Friday, August 19, 2005
 
the lu index
During the Past Week:
number of days spent in school the entire day: 4
number of hours spent commuting: 11
number of times I wished I weren't in grad school: 0
number of candy bars eaten: [information suppressed]
number of times I daydreamed about the one day I get to sleep in: 51
number of nights of great live music: 1
number of people I consciously flirted with: 0
number of people I wished I had flirted with: 3
number of times told that my cholesterol is too high and something must be done: 2
number of times I wished I were thinner: 5
number of times I started to knit: 5
number of times I knit for longer than 3 minutes: 1

number of times I cried because the music I was listening to was so gorgeous: 3
number of times I laughed so hard I spit: 3
number of times I masturbated: [information suppressed]
number of times I brushed my teeth: 7
number of times I shaved my legs: 0
number of times I planned to shave my legs: 6
number of boiled eggs eaten this week: 5
number of times tuna was eaten straight out of a can: 4
number of times soup was eaten straight out of a can: 1
number of protein shakes consumed: 5
number of times I wished I'd had my camera with me: 3

number of times I felt guilty about not having called my brother on his birthday: 4
number of times I reminded myself that he missed my birthday too: 3
number of times I was grateful to live where I live: 13
number of times I was resentful that I live where I live: 2
number of times I felt grateful just to be alive: 2
number of times I wished I'd never been born: 0
number of times surprised by my own positive attitude: 3
number of hot-damn-lucky parking spots found: five (hail mary full of grace...)
number of times felt grateful for those parking spots: 37

number of times Daryl bought me a beer because he was embarrassed for me re: what I was drinking: 1
number of to-do lists written: 6
rate of completion of to-do lists: 65%
number of times spent thinking about race relations: 11
number of conversations about gay marriage: 3
number of dollars spent on toll bridges: $9
number of dollars spent on yummy burritos: $5
number of exceedingly graphic, yet casual, conversations about sex: 1
number of times shocked at how conversationally forthcoming women are with friends: 3

number of naps taken: 1
number of times laundry done: 0
number of times I buried my face in my cats' fur: 8
number of times I put my ear to a cat's belly to hear how loud the purring is: 2
number of days I put off calling Comcast because talking to them on the phone is slow torture: 7
average number of hours of sleep per night: 7.5
number of hours of sleep wished for per night: 8.5

Monday, August 15, 2005
 
handmade goodies
I made this lovely (if I don't say so myself) choker last Wednesday after work.
handmade choker

I also started this gooorgeous autumnal scarf. Another long skinny scarf. Made from Taos yarn, which is made from Taos sheep's wool and Taos indigo plant dye.* I'm calling it my transitions scarf. (New apartment, new job, new semester, new season....new scarf!)
presenting: the autumn scarf
Previously, it was just some yarn I had to put in a ball.
putting my taos yarn into a ball yum!
Even more previously, it was a skein in the Taos yarn shop.

*The yarn did not come from blue sheep, but here's a picture for you anyway.

Saturday, August 06, 2005
 
music discovery
Have I mentioned how much I love Pandora.com?
Oh, I have? Well forgive me: you are going to hear a lot more about it over the next many weeks. Music is the main reason for me to still be alive. Pandora has given me a shot in the arm.
Pandora has already become part of the vernacular of my friend-group. As in: "Ooo, this group is good. I'm gonna give their name to Pandora and see what she does with it." Daryl is already going to a show on Sunday featuring a woman he discovered through my Pandora radio station, Radio Lu. Even supreme skeptic Lulu has already bought a new CD because of Pandora's influence.

I went to this amazing show last night at The Independent. Griddle opened, my lovely Griddle. Then Kehoe Nation, which was just...amazing. Two drum sets, a stand-up bass, a virtuosic barry sax/clarinet player, and the singer/guitarist. The singer is a short Harley-lookin' dude with a ZZ Top beard who has an astounding voice. He went from an operatic (I shit you not: it was opera) tune to an Alice in Chains cover. Anyone who can veer from opera to Alice in Chains and light fires in the audience like that is a god. Both songs featured a guest accordionist who looked like Roberto Benigni. This group had the crowd in the palms of their hands. I don't know how to describe it; I was laughing and jumping and ecstatic.

At any rate, I met some of the Pandora guys. And you know what? They're not just talented, hard-working, sweet and music devotees. They are also hot. Of course, how can you be talented, hard-working, sweet and devoted to music without being hot?

Friday, August 05, 2005
 
the new mexico recap
I put a bunch of New Mexico pics up, for those who haven't perused them yet.

I've lost some steam, and isn't that the way of vacations. I had such an amazing time that my boss said she had never seen me happier when I came to work 12 hours after getting home. And now my "real" life has come crashing in on the party. Dr. appointments, work, training, school b.s., financial aid snafus extraordinaire, and the occasional cut and scrape just for fun.

So! Where were we? I told you about my fun Friday night in Albuquerque.
the sniff test
Here's the sniff test being administered to the skunked dog after the bath.

Saturday found Kathy and me on a road trip through Northern New Mexico.
yow!
We stopped in Chimayo, one of my favorite places, for the Santuario/shrinage/famous healing dirt.
Chimayo   inside the Santuario de Chimayo

This is Not Drinking Water  (you heathen!)
The Holy Water is labeled, but it's always good to add a note requesting that people not drink it.

Then, on to Taos. We were hoping for a little cooler weather; it's usually cooler in Taos and Santa Fe than it is in Albuquerque. It was 96 degrees in Taos. Oh, well.
relaxed, how about that?   happy!

the kingdom of heaven

We toured the grounds of a fantastic, and fantastically expensive, Taos hotel/resort called El Monte Sagrado. This solar "plant" was on their grounds, and I couldn't get enough. It's a statue, it's solar power, it's both! I love practical art, man.
solar energy

We had to take a pic of me with the Taos Plaza bear. The very first weekend I lived in New Mexico, a similar shot was taken of me with the bear. Back then he wore an apron. Now he's in low-rise jeans, so I took the opportunity to pretend to grope him. You readers know, of course, that I'm too gentile to make out with bears. In public.
getting to third with the bear

road to Cohiti Pueblo

Back in Albuquerque, no New Mexican vacation is complete without a walk on the ditches, or acequias, the old-style irrigation in the North Valley of Albuquerque.
acequia

beauty   yum
view facing West, view facing East with the Sandia mountains [sigh]

paul and his view
Speaking of the Sandias, here's Paul in his side yard. Damn.

rico and me
Rico took me out to lunch.

the patio
This was my home base, at Kathy's house. Thanks to Kathy for her lovely hospitality. I'm glad I went, I'm glad I'm home. Namaste, kumbaya, it's all good.


10/2004
11/2004
12/2004
02/2005
03/2005
06/2005
07/2005
08/2005
10/2005
11/2005
12/2005
02/2006
03/2006
04/2006
06/2006

Of Course:
The views expressed here are my own and do not represent in any way my employer. Or my school. Or even my friends. And heaven knows the views here aren't representative of my family. Ha! This is a personal blog and it only represents me. And on some days, even that is questionable. So there.



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