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May 31, 2006
GB:NYC3
Come one, come all, see the freaky bloggers! Watch them drink, watch them carouse, watch them do lewd things! Barrage on Friday, June 2nd at 7pm, the Eagle on Saturday.
I am really looking forward to it. Friends are coming in from all over, and as Hottie McZeitzeuge says, "Seasoned bloggers, newbies, wannabe's, wallflowers, and even fans of bloggers are welcome."
Don't make me invite you specifically. Yes, you know who you are....
Posted by G at 09:32 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
May 29, 2006
My dog loves her food
Posted by G at 10:07 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
May 25, 2006
Comic books and sportsmen
Friday night will be a night with the geeks, Hugh Jackman and other X-Men. Saturday I'll be seeing woofy woofymen playing rugby. Sunday will be crazy since there is no school on Monday. Nothing crazier than a teacher with a three day weekend.
CRAZEE!
Posted by G at 07:58 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
May 24, 2006
Son of a peach
Derrick tells me that I'm the most zealous grocery shopper he knows. I can't help that one of my mom-inherited attributes is a monthly binge at the grocery store. I don't like going to the grocery store, so I'm very thorough. Thorough, dammit.
I remember grocery trips with my mom. Some of the pattern came from our living in so many rural areas, so the 50 mile round trip to the grocery store made us stockers. Mom also went through some seriously crazy food fads, which I should write about some day. We went down every aisle and my sisters and I would fiercely debate which food items were most important to us, as mom only allocated a certain amount to fun food.
Once we got home, the battle against spoilage was waged for a month. Salads were popular in the first few days, dairy waned within weeks, and things stored in cans or boxes were saved for the days before the next grocery trip. Even when we lived in towns with easy access to groceries, we stuck with the binge shopping, filling our fridge and separate full-size freezer with food. It didn't help that my dad regularly slaughtered a cow to fill the freezer with beef.
My sisters and I now live in urban areas with easy access to grocery stores, yet we still binge shop. Even worse, I don't have my mom's organizational skills, so I currently have FIVE cans of peaches, SIX packages of Amy's Organic Mac&Cheese, EIGHT types of beans or chili, and other illogical duplications. If I lived in a large space, this would be okay. In NYC, this just seems a bit crazy.
If an apocalypse strikes, I'm set. We'll just have lots of Mac&Cheese. And peaches. Can't forget the peaches. Do I have peaches? Maybe I should buy some more....
Posted by G at 07:40 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack
May 23, 2006
Mixing with the lower classes
Forget about the subway being the great equalizer in NYC. Mixing in the laundromat takes everyone a step lower, and I hate me some laundromat time. I absolutely detest going to a filthy place that charges obscene amounts for the benefit of washing my laundry amidst unwashed masses. First you have to pile all your laundry into one of those ridiculous granny carts, then you haul it blocks down to some nasty place with stairs. People don't help each other, children are shrieking around you, and game shows are intellectual challenges.
This time wasn't as bad, but last time I had some nasty woman opening my dryers to check if my clothes were done. She knew they weren't hers, but she used the excuse of all the others being full. The fact that my clothes were STILL TUMBLING was no obstacle to her nasty, unwashed hands. I thought about smothering her in my towel load, but then I realized I would have to wash them again.
I wish I had a washer/dryer in my apartment. This is why people move from NYC. Laundry.
Posted by G at 09:49 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack
May 20, 2006
The big news
Nope, it wasn't sex reassignment surgery, ball shaving, or a hairpiece fetish.
A very wise woman in my life told me something a short time ago. I have been torn about my school and my own life for some time. "You have to learn how something works right before you can fix something that is broken." Kathy is one of the better, brighter people that I know. She also knows me better than I know myself.
I accepted a position at a new high school in the Bronx for next year. I'll be teaching much more advanced math, something that both terrifies and excites me. The school appears to be very well organized, the staff seems committed, and the kids really want to succeed. I feel extremely guilty about leaving my old school, as they are poised to begin the long road back to being a successful school. I could be a part of that struggle, working with the new principal, a man I really admire.
Here's the way I look at it. I'm really good at what I do, I have a passion for my kids, but I also need a few more years in the classroom. All of the people I respect as teachers/administrators had at least five or six years in the classroom, and they taught in a variety of grades.
I guess I'm spending the summer re-familiarizing myself with geometry, TI-84 calculators, and beginning calculus.
Posted by G at 09:04 PM | Comments (22) | TrackBack
May 17, 2006
Second most important event of Last Monday
An email from a friend:
I write not to inquire about the big change afoot in your life (though I am curious), but to substantiate a claim by my bf, Brendan. While shivering our collective arses off at the Yankees-Rangers game on Monday night, I got up to pay the nice beer vendor, yet again (as sobriety and baseball don’t generally mix well with me). Upon returning to my seat, Brendan insisted that he had seen your distinctive mug on the Jumbotron. As Brendan’s only met you once – and there is generally a good share of shaved heads with goatees in large NYC crowds – I doubted his claim.
Though, then I thought, well – G’s from Texas, so maybe he would be at a Rangers game. If you weren’t, Brendan wants you to know you have a fairly plausible doppelganger.
Either way, hope all is well.
Subway Subversive
Dear Subway:
My other news is almost ready for release. It is the penile reduction.
As your bf surmised, I was caught out just like Ferris Bueller.
I live across from the stadium, but I'd never gone to a NYC game before. I was with some friends from Texas when suddenly my head scared the bejeebus out of me. One should never be forced to see one's own head displayed on a 50' scale. Pores are huge. My friends had seats under cover, so we didn't get soaked, plus I didn't really pay attention to the game (I really can't understand the appeal of the sport, except for the yummy players in hot outfits. I really liked how everyone in the stadium loves YMCA anthems,
the guys who covered the field impressed me with their efficiency, and I was disappointed when the rain didn't turn the whole game into a wet Tshirt contest with Mike Piazza naked. I think he's with the Yankees, but he might be with the Mets. It doesn't matter, he's really cute.
Posted by G at 09:45 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
May 15, 2006
Stay tuned
I posed questions, I listened to advice, I weighed the options. I've stressed and freaked and hmmm'ed and hahhh'ed. Tonight I actually looked over the cliff edge and stepped off. I almost barfed on the subway; I was so nervous. Thanks to all of the very good advice from my very good friends, my family, and Derrick.
There's a big change in the air.
Posted by G at 06:01 PM | Comments (12) | TrackBack
May 14, 2006
Mom's day
When your mom is dead, it makes buying cards and making calls less of a pressure, obviously. Sometimes I wonder if any of the holidays will get easier.
So to all the other mothers in my life, thank you so much for being in my life. Love you all.
Cheery entry, huh? Reflects my mood today.
Posted by G at 08:14 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
May 09, 2006
New Yorkistan, Part 2
Put returned Peace Corps Volunteers together and certain things will always happen.
Drinks will be imbibed, stories will be told, gossip will be shared. Partners will be amazed/frightened/bored.
Bubble machines will be wielded.
T'Amanda will do a keg handstand. She will succeed.
Dogs will be giant, boyfriends will be shrunk.
Burgers will be displayed.
Friends will take inappropriate photos.
Friends will enjoy being together again.
I also met some really cool guys, including one particularly hysterically funny man. He is my new BFF.
Actually, alcohol is the only real constant. Peace Corps really requires that.
Seriously, life in Peace Corps could be summarized as experiences like eating genuine sheep ass-fat, dealing with giardia, and the eternal search for heat in the winter. Over time, the bad moments fade, and now I just think about how much it changed me. The removal of luxuries made simple things like reading a luxury, and time spent with my host family, my students, and my friends became the real aspect of the day. Spending time with my friends brought it all back, and I miss it.
Posted by G at 06:32 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
May 07, 2006
New Yorkistan, Part 1
I was waiting for the local C train when I saw Amanda near me on the platform. It's not that I wasn't ecstatic to see her; it's just that it was extremely unexpected. I don't know why I don't expect it. New York City is the smallest village in the world. Next time I'm on the subway, I expect to bump into the first girl I ever kissed (Jennifer McKinney) or the Alaskan guy I first messed around with. Preferably the guy, now that I think about it.
Back to Amanda and this specific subway station at this specific point in time. I think the last time I saw her was after the Uzbekistan evacuation. We chatted for a few minutes, talked on the subway, and agreed to get together with a few other RPCV's in NYC.
It's been five years since I was medically evacuated from Uzbekistan, less for Amanda and the others who were evacuated after 9/11. It doesn't seem like that long ago, but that's how time flies. Five years ago I weighed only 130 pounds due to bad diet. Five years ago my left leg was a shredded mess. Five years ago I was relatively fluent in five languages. Five years ago I was abruptly returned to the US with no real clue what to do.
This afternoon I'll be seeing other volunteers, friends with whom I've lost touch. Peace Corps was like a summer camp, but a summer camp with terrorists, giardia, incompetent directors, lots of vodka, and mistaking birthday parties with circumcision parties. I wonder how it changed them, since I know it changed me.
Posted by G at 03:05 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
May 04, 2006
Is Your Boyfriend Published?
He just published. Yeah, he uses phrases like 'nascent capitalism' and 'rhyghte goode ale,' but he also uses 'bullshit.' Who can resist reading it? If you can somehow resist, definitely tell him congratulations.
Posted by G at 07:21 AM | Comments (10) | TrackBack
May 01, 2006
Falling into things
If I asked friends to describe me, I seriously doubt anyone would use the words 'good planner.' Goofy, unfocused, impulsive, random, moody, morbid, and inattentive would vie for creative, friendly, and nerdy.
I can plan, it just doesn't normally occur to me. I never sat down at any age to write a list of goals. I never even thought in broad brushstrokes, except maybe to try to be happy and help other people. I knew I would never date clowns, but that isn't a life-changing goal. I never really thought I'd live in NY, or London, or Moscow. I love teaching, but I never looked at one of my teachers and wanted to be one. While I was in Peace Corps, I just fell into teaching and enjoyed it. I never thought I would be in a relationship, much less in one for two years. I never even decided to shave my head. These things just happened, sometimes seemingly to someone else.
I have so many character flaws, but I think my lack of interest in my own course might be the biggest. It is very frustrating to me, as I often feel shaped by events, rather than a shaper of events. I don't really understand people who look off into the future and say "I WILL BE THE PRESIDENT OF BLAH, BLAH, BLAH BY THE AGE OF BLAH."
I have to make serious decisions, right now. Things that will shape my future, my life, my well-being. I have a wealth of choices, and a poverty of decision-making ability. What scares me is that I'll just fall into the next thing just because it presents itself in my path, rather than me choosing something. So many paths are unfolding in front of me, and I'm frozen at the crossroads.
Posted by G at 10:10 PM | Comments (14) | TrackBack