Barb's Burblings

So close

My horoscope for today:

Scorpio ------------------ You can definitely have anyone you want. Not just now, but always. It's just that circumstances right now will make that quite clear to you. Don't gloat. True power includes the wisdom to be discreet, when need be.

Dang it. Why couldn't I have gotten this yesterday, when I saw not only Cute Book Club Boy, but also an incredibly adorable, British waiter at lunch?

"Always." Ha. My lack of dating history would beg to differ.

Current song in my head:
"Extraordinary" by Carbon Leaf

And I will post about camping. I just picked up my pictures last night. But right now, I'm off to Connecticut.

Lancer lament

I should probably be writing about the camping, which was great, but I'm far too distracted by my rental car. I took my baby into the shop yesterday morning and am now tooling around in a Mitsubishi Lancer. It's so weird driving a different car, and man, it just makes me appreciate my car more. Not that the Lancer doesn't work OK; it does, and I'm particularly impressed with the air conditioner. But, man! The gas pedal is kind of sensitive, which has led to a lot of jerky driving. And I'm not entirely sure that it actually has shocks. It's very bouncy. (Although it does remind me a bit of Sam, my first car--which was a 1987 Honda Civic, so I'm thinking that this isn't necessarily a good thing.) Don't even get me started on the pickup, or lack thereof.

I had gotten very used to the bar in the middle of the rear window in the Prius that seeing the wide expanse of glass in the rearview mirror was somewhat disconcerting. And I keep going to change the volume or switch radio stations on my steering wheel. I can't remember the last time I drove a car that the parking brake wasn't a pedal. And using an actual key to lock and unlock the doors is a bit odd.

But the biggest thing is the gas. Ohh, man, I hadn't realized how spoiled I am in the Prius. Watching the gas level fall, I'm secretly convinced that the car is just jettisoning its gas. That's the only explanation, really. Or...it just doesn't get 52 mpg. With the a/c on. I don't want to live in that world!

I really can't complain. It's a car for $21 a day--and my insurance is paying $20 of that. So for a buck a day, I shouldn't complain. But...well, I'm human, people. I get my baby back on Monday.

Current song in my head:
"Love is a Battlefield" by Pat Benatar

It's time to play the music

In a brilliant move, the first season of The Muppet Show is being released on DVD in one beautiful package. I have to have it. (Fraggle Rock's first season is also being released.) I will actually probably go out on August 9 and pick it up. Nothing makes me cheery like watching the Muppets. Hopefully this means the other seasons will follow in fairly rapid succession.

Heat index

It's 10:20 at night and it's 81 degrees out. Humidity is 77%, meaning a heat index of 86 degrees. Blech. Thank God for air conditioning. Tomorrow and Thursday? High of 92. Plus humidity. On the positive side, it's supposed to cool down a bit for this weekend, which I will be spending outside. So that's happy.

It's just never a good thing when you get all sticky just walking to your car in the morning.

Greg and Barb: A Love Story

Theirs was a love that was never meant to be. Though they had only a few hours together, they were magical hours. Hours spent gazing soulfully at each other, as they spoke to children about the properties of carbon dioxide and tests for water pollution. Conversations about the physics of whether ultraviolet light can be used in a laser. He read poetry (i.e., Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) to her in his charming British accent. They shared their pasts, their plans for the future…plans that, alas, could not include each other. He had to leave the country the next month. They considered it a tragedy that though he had been volunteering at this place for some undetermined length of time, it was only now that they had met. And so they parted, wistful of what might have been, if only they had met sooner. But both were thankful for that time they had spent together.

Birthday kitty!

Today is Colin's second birthday. And for all the various scratches (and scars I now have), I'm thrilled I have him. Really, there's nothing like being woken up a minute before your alarm goes off by a cat circling your head, sticking his face (and whiskers, which are the real problem) into yours so you'll finally get up and feed him.

When I first got him, he was a wee little thing:

But now he's HUGE!

And also likes baseball, which is good.

Current song in my head:
"Sixteen Candles" by the Crests

I have too many thoughts

So yesterday I was walking to the building next door, where my car lives during the day. I had my bag on my left shoulder, so my left arm wasn't swinging too much. But my right arm? Swinging away. I became kind of self-conscious about it, so I made my arm stop swinging so much. And then I thought about how weird that was, that I could just will my arm to stop moving so much. And then keep it fairly still, even while thinking about other things. So then I wondered if I could keep my arm perfectly still. And I pretty much could, though it took a bit more conscious effort.

Anyway, that's a fairly decent example of my inner monologue, which is why I post so much about baseball. You don't want to be exposed to the way my brain works. (See my April 16, 2004 entry on Canadian geese for another example.)

Brian: An All-Star Tribute

So Brian's in Detroit for the All-Star Game, and is totally feeling the love. Or, he should be. He's quite the darling of the press.

Baseball's New Galaxy
When you have a swing so sweet it makes honey jealous, a stat line that reads .345 with 15 homers and 49 RBIs for the surprise team of the brutally competitive AL East, what hasn't been fun? And what isn't fun about Roberts?

FOXSports' All-Star Selections
Brian Roberts has been lightning in a bottle for the Orioles.

ESPN.com's Ultimate Lineup
Brian picked as their leadoff man (sorry for the lack of link)

On Move From Top to Bottom, Roberts Keeps Things in Order
"Admittedly, Brian Roberts is having an MVP-type season," Francona explained.

And so on. His name keeps popping up all over the place. He went to some party Sunday night--I'm taking the fact that he was photographed alone as a good sign. Here's hoping that he gets more than one at-bat tonight.

Current song in my head:
"Get This Party Started" by Pink

Good news and bad news

Good news: After taking 3 of 4 from the Red Sox and moving to only 2 games out, the 4 Orioles All-Stars flew to Detroit last night. From the Baltimore Sun

As most of the Orioles rushed out of the clubhouse and went their separate ways for the All-Star break, Brian Roberts, Miguel Tejada, Melvin Mora and B.J. Ryan were packing for Detroit for tomorrow night's All-Star Game.

The trip is most special for Roberts and Ryan, the two first-time All-Stars.

"For me and B.J. Ryan, we joked about sitting in the locker room beside each other four years ago and we were just complaining how bad we were and how we needed to hang them up and go home," said Roberts. "For us to be going on the same flight to Detroit today, that's pretty cool."

Added Ryan: "We were here when we weren't very good and he was battling for his job and I wasn't pitching a whole lot out of the bullpen. It's fun that I get to go out there with him."

This will be Tejada's third All-Star Game, but he said he is going to treat it like it's his first one. He will get his first career start.

"I am going to enjoy every moment," said Tejada. "Me and [Roberts], we're going to be walking around like little kids, trying to touch everything."

How cute is that?

Bad news: My fantasy team got creamed last week. Completely pathetic. I lost my match-up 11-0 and dropped to fourth in my league. I had nothing--no pitching, no offense. I managed to pull off a tie in the "Saves" category, though, so at least it wasn't 12-0.

Current song in my head:
"Cecilia" by Simon & Garfunkel

Baseball players = dreamy

Saw Take Me Out today. Man, what a great play. A comedy that managed to stay funny throughout, even as it tackled some pretty darn serious topics. A play about baseball that could easily be enjoyed by people not conversant in the sport. An afternoon that included naked men. What's not to like?

But seriously, it's worth getting out and seeing this play. The Tony Award it won in 2003 was well deserved.

And speaking of baseball, amazingly enough I've neglected to mention the exciting news about My Boyfriend Brian Roberts. He's heading to Detroit tomorrow to participate in the All-Star Game. And not just participate--he's a starter. Talk about well deserved.

In other news, I'm hooked on Chuzzle on popcap.com. The sounds are particularly satisfying. But it's fun even when muted.

Current song in my head:
"Kissing a Fool" by Michael Buble

I left my heart in London

There's certainly nothing I can say about what happened this morning in London. When I turned the tv on and saw the horrific images...well, it was upsetting. Obviously. London is one of my favorite places, if not my favorite. And my heart goes out to the people of London, and all of Britain.

Of books and office supplies

I keep forgetting that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is coming out in the very near future. I finally did get around to preordering my copy, but it just keeps slipping my mind. There was an interesting story on the NY Times site about the security surrounding its release; apparently there are a lot fewer leaks this go-around than there were for Order of the Phoenix. Anyway, this means I need to get a move on and finish the book I'm currently reading and at least start my book for book club, which meets July 28. Because I know I'll be spending that weekend just reading Harry Potter. Blast! I just remembered that I have HOSC all day Sunday. Well, that will eat into my reading time.

In other news, my boss surprised me this morning with one of the coolest office supplies in the world. I love Post-It so much. This is genius, people, pure genius.

Current song in my head:
"Sounds of Silence" by Simon & Garfunkel

The Great Pierogy Race

One of the unique aspects of going to a Pirates game is the pierogy race. It starts on the Jumbotron, watching three or four pierogies racing around Pittsburgh, and ends right there in PNC Park, as they run in toward the finish line. Those wacky Pittsburghians! Pittsburghites? People from Pittsburgh.

Though he is obnoxious and disliked

I was watching The American Revolution on the History Channel earlier, and like many similar programs, it included excerpts from letters written at the time. As one letter was being read, I knew that it was a John Adams letter. How did I know? They intelligently used William Daniels--who played Adams in the original Broadway production and movie version of 1776--to do the voiceover. Made me very happy.