It's posts like this that make me love Dooce. Read this post. Read others. I think I have to get her books now.
For the record, almost the exact same thing happened to a coworker when he bought a brand new Maytag front loader several years ago. Except Twitter wasn't around, he doesn't blog, and he didn't get his machine fixed, even after several visits--it got "clunkered." He got to buy a brand new cheap top loading washing machine, which he claims is the best thing that he ever did.
After my coworker's Maytag nightmare, when it was time for me to get a new washing machine, I went with LG, based only on reports that their customer service is pretty good. I figured that things like washers break, especially the fancy ones, and I want to deal with a company that actually cares when things break. So far (fingers crossed, touching wood, etc.), so good. Love the LG.
Friday, August 28, 2009
My So Called Rewatch
It's all over hipster blogs by now, but My So Called Life is available on Hulu.
Oddly enough, one of my house guests happened to be carrying his DVD box set of this very same series a few weeks back, before I knew about the Hulu thing, and I begged to borrow it. I loved this show when I was in high school. I wanted to be Angela Chase. I wanted to make out with Jared Leto. I wanted to live in a suburban home with two "normal" parents and "normal" neighbors. I did not want to be getting up at 5:30 a.m. to get ready for school, thence waiting on the crack vile strewn corner for the first of the 3 bus routes that I had to take to acquire my education. Hail Northeast! (Follow up note: I did not, however, wish to make the move to the suburbs between my Junior and Senior year. I actually wanted to live in one house/neighborhood from birth, so as to ensure that I had established friendships and social circles. Funny, I'm going off on a tangent that might require another post...short message to parents--DO NOT MOVE YOUR KIDS WHILE THEY ARE IN HIGH SCHOOL, THEY WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU. EVER.)
Back to MYSCL. Magically, I loaded the series onto my computer for transference to my 32GB iPhone 3GS. (Thank you HandBrake and Apple for being awesome.) I've been watching episodes during my almost daily lunch break gym visits. And you know what? Sometimes, while watching, I want to pop Angela upside the head for her vapid stupidity. I also get pissed at the "happy family" dynamic and convenient plot resolutions contained in every episode. Yes, there is tension and teen angst, just not enough to make it "real," whatever that means. And finally, the way those kids speak...ugh. That was not my adolescent reality in the 90s. Honestly, it gets me through the workout, but I can't recapture that "loving the show" feeling that I know I had when I originally viewed it. I'm not sure if I'm upset about this or not. Maybe I've changed more than I thought I had.
One show that does hold up for me is Buffy. That show will rule for all time and eternity. The end.
Oddly enough, one of my house guests happened to be carrying his DVD box set of this very same series a few weeks back, before I knew about the Hulu thing, and I begged to borrow it. I loved this show when I was in high school. I wanted to be Angela Chase. I wanted to make out with Jared Leto. I wanted to live in a suburban home with two "normal" parents and "normal" neighbors. I did not want to be getting up at 5:30 a.m. to get ready for school, thence waiting on the crack vile strewn corner for the first of the 3 bus routes that I had to take to acquire my education. Hail Northeast! (Follow up note: I did not, however, wish to make the move to the suburbs between my Junior and Senior year. I actually wanted to live in one house/neighborhood from birth, so as to ensure that I had established friendships and social circles. Funny, I'm going off on a tangent that might require another post...short message to parents--DO NOT MOVE YOUR KIDS WHILE THEY ARE IN HIGH SCHOOL, THEY WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU. EVER.)
Back to MYSCL. Magically, I loaded the series onto my computer for transference to my 32GB iPhone 3GS. (Thank you HandBrake and Apple for being awesome.) I've been watching episodes during my almost daily lunch break gym visits. And you know what? Sometimes, while watching, I want to pop Angela upside the head for her vapid stupidity. I also get pissed at the "happy family" dynamic and convenient plot resolutions contained in every episode. Yes, there is tension and teen angst, just not enough to make it "real," whatever that means. And finally, the way those kids speak...ugh. That was not my adolescent reality in the 90s. Honestly, it gets me through the workout, but I can't recapture that "loving the show" feeling that I know I had when I originally viewed it. I'm not sure if I'm upset about this or not. Maybe I've changed more than I thought I had.
One show that does hold up for me is Buffy. That show will rule for all time and eternity. The end.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Holy Moley Marriage
I owe a new post here according to Jaime. While I'm thinking of something to write about, you should go here and read what white middle class teenagers in 1962 were taught about marriage. I am both horrified and sickly fascinated.
Side note: I read a lot of "mommy blogs." I am not a mommy. I have no interest in being a mommy. I just find stories of parenting to be interesting/amusing and useful as birth control. I also like looking at funny pictures of kids.
Side note: I read a lot of "mommy blogs." I am not a mommy. I have no interest in being a mommy. I just find stories of parenting to be interesting/amusing and useful as birth control. I also like looking at funny pictures of kids.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
I married an actual maniac.
On Thursday last, I went to watch my husband play a little show in NYC.
CPM and I are such total opposites. I hate being the center of the attention. The few times that I have been on stage in my life, I have been absolutely terrified. CPM is a natural performer. I am in awe of his musical talent and ability to make an entire room full of people laugh. He made me laugh hysterically on the first day that we met. This is no small feat, when you consider that I mostly laugh "on the inside," and rarely let a full guffaw escape my lips.
So, here's a moment from that show he played on Thursday night at Webster Hall. I have my own video, but it's on my iPhone and I'm too lazy to upload it at the moment. Also, this person's video sounds much better than mine.
Edit to add: My videos are here, here, and here. The sound goes away sometimes. I think the iPhone is too much of a pussy to handle the rock.
CPM and I are such total opposites. I hate being the center of the attention. The few times that I have been on stage in my life, I have been absolutely terrified. CPM is a natural performer. I am in awe of his musical talent and ability to make an entire room full of people laugh. He made me laugh hysterically on the first day that we met. This is no small feat, when you consider that I mostly laugh "on the inside," and rarely let a full guffaw escape my lips.
So, here's a moment from that show he played on Thursday night at Webster Hall. I have my own video, but it's on my iPhone and I'm too lazy to upload it at the moment. Also, this person's video sounds much better than mine.
Edit to add: My videos are here, here, and here. The sound goes away sometimes. I think the iPhone is too much of a pussy to handle the rock.
Monday, August 17, 2009
No pictures, please.
The most important part of this blog is that as it is being written, my husband is in the same country as I am. I did end up having to retrieve him from JFK airport on Saturday, a 2.5 hour drive from home, which involved crossing three bridges (ugh, hate driving over bridges, hate hate hate). It was worth it. To calm my nerves, the spouse took me to lunch at Papacito's in Brooklyn. I took no photos, but thoroughly enjoyed my Chile Relleno Burrito. I was sending mental images to the blog, though, I swear.
CPM brought me lots of chocolate from Europe. I have to take pictures. I asked for one bar of lemon chocolate. I got about 12 bars of chocolate, in assorted flavors and sizes, including lemon, lime, ginger, and tangerine.
Finally, I've been to this pizza place twice, and have yet to mention it, so here it is: Jules Thin Crust. I took pictures, but I was rushed because somebody just couldn't wait for me to focus properly, so the pictures were crap, and I deleted them. Trust me: you have to have this pizza. My favorite is the Veggie #2: fresh chopped organic tomatoes, basil, arugula, garlic, cubes of fresh mozzarella, organic tomato sauce, mozzarella.
CPM brought me lots of chocolate from Europe. I have to take pictures. I asked for one bar of lemon chocolate. I got about 12 bars of chocolate, in assorted flavors and sizes, including lemon, lime, ginger, and tangerine.
Finally, I've been to this pizza place twice, and have yet to mention it, so here it is: Jules Thin Crust. I took pictures, but I was rushed because somebody just couldn't wait for me to focus properly, so the pictures were crap, and I deleted them. Trust me: you have to have this pizza. My favorite is the Veggie #2: fresh chopped organic tomatoes, basil, arugula, garlic, cubes of fresh mozzarella, organic tomato sauce, mozzarella.
Friday, August 14, 2009
T-Minus
In a little over 30 hours, the spouse returns home. I am so excited and happy to see him. I am drinking a medium decaf iced coffee from Dunkin Donuts (cream, 2 splenda) in celebration. There is enough caf in the decaf to keep me bouncing around all day. I had a late night last night: "late" means "went to bed later than 9:30 p.m."
Last night I went to see a friend's band perform (I would link to their myspace, but the powers that be have blocked my ability to access that page from this computer). They play some scary black metal, which is not usually my preferred style of music. However, they were incredible! I was quite impressed, even though it was tough to hear the vocals. (Dear Johnny Brenda's: hearing vocals is actually important to me. Fix your mix. Thank you.) I also enjoyed standing out like a sore thumb. I was there with Perry. We were the only two people wearing white shirts. Perry's was way cooler than mine, as it featured Howard the Duck. Everyone else was wearing black on black on black. There was a family with matching bullet belts, possibly purchased on sale ("Look Ma, they're three for $20."), and one dude came in full face make-up to pay homage to the headlining band, Marduk. Alas, I lasted only through Black Anvil's set, and left at 10:30 to go home and go to bed (see also, all posts and tweets about my dog waking me up at 4:30 a.m.).
I've made it a point this week to keep myself busy every night, despite it being a work week, to make it fly by. My tactic was a success. The week passed in no time, and tomorrow I get to retrieve CPM from the airport. I'm so excited.
Last night I went to see a friend's band perform (I would link to their myspace, but the powers that be have blocked my ability to access that page from this computer). They play some scary black metal, which is not usually my preferred style of music. However, they were incredible! I was quite impressed, even though it was tough to hear the vocals. (Dear Johnny Brenda's: hearing vocals is actually important to me. Fix your mix. Thank you.) I also enjoyed standing out like a sore thumb. I was there with Perry. We were the only two people wearing white shirts. Perry's was way cooler than mine, as it featured Howard the Duck. Everyone else was wearing black on black on black. There was a family with matching bullet belts, possibly purchased on sale ("Look Ma, they're three for $20."), and one dude came in full face make-up to pay homage to the headlining band, Marduk. Alas, I lasted only through Black Anvil's set, and left at 10:30 to go home and go to bed (see also, all posts and tweets about my dog waking me up at 4:30 a.m.).
I've made it a point this week to keep myself busy every night, despite it being a work week, to make it fly by. My tactic was a success. The week passed in no time, and tomorrow I get to retrieve CPM from the airport. I'm so excited.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)