Jon was in Seattle all last week for a conference, and I went up last Friday to spend the weekend with him. On the plane, I sat next to a serviceman who was coming home on leave from Iraq. He'd been on a plane for over 24 hours at that point, and we ended up talking the entire flight. He was so nice! When we landed, they let all of the servicemen off the plane first, and when I got off, he was waiting there to walk me around the airport to find an ATM. Then he waited with me while I got my bag and walked me over to the taxi stand. Such a gentleman!
Then, when I got to my hotel, the check-in guy was super-friendly and nice to me. And the guy at the little cafe where I bought my lunch. Friendly and kind of flirty, but not creepy at all. Just enough to make me feel like I was pretty.
When we were going through the security line as we were catching the flight home, the guy checking boarding passes was extremely good looking, and the line was pretty long. When I got up to the metal detector, I handed over my boarding pass, and I said, "Are you ready for me to walk through?" He took it from me and said, "I've been ready for the last 20 minutes. That's about how long you've been waiting in line." OMG! I just grinned at him. Then grinned as I put my shoes back on. And grinned as I walked to my gate. And grinned as I boarded my plane.
It's nice to be flirted with. Makes a girl feel good. Thanks, Seattle boys!
Friday, February 13, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
Another Professor Story
So, my Contemporary Novel professor is a piece of work. Here's the latest:
We read Sandra Cisneros' novel "Caramelo" for this week. I didn't like it. But, that's beside the point. The book is about a Mexican-American girl who grew up in Chicago but went to Mexico every summer to visit her grandmother. Most of the book takes place in Mexico.
During class, we were discussing who the audience of the book is. I suggested that it was primarily for Mexican Americans and Latin Americans. My professor objected to this suggestion by asking the question, "But do those people really read novels?" I responded, "Why wouldn't they?" He then said, "Well, it's about literacy and having leisure time." Ummmmm, there are millions and millions of people living in Mexico, not to mention all of Latin America. I'm fairly sure a significant number of those people can read a book. And that they are not slaving away in the fields for 16 hours a day or whatever it is he thinks they do. I mean, Whaaaaat?
Next week we're discussing a novel about a black slave-owner in Virginia. I can't wait to hear what he says about that!
We read Sandra Cisneros' novel "Caramelo" for this week. I didn't like it. But, that's beside the point. The book is about a Mexican-American girl who grew up in Chicago but went to Mexico every summer to visit her grandmother. Most of the book takes place in Mexico.
During class, we were discussing who the audience of the book is. I suggested that it was primarily for Mexican Americans and Latin Americans. My professor objected to this suggestion by asking the question, "But do those people really read novels?" I responded, "Why wouldn't they?" He then said, "Well, it's about literacy and having leisure time." Ummmmm, there are millions and millions of people living in Mexico, not to mention all of Latin America. I'm fairly sure a significant number of those people can read a book. And that they are not slaving away in the fields for 16 hours a day or whatever it is he thinks they do. I mean, Whaaaaat?
Next week we're discussing a novel about a black slave-owner in Virginia. I can't wait to hear what he says about that!
Saturday, January 31, 2009
House Update
My friend Ali told me when all this began that in his culture, people would say that someone had put the Evil Eye on us. I'm beginning to think they might be right.
The Good News:
1) We've ordered cabinets again, and they will be shipping Feb. 16. They will be delivered within 2 weeks of that, and then they will be installed at some point. So, we are looking at having kitchen cabinets sometime in March. Yay!
2) We've ordered countertops again. We have to wait for the cabinets to be installed before we can actually get the granite, but it's all in process.
3) Our pool is fixed again. It has broken every month since we've lived here. Let's see how long it makes it this time!
The Bad News:
1) We filed a lawsuit against our contractor on Dec. 19, but for some reason Dallas County has still not served him with papers. More waiting...
2) Our 4-month-old mattress developed a huge divot that was causing us some back pain. I mean, what are the odds? We had to schedule the furniture company to come out and take a bunch of pictures and measure the divot. It was big enough and the mattress was new enough that they just exchanged it for a new mattress on Friday. Thank goodness it was that easy, but seriously, the easiest thing would have just been for the mattress to do what it was supposed to do.
3) We had the HVAC guy come out to do an estimate on replacing the vents in the front of the house. It's not that expensive, but with everything else, it's just a big pain.
4) We had an electrician come out to do an estimate on fixing all the wiring (none of the plugs or overhead lights work in the front part of the house). It was very expensive, and I think we need to get more estimates. But this just takes up a bunch of time and money as you have to pay about $150 a pop for estimates.
5) Because of the big freeze this week, they didn't pick up our bulk trash, and it's still all just sitting out in front of the curb!!! I really hope they don't just put it off until next month.
So, we're pretty frustrated right now, but at the same time, we feel like stuff is sort of getting done around here. I don't know. Things are better, but they're just really not good. I guess I'm glad things are moving forward, but it's really hard to have patience when you have lived in a house for 6 months and still don't have a kitchen. Anyway, there it is.
The Good News:
1) We've ordered cabinets again, and they will be shipping Feb. 16. They will be delivered within 2 weeks of that, and then they will be installed at some point. So, we are looking at having kitchen cabinets sometime in March. Yay!
2) We've ordered countertops again. We have to wait for the cabinets to be installed before we can actually get the granite, but it's all in process.
3) Our pool is fixed again. It has broken every month since we've lived here. Let's see how long it makes it this time!
The Bad News:
1) We filed a lawsuit against our contractor on Dec. 19, but for some reason Dallas County has still not served him with papers. More waiting...
2) Our 4-month-old mattress developed a huge divot that was causing us some back pain. I mean, what are the odds? We had to schedule the furniture company to come out and take a bunch of pictures and measure the divot. It was big enough and the mattress was new enough that they just exchanged it for a new mattress on Friday. Thank goodness it was that easy, but seriously, the easiest thing would have just been for the mattress to do what it was supposed to do.
3) We had the HVAC guy come out to do an estimate on replacing the vents in the front of the house. It's not that expensive, but with everything else, it's just a big pain.
4) We had an electrician come out to do an estimate on fixing all the wiring (none of the plugs or overhead lights work in the front part of the house). It was very expensive, and I think we need to get more estimates. But this just takes up a bunch of time and money as you have to pay about $150 a pop for estimates.
5) Because of the big freeze this week, they didn't pick up our bulk trash, and it's still all just sitting out in front of the curb!!! I really hope they don't just put it off until next month.
So, we're pretty frustrated right now, but at the same time, we feel like stuff is sort of getting done around here. I don't know. Things are better, but they're just really not good. I guess I'm glad things are moving forward, but it's really hard to have patience when you have lived in a house for 6 months and still don't have a kitchen. Anyway, there it is.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Bulk Trash Day
A few weeks ago, we did a load of yardwork (the previous owners of our house had obviously not pruned or even raked the yard in the entire 11 years they lived here!). It's been sitting in piles in our yard since then, and this week is our bulk trash week. We spent the morning hauling it all out to the curb along with a bunch of construction trash our contractor left piled up in our garage. Here's the final result:
As you can see, the pile of brush is higher than Jon's waist! Whew! I'm glad it's over.
As you can see, the pile of brush is higher than Jon's waist! Whew! I'm glad it's over.Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Truly Scrumptious
I realize I just posted like an hour ago, but then I got "Truly Scrumptious" stuck in my head and I started thinking about all the vocabulary words I learned just from that one song. I'm posting the lyrics here, because they're so adorable, and I've loved this song since I was, like, 6 years old. And it really did teach me good vocabulary! Plus, I love the rhyme "delicious" with "our wishes." It taught me a little something about poetry, too, I guess. "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" (The Musical!) is coming to Dallas this summer, and we have to go. I cannot forget or decide to be lazy. Please, friends, remind me that I want to do this or I will regret it!
Toot sweets sound like what they are
So do lollys in a lollypop jar
Gingerbread men have a gingerbread sound, we've found
Sugar plum cinnamon and lemon tart
Tell you what they are right from the start
And your name does the same for you
By coincidence, Truly Scrumptious,
You're truly, truly scrumptious
Scrumptious as a cherry peach parfait
When your near us, it's so delicious
Honest, Truly, you're the answer to our wishes
Truly Scrumptious,
Though we may seem presumptuous
Never, never, ever go away
Our hearts beat so unruly
Because we love you truly
Honest, Truly, we do.
Truly scrumptious,
You two are truly scrumptious.
Scrumptious as the breeze across the bay
When you're smiling, it's so delicious
So beguiling - you're the answer to my wishes
Truly scrumptious,
You two are truly scrumptious
And I shan't forget this lovely day.
My heart beats so unruly
I also love you truly
Honest, truly, I do
Toot sweets sound like what they are
So do lollys in a lollypop jar
Gingerbread men have a gingerbread sound, we've found
Sugar plum cinnamon and lemon tart
Tell you what they are right from the start
And your name does the same for you
By coincidence, Truly Scrumptious,
You're truly, truly scrumptious
Scrumptious as a cherry peach parfait
When your near us, it's so delicious
Honest, Truly, you're the answer to our wishes
Truly Scrumptious,
Though we may seem presumptuous
Never, never, ever go away
Our hearts beat so unruly
Because we love you truly
Honest, Truly, we do.
Truly scrumptious,
You two are truly scrumptious.
Scrumptious as the breeze across the bay
When you're smiling, it's so delicious
So beguiling - you're the answer to my wishes
Truly scrumptious,
You two are truly scrumptious
And I shan't forget this lovely day.
My heart beats so unruly
I also love you truly
Honest, truly, I do
First Day of Class Again
I had my first day of class for this semester: Contemporary American Novel. There is a list of 13 books, most of which have won the Pulitzer in the last few years. Everyone in the class was talking about how they had already read like nine of the books on the list. I have read exactly one book on the list. And I read it last semester. But who wants to read Pulitzer Prize-winning novels when you can be reading "Twilight" instead?
So, in class, my professor asked the rhetorical question, "What was the first book printed in the West?" Meaning, Western Civilization, not the American West. The girl next to me was like, "The Bible?" I said, "The Fall of Troy," because being so close-minded as I am, I always take West to mean England because really that's where all the good stuff happened. And I actually placed my little grubby hands on a first edition of the Fall of Troy last semester at the Harry Ransom Center in Austin, so yeah, I kind of know that's the first book ever printed in England. You can imagine my astonishment, then, when my professor proceeds to answer his own question saying, "Thomas Malory's Morte d'Arthur." WHAAAAT?!? That is just not true. He is just plain wrong. I wrote my Master's thesis on that book, and it was not the first book printed in England, much less the entire West. No, no, no. Maybe if by "book" he meant "novel" you might have an argument, but even that issue is hotly contested (well, you know, as hot as those contests get). What should I have done? Should I have corrected him so the room full of my fellow grad students would not be grossly misinformed? I'll tell you what I did do. I turned to the girl next to me and whispered, "That's not true!" in a scandalized voice and then just stopped listening.
So, in class, my professor asked the rhetorical question, "What was the first book printed in the West?" Meaning, Western Civilization, not the American West. The girl next to me was like, "The Bible?" I said, "The Fall of Troy," because being so close-minded as I am, I always take West to mean England because really that's where all the good stuff happened. And I actually placed my little grubby hands on a first edition of the Fall of Troy last semester at the Harry Ransom Center in Austin, so yeah, I kind of know that's the first book ever printed in England. You can imagine my astonishment, then, when my professor proceeds to answer his own question saying, "Thomas Malory's Morte d'Arthur." WHAAAAT?!? That is just not true. He is just plain wrong. I wrote my Master's thesis on that book, and it was not the first book printed in England, much less the entire West. No, no, no. Maybe if by "book" he meant "novel" you might have an argument, but even that issue is hotly contested (well, you know, as hot as those contests get). What should I have done? Should I have corrected him so the room full of my fellow grad students would not be grossly misinformed? I'll tell you what I did do. I turned to the girl next to me and whispered, "That's not true!" in a scandalized voice and then just stopped listening.
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