Eduard's Fame

Speaking of stars, I see that Brian and Karen have blogged about seeing Eduard sing in the GFA Harmony for the Homeless concert. Mom sent along this photo of Eduard (center) singing as well.

Oscar Night

Came home, made popcorn, and watched the Oscars. It was great that they were on at the same time here as back East so I could chat with Carrie during the commercials and not have to wait while everyone else knew who won (like with Miss America... sigh...) Of course I didn't realize this in advance, so I didn't TIVO it or get home in time to watch any of the red-carpet or hours and hours of pre-show.

The best thing though is not having to stay up so late to last until Best Picture. The whole thing was over by 9!

Mousetrap

Tina and I went to see the Mousetrap presented by the Northside Theater Company at the Olinder Theater in San Jose (848 E. William Street). It played to a sold-out house (of 80 seats) and was quite a decent production. I had seen it years ago in London, but had forgotten enough of the twists to still be surprised a bit by some of the revelations.

Happy Leap Day

I didn't realize quite what Leap Day traditionally meant to the single girl (though I'll definitely be sitting this one out). I found some great info and ephemera at the Leap Year Day Project Museum (or LeapZeum).

For some ridiculous reason, to which, however, I've no desire to be disloyal,
Some person in authority, I don't know who, very likely the Astronomer Royal,
Has decided that, although for such a beastly month as February,
twenty-eight days as a rule are plenty,
One year in every four his days shall be reckoned as nine and-twenty.

A paradox, a paradox,
A most ingenious paradox!
Ha! ha! ha! ha! Ho! ho! ho! ho!

Happy Birthday Aunt Susan!

A very happy birthday to my Aunt Susan who is celebrating at a concert of the Norwalk Symphony called the Colors Of Sound (fitting, since she is of course an artist). Some of her work is online on the Westport Art Center's site and in the Westport Schools Permanent Art Collection.

Mom sent me this photo of Aunt Susan with Norwalk mayor Alex Knopp who made a proclamation in honor of her birthday! plus a picture of the birthday cake!

Door to Door Again

I did one last day of door-to-door campaigning today before Tuesday's election. Here's Barbara Nesbet (left) and Roberta as we walked around Palo Alto. We covered a whole princinct and then Barbara went on to do more (I came home and crashed). It was an absolutely beautiful day to be out walking though, and the neighborhood we were in (up in Barron Park) was lovely. We even worked the crowd briefly at the Juana Run community event.

Last day of Sheltered Reference

Today was my last day of Sheltered Reference down at the Gilroy Library. The other librarians and staff surprised me with cake and a card that everyone signed! I'm going to miss going down there -- but hopefully I'll get to go back as an extra help librarian once in a while.

There was a small fire in the garbage can out back behind the library and the fire department was called. When I was there on Wednesday the roof leaked and the parking lot flooded, and then after I had gone home, the power went out and they had to close down! Never a dull moment at the library!

Eragon

Finished Eragon by Chrisopher Paolini, which I learned about from the library's mailing list when they started circulating copies. The author is an 18 year-old kid and the book has caused quite a sensation. I've read mixed reviews -- there's certainly nothing new in it, we could be in any number of other worlds like Middle Earth -- but I couldn't put it down. I'm hoping to pass it along to Eduard when he comes to visit in a couple of weeks, and will definitely pick up the next in the series when it comes out. I've certainly read better fantasy, but it was a good read.

Tupperware

I don't know why, but I've always been facinated by Tupperware. I heard a piece on NPR a couple of weeks ago about a PBS documentary which talked about Brownie Wise, the saleswoman who revolutionized selling Tupperware through parties. I finally managed to watch the show tonight, complete with tons of vintage footage from training videos and advertisements.

Here's the blurb on the show:

American Experience premieres "Tupperware!," charting the origins of the small plastics company that unpredictably became a cultural phenomenon. Narrated by Kathy Bates, this funny, thought-provoking film reveals the secret behind Tupperware’s success: the women of all shapes, sizes and backgrounds who discovered they could move up in the world without leaving the house. At a time when women, who had been celebrated for working in factories during World War II, were being pushed back to the kitchen, self-taught marketing whiz Brownie Wise showed them how to defy the limitations they faced by starting up their own businesses. Their funny, straightforward and often poignant stories tell us a lot about the history of selling, the changes in expectations for women, and the importance of recognition and applause in all of our lives.

Among other things, Brownie was the first woman to make the cover of Business Week! Sadly, things fell apart for her at the end and Mr. Tupper fired her and they pretty much wrote her out of the company history.

Plus, the KTEH Pledge drive has started so I had a chance to see the camera shots! (They warned us that we wouldn't be able to watch without wanting to critique the shots -- and yes, they could have used a bit more headroom on camera 3) If you pledge now, you can get the video or DVD of the show...

Back behind the TV Camera

After many (12?) years of not doing any TV work, I'm back behind the camera! This time, its volunteering for KTEH, our local public TV station, for their pledge drive. I had training tonight and then will work on a "virtual" break next Sunday (where the broadcasts are pre-recorded and we plug in live shots of the phone volunteers), and then get to be a "clone" on a live break the following Friday :)

'American Idol' Could Affect Hawaii Turnout

I heard this on the radio this morning and had to laugh.

Hawaii's state Democratic party chairman said because a well-known Hawaii contestant will be on "American Idol" tonight, many voters may stay home to watch the show instead.

And yes, I'm watching American Idol now (which I TIVOed from earlier... so it didn't get in the way of my stamping, much less voting...)

Cards!

Check out these cool cards EMY (who I met in my knitting group, and who is an Elizabeth, not an Emily) showed me how to make tonight at her stamping demo (I of course couldn't resist ordering some of the stamps to play with). BobbiLynn, you're going to have to come meet her, or we're going to have to host a workshop to learn more cool tricks!

Fun Fact

From Jasper Fforde, one of my current favorite authors:

"The name of Thursday's husband, Landen Parke-Laine, comes from what happens if you are playing Monopoly and land on the first of the blue set -- a U.S. translation might be 'Landen Boarde-Walke.' Hence, his parents' names, mentioned in Lost in a Good Book, are 'Houson Parke-Laine' and 'Billden Parke-Laine.' "

From an interview with the author by Barnes and Noble

No!! It can't be over.

Thank you Sex and the City for great TV. We'll miss you :(

Cell Phone Cozy

I still need to get a bit of velco for the opening, but I just finished a little cellphone cozy (pattern adapted from Stich n' Bitch's technicolor techno-cozy pattern, p. 178, but simpler and with some adjustments to mask the fact that I switched stich patterns half-way though, so that whole part became the flap).

TLC Essentials 2968 Shaded Denim on US 9 plastic needles, 16 stiches CO.

Our knitting group met again today and Emy showed off her awesome big-bad-baby-blanket!

Scarf for Carrie

After a woman in my knitting group explained to me how fringe works (it turns out to be extremely easy), I came home and finished the scarf I was making for Carrie (which I'm blogging a week later to not ruin the surprise). Its dark green to match her blog and done in knit-2, purl-2 ribbing.

Hopefully she'll post a photo of herself wearing it so I can see her new glasses!

The Best Week Ever

I have to admit that one of my secret TV obsessions these days is VH1's I love the 80s, which is like one big you-know-you're-a-child-of-the-80's-if test (not that I needed any additional TV shows to keep track of). Tonight I watched their new scary show, The Best Week Ever, which is the same format -- but just reviews the entertainment news of the past week with commentary from strange current TV personalities like Mo Rocco and the weird guy from Ed. And of course, they have a blog where they discuss the week as it happens. I think I just like their concept of the best week ever being the past seven days, every week.

And yes, I should be doing my homework.

Happy Birthday to Katy and Mark!

Today is both Katy and Mark's birthdays! Happy birthday to them!

Donald in the Times

Photo from today's NY Times

Brian sent along this link which has photos and quotes from our friend Donald Dunn who is now the Democratic State Chair in Utah. Donald worked in Public Liaison while I was at Political Affairs, and then I worked for him at the '96 Convention.

Fahrenheit 451

I somehow managed to get through high school without reading Ray Bradbury's 1953 classic, Fahrenheit 451, but since it was this year's Silicon Valley Reads selected book, I thought it was time that I did.

Its definitely one of those ones you have to read in your life.

The author has a nice site at http://www.raybradbury.com/ as well.

What we're up against

Friday's local Gilroy paper ran this rather scary editorial against Measure B.

No on Measure B: For pornography and hours

Sigh.

Fun fur

I'm now the proud owner of an extremely silly and impractical "fun fur" long thin blue scarf which I finished this morning.

Lion Brand Fun Fur Indigo (3299) on great big #11 needles (which makes it go really fast) All knit rows, 12 across (really thin)

Iron Jawed Angels

Watched Iron Jawed Angels on HBO (after Sex and the City). I wish I had heard about it in advance and could have had a viewing party. I'm excited that Betty's doing a voter registration drive at her school and hope that she gets a copy of the film to show there, it seems clearly aimed at young women and hopefully will get them excited and involved. The cast is great and the production is modern-looking, it rings some off-notes and some crazy anachronisms, but I'm glad I got to watch and hope others did!

Knitting Group, 2/15

I love my new knitting group! Everyone is so nice and working on such cool things!!

We'll be meeting every Sunday at 4pm at Orchard Valley Coffee in Campbell -- everyone's welcome!

Semiconductors

Attended a lecture on semiconductors today at The Tech. Here Tina introduces the speaker, Jeff Katz. It was a great presentation and will hopefully be just the start of a great series of events for Tech volunteers spotlighting different Tech volunteers. I video taped the lecture and hope that it comes out better than my last attempt (which had no sound).

Charlie Brown

It wouldn't be Valentine's Day without Charlie Brown waiting by the mailbox. [sigh]

Chocolate chip cookies are red.
Chocolate chip cookies are blue.
Chocolate chip cookies are sweet
So are you.

The Company

Tina and I went to see The Company starring Neve Campbell and the Joffrey Ballet company at the Los Gatos theater. While seriously short on plot, it is beautiful and the dancing is wonderful. There's a fabulous dance on a swing to music by Angelo Badalamenti (right out of Twin Peaks).

Chocolate Appreciation Day

Happy Valentine's Day -- or, as my friends and I like to think of it, Chocolate Appreciation Day!

Alan and Andy

Alan and Andy were in town visiting Alan and Margaret and we all had dinner at Harold and Annie's.

I brought lemon pound cake that I had made with some of the lemons from Tina's tree! After dinner we listened to Jonathan's Fresh Air interview (you can listen to the real audio version if you missed it on the air) and Alan and I did the Friday puzzle.

Happy Birthday Len

More birthdays! Mom and Bill surprised his father Len at the Y in Westport, where he works out 3 times a week, with cupcakes for his 94th birthday. He got a round of applause from all the other exercisers.

Happy Birthday Len!

Digital Fortress

I had bought Mom Dan Brown's Digital Fortress for Hanukkah and she recently sent me back a copy. I have to admit I couldn't put it down. Its a really quick read (helped by the fact that most chapters are only a couple of pages so its way too easy to tell yourself you'll just read one more... and then another...) However, I felt that the codes it was based on were too obvious and given away to the reader way before the characters finally figured them out, and the premise isn't as interesting as his DaVinci Code or Angels and Demons. It'd be a great airplane read though -- you'd be across the country in no time.

Happy Birthday Dad!!

Today's my Dad's birthday! Happy Birthday Dad! Here's a photo of him from when we were in Paris in January.

Wednesday on Fresh Air

Thank you to Margaret who just posted in the comments that my uncle Jonathan will be on NPR's Fresh Air tomorrow!! (Mom forgot to mention that!) Everyone be sure to listen!! Here on KQED (88.5), Fresh Air is on at 1pm and 7pm.

Striped Scarf

Finished my grey and white striped scarf tonight during American Idol (one of the finalists goes to SJSU!).

I still need a lot more practice, but it was fun to work on (took almost two weeks). I lost the yarn labels so I'll have to go back to the store and figure out what yarn it was, but it was on my #8 needles.

I also got my Stich n' Bitch book from Amazon in the mail today (though i said the title out loud at The Tech last week and almost got in a world of trouble), so hopefully I'll learn some new tricks to make things come out better. I also stopped into Knitting Arts, the knitting store in Saratoga, which is amazing! (I just bought some bigger needles for the next project.)

Happy Birthday Karen

Happy Birthday to Karen!!!

Book Group!

Today was the first meeting of our new book group!

I forgot to take the picture until after Marisa already left, but here are Laura, Brenda, Tina, Ellen and I with a pile of books, mugs of tea, and lots of cookies and brownies.

We talked about books, movies, tv shows, history, religion, and a little bit of everything!

Rather than all reading one particular book, we thought we'd all just come prepared to talk about some of the books we've liked and be able to hear about a wide range of different books.

Here are some of the books that I noted that I wanted to look into:

• Leap of Faith by Queen Noor
• The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
• Paradise by Toni Morrison
• The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings by Edgar Allan Poe
• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (to re-read)
• Contact by Carl Sagan
• Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub
• Violin by Anne Rice (I recommended her The Witching Hour series.)
• The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje
• Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley (which I've been meaning to get to for years!)
• The Harlot by the Side of the Road by Jonathan Kirsch
• Red Azalea, Becoming Madame Mao, and Empress Orchid: A Novel by Anchee Min
• New book by the author of Girl with A Pearl Earring: The Lady and the Uniocorn by Tracy Chevalier
• All the Presidents' Children: Triumph and Tragedy in the Lives of America's First Families by Doug Wead
• Mysteries by Ruth Rendell and P.D. James
• I Claudius (though I'm not sure what version we were talking about. Tina?)
• Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith

Thank you all for coming and for the great book suggestions! Feel free to add more by commenting here!

Dean Delegates

I ran to be a delegate for Dean today! I had to leave before they counted the ballots, but I don't expect to have made the top 3 women -- and even then, we would only get to go to the Convention if Dean wins over 15% in our congressional district. But it was fun to go and to meet new Dean supporters and feel good about the campaign.

My camera batteries died, so this was the only picture I was able to take. Of the 49 eligible voters, I think 23 of us were running for the 5 delegate spots.

Here's my little speech:

My name is Emily Reich and I'm running to be a Dean delegate because I believe that we'll all remember this campaign as an important turning point in Democratic politics and I would be proud to be a small part of that.

I believe that I can represent the young people who have played such an important role in this campaign and whose energy and faith we need to carry our party through to the White House.

At the early Meetups I attended and on the blogs and email lists that have fueled the movement, I have been continually struck by the numbers of new voters and activists who have for the first time understood that they too could make a difference if they got involved.

I believe that we need to take the message of the Dean campaign to Boston -- to stand tall on the convention floor and make sure that the Democratic Wing of the Democratic Party has a strong voice.

I've worked at two DNC conventions-- I've been on the floor with the delegations and behind the scenes, and I hope that you'll vote for me today to be one of those voices.

It was definitely an interesting experience -- and hey, you can't win if you don't run!

Brian and Laurel

My step-brother (Bigger) Brian and and step-sister-in-law Laurel are on the front page of the NY Times!!!

Love Letters

Tonight Lifetime showed a tv version of one of my favorite plays of all time, A.R. Gurney's Love Letters, starting Laura Linney and Steven Weber. I've seen it performed a couple of different times on stage (my favorite is still when Mr. Decker and Ms. Luster -- two of my high school English teachers -- performed the play for us.) It always makes me cry.

Thanks Mom for calling and telling me it was on tonight!

Today I was a Children's Librarian!

Had tons of fun today on the children's reference desk at the Gilroy Public Library. Looked up a lot of Pokemon and Yugioh videos, helped kids use the Internet, found books on cheerleading, missions, sign language and all sorts of other interesting things.

Sorcery and Cecelia

Finished Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot: Being the Correspondence of Two Young Ladies of Quality Regarding Various Magical Scandals in London and the Country by Caroline Stevermer and Patricia C. Wrede and am going to pack it up and mail it to Carrie H. for Chocolate Appreciation Day (aka Valentine's Day) since I think it will appeal to her Jane Austen sensibilities (with a bit of magic thrown in for fun.)

Internship, Day 1

Had my first chance at being a Reference Librarian today down in Gilroy! Didn't get to answer too many questions, but I'll be back there tomorrow for more! :)

Congrats to Eduard!

Congrats to Eduard for being cast as the Coach Van Buren in the Greens Farms Academy production of Damn Yankees!!!

Spring Semester

Had my first class of the semester today -- Online Searching. Its mostly an online class, with only a handful of actual class meetings. My other class, Reference, has its first class meeting next Monday night.

I'd better get to work on the reading that's already been piling up and a couple of assignments.

200!

Woo hoo! That was entry #200! A milestone! Plus I got 4 comments from knitting buddies!

Timeline

BobbiLynn lent me her copy of Timeline by Michael Crichton. I loved it and immediately had to write to Hanna because its closely related to her own projects (without the dangerous time travel, as far as I know). It reads a bit like a movie script and makes me want to see the movie (though everyone says it's awful).

Thanks BobbiLynn for the great recommendation (see, my book group idea is already paying off!)

Big Fish

Rather than staying home and watching the Super Bowl, Ellen and I went out and saw Big Fish. I'm so glad I finally got to see it! I thought it was great and really beautiful to watch.

People to Knit With!

Just got back from the first meeting of our new Stich n' Bitch group at Orchard Valley Coffee in Campbell. It was so much fun to have people to knit with!

Here's the group so far, working on two scarfs, two hats, and a baby blanket: