Did you know that I’ve been blogging since 2001? I used to pore out my heart in those old blog posts. Like the icky private stuff. Then I started a blogspot account in 2004, and developed a blog that I could share with my friends and family. After that I got new ideas and went forward in a different direction. I changed names a couple of times, and then a few years ago I switched to wordpress because of the privacy options available.
Wanting more from WordPress, I looked into domains, and doing a wordpress.org installation that would be give me more flexibility and access to tons of free templates and plug-ins.
It’s been a good ride. And while I’m about to do a little more shifting in the coming months with my template and my domain, I decided to look at some of those 2004 posts, which is where this blog begins, and give you a little update on some of the stuff I was talking about in May 2004.
So here we go……
When I walk into work every morning I always have the feeling that people still perceive me as a student. Perhaps it is my “casual Friday is everyday!” attire or my young demeanor.
Not the case anymore. At 30, people can see that I don’t fit in with the student body. Also…I get ma’am’d like crazy these days.
I hate Quark. If only QuarkXPress wasn’t the frontrunner of desktop publishing.
Good news for me, Quark was surpassed by InDesign a few years ago.
I made the mistake of eating half of a low-carb bagel and now I feel like yakking! So nasty.
Eww! I can’t believe I ever ate low-carb bagels. That was probably the last one I ever had.
I spent most of my weekend designing a new web site. It’s called Nine*Poems Creative Outlet, www.ninepoems.com. It is just for fun, but hey if I make a couple of bucks, that’s cool too.
Ha! Even back then I couldn’t resist new websites. Well as you can see, that old creative outlet was retired and you are currently on ninepoems.com. Funny thing is that I’m actually working on something to transition away from ninepoems.com. More to come on that later.
I wonder if my crafty-ness will ever wear off. That’s all I want to do. I go through phases I guess. This happens every now and again, and then it’s back to books, or some other thing to occupy my time.
No update required. Still the same.
I bought some new fonts today, hooray! Of course I had to pick up stuff for other people too, like a Tungsten C and some canned air.
The key part of that text is the Tungsten C. That’s an old Palm device. We thought it was the bees knees. I’m sure one day, I’ll laugh at my iPhone as archaic.
So this train of thought must originally begin with this factor….
I’m getting a new camera lens for my birthday.
Cannon 50mm f1.8
And this lens is now constantly on my mind.
So this morning, when I saw this picture on thekitchn.com, my mind’s light bulb switched right on with bright obnoxious flourescent light.
Source: Apartment Therapy
This is how my days escape me. This is how I have too many projects. This is all because I can’t help myself. I love to create stuff.
So I’m looking at this picture, and I think about how I like it and about how I can’t wait to get my new camera lens.
And there is pornography for my lens. It’s a Flickr group of just pictures taken with this particular lens. And I look at it all the time! So I go there (AGAIN) and I see some amazing photographs and furthermore some pretty good examples of photographer watermarks.
I groan. I’ve attempted to use Lightroom’s watermark feature, but it’s just bleh. I wanted more, so I watched this:
And then I started to make watermark ribbons. Like five of them, until I settled on something very simple.
But while I was making watermarks, I thought, let’s do this for real. Maybe I need a domain to add to the watermark. God knows why.
And then I implemented my watermark workflow, which included my new URL.
Well you know what that means right? I have to have a website to back that up. So I did some research and found a template that I liked, and I activated it.
The template
Trouble was, this particular template, as gorgeous as it is, sucks to manipulate. So I was nose deep in customizing this thing the whole rest of the day. The entire Super Bowl. Yep.
At this moment in time, I am unsure if I will keep it. It’s much too difficult to manipulate. I just think it looks super pretty. And, there’s still a bit I need to do with adding images and the like and actually having a consistent watermark.
So yeah. This train of thought cost me $14, and an entire day. But it was pretty fun and so I guess it was worth it.
Please tell me that other people do this and that I’m not a complete whack job.
She’s laying on my feet right now, keeping them warm on a rather bland Saturday morning. Persephone, who we also call “Little Bear,” loves to be at my feet. Great on cold mornings, bad in the middle of the night. I don’t know how many times I’ve kicked her, but it’s the price she pays to be in her favorite spot.
And an update on Callie….
Callie
Her last visit to the Vet was two weeks ago. They bandaged her again. Well two days later, I came home and her bandage was off! So I coned her for a couple of days while the last little bits of her tail healed. By the end of the week, her tail had not only healed but her fur grew back. So fast! I guess the air really did help. So now she is bandage and cone free and very very happy!
And because I shouldn’t leave her out…
Penny
Penny is just Penny and she’s doing great. More lovey than ever, and she’s even letting me pick her up, which has always been a challenge.
I have this lovely plant that I inherited from my old boss when she quit. Sad she didn’t want to take it with her. I think maybe she had inherited it too. I took over it’s care, and I’ll be honest with you, I’m not the best plant owner, as you’ll see later in this post.
Well…over the past eight years it’s had it’s good days and it’s bad days. Mostly because I forget to water it. Poor thing. There was a really great period of time when I used to share an office with one of my student assistants. She had tons of plants and so she kept her eye on this little guy too.
Since then, I’ve been up in my own office and the plant just chills in the window. I would water every now and again and it was doing pretty well. Then a couple of months ago I noticed something odd. Not only did my plant look amazingly alive and well, but there was a mysterious bottle of water next to it.
Ok….
I figured I must have placed it there. I am notoriously bad at bringing drinks into my office and letting them fester.
But I wasn’t sure. So I left it there to see what would happen.
Sure enough, the water in the bottle would deplete and then I’d come in the next day and it would be refilled!
So somebody, I don’t know who, is sneaking into my office to water my plant. I’ve asked around and there are no answers. Perhaps it’s the cleaning staff? But I sort of doubt it. They are are really short staffed and just overwhelmed. Perhaps it’s a secret watering gnome?
Maybe it’s my plant? Could it have magical powers?
Anyway, I know there’s got to be an explanation about it, but truthfully I want to stay in the dark. I love coming in each day to see the water bottle and my very healthy plant. I feel like the answer may disappointment me.
So if you’re out there secret plant waterer…THANK YOU!
Basically, Amanda got me the bamboo as an engagement present. The plant thrived, until Brian and I broke up, and then it dwindled. Mostly because the cats kept getting at it. So I brought it to my office and tried to revive it, but there was no hope. It was gone.
So I kept the dead plant around (am I a hoarder?) and decided that once my divorce was final I would put the plant to rest. How dramatic is that? Sure enough, I somehow remembered that little idea, and so the day after I got my divorce papers I did just that. Goodbye bamboo. I think I’ll replace you with another bamboo.
Let’s travel back in time to 1994, and review a little movie called “With Honors.”
You remember the one…snotty Harvard kids, brilliant hobo, cliches up the wazoo, and lessons learned by all. Yeah, that’s the one.
It opens with a ringlet laden kinda gay Patrick Dempsey (Oh McDreamy), Harvard student radio station host, spouting off about how it’s crunch time for seniors, there are only so many days left to finish that senior thesis.
Can I just interrupt right here. When this movie came out, I was in high school and starting to think about college. This whole “thesis” concept scared the crap out of me. I had this off-base notion that a thesis was a total requirement and that it would be the hardest thing in the world to do because of this stupid movie. Maybe things are way different at Harvard than at CU-Boulder, but this was not the case at my college. Senior thesis projects happened, but it was way under the radar. In fact, true story, my roommate wrote her senior thesis and I didn’t even know about it until she graduated and won an award for it. I am either a very bad friend, or it just really wasn’t that big of a deal.
I’m already digressing too much…
As Dempsey prattles on we get our first glimpse of Monty…aka Brendan Fraser. Wearing one of his many Harvard sweatshirts, he’s out for his morning run, where of course he’ll run by the (co-ed?) Harvard crew team, lead by his obvious from the get-go love interest Courtney (Moira Kelley, fresh off her Cutting Edge stint….TOE PICK!).
Only the enlightened Harvard senior thesis writers have time to jog in the cold Cambridge mornings, unless of course they are DJ’ing with a Rooster. They can do it all!
And Monty is such a stud. He not only rocks a Harvard sweatshirt like no other, he can memorize the opening chapter of his Thesis, and out run the Harvard crew team.
He’s great at everything…except backing up his work!
Oh Noes!!
What an idiot. Good thing he’s a good runner, and he’s got a Harvard colored scarf to wear as he runs in the middle of the chilly night to make photo copies of his first 10 chapters. Wait, you’ve got 10 chapters?!?! Asks annoying overly-competitive roommate. Yes, the one that is studying to by a gyno. The up-tight gyno guy. Because that’s the only way he’s going to get close to va-jay-jay.
But Oh Noes! Again. Monty stumbles and his beloved thesis finds it’s way into brilliant hobo’s lair. I can say without a doubt there is no way anyone gets to live in a boiler room of a library unnoticed. Let alone, a Harvard library.
Okay, okay…we’ve got a lot more to watch. We know how it goes. Simon (brilliant hobo) steals the thesis, and snobby Monty calls the cops. And then Simon dazzles the courtroom with his smarts and his wit. Monty bails him out and the lesson learning begins.
First, here’s how to make a little extra cash. Right out jail, steal newspapers and sell them cheaper. Only people in the 90s would come crawling for a paper newspaper. INFORMATION….I NEEDS ME SOME INFORMATION. No wonder we’re addicted to the Internet.
Newspapers and pay phones!?! How 90s.
Okay…so Monty is learning lessons, along with his roommates. They are so curious about Simon. Patrick Dempsey is a fan OF COURSE. Jeff (Mr. Va-Jay-Jay) is of course not pleased. And Courtney is simply hoping Simon’s attracted to her like the rest of her roomies.
Jeff studies for his future career.
Monty, in yet another Harvard shirt (in case we forgot where this movie was set), is not pleased with “the bum,” because he’s been working on his thesis since JUNIOR YEAR! Not Junior year. OMGah.
But then his heart melts when he wakes up in the cold night and decides to give Simon his Harvard blanket. Not invite him into the house, no. Give him a blanket for his new van pad.
Okay…so now Simon is following Monty around. Lots to do. Study, read, stink up the library…
So while they do all that academic stuff, let’s take a moment to talk about Brendan Fraser.
Ah, Brendan. I used to be in love with you. Back when you were like this….
And not like this…
Back at Chez Cliche, we learn that Jeff has only written one page of his thesis. Really? One page? That’s so unrealistic. How about 11. Sounds way more likely and frightening. One page just sounds stupid.
And the lessons keep on coming. The next day, Monty, who wants to work in government goes to government to help out Simon. But Simon doesn’t want help that he actually deserves. He’d rather hold a thesis ransom. So many lessons!
And then Simon teaches Monty a little bit about geology.
Each rock represents a moment. And let me just say in my limited geology knowledge, that rocks as shiny and pretty like these typically aren’t readily available at important moments. But perhaps I’m not looking hard enough.
And since we’re talking about important life moments, it’s time for Monty to spill his guts about his disappointing father. Daddy issues aside, he’s turned out okay. More life lessons!
Monty decides to take Simon to class. Because that is going to go off well. Naturally, Simon gets called on. And some brilliant dialogue commences:
Like, from the Prof, “There are no bums, there are only the financially challenged.”
And at one point Simon says, “Colleges produce a lot of garbage.” So very true.
Prof: “At Harvard, we don’t end our sentences with prepositions.” OUCH!
Time for Simon to school you. And he does just that. Going off about the Constitution. It’s like a prequel for “Good Will Hunting.”
How do you like them apples?
And so now we’re back home in the van pad. Monty is smitten with Simon. Who wouldn’t be? “Boy, oh, boy, oh, boy.” He wants to bring Simon inside, but Jeff’s a dick head. Jeff needs to learn some lessons. Something tells me that he will.
Disappointed, or something, Simon takes off. I’m not sure. He’s teaching some sort of lesson I’m sure. Leaving Monty hearbroken, just like his father left him.
Time has passed, and we learn that not only did Monty get his cast off. Thank God. But that he’s using an awesome dot matrix printer. I’m personally jealous.
The sound of it brings tears to my eyes.
It’s now Christmas time and we hear the light melody of Madonna’s “I’ll Remember.” Such good 90s. We also learn that Monty isn’t going home for Christmas, because it’s too expensive AND his thesis won’t let him go. She’s a controlling bitch. Thankfully, the rooster is there to keep him company.
Lonely Monty nostalgically visits Simon’s old haunts. But there’s no Simon. When he’s given up hope, there’s a knock on the door. Simon has sent a messenger because for some reason, he doesn’t want to see Monty.
The messenger has brought along the thesis and has a message originally penned by Walt Whitman, “You shall no longer take things at second or third hand, not look through the eyes of the dead, nor feed on the spectres in books. You shall not look through my eyes either, nor take things from me, you shall listen to all sides and filter them from yourself.” What is the lesson in all this madness?? Why Simon?
Monty finds Simon in an alley and he’s really sick. Poor Simon. He refuses to go to the hospital and Monty gives in way easily. Instead, he takes care of him at home. We learn he’s got bad lungs from asbestos. God damn the Man! Stupid ship yards.
While the two soul mates have a heart-to-heart. I want to talk to about Joe Pesci for a minute. What is there to say? I think this was his one shot to break outside his typecasting. I guess he did just that. He fits the role well.
So Monty is now learning lots of lessons and finding that his thesis is total crap. He hates it! It’s 83 pages of drivel. He’s going to start fresh. Bad plan Harvard.
The two sit down to a romantic New Year’s Eve chicken dinner. Simon made it for him!
But boy-oh-boy-oh-boy was it hard to pluck those rooster’s feathers. Whatcha’ talkin about Willis? Not the ROOSTER!! OH NOES!!
RIP Rooster.
Jeff is back and he is not pleased to find Simon in the house taking a dump. Jeff still hasn’t learned his lesson. But he’s going to break sometime.
Okay, okay. So much has happened. They’ve recovered well after the Rooster death. First, there’s a montage. We see Monty cruising on his most excellent new thesis. And Patrick Dempsey has Simon on his radio show so they can drink wine and be phony. And we see Monty and Courtney growing closer.
Montage over…back to work. We get a nice Jeff and Simon moment, where they bicker. But Simon has french toast to offer and Jeff just can’t resist. And then Simon drops the bomb. The big old lesson. Simon says, “You know why you hate me so much? Because I look how you feel.” LESSON. LEARNED.
Days later, Simon, who is blatantly dying, even though we rarely see him cough, is writing his obituary. He’s studying others to get ideas. Classy. And he spouts off this little nugget about one man’s obituary “How can he die? He never lived.” Very wise Simon.
Then Monty finds out that much like his own papa, Simon ditched his wife and kid too. Harsh. Lessons are overwhelming for both Simon and Monty. Monty is pissed. Daddy issues are surfacing and he walks out on Simon.
But he can’t stay mad for long. In fact, that whole issue just gets dropped and Monty takes Simon as his date to some huge pajama party. I would have loved to go to a pajama party in college. Why didn’t we do that?
Courtney gets in another fight with her (bro) boyfriend and Monty capitalizes on the moment. He finds her outside by a fountain in her lingerie (slut) and just kisses her.
“What are you doing?” she asks.
“I’m ending our friendship.” SMOOTH.
But the lovemaking can’t go on forever. Simon IS DYING. And he decides to tell the saddest story about a dying dog. The director and screenwriter both knew it would be the only way we would feel emotions.
More daddy issues. And then it’s road trip time. Monty is not done with his thesis, but he’s taking Simon on the road anyway, to see his abandoned son. Everyone is going along, even Jeff (who finished his thesis. He must have had a break through. Perhaps it was the french toast?).
Good thing Simon fixed Patrick Dempsey’s van pad, cause they are cruising! They arrive at Simon Jr’s house. Understandably, Simon Jr rejects him. It does not go over well.
Regardless, Simon picks up a nice little rock and puts it in his pouch. MOMENT PRESERVED.
Simon is now super dying. He wants to find a quite place in the grass to die like the dog in his sad dog story. Harvard & CO won’t let him. Instead of taking him to a hospital STILL, they take him home to die there. And they do it with urgency.
Now comes one of the most ridiculous parts of this movie. Instead of getting him medical care they read to him Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass.” Even Jeff gets in on it! JEFF!
They read him into eternal slumber. Ultimate lesson learned.
The funeral commences and Monty reads his obituary. Jeff gets a shout out! As do the others.
Simon is gone.
Of course, Monty has missed the thesis deadline, and there is no way he can graduate with honors. But he graduates anyway, with….(get this)….HONOR.
And as he walks through that infamous Harvard gate, he picks up a rock to capture the moment.
Hi! I'm Rochelle. Welcome to my blog. This is a space that’s almost like a scrapbook, a little bit of a rant room, a gallery of creative work, and a dash of nonsense. My life is not terribly exciting but I have a lot of creative energy that’s got to be focused somewhere.
