never enough

Obviously four days, four shampoos, four conditionings, and one long hot soaking bath does not help to stabilize hair dyed dark red after being blonde...



My poor poor Brooklyn Cyclones hat after wearing it to the gym. At least no one will ever take it thinking it theirs by accident.

I realized after taking the darn thing off post-workout that people had in fact kinda been looking at me funny. I wonder if they thought I was working out so hard I was sweating blood? Or maybe they were thinking I had the Ebola virus and was liquifying right in front of their eyes?

Just to be safe, I'm wearing my dark colored hats to the gym for the next week. I don't want anyone calling 911. Ooh, unless the EMTs are hot and want to give me mouth to mouth. Hmmmmm.

good advertising

ahem

looking for a band

This is from an exceptionally talented friend of a friend. I saw her perform with her old band, she is great! Spread the word if you know of anyone who fits.


"hey you beautiful, creative, talented people.

i need a band.

i've decided to turn to you as a huge group of
radicals, dreamers, and inspired people. Mama needs
some back up.

i want a drummer who is so slammin' and wicked
sensitive, who is skilled or could learn how to be
skilled at triggering samples. Extra bonus if you can
sing.

i also want a keyboard player who is hip on sampling
too and can sing.

if you have any knowledge of different instruments,
that is a major plus.

i'm getting ready to do a residency in New York City
(every thursday in March) and want to rehearse in the
weeks before then. Then we'd go on tour, as soon as
my new record comes out. so it would involve a lot of
your time and flexibility. It is, of course, a paying
gig.

i know you're out there.

you have to be hard-working and prepared to tour. you
preferrably live in the New York area. and you are
wild and fun on stage.

email us at my_dogbites@yahoo.com and send me to where
we can hear your stuff, tell us a little about
yourself, what your availability is, and anything else
you want us to know about you.

lots of love and witchy inspiration,
bitch
xoxo"

disbelief

c'mon...

over it

Okay, could there possibly be any more press coverage about this whole James Frey thing with A Million Little Pieces??? Is this mass media hysteria because it was promoted as non-fiction or because Oprah is in the picture? She gets a little something that trips her up, puts her flat on her face, someone pulled the wool over her eyes and we all got to see. I think THAT is the issue at hand.

For those of you who don't know, my company didn't publish this book, but yes we published his second, My Friend Leonard. Sales were already good before the controversy. How long that will last, I don't know.

With all the lies that our government spouts every day, how much do I care that this guy promoted his book as being 100% accurate? It still is a great story. Did the smoking gun ever look into the truthfulness behind The Basketball Diaries or Naked Lunch? Would it make them less engaging or worthwhile as books?

All I know is the book was written very well, it is a captivating and entertaining work, and still one of the better things I have read in the past year, exaggerated or not.

let the countdown begin

There would be approx 40.4 weeks, or 282 days until I run the NYC Marathon.

Yes, I will be counting down for the next ten months.

Maybe it will be more inspirational if I count down the mileage it will take for me to train and complete this darn thing? That would leave me with....761 miles to run until I, Bridget Rockstar!!, finish the ING New York City Marathon.

I should start a running tally on the sidebar, eh?

heaven

Oh my lord, do I need more of a reason to try desperately to get a job at the Times? Man, if I could work there and be able to wear sneakers every day it would be LIKE A DREAM COME TRUE. At least, a dream not on my already very long list.

career tips

Once my boss gave me the advice to dress for the job I want, not the job I have.

 

I want a job where I can wear sneakers every day.  The job I have does not allow that.

 

Chicken or the egg, chicken or the egg...

wicca

Okay, guilty pleasure time again. Thanks to Seattle Girl, I am utterly addicted to a teenage series called SWEEP by Cate Tiernan. Seattle Girl gave me the first eight books of the series when I was laid up for a month recovering from my hernia repair/abdominal reconstruction.

I was immediately hooked. You know, not sleeping reading one right after another hooked. Recently I have gotten my hands on books nine through thirteen, and I am obsessed all over again. As I just completed book number twelve I was crying. Again.

How embarrassing, to have pre-adolescent material make me cry. Yet I love it all the same. Guess the little girl inside of me is still alive and kicking.

This is mostly a series for females; some guys may dig it, but not in the absolutely guaranteed way gals will. If you have been stressed out and could use some R&R, know someone who is laid out sick, or owe a gift to a teenage debutante, check this series out. As a very brief synopsis, these books center around a young girl discovering she has magikal powers, in the way of Wicca, and how she in this modern day and age copes with them and incorporates this new discovery into her life. It is touching, charming, and absolutely intoxicating. Do yourself or your friend a favor, don't buy one at a time, you'll end up making way too many trips to the bookstore because once started you CANNOT STOP.

The first three books of the series, listed in order are Book of Shadows, The Coven, and Blood Witch.

Make haste, and may the Goddess be with you.

lemmings

I often joke that I like it when someone else does my thinking for me.

For example, TiVo. Similar to DVR, they both record TV, can record one channel while you watch another, and allow you to select to tape a whole season with one motion. TiVo you have to buy the equipment (anywhere from $50 - $250), DVR equipment is free. TiVo either costs $13.00 a month OR you can buy lifetime service for $300, DVR costs $10 a month. TiVo you can download stuff to your computer or ipod, DVR none of that. TiVo requires a phone line the first time you set up (which I do not have, cell phone only, baby!), DVR does not.

The clincher, for me, is that TiVo will go and record stuff it thinks you will like based on your previous viewing patterns. DVR does not think.

Um, hello? Is there any question here? I like having hundreds of people doing extensive research and completing complex algorithms to give me things I will like! That being said, this is only cool if the suggestions pan out. The suggestions from the itunes store NEVER work for me. Maybe because they don't know anything about my existing CD collection and have incomplete background knowledge of my tastes. TiVo takes into account what you record and what you just end up watching!

Bacon recently informed me of itrain.com, a site that offers workouts for your ipod. Ooooooh, aaaaaah. Bigwig trainers creating mixes plus adding motivation and instruction all for 99 cents? Awesome.

But I have saved the best for last. If you have not checked out pandora, you are soooo missing out. You type in a song or artist that you like, and a custom playlist/radio station is created for you. You can create a whole slew of stations to play, and the program goes so far as to explain how it picks your music using the genome project algorithm. And it is free.

*Sigh* I love the digital age.

taking votes now

What do you think, should I do it??

I have in my mind a number of people it will take for me to say yes. It is not unreasonable or unrealistic. Vote now!

modern science

We can't cure cancer. We can't cure AIDS. But by god...

misunderstood

For the longest time I believed that "approximately" meant exactly. I mean, whenever someone uses the word approximately, they get really specific. It was approximately 4.568 meters long. It weighed approximately 47,895 pounds. It is approximately 27 stories tall.

Being that most of my knowledge is gleamed from context, you can see my dilemma. And my shock when I discovered that approximately meant almost exact or correct, very similar. Almost?!?! I mean, if you are going to be kinda close couldn't you round it up or down a bit? Bastards.

Anyhoo, today I had another misinterpretation blown away. Moot. As in, oh, we don't even need to discuss bridget drinking, which is a moot point. As in not even worth discussing. In other words, because the conclusion can be assumed, as it is understood.

Dead wrong.

Moot - In Old English, mot meant "meeting," particularly a formal get-together by citizens to deal with legal issues. Its roots are shared with the modern English word "meeting." In legal use, "moot" shifted use in the 1600s to refer to a point of discussion, particularly one that as open to debate.

Good thing my sister got me that word origin calendar, as you all get to share in my newfound tidbits of knowledge.

Since approximately 11.7% of my language has been acquired from context while reading, I suppose whether or not I should start looking words I don't immediately recognize up in a dictionary is a moot point.

Bwa ha ha.

relief

Woo hoo! Something for me to see valentines day weekend, instead of something like the insipid "The Notebook".

gravity

This is AWESOME.

chemistry

The year of sex.

That is what Spaghetti and RFW have deemed 2006 to be. See, we have this...problem. We go out often enough, and have great fun. With each other. We historically don't look around or interact with new people. Granted sometimes I'm with a group of twenty, which should occupy anyone. Can I help it if I have such engaging, interesting, and fun friends?

For me, I think I will make 2006 the year of dating. I seem to have enough opportunities for sex arise (pun intended). Over the xmas/new year I had two passes alone. Not that I have acted on any in a while. If you are a faithful reader, you pretty much know when the last time was.

I have had some fun one-night stands since I have been in New York, but where they are fun and interesting I'm just not quite that girl. It is like dressing up for halloween, it is neat to see what you look like as a smurf, and fun to sing the song and complain about gargamel for a night. But wearing that blue paint every day would get tiresome.

Did that analogy make any sense? In my mind it did.

So I am going to wink and email on match. Not just sign up and do nothing. I even registered to this new site, chemistry.com, match's beta version answer to eharmony.com. Boy, that psychology test was long. The funny thing is that my profile results came out as this:

You have a great overview of reality. You see many angles to the same issue and enjoy discussing multiple solutions to complex problems. You like to use your imagination and engage in creative theorizing.

You have executive social skills, easily picking up the gestures, facial expressions and speech patterns of others. You are intuitive; you generally understand people, and your sympathetic nature makes you pliant, adaptable and likeable.

Yet despite your charm and poise in large social situations, you often enjoy solitude or intense conversations with just one individual or a few close friends.

You are good at doing and thinking a lot of things at the same time. But when you focus on an issue, idea or problem, you like to concentrate in depth. You leave no stone unturned.

And with your insight, charm and intellectual bent, you make warm and interesting company.

After reading this I was blown away. I never have been so accurately described so concisely. Freaky. We'll see if it gets me a date or two.

applecare rocks

My ipod officially died, the apple service department took one look, pronounced my love dead, then lickity-split started engraving my new one. So I get a brand new ipod mini, how cool is that??

Getting applecare is TOTALLY worth it.

prayers needed

My baby is sick, a mere eleven months after birth. He is off to the hospital for a cure. Fortunately this is possible as I have insurance.

Keep your fingers cross he gets back safe soon, I am so lonely without him.

oh, monday

Believe it or not, I got my sorry butt out of bed to go to the gym this morning. I always aspire to be a morning workout person, but so far have failed.

Today I was surprised at the deserted state of my gym. I thought for sure there would be a post-new years bunch, still shiny with their resolutions. I know they go at night, maybe most resolvers are nocturnal?

Anyhoo, I got to use one of the "good" treadmills, the ones that have all the fun programs and features. Even more of a boon since of the eight that exist at my gym four were broken. Yeah, high quality place (Ballys) let me tell ya. There are seven mediocre treadmills and eleven basic models still available for use, but what do my dues do, pay the bill for receptionist phone conversations?

While enjoying my run in the elite spot, I noticed the news flash - Dick Cheney rushed to the hospital for shortness of breath. Maybe a heart attack, maybe just too many retained fluids. Dude, just how sick is this man, anyway? How many times has he had a heart attack? How many times has he needed emergency care?

You do know what is next...

threshold

I have reached my limit of sleep. It is 3:21 am and I am awake, awake, awake. Seems that sleeping all day every day all week has recharged me to the point of overload.

In an effort to keep occupied and hopefully knock myself out, I have researched grad schools and picked ten to apply to, revisited the plot and outline of a book I have long considered writing, and come up with a brilliant plan and concept for a bar for me to own and operate.

Problem is that whenever I start thinking of any of the above endeavors, I come up with more really groovy ideas and get more excited and further from sleep. I was considering the bar idea while lying in bed and I literally sat up because some of the ideas became clearer and more focused.

Tomorrow/today will definitely be a super duper workout day at the gym; I need to wear myself out so that I get back on a regular sleep cycle for work. In the meantime I need to start acting on all these great inspirations, I think the book first would make the most sense. This will be weird, I have never written fiction before. Do people often collaborate to write books, like in music?

You would think I would know the answer to that...

proof positive

I must be better; I just took apart my showerhead and fixed it - very much healthy rockstar behavior.

Like the time I tried to fix my electric clothes dryer while living in hamtramck. I took that sucker apart and replaced the heating coil, discovering not once but twice that touching the coil while the dryer was plugged in was not a bright idea. Even though I therefore glowed bright enough to light the apartment for a while.

I never did put that dryer all the way back together...

random question

My living room windows face south; therefore my apartment gets a lot of light. This is a valuable asset when living in Manhattan, and I am thankful for it. Also, as a norm for this city, I have radiant heat, and there is a radiator stationed under one of the windows in my living room.

I was sitting still thinking (or in a cold medication stupor, you choose) when I noticed the bright panes of light on the floor were being distorted by the waves of heat coming off the radiator. But when I look out the window nothing in my line of vision is distorted. I look back at the floor, the light still looks as if smoke is rising past my window, but when I look back out my view is clear as day.

What is up with that?

In movies there is often that scene where the characters are caught in the desert and the scenery is altered and maligned from the heat, sizzling and moving. So I get that it probably takes a significant area emitting heat (such as a desert compared to a radiator) to affect our vision. But then why is a small area emitting heat visible to us at all, via light reflection? I mean, sight is sight, it all comes down to what our brains can process, right? Why can my same eyes perceive the same phenomena occurring only on the floor and not through the glass?

Ohhhh, the mystery.

For all you schlubs who don't have a radiator under a brightly lit window, next time you are driving into sunlight on a cold and very sunny day turn all the heat onto the windshield and you will see the same effect on your dashboard. You too can share in the wonder.

And yes, I did just spend a half hour of my life looking back and forth between the floor and the window. Get over it.

clogged

Upon arriving home from Vegas I discovered that my shower head is clogged. This was determined when water sprayed out in all directions except the one it was supposed to. As I have not gotten out to a hardware store as of yet, I have resorted to baths.

Also backed up? My head and lungs. An excess of phlegm has caused me to stay home yesterday and today. I am comfortably drugged, almost enough to alleviate the guilt to starting the new year with sick days.

I love the word phlegm. Don't know why, I just do. I think I feel like I'm part of a special club for being able to spell it. Or maybe it is the twangy sound of the word. Dunno.

RECIPE FOR PHLEGM (as taken from "Why Do Men Have Nipples?" by Mark Leyner and Billy Goldberg, M.D.)

Ingredients
1/2 - 1 lb. fresh okra
1 - 2 cups water (the less water you add, the thicker your mucus will be)

Instructions
1. Chop the okra into large pieces and place them in a saucepan with a tight-fitting lid.
2. Add water to cover and boil the okra, about 10 to 15 minutes, until it is a dark grayish green and very soft.
3. Tun off the stove and remove the lid. Let your slimy substance cool.
4. Strain the slimy mess into a bowl and discard the okra.

At this point I don't know what you will do with the phlegm, but enjoy!

happy new year!

Vegas was awesome.

Seeing my friend Dawnalicious and meeting her charming girlfriend was wonderful. I may not be a good correspondent, but there are some people you just were meant to get along with, time and distance meaning nothing. She looked happy and healthy and content with the life she is building out there. It is always so heartwarming to see your friends doing well.

Sin city is indeed a testament to all that capitalism has to offer. It is ironic that I spent last new years in Disneyworld, because Vegas is definitely the adult version. All those structures, lights, shows and more to make you believe you are not somewhere real, but in a perfect fantasy world.

New Year's Eve? Oh, what a great time. Kzoo Jen and I attended a party at the Nine Irishmen in the New York New York casino (yes, I am fully aware of the irony); wow it was a total blast. I met all kinds of fun people, drank a lot, danced like crazy, and got some real up close and personal time with a Scotsman from Edinburgh named Keith. No better way to start the New Year than with a snog, eh?

Inside the pub there was a Celtic band, and outside on the replica of the Brooklyn Bridge was a cover band performing dance music. This was on the strip but with the luxury of a bar, restrooms, and heating lamps. All the joys of spending new years on the strip with none of the misery.



This party was called "Horns and Halos", and we got to pick and wear one or the other. This is each of us early in the evening, god knows how we looked after our tenth Guinness.


Me being naughty…


Kzoo Jen being nice.

I got carded to gamble. When I asked the roulette guy what the legal age was, he told me 18. Then the four Australian men at the table spontaneously confirmed they would have ID’d me as well. *Joy*

Unfortunately my recovery time was not so great the next day, I threw up three times in the first hour and a half of my flight home. My poor, poor row mates. They were very kind and understanding. When I first got sick I explained about how the first month I spent as a flight attendant I was airsick, they did find that entertaining. And I was hopefully able to appease the fear of turbulence a bit for the woman next to me. Only a little though.

Another fun distraction, after getting back to NYC someone took my suitcase from the shuttle instead of his own. I have this guy's luggage, since he took the wrong one. No, I have not opened it as of yet. If he doesn't return mine I will. I hope I get mine back, I only had clothes and shoes in the suitcase but I will miss my kick ass boots if they are gone.

Check out the extra security thing we were put through in the Vegas airport. It was before the metal detector and blew all this air puffs at you. Neat.



Oh, and did I already mention that I made out with a hottie Scotsman? Just wanted to make that clear.

Happy New Year!!!