Ucky Light

Chicago, in all times that I am not in the fracking office, has been bathed in disgusting, depressing, on-the-verge-of-rain (and not in a good or interesting way) light.  

There is a new statue up over by the Tribune tower (Lear) that I want to use to practice taking photos of sculpture - but I just can't bear to go over in the gloom (although maybe gloom is good for Lear)?  I'm meant to be practicing taking pictures of buildings and sculpture (again, for Italy) - mostly I take pictures of people and I have no clue what makes an interesting photo of a building. Here are some early attempts, but...

I mean - fortunately, there is still time to practice - and there will also be a lot of people to photograph....

High Fidelity

If you think there couldn't possibly be a CD of Yo-Yo Ma playing songs composed by Marconni for Sergio Leone spaghetti-westerns? Well, you are just wrong.

One of the assignments for the Italian jaunt is to bring along a mixed tape. Well, *a* mixed tape is turning into 5 or 6. I was not really into music as a kid/teen (or, rather, I was, but into 50s and classical music, so mixed tapes - not so much). I haven't made a mixed tape, I think, since my sister's wedding - and she is now the mother of 3, so...

Already I have going:

One CD containing my favorite covers of all time (cleverly titled "My Favorite Covers");

"Tuscan Morning" containing Italian classical music - primarily Palestrina (on the recommendation of the music-wise and well-traveled M. Lee) mixed in with 'classical' music from the soundtracks of movies set in Italy (see the Yo-Yo Ma above). Also that one has the meditation from Thais, which is a stretch, but I'm running with the tenuous 'Roman occupied Egypt' link to Italy to sneak it in;

"By the Pool" containing every cheesy pop song I've ever loved. In my head I think of it as the 'Step away from the Hanson' CD. However, I have not, in fact, stepped away from the Hanson; and

"Sour Cocktails" containing only depressing or cynical ballads. Peggy Lee singing "Is That All There Is" naturally kicks that one off.

Clearly, I am having more fun with this than is really good for me.

Finally!

You're about to forget the whole thing, when all at once, one day, it's Spring.  

In a few short weeks I'm going to Italy!  Italia!  Last night I read "A Room with a View," before that I read "Playing for Pizza" about American football in Italy, and I have watched "Much Ado About Nothing" (both the Kenneth Brannaugh version and the Shakespeare Re-told version).  I need to figure out what to read/watch next.  

P.S.  Spring!

I've already decided that the only book I need to take with me is Tom Jones.  I read it pretty much every year as spring becomes summer - it is long enough - it always cracks me up - and the mood, while set in England, from some reason feels appropriate for a week in Tuscany.  Not that I've ever been to Tuscany, but it just seems right. 

Blame the pills

A weird side-effect of the anti-depressants?  I am actually finding it easy to do work at work - which means I'm not blogging at work.  With the help of free wi-fi at my nearest Starbucks, however, I hope to do better.  So - what have I been up to?  Well, in January, there was my non-birthday (my choice) which nevertheless involved the gift of an amazing new camera, which I used to take this photo of my youngest nephew, Joshua David.  Adorable, no?

And then in February, I used the camera to take this photo of some other crazy person who was also headed to the Obama call center at 4:00 a.m. to take voters' calls on Super-Tuesday:

And then in March, there was, of course, Easter at the lovely Mrs. AK's home - I mean, regard the tablescape!

And this is the butter!  You see what we are working with here - impressive!

 

April, the camera was used again in DC, but I have to get clearance from those depicted before I throw any people photos on up here.  Here are some touristy/artsy-fartsy shots, though:

What?!?!

I find this more disgusting than I can possibly say - a children's picture book to walk a kid through Mommy's tummy tuck and nose job? Again I say - what?!?!

Kid: "Will you look different?"

Mom: "Not just different, my dear - prettier."

Kid: "But you are already the prettiest mommy in the whole world."

Which last statement Mommy proceeds to discount/ignore/invalidate by hopping on into surgery. "It's not who you are inside, kid, its how you look that counts."

Happily there is no possible way that thinking will rebound on Mommy and Daddy when their perfectly normal 14 year old stops eating because she isn't thin enough and wants to start botox because her face moves so much more than Mommy's - I mean, facial expressions can't be pretty if Mommy doesn't have them - and when she cruises right into demands for boob and nose jobs so she can unveil the new her at her Super Sweet Sixteen birthday party.

Is it wrong for me to hope for a more Bad Seed sequel? "Everybody Thinks So" maybe?

Argh!

Why can my sister see my new design layout, but I cannot! The horrifying mysteries of blogger.

Weekend

This weekend I saw Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, which I found delightful - I have a bit of a girl-crush on Francis McDormand - but, in addition, I do think Amy Adams just could not be cuter (although I do not have a girl crush on her) and then Shirley Henderson showed up, and then Captain Wentworth from the A&E version of Persuasion, which was lovely. And, of course, the costume and set design is fabulous. My new thing is to go to a diner for breakfast on Saturday and then hit the insanely early (but also relatively cheap) first matinee of the day. The theater is next to a Walgreens, so I went in to buy a few sundries, but it was St. Patrick's Day (observed) in Chicago, so I decided I would prefer to be shopping at Target without the noon-drunks, so I went to Target, and then, because one is at Target, one must look around and lo .... a vacuum cleaner designed for dog hair. So, Reader, I bought it - and then the rest of my weekend was spring cleaning (except for a delightful brunch at Melike's).