I found my first grey hair last night! Fuck yeah! It's this beautiful silver strand, actually, almost like metallic thread. I love it.
I think I take after my grandma; she was completely grey by the time she was 30.
I searched the rest of my head for more, but I found just the one. And it's stayin'. I dig it.
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Oh, This Whirlwind Romance
The traffic, teeming with desire,
Slowly edges its way
To its climactic destination,
Afraid of overheating before making it.
We are born onto the street,
Pushing our way forward
Through the sultry summer membrane
Of humidity and subway steam.
The sidewalks, a congestion
Of tourists and artists
Ebb and flow like heartbeats,
Surging with life and beauty and grace.
We scan the lumbering cityscape;
The sisters no longer there.
The Gemini of the horizon--
They fell to their knees.
Oh, this whirlwind romance--
Locked in a heavy embrace.
Slowly edges its way
To its climactic destination,
Afraid of overheating before making it.
We are born onto the street,
Pushing our way forward
Through the sultry summer membrane
Of humidity and subway steam.
The sidewalks, a congestion
Of tourists and artists
Ebb and flow like heartbeats,
Surging with life and beauty and grace.
We scan the lumbering cityscape;
The sisters no longer there.
The Gemini of the horizon--
They fell to their knees.
Oh, this whirlwind romance--
Locked in a heavy embrace.
Monday, July 25, 2005
Sunday, July 24, 2005
NYC
So, we didn't get to do everything we wanted to yesterday while in the city. The bus ride in was interesting, as in the man drove like a maniac and I was afraid we were all going to die. Of course, the people who drive in New York drive like maniacs, too, so he fit right in.
We went to lunch first at The Hard Rock Cafe. We enjoyed some really good food, excellent music, and we even got a souvenir as part of our meal.
No, we didn't steal them; they had a deal going-- for $9.99 you got the drink of your choice and the glass of your choice. Pretty sweet.
We finished our meal and headed on to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which is 3 blocks over and 40 blocks up from where the bus dropped us off. This is quite a hike, let me tell you, but it's worth it to see all the beautiful art showcased there. We were lucky to have such a nice day for our trip.
While walking to the MET, I snapped a shot of the fountain that marks one corner of Central Park at 5th Avenue and 59th Street. Last year when we stopped here, there was a choir of Quakers or Amish People or something standing on the fountain performing a little impromtu concert. They just kind of showed up there while we were sitting there, formed a few lines on the steps, and started singing. The majority of them were teenagers. It was so strange yet so beautiful.
So we get to the museum and find out that there are new checkpoints upon entering because of the recent bombings in Britain and Egypt. I get through fine, but Harry gets held up because of our Hard Rock souvenirs. Seems you can no longer bring glass into the museum. Glass? I found this a little strange. I told Harry to just chuck them, but he didn't want to give them up. So we had to forgo the museum. All that walking for nothing.
We started back down 5th Avenue, stopping along the way in Central Park near the remote control boat pond. We got to see all breeds of dogs prancing around, seeing as the dog park is right there. We watched the kids race their boats around the pond, too. There was a breeze blowing and shady spots everywhere to enjoy the lovely day. Good times, good times.
We started walking again, stopping in F.A.O. Schwartz since Harry had never been. Last year, they were closed for renovations when I took Harry into the city. Seems they've changed it immensely, and some of the things I was so looking forward to checking out, like the Hello Kitty section, were no longer there. F.A.O. was a bust. Sadness.
We then went to The Disney Store. Yeah, we have one in each of the malls here, but the one on 5th Avenue is just so cool. We didn't buy anything, but we had a good time just walking around and checking things out.
While walking down 5th Avenue, Harry noticed a sign in a window across the street. While on the third floor of The Disney Store, we were able to snap a shot of it. Harry was tickled that someone in New York loves him enough to put it up in neon.
We did some more walking, cutting over to 7th Avenue at 53rd street, now in search of a cup of coffee. We found a Dunkin Donuts around 50th. Eureka! We sat and drank and used the restrooms a couple of times (restrooms are hard to come by in NYC, so ya use 'em when ya got 'em). We then wandered, searching for the Warner Bros. store, which I know is in Times Square somewhere. We weren't able to find it last time, and we had a repeat this time, as well. Where is that damn store anyway?
There were tons of people walking on 7th Avenue, and they were all in my way, pissing me off at every turn because they insist on just stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to converse with someone. At least move off to the side, for God's sake! Damn tourists. You could tell these weren't locals.
We gave up on the Warner Bros. store and kept going to the corner of 7th and 40th, where a coworker told me a wonderful comic book shop, Midtown Comics, resides. He told me to look for a sign on 40th that led to a set of stairs up to the second floor of the building where Midtown was. And, yes, the sign was there. I bought a really cool hardcover edition of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman - Endless Nights and an awesome Woodland Faeries calendar for next year. I'm itching to go to the comic book shops in CT again now. I miss them.
The trip wouldn't have been complete without a trip to The New York Public Library, so we trekked back over to 5th, and there it was. I needed a picture of the lions who guard all the prized possessions within. "GET HER!" Quick, what movie?
The library entrance. It says it was built between 1895 and 1902. The architecture of the building is phenomenal. There were so many little surprises lurking on all sides of the structure. They don't build things like this anymore.
A fountain flanking the left side of the library entrance. Absolutely gorgeous.
Another cool fountain flanking the right side of the library entrance. Amazing.
We noticed this interesting reflection on a building directly across 40th Street while standing on the library steps. We didn't take this pic at a skewed angle; that's actually how the place was built.
We then cut over to Madison and walked to St. Patrick's Cathedral, where the bus was to pick us up at 8pm. We arrived 45 minutes early, so we rounded the corner at 51st, looking for another cup of coffee. We found a deli that served java and waited in there until it was time to catch the bus.
The ride home was uneventful, and we got back to North Haven at 10pm. We hopped in the car and made our way back to Stratford. After a shower, a couple of drinks and some Iron Chef America, we called it a night and turned in.
All in all, it was a nice day, but damn, am I still tired. In total, we walked 102 blocks.
I need to learn to ride the subway.
We went to lunch first at The Hard Rock Cafe. We enjoyed some really good food, excellent music, and we even got a souvenir as part of our meal.
No, we didn't steal them; they had a deal going-- for $9.99 you got the drink of your choice and the glass of your choice. Pretty sweet.
We finished our meal and headed on to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which is 3 blocks over and 40 blocks up from where the bus dropped us off. This is quite a hike, let me tell you, but it's worth it to see all the beautiful art showcased there. We were lucky to have such a nice day for our trip.
While walking to the MET, I snapped a shot of the fountain that marks one corner of Central Park at 5th Avenue and 59th Street. Last year when we stopped here, there was a choir of Quakers or Amish People or something standing on the fountain performing a little impromtu concert. They just kind of showed up there while we were sitting there, formed a few lines on the steps, and started singing. The majority of them were teenagers. It was so strange yet so beautiful.
So we get to the museum and find out that there are new checkpoints upon entering because of the recent bombings in Britain and Egypt. I get through fine, but Harry gets held up because of our Hard Rock souvenirs. Seems you can no longer bring glass into the museum. Glass? I found this a little strange. I told Harry to just chuck them, but he didn't want to give them up. So we had to forgo the museum. All that walking for nothing.
We started back down 5th Avenue, stopping along the way in Central Park near the remote control boat pond. We got to see all breeds of dogs prancing around, seeing as the dog park is right there. We watched the kids race their boats around the pond, too. There was a breeze blowing and shady spots everywhere to enjoy the lovely day. Good times, good times.
We started walking again, stopping in F.A.O. Schwartz since Harry had never been. Last year, they were closed for renovations when I took Harry into the city. Seems they've changed it immensely, and some of the things I was so looking forward to checking out, like the Hello Kitty section, were no longer there. F.A.O. was a bust. Sadness.
We then went to The Disney Store. Yeah, we have one in each of the malls here, but the one on 5th Avenue is just so cool. We didn't buy anything, but we had a good time just walking around and checking things out.
While walking down 5th Avenue, Harry noticed a sign in a window across the street. While on the third floor of The Disney Store, we were able to snap a shot of it. Harry was tickled that someone in New York loves him enough to put it up in neon.
We did some more walking, cutting over to 7th Avenue at 53rd street, now in search of a cup of coffee. We found a Dunkin Donuts around 50th. Eureka! We sat and drank and used the restrooms a couple of times (restrooms are hard to come by in NYC, so ya use 'em when ya got 'em). We then wandered, searching for the Warner Bros. store, which I know is in Times Square somewhere. We weren't able to find it last time, and we had a repeat this time, as well. Where is that damn store anyway?
There were tons of people walking on 7th Avenue, and they were all in my way, pissing me off at every turn because they insist on just stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to converse with someone. At least move off to the side, for God's sake! Damn tourists. You could tell these weren't locals.
We gave up on the Warner Bros. store and kept going to the corner of 7th and 40th, where a coworker told me a wonderful comic book shop, Midtown Comics, resides. He told me to look for a sign on 40th that led to a set of stairs up to the second floor of the building where Midtown was. And, yes, the sign was there. I bought a really cool hardcover edition of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman - Endless Nights and an awesome Woodland Faeries calendar for next year. I'm itching to go to the comic book shops in CT again now. I miss them.
The trip wouldn't have been complete without a trip to The New York Public Library, so we trekked back over to 5th, and there it was. I needed a picture of the lions who guard all the prized possessions within. "GET HER!" Quick, what movie?
The library entrance. It says it was built between 1895 and 1902. The architecture of the building is phenomenal. There were so many little surprises lurking on all sides of the structure. They don't build things like this anymore.
A fountain flanking the left side of the library entrance. Absolutely gorgeous.
Another cool fountain flanking the right side of the library entrance. Amazing.
We noticed this interesting reflection on a building directly across 40th Street while standing on the library steps. We didn't take this pic at a skewed angle; that's actually how the place was built.
We then cut over to Madison and walked to St. Patrick's Cathedral, where the bus was to pick us up at 8pm. We arrived 45 minutes early, so we rounded the corner at 51st, looking for another cup of coffee. We found a deli that served java and waited in there until it was time to catch the bus.
The ride home was uneventful, and we got back to North Haven at 10pm. We hopped in the car and made our way back to Stratford. After a shower, a couple of drinks and some Iron Chef America, we called it a night and turned in.
All in all, it was a nice day, but damn, am I still tired. In total, we walked 102 blocks.
I need to learn to ride the subway.
Friday, July 22, 2005
It was horrible...
Yeah, MRIs suck ass. Especially dye MRIs. Yeah, Matt, it was a dye MRI. Oh, the horror.
I started freaking out about having to go have the test around 11am yesterday morning. I was sitting at work, and I guess the gravity of the situation finally hit me. We're talking about my brain here. My brain is very dear to me; I like it just the way it is. I don't want anyone poking and prodding and lurking in that vicinity. It's my brain, MINE!
I called Chris and talked to him for awhile, and I let him know what was going on with me. We try to keep each other in the loop. We quickly moved away from the topic of the MRI to other things: friends, family, the upcoming picnic, etc. Leave it to Chris to completely steer us off the subject at hand; I think that's why I called him. I knew he'd get my mind off it for awhile, and he's always there to listen (now that we're not married anymore). And he knows me so well that I hardly have to say anything and he still knows exactly what I'm thinking.
I left work at 2:30pm, suddenly wishing I had taken Harry up on the offer to leave work and come with me. I figured he'd just have to do a lot of waiting, and I didn't want him to have to go through that. Waiting for someone at the hospital can be completely nerve-wracking. I thought he'd be better off at work; it would keep his mind occupied so he wouldn't have to think about what was going on with me.
Since when the hell am I such a martyr, I ask you?
I figured it was too late to call him and ask him to come down once I got to the hospital. Dude, was I wrong.
I was supposed to be there at 2:45pm to register (which I was), and my appointment was for 3:15pm. Needless to say, I didn't get get into the MRI room until after 4pm. The woman at the hospital registration desk was a little slow, and then the woman at the MRI reception desk neglected to tell the MRI technician that I was even there. She just happened to wander into the waiting room and noticed me there.
So I get in there, she shows me the machine. What I thought would be a little "tunnel" is really just a tube. Just so ya all know, I'm very claustophobic. Yeah.
So she has my lay down and gets me all settled with my headset, my panic button, and the little contraption that goes over your head with the little mirror so you can see the tech in her booth at all times (they think of everything), and proceeds to tell me that 3/4 of the way through the test, she's going to be taking me out of the machine and injecting me with dye.
Red alert! Red alert! Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!
She saw the look on my face and says, "OK, and she doesn't like that part."
I explained my needle phobia and about almost passing out the week before and my difficult veins, etc. I told her my left arm was better and that if she had a butterfly needle, that would work best. She told me she uses a butterfly all the time anyway.
Ok, here we go.
They put me in the tube, or should I say coffin cuz that's what it felt like. I quickly closed my eyes and tried to think happy thoughts, but the only images that kept coming through were X-files episodes where someone either burned to a crisp in an MRI machine or oozed out green goo from their veins when put into one. Pleasant.
They had my listening to oldies, like '50s doo-wop, which isn't really my taste and made the time stretch even more because of it. When I thought we MUST be hitting the 3/4 mark any minute now, the tech announced, "We're almost 1/2 way through." Ugh.
The 3/4 mark finally arrived, and she pulled me out of the machine. She started looking for a vein in the crook of my elbow. She didn't like that vein. She then looked for one on the inside of my wrist by whacking the crap out of it. She liked that one better. I started taking deep breaths to calm myself down. She inserted the needle and taped it down. I was ok.
She put me back into the machine, but about 2 minutes in, as she was trying to inject the dye, it started to burn, I mean really burn. I told her it hurt. She then realized the vein blew. Pushed the needle right out. It was just sticking into my skin. She tried to readjust, but my vein just didn't want the needle in it.
She took me back out of the machine and told me she'd have to try another vein. It was here that I started to panic a little. I knew this was going to happen. I started to tear up because I knew that it was just going to get worse.
So she went back to the first vein in the crook of my elbow. She tried to insert the needle into it, but it just didn't want to go. And it hurt. By this point, I am all-out crying, and I've also started shaking. And I'm freezing. I'm actually afraid that I might be going into shock. She tells me she's going to go get someone else to insert the needle.
Now my teeth are chattering, too, and I can't keep still. I'm almost to the point of hyperventilating. She asks me if I want to quit, but if I do, I have to come back and do it all over again. NO FREAKIN' WAY! I ain't comin' back and doing this again. So I tell her to keep going.
The new woman decides she wants to stick it in the vein on the top of my hand. This agitates me even more until she does it, quick and almost painless and absolutely painless once she tapes it down. Eureka! We've struck gold.
They put me back in the machine, and a few minutes later, start injecting the dye. No problems. I immediately start to calm down. She takes the needle out about a minute later. I finish up the test, and I'm completely calm by the time that happens. I apologize to the tech for freaking out, but she's apologizing even more profusely for me having to go through that. She was really a rather nice woman; I wish I could have met her under better circumstances.
So, I quickly left, and went to the CVS down the street to buy myself a KitKat. Hey, I needed chocolate after that ordeal.
Now I'm just waiting for the doctor to call.
I started freaking out about having to go have the test around 11am yesterday morning. I was sitting at work, and I guess the gravity of the situation finally hit me. We're talking about my brain here. My brain is very dear to me; I like it just the way it is. I don't want anyone poking and prodding and lurking in that vicinity. It's my brain, MINE!
I called Chris and talked to him for awhile, and I let him know what was going on with me. We try to keep each other in the loop. We quickly moved away from the topic of the MRI to other things: friends, family, the upcoming picnic, etc. Leave it to Chris to completely steer us off the subject at hand; I think that's why I called him. I knew he'd get my mind off it for awhile, and he's always there to listen (now that we're not married anymore). And he knows me so well that I hardly have to say anything and he still knows exactly what I'm thinking.
I left work at 2:30pm, suddenly wishing I had taken Harry up on the offer to leave work and come with me. I figured he'd just have to do a lot of waiting, and I didn't want him to have to go through that. Waiting for someone at the hospital can be completely nerve-wracking. I thought he'd be better off at work; it would keep his mind occupied so he wouldn't have to think about what was going on with me.
Since when the hell am I such a martyr, I ask you?
I figured it was too late to call him and ask him to come down once I got to the hospital. Dude, was I wrong.
I was supposed to be there at 2:45pm to register (which I was), and my appointment was for 3:15pm. Needless to say, I didn't get get into the MRI room until after 4pm. The woman at the hospital registration desk was a little slow, and then the woman at the MRI reception desk neglected to tell the MRI technician that I was even there. She just happened to wander into the waiting room and noticed me there.
So I get in there, she shows me the machine. What I thought would be a little "tunnel" is really just a tube. Just so ya all know, I'm very claustophobic. Yeah.
So she has my lay down and gets me all settled with my headset, my panic button, and the little contraption that goes over your head with the little mirror so you can see the tech in her booth at all times (they think of everything), and proceeds to tell me that 3/4 of the way through the test, she's going to be taking me out of the machine and injecting me with dye.
Red alert! Red alert! Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!
She saw the look on my face and says, "OK, and she doesn't like that part."
I explained my needle phobia and about almost passing out the week before and my difficult veins, etc. I told her my left arm was better and that if she had a butterfly needle, that would work best. She told me she uses a butterfly all the time anyway.
Ok, here we go.
They put me in the tube, or should I say coffin cuz that's what it felt like. I quickly closed my eyes and tried to think happy thoughts, but the only images that kept coming through were X-files episodes where someone either burned to a crisp in an MRI machine or oozed out green goo from their veins when put into one. Pleasant.
They had my listening to oldies, like '50s doo-wop, which isn't really my taste and made the time stretch even more because of it. When I thought we MUST be hitting the 3/4 mark any minute now, the tech announced, "We're almost 1/2 way through." Ugh.
The 3/4 mark finally arrived, and she pulled me out of the machine. She started looking for a vein in the crook of my elbow. She didn't like that vein. She then looked for one on the inside of my wrist by whacking the crap out of it. She liked that one better. I started taking deep breaths to calm myself down. She inserted the needle and taped it down. I was ok.
She put me back into the machine, but about 2 minutes in, as she was trying to inject the dye, it started to burn, I mean really burn. I told her it hurt. She then realized the vein blew. Pushed the needle right out. It was just sticking into my skin. She tried to readjust, but my vein just didn't want the needle in it.
She took me back out of the machine and told me she'd have to try another vein. It was here that I started to panic a little. I knew this was going to happen. I started to tear up because I knew that it was just going to get worse.
So she went back to the first vein in the crook of my elbow. She tried to insert the needle into it, but it just didn't want to go. And it hurt. By this point, I am all-out crying, and I've also started shaking. And I'm freezing. I'm actually afraid that I might be going into shock. She tells me she's going to go get someone else to insert the needle.
Now my teeth are chattering, too, and I can't keep still. I'm almost to the point of hyperventilating. She asks me if I want to quit, but if I do, I have to come back and do it all over again. NO FREAKIN' WAY! I ain't comin' back and doing this again. So I tell her to keep going.
The new woman decides she wants to stick it in the vein on the top of my hand. This agitates me even more until she does it, quick and almost painless and absolutely painless once she tapes it down. Eureka! We've struck gold.
They put me back in the machine, and a few minutes later, start injecting the dye. No problems. I immediately start to calm down. She takes the needle out about a minute later. I finish up the test, and I'm completely calm by the time that happens. I apologize to the tech for freaking out, but she's apologizing even more profusely for me having to go through that. She was really a rather nice woman; I wish I could have met her under better circumstances.
So, I quickly left, and went to the CVS down the street to buy myself a KitKat. Hey, I needed chocolate after that ordeal.
Now I'm just waiting for the doctor to call.
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