Oh hey, it's Christmas!

I've been a busy girl lately, but that usually happens this time of year. I'll be doing my best to hustle and bustle and post a bit more in 2009...and maybe next week, if I can get around to it.

Whatever winter holiday you celebrate, I hope you have an fantastic time celebrating it! I myself get in on the Christmas festivities, and so far it's been pretty enjoyable. This whole week has seemed to be one long weekend...aside from the one day I worked. No, I'm not complaining...I'm just not used to it.

A very Merry Thursday to you all! And to all, a good night!

Question of the day

Is it possible to be cynical about specific situations yet optimistic about the overall picture at the same time?

Mobius Band--my indie electro rock love

A few weeks ago (the day the Phillies won the World Series, to be exact), I happened to be in the City of Brotherly Love to attend a concert for a couple great indie-rock acts: Tokyo Police Club and Mobius Band. Really, I wouldn't have thought to go to the show until I heard that Mobius Band was added to the bill. My first exposure to them was probably the song "Starts Off With A Bang" off their City Vs. Country EP about a year, possibly a year and a half ago, and I really dug their sound. They seem to do nearly everything right when it comes to creating perfectly catchy, yet musically good, electro-rock. And I have to say, I'm hooked. Their full-length album, "Heaven", has been in heavy rotation on my iPod lately, and I was thrilled I got to see them live. They look like they're just having a lot of fun up on stage, and that's what I consider an ideal live performance: a band having a great time playing and drawing the audience into that, creating a really great positive environment for enjoying the music. There were definitely people dancing and bopping around at the show during their set, and that made me really happy. The only thing that disappointed me was that I didn't get a chance to talk to any of the band members hanging around during the TPC set to personally give them my thumbs up. I'm considering this my way of making up for it. Thanks for playing Philly, guys. Can't wait to see you again!

Check out their video for "Friends Like These"--it's one of my favorite songs by them.

Rave about a new Google Gadget

About two weeks ago, it appears, Google made public a new gadget for adding a Google Calendar to the Gmail side nav bar. I decided to try it out, since I'm a frequent user of both Gmail and Google Calendar.

I have to say...I am a fan of that little gadget! It seems like it was pretty well thought-out. It gives you a day agenda view, and when a scheduled event ends, it is faded in the calendar. Also, clicking on an event will take you automatically to the details of that event, which is something I'm disappointed about with the normal Google Calendar, where you have to double-click to get to event details and it takes you away from the rest of the monthly calendar to a new page. Sometimes that seems to take longer than it should, and the gadget makes that transition nice and quick.

Normally, a month loads at a time, but if you scroll down to the end of the month, it will load the next month, and if you scroll to the end of that month, it will load another, and so on. There is also an option to load a mini monthly calendar, and that allows you the ability to quickly jump to a date by clicking on the date in the monthly calendar, rather than scrolling through all the dates, as well as letting you go back in time to view dates that have already passed (that was a concern of mine when I was testing it out earlier this week, and I'm glad that there is a way to time-travel...on the calendar).

I haven't noticed any major problems or glitches yet with the gadget. My only complaint would be that adding details to a new event leads you to a new window or tab (browser-dependent), and ideally I'd love for it to merely expand the new event box that pops up when you click on "add". Then again, the same thing happens in the original Google Calendar. At least they're being consistent. I'm just happy I don't have to keep two tabs open for these two applications now. It's nice to have it all in one spot.

There is also a gadget for Google Docs, which I also added, but as it's not yet something I use often, I won't go on raving about how awesome it is. Again, though, it's still neat to keep everything on one page. If you use any of the applications, I highly recommend trying your hand with the new gadgets.

This is...sand?

Yesterday I found a site called thisissand.com, and it's one of the coolest flash sites I've seen in a while. Plus, it allows the user a lot of creativity in making sand art, and the graphics and sound used in the functions are just about spot on. I'm a fan, and imagine that this will consume a good bit of my time in the near future.

Check out their gallery to see what people have come up with. This is one of my submissions.

Epitome of delicious

I'll freely admit that as a child I had very poor eating habits. It's really no fault of my parents--I made the wrong choices when given options of what to eat. And to paraphrase Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, I chose...poorly.

Thankfully by the time I got to college I worked on changing things around, and have only gotten better about it since then. Nowadays, I live a short walk away from a farmers' market that usually has some pretty tasty produce, and I've been getting in the habit of going there once a week to pick up some fresh fruit and veggies. I always get bell peppers. Usually, I pick up one red, one green, and one orange pepper. I'll cut parts of each to use in salads or fry up in a pan as part of dinner. A couple weeks ago I was at a different farmers' market in the city and procured myself a few peppers, unsure of exactly what I'd do with them. At least, I didn't think I'd do anything out of the ordinary.

Then my friend Matt suggested that I try roasting them. He gave me instructions on how he normally does it, and it didn't seem to be that hard of a thing to accomplish if you have the time to do it. Roasting peppers isn't a difficult task, but it does take a long time. I spent a rainy afternoon giving it my first go with a red pepper and parts of a green pepper, and while it wasn't perfect (I wasn't expecting perfection on the first go-round anyway), it was amazingly delicious. I've always been a fan of roasted peppers, but I think with most cooking, the taste of the fruits of your own labor winds up being that much better than anything you could just buy at a store. I ate everything I roasted in one sitting (along with a couple pierogies) without a complaint from my stomach. Yum!

I tried again last night with another green and a yellow pepper (yes, I gave in and bought a yellow!), this time with a better idea of what I was doing, and I have to say I was definitely satisfied with the final results. I only ate parts of each last night--cut in strips and thrown into a salad topped with chicken coated in an awesome mixture I made and pan fried up. My mouth loved every bit of it!

I'm really enjoying the foods I've been making for myself lately. Nothing has been too drastic a taste change for me, nor has it added significant difficulty to food I had already had a formula for, but I think the slight experimentation has been paying off. I'll be trying to keep up with the healthier eating, more fresh fruit and veggies, and posting any good finds here.

What are people smoking in St. Paul?

I've taken time to watch a little bit of the Republican National Convention the past two nights, and I have to say, I'm really not impressed. Palin's speech last night was all style and very little substance. A few of the things she said have already been challenged and fact-checked. We're going to get our energy independence by drilling for more oil? How long will that last us--a couple weeks?

For all that the DNC last week in Denver was about bringing people together, this convention seems to have shades of wanting to do the opposite--keeping us divided, driving people into more debt, and preventing us from really exploring what all our scientists can do to make us energy independent at a lower environmental cost. I was repeatedly getting angry listening to some of the speeches the past two nights. I didn't watch them all, granted, but I think if I had I might have gotten even angrier. I was trying to be as unbiased as possible when listening to what some of the speakers had to say, but it was nearly driving me insane to do it. I don't know if it's my rational side getting the better of me or...no, forget it. I just don't think like a conservative Republican. And I'm thankfully okay with that.*

The one other thing I wanted to bring up was the fashion I saw the past two nights. Now, I'm wishing I had paid a little bit more attention to what the Democratic delegates were wearing, but I'll tell you something, I'm pretty sure the Republican delegates have a hold on tacky. From American flag-tiled blazers to the sea of cowboy hats, many of them emblazoned with more buttons than I thought would even fit on a cowboy hat (then again, in my mind, that number is usually zero), most of the outfits I saw just seemed so gaudy. There were a lot of people dressed in a more professional manner, with suits and ties, dresses, skirts and blouses and the like, but I really think that at best, it canceled out some of the fashion mistakes that were shown so prominently on CSPAN.**




*This is a VERY brief synopsis of my feelings. I wanted to make a post about it, but with limited time, this is what I can get out for now. Future ramblings more than likely will occur.

**I know that fashion has very little to do with the convention, but hell, I had to say something about it.

Filler or Filling?

It has to be said because, well, I've been moved to say it.

I...love...peanut butter!!!

I'm not about to slather any consumable with it. Not by any means. I know someone who eats a breakfast sandwich consisting of an english muffin, peanut butter, and a scrambled egg. For that person's sake, I'm not naming names, but I find the concept a bit disgusting. So, I have my limits with the spreadable peanut form, by my oh my, do I find peanut butter delicious.

And no, I don't mix the deliciousness with jelly or jam of any kind. That's just a travesty. You take away room for more peanut butter when you do that.

This has been your latest installment of Filler or Filling. Thanks, and have a full day!

Meebo Me!

For the past year and change, I've been using Meebo as my chat client while I'm away from home (read:at work). I think it's a great service, and I love the fact that it has a chat archiving option. That way, I can log on at home if I needed to go back to a conversation for, well, anything I wanted to look at again. That has come in handy for me a few times.

Meebo has also developed a widget for websites called "Meebo Me". I knew about this a while ago, because my sister has used it on her site for some time, but I never got to experimenting with that myself. Well, those days have changed! As you can see on the main sidebar, I have added the Meebo me widget. If you see me on, drop a line and say hello. I'd love to get some feedback on future posts, which will be coming, gosh darnit! I'm determined to make something of this blog, and I have a few posts lined up. Now, I just need to motivate myself to sit in front of a computer long enough to type them out.

If you have a site and use the Meebo Me widget, what do you think of it?

The Facebook Redesign, from a German's perspective

Transcript here.

I was amused, at least by the initial comment.

Promises, promises (aka Excuses, excuses)

I've been quite the busy lady lately. As I remarked to a friend of mine the other day, normally you think about the summer as a time of relaxation. I've been bouncing around like an ADD pinball on Red Bull and cocaine. At the same time, I've been having equal amounts of stress and fun. Okay, perhaps more fun, but the stress always comes first and can take a while to get over.

What the heck is the point of all this explaining, you ask?

As you can tell, my post count is still pretty low. I do intend to do something about this. But as I'll be away for the next few days, I can't guarantee any uptick in posting until at least next week. From there, I'll be working on a few topics I have lined up in my queue. Everyone will be happier for it.

Justice

Justice is definitely one of my new favorite bands. This song is probably one of their most addictive, and the video is just freakin' cool. Watch, be amazed, and D-A-N-C-E!

Excuse me while I barf.

Who in their right mind would name Chris Martin, of all people, a rock god???

I don't mind much of Coldplay's music (though for me, it seems to be "the earlier, the better" in my book), but for the love of anything holy, don't dub Martin or the band any kind of rock royalty for their ability to sell records and fill stadiums. They're following the formula, not experimenting and trying to change it.

I get this sinking feeling that Coldplay's trying to be U2 on top of all that. Please, we only need one of those around. Really.

I think I need to go to the bathroom and lose my breakfast now.

Cue Eerily Good Music

I'm convinced that somewhere out there in the ether, my iTunes at home and at least one of my Pandora stations are in cahoots. I kept thinking it was coincidental when I would hear a song at home, and then while I was at work that day the same song would come on. But the frequency of such happenings has increased drastically over the past month or so. It's happened several times this week already. They're out to get me. All of them!

I could see it making sense if it was a very narrowly broad station, and hearing the artist or group in the morning spurs me to play the niche station when I get to work, but I usually have my iTunes on shuffle mode, and this particular Pandora station is almost like a shuffle mode player too. There are thousands of tracks on my iTunes, and the range of songs played at work is extremely broad. I could be listening to Daft Punk one minute, Frank Sinatra the next, and The Police after that. What can I say, I enjoy variety!

So I'm thinking that my iTunes and Pandora are either subtly trying to give me a theme for my day by playing the same songs, or there's a conspiracy afoot!

Thankfully, the repeated songs are all ones I have absolutely loved. That's something.

Recycling CFLs

I found a great little article on recycling CFLs that may be relevant for anyone out there using them--and I highly recommend switching to them if you haven't already. They're certainly more efficient than incandescents and they last a lot longer. I put a few in some lamps when I moved into my current apartment two years ago, and they still haven't blown out. *knock on wood!*

Granted, because of their long life, I think it may be a while before people will need to start looking for places to recycle the old bulbs, but I think having an idea or two of where to go when the bulbs do blow out is always some handy information. And I had no idea that Ikea recycled them. It's nice that there are two locations in my area, and that I have a nice healthy addiction to the place!

Kathleen and I purchased a new and sexy TV stand, and after having it for a week and a half, I've nearly finished putting it together. Once it's done I'll post some pictures of the finished product and finished look of our living room space. Well, we may get another chair to fill some space, from Ikea, of course. Sometimes it's like they read our minds there.

To summarize: Buy CFLs, and recycle them when they burn out. Also, Ikea is awesome. That is all.

First attempt at not failing

I should really beat myself over the head for not heeding my own blogging demands, but I might hurt myself too badly and not be able to post for a while. And then we go back to square one...oh, what a good show that was!

Alright, enough of digressions.

At the end of April I went out to The Fire with Schwenkenstein to see a band out of Toronto highly recommended by Chuckles called Woodhands. We found out upon our arrival that the show was starting even later than originally thought but used the time wisely and thoroughly enjoyed some lagers and watched the Sixers drop a playoff game to the Pistons--something we didn't care too much about; we just happened to be sitting in front of a couple of TV screens. I also saw a friend from college who I will forever remember as ICES Andy, and he told me he was playing first with his group, The Sea Trio. It's always neat to run into people you know and haven't seen in a while.

I'm digressing again.

POINT IS, Woodhands rocked the crap out of the massive[ly small] crowd! I honestly wasn't sure how the act would translate live, but they blew me away. I talked with Paul briefly after the show, and they said they'd be back in the States again in September. I'm wholeheartedly looking forward to seeing them again, and plan on bringing at least a [half-]dozen friends with me. I think if the room had been a little more crowded, some of the folks might have been a little less self-conscious and more dancing would have taken place. I was a victim, too, I'll admit, but about half-way through their set, I was moving around a bit more. The lager helped too. I didn't care about getting home massively late for a Sunday; I went to bed a happy woman.

Consider it your homework to check out Woodhands and give 'em a whirl. If they don't make you bounce around a little bit, you don't have a pulse!

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I'm honestly making an effort to post in this blog more often. I have a few more ideas I'll be writing about in the next week or two. I hope you stick around to enjoy. Please, invite some friends, start some chatter, or laugh at my attempts to communicate.

Boo Me!

I've decided that I'm going to do more with this blog. By that, I mean that I'm going to showcase more poetry (when I write it), I'm going to start writing my own brand of reviews (which I think I'll title "I Command You To Hear This", although that may change), and I may even get news-relevant. I've lost focus, a lot, and I'm trying to gain some ground now. I think if I motivate myself enough, I can have some very post-worthy topics on here.

I have another spot for my personal posts, and I think I'm going to keep it that way, for now.

The challenge for me at current moment is to post at least once a week. Depending on a number of factors, I may increase that base requirement of myself. Starting light is probably the best option for me.

So you'll be hearing from me again soon...very soon. Well, okay...keep your fingers crossed.