No Chaser

Home again Jigggity jig

All the travel this month is doing wonders. The week with Clonk's pop, whose health is rapidly improving, was a much-needed diversion from all the less important things in life. We enjoyed visiting other Clonk family members and friends as well, spending a lot of time with children who were cheerful and fun. There were no holiday fights and no real tension. We took many hikes, we ate good food. Mainly, it was good to feel there were other lives and locales within driving distance.

One of the treats of this trip was stopping off to see Randomgirl (twice) who happens to live halfway between us and the other Clonks. It made us very happy to see her so settled into her new home, town, job after only living there one year. I felt very reassured that I could just get in the car and drive to see her pretty much any time I wanted. When you are trapped in a foreign and semi-hostile land, it's comforting to have a good friend only a day's drive away. The work she's done on her house was also an inspiration. The day after we got home, we went to the hardware store for supplies to continue our home makeover.

Our downstairs bathroom, which is decorated in what I like to call Barbary Coast style, is a bathroom only a pirate could love, with gold fixtures and lights hanging from chains above cabinets evocative of treasure chests. I have bought new chrome and white ceramic fixtures and hardware and have removed the cabinet doors in readiness for painting them white. Once all that is installed, I will paint some pleasant color leftover from one of the other rooms. We got paint chips yesterday for the whole house (minus the kitchen which is already painted) and have already decided on colors for all rooms except my office. I'm down to five, with lovely names I might add: Apple Orchard, Caterpillar, Dublin, Barnyard Grass, and Delicious Melon. [These are Behr 430B-5, 430B-6, 440B-5, 440B-6, and 280A-3 in case you're interested.] I'm leaning toward Melon with Caterpillar together somehow. But, I may stick with Dublin, which is a tad bluer and a shade lighter than Caterpillar.

Oh boy, I love paint. Thanks RG for the motivation!

posted by: NoChaser at November 28, 2005 08:30 | link | comments (3) |

It's fun to stay at the . . .

Well, I had a lovely trip, the details of which I won't bore you with. Sublimely good art and laughably bad art, excellent food, cosmopolitan city and quirky little burg, fun with friends, exercise and relaxation. Everything a trip should include.

While I was visiting with Miss Holly Golightly in the little hamlet of central PA, I visited the YMCA and swam in the beautifully tiled natatorium. I felt more comfortable than I have in a gym in a long time. I've been going to the U facilities for years, and frankly, it's becoming more and more annoying to work out among the undergrads. The equipment and facilities are great and keep me coming back. But, the music, the TVs, the desperately horny youth, my students in the locker room . . . oy vey. So, I thought, why not check out the Y here in town?

The local YMCA is not bad, very low-key, with a decent-sized pool, okay classes (not that I ever go to classes), and reasonable rates. Lots of seniors, gender-segregated "fitness centers," and the option to go to the other facility across town.

The older woman gave me a tour to the pools and the gymnasium, and then stopped outside the women's fitness room. She said, "Now this room is for women only. You are a woman, right?" I smiled and reassured her I am female (although I didn't specify whether that was genetically rather than surgically/hormonally the case). She replied, completely unfazed, "I figured you were because you sound like a woman, but you could be a young boy." I was very nice and told her it was a common assumption.

I am often mistaken for a boy, and have been since I was a teenager. I actually have a fairly feminine figure, but the (non-work) clothes I generally wear tend to hide it. I have short hair. I don't wear makeup or jewelry. I am mis-gender-identified more often when I wear a baseball cap or a knit hat, the latter of which I was wearing today. These various sartorial features also tend to mask my age effectively.

Later in the tour, I was explaining that I wanted to stop working out "at the U with all the kids," and my friendly tour guide responded as if I was being silly, "But, you're practically one of them." I chuckled and said, "I'm 38." Well, you could've knocked her down with a feather. "Wow! You are lucky!" she laughed. I wanted to respond (but didn't), "Yup, Irish genes and clean living."

posted by: NoChaser at November 14, 2005 12:57 | link | comments (7) |

Happy Day

Today was a good day. It was beautiful and sunny here in Cornlandia. An article I wrote came out. I sent out the last job application. I enjoyed my class. I am packed and ready to go for my trip.

I am excited about my week-long trip, which includes a conference I always enjoy and a visit with one of my oldest friends. To clarify: she's not old; we've been friends a long time. We met when we were around 13 or 14 and became good friends around 17 or 18. Basically, we've known each other more than half our lives. We have both moved into academia and even do very similar work. We never planned it; it just worked out that way.

More than any of my other friends, we can really get on each other's nerves: she's too girly, I'm too boyish. We have had bitter fights and even broke up once for a short time. But, we decided it was more important to have a friend who knew one's history and one's darkest moments than to hold onto our anger and deny our shame and regret.

When we get together, we will talk about fashion, sing silly songs, and quote lines from our favorite films. We will joke a lot and laugh until our eyes are watering or we are blasting tea out our noses. We will tell each other secrets that we don't really need to tell because we already know them. We will tease each other about our inadequacies and foibles. We will give each other encouragement and support to display with a flourish whatever is up our sleeves. We will scamp about like Holly Golightly and feel we are again 19. We will hug and kiss, and we will hold hands when we walk around town.

So, perhaps I'm mainly happy that the day of my trip is finally here, and because I know my good day is a prelude to a good week.

posted by: NoChaser at November 02, 2005 17:07 | link | comments (2) |

G. R. R. R.

Today I had bad email drama on two accounts.

First, my gmail account deleted all email in my inbox without my telling it to do anything of the sort. This included a few important emails I really didn't need to lose. Apologies to anyone who has emailed in the last two days. If I have not responded to you, please email again.

Then, my yahoo account, which I logged into six weeks ago, was deactivated, supposedly because I had not logged in for four months, which is also absolutely not the case. I know people generally don't email me there -- it's my backup anonymous account -- but I had some old email conversations between Clonk and I that I really really wanted to keep, and now they are gone.

I suppose there is some lesson to be had on the ether-reality of e-anything that somehow relates to ephemerality of my very existence and self-conception and memory, etc., but sheesh, it mainly just stinks.

posted by: NoChaser at November 01, 2005 14:00 | link | comments (5) |