Our Lady of Perfection

Only you can help seniors to remember their medicine!

2009-07-31T10:57:00.002-04:00

Doing something unusual, like knocking on wood or patting yourself on the head, while taking a daily dose of medicine may be an effective strategy to help seniors remember whether they've already taken their daily medications, suggests new research.

So won't you please help the seniors out by doing something unusual today when you take your medicine?

Kelly Lambert at VFOB

2009-03-20T14:45:00.000-04:00

Kelly Lambert spoke last night at the Virginia Festival of the Book about her book, Lifting Depression, and about her neuroscience research. She was a personable and engaging speaker whose views about depression did not seem as extreme as those expressed in her book. Her research into what she calls the "effort based rewards" system is fascinating. There's little doubt that the effort-based rewards feedback loop is broken in people with depression and the suggestion from Lambert's rodent research that this reward system could be retrained is encouraging.

Lambert specifically suggests knitting as one possible activity that might help depression, and serendipitously there was someone in the audience who was knitting. She agreed that it is a relaxing and rewarding activity.

Lambert has convinced me that I should try doing more things with my hands such as cooking, baking pies, and painting lobsters as I did last week. (No lobsters were harmed during this activity.) Creating is fun and can make people feel good, whether it cures depression or not.

Justine Willis Toms at VFOB

2009-03-20T14:40:00.000-04:00

Justine Willis Toms, author of Small Pleasures and co-author of True Work, appeared at the Virginia Festival of the Book last night. Her picture here looks a little blurry but that's the photographer's fault -- she's not really blurry in person. She's really lovely in person, with a warm smile for everyone. She began her talk by saying we are living in a time of great growth and recommended that we try to turn worry and fear into curiosity and optimism, which I thought was good and timely advice.

Toms was soothing yet challenging. She encouraged optimism during the present moment, which is a challenge for lots of us right now. She encouraged living your dreams and had the audience write down what they most wanted and what they needed to be happy. I wrote that I don't know. I even underlined "I don't know."

Justine Willis Toms might have me convinced that I'm not dreaming big enough.

If you missed her last night, she's appearing again tonight at 6 pm in the City Council Chambers.

Hardships and healing panel, VFOB

2009-03-18T22:39:00.002-04:00

Writers Susan Skolnick-Lozano, Russell U. Richards, and James Herndon with moderator Faith Andrews Bedford.

Today was the first day of the Virginia Festival of the Book and I went to my first session at 6 pm at the Northside Library. The panel was entitled "When Life Takes a Turn: Authors Write About Hardships and Healing." It was an interesting, well-moderated session which addressed more writing issues than healing issues. Each author read for a few minutes from his/her book, and then fielded questions from the moderator and the audience.

Responding to a question about what they had learned about themselves while writing their books, Richards said that he discovered that things he had believed about himself weren't true; Skolnick-Lozano discovered that she was a great motivator with the ability to get people to believe in themselves; and Herndon discovered that he was a naive young man, adding that writing his book was one of the happiest periods of his life.

I was touched by these authors' willingness to reveal very personal things about themselves in their books. Skolnick-Lozano said that one reason she wrote and was willing to share such personal information was that "people need to know they're not alone." Amen to that.

More tomorrow. The Book Fest goes through Sunday -- check out the schedule and come to some events!

True Work

2009-03-18T15:52:00.006-04:00

One of a series of posts about the Virginia Festival of the Book:

True Work was written a decade ago by Michael Toms and Justine Willis Toms, the co-founders of New Dimensions Radio, and is about following your bliss as it pertains to your working life. I was going to write a really short review of this book, saying that I love any book with a sentence like this in it:

A regrettable case of degenerative curmudgeonliness befell a small office we knew.

Is that not a perfect sentence? I think it is. The rest of the book is warm, encouraging, and quotes lots of excellent teachers on the subject of work and life. If you're in a rut, or have a dream you've been wanting to follow, you would do well to read this book. My work life has been in a bit of upheaval lately, my time being doled out to several divisions, and I liked hearing about "walking through the valley" of bad times and how we can learn important things there. The Toms also encourage readers to set up their own True Work Circles in order to give and get support. There's a lot to like about this book. It's spiritually sensible in a kind of new-agey way.

Michael Toms had to cancel, but Justine Willis Toms will be at the Book Fest on Thursday night (see below). I'm looking forward to hearing her speak, and hope to see a lot of people there.

__________________________________________________

New Dimensions: True Work

Justine Willis Toms, co-host of the award-winning New Dimensions radio show, joins success coach Michelle Prosser to talk about doing what you love and loving what you do.

Thu. March 19th, 2009 8:00 PM

Lifting depression?

2009-03-17T14:04:00.010-04:00

One of several posts about the Virginia Festival of the Book:

Kelly Lambert's book, Lifting Depression, is an interesting read. Her basic premise is that the lack of what she calls "effort-based rewards" can lead to depression. She uses a combination of current research and evolutionary psychology to make this argument. Effort-based rewards are just what they sound like, working (expending effort) to attain a goal. Lambert thinks that if that goal is the creation of something tangible, so much the better. She tells us she beat depression by vacuuming, and recommends other activities such as knitting and sewing and cooking meals, which primarily use the hands and produce material objects. She argues that our ancestors did a lot more work with their hands and they had much lower rates of depression. I'm not sure we know what the ancient rates of depression were. Depression isn't a new thing; melancholia has been with us for a long time. It's diagnosed more now, and I would argue that's because of the continuing destigmatization (which unfortunately still has a long way to go).

I wouldn't object to Lambert's ideas as being of possible assistance in depression, had she not seen fit to trash the use of antidepressants and therapy along the way. I myself would not be able to FIND the vacuum cleaner without antidepressants, and while they may be overprescribed by general practitioners who have no business prescribing them, they are invaluable for those with moderate to severe depression. Lambert refers to meds at one point as "masking uncomfortable but important feelings." That's absolutely untrue. On meds, I laugh, cry, feel joy, feel anger -- feel the full range of human emotions. Without them, in the throes of depression, I feel only the low end of the spectrum, and my lows are lower than most. Lambert refers to depression as being useful in that it points to problems in our lives. While that can be true, people with depression are likely to fall into an episode with no trigger at all. Even when triggered, depression as a reaction is overkill. It's maladaptive.

There's nothing wrong at all with taking a multifaceted approach to treating depression, and I know lots of knitters who find knitting a fun and relaxing hobby. And I agree that making things from scratch can be incredibly satisfying. But there have been times in my past when I had anhedonia, the inability to take pleasure in anything, and I certainly tried to do things to bring myself out of it, but guess what worked? Therapy and medication.

If you have depression, I think it makes sense to try whatever might work to alleviate it. Exercise, cook, knit -- all of that. But I would also recommend finding a good psychiatrist and pursuing medical treatment. It's an illness with a high rate of relapse. Get treatment.

Kelly Lambert is speaking about her book at the Virginia Festival of the Book this Thursday. Hope to see you there.
___________________________________________________________

Lifting Depression: Have Important Clues Been in Our Hands All Along?

Thu. March 19th, 2009 6:00 PM

Kelly Lambert (Lifting Depression) considers both our ancestors' lifestyles and the evolution of the mammalian brain to generate novel ideas and offer help for the skyrocketing rates of depression in contemporary society.

Hardships and healing

2009-03-14T14:52:00.007-04:00

One of a series of posts about Virginia Festival of the Book events:

The three authors participating in VFOB's "When Life Takes a Turn" panel have all faced adversity in their lives in different ways. Two have serious illnesses and one helped her daughter recover from a traumatic brain injury. In reading their books, I focused on the theme of this panel -- facing hardships and healing.

Russell U. Richards' book, The Arts and Innards of Russell U. Richards!, was specific and detailed in chronicling both the writer's artistic journey and the natural history of his illness, ulcerative colitis. At times quite blunt and detailed, this made for a good story.

I would not be surprised to learn that this book was dictated, as it reads very much as if Richards is just telling the reader his story. The author's voice, while not polished, is authentic and because it is, his story is quite compelling, equally as compelling as the reproductions of his artwork which are printed in the book. The way health and artistic life are intertwined in the story is interesting. Richards' art is not easily categorized but I really enjoyed a lot of it, particularly The Isle of Life which is brimming with, well, life and color.

Riding at Fairhunt seems meant for a younger audience, possibly young people beginning a life of horsemanship. Susan Skolnick-Lozano delivers advice about life and attitude among the practical rules of riding. I would have been interested to hear more about her daughter's recovery post-traumatic brain injury. What she writes is brief and to the point, and her can-do positive attitude permeates the story.

Jack's Shop, while a nostalgic memoir of growing up in Madison County, ends just as the author/narrator, James Herndon, is coming down with encephalitis. The author is thus presumed to have lived through the adversity of a serious illness, but it all takes place after the time period covered by the book. The author plans two sequels, however.

I look forward to hearing these three writers talk about their experiences at the panel this Wednesday. I hope you'll join me there.

_________________________________________________

When Life Takes a Turn: Authors Write About Hardships and Healing

Wed. March 18th, 2009 6:00 PM

James Herndon (Jack's Shop: Beyond the Front Porch), Susan Skolnick-Lozano (Riding at Fairhunt... For Love, Life and Therapy) and Russell Richards (The Arts and Innards of Russell U. Richards!) discuss their books of personal difficulties and triumphs.

Crack eggs

2009-02-25T20:47:00.004-05:00

Let's see, today was Ash Wednesday -- that means -- if I'm calculating correctly -- why YES: the Cadbury's mini-eggs are in the stores right now. Every year I pick up this habit, only to be forced to go cold turkey when Easter rolls around and they disappear. You'd think I'd learn and pick up some extra, but I'm in denial. I'm so in thrall to these little beasts that I think I will be happy once they're gone and I am a free woman. But then the next year rolls around, and the cycle begins anew...

The devil incarnate.

A week without freedom

2009-02-21T13:16:00.003-05:00

It has been a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad week. I still do not have a license to drive. People have been so helpful and kind to me, especially my neighbor who has been driving me to work every day, that it seems churlish to complain, but I really, really do not like the feeling of not being able to jump into my car and go wherever I want.

A dear friend of mine helped me identify this malaise after a few days in which I was in a crummy, despairing, yet un-self-aware mood. The whole thing is taking me back to the days of childhood, when my time was not my own and when I was in constant trouble for waiting until the last minute, requiring my parents to run out to the store at the last minute for school or personal supplies, which they very much resented. I can't say I blame them, but in adulthood I have kind of gotten used to my way of doing things, which means if I run out of dog food I can go out in the evening after work and get some. And I don't mind that it's at the last minute. The world has become more accommodating to me as well, what with stores being open all the time and everything. But this week running out of dog food was problematic. Would I ask my neighbor to stop somewhere on the way home, even though I've been trying as hard as I can to minimize my impact on her driving habits? Would I take a chance that I could drive to the store and not get caught? I spent WAY too much time this week thinking about dog food, and if that sounds dumb, try living it. My life felt full of petty concerns that I could do nothing about. In the end my friend solved the problem by suggesting I pick up some food on the Corner during lunch time, which is what I did.

Decisiveness has eluded me and I think it's largely been due to the lack of autonomy I've felt. With fewer options open to me, I flailed about thinking obsessively of the few crummy options I could imagine. I have a feeling that, when the license arrives, I will feel the world open to me in a really lovely way. Maybe I'll never take having a license for granted again, but that's doubtful. It's just not the human way. But for a few days, I'm sure, I'll be happy just thinking that I have my license, and with it, my freedom.

UPDATE: My new license arrived in today's mail, finally -- let's just say a watched mailbox never spontaneously generates mail -- and I am free again!

Photo day wtf do I know

2009-02-15T16:41:00.002-05:00

What say I just post pix when I feel like it and write when I feel like it without imposing all sorts of false order on my blog which has its own inherent order anyway?

Here's one from our snow day a couple of weeks ago:

These interesting seed pods are still hanging on a tree near the hospital:

One of my favorite subjects, hanging upside down outside my old office window:

Imagine hanging upside down to enjoy a tasty little treat!

Certain girls

2009-02-15T15:56:00.004-05:00

Just finished Jennifer Weiner's most recent book, Certain Girls. It took a very serious turn toward the end, which I did not expect and which kind of threw me into a turmoil of grief and regret. I suppose it's good to be surprised by a book in that way, and I suppose I shouldn't spoil the book for people who might want to read it. It's an interesting mother/daughter story, with each voice alternating chapters -- a technique that rarely works, in my opinion, but which worked for me in this book because I found both voices and story lines equally compelling.

Maybe it's a backhanded compliment, but this book made me wonder why I don't write a book or books about my own, thinly veiled but fictionalized life. I feel like, even after all these years, I still don't know what I'm supposed to be doing, or if I'm "supposed" to be doing anything at all. Does it seem likely that I will sit down and write a novel at the age of 50? Should I not allow age to have anything to do with it? Should I be working on my freelance editing business rather than daydreaming about writing? Should I just write and work and freelance and shut up about it? Should I stop asking myself all these questions? Or should I ask them, but keep them to myself?

I've had another unproductive day looking for my birth certificate. Maybe it wasn't all that unproductive, even though my goal wasn't achieved: I did throw out an entire trash bag of worthless paper and shred even more than that. So some organizing did occur.

Tomorrow I'm going to see if I can drive to work and back without getting stopped by the cops for not having a valid license. It feels insane to be worrying about this.

VFOB Funtimes

2009-02-14T20:20:00.002-05:00

The good people of the Virginia Festival of the Book have invited me once again to blog for the festival. I love the bookfest and I feel lucky to be involved. This year I'll be covering a few health/mind/body sessions. I'll be reading the books and going to the sessions and blogging about them. I'll keep you posted as I begin my reading, it is to be hoped, next week.

I need to rant

2009-02-14T20:10:00.002-05:00

I need to rant about something that is in large part my own fault. My driver's license expired on my birthday and SINCE I HAD MAJOR SURGERY THAT DAY it kind of slipped my mind, until I was reminded by a supercilious police officer yesterday, on my way home from the longest week of my life in which I was exhausted and just living for the weekend. Don't delay me on a Friday night, man. I fully admit that this is my fault, I never should have let it happen, but could we also agree that it is a technicality, this $32 license fee, and that I am the same driver today that I would have been had I renewed my license on time? And can we furthermore agree that I am the same US citizen that I have always been? Because they would not renew my license at the DMV without my birth certificate, which of course I have shown them several times before now but which I couldn't find this morning.

Ironically, I was then able to renew my license online without proving who I am. I didn't even need a PIN number! And I didn't need to prove my legal right to existence or whatever they call it at the DMV. Unfortunately now I have to wait for them to mail my license to me.

I'm just frustrated with the system. I'm sure the system's frustrated with me as well. It just wasn't a very good day.

Suppose that...

2009-01-31T11:03:00.002-05:00

...you think you made a pretty big mistake. Or really, you don't know whether it's a mistake but it seems like it might be one because you suddenly discover you're not as talented at something as you thought you were and your good feeling about your skill turned out to be mostly bravado. Or maybe not *mostly* bravado, maybe just some of it is bravado. Anyway, your choice is between not relying on this skill and realizing that you're not as good as you thought you were, or actually taking steps to improve the skill so that you (possibly) become as good as you thought you were. How do you decide? And yes, I'm being intentionally vague.

In other news, I am achy as all get-out and feeling unmotivated. But I'm making myself write anyway.

I wish I could live my life without regret.

So...

2009-01-29T19:13:00.002-05:00

I was sitting in my enormous rocking chair, reading Kavalier and Clay, finally after all these years because I bought it -- I was unable to check it out of the library for what seemed like decades -- when I started to think about my job situation and how it's not going so well and how I'll probably be doing something else pretty soon. This made me think of an editorial job I had wanted very much but didn't get and that made me think of writing. And that, for reasons which remain shrouded in my checkered past, reminded me of gin and tonics. I don't have any gin though, or tonic for that matter, so I am now sitting here typing with a Malibu rum and Fresca, a drink of my own invention and don't laugh until you've tried it. And no, I'm not using the drink to type with -- you know what I mean!

I thought about successful bloggers I know who write every single day and it occurred to me that I could write every single day if I gave myself time and space to do it. And I remembered that I was always a good writer in school, lo these many years ago, but that I decided I didn't like writing. And yet I keep a blog for fun. And I love email. I just don't like being forced to write things, and indeed there's a writing task on my work desk that is currently kicking my ass.

Which is all just to say, maybe I should be writing more.

This just in

2009-01-14T11:16:00.001-05:00

Let's file this under "things I've always suspected":

The toxin in Botox products may spread to distant parts of the body, with potentially fatal consequences, Health Canada said Tuesday in announcing new labelling information for the drugs.

--via Feministing

Weird news o' the day

2009-01-12T10:24:00.002-05:00

Hold out your hand. If you are a woman whose index finger is shorter than your ring finger – even by just a few millimeters – you may be more likely to develop knee osteoarthritis (OA), according to a new study. --Arthritis Today

Seriously? But of course my index fingers are shorter than my ring fingers.

Not sharing

2009-01-11T10:52:00.002-05:00

I've always been bad at sharing. I'm known for it in my family. Monday evenings we would go to the Julia L. Butterfield Memorial Library and afterward we would get a quarter to spend on candy at the Julia L.Butterfield pharmacy. Do not ask me who Julia B. was; I should know, but I don't. Back in the car, my brothers and I would be munching on our candy when something like this would transpire:

Mikey (spontaneously): Dad, would you like some of my candy?
Dad: No, thank you.
Chris: Dad, would you like some of *my* candy?
Dad: No, thank you.
[Loooong pause]
Me: Dad, you don't want any of my candy, do you....?
Dad: Yes, thank you, I'll have a piece.

Usually he wound up not taking any of my candy, but you can see why I got teased a lot. By the time grad school rolled around, I was refusing to share popcorn in movie theaters. I had to have my own.

This all came up as I was considering updating my blog and realized that I didn't want to share. Maybe some other time.

End Umbrellarage! Umbrella etiquette...

2008-12-22T15:55:00.002-05:00

...aka "umbrelliquette," according to this great article by Melissa Kirsch:

The entire country beset by storms, umbrellas -- an at once brilliant (a little roof you carry with you) and unwieldy (given bags and winds and the inevitable presence of other umbrella-carriers) necessity -- explode across the urban landscape. In aerial view, any city in a storm is a riot of color, but on the ground, it's an ugly fight for survival. Enough, already. Herein, some pointers to ensure no one loses an eye, no one buys a super-expensive novelty.

Read the whole article at the HuffPost.

A snowy day

2008-12-19T15:01:00.002-05:00

The snow is really coming down today and it's really beautiful. I had hoped for one good snowstorm before Christmas and this is it. The kids and dogs are enjoying it greatly.

Just a few days ago it was so warm that I went to the nearby playground to swing on the swing set. It was so liberating to experience that kind of motion, going up so high, practically flying.

My recovery is proceeding apace. I was told that this 2 weeks would bring "2 steps forward, 1 step back" moments, and that's certainly been true. My head is feeling a bit more organized and I'm starting to think seriously about work again. I want to really go in there in January and wow them again. There are some exciting projects for me to work on.

On the other hand, I will miss my leisure time. Not that I've had much; being surrounded by family seems to mean little time to oneself, and I'm not one who can thrive without time to myself. This is not something I really love about myself. I always thought I'd be a lot more happy if I could learn to live in proximity to people, but evidently that's not who I am.

Photo day 35

2008-12-12T22:30:00.001-05:00

My niece and nephew with my dogs.

Photo day 34

2008-12-12T22:21:00.001-05:00

My dad runs the "soap closet" at his church. They provide various personal and household cleaning supplies to people in need. We went one day to label dish soap and to repackage laundry soap.

Photo day 33

2008-12-12T22:05:00.002-05:00

Calling Shelly, the cloud expert: what kind of clouds are these? They looked like billowing fabric.

Photo day 32

2008-12-12T21:45:00.002-05:00

A corner of my dad's dining room.

873 channels and nothing to watch

2008-12-08T00:17:00.003-05:00

Sometimes tv is so disappointing. I can't sleep and there's nothing on tv either.

I don't feel like doing anything. I'm still having trouble reading. I don't even want to look at magazines or catalogs. I'm restless. I'll think I want to do something and then do it for about 2 minutes before realizing that's not what I want. There's nothing to eat in the house and part of me feels like going out, just getting in the car and going somewhere. I guess I'm a little stir-crazy. What do you do when you don't know what to do??? That's a serious question.

I do have a puzzle with me so I might try that next. I'll report back, maybe. I thought writing would help but now I'm finished and don't want to write anymore.

A small request

2008-12-07T09:44:00.001-05:00

Please follow my inane twittering, if you'd like. Shout out to Melissa: I blame you.

Sleep at last

2008-12-05T09:37:00.001-05:00

Since I went on and on about the insomnia, I thought I'd mention that last night I had a good night's sleep. Amazing how that sets you up for the day. I still woke up early enough for the sunrise.

Photo day 31

2008-12-04T20:00:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a beautiful day and my dad and I decided to walk to the diner for breakfast. On our way home we passed this little flock of goldfinches.

Photo day 30

2008-12-04T18:00:00.000-05:00

A corner of my living room, complete with Pomeranian throw pillow.

Photo day 29

2008-12-04T16:00:00.000-05:00

Happy 50th birthday to me!

Extremely thoughtful and generous gifts from my friends.

Photo day 28

2008-12-04T14:00:00.000-05:00

The sky, doing interesting things last month. Still having trouble holding the camera steady on those night shots...

Photo day 27

2008-12-04T12:00:00.000-05:00

Two shots from Shenandoah Joe's, a terrific coffee place in Cville.

Photo day 26

2008-12-04T10:00:00.001-05:00

The Perfect One goes upside-down.

Photo day 25

2008-12-04T07:46:00.003-05:00

The Anderson Brothers building, soon to be a CVS, on the UVa Corner.

Photo day 24

2008-12-04T07:40:00.001-05:00

aka Photo day omg I'm finally posting photos again. This is the first of a few.

Your friend the bun who lives outside of the old medical school.

The best thing about insomnia

2008-12-04T07:15:00.002-05:00

... is watching the sun rise. It's so lovely to see the sky lighten and the pretty colors along the horizon as the sun comes up. In the 70's portion of my youth one of my favorite singers was Melanie (I am a sap) and one of her songs was:

We were meant to see the beginning of the day
I believe it was planned to lift us this way
Take you an apple and take you a song
Watch a baby day be born

Even as a kid, tortured lyrics like "take you an apple" bothered me, but if the tune worked I would forgive.

Right now I feel like an apple though.

Update

2008-12-04T02:26:00.002-05:00

Dad gets Rolling Stone because it's free. He calls it "The Rolling Stones, or whatever." I think it's funny that he would subscribe to a magazine just because it's free, but maybe it's a sign of open-mindedness.

I'm up at 2:30, but I actually slept 6 hours tonight. Yes, I went to bed at 7:30 pm. Basically I had a drink and the living room was warm and my niece was going on about how the dogs don't love her even though they do and my sister-in-law was encouraging me to go to bed if I was tired. I was tired. But 6 hours seems like an acceptable amount of sleep to me.

It finally occurred to me yesterday to inquire of the internet whether insomnia is a symptom of surgical menopause. It is.

I have the urge to end every post with "that is all" but I will leave that to John Hodgman.

Update

2008-12-03T06:29:00.002-05:00

My father subscribes to Rolling Stone magazine. Trust me here, this is inexplicable. Although I will ask him to explicate it if the g.d. morning ever gets here. Ok, it's technically here, but it's still dark outside and everyone is sleeping.

Insomnia

2008-12-03T04:40:00.002-05:00

I am secretly fascinated by insomnia and thus haven't been too annoyed by my current and only bout of it. It helps that I'm still on medical leave and don't have to get up in the morning. I can also nap during the day. Must readjust schedule in the coming weeks so that I can successfully return to work.

I suspect part of my problem is the interaction of pain and painkillers. The pain isn't bad, but sometimes I can turn funny in bed (just ask anyone -- Kidding!) and wake up from twingey pain. As for painkillers, I'm officially off, but this is the first day. I'm sure they muck with sleep and I think my life, not to mention my memory, will be much more normal without them.

Anyway, I'm up, I'm watching Bob Newhart, I'm reading 622 articles in Google Reader, and I'm downloading Privileged (do I really have to mention that it's a guilty pleasure??). At 4:46 am. I think the insomnia will go away soon, but if it doesn't perhaps I could learn to use this time wisely.

Although I don't think the wise use of time is what insomnia's all about.

A one-sided Bob Newhart phone conversation

2008-12-02T05:31:00.002-05:00

Hello?
Oh, hello Mr Carlin. You sound down in the dumps.
You are down in the dumps? What are you doing down there?
Oh, just browsing?

The Bob Newhart Show has been a big part of my recovery from surgery. He's always there on Hulu, any time day or night (right now it's 5:30 am but I've been up since 4), 72 episodes worth. Just the right combination of humor and absorption. I lurve him.

Having nothing to say...

2008-12-01T13:22:00.003-05:00

...naturally makes me want to write something. I keep having all these ideas of things to do, and then I nap instead. This is what we call "recovery." Things are looking up though: I'll be off vicodin after tomorrow, and I've been able to take a couple of good walks with dad. Not with the dogs though, who find it baffling that I could set off outside without them. I miss having them on the walks, too, but it's going to be several more weeks (at least) before I can handle even occasional leash pulling.

Late-night dispatch

2008-11-30T02:32:00.002-05:00

Yes, it's 2:30 am. I have never had insomnia before, at least not for any sort of prolonged period. I wake up to take my pain meds and then can't get back to sleep. I am looking forward to being completely recovered from this surgery.

My dad is staying with me right now, and nothing makes you feel feeble like having a 75 year old caretaker, but it's been great having him here and he makes excellent grilled cheese sandwiches (secret: English muffins and cheddar).

I am pretty bored because my mind is not fully functional, so my life right now is a round of tv and naps, with talking and occasional light reading. When I set my mind to something more intellectual, I can't focus. Maybe it's the opioids...

That's all from here.

World's largest rodent

2008-11-29T03:49:00.004-05:00

Your friends, the capybaras (courtesy of Cute Overload).

My mom and I used to go to the zoo and seek out the capybara, whose sign always said, no matter which zoo, "World's largest rodent." And yet they are so cute.

I am slowly returning to the land of the living from the land of the sick, followed by the land of surgery.

Photo day 23

2008-11-14T15:00:00.000-05:00

Who's this on top of my computer monitor?

It is my tiny spider visitor. Since s/he was RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME, I had hoped to get a better shot -- but s/he was a jumper, so I couldn't get as close as I wanted.

Photo day 22

2008-11-14T14:00:00.000-05:00

The Perfect one sticks her tongue out at you, but in a peaceful, relaxed sort of way.

Photo day 21

2008-11-14T12:15:00.000-05:00

Taken from the link between the old and new hospitals.

Photo day 20

2008-11-14T11:00:00.000-05:00

Starlings near the old medical school.

Photo day 19

2008-11-14T08:49:00.004-05:00

Back when I felt like going places, which seems a lifetime ago but was only the end of September, I went to an art opening at a new UVa gallery. It was so much fun to see art and drink bad wine. I am going to make a point of going to more exhibits in the new year.

Brief update

2008-11-14T08:46:00.004-05:00

Hello there, it's been a while.

I have been stuck at home feeling like crap for what? a month now? and I'm having surgery next week so blogging may continue to suffer.

I'm going to try to post some pictures today but so far Blogger is refusing to cooperate.

Photo day 18

2008-09-23T17:18:00.003-04:00

There I was, alone in my office. Or so I thought! I looked up, and voila! my new bug helper. Here he is working on some filing.

He is currently scoping out the phone. I can see he will be very useful.

Photo day 17

2008-09-23T17:15:00.003-04:00

All the pillows are belong to me!

I shall allow the giant dog a tiny corner of one pillow only.

Photo day 16

2008-09-23T16:58:00.003-04:00

Taken from my airplane seat, leaving Philadelphia on the day after the wedding.

Photo day 15

2008-09-23T16:51:00.002-04:00

Neither of these are very good images, but they captured some sweet moments of my brother, his wife, and their kids.

Taken in Philadelphia at John's son John's nephew John's son John's wedding. We are all about the easy-to-remember names in my family.

Photo day 14

2008-09-23T16:40:00.003-04:00

Squirrely McSquirrelsons, telling me off outside Cobb Hall.

Photo day 13

2008-09-23T16:34:00.003-04:00

Isn't this a lovely little plant grouping? In the summer, the leafy plant was a gorgeous bronze color. I neglected to take a picture then, but it's still pretty now.

Photo day 12

2008-09-23T16:28:00.003-04:00

At the bank drive-through, a fairly unusual place for me to be.

What should I write about?

2008-09-23T16:17:00.002-04:00

So I stumbled across this great new column in the Washington Post called "Medical Mysteries" and I thought, damn, why didn't I think of that? Because it would be such an interesting column to write. Now I am trying to think of great column ideas that no one has had yet.

I know exactly who I'm marrying

2008-09-22T17:10:00.003-04:00

Good news on the marriage front:

He's in all the movies!

As bouncy as a Boxer on a trampoline

2008-09-17T11:22:00.001-04:00

Like dogs? Need a laugh? You're welcome.

Photo day 11

2008-09-16T16:28:00.003-04:00

I do love the little sparrows. They are sitting on a fence that bounds the hospital's helicopter landing pad.

I think I've done something like 3 pictures in the last 5 or 6 days. Considering how craptastic I feel, I consider that amazing.

Photo day 10

2008-09-16T16:24:00.003-04:00

Nothing is quite so cheering to me as a visit from Phoebe. Here she is playing at the local mall on an unspeakably hot September Sunday.

Photo day 9

2008-09-16T16:20:00.002-04:00

A row of trees outside a hotel that I pass walking to and from work every day.

Photo day 8

2008-09-10T19:35:00.002-04:00

Impediment to progress

Well, since this truck is part of the construction equipment for the new Cancer Center, I suppose I shouldn't call it an impediment to progress. It was actually an impediment to MY progress as I walked to work this morning, though.

Photo day 7

2008-09-09T16:11:00.004-04:00

A rainy day at UVa, from the Cobb Hall porch.

Photo day 6

2008-09-08T18:17:00.003-04:00

Let's just pretend it's only been 6 days since I started posting a picture a day, ok? We can see how long it actually takes me to post 365.

"Take me for a walk, I beseech you."

Photo day 5

2008-09-05T22:11:00.003-04:00

Today a 3-fer! I wasn't feeling well today and stayed at home. Thus I had to press some local subjects into service for the daily photo.

Here's Rosalie, comin' atcha!

A funny expression of Zoe's:

Zoe has always enjoyed settling in for a good chew on her nylabone:

Photo day 4

2008-09-04T19:39:00.003-04:00

There's a beautiful little patch of flowers and grass directly in front of the UVa heating plant. I pass this on the way to and from work at the hospital.

Photo day 3

2008-09-03T19:31:00.002-04:00

This tree is outside the hospital, across from the parking garage where a lot of sparrows nest. They seem to like to gather here.

Whoa.

2008-09-03T11:27:00.002-04:00

Something makes me think this widget might not be very accurate.

Photo day 2

2008-09-02T19:44:00.003-04:00

Imagine my delight upon finding, as I pulled into the Integral Yoga parking lot in order to buy dog food and N-acetyl cysteine, that Breadworks was still open. I can have cookies! I exclaimed in the privacy of my car. Do they not look delicious?

Photo day 1

2008-09-01T15:02:00.006-04:00

My mom made this little bear when she was in high school. To me, it's the most valuable item she ever gave me. I think of her every time I see it. It sits on the buffet, sandwiched between my favorite photos of my brothers.

Ah, blogging

2008-09-01T14:45:00.002-04:00

As you may have noticed, I've hit a blog bog. I'm not going into the reasons why, but in an effort to jump-start my blogging once again, I've decided to post a picture a day for a year, aka Project 365.

Stay tuned.

A leetle Monday pick-me-up

2008-07-28T08:44:00.002-04:00

You really should be reading Cute Overload, but for those of you who still don't, please to enjoy Mooses in Sprinkers.

My actual mantra lately

2008-07-23T11:01:00.002-04:00

For some reason, the songs I like don't seem to be produced as actual videos... Anyway, even though this is my mantra, I try not to access it during actual meditation sessions.

It's just the fault of faulty manufacturing

2008-07-23T10:56:00.002-04:00

Another pseudo-video, this time featuring my latest heartthrob, a man 3/5ths my age.

It's a lovely song, despite the mention of diarrhea at the very end.

Present company included... I mean, excluded!

2008-07-22T13:50:00.001-04:00

It's not much in the video department, but please to enjoy my current favorite song:

Bush tours devastation...

2008-07-03T13:18:00.001-04:00

... caused by his presidency! Fun, but in a painful sort of way. Brought to you by your friends at the Onion:

Bush Tours America To Survey Damage Caused By His Disastrous Presidency

Miscellany

2008-06-23T18:00:00.001-04:00

(1) A great Carolyn Hax quote:

not a lot of people are naturally drawn to search their souls. It's dark and spidery in there. Usually they need to get to the point where the alternative is so much worse that they're finally willing to go in.

(2) Is it any wonder that, in my youth, I was *outraged* that my mother would not let me have these?

How delightful I would have imagined I looked!

Can a miscellany consist of merely 2 items?

Jittery yet exhausted

2008-06-16T18:00:00.000-04:00

Does this happen to you? You're exhausted and would like to drink some coffee, but your nerve endings feel like they're outside you. More jitteriness doesn't seem like a good idea. Taking "vitamin K" and coffee together seems counterproductive. Urgh. Perhaps a nap...

PM update: Coffee is good for exhaustion. K(lonopin) is good for anxiety. My nerves are back where they should be, on the inside, not exposed to the air. A good balance of relaxed energy is achieved.

Office law: even if you have your own private office, if you wear slipper socks that look like these and try to sneak down the hall to the bathroom because you never, ever, see anyone in the hall, you will, simply by virtue of wearing these socks, run into eleventy-seven people.

PS this is the muted version provided by my cell phone. The actual socks are ever so much more garish.

The Grumbler

2008-06-15T17:10:00.003-04:00

Max cannot resist vocalizing in response to the many territorial insults he receives each and every day, including pedestrians, bikes, skateboards, and scooters. In order to honor my fervent requests that he not bark at each one, he has learned to do this instead. I apologize for the video quality; evidently my camera's not very good at this and my fan is loud.

A bit of color

2008-06-15T12:19:00.001-04:00

Taken at the McGuffey Art Center.

Greens + carrots + apples + strawberries =

2008-06-15T00:42:00.004-04:00

Brown. Brown juice! It looked very unappetizing, but tasted pretty good. Having drunk pure kale juice with a dash of strawberry last weekend, this was definitely an improvement, flavor-wise. I am going to have to look into the aesthetic part. Or just close my eyes and drink. I felt quite zippy afterward, which is either a testament to juice's nutritional goodness or the placebo effect.

Having had 8 glorious hours of sleep last night, I wound up having a fairly productive day, productive in that good, weekend, not work type way. I had my hair shaved off -- ok, not quite shaved, but it is very, very short. Spiky short. Not a style that I admire on others, although my very nice young stylist told me that I totally rock it. That should have made me feel good, but instead I feel like a grandmother. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I reverted to my natural color which is a lot more gray than I had remembered. I like it though, and no more expensive and long trips to the parlor of beauty.

I also finally bought dog and cat food (good stuff -- they've been eating crap and the cat has been eating dog food -- sorry Rosalie!), went on a secret mission, and saw some photographs that were part of the "Festival of the Photograph." It was fun to make a point of seeing art, it's something that I like so much but forget to do for months on end.

I cannot reveal to you the secret mission unless it all ends gloriously sometime in the future.

My little Pomeranian, Max, is having some kind of back problem, which has been rough for him. He perked up a lot today, though, which was nice, and I hope he's on the mend.

Well, that's all I've got. Maybe tomorrow there will be pictures...

Not the best

2008-06-03T20:10:00.003-04:00

I'm feeling kind of blah. Haven't felt like writing, haven't felt I had anything to say, you know, blah. Maybe I'm bored. I don't generally get bored, but when I don't have time to follow my own inclinations either intellectually or puttering-around wise, it does happen. I do notice I'm having trouble mustering the appropriate feelings and reactions to things. It's a little bit like anhedonia, except that I am still taking an interest in life, just, uh, not so much in people. Maybe I shouldn't say that on the internet. But I suppose it's something most people feel from time to time, and it's not directed against a particular person or persons.

I feel isolated but as I think this is my own fault, I then conclude I have no right to feel anything about it. Which is not how feelings work, as we know. Plus blaming oneself for having feelings is the fast track to depression. The trick, as one of my friends has been telling me, is to observe without judgment or blame. Then you can take action or not. I used to know this but it seems I temporarily forgot.

Somehow just writing about it makes me feel better. Kind of a bummer for the readers, though!

In CSA news, I'm happy to report that I ate an exceedingly righteous salad for dinner tonight. It's hard for me to get excited about salad -- I mean, it's good, but it really can only be so good, you know? So I get excited about the fact that it's good for my health, and that I'm not wasting as many veggies as I would otherwise. Speaking of which, joining a CSA when one is not used to preparing fresh food is a bit of an adjustment. I have been wasteful, I must confess. But I'm getting better. Last week, when I got everything home, I just stood over the box sampling the wares, most of which I can't identify. It makes me understand how people can eat raw -- I also feel a connection with our foraging past. It's kind of amazing the variety of tastes found in a bunch of leaves. Amazing AND delicious! The strawberries have been great, too.

We are in the "heavy greens" portion of the harvest, since it's early in the year, and my plans to dehydrate things I can't use is not working out, because to the best of my knowledge, dehydrating lettuce would be a mistake. Maybe a tasty kale chip? Unless my dehydrating expert chimes in here, I'm waiting until later in the season for that step. Luckily, I have a juicing expert on my extensive staff! She convinced me to purchase a juicer, for those special times when one is overwhelmed by veggies. I think this will be a fabulous solution and look forward to putting it into action this weekend. I'll report back. You can't stop me.

On the pre-emptive strike

2008-05-27T12:14:00.001-04:00

I would like to understand why I sometimes shoot myself in the foot. This week, a work situation came to a head, prompting me to realize that it's an old pattern, prompting me to remember an early iteration of it: when I was a kid, my parents would sometimes get fed up with the state of my room (which was always horrendously messy, or so they thought) and close me in there until I had cleaned it. I would always resist, staying in there without cleaning for hours on end, missing meals, feeling like I was going to starve, but still refusing to clean. Finally I would crack, but it was always such a painful process. And I always knew that I would have to be the one to cave, that my parents never would.

So why did I keep doing it? Why put up a fight I knew I couldn't win? And why did my brother do the same thing?

I was extremely compliant in most other ways. Somehow I took my stand on this one particular hill, but I never won, and I never hurt anyone except myself. So why?

This isn't a rhetorical question. Not that I expect anyone else to have the answer.

Blogging and self loathing

2008-05-26T12:06:00.000-04:00

Lately I've been having mood swings about my blog. Sometimes I think "I should blog more! Constantly! Honestly!" Sometimes "I should quit blogging! Give up!" Recently the most seductive thought has been to give up on this blog and start a new blog that is very anonymous and tells it all like it is.

But how would that be? This takes me right into all those questions about memoir vs fiction that we like to think about nowadays. I think that for me, like a lot of people, the true appeal of having a blog is of being known to the outside world, of having a record of my thoughts and feelings that might speak to something in other people. I often like to read posts in which people express feelings that are similar to mine, and I think my blog could serve that purpose for other people.

I'm frustrated recently by the fact that I can't be completely honest, which has made me see that I wanted to be able to do that here. By "not completely honest," I don't mean that I'm lying, just that I can't tell everything, because people who know me read this. I can't be "myself" here for the same reasons that I can't be "myself" anywhere. Because we have to edit too much of ourselves to get along in the world.

Or at least I do.

Just in case...

2008-05-25T13:09:00.001-04:00

... you haven't seen this yet, here it is:

Couldn't have said it better

2008-05-15T09:33:00.001-04:00

From "Misogyny I won't miss" in today's Washington Post:

There are many reasons Clinton is losing the nomination contest, some having to do with her strategic mistakes, others with the groundswell for "change." But for all Clinton's political blemishes, the darker stain that has been exposed is the hatred of women that is accepted as a part of our culture.

Another one from the Duh Annals...

2008-05-12T14:42:00.002-04:00

Cane may ease the load on arthritic knees

Maybe I'm missing something... but haven't people been using canes for, oh, centuries now? I used one before my knee replacement and yes, it helped.

A belated happy caturday!

2008-05-11T12:57:00.003-04:00

For all of you who foolishly don't read Cute Overload, here's a video from yesterday that may amuse you:

Green Valley Book Fair

2008-05-06T17:11:00.002-04:00

So, the GVBF starts again this weekend, and I was taking a gander at their "new arrivals" section. The books under "Summer Reading" are broken down into categories such as "Best Selling Authors," "Families and Relationships," etc. After my current obsession, "Mystery and Suspense," there's a category called "Paranormal Romance." WTF?

Has it really come to this? Isn't the "regular" romance genre unrealistic enough? Now we have to look outside the human realm?

This disturbs me, but in an amused sort of way.

If Our Lady of Perfection were a Celebrity

2008-05-06T14:09:00.001-04:00

I should have been able to predict this:

My niece, the star

2008-05-01T12:24:00.003-04:00

My beautiful and talented niece is performing in a stage show in the near future.

That's her being held up in the top picture, and seemingly fainting away in the lower right picture. I can't wait to see this production! I think it will be great fun.

Watch for her this summer as Veruca Salt in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, another Kids on Stage production.

Christmas in April!

2008-04-30T16:07:00.003-04:00

Last night I arrived home to a wonderful surprise -- the book Creature, which a friend had given me for Christmas last year. Unfortunately the first printing of the book had completely sold out and it took until now to reprint. But it was totally worth the wait. Creature is full of amazing animal photographs by Andrew Zuckerman, all placed on plain white backgrounds so that the animal's characteristics and pose stand out quite starkly and beautifully. Check out this video from the photo shoot for the book.

You can find some pictures from the book here.

Thanks, B!

Thinking about life

2008-04-29T15:07:00.002-04:00

I was talking to a wise woman yesterday about my feeling that I'm casting about, and that I keep wanting to make some enormous change but all the changes I think about making don't seem like the right ones. Examples: moving, sometimes to town and sometimes to a whole new place; changing jobs; changing jobs and moving; buying a car, computer, flat-screen tv, or other big ticket item, or every big ticket item; etc. I really don't want to do any of these things, but I keep thinking about them. I believe this is a very subtle signal from my subconscious that I want to change *something*. But what?

In the course of our conversation, I said something about being afraid I wouldn't have any retirement years to enjoy, because I might be dead or severely disabled by then. Not to be gruesome, mind you -- it's something I worry about mostly because my mother had a stroke at the age of 52. DH (which does not stand for dear husband as it does everywhere else, but rather for the aforementioned wise woman) said that one thing I could do is to think about my five-year plan. Where do I want to be in 5 years? And what are the steps I can take to get there? And what things can I implement right now to make this time more enjoyable and fulfilling?

Now part of me has never liked having or making goals. I like the idea of seeing where life takes me. And part of me thinks that 50 year olds with 5-year plans are kind of absurd, which when you think about it is absurd of me to think. Obvy, people of all ages have ideas of where they want to be down the road.

Part of me is afraid to want things because I might not get them.

Part of me is now keeping a journal detailing events during each day that (a) surprise, (b) move, or (c) inspire me. This, in an attempt to find patterns that might lend some direction to my mindless casting about.

I'd say I'll keep you posted, but do I ever follow-up on anything that I say that about? I'll keep you posted if I think to do so...

Your mother called. She'd like coffee.

2008-04-28T09:50:00.002-04:00

It's that time of year when our inboxes and mailboxes are bombarded with messages about what to get mom for Mother's Day. The first year after my mom died, I found this incredibly painful. Incredibly. To defend myself, I would make rather macabre jokes about these ads.

For instance, the one above (from our friends at Green Mountain Coffee, a company I normally love) would become:

Your mother called FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE. She'd like coffee.

Although come to think of it, whatever the afterlife holds, MY mother probably DOES want coffee.

A beautiful day, an aching jaw, and a new toy

2008-04-25T16:25:00.004-04:00

It's so gorgeous outside that it is a travesty to be inside. Or at work. But what can one do?

And my jaw does ache, for no apparent reason. It goes through periods where it aches, followed by longer periods where it does not. I await the latter eagerly.

New toy! I've mentioned that I've been shopping for big ticket items lately, but for the most part I have resisted buying much. I have bought some books, I finally bought inexpensive white curtains that have transformed my living room, but yesterday my new camera arrived! Now I have 3, but 2 of them are much older than the one I got yesterday. Here is a picture:
Is it not beautiful? As you can see, it has a 10x optical zoom, and its point-and-shootiness is extremely excellent. It has no viewfinder, but the (3 inch!) lcd screen adjusts itself so that one can see it even in the bright light. You can change a lot of the settings yourself, or rely on the "intelligent auto" mode which seems to make better decisions than I do.

The camera I've been carrying around for a couple or several years is big and clunky and I do love it, but it's been weighing me down, man. I love it mostly for its 12x zoom, so to find a 10x zoom on a much smaller/lighter camera was a boon. I'll be able to travel light now instead of carrying a huge camera bag all the time. And although I got the last camera with grandiose plans to learn the manual settings and graduate to a DSLR, I find I'm more of a point and shoot and play with it in Photoshop kind of gal.

Now if I could only get up the nerve to take random shots of strangers...

10 point victories are pretty damn good

2008-04-24T11:25:00.002-04:00

I love Howard Kurtz. If you're a Hillary supporter, as I am, then the excitement of yesterday's news of her victory in Pennsylvania was somewhat tempered by the media coverage of that news. Here's H. Kurtz, directly responding to that wtf feeling:

Barack Obama stumbled, bumbled, faltered and faded, but he still has a lock on the nomination.

That, in a nutshell, is the media consensus after Pennsylvania. Now I've saved you all kinds of time because you don't have to read anything else.

Journalists often accuse the Hillary camp of moving the goalposts--let's only focus on big states, blue states, the popular vote, whatever--but the media did a bit of that on Tuesday. After telling us for days on end that Hillary Clinton had to win by six to eight points for her victory to be significant, they largely dismissed her 10-point margin, saying it doesn't change anything. The math is the math, she can't possibly catch up, yadda yadda yadda. Hillary woke up yesterday morning to that NYT un-endorsement, castigating her for taking the low road and beseeching her to get the hell out of the race.

You can read the rest of the article here.

Must break blog silence

2008-04-23T15:59:00.003-04:00

I suppose I feel self-conscious about the confessions post from, well, the last time I posted. Urp. But enough said about that, or some might say too much said...

I didn't post for Earth Day yesterday, so today I will share with you a cartoon that I stole from somewhere:

And in conclusion, I would just like to say: Go Hillary! Way to win Pennsylvania!

Confessions that I should probably keep to myself

2008-04-09T16:26:00.002-04:00

1. Remember when I talked about that thing that happened at work that made me lose my perspective but then I regained my perspective fairly quickly? That wasn't regained perspective, that was a lightly scabbed-over deep wound to the spirit. I mean, who was I kidding? It's been simmering here, just under the surface, and now every time I have a "spot of bother" at work I'm feeling just miserable. I applied introspection to this problem and realized that, while I'm fully aware that I'm not perfect, I was trying so hard to be perfect here, and working for someone who seemed to think I was perfect, and who is also a perfectionist, that now the bloom is off the rose and I don't even feel like trying anymore. This is not a reaction I'm proud of, but it's a familiar pattern. I feel like I can never attain the same level of respect, and I don't want to try at least partially because I'm mad to find that a) I was being perfectionistic again and b) I'm working for a perfectionist. Although neither should surprise me, especially the latter because, my friends, not only does one marry one's father/mother, one also works for them. Which really just means that it's yet another opportunity to work on longstanding issues. I'm not perfect, the person I work for isn't perfect, and I don't even think I'm perfect, and yet I hope to be perfect. The whole thing is out of control. Must calm down. Must give self permission to flub things up once in a while. Isn't flub a good word?

2. This is very hard for me to say, but... I thought painting my house and redoing my bathroom would make me happier than it has. I feel like I got used to it instantly and it doesn't feel all that different, even though I know -- I know! -- that it has changed radically. It's very beautiful now, and I don't feel like I have to ignore the yucky walls which have needed painting since before I moved in. And the bathtub is truly joyous. But I feel in some ways like I've had it forever. Even though I just got it. I know that money can't buy happiness, but I love my home, and I really thought that sprucing it up would make me love it so much more. And I do still love it, and maybe the bar was pretty high to begin with, but I haven't felt an incredible increase of love. This is such a dopey thing to complain about, and I don't really mean to complain. It's just something I noticed. I've dreamed for years of having the interior painted. I thought it would make the house perfect (eek, perfection again). And it does look utterly gorgeous. I just didn't think I'd get used to it that fast -- I thought I would feel renewed wonder every time I looked at it.

Thus endeth my confessions. Don't judge me! Or go ahead and judge me, I have no control over what you do.

I actually do something interesting and then forget all about it

2008-04-08T14:35:00.002-04:00

Last week, largely because of an article in the Cville, I decided to join a CSA. CSA stands for "community-supported agriculture," so maybe it's more correct to say I joined CSA. Or maybe CSA needs an F for farm or O for organization at the end. It's a little weird to say "I joined a Community-Supported Agriculture." But I digress.

Probably everyone knows, but in CSA, one buys a share of the harvest for a particular farm. You pay in advance for the entire growing season, and then you pick up a weekly box of fruit and veggie goodness. It's a chunk of money up front, but averages out to only about $20 a week -- great for a vegetarian, especially, because then I can just add some grains and viola, food for the entire week. I think I'll actually be spending less on food than I usually do, because I normally procure many prepared foods.

Of course, this also means that I will have to cook. We'll see how I do with that. I think it will be good for me to eat fresh food and to prepare it myself. I always feel better when I eat healthier and this could be just the ticket.

Or I could make a weekly plea for someone to come get the veggies that I can't possibly eat in a week.

I decided to join Best of What's Around, not because it belongs to Dave Matthews, whose music I, um, don't actually know (but don't tell anyone I said that as I believe I would be run out of town on a rail), but because it's the largest concern around, with the most diverse crop list. It's also fairly close to me, but they, like most CSA's, have pickup locations in town as well.