QOTD: "I personally think we developed language because of our deep need to complain." - Lily Tomlin
Reading: just finished Jasper Fforde's The Eyre Affair
Listening to: nothing
Decluttering accomplishments: filed away a bunch of papers
I've decided to do a bunch of survey answer things because, frankly, my life has just gotten too dull to write about. I was bored stiff at work much of the week. We did have a nice little after work party on Friday to celebrate finishing the annual cycle of briefings to Congressional staffers. I did write one background paper, but I don't really have enough to do for the most part. Of course, that alternates with the times I have way too much to do.
And it's not like I did much this weekend either. Yesterday was retail therapy day. I drove all the way down to Potomac Mills. Okay, it's not quite the edge of the universe (probably about 25 miles or so each way) but it does involve the Springfield Interchange, which is never a good thing. Coupled with the rain, that made it less than pleasant. But I accomplished what I needed to. Namely, I finally bought a lamp for the den. It isn't perfect, but for ten bucks at Ikea, I don't need perfect. They had a lamp I liked better, but that one required a shade and neither of the two shades I liked were in stock.
The actual Potomac Mills outlet mall was a more mixed experience. The fundamental problem is that the mall is too big. If you're like me and you don't want to buy things without checking out all of what's available, you end up too tired at the end to actually buy much of anything. I did get what I came for - a pair of dress shoes - but I didn't buy much else. I always stock up on pantyhose when I'm at an outlet mall, which is easy. But my only other purchases were at the gourmet store, where I got a new coffee grinder. Since I was going to have to wait in line to pay anyway, I threw in a few cheap impulse buys - a rubber ice cube tray that makes penguin shaped ice cubes, an Iron Chef chocolate bar (Iron Chef Kobe, theme ingredient: almond butter crunch), and some Stash orange spice tea bags.
On the way back, the traffic was worse, the rain was intermittently heavy, and my car chose to misbehave. About three quarters of the way home, the antilock brake system light came on. I figured the best thing to do was to just go directly home and deal with it then. The Saturn manual says that you should turn off the car and then restart it, which should reset the antilock brake system. I'll also note that when I got off the highway and was driving more slowly, it felt like the steering was stiff, like maybe the power steering wasn't working right. That sounded suspiciously like the symptoms the time six years ago when the alternator died. At home, I turned off the car and tried to restart it, but the battery seemed dead. Since the battery is just over a year old, I was even more convinced it was the alternator acting up.
That other time, this meant getting the car towed. But I figured that I'd try it this morning and see if it would start. And the car started just fine and the ABS light didn't come on. The ABS self-check worked normally, too. I went to the supermarket and the gas station and the car seemed fine all along. I'm still going to take it in to get looked at, but maybe it really was just something in the electrical system getting wet and nothing majorly wrong.
Before I get on to surveyish things, I'll also mention that I'm still plugging away on the travelogue. I'm also close to a decision on what to do next. I'm looking at a gourmet tour of Vietnam. It covers all the normal touristy stuff, but also includes special restaurants, markets, and a few cooking lessons. I haven't committed to it yet and there are still other options, but it sounds very appealing.
As for survey stuff, here's a bunch of old things from This or That from about a year ago, which I didn't answer at the time. There was also one on junk food, but none of the questions on that interested me at all. For the record, the candies I like are Hershey's bars with almonds and Heath bars and the only soft drink I can get excited about is bitter lemon.
1. Bugs Bunny -or- Daffy Duck? Bugs, because I like orchestra conductors.
2. Tom -or- Jerry? Jerry is the mouse, right? He's so much smarter.
3. Mickey Mouse -or- Donald Duck? I'm not really crazy about either, but I do like the Micky Mouse as the Sorceror's Apprentice piece in Fantasia.
4. Rocky & Bullwinkle -or- Boris & Natasha? I like Bullwinkle a lot, but the real highlights for me were Fractured Fairy Tales and Dudley Doright.
5. Road Runner -or- Wile E. Coyote? Wile E. Coyote, because he doesn't do that stupid beep-beep thing.
6. Sylvester -or- Tweety? Sylvester, just because cats are better than birds..
7. Popeye -or- Bluto? I don't really like this cartoon at all, but I guess I'll go for Popeye, since he's the good guy.
8. South Park -or - The Simpsons? The Simpsons. I've actually never seen South Park, but I have the impression that I'd find it too crude to enjoy.
9. Jetsons -or- Flintstones? The Jetsons, because I'm a space age kind of gal.
10. And finally, the eternal question asked by all good Scooby-Doo fans: Velma -or- Daphne? I've never watched Scooby-Doo and I have no idea who either one is.
1. Charcoal or gas BBQ grill? I don't have either, but I prefer charcoal. It just seems to make the food taste better.
2. Beach or pool? I love the beach, but pools are better for swimming. The idea of just lying around the pool is unappealing.
3. Sneakers or sandals? They have different purposes. Sneakers are for walking. Sandals are for normal day to day wear.
4. Sunblock or suntan lotion? Sunblock, with the highest SPF I can find. Otherwise, I go from ghost to lobster in minutes.
5. Iced tea or iced coffee? Coffee. I dislike most iced tea (the Thai variety is the exception). An iced capuccino makes a really nice break on a hot day.
6. Touristy beach town or quiet camping trip? The touristy beach town, I guess. A non-touristy beach town would be even better.
7. Theme park or baseball game? Take me out to the ball game!
8. One or two piece swimsuit? (ladies...which do you prefer to wear; guys, which would you prefer a woman to wear?) Even if I ever thought I'd look acceptable in a two-piece, why would I want to expose more of my pale body to the sun?
9. Bicycling or rollerblading? Bicycling
10. It's 95 degrees outside. Do you prefer to go outside in the heat, or stay in and hide behind the air-conditioner? It depends on where I am. On vacation somewhere interesting, I'll brave the heat, but I'm always happy to get back inside and cower next to the air conditioner.
1. Laptop or desktop computer? While you can generally get more for your money with a desktop, I like how little space my laptop takes up.
2. PC or Mac? I've got a Mac at home and PCs at work.
3. DVD or VHS? I can watch DVDs only on the computer, so I stick to VHS for rentals for now.
4. Cell phone or regular phone? Regular phone. I don't want to be that reachable.
5. Satellite or cable TV? Neither.
6. X-Box or PlayStation? Neither. I'm too afraid of the addictive potential.
7. Netflix or video store? Video store. I'm into instant gratification.
8. Wide-screen or regular TV? Regular. I don't watch enough TV to justify anything more.
9. Film or digital camera? Both. I also have the coolest digital camera in the world, because it has a built-in Polaroid printer. On vacations, I can take a picture of a person and give them an instant print.
10. Dial-up or high-speed internet connection? Dial-up. High-speed is tempting but I can't justify the cost.
1. Regular or electric/battery operated toothbrush? Both. I like the electric toothbrush, but I use regular ones when I travel.
2. Shower or bath? Both. I like to relax in a bubble bath, but I also find showers very refreshing. In short, baths make me sleepy and showers wake me up.
3. Automatic dishwasher or hand-wash dishes? Hand-wash. I have a dishwasher, but it's not worth using for just one person.
4. Paying bills: online or write out checks? I write checks. I'm too old to completely trust on-line bill paying.
5. Laundromat or your own washer/dryer? I love having a washer and dryer in my apartment.
6. Electric or gas stove? My apartment has gas, but I'd actually prefer electric because you can get both higher and lower temperatures with it. I know that a lot of people like the ability to adjust the flame quickly, but you can adjust it over a narrower range.
7. Subscribe to magazines/newspapers or buy at newsstand? I buy the newspaper at the supermarket on Sundays, which gets me out of the house at a decent hour. I've pretty much given up on magazines, though I sometimes buy them at airports.
8. Alarm clock...music or buzzer? Buzzer. If I wanted to wake up with Sting, I'd sleep with him.
9. Go grocery shopping yourself, or order stuff to be delivered? I do it myself. I suppose delivery is fine for packaged goods, but I don't usually even decide what sort of fruit and veggies I want until I see what looks good in the store.
10. On workdays...pack a lunch or eat out? I bring my lunch most of the time, since it's a lot cheaper to do that.
1. Spam...the lunch meat. Yes or no? No. I can't even look at the stuff without cringing.
2. The traffic light is green as you approach, but by the time you get there, it has turned yellow. Stop or go-go-go? I've lived in Boston in the past. Yellow means accelerate.
3. You are taking a trip...you have to decide whether to fly or take some sort of ground transportation. High or low? High. I'm not the queen of frequent flyer miles for nothing. More to the point, I have little patience with driving. If trains or ships are an option and I have the time, that's always a good way to go, but I rarely have the time.
4. Someone asks you a question about why something is, and you don't know the answer. Try to find out *Why* or just say *I don't know*? It depends on what it is. Usually, I'll try to find out.
5. You are at the mall, and you spot someone who tortured you when you were in high school. Hello or goodbye? In the unlikely event that I recognized them, I'd still try to ignore them. Why re-open old wounds?
That's enough for now. Time to do laundry and watch the Tony Awards.
Copyright 2003 Miriam H. Nadel