I am a normal rock

I learned this from the "which Zoloft rock personality disorder do you have?" quiz, which I stumbled upon. I had to take it, since I've always found the rock to be utterly cute.

Anyway, here was my result:



You are a normal rock!


::Which rock personality disorder (from the Zoloft commercial) should you have? (Results contain pictures!)
brought to you by Quizilla


Yes, friends and acquaintances, you've heard it here officially: apparently I'm absolutely normal. **snicker**

It's sad, in a way, though: why can't I be bipolar like all the other kids, Mommy?

"toilet" humor

A few years back, when we almost went on a trip to Greece, I was reading up on Greek vocabulary and made an interesting linguistic observation: many European languages, even the ones that are less related, seem to have a word closely resembling "toilet". I remembered toilette from taking French, Bruce remembered toiletten from a trip to Germany, and I'd read about (pardon the Anglicization here) toualetta in Greek. Interesting, huh?

Over the past few days, we've been looking into going to Prague sometime in the fall, so I found a Czech tutorial website last night. Guess what word I found... toaletni! Proving my theory right. Shortly thereafter, I stumbled upon an online dictionary for multiple European languages and played around a little bit. Lo and behold, there are "toilet" like words in over 10 Eurpoean languages, ranging from Portuguese to Swedish to Bulgarian... wow! Even more amazing is the fact that Hungarian falls into this category (toalett) -- if you know anything about European language evolution, you'll know that Finnish and Hungarian are by far the least related to the rest of the continent.

So here's some food for thought. I'm thinking these "toilet" variations are more modern words, brought about by travel/free borders/etc. It just wouldn't make sense that all of these countries would de novo come up with variations on "toilet".

Talk about a sewer mind, eh???

In any case, it makes a helluva linguistics PhD thesis.

what does "friend" mean to you?

I guess maybe I'm feeling a bit introspective and sappy since I woke up feeling flu-like this morning in addition to the ongoing sinus infection. I'm not feeling the best and am not in the best of moods, so I wasn't going to post. But maybe I should.

I'm doing some work from home with Joshua Redman in the background. He's typically too much on the "smooth jazz" side for me, but a friend was his high school music teacher, and besides, he's a heckuva sax player. and it made me think of home, not only due to this friend, but because Mr. Redman's playing style is much like the guy who taught me how to play sax, in California.

I was supposed to fly to CA today. I have a car that's much more fuel-efficient at my mom's house, which we never got around to bringing up here. I postponed the trip because I didn't want to fly with a sinus infection. But also, I wasn't thrilled to go. Everyone experiences this. You move away from home, you lose touch, things aren't the same.

And now, on to the friend-related issue that's really weighing on me. One anonymous friend and I have been working on a music project, with him in charge. I've offered help and support, and for the most part, he's taken me up on it. I've also offered some unsolicited opinions about the plans being too bold/not conservative enough/not doable in our time frame. He'd always laugh it off and say, "it'll all work out." Well... deadline is fast approaching. And guess what -- the group is not on the plan time-schedule. Since I care about the group, the last thing I'm doing is "I told you so". That's just not right. But suddenly, my offers of help are refused. "I don't need your help" is the message I get. Things just haven't been the same between this friend and me, for the past few weeks. I'm trying to stay in the background to see where things end up, but I don't want to kill the friendship. I hope not to have to quit this band.

My head hurts...

always remember to save

That's my moral for the day. Listen closely; use it wisely.

I've been double checking a rather large document at work. Before I left on Friday, I remembered to save my changes, but I've gotten rather complacent about just leaving the document up on the screen, and not leaving an "I am here" tag for myself.

You can see where this is going. I got in this morning, did one little task, then poof -- the machine crashed. Meaning... my changes were saved, but I had no clue where I was.

I learned my lesson. Back to little tags before I leave my computer for the day. Or maybe even every 15 minutes, the way our computer systems work.

Speaking of work, deadline time is coming up, so I'd better get back for now...

Giving you a pizza my heart

Happy Easter, to those who celebrate. I ran again this morning, which gave me the appetite of a rhino, but I consider getting back to running a sort of "rebirth" for me. Hence the Easter run.

I had the most fantastic experience yesterday -- one might call it a "foodgasm". See, Bruce is from just outside NYC -- a very Sicilian town that makes real pizza. I've had some of this greasy, cheesy ambrosia (as well as similar stuff in Italy!) and while I'm happy enough with other inferior pies, nothing's as good as a real NY pizza.

The Seattle food scene... well, it kinda bites. Nothing spectacular, esp for someone who's lived in San Francisco. Pizza, especially, has been mostly too dry, not enough sauce, too salty a sauce... and I'd mostly given up.

Until yesterday.

I was famished (from running, and from planning a possible Oktoberfest trip) and after a round of studying Home Depot for more house fixin's, Bruce says... "there's a new Romio's in Mountlake Terrace. Let's try their pizza!"

I'd been to the Romio's in Magnolia/Queen Anne with Jessica, but we both had pasta dishes. They were pretty good. I hadn't tried their pizza.

"Sure," I said, thinking about replacing all the run-burned calories, and then some.

We ordered a plain cheese with gyro meat. (Gyros... YUMMMMM...) You see, a good pizza doesn't need 20 toppings to taste good, so this was a true test for us.

And... WOW. Words don't describe how close this comes to mafia-owned Scotto's Pizza in Great Neck. Thin crust. Toppings almost all the way to the edge. And the grease. Some might consider Romio's pizza too greasy, but it's all part of the NY way of doing things. I could've used a hint more sauce, but otherwise... WOW. Unfortunately it's not the dirt-cheap that Scotto's is... maybe that's a good thing, since we'd eat it more often otherwise.

We will be back.

As the 'mill turns

I ran today for the first time in two weeks. I usually run pretty regularly, but gunk-filled sinuses haven't enjoyed the idea of jostling. Still, I had to try it today.

Before Sinus SuperBug (BSSB), in the beginning of January, I was going out for "relaxing" (yeah, I need to be commited) 1 1/2 hour runs on the weekends. I've run marathons before, but I'm not training for one now -- it's nice to go out for a long run if you feel like it, with no pressure if you don't.

Then, as I hypothesize I contracted SSB toward the end of January, something suddenly happened. I was out for a 1:40 run... I had run "out" 50 minutes on the Sammamish River Trail. When I turned around to come "back", I had a horrible thought: "gee, I feel like walking for a bit." My body had run down. I walked most of the way back. And it had started to pour rain. Waaaa. And this continued over the weeks to follow, until I couldn't run more than 15 minutes without wanting to stop. ???? I only attribute it to SSB. And while I've run since then, I've had to engineer in some walking breaks so as not to poop out entirely, so I can make it 45 minutes. Sigh.

And this is what I did today, though it started out pouring, so I drove to the gym treadmill. I have a short attention span, so this is really tough for me. I'll run, stare into space for what seems like a really long time, then I'll look back at the timer, and... 3 minutes.

But! I had a CD player, so I listened to the last Rush studio album (Vapor Trails) while I pounded the rubber.

And my gym has three TV's in front of the cardio equipment, so there's usually something to stare at. But today, the middle TV had infomercials -- one for a juicer, one for synthetic HGH which promised to improve your entire life, and one for a cleaning solution. The right TV had a Mariners/Royals pre-season game, which was rather boring, since the M's were trouncing KC. And on the left TV....... the constant CNN scrolling of the Terry Schiavo case. Tragic, ironic, I'm tired of hearing about it. And the irony being: the battle is about a feeding tube, while it's bulimia that got her into this condition in the first place? Hm.

Note to self to create a living will asap. That way, my "millions" of hard-earned government dollars can go to my loved ones. Heck, it's better than sending it back to the government, eh...

I won't say the run was easy (esp given the lack of mental stimulation) but I did it. The first time back is always hard; you have to remind yourself that you like doing it, because if today were any barometer, I'd consider running "too hard" and just give up.

Anyway, tally ho, and off into the rain to pick up a new round of antibiotics that hopefully will finally kill of SSB.

The weight is over

Double meaning to this title, of course... bad blogger, I haven't written anything for a few days. Chalk it up to being mildly feverish during the week from ongoing infection, which led to my dealing with a few situations a little too emotionally. I owe it all to several fabulous coworkers who listened to all of my whining and continue to provide support: Johanna, Heidi, Christine, Ian, and Hugh -- my hat is off to you.

The second meaning of this title... I'm finally getting back to regular weight routines at the gym, for the first time this year. Just after Jan 1st, I had some minor surgery on my left arm. Then, I injured my right hand (the story which I'll tell sometime, I'm sure). Finally, my upper extremities are healed enough to be able to hold a dumbbell. During my down time, I tried as much as I could with the few weight machines that didn't require grip... but it just wasn't the same.

Last Friday night (yeah, loser that I am -- Bruce plays Dungeons and Dragons on Fridays) I set out to the gym for my first full weight workout. I don't think I've ever hit the gym on a Friday night before -- it's crowded! Not what I was expecting. Anyway, I didn't follow much of a routine, but there were certain exercises I did just because I *could*. And after about 20 minutes, I could feel my right hand ache a bit -- and not a "good ache" -- so I took it a bit easy. But I tell ya, I couldn't have been more excited to hit the gym again.

Throughout my injured phase, I could almost see my shoulders shrinking, my chest drooping (face it, my chest won't "shrink" at my size), Popeye arms... but I didn't seem to lose that much tone. And now, a week later, after three weight workouts, I do believe I'm seeing progress in my upper body. So in the end, maybe the time off was a good thing.

Other than the fact that I hurt like hell last Saturday morning. :D Comes with the territory.

So don't mess with me! I'm strong... er... I'll probably still be achy from my last weightlifting session.

Happy beginning of Easter weekend! I'll be getting back, shortly, to the Thai Tomato Soup I just made from the last issue of Cooking Light (fyi, needs a hair more sugar than the recipe calls for). And a little bit more of the Dreyer's Light Thin Mint that mysteriously made its way into my cart. Hmmmm, however did *that* happen...

Quatre -- the last of 100 things

This might take some thought... the well's running slightly dry. But here goes...

76. I've performed on two semi-major performance stages over the past 4 years (one in CA, one up here in Bellevue).
77. I hate filing. My receipts and stubs often end up, sadly, in piles.
78. I love animals, but a plant is enough responsibility for me right now.
79. I tend to have closer male friends than female friends.
80. Former students told me I remind them of Rachael Ray -- not so much in looks, but the way I teach my classes.
81. I strongly dislike fake, placating people.
82. I've seen every single episode of ER. Yes, they all blur together after 10 years.
83. I write goofy work-related parodies of well-known songs...
84. ... and I printed out sheet music for my organic chemistry students with reactions put to well-known tunes.
85. I have no idea what my lot in life is, career-wise, and I'm hanging out at this "safe" job until I figure something out.
86. I am one of the few people in my family not named after another family member. My Anglophile parents flipped through a baby name book and pulled out Brooke Erin. I'm pretty happy with it.
87. If it weren't for the crowds, Christmas shopping would be one of my favorite activities. I get such a thrill out of hunting down and finding the perfect gift for everyone.
88. I could spend a mint in Crate and Barrel and Williams-Sonoma.
89. When I was 19, I tore a ligament and 3 pieces of cartilage in my left knee. I've since run three marathons on that knee and rarely have problems.
90. I play tons of jazz, but my mind often wanders too much to listen to it (I swear I have Adult ADD).
91. Until I met Bruce, I didn't think there was any person in the world with whom I'd be willing to share my deepest, darkest secrets. Happily, I was wrong.
92. I like watching the olympics for the sports and competition, but they're often too Americentric for me to watch for more than a few minutes.
93. I am a spelling Nazi. I seethe inwardly at misspelled words.
94. I crave change and new challenges.
95. I fancy myself a better cook than baker; still, I get requests for my baked goods.
96. I love learning, but I don't have the patience to sit in a classroom anymore -- besides, having been a teacher, I'm aware of the general crap teaching quality out there.
97. I didn't get chicken pox until I was 20 -- broke out the morning I took the GRE.
98. I rarely sunburn. But when I do, it's bad.
99. When I was a kid, I wanted to be either a newscaster or a weathercaster. All the other girls wanted to be cheerleaders.
100. While I find some celebrities attractive, I don't lust after them. But LL Cool J has a fabulous smile. :)

And there's 100! I'm sure more will trickle in later...

sorry, sweetie, gotta embarrass you

I was just sitting here talking with Bruce... he has a shoulder problem for which he sees a PT a few times a week, and has been going there for a while.

It was today that he told me he noticed a file drawer in their office labeled "cervical flexibility". He laughed, asking me why anyone would need a flexible cervix?

I then reminded him that the upper portion of the spinal column is referred to as "cervical". :D

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

I rode the SillyCon Valley electric bull... and didn't fall off

Unless you were hiding under a rock in the late 90's, you're probably familiar with the so-called "internet boom". Both Bruce and I were involved, he much more so than I was. (He was smart and got merely a CS bachelor's degree. I was not quite so smart and spent several years in graduate school before deciding the real world would be better.)

It was a time of niche,serendipitous ideas. It was amazing. Someone could come up with the most obscure idea in the world for a company, and rather than laughing it off wistfully, you could make it happen, because the money was there. You want an online dog-washing service, small breeds only? You got it. You want an online review service for cell biology but not protein biochemistry research products (yes, I worked there)? Here's your money. The ideas flowed, they were many, and it was a renaissance of sorts.

And most techie towns, you couldn't walk into a cafe or coffee shop without hearing of talk about programming, business strategy, "page views", p/e ratios... As someone who tries to find more to life than work, it was a bit stifling.

Of course, students who graduated from college during this time ended up spoiled, for the most part. Since jobs were plentiful, it was easy to find an entry-level position doing grunt work for Company X... and it unfortunately created a bit of a sense of entitlement. People expected to have a job once they graduated. And of course, those days are gone.

Both Bruce and I have fabulous memories... and not so fabulous. Shortly after Bruce became employee 9 at a small company and loved it, I became employee 10 at another company. They were run like night and day. My company was stratified such that I was 4 levels below the president -- in a 10 person company! I didn't last there long; they were so disorganized that I'd often come in with one hour of work to do a day. Had I been wiser then, I would've spent much less time on site. Maybe that would've sent a message. So it wasn't all fun and games, all the time. It's good to be good, but it's better to be lucky.

Many of our friends got carried away. They invested, they day-traded, and they did it in a big way. We often conservatively kept 1/3. Compared to others in our age category, we're financially quite well-off. We didn't let the notion of wealth get to our heads. Too badly. ;)

And this is why I say... that we rode the SillyCon Valley electric bull... and didn't fall off.

100 Things... un, deux, trois

Now, back to my list. Lessee, what haven't I covered...

51. I was raised in a very different family. After my parents split, my mom and I stayed with my grandparents for a while. Thus, I view my grandparents as parental figures, as well... which makes it difficult as they deal with chronic, potentially terminal illness.
52. I think I'm one of the few in my family not to own a shotgun.
53. But despite my less-redneck ways, I love to share raunchy jokes with 'em.
54. My cousin David and I built a treehouse when I was 10 and he was 8. We loved hanging out up there. Our grandfather was so concerned for our safety, which I didn't understand then, but I do understand now.
55. For a few years in grad school, I ate almost entirely vegetarian. Then I realized that sausage is too yummy.
56. I want to live in London and/or Vienna for a year. Each.
57. I live in jeans and sweaters.
58. I don't have much of a sense of whimsy, in contrast to Bruce.
59. A dash of crushed red pepper flakes makes lots of things taste better. I just made peanut brittle with a dash of cayenne.
60. If I can't pay off my credit card bill every month, I don't buy it.
61. My hair was nearly straight until I was 25. Then, it turned wavy and has stayed that way since.
62. I have a bit of a fear of heights.
63. I can't stand gelatin or anything remotely with a gelatin flavor.
64. Sadly, I think the big chains make better cappucinos and lattes than the little mom and pop places, much though I'd love to support the small businesses.
65. I just asked Bruce for his thoughts on this list. He says... really cute, gorgeous eyes, dimple... he's no help. :P
66. I'm just a hair on the "extrovert" side on the "extrovert-introvert" continuum.
67. I own several 80's hair band CDs and I'm not ashamed to say it.
68. I chose all the "wrong" internet companies to work for, in terms of financial success. At least one of them was a fun time.
69. I graduated college when I was still 20.
70. I love touring factories and seeing how things work.
71. I'm not fluent in any language except English, but I know a smattering of Spanish, French, Italian, and Greek from travels. But it's fun to impress people by tossing phrases around in multiple languages, making them think I can speak them all.
72. I'd love to burn Bruce's copy of Oops I Did It Again... but I'm nicer than that.
73. The puns just slip out of my mouth. I don't plan them, it just happens. And I apologize in advance.
74. I don't seem to have the patience, these days, to read a novel.
75. I want Vern Yip to redesign my downstairs room into a rustic cabin feel, complete with maple paneling.

That's it for now, folks!

A no good, very bad day

Back to your regularly scheduled "100 Things" in a few... a quick "regular" post, first.

I've had a left-side sinus infection off and on for months, perhaps years. Over the past few years, I've developed migraines, mostly on the left side. Saturday morning, the two intersected -- mind you, it was also the worst migraine I ever remember having, as well.

I haven't been in that much pain in a long time.

I initially woke up at 6:30, feeling a headache coming on, but expecting only a mild one. I woke up again at 9, and waited maybe 15 minutes before I poked Bruce and told him I should go to the local clinic.

I'd never officially been diagnosed with migraines until yesterday, so I usually would just sleep the bad ones off. But given that this was my third bad one in 6 weeks, it was time to do something about it. And that was truly the case, since I was in so much pain I was unable to walk a straight line and unable to read anything without dry-heaving. And thoughts of food? No could do.

So he drove me to the clinic... and I sat in the waiting room in so much pain, hunched over, tears streaming down the left side of my face. I got in to the doctor (who knows me pretty well, since he's treated both my hand injury and Bruce's shoulder injury) and he basically told me... why the hell did you wait so long to get these headaches looked at?

(They seemed to coincide with sinus infections, so I've tried myriad methods to treat my headaches from that angle... with no success. That's why.)

Anyway, I honestly can't remember half of the appointment, and I'm sure that if I didn't have a pharmaceutical background and an interest in health science, I wouldn't remember much at all. In any case, since I was nearly unconscious, I was treated, sent home, and told to come back next week to discuss headache treatment when more lucid.

I got a shot of Imitrex into my arm. Ahhh, within the first hour, I could actually watch TV without everything swimming in front of my eyes. Got a booster shot two hours later, which by mid-afternoon, reduced me to moderate headache -- making me mostly functional!

I also got some "happy drugs" (amidine) that would squelch a headache if it continued into the night. The thing is -- I'd told a friend I'd go to his birthday party that night, including promises of interesting alcoholic concoctions -- and amidine and alcohol do NOT mix. I was ready to bag the party, but Bruce was feeling the need to be social and seemed to want to go.

I held off on happy drugs, wanting to drink something (yeah, like that's a good idea with a bloodstream full of imitrex). Until shortly before the party, when the pain worsened a bit again. Then the left-side tearing restarted. And then, the pukey feeling came back. So I took the pills and sacrificed the alcohol. Oh well, no biggie.

But the moment I got to the party was, happily, my first pain-free moment of the day! Oh joy, oh rapture! And the people there seemed very cool. Unfortunately this stupid laryngitis-thing (which may be an indirect result of too many migraines in a row, rather than actual sinus infection) made it impossible for me to be social, and it was totally frustrating. I hate coming across as so anti-social, but what to do? If we cross paths again, they will meet a very different Brooke.

In any case, I heard some very interesting stories about this friend from people who've known him 10+ years. (Blackmail, my dear, if you're reading this. Ha!) But still had to leave early (not only out of anti-social frustration) because both the amidine and imitrex have "dizziness" as their major side effect, and the room started spinning even when I was standing still. Still, I wasn't in pain at all, so I was a lot happier.

Today, I show no signs of having experienced one of the worst headaches I've ever had. Funny how life works that way. Just goes to show that sometimes living "in the moment" isn't the best thing to do -- think ahead 24 hours, or even less, to a time when I won't be in pain.

And I hate to live a life controlled by drugs, which I'll have to do, given the increased migraine frequency I've experienced. But I've been down that road once before (a story for another time, when I had a series of panic attacks) and I can do it again and stay strong.

100 things, part deux

To keep my mind off the pain of my currently exploding sinuses.

26. I have bad vision but hate glasses with a passion. Not for vanity reasons; I don't like that much weight on the bridge of my nose.
27. Shoveling snow is fun on occasion. Just not every day before going to work.
28. I've had multiple careers and still can't decide on one. Prior to data-analyzing, I was a college chemistry teacher, worked in various analysis positions at internet companies, and did biochem/mol bio bench research.
29. I kind of miss the experimental/research side of my life -- but there's so much rigid scheduling often involved that I'm not ready for, again.
30. I own 10 musical instruments -- some I don't play very well, but I can play at least a short little ditty on all but the violin. Other instruments include piano, alto sax, tenor sax, bari sax, clarinet, flute, acoustic guitar, electric bass, and trumpet. The piano and saxes get the most use.
31. A relaxing weekend morning for me often starts with 1-1 1/2 hours of running at a relaxed pace.
32. I can't remember the last time I wore makeup other than tinted lip gloss.
33. I have no fear of public speaking, and not much fear of public performance.
34. I tend to be far too direct and blunt, and have lost friends that way.
35. I didn't think Napoleon Dynamite was very funny. It was just a'right.
36. By the time I was 13, I'd visited over 30 states, but only one "foreign" country (Canada).
37. I like most roller coasters but not free-fall rides.
38. I could spend a long time browsing a gourmet market or foreign supermarket.
39. In fact, to me, part of the fun of overseas travel is to see how they live their day-to-day life differently -- translating to, avoid the touristy places and browse the everyday stores.
40. One of the more naive things I've done in life: in grad school, I chose the "cool thesis project" even though I was on a different wavelength than the advisor. You've gotta be able to communicate with your thesis advisor.
41. I can run 40+ miles a week and still carry around "that last 15 pounds".
42. I didn't admit it then, but I had an eating disorder my last year of college, potentially contributing to the sticking of said "last 15 pounds".
43. I'm not a huge fan of clothes shopping, but when I serendipitously find something that looks good on me and I buy it, that can make my day.
44. When I was a college faculty member, unlike many of my colleagues, I never cursed during lecture. I found it disrespectful to the class to do so.
45. I am a grad school dropout. When my mind wandered during every single lecture and seminar, I realized I needed a change.
46. And in my first gutsy move in life, I quit grad school with nothing else to turn to. I found some contract work at Genentech soon after.
47. I'm a piano singer-songwriter. I write songs that make me happy, or are cathartic in some way. And I love sharing my music.
48. I hated mangoes until I tried eating them with lime juice. Now I can't get enough of 'em.
49. I can't drink regular soda because everyone around me, while I grew up, drank diet. I got used to the lower sweetness levels.
50. I love cardamom and put it in many baked goods that call for cinnamon. An homage to my part-Swedish roots?

Tune in later for the next installment...

100 Things About Me... un

Some time ago in blogland, there was a "100 facts about me" project. I think it's pretty cool, and maybe insightful for those of you who think you know me well. Besides, what better to do on a Friday night when I'm infected and can't talk?

I'll do this in four installments of 25. I think. Let's see where the muses lead me... in no particular order.

About Brooke... 1-25
*******************
1. I don't much like the colors orange and red, but I love wearing them... and several rooms in my house have been painted or will be painted variations of those colors.
2. I would make an awful parent, therefore I have no desire to have kids. And I secretly seethe at people who say "Wow, why would someone NOT want kids?"
3. I was among the first picked for every (singing) solo in elementary school Christmas pageants.
4. I love to cook, but always pass off jalapeno chopping to someone *not* wearing contacts. That oil goes everywhere.
5. If I were young enough to be on American Idol, I'd be trying out, baby.
6. I never thought I'd be able to leave my home state (CA). Now, I have a hard time going back for visits.
7. I don't believe in political parties. I think the two main parties are all about name-calling and finger-pointing, thus I refuse to associate. I'm probably closest to libertarian these days, but I hate that politics is all a game of "us" vs. "them".
8. I only remember having met two famous people, ever: a. in the 80's, my family ran into Lee Greenwood (country singer) in a cafe while on a roadtrip, and b. I met Oakland A's center fielder Dave Henderson back in the 90's.
9. I wasn't really encouraged to exercise as a child and weighed over 200 pounds at age 15. I lost 80+ pounds shortly thereafter. I haven't stayed that light into adulthood, but I've *never* been as big as I was then.
10. I'd rather meet a Food Network personality than a sports star or another TV celebrity.
11. I've colored my hair far too many times to count. It's slowly going back to natural, when I'm sure I'll color it again.
12. In high school, I was one of the few girls *not* in love with New Kids on the Block.
13. I've been to New England 5-6 times, but I've never been to Boston (other than passing through Logan Airport).
14. Organic chemistry was my favorite course in college. Then, I taught it for a few years.
15. Bruce proposed to me having known me a month. Much to my shock, it only took me two more months to say yes.
16. My ideal weather is 60's and overcast.
17. I'm ashamed to drive an SUV. I always find myself apologizing to people and making excuses for it (it gets better mileage than most trucks).
18. My then-fiance and I rode the internet rollercoaster with Silicon Valley jobs. Those were the best of times.
19. I have over 200 pages of a semi-autobiographical, self-discovery novel written. Haven't touched it since my move to Seattle.
20. My favorite cheese is Castello Blue.
21. I could drink mango mojitos for hours.
22. But the sad truth -- have I truly reached adulthood when I say that I like virgin spicy bloody marys as much as the real deal?
23. Black coffee, straight up, most days.
24. I'm a semi-closet prog rock geek. (Well. Not so "closet" anymore.) I used to own every Rush album (damn you car/CD thief!), and half of my CD shelf contains bands people haven't heard of.
25. I have a brown thumb. I claimed huge success when my crocuses (croci? Croce?) actually popped up this year!

Next installment later... g'nite, folks!

beer so thick you can eat it with a fork

Last night, I had an interesting experience. I got home early from playing piano at band rehearsal, so Bruce and I decided to share this Austrian beer we picked up at Central Market. I can't remember the name off the top of my head, but it's a special beer brewed only one day a year. (And overall fairly inexpensive -- about $4 for the bottle!)

Well, it's the most syrupy beer I've ever had. Kind of a metallic tasting maple syrup, and I mean that in a negative way. Still, it's beer, and I hate to waste it, so I drank my half down in about 10 minutes.

Only when I was close to finishing my half did I actually read the label. This stuff is... 14% alcohol!!! That's about 5 times the US standard. So it was at that point that I realized... I just drank almost 3 beers in 10 minutes!

Woo! The rest of the night I was happy. Nah, not too bad. I actually have a pretty high tolerance, so I was just slightly buzzed.

An amusing aside: I love the new lime Coke commercial. There are a bunch of people dancing around singing "you put the lime in the Coke, you nut." Cracks me up! Perhaps I'm easily amused.

cryin' in my (green) beer

Top o'the mornin', eh...

A mixed bag of rants today. I'm still reeling from the music thing last night, but I won't say anything about that again until I have more time to think.

I get chronic sinus infections. I'm currently searching for an antibiotic that will kill off this round, since the one I'm taking ain't doin' squat. As a result, I can barely speak.

The rant being... you'd think people in doctor's offices would have a bit more sympathy. I put in a call to them yesterday, scraping the bottom of the barrel to get any sound out of my throat.

Me: I have a question about...
Them: WHAT?
Me: I have a question...
Them: WHAT?

And it went on like this for a few more rounds until I finally got my point across. I haven't entirely been impressed with the desk staff there... if someone seems to have difficulty talking, don't holler WHAT? back at them!! A message was left with my doctor, who's out of town until tomorrow. Ah, such is life in the chronically-infected world.

I'm seriously working on my coding chops today. I made a small, elegant, yet simple change in a data analysis perl script we use in Genome World. Somehow that unmasked a deeper, more difficult issue that already existed downstream in the code. I'm feverishly (ha, pun intended) trying to convince my coworkers that I didn't create the new problem (heh) while at the same time, trying to figure out how to fix it. It's a good challenge.

Meanwhile... since UW made it to March Madness, all of the guys I need to talk to about said problem are in a sports bar drinking green beer. And I don't have any green beer right now. but if I did, you can bet I'd be cryin' in it.

take that

second post today, but gotta get something off my chest.

I'm a musician with a varied past -- big band singer, jazz pianist, jazz sax player, a cappella vocalist, singer/songwriter... etc. When I moved to Seattle a year ago, I jumped headfirst into the local music scene, and thanks to craigslist, I've ebbed and flowed with needs and interests.

A month ago, I met these guys who were doing a 6 part (4 guys, 2 girls) trip-hop group -- all vocals and a recorded vocal percussion track. I came to a rehearsal to replace their departing alto, and was later told that everyone was "intimidated" by my musical ability -- in a good way.

I've since been to about three other rehearsals -- the pace was on the slightly slower side in terms of learning songs, but the music was way cool. How many times have I sung The Lion Sleeps Tonight or other such common blather a cappella style? This was something totally different -- artsy, experimental.

Little did I know what was coming. I felt I interacted fine with the group in the few rehearsals I'd attended, though I clearly felt the most extroverted. But still, I held back and tried not to overwhelm. I just got an out-of-the-blue email from Band Leader Guy (who claims he prefers the phone, so I knew something was wrong) saying that I'm clearly talented but "the chemistry isn't working out". ??? I'm confused. Yeah, things still felt superficial with the group, but what do you expect after three meetings???

Anyway, I wrote back saying how confused I was, and asked what he felt was wrong. Though I don't know if I'll ever get a response. He was too spineless to call me in the first place...

Perhaps this is heading something off at the pass that would've been a problem on down the line. But it was fun for me on the way there. This is a sad moment for me.

cheesecake is awesome

One of the wonders in life is cheesecake -- the perfect blend of creamy, sweet but not too sweet, and the sour of citrus with the ever-so-slight sour of the cheese. Of course, the best in the world contain far too many calories than I want to know.

I love cooking, and I'm a scientist-geek -- so I'm often surfing the web for recipes. Frequently I'll look for healthier knock-offs of things I really love. Or just plain ol' experimentation. Not too long ago, I found something that's almost a magic cheesecake substitute, that's FAT FREE.

Now, it doesn't quite have the same creamy mouthfeel, but the flavor is THERE. I'm a berry freak, and I love to dollop/mix with berries, fresh or frozen.

Here's whatcha gotta do:
Mix one regular size package fat free/sugar free white chocolate jello pudding with 16 oz fat free sour cream. Mix well, since the pudding mix tends to clump. Add a few drops of lemon or jime juice (the latter makes it taste a bit more key lime pie) to taste.

And that's it!

Yeah, it's weird. And I was suspicious, too. But it does work, would you believe!

The texture is a little bit gelatinous to me (and I HATE gelatin with a passion) so I probably wouldn't eat it straight, but mmmmmm... with berries..... :D

that little yellow bracelet

I've finally put my finger on what bothers me about those LiveStrong bracelets. I have yet to be caught up in the craze, and never will be, as far as I'm concerned.

(warning: overgeneralization to follow. maybe you don't fall into this category, and I apologize if you don't.)

It's the same thing that bothered me about the post-9/11 "dove releasing" ceremony where I worked at the time. Many Americans -- dare I say most -- use this sort of thing as a type of "closure". Which is completely reasonable.

Yet I run into so many that use these opportunities to mentally pat themselves on the back, to say, "there, I've done my part, I don't have to think about that anymore." Whew, we bought the bracelet, the money goes toward cancer, I've done my good deed, now on with life.

Wouldn't it be nice if this attitude solved the world's problems?

Now, I'm not saying that we all need to think about a cure for cancer 24/7, especially those of us who lack experience or training in the appropriate fields. But cancer can't be cured by a single small donation. World peace won't be achieved by releasing a few doves into the sky. Sure, it's a nice gesture, but I ask that people revisit these topics on a semi-regular basis.

And that's why I won't buy a LiveStrong bracelet. Curing several varieties of cancer is done over a lifetime of small gestures... if we're lucky.

oh iiii-iii-i'm still alive

test for echo... anyone?

anyway, here i am. i've been meaning to put something up for months, a "space for rant" if you will, and i finally came up with a semi-creative blog name that wasn't already taken. score!

so now, i have something to do while i'm at work. and you all get to virtually listen.

observation for the day: craig's list is the bomb. one of the jazz bands needed a bass sub. i posted an ad. i got THREE responses. since i come from craig's hometown, i was an early user of craig's list, and i used it to help orient myself in my move to seattle. now the thing's expanded to freakin' everywhere. there's a craig's list bakersfield. fresno. wow.

entries will probably be longer once I can move all 10 fingers again. 'til i get bored at work tomorrow...