Posts Tagged ‘thanks’

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What’s the Frequency Kenneth?

February 22nd, 2010 by Suzanne | 8 Comments | Filed in random

Last Wednesday, I took a closer look at the nail on my big left toe. It had been a bit yellowed for a few weeks, but I thought nothing of it. I hate feet. They are gross even under the best of circumstances, so my toes aren’t exactly shining pedicured beauties and the slight discoloration didn’t really register.

It turned out that my nail was sort of in the process of falling off. “Hmmm,” I though. “I should probably do something about this.” I considered ripping it off myself, but wasn’t sure how much blood that would entail and how I might, without a toe nail, eventually stop it. So I put a bandage over it and called a podiatrist the next day. They gave me a Friday morning appointment.

The doctor looked at my toe and asked me when I traumatized it. “Huh?” I said. He said that I must have stubbed it at some point, causing the break, which was then allowed a fungus to get in. I wracked my brain. Maurice, the hamster who runs on the wheel that powers my brain, amped up. We came up blank. I’d think that something that would cause my toe nail to crack open would be something I might remember, but I guess not. The story of my life these days…

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On a side note, changes are coming to CUSS! I have an awesome person helping me deal with the technical issues that Blogger threw at me a few weeks ago (I can’t use their publishing service after March 26 for a variety of reasons), and she’s going to be moving CUSS to a WordPress format. CUSS readers (all two or so of you, who I love dearly) will still find the blog at the same URL, cussandotherrants.com, and I think the feeds won’t be affected. It’ll just be a shiny new look (eventually) and a different way to leave comments.

Anyway, given all the blogs out there and the limited amount of time people have in which to read them, I just want to thank you for reading CUSS. It means a lot to me.

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Happy Anniversary, BlogHer!

January 22nd, 2010 by Suzanne | 5 Comments | Filed in writing

Four years ago, someone took a chance on me. I’d only been blogging for a few months when I heard that BlogHer was looking for volunteer contributing editors for a new site they were launching. I rushed to their current homepage, noticed that people already claimed the topic I most wanted (feminism and gender), and saw that travel and recreation was still open. Well, I love traveling and do it a lot. I had just blogged a trip to France. I left a message with links to three posts (this was before I had any idea what HTML was, not that I’m an expert at it now), and hoped for the best.

Not long after, I heard from Lisa Stone, one of BlogHer’s founders. She said that she “loved” my blog and offered me the gig. I was thrilled! (Re-reading her email today, which I just looked at again, brings tears to my eyes. Yeah, I still have an email from January 2006 in my inbox.) My first post – Introduction to Travel and Recreation appeared on January 22, 2006. I hoped for many things, but was not sure what to expect.

Four years later, I still write for BlogHer, although on feminism, not travel. It offered me a platform when I was just exploring writing. It offered me a platform when I sent out proposals for a travelogue I was writing about unusual things to see and do New York City. It offered me a platform when my book, Off the Beaten (Subway) Track, was published 2.5 years later. It offered me a platform to meet and be inspired by other women.

Sure, it hasn’t been all champagne and roses. When I realized that my four year anniversary was coming up, I compared it to my marriage: sometimes I wanted to scream and stomp around with selfish, delusional indignity, but overall my life is richer, happier, and better in every way because I have it. (Husband was slightly offended by this analogy, but I stand by it.) I’m so lucky.

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“I Am Not a Hero”

January 13th, 2010 by Suzanne | 3 Comments | Filed in random

>Miep Gies, one of five people who hid Anne Frank’s family and four other people, died on Monday night. She was 100 years old. I read parts of her memoir, “Anne Frank Remembered,” a few months ago when I went to research at the Holocaust museum in New York City.

“I am not a hero,” she wrote. “I stand at the end of the long, long line of good Dutch people who did what I did and more – much – more during those day and terrible times years ago, but always like yesterday in the heart of those of us who bear witness.”

If anyone can read those lines without crying, I don’t understand how.

Today the New York Times published a letter from someone praising Mrs. Gies and lamenting the lack of “empathy, courage, and selflessness” that exists in people today, noting that these “were once the kinds of behaviors we valued most in human beings.” This is a nice sentiment, but it is not true. It has never been true. If we really valued these behaviors, the Holocaust would not have happened. Years of institutionalized and individual racism would not exist because people would have stood up and said, “This is wrong,” no matter what the cost. People were as narcissistic and self-involved back then as they are today. That is what makes Miep Gies so special.

Mrs. Gies said that she was “only one” of many who acted so humanely and courageously, but that is another indication of her generous nature. Then and now, people pay enormous lip service to the “sanctity of life.” Most people will not risk their own lives to stand up for others. I think often about what I would do if I were in Mrs. Gies situation. I only hope that I would act as she did.

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Awesomeness

January 5th, 2010 by Suzanne | 3 Comments | Filed in Uncategorized

>My cousin told me to say hi to Tina and Alex when I went for my taping at 30 Rock, but sadly, I did not see them. Heck, I didn’t even see the guy who plays the page. Or Janice Huff, my favorite weather person, who I’d be far more likely to run into since I was on the same floor as the news. I think.

The lack of celebrity sightings did not make my first TV appearance* any less exciting. AnneLise calmed my nerves, assuring me that I did not look like a zombie with too much eye makeup. She also said she liked my pixie haircut. Once I saw myself on the monitor, I felt a little better. AnneLise and I sat in front of a green screen, and I thought the subway car backdrop that they chose was pretty awesome.

AnneLise was great leading the interview, and I had a fun time talking to her. The production staff was also very nice. After we finished, they asked if it was my first time taping for TV. When I said yes, they said I was very professional. It was just a super experience overall. I can’t thank AnneLise enough, and I also can’t wait to see the segment on New York Nonstop!

*This discounts various times that I showed up in the audience of shows, like The Bozo Show when I was a kid, or during my period of talk show obsessions in 1994-1995, when I made a comment on The Rikki Lake Show and possibly also The Rolanda Show. Also, I ever so briefly appeared eating hot dogs in MTV’s episode of Real Life (“I Want to Be a Professional Eater”) because I stuffed my face next to Tim “Eater X” Janus, who was featured on the program. Although exciting, I do not count these.

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And That’s the Whole Story

October 19th, 2009 by Suzanne | No Comments | Filed in Uncategorized

>Since the job search is going slooooow, and I’m caught up with my school work, I figured I’d stretch out typing up Always until tomorrow. Then I found out that Planned Parenthood needed volunteers tomorrow for a health insurance campaign, so I figured I could at least do something productive with my time. Plus, I got an email from a friend complementing me on my “sweet” story, noting that my “use of dramatic irony was pretty sophisticated for a middle-schooler.” And nothing motivates me more than flattery, so I got my ass in gear and got the rest of the story online.

I’m glad that someone is enjoying the cheese-tastic goodness of my weird 13 year old ego. Regardless, I definitely watched too much LA Law, Hill Street Blues, and St. Elsewhere. Oy vey.

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>Hitting the Big Time – Inconceivable!

October 4th, 2009 by Suzanne | No Comments | Filed in Uncategorized

>Last week was (another) rough week. This not having a job thing is really weighing on me. Even though other good things are happening, I’ve been in a serious unemployment funk.

Then, as I was moping around Grand Central Station on Thursday while waiting for a friend, I received the following email on my BlackBerry:

I’m writing to invite you to a live radio show at the UCB Theater in Chelsea next week, Weds, Oct 7th between 6-7pm. I’m sorry for the short notice, but one of our listeners suggested you as a guest, and you’d be in great company — also booked for that evening is author/actor Wallace Shawn and comedian Brent Weinbach. We’d love to
talk about your book “Off the Beaten Subway Track” and get some tips from you about exploring NYC.

The show is a WFMU radio talkshow called “Seven Second Delay” hosted by Andy Breckman and Ken Freedman. Andy’s the creator and executive producer of the Emmy-award winning show Monk, airing on the USA Network, and Ken is General Manager of WFMU, an independent radio station. They co-host Seven Second Delay, an hour-long
loosely-formatted radio show that broadcasts live from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Chelsea and reaches about 30,000 listeners an episode. More information on the show is available here: http://sevenseconddelay.blogspot.com/.

Are you available? Interested? We also have a date in November we
could look into.

Am I interested? Am I available? Fuck yeah!!! Not only does it sound like a rad radio show with awesome hosts, but Wallace Shawn from the motherfucking movie The Princess Bride is going to be on. Missing that show would be inconceivable! (Which, I am embarrassed to admit, was more or less my reply. I am glad they still wanted me after I made that lame joke.)

This invitation perked me right up, and I’ve been feeling much better these past few days. I owe it all to Pamela. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Pamela!

As noted, the show is on Wed., Oct. 7 at 6 pm at the UCB Theater (307 W. 26th Street). It only costs $5 to see me share a stage with Wallace Shawn. Inconceivable, I know. The show also streams online or can be heard on the old fashioned radio at 91.1 FM in New York, at 90.1 FM in the Hudson Valley. I am major excited.

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>The Rabbi and The Librarian (Not a Joke)

April 15th, 2009 by Suzanne | No Comments | Filed in random

>So many of my posts are focused on the people who disgust and disappoint me by working to reduce understanding between people and to eliminate freedom while claiming they are protecting the community. Today’s post is different. Rabbi Caspers Funnye and Judith Krug are two people who work(ed) to create a better society.

During the festivities surrounding Pres. Obama’s inauguration, I read a story that mentioned that his family contingent was undoubtedly the most diverse of any president’s. It included Southest Asians, African-Americans, Canadians, and a rabbi. “A rabbi?” I thought. “Why hadn’t I heard about this person before, especially when people were spreading all those hideous rumors that Obama was anti-Semetic?”

Well, a few weeks ago, the New York Times Magazine ran a story about the rabbi. Turns out that Rabbi Caspers Funnye is Michelle’s cousin, and that he is on a mission to bridge the gulf between the black and white Jewish communities. Amazing person, although of course I am not down with the traditional gender segregation they practice in his congregation. Still, I would love to get involved in creating a more diverse understanding of Judaism, although I have no idea how to do so.

In today’s Times, there’s a small piece commemorating the work of Judith Krug, who passed away on Sat. Ms. Krug headed the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, battling censorship and fear. During the Bush administration, my mother-in-law, who is a children’s librarian, proudly noted that librarians were at the forefront of protecting First Amendment rights. They were supposed to report on anyone who checked out suspicious books or looked at “bad” web sites, but many librarians refused to do so. Engaging in this battle for over 40 years, Judith Krug set a great example of leadership for not only librarians, but for all of us who truly care about creating democracy.

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>schmoozer, loser

March 3rd, 2009 by Suzanne | No Comments | Filed in mortification, random

>6:52 pm
Greetings from the corner of a fancy awards dinner! When I was invited to the event last week, I was excited. What a great opportunity to meet people, I thought. Of course, I forgot how bad I am at schmoozing.

I also appear to be one of four women not wearing stilettos. The fact that I am decked out in neon green wellies is probably not making me a more enticing person to network with, either. But it is slushy and cold, dammit! What else should I wear?

Ok, off to my table, where hopefully my host will not be embarrassed by me. At least I left my bear hat and backpack at the coat check…

Update from home: Once I joined my table, all was well. No one seemed at all disturbed at what I thought passed for “festive attire,” as the invitation specified. Lots of cool reproductive rights and social justice types to chat with, plus the woman I sat next to graduated from my high school in 1987. Everyone rocked! I am very glad that I attended, and thankful to my host for thinking of me.

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>Reason #27,294 Why I Love New York

March 2nd, 2009 by Suzanne | No Comments | Filed in hilarity, random

>This is the first thing I saw when I left my building this morning:

Thanks to the anonymous mini snowman builder, I will smile all day.

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>Stats

February 1st, 2009 by Suzanne | No Comments | Filed in random

>The year is 1/12 (8.4%) over already. For some reason, I find that reassuring.

I have completed four full work weeks (20 work days) already. I missed one (Friday) due to illness.

Thanks to a debacle* that had me spazzing for an hour on Friday while I was supposed to be convalescing, I finally discovered that from 8/1/08 to 11/1/08, I sold 960 copies of my book, Off the Beaten (Subway) Track. I don’t know if that is considered good or not, but I’m pleased anyway. (BIG THANK YOU to all of you nice people who bought a copy or, in some cases, as many as fifteen – which is 1.5% of all sales. I’m lucky to have such supportive friends.)

I called my doctor yesterday to report my ailing condition. He said I should wait at least another 7-10 days before considering antibiotics. I’m at the point where I’m blowing out all the really yellow, thick, sometimes bloody (it’s dry in here) mucus, so I suspect I’ll be better by then.

Today is the second day in a month in which the temperature is expected to go above 35 degrees. (Although it is 30 now, it is supposed to get up to 45.) I have not left the house in 2 days. I’m debating whether I should go to a “porkapalooza” Super Bowl party catered by the infamous chow hound restaurant Momofuku or continue my self-imposed house arrest.

Regardless, happy first day of February and enjoy the 32nd day of 2009!

*Oh, the debacle is that my publisher is out of business. My agent received a letter on Jan. 30 that was dated Dec. 24 and had been sent to the wrong address informing us that most of the catalog was sold to another publisher, they didn’t pick up my book. Hence, all copies were now remaindered (i.e. – unavailable for distribution) and my contract granted the rights back to me and the option to purchase them for $1.88 per copy to find a new distributor. FREAK OUT!!! I didn’t even know how many copies sold. (And I still don’t know how many were printed.) An hour later, my agent called back. He tracked the publisher down and was told “to disregard the letter. That deal fell through, and we sold the catalog to another company, which did pick up Susan’s [sic] book.” My heart began beating at a more regular pace again.

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