Category Archives: Blogology

Still Loquacious After All These Years

By nopasanada | Published: August 11, 2010


“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.”  ~Marcel Proust

On Thursday evening I sat – more like splayed – on the couch in a suite. Everyone else was milling about over wine and cupcakes the size of my noggin. The laughter was plentiful and despite the din I was having a peaceful, contemplative moment. Alana came to check on me.

“Are you ok?”

“Yes. I’m just…I’m thinking.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. It’s just that these people…they’re all here and all day I’ve seen these people that I genuinely adore. I’ve gone from gathering to gathering and I’m just happy. I have these great friends and people in my life.”

She paused. “Well, I understand. Especially after college when you don’t know how or when you’ll ever make close friends like that  – you know, good friends – again.”

“I’m terrible at making friends. I have like four at home. And I never thought it would happen like this”, I replied with a wave around the room.

“You found the spice”, Alana said. Then went off in search for more wine.

The following evening I was doing a quick interview and let’s just say that I’m terrible with the public speaking. So instead of saying what I really wanted to say there was more blathering and wild gesturing and lots of “um” – ing. What I wanted to say is this: If you had asked me five years ago when I started this here little blog o’ mine, what my site would be like in five years I would have said – and I quote – “fuck if I know”. I probably would have shrugged and figured that in five years I wouldn’t be here in five years. It’s just a fad, I would have said. I’ll probably be bored in five years and moving onto something else. I wouldn’t have imagined all of This and all of you. What I meant to say in my interview is that I love blogging because I love that these women are nothing like me, they live in all corners of the country and yet here I am with them and so very happy. I adore them and this has been far more than I ever could have hoped for.

I’m full of pithy cliches right now but it’s all true. And you all have been pretty fucking fantastic. I’m having way too much fun in this space and I have you, my readers, my people, to thank.

So cheers and here’s to five more.

Posted in Blogology | 10 Comments

How you like me now?

By nopasanada | Published: July 20, 2010

“Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product.”  ~Eleanor Roosevelt

So, you like?

Gorgeous right? And perfect and…wow…I am thrilled. Last night when my site designer extraordinaire emailed me to show off her handy work I was a little overwhelmed. Moments later she emailed and mentioned something about Christmas and I was all, “Yeah, that’s it”. Total Christmas in July. I now have everything at my fingertips including spots for my Life List and all of that writin’ about  politics I’ve been planning to do.

If you can’t tell I am excited to have this site reflect me and my interests and I hope you all enjoy the semi-new No Pasa Nada as well. And no worries, it won’t be that new. I still plan on drinking a lot of wine and complaining about the superficial. Except now it will all be done on this fancy site.

Huge thanks to Schmutzie for the masthead, Dawn for being magical and Sweet Blog Design. High five, y’all.

Posted in Blogology | 9 Comments

Just Happy to be Here*

By nopasanada | Published: July 7, 2010

“It is while you are patiently toiling at the little tasks of life that the meaning and shape of the great whole of life dawn on you. ” ~Phillips Brooks

I was going to start off with a sting of complaints. Starting with a very late evening after a one day trip to DC. A trip full of running and jockying to and fro on Capitol Hill. At the end of the day I was standing in the airport parking lot rummaging around for car keys. Frustrated, tired, hungry, genuine feelings of inadequacy. I was total bad news bears and cursing when the pocket that held my MacBook suddenly popped open. You know those slow motion scenes where the character goes diving head first to save an object? Well I was the opposite. I kind of just stood there with a this cannot be happening look on my face. Willing my laptop to bounce of the pavement. But it did not. So here I am greatly looking forward to this unexpected expense and have been for the last several weeks.

And really that’s how things have been over here. A comedy of errors, if you will. One thing happens then another then another until my little house of cards comes toppling down. Usually in the form of tears. About two weeks ago I called my mother and was a giant ball of sobs and gasps for air. Peg said, very calmly, “You’re stressed and this is not helping”. Which is exactly it, you know. It’s stupid stuff like how I’m not home for enough time to allow FedEx to deliver said new Macbook or how I can’t get people to do very basic things. It’s relentless and, to be honest, unbloggable.

There are two interesting things to point out before I pose a question to you. Thing the first is that this isn’t where this post was headed. I was going to complain about travel. In fact this was written, long hand, during a 5 hour 50 minute flight to Seattle. Thing the second is that while my brain has been like a hamster on its wheel, I’ve been able to cook up some fun things that I’m really and truly looking forward to so I’m excited and yet….life, man. LIFE.

Thing the second shocks me for here I am crying one day and the next day finding pure joy in the people I get to surround myself with in a few short weeks. It’s interesting how the mind works.

Oh yes, my question, since we’re here and I’m curious: What subjects and topics are on your WILL NOT BLOG list?

I’ll show you mine if you show me yours.

*borrowed from Susan.

Also posted in Humdrum | 16 Comments

This is for my people. My party people.

By nopasanada | Published: June 13, 2010

“Gratitude is a quality similar to electricity: it must be produced and discharged and used up in order to exist at all.”  ~William Faulkner

Way back in February – you remember February don’t you? With the cold and the ice weasels? – well way back then I went to Houston for three days. Three days in a room with Susan surrounded by women I have since….gosh, forever. Except here’s the funny part, the part where you can understand my pill popping ways: The first day we ordered bottles of champagne by the pool and slowly people that have always just been there appeared. Susan and I got pedicures at the spa and then got dressed for a Mad Men themed party. We went downstairs and started to mingle and instead of hugging and kissing it was as if I didn’t belong. Here I was in front of these Forever People and yet I couldn’t stand being there. I was there physically but mentally couldn’t help but feel as if I wasn’t wanted there. Like ‘they’ didn’t like me. I lost the ability to speak to others and a lump formed in my throat so I ran back upstairs. I tweeted something about being around all of these people I’ve known for years and yet feeling like complete awkward shit. I stared at myself in the full length mirror, shook my head and went back downstairs.

Everything else is a blur. A chaotic mess of wonderful memory. Where I had more fun than is legal and I laughed. Oh, how I laughed and enjoyed a tasting menu and hugged and whispered and talked about what was fun. And my God, I was inspired. During the keynote featuring Heather, Maggie and Gabby I tweeted, “This keynote is making me smarter” and later “I love seeing smart women do great things”. It was all better than good and I’m not sure why it has taken me so long to write about Houston or the ideas that I left with. Probably life getting in the way. Not enough time to really process. But four months have passed and I’ve processed and percolated. And now I sigh. I got comfortable. I don’t know why I was so nervous because those women there? The ones brimming with brilliance? They’re my people. Now can we do that again?

Mom 2.0

Mom 2.0

Lindsay

Also posted in Grace in Small Things, Socially Awkward Barbie™ | 6 Comments

In the new

By nopasanada | Published: June 10, 2010

“No matter how one may think himself accomplished, when he sets out to learn a new language, science, or the bicycle, he has entered a new realm as truly as if he were a child newly born into the world.” ~Frances Willard

So, go to this page – www.wufpac.org – designed by the wonderful Sean Slinsky.

Go to the About section.

Scroll down to Advisory Committee.

And do you see that first name there? The one that reads Heather Barmore*? Why that there be me all fancy and shit. And I promise not to turn this into a long diatribe as to the importance of woman in politics. Or tell the story of last week when I told a fairly young Assemblywoman that she needed to ‘hold it down’ for the rest of us. No, no, none of that. Just some good old fashioned HUZZAH-ing from me.

But I’d be remiss not to mention my unrelenting fascination between ‘New’ media and politics. Each day I feel as of I come across something new that closes that gap between the Beltway crowd and those they serve back home. The other day my congressman – who I respect immensely – started to follow me on Twitter. I still plan to swear and discuss Grey Goose of course but I must say that no matter the member, I enjoy that there are so many who put themselves out there as a way to to take communicating with their constituents to another level. I like openness and transparency and having some sort of connection to those who represent me presented in a fashion that makes it far easier for me to communicate and see what’s going on down there from up here.

I like being where we are and can’t help but constantly jot down how to make it better. But I’m not an expert. Not even close and I roll my eyes whenever I see someone who has been blogging for two years, announce that they are a social media expert. I think that we’re all learning how to use this relative newness to suit us and our lifestyles. And I, for one, am having fun.

*If you go back to my Life List  - which has since been edited – you’ll see that #28 says “Help to extend WUFPAC across the country”. I’m kind of starting to cross that off but not quite. Either way, it’s fun to whittle the list on down.

Also posted in Life List, Poliogue | Comments closed