Trish Choate

Contra dancing crazy - Trish Choate

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:04:50 -0600

It's documented here in this blog that I've made an attempt to salsa. Let me be clear.
I haven't given up on learning to salsa dance. I've just recognized that it will take a greater committment of time, energy and embarrassment than I am perhaps capable of now.
However, I have stumbled upon -- quite literally -- another form of dance.
Contra dancing -- or country dancing -- is so easy that even I, three-left-feet Choate, can do it.

Blindly Building MySpace - Trish Choate

Wed, 26 Dec 2007 12:28:17 -0600

"The Simpsons" had it right on when it comes to showing how the younger generation helps old foggies over 30 navigate the Web.
Marge tries to find a little info about a family-oriented topic while Lisa and Bart peer impatiently over her shoulder and bark commands to their slow-surfing mother. She accidentally orders an appliance and gets no info.
Finally she relinquishes the mouse to Homer.
He finds the info with one click.
I've had shockingly similiar experiences with my daughter.

Jason Stratham with hair - Trish Choate

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 10:53:19 -0600

Jason Stratham's cueball head has been another weapon in his tough-guy acting arsenal.
The dome, bottomed by a stubbly chin, helped make us believe he was tough enough to smash through a few layers of brick if necessary and use the cueball to do it.
But as I consider going to see "Revolver," I have to decide if I want to see Stratham with hair.
It just seems wrong.

Alamo Elementary School Days - Trish Choate

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 12:01:57 -0600

My first experiences with what I'll call organized education -- unorganized being my mom reading "Fifty Famous Fairy Tales" before naptime -- was at Alamo Elementary School.
It was a fairly tough school with playground fights and classroom warfare regularly featured.
My math experiences there weren't the best, but I'm pleased the school is getting kudos for math.

Was "No Country for Old Men" Texas Country? - Trish Choate

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 17:44:45 -0600

How many times have we seen films that supposedly took place in Texas with little or no sense of what the state is actually like?
On top of that, actors' attempts at Texas accents are usually pretty heinous.
But "No Country for Old Men" scored some points in at least one of those categories.

The Guy in High Heels - Trish Choate

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 12:03:31 -0600

Dupont Circle was thrumming with life -- and drums -- Sunday afternoon.
The day was beautiful, drawing out a crowd to perch on benches and sit on the steps around the fountain in the circle for some people watching.
I took a short cut through the park and almost stumbled across a person wearing a long, black dress with sparkly decorations and a nice pair of strappy black spikes.

Immigration: It's Alive - Trish Choate

Tue, 26 Jun 2007 16:39:46 -0600

The immigration reform bill came back to life officially at 12:16 p.m. today.
Senators voted 64-35 to proceed with considering the bill.
Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., trumpeted success.
"I’ve been in Congress for more than 40 years and immigration reforms are always controversial," Kennedy said in a media release. "But Congress is expected to muster the political will to get it done. And today, I’m proud to say that we did. Today’s vote is a major step forward for Congress, and for the country. "

Jefferson Awards laud hard-working volunteers - Trish Choate

Tue, 19 Jun 2007 11:39:15 -0600

Petrolia resident Jena Fleming will be among the 81 "unsung heros" honored tonight in big ol' Washington, D.C., for their volunteer efforts.
How's this small-town girl and her husband Marty handling the big city?
Check Wednesday's Times Record News in print or online to find out.

Salsa Verde: El Conejo - Trish Choate

Fri, 15 Jun 2007 11:41:22 -0600

Salsa superman Mike gave me a quick lesson early in the evening at La Tabaq.
What did I learn?
I stink up the place when it comes to salsa, but Mike's a good teacher.

Salsa Verde - Trish Choate

Tue, 12 Jun 2007 13:21:40 -0600

It seemed like a good idea. Go learn to salsa dance.
How easy could it be?
Well, it could be real hard and real embarrassing, especially on D.C.'s salsa dance scene.

Goodbye, Jack - Trish Choate

Wed, 02 May 2007 17:21:55 -0600

Winter was like a wound that wouldn't heal in D.C.
Just when you thought it was over, a blanket of snow fell on the city.

Wake Up, Little Suzy - Trish Choate

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 12:35:55 -0600

The reporter by me yesterday settled down in his chair, almost wedged into the corner of the crowded conference room where the brand new House Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture was having its debut hearing.
Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw the reporter's chin drop to his chest. Soon, he was softly snoring.

Is "Ghost Rider" really Texan? - Trish Choate

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 12:38:58 -0600

A scrubby pasture with a dusty rut of a path running through it. Bluebonnets poking out of the ground. And cattle lowing somewhere or other.
Ahhh, what a sight for sore, Texas-deprived eyes.
Wait a minute.
Those bluebonnets don't look like the right color.
And hold on.
What's that big ol' tree doing growing in a pasture? Shouldn't it be a twisted mesquite?
The tears in my eyes dried up as I began to wonder, just how genuinely Texan is the movie "Ghost Rider," y'all?

Above, Below, a Northern thing? - Trish Choate

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 12:22:59 -0600

Wind slapped and grabbed at my too-short coat as I stood there, considering the question a stranger on Q Street had just posed.

"Perfume" or Something Stinks - Trish Choate

Wed, 07 Feb 2007 14:35:13 -0600

The movie was ruined for me before I even sat down to watch it, but I didn't know it.