being jennifer garrett

Pretty

2008-08-20T22:39:00.002-07:00

Just 'cuz I liked it so.

Say it ain't so

2008-08-19T07:42:00.000-07:00

Me: You don't wear your bra outside your clothes. You're not Madonna.
11-year-old girl: Who's Madonna?

Oh, lord.

A regular

2008-08-18T19:42:00.002-07:00

With the heat here in Seattle the last few days, J.R. and I haven't felt like cooking. Yet I'm trying, again, to get on the wagon and stay there, so I don't want to eat out. Thusly, Panera. I'm currently infatuated with their turkey chickpea chili, especially accompanied by a half Greek salad (no olives, no peppers -- and, if I didn't take pity on the poor checkout girl, half the feta). One lazy night led to another, and we'd managed to hit Panera three nights running. We skip a night, and then we're back the next night, with the kids this time. At first, sweet, slightly clueless cashier doesn't recognize us, but once I hit her with the "no olives, no peppers," it all comes back. We joke that we need frequent flier miles, and she's just happy to get us out of there before I ask for something else weird that she doesn't know how to type in.

It's cold and raining today, and we didn't go to Panera. But, man, it was a perfect night for chili.

I'm going to need a longer commute

2008-08-15T22:28:00.002-07:00

While I was in Boston, I made time for a trip to Newbury Comics, where all music lovers go to worship (also where those who love their pint glasses go to load up). I'm a proud recipient of the Newbury Comics e-newsletter, and a few weeks ago, they alerted me to a new disk from some chick named Antje Duvekot, which of course I couldn't find anywhere around here. I picked up Snapshots in Boston, and I love it. I've always been a sucker for a girl with a guitar, and that hasn't changed. Great lyrics, great sound. My favorite (for right now) is Merry-Go-Round.

I also discovered the latest from Kris Delmhorst there, and while I like it, too, it's a departure from her earlier sound, which I loved. All in all, a lot of good music, and I just need to find more time to listen to it.

Also

2008-08-14T21:24:00.002-07:00

All my Ohio pictures are up now. I know y'all were anxiously waiting. I particularly enjoy where J.R. illustrates how tall corn should be and when Gracie hams it up.

Dark knight of the soul is real

2008-08-14T20:14:00.002-07:00

We finally saw The Dark Knight last night, and it was as good as promised. I've pretty much loved Christian Bale since I was 16, so he can do no wrong in my book (though he didn't really have to act too much in this one). Heath was as creepy and disturbing as possible, and damn! it's still hard to believe he's gone. The major miscasting for me was Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel. Not that I was a huge fan of Katie Holmes, but Maggie is just ... wrong for this part. She's not beautiful, though I think she's very attractive in a unique way, and she never really connected with Batman or Harvey -- or me for that matter. I wasn't sad when her storyline ended -- and Batman didn't seem that upset, either.

Bookish

2008-08-13T17:39:00.001-07:00

You gotta love me: One minute I'm googling lists of the 100 best novels of all time to see what I should read next -- Madame Bovary, Catch-22, For Whom the Bell Tolls (though it's fairly unlikely I'll start with Hemingway). And then, next thing you know, GoodReads informs me that a friend just read and liked these Anne Stuart novels, and I'm off like a shot to investigate trashy romances (which I love). At least you can't call me a snob. Well, you could, but who the hell asked you anyway? I'm trying to be good and compile a list of books to look for when we go to Powell's later this month, but it's going to be hard to resist the temptation to hit B&N tonight.

This is what happens when you sit in a metal tube for six hours

2008-08-12T12:52:00.000-07:00

It’s somewhat disturbing how much I take cross-country flights in stride these days. Not that I don’t still have my moments of “ohgodohgodohgod” during turbulence, but I’m definitely in the expert traveler lane these days. The ubiquitous babies don’t even faze me anymore, and I thought I’d gotten used to the shared TV-watching experience on JetBlue, but I was wrong. Red Sox game on ESPN on a Boston to Seattle flight? Everyone is on the same channel. Pats? Ditto. But I was caught off guard when the plane erupted in various cheers when the one of the members of the US men’s gymnastics team stuck his landing. It was kind of awesome.

And, as the flight wore on and the Olympics wore off, it occurred to me: How do I know that I’m really flying? I mean, this plane looks like a damn movie set. I could be sitting in some weird fake plane for six hours when really they zapped me across the country in six seconds. What if it’s all some great conspiracy with the oil bastards to continue to charge me ridiculous amounts of money? I’m just saying.

Oh, say can you see

2008-08-09T19:44:00.002-07:00

Thoughts upon the close-up of Michael Phelps during his first medal ceremony of the '08 games: I'm not going to cry. I'm not going to cry. I know they are right on my face right now, and I'm not going to cry. Not even when they play the national anthem. I got a bunch of these four years ago, this is old hat. I'm not going to cry. Okay, it's still pretty cool.

I love the Olympics.

Good times

2008-08-08T20:36:00.002-07:00

We went to the Reds game last night, and like every single other time I have gone to a Reds game, the damn home team lost. Seriously, I know they're not that great a team overall, but not once? I'm beginning to think it's me. Bygones. It was Ladies Night, which means I got a free hat, and later on, free Dove chocolate. Apparently, there were some massages, too, but I was too busy watching the Reds lose.

Snapshots

2008-08-06T21:01:00.002-07:00

We drove through the Ohio countryside to go to a cookout at my dad's place at the lake. Lots of pretty corn, cute shops, barns, the usual. On the way back, we saw matching Speedways on opposite sides of the street -- but only one was open. What does that mean? I don't know.

Because I am a mature grown-up

2008-08-05T20:04:00.002-07:00

I send unflattering pictures of myself to my boyfriend because he mistakenly likes them. Also, I responsibly purchase gifts at Barnes & Noble and don't buy anything for myself (I am going to Powell's later this month, after all). I know how to season a cast-iron skillet. I discuss inflation and the current price of chicken. I talk about mortgages and PMI and sometimes actually know what I'm talking about. Also, I stomp my foot and pout when the store doesn't have any Zebra Cakes.

And they call it puppy love

2008-08-04T19:52:00.002-07:00

Yeah, so I claimed I was going east to see my family, but really it was to hang out with a pack of dogs, including but not limited to Dawn's new puppy, Jen's new puppy, my mom's dog, and (one of) my sister's dogs. I was going to put one of their little faces along with this post, but I really can't choose amongst all the cuteness. Just go see for yourselves.

Off like a prom dress

2008-08-01T17:20:00.003-07:00

I'm heading back east tonight for a delightful week of fun in the sun in scenic Ohio. Yeah, I know. I'm lucky. This year, I'm dragging J.R. with me just so he knows I can't make this shit up. Seriously, I'm ridiculously excited about seeing my family. (Leslie! Dad! Heather! Dawn and the new puppy! Yes, Mom, you too, of course.) I promise to blog all about the chili 5-way, as usual, and if things go my way, I'll get to go to Ladies Night with the Cincinnati Reds -- even though they f-ing traded Griffey. I really do hate trades.

The end of an era

2008-07-31T18:47:00.003-07:00

For all his Manny-being-Manny-ness, I will miss him. For his majestic home runs, I will miss him. For his pimp stroll after said home runs, I will miss him. For all his "I am a bad man," I will miss him. I won't forget that you were integral in bringing home the first World Series in 86 years, Manny. Oh, yeah, and that second one, too.

Good luck in L.A., man. And I don't care what the papers or the front office says, I'm not the only one who is going to miss you. You'll always be a Red Sock in my book.

The pictures are all I can feel

2008-07-30T21:22:00.001-07:00

I finally picked up my copy of Dani Shapiro's latest novel, Black & White, and I've finished it just a few days later. I don't know why I put it off for so long -- perhaps I was put off by my reaction to her last novel (which I thoroughly enjoyed, but it made me depressed in that grown-up way). Black & White centers around a woman who was photographed (intimately so) by her mother from 3 to 14, and it brings up the question of identity as something we can see, something imprinted on photographic paper. It made me think about how we remember things because we have pictures of them, or at least we think we remember them because we can still see some remnant of that time. It's a good book, and it left me thinking quite a bit. Which is clearly why I've moved on to The Photograph as my next book selection. In for a penny, in for a pound.

Television for women

2008-07-29T22:20:00.002-07:00

When I saw this blog over at Ashbloem, I immediately fell in love. Because I -- yes, I -- was also once a lover of all things Lifetime. True, this was mostly in high school when my afterschool fun consisted of going over to my friend Maggie's house and watching bad Lifetime dramas. Oh, they were so gloriously bad! My favorite, or at least the only one I still remember, was Betrayed by Innocence, which you can tell immediately from the title is fabulously, ridiculously bad. It was particularly memorable to me because Barry Bostwick was cast as the attractive older man who has an affair with a younger woman who, shall we say, misrepresents her age. Awesome! See, Barry wasn't always the goofy mayor from Spin City. Apparently, he was hot once, too. Or, at least, hot enough for Lifetime.

The first time

2008-07-27T11:35:00.003-07:00

Yesterday was my very first company picnic. Sure, I've been to J.R.'s huge Microsoft blowouts, but those were for his work. Wellesley never threw company picnics -- it's a college. Occasionally, we'd have lunch at the President's House, but that's not really the same thing. I mean, there was never volleyball. (In case you were wondering, yes, I suck at it, and wee children could beat me. At least, whenever they got it over the net, they could.) It was a surprising amount of fun.

Plus I got to add that to the rest of my firsts this week: First time in Kansas City, first time in Denver, first time I truly understood air rage. Good times.

Hey hey hey hey

2008-07-24T14:39:00.002-07:00

I've had the Beatles singing in my head ever since I started my little sojourn to Kansas City yesterday. I think you should all share my pain since it took me 8,000 years to actually get to Kansas City. Because when you're going to Missouri, you really want to spend most of your day in the Denver airport, which, while offering sweet free WiFi, is not a great place to chill for hours on end.

First, my flight out of Seattle was delayed. Fine. It'll be tight, but I should still make my connection. Well, now there are thunderstorms in Denver, so we have to circle around to make a different approach. And once you've done that, they're going to close the airport, so that you and your plane that is running out of fuel has to land in some godforsaken airstrip in Nebraska to gas up and wait for Denver to call the all clear. Of course, by the time that happens no way in hell are you going to make your connecting flight, JenGarrett. So then you wait at customer service, and they've nicely already rebooked you on the 8:14 flight. Okay. Sure, it's only 5:30 now, but it's better than nothing. Except that then the 8:14 flight is delayed. Until 10:30. However, the 9:27 flight is on time, but no, you can't get on that one without paying extra. Bygones. The 10:30 flight actually takes off, which is more than the poor canceled suckers going to San Francisco can say, so who am I to complain?

I was safely tucked into bed by 2 a.m. Kansas City time, so all's well that ends well, right? At least the conference has been pretty good so far.

Paps for president

2008-07-22T23:11:00.003-07:00

It was a nice change to see the Sox win one at Safeco tonight. Plus, it's always a pleasure to attend a game where pleasant, yet still drunken, Canadians compliment your team and assure you that they see the boys back in the Fall Classic.

After Matsuzaka let things get a little dicey in the 8th (I told Tito to take him out at pitch 99, but he didn't listen), Papelbon came in to save it all in the 9th. Since he was without his usual Fenway fanfare, the Boston fans in the bleachers cheered him on, including an adorable child in a Paps t-shirt who danced in the aisle. After the win was safely away, Sam commented on how cute the kid in the "Obama shirt" was. Now that's a ticket I'd like to see. Paps can just give any country who attempts to fuck with us the steely eyes, and then we can all go home.

The view from here

2008-07-21T21:25:00.003-07:00

Watching Karate Kid at 32? Way different than it was back in the day. Also, watching it with an 11-year-old and a 13-year-old? Funny, but not necessarily for all the right reasons. Also, when did I start blogging only in questions? When I got lazy? Who knows. All I know is that I heard "Cruel Summer" (from my new "Seasonal" mix), and I simply had to see the Kid again.

Speaking of children, I was reading my Real Simple tonight and was wholly intrigued by a piece by Rebecca Walker about dealing with the clutter children create. I'm still not totally okay with such things, but I try. Apparently, she recently wrote Baby Love: Choosing Motherhood After a Lifetime of Ambivalence, which definitely has an intriguing title but according to the reviews, a misleading one. I don't want to read a book about how someone who always wanted kids finally gets the guts to have one. I want to know if someone who was truly ambivalent about children has one and why. Because I've always thought that if you were, you know, ambivalent about the whole thing you shouldn't really have any. At least, that's what I'm telling my mom.

Bison and bald eagles and cougars, oh my

2008-07-19T21:36:00.002-07:00

We went to the Northwest Trek today, which was awesome, despite the three days it took us to drive there. I'm up for pretty much any adventure which results in seeing baby bison. Or really baby anything. Plus a whole host of other cool creatures.

It comes down to this

2008-07-17T21:58:00.002-07:00

J.R. and I went for a walk around Green Lake tonight -- he to take pictures, I to not sit on my ass watching TV. It was a beautiful night, and it was nice to be out among people. What I didn't expect, however, was what I felt watching the runners go by. I was jealous. I missed it. I was a little warm from the walking, but I'm pretty sure I didn't have a temperature. It may be time to really get back to it -- not just to get on the wagon, but to run around it.

Don't get burned

2008-07-16T21:30:00.002-07:00

I've started watching Burn Notice -- just in time for the second season. I gotta say, I'm loving the summer start, especially since USA kicked it off with a first-season marathon, allowing me to catch up. I love the snarky lead character, played to perfection by Jeffrey Donovan (who I don't remember from the Pretender, but that was a while back). However, I don't really like Gabrielle Anwar, for a couple of reasons: it seems like she's done something horrific to her lips; the character isn't written that well; and despite the fact that they've ditched her Irish accent from the pilot, she still seems like she's talking funny. Bygones. Sharon Gless makes up for nearly everything.

And they call it robot love

2008-07-15T21:20:00.002-07:00

We took the kids to see WALL-E tonight, and I have to admit, it was a damn good movie. It's not often robots can make me cry, but luckily I was prepared with extra napkins. As much as I enjoyed it, I actually don't have much to say about it. It was just a nice way to end a crappy day.