spacekadet

Posted by monica at 04:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This weekend's been so good, it's impossible to not have the Sunday blues a little bit. Sunshine. Crisp, cool air. Uncharacteristically blue skies. No where to be. Nothing to do for a change. There's a warm, autumnal vibe in London. It makes me happy to be here.

Here's a summary of some really happy things that I've enjoyed these past few days. Reading through them I see they mostly revolve around food, but no surprises there....

• Made my first batch of homemade soy yogurt with soy milk and a spoonful of dairy yogurt - the results were successful if, that is, you don't mind the taste of soy yogurt

• Enjoyed the arrival of apple season by indulging in a few of my favorite apples, the Egremont Russet
  
• Went to a gastropub for some fairly average tall food with some way better than average people

• Decided more or less that I want to move on from London before Christmas 2009
• Started a soughdough starter with water and rye flour
• Enjoyed some of the sunniest (and coolest) weather of autumn by walking around Clissold park a few times, cycling to the pub, and sitting on the couch by the window

• Cooked two recipes from the Rasa cookbook, a mung bean curry and savoy cabbage - both dishes made us go "mmmm"
• Rethemed the SmarterFitter blog, with the addition of a few monetizing features, plus a couple blog posts
• Listened to Neil Young's Prairie Wind a few times in a row
• Decided that Wordpress is "the business" and set up a DB for the wordpressified spacekadet blog of the future
• Watched the Science of Sleep - weird weird movie, maybe wonderful, too, but haven't decided yet
• Started A Million Little Pieces by Opera's nemesis, James Frey
• Took a few pictures
• Decided no more chores on the weekend

Posted by monica at 03:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tim and I went to Scotland. We walked up and down lots of hills, camped it up all over the country side, figured out how to fry onions with a camp stove, got lost in the clouds, took a trip on a funicular, drank some whiskey, and climbed to the highest point in the UK.

Link to the Flickr Photo set
Link to the Google map of where we camped and hiked

Crossposted to SmarterFitter.com

Posted by monica at 02:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The jalapenos have arrived
Originally uploaded by spacekadet

The jalapenos I've been growing on the window sill have finally begun to bear fruit.

Posted by monica at 09:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tim and I cycled 59 miles yesterday as part of the British Heart Foundation's charity ride from London to Southend. We left Victoria Park at 08:00, made it to Southend by 14:30. We were on a train back to London by 15:30pm and by 17:45, we were at the Londsborough (our local pub), celebrating with cold beer.

Here are a few things I learned along the way:

• Contrary to my prior belief, the weather does not improve when one leaves London
• A bicycle ride through the suburbs of London isn't so bad when the route is signed and lined with an eternity of other cyclists to follow
• Anyone with legs and a bike can cycle 59 miles, even people with really heavy mountain bikes, big beer bellies, or painfully squeeky gears
• A beer belly won't stop an Englishman from brandishing flashy, skintight cycle gear
• Tandem bicycles are absurd
• Sunscreen should be worn at all times, even in cloudy England
• A flat tire always occurs at the most inopportune time, such as after the journey, back in London, on the bike ride home from the train station
• My bicycle seat (a Selle Italia XO Genuine Gel Saddle) rocks - 59 miles and no bum-pain. This may have more to do with my rock-hard ass than my bike seat
• 1 pack of pumpernickle bread, 1 handful of walnuts, 1 handful of almonds, 1 block of cheese, 2 apples, 2 bananas, 2 slabs of leftover tofu steak, 1 tomato, and 2 Whole Earth raw food bars are almost sufficient for 2 people's journey, but it doesn't quite cover the insatiable craving for salt on the train ride home
• Really long bike rides make fully-leaded Coca-Cola tie with extra-cold lager for most thirst-quenching beverage EVER (lager wins, I think)
• Southend is a dive
• Leaving London is good for the soul, and I should do it more often, but not to Southend

Oddly, neither Tim nor I are muscularly sore today. I think this has something to do with my pre- and post-ride stretch, 8 solid hours of very sound sleep, ample food for the journey, proper hydration, and post-ride carbo-loading with beer, wine and a generous pile of delicious pasta. Either that, or my rock-hard ass.

Go to the photos!

Posted by monica at 08:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Have I aged well?
Originally uploaded by spacekadet

My parents sent me this picture of baby-Monica (along with this ultra comfy Ohio State t-shirt - go Buckeyes!) with their latest shipment of mail.

Baby pictures are weird; I just don't see the resemblance. The only thing that gives it away is the facial expression, which I still make when I walk into a pub and find Hoegaarden on tap! (But who knows, this might not be me talking, but the remnants of last night's imbibing still trickling in my bloodstream. Go Buckeyes!)

Posted by monica at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Lions Gate Bridge from Stanley Park
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

I might have some stories to share later. But for now, here's a drink recipe I learned at a semi-eurotrash tapas restaurant in Vancouver's west end. Enjoy this fine beverage while you check out my photos. (You'll need the booze to dull the jealousy.)

Dark and Stormy

1.5 oz dark rum
4 limes, juiced
ginger beer

It all goes in a tumbler with some ice. It's superb!

Posted by monica at 10:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pictures galore from my lovely weekend in Big Bend are now on the interweb.

Flickr photoset

QuickTimeVR 360 panorama! (Also available in hi-res!)

The trip was nothing short of amazing. We camped in the Chisos Basin, nestled amongst the vast and versatile Chisos Mountains. We had two full days in Big Bend, which we spent hiking in the mountains. At approximately 10 miles in distance and 2,000 feet in elevation per day, our legs were very sore by Tuesday. But the wobbles of strain accompanied wobbles of awe as we beheld the inspiring landscape of the Big Bend. The molten lava domes of the Chisos; the drooping juniper, the staunch agave, the molting madron, and the rest of their plant-life friends; the portly javalina and the agile deer (but alas, no bears or mountain lions); and let's not forget the spectacularly windy scene from Emory Peak, the third highest summit in Texas.

Our trip was made vastly more interesting by the book, Big Bend Vistas, a detailed account of Big Bend's geology by William MacLeod. We learned all kinds of new words such as dolomite, marl, novaculite, igneous, and orogeny.

Big Bend is definitely one of the coolest experiences in nature I've ever had. Feeling like I'm in the middle of no where, challenging my body, walking with my eyes to the ground, careful not to trip over any rocks, only to look up every so often and be struck by a new panorama before me... these are some of the things I'm "about" (like postcards and scrabble). Some things I'm not about? War, Highlander II, meat...

I have newfound respect for people who do stuff like climb Everest, or hike the Appalachian trail... I'd like to be that kind of rockstar someday...

someday...

Posted by monica at 04:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yoda
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

link to Flickr photoset - enjoy!

in just two days i'm heading home again for christmas with kinship. i'm actually very excited!

snow...
casseroles...
hot beverages...
ice skating...
wooly sweaters..

vacation!

Posted by monica at 03:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A few more photos from the bike ride in Wimberley. I brought my Lomo Fisheye with me, and rigged it to my handlebars. Fun stuff.

Posted by monica at 08:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Veronica & Marcella, touched by noodles
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

Highlights: FINALLY seeing Stephanie and Marcella's crib, meeting Marcella's sis, meeting the pets, cooking and eating, Tetris benchmarks, cardboard box sledding, the Surreal Calder, Michael's first tattoo, Stephanie's bitchin' tattoo shop, cosmopolitans, orange ginger honey carrots (RIP), a new hat, tattoo art brainstorming, sleeping in a tent in the rain, morning coffee with friends.

Posted by monica at 04:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Leaping into the abyss...
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

Last weekend, Matt and I enjoyed a blend of extreme adventure cycling with the humble simplicity of hobo life. We started with a bike ride through the Hill Country, meandering our way through various facets of Texas geography. After the 40 mile ride, we retreated to our campsite in Wimberley, where we recovered from a day of hard work with water, wine, and food cooked over (and sometimes in) an open flame. On Sunday, after a quick splash in Jacob's Well, we begrudgingly packed up camp and headed further west towards Blanco, where we toured the Real Ale Brewing Company. We ended our trip on a mammalian note, stopping at Pure Luck Texas goat farm for fresh goat cheese (alas, it was an anticlimactic finale – the cheese was not for sale, but there were plenty of pure goat kisses to pass around).

Posted by monica at 09:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by monica at 04:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

IMG_1583
Originally uploaded by davediode77.

But wait, there's more. Charles and Courtney (C-squared) have posted their wedding photos. The images truly capture the essence of their sacred bond: good friends and good food. Accolades to Meghan the photographer.

Here are a couple shots from the reception. I can't remember that girl's name but we got along famously - and we matched! We shared the best chocolate martinis of our lives!! The magic! She was one of many law students I met that night. I never thought I'd get along with a group of lawyers-to-be, but they were SO much fun. (My dream is that they have similar words to describe an evening spent with a crew of math nerds.)

Posted by monica at 09:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Perfectly clear day.
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

On Monday morning I awoke with, oh maybe not a bounce in my step, but at the very least, a rosy glow in my cheeks, part red-wine, part renewed optimism. But by Monday afternoon I had endured one of the most soul destroying working days of recent memory. I have never been told "your stupid" so diplomatically - it was fairly impressive. Without going into detail, let's just say that my team "got served" by our client.

It happens.

And by Monday evening, I was on my bike, fleeing the scene, listening to "Mad World", feeling once again generally awful about being in this place...

All around me are familiar faces... Worn out places... Worn out faces
Bright and early for the daily races... Going no where... Going no where

Like most gutters, this one wasn't as bad as it seemed, and I'm about 95% recovered. But it's hard to dig through my memory, back through a week I'd rather forget, and backwards to the perfection that surrounded me just one week ago.

Joe from Chicago came to town on Thursday night. I took Friday off for the occasion. What followed was a lot of new stuff, and the flood of dopamine tickled my sensory receptors not unpleasantly.

Check out the pictures on Flickr.

I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles its a very very
Mad world

Posted by monica at 09:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Pine Cone
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

On our way back we stopped at a bar called "Cindy's Gone Hog Wild" just off of 71. It was awesome: completely open air, full bar, pool tables, bikers, and a rockin' stage. Turns out, Hog Wild hosts an open mic on Sunday afternoons, and the bands were actually quite good. There's something about a cold beer after a hike in the woods that's especially relaxing. Add some sunshine, a deck, and a band doing a decent cover of Neil Young's "Old Man", and I had myself a pretty near perfect Sunday afternoon.

Posted by monica at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've posted a few pictures from my week in State College, PA. It was an exhausting but thoroughly productive week, and bore no resemblance to my memorable time at MASS.

This, of course, means I shared no moments nor made any friends for a lifetime. But I did pick up a rash.

Yes, my flight was delayed at State College airport, which is the tiniest airport I've ever been to, located in the middle of corn fields. I took the opportunity to go for a walk in the country. While I strolled down desolate roads, I couldn't help but pick up a few leaves that had fallen, bearing the first signs of autumn. And a pine cone! I hadn't smelled a pine cone in years.

And now I'm covered in an itchy rash. On my face, too! I can only think of one place worse to have a rash.

Go Nittany Lions!

Update:

I've identified my rash as Toxicodendron diversilobum, known more commonly as poison oak. I've had poison ivy plenty of times, but never poison oak! How exciting. A new rash. Check!

In my googling, I also found the never dull Rash Hall of Fame.

Posted by monica at 11:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've posted a few pictures from ACL! It was hot as hell but it rocked my world. My only regret is missing Sunday, but that couldn't be helped...

Posted by monica at 11:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Skyline View
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

I've finally posted and organized my
Boston Photos on Flickr!

It was an incredible trip and it'd take me forever to go through the details. So how about a brain barf of tidbits?

My stay lasted from August 10 - August 18. For the first few days, I stayed with my good friend Dave-Diode and his lovely roommate, Stacy, in Somerville; after that I stayed with Charles and Courtney near Porter Square. Many thanks to these individuals for their wonderful hospitality.

Charles and Courtney got married! It was an awesome wedding. The ceremony lasted about 20 minutes; the reception and ensuing bar crawl went til all hours. Charles' sister gave me a pair of Mephisto flip flops: score.

The Diesel is the best coffee shop I've ever been to - it has pool tables, windows, space, gey girls, high cielings, cool art, freaks, mint brownies, oh yeah, and amazingly good espresso and coffee.

Thanks to Charles and Courtney for lending me a bicycle for the duration of my trip - a bicycle is THE way to get around Boston, as far as I'm concerned. The bike allowed me to LIVE it. Tourist, I am not.

Discovered Scot Miller at the Harvard Museum of Natural History - he had a photo exhibit of images from Walden Pond. They were gorgeous.

Bluefin Sushi is awesome. I ate there twice.

I got to hang with my good friend, Jason - he showed me the SETI lab, reunited me with my ex (thanks!), shared a brownie with me at the Diesel, and dined with me all around town. Alas, the trip only whetted my appetite - I'm hungry for more Jason.

MIT is new and blockular, except for the Stata Center.

I went to a high school teacher party. It was fun... the snacks were tasty... and high school teachers are way more attractive in Boston (an easy comparison given that my high school teachers were nuns).

Dave bought a Mac Mini. dr00l

Stacy's cats are adorable house pests.

Downtown Boston reminds me of The City of London

The Goodwill in Davis Square is a goldmine.

Like everyone else who's ever been to a Trader Joe's, I love the place.

Bars visited: Christopher's, The Miracle of Science, Jury's Hotel Lounge, McCormick & Schmick, Grendel's Den

Restaurants Dined at: Legal Seafoods, Bluefin Sushi, V. Majestic, The Rosebud, Tealuxe, Au Bon Pan, a forgettable place near MIT, Dave's kitchen (best restaurant of them all)

Yeah, of course there's more. But I'm out of time!

Posted by monica at 04:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Beignet Feast at Cafe du Monde
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

I look at my pictures and think, "These don't even come close!"

I mean, what words express the random wonder of color and happenstance that is the crescent city? How do I begin to explain the intense chemistry I feel with N'awlins when I can hardly explain it myself?

From start to finish, Stephanie and I were on our 'game'. From that first fluffy, buttery omelet at the Camellia Grill to the tacky rotating bar and its tacky patrons at the Carousel Lounge, we ROCKED New Orleans.

Again, I am faced with the infuriating impossibility of putting this experience into words!

Is there any possible way to explain how surreal it was to share a walking tour of the Garden District with Nicholas Cage? And on the same day, attend a perfect wedding? - the hurricane brought waters that made City Park lush with green, and Tracey and Jesse were radiant.

Monica & Steff Make the "Magnum" Face
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

There were the girls we met at the wedding, who joined us for a night out in the Faugbourg Marigny district. We saw Johnny G. at Lafitte's, and ran into other wedding goers at the Apple Barrel, where we partied til the band stopped playing, then had 4a.m. beignets at Cafe du Monde.

The threat of Hurricane Dennis kept the city eerily quiet for the whole weekend. Lots of people left town, and all that remained were die-hards like us.

But that didn't stop us from taking a swamp tour!

The duldroms set it on Sunday morning when Stephanie flew back home. I had the rest of the day to kill, but I felt really down. We had such a perfect weekend, and I guess I was just sad to see it go. It also felt really weird to be there on my own. I took a drive around town, stopping by a few old haunts like Audubon Park and the Lebanon Cafe. I couldn't believe I had to go back to Austin. The adventure was over, and reality was knocking on my door with a heavy thud.

The strange part is that I felt like I was leaving home.

I think part of my sadness had to do with low serotonin, the end result of a weekend of culinary indulgence. Which is why I spent part of Sunday afternoon at Whole Foods collecting a miriad of fruit and vegetables to munch on throughout the day. I even spied someone from "Rasputin's Vodka Bar" who Stephanie and I people-watched the night before.

"Jeez," I thought, "it's like I live here!"

I wish.

So yesterday I get a call from my friend, Matt, suggesting we take a bike ride around town. He hadn't seen my new wheels, yet, and I'm all about cruising around on the new bike. In search of an adventure, I asserted that we avoid destinations we've been to before. Our travels took us to East Austin, where we found Nubian Queen Lo-La's soul food kitchen on Rosewood and Chicon, whose purple decor caught both of our attentions.

The place is the size of my bedroom, with only three tables, and we were the only customers (they let us park our bikes inside). The shelves were covered in framed photos of (presumably) the owner's family. Mardi Gras beads hung from the ceiling.

The best part about Nubian Lo-La, aside from her purple hair, is that she had a dream (which she told us about) and her restaurant was it. We were inside someone's dream! Both the food and gospel music reflected her dream. What's not to love?

(Admittedly, we were both worried about the future of Lo-La's, but I was really happy to find this article, which suggests to me that the Queen might be around to fill our tummies for many years to come.)

Austin is no New Orleans, but it has its own color and texture and possibility. There are plenty of strangers to meet and curiosities to explore.

What made New Orleans really special was the quality time I had with my sister. I'm so glad I was able to share the experience with her. It's a special kind of awesome that's hard to top. But I'll keep on trying. Even if that does mean I'm left speechless from time to time.

Posted by monica at 09:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Modern Art at the MCA
Originally uploaded by spacekadet.

speaking of Chicago, i do have some photos i took while i was in the windy city visiting kinship last July 1 - 5. click here for the photoset (Flickr has replaced iPhoto's album for my photo sets - it's just that good).

my weekend in Chicago was full of so much love and food, that i am starting to think that the two experiences are one in the same.

there was the big breakfast of omelette, toast, fruit, and much-needed coffee within an hour of my arrival. and margaritas and guacamole with Cara in Old Town.

RJ's truckstop for the veggie burger and salad bar. an impressive vegetarian mousakka in the Sak's 5th Ave food court.

a picnic of cabbage salad, pasta salad, fruit, and A&W at my mom's 'retreat' in Woodsmoke.

muttar paneer, naan, chickpeas, samosas, veggie tamales, red beans & rice, fried plantain, tapioca pudding, and an "original rainbow cone" at the Taste of Chicago. more margaritas.

a perfect salad and flat bread at the Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder Company.

a July 4th BBQ with homemade bean burgers, veggie kebabs, baked beans, tofurkey, s'mores, and Billy Joel on the CD player.

Trader Joe's coffee. and the Ear Wax Cafe in wicker park for a "jerk seitain" sandwich and yummy vegan deserts.

when we weren't eating, we did do some interesting things like hike around Starved Rock (and by hike i mean stroll), see the musical version of The Lion King (amazingly intricate), saw the opening of Dan Flavin: A Retrospective at the Museum of Contemporary Art (fluorescently fantastic), walked around Millennium Park (again), people-watched on the Metra (an army of zombies), saw free improv at Second City (hah), and even randomly bumped into one of my old roommates from college (just plain weird).

but why is it always the food that stands out?

event-planning has always brought out the anxiety in my family. but at the dinner table, we slow down. we love food ... and drink. it's our common ground, which is so hard to find for four people who are so different.

an interior designer, a theology professor, a mathematician, and a media student walk into a bar ...

what the hell do they have to talk about?

food and bodily functions, usually.

Posted by monica at 06:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Posted by monica at 12:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Link to the photo album.

technorati tags: sxsw | photos | electriceelshock | thebravery | austin

Posted by monica at 10:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

What's a leaving "do" without lots of beer and bad flash photography?

Posted by monica at 04:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fridays are even better when Tim has the day off. We were able to do London during the business hours, which is far more pleasant and less jam-packed full of fuckwits compared to the weekends.

We started out with the Turner Whistler Monet exhibit, which is not at the Tate Modern (much to my embarrassment), but at the Tate Britain. The exhibit focused on works set in London, Paris, and Venice. Monet's sunsets are amazing. And Whistler's watercolors were equally impressive. It's insane how polluted London must have been back in the 1800's, as their imagery can attest to. We learned that Londoners used to drink the Thames water! It must have been such a nasty place. Wait: it still is. Let's just say that it wouldn't be my last weekend in London if I didn't step in dog shit.

After the exhibit, we had a very nice walk around London, took some touristy photos, and enjoyed an excellent long lunch at Carlucchio's. That I managed to drink two glasses of red wine just hours after last night's festivities is a testament to my rock star prowess.

And the Spaghetti Vongole? Divine!

It was snowing sporadically throughout the entire day. SNOW! in London! It's a wonderful thing.

Posted by monica at 04:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tim and I checked out the old Roman spa town of Bath in west England last Saturday in Sunday. It was a really nice stay. Some notable points:

* great local pub - The Rising Sun. Tried Twiglets for the first time - weird marmite-flavored nobbly baked stick thingies.
* Wall quote: Sticks and stones may break my bones but whips and chains excite me.
* wonderful accommodation at the Villa Magdala B&B
* blue skies and very very cold
* saw the ruins of the Roman baths -- hot springs are cool
* Indian food is good but "too much" sometimes
* hills and views everywhere!
* cool Georgian architecture - so white and clean!
* best veggie food EVAH at Demuth's
* Tim beat me at Scrabble: 273 to 261
* two wonderful exhibits at the Victoria Art Gallery: David Cox's Stories and Ana Maria Pacheco's Some Exercise of Power.
* back home, I had my Scrabble revenge, kicked Tim's ass 332 to 216.
* don't forget to look at my pictures!

Posted by monica at 04:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Taking advantage of our current proximity to the whole of Europe, Tim and I went to Italy last weekend.

Friday

We flew into Pisa on Friday morning, then took a "coach" into Florence. It was an exhausting day of travel, but we made it in one piece and was extremely relieved to find that our hotel, Colomba, was close, clean, and run by the friendliest woman in town. The building itself was 18th century, but the inside had been totally gutted and modernized. Although an old-school Italian villa experience would have been quaint, there is something to be said for clean reliable accommodation.

I'm pretty certain that our first Florence dining experience was not entirely "authentic". The restaurant, Zaza's, was crawling with my countrymen. The pasta with chile and prawns was flavorful, but the bread was underwhelming. And the house wine - a shambles!

After dinner we strolled into the centro storico to behold the massive Santa Maria del Fiore (the cathedral otherwise known as the Duomo, affectionally pronounced "Dwo-mo" by the easily amused). The dome of the cathedral was built in 1436, but the insanely hardcore neogothic facade was constructed in 1888. I remember thinking "Wow, this will be very impressive in the daylight." However, meteorological effects would see to it that I miss this treasured sight ...

We found after dinner drinks at the perfect Cafe Coquinarius, a wine bar near the Duomo. For weeks I've been searching for a chill place in London to have a quiet coffee or a drink. For some reason I have trouble relaxing at the cafes in London - there's a certain essence of "settling-in-ness" that places in London seem to miss out on. Cafe Conquinarius was the place I'd been looking for - quiet, calm, dimly (but not too dimly) lit. The were playing pleasant music, as well: a bit of Billy Holliday and a little bit more of some bossa nova. We talked about non-depressing things and sampled some Italian red wine:

Influence by the Tuscany's reputation for good chiantis, Tim tried the 1996 Chianti Rufina Reserva Nipozzano, which he found to be "pointless . . . especially for 8 euros." He was more impressed with his next choice: a 2003 Morellino di Scansano. My 2002 Rosso di Montalcino was so good that I indulged in two glasses of it! The montalcino is a robust red, with an essence of caramel. Could I be making this up as I go along?? Maybe . . . but it really did taste a bit caramel-ly!

...it's a damn shame that the perfect cafe is all the way in Italia.

Saturday

Breakfast at the hotel was sublime. My bran flakes were superb and a welcome alternative to the ever popular croissant. My banana was at the perfect stage of ripeness. Tim enjoyed some Nutella with his tea. We were fueled for a day of tourism and aimless wandering.

Sadly, we were cursed with a pervasively cloudy day and picture taking was mostly discouraging. On the upside, I avoided seeing all of Florence through a camera lens.

We decided to keep our museum adventures to a minimum (after all, who wants to spend their one full day in Florence cooped up in crowded museums?). We decided to get this leg of the journey over with, and made our first stop at the Galleria Dell'Accademia to behold Michelangelo's masterpiece: the sculpture of David.

David is phenomenal. The first point of awe is its very size: it's over 5 metres tall! Even our untrained eyes could recognize the perfection of the human form in this image. We just stood in amazement for about 5 minutes, exchanged a few words about David's expression (concerned or contemplative?) and then officially declared that all other human sculpture is forever ruined for us. David is the epitome. Check. ✓ Done.

While we were at the gallery, we spied a pack of tourists from no other place than Texas. They really do stand out like a sore swollen thumb. Some even wore cowboy hats. I even spied some feathered hair, and a mullet or two (and not the "in" kind of mullet that is all the rage with the kids these days - what is up with that by the way?).

We went by the Dwo-mo for a peak inside. We heard one tourist comment that it was "more impressive from the outside": I felt mutually. We mistakenly paid 3 euros for what we thought was a trip up to the top of the dome, but was actually a visit to the crypt, a mostly forgettable excursion.

We left tourist hell to pursue the Lonely Planet Guide's recommended walking tour of "Local Florence". Along the way Tim found a UV filter for his camera. It was cold outside, but pleasantly less crowded than I expected: hurrah for off-season travel.

The walk was accentuated by a few wrong turns, several close calls with piles of doggy doo doo, and via after via of shuttered homes whose earthy colors would have looked much better in the sun.

Coffee is a special thing in italy: strong and smooth. I didn't drink nearly enough of it. I did not have the same problem with red wine. We had lunch that afternoon at Il Pizzaiuolo. Their house red was tasty, and their bruschetta divine: light fluffy bread, just enough garlic, and very fresh pomodoro. Tim's Pizza Caprese was perfect, and my Spaghetti d'Angelo was also delightful. Our waiter was a sweet old gent who managed our "pigeon Italian" much better than we handled his only slightly broken English. Tim is cutely embarrassed when he attempts to converse with foreigners in their own tongue. I enjoyed this greatly.

Tim's final thoughts on Il Pizzaiuolo: "This is a good lunch." I couldn't agree more!

Lunch preceded more wandering. We saw the replica of 'David' in the Piazza Signoria followed by a bunch of fuckwits at the Ufizzi who were gawking at those fools in make-up who feign talent by standing stone still for minutes at a time. We found moleskins for 5 euros at a bookshop and stocked up. Now Tim and I match: puke!

When we felt we had gone for a reasonable amount of time without consuming, we headed to Caffe Megara for an aperitif before dinner at Bella Donna. The restaurant was a great place all around - the food, the traditional atmosphere, the wine, the friendly service. It was here I decided that I absolutely must learn enough Italian to read the menus. The good places in Italy don't have English menus, and the whole not-eating-meat thing makes it tricky to be entirely spontaneous with food choices. Still, I managed a nice dish of pasta with marinara and fish.

After dinner we went back to Caffe Conquinarius and were once again elated that it was still damn cool. We were so pleased that we made a list of the reasons why we liked it so much (maybe someday when we are wealthy entrepanuers we'll recreate it):

1. friendly staff
2. solid, well-spaced tables
3. unpretentious but charming posters advertising old school alcohol products: campari, amaro falsina rammazzotti, maccheroni piangiani
4. great lighting
5. the music: not too loud, but audibly clear. they didn't fall into the bad effect of turning up the music when the crowd became louder
6. high ceilings which elicited the feeling of spaciousness despite the small size of the cafe
7. big glass front window
8. delicious wine by the glass
9. food that we didn't try but looked very nice
10. it's non smoking!

Sunday

Caught the bus back to Pisa (after yet another delicious breakfast at the hotel). We had several hours before the flight back to London, so we headed into central Pisa for a look around.

The first thing to greet us was the sun! We made a beeline for the Leaning Tower which is fairly neat and surrounded by other impressive old white marble buildings. It may be a tourist mecca, but it was well worth seeing. We had lunch and gelato in the sun - such a treat after a long London winter. On the way back to the train station we spied some graffiti that actually turned out to be a giant mural by Keith Haring. Fairly impressive.

Our flight was delayed and we had to chill out at the airport for a couple hours. But it was ok, I wasn't that thrilled about having to go back to London so soon. Monday would mark two weeks until I leave London. The time flies way too quickly.

Posted by monica at 08:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dave Diode's in London for the weekend, and it's just like old times (Dave, Tim, & I were roomies for a while in Austin!).

We've had a really full weekend - there was the Cake concert on Friday, and St. Paul's Cathedral and The Tate on Saturday. It was all padded by a healthy dose of food and booze. But would you believe we actually made it to the gym on Saturday morning?

St. Paul's was fantastic, and the 530 steps up to the top was well worth it. Some notable inspiration on the tombstones in the crypt. The following makes me want to read some more of Blake's poetry:

We also walked over Millennium Bridge to the Tate Modern. The highlight was mark Rothko's giant meditative pieces (where I took the above picture of Dave).

We rounded out the day with a really great meal at the Northgate. The cheese plate (and the bottle of wine) didn't bode well with me into the night, alas, I shall never be able to eat Stilton again.

Dave went clubbing all night, which was just as well - seemed that most of us required a very long sleep-in on Sunday. We had a pretty quiet day; grabbed dinner at Pizzeria Oregano in Islington - a fantastic little gem tucked in an alleyway off of Upper Street. Dave's meal came wrapped in foil shaped like a swan!

Link to my photos.
Link to Dave's flickr photos.

Posted by monica at 05:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yesterday, took the Docklands Light Rail from Bank to Island Gardens. Took in the magnificent but gray view of the Royal Naval college (yet another design by Christopher Wren) before walking across the Greenwich Foot Tunnel (under the Thames River). I emerged on the other side to the site of the Cutty Sark (circa 1869), the world's last surviving tea clipper ship.

Walked down the river towards Greenwich Park, passing the Old Royal Naval College along the way. From within the old building I could hear the clamor of dozens of various musical instruments practicing various songs. I soon learned that some of the buildings of the College now house the Trinity College of Music.

Headed up the great hill in the park to the Royal Observatory. Took the free tour (which was excellent) of the Flamsteed house, also built by C. Wren (who, by the way, was an astronomer before he was an architect). Flamsteed was Britain's first Royal Astronomer and spent his life tracking stars. His contribution helped pave the way to the discovery of how to establish longitude. It was John harrison, whoever, who won the Longitude Prize for his invention of the H4 (preceded by the H1, H2, H3), the first maritime clock that was accurate enough to determine longitude over long distances. It was a great tour, and a fascinating journey in science and process. Note to self: read Dava Sobel's "Longitude: The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time".

I also saw the largest telescope in Britain (a 28 inch refractor) and stood on the Prime Meridian!

Link to photos!

Posted by monica at 08:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last Sunday, Tim and I fancied a stroll down the coast. So we took a train eastward to Dover and did a 10 mile saunter up the famous White Cliffs of Dover to the sleepy seaside town of Deal.

Link to photos.

Posted by monica at 01:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by monica at 11:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

"In ancient times, hundreds of years before the dawn of history, an ancient race of people... the Druids. No one knows who they were or what they were doing... " -- Nigel Tufnel, This Is Spinal Tap

I'm slowly getting around to posting the photos I took during my sister's elaborate visit to England. We took over 600 pictures during her trip; weeding out the share-worthy shots is an overwhelming task!

Today's installment were taken on December 27, 2004. Tim and I still had the rental car and thought we should make use of it by getting out of London and seeing the countryside.

We had planned on doing the Avebury-Stonhenge-Bath circuit. Stephanie was very keen on seeing Stonehenge, despite rumors that it wasn't all that and a bag of crisps. According to Rick Steves' Great Britain (2002 edition!), there's a little town near Stonehenge called Avebury that features a larger stone circle that is both more inviting and less touristy than the 'henge. Nearby is the old Roman spa town, Bath. Sounds like a full day!

Turns out, Avebury is a tricky little village to locate. Well, tricky that is, if you don't have a proper map. Rick Steves (bless him) featured some fairly lousy maps in his guidebook. And we (bless us) had not bothered to double check our directions or purchase a non-hand-drawn-by-Rick map. Still, I've got to hand it to Rick Steves - had we not read his entry on the Tower of London, we wouldn't have known to "arrive early and head straight for the crown jewels", which we did and managed to avoid the massive queue that evolved just minutes after we made our exit from the jewel house. But that's another story!

It took us hours to make it to Avebury. We arrived late, and I headed straight for the bathroom. We didn't have time for much more than a few snapshots. The mile-long walk around the circle would have been nice, but the sun was setting and we hadn't yet seen Stonehenge!

Bladders empty, and a half-bag of jelly bellies consumed, Tim put the pedal to the metal and we sped off towards Stonehenge. The ride involved a mysterious maze of village roundabouts, and one minor traffic jam. But suddenly, Stonehenge appeared, plopped on a hill off the highway (I say that as if the highway were there first!).

Although a huge fence surrounds the monolith, I was still in awe of the ancient structure. It was gigantic! And it's just so... old. Bronze age, baby! Well worth the visit.

We never did make it to Bath - after Stonehenge we were ready to journey back to London and find a cold beer. Which we did, at the always reliable Northgate pub.

You've read this far, now check out the photos!

Posted by monica at 07:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Link to photos from Christmas day 2004. Steff arrived that morning, and most of the day was spent indulging. What better way to while away the jetlag?

Christmas 2004 highlights:

Having tea and toast while opening "prezzies" with Tim and Steff.

A Christmas pint at the Wellington - Steff's first English pub!

My deliciously successful holiday eggplant parmesan.

Sticky pudding with toffee sauce.

Port wine.

Playing Scrabble.

Winning Scrabble.

Makin' pies - a tradition in my family. Pecan pie and pumpkin pie are staples at holiday Christmas parties back home. What better way to combat the Holiday Homesick Blues than by creating some delicious and familiar dessert items (if anything, the addition of whipped cream is a sure way to ease any ill). I quickly learned that corn syrup (an essential ingredient in pecan pie) is not available in the UK (this may partially explain the fat stereotype that most Europeans have about us Americans). Canned pumpkin is similarly unavailable. So in the end I mushed up some butternut squash, which probably would have worked much better if I hadn't left the pie in the oven so long. But that brings me to the previously mentioned highlight: A Christmas pint at the Wellington. My grandmother is probably rolling in her grave. People seemed to enjoy the pie regardless, so, Merry Christmas!

Side note: did you know that pecan pie came about as a direct result of the invention of corn syrup?

The best part about Christmas day in London? The company, of course!

Posted by monica at 06:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

While exploring London last night with Tim and Rory, we came across the Scooter Club meet-up at Bar Italia in Soho. It warmed my heart to share a brief moment with three of my favorite things: scooters, coffee, and Christmas lights.

Posted by monica at 05:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Taken August 29th, 2004 at Jess & Stacey's.

Posted by monica at 05:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There's a building near my work that's being torn down from the top down. With the removal of each floor, my view of greater london has slowly improved. St. Paul's is visible now, along with the London Eye. The above is a (cropped and "Enhanced" version of the original) photo I took from my building last Tuesday.

To give you some perspective, here's a pic of the whole scene, Pizza Express and all. It's kind of cool to see cranes and bulldozers on top of a pint-size skyscraper, all covered and concealed in white tarp. The sun sets right over the London Eye, providing a spectacular view when the sky is actually clear.

iPhoto did a marvelous job of making a dark cloudy day look like a scene from 19th century London. (Aside from the huge crane and all.) I think it's quite Chaaaaahming!

But more importantly, there's something about this photo that says winter to me. I was in Urbana, Illinois the last time I felt the early onset of winter. I don't know how to describe it. Winter is so sudden. One morning I step outside and feel a breeze just cold enough to chill my nose. The air smells of dead leaves. And I think, "Is today the day I whip out the scarf?"

I look forward to winter and I hope there's snow and ice skating and a christmas tree in my living room (currently filled with boxes and miscellany). I look forward to hot soup, extra blankets, and pubs with fireplaces. I look forward to seeing my sister on Christmas day!

Posted by monica at 06:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

just downloaded the few pics i took on the halloweeeen rollerstroll. i didn't take very many because i was worried about tripping and using my camera to break my fall.

here's a photo of rory and i midway through the skate....

it's funny because it's sad.

Posted by monica at 02:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

One of the nicer things about my job is that I work on the 16th floor facing a window overlooking the City. At least five times a day you can find me staring longingly out the window, enjoying the view, or lamenting the clouds.

Last week I brought my camera to work and took a few shots from my high flying floor in St. Aldgate House and from the Highwalk area just outside. It was a nice way to spend lunch.

Speaking of nice ways to spend lunch, yesterday the soon-to-be head of development took us all out for lunchtime drinks. To give you a quick idea of how things went: we got to the pub at around 1pm, and I never quite made it back to the office.

This outing was fantastic on several levels. I was able to meet people I've never met before and have lighthearted conversation with the people I already knew. I felt like I really hit it off with the boys in development, who seem like a really fun group of people once you get them away from their computers.

At around 3pm I was feeling pretty happy. I remember thinking: "wow, I'm going to go home from work with a smile on my face today!" Then things kind of changed a bit, right around the time two separate individuals handed me a fresh glass of wine. I should have seen this coming when I realized that drinks were in lieu of actual lunch.

So, it's all kind of annoying because it seems to be such a regular pattern in my life: I meet cool people, and suddenly it all turns drunken. I feel a distinct lack of self control in these situations, and so continues the cycle: Monica finds herself in a new social situation - Monica feels nervous about talking to new people - Monica finds herself with a beverage in hand - Nervous Monica drinks quickly - Monica starts feelin' like a rock star - Rock Star Monica gets drunk after drinking too much too quickly - Monica meets loads of new people and laughs the night away - Monica stumbles home - Monica sobers up - Monica realizes she has little recollection of the good time she had the night before - Monica settles into a dull hangover - Monica feels like ass both physically and mentally - Monica feels a deep sense of regret for drinking so much as to not remember half of the night and for feeling like shit as a result.

Like it was all a waste of time.

It's just not worth it.

So, I hope that when I get back to work on Monday that I will a.) still have a job, and 2.) have a few more friends at the office.

Oh, and iii.) a firmer grip on my priorities.

Since I lost Friday night to Work Drinks Gone Wild, Saturday has been all about being good to myself. I took a trip this morning to the local fish monger and gathered supplies for a weekend of yummy dinners. Tim and I expanded our fish cookeriness by baking an entire sea bass! We stuffed it with basil, tomato, and salt (always, loads of salt), and it came out great!

Needless to say, there was no wine happening at dinner tonight.

Tomorrow is Halloween, which I hope to celebrate with London's inline skating community on their 10.5 mile Halloweeeen Rollerstroll.

Posted by monica at 05:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Taken at the bus stop off of Regent's Canal, somewhere between Southgate Road and New North Road.

Taken at Highbury & Islington Station

Picadilly Circus, London's equivalent to Times Square in NYC. This is the only picture I managed to take at the Spies and Spywatchers Walk before my camera sadly ran out of battery power.

Standing on a Lock at Regents Canal.

Looking down Regents Canal.

Posted by monica at 04:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yesterday, Tim and I decided to take a day off from job hunting. So we hopped on a train and went to the medieval university town of Oxford. (Jump to my photos here.)

I love old buildings, and I love university towns, so naturally I came to adore Oxford.

If you're planning on visiting Oxford, don't pay for an all day ticket for their double-decker open-top tour bus. While the bus experience might be cool, the town is actually very small and quite walkable.

We, however, made that mistake and, after a very short bus ride, we thought we'd sit down in a pub for some snacks and to plan our day. We found a place called The Bear, founded in 1242. As you'd expect from a pub that old, the ceilings were very low and the rooms tiny. It was cozy, but the food was crap. I did get to try my first Quorn sausage, which seemed ok, but was almost cold when it arrived. Final thought on the matter: I don't think we'll be returning to The Bear.

We walked off "lunch" with a stroll to the University of Oxford's very impressive Botanical Gardens. It started raining as we arrived, so we sought shelter in their row of greenhouses. Forget row after row of ferns and cacti, Oxford knows how to build a greenhouse. Their glass enclosures were filled from floor to ceiling with exotic trees, flowers, and shrubs from all over the world. The floors were lined with intricate pathways through the narrow divides of green. Outside, we braved the rain and found a Yew tree that was planted in 1645 during the English Civil War.

We were sad to leave the gardens, but the rain was, well, wet.

We walked out, past the Magdalen bridge and down the road passing about 5 universities along the way. We were only able to see the grounds of All Souls College (the rest of the universities were closed to the public). According to our guidebook, the grass on the university quads may only be stood upon by the high masters. Sure enough, All Souls' quad was impeccable, and even had a sign that read "Keep Off Grass".

University life in Oxford is fascinating to me. To live and study in a little room at a place with so much history has a certain charm. The universities certainly have a "vibe" - perhaps it comes from the collective waves of all the brains hard at work behind the school's walls. If memory serves, students don't attend classes. Rather, they have individual tutors they meet with once per week to discuss their studies. Then they take exams once per year. I like this idea - school should be focussed on the individual's own pursuits. A person must be very devoted to their work to succeed in that kind of environment. I had a hard enough time getting things done when I was forced to go to classes. But maybe I would be more motivated if left to my own intellectual devices. So I wonder: are the people at Oxford really as intelligent as one would imagine? What percentage come from rich families? And what percentage are just plain wankers?

Throughout all of this it was raining. Luckily we found a nice place for tea in St. Mary's Church. They had a cafe called "Vault & Garden". If it weren't raining, it would have been a lovely place to have tea outdoors. But the inside was charming enough.

The rain stopped and we took another wander around town before returning to St. Mary's to climb its bell tower. This was one of the coolest parts of the trip. We had to climb up a tiny spiral staircase to get to the top - I'd never seen anything like it! Along the way we could see some of Oxford's famous gargoyles lining the buildings. The tower afforded such a beautiful view of the city, that I couldn't resist taking a few panoramas:

It seemed appropriate to spend the end of our day in a pub. We found a place called the Lamb and Flag on St. Giles St. It was everything I could have wanted. When you find a pub or a bar to fall in love with, it's hard to explain what's so damn special about that particular place. It's just comfort I guess. The Lamb and Flag did it for me. I was so happy that it only took a pint to get me drunk!

Don't forget to check out the rest of my pictures!

Posted by monica at 07:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pictures from Trieste.

Posted by monica at 07:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Photos from Pula

Posted by monica at 07:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Photos from Piran.

Posted by monica at 07:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Photos from Ljubljana are here at last.

Posted by monica at 07:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

When we got to Ljubljana, we headed to one of their better pizza joints just across from the town square.

To get there, we walked under one of the streets through a passage that had this amazing wall of graffiti spanning its length.

As for the pizza, Ruth's veggie was delicious. I, however, thought I'd give anchovies a try...

Too salty.

I've been noticing graffiti more and more ever since I discovered the "graffiti" tag on flickr.

Now, if I don't include enough text with this post, the long-ass photo is going to do some funky ass shit to my website. So since we're on the subject of graffiti, here's a little Prince to calm your weary soul. Here's to feeling "aah-ight" all the time...

everybody wants 2 find Graffiti Bridge
something 2 believe in, a reason 2 believe that there's a heaven above
everybody wants 2 find Graffiti Bridge
everybody's looking 4
everybody's looking 4
everybody's looking 4 love

everybody wants 2 find the perfect 1
someone that makes u happy, someone that makes u laugh when u want 2 cry
everybody wants to find the perfect 1
everybody's looking 4
everybody's looking 4
everybody's looking 4 love

the love of a boy, the love of a girl
the love that comes from a warm heart in a cold cold world
everybody wants 2 find Graffiti Bridge
something 2 believe in, a reason 2 believe that there's a heaven above
everybody's looking 4
everybody's looking 4
everybody's looking 4 love

everybody wants 2 find Graffiti Bridge
(people throw away your arms of fire)
a bridge that leads
a bridge that leads them 2 a love they know is real
(let democracy take u higher)
everybody wants 2 find Graffiti Bridge
everybody's looking 4 (if you believe)
everybody's looking 4 (wave your hands)
everybody's looking 4 love (on the power of love)

(Love is shining)

(everybody wants 2 find Graffiti Bridge)
there's a future (sure, you're right) a future worth fighting 4
I'm a living witness
everybody wants 2 find Graffiti Bridge
ooo, everything's gonna be alright, alright, alright
everybodys looking 4
everybodys looking 4
everybodys looking 4 love

there is a future
worth fighting 4
yes it is, I know it is
everything will be alright

everybody wants 2 find Graffiti Bridge

Posted by monica at 02:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Follow this link to my digital photos from Austria, Slovenia, Croatia and Italy.

These are the pics I took with my Canon S50. I didn't bring my computer, so I could only take as many pictures as would fit on my measly 128 MB compact flash card. I think it's time to upgrade.

Fortunately, we brought the Nikon SLR. So more photos are coming soon.

On a side note - I haven't been posting much because it's difficult to get in the mood when I'm living out of a suitcase in someone else's apartment. Hopefully I'll get a job soon and be back to it. Then again, London is pretty damn cool so far and I wouldn't mind being distracted by the sights and sounds (and pubs) of this amazing city.

Posted by monica at 02:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My first images from London aren't exactly awe-inspiring, but they do express the theme of my first day in London:

drinking, drinking, and more drinking.

Pub food is good in London - at one place I had an incredible goat cheese salad, at another, a couscous stuffed tomato. So much better than corn chips and cheese fries.

This Sunday we are going to see some of Eastern Europe in Slovenia, Austria and Croatia. Today the plan is to walk, run, and take some more pictures.

Posted by monica at 07:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I posted a few photos from the Keep Austin Weird 5k. They were taken with a 3-year old disposable camera, so forgive the dearth of quality pictures.

Posted by monica at 05:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

More of the giant spider and some other random pics around Austin, taken with the Nikon SLR.

Link to gallery.

Posted by monica at 11:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

After taking a few pics of the MASSIVE spider with my Canon S50, I was inspired to take a few shots with Tim's Nikon SLR - a real camera!

We took a roll outside and had it processed and put onto a CD at Walgreens. The developing took less than two hours and cost less than 10 bucks. Very nice. I think I could have a lot of fun with this. Using a real camera is much more fun than the digital, aside from the whole lack-of-immediate-gratification thing. But really, a couple hours ain't bad.

The Nikon felt really nice to use, and we were rewarded with beautiful pictures! I'm going to have to do this more often.

Link to photos.

Posted by monica at 11:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I've been back in Austin for a couple of days now... just a few final notes I scribbled while on my trip. Oh yeah, and a few photos.

When we left from Chi towards Champaign, we quickly ran into some insane traffic caused by an unfortunate accident. We put the car in the four wheel drive and drove the jeep right across that median ditch and towards another route. My first off-road experience!

I was elated to stay at the Hawthorne Sweets... only because it's connected to assram. I made some frantic (and probably expensive) phone calls and managed to pull everyone together at Esquire, home of the zone. It was AWESOME to see everyone from UIUC and Wolfram. I had such a great time. We ended up having pizza at Jupiter's, coffee at Cafe Kopi, and then drinks at Boltini. The night went by way too quickly. Dawid looks awesome with his long hair. And the Wolfram crew is exactly the same - which is fine by me. Suketu is still the bomb, and Seth proposed the coolest toast to me... something about getting drunk for the first time at my place.

I had to leave way too soon... when I return, I'll be sure to stay a couple of nights at UIUC. Writing this now, I feel a little sad! I miss my wonderful friends from the good ol' days of undergrad and software testing.

I was also glad to see that Strawberry Fields was still around to provide us with some chow for the road - their bbq tofu sucks, unfortunately, but their sandwiches still rule.

Five hours later...

In general, a blatantly commercial restaurant that serves up advertisements in their menu and bad jokes from the waiter would have me wanting to hate, but the truth is: The Cheesecake Factory serves up some damn good cheesecake.

Our last stop in the tour de midwest was Columbus, Ohio to visit my dad's side of the family. I hadn't been in Ohio since I popped in on the way back from MASS in January 2000, freezing my ass off all the way there in the heatless but lovely Toyota Celica. This time around, the weather was rainy and cool and the Jeep's a/c worked well enough. The 5 hour trip from Champaign to Columbus was nothing compared to our previous journey. We got into my Uncle Jim's house a little after 5pm, and was greeted by my Grandma, Uncle Ed, Aunt Rosella, Aunt Judy, but sadly, no Uncle Jim who had to teach.

Almost as quickly as I arrived, we departed for dinner at The Cheesecake Factory, which the Ohio crew apparently loves. On the way, we spotted a nice surprise: my cousin Chris (not to be confused with my cousin Chris) who joined us for dinner. It was fun to catch up and once again, stuff my face with food. I had some strawberry cheesecake, and since I couldn't use the phrase "triple cumshot" in front of my nice family, I instead opted for "this is really really really good".

After dinner I was able to catch up with Uncle Jim. He's been doing music his whole life, and his kids, Andy and Chris, have followed suit. I remember when Chris was in grammar school and he learned how to play the violin. He could play by ear, and we used to have great fun thinking of songs for him to play. I also remember him being into art, so I'm not surprised he's majoring in graphic design. He's got a band on the side, The Fe-Ne-Tiks.

Once again, the visit was extremely short. The good news is that I saw almost all of the Ohio-Shaw clan and everyone seems very well. I left with good feelings a little regret for having scheduled such a short visit. There is never enough time! Must get back to Austin! Must sell all my possessions! Must get to England with my sanity intact!!! Must get a JOB! MUST BREATH!!

We're on the road now, heading back to Austin, driving due west into the sunset. Bargh.`` I'm anxious to get back and have some BBQ on a Bun at Mother's, and then get back to losing the road-trip blubber as quickly as possible. The trip home has been surprisingly beautiful. We're driving back via Kentucky and Arkansas. Kentucky, man, they have some great country side, especially in the mega foothills of the Appalacians. I've seen some bluegrass-related landmarks along the way, which isn't surprising given that Kentucky is the Bluegrass State. Kentucky is also home to the nation's largest inland peninsula, The Land Between The Lakes, which has something like 200 miles of hiking trails. Once I capillarize and become bodacious, I will need some new challenges beyond the gym and 5k's, and I think I might find these challenges in outdoor adventures, like mountain biking and hiking. Camping rules, and it's a geek sport - GADGETS GALORE. So maybe someday I'll head over to the LBL and get my off-road cycling calves in motion, rewarding myself with tea and Malt-O-Meal while I camp along the Kentucky River.

Posted by monica at 12:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Ok so the traffic in the windy city blows. It took us almost 5 hours to make the 164 mile trip from Madison to the Days Inn Gold Coast in Chicago. It's called the Days Inn Gold Coast, but it's more Old Town/Lincoln Park, right near the Lincoln Park Zoo. I'm pretty proud of myself for finding such a reasonably priced hotel in such a perfect part of town. High fives to me.

Still, negative high fives for my stress levels as we got in. The traffic filled me with rage. I was to have dinner with my parents, and see Cara, and it was all crashing down around me. But guess what - shocker - it all worked out.

While my parents made it into the city, I downed a vodka tonic at the Bar Louie downstairs and then walked the 10 blocks up the street to have dinner at the Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder Factory. WALKING to a restaurant felt awesome. I never want to own a car again! The CPOGF was SO GOOD, after that miserable drive, which I learned was due to George W. Jackass being in town. Their salad is awesome. Their flatbread is awesome. The "upside pizza" that isn't really pizza but rather a cheesy saucy cumshot in a bread bowl was so awesome that I could barely take a break to drink my glass of Chianti. Interesting factoid: the CPOGF is located across the street from the site of the Valentine's Day Massacre.

You have no idea how happy that food made me! Almost as happy as I was to see Cara at the Grafton near Lincoln Park. It was a shame I was so tired from driving and mass food and wine consumption. But it was fun to catch up and drink Blue Moon with my dormmate turned compatriate. Cara seems really happy. Yay!!! I need to stay in better touch with her. She's a reightous babe and one of the coolest people I've ever met.

Friday was a beautiful day. We were able to walk from our hotel to Lake Michigan and go for a run down the lake shore, from Oak Street beach to Navy Pier and back. Running is a great (and often better) way to see a city when there isn't much time for cheesy tourism. Afterwards, we had breakfast at Clarke's, a 24-hour diner on Lincoln Ave. near De Paul. The place was filled with swelling frat boys. The breakfast was so-so. It's hard to go wrong with eggs and toast.

Internet withdrawl! Okay, so maybe Austin kicks Chi's ass in the wifi department. DePaul U. must have some free-wifi happy coffee shops. Sure enough, we found a place that, for some reason, featured a pitbull who was intent on dragging its ass along the ground. Hmm. Here's what I don't get: a coffee shop with no bathroom. So I peed in a Chipotle w/o buying anything - do you think McDonalds got my point? I didn't stay long enough to find out - I was worried I'd get diabetes just by spending time in the place.

We walked back to our Hotel via Oz park. Surrender Dorothy!

It was necessary to have some Italian food while I was in town. We found a place in Old Town called Topo Gigio. Damn this place was good. Their eggplant parmesan was the best I've ever had. Some of the staff wore t-shirts decorated with a cartoon mouse. I later learned that Topo Gigio was a mouse puppet that often appeared on the "Ed Sullivan Show". Topo Gigio is also on TV in Italy.

We could have stayed at TG all night had we not planned on having a happy out at the Gingerman Tavern. After hanging out for some time with Tim and my parents reading Trivial Pursuit cards, some people showed up and we had a good time. Although I was drinking Stella Atois at a very slow place, I suddenly became extremely inebriated and had to go pass out! Jigga wha?!

Sunday morning - should I have been surprised to not be in the mood for running? I felt better than I should have, but I didn't push my luck. We headed around the corner for breakfast at Nookie's - great place! And yet, it didn't change my dislike for going out for breakfast. Despite the tasty zucchini egg-white omelette and tasty toast, it's all too much. Maybe it's because restaurants don't have the New & Improved Boca Breakfast Links (the ones in the red package). But I think it mostly has to do with my hatred for stuffing myself full of potatoes and eggs early in the morning.

Monica's favorite breakfast:

1 Omelette made with 5 egg whites, sauted onion, mushroom, and bell pepper, a sprinkle of colby-jack cheese, salt and pepper.
2 Boca sausages
1 glass of ice water

Maybe if I'm really hungry I'll have a slice of dry wheat toast or a banana. But I can't deal with the massive plate of hash browns and greasy eggs and butter-soaked toast that's so common at breakfast joints. Who wants to start the day bloated and nasty?

Anyway, back to my day. We headed downtown for the recently revealed Millennium Park. Part of it was closed for a benefit, but we saw most of the cool stuff: the family portrait of the world, the wicked spitting fountain, and the backside of the reflective metallic giant bean.

We didn't have much time for strolling, but for good reason: my parent's were throwing a going-away party for Tim and I ate my Dad's house - an Indian feast! Most of the food was from my family's favorite Indian restaurant, Shera Punjab, with the exception of a delicious chickpea dish that my mom made from scratch. I was pretty elated that my whole family showed up, even my Ohio cousins, Andy and Emily, who I haven't seen in over four years. My former roommate, Mike and our mutual friend, Joe, even stopped by. How touching!

After the party, the trip ended too quickly, too soon. The next day we had time for a run on the north lakefront trai, and a quick stroll through the Lincoln Park Zoo to see the gorillas and their friends. I love the zoo! Then it was off to the burbs for one last lunch with my parents at the Lemont Street Cafe. We said our final goodbyes and some tears were shed, but I like to think they were tears of joy. After all, what better excuse for my family to visit London? And besides, I have a return ticket for February... I've spent more time away from them while I've been in Austin!

No time for tears, it's off to Champaign - UIUC, Altgeld Hall, and my beloved friends.

Link to my photos in Chicago.

Link to Sandy's photos of the Indian Feast.

Posted by monica at 11:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Finally, camera cables at last... here is a link to some photos I took in Madison, Wisconsin. Enjoy!

Posted by monica at 11:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Per Marcella's helpful guidance, Tim and I took a drive today through the Hill Country. Our destination: Luckenbach, Texas, the city "Where Everybody is Somebody", made famous by the song of its name by Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings in 1978. Today Luckenbach considers itself a "social center" for music, beer, and bikers.

We took the long route to our destination, up through Johnson City and west along FM 1323. FM 1323 was lined with beautiful "wild" flowers and offered plenty of nice views. The best part though was the biker bar called Harry's in Willow City. We each had a beer and a rest and even got to chat with Harry for a while. Not bad for noon on Sunday.

We sped through Fredericksburg because that town isn't much fun for anyone under 60 years old. We made it to Luckenbach in one piece. Sure enough, this teeny town was crawling with people (apparently this was a big weekend: it marks the town's 150th anniversary). We chilled, had a beer. Tim had a pork loin sandwich 'cos Marcella said so. There was some kind of Corvette convention in town, as well, which was kind of neat. Overall, it's a cute little venue. The whole thing made me wish I bought that motorcycle.

If you care, here's a link to a short history of Luckenbach.

Link to Photos.

Other trips I'd like to take (or re-take) in the near future, while the H is O:

Willow City Loop / Enchanted Rock
Real Ale Brewing Company in Blanco, TX!!! (on the map above)
Mount Bonnell at Sunset

Any hidden gems I'm missing?

Posted by monica at 02:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Lia's boy, Rob, is in town. Tim and I joined them this evening at the Clay Pit to enjoy some delicious food and get to know Rob a little bit better. It was a really nice time. The Clay Pit's vindaloo is DELICIOUS. But tonight I controlled myself and ordered the tandoori vegetables instead. They really know how to cook their veggies - crisp, flavorful, tasty.

Snapped some photos at Tim's place this afternoon. That was fun.

Posted by monica at 12:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

California is a surreal place with wonderful weather, a beautiful coastline, and a freaky mix of people.

The flight over the west presented me with my first ever view of snow-capped mountains. The first view was of Great Basin National Park in Nevada. Soon after we flew over Yosemite which is -- I kid you not -- wet-your-pants spectacular.

I arrived in San Jose on Friday at 10:30ish CA time. Tim had a great afternoon planned. We first headed out from the airport to Santa Cruz. Until that point, my only two oceanic adventures were swimming in the Gulf of Mexico in Pensacola, Florida (not even the ocean really) and seeing the Atlantic from the Wonderland T-stop in cold and wet Boston, Massachusetts.

The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk was an ideal first stop. Even if you've never been there, you still may have fond memories of seeing it in the Lost Boys. It was pretty early, and the boardwalk amusement park was eerily quiet, so we grabbed an overpriced Diet Pepsi and headed to the beach. Some might consider the beach/amusement park theme to be somewhat tacky, but I thought it was fantastic. The beach and everything around it makes life feel perfect: the moving water, the wharf, the kids chasing seagulls, and rollercoasters.

By the time my feet had enough of the frigid Pacific, the Big Dipper had begun operation. I love rollercoasters, and the Big Dipper is an amazing piece of classic all-wooden coaster art. We hopped a ride with the alterna-kiddies who yelled "PUNK ROCK" as we wooshed down the dip. Thinking about it now, I have to agree: the ride was almost as punk rock as the Parlor.

So within two hours of my arrival in California, I had stood on the edge of the U.S. and rode a cool old wooden rollercoaster. Life is good.

We had lunch on the wharf and listened to some sea lions barking before heading to Monterey, CA. Monterey had their version of the Crown & Anchor, which turned out to be a fairly decent pub with a fair selection of beer and an outdoor patio. Turns out the Crown & Anchor is one of the few things Monterey had going for it (oh yeah, aside from a breathtaking view of the sea) for a couple of childless cynics in their twenties. In its perfection, the town itself was somewhat miserable. It seemed to be comprised solely of tourists stops with nothing useful at all for anyone who lived there. The people roaming the streets were either old, burdened by young children, or goth-kid townspeople. There were also some people who accosted us to give money to help a needy family in Monterey. Poverty in Monterey? I don't believe it. I did get to see some sea lions though: they are so cute.

We escaped from Monterey and (after paying a small fee) hopped on "17 Mile Drive", a scenic tour along Pebble Beach. This took us along some particularly gorgeous areas on the California coastline. We made a few stops to take in the scenery. Almost as breathtaking as the drive itself was the multimillion dollar houses along the drive. I don't think I could live like that, but it made me wish I had a friend with a guest house who could.

By the end of our travels, about 100 miles stood between us and San Francisco, so we hopped on the famous Pacific Coast Highway (Route 1) and drove north up the coast. What an amazing ride: miles and miles of beautiful sea. Everything was so picturesque: the house on the cliff overlooking the ocean, the light house, the seaside towns, the surfers. It was a welcome reminder that life can be almost perfect.

Finally, San Francisco. We checked our stuff in at the Mariott and then scratched our heads for a while as we had no idea where the San Francisco scene was. We thought we'd just walk around and see what was happening, but that journey was short-lived. A short walk from the hotel landed us in proximity to a bum fight and a countless number of crackheads. I swear, Austin must be making me soft, because we got scared and went back to the hotel to seek advice from the concierge. We ended up at a Irish pub filled with douchebags and techno music. There were some ho-bags dancing on the bar. But the beer was cold and we met a couple people who told us we should check out the Castro.

Tired and weary from the long day, we decided to put the Castro on hold and get some sleep. The next day we took a bus to Golden Gate Park. We spent a couple hours wandering around and eventually found the Japanese Tea Garden. I assume that the fee at the door was intended to keep the bums from detracting from the impeccably maintained garden.

We wandered back from the park to Haight Street, known for its roots as a popular hippie hangout in the 70's. Most of the head shops seem to have been replaced by vintage clothing stores. We took a brief stop in the epic Amoeba Music store. The place has an enormous selection of used and new records, cd's, dvds, and videos. All you could hear was the clack-clack-clack of people flipping through media.

After Amoeba we grabbed some tasty Japanese food. I even ate some fish. Then we found a coffee shop that had $1.95 12oz. fresh squeezed juice. I got a carrot-ginger juice and chilled outside. The rumors about no-smoking in California are true; it's next to impossible to find a cafe or bar with outdoor seating. In California, there's no such thing as social smoking. Either you're a smoker who doesn't care where you are as long as you have a nic-stick in your mouth (i.e. you don't mind smoking on the street), or you just give in to the system and enjoy your clean lungs. I'd have to choose the latter option. That evening, I gave up on finding a place to both drink beer and smoke at the same time and went on enjoying the experience of a smoke-less bar. We checked out the recommended Castro which was a little too funky (and gay) for our modest pub tastes and retreated back to Haight where we found some pleasant bars to chill out in for the rest of the night.

On Sunday morning we had time to see Union Street where apparently people go to shop and eat. We took a drive down the shockingly crooked Lombard Street. Finally, we drove over the Golden Gate Bridge before making our way back to San Jose for our flight back to Austin.

So what's my take on San Francisco?

My first impression was that it was dirty and full of freaks. The number of homeless people in SF is shocking. It was the first big city I've ever been in where I wouldn't feel safe walking around by myself. Apparently the key is headphones and sunglasses.

Getting past the bums and the cigarette butts lining the street, San Francisco is amazingly beautiful. The hills give the city an irresistible "texture"; how cool is it to always have a view of something marvelous, be it the sea or a mountain?

SF seems to have great food; for the most part I was able to eat well without eating crap food. The food also seemed reasonable priced. I love cafes, something which Austin is painfully lacking.

I got the impression that the bar scene in SF caters more to people who want to "get fucked up" rather than chill out over a few pints.

Some of the streets in SF are so steep that it feels like your car is going to roll over!

The weather in SF (and everywhere along the coast) is perfect: 70's during the day, 50's at night.

Would I go back? Definitely. California is amazing. I don't think I could live there, it's a little too surreal for me. But if I ever make it back to SF, I'd like to do the cable car thing, walk over the Golden Gate Bridge, perhaps rent a bicycle, see wine country, see Fisherman's Wharf... among a whole list of other things I probably don't even know exists in SF.

Posted by monica at 05:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

last night, after a week of schoolwork so fruitless that it's not even worth mentioning, i decided to assemble a posse and have an evening out at the parlor. the planets were properly aligned for maximum cosmic connectedness between the whole crew (if that's not true, then the Fireman's No. 4 definitely helped make it seem so). in particular, i enjoyed catching up with my astral friend, Marcella for tales of bulbous sperm sacks, bumpin' nasties, and googootoobars. i also met some new rock star peoplez. via Ginger, there's Katherine (not sure if that's with a "K" or "C") who was pro-mechanical pencil because of the fine tip. i claim that a finer tip can be attained with a regular pencil. i don't care what you say, obsessive-compulsive pencil sharpening has its charm. via Sheri i met Ryan. after a preliminary interview, i determined that under his wild head of hair is a fellow geek, musician, and lover of elite links. if i had pressed the issue, i bet i would have learned that he's also a fellow dancer.

meanwhile, other people in the world endured more unfortunate fates.

here are some mostly fuzzy photOS of my evening.

Posted by monica at 05:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by monica at 09:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've posted Saturday's highlights from my mom's visit to Austin. Here's what happened on Sunday:

Woke up entirely too late.

Had brunch at East Side Cafe, who did a very nice, not-flooded-in-grease-and-cheese take on migas (I still think mine are better). According to my mom, the Huevos Mexicana (like lasagna with tortilla instead of noodles and egg instead of typical lasagna filler and covered in verde sauce) were also quite good.

Checked out the Austin Fine Arts Festival. The kinetic sculptures by Jeffrey Zachmann were very cool. But the highlight was (finally) seeing a performance by the Gourds (famous for their country cover of Snoop Dogg's "Gin & Juice"). I wasn't sure what to expect, wary that their fame to me was due only to a single song, and a cover no less. But the Gourds rock the house. They're energetic, funny, and they play good music. The Gourds are why Austin is such a cool place to live in: you can pay $7 to go to a decent outdoor festival, and see great musical acts perform from just a few yards away, all the while sipping Tecate from a can and sitting in the shade.

Took a break to nap/drink some more beer.

Had dinner at the Clay Pit. And by dinner, I mean, pre-dinner girly drinks made of mango, followed by an insane amount of food including samosas, tandoori veggies, curry, rice, and naan. Admittedly, I was painfully full afterwards. But it was oh so good. I had a mango pina colada for dessert.

Photos.

Posted by monica at 12:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Universities really need to get together and schedule their Spring Breaks at the same time.

This week, while I was recovering from Spring Break last week, UIUC students were enjoying their own week of freedom. This brought Braden and Jennifer to town. Wednesday they crashed at my place. That night, I felt it was my duty to introduce them to the Austin coolness that is Hyde Park.

Naturally, I took them to the Parlor.

My favorite punk rock pizza pub was received well, as expected. Afterwards we moved the party back to my place. I had an excellent time catching up with Braden and meeting his girlfriend (I'm sorry Braden, but your girlfriend is cooler than you!). There was some drunkenness involved, and I even talked about politics for a few minutes. Eventually, a raccoon came by and climbed the tree in my yard. Tim snapped these pictures with my camera. Check out the amazing tongue on that beast!

Posted by monica at 03:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's been a very busy weekend.

Friday...
Caught up with Dave Kammeyer for pizza and beer at my place, then we headed downtown. We started at the Copper Tank North room for Gram Rabbit. Although they were a "Friday Pick" in the Chronicle, they're music struck me as the kind that might be ok recorded, but sucks live. Dave commented: "I can actually feel the bass vibrating up my chair and through my crotch." My theory is that the incredibly hot lead songstress is the key to this band's SXSW-level success.

We ended at the Copper Tank main room for Feeble Weiner and some other bands whose identity I did not bother to figure out. Scored a free tote bag.

Saturday...
Saw two shows at Stubb's. First, The Mavericks, an "alt country" band who did songs like What a Crying Shame, There Goes My Heart, and I Want to Know. Their sound definitely had an Elvis appeal, and the lead singer had an amazing operatic voice. Although I don't usually like country, it was impossible not to enjoy their energetic live act.

Afterwards I was ecstatic to (finally) see Patty Griffin. Her CD, "Living with Ghosts" was a mainstay in NOLA, so seeing her perform live really brought me back to lazy mornings in the hot summer sun at Tulane. Though she didn't sing anything from that album, all of her music is wonderful and her live act was better than I anticipated.

After Stubb's, Tim and I chilled with Dave across the street at Bull McCabe's which is apparently where the Crown & Anchor bartenders go when they need a drink. At the table next to ours, a Peter Berg (of Chicago Hope) sighting. Earlier that day, two News8Austin sightings: Doug Shupe at Kirby Lane, and Andy Langer at Stubb's.

I love people watching!

Closing thought on SXSW: if I ever do this again and buy a wristband, I'm definitely going to spend a LOT more time researching bands. It's not the kind of event where you can just walk around and find a show you like, as this would involve traversing several city blocks, waiting in lines to get into venues, and wasting a whole lot of time only to inevitably not find an act worth staying for. I had a great time, but I wish I saw more bands. But that's for another year. Now I'm happy to get back to life as usual.

Photos.

Posted by monica at 04:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last night Tim and I made our first venture into the SXSW music festivities.

Before we headed downtown, we stopped in at Diesel to visit Ginger at some sort of band promo party they were having. The scene: BBQ, PBR, and insanely bright lights to highlight the fashion (non)sense of the indie hipsters.

We didn't stay long.

Downtown was insanely crowded and many of the shows were difficult to get into, including Pedro the Lion. In the end, I didn't get to see them. I'm sad but not at the gut level.

The highlight was singer/songwriter Ian Moore at the 18th Floor at the Crown Plaza. He reminded me a bit of Jeff Buckley with an added dose of rock OUT. The SXSW site has his song Caroline for download; listen to it.

The rest of the night was fairly lame. There was some mediocre jump-jive-and-wail type jazz at the Elephant Room, but still, a decent way to get away from the crowd. I also ran into an old coworker from C&M at UIUC.

"Are you Monica?"
"Oh my god, Eric!??!"
"Adam... but that's ok."

So that was a fun flashback and made for some good company at Maggie Mae's.

And now, today's dose of indie:
(courtesy of Diesel jeans)
(click on the image to get your indie kids in hi-res)

Posted by monica at 03:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It was my Wonder Boys moment.

Bruce Sterling invited the SXSW Interactive bunch to a post-party at his house, which just happened to be right down the street from Tim. About 600 people came and filled the place with booze, geek talk, prettiness, stinkiness, and an all around good time. Highlights include:

Free Titos.
Asking David Weinberger to take a photo of Tim and I without realizing it was David Weinberger, "A-list blogger".
Hitting it off with David Weinberger.
Swapping Wolfram stories.
Meeting Carl de Cordova and talking architecture, Everquest addiction, and Training For the Apocalypse ("interesting").
Peeing in Bruce Sterling's Bathroom.
The real indietim.
George, negrophile.
"Oh, have you ever seen the Big Lebowski?"
Getting told a bad linear algebra joke.
3 enviable porches.
Talking to a slew of tech-famous people and not even knowing it.
A bowl of corks.
Psycho Eels fan.
Shoe compliments.
Random Hyde Park notables like the Fresh Plus cashier and Quackenboosh Todd who didn't seem to mind hitting on me in front of Tim.
Drunken frat boy, speechless, resorting to the power of *the dance*.

Here's a few photos I took.
Sterling's pics of the aftermath.

Posted by monica at 12:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In celebration of Pam's visit to Austin (if only so that her memories from Texas were more profound than those moments in Lubbock), we assembled a posse and journeyed to The Parlor for delicious pizza and Fireman's #4. An amazing time was had by all thanks to madlibs and drunk bums. Wild photos were also taken.

Posted by monica at 06:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by monica at 09:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

i took some rather unimpressive photos while i was home in chicago this christmas. sadly, they don't even come close to capturing the essence of my visit.

the first days before christmas seemed to drag on forever. too much family and shopping, not enough coffee and nicotene. it snowed on the first night i was there, but after that it was fairly warm. no white christmas, after all. instead, christmas in mokena, il. it was a pretty good christmas party. lots of wine and cheese. my dad and my aunt almost got in a fist fight when i said i wanted to drop out of school and get a job. sounds kind of weird, right? well, my aunt thinks i should absolutely positively get my PhD. she sums up her reasoning in a question: "what else are you going to do with your life?" so i was spared, as i have an infinite number of alternatives to graduate school and a career as an academic bullshitter. my dad, however, took the whole conversation as a bitter affront on his useless PhD. it was kind of uncomfortable and made me think of all the cool places i could spend christmas instead of at home if i had mucho dinero.

once christmas was over, time flew by pretty quickly. i spent my time catching up with friends for beers and good times. the highlight was seeing some friends from high school. there were some engagements, but thank god no kids.

lesson learned this trip: 9 days is way too long to spend in family-land, no matter how much money i saved in airfare. in the future, i'll spend the extra dough on an earlier flight back to sanity.

back in austin, i'm incredibly relieved. still a little woozy, but relieved. i took my sister and ginger out for punk rock pizza last night. i also saw Peter Pan which was a magical tittilation of the ol' heart strings. my sister didn't agree, but i for one had to choke back a couple tears. i do believe in fairies!!

Posted by monica at 09:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

i finally got my photos back from my trip to Lubbock, TX for the Red Raider Minisymposium. the images rekindled feelings that i thought i had forgotten along with they chay keizer model. but now it's clear that lubbock is in me, and it's not going anywhere without the assistance of an ancient indian burial ritual. so forgive me if i live in the past today. i know it's not like me. just remember...

it's not me...

it's lubbock.

i left for lubbock on a thursday afternoon. as the super shuttle pulled away from my driveway, Lia called and told me to "bring the warmest coat i had". but it was early, and i was feeling too groggy to make the driver go back, and besides, this is texas -- how cold could it possibly be? when i got off the plane and out of Lubbock Airport, the first thing i noticed was the arctic air feeling me up through my crappy old navy sweatshirt. something had to give. my first plan of action was to acquire something warm. a cowboy in my bed wearing nothing except his hat and a pair of spurs would have sufficed. but i knew that attempting that probably meant getting hung in the town square. so i headed "to town" in search of an extra shirt. the first thing i saw as i left the Days Inn was the "Stadium Inn" next door, situated across the street from the TTU stadium itself. what I want to know is: why didn't we stay there instead?

i can't say that i'll ever forgive pahdu for that one.

turns out that the only shops that sell clothes in lubbock only sell stuff that come embroidered with a hideous TTU logo. the upshot is that i finally figured out why the hell a math conference had "red raider" in its name. the bitch factor is that i now own a TTU hat and a long sleeved red TTU shirt.

the ultimate pimp slap came when i put on the shirt and found out that its sleeves were three-quarter as opposed to full sleeve.

but that had to happen i think.

things improved drastically when i caught up with lia and her friend, pam, from upenn. pam is a kindrid spirit, one who i feel i've known forever in the cosmic sense. you might call her: the shizzle. i go to these things to meet cool people, and to have my goals realized so quickly immediately justified my trip. as it would turn out, i would need the comic relief to get through what could have been a most painful weekend.

it was cold, you see. really cold. and then i got a cold. a snotty nasty mucous fest brewing relentlessly. and it was lubbock. the walk from the Days Inn to campus was mostly orange, grey, and miserable (see panorama above). and once i got to campus, it was more dull and lifeless than the dust expanse i had just travelled. i figured that was because school wasn't in session -- only it was in session. and such was life at Texas Tech University. pizza, school, and football games. even the homeless steared clear of this weary rural America town.

the case for "lubbock sucks" was won when i discovered that lubbock is in a dry county. fortunately, there was a math reception on the first night which served plenty of wine and food. i can now understand why we have such a problem with obesity in this country. if i was that bored all the time, i would probably eat myself to death (that is if i didn't drink myself to death first). although i wanted to mingle, i was feeling a little antisocial. so hid in the corner with a plate of hummus and grease and made fun of people with my new friends who failed to get a photo of this guy we saw/met who had really huge hands. in fact, i never got the full story about what happened with him and pam after lia and i left. if i'm ever in pennsylvania again, remind me to steal pam's diary.

speaking of math, i should probably mention something about the conference itself. the talks were decent, but sadly, all concerned topics in physiology modelling that i'm not really interested in. and there was very little math. i think all the speakers shared powerpoint slides because they all had the same graphs to represent their results. there was coffee and cookies in between talks. there wasn't enough good people watching, except for this one girl who had on a hideous sweatshirt that had a "top ten reasons to be a math major at ttu" list on the back. the only reason i remember is "to keep the eraser companies in business."

on the last night in lubbock we found a bar (apparently you can buy booze at bars, not at stores... cuz it's sooo much safer to drink at a bar and drive home than drink at home in the first place). here we finally hung out with some other math people. while that was nice, i should have stayed in. my nasty cold must have clogged my sense of reason because i made a complete ass of myself. i won't go into details ... i'd like to take this story to my grave. but all i know is that i will probably have to discontinue my studies in math biology just so i don't run into these people again.

lubbock was so bad that i left a day early and caught a standby flight home. i did bring home with me some fond memories along with some lubbock mud stuck in my shoes. the trip was awful but it makes me laugh. in fact, i laughed a whole lot in lubbock, inbetween visits with the snot rag. places like lubbock, well, you just have to laugh. cuz otherwise you end up like one of them.

you can see all of my inspirational photos from lubbock here.

Posted by monica at 03:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

reluctantly, i have returned to austin from my short but wonderful trip to chicago. the meat of the trip can be found in my photos and tim's photos. here's a summary...

thursday: got into chi at around 3pm... props to my parents for picking us up at the airport and taking us into the city. my parents were pretty psyched to find parking; tim and i were pretty psyched to be in a real city again. stepping onto fullerton avenue, the air seemed to breath a little cleaner despite the smog. hundreds of people passed me as we made our way across the 6-lane intersection, and the feeling of life in motion was more refreshing than the the cafe mocha i would soon indulge in at the bourgeois pig, a coffee shop situated in a styley old brownstone near depaul university in lincoln park. after caffeine, my parents left tim and i at our hotel, the omni ambassador east, home of the famous "pump room" (an elite bar/restaurant were frank sinatra and friends -- among many other famous types -- apparently used to hang out, but tim and i were never spiffed up enough to get in). the omni is a national historic landmark and prides itself in blending the luxuries of yesterday with state-of-the-art technology of today (i.e. a webtv and a nintendo64). tim hooked us up with a real honest-to-goodness SUITE, with a couch and everything! it was pretty nice and we probably should have spent more time in there given how much is cost. but after a shower we headed out for food. tim wanted to go to the Chop House, but surprisingly enough, the only veggie food they had was a side salad and potato pancakes. so we settled for some delicious deep dish spinach pizza at pizzeria uno. we did a little bit of wandering and found some drinks at a cool little storefront bar called Mondelli Lounge. afterwards: exhaustion followed by sleep.

friday: our only full day in the city. we managed to get out of the hotel by 9am for breakfast where i spilled coffee all over myself. after we ate and i changed my t-shirt, we began exploring... among our wanderings: The Loop, Grant Park, Lake Michigan, The Magnificent Mile. i got to check my e-mail at the Apple Store, and see someone on a Segway, and use my camera a whole bunch.

after walking around all day, we direly needed a drink. so back to the Mondelli Lounge we went for a few vodka tonics before catching up with my sis and parents for dinner at Raj Darbar. the cooks over there dished out some phenomenal indian food which i couldn't help but gorge upon. afterwards, i was too full to movie so we went a couple doors down to Griffin's Public House for more drunkeness and the Cubs game -- it was insanely cool to be in a Chicago bar when the Cubbies won. "Aloooooooooou!"

after the game we headed out into the chaos of the north side post cubs victory. i got a call from one of my favorite people, cara, so tim and i got a cab and went even further north to meet up with her at a chill beer bar called "The Hopleaf". more drinks, chit chat, catching up... i miss that girl!

by the end of the night i was drunk and tired and extremely happy that the convenience of public transport was close at hand. we hopped on the red line back to our hotel.

saturday: john and colleen's wedding day. due to the chicago marathon, the omni was full for saturday night so we got gussied up and checked out. tim looked great in his suit. we were late for the wedding, which was boring anyway. it was a catholic ceremony which involved mass, a ritual i haven't attended in years. that was vaguely interesting. aftewards, we spent the remainder of the day wasting time downtown. some tasty food -- upsidedown pizza, salad, bread -- was had at the Chicago Pizza and Grinder Factory. then we travelled to navy pier for some bullshit tourism before the reception. i was wearing a pair of incredibly uncomfortable shoes the whole time (my feet are still recovering). it was also cold, and the only jacket i had was a hoodie, so i looked incredibly ghetto the whole time. but alas, i had a reception to go to, and it was surprisingly fun. tim got along really well with the family, thanks to the open bar. i had a chance to catch up with my extended family, something i don't do often enough.

we didn't dance, but we sure did party... until about 2am. i had a reservation at the Hilton in the burbs (the only place i could get a room for saturday), but i made the crucial mistake of not calling early to confirm my reservation. when we got there, they had given away our room so they put us in a conference room with a couple of rollaway beds -- ghetto! the good news is that they felt bad so we didn't have to pay for the room, and they gave us some pop and snacks for our troubles.

sunday: a day in the burbs. tim and i were pretty out of it... all we could manage was a lazy afternoon with my sis -- we took a walk by "hidden lake" and saw some pretty red leaves. then we stalked my mom at the sports athority (damn we're cool). finally, we played mini golf ... i came in last.... something like a 59 on a par 45. before the flight back, tim and i got our garlic on at a tasty italian restaurant for the benefit of our fellow air travellers.

so that's it. i enjoyed the city so much that i'm almost considering moving back there when the time comes. but first i need to catch up with life here in tejas. i'm behind in everything from homework to laundry to exercise. but the weekend refreshed me, and i'm confident i'll be caught up by the end of the week. and i should have no distractions as i left my phone charger in the room at the omni. and since i don't have a phone, i can't exactly call to see if they found it. one of these days i'll get around to buying a new one.

back to life, but i'd rather be in the city.

Posted by monica at 02:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

i swore that i would keep this thing updated, but like so many other things, i have failed in that regard. but since yer mom told me i should update my blog, i thought i better do so.

let's see. some good things: went out with dave k. last week with tim, pete, and pete's new girlfriend who i offended by knocking the bubble tea culture. whatever.

there was a pre-prelim party that involved a keg of Keystone Light. not sure what was up with that. i had no luck getting lucky with any of the new students.

oh wait. i didn't try.

the day following the pre-prelim party, i went to the Dog & Duck Pub for John H.'s birthday (photos here -- sadly, none of the birthday boy). it would have been better if i hadn't drank half a bottle of Fat Bastard Chardonnay before hand (thanks, sis, for the b-day present). my indulgence warranted me drizzunk upon my arrival to the illustrious d&d (not dungeons and dragons, which michael piatek apparently now plays). several hours and many plastic cups of water later, i was recovered and ready to party for the second time that day. (observe how i cleverly label my solo daylight wine consumption as "partying".) so i hit my next-door neighbor's 21st birthday extravaganza, a night that would end in much regret (regret that i'd ever been invited the lame-ass tool-saturated keg party in the first place). as the party sucked, my comrades and i decided to move things to my porch. the party looked even worse from a distance. anyway, their party noise translated to my deck noise which translated to me getting a bullshit ticket from the APD.

that's the LAST thing i need!

(next to an std.)

a ticket. a ticket for playing prince and survivor under the jubilee of undergraduates hitting a pinata.

the whole experience got me thinking -- white wine is really pretty good, and almost refreshing. red wine is sometimes a little too robust for me. the Fat Bastard C was so light and as i was searching for a better way to describe it, i read this on the company's website: the chardonnay is equally versatile, depending on the statutes and by laws of your municipality, even for those who prefer scrod. a fatter style chardonnay, as critics say, it too is rich yet quite refreshing.

i'm so on the ball.

the point is: if i had gone with my initial instinct (wine) i would have never run into this whole ticket mess in the first place (zeigenbock with undergraduates).

i swear to god i'll learn something from all of this eventually.

Posted by monica at 11:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

pics of the University of Georgia, Athens.

Posted by monica at 12:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

great weekend all around. saturday was spent jazzing up my wardrobe. during this time, i was informed that i have "no ass". (i knew it!) in an effort to add a little junk to my trunk, an italian dinner was had at the basil press. bananas foster was prepared tableside -- video here (18mb). a moment was had when phil proposed a toast to blossoming new friendships.

this afternoon i went hiking in the appalacians to the chattahoochee river (photos). the pictures are pretty lame -- no epic views or anything like that. but the walk was fantastic and the weather was beautiful.

tomorrow, work work work. i have 10 working days left to finish a somewhat substantial project. and then, home again home again booshity boosh.

one minor point of great hilarity (at least to me). the scene: on the elevator with rommel and allison, all of us armed with our trash. random guy gets on and i apologize for all the garbage. as random guy gets off at his floor, guy says: "that's a lot of trash". my response, for the benefit of my new friends: "well i'm a very dirty girl". there i go, being a loser and quoting myself again, but i was really proud of that.

Posted by monica at 01:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

athfest this weekend. went out last night to celebrate... hit the globe first for a hoegaarden. the globe has t-shirts; must acquire one before the end of my stay here.

following the globe, there were some issues involving a certain underaged person among us, but we finally found a place that let us in. it was called "the tasty boosh", or something like that, and inside i was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the music. blues, rock and roll -- fun all around. i imbibed a great deal of newcastle, and sang along when the band played "sister christian".

athfest was a great opportunity to try out the quality of low light photography with my new canon s50. here are some (mostly blurry) pictures from the evening and a short avi taken at the globe.

Posted by monica at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

dear diary,
it's been four days since my last confession. things have been strangely busy here in the deep south. the man has me workin from 1-9pm, so it is hard to get a word in edgewise with you.

i purchased a digital camera yesterday: a canon s50. i am anxiously anticipating its arrival.

last night, after a failed attempt to go to the half moon pub, Alison, Phil, Rommel, and I headed to our old standby: the globe. best quote: "that beer's not gonna drink itself." thanks, alison. yay, photos.

Posted by monica at 11:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

For a far too short time in Austin, I had the pleasure of living in an apartment at 304 Moore Blvd. The place was insanely charming, huge, and reasonably priced. I miss it dearly.

Posted by monica at 08:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last Friday I had a housewarming party. I took some digital photos and even put my izone to work. Good times. Thanks to all who attended.

Posted by monica at 03:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by monica at 12:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

i love ya baby, but all i can think about is kielbasa sausage...

People with boring lives should be discouraged from broadcasting the mundane details of their trivial existences on the interweb.

Luckily you have me.

I had my dermal lightening bolt repaired last sunday. Atomic Tattoo was a very friendly and clean family tattoo parlor. It was here that a mysterious maiden appeared with several dozen limes which she left on the floor as she quickly departed. Each was decorated with slurs of varying creativity. One said "you suck", another made mention to someone's single testicle. Apparently one of the employees gave someone a bad time.

Naturally, celebration was held at the crown. Here I drank many pitchers of beer and took even more photos. Rafi let me wear his downy soft performance fleece. 3 popcorn remnants were found in the left pocket.

Installed TeXShop on OS X this afternoon. It's the first decent TeX editor of seen for the Mac. Productivity at last.

Current 2003 BumbleButt Raquetball Tourny stats:
Losses: 2
Wins: 0

Posted by monica at 05:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Photos from Christmas 2002 in Chicago.

Posted by monica at 09:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Photos from Austin's infamous Duck Tour.

Posted by monica at 09:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Monica and Diode move to Austin - photos from the long journey and short visit with my Dad and Sista.

Featuring:

Extremely bad hair.
Inner Space Caverns
Refills at Serranos
Zilker Botanical Gardens
Pasta at Piccolo
Kayaking on the Colorado River

Posted by monica at 03:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pics of Mike and I getting trashed on white russians and having a blast at the House of Blues in New Orleans.

Posted by monica at 08:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)