Average Jane

What is Average Jane Doing?

This week is already headed down a path that promises minimal excitement.  Here are a few things I have planned (aside from work, of course):

• Songwriting - I've promised to have two more songs finished by Saturday's band practice and now my husband and a couple of his friends have asked me to write lyrics to a song they recorded over the weekend.
• Reading - I'm about 2/3 of the way through "Assassination Vacation" and I think I'll read "The Kite Runner" next.
• Endoscopy - Tomorrow morning they're going to have a peek at my innards to try to figure out why my heartburn persists despite daily medication.  Extra bonus:  I get to go home and sleep off the anaesthetic all day!
• Errands - I'm also getting my car repaired, taking two cats to the vet, trying to remember to schedule a haircut and color appointment, trying to remember to buy salt for the water softener, etc.

I suppose I've done quite enough for one day to drag you down to my level of ennui.  I'll try to write something more interesting tomorrow.  Should I post first thing in the morning or wait to report on the endoscopy and hope that I can be coherent?

Average Jane Looks Back

Today AdRants mentioned a new commercial for Clorox that explores how laundry has changed over the years, and it made me think of visiting my great-aunt when I was growing up.

Aunt Edith had the most fascinating washing machine I'd ever seen.  It had an open agitator drum for washing the clothes and washtub of rinse water right next to it, separated by a wringer.  She would take the wet clothes from the wash water and run them through the wringer into the rinse water.  Once they'd been rinsed to her satisfaction, she'd run them through the wringer again and put them in a basket to be taken outside and hung on the line.  She did have a gas dryer, but she only used it in the wintertime and for towels that would have been too rough and scratchy if hung outside.

I loved to watch her do laundry when I visited.  She would let me feed clothes into the wringer - carefully!  The risk of pinching my fingers in the rollers made it that much more exciting.  It was also an interesting novelty to hang clothes on the line.  I'm sure I made more trips outside to check the laundry for dryness than was strictly necessary.

It never occurred to me to wonder why she still used such an old-fashioned laundry setup.  It made perfect sense:  why change something that works just fine?  "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Many of my close relatives, including my great-aunt, my grandmother and even my dad, lived through the Great Depression and took its lessons to heart for the rest of their lives.  Every time I darn one of my old socks, turn off extra lights in the next room, or make a stewing hen stretch into three meals, their influence comes through...and I appreciate it.

Average Jane's Long Week

Is it just me, or did this seem like the longest work week on record?  Maybe it's because Tuesday was the most depressing day of the year, although it didn't seem worse than any other day to me.

I don't have a lot planned for the weekend.  I'm about halfway through Oryx and Crake, which was recommended by a couple of people after I asked for book suggestions a week or so ago.

On Sunday, I've offered to go see King Kong with my stepmother, who rarely gets a break from caring for her 96-year-old mother.

So basically, things aren't too exciting in the Average Jane household at present.  Let's hope next week is a little livelier.

Average Jane's Weekly Web Finds

I'm a little too tired to write a coherent narrative today, so here are the latest additions to my del.icio.us bookmarks:

• New York Hack - A female cab driver in New York City.
• The Escape Plan - A couple's 40 day project to "escape adulthood."
• 15 Megs of Fame - "Discover and share new music."  I'll definitely be uploading some of my band's songs when we're finished recording and mixing.
• McSweeney's - Always something new and amusing.

Enjoy your Thursday!

Average Jane's Karma

Last night I babysat my 5-year-old niece and discovered that she has become an expert in the fine art of dawdling.  There once was a time when she obeyed my every request with minimal hesitation.  That time has ended.

The dawdling was all centered around bedtime.  She willingly stopped watching "Monsters, Inc." before it was over when bedtime arrived.  I thought I was home free, but I was very wrong.  We went upstairs to her room and I asked her to put on her nightgown and brush her teeth.

"Wait!" she said, and ran back downstairs.  It turned out she needed to get her pinkeye medicine so I could administer it.  That was fine because I didn't even know she was still taking it.

"Okay," I said, "Now put on your nightgown and brush your teeth."

She goofed around with her shirt for several minutes, constantly getting distracted by objects in the room.  I got a little more insistent that she hurry up, take off her clothes and put on her nightgown.

She ducked behind her closet door and asked me to hand over the nightie, "But don't look at me." 

Fine, whatever.

After another couple of minutes passed, she finally emerged with her nightgown on and I resumed the toothbrushing prompts.  But no, first she needed her eyedrops.

I put two eyedrops in each eye and she had to sit up and dab her eyes with a tissue in between each drop.  Finally that was over and she slowly put toothpaste on her toothbrush and, with only a few more interruptions, brushed her teeth.

She tried to prolong the process of choosing a book for me to read, but I think my impatience was finally getting through.  I read a book about a little girl who pretends she's a fairy, hugged my niece goodnight (to avoid the pinkeye germs), and closed the door...

...then had to immediately open the door and turn the light back on because I'd left my cell phone in the bathroom and, I discovered, also shut their Pomeranian in the room.  Oops.

That set the stage for a little extra back-and-forth, but I managed to get the lights turned back out and the door shut.  Whew.

The thing is, that was my M.O. as a child in every detail.  I was the Queen of Dawdling, whether it involved going to bed, doing chores, getting dressed, or anything else my parents asked me to do.  And now karma is reflecting a little of it right back at me.  I suppose it's the least I deserve.

Average Jane Nitpicks

This has been bugging me every time I go to my local sandwich shop.  It's part of a triptych that begins with "Oooh...!" and ends with "Mmmm...!"

I'm sure they meant "Ahhh...!" but what they ended up with was an exclamation of shock and fear.  Because the photo depicts my favorite sandwich, I always end up sitting across from it thinking, "What's so scary about the #4 on white with standard toppings?"

Average Jane Makes Plans

I know I keep going on and on about BlogHer, but it's just because I can't wait to go again.  Registration opened today for what will be a two-day event this year.  I'm planning on going to both days and it looks as though Cagey may join me again, and maybe Dorothy as well.  Woohoo!

I put some of last year's BlogHer knowledge to use in a meeting on Monday.  We were discussing well-known corporate blogs and I kept thinking to myself, "I met a lot of the people responsible for those blogs at BlogHer - how cool is that?!"

I'm going to try to spread out the expense a little bit by watching the plane fares and BlogHer registration cutoff closely. 

So, are you planning on going?

Average Jane Likes...

To wrap up the week, here's a nice, juicy list of some of the things that are making me happy right now:

1. Cute Overload! ;) - (Yes, it has the emoticon in the title.)  I thought I was too cynical, jaded and cool to be swayed by the sight of an adorable hamster or puppy.  I was wrong.  I go to this site every day and sometimes I say, "Awwww!" out loud, and I don't care who's listening.
2. Scrubs is back on!  As an added bonus, NBC has been running them two at a time, although really that's just because they foolishly kept the show off the air all season until now.
3. Oranges are in season and they're really good and cheap this year.  I'm due to buy another sack of them the next time I go to the grocery store.
4. There's (finally) a new post on Snarkywood this week!  Sure, Madonna is too easy a target, but I'll take a nice, fresh helping of their snark anytime.
5. Say what you will about The Sharper Image and their pricey gadgetry, but my, oh my, do I love our Ionic Breeze air purifier.  If I could afford it, I would buy one for every room of my house without hesitation.  We have one in our bedroom and it's cut my husband's allergy symptoms down significantly.  Plus, it makes the air smell wonderful.
6. I talked to my husband last night and he's having a delightful time in Anaheim, just as I predicted.  He said he'd get me Joe Satriani's autograph tomorrow.  What a nice husband.
7. I've been having fun posting to Who In the What Now? and reading what other people post.

What's making you particularly happy these days?

Average Jane Saves $

Yesterday I took my car into the shop because the "check engine" light was on.  Also, I'd been noticing the smell of singed electrical components every time I turned on the defroster, so I figured that was worth mentioning while I was there.

It turned out that my catalytic converter needs to be replaced.  In fact, it was responsible for both of the symptoms for which I brought in the car.  For most cars, a new catalytic converter would cost about $200.  For my Honda Insight, the cost is more like $1,200.  Fortunately, my warranty will cover the whole thing.

Naturally, my dealer didn't have the part on hand, so I'll be making another trek to the shop next week for the actual replacement.  In the meantime, I still have to look at the warning light every time I drive (it's an especially alarming one, too, with the words "check engine" written inside a yellow outline in the shape of an engine).  I've been assured that it will not hurt anything for me to continue driving the car.

This may be the first time I've ever had a car problem covered by a warranty.  I'm certainly not complaining!

Average Jane On Her Own

My husband is leaving today for Los Angeles to go to the NAMM show.  Even though he's been a professional musician for years, he still geeks out over events like this.  He and I went to a couple of NAMM shows in Nashville years ago, and he still has the photos and autographs in the studio.  I'm sure he'll have a fantastic time at the BIG show they have in Anaheim.  I don't think he's ever been to one there.

While he's gone, I'll have to think of ways to entertain myself.  Tonight I have a club meeting and I've been trying to schedule a dinner with a friend tomorrow night.  I'm attending an industry awards show on Friday night and there's also a roller derby party that evening.  On Saturday evening there's band practice.  I guess my entertainment is pretty well covered after all.

The hardest thing to do while my husband is gone is resist the temptation to let the cats sleep with me.  They've been banned from the bedroom for quite some time now, but I tend to weaken when it's just me.  I'm always immediately sorry after a night of being walked on, having my fingers gnawed, etc.

I'm glad my husband gets to go do something he'll really enjoy.  I've been on several fun trips in the past year or so, but he hasn't been anywhere lately.  I have BlogHer coming up in July, but maybe he and I can think of a fun weekend trip we can take together before that.  Any suggestions?