Liberty in All Forms

New Recipes

2008-07-04T18:01:00.000-07:00

Alright, so I have two new recipes to share with you this Independence Day. The first recipe comes straight from Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The Original Classics (though I have changed a few ingredients to fit my taste/pantry). This is a must try:

Spaghetti and Tomato Sauce 101
I made this to feed two people, but you can definitely stretch it to three.
Ingredients:
6 vine-ripened tomatoes (you know, those tomatoes you see still on the vine at the store)
1 box of spaghetti (will give you leftover plain spaghetti, gauge for amount of people)
2 garlic cloves
1/2 yellow or white onion
crushed red-pepper flakes
1/4 cup of fresh basil leaves, torn to small pieces
Salt

Start boiling water for pasta:
You know how to do that.

Prepare the tomatoes:
You have to skin these. Here is how you do it (by blanching them)
Bring a saucepan of water to boil. Score a small X on the non-stem side of each tomato. Drop them into the boiling water for 20-40 seconds or until you see the skin peeling. Then drop them into bowl of ice water. Remove from cold water; the skin should peel off very very easily. Cut across the equator and squeeze the juicy, seedy center into a bowl (like you would a lemon, only softer). Cut the meat of the tomato into thin strips. Push the seedy, pulpy stuff through a strainer (or improvise, I used a spoon with little holes, or if you must, throw it away, whatever).

Put pasta into boiling water, if the water is indeed boiling:
OK?

Prepare a saute base:
Cut the onion into strips or dice it according to your taste. Finely chop garlic. Warm olive oil in a frypan set over medium heat. Add garlic. Let garlic lightly brown for 30 second to 1 minute. Add salt and red pepper flakes. Continue to brown garlic for 30 second to 1 minute more. Add onion and cook until onion is becoming translucent. Add the tomato strips and pulp. Turn the heat up high to breakdown the tomato meat.

If the pasta is done, remove from heat and strain:
Reserve about a cup or so of the cooking water for later (you'll see).

Mix it all together and what do you get:
Let the tomato meat break down a little bit. Slide the strained pasta into the hot tomato sauce. Toss lightly and let the pasta absorb all the flavor. If the misture gets too dry (the pasta will absorb moisture) add some of the reserved cooking water. Add the basil pieces and cook for a minute or two more.

Plate and garnish with grated Parmesan cheese (fresh, now, yahurd) and sprig of fresh basil.

IT IS SO GOOD. The basil is pungent, and the red pepper flakes leave a tingle in your mouth. It tastes fresh and light. Definitely a repeat recipe.

The second recipe comes from Trisha Yearwood's book Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen. It is Warm Feta Dip with Artichokes. Pretty good for a party:

1 14-ounce can of artichoke heart (or like 6-8 hearts, I think), finely chopped.
5-ounce package of feta cheese, crumbled up
3/4 cup of mayo (gross, I know)
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese.
1 2-ounce jar of pimientos, diced or finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped.

Mix all ingredients thoroughly together. Spread into a shallow baking dish or pie plate or whatever. Bake at 350 for 25ish minutes or until golden brown and bubbling.

Use Melba toast or crackers or pita chips or corn chips to eat the dip.

I think this this is good for a party, but not good if only two people are eating it (trust me; it is strong stuff).

Hope y'all enjoy.

New Blog

2008-06-15T22:08:00.000-07:00

It's time to start something new.

It's time get excited.

It's time to blast something out of your car doors.

It's time to have a party.

It's time to GET UP OFFA THAT THING

and blog 'til I feel better.

News Flash: Artichokes Are Disappointing

2008-06-15T20:43:00.000-07:00

Artichokes are the most unsatisfying vegetables in the world. I decided to try steaming them today, and it took up all my energy and patience and all without a single satisfying bite.

The recipe called for a homemade lemon mayonnaise, which itself almost caused a breakdown as I had to visit the store a second time to buy more eggs.
*Blend one large egg (at room temperature) with salt and a squeeze of a lemon half in a food processor.
*When the egg is foamy and light, add 1/4 cup of canola oil and 1/2 cup of olive oil one drop at a time and then in thin streams (OH MY GOD!) until stiff.
*Season with salt and add more lemon juice to taste.
NOTE: using just the egg yolk makes a stiffer, more traditional mayo. Add a spoonful of Dijon mustard for real kick.

It wasn't until I was preparing the actual artichokes that I realized that I must document how horrible artichokes are.
Remove the stiff outer leaves and rub the exposed flesh with a lemon half to reduce browning.With a very sharp knife, cut the top third of the artichoke off. If any sharp points remain, trim them with kitchen shears.Chop off the stem and with a paring knife neatly carve the base of the artichoke flat. Rub with lemon to prevent browning.Carefully spread open the flowerhead (sharp points) to reveal the choke. I was scared that something was going to snap my fingers off at this point, but I think you'll probably be okay. With a melon baller (god, I wish I had a melon baller) scoop out the thistle of the choke. Really dig in there firmly and scoop out everything. This is the most disheartening part of the job because you have basically removed most of what you bought. Seriously dig in there until no fuzzy hair can be seen. Squeeze a lemon into the center all over the heart.Now soak in an acidulated bath of lemon juice and ice water until you are ready to cook.Place artichokes in stem-side up in two inches of boiling water in a big pot. Put crushed cloves of garlic, a pinch of salt, a scattering of peppercorns, a sprig of thyme, the juice of one lemon, and the juiced lemon rind into the pot. Cook for 25 minutes or so. A knife should easily pierce the base when finished. Cool artichokes and serve with homemade mayo. You may notice that I have not included a photo of the finished dish. That is because it sucked and was unimpressive. What was impressive was the waste create by the artichokes. This is for a single artichoke.

Lessons learned today:
1. I don't like mayonnaise enough to make it myself.
2. Artichokes are stupid and far too wasteful for our suddenly waste-conscious society.
3. Split-pea soup (the real dinner I had quietly simmering behind all this artochoke chaos) is really simple to make and tastes good.

April Showers Bring May Showers

2008-06-01T18:42:00.000-07:00

May flew right past me. Just a brief summation of April and May:

Finished my copyediting class

Finished teaching Kaplan

The weather has improved a bit!

I went to Boston for the first time to visit my cousin

My parents came to visit and spent a wonderful week with us

Went to Coney Island last weekend and had a wonderful time

Got a sunburn

At the moment I am gearing up for Summer, trying to plan a trip to Athens, and thinking about what to do next. One thing coming up is my new blog. More details to come.

Hope everyone is doing well. I'll try to give you a call sometime this month. I changed my cell phone numbers, and I don't think that everyone has it yet.

Happy Pasover!!!

2008-04-18T19:42:00.001-07:00

2008-04-14T17:47:00.001-07:00

I'm still trying to restructure this blog and have come across a few obstacle: 1) I read slowly 2) I don't buy new music every week 3) I'm lazy. I feel that in general my posts are reliant on my consumption of something: a song, a book, a news story, a meat loaf (see below), etc. Only through consumption can I produce a post. Well, here are some ramblings to get me started, anyway:

I made the best meatloaf that I have ever tasted. Here is the recipe:
1. Put three slices of fresh white bread (crusts removed) in the food processor and blend until all is crumbs. Put aside in bowl.
2. Put one carrot (roughly chopped), one celery stalk (strings removed, roughly chopped), one-half yellow onion (roughly chopped), two crushed garlic cloves, and one-half cup fresh chopped parsley. Blend until finely minced. Place in bowl with crumbs.
3. Add to the bowl 1/2 lb of veal, 1/2 lb of beef, 1/2 pork, 1/2 cup ketchup, salt, pepper, 2 eggs, and several teaspoons of dry mustard. Blend with hands for one minute until mixed.
4. Form a free-standing loaf on a cookie sheet (or wire rack, covered with foil or parchment, above cookie sheet).
5. Brush a glaze of brown sugar, dry mustard, and ketchup over the loaf, thinly covering.
6. Saute a sliced red onion in a little olive oil until soft. Drape onion rings on loaf.
7. Bake loaf at 400 F for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with fresh rosemary twigs, bake for 25 more minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 15 minutes.
8. Enjoy!

It was so good. Every bite is so full of flavor that you can feel it tingle for minutes afterward. I'm definitely going to make this again when a group comes over for dinner. No photos, unfortunately.

I've started to work out regularly:
I can't wait to finish my classes so that I can go to the gym on a regular basis. I would love to go 3-4 times a week, but I usually end up going 2-3. I bought a heart rate monitor that transmits my heart rate to all the machines at the gym and also to a watch on my wrist. In the past I've always had trouble burning out too quickly while running, but now I can keep myself in a healthy range and run longer. I also love taking a shower after running and emerging onto the streets of New York after a long day of work feeling completely refreshed and pleased with myself. Even now, after I've undone my work with hot dogs for dinner, my body feels better.

I've realized another long-term goal:
I would really love to start and own my own business. I know that this is a romantic idea, and that in reality owning a business is a risky and stressful endeavor that often fails, but I'm so enamored of the image of myself orchestrating a machine that works, that makes something valuable and engages the talents of a staff. It is too bad that publishing isn't quite conducive to the small-business model.

I'll keep thinking it over.

2008-04-03T19:51:00.000-07:00

John David just made us dinner and is now washing our clothes in the bathtub (long story). I'm lying in bed, thinking about this weekend and about the day I had.

Here's another review to get this blog kicking:

Title: Identical Strangers
Authors: Elyse Schein and Paula Bernstein
Imprint: Random House
Pub Date: Fall 2007
Rating: 5 of 10

Elyse and Paula were adopted separately, grew up in separate loving families, went to separate colleges, and traveled the world on separate trips. Then in their mid 30s they met each other, and "separate" went away. They had the same full, dark hair, the same smile, the same mannerisms, and the same DNA. They were twins.

The book begins at their discovery and follows their paths as they criss-cross, collide, swerve, and steady, trying to make room for each other and their now inseparable baggage. Each woman takes a turn in the narration, presenting an anecdote or key point in the plot and then letting her twin take over. Well done, I felt, and worth a read if you like this sort of human interest story. I also liked that neither strayed too far from the their shared story. There was a balance of voices that worked well, that built a worthwhile story; they maintained an even tone despite their emotional voyage and allowed each other to speak and address their issues with an honored space. In a way, their narrative voices paralleled their developing relationship. At first speaking almost at cross purposes, the two voices later align as the book closes (while still maintaining their distinct character). Though the end isn't set off with fireworks (and thank god), I left the book satisfied and settled. In general, a solid read.

2008-04-02T10:58:00.000-07:00

John David has been bugging me to post more regularly, so I have decided to write more reviews and reports. So, here is to new attempts at keeping this blog running.

Today I will be reviewing a new album.

Title: Teraphonic Overdubs
Artist: Chris Joss
Release Date: Sept. 2007
Label: ELS
Rating: 6.5 of 10

Author info (from allmusic.com):
"Frenchman/producer/multi-instrumentalist Chris Joss constructs funky downtempo music that's heavily influenced by the film music of Lalo Schifrin, John Barry, and Quincy Jones. Joss made his debut in 1996 with The Man With a Suitcase. Dr. Rhythm appeared in 2002 and was followed two years later by the soulful You've Been Spiked. That same year, You've Been Spiked was picked-up for an American re-release by the ESL label, home of the like-minded Thievery Corporation."

Review:
Fabulous percussion and unique melodies (a bouncing mix of guitars and loops, light "la-la-la" vocals, and an array of world instruments) make this a wonderful album to hear in the store and on the stereo the first couple of times. Lack of strong, concise song structure makes this a less satisfying listen afterward (but maybe that is my downfall when it comes to instrumental music). In general it reminds me of a really great instrumental remix of Broadcast and Blaxploitation artists. Every song is good, but none hits the mark completely. Some songs come close: "I Want Freedom," "Count the Daisies," "Summer Springs," and "Luna Rides Back." All good, but I wouldn't play them at my wedding or anything.

2008-03-26T18:13:00.000-07:00

I suppose I am writing posts on a monthly basis at this point. Not because there is nothing going on in my life--the last few weeks have been quite fun--but because I've been feeling very insular the last couple of months. It is hard to have a group of friends in this city. The whole Seinfeld model of friendship, of people dropping in and out of apartments, of friends meeting up regularly at Tom's Restaurant, seems impossible to me. Perhaps it is just an old model of New York, one in which friends lived in the same neighborhood, went to the same restaurants, and saw one another on the subway. That doesn't happen now. No one in my friend group lives in the same area.

Luckily, in the last few weeks I've had visitors! Edward stayed with John David and I for a few days. A week later Rachael and Erin came up to visit. A week later one of John David's college friends stayed with us. It has been nice to socialize again, and I realize how important steady friendship is. So, I've added a new goal to my 2008 list: Be more proactive about friendship.

I've been doing pretty well with my other goals. I've been trying to become healthier and fitter. I joined a really nice gym close to my work, and I have been going 3-4 times a week. I've been making better choices about food. Unfortunately, I got sick the last couple of days, so I haven't been able to maintain the momentum I started last week, but I am still hopeful. My copyediting class is going well. My Kaplan class is going well. My knitting is still in progress (I've taken a break from it with all these visitors). So, my hope the next few months is to get well, get healthy, and get more friends.
We shall see.

2008-02-22T15:13:00.001-08:00

It has been a fairly temperate winter in New York. Rarely freezing, usually chilly, and very little snow. Imagine my surprise when I looked out of my window this morning and saw a blanket of white:

Fortunately, I was well prepared with snow boots and a thick scarf. It snowed all day, and it was lovely watching the flakes twirl in the air from the 12th floor of my building. Inside my building was not so lovely:

I am now working on two paperback books, both of which will come out some time in June. Seeing the process of making a book has been very exciting, and I can't wait to take on more projects. Yay weekends.

2008-02-17T13:15:00.000-08:00

FURNITURE!

Wonderful wonderful furniture!

And cookies:

Pecan linzer cookies with raspberry filling. Yum. Happy Valentine's Day. Happy President's Day.

2008-02-06T10:18:00.000-08:00

Howdy. Just about to finish another hat (above). Not a great hat, but I did learn a bit about how patterns work, so I think I am ready to make the big leap and knit a sweater. Something simple but nice. It is a little daunting, since many sweater patterns call for up to 12 balls fo yarn. Quite an expensive endeavor. More info to come on that soon.

John David and I now have furniture! I'll try to post pictures soon.

Yes, after two months of sitting on the floor to eat, watch tv, knit, read, etc., we have a couch. We also have chairs, and a kitchen table, side tables, a tv stand, and a kitchen unit. A home! John David wants to paint all the walls, and I would love to start getting things like lamps, rugs, and curtains.

Alright, I'll must return to work. I've got my first copyediting class tonight, and a concert to go to. Quite a packed evening.

2008-01-25T08:04:00.000-08:00

I finally finished these projects: cabled scarf and a sock. I also just got this in the mail:

An interchangeable set of circular knitting needles. Yay projects.

Work is going well. This week my boss assigned me a book to work on! I'm very excited. It is a paperback conversion of a hardcover edition that we printed last year. I get to usher the book into its paperback stage. I took today off work. Got to sleep in. Very nice.

I start teaching my SAT class in the Bronx next weekend. Tomorrow there is an informational meeting for the students, and I'm going to that. I'm a little worried about heading into the Bronx, the only borough I haven't visited before, but it seems like a good school. I'm not sure how I should act. Sidney Poitier in To Sir, with Love? Michelle Pfeiffer in Dangerous Minds? Edward James Olmos in Stand and Deliver? Certainly not Richard Dreyfuss in Mr. Holland's Opus. We shall see.

Next week I also start my copyediting class. I just hope it isn't horribly boring. That is my one wish.

What else? What else is going on?

John David and I got some furniture. Some guy in our building faked his suicide in order to leave his wife. When she found out that he was still alive, she decided to get rid of everything and move. So, we ended up taking some of her furniture, including: a bed stand, a bookshelf, a rolling kitchen unit, and a dresser. John David's friend Trey also brought us a chair and desk to use (very nice). John David also ordered a bunch of furniture online from Ikea. Hopefully, that stuff will arrive sometime next months. Hurray! We couldn't make it out to Georgia this January. I'm not sure when that will happen, but it will happen at some point.

Alright. Enough rambling from me. I'm off to make lunch and think about my next knitting project.

2008-01-06T03:21:00.000-08:00

I still haven't gotten my rhythm this year. It is hard to fall asleep, it is hard to get up in the morning, and I am tired most of the day. I think my body is starting to relax and take its revenge for all the abuse I have given it the last few months. An itchy throat developed into something nasty yesterday morning, and now I can't get to sleep this cold Sunday morning. I keep on having confusing dreams about knitting, about me having to follow this knit and purl pattern that I can't keep straight. I'm also sad to see that my subconscious has absorbed all my lame hobbies.

My lame hobbies are going quite well, though, so perhaps a few bad dreams is just recompense. I am still working on that cable scarf that I posted about awhile ago. It is about 4 feet long, and I am anxious to find a stopping point. I have also started a sock, which I am very excited about. Single ribbing at the cuff, stockinette down the leg, I am about to hit the heel, which seems like a real challenge for my inchoate knitting sense.

I'm not sure why knitting has become such a large part of my daily life. I bring it to work in case I want to knit at lunch, I smile thinking about getting more knitting supplies, I knit off-and-on most evenings while half-watching TV, I get excited about the weekend because of the knitting potential. Do I have an obsessive personality? I wonder. I look back on past activities: origami (yes, I know), theatre, music, radio. I've also dropped each of those activities rapidly at some point. Still thinking about this issue. Obsession? Passion?

I'm trying to enjoy January as much as possible. Mainly because in February I'll be adding a few things to the mix. I'm enrolled in a copyediting class at NYU, which starts the same week that I begin teaching at Kaplan. Too much? I hope not. It will get me out of the house and into the city. That is a good thing. I have been staying in way too much while the city spins around me.

Suddenly I've run out of things to say. I hope everyone is well. I'd like to talk to all of you soon. I've been too much in my shell lately, and it is time for me to reconnect.

2008-01-01T15:32:00.001-08:00

Perhaps Rachael and I should have sent this out along with the tide of Christmas gifts, cards, and cookies. In our defense, Christmastide is not officially over for several more days, so in celebration of the Twelfth Night and the Epiphany, we have recorded a song for y'all.

Drummer Boiiiiiii :

Vocals: Miles and Rachael
Sleigh bells and triangle: Miles
Fat beats: Rachael

I think a longer post is definitely in order to recap the last month, but here is a list (following Rachael) of things I am grateful for from 2007 and things I am hopeful for in 2008.

Grateful:
- Saw Cirque de Soleil with my wonderful guy.
- Wrote papers not entirely at the last minute with the encouragement of John David, Rachael, Edward, Helen, Haley, and Erin.
- Enjoyed my classes and graduated without a major obstacle.
- Co-hosted the best looking theme party I have ever seen (Great Depression--Great Fun!)
- Went to the lake with friends and family (scary boat ride!).
- Finished job and trained replacement.
- Packed up all my shit, took a plane to New York.
- Went through six weeks of publishing camp and met hip cats.
- Found a good job without a panic attack.
- Survived move from one sublet to another.
- Survived second sublet.
- Learned how to knit.
- John David got job and moved up here.
- Found real place to live.
- Finished training at Kaplan.
- Survived move into real apartment.
- Enjoyed holiday season in New York.
- Spent good time with parents in Tacoma.

Hopeful:
- To get furniture and live in a comfortable place!
- To take a class on copyediting.
- To stop eating candy
- To continue knitting and learn how to make socks, a hat with flaps, mittens, and a sweater.
- To learn how to cook new, healthy meals.
- To visit Philadelphia and Chicago.
- More!!!

2007-12-10T09:52:00.000-08:00

John David and I have moved! Yes, we now live in a comfortable apartment in one of the northernmost neighborhoods of Manhattan called Washington Heights. I love it for many reasons:

1. The subway is one block away, and my new commute is 25 minutes.
2. There are two corner grocery stores, a McDonald's, a Burger King, a Dunkin Donuts, two hardware stores, a movie theatre, a Papa John's, a Dominoes, and a Duane Reade within three blocks.
3. Fort Tryon park is four blocks to the north, both overlooking the Hudson and the East Rivers and also containing the Cloisters.

We finally have a real bed (after sleeping on the floor/leaky air mattress for a week) and a TV (though no cable yet).

Also, more exciting news: Rachael and I are brewing some mischievious holiday fun to send to everyone. Don't ask us questions when we demand your holiday mailing addresses soon; just prepare to be amazed.

2007-11-29T20:52:00.000-08:00

Some photos of knitting!

Here is the scarf I made for John David. It is long! I don't understand why the scarf is always a first knitting project; so tedious during the last half.

And here is my next project. Cable knitting. Reminds me of when I did origami.

I will post more about reality next week. I have a busy weekend of packing, moving, and unpacking. I will post pictures of our new apartment soon.

2007-11-24T18:06:00.000-08:00

Wow, so much to blog about: John David arrived on Thanksgiving day, we signed a lease on our new apartment on Saturday, and now we are spending the weekend together: walking, eating, drinking, sleeping in, watching movies, trying to catch up for the last few months of separation. I'll just dig in.

Thursday:
I went to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. At first I went to Columbus Circle, which is the southwestern corner of Central Park. Huge mistake. I really cannot remember the last time I have been in the midst of such a crowd. I soon decided to move uptown, walking along the edge of Central Park glimpsing the balloons. Here is Ronald McDonald (please tilt head 90 degrees) looming through the trees over the crowd huddled along Central Park West Ave:

After the parade finished, I watched the crowd scatter through the streets and across the Great Lawn of the park. Then I read and waited for JD's flight to come in. I waited on some benches, watching artists draw the faces of tourists. Then I took the train and bus to the airport and waited in the airport.
Then he arrived!! yay
We took a taxi back to Brooklyn and collapsed on my air mattress for a long nap. At night we headed back to Manhattan to eat at Ellen's Stardust Cafe, the only place for singing waiters in Times Square. A little annoying and overpriced, but the novelty was a bit entertaining. We finished the night looking at the Christmas windows at Macy's and then walking around the Empire State building.

Friday:
We got up. Ate. Made the long trek across town to sign the lease on our apartment. Complicated and frustrating, but we've made another step and that feels good. Later that night we watched the movie Willow on youtube and ate Chinese food. We played this game on the internet: www.freerice.com. Go to it. Vocab and solving world hunger together at last.

Today:
Slept in very late. Hung about and finally made it outside. We took the subway to Coney Island. We walked along the boardwalk, looked at the closed rides and games, and crossed through Brighton Beach before heading home. Brighton Beach (aka "Little Odessa") is the Russian center of Brooklyn. All the signs are in Russian, you can order borsch if you can read cyrillic, and the pastries look wonderful. Sergey recommended I try the Napoleon cake, and I bought a brick of it from the cutest pastry shop I've seen in a while. John David reluctantly had a slice, describing it as bacterial sludge made from the chewed remains of something that once tasted good. Through my perspective: Layers of graham cracker crumbs are separated with a sweet cream cheese filling. It is a little mushy--true, John David--but I think it tastes good. We ate at the Mexican restaurant across the street, and now we are cruising the internet, chatting with friends, looking at Ikea goods, blogging, and posting photos.

These next few weeks will be difficult--I'm sure--but it is nice to have someone here. A pair of hands to help carry a heavy load. A reassuring hug. Soft sleep breathing at night. Company for the ride. I'm feeling a little better each time I think of the coming days.

2007-11-18T10:21:00.001-08:00

HATS ARE SO EASY TO MAKE!

2007-11-17T15:23:00.000-08:00

Things have taken a turn for the better here, though I don't wish to tempt fate and say that everything is working out. John David is spending his final weekend in Atlanta enjoying friends and getting ready for his big journey up here on Thanksgiving Day. I just hope that on Thursday the world is right and we have a nice time.

We have an apartment tentatively lined up. We sign the lease next weekend and hopefully all will go smoothly. It is a pretty little one-bedroom apartment, and if we are friends on flickr, you can see photos there.

Speaking of photos, look how my knitting project is coming along:

I have finished the second skein of yarn, and now I realize that I have to get a third if this is to be a true scarf. I also realize that I have until Thursday (yikes!) to finish it. We shall see.

Work is going well. Even though I haven't struck up any real friendships with my coworkers, I enjoy them all and usually have pretty good days.

I have finished classes for Kaplan, and I am almost certified to teach. Only a few more small requirements, and I will be set.

Today I cleaned my room a little bit and then knitted for hours. Nothing else. Tonight I have a small birthday dinner to go to for Betsy. Should be fun.

Last night I walked around Herald Square with some friends. We saw the Christmas menageries at Lord and Taylor, and we giggled with wide-eyed delight. Tomorrow Macy's will reveal their windows at 5:30 (we tried to peak in, but I couldn't only make out a few santa-related silhouettes (that is the first time that I have ever typed the word silhouette, strange).

Next time I see something filled with holiday spirit, I'll take a picture. I promise.

2007-11-04T15:26:00.000-08:00

New York feels a lot like Rome to me. People often use, for example, the word "character" when discussing both cities. "The city's got character." "The character of the neighborhood makes in unique and fun." "The apartment has character." Everything, it seems, has character. What they really mean, though, is that each part of the city and each apartment is really dirty an a unique way. With several exceptions (Central Park for New York, Villa Borghese for Rome, SOHO in New York, Via Veneto in Rome), each time you walk upon a new street, you feel a little disgusted. A little unsafe, too. People litter; it is a way of life passed through the generations. People will pay thousands of dollars to live in a dump with a great location. It is crowded, flooded with tourists, and expensive. And in many ways poorly run and in disrepair.

I realized this parallel "character" while waiting for a subway at 1:30am in Brooklyn. It is dirty and stuffy, and I am waiting--along with a large crowd of people--for a subway to take us farther into Brooklyn. We wait forever. A train arrives to Manhattan. A train arrives to Brooklyn; it is out of service, of course. Then a trash train blocks the Brooklyn tracks. Then another Manhattan train passes by. Then a Brooklyn train stops along the Manhattan tracks; passengers, for some reason, are not let on, and the train drives away. Five minutes later the same train (I assume) emerges, and this time we are let on. All the while the crowd maintains control with resigned patience and gossipy speculation about the mystical train to Brooklyn.

A similar--though more extreme--thing happened to me in Rome. I was kicked out of my dorm around 10am, and my train to France wouldn't leave until 11pm. Sooooo, I spent the day relaxing in the park, eating chocolate, cheese, bread, and apples I bought from the supermarket built underneath the park, and reading. By the time I arrived at the train station around 10pm, I was tired, sunburned, and dehydrated. And my train wasn't listed on the computer systems or schedule board. Passengers around me whispered in English, Italian, and French trying to figure out what was going on. No train employees in sight. I slowly gleaned from other conversations that an unmarked train would arrive around 11:30 headed to France. Around the 11:30 rolls around, and nothing. Around 12:00 an unmarked train arrives; some people get on, some people get on and then off, arguments are breaking out, and the train conductors are yelling in Italian. I do not get on; it doesn't feel right. The train leaves (but not before closing upon some exiting passengers, cut off from their families already disembarked). More arguing in Italian. 30 minutes later another unmarked train arrives. Its cars are labeled out of order, but after 15 frantic minutes, I find my car, my cabin, and my seat.

New York could never surpass the freeing disorganization and dirty beauty of Rome, but it comes close.

A couple good things to keep in mind while I am awash in this new city:

I get a ton of free books. All the time. You see this photo? That is in my room. Multiply that by three, and that is at my cubicle at work. I've already sent a box of books home, and another one is being compiled. I can't wait to buy a bookshelf.

I am getting on with the knitting. I finished my first skein, and I have to buy two more to finish this scarf for JohnDavid.

2007-10-30T16:37:00.000-07:00

It has been nearly two months since I've blogged with any real energy or result. I don't think I've wanted to process my daily experience, and I don't think I've wanted to commit it to screen/paper. Somehow writing it out for people to read makes my daily experience more inescapable. Roughly two months ago I moved from one sublet to another; in fact, that might have been one of my last larger blog posts. That was the first time I thought to myself 'OK, this is now my life. I life here now. This is my job, my commute, my grocery store. These are my things; I have to move them, and they are heavy.' In other words, I realized that I wasn't a student anymore. I finished my final test (getting a job), and now what? Not a crisis, of course, but not comfort either.

I do indeed live here. This is my job. These are my things. At the same time, however, I haven't quite found home, a career, or comfort.
I live here now.

This is my job.

These are my things.

Life has steadily improved, and I really hope that I will find my home in time to enjoy the late autumn and winter.

Some things/moments/people of note:
-I’ve taught myself how to knit, and I enjoy it very much. The people at my office are all amazing knitters, so I am rushing to join their circle of crafting and projects. I’m working on a scarf right now that John David will (imperatively) love.

-Edward came to visit NYC and had a great time. We walked all over Manhattan and felt the size of the city pounded out on our feet.

-My friends from this summer are slowly beginning to regroup and organize. I think we are all realizing that our jobs (that we all worked so hard to get) are only portions of our lives.

-I played croquet in Central Park. So much fun.

-There are two Russian Vodka bars down the street from my work. They have this slightly dangerous, dirty aristocratic elegance that I really love.

-I went to a show at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre and watched Amy Poehler perform. Very funny. And inexpensive!

-I'm halfway through training at Kaplan. Much more demanding and nerve-racking than I expected. Two more weeks.

-I reconnected with a guy I became friends with in Rome. He is now in New York. Awesome.

I have one more month of this sublet, and then I'd like to find a place to call my own. It doesn't have to be fancy, but it does have to be mine.

2007-09-23T08:41:00.000-07:00

Taking a cue from Erin, I will now do a life update in bullet-points.

-Yesterday I spent the day in Astoria hanging out with some friends: going to breakfast, watching a movie (The Weatherman with Nicholas Cage), and reading. We then all trekked back to Brooklyn where another friend was having a housewarming party. One social interaction per week, I feel, is going to be the trend. New York can be very lonely. I'm still wondering how I'm going to make this life work for me.

-I made it past the first round of Kaplan auditions, and I will soon meet up for a one-on-one interview this week. We shall see how that goes. I really need something to do after work.

-I've been reading a lot more. I get tons of free books from work (one really good perk), and I joined the company book club.

2007-09-08T10:37:00.000-07:00

I had a Tintern Abbey morning. After I got up, I lay back down in bed, closed my eyes, and tried to remember the last several years starting with the first year of college. I reimagined my room, the Myers building, the dining halls (long tables of people, loud laughing, Sunday brunch), my walking routes to class, the buses, classes, where everyone lived, classmates, events, constructions, my habits, seasonal changes, the trees, etc. I stirred up those particular sharp feelings. Not bad, but like a familiar smell that never quite points to one thing but opens up a world of memories. At first I was sad because I opened my eyes and felt really alone and without a center in my room. In the process of thinking about people I should reconnect with, however, I realized that I have felt this way several times in my life, especially during moves. When I moved to Atlanta, I felt this way (and thinking back, I remember how wonderful my years in Arizona were), I felt this way when I left Seattle as a child, and I even felt this way during the first year of college after I had left my high school friends and my family in Atlanta.

New York has not quite wowed my yet. I am still in survival mode, still learning a new job, moving from sublet to sublet, still trying to make connections. I'm sure I'll look back on this time of my life with nostalgia, closing my eyes and trying to retrace these sublets, my office, Columbia, New York, first friends, etc.

I think I'll go to the park and try to relax.

2007-09-02T22:50:00.001-07:00

At first I heard a couple howling screams and then a loud boom. I thought to myself while I was lying on my airmattress trying to fall asleep, "Am I about to witness my first shooting?" At that moment my air conditioner starts to turn. It sounds louder than normal, fuller somehow. No wait, that is just the subway outside. No wait, it is too loud for the subway. That is a group of people chanting and screaming. I get out of bed and look from the living room windows, which have a view to the street. I see outside an entire Afro-Caribbean neighborhood parading down the street. Chants. Air horns. Ululation. Shrieks. Stamping. Loud drums. Many loud drums. Many many loud drums.

It wasn't violent or out of control. It wasn't long. It came and went in a manner of minutes. Only an occasional shout or horn can now be heard. I was just completely surprised.

Time for bed.

2007-09-01T17:28:00.000-07:00

My muscles ache- ach!- and I am walking around my new apartment in a daze. What a day.

Up at 7:30 to finish packing all my stuff, I am shoving random crap into shopping bags and boxes. Amazing how much clutter I allow myself. I divide my things into several trips and leave around 8:30 for the subway, carrying a full suitcase, my air mattress, my bedding, my computer/electronics bag, and a large cloth bag full to the hem with books. A five-block walk and a short subway ride later, I arrive at my new home, pick up my keys, and begin the whole process again. On the second trip I carry another full suitcase, my pillows, my bathroom/extra crap bags, another large cloth bag filled to the hem with books, and my hanging file cube. Aside from a brief spill of my files on the floor of the subway station, the second trip moves without a problem. I am getting exhausted at this point.

When I return to my old sublet, I have two things left: an extra box of heavy crap and my air conditioner packed back inside of its box. I drop off keys, receive my security deposit, and call a car service. I lug these boxes down the three flights of stairs (forgot to mention that before) and onto the street corner. Several minutes later a sedan pulls up, opens its trunk, and then we are on our way. After misunderstanding me and arguing for several moments, the driver heads in the right direction on the right street, which is conveniently blocked by the once-a-year West Indian cultural parade of Brooklyn. This moment: forehead in hands, exasperation.

We find a detour and pull up. I pay. I cross the street and almost collapse under the weight of both boxes. Kind neighbors help me bring everything into the building, and I find myself sliding the boxes along the hallway and into my new place.

I unpack, I make a couple calls from bed, and I eat a big burrito. I fall asleep and have another worry-caused dream in which I imagine that part of the rent includes picking up various packages from around town and deliver them to strange management firms. And now I am awake. I don't want to go out, I don't want to eat dinner; I don't know what to do.

My muscles ache- ach!- and I am walking around my new apartment in a daze. What a day.

2007-08-17T22:15:00.000-07:00

I've been so restless these last couple of days. Have I forgotten how to relax? I remember loving summer days in high school: wake up at noon, eat whatever was in the fridge, watch tv for several hours, take a walk, listen to music, go on the internet, eat with family, watch tv for several hours, listen to music, go to sleep. What a life! Somewhere between then and now--through a first job, high school graduation, moving, college, moving, a second job, moving, more college, moving, a third job, moving, more college, moving, a fourth job, graduation, moving, more school, moving, and job searching--I lost track of how to putz around for hours and love it. Right now it is my goal to retrain that ability before I get caught up in the cycle.

This is a perfect time to think about this for several reasons:
1. John David is coming to visit tomorrow, and I want to relax, show him around town, and have a lot of fun.
2. I've finally adjusted to my sublet and have made a comfortable nest for myself (for at least 15 more days, but let's not think about that).
3. I got a job! Yessssssssssughgughgughghgg. Big sigh of relief, and happiness. I'll be working for a division of Random House called Crown. It is a great job, and I start on Wednesday.

So yeah, time to chill. Any suggestions?

2007-08-15T08:56:00.000-07:00

Things are about to hit critical mass. More on that soon.

I've never payed much attention to Feist. She never quite had the same mood that Cat Power had, and so I was fine sticking with Cat Power. This recent single "My Moon My Man" has changed my mind. I am a sucker for subtle and simple atmospheric compositions: Cat Power and Erik Satie come to my mind first as favorites. I think Leslie Feist has really hit the perfect note, and the video is really good (think OK Go and that Fatboy Slim video with Christopher Walken and others)

I'll definitely consider buying the new album now.

Right now I am just waiting for phone calls and emails. I hope this weekend is my breath of relief.

2007-08-13T13:46:00.000-07:00

Today's blog is about exciting new things.
First of all, the latest single from one of my favorite bands The Go! Team

They are playing at the end of October in both Brooklyn and Manhattan. Egads, I must go.

Next, the Espresso Paperback Machine, the first on-demand commercial book printer in the world. For a plodding video of this new machine, please copy this address into your browser:
http://www.ondemandbooks.com/perfectbook.mov

Third, the TurboBroiler:
This machine somehow cooks meat very evenly and very quickly. My roommate, who owns it, does not know how it works, but she says that every Filipino family owns one. I swear, it cooks a great burger in 5-7 minutes.

Finally, on the life front, things are moving ahead really well. John David has an interview sometime next week. I have a second interview for an exciting job tomorrow morning. I hope everything works out. Monday is the hardest day when looking for a job. Everyone else is out and about, working and contributing to society, while you wait for someone in a mysterious office to make a move, give you a call, email you, whatever.

Hopefully this will be my last jobless Monday.

2007-08-11T12:23:00.000-07:00

Big gasp of relief here in New York. After several weeks of painful heat, things are beginning to cool down. Yesterday it drizzled all day and all night. This proved annoying while I rushed around the city for an interview and phone interview. My big, borrowed umbrella was caught in a tug of war between me and the wind. I made it through the day without a scratch or splash, however, and spent the evening at Jess's house in New Jersey. A nice day. A nice night. Aaaaaaaaannnnnnnddddddd . . . a very nice morning:
Ignore the window screen and focus on several facts. First, my window is open, and the cool air is floating through my apartment. It is almost like spring. Next, see the sky, how it shines, cloudless. Very pretty outside, and though this neighborhood is wearing a little thin on me, I'm definitely going to take a walk as soon as I change (I know, I know, it is already 3:30, but I've been taking it easy).

It has been a long week, and though I haven't found a job yet (perhaps that is next week's goal), I've had a good time. I've stayed in contact with friends, discovered a cheap dumpling place, and visited New Jersey for the first time in my life. I spent an afternoon in Hoboken, NJ, in fact, which is surprisingly small (about one or two square miles) and holds the honor of being Frank Sinatra's birthplace.

I'm going to start a weekly feature where I explore a specific monument of New York. Soon to come is the Brooklyn Bridge. I need more time to get this together, so please be patient.

The job search is taxing. I am often tired and worried about the coming weeks. I know all the pieces will fall into place, but I am just at a moment when these pieces haven't all arrived, or they are obscured. So now I'm waiting and hoping that when they do come or come within grasp, I will know what to do. I just have to be strong, honest, and ready to make something good out of what opportunities arise.

I hope all is well with you.

2007-08-06T07:53:00.000-07:00

In one of my classes I read selections from Dorothy Wordsworth's Grasmere Journals. I remember being both bored and amazed by her lifestyle: gardening, letter writing, poem transcribing, letter writing, walking, eating, letter writing. That's about it. What a strange daily life. There was such a sturdy difference between that world and mine, I thought.

Today I feel differently. I have no job. It is raining. The cable is broken. Today I woke up, put on a clean shirt, read, stared off, checked my email, read, made a phone call, read, stared off, checked my email, and now I'm blogging. I think I might take a walk later, perhaps after reading, staring off, and checking my email. It isn't even noon yet, and I am not even Dorothy Wordsworth. I don't have a garden. That may be the problem.

Or perhaps this morning just seems slow because yesterday was so fun. I went to a free concert day in Brooklyn. During the summer they hold these "beach party" festivals in a gigantic abandoned pool.

I got there very early (2PM) and waited in a very long line for a very long time. Inside the promoters had set up a waterslide, a water volleyball net, and a dodgeball court. Stands along the perimeter sold overpriced hotdogs, hamburgers, beer, and water. The opening band really didn't catch my eye or my ear, but the second act I'm from Barcelona was really fun. It reminded me of the fun Athens collective bands I am now missing. They even threw beach balls into the audience:

When I figured out how to use zoom, I could actually get a shot of the band. Here is my favorite out of the group:

I was lucky enough to run into some CPC kids there and finally had some company among the huge crowd. After a long break, Blonde Redhead finally came on stage and really gave a good show. I haven't bought the new album yet, but I think it will be my next CD purchase. This was a good idea to go. I had been trapped in my apartment living my Dorothy Wordsworth life for two days before Sunday, and I was ready to get out.

One final note:
I'm sure everyone is relieved to hear that the hipster clap is still well and alive in Brooklyn, along with skull-fitting, angular haircuts and $100 shirts that look like they came out of the dumpster. Great people watching, though. All the cool kids from Brooklyn and Manhattan seemed to be there, and as the beginning snare and whistle of Peter, Bjorn, and John's "Young Folks" spread from the concert PAs, I could hear faint, fanboy screams reverberate across the peeling pool floor:

2007-08-04T18:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, today, and tomorrow I am taking a short break from job searching and job worrying. Good thing, too, because this week has been a maelstrom of online applications, interviews, temp agencies, and resumes. For example:

See here Miles in his natural habitat, pawing gracelessly at the computer screen. Give me a job. *scratch scratch*

This weekend has been nice. Friday I read in bed and made a visit to my friend's birthday party in Astoria. Today I also read in bed, finishing off Chabon's new book and starting another. Don't think I've grown soft, though. I also took a long walk around the neighborhood, snapped some pictures, ate at a Greek diner, and picked up dry cleaning. Here are the fruits of today's labor:

This is the diner I live above. In the morning, the stairs are swamped with a cloud of grease, hot diner air, and flies. Luckily, they close around 4. I have yet to eat here; I already spend too much time eating junk food in this building.

So easily I pass into another neighborhood, one with a completely different feeling and with completely different people.

A Saturday market in front of the Brooklyn triumph.

One of the large lawns of Prospect Park. I have yet to spend much time here. It doesn't quite have the same blissful atmosphere of Central Park, but perhaps I will change my mind over time.

Alright, enough quickly-shot photos. Tomorrow I am going to a free Blonde Redhead concert in Brooklyn. I am looking forward to being outside of the apartment for more than a couple hours.

2007-07-31T17:28:00.000-07:00

Things seems to be moving so slowly in my little world. Perhaps this is my desire to speed through these next few weeks and to suddenly find myself with a job, a furnished room, and a John David.

After the first full night of sleep all week, I woke up this morning and went to the career fair at Columbia. Lots of booths, books, and resumes. Though only a few companies really had what I am looking for, I feel good about the contacts I made. I'm excited to work in a cool office and join a team.

Funny story:
As I was walking down the street from Columbia in pursuit of a bagel, a woman along the sidewalk asked me, "Is that a University of Georgia bag?" It turns out this woman went to UGA many years ago. Even more, she moved to New York to work in publishing and for many years worked for Scholastic. We talked very briefly about what I was doing in New York, about Columbia, about the job search. Then she said she would pass my name along, and I gave her my resume. Very strange; I hope I wasn't too forward.

Funny how connections happen out of the blue.

Alright, I don't have much more to say. Another early morning tomorrow (up by 7AM three days in a row--unheard of), an interview/meeting, and a formal reception. I have set things in motion, and now there's a moment of anxious hope that everything lines up right.

2007-07-29T17:02:00.000-07:00

It is a rainy day in Brooklyn, and I am sitting in my room wondering anxiously what I should be doing. I finished my program at Columbia on Friday. We had a final banquet and received one of these suckers:

Hooray-ya-yay
The last 48 hours have pretty difficult. I had to be out of the Columbia dorms by 10AM on Saturday, but I didn't end up packing until a few hours before that deadline. Foolish perhaps, but I cleaned up, sorted everything, and was out just in time. I shared a cab with a friend and headed to Brooklyn. I dropped off my things, took a shower, and began walking toward the mall in order to get an air mattress. The Atlantic Center mall is located five blocks from my house. I didn't realize this until yesterday, and I am so thankful for the convenience. Other residents of Brooklyn, however, are not so thankful. It is another recent development that people think are marring the city's character. In fact, I am living right next to one of Brooklyn's most ambitious building projects in history, the Brooklyn Arena and Gehry complex:
I live on Vanderbilt and Dean, directly on the lower right corner of the map. Most of Brooklyn's buildings are about 4 stories, with a few going up to no more than 10 stories. Imagine, then, this in the middle of the Brooklyn Brownstones:

We shall see how that works out.

Anyway, got my mattress, carried it home, and then took the subway back to Manhattan to see Rachael and Shannon:

I realize that these photos are sideways, but I'm not motivated enough to alter them in photoshop, so just tilt your head. We hung out in Union Square Park, walked through a farmers market, and ended up in Madison Square Park. After lying on the grass and talking, we took the subway to Brooklyn, visited my apartment, and ate a great meal at a local cafe.
After Shannon left, Rachael and I bought some ice cream and watched tv. We soon realized that my apartment is extremely hot. My roommate has a small cooler in her room to battle the heat. Smart, very smart.

I slept with a spray bottle and periodically sprayed myself while we listened to the Saturday night racket outside my windows. It was awful. The first thing Rachael and I did in the morning was walk to the mall and purchase an air conditioner:
You see it here nestled in my window hard at work. A very long ordeal, however, was involved to get it to this place. I didn't realize how hard it is to carry a full window-sized air conditioner. Very heavy to lug five blocks. Then it started to pour outside. This was a low moment. After several anxious moments of lugging an air conditioner along the street while cabs sped past, we finally hailed a cab and got home. Tough day.

Things are getting better, though. My room is wonderfully cool. Rachael and I had a nice meal before we parted. I bought groceries and talked to my parents and John David. I took a nice nap and a hot shower. Now I am thinking of tomorrow: a cool interview, fresh laundered clothes, and a clean room. I'm looking forward to it.

2007-07-21T11:28:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,

This blog has been a void for quite awhile. I haven't had the time to fully process everything that has happened in the last few weeks. Perhaps after some time I will begin to formulate some anecdotes for y'all.

We have just finished the magazine portion of the course, which was a refreshing change from books but nonetheless stressful. I was the art director in the men's magazine group. We created JACK, a hip road trip magazine that melded the content of a travel magazine with the attitude of a men's magazine. I had to create a logo, two covers, a feature spread, and a table of contents. Click the links below to download my work.

http://philos.myweb.uga.edu/featurespread.pdf
http://philos.myweb.uga.edu/NEW%20COVER%20SAMPLE%20-%20DESERT.pdf
http://philos.myweb.uga.edu/NEW%20SAMPLE%20-%20CRUDE.pdf
http://philos.myweb.uga.edu/TABLE%20OF%20CONTENTS.pdf

On my computer, you can see the frame lines in the pdfs. Let's ignore those, shall we?

I found a sublet for August in Prospect Heights in Brooklyn. hooray.
I haven't found a job yet. sad.

I've been reading an oral history of New York covering the years between 1890 to WWII. The book is divided into chapters that each focus on a distinct neighborhood. I finished the Lower East Side the other day. Pretty intense place in its day. Gang wars. Murders. Rampant thieving. Egg creams. All very interesting except for the extended section on pickles, herring, and potatoes, which seems to have been the primary diet of most people. Right now I'm reading about the Upper East Side, which was, in contrast with the LES, one of the most wealthy areas. Carriages. Balls. Registries. Calling cards. All very surreal.

New York has this strange place in American culture. There is this pressure to not be a tourist, to be a New Yorker, and real New Yorkers are so proud of their connection to this city. And yet, most families who immigrated to the US up until WWII probably lived in New York. I just found out that my great great grandfather and his family owned a rare book store in Bryant Park. New York was the passage through which people entered a completely new world, and this has really made New York the cultural center it is. Everyone can point back to it somehow. I suppose this is fairly obvious, but I am just now understanding what that really means.

Well, I'm off now. More posts to come, I promise.

2007-07-02T00:18:00.001-07:00

Busy and frustrating day. I did email back and forth with Kathy Griffin's agent, though, which is cool. Tired, tired, tired.

2007-06-30T23:34:00.001-07:00

The past few days have been extremely busy. It is 2:30 AM, but this is the only time I have to myself.

The book workshop began on Friday. I am the CEO/Publisher for my mock publishing house, which means I have to oversea the development of six book titles and the creation of a nonfiction general trade imprint (somewhat like in Random House or HarperCollins) by Friday. Stressful. I just finished working an hour ago. There are about ten people in the house, and they are extremely talented and intelligent. I will post some of our ideas once they are approved and in production.

And a couple of announcements:

It is Miles birthday today! Yay!

I got pinkeye on Thursday! sad . . .

Alright, I must sleep. I love you all.

bye,
Miles

Interview

2007-06-19T14:14:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling a lot stronger today. Though I still woke up way too early because of the morning sun, I slept much better last night. Hooray. I still need a blanket.

Earlier today we had a lecture about resume writing and interview techniques. The speaker made me quite nervous. She described horror stories and prepared us for the worst interview questions. Luckily my interview went very well. I met with two people and chatted loosely about the company and myself. They were comfortable and interesting. We shall see.

I got to ride the subway for the first time today, taking it from the Columbia stop all the way down to Wall St. It reminded me a little of Paris, and now I am more excited to move here.

I have dinner in a few moments and then a lecture by Bob Gottlieb. Fun stuff.

2007-06-18T10:44:00.000-07:00

The haste of the last few days is finally catching up with me. I am tired and miss John David and my roommates. I remember being very sad leaving the dorms a few years ago and have often wanted those moments again. Moving suddenly back into the dorms, however, reminds me of how difficult those times were. A constant barrage of people every time I open my door. To escape I have close myself in my small room. It is Monday, and already I am overwhelmed and weary of constant introductions and publishing talk.

I have met some very cool people, and my excitement for the next few weeks is steadily increasing.

My interview is tomorrow, and I am extremely nervous. I just need t relax, compose, and enjoy my time here.

More later. Another lecture is about to begin.

Columbia!

2007-06-17T11:25:00.000-07:00

Alright. I'm here. The plane flight was really chill and surprisingly short. Flying over New York was a wonderful feeling. As we were approaching our destination, I kept looking for a recognizable point. About fifteen minutes before we landed, I saw the Statue of Liberty. Awesome.

Quick taxi cab to Columbia. Quick check in. Quick move in (I labored over packing for so long last night, only to unpack in about five minutes). I took a quick walk around the perimeter of Columbia. They are shooting some sort of video on the main quad. All the actors look like regular white kids. All the production members are Indian. They are dancing now. Outside. Very strange.

Well, I'm very restless. The other CPC students and I give each other sidelong glances (or maybe I'm just glancing), but I haven't officially met anybody yet. Alright, time to go find something to do.

2007-06-13T12:31:00.000-07:00

Yay for

Hotlanta

This past weekend JD and I packed all my belongings and, with the help of Erin and Haley, moved all my shit into storage. It is over.

I have spent the last few days sleeping in, doing homework, relearning how to drive in Atlanta, watching tv, being fat, and buying supplies for New York. My flight is Sunday, school starts Monday, and my interview happens on Tuesday. Funny how important events tend to happen all at the same time.

I've become a craigslist addict recently. In fact, I'm going to look at apartments right now.

2007-06-07T15:38:00.000-07:00

I have held off worry for quite awhile. It wasn't until yesterday that I had my first anxious pang about the next few days/seven weeks/six months. I could describe all the shit I have to do, but really I shouldn't be writing about it; I should be doing it.

Ok, I'll just start.

2007-05-31T22:15:00.000-07:00

I'm currently going through all my shit. Though it hurts me, I'm gonna hafta throw my seal away. Alas.

The best art project I've ever done.

2007-05-29T19:26:00.000-07:00

Is this gauche? I hope not. Our bathroom has become the most vibrant part of our house. I promise to maintain bathroom graffiti as a way of life from now on.

2007-05-27T16:53:00.000-07:00

What an eventful last few days. (This post will most likely become a superficial list; I apologize.)

-Thursday my friend gave birth to a beautiful girl.
That evening my roommate and I drove a large budget truck, which was filled with all of her things, down to Atlanta and hung out with her folks. We then went downtown and checked in at the hospital. We talked with our friend and looked at the her baby. So tiny! Cute cute cute. We then met up with a couple of our high school friends in Midtown. When we noticed how late it was getting, we drove back to Athens, returned the truck, and went downtown. After celebrating a friend's birthday party for a couple of hours, we crashed.

-Friday my roommates and I threw our last party together.
I got up early, went to work, and finished several projects. JD picked me up (he did a lot of driving this weekend, and I really appreciate him), and we began to get stuff together. Balloons, streamers, alcohol, Depression-era blues, twine, dirty clothes, newspapers, rags, and cardboard boxes--we constructed the finest crack den/shanty town the world has seen.

-Saturday our friends got married.
We got up early, still under the weather from the night. Washed and dressed in our finest, we drove to Atlanta and celebrated our friends' marriage. The ceremony and reception were beautiful. Quite wonderful. After the wedding, we realized Herbie Hancock was giving a free show in Piedmont Park. We walked through the crowded park, ate carnival food, and watched a great show under the stars.

-Sunday JD and I putzed around.
After sleeping in, we walked to brunch. Then we made a quick trip to the museum, where we saw the Annie Leibovitz exhibit and a traveling show from the Louvre. We drove home, and I cleaned up the house. I love mopping.

A birth, moving out, a birthday, a party, a marriage, music, art, eating, drinking, mopping--this weekend had it all. I am tired but glad.

2007-05-21T14:42:00.001-07:00

Trout (for reference) with very large package from New York.

Uuuuuhhhhghghghghghghghghhhhhhh . . .

I'll be totally cool. Just gotta breath and work. Make it fun.

I think I might spend some time in Atlanta next week after the party and the wedding.

Alright, I'm bored now

Bark/Sneeze

2007-05-21T00:24:00.000-07:00

Pandas are loud. And cute:

Another weekend has passed. Nothing too exciting happened: bridal shower, cleaning, and sleeping in. My roommates and I have decided to throw an end-of-the-term party. The theme is the Great Depression. Our invitation: "Party at Hooverville: Great Depression--Great Fun."

We've also spread out bathroom graffiti to the walls. Expect pictures of crude drawings.

Cleaning and Cards

2007-05-19T15:47:00.001-07:00

Something remarkable happened today:

They may seem like two ordinary fileboxes, filled with colorful folders, well-ordered labels, and various documents. Until today, however, they were simply a fantasy.

For the last few years, I have slowly accumulated a pile of notebooks, photos, bills, letters, and general crap, all of which I have pushed from one corner to another. Perhaps the realization that I will have to move all this shit across country--not just across town--helped motivate me. Perhaps this newly-reclaimed free time is unleashing a new zeal for organization. Either way, I am quite relieved and looking forward to recycling all this rubbish:

Wow, this post is kind of boring; it's about files. I'll finish with a quote I took from a photocopied selection about political power and tactics in Saul Alinsky's _Rules for Radicals_: "Power has always derived from two main sources, money and people. Lacking money, the Have-Nots must build power from their own flesh and blood. A mass movement expresses itself with mass tactics. Against the finesse and sophistication of the status quo, the Have-Nots have always had to club their way. In early Renaissance Italy the playing cards showed swords for the nobility (the word spade is a corruption of the Italian word for sword), chalices (which became hearts) for the clergy, diamonds for the merchants, and clubs as the symbol of the peasants." I don't know nothin' bout them politics, but the card tidbit is interesting.

2007-05-17T07:45:00.000-07:00

Couldn't sleep at all last night. I eventually got out of bed and watched Watership Down on YouTube. Psychic rabbits are awesome.

My parents are returning to Tacoma today, after a week-long visit for graduation. I really enjoyed having them, and I am glad we worked on my loans for this summer (shit, y'all, New York's spensive). I'll just be indebted to everyone forever, but at least I won't be in rural Georgia another year.

I think I'm going to learn more about the color field painters.

Sure, my boyfriend makes fun of me for liking seemingly incoherent blobs of color, but I can't help it. Plus I need something to distract me from work, cleaning, packing, assignments, and all that.

2007-05-10T18:48:00.000-07:00

All six of us are currently cleaning out the house for our party on Saturday. This means, unfortunately, that we are throwing away all of our prized bathroom mags, filled with irreverent graffiti. Here are some of my favorites. Please excuse the poor scan quality.

This is from our favorite issue of Vogue, which included a special on rainjackets, one of which looks exactly like the Abu Ghrab prison torture. Judge for yourself.

The lift-out quote: "An anorak is a way of adding an unexpectedly fizzy jolt to an otherwise prosaic outfit." Haley added the noose for emphasis.

Finally, our favorite magazine, Life & Style:
Oh, and here is an interesting (and completely unrelated) fact. I was downtown with my professor, his wife, and a couple classmates. He told me that the little old woman who says "Hush" in the book Goodnight Moon is Gertrude Stein. I never knew.

2007-05-07T22:54:00.000-07:00

Wow, I wish I had such dedication:

http://www.c71123.com/daily_photo/

And links to other "obsessive photo projects":

http://www.c71123.com/daily_photo/links.php

A dream from 9 May 1980:

"I am involved in some kind of race or chase. There are 3 teams and we are trying to get to Japan first and we have bicycles . . . The event starts out somewhere in the desert (I guess Palmdale)and the other two teams have a definite advantage because they have the money to take jet planes there . . . They both take off and are on their way to Japan--a friend tells me of a way to get over . . . I take apart my bicycle and put all the different parts in packages, then I put my body inside some kind of tractor tire that was being shipped to Japan. It was kind of scary at first, I was being rolled around a whole lot, but I got used to it . . . I arrive in Japan and Tokyo is one huge shopping center with lots of people with cameras . . . They seemed like tourists in their own towns. I get picked up by my teammate, who is Woody Allen and his son, who is a nice, bright, funny kid . . . Slowly we arrange the bicycle parts aright again and head for the finish line . . . We find out that the other teams have not gotten there yet. We are happy and don't care if we win, but glad that the race will be a close one."

A diary entry from 18 May 2006:

"In my hotel room, watching Italian MTV. Today was a long stretch of walking, which is refreshing compared with yesterday, a day of little movement across broad expanses of space and time. After checking my bag in Heathrow, I sat in the international departures wing of the airport for two hours, waiting for a gate to be assigned to my flight. I spent this time boy-watching, for the most part. When I got on the plane, I was ready for it all to be done. After a long (it seemed so) flight, a long train ride, and a long walk through the hectic streets of Rome, I finally reached the hotel and collapsed. The watchman brought me to my room, turned on the tv, turned the channel to the soccer game, and said, "Finale!" Fell asleep immediately, a sleep of death that left me confused when I woke up at 6AM. Figured out how to call home and did so. Had breakfast with il professore and then headed out. Early in the morning, I visited the Trevi Fountain, la Piazza di Populo, la Villa Borghese, the Spanish steps, the Roman Forum, the Colosseum, and the park surrounding the Domus Aurea. At a spinach calzone and took a three hour nap at the hotel. The Katies then knocked upon my door, and we took another long walk. Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and the Villa Borghese. As the sun set we came upon the temple to Aesclepius in the Villa. Gorgeous. We then walked home in the dark, ate a pita at a nearby restaurant. Sat in my room, watched TV, wrote. Great day. Hot Chip's "Over and Over" and Fabri Fibra's "Applausi per Fibra" play repeatedly on the tv as I fall asleep."

I'm a lazy documenter. I dislike photos and diaries; they ruin the moment for me. Looking back on my experiences, though, I wish I had more evidence. Perhaps I can begin to strike a balance between living in the moment and keeping a record for the future.

2007-05-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

In true Miles fashion, I procrastinated on the very last paper of my undergraduate career. Surely I would pull through for this one, make a final valiant effort to work ahead of time. No way. Wrote two pages last night, ten today. Turned it in thirty minutes late. Oddly, there is no guilt whatsoever. I honor my priorities, which do not include seventeenth century royalist poets. Dommage.

Alright, I'm off to get some late lunch and finish some work, which includes installing a new scanner for my office. Excited!

Word I learned today:

Puncheon:
I. Name of various pointed or piercing instruments.
1. A short piercing weapon; a dagger.
2. a. A pointed tool for piercing; a bodkin.
b. A marble-worker's tool, ? a mason's pointed chisel. Now rare.
c. A graving tool, a burin
3. An instrument for punching or stamping figures, letters, etc. on plate or other material; also, for making dies for coining and matrices for casting type
4. A short upright piece of timber in a wooden framing which serves to stiffen one or more long timbers or to support or transmit a load; a supporting post; a post supporting the roof in a coal-mine; formerly also a door-post.

Also:
A large cask for liquids, fish, etc.; spec. one of a definite capacity, varying for different liquids and commodities.

As a liquid measure it varied from 72 (beer) to 120 (whisky) gallons.
Thanks, OED. Another word I'll never use.

Cool and weird, ceird:

2007-05-04T19:51:00.000-07:00

Today was luxurious: sleeping in, lunch at home, easy project at work, margaritas, art show, and more.

I even learned something at work:

"Qoppa is an obsolete letter of the Greek alphabet and has a numeric value of 90. It has been attested in early Aeolic and Boeotian scripts, while the sound [kʷ] is attested in the Linear B syllabary. Greek dropped the sound, a labial-velar plosive, it presented in the post-Mycenaean era, and the letter survived for a few more centuries in certain dialects before becoming altogether extinct by pre-Classical times. There are two very different glyphs for qoppa: "archaic Qoppa" (Ϙ ϙ) used to write words and "Numeric Qoppa" (Ϟ ϟ) used in modern Greek legal documentation.

Qoppa was originally borrowed from the Phoenicians, who had /q/ (a voiceless uvular adoptedplosive) in their language. It was later imported into the Etruscan alphabet, and through this eventually into the Latin alphabet, in its current form Q. It was also into the early Cyrillic alphabet, as koppa (Ҁ, ҁ)." This is from wikipedia. I consult it far too much.

Had never even heard of that letter before today.

2007-05-03T17:03:00.000-07:00

I did a very foolish thing today.

Thinking that my last final was at 8AM, I woke up very early (for me), studied, biked to campus, and ran into class. It wasn't my class. It was a different class. I had gotten the time for my final wrong. By seven hours. Once again this proves what a little sleep deprivation will do to me.

Finally finished my final for Avant Garde Theory. Here it is, a Surrealist collage of every doodle I've drawn in the last couple of years. Please go here to download pdf.

http://philos.myweb.uga.edu/Collage.pdf

Beginning

2007-04-15T16:58:00.000-07:00

I don't really know how to begin. So, I'll just start off with some words.

begin: O.E. beginnan, also onginnan (class III strong verb; past tense ongann, pp. ongunnen), from bi- "be" + W.Gmc. *ginnan, of obscure meaning, found only in compounds, perhaps "to open, open up" (cf. O.H.G. in-ginnan "to cut open, open up," also "begin, undertake"). Meaning "beginner, novice" is from 1470.
start (v.): O.E. *steortian, *stiertan, Kentish variants of styrtan "to leap up" (related to starian "to stare"), from P.Gmc. *sturtjan- (cf. O.Fris. stirta "to fall, tumble," M.Du. sterten, Du. storten "to rush, fall," O.H.G. sturzen, Ger. stürzen "to hurl, throw, plunge"), of unknown origin. From "move or spring suddenly," sense evolved by c.1386 to "awaken suddenly, flinch or recoil in alarm," and 1666 to "cause to begin acting or operating." Meaning "begin to move, leave, depart" is from 1821. The connection is probably from sporting senses ("to force an animal from its lair," c.1384). To start something "cause trouble" is 1917, Amer.Eng. colloquial. For starters "to begin with" is 1873, Amer.Eng. colloquial. Starter home is from 1976; starter set is from 1946, originally of china. Starting block first recorded 1937.
commence: 1314, from O.Fr. comencier, from V.L. *cominitiare, orig. "to initiate as priest, consecrate," from L. com- "together" + initiare "to initiate." The academic sense of commencement "action of taking a full degree," is in M.E.
initiation: 1583, from L. initiationem (nom. initiatio) "participation in secret rites," from initiatus, pp. of initiare "originate, initiate," from initium (see initial). Initiate (v.) is 1603, from L. initiatus, pp. of initiare. The noun meaning "one who has been initiated" is first recorded 1811.