weapons of massdistraction

Recently the little man was watching, rather intently, as I tied my shoelaces. Noting this I said “hey, I really need to teach you how to tie shoelaces” as the lad still wears slip-on Vans. He gazed at me and said, very earnestly, “no, you need to teach me how to fly.” Well, all right then. Looks like he’s inherited my penchant for fantasy. But no complaints from me. It’s rewarding to have conversations with him these days, and share with him the things I love. Especially now that he’s seven years old - today!

{insert speechless outpouring of love}

Switching gears…for some reason I really like saying Total Fucking Blood. It’s the most ludicrous band name ever, but I like what I’ve heard. They’re playing the Entry tonight, with two drummers at the same time. But I already plan to go to the Poster Offensive opening reception, and then to see The Chambermaids and Cave Deaths at the Hexagon afterwards. It’s a free show and everything. But yes, I realize I am clearly insane, going out the night before the little man’s big birthday party. Especially when there are a thousand and one loose ends to tie up yet. Don’t get me started.

Also crazy, I’m planning to attend a co-worker’s wedding reception tomorrow night, after the birthday party. And then what, you ask, sleep in and relax Sunday? Hell no! We’ve got the Headwaters Walk for Justice that I haven’t done any fundraising for! And after that? The husband is hopping on a plane and heading out for yet another business trip. This time it’s domestic, and to a vegan-friendly city. But he won’t make the mistake of checking his laptop again.

Bonus: Overheard at work: “Fuck Punjabi, I just want the internet to work” - which was especially funny because at the time I was listening to Chunari, Chunari, from the Monsoon Wedding soundtrack.
Plus: Who knew finger cots were so funny?
And: A waferbaby buddy of mine is having a baby today (well, his wife is). So their kid will have the same b-day as the little man. Yay!

Last week left me in need of diversions. Thankfully the weekend has been a pleasantly diverting one…

• Friday night I hooked up with my peeps at the Walker, to catch the Diane Arbus exhibit before it closes (today).
• Afterwards I met up with Maria, who was in town for a family wedding. She hosted a gaming party at her brother’s place. It was good, geeky fun. I didn’t get the chance to play Heroscape, but I did bear witness to the spectacle of it.
• Not long after I fell asleep the husband was paged. Twice. I couldn’t get back to sleep so I watched the first two Battlestar Galactica webisodes. Such a tease. And a good way to build up the buzz for the upcoming third season.
• Saturday morning I went back to retrieve Maria, and whisk her away to Anodyne. There we met up with the usual suspects. I was tired while the little man was on the hyper/loud end of the spectrum, but he didn’t want to leave…even after three hours of coffee shop sitting. There are toys there, and a chess set that allows him to play his version of the game. It isn’t terribly strategic or quiet (he shouts “I will destroy you!” while slamming his opponents pieces off the board).
• It was good to get home and chill. The boys played some video games while I watched Brick. I’d wanted to see it when it was in theaters, but didn’t get the chance. I’d nearly forgotten about it, but thanks to Milk and Cake it wound up in my netflix queue. And I’m glad it did. I might re-watch it with the subtitles on before sending it back. The dialogue was just so intriguing.
• The lad and I ran up to the neighborhood playground last night. He was unusually hyper all of yesterday (I nearly suspect he got into the espresso at Anodyne) so it was good that he burned off some of that excess energy, especially since it’s crappy outside today. But soon we’re off to the gym where we can both expend some energy.
• Somewhere along the way I’ve gotten hooked on The Fratellis. They bring out my inner fangirl more than any other band in recent memory. I do hope they stop in Minneapolis when they tour stateside.
• I did miss last night’s Zombie Pub Crawl, but I fully expect to see more photographic evidence being uploaded to the internets soon.

Today’s diversions promise to be less exciting. On the menu - working out, running errands, cleaning the house…and refraining from flickr-ing (so that I can actually follow through with my chores). But I’m feeling fairly content, so it’s all good.

Still coming to terms with the idea that I can’t do it all. I have neither the time nor the motivation (but I would like to refrain from being so constantly disappointed in myself). In the last week I’ve missed: The Clientele show, family day at the Walker, Cat Power at The Varsity, the chance to take the little man to the State Fair, the end of the Delightful exhibit at the Rosalux Gallery, the Minneapolis PPK Vegnic (vegan picnic), a deadline to submit to Mental Contagion, my Wednesday night workout, and more.

Even so, the past week has been an eventful one:

• Tuesday afternoon. The little man played outside with the neighborhood kids for over two hours. This may seem trivial, but it was the first time this had happened in ages. Often neurotypical kids aren’t particularly kind to or patient with kids who are other (especially if their parents aren’t teaching them tolerance) and the little man’s autism separated him from the pack long ago. His interactions had made him wary to even go out in our own backyard, but on this day things went well. Though my heart was in my throat the whole time I did my best not to hover and he enjoyed himself.
• Tuesday night. We received a phone call from some random courier company. The husband’s missing luggage had turned up, but no details were given. It was delivered after midnight. The contents were intact but everything was mysteriously…damp. And odd-smelling. Miraculously the laptop still works, but there were also two hard drives in the bag. One works, one does not. Thankfully they contained the same data.
• Wednesday. At work we had an out-of-the-norm four hour staff meeting scheduled. Turns out it was just a ruse. We were really in store for a surprise field trip, to the State Fair. It was loads of fun.
• Wednesday evening. I served the husband’s family an all-vegan all-Lebanese meal of grape leaves, tabouleh, lavosh, hummus and Lebanese green bean stew. They enjoyed it (or at least they claimed they did).
• Thursday was a blur.
• Friday morning. The little man and I had an early start at the Children’s Hospital for his EEG. He was hesitant but cooperative. We should be getting results back by the end of the week.
• A designer friend at work made these kickass Star Wars-themed invitations for the little man’s upcoming birthday party. The boy is seriously stoked.
• We went up north for the weekend, to my in-laws’ place. It was lovely, even if we were without internet access.
• We returned last night, so as to celebrate my sister-in-law’s 30th birthday today. Happy Birthday Sarah!

Bonus: On Sunday, September 10th Mizna is putting on a benefit show at the Cedar Cultural Center, with proceeds going to the Mercy Corps to aid the people of Lebanon. I’ll be there.
Plus: While up North I finally got around to watching Fearless Freaks, the documentary about the Flaming Lips. That only served to strengthen my Wayne Coyne crush, especially after watching him mow his lawn while wearing froggie-style rain boots.
And: How can we make America better? Minnesota-style…

Thursday was surreal from start to finish. I kicked the day off by taking the little man in for his first psychiatric consultation. It was his psychologist’s idea. I’ll admit I was hesistant. Resistant even. The appointment was much longer than I’d expected, but also less painful than expected. The doctor was remarkably reasonable. After a lengthy conversation we came to the joint conclusion that meds aren’t necessary right now. The potential side effects would outweigh any potential benefits, and the little man is doing well enough on his own right now. That was the good news. The bad news? Well, I had just been describing his “staring episodes” when he was kind enough to demonstrate. It was beneficial to have the doctor witness it for herself, but it’s scary to hear the word “seizure” used in reference to one’s child. We’re going back next week for an EEG.

Later on I was to go to the State Fair, to see the Flaming Lips/Sonic Youth tag teaming it at the Grandstand. But my enthusiasm level was low. I was feeling tired, physically and emotionally, but I talked myself into going. I already had the ticket after all. But just as I was heading out the door a crazyass storm blew into town and knocked our power out, with the bonus of a tornado watch. I didn’t think the outdoor show would even be happening, but the box office confirmed it was. After some confused shuttling to and fro we got the husband and little man over to the safe haven of my in-laws’ home, and the husband chauffeured me to the Fair. By this point the rains had swept through, leaving behind cool, fresh air. I managed to hook up with friends and get to the Grandstand not too long after the show started. And I’m glad I did. It was great to see Kim Gordon, twirling around on stage, in her twee babydoll dress. And if I didn’t have a Wayne Coyne crush before the show, I sure do now. It turned out to be a magical evening.

Afterwards, well, that’s another story. Our power was still out. I had the husband pick me up sometime after midnight, and we went back to our house (the little man was asleep at the in-laws’). I wound up feeling like a burglar in my own home, stalking through with a flashlight in hand. And hey, the place is so messy these days (even by my own low standards) that it already looked like it had been ransacked. We grabbed some necessities and headed back to crash with the kid. Thankfully the husband set up his parents’ house with wireless. The next morning I found out our power was back on by sitting on their couch with my powerbook, and logging into one of the servers at our place. Yes, we are nerds.

Since the inception of this blog I’ve made it a general rule to avoid the topic of work…especially the specifics. These days, maybe not so much. I’ve been happily employed by Clockwork Active Media Systems since early 2005, and our kickass little company was just named one of the “Great Places to Work” by Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. Another Clockworker put together a Clockumentary video to mark the occasion. Enjoy!

Bonus: The little man is on another impromptu overnight with grandma. I’m going to get the jetlagged husband out of the house for a night on the town. He wants to see Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. Well…why not? We’ve already seen Little Miss Sunshine (fan-freaking-tastic) and I have reservations about The Illusionist…but only because another movie about magicians, The Prestige, is coming out soon too, and I adored the book by Christopher Priest. Personally I wouldn’t mind seeing Quinceañera. But there is no way I’m wasting my time or money on Snakes on a Plane, and that’s final.