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...

reason no. 53 to keep my job

Summer hours: Last Friday I got off work at 1 p.m. without having to work extra during the week. And I'll get five more Fridays like that this summer.

group error

So I joined this group on Flickr called New York tourist's collections. It's a fine place for all my recent New York pictures.

Why I almost didn't join: The apostrophe in the group's name is out of place. Tourist's is singular possessive. Collections is plural, requiring tourists plural. More appropriate names would be: New York tourist photo collections or New York tourists' photos.

I'm contemplating mentioning this gaffe to the group administrator. Or am I just being an editing freak?