Asymmetry

photo © 2010 KO_Photos | more info (via: Wylio)I have a crooked smile.

I have a crooked hairline and now a crooked haircut that's literally and figuratively growing on me.

I'd walk a crooked mile for this crooked life of mine, which reminds me of this nursery rhyme.

The asymmetry isn't all bad I guess. I'm getting used to it. I'm changing my blogging habits to allow growth, or something akin to that. If I published everything I thought or wrote ... it would be something else I guess. I don't do draft posts. I type, I publish, then I think. SO ... trying to think before I write leads to fewer posts. Change the process change my world, or at least my blog.

Remnants of old style chronicle of life: today I woke up at 7 a.m. when Shawn left. And I stayed up, even though that's earlier than I get up during the week (I know, lazy bones). Today I have done all the laundry. I have had too much coffee, including some at the coffee shop where I did my Bible study "homework." Today I have watched a lot of TV -- basically cleared out my DVR list (easy to do when you start at 7 a.m.).

I'm still thinking about how Medium ended, which is the pretend part of my real-or-pretend post on OSU, in that the TV series finale made me feel sad and introspective in a similar way to the sadness I felt in response to the anniversary of something real that happened.

I have been finishing books and not writing about them -- two of late being Evolving in Monkey Town and To Have Not. Those are easy enough blog posts to jump start my 2011 count. Crochet projects are easy too -- and that's another thing I did today -- wash and block and photograph my latest blanket for a grad school friend's baby.

Today I walked in the sunshine and sat outside in the 70-degree January weather. Southern Louisiana isn't all bad, at least weather-wise. This is my home now, so I have to make the best of it.

Yellow Granny Square

Yellow Granny
Originally uploaded by silvermari

Finished a crochet project today. Now just need to get it in the mail. It's a simple pattern -- just one big granny square. Then I added a popcorn stitch edging -- really love that. The yarn is a soft butter yellow (perfect for either gender), and it has a little sheen to it. Goal to get it mailed in the early part of next week. The baby is coming soon!

Real or Imagined

Ten years ago a plane crashed killing ten men affiliated with the OSU basketball team, including two players. I was a sophomore, the same age as one of the players who died.

I don't have any specific memories other than seeing the news in my room in Indiahoma (happened on a Saturday and I went home ... a lot) and waiting in line to go to the memorial. The memorial itself, not in my memory banks. (I wrote about it though, but it's sappy weird 20-year-old musing, so not republishing here.)

Now I read articles about it, and that boy, and feel so sad. It feels almost selfish. I lost nothing. But I was part of that community, and like all of us, I still bleed orange.

Word Nerd

I've had this post it at my desk, tracking all the things that bug me, grammatically, that have come up in my new job. Some aren't specifically unique to this job, but I'll list them anyway. IF I were a real blogger I would do a series, add explanations and links to the reasons behind why these things are wrong (i.e. why my way is right), but this is the best I will do for now...and no one will care about this but me.

• e-mail not email (although Google disagrees so maybe eventually I'll have to relent)
• adviser not advisor (i cannot imagine ever relenting)
• third comma in a series: "peanut butter, bread and jelly" not "peanut butter, bread, and jelly"
• click here/check out the link below (just SEO bad practice)
• hotlink/hyperlink (ick)
• nonsense abbreviations -- I hate hate hate that they call the communications team the "comms" team ... makes me want to say vom-dot-com every time
• underway as one word is almost always wrong ... although in my current job sometimes it's right, as in when you're talking about a ship or other sea faring vessel getting underway
• hyphenating after an ly word -- just not done
• two spaces after a period (there have been a few articles about this lately -- see one in my Google shared items on the right sidebar)
• over/more than (over is only for things physically over something else, but when it's one thing is bigger than another it's more than)
• entitled -- stories, books, plays, reports are not entitled to anything. they are titled something, and in most cases you can leave it out entirely and just say the title
• this is personal preference but i hate when the letters after a number are superscript. so 1st so the st are the same size as the number. it's a default in Microsoft products and I always change it/teach mine to NOT change it automatically.

don't bother copy editing this -- i don't hold myself to exacting standards, esp in this blog. is that bad?!

Bummerware

broken_corningware
Originally uploaded by silvermari

I got our Corningware French White set from my mom's house in August when we were home. It wasn't until right before Christmas that I got it out of the box and discovered that the biggest casserole dish, the one I needed to use, had a crack in it. Blasted!

After the holidays I started searching for a replacement. The set came with lids - so I already had a glass one and a plastic one, but the new dish itself cost $25. I e-mailed customer service and asked if they could give me a discount, since I had a never used one w/ a crack (although the warranty expired 12 months after purchase).

The customer service agent actually wrote back and told me they were sending me a new casserole dish no charge. Whoopie! I knew better than to celebrate publicly though, because the picture shown here is the one I received -- even more broken than my original.

I've written the customer service guy back and sent him the link to this photo on Flickr. The package also contained another woman's name and address, so that adds to the shadiness. Basically I'm bummed all over again.

NYC Timelapse

NYC - Mindrelic Timelapse from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

My Flash keeps crashing so I can't watch this, but I looked at it at work and e-mailed it to myself.

Bike Helmet Hair

My mom sent me this image over Christmas break to use as a blog image when I go on my next bike ride. We're planning to go today. We'll see how the plan succeeds - hopefully without me falling.

Although my hair is not orangey-red like this image it is practically that short again. I went for another hair cut from the same woman I didn't like last time. I took pictures from Ladies Home Journal and thought I could get a Sela Ward style with layers and choppiness and movement. Instead I've got a short helmet with lots of weird shortie pieces and some kind of stacked back. Maybe it will go better when I wash it, but I doubt it will work with my curls.

I think I just need to suck it up and try somewhere else - I need someone who can give me a versatile style that works curly or straight. There ARE Bumble and Bumble trained stylists in New Orleans. Can I justify a 3-hour round trip for my HAIR? Yeah, I probably could. We'll see what I do. I think I want to try growing it out again, but I was at the point where it was fitting back in a pony tail, so I was wearing it in a pony tail almost every day. And I don't know if I can break myself of that when I grow it back out.

These are the kinds of things I worry about, so OBVIOUSLY I've got a pretty great life.

Beta Bursts

Photo by Katie @ French Bakery

Despite a slow down in actual posting, I still compose blog posts in my head almost constantly. I could write about Shawn's failing hard drive and his successful (knock on wood) attempt to resurrect it while he waits for the new part to be shipped.

In New Orleans this weekend I had brain posts going about shopping, walking, smells, the hotel and its view, weather, food, street cars and my lame attempts at photography.

Because of a series of things, I went to a UMC that was on the street car line and felt so warm and happy there. The pastor spoke to me before the service, and I was so moved by her sermon that as she was hugging people on the way out, I made the move and hugged her myself. (I'm not a hugger as a general rule.) I thanked her and told her I wished I lived here -- and she said "me too" and "hey that's a thought." Although I don't think Shawn would be down with that commute!

She had some suggestions for other UMC's I should try in Baton Rouge (I haven't really written about my quest for a church here, or the way I've stiffened to the two most obvious choices).

And today she sent me an e-mail to say it was nice to meet me and reiterating her suggestions/inviting me to come back any time. I love communicating online, and I think it's so nice of her -- to connect in a way that's meaningful to me.

So my first longer-than-two-hours trip to New Orleans was a success. I'll look forward to going back and hope I can sustain some of the renewal I felt. So far I'm not doing that great, but there's always tomorrow.

View from 2053 up Canal Street

My Favorite Gift

My sister made me this AMAZING casserole carrier after I was coveting Gran's at a church dinner a couple months ago. My dad made the handles and the base, my mom bought the accessory spoon, Aunt Lee Ann helped and Gran loaned her old trusty sewing machine for Beth to get it made. And how perfect is the fabric? I bet it's called silvermari swirl or something, right? Now I just need a pot luck and killer casserole recipe... TBD on when it takes its maiden voyage.

I got some other great gifts for Christmas 2010 too, and today the package from my inlaws' finally arrived. I got my wished-for iPod clock radio so I can groove to my tunes and/or NPR in the house. Huzzah!

From myself to myself I got a new cell phone that also arrived today. The unlocked phone from Amazon really works (I wasn't eligible for a new phone from AT&T until this September because of losing the new one last March). My purple phone finally cracked -- the hinge was coming apart and the battery charger didn't do a great job without it being jiggled every few minutes. New technology is exciting, although I need to get my contacts moved over (thought they were already on my SIM card ... whoops).

And it's webcamming night with a certain little monkey moo! Darkness lifting ... I hope it stays lifted.

Some New Year Snaps

Professor Hat

School Spirit

Trying on Shawn's hat

Pouting - I forget about what

I failed at posting 300 times in 2010, by 19 posts (although I did post one more than in 2009). I doubt I'll do 300 in 2011 either in part because I am realizing that I write too much, reveal too much. I just need to remember my audience, which isn't always easy or top-of-mind. So lately I've been blogging-shy about all the things that have been going on. Each of these pictures could be a post, plus many more (although the Owen and Shawn hat photos do go together).

I don't have any solid new year's resolutions. What I thought I was going to do now seems to be what I should work on in 2012. Glad to be home, going to try a brighter outlook on the job front and just slog through otherwise.

Hope you had a great Christmas and New Year's, and that 2011 is shaping up for the better.

Christmas Dinner

With my mom's cranberry salad in the bowl
Shawn's grandma Ramona gave me.

Sugar Free pumpkin pie!

I didn't take pictures of the deviled eggs I made (one regular batch and one made with Slap Ya Mama cajun spice mix) or the other hearty treats we enjoyed over the holiday. Glad to be home so I can get back in the gym! I also rode my bike to work today for the first time. Pudge-o-rama...

Juggling Elf

For my Christmas present to Shawn I gave him three light up juggling balls. They are amazing, and I may have to attempt a video in the dark. But they still look pretty cool on first juggle. On the way home he was hassled at the X-ray machine, but they let him through with them after he explained (no demonstration required). I'm EXTRA glad I shipped them to Danville instead of carrying them on the way there -- the surprise would have been spoiled!

White Christmas 2010

Being in Danville this year was our second white Christmas in a row, after last year's blizzard in Oklahoma. Here's what we saw out the back door at the inlaws' house. (Of course I stupidly didn't take pictures of us IN the snow ... I didn't even step outside on Christmas Day!)

Dear Santa

Watching Miracle on 34th Street for the first time, and I have been cooking for our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dinners -- so far just the deviled eggs and cranberry salad. Yum-oh. Tonight we're having ham and tomorrow will be turkey. Just the four of us (thank goodness for Christmas Day NBA basketball games!), and then on Boxing Day we'll go to Shawn's aunt's house for a bigger party with the rest of the extended fam. We had dinner with Shawn's dad's family on Tuesday after we arrived.

Thinking about Santa puts me in a greedy frame of mind. Gimme, gimme, gimme. I just perused my Google bookmarks, and the category labeled "i want." In the past couple years I've been using it I've amassed 100 bookmarks of items I want, and that doesn't count items on my Amazon list. Some of them are dead links now -- like a dress I liked over a year ago that's no longer available. A lot of letterpress stuff, tons of specific Etsy things, travel products, jewelry (especially w/ an m and/or w), a few books and a magnetic photo rope.

That's not what Christmas is about. Hope you find the real meaning of Christmas in your holiday this year.

My First New York

My First New York: Early Adventures in the Big City (As Remembered by Actors, Artists, Athletes, Chefs, Comedians, Filmmakers, Mayors, Models, Moguls, Porn Stars, Rockers, Writers, and Others by New York Magazine

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A birthday gift from my mother-in-law. I put the book on my Amazon wish list once I read about it on The Noisiest Passenger blog. Basically a collection of New York magazine essays by famous people about when they first moved to New York.

I don't remember as clearly when I moved to New York in November 2007, probably because I was working to be vague about my living situation and I can even fool myself. But I have distinct memories of moving Shawn there that August. The heat without the air conditioning in the stuffy little studio, moving every box just the two of us and how filthy it was.

When he left to go get his office keys and I lay on the bed, listening to the city. In particular I listened to the noise made by the nearby bookstore's sidewalk lift (not sure what else to call it -- but it's a way to get goods into the basement without traipsing through the store -- most grocery stores there seem to have them too). I couldn't figure out what the sound was as it sounds like a high school class change bell, and it wasn't until I had moved there and seen the lift in action (and heard its associated sound at the same time) did it click. A mini mystery that eventually I solved.

After a shower I put on my black interview dress and killer heels and took the subway to Rockefeller Center. I had a job interview on the day I helped Shawn move to New York. It was at a PR firm, and I had a few other interviews during my first few months in residence, but nothing ever panned out. (The closest I came to an offer was in the Bronx, and I just couldn't face going from no commute to 1 hour-plus each day.)

Anyway, on my first day in New York, although I'm still a visitor at this point I know it's where I'm going to be living within a few months, I find myself across the street from Rockefeller Center, among the hustle and bustle and business of midtown. I felt so grown up, and it was more than a little surreal. I don't know that I really loved it or just the idea of it -- probably looking back clouds my memory because I've been able to morph my initial misgivings into a romanticized fondness for the place I truly became a Mrs.

The bedbugs and space issues came later, and they're part of my New York story too. But I like to think my First New York is more about wide eyed wonderment, empowerment and a choice to move to the best city on earth with my passion.

Projecting

On the Levy

Been a busy Saturday. After working out and our usual pancake lunch I indulged in a Hallmark Christmas movie and then we went on a bike ride. For the first time we went to the levy -- it's so close and easy! I only had to walk my bike up one of the inclines ... and a true biker rode by me and said "yeah, that part is tough." HA! I can only get better from here...

Once we were back from that I started in on the Christmas cookies. I made the dough yesterday and baked and decorated today. The dough was stickier than normal even though I had chilled it overnight, so I had to work in some more flour.

Not eating/tasting the dough produces more cookies -- actually made there be not quite enough icing. So I just didn't frost the broken ones (broken = goodie for Shawn). I focused my will power on not eating the cookies ... so far so good, but man they look tasty! 10 bells, 12 stockings, 15 trees, 9 stars plus a few broken ones of almost each. They're drying now and then I'll box 'em up. I made homemade bows out of magazine pages to go on the boxes, based on what I remembered from this tutorial. Feelin' pretty crafty today, and making them is kind of addicting! I guess better to be addicted to crafting than eating too many cookies!

Lovely -- including purple stockings!

Kind of makes a mess!

I also got to starching a few Christmas ornament snowflakes that I crocheted for coworkers, etc.

Six ornaments ... hope they're dry by Monday since we leave on Tuesday!

2010: The Places I Have Slept

View 2010 in a larger map

Edit: Thanks to my eagle eye commenter I've edited this to reflect the nights slept on the cruise ship. I just added the ports -- no way to know for sure where we were on all the nights we were at sea, but I know I woke up in each of these places -- plus a couple out on the water. Thanks, CG!

vanity

upgraded my website, silvermari.com, to a wordpress set up instead of straight html (which basically meant i never really updated it). i haven't decided whether to shift this blog from blogger. i am weirdly loyal to google though. there are still a lot of random html pages i need to clean off my server space, but i'm going to focus on something OTHER than my own vanity site...

while i was tooling around my bookmarks and blog i found this befunky site that allows fast editing of photos with weird overlays, and spent some time playing:

Joy

I've been working on blog posts in my head but haven't taken the time to type them out... Here are some topics, in case I don't get around to true posts:

• Mail - I love opening the box to Christmas cards. And today bonus: my This American Life USB came!
• Make-up ... how wearing it changes things and how I finally succumbed, as my 20s closed, to wearing it to work every day
• Weather -- I am certainly getting used to the balmy winter. 70s in December, yes please!
• Gift Guides -- Etsy Taste Test ... uh, this was pretty good on what I like BUT seriously I love most everything on Etsy! Then there's this Hunch Gift-o-Matic where you put in a Twitter handle and it spits out a list of suggested gifts. I have a suspicion it's just a shuffled list for everyone, but still a really neat concept.
• Recent conversations about work/career planning. I'm not sure I have any better grasp on what I should be doing, but I feel mostly OK. Especially because I'm taking some time off for the next couple weeks.
• I got my first Kindle gift book from my mother-in-law -- my One a Day Bible! So no more lugging the big book with me on trips.
• I lost a box of Triscuits. Seriously, what?
• I won a really groovy Christmas ornament at the office women Christmas party
• I had a terrible blood sugar incident yesterday ... ate a white bread sandwich (we didn't really have a choice of bread from where we ordered out) and then crashed out just before the security line at the airport. Luckily my coworker had a Kashi bar and saved me.

Hope you have as many good things to write about!

Elfing Tradition

I have made these for two or three years now, and this time I couldn't pick just one dance... Sorry for the ads you have to watch before you can see the video ... doesn't really make me want to go to Office Max, but there you go.