nerdygirl.com

 
:: Saturday, June 28 ::

Some bacteria on toilet related links for you:

1. I suppose this is more a case of bacteria beyond toilet than bacteria on toilet, but some scientists have apparently worked out a way to recycle water from train toilets.

2. Is there really more bacteria on your desktop than bacteria on toilet seats?

3. Of course, there are always people who want to make you afraid of bacteria on toilets.

Note: I realize that my nemisis over at gristle has quite a few bacteria on toilet related links, and I'd like to point out that I didn't steal any from him. If his bacteria on toilet links are the same as my bacteria on toilet links, it is sheer coincidence, as I found them all myself. From Google, of course.


:: Friday, June 27 ::

Three days remain for the bacteria on toilet competition. Throughout the last month or so, you have been told about the problem of bacteria on toilet seats, and you have suffered through dozens of non-sensical bacteria on toilet references. Your forebearance is astounding.

I would like to thank those of you who have supported me in this bacteria on toilet campaign. It has been a long hard road, and I am chagrined to find myself in second place at the moment. Let's hope it doesn't last. Let's hope the gods of bacteria on toilet decide (at high noon on Monday) that I'm the one who deserves the first place spot. Fingers crossed.


Sentence fragments:

Yesterday. Coffee shop. The man in front of me. In line. Wanted a cookie. No little wax paper thingies. Grumbled. Doesn't shower much. I thought. How to get a cookie? Tried to be helpful.

"Problem with germs." Speaking to me. "Everyone so worried about germs."

"Yes." Agreement.

"Not germs." Talking to me still. "Problem not germs. Don't eat right. People don't. Eat right." Took his cookie. For breakfast.


:: Tuesday, June 24 ::

So, Blogger's been messed up for a few days. Lame like bacteria on toilet. I finally figured out a workaround today, which is good because otherwise I was going to have to leave Blogger and make my own stupid web content publishing system or something (like I actually would have gotten around to it). Hopefully, it won't cost me the bacteria on toilet competition.

Of course, that doesn't mean I have anything worthwhile to say. Here are some other things to keep you busy:



:: Wednesday, June 18 ::

Sydney and I had an interesting conversation not too long ago about what part of a book we're reading will stay with us when we put it down. When Sydney reads, the characters become real to her. They become an extension of the literature to the point where she can imagine them in different scenarios, outside of the story she's reading. When I read, it is generally the feeling of the story that will stay with me more than the actual characters. While I'm reading, I suppose I tend to insert myself in the novel, either as a bystander or as one of the characters (it can change from page to page, as well). My imagination takes me into the experience. I'm not sure if this is due to escapist tendencies or me being entirely too egocentric, but the end result is that when I put the book down, the feeling (or emotion or tone or whatever I ought to call it) stays with me more than the characters do.

What about you? What happens when you read?


:: Sunday, June 15 ::

Last week, on Wednesday, I dreamt that I missed my flight. In the dream, I was confused about the time, didn't know how it had gotten to be past the time when I was supposed to be there. I looked around for some clue as to what I should do, but found none.

In real life, when you miss your flight, the airport employees are cool and efficient and entirely unsympathetic to your plight. I found this out on Friday when I overslept and missed my flight. When I got to the airport, I ran inside with about 20 minutes to go before my flight was scheduled to depart. I went to the electronic ticketing machine and received a message: "gate check-in only". I headed for the gate, only to find out that the line to get past security was oh-so-very long. I asked someone if there was any way I could get through more quickly and was told that the airline might be able to do something for me, might be able to escort me through.

I ran back to the ticket counter and quickly explained that my flight was about to leave and I wished to be on it when that happened, but the security line was just so long. I asked the women standing around (they were not busy) if there was something they could do. "No," was the answer I received.

"But they said someone from the airline might be able to escort --"

"No, there's nothing we can do. What's your last name? I'll rebook you."

"But-- I-- I'll just go stand in the security line and see if I can make it."

"You'll never make it. I'll rebook you."

She was so disdainful. I gave up at that point. The massive surge of adrenaline I'd had since I woke up had abated, leaving me feeling sluggish and incapable of speedy action. Luckily, there was space on a later flight and everything worked out just fine. I do wish the phrase "dream come true" applied to me in a slightly more positive sense, though.


:: Thursday, June 12 ::

I think it is most excellent that Jason has a recording of his lawnmower on his site.


:: Wednesday, June 11 ::

If my favorite new search term is bacteria on toilet, then my new favorite show is Extreme Engineering on the Discovery Channel. I know it's hard to imagine anything more exciting than bacteria on toilet seats (although perhaps the excitement caused by bacteria on toilets is slightly different than Extreme Engineering excitement). I learned about the marvels of the Big Dig in Boston a couple of weeks ago. Way cooler than the marvels of bacteria on toilet. Now I'm learning about the building of the subway systems in New York and San Francisco. There are some amazing obstacles that have to be overcome to build these transportation systems. People really are quite clever when it comes to building underwater tunnels and whatnot. The coolest thing I learned watching the Big Dig program was how they froze the ground under the train station so that they could tunnel under it without upsetting the train traffic. Neat!


:: Monday, June 9 ::

I had a great time at the zoo. My favorite animals (apart from my neice and nephew) were the fruit bats. I liked watching them walk upside down, grabbing on with their toes and their one finger. They reminded me of cat burglers, skulking across the ceiling -- very ninja. Also, it never occurred to me before that bats would have tongues, but they have these cute little pink tongues. Later, we saw some tamarins grooming each other, which was fun to watch. Giraffes are pretty amazing to look at, too, but you already knew that.

Also, thanks to Sydney, shopping was a complete success. This may have had something to do with brunch, too -- I think I should always have champagne before shopping. It makes everything look so much better. I even managed to do the majority of my shopping at Nordstrom without being intimidated, except at the makeup counter. I was very impressed with the way Sydney boldly walked up to the Mac counter and started talking to the woman about lipsticks.

In the end, I bought a very simple dress, some shoes, and a tube of lipstick. Shopping is so much easier when someone tells you where to go and picks out things for you to try on. I also found some tank tops and other summery clothing. This was the first time in quite awhile that I didn't feel like all clothing manufacturers were conspiring against me -- probably because I wasn't trying on pants, but that's a whole story/rant unto itself. It's so nice when clothes actually fit; a rare occasion, to be sure. Much nicer than bacteria on toilet.


:: Friday, June 6 ::

I am very much looking forward to this weekend. First, my sister and her family are coming to stay with me. This means I get to play with my neice and nephew and we even get to go to the zoo on Saturday and ride the train. Then, on Sunday, Sydney is going to help me find something suitable to wear for my high school reunion. I am terrible at shopping, but I'm actually looking forward to a day of girliness. We will start with a champagne brunch and then go to Nordstrom. From there, who knows?

Normally, I shy away from Nordstrom like it's bacteria on toilet. The few times I've been in there, the snooty shop girls have looked at me as if to say, "you don't belong here." Then there's this whole recursive thing where I know that they know that I know that they know that I don't belong there and I usually last about five minutes before making a beeline for the door. But Sydney does the girl thing way better than I do, so it should be okay. I'll let her handle the shop girls because, if nothing else, she can use her mad kung fu skills to chop 'em down to size.


:: Thursday, June 5 ::

Bacteria on toilet. I keep thinking about the HA! HA! DEVIL YOU MISSED lady, trapped in her epic struggle with Satan. Does she sit up nights, having arguments with Beelzebub? Or is Devil maybe a dog or another animal that tried to bite her through the car window? Perhaps she takes care of a husband or an older sibling who scrawled the message on the door? Does her hunched over frame also bear the weight of someone else's mental illness? It's possible. The thing I wish most of all is that there was a huge dent in the door, as though made by a lightening bolt, right under the words. Ha ha, Devil. I win this round.


:: Tuesday, June 3 ::

There's a bagel shop where I sometimes stop in before work. It's across the street from a junior high, so there are usually lots of kids in their early teens in there, and I like to listen to them talk, even though it's usually hard to keep from laughing. "Hey, Julius," one of them said today, "Did you know Alvin gelled his eyebrows?"

I wondered, briefly, whether bacteria on toilet seats ever concerned Julius or Alvin. Bacteria on toilet is, like, some bad shit, man. Bacteria on toilet.

This got me to thinking about how society works, and what the rest of Alvin's day will be like. There are two possible outcomes, as far as I can tell. One, Alvin might be one of the cool kids, and if he carries it off well, others will soon be putting goop in their eyebrows -- until the weather gets too hot because nobody wants that stuff dripping down into their eyes, no matter how cool they think it looks. The other outcome is what will more likely happen: Alvin will get a load of crap for putting gel in his eyebrows. He may even wash it off in the boys room between periods. If he sticks it out all day, it is doubtful that he will repeat the fashion faux pas tomorrow.

It would be easy to feel sorry for poor Alvin, but the thing is, this is how societies work. You step out of line, and if you don't present your case well enough, someone (or a group of someones) pushes you back in. If you present a compelling argument (which might only consist of having the right attitude), others will follow and a new branch of the social tree will sprout. I'm thinking that this is how we end up with most of our fads, from pet rocks and paint-splatter clothing to thong underwear and remember when everybody had their hair cut "like that chick on friends"? Yeah, that too.


:: Monday, June 2 ::

For the past couple of years, I've been checking in on bluishorange.com every now and again. Alison Headly, the site's owner, has a lovely dreamy way of writing that I find to be incredibly effective. So I would check in maybe once or twice a month just to see what she was writing about. But then she got herself arrested, and I'm hooked -- I now check in on the site every day. The burning question is, of course, what did she do? She's unfolding the mystery slowly, revealing little bits of her story every couple of days, but hasn't yet named the crime. While part of me is impatient and wishes she'd just hurry up and tell us what she did, I have to say I'm having fun watching the puzzle pieces fall into place. There's beauty in her storytelling, plain and simple. Of course, she makes no mention of bacteria on toilets, but then, there's no accounting for taste.



where's my rocket car?

current issue
2002 issue

bloggage...

50 cups
beefpile
bluishorange
blogjunky
chattering magpie
fox in the snow
fush!
kungfukitten
little.yellow.different.
me head
plasticbag
royal rodent
semaphoria
sir cringe
timmie tv
tumbleweed

for fun...

fingertip haiku
my brother's book
but now i see
brunching shuttlecocks mcsweeneys lists bookcrossing.com
structurehack
web-goddess.net
gristle.org

archives...

4/2001 to 3/2002
April 2002
May 2002
June 2002
July 2002
August 2002
September 2002
October 2002
November 2002
December 2002
January 2003
February 2003
March 2003
April 2003
May 2003
June 2003
July 2003
 

i'm using blogger