Celebutante

Pronounciation discussion:

Envelope or Envelope? My boss Hans Widicker was listening to a commercial for a jacuzzi on the AM station in North Dakota. The voiceover said,"Let the warm soothing bubbles envelope (pronounced like the noun not the verb) you." Most everyone subscribes to the pronounciation difference twixt the noun "EN-ve-lope" and the verb "en-VEL-op." Now the question is, do you pronounce the noun "on-vel-ope," like me, or "en-vel-ope" like the unpretentious?

He Ain't Heavy . . .

One of my Men's Health emails made reference to mypetfat. So I went to the site, and I not only found a really cool paper weight but some valuable positive-thinking advice. My title, from the Band hit, alludes to a weight/burden that is "my brother." Jay, from mypetfat, had a problem with fat; the visual reminder allowed him and countable others to control and positively address that problem.

What are your problems/issues/discrepancies-twixt-reality-and-desire? I suggest we can use our own issue specific "mypetfat" to help us. Maybe we want to work out more--make a token out of a picture on a piece of cardboard, for durability, to carry with us and look at when we have to make the choice between two activities. Maybe we don't stay in touch with family--carry around a rock. It is mighty lonely; do we want to be that lonely?

Pronounciation discussion:

Saturday on the way back from church, I was listening to Wait, Wait! Don't Tell Me. and the citizen contestant for the fill-in-the-blank limerick contest was from Wilkes-Barre, PA. I've sent stuff there for AdventSource and always pronounced it in my head as Wilkes Bar. Well, the resident of this aging community pronounces it correctly as Wilksberry. Who knew? Not me, that's who. This brought to mind another town name of a customer of AdventSource, Havre de Grace, MD. I wonder, do the citizens of this town pronounce "Havre" like Favre, the quarterback--"Farve." What interesting town names/town pronounciations do you know?

Hew's in the News?

Tony Minear, former Union College teacher in the religion dept.

Why I'd Like to Compose

Because, I could then title my tunes. Today at CVC while not enjoying or learning from the sermon, I looked at the different tune titles and accompanying songs in the Seventh-Day Adventist Hymnal. Those of you who enjoy playing the piano and hymns might look to pages 816-818 in your hymnal for variety.

Some tune titles and stories that caught my eye:

Yigdal (11), You Yangs (102), Ton-y-Botel (413,606), My favorite: Thaxted (648) This tune is from Gustav Holst's The Planets. I can't say I'd like to be thaxted, but wouldn't mind thaxting someone. See Saw Saccara Down (288), St. Botolph (585) my favorite of many "Saint" tunes, O store Gud (86)

Pronounciation conversation

With NPR you get to hear fairly accredited people pronounce words instead of just read them. This week Marketplace with Kai Ryssdal highlighted New York which included reports on the NYSE and their recent merger with Archipelago, an electronic brokerage firm.

Here is where the pronounciation comes into play. They pronounce "electronic" elle-ectronic, not ee-lectronic. I like the choice. What do you think, but more important how do you pronounce it?

The First Nogg-el the Angels Did Say?

Super Saver started selling egg-nog a couple weeks ago. I've now consumed my first half gallon of it, and to top it off, I had egg nog ice cream tonight at Ivanna Cone with my sister and her friends. Actually all four of us had egg nog with my sister gettting the lemon cheesecake, me getting caramel cashew, and her two friends each also getting the sweet cream vanilla.

I've always enjoyed egg-nog. I've even tried making it at home; it didn't turn out very well but that is how it goes when you don't have all the necessary ingredients. Nog(g) is a strong ale from 17th century East Anglia. Originally they would make egg-nog or egg-flip by stirring eggs into hot beer/ale, then add some sugar, milk and spices. I'm not so bold as to think that would taste very good though.

One more question and answer from the academy bowl that I found amusing:

This mountain, considered by many to be the most beautiful in Europe, is in the Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. Those who have been to Disney World would be sure to remember it as well.

The two responses were "Space Mountain" and "Magic Mountain" respectively. For the answer see comments.

Curse the Blimey Stone

Tonight I went to the Academy Bowl that Union put on for the visiting academy seniors, one of which being my sister. One of the teams answered Blimey Stone, when the correct answer was Blarney Stone, even worse they were give credit for the answer.

Some new names of AdventSource customers: Sairy Salgado, Demerol Laupati, Ulna Keet, and Beverly Supersaad. I hope that the reasons for my choices are obvious enough.

When the Frost Is on the Windscreen

I have an opportunity to passive-aggressively delay my trip to work with my Ukranian roommate, hopefully discouraging him from coming with me in the morning. As it is, I try not to speak to him in the morning.

Take It For Granted.

Please. Because it is. It is all granted, if it wasn't you wouldn't have it. So if it is there take it. Accept it.

Heifers for the Holidays

Last week I received "the most important gift catalog in the world" from Heifer International. It is an organization that takes donations and turns them into livestock for people all over the world in dire straits. It seems to be a very good idea. What helps is that they aren't just giving animals, they are training the people to keep the animals healthy and productive.

The Rooster and The Hen

and the Egg.

My friend Angela's friend's husband Jeff gave a talk about a relationship with Christ. He presents it well and as good as I've seen this analogy anywhere. However, I wonder if it is wise to liken our relationship with God to a relationship with a human, even if it is our holy matrimonized partner. Double-However, it could be that because of my inability to have a relationship with a person that would be worthy to mimic in my deified relationships. So the issue isn't having a relationship with God that is like a human relationship, but that I need to learn how to have relationships that are worthy of imitating with God.

This is where I think the Greco-Roman pantheon comes in handy. In this situation, the gods themselves have screwy relationships with each other and humans too. It takes a lot of pressure off our own interpersonal relationships. Plus it helps to magnify different character traits to learn from. To Be Continued.

Wet as October

Hope is a good breakfast but a bad supper.

I hope to get away from the press of my life a bit and visit some friends during the calends of November.

Something Witty and Clever

Children should be seen and not heard.

One more recipe: Sunset Tuna Salad. 2 cups diced red pepper, 2 cups diced carrots, 1 cup mayonnaise, 9 oz. of albacore white chunk tuna (40% dolphin preferred).

I came up with this one on my own, very tasty.

Political freedom cannot exist in any land where religion controls the state, and religious freedom cannot exist in any land where the state controls religion.
-Samuel James Ervin Jr., lawyer, judge, and senator (1896-1985)

Children should be beaten, not heard.

Canaan Instant Breakfast [or Flaxploitation]

I like breakfast. Those of you that know me, know that I like oatmeal for breakfast. If I can't have fresh oatmeal with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, I prefer agglutinated oatmeal, which has been sitting for a bit so the water and starches make a nice smooth cream that absorb the individual oats. Since I don't really buy ice cream to keep around at home, I make my bowl of oatmeal the night before so that I can plump the golden raisins and have that agglutination to stick to my ribs til lunch.

A normal bowl of oatmeal for me is 3/4 c. oats (rolled or quick), 4 pinches of salt, a smattering of golden raisins (about 16 to 24 raisins :), and 1 1/4 to 1 1/3 cups of water (more with rolled oats). I then microwave it either 2:20 or 3 minutes (more for rolled). Once it's out of the microwave I spread a bead of honey (in a counter-clockwise circular motion) over the entire surface of the oatmeal, stir, and refrigerate til morning when I reheat for two minutes, stirring halfway through (maybe a splash of milk to make it creamier).

This morning though, I mixed it up with some flaxseed meal. I put in a rounded spoonful of the miracle meal when I prepared it last night, and this morning . . . WOW! What a wonderful supplement to my already tasty bowl of wholesome goodness. Flax has fiber, lignans, and omega fatty acids.

While flax is most recently enriching my gustatory and alimentary life, it has been a cache of wordy knowledge for me for many years. Flax, or linseed, is used to make linen. In order to get it from the plant to the tropic region leisure suit, it must undergo a long arduous process that includes retting, a soaking of the stalk to breakdown the fibers before they can eventually be spun into thread. Ret is a fun three letter word that is a boon in many word games like Scrabble or Boggle. While flax is soaking, a light yellow foam forms on the top of the vat. This is called tow. Whence towhead for a little blonde boy.

And as I heard a 16 year-old girl say today as she was leaving, "I'm bouncin'."

Bragging and a Recipe

Our family has a breakfast recipe for egg pancake. It is simple, but probably requires a cast iron pan, at least an oven safe sauce pan about 9-10 inches in diameter.

1 cup flour, 1 cup milk, 4 eggs, 1/4 tbsp. of butter, salt to taste.

First place butter in pan and put in oven at 425 degrees. Then mix first three ingredients and pour into pan. The butter should be melted by then. Use it to coat pan to prevent sticking then pour in batter and bake for 15-20 minutes. It will rise up and curl a bit like a souffle. You then slice and enjoy.

Saving the best for last, I now brag. I made this recipe this morning and while it was in the oven I took a shower; it was all ready to go just in time for the kickoff to the Bears-Vikings football game. I love baking because you have incredible opportunities for multi-tasking.

Hot Eats, Cool Treats

Today I went thrifting. I got some ties, a juicer, and five books: two on food, two dictionaries, and one Bulfinch's Mythology (oh and one Pictionary). When I went down to the Goodwill on 17th and Washington, I went to Grateful Bread for the first time. They were out of samiches, but they did have curried cauliflower soup, which I would take over any mulligatawny that the Oven or Tandoor have to offer.

Then this evening Scott and I went to Ivanna Cone. They had a wonderful new flavor: Basalmic Strawberry. The Peanut Butter Fudge Brownie was good too.

I've decided I like old dictionaries; the two I got today were from 1965 and 1936. There is another at Olde Glory antique shop from 1901. Soon it will be mine. On a side note, Gurney is a good test word for dictionaries. Many do not have it. I ask you, "What do they call hospital beds on wheels then?"

In Heaven There Is No Beer,

That's why we drink it here.

My Great Uncle Robert had a stroke on the 1st and passed on the 10th. His funeral was yesterday morning. That evening I went to the NE Stroke Foundation's 12th annual Okto-Beerfest. They had many different beers with a few restaurants providing appetizing hors d'ouvres. I'm now going to list first the beers I tasted that I liked then those that I didn't. If you're not too keen on my lists you can skip down to the other observations from my time there.

Beers I liked:
Empyrean Oktoberfest, Widmer Hefeweizen, New Belgium's Frambozen and 1554 Black Ale, Boulevard Dry Stout, Czechvar, Sam Adam's Cherry Wheat and Oktoberfest, Leinenkugel Oktoberfest (favorite oktoberfest brew), Lincoln Lager's Rootbeer, Hacker-Pschorr Weisse-Dark, Warsteiner Dunkel, and Goose Island's 312 Urban Wheat Ale.

Beer that didn't taste alcoholic or beery: Framboise Lambic, more of a raspberry sparkling wine.

Beers I didn't care for: Empyrean's Luna Sea ESB and Burning Skye Scottish Ale, New Belgium Sunshine Wheat (however, I've been told the Sunshine Wheat Lip Service chapstick is good), Boulevard Bully! Porter, Rouge Dead Guy Ale, Sam Adam's Cream Stout and Triple Bock, Lincoln Lager's Honey Ale, and the Polish Pivo Okocim

Now those observations I promised. They had the Lincoln Pipe and Drum Corps play a couple songs. One of the members, in his full regalia, had a cell phone on his kilt belt right next to his ceremonial sword. Some people just don't get into character like they should. He could have at least put the phone in his tarn. Later in the evening the Herr Schulz German Band played some polka music and other German type music. I realized, as I watched a few people try to dance along, that polka was invented by drunk people. So it was a fun time helping a good cause.

What We Have Here Is A Failure . . .

to communicate. It is now 8:16 in the post meridian. At 6:56 in the post meridian, I began walking from 48th and Calvert to 11th and "H". The reason I had to walk about 5 miles this evening, after working 9 hours and 48 minutes, is because I didn't receive a call from Gross Amoco to come pick-up my car, nor did I really have the time to pick it up. I guess I could have used the 15 minutes I took for lunch to go get it, but then I wouldn't have eaten anything. Oh the decisions we have to make. And really, I would have picked up my car during lunch if I would have remembered, but I was busy with work. Today AdventSource had 21,846 in sales and sent out 126 packages with UPS. To put that in perspective, we are usually very pleased with a $10,000 day, with anything over 70 packages being a good number for UPS.

On the plus side, I got to get a closer view of many loverly homes along Sheridan Boulevard, and I finally got to see the new gazebo/dome at the Sunken Gardens. I didn't take the time to read and go through the touch screen display they have there, but I will.

The Stinger

I just had a horrible nightmare. It is now 4:51 in the AM, and Nat X is nowhere to be found.

Mind you, this is a dream so things are messed up and complicated. I'll try to distill the nightmare part for everyone. In my dream, I thought I was going to be playing basketball, for some reason with Michael Covarrubias, and others to make a team. But before I got to the facility, I decided I didn't want to play. This feeling got even stronger when I got to the facility and found out that it was a Special Olympics event. This competition had an odd arrangement where the buddies and the participants didn't play a game of basketball but moreso did a skills competition. I was late, and when I was walking into the main gym from the facility I was asked by some administrator lady if I was normal (there might have been signs in the area saying it was an able bodied entrance/registration or something). I said yes, and we both had a chuckle because we knew we were the exceptions at the event--here is where the psychological torment comes--we were minority and inferior exceptions.

Once I got into the gym, I was immediately thrust into a skills comp where our regional team was shooting the ball from the side, within the basketball key. I made my first shot, but then there was this girl behind me (I don't know if she was a Special participant or not) who affected my shot because when I went above my head with the shot she would hit it with her hands, i guess because she was just having so much fun, flailing and whatnot. By the way, Frank Martinez was the helper at our basket and he kept on giving me advice while I was shooting and missing. That's kinda the end.

Now for a breakdown of the torment, I was so frustrated because I couldn't complete what should be such a normal function, and I was doing worse than a bunch of handicapped people. The thing is I probably did just as well at the basketball thing as I normally would have, but when I was compared to the Special Olympic participants, I paled. I compare it to a dishwashing competition. Everyone can wash dishes, right? Now step into a situation where you are competing with a bunch of mentally retarded people who have been practicing at dishwashing, and are therefore really good at it--at least better than anyone who hasn't been practicing. So a normal person, me, who hasn't been practicing is blown out of the water in this competition, making them inferiour (I'm going british) by losing. It sounds a little silly right now but this was a really traumatic feeling for me. I think what made it so humiliating was not that I was doing worse than the handicapable, but their presence and my perception of their abilities, castrated my own self-worth when I attempted any task, menial as it was.

It is now 5:20 in the AM, and I thank you for listening to my nightmare. Sweet Dreams

Joe Pa Rises Again

This has been a tough weekend footballwise for me. The Huskers lost the lead with 12 seconds remaining, and the Bears gave up two touchdowns in 30 seconds with 3 minutes remaining in the game to lose a game they were winning. However some teams had some big victories this weekend. The Minnesota Golden Gophers beat the Michigan Wolverines for the first time in a long time to get the Little Brown Jug, a travelling trophy that started when one visiting team's trainer didn't trust the home team's water. On the other side, Michigan has now lost three times this season and hasn't been this bad in a while. Two other upsets in the Big Ten (with their eleven teams) have changed the face of the conference. Undefeated Wisconsin and undefeated The Ohio State University lost to Northwestern and Penn State respectively. This puts Penn State and their geriatric coach Joe Paterno



at the top of the Big Ten Conference. Penn State and Michigan State play for the Land Grant trophy, being two of the oldest Land Grant universities in the country. And in a final bout of trivia, Wikipedia again doesn't fail to satiate my ever burning questions. I wanted to know what exactly a Nittany Lion, the Penn State mascot, was. Now I do.

Another couple big wins happened in the Big 12 Conference, with Baylor getting their first ever road win in the conference against Iowa State, and Texas beating Oklahoma for the first time in maybe six years.

Halation, Dove, and . . .

RED!

Those are the colors that Portland municipal workers have to choose from when creating "The Subconscious Art of Graffiti Removal" a short film by Matt McCormick narrated by Miranda July, writer, director and star of Me and You and Everyone We Know. I really liked her movie; his movies not as much, but Miranda does a fine job narrating and makes it worthwhile.

Mr. McCormick's collection of short films came to me via Netflix. I like Netflix for its expansive dvd database and ease of use, at an affordablity much better than Blockbuster.

Oddly enough, of the 4 or 5 word-a-day emails that I get, two of them had autotomy

Autotomy is nature's gift to some animals to help them escape when under attack or injured. A lizard being chased will drop its tail and slip away. The detached tail continues to wriggle, distracting the predator, while its former owner flees to safety.


One of my wordadays that I really like is from Anu Garg, she is found at wordsmith.org. She always has fun quotes at the end of the email. Here are a couple:
There is no man so good, who, were he to submit all his thoughts and actions to the laws, would not deserve hanging ten times in his life.
-Michel de Montaigne, essayist (1533-1592)

Vocations which we wanted to pursue, but didn't, bleed, like colors, on the whole of our existence. -Honore de Balzac, novelist (1799-1850)

It's the Little Things

This evening after work, I got my hair cut by Missy at Hairington's. I've been to her before (she was the first one to cut my hair to remove my "perm"), but all summer, I've been going to Stacey's in the Hay Market. I really like the freedom I have when I talk to Missy. Stacey is nice, and I liked my hair while I went to her, but never right away, she always styled it funny--the eyebrow waxing is a nice touch too. Missy understands my high forehead (cue They Might Be Giants' "We Want A Rock") and the hair style necessities that requires. So that was nice. After that I went to the Racquet Club, then I planned on shopping at Super Saver on 56th, where I normally go, but I took the turn I normally take when leaving the Racquet Club, toward my home. So instead of entering my consuming comfort zone, I had to compromise with (cue scary music) GHETTO RUSS'S. I was wandering up and down the aisles, back and forth--completely disoriented and increasingly frustrated. Discomfited seems to be the right word. I hate any grocery store that is not Edgewood Super Saver.

Movie Review: A History of Violence 4 outta 5 stars
I really liked this movie. Viggo Mortensen does a wonderful job, really all the actors--Maria Bello, Ed Harris, William Hurt, and Ashton Holmes (as the teenaged son)--do a fine job, with William Hurt dazzling during his short time. Apparently the story is taken from a couple of "graphic novels/comic books." It has that feel to it with its very story boarded scenes. It works for me, because each scene brings something valuable to the film for the characters, plot, and the audience emotion. I don't know if it was the audience I was watching it with, or just the film itself, but instead of a dramatic, intense action feeling, it evoked a deep dark comedy, something that could have been as funny as Fargo with the right casting. But don't take my word for it.

Real Retro Update

I got my The Real Retro.com shirt today, I like it. Plus, it came quickly--I ordered it Wednesday, and it got here today on Monday. Yea! Real Retro.

Merry Chris Kniss Everyone

Quickly, another observation from the Husker game Saturday: when the defensive players for the Huskers made a good play like sacking the quarterback or tackling the running back behind the line, they celebrated by putting one hand in the air wiggling their fingers and then abruptly bringing their hand down in a fist. This was done in concert with a teammate so that it seemed a bit more coordinated. If I'm not mistaken, this is how female volleyball players celebrate. Maybe in discussing the motivation of the band and drum corps previously, I overlooked that maybe the football team is motivated by the Lady Huskers #1 ranking and even greater success.

I don't know what the rules are for using people's names for entertainment purposes only, but I will make this disclaimer now. If anyone whose name I use is offended or angry at the usage of their name, I will give them money so that they don't sue me. Here are some names for your enjoyment:

[These names have been removed by me because I have offended one of them. I apologize.]

It Takes a Willage

This afternoon before the Huskers-Cyclones game, I went to the Haymarket, downtown, and on the campus to see the sights, people watch and such. I could have gotten a seat on the 45 or 35 yard line for 65 bucks, but who knows how far from the field it was. But I wasn't looking for a ticket. As I and a crowd of a lot of other people, maybe 70 then 150, watched the drum corps and band perform on the campus lawn, I thought about all the time and effort that those twenty and 150 individuals went through to perform for and entertain the 77,000 fans that came to watch the game. All of it would be nonexistent if not for the football team, who I doubt realize what magnitude their play has on so many people. For example, how much would the band practice or care if they were playing to a half empty stadium of disgruntled fans? How many Lincoln businesses would be struggling to make ends meet without those five, or this season seven, weekends of increased population in the city by a third? It all begins with the success of 60 kids playing football for three hours on a Saturday afternoon.
However, I think the question remains, would the band care? Does their motivation come from matching the success and excellence of the football players, or is it from the desire to perform well no matter what the circumstance? I'd like to think I would fall under the latter. And whether or not I apply it, I think that the more dire my circumstance, or the lower the quality that surrounds me, the harder I would try to excell, partly out of pride, but also out of self-respect.