sleepy friday

The boy and the dog, circa this morning, as I left for work. In their defense, the boy had just worked a 12-hour shift and the dog had almost chased a rabbit in the field half an hour earlier.

Yet Another Facebook Energy Suck

Among facebook's many disturbing traits, it sometimes spawns various meme-like lists that are much harder to pretend you haven't seen than the ones that used to come via email. The latest, 25 random things about me, came to me earlier today. And since it came via Samia, one of my favorite people who is too nice to blow off, I succumbed. Here it is below:

Relief Like No Other

Better than finishing my taxes or getting into grad school or driving down Agua Fria in a blizzard without crashing—the sense of relief I experienced as that helicopter took the Bushes away to Texas was enormous. And, yes, I know that was barely a sentence.
Most of the editorial department sat (or stood) in my office watching Obama's speech on my computer. I'm pretty sure that our constant wisecracking was just because none of us wanted to cry in front of each other. I was very anxious and spent most of the speech fondling my Calm Rock. Also, we were drinking mimosas. Hopefully there won't be an horrific typos in tomorrow's paper. I can't believe it's not even noon and the entire universe feels different. Calmer. Better. I also can't believe I have to watch Gov. Richardson's speech in an hour. Not really envying Richardson these days; talk about a meteoric nosedive. He thought he'd be there, in DC, part of the new regime, and instead he's stuck here, if he's lucky, giving a sloppy second speech to a Rotunda-full of doubting Thomases.
He should probably have a mimosa too.

Maybe Denial is a Reasonable Strategy

I spoke this morning, briefly, with a woman who told me she feels very optimistic about 2009. I told her she's the only person I've spoken with who feels that way, and that everyone else I know (and don't know) seems to think things are going to be grim.
She said she just feels positive. And that she's stopped watching the news.
She may be onto something.

tonight

THIS WEDNESDAY at 8PM

Geeks Who Drink pub quiz at...
Catamount Bar & Grille:
125 E. Water Street, Santa Fe

Featuring The Reporter's very own Editor: Julia Goldberg as Celebrity Guest Quizmaster!




Does it cost anything to play? Nope, it's free.

Do you need to sign up beforehand? No, that's silly.

Uh...what exactly is it?

The pub quiz (kinda like trivia night, but better, smarter and wildly superior in every possible way) consists of eight rounds of eight questions and is played in teams of up to six people. Questions are read aloud by the quizmaster; teams write their answers on provided answer sheets and turn them in at the end of each round.

Geeks Who Drink quizzes are unique in that they include two rounds of music questions - like name that tune, but with an edge. Examples: Country Music that Doesn't Suck, Pop Songs Butchered by David Hasslehoff…

What do you win?

Bar cash and prizes ranging from this to that. And of course, the winning team gets their photo on the blog at www.geekswhodrink.com

Wednesdays @ 8pm
Geeks Who Drink pub quiz at...
Catamount Bar & Grille:
125 E. Water Street, Santa Fe

halfway there

My favorite thing about this NY Times article on Nat Hentoff's departure from the Voice is the photo.
As a lifelong struggler with clutter and paper-related chaos, this photo makes me think that maybe my natural impulse, which is to just stop trying to be some kind of minimalist metrosexual Ikea freak and give in to my actual nature; let myself be surrounded by endless papers and books. Of course, Hentoff is 83 and I am barely halfway there and am already surrounded by as much clutter, so maybe I should keep up my halfhearted attempts to organize for at least another decade or so.

Eich bin Americanish

Or something like that.
I have returned from Switzerland, where I: ate lots of chocolate, ate lots of cheese, drank tons of coffee, drank lots of wine (my tolerance for alcohol in Europe is 20 times what it is in New Mexico; I'm working on a scientific explanation for this).
I saw A LOT of art: Picassos up the wazoo.
I froze my ass off, walked a bunch, saw many medieval streets and buildings.
Most of all, I spent a lot of time with my closest friend, Sonya, talking and doing all of the above.
I mostly was surrounded by people speaking German, which I don't understand, and discovered it's very pleasant to not overhear conversations or interact with people.
I also got a teensy bit frustrated by it at times and was grateful for Sonya's German.
And now I am home, about to start getting ready for work.
I am bussing it in because the boy was hit by a drunk driver in my absence and his car was totaled. That was the one sad note of the trip, because it was very worrisome to get that call. Had the boy not been in his now-destroyed tank of a car, he would likely have been very seriously injured. At any rate, he's got my car today so he can get some things done. On the bright side, the drunk driver had no license, warrants out for his arrest and was in a stolen vehicle, so he is (hopefully) going to jail for a good long while.
I can't tell if I have jetlag or not because my sleep has been so crazy in general for more than a week. I guess I'll know if I pass out at work this affternoon. Or maybe that will be a sign; sometimes I feel like doing that anyway.
I may post more pictures later (or I may not; I don't want to make promises I'll be too unconscious to keep). For now, here I am being cold over a scenic view of Zurich: