Pirattitude Gone Wrong

The New Jersey Nets are being moved to Brooklyn. We have no stadium. This means that a huge (and very ugly) arena along with a massive condo complex are going to be built in an already congested part of my borough. Not too far from my house the developers used imminent domain to force people from their homes and businesses so they can raze those buildings to make way for this behemoth that none of us who live here want. When it is finished it will be the densest housing tract in the nation (YUCK!). This is going to mean increased traffic on our streets (which are already crowded), increased ridership on our subway lines (which are already crowded), and a whole host of other problems created not only from the new structures once they're up but even from the demolition of the existing homes and businesses. 350 homeless people have already been pushed out of their shelter after it had to be evacuated when a parapet fell from a building nearby that was being demolished by the developer.

Normally, I'm all for Pirattitude. You know, approaching the world with swashbuckling abandon and not giving a scurvy-ridden care what the landlubbers think of you. However there are times when doing whatever the hell you want with no regard for the consequences is a pretty selfish thing (DUH). Basketball is coming to Brooklyn. Woo frickin' hoo. Oh boy, I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself. Basketball is exactly what we need. Excuse me, I just threw up in my mouth a little. What about the homeless shelter? What about the people who are losing their beautiful row homes built in the late 1800s? What about the destruction of old warehouses and factories that are part of the rich history of blue collar industry (which, by the way, all have stunning architectural details)? What about the congestion created on streets and subway lines that can't handle the traffic? What about the fact that none of the residents of this town want this and our government gave the green light for the developer to use imminent domain to steal property? Our government allowed the developers to become Land Grab Pirates. It makes me sick. It's just so wrong!

This video offers free Land Grab Pirate lessons at 10AM at Pier 6 - that's where and when the demo started. *snicker* Too funny.

$377

That's how much I just spent at the vet. Ouch. Don't get me wrong, I'd pay pretty much anything I had to in order to ensure Duke's health and happiness... but $377? He didn't have a procedure of any sort, no surgery, no stitches, no emergency care things. He got a rabies booster, a heartworm test, a skin scrape because the vet wants to make sure he doesn't have any of the nasty bugs he used to have in Miami, some sort of fecal thing for which I must take a poo sample (gag), 2 other shots of some kind that I can't remember right now, and a thyroid test to see if he needs to go back on meds.

We leave for Paris in 2 weeks and I can't help but think of all the things we could have done with $377 in le Quartier Latin. It was well worth it, though. Now I have the peace of mind that my little (read: large) pumpkin (read: hairy child) is well taken care of. He's up to 96 lbs now!

I'm lucky I got out of there with my dog. Everyone at the animal hospital loved him (surprise, surprise) and we spent an extra half hour there just so everyone could gush over him and play with him and talk to him and give him treats. They all can't believe that at one point early in his life he was left for dead on the side of the road. He's Duke the Amazing Wonderdog, that's for sure. He's defied death twice now. Once for real and once for... well, for some reason that no one can comprehend. And he's doing just fine.

Sofa saga

Why can't people who sell things on craigslist describe their goods accurately? Am I really supposed to believe that this photo represents anything "beautiful", "elegant", "vintage", or "like new"? C'mon! It's a Laura Ashley wannabe. I think there should be a short, yet informative, article of required reading for all potential craigslist furniture sellers. It would include things like proper names of furniture design eras (if I see another "Eames era" or "mid-century" description on an overstuffed anything I might throw up), how to accurately quantify the condition of your piece ("like new" does not mean "if you don't count the huge slash in the side from my naughty kitty"), and most importantly it would include a pricing guide. That beauty down there is going for a mere $600. Um... are they serious?

No, Kermit, it actually is pretty easy being green...

I just subscribed to our electric utility's green energy option. This basically means that evil, evil ConEd will now supply our electricity from a green energy source. Evil, evil ConEd will continue to bill us on one consolidated invoice, but instead of the money going to evil, evil ConEd it will go to the green electricity provider of my choosing - with a nominal distribution charge still going to evil, evil ConEd, a'course. We'll only be paying a penny more/kilowatt hour. Pennies, people. Pennies to help out Mother Nature. Who, incidentally, we as a species have been screwing since we lit that first fire. And then came cars. You know the rest.

I chose to get 35% wind power/65% river-to-run hydropower instead of fossil fuel electricity from a conventional source. All the power comes from New York state, which is also a cool thing. The hydropower comes from facilities that transform the motion of the river water into electricity without rerouting or destroying natural habitats and the wind power comes from wind turbine parks all over the state like the one in the picture.

Some people have fought the installation of turbine parks in upstate NY for various reasons - not the least of which is property value. In spite of the objections, wind power is a growing source of energy in the state and that's got to be better for us all than burning ever increasing amounts of fossil fuels and creating massive amounts of carbon emissions... regardless of what it does to property values upstate. In this trade off game I'm betting on the turbines.

In the interest of full disclosure I should mention that evil, evil ConEd provides a number of green power suppliers to choose from and they make it super easy to switch. They even noted the ease of switching to green power in this month's bill. I guess maybe that means they can be upgraded to simply evil ConEd. I like progress.

P.S. I still feel that Strip Bar class in my thighs. Great googly moogly.

Va va va voooom!

I feel like I've been hit by a truck... and I couldn't love it more! I went to the gym tonight. It's been so long since I went to the gym that I was afraid my card might not work. Seriously. I pay $70 a month to be out of shape and lazy (and overworked and stressed out... but whatever).

Anyway, yesterday I had an epiphany about my body and my sense of self and how the two are inextricably linked that really hit home. I haven't been treating my physical self very well at all lately. I've not been nourishing and exercising this machine they way I should. That said, I worked out at home yesterday and made a lovely, healthy dinner. I decided to take serious strides toward health and getting my ass moving is one of them. Tracking my progress online is another - I have learned that I need a watchdog of sorts. Unfortunately my own will to succeed doesn't cut it. (pathetic)

So, tonight I went to the gym. I went to the gym and I took a class. Historically, I've been embarrassed and took my place near the back in group classes because there's something about lots of sweaty people and 3 walls of mirrors that makes me lose coordination. But today I didn't do that. Today I was smack dab in the middle of the class behind the instructor so I could concentrate and get the most out of it. Here's the fun part - the class is called Strip Bar. It's one of those stripper aerobics classes. It was fantastic! I haven't had that much fun at the gym... well, ever.

I'm sore all over and I love it. I worked every part of my body and I can't wait to go back. The instructor was super cool. Anyone who tells me, "More booty, more booty!" is alright in my book. She was engaging and asked us all questions during the first few minutes of warm up that put us all at ease. There can be a tension in a room full of women sometimes that feels judgmental and very negative - she put an end to that right away and we all had a blast. I'm going again Friday after work. I deserve it.

Interview Me

This is something I saw on Rover's blog and then on L. Britt's. I asked L. Britt to interview me, so her questions (really good ones) are below along with my answers.

The Rules: Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me.” I respond by asking you five personal questions (I will leave these questions for you in my comments) so I can get to know you better. If I already know you well, expect the questions may be a little more intimate! You WILL update your journal/bloggy thing/whatever with the answers to the questions (please don't leave your answers in my comments unless you don't have a blog). You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the post. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

1. What's the favorite part of your body, from your neck down?

My back. I love it. I have freckles that I used to hate, but now I think they give me character. There's a cluster of them right between my shoulder blades that I particularly like. I have a sexy back.

2. Are you still making reincarnated t-shirts?

I hadn't for quite awhile because I got sidetracked by my day job (which has turned into a day/evening/sometimes into the wee hours job) plus I was getting Fetching Couture off the ground. But lately I've been tinkering with t-shirts again and it's been really fun. It's made me realize how much I've missed it. It also helps that the weather isn't so frigid anymore. There's something very difficult about making a garment that's better suited for warmer weather when it's grey and freezing outside.

3. Does he offer you anything unique as a friend that you can't get from a less "touchy situation?"

This was a hard one because it made me think about a lot of things that I mislead myself about for a long, long time. It's not about what he offers me, because he doesn't offer anything at this point. It's about what I wish he would have offered when he could/should have. That in itself is absurd because it's all about the past, not about the present and certainly not about the future. I'm attached to the idea of what I want him to be and not to him. I want him to be well adjusted and truthful and earnest and genuine. I want him to be a friend. No, he can't offer me anything unique. I want him to, but he can't.

4. Do you think you'll be engaged by the end of 2007?

I think so, yes. We talk about being married. We talk about our future. We both want it. I'm really happy about going through this journey with MT. He's an amazing partner. I love him more all the time.

5. Why does sadness scare you?

This one took a lot of thinking. Sadness scares me because I view it as a personal failure. When I am sad I get angry with myself. I'm usually a very upbeat person and when I'm not feeling positive I think I'm doing something wrong. 6-7 months ago I would have laughed that off as a silly personality quirk. But now I see sadness as the door opening slightly to let depression back in. I'm afraid that every bad day is a slippery slope.

Second Chances

Most times people deserve them. In this case he does. Give him one. He loves you. That's hard for me to say, but it's the truth. If you only believe one thing believe him when he tells you he loves you. That's got to count for something.

Please simply see the humor in this and don't vilify me for devaluing our system of government. I happen to get quite a kick out of this little farce. I love democracy... when it works. When people are involved. When we don't try to cram it down the rest of the world's throats. You catch my drift.

I rented

I did. I called up the rental company and ordered a couple tables, chairs, plates, glasses, flatware, etc. They're delivering it all to my house, they'll pick it up later and I don't even have to wash the dishes. All that for only $93. Pretty good, huh? I decided that I would do myself a favor and eliminate some of the day-of freak out that would inevitably ensue from worrying about not having enough seating and dinnerware. Friday, here I come!

Oh, I didn't invite Bad Time Drunky Friend after all. ;-)