out of the mouth of babes

today i got to work with two of my favorite kiddie models, esther and georgia. they are vietnamese twin girls with two mommies, they are adopted, and they are AWESOME.

anyway, twin #1 (i think it was esther) looked at my belly and asked, "are you pregnant?"

"yes!" i replied enthusiastically to her.

and with this she stared right at me and said, "you know, you really should adopt."

this cracked me up. i told her that it was a little too late this time around, but maybe next time.

in other pregnancy news, i am feeling max move more and more. on a job a couple of weeks ago, i actually stood up and looked around because i thought i must have been sitting on a cell phone or a cable and receiving some sort of electric shock/vibration. the best way to describe these early flutters (and i feel them several times a day) is as if there is a goldfish swimming around just below my ribs, holding a tiny cellphone that is set to "vibrate". it's weird, but i like it.

culinary treasures of williamsburg

while bdub is away, nowlze shall...eat.

bdub is currently on a little mini-tour with my brightest diamond- southern california and then off to barcelona for just a wee festival before his return. the 'rents came up for a four day jaunt to NY this week, and we had a great time stuffing our faces.

day one we settled in at the cozy black betty for some mediterranean food with a moroccan twist-- moroccan paella for dad, a seafood stew for mom, a chickpea and zucchini stew for me (eh), and various mezze. not bad, though next time i will choose differenty for my entree. the mezze were delightful, though.

day two it was la locanda to satisfy our pasta cravings. how i love la locanda...back when i could actually drink a full glass or two of wine, i loved that they offered a nice house red for four dollars a glass. so cheap, so delish. mom had a puttanesca, dad the seafood pasta, and for me, the eggplant parm. la locanda is perfect comfort food when i am craving the italian american dishes of my girlhood sundays (though still not as good as nana's, of course).

day three was polish food at krolewski jadlo, or "king's feast", which is technically in greenpoint and one of my dad's favorites. i wasn't too keen on polish food, as generally their vegetarian options are all fried and fried food gives me wicked indigestion these days. but, what dad wants, dad gets, so long as he talks it up long enough that everyone gives in if only to quiet him. is that mean? i speak the truth. anyway, i had a plate of pierogi (boiled, not fried), some cucumber salad and a bowl of borscht. other highlights were mom's pickled cucumber soup, which was creamy, loaded with dill, slightly sour and, much to my surprise, served hot! mom also got the polish platter (pierogi, potato pancakes, stuffed cabbage, and sausage) and dad got ham hocks (eeewwww...).

king's feast is big on ambience, though. check it:


come for the 'staches, stay for the food:




day four was my favorite korean/japanese spot, miyako. we started with pa jun, my old standby (korean pancake with crab). i don't know how they manage to elevate the humble pancake to a crispy, fluffy, and (i kid you not) slightly creamy delight, but they do. i also got a california roll to satisfy my sushi craving along with tofu dol sut (tofu, veg, and rice served in a hot pot with sesame oil and chili sauce). mom got the beef dol sut, dad, the garlic shrimp. miyako is flavorful, light, healthy, and delicious. highly recommended over other sushi or korean spots in the 'hood.

pre-miyako, mom and i took advantage of the gorgeous weather and strolled up to fortunato brothers for gelato. i had the tiramisu, she- the coconut. insane. we also got a dozen pastries to take home, including their famous mini canoli and other delights. i think fortunato brothers' gelato needs to become a staple in entertaining houseguests...it's a nice walk from our apartment, and gelato provides the perfect respite from city madness. plus, who can be stressed, worn out, or anything but completely satisfied, really, when eating gelato?

eating aside, i am very grateful for the 'rents visit. despite some pretty loud tv running all day long and maybe some incessant chatter (dad, i'm looking at you), the 'rents are the ultimate in houseguests. i think the biscuit got something like three walks a day, which is crazy. woobie's litter was scooped, our back patio summerized (not an easy chore), our shower and bath scrubbed. i was chaffeured to all of my jobs. clothes were mended, the toaster oven de-crumbed, kitchen shelves dusted....my mom even cleaned up some cat pee and a dead cockroach. that's love.

oh boy...

yes, we're having a max (not a neve as i had convinced myself). it's crazy, because more and more, i had been picturing a little max running around....or, actually, being mellow and chilling out with me and his dad and his cousins. who knows? perhaps my instincts will be off with that personality assessment, too, but let's hope that they are more on point this time (i have felt from the beginning that i would either give birth to a crazy-lady girl or a mellow, easy-going boy.)

as much as i do love the precocious, little city girl with the striped tights sagging at the ankles over the jumpers and the mussed ponytail from riding the subway, i have let that dream go this time around....because really, that was a dream about stuff. and if i am going to be completely honest, a dream about a little version of me (that maybe i could "get right" a second time around.) egotistical? yes. i need to allow this little bean the autonomy of being nothing but himself.

already a lesson learned. still, i do have a healthy dose of fantasy lurking within, of a mini-bdub this time, but one of those sweet city kids who is savvy yet compassionate, confident and independent yet lovin' his mama, and with a world view which we never knew as kids...one that i pray will make him a person who sees more beyond himself. i have also realized from talking with my kick-ass husband that i can still raise an ass-kicking, strong feminist....after all, i married one.

but enough about me. here's to you, max. keep on kickin'. your mama loves you.

another milestone

within the last two days, two people whom i hadn't told i was PG commented on my pregnancy. i guess that means i am officially showing!

the first was a little old actor with whom i was working on these australian "webisodes". out of nowhere he asked me, "when are you due?" and when i told him he said, "i have a daughter...." and paused...and told me that he never really knew love until the day she was born.

the other was the biscuit's vet, dr. leiman (the one who shushed bdub). we took the biscuit in to see him today (i was convinced that le bisquit had pneumonia...long story, he's fine,) and after the exam concluded, dr. leiman said, "i have some really good literature about introducing a new baby to your dog" and proceeded to give us all of this good advice about keeping treats by the door for visitors to give the biscuit, and how to enter the home with a baby. it was so sweet! and so out of nowhere, because i was wearing a very loose tunic that is not especially bump-revealing.

how nice, though, that these comments have been helpful and encouraging. i'm just waiting for the bad parenting advice to ensue. maybe i can get one of these for after the little bean comes along:

dogs rule, babies drool

i know it's a little odd, but i speak the truth. should i be concerned that i "sqeeee!!!" when i see the pups, and not to much with the babies? i think i am missing that particular mama gene. maybe the switch will flip over in a couple of months?

case in point: i was walking from the subway today (and, consquently, i think that i need to be officially DONE carrying my bag up the subway steps...i believe the babe has already descended into the birth canal as a result of today's efforts.) coming towards me was a dad, a bored looking baby covered in one of those plastic rain stroller covers, and...the CUTEST little shi tzu! this little doogie howser md was seriously prancing through the puddles, hopping back and forth, side to side, and wearing the most adorable striped sweater to protect him from the cold. i smiled and said, "how cute!"....and i'm certain the dad thought i was talking about, you know, the actual baby.

but i wasn't. and for that, i do not feel badly. i speak the truth.

sniffly mama

i must have hormones in overdrive, because lately everything but EVERYTHING is making me weepy. here's a partial list:

-anything on tv having to do with animals, especially escape to chimp eden
-speeches by barack obama
-cuddle time with the biscuit (little does he know...so fleeting)
-any and all public protest, especially those having to do with the sean bell trial (his fiancee was arrested during the protest....what a strong woman.)
-all shows featuring babies, delivery, birth
-even my childbirth books! they're instructional books, for crying out loud!

this week has been stressful. family health issues, no time for nothin', work drama with the nasty lady (whom i refused to work with again....and with my insistence was actually heard and accepted by the booker for the job. crazy.)

the apartment hunt has begun in earnest with an email sent to our peeps, and trying to get an idea of what's out there on craigslist. i am not really looking forward to a long, drawn-out search-- which, hopefully, can be avoided--, but as our basement has flooded AGAIN this week (broken hot water heater, promptly repaired) and the little black ants continue to march along our kitchen counters and bathroom vanity, i look forward to a day with no pests, new appliances, and room for baby.

apologies for the lack of photos...i have two from "bump watch 2008" on the way.

ch-ch-ch-changes

bdub and i had a little talk about this renovation business, and now we're thinking of just trying to find a two bedroom apartment to move into, rather than subletting for two months and having to pack all of our stuff and put it into storage, only to have to move it all back (and likely relocate in a couple of years.)

i do love certain things about our place: the back patio of one. i love having my coffee and my breakfast out there in the summer. i love having parties out back, cooking dinner on the grill, planting my container garden... i think some outdoor space will be a priority for our next location, if it's possible.

i also like being on the ground floor, though it can be a little noisy. it's a piece of cake for bdub to load his drums in and out, and tending to the biscuit and his bathroom habits is a snap. i can only imagine how much more i will appreciate the ease of the ground floor with a babe in arms.

i will not, however, miss our little friendly creatures, such as the teeny tiny ants who appear every spring and the mice who tormented us through the winter. i will not miss the drafts. i will not miss the unfinished cracks and leaks everywhere, the panic of being away from home during rainstorms, freaking out that our kitchen and basement might be flooded (again). but overall, i love our place. finding a place with some love (and a cool landlord--we've had really nice, understanding landlords here) will be our challenge.

if you know of anything that fits the bill, shoot me an email or leave a comment! and please, whatever you do, please do not remind us that really "it's a great time to buy" and that we're just "throwing money away by renting"....we totally know that it's a great time to buy, and if you'd like to loan us the 100K for a down payment, let's talk! (or even if you have a spare $500-$800/month sitting around for a condo maintenance fee, we'll take that, too.) also, we don't believe that paying money is exchange for a nice place to live and put down some roots, raise a family, and do what we love in the city where we wish to be above any place else equals throwing money away. we appreciate the return on our investment that renting in brooklyn affords us!

good stuff

we received a couple of items of good news today!

dr. moritz called with the results of my NT scan (and it's about *bleepin'* time.) the results placed the baby at a 1:1800 risk for down syndrome and other trisomies. the good doctor said, "can't ask for any better than that!" which is great to hear, but also makes me feel old....at 34, i am practically a pregnancy dinosaur, just one digit and revolution around the sun from the dreaded "high risk" category, so we'll take our compliments where we can get 'em.

the other fantastic news is that our landlord, ruben, plans to renovate our apartment this summer! w00t! we really love wolfeinelli headquarters, but were afraid that its current setup (combined livingroom and bedroom with NO DOOR) was simply not conducive to sleep training an infant. ruben's idea is to put our NEW bedroom in the back or our apartment where our kitchen is currently, and then combine our NEW kitchen with our NEW living room and build a brand spankin' NEW bathroom. we're talking a gut renovation, so we will need to sublet during that time and work out some type of storage situation for all of our stuff. totally worth it, though, as we really do have a great space and we love our neighborhood!

such a relief, knowing that these things are gradually falling into place. i am so relieved, in fact, that i will not complain about another day from hell with lil' miss nasty.

i've got mouths to feed!

though my next musings are from exactly a month ago, they still reflect how i am feeling today: SICK of working at the freaking sports tv station.

i guess i have learned nothing from the trials of dooce (the [in]famous mom/blogger who lost her job as a result of blogging about her employer), but i just can't help it. i worked with a woman yesterday who is, by far, the most horrible person i have ever had to apply makeup to, for a myriad of reasons. she was like the anti-nowlze, and (i hope this doesn't sound too snooty) but for that, i feel sorry for her. i guess her mama just never taught her how to treat people well. poor girl.

i shall end my tenure at the sports station and welcome summer in approximately two months time, wherein i will beach it with my girls and all of the pain of sitting in a cold, dark, windowless room while eating crappy food and having some no-talent hack belittle me and treat all of my work friends like crap will have been worth it.


from 3/22: i've got mouths to feed!

for this reason, i am here at CBS college sports network (fka college sports tv). as it is the NCAA tournament, i have worked five days so far this week, and have five more to go before i (maybe) get a day off. i will continue to work for them three to fours days a week for the next month, and perhaps even longer (which would be fine, if i didn't also have photoshoots booked inbetween).

don't feel too sorry for me, though. when i am here at the tv station, of my ten- to sixteen-hour-long days (i am compensated with overtime), maybe an hour of them is actually spent applying makeup. the remaining nine to fifteen are taken up by reading, writing, "doing computer" (as my friend john kale in west virginia likes to say), watching tv, catching up on phone calls, and eating. i must find ways to make better use of my time and i am open to any/all suggestions.

but it's hard on a nowlze. i am tired. towards the end of the night, i want to pull my hair out. i go home and i am kind of mean and i usually cry for a little bit, thinking about having to wake up in the morning and do it all again. as much as i would like to go to bdub's gigs and see my friends, i just don't have one iota of energy left at the end of the night. so sad.

poppin' and lockin'

i popped today! for reals! i have an actual bump (and i am pretty sure it's not just gas.) in fact, a coworker who was privy to my "condition" even noticed with no prompting from moi. crazy.


here is a journal entry from 3/19 (another crazy pregnancy day):

it's alive! (or the closest thing to a religious experience of which i have ever felt)

i felt the baby today. of course, i didn't feel it kick or move or stir. but i felt it all the same.

after street to elevator, subway platform to train, i stepped through the open doors of the A with my kit in tow. three drummers sat in a circle in the center, and one kindly directed me to an open seat (hallelujah! this small act itself could perhaps prove the existence of a benevolent creator...and i wondered, did i look preg to him, or just exhausted? i felt both.)

i sat, closed my eyes. the rhythm, deep and clear, resonant and generations old, leapt into my throat and down to the babe. i felt it. it felt it. it was undeniable and here i sit on the next leg of my journey home. everything real to me at once.

i'm TARD

from 3/12:

i am a tired, tired girl. in fact, i am TARD, which is what bdub and i say when we are just plain exhausted. i keep feeling that 1:52 in the afternoon is way too early for a nap!

i am working tomorrow and friday, my first days of work since this serious exhaustion has hit. hope i will feel ok. sometimes i think it is just better to MOVE and be doing something to beat the exhaustion.

in much, much happier news, kara dean had her baby yesterday!! name TBD (update: his name is Ashland), but birth weight was NINE pounds, 5 ounces. allow me to repeat that: NINE pounds, 5 ounces. she is my pregnancy hero.

bdub and i will be heading to the hospital to see the new little guy tonight. kd says he's adorable: he already has a neck roll and one dimple on his cheek. her description alone makes me just want to eat him. is that cause for concern? that i want to eat my best friend's baby?

bdub has purchased a lead check test kit for our apartment. should there be any lead paint sneaking around any corners, under any layers, we are freaking OUT OF HERE. notice the hilarious packaging; i especially love the pregnant mom holding the little girl's (little boy's?) hand. the best part is that on the back it reads, "This test is not intended to replace an inspection by a licensed lead inspector or testing laboratory." oh. great. i feel safer already.

eight week appointment- this kid's got a tail!

from 3/10:

had our first doctor's appt today!

i am in such good hands. dr. moritz is a gem. i couldn't ask for a better doctor. plus, he delivered max roach's daughter's babies!! how crazy is that? if he's good enough for max roach, he's good enough for us.

he is also a bit of a tv star. here is a clip of him on abc news discussing eating disorders.

anyways, i gave about six vials of blood, had an ultrasound, and heard a big, beautiful heartbeat (about 150-160 BPM) and saw a gorgeous little bean, complete with tail stub and a gloriously beating heart. i could even make out the beginnings of tiny arms and legs and a head!

crazy. seriously crazy. bdub claims that if you hooked me up to a lie detector test and asked me if i secretly wanted the tail stub to stay, i would have to say "yes". this is true. i guess it has something to do with my mild obsession with the book Geek Love in my early twenties.

anyhoo, i got a bunch of prenatal vitamins, paid my $50 copay and that was that.

i can't describe the elation of seeing that heartbeat....nice and strong. plus, our due date is earlier than we had expected:

OCTOBER 18!!

that's brian wolfe day! what a coincidence! ehrrin keenan pointed out that already the bean knows how the wolfeinelli's roll, and is falling in line to arrive for our celebration.

symptoms thus far:

1. gas/constipation
2. fatigue
3. sore boobs
4. bloat
5. nausea

got one up the spout!

(twelve week ultrasound from NT scan)

finally! the breaking of the hiatus!

i hadn't wanted to spill the beans until i had the results of our NT scan, which involves measurements from an ultrasound coupled with bloodwork yadda yadda yadda. it has been nearly TWO WEEKS and i have yet to receive any bloodwork from St. Luke's-Roosevelt's fetal evaluation unit, so i will hereby declare that i am sick of worrying about it! i will throw caution to the wind, believe all is well (do i have any good reason not to believe so?) and share this new chapter of insanity in my life with you, dear readers.

i have been privately journaling in anticipation of sharing my news....my next few posts will be playing a little catchup from the last couple of months. enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


2/17/ 08

so this is what the hiatus has been all about: i am PREGNANT! KNOCKED UP! GOT A BUN IN THE OVEN!

currently i am in my fourth week and going on my fifth. naturally, i don't want to post about this on my big old blog for the whole wide world, so i am journaling until up to my first appointment.

i found out i was expecting a week and one day ago. i was CERTAIN i was getting my period...isn't it funny how pregnany and menstrual symptoms can be exactly the same? anyway, when i hadn't gotten my period i had suspected that very day and picked up a pregnancy test at walgreen's. sure enough, a big, fat plus sign emerged.

i think i stood in the bathroom for a good five minutes with my hand over my mouth, gasping at this stick, looking at it and myself in the mirror, thinking that this couldn't be happening. when bdub came home from his rehearsal, i left the door to the bathroom ajar and the light on. i hit "play" on bdub's ipod, as i had had it set to the song, "let's have a baby" by our friend mike viola. some lyrics:

"you might think
we need more space
you might think
new york is not the place
you might think
but don't think
let's have a baby!"

bdub took this as a sign that i wanted to make a baby then and there, until i steered him to the bathroom sink. balancing on the edge of it was my pee stick. bdub's first words:

"i think i need to sit down."

then we hugged and kissed and cried a little. it was very special.

so here we are. one week later, still pregnant! i have my first doctor's appointment on march 10 with dr. moritz, an amazing doctor with the ny women's health clinic at roosevelt hospital. dr. moritz comes at the recommendation of kara dean, my new york pregnancy guru. SOOOOO relieved that i can check finding a great doctor off of the list (and he takes our insurance, thank god).

symptoms so far (in order of severity):
1. gas/constipation (is that tmi? whatever. it's true.)
2. fatigue
3. sore boobs

screw the hiatus

101 74 things that piss me off

1. slow computers
2. stepping in dog poop
3. gas
4. corn and corn products
5. foodies
6. my messy apartment
7. heat on a timer and lack of a thermostat (not all of us work a 9-5...brrr)
8. my upstairs neighbors
9. mice
10. my landlord (most of the time)
11. sore boobs
12. lack of space
13. lack of work
14. lip service
15. impatient honkers
16. traffic
17. litter
18. clutter
19. noise
20. the ADD that accompanies living in nyc (i need room to think!)
21. our trashcan that never shuts
22. halitosis
23. hormones
24. paying money for crappy food
25. disorganization
26. hangnails
27. bloat
28. waiting on checks
29. taxes
30. disrepair
31. cheesy bands
32. flab
33. lack of motivation
34. dust bunnies
35. split ends
36. grays
37. nuts & gum
38. unfinished business
39. uti's
40. sluggishness
41. impatience
42. the slow tick of the clock
43. peeps who do me wrong
44. wet bandaids
45. pruny fingers
46. stubble
47. lack of a pedicure
48. zits
49. bad dog owners
50. meatheads
51. jerks
52. cheeseballs
53. smarmy men
54. nyc snobs
55. nyc rents
56. pollution
57. provincialism
58. sexism
59. racism
60. lack of free healthcare
61. george bush et al
62. rotten produce
63. know it alls
64. phonies
65. mildew
66. mold
67. must
68. rapid fire text messaging
69. exhaustion
70. insomnia
71. snorers
72. headbutters (biscuit, i'm talking to you)
73. pests
74. unfinished business

(....aah....that's better...)

but before i go (and while i'm feeling listy)...

100 things that make me happy

1. having bdub in my life
2. morning snuggling (and evening snuggling)
3. having a dog who likes to spoon
4. new york on the first day of spring, when the chairs and tables are being put outside at the restaurants
5. the snow that looks all sparkly and windswept, like a sugary blanket
6. mushroom thyme pizza from the brick oven gallery
7. reunions (especially with family and my beach girls)
8. catching up with my peeps
9. composing random and ridiculous songs with the dub
10. making my peeps something delicious
11. fish tacos on a hot day
12. homemade italian wedding soup on a cold day
13. care packages
14. bi bim bop
15. my nephew's imagination
16. my niece's smile once she warms up to you
17. the biscuit's desperate stretching
18. wiles's toothy grin
19. road trips (and getting taco bell-our guilty pleasure- and bdub always saying, "i'm buying!")
20. an icy soda
21. the feeling after a good workout
22. a smooth day at work with fun peeps
23. sunshine (trite but true)
24. lying on the sand in 80 degree weather
25. katherine's back porch
26. ehrrin keenan's facial expressions and tiny little fingers
27. belly laughs
28. a good afternoon at gabe's
29. the mint cookie chai or moon pie tea at the roebling tea room
30. seeing/hearing people i love play music
31. dog runs
32. kick ass delis
33. trader joe's
34. new makeup that fills a void in my kit
35. getting out of the city for a little bit
36. homemade ravioli with fresh tomato sauce (preferably nana's)
37. anything made by nana
38. the security of my marriage
39. woobie's luxuriously soft fur
40. the biscuit's frito-licious scent
41. animals in general
42. starting a new roll of tape
43. opening most fresh things (the first dip into most jars of food)
44. a clean house (my own)
45. a good party
46. a great rock and roll show
47. good wine
48. veggie bacon
49. warm boots, coat and mittens in the winter
50. going down the steps of the subway just as the train pulls in
51. a seat on the train
52. little kids in the seat next to me leaning on me as we ride the train
53. girls nights
54. good naps
55. christopher guest movies
56. green and black's chocolate
57. cheese. any and all.
58. baby pigs. pink ones.
59. clear skin
60. home organization
61. a good book
62. new underwear and bras
63. shitkickers (both the boots and the people)
64. thai food delivery
65. finger food
66. the rat zapper
67. hikes in the woods with dogs
68. the canals in amsterdam
69. the biscuit licking my face
70. guitar hero
71. our back patio in the summer
72. bubble baths
73. a stocked fridge
74. "aha!" moments (not to get all oprah...)
75. personal growth
76. billy bragg's "a new england"
77. guided by voices' "glad girls"
78. the cozy nook
79. evenings of interpretive dance at 89 maujer
80. a good magazine
81. fresh summer tomatoes
82. the photography and recipes on 101 cookbooks
83. the crunch of fall leaves
84. country roads
85. house parties in west virginia in the summertime
86. campfires
87. vegetable gardens
88. puppy freakouts
89. a good game of scrabble
90. female bonding
91. amy sedaris
92. a kick ass massage
93. pedicures
94. a perfect haircut (which includes a great blowout)
95. fresh juice straight from the juicer
96. good eggs
97. time to primp
98. jeff a's utterances (hilarious, true, and cutting)
99. weekends off
100. the smell of coffee (how i miss you...)

101 things in 1001 days

so my hiatus will be broken by this post...i couldn't keep this rad idea to myself.

here's the website that explains the project: in a nutshell, you must come up with a list of 101 tasks you would like to complete within 1001 days. the criteria is that the tasks must be specific with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. they also must be realistic and stretching. so here are mine:

PERSONAL:
1- finish this list!!!
2- decide on and buy new glasses
3- repair computer
4- use reusable bags when going to the grocery store
5- go to the farmer's market once a week for an entire season
6- copy all of nana's recipes from her (while cooking with her)
7- join a community music ensemble
8- with bdub, finish lawsuit (get information subpoena as a start)
9- replace running shoes
10- take mom out for a real british high tea
11- make a pushpin travel map for bdub
12- watch less television
13- spend atleast one day a year with individual siblings (0/4)
14- make a toast
15- have a weekly dinner (or other) date
16- live la dolce vita!


FINANCIAL:
17- pay off the car
18- establish credit (use a credit card and pay it off monthly) (<- 768! not bad!)
19- open a savings account and come up with a realistic goal
20- cut back on cable tv services
21- combine cell phone plans


PHYSICAL:
22- see doctor about sciatica
23- go to the dentist
24- attend regular yoga classes (atleast once a week for atleast two months)
25- get acupuncture
26- conceive and have a healthy pregnancy
27- give birth
28- establish a regular exercise routine (3 x/week for atleast two months)
29- get down to 120 pounds
30- get laser resurfacing (or other applicable procedure) to eliminate acne scars/pock marks
31- grow out my nails
32- wear my cute clothes and shoes that just sit in my closet
33- walk the dog daily for a month (atleast)
34- floss regularly (daily)
35- drink more water!


APARTMENT:
36- purge and organize all areas of our apartment
37- figure out a plan for the basement to make it livable and then do it!
38- purge my closet (and restock with better stuff!)
39- add to equine paint-by-numbers collection (2/8) and then frame and hang
40- buy a solid piece of danish modern furniture
41- get rid of all evidence of mouse infestation
42- install a shelf in the bathroom
43- repair front door
44- maximize all space
45- organize books and replace bookshelf
46- replace the @*&$%!ing trashcan!
47- buy a file cabinet
48- corral mail


TRAVEL:
49- go camping upstate or in pa
50- travel to italy
51- travel to spain
52- go to a dog-friendly b & b
53- go snowboarding
54- go icefishing
55- go to dia: beacon
56- take the biscuit to the ft tryon park dog run
57- go horseback riding
58- attend sxsw
59- go on a cross country road trip!
60- go to warhol museum
61- go to brighton beach (russian disco, yes?)


PROFESSIONAL:
62- complete three beauty tests (organize, shoot, get useable prints) (0/3)
63- complete three fashion tests (organize, shoot, get useable prints (0/3)
64- upgrade 50% of products in both hair and makeup kits
65- do a mailing
66- create beauty blog
67- take some lessons to improve hairstyling
68- learn to trim bangs
69- learn to airbrush
70- redesign website
71- get bio up on arthouse's website
72- talk with david about career
73- examine other career avenues
74- pursue a side income


SPIRITUAL/INTERPERSONAL:
75- attend services at the unitarian church
76- volunteer regularly (once a month to start)
77- volunteer with animals
78- silently count to ten when getting frustrated or tempted to say something stupid/mean/thoughtless
79- live more compassionately
80- get the biscuit to become a certified therapy dog
81- spend more time with elderly people
82- pray or meditate daily/nightly
83- stop gossiping
84- forgive those who have done me wrong
85- maintain strong family ties (weekly contact with all relatives)


EDUCATIONAL:
86- take a theramin class and establish a weekly practice schedule
87- bake a souffle
88- make borscht
89- learn photoshop
90- get certified in cpr
91- make homemade tamales
92- make dilly beans
93- sew a cute skirt for myself
94- bake homemade bread
95- take a dance class
96- take a self-defense course
97- finish reading a people's history of the united states
98- read hegemony or survival
99- learn to make cheese
100- learn the tarantella
101- learn guitar well enough to sing around a campfire or to babies


..and now i will take leave of this blog once again while i pursue those things on my list, and some not on my list. ciao ciao!

wolfeinelli on hiatus

that's right peeps...i need to take a lil hiatus from blogging for now (not that i have been an especially active blogger over the last month or so).

the wolfeinellis in the city will come back in a few weeks bigger, stronger, and updated! as for now, please enjoy my most recent fun internet finds:

frugal fashionista
love this blog.. love it. i like to think of it as giving the fashionistas a smackdown in the form of knock-offs and cheap threads. it's deserved. plus, with frugal fashionista, i feel like it helps me to pull together a quick, fun look and channel my inner lindsay lohan or hillary duff when i am feeling old, haggard, and chunky.

and, of course, there is nothing quite as adorable as corn nut drinking a heineken.

enjoy! and much love!

xoxo

gold shoes in heaven

a hundred apologies for the hiatus in blog world. much has happened since my last post: work has picked up a bit, my existential and career crisis has continued, and we have had a death in the family.

brian's grandma wolfe passed away on january 31st as a result of pancreatic and liver cancer. shortly after christmas, she was given the diagnosis and the prognosis of about two months to live. i spoke with a couple of my girlfriends who had both lost their grandmothers to the same types of cancer, and both warned that the deterioration was rapid. at our first opportunity, bdub, heather and i went down to west virginia to spend some time with her.

she had been moved to a nursing home just the day before we got in, and she was none too happy about it. however, nothing in the world lifted her spirits more than being with her grandchildren. this was last tuesday, and the morning after we returned to new york, she passed. we headed back down for the funeral just a few days later.

no one in this world besides betty holliday wolfe has ever made me feel so exotic and glamorous. i remember taking his grandma to the parkette once when we were in for a visit. all it took was ordering bleu cheese dressing for my salad to give her cause to exclaim "oh my!" and grin at me with googly eyes. to be honest, it made me feel a little uncomfortable but secretly i loved it.

she always asked me how i stayed so thin and looking so good, and no one asks me that.

she loved music, and any time she heard it, she'd ferociously tap her thigh and tell tale of when she sang alto with the sweet adelines and wore a gold dress and gold shoes. like me, she also loved glamour.

she made brian crazy sometimes (the "buying a short set at walmart story"--in which she gets stuck in an electric buggy and nearly triggers bdub's fight-or-flight mechanism-- is a story for another time). she could be wildly negative. she hated her building, and claimed that everyone in there gossiped about everyone else...yet many of these residents were at her viewing this week, talking about how she was their good friend. she could be intensely critical.

she was extremely particular about food, refusing to receive meals-on-wheels any more because she didn't care for the vegetables (or any vegetables, for that matter- nothing but meat and potatoes for her). she ate her fast food and hot dogs and burgers like a bird. if after a family dinner you ever complained of being tired or full, she would say, "well, you know what your problem is! you ATE TOO MUCH!!". she drank nothing but coca cola; i think towards the end brian's dad convinced her to atleast switch to rootbeer so as to avoid the caffeine.

bdub's paternal grandfather split when his dad was a boy, and his grandmother raised his dad in what was essentially the clarksburg ghetto. she was poor, considered an outcast at the time, and worked hard her entire life; i don't believe she ever left clarksburg. she was preceded in death by an infant daughter, jack's twin sister, jill ann...and when we think of what can make a person bitter in their old age, of why grandma wolfe could be so negative, how quickly we forget the hand she was dealt in her life.

yet she always loved music. and she adored brian. i believe that he gets his musical talent from her....maybe she is the link that led him to discover his true happiness and passion? the story goes that little brian and his mom and dad returned to west virginia from maryland on account of grandma wolfe's knee operation (who else did she have to help her with her recovery?). perhaps if it weren't for grandma wolfe, they never would have come back to wv....thus the wolfeinelli love story would never have happened.

godspeed grandma wolfe. thank you for always making me feel like you were just tickled to have me as a granddaughter-in-law. may you sing alto with the angels in heaven, dancing time steps and keeping a good, strong beat in your gold shoes.

and for our next kill....

...i wussed out and called my sister in law and her boyfriend, nick.

heather, if you are reading, let me just say this: a man who will come over to your sister in law's apartment at 1 am to help her dispose of a dead baby mouse is one thing--a keeper.

(and here they are, dumping the contents of the zapper:)



of course, last night as i settled in for a relaxing evening at home (this was pre-kill), i thought i would give my email one last check. this appeared in my inbox:


Hi, Noelle,

I know this is rather last minute, and we've never worked together, but I ran into your website when I was searching for a makeup artist.

I have a test shoot tomorrow night (January 26) from 5:30-9ish, with Tara from DNA Models. My regular makeup artist had to decline due to a job, and I've exhausted my other resources.

Please let me know if you're interested."

i looked at his website and it is killer, just the kind of stuff i need for my book.

alas, i was too late. in the two hours between him sending me his email and my reply, he had already found someone for the job.

ah well, atleast i made a new contact, i suppose. one who already has a regular makeup artist. (argh.)

zzaaaaapp!!!!! an update!

ding! dong!
one mouse dead. probably about two hundred more to go (i wish i were joking).

rat zapper's online support was wonderful: after the one who got away (as mentioned in my previous post) i contacted the fine people at rat zapper and have been emailing with a nice woman named cathi for a larger part of the day. she was asking me questions like,

"Was the red light flashing as well as the bait missing with your missed kill?"

"Was this your only missed kill?"

"Could the back of the unit have been touching anything metal?"

and then she got ever-so-gradually more personal with her correspondence:

"I use four Rat Zappers as well as 10 lazy cats and am well aware that those of us who battle rodents want them gone yesterday."

and

"There is a possibility that the metal contact could have an effect. I occasionally get this sort of grounding with my electric horse fencing which is lots of fun when the horses figure it out and escape.

Regards,
Cathi"

i love people like cathi. they are the types of peeps that make me want to leave new york and relocate somewhere where people just want to interact kindly with each other...where people actually give a shit about customer service and other people's problems. but i digress....

i moved the zapper a little further away from our metal metro shelving, threw in a couple of wheat thins and flipped the switch.

lucky for me, after the deed was done, i called our sweet landlord and he was here in a jiffy to dispose of our dead friend (bdub is out of town for the next two days). i fear that for the next kill, i am on my own! eek!