Cutest Fat Cats Ever

My cats like to coyly flop over to get their bellies rubbed, and have perfected the art of doing this.  It's a little ridiculous, but they are seriously cute.  They're such hos. Also, I had to look up how to properly spell the plural of 'ho.' For you.  Exhibit A:

I mean seriously. And usually it's both of them.

Now that I've distracted everyone (*crickets*) from how rarely I update this thing, I'm going to scamper off to waste more time while I wait for my ceviche to be ready. Yep bitches, I've got some ceviche cooking (marinating?) and it's going to be good.

Glass Half Full

I've been feeling a little bummed lately. Mainly about the same stuff I normally beat myself up about, nothing really new. I'm just down that I'm now in my late twenties and have this tiny little studio I'm crammed into. Down that I don't make more money. Down that I'm in a (in many ways great) long term relationship that has its own difficulties and compromises. Down that I'm not more outgoing and bubbly, but rather feel awkward and shy more often then I'd like.  Just the same old stuff but it still sucks. Add worry for various loved ones, for various reasons, to that list and it ends up feeling like a lot.

I don't know if this is a case of learning to just appreciate what I've got, or if it's a case of using these feelings as a kick in the ass to change my life. Both seem hard to do. The life changing one especially, since where do you start? It's not like I'm not trying already. But that's not really an attitude that will get me anywhere.

On the plus side I've got a freezer full of homemade sorbet and two purry cats.  While those two things may not contribute much towards an overall improved life plan (um, crazy cat lady, anyone) they do contribute towards an improved evening.  Maybe for now that's the best I can hope for.  Hopefully the rest will come.

World Traveler

I think this will be the year to travel to places I've already been.  I'm planning on visiting Florida and have already taken a (kick-ass) trip to Italy earlier this month.  I lived in both places for quite a while, so I'm not really going as a tourist so much as to visit friends and family.

Of course, I also took a little two night detour while in Italy to visit Morocco (Fez), which I haven't ever been to. Egypt is another dream, but I may wait for that pesky little revolution/riots/protest thing to die down before heading over (I'm not really up on the current situation other than that it's volatile. Slightly more informed about Libya. Slightly).  Plus, I've already sold off my kidney and lung for this last vacation. I need my liver. Who vacations without a liver?  You can get by without breathing too hard on vacation, but a liver is critical for all the obvious reasons.

Speaking of revolutions, an unnamed travel companion of mine was worried about Morocco exploding into similar political disarray but democracy managed to elude them a little bit longer and we had a lovely time.  Not that I'm valuing my vacation over life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness or anything. But I'm glad they held off so I didn't have cancel my trip/hear 'I told you so'/escape in the back of a turnip wagon to the American embassy.  It probably would have made a more interesting blog post however.

And the souvenirs I picked up are lovely. I now have a hand woven wool and cashmere blanket/rug/wall hanging thing that here would have probably cost me that liver I'm so attached to. There? $40.  I also got a traditional Moroccan dress which I've already worn once as a costume to my friend's party.  I wore it to the liquor store on the way to the party which was awkward because most Moroccans are Muslim and don't drink. I am not a method actress obviously.  But then, I also got slightly tipsy while actually in Morocco so....there you go.  Disrespectful on two continents.

Ok...I've totally lost track of this post. I'm going to end it now before I start rambling about donkeys or corn or something.

Cat Equations

Winter = Sucks.
Winter = 2 cats curled next to me on sofa for warmth.
2 cats on sofa = Cute
And yet Winter ≠ Cute.


Math is hard.

Seeing Brooklyn

My perpetual goal is to leave my cave more often and actually venture out into Brooklyn.  In summer this is easy. Winter, not so much.

Today was WinterJam at Prospect Park (Brooklyn, for anyone who doesn't know) however, so it seemed worth the effort.  Overall, while  a little disappointing, I'm glad I went. I ended up with a $6 pie.  Really, it all comes down to food. Though for a while there I thought my toes might be about to fall off (note to self - need to re-waterproof boots. Also, umbrellas are your friend).

Also worth it because when I woke up this morning I had two holes in my ceiling (courtesy of frozen pipes that had to be worked on) and a busted door (courtesy of me...I locked myself out) and now things are much more civilized.  Though everyone and their mom has let me know it might be a good idea not to lock myself out again. Thanks; I never would have thought of that.

So to sum up : It's cold and wet in Brooklyn, there was a big winter party at Prospect Park which not all that many people attended, my apartment is less busted than a few hours ago, and it all comes down to food always and forever.

Go Packers!

Sooo....still here

While it may seem like I haven't been writing for the past few months, that is in fact an optical illusion. I have been writing. Just not here.  This is mainly due to the fact that other sites pay for writing....and I am obviously greedy.

However this does tie into my New Year's resolution to not be actively poor this year.  Last year was an improvement over 2009, for sure, as that year I probably made the least since graduating college. I think a lot of people did. 2010 was better, for me and a lot of my film and non-film friends.  Just based on my personal observations and my personal finances, the economy improved.  I am hoping 2011 sees a similar improvement to my finances and that eventually my goal can shift from not being poor to perhaps being actively rich.

Other resolutions have to do with being neater, not being a pack rat (does the show Hoarders inspire anyone else to clean? Because it for sure does to me) and generally comporting myself more as a fully functioning adult.

None of that is either here nor there, but just an excuse as to why I was not here...but I was there.

Things I have being doing that may or may not be interesting:

Juicing. I got a juicer for Christmas and today attempted to make a homemade Bloody Mary mix. It was...well...I drank it. My boyfriend refused to. I think I put too much horseradish and not enough tomato.  Mistakes were made and lessons learned.  For those considering getting a juicer, I will say they are very enjoyable but the juice comes out a little frothy (and pink..both my apple and tomato juices have been kind of pink randomly) and there's a lot of cleanup of the machine needed. Otherwise great though.

Making ice cream. Ok, I haven't done this yet but I also got an ice cream maker for Christmas and it is in my future.

Watching the Packers kick ass!!! We are going to win the Superbowl. Even if we don't win the championship tomorrow we will win the Superbowl. It is foreordained.  Go Packers! Also, ha on Brett Favre for having to end his starting streak. That's what you get for leaving the Packers, even if it took a couple years. I do feel a little bad about his sister though. I am human. Not so human that I'm not smug about his ass getting knocked out during his last game though (it was his last game, right?).

And...other stuff. But I will update soon in regards to that stuff. I don't want to use it all on one post.

To write or not to write

The thing about blogging is that there is no filter. Which is great in a lot of ways. You can't blame anyone else for what gets put up.  It's your own genius or stupidity.  But if you (and by you I mean me) are blogging in part to brush up on your writing skills, if your goal is to become a better writer, it's a longer, slower, windier road than if you had, say, a teacher or an editor telling you enough with the commas already.  Or that sentence is really boring, but that one is ok. And also, that is not a real word.  You get a B.   This is exactly how in my train of thought an editor would interact with me, except somehow there would be red ink all over everything (I don't care that it's all digital).

I think that once a blog or an author starts getting more feedback from readers themselves it can serve some of the purpose of an editor.  Readers can certainly be harsh enough - I read enough blogs to see some pretty direct criticism.  And the internet is pretty amazing in that it is one of the only forums where we can interact with total strangers without any sort of filter.  Back before it was around there were newspapers, magazines, radio, tv, even personal ads - but they were all to some degree filtered through at least one other layer.  This is great for freedom of speech, not so nice for accuracy sometimes.  Wonderful for individualism, not so amazing for grammar.  So basically, I guess, I'm kind of reaching a conclusion that everyone else got to ten years ago.  I love that I can write online, but sometimes for my own growth I wish there was a built in editor or critic.  I guess that's what writing classes are for.

Oh, by the way, if anyone wants to read some actual articles I've been writing about Brooklyn, check it out here:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/791318/lucrezia_wise.html

Still no editor feedback, for the most part, but I try to stay more on track when writing these.