A little levity

Every once in a while, I check out the Failblog website for a little reprieve from heavier stresses in life. This was one video (it's only half a minute) that made me laugh out loud because I totally did not see the outcome coming. It's starts with a Chinese newsman obviously making a point about something that needs attention and a cyclist is coming up behind him ringing his bell...



Hope everyone has a good (and safe) weekend!

A new road

I'd been in a funk since getting back from New York. The combination of leaving my family and friends back east, trying to get back into the work groove, and reading "The Road" was pretty affecting. In the first two days I get back, I learned that my friend in the hospital (for her privacy's sake, I'll say she's had major complications from an infection) had a setback while I was gone and is medically unconscious again. The topper was a close friend of a friend suffered the sudden loss of her ex-husband (who was still one of her closest friends and great father to their young children) due to illness that went suddenly serious. He was only in his 40s. I was crying every other hour at work.

Also in those few days, I came out to my car after a long day at work to find my car battery dead. And for some reason now, the "D" doesn't illuminate on my dashboard when I'm in Drive. Which ridiculously shocked me the first time I noticed it--my thought process was like Am I dead? Who's driving this thing? Is it driving itself? Is it a ghost car? Wait, is it possible I'm not in any gear and driving? (my foot taps the brakes and gas) no, I've got to be in gear--hmm, is it possible the light's out? Yes, I know...genius at work. And on top of everything else, I have not done one Commit2Fit Healthy Habit or stayed in my WW point range since I got back. I've eaten fried food every day, drank coffee and/or beer every day, and have drunk about 2 tablespoons of water since I've gotten back.

I decided to take the wheel on at least one thing, which will hopefully affect more of my life. Yesterday when I visited the hospital, I promised my unconscious friend that I would run a mile every day until she got out of the hospital. I know she's struggling to get better and I wanted her to know she's not alone. I chose something difficult for me but that was also something good/healthy for me. I don't know, maybe I'm floundering, desperate, feeling so helpless, grasping at straws...it was an impulsive promise I made at her side. I know it doesn't come close to the healing process she's undertaking, but God help me, I need to do something that I feel I'm doing with her. We'll see--maybe a better suggestion will illuminate.

Evolution of a haircut

What I wouldn't give for good hair. Since I don't have that, the holy grail is the decent haircut that works for my coarse hair that has the texture of that cruel limbo between flattering straight or wavy hair: kinked straight hair.

Anyhoo, when I booked my trip to New York I made an appointment with the one haircutter who knew my hair and could work with it. Unfortunately, it's been a number of years and it just wasn't the same magic as I remembered it--though she did lighten my hair load quite a bit. Here's the evolution:

Pre-haircut-definitely very long in the face--gotten pretty unflattering--kind of just hanging, begging for a haircut:

Post-haircut-obviously just styled by the haircutter--dried smooth straight--and one can appreciate the flattering framing layers:

Post-post-haircut-obviously in my classic wash-and-go mode, this is what the haircut looks in my lazy, unstylish hands:

When I wake up in the morning, the crueler voice of my inner monologue says, hey! Mick Jagger/Jon Bon Jovi/Richard Marx wants his hair back...oh, wait, keep it, he realized he's in 21st century! or hey is that what Wolverine would look like if he didn't blowdry his hair? On the plus side, if I ever did get around to using a hair dryer & brush and/or flat iron, I'm pretty sure I could get it to look like Karen O or Joan Jett. Hmmm...that would be worth the gumption.

We're back

We arrived back to Cali from NYC yesterday. Yeesh, it is slow going for me. Besides the base melancholy of leaving my sister, I read Cormac McCarthy's "The Road" on the plane trip back. Geez, that just about devastated me. It's a very effective book following the journey of a man and his young son in a post-apocalyptic world. As if surviving the elements and searching for food wasn't hard enough to witness, the most harrowing details are the ones depicting the evil horrors that man do. It's very well-written and I recommend it with caution--prepare for a tension filled ride that could prove upsetting and demoralizing. I recommend reading it when you have time to finish it (e.g., 3-4 hours) because it's hard to put down. I also recommend some kind of chaser after it, like some SpongeBob Squarepants cued up on the DVR or an issue of People or Us Weekly. I heard they made a movie of it with Viggo Mortensen. I think the only way I could go see that movie would be if it was a double feature with a Will Ferrell movie or something like "Pineapple Express".

Fortunately, a good friend saved me and I was able to get sucked into the Twilight saga to help bring me out of the pit of distress after reading "The Road". I'm on a brighter road to recovering from this funk.

An Afternoon at the Museum

Velina, my sister, and I went to the Museum of Natural History. I don't know if it's because of the "A Night at the Museum" movies but it was crazy crowded--worse than Chinatown on a Saturday morning. It was packed with kids and tourists and the huge halls compounded all the noise into an unseen monster that beat me into exhausted submission and headache.

Fortunately, the main part that the girl wanted to visit was the hall of gems and minerals. Not many people there. Over the years, she has picked up an interest in rocks from her rockhound grandfather, who also happens to be an amateur paleontologist who goes on digs every summer.

We spent most of our visit there, looking at minerals and gems and looking up details in the reference book she had brought with her. Between escaping the havoc of the rest of the museum and the carpeted quiet of the mineral hall, I was ready to pass out. So relieved when the girl was ready to go too. I love this museum and I totally recommend it but it's easier to enjoy when it's not so crowded. We'll be back.

Leaving on a high note

On our second day at the beach, the girl had a great time repeating the previous day (adding in a rented boogie board) and more sandwiches.

But the best part of the day? Finding a dollar bill on 3 separate occasions, washed up on the shore:

The exact amount to get a shave ice doused in rootbeer syrup before we left!

Chillaxing at Montauk

Today we headed to Montauk, Long Island for a bit of sun and surf for two days. My sister and soon-to-be-legally-brother-in-law rent a place out there in the summer time. The girl loved the ocean and eating sandwiches on the beach.

And I loved the relaxed pace and a platter of these:

My sister and her man, though, were surprised/appalled how thoroughly I ate the lobster, including the tomalley and eggs. sigh. They don't know what they're missing.