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Again June 29, 2006 ~ 12:28 pm

Posted by Julie in : Daily Grind , comments closed

Brooklyn Botanical Garden

This morning, after having a conversation with my mom that again involved the phrase “Yeah, I puked last night,” I had a revelation.  I should not be puking every couple of weeks.  I’m betting I shouldn’t even be puking every couple of months.  It’s not normal for a stomach to be so sensitive, and I surely can’t be eating bad food that often (really, I’m generally not as stupid as I was with the pork loin last month).

This revelation led to another revelation: maybe it’s some sort of food allergy.  When I was little, I was tested for allergies and they found me allergic to everything in the universe except cinnamon, coffee, and kapoc.  I thought I had outgrown them, but maybe I haven’t.  My friend Kim has all sorts of random allergies (which were eventually diagnosed as celiac disease), maybe I’ve got something similar going on that explains the puking and the gnawing ulcer-like feeling that’s apparently not an ulcer but merely hyperacidity.

To prove my theory, I need to start listing things I’ve eaten when I get sick and see if there’s any overlap in foods or ingredients.  It’s just a shame I don’t know what the hell was in the pint of sour Belgian ale the beer distributor bought me at the bar last night.  And here I was all excited because I didn’t have to buy a beer at Stitch n Bitch.  Win some, lose some, I guess.

I work with geniuses. June 28, 2006 ~ 10:56 am

Posted by Julie in : Academic Office Monkey , comments closed

This week my college switches over to four day work-weeks for the summer.  The college is closed every Friday between now and August 11, with the exception of next Friday.  Apparently they feel that since they’re being all generous and giving us Tuesday off for the 4th of July, we can just suck it up about the Friday.  I said “screw that” and am taking next Friday off anyway, as well as all of the following week.  But I digress.

Today I came into work to find signs on all the doors in my department saying “The Registrar’s Office will be closed on the following Fridays: 6/30, 7/14, 7/21, 7/28, 8/4, 8/11.”

Let’s pause and think about this.  There is a big sign on every door informing people that we won’t be here on those Fridays.  Of course, on those Fridays the college will be closed so no one will be able to get on campus, let alone into the building to read those signs, but what the hell, right?

I work with fucking geniuses jeenyuses.

And to make it even better, “Wheel In The Sky” is on the radio.  Is 10:55 AM too early for a beer?

Mutual of Jones Beach’s “Wild Kingdom” June 26, 2006 ~ 11:04 pm

Posted by Julie in : Shorty, Story Time , comments closed

I know that some people wouldn’t classify a concert without alcohol as hell, but there’s just something nice about kicking back with a beer while seeing your favorite band.  It’s even nicer to have a beer to help you pass the time until your not-so-favorite band gets the hell off the stage and lets your favorite band take over.  For instance, about the time that your not-so-favorite band starts singing “Wheel in the Sky.”  That would be a good great time for a beer.

Apparently I was not the only one thinking like this on Saturday night.  Our first hint was the huge tailgate party going on in the parking lot when we arrived.  People had pitched tents, were sitting under tarps, or were just chilling out in their cars blasting Def Leppard (there were no Journey tailgaters as near as I could tell) and drinking pre-show.  However the real proof was an incident that happened the third time I went to the bathroom during the Journey half of the show (I had been tailgating with everyone else, what can I say?).

There was a line of about ten women waiting for stalls when I came over to wash my hands, and I was glancing at them in the mirror when I saw something shiny and cylindrical in the hand of a woman behind me.  At that same instant, every other woman in the room saw it, too.  As one, much like a group of lions sensing prey, we all whirled to face her.  “Where’d you get the beer???” we asked with one voice, obviously all having been denied life-giving alcohol by the evil venue.  The woman backed up a step towards the wall, trying to protect her Bud Light from the predators around her, then giggled tipsily.  “Out of my purse!” she exclaimed, as if it were the most natural thing on earth.

All of us who were without alcohol looked at each other in a mass “D’oh!” moment before I summed it up.  “Goddammit!” I said, looking at the tiny bag on my hip.  “I’m bringing a bigger purse next time!”

Hell…raiser June 25, 2006 ~ 12:56 pm

Posted by Julie in : Reviews , comments closed

Last night Jordana and I went out for the third major event of Kickass Summer Weekend. (Lori’s party Friday night was the second, and ended up being very laid back…with a camera.) Through pouring rain and a lightning storm we drove out to Jones Beach on the Island. We had originally planned to spend the whole day at the beach, but the rain pissing down put the kibosh on that one. It also put an end to our “get to the beach in an hour” plan, so we finally crawled into the parking lot at 6:30. Plenty of time to have our beach picnic and some beers in the car. Next time we’re bringing a tent like all the other Leppard fans seemed to have - the parking lot was a massive tailgate party. Headed into the Ampitheater and got to our seats in time for Journey to start playing.

Now, let me tell you what hell is. Hell is sitting through a Journey concert with no beer. That’s right, there was no beer or any other type of alcohol sold in the venue. We asked and were informed that to get beer we would have to be in the VIP section, and alas there were no upgrades to be had at this concert. I don’t know if this is going to be true at all concerts, or if it was just specific to this venue, but now we know what one of the perks to the VIP tickets was. Journey wasn’t really bad, it was just that they didn’t seem to have a stage presence. They weren’t working the crowd, they weren’t really moving around the stage, they were just there. Back in college when someone was playing a Journey CD it meant that they were going through a bad break up, and everyone on the hall would just shake their heads and say “Oh, Journey.” Last night I found myself shaking my head and saying “Oh, Journey” a lot. It was all that really could be said.

The Def Leppard half of the show, on the other hand, kicked ass. I’m guessing that they’re alternating who opens like last year’s tour with Bryan Adams, but last night they closed and took full advantage of it. Their graphics on the screen were great and included lots of pictures of the band in the early days, interviews from MTV, and of course, lots of Steve. It seemed like they took a page from Queen’s book and were able to have a little tribute to him while still making the “this is who we are now” statement. All of the guys really owned the stage, playing up to all the fans everywhere, moving around and playing off of each other.  I know, they do this at every concert, but it was such a contrast to Journey that I have to mention it again.  And I loved, loved, loved that they played four songs from “Yeah!” (including two of my favorites, “Hellraiser” and “Hangin’ on the Telephone”). It was nice to get some of the new songs in with some of the older ones, and I think it really helped tighten up the set. Phil has said that they’re taking this tour up a notch and he’s right. I screamed so much that if it had been a full headlining show, I would have lost my voice last night. As is, I’m incredibly hoarse today.

But not too hoarse to cheer for England’s win in the World Cup just now. ;)

How far is heaven? In round numbers, please. June 23, 2006 ~ 10:49 am

Posted by Julie in : In Da Hood, Reviews, Rick, Urban Family , comments closed

Night One of Kickass Summer Weekend is in the can. I mean that in the film sense of the word, not in the, “it was cancelled and ended up in the garbage” sense.

Every year Prospect Park plays host to “Celebrate Brooklyn,” an incredibly diverse collection of free concerts that span the summer. Last weekend we saw Laurie Anderson and Chirgilchin (a bunch of Tuvan throat singers who were better than Laurie Anderson even though they were the opening act). Two nights before, Prince dropped by after he did a concert in Manhattan. Last night, James Hunter opened for Los Lonely Boys. Next Saturday a bunch of South African musicians will be playing, and yes, I will be there with a large group of South African expatriates. Like I said, nothing if not diverse.

(More behind the cut)

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Oi! June 22, 2006 ~ 12:32 pm

Posted by Julie in : Random Insanity, Shorty , comments closed

Go show Jon some love. Heather has taken his clogs and might possibly have destroyed them.

Then go read my real post for today, which is under this one.

E-Day June 22, 2006 ~ 11:04 am

Posted by Julie in : About a Julz , comments closed

Two nailbiters are going on in Germany right now to see who’s going to make it out of Group E in the World Cup.  I’ve got the Game Casts going on my computer (basically a play-by-play of the games, with player stats and a little diagram of the pitch), so I’m sure ITS loves me this morning.  It’s not exactly streaming video, but it does seem to be accessing the net on a regular basis.  I feel sure that I’m not the only one on campus doing it, though, and since we’re TV-less (shit, I totally forgot I have a handheld TV I could have brought!), this is how I’m getting my World Cup coverage, unsatisfying as it is.  Even more unsatisfying when the Ghanans score a goal.  I know I was supporting them the other day, but now that the US is playing them, I have to back my guys up.

Yesterday Retro was talking about how in his mind’s eye he still sees himself as a teenager.  I have the same problem and I think it might be universal, this perception of self that is somehow fifteen years out of date.  In high school I had long, extremely curly hair that I hated.  I always hoped that somehow the curls would go away if I grew it long enough, but instead it resembled Brian May’s hair dyed red.  My nickname from the school’s group of “wits” (who I believe all still reside in Beaver County, many still working at the local grocery store) was “Danny Partridge.”  We all have to endure a high school hell of one sort or another, but for a teenage girl who was insecure about her looks anyway, being called a boy’s name was especially painful.  I’ve always had great sympathy for Danny Bonaduce because of the whole name-calling incident.  Yeah, he’s a trainwreck of a human being, but I imagine that ruthless teasing on account of his red hair and freckles had a lot to do with who he is now.

It’s because some creature in the back of my head still calls me “Danny” on occasion that I’ve kept my hair short since I moved to New York.  In some cases, extremely short, shaved up the back, boy haircut short.  Ironic, isn’t it, that to escape that little voice calling me by a boy’s name, I’ve cut my hair as short as a boy’s?  I’ve come to accept and even like the red hair, although it’s fading to auburn as I get older.  When I was younger and couldn’t stand it, it was fire engine red.  Now that I want it, it’s getting darker.

What’s a girl to do?  I’ve resorted to using products (anyone who read the Doctor Who story I wrote, now you know where I got the idea).  There are now shampoos and conditioners that can boost your red highlights.  In addition to that, there’s something that John Frieda makes called Color Glaze that has some mild dyes in it and does a super-boost.  There are still way more products for blondes and brunettes, but thank you, John Frieda for finally making something that works for natural redheads.  I know we’re a minority, but how damn hard would it be to put a picture on a box of dye telling us what color it might turn our hair?

I’m hoping that in 15 years or so, when my 28-year-old self is the out-of-date self-image I’ve got, I’ll be happier.  I don’t look like Danny Partridge anymore, and my hair is a kickass shade of red.

Writing is hard work. June 21, 2006 ~ 10:36 am

Posted by Julie in : Pseudo-dim , comments closed

Brooklyn Botanical Garden

I am in the process of lining up what may be the busiest weekend of the summer for me. If the last event comes through, it might also be the coolest/most bizarre. I’ll let you know when everything is finalized. In the meantime, Happy Solstice (or Midsummer, or Litha, whichever you prefer)!

Aside from that, I’m keeping busy. I should be finishing my mom’s present, since tomorrow is her birthday, and by god I will work on it at lunch, but something else has most of my interest and attention at the moment. Writing. I actually wrote a short story on Sunday - so short that I believe the technical term is “fic-let” - a scene between two characters who aren’t mine. (Technically, yes, that qualifies it as fanfiction. I wrote fanfiction, SUCK IT.) I posted it to Fanfiction.net, and within 14 hours I had 9 really positive reviews from fanfiction writers I admire, and 8 of those reviewers had listed my story as a favorite.I really wasn’t expecting that kind of a response. It was a scene that had been kicking around in my head for a while, and I didn’t think other people would be as amused by it as I was. I guess I was wrong. And since I now have a built-in audience over there who are waiting for my next story, the pressure is on. I have amazing empathy for J.K. Rowling right now, when last week I was cursing that she should just finish the damn seventh Harry Potter book.

I spent three hours last night working on my next short piece, deliberating over word choice, was it in character, where did I want it to go. During that time, I remembered that good writing isn’t easy. Somehow characters will take on a life of their own and do something completely opposite of what you had intended. One wrong word choice takes the piece in another random direction. And you’re left trying to corral everything back to the way you had envisioned, or at least get it all going in the same direction, even if it wasn’t the one you’d planned.

Blogging is so much easier than writing about the space-time continuum.

Well, that was…weird June 20, 2006 ~ 10:27 am

Posted by Julie in : Random Insanity , comments closed

I had a dream last night that for some reason Aimee, ESC, and I (and someone else, who I think was Sloth, but sometimes she was Not Sloth) went to some Eastern European country on vacation with Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen. Paul Rodgers was there as well, somewhere, but the only person I ever really saw was Brian.

Somehow I had gotten into said Eastern European country without my passport (this is a reflection of real life, as I don’t have a current passport), and I was worrying about how to get out of said country without my passport since we were leaving in two days. We went out sightseeing and I found a guide book which featured me quite prominently, and then went back to the hotel to get ready to go out again.

When it was my turn to take a shower, the concierge came up and said, “I’m sorry, we’re out of hot water.” Aimee and ESC were laughing at me, because there I was with shampoo in my hair and no hot water, and I said “I don’t need any hot water, I can take a shower without it.” And I did. But when I got out of the shower, somehow the lack of hot water caused a fire and we barely had time to get out of the hotel with a few of our possessions. I had time to grab my iPod mini and the guidebook, but everything else was lost in the fire. And by lost, I mean, we eventually got back in the hotel and saw it and it looked fine, but now my laptop refused to work properly. It had some sort of computer hiccoughs and skipped a lot.

Somehow Brian May’s stuff had made it through unscathed in spite of him being on a higher floor than me, and we all ended up at some house in the middle of the woods.

Anyone wanna tell me what the hell this means? Because otherwise I blame all of it on watching improv and drinking before bed.

World Cup insanity June 18, 2006 ~ 12:14 pm

Posted by Julie in : Reviews, Urban Family , comments closed

Brooklyn Botannical Gardens

Things Decided at the Laurie Anderson concert last night:

Thing decided just now while watching soccer:

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