A Slice of Stranger.

"Smith could see 

the blast of icy anger that Jubal 

was hurling toward the man, 

a blast so furious that, 

had one Martian hurled it toward another, 

both 

would 

have 

discorporated 

at 

once."

Valentine Michael Smith is a human who was raised on Mars and only recently made his way back to Earth. Here, he is watching the human Jubal Harshaw exchange words and threats with a policeman. Apparently, on Mars, if a Martian even so much as thinks a bad thought about another, he is in danger of immediate discorporation (not exactly death-- plainly ceasing to be).

My first reaction went something like this,

'Oh, how wonderful! If only the world I live in could become something like that!'

But then I got to thinking,

'Wait, then people would only be non confrontational for the sake of self-preservation. So that's kinda lame.'

See, the magical thing about these Martians is that this whole discorporation thing hasn't conditioned them to be kinder, more patient, or avoid confrontation. They just are, by nature, all of these things. Discorporation is not the rule which keeps them in line. Discorporation is the rightfully dramatic result if ever a Martian acts so unnaturally out of anger or frustration.

Also.... it was the Cause & Effect Spring Party last night. Click here to see the awesome invite.

The party was, as promised, full of laZers, smoke, bubbles, and fun. Also... a photobooth.

Zak and his coworker, Alex

Zak and Allie: round two

Zach vs. Zak

The lovely couple

A couple of days full of events. Dare I say... eventful?

Wowza. Crazy couple of days. 

At some point on Wednesday morning/afternoon I started feeling some discomfort in my... ahem... pelvic region. I thought little of it. 

It became a bit more obnoxious on Thursday evening. But I went to work and kept myself busy. Didn't even think about it. 

I got home a bit after midnight, feeling perfectly fine. But by 12:45 or so my stomach started feeling strange. I kept feeling like I needed to pee, but whenever I'd try to, I'd have little to no luck. I began thinking I might have a dreaded UTI. I hopped back in bed, submitting to the realization that I wasn't going to pee, though I felt I needed to. Moments later, I rolled over onto my right side and zing. Pain. My entire right side cramped like a mothereffer. I went to the bathroom. Still no pee. Just more pain. Slow, creeping pain, spreading to my lower back and abdomen. 

Tired of trying to convince my body it needed to pee, I resorted to pacing. Back and forth. While quickly and deeply huffing and puffing. At one point, I approached Zak (tired and in bed) and said worriedly "Zak, I have no idea what's going onnnnnn." At which point, Zak immediately looked up the nearest hospital. After a moment of debating, and Zak helping me to put my clothes on (seriously... it was that painful) we left the apartment, hailed a cab, and went to the ER. 

PROOF.

Then some nurse got my information and blood pressure. Then we waited. Then we were given a bed. Then we waited some more. Then we listened to everyone around us hollering about waiting too long or needing more drugs. Then we waited a little more. Then a doctor gave me a cup to pee in. Then we waited one last time. And finally a doc told me there was no infection and based on my symptoms, I probably had a kidney stone. 

A kidney stone. In my 23 year-old body. 

We finally left at around 4:45am. By then I was feeling almost normal again. 

I spent the whole next day peeing into a cup and inspecting for kidney stones. Sure enough... my 4:15pm urination brought with it a tiny little gift. A quarter of a centimeter gift. (Amazing how much pain that teeny little thing can cause.)

I brought the stone into the doc and it is currently being analyzed. I'll be sure to give you all the dirty details of my health qualms as I learn them.

Anyway. I needed a bit of a pick-me-up after that fiasco. Soooo...

*  *  *  *  *

CHOppED Off.

Oh... and let me just add: Zak Engel rocks for taking care of me all night long while I felt like hell, getting to bed at 5:30 am, waking up at 8:30 am, getting to work on time, and working all day. Unstoppable, that one.

Well golly, I've got a new OVEN!

It's true. It's in my kitchen. I'm looking at it right now.
It has four working burners and a fully functioning oven/broiler.
Could I be any happier?

:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

More extensive update to follow. 

What a dandy weekend.

Most weekends, by nature, are pretty dandy. If you're one of many in the world of 9-5 jobs (more like 8-6 by today's standards, let's be honest), the weekend is freedom. As I am not a nine-to-fiver, the weekend just means the streets below my window will be noisier, with all else equal to weekdays. In fact, I had not enjoyed a single day off for two and a half weeks... until yesterday. But wait! I didn't stop there! I proceeded to have Sunday off as well! Yes, a whole weekend of leisure and sunshine. And I took advantage.

Friday night, we finally tried out a Mexican restaurant I've been talking about since my arrival in NYC. Turns out it was just mediocre. But hey, we shared a pitcher of margaritas, so Allie was content.

Yesterday, Zak and I woke a bit early, expecting that our new stove may be delivered as early as 10am or so. We did some cleaning, some organizing. Over breakfast, the truck arrived! Zak went down to the street to greet our beautiful new appliance... turns out its perfect newness was blemished by a few "beauty" marks. The handle and an entire side managed to get dented during its commute. So we hesitantly rescheduled for Monday. (We tried real hard to get them to come out later that day... or even today, but they said it simply was not possible. Hmph.)

Not thrilled. But oh well. With our afternoon schedule suddenly freed up, we made plans!

We took a train up to Central Park where we took a lovely walk northward to the Met. That museum is outrageously large. We moved quickly and spent around an hour and a half there, but we couldn't have seen more than a quarter of what they have to offer. Unbelievable. Zak took a couple of photos on his iphone.

This one was particularly awesome for reasons that those around us didn't even pick up on. The whole thing was curved. When you stood in just the right place, your voice was amplified and resounded back toward you. I take no credit for that discovery. Zak noticed it, not me. Go figure...

After the Met, we got a late lunch at a nearby cafe and spent a mellow evening at home. 

Today I brought Zak to see a shop in SoHo that I've been wanting him to see for weeks now. It's called Evolution and specializes in taxidermy, fossils, and skeletons. They have some really unique items. Earrings made of beetle wings. Suckers (lollipops, for you New England folk) with centipedes in the middle. Fossilized amber from millions of years ago. I think it's the coolest. Zak thinks I'm strange. Though he did find a few things to which he took quite a liking. After SoHo, we did a bunch of window shopping and after looking far and wide for a new place to try out for lunch, we landed at a favorite standby: The Cupping Room Cafe. 

We got a seat at a small perch for two, right by the window. We indulged in a couple of delicious and overpriced brunch beverages. (Why in the world do drinks become so darn expensive when they're served for "brunch"?) Mine was a mimosa of sorts with champagne, fresh squeezed lemonade, and mint. Zak's was some sort of champagne, gin, and citrus combination. Both tasty. His more potent than mine. Zak opted for the eggs and bacon plate. The boy is easy to please. I chose the cobb salad, and I'm sure my eyes lit up like Christmas lights when it arrived and I took in its beauty and SIZE. It was served in what I would consider a medium-sized mixing bowl. I couldn't even finish it. 

Now we're home. I have been updating my external hard drives while listening to the new Bon Iver album while Zak covers more ground in Kingdom Hearts. A brief aside: when you visit Neverland in this game, your shadow becomes it's own identity just like Peter's did... and he's quite evil! You must defeat him! Or perish! Anyway... we're awaiting a call from our dear friend Victoria, at which point we will join her and her family for a beverage somewheres. 

I don't know how to wrap up this post. So I'll just say

Happy Father's Day, Dad!

Heat + Water Falling from the Sky = Bliss

6:30pm. Time to leave work.
The clouds have gathered. The cityscape has grown greyer over the past 30 minutes.
The lightening begins around the same time my commute home begins.
I make it to the subway with a few measly drops on my blouse.
I exit the subway at the West 4th station to greet a steady rain.
I casually walk half a block.
Flash, gleam, bang. 
Cue the wind.
Over the course of my next ten steps, the rain speeds and my pace, decidedly, does not.

While the hundreds of people I pass gather tightly under what awnings they spot, gripping their umbrellas and companions to shield themselves from the storm, I walk dreamily by.

I return to my apartment soaking and smiling.

Bringin' Home the Bacon.

Well, I'm in the midst of a looooooooong work "week." I will not enjoy a day off until next week Saturday or the following Sunday... meaning I will have worked at least 15 days in a row. But it's okay. I could certainly use the money, and somehow my schedule still finds a way to accommodate Pete's visit! I'll be seeing him tomorrow after work. Something tells me we may he headed for our usual evening together: John's Pizza and some local bar for a beer or two.

In recent news, this video has entered my life and swept me off my feet. (Yes, internet videos can do that.)

And also, I learned about a pretty wonderful program called CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). Through CSA, individuals are paired with local farms and are sent a box of fresh produce weekly. The average cost is something like $25 per week. The best part is that there's no way to know for sure what vegetables or fruits will be in your box each week. It gets you to try cooking or eating foods you've never eaten before and pushes you to get creative in the kitchen in doing so. I plan on looking into it. Adding variety to my produce regimen  and supporting local farms and farmers?! That is certainly worth consideration. Here is a link to the NPR story that brought CSA to my attention. And here is a link to the CSA website if you want to learn more.

Last order of news: good luck to my brother Derek who left last night for a 3-month summer job coaching kiddos in a hockey camp! He will be traveling over time through a few different states. What a fun gig! Enjoy the summer, Derek! And Evan, I know  he's your better half but have fun this summer also! AJ is alllll yours!

Buddies!

New Food Blogs

Well Zak and I finally went to look at ovens early this week. Looking at ovens turned into calling the (impatient) landlord about pricing and what not. Calling the landlord turned into controversy. Controversy turned into us giving the landlord the product information so he could call "his guy" to see what could be done about delivery/installation prices. Giving the landlord the product information turned into us waiting. And waiting. And waiting. Good thing I haven't held my breath. I'd be one beautifully deep shade of purple by now. 

So I'm still working with a broken oven and a paraplegic stovetop. But that doesn't keep me from studying that which I WILL make once I have a fully functioning oven. Which brings me to my latest discovery. Sprouted Kitchen. I love the cleanness of this blog and its photos. The food often looks quite delicious, too! When I'm feeling a bit adventurous (and when I can hide my meal plans from Zak) I'm excited to try out the Sauteed Beluga Lentils + Butternut Squash recipe. 

Courtesy of Sprouted Kitchen

How beautiful does that look?! I guess it might be a dish best served in late summer or the fall. But I guess the way things are going, I may not have an oven until then, anyway! So perfect.

***

The production studio where I've been working puts together a mix CD every couple of weeks. I just got a new one yesterday! I have not listened to it yet, but I thought I would post a song for you as well. And we can listen to it for the first time together! What do you think?

"Hurting" by Friendly Fires.

Snack Time

The sun is shining, my book is intriguing, the popcorn is popped.

My nose is also running at an inhuman rate, and my tonsils are so swollen I can see them bulging out of my neck. But I'm doing my best to ignore those....

What a gorgeous day.