Grandma

I think my grandmother is dying, so please pray for her, especially since she's a fallen away Catholic. She's had such a hard life: orphaned at about 10 years old with her little brother. Had to stay in an orphanage for years because her aunt and uncle, who lived in the next town, refused to take them until the state practically forced them. Worked her way through college and married my grandfather, had 3 sons in the span of 5 years, was left by her husband for another woman, had to raise them practically by herself and has been a little crazy ever since. She was on Jeopardy once! Really intelligent, but kinda eccentric. Insists she's part Jewish, but we have our doubts. We found out recently that in her college days she tried to join a Jewish militia camp in the Middle East.....
I haven't kept in touch with her, which kills me, beacuse she's always been so damned proud of me. I didn't even have to do anything. She had breast cancer about 8 years ago and went through chemo but I don't think she's going to make it through this one. It's strange. My grandfathers died so long ago that I sorta took for granted that my grandmothers, I guess, wouldn't.

Chess chess chess chess chess! Chess is my new obsession. Chess it ain't even a quesshun. Chess it was love at first sight. Chess when I turn out the lights. I love it! I had promised myself long ago that I would never learn to play chess, although I can't exactly remember why I would do something so ridiculous, but I've been playing for a week now and it's fascinating. I thought I'd be able to master it in a week, because there are only a finite number of ways it can go down, right? Granted, it's probably in the millions, but finite nonetheless, and it's not like in poker where you can't see what the other person has to work off, but alas, it was not meant to be and I haven't won a game yet, but I've gotten 2 or 3 stalemates! Which I consider to be like victory. My roommate and I were thinking of stacking lot of mattresses on our beds and painting a chess board on the ceiling and then playing with glow-in-the-dark velcro pieces with our toes. It's even an aesthetically pleasing game! It's so pretty and regal and dignified looking.

I beat Maxamataz at pool yesterday. Bigtime.

He's a poet and I didn't know it!

Sometimes Aristotle reads like a poem, or, at least, should. I am reminded of Peter Fry's coffehouse reading of the de Anima... backwards.

As in regards to the virtues some men are called good
In respect of a state of character, others in respect of an activity,
So too in the case of friendship;
For those who live together
Delight in each other
And confer benefits on each other,
But those who are asleep or locally separated are not performing,
but are disposed to perform, the activities of friendship;
Distance does not break off the friendship absolutely
But only the activity of it.
But if the absence is lasting,
It seems actually to make men forget
Their friendship.....

ok it was a whim... maybe I should actually get back to studying.
But I think I'll post another soon.

Deeelish

Mamajuana:

1. Haggle with the locals on the beach in the D.R. for a bottle of wood chips and herbs.
Do not be distracted by marriage proposals.
2. Explain over and over to the customs people that it's not marijuana.
3. Keep in room for 8 months before you summon the energy to make it.
4. Pour equal amounts of rum and red wine into bottle; top off with 1/2 cup honey.
5. Shake, close, and wait for 15 days.
6. Explain to prefect that it's not marijuana.
7. Take a swig and black out.

Nananananana Nananananananana Na na BATMAN!

I was sitting next to Donny in what I ever so affectionately call the Batmobile, and I was marvelling at the gadgets. "What's the red button do? Can I press it? "
"It's the passenger seat ejection button. You can press it but you'll die."
I pause to consider this.
"How would I eject? There's no sunroof. "
"There will be." (i.e., once I eject)
Pause. Next gadget.
"How come that thing stuck to your windshield talks to you?" "Where does this wire go to?" et cetera et cetera
Donny sighs.
"Donny?"
Donny's concentrating on sticking his arm out the window to signal, since, believe it or not, his blinker doesn't work. But he hears me.
"Yes, Claire?"
"What would you do if there weren't any gadgets?"
His cat eyes turn to me.
"I'd make them."

I CAN'T do links. You would laugh if you knew how I try and fail. And don't bother trying to explain it to me, and above all, please don't say "It's easy." It's easy if you know anything about these things. But that's tautology. I get caught up thinking about "how in the world....." and then I space out when people try to explain technichal things. I can't get over the telephone. Or for that matter the moving type.....
I still don't have a cell phone and I don't even want one. I never save papers onto discs. I print them out directly from whatever computer I'm using at the time because I somehow can't trust my precious words to a "floppy disk." It's not that I dislike technology or fear it or think it's evil.... but I don't understand it & when i don't understand something that's all around me it makes me wanna grab some people and find a bottle of wine so I can wander off into nature and forget about everything except flesh and bone and trees and birds and other happy organic things.

Mardi Gras 2005

"I'm getting my beads"
And Booty proceeds
To unbutton his shirt
For the bartender

Timeline is a movie based on a Michael Crichton book and it was as ridiculous as any Army of darkness movie, but it's not supposed to be, I don't think. My favorite 2 lines are :
" Do we look like quantum wormhole experts?!"
and
" This is definitely 1357 France!"
Ultimate nerd flick b/c it combines medieval battling with time travel.
Shudder.

Should I go to NY for Easter? I've never seen it in the spring...