It's hardcore weather out there, man. 14F (-10C) right now, supposed to go down to -1F (-18C) tonight/tomorrow. The wind is vicious. They are predicting "treacherous conditions" during tomorrow morning's rush hour. So my commute to work might prove interesting...:| Should have taken one more day off... Btw, I didn't venture out today, and yesterday I only went to the laundromat, which is right across the street. That brief outing was quite enough to convince me that I did NOT need to expose myself to THIS kind of weather unless absolutely necessary... LOL. Strangely enough, the past four days went by pretty fast, considering how little I have managed to accomplish. Could be because I spent large chunks of Saturday AND Sunday in a semi-catatonic hormonal haze... I wasn't in terrible pain or anything - but I wasn't bursting with energy either, to put it mildly. I cooked some food, watched some Lost (I only have a few episodes left till the end!... *bites lip in distress* ;), read my favorite Dany & Dany yaoi manga for the umpteenth time, wrote a few emails, texted a bunch... Today was mostly devoted to finishing up Christmas shopping (online, obviously; I had thought of visiting a few stores, but the weather took that thought right out of my mind, LOL). So at least that's off the agenda. *relieved sigh* I have to say, though, that it seems more troublesome/time-consuming the older I get, and sometimes I really wish I could skip the whole thing. Btw, I thought I was going to start sending snail mail holiday cards again, since I've got a few new LJ friends who do it... but I just can't seem to fit that into my schedule. So it looks like I'll only be sending ONE card this year.:P [In case you're curious, it's going to meathiel, from whom I have already received one (thanks, by the way!... it's a lovely design!...:).]

Like I mentioned here before (more than once, probably) - greeting cards or gifts exchanged between people who don't actually keep in touch otherwise seem utterly meaningless to me, and it makes me feel terribly awkward to receive them, or to know I am expected to return them. ( Read more... )

As usual, my parents are doing the turkey dinner thing on Sunday, because today my sister celebrates with her husband's family. So I spent the day on my own. Slept in a bit, cleaned the place, then watched some Lost (yes, I'm still at it... almost half-way through the final season, though; and I do want to finish it... while at the same time I don't, because then it'll be over, and I've gotten sort of addicted to it, LOL). Oh, and also did some texting.:D Yes, the usual suspect IS celebrating Thanksgiving with her family - but somehow that didn't prevent her from texting me on-and-off throughout the day... LOL. Who am I to complain about that?...:P

Anyway... I haven't done a silly meme in a while, so here's one snagged from meathiel:

1. What time did you get up this morning? Around nine, I think.
2. How do you like your steak? I don't eat steak. *shudder*
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Floating Skyscrapers. A Polish gay love story. Very depressing...
4. What is your favourite TV show? Lost, obviously - since it's the only one I've watched in years...:D
5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? I was gonna say Greece - but it's probably not a fun place right now due to the economic crisis... so I don't know. Somewhere warm and sunny, with plenty of trees and water and a quaint historic town nearby...
6. What did you have for breakfast? The usual - a small bowl of instant grits & a cup of Earl Grey with lemon & honey...
7. What is your favourite cuisine? Moroccan, probably - the little that I know of it through attempting a few recipes, LOL. But really, I love anything Mediterranean, and a lot of Asian, too. I'm up to trying anything, really - unless it contains some creepy animal parts.:P
8. What foods do you dislike? Beef. Anything with mint in it. Dark, bitter chocolate. Anything burnt (even very slightly). Anything with artificial coloring that looks like plastic...
9. Favourite place to eat? Don't really have one right now. Haven't gone out to eat in a while...
10. Favourite dressing? Italian. Or anything with balsamic vinegar...

( the rest under the cut )

A little grumpy today, for several reasons. First of all, I missed my chiropractic appointment, because the damned bus didn't show up on time. I hate when that happens. I need my acupuncture, badly, and now I have to wait two more weeks.:/ Also, it's frigging COLD. Way too cold for this time of year. It's not even December yet! I had to drag my warmest winter coat out of the closet. The heavy, almost ankle-length one that makes me all clumsy and sluggish and generally disinclined to move. Or maybe it's the cold itself that does this. Whatever. Anyway, I have zero energy, painfully tense neck & shoulders and a slightly upset stomach (probably due to the store-bought chicken salad I had for lunch - it must have been full of preservatives, artificial flavors and other shit). A perfect recipe for grumpiness. Should just shut up and watch a movie or something - but I felt the need to make my obligatory weekend LJ post, anyway.;)

Also, yesterday was a Day of Much Texting, as well as several brief emails exchanged during work hours (the texting happened mostly in the evening, though). All highly amusing. There may have been another long phone conversation before that, which happened later in the evening than usual (I was spotted "liking" someone's posts on Tumblr, which obviously meant I wasn't in bed yet... LOL). And it may have messed with my sleep schedule a bit. But it was lovely nonetheless...

Damnit, I really don't feel up to formulating coherent sentences at the moment. I think I have a more appealing idea on how to spend the rest of the evening - and it includes my papasan chair, the heating pad and Netflix.:)

Spent another hour-and-a-half on the phone tonight. Someone had a ton of new fic ideas to run by me.;) I wasn't actually going to pick up this time, since I was in the middle of cooking dinner; I was going to send a text message saying that I was busy, and would call back later. But of course that didn't happen. Of course I picked up, and didn't even mention that I was in the middle of something. Because suddenly it didn't seem to matter. So now my throat is a little dry, my sides hurt from laughing, and my Moroccan fish tagine resembles some sort of massively overcooked gruel.:P But guess what? It's still edible! So, in essence, go me.:D Btw, if someone at NSA is really listening to all the random private conversations they are apparently recording, tonight's material would be prime entertainment. I kinda wish I had access to the recording myself... LOL.

And that is all for the moment. Good night.:D

Ahhh, Gods... life is a whirlwind of crazy at the moment. Work is getting hectic, and it shouldn't be, not at this time of year - I wasn't expecting that, and I do not approve. *scowls* We have a fucking PHONE CALL PROJECT (my favorite thing, right next to pushing a boulder up a steep hill, or poking myself in the eye with scissors, or... well, you get the picture). I may not actually feel suicidal because of it... but I am certainly pissed off. I almost wish the boss hadn't returned to the office after her surgery; it was so blissfully quiet while she was gone...

That's the bad crazy. The good crazy is my new enthusiastic VC friend, who is almost single-handedly trying to revive the semi-catatonic fandom, and doing a pretty good job of it, too.;) ( Read more... )

Oh, and another thing before I sign off: I've been itching for some new music, and I've found a perfect cure for that particular affliction.:) Abney Park. As recommended by meathiel. I just finished downloading over 40 tracks from Soundike.com. They are AWESOME. I have a feeling I'll be playing them to death over the next few weeks...:D

Here's a lovely fanvid to illustrate my point:



So thanks again, Kerstin. And feel free to throw more recs at me, whenever. Your taste in music is exquisite...;)

Once again, my cinematic intuition has been proven infallible. I picked a movie almost at random, and it turned out mind-blowing. I was actually on the verge of skipping it altogether, since it was raining when I went out to the grocery store this morning, and the prospect of traipsing around downtown in cold, wet weather didn't sound too appealing. But I already had the ticket, so I decided to brave the elements.;) Btw, the rain soon dwindled down to a mild drizzle, and by the time I walked out of the theater, the skies had cleared and it got a bit warmer, too. So not a bad outing at all.

( The film was called The Notebook. )

In other news, I am happy to report that the heating in my building was FINALLY turned on at around 6 a.m. this morning. I'd been having a bit of a crisis for the past few days, because I really, REALLY detest feeling cold all the time. Last night was particularly bad. I don't know why they always wait for the outside temperature to drop down to 50F before they deign to turn on the heat... but anyway. It's on now, and it's doing a hell of a lot to improve my mood.:) Oh, and my period is over already. It did start on Monday night, so I went to bed early - and I did feel crappy on Tuesday morning, but somehow I dragged myself to work. It could have been worse, I guess...

Another thing that improved my mood last night was a phone call from a Very Cool Person. The same cool person, in fact, with whom I've been exchanging awesome fandom-related emails for the past few months. It's always a Big Event in my little world when an online friend becomes a "real life" friend who actually calls you on the phone. It's happened a few times so far... but it's never lost the air of slightly incredulous wonder, LOL. See, I don't connect with people that easily, and in many cases, I actually prefer to keep the acquaintance "virtual", even if the person doesn't live across the ocean. Anyway, I'm hardly ever the first one to suggest exchanging phone numbers - but this time I've been kind of wondering if perhaps I should... and then - lo and behold - she beat me to it.;) I have to say that discussing fanfic over the phone still feels sort of unreal; but it's awesome nonetheless.:) Those 45 minutes certainly went by very quickly...:D

And now, I need to catch up on sleep. I was either too excited or too cold last night to manage more than about 5 hours, and as a result I've been nursing a headache. I know I'm behind on comments, but I'll get there. Hopefully after I return from my next movie trip tomorrow...

So, on Saturday have my chiropractic appointment in the morning, and in the afternoon I'm taking a ride downtown to see that crazy lesbian movie that lasts three hours.:) (Check two posts down if you have no idea what I'm talking about, LOL.) I am also about to get my period any day now - and I sort of really want it to happen on Sunday, because that's the only day I don't have to be anywhere... but I am well aware that's not how things usually work.:/ I will most likely get it on Monday, since that's the day my boss is supposed to return to the office after her prolonged medical leave - and so it would be a very awkward day to call in sick. Especially considering the fact that I have already scheduled the following Thursday AND Friday off, to see more movies. Of course, it's also possible that my period won't even start till the middle of next week, since I don't really "feel it coming" yet - except for the intense and slightly manic mood I'm in, LOL. Well... I somehow managed not to call in sick at all last month, so let's hope I won't have to this time, either. *crosses fingers*

But what I'm really saying is I don't know if I'll have the time and/or energy to post this weekend. So in case I don't, I'm checking in now to say that all is well, if a little hectic at the moment.;)

Pleased to announce that film festival plans have been made.:) I am actually going to see five movies, starting with a Special Presentation of Blue Is the Warmest Color, which won this year at Cannes. And which just happens to be a lesbian love story.:D The movie lasts THREE HOURS, btw, so I am not quite sure what I was thinking (there's NO WAY I can endure 3 hours without a bathroom break) - but I ordered the ticket already, since they're showing it only once and I was afraid it might sell out quickly; so I guess I'll worry about the particulars when the day comes, LOL. That's Saturday the 12th. Then, the following week, I am taking Thursday and Friday off to go to matinees, since those are only $5.00 each (the Special Presentation ticket cost me $20 + extra fees for ordering online, so I want to keep the rest of the fun low-profile, LOL). A friend of mine is going with me to one of these, by the way. It's a Polish film about a Gypsy poet, whom I remember hearing about as a child - my parents used to have some analog records by various Gypsy bands/artists from all over Europe, and one of them was a Polish singer, whose songs I absolutely loved. Both the melodies and lyrics were very beautiful; and I think at least some of those lyrics were written by the poet in question. I don't know much about her, except for the name, so I am quite curious to see this film and find out more. It's bound to be a lovely trip down memory lane... Incidentally, there are several Polish films shown at the festival this year, and TWO of them are about gay men (including one about a gay CATHOLIC PRIEST). This is UNHEARD OF. I am more than a little stunned... LOL. I probably won't see both, but I would like to catch one at least. As well as an Argentinian psychological drama that sounds interesting. So yes, I'll be having culture by the bucket.;)

But speaking of movies - I just saw another rare gem on Netflix. ( Read more... )

Another weekend. I don't really have any news, aside from the fact that my boss is doing fine after the surgery, and has probably been released from the hospital by now. Of course, she won't be back at the office till October, so work's been very quiet. I mean, there's plenty of stuff to do, but there's no rushing around and being interrupted by "special projects". Which is just fine by me... LOL.

Also, it's that time of the month, and once again my body can't seem to decide whether my period has actually started or not.:/ ( Read more... )

Again, just a brief check-in because I feel bad about not being a very active LJ-er of late. I do read my flist, by the way - but I'm afraid I won't be doing much commenting in the forseeable future, unless someone posts something that absolutely REQUIRES a comment. Like I mentioned before, there has been a lot going on at my favorite comm over on Dreamwidth; and I'd rather invest my time in keeping up with that, because that's where my heart is at the moment.:) ( Read more... )