August 2004 Archives
The joy that is cottage cheese
Posted by Chiara | Category weight
I have rediscovered that I love cottage cheese. I used to eat it with French dressing when I was a kid. But now I like it right out of the tub. Nothing added. Just a 1/2 cup of cottage cheese. Though add some sliced pears and some pear juice - double yum!Tom's petition to renew assault weapon ban
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
Tom Coates, father of one Daniel Mauser, one of 13 people killed at Columbine High School by two students us gathering signatures for a petition to get Congress to renew the national Assault Weapons Ban, which automatically expires at the end of the summer. Congress must renew this ban or military-style assault weapons will be back on the street and available for sale in our neighborhoods. Put pressure on Congress to act now. Add your name to the list of people who want to ban the sale of assault weapons.Post-Yoga Dealings
Posted by Chiara | Category weight
I'm finding it very difficult after my yoga class. I really enjoy the class. But I come home and I'm SO hungry and tired. It's really hard not to eat whatever is sitting in the snack cupboard. Last night I think I did okay. I had a bowl of cereal and the last 2 meringue cookies. Camille brought in cookies and brownies for our working sessions yesterday afternoon. I was so late for work yesterday that I didn't really have time to bring good snacks with me. I ate all my food and I was starving come 4 o'clock whenREAD
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
The American Library Association's 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000 is a very interesting list. I'm sure that I have read 24 of them. There are another 8 that I think I read, but I can't remember for sure. I guess is says something about the Newtown school district (PDF) that most of the 24 I read in high school. I need to have read all of these. My children, if I ever do have any, will have read all of these by the time they are 21.New Mini-Sub-Blog
I've decided to make a little spin off section of chiarafox.com that is focused just on my weight loss efforts. This way I won't fill the main entries with non-scale victories and concerns over points spent and whatnot. (It also won't clog up my LiveJournal.) I think that journaling my thoughts and feelings (along with my food journal at WW) will be a helpful tool on this journey. Especially since feelings and food are so intertwined for me. So for those of you who are interested, you'll find these posts via the right hand nav in WeightLossBlog.Bliss
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
The Green Lantern Inn + Point Lobos State Reserve + 10/3.5 = Pure happiness and utter relaxation6/10th of 1 Pound
I'm now starting my 4th week on the Weight Watchers program. I weighed in tonight and I gained .6 of a pound. This isn't surprising. The booze this weekend really sent me over my points. I didn't feel well Monday when I got home (I had had soda and candy to try to "wake me up" during my afternoon meeting - smart, I know) and I blew through whatever few points I had left that night. And last night I had 2.5 servings of meringue cookies when I shouldn't have had any. So the gain isn't surprising. It's actually surprisingFeel the Love
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
Wow... I really was out of it yesterday. Note to self: when people tell you to keep drinking, don't listen! (Or at least switch to water. :) I reread my post from yesterday and it only captures a small part of what I was feeling about this weekend. Which was this: I'm making friends. With really neat, good, kind, loving, fun people. Making friends is something that is very difficult for me. I've spent so much time being out of touch with my emotions, that it really was impossible for me to share with anyone. Since I didn't even knowJust Lovely
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
This past weekend was just wonderful. E's friends Becky and Kevin got married this weekend in Santa Cruz. I've only met them a couple of times, but I really look forward to getting to know them better. They are really, really neat people. They had a picnic in Santa Cruz on Sat that E and I went to. Brian and Christyn where there, as was Jonah, of course (he was the best man). I also got to meet another CMU guy, Squirrel, who was visiting from Seattle. He's really cool. The picnic was fun. We played volleyball, which was loadsCivic Action, Part II
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
ELECTION PROTECTION RALLY AND TRAINING September 11, 2-5 p.m. Yerba Buena Gardens Mission St. between 3rd and 4th Sts. Join Working Assets, Mother Jones magazine, People For the American Way Foundation, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Equal Justice Society, True Majority, Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities, IMPACT 2004 and others to learn about opportunities to help protect voting rights in key states on November 2. Participants in this outdoor rally and training will receive an update on efforts to prevent minority disenfranchisement and intimidation at the polls, challenges posed by computer voting systems and an overview of theCivic Action
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
Be an Election Protection Volunteer In the last presidential election, millions of votes were never counted. Voters in minority communities were disproportionately disenfranchised through illegal disqualification, intimidation, and faulty voting machiens. The nonpartisan Election Protection coalition needs you to stand up and defend voting rights on November 2. Wow. This group makes me happy. I wonder if I can pull it off and actually help?untitled
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
Not much happened today, but I still felt the urge to post. Smudge seems to have discovered the feline joy that is RUNNING. He's been racing around the living room all evening. It's so good to see. He's finally acting like a kitten. He's rolling around the floor at the moment chewing and scratching the hell out of a little hash sack. A minute ago he was chasing a pink fuzzy ball. Ah the energy of kittens. If only we could harness it we could power a small city. Yesterday I went to the Ren Fest near Novato with someIf wishes were horses
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
I just got back from my first horseback-riding lesson in years. I went to the Sunset Riding Academy in Sunol and had an evaluation. One of their instructors was out sick, so rather than having a one-on-one, I joined the advanced Western class (even though I'd be taking English style). It was SO much fun! It felt so good to be up on a horse again. And not in one of those horrible wooden Western saddles that they have had on the few trail rides that I've done. We walked. We trotted. I even cantered (though I had a hardSmudgie Goes to the Doctor
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
I took Smudge in to the vet this morning. He was due for a booster on his shots and the vet wanted to make sure that he was putting on weight. He's only gained 6 ounces in the past 3 weeks - up to 2 pounds 2 ounces. The vet said that he should be at least 3 pounds. If he really is as old as the shelter says he is he should be double the size. She's concerned. So... they are going to do some blood tests. Check his fecal. The poor little guy. He's so tiny they hadRight to Privacy? Not Here!
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
From today's San Francisco Chronicle, The Bush administration asked a federal appeals court Wednesday to overturn California's financial privacy law, which allows customers to prevent banks and other financial institutions from sharing their personal information with affiliated companies. Of course They don't want any limits to the Homeland Security Act. They want to be able to see all your info and track everything. God help us if they have any limits to that. Fuck. Isn't anyone noticing these things? Isn't anyone outraged? It's hard not to sound like a conspiracy theorist these days. But the scary part is that itAuntie's Brag Book
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
My nephew Nick Berlingo and niece Gracie Berlingo. Aren't they just the cutest ever?The Future of Information Architecture, A Retreat
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
Where: Asilomar Conference Grounds, Pacific Grove, CA When: October 1-3, 2004 This weekend retreat is an opportunity for IAs from around the globe to come together in an informal and beautiful setting to discuss and share ideas about the future of Information Architecture. Where are we heading? What is the career path for an IA? What is on the horizon for the next 5 years and how do we plan to approach it? Supported by IA organizations such as AIfIA and local companies like PeopleSoft, we will be gathering for a weekend to talk with one another, share ideas, peekWhy I Want To Be Healthier
Posted by Chiara | Category non-blog
I have struggled with my weight and body image all of my life. I can remember being aware that I was bigger than the other girls as far back as first and second grade. I was always a big girl. I was the tallest one in my grade until 7th grade when Ben Garvin finally became taller than me (he's now well over 6 feet tall). I've been this height - 5 feet 7.5 inches - since 8th grade. The smallest I ever was at this height was just before my father died my junior year of high school. IWeight Loss Graph
Posted by Chiara | Category non-blog
Yoga, You Seek Yoga
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
Last night I took my very first yoga class over at Downtown Yoga in Pleasanton. It was the Gentle Yoga class, which said beginners were welcome. Which was good. Since the only yoga I have done before was the couple of videos that Carrie and I did in my living room. I wasn't overly impressed with those tapes. The poses seemed rushed, and I felt that I got more just doing my post-walking stretches from TNT. The class was really neat though. There were only about 8 of us there, plus the instructor. She was very good (Kate, the directorGuenevere, Queen of the Summer Country
Posted by Chiara | Category books
Guenevere, Queen of the Summer CountryI cannot go to school today, said little Peggy Ann McKay
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
I'm getting sick. I don't feel really sick today. But I feel like you do right before you get really sick. I woke up Sat morning with one of the glands in my throat completely swollen and tender. I took a nap shortly after I got up yesterday. The most active thing I did yesterday was go to a movie and cut up a cantalope. I hate summer colds. The only upside of being sick is that you get to stay home all wrapped up in blankets on the couch. And when it's 90+ degrees out, it's hard to stayPosted by Chiara | Category non-blog
Basics Birthday: March 4 Birthplace: Manasass, Virginia Current location: Pleasanton, California Most years in a single place: 8 Profession: Information Architect First Job: Library Page Parents: Arthur & Tamara Sibling: Timothy Pets: Freesia, Harold, Smudge, and Mod Nickname: C, Chachi, Tootsie Childhood imaginary friend: Baggook Favorite Color: green Flower: freesia, stock Animal: house cats, river otters Movie: The English Patient Television Show: Northern Exposure Book: The Poisonwood Bible, Their Eyes Were Watching God Author: Barbara Kingsolver, Zora Neale Hurston, Henry James Actor: Harrison Ford, John Cusack, Edward Norton, Johnny Depp Actress: Gwyneth Paltrow, Juliette Binoche Shakespeare play: Macbeth OtherThings About Me, in Random Order
Posted by Chiara | Category non-blog
1. I was born in the year of the Tiger. 2. I once had a hamster named "Albert B. Fuzzy Hot-in-Tot Ratman the Third" 3. I hate bell peppers of all colors and refuse to eat them. 4. I like the taste of onions, but can't stand to eat them. 5. My father drowned when I was 16 years old. 6. For the first 12 years of my life I was raised Mormon. 7. I have battled with weight and self-esteem issues my entire life. 8. I first made love when I was 17. 9. I taught myself how toFolk Music Fest
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
Heeheehee My father would be so proud. I just got four CDs from Amazon.com, all with songs from my childhood. Kingston Trio, Greatest Hits Woody Guthrie, The Greatest Songs Of Woody Guthrie Arlo Guthrie, The Best of Arlo Guthrie Peter, Paul, and Mary, The Best of Peter, Paul, and Mary 10 Years TogetherUser Experience Network
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
There's a new grass-roots organization on the block called the User Experience Network or UXnet. It's a pretty neat idea. There are so many focused groups sprouting up (like AIfIA for information architecture or the UPA for usability professionals) that I often find it hard to keep up. UXnet seems to fit on top of these other groups, so to speak. They are organizing a calendar of all things related to usability and the user experience, no matter what group is sponsoring them. This to me is a wonderful win. Just one place to see everything that is going on.Filed
Posted by Chiara | Category main_page
C and I went to the courthouse this morning and filed the paperwork for our divorce. All told it took about 20 minutes, and that includes the time it took to get though security at the front door. I'm not sure how I feel about the whole thing. I feel sort of... blank. I mean, it feels really good to have it finished. And there is no doubt at all that this is what I want. Yet, this is a big deal. And there was nothing to mark the significance. We just walked in, handed over some papers, wrote aMonthly Archives
