Manny being LA

Yesterday as the trade deadline approached, the Red Sox were involved in a major deal in which Manny Ramirez was traded away to the Dodgers, Jason Bay was received from the Pirates and the Pirates got 4 players, 2 from the Sox and 2 from the Dodgers. The Sox are also paying the rest of Manny's salary for this year. No word on if the Dodgers will be required to pick up Manny's option(s) or not.

This is a sad day in Red Sox Nation. Manny is a Hall of Fame player and always puts up great numbers. Lately, though, he has been a royal pain in the ass in the clubhouse, getting into a fight with one of his own teammates, getting into a scuffle with the PR guy over a request for a ridiculous amount of tickets, and to put the icing on the cake, taking himself out of the lineup of the first game of the Yankees series last week.

Manny has been one of my favorite players since Nomar left in 2004. Manny helped the Sox win the 2004 and the 2007 World Series. I was at his first game at Fenway where he hit a home run in his first at bat. Sure, Manny has his antics, his weirdness when he cuts off relays to home and allows an inside the park home run, throws the ball into the stands when there are only 2 outs, hi-fives a fan after catching a fly ball, etc. Despite his playing style, his numbers are irrefutable: 2318 hits, 510 HR .312 avg over 16 seasons.

It will be an interesting second half of the season without him. Jason Bay has some big shoes to fill. Good bye Manny, we will miss you - say hi to Derek Lowe and Nomar for us.

Comments

Yesterday, someone at work (who doesn't have any kids) saw me and said, "You look hot and uncomfortable." To which I wanted to reply, "So do you." However, being a superior to me and me being the nicer person, I just responded, "I still have a Red Sox hangover from Sunday." SERIOUSLY?!?! Would anyone say that a non-pregnant person looked hot and uncomfortable? Is that supposed to be a compliment? A sympathy greeting? Come on people - as one of the books I read says - the only thing a pregnant person wants to hear is, "You look great!" Or, if we really don't look great, just don't say anything about our looks, just ask us how we are doing or how our weekend was.

Sweet Setlist

Aerosmith isn't on tour this year so I live vicariously through their website and updates. Recently, Steven Tyler played with Billy Joel at Shea Stadium as a final farewell to Shea (it's the last year of this ballpark too). Check out the setlist:

July baby update

Clara Jean
Owen David
Sadie Eleanor

Congrats to all!

Belated and not so belated

Birthdays to my brother in law (ha, you are older than me!) and to my good friend LB. I hope you both had and have wonderful birthdays!

2008 All-Star game

I finally had a chance to watch what I had of the All-Star game (up to the 10th inning). I really enjoyed the pre-game ceremonies with all the Hall-of-Famers there and the tribute that was paid to Yankee Stadium. The unfortunate thing, was that the Yankee announcer, Bob Sheppard, was not able to do the announcing. He has been the voice of Y.S. for 56 years and is not in very good health right now. The even more unfortunate thing, was that Joe Buck filled in for Sheppard. You would think they would at least have another current ballpark announcer do the honors, possibly Vin Scully (since he's from the Bronx), or maybe share it with the Red Sox announcer and the Rockies announcer. But seriously, just because it was on Fox, we got stuck with Joe Buck. During the pre-game when he was introducing all the HOFers and the starting players for each team at each position, he did ok. Until he FORGOT to introduce the catchers. Who he then did introduce after the managers. Dumb ass.

A few thoughts on the pre-game:

I think Yogi, Whitey Ford and Willie Mays got the loudest cheers from the crowd.

Joe Buck is a dumb ass.

Sheryl Crowe is a good singer, but her rendition of the National Anthem was too slow and boring for the All-Star game - what about Bon Jovi who was in town the night before?

Wade Boggs is still an asshole - all the hall of famers wore the cap they were inducted into the hall with except Boggs. Yes, we all know you played for the Yanks and won your World Series there, but wear your Sox hat and bring your Yanks hat - that's what all the classy players did!

Rollie Fingers has the best mustache in baseball.

Yankee fans are mostly stupid. When Paplebon came in when the game was tied they started shouting for Rivera. First, wouldn't you want your guy to come in during a save situation? Paplebon shut up their "overrated" chant pretty quickly.

Yogi Berra is the most adorable ball player around.

The titty fairy cometh

I blogged a while ago about my new bra size. Currently, I am reading a book called the Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy by Vicki Iovine. It's pretty funny and seems to have some good advice in it. One chapter talks about the physical changes your body undergoes while pregnant. One of these is the fact that your boobs get bigger to accommodate for the milk glands and to prepare to feed the child you are carrying. She writes that some of her girlfriend's SO's (significant others) call this time the visit from the titty fairy. I told this to my husband and he thought it was hysterical. It is pretty hilarious. Especially for those of us who didn't have anything to begin with, it's a new and exciting feature to have. All those push-up bras now have something to work with and cleavage is a possibility. During this time I will be taking some advice from one of my own girlfriends and buying a couple of low cut shirts. (Hey, even though they're maternity shirts, I still look cute!)

Pregnancy and emotion

One of the side effects of being pregnant is that you can be extremely emotional. I remember hearing stories from my friends who, when they were pregnant, couldn't watch a Hallmark commercial without a box of kleenex. I heard these stories and thought to myself, "Ha! That won't happen to me! I am in complete control of my senses." Stupid me. The All-Star game was on Tuesday night and since I had to work, I TiVoed it. Before I went to work last night, I started watching the pre-game show and practically fell apart when Yogi Berra came on the screen. That's right, I started getting teary when I saw a Yankee. I literally had to turn it off so I didn't show up to work all bleary-eyed. Stupid hormones. God forbid they decide to tear down Fenway and I decide to get pregnant again. I will be a wreck.

The All-Star game was ridiculous. I added an hour to the recording and still didn't get it all. It lasted 15 innings and finally the AL came out on top thanks the JD Drew and no thanks to Papelbon. The game was played in Yankee Stadium. As I blogged about before, this is the last year of The Cathedral. It was a fitting tribute to the grand old park, especially with the AL win.

Weekend trip

This weekend we traveled to VT to visit with some of Sean's family. It was fun and relaxing. They have a sailboat on Lake Champlain so we hung out on that for most of the day on Saturday. In my current state, I can't really reach my back to apply sunscreen and immediately forgot about it upon arrival at the boat. Needless to say, my back is VERY red - OUCH! But the weather and company were beautiful and Sean's little 2nd cousin is wicked cute at 3 years old and loves the beach.

Our trip back was not that much fun due to the traffic, but at least the Red Sox game lasted a long time and ended with a win, so that slightly helped pass the time. The evening ended with some wings and a viewing of the day's stage of the Tour-day-France. A grueling climb and fun descent. Luckily there were no crashes - which is good for the riders, but boring for the viewers.

If you haven't already, go to http://www.coldplayontour.com/wwdc/ and vote for my friend's band: Honor By August (their video is third from the bottom).

Wimbledon 2008

Nadal wins: 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (8), 9-7
The best tennis match ever was played yesterday in the men's finals at Wimbledon. Roger Federer (1) was going for his 6th straight Wimbledon record to try to beat Bjorn Borg's reign of 5 straight (which Federer tied last year). Rafael Nadal (2) was trying to beat Federer at Wimbledon, a feat he missed last year, barely, plus he was trying to become the first man to win both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year since Borg. Nadal has always had Federer's number on clay at the Roland Garros, but he never could quite outsmart Federer on grass. The match was the longest in Wimbledon history, 4 hours, 48 minutes, it survived two rain delays, numerous challenges and strong winds. Every type of swing was used, both players played strong, at net, at the baseline, with grace and athleticism. Both players were dressed in the required white, they survived shadows cast by the setting sun, exhaustion, and played the game of their lives. It was a clinic in perseverance, strength, determination and skill. It will be shown again tonight on ESPN Classic, as it was one of those matches that was one for the ages. If you like tennis, even just a little, watch the match. You'll be happy to have witnessed one of the great, if not the greatest, match in men's tennis history.

Update

Baby name born in June: Freya - Congrats!
Another born in June (who I thought was being born in July): Noah - a boy!
Ava Grace (also in June)

Congrats to everyone!

Lincoln and Darwin

I just read this article comparing Lincoln and Darwin. It was quite interesting. They were both born on the same day in the same year. They both changed the course of history - one for a nation, one for science. They shared personal issues: depression, loss of a mother at a young age. They were both magnificent writers. The article goes on to ask who was more important. The author brings up the point that it is like comparing apples and oranges - with which I agree. They were both extremely influential in their respective fields, but Darwin lived in England and was a scientist and Lincoln lived in the US and was a politician (to this day, politicians don't listen to scientists - at least not the ones that they haven't paid). However, he decides he must have a winner and decides that Lincoln was more important. His argument is that without Lincoln, who knows what the state of our union would be, but with Darwin, someone else was bound to come along and think up the theory of evolution (this is true as Alfred Wallace indeed did also come up with the idea); but who is to say that no one else would have come along to abolish slavery? Also, Darwin's idea influenced scientists world-wide, Lincoln preserved the nation, which eventually gained world-wide influence, but not until half a century later. I just say they were both extremely influential, intelligent men, without who, we would be ther poorer.

Baby count 2008

As I mentioned in a previous post, I know a lot of people who are having babies this year. here is the update so far (and yes, they are all girls!):

Jan: 1 (Caroline)
Feb: 2 (Grace and Katelyn)
April: 2 (Nell and Darciana)
June: 1 (waiting for confirmation)

Just wait for July - there are 4 coming!

Great trip!

A few weeks ago Sean and I took a trip to Paris. We figured it would be a good time to go before I couldn't walk or fly anymore. We left on a Tuesday evening from Portland to Newark then to Paris. It was a little tricky leaving from Portland because we were delayed about three hours so we were very nervous that we wouldn't make our connection in Newark. Luckily, we got into Newark just as our plane was boarding so we made it. After breathing a sigh of relief once on the plane, out flight was fairly uneventful and we arrived in Paris around 12:30 pm on Wednesday. We bought our train tickets to get into the city and got to our hotel around 3 or so. That afternoon we went to the Louvre since I knew it was open late on Wednesdays.
It was really cool. It is an amazingly huge museum with lots of stuff you've seen in movies and in books, but to see it in person is really cool. Even the Mona Lisa, which, even behind glass, has such a quality to it, you can't help but stare at it for a while. That night we had a crappy dinner as some bistro near our hotel.

Our hotel was great. It was near the Arc de Triomphe. It was nice to see the Arc every day on our way to the metro. The next day we went to Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower. It was a great day and we did lots of walking. Notre Dame was beautiful. I think it was my favorite thing we saw while we were there. It has such an amazing history and such beautiful architecture. Notre Dame has wonderful stained glass windows, cool gargoyles and a huge bell called "Emmanuel," (the one that Quasimodo rang in the story) and it weighs something ridiculous like 3 tons.

The Eiffel tower was also a cool building with amazing architecture. You get great views of the city from the tower and you get to be 900 feet high.








The next day we went to Versailles. It too was spectacular. The space of it is huge and the paintings and architecture of it are beautiful. We saw the Hall of Mirrors, the doors which Marie Antoinette escaped through to safety for one night, her Hamlet with a mill and farm. The gardens are extravagant, there are statues everywhere.

The next day we went up to Sacre-Coeur in Montmartre. Another beautiful church and area, although there were a lot of annoying street vendors. We also saw Moulin Rouge and ate at a nice little cafe for brunch.

All in all, we saw a lot of great stuff, walked a lot and had a nice relaxing trip (except for the start of the trip when we were delayed). The food, honestly, wasn't that great. We went out to one nice dinner, but mostly, we just ate bistro food. We also finally made it up to the top of the Arc de Triomphe - on the third try. Each other time we tried to go there, it was closed, and finally on the last night, we made it. I liked going up the top of the Eiffel tower, but going to the Arc at night, was really worth it. I would highly recommend it if you ever go. We had a great time!

Jerry Remy day at Fenway

Yesterday, the Red Sox organization and NESN celebrated Jerry Remy for his time playing with the team and his 20 years as a broadcaster. Remy is also the president of Red Sox Nation - a group of "citizens" (aka fans) of the Red Sox who pay a minimum (or maximum) fee to have a special entrance at Fenway, their own day at the park, discounts at the store and free MLB radio on the computer. A lot of people think that Remy and Orsillo don't pay enough attention to the game at times, but I think it's their entertaining broadcast that makes the Sox games more fun to watch. Especially when this happens:

Summer movies

There really haven't been very many blockbuster summer movies lately. Sure, there was the latest Indiana Jones - which was perfectly entertaining. But it seems they are either so stupid they're funny (Zohan), remakes of old TV shows (Get Smart), or horror (The Happening). However, on July 18, The Dark Knight will be released. I wasn't a huge fan of Batman Begins, but I am excited to see The Dark Knight. Just watch the trailer.

Today's trivia

What flavor is a mixture of wintergreen, peppermint, vanilla and cinnamon?


Answer: Bubblegum!

Go Green! (Another one for the ages)

Last night, the Celtics handily beat the Lakers 131-92 to win the NBA Championship. The largest point differential in a finals winning game. I only watched the third quarter, but it was ridiculous. The Celtics played amazing defense, and just in the few minutes I watched, had something like 6 steals. This is the Celtics 17th championship - the most won by any NBA franchise. This stat would normally make me wish they didn't win and give someone else a chance, but because of how poorly they did last year, the fact that they haven't won in 22 years, and that they are a Boston team, I am happy for them. Paul Pierce won the MVP, deservedly so - he had an average of something like 22 points per game in the finals and even though he got injured, he came back in the same game to play his heart out. Plus, he put any ego he had aside this year when the Celtics got Garnett and Allen and learned to play well with others to get this team to the championship. They won with Bill Russell and John Havlicek watching - two of the Celtics greats of all time. They won it with Doc Rivers as their coach and with Red Auerbach watching from somewhere smoking a cigar.

They f*$k you at the drive through....

Name that movie? Today I got up a little late so I went to DD for some breakfast. I had to wait forever and they got my order wrong - dammit!

Also I received a call from Anonymous today - I am pretty sure I know who it was, but they didn't leave a message. Leave a message people! How hard is that?

I think I am being tricked - today must be Monday all over again.

New Metallica

The new album (which was promised three years ago) is finally supposed to come out in September. I can't wait!

Bull Durham

Apparently, yesterday was the 20th anniversary of the release of Bull Durham. This is a great baseball movie. If you haven't seen it, see it - even if you don't like baseball. To see interviews with the actors and other movie memorabilia check out this article.

Bad smells, b-cups and babies, oh my!

So, I think the two people who actually read this blog already know my news that I am pregnant! About 20ish weeks along in fact. We are very excited about this new adventure that we will be embarking on. So far, my experience has been great. I wasn't sick, I haven't had any weird food cravings (yet), and in general, haven't had any pregnancy "symptoms." (I hate to use the word symptom as it makes pregnancy sound like a disease or something.) It's bad enough that insurance companies see it as a disability - if you want to get some paid time off to have your baby, you need short term disability insurance, and even then, it's only at 80% of your current salary for 6 weeks, after that, you're SOL.

A few short, funny stories to share:

A few weeks ago, the lab next to me was thawing and dissecting about 20 large cod. Needless to say, this created a big stink - literally. Even with my office door and the lab doors closed, the smell still got to me so I went home to work. Pee yew!

A few days ago, I bought my 1st ever B-cup bra. (Yeah, yeah, bring on the jokes). I think it still might be a little small, but I know the C will be too big.

I've also bought a few maternity items: a pair of jeans, a pair of capris and a couple of dresses. I also got a few things from my sister in law which will be a great help. The jeans currently keep falling down, but I'm sure I'll grow into them (how many times will I be able to say that and be happy about it?). The capris are great and at least one of the dresses is as well. It's weird how certain clothes definitely show off the fact that I am pregnant and others hide it fairly well. The dress, for example, is empire waisted, black and it is fairly obvious what is going on - as witnessed by the man in front of me at Versailles (more on that in another post) who asked if this was our first child (Bold!) - but he was very kind and told me his two daughters have 4.5 kids between them, so I figured he clearly knew what a pregnant lady looks like. I also bought this weird elastic band thing that I can use with my regular pants without having to button them. Who knew pregnancy came with gadgets too?!

I've told a few people at work, but I don't think I'll make a big announcement. I figure I'll just let people figure it out themselves and make them squirm a little if they ask me (hee, hee). Today I am actually wearing a top that makes it fairly obvious - we'll see if anyone says anything.

So I think we make the 10th or 11th couple I know this year who is expecting among our friends. There was one in Jan., two in Feb., one in April, there will be one this month, 3 or 4 in July, one the end of Oct and one the beginning of Nov (me).

Bring on the babies!

In Plain Sight

I usually leave the TV blogging up to LB, but this new show on USA, In Plain Sight, may not be on her radar. There have only been two episodes so far and it's quite a good show. It's about Mary, a US Marshall, and the jobs she takes, her family and relationship. It's on USA so it's not in HD, but the writing seems solid and I think it will be a nice break from summer reruns. Starring: Mary McCormack (Coyote Ugly), Frederick Weller, Lesley Ann Warren. Check it out if you're so inclined.

500!

Manny hit his 500th home run on May 31! Yeah for Manny! Last night, he hit his 505th home run. Go Sox!

The Plastic Ocean Part II

A while back, I posted about how there is a huge amount of plastic out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It turns out, a few people decided to go out with the man who has made this tragedy public, to film the grossness that's out there. From reading the articles, it seems like you would get to the gyre and there would basically be a floating plastic dump. It turns out, the gyre is full of broken down bits of plastic, so at first look, it doesn't look that bad. It's when you trawl with a small mesh net that you see the real problem. Check out this video of their trip (Warning: bad language on the video). Each segment is between 4-5 minutes long, but if you just want to see the problem, segments 9-12 are the ones to watch. As a scientist, I am always skeptical of things people seem to be blowing out of proportion. It's especially hard for me with the video because there are no times or dates on the actual tape. However, due to the passion and expressions on these people's faces (who are clearly NOT actors) makes me believe what they are seeing is real.

Bo Diddley

Today, Bo Diddley, famous rock musician passed away. I must admit I am not too familiar with his music, but I do know that he was a great influence on many of the classic rock artists. Read this article about his music and life.

Am. Idol 2008 recap

David Cook won. Slightly surprising considering the judges had all but crowned Archuleta the night before. During the contest night, Cook sang "I Still Haven't Found (What I'm Looking For)" by U2, chosen by Clive Davis (who will own the winner). He was great. I love U2 and Cook changed it just enough to make it his own, but stayed true to the original. He then had to sing a song from some songwriting contest (who wrote the song? - who knows - for a songwriting contest, you'd think they would tell the audience who wrote the song). Finally, he chose to sing, "The World I Know" by Collective Soul. Another song I love and again Cook did it justice. Archuleta sang three ballads including his version of "Imagine." I love this song and hate the fact that Archie sang it and everyone loved it. Ug.

I'm glad Cook won and hope his career takes off after his stupid obligatory Idol tour.

I know a lot of people think Am. Idol is lame and the singers suck (Burger?), but I have become fans of a few of the contestants of this show, and am glad to have been exposed to them through this show: Daughtry, Bo Bice and Kelly Clarkson. In fact, I am listening to Bice right now and really like the album. I have owned this CD (yes, I still buy CDs) for a couple years now and just noticed that Chad Kroeger (Nickelback) wrote one of the songs. Kroeger is awesome as a singer and songwriter and has worked with some of the best (Santana). Bice also performed on one of the Idol shows this year with a new song, which I am looking forward to being released.

Now, let's go Sox and Celtics!!

It's good to be green (or Red)

The Red Sox have installed solar panels on the top of Fenway to help heat their hot water. In this day and age where energy efficiency is so important, it is very impressive that a professional baseball organization would take the time or money to invest in such a project when they could just jack up ticket prices to help pay the bills. Check it out. Another reason I'm proud to be a Sox fan.

Another reason why baseball is awesome

Last night, Jon Lester no-hit the K.C. Royals. This is a major feat in baseball (see comment on previous post). Let alone for someone who less than 2 years ago was diagnosed with cancer. Lester has been a Red Sox hero since he won game 4 in the World Series last year. Last night's game was a true no-hitter - he pitched all 9 innings, and despite the two walks he gave up and the throwing error to 1st base, no runs scored (yes, you can have a no-hitter where the other team scores runs). I didn't get to see the whole game, only from about the 6th inning on, but even in the 6th I could tell that Lester was ON. It was fun to watch, beautiful in fact. To see a pitcher and catcher so in tune and the batter baffled by what is being thrown is truly amazing. The game was a real team effort too, Ellsbury had a fantastic catch and the whole team was rallied behind Lester to help him complete this achievement. Whenever I see a no-hitter, I always think of the movie For Love of the Game, specifically the part when Kevin Costner looks up at the scoreboard with some confusion and asks his catcher, "Ain't nobody been on base?" I'm sure that every pitcher at some point during their no-hitter has this realization and I can't imagine the feeling. Fear, joy, trepidation, doubt, adrenaline all must come into play. Lester handled all of those feelings with grace last night, and it was a joy to watch. Congrats to Lester and Varitek (who had the only HR of the night despite a 7-0 score), and the rest of the team. You gave us all something to be inspired by.

Why baseball is awesome

I just read this article about why baseball is the best sport. I agree with most of it, especially the last sentence - a lot of people think baseball players are wussy - but you try hitting a ball with a 2.8 inch diameter that's going 95 mph.

Am. Idol final 3

So the two Davids and Seyesha are the final three contestants on American Idol this year. They are all good singers, although after watching last night's performances, I have to agree with the comment made on my last Am. Idol post that I will shoot my TV (or something to that effect) if David A. wins. He totally killed (not in a good way) "And So It Goes" by Billy Joel. David Cook was not in top shape last night though. The Switchfoot song he sang, was flat and not very exciting and he did not come close to doing Steven Tyler justice on "Don't Wanna Miss a Thing." Seyesha did a fine job on all her songs, but no one hit anything out of the park. I think, in part, it was because of the format. They all sang three songs, one picked by one of the judges, one they picked themselves and one picked by the producers. It was pretty obvious that the producers either a) know nothing about pop music and who actually watches this shoe or b) want one of the contestants to fail miserably, but all of the producers songs choices were so terrible, it was hard to figure out which one. I can't for the life of me predict the winner.

Go Green!

So the Celtics are in the playoffs. In fact, they were the best team in the NBA this year with an .805 winning percentage. This compared to just last year's record when they were the worst team in the NBA bar none. So cool, they're in the playoffs now, but it seems they have forgotten how to win on the road. For a team that was ridiculously dominant all season, it is weird to watch them totally lose it when they are the visiting team. Now, I know the playoffs are very different from the regular season, nerves and all that, but this team is so talented that it is totally perplexing to watch them fall off the wagon when away. I will admit that I did not watch a regular season game, but I have watched some of the playoffs, and even for me (a non-basketball player, watcher, etc.) it is obvious that the home game is completely different from the away game. It's like they think they suck or something. Whatever it is, I hope they figure it out, because this team, and Boston, deserve an NBA championship.

American Idol '08

If you have been reading this blog for a while, you know I am a fan of the show American Idol. This year has been quite disappointing as shown by the lack of posts about it. None of the contestants stand out or have had that "knock your socks off" performance. I really don't care about any of them and am not sure if any of them will survive the record business. Terrible singers lasted a long time on the show this year for inexplicable reasons. They are down to the final 3, and luckily the show will be over soon. I know I can just stop watching it, but it's totally addictive and now I need to know which one of the saps left will win.

497

Manny is on his way to 500 home runs. However, since he hit 496 on April 19, his bat has been pretty silent. Ironically, 497 happened when they were away, in Detroit. (Yeah, I know they went to Tampa for three days, but they have been home for all other games). Now they are away from that stupid 486 banner that's up on the Green Monster. You would think by now, Fenway would smarten up to jinxes like that! Go Manny!

How to get ride of a canker sore

I'm sure you all have your own remedy for getting rid of canker sores, stop stressing out, rinse with salt water, orajel until your entire mouth is numb. I found a new one today which kind of combines the last two: These salt and vinegar chips will dry up that yucky canker sore AND make you mouth numb! And they taste good! Man, I had a boring day.

My radio stations

I know, WHO listens to the radio anymore you ask? Well, me. I don't have satellite radio since baseball is on XM and football is on Sirius, it just doesn't make sense to get one until they decide to merge. And oh yeah, I don't have an iPod. Well, Sean lets me use his old nano, but I can't hook it up in my car. I refuse to get one of those tuner devices because the one sound I cannot stand is static. Even a little. Finally, I only have a single disc player in my car and often forget to bring a CD (yes, I also listen to CDs and still buy them) into the car, so unless I want to listen to Daughtry for the 5000th time, I usually end up listening to the radio.

I also listen to the radio at work. If I wasn't able to have music during the day, I think I would go crazy. This is why I love Pandora.com. Usually I listen to Pandora, but some days, I'll listen to the local alt. rock station, like this morning, until the play the lunch bunch during which the crappiest music from the 80s and 90s (Wall of Voodoo anyone?) is played and I have to turn it off.

Just now, I turned on my old radio station from the smallest state. I freaking love this station. They play the Doors, Metallica, Georgia Satellites and Led Zepplin. Where else can you get that kind of variety? I'm not saying it's good day after day, I'm just saying it's fun to listen to. Plus, I get to listen to the cheesiest commercials ever!

A good cause

Some of you may have heard about the Ortiz jersey that got buried at the new Yankee Stadium to try to place some sort of curse on the Yanks by a Bronx-living Red Sox fan. Well, eventually, the news leaked out that he had done this, so the jersey was jackhammered up out of the concrete and was auctioned off to raise money for the Jimmy Fund. Today the bidding closed and it raised over $175,000 for the Fund. As much as I would like the curse the new Yankee stadium, I think this is a greater cause.

Our weekend

Last weekend we traveled to the warmer nether regions of our country to be total tourists in DC. We had great weather on Saturday, saw lots of monuments and met up with a couple of old friends. It was really fun. Lots of walking, ice cream and water. Sean and I took the train down as the plane tickets were ridiculous. Plus, that way, he could get some work done. We took the train from home to Boston, then the Acela from Boston to Baltimore. It took 9.5 hours total - a little less than it would've taken to drive, but we didn't have to drive. It was actually pretty cool to watch the season change from just starting to be spring up here to spring in full bloom down there. We got to go through our hometown and the surrounding hometowns of our friends. We even saw people on the beach in some places! I only have a few suggestions for the Acela: get drink holders - those stupid trays suck. Get satellite radio - how hard can that be? Get better snacks.

It was beautiful when we arrived. We got picked up and headed to Annapolis where we hung out for a while, then had a very nice dinner in town (thanks to Reed) and headed back to get ready for Saturday.

Saturday we headed to the metro to get into DC. It was pretty straightforward to drive to the metro and get into the heart of the city. We walked around for a while and finally met up with one of my friends from college and her boyfriend at the WWII memorial and then we all walked around checking out the monuments. At one point we noticed lots and lots of riot police and people lined up along the street like it was going to be a parade or something. We soon found out it was an Aryan nation rally. As soon as we learned that, we took off, wanted to not be anywhere near such a disgusting cause, especially when the riot police put their face masks down, it was a clear sign to be to book the hell out of there.

At about 5, my friend had to take off so the rest of us headed into Georgetown to hang out and get some pre-dinner snacks. It was a busy place, but we found a cute little bar to get some apps and rest for a little while before heading to my other friend's show. At about 8 or so we got back on the metro to head into Arlington to get to the club. At this point we were all pretty tired from being out in the sun all day, but I was so excited to see my friend it didn't matter to me. We had some dinner at the club (not the greatest food, but it sufficed) and at about 10 or so I finally met up with my friend. I thought I had seen him earlier, but I think it was someone from another band who was playing that night. It was great to see him, but it was really loud so we couldn't really talk much. I got to meet his wife, who is really nice. So we hung out for a while and then his band, Honor By August, went on around 11:30 or so. We didn't stay very long as we didn't have any earplugs (I didn't notice how loud it was - I guess my hearing is already shot) and Sean was wicked tired. It was really fun to see my friend and his band. He just looked so happy playing, it made me really glad for him.

Sunday we had a Segway tour booked for 12:30 so we drove into the city this time, since it's really not that bad on a Sunday, checked in for the tour, got the little tutorial and practiced around in the little courtyard for a bit. Finally, we decided it was raining too much and the tour would suck so we canceled. So, then we headed to ESPN zone for some lunch and games, then headed to the International Spy Museum. It was pretty cool. We walked through the museum and then did an interactive exhibit. At that point it was about 6 or so, so we headed back, had some dinner, then went to the airport. Our flight was delayed about an hour because of the rain, but that wasn't too bad. It's a quick flight so we got home about 12 am I think. The only thing that sucked was that the cabby acted like he knew where he was going, but really didn't - seriously, if you don't know where you're going, just ask!

All in all, we had a great weekend. We had great company and lots of fun. We'll hit the museums next time, and maybe get a tour of the White House.

Aerosmith

Most of you know that Aerosmith is one of my favorite bands. Today I have been able to listen to them all day so far and not hear the same song twice. I have listened to Honkin on Bobo, the two new songs from Ultimate Hits Disc 2, Just Push Play and all 3 discs of Pandora's Box. Up next is Pump and after that Toys in the Attic ( my fav album). When I hit Toys, I will hear some songs that are on Pandora, but that's ok. I love not having an office mate.

New video

If ANYONE has any connections at VH1, MTV, Fuse, etc. SEND THEM THIS VIDEO!

"Into the Light" by Honor By August

The House that Ruth Built

Many of you know this is the final year of Yankee Stadium. The new stadium will still be in the Bronx, but bigger and better (and probably more expensive). I think they are going to do what they did in Foxborough and turn the old stadium into parking, but please correct me if I'm wrong - I don't really keep up on the day to day happenings of the Yanks. I read this article this morning. I didn't realize until I looked at my schedule that the author is right, we (the Sox) close out the regular season of baseball against the Yanks at home (Fenway). I could argue with a few of the author's points (the most famous facility in the history of American sports? I'm not sure about that!) But, it does seem a little wrong that we won't be giving Yankee Stadium a proper farewell - they have to do that against the Orioles. Because, you know, it would be nice to beat the Yanks one last time in their own home*. :)

* and yes, I say this after we got creamed last night

Life and death

Today I went to a funeral. Not the most uplifting event, but in a way, it kind of was. A funeral is really the celebration of a life. The life that was celebrated today was a great, old life. It was a life that cared for his family and made and impression on anyone that it touched. It was a caring life, a loving life, a happy life. A life that survived a few years of WWII in the Pacific, a life that met its life partner 59 years ago. A life that produced 3 successful sons, 3 successful grandchildren, and 3 successful businesses. I am glad that this life was able to be a part of my life, if only on the outskirts and through stories. Knowing how much this life meant to its family, is enough to know how important it was. The eulogies given were heartfelt and meaningful, the song that was performed was beyond compare and the day was beautiful. You could tell that this life was proud to be celebrated. Thank you Mr. A. for having a wonderful life.



sidenote - going to a funeral during Easter made me realize I really don't want to die during Lent - you can't say Alleluia.

Fenway Opening Day!

Yesterday we went to Fenway for Opening Day. It was AWESOME! It was a beautiful day, sunny with a little chill in the air. I got to the park about 11 to wait at a will call window to get my tickets reprinted. The window finally opened about 11:40 and they tried to print my tickets. Of course, there was some printer error which finally got straightened out and I got my tickets to this game and my game in July. YEAH!! While I was waiting there, I talked with a very nice couple from CA who had never been to Fenway before who got tickets from one of the husband's students. They were very excited to be at Fenway. Also, while I was waiting there, members of the Boston Symphony walked in to get ready for their performance later during the opening ceremonies (unfortunately there was no Keith Lockhart as the BSO had a performance that night so they were probably having rehearsal and Fenway got the second string, but they were still great).

After I got my tickets I went across the street into the sun to wait for Sean to arrive (he had to go run an errand). While I was waiting I talked with another nice gentleman who was there waiting for his son. He told me all about Gloucester and New Bedford and said I should make sure to check out Antonio's restaurant the next time I'm in New Bedford. Apparently, they have a rowdy crowd but it's a fun atmosphere and great Portuguese food.

Finally Sean arrived and we went to find our seats. After hitting the bathroom, and getting some food we got to our seats and luckily no one was in them (this was my biggest fear after my tickets never arrived). We had nice neighbors, great seats right in the sun and a perfect view of the field (except for the deepest part of center field). We had to turn around to see the jumbo screen, but that was ok. Around 12:45 they started showing highlights of 2005's Opening Day ceremony and then the post season games from last year. This was great, as it got the crowd all hyped up and ready for the day's ceremonies.

First, they had members of Red Sox Nation carry out flags from lots of different countries representing Red Sox Nation. They marched out the green monster where most of the people entered from. The BSO started playing and the World Series banners were revealed: 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 2004 and finally 2007. When they unveiled the 2007 banner (which is as big as the Green Monster) it flew up in the wind and took a little while to come down so the people on the ground could hold it straight. It was pretty funny. The BSO played the soundtrack to Jurassic Park by John Williams as this was happening. It's kind of weird when you think of it as the soundtrack to a dinosaur movie, but it really is inspiring music on its own. After the banners were unveiled, members of championship Bruins (including Bobby Orr), Celtics (including Bill Russell) and Patriots (including Tedy Bruschi) teams paraded out onto the field, carrying their respective trophies. Finally, this led to the members of last year's roster to receiving their rings. The rings are awesome. They have the Red Sox as the dominant logo and each ring has the player's name and number on the side. Also, for the players who were on the winning roster in 2004, their rings have 2 trophies on them. They are beautiful.

As the rings were distributed, Dice-K completed his warm-up routine out in right field and the bullpen, so we got a good view of that. After the Sox received their rings, they all marched out to center field to raise the 2007 championship flag on the flagpole in center field. Ortiz was going to do it, but he brought Johnny Pesky out to do it - it was so cute, since Papi is about twice the size of Pesky, but you could tell that Pesky was just to proud to be doing it. Once the flag was up, the rosters were announced. The BSO then played the National anthem and 4 F16 fighter jets flew overhead. Finally, it came time for the first pitch, and who better than Bill Buckner to toss it? And he wasn't even booed. Sean thought it was still too soon, but clapped anyway, and most fans were in enough of a forgiving mood to cheer for him. He tossed a good pitch to Dwight Evans and then finally, Johnny Pesky got to say, "Play Ball!"

All throughout the Opening ceremony, a red-tailed hawk kept flying over the field. Some of you will remember the last post about the kid who got nailed by a hawk. There was some debate as to whether it was the same hawk or not, but once the F16s flew over, the hawk made it out of there, but reappeared about an hour later. Apparently, at one point it had a huge rat in its talons.

The game was great. Steven Tyler sang God Bless America during the 7th inning stretch. Neil Diamond sang from the Jumbotron Sweet Caroline and will be giving a concert in August at Fenway. The Sox won 5-0, Manny scored a run on a triple and an error, Dice-K pitched extremely well and even Delcarmen redeemed himself by not allowing any runs! Sean and I had a great day at the park and can't wait to go back in July. I don't know if my sign made it on TV so here it is:

Some game day stats:

Food consumed: 3 ice creams, 1 hot dog, 1 pizza slice, 2 sodas, 1 cracker jacks, 2 pretzels, 2 waters (no Sports bars available yet)

Sunburns: 1

Pictures taken: 25

Happy red sox fans: 36, 567

Go Sox!

Suggestions?

As many of you know, I am going to Opening Day at Fenway this year. I will witness the ring ceremony, the banner unveiling and the World Champs take the field. I always bring a sign to the game so this year I am soliciting suggestions as to what the sign should say so I get on TV. Something with NESN on it is usually a sure bet. Any unwelcome suggestions from Yankees fans will be deleted. Thanks!

Priceless

BOSTON (AP) — A 13-year-old girl touring Fenway Park on a school trip was attacked by a resident red-tailed hawk that drew blood from her scalp.

She wasn’t seriously hurt, but some observers saw an omen for a certain New York Yankees slugger in the attack Thursday at the home of the Boston Red Sox. The girl’s name is Alexa Rodriguez.

Vince Jennetta, a teacher who chaperoned her class trip from Memorial Boulevard Middle School in Bristol, Conn., told The Boston Globe that Alexa is “a little shaken, but OK.”

The hawk perched on a railing in the upper deck behind home plate as the group toured the stadium. The hawk took flight and swooped at the girl with its talons extended, scratching the her scalp.

A single egg lay in the hawk’s nearby nest in an overhang near the stadium’s press booth.

The nest and egg were removed at the direction of state wildlife officials.


While I think this story is hilarious, I am glad the kid is ok.

For Bon Jovi fans

One of the great songs done very well by Bon Jovi......

Banana rant

This morning I didn't feel like making my own breakfast so I decided to go to a local coffee shop to get a bagel, coffee and juice. I picked out a juice that had Vanilla and Almond in the the name so I thought it sounded good. To my disappointment, the first sip tasted like banana. "What the hell?" I thought. So I looked at the ingredients, and there is was, 5th or 6th, banana puree. Now, I like bananas as much as the next person, in fact, my grandfather swears it's not an apple a day, but a banana a day that keeps the doctor away. My beef with bananas is that they infiltrate everything they are associated with. For example, the juice this morning - if I had wanted a banana drink, I would have gotten a drink with banana in the name. Also, whenever you bring a banana in your lunch and forget to take it out of your lunch box (that's right - I have a lunch box - with my initials on it!), it makes everything else in your lunch box taste like bananas. Now, who really wants banana-flavored brownies?? Not me! I wonder if we can get the FDA to start making manufacturers place a banana warning label on items containing bananas?

Words words words

Does this ever happen to you? You're editing or proofing something that has the same word repeated over and over and after a while the word looks like it is spelled completely incorrectly to you? This happened to me today with the word length. 4 consonants in a row just isn't normal.

Red Sox Win!

Today was MLB season opener. In Japan. At 6 am EDT. It was the Oakland A's vs. my beloved Red Sox. The Sox won in 10 innings. Dice-K started and had a rocky few innings but then settled down. Manny had 4 RBIs. Brandon Moss who got the start due to a late scratch of JD drew, had a great home run. Ellsbury had a fantastic catch in center field. Way to start the season boys! Sweet Caroline!

Happy Easter

I hope everyone had a happy Easter. We had a great time visiting with friends and family. We had ham, it was sunny, church was good. It was nice to be home. Some of our friends and family were away so we hope to catch up with them sometime soon....

It was a nice sunny day, but still so cold since it's still March. I can't wait until it's at least 40 when I wake up.

Another week of work. Woo hoo.

Godly Friday

If you don't care about religion, feel free to skip this entry.

Today is Good Friday, aka Holy Friday, aka Godly Friday, aka the day Jesus died. I went to a 12 noon service since I will be in a car at 7 tonight when the other service happens. I think the only other time I've been to church during the day is on Ash Wednesday. It actually wasn't too bad. We still sang some hymns, but there were no Tones or Anthems sung. I go to the Cathedral in the city I live in since it has a great choir and one of the main reasons I go to church is for the music. The noon service today was in the chapel of the Cathedral since only about 30-50 people were there. The chapel is a little weird in that it's a circle and the lectern is directly across from the alter. Fr. Ben gave a good homily. It was vaguely familiar as the lesson of Good Friday is pretty straight forward, but he put a neat spin on it talking about how God gave us Jesus to die for our sins, and as a father, he couldn't really understand that, but if you think about it a little more, in that God and Jesus are one and the same, it was really God giving up himself for us, which he could understand. He also threw in some symbolism in that the horizontal slat of the cross represents the human form of Jesus and the vertical slat of the cross represents the divine Christ. Fr. Ben gives good sermons. They usually make you think. The entire passion was read and we sang an African-American spiritual hymn (yeah - it's in the regular hymnal - 172 or something like that - "Were you there..") which the organist really likes since I remembered it from last year too.

I like Good Friday, even though it's not really good. But it's not really bad, either. And it reminds you why Easter is so great.

5th Anniversary

Today is the 5th anniversary of the beginning of the war in Iraq. Can you believe it has been 5 years? It has been such a waste of everything. Some quick stats (as of March 9, 2008, from the Brookings Institution's Iraq Index)

3,979 US Soldiers Killed

29,320 Seriously Wounded

Troops in Iraq - Total 164,895, including 155,000 from the US, 4,500 from the UK, 2,000 from Georgia, 900 from Poland, 650 from South Korea and 1,845 from all other nations

US Troop Casualities - 3,979 US troops (more than the number of civilians-2,974-killed on 9/11/01); 98% male. 90% non-officers; 80% active duty, 12% National Guard; 74% Caucasian, 10% African-American, 11% Latino. 18% killed by non-hostile causes. 51% of US casualties were under 25 years old. 70% were from the US Army

Non-US Troop Casualties - Total 308, with 175 from the UK

US Troops Wounded - 29,320, 20% of which are serious brain or spinal injuries (total excludes psychological injuries)

US Troops with Serious Mental Health Problems - 30% of US troops develop serious mental health problems within 3 to 4 months of returning home

US Military Helicopters Downed in Iraq - 68 total, at least 36 by enemy fire

Spent & Approved War-Spending - About $600 billion of US taxpayers' funds. President Bush has requested another $200 billion for 2008, which would bring the cumulative total to close to $800 billion.

U.S. Monthly Spending in Iraq - $12 billion in 2008

Cost of deploying one U.S. soldier for one year in Iraq - $390,000 (Congressional Research Service)

Lost & Unaccounted for in Iraq - $9 billion of US taxpayers' money and $549.7 million in spare parts shipped in 2004 to US contractors. Also, per ABC News, 190,000 guns, including 110,000 AK-47 rifles.

Missing - $1 billion in tractor trailers, tank recovery vehicles, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and other equipment and services provided to the Iraqi security forces. (Per CBS News on Dec 6, 2007.)

Mismanaged & Wasted in Iraq - $10 billion, per Feb 2007 Congressional hearings

Halliburton Overcharges Classified by the Pentagon as Unreasonable and Unsupported - $1.4 billion

Amount paid to KBR, a former Halliburton division, to supply U.S. military in Iraq with food, fuel, housing and other items - $20 billion

Portion of the $20 billion paid to KBR that Pentagon auditors deem "questionable or supportable" - $3.2 billion

Private Contractors in Iraq, Working in Support of US Army Troops - More than 180,000 in August 2007, per The Nation/LA Times.

Journalists killed - 127 - 84 by murder and 43 by acts of war

Journalists killed by US Forces - 14

Iraqi Police and Soldiers Killed - 7,951

Iraqi Civilians Killed, Estimated - A UN issued report dated Sept 20, 2006 stating that Iraqi civilian casualties have been significantly under-reported. Casualties are reported at 50,000 to over 100,000, but may be much higher. Some informed estimates place Iraqi civilian casualties at over 600,000.

Iraqi Insurgents Killed, Roughly Estimated - 55,000

Non-Iraqi Contractors and Civilian Workers Killed - 548

Non-Iraqi Kidnapped - 305, including 54 killed, 147 released, 4 escaped, 6 rescued and 94 status unknown.

Daily Insurgent Attacks, Feb 2004 - 14

Daily Insurgent Attacks, July 2005 - 70

Daily Insurgent Attacks, May 2007 - 163

Estimated Insurgency Strength, Nov 2003 - 15,000

Estimated Insurgency Strength, Oct 2006 - 20,000 - 30,000

Estimated Insurgency Strength, June 2007 - 70,000

To all of our loved ones who were there, are there, and are about to go there: thank you for doing your part and thank you for coming home safe. I support you with my whole heart even if I do not support this stupid war.

Still here

Just a quick note to say I am still here. Not much happening. We went on vacation which was nice. Did some snowshoeing, watched movies, read books, ate too much. Then I came back to work. OK. That was really boring, so let me try to think of something in my life that is interesting.

Hmmm.

OK - You know those tickets I ordered? Yeah, they still haven't come yet. If they don't come I am blaming all of you who said you hated me because I got the tickets!!

Sorry, that was kind of mean (does that show the kind of day I am having?) Sorry.


Ooh, I know! I went to a really great concert a few weeks ago that was the Music of English Cathedrals performed by the Chorus of Westerly. It was awesome. Mostly because I knew almost every piece performed by heart and we got to sing along. To go along with this show, the people who were in the Chorus in 1995 and went to England finally got our tour books. They are awesome. It's fun to look at it and remember all the things we saw and did there. I celebrated my 18th birthday in the Roman Baths, man that was a long time ago (but I'm still not as old as Scott). :) Joe Banana's anyone? Do the Randy!

Love letters in the sand....

There is a show on TV called October Road. Honestly, it's not the greatest show, but I like it. It's about a group of friends in a small New England town and their relationships with each other, their lovers, parents, and enemies. All in all, it's not very well written, but the most recent episode was an exception. It included flashbacks of the main characters (5 guys) when they were all 10, when the boys were friends with a girl who was the coolest. She played in the woods with them, liked the same music as them and chased away the bullies. Later in the episode, they go to visit the girl for her birthday (as she had moved a few towns away) and while they were on the bus they sing along to "Coming Home" by Cinderella. To top it all off, they collectively get her a necklace that has the words, "I remember you" engraved on it, as earlier, she had said that"I Remember You" by Skid Row was the greatest song in the history of songs.

I think I liked this particular episode so much because I could relate to it. Besides the fact that I too, when I was 10, thought that "I Remember You" was the greatest song in the history of songs, when I was growing up, around 2nd-5th grade, most of my friends were boys. We used to race during recess (I always won), listen to the same music, pass notes, and generally have fun. There was no who-liked-who or she said WHAT about me? to deal with. I was never a girly girl and this was probably the reason most of the girlfriends I had didn't go to my school, they were in my choir and chorus. Boys were easier and nicer to have as friends. But alas, we grow up. I'll never forget when it all changed, I could no longer beat my friend, David, running, and I started to like one of the boys more than a friend. Later, that same boy would tell me we couldn't be friend anymore because he liked another girl in my class who didn't like me. It broke my heart, but I told him it was ok.

Luckily, we grow up more and girls and boys can become friends again. I thank all of my boy friends and girl friends for everything, I am truly grateful to have you all in my life.

Favre retires

Last night, Brett Favre decided to retire from the NFL. I don't know Favre, but I enjoyed watching him play in the scrambliness that he always used and the heart and gut that always drove his performances. Plus, he was in There's Something About Mary. I hope he has the courage to stick to his guns so he will be able to enjoy watching football and his boys grow up.

2008 Grammy Awards

So the Grammy's were Feb 10th so I apologize for getting this post out a little late. I must admit overall, the show was ok, nothing spectacular stood out, except for maybe Herbie Hancock and Lang Lang's performance. So, in no particular order here are some of my notes on this year's Grammys (probably not in sequential order of the show since I watched it a week ago).

• Beyonce introduced Tina Turner as the Queen. Queen of what? Hot legs? 'Cause I know she ain't no data queen, nor the queen of soul. Luckily, Aretha (who gave a great performance later in the show, let it roll off her back).
• Tina Tuner still can dance, her voice may be aging, but her moves sure aren't.
• Cirque du Soleil performed a few pieces from their Love show, which showcases Beatles songs. It made me want to listen to my Red and Blue Beatles albums again and made me NEVER want to see Cirque du Soleil.
• Kanye West wore a very weird outfit, something Michael Jackson-ish (maybe it was his tribute to the 25th anniversary of Thriller?) but did a very nice rendition of his song, Mother.
• Cyndi Lauper helped to present an award to Amy Winehouse. She looked terrible, I never heard much about Cyndi doing a lot of drugs, but she looks like it.
• Foo Fighters were relegated to the outside stage with three young musicians (2 violinists, 1 cellist) who were finalists to play The Pretender with the Foos. They were voted on by people watching the Grammys after playing only about 8 notes. The prettiest girl won, but all three got to play the song anyway.
• Carrie Underwood actually gave a great performance singing Before He Cheats. Why did she do country again?
• John Mayer should stick to playing the guitar and not sing.
• Keely Smith and Kid Rock performed a duet - WHAT??
• Herbie Hancock and Lang Lang played Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue with the Grammy orchestra. They were fantastic. It was up until this point I seriously considered not watching the rest of the show.
• Amy Winehouse performed two songs from London. Despite all her drama, she was worthy of all her awards (5).
• Herbie Hancock won album of the year - the first time a jazz album has won in 40 years.
  

Station Fire

Today is the fifth anniversary of one of the worst fires in RI history. Great White, a hair band from the late 80s, was playing. During their performance pyrotechnics were set off setting the noise-insulating foam, which covered entire ceiling of the club, on fire. 100 people died including the band's guitarist and a late-night DJ from one of the local radio stations. It was a huge tragedy. In addition to those who perished, many people were significantly burned, physiologically and emotionally. Luckily, I didn't know anyone who was a victim, but one of my co-workers at the time had 2 buddies who never made it out. Two people went to jail - the manager of the band, who set off the pyro, and one of the club owners for not providing the correct insulation.

Every year the ProJo notes this significant, sad day in RI history and I am always amazed reading the survivor stories. These stories really prove the strength of humanity.

Caucus!

Last Sunday, Maine held its democratic caucus. I have never been involved in a caucus before so I decided to go, it sounded exciting and I feel it's important to be a part of our nation's politics. I was able to participate since I was registered as "undeclared." I heard this wouldn't be a problem, all you have to do it re-register as a democrat and then go participate in the caucus. It started at 2 pm so I got there just after. As I drove up the street to the garage I parked it, I saw the line of people waiting to get into the high school where the caucus was held. It didn't look too bad except it was snowing wet snow but I figured it wouldn't be too long until we got in the building. Little did I know there was a line equally as long coming around the other side of the block. So I was standing outside for about an hour. It wasn't too bad until the last 15-20 minutes when I started to get really cold. So finally, we (this is the collected "we" as my hubby passed on the event) got inside the building.

Once I got inside I was directed to another line to re-register as a democrat. This line went up three flights of stairs and lasted probably another hour. By this time I was a bit tired but still interested in participating in the process. There were lots of people talking about Obama, walking up and down the hallway with signs and some recruits for the city's Democratic party. I saw a few people I knew, made temporary friends with the people I was in line with. No one really complained about the lines which made the atmosphere fairly enjoyable, albeit tiresome.

Finally I got into the room where I could change my party affiliation. This room was total chaos. You were supposed to get in the line according to your last name, although after standing in the S-Z line for about 30 minutes, I found out that the V-Z line was really under the H-J line so I moved over there. Once I changed my party, I got a small slip of paper with my district on it so I knew what room to go to. However, at that point, all of the caucus rooms were rumored to be full so they gave us the option of voting absentee. At that point I was thoroughly tired of being in line so I filled out my absentee ballot and went home.

It was certainly an experience and now at least I know to get there earlier and to re-register for my party ahead of time. It was a very successful caucus for the state with 99% of the precincts participating. Yeah for democracy!

Tickets!!!

I just wanted to let everyone know that I got Red Sox tickets to OPENING DAY and to one of the Yanks games in July. I am so psyched!!! GO SOX!

Science rules!

Being a science dork, I like it when science it applied to all aspects of life and fantasy. Check out this article about The Science of Fairy Tales. Now, if they could only come up with a genetic mutation to change mice into horses.....

Happy Valentine's Day!

People in big cars

The other day, I was driving down a fairly busy street in my city, behind this guy driving some sort of SUV (like an Expedition or something huge like that) and he totally took the side mirror off a car that was parked on the street! He didn't even stop, hell, he probably didn't even notice. I just hope his car got some sort of scratch from doing that, otherwise, he'll never know the difference. Seriously - why do you need a car that big? He was all alone in that vehicle, he wasn't even towing anything. Ug. Makes me so annoyed. (cartoon from www.grinningplanet.com)

Today I am really bored

What Video Game Character are you??

I am Kung Fu Master. I like to be in control of myself. I dislike crowds, especially crowds containing people trying to kill me. Even though I always win, I prefer to avoid fights if possible. What Video Game Character Are You?

RIP Heath Ledger

A few weeks ago, a promising, young actor passed away. I obviously did not know Heath Ledger, but I admired his work, from 10 Things I Hate About You to Brokeback Mountain. It was truly sad to learn about his death which brought to light that even famous celebrities are subject to stress and anxiety. I feel like sometime we (non-famous people) tend to think that because someone has a zillion dollars, they are superhuman. The coroner's report has finally comeback with a ruling of an accidental lethal mixture of prescription drugs in Ledger's system. I truly feel for his family, especially his young daughter. I hope they will all find some comfort in the fact that Ledger was able to bring joy to the many people who watched him on the big screen.

Dreams brought on by disappointment....

Can have happy endings I have found. So, I haven't much talked about the Patriots this year. I usually leave that to the Burger or LB. But, the New England Patriots had an amazing season. They were undefeated in the regular season and made their way to the Super Bowl. Last night, their perfect season was ended by the New York Giants. It was a crazy game. Very low scoring, weird plays, and our Pats just didn't look right. Something was wrong, whether it was the pressure to win it all, or age, or what, something wasn't right and the Giants took advantage of everything we gave them. The game was messy including some really weird play clock issues, topped off by the fact that there was one second left on the clock at the end of the game, the Giants had the ball, and to add insult to injury, the refs made them make the last play. They should have just effed with the clock again and brought it down to zero. Everyone was already on the field, the coaches had already shook hands and Belichick was in the locker room, I couldn't believe they made them end the game like that. It was disappointing, even heartbreaking. For this was much more than just the Super Bowl, it was a chance to become the Best Team Ever.

But last night I dreamt of Tom Brady. No, not that kind of dream. It was after the Super Bowl and there was a big party, everyone was dressed to the nines, and I got to ride with Tom in his limo with a zillion other girls (but of course I was sitting next to him), as we drove down the streets of Boston (I think) and we just talked about how he needs to get healthy and take some time to rest and get ready for next season. I really only remember that I told him he shouldn't be afraid to tell Belichick if he is hurt so he can get better, no one was going to be mad at him for admitting that he needed some rehab on his shoulder or whatever was wrong (apparently I was convinced that he was hurt - it must've been my mind rationalizing why he played so strangely last night). And he was really nice and seemed to understand and appreciate my concern. And man was he CUTE!

Shaping Young Minds

At my work, the scientists are invited to share our knowledge with the youth that comes through our doors to study the X-fish. You could say that we are hounded to break up the everyday presenters monotonous routine with a few minutes of something 5th graders might find interesting or exciting. After a while of procrastinating about this, I decided it was time to share my exciting life of science with these kids (plus, then I could add it to my resume). One of the reasons I procrastinated so much was because my job is so boring - I had a hard time figuring out how on earth could I make it seem exciting to 5th graders. So, instead of telling them the truth about being an everyday scientist, I told them about the exciting things I have gotten to do, like go out on boats, catch fish, collect water samples and the like. I showed them cool pictures of a fishing net full of fish, the gross eggs and babies of a dogfish that had died, and a cute baby blowfish. It was actually pretty fun and I think the kids thought it was interesting. By far, the picture that for the most oohs and aahs was this one:

Thanks Endeavor!

Happy Birthday kid sister!

Have a great day. See you soon!!

Annual being sick sucks post

Well, I have a cold again. I feel slightly better than yesterday but not much. I just have a cold - and no, it's not GT's fault, I'm pretty sure I was sick before the football game, it was just in the incubating stage at that point. So anyway, short and sweet - being sick sucks and we have a organization dinner tonight with members of our board, where I'm pretty sure my husband will know more of them than I do - ironic, eh? Whatevs, at least there will be good food.

Oh yeah, and the Pats are going to kick Eli's ass all the way back to Giants Stadium from AZ!

Good Dog, Happy Dog

A black and white ball of energy
Who loved the outdoors and his family.
He had a great appetite
and would never bite.
Playing in the snow
he ran to and fro.
With an extra-long tongue
he'd chase the frisbee far flung.
He was very well loved
and got lots of pats and rubs.
In the greener grass you now play
and we are dismayed
Because now you are far from us
and we will have to adjust
To being apart
while keeping you close in our hearts.


We all loved Bailey!

Sir Edmund Hillary

Today, the first known person to climb and summit Mount Everest passed away. I don't know much about climbing, but know that summiting this impressive mountain is quite a feat. Most of the articles I've read make him sound like a pretty decent guy, giving back to the Everest community, building schools and hospitals. It's always nice to read about a decent human being. Even the things that he did that were controversial seem to be so because he was fighting for humanity. To read National Geographic's take, click here.

Funny lyrics

So, I think we have all had that moment where you and your friend are riding around in your car and you are singing along to a favorite song and belt out the impressively wrong lyrics. I think there are many websites dedicated to the exact phenomenon of misheard lyrics. Today, the one that I came across for myself was from the song "Sample in a Jar" by Phish. I will admit that Phish is not one of my favorite bands, despite my dedication to the Dead. But, I enjoy the light-heartedness of "Sample in a Jar" and "Bouncing Round the Room." As I was listening to SIAJ, I realized that I didn't really know the words to one of the lines - in fact, in my mind, the words were: "Dancing with a legume, up on Leroy's bed." Who doesn't like to dance with legume's, right?? :) For the correct lyrics, click here.

Congrats!

Our group has a new baby! The wife of one of my best friends just had a baby! Everyone is healthy and resting, getting ready for the next phase of their life. I'm so happy for you and can't wait to meet your new addition.

The Plastic Ocean

Today I read this article about plastic. It is a bit long, but worth the read if you care about your health and the environment. I consider myself among those who are concerned about the planet. Plastic is a material that has many benefits and many harms. The invention of useful plastics has lead to the invention of life-saving medical devices, bulletproof vests, and silly putty. However, it seems that the harms are far outweighing the benefits: we breath toxic gases released by melting plastics during the recycling process, we breathe dust particles containing small bits of plastic, and huge volumes of plastic are polluting the oceans (one area in the Pacific contains a gyre full of debris the size of Texas.) Some food that we ingest (even if it is wild, organic - whatever that means) probably contains some sort of plastic, whether it be the sushi you had at lunch or the shrimp cocktail you had as an appetizer.

This information is disheartening on many levels. Plastic seems to be great since it can be recycled, however, the recycling efficiency levels are still so low, it hardly seems worth it; and the recycling process releases toxic fumes into the atmosphere. Alternatives to plastic are starting to get mass-produced, but some of those materials are made from corn, a crop when grown for food isn't so bad, but if we start to grow it for products other than food, land will become less available, the cost to process it will go up, more soil for other crops will be destroyed, and prices of most products will continue to increase.

I am having my own personal dilemma today. I received an email from the Body Shop informing me of a huge sale they are having. Many shower gels and body lotions are 75% off. This is a great deal. I love the body shop and everything it stands for. My issue is that most of their body gels are only 8 oz. They are on sale for $3 which, considering they are usually $12 is a great deal. Herein lies my problem. I know I can get 24 oz. of St. Ives body wash for $3 at Target. So here we go - one plastic bottle at 24 oz vs. 3 plastic bottles at 8 oz. each. The product inside is fairly similar: natural ingredients, never tested on animals. The one bottle is less plastic that the three bottles and is cheaper. Which of my morals do I go with? Less plastic? Community trade? I would just give up and go back to plain old soap, but every soap box is coated in some sort of waxy coating which probably has some sort of plastic base also. Maybe I should learn to make soap, with all my free time (yeah right).

Finally, I thought it was weird that this article was in the Men's Lifestyle section of MSN. I found it from the msn.com cover page. Shouldn't it be in the overall health section?

Two jobs?

The other day someone asked me why I have two jobs. I guess it's a fair question. I am lucky in that I don't need the second job for monetary reasons (although it is nice to have a little extra every week). Really, I have the job to connect with people. My 9-5 job is usually me and my computer. Sometimes I get to call someone or occasionally talk to my boss or officemate, but usually it's just me. My second job, which I only work 2 days a week, allows me to help people find what they need and sometimes I get to have interesting conversations about a book I haven't head about or a topic in general someone is interested in. Now, if only I could get paid as much as I do at my second job as I do at my 9-5 job.....

Happy New Year!

I wish everyone health and happiness in the coming year.

In the spirit of giving

I hope you all had a great Christmas. Ours was great but busy. I found this site on one of my friend's facebook pages:





You can donate grains of rice for free and learn something (my favorite kind of game - do something good AND learn!)

Happy holidays. I hope you and yours have a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year.

Don't you love irony?

This is ridiculous. Poor guy and his family

HONOR BY AUGUST

Check them out. The guitarist on the right was one of my best friends in middle school.




Here is their website:

http://www.honorbyaugust.com/

THEY ARE AWESOME!!!!

I brake for quohogs

The other day at my other work, someone asked me where I was from. This isn't a question I get very often as mostly, I just blend into the background. However, I must've said something that this person picked up on as not being from around heyah because she said I have an accent- not a strong one, but significant enough to pick up on. This surprised me a bit since I am not from the part of the biggest-littlest state in the union that is known for having an accent. Not that I was offended, just a little taken aback. Isn't it funny the things strangers pick up on?

What would you name your boat?

One entertaining part of my boring-as-ever job is I get to see lots of boat names. here are some gems from today:

Mom's Worst Nightmare
Empty Pockets
Royal Flush
Sassy Sarah
Aunt Lou-Sea

But I think the winner for today is....

Chesty McBoob

Ha!

12/17: Miss Behaving and Rock on Jo Jo