Monday, May 25, 2009

Rain Holidays


man dives off boat
Originally uploaded by 4eva.
Hello Kids, I hope you're all enjoying your holiday weekend.

I was talking to my father the other day, and we concluded that it seems like people who only work 9-5, Monday thru Friday must have a lot of free time. Of course, it's probably not as much as it seems, what with commuting and all, but really. My Dad did point out, however, that when those people try to get stuff done on weekends, everybody else is too.

The Country Club (of course) means working nights, weekends and holidays, which is actually not what I'm here to complain about today, considering I am extremely used to that.

No my friends, what I am here to complain about today is (of all things) the weather.

I used to aggressively Not Care about the weather- I lived by that Fall Out Boy song lyric "you know it's sad that I never gave a damn about the weather, but the weather never gave a damn about me." There was no use in complaining about the clouds, or the heat, since there was nothing I could do about it, and I had to work whether it was raining or not. In fact, if it WAS raining, I usually had a calmer day at work and so really didn't mind.

That was all well and good last summer, but NOW I'm bitter. It's been a (reasonably) nice Memorial Day Weekend- hardly any rain, lots of sun, really pretty good temperatures. The kind of days that make me want to lie down with a book in the grass. My father and I had planned to borrow his friends boat on our day off tomorrow and go out on Lake Mahopac. I was really looking forward to lying down in the boat and soaking up some warmth in the sun. I had this whole mental picture of standing up on the edge of the boat, arcing my back and doing a perfect jackknife dive down into the cold depths of the lake. We would drive by and wave to the Frank Lloyd Wright house, and maybe get a little bit of color on my wintry looking legs.

It seems all of that must now be abandoned, as the weather has chosen to crap on those in the service industry tomorrow and chase us all inside with a high of 57* and mostly cloudy skies. That leaves my father and I with nothing to do after we finish our house chores.

This is a recurring problem, but can anybody think of something to do with your dad on a cool-ish day? He recently had knee surgery, otherwise we'd take the dog to the park, or go walk around the beachfront in Rye. There isn't really anything to see in the theaters, and I'd like to do something that doesn't involve spending too much money. We'll probably wind up just going out for lunch, but it would be great if somebody could think of a better option.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Scrapbooking, links + Sweaters


Scrapbooking...Purple Style
Originally uploaded by Nicki_2004.
I was thinking, about a week ago, that I don't really have any goals for the summer. So I settled down with a movie (Company!), some snacks + a pen and waited for the ideas to come rolling in.

I could be completely impossible, and decide I want to read a book a week, but really all that's going to be is a source of stress, since I just don't have free time or patience like that. I think a more realistic number is about four, depending on density.

I have decided that I want to finish my scrapbook from London by the end of the summer. I have given myself until June to collect all of the supplies (print the photos, buy a book and stickers, etc...), and I think that'll be a really good project for me, especially considering I want to make it a fun, attractive layout, not just photos stuck into an album. I could get a shitty book printed online if I wanted that.

Other than that, I have a few activity-related goals- go to the beach, see certain plays, but this summer is going to be all about working so that I can buy a NEW DESKTOP COMPUTER by the end of the summer! Hooray!
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OMG, this sweater!

When I was at work today, I was looking at Etsy, and I remembered that I owned this piece of hideousness, and got really excited about coming home and putting it on! Of course none of the guys in the shop understood, but I got home and went straight through my sweater chest + found it. It was kind of dusty-smelling, + was making me itch, so I'll have to wash it before I can really wear it again, but I LOVE that sweater.

Have I talked about this sweater before? Because I definitely should have. M.ton + I were watching "Step Brothers" (which is actually MUCH funnier than I thought it was going to be, I recommend it for the sake of seeing two funny guys given full license to just PLAY), + it got to the scene where they're opening Christmas presents, + M.ton grabbed my arm and went

"oooh, can I have a sweater like that?!"
"I'll get you one, but you have to actually wear it."
"Can I wear it ironically?"
"Of course!"

Well, the very next day I was in a secondhand store, and I didn't find a Christmas sweater (it was the beginning of December, they had probably all been snapped up already), but I DID find one with cheesy alpacas marching around it, with alpaca buttons, + this ugly herringbone sweater. I bought them both for less than $5, + M.ton got a big kick out of his sweater, + I wore mine like a sweatshirt every day for a week.
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And now, a few links:

the Hype Machine is a wonderful little thing to discover new music on. I like to run it in the background when I get tired of my iTunes library. It helped me discover this post, which is really well phrased, even if I don't like the song that much.

This group on Flickr, which was pretty much made for freaks like me.

And Nubby Twiglet who pretty much always wears something that complements her complexion AND looks good on her, has a job she loves, and remembers to update her blog every day. She's living the dream, basically.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

List Addicts: Party Drinks

One of the blogs I frequent, listaddicts.blogspot.com, recently opened up for submissions from their readers, and this is mine!
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That's right, you have 15 people showing up at your house in two hours, and you just remembered that you haven't got anything for them to drink. What to do when you need to mass-produce beverages for party friends? Never fear! My list is here!

-Mom's Punch: Totally PG, it's made with a few types of fruit juice, sparking water and floating globs of Sherbet. This is SO GOOD on a hot summer night, or at a teenage birthday party. It feels very decadent, and you can still see straight.
-Apple Cider: Get some from the Farm stand in October, heat it up + throw in some cinnamon sticks and whole cloves. Show up at a party, dish it up (with shots of rum, if you please), become everybody's best friend. It's totally happened to me before.
-Egg Nog: This stuff is sooooo good! I mean, you really, really shouldn't be planning on getting in a car afterward, since the drunk sort of hits you like a sandbag, but seriously. Who doesn't want to drink their daily calorie intake in one little glass?
-Mint Julips: Anybody who makes Julip that is worth anything mass-produces it, making it the perfect party drink. If you do it right, with shaved ice, proper rum, and silver cups, you're all set to sit around the backyard in your big derby hats and discuss where you and your husband are going to vacation now that he has quit the financial industry.
-Mojitos: This may just be because my pretend secret crush makes really really good ones, but they're really good and summery. Although, they're not really quite as easy to mass-produce.
-Plum Wine: Specifically, Plum wine mixers. Wine + sparkling water= another summer drink that is distinctly easier to make than a Mojito that is equally refreshing.
-Champagne: I mean, come on. It is THE party drink, isn't it?

What about the rest of you? What are favorite drinks to produce in five-gallon bucket quantities? Anything you think I should try out?

Sunday, May 10, 2009

My lovely new job


A variation of ensembles.
Originally uploaded by chlorinebeach.
This year, for a change of scenery on weekends I work in the Golf shop, instead of the clubhouse. It seems pretty okay so far, although it's Mother's Day so the place is pretty dead.

If I'll be here a whole lot, I'm thinking I need to subscribe to Google Books, since I'm not allowed to sit with a book open, but I am allowed to play on the computer (I guess it looks like I maybe might be accomplishing something). The only problem is that a computer screen, after a while, really starts to hurt my eyes.

Lights

But the main point of this entry actually has little or nothing to do with my job- I have poorly directed rage at the Box Office (or whoever is in charge of ticket pricing structure) for West Side Story.

As a college student, and particularly as a college student coming home from London, I like to do everything REALLY cheaply, so the fact that they have no student rush, and the cheapest ticket is $45 REALLY annoys me.

"But Bef!" you cry "They have a lottery, and the tickets are only $26! If you go on a not so busy day, you're guaranteed to get a seat! I really don't see what the problem is."

The problem IS, that the tickets which are being lotteried are in the front row. And for a production that looks as amazingly danced as it does (I'll put a video at the bottom of the page), which kept the original Jerome Robbins choreography, I'd really like to be able to see their feet. Actually, not their feet might be okay, but I sat in the front row to see Merwin in 'The Little Mermaid', + I couldn't really see them below the knee. NOT interesting.

So I guess the solution is to wait a little while into the summer and see if the tickets go on sale, or to beg for tickets for my birthday. Or to just cough up the 45 bucks, and then not do anything fun for the rest of the week. Which is beginning to look like the solution.




[This actually isn't even a good example of the dancing. If you are clicking through the theater section of the NY times ( http://theater2.nytimes.com/gst/theater/tdetails.html?id=1194827556329&scp=1&sq=west%20side%20story&st=cse ), you might come across one of their advertisements which has a pretty good selection of clips from the whole show, and it looks PRETTY HOT. Just sayin']

Thursday, May 7, 2009

things I Love Thursday


Yes, we're back, and it's time for another Things I Like Thursday, inspired by the lovely Ms. Gala Darling!!!

So, what do I love this week?

TiLT: 5/7/09

-Danielle: I am visiting my oldest friend today! There has been a lot that we haven't discussed, because I haven't seen her in positively AGES. And now I get to sleep on her floor! What could be better?

-Laptops: I love them. They are convenient. Yesterday I was super bummed because I had to drive my sister to her ballet class, and I was worried I wasn't going to be able to accomplish everything on the to-do list. BUT THEN! I realized they probably had wi-fi at the studio, so I brought along my computer and was able to be helpful and productive AT THE SAME TIME. What is better than that? I'm not really sure.

-Trains: Trains are pretty much the best method of transportation I can possibly think of. You're going somewhere, but you can stretch out or get up and walk around, all at the same time! I just wish they had a more convenient train network in this country. Because I went ALL OVER the UK last semester, and I did most of it by train. Aww, tea cart hellz yeah!

Ugly faces

-A Job for my Boyfriend!: Not only is it fun to be able to go out and do money-type things guiltlessly again, he's feeling much better. Because being funemployed kind of runs out of novelty after the first few interviews. He's working somewhere where he likes the boss, and guess what's even better?! We'll have a similar work schedule, so I'll be able to see him more than occasionally.

-Honorable Mentions: iPods (can we just say convenient technology in general for this one?), FINALLY finishing uploading all of my Europe Pictures, Paychecks, fresh fruit, inspiring podcasts, not having to change my major, Wardrobe Mistressing for '3 Penny Opera', The Michael Jackson Estate Auction, Twitter [Why don't you all have one yet?!], and this video.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

What you should REALLY do.

While I was filling out my evaluation from the London program, one of the questions I came across was

If you were to advise students going on this program, what would you tell them?

I had been planning on doing a blog post along those lines, so I took it as a nudge from the universe to update my damn blog already!

-BUY A CAMERA CASE. BUY ONE. It doesn't have to be fancy, but (including myself) FIVE people broke their cameras over the course of the trip. You know what sucks a lot? To be at the beginning of a great weekend trip and smash your camera. BUY A CAMERA CASE.

-Bring a canvas bag with you on vacation that you can roll up and shove in your backpack. You will buy things while you are out walking around, and you will not want to carry around multiple shopping bags. I brought a bag, and all of my friends were jealous of me. :)

-Bring a few different pairs of good, decent-looking, comfortable shoes. But don't bring too many pairs (GIRLS!!!), because you will buy more. I'm not even a serial shoe-buyer and I bought like three pairs.

-Go see stuff. Walk past a play you think you want to see? Walk straight into the box office and buy a ticket. There is so much stimulation in a city that if you see a poster + think "I'd like to do that", and don't immediately do something about it, chances are you will forget about it and then have big time regret!

-Don't wear that ugly sweatshirt in public! Seriously, you guys are what gives America the ugly tourist reputation. And stop yelling while you're on the street. Calm down, nobody is going to die.

-Take pictures. Upload them regularly.

-No fears. It all works out in the end.

What would you say are some of the less obvious tips you would give somebody going abroad?

Sunday, May 3, 2009

Oh, My God, I'm Back.

Somebody buy me a memory card reader?