Two reasons for that subject. The first: we had a rash of classic True Internet Weirdness™ on the forum recently, and I had to post one of my very favorites from the turn-of-the-century era strange stuff. So you too should check out Mr. Nice.
Secondly, I've felt a little like Mr. Nice for the past few weeks -- introducing myself and smiling a lot and performing on cue. That's because I've just finished with three job interviews at institutions in and around the NYC area. I won't bore you with the details, but naturally there's been quite a bit of planning, preparation and travel involved. So that's been keeping me busy. It's also provided more opportunities to see Samantha, which is an excellent side benefit. We first spent a relaxing weekend together in Poughkeepsie, sampling the local cuisine and enjoying the snow. Then we met up again in Manhattan just a couple days ago and did some more touristy stuff, like walking along Fifth Avenue and seeing Rockefeller Center and the NY Public Library. The Hudson River Valley and surrounding environs are all beautiful, and Manhattan is singularly awesome, of course. It has all strengthened my feeling that I will enjoy living in New York more than I have southern California. And not just because Samantha is there.
But now I'm back in SoCal for a while. Another reason I know I need to leave this strange place soon: I'm getting used to the weather. While I was in New York, I discovered (to my dismay) that it was slightly troublesome to me to be leaving a building and actually have to think about what I was wearing and if it was appropriate. Of course, once I got outside I was enjoying the seasonal conditions immensely, but even this brief feeling of inconvenience is completely unacceptable. But in the meantime, I will keep doing... err, whatever it is that I do.
Which, by the way, outside of work, amounts to singing and baseball. I discovered this in answering questions at my interviews about what I do outside of work. Those were the only two things of significance I could come up with. (I decided that watching strange Internet videos and obsessing over obscure singer/songwriter duos don't qualify as significant.) Sort of a short list, for a guy who purports to have wide ranging interests. I'm trying to decide if this is acceptable or if I should pursue other hobbies.
In other news:
- Speaking of said musical group, I'm once again making changes to my silly Storyhill site. I've actually purchased a domain name, but I'm having trouble configuring it correctly so that it shows up as the URL and not the one that shows currently. Can anyone offer advice on this matter?
- Next concert: Verdi's Requiem. I'm knocking off a bunch of the classics in the repertoire that I haven't done before. But I think I'll have had my fill of large orchestral-accompanied works by the end of the year.
- Reasons Why Long Distance Marriages Suck #14: My motivation to do life maintenance sorts of things is extremely low. For the past day and a half, I have succeeded in doing nearly nothing of significance except feeding myself and attending to my cats. To do before the day is out: meal planning, grocery shopping, cleaning, vacuuming, laundry. Any bets on whether any of it gets done? Not a line I'd take...
- Spring training, woot! It's a very different Twins team this year, and expectations are a little lower than usual. That's okay, it's always better to exceed low ones than not meet high ones. Who I'm excited to watch this year: Francisco Liriano (may he just stay healthy all year, I don't care if he's even good), Delmon Young (learn to take a pitch, boy, and the sky's the limit), Adam Everett (just for the defensive value) and whoever makes rotation spot #5.
- My fantasy baseball draft is this Saturday. 25 teams read in my BP 2008, five to go. I'm gonna pwn. Barry Bonds is my number one pick. Yep.
- Watched recently: Dan in Real Life (Steve Carell does serious pretty well, not bad for a plane movie), Penelope (cute, enjoyable acting, a feel good movie), more Gilmore Girls (Jess is a punk, Luke is awesome, Lorelai is a wacko), Firefly (yes, I haven't seen it yet, and I'm not done, so just hold on), and the first disc of Baseball (awesome and I can't wait for the next eight).