Heat Wave

I can't understand why the tenants at the condo building next door don't use the pool they have. There's this nice pool that's cordoned off from the rest of the world (I can only see it because our building overlooks it across the way), and almost nobody ever swims in the pool. Plenty of sunbathers, but almost nobody swimming in it. Especially on these super-hot summer days! If I lived in that condo, was paying all the assessments for everything, I'd be in that pool every day it was open, just to get my money's worth. You got it, use it.

So, the doctors still aren't sure what's the deal with Exene -- several symptoms she thought were tied to the antibiotic she was on were ruled out by the ENT, who said nobody had ever shown those symptoms (in this case, a rash and/or extreme sun-sensitivity -- looks like a pox! Also, swollen joints. She's also had thrush the past week or so -- that could be tied to the antibiotic). Anyway, the doctor said Exene's "a puzzle" -- she wasn't sure what was going on, and recommended that Exene see another specialist, so she's got another appointment on Thursday, this time with a rheumatologist. I'm still thinking it's some kind of auto-immune disorder like lupus, or else, I dunno, cutaneous lymphoma? We'll see what the latest specialist says. But it definitely bugged Exene for the doctor to characterize her ailment as a "puzzle" -- she really wanted some kind of definitive say about what's wrong, and that wasn't forthcoming.

I stayed home sick today, still rebounding from the stomach flu. I'm way better now than I was this morning (or yesterday or the day before). Kinda glad to have gotten it out of the way before the big trip this weekend, when I take the boys to North Carolina to visit my family. Although B2 hasn't seemed to catch it, yet (and I hope he doesn't), at least I know B1 and I already had it. I'll bring stuff for the trip, just in case!

Uruguay put up a tough fight in the semifinal with Holland (2 - 3). I was surprised how fiercely they'd competed. It was a good match, although it should pale before the match tomorrow, between Germany and Spain. That should rock -- two competing styles: Germany's  calculated saber cuts versus Spain's rapier-like perfection. We'll see how it goes.

The one weakness I see for Spain is an excessive reliance on David Villa, their superstar striker (and he is amazingly good). They tend to pivot their offense on him, which is a lot to demand of one man against that German team (who manage a multi-pronged assault that is dazzlingly dynamic). Hopefully Spain will kick it into high gear and stop the German machine, but they have their work cut out for them, because this German team KILLS! It should be a fantastic match, and I'm looking forward to it.

This-and-that

Still somewhat sick from the stomach flu; B1 soldiered right through it straightaway; I'm getting there. Lost two pounds in about 12 hours. Hah!

Today is the Uruguay v. Holland World Cup match. Holland should smoke Uruguay. We'll see. I'm thinking tomorrow's Spain v. Germany will be the real highlight of the World Cup, although whoever wins that playing Holland should be great, too.

In today's NYT... Need a Job? Ask the NY Philharmonic.

Next season the New York Philharmonic will have a rare 12 openings, or roughly 12 percent of its instrumental work force, thanks to a confluence of retirements, departures for better jobs and long-unfilled positions. The Boston Symphony Orchestra has 10 vacancies, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra 9, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic 7.

Elsewhere the Cleveland Orchestra has four full-time job openings and one part-time. The Philadelphia Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony, San Francisco Symphony and Dallas Symphony each have three openings.

“We haven’t had this many for quite a while, not for 20 years,” said Carl R. Schiebler, the New York Philharmonic’s personnel director and its maestro of musician management. “A lot is six or seven.” 

I have the misfortune of working in a profession where people don't realize the value of the work that I do -- as I've said in the past (maybe not here), but editors, if they do their work well, are largely invisible. Only bad editing really stands out; if an editor does their job well, you don't even realize they're there. That's making the job search rather challenging, and even if/when I find something, the odds of it paying incredibly well will be remote. Not like it's my main objective, mind you, but it's still something I have to consider. It's why I'm looking into Technical Writing as a way of moving into something that uses my editing experience in a way that's actually valued.