Rationalization...

The theme of this post is consumer consumption and how I am justifying my current purchases and reconciling them with my continuing state of unemployment. *sigh*

I've been having such fun with flickr, that I realized it made sense to get a digital camera. I mean this way, I could save the cost of film, developing and the CD I had them make for me so I could upload the pictures. Plus the price of digital cameras has come WAY down. I utilized my librarian research skills [not to mention some advice from CaffeineAddict ;-) ] to ferret out the best value. Turned out to be a Canon A540 from amazon.com for $176 -- that equates to developing costs plus film for about 12 rolls. Makes sense, yes?

Of course, now I'm feeling guilty so I am refusing to open the camera box until I a) send out at least 3 more resumes and b) read the manual! Hopefully, that will be before I go to Honolulu on Dec. 5th for a short visit. Oh, yeah, Honolulu....so how do I rationalize that one? Well, my friend (from NY) was able to get U2 tix for the Dec. 9th concert at Aloha stadium and she twisted my arm (NOT!). The airfare was quite reasonable and I am able to use timeshare for accommodation. Makes sense, right? (In a strange twist of fate, I had been unable to get tix for their originally scheduled concert in April, which was later canceled....so I figure there's an element of fate or something working for me. I am meant to go!)

In the meantime, my 15 year old TV is on its last legs -- most of Law & Order is too dark to see anything but shadows...Anything I videotape is barely watchable. And Costco.com had this great deal on a bottom of the line 32" LCD -- $599 after rebate (plus tax), delivered to my door. Considering they cost from about $900 and up, I'm actually saving lots of money, right?

And then, I got my tax refund from Hawaii which will pay for the camera (we don't count the federal taxes I had to pay....). Yay! Am I still making sense?

So today, I finally took that little gecko up on his offer, and lo and behold, saved nearly $500 on my 6-month car insurance. Hey, those commercials are no bull -- at least not in NJ (or more likely, I've been overpaying a hell of a lot to the other company the past couple of years). So I figure over the course of a year, that would pay for at least the trip to Hawaii. :-D (Never mind the mountain of debt on my credit cards and my student loans....which reminds me that I put everything on my Amex so I earn points! Yes!!)

Plus I almost never eat out and haven't bought a book in six months (don't worry, I've read lots, but get them from the library, of course!) So who knows how much I'm saving on those two things alone! Sounds logical, right? And I haven't even replaced the broken dishwasher, the loud refrigerator or the squeaky dryer, all of which are over 20 years old. ;-(

Rationalization over. I'm just glad I didn't put it on a spreadsheet and force it to balance. hahahahahaha!

Perspective

Someone sent me this, I really liked it and thought I would share.
Live a Life That Matters
(You may not be able to hear the music unless you have the right plug-ins, but you should be able to see the text ok.)

Happy Thanksgiving!

To all my friends, I am grateful for your friendship, your support and encouragement, and your laughter.
Enjoy your turkey!
(make sure you turn the sound up!)

Two Tales of A City

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times....
First line of Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities

On Friday and Saturday, I went into New York City for various reasons and had bi-polar experiences. I must admit that since returning to NJ I've had little motivation to go into the city much. Getting there and back can be an ordeal. But on Friday, I took a workshop on Literary Archives given by SAA at the New York Public Library. I loved the workshop and the people I met and it confirmed that "yes, this is what I want to do with my life!" And of course the library building is wonderful -- I spent some time in the reading room on my lunch hour. To top it off, it's in my old neighborhood -- I worked within a few blocks of here for over 24 years. It was nice to see the renovated Bryant Park (behind the Library) being put to social use with ice skating and merchant booths.

But while commuting into the city that morning was not pleasant, commuting out during the evening rush hour was just a nightmare. Navigating through all the people, the crowded bus inching its way through the traffic -- it was nearly overwhelming. It took a lot of effort to keep my cool -- lots of mental imaging and breathing and talking to myself (not out loud, tho!). I used to be the consummate New Yorker, but there is no way I could do that on a day to day basis again -- nor would I want to! So that was, obviously, the "worst of times." It sounds trivial when I write about it, but truly it was pretty traumatizing at the time.

Then I went back again on Saturday to join some friends for the museum and dinner and a jazz concert. And it was one of those experiences that shows the city at its very best. First we went to see the "Americans in Paris, 1860-1900" exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum. I walked the last twenty-five blocks to the museum (along Fifth Avenue which borders Central Park), and even with the dull overcast weather, the city is just so interesting: the architecture, the book stalls, the sculpture! I want to go back and rediscover it and get some pictures. The exhibit was wonderful. There must have been 10 rooms full of artworks by Sargent, Cassatt, Hassam, and numerous others. All benefits of digitization aside, there really is nothing like seeing original artwork in person.

We went to dinner at one of those typically New York Italian places with lousy acoustics and wonderful food at a moderate price. Calamari and baked branzino (sea bass) for me. This was followed by a splendid Jazz at Lincoln Center concert in their innovative new space, The Rose Theater in the new Time Warner Building at Columbus Circle (more pictures). Wynton Marsalis is the artistic director and he himself is a phenomenal musician. For this particular concert, the jazz band collaborated with The American Composers Orchestra and presented an evening of Gershwin and other American composers. Patti Austin was a featured singer for three of the pieces. As if that wasn't enough, we were treated to the premiere of a wonderful new composition by Derek Bermel. And the piano player for the "Rhapsody in Blue" performance was out of this world.

It was a totally WOW day and I realized how much I had missed New York culture while I was in Honolulu. So where does that leave me? For sure, I don't want to work in NYC anymore, butI also need to be near enough to enjoy the richness of its cultural offerings!

Twisted Justice

I am so angry and disappointed by what happened here in NJ this week. For those not familiar with the story, two young men set a fire at a local college over six years ago in which 3 students died and dozens were injured, some very seriously. Their families were implicated in covering up their involvement during the early months of the investigation. This week prosecutors accepted their pleas to a VERY reduced charge. Currently 24 or 25, they will get up to 5 years (and as little as 16 months) in a youth correctional facility with sentencing to be delayed until after the holidays so they can spend them with their families! Well, I guess that will teach them, huh?

As part of the plea agreement:

"I didn't intend to harm anyone," each told Superior Court Judge Harold W. Fullilove. "It was a prank that got out of hand."[...]While the men admitted setting the fire, they don't admit causing the three deaths or the injuries to nearly five dozen other people...more (end of article has a summary timeline)

I agree with two editorials in the local paper (ed1 & ed2) which you can read if you want. This totally sucks!

Miscellany

Haven't written much lately as you can see. Actually, there's alot I want to blog about, but I just have to get over the idea that it all needs to be "champagne" quality. It's so much easier to comment on other folks blogs :-) I want to write about books and what I think about certain issues and sometime soon about being a librarian or archivist (I hope).

Right now I feel like I'm back in school. I signed up for a one-day workshop on Archiving Literary Manuscripts to be given by SAA at the NYPL. Aside from the fact that it's a topic I am interested in, I thought it might be a good way of networking. But they e-mailed me a whole bunch of pre-readings (about as many as we had for one of PJ's or RK's classes!!). So I've been sitting here with a yellow highlighter.... To tell the truth, it feels good!

Other than searching for a job, just doing family errands -- I call it running a Car Service for the Aged and the Infirm, but honestly I consider it paying back for all the rides people gave me when I didn't drive, and more recently in Honolulu when I couldn't afford a car. And procrastinating household cleaning tasks by reading lots of books (more about them later), exploring flickr and watching Law & Order. ;-)

Gotta get a job, gotta get a job, gotta get a job.....

Discovering What's in Your Own Back Yard

I love discovering NJ treasures! I've lived in NJ since I was 4 and until late this summer, I never even knew Doris Duke had had a residence (her principal legal residence) in NJ.

As an avid traveler and sightseer, I had ferreted out and visited her home in Hawaii a few months after it opened to the public. Later as a student at UH, I was lucky enough to get a behind the scenes visit as well. I've since recommended it to anyone visiting Honolulu.

One of those friends eventually led me to Duke Farms in NJ. She gave my good friend and traveling buddy Judy a gift certificate to Duke Farms for her birthday -- and I was the lucky tag-along! The real highlight is the Indoor Gardens, open Sept.-May. We took some pictures during the Garden Tour. I want to go again and recommend it to anyone in the area. Note that you do need reservations.

Cutting thru the crap

Anna Quindlen is probably my favorite columnist. Every other week, she cuts through the crap and gets to the heart of some issue or other. This week it's the sham of airport security in the U.S. I wish I could express myself half so well! But if you read her column this week, you'll know pretty much how I feel about the issue.

Viva Las Vegas

Last month I met Marta, one of my UH LIS alumna buds (now working in so. CA), and two of her old college friends for a girls weekend in Vegas to celebrate a milestone birthday (hers, not mine). We had a blast! Marta was a real sport too.

I'm generally not big on Vegas -- I'd rather see the real thing (Venice, Paris, Rome, Egypt, Southeast Asia, etc...). And I still don't get why locals in Hawaii flock to Vegas for vacation. But it is a great place to party once in awhile, and it's relatively easy/ cheap to get there. Going to Vegas for a weekend is not a big deal. All the other places require at least a week and a lot more money!

I had a promotional offer so I stayed at the Venetian, and it's still my favorite. And I'm happy to say their Grand Lux Cafe is still reliably up to par.

Vegas is nevertheless a surreal place. I guess that's what makes it a great place to play and forget real life. You never know what time it is, which actually works pretty well for a night owl like me. I like the idea of not being fettered to the clock and of being able to sit down to eat whenever we damn well pleased!!! And it does get you into the party spirit pretty well. When in Vegas....suffice it to say that by the end of the trip we had each adopted alternate "Vegas" identities and changed our names accordingly. :-)

On top of that, my good friend Judy found out a piano player/singer she and I had met on a cruise about 10 years earlier was going to be playing at the Luxor, so I dragged our little posse to check him out too. Tony Payne -- he sounds better than ever! Playing Friday and Saturday nights at the Luxor.

But I couldn't imagine living in Vegas, or even being there for more than 3 days. Everything is SO FAKE! I think that over the past 30 years or so, I must have gone 5 or 6 times, but never for more than 3 nights. And once you get outside the Strip area, there is .... NOTHING but desert.

You can see us having fun here: Vegas Pictures