So I was saying how (e:maureen)'s post made me homesick... It's so beautiful there. And the beach will be open... So I'm thinking I'll just take my week of vacation and go home. Spend time with the fam, and the puppies!!, and at the beach (and take my #$%#$ licensing exam). I love going home, and it makes my parents happy. I'll miss the 4th in Buffalo, but I guess that's not the end of the world.

But so last night (e:mike) asked me if I lived in one of the mansions. Being from newport, I get that question a lot. And (to me) it's a totally crazy question. Of COURSE not! But to people not from the area, how should they know? But so sometimes I say yes for the hell of it. (my dad's office IS a few blocks down the same street, does that count? ;) )

Well apparently people believed me. hahahahaha so sorry. I was going to try to keep up the charade for a while, but i'm too terrible a liar...

But anyway, so the pix above- Not My House. The first is the Breakers (the biggest mansion) . The next two are Marble House (where I had my prom, actually.) (no pix are allowed inside the mansions, which is too bad, b/c they're super ornate and fancy and impressive.)

Actually the mansions are pretty amazing. "summer cottages" of the rich and famous... Most are owned by the Preservation Society, and are open for tours. But a few are still privately owned and I think people live in them. But the stories about them are so cool. I just can't even fathom that time, the wealth, society, etc. Those links give some of the history (construction cost, family stories, etc). (There's also a section of the "Lost Houses". Cool.)

But it's so pretty there... I mean it's a small town and there's not a ton to do, but sometimes it takes being away to realize what I've always taken for granted. I'm going to try to dig up more pix when I get home. Maybe I'll show you all my real house. Or (gasp) my prom picture. (ok probably not on that one.) And I'll be sure to take some good touristy pix when/if I go home, to give you all a virtual tour and share some good old hometown pride. :)

Oh and while looking for mansion pix, I found this- never knew Olmsted did a park in newport too!



Love,
Princess Jenks (ha, ha)

Sweet. Chase (my bro-in-law) rocks. Just sent me six cd's. Guru's Jazzmatazz vol 1/2/3 (cool rap/jazz mashup type stuff), the twilight singers, matthew sweet and susanna hoffs doing covers, and "his current fave"- asobi seksu- citrus. Will report after I hear them...

But anyway, so I was out last night... Ran into a guy I met a few weeks ago... I was pretty psyched when I met him, thinking he seemed cool (and cute), and I was dumbfounded that he actually approached me, so I was hoping to see him again... and so I saw him, but... I dunno... it wasn't there. He was wearing different clothes and no hat and somehow the whole vibe was just totally different and I'm not digging it. Bummer. (and extra-bummer b/c he was like waving at me across the whole place and making a scene.) I hate not being excited about people...

But I think even worse, I hate when people aren't excited about me.
I also saw the threesome-proposing-couple... At least I'm pretty sure it was them. (nothing ever happened, for the record. I kind of wanted to at least get a drink or something, but then he stopped emailing me all of the sudden.) But so I was trying to make eye contact, and either he didn't see me (doubt it) or ignored me (more likely). But the weird thing is- another friend of mine was there- and I think he was with them!! So I might actually have a connection to these people. (don't know why that surprises me, this IS buffalo.) (which is also a large part of the reason NOT to do anything too scandalous with them- b/c somehow everyone in the world would find out and I'd be mortified.) Now chances are I probably never would have had the balls to do much/anything, but somehow it stings a little that they are the ones suddenly rejecting me, after being the ones to bring it up in the first place. Maybe I'm just too sensitive...

But then I saw this on craigslist today, and I can't help but wonder if it's them:

couple looking for mw ww or w - mw4mw - 25

Hi. We are a couple in our mid 20's. Both curious about messing around with other couples or other women. We are both very open minded, and attractive. We are clean and would expect the same. Please send photos, and a description about yourself. Thanks!! Hope to hear from you!!

I'm kind of tempted to be like 'is this you?' but what would that accomplish, besides making everyone uncomfortable?

But on a good note, I got to work with the plastics guy today at work, and he's great, and it's what I want to do, so it's good to get some face time.

I really hope someday I can outgrow this boy-crazy idiocy. I'm way too old for this shit... Bleh.

Ok, off to attempt a little exercise. Maybe being less of a fatass will help with the boy situation.

Ok, I fixed the Gather link for Mr. November (I hope)- here's the new number: 0211560001149625360

Today was a slow day at work. Which was fine with me. Spent most of the day wondering where to eat for lunch. Eventually recruited a whole crew to Ulrich's Tavern, on Ellicott. Which was much better than I would have expected, given its appearance. German food. Paul you should check it out...

And I think I got a guy at work in trouble, hehe.

So I work with this guy... he's great. Super nice, funny, smart... Good at what he does... He even cooks! Just an all around good guy. And devoted to his girlfriend. And one of the housekeepers at ECMC was convinced his name is Dr. Chuckles. And one day she overheard him telling a senior doc about a patient, and thus using medical lingo, etc, and later she said "damn, you one edumacated Chuckles!" So that has become his nickname.

But anyway, we've had a lot of schedule overlap lately, so we hang out some. Lunch on occasion, etc. But certainly nothing flirty or inappropriate or threatening to his relationship. So on friday when I found out it was too late to go to Rochester, I left him a note that said "Chuckles- since i'm not going to Rochacha, maybe you (and the GF) want to grab a beer?" Well the note got buried, and he didn't get it friday. But this morning told me that he found it yesterday, and that it got him in trouble with his girlfriend. She wanted to know why a girl is calling him Chuckles, and totally didn't believe the housekeeper story, so he's in the doghouse and she wants to meet me. hehe.

Ok, off to find a notary...

ciao peeps.

So I had a semi-productive day.
I put a new faucet in my bathroom sink.
And afterwards realized, it's no bigger than the old one, which was the whole reason I wanted to replace it. Oops. oh well, at least it looks better. And so far, no leaks.

Then I went to Spot to try to study. Got there at 8:59, only to find out they closed at 9 tonight for "renovations". So I went to Caffe Aroma. Which is just not the same. It's ok, but a little too dark to study... and it's really small. Free wireless is nice, but at the same time, a large part of the reason I leave to study is to get AWAY from the damn computer...

About 5 of my friends are moving tomorrow. Leaving Buffalo... And they're all meeting at Faherty's. And I was going to go. Then I pussed out and decided not to- mostly b/c I'm bad at goodbyes, and chances are high I will cry. I'd rather just talk to them next week, ask how the move went, and ask when they're coming home... Avoid that whole moment of goodbye.

But then I just got another call "what are you doing?!" "nothing... just got home from studying... was going to get ready for bed..." "No. We're going drinking. Faherty's. Now!" And since I suck and always cave to peer pressure, I guess I'll go have a beer. But I guess it's ok... I got some studying done, and don't have too much to do tomorrow at work so it's ok if I'm tired.

And while I'm digging Gnarls lately, I'm rapidly becoming unhealthily obsessed with a new CD- Alligator, by The National. It totally kicks ass. A little melancholy, but I love it. My user song is now "Baby We'll Be Fine" (Gather: 0166480001149563381) And another fave is Mr. November (Gather: 0211560001149625360)

Happy listening! (seriously- download them. I'm hooked.)

[oops, sorry. The Gather for Mr. November doesn't work. I'll fix it when I get home.] [ok, all fixed.]

So this article
caught my eye in the little NPR feed box (thanks paul!)

It's about chiral (right/left handed) amino acids and a theory on why it is that most things on earth tend to consist of the left-handed forms...

Anyway it's totally geeky, but it made me think of a chemistry lecture in college... we were learning about chirality. And I think we were talking about how lactose (the sugar in milk) has R and L forms. And as I remember it, one of them is totally toxic, but the other is not. And they are the same molecule, just but the atoms are arranged in mirror image.

Ok but to the point, the prof said that Lewis Carroll (who wrote Alice in Wonderland) was also a brilliant scientist. And that in "Through the Looking Glass" there's a part where Alice tells the cat not to drink the milk "in the mirror" b/c it will make him sick. A reference to the R/L chiral lactose.

I dunno, I always thought that was neat.

Ok but I just got totally distracted by the news feeds. I checked out boingboing which I'd never even heard of, and they have some guy who makes molecular models out of balloons. Like a huge DNA balloon animal... God, the last thing I need is more ways to waste time online!!

p.s. new user song- Gone Daddy Gone, covered by Gnarls Barkley