The Cruise

Finally revisiting some promised updates... the Cruise.
-Went to the Western Caribbean the first week in May. It was awesome! Being my first cruise, I was afraid I might get seasick, but it didn't bother me at all, weirdly what bothered me most was being back on land, where you still felt like you're rocking. I didn't like that too much, because it's the same feeling I get when I'm dehydrated. The other downer to the week was I forgot to put sunscreen on my stomach the first day, and while the burn wasn't that bad, a few days later I decided to run a 5k on the top-level track and it made the burn start to peel prematurely, so the last 3 days, it felt like I was walking around with my internal organs exposed to the elements. K.O. points to the Caribbean sun. I'll get a rematch again sometime though, because other than the sea legs and the sun burn it was up there on the list of most awesome adventures I've taken.
Great things about the trip:
-Haiti= went ziplining on the world's longest zipline over water
-Jamaica=bought a hookah and laughed as the customs people were trying to get me to call it a 'bong'. Didn't fall for that trick. Now I'm thankful that I had some hippie friends in college that told me the only difference between a 'bong' and a 'waterpipe' is the name, and a 'bong' is illegal in the U.S.
We also climbed up a waterfall in Jamaica. I saw my life flashing before my eyes a lot during that expedition, but I made it to the top okay. Sadly, the 70 year old in front of me did not. He's okay.... just had to quit after the first part of the climb. (I wanted to as well). Because I was under the impression that it was going to be a leisurely hike BESIDE Dunn's River Falls. Wrong. It was IN the falls. Basically rock climbing in the middle of a terrentual downpour, hoping for your life that no one above you falls, because they're taking everyone below them out with them. Yeah, it would never fly in the U.S. But hey, I survived, so i feel ultra bad ass.
-Grand Caymans=did some ocean kayaking and then coral reef snorkeling on the "divorce excursion". They only had two person kayaks, and well, when you're already exhausted from climbing for your life the day before, and you feel like your kayak is just going in circles, there was a lot of "Stop hitting my paddle!", "You're not doing it right!", "Just stop. I'll do it myself!".... I'm cranky when I'm tired.
-The food= completely awesome, completely too much, hence the need to run the 5k.
-The entertainment= I learned how to play casino black jack, and it only cost $200 to learn! HA! Good thing I'm good at Hold'em and was able to win my losses back. My favorite source of entertainment was the piano bar with Matt Yee. We went to see him perform almost every night. He did an "Adult Sing-Along" show, which basically meant a bunch of people singing oldies and getting plastered. The worse we sang, the more he made us drink. Which obviously meant a downward spiral of more howling and more drinking. Good times though, good times.
-The foreigners=no need to explain, there were plenty of stories that ended with "....foreigners". Just like I'm sure there were equivalent amounts of historias that ended with "... américains"
My favorite story being the adorable 3 year old german boy in the elevator practicing his numbers. He completely mixed up his zwölf with his elf.... foreigners.

New Hope, PA

Sean and I went to New Hope a couple weekends ago and that's like my new favorite place. It reminds me of my two homes. Lexington and Harrisonburg. It has the small historic natural charm of Lexington being right next to the Delaware river, while having that cultural blast and young energy of the burg. Equiped with a brewpub, art galleries, cafes, and the coolest little bookstore I've ever been too. I've included some shots I took with my iPhone while there.



-- Post From My iPhone

Updates to come

Posts I will be creating soon:
Cruise
Bday trip to NYC
iPhone
Trip home to the burg
New hope trip
South street big wheel pub crawl
Fool by Christopher Moore
My job update

I'm working on these so stay tuned.


-- Post From My iPhone

Update

1) went to Vegas last week. That was tons of fun! Got some really cool stories, photos, and coined the phrase "This is how episodes of CSI start." I'll share stories and photos when I find time, which I don't have now that I'm working full-time at a job where I think anyone might go postal at any minute, and I can't even guarantee that it won't be me, and I consider myself normal.
But I guess it's the "normal" ones you have to keep an eye on.

2) My job: working full-time in NJ, as a typesetter/graphic designer for all of the local hospitals. I create all of those forms you fill out when you go to the doctor, booklets with pictures of festering wounds, and pamphlets such as, "Oops, You've Got Herpes! Now What?" I hate my life between the hours of 8a-5p. So basically, I'm saving up as much money as I can so that I can either visit Harrisonburg every other weekend, or just move back and do the blind job hunt over again. Compared to now, I think I would take food service/retail back in the Burg any day. But I'm still holding out for that Audio job to get back to me in the next month. I'm also seriously considering taking out a loan (if I can get one), and starting my own graphic design business, instead of freelancing. Then I could make my own schedule and it wouldn't matter where I lived, a few weeks here, a few there, lots of time for hockey, vegas, and the steelers. sigh, I just want to be happy. I'll start working on that dream on my birthday.

3) I'm spending my entire VA state refund on music. There's no station up here that even compares to WNRN, so I had to create my own version of WNRN on Pandora, and the result was me being introduced to way too much music that I must own NOW.

4) One of my cousins is getting married this weekend, while another one of my cousins just turned 2 days old!

5) it's dinner time.

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (8)

I think I get the point of the book.... I think.... I could be completely wrong though, but here's my take on it:

The curse that the book refers to that anyone who hears or says the name of a certain ship captain who (hint) "sailed the ocean blue", I think has to do exactly with the concepts that came along with him. Another website says about him, "He was the original frontiersman who challenged the unknown sea and brought back stories that fired the imagination of a new beginning where all would be possible."

Well, haven't you felt a bit cursed too since you got the history lesson in Elementary school? When you felt you lived in a world with little left to be discovered, but somehow you had to discover SOMETHING? I don't know about you, but I have. It's like the main theme in "The Cheese Monkeys" by Chip Kidd, the human condition means always looking for the next best thing, trying to be the best you can possibly be, not settling for anything less than BETTER. Suddenly, good is never good enough. We live in an age where "Good is dead". Great is the only option. And perhaps it's that same condition that creates the curse. Once we realize good is dead, and we want something more, that we might deserve something more, we will never be able to let that go, never be satisfied until we die.
And as a result, the more people we come in contact with with our "be somebody" mentality, the more we spread the curse to affect them as well. Sorry, reader. I may have cursed you. But Junot did it to me, so blame him. Again, I could be wrong though.

Overall, great book, but I could also see it as the equivalent of a Jackson Pollock painting... Only great if you chose to interpret it as something moving. I'd like to think that I took something from it, if not just a new interest in the history of the dominican republic.

The Problem with Redheads

according to Tom Robbins' "Still Life with Woodpecker":

"The 12 Most Famous Redheads:
1. Lucille Ball, comedienne
2. Gen. George Custer, military maverick
3. Lizzie Borden, hatchetwoman
4. Thomas Jefferson, revolutionary
5. Red Skelton, comic
6. George Bernard Shaw, playwright
7. Judas Iscariot, informer .... aka, Judas Iscarrot-top
8. Mark Twain, humorist
9. Woody Allen, humorist
10. Margeret Sanger, feminist
11. Edna St. Vincent Millay, libertine poet
12. Bernard Mickey Wrangle, bomber
From this list, the analytically minded might conclude that persons with red hair tend to be either dangerous or funny."

"redheads are the result of sugar and lust"

after explaining the possible origin of Redheads:
"So redheads are either descendants of the demigods or are potential demigods. That's nice. I like that."

I like that, too, Tom.

I've decided to start dedicating an individual post to each book from now on. I rate 'Still Life with Woodpecker' an easy 10. Any book that successfully makes redheads out to be simultaneous outlaws and heroes, while claiming that Blondes are terrorists from the planet Argon is a winner with me. Tom Robbins is absolutely an absolutely hilarious genius. This is the first author I've thought I have to meet this person, hear them speak at a conference or somehow find an upcoming booksigning. He's also the only writer who has made me laugh out loud. I'll definitely be reading more of him.

2009 Book list

My New Year's Resolution this year was to read 5 books, as I couldn't remember the last time I had read. Well, it hasn't even been 2 months and I've met that goal. I've caught the reading bug now and can't imagine giving it up. I might as well keep a list of the books I've read this year.

In order of read:
(enjoyment rating scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the highest)

Firmin by Sam Savage (4) - The story of a mouse that lived in a used bookstore in a rundown urban area, learned to read, and became aware of his mortality and the his crumbling surroundings. I liked the author's humor in his writing style, and the book was entertaining at times. The subject of poverty and mortality was a bit morose, but realistic. I'd recommend it to someone of dark humor that enjoys literary references that doesn't mind continually being asked, "what does it all mean?"

The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien (10) - Of course you know what it's about, and why wouldn't it be a 10? An author cool enough to have 4 initials is inevitably going to produce coolness. I realized there's actually a bit of a science fiction nerd in me after all. I will definitely be reading the Lord of the Ring books, but decided not to jump into them immediately afterwards in order to give a sense of 'lapsed time' just as intended between the two works.

Confessions of a Shopaholic (10) - Okay, so, I'm a sellout and read a bestseller chick-lit paperback, I kinda hated myself when I bought it too. But seriously, if you're a 20 / 30 something woman trying to find your "career path", You'd understand why this book became a bestseller. It's hilarious, just girly enough while maintaining a bit of "hear me roar" feminism, a really easy read, and while it didn't change my view on the world, it made me feel good to be reading a book for entertainment rather than watching the "mass appeal" equivalent on tv.

Shopaholic Takes Manhattan (8) - When I sell out, I go all out. The way the first book ended MADE me go out and purchase the next one. You literally fall in love with the characters, they became like great friends, and I didn't want to let them go with the first book, so I got the second in the series. The characters were all still there, so I was happy, the situations were as equally entertaining/embarassing, but I will admit, I felt like how much more credit card debt can this girl take? So, the main theme got a little exhausted with me. I will eventually read the next book in the series, but because this one wasn't a 10 like the last, I thought I should take a break from it.

The Cheese Monkeys by Chip Kidd (10) - About a male Freshman Art Student in the 1950's taking one of the first Graphic Design courses offered at a Pennsylvania college with a professor who is the equivalent of Simon Cowell. Although it was based in the '50s, it took me back to some of those same freshman year feelings as a music major. The fact that I'm interested in graphic design didn't hurt either, oh yeah, and I caught all of those PA references in the book. Also, I figured out what a 'cheese monkey' is, and that makes the book an instant classic to me. I HIGHLY recommend this book to any adult with a background/interest in the arts.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (10) - Gotta love the classic chick lit! I thought it would be a much harder read due to that fact, but I think I'm more Victorian era fluent than I thought. I've always been told I have an old soul, and I think it founds its origin. This book reminded me a lot of the Sound of Music, but without the Nazi's and the music. So, probably not like the Sound of Music at all, but to each their own.

Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins (10)

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (8)

Next up, Fool by Christopher Moore


To come:
The Soloist - Steve Lopez (own it)
Lush Life - Richard Price (own it)
Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen (own it)
Flatland / Sphereland / Flatterland
The Awakening - Kate Chopin (own it)
The Mysteries of Udolpho
Tess of the D'Urbervilles
Northhanger Abbey - Jane Austen; after I've gotten in some more victorian gothic
The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien (own it)
The Road
Wicked (own it)
some David Sedaris *recommended by jus
some James Joyce

...and counting. open to suggestions. let's talk books.

2 interviews

I guess I need to update everyone on my current job status. Two weeks ago, I went in for an interview with a publishing company that wants to bring all their audio needs in house instead of outsourcing it. They found my resume online, and called me in for an interview. The interview went really well, and I REALLY want the job, the only problem is.... they haven't quite convinced their management to go this route and bring the audio editing/recording in house. I have the job though if they do. Today, I was asked to put together a good 30-45min presentation for the execs on Friday to discuss procedures, costs, and answer any questions. Thankfully, no matter what their decision is, I will get paid for my research, preparation, and presentation time. This is why I want this job so badly, this is exactly the level of responsibility and respect I was looking for.

On a side note, I also had an interview with a printing company to do typesetting. They offered me the job, but since it has a high turnover rate, I get to do a 3 week paid trial run, starting at 24 hours/week, and after the three weeks, I can either leave or come on full-time. It's actually a perfect situation, because I'm really wanting to take the other job, but can't know anything until they make their decision.

So, that's the update for now, i'll update after the presentation.