Tag Archives: Oreo

Happy Birthday, Oreo!!

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Today is Oreo’s unofficial first birthday, ‘unofficial’ because I don’t know exactly what day she was born last year.  I know it was sometime in late January or early February, so I figured February 4th was as good a day as any.  I’ve had her for almost 10 months now, and I can’t imagine how empty my life would be without her, especially since I’ve moved up to Lowell.  Granted, getting up early to take her out in near-zero temperatures is not loveliest task to complete, but it’s a small sacrifice.  Here’s to many more birthdays in Oreo’s future!

In other news, I just found out I’ll be presenting at the IASPM-US Conference in San Diego at the end of May.  Woo hoo!  So, that’s makes two conferences in two weeks in May…I feel like I’m having deja vu, seeing as I did a conference tour two years ago.  No road trip for me this time, though, as the U2 Conference is in NYC from May 13-15, and the IASPM Conference is in San Diego from May 29-31.  Even though they’re two weeks apart, ain’t no way I’m driving to California from Massachusetts.  The way I see it, I’ll probably spend as much on gas and hotels along the way as I would on a plane ticket, so I’ll take the convenience of flying.

Insomnia, pt. 2

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Yesterday was the first day of the spring semester at UML.  I’m usually a bit nervous before the start of the new semester, and the two nights ago certainly was no exception.  I didn’t get much sleep the night before, about four hours, due to my mind’s inability to relax and also to a fear of oversleeping.  I had trouble falling asleep last night, too, again because my mind just couldn’t settle down.  Among the various subjects my mind contemplated were:

  • The new semester: I hope I teach well and I hope my students are receptive to my methods.
  • Relationships: past, present, and future; platonic, romantic, familial.  It was a long weekend, to say the least.
  • The first six measures of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee”: I’m using that as an example in class on Friday, so I transcribed it into Finale Sunday afternoon and haven’t been able to get it out of my head.  Along with…
  • “Get On Your Boots,” U2’s new single: I’ve lived with the song for a week now and I can say with full confidence that I like it.  It’s a new direction for the band, which was their intent on this album.  I was reluctant to write about the song until I’d listened to it enough.  I have, and it’s a keeper.  Like the rest of the U2 fans out there, I’m very excited for No Line On The Horizon.
  • The impending snow storm: I hope my tires don’t get flat again.  I’ve spent a pretty penny getting them changed; I’d really hate it if I had to through the hassle of changing yet another tire.  On the bright side, Oreo will have more snow in which to run around.
  • Travel plans for Spring Break:  My mom wants to go to Vegas, Mike is hosting FriendFest ’09a in DC, and I’d like to visit Houston again.  Three place, one week…something’s gotta give.
  • My country ’tis of thee sweet land of liber…DAMN IT!!
  • The Australian Open: Djokovic has all the talent in the world, but no heart.  I realize that court temperatures of 142 degrees are torture, but he’s a professional with adequate time to prepare for the conditions.  It’d be different if this was the first time he retired, but he’s developing a trend of quitting when he’s down.  Federer, the game’s gentleman champion and ambassador, even called him out.  Not a good sign, Novak.
  • Nashoba Valley Chorale: I sang with them for the first time last night and the music was tough.  Of course, I was rusty, but a lot of the music was in French, a language I have trouble with.

So yeah, the way I see it, it was impossible for my mind to shut down while all this crap swirling around.  I’m not sure how well I’ll survive averaging less than five hours of sleep a night.  Here’s to an early bedtime tonight!

Click here for “Insomnia” (pt. 1).

December 2008 12 of 12

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6:13am – The weather outside had been crappy for the past few days.  Today was no exception.  Little did I know it was going to affect my day so much.

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6:47am – Since the weather had been so grey lately, I decided to dress brightly for the last day of classes.  All for naught, however…

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6:52am – The view from my car’s driver’s side window.  The water from all the rain had frozen into a sheet of ice.  Lovely conditions, really.

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7:20am – Driving HOME from school.  Yup, that’s right: driving HOME.  The severe weather had caused campus-wide power outages.  So much for the orange brightening my students’ day.  Note how the only lights in the picture are the headlights from oncoming traffic and the flash’s reflection in the windshield.

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9:58am – UML’s text about campus closing finally reaches me…three hours late!

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11:43am – Working in Finale, editing a portion of one of my finals I’m giving next week.  Mmm, part-writing.

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1:47 – While preparing my first-ever batch of homemade chicken noodle soup, I decide to put on a little John Mayer.  I haven’t to listened to this CD in a while: I was reminded of how good it is.

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2:58pm – My very first pot of chicken noodle soup.  It turned out pretty well.

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6:36pm – While cleaning up the kitchen and making a breakfast casserole for the weekend, I pop on the DVD of U2’s 2005 Vertigo tour from Chicago.  It was a pretty good show, although I like the Elevation tour DVD from 2001 a little better. 

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8:30pm – The breakfast casserole is ready to be put in the oven tomorrow morning.  Thanks for the idea, Mrs. Blessinger (I don’t mean Marty).

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1:01am – Mike and play a three-game series of NCAA ’09.  He tried a new team, Georgia Tech.  It was an ugly win: I managed to squeak out an overtime victory in game 3.

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3:12am – After a long chat with Marty and finally taking Oreo out, I crawl into bed and read a few pages of Eclipse before passing out.

November 12 of 12 (belated)

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Better late than never, I guess.

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11:32am – I’ve been sleeping like crap lately, so I decided to sleep in this morning.  During my morning internet routine, I came across Mike’s 12 of 12 and though, “Damn!  I forgot yesterday was the 12th.”  So I start taking pics.

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11:33am – Making my Pick ‘Em picks.  Not that it matters, ’cause I suck at this game.

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11:47am – My floor is littered with bits of rope, from one of Oreo’s toys.

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12:20pm – There’s Oreo, with said toy.

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12:37pm – Lunch in my office at school: pasta leftovers and POWERade.

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1:21pm – Lesson planning for Theory 3.  We’re studying Rondo form.

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2:02pm – The view from my office window.  It was a grey day in New England.

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4:08pm – Walking to the duplication room, I pass a break in the buildings with a lovely view of the Merrimack River.  The white building in the distance is my apartment building.

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4:10pm – The lady who works in the duplication room STILL can’t spell my last name correctly.

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4:24pm – On my way out of my office, I grab some Whoppers that were left over from the Halloween candy I gave out to my students.  Mmm, Whoppers.

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6:10pm – I decide to relax a bit with a big Milky Way hot chocolate from Dunkin’ Donuts and some Scrubs.  I’ve started to re-watch the series; I’m on Season 2.

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7:45pm – Grading some Theory 3 homework.  Times sure have changed: I never would have turned in a form chart that looked that sloppy.  Note my comment on the far left side: “Rulers are good.”

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BONUS: I’ve made it to Book 2 of the Stephanie Meyer Twilight series, New Moon.  I’ll read some more when I crawl into bed.

30 of 30(‘s)

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I turned 30 on couple of days ago, and frankly, it was weird.  I’m not freaked out, like some people get when they reach this “milestone.”  It’s weird in that I’m starting another decade of life.  It’s weird how much older 30 seems than 29.  It’s weird because it doesn’t seem any different from age 29, except when I say out loud “I’m 30.”  I used to use the phrase “you’re only as old as you feel” when I worked retail.  I said that to men who would come into the store and hesitate to buy an item because they felt they were “too old for that.”  The way I see it, I certainly don’t feel too old for anything.  In fact, I don’t feel like I’m 30, which is contributing to the weirdness of the occasion.  I still make crude fart jokes, poke Marty incessantly when we’re together, dance around my apartment in a silly manner when I’m giddy, and get excited to play new video games.  Again, I don’t feel like I’m 30, but I am.  So…there it is.

In honor of my 30th birthday, I thought I’d make a list similar to the monthly 12 of 12 I try to post.  This time, however, the list is comprised of things I hope to see and/or do while in my 30’s.  I’ve got a decade to complete the list, so I think I’ve got a pretty good shot at checking off everything.  Here goes (in no particular order):

  1. Watch the Cubs win the World Series.
  2. Pay off my student loans.
  3. Go whitewater rafting in the Grand Canyon.
  4. Learn Chopin’s “Fantasie Impromptu.”
  5. Write and publish a book.
  6. Meet U2.
  7. Buy a house.
  8. Go to Wimbledon.
  9. Watch the Bears win another Super Bowl.
  10. Learn to write left-handed.
  11. Celebrate Oreo’s 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th birthdays.
  12. Get married.
  13. Add a different stamp to my passport.
  14. See my parents retire.
  15. Win a tennis tournament.
  16. Become fluent in Tagalog.
  17. Learn Spanish.
  18. Get tenure.
  19. Present at an international conference.
  20. Buy a new car.
  21. See a sunset on the beach at Boracay.
  22. Drive on the Autobahn.
  23. Skydive.
  24. Watch FSU win another NCAA college football national championship.
  25. Have a child.
  26. Swim with dolphins.
  27. Visit all 30 (ha!) MLB parks.
  28. See Niagra Falls.
  29. Learn to cook more Filipino food.
  30. ?
You’ll notice that #30 was left blank.  That’s where you, the reader, comes in.  I’d appreciate your suggestions.  They could be silly or sincere (I prefer sincere).  In any case, I look forward to reading what you think I should do in my thirties.

Be less dumb

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OK, now I know my dog is cute.  TOO CUTE, as Mike would say, and as evidenced by the picture above.  But here’s what I don’t get: when I’m out walking Oreo along the lovely Merrimac River, some people I pass compliment her (saying such things as, “Aww, hey there cutie!” or “Hi puppy!” then proceed to whistle at her, as if they’re calling her…then they just keep on walking.  It’s pretty obvious that she’s still a puppy who’s learning how to act calmly in public, and I’m trying my best to train her not to jump up on people.  But when we’re walking briskly down the esplanade with Oreo at my side and some stranger whistles at my dog, she wants to play with them (quite understandably), which causes her to break her stride and start jumping up or weaving all over the place.  The way I see it, if you’re gonna whistle at my dog and get her attention, you had better stop to pet her.  Otherwise, you’re just being mean and taunting her.  I’m sure you all don’t mean to tease her and get her all riled up, but you do, which doesn’t help me train her to walk calmly by my side.  Make up your minds, people: either pass us by with a nice head nod or a friendly “Hello” and keep on walking, or stop to ask to pet the cuteness known as Oreo.  Enough of this senseless whistle-n-walk.  In the words of the great Dr. Buchler: Be less dumb.

On a lighter note, Oreo in that raincoat is one of the cutest images I’ve ever seen.  And her eyes saying, “OK, really?  Seriously??  Honestly???”: just priceless.

September 12 of 12

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I was so tired last night I didn’t get a chance to post my 12 of 12 before I went to bed, as I like to do.  Here it is, a few hours late.

6:19 AM – The alarm had already been going off for 4 minutes.  Ouch.

6:24 AM – The parking garage on the first floor my building.  Oreo’s leading the way to the pet area.

6:55 AM – My clothes are waiting for me after my shower.  And yes, I did set them aside the night before, undershirt and all.

7:29 AM – My breakfast this morning.

7:45 AM – Making sure the playlist is complete for classes today.  Mozart?  check.  Sousa?  Check.  All-American Rejects?  Check.  Busta Rhymes?  Check.

11:45 AM – I head over to the convenience store adjacent to the Dept. of Music to grab some lunch before my office hour.  I decide to give Senor Miguel a try.  That was a mistake.  I should have known better.

12:15 PM – While waiting for a student (who never showed) during my office hour, I unload my bag and discover that I’ve a lot of grading to do this weekend.  A lot.

3:05 PM – Locking up my office, as I complete my first full week of classes (last week was only three days).  (P.S. You know it’s my office: amidst Red Sox Nation, it’s the only one with Cubs logos adorning the window.  Go CUBS!)

3:40 PM – I live only 2.0 miles from school, yet my commute averages about 25 minutes, no thanks to the Rourke Bridge, which I have to cross to get to and from school.  Essentially, three lanes bottleneck into one, then branch out again into three.  Here, I need to make a right, and would be able to if the jerk in front of me, who needs to make a left, would have gotten over to the left lane.  Moron.

4:07 PM – There’s a Dunkin’ Donuts right across the street from my apartment, and since Senor Miguel’s breakfast “burrito” didn’t do much for me, I decide to grab a sausage, egg, and cheese bagel.  This was not a mistake.

8:47 PM – Despite the mountain of papers I have to grade, I decide to take the night off because I’m utterly exhausted.  So, I play a little MarioKart Wii.  I won a few gold trophies in the 150cc league.  My only loss in this cup was due to a fluke pass right at the end, after I dominated the entire race up ’til that point.  Stupid spiny shells.

12:26 AM – I spend the rest of the night watching The Karate Kid and The Karate Kid Part II on AMC.  Oreo and I are in and out of consciousness pretty much the whole evening.  Man, my dog is cute.  Too cute.

One monthaversary

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It’s official: I am now a full-fledged resident of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  I know, I know.  I’ve been living here a month now (I still can’t believe I live here, by the way), but it all became “official” last week, when the last vestige of my life in Florida went by the wayside: I got Massachusetts license plates.  I’ve discovered many things about this portion of the country, some good, some not-so-good.  My last entry was about the things I’ll miss about Tallahassee.  And sure enough, those all still hold true.   But rather than dwell on the negative of no longer being in a place I liked, I thought I’d make a list of the stuff that has impressed me about Lowell and the surrounding area.  Here goes:

1. The weather at this time of year is absolutely gorgeous.  I mean, for the last two weeks, it’s just been stunning.  Highs maxing out in the low 80’s (and by low 80’s, I’m talking 80, 81 tops.), bright sunshine, clear skies, light breezes.  And I live right on the Merrimac River, so it’s a pleasure walking Oreo (except that she still gets a bit crazy when other pets are around).  I know it’s only a matter of time before the weather gets miserable, so I’ll take as many perfect days  as I can get before Old Man Winter dumps all over the place.

2. I absolutely love my new apartment.  It’s bright and clean and spacious, thereby making me more fastidious about keeping it up.  I haven’t left dishes in the sink, I make my bed on a daily basis, and have been pretty good about not letting clutter build up.  Hopefully it keeps up once the school year starts.  Plus, I have a little balcony so I can enjoy the nice weather even more.

3. I have ready access to a major city (Boston) and its airport (Logan International).  Now, don’t get me wrong: I loved Tally’s airport and it’s ultra-low stress level, but it’s nice having travel options and seeing affordable flight prices out of an airport that’s less than an hour away.  Plus, I have access to Manchester’s Regional Airport, too, which gives me even more options.

4. I live two miles from school.  Literally.  My commute takes 10 minutes, tops, and that’s only because I have to deal with traffic crossing the Rourke Bridge.

5. The view from my UML office is great.  I’m on the fourth floor of the Fine Arts building, on the side that overlooks the Merrimac.  Here’s what I see when I look out the window:

6. The drive up to Nashua, NH (where I do a lot of my shopping) is scenic and low-stress.  It follows the Merrimac for the majority of the tree-lined 7-mile ride.  It’s going to be beautiful in the fall with all the leaves changing colors, and even in the early winter, with a light snowfall filtering through the canopy.

7. Since this area is so old, the streets are not organized very well (read: no grid and poor city planning), which can be interminably frustrating.  But instead of looking at it negatively, I’ve tried to see it as a challenge to learn a new part of the country.  I got to know Houston because I lived there for so long.  Chicago was very easy to get a handle on because the city is on a grid.  Tally was small enough that it didn’t take very long to know my way around.  Lowell is small, too, but the city’s one giant spaghetti bowl.  Learning my new digs will take some time, but the way I see it, if I can learn this place, I can get along anywhere.

It’s only been a month.  That month, however, has gone by rather quickly, and time is sure to fly once the school year gets rolling.  I can’t wait to discover more about Lowell and Boston and New England in general.

Top 10 things I’ll miss about Tallahassee

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My moving trailer arrived Wednesday, so it’s been a packing/loading fest since then.  My mom came into town help and has done a wonderful job.  With the apartment slowly, but surely, emptying, the upcoming to Lowell is, as Marty puts it, “gettin’ real.”  Really real.  I almost can’t believe it.  I’m packing up my computer in a few minutes, so I thought that my last entry as a Florida resident would a Top 10 list.  I’ve spent five good years in Tallahassee, so here are the Top 10 things I’ll miss about The ‘Heez (in no particular order).

1. The ranch dressing at The 4th Quarter.  Ranch dressing is just good in general, but the stuff at The 4th Quarter bar and grill is just something else entirely.

2. FSU.  I met a lot of great people at Florida State and made some really really good friends through the school.  Thanks, everyone.

3. Living costs.  As I quickly discovered, Lowell’s cost of living is dramatically higher than Tallahassee’s, so much so that my apartment in Massachusetts is going to cost me double what I’m paying in Florida.  Ouch.

4. The weather.  I hate the hot oppressive summer temperatures, but I will miss those lovely February days when the mercury hits 73.

5. The sports.  I’m a pro sports guy, but FSU is the first sports school that I’ve attended and it was great.  Gathering at Doak Campbell Stadium with 84,000 other fans was an experience I’ll miss dearly.

6. The hotties.  Tallahassee has an inordinate amount of very attractive people.  I mean, hott with two t’s.  In fact, I’d say the attractive-ness quotient is as high in Tally as it is low in Lowell (how ’bout that).  I guess the good news is that I won’t feel so bad at the gym.

7. The cheap drinking.  $1.75 draft beer for happy hour…how can you beat that?

8. The dog park.  Oreo liked running around unfettered with the other pups at Tom Brown.  Fortunately, Lowell just opened up the city’s first official dog park, so I’m hoping it’ll be a good one.

9. The proximity.  Everything essential is 15 minutes away, tops.

10. The food.  For a city of it’s size, there is a surprisingly high number of good restaurants.

Well, that’s all from Tallahassee, FL.  Another chapter ends, with one waiting to begin in Lowell.  I’m going to miss Tally for sure, but the way I see it, I’m moving on to bigger and better things.

June 12 of 12

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What better way to kick off Friday the 13th than with 12 of 12.

My life’s pretty quiet now.  Translation: I’m bored out of my mind.  I didn’t leave the apartment yesterday (again), so several pics are of the TV screen.  God I love TV.

10:02am – Amy and I are trying to live a more eco-friendly, organic lifestyle, so she recommended this organic peanut butter.  I did a side-by-side taste test and the results are in: the MaraNatha peanut butter is delicious.  It tastes freshly homemade.  Amazing.

10:22am – They’re doing some renovations and repairs around the apartment complex, so I didn’t have water to wash my dish.  So to pass the time…

10:23am – I continued my Seinfeld-watching.

10:48am – As you can see, I’m making progress, moving on to the second disc of the penultimate season.

11:15am – I get an email saying that my dissertation has been approved by the Office of Graduate Studies and will posted online.  Horray!

11:23am – As I continue my morning online routine, I request official copies of my transcripts from my three schools.  Northwestern is the only school that has my mail a request form in by snail mail (thereby slowing the process).  Thanks to Loyola for sending transcripts for free.

11:24am – The transcripts I requested from LUC, NU, and FSU are all going to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at UMass Lowell.  It’s part of the “making-my-hire-official” process.

12:47pm – Givin’ Oreo some love.  She loves those nubby gloves I got.

2:25pm – WGN celebrated its 60th year of broadcasting Cubs baseball with a “throwback game,” which featured both teams wearing 1948-style uniforms and a black-and-white telecast complete with graphics of yesteryear (just for the first two innings).

8:10pm – I cooked dinner for myself, which is a rarity these days.  It looked better in person, and it tasted even better.

9:52pm – The way I see it, since I was feeling domestic, why not continue the trend?  Iactually washed my dishes.  Recognize the hat?

10:31pm – 2nd place in the 100cc Special Cup in MarioKart Wii.  I was leading the standings until the final race.  Two words for you: Rainbow.  Road.  God I hate that course.