Last Thursday night I set out to retrieve my precious powerbook. I thought the little man would be overjoyed to join me on this mission. But he quickly corrected this erroneous assumption. When I suggested that maybe we all three could go to the Apple store together the lad gave me a look. Then he slowly, politely replied - not just for himself, but speaking up for the husband as well - with “we’d love to, but we can’t. We have to work.” In this case, the “work” actually meant playing. Playing the newly arrived Lego Star Wars video game, ordered by the husband. Upstaged again.

The weekend wasn’t terribly exciting. Too hot to be so. Our lives are being lived in the two rooms of the house with a/c units, while we let restaurants do most of the cooking (almost like Manhattanites). I lounged about reading comic books in bed instead of going to a party I’d planned to attend. Together we watched an excessive number of movies, at the theater and on DVD, and played a few card games. And the male 2/3 of the household played video games, of course. When Lego Star Wars grew stale, Pikmin 2 and Super Monkey Ball were there to pick up the slack. I do hope this alleged cool front comes through. I think we could all do with a bit of sunshine and fresh air.

Yesterday morning I left my brand new lip balm in the car, in the little cubby below the emergency brake. When I was leaving work in the afternoon I foolishly reached for it. Upon popping open the cap I was sprayed with hot wax. The tube had completely liquefied. Where it splashed against my skin it quickly cooled and crusted over. But where it came in contact with the black steering wheel (that had been baking in the sun all day) it remained slick, which made driving a bit of a challenge…and made my hands smell peculiarly of lemon and lime.

Like many people I have a pretty decent internal chronometer. Without a timepiece handy I can usually guess the approximate time. But the other night, when I was re-reading one of my favorite books, I was way off my game. I started to get tired and thought it would be a good time to turn in. I figured it was about 10:30pm or so. It was 1:07am. Doh.

Tomorrow is System Administrator Appreciation Day so the husband is taking the day off. Yay! He deserves it. It’s also my last Friday off, so we plan to spend the day together. And the evening too, because the little man is staying overnight with his grandparents. As usual, though, we’ll have this precious time off with only vague ideas of how to use it. The movie we both want to see is opening this weekend, but not in the Twin Cities. So we’ll have to come up with another selection we can agree upon. I’m sure we’ll eat out. Somewhere. But that’s about it. It becomes more difficult to be spontaneous when you are old and married with kids and junk. Suggestions would be most welcome.

Bonus: Camera Obscura is playing tonight at the Varsity Theater. But Superhopper’s CD release show is also tonight, just across the river from us, on the MMAA’s patio. So torn.
Plus: Shoot, I just spotted this article: West Siders lobby at St. Paul City Hall. I’m a West Sider and would have gladly joined yesterday’s protest against gentrification and unchecked development. One of the developer dudes actually turned up on our doorstep, on a subzero day last winter, feebly attempting to rally area residents to support this ghastly project. Even though we plan to move out of the neighborhood next year, I hope this atrocity doesn’t come to fruition.
And: I miss my powerbook.

For the record, though they are both products made of soy, Genisoy Soy Crisps and Silk Mocha are two great tastes that DO NOT go great together. I’m feeling a wee bit ill at the moment. Go figure.

Today a co-worker asked me about vegan tuna salad, as I am the resident expert on all things vegan, and I told him about Tuno (which I still haven’t tried). I found there is currently a shortage of this product, but am unsure whether it is high demand or incredible disdain that has done it in. A bit of googling would suggest the latter.

Also on the topic of food, the husband happens to be a junk food vegan. His diet consists mainly of starch, starch and more starch. He feebly attempts to argue that potatoes are a vegetable and therefore nutritious. Recently we went out to lunch, at Everest, where he ate pakora – mostly batter-fried potatoes – and bread and white rice. For dinner that night I busted him eating waffle fries at his desk, and nothing else. Oh, I guess there was ketchup too (but no, that doesn’t count as a vegetable). Exasperated, I threw my hands up and said “I’m going to outlive you by 40 years!” With a goofy grin on his face he asked “is that a promise or a threat?

Today marked my last Monday to myself (next week I go back to working Monday through Friday) and it was an oddly melancholy one. It should have been a decent enough day off, but something wasn’t quite right. After I took the lad to his bus stop I drove away under a bright blue sky. But I was listening to Low…and found myself crying quietly while remembering my dead. Oh the mood swings. In private I’m able to keep it in check less than some might guess but I’ve gotten pretty good at faking it in public. I got it under control and forced myself to move along, to take comfort in the mundane, the routine. First stop: the gym. Afterwards: the Apple Store. My precious powerbook, an all too constant companion since I obtained it last Fall, has been having some rough times too. And now we’ll be apart for a full seven days. I’m sure the powerbook will be just fine. Me on the other hand, well…

Bonus: Saturday morning I came across the trailer for American Hardcore, a documentary about the 80s hardcore scene that was so crucial to my youth. Watching it I noticed something. Or the lack of something. The women were invisible. Well, they got that right, it really was just like the good old days. Sigh.
Plus: In case you hadn’t noticed, this post was intensely personal.
And: As usual, Mimi Smartypants makes it all better.

Yesterday I received an email from the lovely Zophia. In it she casually mentioned “we are gassing each other with nitrous tomorrow. That should be interesting.” No, she wasn’t referring to recreational nitrous use. Rather it was state-sanctioned giggling…in her dental hygiene program. After class she reported back. Apparently she’s quite the lightweight, but I’m sure I would be too.

Mythlandia is amazing (via Drawn). Find the Kraken!

Also lovely, Lions, Tigers, Bears, Etc., Frightened Friends and Fearsome Foes:

A sunny fall morning in 2001 reintroduced us, as a country, to our old friend, Fear. Since then, we have been constantly reminded that if you’re not with us then you’re against us, that secrets and walls and wiretaps fight the terrorists, and that death may be waiting around every corner.

This July, over 30 artists will face their fears, from movie monsters to bedroom boogeymen and beyond, in Wootini’s Lions, Tigers, Bears, Etc., a curatorial debut for artist David Huyck. Artists such as Colin Christian, Chris Ryniak, and The Little Friends of Printmaking will join Wootini friends Andrew Bell, Bwana Spoons, David K. Rose, Jermaine Rogers, and others, in this exploration of our various emotional tormentors. Oh, my!

I would gladly trek to North Carolina to check that out. Unfortunately James is no longer residing in the Tar Heel state (which would have made such a visit even more worthwhile). Hopefully he will settle into his new digs, and schedule, soon enough.

Bonus: Still need to see A Scanner Darkly, but I’ve just discovered another animated feature for adults: Renaissance. Intriguing. Not quite so compelling, however, is the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles teaser (they look more like frogs). I’m sure we’ll be seeing it anyhow. Sigh.
Plus: Doh, meant to post about this sooner. Savage Aural Hotbed is playing tonight, just across the bridge from us, at the Minnesota Museum of American Art. I haven’t seen that band perform in ages, and I adore the museum’s patio nights series. Seriously, it is one of the best places in town for an outdoor show. But I changed into my pajamas when I walked in the door and won’t be getting out of them again until morning.

Oh the frustration. Some of you may have noticed the site was down…for nearly a full day. Since the early days of the web I’ve relied on independently run hosting providers, often just someone with a server or two in their basement. This site’s host has been fairly reliable…until the admin goes out of town. Without fail his DSL modem craps out while he’s away, leaving me with extended outages, and extended periods of nail-biting. This afternoon the husband is going to move my site elsewhere. To a server in our basement. The next time it goes down, well, at least I’ll have in-house technical support to turn to.

This heatwave has left me feeling uninspired and defeated. I didn’t make it to see Low last night. They were playing at midnight, and I was in bed around 8pm. I’d intended to just have a little lie down, then head downtown around 11pm. But we all know how that goes. At least the first half of the day was productive. I was up early taking care of the mundane details, like laundry and dishes, prior to our playdate with the wonderful Rena and her lovely children (my lad got on quite well with Little C, I thought - we’ll have to do it again some time). Then we headed to the little man’s swimming lesson. He has been making progress lately and is getting much, much closer to actual swimming. Afterwards I asked him where he wanted to go. His reply? California. Yeah, the Bay Area is sounding pretty good right about now, but that’s too bad kid…we’re broke, and first grade starts on Monday. We settled for lunch at Pizza Luce instead.

And now I have to figure out how we’re going to endure the remainder of the weekend. For once we have no plans. A leisurely weekend spent puttering about the house would sound appealing…if it weren’t for the heat advisory combined with our lack of central air. We do have two sad little window units, but the thought of spending all weekend in a) the computer room and/or b) our bedroom is dispiriting. And anywhere I can think to take our little family (various museums, indoor playgrounds, etc.) is likely to be overrun with other families also seeking to escape the heat. Even so, I think we might venture to Minneapolis to return books to the Central Library, and visit the Midtown Global Market. Also intriguing, the Mill City Museum’s new Farmer’s Market - “a new produce market focused on local, seasonal, sustainable and organic foods” - but that’s outdoors, in the blazing heat. Yes, I am a wuss and I will likely save that for a milder Saturday morning.

If only there were some movies out we could all enjoy. A Scanner Darkly may be animated, but it’s not for the little man and Wordplay would likely bore him to tears. I’d consider a last minute attempt to enlist our babysitter, but would hate to subject her to the current stuffy stinkiness of our home. But enough stalling. Before we make any kind of escape, I should probably shower…

Today I am especially glad to have found Empress Eve. I bow before her. If she hadn’t posted about The Amazing Screw-on Head I might not have known that Mike Mignola’s steampunk comic book had been turned into a pilot. And an animated one at that (forget live action, Mignola’s vision should be realized in animated form). The casting was superb. Paul Giamatti plays the title character. Patience the Vampire is voiced by Molly Shannon, and David Hyde Pierce does the Emperor Zombie. Fan-freaking-tastic. The pilot is chock full of random nugget-y goodness, from an opening scene in The Museum of Dangerous Papers, to fabulous quotes like:

“…forbidden evil as fresh as a daisy”
“I’m so excited I just made water in my pantaloons.”
“…free at last from my vegetable prison”
“Your petty vengeance fetish will have to do without Mr. Groin”

And there’s even an alternate explanation of Lincoln’s Homestead Act of 1862. For the love of Pete, go, go watch it now, and please partake of the survey afterwards. We must do all we can to encourage the Sci-Fi Channel to create more episodes.

Opposable thumbs have helped advance humankind, but we take them for granted. Or at least I did. Until yesterday. Genius that I am, I somehow pressed my right thumb against a rack in the oven, when I was attempting to reposition a cherry pie. In an oven that had been fired up at 425 degrees for over 40 minutes. Can you say ouch? Naturally I am right-handed, so I was useless for the remainder of the evening. I needed the husband’s help with finishing up in the kitchen while I sat nearby, soaking my hand in cold water. After a spell I gently towelled off my sad thumb (fully half of the pad had turned into one giant blister), and the husband wrapped it in sterile gauze before sending me off to bed. It ached and throbbed for a bit, but I managed to get to sleep. This morning it was much improved, but not enough that I could fully function with ease. Making coffee with the French press was challenging. I was nearly foiled by the clasp of a necklace. And the hook and eye closure of my bra had me on the brink of tears. To prevent similar situations in the future there is but one solution. I can’t cure my clumsiness so instead we must obtain silicone oven mitts. Maybe even a silicone body suit, you know, just in case.

Bonus: On Friday Low performs at midnight (so, technically that’s Saturday I guess), as part of Macy’s Day of Music. But hey, Alan and Mimi have small children too…couldn’t they play one of the earlier slots? I’ll quit my whining. I made it out to see them the last time they played this event, also at midnight in Orchestra Hall, back when the little man was much littler. It was well worth the sleep deprivation.
Plus: People I care about are having interesting experiences this week. The baby boy that mopsa and her LP are adopting was born yesterday (a little ahead of schedule but a-ok). Congratulations! And our intrepid citizen journalist, Chuck Olsen, is out globetrotting in Korea during monsoon season. Not only has he gotten soaked, he’s also run into scary mobs of riot police, out in force because of the anti-FTA protests.
And: Word of the day: sussed. I recently overheard a co-worker work it into conversation and it made me smile.

It’s the weekend. I’m going to attempt to put all the big life stuff on the back burner and just relax (until the next panic attack hits). The little man and I got a good start yesterday. We went swimming, followed by a lovely lunch, where he surprised me by eating Udon noodles for the first time in ages, and then took in a repeat viewing of Cars.

I’m going to kick today off with a visit to the St. Paul Craftstravaganza, with Irish Girl. Meghan got me in the mood for the event by giving me a heads up on Chia Hats. And hello, if you go to the deluxe hat page they’ve got a photo of M.I.A. modeling one of those babies. Also on my radar, some super cute vegan-friendly shoes. Thankfully they don’t have my size, because I really shouldn’t be dropping $78 on shoes just now.

Bonus: Lake Phalen’s Dragon Festival is this weekend.
Plus: The gentleman Barrett Chase has given his site a lovely new look.
And: I created a profile at consumating.com, but I need to participate in another social networking site like I need a hole in the head. Not to mention, the spelling bee nerd in me can’t get past the fact that there should be another m in the word consummating.
And another thing: There is now an odd tanline around my eyes, from wearing sunglasses outdoors, that makes me look like some sort of reverse raccoon. Sigh.