one of the matts

An old high school friend just sent me an e-mail. A hi-how-have-you-been after more than two years. There are these phases in my life when certain guys hold similarities with each other. This guy was in the Matt Phase. (Who can guess the similarity he shared with the other guys in the phase? Hmm. Anyone?) And to distinguish him from the other guys in his grouping, he was High School Matt. (Ah, I see the light of recognition dawning on some of your faces.)

Nothing deep to reveal here. Just an unexpected link to the past for me today. A link that had me writing a general sum of the last two years of my life. How does one sum up such an expanse of time? What level of detail does one include? It's must be more specific than an obituary but more general than a diary entry. And this is assuming that I remember all of the key points in my life. I don't. Maybe I should have just provided a link to this blog.

Anyway, I provided a probably overly long response, to which he supplied an equally long missive. Brevity was never a strong suit for either of us. (I can be succinct in my editing and writing, but it’s a challenge made harder the closer the material is to home. All that means is I can be brief about the weather forecast or the latest news bite, but ask me about my newest shoe purchase, and I’ll provide a novel.) In this case, I’m glad he was equally lacking in brevity.

welcome summer

Spring St.
Originally uploaded by theCallowQueen.

Today's the second day of summer. Sigh. Here comes the heat. Good-bye to the few nice spring days that we had.

Here are a few Googlisms on spring. My thanks to lizalou42 for the link (googlisms.com).

spring is sprung
spring is here
spring is late
spring is back
spring is springing earlier
spring is coming
spring is busting out
spring is sure to come
(People are so demanding of Spring)
spring is in the air (I can fly!)
spring is in the air whether he's pausing for an outdoor lunch or enjoying a bounce (I'm male? I can bounce? Am I Tigger?)
spring is like summer (Spring is often called Summer)
spring is colorful and sexy at the house of versace (Now this is more like it)
spring is bright for klein (I'd like to think I bright in general. I always did well in school)
spring is the period express from god (Sounds important. Am I happy about being the period express from god?)
spring is poem
spring is 100% minority owned source for wire forms (Who knew I was 100% minority owned? And what do wire forms want with me?)
spring is worth a mint (That's a gold mint, right?)
spring is eternal (Now, this is more like it.)
spring is the morning bird song (Comments like these are what puts Spring in the air.)
spring is friggin' awesome (Duh! Everyone knows this!)
spring is unwinding all around us (OK, I am a bit crazy at times.)
spring is (Yep, I think that wraps this up nicely.)

Oh, about the photo: I took this shot on the NYC subway on the last day of our trip.

news bite

GRAPEFRUIT MAY MAKE WOMEN SEEM YOUNGER: A study of smells shows that the scent of grapefruit on women make them seem younger to men--about six years younger. The study by the Smell and Taste Institute in Chicago was conducted to determine what makes a women smell young. (Source: Associate Press)
COMMENTS: My favorite perfumes contain grapefruit. I wonder if this is my problem with men. They all think I'm too young for them!

don't buy analog

We're a TV-obsessed society. And, with my new editing job, I'm getting an inside look at what it takes to get what you see to your TV screen.

All I can say is don't buy an analog TV. Sure they're cheap. I know digital TVs are expensive. The prices should start to come down once Congress has set a firm stop date on analog signals. Right now it looks like it will be the end of 2008. After that you'll need a converter to use your analog TVs. The government is considering proposals to subsidize these converters for the poor.

Manufactures are saying they can make low-cost converters for $40 to $100 a pop. That's not very low cost in my book. What can I get for $19.95?

Why the switch? The government wants those frequencies back. At least 24MHz worth are earmarked for public safety officials. It has something to do with fighting terrorism and first responders.

Anyway, I'm not going to buy a new TV until this whole thing is sorted out. Then again, I'll have little reason to want a new TV as long as I have my roomie. She has a nice big, albeit analog, TV. I love her for more than her TV. She's quite a cook, too. ;)

nightmare on waffle street

Last night I dreamt that my roomie ate the last Eggo waffle. Ordinarily that wouldn’t be such a big deal, but that waffle was the only food item left in our kitchen.

This morning, I woke, shuffled down the hallway, and opened the freezer door. There sat the lone food item, my breakfast, my Eggo waffle.

Thanks to my roomie for not eating it. It was yummy. And I guess a trip to the grocery store is in order this afternoon.

my side, your side

I’m sick of religion today. Then, again, I’m sick of religion most days.

Sick of the fighting.
Sick of the prejudice.
Sick of the hell and damnation.
Sick of the self-righteousness.

We humans are so controlling. We want to define what is and what isn’t. We want to put limits on ourselves and limits on our gods. The more we confine ourselves, the more we box ourselves in, the safer we feel. But entrapment doesn’t bring a person closer to the divine, just closer to suffocation.

regular schedules

You know how women who live in close quarters often develop the same menstrual cycle? Well I'm wondering if there's such a thing as a pee cycle. There are two women on this floor who seem to have the need to urinate at nearly the same times as I do. It's very weird. Maybe I should cut back on my water intake.

flowering thoughts

Flower1
Originally uploaded by countingpigs.

I've been trying to post to countingpig's blog for days, but there seems to be some problem. So I decided to post one of her beautiful photos and use my blog as a forum to reply.

1. We miss you too!
2. Try not to read the synopsis for Lost. It the show is good, but waiting for all of the bits of the plot to emerge might just drive you crazy.
3. It was so good to see you.
4. This photo's really beautiful.
5. Miss you. Love you. Wishing you well.

bland blogs

So someone mentioned to me that my blog’s become a bit more boring since I don’t have my old job to rant about. And it’s true. The blog is blander. My life is blander. Well, it was bland, but this last week or so has stirred things up again.

I had actually been sleeping well since I started my new job. Mystery of mysteries, when I’d lie down in bed, I’d fall asleep within a half hour--consistently. But this past week, I’ve fallen back into the old ways--staying awake for an hour or more, waking up very late, and carrying my tiredness through the day with me.

What had changed? Two things.

First, this newsletter I’ve been working on. It’s one I’ve picked up from an ex-co-worker. I had major program problems switching the files over to my laptop. I thought I wasn’t going to be able to do the newsletter at all at one point. Luckily it worked out to an at least manageable end--I thought--until I was told someone had forgotten that an extra half-page ad needed to run. So I redesigned the whole thing last night. Stress. I haven’t really had that since I left my old job. Stress keeps me from sleeping.

Second, I’ve been on ex-co-worker overload. Last Friday, you’ll remember that I met up with a whole slew of my former co-workers, including my ex-boss. That brought back the flood of memories. A flood of regrets. Yes, I’m happy at my new job, but I’m still sad about what I left and how I had to leave it.

Then out for our usual drinks on Tuesday (which is an ex-co-worker event), one of my former managing editors found out that my ex-boss and I had “communication issues.” She hadn’t known. I preferred it that way, I guess. I feel like I’ve hurt things enough there; I don’t want to further pollute the relationships that must continue there. Then, I started thinking about what she, and the others who don’t know the true reason, must think of why I left. Do they think me restless, undedicated, or simply desiring more before I deserved it? Many in that office, especially the old timers, strongly believe that if you stick at your job and do it well you will be recognized when recognition is due. They’re about dedication and faithfulness. Odd thoughts, I know, but those were the thoughts I had.

So, I’m off to lunch with more former co-workers today. I’ll probably have a movie night with another on Friday. I’ll see another group for lunch next week. There’s always Tuesday drinks. And then there’s Book Club and Dinner Club at the end of the month.

Maybe I should stop. Maybe, if seeing them brings back all these stresses, I shouldn’t see my ex-co-workers. But take away them and the newsletter and I’m left with blandness. Nice blandness. Pleasant blandness. Content blandness. But not much to write about. Besides, they're not just my ex-co-workers; they're my friends--well most of them.

Maybe that’s the point. I’ve been so busy living in the stresses of life, in my ups and downs, that I haven’t learned how to shape my own interests. Now that I don’t live for my job, I can find my passion. My passion was my work. Now I have the opportunity to find passion outside of work. I have the mental and emotional resources to dedicate to it—whatever it may be. I just have to figure out what that is.

where's stephen chow?

Recyclables?
Originally uploaded by theCallowQueen.

To bad this woman doesn't know the Shaolin way to carry garbage...