Someone tried to jimmy their way into our garage. So glad we got that renter's insurance! Rough neighborhood I guess. Akhil and I are sitting here sweating in our 95-degree apartment, contemplating the blandness of our lives. Well, bland at the moment since we're still waffling over real estate and I still seek work on a daily basis. Before I get into our latest plans and escapades, I'd like to congratulate "you-know-who" on the baby news! As far as I know it's still a secret in some cases... but I for one am very excited about it.

These last two weeks I got back into the volunteering groove and finally met with Liz Thoman, who runs the Center for Media Literacy in Santa Monica. It's so amazing in a way to have a chance to work with her, as she founded the journal Media&Values that we referred to every now and then in our theory classes in graduate school. A remarkable person. I'll be writing a few things for her in coming weeks.

Akhil has been decorating his new office, and I've been nitpicking the decor of our apartment just to get a few more months/years of life out of this place - yes, we thought we'd have moved by now but things are not cooperating. So, I dug up a few gift certificates from the wedding and reorganized. I can't believe what Pottery Barn charges for furniture. Yet, I feel repelled by most of Ikea's. I think there's room for a new player in between.

Let's see... "Big Fish" was good, "Bourne Supremacy" was so-so, "Collateral" was decent (and L.A.-realistic!) and I am about to finish "A Suitable Boy," finally, which is getting good in pages 1200-1375. Tonight we're going out for booze - a rare activity for us these days, but once in a while it's all you can do.