All Times Are Valentimes!

I thought about doing a traditional "I hate Valentine's Day" post, but I've decided against it. Not saying I actually Valentine's Day, because I really don't. If you're curious, it has to do with the whole "societally mandated day that you must prove your love" angle of the day. And while I still believe that, I think I've mellowed a little in my old age, and my opinions aren't as ABSOLUTE and UNYIELDING as they used to be. So I'm willing to loosen my stranglehold on that opinion a little in order to make things tolerable around my house. The Peach knows I don't like it, but she still likes the whole idea, so I'm willing to swallow my pride - and my tongue - and meet her halfway. This 14th I will be getting her a tiny present with a card, and we will have a romantic meal of champagne and cheeseburgers, followed likely by some movie with Cary Grant in it.

And that's it. That's about all I can handle at this stage in my life, and luckily The Peach isn't super-high-maintenance about it. I'm very glad I'm not with someone who would be like that about Valentine's day, but then again: a relationship like that would have fizzled out long before the first February reared its ugly head. And I'm kind of looking forward to seeing what the kids in my class will be doing for Valentine's day. God, I'm actually looking forward to something V-Day related? I must be losing my bile. The Young Doc would be mortified.

Occupational Hazard

My first official job as a Speech Pathologist has been going pretty well; I'm part of a good, supportive team and I really like the kids I'm working with. Most of my job involves planning and delivering treatment directly to the kids in the class, but every Wednesday I have meetings and check-ins with family members. Today I met a few mothers in a book-learning workshop that a colleague was running, and the conversation started running, as it invariably does, to their other children. I'm usually fine with this, as I think part of being a parent (particularly of a special needs child) is venting about their kids, so I nodded and smiled along with them, not having much to contribute myself, since The Peach and I have no kids. One of the mothers turned to me, and said, "What are your kids like?" That sometimes happens: people assume, since I'm at the end of my 20s, married, and involved with education and children's development, that I have kids of my own. So I tried to pull out a stumper for an answer.

"They're quiet," I said.

What's Up Wednesday - April 23, 2008

Non-mandatory post tomorrow or Friday I hope. But for now, let's check in with what's been on my plate for the past week.

The Movie: I saw Jim Jarmusch's Down By Law yesterday, and I am surprised I haven't seen it sooner. I'm not a huge Jarmusch fan or anything, but I really liked Dead Man and told myself I should search out more of his work...and then I never did. But really: the adventures of John Lurie, Tom Waits, and Roberto Begnini in and out of prison in New Orleans? That's something I really should have checked out. It's not a prison movie or escape movie in the traditional sense - nothing is terribly traditional with Jarmusch, I've been noticing - but it's a great character piece, with some great acting. I liked it so much I immediately went to the library and took out another Jarmusch movie, Broken Flowers; haven't seen it yet but it's my plan for tonight.

The Album: I downloaded Let's Stay Together on a complete whim a couple weeks ago. I'd never heard of Jimmy McGriff, but I thought an album full of jazz versions of R&B songs done on the Hammond organ was just quirky enough to be listenable, at least once. And it's exceeded my expectations. Each song works individually and as part of an album, and I've listened to it three times in the past week alone. I'm sure I'll get it out of my system soon and relegate it to single entries on playlists, but for now this is a hell of a find.

The Real-Life: Went to the Edmonton Toy & Comic Fair on Sunday with Morgoid and The Dorklord, and it was pretty fun. I got me a lot of comics AND a Dalek figure (I know, I know, but it's a DALEK!), and I got to see Ernie Hudson. He looks good for a guy his age, or as Morgoid said: "He looks good for his age. Wow. I mean, really good." I left before there was awkwardness or drooling, but yeah, it was interesting.

The Food: The Peach and I made Rosemary Cookies on Saturday, and they are REALLY good. Basically, a modified shortbread cookie with fresh rosemary in them, and topped with an egg wash and sugar on top. Sweet and savoury is always a good combination, and this one has impressed.

The Job: Today I had a girl do a tiger impression for me. She also did an entire language subtest in a Scottish accent. Sometimes, my job is AWESOME.

Revenge of The Test Fear

I'm not having a good night, folks. I write my CASLPA certification exam tomorrow (four hours, two hundred questions) and The Test Fear is setting in. A headache is creeping up on me, I can't concentrate on anything, and with every page or note I review or re-write, the words "there's no WAY you're going to do this" keep echoing in my head. I'm doing my best, but it's just so daunting; for every fact or theory I remember there are five more I need to review. I know it's almost pointless to keep studying, but I kind of have to. I normally don't react like this to tests, but this one's a BIG one, and unlike any other test I've ever written (except maybe the GRE), my entire life pivots around this test. I don't know. Maybe I should have started studying earlier, even though I did start at the end of January; maybe 2 months wasn't enough. Maybe I should have dedicated more time to it. Maybe I should have tried harder to get a hold of some other people who were studying for the exam too. I don't know that any of that would have helped my mood right now. I'd still be worrying, probably just as bad. But maybe then I'd at least be prepared and feel unprepared, as opposed to what I think I am now. Let's hope I'm not flushing $400 and the next year of my life down the drain.

(Sorry. I'm not normally this pathetic, but the stress is getting to me.)

My REAL Last Exam?

At the end of this month, I'm going to write my national exam, that will make me a member of the the national college and make me clinically certified. This will help me out in many ways: most places won't hire you unless you're nationally certified, plus you get a big reduction in your insurance rates and access to a lot of resources for professional improvement. It's also a big chunk of money and time. The money's been taken care of, thankfully, but for the next four weeks I'm going to be studying for a four-hour, 200-question exam that is on every class I've ever taken in my Master's program and decides whether or not I can hold a clinical position. Plus, the last class I took was over two years ago, so some of this stuff is like dredging up nearly-forgotten information. So, no pressure. Wish me luck, folks: I think I'm going to need it.

(At least looking through all my old textbooks and notes has reminded me how much I like my chosen career, though. If only I can re-remember it all...)

What's Up Wednesday - February 20, 2008

The Movie: Took Jago out to see There Will Be Blood for his birthday. He's probably the biggest P.T. Anderson fan that I know, so I figured that it would be a good present for him, and that we wouldn't have that many people we could have taken to see it anyhow, as most of our friends don't really like him. But we took Diego and the three of us sat through all two and a half hours of it, and my GOD is it good. Daniel Day-Lewis is amazing, pulling off both sliminess and genuine emotion, and wrapping it up in about fifteen tons of charisma. The story's unexpected and really powerful, and while it sure doesn't feel like your "typical P.T. Anderson movie" (much different than when I think of Boogie Nights or Magnolia), I can see how he would be interested in this kind of project. Really really good; I don't think it's going to beat No Country For Old Men at the Oscars on Sunday, but it might have a chance.

The DVD: I rented a few this past week, but I'm going to give the nod to Gone Baby Gone. I knew I would have to watch it because it's based on a Denis Lehane novel and I do like his books (and I liked Mystic River too). I was a little put off by the fact that it was directed by Ben Affleck, but he actually did a fairly good job. He made a perfectly good movie, with competent shots and he didn't let any obvious style get in the way of the story, but sometimes I felt that there could have been more exposition, as some things were even more confusing and unexplained than they needed to be. Casey Affleck was good, and Amy Smart (the other reason I watched it) was AMAZING. So, definitely worth a rental, particularly if you like a smart little mystery.

The TV Show: I got The Peach Whose Line Is It Anyway? The Complete Seasons One and Two as a random gift, and we've been working our way through it. It's...really uneven. Some episodes are brilliant, some are painful, and some are both at once. But it's good to see how the original series started, and there are some really nice scenes. We're most of the way through Season One, and while it was okay, I hope that Season Two picks up the quality a bit.

The Video Game: I've been playing our home version of Zuma a lot the past few weeks, but last Saturday night in a fit of insomnia, I finally finished the damn thing. Even though I finished the adventure level, I still like playing the other levels. Just a fun time-waster, and the last level's a DOOZY!

The Job: I'm slowly gearing up to be working another part-time job, just eight to ten additional hours a week. Still working with kids with ASD, and still doing research instead of clinical work, but it's a fun grind interacting with the kids. And I'm meeting a few families I used to work with five and six years ago, so it's really interesting to catch up with them. Plus, the extra income will be useful.

The Real Life: My grandmother's birthday was Valentine's day and I gave her a call to give her best wishes. For the first two minutes, she thought I was my dad. "I thought things were strange," she said when I cleared it all up. "Your dad doesn't sing that well!"

What's Up Wednesday - January 23, 2008

In a completely spur-of-the-moment decision, I’ve decided to add at least one weekly feature to increase my blogging frequency. It’s not really the end of the world if I don’t put up something life-altering every day, but getting at least one thing out a week would be good. So every Wednesday I’ll check in here and talk about some of the things that have happened to me in the previous week, in a number of categories. Categories may change, disappear and reappear without notice. And I’m going to limit myself to one thing per category, to make things simple.

“Why Wednesday?” you might ask. Well, for one thing, I like the phrase “What’s Up Wednesday”. Also, today’s Wednesday, and today’s the day I came up with this idea. I’m not very complicated.

So, what’s been up with The Doc this past week?

The Book: I've started The Fortress of Solitude audiobook. This is basically Jonathan Lethem's fictionalized autobiography, the story of a white kid growing up in a black neighborhood in New York City in the 70s, and his experiences with the children on the block and his dysfunctional parents. Jonathan Lethem's a good writer with a lot of pop culture references that you need to know a little about in order to enjoy and understand the book; luckily, he and I like the same Marvel comics and jazz albums, so I get it. And David Aaron Baker reads the story rather well, giving each character a distinct voice. I approve, although it's not for everyone.

The Movies: Starting to get obsessed with the Oscars list. I've seen two of the five Best Picture nominees, and I definitely want to get out to the cinema and see as many of the rest of the nominees as I can. Time to break out my spreadsheet!

The Comic: I started reading Heartbreak Soup, the first collection of Gilbert Hernandez' Love and Rockets stories. It's really good. The cartoony style reminds me a little of The Yellow Kid, and the sparse style works even though there are lots of characters. Just finished the first chapter; it's dense but worth the read.

The DVD/TV Show: Finished up Dead Like Me, Season 1. I started watching this almost a year ago, but then got out of the habit; not that it was bad, but I stopped watching it with Ninja & Jago and so it fell by the wayside. But both seasons were available fore $15 each this Boxing Day, so I picked them up and started watching again. I really like Dead Like Me: the stories aren't always even (hard to strike a balance between the family and the reapers), but the stories are quirky and clever, which hooks me every time. Plus, the actors are great, Mandy Patinkin and Jasmine Guy in particular. Great stuff, looking forward to Season 2.

The Album: Another Boxing Day purchase, So Jealous by Tegan and Sara. I didn't really care for their first albums, but So Jealous has them dipping into pop and a little heavier rock. There are a lot of catchy hooks, and I really dig their close harmonies. Probably listened to the whole album 4 times last week alone.

The Video Game: Jago lent me Harvey Birdman for the Wii. he told me it was kind of fun, but too short. I've made it through 2 of the 5 levels in just under an hour and fifteen minutes, and so far it's just like I'm helping make a few sub-par episodes of Harvey Birdman. It's mildly entertaining, but...yeah. Not as funny as it should be, really. Also: no Stephen Colbert, which is another strike against it. I just hope that when they make a Space Ghost: Coast To Coast video game - and if they don't should - it's better than this.

The Job: Now that I've technically graduated, I was looking for another part-time job to fill up my schedule and my bank account. I just signed a contract to be a research assistant for a Ph.D. student, doing some assessments here and there, which not only pays rather well but solidifies one of my special talents (I'm one of a very few people in the city who know how to do one particular assessment). Plus, she mentioned that there might be another casual position she could try and secure for me doing, yes, that same assessment. So even though I haven't applied for any clinical jobs, it looks like this research/assessment thing's going to work out nicely for me for the next little while.

The Real-Life: The Peach and I realized over breakfast on Sunday that we had been married exactly six months, which was a bit of a shock to us. We sat there in stunned silence and then grinned at each other. Then, we finished up our breakfast and went shopping for pants. Ah, the life of the married guy.

So that's it. Anything new and/or exciting happen to you? Let me know. I'm interested. No really. I care about YOU.