Miss Esther, there's a mouse in the house!
Thursday morning I woke up at 5:40 because I needed to get into work early to do a bit of media monitoring. Surprisingly, I wasn't very groggy. Lately I have been questioning if I really am a morning person because even with 7 hours, I wake up in a zombie-like fog. (Many may recall, that in Seattle I averaged 5.5-6.0 hours per night, and still had lots of energy.) This morning I was very glad to have more spring in my step because I needed it!
After waking I headed to the bathroom to shower and beautify myself. As I was...in the bathroom I saw the shower curtain twitch. I ignored it thinking it was just a wierd gravitational pull, but it did it again. Then I was worried. I recalled last March when I was visiting my friend Krista in NYC and there was a HUGE cockroach in the bathtub. So big that I refused to kill it myself. It was something that I did not want to see in my bathtub at any time. With much trepidation I opened the shower curtain; fortunately I did not see a slimy six-legged mutant. Instead, I saw a wriggly little worm that turned out to be a mouse tail.
This little grey mouse was frantically trying to climb out of the bathtub, but he couldn't quite make it and kept slipping to the bottom of the tub. Since I do not have an aversion towards mice, I actually felt sorry for the little guy. I quickly put some clothes on, grabbed a dishtowel, and tried to pick him up. The dish towel was for my hands. I may not have an aversion to him, but I do have one to the vermin he may have been carrying. Plus he probably bites.
My first attempt to pick him up failed. He's a quick bugger. But I was successful of the second try. I then had to find a flashlight because I remembered that the hallway light wasn't turned on the night before, and I didn't want to trip down the stairs while holding a mouse. Finally we made it outside. I crouched down to let him loose, and boy was he ready to escape. After I opened the towel he made a bee-line to the "curb" for our handrail to climb over the side and on to freedom. Too bad he did not realize that on the other side of that "curb" thing was a 1 story drop. So he fell, but amazingly he did not die. I guess he had so much adrenaline pulsing through his tiny body that the fall did not phase him. As soon as he hit ground he was off like a bolt of lightening. I'm sure he set some kind of mouse record for speed. I imagine, that he probably has a few broken bones or something...or he's just another one of those indestructible New York vermin.
Anyway, for all those who have reconsidered visiting me, we have plugged up all the holes in our apartment with steel wool, and we should no longer have any problems. I think that night he was stuck in our tub was his first night with us, because there weren't any of those tell-tale signs. We will also sweep more.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Sunday, August 13, 2006
In the subways you will find people selling all sorts of things. In the L stations there are people who sell bootlegged copies of current films. For kicks, my roommate bought a copy of the Lake House. Angie liked the film on the big screen, so why not watch a film that was filmed at the movie theater! Actually she probably didn't think that as she plopped down five bucks, she just hoped that the copy wasn't too horrible. We watched it this afternoon.
Well to start out, the movie wasn't exactly clear. It was as grainy as watching an old movie on non-HDTV...or any newer TV set. It was pretty much UHF. Actually, it reminded me of Mystery Science Theater 3000. For those of you who don't know what that is, let me explain. It was a show on the Comedy Channel about a guy who was sent to a space ship to watch bad movies as punishment. To endure the drudgery he made robot sidekicks who would make funny commentary throughout the show. Essentially, the viewer would watch people watch movies. So today, The Lake House was MST 3000 without commentary from robots. It was still cheesy enough for me to make my observations.
The videographer had a steady hand, for the most part. There was one part where he must have fallen of his seat because all of a sudden the images on screen went sideways and then black. Then there was the time when the blanket that covered the camera covered the right half of the screen. After a while the left side was covered.
Since it was in the theater, there were a lot of random coughs and at we could see people getting up and going to get more popcorn.
Even though the movie was not that great, I must say that watching it bootlegged made it more entertaining.
Well to start out, the movie wasn't exactly clear. It was as grainy as watching an old movie on non-HDTV...or any newer TV set. It was pretty much UHF. Actually, it reminded me of Mystery Science Theater 3000. For those of you who don't know what that is, let me explain. It was a show on the Comedy Channel about a guy who was sent to a space ship to watch bad movies as punishment. To endure the drudgery he made robot sidekicks who would make funny commentary throughout the show. Essentially, the viewer would watch people watch movies. So today, The Lake House was MST 3000 without commentary from robots. It was still cheesy enough for me to make my observations.
The videographer had a steady hand, for the most part. There was one part where he must have fallen of his seat because all of a sudden the images on screen went sideways and then black. Then there was the time when the blanket that covered the camera covered the right half of the screen. After a while the left side was covered.
Since it was in the theater, there were a lot of random coughs and at we could see people getting up and going to get more popcorn.
Even though the movie was not that great, I must say that watching it bootlegged made it more entertaining.
In the subways you will find people selling all sorts of things. In the L stations there are people who sell bootlegged copies of current films. For kicks, my roommate bought a copy of the Lake House. Angie liked the film on the big screen, so why not watch a film that was filmed at the movie theater! Actually she probably didn't think that as she plopped down five bucks, she just hoped that the copy wasn't too horrible. We watched it this afternoon.
Well to start out, the movie wasn't exactly clear. It was as grainy as watching an old movie on non-HDTV...or any newer TV set. It was pretty much UHF. Actually, it reminded me of Mystery Science Theater 3000. For those of you who don't know what that is, let me explain. It was a show on the Comedy Channel about a guy who was sent to a space ship to watch bad movies as punishment. To endure the drudgery he made robot sidekicks who would make funny commentary throughout the show. Essentially, the viewer would watch people watch movies. So today, The Lake House was MST 3000 without commentary from robots. It was still cheesy enough for me to make my observations.
The videographer had a steady hand, for the most part. There was one part where he must have fallen of his seat because all of a sudden the images on screen went sideways and then black. Then there was the time when the blanket that covered the camera covered the right half of the screen. After a while the left side was covered.
Since it was in the theater, there were a lot of random coughs and at we could see people getting up and going to get more popcorn.
Even though the movie was not that great, I must say that watching it bootlegged made it more entertaining.
Well to start out, the movie wasn't exactly clear. It was as grainy as watching an old movie on non-HDTV...or any newer TV set. It was pretty much UHF. Actually, it reminded me of Mystery Science Theater 3000. For those of you who don't know what that is, let me explain. It was a show on the Comedy Channel about a guy who was sent to a space ship to watch bad movies as punishment. To endure the drudgery he made robot sidekicks who would make funny commentary throughout the show. Essentially, the viewer would watch people watch movies. So today, The Lake House was MST 3000 without commentary from robots. It was still cheesy enough for me to make my observations.
The videographer had a steady hand, for the most part. There was one part where he must have fallen of his seat because all of a sudden the images on screen went sideways and then black. Then there was the time when the blanket that covered the camera covered the right half of the screen. After a while the left side was covered.
Since it was in the theater, there were a lot of random coughs and at we could see people getting up and going to get more popcorn.
Even though the movie was not that great, I must say that watching it bootlegged made it more entertaining.
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Tonight as I was cooking some dinner, I heard a couple of explosions. No, it wasn't my cooking...even though I do cook on a gas stove. I decided to into my room to see if I could get an idea where that noise came from. It came from a building behind mine that was, at the time, on fire. 
After a few more exlosions, the flames got even stronger and they roared out of the window. It seemed like it took forever for the fire department to come and put the fire out. Finally they came.
The first firefighter (sorry for the bad picture) broke all the glass out of the remaining windows on the floor. I thought it was rather odd, but as soon as the hoses turned on, I realized why. The force of the water would have broken the windows anyway, and at least glass was no longer flying with it. It was creepy to watch, and I am just so glad that no one was in the place...that I saw. I hope everyone was safe.
Have you ever wondered what would happen if you put four New Yorkers in a car and sent them to New Jersey? OK, maybe that isn't exactly something you lay awake at night thinking about, but just in case you are let me tell you what happens: confusion. I am not going to blame it on us poor New Yorkers who don't drive anymore; I think New Jersey signage is the biggest culprit.
Today my friends Holly, Richard, and Alejandro borrowed a car and went to IKEA, Costco, and Target. Holly didn't want to drive, and quite frankly I didn't want to either. NYC has way too many one way streets and it can be very confusing. It is not as confusing as the New Jersey Turnpike. Our first stop was IKEA, and it took us three tries to get there. Alejandro drove, and Richard navigated, but it wasn't too successful. I was pretty much not paying attention to where we were or how it was that we got lost. I think the issue was that we were looking for an exit that wasn't well-marked. We always saw it as we passed it. But getting to it would also require driving over medians. Since we weren't in an SUV, we opted against it. We drove by the same mosque about three times, made several U-Turns (some of those being in the same place), and then finally we made it to IKEA.
It was Holly's first time ever at the Swedish haven of cheap furniture. This particular store was enormous--two stories. We started our voyage through the store at the cafe. This is place that requires sustenance for sure, and we all endulged in some swedish meatballs. Then we hit the showroom. I am in the market for furniture because I currently just have mattresses and a mantle that doubles as a vanity. My underwear is in a suitcase next to my closet. So I looked at dressers and shelves. I didn't buy anything though. I am going to wait until I am no longer an intern. Alejandro is in the same boat. We both looked around and bought just a few kitchen things.
So when we finally got done with IKEA (about three hours) we headed over to Costco. In Seattle it is not a good idea to go to Costco on Saturday because it is completely impossible to find a place to park. This is not the case at the Hackensack, NJ Costco. But we had other issues. For example there was four of us and only one Costco card--and this card didn't belong to either of us. Using my powers of stealth, I was able to get in by tagging along with a random shopper, and then met up with the gang. We got a few things, and headed to the checkout. This is where we met up with an issue. Since neither of us was the cardholder, we were not allowed to purchase anything. Dejected, we walked back to our car and headed to Target. That's a good store. No membership cards, we found it easily, and it has pretty much everything one needs. Even vitamins. I actually forgot to buy those...so luckily I discovered this before we left the parking lot.
Amazingly, the trip back to NYC was uneventful. But for those of you who want to drive into New Jersey, be careful of signs and turnpikes and Costco.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
For everyone who knows about my love of professional cycling...well all readers should know after my first-day-of-the-Tour post...perhaps you are wondering about my thoughts on the Floyd Landis situation. Well, I will tell you. I firmly believe that he is innocent. You all may think that I am terribly naive, especially after the results of the tests, but I am sticking to my guns. Something is terribly fishy, but yet the press wants to make a villian of him.
True, he hasn't really represented himself like smooth, suave Lance Armstrong. Lance has had seven years of defending himself in the public eye so he is very well-versed in what the media should hear, and I imagine he has a stellar PR team. Floyd, on the other hand, probably didn't think he would need any PR training, so now he is shooting himself in the foot everytime he opens his mouth. If I were his publicist I would tell him to say less, and I would tell his expert friends to quit giving excuses because the press is having a field day making fun of every new idea.
So why do I think he is innocent? He only had one positive test. Sure, it happened to fall at a very important day, but if he wanted to guarantee victory by was of artificial enhancements he would have doped up for the time trial as well. That was the day that sealed his victory. No one dopes just once. He is a hard worker. He proved that early in the season with three wins--and zero positive drug tests.
So now all you CSI fans are shouting, "But what about the tests?" Well that is a question for the UCI, cycling's governing body, and the World Anti-Doping Association. Their tests are flawed! The first flaw is that the UCI uses a testing facility that is notorious for leaking information to the press. (ie Lance Armstrong) They are not supposed to know anything about the athletes they test, but still they manage to be able to tell L'Equipe the nationality of the testee. If the results are supposed to be valid, the facility cannot know anything that could bias their results. Floyd's name should have never (according to the UCI's OWN rules) been out in the public until after the B-sample was tested. But, as the UCI stated, they had to make the announcement before the testing facility told the press. I see red flags here!
Second flaw: Operacion Puerto (OP) has already proved that science does not always work. Several athletes, ie Ivan and Jan, are in trouble for somehow being involved in a doping scandal, yet when they were recently tested after their wins, the tests found nothing. This either means that A) They are totally innocent or B) THEY DON'T WORK. I think Ivan is innocent, however.
Lastly, this whole doping thing has become nothing more than a McCarthy-esque witch hunt. Dennis McQuaid of the UCI spends most of his time bad-mouthing suspected cyclists and won't even help them claim their innocence. For example, I read in Velo News that Spanish authorities have asked the UCI for Jan's blood samples to see if they match the frozen ones from OP. The UCI refused, saying they needed to have them for their research. Wouldn't be horrible if Jan lost everything because the UCI won't help him? McQuaid has even said that if the Italain Olympic committee finds Ivan innocent, the UCI will still sanction him--and they have NO right to do that according to their own laws. Which we have seen they can't even follow in the first place.
Many people blame the drugged up cyclists for ruining the sport. I say that it is the UCI who is ruining it by dragging innocent people through the mud. GO FLOYD!!!
PS Greg LeMond needs to shut the #*$&% up. If the testing procedure was as crazy then as it is now, chances are he would have tested positive for something besides being a major naughty word that my grandmother taught me.
True, he hasn't really represented himself like smooth, suave Lance Armstrong. Lance has had seven years of defending himself in the public eye so he is very well-versed in what the media should hear, and I imagine he has a stellar PR team. Floyd, on the other hand, probably didn't think he would need any PR training, so now he is shooting himself in the foot everytime he opens his mouth. If I were his publicist I would tell him to say less, and I would tell his expert friends to quit giving excuses because the press is having a field day making fun of every new idea.
So why do I think he is innocent? He only had one positive test. Sure, it happened to fall at a very important day, but if he wanted to guarantee victory by was of artificial enhancements he would have doped up for the time trial as well. That was the day that sealed his victory. No one dopes just once. He is a hard worker. He proved that early in the season with three wins--and zero positive drug tests.
So now all you CSI fans are shouting, "But what about the tests?" Well that is a question for the UCI, cycling's governing body, and the World Anti-Doping Association. Their tests are flawed! The first flaw is that the UCI uses a testing facility that is notorious for leaking information to the press. (ie Lance Armstrong) They are not supposed to know anything about the athletes they test, but still they manage to be able to tell L'Equipe the nationality of the testee. If the results are supposed to be valid, the facility cannot know anything that could bias their results. Floyd's name should have never (according to the UCI's OWN rules) been out in the public until after the B-sample was tested. But, as the UCI stated, they had to make the announcement before the testing facility told the press. I see red flags here!
Second flaw: Operacion Puerto (OP) has already proved that science does not always work. Several athletes, ie Ivan and Jan, are in trouble for somehow being involved in a doping scandal, yet when they were recently tested after their wins, the tests found nothing. This either means that A) They are totally innocent or B) THEY DON'T WORK. I think Ivan is innocent, however.
Lastly, this whole doping thing has become nothing more than a McCarthy-esque witch hunt. Dennis McQuaid of the UCI spends most of his time bad-mouthing suspected cyclists and won't even help them claim their innocence. For example, I read in Velo News that Spanish authorities have asked the UCI for Jan's blood samples to see if they match the frozen ones from OP. The UCI refused, saying they needed to have them for their research. Wouldn't be horrible if Jan lost everything because the UCI won't help him? McQuaid has even said that if the Italain Olympic committee finds Ivan innocent, the UCI will still sanction him--and they have NO right to do that according to their own laws. Which we have seen they can't even follow in the first place.
Many people blame the drugged up cyclists for ruining the sport. I say that it is the UCI who is ruining it by dragging innocent people through the mud. GO FLOYD!!!
PS Greg LeMond needs to shut the #*$&% up. If the testing procedure was as crazy then as it is now, chances are he would have tested positive for something besides being a major naughty word that my grandmother taught me.
Sunday, August 06, 2006
As I am sure most of you heard on the news, New York had a bit of a heat wave last week. You know, I think it is funny that weather makes the news...and more than just the daily forecast. I always look to the news to find out about things that I don't already know. I can pretty much go outside and tell that it is sweltering. Of course the news does tell us how to deal with the heat, which I guess is important. Actually, last week's heat crisis turned scorching temperatures into a near state of emergency.
As I've mentioned in a previous entry, the old buildings we live in are not equipped with central air. (I invite you to read back to my entry on installing air conditioners...it is quite funny.) But since these units are not always cheap, not everyone has one. For example I don't. My apartment has one in the living room, and my two roommates have them in their bedrooms, but I am not quite ready to shell out a hundred or so bucks for one. I have a small fan that I got for free, and at the beginning of summer I thought that was plenty. I figured that it couldn't get hotter or muggier than Ecuador, so I can handle the heat. I am pretty much the most retarded person on the planet. It is hot, and I should go out and get an a/c, but now I tell myself that it is pretty pointless to get one with one month left of summer. Although they will go on sale soon, and maybe I'll get one then.
I am not the only one in this city without an a/c precariously perched on my windowsill. I imagine there are many low-income families in the 'hood that are relying on fans and popsicles to stay cool. (Popsicles are still one step up from me, however. Due to the sugar content, I'm trying to do without.) So when the 100+ days came, and the popsicle/fan combo failed, the residents did the only thing they could do--they bust open the fire hydrants. This is an illegal activity, as they tell us on the news, but it happens on every street. While walking home, I do enjoy the light spray of the hydrant; it is refreshing. I have yet, however, to stand in front of the hydrant. Those things are pretty powerful, and like I said, it is against the law. But when I see the hydrants I often think about running through the sprinklers, which was a favorite childhood activity. I guess fire hydrants are the inner-city sprinkler system.
Fortunately during the day, I am in an air-conditioned office. In fact there are days when it is so cold that I have to turn on the space heater. This week, we were not allowed to keep our a/c as cold, however. You may recall a few years ago when several cities back east blacked out. This is a common occurrence in the summertime because a/c units tend to use up a lot of power. (My roommates told me that energy bills are much higher in the summer than in the winter--that's something that may come as a shock to Seattleites.) In order to conserve energy, ConEd asks everyone to dim lights, lower the a/c temperatures, and turn off any unnecessary electrical appliance. Apparently elevators are one of those unnecessary appliances. I disagree. I work on the 16th floor. As much as I like the stairs, I do not like 16 flights of stairs. That's why I took the freight elevator when our main lifts were grounded on Thursday. The freight elevators have to work for deliveries and the handicapped, or people with stilettos. (Although one girl in my office climbed the 16 floors in 4 inch heels.) That Thursday was a fun day. We had to work with our lights off, and everything seemed really laid back and casual. We ordered in lunch under the excuse that due to the elevators we couldn't leave. I had a really tasty BLT. But the next day, I dressed ready to climb up the stairs, but the elevators were turned on. I'm not sad about that, by the way.
Another fun part of summer are roofop parties. Having a good roof is quite the commodity. Since our apartments are so small, it is hard to have a large party. So resourceful New Yorkers looked to the roof for their smashing parties. In fact there are a few bars/clubs on roofs. I haven't been to any, I've just heard. There are two great reasons to go to a rooftop party: 1. the view. Last week I went to a roof with a great view of the George Washington Bridge. Reason #2. the cool breeze. Add some chips, and you've got a party. The only dilemmas with these parties is electric power. There aren't any outlets up there. So to have lights, music, and the occasional bubble machine, party hosts usually dangle extension cords into their window and plug in that way. This is ideal for those that live on the top floor, but it is very comical when the host lives on the bottom floor. Luckily we aren't dealing with a high rise building. I think those have outlets--they are more modern. They even have central air. No, the party in question had maybe five or six floors, but still the thankfully long cord was lowered all the way to the bottom, with a girl hanging out her window yelling "A little more to the right" at 10:00 p.m.
You are probably wondering when I am going to throw my rooftop party. Well, our roof isn't very accessible. Most good roofs have a stairway leading up to it. We have a ladder. Somehow I don't see myself carrying two litre bottles while climbing up a ladder.
As I've mentioned in a previous entry, the old buildings we live in are not equipped with central air. (I invite you to read back to my entry on installing air conditioners...it is quite funny.) But since these units are not always cheap, not everyone has one. For example I don't. My apartment has one in the living room, and my two roommates have them in their bedrooms, but I am not quite ready to shell out a hundred or so bucks for one. I have a small fan that I got for free, and at the beginning of summer I thought that was plenty. I figured that it couldn't get hotter or muggier than Ecuador, so I can handle the heat. I am pretty much the most retarded person on the planet. It is hot, and I should go out and get an a/c, but now I tell myself that it is pretty pointless to get one with one month left of summer. Although they will go on sale soon, and maybe I'll get one then.
I am not the only one in this city without an a/c precariously perched on my windowsill. I imagine there are many low-income families in the 'hood that are relying on fans and popsicles to stay cool. (Popsicles are still one step up from me, however. Due to the sugar content, I'm trying to do without.) So when the 100+ days came, and the popsicle/fan combo failed, the residents did the only thing they could do--they bust open the fire hydrants. This is an illegal activity, as they tell us on the news, but it happens on every street. While walking home, I do enjoy the light spray of the hydrant; it is refreshing. I have yet, however, to stand in front of the hydrant. Those things are pretty powerful, and like I said, it is against the law. But when I see the hydrants I often think about running through the sprinklers, which was a favorite childhood activity. I guess fire hydrants are the inner-city sprinkler system.
Fortunately during the day, I am in an air-conditioned office. In fact there are days when it is so cold that I have to turn on the space heater. This week, we were not allowed to keep our a/c as cold, however. You may recall a few years ago when several cities back east blacked out. This is a common occurrence in the summertime because a/c units tend to use up a lot of power. (My roommates told me that energy bills are much higher in the summer than in the winter--that's something that may come as a shock to Seattleites.) In order to conserve energy, ConEd asks everyone to dim lights, lower the a/c temperatures, and turn off any unnecessary electrical appliance. Apparently elevators are one of those unnecessary appliances. I disagree. I work on the 16th floor. As much as I like the stairs, I do not like 16 flights of stairs. That's why I took the freight elevator when our main lifts were grounded on Thursday. The freight elevators have to work for deliveries and the handicapped, or people with stilettos. (Although one girl in my office climbed the 16 floors in 4 inch heels.) That Thursday was a fun day. We had to work with our lights off, and everything seemed really laid back and casual. We ordered in lunch under the excuse that due to the elevators we couldn't leave. I had a really tasty BLT. But the next day, I dressed ready to climb up the stairs, but the elevators were turned on. I'm not sad about that, by the way.
Another fun part of summer are roofop parties. Having a good roof is quite the commodity. Since our apartments are so small, it is hard to have a large party. So resourceful New Yorkers looked to the roof for their smashing parties. In fact there are a few bars/clubs on roofs. I haven't been to any, I've just heard. There are two great reasons to go to a rooftop party: 1. the view. Last week I went to a roof with a great view of the George Washington Bridge. Reason #2. the cool breeze. Add some chips, and you've got a party. The only dilemmas with these parties is electric power. There aren't any outlets up there. So to have lights, music, and the occasional bubble machine, party hosts usually dangle extension cords into their window and plug in that way. This is ideal for those that live on the top floor, but it is very comical when the host lives on the bottom floor. Luckily we aren't dealing with a high rise building. I think those have outlets--they are more modern. They even have central air. No, the party in question had maybe five or six floors, but still the thankfully long cord was lowered all the way to the bottom, with a girl hanging out her window yelling "A little more to the right" at 10:00 p.m.
You are probably wondering when I am going to throw my rooftop party. Well, our roof isn't very accessible. Most good roofs have a stairway leading up to it. We have a ladder. Somehow I don't see myself carrying two litre bottles while climbing up a ladder.
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