Tavie blogs i like:
amy
dave foley
mark mckinney
e.mail
archive
andrew
carl
barb cooking blog
boing boing
caroline
cartoon brew
chris
cityroom
consumerist
erin
gena/ deadly stealth frogs
gothamist
jim hill
kids in the hall lj
kithblog
matt k
mike t
nathan
post secret
rynn
sarah
sarah c
sean
tea rose
toby
tom
webcomics i read:
american elf
american stickman
elfquest
lolcats!
masque of the red death
the perry bible fellowship
toothpaste for dinner
ultrajoebot
xkcd
Other places to find me:
me on the tumblr
me on the flickr
me on the formspring
me on the twitter
me on the ravelry
me on the myspace
Subscribe in a reader
Kids in the Hall on Facebook
Tasty Morsels Bakery on Facebook
my 'currently-reading' shelf:
i want:
wish list
i've read:
goodreads list
Thursday, July 31, 2008
My baby brother* proposed to his girlfriend last week. He called me to tell me the day after I got back from Japan; his blog post about it made me cry.
I can't wait until Joanna's my new sister.
*In all but blood.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:31 PM | shower me with attention
I can't wait until Joanna's my new sister.
*In all but blood.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:31 PM | shower me with attention
When Drusilla licks her tail while sitting on the couch, you can hear a sandpaper scrape-scrape-scrape sound.
I am finding this quite endearing.
I'm very sleepy right now but I have to wait 25 more minutes for my laundry to dry.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 9:19 PM | shower me with attention
I am finding this quite endearing.
I'm very sleepy right now but I have to wait 25 more minutes for my laundry to dry.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 9:19 PM | shower me with attention
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG
Princess and the Frog trailer!!!
Why are you in Tavie's head? 11:00 AM | shower me with attention
Princess and the Frog trailer!!!
Why are you in Tavie's head? 11:00 AM | shower me with attention
Oo-oo-oo-oo!
Why are you in Tavie's head? 8:22 AM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 8:22 AM | shower me with attention
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Ha HA, the insurance company has admitted their error! Ha HA!
In other news, I can't sleep more than a few hours at a time. Ugh.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 3:15 AM | shower me with attention
In other news, I can't sleep more than a few hours at a time. Ugh.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 3:15 AM | shower me with attention
Sunday, July 27, 2008
If my health insurance provider thinks I am paying $730 for a cancer-screening exam ordered by my doctor, they have another think coming. Since when does a routine procedure ordered by my doctor "exceed reasonable and customary"?
Back for five minutes and Real Life topples all over me.
I want into move to DisneySea and set up shop in the simulacrum. I want to live in a false, beautiful reality where the plunges down the mountain only last a split-second and you scream with terrified joy all the way down.
I hate you, health insurance company.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 9:25 PM | shower me with attention
Back for five minutes and Real Life topples all over me.
I want into move to DisneySea and set up shop in the simulacrum. I want to live in a false, beautiful reality where the plunges down the mountain only last a split-second and you scream with terrified joy all the way down.
I hate you, health insurance company.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 9:25 PM | shower me with attention
Johnny Depp sausage, anyone?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 4:11 AM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 4:11 AM | shower me with attention
Saturday, July 26, 2008
The night I come back from Japan, AMC welcomes me home by broadcasting The Last Samurai (yawn) and The Karate Kid: Part II (yay!)
Why are you in Tavie's head? 11:16 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 11:16 PM | shower me with attention
Jiggety-jog.
Wow, if you don't count airplane-naps as real sleep, I've been awake for 26 hours.
Still owe people emails. Sorry.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:30 PM | shower me with attention
Wow, if you don't count airplane-naps as real sleep, I've been awake for 26 hours.
Still owe people emails. Sorry.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:30 PM | shower me with attention
Jiggety-jog.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:30 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:30 PM | shower me with attention
This is easier than writing 50 emails. Ahem:
To whoever I accidentally called that doesn't read this blog or probably speak English: sorry about that! Didn't mean to hang up without saying anything. I panicked!
To Naomi: I will send you the pics soon as I get home*!
To Nina: I will reply to your Dr Who email soon as I get home!
To Mom: I'm at the airport, waiting to board. See you in like 14 hours.
To my future seatmate on the airplane: Sorry about the smell. I had the sweatiest trip to the airport ever. Listen, it's not my fault. Japan is really, really humid. And my sister made me take one of her big suitcases home with me, so I had two rolling suitcases and a heavy backpack and an overstuffed purse, so, yeah. I stink. I'm sorry.
To Gina: I can't believe you cut off all your hair.
To everyone I promised sake: I didn't end up buying any. Sorry. I got a lot of chopsticks and Disney omiyagi, so you can have that instead if you want. Or I'll pop down to the liquor store and buy you sake which is probably just as good (read: perfume-tasting) as the sake I would've gotten you in this airport.
*By which I mean, "as soon as I wake up".
Why are you in Tavie's head? 3:22 AM | shower me with attention
It's a futago thing.
Today's one of those days that we'll look back upon when we're old ladies and speak volumes with a single word or gesture. It was a day when my sister and I rediscovered all the magical parts of our childhood together without having to force it. Today I discovered DisneySea.
It's the most beautiful theme park I've ever been to. I took about a gazillion pictures because everywhere I looked, I was dazzled.
K. was most excited for me to see this place. She wouldn't permit any "spoilers", which meant I couldn't peek at a guidemap or read too much on Wikipedia, or even face the park as we rode over on the monorail. She wanted the experience to be "pure" for me. As seasoned a Disneypark otaku I am, it is an extremely rare occurrence to experience one for the first time. I had those pit-of-the-stomach "I'm too excited to sleep" butterflies as the monorail approached the park. I warned her I might cry. I was that excited. (I didn't cry, but my eyes about fell out of my head.)
My favorite part was Discovery Bay, the steampunk dreamland that must've given Cory Doctorow a hundred little nerdgasms when he stepped foot there. One of the multitude of little signs of the day's perfection was during our second go-round in their spectacular update of "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" (a.k.a. "The Submarine Ride") - there's a sunken ship called the "HMS Octavia".
It was a toss-up between that and "Journey to the Center of the Earth" for favorite ride. I honestly can't decide; when I'm riding each, I love it best. We rode each one twice and it wasn't nearly enough times.
We also discovered something new together - K. hadn't gone into Mermaid Lagoon on any of her visits to the park, and I think it was because the Fates wanted us to discover this wonderland together. I don't care who you are - male or female, 5 years old or 95, this place is fucking beautiful and should be experienced. We were instantly 9-year-olds again, reaching for eachother's hands, giggling and running through Ariel's world together. I can't be remotely snarky or sarcastic about this place. It was that beautiful. For some reason, it made us both think of our friend Erin - maybe because she, of all people we know, appreciate beautiful design, and this place exemplifies that notion.
Even the little-baby-kiddie attractions are awesome. Sindbad's Storybook Village was a charming ride that was, surprisingly, not based on any existing Disney franchise. It's sort of an Aladdin-meets-Small World, with strangely ugly-cute character design and an infectious (Japanese) theme song. Oh, Alan Mencken wrote it - that explains it.
Yes, and even their Tower of Terror was fun, with its dastardly-yet-dapper old-man hero, depicted in the post-show area as attended by numerous adoring concubines. It took K some coaxing to get me on this one, but well worth the effort.
I wish we could have had a hundred days like today. I wish today had gone on forever. It kind of will, I think.
Kirsten says:
The Japanese word for "atmosphere" is fuinki. Say that fast and it sounds like "fwinky". The "fwinky" stepping out of the Hilton into the warm, humid air (Japan in July is stupid hot), smelling the moisture, and reliving past days of being cooped up in a car to be greeted by overabundant sunshine and the promise of discovery was like having one's childhood handed back to them. On the monorail, we could see the ships lining Tokyo Bay. We could even see the commuter subway train pass by on its way to the city center. That was on the left; on the right was an entirely different universe altogether. Tokyo DisneySea is at once familiar and yet a wholly different experience from Epcot, MGM, even the Magic Kingdom in any hemisphere. The paucity of costume-characters is one clue that this is definitely Disney on the "B" side. The Mouse has little overt presence in DisneySea, because the Mouse is a figurehead for the children, whereas DisneySea tends to attract an entirely different age group. However, it is no less mystifying and wondrous, at any age.
I snack. I snack a lot. Everywhere I go in Disney, I'm surrounded by unusual things to eat. Disney Japan, in particular, offers a wide variety, given the Japanese penchant for seasonal ingredients and the universal plague of finicky children. Frozen mango on a stick so hard you can barely chew it; shaved ice with passionfruit syrup; flaky sausage pies; curry-flavored popcorn, for the love of god! Outstanding.
To beat the heat, the steampunk imagery went well, given that the "steam" was actually cooling mist. Each section of DisneySea caters to a specific echelon of one's inner moppet. My personal favorite is the Spanish fortress, a gorgeously-designed collection of parapets, each containing its own amusement, from alchemy lab to Foucault's pendulum. "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" - I had lost hope of ever seeing that breed of attraction again. I rode the "Raging Spirits" roller coaster alone because Tavie was a pussy, but every other moment I shared with the only other person on the planet that would understand every nonsensical thing that would come out of my mouth that day.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:27 AM | shower me with attention
To whoever I accidentally called that doesn't read this blog or probably speak English: sorry about that! Didn't mean to hang up without saying anything. I panicked!
To Naomi: I will send you the pics soon as I get home*!
To Nina: I will reply to your Dr Who email soon as I get home!
To Mom: I'm at the airport, waiting to board. See you in like 14 hours.
To my future seatmate on the airplane: Sorry about the smell. I had the sweatiest trip to the airport ever. Listen, it's not my fault. Japan is really, really humid. And my sister made me take one of her big suitcases home with me, so I had two rolling suitcases and a heavy backpack and an overstuffed purse, so, yeah. I stink. I'm sorry.
To Gina: I can't believe you cut off all your hair.
To everyone I promised sake: I didn't end up buying any. Sorry. I got a lot of chopsticks and Disney omiyagi, so you can have that instead if you want. Or I'll pop down to the liquor store and buy you sake which is probably just as good (read: perfume-tasting) as the sake I would've gotten you in this airport.
*By which I mean, "as soon as I wake up".
Why are you in Tavie's head? 3:22 AM | shower me with attention
Friday, July 25, 2008
It's a futago thing.
Today's one of those days that we'll look back upon when we're old ladies and speak volumes with a single word or gesture. It was a day when my sister and I rediscovered all the magical parts of our childhood together without having to force it. Today I discovered DisneySea.
It's the most beautiful theme park I've ever been to. I took about a gazillion pictures because everywhere I looked, I was dazzled.
K. was most excited for me to see this place. She wouldn't permit any "spoilers", which meant I couldn't peek at a guidemap or read too much on Wikipedia, or even face the park as we rode over on the monorail. She wanted the experience to be "pure" for me. As seasoned a Disneypark otaku I am, it is an extremely rare occurrence to experience one for the first time. I had those pit-of-the-stomach "I'm too excited to sleep" butterflies as the monorail approached the park. I warned her I might cry. I was that excited. (I didn't cry, but my eyes about fell out of my head.)
My favorite part was Discovery Bay, the steampunk dreamland that must've given Cory Doctorow a hundred little nerdgasms when he stepped foot there. One of the multitude of little signs of the day's perfection was during our second go-round in their spectacular update of "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" (a.k.a. "The Submarine Ride") - there's a sunken ship called the "HMS Octavia".
It was a toss-up between that and "Journey to the Center of the Earth" for favorite ride. I honestly can't decide; when I'm riding each, I love it best. We rode each one twice and it wasn't nearly enough times.
We also discovered something new together - K. hadn't gone into Mermaid Lagoon on any of her visits to the park, and I think it was because the Fates wanted us to discover this wonderland together. I don't care who you are - male or female, 5 years old or 95, this place is fucking beautiful and should be experienced. We were instantly 9-year-olds again, reaching for eachother's hands, giggling and running through Ariel's world together. I can't be remotely snarky or sarcastic about this place. It was that beautiful. For some reason, it made us both think of our friend Erin - maybe because she, of all people we know, appreciate beautiful design, and this place exemplifies that notion.
Even the little-baby-kiddie attractions are awesome. Sindbad's Storybook Village was a charming ride that was, surprisingly, not based on any existing Disney franchise. It's sort of an Aladdin-meets-Small World, with strangely ugly-cute character design and an infectious (Japanese) theme song. Oh, Alan Mencken wrote it - that explains it.
Yes, and even their Tower of Terror was fun, with its dastardly-yet-dapper old-man hero, depicted in the post-show area as attended by numerous adoring concubines. It took K some coaxing to get me on this one, but well worth the effort.
I wish we could have had a hundred days like today. I wish today had gone on forever. It kind of will, I think.
Kirsten says:
The Japanese word for "atmosphere" is fuinki. Say that fast and it sounds like "fwinky". The "fwinky" stepping out of the Hilton into the warm, humid air (Japan in July is stupid hot), smelling the moisture, and reliving past days of being cooped up in a car to be greeted by overabundant sunshine and the promise of discovery was like having one's childhood handed back to them. On the monorail, we could see the ships lining Tokyo Bay. We could even see the commuter subway train pass by on its way to the city center. That was on the left; on the right was an entirely different universe altogether. Tokyo DisneySea is at once familiar and yet a wholly different experience from Epcot, MGM, even the Magic Kingdom in any hemisphere. The paucity of costume-characters is one clue that this is definitely Disney on the "B" side. The Mouse has little overt presence in DisneySea, because the Mouse is a figurehead for the children, whereas DisneySea tends to attract an entirely different age group. However, it is no less mystifying and wondrous, at any age.
I snack. I snack a lot. Everywhere I go in Disney, I'm surrounded by unusual things to eat. Disney Japan, in particular, offers a wide variety, given the Japanese penchant for seasonal ingredients and the universal plague of finicky children. Frozen mango on a stick so hard you can barely chew it; shaved ice with passionfruit syrup; flaky sausage pies; curry-flavored popcorn, for the love of god! Outstanding.
To beat the heat, the steampunk imagery went well, given that the "steam" was actually cooling mist. Each section of DisneySea caters to a specific echelon of one's inner moppet. My personal favorite is the Spanish fortress, a gorgeously-designed collection of parapets, each containing its own amusement, from alchemy lab to Foucault's pendulum. "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" - I had lost hope of ever seeing that breed of attraction again. I rode the "Raging Spirits" roller coaster alone because Tavie was a pussy, but every other moment I shared with the only other person on the planet that would understand every nonsensical thing that would come out of my mouth that day.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:27 AM | shower me with attention
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, I am off to DisneySea!
Why are you in Tavie's head? 9:32 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 9:32 PM | shower me with attention
The happiest Tavie on earth. Me and Kirsten met up my friend Naomi (Japanese KITH fan extraordinaire) and the three of us hit Tokyo Disneyland this morning and didn't stop until about half an hour ago. My dogs is tired, yo.
I took lots of pictures, because I do that.
It was a magical day from start to finish. Everything both familiar and strange atonce; favorite rides in Japanese, strange popcorn (I liked the "melon soda flavor" best, but that's only because I didn't get to try the curry) and - oh, nostalgia, oh, rapturous joy, the Tokyo Main Street Electrical Parade, including my very very favorite Disney character of all.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:53 AM | shower me with attention
I took lots of pictures, because I do that.
It was a magical day from start to finish. Everything both familiar and strange atonce; favorite rides in Japanese, strange popcorn (I liked the "melon soda flavor" best, but that's only because I didn't get to try the curry) and - oh, nostalgia, oh, rapturous joy, the Tokyo Main Street Electrical Parade, including my very very favorite Disney character of all.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:53 AM | shower me with attention
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
One thing is certain: Gina wouldn't survive long here on nothing but edamame and iced tea.
I've had more outer-space food in the past couple days than any other time I can remember. This picture, of ikura and pickled ginger, doesn't qualify as outer-space food, as it's my favorite sushi and I eat it often at home. (It's also one of the few types of sushi I can eat without allergic reaction.)
We went to a bar with Paul and Yuko last night, and had a vast array of Japanese bar food. Although we forewent the salted squid guts, we had more than enough wacky strange comestibles to satisfy my penchant for the more bizarre gastrointestinal experiences. I'm pretty sure I ate some sort of barbecued intestine on a stick, and it was frickin delicious. The weirdest thing of all, though, was the matcha sundae with azuki sauce, not in itself so very odd save the special surprise on the bottom: corn flakes.
The Japanese obsession with corn both repels and fascinates me. I like corn, but does it have to be everywhere?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:43 PM | shower me with attention
I've had more outer-space food in the past couple days than any other time I can remember. This picture, of ikura and pickled ginger, doesn't qualify as outer-space food, as it's my favorite sushi and I eat it often at home. (It's also one of the few types of sushi I can eat without allergic reaction.)
We went to a bar with Paul and Yuko last night, and had a vast array of Japanese bar food. Although we forewent the salted squid guts, we had more than enough wacky strange comestibles to satisfy my penchant for the more bizarre gastrointestinal experiences. I'm pretty sure I ate some sort of barbecued intestine on a stick, and it was frickin delicious. The weirdest thing of all, though, was the matcha sundae with azuki sauce, not in itself so very odd save the special surprise on the bottom: corn flakes.
The Japanese obsession with corn both repels and fascinates me. I like corn, but does it have to be everywhere?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:43 PM | shower me with attention
Thank you for being a friend. I am sad.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:19 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:19 PM | shower me with attention
My über-Japanese day began with lolling around in bed for a full 8 hours watching Dr Who and surfing the inter-not. Then I met K. at a 7-11 (I know, right?) down the street and she took me to her school, Hisumi. It was her last day there and she wanted to show me around to the kids. The kids, the cutest little moppets imaginable, unreal in their cuteness, like cartoons come to life. Pushing, reaching, suddenly shy, begging me for my "autograph", or to draw cartoon characters in their exercise books. K. was amazing with them. She blew my mind. Everywhere she went, she introduced her "neesan" [big sister] and I protested, "futago, [twin] not neesan!" At the end of the afternoon - exhausted, sweating, smiling, nodding, speaking slowly, straining to understand, sipping iced tea, smiling, nodding - the kids performed an elaborate ceremony, with flags and an insanely precocious marching band.
After that, it was sushi with K's friend Sandy, one of the most adorable (yet deadpan - a strange mix, you must meet her!) people I've ever met. Then karaoke. Are you keeping track? Japanese schoolchildren, sushi, karaoke.
Then... well, before I begin this section of the travelogue, I know that you may not be able to help but try and picture the stories that you read here. It's part of reading, you make up little pictures in your mind to accompany the text. To help keep your breakfast down, the part of Tavie is going to be played in the following paragraph by your choice of the following: Drew Barrymore, Liv Tyler or a young Isabella Rosselini. Picture them in your mind. Got it? OK.
K. took me to an onsen. I had sworn up and down I would never go to such a place, where it is required that you be completely naked with total strangers - of the same gender, sure, but so what? My best friends have never seen me naked, and I intend to keep it that way. I would not wish my Jabbaesque* nudity on anyone. But K. swore up and down that no one cares, that everyone's naked, that it's perfectly normal.
I dunno what made me agree - jetlag, lack of reason, too much ikura and green tea, my aching hip - but, okay, so I did that. It was kind of... not at all bad. Seriously, if the middle-aged ladies were sneaking peeks at my bodacious booty, they had the courtesy to do it when I was looking elsewhere. That's all I ask, really. And the bubbling hot springs were unspeakably refreshing.
So I've done that.
I will now resume playing myself. If you need a reminder, I am the Jew-y man-looking girl making a face in the picture below.
*I can make up a nu werd?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 9:23 AM | shower me with attention
After that, it was sushi with K's friend Sandy, one of the most adorable (yet deadpan - a strange mix, you must meet her!) people I've ever met. Then karaoke. Are you keeping track? Japanese schoolchildren, sushi, karaoke.
Then... well, before I begin this section of the travelogue, I know that you may not be able to help but try and picture the stories that you read here. It's part of reading, you make up little pictures in your mind to accompany the text. To help keep your breakfast down, the part of Tavie is going to be played in the following paragraph by your choice of the following: Drew Barrymore, Liv Tyler or a young Isabella Rosselini. Picture them in your mind. Got it? OK.
K. took me to an onsen. I had sworn up and down I would never go to such a place, where it is required that you be completely naked with total strangers - of the same gender, sure, but so what? My best friends have never seen me naked, and I intend to keep it that way. I would not wish my Jabbaesque* nudity on anyone. But K. swore up and down that no one cares, that everyone's naked, that it's perfectly normal.
I dunno what made me agree - jetlag, lack of reason, too much ikura and green tea, my aching hip - but, okay, so I did that. It was kind of... not at all bad. Seriously, if the middle-aged ladies were sneaking peeks at my bodacious booty, they had the courtesy to do it when I was looking elsewhere. That's all I ask, really. And the bubbling hot springs were unspeakably refreshing.
So I've done that.
I will now resume playing myself. If you need a reminder, I am the Jew-y man-looking girl making a face in the picture below.
*I can make up a nu werd?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 9:23 AM | shower me with attention
Monday, July 21, 2008
The bed is swaying again. Just a little. These tiny earthquakes, I don't know how people get used to them.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 8:53 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 8:53 PM | shower me with attention
Natto is a much-beloved Japanese delicacy made of rotten soybeans. Ichiro and Kei went on and on about it today; Paul and Yuko went on and on about it last night. It's renowned for its foulness.
I had to try it, so K and I had a little tasting party in our undies. We took pictures (no worries, all shots from the neck up.)
I'm "Larry" because the humidity in this steaming jungle of a country makes me look like that kinky-haired stooge. My Jewfro is out in full.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:08 AM | shower me with attention
I had to try it, so K and I had a little tasting party in our undies. We took pictures (no worries, all shots from the neck up.)
I'm "Larry" because the humidity in this steaming jungle of a country makes me look like that kinky-haired stooge. My Jewfro is out in full.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:08 AM | shower me with attention
There's something akin to the old clock in the town square ringing out the time here - it's some sort of PA system that blares a chime through the town at certain hours.
They're now blaring "Eidelweiss".
Rodgers and Hammerstein in a small Japanese - it's so surreal. K says a lot of people don't even know what the song is.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 5:00 AM | shower me with attention
They're now blaring "Eidelweiss".
Rodgers and Hammerstein in a small Japanese - it's so surreal. K says a lot of people don't even know what the song is.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 5:00 AM | shower me with attention
We just got back from a extended, leisurely lunch at a family restaurant called "Gusto". Think Friendly's East - very strange Japanese menu, very kid-friendly, full of families with young children. We were there so I could meet Kirsten's favorite student and his mother, one Ichiro, an incredibly well-spoken and polite young man who speaks perfect English. We sat and talked for hours, he and his charming mom practicing their English, Kirsten and I blithering on and on about New York and Japan - mostly food.
But let's back up. I had originally packed a tank top, but wanting to keep my luggage light, I tossed it aside at the last moment. Stupid; most of the shirts that I did end up taking are extremely low-cut. (What can I say? The girls like to breathe.) So low-cut are my comfy shirts that they would be inappropriate for me to wear when meeting a student; thus, K and I spent most of the morning scouring Japanese clothing stores in search of something that would fit a fat, proud young American*.
I dunno where big people get their clothes in this country; but seeing as I haven't come across any yet, I'm guessing that they hide their big people in caves or under large tree roots or somesuch.
Anyhow, we finally found something that I could stretch over my bulbous frame, something to hide the cleavage, so I was decent to meet the kiddo.
The picture, by the way, is of a vitamin drink. Kirsten doesn't find it at all strange that there's a drink called "Collagen". She has clearly been here too long.
More pictures here.
*I'm quoting McKinney; I am in no way proud.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 4:51 AM | shower me with attention
But let's back up. I had originally packed a tank top, but wanting to keep my luggage light, I tossed it aside at the last moment. Stupid; most of the shirts that I did end up taking are extremely low-cut. (What can I say? The girls like to breathe.) So low-cut are my comfy shirts that they would be inappropriate for me to wear when meeting a student; thus, K and I spent most of the morning scouring Japanese clothing stores in search of something that would fit a fat, proud young American*.
I dunno where big people get their clothes in this country; but seeing as I haven't come across any yet, I'm guessing that they hide their big people in caves or under large tree roots or somesuch.
Anyhow, we finally found something that I could stretch over my bulbous frame, something to hide the cleavage, so I was decent to meet the kiddo.
The picture, by the way, is of a vitamin drink. Kirsten doesn't find it at all strange that there's a drink called "Collagen". She has clearly been here too long.
More pictures here.
*I'm quoting McKinney; I am in no way proud.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 4:51 AM | shower me with attention
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Oh it's four in the morning and I'm awake, awake, awake...
Why are you in Tavie's head? 3:09 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 3:09 PM | shower me with attention
Dryblog - Saturday, July 19th, 11:00 am
Waiting to board the flight to Tokyo. The airport's wireless network keeps cutting out. I've reduced the font to a barely-legible miniscule 6-point so that I can blog in relative privacy. But now that I'm sitting here, laptop booted up, I find myself with little to say. I feel frumpy; using the restroom before going through security, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror (something I've been trying to avoid for awhile now.) I have my hair down in braids, the easier to lean my head back and sleep without an interfering ponytail lump digging into my scalp. My freshly-washed hair looks frizzy, dry, underconditioned. My eyes are even more raccoon-y than usual.
The flight will take 13 hours, 45 minutes. After deplaning ("a fancy word for... get off the plane now"), I'll wait on the long line through immigration, and exchange my currency, and then do the part I'm dreading: find the office to get my rail pass, make them help me reserve a seat on the Shinkansen to Nagaoka, ask them to help me findthe Narita Express to Tokyo to get ON the Shink, and hope I don't forget a step or take too long to make the train, or get confused and break down in the middle of the airport.
Meh. This is why Mom gave me a bottle of Valium to take with me. Not that I plan on taking it. I've traveled alone many times; I enjoy it, I prefer it. But this time I feel exhausted, weighed down, frizzy and uncertain.
We'll see. First things first. First I have to board the plane and make it through the flight. My tool will be Nyquil.
7.20 - 3:52 pm local time (2:52 am NYC)
I am absurdly proud of myself. I'm typing this on the Narita Express (N'EX) train from Narita airport heading for Tokyo Station. Miraculously, I got through immigration, found my bags (a quick heart-stopping moment when I realized I was waiting at the wrong carousel, and, upon reaching the right carousel, found "Baggage Pick-up Closed" glaring at me from the electronic screen - but my taxi-yellow suitcase was waiting for me at the Baggage Desk) - made it through customs, got my currency exchanged, found the JR Rail office, traded my voucher for a rail pass, got reservations for both this train and the Shink from Tokyo Station to Kirstenland - all on little sleep and with two messy pigtails flapping around my skull. Not too shabby, Miss T. Not too shabby.
Wet blog (local time: 8:26 pm)
I made it! I made it! I madezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:24 AM | shower me with attention
Waiting to board the flight to Tokyo. The airport's wireless network keeps cutting out. I've reduced the font to a barely-legible miniscule 6-point so that I can blog in relative privacy. But now that I'm sitting here, laptop booted up, I find myself with little to say. I feel frumpy; using the restroom before going through security, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror (something I've been trying to avoid for awhile now.) I have my hair down in braids, the easier to lean my head back and sleep without an interfering ponytail lump digging into my scalp. My freshly-washed hair looks frizzy, dry, underconditioned. My eyes are even more raccoon-y than usual.
The flight will take 13 hours, 45 minutes. After deplaning ("a fancy word for... get off the plane now"), I'll wait on the long line through immigration, and exchange my currency, and then do the part I'm dreading: find the office to get my rail pass, make them help me reserve a seat on the Shinkansen to Nagaoka, ask them to help me findthe Narita Express to Tokyo to get ON the Shink, and hope I don't forget a step or take too long to make the train, or get confused and break down in the middle of the airport.
Meh. This is why Mom gave me a bottle of Valium to take with me. Not that I plan on taking it. I've traveled alone many times; I enjoy it, I prefer it. But this time I feel exhausted, weighed down, frizzy and uncertain.
We'll see. First things first. First I have to board the plane and make it through the flight. My tool will be Nyquil.
7.20 - 3:52 pm local time (2:52 am NYC)
I am absurdly proud of myself. I'm typing this on the Narita Express (N'EX) train from Narita airport heading for Tokyo Station. Miraculously, I got through immigration, found my bags (a quick heart-stopping moment when I realized I was waiting at the wrong carousel, and, upon reaching the right carousel, found "Baggage Pick-up Closed" glaring at me from the electronic screen - but my taxi-yellow suitcase was waiting for me at the Baggage Desk) - made it through customs, got my currency exchanged, found the JR Rail office, traded my voucher for a rail pass, got reservations for both this train and the Shink from Tokyo Station to Kirstenland - all on little sleep and with two messy pigtails flapping around my skull. Not too shabby, Miss T. Not too shabby.
Wet blog (local time: 8:26 pm)
I made it! I made it! I madezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:24 AM | shower me with attention
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Off to the airport. All told, it'll take roughly 24 hours of traveling (14 of it on the plane, the rest waiting or getting from here to there to another place) for me to get to where I'm going.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 8:09 AM | shower me with attention
From: Tavie
To: Hannah
Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:55 pm
Re: AV Club! X-Files!
Oh sweet mother of all that is holy in this beautiful, terrible world, THAT IS THE GREATEST THING I HAVE EVER SEEN.
Nathan Fillion? CHECK
Joss Whedon? CHECK
Beautifully penned showtunes? CHECK
NEIL MOTHERFUCKING PATRIC HARRIS? CHECK!!!!!!!!
Why have I never HEARD of this before?
I have to blog.
(Also, that's not the book I saw in Toronto but that one looks even better. I am buying it. Thank you! A million times thank you!)
-----Original Message-----
From: Hannah
To: Tavie
Sent: Thu, 17 Jul 2008 8:04 pm
Subject: Re: AV Club! X-Files!
Have you been watching this? http://www.drhorrible.com/
And: http://www.amazon.com/Bedlam-Anthology-Sleepless-Jane-Messer/dp/1864480726 ?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:53 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 8:09 AM | shower me with attention
Thursday, July 17, 2008
From: Tavie
To: Hannah
Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:55 pm
Re: AV Club! X-Files!
Oh sweet mother of all that is holy in this beautiful, terrible world, THAT IS THE GREATEST THING I HAVE EVER SEEN.
Nathan Fillion? CHECK
Joss Whedon? CHECK
Beautifully penned showtunes? CHECK
NEIL MOTHERFUCKING PATRIC HARRIS? CHECK!!!!!!!!
Why have I never HEARD of this before?
I have to blog.
(Also, that's not the book I saw in Toronto but that one looks even better. I am buying it. Thank you! A million times thank you!)
-----Original Message-----
From: Hannah
To: Tavie
Sent: Thu, 17 Jul 2008 8:04 pm
Subject: Re: AV Club! X-Files!
Have you been watching this? http://www.drhorrible.com/
And: http://www.amazon.com/Bedlam-Anthology-Sleepless-Jane-Messer/dp/1864480726 ?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:53 PM | shower me with attention
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Last month I was in Pages, an excellent bookstore in Toronto. I bought a couple of books there that were on sale (and excellent reads), but there was one that caught my eye that I didn't purchase at that time. I did write down the title - and promptly lost the paper.
The problem is, I don't remember anything about the book except that it was an anthology of short stories (I think) about sleep or insomnia.
Dammit. I really want to remember what this book is.
Has anyone out there heard of a book like this?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 11:21 PM | shower me with attention
The problem is, I don't remember anything about the book except that it was an anthology of short stories (I think) about sleep or insomnia.
Dammit. I really want to remember what this book is.
Has anyone out there heard of a book like this?
Why are you in Tavie's head? 11:21 PM | shower me with attention
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Work is hell. Life is hell.
I'm going to Japan on Saturday. Travel is hell.
Hell, hell, hell.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:34 PM | shower me with attention
I'm going to Japan on Saturday. Travel is hell.
Hell, hell, hell.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:34 PM | shower me with attention
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Poor Francis is stuck sleeping on our couch tonight. Air travel is not as reliable as one would hope.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 11:51 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 11:51 PM | shower me with attention
Saturday, July 12, 2008
My first 29th birthday was fun once the work day ended. A surprising amount of people-- Guy Incognito, Staci, Jeremy, all three Stephanies, Kathy, Lucy, Francis, and, of course, my hetero life partner Silent Bob, and we crowded out my favorite restaurant for muchos tapas y sangria.
After that, we went to Karaoke at that place off of University, and we all sang - even me. Pena's renditionn of "Glory of Love" was a theatrical triumph.
Today my family came out to Hoboken and we went to see Wall-E, which I absolutely adored. My geeky heart was happy from the first strain of showtune to the very end of the gorgeous closing credits. "Eve's Theme" is the single most Epcotty piece of music I've ever heard on film, and I want the soundtrack for that reason alone.
In other news, I got a call from Goose today, who reminded me about The AV Club's ongoing retrospective of Newsradio, which I'm posting a link to here because I keep forgetting to read it.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:51 PM | shower me with attention
After that, we went to Karaoke at that place off of University, and we all sang - even me. Pena's renditionn of "Glory of Love" was a theatrical triumph.
Today my family came out to Hoboken and we went to see Wall-E, which I absolutely adored. My geeky heart was happy from the first strain of showtune to the very end of the gorgeous closing credits. "Eve's Theme" is the single most Epcotty piece of music I've ever heard on film, and I want the soundtrack for that reason alone.
In other news, I got a call from Goose today, who reminded me about The AV Club's ongoing retrospective of Newsradio, which I'm posting a link to here because I keep forgetting to read it.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:51 PM | shower me with attention
Friday, July 11, 2008
Happy birthday, Kirsten. Welcome to your last year of your twenties.
Ha-ha, you're old.
*beat*
Waitaminnit...
I make a variation of this joke every year. Does not get old for me.
ETA: I can't believe this post spent all day with an incorrect link to my sister's blog. Lame.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 12:00 AM | shower me with attention
Ha-ha, you're old.
*beat*
Waitaminnit...
I make a variation of this joke every year. Does not get old for me.
ETA: I can't believe this post spent all day with an incorrect link to my sister's blog. Lame.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 12:00 AM | shower me with attention
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Hollywood Reporter says Elfquest is really going to be made into a movie this time.
Wow.
P.S.: Boinged it!
Why are you in Tavie's head? 12:40 PM | shower me with attention
Wow.
P.S.: Boinged it!
Why are you in Tavie's head? 12:40 PM | shower me with attention
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
My former manager surprised me today with a trifle in the conference room. She actually made me a trifle. It was delicious. Everyone jumped out and yelled "surprise!"
The most surprising part is that my birthday isn't for three days.
That was some delicious, delicious trifle.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:15 PM | shower me with attention
The most surprising part is that my birthday isn't for three days.
That was some delicious, delicious trifle.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:15 PM | shower me with attention
Monday, July 07, 2008
Epic BB thread coverage continues, now in the NYT.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:25 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 10:25 PM | shower me with attention
Sunday, July 06, 2008
I'm in a Starbucks in Washington, D.C. with my mom, waiting to get the dollar bus back to New York. We've had a fun, if tiring weekend in our nation's capital. Today we spent the day at the National Zoo. We went specifically so I could see an elephant get his bath, as my mom is well apprised of my life-long fascination with the bathing of elephants. And that was, indeed, a spectacular event to witness - I had never seen an elephant bath in person before - but, oddly enough, it was not the most striking moment of my day.
The most striking moment was meeting Kiko (pictured.) Kiko is an amazing orangutan who was chilling out under a white sheet in the "Think Tank" exhibit at the National Zoo. He loves to hide under sheets, and he was doing so today as he watched us, his face pressed against the glass, his wise eyes tracking our movements. I hunkered down and spent a good long time peering into his eyes. (Normally apes don't like this, but Kiko is more than used to inquisitive humans giving him the hairy eyeball, and did not seem in the least disturbed.)
I could have gazed into Kiko's eyes for hours. I felt very certain that he knew something that I didn't, and I wished he would tell me. We were as close to nose-to-nose as you can get with an orang - I was less than a yard away from him.
What a fellow. I think I fell a little in love.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 4:47 PM | shower me with attention
The most striking moment was meeting Kiko (pictured.) Kiko is an amazing orangutan who was chilling out under a white sheet in the "Think Tank" exhibit at the National Zoo. He loves to hide under sheets, and he was doing so today as he watched us, his face pressed against the glass, his wise eyes tracking our movements. I hunkered down and spent a good long time peering into his eyes. (Normally apes don't like this, but Kiko is more than used to inquisitive humans giving him the hairy eyeball, and did not seem in the least disturbed.)
I could have gazed into Kiko's eyes for hours. I felt very certain that he knew something that I didn't, and I wished he would tell me. We were as close to nose-to-nose as you can get with an orang - I was less than a yard away from him.
What a fellow. I think I fell a little in love.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 4:47 PM | shower me with attention
Friday, July 04, 2008
Happy fourth of July.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:27 AM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 7:27 AM | shower me with attention
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Oh, epic Boing Boing comment thread. I would be so bored without you.
Why are you in Tavie's head? 8:07 PM | shower me with attention
Why are you in Tavie's head? 8:07 PM | shower me with attention
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
