I Heart...

...the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack. Have I mentioned that yet? I love music. I have always loved music. But it's rare that I find I really like a soundtrack enough to buy it, let alone listen to it for weeks on end in the car. I remember commenting to Sheryl when we saw the movie together that I thought the music was incredible. I searched for a while for the soundtrack (Barnes & Noble let me down twice, which is odd, and it was finally Target to the rescue, which was also odd), and was concerned that it wouldn't live up to my expectations. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that it's a great stand-alone compilation. I'm quite certain I would've loved the CD without having seen the movie.

I saw the movie for a second time, after listening to the soundtrack for weeks. And it was even more stirring than before. The tempo, the insistence, the sorrow...the entire vibe of the CD is captured in the movie, even though I'm sure it's intended to be the other way around. And there's such strong association between the music and the images in the film - from running through the streets of Mumbai to the aerial view of the city to riding on top of the train and "working" at the Taj Mahal - I can't even begin to imagine music that would pair so well with the scenes for which the music was selected. It's one thing to have songs I recognize in a movie as there's a sense of nostalgia often related to hearing them. There's something altogether different with remembering music I've never heard before because the use of the music was done in such a powerful way. I think I'm done gushing for now. By the way, have I mentioned that I like the soundtrack a bit?

Back to Rational?

Almost, but not quite...

The production schedules came in, and for me, weren't as bad as I thought. We have two more weeks of downtime scheduled in March and April. The other plant is not so lucky as they will be dropping a shift. So, another 1,100 hourly layoffs and another 50 or so salaried layoffs. I'm sure this will mean a lot of shifting around at the various plants, and I'm guessing we'll have more new-ish faces to get to know and a lot of changes over the next few months. But we're scheduled for production all year, and while that can change as quickly as an email can be sent, for now it's a relief.

We have always teased Auntie Joanne about her amusing condition where as her stress level increases, her shoulders shrug further and further upward. You could tell when she was particularly tense or upset because you could barely see her ears. I realized a long time ago that I share the same tendency. It's either that or I clench my jaw. Fortunately, I haven't been clenching my jaw (no grinding, just clenching, which is painful at best), but every so often, and quite a bit yesterday, I had to stop, think, take a deep breath, and force my shoulders down. It makes me chuckle when I do it, as I picture Auntie Joanne and just think about all the shit we gave her over the years about that. I'm sure she's proud that the tradition carries on...

Completely Irrational...

So, after a "forced" vacation this past week, which was full of budgets for both work (I know - vacation, right?) and Jaycees, not enough relaxation, lots of fun, and not enough reading, I find myself a bit anxious. Or maybe a lot anxious. And I have no desire to sleep. The irrational thought is that if I sleep, I'll eventually wake up, and then will have to go to work. My rational side, which seems to want to hide right now, realizes that I have to go to work whether I sleep or not. Right now, irrational is winning out (quite obviously).

I haven't dreaded work in a really long time - years, maybe, even with all of the craziness of the last few months. So why now? I attribute it to submitting my budget, and having the finance guy email me back that it was exactly what he was looking for, but would have to be reworked because there's an upcoming announcement about the production schedule. *gulp* That's usually not good news. At least in this climate, that's not usually good news. I'll deal with whatever comes my way, but having been out of the loop for the last week, the anticipation is getting to me. And it doesn't help that I let my sleep schedule go to hell in a hand basket this past week, too. Or rather, I let it go back to what I feel my natural biorhythms dictate, which means going to sleep around 3 or 4 in the morning and getting up around 9 or 10, not to mention the occasional catnaps of this past week.

So, I guess I should focus on the positives, right? I took my Christmas tree down and put it away in the balcony storage area. My goal was to disassemble by February 1, so I met my goal! I didn't get around to any general cleaning in the living room, so it's in a bit of disarray right now, but should be easily fixed (which is something I could be doing instead of blogging, but this is more fun). I saw Slumdog Millionaire for the second time, and loved it, and fell in love with the music even more, which is crazy since that CD has been living in my car since I got it. And I saw Gran Torino. Hilarious throughout, and a tear-jerker at the end. I loved it, and will probably see it again. And I am grateful that I have a job to go to tomorrow, even if the dread is a little overwhelming right now. I know I'll quickly get into the swing and start figuring out what's going on. It's just quite a challenge. I think it's time to curl up on the couch for a bit...

It's fun to be a girl...

It's fun to be a girl in a time when Tupperware parties have given way to Passion parties. I went to a friend's Passion party today, and had one of my dear friends in tow. There's nothing better than taking a picture of a Jelly Osaki dual-action orgasm-giver and texting it to another friend, all the while knowing this is all completely normal and fun.

We followed it up by meeting my friend's husband at Sindhu for dinner. I haven't experienced Indian food in Lansing, despite living here for 8ish years. The food was great, and we shared three dishes family-style. I picked the Chicken Vindaloo (spicy, not medium!). We had another chicken dish in a creamy-ish tomato-y sauce and lamb in a spicy sauce. The company was better than the food, and I had a delightful day with my friends. No pressure, no worries - just funny conversation and general silliness - a diversion from all of the current stress and worries. Such a good feeling!

Hi, Soapbox...Pardon Me While I Hop On You For a Hot Minute...

Post-swearing in, I got into a lengthy discussion about the inauguration and my disdain for the view that civil unions should satisfy the LBGT population in their quest for equality. I was faced once again with the opinion that civil unions should satisfy the quest for equal rights. In my mind, gays (and their supporters) aren't really searching for equal rights. They are seeking equality. And at this point the semantics discussion enters in. The logic (flawed in my mind) follows that: If gays are granted civil unions, and civil unions provide the same "benefits" as the legal institution of marriage, then the term civil union should be sufficient. My logic is: If gays are granted the same benefits of the legal institution of marriage, then call it a marriage for crying out loud!

The only way I could try to get my point across was this: Women and men fought for women's suffrage. Women became voters, just like men. There was no distinction between male voters and female voters. They did not create another term for women as a subgroup of the ballot-casting population. They didn't call them Pickers or Selectors or Choosers. They called them voters when they were FINALLY granted the same right to vote that men (at least the white ones) had held for-seemingly-ever. To call women with the right to vote by another name denigrates that right and continues to promote a distinction between the two groups when that distinction shouldn't exist. So, if gay couples are FINALLY allowed to have their commitment to each other recognized legally as having the same benefits as the currently legal heterosexual marriages, it should be called by the same name to promote equality. It's senseless to me that a gay couple should seek a Civil Union License, while heterosexual couples apply for a Marriage License. Why don't we just take another step backwards (at least in some parts of our great country... in other parts, this would probably make sense) and have Interracial Marriage Licenses? Or Interfaith Marriage Licenses? If there's going to be one distinction, should every couples' differences be identified as well? Hell, why not break it down into nationalities and throw some slurs in there as well? Maybe a Wop-Mick Marriage License? How about more defining physical and emotional characteristics, like Fattie-Redneck Marriage License? And we can work on the specifics of the gay licenses, too...Bear-Queen Marriage License...Lipstick-Bull Dyke Marriage License... The possibilities are endless. Which is even more reason to just call it a damn marriage.

I Know...

Still remiss in blogging, I know... I haven't even mentioned my South Haven / Bangor adventure, have I? And Tia's visit? So good to catch up. It's funny how you can be friends with someone for not a very long time yet still feel a pretty great connection. It gives me that warm, fuzzy feeling. And weddings galore? And a cruise in March! So much work ahead of me!

But I saw this quote today that made me giggle:

"By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you'll be happy. If you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher."
-Socrates

I think substituting "husband" should work as well.

So, one of my goals will be to catch up on blogging next week during my forced week off. We're rotating weeks off at work to avoid laying anyone off, so it's not really a bad thing. And I managed to roll over a few weeks from last year, so I have 5 weeks of vacation and a week of sick time. I just hate dipping into the "reserve" that I keep rolling over. Such is life - I am glad to have a job at the very least, and happy to keep my employees working...

Operation: Eat Healthy - Update

I have a lot of friends waiting until January 5 to start their healthy eating / exercise resolutions. I decided not to wait for a few reasons. First, I signed up for endurance swimming at the Y. It starts during the week of January 12, but I did not want to be dying in the pool during class from having not swam much in the last few months. So, it has been off to the pool for the last few days, which is working out nicely. Second, I figure the weight I gained over the holidays will come off easier if I work at it sooner. I'm sure there's absolutely no physiological basis for this, and I'm positive it's all mental. It's not like there is a LIFO accounting process for the increase in the number or size of my fat cells (for all you non-accounting people, LIFO means Last In First Out, and is a way of valuing inventory), but really, with a little time on my hands, I figured it didn't make sense to wait. And I thought it might be detrimental to wait.

So, I hopped on the scale this morning and I am +2 pounds from the beginning of December. I'm a bit shocked by that, as I thought it would be quite a bit more given what I ate over the holidays (mom & Nancy made the ridiculous caramel-covered pretzels rolled in toffee and dipped in chocolate - one of the few things I absolutely cannot seem to resist). So, we will see how all of this goes - I'm hoping to make the changes permanent. I don't have the urge to lose a bunch of weight and gain it back again as I've done in the past. And since I've lost weight in the past, I'm not scared or intimidated by the process of doing so, so much as the process of keeping it off. And, having a few weddings to stand up in this year helps just a little with the motivation! Sometimes, it's nice to have a timeline to work with. Wish me luck, and if you're up for a class at the Y, let me know - after all, variety is the spice of life!