Tag Archive | random

hibernation

Feb24

I feel like I’ve been off in my own little cave for the last few weeks. I haven’t looked at my blog and barely looked at any others. I think the freedom of not having a blog goal for the year has gone to my head a little bit! And, I’ll continue to claim that this time of year, it’s much easier to just give in to “I just want to stay under the covers and not do stuff” tendencies.

But, now it’s almost the end of February, and it’s Oscars night once more (interesting side note, the Today show did a segment on the Oscars yesterday and pointed out that this year it is “The Oscars” rather than “The Academy Awards” because it somehow helps them court the youth demographic by using the former). I’ve only seen two of the real contenders this year (Argo and Lincoln) but will be glued to the tv anyway…for the fashions and to see who wins and what happens (but whether I’ll make it up to the very end is another question). I think that Daniel Day-Lewis and Tommy Lee Jones are likely to win in their categories (and Lincoln may win as best picture), so at least I’ll be able to refer to that.

And, what would Oscars night be without watching all the red carpet arrivals (even the super early ones)? The plan is to start watching them while eating a variety of appetizers from Trader Joe’s (fried macaroni and cheese balls are in the house)! There probably will not be a proper “dinner” in the strivingcynic household tonight…but lots of cheese, crackers, artichoke dip, guacamole and chips. Tomorrow I will wake up in a carb haze and make my way to the gym. Time to rediscover the virtues of life outside the cave!

Do you ever feel the urge to hibernate? What are your Oscar night plans?

in with the (drifty) new

Jan21

I decided to skip this week’s and last week’s Top Ten Tuesday posts, since I couldn’t think of anything to say for either topic…I think I should be on board for next week.

I’m still in my drifty, don’t know what I want to talk about phase. So, a few other random bits of news from my corner of the world!

To follow up on my drifty post, I am now the proud (in four years time) owner of a new Nissan Rogue. I just got it today…and so far, so amazing. My previous car was from 2001….before satellite radio, bluetooth, and heaters that actually worked  quickly (in cold weather, I usually had to wait about 10 minutes before I could expect the focus to really warm up). I will have photos and talk more about it in another post (see! a plan!).

Strivingcynic cat has decided that on some nights, he wants to sleep with us. It’s really sweet, except that his method usually involves putting part of his body on top of part of mine (chest, hip, leg). I wake up, and there he is, curled up so sweetly…and then I start to realize that I’d really like to move in some way, but that I’m pinned down. Then I start to fixate on the desire to move, which is coupled with the guilt of thinking about how sweet he is and how if I move I may startle him or he might take that as a hint to get off the bed. Once or twice I’ve been able to move him and he just looks at me sleepily and settles back in. But, often it’s what I call the “thump of outrage….” the sound of him hitting the floor after he jumps off the bed “sensing” he’s not wanted.

Another funny thing was that he wasn’t “waiting” for me when I got home after picking up the new car today. SC cat actually knows the sound of my car…mr. strivingcynic has attested to being home and watching cat go running to the door when he hears my car pull in (I’ve seen him do the same when mr. sc comes home). Often, he’ll pop up into the window first and then jump down to run to the door. Today when I got home, nothing. So, we’re wondering how long it will take for him to associate the sound of my car with “mom’s home.”

Otherwise, I’ve been enjoying the three day weekend. Suits my drifty ways.

drug store of lies

Jan15

I’ve never been a good liar and I don’t like lying. I find lately, that most of my lies are of the “tell the person with the clipboard trying to stop me that I’m running late for an appointment” variety (I don’t know, something about clipboard holders just sets my teeth on edge and I find myself increasing my speed).

Sometimes when I run across someone who is able to use things like lying and manipulation to their advantage, a line of my mother’s will run through my head “Do they give lessons?”

Well, today I got a lesson about lying in the aisle of my local Walgreen’s. There I was, innocently looking for a hair conditioner (I totally ran out this morning….curly hair does not do well left unconditioned..tangle city) when I saw a woman talking into a cell phone. To be clear, I saw her in the aisle at Walgreen’s. I say this because the first words out of her mouth were:

“I’m actually driving right now, so I can’t talk long. The office just put you through to my cell because I was out of the office.”

I think I couldn’t help giving her a bemused look at that moment. As their conversation went on, it was clear that the caller was complaining about being issued a warning or fine by their condo association. She was explaining how she understood, but “it’s the rules” “those are the association’s rules” and variations on that.

The whole time she was talking, the Walgreen’s muzak was playing. Fair enough, maybe she had cheesy music playing in her car. And of course, sales people and customers were talking as they went about their business. Maybe that was faint. But then came the loudspeaker announcement “So and so, please go to the photo section.” And it was not a quiet announcement. I was in a different aisle at that point, but I cringed (and laughed) on her behalf.

But, to her credit, she just kept going on about the rules. And a few minutes later she said again. “Could you please do me a favor and call me again and leave a voicemail about this. I’m in the car and it really isn’t safe for me to be talking….greatthanksbye.”

Wow. So, what did I learn? When lying and evidence comes to light that you’re lying….just keep on lying. The old, “no I didn’t eat the chocolate” as you wipe away the chocolate smudges on your face. “Did you actually *see* me eat the chocolate?” “I didn’t think so.” And so what if there’s an audience watching you lie…it’s not like you *know* them.

Clearly, that woman had gotten over any issues with lying ages ago. That woman could give lessons.

drifty

Jan13

Apparently, the fact that I met my 2012 blogging goal, has given me license to drift off for awhile. I keep thinking “what could I write about?” but absolutely nothing has stuck in my head. I’ve taken no pictures, haven’t seen any movies; nothing has struck me with a “I could write about this.” My thoughts have been more on the drifty side.

I did read a book (the first of 2013–24 more to meet my goal). Chocolate Wars, by Deborah Cadbury. It was a history of the Cadbury family, chocolate factory, and chocolate manufacturing and companies in general. It was actually pretty interesting (well, I found the parts about figuring out how to process chocolate; how the Cadburys Quaker values formed their pursuits and decision;  and other chocolate companies companies interesting–the end parts about corporate takeovers were above my “I understand nothing about business” head.) And I have to admit, I put down the book more than once to get a piece of chocolate! I’ve now picked up a thriller that was really popular a year or so ago called Before I Go to Sleep, by S. J. Watson.

My car search has intensified. It’s looking more likely now that I may be giving my car to a relative, so it’s become a little more urgent (I also still ended up putting almost 500 in necessary repairs into the car…). I’ve probably narrowed it down to a Nissan Rogue. Of course, I had paid off my previous car, so taking on a car payment (this will probably be the largest purchase I’ve ever made…) doesn’t thrill me. But the thought of having a new car does. And cars have changed a bit since 2001, so it’ll be like a time warp!

Although it’s early days yet, I think am not doing too badly on working towards my goals. Aside from reading, I’ve been running, still adding in new behaviors, meditating most days…

And that’s about it. It’s definitely getting into January doldrums time, so I’ll have to think of how to shake it off a bit. Perhaps I should make use of the cake pops kit I got for Christmas?

Hope January and the New Year are treating you well.

a little light at a dark time of year

Dec20

Once again, the tree is up!

our tree has been up for a week already

our tree has been up for a week already

A certain little feline somebody likes playing with the tree skirts. The one to the left has not lain properly since we put it down. The one on the right has fared better since he likes to hang out/sleep on it.

lurking

lurking

That photo was from last year, so some things don’t change, I guess (although he wasn’t as abusive of the tree skirts in that photo).

You can see in both photos that the hanging ornaments stop before the bottom of the tree. So far this year, we’ve lost one ornament cat toy, a ball which we found in pieces on the floor (all paws were undamaged). And he’s been very helpful about “rearranging” the branches.

Hanukkah has come and gone. We lit candles, but we’re waiting for Christmas for the big gift exchange (and are planning on taking advantage of this weekend to finish up our shopping).

I’d say I still can’t believe it’s December already, but the darkness when I go to the gym around 6:30 in the morning (it was even dark when I left for home this at 7:30 Monday morning) reminds me. Along with the cold. If the world doesn’t end on the 21st, the days will start lengthening again. But in the meantime, we’ve enjoyed our Hanukkah candlelight and Christmas lights.

what strivingcynic forgot

Dec16

So, after finishing last week’s list of Top Ten new-to-me authors for last week’s Top Ten Tuesday post, I finished another book by a new-to-me author, What Alice Forgot, by Liane Moriarty, that would have made the list. The book centers on Alice Love who wakes up a thin/gym rat, polished, almost 40-year-old soon-to-be divorcee with three children after hitting her head. The last thing Alice remembers was being a 29-year-old newlywed, gym avoider who’s pregnant with her first child. It’s 2008, but Alice doesn’t remember a thing after 1998.

This got me thinking about what would surprise me about my life in 2012 if the last thing I remembered was 2002…

1. Different home. I lived in my apartment (where I would stay for another 8 years) in 2002. Not to mention…

2. Mr. strivingcynic. It would be another 6+ years before I met him. And given my romantic history, I would said it was impossible! Not to mention that he’s the reason I have the different home.

3. Strivingcynic cat. In 2002 I lived with his big sister (now in heaven). It was 2003 before I learned she had kidney issues, later she developed diabetes and died in 2007. SC kitty didn’t come along until 2008.

look at me, flopping in your "new" home

look at me, flopping in your “new” home

4. My job. Ten years ago, I had just lost my job in a layoff, and had already planned to attend  grad school. Careerwise, I was in flux.

5. My nephews. My oldest nephew was only about 2 weeks old in mid-December 2002. He just turned 10 and has a younger brother.

6. Running. I went to the gym 10 years ago, but avoided running. The idea that I would one day run 10 miles would astound me.

7. Technology. My dial-up PC did it for me in 2002. I got my first cell phone around Christmas of that year and almost never used it (in fact, I didn’t really change cell habits until June 2011 when I got my iPhone). Now I use a laptop, an iPad, my iPhone. It’s no longer new territory for me to order something online.

8. Grandparents. I lost two grandparents between 2003 and 2006.

9. Knitting. I haven’t gotten back into it the way I hoped, but I did learn how to knit and made several scarves somewhere around 2005/6. I’d be shocked to learn that I had made several  of the scarves I own myself.

10. Traveling. I’d be surprised to see photos of me in places I’d never been before. Charleston, SC; Toronto, Austin, TX; Chicago, New Orleans, Tampa, New Mexico, San Diego…

11. All the current events that wouldn’t be current and pop culture changes. I would never have heard of Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Emma Stone, or pretty much anyone who came onto the scene in the last 10 years.

I wonder if I’d be surprised about what’s the same about me after 10 years…I drive the same car, haven’t done anything dramatic about my appearance, am still constantly hoping to be more organized.

Duh…just realized as I was wrapping up that there’s a number 12. I don’t know if I knew what a blog was ten years ago, let alone that I would have one!

I really enjoyed What Alice Forgot (one funny thing about it is I also read Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella this year, which has a similar amnesia-victim plot).

What things might shock you about you if you woke up tomorrow thinking it was 2002?

all for me?

Nov29

A few weeks ago, I headed to my (relatively) local Ulta (a cosmetics store, like Sephora) to pick up a few things. As usual, I got my intended purchases (moisturizer), picked up some impulse buys.

(it would help if I actually used the hand cream considering I buy enough of it)

and found one of their products that I really like, but of course, is now being discontinued. The good side of this is that now it’s on clearance.

I love the smell. Too bad I won’t be able to buy it for much longer.

When everything was being rung up, another sales woman was walking around behind the counter picking things up. She then came over and very quickly slid things into my bag and walked off.

Not wanting to be too eager and say “ooh..whadja gimmee?” I said thank you and left the store. Walked to my car…got in…and dove into the bag. I couldn’t believe the four new items the girl had put in.

First, there was this:

a pretty decent size bottle of Burberry body oil

I couldn’t believe this was a freebie. And I like the smell. I don’t think I would have bought it for myself, but I’ve been wearing it.

Then, there was this:

a T-shirt! Wow, I got a shirt!

And even better (I know, what could be better than fragrance and a shirt) was this!

an umbrella! a really, really cute umbrella!

[Cathy, I know you're totally jealous of this umbrella].

And, well, remember my post a few weeks back about how I kept misplacing things. Well, irony number 1 is that I got this umbrella a few hours after finding my “lost” umbrella.

this one.

The second irony? I said there were four things, but I put the fourth one somewhere and don’t know where it is! It’s a Taylor Swift fragrance car (rear view mirror) hangy thingy. I’ll find it eventually.

Now, I did not spend a lot of money at Ulta, and even stranger, only one of the items I got was related to something I bought. The hand cream from the first photo is by the same company the umbrella is from. I’d be amazed if I got the umbrella just because I paid $3.50 for an $8.00 hand cream. But, I did not purchase any products from Giorgio Armani or Burberry.

Not that I’m complaining! Unfortunately, this is probably setting the bar for my expectations of future Ulta visits (and that’s how they get you)!

What freebies/unexpected free gift with purchase have you gotten?

happy thanksgiving

Nov22

Happy Thanksgiving! Well, Happy Thanksgiving if you’re reading this in the States. Otherwise, I hope your day is going well!

My plan is to spend the day with my family eating pretty much everything I see, which will include appetizers like cheese and crackers and veggies and dip; turkey with stuffing and gravy; squash; the ever-amazing string-bean-with-mushroom-soup topped-with-crispy-onion-rings casserole; pasta (for our vegetarian guests); and cranberry sauce. Not to mention the pumpkin pie (my contribution) and cheesecake.

I’m sure before the day is over, I’ll have enjoyed myself to the point of sleepiness. A little like this guy.

sc cat looks ferocious, but he’s just worn out (and wishes you a happy thanksgiving, too)

Have a great day!

what I’ve been up to

Oct22

My “cold spell” away from blogging/blogs period lasted way longer than I expected it to…I’ve observed throughout my life that when I’m knocked out of my routine by something, it has a domino effect and everything starts to go. So, cold = more couch time, different foods, no exercising, less pretty much everything, followed by a “need to get back into the swing of things” period.

But, I didn’t just have a cold…some other things also conspired to change my routine. To name a few…

1. My mother came out for a brief visit. She lives in California, so we don’t get to see each other often. Per usual we got in a mother-daughter shopping trip (look for these clothes in future “what I wore” posts!).

2. Last week, mr. strivingcynic and I went to see Margaret Atwood speak at Princeton University. We were so excited at the prospect of seeing her (major gratitude to Princeton for having events like this free and open to the public) and so sure the lecture hall would be packed, that we got there an hour early (the hall was empty but people arrived right after us).  The lecture hall did fill up as time went by, though.

Aside from my fear I would cough my way through the lecture (I kept the cough drops going and tried to take advantage of audience laughter to cough), we had a great time. It was a really interesting talk about zombies and other literary monsters. Another interesting thing for me, I learned about the lecture because I follow Atwood on Twitter and she mentioned it there. So glad I joined (and she wished a special hello to her Twitter followers).

3. I got a little older. My 41st birthday was last week. Funny how when I first started this blog almost two years ago, I had posts devoted to my turning 40…and once that happened, very few about turning 41. But, the day has come…and, I’m cool with it (like I have a choice).

Looking back at this last year, I’ve had a lot of fun and adventures…going to Cape May, England, San Diego; seeing Bruce Springsteen in concert, the play Chicago, and seeing Margaret Atwood speak. I got a new computer, an iPad, and some new books and clothes (and have begun thinking about a new car…), not to mention my beloved Keurig coffee maker (a Christmas present from mr. sc) and our kitchen improvements. I got out into the social media world more, read about 30 books, saw at least 5-7 movies (probably more..I should probably start keeping a list of them, too). I worked my way up to running 10 miles (couldn’t manage it yesterday–but I’ll get back there soon). I’ve had many wonderful times with my family and friends (and blends).

4. And as usual, I’ve been thinking about where I want my life to go…yes, I could be more organized and more on top of things, but I’ve got an idea of where I’d like to focus some energy (to be discussed in another post…shame on me for “teasing”..but there you go.

Anyway, I feel much more caught up. For now!

the constant catcher upper..

Sep24

Things…well, time, got away from me last week and I never got around to responding to comments or visiting as many blogs as I wanted to. Hopefully, this week will be less hectic.

So anyway, a few follow ups or things I’ve been meaning to talk about.

1. My last post. Just to clarify…nothing in particularly turned me ragey last week. But, I’ve noticed of late that I’ve gotten “better” when something sets me off…and I wanted to use more sculptures in a not “hey, here are sculptures” way…

2. Books. I wanted to give some sort of review of Prep, by Curtis Sittenfeld, which I finished a few weeks ago. But, I couldn’t come up with a full-fledged review. So, here’s a shorter version…I really liked this book, which is interesting because like Carrie in Ann Packer’s The Dive from Clausen’s Pier (my review), the main character, Lee, was often hard to like (I have a version with an interview with Sittenfeld that mentions how Lee is a difficult character…so I know it’s not just me). But, this book really nailed a lot of the awkwardness of feeling like an outsider in your teen years and I was really anxious to get through it. I would definitely recommend it.

Right now I’m reading The Little Friend, by Donna Tartt (so, this was on my “hope to read this summer” list; it’s now fall, so it didn’t make the summer cut entirely). This is a long (550ish pages), dense book that I have to put down after a bit…it’s pretty unsettling. Even the cover is unsettling.

see what I mean?

Source

Hopefully it won’t take me too long to get through (I’m more than halfway through) since I’m on my way to meeting my 25 books this year goal.

3. I never got around to writing a post about going to Atlantic City to see a show a few weeks ago. I had only been to AC once, about 15 years ago. The show (comedian Louis C.K.) was at the Trump Taj Mahal..which was amazing for its…well, let me show you…

hmm…I wonder what this place is called…

all I could think was….wow

the ripley’s believe it or not museum was also fun to look at

4. Clothes…just to give you a preview…I am finally rewearing. Yesterday, with fall’s arrival, was my first rewear (I’ll keep you in suspense on what shirt I rewore.)..I think I still have another two posts worth of clothes to get everyone caught up. In the meantime, I am thinking about how to continue these as the weather gets cooler.

5. Something else I probably won’t get around to posting about so I’ll just talk now…I went into NYC yesterday to see Chicago. It was a beautiful day yesterday, nice for walking around Central Park. The show itself was really wonderful. Interesting to see how it was staged and how it compared to the movie.

That’s it (for now..)