socks

Interesting how sock-talk has become all the rage over in blatherchat. :-) At Didgeri-Douze, I admired Teddy's wild socks (his entire attire, of course, but mainly his socks). Then we had a intense e-mail sock conversation in which I exhibited a great deal of Sock Envy (Allison must have as well, since she got a package of socks recently from Teddy, too!). About the same time, we also had a Marmite Conversation (mostly me wondering what it was).

So I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised when a package arrived yesterday from Teddy full of socks and marmite. :-) I *love* these socks, and plan to proudly wear them to conventions. I modelled the toe socks for Jeff (see today's blatherphoto); he just laughed and said, "They are so...YOU."

THANK YOU, TEDDY! :-)

Marmite

Auuuggh! What tastebud travesty is this!! It looks like it should taste like chocolate...what a cruel shock to find that it actually tastes like the salt sludge that you scrape off your boot in the winter (not that I've actually tasted any myself, of course...). Do people actually LIKE this stuff????

The fact that the marmite came in little containers that looked like the cream containers one finds in restaurants for coffee is also frightening, since it seems to indicate a certain frequency of use by many people.

Puzzlebox Live Online!

Paul Kwinn reports:

"Puzzlebox will be playing on a live on-line webcast. It's a regular show, broadcast over the web from a guy's livingroom in Langley, Washington (on Whidbey Island, in Puget Sound). The show is on Monday, April 24th, starting at 7:00 PM Pacific Time (so 10:00 PM for you East Coasters), and running about 45 minutes to an hour. The name of the show is "Testing, Testing" and the URL is:

http://www.electricedge.com/testingtesting/.

They've got archived copies of all their previous shows on the site, so you can check out the format, if you like. And you'll need RealAudio, so if you don't have that plug-in already, you might want to get it installed before the show (the Testing, Testing URL has a link to download it). Apparently, they read e-mails on the air during the show, so you can say "Hi" or request a song if you like."

living off michelinas

My work schedule has become rather erratic as of late (and sleep schedule).

I tend to work at home in the mornings now, getting up before my alarm clock goes off and staggering to my computer before doing anything else to check my email (is that sad or what?). Then, of course, I get sucked into doing some work for a couple of hours until hunger pains force me to leave the computer, have breakfast, take a shower, get dressed. Do some more work at home, errands (this morning was bank stuff), then office. I'm trying to get back into a regular habit of going to the gym (yes, I've been slacking off lately) before going to the office.

I've been living on Michelinas lately (small frozen dinners, heated up in our office microwave), and usually eat meals in front of the computer. Last night, Jeff and I worked until about 10:30 pm (no dinner). I was pretty crabby and exhausted by the time we got home. Cheered up some once I got something to eat (soup, leftovers), then fell asleep on the couch (Jeff got me to bed). I am definitely not a night person!

PEGASUS NOMINATIONS

Lori Coulson has told me to let people know that the Pegasus nomination deadline is May 1st (not Apr. 15). You can find a nomination ballot here. Please do support the Pegasus Awards by sending in a nomination if you haven't already...the more nominations they receive, the more representative is the final voting ballot. -Please- spread the word about this, thanks.

SOCK MONKEYS

I've been fascinated by the topic of sock monkeys which has cropped up in Blatherchat lately. Here are some interesting/horrifying resources on the topic I've found online:

Nate's Sock Monkey Hub

The Evil Sock Monkey Conspiracy

The Sock Monkey Page

Worship the Sock Monkey (weird)

babysitting

There are women out in the hallway right now, trying on a wedding dress.

Yes, -one- wedding dress. The office next door does wedding dress designs, and from time to time they'll be clustered outside my office with a model in a dress, pulling and tucking material here and there, critiquing the shape, the essence. I'll often pretend I have an errand just so I can get a closer look at the dress. Today, someone's perfume permeated the hallway as I stepped out, the fragrance drifting all the way down to the end of the corridor. I love working in this building; there's always something interesting going on somewhere. :-)

Lissa called last week to say hi; I got to talk to Teddy, too. It was wonderful hearing their voices, but it also made me miss them all that much more, argh. Why hasn't anyone invented transporters yet??

Rafe, Allison showed me the pictures you gave Dave, who gave them to her at FKO...they are great, thanks for sending those! I hope to borrow those sometime for scanning and posting some here.

Last night I had dinner at my sister's and played with Annie up in her bedroom. She proudly showed me her New Bed; she is too big for her crib. Aware that she might lose my undivided attention if I went back downstairs, she asked me if I could stay on her bed for a while. I said yes, and asked for some tea. She made invisible tea at her kitchen set, inquired whether I would like sugar and cream, and generously provided freshly-baked chocolate chip cookies. After this fine repast, she got some books out of her shelf and clambered up onto the bed with me. We lay down beside each other and she "read" one of the books to me. I could hear echoes of Ruth as Annie carefully modulated her voice in all the right places.

I found it difficult to concentrate on Annie's story because I was too busy watching her. And as I watched, I couldn't help but marvel at the fact that I had (literally) seen her born...and here she was, practically growing up in front of my eyes. It was hard fighting the impulse to reach over and wrap my arms around in her a huge bear-hug. Sadly, Annie is past the stage where she will passively let me do that sort of thing anymore; she'd squirm out of my arms and impatiently say, "Don't DO that, Auntie Debbie", anxious to get back to whatever activity I had interrupted. So for now, I just hug her in my mind instead.

The girl in the wedding dress outside my office is starting to look tired; she's been out there at least an hour while the observing women comment and tug and adjust.

I think I'd better go offer her some chocolate...

too busy

WAY too much going on in my life right now. Have you ever had the feeling you were on a rollercoaster but had forgotten to buckle up? :-)

Went for a late dinner at Fune with Scott M. (Jeff was out on a business meeting). My favourite type of norimaki these days is (sorry, can't remember the proper name) composed of fish eggs on rice, wrapped in nori, with a raw quail's egg broken on top. I've been reassured that eating a raw quail's egg is perfectly safe. One of my favourite snacks, by the way (and the less sturdy-stomached may want to click elsewhere at this point), has always been a bowl of freshly-cooked rice with a raw egg and shoyu (soy sauce) mixed in. I think I mentioned this in my Blatherings a couple of years ago. It's sort of slimey and disgusting-looking, but my Mom got me hooked on it. I haven't been so keen on it in recent years, though, because of the whole salmonella scare re: raw eggs.

After dinner, we went back and watched the last half NYPD Blue - a show I've never seen but which Scott watches regularly - until Jeff came home. I took an incriminating digital photo of Scott, mainly as revenge as the one he posted on me on his website, but he threatened me with horrible things if I posted it. I was briefly tempted to call his bluff (Scott looks pretty imposing...big, long hair, lots of black leather, talks tough in his Scribbles...but he's basically a marshmallow at heart) but decided I could get my revenge with subtler methods in the future.

Today's blatherpic: my niece Sara, age 5, wearing a cape (I can't remember why). The doll she is holding is indeed the very same DollyKajolly she has had since crib-size. The doll is now truly awful-looking, hair so filthy it's mutated into grubby snake-like tendrils, grimy face, stained dress, joints weakening...we are all bracing ourselves for the trauma that will ensue when DollylKajolly's head falls off one day.

harp ordered

Bolstered by my Writer's Digest cheque, I've decided to go ahead and order my harp. Talked with Larry Fisher on the phone this morning...VERY nice fellow. He's already started making my harp!! (We had talked before about wood, and decided on maple) We discussed artwork and cases and delivery options and such. I'm getting some artwork on the soundboard, designs based on the James McFall harps, which were produced in Belfast around 1900. You can also see them on the Clarke Irish Harps (NY, 1915).

I told him about my harp friends (especially Annie, who recommended him), and he seemed surprised/pleased that folks in the UK had heard of him. :-) My harp will be done in July. (Insert image of Debbie jumping up and down in excitement here)

Got my FKO pictures back from Black's but don't have my scanner software installed (had to reformat my drive after the crash); hopefully by tomorrow, when I'll start posting pics. Meanwhile, today's Blatherpic is donated by Phil Allcock. His description of the photo: "This is quite clearly Phil hugging Debbie affectionately whilst Lissa and Annie (check out that evil grin) take advantage of her..."

Allison's FilKONtario report is finished and now available online, for those interested. Scott Snyder also has one online.

Doug brought me a present on the weekend...a case of Cadbury Fusion chocolate bars. (!!) I've hidden them away behind the trail mix on our office shelf, but I can still hear them calling me all day, argh. I am so weak. I brought a bag of mini-carrots to help cancel out the effects. I'm finding, tho, that carrots go remarkably well with chocolate...

Jeff and I actually spent some Quality Time together last night and Did Not Work. The "no work talk" rule was also in effect, and only broken twice (once by me, once by him). Went to the Paramount and saw "High Fidelity", which we both enjoyed.