June 2003 Archives

Note to self... just because it doesn't LOOK sunny out, it doesn't mean that the sun isn't hiding behind those clouds, just waiting to burn you. Ouch.

Posted on June 3, 2003 8:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last night, Sarah and I finally watched the production of The Gin Game that we'd taped off PBS a few weeks ago. Maybe I'm too dim or something to "get" it, but something about it was entirely unsatisfying.

Sarah had been more interested in it than I. But when Dick Van Dyke started cursing up a storm (on PBS, no less), I decided to keep watching. The characters seemed rather interesting and were getting more so as time went on. But then I started to wonder why the woman, played by Mary Tyler Moore, kept hanging around with the guy. And that question was never really satisfyingly answered for me. You get some hints and there's always the answer of just being lonely, but... something just seemed wrong about it. It almost made ME feel stressed just watching it.

But the thing that really made it not work for me was the ending. It didn't seem very conclusive to me. We hadn't learned enough. It felt like we left the story just as it was starting to get interesting, just as we were learning the important things about these characters and what drove them.

I didn't discover until today that this was originally a play. Maybe I'm too common to understand a play like this and its "deep meaning". Or maybe it's just not to my tastes.

It was a treat seeing Dick Van Dyke calling Mary Tyler Moore a bitch, though.

Posted on June 4, 2003 12:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jeez... I thought the rain had finally stopped. But no! Yesterday we got a downpour. When I came home, I discovered that the rain had been going practically sideways. We'd left a window or two open to keep the apartment from becoming an oven while we were away. Several of my books that were near the window were soaked. I guess I learned my lesson, but it's never really happened before. An occasional drop or two has found its way in, but never to this degree. Luckily, only one of them suffered any major permanent damage. It's just bizarre how wet everything got. Even the carpet just inside the balcony got wet and that's a good 7 feet or so from where the roof protects us.

Stupid rain.

Posted on June 13, 2003 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Ever since I was told I had to stop eating sugar, I've discovered that the world of sugar free has come a LONG way. I've got a massive sweet tooth, so it was a major blow to me to discover I wasn't supposed to have it. Though I haven't been totally strict, I've cut WAY back. No more soda. Lots more water. Cookies and other sweets very rarely.

The thing is... stuff without sugar tastes a lot better these days. Even the no sugar added ice cream from Breyers is quite good. And Crystal Light isn't as bad as I thought. Even Minute Maid Light is good. And the best thing is... most of these products are also lower in fat and cholesterol, which is another thing I'm supposed to be dealing with. I'm down below 200 pounds for the first time in a VERY long time.

I'm just shocked that there's actually good sugar free stuff out there. I never imagined you could do a good butter pecan ice cream without sugar, but... you can. It's yummy. Come over and eat some.

Posted on June 18, 2003 3:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

One of my weeks of vacation ended yesterday. It was a very lazy vacation. I did very little, which was actually probably a good thing, as I'll be doing quite a lot over the summer at work. Jason came down from New York to visit with us for the first part of the week and then it was mostly nuffin' for the rest of it. Just playing oodles of Dynasty Warriors 4, which Jason got me addicted to. Then we went to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival on Sunday, which was oodles of fun, even if it was really hot out. Had some pretty tasty, but expensive food, too.

Since we didn't feel like getting on a crowded metro train right away, we popped into the Natural History Museum, since it's open until 7:30 during the summer. We caught the Cirque du Soleil IMAX movie, which was very spiffy. It's just stunning how strong those people are. They truly are freaks. :)

So now it's back to work. Shorter work days until things really get crazy, though, so that'll be nice.

Posted on June 30, 2003 5:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)