Why I don't really go to the movies these days

So the deal is, we have lots of free movie tickets to the local multicineplex. I am disappointed in movies these days and never want to go. This weekend I promised Michael I would go but kept putting it off. Finally we decide to go with friends to see Start Wars. When we got to the theater we could not get in with our free passes because there is some rule about not using the free passes until movies like Sith that are supposed to be huge blockbuster must make real money or something I don't know. It took us almost a ten minute conversation of not wanting to see the only other two movies at the 18 plex. (Really each movie is playing on multiple screens so there are only about 2 movies playing you can go every 15 minutes.) Before someone suggested we just use the free passes to get tickets to another movie and go see Sith anyway. Really it is 11:30pm on a Sunday, there is no one at the theater anyway, who cares? Smarty pants.
So here is my take on the movie in a condensed manner. I have read so many reviews of this movie that I will only say the super girly things:
-What kind of shoes do jedi's wear and who gets to pick those out?
-Padme, the costume designer's dream come true after suffering through all those jedi robes and shoes....oooohhh, girly hair and and new dressy accessories each scene.
what is up with going to bed in the pearl sleeve dress with the full eyemakeup and lip gloss? Who does that?
giving birth to HUGE twins that look about 3 months old, when you look about 5 months pregnant.
also there was lots of war and saber fights and people flying places and some sort of political commentary blah blah blah.
I can't wait to use up these free passes, so I can feel better about walking down to the local theater and paying to see an independent film that I really want to see.

aquatic

aquatic, originally uploaded by nfancie.

for illustration friday

easy veggie and cheese sandwiches

12 grain bread (or any other yummy whole wheat etc. you like of the presliced variety)
thin sliced sharp cheddar cheese (the orange kind for me)
thin sliced gruyere cheese
sliced tomato
thin sliced mushrooms
baby spinach (this is something I keep in the fridge that I buy in those tubs of organic lettuces in the store)

layer sandwich with cheese and veggies, season if you so desire
heat a little dab of olive oil in a pan on medium heat
grill sandwiches in the pan panini style (squish em with your spatula or nora & quinn and deborah and keith use your fancy sandwich makers)
this is just like making a regular grilled cheese just watch the sandwich closely because you want it to get nice and golden brown but not burnt and you want the cheese to melt, so don't keep the heat too high or you will end up with burnt bread and cold cheese
eat when cheese is melty, you can melt the cheese faster by covering the sandwich with a pot lid if you don't have the fancy sandwich maker

I also made these with some whole wheat pita I just sliced in half and stuffed with the ingredients.

If you make this give me a comment to let me know how it went and if you made any changes.

summer resolutions

So, while I enjoy this new creative wave and quietly wait to be able to act on it until after the quarter ends and my papers and projects are complete, I am feeling needless stress about school work and the state of the world. Today I combated it with company, first in class and then Alyssa came by for yummy sandwiches (recipe to follow) and she brought brownies.

I am thinking of some summer resolutions and that may be strange, but I think I normally make some mental resolutions everything I see change in my life. Sometimes I have them at the beginning of every week when I think tomorrow, tomorrow is the day I get up early and exercise and eat breakfast before work, maybe even iron a shirt to wear...yeah that never happens. I have mixed feelings about writing down some changes I would like to make here, but there is a possibility that by writing them down they will become more real. First things first, I am too grounded and boring and all about debt reduction and we will not be getting Ipods --yet. But I am thinking of putting myself on a behavior plan of sorts (see the sp.ed. program at work) and using a mini Ipod as a reward for exercising. I bought some yoga videos on Amazon so this means I can do some exercise without even leaving the house. Also, I ran into the lovely Julianna today. She is surprisingly still interested in doing Saturday morning yoga with me. (surprisingly because last time we did yoga I was a big wimp and could barely move and then got a cramp in my tricep --I didn't even know you could get a cramp in your tricep). So while this may be too out there, other plans for the summer include the possibility of piano lessons with Michelle and voice lessons with Caitlin. hmm this seems like a lot but add to this, various painting and computer like arts and maybe even some loobylu type softies it looks to me like my summer of only working part time is pretty busy. The only thing I left off was starting my master's portfolio ugh. but I definitely need to take a break from the program cause it is making me feel crazy, at least until July.

learning new tricks

I am feeling highly creative lately and more so everytime I look at this blog
www.loobylu.com
I hope this summer I use my free time productively and start doing cool things again...art things.
I am not smart enough (or maybe I don't have the time to upload enough) but a few of my painting are still up on this site. http://homepages.uc.edu/~murphyah/
Spending time to do the three city scapes for Matthew's recital probably was the kick start to my creative wave.
Unfortunately, while I am having these creative bursts I need to actually stay grounded and finish my papers and projects. so much work so little time.
I am feeling okay about getting everything done so I hope the good vibes continue. I am also feeling super happy about a bunch of other things. including

• Angelique's visit last weekend and the random foods I bought at Jungle Jim's
  
• Discovering that Fairview Park is so much cooler, than the ghetto park I thought it was. if I am really cool I will take some pictures to post but right now I can't remember my flickr password and it won't tell me.
  
• feeling like taking pictures of things and using them in my art.
• Soon having the time to use scan my sketches and play with them digitally.
• michael forging my signature today to deposit a $10 royalty check I forgot about.
• The strong possibility of IPods in the future (maybe tonight) coming from michael's inheritance (accordions...he inherited 3 accordions so weird but apparently with high resale value and this is good as I am less likely to be subjected to accordion music.)

so if you have any IPod advice or opinions or if you would like to weigh in on which color mini I should purchase let me know.
you can also make requests for art work.
and you can still ask for a link if you would like one.

I will try to update more often so I can write an actual post that does not include bullet points.

slow poke

angelique has posted more. check it out if you are interested. I felt like I should make an announcement because she has been such a slow poke in posting more. as I have said before she is an infinitely better writer/communicator than me, in this blog form. worth a real read and not just a glance. her link is above and on my sidebar.

I know you know

but just a reminder that michael's master's recital is tomorrow afternoon. so all the family is coming into town. I have been cleaning because I am anal retentive that way. michael and I are both acting stressed and running around and feeling not ready. I know he has more of a right to these feelings than me, but essentially all the family stuff stresses me out. (Which is odd because everyone is very nice I just worry too much about pleasing people, and about other peoples comfort levels).
so this morning when michael decided that his head was about to explode. he said to me that this was his last recital with associated hoopla, because it just took too much effort. I said (projecting the expected hoopla associated with impending wedding) ...so can we elope...and he said no, very quickly, leaving little room for doubt. bummer.
a lot of my stress comes from projecting, so if I learn to be more existential that would be cool. (is that something that can be learned?) Can it be learned while expecting out of town guests, preparing a reception like thing for 20+ people, having a presentation due next week, working and doing school observations, steadily falling behind on my history reading, feeling buried under the few free weekends left and the work that needs to be completed in them. I mean I have to write a lesson plan. I don't even know what that is and yet I am expecting to graduate next june with a masters degree in special education. what I am I going to do with myself this summer when I am only working part time? I think sleep. and maybe paint, and read. and also lots of nothing.
through all my stress and blah blah blah...michael and I still get along (for the most part) and I love that I made him laugh aloud last night by being sleep deprived and glib.
"can you refill water"
me no comment but I leave the office
and immediately return
"I guess I need to take the glass, unless I was thinking of bringing the water back in my hands"
he laughs
I take the glass and walk away
him-"lap, lap, lap"

I guess you had to be there.

also
Ferris Bueller teacher quotes
"In WHAT way.....does the authors use of ...Prison...."

"something d-o-o economics, .....voo doo economics"

finally riduculous links for you.
oprah really did a show on this? or is it some sort of joke

I loved this site in 1999 but it doesn't update as often anymore. but you can enjoy it and maybe look at some archives

amy, you were impressed when I used this peson's name as an adjective, in the spirit of dead baby jokes I give you this

I do apologize for the first and last ones but I couldn't keep it to myself.

-hey is there any rule about bibliographing links and how you found them? I think school is making me all about copyright laws, plagiarism, APA and now Turabian. (do you think bibliographing is a word?)

personal soundtrack #?

currently playing: town without pity(thanks to amy's cool link)
with visions of john travolta in "Look Who's Talking" dancing around the kitchen

I either want to change tracks or sing loud and dance wildly around the office strewing paperwork as I go.

change

so I changed my look.
what do you think?

p.s. if you want to be linked I will add you just let me know.

rhymes

so I had a bad day on tuesday, and today with some validation from my classmates I am positive that my professor is crazy and I am just an assertive girl (a.k.a. a bitch) but I don't care if assertive women are bitches and assertive men are just strong. I will keep being myself and trying to maintain a level of professionalism, even with petty, pompous, old men that I would rather kick in the head.
rant over
new one now.
on my drive home today I heard this weird captivating piano song. first you must understand that I am only in my car for about 20 minutes total a day. I am lucky to work about 10 minutes away. In the morning, I listen to the local station's NPR news and in the afternoon a CD. When the CD's get old I am often too lazy to change it or not hitting enough red lights to pick a new one out (nope I didn't get the car with the 6 CD changer and maybe that was a mistake but I am over it). So I resort to random afternoon radio. I have yet to find a station in Cincinnati worth listening to and unfortunately the local station is broadcasting the PRI show Echoes* when I drive home (for me, not usually worth listening to unless you are hip to the ambient scene and then more power to you but it generally puts me to sleep or makes me want to break something out of frustrated boredom). alas, on the radio today I hear this. a song no one should ever have to hear. with lyrics that, should you choose to click the link, I suggest you read as if reading a Dr. Seuss book.
wait that is bad, Dr. Seuss books my provide better lyrics,
ones that do not try to rhyme go with Chicago...dude you just rhymed go with go. that wasn't too hard. also what is up with the rhyming. not all song lyrics have to rhyme. are you 6 years old? AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH! note: I like roadies and appreciate all their hardwork but lyrics like this make me think roadies would want to strangle the guy with some extra cords

Now, roll them cases out and lift them amps
Haul them trusses down and get 'em up them ramps
'Cause when it comes to moving me
You know you guys are the champs
But when that last guitar's been packed away
You know that I still want to play
So just make sure you've got it all set to go
Before you come for my piano

end rant 2

thanks to all who helped me feel less crazy. I will continue to be a direct speaking and constantly questioning student. who asks questions about the requirements for the final project. which at this date remains an enigma. (6 weeks into a 10 week quarter)

*the host of Echoes came into the store where Michael worked and bought a guitar for his son. I know you needed to know about his brush with PRI fame.

at long last

haven't posted in a while, the immensity of Angelique's writing made me kind of quiet for a while. also I wanted to make sure everyone got a chance to read her stuff.

so now I am back to my trivialities. this weekend has been nice and relaxing. I have school work to do, as usual, but nothing is due immediately so I am resting up for the next crisis of due dates. I have been so busy lately that I don't notice the things around me. so on friday I went shopping (thanks to some support from mom and dad) and got some clothes so that I can feel less like a homeless person that just wandered into my cubicle at work. Friday I had a morning clothing crisis that ended up with me wearing clothes that made me feel awkward all day. I don't know if you have ever experienced this but my shirt was too short, my skirt too big and when I looked down at my jacket I realized their was a nice food stain on the front. ack! I felt like one of the kids at school. so it was good to go out friday and get some clothes that fit, without stains or any weird shrinking yet. at the gap I tried on a jacket that I did not realize was three quarter sleeve. I hate three quarter sleeve, possibly stemming from my murphy arms and the fact that most normal sleeves leave me looking limby and awkward. makes me think of the Simpsons episode. Remember, Milhouse and the flood pants? yeah, thats me.
moving on....
saturday michael and I went to see The Interpreter
it was good because I haven't been to the movies in a while but I am picky about plausible story lines and creating a drama without just handing it over to the viewer, so there were some points that bugged me. I'll save the complaining because I hate to ruin movies for people who can turn off that analytical thinking and enjoy the story, by pointing out the parts that bothered me. who am I kidding? just highlight the next part the text is in white. I do have to say that it was mostly good until about the last 4 lines of dialogue, which were so poorly written even Sean Penn couldn't save it. He has a couple of lines like that ....so bad. Also I saw an interview on TV with Nicole Kidman talking about the writers deciding her character should play an instrument, the cello. Nicole says "oh not the cello, how about the flute" what a poor decision. totally unnecessary for the character and crushing to the plot. oh, I overheard the plot of an assassination because I needed to go upstairs to get my flutes, they are too heavy to carry boohoo. I live 2 blocks from a music conservatory, the flute a small black case you toss into a bag. not a huge hulking canvas tote filled with loose instruments parts and mishmashed sheet music. A cello, hulking instrument to carry, too big to fit in a purse, something you wouldn't want to haul up and downstairs a couple times a day (right nora?) alright enough of my cello rant.

today, pathetic but now infinitely cooler me, finally went to the big library on campus (my first time for those of you counting I have been going to school here for over a year. full time, including summer.) Prior to this I have been ordering books online and having them delivered to the library near my building, it doesn't get much lazier than that. but also, not much more truly time saving for my hectic life.

Finally Congratulations! to Deborah, Keith, and Cecilia on the birth of new baby Sophia.