July 29, 2003
I’ve been remiss in not
I’ve been remiss in not commenting on the excellent day I had on Saturday. A group of us went and saw All the Great Books (abridged) by the Reduced Shakespeare Company at the Kennedy Center. It was very funny, particularly when they got off script and couldn’t find their way back. I’m also now two degrees from Michael Vartan, as one of the actors (who I talked to afterwards) was in an episode of Alias, in which he diagnosed Vaughn as having a horrible, horrible disease. After the show we went to Buca di Beppo for a fantastic dinner.
We then adjourned to Jody and Lucy’s, which was a blast. We just hung around and played cards, had some drinks and cupcakes, and capped off the evening by playing Taboo. It was really cool just hanging out, having a good time. Overall, very enjoyable. Whee!
Of course, I so didn’t want to get up and go to the HOSC the next day, but I muddled through. The prospect of seeing Cute Nate didn’t hurt, either.
Current song in my head:
“Can’t Help Falling in Love” by Elvis (I’m listening to it to counteract the Kirsty MacColl I’ve had in my head for the past few days)
Good article in the Post
Good article in the Post this weekend about how Americans don’t get enough vacation.
July 28, 2003
I got this email. And
I got this email. And I actually enjoy responding--what’s more entertaining for me than writing about myself? But instead of emailing everyone, I'm just posting it here.
1. What time is it: 12:19 p.m.
2. Name: Barbara
3. Name as it appears on birth certificate: Barbara Lynne Dickson
4. Nickname: Barb, BarbL
5. Number of candles on your last birthday cake: 24
6. What size shoes do you wear: 8½
7. Kids: None, happily. I get my fill once a month when I volunteer.
8. Pets: None, other than when we watched Carrie’s family’s dog Duncan for a few days a couple of weeks ago
9. Favorite colors: Purple, red
10. Body piercing: Other than my ears, nope. I mean, I barely ever put in earrings.
11. Eye color: Blue
12. Birth place: White Plains, NY (my family lived in Mahopac at the time, but the hospital is in White Plains)
13. Favorite food: I have to limit it? I’m partial to Chinese food, anything with “teriyaki” in its name, pizza, and Italian.
14. Been to Africa: I have not. When I was younger, we were going to go to Europe and visit people we knew in Kenya. We moved to Connecticut instead.
15. Been toilet papering: Nope. I’m far too mature for that.
16. Love someone so much it made you cry: I’ve never been like, “Oh, I love you, boo hoo hoo!” but things that loved ones have done have made me cry.
17. Been in a car accident: A few minor ones.
18. Crouton of bacon bits: Neither, really.
19. Favorite day of the week: Friday. Friday afternoon, particularly.
20. Favorite saying or phrase: Anything said in a sarcastic manner.
21. Favorite restaurant: Maybe Buca di Beppo. Mmm. Heaping mounds of Italian food. I’m also very partial to Benihana. And there’s a little Italian restaurant in London near Covent Garden that I adore. At this moment, though, I can’t remember what it’s called.
22. Favorite flower: I don’t have one. It’s not like I get flowers. Ever. So it’s not something I’ve ever really thought about.
23. Favorite sport to play: I like to swim. Softball also rocks, but I suck at it.
24. Favorite drink: Alcoholic or not? I love Sierra Mist. Alcoholic? If it involves vodka or rum, I’m good.
25. Favorite Ice Cream: Bubble gum
26. Favorite fast food restaurant: Probably Wendy’s. They’re high-quality fast food.
27. What color is your bedroom carpet: Generic apartment beige.
28. How many times did you fail your driving license test: None. I only got one wrong on the written. And I passed the driving part on the first try, too.
29. Besides this one, from whom did you receive your last email: In my AOL account, and not junk mail? It was from my dad, updating me on my cousin’s wife and baby.
30. Which stores would you choose to max out your credit card: Barnes & Noble
31. What do you do most often when you get bored: Go on the computer. If I’m bored with the computer, read. Or watch tv. I bounced between those three when bored.
32. Bedtime: 11:30 p.m.
33. Favorite TV shows: Simpsons, Amazing Race, West Wing, Alias, Keen Eddie (watch it—Thursdays at 8 on Fox!)
Bob Hope passed away. It
Bob Hope passed away. It seems like an awful lot of famous people have been dying lately. We're in the third or fourth set of three by this point, aren't we?
You hear a lot about
You hear a lot about Ugly American behavior. You don’t hear so much about the ugly behavior of people from other countries. But it happens. Yesterday I was working at the HOSC and was doing an experiment with four British guys (and they were like 18, so a bit older than the typical visitor). The first half of the experiment goes along swimmingly. But it all crumbles in the second half, when one of the guys decides that he needs to correct my pronunciation of the word “vitamin.” Apparently Brits say it “vit-a-min,” whereas Americans say it more like “vite-a-min.” But he will not let this go. It was hard enough trying to explain what Kool-Aid is; I don’t need to deal with the differences between English and American English. Particularly when he started in on the whole, “We spoke it first blah blah blah” thing. I manage to push through the “vitamin” debate, only to have it start again when I say “iodine.” British pronunciation: “i-o-deen.” American pronunciation: “i-o-dine.” Argh. I was ready to smack this boy around by the end of the half hour. But the three guys he was with were nice. Oh, and none of them were cute enough to compensate for this; even their accents couldn’t counteract it.
Current song in my head:
“England 2 Columbia 0” by Kirsty MacColl
July 25, 2003
I’m looking forward to this
I’m looking forward to this weekend, but I know it’s not going to be a restful one. Tonight I tutor, then probably a movie. Tomorrow is chock-full, what with All the Great Books (abridged), then Buca, then hanging out at Jody and Lucy’s. Sunday I spend the afternoon at the HOSC. They’re all enjoyable things, but that doesn’t leave much time for lying around the apartment in my pajamas, which is a shame. Oh well.
July 24, 2003
Next season, Joey will have
Next season, Joey will have his own show. It'll be odd to have Joey without the other Friends...but I guess it worked okay for Frasier.
July 22, 2003
It’s kind of annoying when
It’s kind of annoying when your life is pretty quiet, with most evenings free, but then three things you want to do all happen on the same evening. It’s just very frustrating. Case in point: August 21. My book club meets that night. There’s an author doing a book-signing that I want to attend. And it’s the finale of The Amazing Race, which means TARCon up in New York. Even if it doesn’t mean TARCon, it’s still airing at 8 that night. The book-signing is at 7 in Bethesda. The book club is at 7:30 downtown. Admittedly the author is going to be in Baltimore the next night, so theoretically I could go there. But that still leaves the choice between TAR and the book club. I hate decisions.
Current song in my head:
“Open a New Window” from Mame
July 21, 2003
Has anyone else wished that
Has anyone else wished that the elevator they were riding in at work would get stuck, as this would give them a chance to nap at work, guilt-free? Just me, then.
I hit a turning point
I hit a turning point last night. I was sitting alone in my apartment, watching the ABC Family movie Lucky 7, and I thought, “I really should get a cat. A cat would keep me company.” The journey to becoming the Scary Cat Lady, and thereby Tragic Spinster, has officially begun. I mean, nothing against cats, and I do truly like them and think it would be nice to have one. But at that moment, I could feel my impending Cat Lady status.
So I tried to counteract it by reliving my youth, namely, I watched the video from a couple of high school drama trips. In Montana over the Easter break (we didn’t get spring break, we got a 5-day weekend), the drama department took a trip; to Seattle my junior year to see Miss Saigon; to Ashland, Oregon, my senior year to visit the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. A friend took a camcorder with him each year. So I was watching the tape last night, and it was very odd. All these familiar faces, and I couldn’t remember most of the names that went with them. And we looked so young! The Seattle trip was eight years ago. Dang. They were fun times, but odd. It’s so strange to look back sometimes.
Current song in my head:
“Intuition” by Jewel
July 17, 2003
I don’t understand the love
I don’t understand the love a lot of people around my age have for the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. I just don’t like that movie. At all. Maybe it’s because by the time I saw the movie, I had already read the book and loved the book. First of all, it’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, not Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. And how could anyone like Willy Wonka in the movie? He’s evil and creepy and has an odd psychedelic tunnel in his factory. He’s very mean to Charlie. I don’t understand how Roald Dahl was even involved in the writing of the movie. I recommend to anyone who’s all, “No, the movie is perfection!” to go read the book. Now. It won’t change your mind that the movie is fabulous—many people have grown up on it, and you just don’t change your opinions about those movies—but maybe you’ll see where I’m coming from. And then go read the sequel, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator.
Anyway, this rant comes to you because Tim Burton is planning on remaking it (with its correct title, yay!), and it seems many people are upset about this prospect. I’m hoping it’ll be more true to the book.
Current song in my head:
“The Name of the Game” by ABBA
July 16, 2003
I’m addicted to salt water
I’m addicted to salt water taffy. It’s like crack. There’s been a box of the stuff in the kitchen all week, and it’s fantastic. It’s taking all my willpower not to just take the box back to my desk with me. Fortunately, it’s almost gone.
In other news, I woke up with a sore throat. It’s gradually fading, which is good, but I’m completely unmotivated to do work, which is bad. I want to be in bed, asleep. Hmm. That’s actually not that unusual.
Current song in my head:
“Right Side of Wrong” by Bon Jovi
July 15, 2003
They just replaced the roof
They just replaced the roof at work. Now they’re doing something involving tar up there. And the really, really foul smell has managed to drift from the 11th floor to the 6th floor. It’s not at all pleasant. Uck.
Anyway, I had a pleasant weekend. On Saturday Steve and I journeyed to Ocean City for the day. I don't know that it was worth the 4-hour drive there, but I did get some Rita’s, so I was happy. And now I’m fantasizing about beach time. Rates for a beach house there aren’t completely unreasonable, particularly if a group goes. We also saw the highly entertaining Pirates of the Caribbean, and on Sunday I led a large, enjoyable First Ladies exhibit tour.
Things at work are rather tumultuous; things at home are quiet, as Carrie is at her mom’s. I’m attempting to start exercising again. I bought a printer/scanner/copier, but alas, this blog doesn’t allow for the posting of photos (I’m too cheap to, you know, pay for that service). When I have time, I’ll scan some in and post the links for y’all to peruse.
Current song in my head:
“New Music” from Ragtime
July 09, 2003
After two days of heat,
After two days of heat, the temperature in my office is back to normal. For which we are all very grateful.
We’re going to have a houseguest in the apartment for a few days. Carrie’s mom bought a puppy from someone down in Virginia, so Carrie trundled off today to get the doggie. She’ll probably take the dog up to Philly this weekend, but until then, there will be a pug running about the place. Awww.
In other news, Big Brother started last night. It’s so my guilty pleasure. It’s complete trash, but I love it. Anyway, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays!
Current song in my head:
“Freakin’ Me” by the Jungle Boys
July 07, 2003
After watching my copy of
After watching my copy of 1776 this weekend, I realized that it's pretty poor quality and I should get the DVD. So I trundled off to amazon.com this morning to add it to my Wish List. And then I promptly burst into hysterical laughter upon seeing the cover of the DVD. It's truly wretched. Apparently the movie is about Tom Jefferson getting some from his wife. John Adams--the main character of the show--isn't on it at all (though there appear to be not just one, but two pictures of Richard Henry Lee). Ben Franklin is also missing from the cover. This is just shameful.
I still want to the movie, though. Director's commentary and screen tests? Yes, please!
In a cost-saving measure, the
In a cost-saving measure, the Powers That Be turn down (up?) the air conditioning in the office over the weekend. Logical enough. Except that I walked into work this morning, the first day back after a three-day weekend and it was stifling. The temperature outside was somewhere in the low 70s; inside it was at least 80. It’s getting slightly better, but I think it’s also being helped that I’m not exerting any energy. I think we should be allowed to stay outside until the temperature in the office is reasonable.
In other news, there was a big storm last night—lots of thunder and lightning. I went to my car this morning to find that parts of a tree were lying around everywhere, and my car was covered with leaves, bark, twigs, and dirt. But my car, other than getting really dirty, was fine. So I’m not entirely sure if lightning struck the tree or what. Maybe it was just really windy (though I don’t think so).
Current song in my head:
“Someday” by Sugar Ray
July 02, 2003
Another coup for Canada: Vancouver
Another coup for Canada: Vancouver won the 2012 Winter Olympics. They beat out Salzburg, which is sad. I like Salzburg. At least my parents are vaguely close to Canada, so maybe I can visit Vancouver before 2012.
July 01, 2003
From a forward... I know
From a forward...
I know that many of you have heard Pat Robertson, Jerry Fallwell and others speak of the "Homosexual Agenda," but no one has ever seen a copy of it. Well, I have finally obtained a copy directly from the Head Homosexual. It follows below:
6:00 am Gym
8:00 am Breakfast (oatmeal and egg whites)
9:00 am Hair appointment
10:00 am Shopping
12:00 PM Brunch
2:00 PM
1) Assume complete control of the U.S. Federal, State and Local Governments as well as all other national governments,
2) Recruit all straight youngsters to our debauched lifestyle,
3) Destroy all healthy heterosexual marriages,
4) Replace all school counselors in grades K-12 with agents of Colombian and Jamaican drug cartels,
5) Establish planetary chain of homo breeding gulags where over-medicated imprisoned straight women are turned into artificially impregnated baby factories to produce prepubescent love slaves for our devotedly pederastic gay leadership,
6) Bulldoze all houses of worship, and
7) Secure total control of the INTERNET and all mass media for the exclusive use of child pornographers.
2:30 PM Get forty winks of beauty rest to prevent facial wrinkles from stress of world conquest
4:00 PM Cocktails
6:00 PM Light Dinner (soup, salad, with Chardonnay)
8:00 PM Theater
11:00 PM Bed (du jour)
Whoa! Canada! Legal Marijuana. Gay
Whoa! Canada! Legal Marijuana. Gay Marriage. Peace. What the Heck's Going On Up North, Eh?
This man is the Senate Majority Leader. That is so wrong. Frist Backs Putting Gay Marriage Ban in Constitution