New York in 3-2-1

Took a quick trip to New York City.
My stepmom turned 50 (its a milestone year for her and me!), and my dad took her on an art tour in NY for her birthday. It ended with her having a show at the Agora Gallery in Chelsea. How cool is that?


A friend of mine came along for the ride, and we spent some time sightseeing:
DAY 1
Statue of Liberty


Stock Exchange


Ground Zero


Times Square


DAY 2
Met


Central Park


kicked out of the Plaza (therefore no photo)

Empire State Building


Greenwich Village


Meals and chats with family.


Great time!!
good to have a day to recover before the rat race starts up again!

Sometimes...

.. I feel like I am in a fuzziness, and what I consider to be my life is actually a dream or imagining.

I wish it were easier to be where I want to be.

As I get older I realize its more of putting things on a trajectory and seeing what happens rather than actually having control.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Standing on a corner....

Having walked past buildings of monumental architecture. I stand at a constitutional corner and look at a large obelisk going into the sky. On the grounds below people play softball, soccer, ultimate frisbee, while many more run by.

What an amazing place to live. I can only imagine.

Interesting media moment

David Plotz talking about H1N1 on "The Shift Happens Podcast":
...talking about public health measures to limit the spread of a disease...


"...social networks are weaker, people have fewer social ties which means that they are more willing to break a quarantine."


This is so interesting to hear in a media venue because its something that I've been thinking for a long time!

Interesting media moment

David Plotz talking about H1N1 on "The Shift Happens Podcast":

...talking about public health measures to limit the spread of a disease...

 

 

"...social networks are weaker, people have fewer social ties which means that they are more willing to break a quarantine."

 

 

This is so interesting to hear in a media venue because its something that I've been thinking for a long time!

a new consciousness on reality

Nearly made a big booboo this week.

 

Spent Sunday underwater at a max depth of about 30 ft.

Well, when you do that for extended periods of time, there are all these calculations and numbers blahblahblah to consider when doing things to your body that involve pressure.

One of those is flying!

There are Rules about how long you have to wait to fly after diving so that you don't EXPLODE! actually, its get the bends, but I just keep in mind that its all about exploding 'cause that's more dramatic.

 

So, I have a trip to DC on Tues.

LUCKILY - yes, luck 'cause I didn't even realize I had to think about this - its more than 18 hours after my last dive.

If I had planned a trip for Monday, I would have had to cancel it.

 

Here is a whole new thing I have to take into consideration about staying alive!

Canyoneering I, II, II

*sigh*

holy cows!!

This was a life-altering experience.

I am a very very careful person.
I don't really do anything unless I have a good feel for the fact that I can do it.
Things that I "wing" are because I have done them before and I know that I can get away with that.

There are times in my life where I have realized that I had a "phobia" and I worked through it. The most obvious example that comes to mind, is that when I was fresh out of high school, I didn't like being on the phone. The whole idea of calling people I didn't know freaked me out. So, when I had to get information about something - find an apartment, get prices for a product - I would make a list of all the options (people to call), and I would call everyone on that list! even if I got my answer on call one. Did that get me over the phobia? eh, not so much... needless to say, I love the internet!

Aside 2:
I am DEATHLY afraid of snakes. Most of my life, I've had nightmares involving big snakes. I wanted to get over this fear, and I've paid attention to methodologies to overcome fear, and when it was suggested that I just do it by handling I snake, I thought NOT ON YOUR LIFE! There is no way in HELL I would do that. I'd rather just be petrified of the critters.
And that was mostly my attitude about fear.

...back to topic at hand.
Canyoneering is basically rappelling down waterfalls... hike up, rappel down.

This canyoneering thing is the first time in my life I had encountered something that induced sheer panic, and then consciously decided to just . keep . working . through . it.

Day 1: Lisa thinks, oh, this is going to be great, I've done this before with Meg and Tim, I had fun, nothing to be scared of harness will hold me la la la la...
Rappel 1 - no biggie, down I go.
Rappel 2 - STOP! wait a minute! I can't see where I'm going! I'm backing over an edge into NOTHINGNESS! holding a rope?! am I nuts!?
PANIC!!!

Well, I didn't want to seem like a wus, or hold up the class, or for anyone to tell me I couldn't do it. So I figured I'd just have to sort it out and find a way to cope!

There are 6 Rappels in that watercourse, here are heights: 45', 60', 20', 90', 70' 110'

The night after Day 1, I did not sleep. I just keep having dreams/thoughts about what I'd have to do the next day. I was so frickin' scared that I was gettin' all nervous on the hike TO the watercourse; you know, worried about my footing and silly things like that. I took a big sigh and went down the first 45' fall, and yikes! it was FUN!!
I realized that the experience of the day before had actually made it easier here on Day 2.
I didn't panic at the top of these falls, but I wasn't through the fear.

On the walk back to the car, the instructor said to me:
you are fine once you are on your way down, its the anticipation and then taking that step over the edge that is freaking you out.
I filed that away in the back of my mind.

After Day 3 I would say I was still scared. I still had to really think about going over those edges. But as the instructor said, after every one, you have done one more than you had before, so you have just that much more experience.

The day after my canyoneering weekend, I was exhausted. Emotionally and physically. I had not gotten home until very late each night, and all of that focusing on the fear was emotionally draining. So on that Monday, I was pretty introspective.
Through that, I had a pretty big realization.
I deal with all fear or anticipation the same way.
I know I can deal with anything, get through anything.
Its the thinking about it and the anticipation, and then taking that first step that freak me out.

Because of this, I am determined to keep practicing backing over that edge.
I am determined to find out how to do it without the fear. I want to know what I need to do to make that happen. I want to have that tool in my toolkit of coping with life.

(I highly recommend that if you want to do something outside, you go here and book a course with these incredible guys: Alpine Training Services - ATS.)




























All photos from Day 1 link
All photos from Day 2 link
All photos from Day 3 link

S.C.U.B.A.

This month has been one long activity after another. Weeks full of work, traveling here and there, and then weekends of Lisa 4.0.

Activity 1: SCUBA: We did our classroom, pool work, and tests for the PADI Open Water certification.

I would sum this whole training thing up by saying that its a minute of: this is how you breathe underwater and weight yourself down so that you stay down; and the rest is 40 hours of training you on what to do when things go wrong!

I was more excited than nervous to do this certification because whenever I snorkel, I always wish that I could have more freedom to follow the fish. All this "how to save yourself" stuff was the slap-in-the face about the realities of the risks.

Whatever!

Carpe Diem, and all that.

There were 8 students and 2 instructors in the pool, and that was just too much. I didn't feel like I could really move around and get a feel for all that equipment 'cause we kept banging into each other. We didn't finish all our "skills" over that weekend, and so my friend and I did the rest, just the 2 of us this past Friday. It was GREAT having the whole pool to ourselves. We were able to really get the hang of buoyancy and swim around. We are off for our first open water dive tomorrow, and I . am . excited!!

My mom was kinda confused when I told her I wanted to get scuba certified because I can't swim. You know, with strokes. I can spend some time underwater, or I can swim on the top, or just play around. I just never learned how to do any strokes. The swimming teacher my mom hired for me and my brother when we were kids told my mom after a couple weeks to just give up on me 'cause I was never going to learn. And that was that.

Well, scuba is not about swimming. Its about having the freedom to be underwater on your terms. Its a gateway to this whole other part of the planet - the part that that is the MAJORITY of this planet, eh?.

so, watch out fish! Here I come!

US Car Manufacturers

I don't really have strong political opinions often, but there is one thing going on right now that is driving me NUTS, and since this is my venue for pushing my opinionated opinion in a public setting, here goes...

So, the US car manufacturers are suffering and looking for help from the government.
They are not making sales, therefore, not making profits.
And of course, the help is requested so that they don't have to lay off people and add to the high unemployment numbers. So that's the pulling-on-the-heartstrings "help us" line.

Here's my rub.
1. They killed the electric car for stupid selfish reasons.
2. When car manufacturers outside the US started building more fuel efficient, affordable cars, they instead SUPER-sized. "Daddy George will protect us by keeping the oil coming" "Americans like big cars" "Big cars are safer".

What did the people do? They said:
Speak with your Wallet! Don't buy these big cars! Don't support these manufacturers!

so, umm, hello, no one's buying their cars!!
why is it a surprise?!

This is a basic tenant of capitalism.

The consumers are speaking with their wallets and letting the manufacturers know "We don't want huge gas-guzzling cars"! If those manufacturers are not listening by changing their focus, they deserve to go under.
They are the ones who took on the responsibility of all these employees; they are the ones abusing that role, not the US Government.

Now the government is giving them money, with conditions, and the media is making THAT the story.
You know, if you bailed out a company that was suffering because of a bad business decision, wouldn't you "loan" that money conditional on those business decisions changing?
Why should the government be any different?
In fact, if they gave OUR tax money to these manufacturers without any conditions on changing their ways, wouldn't that just be "enabling" the perpetuation of whatever got them into trouble in the first place?

So, come on, Media!!! Get the story straight!
US Car Manufacturers need to take responsibility and listen to the LOUD voices of the consumer!
Make smaller cars, stop your propaganda about safety in size, and focusing on efficiency.

Lisa 4.0

Over the years that I lived in Arizona I made friends with very good people. If you know me in life, you know just how wonderful those people are.
Now I find myself in California, looking for ways to make new friends, and realizing that I have a world of Lisa-discovering to do.
I gave this conundrum some thought.

I realized that one of the things that makes these friends of mine so interesting is that they are very active. Not only do they run, bike, swim, row, rappel, they set personal goals for their physical endeavors and then do what is necessary to meet those goals. As things change – they realize a goal, they change their minds, they get an injury – their goals change. They are always challenging themselves and striving to be better. This gives you a unique outlook on life. It is positive, it means that there are no limits, and anything is possible.
I love my friends for these qualities!

Anyway, I decided that I want to meet more of these people in my life.

Coupled with that, I started thinking about what Lisa might like to do.
Now, one thing I really love doing (I don’t know why) is snorkeling. Being underwater with all those fish! There is a whole other world down there! Wait! Maybe its ‘cause I’m Aquarius??? Hmmm.

Anyway… I told my friend that I wanted to get certified to go scuba diving. I looked online and yikes, there are so many different ways to get out on the water starting from this Southern California coast! My friend said he would like to join me, so we are signed up to get certified next month.

My friend loves the outdoors. In exchange for him facing his fear of sharks (in a SWIMMING POOL!) I am going to take a course to overcome my fear of heights so that we can go rappelling together down waterfalls! I have done this once before with Meg and Tim down Salome in AZ, and I really enjoyed that, so am willing to take on this fear and add a harness to my list of gear. Why not? I’m trying to figure out what I like to do, and how will I know without trying?

I told my friend about adventure racing. I don’t know why, but I love it! I would be happy to volunteer at races I love being involved so much. My friend is intrigued. He thinks we should try do one together. I said to him… sir, you do realize that I don’t mountain bike, right?
His response: why not?
I thought a bit, and realized there was not valid reason.
So, we went out and bought bikes! And have gone riding. My friend is patient, and helps me resolve my concerns one at a time… which shift lever does what, using my legs instead of my gears, taking breaks, and becoming more confident hitting ruts.
I have a lot of endurance and leg strength to build, but I tell you, mountain biking is MUCH better than the leg-press machine!
I have been given the challenge of deciding on a race for us to do in the summer.

YIKES! What a bold new world of opportunities out there for me!
What possibilities?!

Now, I thought that my Musings might take on a new focus over these next weeks as I try out all these new activities and go through the learning process one thing at a time.

So this is Turning 40, Part 2.
Its “Lisa 4.0”
Its the future.

NY in LA

Over the past couple days strange things have been showing up on the corner of Spring and 7th Street.


NYPD? Taxi with a NY plate?

The other day I saw this:


it made me laugh!

Here's another picture...


Today, I realized what was going on from a "Street Closure: Filming" door hanger.
They are filming CSI: NY on Monday and Tuesday. The hangar says that there will be a gun fire, lots of action, lots of explosions, with a semi crashing into a diner!

I might have to take a walk up there tomorrow...

Figuring it out...

Its funny what you learn about yourself if you open yourself up to it.
Over the past month, I have learned a lot of things about myself… there has been some purging, some weakness, some introspection, some assistance, and in the end, a lot of realizations.

Here is a question I’ve been thinking about:
What do I like to do?

Well, I have been just about work for the longest time, and when I think about things outside of that, the list is pretty short:
Autocross
Flamenco

Now, if you are a friend that I’ve had over to a house, you might want to add cooking and baking to that list. Well, these are things I have done, but they are not my favorite things to do.
I am pretty crafty, but got to the point that I started to wonder what to do with the crap that I crafted, so I’m over that.

Let’s talk about the first two: Autocross is something that is usually done only once a month in a region. It can also get expensive because you have to keep your car serviced, maintained, and in good shape. I wonder if having the MINI club (DMC) in Arizona made the autocross easier and more fun. I plan to go out to the track this weekend here in CA, and see how things are run in this region.

I have done Flamenco most of my life. I started because it was far more interesting than ballet, and that’s what my mom had me busy doing as a child. The thing about Flamenco is that its an emotional expression in the form of dance. I have never felt that I had the right expression. I thought that maybe “one day” I would be older with lots of life experience and I would have something to express. I’ve started to realize, now that its “one day”, I’m older, and have had a lot of life experience, that I still don’t think I’m very good at expression. I’ve accepted that maybe its just not me.

So, if you minus the Flamenco, and the autocross is very infrequent, what do I like to do?

Communication

I used to write letters back and forth with my grandmother when I first moved to America.

I also used to share letters with my cousins when they were very young.

One day, the letters got replaced by phone calls.

 

I just realized this weekend, I don't get phone calls anymore!

 

But my friends do still communicate:

 

Blackberry IM

Facebook

Email

and now Twitter.

 

I think I know more about what's going on in their lives with all these internet tools than I ever did with the letters or phonecalls.

 

 

...on Facebook

Everyone seems to be talking about Facebook these days. "It's just for kids", "It's addictive", "YOU have a Facebook page?!"... so, ok, here's my two cents.

I live in a country different to the one I grew up in.
My family and friends (ok, mostly my family) are spread all over the world.
This is a time of living where you want to, and being very separate from a physical community.
This is the age of email, blogs, online social networking, and television... a lot of living via machines.

I started using Facebook because my younger cousins were on, they were traveling around the world, and using Facebook to keep in touch and communicate their adventures. Next thing I knew my older cousins were on, and for a good long time there, I had a "friend" in most of my relatives! These are relatives I see... NEVER... and talk to a little more often, and with Facebook, I suddenly know what's going on in their lives, how they are feeling, and what they did on Sat night! It didn't got $2/min, nor was it a lost letter, and I didn't wake anyone up with a 2am (OMG I didn't realize the time changed) phone call!
Then, I started getting friend requests from friends... and now long lost people of my past are getting in touch with me... people are reminding me of names, places, and relationships of my past that I had completely forgotten. Its like a full circle of remembering who you are.

I have been reading blogs for a couple of years, and I've gone from one to another like an org-chart of connections. I got the idea of using a blog and reading blogs out of a need to find like-minded people. On online community since I felt so different to the neighbors I lived around in Phoenix. I found, however, that the more frequent, interesting writers were the "mommy-bloggers"; well, you don't have to look too far in my archives to know I'm not one of those. Instead of finding an online community, I quickly became "involved" in the public personas of a whole slew of people, that didn't know me!

So, here's what I think of Facebook. Facebook is the easy way of staying in touch with the people you know, who know YOU!

I'm sure all the bloggers I read have Facebook pages, but they keep those secret along with their names and email addresses, and I stay away from looking those up and adding them as friends. Because...

Facebook is how I stay in the know with the people who know me!

Coincidence?

Everytime I travel, there is someone who catches my eye... slowing me
down, not coping with all the kid stuff, obviously doesn't travel
often... and more often than not, these people show up somewhere else
on the trip... boarding my plane, on the rental car bus... something
like that. It happens almost every time.

Here are the specifics of today's incident:

The man in front of me at the xray did not make the moves to unpack
stuff onto the conveyor. I noticed his backpack, belt, and shoes. He
did not take any bins and he did not make a move to take out a
computer. I got distracted by my own unpacking and undressing, and
went through the security system. I got to the other side, and saw the
man's shoes, still on! Huh?!

Ok, so I don't usually do this, but I caught the eye of the TSA agent
and said "he has his shoes on!"
She looked at me and said - he's with the airline.

Geez!! He was wearing a blue shirt and khakis, I would never have
thought.

Well, here I am on this Southwest flight, and HE is my flight attendent.

I just think this kind of coincidence in the paths of people's lives
you intersect, is fascinating.

Where is "home"?

I'm sure that most people who move countries consider the country of their birth to always be "home".
Since I didn't ever want to actually live there, I don't feel that I can call South Africa "home".

When I moved to America, I moved to Los Angeles. This is where I graduated from high school (South Pas High, thank you very much!), this is where I got my first job, learned to drive, experimented with different religions, and mostly grew up.
My mother lived here for nearly 10 years. When I was in college, and I went "home" it was to my mom's in Pasadena.
Does that make Los Angeles/Pasadena home?

My brother lived in San Fransisco for a long time, we have family friends who lived there, my dad lived there for two years at one point, I have spent most of my time in America going through San Fransisco at some point or another. Usually to visit family.
Does that make San Fransisco home?

I lived in Arizona for nearly 16 years (GOD!), I lived in all the major cities (Flagstaff, Tucson, Phoenix - yip, there are only 3), I owned/own property there.
Does that make Arizona home?

When I drove from Los Angeles to Annandale-on-Hudson for college, I spent my first night in Arizona stopping at the Grand Canyon on the way. I kept a journal on that trip, and in the entry for the second night (which was in Albuquerque) it says "I am glad to be out of Arizona, that state doesn't like me."
Four years later I MOVED there!
yikes!

I have a friend who is moving with her husband and 1 year old. She is moving "home". In talking to me about making choices about a house to build, she is considering her daughter's ENTIRE school career, the friends she will make, the neighborhood she will grow up in. My friend wants to give her daughter "Home".

Sometimes I am envious of friends who's parents still live in the house/town that they grew up in... "home" is clear to them.

Where is "home" for me?

I'm not sure that I can attach that concept to an actual place of my past. I think it has to be the place of my current.

Home is, literally, where my heart is.

BTW

I am happy to report that things have slowed down on their own!

I no longer get work emails all weekend; in fact, they stop after 3pm.

yay!

Turning 40: Part 1

It was my 40th birthday on this past Friday, and I will post some other time about my thoughts on that milestone. But today, I would like to call attention to two very special people who made this the most special of birthdays.

The man I am currently dating, let's call him Mr. R, has spent the past month or two organizing with my best friend, Meg. Here's what they did:

My day started with a plethora of birthday wishes from my friends and family.

Mr. R gave me the gift of a Mala, intended to help you keep your heart and head in sync. Mine is made out of conch shells for my love of the beach, and a light turquoise stone.

All day Friday, Mr. R and I spent out-and-about with a movie, dinner (he ate sushi for the first time), and finally made our way home late in the evening. There were rose petals on the door mat, and two notes stuck on the door. The first told me that I have a scavenger hunt to go on, and the second was the first clue. Here is the progression of clues, and the locations and gifts to which they led.

On the front door:

The first clue







This clue led me to the bed, where I found a pillow and this note.






Clue 2.







This led me to my laptop, where I found a Timex watch and iTunes gift card with this note and Clue 3.






Clue 3.







Must be the macmini filled with music (PantyRaid and MartyParty)… there I found this note and a Putumayo CD.





Clue 4.







Definitely the BATH! Here was the note and a plethora of Lush goodness!






The last clue.







Obviously the outdoors… and that mini Cassiopeia is a clue to what would be waiting for me there.



A little box of treats from Essense Bakery, some big boxes of treats from BluLA, and my best friend Meg.




Now, I had an idea I might find her somewhere after I got that watch, because I had just told her that I wanted a black Timex just like it!
Even so, I cried when I saw her outside... what a nice surprise!

Now, that Mr. R did not stop there! He booked us in for a bunch of treatments at a day spa the next day... and we ended that relaxation with an incredible Brazilian lunch.

It was a relaxing weekend full of fun, laughter, and companionship with two very special people. I cannot imagine having a better way to celebrate such a milestone birthday, and I will surely never forget it.

Thank you, my dear friends!



(postscript: I give up on formatting!)

Probably better for Facebook...

so, I'm listening to the Inaugeration.

Because I want to hear if Chertoff speaks; and if he does, I want to hear what he has to say about FENCE!... for personal reasons, that is.

 

In the meantime, I thought maybe I would contribute to an understanding of "me" here on this o' blog.

 

The announcer (didn't hear which one) just said that Cheney is coming out in a wheelchar because he "hurt his back lifting boxes while he was moving out"

 

huh?!

he was moving his own boxes?

 

yeah - I don't believe that!

Cookies 2008

Well, this year I had to bake cookies without my girls. It took all day to make the 6 types. I forgot to take the photo while they were layed out, so here they are boxed up. If you want to see cookies from the past, here's the link.

My Cats

These are some funny pictures of my cats, thought I would share.


- at the vet


- looking out the window


- would this be a good place to take a nap?


- Molly


- Max

Ah, life... I can't keep up.

Well its not life that's bogging me down, its just work.
I have spent 0 days in my office over the past 4 weeks. Instead, I've been driving around southern Arizona, staying in Tucson hotels, and flying back and forth to Fort Worth Texas. I am seriously hoping there is some calm over this Thanksgiving weekend. I even said a prayer... it went like this:

Please have everyone take the weekend off! Please let the emails and phone calls stop!

So, I'm sitting on a conference call right now, and I'm so burned out, I'm sick of working... so I'm venting into my Blog about the insanity that is the pace of work right now. I am hoping beyond hope that this ends soon... and I've had that thought a million times now. Everytime I think I see an end, a light at the end of a tunnel, it gets extended.

I joke with people about it...
- at one point, about 8/9 months ago, I joked that I was going to get pregnant so that by now I'd be on maternity leave;
- then I started trying to get fired, noone would buy it;
- my latest is to ask someone to shoot me.
There are a lot of people at my meetings with guns, and I figure if they give me a good shot somewhere, I'd be able to be in hospital for a couple months; they won't do it.
- so, I'm starting to realize that the only thing left is to quit.

But I'm not a quitter.

One day it has to end on its own, don't you think?
Eventually all of this will be built, it has to end.

Once Upon a Time in an Urban Jungle...

Two people went into a coffee shop for breakfast.

It was a cold fall morning in the middle of some tall tall buildings.

As they approached the door, a homeless man was speaking to himself with few intelligible words.

The couple went in, placed their order, made their purchase, and waited for their food and drinks to be prepared.

 

Without saying anything, the man of the couple went back to the counter and made a second purchase of coffee and breakfast.

When the couple left the coffee shop, he asked the homeless man if he liked coffee,

and passed on the drink and food.

 

As the couple made their way to continue their day,

they looked back to see the homeless man with his coffee and breakfast wiping his eyes.

 

An update, of sorts

so, a lot has been going on over the past couple of months, and its not easy to post here because there are things that are still in flux. I thought I would post an update anyway, so that if you do visit this blog, you would know where I am.

 

I have been

- releasing the habits

- recognizing patterns

- letting go of the fetters

- thinking about all the "one days"

I've been making plans for tomorrow, and next month, next year, and my life

 

I have accepted that I am not young, and need to stop putting off the things that I want to do. Instead, I need to embrace my life and demand that every second count.

 

I have learned quite a bit...

 

I have learned what I need from friendship, I have learned to be selfish, I have learned to put my own needs first, I have learned to ask for what I want.

I have come to recognize what I deserve, and its much more than what I have been getting.

I've come to understand the characteristics I appreciate in people, and those I don't.

I am learning how to have healthy conflict. Conflict that resolves, builds trust, and allows growth.

  

I am learning to accept care.

I am being cared for.

 

I am having fun

and it is not only fun that I have created; fun is being created for me.

 

I have found peace.

real peace.

not just peace created by denial and compromise

 

I am grateful for the people in my life who see it as it is, who accept me for who I am, eventhough they may not understand.

 

I am remembering who I am, and I am making choices that pay homage to that person.

 

 

homage

interesting

caring

cute

clever

giving

loving

deep

attractive

conservative

ever changing

funny
mischievous

sexy

spiritual

thoughtful

liberal

serious

beautiful

healing

emotional

sensitive

understanding

 

my future

 

 

 

 

Existing ATT customers, guess what?! ATT doesn't like you

If you are an existing ATT customer, it seems that they don't really care about encouraging you to join the bandwagon and become an iPhone user.

 

I have been with ATT for as long as I've had a wireless/cell phone... and that's about 8/9 years.

 

Because I upgraded (!) my phone in January (my phone died and I got a new one, which I guess in their world qualifies as an upgrade), I am not eligible to get an iPhone at the "new customer" prices until SEPTEMBER 2009!

 

well, I could get one... it will just cost me $200 more than if I was some fair-weather cell phone user looking for a deal. That is TWICE as much!

 

I'm glad they appreciate my loyalty!

 

I realize here that it would cost me less to break my contract and cancel my service; and then sign up as a new customer! than it would to purchase and use an iPhone as an existing ATT customer.

 

Its really hard for me to believe that in this world of serious commercial competition on wireless carriers that ATT is so lackadaisical about keeping their existing customers. Its actually insulting.

 

Way back when, I wrote an entry here about the cell phone carrier management philosophy... which was about offering incentives to get new people but not rewarding the existing; glad to see the cell phone carriers are maintaining their end of my analogy!

 

but before I go, lets just think about one other concept.

Fine, I'll pay the extra money... for an UNLOCKED iPhone! that's how much the "no-commitment" phones cost; no commitment means no commitment to ATT, right? so you think they will give me an unlocked iPhone for the extra $200??

 

I'm betting the answer is a resounding "no"... and if they are so concerned about monopoly, then I can only do that which any customer/consumer has the power to do - not join the bandwagon, not give them my money, boycott the frenzy!

 

 

News

Well, I haven't posted in a while, and that's because there has been a lot going on. I know that there are a few people who read this who actually know me, and probably haven't heard first-hand the news that I'm about to share. I apologize, then, that you are reading about it here, and that I have not told you in person. But then, that is the purpose of a blog, no?, to keep a journal of your life by which people can keep in touch with what you're doing.

I also have been resisting the resulting comments and emotions that will result in the sharing of this info...
Since I feel badly that I have not shared, I'll suck it up! and deal with the repurcussions.

At the end of June, I moved out of the house, and ended my relationship with Greg.
Since this is a public forum, I won't go into too much of the details, so if you want to know more, you'll have to let me know.

He and I have been having concerns for the past couple of years. Since he is a very private person, its not something that we have discussed openly. And since we are both adult, we were able to continue our lives without it having too much of an effect on the outward expression.

I have moved into a 2-bed condo that's in Phoenix, close to South Mountain (near where Matt used to live). I have the cats. Greg is going to stay in the house.

He and I are still talking and after some time, I'm sure we will be able to have a friendship, but right now, we obviously need to let some of the emotions pass and the intensity die down.

It has been interesting having the opportunity to start over, and I'm excited about some of the possibilities that come out of a future that is an open book. I am thinking that I will leave the Phoenix area, as this is not a place that I have ever really wanted to live. How that will happen, and when, I don't know... I would obviously not do anything until the responsibilities of my current work situation have been met.

So, that's the news.

Saturday

This is how I like Sat to be.
Calm, cool, and peaceful.

Swimming Lessons

So, I have a friend with a 3 year-old. I have a soft spot for him. I would take him as my own any day of the week, and I joke that its a good thing his parents keep him away from me because I might just kidnap him if I had the chance. Anyway... due to some trauma in their family history, they are very nervous about him being around large bodies of unprotected water. Since we have one of those, I feel bad when they come over because I don't feel that they can allow themselves to relax at our house when he's with them. I don't like that. Also, his mom is one of my best friends, and usually when we get together, its just for us... so I don't see the little guy very often. I suggested earlier this year that maybe I could take him to swimming lessons (at first I was thinking dance classes, but didn't think that would fly!). But the swimming would be a way for him to cope and know about water, they would relax, and I could spend some quality time developing a relationship with him.

Just because I don't want to have kids of my own, doesn't mean that I don't like kids. I actually love spending time with children, especially small ones, because you are always surprised, entertained, and educated by the way they process what's around them; and I love that!

anyway... Dad and son came over to get me... I haven't seen the 3YO since last summer, and I thought maybe if they picked me up, there'd be a lot about my house for him to remember, and he wouldn't be so shy. It worked. He was taking my hand, talking to me, and letting me pick him up right away. Off we went to the swimming lessons and dad and I were talking about how we were both expecting a FREAK OUT! Last summer when they were at my house, the 3YO would not get into the pool, even with someone holding him, he was very afraid!

When we got there, we had to wait a while to fill out paperwork, and he and I walked around looking at all the rooms of kids swimming, playing, etc. He got pretty excited to be one of those kids. I thought that was a good sign, but thought that as soon as the reality of what it meant to be IN the water hit, he'd freak!

When we went into the room with the pools, he desperately wanted to jump in and make a big splash like all the other kids. Dad and I knew that would be a bad thing because it was obvious that he hadn't associated the big splash with being under water, so we held his hand and explained he had to have his swimming lesson first. This was not an easy action to stop. Its not that easy to negotiate with a 3YO when you can't even hear yourself talk from the noise and the stimulation in the room is overwhelming!

When it was our time to go to the lesson, we were in a class with another 3YO who knew what he was doing, and a 10MONTH old baby! The teacher takes each kid out into the pool one at a time and does the exercise... all associated with saving yourself if you fall in the pool... NOT about actually swimming. I was really impressed at her patience, how easy it was for her to get him in the water, floating, following her direction, doing what she was asking. It was amazing! He was smiling, and looking at us, very pleased with himself. That was, until he realized that the instruction to "blow bubbles" meant there was the potential to get your WHOLE FACE IN THE WATER! and he did not like that! now you could see a little bit of the panic, but the teacher was so calm, that he was ok, but refused to blow bubbles again! He did the rest of the class, and kept asking if he could go swimming; I think that the jumping and splashing was what he associated with "swimming".

So after the lesson, we went back into the free-swim pool, and thanks to my planning (!) at least one of us had on appropriate attire for "swimming" with a 3YO in a pool that had a step-off that would result in him being over his head in water! so, we walked around the step for a while with me explaining to him that if he crossed the blue line he would have to blow bubbles. Eventually he got it, and we just circled the pool until Dad did the "time-to-leave" count down.

After they had dropped me off home, and left, I realized how crazy this whole parenting thing is. Not once during the time that I'd been with them had I thought about my life, work, me, my needs. I'd been in situations that were incredibly overstimulating for the senses - noise, colors, movement, activity - and had to be very focused on the reality of a little guy who had the potential to be in panic. I was actually amazed that the insanity of the location wasn't throwing the kid off the edge; but I think that his daily life at daycare must be just as full of stimulation... so maybe he's better equipped to cope than me.

I am also sure that when you are a parent, you get used to the giving, and you learn to cope with getting life done at the same time. But I can tell you, that after they left, and Greg and I looked at each other to decide what we were going to do for the rest of the day, every decision felt indulgent, OVER indulgent.
But boy, was I glad that I had made the choices in life that I have, and that the afternoon Greg and I planned together was possible!

Its a....

CHILI RED!!

 

Greg made a decision on what he was going to be adding to the family as his daily commuter....

 

 

The Panda joke.

So...

 

Adrian told us, and some dinner guests, that he'd seen a segment on television about how they are trying to get pandas to mate by showing them video of other pandas mating. Adrian being who he is phrased it in his own special way. He introduced the topic by saying that he'd seen a show on TV about "panda porn".

 

Coupled with my purchase of a shirt by the company Panda Snack, and being told that I shouldn't wear it to Thailand because I might be mistaken by panda's as a snack...

 

as you can imagine, the panda has taken off as an inside joke here amongst those who never stop working.

 

When I got back to my office from vacation, this is what I found in my lovely picture frame on the wall.

Last Day

Took longtail boat on river, visited king's barges (highly decorated) and had last Thai Pad Thai.

Off to airport for grueling flight home.

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Contradictions

Up the street from our hotel. Luxury next to hovel. Monks next to businessmen.

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One night in Bangkok

Our hotel has a little restaurant and bar next door. Pretty much the only respite from the smells of fish sauce, beggers, people selling and tuktuks in the area. In the distance are the skyscrapers reminding us that we are in a world class city. I think we found the "other".

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Thailand day 10

Yesterday we basically sat on a covered couch at the beach all day. Greg and I went out on a sea kayak for a while, and we were entertained by the swimsuit catalog photo shoot in the swimming pool for a while.

Today, it is raining as if it won't stop, which is fitting because it is the day of family separation. Greg and I are at the Phuket waiting for the flight that will take us on the final leg of our adventure - Bangkok.

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Thailand Day 8

After a tourist day of speedboating to Phi Phi and being tourists numbered 408,635 through 408,642, enjoyed a Thai sampler menu at the Sala restaurant with the lovely entertainment from all over Thailand.

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Thailand Day 7

Moved to this crazy incredible resort on day 7.
Mary's friend's huband is the exec chef and told us we need to make the move.

It was an overwhelming experience to walk around this place. Will share more photos on return. Or look up Sala Phuket online.

And that's where we are at...

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Thailand day 6

Left rainy dismal Patong.
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Thailand day 5

Was pretty dismal and I chose not to record its existence.
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Thailand day 4

Left Samui for Phuket. Had to check out pretty early and hung around the rest of the day waiting for flight. Here are the brothers waiting at the hotel for the ride to the airport.

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Thailand Day 3

Greg and I went kayaking and I did a good job with the sunblock on my back and upper arms, but not my legs and lower arms!

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Thailand day 2

The beach on Samui.

Its been very muggy and humid while we've been here. Some days it rains and that helps. We got caught in the rain during our scooter ride around the island. Have not spent much time on the beach.

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Thailand day 1

Resort 1 had all these lilyponds with streams leading between them. Here is one of the fish fountains swimming towards a pond.

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Breakfast in Thailand...

Sushi - 2 days in a row!!
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Thailand Day 1

Took a scooter ride around Samui.

Will update more later
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Working on BlackBerry, please excuse short responses.

Inspirational

Last weekend, Greg and I went to see the Parsons Dance Company at the Scottsdale Center for the Arts.

We see a lot of shows at SCA, and every now and again, they are noteworthy.

We realized a while ago that the people who put the program together select artists that are unique, innovative, often well-known, but always interesting. We get to pay between $30 and $40 to see shows that probably cost over $100 in their resident locations. The amphitheater honestly has no bad seat. And our experience is always enjoyable.
We mostly go to the jazz, latin music and dance shows. The organization allows you to pay a "series" price when you purchase 4 or more shows from the whole program, so you are not restricted in your selection. We started out going to only 4, and as our salaries have increased, we have purchased more and more tickets; to the point where we are close to seeing every show in the program that interests us. I say all this because I think it exemplifies exactly how much we appreciate SCA (and if anyone lands here because they Googled it, I want to make sure that's understood).

Anyway... we see a lot of dance shows. They are always interesting and entertaining; and we are always impressed by the skills of the dancers. But last weekend, was a show that was remarkable. The only other choreographer that has made me speechless is Ohad Naharin, whose pieces we have seen performed by the Hubbard Street and Le Grande Ballet de Montreal.

Last week, it was David Parsons.
Every piece was energetic and fun and happy and positive. There wasn't even one solo/duet that had a little dramatic for the reason of being dramatic moment. The dancers were having so much incredible fun you could see it on their faces. They weren't just smiling, they were laughing, and ooh'ing, and connecting with each other in the exuberance of the choreography. The movement was creative and different, there wasn't any running in circles, or just running around to "use the whole stage". And specifically, here are the pieces of note:

Caught: who would ever thought that this was possible! a pairing between a dancer and a lighting person to truly take advantage of the strobe. You have to watch to believe!

Shining Star: Homage to the 70's.

Sleep Study: dancers in pajamas, sleeping on the floor - seriously, the whole piece was on the floor, moving around as you would in sleep! how come noone has ever thought of anything like that before?!

In the End: dancers in jeans! and T-shirts dancing to a medley of Dave Matthews Band music. Unbelievable! Its been a long time since I've seen music expressed by dance so effectively. If Dave Matthews has ever seen this piece, I'd love to know what he thinks because if I were him, I'd make it my music video!
If you watch the video for Satellite, you'll see that he finds patterns beneath the music that he brings to the foreground through the choreography... amazing! you'll never hear that song the same again!

Oftentimes you want to get up and dance in your spot when you see a show at SCA, but this time, I wanted to get up and run on stage to be with these people in this piece! I wanted to quit my job and start training all day so that I could be part of the Parsons Dance Company, and you know what... that's the first thing Greg said too when we walked out!

a girly truck box

Isn't this pretty?

I live with 2 (old) men

I was going to do Dishwasher Watch this week... since I loaded and ran the dishwasher on Friday night and as of Monday morning when I left for work, it was still loaded with clean dishes... and the sink was FULL of dirty ones (I was trying very hard to not be the one who did it, again!).

 

But I had a helper during dinner time who did the honors of moving dishes around.

 

There are many inconveniences when you live with two old men. They talk about nothing for hours while you are looking for some peace and quiet. They are stubborn. They are set in their ways. They tell you that you are always wrong... when all it is, is that they don't understand what you just described because they still use 8-tracks. They watch annoying television. But the most annoying part of all, is that neither of them will do anything that is constued as house-maintenance.

Maybe, just maybe, if you put some stinky fish remains in the trash, they will take it out.

But that's it.

and my dishwasher watch was going to document their incredible ability to ignore filth.

 

 

Changing office view

Remember these?

Well, I changed my view....



yip, that's the view from the top of the hill on our land in Costa Rica.
And aren't you impressed with how well I framed it with the tree leaves coming down around the edges?
I did that on purpose.

Cactus Truck

I saw this on the highway today, thought it was interesting.

Car manufacturer emblems

I'm been thinking about emblems lately. I think its because I look at cars coming around the course and I don't know what they are. I think, how will I identify this car if it hits a cone, because I don't know what it is. So, I started thinking that I should pay more attention while I'm driving and maybe I'll figure out what's confusing me.
It worked.

here is a selection of the most common brands at autox:

They are all round!

here are the exceptions:


of course this one is a hybrid:


and this is what marks me as a "girl"; do you see the differences between these 2 cars?
the only way I can tell is to look at the logos.

"SAT words"?

I've started thinking that the reason why some of our younger staff don't follow my direction is because they don't understand the meaning of the words I use.

here are two that have come up recently:

nuance
status quo

Saving Daylight: for what?!

I hate daylight savings.

Mostly because we don't do it here in Arizona.

What that used to mean is that 1/2 the year I was 2 hours behind at work, and then the other 1/2 I was 3 hours behind.

There is a big difference between 2 and 3.

Being 3 hours behind (I get to work at 9, its now Noon in DC) means that the people I work with/for are going to LUNCH when I get to work.

At this point, they are frustrated that the emails and phone-calls they left for me all morning are still not answered.

When its 2 hours, its still "morning" when I return the messages. Not as frustrating.

Frustration number 2: Most people don't realize that AZ doesn't change time. So, I get phone calls at 6am (oh, I'm sorry, I thought it was 7!); those meetings that I said I could get up for at 6am so that they could do them first thing in the morning? now I have to be awake and alert at 5; all that traveling I do? now my body has another hour to go before its awake while I sit in meetings wishing I drank coffee.

Our lovely President went and changed the daylight savings months last year.

Instead of it being 6 and 6, now its NINE and 3... I ask you, what is the point?! 

If the time is saving daylight for more months a year than its not, why don't we just permanently change it!! and stop all this nonsense!

Maybe Max isn't so dumb

He just smelled the milk in a little jug but it was too low for him to reach it to have a taste, so he dipped his paw in and licked it.

Now, in some contexts, that could be considered a "tool".

Maybe I'm watching evolution in action, and the next thing you know he'll be walking upright on his back legs!