neue Welle

by Donna on April 30th, 2004

Intead of exercising, I watched Bed and Board. I am working my way through the Antoine Doinel series backwards. The first movie I watched was the last film of the series, Love on the Run. In my Netflix queue are Stolen Kisses, Love at Twenty, and 400 Blows. Over the weekend I will watch Purple Noon. Hopefully The Barfoot Contessa will get here today so I can watch that too. The movies in my immediate queue are: The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Salome / Lot in Sodom: Double Feature, and 8 1/2. So far I am loving Netflix. I remember I once went to Blockbuster and asked if they had 8 1/2 to rent–you know where they pointed me, right? Yes, over to the case with 9 1/2 Weeks.

Now Introducing…

by Donna on April 29th, 2004

:: Dust Designs ::

My dear friend Erin asked me to help her hitchhike along the information superhighway and the result is her new Web page: dustdesigns.net! Erin possesses an artistic soul but she is trapped working a boring day job. She dreams of sharing her art with the world for a small exchange of dollars via paypal. Won’t you help her make this dream come true? Ask her to paint a picture of your house or pet! Just email her a picture and she will transform it into a beautiful piece of artwork. Think of what a wonderful gift a painting makes! Mother’s Day is right around the corner! Hey, I bet she might even give a small discount if you mention you came from donnaville!

Flickety Flick

by Donna on April 27th, 2004

Last night I went to the Inn of the Hawk for their new dish, the New Orleans-inspired muffuletta. It was very tasty!
In the mail I received my first two DVD’s from NetFlix: Bed & Board and Purple Noon. I think I am going to really like this concept of renting DVDs. Whenever I rent from Blockbuster, I rack up so many late fees, I could just buy the DVD. Has anyone ever seen Purple Noon? Such a disturbing movie. It still haunts me. Why do I want to see it again?

New To Do List
1. CLEAN BEDROOM
2. CLEAN OFFICE
3. CLEAN CLOSET
A cluttered living space leads to a cluttered mind.

I have gotten better. The living room, dining room and kitchen remain immaculate. I really work hard to keep them clean. And since I moved, I have really worked hard at not stagnating. Believe me, I could stare at a wall for weeks if left to my own devices. Instead, I have opted towards a more active life. What helped me is an article I read about Morita Therapy where instead of asking “Why don’t you want to clean your room?” and “How does it make you feel living in such a cluttered space?” Dr. Morita instead says: “JUST CLEAN YOUR DARN ROOM!” I like this and when I just want to sit and veg but know I need to load the dishwasher, I say to myself: “MORITA SAY: DO IT!” And I do it. Kind of like when I am at a meeting and I say to myself, “Be like Emma Peel!” and suddenly I gain the composure and confidence I was missing. So tonight I will do it– I will clean my bedroom and office because Morita say: DO IT and Emma would never live in such a pig sty.

Shake your bon bon

by Donna on April 26th, 2004

I accomplished so much! Three loads of laundry! I vacuumed. I painted. I swept. I straightened. I even worked out! Trampolined to the A Man and a Woman theme, VersaClimbed to Leavin’ on a Jet Plane, some Chuck Berry song, Dusty’s Son of a Preacher Man, Neil Diamond’s Girl, You’ll be a Woman Soon, Joplin’s Take a Piece of my Heart, Donnie and Marie’s I’m a little bit County, I’m a little bit Rock and Roll, and ended on Duran Duran’s New Moon on Monday. I can’t believe how much I improved in just one day.

Last night I had a dream I found a time machine. It was in a hotel’s elevator. I jumped inside and found myself in the 1950’s at a Roy Orbison concert. His words wrapped around me and I felt an incredible peace. Instead of embracing it, I knew that I couldn’t thoroughly enjoy listening to Roy without my father and so I jumped back into the elevator to get my dad. He was quite incredulous but came back with me. As soon as we appeared at the concert I noticed a penny at my feet. It was standing on end. A great wind came and knocked it over. Roy’s voice disappeared and everything went dark. I awoke.

Sweating to an odd mix of music

by Donna on April 25th, 2004

I worked out last night! A few days ago, Lisa asked my father for his old VersaClimber and little trampoline. My mother was only too happy to get rid of them and Lisa set them up in the garage. Last night I brought my old boom box (circa 1985) and favorite cassette tape out to the garage and I moved my body! I jumped on the trampoline to John Denver and Placido Domingo’s Perhaps Love. Then for the Culture Club’s Karma Chameleon and Katrina and the Wave’s Walking on Sunshine I VersaClimbed. My muscles started to ache when Bob Marley’s Buffalo Soldier came on so I moved back to the trampoline. I started to feel a little better and so I moved back to the VersaClimber for The Toreador Song from Carmen. That just about finished me so I went inside and finished the evening by doing crossword puzzles.

Today’s To Do List
1. LAUNDRY (Darks, Bedsheets, Towels)
2. BILLS
3. Clean bedroom (Closet!, find place for albums, organize drawers)
4. Straighten dining room, living room, kitchen
5. VACUUM
6. Paint moulding that was chipped by the men who put in the new hallway floor.
7. Retrieve packed summer clothes.
8. Expense Reports (March & April)

dingo ate my baby

by Donna on April 24th, 2004

Last night I went to the 30th birthday party of a fellow I barely know. I wasn’t invited, I went as my mom’s date. Rob and my mom work together and she felt strange going to his surprise party alone especially since she thought there would be many 30-year-olds present. As it turned out, most everyone was either family members or work buddies. It was nice seeing Rob again after so many years. We went to middle school, junior high, and high school together. He was one of the popular kids; I was not. We never spoke or had any interaction other than passing each other in the hallway. Yet, I always remembered him as a nice young man mainly because unlike the other popular kids, he never tormented me or made my life difficult. He still struck me as a nice guy as I watched him interact with his little nephews and nieces. Speaking of kids, there were a ton running around. They were so adorable and I was reminded of my ephemeral fertility. Like sands through an hourglass… Regardless, I am not ready for a child right now anyway. Heck, I couldn’t even handle a puppy and let me tell you that is all Lisa talks about any more. She is like a 5-year-old. “Donna, can we get a puppy, huh? huh? huh?” “Please, Donna, let’s get a puppy!” “If we had a puppy we could name it Dingo, isn’t that a terrific name for a puppy?” A puppy would be nice, but I am just so fearful of the major responsibility. And I know that as much as Lisa wants a puppy, I would end up walking it, picking up its poop, feeding it, etc… Still, Dingo is such a cute name.

butterfly kisses

by Donna on April 22nd, 2004

I had such a lovely evening. My dear friend Erin came over and together we got her a domain name and a Web Site Provider. She is going to sell her incredible artwork over the Internet! Stay tuned for updates!
Also, the Mike Nesmith wool hat I knitted arrived in England and now sits atop the head of a very talented singer-songwriter. Check out his Web page. Go to the gallery to see a picture of him wearing the hat I knitted!
Lastly, DeLorenzo’s Pizza (a.ka. the very best pizza in the entire world) has finally put up a Web site designed by my very favorite maitre d’ Mr. John Beck! Check it out!

One more thing…. I signed up for Netflix. I am slightly disappointed they didn’t have Algiers for rent. Regardless, the first three movies that are coming my way are: Purple Noon (which I’ve seen but I want Lisa to experience it), Bed and Board, and The Barefoot Contessa.

Things

by Donna on April 21st, 2004

Monday I went to the County and saw Pépé le Moko. It starred Jean Gabin as a gangster hiding out in the Casbah. The police are closing in and he feels caged. What brings him out of hiding? The love of a beautiful woman, what else! It was a good movie. Now I must see Algiers with Charles Boyer and Hedy LaMarr to see how well the Americans remade it. Did you know that Pepe le Pew is based on Charles Boyer’s portrayal of Pepe le Moko? Le mew, le pant le pant, le puff le puff, le pant!

On Saturday I went to a few garage sales and bought a TV for $25.00!!! The screen is much larger than the one we have. I lugged it up to Lisa’s loft only to find that the TV only has a coaxial cable plug and our DVD player doesn’t. Tuesday evening I strode confidently into the local Radio Shack and said, “Point me in the direction of your RF modulators, my good man!” It cost more than the TV but I figure $55.00 in all is still a pretty good price for a TV that size.

Last night I had to turn on my overhead fan! Yes, it is getting warm! Finally! The fan hums as it goes round. Almost like a revving noise. My dreams were filled with Starsky and Hutch and the Duke boys zooming around in their respective 1976 Ford Gran Torino and 1969 Dodge Charger General Lee.

There are very few songs in which I know all the words. Sure I can sing along when a song is on the radio but without the musical accompaniment, I can’t ever remember what line comes next. The theme to the Dukes of Hazard I can sing from start to finish without even needing a note (of course, very few notes come from my mouth). Same is true for Sonny and Cher’s I Got you Babe and the theme to Josie and the Pussycats. I figure the reason is I was exposed to those songs on a nightly basis during my formative years. Reclining on the brown shag carpet, sucking on an Otter Pop, watching TV, those songs infiltrated my mind. I think they are keeping me hostage. Just two good ole’ boys, never meaning no harm, beats all you ever saw gettin’ in trouble with the law since the day they was born! Making their way, the only way they know how; that’s just a little bit more than the law will allow! (This is the verse most forget–>) Straightening the curves, flattening the hills, some day the mountains might get’em but the law never will! Just two good ole boys, wouldn’t change if they could; fighting the system like two modern day Robin Hoods!

Wow

by Donna on April 18th, 2004

What a weekend! I accomplished so much!!

1. Cleaned the garage door
2. Scrapped the mud from the back patio
3. Bagged the leaves from the side patio
4. Washed the green gross stuff from the siding by the garage.
5. Bought and assembled a grill
6. Vacuumed and straightened the dining room and living room

Items that still need doing
1. Laundry (at least 2 loads)
2. Go through papers in office
3. Sort through CDs and organize
4. Grocery shopping (that’s a list unto itself!)
5. Go through summer clothes and pack up winter clothes

intactivist

by Donna on April 17th, 2004

Some woman emailed me requesting I mention her in my Weblog and link to her fundraising page. Apparently she is training for a marathon to raise money for the American Stroke Association. Gosh, I am so old that I remember when people went door to door collecting for one charity or another. Times they are a-changin’. There you go, Lori! Maybe one of my 4 regular visitors will stop by and donate.
I didn’t donate to Lori’s charity, mainly because I am tight-fisted, although I do have some causes I support. For instance diabetes. I went to a couple diabetes walkathons with a friend who wore an insulin pump. We’re not friends anymore but I continue to use the American Diabetes Association address labels on my envelopes.
The cause I would take as my platform if I was suddenly crowned Miss America or somehow found myself First Lady is ending the systematic genital mutilation of newborn males. If I ever marry and multiply, there is no way on this green earth I will let any doctor touch my son’s Zauberstücke. Of course, I have no interest in having sons, I would much prefer daughters. Hopefully, in 30 years when I am ready for children, it will be possible to choose their sex.