A night at the Opera

We finally got to celebrate my friend Barb's birthday at Opera. The food was delicious, and so were the mint martinis. Barb was surprised and pleased by her gifts -- a picture frame decorated with black cairn terriers like her beloved Max and an autographed photo of her movie boyfriend, Clint Eastwood. She works very hard, and I'm glad my birthday presents appealed to her silly, frivolous side.

I'm also glad I got home in time to catch the tail end of the late news and learn that the Cubs have suspended Carlos Zambrano indefinitely (see below).

Why do we still have Carlos Zambrano?

The hotdog/douchebag/diva melted down today in the first inning of the Cubs/White Sox Crosstown Classic. He gave up four runs and then completely lost it.

Nothing is ever Carlos' fault. He has no impulse control. Lou Piniella pulled him from the game and right now is saying, "There's no excuse for this," and "It won't be tolerated." He volunteered that during the game he had "a conversation" with GM Jim Hendry.

I hope it means the Cubs will unload Zambrano before the trade deadline.

Kids watch baseball. Derek Lee always does his best and never hogs the spotlight. For Zambrano to get away with this sends the wrong message about sportsmanship.

Clean Me

I haven't been a Cleanie for a couple days, but today was a big day for the new Clean Me. I got an estimate for doing a little fix-it work on my hideous, horrible bathroom. To regrout all the tiles, replace the caulk around the tub and toilet and sink, steam clean the floor and scrape/sank/killz prime the area around the shower will only take 4-5 hours and cost about $500.

Yea!

This reinforces my new outlook -- that upkeep of my home doesn't need to be an all or nothing proposition. Just because I don't have the $5000 to $7000 sitting around, enabling me to redecorate it exactly the way I want it to, doesn't mean I have no choice but to sit around and be depressed.

Five on Friday

These five songs evoke specific summer memories. I was inspired by seeing Chad and Jeremy's "Summer Song" on Trav's playlist here. (That song reminds me of playing Scrabble at my friend Judy's house, with her bedroom windows wide open, listening to albums her older sister left behind when she moved out.)