Exiled in Sovereign City: 05

29 May 2004

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28 May 2004

All elephants are pink

Elsie is an Elephant. Elsie is Pink. She's no longer a Rebuplican.

27 May 2004

Absorbalicious

So a couple weeks ago one of my co-workers who's involved with Junior Achievement asks me if I want to volunteer some time. I've done JA before, and Working in the Schools, and I haven't done any volunteer work in quite a while, so I figured I was due. Turns out this wasn't quite JA though; Jack Benny Middle School (my alma mater) needed judges for a science fair. I kind of jumped at the chance. If you know me, you know i've got kind of a dislike/hate relationship with the city of waukegan.

Sure, i had opportunities there that really didn't exist anywhere else; I went to the same gradeschool as Ray Bradbury (and met him a couple times), then ended up going to a Junior High named for comdedian Jack Benny. I suppose the most notable thing about my highschool was that our mascot was a half-blind bulldog. (shrugs).

Anyhow, it was mildly surreal going back to the school for the first time in probably 15 years or so. Everything seemed so incredibly smaller. Strangely enough, it didn't seem like anything changed. The same old trophies and plaques were hanging in the lobby; the same old cardboard BENNY letters painted green and white were sitting on top of one of the trophy cases.

There was a plaque honoring teachers who have been at the school in excess of 15 years; strangely enough, there were a bunch of teachers from my era (87-88) that hit the 15 year mark, then suddenly there were no more. Stranger yet, there were absolutely no teachers there that were there when I was there. I can imagine teaching 7th and 8th (and now 6th as well) graders probably takes a lot of patience, but zoinks; that's total turnover.

So the whole gymnasium and stage were filled with science projects. Much like science fairs i participated in in gradeschool, a majority of the projects consisted of comparing the longevity of different batteries, the amount of gas released in different brands of soft drinks, and probably most commonly testing a papertowel's absorbancies. I'd venture a guess that when the projects are doled out, there's a sheet with some basic ideas for an experiment and those are at the top of the list. There was one 8th grade girl that called her paper towel experiment Absorbolicious. She got extra points for that.

Other notable experiments; there was one where a pair of guys compared how different materials burned (plastic bag, cardboard, and piece of wood). The details of their experiment were so incredibly vauge, that it was actually kinda funny. They didn't really post how long it took to burn each piece of material, nor did they have specific sizes of material. After judging them, I just asked them if they just chose that project so they could burn stuff. They eagerly replied that they in fact did. I so remember being that age. It wasn't really all that long ago.

I think there's lots to be learned by kids participating in a science fair; which I don't think i ever realized when i was comparing various brands of popcorn. Obviously, the science aspect is important; Science isn't really a subject that's very widly taught due to budget cuts, and as a result kids aren't as interested in the sciences. I think these presentations give kids a chance to work on their presentation skills too; making the presentation boards, engaging the judges in whatever their topic was, making an experiment look credible with a demonstration. It's all so important, and they're all skills that are valuble down the road. Gah. Did I just write that? Am I turning into my mom? or a guidance counselor? (shudders). Anyhow, it was a very wortwhile experience, and I'm glad I did it.

21 May 2004

Ohmygosh!!! Not My Desk is active again! Have I ever implored you to read through this site? If not, you simply MUST. it was initially written by a guy who worked as a temp in the San Francisco area, and detailed his wacky hijinks in the corporate commonplace.

The crown jewel of lots of great writing has to be his critique of Corporate Tool, Spencer Johnson's Who Moved My Cheese. Given the review and his celebration of "Cheese Week" he probably wrote more content about the book (and it's pedantic allegories) than was actually in the book itself. If nothing read this piece, but this website is guaranteed to while away a boring day sitting on conference calls. Er, not that I would know first hand.

19 May 2004

Not lots to report here... May has been shaping up to be an underwhelming month. Work has been pretty busy and frenetic, have had my hands full juggling things at home too. Mom is back in town, and making her rounds at Evanston Hospital, which has kept me on my toes.

I do have a few entries stacked up in my head that i haven't had the time to fully orchestrate. One is about the French Teacher I never had, the other is about seeing Wonderwoman at my bank. They're just spending time in my journal notebook right now fermenting, ripening if you will; i just hope i don't forget what it was that was so notable. hmmm.

Also, saw Mean Girls over the weekend; such a fun romp. Though set in Chicago's northern neighbor Evanston, I know it wasn't actually filmed in there, but they did namedrop Walker Brothers Pancake house; which is enough for me apparently. On the whole, I don't think I'd realized girls were so incredibly snarky. I know high school girls can be catty and petty, but yikes. that movie took it to a whole new level for me. Does this happen among the Lunchy Brunchy gals? I'm worried now.

Oh yeah... Questionaire time:

Playoffs:: Sports again?
Morris:: Stephen Morris of New Order
Break up:: Shakeup
Eggs:: Break a few eggs to make an omlette
Parker:: Brothers
Hardy Boys:: Oh Wow! Nancy Drew.
Deluxe:: Royale with Cheese
Protection:: copy
Girl Scout:: Gilda
Salsa:: Salcita.

13 May 2004

So I need to tinker with the new design before I move it into production... Lesson learned.

12 May 2004

I'm late. This week's unconcious mutterings

Vagina::Rymes with "Paulina" (one of the streets in Chicago that rhymes with a part of the female anatomy)
Racism::Lame
Mother's Day::Palmer House!
Fire alarm::Name for the firetruck shaped Transformer
Elvis::"Elbis Loves His Momma"
Pregnant::Like a broken typewriter; skipped a period.
Vacation::Holiday Rooooaaad!
Waffles::The former Troy, Illnois Waffle House
Perpendicular::Olive Oyle.
Hospital::General.

Hmm... Bored with the old design. Bring in the dots!

09 May 2004

Mom.

Well, it still is Mother's day for 54 minutes. Had a grand time really. Went to the Palmer House and dined in the Empire Room. We were serenaded by a fantastic Jazz Band. The food was great, service impeccable, and the pastries divine. Not only were we celebrating Mother's day with the woman ultimately responsible for me being here, but we were celebrating 10 years of her having a new heart.

Yeah, that's right. A new heart. Not figuratively, but literally. Those who know me, know that I've called my mom "indestructible". She's known maladies and ailments many. Growing up I thought it was entirely normal to spend holidays in the hospital. Throughout all of it, though, my mom has always been a trooper, and pretty unavailable. So why would a heart transplant be any different.

Initially she was called in as a secondary recipient, in case the initial recipient wouldn't be compatible with the donor heart. At the time, her heart was enlarged and not doing all it should, but she wasn't what you'd call on her deathbed. Heavens no, when she got The Call, she just returned from an evening out dancing with my Father. Yeah, this woman knows how to do things with style.

So she goes down to Evanston, they prep her just in case, and it turns out that the donor heart wasn't compatible with the primary candidate, so they test her, and sure enough, it was a match and they went ahead with the procedure. As I understand it, there weren't really any complications, and the surgery was a complete success. So much so, that some eight or nine hours after the surgery she was already well enough to start motioning around and order the nurses around. Naturally.

Ten years. A Decade. That's a long time. Granted it hasn't all been walks in the park; we've had some ups and downs. This woman, my mom, has the strongest spirit of anyone I've ever known. On a few instances I've found myself sitting next to her hospital bed, while doctors are always puzzled with the litany of health issues she's battled and conquered, and she's just there making jokes about her body with the hot-rod heart and taking comparative notes about the lunches of the various hospitals she's had the pleasure to take lodging in.

So a nice time was had by all today going to the Palmer House, celebrating Moms and Hearts and great food. But I just wanted to stop and let everyone know that Mother's Day is just a little more special with the Jurgaitises.

03 May 2004

So, yes. I am in fact a bad person... In the eyes of the Crobar. (shrugs). There's worse things yeah? My day Saturday just didn't unfold quite as planned. Granted it wasn't very rigorously planned to begin with, but the general tenets were: Exercise, Mom's house, and Glitterati. I did get the exercise in. Went to Mom's house; got really itchy and watery eyes, thanks to the colonies of dust; we also went to Kongs and had dinner with the Whites. That went incredibly long. I bolted for the City around 9, got there at 10, by the time Jim & I made it to Crobar, it was 11, and our Guest list amnesty had worn out. $20 to get in. Hmm. And the drinks aren't cheap. Everyone in the line was either wearing Crop tops, and hip huggers (and clearly everyone shouldn't wear those) or the guys were in their bluestriped dress shirts, all ruffled with a pair of "distressed" jeans. ugh. so the decision not to bother was tough; really Jim didn't think it was really worth 20 clams just for the privledge to get in (which i'm inclined to agree with).

I guess my application for the fabulatti has been put on hold.

Sexy:: Girlfriend (a little Sixteen Candles humor.
Clique:: Mall Claw
Pledge:: drive
Carbs:: bourgeois concerns
Dream Job::Gameshow host
Sweeps:: Bleeps and Creeps (ahh... michael winslow).
Soundtrack:: Sixteen Candles
Hero:: Foo Fighters
Shave:: Close
Christina:: Applegate (I still think fondly of Dont tell mom the babysitter's dead.

list du jour courtesy Unconcious Mutterings

01 May 2004

No rest for the wicked.

Kinda got a full day ahead of me. Going to the gym. I really need to get back on the workout treadmill. I've been going semi-regularly but work has been so sporadic in the mornings and evenings, that i haven't quite had a routine going for a while. I definitely need to schedule another session with the trainer; though fortunately/unfortunately the baroness hasn't seemed to have been around lately. Maybe she's maximizing somewhere else.

Going up to Wauk-town to help out at mom's house. I have to remember to take a benedryl so i don't swell up from all the dust. I find that I have a love/hate relationship with Waukegan. I think I'm infinitely glad that I didn't grow up in a vacuous suburb like Lake Glenville Heights Parkington. Waukegan has a definite history and cartography (though the cartography is kinda whacked when you get to the outskirts; i mean, it borders Libertyville?). But I just feel like the direction of the town is just wrong. The primary draw into the downtown area, for instance, is the County Courthouse (and jail). I realize there is a community group revitalizing the fantabulous Genessee Theatre which is great; but on the larger picture, there really isn't a draw and hasn't been in years.

Waukegan was one of the finalist communities that was up for the Casino license that controversially went to Rosemont. I've hemmed and hawed over thinking that was over all a good idea. I'm sure a casino would generate revenue in a town where most of the large industry picked up and went to sunnier shores. But on the social level, I don't think it would add to the overall landscape of the town. Short of being in Las Vegas or Monte Carlo are casinos really glamourous? Could Waukegan expect to receive the Chicago Glitterati? Are the communities that currently have Casinos any better for it? Aurora. Gary. Hammond. East St. Louis. Or, rather, do the casinos become a stopgap; then a crutch for the people of the community; hoping to strike it big? The cardinal rule of gambling is that all odds favor the house. So sure, some individuals might hit pay dirt; but will the community that plays host to it?

I really don't have answers to what Waukegan should do. I just have a premonition that a Casino would further send Waukegan into the decay that it's been sinking into for the last 20-30 years. In the end, I probably don't have the right to criticize since what they or their elected officials/drivers education teachers choose to do since as soon as i could i deemed to leave the parochially minded LC (read: Lake County) for the Big City.

Oh and going to Crobar tonight with a pack of friends to celebrate new jobs, engagements, and the meaning of life. I'm already not sure how I'll feel about that. The whole process of getting on the guest list was a little, how should I say, bitchy.

I submit the emails for your disdain:
_________________________________
OK... you've won FREE admission for Crobar Chicago on Saturday.

That means you can party for less money!!

This is just one of the ways that Crobar is giving up the love to our email list subscribers.

OK. You won. Cool ... now what?

HERE ARE THE RULES:

RULE 1
To claim your FREE ticket you HAVE TO RSVP to this email saying you are going to attend. RSVP BY CLICKING HERE

We don't want to be hard asses but you were one of the winners, and that means OTHER PEOPLE DID NOT WIN.
If you are NOT planning to show up, be cool and DO NOT RSVP.

If you are planning on joining us for the party then RSVP NOW!!!

We're only allowed to let in a limited amount of people and we want to make sure that everyone we give tickets to actually uses them.

RULE 2
If you sign up and don't claim your FREE ticket, your name will be put on the BAD PERSON list which will prevent you from winning for future events. You don't want to be a bad person do you?

RULE 3
To claim your FREE ticket you must RSVP by 5pm on Friday. If you respond AFTER that time you WILL NOT BE ON THE LIST!!!!

RULE 4
To use your FREE ticket you must be at Crobar by 11:00pm on Saturday. The ticket is good only for this week.

_______________________________

Whatever. i kinda realized that i'm not into the whole scenester thing anymore. So I'd be a bad person if I don't turn up. So i just RSVP with another email address. Maybe that makes me a really bad person.

Under new management! Formerly known as Filbert's Spread. Heretofore referenced as Conjugations from a Contrarian Grammarian. Previously known as Agent Eightysix's Log. Furthermore known as Señor De LaTaco's Groovy Dance Band.