FOR THE WEEK OF MAY 17-23
WHAT I’M READING: I’m in need of a book. Can you help me? I can help you if you’re interested in old magazines. I’m purging. Contact me for the list.
WHAT ELSIE’S READING: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin repeatedly. All the other children’s books we own are boring and trivial next to Brown Bear, says Elsie. She only loves Brown Bear and maybe Blue Horse and Green Frog, and more specifically Purple Cat, who reminds her of our cat Frannie. Frannie and Elsie just might be in love. But it’s still hush, hush.
WHAT I’M WATCHING: Doubt, an excellent film. I had writer’s block for a few days after seeing it. I just couldn’t bring myself to write my usual blah blah stuff with John Patrick-Shanley writing the ‘ol brilliance. But then again, blah blah can always become a masterpiece with a bit of fine tuning. I’m starting with a title. I’m thinking Fear or Truth. Definitely monosyllabic. Blah, blah. Did I mention I have a baby and my brain has congealed? Seriously, I trip regularly and knock over water glasses, bottles, whatever as long as there is a major spill.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: A new mix cd from my good friends in Montreal. They make a yearly mix which they send out to all of us friends. I played Falling Slowly all the way home from my audition today.
Somehow I always feel a little used after auditioning (I haven’t quite mastered the ‘see it as an opportunity to act’ attitude) and Glen Hansard & Marketa Iglova put me back in a creative, hopeful mind frame. Yeah for independent artists.
WHAT I’M WEARING: Oh, oh, oh, my mama bought me new sandals. Mephisto pink beauties (that’s not the official name, thought it probably should be) from a shoe store that served us old style. And by old style I mean the saleswoman placed the little stockings and shoes on my feet like I was very valuable. Good service is sooooo refreshing. Do I sound old?
WHAT I’M EATING: We might have a chocolate chip cookie stash for the weary PhD which I occasionally dip into. And then again, we might not.
WHAT I’M ENJOYING: The weather of late, which enables spectacular pictures of babies, namely Elsie.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Since I’m feeling grizzled (I LOVE the thesaurus), I decided to layer on the Ginger Ciao of old in order to feel young. Oh, the paradox.
FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 13-17
WHAT I’M READING: Some interesting websites about developing a business online, including this one. Seth creates thought-provoking bite-sized blogs on a daily basis. I am often inspired.
WHAT I’M WATCHING: The Visitor. Good movie which explores the plight of illegal immigrants. My kind of movie really. No violence, no scary chain saws, just a poignant story. I still haven’t recovered from Snatch which I watched, oh, nine years ago. That pig scene…forever etched.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: Simon’s encouragements. I haven’t yet resolved the notion of equilibrium. I seem to vacillate between high states of anticipation and low, oh so low states of despair. This is one of the places where I am ‘learning to kneel.’
WHAT I’M WEARING: Orange dresses. I have a couple. One is more little grunge girl, the other is more foxy mama. I don’t wear the foxy mama dress too often ’cause sleepless nights with my little Pelsie Pants make me feel not so much like foxy mama.
WHAT I’M EATING: And by this I mean what I’m NOT eating, which is everything. We decided as a family to do a candida cleanse. Sounds fun, eh? It’s just a matter of time before I am brimming with energy and running miles and singing really, really high notes…cause isn’t that what our bodies do when they radiate health?
WHAT I’M ENJOYING: Browsing health food stores and discovering new ways of eating. It’s perhaps a fetish. Maybe. I recently discovered Salba. Japan’s superfood.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Elsie’s peas and brown rice mixture. Very mild. Just the way she likes it. She positively convulses at the smell, let alone the taste of sweet potato. Not so much flava, Mama!
FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 29-April 4
WHAT I’M READING: Labels. Snippets out of Macleans. Theatre reviews. If it’s the length of Goodnight Moon and I can put it in my mouth, that’s my kind of read.
WHAT SIMON’S READING: Only his thesis. Over and over and over until he hits ‘SEND.’ He’s afraid of me now, because I told him he needs to provide for his family (which incidentally is a very powerful line).
WHAT I’M WATCHING: Anderson Cooper 360. I don’t understand what it is about that silver fox that draws me in. Like I will be sitting there SOOOO tired, like out of my mind tired, and Anderson Cooper appears telling me about all the day’s disasters and I’m tranfixed. Yes, I will meet you on the Mexican border…do tell me about all the scary things. Tell me, tell me, tell me.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: “Rainbow purple, rainbow blue, rainbow green and yellow too”—otherwise known as Elsie’s music, otherwise known as Elsie’s car valium.
WHAT I’M WEARING: My old Seven jeans. Simon patched the thinning inner thighs and they are good to go.
WHAT I’M EATING: A lot of kale. Kale is actually quite delicious, particularly if you saute it with onion, garlic, chicken broth and red wine vinegar. Okay, I always forget the red wine vinegar, but my sister tells me it makes all the difference.
WHAT I’M ENJOYING: Long walks with Elsie secured in a stroller instead of velcroed to my body. Don’t get me wrong, I love having her close, but it gets…hot…AND then I can’t wear the amazing blue trench coat I picked up in LA. Cause this is one coat where sweat and milk chunks are not allowed. The line must be drawn.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Simon’s skin, which I think is starting to ooze espresso. Is that possible?
FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 8-14
WHAT I’M READING: Seventeen dollars worth of magazines. Simon was appalled. I’m like, that’s only three magazines – one of which was NOT People’s. I read it at the cash. And anyway, how can you read a book on the plane with Elsie and her many needs, which seem to be amplified in claustrophobic quarters? I rest my case.
WHAT SIMON’S READING: He is listening to books on tape. Or books on ipod as it were. At night. In bed even. So yeah, it’s me, Simon and Brian Tracy cozying up for a midnight cuddle.
WHAT I’M WATCHING: The most recent Cohen brothers film, Burn After Reading. Left me feeling a little dark. I had to watch three episodes of 30 Rock to recover.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: Reggae For Kids, a gift from Simon’s sister, Emily and her partner, Chris. Chris is actually supremely reggae knowledgeable and is slightly offended by the cd. Fortunately I am blissfully ignorant, so Elsie and I can feel free to groove.
WHAT I’M WEARING: Traveling gear, which means yoga pants and a tank top. But I should add, I’ve suddenly discovered the joy of lipstick. Bright orange lipstick. So I’m wearing that too. I’ll write more about that another time.
WHAT I’M EATING: Pizza with a brown rice crust. Surprisingly delicious. 2 cups cooked brown rice, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Mix and then spread on a pizza pan. That’s your crust.
WHAT I’M ENJOYING: Now that our play is over, there is a little more room in my brain for something called relaxation. It’s pretty cool. And my chin acne seems to be receding, which is also cool.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Elsie’s butt. In fact, Marie-Claire has remarked that I really get in there for a sniff. Welcome to motherhood, my friend, where the consistency of your child’s bowel movements are of utmost concern.
For the week of March 1-7:
WHAT I’M READING: A French novel, Lignes de faille by Nancy Huston. I read this novelist for the first time in University. But somehow reading with the knowledge that I will be writing NO paper has made me love her even more. What a precocious protagonist, that Sol! Nope, don’t got any proof. What irony! Nope, don’t got any supporting quotations. ‘Cause I am reading for pleasure.
WHAT SIMON’S READING: The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell. (By the way, have you ever seen Malcolm Gladwell? He has surprisingly BIG hair. Like a serious fro. My heritage of straight lifeless hair shouts out to your plentiful fro, Malcolm!)
WHAT I’M WATCHING: A clip of myself being interviewed on French television. Let’s call it cute when I speak spontaneously in a second language in front of a million viewers.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: The chilling sound of -45. Yeah, -45 has a sound. A bad one.
WHAT I’M WEARING: The same three boring outfits. What was I thinking when I packed so freakin’ light? It’s a mystery. Usually my suitcase is brimming with choice. But this time while packing for a three week stay, I went the route of scarcity. Elsie, on the other hand, brought her entire wardrobe. Probably a good thing, since lately she likes to poo all the way down to her socks.
WHAT I’M EATING: The best meal of my life. Last night. Smoked salmon and mussels to begin. Then homemade tourtière. Then Toblerone chocolate fondue. Thank you, Richard Marcotte!
WHAT I’M ENJOYING: Lazy mornings replete with Elsie play time. My daughter has an exquisite laugh, heard for the first time in Regina (cough-like laugh is out).
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: The bathroom adjacent to our dressing room which smells like bubble gum and a men’s urinal.
For the week of October 26-Nov 1:
WHAT I’M READING: The New Yorker. Interesting article about how Sarah Palin got her nomination. Turns out she was pal-ing around with Washington elites. Um…
WHAT SIMON’S READING: Steve Pavlina’s website. With intensity. (Kind of like how Elsie eats after being in the sling for four hours. Verging on insanity.) Why is he so interested? Well if you must know, Steve Pavlina is juice feasting for 92 days, and Simon is living vicariously through him. WE don’t think WE have sufficient funds for Simon to juice feast himself. So he’s reading Pavlina’s day to day accounts. Do you know how many carrots you need to make a gallon of juice?
WHAT I’M WATCHING: Many episodes of 30 Rock with Little Beauty in my lap. Tina Fey just might be my hero. Not heroine. I like the gender neutral term. So when I call myself and an ‘actor,’ you don’t need to say, “You mean an ACTRESS?”
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: A delicate cooing. These Elsie reverberations are usually accompanied by a potent stare.
WHAT I’M WEARING: Work out gear. Yep. I’m back at the university gym with all those sweaty kids. Though I might have overdone it on the calf muscle machine. Just maybe. Since I can barely walk. Simon keeps telling me to stretch. But here’s the thing. I have stretched. I continue to stretch. I need more than stretching. I need physio.
WHAT I’M EATING: I AM the master pizza maker. Yesterday, I concocted my own recipe. Chef Chevron, I’m branching out on my own. Pesto, tempeh bacon, chopped spinach, a mixture of goat and soy cheese, cayenne. All on a Trader Joe’s whole wheat crust. I rolled it out and whispered sweet nothings so it would lie flat on the cookie sheet.
WHAT I WISH I WERE EATING: Heather’s chicken marbella.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING:
You say vinegar. I say ants.
Vinegar.
Ants.
Vinegar.
Ants.
For the week of October 19-25:
WHAT I’M READING: I’m not.
WHAT SIMON’S READING: Um…he’s not.
WHAT I’M WATCHING: Here’s the thing. Where once we were not so much tv watchers, now that we’re perpetually sleep deprived, suddenly we are. Getting all glossy eyed in front of the tube is right up our alley. Simon is trying to get me hooked on Heroes. I’m trying to get him hooked on 30 Rock. So there.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: I’ve had kind of a down last few days. And when I’m down, I find The Great Lake Swimmers are a perfect accompaniment to my mood. They’re just a little more down than me. Exhibit A: “I can’t write. I can’t sleep. I can’t play. My insides have been broken.” Clearly this man just gave birth. Adjustment takes time. It’ll be okay.
WHAT I’M WEARING: More pants. Because more pants fit. And that’s a very good thing. Cause now we can go more weeks without doing the laundry. We’re thinking of letting things go for a while. Might be cause for concern.
WHAT I’M EATING: Chocolate and beer as a midnight snack. I woke up with a hangover. Seriously.
WHAT I WISH I WERE EATING: The lasagna of my youth. You know, when we all ate carbs. Parenthood makes you nostalgic, okay?
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: The lemony-pledge stuff they spray into our apartment dumpster which wafts into our bedroom every morning. It’s sort of disconcerting. Like stop all the tree dusting already. Trust me grounds keepers, they’re clean.
For the week of October 12-18:
WHAT I’M READING: Every week Pastor Dave sends me the weekly bulletin from my dad’s church in Toronto. He includes a hand-written note and if I’m lucky, a butterfly sticker. So I read that.
WHAT SIMON’S READING: The Omnivore’s Dilemma, a book we both highly recommend. I recommend it and I haven’t even read it in its entirety. What do you think of that? I just have a hunch it’s an important read for those of us wanting a better understanding of where our food comes from and what it’s made of. Did you know that as North Americans we’re basically corn bodies?
WHAT I’M WATCHING: While Chevron was here, we watched the season premiere of CSI and everybody cried. CSI has taken on a whole new level of significance ever since I had coffee with Marg Heldenberger. Okay, okay. We didn’t exactly drink our coffee side by side. But we were pretty damn close. And yes, she is very pretty AND she eats pastries. But only if they’re delicious.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: Chevron’s music: Amel Lemieux, which I now call my music. And of course, all of Elsie’s sounds, which range from an impassioned wail to a series of murmurs to this cool gobbling noise she makes every time she eats. We call her our ravenous beast.
WHAT I’M WEARING: Jean shorts. Everyday. Simon is surprised. I’m like, hey man, I’m lucky if I shower. (As a side note, Chevron was kind enough to babysit Elsie for a little while one morning. When I returned, she was standing there in her underwear holding her drooling niece: “I never managed to put on pants.”)
WHAT I’M EATING: Raw porridge as per usual. And an eggplant/chickpea medley which I also picked up from sis. Delicious.
WHAT I WISH I WERE EATING: Canadian Thanksgiving dinner. Somehow I don’t think Simon and I will be whipping up a turkey. Though I’ve always liked the idea of corralling all the disparate lonely people to our table for a turkey. So maybe…
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: We got a new bag of beans from Intelligentsia. Simon was excited and read me the label: “Do you know what you’re drinking? Orange, white grape and tropical fruit with an all-spice and baker’s chocolate finish.” Me: “Yum! Can I have two?”
For the week of September 21-27:
WHAT I’M READING: Five issues of Brain, Child (a cool parenting magazine my sister-in-law sent us) simultaneously. I have them spread out around the apartment, so they’re easily accessible while I feed my ravenous child. I gotta stay sharp. I’ve heard the “mommy” brain softens rapidly from lack of REM sleep.
WHAT SIMON’S READING: Now HE’S reading Deepak Chopra’s Seven Spiritual Laws at a leisurely pace. He’s wondering if we might like to try a couple days of total silence. Um…not really.
WHAT I’M WATCHING: Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert with my politically minded mother. She has become a total news junkie. Who’s excited about the presidential debate???
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: Bon Iver. Elsie’s shrieking at bath time. The meowing of the three stray cats that hang out by our living room window. That which deters the three cats from lingering too long: the spray bottle. (I have put my foot down. Absolutely no more live things in this apartment! Simon, Elsie, the ants, the other assortment of bugs I find at random…me…we are full up.)
WHAT I’M WEARING: NOT all the fun clothes I had dreamed of. Remember how I said I had my eye on my skinny jeans…well I still do, but I can’t QUITE SEE them from the angle at which I’m sitting. Here’s the thing. You’re body isn’t quite the same after, oh, giving birth. Big sigh. Like, for example, your hips. MY hips. They’re bigger. Still.
WHAT I’M EATING: Delightful creations made by my mother. Like, for example, homemade turkey soup. Like, for example, carrot muffins. Like, for example, omelets that taste like her kitchen!
WHAT I WISH I WERE EATING: Actually, I am perfectly content when it comes to food. I don’t even miss the heavenly chocolate chip cookies Simon and I had discovered at a coffee shop near our midwife, and were indulging in regularly. Okay, maybe I miss them a little, particularly after a salad replete with red onion.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Elsie’s diapers. Yeah, not so bad really. And it’s kind of a bonding time for us—diaper changes. She gurgles, then I gurgle a little retort…she gurgles some more and then hurls milk. It’s really sweet!
For the week of September 14-20:
WHAT I’M READING: Well, it would be a lie to say I’m reading a hell of a lot. But I have STARTED Quantum Healing by Deepak Chopra. I’m doing research for our health site. Alternative approaches to healing. Mind power. Spontaneous healing from cancer…and the like. Cool stuff. After laboring at home in the bathtub with no medication, I am a firm believer in mind over matter!
WHAT SIMON’S READING: Dunno. Let me go check. Where am I checking you might ask? His backpack. Like any good reader, he always has a book on hand. Okay, Simon is reading…Letters To A Young Mathematician. I can’t really comment. All I can say is that it came from the “science” section of UC Riverside. Okay, Simon wants to comment: Ian Stewart’s take on how researchers think, learn and explore. There. He recommends.
WHAT I’M WATCHING: Back to back to back episodes of Weeds. Yep, we’re pretty much hooked, and preparing for a time of grieving when we come to the end of season 4 and have nothing left to download.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: My new ditty. Have a listen.
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Email me for ditty transcripts. Happy to oblige.
WHAT I’M WEARING: Realizing that maybe this category is why my uncle doesn’t like my blog…just a touch too personal for him. Apparently he doesn’t want to know all my business. But for those of you that aren’t squeamish about…CLOTHES, I’m wearing an ensemble that I recognize from a distant life: navy blue schpants (cross between shorts and pants) and a navy blue tank top (Simon is calling me the Navy Blue Knight…whatever floats his boat! These clothes weren’t purchased at Motherhood Maternity!) And I already have my eye on my skinny jeans…
WHAT I’M EATING: Whatever Simon makes me. Last night he made a delicious vegan pasta. As we were digging in he said: “I really learned a lot from making this recipe!”
WHAT I WISH I WERE EATING: French Toast, what else? AND…Ginger Pear Kambucha. I could drink that stuff by the gallons. Unfortunately, it’s mucho expensivo.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Elsie’s head! Elsie’s belly! Elsie’s nose! Um…Elsie!
For the week of September 7-13:
WHAT I’M READING: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. Read the book and note the distinction she makes between the meditation she does at her Ashram in India, and her description of Vipassana. My dad has done two ten day Vipassana retreats—the really tough stuff—where you meditate for hours without moving a muscle. I have profound respect for that man! Personally, I am starting with 10 minutes, and making allowances for the odd scratch or limb adjustment.
WHAT SIMON’S READING: This is a category worth adding. Gives a sense of the balance (or lack thereof) emanating from our abode. Currently, Simon is doing a SECOND thorough reading of his beloved book on pH (The Ultimate pH Solution by Michelle Schoffro Cook), and apparently getting very pumped to make us recipes that will alkalize us like nobody’s business. I await the Tofu Scramble and Herb Spelt Bread with bated breath.
WHAT I’M WATCHING: The presidential speeches; my first episode of The Closer; those new high-fructose corn syrup commercials (sponsored by the corn industry) on Utube. We are not duped.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: A group of mothers at Peets talking about their children. Well, it’s actually one mother dominating the discussion as she sews sequins on a ballet costume. I feel I might actually vomit or do something hateful. Now she is standing on the table and showing off her jeans being held up by velcro (okay, she’s not actually standing ON the table, but it feels like she is). Apparently she can’t afford to send her children to baseball AND get her pants altered. This is what she is telling the group. Did I mention we’re sitting in Peets?
Oh, thank God. They’re leaving. All trudging off to their minivans.
WHAT I’M WEARING: A tanktop when I should be wearing a momo. Today a man stopped his truck and rolled down his window in the grocery store parking lot to exclaim: “Wow, you’re ready to pop!” Thank you, strange man for sharing your valuable opinion about my belly. I had forgotten that birth was a public event subject to public commentary!
WHAT I’M EATING: What Simon calls a ‘Tomatillo Party Wrap.’ His little creation after discovering tomatillos at the Riverside Farmer’s Market.
WHAT I WISH I WERE EATING: Well, though I partook of this delicacy yesterday afternoon, it’s something I could eat over and over and, in fact, SHOULD eat over and over. Indeed. French toast with my mail order Sourdough Farmer’s bread. Incredible. Simon was equally delighted.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: My sandy towel at Topanga Beach. Made me feel like I was camping in Ontario for a moment. The smell of tenting and its surrounding leisure!
For the weeks of August 10-23:
WHAT I’M READING: Michael Ondaajte’s new book: Divisidaro. So distinct, his words. I can only handle the intensity in short bursts! I’m interspersing his poetry with Happiest Baby On The Block, which I’m told is a baby classic. I am learning strategies to calm my colicky child! Preventative care, okay?
1) I will swaddle Elsie
2) then put her on her side or stomach
3) then yell SHHHHHHH in perfect imitation of womb babel
4) at which point I will encourage her to suck!
5) I will finish off her treatment with some vigorous swaying.
How could any baby not be perfectly content after all that? Impossible!
WHAT I’M WATCHING: The Olympics of course. And mostly women’s gymnastics or Michael Phelps. The other morning Simon set up a video treat for me – the gymnastics team finals. Oh, the delight! My greedy eyes! I made my cup of coffee and then allowed the Olympics trance to set in. Poor Alicia, who fell off the beam and then fell again on floor. I could have cried with her. I think I did actually.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: My Dustbuster working over time to get this place in order for Elsie. What a good mama, eh Elsie? She wants you to experience your newborn life in perfect cleanliness. I might mention that Simon is NOT listening to the Dustbuster if he can help it. The combo of our cyclone air conditioner and Dustbuster is too much for his sensitive ears. He leaves the apartment and waves his fists at the gods.
WHAT I’M WEARING: This wee section is going to get so fucking!!! interesting once I’m not pregnant…but considering my current reality, let’s talk about my new Peruvian jewellery. My dad brought me back a lovely necklace from a remote town in Peru. He’s very proud of his purchase, and I’m very proud to wear it. I get oodles of compliments.
WHAT I’M EATING: What we like to call a WIC omelette. Yesterday we decided to utilize my pregnancy coupons allowing us to purchase twenty-four eggs. The blessed state of California cares about my protein intake. It was a very humbling shopping experience. Probably one that hasn’t quite sunk in. Basically, we are very confused shoppers, experiencing every extreme – from high-priced organics to government eggs!
WHAT I WISH I WERE EATING: Plums. And more plums. Finally, I know what to say when people ask me about my pregnancy cravings. Plums! Firm, but juicy. The best kind of fruit.
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: An Irish rose. Okay, I don’t know if it’s Irish, but it’s probably organic, since Si brought it back from our organic grocer.
For the week of August 3-9:
WHAT I’M READING: Never Be Sick by Raymond Francis and The Gathering by Anne Enright (Booker Prize 2007). The former is convincing me more and more that I don’t ever need to visit the doctor again. Si and I are going to live to be 130, I’m telling you. Ask me how? I’ve got the goods. The latter…well, she’s entertaining me with her fantastic prose, “the excruciating aliveness of family” and other delicious lines.
WHAT I’M WATCHING: 4 episodes of Weeds back to back on the plane ride home, ’cause as Simon said, “the writing is so good.” I think he has the hots for Mary Louise Parker. “You don’t mind looking at her either,” he says. “But anyway, the writing…” Yeah, yeah, hubs. The writing. It’s all about the writing.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: Eckhart Tolle (pronounced To-Lay, did you know?) reading A New Earth. Something about babies and butterflies and their essence. Oh! I’m also listening to the sound of my own cursing…to the tune of: “Got you you little fuckers!” That’s how I speak to the ants these days. Pray for me, Eck!
WHAT I’M WEARING: Oh who gives a shit! When you’re sporting a watermelon, clothes lose their charm.
WHAT I’M EATING: Blackberry sorbet on an organic sugar cone!
WHAT I WISH I WERE EATING: All the homemade dinners we have lovingly prepared and stored in the freezer in anticipation of our tired state when baby comes. Okay, this is all fantasy. There are no lasagnas rearing their tomato-y heads or cauliflower casseroles for that matter. But I am making space…
WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Nothing. But Simon’s sniffing my pregnant shoulder AND he loves it!
For the week of July 6-12:
What I’m reading: A new play by Tracy Letts: August: Osage County. It’s a Pulitzer Prize winner…and very juicy. AND The Book of Secrets by Deepak Chopra. Juicy wouldn’t be the word here…but thought-provoking, challenging, yes.
What I’m watching: Rosemary’s Baby… which I know I’m crazy to have watched WHILE pregnant. But whenever someone tells me not to do something, I feel rebellious and want to do it all the more! It took me three days to finish it, I was that freaked out. The whole movie is available on YouTube, by the way.
What I’m listening to: Beethoven’s “Appassionata,” which makes me miss my piano very badly. I can feel my hands on the keys. I imagine how many hours of practice would be required to play the sonata myself.
What I’m wearing: The same thing everyday—a black skirt and black tank top. Sometimes I get really crazy and wear a white tank top. The wonders of a pregnancy wardrobe! Though in a way I’m grateful…because whenever I’m in LA, I see AMAZING clothes everywhere, but I’m not tempted. It’s not so exciting to spend a hundred dollars on something you MIGHT wear later…
What I’m eating: Lots and lots and lots of carrots. We’re back on our carrot juice kick. We had gotten lazy for a while. But on our recent visit to WholeFoods, we picked up a 25lb bag!
What I wish I were eating: Vanilla Sandwich Cookies. We opted to not buy them, because Simon is always on the verge of doing his Candida diet. Though yesterday, at the climax of Rosemary’s Baby, he turns to me and says: “Did we buy those Vanilla Cookies?”
What I’m sniffing: Cranberry Gommage by Arcona. I sniff, then exfoliate, then sniff some more.
For the week of June 15-21:
What I’m reading: Well I finished Sex, Lies and Videotapes, and then I read Betrayal by Harold Pinter. Now I’m moving on to a systemic reading of Flannery O’Connor’s short stories. I am going to study her for form. Yep, yep.
What I’m watching: HypnoBirthing videos. Who wants to give birth with no pain?? MEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!
What I’m listening to: Kathleen Edwards’ new album: Asking For Flowers.
What I’m wearing: Sometimes nothing in this heat. But inevitably, that’s when the maintenance guys walk right onto our patio with no warning, past the wide open window…to turn off the water…or blow leaves. It’s always unexpected and very jarring. But I’m sure they’ve seen many ‘a preggo woman with exposed flesh. I mean who hasn’t??!!! And quite frankly, the hotter it gets, the less I care.
What I’m eating: “Wedding Cookies” purchased for my little women’s group. And might I say, the cookies were a hit. Personally, I think it’s a bit of a triumph getting groups of women to EAT together, as opposed to everyone ‘playing full.’ When did a person need to be famished to eat a freakin’ Wedding Cookie???
Oh yeah, I’m also eating those Vans Gluten Free Waffles. 2 for $4.00. That’s a GREAT deal. In Canada they cost like 10 bucks a box. Sure glad I’m American now!
What I wish I were eating: A salad made by somebody else. I don’t feel like cooking these days. Yesterday I did manage to pull together a wee dinner of fish, green beans and yam mash. Everyone say ‘yam mash.’ But I don’t think I’d like to repeat the endeavor today.
What I’m sniffing: Um…ant corpses. Here’s some hands-on science for y’all. When you squash an ant with your finger (which you are prone to do when you see them often enough), the little suckers release some kind of chemical—putrid stank, which takes at least 3 hand washings to remove. Gross, you say? Indeed. The little ant pile I found devouring the spider as a team was PRETTY GROSS. But I didn’t cry or even cry out.
For the week of June 9-14, 2008:
What I’m reading: Willful Creatures by Aimee Bender, Sex, lies, and videotape by Steven Soderbergh (screenplay, don’t be alarmed), & Telling True Stories: A Non-Fiction Writer’s Guide Edited by Mark Kramer & Wendy Call (okay, that might be a little boring…)
What I’m watching: The Savages.
What I’m listening to: California Public Radio & a Suze Ormon podcast—Oprah’s money expert. Yeah, I know. Simon keeps finding the darndest things to set us on the path to financial freedom! First I moan and groan, then I commend his efforts and comply.
What I’m wearing: Lime green flip flops paired with black nail polish. Somehow my FEET are looking more and more attractive these days…
What I’m eating: Riverside Farmer’s Market peaches & sheep Gouda.
What I wish I were eating: Scallops covered in chicken skin. A weird pregnancy craving, perhaps. Also a delicacy I tried at a fancy Pasadena restaurant when my parents were in town. I was in shock at the time—”I didn’t expect the chicken skin to be so thick…but it’s good…”
What I’m sniffing: Lavender bath oil from the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market (mental note, tell y’all about the dog man…)
