Clips of interest :)

"Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story"

And all the enthusiasts can relate to this...

Let's see...

Year ago yesterday we met for the first time, in flesh that is, as we had been exchanging emails for one month and calling to each other (or rather he had been calling me most of the time) about the same time (he was gentleman and waited until I felt comfortable giving my number, which was, even I don't know does he know, one of the positive traits in him during the getting-to-know-you process - I am shy, even no one ever believes it). I remember how excited I got when I heard that he had booked the plane tickets to visit me (only about  1½ weeks after I sent my first, response, email to him) and how slowly time passed after that.

I still remember how handsome he looked when he walked out of the baggage claim (but honestly he has only got more handsome since, I don't know how he does it), how good he smelled when we hugged, what he wore (that sky blue T-shirt just looked so good on him) and how much I wanted to touch him when we were standing in the cafeteria line at the airport before heading to, then, my place. I still remember how beautiful his smile looked and how good it felt to sit next to him, holding his hand when we sat in the taxi on our way to my place.
Little did we know that year later we would already be living together, that we had lived as man and wife for five months already. (Little did we know that we wouldn't be spending our first anniversary together, but separated by Europe - which isn't that bad as we have modern tools of communication and he is coming back home as soon as he can.)

It has been a wonderful year with my Darling Wonderful and he is a real blessing in my life. And it makes me wonder how suitable nicknames you can invent for someone you have never met and whom you only have knew few days: as Mr. Wonderful is his first nickname (which has been followed by variations of Dear) and I still do call him that, for a reason - and my intention is to call him by that name for decades to come.

(AnneR., who knows. )

Interestingly enough I realised yesterday that last, and excluding this one, only, one year anniversary I have had with someone was almost ten years ago. So, even I am commitment kind of person I haven't had long relationships (though, what does it tell? Just that I don't stay in a relationship because I "have to", I stay because I want to and because it works.)

And I have become a firm believer of online dating sites: at least one of them worked, once - and that is enough for me (funnily enough it was one which allows freeriders to contact others, too).
Apparently what they say is true: you just need to kiss enough frogs to find your prince, in our case King.

Things to get (now I only need 72 hours for a day)!

Graphs by Barbara & Cheryl - these are mostly simply awesome and there is one design I have adored in fellow stitcher's gallery, but they didn't tell me the designer or the name of the design: Jacque's View (it looks ten times better stitched).

Now we just need to win the lottery - or Mr. Wonderful has to find a very well paid job.

Ok, I am just kidding. No matter what I will continue working until we have our first child (G-d willing, knowing my health issues (prayers regarding children are welcomed - if you believe in them)).

When it comes to spirituality...

It's interesting to notice the change in me: I have and am getting more spiritual (I wouldn't say religious as I am not member of any organized religion) since Mr. Wonderful came into my life. Or maybe it's just that despite the difference in our belief bases (basically the main difference is that he considers Jesus as Messiah whereas I don't) his love for G-d is contagious, or rather helps my hidden religious side to come out because the atmosphere is accepting.

Basically that difference isn't visible in our daily life as we both avoid pork, we both avoid blood, we don't use intoxicating substances in excess (actually I am becoming an absolutist with my current interest towards alcoholic beverages), we don't believe in birth control in committed relationship (yup, kids would be very welcomed ) etc..
The visible difference comes from our backgrounds: he comes from family where G-d was part of their daily life, I come from agnostic family and I was already in schoool when I realised that religions do exist.

He has really changed my life in so many ways, but then, I got what I was praying for:  a good man to share my life and have family with, and eventually, in July 2008, he sent me a message and the rest is history.

Do I sound sappy? Good, I feel like it.

I intended to share some lovely stash in this entry, but I guess I have to do it later as I should head to bed.

And she had S.E.X.!

But, I didn't fail my goal of not buying more stash as this stash is for a new project, a Mystery SAL to-be, organized by Lady Periphaeria... (More about it later, but quite soon.)
I have been hanging around at Hand-dyedfibers.com's forum for a while and drooled after all the lovely VC silks in the store... then I went and designed something just to try certain style and it ended up to be a project which demanded silks - and as I don't have that much experience on Vikki's silks I decided to give them a try.

"To try" may not be an approriate term for the whole purchase: I bought 31 five yard skeins of six stranded silks. (The order has already been shipped!)

Family can shock you

When I left to grocery store yesterday I turned lights off... and when I came home I saw a light in my bedroom window.
I can say that I was a bit "WTH!", but as I wanted to know why the light was on I went home and what did I found? bits_2_whole had popped by to fix my desktop computer.

Lesson learnt: giving your key to your family members can lead to confusion.

Another thing I have learnt during last two days is that scripts which are claimed to be easy by their developers rarely are so - but it seems to me that I eventually found a suitable (easy enough, clear enough and has all the basics I need) online community script.

A tease, aren't I? *grin*

Plan for this weekend is...

Is short and sweet:

1. Rewrite all the links and move Periphaeria's site to it's new domain (Keep your thumbs up that it goes smoothly.) - I have to abandon Sitesled, that darned thing has been inaccessible for a day now...
2. Go on a date in Saturday. (Time of miracles is not over yet, it seems.)

I'll provide the domain when it's working (it takes from two to three days to work, according to my host).
Actually this was just making the decision earlier than I thought: I had in mind that some day I will register domain and get PD's site hosted by paid host. In the end it may actually be good turn as now I can combine everything under same domain: PD's site, blog, galleries... and I will probably have better shopping features at some point too.

And I get to learn all kinds of new stuff. ^^

In search of...

Good, free (or trial) CSS previewer. Couldn't find any and I'd really use one. (I'd prefer to see what I'm doing.) Not that I'd do any more editing today, I found a migraine from somewhere...

Angela, yes, I do have a cam, but remember what I have told? I use free version of Trillian and it doesn't support video conferencing. *grin*

Back again!

Whole story in here.
Otherwise... it's great to be back! And I've some serious catching up to do during weekend, so there'll be lurker in blogs all around...

O_o

My ISP has customer service!

Whole story short: when we separated there was no change in customer info of this connection (in other words: it was left under Dan's name), and it was ok with him, "As long as you pay the bills". During these two years there weren't any problems, and as I know everything necessary about Dan I was able to handle possible problems with the connection.
Then... I called to technical support, as mentioned in previous entry, and the guy called me back and told me that they're changing the connection type in our house from HomePNA to ADSL. As he was unaware does the protocol change (well, duh, of course!) I gave a call to customer service and asked about the change... turns out they had sent modems and all necessary info to customers, but the problem was... in Finnish Post. They had delivered the parcel, but to Dan's new address and not to me (bills do come to my mailbox anyway, isn't it wonderful? *grin*), and as Dan is not most patient person, and has bad habit to assume the worst about me sometimes (even he knows there are things I'd never do he seems to assume that I can change), he had sent the box back and cancelled whole friggin' account (by accident, I presume, as his practical skills are even worse than mine and he has problems to understand what he reads - or he lacks stamina to read everything, anyway...) from end of August...
Fortunately this extremely nice customer service person did her work. She called to Dan, had the account cancellation cancelled, changed the account under my name and sent the modem to me (it should be here in next week).

And... when I'm back I'm not with that 256kB/s line, it'll be 1MB/s. It's only 5 euros more (24,90€) per month and I couldn't resist the temptation.

This'll also mean that I'm in the brink of building WLAN for myself (Demon's Den as network name sounds good, don't you think? (As most of you know me under nickname of female demon)) which means that I'll be using mostly my laptop and old desktop may become a server...
Then I only need to connect computers to my stereos (to be able to listen from my music library trough stereos and scrobble it to Last.FM) and I'm in seventh heaven.

I just hope nothing goes wrong anymore.

Dreams, offline life and random thoughts

Couple of nights I've seen dreams in which I'm in Bangkok, but leaving from there. And last night I made it to the plane. It was a close call, but I made it.
I think my mind is saying something to me, I think it's really letting go.

Watched Lion King last night while stitching (telly is finally in the bedroom so I can sit on my bed, watch old videos (picture quality is dreadful after you get used to DVD quality) and stitch - with cats, of course), and old monkey said something to Simba which caught my ear... "Past hurts, but it's up to you do you end up learning from it or forgetting it" (very faintly based on memory, it may not be correct (it's translated from Finnish anyway), but that was the idea in it).

ISP

Gave another angry call to my ISP, waiting the customer service guy to call me back. I'm in the phase where I'd like to whack someone, not because of not having 'net, but because they try to claim that they have piles of things to do and it may delay preparing... It's summer, for crying out loud! And they have never had any difficulties to fix what ever has been broken in hours or few days. This is first black out of over a week.

Something I thought about last night

It's kind of somber thought, but yesterday, while watching movies and stitching I had this haunting thought... I begun to think how I was after Sol and how I am after Wolfie...
Difference being that after Sol I was practically dead emotionally and physically for months. I had no need to be close to anyone, had no need to be touched, had no need for intimacy... before I met Wolfie. And after him I seem to be more alive than I've bee in ages. I miss being touched, intimacy... I miss the whole scale of it.

They say love can break you, it can. They also say that love can heal you, I agree.
But I also say that it scars you always, no matter what, and sometimes I wonder what's the point.

Withdrawals from blogs, other news and SBQ

I haven't been able to read any blogs in days, because of the connection here. Which is supposed to be 2048/512kB, but is usually slower than my 256kB/s - if it's working at all. (Which is about the eight wonder of the world. *grin*)
So, don't wonder if I'm not lurking around. I just can't.

The problem lies either in ISPs end or in the router... (But hey, do I love WLAN or do I love it - let me think... *grin*)

In other news

1. I've been stitching. And actually accomplished something, though I begin to doubt will I even reach my goal of ½ of Alter Echo...
   Pictures will follow when I remember to ask from Wolfie that USB cable for the camera (or cable for the scanner).
   I'd say I'm quite happy with the colours I chose for it (for the sampler that is *grin*). It'd have been bit boring with only the given two colours, 902 brings some depth to it.

2. I've lost 2 cms from my waist - in six days. And I've been eating like a horse. (One of the reasons being that he's taking care of my eating. I just wont get hungry. I can't. I've no time. (Which is wonder in itself as he's not around most of the day anyway.))
   Wolfie said that it's Thailand which causes that (he has lost quite some weight since he came here, not so many months ago, and in his own opinion he eats like a horse (though he exercises regularly)). Something in the food, or in the climate or maybe it's just caused by little green men.

3. I'm still alive after eating cherries, strawberry yoghurt, odd-little-fruit-he's-unable-to-translate-in-English (I think it's custard apple (tastes bit like canned grapes))... and too much durians and mangos. (And those wonderful fried seaweed chips with chili... mouthwatering thought.)
   Not to mention eating in one little eatery in nearby soi, which might be something to dread to most tourists. *evil grin* But where locals eat... I eat.

4. I'm drinking too much coffee again. But he has good coffee around... (Though I think we need to head to Starbucks soon. I've drank almost all the coffee (caffeinated one).)

5. When I'm in the move alone no one seems to think that I speak Thai. When we're out together most people seem to assume that we both speak Thai, or at least Wolfie does.
   Silly thing in it is that neither of us really looks local (FYI: North European and South American) - in sense of looking Asian.

And then... for something completely different.

This week's

Stitching Bloggers Question

was suggested by Vash and is:

"Have you ever used a magnifying glass while stitching? If so, did you find it helpful?"

I haven't but when I was doing my first (and currently only one) hardanger piece I realized that it'd be good to have. And I'm quite sure that if I get into high counts (high being 40< HPI) I might need one, just to prevent my eyes from tiring. (Glasses help to certain extent, but aren't magnifiers anyway...)

The Geek Code v3.12

-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
Version: 3.12
GO>J d+ s:+ a- C+++(++++) UL?>++++ L>+++ E? W++>+++ N* w PS++ PE Y+ t+>++ 5++ X R* tv(--) b+++ DI++++ D+ G e*>+++ h+>- r x+(**)>+++
------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------

Looks odd? Create your own.

And what's new?

From New York Daily News:

Nerds make better lovers

Ready for a real relationship? Ditch the pretty boys and grab yourself a geek

By TRACEY LOMRANTZ

"Christina Aguilera recently traded in piercings for petticoats, apparently making the usual Marilyn Monroe morph. But there's more than meets the eye: Sure, she's blond, buxom and sweet-voiced now, but she's also emulating the classic bombshell in matters of the heart.

You see, Aguilera's fiance, like Monroe's husband, playwright Arthur Miller, is kind of a geek.

When Aguilera announced her engagement to smarty-pants music executive Jordan Bratman in February, the 24-year-old pop star demonstrated a tried-and-true dating trick. Geeks have got the goods.

Bratman, with his scrawny frame and oversize ears, has mastered the music industry at just 26 and is Romeo enough to have stolen Aguilera's heart (as well as inspired her new demure-coquette look).

"A nerd is an excellent provider and a guy who puts you first," says E. Jean Carroll, Elle magazine's love and sex advice columnist. "He'll turn out to be a great father and a great husband."

And, she insists that a woman who is willing to stick it out with a nerd and get past his quirks will be handsomely rewarded. "Don't give up on him too fast," she said. "If you stick with him, he's going to turn out to be really great."

If Hollywood is any indication, then yes, he will. This month, reality TV celebrates geek love with two shows: Ashton Kutcher's "Beauty and the Geek," which pairs braniacs with bimbos for a "social experiment," and the latest installment of "Average Joe," in which a pretty girl woos not-so-studly dudes (airing on June 22).

On Fox's "The O.C.," the nerdy Seth Cohen (played by Adam Brody) didn't just land the adorable Summer Roberts (Rachel Bilson) on TV - he managed to get the girl in real life, too. Bilson (and her character) managed to look past the slicked-down hair to find the witty guy beneath. Cohen's obsession with comic books? Her character deems it sweet. Brody's nasal drawl? Bilson doesn't seem to mind.

How can a savvy girl land a geek of her own? Spencer Koppel, a self-proclaimed geek who attends crossword-puzzle tournaments on weekends, has made it easy for girls with their eye on the prize with his "Geek to Geek" dating service, www.gk2gk.com.

Members can meet and select a perfect mate (guys with screen names like "thinkspecs" and "ivygrad") based on favorite board game and gadget instead of eye color, height and other categories the nerds might be lacking.

And according to Koppel, the pool is stocked with supreme sci-fi fans and accomplished intellects.

"I think geeks are more successful. They're happier in the work they do," Koppel said. "And they're pretty faithful people, because they're certainly grateful for anything they have."

When it comes to the between-the-sheets aspect of the relationship, Carroll agreed that a girl couldn't do much better than a less-than-perfect male specimen. "We've all been to bed with the guy who is worried about what he looks like, checking the mirror before he gets in bed," she said. "The nerd, gloriously, stunningly, perfectly, is into the woman. That right there is very stirring, sexually."

Tiger's purr-fect

It seems to be enough for the likes of goddess models and Hollywood A-listers. Tiger Woods has a geek-like drive for a stodgy sport, a fat bank account and Swedish model Elin Nordegren on his arm. David Arquette may not have the body of a Greek god, but he managed to land sexy former Friend Courteney Cox with his goofy humor and mismatched wardrobe.

For Scott Dennis, a 34-year-old teacher from Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, "geek" and "good guy" are synonymous - and he is both. Although some aspects of his personality make him what he called a "quintessential babe magnet" (former jock, drummer in a rock band), the real qualities that helped him land his girlfriend are the geeky ones.

"Do I know the difference between a knight and a pawn? Certainly," he says. "Am I familiar with the Four Move Checkmate? Well, maybe I am. ... But the truth is I'm a decent guy with diverse interests who actually offers authenticity in his relationships."

But to get to that authentic nerd, chic women have to be willing to
embrace their own inner geek and accept the guy for who he is, chess trophies and all. The caveat to mating with a geek, as some dating experts see it, is coming to terms with his less-than-studly looks and less-than-suave demeanor. All thoughts of embarrassment have to go out the window.

Andrea Lavinthal, who co-authored (with Jessica Rozler) "The Hookup Handbook," a young woman's guide to navigating the waters of singlehood, says that being sure of your choice of guy is first and foremost.

"Girls tend to worry about what their friends are going to think," she said, "and you have to get over it. You can't always be making excuses and apologies. Give him the respect he deserves, and don't always be assuming you're better than him."

She also said that not all girls are ready for a full-on geek relationship right from the start. Her book has a chapter devoted to "The Snufalufagus Hookup," the one that every girl wishes her friends didn't know about, and that she at first tries to deny happened. "In
many ways, it's the first foray into the nerdy guy thing," Lavintha said. "You're attracted to him because he doesn't screw around. Sure, it's fun to make out with the hot bartender, but you're not going to marry him."

Not falling for the fakes

Koppel, however, warns that unserious girls who prowl his site looking for a breadwinner should use caution - his members may be geeky, but they sure aren't stupid. "I think geeks are intelligent enough to be wary of the idea that an attractive woman is interested in them," he said. "They aren't as drawn to beauty as they are to intelligence, and wouldn't just accept a ditz."

It takes the right kind of girl to love a nerd. Kate Hammer, an NYU student, said she's just that kind of girl. "I have been snagged by nerd charms," she said.

"My ex and I bonded over 'Star Trek,' and on our first date at an amusement park, my current boyfriend impressed me with his intricate understanding of the physics of roller coasters. He's a mechanical engineer."

For a modern girl who is far from ditzy, the geek could be the mate who brings security and a load of eclectic interests to the relationship. Even the once-naughty Aguilera managed to find a guy who defines devotion and doesn't compete to be the sexiest one in the relationship. Clearly, it's what a girl wants."

Originally published on June 9, 2005

And I ask "What's new?". I've knew that for years, as a woman who fells only for nerdy guys I've always thought that. And for the same reasons.
In fact it seems to be harder to men in my life to be officially nerds than me to love one. There's "slight" dilemma.

Entry no. 295; various.

There's something seriously odd in my brains. And in Mozart.

I went to sleep about 4 hours ago and woke up (once again) completely sweaty, dieing of thirst and complete messed up. Don't remember dreams I saw that well, but I know they have been very scattered and without any sense (I usually have some sense in my dreams). Woke up totally confused and very cranky, just like I've used to wake up before I found out what influence that CD I mentioned has on me.
Last night I didn't listen it. I was too lazy and way too relaxed when I realized that CD player is not on and decided to play with my fate. Apparently I shouldn't have done it.

I'm in here now because I was unable to fall asleep again.

This has nothing to do with coffee consumption. I drank my last cup in about 6 hours before I went to bed, and I've been known as a person who has needed coffee to fall asleep.
Neither have I drank tea or anything with caffeine in it. Music doesn't affect to my sleeping either.

Unless it's Mozart. At least it really begins to look like it.

Anyway, while laying in bed I came to conclusion that my brains are so overactive during nighttime that it goes far above normal activity, and that causes sweating and thirst. Apparently I use quite much energy while sleeping... It'd be nice to know how restlessly I sleep without my daily Mozart fix.

Health.

Throat ache went away and is here again, so I think that in the end it's all about.. *tadaa*.... central heating, in other words air in this apartment is too dry for my tubes. I've to remember put my air humidifier on.

And after about five weeks stable phase it seems to me that my weight is going down again.

Blogging and some serious nerdiness.

I've developed a perverted dream... I've had this server project going on about year and a half (yes, I'm fast) and lately I've been dreaming about it again. Just because I've reached new level in my bloggerism: I want to have an independent blog. (Livejournal isn't actually "an independent blog" if you ask from me)
Software is free, but it needs server which runs PHP+MySLQ (freeware too, AFAIK). And that would mean that I should learn about gazillion things and after it we could ask "Why not study that stuff then as you seem to be so friggin' interested of it?".

Interesting issues indeed.

SOLAK.

I became familiar with aspect of "charity stitching" some months ago when I really begun to find my place in cross stitching communities around internet. As a known tree-hugger I liked the idea of it, but was very disappointed because most charities seem to be flooded with religious views (and quite fundamentalistic even (in my eyes at least)) and they're focused only to one place and to small groups of individuals (and when we mix charity and religious views it easily gets ugly and leads to discriminating of individuals with "wrong" beliefs....).
But then I was reading one previously mentioned blog and found link to SOLAK's site...

Nowadays I'm a member, so I think we all know what happened after I got to their site?