A Very Special ROFL Engagement
December 8, 2012 § 6 Comments
The very first image ever taken of Chris and me, at the ROFLcon afterparty
Earlier today (wait no, it is the middle of the night/morning, I guess it was yesterday), Chris and I made our engagement public. We had planned on waiting to announce our decision (I do not believe in proposals) on January 1 because symbolism, but anyone who knows me knows I am one of the most impatient people in all of Christendom, and that I have a strange compulsion to beat my own deadlines. If I say something needs doing by December 1, for example, I will be turning that shit in during the first week of November. And if I need to have something written by the end of summer, by gum I will start outlining in May. This probably makes me annoying, but I don’t care. I probably think YOU are annoying, because you’re slow.
True to form, last night I decided I did not want to wait another three weeks for something that was already true in my heart, so Chris and I made with the text messages and phone calls and a merry time was had by all. At one point, someone mentioned that Chris and I first met at Portland’s ROFLcon summit, which got some other people talking. Were we the first engagement to come out of the ROFL series? Turns out that yes, we were, and will probably be the last, as the ROFL dynasty ended last spring. This is very funny to me, and isn’t something I’ve thought much about, but ultimately it is the stupid internet that brought Chris and me together. Really, every step in our relationship owes its existence to the internet. Before meeting at ROFLcon, we were already on the same Web Ecology listserv; our first interaction was me being snarky about something Chris had said about [REDACTED], and scaring him. When we were properly introduced in Portland, his eyes got all wide because I was that girl, which wasn’t something I was used to. But it wasn’t until the second day that we really clicked — Chris came and sat next to me during Biella Coleman’s breakout session on Anonymous, and that was pretty much that. After ROFLcon, Chris returned to New York City and I returned to Eugene and we proceeded to break Skyping records, due to our discovery that WE COULD WATCH TELEVISION TOGETHER, on the computer. Then once Chris moved out to Eugene last March, by which point I had fallen into the pit of manic depression known as a PhD dissertation, he helped me fact-check and read draft after draft after draft and is one of only maybe a half handful of people whose knowledge on the subject met and sometimes even surpassed my own. And he was nice to me through all of it.
So, internet, thank you — I take back everything mean I’ve ever said about you. Well almost everything. I have my standards.
Our engagement photo, of sorts
As It Turns Out There is Nothing Fun About Hurricanes
October 29, 2012 § Leave a Comment
The winds are just starting to pick up; it’s like standing blindfolded at the line of scrimmage where all the players are pissed off ghosts.
Twitter has proven to be weirdly comforting. We keep trying to watch movies, but always end up on Twitter instead.
Rum is a good choice, during a hurricane.
I find myself saying “ooh look, FOLKLORE!!”
This exists. It’s too bad that our internet is already so spotty, because otherwise we would be downloading all of the CDs for Nathan.
Our internet is already spotty.
Every day Nathan looks more like a Great Dane (his other half is Pitt Bull, and that’s mostly what he looked like when we adopted him).
Chris is a good hurricane buddy.
It is inadvisable to rent IMAX movies about the sea when you do not have a proper television (we stream all our shows). This shit is weak on a laptop.
Hurricanes are not fun. Anyone who tells you otherwise thinks they know everything.
The full brunt of the storm should arrive within the hour.
Yeah…We’re in the Evacuation Zone
October 27, 2012 § Leave a Comment
Velocinathan
October 25, 2012 § Leave a Comment
Happy Nathanween everyone! Also be sure to check out the BONUS FOOTAGE at the end, when we give Nathan a nice smoked bull penis to gnaw on!
Somewhere Over the Nathan
October 1, 2012 § Leave a Comment
This past weekend (was it last weekend? Who even knows anymore), Chris and I took Nathan to Central Park. He appreciated music, jingle-jangled through the forest, and of course practiced his AMAZING TRICK. Be sure to watch till the very end for a special bonus scene!
How to Train a Willful Puppy, Part 1: Don’t Feed the Troll
September 26, 2012 § Leave a Comment
Crosspost from Modern Primate! Nathan Scott Phillips-Menning! Obedience training! Don’t troll me, dog!
Perhaps unsurprisingly, our first week with Nathan was a mixed bag. When he was good, he was a cuddlebug darling. But when he was bad, he was a gnawing, destruct-o-tron hell-beast. Initially, this Jekyll and Hyde routine was baffling. Chris and I would be on the couch chatting or at our respective computers minding our own damn business when suddenly Nathan would go nuts. He’d knock over his water bowl, pee on the floor even though we just got back from a walk (dude, seriously??), or bounce off the walls for 10 minutes before trying to eat whatever it was that Chris and I were doing. Sitting on the couch? I’ll chomp the shit out of the armrest, thanks. Sending a text message? Lemmie just kick that in the face for you, sir. Eating dinner? Not anymore friend! –And so on. Whenever Nathan would do something naughty, we’d jump up, tell him that and why we were displeased, then direct him away from whatever forbidden thing. Nonono! Here play with Ducky, the squeaking toy you like! No Nathan! Water bowls are not a Frisbee! Nathan come here, we’re going outside, again! And then we’d go for a walk, the length of which would be commensurate to the severity of whatever offense. The worse he was, the further we’d go—which was the only way he’d learn, we thought.
Boy were we wrong! For the thrilling conclusion, click through to the MP!
DOGFRIEND
September 18, 2012 § 5 Comments
My very first childhood friend was a beautiful (and infinitely patient) Golden Retriever named Treevor. I was just a baby and didn’t know anything, but Treevor took me places and kept me safe and taught me how to be nice. Since then, dogs have been one of the great joys of my life. Few things make me happier than seeing (and even better, snuggling with) a smiling, wiggly dog.
Unfortunately for my mental health and wellbeing, I’ve not lived long-term with dogs since 2002, when I left for college. I have loved dogs during this period, oh yes — my family dogs, the dearly departed Pookie, as well as Rowdy and Sophie, have been my long-distance dogfriends for the past decade. But visiting dogs isn’t the same as being a full-time parent; I have long felt a dog-shaped absence in my heart. But how to fill it? Until recently, adoption wasn’t in the cards, for all kinds of reasons. Too much moving, instability, immaturity — I just wasn’t ready.
But now I am. Now we are. And so yesterday, Chris and I made that commitment (he chronicles the adoption process here). This is a big deal for both of us, in fact is the first time I feel like a proper adult. The PhD had absolutely no impact on my own sense of identity, and certainly didn’t make me feel any more capable or secure in the world. But this does. Because now I am responsible for another creature’s safety and happiness. I am a caretaker now, and that feels different. I already love the shit out of him, and promise to do my best.
Apartment Hunting in New York: The Musical
August 30, 2012 § 1 Comment
Here is a video we shot the day we applied for –and ultimately WON– our Upper East Side closet super cozy apartment! I do a dance at the end, because it was a very long day. See for three whole seconds if I care what you think!
