Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

I didn’t take a shower this morning.

I  normally take a shower every morning because if I don’t, I’m greasy and disgusting. Well, really only my face and hair are greasy and disgusting. I don’t shower the night before because normally, if I wash my hair and then go to bed, I wake up with greasy and disgusting hair. Because that 8 or so hours of sleep is enough time for my scalp to go “OH HEY WOAH NUH UH! IT’S OILY TIME!” and gross things up.

So I hear people talking about how they only shower/wash their hair once or twice a week and I just can’t wrap my mind around that. No, I don’t think they’re dirty or anything, but just… not having to shower constantly? Not having to scrub your scalp at least once a day? Having that much free time in the morning? Is that really… is that possible?

I woke up this morning and my hair was not greasy and oily and disgusting. I did not shower this morning. I had an extra 45 minutes and didn’t have to get dressed while still damp and very hurried. I was able to floss my teeth leisurely. A whole new world is opening up for me.

In short, cleaning my hair with baking soda and lemon juice really seems to be working out. I’m still tinkering with the amounts I use (I think I’ve been using too much baking soda) and want to get some squirt bottles so I can get the bs mixture on my roots and not on my hair. But yeah. I’m really liking this so far.

Some of you have commented saying that you’re thinking of going the same route. Here’s some tips that might help you:

• Start using shampoos and conditioners that don’t have silicone, dimethicone, or anything else ending in “cone” for at least a week. The silicone glues split ends back together. If you stope using a silicone based shampoo/conditioner then eventually the cones get stripped out and the split ends start splitting again. Split dry ends plus early greasy scalp can be really discouraging. I’d been using non-’con-containing shampoo and conditioner for several months so I think I was able to skip that ookiness entirely.
• If the baking soda doesn’t work for you, go back to shampoo but try watering it down some. Add more water to the mix every week or so until you kind of plateu, then try the baking soda again.
• Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) can darken light hair, so if you’re blonde, consider using lemon or lime juice. Likewise, citrus juice can lighten dark hair, so if you’re dark, use ACV.
• The acidic rinse is very important to seal the roughed up cuticle of your hair and normalize your hair’s pH balance. Don’t forget it. Also, ACV can make your scalp feel greasier so try to use it just on the ends of your hair.
• Rinse the acidic rinse very well or your hair can feel sticky.
• Don’t use too much baking soda, and use it only on your scalp and not on the body of your hair.
• If the ends (especially tips) of your hair get dry use a tiny amount of oil. I’ve heard both Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) and coconut oil recomended. Just barely wet your fingertips and stroke them through the ends only. Don’t use any on your scalp unless your scalp is really dry.
• A boar bristle brush will help spread the oil from your scalp/roots to the ends of your hair. I have a lot of fine hair and I seperate my dry hair into sections to brush it. If I just try to brush my hair, the hair on the bottom is untouched. Also, the brush does jack all for snarls/tangles. I’m trying to find a wooden comb to purchase, which should help with oil distribution and also work out snarls/tangles.

The first few times I used the baking soda, I made a paste and scrubbed it in because I was really greasy and had lots of sebum build up. Then I kept doing the same thing when I wasn’t as greasy. Folks online recomend using about a tablespoon of baking soda to a cup or two of water and I’m at a point now where that works really well, but if I get sebum build up again I’ll use the paste once or twice to clear my scalp.

The skin around my hairline, my shoulders, and my back is a lot clearer with smaller and less clogged pores, and I’ve only been doing this a few days.

My face is also super oily and has been since I was 7 years old or so. The more I try to strip off the extra oil, the oilier I get, which kind of makes sense. On a whim, last night I picked up some Castor Oil and tried The Oil Cleansing Method or OCM. I used three parts castor oil to 7 parts sunflower/flax seed oil I had lying around, and also added 3 drops of oregano essential oil and a splash of tea tree oil (the latter two are antibacterial). I was worried about being too oily (adding oil to oil? no way!) but I figured I could always, you know, wash my face afterwards if I needed to. I came out feeling clean and relaxed and my face wasn’t blotchy or overly dry. It was ever so slightly tacky, but not unpleasantly so. I woke up this morning and my face still felt clean and not excessively oily. Usually I wake up in the morning and can scrape off oil. I feel like I could rub my face on a piece of paper and the paper would turn translucent.

I think I am going to do the OCM once a week or as needed, with in between cleansings of Dr Bronners Pure Castille soap, possibly using diluted ACV as a toner (I sometimes get buildup on my ears with Dr Bronners soaps, which is weird).

I’m also trying to transition to a more natural deoderant for my armpits. I’m allergic to most deoderants, and sensitive to a lot of chemicals and scents/perfumes anyway, so the simpler the products I put on my skin and in my body the better.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Nesko and I have been dating each other for about ten years and have lived together for almost four years, not counting all the times he’d “stay the night” (read: come over and not leave for a week or so) before we signed a lease together. We got engaged a few months before moving in together and then didn’t really rush towards getting married. We’d been together for so long and felt so complete as it was, that we didn’t see the need (other than for legal reasons) to get married. We were already committed to each other.

But then we did get married, and even though we both expected everything to be the same, it wasn’t. We were nervous before the ceremony, we were giddy during it, ecstatic after. We both walked around for a month or so after just giggling from time to time and calling each husband and wife because we could. I still get a thrill out of looking over at Nesko and seeing not my boyfriend, not my fiance, but my husband. It’s exciting and cool and awesome.

And gay folks in California can now have the same exciting, cool, and awesome marriage feeling.

That’s right. California has finally declared gay marriage legal. Hopefully the rest of the country will soon follow.

“…(R)etaining the designation of marriage exclusively for opposite sex couples and providing only a separate and distinct designation for same-sex couples may well have the effect of perpetuating a more general premise - now emphatically rejected by this state - that gay individuals and same-sex couples are in some respects “second-class citizens” who may, under the law, be treated differently from, and less favorably than, heterosexual individuals or opposite-sex couples,” the opinion authored by Chief Justice Ronald M. George said.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

What the hell, people? Who is doing google searches for “Nesko hair” and why?

Dang, I am baffled. BAFFLED.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Hey, Chicago people. I don’t know if this is every Chicago location, or going on outside of Chicago, or what. But right now, there’s people from National City Bank giving out free coffee at the Caribou Coffee in Lakeview (Ashland and School? I think? It’s across the street from the Lakeview Whole Foods Market). Apparently they are also giving out free baked goods/pastries as well. I got a fancy ass coffee drink, so it’s not just black coffee. It’s good stuff. Other people walked out with fancy coffee drinks and scones/muffins/etc.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

I’ve been thinking for a long time (years, actually) about trying a baking soda scrub and apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice) rinse for my hair. I’m sensitive (or out and out allergic) to a lot of chemicals and scents and things, so using something simple like that really appeals to me. But I have this paranoia about being dirty or greasy, and for a long time had a lingering suspicion that cleaning my hair with something other than shampoo wouldn’t work because hey! It’s shampoo! Right?

Then a co-worker mentioned in passing that she’s been using baking soda and ACV for four weeks now. Her hair looks great. If she hadn’t mentioned something, I would never have known.

So today I mixed up some baking soda and water to make a paste, diluted some lemon juice in warm water, and went at my hair.

My hair is still damp so it’s hard to tell what the results are.  I’m worried that the hair near my scalp is oilier than it “should” be (and thus will look like crap) but the longer hair that doesn’t directly touch my scalp feels soft and nice. It actually feels kind of like I conditioned it, but I didn’t use conditioner. I also rubbed some of the baking powder paste on my face and that felt pretty nice.

Stay tuned for more gripping updates about my hair. I’m pretty oily and frankly, not having to wash my hair every 12 hours is really appealing. So hopefully this will work out.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Nesko and I have barely seen each other in quite a long while, most of our time together being spent in the mornings as he drives me to work before heading over to work with his dad on getting an apartment rental ready. I come home at a reasonable hour and he drags his tired self home much much later. I decided that tonight would be a good night to go on a date, since our weekend is entirely booked. I got cleaned up this morning, spritzed on some perfume, and grabbed one of my nice blouses, then realized that I had no clean black pants or jeans. The only clean pants I have are brown. My nice blouses? All are black and white patterned.  I made due with an emergency substitution (olive tank top with embroidery around the neckline, red cardigan, classier looking than it sounds), made harder by the fact that most of my shirts are dirty. Set behind schedule by the mad dash for clean shirt, Nesko and I headed out.

Where he revealed that his socks didn’t match and he wasn’t wearing any underpants. Because none of our damn clothes are clean.

Lest you think we’re incredible slobs, we’ve tried to do laundry several times. But there’s only one washer and one dryer for our apartment building. The people directly below us have 2 kids and there’s like 14 people living in the basement. Every time we’ve tried to sneak a load of laundry in, the washer’s been in use. So things have piled up and gotten out of hand, and I’m getting to the point where I’d sell a kidney for a washer and dryer in the unit we live in. Because even when the washer and dryer aren’t being hogged? Sometimes they don’t work. Plus it’s $2 per wash. Yeah, the dry is free, but I have a LOT of clothes that are hang dry and that’s a pretty effing expensive wash.

So date night tonight is going to consist of pizza, a movie, and folding laundry on the couch. Together.

Aww.

In other news, I’ve bagged up three garbage bags full of clothes that don’t fit me right or that I haven’t worn in a long time and they’re sitting in the hall waiting to be dropped off at AmVets or something. I’m kind of having mild anxiety about OMG WHAT IF I NEEEEEEEEED THAT STUFF but for reals, a lot of these items? I haven’t worn in ten years. I did sort some of it into the costume bin, but the rest is going. My closet is a lot emptier now and I’m going to cycle in quality clothing that fits well and I will look and feel better. The end. I’m trying to do the same with N’s stuff, but holy crap does he cling to faded shirts and butt-holed jeans. Yeah, ok, I get that he does a lot of dirty work and bummy clothes are good for that, but some of his stuff is just awful and hasn’t been worn the entire time I’ve known him and he won’t give it up. Because he might OMG NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED it someday. It’s a work in progress.

I think I’ve weeded the bookshelves of as much as possible. If I do any more I’ll bleed. The only way most of the remaining books will be shed is if we move overseas or something. It feels kind of good to get rid of stuff. My paternal grandmother is a hoarder and my parents both tend to accumulate stuff, although it’s well within normal bounds. After the multiple floods* and the fire that we all went through when I was a kid, I tend to be a bit clingy with items as well. I’ve lost so much stuff that had MEANING! that now I’m leery of letting anything go. So getting rid of clothes and books and old paper and stuff is terrifying and also liberating. It helps that I’m in a more stable place than I’ve been in a long time. Not that my life was all huge turmoil and drama or anything, but N and I have reached a really quiet place of long term commitment and understanding and so it’s easier to see what’s important and what isn’t important, and to let go of stuff.

*This warrants a whole other post, because there was real nastiness involved with the multiple floods we had. Srsly.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

I have to say, this morning? I didn’t really want to come into work. And as Nesko drove me to work and it rained more and more heavily, I just watned to go home more and more and curl up on the couch with him and watch the rain pour down. I could really use a lazy day in the rain. I don’t think I’ll get one for awhile, though.

In my little fantasy of how the day would have gone, I picture myself getting some writing done as well. In actually, I probably would have taken a nap, eaten carrot cake, watched tv, taken another nap, and then watched a movie. Then gone to bed.

I have a short short story about a guy who flies away from his old life, in the sprouts wings kind of way, inspired by the song “Beloved” by VNV Nation. I need to run through it again, clean it up, then send it out for test reads/second eyes stuff. Then I think it’ll be ready to submit. Most of the places I’ve found that publish flash fiction lean more toward the sci fi than fantasy and this isn’t very sci-fi-y.

I have my short story about a woman who encounters a modern day pooka. That’s been looked at my trusted people and needs to be revamped and tidied. I’ve been putting off doing that for reasons I can’t quite fathom.

I have a short story clattering around in my head about a Bold And Noble Prince who encounters A Princess In A Tower but it turns out the Tower is like an angler fish, using a fake princess as bait, and eats the Prince.

I’m still working on my horror thing about the haunted maze. I think everything I’ve written so far will be scrapped, unless it turns into a novel or something instead of a short story. But it’s been useful and will inform the rest of the story.

I’ve been thinking about my werewolf story also. Every time I go to the movies or see Coming Attractions I start thinking about it. I think I have a new approach towards the story, so my brain’s kind of circling the idea and I poke it from time to time with a sharp stick. I’ll see what I can do with it.

I should get back to posting 100 words blurbs.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Sooo… just wanted to post some blather about what’s going on in my life. GRIPPING I KNOW.

I have a headache and have had it since before I woke up. A can of Coke, a small caramel latte, and a fistful of excedrin have done nothing for it. Neither has sucking back a bunch of water. I am a sad panda. I think a short nap of five or six hours would set me right.

I am going to be travelling for work, going to St. Louis MO and Rochester Hills MI in June and August respectively. I haven’t flown since the summer after I graduated eight grade, and I’m pretty sure I’ll be flying to both these places. Or taking Super Bus or something, I don’t know. I’m kind of looking forward to that and also apprehensive because I haven’t packed for a flight in… uh… my entire life. When we went to Australia, we were staying with friends, so didn’t need to pack shampoo and conditioner. Also, there were no liquid restrictions. I can’t use hotel shampoo and conditioner and soap because I get a rash. Oh, look! I’m finding things to worry about! Go me! Other than that, I’m looking forward to it. I love travelling and don’t get to do it very often.

I’ve been barrelling forward on changing my name. I have a new state ID, new voter’s reg card, and will get a new SS card and new debit cards soon. The guy at the bank said not to bother getting new checks unless I write a lot of checks, which I don’t. People keep asking me if it’s hard spelling my new last name. It’s not. No, I haven’t been practising signing my name, either. I just do it. My initials are now BB and one of my friends has started calling me BB Gun. D’awww. I won’t mention what they used to call me when my initials were BS.

I’m getting more and more worn out by my commute. I’m looking at apartments closer to where I work, but our lease is not up until December (Ugh! moving in the winter! They were 4 months late getting our new lease to us so it has a wacky end date) and we have a housemate whose commute and my commute are basically in opposite directions, so… I don’t know what we’re going to do about that. But taking 2-3 buses and a train is just major ugh, and a commute that ranges anywhere from an hour to two hours? That is very depressing. And also means that I get up, dash to shower, and run out the door with no seconds to spare, and usually no breakfast.

Our downstairs neighbors had another screaming match the other day, complete with slamming doors. This time it was the adults only and didn’t involve the teenaged kid who lives there. I’ve been with Nesko for ten years and we’ve never had a screaming match and I am so incredibly greatful for that. Has there been screaming? Yes. Usually on my end because I’m loud. But it’s rarely directed at him (usually it’s all “FUCK YOU COUCH WHY YOU GOTTA STUB MY TOE ARGH FUCK FUCK DAMN ASS POOP” or “HOLY CHRIST GALLON OF MILK WHY YOU GOTTA BE A SOLID BLOCK OF STINKY CHEESE I HATE YOU WHAT THE SHIT” or “COMPUTER! WHY GOD WHY I THOUGHT YOU LOVED ME GIMME BACK MY FILE” or whatevs) and it blows over pretty fast and then Nesko is making fart jokes and shooting me with his kiss gun and I’m throwing dirty socks at him. Our love, it is a beautiful thing. Or a strange thing. Beautiful and strange.

I made sugar cookies last weekend. I haven’t made sugar cookies in years. I rolled out the dough and cut it out with cookie cutters and baked them and iced them with colored icing and it was fun. And then Nesko cleaned everything up! yay! And now I want to make sugar cookies again. Maybe a bunch of dinosaurs. Or sharks. Or bats… with knifes. I scored some pecan halves from work (organic pecan halves. oooooh.) and so want to make my turtle cookies, too. I wonder how well those freeze. Anyway, I’ve been talking for awhile about doing step-by-step instructions on baking, complete with photographs, so if Nesko and I are free this weekend we might do that as a special project. Or we might just watch James Bond movies and do laundry. We do so love living dangerously!

I’m allegedly receiving the Stimulus Package tomorrow. Dates these are sent out are based on the last two digits of your SS number. Lucky me, I’m spending mine on bills. What are you spending yours on, if you get it? Oh, I also might splurge and get a magazine subscription. See my above sentence about living dangerously!

I’m also cleaning out my closets. I have two garbage bags full of plus size clothing (size 18-22 ish) mostly business casual (light sweaters, vests, jackets, button down shirts, some skirts that are roughly knee length). if you live in Chicago and can come to my apartment let me know if you want to paw through these things and take some home. I will charge you like $1 per item.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Ok, maybe it won’t save your life but it may save you some frustration.

I had a problem with my computer this weekend, where I could use google chat and iTunes and Yahoo Music Jukebox with no problem, but I could not use any browsers. Firefox and IE both would launch, and then would search and search and search and not connect and time out. I tried many things to resolve this, but here’s what worked:

I went to the start menu, picked “run,” and typed ipconfig /flushdns and hit enter. Then I restarted my computer.

Voila! Problem solved!

This solution is courtesy of Matt.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

I want you to go to this link, look at the illustrations from this book, and not flinch:

http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2008/04/25/i-guess-its-a-jungle-in-here-too-huh/

It’s hard, isn’t it? It’s appalling that somebody thought “hey, I know! It’s the 21st century! Let’s have a white character beating up a bunch of insanely stereotypical dark-skinned characters! We can portray the non-whites as savage, half naked, sexualized, violent, animalistic charicatures. It’ll be great!”

There’s been a lot of talk in the feminist blogging community for a long while (years) now about how white feminists just can’t seem to unpack their privilege and, essentially, stop being dicks. Moreover, this is a debate that’s been going on for decades, largely unheard. http://dearwhitefeminists.wordpress.com/update/ has some impassioned, frustrated stuff to say about the ongoing struggle, as does the comments section.

Images, and attitudes, like this are damaging to women as we struggle for equality and are damaging to all of us as human beings. I am sickened and disgusted by the idea that someone thought that images like those were appropriate. I am more sickened and disgusted by the fact that it didn’t occur to anybody involved with the book that those images might, just might, be hateful and wrong. The backpedaling and excuses involved with this book are also really really gross. “Well, they’re IRONIC. That makes it OK.” It’s not ironic, it’s hateful, and it’s diminishing, and it’s wrong and bad.

And this kind of stuff goes on all the time, and that’s hateful and wrong and bad and it should stop. And when people stand up and say “Hey, knock it off, this stuff is wrong and bad and hateful and stop. Just stop.” people need to actively listen to that and knock it off.

Basically, anyone who claims that racism isn’t an issue in the USA needs to look at those images and rethink that claim.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Someone I know looks thinner than before.

Her upper body looks trimmer, a bit more toned. Or maybe it’s just the shirts she’s been wearing lately. I know she hasn’t been dieting, because she doesn’t diet, but maybe she’s been lifting weights. Maybe she’s buffer.

I’ve thought about asking her about it. “Hey, have you been working out? You look good.” Except she looked good before. She looked just as good then as now, the only difference is a few centimeters around her arms. I know she’s not TRYING to lose weight, and why should she?

But there’s still this urge to comment on her body, to recognize that it’s changed.

And then I thought, would I feel this urge if she were male? Would I feel the need to comment on her body and its changes? And frankly, the answer is no. I wouldn’t.

This connects with some discussion that’s been going around the parts of the internet I hang out at regarding women’s bodies and the public aspect of them. Women’s bodies are much more on display than men’s bodies. They invite more comment, more commentary, more criticism. They are more likely to be touched. They are more likely to be judged both for what they chose to wear as well as what they chose not to wear.

And that’s the norm, you know? That’s just the way it is, at least for now. But the awesome thing about society is that it can be changed, one person at a time.

http://finallyfeminism101.wordpress.com/  is an introduction to feminism. What it is, what it isn’t, how you can be a feminist, that sort of thing. There’s a lot of feminists who get burnt out from constantly defining feminism, and constantly defending it against charges of “man hating” and what not. So it’s nice that there’s a place that collects a lot of the basic stuff for easy perusal.

http://www.feministezine.com/feminist/modern/WhitePrivilege-MalePrivilege.html talks about male privilege. It’s based on white privilege, which is the first post, and you should read it. Then scroll down to the male privilege post.

http://www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/tannend/nyt062093.htm is an essay on societal defaults and language, and very interesting.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Just got my copy of Weird Tales and glancing over it, holy hell. I think I’m going to need a subscription.

Check them out at http://www.weirdtalesmagazine.com.

Brenna, I think you’ll like this. Matt, you too. Hell, if you’re reading this, you’ll probably like this magazine.

I also totally think I could submit art to them and have a chance of it getting accepted. My mind, it is blown.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Right Hand: Oh, hey there. Left Hand. What are you doing?

Left Hand: Fuck off!

Right Hand: Right then! Hey, Brig, what’s up with this thing? I need you to change all the X’s to Q’s.

Me: Sure thing. I’ll get right on it.

Left Hand: HOLY CRAP BRIGID WHAT THE FUCK!

Me: buh?

Left Hand: ALL OF OUR X’s are Q’s WHAT THE HELL MAN you need to change this back ASAP.

Me: But Right Hand just told me to change it all.

Left Hand: He’s an idiot. Change them all back.

Me: Uh… ok.

Right Hand: What the hell? Why are all of our Q’s suddenly X’s?

Me: Left hand told me to change everything back.

Right Hand: Oh! Right. Right. That was wrong, what I told you. Look, change all these X’s to W’s, and then change these five to only be sold in this place, and then change the price on these six, and then set everything that has a “y” in it to only be sold on Saturday.

Me: Uhh…. ok.

Everyone at every store: OH MY GOD THE SKY IS FALLING.

Left Hand: Brenda? What’s up with this?

Me: Who the fuck is Brenda?

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

I really love music.
A lot.
I love the sound of it (duh) and I love lyrics. I love dancing. I love the whole music experience.
Music moves me in a very sensual way. It’s emotional and deep and rich and has shaped my life and my personality. I’ve been soothed by music and I’ve exulted in music. I’m very lucky that I’m married to a guy who also loves music and is willing to explore different genres and styles. He also plays guitar and sings. I’ve obviously hit the motherlode in this dude. Seriously.

Music, for all that it shapes culture, is not accessable to everyone, however.
Just as the blind can read books that have been translated to braille (a very VERY small percentage), there’s apparently also people who translate musical lyrics to ASL.

The results, at least the results in the following video, are amazing and artistic.

The song chosen for this video is a Marilyn Manson song, which really fits, as Manson is very interested in opening dialogue and challenging people to THINK. The effect is very VERY nice and there’s a wonderful musicality to the signs. Plus, the translator? Is super cute and I love his costumes. <3

Marilyn Manson was a decently-sized influence in my formative highschool years. So listening to the music on the video really took me back and put a smile on my face. But it’s awesome to see a different interpretation of the music, of the video.

And it’s wonderful that such a cultural juggernaut is being made accessable to other youth (and old people too, I guess. ;) ) despite the controversy of the subject matter. When only a small amount of media is being translated (to ASL, to braille or books on tape) it’s easier to limit what’s being translated, to censor what people have access to. And that’s why I love the internet, because there’s dudes making ASL versions of edgy, controversial songs. And that’s so great. Because it’s one thing to read lyrics in a pamphlet or CD insert or online. It’s another thing to have those lyrics incorporated artisticly into the presentation. One’s reading something. The other is experiencing something.

Anyway, the video is totally safe for work although the sound isn’t (oh, Manson. You and your dirty words.) so if you’re someplace where it’s not cool to have cuss words floating through the air, turn the sound down or pop your headphones on.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Hey, guys. FYI, I uploaded a shittonne of photos to my FLICKR account.
You can see the photos I took at Normal View, photos of me (lol fatty lol), photos of my nerdy friends, and a WHOLE FREAKING BUNCH of bathroom graffiti. I’m very proud of the latter and think I might play with the photos some (clean them up, crop them, adjust contrast for readibility) and put them on a webpage or something.

Oh, also? There are photos of Nesko wearing a black wig and ROCKING OUT in his Halloween costume from last year. And a bunch of people are wearing fezes. Fun times!

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Taking a cue from Matt, I’ve created an album cover myself. Head on over to his blog if you want the rules and all.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Remember, ladies! What you chose to eat speaks volumes about your morals and ethics, and it’s totally cool for men to judge you and your morals based solely on what you put in your mouth. If you don’t eat salads 24-7, you are a bad person. Remember that every thing you put into your mouth, and your body, is totally up for public debate and public judgement.

Possibly the worst thing about this exchange is that these folks are married, and I think this is supposed to pass for flirting. Maybe next they’ll retire to the bedroom, where Rex will pull out his fat calipers as foreplay.

Originally published at brigidkeely.com/wordpress. You can comment here or there.

Matt has been recording his dreams and they are fascinating, so I thought I’d do the same.

Two things combined to make this dream a reality. One is that Nesko and I have been watching “Alien Nation,” the old Sci Fi show about Aliens settling on Earth, and the other is that my job involves me knowing about cheese so I’ve been reading cheese books and websites a lot. I mean, a whole lot. One day I read about cheese for about four hours straight. That’s a lot of reading about cheese.

Anyway, in the tv show, the New Comers (as they are called) enjoy sour/spoiled milk in the same way that humans enjoy alcohol.

In my dream, cheese was like a gourmet drug or super expensive high alcohol content thing. That’s pretty normal, right?

Except also in my dream, there were New Comers who were making Black Market name and region protected cheeses and trying to pass them off as the real thing.

I was a cop and was trying to crack this ring of cheese forgery. I kept running around, following leads, running through parking lots and recently abandoned buildings. I eventually found a wheel of Morbier with an obviously fake seal. Proof! At last!

Also there was some plot point about how one abandoned warehouse had been used as a cave to store and age the cheeses, and the floor was a stretch of carpet over dirt, so we could peel it up and find footprints under it and also take samples from people’s shoes to see if they’d walk on the dirty carpet and so connect them with the crime.

This is the second dream I’ve had about cheese. I’m coming to realize, more and more, that I don’t really like cheese that much.