Ulysses Zweibel

deceiverofmen @ 01:57 pm: summer rolls spring rolls and vermicelli
Pho Pasteur wins hands down on summer rolls. I may be in love with Thaison's spring rolls and noodles, but the extra $0.50 for a freshly rolled summer roll was so worth it at pho pasteur. Nha Trang was dry and chewy, thaison was lacking in flavor, but pho pasteur's rolls were so fresh the paper was still sticky, soft and yielding rolls with a hit of mint as soon as you bite down. mmm.

i think next time i'll try an order of every flavor.

deceiverofmen @ 02:08 am: in case you haven't seen this
its pretty damn funny

ralphieboy333 @ 04:14 pm: More of THE WORD, THE TRUTH, THE VOICE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD

seweccentric @ 01:31 pm: In other news...
The condo has had nearly 50 showings, and no offers.  Cannot figure that out.  Not even crazy-insulting low-ball offers.

seweccentric @ 12:52 pm: No more cruises for a while...

I'll skip the "I hate old people" rant for now.  Someone we met on the ship sent me an article about the Marco Polo being held in port three days after we disembarked.  Apparently it was held at port in Ireland because 380 people (of about 1000) are being tested for the noro virus.  Nice.

But I do want to add that hand sanitizers are NOT a substitution for washing your hands thoroughly.  They are 60-95% alcohol.  Do you wash your hands with alcohol at home?  It robs the skin of natural oils and lubricants and will ruin your diamond jewelry.  Use it sparingly and only when the occasion really calls for it (in hospitals, handling babies, creepy restaurants, etc.).  Dry hands are twice as likely to be colonized by bacteria.

And along those lines, use anti-bacterial soap with caution.  It's not meant for all body parts, and probably shouldn't be in your shower.  They are no more effective at deactivating viruses than any other kind of soap or detergent.  Overuse of chemicals like triclosan has been suggested to cause sensitive bacteria to evolve resistance to its antibacterial action [Wikipedia: Antibacterial Soap].  This is why we have super bugss like MRSA.  When these resistant bacteria divide, they pass their resistance on, creating entire colonies of antibiotic-resistant bacteria



Tags: rant

deceiverofmen @ 01:54 am: random craving!
I simply *MUST* have peach ice cream! It would really make my day if i could find fredericksburg peaches. I won't though.

Hopefully there will be over ripe peaches underneath the manhattan bridge. Jeff doesn't like peaches, so I hope either justin or lorenzo will share my love of peach ice cream. Otherwise I guess I'll have to eat it all by myself!

hmm. come to think of it that doesn't sound like such a bad idea. :)

deceiverofmen @ 01:11 pm: haven't posted in a couple of days
I'm just thinking things through. There are a lot of big changes in my life both professionally and personally.

I don't know what else to say.

seweccentric @ 04:18 pm: Finnish Beast
I didn't want to spend a lot of money on souvenirs, but I really wanted some earrings from Scotland.  Though not completely Celtic in style, I love these earrings - the design is called the "Finnish Beast" and came from the hilt of Finnish sword.  The designer has some really beautiful collections and I brought home her catalog, too (although I'm sure it's all online).




Tags: 2009trip

seweccentric @ 07:13 am: The Trip Home
6:00 AM (London time = Midnight in Houston) - Woke up.  Got breakfast, packed everything that wasn't already packed and left the cabin.
8:30 AM - Off the boat with express disembarkation
8:45 AM - On a shuttle to Heathrow - about an hour drive
11:45 AM - Checked in on time and boarding the plane
12:45 PM - After sitting at the gate forever, the plane finally taxis down the runway.  We are sitting immediately in front of the toilets so our seats can't recline against the wall and it smells like shit for most of the flight.  And the brownie desert had raisins in it.
4:30 PM (Houston time) - We land.  Called mom to tell her we were on the ground.
5:15 PM - Clear immigration & customs and proceed to stand in the sweltering heat and car exhaustion outside the terminal.
5:45 PM - Pay a cab $12 to drive me to the other terminals while Dudley stays at Terminal E in case mom is waiting at the wrong one.
7:00 PM - Mom finally finds us. The woman seriously needs a cell phone.
7:10 PM - Mom loses her debit card after trying to get out of the airport from the wrong lane and messing with the stupid machine.
7:30 PM - Arrive at mom's to pick up the Barkster, who has fleas and has chewed off all the hair on his ass.
8:30 PM - Arrive at our house and proceed immediately upstairs to give Barkley a flea bath before any fleas get on the kitties.
9:30 PM - Head out to karaoke to see all our friends and hear about everything we missed.
1:30 AM - Head home to bed and attempt to return to a normal sleeping schedule after being awake for over 25 hours straight.
6:30 AM - Awake.  ~sigh

seweccentric @ 08:02 pm: Yarn Haul

Yarn
Originally uploaded by seweccentric

Final yarn count = 67

ralphieboy333 @ 02:54 pm: Bullpoop and cowcookies! You are wrong, journalist!!
Much is being made of the replica Horton 229, a German jet design tested during WW2, as something that could have "won the war" for them.

Note that other jets were flown by them (ME 262 and Arado 234 mainly) using the same Junkers Jumo 004 engine and they still lost. Production problems kept Luftwaffe from putting enough of anything into the air.

Interesting that somebody decided to do a mockup of the old design for radar research, though. As the article states, it could have evaded radar, but most planes flying low can do that.

ralphieboy333 @ 01:09 pm: poetry corner
"I been on the right trip
But it must have been the wrong car
My head was in a bad place
And I'm wondering what it's good for
I was in the right place
But it must have been the wrong time
My head was in a bad place
But I'm having such a good time."
- Dr. John

"I deal in dreamers
and telephone screamers
lately I wonder what I do it for..."
- Joni Mitchell

"Don't give me no stuff, now
Don't be talkin' trash
You wanna have a good time
You need to spend some cash
to let the good times roll
better let the good times roll
Get on downtown
Only once you go around
Let the good times roll."
- traditional

"You might think he loves you for your money
But I know what he really loves you for.
It's your brand new leopard-skin pill-box hat."
- Bob Dylan

"We want the funk
Give up the funk
Ow
We need the funk
We gotta have that funk."
- George Clinton

"But I can still paint the town
All the colors of your evening gown
While I'm waiting
For your blond hair to turn grey."
- Mick Jagger

deceiverofmen @ 09:06 pm: i wish i could find this on myspace music
one of my favorite songs in the whole world. I don't know why but it just resonated with me on first listen.

Heavens to Betsy- Paralyzed

i've seen the way you looked at the sky

you looked right up at it with unclouded eyes
that ain't the way i see anything
i don't know if i can stand another day of rain
you left the nest so long ago
you walked right out one day it was easy for you
ruffle your feathers, everything you have in my face
well i had to leave my wings at home today


cuz i seen you in the sky
how did you get so high
i don't know how to fly
cuz you leave me paralyzed
i i i i i i...
wonder why


only some of us get to touch the sky


you were born with blue, baby boy blue in your eyes
you were born to touch the sky, the sky my sky my sky


cuz i seen you in the sky
how did you get so high
cuz i don't know how to fly
and you leave me paralyzed
i i i i i
i know why


only some of us get to touch the sky


i know what privilege is i know what mine is and why
but if i could i'd steal yours
and i would fly so fucking high


cuz i seen you in the sky
how did you get so high
cuz i don't know how to fly
and you leave me paralyzed
i i i i i i i...
wonder why
only some of us get to touch the sky


all that i can do is watch you fly
all that i can do is watch you fly
all that i can do is say good bye (?)

deceiverofmen @ 07:54 pm: girl in a coma
They're growing on me. When someone first recommended them I wasn't sure. I kinda of liked it, but I was a little indifferent. Now I'm listening again. I really like the guitar. I really like the blend of musical styles.

Would it be strange of me to say I can hear the Texas in them? Really. you can hear the tejano, you an hear the country western, you can hear the austin garage, but its none of those things. I think its kinda cool.
 

deceiverofmen @ 05:49 pm: song lyrics
truth covered in security i can't let you smother me like to but it wouldn't work trading off taking turns
don't tell me what i want to hear afraid of never knowing fear experience anything you need i'll keep fighting jealousy 'til its fucking gone

seweccentric @ 04:35 am: Goðafoss

Godafoss_0355
Originally uploaded by seweccentric

Yesterday we went on an excursion to Goðafoss Falls - which included a single lane dirt road! We spent the morning in Akureyri which I believe is Iceland's 2nd largest community (after Reykjavik). Only found one yarn shop (Fold-Anna) and the selection wasn't much different from the other shops I've already bought from - so i showed restraint.

Today we are in Seyðisfjörður with a population of about 800. Not much at all here. But tomorrow we'll be in Tórshavn (Faroe Islands) and I'm excited about that - very beautiful.

We've been lucky with the weather - very mild and some days I don't even need a sweater.

Tags: 2009trip, iceland

seweccentric @ 09:02 pm: Twitterings

• 05:39 is in Akureyri, Iceland and heading to Goðafoss Falls later! #

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Tags: 2009trip, iceland, twitter

ralphieboy333 @ 10:02 pm: Londonbeat

seweccentric @ 09:02 pm: Twitterings

• 06:45 is resting in a cafe in Reykjavik. #
• 11:17 is uploading more photos in Flickr... #
• 11:31 bought 33 balls of Loðband Einband yarn (by Ístex) in Reykjavik. #

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Tags: 2009trip, iceland, twitter

deceiverofmen @ 02:47 pm: real women have curves
I needed to buy a new pair of pants today. I have only one pair that fits and i haven't had a chance to do laundry all week. It was so sunny and nice outside that I dilly dallied a bit on broadway looking in different shops. Normally if I go somewhere like daffy's or h&m I get so annoyed. No matter how much weight I lose, i always walk out feeling so fat and hopeless. Not one thing ever fits. No matter the size. Things are always much too big or much too small. That happened to me again today except it was only my bust or my hips that were the problem. Things were soooo close to fitting, but my curves got in the way. This made me so happy. Really! still no cute clothes but i could blame my curves and it'd really be only them to blame. Things fit well in the waist, in the thighs. It was pretty amazing. I don't mind my boobs busting out of everything if it fits everywhere else (give me a couple of days, i'll be complaining about it i'm sure).

Oh right and I usually buy old navy jeans, most old navy clothes run big in my experience. I tried on jeans in other stores a size smaller than what i wear now (my jeans don't really fit anymore) and they were too small, but only barely- in another week or two any of those jeans would fit me. And of course, by the time I get to old navy and try on the same jeans i always get but one size smaller, they fit beautifully. I am a size 10 now. I can't believe it, its been a really long time since i was size 10. I'm actually between 10 and 12, but still. I can't believe it!

Now if only i could find cute dresses that aren't made for the hipster physique.