Fun Center for Sick Detroit Kids

I have some ambivalence about this whole "click here to vote for which resource-starved human services institution is going to receive money from our corporation" business, but nonetheless, it would be cool for kids at a children's hospital in Detroit to have access to a "fun center" for play. So, if you like, click here and vote for Detroit to get Colgate's money and in the process, contribute to Colgate's self-congratulatory rhetoric. You can do it once a day, if you want.

The Chocolate Cake Doppelgängerin

I am making yogurt, seven-grain bread, and broccoli mushroom quiche, while trying to think of what else besides Fionn Regan, Jenny Owen Youngs, Tricky, and Nouvelle Vague to put on a mix for Katie and John.

It's been quite a lovely weekend, with Friday night dinner with Zac, Alice, and Victoria in Zac's new abode, a cabin in the arboretum, a drink at Bab's with Ms. Isolt, leisurely Saturday brunch at Angelo's with Jeremy and Erika, a visit to K & J's place and an excursion with them to the Detroit Auto Show, perfectly sumptuous mole enchiladas (like I hadn't had since Austin!) at El Barzon restaurant (with an ecstatic private celebration happening next door), then a drink at Baile Corcaigh (I think that was the one, right K&J?). They gave me the most incredibly perfect Irish coffee I've ever had, with thick, sweet Irish cream on top. Gorgeous.

I got back home to the cottage after all the fun and collapsed for a good twelve hours of sleep! Today I've been totally useless, playing around on the internet and considering reading for my course on Material Culture and the Built Environment, and for 101 this week, but not. I finally went grocery shopping at about 9:30, and that was the first I got out of the house at all.

There was something that happened on Saturday night that was so quintessentially of-my-life in that serendipitous way I can never quite fathom, but that always peeks out its head when I'm least expecting it. John asked me just as I was leaving Detroit, "Are you going to blog about that, or are we?" I said that I would. But I don't know that there is a way to capture it that really does it justice. Well, I will try. And John and Katie, you can do too, if you like. ;)

We were just arriving at the pub, settling our coats on the bench as we sat down at our small round tables nestled among the dark wood paneling and stained glass. And a man strode right toward me, saying: "Are you the chocolate cake girl?" I said, "No." He said, "Oh, my goodness, you have a double." And I said, "Can I be the chocolate cake girl?" He told me yes. Katie, John, and I sat, and after a minute or two of giggling about the oddness of this puzzling encounter, we had a lovely, intimate, far-reaching conversation with discussions and stories about life and relationships, work and Middlesex, friends and who knows what-all. We'd completely forgotten about the Chocolate Cake Fellow.

But then, just after we'd paid our bill and zipped and buttoned up our coats and jackets and were about to walk out the door, he came back, walking right toward us with a thick slice of luscious, rich chocolate cake on a plate with three forks. He said, "Wait! Don't you want your chocolate cake??" And we laughed with surprise, and still a good degree of puzzlement, and he said, "Let me wrap it up for you." I thanked him profusely, he disappeared and reappeared a moment later with the cake neatly hidden away in a to-go box, and I introduced myself, and he told me his name was Jeff. We left with the cake, never quite knowing what it was that I'd done to deserve the cake.

This morning, I had chocolate cake for breakfast with my coffee. It is so rich, I hardly made a tiny dent in it.

Magnetic Fields -- Distorted

For those of you who love Magnetic Fields as much as I do (Oh, 69 Love Songs -- who can resist lyrics like "I can keep it up all night, I can keep it all day; let's pretend we're bunny rabbits, until we pass away")!? you can listen to their new album, Distorted, for a limited time streaming on their myspace page. And, other exciting news -- they'll be on tour soon. Perhaps worth a drive to Chicago. hmm.

Flight of the Conchords Ep2 She's So Hot - Boom

Megan is the boom queen. She's so hot, she's making me sexist.

Grieving

Well, I suppose it could have taken me longer. But seven years is rather a while.

Walking on through the little community library here in the country, I found myself in the self-help section, looking for pain management books and hoping to find the one Laura suggested. And then there I was in the grief section, and I decided to pull one from the shelf: Never the Same: Coming to Terms with the Death of a Parent by Donna Shuurman. And today I picked it up to leaf through it while the coffee was percolating. It isn't quite right for me, since her text, as well as the Dougy Center, where she is executive director, cater to those who lost parents as children. But otherwise, the ideas underlying their work resonated with me, and thanks to their center locator, I have found my way to free grief counseling, so I am going to try a group and see how it goes.

I'm browsing self-help books. I guess I must be in grad school.

This should be fun . . .

This New York Times article on violent offenses by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans conveys exactly the kind of human costs I knew this country wasn't prepared for when George W. Bush pushed us into this war, and I wept as I walked down the street in Austin, marveling at the futility of us 10s of thousands of anti-war protesters in the capital of his home state, railing against the inevitable. I felt embarrassed at the time, that I couldn't hold it together. Now, I think there was a kind of premonition in my reaction.

What is absurd to me is that there isn't thorough treatment for all the military personnel coming back from this war. Given the military culture, it's unreasonable to expect a questionnaire to be an adequate screening tool, and it's irresponsible to do anything less than an individual assessment for each and every person who is expected to make the transition from holding a weapon with the express purpose of causing injury and death to an enemy, to going about everyday life in a civilian world. I believe the US government bears far more responsibility in these cases than the NYT is in a position to argue. And I believe that this article is a fine illustration of how woefully underestimated the enduring costs of this war have been, and continue to be, by this regime.

Thawing

Above, an image from cross-country skiing last weekend. And below, three photographs from the past few days, after days of rain melted the knee-deep snow. The lake is back to a flowing entity, from a solid surface holding the huts of the ice fisherman just a few days ago. The changes take my breath away sometimes.

By the way, I've finally posted some photographs from the New Years trip to Yosemite. :)

Just a friendly reminder

. . . coming from somebody with chronic neck and back pain, since that MF in a sports car rear-ended the SUV behind me into my car over a year ago now . . .

Be ergo!

And thanks to Laura, I've discovered New Zealand physiotherapist Robin McKenzie's short little book Treat Your Own Neck, which I'll hopefully be getting by inter-library loan shortly. People have lots of positive things to say about her book Treat Your Own Back, so I'm hopeful about the results.

But I think it may also be time to go back to physical therapy again. I just wish there were affordable acupuncture here, and/or that it were covered by our medical insurance.

Light therapy

Has anyone here who deals with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) explored light therapy? A friend of mine has this goLITE portable light therapy device, which you can purchase for $169 at COSTCO online. I've seen others in the $200 range that seem more highly recommended on websites on the subject, but I never know who's behind the reviews.

The portability of this one would certainly be handy, since I have noticed SAD problems both in Michigan and in Hungary, so I could carry it along for fieldwork.

But any time I'm buying a manufactured item with plastic, especially one over $100, I would like to know that it will be the right one for me. . .

Any thoughts or suggestions?

EDIT: By the way, that other one I was thinking of is the Ultralux Light Box from Full Spectrum Solutions. It's $229 (a big price step up from $169), but it is also made in the USA and has a lifetime warranty for parts and labor (as opposed to the 2-year limited warranty with the goLite. It also appears to be made of metal rather than plastic, though I'm not positive about this. I'm almost certain the goLite is plastic, and I'd expect it's manufactured in Asia, since I can't find any information about its origin on the company website. I've emailed them to ask about these details.

When I think about hauling the Ultralux to Europe, though, along with all my recording and computer equipment, clothing, and everything else I'll bring to the field, it doesn't sound too appealing . . .

SECOND EDIT: Additional information from the companies.

On the UltraLux I:

This was my message and the company response (in yellow).

Hello,
I am considering purchasing an Ultralux I Lightbox. I have a few questions about the product, however.

(1) What is the weight of the product? Around 12lbs – 13lbs
(2) Does the lightbox click easily into and out of the stand, or is the fixture more or less permanent when it is installed into the stand? The stand screws onto the box.
(3) Where is the product manufactured, exactly? USA
(4) What are the materials the product is made from? Is the light box plastic or metal? Metal
(5) How is the lightbox powered? Is it by battery or by AC/DC plug? AC/DC Plug

The UltraLux I is very sturdy and we almost never have any warranty issues.

From Apollo Health, on the goLite:

Hello,
I am considering purchasing the GoLite p2 device. I would like some additional information about the product, however.

(1) Where is this product manufactured?
(2) Is the product made of plastic?
(3) If I have problems with the device after the 2-year warranty period, what can I do?
(4) What does the "limited" warranty mean? What does it cover?

Thank you in advance for the information.
Heather

Heather,

I will answer your questions by the same numbering they were asked in.
1. China
2. Yes
3. We will offer you a discount on a new product after the 2 year period is up.
4. The warranty is limited in that it covers anything having to do with a manufacturing defect. It doesn't cover any damage done by the purchaser such as dropping the unit or animals chewing on the cord.

Please let me know if you have any further questions or concerns.

Funny blogs.

ha. "ha ha".

Aliens in America

In my frustration over the dwindling selection of decent silly TV shows to watch, with the writers' strike and ABC's frequent rerunning of previously aired episodes of Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, Pushing Daisies, Samantha Who, and Big Shots, in an act of desperation, I went over to CW to see what I might be able to find. (Since I continue to refuse to pay for cable just to get the basic channels, believing it is criminal to charge me to be the depository of advertisements for corporations wishing to cultivate new desires in me, I'm limited to what is available streaming over the internet.) And I've become surprisingly charmed by a new show there called Aliens in America.

The premise: A kind-hearted Pakistani teenage orphan named Raja lands in the middle of Wisconsin, to a stereotypical American Midwestern household: The mother lovingly smothers the family, the bumbling father (played by delightful Scott Patterson, Luke Danes in Gilmore Girls) navigates the baffling world of being the sole breadwinner through various jobs and moneymaking projects such as raising llamas in the backyard, the older daughter wakes up one day to find she is one of the hottest girls in school, and the younger son seems so interminably relegated to geekdom, the parents try to treat his status with the social equivalent of electroshock therapy by taking in a foreign exchange student. They imagine the fantasy exchange student will whisk their son straight to the category of most popular boy in school as he trots across the football field, his blond locks blowing in the breeze as the muscles ripple all along his tall Nordic frame.

Instead, they get Raja, and much hilarity ensues. At its heart, it's a very lighthearted and silly comedy, and it surfs along on the waves of various caricatures of American and Pakistani culture. Raja, naturally, wears kurta pajama and a head covering, prays to Mecca five times a day, avoids immodest talk and images, and speaks English with a heavy South Asian accent. But relying on these stereotyped caricatures, the show pokes fun, most of all, at the Midwesterners who can't seem to stop calling Raja Roger, assuming he is a terrorist, mistaking him for a Mexican or persons of any number of other nationalities, and expecting him to speak alternately for all Muslims, all people of color, or anyone who isn't from Wisconsin. In the process, there's just a hint of political critique embedded in the fun (though I also wish, like the folks at Vulture, that it weren't always at the expense of Midwesterners). Along the way, there are lots of quirky moments that keep you guessing.

Although I'm not sure how long I'd follow it if I had Lost and Battlestar Gallactica back in the spectrum, I have to say, I'm enjoying it for now.

Laura and I couldn't get enough of listening to Do Right Woman - Do Right Man in the car on the way back to Yosemite. So I've gone back to the great, thanks to an unexpected find in my mother's music collection -- The Very Best of Aretha Franklin - The '60s. In a selection that also includes several Kenny G CDs, loads of Christmas music by various unnamed artists, a good dose of Julio Iglesias, plenty of Faith Hill, and Dolly Parton, I'm always surprised to find something I really love to listen to. I probably sound like quite the music snob to some, but well, I just have different tastes than Mom.

But there are some generational crossovers, those greats we can all appreciate.

So, here's to Aretha, the Queen of Soul.

New photos from the road to Yosemite . . .

. . . and from being there.

In case any of you had a little too much bubbly, you might try a tea of milk thistle. Here are some suggestions for avoiding or curing a hangover. I thought I might as well share, since I was looking it up for my near & dear.

Yosemite was beautiful, magnificent. And very fun with my friends and friends-of-friends. And tonight Laura and I were talking about going to the Glas Kat, but I may need to poop out, because I feel like I may pass out from the mountain air and warm water of the shower. . . Oh my goodness, and it's good we decided not to go since I wrote that last sentence, since it's closed tonight!! phew. There are distinct advantages to being nerdy and blogging about what you're planning to do, sometimes. :)

I haven't been salsa dancing at all since I've been in California, but I just haven't really been in the zone. I've really been enjoying time with family and friends, and haven't particularly felt like running out to the city, and leaving them behind to be on the dance floor.

okay, well, i'm not making much sense here and i'm clearly too tired to say anything of interest. so, time to pass out with my clean hair and freshly shaven skin and body aching comfortably from ice skating and hiking and dancing in the hotel room.

happy new year, everyone!