Off to Dreamland

William Edward Milner (Victorian painter) The Romantic Dreamer

It's just the perfect picture for today!

Of Beer and Such

Almost everyone's been talking about the price of gas, so much so that it's almost become old news. I'll admit that with my particular lifestyle, the price of gas does not directly impact me, but of course the fuel debacle is affecting all of us in other ways that have become pretty obvious.

The thing that's impacting me right now and in my face is the price of beer! I stopped in the usual distributor the other day and did my usual thing: looked at the bargain close-outs, but failing to see anything that made me swoon, headed over to my usual good, inexpensive beer choice. I confess, I didn't even bother to look at the price, I've bought it so often. I was in for a shock. Good ol' Stegmeier Porter has jumped ten dollars in price in less than a year. I kid you not. Yes, there's been a hop shortage, and the added fuel cost, and now there's a worldwide food shortage, as well. Will fueling our cars start competing with feeding the world's people?

And, woohoo! It certainly looks like Barack Obama may be the candidate to face John McCain in the general election. Maybe this will get me excited about something. We all need something to excite us.

What's exciting YOU?

Pintprice is a fun little widget. I stole it from I Love Beer.


Life is too short to drink bad beer. Well, unless that's all there is. Is that all there is? Happy Friday.

Happy Mother's Day!

May everyone either spend time with their mothers today, or feel the warmth of happy memories!

Meme-oir

G tagged me for a meme! G, thanks! Here's the deal:

1. Write your own six word memoir.
2. Post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you’d like.
3. Link to the person who tagged you in your post.
4. Tag five more blogs with links.
5. And don’t forget to leave a comment on the tagged blogs with an invitation to play!

So, this could be a précis of your blog, if it's a lot about your life. That's a tall order, and I didn't even know where to stick the accent, so I copied it. I've always struggled with tasks like this one. Of course, this isn't exactly as difficult as when a certain high school teacher handed us a beautifully written essay and asked us to cut it down to one sentence. I found that heartbreaking. This isn't like that at all. Hmmm--there have been so many themes to my posts.

Let's go out for a beer.

This is not what I expected.

OR it could be a headline, I suppose--

Bored Misfit Is Ambivalent about Job

No, no, that's too silly. I suppose I'll go with:

Waiting for the fun to start!

Yes, I do have to make the fun happen. That is my responsibility. My life is certainly easy enough, especially compared to those tumultuous ones that surround me during my days now. I can stop running, avoiding, and hiding from--everything, now.

Time to get comfortable, forever more.
Without a care in the world.

So, if you're reading this, please please play the meme! I'm breaking the rule by doing it this way, but--I haven't done a very good job of being here lately, and don't know who to tag. I'll look forward to seeing your meme-oirs!

all ears

malaise

1 : an indefinite feeling of debility or lack of health often indicative of or accompanying the onset of an illness

2 : a vague sense of mental or moral ill-being

I wasn't aware of the preferred definition for malaise. I think my general feeling these days is of the second definition's variety. It's hard to explain. Before I was laid off the last job, I was bored and miserable, and now I'm alternately bored and nervous. And sometimes irritated. It really is harder to make big changes as you age. My coworkers are so young that I have a hard time understanding them. I think that some of them are texting each other during the day, but I'm not sure. It would explain the amount of drama that goes on that I don't actually hear, but know is there.

And this batch of young people are going through big changes themselves, and by the end of summer, five of them will be gone: Ms. Bad Attitude is definitely out of here soon, two are leaving for college, and two have finished their classes and are embarking on different careers. The turnover will be interesting.

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My cat is still driving me insane. Interestingly, the best cure for her carpet-wetting problems has been restricting her access to the basement when I am at home. Yes, the basement is where her litter box is, but she will let me know if she really needs to go down there, and I will supervise her. Otherwise, she's up to no good. We've also locked her in with her litter box a couple times right after her misbehavior, so she's not nearly so keen to go running down there, but when she does, she tends to head for the appropriate area more often. Of course, we've developed a broad definition of "appropriate area," but I can't complain. Things are better. However, the endless mewing is to be endured.

~~~~~~~~
My favorite Italian restaurant lost its chef, and now the place is basically a great pizza place with a wonderful atmosphere and a great bar, but that's not worth driving all the way out there for. Their pizza was always good, but not really better than ABC's. The chef has his own digs nw, a place called Amuse, which showcases his and his sous chef's wonderful talents, but it lacks something in the atmosphere department, and is not (yet) wildly popular. I am mourning the demise of the original place, as it was. Nothing gold stays. It's possible that restaurants are a little too important to me.
~~~~~~~~

About this evening: I hafta go to a workplace reception and awards show tonight. Actually, it wasn't absolutely mandatory, but there was some pressure to attend. I wouldn't mind, if I were allowed to take Mike, but it's only for employees. I think that's weird. We'll make the best of it, though; Mike will drop me off and pick me up, then we'll go out and have a nice time. I'll be dressed up, so we may as well. The awards show has a Kentucky Derby theme, for which my branch manager bought the straw hats, ribbons, and flowers, so we'll all have hat head by the end of the night. Of course, our hats are big enough to hide closed eyes, too. Did I mention how much I was looking forward to this?
~~~~~~~

Oh, no, I'm boring myself. Must be time to quit yammering.

Holy May Day, Batman...

Dick: "Bruce, let me ride Waynebow. I'm light enough."

Bruce: "No, Dick, I couldn't allow my own ward to ride my own thoroughbred. People might think it was funny."

Rabbit, rabbit! Good luck in May!
Great show. Two ears up.

Down to Earth

ACTONWIRE-- Polls are now closed. Voting did not take long in this precinct, due to the fact that there are not many democrats. Still, voter turnout was high. We will wake up to the earth-shattering news tomorrow.
~~~~~~~~
The Boston Marathon happened yesterday, and this year happened to be the tenth year anniversary of my and the hubby's experience with it. It was the most fun I've ever had running. It was also the most beat-up I've ever felt afterwards, but it was just a blast, anyway. The scariest part of the day was the bus ride from Copley Square out to the starting line, because it seemed to take an awfully long time to get there. The actual starting line was right out in front of The Hopkinton Library, a charming place. From there, we ran through Ashland, Natick, and then Wellesley, where a horde of screaming girls turned out for their traditional supporting role. For the men. Women haven't been officially running Boston for long. Anyway, you can hear these women screaming a mile away, and that's not just an expression. After Wellesley, which is about the midpoint, the course gets tougher at Newton, which features a staircase-like climb that's often referred to as Heartbreak Hill. Actually, I did not feel bad until just after that, in Brookline. I felt really bad for about two miles at this point, but fortunately it was not long until I could see the Boston skyline, and that made it all better. Running is mental. The left turn onto Boylston Street was very exciting, and I felt as if I were running faster than I had all day, though I seriously doubt this was the case. Boylston Street seems to last forever, because the finish line is painted a bright yellow that is visible from far away. And there were so many people lined up along that street and hanging out of windows and so much yelling and whistling that the whole scene was visually and audibly overwhelming. When I was finished, I was elated, relieved, and immediately very stiff. Oh, and completely disoriented--I had to ask a mounted policeman to point me back to our hotel, which was embarrassingly close. It was a short walk that took me back to Mike, who had already showered and was attempting to nap. He runs fast.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Work is fine. I can't complain, and I don't, because it really does get easier all the time. Some of my very young coworkers see high drama in this place, but they don't know what drama is. Not yet. (shrug) A couple of them are incredibly immature, but all they can muster is mildly annoying. I'm not going to be giving out any more Certified or Napoleon awards. I hope.

My favorite youngin' has even mentioned a movie that I should see-Bee Movie! How did I neglect this one? The way she described it, with that lilt in her voice I just love, makes me think it might rival some of the funniest things I've ever seen. "It's like really violent, though. They shoot Winnie the Pooh with a tranquilizer gun." Oh, bother, I can't imitate her. And I don't blame the bees for shooting at Pooh--I mean, he like pretends to be a rain cloud and starts trying to get their honey. He's such a liar.
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I hope it was a happy Earth Day weekend for everyone. I had an unexpected three-day weekend because my schedule got shifted to the right--I'm working this Saturday, and that's fine with me. It was nice having Monday off, and if I ever get a Wednesday off instead of a two day weekend, I will be fine with that. And it's really nice to feel this way, for once.

Philip Ferguson Jones

I don't seem to have much to say these days. Just staring out the window--be back in a bit:)

slow train

It's a very quiet morning, as the day is beginning. She enters the small room, quietly and ponderously, staring out the window. I know in a moment where she's looking. "He doesn't work today, and I know that he doesn't have any money. So what's he doing there?" I don't even remember her boyfriend's name. He works at the grocery store next door. Her eyes are focused on that distance so keenly, anxiety and worry almost changing her features. It occurs to me that it is awfully early in the morning to be running out to a grocery store, especially with no money. "I happen to think he's very attractive, but the problem is, so do lots of other girls." It's the first time she's actually spoken directly to me about this situation of hers, and I'm almost touched. I ask if there's someone in particular she's worried about, and she just shrugs and says no, but "he's cheated on everyone else he's ever dated, and I want to make sure it doesn't happen this time."

I don't say anything else. Before she leaves, she picks a couple stray hairs off my sweater. I've been groomed. I wish it were as easy to rid her of her attraction for this young man.