phear of fones

I've probably mentioned this before, but I hate phones. I hate calling people I don't know. I calling people I do know. I hate answering calls. I'm not sure if I'm afraid of the connection cutting out or of misunderstanding someone/being misunderstood, but phones just freak me out. This is probably why I like texting so much. They also, apparently, make me sound like an idiot. And I'm pretty sure I'm not an idiot.

I applied for my first credit card yesterday. (Hurrah for more debt! I feel so American.) And, stupid me, I tried to use fancy settings on my new phone like mute and speaker while I was looking for paperwork. My call may have been recorded. So perhaps it will give people a laugh for years to come. I'm also apartment hunting, which means calling people and explaining who I am, what I do, and why any sane person would want to live with me. Not an easy task. And it's made more difficult (or so I'd like to think) by the fact that my job is terribly obscure and nearly impossible to explain without visual aids to anyone outside the design field. I must simply learn to deal.

Your musical reward for reading my complaints this time is Radiohead covering Bjork. Wow. I've got to write that again. Radiohead covering Bjork. Magic.

the hits just keep on coming...

Following close on the heels of the raging success of my latest instructable, my lovely paper folding applets have been linked to by the Fitful Flog. This is, of course, awesome. But my MIT webspace runs out in January and my website will go poof. I think it's time to get serious about choosing a new host.

I've been doing a lot of holiday shopping of late and it got me thinking about an old (possibly true) story that my 10th grade history (during our local history section) and science (during our topography section) teachers told my class. My city used to have a lot of mob money running through it. Among other things, it supposedly funded the design and construction of our local mall. If you look at a map, the mall looks suspiciously like a handgun pointed pretty directly at city hall. Thanks to the wonder that is Google Maps, the story seems to be true. Take a look for yourselves:

View Larger Map

delicious

I finally got to upgrade my old phone.  I hate phones, so I didn't really expect to be excited by this (I assumed anything short of an iPhone would leave me frustrated at best) until I saw the Chocolate's scroll wheel.  It lights up.  It follows your movement.  It's shiny.  And the other keys make the phone vibrate ever so slightly.  Yummy haptic feedback.  And I found a Psapp's Hi as a ringtone.  I still don't know if I'll like actually calling people anymore than previously.  But I do enjoy scrolling through my contact list.  I just hope I don't ruin the slide mechanism.

I've also found a really excellent lamp.  I sincerely hope whatever apartment I find is in need of a light fixture.  Design shopping websites are dangerous things.

I can add another notch to my baking-bedpost.  I made banana bread all by my lonesome yesterday.  Must get all this cooking out of my system before moving to Manhattan.

Here's your reward for reading this post - my ringtone.

consonants & vowels

I have a new favorite song, and you should all listen to it. Regina Spektor's amazing.

This song isn't actually from Soviet Kitsch, it's from Songs. But you should go get Soviet Kitsch too anyway.

That is all.

:D

My new instructable got featured!  I'm much too proud of this.  Hehe.

we apologize for the delay

I've been busy, although that doesn't really excuse a nearly month long absence. So I'll try to catch all you wonderful people up on what I've been doing.

In the past month I've put up Christmas lights, flown to London, baked crescent rolls three times, cookies twice, folded things from the Fitful Flog, started Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses, found a Wii for my sister's Christmas present, found many amazing design shopping websites (which you can visit for yourself by checking my del.icio.us) and taken a job in NY, thus ending my search for employment.

Also, check out this pic of a snowman ornament falling to its death.


And, drum roll please, I have a new Instructable. Check it out here.

Now to find an apartment.

the trouble with timing and travel

And, no, it's not the same problem.  Really, they each have several.  Anyway.  That really is a terrible entry title.  And a poor Star Trek reference to boot.  I should come up with something better.  Damn my brain.

My watch looks even awesome-er thanks to Photo Booth's comic book effect.

What was this post supposed to be about?  Oh right, watches.  So.  My lovely metal digital Swatch lost its faceplate a couple months ago.  Ever since I've lived in fear of accidently forgetting to take it off before stepping into the shower.  I love this watch.  It's silver.  It's thin.  It's digital.  I refuse to read normal clock faces.  There's no need for that anymore.  Numbers, people, numbers.  My watch still looks great (possibly even better than when it had a faceplate as it's no longer scratched and you can see some of its guts), but it gets slow after a couple weeks and I just know I'm going to drown it someday soon.

Then, a miracle happened.  Or so I thought.  I was walking around Times Square on my way to dinner with a friend a couple weeks ago and I pass the Swatch store.  They should be able to fix Swatches, don't yo think?  And tiny plastic disks shouldn't cost very much.  But, oh no.  Not only can't my watch be fixed at the store, Swatch doesn't even make replacement faceplates!

So now I have no choice.  My current watch's days are numbered.  I'll need to buy a new one.  I did a great deal of internet-scouring and found this super amazing company.  Now, I know what I wrote just a couple paragraphs ago about demanding readability of my time telling devices.  But.....just look at the amazing hotness of this watch.  It may make me a complete watch hypocrite but, as soon as my Swatch dies, I'm buying it in clear.  Yum.

And now for carry-ons.  I'm going to London on Sunday for a few days to hopefully further my quest for employment.  This time I am not going to deal with baggage claim.  It's frustrating and customs at Heathrow takes long enough by itself.  But I always check because, well, I need my shampoo and eye cream.  I was at Linens'n Things the other day and I saw this cute carry-on kit filled with tiny clear bottles and containers.  I'm a sucker for containers in general, but miniaturize them and I'm almost certainly in love.  Now I have an excuse, er I mean reason, to buy them.  I spent a good hour today slowly pour body wash & co into them.  Hopefully I get through security!