Adventures in the Colonial 'burg: December 2008

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

It begins

So I had a phone interview today with a large university out west, and I will not say which one, but I will state that it is (without traffic) roughly thirty minutes from Corbett's mother. I think the interview went fine, but I really won't know until mid-January, when they determine the short list. Either way, I was picked in the top ten of around 100 candidates, so if nothing else, that's a good thing.

Now I need to get my butt in gear with plenty of other things. What I really want to do is something that I should not be doing, even though it still is "work." Corbett flies in tomorrow, and there is quite a bit I need to do before then. I would like to have taken tomorrow off and just stayed home to take care of everything, but my students are giving their presentations tomorrow morning, so I really can't do that. What a great little joke it would be on them if I just didn't show up.

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Continuing the obsession...

How could anyone not love her?

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Slow day

This afternoon is passing by slowly, because

1) I'm cold and wet from walking in the rain.
2) There's a seminar I have to go to in 12 minutes.
3) I'm trying to get some fits to work and they aren't.
4) It's dismal outside.

Current Obsession

I've been watching the soon-to-be-cancelled show Pushing Daisies, and I have fallen in love with the show. Mostly because it's so pretty and colorful. While I am very much into the show, that is not the point of this post. It's one of the actresses on the show, who plays "Olive Snook," who works for and is in love with the main character of the show. She is played by Kristin Chenoweth, and she is my new obsession.

She's very short (4' 11"), and therefore adorable, and also has a very cartoony squeaky voice. In addition, her voice is amazing. She has been in a lot of Broadway shows, one of the more recent being part of the original cast of Wicked, as Glinda. Now I have been listening to this cast recording just so I can hear her sing over and over again.

Luckily the 'burg's library has a CD with her singing other stuff, and I just have to wait for this other dude/dame to return the thing. Patience is not a virtue I have.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Ding dong, the witch is dead

A prayer to no one in particular:

Thank you, oh mighty one, who watches out for me in times of severe crisis. Thank you for removing that wench from my life, and replacing the job of Apartment Manager with a woman who is nice, and cares about what happens to the tenants.

Christine (often referred to by Corbett and myself by a name that I would like to not repeat here) is no longer employeed by my apartment complex. She was a bitch, rude, and never seemed to care about how the tenants were doing. I can handle a few days of strife (for example, if it takes an extra few days to get something fixed), if I were treated like a human. She did no such thing. And she is gone!!!

Now, there is Penny. I had some issues recently that prompted me to contact the company that owns the place, and file a complaint. I learned that Christine was replaced by Penny. Penny just called to talk to me about my problems that I've had in the past. She was nice, overly apologetic, and said that if there is ever any problem like this, that I must talk to her immediately. I, I, I felt like she...she...cared. It's a little overwhelming.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Christmas Traditions

It's interesting what traditions over the holidays come and go. There is one in particular that has become a relatively recent tradition with my father and I. When most people hear this, they think it's extremely odd, a waste of time, and well, there are so many alternatives to it that make more sense, that it is a wonder we do it at all. What is it, you may (or most likely may not) be asking?

Every year, my father and I sit while on the phone, he with his shopping list for my mother and me with Amazon.com (set to her Wish List), and we discuss my mother's presents that my dad wants to get her. He then decides what he wants to get her, and if it's cheaper on Amazon, I purchase the gifts for him and he pays me back.

Of course, he could get his own Amazon account, or he could ask my sister, but this is something we've done for several years now, and I realized recently that I kind of love doing it. It's one of those things that may be bizarre or absurd to those on the outside, but I look forward to it every year.

Plus it means I get more packages delivered to my door, and I love getting packages.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Post with no reason

That's not entirely true. There is a reason for posting. I just can't have Jack Black's face at the top of this blog any longer.

Nothing too exciting of late. I'm about to have bagel bites for lunch because I don't want a sandwich and the leftovers I have are not that exciting. I need a nap big time and I think I'm going to watch the Food Network all day on the couch until I doze off to the Barefoot Contessa's soothing yet disturbingly boring voice.

Sounds like a kick-ass day to me.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Prop 8 the Musical

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Monday, December 1, 2008

I'm back

I have returned to the 'burg, and there is so much that I would love to post about, but due to a hangover-like feeling in my head (long day of driving back in the pouring rain yesterday after too little sleep), and in the interest of brevity, here's a quick summary:

Neti pot: Corbett and I got Neti-pots, after Laurie posted about it. I'm on the fence about it right now, although already it's better. I've used it since Wednesday, and for the first few days I had a running nose constantly. Now I do tend to feel better and I think I can breathe more regularly.

Thanksgiving: A day of too much food. Maggie joined us the night before for dinner (Rachael Ray's pasta primavera, delish!) and poached fruit (Corbett still has tons left over), and helped us cook the next day. Kelly came over and much food was consumed. We ended the evening with Christmas in Connecticut, a sad replacement for White Christmas, which I forgot this year :(

Milk: Corbett and I saw Milk on Saturday night. This is a must-see movie for everyone, I must say. It was extremely well done (I tend to like Gus Van Sant movies, though), and Sean Penn did a great job. It's an interesting story, because the anti-gay activists have had the same stupid talking points for over thirty years, and at times you feel like you're just watching modern-day news. It gave me tremendous hope for the future, while also making me try to figure out now what I can do to help.