Very Well Red

Finally blogging again.

The Redhead — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:57:00 -0400

Please check it out here.

Tomato, the Sequel

The Redhead — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 11:37:00 -0400

Joey and I ate the first ripe cherry tomato this morning.

It was delicious.

Yes, I cut it in half.

Tomato

The Redhead — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 10:22:00 -0400

A friend of mine, when we were in college (Canadians say university for programs like the one I completed, but it's an American college), was always asking people, if they were a fruit, which fruit would they be. My reply was tomato, as I am red, a little squishy, and versatile.

This summer, I am growing tomatoes on our balcony. It is a higher-floor, concrete balcony, so I haven't had trouble with pests, and on my one cherry tomato plant and my one regular, bred-for-container-growth plant, I have lots of fruit growing. The cherry is quite productive already, though they are all still green (even though last night I dreamed they ripened into gorgeous, red-and-white tiger striped things - not that they will be anything but regular red when they do ripen). There are two large specimens on the standard-tomato plant, but also lots of flowers. I'm hoping for quite a harvest. My cilantro/coriander plant is fruiting, my basil is flowering (though I've pinched most of them off so the leaves continue to grow, the basil has been so tasty). It has been a good year. It feels excellent to produce produce. We'll get some photos.

As complicated as life is in my thirties, the absolute simplicity of balcony horticulture is so soothing.

Yay Massachusetts!

The Redhead — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 16:27:00 -0400

Good on ya. I'm all for the whole referendum thing, but that is for highway repair and dog racing. We have a legislature for a reason. And today, they upheld civil rights for a good portion of their constituents and did absolutely nothing to the rest of them.

Witness

The Redhead — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 16:28:00 -0400

I had to do it, I just felt so strongly about it... Joey tells the story of a wedding we witnessed this past Friday. I found on Craigslist the most cheerful way to end a work week I can think of. My friend E. just called it "the Internet facilitating serendipity." I like it.

Ow my feet

The Redhead — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 14:49:00 -0400

I knew I should have bucked business casual and worn my Chucks today. The subway shut down when I had just arrived at Lansdowne, so I walked to Spadina in semi-comfy but not-made-for-walkin' shoes. Took awhile, especially since I waited for a shuttle for quite some time at Lansdowne before setting out.

By the way, what do you think the URL for my blog should be? Taking suggestions.

Happy birthday tomorrow, kiddo

The Redhead — Thu, 24 May 2007 10:54:00 -0400

Butthead, where are you? I don't have a current email address for you. I know it's your birthday tomorrow because it's my nephew's, as well. Have been wanting to say hello.

Wendy likes to...

The Redhead — Fri, 04 May 2007 09:41:00 -0400

Meme via Pony.

go to google. Type in "[your name] likes to" and list the 1st 10 things that appear:

Wendy likes to share her work because she believes that scientists should share ideas in order to inspire new ideas.

Wendy likes to do it in the kitchen.

Wendy likes to paint all subjects and enjoys the challenge of choosing a design each year for Brush Strokes that others will like.

And, long-lived tortoises, in many ways, were a symbol for the way that Wendy likes to do business--slowly and deliberately with a long-term perspective.

Wendy likes to find personal themes and combine them together in meaningful ways to her.

In her spare time, Wendy likes to volunteer with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and hang out with her roommates.

For a ‘40s classic look, Wendy likes to use MAC Rage.

Wendy likes to set out young plants.

wendy likes to blog about:. wendy has not yet defined her blogs.

Wendy likes to know what's on your desk.

(Though some of them are so very likely, and some, um SO not, none of them are actually from pages by/about me.)

A wee bit of advice

The Redhead — Thu, 03 May 2007 16:15:00 -0400

If a doctor tells you your new medication has an anticholinergic effect, and you don't really need it, just say no. Or ask for something similar without that effect.

I just stopped taking one (not one of the ones listed, and my doctor said it was OK) and I am so, so so much happier.

Hello Sleepy

The Redhead — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 15:00:00 -0400

I flew 500 miles and back yesterday. Sadly not to Boston, though I would not have had time to see anyone anyway, I had four appointments in various towns where I was.

Oof tired. Flying takes a lot out of me in general. Trying to drink a lot of water today, dehydration is part of the equation.

Someone I know through my job has DVT. I don't think I fly enough for that, but then, he didn't think so either.

Much crazedness

The Redhead — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 10:12:00 -0400

Crazedness, by the way, at least in my mind, has three syllables.

I do not think April could have been busier thus far. I am hoping to get a little time to relax this weekend. The weather is supposed to be great - maybe we will go take a nap in the park. We have done this, near the restaurant - there are lots of people around, but no one bothers you.

Last night I talked to a friend I've known since 1990, but hadn't spoken to since sometime in 2000 (this is our best estimation). We talked for an hour; you can't really describe seven years in an hour, but we did our best. Current situations took up a lot of time - we both live in different cities from the one where we spent time together, we're both in relationships, we both have very different jobs, etc. But she immediately knew my voice, and hers is a little different from what I remember, but the laugh is still exactly the same. I have wondered about her a lot over the time we didn't speak. We had a lot of intense experiences early on. Please don't torture her for info about me. Heh. I'm sure she feels the same way.

By the way, I forgot to mention last night that I am sorely tempted to use our old joke, "Maybe I was (word deleted)," reasonably often. Too bad everyone but you and Phil would be shocked and appalled.

Thank you Danone.

The Redhead — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 10:04:00 -0400

Danone - Dannon for us Americans - has brought Stonyfield Farm yogurt to Canada.

I'm so happy.

It ain't cheap, but it's so delicious. I have no idea why I am so fussy about yogurt, but I am, I'm picky as hell, and I'm eating a Stonyfield Farm vanilla right now, and I'm just. so. happy.

Be nice.

The Redhead — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 12:15:00 -0400

I haven't blogged in awhile but this is important. Andy Carvin is a good guy just in general.

Stop Cyberbullying.

Vacation

The Redhead — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 12:08:00 -0500

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Lots of good news

The Redhead — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 10:33:00 -0500

Lots of people in my life are getting married and/or having babies right now. I guess I am at "that age" and it will not slow down for several years. In fact, we're going to a wedding this coming weekend. Last week we were at a bris. In the last week, I've found out about two engagements, both involving people I love very much.

Let's keep the good news coming, OK? I like it.

How many times?

The Redhead — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 15:17:00 -0500

I am working with someone who is performing a service which will end up with my receipt of a physical object. There are lots of options involved in this object - like a car, but not a car. I've told this person what I want it to look like a couple of times. He disagrees with one of my selections. I told him that I recognize that he has a lot of experience, but I prefer the way I selected. Then today, he again asked me to choose from the two options, my choice and his preference. I emailed my preference. Then, again, he asked me to choose.

I really couldn't give a rat's ass what he prefers. I want what I want. Those of you who know me know that I go after what I want and I generally get it. This is such a small thing, why does he care? It's my object. If he didn't want to give me options, he simply shouldn't have in the first place.

How many times do I have to say that I'm not changing my mind?

At last...

The Redhead — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 14:53:00 -0500

I have met Cory Doctorow.

It was 2002 when I started working on/with/near Creative Commons (before he did, but that's beside the point). And it was 2003 when I started dating Joey, who's known him since the late 90's.

But it took 'til 2007 to actually get us in the same room. He lived up to the hype.

Cheers, Cory. Great to finally see you.

On Macaroni and Cheese

The Redhead — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 10:03:00 -0500

I moved from the Cambridge, Massachusetts area to Toronto about a year and a half ago. I found that things here are just different enough - as I always say, milk comes in bags, and people start sentences with "as well" which I would never do, and suchlike. And the stores, many of them are different. Products in the supermarket.

But then again, there's Whole Foods. There were probably a dozen Whole Foods stores within an hour's drive of my last few apartments in Boston. There are two here; one a fifteen or so minute's walk from my office, and one a forty minute drive from our apartment. Certainly the products are not all the same. Not all of my favorites are labeled in French, or whatever other thing keeps them from coming here. But I do get to have Annie's. I buy the whole wheat one. I love it. It's tasty, fast, and reminds me of home.

I read this article on Megnut yesterday.

I have to say, there's a time for Annie, and a time for homemade. As a matter of fact, the article got me so interested in mac & cheese that I made it for dinner - a modified, even-more-reduced-fat version of a Rachael Ray dealie, but still homemade and yummy. But there's Annie's in the cabinet, as usual. Homemade took...all told...maybe 45 minutes? It's worth it, but it isn't always possible.

Funny that homemade isn't the one that reminds me of home.

Stylin'

The Redhead — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 12:46:00 -0500

I just picked up my new glasses.

I heart them. This frame, in a somewhat lighter shade.

And I can see everything.

MEOW

The Redhead — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 12:48:00 -0500

Girls can be really nasty to each other. In creepily subtle ways. Ick.

Back in my early twenties I never called anyone a bitch, I made a concerted effort not to because, fresh out of women's studies classes, I truly felt that every time I said it, I set feminism back a tiny tiny bit. It was too easy, I felt; there were better ways to express how I was feeling than to degrade another woman like that. And I still think I was right. But I'm ten years older now and far less patient, and some people are just bitches.

Why can't we just be freaking nice to each other?

New favorite phrase

The Redhead — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 09:33:00 -0500

Courtesy of last night's American Idol humiliation fest, a phrase which can be used for a lot of things, including any bad karaoke performance: Bohemian Crapsody.

Earwig

The Redhead — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 09:41:00 -0500

dumdedum I've been waiting so long dumdedum to be where I'm goin' dum in the SUNshine of your LOoooooooove...

Separated At Birth

The Redhead — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 09:45:00 -0500

Ice Queen. Me. We don't really look alike, but if we told someone we were sisters (OK, not twins) they probably wouldn't argue. But it's mostly that we think the same way about things. We were both theatre majors. We wrote about dreams on the same day. Wacky.

IQ told stories about work - I have lots too. The most special one, though, is the time I had to quit a job because the owner of the company was so racist I wanted to die. I was morally opposed to working for her.

I could make a list though. If I'm in a bad mood, please do not bring up cream soda.

Dreams

The Redhead — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 09:48:00 -0500

Have been having vivid ones lately. Apparently so have some of my co-workers.

What do you think dreams are? For me, I feel like my brain is trying to make sense of things I see/think/do in waking hours.

Except that the other night, I dreamed I was doing laundry with some high school friends. And not people I'm in touch with now. People I probably haven't seen for at least five years, if not ten (reunions).

I'd love to hear your theories on dreaming.

I am smart

The Redhead — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 13:46:00 -0500

I proved it. Maria is teaching me some advanced Excel (I taught myself how to use it and I don't know the complicated stuff), and I caught an error she didn't see.

Finally I do not feel like an utter moron regarding statistics, too. Keen.

Plastic surgery

The Redhead — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:43:00 -0500

If I knew that having a particular plastic surgery would make me feel better, even if it would strip me of an attribute that has been part of my identity for about twenty years, should I do it?

It wouldn't be anytime soon, don't have the time to spare yet. But I'm thinking about it.

I believe we've been over this before...

The Redhead — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 13:31:00 -0500

but it was probably on my old blog. I should probably go read through some of that stuff, I bet it would be fun.

But what we've been over before is the death penalty. In light of the recent execution of Saddam Hussein, I feel I should bring it up again.

Of course the US did not do the executing in this case, and I don't even live in the States - the death penalty was abolished in Canada in 1976. But it still brings all the feelings to the forefront.

I do not believe in killing people. I do not believe in "an eye for an eye." I believe that self-defense is the only - yes, only - reason one person should make the choice to kill another human (note: assisted suicide, in my mind, doesn't count here - I think probably I'm OK with that in extreme cases). In modern American society, if you rape, you don't get raped in return. If you steal, you aren't stolen from. Why, when you kill, are you then (sometimes) killed? The death penalty has not been proven to be a deterrent. People have been wrongfully executed. Take a look at who's been executed. What do you see? There's no excuse.

Saddam deserved to be punished heartily. Now, he's all done with his punishment, because a government killed him. It's not up to other people to decide who lives and who dies. And, though this is beside the point, wouldn't you want him to have to watch what happens to Iraq, all of which is outside his control? I would.

Whether it's God, some other entity, or plain old nature which gives us life, no one has the right to end someone else's. That's what we're punishing in the first place, isn't it? And the government gets to do it? I don't think so.

New Year's Resolutions

The Redhead — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 10:03:00 -0500

Joey wrote that it's traditional to list your resolutions.

I made a New Year's resolution which was sort of a pact with an old friend, years ago, that's sort of my permanent life resolution. We both promised to take an active role in creating our own happiness. We've both done pretty well, I would say, so far.

This year my new resolutions are tiny and half complete already - I had my hair cut last night with an actual style, not a trim - and the other is to get a new pair of eyeglasses, with a little more oomph than my current ones. I just need a little update. It'll make a difference, trust me.

2007

The Redhead — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 22:34:00 -0500

Welcome to a new year.

We had a lovely New Year's Eve, a few friends including these two, a bunch of food, half a glass of champagne, and no headache when I woke up. I'm not drinking much these days because of the whole headache thing. The TV went on about a minute and a half before midnight, the rest of the night was spent chatting. We played "guess which four foods Joey won't eat," which is always a fun game. It took maybe fifteen minutes to get all four. Yes, there are really only four, though two are more like categories, and one item is really two items. You'd understand if you knew what they were. And one is an allergy.

We hit a lot of parties this holiday season, more than I ever went to in Boston. Most of us in Boston didn't have room to have parties, we all just went in groups to bars. I had a huge Halloween party one year though, and fit far, far more people in my apartment in Somerville than I probably should have. It was so much fun, and the giant beer stain that should have been under my desk was magically not there when I moved out. I had met Joey at that point but we hadn't started dating. Now we've been together three years. Whee!

I did think about the annual Harvard Law School party, which is an afternoon in the big function room with insane amounts of food and wine. Working at a company with only nine other people is so different. We had a lovely holiday party but it's a different animal from the hundreds of people who would pack into the HLS one.

Now, on to the next thing. The next half year will be concerned with my brother's wedding, work, and who knows what else Joey and I will come up with. I'll turn 33 in the second half of the year. As Dave would say, my Rolling Rock birthday. Better yet, a month later, Joey will be 40. I admitted last night that we're yuppies. I finally said it out loud. Eek.

Milk comes in bags

The Redhead — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 13:38:00 -0500

Do you remember in Pump Up the Volume, the song "Love Comes in Spurts"?

Well, today, running through my head is that tune, but with the words, "Milk comes in bags."

It's my stock "clever" answer to the seemingly age-old question, "What's the biggest difference between the US and Canada?"

The real answer is intangible and not funny.