So I didn't post at all during March, and I was tempted to post something and give it a March date so that I'd have an archive page for the month, but I already did that for February and I just can't do that two months in a row! See the games I have to play with myself!
Here, in no particular order, are some things I've wanted to write about lately.
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It's been raining a lot here. Apparently there are only two real seasons here in the Bay Area: sunny and rainy. I think we're starting to finally transition into sunny, and this past weekend as I was driving along El Camino Real on my way to the grocery store, I saw the most wonderful thing: a double rainbow, clearer and more expansive than I've ever seen before. It was a true arch, as opposed to just a short arc in the sky; it came up from the trees and went back down again, unobscured by clouds. I've never been more disappointed that I didn't have my camera with me.
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Alan's spring break was a couple of weeks ago, so I took off work on Thursday and Friday, and we drove to Lake Tahoe to go skiing. On a not-so-well-traveled stretch of I-80 on the way to Sacramento, I got a flat tire, and we pulled over on the side of the road, unsure where the next exit was. We climbed out of the car and assessed the situation: there wasn't much space on the shoulder, and the flat was on the driver's side, meaning that we'd have been out in the road if we'd tried to change it. While both of us know how to change a tire conceptually, neither of us have ever had to actually do it. So I was contemplating calling AAA, and we were just wondering how long it might take for them to reach us, when a white tow truck slowed down and stopped behind us, not more than two minutes after we'd pulled over! It turned out to be the
Freeway Service Patrol, a program sponsored by the California government that -- and this is from their brochure, which I have kept in thankfulness -- "employs specially trained tow truck drivers who patrol designated freeways during rush hours, help stranded motorists, and keep traffic moving." Our truck driver angel got out his jack and pneumatic tools, and changed our tire in less than five minutes. When he was done, I asked if we could give him any money for his trouble, but he shook his head and said, "Nope! We're not allowed to accept money. We do have a survey that we ask you to fill out, though." Of course I took the survey. Three weeks later, I'm still amazed by our good luck, and that makes
two times that I've been rescued from a flat tire.
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When it comes to music, I'm very much an album person. When I choose the music I'm going to listen to, I choose albums, not songs. I like listening to one artist at a time. I memorize the order of tracks on an album and I have the habit of humming the intro of the song that's supposed to come next after the previous track ends. I rarely use the shuffle feature on my iPod.
...until now. When I donated blood a month ago, I also got back a cholesterol reading, and unfortunately, my levels are high. So lately I've been going to the gym in an attempt to get fit, and as a result, I've been listening to my music on random so that I don't have to mess with choosing albums while I'm running on the treadmill. Strangely, I'm enjoying this break from album-mode a lot more than I thought I would. My iPod surprises me by choosing songs I would never have listened back-to-back, but that flow together well. I like to think this is because I finally have a music collection I'm proud of, one that I've refined over the years and that encompasses songs and artists that really fit my listening tastes, whether they are new or old. Five years ago I wouldn't have been able to say this, and it makes me happy that I can now. (Does this make me a music snob?) In any case, here are two albums I've been listening to a lot lately, and that you should check out: Illinois, by Sufjan Stevens, and So Jealous, by Tegan & Sara.
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I really don't have an explanation for why I don't post here more often. Maybe it's because I don't really feel like I have much to write about these days. No revelations, no deep thoughts. Mostly it's just work, being a homebody, and sometimes hanging out with people. The hanging-out-with-people part has been a relatively recent development: last weekend I played poker with some folks from work (it was only my second time playing Texas hold 'em, and my first time playing for money, but I think I did pretty well for a newbie), and the weekend before that, I did some stuff with the local
GT Alumni Club -- helping with Habitat for Humanity and going to a Giants vs. Braves game at
SBC/AT&T Park (unfortunately we lost, but the view of the bay from the stadium is awesome).
There's also been some stuff going on with the law school: this past weekend, they put on their annual (student-written and produced) musical, in which Alan had a pretty significant role. It was fun to watch him on stage, but it also made me miss being a student, and the feeling of being involved, you know? Also, this coming weekend is "law prom," which is... exactly what it sounds like. I got my mom to ship me my dresses from high school, which until now have been hanging in the back of my sister's closet at home in Alpharetta. I haven't tried them on yet to see if they still fit.