new find: Passion Pit

I think I like 'em. Hypnotic to say the least.

a couple pounds of cake

so i lost a couple pounds in my attempt to lose 8 total by xmas. then i saw this comic this morning and i chortled.

yes, a couple pounds is a huge deal for us women. we can't simply shed pounds like you men out there. my manlove lost 4 pounds just by eating healthier with me the first week. 4 pounds! jealous? maybe. determined? sure.

cake? well, ok, just a piece.

christmas cards

'Tis the season for writing holiday cards and sending love and warm wishes (and silly photocards) to friends and the fambam.

I've written/sent just over 20. My hands hurt. My stamps are depleted. My warm wishes are running low. Alas, 'twas totally worth it.

My mailbox has only been graced with one card so far. From Ms Borquita, of the Portland persuasion. I attribute this to the fact that it is still early and more are to come. Or, like in this lady's case, something is terribly wrong. Maybe I should call the police.

ohhhhh, no you didn't!

not be outdone by the funky boy, this young gangsta shows us the real meaning of cool.

he started hip hop. didn't you know?


my personal favorite breakdancing move is the middle one. i've been practicing it around the office today.

ker-splat

it's work like this that inspired me to get into advertising

If you only read some of the copy, try out the second sentence. And then the last sentence.

"Men and teenage boys love to be fashionable too!!....embellish with sequined applique, tassels, ribbon roses, rhinestones and nailheads."

Ahhh, to be funky and mustachioed (barely).

(click for larger view)

Kindness. Blindness.

I went to the gym last Wednesday. As I was sweating away on the stationary bike, a blind woman walked in with her dog and started her workout. I started thinking how great it was that she was there. Then I felt bad for thinking that just because she was blind, I expected her not to be there. Then I realized I don't know how I could be that strong.

Then, a second blind lady came in with a walking stick. What a strange coincidence. This is not a big gym. There are MAYBE 20 machines crammed together in a tiny room.

So the second lady gets on an elliptical machine. I've since moved to the tread mill to walk a bit. She strikes up a conversation with the guy on the machine next to her and asks his help with getting her started. He was a young guy, very friendly. I thought it was so refreshing to see people helping people.

I moved from the treadmill to the stair climber. And she moved to the bike next to me. She asks me to help her get it started. And continued to talk to me for the entirety of my 20 minute stair-climbing hell. Super nice girl.

We talked about jobs and work. We're both transplants from out of state. She kept asking me to update her on how far she had gone, how many calories she had burned, what her speed was (a girl after my own heart!) She talked about how she loves hiking and is part of a blind hiking group and is hoping to find a blind softball league as well. I was shocked. I can't even make sense out of what that would be. I didn't ask because I didn't want to seem ignorant to the fact.

But, it was an amazing experience. Twenty minutes changed my view of people with disabilities. I looked up blind hiking groups the next day. I wanted to volunteer. I wanted to take part. I wanted to help while also doing something I love: hiking.

I haven't found anything yet. But I'm going to keep looking. Even if I'm unsuccessful, it really made me think.

Before I left she asked me where her "friend with the dog was." How did she even know they were there? Amazing.

Maybe I'll run into her again. Maybe we'll become gym friends.

a good feeling:

a full gas tank.

i just filled up this morning. every time i fill up, i feel a little bit better. i'm no longer on empty. it'll be awhile before i have to invest in another full tank. i don't have to worry about stopping for gas in the freezing weather. stressful. gasful.

a good feeling.

Dear Mr Winter,

You bastard. I thought we had an understanding. But seriously???? -16 degrees this morning? Not to mention with windchill it was -30.

So ya. My commute sucked balls. And yes. Mr Pickles ALMOST didn't even start this morning. He sputtered to a halt three times before finally staying on. And yes. My frostbitten toes are absolutely over you and this relationship.

It's not me. It's you.

Sincerely,
Montastic

Dr Mr Winter,

You know I love you. You know I love the snow, and any excuse to curl up and drink a hot cocoa...or an entire bottle of whiskey. Yesterday you gave me a glorious 11 degrees to work with. Today you're promising only 9. I don't mind it during the day since my building finally got the heat problem worked out...and I am no longer freezing at work.

But during the commute, I'm quite cold. I only work a little over three miles from home. That is not enough time for Mr Pickles to warm up. He tries his best...but when it's only 2-3 degrees outside when I leave home in the morning, warmth is not easy to come by.

So here's my proposition for you:

Stay around 30 degrees from 8:40 to 9:00 am, then drop as low as you want. Warm up again from about 4:55 to 5:20 pm, then please plummet to the lowest lows overnight. Deal? Good.

Also, thank you for the solid sheet of ice that is frozen on the inside of my apartment windows. I've never had that happen before. You can teach me so many things.

Sincerely,
Montastic

a random sampling of cool

I've had these all in the to-be-posted pile on my computer's desktop. So, without much belabored description, here they are:




if you have this amount of time, please do things like this. so rad. every note played is a different video file, placed together to make one of my fav jams of all time!



this pie chart represents a combination of all the flags of the world. check the site for individual flag-pie-charts for each country. super cool.



glow in the dark gloves. for what? well, originally for sign language use at night time. innovation alert! something i would have never though about--people struggling to read sign language at nighttime. what a brilliant thing. of course these could be used at for dance parties, raves, nighttime jogging, or nighttime high-fiving.



i was in San Francisco over Easter this year. and i remember watching street performers for a while, just HOPING they would do something even remotely as cool as this. talk about talent.

yay winter forecasts!

i heart the cold.

i dislike pit stains

and not the kind that is just sweat showing through a shirt. dictionarally* speaking...those aren't even actual stains.

i'm talking about yellowish brownish stains on lovely white shirts.

like: white shirts
dislike: pit stains

like: hugs
dislike: lifting up my arms for a hug, only to reveal huge pit stains

like: pleasant aromas
dislike: the grotesque B.O. that you can't wash out of a shirt once it is pit-stained.

like: looking fab, sometimes
dislike: looking stained, all the time.

this just in!
Montastic sweats a lot.



*yes, i'm aware this isn't a word.

yet another way you know you are too tired

while starting to put on your morning makeup you start putting face powder in your armpit instead.

yep.