recovering
Snowboarding didn't go as planned. After four days, I was going to be catching air and ripping it up. As it turned out, I slammed my head into the mountain three slopes into it the first night and ended up in the hospital with a concussion. Yes, I had a helmet on. My weekend of kick ass snowboarding became a weekend of headaches, nausea and cabin fever in West Virginia.
10 days later, I am finally back to work still with minor headaches and in a constant but minor daze. According to the doctors, I'm supposed to be 100% in another week or so. According to Andrea, Concussion Champion of 2005, it could be longer. We'll see.
Thanks to all of my friends that have helped me out. Especially Dan, who knows bad snowboarding when he sees it, Darci who could verify that all my answers to the ski patrol's questions we in fact wrong, Currie who drank enough Absinthe to seem way more out of it that me, and everyone one else up at Snowshoe who kept things light by making me laugh the rest of the weekend. I couldn't have asked to be debilitated around a better group of people.
Thanks to Steven, Janet and Jenny for stopping by to make sure I was okay and for driving me around all week. Thanks to Anne-Marie for getting me things so I didn't have to get off the couch, Charlie for taking over the project at work that I took so he wouldn't have to, Maureen for figuring out the secret to unlimited sick days, and to everyone that sent get well emails. And lastly, thanks to April for the beautiful flowers and to Shaun and of course Andrea for being so sensitive to the situation...
"i just called shelly and told her that her name was yolanda and her favorite thing to do was clean my house. apparently her concussion isn't that bad... she seems to be in good spirits, partly due to the drugs she got from the doctor, partly due to getting a week off work, but mostly due to the unexpected entertainment value of everything bright and shiny around the house. april, if you need a good laugh after a long hard day, call shelly tonight and ask her specific and difficult questions revolving around her having to remember something in great detail. awesome...
i tried to send her good thoughts, janet, but they all came back stamped "return to sender." guess no one was home! LOL!! wow, i really am as insensitive as they all say. ;)"
Laughter really is the best medicine. It's leaps and bounds better than Tylenol. Vicodin is also good.
quotes
from the Golden Globe awards...
"I know as actors our job is usually to shed our skins, but I think as people our job is to become who we really are and so I would like to salute the men and women who brave ostracism, alienation and a life lived on the margins to become who they really are." Felicity Huffman, best drama actress for "Transamerica."
___
"I know everyone thinks they have the best cast but I ... just get to go work with such great actors who are so talented ... who are so wonderful and kind and good and wonderful and sexy and great and I just want to make out with all of you." Mary-Louise Parker, TV comedy actress winner for "Weeds."
snowboarding tutorial
Alright! Snowboarding 2.0 is coming up this weekend. Last year, about this time, I tested my skills for the first time. For a snowboard-virgin, I think I did pretty well. Had a tough time on the uh, toe side? I bit it most everytime I tried that. Otherwise, I was on my feet most of the time, wind in my face, getting in as many trails as possible.
SO! I'm going for three days this time, and have every intention of looking like
this at some point during the weekend.... and landing without serious injury. What do you think? Is it possible? Any pointers anyone wants to give me?
please?Eh, hem. Correction: photograph, courtesy of
Todd (that's him in pic)
writers gone wild
When I'm looking for something new to read, I usually go for award winners/nominees like the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, the Booker Prize, etc. I don't always know what the award criteria is; I've just found that books that win awards are usually pretty good. Today I found a new list for consideration on the
Powell's Books Blog...
BookSlut has unveiled my new favorite literary prize. Nerve offers the
Henry Miller Award, a monthly prize bestowed upon the "best literary sex scene published in the English language." Two annual winners will receive $1,934, "commemorating the publication date of
Tropic of Cancer." At last — someone skips all that other crap and gets to the good part of a book.
quote of the day
"There is a land called Passive-Aggressiva, and I am their Queen."
-
Dr. Addison Shepherd, Grey's Anatomy
triskaidekaphobe? not me
How did Friday the 13th become such an unlucky day?
Dossey, also a folklore historian and author of Holiday Folklore, Phobias and Fun, said fear of Friday the 13th is rooted in ancient, separate bad-luck associations with the number 13 and the day Friday. The two unlucky entities ultimately combined to make one super unlucky day.
Dossey traces the fear of 13 to a Norse myth about 12 gods having a dinner party at Valhalla, their heaven. In walked the uninvited 13th guest, the mischievous Loki. Once there, Loki arranged for Hoder, the blind god of darkness, to shoot Balder the Beautiful, the god of joy and gladness, with a mistletoe-tipped arrow.
"Balder died and the whole Earth got dark. The whole Earth mourned. It was a bad, unlucky day," said Dossey. From that moment on, the number 13 has been considered ominous and foreboding.
There is also a biblical reference to the unlucky number 13. Judas, the apostle who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th guest to the Last Supper.
Meanwhile, in ancient Rome, witches reportedly gathered in groups of 12. The 13th was believed to be the devil.
Thomas Fernsler, an associate policy scientist in the Mathematics and Science Education Resource Center at the University of Delaware in Newark, said the number 13 suffers because of its position after 12.
According to Fernsler, numerologists consider 12 a "complete" number. There are 12 months in a year, 12 signs of the zodiac, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 labors of Hercules, 12 tribes of Israel, and 12 apostles of Jesus.
In exceeding 12 by 1, Fernsler said 13's association with bad luck "has to do with just being a little beyond completeness. The number becomes restless or squirmy."
This fear of 13 is strong in today's world. According to Dossey, more than 80 percent of high-rises lack a 13th floor. Many airports skip the 13th gate. Hospitals and hotels regularly have no room number 13.
On streets in Florence, Italy, the house between number 12 and 14 is addressed as 12 and a half. In France socialites known as the quatorziens (fourteeners) once made themselves available as 14th guests to keep a dinner party from an unlucky fate.
Many triskaidekaphobes, as those who fear the unlucky integer are known, point to the ill-fated mission to the moon, Apollo 13.
As for Friday, it is well known among Christians as the day Jesus was crucified. Some biblical scholars believe Eve tempted Adam with the forbidden fruit on Friday. Perhaps most significant is a belief that Abel was slain by Cain on Friday the 13th.
source: John Roach for National Geographic News
i read stuff too
I've been a loyal patron of Barnes and Noble and barnesandnoble.com for several years now. Don't get me wrong, I do understand the plight of the independent bookstore owner, but most specialize in used books. I don't do well in used book stores. The few I've been in are extremely cramped, which doesn't appeal to my definition of personal space, and often smell musty, which usually causes an allergic reaction and I have to leave for fear of sneezing all over the merchandise and possibly other patrons since the space is so small.
However, today I discovered my new favorite,
independent, new and used bookstore. Powell's at
www.powells.com. All the personal space my laptop can provide and whatever non-musty environment that has an internet connection I choose!
I googled the author of the current book I'm reading,
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, and found that Powell's has a whole listing of
author interviews and includes with each interview other book selections of similar appeal. Within 5 minutes I found about 15 books I want to read. They also have a
BLOG and a
Bookcast! I LOVE THIS PLACE!
To top it off, under
Browse Sections they have a sidebar titled Find Books with common online book sales link such as Award Winners, Book Clubs, Staff Picks and...
Harry Potter. Yes. They have an entire section dedicated to Harry Potter!
Yep, this is my new favorite.
i watch stuff
The freakin' geniuses over at
The Superficial have birthed another beautiful baby blog that offers up juicy pre-movie-release morsels to nourish the movie addict within.
"Clerks 2 Teaser Trailer online
The Clerks 2 Teaser Trailer went up on the official site about 30 minutes ago. If you've ever wondered what Clerks might look like with color and Rosario Dawson, here's your chance to find out. It's mostly just a montage of quick cuts, but the story will pick up 10 years after the original with the stores replaced by a fast food joint. I don't want to ruin the movie, but I hear Silent Bob says something deeply profound at the end, and then Jay makes a marijuana reference and tops it off with a 'Snoochie-boochies!'"
BONG!!
the best kung fu movie...
you likely haven't seen is
Kung Fu Hustle. Completely original, excellent use of CGI, funny as hell, and needless to say, wicked awesome kung fu.
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Steven on an excellent Halloween costume, and apologize for the late recognition. I didn't know it at the time, but he indeed was a dead ringer for a member of the Axe Gang complete with top hat and axe.
Looks like there will be a Kung Fu Hutsle 2 coming soon!
top 10 highlights - nye '06
10. Red desk lamp on wheels. Not really a hot item in the white elephant,
but this is a list of highlights and that thing was bright.
9a. Ree cleans up on the dance floor. Literally. Unfortunately, this went undocumented. Therefore the tying #9 highlight is...
9b. Contributing to the deliquency of a minor
8. Tatoos...
7. ...and slap bracelets!
5. Grass hats. H.O.T.T.
4. The liquor cabinet was emptied!!!!!
3. Disturbing neighbors of note
2. U.S.A.! U.S.A.! (?)
and the #1 highlight of 2006...
quote of the day
One a day is best.
"Laugh every day, it's like inner jogging."Care of Lisa Campbell, WSB AM750 News anchor
the L word premiere
I have never seen so many women in one place in my life. We met some fun people and had a frickin' awesome time. Oh yeah, and we were VIP, baby! Yes, we were hanging with cast member and 70's icon Pam Grier and The L Word creater, writer and executive producer, Ilene Chaiken. It was a great time.
Pam Grier, Ilene Chaiken, Cassi
frick
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY, JAMES!!!!!!
I got the reminder on the 3rd. I thought about it multiple times yesterday. When I got to work this "morning", I realized it was the 5th. I had forgotten. I am so sorry. Now it's probably the 6th where you are, James. Oh well, I hope it was a good one!!
a new year
Last year Steven and I sat down and wrote out 5 things we wanted to accomplish in the year. Not really resolutions or goals per se - 5 things that would expand our horizons I suppose.
My Things to do 2005:
1.
Get a new job - I guess you could say I got something of a new job... just not by my own efforts. I work for a different company with a lot more stress, but other than that the job is not new in any way. Same desk, same co-workers, same boss. Yeah. I didn't really accomplish the first one.
2.
Go hiking - Check. Went hiking with the girls in June. Didn't hike anymore after that. Turns out, I've got a bum foot. Great time to figure that out is on a multiple day hike.
3.
Learn to surf - Well, I would have if it weren't for President Bush. I was headed down to Coco beach, but he asked that people conserve fuel and not travel unnecessarily on Labor Day weekend due to the pipeline issues cause by Katrina. Stations were out of gas in Atlanta, and I didn't want to get stuck in Deliveranceville, GA on my way to Florida. I could also blame Katrina, but I prefer blaming Bush.
4.
Go to the arts (play, symphony, opera, etc.) - Nope. I went to a Coldplay concert, but I really don't think that applies. This was such an easy one too...
5.
Take a class (language, music...) - I found a photography class to take in October, but that was the middle of racing season and would have screwed up our constantly changing practice schedule. It was a sacrifice I had to make. Probably a good one too. If you don't remember we took
GOLD at the Hooch!
Long story short... I didn't expand my horizons much. So in the spirit of futility, I hereby make my list of
Things to Do 2006:
1. Do two of the unaccomplished things from Things to Do 2005. Likeliest candidates:
I. Go to the arts. I bought a dress and need to find an occasion to wear it.
II. Take a class. I've already picked out three possibilities.
2. Join/start a Book Club. Already working on it!
3. Write a letter for employment to George Clooney (who doesn't want a nice looking boss, potiential inter-office relationship/HR issues and the ability to make some good films?) and AMC Theatres (Cinema business needs some revamping).
Okay, I can't think of anything else. Who said 5 was a hard and fast rule? If I accomplish one of these I'll be doing just as well as 2005...
