Today we went to see Patrick Stewart in The Caretaker. I enjoyed it well enough, except for finding it hard to stay awake during the second act because I was up late last night. I didn’t really understand the play - it was supposed to be character-based, but I didn’t find the characters particularly likeable and couldn’t identify with them at all. I enjoyed seeing Patrick Stewart, although his grizzled appearance was a bit jarring.

We didn’t do much at all today. A and I slept pretty late and then went to Le Gamin for brunch, where I discovered I like goat chese (at least in crêpes). I was still kind of tired so we came back to the apartment; on the way we stopped in at a veterinarian because they had cats advertised on the front window. (C has said he doesn’t want another cat right away, but I’ve been finding possible places to adopt anyway for when he is ready.) The one advertised in the window was named Radar, and he was on the front counter with the receptionist. He let me pet him for a few minutes, and then swatted at me rudely - I guess he decided he’d had enough.

We took a nap at home and then went to see Bad Santa. It was okay, there were some funny bits, but I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as the people sitting behind us. Unfortunately, they shared their delight by laughing obnoxiously loudly and commenting on the plot audibly. There was a sight gag in the movie that I didn’t pick up on immediately, but the person behind me said it right away so I didn’t get to figure it out for myself. I was pretty annoyed by that. Overall, though, it was vaguely amusing, but I didn’t like the ending. On the way back to C’s apartment we stopped in at Crema Lita and got some frozen yogurt. We’d planned to walk around Chelsea Market for a while, but we decided it was too cold and we just came home. A is baking cookies now, and C gets off work at 7:30. I don’t know what our plans are for tonight, but we sure didn’t do much today - just brunch and a movie!

There seem to be a lot of animals in the boutiques here. Although I come to New York several times a year, I don’t often go in the little shops. Yesterday we went to a baking supply store and I saw a cat curled up in a plastic storage container in one of the aisles - I got the impression that somebody had been restocking the shelves and was called away, so the cat decided to make himself comfortable. His name turned out to be Billy, and he was docile enough to let me pet him but he wasn’t keen on having his tummy rubbed. Today we saw an little dog in the Aedes perfume store, but it was old and had cataracts and didn’t move around too much. We also stopped in a pet store today on Christopher Street to look at the kittens, and we saw the biggest cat we’ve ever seen! It turned out to be of a fairly new breed called the Savannah, which is the result of a 1980s cross-breeding between a male serval and a female Siamese barn cat. This Savannah, whose name was Achilles, wasn’t for sale - he belonged to the pet store owner. His wild ancestry was very apparent as he paced back and forth in front of the child-proof gate separating his room from the rest of the store. He didn’t seem to like the dog that was back there with him, so he hung out near the gate and paced back and forth exactly like a tiger in a cage at the zoo. The store, Le Petit Puppy, is renowned for its two Savannahs - the other, Uma, has been featured on CNN and the store was mentioned on the website of New York magazine.

I just heard the Welcome! You’ve got mail! voice. It wasn’t from my computer, and C’s computer isn’t on, so it must have been one of his neighbors. Either their speakers are turned up way too loud, or it’s just that quiet in here. The latter is possible, but unlikely - I’m typing, the laptop is whirring quietly, and the radiator is hissing. I don’t mind hearing movement or music from the other apartments, but to have the computer speakers turned up so loud I can hear the AOL greeting is kind of excessive, I think.

I do find it interesting that despite working so closely with the deaf community, I talk about sound and noise a lot. I wonder several what situations would be like if I were deaf, and I’d consider trying it temporarily to find out, but I go on enjoying my hearing just the same.

Here, finally, is my review of the Once More With Feeling soundtrack. I’ve omitted the three scored pieces that are at the end because I don’t feel qualified to review them as I don’t have a background in classical music or in film scores. My only qualifications to review the rest of the soundtrack are that I’m an avid fan of musicals.
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The bus ride to New York was pleasantly uneventful. I had way overestimated how much time it would take to get to the bus terminal, so even after stopping at the Corner Bakery in Union Station for breakfast we got on a bus leaving 90 minutes earlier than the one I’d scheduled for. A slept pretty much the whole way, and I read Octavia Butler’s Adulthood Rites for a long time and then took a nap myself.

When we got here, we had to contend with the fact that C’s cat had died last night. She was very old, and he’d called us last night to let us know that she was dying. It made me sad because I had known her pretty well, and she was a sweet cat even if she was a pest sometimes (what cat isn’t?). C was planning to throw her away, but I asked him to save her until we got there so I could pay my last respects. When I finally did see her, I just petted her a little bit and didn’t look too closely; rigor mortis had already set in. C enlisted my help in putting her into a bag and included her favorite toy with her; A put in a gold dollar so she could pay the ferryman.

I got some very nice gifts last night and today. Here is a quick summary, in no particular order, and leaving out some things. In fact, I’m just making this list so I get a few things written down…I didn’t take notes while receiving gifts, so I don’t think I’ll ever get everything listed!
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Crayon reported to me that yesterday’s Straight Dope question is In what language do deaf people think? I haven’t been able to find that yet on the Straight Dope website, but I did find one called How does closed captioning work? There’s a corresponding thread on the Straight Dope message boards that includes some interesting discussion on how captions and subtitles are produced.

Added - It’s posted!

I’m finding the variety of reports about Malvo rather interesting. The Jamaica Gleaner reports the story as The Tragedy of Lee Boyd Malvo, and CBS points out that his life sentence is a holiday gift in their story Merry Christmas, Lee Boyd Malvo. The jury was apparently split on the sentencing phase, but analysis from the Washington Post claims age was the deciding factor that saved Malvo’s life.

How do I feel? I’m fine with it. I’m not sure what my opinion is on the death penalty. I think if any state would have handed it down, Virginia would have, although the Associated Press has a story that suggests Alabama may also get to try the snipers, and that it also has a strong death penalty law.

I was scheduled to be in the office today from 8-4, but I completed 100 minutes of voice calling on the VRS system so I get to leave early. I’m sticking around, though, because A is coming to meet me on the metro and we’ll drive up to my parents’ house from there. I’m not 100% sure what the evening schedule is, but I know A wants to get home early. Both my parents are sick, so we won’t be staying there overnight. I managed to leave the presents at home, but A is bringing them.