Not much to report. This week is pretty busy for me, with Computational Linguistics and philosophy of language assignments due today, piles of laundry piling up, coffee with a Hungarian tomorrow (why? God I do not feel like making chitchat with another stranger) and millions of errands to run. We have five kinds of flour in the house (whole wheat, stone-ground whole wheat, rye, soy, semolina - no white) and basically nothing else. I am very tired.
Apparently in the Hoosier State they don't believe in salting the sidewalks or even putting down molasses like they used to in Massachusetts, and so the streets are very slidey. I fell down the library steps on Sunday and I'm still very sore. I think I am tired of winter now.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Community Kitchen
Yesterday was my first shift at the Monroe County Community Kitchen. Although I didn't get to cook or even prep, it was a very satisfying experience - I put frozen vegetables on trays, made baggies of Nilla Wafers, wiped tables, arranged chairs, cleaned windows, and broke boxes down for recycling. I am hoping that after I have been there for awhile they'll let me move on to peeling potatoes or something, but I'm okay either way, really.
The other volunteers were an interesting mix - a lot of retired people, of course, two guys from a local bank, a Special Ed kid who goes every day with his teacher as a sort of occupational therapy, some totally hardcore dudes with sleeve tattoos and piercings, and an IU student from Taiwan. Everybody was really nice - the Special Ed kid's teacher says that after awhile you get to know everyone and it's just like a big party.
At the risk of being like the hypocrites who hire trumpeters to follow them around when they give alms, I will also mention that yesterday was the first test of my Lenten resolutions: I went out for Chinese with a couple of people after the lecture and although I *wanted* Kung Pao chicken or lo mein, I ordered Mapo Tofu instead. Afterwards, at the departmental party, I wanted a glass of wine, but I had pear juice instead.
I was kind of dressed up for this occasion - it's not every day we give hiring candidates the trial by fire - and as usual I was wearing gloves - my fawn-colored wrist-length ones that I love. The Horse noticed the gloves and said, "The gloves - is that a fashion statement or something else?"
I never know what to say when people ask me this - I wear the gloves to keep from mangling my fingers when I'm nervous or bored, both pretty common states at parties. But although no one wants to know about my disgusting self-injury habit, I find this sort of harmless, helpful lie very difficult. So I said, "Something else."
"I thought so," said the Horse, and Cufflinks piped up, "So you're saying they don't look good?"
I told him not to instigate, and the Horse backed down. It was very uncomfortable. I need to learn how to tell better polite social lies - would it be so bad if people thought I wore gloves just because I like gloves, or because I'm an eccentric dresser rather than an insane finger-mangler?
The other volunteers were an interesting mix - a lot of retired people, of course, two guys from a local bank, a Special Ed kid who goes every day with his teacher as a sort of occupational therapy, some totally hardcore dudes with sleeve tattoos and piercings, and an IU student from Taiwan. Everybody was really nice - the Special Ed kid's teacher says that after awhile you get to know everyone and it's just like a big party.
At the risk of being like the hypocrites who hire trumpeters to follow them around when they give alms, I will also mention that yesterday was the first test of my Lenten resolutions: I went out for Chinese with a couple of people after the lecture and although I *wanted* Kung Pao chicken or lo mein, I ordered Mapo Tofu instead. Afterwards, at the departmental party, I wanted a glass of wine, but I had pear juice instead.
I was kind of dressed up for this occasion - it's not every day we give hiring candidates the trial by fire - and as usual I was wearing gloves - my fawn-colored wrist-length ones that I love. The Horse noticed the gloves and said, "The gloves - is that a fashion statement or something else?"
I never know what to say when people ask me this - I wear the gloves to keep from mangling my fingers when I'm nervous or bored, both pretty common states at parties. But although no one wants to know about my disgusting self-injury habit, I find this sort of harmless, helpful lie very difficult. So I said, "Something else."
"I thought so," said the Horse, and Cufflinks piped up, "So you're saying they don't look good?"
I told him not to instigate, and the Horse backed down. It was very uncomfortable. I need to learn how to tell better polite social lies - would it be so bad if people thought I wore gloves just because I like gloves, or because I'm an eccentric dresser rather than an insane finger-mangler?
Friday, February 8, 2008
THIS I DO CONCEDE:
Pulp Fiction is awesome. I was completely wrong. I will have to go read The Brothers Karamazov now, too, because I may as well just do what Floss tells me.
Man there is some good eating in that movie, too - it really made me want a milkshake or a hamburger or a Pop Tart. Blueberry pancakes, blueberry pie ... after it was over Cufflinks and I had buckwheat pancakes and listened to George Gershwin.
Today I have my first shift at the soup kitchen, a metaphysics lecture by a hiring candidate, and a shindig at our head of department's house, which is always fun. I'll let you know how all that goes.
(Man, I know I've already geeked out over Common Rotation's cover of "Don't Let's Start" but seriously, if it made me smile any harder the top of my head would fall off.)
Man there is some good eating in that movie, too - it really made me want a milkshake or a hamburger or a Pop Tart. Blueberry pancakes, blueberry pie ... after it was over Cufflinks and I had buckwheat pancakes and listened to George Gershwin.
Today I have my first shift at the soup kitchen, a metaphysics lecture by a hiring candidate, and a shindig at our head of department's house, which is always fun. I'll let you know how all that goes.
(Man, I know I've already geeked out over Common Rotation's cover of "Don't Let's Start" but seriously, if it made me smile any harder the top of my head would fall off.)
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Magenta soup
The neat thing about making your own stock is that it's different every time. Last night I took the vegetable scraps saved up in the freezer and made broth so I could have lentil soup to break my fast tomorrow night. K and I have been making soups like whoa lately; I made an acorn squash and apple soup which was not nearly as nice as it sounds and K made a cabbage soup the other day and put the outer leaves in the stock pot, along with some apple peels. The result of this stock was a striking shade of magenta, but the soup smells pretty good.
Okay, so, Lent. I recognize that I probably shouldn't be posting about this because it violates my own standard that discussion of religion in a public forum is in poor taste, plus Jesus said to do your religion in private and wash your face when you're fasting and so on. But, in violation of these guidelines, I will say that this year I am planning to do Lent right. I have reasons for this, but I won't go into them here. I am going to give up not going to church for Lent, and also fast on Ash Wednesday and not eat meat on Friday (which I almost never do anyway because Saturday is market day and on Friday we never have anything in the house).
The question is, when is it okay to give something up for Lent? It kind of seems as if you shouldn't give up something if it's something you ought to give up anyway, on general principles. For example, giving up smoking for Lent. I think of this as the Piety Diet: you should not be thinking of Lent as a time to lose weight or kick a bad habit. On the other hand, it seems stupid to give up something like Facebook or Pop Tarts - things that are frivolous, but don't have anything to do with your relationship with God. If, every time I want to go on Facebook, I think about Christ and refrain - well, that just seems ... lame. So what does that leave? Is it okay to give something up if abstinence will be good for you in some not-necessarily-spiritual sense? Everyone who reads this, apart from LCA, knows more about this stuff than I do - can somebody help me out?
Okay, so, Lent. I recognize that I probably shouldn't be posting about this because it violates my own standard that discussion of religion in a public forum is in poor taste, plus Jesus said to do your religion in private and wash your face when you're fasting and so on. But, in violation of these guidelines, I will say that this year I am planning to do Lent right. I have reasons for this, but I won't go into them here. I am going to give up not going to church for Lent, and also fast on Ash Wednesday and not eat meat on Friday (which I almost never do anyway because Saturday is market day and on Friday we never have anything in the house).
The question is, when is it okay to give something up for Lent? It kind of seems as if you shouldn't give up something if it's something you ought to give up anyway, on general principles. For example, giving up smoking for Lent. I think of this as the Piety Diet: you should not be thinking of Lent as a time to lose weight or kick a bad habit. On the other hand, it seems stupid to give up something like Facebook or Pop Tarts - things that are frivolous, but don't have anything to do with your relationship with God. If, every time I want to go on Facebook, I think about Christ and refrain - well, that just seems ... lame. So what does that leave? Is it okay to give something up if abstinence will be good for you in some not-necessarily-spiritual sense? Everyone who reads this, apart from LCA, knows more about this stuff than I do - can somebody help me out?
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Caught!
Tonight is Peasant Disco and a pre-party at VTL's place, so I went by the package store to pick up a six pack of the nice local IPA and who did I run into but the Horse and his wife, my mentor. I saw the Horse and, suave as usual, jumped about a foot in the air and tried to hide, but he'd seen me and he came over and said, "Philosophy is tough, you know? We're asking the big questions, and it doesn't always seem like there are answers, and then we turn to -" he gestured at my Dragonfly IPA - "medicine."
"You caught me," I managed after a long pause.
"Well," he said reasonably, "you caught us, too."
A very nice evening last night as well - after Tractatus group, I went with Mike to the GPSO happy hour at Nick's, where I made pleasant smalltalk with a cute, large-nosed Poli Sci major. I deserve major props for this, because I just went right up to him and used the classic line, "You look familiar - do I know you from somewhere?"
"I don't think so," said the boy.
"Well, you can meet me now. I'm Emily," I said, extending my hand.
I am pleased with myself for that.
After the GPSO thing I went for pizza with some of the other firstyears in the department - Sam, Scott, Josh, and Krista - which was really pleasant. We hung around Mother Bear's until almost eleven, at which point we went to a free showing of the Darjeeling Limited at the Union. It's no Royal Tennenbaums, of course, but I wasn't disappointed. Adrian Brody is lovely as always, and Jason Schwartzman was quite good, and visually it was spectacular, as Wes Anderson's movies always are. And there was even a little Angelica Houston, who always reminds me pleasantly of my mother.
So on the whole, good times fore and aft. I love it when things work out like this.
"You caught me," I managed after a long pause.
"Well," he said reasonably, "you caught us, too."
A very nice evening last night as well - after Tractatus group, I went with Mike to the GPSO happy hour at Nick's, where I made pleasant smalltalk with a cute, large-nosed Poli Sci major. I deserve major props for this, because I just went right up to him and used the classic line, "You look familiar - do I know you from somewhere?"
"I don't think so," said the boy.
"Well, you can meet me now. I'm Emily," I said, extending my hand.
I am pleased with myself for that.
After the GPSO thing I went for pizza with some of the other firstyears in the department - Sam, Scott, Josh, and Krista - which was really pleasant. We hung around Mother Bear's until almost eleven, at which point we went to a free showing of the Darjeeling Limited at the Union. It's no Royal Tennenbaums, of course, but I wasn't disappointed. Adrian Brody is lovely as always, and Jason Schwartzman was quite good, and visually it was spectacular, as Wes Anderson's movies always are. And there was even a little Angelica Houston, who always reminds me pleasantly of my mother.
So on the whole, good times fore and aft. I love it when things work out like this.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Maybe I had too much coffee this morning...
Also, OMG, my iTunes just OF ITS OWN ACCORD played "Heart of Glass" right after "The Ballad of Lucy Jordan." This sequence is so familiar I swear it must have been on one of my dad's mix tapes when I was a kid. What're the odds? Probably higher than average if you're like me and have cribbed your musical taste wholesale from your Baby Boomer parents.
Couldn't be geekier
Oh, man, Adam Busch's band covering one of my all-time favorite They Might Be Giants songs: most dorktastically hot thing ever.
Seriously. It's Warren. Singing "Don't Let's Start." It's a good day to be me, folks.
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