And I’ve missed three more days of posting. Not gonna lie—hanging out and drumming with taiko players from around the world was more awesome even than NaBlo, so no regrets here.

I found the experience of watching the other groups (San Fransisco Taiko Dojo, their Rising Stars, Sacramento Taiko Dan, and Osuwa Daiko) perform to be deeply inspirational. I’m proud of Kaminari for the spirit we brought to the show, and I hope we can keep our enthusiasm high and incorporate this experience into our future practices and performances. Now I sound like I’m writing a speech. Whatever, it’s all true. TAIKO 4 EVAR!!1!

Well, I guess I’ve mucked up NaBloPoMo already by missing yesterday. I blame the flying.

Did I tell you I’m getting on a plane today? Yes, to San Francisco. As you may remember, I hate flying with a burning passion, so I’m not having a good morning so far. Wish me luck!

So far I’ve been lucky each day to remember before midnight that I haven’t posted anything yet. Today I have three whole minutes left, so here goes . . . almost nothing.

This afternoon, my mom and I went to Nordstrom’s and found her a mother-of-the-bride dress. Success!

And this evening, I mediated a case that reached impasse, making my record 2-1. Two settlements, one impasse.

That is all.

And I didn’t even get the sticker to prove it. Lame.

I didn’t do any research beyond listening to NPR and the Slate Political Gabfest every now and then, so I had to come up with a slapdash decision tree by which to fulfill my civic duty. To wit:

1. First, vote a straight Libertarian ticket. That took care of, oh, maybe a fifth of the races.
2. Of the races that were left, vote for any candidate named Natalie. (There were two.)
3. Next, vote all the incumbents back in. The less time spent cleaning out desks and rescreening the sexual harrassment video, the more time is left to govern or judge or whatever. Right? This step was a little tougher because the ballot didn’t note which candidates were incumbents. I picked out all the ones whose names I recognized, which left about thirty races…
4. …in which I voted Democrat.

Then there were the propositions, which were straightforward enough, and finally the race for School Board. Now there’s a toughie. No parties, just six names. Not having studied for this one, I could only base my decision on (likely) gender, guesses at age and ethnicity, and whether I remembered seeing the candidates’ names on any signs around town (advantage to the unfortunate-but-memorable “Schwethelm”). None of those criteria seemed appropriate to vote by (as opposed to picking Natalies—Their parents have the same taste as mine! Surely as adults we’ll think alike.), so I skipped it.

School Board is pretty much a bonus question, yes? Ooh, maybe that’s the one you get the sticker for. I should’ve guessed.

How the hell did it get to be November already? At any rate, here we are, and November means NaBloPoMo.

Once again, I will valiantly attempt to post every day in November. Have I ever succeeded? It’s possible. Maybe tomorrow I’ll link to all my November firsts of years past.

This year might represent the biggest jump yet from pre-NaBlo posting levels. I’ve written something like ten blog posts in the last four months. Shame.

But now it’s time to resume the flurry of just-before-midnight typing that makes the NaBlo tag loom so large in that cloud to the right. Onward!

Me, pre-dinner: 126.2 pounds
Me, post-dinner: 128.6 pounds
Dinner: 2.4 pounds

And I only had one plateful. Half of the weight is probably ginger ale, but still. Nom nom nom.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

Have y’all heard about Terry Gross’s interview with Tracy Morgan? It’s … weird.

I’d never seen or heard Tracy Morgan interviewed before this, so I had no idea how much the real Tracy resembled the characters he plays. He’s not clueless like they are, for sure, but he’s just as intense and unpredictable.

The tension in the interview is so uncomfortable that it made me physically squirmy. Or at least Terry seems tense. Tracy’s personality is so far from my own that I don’t know how to begin to project my feelings onto him.

I’m not sure why Terry seems to be criticizing Tracy sometimes, really jabbing at him. I listen to more than my fair share of NPR, but in Houston Fresh Air plays on Sunday mornings, so I don’t know much about Terry. Is this her usual style?

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If you’re already prone to extended naps on your days off, and then you get sick, don’t even bother making plans. Sixteen hours, bitches.

The Alexandria concert was tons of fun. The cold rain that tracked us all the way there didn’t promise a great experience, but our hosts found us an indoor location, and the show was a smashing success. Alexandria turned out IN FORCE, let me tell you.

We weren’t sure what to expect from a small-ish city, but the crowd packed City Hall so thoroughly that the organizers had to delay the start of the show for ten minutes while they brought in extra chairs. Every number got an enthusiastic response, and this audience wasn’t shy about cheering us on while we played. I can’t tell you how much easier it is to play for an audience that actually seems to be enjoying themselves.

In related news, I woke up this morning with a sore throat. I thought it was from all the yelling I did during the show, but over the course of the day the unpleasantness crept into my ears and nose. Sometimes I cough so hard that I gag.

I don’t have a fever, so I’m thinking it’s not swine flu. Goodness knows what was floating around in that crowded hall, or what lingered on the door handles of all the gas stations we stopped at. I’m hoping a good night’s sleep tonight and a day off tomorrow will vanquish these teeny intruders, whoever they are.

Here’s an old standby post topic I haven’t pulled out in a while: things people were searching for when they found my blog. The popular search terms haven’t changed much over the last year or two. I’m a little disappointed, honestly. I’ve changed, really I have! Surely my best work isn’t behind me.

Let’s start with People Who Probably Found What They Were Looking For:

adjectives that end in ly This search, with all its variations of phrasing and spelling, accounts for more traffic than the number one search term, “prepoceros.” This post of mine is the second or third result in many of these searches. What can I say? The people love a good list.

natalie hudson houston That’s my name, and that’s where I live. This search turns up at least a couple times a month. I figure it’s mostly people who know me in person. I haven’t put my last name on the blog until now, but if it’s leading people here in searches, I think I’ve lost the fight. Not that I fought tooth and nail. I mean, I link here from my Facebook, for crying out loud.

motherfucking fleas Sam had a bout with fleas a few years ago, and those critters were indeed motherfuckers.

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