Obsessive-Compulsive? Me?

Since reading, somewhere, the other day that the tune and chorus of Charlie on the MTA* were based on The Wreck of the Old 97 I of course had to find that song, which I located at The Blue Ridge Institute. (I don't know how, stumbled in through some back door.)

I've spend the last few days going back and listening again to The Wreck of the Old 97, feeling that learning it might be nice, and then today wandered off amongst some of their other offerings. Reading the backstory for The Vance Song (lyrics here, audio clip at the top) I didn't think I would like it, partly because it says the murderer composed it and sang it before he was executed. But the guy they recorded singing it - wow. He sounds like he's 180 years old and came from Ireland when he was 15 and he was just amazingly evocative. It sounds like it was recorded in someone's kitchen after they'd been drinking. It made me want to write my own death song. I may have to put off dying for a while 'til I can get the recording right.

----------------

*I don't think I made a note about it at the time, but I had to listen to every different version of Charlie on the MTA that I could find after Copperbadge made mention in his steampunk AU story The Dead Isle of the main character singing "Charlie on the MTA" to amuse himself when he's in prison. I hope he hasn't decided to change that, but I don't think he will, as it's a damned fun song. Okay, maybe I really want to learn all of Charlie rather than Old 97.

I'm amused by a bunch of things about "Charlie":

-It's often billed as "Irish music" by people posting it on YouTube. It seems to get covered by Irish bands quite often, but it's pretty firmly American music, I would say.

-In the lyrics is a mention of Scollay Square station (often incorrectly transcribed as "Scully Square Station") - which ceased to exist in 1962. Of course the song was originally composed in 1949, so it did exist at that time, but, as Eor pointed out, it does seem very New England that a place which no longer exists and is so forgotten that people misspell it is still immortalized in a song that's still popular and riffed on. In the Dropkick Murphy's Skinhead on the MBTA the Skinhead's wife hands him a grenade through the window at "Scully Square Station". (I can't quite forgive them for changing 'unlearned' - which is supposed to rhyme with 'return' - to 'unknown.' Why? Yes, that's my OCD showing through.)

-Watch the Heebie-Jeebies version! :)

-Ages ago Eor and I had both read a story which we associated with "Charlie on the MTA." We both thought we'd read it in Asimov's within the last 30 years or so, but it turns out it was A Subway Named Mobius, by A. J. Deutch, which came out in 1950 (just after "A Streetcar Named Desire," naturally.) So, a year after the original "MTA" song was written, but before it was really popularized by the Kingston Trio as "Charlie on the MTA" in 1959. It's a pretty cool story, but there's no character named Charlie in it. There ought to be. Professor Turnbull, in fact, the guy they still can't find at the end, his first name is given as Merritt - it should have been Charles. (Or, could someone please write me a spoof where it's "Merritt Turnbull on the MTA"?)

-Yes, the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority's travel card IS called the Charlie Card because of this song, it's THAT much a part of Massachusetts culture.

Memo to myself...

Make sure that when you are bedding down guests for the night you tell them what time you are getting up (and set your alarm and stick to it, even if it's a day off) but also let them know which are their towels and washcloths for the next morning. The people who you least expect to ever get up and take a shower will be the ones who decide to do just that. I should have learned this lesson when Hawk did it to me a few years ago, so I was unsurprised but still kicked myself when Mom did it this morning - they used my hand towel, because 'that's the size of towel that is given out in the public baths in Korea,' they both said. Hawk was more obnoxious about it, because he's a little brother - "I took your face towel and dried my ass with it!"

I've had some questions regarding my post about the real estate agent.

I'm sorry I've made a lot of people feel out of the loop regarding our plans for moving. We're not necessarily abandoning this condo right away, we need to find a place to go that fits us well, and we don't want to jump too precipitously. This has been a really great place to live in a lot of ways - nearly everything you want within walking distance - but there are constraints with having neighbors right on top of you. One can't make changes to the outside of the building or major changes in the yard without gathering the neighbor's opinions, and you don't want to turn the music up too loud. It would be a better place for someone who's more outgoing and sociable than we are. We wanted to compromise so as to have the convenience of in-town living, but it seems we can't stand, for an extended time, to compromise quite so much as we have done.

You can see the floor on my side of the bed! :)

We're going to have a real estate agent in, tomorrow evening, so the pile I've been creating for the past year had to disappear. I didn't actually throw out a whole lot of stuff, I just mainly moved dirty clothes to the laundry, put books on a shelf and stuffed and stacked everything else more creatively. So now there's like floor where there was a small set of drawers and a row of journals and notebooks, completely covered with a pile of papers. Stuff that got stuffed. A lot of it has to go, but for this evening this is all I can manage. I think now I should take a Tylenol PM, for the anti-histamine, and get to bed.

If you get a chance (and won't be offended by playing with religion) read Jeeves and the Mysterious Ways by laeticiav. :)

Other than that, my day... Well, let me see. Waking up too early after being up too late, and running off to Portland to get the van inspected. Then a stop at the hardware store and on to breakfast at Becky's - yay! Looked around the LL Bean main store and outlet in search of long johns for Eor, then some work in the garden (weeded, turned some dirt, got some pea netting up - had to weave some of it together because it was too short, planted pea pods, bok choy and more radishes), tacos, and then I took another quick trip back to the store looking for a yellow button-down shirt.

I was back in a little more than a half hour with chocolate milkshakes from Johnny Rocket's and the impression that yellow button down shirts have been banned from Freeport. I went into Tommy Hilfiger, LL Bean and Calvin Klein with very little luck. (yes, I do move fast when shopping - cruise through, see that what I want is not there, move on.) Oh, there was one yellow-and-white striped shirt at LL Bean, of that material that is very ripply-bumply (is it called poplin, perhaps?), and there was a bilious, eye-searing yellow shirt at Calvin Klein. Which is weird because, seriously, there is every other goddam thing you can imagine in pleasant, sunny shades of yellow. T-shirts, sweaters, polos, fleeces, raincoats, shorts, weird halter-top-looking blouses. I would also have been happy with ocher, but I thought that was an even longer shot. I thought yellow would be likely!

Chocolate milkshakes made the walk worthwhile, though. :)

Now off to mend the raveled sleeve of care, or something like that.

exhausting, but good.

Today we got up and made ourselves a couple small tacos and were outside by about 8:30AM. We dug up and wrapped the roots of a bunch of our blackberry plants, jammed them into our tiny car, and carted them on up to our friends' (groundctrl & littleredhead) new house that they're building. They had picked out a spot and groundctrl had the fence posts almost all cut by the time we got there, and we all ran at it with a fearsome speed. Eor has, I think, decided to call this 'dog-teaming,' as we all tried to out-pull each other and nearly worked ourselves into a stupor of exhaustion. But we got it done and it looks GREAT! I wish we'd taken pictures. In fact, I think what I will do, if I can, is I will take a picture of what we were imagining and see if I can get Littleredhead to take a picture of what Groundctrl designed and we assembled, today, so you can see how many notches above our vision he took it. :)

We worked straight through until 2:30pm with a couple of mouthfuls of trailmix and the like, and then realized we all felt like falling over and went out to eat; had an amazing meal that couldn't be beat, looked at our plates and thought "I could eat that much again." Well, apparently Littleredhead was full, she's the only one of us who seems to have proper portion control. But, had desert instead, and then bought more candy on the way home, because my and Eor's bodies insist that burning any extra calories is not allowed. ;)

And then I cooked cornbread, which I guess was 'dinner.' Off to bed, must work in the AM. :P

I love working side by side with people. I do think there's nothing better for friendships, if you can keep from getting snappish with each other when you're exhausted. :)

It's not that things don't happen in my life, it's that, mostly, they would require too much explanation to be worth posting.

I almost hit two otters when I was driving to work this morning There was no way to stop, too much traffic behind and too my left, no margin to the right because it was at a bridge (which is why I'm going with them being otters). The one in the lead got all the way across the bridge ahead of the traffic, the one following ended up right squarly in front of me. I let off the brake and cringed, heard a thump, then looked in the rearview and saw him running back off the way he had come. I passed directly over him and the thump must have been a bump in the road.

Chasing after girls will shorten your life.

covertly?

There's a long entry in Wiki about Angela_Brazil, but let me snip this part for you...
Interpretations of lesbian content

It has been suggested that Brazil's tales were intended to be covertly expressive of lesbian themes. Her stories of friendships between girls do include kissing between pupils and less frequently between pupils and teachers, and also elements of adolescent jealousy. It is possible that Brazil, writing about her own youthful experiences of schoolgirl life, was completely unaware of these implications and passionate friendships between adolescent girls are not uncommon. Nevertheless, the tone of the relationships in her stories was highly sentimental and might be interpreted as having erotic implications. In fact, Brazil seemed particularly attached to the name Lesbia, which was given to several important characters: Lesbia Ferrars in "Loyalty to the School", for instance, and Lesbia Carrington in "For the School Colours". Both of these seem to have been largely self portraits, suitably idealised.

Lesbian Mary-Sue?

last instalment of "A Harum-Scarum Schoolgirl," Angela Brazil

I finished reading "A Harum-Scarum Schoolgirl" a couple of days ago and need to make one more installment about the femme-slash, but I'm not sure there's any particular short bit that I can quote from the last part of the book.

a long info-dumpy quote, spoilers for the end of the book, and also the stuff from the rest of my day - I'm linking you to one of my other journals because I can't figure out how to do a proper cut in Blogger to protect your eyes from the spoilers if you don't want them...

"A Harum-Scarum Schoolgirl" (Angela Brazil)

More excerpts of femme-slashy goodness for you...

Diana has pulled a prank (put hats and mustaches on plaster casts of the Greek gods) and is being punished by having to wear the basic school uniform all the time - she can't change into nice clothes for dinner or dancing class (where, of course, the girls dance with each other):


She was a girl of spirit, and she did not mean to betray, even by the blink of an eyelid, how much she cared. Geraldine, Hilary, and Ida had rubbed in her ostracism, and certain impudent juniors had enjoyed themselves with witticisms at her expense. To these she must preserve an attitude of sang-froid. But up in the ivy room, when she went to bed, the mask fell off. The Diana that cuddled in Loveday's arms was a very different Diana from the don't-care young person of downstairs. Loveday - who understood her now - consoled and kissed where a term ago she would have scolded. There are some dispositions that can only be managed by kisses.

...

"...Miss Todd says I've been utterly and entirely spoilt. Do you think I have?"

Loveday took the piquant little face between her two hands and looked a moment into the upturned grey eyes.

"Yes," she decided. "You're undoubtedly a spoilt darling - but you're a darling all the same," she added softly under her breath.


Kisses!

Diana's parents are coming back and plan to take her with them on a tour of England in a rented car:

"But that isn't all yet. I haven't finished telling you," triumphed Diana, laying a fluffy head on her room-mate's shoulder, and poking a caressing finger into Loveday's dimples. "Mother said in her letter that she guessed I'd enjoy the tour so much more if I had a girl companion with me, and would I like to ask one of my school friends? You bet I would! Ra-there! Do you know whom I'm going to ask?"

"Wendy?"

"Wendy! No! I'm very fond of her, but she's not the one for a tour like this. Besides, I know she's going to the seaside with her own home folks. There's only one person from Pendlemere I want, and that's Loveday. Will you come! I'd just adore to have you!"


Stuck her finger in her friend's dimples?

During the tour they are once forced to sleep in separate rooms, and Diana sees a mouse (because of her habit of keeping biscuits under her pillow in case she wakes up hungry at night):


The intruder, equally terrified, took the hint to quit, and scuttled away. The idea that it might return to seek her biscuits was too much for Diana.

"Even if I eat them it'll come back to see if they're there," she thought. "I'd have a fit if I felt it under my pillow again. I can't sleep another wink in here, that' certain. I'd as soon have spooks as rats or mice. I'm going to Loveday."

So, though the time was about 1a.m., she jumped up, seized the candle, and managed to find her way along the passage to her friend's room. Loveday, much astonished to be thus awakened, took her into her bed, and they laughed over the little adventure.

"Oh, yes, it's all very fine to laugh," said Diana. "But if you were all alone you wouldn't like it yourself. Nothing will induce me to sleep by myself again in a strange hotel; so I warn you. You'll be saddled with your pixie girl for the rest of the tour. She's a scared baby at nights, and she doesn't mind confessing it."


Weakest most obvious scheme EVER for getting people in bed together? Does it beat the hypothermia gag used in so many slash fic?

I can't believe I haven't posted in a couple of days. Been busy, and for some reason I thought I had posted. Probably because I'm in a habit of talking to myself about the posts I plan to make.

Friday we got mulch in the afternoon - a truck brought five yards, which is a lot. Yesterday we spread it. All. Five yards is a LOT. My knees are tenderized from crawling in under all the bushes and working the mulch in there. I ache.

Today was working on the floor, so I was standing most of the day. I think I'm going to take a Tylenol PM right now, and maybe an Advil as well.

"A Harum-Scarum Schoolgirl"

(I posted this last night to two other of my journals, but it was late and I needed to sleep, so didn't get around to crossposting here.)

I've been reading Angela Brazil novels - girls at boarding school, WWI era - and the first two were kind of femme-slashy, but this one...

(Diana, the main character, talking about her roommate, Loveday):

"I'm falling in love with her," she admitted to Wendy. "I was taken with her, of course, the moment I saw her, but I believe now I'm going to have it badly. I think she's beautiful! If there were a Peach Competition, she'd win at a canter."

(Diana has gone to bed very upset):

All night long Loveday had uneasy and troubled dreams about Diana. They met and parted, and quarrelled and made it up, they did ridiculous and impossible things, such as crawling through tubes or walking on roofs; they were pursued by bulls, or thye floated on rivers; yet always they were together, and Loveday, with a feeling of compunction and no sense at all of the ridiculous, was trying with a sponge to mop up Diana's overflowing rivers of tears that were running down and making pools on a clean table-cloth. She awoke with a start, feeling almost as if the sheets were damp. Stealthy sounds came from the next cubicle, and the candle was lighted there.

"What's the matter, Diana?"

"S-h-s-h!"

"Aren't you well?"

"Yes, I'm all right."

"What is it, then?"

As a grunt was the only answer, Loveday got up and drew aside the curtains. Her room-mate was ready dressed, and was in process of combing her light-brown locks and fixing in a slide.

"What the dickens are you up to, child?" ejaculated Loveday in amazement.

Diana turned quickly, pulled Loveday down on to the bed, flung an arm round her and laid a fluffy head on her shoulder.

"Oh, do be a sport!" she implored.

"But what do you want to do?"

Never fear, she actually just wants to go visit her cousin, who's getting sent to the front. However, female ejaculation is apparently not a myth. ;)

Later, they get a new agriculture teacher who brings two student- assistants with her...

"I believe I'm going to adore Miss Chadwick! She looks so sporty. She wrinkles up her nose when she laughs, just like a baby does."

"The little dark student with the freckles is my fancy."

"Oh! I like the other, with the bobbed hair."

An accidental scan forward for the words "in love" makes me think there's more delights to come. :)

There are some reasons I like living in Maine.

My coworker, Moose, told me about people who died of brain-eating bacteria after not following the neti pot instructions carefully enough. Be assured, I always use filtered AND boiled water in my neti pot. I always have, and now I always will. (I'm not as good about washing the neti pot, but then I don't live in Louisiana, either.)

Spent a good chunk of this evening looking at the photos of a local friend who's in New Zealand right now. OMG gorgeous. And she's so good - she posted 330 pics and captioned them ALL. I never even post them all. I wonder if the Kodak site makes it easier? Almost every site I ever use I have to go through a time-consuming process of reducing my pics (they're always huge) before I can post them.

I should probably be in bed, I'm pretty tired and feel like I might be getting sick, but tomorrow is my Monday and one should never call in on a Monday. I do at least get to go in a little later than usual, so don't have to get up so early. Let me see... I think I can sleep in until 7am. :) Sounds delightful.

We did more yard work, this morning, and I raked a LOT of rocks, trying to get the entire railroad bed up out of the strip of land just on the other side of our arbor vitae. They didn't do a very precise job when they put down the new rails and ties and extra rock last fall.

When my shoulders hurt from raking we went up to L.L.Bean and got free ice-cream. :) They're doing their hundred anniversary celebrations and have got Gifford's to make them a special limited-edition ice-cream, "Muddy Bean Boots" - vanilla base, caramel swirl and chocolate brownie chunks. Yummmm!

Then we meandered down to my cousin Pen's house, stopping at the hardware store on the way (they don't have grass seed out, yet - nobody in Maine is supposed to be thinking about seeding their yard this early in the year) and arriving just in time to have an early dinner with them. She had not seen my email after all - I had wondered, because I thought she would write back - and they were completely surprised, but they had Indian take out and there was plenty for us. And then we got the tour of the property and we nattered on for quite a while - in fact I think we were there closer to two hours, when I'd expected one. :) Pen and her husband are so enthusiastic and have just a ton of interests and projects going on.

Must rest, now.

A friday five post

Since I just surprised myself by having a lot more to write than I ever thought I could have, I guess I'll go ahead and repost this to my various blogs, journals and thingywhatsers. Keep in mind, this was written for a group in which they don't know me very well, so a lot of this is old news to most of you.

I know this is ridiculously long, sorry.

[01] What book has been made into a great movie (or tv series, etc)?

Although I have not seen it, it seems that Martin's Game of Thrones has translated well, which is amazing to me because I can't freaking STAND his writing.  But I guess it goes to show you what someone with real imagination and vision can do, getting past his usually incredibly boring writing and characters to create something visually appealing to many people.


[02] What book has not translated well into other media?

Although as a general rule everyone usually says the book is always better than the film, I actually view the two as completely separate entities, and I try to avoid comparing them.  I mean, the most recent version of  Alice in Wonderland (the Tim Burton one) did not resemble the book at all, and had some serious bzuh moments (the Mad Hatter's dance at the end - what the fuck? *cringe*) for the most part I enjoyed the hell out of the movie most of the time because it was fun and gorgeous and had lovely costumes.  Movies are an entirely different thing for me than books, and I watch them for different reasons than I read books.

[03] What novel would you like to see as a film?


Good Omens (Pratchett/Gaiman) is my perennial favorite to harp on, because a film version has been promised so many times.  It was supposed to be made by Terry Gilliam years ago, and I'm sure he would have done a fantastic job.  Now that Neil Gaiman is popular and Terry Pratchett has Alzheimer's, and three of his books have already been made into made-for-tv movies in England it looks as though they're doing "Good Omens" as a tv series in England, but that's still 'next year.'  Who knows.

That said, I think I will never seen a screen adaptation of any of Bujold's Vorkosigan series, but it could be gorgeous and fun - there's plenty of intrigue, explosions and romance. It seems made for screen.

[04] What literary character do you enjoy seeing envisioned on the big screen?

Hm.  This is a really hard one.  I would dearly like to see the movie of  "Master and Commander," because I've been reading the books with a group read thing over on MandC_read - we are almost at the end of the series (and will be starting over again after reading "21" if anyone wants to join, *hint-hint*.  It's a very easy format to keep up with, just read a chapter each week and join the discussion on the weekend.)  but I digress, because really I think this question is meaning to as which character I have in the past enjoyed seeing.  The fact is, all of them.  Even if I didn't approve of the way they came out, even if the movie barely resembles the book, to me, I love seeing books made into movies.  I will often want to watch the movie even if I hated the book. :)  I love these recent Sherlock Holmes movies, and the TV series of  "Sherlock," even though they bear so little resemblance to the literary Holmes that I almost wish they'd chosen different names for the characters. 

BUT, I've got to say I notice (well, only because Eor points it out to me) that my real love is always for secondary characters.  In the Harry Potter movies, I adore Ron and Neville, in nearly all the Holmes adaptations if I'm going to be annoyed or delighted it will be because of how Watson gets portrayed.  (Seriously, Nigel Bruce, what were you thinking?)

[05] Are you likely to read a book before or after seeing the film upon which it is based?

I'm likely to have already read the book and to consider re-reading it before seeing the film, but then to decide that's a bad idea, because I don't want to be comparing.  Or, I'll hear the movie is well-liked and I might read the book and then never get around to seeing the film, as I did with Tipping the Velvet.  That's because after reading the book, I can't really bring myself to care - that book was the worst conglomeration of every damned lesbian cliche and stereotype the author could dig up. 

Or then again there's my weird fascination with re-reading all the Oz books because I love reading fanfics of "Tin Man", which was a sad, ridiculous, execrable Sci-Fi (or however they spell it this week) adaptation, completely missable except for the interactions between the Scarecrow and Tin Man characters - the Scarecrow character (called Glitch in "Tin Man") was played by Allen Cumming and was delicious in every little nuance.  Obviously the Scarecrow and the Tin Man were a couple, right?  They are 'inseparable' in the books, and that just gives fuel to my evil desires to see more (and more and more) Glitch/Cain romance. ;)

feed me, Seymour...

Yesterday I heard a report on the radio that many of the construction workers hired for the projects being worked on for the Olympic games were overweight and having a lot of accidents, so they were offered bowls of porridge for breakfast and that cut down on their accidents. Apparently many of them had been eating high carb breakfasts like pancakes, and getting blood sugar crashes, when what you need in the morning is a proper mix of protein and sugar. I guess oatmeal is high in protein and if you have a little brown sugar and some raisins, that works.

That makes me feel great about my usual regimen of oatmeal with cashews and dried cranberries, yet confused, because I have a crash around 9 or 10am and need more food. If I have eggs and potatoes, though, I rarely have that crash. Of course I do eat half as much oatmeal as is considered a serving on the back of the oatmeal container, but when I eat eggs I probably eat half again more, at least, than that which is considered a serving. ;)

The dietitian who was interviewed on the radio said that the Masai have an excellent breakfast for keeping going all morning, or all day - they have two week old fermented milk in the morning (like yogurt), then a little straight blood, then some millet porridge which they ball up and take with them to nibble on all day. And that makes me feel all the better about my idea of making 'cookies' with my oatmeal (cashews and cranberries included, of course) and taking them with me to eat all day. I ought to get back on the project of figuring out how to do that properly.

Possibly unrelated, I drove 205 miles for work, yesterday, and was freaking exhausted. From all that driving I trained six people. I managed to convince myself to walk on the treadmill for a little over 20 minutes (in my hiking boots), when I got home, and then I slept really hard last night.

wiki walking

So, because I read Trickster, by Copperbadge, and read his note at the end that the "Thompson" referred to in the story is Titanic Tompson, and Damon Runyon based a character on Thompson in his story The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown, on which Guys and Dolls was based, and I worked on Guys and Dolls at Hackmatack Playhouse back in '85 (I think I helped with lights, which would make it '85, because in '84 I stuck with scenery building and painting.) ... *takes a deep breath* BECAUSE of all that, now I want to read The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown, but Damon Runyon works are not yet on Project Gutenberg and I don't want to pay 30 pounds to eBooks-Library for a year's subscription so I can download this one book. Most of what they have on there seems to be stuff that's on Gutenberg, there's just a few newer things. (Also, I'm not sure about the organization of that "library" site - they have GK Chesterton listed under Sociology and Cooking. Does that seem right?)

The Internets - hell on ADD. Writing all this - having to concentrate and re-follow my rollercoaster of thought - tired me out so much I had to go take a walk on the treadmill to relax before I could come back and brush it up to post.

cookies...?

I'm trying, this evening, to make Innocentsmith's Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies - the Derien Gluten Free Version.

Right now they look like puddles with a pile of chocolate chips in the middle of each.

ETA: Failcrumbs! (yummy failcrumbs, though)

Time for bed, but I have been terrible about posting. I started my period today and have been wildly mood-swinging. Earlier today I looked at my first attempt to write Chapter 14 of "Swept Away" and thought, "Why did I get all overwrought about how terrible that was? It's not so bad." Then, as I was cooking dinner, I almost started crying over something very silly, you know how this is. I've taken a Tylenol PM, though, and am now going to drag myself away from the computer and go lie in my bed with Our Little Friend - a sock filled with rice, that we heat in the microwave - and a boring book, and hopefully get a good night's rest. :)

Noon, and I'm still barely able to keep my eyes open.

I went down to Becky's for breakfast today, by myself; sat at the counter and read my current Master and Commander book (we're still on The Hundred Days), which seemed kind of apropos and kind of cocky, since Becky's always has been a place primarily for waterfront working people. It's amazing to me how perfect their omelets are, and how neatly folded. And I'm also endlessly grateful that I can get gluten-free toast and grilled blueberry muffins, so of course I got both, and then ate until my tummy hurt and put the rest in a box for later. Which might be sooner, now. :)

The trip to Portland was because I needed a follow-up MRI to the one I had six months or so ago, because they found these hemangiomas on my liver when they were trying to discover why I have these random-seeming pains in my lower left abdomen. Apparently hemangiomas are common, but they need to follow up when they see them to see if there's any change in them. In a year I might have to have another MRI even if they don't see any change this time.

I nearly fell asleep in the tunnel, which surprised me. Maybe I did the same six months ago when I was in there, I don't recall, but I didn't expect it because it's pretty loud (they even give you earphones to deaden the noise) and one would think that it would feel claustrophobic and make a person too panicky to fall asleep. The tech said it is quite common; all the noises seem to lull people like chanting. It could also be the after-effects of the Tylenol PM I took last night, too, but my pet theory at the moment is that sleeping is a way to avoid panic. I have always thought that I could never sleep in one of those coffin-hotel things, but knowing that I've got the panic button in my hand (a bulb thing the tech gives you so that you can signal if you need Out Now) is a huge help. I had a feeling that if I allowed myself to want to do something badly, like scratch my nose (the nose itching is always the first thing that happens when you get all strapped down, right?) then I could start to panic, so I didn't allow myself to think about wanting to do anything. And then you have to listen for the commands, and breath deeply and regularly - it ends up like an enforced meditation. Even though I had to be awake to drive for a half hour, when I got home I laid down on the couch and drifted in and out for a while before I convinced myself that I had to get up because I have to drink a lot of water to get the dye or whatever it is they use out of my system.

When I finally got up from the couch I realized that while I was in Portland I could have gone over to the fabric store to look at something for a liner for my coat. Oh well, some other day.

Oh, useful tip for women who might be getting an MRI (though I don't imagine you'll remember any more than I did) - the underwire bra will have to come off. Last time the tech had me do that and then he started the IV, but this time a manager, trying to help him, started the IV for me and forgot to tell me to take off the bra. I had on a long-sleeved t-shirt, the sleeves were kind of tight, and now I had one sleeve pushed up and the IV plug in my arm, though it wasn't attached to anything. I'm really glad they use those little plastic tubes instead of metal needles, because it makes me more willing to bend my arm. I didn't think I could really get the shirt off, but I managed to get the bra off without removing the shirt. :)

Lazy and tired

having spent far too long writing an email, so I'll just post an excerpt from that...

Eor's been interested, this evening, in learning more about the Expulsion of the Acadians, because the front man for Beausoleil mentioned it in his banter last night, in telling about the name of the band.  And from that he's found out there's a housing design place also called Beausoleil, in no way associated with the band, which produces tiny, self-sufficient houses.   Their homepage here: http://www.beausoleilhome.org/  and  floorplan in this article: http://www.louisiana.edu/Advancement/PRNS/lala/2009-SPRG/BeauSoleil.pdf

I just had to chase down the floor plan I saw him looking at.  Oh, Internets, why so distracting?  There's also a clothing design place called Beausoleil, which sells double-stick tape to hold their clothes on with.  Can't be very comfortable. :P 

He's also reading about accordions.  Since seeing Vishten - http://www.vishten.net/ - a few months ago I've decided accordions are sexy and mysterious - although that might have been because of the girl who squeezed it in such a sultry manner :) - and they are my bet for next big musical instrument comeback.  Banjos have been making a huge comeback, and my brother [Hawk] thinks mandolins will be the next big thing, but I'm all for making it the accordion. ;)

Oh dear, I must sleep.  Getting silly. ;)

I'm back.

Bet you didn't miss me. :) I actually went to Boston for one day of training, yesterday, which was much more informative than I had expected, although I did already know a lot more than many of the students. It just sucks I didn't get this training a year ago, when I started this job.