggs and ham is if you WANT to be hospitalized with a nasty food-borne illness. (What kind of "doctor" ARE you, Dr. Seuss???)

Have you ever taken dance classes? Nope... in fact, I think the ONLY dance "experience" I have is from playing the part of a townsperson in my high school's production of "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers." My friend Ali and I were taught a great little dance part for the "town social" scene...

Which do you use more: the thesaurus or the dictionary? Hmmm... interesting question. I actually use both of them fairly often. But I MIGHT use the dictionary slightly more often...

What’s your favorite form of exercise? Walking and jogging are pretty great -- simple, easy, cheap... but sometimes I like the structure and challenge of a dvd like Insanity or P90X... I also love to swim, but I'm not really a swimMER... if that makes any sense...

What’s the longest you’ve ever waited in line? I'm not sure... I can remember a couple really popular movie openings where I was in line for at least an hour... Other than that... maybe at the DMV?? If I've waited in line longer than an hour at the DMV, I probably blocked the horrible memory from my brain...

Can you use chopsticks? Yes -- in fact, I think I'm rather adept with chopsticks. They're kinda fun to use...

What is your favorite salad dressing? Blue cheese, unfortunately... because that has to be the WORST salad dressing for you. (Why can't I love a good fat-free vinaigrette?)

Can you sing the alphabet backwards? Hold on a sec.....

Nope. Definitely not.

Do you have any allergies? Well, I'm definitely allergic to cedar... and mosquitoes (although I think I'm starting to be LESS allergic to mosquitoes than I used to be... they used to inevitably swell up to the circumference of baseballs... lately, they're more like golf balls... And I think I completely avoided being bitten at all this past summer, which is highly preferable). I also seem to have a weird reaction if I eat too many almonds or drink almond milk... Which is is sad, because I really LIKE almonds. (But it could be worse -- I could be allergic to chocolate...)

Crunchy or creamy peanut butter? Crunchy...

Have you ever hitchhiked? Do you people know me AT ALL???

Okay, that should be enough inconsequential information for one night... Off to watch sci-fi shows and eat (unburned) cookies...

Dusting off the camera...

As I was looking through my windows at the outside world last night (when the sun was setting and casting a reddish tint on the buildings), I suddenly realized that it has been far too long since I posted any cityscape pictures on this blog. And no, I don't have the panoramic skyline view I used to have... but I still love to gaze at the many-hued buildings in my line of sight and I like to watch the ever-changing scenes out on the streets and sidewalks. And I like to keep an eye on that cupcake store across the street... just to make sure it's not going anywhere...

I was especially intrigued by the bright moon last night...

My slight view of the Merchandise Mart down the block...

I still love the Hancock Building...

I've been staring at these Christmas lights on a balcony across the street for weeks...

Have I mentioned I have a great view of the Office Depot??

I also have a great view of the aforementioned cupcake store, but no pictures today... maybe next time...

New year, new randomness...

And so begins the post-holiday slump.

My tree is down... my decorations have been packed up in boxes and carted down to storage for another year... my Christmas cookie recipe card has returned to its place among all the other recipe cards I use infrequently... and the workout music on my iPod will be decidedly less festive from now on. But I shall, of course, continue to post random thoughts:

I've had a really annoying sinus (possibly stress/migraine?) headache ALL DAY. I took a Sudafed and about fifty-seven Advil this morning, but it only managed to take the edge off. And I really didn't want to take a fifty-eighth Advil, so I've just been attempting to stave off a recurrence of this morning's pain with various natural remedies. I've been drinking lots of water, putting a cool towel on my neck, and rubbing my earlobes (something I just read about on the internet... and maybe it's just the placebo effect, but I think it helped a LITTLE bit??). I also somehow managed to still walk/jog 3.5 miles on the treadmill. But I'm thinking at this point, the only thing that will knock this malady out is a good night's sleep...

Rick has been in Indiana all day. The quiet house finally motivated me to finish emptying our suitcases from our trip to Austin and tidy up a bit. I don't know why, but every time Rick is gone, I seem to clean more... (This place will be spotless in a couple months when he heads back to Vegas for a work conference... I'll be cleaning for days...)

Why does my weird cat like to sleep in the sink???

I'm starting to think that Chicago is going to miss out entirely on any decent snowfall this winter. We've barely had a THING so far, and the long-term forecast is pretty boring for the next couple weeks. (Yes, I WANT snow. Yes, I'm weird.)

I realized today that I need to find a Chicago-area eye doctor -- I attempted to order some contact lenses online (since I'm about to use my last pair), and was informed that my order couldn't be processed because my prescription has expired. Apparently a current prescription is required by law before contacts can be purchased at an online store. Curses. Foiled by the "law." (I'm sure there's a place on the internet where I can buy illegal, black market contact lenses, right? Not that I'd ever do that...)  

Okay, Mr. Headache, you win... I'm off to take my fifty-eighth Advil.* And then maybe I'll head to bed early...

*I haven't LITERALLY taken fifty-eight Advils. Please don't call 911 on my behalf...