Whenever I fill up a glass, I fill it all the way up, to the point where it's almost overflowing and I have to slurp up some of the liquid in it before I can even pick it up. I am particularly bad about this with water and with coffee (though my need for extreme amounts of creamer is partially to blame).
You know how they describe optimists as people who see the glass as half full, and pessimists as people who see the glass as half empty? What's it mean when you see the glass as never full enough?
Friday, May 25, 2007
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Snow's a-comin'!
Here is the official forecast for Nashville as it stands right now:
Tonight
Light snow developing after midnight. Accumulation around 1 inch. Lows in the mid 20s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 90 percent.
Thursday
Light snow in the morning...then a mix of light rain...snow and sleet in the afternoon. Additional snow and sleet accumulation around 1 inch. Storm total accumulation around 2 inches. Highs in the mid to upper 30s. East winds around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation near 100 percent.
As a former Michigander, I must admit that I am having quite a bit of fun watching everyone freak out over a potential 2 inches of snow. People were taking work out the door with them in case they had to work from home tomorrow. People with 4-wheel-drives were commenting how nervous they were about how bad the roads might be. And when I drove up the hill into my apartment complex today, the driveway had already been pre-salted . . . just in case.
Now, I assure you that I have already heard all the usual commentary about snow in Nashville: (1) people here don’t know how to drive in snow, (2) we don’t have the equipment down here to handle snow, (3) you may know how to drive in snow, but ice is a whole different situation, and (4) remember that terrible snowstorm in 2004 when it took us all 8 hours to make the normally 30-minute drive home!?
I’m all for being “better safe than sorry” when it comes to bad weather (which is why I always had a blanket, boots, a small shovel, snacks, and a candle in my car during the winter months in Michigan), but this much excitement and concern seems a little disproportionate to the amount of snow predicted, and honestly seems to border on irrational behavior.
But, since I don’t think I can really do much to reassure people that it is honestly going to be alright, I thought I would – at best – share some factoids of truly amazing Nashville weather, or – at worst – just feed the paranoia.
Here’s my personal highlight:
Most snowfall in 24 hours: 17.0", March 17, 1892
Now that’s something to freak out about!
Tonight
Light snow developing after midnight. Accumulation around 1 inch. Lows in the mid 20s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 90 percent.
Thursday
Light snow in the morning...then a mix of light rain...snow and sleet in the afternoon. Additional snow and sleet accumulation around 1 inch. Storm total accumulation around 2 inches. Highs in the mid to upper 30s. East winds around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation near 100 percent.
As a former Michigander, I must admit that I am having quite a bit of fun watching everyone freak out over a potential 2 inches of snow. People were taking work out the door with them in case they had to work from home tomorrow. People with 4-wheel-drives were commenting how nervous they were about how bad the roads might be. And when I drove up the hill into my apartment complex today, the driveway had already been pre-salted . . . just in case.
Now, I assure you that I have already heard all the usual commentary about snow in Nashville: (1) people here don’t know how to drive in snow, (2) we don’t have the equipment down here to handle snow, (3) you may know how to drive in snow, but ice is a whole different situation, and (4) remember that terrible snowstorm in 2004 when it took us all 8 hours to make the normally 30-minute drive home!?
I’m all for being “better safe than sorry” when it comes to bad weather (which is why I always had a blanket, boots, a small shovel, snacks, and a candle in my car during the winter months in Michigan), but this much excitement and concern seems a little disproportionate to the amount of snow predicted, and honestly seems to border on irrational behavior.
But, since I don’t think I can really do much to reassure people that it is honestly going to be alright, I thought I would – at best – share some factoids of truly amazing Nashville weather, or – at worst – just feed the paranoia.
Here’s my personal highlight:
Most snowfall in 24 hours: 17.0", March 17, 1892
Now that’s something to freak out about!
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Positively Positive
Les and I swung by our local Tower Records to check out the sales tonight. If you haven’t heard, Tower Records is going out of business, liquidating all their stock, and closing all their stores (maybe except for one or two). It’s a sad state of affairs. But it is an opportunity to find some unusual things for a very good deal, so we as gawkers went in to see what there was to see.
Les picked up a couple of good CD deals at 75% off, and I browsed through magazines, which were 80% off. Most of the magazines just didn’t fit my personal interests (Atlanta rap, tattoo artists, Tulsa skateboarding, Ford truck customization, etc.), but one title caught my attention -– Ode. Although I have never heard of it, I was roped in by the subtitle, “For intelligent optimists.” Honestly, I don’t count myself in the world group of exceptionally intelligent people and I struggle to maintain even a façade of optimism sometimes, but I thought, “Now, that’s [an intelligent optimist] someone I’d like to become. Maybe this magazine will show me how!”
I haven’t read through all of it yet, but I’m enjoying it so far. I think the thing that is most stimulating to me in what I’ve read is that it is truly an international magazine (yet conveniently in English, for me), with all sorts of interesting stories from around the world. Six of the 17 Letters to the Editor (my favorite section in any magazine) were from the Netherlands, and 8 were from the US, with the rest being from England, India, and Chile. Interestingly, there were no letters from Canada, making me wonder whether they're keeping up with their letter-writing reputation these days or just slacking off up there. Maybe their computers are snowed in? Three of the letters were from Portland, OR, once again reminding me that this must be one of the coolest cities in the US and why have I not been there yet?
I saw an advert in Ode for www.zaadz.com (the word for “seeds” in Dutch) and decided to check it out. It appears to be a more grown-up, intelligent, and activism-driven version of MySpace, so of course it totally peaked my interest (often on MySpace I feel like I'm one of the few people who isn't just about drinking, partying, taking internet quizzes [even though I do love them], and trying to collect as many "friends" as possible). I just started my profile today, under my now-common moniker of "It's Lisa, y'all" (which is leading me to wonder what I'll do if I ever move out of the South!). I haven't added much of anything in there, but I'm working on it. After writing up profiles for Blogger and MySpace, I have to find a quiet moment to compose if I want this one to be anything more than a cut-and-paste from the other sites. And, as you can imagine, this is a bit challenging during the holiday season. New year, new Zaadz profile?
Les picked up a couple of good CD deals at 75% off, and I browsed through magazines, which were 80% off. Most of the magazines just didn’t fit my personal interests (Atlanta rap, tattoo artists, Tulsa skateboarding, Ford truck customization, etc.), but one title caught my attention -– Ode. Although I have never heard of it, I was roped in by the subtitle, “For intelligent optimists.” Honestly, I don’t count myself in the world group of exceptionally intelligent people and I struggle to maintain even a façade of optimism sometimes, but I thought, “Now, that’s [an intelligent optimist] someone I’d like to become. Maybe this magazine will show me how!”
I haven’t read through all of it yet, but I’m enjoying it so far. I think the thing that is most stimulating to me in what I’ve read is that it is truly an international magazine (yet conveniently in English, for me), with all sorts of interesting stories from around the world. Six of the 17 Letters to the Editor (my favorite section in any magazine) were from the Netherlands, and 8 were from the US, with the rest being from England, India, and Chile. Interestingly, there were no letters from Canada, making me wonder whether they're keeping up with their letter-writing reputation these days or just slacking off up there. Maybe their computers are snowed in? Three of the letters were from Portland, OR, once again reminding me that this must be one of the coolest cities in the US and why have I not been there yet?
I saw an advert in Ode for www.zaadz.com (the word for “seeds” in Dutch) and decided to check it out. It appears to be a more grown-up, intelligent, and activism-driven version of MySpace, so of course it totally peaked my interest (often on MySpace I feel like I'm one of the few people who isn't just about drinking, partying, taking internet quizzes [even though I do love them], and trying to collect as many "friends" as possible). I just started my profile today, under my now-common moniker of "It's Lisa, y'all" (which is leading me to wonder what I'll do if I ever move out of the South!). I haven't added much of anything in there, but I'm working on it. After writing up profiles for Blogger and MySpace, I have to find a quiet moment to compose if I want this one to be anything more than a cut-and-paste from the other sites. And, as you can imagine, this is a bit challenging during the holiday season. New year, new Zaadz profile?
Monday, November 27, 2006
Whew! Back in the South
We just got back from a week-long Thanksgiving break in Michigan. It was SO great to see all of our wonderful family members who lived up there and it really made me wish that they lived somewhere warmer (hint, hint, family!) so that we could live near them again. They are just some of the best people I know!
Of course, I suffered from my usual “this would never happen in the South!” culture-shock as we drove North. In Ohio, I went to step into an elevator and the man in the elevator (who did actually have the right-of-way, but I didn’t see him when I started to step in) pushed passed me without acknowledging my existence as I tried to enter the elevator before he had a chance to exit it.
In contrast, on my first day back in the office, a man who was carrying his lunchbox and a tray of cupcakes sped up to open the door into the building for me, pushed the UP button on the elevator, and let me enter the elevator first. A girl can get used to this kind of treatment, which will then prevent her from being able to live anywhere else. Manners -– something I just love about the South! Way to go, guys!
Of course, I suffered from my usual “this would never happen in the South!” culture-shock as we drove North. In Ohio, I went to step into an elevator and the man in the elevator (who did actually have the right-of-way, but I didn’t see him when I started to step in) pushed passed me without acknowledging my existence as I tried to enter the elevator before he had a chance to exit it.
In contrast, on my first day back in the office, a man who was carrying his lunchbox and a tray of cupcakes sped up to open the door into the building for me, pushed the UP button on the elevator, and let me enter the elevator first. A girl can get used to this kind of treatment, which will then prevent her from being able to live anywhere else. Manners -– something I just love about the South! Way to go, guys!
Friday, October 20, 2006
Tiny, tiny art
I’m off work today for a “mental health day” and am enjoying sleeping in, reading some stuff on the internet, and will eventually enjoy things like going outside and doing stuff (I am hoping to get a few work-hours-only cancellations in our National Parks Passport Book today).
I followed a link to this site on Wired.com and thought you folks out in the rest of the world would enjoy it if you haven’t seen it yet.
I really love people who go out and just “do art” randomly on the streets of their city and then document it (although I’m not particularly a fan of straight-up graffiti bombers with zero talent) and share it with others. This artist’s work is interesting to me because you could conceivably stumble upon it if you happened to be looking in the right place at the right time. “Hidden in plain sight,” so to speak. And the small stories these mini art works tell are both true and entertaining. Huzzah!
I followed a link to this site on Wired.com and thought you folks out in the rest of the world would enjoy it if you haven’t seen it yet.
I really love people who go out and just “do art” randomly on the streets of their city and then document it (although I’m not particularly a fan of straight-up graffiti bombers with zero talent) and share it with others. This artist’s work is interesting to me because you could conceivably stumble upon it if you happened to be looking in the right place at the right time. “Hidden in plain sight,” so to speak. And the small stories these mini art works tell are both true and entertaining. Huzzah!
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Speaking of chastity belts (which we weren't)...
Folks, I’m here to talk to you about the humble zipper. I just learned something about the zipper this week that I never knew. Apparently, some zippers have sliders (that’s the little thing that you pull to zip or unzip the zipper) that lock, preventing the zipper from being unzipped while the slider is in the “locked” or “down” position. No more “XYZ” situations for me!
I found out about this unexpected zipper technology while I was talking to a friend of mine at work. I had just gotten a new pair of pants and was telling her that I liked them very much, but complained that the zipper kept sliding down part-way. She asked me if the slider was in the locked position or not. “What are you talking about? Locked?” I asked. She explained that many zippers on pants have the locked/unlocked feature to save you from embarrassing situations and told me to check my own zipper slider. I did so (delicately, in the middle of her cubicle) and found that it was indeed in the up or unlocked position. Ah ha!
After I learned about this locking feature, I made sure to lock my zipper after every trip to “see a man about a horse” and had no further problems. I was so excited about my new knowledge that I told a couple of my friends about it and found that none of them had ever heard of it either. I tried to find a page that explained the technology but came up empty-handed. It seems that you either know about it or you don’t and, if you want to have it explained to you, you need to learn to just accept things on faith instead. It will not let you (or your zipper) down!
I found out about this unexpected zipper technology while I was talking to a friend of mine at work. I had just gotten a new pair of pants and was telling her that I liked them very much, but complained that the zipper kept sliding down part-way. She asked me if the slider was in the locked position or not. “What are you talking about? Locked?” I asked. She explained that many zippers on pants have the locked/unlocked feature to save you from embarrassing situations and told me to check my own zipper slider. I did so (delicately, in the middle of her cubicle) and found that it was indeed in the up or unlocked position. Ah ha!
After I learned about this locking feature, I made sure to lock my zipper after every trip to “see a man about a horse” and had no further problems. I was so excited about my new knowledge that I told a couple of my friends about it and found that none of them had ever heard of it either. I tried to find a page that explained the technology but came up empty-handed. It seems that you either know about it or you don’t and, if you want to have it explained to you, you need to learn to just accept things on faith instead. It will not let you (or your zipper) down!
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Happy, Happy, Dane, Dane!
Denmark is the happiest country in the world. The United States is the 23rd most happy, out of a total of 178 countries. Not too bad, but lower than I expected. Now I feel sad. Oops, I think we just slipped to 24! I’d better hold it together.
With fire, is how he cuts his hair
Les and I recently saw an independent film about the Shakespeare & Co Bookshop in Paris, France. The name of the movie is “Portrait of a Bookstore as an Old Man.” Although I felt like I was watching Part 2 of a movie I had never seen Part 1 of (in that it seemed like a lot of information was just thrown out there with no explanation, as if you already knew about these people, this history, this author, this artist), there were many shocking, laugh-out-loud, and tender moments. I thought, “If I were just a bit more literary, I bet I would really enjoy this movie a lot.”
So, all you avid readers and smart people out there -- check out this movie if you get the chance. I promise that you won’t be disappointed.
Beauticians, on the other hand, should probably steer clear. The 91 year old owner cuts his hair by lighting it on fire and then snuffing it out before it gets too short. I think that would be painful to watch if you were a professional. On the other hand, my friend got THE BEST eyebrow grooming from a gas grill that was a little too-much-gas/too-late-lit. Foomp! But they looked really good!
So, all you avid readers and smart people out there -- check out this movie if you get the chance. I promise that you won’t be disappointed.
Beauticians, on the other hand, should probably steer clear. The 91 year old owner cuts his hair by lighting it on fire and then snuffing it out before it gets too short. I think that would be painful to watch if you were a professional. On the other hand, my friend got THE BEST eyebrow grooming from a gas grill that was a little too-much-gas/too-late-lit. Foomp! But they looked really good!
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