Floors!!

My on-line presence might be pretty sketchy for the next week, as I'll be living in a very posh hotel as my NEW FLOORS are being installed.

I've been moving stuff out of the rooms with the warped hardwood floors to the kitchen and guest room, and I should have everything completed by the time the crew comes on Friday morning. I imagine I'll come home to all kinds of dust and nastiness, but beneath it all will be beautiful, shiny, freshly stained oak.

In other news, I'd like to thank the House, the Senate, and Drinky McDumbass for finally passing the American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008!

Sure, there are some annoying provisions in there, but on the whole, I really believe this thing will create a more organized regulatory structure. It will force banks to assist homeowners in need, which will in turn bolster the work of banks, thrifts, and the bond market.

Oh, and it sort of saves my job for the time being.

Kirche am Steinhof

Click on any of the photos to get a larger view. If you click twice, you'll get a zoom.

Below are unfortunately unstunning pictures of the spectacular Kirche am Steinhof in Vienna. It was built in the Art Nouveau/Art Deco style by Otto Wagner between 1903- 1907. As we arrived, the sun started to set, making it difficult to photograph, because the golden dome was reflecting the sunset, causing an awful glare.

I'd never seen a church in this style - the ones I am most familiar with are Gothic or neo-gothic, or Baroque.



Because the interior of the church is being renovated, we couldn't go inside. This is a shame, because there are fantastic looking mosaics inside. I peered through a window to see what I could, but the glare from the glass rendered photography impossible with my tiny Cannon digital. Rumor has it, there is work by Klimt inside.


The bust you see below is a bronze of Leopold Steiner, a major figure in lower-Austria politics after the first world war. He is credited here as the "creator" of the church.

This church is located on the complex that holds the Lower Austrian State Healing and Care Institution for the Neurologically and Mentally Sick. Between 1940/45, this institute was used for the "euthanization" of the handicapped and mentally ill. . It is estimated that 3200 Germans were experimented on and murdered at the institute. 200 of these were children.

Romeo took a lot of pictures of this church, but I haven't gotten a copy of his CD yet. I'll post any good pictures he took too. Click on any of the photos for a larger view.

To lighten up the mood, here's a picture of a building I like to call "The Phallus of Vienna" I think it is the exhaust tower of a factory of sorts. The body of water in question is the Danube.

Czeski-Krumlov

The vacation picture posting has begun! For fun, I'm doing them in reverse. This is my last day in the Czech Republic. Click on the pictures and they will get larger. I recommend doing that with the mural below.

Beginning of Week II

The last few days have reminded me that 'busy' can exist without 'hectic'.

On Wednesday I did more touristy things, and surpise, surprise, it was another rainy day. I walked back into the First District and stopped at the St. Peter's Church, a baroque number that is as beautiful as many as I've seen around Europe. Lots of gold and marble. Then I wandered off into the shopping area where I bought postcards. I haven't addressed them or written them or anything, but be on the lookout: part of my plan for today is to work on that.

Then it was off to the Naschmarkt, which as the name suggests, is all about food. It is a 1.5 km stretch between the Linke and Rechteweinzeilen with vendors selling food of all kinds. Fresh vegetables and fruits, some of them really exotic, share center stage with the cut flowers. There are stores with health food products and several chinese groceries. Prevalent are the Turkish stands selling cherry tomatoes and peppers stuffed with feta cheese, olives, kebabs and other meat-on-a-stick type products. To get your attention, they yell, 'MY LADY' in as many languages as you can before you pass their stall.

There were stalls with alcoholic wares and sweets that I was tempted to try out, but it was so crowded despite the rain that the idea of opening my wallet seemed like a bad one.

I finally ended up in a cafe house for lunch, where I decadently ordered a Topefenstrudel (sweet cheese strudel) and a melange. And yes, that was my lunch. I mean, why should I suck down a big salad or something, when really all I want is a strudel?

Then I walked on over to the Museums Quarter and into the Leopold Museum for more art. On permanent display is the largest collection of works by Austrian artist Egon Schiele, an expressionist and cubist, plus other Austrians of the same period; Richard Gerstil, Gustav Klimt and Oskar Kokoschka. The few Klimt items on display were not the huge Jugendstil informed paintings expected of him, with highly detailed, gilded dresses. He did some surprisingly realistic work, including portraits and landscapes.

The main exhibition hall featured work by Albin Egger-Lienz. The display takes up nearly an entire floor, and was for the most part so gruesome, I sort of ran through it. He did some very realistic work as a field painter during WWI, apparently on-site, of battles and fallen soldiers. Some of the portraits were clearly meant to show how war as anti-humanistic and and anti-heroic, but I couldn't deal with it.

Then I walked my way back home and cooked dinner for my host and his friend. Several bottles of Burgenländishe Sauvignon Blanc were ingested, life was good, if not somewhat fuzzy.

Thursday was a holiday here, and I used the time to hop a train and visit friends from grad school in Salzburg, Paul and Doris. They have two beautiful little ones and a new house in the middle of nowhere in a part of upper-Austria known as the Mühlviertel. We did some walking around in his little town, I saw where he worked, where he lived, and his local hangout. Then we toured around Linz, ventured up to the closed castle, tried to climb the Pestsäule and sampled some local beer. (Wieselburger).

The next day found us up early, courtesy of his two children. We drank some green tea and dashed off to the playground to play soccer. The boy, Niklas, is 4, and already has a pretty good idea of how the game is played. The little girl, Anna, 2, pretty much just wanted to dance around and sing, which she did. She was on my team, and an excellent morale builder.

After a wonderful lunch of ratatouille and a nice, long chat with Doris, I caught the train back to Vienna, where I was greeted by Romeo and his bicycle.

Whew! I could go on and on, and I will for sure, but not now. It is 9 am GMT+1, and it is time for me to get dressed and find a place to write out those postcards!

For those of you playing along, ordering a shit scratcher in Switzerland will get you some chicken.

Arme Schlampe

Wow. I can read about it in the papers and follow exchange rates, but I didn't really understand how weak the dollar is until today, when I paid $7 for a cup of coffee.

Now don't get me wrong, it was a fancy coffee and probably the best I have had in years (melange) but this is kind of silly.

No, it is completely ridiculous.

However, theater tickets on opening day at the Volkstheater were only $12 yesterday. We went to go see Eine Heikle Sache, Die Seele by Dimitré Dinev. (A Tricky Thing, the Soul) enjoyable, completely macabre, and very funny at the same time. It is a farce about a wake that plays heavy with existentialism and living in exile.

Today is an excellent museum day; it is cold and rainy. I went to see the Paul Klee exhibit at the Albertina, and had to skip a few activities I had planned because I spent three hours on just that part of the HUGE gallery. Raise your hands if you knew that Klee was so fascinating. In fact, I found myself breezing through the Oskar Kokoschka exhibit at the same place because I had had enough culture for one day. At this point I should probably mention that I had gone to the museum because of Kokoschka in the first place. (Kokoschka is Austrian, while Klee is just Swiss.)

I did learn one new word in dialect from a friend who ha drecently been to Bern. Apparently in Switzerland, it is not unusual to see "Mistkratzer" on the menu. This translates to "shit scratcher" Can you figure out what dish this refers to?

Speaking German again has resulted in broken gears in my head. I've forgotten a lot. However, after three days I'm already at the language crisis phase where I also can't remember how to express myself to say in English, either. This is a good sign. After a couple of days of this, I generally speak much more fluently.

I wish I'd thought to bring my camera software. It would be fun to actually post the pictures on the day they were taken rather than two weeks later.

Finally available on FredtheWebsite.com: Picture of Steven's Bar Mitzvah.

This landmark event took place last month. I don't have any pictures of the service, but there are plenty of shots from the luncheon, as well as from breakfast at the Chester Diner in New Jersey the next day.

All in all, it was a lovely event, and the Bar Mitzvah boy man did a fantastic job during a very long service. Here he is (left) with his cousin Ben the morning after.



One of my personal highlights from this trip - and I do mean ONE of the highlights, was the 2008 Mustang Pony I cruised around in for the price of a tiny economy-sized car. No - I'm not planning on buying a car, but it was fun for a weekend, on Route 80, where zooming is just expected.

Some of you have asked about the status of Project Dog. I had decided on Hudson the day he went to Study Abroad. Although I gave the shelter my contact information, it turns out that Hudson isn't coming back to the shelter, and they can't/won't tell me where he is. Since this is a no-kill shelter, I'm not afraid for his welfare, but I am sad I hesitated on adopting him the day we met.

More about Doggies

First things first - I still haven't adopted anybody.

I went back to the shelter last week to visit Hudson, and I'm completely in love with him. He's such a sweet baby. I chatted with one of the shelter volunteers about possible barking and howling, and she told me she's never heard him utter a peep unless he's outside and another dog gets too close. It would seem that Hudson is not a fan of other dogs. In fact, he hates 'em.

Before going to the shelter I invited two other friends to come along and check him out before I made a decision (I'm in love, I can't be expected to behave rationally.) Both of them canceled at the last minute, and so I decided to leave the adoption for another day.

And I did return on Wednesday with reinforcements and found that Hudson was gone! The shelter was too worried about his aggression towards other dogs, and so they sent him for a three week study-abroad to the Southside to attend K9 University. Crushed, I left my business card and asked them to call me when he gets back from his trip.

Lauren, my partner in many crimes, has her reservations about Hudson because as a Hound, he is predisposed to certain traits that might make him less than the best condo dog. And how did she try to help the situation? She took me to the Chicago Dog Show last weekend!

It was a great day, although somewhat overwhelming. So many wonderful dogs - none of them available for adoption. I spoke to people from various rescue programs, loved on lots of dogs, and watched the puppy best of breeds/best-in-show. (Can I tell you how ridiculously cute the puppy toy representatives are??)

Below are a few of my favorite pictures of the day. If you want to see the rest, click the link at the top of the page to see all the pictures I posted to my website. If you want to see larger images and are using Internet Explorer, you can click on the photos and you'll get just that.

I think this little guy is a Cairn Terrier. He's a volunteer dog who visits young children in hospitals.

This guy is a representative from the Bulldog rescue. A few of his colleagues were with him, dressed up in other costumes, but it being so close to St. Patrick's Day, here's a cute little leprechaun:
I think Lauren knows what kind of puppy is - (comment Lauren?) Look at how cute he is! He was going to town on his little toy, flipping out and just being adorable. It was hard to get a picture of him that wasn't blurry.


File this one under "pity". Look what they've done to this Poodle?! He's been shaven and styled, and his ears are in elastic bands!


Love, Love Love. I hugged this dog for a long time and didn't want to let her go. Say what you will about Doberman Pinchers - they are sweet dogs! I was so excited at the prospect of having another Doby (had two as a teen) that I actually called the Doby rescue. Yeah - unless I want the toy version, and I don't, these guys are just too big to live without a yard.

Pre-grooming bad hair day. Although, this could be a picture of me, come July.

So stay tuned - it will be three weeks before I can have Hudson, but in the spirit of trying to find the right dog, I'm still looking. I'm looking with half a heart, but I'm looking.

The Search for the Doggie Begins!

It has been ten years since Nikki, my darling and constant companion of nine years died of cancer. An Australian Blue Healer, curious, intelligent, and loyal, she made every day a happier experience.


See Nikki Here

I was heartbroken when she died. I was young, traveling the world and knew that getting a new dog at that stage of my life was not practical. And so I waited. Even after moving back to Chicago I was never really sure I was staying here, and I never felt completely settled. I bought a condo four years ago, but still didn't think having a dog suited my lifestyle.

Lately I've been paying attention to that hole in my heart created by living dog-free. I still don't know where life will take me, but being happy is an important part of being settled. And so, I'm going to get a dog.

Lauren and I took a trip to the PAWS Animal Shelter today, and I began my search.

So far, I am considering Skye - a beautiful Airedale/Collie mix



And Hudson - a very playful hound dog.




Skye has had a difficult life it seems. She's very timid and isn't overly fond of men. This picture doesn't do her justice - she's a graceful girl. She wasn't particularly affectionate, but I think in the right home environment - possibly mine- she'll come out of her shell. She's sweet, she was patient with her younger, extremely boisterous roommate, and was even willing to play with her. Skye showed great curiosity, and she even barks like a lady. According to the shelter, her personality is that of a wallflower:

Shy yet charming canine searching for patient owner with relaxed lifestyle. Looking for gentle guidance to help me come out of my shell. Treat me sweet and kind and I’ll blossom

Hudson is just a love. He's still got some puppy qualities about him, which although adorable, could make him a pain in the tuchas. I sat on the floor with him, and he came right over and brought toys to play with. At one point he had draped himself on my lap. Another concern is his bark. I haven't heard it, but he is a hound dog, and when he does have something to say, the neighbors six blocks down the street will know about it. Hudson's personality is that of a Busy Bee:

I’m a naturally playful, curious, and trusting canine. Take me for a big walk every day; give me something to do. After my job’s done, I’ll curl up in front of the fire with you in the evenings. I’m a dog on a mission to please you and myself.

The one dog I'm not considering is too new to the shelter to have a picture posted. He's a two-month old puppy named Roger. Roger was an extremely affectionate mix of I don't remember what. He is friendly and playful, yet not bubbling over with dopey doggie energy. He still has his pink puppy belly and that wonderful new-puppy smell. He nearly melted me when he crawled into my lap and put his head on my shoulder, his nose against my neck, and showed no interest in moving off. If I could handle the challenges of a puppy this young, Roger would have been an instant pick.

I didn't walk out of the shelter with a dog today, because the rules of this game are that before I can adopt I have to have a 24-hour cooling off period. I fall in love at first sight with most animals, and this, I'm hoping, will help me pick the right dog for my lifestyle in a more logical way. Besides, I'll need time to buy doggie necessities like a bed, food, toys, and bowls. I've already picked out a vet and am investigating dog walkers.

And speaking of toys, please hear me now: although I will allow my dog to remain a carnivore, he or she will NOT be chewing on pigs' ears. So don't bring me any. Got it?

Still Sublime, Even Without the Mandolin

Of all the times I've seen Squeeze or any of the band members' solo performances live, I have never heard them do Maidstone live.



Here's some proof at last that they do play it at least on occasion. Maybe they just don't like to play it in the mid-western US states.

CD Music Mix Challenge

Hello, and welcome to my track listing!

What? You may ask? Well, if you aren't in the know, here's the deal. My buddy Stennie posts a Music Mix Challenge from time to time. She asks (in this case, 20) questions, and participants answer them in the form of songs on a CD. This time we had 9 total participants, and I think I've gotten all the CDs. I've only listened to three so far, but so far, so good.

1. Sellout —a song that is used (or has been used) in a TV commercial.
Hello Goodbye - The Beatles – Target is currently using this in their ad. I get it that they’re going for the “good buy” double entendre, but somehow it doesn’t work for me. I do like the song though.

2. A song that’s in a foreign language
Typewriter, Tip, Tip, Tip (From Merchant Ivory's Film "Bombay Talkie") - Asha Bhosle & Kisore Kumar – The first of several songs on this mix from the soundtrack to the Darjeeling Limited. You were expecting a German song here, weren’t you?

3. A song about cheating
As Heaven is Wide – Garbage – She’s been cheated on, and she’s pissed.

4. Song that makes you cry
A Change is Gonna Come – Sam Cooke. Such a beautiful song. The lyrics “It's been too hard living but I'm afraid to die/Cause I don't know what's up there beyond the sky” get me everytime.

5. B-side
Oops. I had the wrong song listed here. Thanks for the heads up Betster! The song is Smile, a Japanese B-side done by Elvis Costello.

6. Kick-ass cover song
Girl, You’ll be a woman soon – Urge Overkill. I don’t remember if anyone has used this on a previous mix, but last time I heard it on the radio, I remembered to use it on the next mix challenge. I just love this version.

7. Earworm —a song that gets stuck in your head.
Don’t You Evah – Spoon. Love this band, love this song.

8. A favorite live track
Charmless Man – Blur. I suspect that I used Blur on my last live track submission. I don’t have a lot of live tracks, so I have to use the Blur album a lot.

9. Title out of nowhere —a song in which the title does not appear in the lyrics at all.
Dirty Harry – Gorillaz. Speaking of Blur…

10. A favorite song you have discovered since our last CD Mix
This Time Tomorrow – The Kinks. Another track from the Darjeeling Limited soundtrack. Wes Anderson has the best soundtracks.

11. Favorite artist duo collaboration
Well Did You Evah – Deborah Harry and Iggy Pop. A friend of mine put this on a mix tape when I was a struggling undergrad. I always thought it was a fun version – “It’s just so.. SWELLIGANT!!”

12. Geographical location song —any song that mentions a geographical place: a country, a city, a street, what-have-you.
Les Champs-Élysées- Joe Dassin. Don’t you love this song? It is so happy! Carefree! The France of textbooks 70's educational film strips. This is the third, and last from the Darjeeling Limited soundtrack in this mix. I remember learning the words to this ditty in high school French class, and somehow convincing myself that it was dirty.

13. Musical question…
What’s The Matter Here – 10,000 Maniacs.

14. And answer!
He Wasn’t Man Enough for Me – Toni Braxton
Not characteristic of my taste in music, to be sure, but the song is so sassy. I couldn’t resist.

15. Four-letter word —a song whose title consists solely of a four-letter word.
Blue – The Jayhawks

16. Seven Deadly Sins—a song about any one of the Seven Deadly Sins.
Fiona Apple – Limp. This one is all about rage.

17. A song you wouldn’t play in front of your Mom
Human Nature – Madonna. Ok – I have to confess that I struggled with this one. I’m not the biggest Madonna fan, but I do like this song. Staying true to the question though, I can say in all truthfulness that this song grossed my mother out. She was offended by all things Madonna, and this video, being S&M related, was too much for her. It seriously pissed her off.

18. Song about violence and/or death
Tears in Heaven – Eric Clapton. This one used to make me cry, so it does double duty!

19. Guilty pleasure song
Shadow Dancing – Andy Gibb. Shameful, right?

20. Amnesty Song - with a twist! A song that fits any two of the categories above. (Mixes #2-5, minus twist)
Lost Cause – Beck. I don’t keep running lists of amnesty songs, but I remember that I wanted to use it for a break-up song once, and it is a sad song – one that just might make me cry.

And that's all! I hope you enjoy the music, all who played.

If anything, See It for the Soundtrack.

Today I saw Wes Anderson's latest movie, The Darjeeling Limited. I've liked everything he's done so far, with the exception of the Life Aquatic, which I simply didn't understand.

It seems the "limited" part of the title refers to the fact that this movie is only in limited release. I had to bike all the way out to Evanston to see it. The movie is getting really bad reviews, and for the life of me, I simply cannot understand why. It is a visual masterpiece. All of the performances were strong, convincing, and enjoyable. And the storyline is interesting enough. Sure, I'd like to see Mr. Anderson build a story around other characters than his standard rich, estranged, and messed up family. But it seems there are more stories to be written about for the wealthy and borderline psychotic than I could have ever imagined.

As for the actors:

1. This is the first movie Adrien Brody has worked on since The Pianist that wasn't doomed by a crappy script. Also, seeing him play someone who is kind of neurotic made me realize that if there were ever a revival of the Odd Couple, he's be the man to play Felix Unger.
2. Owen Wilson: a perfect example of life imitating art. Kind of creepy, really.
3. Jason Schwartzman has a very George Harrison-esque look about him in this movie. It works for him, very well. I never would have thought of him as attractive before. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that he's 10 years younger than I am.
   
4. Angelica Huston: her part was too small. She played the affected mother as well as she done everything else. But wow - she's looking more and more masculine with each movie she does.
   

While I would put Anderson's movies at the bottom of my top 10, his soundtracks are always stunning. I've got them all, and believe you me, the first thing I did after returning home from the 'burbs today was to download this soundtrack. It is heavy on the Kinks, has some great music by Indian artists, a piece performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and includes the sweetest little song ever written in French, "Les Champs-Élysées." Even if you've hated everything Anderson has directed, check out this soundtrack.

As Winter Approaches ...

Thanks to Karl for this link.

And as long as we're on the subject of Canadians, I would just like to say that I'm happy to learn that Oh Canada is as difficult to sing as The Star Spangled Banner.



Although this is painful - it isn't even remotely in his range - don't blame Geddy, please.

The most fun I've had since Italy.

Lauren celebrated her birthday today at the local Whirlyball court.

You don't know what Whirlyball is? I didn't either. But now I simply can't imagine my life without it*.

It is a game.
It is an awesome game.
It is a truly awesome game.
It is a truly awesome game played while driving bumper cars.

Are you catching my drift?

The game itself is a sort of polo, played with a whiffleball and scoops. The object of this truly awesome game played while driving bumper cars is to use your scoop to get the whiffleball in a net.

And let me tell you, it ain't easy. I had control of the ball several times, but never scored a point. I did some checking a la hockey and rammed into some people just for the thrill of it. Lots of other people got their thrills too - so don't feel sorry for them. I suspect the full-body whiplash will hit me in the morning.

I'd forgotten just how competitive I can be in playing games, and I forgot how much I enjoyed playing roller hockey: the one real contact sport I ever participated in. But one thing I won't be forgetting soon is that I want to play whirlyball very often.

There was a lot of laughing, a lot of cheering, and surprisingly, a lot of sweating.

It was probably THE party of the year, which kind of dooms the Halloween party I just decided to have. But who cares? Whirlyball is my new favorite thing.

I hope you enjoyed your birthday as much as I did, Lauren!

*I still ::heart:: Gary Fisher most of all. He is the way and the light. Amen.

Towny Tourism

Sunday was such a beautiful day that I was hardly about to spend it in the condo watching movies. Slightly dehydrated from the night before, armed only with my water bottle and an apple, I saddled up the Gary Fisher and made my way to the Baha'i temple in the ritzy suburb of Wilmette.

The Route
Wilmette is just a little north and a bit east of where I live; all in all it is about a 10-mile trip in each direction. On the way there, I took California Avenue north to Evanston where it becomes Dodge Street, then went east at Emerson, then north again at Ridge, took the jog onto Sheridan and then onto Linden Avenue, right to the temple. On the way home I decided to avoid the traffic. I took Sheridan up to Main Street and hopped on the North Channel Bike Path which ends pretty close to my front door.

The Experience
When I reached the temple, I realized right away that I'd been kind of stupid to visit on a Sunday at noon. The cobblestone streets in Wilmette were filled with parked cars and bumper-to-bumper traffic, and the temple was filled with worshipers and tourists. Although the parking lot was nearly full, Gary Fisher and I had no problem getting rockstar parking right in front.

Isn't Gary looking majestic?

Sweaty and kind of gross, I walked around outside for a little while. This gave me a chance to visit the gardens. Although they were unfortunately quite barren for this time of year, I did notice a little lilac patch filled with butterflies. Rounding the building, I saw that behind all the shrubbery and not really noticeable from the street, workers were climbing on scaffolding and parts of the grounds were either dug up or tilled under.

Very little of that is apparent in this picture:


It was very tempting to take off my shoes and wander around on the grass - we don't really have manicured lawns like this in the city. And what little patches of grass we do have are used way too often as a doggie toilet. For whatever reason I resisted and went back to the front entrance of the building.

Note: no amount of photoshopping was done to these pictures. The sky really was that color.

This isn't a picture of the main entrance. But since the building was teaming with people and all of the entrances look exactly the same, I figured this picture would do the building justice.


The detail on this building is so intricate and so delicate it is easy to understand why 41 years passed between the laying of the cornerstone and its dedication. Etched into the pillars and decorating the arches of the building are religious symbols from every major world religion. Above every entrance (eight in all) and in each alcove contains quotations from the writings of the Prophet Baha'u'lluah. The building itself is made of quartz crystal and white cement.

I posted a few more pictures of the temple and a brief description of the religion to Fredthewebsite. Please remember that being designed in Front Page 2000, Fred is best viewed in Internet Explorer.

Once it seemed like the service was over, I did go inside for a bit. The sanctuary is every bit as beautiful as the temple's facade, and light pours in from the ceiling and the walls. Like all well-organized tourist attractions, the basement contains a visitor's center with all manor of information about the Baha'i faith and the construction of the building. I watched part of a movie about the Prophet and looked at photographs taken of other Baha'i properties around the world before I'd had enough of the crowds of people. There is a bookshop down there that looks worthy of a visit on a different day.

The Aftermath
Before going home, I biked around the Gillson Park and Beach across the street. I wish I'd come prepared to spend time at the beach. There were more people at the tennis courts and bike trails than at the lake, and although I never actually go in the water when I'm in the city, somehow I think I would have made an exception for this beach - e coli be damned.

I ate my apple under the shade of what looked like a white birch and chatted with some tourists from Pakistan before heading back south.

With a tan that would make Oliver Wendell Douglas jealous, I arrived home completely exhausted. If I hadn't been so hot, I don't think I would have made it to the shower. I spent the rest of the afternoon feeling calmer than I have in weeks. I made it through the entire Da Vinci Code without moving a muscle (what a long movie!) and then fell into bed promptly at 10.

Help Bet and Stennie kick Cancer's Ass!

Bet and Stennie, the hosts of the award-winning* Podcast, the Hucklebug, will be podcasting short segments every half hour from at 9 AM on Saturday August 11 until 9 AM EST August 12, to raise money for The American Cancer Society . This could very well be the 'athon that raises the very dollar needed to knock Cancer to its knees -- so don't miss out!

Want to participate in the ass kicking?
It's easy! You can help by performing these three easy steps:

1. Download the podcasts directly from Hucklebug.com, or use iTunes or My Yahoo to listen.
2. They entertain, you donate to the American Cancer Society.
3. Stop by the Hucklebug and let them know that you've made a donation.

What is the Hucklebug?
Are you kidding? The Hucklebug is the witty weekly Podcast that is sweeping the nation! Listen to the "ladies" discuss such riveting topics as sex lives of cartoon characters, sexy vs. ugly body parts, Alan Arkin, music, TV, movie reviews, politics and much m0re. Updated every Thursday, the weekly Podcast will make you laugh out loud. if you haven't caught an episode yet, what are you waiting for?

*Awarded "Best Podcast Ever" by FredtheBlog in 2006 and 2007

Five Things - East Coast Edition

Five things that are just better about the East Coast

1. The time zone - my body clock is just set for Eastern. I never have to look at my watch here.
2. Bagels - need I say more? I sent Lauren a text message when I got my bagel and whitefish to share my joy. She's either jealous or ambivalent, I don't know. She didn't respond.
3. "soda"
4. Kids sitting on the stoops on the street - I had forgotten that kids played there. In Chicago they hang out either on random apartment steps or in parks. Here in NJ it is just like I remember it on Long Island - you sit on the stoop with your feet in the street. And nobody even tries to run you over.
5. The beach. No, I haven't been to the shore and I'm not likely to on this visit, but just knowing that the Atlantic is so close makes me very happy.

Anyone care to add to this?

Binky Sees a Sight

Yesterday was just as full as I expected, and I think the Binky actually had a very good day!

Rather than go to Northwestern, she chose to start the day off at the Lincoln Park Zoo. But since I didn't get any good pictures of her at the zoo, here's one of her at Navy Pier on Saturday.


From the Pier, we went right to Wrigley Field to watch the Cubs get slaughtered by the Razorbacks of Arizona. The Cubs lost bigtime, and we booed them. But we did have decent seats from which to watch the mascre. Check out the view:

In the outfield, sort of on the first baseline... now only if we' d had a real, winning game to watch that day. Despite the Cub's tragic loss, I'd have to say that Binky remained happy:


Then we took the party up a few notches. We met Lauren and slowly made our way via the 151 bus to the Sears Tower. Conversation on the bus revealed that this is exactly what the Binky meant when she expressed an interest in seeing sights. We pointed out some of the other "sights" as we sat on the bus. Last night, however, sleepy old Aunt Michelle didn't have the energy left in her reserves to get out of the bus and show her these sites. Besides, they were meant for today.

Photo Credit: Lauren

We milled around the huge building for awhile, bought some souvenirs for Steven, the child without a nickname who will no doubt be a featured topic on FredtheBlog later this week.

So, after the Tower, we went to Big Bowl for some pan-Asian delights. We're talking appetizer, main course and desserts people. What a treat! I snarfed my Tofu-Spinach Kung Pao like it was the best food on the planet. And it was really, really good. I was also just really, really hungry.

We left Lauren after dinner (she has to work today, alas) and I was too exhausted to navigate around with public transportation. We cabbed it back home. And thank providence, we had the really awesome kind of cab driver. He knew where I wanted to go, he knew the best way to go there, and he didn't talk on the cell phone while driving. Heaven!

At home, we finished watching Little Miss Sunshine, while I did some laundry. She thought the movie "wasn't bad," which as I'm learning, means that the movie was pretty good.

After looking at some old photos in my albums, (you really do look Mexican!) we went to bed at about midnight or so - at my urging. Today is our last day in the city. I have an allergist appointment at 11:20, and then we want to go shopping around the Mag Mile, with a stop at Millennium park, perhaps my office, and then finally, THE SHEDD AQUARIUM - destination of Binky's dreams. I think there will be some Italian Beef eating going on at some point during the day, too.

Well then, it's 9:10 and I've got to rush and get ready so that we can be out of here by 10:30.

IIII Roooovv UUUUUUUUUU

I discovered this clip last night and have watched it 20 times or more, squealing with laughter after each viewing. I present to you, Odie, the talking dog.



I'm not sure what has me so drawn to this video. Sure, it's a cute doggie doing something adorable. But it is totally unlike me to watch a video this often. I think they put heroin in the clip somehow. Now I'm addicted. Seriously. While putting this little blog together, I watched it four more times.

Pugs have never been my favorite dogs by any means. I'm drawn more toward Labs and Boxers - you know, real dogs. But lately their little smooshed in faces have been getting to me. I think it started with this video:



And then was further cemented by this video:



I guess this is just my version of a summer fling. Between the pugs and Gary Fisher, I'm quite the whore these days, aren't I?

Resolution Update And Then Some

Resolution Weeks Two and Three
The drive to make my own damned coffee continues on. Week two was pretty easy. I only succumbed to Starbucks on Friday. Being that it was my birthday, I was just in the mood to be served.

Week three is where it got interesting. It seems that the green coffee giant has noticed my absence, and is moving heaven and earth to get me back:

Monday of last week I decided to use my Starbucks gift card from Lauren for an afternoon pick-me-up. The card reader was down, so the cashier said. She just gave me a free latte, since I hadn't brought any cash with me.

By the time Friday came around, I was out of milk, and was forced to caffeinate at Starbucks. I ordered my latte, paid with my gift card, and moved over to watch the barrista make my drink. Just then, the steamer/espresso maker started to overheat, spewing steam and milk and froth everywhere. Thank goodness someone managed to unplug the thing before it blew. Lucky for me, there was another machine and I got my latte. Because I ended up waiting 10 minutes for my drink, I also got a coupon for a free drink of my choice.

Do you see what is going on here? I'm going to get my coffee for free until I'm hooked on getting my daily brew at Starbucks again! But fear not. I won't fall for this trick. I stocked up on milk this morning and I ground my beans for the week. My commuter cups are all clean.

The straws on the spokes come later
I mentioned to Dr. B once that I needed to replace my 30 year-old Schwinn this year. It's a great bike, don't get me wrong, but the tires are thin and difficult to replace. This causes the inner tubes puncture often. The front derailleur has some rust, and one of the gears is missing a tooth.

Being the kind, giving person she is, and given that she's sick of hearing me bitch about my poor Schwinn, she gave me an overly large gift certificate to a very chic bike shop in town. After much deliberation, I decided that I would not only accept said overly large gift certificate, but that I would break with my tradition of needing several years to buy anything costing more than $50, and leave that day with a bike.

And I did it!

Meet the Gary Fisher Nirvana:



It only took me 20 minutes to decide on this purchase, as I was in love from the moment I sat on its sweet, sweet saddle. Bikes have shock absorbers now-a-days. Why didn't anybody tell me this? I was trying to act all knowledgeable about the mechanics of bicycles, and I think the sales lady bought my act until I let out a little scream of delight at how bouncy the bike was.

She: "Those are shock absorbers."
Me: "Fancy! Do all bikes have those now, or is this special?"
She: "No, bikes have pretty much had shocks for a good five years now."
Me: "Do they make coffee now too?"

Anyway, this hybrid baby features big honking thick mountain bike tires. I tested them out all the way home. (The bike is guaranteed in full for seven days, including punctures.) I navigated right through potholes and gravel like a madwoman and five hours later the tires are still inflated. And my butt? It doesn't hurt! The gears - 24 in all - shift like a dream.

The only drawback I can see so far is the "easy release" front wheel that I pretty much have to remove and lock to the back of the bike when I park it anywhere but my basement. When the saleswoman showed me how to release it, it did indeed look easy. But things are never as easy as they look when you have to do them yourself. I expect this to be a pain in the ass.

I forgot to buy fenders, but did trick it out with a rear-view mirror, a kick stand (bikes come shocks, but no kick stands!) a headlight, and a mounted Kryptonite lock. So unless it rains, I'm pretty much unstoppable.

More Goodness To Come
I'm only working two days this week and the Hucklebug Returnith!

Like It's 1999

People, I am overwhelmed.

Overwhelmed in a very good way, that is.

For those of you not in the know, Friday was my birthday. I haven't much been in the mood to celebrate a birthday since I turned 30, and so I generally spend the day hoping nobody remembered, getting PISSED off when certain people did forget, (du weisst wer du bist, Ferkel!) and just not wanting to have a party or do much of anything.

This year was different, however, and I decided I would not only allow myself to celebrate it, I wanted to have an honest-to-god party. Since the much younger Josh's birthday is the day after mine, his wife Lauren and I decided that we'd celebrate it together. The party ended up being at a restaurant owned and run by earthy-crunchy stoners - which by the way, happens to be one of my favorite places in Chicago. The service is random, but the food is diverse, the prices are low, and the beer selection is bountiful.

We were a group of 17, which surprised me to no end. Pessimistic as I am, I just didn't expect a turnout that large. C&A came out from BFE, S&K - who have the tightest scheduling of anyone I have ever met - actually changed plans to be there. A new transplant from Brazil came to play, as well as people I hadn't seen in ages. I heard a lot of laughter, and drank well under the threshold of forgetting a single thing. So really, this evening was quite the success.

I also got an unprecedented amount of loot this year, not just from the party, but from people who lived too far away to be invited. Gifts always make me a tad bit uncomfortable (the receiving part, not the giving.) I went a bit speechless a couple of times. Sitting here with the loot though, I am having total recall of why I loved my birthday when I was a child. Check this out:

• Lauren and Josh gave me a substantially-charged Starbucks Card. Good for a laugh, given my quest of late to shun the makers of liquid crack. But make no mistake: I will cherish this card and I will use it!
• Chris and Amy bought me Mozartkugeln from their trip to Germany. Kitchy and silly, these little balls of goodness contain AUSTRIAN chocolate, pistachio and marzipan.
• GZ gave me a HUGE novel called Ausgebrant by one of his favorite authors. I've started reading it, and it rocks.
• Stenns sent me the key to many eloquent ways - or rather Effective and Appropriate ways to craft corporate communications.
• Mikey the Blogless also sent me a communications book, PLUS Little Miss Sunshine.
• Betster not only sent me the Holy Grail, but also the special 30th anniversary edition of SCHOOL HOUSE ROCK!
• The Little Fireman sent me a card of a fireman, in which he wrote, in legible print, "You are nice!!" (QVELL!)
• And from Dr. B I got a too-generous-to-be accepted gift certificate to Village Cycle.

I feel very fortunate and very spoiled. Thank you everyone!!

Resolution - Week One

I'm happy to announce that I indeed managed to make it a whole week without Starbucks. A situation occurred early on when I woke up late and had to rush around to make it to work on time. I would have missed my train if I stopped to make coffee at home, meaning I would have to rely on the swill I can make for free at work.

In short, it was a vomitous occasion. I tried mixing it with milk that I'd brought to work earlier in the week, but it was so bitter! So I added sugar, which resulted in kind of a sweet and sour effect. So then I added one of the toxic vanilla-flavored creamers, (can you tell I was desperate?!) and was nearly moved to eject the contents of my poor stomach immediately. I solved the problem by drinking tea. The rest of the week progressed rather smoothly.

Today, when Dr. B and I went out for our monthly-ish pedicure, we went to Starbucks first, and did, alas, have a latte. But I made it a whole week as planned, and had ONE as a treat. Tomorrow's morning brew will be made at home.

It is funny that my original Starbucks blog generated so many comments! Obviously coffee is on the mind and in the hearts of at least six of you. Let me put your mind at rest on a few items:

1. I am not frothing the milk at home. As yummy as that is, I just don't have the time or coordination to do something like that at 6 in the morning. I also don't have a frothing device. For everyday consumption, coffee with plain old regular fat-free milk (organically puss-free) from the fridge is just fine.
2. I'm not really tied to the Starbucks brand - I do get lattes from other coffee shops. It is just that Starbucks is so damned convenient. I pass FOUR on the way to work. The independent coffee shop across from the El makes a decent latte, but it is only 10 cents cheaper and they take for EVER to make one. Also, a lot of the independent shops around here use Intellegencia coffee, and I just can't stand it.
   
3. My caffeine addiction doesn't bother me in the slightest, and I have no desire to give up coffee or other caffeinated beverages. The whole point of this exercise is not to spend unnecessarily because I am a lazy ass. After I've made it a whole month of making coffee in the morning, I'll have no problem grabbing a $3.58 latte on the occasional, messed up morning. "Why a month?" I hear you asking yourselves. Well. I chose this amount of time because I learned once that it takes 30 days to make a new habit.

In other news, I'm quite proud of an accomplishment of a different kind today. By 8 a.m. I was on my bike, and I not only made it all the way downtown, but according to the Official Chicago Bike Map, I managed an 18 mile ride today. My trip from home to my office took me 65 minutes. If I can shave off 5 to-7 off of that time, I can claim to be faster than the Brown Line.

The One About Peanut Butter

Confession: I bought peanut butter at the store today. I haven't had peanut butter in my house since last century. See, I'm a peanut butter addict. If it is in the house I will eat nothing else, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It's not like I sit down and eat the whole jar in one sitting or anything. I just lose my appetite for everything else.

So I ate peanut butter and strawberry jelly on matzoh for dinner. The apple I took out is still sitting there, and I think it's getting jealous and pissed off. But I'm full. Besides, strawberry preserves are fruit.

Hopefully, falling off the wagon won't have any reprocussions. I mean, it isn't like I haven't eaten the stuff in seven years, I just don't keep it around here.

In fact, Potbelly's has a toasted PB&J that I totally recommend.

And the poor apple knows that it would taste good with peanut butter on it, and I still don't want it.

From My Mother's Cookbook

Anyone who has ever discussed food with me at any length knows that my mother's cooking did not enjoy the greatest reputation: she wasn't particularly interested in food and it showed. For the most part, she ate the absolute minimum of what she needed to stay alive, the more convenient the better.

For example, until I was 17, I had never eaten fish that wasn't formed into tiny sticks. My mother detested fish and didn't know how to cook it.

She didn't want to learn, either. But Better Homes and Gardens said it was what she should be feeding her family, so by golly, once a month or so she'd buy a box of frozen, breaded fish, douse it in Realemon, and broil it until it was burned.

Every once in a while though, she'd get inspired and really whip up something tasty. One of those dishes was split pea soup. This stuff was thick and creamy, flavorful, full of vegetables and, um, probably not kosher, if you get my drift. She made a HUGE vat of this stuff at least once a winter and freeze it. Even frozen it was something we all looked forward to. (Except maybe my sister. She poured ketchup in her soup.)

This past week I've been really craving some of this soup. Sure, I'll have to augment it a bit, since I'm not about to put a dead animal's bones in my food. But how much of a difference will that really make?

I guess I won't know, because I can't find her recipe. I remember seeing the recipe hand-written on yellowed looseleaf paper in the photo album she used as a cookbook. But when I looked today, it wasn't there.

I did, however, find this little gem, written on a piece of stationary from Calumet Auto Wrecking, Inc. It isn't in her writing, I didn't know she had friends to the south, but wouldn't you know, she got a moonshine recipe from them! I felt it would be irresponsible not to share this little gem further.

Kahlua

3 cups sugar
3 cups water
boil 10 minutes and then cool.

Add 750 ml of vodka
3/4 cup of instant coffee

Chop 1 long vanilla bean and divide between two fifth bottles. Pour the liquid into the bottles. Shake every day for three weeks.

Then I guess you drink it. Sounds kind of tasty, actually. I might have to try this instead of the soup.

Blogging Bonanza!

I'll bet you never expected to get behind on this blog, eh? If you haven't been here in a while, scroll down. You're missing out.

Florence and Siena pictures are up: http://www.fredthewebsite.com/photogallery/italy.htm

To answer Alexis: There are few pictures of me on my own camera, because I not only don't like having my picture taken, but I also know what I look like, and I don't surrender my little cannon lightly. However, you're in luck. There are lots and lots of pictures of me on this vacation on Romeo's camera, like this one, for example:



The funniest thing about memories - Alexis commented that the pictures all show such gray skies. I noticed that too as I was uploading. But I've been telling everyone that apart from the first day, Italy was rather sunny. You can tell by looking at the pictures that for the most part, that just isn't true.

But I remember sunshine, and I'm wearing sunglasses in the photo above.

That probably has to do more with my state of mind than anything. We did have some sun, but because I was having such a good time, I guess the clouds weren't a part of my reality.

-----

To celebrate both Passover and Easter, I include this link I found of Peep Bunnies acting out the 7 Plagues.

Photos

The first four days of Italy are up. Please look at them using Internet Explorer, because I don't know how to format a photogallery using Firefox.



Enjoy!

Ciao!

Back from Italy, I feel like a different person. Maybe it's the jetlag or all the red wine, or maybe it's the 10 hours of walking every day for a week and the deep, sound sleep, but whatever. Vacation is a very good thing. And vacation in Italy? That's unspeakably wonderful.

So wonderful that I wasn't even tempted to go to an Internet cafe to check my email - not even once.

I took over 300 photos, which will start finding their way to fredthewebsite.com this weekend.

In the meantime, here I am at the Roman Forum. Eat your heart out.



No, really. Go ahead.

... But if you leave your name and number ....

At long last ladies and gentlemen, I am on V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N.

And this time I'm doing it right. In years past, in the interest of not wasting a single minute, I'd leave for my trips directly after a day at work. This would involve staying up late to pack the night before, getting up early to be obsessive compulsive about the lights and the gas, schlepping a heavy bag on public transportation, rushing from work to the airport - or in otherwords:

Stress, stress, stress.

And I always think to myself: I need a pre-vacation and a post-vacation.

I've finally learned. Friday after work I went out for drinks with some buddies from work and got home late. Saturday I went out for brunch, cleaned my house, went to the movies, had an absolutely disgusting dinner at a restaurant I'd been dying to go to for months.

Sunday was an absolutely beautiful day. I went for some yummy brunch with L&J, looked at some gorgeous houses well out of anyone's price range, and then whiled away the afternoon hours at a beer garden sipping some wonderful Weizen and enjoying the sun.

When I got home, I watched another movie, ran to the store for some last minute necessities, and went to bed early. This morning it was early to rise. I'm all packed and watching another movie at 9:15 am. I'm feeling no stress today, and that's pretty damned righteous.

In seven hours I'll be on a plane bound for Belgium, and eight hours after that, I'll be on another flight for Italy.

I'll try for mid-vacation blog, but I make no promises. We'll just have to let Italy do what Italy does.

Ciao!

One of Life's Pleasures

There is nothing quite like the taste of a latté in the morning after a long, deep night's sleep. Eleven hours last night people, ELEVEN. This is like the birthday, all 8 days of chanukah, and a partridge in a pear tree all wrapped up in one.

And then the latté.

You know, coffee has wonderful flavor when you don't so much need it - but you just want it.