Hypothetical questions and cookies

Yesterday J.D. made his famous chocolate chip cookies!

While a batch was baking, we flipped through the t.v. channels. We found a Harvard philosophy professor giving a lecture on PBS. He had apparently posed the question whether a person would choose the collected works of Shakespeare or The Simpsons. We didn't catch what his larger results were, so I decided to ask the question too. Feel free to be honest, especially since the poll is completely anonymous.

And I won't say too much more, but I think maybe there is a lot here beyond what "meets the eye" in the judgment assigned to the choices. (Definitely arguments can be made). Also, it's quite possible J.D.'s and my choices would surprise a few people.

I've also added the hypothetical question that J.D. then came up with, which changes the context and perhaps your answer.

Anyway, this is the sort of thing we talk about while eating chocolate chip cookies, lots and lots of chocolate chip cookies. :) YUM!

My favorite is the part about Senator Tiddles (R-TN).

Cat Congress Mired In Sunbeam
September 25, 2009 Issue 45•39

WASHINGTON—The current session of the 111th Cat Congress was once again suspended Tuesday following the sudden introduction of a sunbeam onto the Senate floor, a development that has left a majority of transfixed lawmakers unable to move forward.
The ray of sunlight, which first appears in the official record at 11:30 a.m., interrupted debate over S. 391, a proposal to provide underprivileged felines with universal access to scratching posts.
"We've come up against an unforeseen circumstance, but we'll resume deliberation and voting as quickly as is reasonably possible," said majority leader and Budget Committee chaircat Sen. Creamsicle (D-ND), stretching out to his entire length and repeatedly kneading the chamber carpet. "I think I speak for most of my colleagues when I say that, while it is extremely important we continue the legislative work at hand, we must first give this warm and bright beam of light the due consideration it deserves."
"And we should, er, debate this for as long as it takes," added Creamsicle, softly swishing his tail back and forth. "Perhaps all day, if we have to."
A majority of senators seemed to agree with Creamsicle. Eighty-nine of the 100 congresscats present immediately joined the new Sunbeam Investigative Committee, and a number of subcommittees are also reported to have been created, the largest of which has been tasked with determining the value of lazily batting at rising dust motes while half-asleep.
A small minority of feline senators, however, took issue with the procedural delay. Sen. Poppy (D-DE) was especially vocal, claiming that the Senate should ignore the seemingly intractable sunbeam issue and continue with other, more pressing matters.
"This irresponsible stoppage is absolutely unacceptable," Poppy said. "Frivolous distractions like these are robbing our constituents of the soft, cozy shafts of…I mean, the reforms they so desperately need…so desperately need… I yield my remaining time."
Some legislators refused to participate in the debate altogether, most notably Sen. Ruby (R-SC), who spent several hours sitting motionless in front of the northwest wall of the Cat Capitol Building, staring unblinkingly at an unknown object.
The sunbeam marked the fourth event to suspend congressional activity this week. According to sources, other disruptions included a thunderclap on Monday that instantly adjourned proceedings; Wednesday's chaotic introduction of a laser pointer; and the discovery of a large cardboard box in the Capitol Rotunda Thursday that prompted minority whip Sen. Tiddles (R-TN) to call a recess so that he could sit inside of it.
None of these delays, however, compares to the appearance of a small sparrow outside the congressional chamber last month, which completely mesmerized House Speaker Jeffy-Boy (D-CA) and brought all government activity to a standstill for approximately 17 minutes.
Big Stripey, founder of the influential political watchdog committeelitter.com, said he isn't surprised by the latest sunbeam debacle, claiming that years of corruption and mating scandals have shown just how ineffectual the current Cat Congress really is.
"Our lawmakers were elected to serve the common cat, not their own self-interests," Big Stripey said. "With over 6 percent of the population stray, millions more going hungry or only getting dry food, and the dogs next door developing a very real litter of puppies, we need action now for the sake of our kittens and our kittens' kittens."
"We're not paying these idiots to sit around and lick each other all day," Big Stripey added.
Many congressional insiders refuted accusations of indolence, saying that the rigorous schedule of cat legislators entitles them to periodic breaks in addition to their 18 scheduled hours of sleep per day.
"Our Founding Toms understood that certain provisions must be made in the interest of the public good," congressional spokescat Georgina said. "Democracy is not always so cut and dried. Sunbeams are going to happen. Vacuum cleaners are going to happen. Those little springy wires with a piece of cardboard at the end are going to happen. It's simply the way the system works."
According to late reports, the Cat Congress had briefly reconvened due to cloudy weather, but was quickly adjourned again after a crumpled up piece of aluminum foil suddenly rolled across the Senate floor.

"Best if served chilled"

I took my glucose test today. At 8:25 I downed the flat, super-sweet orange drink. I did have a choice of that or lime flavored, but I decided to go with a known evil. I found the writing on the label highly entertaining: "Best if served chilled." Yeah right. Let's just say it was not chilled, but I'm not sure that would have helped much anyway. I copied this part of the label too: "Administer test in the morning, when possible, and advise patient to remain quiet for duration of the test." Remain quiet? What, so I can't complain about feeling queasy? :) I waited for an hour; they took my blood sample, and then I walked home.

It was a beautiful day here. On my walk there were tons of September roses in bloom. They smelled lovely. Once I was home I took a nap, and then J.D. came to get me for his company's fall picnic. I really enjoyed being out of the apartment and getting a little vitamin D, having a hamburger for lunch, and laughing with J.D.'s co-workers. Good times.

Relaxing in the shade with J.D. We were watching the "Washers" tournament, which apparently is a Midwestern thing. We later played a game against Steve and James. J.D. and I both scored a "ringer," the most difficult throw. The game involves throwing 3 to 4 washers into a box. If it goes into the box, you get a point. If it lands really close to the box, you can also possibly score a point. If it goes into a cup inside the box, then you get a ringer, worth 3 points. It's a pretty simple game. Everyone throws the washers one at a time. Except me-- I tried throwing them all at once, and ironically, that is when I did my best! I called it my "cheater-cat" move, but we all laughed. It was a lot of fun.

I saw my first "keg stand". . . don't worry, the pregnant lady did NOT participate. (Nor would I ever). Although J.D. said he has done a keg stand before (read: college Kappa Sigma days). He said he lasted about 20 seconds and hated every one of them. The female pictured here lasted about 8 seconds before she started spurting beer everywhere. I think someone else did 12 seconds, but they almost dropped that person on her head. We didn't stay long once they started the food and beer consumption games.

J.D., Steve, and James.

A very good day.

Queen of the Hill

Miss Athena decided to pose rather regally atop her mountain.
You can also see one corner of J.D.'s packing.

H1N1: To get the shot or not

SLU (St. Louis University) is conducting an H1N1 Swine Flu vaccination trial, and they've asked me if I want to be part of the study.

I've read over some articles online about pregnant women getting the vaccination, and a few people write really terrible, judgmental comments: "What horrible mother would jeopardize the life of her child?" Well, first of all Mr. Hysterical-Pants, this vaccine is not that different from the normal flu shot, which has been recommended for pregnant women as standard practice for a long time now.

Granted, I'm not saying "yes," I'm doing it-- I'm just weighing the possibility. Honestly, I've been trying to decide whether or not to get the shot at all. But if I'm getting it anyway, why not be closely monitored in the process? The full study results are probably not going to be out before I would need the vaccination anyway.

Still, it's difficult to make decisions that affect more than myself.

So, are you getting the shot? Would you if you were pregnant right now?

Us as kiddos

Someone always loved kitty cats.

Someone else had a more "interesting" friend.

Anyone out there?

Last night J.D. picked up more boxes. Now there are apple boxes up the wall for the cats to climb. Athena has literally reached new heights. Today I caught her on top of the dining room book shelf, as close to the ceiling as she could get, playing around my flower vase, pictures, and other fragile things. Yesterday she knocked over all J.D.'s shot glasses in the bedroom window, after frantically chasing a fly. She then managed to pull the same fly from midair and hold it under her paw, trying to figure out what to do with it once she had caught it.

Today there's no backing out of the deal on the house without forfeit of the earnest money. And I'm feeling very lonely. I don't know why I type words into cyberspace anyway. There's such an overwhelming silence-- it just feels like talking to myself. I guess it would be nice just to know who is listening... who is out there, who might care.

I'm also feeling Athena's puzzlement. What to do when you catch a fly? The house here means more years away from our families, and I miss them everyday.

J.D. is already packing

Saturday after the ACT and yesterday after going to work for most of the morning, J.D. stopped by Shnucks to get boxes. He already has most of his books, models, and game table stuff packed. Yesterday he started packing up the supply closet. Last night he started on videos and movies. He asked me: "Do you think we'll need Star Trek Next Generation in the next month?" "No, go right ahead honey."

So, the result is we have a tower of banana boxes currently reaching up the dining room wall. (If it isn't obvious, J.D. can't wait to move). The cats have been having great fun with all the boxes too. Athena likes to crawl into them and wait for Sophie to wander by, then pounce on her, and they both run around the apartment like maniacs. I just smile. I hope things will happen as quickly as J.D. wants. Our final day to close is October 28, 2009, but I guess we can close anytime before too, as long as everything is in order.

So my project this morning is to journey downtown to City Hall to arrange for the city's Certificate of Inspection. We only have 5 days to get it done. I'll be taking the metro and walking, so I hope it isn't too difficult to reach from the nearest metro stop. They only do inspections after they are paid with cash or check (dang).

Well, wish me luck. I'm off to the wonders that await me at City Hall. :)

Pregnant Eve

When I had the opportunity to see Rodin's house & garden, I encountered his bronze Eve. At first, I was repulsed. Here was another male judgment of fallen womanhood, of woman as the weak and ashamed temptress, cast down for bringing the forbidden fruit to man. Her arms defensively attempt to shield her heart from the onslaught of Adam and God's blame. Her head is tilted submissively, and her gaze is downcast. She is the punished woman, reacting in fear and pain for her "sin" of seeking knowledge.

The sculpture seemed so traditional, so banal, so overwhelmingly misogynist in its message. But as I stood there looking at Eve, in her corner room with the light falling around her, the longer I stared, the more her slightly rounded belly spoke to me. And genuinely looking at her, my hostility melted away. I began to feel sympathetic with Eve, even in her fearful pose. I turned on my audio guide and discovered that Rodin's model had been pregnant. Rodin later learned this and realized Eve was pregnant too. Both the model and statue had evaded the great artist's consciousness.

The Eve standing before me spoke with her obvious gestures the narrative men have constructed about women. Yet, under the flamboyant artifice was the more genuine, natural truth. Eve had in part escaped the sculptor; she was not just the embodiment of men blaming womankind for "original sin"-- she was a woman carrying the secret, creative knowledge born inside and solely reachable by women. She was no longer just what men think of women, but often what women feel and experience beyond the designs and realizations of men.

I felt this quite powerfully. Yet, even the audio guide attempted to reestablish Rodin's original narrative. They commented that this bronze Eve was "condemned to eternal gestation." This judgment of pregnancy is a completely limited perspective on women's lives, power, and bodies. This argument follows the declaration in Genesis that pregnancy is primarily a punishment, God's curse to bear children in pain. But from what I have experienced so far about pregnancy, I certainly don't feel "doomed" or "condemned," but truly a part of life and something beautiful, creative, and potent. The audio commentary and Rodin's original message seemed to miss so much of the reality of what it means to be pregnant and part of the eternal maternal-- far beyond the grasp of an angry, patriarchal God's punishment for merely existing as a woman. In truth pregnancy is closer to the creative source of love and life, which is partially accompanied by pain and fear but arises through the inner depth and strength of womankind.

Celebrating... our style

To celebrate the bank accepting our offer we went for cheeseburgers... I know, not very fancy, but we've got to save the coinage. Then we looked into the depressing, terrifying reverse-mirror that is Revolutionary Road... such "great" timing. We are just glad everything truly seemed our opposite.

After the flick, I looked at the special feature titled "Lives of Quiet Desperation." I asked J.D. what writer they were quoting. He immediately guessed "Hemingway"; then I told him he could have hints. The first question he asked was "American?" "Yes." "19th or 20th century?" "19th." Then he guessed "Whitman." "No, close." Then "Thoreau." "Yep."

So I read the section that people often misquote: "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation" (Walden 8). And then the other section people often quote, which yes, is one of my favorites too: "I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived" (90).

Very eloquent Thoreau. I should have stopped reading out loud there. But, I went on, past even the part about fighting pygmies and cranes: "Still, we live meanly, like ants; though the fable tells us that we were long ago changed into men; like pygmies we fight with cranes; it is error upon error, and clout upon clout, and our best virtue has for its occasion a superfluous and evitable wretchedness. Our life is frittered away by detail. An honest man has hardly need to count more than his ten fingers, or in extreme cases he may add his ten toes, and lump the rest" (91).

I looked over and my hard working, sweet husband was asleep. Showing more wisdom than both Thoreau and myself.

Goodnight all. Thanks for all the love and support.

Our house in St. Louis

Built in 1908, 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 1,906 sq. ft. Located near my school and J.D.'s work.


The outside-- it's your typical brick St. Louis style. I'm really looking forward to hanging flower baskets on the porch next spring. Maybe J.D. will even make me a swing for summer mornings out with the baby.

Front entrance-- pretty glass door, green slate flooring.

Stairs of course-- I'm day dreaming about decorating them for the holidays already. I'm silly. :) Door to basement sort of showing too.

French doors to master bath. Curtains will be good here I think. :)

Sanctuary from the world (the bathtub that is). :) Will be much used and loved.

Another sort of rest place I suppose, with a privacy wall.

Master bath-- double sinks.

Living / sitting room on the main level.

Kitchen-- new stove, with counter space... highly valued by me.

Kitchen island with sink and dishwasher (holy cow! I'll have a dishwasher!). I don't know why they didn't turn the lights on for these pictures. It's much nicer in the light. :) You can still sort of see the back door and an open area for a dining room table. The lower bathroom is to the left.

Downstairs half-bath with tile floor (like kitchen) and granite counter.

Still need some pictures of the backyard, deck, garage, & bedrooms. We'll have to add some later, since I just took these pictures from the listing website. Well, that's it!

It's almost our house! And we're so excited!

I think J.D. and I will be very happy here. It's a good first place to raise our son.

Offer Accepted!

J.D. called me at 1:00 straight up. I could hear the happiness in his voice. The bank has accepted our offer! We're one huge step closer to home ownership.

I started crying a little over the phone, especially when he said "We will finally have a house." J.D. was laughing. We're both very relieved and happy.

I guess I can go ahead and keep picturing how we'll live in our new space. . . .

Lifting a Heavy Day

My body aches. The stress is building up in my neck and back. J.D. and I are both on edge. He just left for work, and now I should get to work too. Maybe I'll read poetry out loud to the baby while lying down for awhile, that might help me feel better.

Eight years ago we were newly married and had just moved to St. Louis and into this apartment. While things here have been mostly good, we're both ready for a change. We want something of our own. And I guess since we've been waiting for a house for so long, one wouldn't think a couple of days would be a big deal, but even a couple of minutes feels like ages right now.

I keep wanting to picture: my shade garden out front, the hanging baskets of flowers on the porch, my vegetable garden in the back yard. J.D. mowing the new lawn we would plant. BBQs and dinners on the deck, maybe with company. Filling the bird-feeder and watching for Cardinals. Doing laundry upstairs in our own washer and dryer. I can't even picture using the dishwasher. Folding the baby's clothes and having a place for everything to be neat and organized (at least in the beginning). Then long, wonderful soaks in that beautiful bathtub. I dream about maybe getting a small, potted fragrant olive tree by the front entrance area and stairway, so the whole house would smell delicious (or maybe we'd have to put it on the deck). I picture trying to place our swap-meet furniture to its best advantage. We would joke with everyone to come see our crappy furniture. But mostly, we'd just have a place we could continue to grow.

But regardless of what happens, we have each other, which is all we need. Especially today, when thinking of the loss of many families, to have your loved ones is really to always have a home.

Nothing new

Not much to report. We're still waiting. Maybe in the morning.

09/09/09

What a long day of nerves and torture. Finally at 4:30 p.m. I heard something from our agent. The house is still available, but only just barely.

At this point, we've done all we can. We put in our best and highest bid tonight. Supposedly the bank will select the top bid tomorrow. We know there are three other bids. The bank's listing agent said two of those are far too low and won't really be considered. So, we're really only competing against one that is "within spitting distance" of the listing price.

I have a feeling 09/09/09 will either be great, or I'll be crying all evening. We'll see. But seriously, we've done ALL we can. So, it's out of our hands now. Again, good thoughts.

Waiting Game

This morning has been torturous slow... waiting to hear about the house we REALLY want. I'm so nervous. I want a nice place for our family, for our son's first home. This would be as perfect for us as possible. It's close to school for me. It's clean, nice, and has a lot of potential both inside and out. It makes the house deal that fell through seem like it happened that way for a reason.

Now I'm just waiting to hear from our agent after she talks to the seller's agent. They've been playing phone-tag all morning.

J.D. called twice from work. Every time I hear the phone ring... I brace myself and think "This is it." But it's not yet.

More waiting. . . . and sending good thoughts into the universe. Please let it be.