Are you here?

You should go here instead:

BABYCAKES

xo.
suge knight.

the tv embarasses me

I just caught some of Ralph Fiennes being interviewed on The View. I have never been more ashamed of America.

some city shots

A few of you folks have asked me to send more pictures of the city. I'm not much for taking pictures, but I try to oblige. So, here's a view from Wacker Drive:

That's the Chicago River. If you keep heading a little ways further into the picture you'll hit Lake Michigan. Next picture is taken from the same spot just facing the other way (west). Wilco fans note the bumpy buildings on the right. People here call them "corncobs." Not so beloved as you'd think.

Next is a picture my sister Mary took from a boat on the lake. The tall black building in the middle is the John Hancock Center, and I learned this weekend that it is only the 3rd tallest in Chicago and will soon be the 4th once Trumpcock is built.

Finally, here's pretty Mary standing on my neighborhood platform. The elevated trains running through the cityscape make me think of the Contemporary, which was cemented in my childhood as the coolest place on earth.

Maybe next time I'll post pictures of the place down the street with the awesome tacos.

Bob

So now I will counter my previous boy-critical rant with a post about the love of my life, the only male who matters, the king of the Conner Dynasty - Bob. Bask in his power:



I pity anyone who's never felt his gracious love.

Seriously now, Bob is the best. I know by writing this I'm in danger of another 10 year onslaught of cat related gifts (of which I have plenty), but Bob is a 15 1/2 year old member of our family and is as beloved as any human. Recently, he suffered what we surmise to be a stroke debilitating the right side of his body. It scared the dickens out of my mom who is bearing the brunt of his rehabilitation all by herself. She's done a marvelous job. Even though he limps, runs into things due to impaired sight, and can only turn to the left, which he does a lot, he's really getting around wonderfully. And more importantly, he's still got the charisma that brings Conners to their knees.

Knowing the inevitable will come, we've started to make dibs on Bob mementos when he passes. I think it was Catherine who claimed his tail for her own Davy Crockett style hat. Lucky Cay.

boys who make passes at girls with glasses

Last night during happy hour at a local bar I was approached by a young man in his early 20's, and I can only assume he was that old because of the age restriction to get in the place. If I had met him on the street I would have put him at 17 maybe. He was goofy and juvenile, inexperienced and harmless, energetic and bumbling. Overall he reminded me of my youngest brother Al, and as such I was amused but completely turned-off. However I know it takes a lot for courage and even more beer to do one of these cold pick-ups so I accepted his number, patted him on the arm, and told him he was doing a good job asking me out. The big sister in me didn't have the nerve to tell him I would never call.

Now for the harsh criticism I didn't give him: His opening and persistent gimmick was horrible and personally offensive. He asked me about a dozen times to tear of my glasses, toss my hair, bite the end of the stem, and arch an eyebrow. You know, the look saying "I just had the brilliant idea...to seduce you" or something like that. My response was an immediate and firm no. No way. Nothing doing. It occured to me that maybe I was being a bad sport, but the idea of doing this thing with my glasses was repellent to me. It wasn't until I was walking home that I realized why. It's the same reason why I can't stand the stereotype of "sexy librarian" -- the fetishism of smart girls. It's one thing to like the way my glasses look, or to think it's cool that I work in a library, or even to think that it's hot that I read books. What's not okay is wanting me comply with your idea of a playboy pictorial: "Spread in the Stacks," "Dewey for Dewey," "Teacher's Pet Gone Wild," or "Shhhh.. Let's Screw". It reduces a smart girl into an object to ogle and thus strips her of her intelligence, literally and figuratively. I know this is only one example of degrading fetishes of professional, smart women - sexy cop, sexy nurse, sexy teacher, etc. - but naturally it's the one that gets on my nerves the most.

So this poor, clueless boy in the bar last night.. he got the tail end of a long built-up resentment. There was no way in a frat boy's keg party that I was going to play that game. But I did let him borrow my glasses so he could do the look himself.

maintenance

Hi.

I've added some new links and sorted them a bit, hopefully to encourage clicking. Please notice these new additions:

Trees with Bells - Opal and friends back in Alabama have a brand new web site to go along with their brand new record, A Sweet, Sad Bending. I listened to it the other night about 5 times in a row. It's lovely, heart-breaking music that comforts me like tacos (if you know me, you should understand).

Asteroidea Press - A blog by an Ottawa friend, Megan Butcher, who is a fantastic poet as well as a born librarian. I bet she organizes in her dreams (in between the raunchy stuff).

Matilda Zine - Another writer from Ottawa, Jennifer Whiteford has a string of accomplishments, most notably an upcoming book, Grrrl. Jen's work is honest, insightful, and funny as hell. I think she's tapped into a real zeitgeist. Yes, I said zeitgeist.

Pudgy Pigeon Enterprises - This woman Stacy... I just can't say. The writing, the painting, the humor, the strength, the proficiency... I imagine her apartment in L.A. to be a veritable art factory (screw Warhol) complete with conveyor belts, pots of paint, scrolls of paper, and for some reason lots and lots of wind up toy monkeys. You know, the ones with the symbols and bellhop caps. What do you call those guys? I know they have a name.... Anyway, just look at the blog already.

I think those are all the new ones, but while you're over there you may as well visit them all. I know Aaron and Mary Rachel have some wonderful new work up, and Catherine's always got something to say. Oh! and Blankets is out and apparently bringing a lot of well-deserved and hard-earned attention to The Acorn. Listen to some samples here.

As for me, well, I'm enjoying a cozy week in North Carolina with mama. That's all I've got for now.

Happy Thanksgiving.