200! ... and counting!

Today is a celebratory day, it's my two-hundredth blog! It would have come yesterday, but I wanted to mark this momentous occasion with a celebratory blog, and celebratory blogs take some time, and in this case research. That's right, I had to read all 199 previous blogs in an effort to pick and choose my favorites.

All well and good until I realized I didn't write any good blogs until say, September or so. This proved to be a problem considering I officially started this blog in late April. Two-hundred blogs in eight months. Math definitely isn't my strong point, but I think that's 25 blogs a month. Granted, most of them are busts, so I'm going to recap the entire short history of Nat Attack is the New BloG by handing out some awards for my personal favorites.

Best Idea of the Summer - The Pageant that Never Happened
Best Timing that Almost Killed Me - The Night the Moon Shone Bright
Best Original Thought - Why the Best is Never Good Enough
Best Proof I Am Lucky - Baseball, Christmas Miracle I, Christmas Miracle II, Work Raffle
Best Use of Creepy Animal Photos - The Yawning Bunnies Return! (and you thought you escaped them)
Best Weird Website Writeups (3-way tie) - Craiglist is the New Match.com, Crying While Eating, SeekingArrangement
Best Use of MSN Homepage - All Fired Up!
Best YouTube Video - Little Superstar
Best Political Statement - It's All I Know About Politics
Best Letter - To The Executive Editors of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Best Proof the Internet is Out to Get Me - My Family Tree of Travesty
Best Saga Involving Food - A Tale of Two Doughnuts; Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V
Best Use of Numbers - A Numeric Trip to Boston

Well isn't that just a fun snapshot of the last 200 blogs? I guess I'll also consider this my end of the year write-up. I love surfing the web between Christmas and New Year's and reading the "Year in Review" recaps. 2006 was a good year for me. I made four bi-coastal flights to the East coast, four trips to Portland, weekend trips to Wyoming, Las Vegas, Phoenix, St. George, Boston, New York, camping in the canyons, canoeing, rafting, swimming, skating, dancing, Spring Break in Cancun, Memorial Day in Portland, 4th of July in Jackson Hole, Pioneer Day in Portland, Labor Day and Halloween in New York,Thanksgiving and a 6k in Salt Lake, Christmas-time in Boston, actual Christmas in Portland... I get around! Like I said, 2006 has been a good year.

Thanks for voyeuring on my life. May 2007 be as eventful. Look for updates on the wildness that will include another quick three-day interview trip, a cross-country drive in the middle of winter, and the humor that is sure to come from being in a completely foreign place without knowing a soul. Oh what fun we'll have. Me, the writer, and you, my faithful reader. Here's to the next 200! ~NatA!

Dream, dream, dream

I've been looking forward to seeing Dreamgirls since I started hearing about it a year ago. I follow movies pretty closely and am always excited to see the ones that get a lot of buzz and actually interest me. Dreamgirls did not disappoint. I loved every second of it. **Disclaimer -- I love musicals; don't hate on me or this post if you're predispositioned to disdain. Pity for you.

The film has been nominated for five Golden Globe awards, three of which go to very deserving actors (the other two are for best original song and best musical). The performance that has generated the most industry buzz and the highest critical acclaim goes to the rookiest actor of the ensemble. Though Beyonce, Jaime Foxx, and Eddie Murphy all deliver knock-out performances, it is Jennifer Hudson's gut-wrenching portrayal as Effie White that gives Dreamgirls its grit and realism.

Many will remember Hudson from her short-lived stint on the third season of American Idol. She was dynamic in her portrayal of a larger-than-life, then later down-on-her luck diva with a voice bigger than her attitude. HOly cow, this girl can sing. I tried in vain (as is my usual routine with YouTube) to post an interview with Hudson on the Today show and her performance of one of the songs on the show. Alas, I can't. To view the interview, a brief view of her role on the show and her amazing singing, click here. (Singing starts about 4:40 if you're impatient.)

Midway through the movie in her turning point of the movie song, she sings and acts so heart-wrenchingly that the crowd burst into applause when she was done. People. This is Oregon. These people are stone and usually only get fired up over trees and endangered species. If they can be moved...

I loved this movie. I don't know how much my 15-year-old sister Mallory did. No worries. It's a movie about dreams and what must be sacrificed to achieve the dreams each of us holds for ourselves. It also lets you stomp your feet and be drawn away by soul, rhythm and sound. I'll be crossing my fingers on Golden Globes night and super excited for the Oscar noms to come out...

The $100 Million Christmas Bet

I bet you didn't get a Gucci fanny pack from your grandma.

But I bet you wish you did.

The Home Office

Working from home really isn't so bad...

Sure, dotProject is painstakingly slow, but you can't beat the feeling of flushing a toilet without the fear of it overflowing all over the place. And the pajamas all day is a definite bonus.

Pause for a Minute

I realize 98% of the blogs I post are snarky, cynical or some version of distorted reality. I enjoy writing that way and I assume if you're one of my regular readers you enjoy reading said blogging style or else you're actually more bored than I am. Amazing and alarming all at once.

That being said, I'm nearing my 200th blog (this is 196) so I'm about due for a serious blog. Maybe not so serious as a deep philosophical debate or a scathing political commentary, but I'd like to throw aside my penchant to fret about word selection or sentence construction and speak from the heart. And I'm going to come off cheesy as all get-out, but forgive this girl 2 cheeser blogs in 200. I deserve at least that much.

I'm dropping all my crazy charades, antics, commentaries and jokes for the U.S. Troops. I really have zero involvement in our country's armed forces--I don't even know anyone personally serving, and I'd be hard-pressed to think of someone I know who knows someone. That's the reality of my life. But I've always had an amazing amount of gratitude for the men and women who voluntarily serve our country.

We can sit at home, safe, warm and protected and debate why they are or aren't where they are or aren't--and we do. Most days we go about our business while right and left-wing politicians, newscasters and even Hollywood figures callously declare what's "best" for American troops. In my opinion, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a political issue scrutinized more. There's a great divide in American view of the troops and what they should and shouldn't be doing, and where they should or shouldn't be.

Nevertheless, here's the hope. Despite the debate--the rallying of the right and the lobbying of the left, I believe Americans are united on perhaps only one front; and that's respect and gratitude for our American troops. Take these two examples:

1. On my flight this morning from Phoenix to Portland, after the flight attendant's schpeal, he said something along the lines of, "At this time of year, and always, we'd like to thank the members of our United States Armed forces in uniform today, or out of uniform, for their dedication and continued service to the country." Spontaneous applause erupted throughout the cabin and lasted quite some time. I think there may have been soldiers on our flight but I'm not sure.

2. About a month ago, Krista and I went to a Jazz game. During a third period time-out a troop in the audience appeared on the jumbo tron and the loudspeaker announced that this was Private So-and-So from Draper and he was on a two-week leave from Iraq. Immediately, and without hesitation, the entire Delta Center was on its feet and applauding in a display of collective respect and united gratitude I won't forget soon. It might have been embarrassing how long we stood clapping, but the silent majority of non-debating thanks-givers was ready to be heard.

I cried both those nights, and I'm tearing up now thinking about them. I'm sitting in the middle of a movie scene--typing on a laptop in front of the Christmas tree, jazzy carols playing in the background looking out over the lights of the entire Willamette Valley (at my parents' in Oregon) warm, safe and protected. Grateful. The members of the Armed Services are the ones willing to do what we are not. What I am not. So I can't help but be grateful.

If you love to disagree with me, grant me a Christmas request and wait until the snarky, cynical, distorted reality Nat is back. For tonight, I am 2% sentimentally, undeniably, gratefully indebted.

the bloody miracle continues!

I just boarded as a C and got an aisle row. Unreal!

an early Christmas miracle!

No long blog tonight. Apologies around. But I can't be discouraged, I'm in the middle of a Christmas miracle!

I was on the same flight as my sister Kendall tonight to Portland when they asked for volunteers to be bumped from the flight. Long story short, I'm 380 dollars richer and staying the night in Phoenix. I was sad this would be my first non-Arizona Christmas EVER, but no worries! I get to see my cousin/brother&sister and families (including new baby) in a Phoenix trip I needed to take anyway. I wouldn't have seen this family for a long time after I moved East. Is anyone seeing the miracle here like I am!

Oh man. I was beginning to doubt my self-proclaimed "luckiest person alive" status today after I didn't win anything in the company raffle. O ye of little faith. This will teach me to doubt the powers of raw luck.

you know you're a baby... cont'd

Pelican Brief night No. 2.

Still scared. Tried to turn on the light. Can't turn it on because my entire life is packed and sitting in the northwest corner of my room. I muddled through somehow.

Julia is wearing kulattes (any idea how to spell coollattes?) tonight. That's fun.

Tomorrow's Agenda

Interview for Monster job A at 8 am.

Interview for Monster job B at 10 am.

That's right. TWO Monster interviews. Twice the irony.

Various meetings, work chit-chat pot-luck and raffle, scramble to get work done and on a flight to Portland at 6:20. Fourteen days out of the office will excite anyone!

Also on the docket... A GOOD BLOG! Believe it or not... Coming soon to a computer near you.

you know you're a baby

... when you have to pause your personal DVD player in the middle of a movie to get out of bed and turn the light on. The movie is The Pelican Brief.

Like I said, baby.

But Julia Roberts is wearing a fanny pack so at least the drama has a few laughs.

proof TV isn't real life

I finished watching season one of Felicity. The characters were packing up their rooms to go home and kept packing books into boxes. Felicity--books into boxes. Noel--books into boxes. As someone who has been packing up her stuff for the big Boston move for the last two months, I can truthfully attest that there have been no books into boxes for Nat.

I guess moving means books into boxes the same way buying groceries means a loaf of french bread sticking out of a brown paper bag in tv/movie world.

Are there any other tv/movie generalities that don't translate well into actual reality?

Irony at its Best

Would you consider it ironic to check Monster.com every day for potential job leads in the Boston area with minimal success (craigslist is where it's at) only to have a recruiter from Monster contact you about a potential job at their corporate headquarters?

I do.

the ending of a tyrannical reign

Alternate title: A Tale of Two Donuts - The Finale

You can trace my donut fascination back to 15 days ago on my first trip to the DMV. My 15-day registered car is now expired and I'm back again hoping to settle the score. Not JUST to get my car registered, but also to lay this donut obsession to rest.

The DMV had some kind of voodoo magic 15 days ago, casting an iron-clad hold on my heart and stomach. I'm hoping the experience of bored waiting, cranky people and grossly overpaid registration fees will release me from the clutches of the chocolate-raised donuts' ways. She must be angry that I slipped in and out of her waiting room 15 days ago in relative anonymity and in less than 15 minutes.

If anything, I've decided 15 is a cursed number. Why? Have you SEEN all the 15's in this blog? The kicker is this: the donut count on my whiteboard is 13. Not a 15, but about to be one. Two chocolate-raised donuts are on the docket as soon as I get through this eternal waiting. Two chocolate-raised donuts started this waltz of one, and two will lay it to rest.

It's like Maria always said: "Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start." This is the last plan of action I have.

No one likes to dance alone.

Back in Business

Thanks to Lindsey's refusal to cower in fear (yes, that would be me in the corner) from the powers that be at the D-Mark, Blogger is no longer blocked at work. Hip hop hooray, ho, hey ho.

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

World's tallest man saves dolphins in China

Herdsman, 7' 9", uses long arms to pull plastic from creatures' stomachs

 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16203273/?GT1=8816

 

This story is very strange, and pretty funny. Even better was the IM conversation I had with David ( http://mnexpatsports.blogspot.com/) regarding arm length and the world's tallest man.

David says: 

that looks like a publicity stunt

Nat says: 

41 inch arms?! that's nuts.

David says: 

 i just measured my arm. 41 inches is pretty much impossible

Nat says: how long is yourarm?

David says:

i'm not sure where to start the measurement. but it's about 24 inches

Nat says:

wow.

Nat says:

well, that man was 7'9"

Nat says:

that's like 2ish feet on you, right?

Nat says:

which is a third again your height

David says:

i'm 6'1". so about 20 inches

Nat says:

so reasonably, we could say your arm, a third again it's length, would be proportionate to giant man's arms

Nat says:

?

David says: 

he's about 1.2 times as tall, but his arms are about 1.7 times as long

David says:

though i'm a writer, not a mathemetician

Nat says:

so he's freakishly tall. it should come as no surprise that his arms are freakishly long too.

Nat says:

how strange. 7'9".

David says: but proportionately, his arms are more out of whack than his overall height.

Nat says:

so he may also win the guiness record for longest arms in the world

Nat says:

or i wonder if someone can beat that?

David says:

i would think they would go hand in hand. no pun intended

David says:

actually, intended

 

And this is my life at the D-mark...

the cruel, cruel world

When my subject lines have no caps in them I'm blogging from my blackberry. Why am I blogging from here during the middle of the day you ask?

The powers that be at work decided to block all sign-in capabilities to Blogger. I didn't know until I got an IM indicating chaos was about to ensue.

Sigh. We don't have the internet at home. So all you'll be getting from me until the iron curtain is lifted are short blogs with no visuals and bad spelling. Par for the course. Waaaaaaa.

What's Updog?

Remember that episode of The Office with updog? Last week, my coworker David and I tried to see if the verbal joke converted to a written-IM-based one. We were slim-to-none better than successful.

Case in point:

Nat says:
It smells like updog in here.
stephen says:
did you take a shower today?
Nat says:
Boo. You ruined the game.
stephen says:
huh?
stephen says:
updog
Nat says:
what's updog?
Nat says:
that's what you're supposed to say.
stephen says:
ah, what's updog?
stephen says:
(thought it was a typo)
Nat says:
no, no no. we're just playing a silly game.
stephen says:
oh. please forgive my stupidity
Nat says:
actually, it's probably a smarter thing.

Kudos Stephen, for being smarter than the average bear. Mostly all of the reactions were similar to this save one or two suckers.

n@ is the new k8

You know how girls named Kate sometimes write their name K8? Well lookee here. You're not the only ones who can spell your name with alphanumericsymbols. Behold, I give you N@.

I am N@. Somehow, it doesn't look quite right does it? Add the "T" and N@t looks so much more complete, doesn't it. And look! Blogger thinks I'm an email address now. How cute.

What other names can be formed using less than the full amount of letters?

A Letter to ABC

Dear Executive Producers of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition":

Thank you for reminding me I am a highly emotional female. I was starting to get a little concerned as I rarely cry in the face of circumstances I'm not personally facing. I march stoically into movies that other women bring the 72-hour supply of Kleenex. I feel nothing as I delete, without a second thought, those really moving email forwards I receive all too often. I was beginning to think I was past the point of feeling!

But leave it to you, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" people to wet my long prolonged dry eyes. You can't help but prick even the smallest heart with your tales of woefully deserving people who need a new home because they have tragedy in their lives you can't even begin to fathom. What? You're seven teenage siblings whose parents unexpectedly died (tragically) within two weeks of each other? A new house for you with two painted trees with doves in the front entry, so you'll always remember the parents. What? Your 7-year-old is allergic to the sun? A new house with the sunlight blocked out in an unfathomably fashionable way.

I cry watching the commercials for this show.

Last night was the kicker. A policewoman from the LAPD who was paralyzed on duty (either by a bullet or a car wreck... we missed the first 10 minutes). Exceptionally active before the accident with her marathon running and surfing, said policewoman is now confined to a wheelchair and worries about being a good mom. Never fear! You sent Ty and the crew in to renovate this Ronaldo Beach, Calif. home. The construction workers labored day and night to widen the halls for wheelchair accessibility, lowered the counter tops and created a recovery room with exercise equipment. A track system was installed throughout the house so an aide isn't necessary to help our policewoman around the house.

ABC, you sure know how to tug on my heart strings. When the family arrived home from Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and the LAPD was lined up in front of the house, I shed a little tear. When the crowd started chanting, "Move that bus! Move that bus!" my heart swelled and the tears kept falling. And then, the LAPD Bomb Squad bus moved forward, exposing the house to this police family (her hubby is a cop too of course) and their crying reaction created more of a chain reaction and I was a blubbery mess.

So thank you ABC. For lack of a better expression, a lot of bad crap happens in life. I appreciate your show and the outward sign that I'm not immune to feeling empathy in the face of tragedy. I find your show a cathartic release and a reminder that we're all vulnerable to life's cruel fate.

I hope I get the boxed DVD set for Christmas.

With much tearful appreciation,
Natalie

Stayin' ALive, Stayin' Alive

The 24th Birthday Disco Skate Extravaganza was a skatin' success! I couldn't believe how many people came--but more then that, I couldn't believe the skaters that were there. It was like living in a movie! Really, it was wild to watch the pro-skaters there. Shootin' the duck and all.

So, without further adieu, pictures from the skate-a-thon:
Nate, Joe, Dave and I.
Dancing crazy in the middle of the rink. The gal who took our skates told us we looked super cute. (My pants were about a foot too short.) This is only about a fifth the size of the group we had.

And, I can't for the LIFE of me get YouTube to post a video on my blog lately. HEre's the link to a little clip of us dancing in the middle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LV18fj7GC34

Check out these sweet bangs.

Heber and Krista took the cake for best costumes. Hebe was hard core--shaved his sideburns and facial hair into true 70's fashion.

Quite a few friends came up from Provo (and St. George) for the big event. We've been friends with these boys since our Freshman year. We celebrated our 19th birthdays together... and now we're turning 24. Time goes so fast!I don't have much snarky comment for this event because it was just such a great time--it couldn't have gone any better. We had so much fun we may actually try to go again before I move East. Want to come?

Last Week's Boston

The City

The Hotel

Me and the Minibar

You Know You're Loved...

When you get called to the front desk at work and these are waiting for you...

I've never had flowers delivered to me before at home, let alone at work! These are from Mel, one of my besties at Columbia.

THank you, thank you, thank you!

in the 7's

Last week, I posted about the 7's and how I hate them and never get up during them. Please note the time of this blog.

I think I woke up because I heard the cat in my room (Mavis knows she's not allowed so it shouldn't have come as a shock when I kicked her out). The cat must have got in when one of the roommates slipped THREE Albertson's donuts into my room. Now I have a reason to get out of bed today! 30 seconds later my phone started to ring. My parents and sister Mallory singing the traditional and the family specific. A lengthy email from my sister Alaina. Already two texts from well wishers.

If all mornings in the 7's started so grandly, I might have to revaluate my numeric system.

A Tale of Two Donuts... Part II

People. My ship is taking on water. I woke up this morning, after a full 8.5 hours of sleep and could not get out of bed. I just couldn't do it. And I had to go to the bathroom so bad. But I still didn't want to get out of bed. I prolonged evacuation nearly another hour. Even with the having-to-go-to-the-bathroom. Here's the kicker. The only way I could get out of bed and make myself go to work was the promise of stopping at Albertson's for some donuts on the way. What is wrong with me?

So I'm two donuts fuller. At work. Not too happy to be here, but here nonetheless. I brought Tiffany and Amanda a donut this morning too. It makes me feel less guilty if others are partaking as well.

The best part of all? Tiffany, having read my "Donuts are the New Skittles" blog from a few days ago, feared my obsession was shifting. To get me back on the Skittles train, and in early celebration of the b-day, she brought me a one pound bag of Skittles today.

Two donuts and Skittles? Best of times.
Only being able to get out of bed with the promise of a donut? Worst of times.

Grey's x 4

That's right folks. The time is now 10:06 p.m. I am still at work. I haven't been working since 6:00. I have been watching, via streaming online video at abc.com the last four episodes of Grey's. How I let myself get behind four episodes? I'll never know. But I fell in love all over again. Pain that the show won't be back until January.

How hot is Kate Walsh in these last few episodes? I have been an Addison fan since early Season II -- it's about time something good started happening to her.

And Mossimo (aka Alex Karev)? Freaking loved him since Season I Episode I. He is freaking fantastic too. He and Izzie need to just be back together.

I'm glad that Stephanie came back to work after going out to eat. That means she and I are the last two people at Datamark. The cleaning crew has even left, and we're in charge of turning the alarm on. First, she's going to help me load some of the flat screen monitors and the copy machine into my trunk.

That's all folks. Back at work in less than 12!

Hello My Name is ________.

I know most of you probably don't care, but I made a list of all the people I met in Boston (actual faces with names that I talked to) on the plane home and I was rather proud of myself. So, to tout my humility, I give you.... the list.

Cheryl, Marie, Kylee, Amy, William, Preston, Diana, Michelle, Carmen, Crystal, Meghan, Machiah, Seth, Julie, Seth, Jeremy, Cyrus, Whitney, Matt, Bryce, Jared, Carley, Laura, Lauren, Melba, Katie, Liz, Tiffany, Oatso, Malcom, Katie.

I'm sure you're probably not impressed. But that's 30 names people! That I remember! And know what they look like! And if pressed, I could tell you what they do, something random about them, or how long they've been in Boston. Don't believe me? There are Bostonians that read this blog now... I'm sure they'd be judges of my answers. Quiz me, come on I dare you...

My Hollywood Family Tree of Travesty

I'm not going to lie. I'm a little depressed right now. In the celebrity "find your look alike" game, check out who I most resemble:

I mean, wouldn't you be a little depressed too? Tony Jaa? He's both male and Asian. Am I either of those? Michael Kiske looks like David Bowie in The Lybrinth. AND that's creepy! Apparently Jared, Jamie, Heather and I share bangs, so we're clearly look-a-likes. Anyone want to take a stab at where Anastasia Myskina or Jennifer Saunders came from? Egads.

So, in humility I tried again:

All girls! A miracle! (No joke, this is the first time in a handful of tries that I haven't gotten one male return reply. It took me uploading a photo with my hair pulled back. Strange, isn't it?) Ironically, I almost always get Zhang Ziyi. The Williams have small eyes! I get it! (Kids used to throw rocks at my Grandpa Williams when he was a boy -- this was during WWII.) Kathy Bates? Kathy BATES?! Spice Girl Mel C? JEANNE MOREAU?!?!

You know, I've been witness to this wizard pulling out respectably decent look-a-likes for my other friends. Their returns all host beautiful actresses in Hollywood with names like Rachel (McAdams), Charlize (Theron), and Jessica (Alba). Look who I get. Boys, Brits, and bad teeth. Maybe destiny is trying to tell me something.

Donuts are the New Skittles

Guys. I've just said something 100 percent heretically blasphemous. (And I've given up proper English convention in the process apparently.)

I don't know what is wrong with me, but the donuts keep calling my name. Albertson's is a bad, bad place. And I can't just buy donuts in onesies, but it has to be twosies. Today I snuck out of work at 10:31, drove to Albert's and purchased the contraband. (I had to buy Tiffany off to cover for me at work -- her vice was a chocolate-frosted cake donut.)

One bite of the maple long john in the store.
One entire chocolate-frosted round raised donut scarfed in the car.

Still working on finishing the maple lj. Chasing the donuts with a Diet Pepsi in hopes I can wash from my memory the fact I just ate a day's worth of calories in approximately 97 seconds.

What has gotten in to me? I've even started a donut count on my board. ::sigh:: I think I'm hopeless... and am slowly discovering I have an addictive personality.

By the Numbers

Okay. Really fast, the recap in numbers of Day #3 (the final frontier) of my trip to Boston.

1 contact lens I wore all day because my left eye decided to wig out first thing in the morning. I then proceeded to do anything that required reading with one eye. Arrrrrgh.
2 airplanes I took to get home. (also the number of sleeping pills I took Sunday night to combat the Diet Cherry Coke drinking binge I'd been on the night before)
3 times I purchased food; CVS Pharmacy for munchies, Starbucks to combat the frigid wind, Que Bueno! Mexican food in the Denver airport for some chips and salsa.
4 hours I slept on the flight from Boston to Denver--a miracle since I don't usually sleep on planes!
5 people I interviewed with at Digitas. 4 too many!
6 kleenex I used (in between interviews) to clear the gunk from my nose and mouth. A wonderful weekend to be sick!
7 o'clock. When I was supposed to wake up and start getting ready. Upon realizing I didn't have my curling iron or hairspray (left in the bags stored at my future-house) I went back to sleep.
8 dollars I had to spend to have a hotel runner well, run and buy me some hairspray. This girl cannot operate without any hair product.
9 minutes I spent changing in the hotel's bathroom--from interview suit to travel clothes.
10; the size my interview shoes should have been; instead of the 9 my feet were crammed into.
11 times I wish I'd had two good eyes instead of one.
12:30 : the time (MST) I went to bed.

Does this sound like a stressful day to you? ... it kind of was.

But I'm home now. Huzzah.

deck the halls

Hey all. Nat here, day number two. I'm sitting at the bar by myself in a fancy steakhouse eating on the company's dime. Not too shabby, but I am of course alone. Still not too shabby. I think the bartender is giving me better service because he feels sorry for me. The quick notes from today:

1. The $8.50 baked potato I'm eating is VERY dry. I think the Irish who have a strong presence here in Boston must have brought traces of the great potato famine fungas with them.

2. I was so close to Ben and Jen's house today in Cambridge I could have reached out and touched it. They have a silver Lexus. I was a little disappointed-I guess I was hoping for a hot air balloon that said, "we're richer than you are." or something.

3. My church building's chapel has a balcony with a glass piece in front of it. Maybe they had problems in the past with paper airplanes and beach balls?

4. The bartender, filling me my 4th Diet Cherry Coke said, "I take it you must not be a diabetic." I told him the diet cherry was my guilty pleasure of choice. The rest of my time there, he called my drink The Vice.

5. One way streets are not my friend. I was very very lost in the world's most beautiful downtown. In a car. It wasn't so bad.

6. My cab driver basically begged me to tell him more about the Mormons because, "Muslim and Mormon is so close." the missionaries will be contacting him shortly.

7. The mini bar in my posh hotel room has a yo yo with the hotel's name (www.ninezero.com) on it. I had a hard time passing it up.

8. H & M is a pretty amazing store. Having one one block from my future potential 2nd home isn't such a great plan I think.

9. And lastly, downtown Boston is pretty freaking rad. Commuting on the bus/T would be a pain, but I think it'd all be worthwhile.

Interviews tomorrow. Over and out!

healthy wealthy and wise

Hi all. Nat giving the first report on the
Boston trip.

Travel was all on time and not as bad as imagined. I got lost in the two mile radius near my future house and had to stop at a CVS to buy the important things I'd left home. Mainly deoderant, a hair brush, and a 20 ounce bottle of liquid courage in the form of Diet Coke. Finally found the house after turning and turning and turning. In the dark. On narrow roads.

Christmas Gala came and went. Simple comments because I hate posting from my blackberry. Half live music, half recorded. Classy. Mario Lopez did a two number set. I found the VOG Boston. Henceforth known as the VOGB. I've mastered the art of chit chat and name memorization.

Currently sitting in my new soon to be living room drinking hot chocolate with friends in front of a fireplace.

Best realization of the night? Ben and Jen Affleck live on the same cul de sac as my chapel, many sightings have been reported. Going to church tomorrow morning just started looking better...

Boston

Here's the view I'll see from my airplane window tomorrow night...

........ and every work day after the first of the year.

Rat Attack

Four years ago, Krista and I started a list of "People We Vote Off the Universe." The list was buried in my piles 'o junk until last week when I unearthed the list in my attempts to de-junk my life. I'll have to post the list in its entirety another time, but I don't have it with me at work so I'll just have to rant about one name on the list for a second.

Chuck E. Cheese.

The name brings to mind childhood birthday parties with pizza and ball pits. Fun, right? Sure, you're a kid and you don't realize the establishment you're at is named after a rat.

A rat named Chuck! (Which brings to mind the ditty, How much wood could a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood, right? Ironically, Joey Gladstone's woodchuck was also voted off the universe on the list. End tangent.)

A rat named Chuck is the mascot for an eating establishment 'o fun. Some marketer of yesteryear is a freakin' genius! (Can't you just imagine him running around the office jumping for joy and shouting, "The rat named Chuck worked! It worked!")

Chuck E. Cheese may be one of the better pizza brand establishments, but at heart, it's still a pizza parlor named after a big, cheesy, rat.

Happily Ever After

So I found this countdown from "The Being a Man Spot" website. How I got there? I have no idea. But they had a pretty funny list of the "The Top 10 Hottest Animated Disney Women." It was pretty clever so I thought I'd post it. (Disclaimer: All the commentary and photos are directly attributed to their site.) Here are the requirements for the ladies to be eligible for this list:

1. She must be a cartoon
2. She must be, mostly, human (no cats, mice, etc.)
3. She cannot be evil (only heroines)

So.... here we go. Feel free to discuss and debate at will.

#1 - Jessica Rabbit (Who Framed Roger Rabbit) - Is there any universe where she is NOT the hottest Disney babe? She shakes, she shimmies, she sings. Con: May possibly be TOO much woman for one guy to handle...



#2: Jane (Tarzan) - Ok, I'll admit I haven't seen a Disney movie since Aladdin. But Jane just screams hotness. Gotta love the tie and white gloves. Prim and proper. Cons: Um, can you say waistline?


#3: Pocahontas - Umm...you know this is an *official* Disney wallpaper? Maybe not historically accurate, but never before has buckskin looked so good. Obviously John Smith had more than colonizing on his mind.


#4: Jasmine - Beautiful locks, rock-hard abs and she's crazy rich? Cons: Maybe her nose is a little big...





#5: Cinderella - Classic beauty. She cooks, she cleans, she sews. Cons: The in-laws. I hear her mother is a b-tch.




#6: Mulan - Good skin, lustrous black hair AND the voice of Lea Salonga? I'm in heaven. Cons: If she gets mad at you, look out, I hear she's pretty good with a sword :-(

#7: Belle (Beauty & The Beast) - Beautiful and humble lass. Devoted to her family. Cons: Likes her men thick and wooly.

#8: Esmeralda (The Hunchback of Notre Dame) - She's a firecracker with a social consciences. And boy can she dance! Cons: Um...what's up with her and the goat?

#9: Snow White - The fairest of them all. Cons: Those pesky little dwarves she's cohabitating with.

#10: Arial (The Little Mermaid) - One word: shells. Cons: Some seriously big 80's hair. May also be underage.