Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Annoying Neighbor, Part III

Well, I had a few days of peace and quiet around my apartment. I suppose my annoying neighbor was away on vacation. No loud talking. No cigarette smell. It is the day after a holiday, so what do you think is happening right now? Cigarettes and loud talking. I walked by her apartment this weekend when I was taking my clothes to the laundry room. I glanced at a coffee can full of cigarette butts and an empty cigarette box. It was one of those new Camel cigarette boxes. It is a "cute," shiny black box with a "pretty" hot pink camel on it. They say they market it toward young, impressionable women. My neighbor seems like the perfect candidate. I guess these cigarettes are called Camel No. 9, as if it is some kind of fancy perfume. I personally don't know why a woman would want to smell like a camel or a pack of cigarettes, but whatever. Oh well, it's her lungs. But even more annoying than the cigarette smell (if you can believe that) is her squeaky voice... Oh my god, he is, like, you know, like the biggest jerk I ever met, who would, like, ever do anything like that, you know, can you, like, believe that.... I really want to buy a dictionary and thesaurus and leave them on her welcome mat. Maybe she can find an alternative to the word "like."

Monday, May 28, 2007

Calm Before the Storm

I don't have much to report right now, but here are a few pictures I took before our latest, wild thunderstorm.

Sunday, May 27, 2007

A Little More of This, A Little More of That

This is one of those random posts about nothing much at all...

So far I've been enjoying the long weekend. Even though I just started my new job and even though I'm still green and happy, it is always nice to have a long weekend. I didn't have any grand, exciting plans for this weekend other than sleeping in, relaxing, reading, and writing. I achieved my sleeping-in mission to perfection this past evening. I eventually woke up at around 11:00 this morning, which was nice, but I must have slept in an awkwardly contorted position (like on top of my head) because I woke up with quite a crick in my neck. I tend to be a tense sleeper, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

After taking a hot shower to relieve the crick in my neck, I started making my breakfast when I heard the music of the ice cream man driving down the street. Even though I was just having breakfast, I suppose for normal people who keep normal hours it would have been the perfect time for ice cream. I may have said this before, but the ice cream men sure seem to be driving faster these days. Maybe I'm just getting older. Maybe they're all California drivers. Who knows?

Speaking of driving. Why do drivers in Colorado insist on merging onto the freeway at 14 mph? You would think that it is generally wiser to enter the freeway at a faster speed, closer to the speed of the freeway traffic, so that someone doesn't end up in your backseat...or mine if I'm behind you. Then again, maybe I'm just the aggressive California driver. I've been living in Colorado for about five years, and I've learned to slow down and calm down a little bit, but stupid drivers still annoy me.

You can tell that summer is just around the corner because we are starting to get the usual afternoon thunderstorms. I absolutely love these afternoon thunderstorms because they put so much energy into the air. I enjoy the thunderstorms even more when they are on the loud and violent side. Maybe I'm strange, but I think there is something romantic and sexy about these kinds of thunderstorms. Plus, in Colorado, you can have a violent thunderstorm one hour, then the next hour the sun is out and everything looks beautiful and smells wonderful. It's great.

Current mood: relaxed
Current music: The Megan Slankard Band. Freaky Little Story
Current drink: New Belgium's 1554 Black Ale

Friday, May 25, 2007

Summer Hours

Today was the first official day of our Summer Hours at work. What this basically means is that every Friday from now until Labor Day we will be allowed to leave the office at 1:00. From what I've heard, most of the editors still tend to stay at work long after 1:00. We tend to have heavy workloads and short schedules, so we often have to take advantage of every moment of every day. But it is nice to have the option to leave the office early. It gives you the chance to spend the rest of the day taking care of your personal life. You can do your shopping, go to the doctor, get your hair done, get your oil changed, or whatever without worrying about making up the lost time at work. I think it's a great idea. Since most of my projects are with freelancers or at a good stopping point, I left a little after 1:00. I was able to do some grocery shopping, and then I've been spending the rest of the afternoon relaxing, enjoying the weather, and drinking a good beer.

Current mood: relaxed
Current music: Tori Amos. American Doll Posse
Current weather: sunny and beautiful
Current drink: New Belgium's 1554 Black Ale - I prefer darker beers that you can barely see through

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Music and Memories

Music tends to play a major role in movies, TV shows, and even reality shows. Whenever you hear a certain song, you tend to think about a moment in the movie or show. It captures certain feelings and brings back specific memories. Music tends to do this in real life. At least it does for me. Whenever I hear certain songs, I think of specific moments in my life, what I was doing, the people I knew. While I was doing some shopping this evening, I heard a few songs on the radio that brought back certain memories. Ironically, a lot of these songs were ones that were popular during my last few years in high school. Most of these songs were really good. Some of them remind me how old I am, but I still love hearing them. Other songs, though, make me cringe because they happened to be the favorites of some of my high school friends. The song itself might be fine, but the thought of my friends makes me gag a little because I can't help but think about how far I've come since then. After I clear the gag, the one thought through my mind is "thank god that's long over with." Although, to this day, I still can't listen to a Hootie and the Blowfish song without feeling annoyed. At least now I have much better memories and better song associations. Sarah McLachlan's Surfacing CD makes me think of graduating from Irvine Valley College and moving on to Cal State Fullerton where I met a new crush and started a new phase of my life. Dead Can Dance and Loreena McKennitt make me think of Saturday Dinners at my best friend's house in California--good food, good wine, good music, and wonderful company. Melissa Etheridge's Lucky CD makes me think of graduating from grad school and starting a new job. Songs by the Killers or "Feel Good, Inc." by Gorillaz makes me think of a certain friend. Tori Amos makes me think of one of my recent crushes. And there are plenty of songs that make me think of my current crush.

Current mood: happy
Current music: Beth Waters. Beth Waters. Although, for maybe one person out there the current song should be "You're So Vain"...you probably think this post is about you. For those of you I love, you know which part is about you.
Current weather: raining, slightly breezy, the air smells wonderful
Current drink: Remy Martin V.S.O.P

Monday, May 21, 2007

This and That

I've been told by one of my new and loyal readers that I haven't posted anything new in a while. Because I don't want to leave my "fans" starving for my witty and clever prose, here is a post about nothing in particular.

So what's new?

Work: Work has been going really well. I think I've reached the point where I have found my new groove and where I feel really comfortable in what I'm doing. Naturally when you start a new job, it takes some time to adjust, and I think I've reached that point. There are some things and procedures I'm still learning, but everything is getting easier. The books are interesting and the authors have been great to work with. It is certainly much better than dealing with arrogant, egotistical, self-centered lawyers and their boring legal books that no one will ever read.

Umm...

Hair and beauty: I looked in the mirror one morning and was struck by how terrible I looked. Actually, I've been noticing this nearly every day for the past few weeks. My hair was getting long and out of control. And since it has grown so much over the past few months, the long dark roots under all of the blond and copper highlights didn't look so stylish. So I had an appointment this past weekend to give myself a complete change. I had about four or five inches cut (my hair grows like weeds) and I went for my darker, more natural color. But, of course, I had to add a fun touch of color. So I have some vibrant red highlights throughout, which actually looks nice against the black hair. And since I've been trying to "refresh" my look, I've been some wonderful "regenerist" and "anti-aging" Oil of Olay products that are giving my skin a nice healthy glow. Yes, I'm only 32, but everyone wants glowing skin. Oh, let's face it, I'm gorgeous, and everyone knows it...

Umm...

Weather: The weather these days has been wonderful. I won't say "cool, but not cold." It's been warm...but not hot. We had a nice, brief thunderstorm this afternoon. The only unfortunate thing is that I don't have a window in my new office, so I had to just imagine what the lightning looked like. But, as everyone knows, I have a pretty good imagination.

Poetry: My personal, beautiful Muse inspires me every day, but I'm just waiting for the right words to come out. A new poem will come soon...

Current mood: relaxed
Current music: Tori Amos. American Doll Posse
Current drink: Ruffino Aziano Chianti Classico Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita -- I have no idea what those last six words mean. That's why I need to learn Italian. Plus, I just want another language under my belt, and at least Italian isn't "dead." Either way, the wine is wonderful!

Monday, May 14, 2007

Annoying Neighbor, Part II

My annoying neighbor is at it again. She is on the phone and she is outside. She is loud. She says "like" every other word--oh my god, she's like, you know, like a teenager, oh my god... But it does get worse. Now she is smoking. It's been a beautiful day. We had a nice thunderstorm this afternoon, and the rain made everything smell beautiful. All that is gone now, because she has to be smoking the worst smelling cigarettes on the market. Sigh.

I wish I could write about something better and more beautiful right now, but I have nothing. It's sad because it was a beautiful evening until now. Even after a glass of wine, I'm too annoyed to think of something beautiful. Well, I'm thinking about something Beautiful right now, but maybe I'll write about that later when I'm in a better mood.

Thursday, May 10, 2007

The Gift Every Mom Needs

I saw an advertisement in a newspaper that was offering gifts and packages that "mom will love." You would think that it would be for a nice dinner, maybe some flowers, or maybe a salon treatment or a spa day. Part of the advertisement was for facials, which is something that most women would enjoy. But the big exciting deal was a 20% discount on Botox treatments. Nothing says "Happy Mother's Day" more than "here is a coupon to take care of all those wrinkles on your forehead." And if you want, you can also have laser treatment to wipe away all those age spots. It doesn't get better than that. Naturally, the smarter and less shallow people of the world know that our mothers are beautiful no matter what.

Saturday, May 05, 2007

What Do These Strangers Know?

Today I decided to wander around a new shopping center here in Boulder. I'm not sure what is wrong (or what is right) with the day today. While walking down the hallways--if you can call them that in an open shopping center--people and children kept smiling at me. Dogs tried to lick my hand. I went to Borders because I can't possibly have enough books in my life. While in the store, nearly every employee asked me if I needed help looking for something. I said that I was just browsing. I really did need help finding something but I never like to bother anyone, so instead I just wandered around the store until I found what I was looking for. In the course of my wandering, though, several customers smiled at me and said "hello." And one person was staring at me so much as he walked down the stairs that he nearly tumbled down the last few steps. If that happened, that would have put a lot of guilt on my conscience. Having so many people looking at me and staring at me is somewhat disturbing to a mildly paranoid person. What is wrong? I thought to myself. Is my zipper down? Did a bird poop in my hair? Did I grow a second head? I did a subtle check of all three of these things, literally, and I appeared to be in normal order. I wear a pair of black boots and a leather jacket that sometimes gives the impression that I just rode in on a motorcycle, and this is slightly different from the typical Boulder mountain attire of fleece jackets and hiking boots. Maybe that was what caught people off guard. Or did I somehow become famous (or infamous) overnight and people are staring at me because they recognize me and are just too shy to approach me. Nope, I doubt that explains it. I don't know what it is that led everyone to eye me all day. It is really puzzling...

Current music: Tori Amos. American Doll Posse
Current read: Elizabeth Gilbert. Eat, Pray, Love

Friday, May 04, 2007

Night descends
Spring showers
Cold, icy rain
The flash of lightning
The rumble of thunder
The perfect marriage of sight and sound
I dream in shades of red tonight
Hypnotized by candlelight
Possessed by Eros
Unsympathetic, unrelenting god
Fingering golden arrows with a smile
Igniting a flame
Insatiable hunger
Unquenchable thirst
Tangled in this web of delight
Envy of Golden Aphrodite
We plunge into unimagined depths
An endless, bottomless pool of desire
Diving, drowning, gasping for breath
Reaching, grasping, embracing
Rising, falling, breathing
Drifting slowly
Blanketed by gentle Hypnos

Construction

Is there a street in Boulder that is not under construction right now? I don't understand it. Julius Caesar can build a bridge across the Rhine River in ten days. Yet, in spite of all our fancy equipment and expensive machinery, it takes us over a year to widen one intersection. And you ask "what have the Romans ever done for us?" You really need to watch Monty Python's Life of Brian to understand the humor behind that. It's the kind of thing that will make a Classicist cry from laughter.