Libraries and cell phones (unrelated in this post)

This week has been a bit crazier than normal weeks (but what is a normal week?). I'm making fairly good progress on my October Get Things Done. The dentist thing is still sitting there glaring me in the face ... but we've changed to our current addresses on our driver's license. Which means I can check books out of every library I run into! Well, in the area anyway. That's a big plus for me. The library in Gurnee deserves another visit - they're doing some pretty interesting new things there. Different building shape and set up, including a TV in a designated place near the front door where you can just hang out and watch the news. It's also *very* popular. I went there on a Monday evening and even then overflow parking was pretty full.

More exciting library-related news: I've found a couple more jobs which I *will* be working on the applications for today. This is so nice, but why do they come in clumps?

We finally got our cellphones switched from our respective family plans to our own family plan. Becca liked the idea, that since we have identical cell phones (Nexus Ones), we are getting a same sex marriage. Unfortunately, this means my actual cellphone number has changed. Again. Sorry guys, I don't like the need to frequently update my number either. This time it's an MN based number since Colin, who is the actual owner of the account, has a MN number. However, the good news is that I've got a Google Voice number which I don't plan on changing or getting rid of ever if I can help it. I don't have actual texting anymore but I do have a limited data plan! So email me to get my GVoice number, then feel free to text that number to your heart's content. In case this is too confusing for you - just ask me for my new number and then pretend that is my real new cellphone number. The one glitch is that when I call you I can't yet have it show that I'm calling from my GVoice number every time. So if I'm out and about, your caller ID may show some odd MN number (218 yada yada) and that's probably me. Go ahead and log that into your address book but I'd ask you to please just use my 231 Gvoice to call and text me.

Kind of a long explanation for something that I don't like using. I hate talking on the phone. I love texting though. And the fact that Google Voice can give me automated transcriptions for voicemail messages. I thought long and hard about whether or not I should just get a data or texting plan, but in the end safety/comfort and overall expenses/headaches had getting a normal voice with data plan win out. I do know that if it was just me, I'm pretty sure I'd swing for data/text, but being on a family plan with Colin who still needs voice changes things. However, for those of you who ever think they might be able to do just texting, definitely check out Qwert. For 10 bucks a month you get 400 texts a month, or for 20 bucks it's unlimited texting. The coolest thing is that they send you a SIM card and there are no extra services required for this low texting plan. The only catch seems to be that you then have a SIM card that can only do texting. Unless you want to physically swap SIM cards in and out every time you need to check SMS messages, you have to be really sure that this will be a good solution for you.

Just trust me when I say I looked at tons of options, including how to be able to call people without a voice plan and/or wifi ... I don't think you want me to prove it by explaining them all. I also started looking around for what the best solution for keeping in touch when we're in Europe in December. I'll undoubtably write up a post about findings and results. The best thing is that our Nexus Ones are unlocked and we can call people whenever we have wifi for very cheap (or if that person is on Google Voice or Skype, for free). Additionally, we can check for voicemail and text messages whenever we connect to wifi without it costing anything because we've both got Google Voice. The trick is what we do outside of wifi range. While it's true I did just fine on study abroad without having my own cellphone, it helped immensely that a few in the group did have them. We can get local SIM cards and there's other solutions available (but you can easily get confused doing research for the one that fits you best), but until Colin and I have figured out what countries we will be in for how long, I am forcing myself to pause this research. Word of advice for those traveling to Europe: whenever possible, text don't call. Texting is so much cheaper and I think Europe laws say you can't be charged for any incoming text messages.

I'm in Deerfield for the second time this week since we're heading to MI to visit family this weekend. I'm on my own for lunch (there's always lunch meetings on Friday which is why I usually come earlier in the week). Walking to Potbelly's nearby is sounding like the best idea ...

Anxiously awaiting

I don't like waiting, especially when it's waiting for someone traveling to show up at my house and I've got no more cleaning and prepping I can think of to do. Reminds me of those times when I'd be anxiously awaiting Colin's arrival on weekends in Bloomington. However, I am willingly putting up with the anxiety right now because one of my best friends from high school is going to be here for dinner! I can't remember how long it's been since I've seen her but it will be good times all around.

Perhaps I should bring in the rest of the tomatoes and whatever we don't want killed by the frost tonight. Okay, then ... I'll try to focus on reading a book and probably fail. Oh well.

#followalibrary

A couple things of note: Today is #followalibrary day on twitter. The rules are simple: if you have a twitter account, tweet your favorite library that you follow on twitter. Or, in my case, look at over a dozen libraries you've been to and find less than a third that do indeed have twitter accounts. It surprised me that Chicago PL (public library) doesn't have one. Or the Library of Michigan. Highland Park (@hplibrary) and Glencoe (@GlencoePL) PLs have them which is expected, and then there's Kalamazoo PL (@KzooLibrary) and IUB's (Indiana University - Bloomington) libraries (@libnlearn). Oh, and for those of you who would like to follow me on twitter, you can find me here: @deafelephant

Second, it's the first day of October! Yay! I love pumpkin spiced lattes and apple cider and watching the leaves put on a show. And cuddling under heaps of blankets and taking walks in the crispy air without the muck of snow or mud. This October, as I mentioned in my previous post, is the "Month of Getting Things Done." It unofficially started a few days ago. I've got the scanner to work with my new Linux Mint OS (that took more time than I'd expected). I made zucchini bread, vacuumed upstairs and the stairs, did laundry, booked plane tickets for San Francisco and did some touristy research, finally mailed stuff to Mom, started looking into more volunteer opps, keep chipping away at the massive amount of unread library blog entries I've neglected, organized my backup hard drive, figured out what to do with the huge vob files, converted two movies and inserted subtitles, made naan twice (I think I'm getting a better idea how to make them less cake-y), took a couple of hikes ...

Some I usually do during the week anyway but others I'd been meaning to get around to doing or at least do more of them. I've also been slowly adding bits and pieces to my nanowrimo story idea. Yesterday I felt frustrated because between my volunteering hours, a nap, and getting the scanner hooked up, I felt like I hadn't accomplished as much as I would've liked. I've already started to feel a time-pressure anxiety which I'm not dealing with well. I've got the mindset that I need to constantly wonder what else I should be doing just then, how to better use my time. I need a bit more adjusting.

Today has ended up being one of those other kind of days. The kind where I seemed to purposely not do anything. Sometimes this works in weird ways and you end up feeling refreshed and actually do get stuff done. It's hard not doing things. But instead of planning out the day and making to do lists, I simply do what I want. This doesn't mean going on a shopping spree or running through the streets screaming my head off (neither of these activities really appeal to me, if you must know). This involves more of an id approach to things. For instance, "hey, I want to go outside." So I go outside. "I don't need to dry my hair just yet." So I put it in a loss ponytail and leave out my aids for a couple hours. "Hey, I want tea." So I get up and make tea, and while waiting I do the dishes. Or I put on some day clothes but keep my pajama pants on and wear wool socks. It's not that big of a difference, but it is a difference. I try hard not to feel bad that I'm not doing certain things and I don't think things through and wonder what I should do instead or beforehand.

This may seem like a contradictory way to start my "Getting Things Done Month" but the challenge is not going to work if I don't try to balance things out and ease anxiety. It's a process and I hope to bring today's method into a productivity method. Now I'm going to go stare out the window while sipping tea.

Wanna learn a secret?

Lately, it seems everyone is going through an angst-y period. Perhaps reading up on the history of the coal industry this morning wasn't the best idea. I didn't quite realize this, but I think I kept at it because it distracted me with other bigger frustrations. But reading about how the planet is dying usually quickly overwhelms me with hopelessness. Looking at cute pictures of puppies and reading optimistic blogs always helps but it hasn't quite done it for me today. So I'm going to focus on something that's really quite exciting to me. And that the fact that it is a sunny warmish day, which means I'll try to take a walk after Shaheli and Colin stop in the cafe for a break.

"Why in the world would you study coal mining history? What does that have to do with anything?" Well, good questions. I doubt I normally would, even though I do find myself frequently looking up random bits of information. But it has relevance, I promise. Until now, it has been a kind of secret. I've only told two people so far - Colin and my best buddy Becca.

I am going to do NaNoWriMo.

There, I said it. Perhaps not that big of a deal. Perhaps the statistics show that loads and loads of people who voice this declaration end up not finishing. Perhaps I don't have such a hot record of sticking with things and getting them done on time. Perhaps I still am a bit afraid that I'll fail or that it's not worth it. Perhaps you don't know what on earth I'm talking about, so I'll pause and give you some help.

NaNoWriMo (not entirely sure how you're supposed to pronounce it) stands for NAtional NOvel WRIting MOnth. It was thought up by some guy in 1999 who got together a group of friends and they attempted to write 50,000 word novels each. In one month. Perhaps horrible, poorly written, crappy writing, but writing nonetheless. Because the idea is that writing a novel is a "someday" dream for many people. Yet realistically, most people will never write anything publishable. So what? How are you going to ever write a novel when you're frozen in perfection? Just write it! Who cares?

I might not get to the word count goal by the deadline, but I sure will try and I know it won't be a waste of time. I will gain something in return, even if it's just a better understanding of how writers write their books. A couple days ago I signed up for an account at nanowrimo.org.

I'm withholding from talking much about what I'm going to write. Part of it is because I haven't quite figured out a whole lot of the story and because of that, I don't want much direct influence or people giving me their ideas of what my story should be like. This is my story, and they could go ahead and write their own. I probably won't be able to keep it a mystery the entire time though. And I may never let anyone else ever read it.

But I will give you this: it is definitely sci fi slash futuristic. No, no flying cars and aliens yet. Mostly just about a kid in a future I imagine has a strong possibility of happening 50 or 100 years from now. Of course, being who I am, I can't resist wondering and looking up answers to questions such as "What's it like to live in a mining town?"

Nanowrimo (I'm not doing the correct capitalization - harder to type) is November. So I've got just over a month before it starts. And in reality it won't take over my life; it's probably only 2 hours a day, 3 at most. But it will be a big difference and it will be intense. Strangely enough, because this has become a goal of mine, I've focused and created goals for getting there. I don't want to be swamped with too many other things when November 1st rolls around so October is my "getting things done" month. This includes developing a website to at least the point that it's ready to be made public. Colin has been helping me a lot with this. It also includes finally getting a dentist appointment (eek), finishing digitizing my grad school papers, getting to goal posts in my genealogy project, and planning for the trips to San Francisco and Europe. San Fran will happen during November and Europe in December (Colin's sister is over there for study abroad so we will be spending the holidays there with his family). There's also Thanksgiving which will be spent with my family, so I've got a couple things already narrowing down the amount of time I can spend writing. I also hope to find another volunteer outlet by November and I'm always keeping my eye out for jobs.

I'm excited! This should be an adventure!

Succulent Zucchini Bread

OMG I can't wait for the oven to finish baking the zucchini bread! So much labor and time to make it, including initiation with food processor, but soooo gooood. One of my all-time favorite foods. Okay, I'm usually not this gushy but - mmmm ... if I could only blog a smell in a way other than mere words.

I was going to write a bit more of an intellectual post but I think I'll just bask in the smell and then take a picture of the bread for you when it's out of the oven. If you've never had zucchini bread, I believe you're missing out on a life experience. I followed the recipe in my "The Joy of Cooking" book.

Friday I finished up making and canning the apple butter we had started the night before. It'd been simmering in the crockpot all night. I used my secret super power and knew that it'd take exactly two pints, four half-pints, and just over half a pint left for immediate eating. I swear. It was that exact. I just have this uncanny knack for guessing exactly how much room the leftovers need and pick the container in which it fits without any breathing room - or any cramming - or any eating that last bit to make it fit. Anyway, the jars are beautiful.

In the afternoon I hiked at a small forest preserve. I hadn't been there before but I was glad I went; there were signs saying it would be closed for renovations in a couple days for about a year. It was very nice and I really enjoyed it. Found buckeyes and saw may apples. Saw fish, a turtle, a toad, and non-mallard ducks (my duck identification skills are measly). The fish was quite large, about as long as from my fingertips to my elbow, and was in shallow water where there was lots of weeds. At first I thought he was stuck and I was looking for a way to shoo him back into the deeper waters but then I realized he was just fine and not suffocating. There were also weird random slabs of concrete. There's no actual road back there, so I had fun making up stories about secret government labs or hidden communities in the 1970s.

Quick Linux update: I'm currently using Linux Mint 9 and really enjoying it. It reminds me a bit too much of the sluggish side of Ubuntu and the fan is acting up a bit but it's working just fine (MUCH better than Puppy) and I hope to make it better. Also, we've got the printer networked now so we don't have to physically plug it in but send print jobs via wifi. Pretty nifty.

Okay time for bed!

Seven things: Pre-HS graduation schools including memories

Before I forget (again), I'm going to do the Seven Things that Kate tagged me to do. A little known fact about me: I only moved twice when growing up. The first was from downstate Michigan to Charlevoix, MI when I was less than one years old. The second was merely across the driveway from the trailer to the partly finished house my dad had been building when I was about five years old. I only remember part of the second move. Mainly, that my mom was very pregnant and it was very hot out and I never seemed to stop carrying the boxes while walking along the "sidewalk" (really just two boards on the lawn).

My hearing loss was discovered when I was over a year and a half old. The story is that I was so observant and looked at everything that it was really quite impossible to tell I was missing something. I only have one memory from pre-hearing aids which consists of *very* vivid smells, colors, and movement. I have very vague memories otherwise from before learning how to read.

Despite living on the same property for my K-12 education, I went to seven different schools before my high school graduation.

1. The first was a pre-K in Petoskey that specialized in helping kids develop faster (since I had a lot of catching up to do). I first went there when I was three and attended two years. I have absolutely no memories of this school. I do remember the trailer we were living in, with a specific memory of watching "Alice in Wonderland" on the TV in the living room. This was my all-time favorite movie. I often wonder just how much I understood of the actual story since I couldn't read and there were no captions.

2. The second was my first year of kindergarten which was in East Jordan (quite a long haul on the bus everyday for a five-year-old). East Jordan's public elementary school contained the area's program for hearing impaired kids. I would spent half the day in kindergarten and the other half in the program. I never fit in with the other kids in the program, but we would all meet once a year to go skiing together all the way into high school. I remember walking down the hallway from one room to the next. I only vaguely remember the kindergarten class though there is a flash of me sitting on the floor with the rest of the kids while the teacher read with some kind of big easel. The program room stuck in my memories a bit more, including the dreaded speech lessons.

3. I like to joke that I flunked kindergarten. I moved to the Charlevoix public school system and started with the kindergarten class. They weren't sure whether I'd be ready for first grade after my year at East Jordan but apparently after the year was over, they said I'd do fine moving on to first grade. My parents had expected me to do kindergarten in Charlevoix, I think mostly for social reasons (easier to start with a new class than join one), so that's what I did. I remember being in awe of my teacher who could cut and color so well. I also played the narrator/introducer in the traditional play "Peter Rabbit." I was the first to have that role; our class was too big and we needed more roles.

4. Most of my elementary school experience was positive. Teasing either didn't happen to me or I took it good-naturedly. I had two best friends who got in a huge fight in third grade and never spoke to one another after that. One moved to a new school and the other joined the popular group. I spent fourth grade looking for a new friend who I had until sixth grade ended and she moved to Traverse City.

5. Predictably, sixth grade sucked. She eventually moved back and graduated in the same class as I did, but timing definitely wasn't good. I continued going to the middle school for a marking period (half semester) of seventh grade. So I was there for a grand total of 1.25 years.

6.  And then I decided to go to the charter school in town that'd just started up and where some of my friends went. I had joined band sixth grade and that become my passion at the charter school. We had a really good band despite being small. I met my best friend through band. She was home-schooled but came to the charter school for band and Spanish. We went to Toronto, Colorado, and England on band trips.

7. After almost four years at the charter school, I started thinking more about the rest of my education. I really enjoyed math and did well in English and social studies. Science was really lacking and I didn't really care about it anyway. I decided my academic growth would be stunted if I continued at the charter school so I moved back to the public school. I went to the old high school building junior year and then we were moved into a new building for senior year which was further from my house. I didn't make any real solid friendships but I did a season each of cross country and track, I quit band after junior year (it just wasn't fun anymore), and I started working at libraries, both the high school and public ones. We had only one AP class offered to us, US Government, and I took it. I also made a point to take the more advanced classes (there were less than 10 of us in the Calculus class) and somehow got through Chemistry and Advanced Biology. My AP US Government teacher was a Kalamazoo College graduate and she was the one who got me interested in going there.

Well that turned out to be a bit longer than I'd expected. "Oh, I'll just list the seven schools I went to before college, easy," I thought. Oh well. I hope you enjoyed the short-ish history of the first 19 years of my life. It could have easily been a *lot* longer! Big chunks, such as the fact that I also have a younger brother, I played piano second grade onward, and I got into backpacking, didn't get mentioned at all. Er, well they have been mentioned now, but you know what I mean.