27 October 2007

Poll question

When people are lying to you, but the lies won't change your life at all - the equivalent of "big fish" stories, what do you do?

I have several people in my life who...um...embroider things to an unbelievable degree.

On one hand, I could say "no harm, no foul."

On the other, I feel disrespected - do they really think I am stupid enough to believe the fake facts they spew?

Do you call them on it, or do you let them have their over-active fantasy life?

25 October 2007

What follows

When I mentioned my attorney the other day, several of you commented approvingly on his wacky sense of humor.

What I failed to mention that my attorney is my ex-BF. And he is a lot more my friend than he is my attorney. He has actually never done any legal work for me, and since I have little money and no power and I try to keep the libel and slander down to a minimum around here, he may never have to do any.

But over the years he has become one of my best friends and confidants. This happens to me all the time. I am apparently a rotten girlfriend and an excellent ex-GF.

I talk to my ex-BF Steve every day for about 5 minutes. We don't say anything important, but we like to keep in touch.

And then there's Mr. Mojo. Since my sister died, Moj is the only person on the planet who gets me like she did. We dated in our 20s, then didn't speak for 17 years. Then fell madly in love again. For a minute or two. I remember a tiki bar in Albuquerque. Then it was over again.

But now when I need someone who understands, Mojo is the one I call. I can be completely mentally ill with him and he keeps the faith for me. He knows I am sane underneath it all.

I love these guys, and they love me. I have never seen the benefit in being bitter about people I dated. I mean, we liked each other once. Just because we have moved on, does that mean we should hate one another?

Apparently it does to the exMrStapler. He won't speak to me, email me, nuthin'. I guess it works for him, but I don't get it.

About 3 times a week, I see something hilarious/weird/amazing that I know he would love. I wish I could call him and tell him about it, but he isn't going for that deal. I guess this is the point in the story where I say "His loss," because I don't know what else to do.

23 October 2007

Generalissimo

I blame my continuing semi-impoverished state on a number of factors. First is probably laziness, followed by a willingness to spend money on ephemeral, expensive stuff (helicopter flying lessons, anyone?).

But there is also another problem: I am a hopeless generalist. A dilettante.

All of the best entrepreneurs are somewhat obsessive. They get one idea and follow it through. I get one idea and follow it until the next good idea...about 5 minutes later.

For instance, here are some of the things in the news that have been fascinating me lately:
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Giant Falling Iceballs
MRSA
Sonar-related whale deaths
Shipbreaking

I guess I have concern for the ocean. And other stuff. But this is just part of the list of the things I wonder about every day. Maybe I will never be super rich. But I will always have something to think about.

What are YOU obsessing about? You know, news stories and articles that you can't stop yourself from clicking on?

A pause in memory of Peg Bracken

If author Peg Bracken had been born 30 years later, she might have been a blogger. I remember the laughs my mom, a rural stay-at-home mother of five, got from her books. I think Peg was a bit of a sly feminist before her time.

 

From the LA Times obit:

Her instructions for stroganoff, for instance, said to cook the noodles in water flavored with a bouillon cube; brown the garlic, onion and crumbled beef; add flour, salt, paprika and mushrooms; then "let it cook five minutes while you light a cigarette and stare sullenly at the sink." She called this recipe "Skid Road Stroganoff."

 

Her books included “The I Hate to Cook Book,” "The I Hate to Housekeep Book" (1962), "Appendix to the I Hate to Cook Book" (1966), "The I Hate to Cook Almanack" (1980) and "The Compleat I Hate to Cook Book" (1988).

 

Peg, wherever you are, I hope you have your feet up and your “big dishwater hands around a dry martini instead of a wet flounder."

 

22 October 2007

Chain smoking


Sunrise on the way to work this morning

It's hard not to use words like "apocalyptic" when you are dwelling in a pit of smoke, fire and ash.

The air is so harsh that I feel like a two-pack-a-day smoker. Headache, eyes hurt, raspy coughing.

People in China deal with air quality like this ALL THE TIME. How do they survive?

Other than that, I got nothin'. I'm busy just trying to breathe, and I certainly don't want to discuss the Red Sox. Apocalyptic, indeed.


Did I mention the wind was blowing like hell, too?

Oh but wait...one cheerful thing -

Can you FEEL the happiness?

21 October 2007

Smoke from a not-so distant fire


That's not fog, that's smoke

As is usual in this type of weather, half of Southern California seems to be going up in flames.

The "Santa Ana Winds" blow in hot and dry from the valleys. The temperature rises into the 90s, humidity drops to below 10%, and even irrepressibly wavy-haired folk like me suffer from flat tresses.

Because it has not rained much for over a year, our state is a wildfire waiting to happen. The smallest spark and WHOOM, it goes right up.

We are having about 3 fires in our county, but the biggie is right over the county line in Malibu and it is all over the news because OMG! Movie! Stars! Homes!

A wall of smoke blew in about 2 p.m. and turned everything an eerie burnt orange color. Ash began to fall from the sky to blow about in little drifts. The bag boys at the grocery store were wearing dust masks as they went out to collect carts from the parking lots.


That tiny bright dot up there is the sun

The other side effect of this is that everyone loses their damn minds. As I shopped last night, I was noticing the wonderful lighthearted brio of my fellow citizens. Today, all that was gone. I had people cut me off in traffic, try to run me down in parking lots, and, in 5 stores on errands, not one clerk said "Thank you." I guess everyone is just busy trying to breathe, because the smoke makes it feel like an elephant is sitting on your chest.

Pray for rain for us, okay?

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Not for important client meetings

I got this pen at my gynie's office the other day. I am a pen snob and don't normally take free pens but I couldn't resist this one because oh my gah! Can you IMAGINE ever using it?

I gave it to my attorney, who was dee-lighted. He said he would hand it to people to sign contracts with. Ah, University of Michigan Law, you know how to train 'em. Go Blue!

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And there are good posts from my blogroll over at Linkateria's Smashboard Sunday. Go check it out.
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