EY's Rants and Raves

I often say that I don't deal well with change. If that were really true, I'd not have lasted for long at Big Faceless Corp where needless change happens every year at a minimum. Heck, the first 2 years I was there, I moved something like 4 times.

But change is happening on the friendship side of my life. Just about a year ago, an old friend and I started talking. At first, it was a frantic flurry of emails/phone calls. Now, I notice that he's on IM and leave it at that. I try to call a few times a weekend, but between the time zones, his schedule and general hermit-hood, I'm not shocked when I don't get him. Nor offended. I leave rambling messages on his voicemail and leave it at that.

I've started hanging out more with a new circle of girls. These are wives of friends of Mr. EY and some single chicks who hang out with that crowd. A few of them have pointedly said that they'd keep me and toss him if anything ever happened. Awwwww. And they all think I have good breasts. Actually, I have good bras. But when someone who has fake ones likes yours, you take it as a complement. Awwwwwww.

And just in time, as 2 friends are moving. Friend S will be moving to her hometown a few states away. She's been on several different paths over the past year and while I'd never tell her this (well, I guess I am NOW lol), none have seemed to make her happy. Today, she seemed more at peace with her plans than she ever has. I hope that lasts when she gets there. I also hope airfare stays at the rate it is now because going to see her will be pretty reasonable!

Friend N will be moving due north to a scary part of the state. It's not that bad, I suppose. There are civic organizations which take pride in their community. Heck, the KKK cleans up the side of the road up there. Have their name on the sign to prove it . Her man has a job there and she can work from home. She'll be near her nephews and sister, so I can't blame her for wanting to move. I'm slightly irked that she didn't tell me herself, but she also didn't tell me when a friend's little one was born and apparently, I was on her "call list". Oh well.

A few years ago, I used to hang out with a group who played cards nearly every weekend. We might do that quarterly now. With one of us going, a split over life direction, new kiddo for one couple, we're a bit adrift. New Mom and Dad have really worked hard to get little one here and seem to be doing well with it. An optimistic assumption considering that I saw them on Day 3 of being parents. Dad is already worrying and planning, Mom is already telling him to chill out. Just what I figured they'd do.

A few years after I graduated from college, the last of my college friends moved. I was nearly in a panic. I am rather slow to make friends and at times, painfully shy. Figured I would sit at home by myself forever. But that didn't happen. I lived. Made new friends, made more. And hopefully, I can continue that on.....

# posted by EY @ 5:35 PM 1 comments

I'm an avid reader. With a good imagination. With most of what I read, this is a good combination. But my ADD-riddled brain often takes tangents I don't particularly wish at inopportune times. Sigh. This is one of those times. Susie and Violet, you do good work, ladies. A little too good.....

(Turning into a rather confessional week....wonder what I'll 'fess up to next.....)

OK, I must be half Luddite. Half because while I like the Internet, can waste VAST amounts of time searching for the right recipe, reading articles, etc, I don't like watching videos online. It's not a bandwidth issue, the cable modem does me right all the time. If I want information, my favorite way to access it is by reading.

Just now, (the thing that prompted this rant) I was on Salon and saw something interesting: Andrew O'Hehir talks to Marianna Palka about her debut feature "Good Dick" in which she plays a woman obsessed with soft-core porn. Sounds interesting. And since I don't get why you'd be interested in soft-core when plenty of hard-core is out there to be had, I thought I'd READ the article. But it's not an article. It's a video. Now, I could care less and am a little pissed. I don't want to HEAR Ms. Palka talk. I don't have time to listen/watch it. I read much faster than she can talk. I can imagine the nuances and tones of voice. This isn't such a delicate topic that I'm all that worried about getting those wrong. If there is a bit I read over too fast, I can go reread it. If I'm distracted while watching the video, I've either got to listen to the WHOLE THING again or go back and forth trying to find that one bit. PITA.

So "no videos for me, please. I'm half Luddite"

There is a quote, I don't remember who of that goes "when asked if she had any guilty pleasures, she replied 'I don't have any guilt' " I've developed a few surprising guilty pleasures recently. Things I wouldn't have expected.

So here goes: I watch Supernanny. Not every week, but I do think it's interesting. Why would a childless person like watching screaming kids? I don't know. I find it remarkable that she can get kids to behave the ways she does. I don't think you have to injure someone to get their attention, but I don't think a swat on the butt is totally out of the question either.

I also watch Project Runway. I looooove Project Runway. This is the 3rd season I've watched.

And I'm currently into Make Me A Supermodel. Just when you think it can't be bitchier than Runway, Bravo jacks it up a notch.

What I don't find that I like are the cooking reality shows. I don't much like The Next Food Network Star. I couldn't make it through one episode of Bravo's Top Chef. It's the judges. Yes, Tom Colicchio is arrogant. But he's DONE something. Like Kid Rock says "It ain't bragging if you say it and you back it up". I can't deal with Padma Lakshmi. She's supposed to be a "food expert" but she's practically anorexic. She was supposed to be a huge intellectual, married Salman Rushdie, then dumps him. He's a Nobel winner, dearie. There are no notches better than that for your belt.

Sorry, I know that was catty....what can I say? I just watched Make Me A Supermodel....

Life at Big Faceless Corp has felt like I've been running around with my hair on fire for about the past week and a half. It's been a good "hair on fire", if there is such a thing. I do enjoy intense bursts where I can really dig in and do some good things. I can't run like that forever, though and I can tell that I'm burning through the energy that these bursts create. Unfortunately, when that happens, I get short-tempered, way too direct and the filter that reminds me to soften my words and tone of voice vanishes. I've got to get hold of that.

Hopefully, I can have some severe downtime this weekend. Maybe get out of the house and see a movie or do something totally frivilous and fun.

Yes, I should be heading to bed right now, but that's not the inspiration for the yawn. I'm afraid, the super bowl is (I refuse to capitalize it this year). Didn't we just see the NY Giants play the NE Patriots, what 3-4 weeks ago? Dec. 29, 23 days ago was their previous meeting. The Giants did play a good game, but when the clock showed 00:00, they had fewer points on the board. Since then, yes, the G-Men have been hot. But let's take a look at their opponents, shall we....? They beat a Tampa team that looked like they were still asleep from taking a couple of weeks off. They beat a Dallas team also still on vacation. They played mostly mistake-free football against a Green Bay team, that while good, just wasn't as good as they were the previous week against Seattle.

In addition to having seen the earlier matchup, I've also seen a few super bowls where the Pats won out. As tough as they play during the regular season, they're harder in late January/early February. They have this guy named "Tom Brady"....maybe you've heard of him? Yeah, he's been the SB MVP.....twice. Not even the lovely and delicious (sorry Deanna) Brett Favre has done that. So I don't look forward to the super bowl this year. I normally watch it at home, by myself while The Boy and our friends have a super bowl party. This year, I care so little about the game, that I'm partying.

Once upon a time, there was a wonderful man named N. He cleaned my house. He still exists and is doing well, but is pursuing another line of work. I guess I should change that to "Once upon a time a wonderful man named N cleaned my house", but I'm too lazy to change it. SO. During this time of which I speak, I could come home from work on a day N had visited and the house didn't just look clean, didn't just smell clean, it FELT clean. You almost felt like you should go shower to be clean enough to be in this wonderfully clean house. The day N went away was a sad day for me. But I had hope that I would find a replacement. And I've tried.

First there was me. I don't do a very good job, but I'm cheap. After some months, I realized that I was getting what I paid for--not too damn much. So I found L. More expensive than me, but much cheaper than N. A happy medium, I thought. But L isn't much better than I am. She's a damn fine duster, but that's not really my housecleaning hot point. She uses half a tree in paper towels, something I find awful. If The Boy didn't make me, we wouldn't have paper towels in this house at all. I found that if I left L a detailed list, she'd usually get most of it. I don't want to have to leave a list. When I do, I really want everything on that list done. And done well.

Next was V. Cheaper than L or N, I was wary, but tried. One visit so far. Better than L, but still way out of N's league. What is the one thing that set N so far above? The shower. Specifically, the shower in the master bath. He cleaned it; so far, I can't tell that either L or V ever tried. Seems an odd thing to miss, to me. I mean, if you know you're cleaning for a childless couple, which shower is going to get noticed? The one THEY USE. So maybe, it deserves a little extra cleaning? Heck, at this point, I can't tell that L or V ever even noticed it at ALL (yes, I know I said it twice....) And if you're going to skip anything in the bathroom, don't make it the shower. Worthless as I am, I'll probably wipe off the counter top. The Boy will even brush the toilet on occasion. But the shower is a big job and one I don't like doing. One I don't like doing enough to PAY someone to do it.....so why isn't it getting done?

When N came to visit, I knew I could go straight to my shower and be able to see myself in almost every surface. The fixtures would gleam, the door would be shiny, heck, the walls would be so clean as to almost be reflective. But not since he left. Before I hired him, a mutual friend told him "You need to know that she's extremely picky and will want everything done perfectly". I was agahst that someone who had never been to my house, who had seen my avalanche of a desk would say that about me. I protested, "no, my BOSS is the extremely picky one, not me, I'm a pussycat!". Nope, he was right (and I've since told him that). I am picky and I want things done right. Especially the shower.

The FDA has declared cloned food "safe". I don't know that I agree. Yes, they've tested, but not for many years. Yes, I know that cloning is "the next step" for technologies such as hybridization, selective breeding, artificial insemination. I get that. But we've been doing those techniques for years; centuries in some cases. When cloning goes bad, it really goes bad. I don't know if there are any tests for a "good clone". What looks good on the outside could be quite wrong at the DNA level. And if I eat it, do I get impacted by the bad genes?

I'm just getting back into reading science fiction (thanks M.) and no cloning horror stories so far. But the thought of eating anything cloned still gives me the heebie jeebies. I'm trying to eat less processed food. More food that's local. Cloning just doesn't make sense in that kind of effort.

But it's much more the idiotic things I find myself doing, not a hot new haircolor. I'm not generally a scatterbrain...well, not much. I consider myself fairly steady, reliable, sometimes to the point of being a little boring. I've forgotten to do things at work, completely forgot an appointment I have every week, forgot to RSVP to a shower (and since I wasn't going, I really should have called). Today, however, takes the cake: I forgot my car.

I had an oil change scheduled, so I took the car to the dealership. It's right across the street from work. If the redlight EVER gave you a chance to cross that street, I'd walk to and from. Since it never does and it's a 5 lane road, I don't. Took it in early this morning. They're usually done by lunch or early afternoon, so I really didn't think twice about it. Work got weird, busy, maybe bad, maybe good about 3:30 pm. One thing led to another and a little after 6 pm, I was off the phone and ready to go. Went to get my keys and I was missing one very important one. I don't live terribly close to work. My house isn't on the way to anyone's who would be at work at that time.

The LAST thing I wanted to do was to call my spouse and say "Honey, can you come back into town and get me from work". So I called a good friend. No answer. Broke down and called the spouse. No answer (which was fine). Called my mother-in-law and asked "How much do you love me?" She does love me enough to drive across town, get me from work and take me home. I think I'll keep tracking all my blonde moments...surely I'll get better.

Labels: blonde moments

I didn't mention NYG. Sorry. I hoped they would beat DAL, but you just don't want to jinx the team you want to not lose. In a game between NYG and GB, I'm gonna be for the Lambeau Guys every time. I think the playoff win and strong showing against NE a few weeks ago will help Manning the Younger shake his own "can't win a game that matters" bogeyman.

A NYG/NE rematch would be interesting. The Dec. 29 game was one of the more interesting games I've watched. NYG essentially had nothing to play for, yet they made a "gimme" game a tough one for NE, who won by 3 points. Both teams would have a significant amount to play for if they meet in February. For NE, a win would cap a perfect season. Indeed, not winning game 19 would make the previous 18 wins merely trivia. A NYG team, kept out of a Super Bowl since 2001 and winless since 1991 would have quite a bit of incentive.

However, the last time NE lost a Super Bowl was 1997. A year that a young quarterback threw for 246 yards, completing 14 of 27 passes and no interceptions. That young QB was Brett Favre....

Labels: football

I'm still less football-y than I think I should be. Between talking to The Boy and attending a community meeting, I missed quite a bit of the Packers game yesterday. I was torn about the NE/JAX game: I've watched bits of the NE tough games and their opponents have done well when I haven't been paying attention. So I checked out the game at 14-14 just before the half and later when it was 28-20. I know that the only Arkansan who really could have impacted the game is Matt Jones and not me, but I'm still supersticious.

I saw most of the IND/SD game, but missed the beginning because I was having brunch with The Girls. I'm watching DAL/NYG, but I'm not overly enthused. I *will* watch the NFC championship next weekend (that delicious Brett Favre, you know). I'm not sure there's much point in watching the AFC. If LT and Rivers aren't playing next week, I don't have much hope for SD over NE. (Honestly, I don't have much hope for them even if they are.)

I've declined an invite to the Super Bowl party some friends have, but if it's NE/DAL, well, I've already seen NE whip DAL. No surprises there. Romo is not going to beat Brady. If it's NE/GB, well, I'm not sure I would want to see NE beat GB. I think if any NFC team could beat NE, it would be GB with Brett carrying the game. He'd have to be perfect, no wacky throws-or at least the GOOD wacky throws-the #11 defense in the NFL would have to play like the guys 10 places up from them and, again, it would have to be one of those crazy Favre games where he takes over a game and carries everything on his shoulders. Incidentally, the #1 and #3 defenses in the NFL (PIT and IND) have both been beaten by NE. If SD beats NE next week, I'll want to stay home and watch the Super Bowl for the game. If not....maybe I'll change my mind.

Labels: football

I'm an Angliophile. I love all things British, always have. I watch a few shows on BBC America when I think of it, but I've come to have a fav: Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares. Celeb chef Gordon Ramsay helps floundering restaurants by identifying what's wrong, finding what's right and trying to refocus everyone. Gordo is a well-respected chef and he's been imported to the US for a show on Fox of the same "save the restaurant" type.

Something I find funny every time I watch the BBC America version is the difference between how we see profanity and how the Brits do. On BBCA, sh*t is not beeped out, but f*ck is. Obviously, both would be an issue here. Both of them come out of Gordo's mouth enough that you get a steady stream of sh*t and . In one episode, he tries to keep a chef in the kitchen, as opposed to going out for a smoke and a drink during service. Chef has to put in a pound when he wants to leave the kitchen, Gordo does when he curses. I think the chef put in maybe 2 pounds and Gordo put in 30.

Still....funny show, good chef. The most important thing I've learned is that I'm sooooo not cut out to be a restauranteur.

# posted by EY @ 9:14 PM 0 comments

There are some days I just don't want to talk on the phone. Especially if I think the conversation will be pointless. Unfortunately, a few of the people I'm close to are some of the most pointless phone talkers I know. Called my mother-in-law to let her know I have some recycle-ables to bring to her house (she has curbside recycling, I don't). That was a 10 minute call; should have been 2 min or less.

Friend calls this morning at 8. Don't know what that was about because she refuses to leave messages (while demanding it of everyone else; yeah, I just loooove that about her). I'll probably call her while she's on her lunch hour to see what she wants. However, it's likely that I'll get trapped into her telling me yet again about an acquaintance whose brother committed suicide on their Dad's birthday (happened a couple of years ago) and how it's so awful for the family. I've resisted the urge to point out that the preceeding time period wasn't fun for the guy. By the 4th time I have to hear it, I'll probably break and not be so sympathetic. Or she'll want me to spend a day driving to get her and take her home (she can't drive). Five hours+ of driving in a day wears me out. Not to mention that she smokes like a freight train and while I've heard miraculous things about Chantix, I also know her. I don't want to be skeptical, but I am. Last time she spent much time in my car, it quickly got covered in a layer of ash.

Co-worker called. Talked to this person earlier in the week. He needs a decision made. He also needs to provide my team with the right info, which I've explained twice how to do. Nothing yet. I'm sure this call is to get a decision. I hate being a bureaucrat, but we do have a process for such things and almost every time I deviate from it, I get bitten in the behind. I'm sure this guy is a perfectly fine person, but I'm not jumping to create a problem and more work for myself.

Intellectually, I know it's bad. I can explain why, I can expound on it at length. But right now, a large sausage and mushroom pizza with extra cheese, or good buttery, garlicky mashed potatoes or something equally fat-laden would make things seem a tad better.

I also know it's a dog-eat-dog world and apparently, I put on my Milk Bone underoos today. Funny, I thought I was only preparing for rain. Certainly didn't mean to, but I guess that's what I get for dressing in the dark.

Had a snack....cheese and celery. I like cheese. I like celery. I'd still love a huge pizza right now.

A few months ago, Cooking Light had a series of recipes which use a basic marinara sauce as a base. There were pastas, of course, but also a soup, pizza and a stuffed mushroom side dish. I made the marinara today and it both smelled and tasted great. I put two pints of sauce in the freezer for later. We'll make calzones for dinner tomorrow, The Boy's will be pepperoni, mine roasted red and fresh green pepper, mushroom.
As I was cleaning up the kitchen, I started getting hungry. What for dinner? I looked in the pantry and saw that I had plenty of canned mushrooms, a half bag of pasta, knew I had veggie crumbles in the freezer. Cooked some carrots for vitamin A. Cooked the pasta and put some of my sauce in a pan. Put about half the bag of veggie crumble in along with a drained can of mushrooms. Needed a little more liquid in the pan, as the sauce lost some "sauciness", but it was still really good. I have high hopes for the rest of our dishes!

Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer a loss in a New Year's Day game
to a team that was almost good enough to be in a BCS Bowl
or take up arms against a 7-6 team and by opposing
be the winner of the PapaJohn.com Bowl.....

That's all the poetry I can wrangle out of Arkansas's New Year's Day loss. I am consoled that at least we played on January 1. I just can't get "into that bowl mood" on Dec. 20 or any other day. Here's hoping Petrino can get us to a bowl we can compete in and not one we're asked to because it's close and lots of fans will spend money in Dallas.

I'm not normally a "make a list because it's the end of the year" kind of girl, but culinarily, I did have some good experiences and have a few goals as I look forward.
#1 Culinary find for 2007: Pomegranates. They are lovely and delicious and once you get the hang of it, easy to deal with. I shall look forward to many poms next fall.

#2 Culinary find for 2007: Short ribs. I only made them once, but they were fantastic and fun. As cold weather progresses, I'll make them again.

Culinary goal #1 for 2008: Leeks. I've never cooked leeks. They look like a lot of trouble, but I'm going to try them.

Culinary goal #2 for 2008: Local ingredients. I'd like to do more with things that are in season and from around here.

Culinary goal #3 for 2008: Entertain more. The house was literally built for it, but we're usually busy and when it's "downtime", I like to be "down". More Girl's Nights for sure and more hanging out now that we have a decent table and chairs.

Labels: foodie stuff

I did everything right. Really. I didn't get too drinky last night (2 glasses of wine, Sprite and a few sips of Champagne after midnight). I soaked black-eyed peas during the evening, cooked them in the crock pot last night, had greens at the ready. 2008 should have started just fine. And it did...until about 1 PM. I suppose it's better for Arkansas to be in a decent bowl where we'll get our butt kicked than be in the San Diego County Credit Union Bowl or the PapaJohn's.com Bowl. I'm glad Mizzou was nice enough to let us score once....I guess.

The year has got to get better from here......