A friend's ex-boyfriend often used to accuse her of "Dealing in emotional currency." While he, he said, used "Intellectual currency." This caused her no end of consternation, the implication being, I think, that the exchange rate betweent he two currencies is not really equal. That he was actually the more reasonable, logical person in the relationship, and therefore, right. Not ruled by passion, or whatever. (Meanwhile, he liked to use his intellectual capacity to argue his way out of what was, in any currency, bad behavior.)
So it was heartening for me to learn in my first week of graduate school, that there is actually an acknowledged phenomenon called Emotional Intelligence. Some people got it, some don't. Sure, I'm in a Counseling program, and it's a bit touchy-feely, but there is some science involved. So there.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Long Time No Blog
Well, we made it across the country.
Yes, we got screwed by our movers. But let's not dwell on the negative.
Our cross-country road trip (which I will photodocument forthwith) was incredible. Several things we learned include:
1. Never stop for gas - or any reason - in Draper, South Dakota.
2. Montana is the most beautiful place ever.
3. Cats can, in fact, enjoy a good road trip.
Yes, there is some culture shock moving from New York to Portland. But it's pretty much all positive - we daily remark on our good fortune. Just this morning Nate said to me, "Even the security guard at Safeway told me to have a good day!" People are so freaking nice here. It's pretty refreshing. But we don't have to miss New York too much - luckily we live directly across from some low-income housing and right next to a construction site. We like to keep it as real as possible. So we can have our fix of 7:30am jackhammers and an occasional racial slur hurled in our direction. However, we did have the singular pleasure of one of our neighbors actually walking across the street to introduce herself, which we found damn neighborly.
The novelty of neighborliness, combined with the distinct pleasure of living in a real-life HOUSE with a big ol' backyard, is almost too much to bear. Soon I will publish a photo of our 2 cats (who had never been out of our 750 sq. ft. apt. in NYC) frolicking in our garden. I think they love Portland living almost as much as we do.
Yes, we got screwed by our movers. But let's not dwell on the negative.
Our cross-country road trip (which I will photodocument forthwith) was incredible. Several things we learned include:
1. Never stop for gas - or any reason - in Draper, South Dakota.
2. Montana is the most beautiful place ever.
3. Cats can, in fact, enjoy a good road trip.
Yes, there is some culture shock moving from New York to Portland. But it's pretty much all positive - we daily remark on our good fortune. Just this morning Nate said to me, "Even the security guard at Safeway told me to have a good day!" People are so freaking nice here. It's pretty refreshing. But we don't have to miss New York too much - luckily we live directly across from some low-income housing and right next to a construction site. We like to keep it as real as possible. So we can have our fix of 7:30am jackhammers and an occasional racial slur hurled in our direction. However, we did have the singular pleasure of one of our neighbors actually walking across the street to introduce herself, which we found damn neighborly.
The novelty of neighborliness, combined with the distinct pleasure of living in a real-life HOUSE with a big ol' backyard, is almost too much to bear. Soon I will publish a photo of our 2 cats (who had never been out of our 750 sq. ft. apt. in NYC) frolicking in our garden. I think they love Portland living almost as much as we do.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Fingersmith
What is it about British period pieces? Why is it that I find anything with haughty accents, top hats and bustles absolutely fascinating? I feel I ought to know better, and yet I watch so much of the stuff that Nate will walk through the living room, glance at the TV and ask, "Is Helena Bonham Carter in this one?" As discussed, Dangerous Liaisons is one of my favorite movies.
Yesterday Richard & I watched Fingersmith (2005) as part of Crafternoon. A 3-hour drama set in London in the 1860s, Fingersmith tells the story of a pack of thieves who hatch a plot to swindle a nice young girl kept as an indentured servant to her perverted uncle. It was so engrossing I only managed to sew 4 buttons in the whole 3 hours, and Richard later had to undo all of his needlework. Now that's entertainment.
Yesterday Richard & I watched Fingersmith (2005) as part of Crafternoon. A 3-hour drama set in London in the 1860s, Fingersmith tells the story of a pack of thieves who hatch a plot to swindle a nice young girl kept as an indentured servant to her perverted uncle. It was so engrossing I only managed to sew 4 buttons in the whole 3 hours, and Richard later had to undo all of his needlework. Now that's entertainment.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Romancing the Stone
Well, so far I've accomplished some important work this holiday weekend. With our cross-country move to Portland coming up in less than 2 months, I spent yesterday (rather than packing) watching 2 of my all-time favorite movies, Romancing the Stone (1984) and Scarface (1983). You may be interested to learn that these movies, while very different on the surface, share a very important element in common: the very strong anti-Colombian sentiment that marked the early-mid 1980s as the drug wars made headlines, and Cubans and Colombians warred for turf in Miami. In Scarface, Colombians are portrayed as ruthless & sadistic killers in a drug deal gone wrong in a South Beach Hotel. Drug smuggling also plays a role in Romancing the Stone, when Joan Wilder and Jack T. Colton, on the run from a bloodthirsty Colombian general, take shelter in a cargo plane wrecked in the jungle and get stoned on the piles of marijuana they find in the fusillage. Which is pretty funny - due to the strong anti-drug climate at the time, they couldn't just light up a joint; they had to make a freaking campfire out of the stuff and then pretend they "accidentally" got high. It's a pretty classic scene, and I would argue that their romance begins under the influence of weed - and a little tequila.
In between screenings, I lolled about with Nate in Riverside Park reading Hunter S. Thompson's The Rum Diary. It was one of those rare, early, breezy summer days when you can actually go to a park, smell the flowers, look around and think, "New York's not so bad..."
Friday, May 25, 2007
Miami Blues
As you may have gathered, I recently went to Miami. For various reasons this was an ill-advised trip. For starters, please note that May is the beginning of Monsoon season in Miami. Let's just say there has been a lot of fallout - both direct and indirect - from our little tropical vacation, including but not limited to:
- 3 day hangover
- the requisite sunburn
- loss of cell phone and several important garments
- cancellation of my netflix account - twice
- i now own a VHS copy of "The Other Sister"
Most, if not all, of these unforeseen consequences were avoidable. What wasn't avoidable was, one way or another, I was coming home broke.
Closely Watched Trains
Yesterday, in a rush to get to work, I saw the dreaded "INSUFFICIENT FARE" message at the turnstile. I missed 4 trains as I waited in line to buy a Metrocard. I was behind a German tourist asking for directions and an old woman using nickels (really, nickels!) to pay her fare. This type of shit only happens when you're already late.
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