Su perro esta molestandome

I said to a friend, "My worst nightmare is that a barking dog moves in next door to me."  "Surely", she said, "You have worse nightmares than THAT!"  Trying to figure out how to say "Your dog is annoying" in Spanish.  Although I think I have made my displeasure evident in English AND Spanish.  It doesn't seem to have made any difference in the behavior of the neighbors or their dog.  Yesterday, the dog was barking and whining all day INSIDE and late afternoon outside.

Really fun surprise 60th birthday party last night.  My girlfriend was SO surprised, her eyes and her mouth were big Os for about five minutes.  She was totally shocked that her family had come secretly from all over the country.  I had to leave "early" as I had to get up and go to work this morning.  I only work ONE day a month, but when it rolls around, it always seems somewhat inconvenient.
Lots of food (Indian) and I totally avoided the desserts, which were plentiful and gorgeous.

We have had 10.1 inches of rain so far this June and June is not over yet!  That is a record.  Every day we have a few storms, mostly at night, thank goodness.  Having drainage problems near my garage where we park the cars.  Sometimes I have to wade through 4 inches of water to get to my house.
Well, it wasn' t THIS deep, but you get the picture....

Attack of the greenheads

Was invited to go on a cruise of the New Jersey coastline.  My brother-in-law had to sail his son's boat from Greenwich, New Jersey to Queens, New York.  Due to some previously scheduled events, I declined.  They had a bad trip.  Engine broke down and when they were trying to fix it, they were attacked by greenhead flys.  These are large, slow-moving, sharp-biting insects that come upon us "river people" for a few weeks each summer.  My father's philosophical thinking on the matter was as follows, "At least it keeps the TOURISTS away!"  After they fixed the engine a sail ripped.  So they kind of limped into the New York harbor.

Restaurant review:  Tried a new restaurant in Millville, New Jersey the other night.  The megabyte cafe failed and the PC@Nite, internet cafe and natural juice bar opened up at 110 N. High St.  They have a limited menu but, believe it or not, really good crab cakes!  Also we got a salad that was an iceberg lettuce wedge, surrounded by bits of tomato and croutons.  It was actually visually pleasing and quite tasty.  The owner of the restaurant is cheery and her son has been drafted into being a waiter.  He was charmingly confused by the whole thing.  They have only been open 5 days and are still deciding what they want to be/do.  The hours are in flux.  Number is 856-300-5023.  A table and two chairs are in front on the street and Internet access is available.  I recommend it.

A lot of weirdos in the library today.  People talking to themselves, talking on the phone, acting strangely.  Of course, they are probably called me a bizarro bag lady.  I have STUFF all around me, my pile of things to do, my clipboard, my Wet ones, my blue plastic folder of things to do, my pencil holders, my notebook holders, my calendar ("the Bible"), my phone, my trash, my wheeled cart, my green zippered bag full of file folders.

Forgotten

 

This is the best I can do copying the photo that I took this morning on my Sprint LG Rumor phone.  I stopped to take another photo and spotted this mailbox full of old moldy mail.  Sad....

Seems like the past few days I have spent TWO hours a day doing errands.  Every day I am buying gas.  Today I went to my arthritis exercise class at 8 AM, went to the bank, then had to drive ALL THE WAY across Vineland to get to the Grapevine office so I could get "hard" copies of the paper where an article about my commune in the seventies is starting to run, then got the gas (good price of $3.27), then took pictures and on to Bridgeton to pick up my emergency supply of Ambien.  Found out that you can PAY for drugs any time you want.  It is just the INSURANCE that says you can't have it yet.

Photo series I would like to make...mailboxes,  laundry, trees.  I really need to get a new camera.  My phone is unsatisfactory.  Everything is too far away and dark.  I could try my old SLR and see if they still make FILM.

God, I hate summer

My apartment is "cooled" by 1 - 4 window air units and it just doesn't get rid of the humidity.
A dehumidifier is on my very long list of big-ticket items that I "need".  It seems I am always in need of a FAN, directly on me, or at my beck and call.

I "could" have gone down to the beach yesterday as I had nothing on my calendar.  That is very unusual.  But I chose to stay home and get started on some things like paying bills and save money on gas.  That was enough of that.  My home is not the place to be on a hot and humid day.  I did go out to do some "local" errands, if you call driving all the way to Carll's Corner local.  I found myself sitting in the car in a parking lot wasting gas just to get the air conditioning.

Then I did go out to Millville to a restaurant for dinner.  I was delighted with my meal at Kawa thai and sushi.  There were so many creative menu items!  I had the MAN IN BLACK, #26 on the Chef special II menu.  It was SO delicious, I couldn't even save any for leftovers.  And you can get BROWN rice for only 15 cents extra.  Usually I am disappointed with what I order and am envious of what others order, but this time I was totally enthralled with MINE.

I think I would like summer if I were here...                                                                                                        

I got this stinkin' smart phone.....

No, not me yet.  A friend said this about her new phone the other day and made me laugh.  Some of us aren't really leaping at the latest technology...we have to be DRAGGED kicking and screaming and filled with dread.  And, no, I haven't yet clicked on the link to upgrade me to the latest Yahoo mail, nor given in to the temptation to accept the next version of Internet explorer.  Sorry, but I learned at work that most upgrades may have given us a few new features, but they also did away with some of my FAVORITE things.  So I am ANTI-progress and ANTI-change.

The victory squat is a yoga routine.  If I could DO a squat, I would call it a victory squat.  But, once again, today, we did too many squats at yoga.  Don't like'em, don't do'em.  Maybe someday.

Being driven out of my mind by the librarian who keeps dialing the fax number which keeps not working.  She must have dialed it 65 times. Don't know why it is so EXTREMELY loud.   Had to resort to my usual blocking-out-the-world tactic of going onto Playlist.com.  It only helps a little.

French Quarter for your thoughts

Clever name of my weekly nail polish from O.P.I.  I usually explain the puns to my Vietnamese nail technician but this one made me tired just thinking about it.  "Why did you pick THAT nail polish"?, inquired a male friend of mine.  Because I saw a picture in the April edition of Ladies home journal of many earthy tones that were "in" this Spring.

Was reading a blog by a young person who had someone die...a twin? a sister?  who died.  She was all broken up about it and lamenting about the trivial things that people complain about on social media.  That's me.  Like talking about my NAIL POLISH.

Sitting with the father of a friend today who needs watching.  Since I am a doer and a thinker, I always want to ENGAGE the elderly.  They are very hard to engage!  Asking if he wants to watch TV, read, listen to music, go for a ride in the wheelchair to look at the flowers and trees.  Even as I am saying it, I am thinking how LAME I sound, if these are the only possible activities available.  Of course, he exhibits NO interest in any of these.  Perhaps one should just do stuff and not ask?  Or just let the aging "vege out" as my friend used to say.  I do not approve of aides who talk on the phone instead of paying attention to their clients, but here I sit on the laptop while two aides bathe my ward
I don't want to bother him but I don't want to ignore him either.

Never too early for Coke

Guy behind me in line at McDonald's was getting a large Coke at 8:00 AM.  I was getting a small black coffee.  Yes, I AM feeling slightly self-righteous.

Names of people are getting quite creative, especially around MY town. Here are some from the police blotter, May 11, 2013 - Jaymere, Purman, Quamane, and Tonetta.

I think what I miss most about work is the opportunity to be on the computer ALL DAY LONG.
Today am working at my part-time job, which is hardly working in the summer.  I like to keep a hand in and keep my library privileges.  I have been renewing one book for more than 15 years and don't know if I can ever get it back.  I loaned it to a boyfriend when he was writing a play.  He returned a lot of them recently, but not that one.  He is married to someone else now, so it is sort of awkward. 

Wishing I was at the beach, where it is cooler.....

No body drying with the hair dryers

A funny sign at the health club.  I like the one at the Cape May Court House library that says, Please remember to flush.  I wonder if that would work at the Vineland Public Library?  They don't tell you in library school that you will have to spend time FLUSHING TOILETS.  That was one of the 35 things I had to do every night when we closed down the library.

Came into the Millville Library today and saw a guy with sagging pants and jewelry in both sides of his bottom lip.  My heart sank.  Then he stepped forward to open the door for me.  My heart soared!

A friend is having a book signing tonight.  I am going over in honor of the longest day of the year.  Lots of daylight I mean.  Anyway, Sally Willowbee is a very creative woman who I have known for decades.
Here is the book she wrote about OTHER creative people in the South Jersey area, Found artists : on country roads, side streets and back alleys of South Jersey. 6 PM book signing at the Renaissance Riverfront gallery in Millville, New Jersey.

http://www.rrcarts.com/book-signing.html

I should have taken a xanax today

Don't know why everything is rubbing me the wrong way this week.  Is it just me?  Or is the world especially aggravating this week?  I DO want everything to go just my way and when it doesn't...

First I had a guy pull in front of me going too slowly and then he immediately slows down and pulls off to the side of the road without a blinker.  I couldn't help myself.  I HONKED at him, which I try not to do, cause I hate when people do it to me.  Then I got to the pool and the gate was still locked.  So I had to traipse back to the desk with all of my crap and ask them to unlock it.  But THEN...me, all alone at an Olympic sized pool.  Is there anything better than that?

But now I have one ear clogged up and feel in somewhat of an other-worldly state. Gliding through the world, 25 pounds less, but my clothes have not become too large!  They must have really been tight before.
It is weird how you lose weight in certain places (my knees) and not in others (my waist).

Thank you for choosing the Bridgeton McDonalds.  I love going to this McDonalds because THREE different people wish for me to have a good day.  You can't help but feel a bit more cheerful after that.

Don't kill my vibe

Cool title for a song, don't you think?  I am inexorably drawn to the poetry of rap, even though it is probably expressing some sentiments that I abhor.  That is why I am reluctant to view on YouTube.
But I might put this song on my playlist so I can figure it out.  Listening to Power99 on the FM dial today. Jay Z is one of the people involved with this song.  Oh dear, it is really called BITCH, don't kill my vibe.  Sigh....

Going out of my mind now that my CD player broke and I can't listen to my audio books in the car.  When did the AM dial get so LAME!

My addictions...
- Diet coke
- the Internet
- coffee
- newspapers
- cheese

Gorgeous day out...finally.  And no bugs, which seems unusual.  Took a little stroll just to get out of the library.

My mind is boggled

Went to a workshop on Google Chrome.  Interesting but intimidating.  Realizing that now that I am not working, I just try to get by on my existing knowledge.  OK, I have ALWAYS been like that.  The teacher of my class has TEN email accounts.  When am I gonna have time to investigate all of the things I learned tonight?  I guess it is good to stretch my mind occasionally.

Having a rough week.  Today we had TORRENTIAL rains.  And I was driving an hour to get to this class.  Also, the gas company is working on the street in front of my house and making quite a raquet.  Sounded like they were dragging something really heavy over concrete and they probably were.  It was making me feel out of sorts.  So I took a Xanax and laid down on the bed.

Still mad at the city and planning to rewrite my letter of outrage.  Pisses me off that I have received NO explanation and NO apology and PLUS I had to PAY for interest and costs of a late and unpaid water and sewer bill.  Plus the humiliation of having my name in the paper for tax sale.  No one has called me about it.  So either no one is reading the paper or I have no friends.  I guess there could be some other reasons.

Not really feeling like a "happy baby"

That's a yoga pose.  I am feeling more like a cranky adult.  Trying to forget my woes by using the computer, listening to my playlist and eating chocolate hershey kisses at the Cumberland County Library.  I thought scary Mondays were just for working people, but here is what has gone wrong so far:
- stopped in to Little Mama's cafe - they no longer have real cream, just powdered creamer.  Then I bought a chocolate covered graham cracker but there was too much candy and it was too sweet
- went to city hall to get a T-shirt left over from the walk on Saturday, but the mayor's secretary knew nothing about it
- visited the tax office as my name was in the paper for the tax sale.  I got so highly agitated and ungracefully paid the water and sewer bill including fees even though it was NOT MY FAULT.  They had changed my address in the system and the bill got sent to the owner of the house next door and then returned to them.
I am feeling wronged and not very forgiving.  May have to write a letter of outrage.
- then to yoga class.  She did a number of moves of which I am not fond....too many downward facing dogs, the plank (which seems suspiciously like pushups which I do not do), squats (another thing I CAN'T do).

Remembering a gorgeous hotel I happened to stumble across in Paris.  It took up almost an entire block and around the corner again.  It is called the Plaza Atheneum on Rue Montaigne.



Went on Facebook, although I really feel it is a pretty big waste of time.  Tried to send an encouraging poster to a friend.  Advice that it is hard for ME to follow, not sure why I think it might cheer HER up.

A little bit ADD

Went on a walk this AM with the mayor of Bridgeton and a bunch of other people I didn't know.  The annual health walk is a part of the "Let's move" campaign.  We signed a big poster which will be sent with our picture to Michelle Obama.  Our county of Cumberland comes in LAST in the entire state in terms of health statistics.  So the mayor had T-shirts made up that said, "From WORST to FIRST".  It was a beautiful day but I got hot and didn't have a hat or sunglasses.  Then I came in LAST.  Even though it was not a race, it was somewhat demoralizing.  And I was waiting for it to just be OVER.  I know I am slow and have no stamina, but really.  I DO work out but I realize I do a lot of different things during my one hour at the gym.  Doing ONE THING for 40 minutes is almost more than I can take physically OR psychologically (thus, the ADD worry).  Then I think, well, I can go ONLINE for hours.  But while online, I am jumping around from thing to thing.  Even when I read for an hour, I am reading a lot of different things, current newspaper, old newspaper, Nook, current book, overdue book, old magazine, current newspaper, open the mail, do the crossword puzzle and the sudoku, then read a current magazine.

Still have to come to the library for my entertainment.  This AM I had a snoring man to my left and to my right, a young black girl and an older white woman were attempting to order a magazine online (it did not work).  They were ordering a magazine called XXL which seems to be about rappers (?) and they were buying if for a GIFT for someone incarcerated in our local prison. 

So, I told a friend that I was losing weight without really trying.  That is not really true.  I AM trying, I just don't feel like I am being successful.  The exercising is going a lot better than previously, but the eating! About the only thing I have accomplished is to lessen the amount of snacking that I am doing.  If I DO snack, I try to eat something that is only 100 calories.  Nighttime is still the worst, though.

We had some wacky storms on Thursday.  Two storms, one in the morning and one in  the evening, each had about 10 minutes of really bad stuff.  Luckily, I wasn't on THIS street in Rosenhayn, New Jersey, during those minutes.....

Finished a bunch of books

Book review: Life after life : a novel, by Jill McCorkle.  I wanted to read this book as the author went to my college, Hollins University,  in Roanoke, Virginia.  I borrowed it from the Vineland Public Library (FIC McCorkle Jill).  Unfortunately, there is another book with the same title out right now.  Maybe because I am reading too many books at one time, I had trouble keeping the characters straight in this one.  The characters are all residents or workers in a retirement home.  There is the narrative which jumps around to all of the different characters.  In between the chapters are inserts about other people and little segments by those people.  They all seem to be people known by one of the characters, Joanna, who is a volunteer at the nursing home.  I liked the character  who was just faking alzheimers so that his son wouldn't bother him.


Book review: Tuesday's gone, by Nicci French.  I borrowed this book from the Vineland Public Library (MYS French Nicci).  I learned from the flap that this name "is the pseudonym of the internationally bestselling writing partnership of suspense writers Nicci Gerrard and Sean French".
It is the second novel in the Frieda Klein series and ended sort of mysteriously, leaving room for more books.  Our investigator is referred to as a "brilliant reclusive psychotherapist".  She assists the investigation into who might have killed a man who seems to have insinuated himself into the lives of quite a few people with money.  He was a different man to each of them.  Frieda tries to figure out who is telling the truth and who did what to whom and when.  London milieu.

 

 

 

Book review: L'étranger, by Albert Camus.  Quite proud of myself as I read this book in French.  It is not really difficult, being a rather short book.  Had to read it for a book club so I even took notes.  I know I read it long ago when I majored in French.  This copy came on interlibrary loan from the Matawan-Aberdeen Public Library in Matawan, New Jersey (FRE CAMUS).  This first lines are quite famous and can be recited by many people, especially French majors.  "Aujourd'hui, maman est morte.  Ou peut-ètre hier, je ne sais pas".  (Today, mother died.  Or maybe yesterday, I don't know).

The quintessential existentialist novel is about a man who drifts through life, getting into trouble after murdering an arab who is threatening his friend.  During the court trial, it comes out that he didn't cry at his mother's funeral and this adds to the damning evidence against him.  Waiting to see if he is condemned to death, he philosophizes that we are all condemned to death eventually.  And thinks that his mother was about to start a new life with a fiancé so no one should have cried over her.  I can't find the cover of my Gallimard 1942 paperback, but here is the link if you would like to read it.

 

http://www.scribd.com/doc/31581027/A-Camus-L%E2%80%99Etranger

 

 

 

Remembrance of things past

My weekly laptop picture is of Proust in his bed writing his most famous book, A la recherche du temps perdu.  I saw his actual bed at the Carnavalet museum in Paris. 

http://carnavalet.paris.fr/en/museum-carnavalet

This museum is HUGE and free and lots of cool stuff including old store signs and fragments of stained glass windows from churches.

Not many people can say that they have read all of this multi-volume work.  I have tried but ended up skipping some.  Very dense, he can go on for pages about the sensations evoked when he bites into a madeleine.  I love the fact that he wrote such an evocative book IN BED.



Starbucks is really incommodious today.  I came here because my exercise class ends at 9 and the libraries don't open until 10.  Here is what I don't like about Starbucks:
- only one table big enough for me and it is continually occupied
- small round table barely big enough for my laptop and mouse.
- table is sticky
- chair is hard

On the plus side:
- they have a plug
- they have newspapers for sale

Exercise for arthritis class was strange this AM.  I ran over there for 8 AM since my excursion for today was cancelled due to extreme weather which is nowhere in sight.  Teacher was not there.  Another attendee was there with an audio cassette of our teacher.  So the two of us did the class looking at an audio cassette player instead of the teacher.  It worked!

Foiled again

Weather tomorrow getting in the way of my plans.  5 of us had planned to go up to Grounds for sculpture.  Do you know how hard it is to get 5 people to agree on a date and a plan? 

I am so close to finishing so many books.  Reading is my favorite activity (probably because it involves SITTING).  Still slogging through several books about Paris, and the book I found in the Newark airport and the book written by Jill McCorkle, who attended my college (Hollins), and the new David Sedaris book, and L'etranger in French, and a children's book about Monet in French.  And there are MORE...

Made a vow to get better about gifts.  Changed one of my money envelopes to be earmarked for such, since I never have extra spending money and thus am never prepared for birthdays, weddings, etc.
Everyone else is so generous and I am just BEHIND and lacking in inspiration.  I hate to shop and I hate to spend money, but I love cool gifts.  Had an urge to go back to Paris and SHOP which is dumb because it was so overpriced over there. 

Friday it rained all day and Monday it rained all day.  One weather guy said tomorrow was the most worrisome day of the weather year so far.  The nice thing about Paris is that even though it rained frequently, it didn't rain a lot and it didn't rain for long.

Blogging humor

    
I should give credit to the New Yorker.  I have been carrying this page around since February 6, 2006.  I come from a family of New Yorker readers.  My father used to get all of us a subscription each Christmas, my mom, himself, and his four daughters.  Now that he is gone, we keep up the tradition, on a rotating basis.

Lovely morning listening to NPR and trying to get the humidity out of my house.  I even left the air conditioner on while I'm out.  Can't really justify that now that I don't have pets.  I love the sunshine but hate the humidity.

Yesterday I had a delightful birthday.  Breakfast at my sister's, gifts, flowers, dinner with my "girlfriends of the '70's" (aren't those the best kind?), phone calls, email messages, Facebook remembrances, singing.  Couldn't have asked for a better day except that the weather could have been better.  Torrential rain and drizzles with occasional brightening.

It's MY day

I am getting lots of attention today.  Facebook notices, breakfast, gifts, yoga class singing Happy birthday to me.  And here I sit doing my favorite activity...getting online.  Lousy weather forecast today but it is a bit brighter out than one would have expected.  Oh well, you can't have EVERYTHING on your birthday.

Book review: Hardly knew her : stories, by Laura Lippman, audio book performed by Linda Emond and Francois Battiste.  I wanted to listen to this because I noticed that Laura Lippman was speaking at the recent New Jersey Library Association conference in Atlantiic City.  She writes about Baltimore a lot and I was going there last Saturday.  I did not enjoy this audio book much until the end.  Then my CD player in the car broke and I couldn't listen to the last disc.  I liked the part featuring stories about her detective from Baltimore, Tess Monaghen, which provided me with details I may have forgotten about this character.  My lack of appreciation stems from the fact that most of the stories are about using and abusing people and a lot of sex and murder.  The audio on this CD seemed a bit dim and did not jibe with my radio volume.

Having a lot of trouble pasting pics today.  Here again I try to feature one of three great stores right across from my hotel in Paris....La petite chaloupe.  Artisinal sardines in gorgeous containers.  Then the wine store, La p'tite cave.  Then a wonderful bread and pastry store.  One day I bought a bagette and some butter and ate the whole thing by myself.

The mysterious Poe toaster

Now I remember the story.  Someone came for many years on the anniversary of Poe's death and left red roses and some cognac.  This is the third year the person has failed to show.  Actually this gravestone marks the ORIGINAL grave.  Poe's remains were moved to another part of the cemetery in 1875.

Slightly erroneous information

Came to Baltimore on the bus trip.  Am standing up at the Enoch Pratt Free Library for a one half hour computer usage.  Nice guy at the entrance gave me a ticket even though I left my ID in New Jersey.  I told him I was a librarian.

Our bus driver tries to give us info on where we are, but it is not always right.  He said we were passing a museum full of "abstract art".  That is not exactly how I would describe the American visionary museum.

Have been walking around and taking the free buses, which are not full of tourists.  Mostly full of chiefly African American residents and every neighborhood I walk through seems to be that too.
Went to the grave of Edgar Allan Poe in the Westminster cemetery.  People had left the following things on his original grave...a pencil, a pen, several pennies, flowers, candy wrappers, and a fan from St Louis Community College.  Well, can't tarry....

I forgot to post a picture today

Here is the mayor of my town.  We like him.

Me and all the other losers (weirdos?)

Being amongst the people-who-don't-have-computers-at-home is an ignoble accomplishment.  As I look around me, there are some real strange dudes and,not necessarilly people around whom I enjoy being.  In fact, PEOPLE are getting on my nerves more and more.  Last night attended a free demo on Windows 8 and a woman behind me was sniffling and chewing gum noisily.  The other attendees were old and strange, except for one sort of youngish couple.  The instructors down at the Cape May County Library technology center, however, are young men, just brimming over with information and willingness to share and help.  Too bad it involves an hour drive from Bridgeton to Cape May Court House.

Book review: Stranger here : how weight-loss surgery transformed my body and messed with my head, by Jen Larsen.  I must return this book today as it is OVERDUE.  I borrowed it from the Vineland Public Library (613.24 Lar)  I wanted to read this because she was a librarian, lived in San Francisco and had weight loss surgery, to which I am sort of opposed.  I figure, if you are going to have to eat less and exercise, why bother getting surgery, why not just DO IT?  She details her transformation and her breakup with her long time boyfriend and her poor eating habits, even after surgery.  I was amazed to learn from the dust jacket and flap that she now lives in Utah and is a lesbian.  I didn't see THAT coming.  I learned the jargon of these many patients, including the desire for Onederland (once you get below 200 pounds)  People who have undergone these surgeries seem to be obsessed with it (even five years out) as they used to be obsessed with dieting.  One of her large friends is worried about the changes in their friendship..."I wanted to tell her how I had no controls, no checks, no balances, no boundaries.  There's being fat, and there's being on a runaway train.  I had to get the surgery.  And I was so sorry."  I know that feeling.

Still working on my taxes.  As I get closer to sending it in, I have totally forgotten WHY I did WHAT and fearing that it is WRONG.  It sure is complicated!  I really should do it online next year, because I think that is what THEY do and then they find all of my mistakes.  My philosophy on taxes is....DONE is better than RIGHT.  Also, a little known cheap way to do your taxes is to just send it in and then they redo it and send you the amount of money THEY think you should get back.  This is CHEAPER than paying H & R Block $250 to help me.  I know I should get some help about every five years, but by the time I get around to looking for someone to help, it is April already.

Stressful morning

Was rushing to get to my exercise class.  Got into the line at McDonald's although it was horrendously long.
Noticed in the side view mirror that the guy in front me was SHAVING like he had narry a care in the world.  Finally he drove off without even going through the drive in to get food.  Grrr...Then had to go to get car maintenance done.  Brought an overdue library book.  I forgot that one has to listen to country western music in the office.  That was hard enought for me (not good at multitasking)  Then a guy who was waiting kept getting phone calls and his ringer was gangsta' rap.  I am as fond of gangsta' rap as the next fella but NOT when I am reading AND listening to country western music.  I was missing Paris where people are quiet and well behaved, not IN-YOUR-FACE like people in my town.  I really detest listening to other people on the phone.

How did I run out of time?  Planned to use the computer for an hour and then do other stuff like photocopying and reading the newspaper on a stick (cheap thrills, as was pointed out by Kramer on Seinfeld).  Drove an hour to go to a demo on Windows 8 although not sure why I want to learn about it.  May have to get an ipad or an iphone soon.  But I don't say no to some free education.

Tried to look up my favorite yoghurt from France to see exactly HOW fattening it was.  But the stats are not like ours, so I couldn't figure anything out.  Thought I would post a picture of it anyway.  Yoghurt with chestnuts!  How come WE don't have that?  In fact, the yoghurt selections in Paris were WAY more than we get.  I brought home one of the little glass jars to remember it by.  (We couldn't figure out what to do with all of them anyway).  This is from their collection called Les moments plaisir (pleasurable moments).
I know you can FRIEND my favorite CHEESE on Facebook (Caprice des dieux) but not sure about stuff from La fermière.

My worst nightmare...

...is that a barking dog will move in RIGHT NEXT DOOR.  I wish this dog would run away.  I really HATE having my peace disturbed by a barking dog.  Not to mention the issues of trash, noise, ambulances, and police with drawn guns.  Other than that, they are just your average Mexican family with North Carolina license plates, a pit bull, and relatives who are going to move in with them.  My general philosophy on neighbors is..."I'll WAIT them out".

Restaurant review: Mi familia pizzeria and ice cream on Burlington Road in Bridgeton, NJ.  Around here you can blink and restaurants are closed or have an entirely new name.  Usual door was locked, but we got in the front door.    Four policeman were out front talking to a lady (some sort of disagreement about a Diet Coke).  I kind of liked it although my friend was not happy with her meatball sandwich.  What I liked:
- waitresses trying really hard to please
- you can get a WHOLE WHEAT pizza crust
- on a salad you get a choice of romaine, spring mix or spinach
- I ordered a small salad and waitress pointed out that by ordering the SPECIAL I could get a large salad for less money

I am starving right now, but I am trying to get more used to it.    Usually, I bring a snack to the historical libary, but I didn't today.  Another guy usually goes to the store to get lunch but he isn't going today.  Someone else usually bakes bread but he didn't today.  Luckily someone produced a bag of almonds and a container of raisins, so this will tide me over.  We are in a small town with NO stores....just a country store with a sign posted that says, "We are doing our best to open as soon as possible".  I am waiting anxiously.  The last people who ran it did not have Diet Coke as they said that no one drinks it in Greenwich.

Boss bitch?

Saw a woman at lunch with this tattooed in BIG letters on her chest.  I told her that once someone put graffiti on my house that said BOSS BITCH in big blue letters.  I asked her whether I should have been complimented or insulted.  "It wasn't me!", she claimed.  I looked it up in the urban dictionary (online) at the time and found that it meant a tough woman who won't take no s#$t from anyone.

Checked the weather in Paris.  It is about 10 degrees cooler and cloudy.  I AM enjoying the SUN here in New Jersey.

Went to see an author last night.  Couldn't decide whether to go to the Sea Isle City library to hear Lisa Scottoline or to the Free Library of Philadelphia to see Walter Mosley.  I decided to go to Philly as I had seen Lisa once at a library conference.  Managed to find a parking place right in front of the library and also figured out the parking kiosk (new technology intimidates me).  It was "only" $4 for 2 hours.  He spoke for 45 minutes.  Talked about his new book in the Easy Rawlins series.  Not sure if I have read one of those.  Just printed out the list of all of his books and series from Wikipedia so that I can systematically read some more.  He seemed rather acerbic and world weary?  He has great character names like Socrates and Leonid and Fearless Jones.  Writings are all over the place...mysteries, nonfiction, science fiction.  Mostly known for his crime fiction.  In his latest book he resurrects a character he killed off in 2007.  Most of his books involve redemption, he said.  This one involves resurrection.  He said that in the beginning, black men did not come to his talks.  Black men prefer TRUTH, so they read nonfiction.  He has pointed out that most of the lies in the world come from nonfiction.

Camera displays people naked

Guy next to me on the computer is looking at that on Youtube.  I am using my free headphones I got on the airplane to use with the ipad they loaned me.  I need headphones EVERYWHERE, just like I need scotch tape, staplers, telephones and waste baskets everywhere.  Have misplaced my special ones yet again.  But I got TWO new pairs....on the way to Paris and on the way back.  And they are nice and LONG....I don't have to check out the headphone extender cable like I had to with my regular earbuds.  I had to give back the ipad but they didn't want to headphones back.

I like this cartoon in the New Yorker,since I am laboring in obscurity on this blog.

Book review: Murder, she wrote, a slaying in Savannah by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain.  Actually, I have listened to this audiobook before, narrated by Cyntha Darlow.  Amazingly, the narrator manages to almost SOUND like Angela Lansbury, who played Jessica Fletcher on TV.  As a former cataloguing librarian, these kinds of books used to drive me crazy.  Jessica Fletcher is a FICTIONAL character so how can she be writing a book?  Jessica is called to Savannah upon the death of a good friend.  The friend left one million dollars to a literacy foundation she ran with Jessica.  The money is contingent upon the solving of a murder by Jessica.  So she stays in the big house of the deceased, along with fortune-hunting boyfriends, ghost-chasing "tenants", servants who have been around for decades.  She solves the murder with a clue that sailed completely by me. 

Becoming a lazy bum again

Now that I am not forced to walk all over Paris, I am back to my sedentery ways...driving, reading, using the computer.  Amazingly, the eating evened out with the walking and I didn't gain any weight during my ten days in Paris!  How to get that level of activity into my life?  Today it is too HOT and I don't have any TIME....oh, I can go on and on with the excuses.

Vowing to add PARIS to my list of frequently read categories.  Of course, all of the others are GENRES (biographies, nonfiction, mysteries), not SUBJECTS.  A friend I visited there is obsessed with Paris in the twenties.  I think I am more into the late 1800's.

Last night was talked into going to a concert in Atlantic City.  I really don't like staying up late and I wanted to go to bed early as I am still jet lagged and I had never heard of Deana Martin, but I went, because I didn't want to be such a big party pooper and I was offered a free ticket and a ride.  Have I been living under a rock?  I never heard of her and she had a list of accomplishments two pages long.  One of Dean Martin's 7 (?) children, she basically sings his songs and others of that ilk.  It was very entertaining and was helped with a big band in back.  It was a fundraiser for the Schulz and Hill Foundation to fund arts in the schools.  The audience was high society down-the-shore people....I called them "sequins and botox".  They all knew each other but I didn't know anyone except the three people I came with.