And it's Sunday again. The weekends seem to pass more quickly: perhaps because I have more obligations (perceived or otherwise)? This weekend, though, has been exceptionally productive:

1) Friday, the Blue Velvet party went [mostly] as planned. Hook made the cupcakes (delicious!), and instead of watching the movie, we had homemade egg rolls. Later, I picked up H's guitar and played the few things I remembered from when I took lessons, these being three chords + the pentatonic scales. But Hook found the tab for Bach's Bourree in E Minor, which I'm going to learn & which will be my formal reintroduction to guitar playing(!)

2) We finally made it to the MOMA, where we saw the Avedon exhibit, as well as this. The P_Wall reminded us both of Joe Page's work, though Page is way, way better.

3) Last night we went for the first time to the Roller Derby! Our initial lack of comprehension of the rules did not damper our enthusiasm for the sparkly pseudoviolence that transpired. Highlights included the $5 beer + shot value combo (holla for value) and the Rocketdog booth where one could sign up to foster (adorable) homeless dogs. And the derby, of course.

***

This morning had the chilliness of a real fall morning. I'm going to hold off on using my heater until the temperatures drop further.

Worst day ever, part two?

NO. It was actually a pretty good day. Though I woke up late, I managed to get out of the house on time - and with good hair! And not having skipped breakfast or percolated coffee! The students were awesome: one talked to me all through recess, telling me what to expect at this weekend's Fall Fair, and I was invited to sit at the coolest lunch table while I was on lunch duty (the sitting being an arguable dereliction of duty, but whatevs). The rainstorm that gathered in the late afternoon cleared before I walked home, and I bought the best-ever Mountain Goats EP on iTunes. I am listening to said EP at the moment. I have a red velvet cupcake waiting for me in the fridge.

What detracted from this pleasant day, you might wonder? PARKING TICKETS. I just paid $199 in parking fines and I am not pleased about it. This beer is helping, but not enough. Oh, San Francisco, I love everything about you but your pigeons and your redonkulously-strict parking regulations!

Major plus and major spoiler alert for those living in this metro area who will be hanging out with us this weekend (i.e., Drew): Hook is going to throw a Blue Velvet party at which we will watch "Blue Velvet," eat blue velvet cupcakes, and drink PBR. Win(!!!).

Slowly, I am joining the rest of the human race.

Most excellent news: I'm one step closer to becoming a functioning member of society! That is, I replaced my terrible Razr of Doom (which was killed in last week's giant rainstorm) with an iPhone. I realize I'm about two years late to this trend - as I am to most tech trends: oops - but this phone is so exciting. I mean, this morning, I looked up a pancake recipe on my phone! And bookmarked it! And then downloaded the Emoji app and sent some texts composed entirely of pastry icons! Such utility cannot be paralleled.

I did suffer - and indeed, am still suffering - a bout of guilt: that is, I felt slightly frivolous buying this phone. After all, it's doubtful that I actually need internet access at all times. But the iPhone is a beautiful object. Also, I get lost a lot, so the maps will help me. Also, the joy I felt yesterday sending texts was equal to the joy I felt when I sent my first-ever text message - and I haven't felt that way in a long time.

WORST DAY EVER.

That bears repeating: worst day ever. I had no idea that SF could be considered a rain capital of the world, but so it can. (Aside: and of course I, not having packed thoughtfully, left all waterproof outerwear in Minnesota. DOI.) Going to work this morning, I got drenched. I'm not exaggerating: my shoes were completely sodden and my jeans were wet from the knees down. You may be wondering how this was even possible. Well, friends, I don't know. The rain was coming down in sheets & these sheets were blowing sideways in the wind, and my umbrella is basically decorative. Fortunately, today was my short day (school gets out at 1:05 instead of 3:15), so the agony of having wet feet was [mercifully] truncated.

BUT THEN. Oh, but then I called the district center to inquire after the paycheck I should have received last week (but didn't). The payroll person claims not to have received my time card, which I most certainly faxed on time! Not only did I fax this documentation on time, but I called the payroll coordinator to make sure the fax had gone through - and it had. Oy! So I will be getting paid sometime in the indeterminate future.

Still more shit hit the fan when my phone broke - the display just...went blank. Water damage, I think, from today's helladeluge. I called Verizon, only to discover that I can't buy a new phone without extending my mom's family-plan contract. (Aside: I am not allowed to extend this contract because my mom hates hates hates Verizon.) Verdict: I must keep this phone until February, when the contract expires.

Things are looking up, though. For one thing, I changed out of my wet clothes when I got home (again: DOI). My phone's display is better, I think, though I'm currently letting the phone and battery dry separately. And I'm going to buy a raincoat and rain boots online tonight: EMS is having a sale, y'all! And Target has a hella good selection of boots. There's not much that online shopping can't fix. Furthermore, I got not one but TWO letters in the mail, plus The Miracle of Mindfulness (which I'd recently ordered on Amazon). Score! The rain - at least, as it appears from my window - seems to be subsiding. I have some Mothership Wit in the fridge. Breathe. Repeat.

First post from my new apartment! Yes, friends: I'm mostly moved in to my new place; I say "mostly" because I still have a big pile o' possessions (all my shoes minus three pairs, printer, FADO lamp, some coats, makeup, etcetcetc.) @ Hook's place. But, all my IKEA furniture is assembled and arranged, the boxes broken down and taken to the recycling barrel in the courtyard. So life is good.

Had the day off on account of Columbus/Indigenous Peoples Day. Woke up at eight, made breakfast, had some coffee, hung the rest of my clothes in my closet. Met Hook for lunch and ate a chocolate croissant on the walk home. That croissant, though delicious, may have been a terrible idea: I'm not sure I'll be hungry for dinner. Oooops. I'm reading The Rules of Attraction and I alternate between semi-enjoying and loathing it. I don't so much dig multiple narrators, though I think the strategy works well here. (Aside: none of the narrators is vibrant enough to carry an entire novel-length narrative, don't you think?) Applied to a few editorial jobs: keep your fingers crossed.

Good news: Hook and I joined a gym! Bad news: the gym is far away (18th and Geary), so we might not go very often. Or ever. Just kidding: we will totally go. Good news: Pilates classes are included in the cost of the membership. Bad news: those classes are held when I'm at work.

I wish the sun would come out, but it's a bit late in the afternoon for that. Siiigh! Haven't given up hope yet, though - the weather here is krazy.

Tonight will bring the viewing of multiple "Office" episodes and an early bedtime. I'm so stoked.

My heart is buffered by particleboard.

IKEA happened, and O what a trip it was! I am now the proud owner of a dresser, two [baby blue] Lack tables, a drying rack, a new down comforter/cover, some Lingonberry jam...the list goes on. As one might imagine, IKEA is not a fun place to be hungover. Then again, IKEA is never fun and hangovers are also never fun, and so the lack of enjoyment was totally predictable.
On the plus side, my room is almost fully furnished, and Hook and I split a "princess" cake at the IKEA cafe. The princess cake was like a Swedish Twinkie.

Hook and I were just discussing the time, way back when, when texting hadn't yet become an integral part of one's daily life. At the present time, I can't imagine a day without texting - it just sounds impossible, doesn't it? Yessssssss. And yet, there was a time (2005) when friends of ours did not have text plans. That's all. That's what I'm thinking about. I shouldn't be as flabbergasted as I am, but only about 10% of my brain is working right now.

Now I'm going to On-demand this week's "Top Chef" and drink at least two more cups of tea. Good evening to you.

Indeed, it feels like the post-party afternoon that it is. Hook and I got the apartment cleaned up; Hook is napping. Still hoping to make it to IKEA before evening, but chances are slimmer than they were fourteen hours ago. Gah! I really need a dresser!
This is all.