Wednesday, June 30, 2004

back in the USA

HOME AT LAST!

it was a long day with a long flight, but fortunately i have a knack for sleeping on and off through any kind of travel.

the Tube strike didn't help the matter and LOM was kind enough to pay for our taxi to the airport.

we flew Virgin Airlines, and i have to say i am seriously impressed. it was like a little party or something. plenty of food and beverages, movies, tv, video games, parting gifts... all that was missing was roller skates.

Sydney didn't offer much of a greeting. im not sure if she's mad at us for leaving her while we went on vacation or if its her grumpy time of the month. yeah, her moods and temperament are actually very affected by the moon's cycle. it can be endearing, but what i really want is cuddles right now, not cold stares.

i shall miss London, and i think i will definately return. but next time, i must have a kitchen so i can make my own food.

...speaking of which, its dinner time and we are heading to the Cheesecake Factory for some greens!

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Tuesday, June 29, 2004

a little telly never hurt anyone

Last day in London... I will miss the beauty and culture here, but not the food (or lack there of).

After a late start we went to Harrods again for some souvineer shopping... we decided to buy ourselves some food instead of souvineers... sorry friends and family.

I may have forgotten to mention earlier that the US dollar is worth roughly half the English pound... So, spending 400 English pounds is equivalent to spending $800 US dollars. Since the prices are about the same, that means everything actually cost us twice as much.

This was the second day I felt quite ill... likely due to malnourishment. anyhow, I tried to hang in there for LOMs sake. We went to Kensington Gardens for the flower walk and to use the loo for my first and way over due poo in London. LOM continued exploring and I went back to our room for a good nap.

I definately felt a bit better later in the evening after watching a little more British TV... we watched episodes of two reality series:You Are What You Eat and Wife Swap. Yes, really.

then it was time for a late night snack at our favorite cafe down the street.

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Monday, June 28, 2004

off with his head!

Today's Adventures:

London Eye -a giant ferris wheel with enclosed capsules which allows an amazing panoramic view of London

Westminster Abbey -found a memorial to my ancestor Robert Burns, poet

Lunch at the Embankment Cafe -not too far from the statue of Robert Burns who apparently inspires young adults to make-out nearby

House of Lords -skipped the mile-long line waiting for the House of Commons

Madame Tussads wax museum -had my photo taken with Madonna, Whoopi Goldberg, the Hulk, DaVinci, David Beckham and Michael Owens.

Regents Park -walking and "senior pictures" with LOM

British TV -Holiday Airport, Sydney and the UK version of Big Brother

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Sunday, June 27, 2004

SOS... please send food

10:30 GMT
woke up late...

11:30 GMT
barely made it to Buckingham Palace in time for the changing of the guards, but we did! and it turns out that its a 30 minute process, so we could have stopped for breakfast after all. the military shouting wasnt impressive, nor were the crowds. but i loved the drumming and bagpipes. i think i want to see if they have a CD and i bet they do!

12:30 GMT
Pub food isnt so bad. i had a BBQ chicken sandwich. it just had pieces of chicken and some BBQ sauce on bread, but it was the tastiest food ive had yet here in the UK.

13:30 GMT
Hyde Park - a beautiful and gigantic park where people play vollyball, english football, rugby, rollerblade, swim and relax in the grass. i cant help but compare it to Boston Commons and the Public Garden. its like we stole all these ideas from "old england" when we created "new england", only everything in new england is smaller.

16:00 GMT
Play: The Complete Works of Shakespeare, 37 plays in 97 minutes. performed by the Reduced Shakespeare Company. it was hilarious! i loved it and laughed my ars off the entire time. i think they were able to do hamlet backwards in less than 15 seconds. it was impressive.

18:30 GMT
my actual words to LOM: "we know they have decent food... the menu cant be that different from home... they have a reputation to uphold... its virtually guaranteed to be satisfying." fortunately i didnt bet my life because id have been dead before we got our food. no one should ever have to suffer the torture of eating at the Rainforest Cafe in London. the service was great, and the smoothies were excellent, minus LOMs wilted and beaten strawberry garnish. but the food... if, in fact, that was what they served us... well... ive eaten tastier, healthier and more digestible meals in college dorm cafeterias.

21:00 GMT
major depression is setting in and im not kidding when i tell you that i currently have tears streaming down my face. i give up. ive cracked. i'll tell you anything you want to know, just feed me! i need food. real food. tasty food. fresh food. id settle for fresh but bland food if that would help. anything to get something nourishing and fiberous into my deprived body. please, someone... send food!

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Saturday, June 26, 2004

Way Out

9:00 GMT
wake, shower, groom, dress, exit room

10:00 GMT
order a waffle from the dessert menu asking them to hold the ice cream and caramel sauce and just slice a banana over it. skeptically, they oblige. sadly, i chew the waffle, feeling each grain of sugar crunch between my teeth. note to self - if it's on the dessert menu, it is not a good breakfast item.

11:00 GMT
walk to Harrods gigantic, themed store to begin our shopping adventure. it is very very huge. it occupies an entire city block and has an Egyptian themed section which spans 5 floors. there are dozens of restuarants. i have never seen anything like this. shock and awe, GW, shock and awe.

13:00 GMT
caesar salad and strawberry crepe at Harrods. once again, i am disappointed by the English "culinary" arts. LOM and i explore the possibilities of opening a restaurant that actually serves yummy food.

14:00 GMT
we head to Piccadilly Circus where we inadvertantly find ourselves as onlookers to the Olympic Torch running by. as we shop, i realize, again, how beautiful i am.

19:00 GMT
we find a "fancy" french restaurant (according to the bouncer) and eat good food for a decent price. its about time.

OTHER OBSERVATIONS:

* take out and carry out are called take away
* put a white girl and asain girl together and you can assume they are local - we've been asked directions at least once per day
* England is much more racially integrated than the US.
* fruits and vegitables are imported from South Africa, Chile, Peru, and other such places, and are not so fresh and tasty.
* instead of signs saying "Exit", they say Way Out... very cute.

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Friday, June 25, 2004

london bridge is falling down...

5:00 GMT
sleeping is definately underrated.

6:00 GMT
after a night of tossing and turning and waking several times, i finally get out of bed to begin reading "Dude, where's my country?" by Michael Moore. only making it through the first chapter im already shocked and awed by what mike has uncovered and the media never told us. but i save this for another entry.

8:00 GMT
we start our adventure with a nice "hearty" breakfast. LOM ordered Small English Breakfast which consisted of funny fluffy scrambled eggs, a big not-so-yummy sausage, ham, fried tomato, baked beans, toast, and coffee. i went for the "American Pancakes" thinking i would get... american pancakes. they were certainly similar, but not mom's or even bisquick... and they were dainty.

9:00 GMT
we take the Tube to see the Tower of London - a cute and impressive little place that i would LOVE to live. in fact, if i can get hired on as a grounds keeper or Yeowoman i might get a room in one of the swanky german-style cottages the other groundskeepers and Yeopersons live. seems like a good deal to me.

At the Tower of London, besides a never ending display of weaponry, jewels, and school children, i saw my very first ever raven. have you ever seen one of these suckers??? i can guarantee it was at least the size of Sydney, if not larger. and its caw reminded me of an electronically produced sound Mario might make while jumping over turtles. i had to chase the fcker but i was able to snap a couple pictures which i hope to be able to attach once we return home.

12:00 GMT
we cross the cute painted bridge easily mistaken as the London Bridge by foreigners, however the London Bridge is the next bridge down and is very very very boring and uneventful... fair lady, it may have been better if it really had fallen down.

13:00 GMT
lunch - baked potatoes... honestly, there arent a lot of food options here and most of the food the Brits eat is bland, buttery, creamed, or some other version of high fat/cholesterol and low taste.

13:30 GMT
pitstop at Simply Food for a box of strawberries.

14:00 GMT
next stop, Tate Modern. this amazing and interesting art museum controversially groups its pieces by genre instead of by period. the museum lives in an old factory/warehouse which creates quite a unique and amusing contradiction considering how loudly modern art has often spoken to the grotesqueness of mass production and celebrity. add to that any artist's interest in the production and sale of the images and objects they create, and you've got yourself an interesting paradox. ha! i love it!

16:30 GMT
pitstop at KFC for something filling and tasty (namely, chicken).

17:00 GMT
we arrive back at our hotel, relax a bit and wanting to makes sure we can take in all the necessary sites we look through our guide books to plan our itinerary for the remainer of the trip.

what will we do next??? tune in to find out.

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Thursday, June 24, 2004

back to the hotel

we have arrived!

im a bit discombobulated, which may or may not be an actual word in any realm of the English language.

Note 1: The UK (GMT according to LOM) is 5 hours ahead of Boston (EST)

Note 2: The UK operates on what the US refers to as "Military Time", or a 24 hour clock.

Note 3: All postings from London will be in GMT and on the 24 hour clock.

here's what my day looked like:

6pm EST
we left Boston on a jetplane

8pm EST
switched planes in Newark

8:00 GMT(3am EST)
we arrived! and with all the comfort and sleep of staying the night in a milk crate outside of the Hynes T Station in -30 degree weather

LOM was very thorough in her pre-trip investigations and was able to get us out of the airport, into an express train, onto the Tube (English for "Subway"), and to our room at the Radisson Edwardian Vanderbilt hotel without a hitch.

10:00 GMT
as expected, our room was not yet ready and we would find our unkempt and exhausted selves roomless and waiting what felt like an eternity before we could rest up and shower.

killing time, we left our luggage at the hotel to investigate our surroundings. we walked through Kensington Park/Gardens and found our way to a small supermarket where we bought cherries, bottled water, a sandwich (for LOM) and a cookie (for me). this cost £10, which is about $18 US. thank goddess most of the tourist sites are free! its going to cost an arm and a leg just to keep us from starving.

Noon GMT
like any hungry and tired tourist without a place to go, we hunkered down in the lobby and passed out in the cushy victorian chairs in the window

13:00 GMT
LOM took charge and got us a different and unoccupied room. we took one look at the room and immediately went into nap mode

16:00 GMT
we wake and shower up a bit, our next stop being dinner. we chose a cute little Indian place down the road. The Delhi Brasserie offered much of our favorite dishes but with a little twist. i had Chicken Tikka Masala (my overall fav) which was drizzled over with yummy coconut milk. yum! they liked us so much they gave us someone elses gold membership card and told us to come back and use it for 10% off of all our meals with them.

19:00 GMT
we return to our room and prepare for an outing to Piccadilly Circus (the Times Square of London), stopping in at a few shops (the Virgin, Tower Records, Boots [a pharmacy], Cafe Nero [London's version of Starbucks], and Waterstone Books. we were able to buy several books currently only available in hard cover in the US (imagine $20-$30 each) for a measily $10 US dollars each... what a deal!

21:00 GMT
we return to the hotel after all our running about, shopping, eating, napping, and disorientation

fortunately i have great spacial capabilities while navigating and LOM is great with remembering names and places. between the two of us we've got this place figured out.

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Wednesday, June 23, 2004

up up and away!

i woke around 5am and would have gotten up to begin packing, but decided to just keep returning to sleep. i dont even think my dreams were that great that i would just want to keep them going, but whatever.

i have checked the weather in London for the next week. it's currently 61 degrees and rainy. oh joy. the next 7 days will be sunny and rainy with high humidity and highs of 70 degrees. so, i shall definately pack my umbrella and sweaters. perhaps i will throw a tank top in just in case it gets up to 71 or 72 degrees. over all it shall be what i consider Springy weather, and this is lovely.

i have much to do before i go, yet here i sit writing. i love writing. i could do it all day. i still dont know if i will bring my laptop with me or not. i want to have constant access so i can write, but i really dont want the responsiblity. perhaps i will just buy time at an internet cafe. we'll see.

LOM tells me we should get decent food since its an international flight. i hope its not fish and chips. i really dont care for fish and chips any longer. she also tells me that we are better off just sticking with indian food while we are there... im all for that! i LOVE indian food. Chicken Tikka Masala, Channa Masala, Tandoori Chicken, Lentil Soups. yummmmmmmmm.

hey, now that i think about it, i was dreaming about being at my grandparents farm, making salsa with my no-longer-little cousin with noodles and accidently getting dried lavendar in it and trying to figure out the best and quickest way to get all the pieces of lavendar out.

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Tuesday, June 22, 2004

1.8 mile (aka boobs 3)

on my way to work this morning i saw so much change and wonder around me!

landscapers had all of the flowers and plants at the new boylston street median, ready to beautify my neighborhood! i couldnt help but smile at this gorgeous display of neighborhood revitalization occurring so near my own home.

further down Boylston was the incredibly lovely and charming Globe girl camped outside slugnut (LOM/my slang for Dunkin Donuts) selling papers to passersby.

it was a joy to observe the Public Garden improvements, as each day more and more progress is made toward completing whatever it is they are doing near Arlington Street. is the new concrete patch becoming a new fountain? a statue? a small oration area? only time will tell.

all of these exciting views prompted me to change the last leg of my route, nearly allowing me to make the 1.8 mile trip without being accosted by some pervert.

you know where this is going, dont you?

as i made my way through the Boston Common the summer sites continued to astound me ... teens groping each other near the Frog Pond, homeless couples taking in the morning sun on the benches, and then...

then a nicely dressed, possibly employed twentysomething-year-old male in a baseball cap sitting on a bench to my left was compelled to speak to me as i pass... "you feeling horny? I'm hard as a rock...".

with all the shock of someone who is barraged with this exact kind of verbal assault on a daily basis, continuing to smile to myself, i looked him directly in the eye, laughed, shook my head in pity, continued walking and wondered to myself if maybe i shouldnt walk through the park any more.

and as any native Bostonian might do after such a moving display of sexual prowess, i headed to slugnut and bought myself a large decaf iced coffee with sugar and cream. so much for a change of scenery.

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Monday, June 21, 2004

i like your boobs, adendum

i returned from meditation just after 10pm. there was a reading tonight that really spoke to me about my boobs.

ok, it wasnt really my boobs that the reading spoke to... rather it got me thinking more about what i had been saying about (not) reacting... and also about something ive been trying to communicate to LOM about attachment and reacting.

what was it that was read and what did it mean to me?

the essence of what i heard tonight is that i am everything and everything is me. thus, to hate anything is to hate myself. the only answer is love. we must love everything, even the "bad".

when we love and accept, and release judgement and the need to control, we become peace. when we judge or hate we create our own misery, we react. love does not react because it is in total acceptance of what is.

my response to those who are so hurt and destroyed that they must reach to denigrate me, is to love them with all of my heart and soul.

read the book... it says it much more eloquentlly. oh, and can i borrow it from you?

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international gnome day

Whoa! slow down horsey!

just two and three days ago i was Ms. Depression 2004. boy did that end quickly and thank Goddess!

today, you can call me Ms. Exclaimation Point 2004! its a magnificent day today for a million reasons!

1. i have an online journal and i love it!

2. its summer solstice! a magical day where the glass is both half empty and half full and that makes it perfect :)

3. its my co-workers birthday and that means we get cake! is there anything better than cake?

4. i walked to work today and no one said anything to me or my boobs about my boobs! YAY!

5. the flowers in the Public Garden are painfully beautiful - i love them with all my heart!

6. faeries are pretty and glittery and i love them :)

7. i am the Universe, supporting and nurturing you without limitations, radiating acceptance and love while raining warmth and nourishment for you to grow, blossom and seed, becoming your own solar system :)

8. im celebrating my Moon! yay Moon!

9. i ate one bananna waffle and 2 cookies for breakfast - yummers!

10. ive been eating plums and strawberries all morning long :)

11. King Gough is alive and swishing, and his constipation seems to have subsided a bit!

12. the sun has been shining all day and its a comfortable temperature - hooray!

13. i love the number thirteen! YAY!

14. its international gnome day! have you hugged your gnome today?

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Sunday, June 20, 2004

i like your boobs, part 2

it never ceases to amaze me when a homeless guy comments on my chest. no really, it leaves me speechless each and every time.

why is it that i cannot seem to recover from these verbal assaults quickly enough to react? is it that im the "queen of cool" or so permanently locked in default "contemplative mode" that i cant even eeek out a "fuck you, asshole"? i pride myself on my ability to remain calm and process things, choosing to react if i deem it necessary, but the lack of reaction in these situations is bordering on passive compliance and acceptance.

meanwhile, regardless of what im wearing - a halter top, regular ol' tank top, t-shirt, or even a jacket over my t-shirt or tank, i get the same obnoxious reaction from men (especially homeless men) as i mind my own business on the way to the grocery store, park or office... .

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i like your boobs, part 1

what is wrong with some men? (notice i did not say "all men"). over the last 3 days i have had at least 3 men (2 of which were definately homeless) comment, quite audibly and without a sense of shame, on the size, attractiveness, or overall quality of my chest.

what kind of world do we live in where any person can assume the right to verbally assault another person and call unwanted attention to a part of that persons body?

its not flattery, appreciation, adoration, or even attraction that results in this inappropriate behavior. and its just too easy to dismiss such aggressiveness to a blanket statement like "men are pigs," or "boys will be boys".

sexism, racism, classism, mysogyny, patriarchy, power, and ignorance are at the root. but just because one can identify the root, doesnt mean that the problem ceases to exist, or ceases to bother those who the comments are directed toward. it only makes it more infuriating.

i dont mind being noticed on occassion, or if someone were to approach me to talk. but i do not want to be oggled, commented on, shouted at, or otherwise have attention drawn to me, my breasts, or any other part of my body.

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Saturday, June 19, 2004

two days

a squirrel doing sommersaults in the dirt hole it was digging

passing a sketchy looking guy on the way to work who i could hear saying under his breath "... those tits..."

my pc refusing to boot, even in safe mode... then once agreeing to boot, freezing immediately after logged on

trident and 3 dover classics

evening nap after the fall of atlantis and meeting the child who would become faerie queen

iTunes - pure prairie league - amie

less listening, more arguing

grooming... again

using ladder 15 to install a new flag and rope... big dogs, everywhere!

a homeless guy walking in my direction who felt the need to announce to himself "i like what i see"... apparently tank tops are "hot"

banana waffles - yum

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Friday, June 18, 2004

angry

i am so angry i now feel depressed, mostly because i couldnt express it in any way because you are so sensitive about everything in the world.

every sound i utter is construed to mean something thoughtless and brutal... even when its about me and not you.

i will not stay angry forever but i will stay angry until im done feeling angry, and that is fair and logical to me.

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poetic moment #1

i took a nap and then felt better after we argued a little more at dinner. now i like you around again, but still need some space soon to keep my sanity.

its getting a little thick around here. it feels heavy, like im being crushed or smothered by the weight of your self-loathing.

i think they are playing johnny cash or something, that's what it sounds like. i kind of like it... except its starting to depress me. something about a crown of thorns.

i really needed hugs today but there were no huggy buddies around and sometimes it would just be nice to have arms around me and lips on the back of my neck. and i have to say it because its true and i shouldnt have to pretend or be eternally silent out of fear of your fear.

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Thursday, June 17, 2004

elephants

i was at home, or my aunts, or maybe my moms... im not sure, but my grandma wilma was there and that was sure a surprise.

the home was a large rambler, very spacious inside with lots of room for all the people who lived there or were visiting. my cousins billy and sean, lots of children and babies, and grown ups too.

for some reason, we all kept cramming into the car to go to the shopping center nearby on 112th. oddly, there were two shopping centers instead of one and they both had the exact same shops... apparently people would be too lazy to cross the main road, so it made sense to build one on each side.

the house had a large and expansive yard in front, something smaller with trees and shrubs behind the house. i was with the children out front and two miniature ponies were frolicking amongst the grasses. the brown pony belonged to the boy child, and the white pony belonged to the girl child. the boy child was a little older than the girl, so he was able to hop on himself, but the girl child was getting frustrated that she couldnt climb up. so i approached and lifted her onto the white pony. the frolicked happily for a while and i was back into and then out of the house again to find the scene had changed.

now the yard was full of large turkeys, beautiful yet aggressive. the children looked from the deck that surrounded the front of the house. at some point i was walking in the field, perhaps rounding up the children. a turkey began to peck at my belly - silly turkey. it didnt hurt exactly, but was something more like being painfully tickled.

back in the house again, i was near the kitchen and talking with my uncle bill and cousin billy. because as a child i always experienced billy as my tormentor, he was also here to torment me as well. lighting a match, he tossed it toward me.

i felt a burning sensation under my neck but could not find the match. it had slipped down my shirt. immediately i grabbed a cold, damp paper towel and placed it to the black burn, the size of a small pea, just above my adams apple. a small portion of the neckline of my shirt was singed. the match had made its way into my bra and waited there for retrieval. i showed this to my mother and to his mother.

there was no time to be self-indulgent, the girl child was upset. i went to her in the other room. the pony had turned itself into a small white cushy box, which was not nearly as fun as when it was a pony. i picked up the girl child and walked with her. in the vanity, i saw grandma wilma approaching. i turned to her and she looked at the child in my arms with sweet eyes of love. grandma wilma was beautiful with her red hair, large featured face highlighted with red lipstick. she looked as she had when i was a small child, before she had broken her hip or used an oxygen tank.

i saw a strange movement out the window and went to look. peeking up from a little mound of yard was a tiny little elephant. i called people to look but it dissappeared. i found that it mostly prefered to appear in the back of the house, which really only had a small strip of yard, and then was encompassed by trees and bushes.

here i saw that there was a second elephant, equally small. the nose of one stemmed from its forhead, and its face below was a symbol of some kind that i did not have the training to identify. the other elephants nose was in the usual place, but its face above also held a symbol which was different from the other elephant.

i wanted to follow these creatures i had never laid eyes on before, but they were quite quick to disappear. i followed along the back of the house, crossing into the yards of neighbors who didn't seem to mind or find it out of the ordinary that i was searching under their decks for tiny elephants. they certainly hadn't seen any.

i approached a house with a slightly raised deck and about 7 steps leading up. under the deck, almost like posts holding up the corners of the deck where tiny elephants with symbols for faces, and misplaced noses. these were the creatures i had seen before - the creatures i sought!

i looked up onto the deck and saw two women sitting at a beautiful wooden table. i recognized them, but unsure how. they greeted me to join them and i began to explain my search. the woman to my right had long light brown hair and was relatively young. the woman to my left was older and thicker with short white hair. she offered to read my cards for free.

i pull out money to give her a tip, and realize that instead of giving me a five at the store, the clerk had given me a piece of paper which someone had sloppily drawn the five dollar bill. i was horrified that i hadnt noticed this before, and now i would have to tip either two dollars or ten because that was all i had left. so, i tipped twelve.

the older woman reminded me that the last time i had joined them i had left my jacket. she pointed to a door and looked through it, not finding my jacket. she looked through it herself and pulled out a thin black knit cardigan. i was surprised i had missed this item although it had been underneath a couple others on a hanger.

it is time for me to leave, and i know this. but in a bedroom i see one of the elephant creatures siting at a desk. it makes to throw things at me, somewhat mischeviously. and i dodge paper and other light objects wondering how to get to it so i can ask it questions. but i also wonder if i want to get to it since it seems to lack maturity.

it seems i have learned what these creatures are, yet am shrouded in more mystery.

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Wednesday, June 16, 2004

mud pie

my grandma wilma used to tell me that when i was little... very very little... they had these neighbors in their trailer court that i loved dearly.

i would play outside in the dirt with little measuring cups and make them mud pies. after completing a baking cycle (which was probably a few short humming sounds... humm, humm, humm) i would bring my offerings of mud pie to their door.

because they were the sweetest people in the world, they would accept my mud pies in a frenzy of excitement and gobble them up! clearly, this tickled me and id return to my baking, making them more and more.

i sure love mud pies.

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Tuesday, June 15, 2004

sexuality

i used to argue that a relationship with a woman was my ideal because i believed i could be more certain that when she said she loved me, the feeling of love she experienced would be similar enough to the feeling of love i experienced, and this would make it "good" and "real." love with a man, however, held no certainties because men are raised to think about emotions differently than women. thus, i believed when a man said "i love you" it may be an entirely different feeling or motivation than when a woman said "i love you".

apparently, it was important to me that whomever i was experiencing this connection with had the same feelings, experience and definitions of this intense and intimate thing called "love."

today it occurred to me that i experience vulnerability and safety differently with women and men... and in the most unusual way, its opposite from what i would expect...

for some unknown reason, there is a certain vulnerability that i feel with a woman that i do not feel with a man.

i can think of a couple of hypotheses, none of which are spectacularly convincing or flattering, but have served me during my lifetime nonetheless.

1. i have always been around boys, guys, men. i know how they behave, what they think, what they want - especially when it has to do with me (s-e-x). i know i can produce these things if i choose to.

2. ive been used and hurt by a lot more men than women. and i may have learned to emotinally detach from men to prevent further damage. i believe i still want and need an intimate and meaningful connection, and i experience great feelings of love with men. however, it is easy for me to let go of the relationship because my perspective of things being temporary allows that distance and detachment.

3. with men, i assume they will or wont like me, and which ever it is it doesnt matter because i know i am beautiful, intelligent, amusing, witty, sexy, sweet, kind, generous, talented, and all around magnificent. if they dont like me, there is clearly something wrong with them, or they prefer starving bimbos to women with substance.

when i consider women, on the other hand, i feel very vulnerable in these relationships. perhaps this is due to a lack of confidence and experience (although its not like i havent dated women). but quite honestly, they frighten me. i question if they actually like me, if im attractive to them, if i possess enough of whatever traits they find appealing. i know there are tons of other, hotter, lesbians out there for them to date and that some of them might just be better than me.

today there is no ideal - woman or man. regardless which gender i am faced with in an intimate relationship, there is no certainty of similarity in our meanings, definitions, and experiences of feelings and emotions. i cannot ever know if what we feel for each other is the same. i can only trust in what i feel and know to be true for me. and i must do what is right for me, keeping my own well-being and life purpose in mind while navigating this sea of life and love. if i remain true to myself, my values and my life purpose than i will always experience joy an love within. i will always enjoy the time i have with the people i let in my life, even if it is only temporary.

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Monday, June 14, 2004

i am flexible and flowing

"I am open to the new and changing. Every moment presents a wonderful new opportunity to become more of who I am. I flow with Life easily and effortlessly."

~Louise L. Hay Power Thought Cards

i notice that the more flexible i am, and less attached to outcome, the more Life flows with a sense of ease and joy. i release the need to control my surroundings, outcomes, or other people.

the less i seek to control these things, the less they "need" controlling. instead i choose to place my focus on acceptance and conscious creation. i accept whatever comes to me, knowing that i am magnificent and have the ability and capacity to meet any challenge. i use each moment as an opportunity to create the most magnificent experiences, opportunities and life i can.

love and life flow through me, and i am free to experience the joy and wonder of this human existence. i choose ease in my life and wish you the same.

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Friday, June 11, 2004

Two on the McCourt

apparently there are at least 2 well known Frank McCourts.

one is the author of Angela's Ashes and the other is an owner of the LA Dodgers.

LOM had never heard of the author. i had only known of the author and thought it was pretty cool that he and his family were at the Red Sox v. Dodgers game at Fenway tonight. authors can be so cool.

at some point LOM began to realize the announcers were refering to him as a Dodgers owner. naturally, i wondered if maybe they were talking about someone else and it just sounded like they were talking about Frank McCourt.

i decided to prove that there clearly was some confusion. either Frank McCourt was an author, a Dodgers owner, or both.

a quick google revealed that there are, in fact, two Frank McCourts. one of which is the author and the other of which a Dodgers owner. who knew?

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Saturday, June 05, 2004

a beautiful day in the neighborhood

It was such a beautiful day today. The sun shone warmly on our faces, making it impossible not to smile.

On our way out the door to meet new friends for dinner, our elderly neighbor VM was being escorted home by strangers. She has the best luck, I think. Nice people always seem to help her home.

LOM, another neighbor and I helped inch VM down the entry steps, into the elevator and into VMs apartment at the end of a long cooridor. I think, perhaps, she has lived in this unit for 40 years.

We left her on her couch, offering our phone numbers. The independent woman refused us. Yet when I looked into her eyes I saw such vulnerability. I was very moved by this.

Only a short time ago, as LOM and I were on our way to Cassava Lounge for our daily ration of tea and free internet, we saw a police officer at her door and decided we needed to investigate.

VMs nephew had called her but received no answer. He then called the police to check on her. The officer knocked on the door and listened for any kind of movement or response. Well, at least that's what I was listening for.

...Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse...

We told him of the evenings earlier events, all that we knew of VM (which isn't a whole lot), and that there was no way she had enough strength to leave her unit alone again on this very day.

LOM and I went back to our apartment to search our condo records for information to see if we could find someone who might have a key to the unit so the officer wouldn't have to call the fire department to break down the door.

LOM, a trustee of the building, called the management emergency number to see if the company had a key to the unit. By the time they returned the call VM would have definately been dead... if she had been home.

The officer was able to get the door open... with a credit card. Glad to know VMs unit is a fortress of safety. I acted as his witness as we entered and searched the place for VM. She was nowhere to be found, thankfully. Of course, I'm assuming someone or some agency came to take her to the hospital for care and that she survived.

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Thursday, June 03, 2004

canvas captive

walking to walgreens, i saw two young hip looking women with clipboards... i immediately began looking for an escape. but it was boylston and i was so close to my destination... there was no escape.

the first one stopped someone else... phew! almost there, just 10 more feet, i can make it if...

the cute one with the hat spoke "do you have a minute to help push GW out of the white house?" it was a tough question, one of those trick ones that you can't say "no" to otherwise you're essentially saying "i torture little puppies and kitties."

quickly, only pausing for a slight second so that she could hear me, i replied "i already vote, uh and stuff." alas, she was well trained and held my eyes... "im helping to raise money for the democratic party to get rid of Bush." my perfect out - "im sorry, i dont have any money today."

this did not dissuade her. she continued looking directly into my eyes as she told me about the master plan... the democrats would use this money in states such as Florida to recruit people to vote, register more democratic voters, and transport voters to the polls.

i nodded politely... thinking of how i could appease her without outright lying. i could tell her that i know people with money and would tell them about this, but it was too late. i was already standing there, captive of this canvaser. i continued to nod as she told me more and more.

"do you have anything i can take with me?" she looked at her clipboard, under it, and looked back at me. "i dont", she said. "but i can give you the URL... it's democrats.org. do you want me to write it down for you?"

"democrats.org... i can remember that." she smiled and said thank you as i turned to make my way into walgreens. i smiled and for some reason thanked her back.

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