Still a Caterpillar...Someday a Butterfly!: Fishing, dinner, and the blues

First, for an update on The Fat Project:

Monday, September 19

5 crackers
2 cups coffee w/ creamer
medium bowl chicken noodle soup
large slice of banana bread
bowl of cheerios, dry
6 triscuts

Tuesday, September 20

2 cups coffee w/ creamer
1 yogurt
A few scoops of beer cheese w/ tortilla chips
Trout w/ an amazing ginger, garlic & soy sauce
A couple asparaguses (is that the correct plural? Somehow I don't think so.)
2 small glasses Riesling

So far today, Wednesday, September 21

1 cup coffee w/ creamer
About 15 Ritz crackers
Half a nectarine

And I’m going to leave early, like at 4:15, to go straight to the gym and be home in time to watch my shows!! Yay!!!

I’ve had such fun the past couple days! Yesterday, I went fishing again with The Meat, and this time The

Queen came along. I definitely like being with The Meat more. He’s more serious and real about things, but also funny in his way. The Queen is just too flippant about things. Also, The Queen violently and maliciously killed a poor Goby. He knew how I felt about killing innocent fish, but he feels soooooo (that is me being sarcastic) strongly about these Gobies destroying Lake Michigan. I was sitting between him and The Meat when The Queen caught that first fish, and I ordered him to throw it back in, and it looked like he was going to, but instead he threw it as hard as he could on the cement by our feet so that it died.

I was so absolutely appalled. Seriously. And The Queen just left him there. I jumped up and ran to the other side of The Meat and told The Queen how terrible he was, and how shocked I was that he did that. And that I wasn’t going to talk to him for the rest of the day (yes, I know, sometimes I act like I’m in third grade, but I couldn’t think of any other threat – he’s my boss, so there are only so many things I could do!). I stayed on the other side of The Meat, and was pretty pouty – I just took pictures and didn’t talk much. But part of me wanted to cry! It was so evil of him, and that poor,

innocent little fish was killed just because The Queen didn’t like his species! The Meat was nice and picked up the dead little body and threw him in the grass as least. And when The Meat next caught a Goby, he threw it back in. And when I caught a Goby, The Meat threw it in for me. He’s much nicer, and cares about my feelings!

The Queen later tried to make nice, and threw back in a Goby he caught, and tried to justify himself by saying that he killed the Goby as humanely as was possible, as opposed to letting it suffocate or be eaten alive by seagulls. Well yes, it was nicer. But it didn’t need to die at all!!!! Oh I was mad. And I’m still appalled by that side of him. The next time we fish, I want it to just be The Meat and me again!

And speaking of The Meat. He is just sexy. He is, even though he’s sixty. And yesterday as we were on our way out to fish, but waiting for The Queen, he told me that if he were younger, he would take me for a ride on his motorcycle, up to some secluded beach on the North Side, and he would get us going really fast, close to 100 mph, and by the time we got to the beach, I’d be ready for anything, begging for it in fact. As he said, he knows from experience. He said that 90 mph was ideal, when the vibration of the engine, through the seat, is just about perfect, and I wouldn’t be paying attention to much of anything at that point. I seriously got wet just thinking about it!

After returning from our fishing expedition, I freshened up and met a friend of The German and I, who is in from Wisconsin for computer training for her new job. We headed to the blue line and met The German in Logan Square, which I am liking more and more, at least the central part that I’ve seen. The restaurant we planned on going to was closed, unfortunately, on Tuesdays, so we walked around the corner and went to Dunlay’s, which had really good food! And we sat outside in the perfect, perfect weather! Also, The German was treating, which is why I could afford to go!

The Bean at night

When we finished eating and finished our bottle of wine, and had relaxed a little, we took the blue line back downtown and walked to Millennium Park to see it in the dark. It was very cool! I took a bunch of pictures of The Bean, and more pictures of the performance area all lit up in first blue, and then red. Then we walked along Michigan Avenue and across the bridge so I could get some pictures of the gorgeous city lights on the river. I love that view! And then, I got on a bus while The German walked our friend back to her hotel. It was a very fun night, even though I was very tired by the end and a little crabby at The German when he was being annoying!

And I was very good, too. It was after 10 pm when I got on the bus, and I was so tired. But also having my familiar little craving for a drink or two, or three. A battle raged in my head, but I won out, deciding that I was way too tired for anything, and also that it would be after 10:30 by the time I got home, and if I drank a whole bottle (which is impossible for me not to do), then I would be very late to work today. So I instead read for a little before almost falling asleep on the couch, and then headed to bed.

Today was a very light day at work, which was nice. And nicer still, because this afternoon The Meat, Blues Daughter, and I took a little “field trip” north a bit to a jazz records store that sells all these old records, as well as CDs, of jazz and blues artists from all time. It was very cool! The Meat and I looked for The Siegel-Schwall Band records and CDs, and Blues Daughter bought ALL the CDs of her father, a famous old Chicago blues singer (who has been long dead, unfortunately). It was a fun little trip! And The Meat loves stuff like that, and being able to tell stories of when he saw so-and-so, and being able to point out all these great singers and great songs.

Tomorrow night is the IWS Wine Party. It doesn’t start until 6:30, so I probably won’t get there until 5:00. And I still don’t know if I’ll have to be introducing our new Executive Director on a microphone and if so, what my little written-out introduction will be. I’ll definitely be nervous going there tomorrow, and if I find out that I do have to speak on the microphone, I’ll be so nervous until it’s over. And then just feel sure that I sounded stupid afterward. I’m going to be doing check-in with another girl, so for at least the first hour, and probably longer than that, I’ll be manning the table there. And I think after that I’ll have to walk around and try to sell our raffle corks. And I’ll also be ready with my camera, since I’m the photographer.

I don’t have any friends going, unlike last year when The German and The Bold One were there to support me. I’m not always comfortable around these people, although I am acquainted with a few of the sustaining members, and a couple of the members I feel more comfortable with, enough to hang out with them for a bit. And a couple of the husbands as well. Still, I will definitely not feel like I’m in my element, and have no one to save me. I will honestly be really happy when I can leave to go home tomorrow night. That’s so bad of me, since this should be fun, and since I also want us to raise a lot of money, to relieve some of the stress of having to raise that much more during the rest of the fiscal year. I really wish I had never accepted the president position.

So tonight – Lost is on! Yay! And also, the first hour of Lost, from 7-8, looks like just a review of all the characters and the island, so I think I’m going to record that and watch the Martha Stewart Apprentice. I love the original Apprentice! I love seeing the tasks they get and how they perform and what ideas they come up with, and I love seeing the interpersonal relations, and I’m often amazed at the same time by the stupidity of these supposedly smart, successful people. So I’m curious to see how Martha’s show is. Even though I know I shouldn’t watch it, because I know I’ll get hooked, and I don’t like being hooked on too many shows. I know I sound like such a loser, being so excited about stupid TV shows :)

I tried to see The Cute Guy today, but he was gone by the time I got back from the record store, and he did have to come back in briefly to drop something off, but I only saw his back as he was leaving. Damn! The Clerk who knows him well is definitely going to have to talk me up and introduce me to him, because he’s not easy to catch alone (usually when he’s here, there are 50 other people in the room along with him, all sitting quietly, so not very easy for me to walk up and introduce myself!)

I want to start dating again a little. I have signed back up for Match, and I’ve filled out part of the stuff, but I still haven’t written my little profile thing or updated the pictures. I think tonight, before my shows all come on, that will be my fun assignment. That way I'll at least talk online to some (hopefully) interesting people, and maybe meet a couple of them out. And it will be exciting, too!!!