on my mind

The Shins (Oh, Inverted World - 2001)
I am so out of touch with the music world. My streaming connection is pretty much nonexistant these days at the office. So no Morning Becomes Eclectic, no NPR, just whatever music left behind from the last girl who had this computer on the iTunes player. Luckily there are some things on here that I like (Coldplay (wow does Chris Martin look chipper in that splash page photo), Norah Jones, Sting (the man just keeps looking better and better)…I could be worse off). And then some new discoveries like The Shins (great website, fun flash stuff). Wow this album kicks ass. Serious ass. Seriously. I remember hearing a few of their singles on Morning Becomes Eclectic back in the day, and also on that wonderful film Garden State. But I’m only now listening to the whole album and it really will change your world.

John Mayer

I had a dream about you last night John Mayer. Yes, it’s true. I was a roadie on your tour and I was giddy thinking that at last we were going to have our moment together. We were riding a bus somewhere out in the middle of the boondocks. And Joe the busdriver (who I knew from UC Santa Cruz when I was a campus tour guide) drove the tour van and it was good to see him because we were always buddies with each other. And my last supervisor (she-who-will-not-get-into-heaven) was there somewhere too which cast a darkness to the dream. When I stopped off at a roadside motel/gas station Bed and Breakfast, I went in to use their restroom while my car was filling up and when I got back out the girls at the counter told me that DB had paid for my gas in full. And I was distressed because I could totally see through her ploy and I remember shaking my head vehemently and telling those girls, no, no cancel that credit card transaction. I don’t want her to pay for my gas. And don’t ask me why I was filling up my car when I was in the tour van with John Mayer being driven around by Joe the bus driver. JM really only had a brief scene or two and I remember just being really nervous. And where was m? I think even in my dreams I get guilty thinking about my boyfriend. And then I read this while eating breakfast at the office this morning and could only take it to be a sign directed right at me. Are you trying to tell me something John Mayer?

FelinePine

Love this stuff. All natural and it smells like pine shavings in a petstore. Didn’t you love that smell as a kid? I did. Made me think of hamsters or cuter yet, bunnies. The kitties are equally pleased (or at least that’s what I’m telling myself). Although they spent the first day with their new litter just staring at it, hindside sitting outside their litterbox with heads stuck through the flap of the box, just wondering what the heck this new stuff in their loo was all about.

Apartment Therapy
Did I mention that I am participating in their 8 week cure? I know I am going to be in our current apartment for only months longer. But the place really needs it and I think it’s a good way to start fresh for our next home. The kitchen looks great already and we are going to work on the living room this weekend. The only problem so far is trying to resist re-grouting the bathtub and kitchen tilework. Cause then that just makes me think that I should retile everything (both areas are gnarly beyond belief) and that’s just not smart.

Quitting my job.
My boss just gave her 2-weeks notice (now I feel foolish for dismissing the folks who were freaking out when jenn gave her notice at her job) and though I am not freaking out, it does give me reason to pause and think about what all this means. Two blogs I have been reading talk about quitting your boring day job and going for it. Where “it” is pursuing a creative career, possibly your own business. I wish they’d say more about that other than inspirational self-help stuff like: Go for it! Believe in yourself! Don’t listen to nay-sayers! I need something more concrete. Like a business model. How much debt they started off with. Whether or not they solicited investors. You know, the nitty gritty that probably isn’t really appropriate to be talking about on your blog.

Still bummed out on life.
Nuff said about that.

My arse is sore.
And I know why. I sit all day. And I should get up to take walks more often but I don’t. I really ought to do something about it. But I don’t. Instead I think ruefully about how my arse is sore.

investing and planning (or beginner’s luck)
M and I played Monopoly last night. We’ve owned the board (a special edition classic Red Sox players version that we got for xmas) for years now and only just ripped open the plastic wrapping to try it out. M is the Monopoly champ in his household but I find it not that interesting. I suggested it on a whim last night before bed not even thinking that he’d be in the mood and I surprised myself by following up the suggestion by actually playing a round. I did well. More surprises. Well enough that m’s title as the reigning champion is facing a moment of vulnerability. And I haven’t laughed so hard in so long. That felt good.

Thinking about it this morning I wondered how much of it was beginner’s luck and how much was sound planning and investing. Maybe a little bit of both. And it’s not that big a deal, but it felt easy and pleasant, rolling the dice, buying property, developing it with stadiums (instead of hotels since it’s the Red Sox version after all), collecting rent and charging fees. You just do it. And I did. And so I should with the big picture and not just on that gameboard, you know?