Dance with me, Write without me.

I never, in a hundred-million years thought I'd say it, but who needs to read EW Dance recaps when you've got a personalized version delivered to your inbox before you even wake up? No. Seriously. Pretty great life, huh?

At work by 7:50 today; full day of client meetings again. No time to write my own blog--I tried to front load Monday and Tuesday with three blogs each, but it doesn't work that way. The genius that's about to follow is loads better than I could have written myself--and I agree 100% with everything in it. Lastly, if you aren't watching So You Think You Can Dance--there aren't enough exclamation points or adjectives in the world how much I (we) all love it. Join us.

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Another post from my unsuspecting guest blogger Mal Pal:

Because I know you are coming in early and I wanted you to have something to look foward to and because I am frrrreeeeaaaking out about this show I am writing this email right now. Oh and I have play group tomorrow.

First and for most anything that Tabatha and Napoleon touch turns to gold! I love love LOVED Twitch and Kherrington but that was the beginning. Chelsie and Mark. Oh my goodness. I cried like actual tears came out of my eyes I loved it so much. AHH! I can't stop thinking about it. I really enjoy that song and I love monkey Mark a little bit and Chelsie is so cute.....I think it may be one of my most favorite dances ever!

Gev stepped it up once again. He is so funny. I love that he is crushing on Cortney, it's so cute. Their dance was lovely.

Chelsey and Thayn were boring and I wasn't a fan of it. It will take a miracle to keep them out of the bottom three. I thought it was funny when Chelsey kept saying that Thayn would make a great designer. Funny little gay boy. Let me also say that Chelsey has the biggest lips I have ever seen.

Comfort is really beautiful like actually I am jealous of just how georgeous she is. Tree boy on the other hand is not my favorite. Their dance was meh. I did however find their dance to be very animalistic contrary to the judges belief.

I loved the Kourtni/Matt lyrical dance. The new choreographer is crazy but the dance was awesome. The comic book idea was so cool. And I think that I kind of like the ninja mask.

Katee got bangs and I must say I like her a bit more now than I did without them. Oh Joshua is SO cute! I was laughing so hard when stupid Nigel was embarrassing him about those pants. I died when he made his Dad stand up. Ohhhhh gosh. I loved their dance a lot too.

To sum it up:

• Favorites- 1.Chelsie & Mark 2.Kourtni & Matt 3.Kherrington & Twitch
• Bottom Three- Comfort & Tree boy, Chelsey & Thayn, Maybe Jessica & Will I'm not sure.

Judges:

• Whoever picks out Mary's clothes needs to be shot
• I really hate Nigel's feathery hair
• The third judge (Adam?) I loved! He was so positive all the time. I believe he actually wanted them all to know what good dancers they are. And he is really funny.

Okay that is all I have. I would love to hear what you have to say and I cannot wait to read the commentaries tomorrow E-dub. This was the best night yet. AHhh! I cannot stop thinking about Chelsie and Mark. I will probably watch it 10 times tomorrow on youtube. Miss you and thanks for getting me addicted to such quality TV.

Love,

Mallory

PS-I hope it is sunny for you at the Cape this weekend.

Color Obsessed

I am literally obsessed with color. There isn't a color I dislike. I've learned that any color can match together; today I found a site that has rocked my world. I've been playing with color combinations for the last few hours. I imagine this could be a designer's, interior decorator's, or stylist's dream...

As always, Blogger was giving me fits with formatting, so I'm only posting two of my color palettes. Go make your own -- you might get hooked...

Thousands and thousands of words

I'm even boring myself.

• Glasses and a braid today. I feel like the dork I left behind in Arizona.
• Bored as I've never been bored before.
• Waiting for a co-worker to send me some pieces that need to be cut out for paper-prototype user-testing training we're doing tomorrow. (Say that a few times fast.) Arts and crafts will be keeping me late tonight.
• Got a new duvet for my bed. Those Target clearance racks will get you every time.
• Without any Celtics articles to read, the Internet just isn't the same. When is opening game?
• The tracker ball in my B-berry fell out this weekend prompting a new phone purchase to have a workable phone. Why does dropping money on necessities always feel like a chore, but buying other gadgets (see new flat screen TV) so much fun?
• I promised myself last night (for the 19th time) that I'd actually be productive in my room. The 19th time was a charm--laundry and the majority of clothing piles put away. Can the streak continue two nights in a row? What do you care, you're just reading my blog.
• I both dread and love the end of the month at work. It's billing, which is nuts for the project managers, but I also get paid. That's right, I only get paid once a month. I can't tell you how rich I feel at the beginning of every month. If you need money, that's the time to hit me up.
• I don't mind the rain (and let me tell you; it's rained about every other day this month); but when it threatens to rain the weekend I'm going to the Cape? No thanks.
• I'm trying to keep the blogging streak alive, but I'm realizing that no blog may be better than this kind of blog.
• The last four of my bullets started with "I." The chain has officially now been broken.
• On my shelf in the fridge exist the following items: 12 cubes butter, 3 cubes margarine, one strawberry freezer jam, a brick of cream cheese, and a package of tortillas with pre-shredded cheese zipped up inside. Can you tell I'm a baker and not much else?
  
• Keeping the tortillas and cheese in one nifty quesadilla-templated package is the smartest kitchen tip I can pass along.
  
• Friends, I think that's all I've got.
  

Textual Orientation

Me: Your boyfriend is sending me pervy pictures of Zac Efron*. Head's up.
K: If I had a dollar for everytime I heard that...

Paying a tithe

Thanks to those who responded to the call to ask me questions. As promised, I shall answer; I'm not sure how well, but here we go. A glimpse into my inner psyche...

Question No. 1 - from my youngest sister Mallory, aka onlychild09...

If you had to lose one of your fingers which one would you lose and why?

Dear Mallory,

What a strange question; probably one I would have asked given the same opportunity. I’ve thought a lot about your question since you heeded the call on Friday. I wondered how on earth I was going to respond. A miracle happened though. Like bloody footprints in snow, allowing not-very-good trackers to hunt their prey, my fingers have left a true story on my keyboard. A handful of the keys are decidedly more used than the others (Dear “z”; do you feel neglected?) and I set out to recreate my steps.

A simple type test was conducted. I narrowed down the field of less-used fingers. The answer is most decidedly NOT my middle or pointer fingers. (Besides, anyone who’s seen how long and crooked my birds are would never agree to letting me give those babies up!) My left thumb is much more dominant on the space bar than my right. In fact, I’m testing now to see if the right thumb ever spaces—it does not. The right pointer does all the work. But considering it is our thumbs that set us apart from the animals, it shall not be one of my thumbs that gets voted off the hand. Ring fingers also have their typing ability—and they’re very useful while braiding.

This leaves the pinkies. Oh poor pinkies. I shall test you now:

[As I’m recreating what’s happening, I want to make sure I’m never using my right pinky. Do I use my right pinky? My left?]

A-ha! Neither are majorly useful; but each has its duty. Left pinky [shifts] and right pinky [enters]. Shifting is more important than entering, so a decision is made.

Right pinky is out. Sorry lil buddy. We had a good run.

Thanks for the question Mal!

Your now nine-fingered sister,
NatA!

**Most used keys? T, R, E, Space, Y, O, A. Maybe Wheel of Fortune should do an update to RSTLNE. I'm just sayin'.

PG-13

I just posted a blog that may have inadvertently scandalized the neighborhood. Apologies if you were one of the lucky few (5) readers who partook. (Please don't judge me; I hadn't visited the external URL. Let that be a lesson.)

For the other three of you readers who didn't see it; more family-friendly material coming your way soon including answers to your burning questions, a Celtic celebration, and everything in between.

Buckle up; it's about to get not very wild.

First Position of Dance

Sisters are typically in tune. As I was writing my post asking for questions (please! still answer!), I received the following email from my sister Mallory:

Okay since you are the only person that I know that really watches the show I want to utilize this free resource we have (called the internet) to discuss this week's show [So You Think You Can Dance]. You already know how I feel about Mary's sick outfit but lets get on to more important things.

• Mia was kind of a meanie. I feel like she didn't like any of the girls at all but LOVED the boys. I think her frosty new hair matches her frosty heart.
• First lets say the two that got voted off were totally right. Man Suzy sucked. Lets get this out right now but I love Kharington and Twitch! They are by far my favorite. Twitch can dance! He does everything so well and K is just so energetic I just want to be her friend. Their waltz was beautiful and I will admit I did cry just a little bit.
• I have a baby crush on Gev. I think he is so goofy. Their lyrical dance was lovely but then again I always love a good lyrical. I loved Gev's partner's hair (I think her name is Cortney?) She looked so natural and it was beautiful.
• I am not a big fan of Katee (the asian girl). Ever since tryouts she bothers me a little bit but I will admit their broadway dance was awesome.

That's all I can remember right now. I would love to read what you thought.

Love,

Mallory

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I. LOVE. THIS. QUESTION.

IT made me SO SO SO happy to get! Woot! You're one of the only ones I know who love it as much as I do. I'm so happy you want to discuss it! What I'd suggest you do on Thursday mornings (after watching on Weds nights) is to read the recap on the Entertainment Weekly page. It's always super funny and pretty spot on. I always like to hear what other viewers thought about it too.

Here are the commentaries from this week:

Weds (dance) night : "Highs and Lows"
Thurs (results) night : "A Judging Mis-Step"

There are a few couples I like quite a bit. I really like Joshua and Katie but know exactly what you're saying about being on the fence with her (after auditions). She's just so happy when she dances though and it shows in her face. It'll be interesting to see them do a ballroom/latin based number when Joshua has to be a real partner.

I like Twitch (a lot!) and Kherrington. I just don't love that the judges seem to be obsessed with them and are trying to push that on the viewers. They dance lovely, but I think the producers are trying to keep them in as long as possible. Something about her grates me a little bit; I need to get over it though because she's a beautiful dancer.

I really like the tall Matt kid (with the tall blonde dance partner). I think he's hot, and he really came alive in that foxtrot--he had fun personality! I think his partner is heavy on her feet. No chance he'll win it, but I still think he's cute. I feel bad for that boy who danced krump; Nigel was an idiot to him. PS - I don't EVER want to see Nigel grab his crotch on TV. Ever. Is it me or does he get creepier and creepier every season?

The lyrical with your bf Gev was a good one; I like those two together. I think it's so cute he has that crush on Kortni. (And WHY do dancers have to have the worst spelled names? Blach!) I didn't agree with the judges that they had little chemistry; I thought it was smokin! Everyone else was meh -- you're right about Suzy getting the boot; I'm still not sure why she was in the top 20. Your assesment of the judges was all spot on as well.

I guess that's it for now. I LOVE this show.

Ask me a question

I am at a current loss for what to write. Seriously, I got nothin'. Honestly, nothing worth reading at this particular moment in time.

I got lucky however, and stumbled upon a list of 101 Great Posting Ideas That Will Make Your Blog Sizzle. I'm not sure my blog needs sizzle as much as content, but a girl has got to start somewhere.

Today, I'm going to tackle #12 on the list. Do a post that answers your readers’ questions.

So dear readers, this is where you enter the picture. In the comments section of this blog, ask me some questions. They can be creative, they can be getting to know me (ha!), or they can be general life queries. I can't guarantee the answers will be contractually factual, but I'm hoping you can begin to supply me with a much needed content boost. This should be an entertaining experiment nonetheless.

Deal? Fire away!

Adding to the lexicon

Sunday I wore a tie to church. I'm calling it the "Femi-knot."

How you know you work with true geeks...

There's an interactive agency Battle of the Bands in Portland tonight. A rival agency of ours is trash talking on Twitter. Our agency is running their corporate site through a markup validation service to check the compliance of their code (21 errors) and comparing it to ours (no errors).

If nothing above this line makes sense to you, your job isn't nearly as geeky as mine.

Let's hope in the clash of the 80's cover bands tonight our group's "We Are the World" (complete with costumes and group sing along) can bring home the prize.

Still not funny

I couldn't hear you over my loud chewing.

Work hard, play hard.

Last night, relaxing on my bed, air conditioner set to Arctic temperature, I fell in love with a show on the ABC Family Channel. My DVR caught a marathon of the show Greek, and I spent a fabulous evening doing what I do best.

On my first bowl of Fruity Pebbles I realized this is one of the things I love the most about being me.

On my second bowl of Fruity Pebbles I realized that the perple who love me best also love this part about me. I love that.

On my third bowl of Fruity Pebbles, my stomach felt, looked, and smelt like a carnival. I vowed not to eat them anytime again soon.

Highly professional successful project manager by day, thirteen-year-old girl by night.

Losing my cool...

This was started as another "100 Things about Nat" but split duties with getting-to-know you facts and a brain dump. And I didn't quite make it to a hundred.

1. If people don't know or forget my name, 99 out of a 100 times, they'll call me Lindsey.
2. I order off a kids menu any time I can.
3. I own a queen bed but always sleep on the outside edge straight up and down. I do just fine on a cot.
4. Last year I went without an AC unit in my room. I owned one, just never got around to putting it up. I considered myself a warrior.
5. Now that Dad (on his trip out here last week) installed my unit, I realize I was just an idiot.
6. I don't care what the extra electricity charges will be this summer, I'll gladly pay them to ward off the humidity.
7. I'm always surprised by humidity--it must be my growing up in Phoenix, but the first few humid days of the summer I'll find myself having an "a-ha!" moment.
8. I thought The Dark Knight opened this month. How sad to just realize it doesn't open until July 18
9. I spent five hours yesterday cleaning up and gutting out the non-clothes-related areas of my room. I was beyond overwhelmed to start but am pleased with the end results.
10. If I ever get married, I have some pretty sweet gadgets to bring to the table.
11. My office kitchen is so fully stocked at work that I eat both breakfast and lunch there. My grocery money is in surplus.
12. Too bad it's going to pay for gas.
13. I might drive a Ford Focus sedan, but man do I love that car. Especially since my dad went to work on the interior; you should see that thing shine!
14. I have a nasty habit of going through the motions of laundry, only to leave it sitting in the dryer as I've moved on to other things.
15. When I curl-curl my hair, I always start from the bottom and work to the top, using a claw to hold back the still straight hair.
16. I have always done make-up before hair. (Alaina does it the other way around; I think its how we survived sharing a hair dryer growing up.)
17. Oh how I wish I had carpet in my bedroom; hard-wood is shiny (sometimes) and looks nice (sometimes), but nothing screams bedroom! to me like a nice plush carpet.
18. There are a few things ingrained in my being that are borne from being a Westerner--carpet in bedrooms being one, owning a car the other key must.
19. I'm PMing (project managing) two really exciting site redesigns at work; I can't really discuss what they are in the blogosphere due to non-disclosure acts, but trust me when I say they're big and exciting.
20. I worked a lot last week; and I didn't really mind it. My social life is on a bit of a hold for awhile while I get my career life under control.
21. If you aren't using brushes for your eye makeup, start. Target makes some really nice generic brushes ($2) that will change the look and feel of your shadows. If you can't afford pricier makeup, start here; you'll be impressed.
22. My hair might be the longest it's ever been. If you met me after 2005, I bet you didn't know that I had short hair my entire life.
23. I have a long face and an even longer neck; when my hair hits shoulder length, it's already a foot long. I imagine a strand of my lower-back-length hair is approximately 8 ft. long.
24. I've been spending so much time at work (and actually working while I'm at work) that I have no desire to fire up my laptop when I get home. This is why I've been a bad blog commenter. I'm sorry.
25. Today is my half birthday. Now I'm on the downhill to 26. This makes me a teensy bit nervous; only because 26 sounds so old and I still feel like I should be 19.
26. At 19, if I could have seen where my life would be at 25, I think I'd be proud. And excited.
27. Both my parents are left-handed. All four of us girls are righties. For some reason, this is a statistic I mark in my head as beyond explanation.
28. Each week, a Rolling Stone or ESPN Magazine comes in the mail. It's always one or the other, but never both.
29. I think you'd be quite surprised how much I know about the NBA and other sports in general. I can definitely out-geek anyone I know.
30. Case in point? Last night I watched the half-time show and the entire second half of a game I already attended. I like hearing the commentary.
31. I own four curling irons (2", 1", 1/2", 1" without a clamp), and three sets of curlers (velvet, spiked, sponge). These are not the cool gadgets included in my dowry.
32. Lately, when I get dressed in the morning for my VIP job, I try to piece an outfit together that looks like it could be in a magazine. Shoe selection keeps me from a 100% success rate.
33. Did you know I'm not allowed to buy cotton? This is a rule I self-imposed six months ago, and I've stuck to it.
34. I own four board games. Connect Four, In a Pickle, Cranium Pop Culture, and a PG13 game given as a birthday present (living under the bed) that I can't quite get rid of.
35. So You Think You Can Dance is back on, and I couldn't be happier. I'm also happy with the number of people I know who watch (including the other gal at my office).
36. I like watching TV alone.
37. But I love recapping with other viewers (or reading commentaries) after the show.
38. I don't think I'm as interesting as I used to be; this list is taking me a long time to write.
39. I found the notes/outline I used to give a talk in February 07 yesterday while I was cleaning out my room. One of the quotes set the stage for a great Sunday service today; huzzah. (Someone I met at a party last month referenced this talk I gave oh so long ago. Holy memory!)
40. I've worn some super tall shoes to social and church events lately. If I'm going to be tall, I might as well go big or go home, right?
41. I hate feather pillows. My mom knows this and makes sure to put out different pillows when I come home. I love that.
42. I'm the worst Brick Breaker player in the world. I was obsessed for about a week and then realized how terrible I was and moved on with my life.
43. Friday was National Donut Day. I didn't have a donut.
44. Does spending your economic stimulus package make you more patriotic?
45. One of my favorite summer fashions is tank tops with a scarf. Too bad I don't wear tanktops.
46. I have a friend who is trying to invest capital in my opening a bakery. Doesn't he know I'm a two-trick pony? And that I hate butter? I don't think bakery-owners are allowed to hate butter.
47. A gal in RS today told about how her family all have their cell phones set to alarm at 9PM; that alarm lets know you that someone loves you and is thinking about you. I think that's a really cute idea.
48. Fresh pineapple is one of my weaknesses.
49. Along the fruit vein, I passed another rite of adult woman passage a few weeks ago--I picked a good watermelon.
50. I've taken hundreds of photos since I've lived in Boston; I have yet to print a single one. The photos hanging on my walls are from a different era; it's both nostalgic and timely to start rotating them out.
51. Since our trip to Ireland, I am obsessed with Coke Zero. The only place I've found it on tap is a movie theater in Oregon.
52. I packed my winter coats away away for the first time in my life.
53. Remember how I had red hair once? Sigh. Sometimes I miss it; but I almost have my old hair back! It's been a process...
54. I hate the zoo. Reasons abound.
55. There are a few certain songs I hear that always, and I repeat always, make me think of a particular person. "I Want to Live" - Alicia. "Listen to Your Heart" - Kendall. "Have a Little Faith" - Melissa.
56. Today, for the first time in conscious thought, I have truly conflicted outlook for the immediate future. This isn't to say that one pole is good and the other is bad; I'm just conflicted.
57. I have officially given up. I will be a nail-peeler for life. I'm dealing with it.
58. I don't get "lost for words" frustrated very often; I hate when I do. It doesn't happen often enough for me to have a formulated game plan.
59. I love people with follow-through. Someone who says "we should go to dinner" or "are you in town this week?" at church on Sunday and means what they say? Holy awesome. I like to think I'm that kind of person with follow-through; this is why I try to mean what I say.
60. It will never be easy for me to meet people--I have to force myself to be chatty. I practice with clerks at stores or check-out stands. Somehow it's easier to small talk with these people.
61. I love being alone.
62. I love talking shop with people in my line of work. Lucky for me, this covers both the technology and marketing/media world.
63. On a particularly grueling day last week, our Art Director told me via IM that he didn't envy my job. He also told me I was doing a good job; which was well timed. Starting a new job always has a learning curve; I was nervous I was behind it.
64. Is sixty-four enough bullet points? Can I end it here? Surely I've got a few more in me. But I've been thinking this since thirty-seven.
65. I'm officially closing the poll at 65. Mostly because I got an offer for a social event (after some persistent pushing to get me off the fence, thanks Lauren!) and need to bake.
66. I bake for social events so I have something to do with my hands.

How quickly it can all go south

3:00pm - With nothing to do this evening, considered going to the gym after work.

7:30pm - Made questionable meat selections at a local fast food chain after late client meetings.

Never an okay sound

I'm at work rather early this morning--with month-end comes the delight of billing, hours approval, and invoice proofing. No one from my team is in yet, but there's someone in the next bay over slurping some kind of beverage this morning. The sound is awful. (Isn't slurping always?) They way he's been going at it, you'd think it was a 44 ounce coffee.

 

I just checked. It's not. And the man is kind of a creeper. He's also really mean on the phone.

The Internet is weird

Alternate title: People who use the Internet are weird

Alternate alternate title: People in real life are weird

Alternate alternate alternate title: People in real life who are weird do weirder things on the Internet.

This never-ending circle could continue on and on and on.

According to the usage statistics on my site, a high percentage of Google users find my blog with a combination of words I don't necessarily want associated with my blog.

Long story short (for real this time): I had to retire a post to keep the creepers off my blog. And I can't even tell you what the phrase is, lest they find me again.

It's like I'm living in The Net*, but I don't order my pizza over the computer.

*Best tagline ever: Her driver's license. Her credit cards. Her bank accounts. Her identity. DELETED.

I'll steal your honey like I stole your bike

My, world wide web activity has been down the last few days. Did you enjoy your three day weekend? I had a smashing last few days--the big news is that I'm finally back in Boston! I did the math, and I've only slept 8 of the last 30 nights in my own bed. I've had quite the last four weeks, but there's something comforting about your own bed.

In previous posts, I raved about the lush beauty that is Oregon. Take at right for an example. In the nine days I was in town, it rained only two mornings. The rest of the time was blue skies and gorgeous weather. But no more talk of Oregon or Boston. Let's discuss what I did over the true weekend.

After flying all day Friday (with delayed flights and mechanical trouble of course) I rolled into my house at 9:30, unpacked one bag and repacked it with clothes for my weekend in NYC. Unwound while watching the Grey's finale (I kind of loved it) and finally turned the lights off at 1am. Got up at 530am, dressed and had Julie picked up by 545. I had no idea it's that light that early. I don't make it my business to get up in the 7's usually, let alone the 5's. Our plan was to drive at off-hours to avoid holiday traffic. It worked like a charm!

We needed to pack as much into our two days as possible, so I guided the quickest, fullest tour possible. For as fast as I generally move, even I was surprised with how much we got done.

Our drive was quick, and we were parked and wandering around the Financial District at 930am. I'm pretty sure I have never been up that early and going in the city. The streets were so quiet! Over the course of the next two days, highlights included shopping, the diamond district, battery park, the Staten Island ferry, grand central station, Rockefeller center, Radio City music hall, a movie, amazing food in window seats overlooking Times Square, a constant craving for Coke Zero, and asking questions to each other about sailors.

Sailors? Yup. It was "Fleet Week" in New York City, so thousands of men and women in uniform were doing their own sight-seeing and posing for pictures. You couldn't take too many steps without seeing tourists asking for photos. Julie and I had so many questions and observations about the sailors--but we never actually talked to one.

We did see quite the number of them karaoke however. Friday night, we found ourselves in this sweet karaoke club in the heart of Times Square. (Complete with background singers/dancers.) We got in before the cover charge went into effect and stumbled upon quite a few sailors having a grand ole time. FNL fans perk up. There was a sailor who kept singing (courtesy of the USS Richmond) who looked exactly like Matt Saracen on stage. I knew he looked familiar, but it took me through "Somebody Told Me" and "YMCA" to figure out the resemblance. Julie (late to the FNL game, but appreciated nonetheless) also agreed with me, and we snickered about it for quite awhile. Or maybe the whole night.

After quite a bit of dancing and singing along, we're somewhat close to leaving when guess what happens? Sailor Saracen grabs my hand and saddles right on up. It's like my true TV-meets-reality moment. He doesn't even say anything to Ju, just shoves his camera in her hand. Just call me Julie Taylor. For the record, that is not my hand on his shoulder, it's his Landry behind us. After our photo was taken, Saracen had some choice and somewhat slurred comments for me; but boozed or not, it's nice to feel appreciated by the male species. Thanks Matty; you made my night. I'm hoping Julie will post about her Flow Rider admirer. (I'll admit that he doesn't look so Saracen-esk in the upclose photo, but from the stage the resemblance was uncanny.)



My Broadway tickets lotto streak continues! We managed to win four tickets to see Hairspray at the Saturday matinee. I'd seen it before but love love loved it, and was itching to see it again. Joe and Jamar came with, and boy were our seats right in the action. Like two feet from the action. The orchestra's subwoofer was at our feet; we felt every note of the soundtrack for several hours afterward. One of the highlights? Link Larkin was played by none other than Ashley Parker Angel. You remember that hit group O-Town's awesome song "All or Nothing", right? No? Do you remember his hit MTV reality show "There and Back"? Sigh. I guess I do know/remember too much about has-beens. Nonetheless, he was really pretty great as Link. And Norm from Cheers was Edna Turnblad (Tracy's mom and the role played by John Travolta in the movie). Motormouth Mabel and Seaweed were also played by quasi-famous people. All in all, it was quite the delightful afternoon. Especially when Penny's mom had to squeeze in front of us in the front row and put Joe on the spot with funny accusations of inappropriate behavior. The only time any of us will be on Broadway, that's for sure.

I just love New York. I can't help it. A two day trip was actually a pretty fantastic way to get it done. We drove home from 1130-3am last night and avoided holiday traffic yet again. Just before leaving, we enjoyed a piece of pizza and a Coke Zero on the Upper West Side. The moment was fairly perfect; the whole weekend was much the same way--the cherry on top would probably be that LFO hit "Summertime" was the first song that played when we turned on the radio. Our remaining weekend wish was to hear "In This Club" and "Please Don't Stop the Music" before we switched from radio music. Within 15 minutes, both played, we sang along, giggled, and shifted mental gears in heading home.

Back to the real world tomorrow!

Choosing Winners

Tonight, both my chosen winners won.

1. I can't believe I actually wanted the Lakers to win. I just don't want the Spurs--it's a choosing the lesser of two evils. AND I think the Celtics will have a better shot against the Lakers.

2. Good job David. I really believed I was neutral, but when they called Cook's name, I was just thrilled. Oh so thrilled. And the baby guyliner he was wearing at the end was pretty hot.

Can Ryan Seacrest take a nap now?

Vantage Point

I could apologize (again) for being a sporadic blogger, but I decided yesterday to stop saying that unless I really am sorry. I sat in some hole-in-the-wall burger joint in downtown Portland yesterday, staring out the window at the city streets; vintage signs on a clear blue day, casual wind rustling the trees, and made the decision.

I've been busy; caught in these small experiences, taking time to soak in the joy of daily living. The right song at the right moment; windows down in my rental, satellite radio removing the cacophony of commercials--sunroof open and a V8 at my fingertips. Long and windy roads aren't nearly as obnoxious when traffic isn't clogging the system--when there's wide open Western spaces to navigate.

May has been an indescribable month of travel and change; highlighted by these pockets of introspection and outward reflection. I've slept more nights in beds other than my own. As soon as I was unpacked, it was time to pack again. Just as I miss Boston and don't miss Boston at the same time; I miss blogging as much as I don't miss blogging. My brain is less focused on structure and more focused on being.

But enough vagueness, huh? I'm typically a straight shooter, so let's get to some bullets:

• P.S. In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm in Portland. On business. My new company is headquartered here (all 40 of them), and I'm here on a training trip. Let's stop a minute to go over the pros here: They flew me out here. They rented my sweet ride and pay for my gas. They expense a good chunk of money a day in meals. In exchange, I go into the office every day, 9-5, train, work, learn, etc. and then get to come home to my family and hang out (eat out/watch basketball). It's pretty much a vacation without using any vacation days. Lovely.
• We've played Ticket to Ride quite a few times. Such a fun game; I should really look into getting my own.
• The Celtics seem to play every night. If it's not a game day, it's a day to read about last night's and/or tomorrow night's game. Because of the time difference, pre-game starts at 5pm--this usually entails a quick dinner and a rush home. Good thing we had early church on Sunday (9-12) so we got to watch Game 7. (There's a reason I have a Pierce jersey. What what!) Well, most of the game due to ....
• Mallory's birthday! Our baby is 17 now.... seems like she's been that old for ages now; I guess her actual age finally caught up to her maturity.
• I've been out for drinks with coworkers twice now. It kind of started as a "I really should go to meet the people I'll soon be trying to boss around from 3,000+ miles away" but I'm finding I actually enjoy socializing. Several nights into hanging out, I realize I am...
• ...the anti-Oregon. Seriously. Everything about me is so mainstream and urban. I'm a consumer, I eat at chain restaurants, I don't like animals, I drive a car, I dress trendier/dressier, I don't smoke, I watch American Idol...
• ...ARchie for the win! Honest to goodness, I would have been happy had either David won, but I think Archuleta sealed the deal tonight. He was golden. Imagine was better than the first time--I hope they'll post it to iTunes. But really, why did he look so miserable? Why's his dad a creeper? And why-oh-why-oh-why does it surprise me that the rest of Americans think Utahns are weird--did you see the Murray City mayor? For reals.
• Monday at 3 my office shut down and we all went bowling. Bowling and booze. And food. And then some bar hopping. Strange to work with people who are social--at my last job I could go several days without talking to anyone. This will be a welcome change.
• My first day in the Portland office, all the Project Managers went to lunch. Someone asked me what my hobbies are. My answers cemented me as possibly the most boring person on earth. ::silence:: "Well, I like movies, and the Celtics, and I guess I read." ::silence:: But really! What are hobbies any more these days? Later in the conversation I had to acknowledge the fact I sounded boring and made mention of cupcakes. I guess tomorrow night I'll be baking to prove I'm not a snore bore.
• For some reason, I find it easy to go to bed at 10:30 here. I don't know what the difference is. I do the same things at night here as I do at home. But really, I can't even remember the last time I went to bed before 11:30; and definitely not six days in a row. It's good to know I can have a goal going back.
• Watched "Lars and the Real Girl" a few nights ago and really enjoyed it. Ryan Gosling is a rock star. The movie was really quirky without being over the top--it had a lot of heart.
• "Becoming Jane"? Ummmmmm. Not really worth your time. Sorry fans. Unless you just want to enjoy James McAvoy. If that's the case, go watch Penelope. It's insanely cute and family-friendly.
• My dad, Kendall and I are going to see the midnight showing of Indiana Jones. I'm not sure if any of us are really that excited for the movie itself, but it seems like a fun, and kind of strange thing to do... so there you have it.
• IRON-MAN. Saw it, loved it. Didn't know much about it going in, except that it cleaned up at the box office. Low expectations are a must-have when seeing any movie. However, I think having high expectations for this movie would have been acceptable.
• Four bullets about movies? Wow. I haven't seen a movie since last year before this week.
• The fridge has been constantly full of leftovers from the restaurants I'm frequenting.
• I finally got my $600 stimulus. I think I may have been the last person in the country. Plans for spending? None. Free money will get put away as I already own everything I could possibly want.
• Or I'll save it for a little Europe jaunt at Thanksgiving. Anyone interested? Paris is my first choice for a 4-5 day jaunt. (Can Italy be done in that short of a time?)
• AHhhhh! 10:34. Past bed time. If I want the streak of up and showering at 7:15 to continue for the sixth day, I'd best get going.

Love you, talk to you later, kay, thanks, bye.

Little Women

I’m not the type who reads for emotion--I read for the story. I’m looking for plot over description; action over philosophy. I’ve always been this way; it’s how I plow through books so quickly and don’t do well in book clubs.

Because my joy resides in plot, I don’t read much into all the deconstructive actions taught in the classes I’ve taken. Can I pick themes to analyze, motives to dissect, and theories to critique? Of course I can. Do I choose to? Not unless a required 3-5 page paper looms over my semester’s grade. The books I read are still laden with literary elements worthy of discussion. It’s just not my cup of hobby tea.

(Clearly you feel the shift in this post coming, right? Classic method of writing; the historical set-up and then the shift that gives meat to the topic at hand.)

I purchased “Little Women” at Target several months ago but hadn’t found the time to join the millions of readers who have loved the March women since childhood. I’d seen the movie some years ago, and appreciated the visual framework laid by Winona, Claire, Kirsten, and Christian. The book is lengthy, and I’ve found myself on several bicoastal flights in the last few weeks.

Little Women is the party I’m devastated to be late to.

The book holds no major surprises if you’ve seen the movie. (Though to note, it’s been long enough since I’ve seen the movie that the central plot points were hazy in memory.) Where the book trumps the movie is where the heart lies, and that is not with the actual plot, but with the March sisters. Four girls, on the brink of maturation; relationships explored through the habits of daily living; textured with the joy and heartache caused by moving on and growing up.

A task no two-hour movie could ever hope to achieve.

Each character in the book has strength and goodness uniquely her own. In turn, she isn’t perfect—at times rash, cruel, or insensitive. Passionate yet flawed; able to hurt and be hurt. At heart, however, the reader always knew that “ a peaceful presence, invisible, but dearer than ever…could not break the household league that love made dissoluble.” Louisa May Alcott does a phenomenal job developing imperfectly loveable characters you can’t help but love perfectly.

And so it is with me.

Surely you know by now that I come from a family of four girls.

And surely you can understand why this book rocked my emotional core.

I cried when the eldest sister Meg left home to be married. I cried when Beth battled mysterious disease but carried on with a smile and grace that surpassed her years. I cried in the afterward describing how hard it must have been for Amy, the youngest, to caboose the order of such strong and differing personalities.

Mostly though, I cried for Jo, who wanted so desperately for time to freeze, and the dynamics of her nuclear family to stay the same; who for a time felt life happening around her, but never truly to her.

And the parents who ruled the roost were kind and just—they guided with firm but loving hands. Not as much is said about the March parents, but the qualities and “well-breeding” visible in each of the March sisters speaks volumes to who bore and raised these women. Their nature is implied with every movement each of the girls makes. Alcott spoke to my heart with the passage, (speaking of Jo) “…for the parents who had taught one child to meet death without fear, were trying now to teach another to accept life without despondency or distrust, and to use its beautiful opportunities with gratitude and power."

The Marches proved themselves to be a ‘league that love made dissoluble’. In time, Jo accepted the inevitable changes required of a household of sisters growing up. Of a little woman growing up. She accepted life without despondency or distrust. She created beautiful opportunities with gratitude and power. She learned to trust time.

I’m rediscovering my tender heart and learning to attach myself to characters in books.

Another grouping

Wow, am I a bad blogger or what? I seem to have reached new lows. Maybe it's because my life is fuller than ever--or because I don't have as much free time at work to multiply and divide words.

Here's the sitch. It's 10:35 at night and I need to make this fast. (Will I? CHances are slim, but here's praying for quick thoughts and speedy fingers.) I have EARLY all-day client meetings and have to get up in the 6's. THE SIXES. Aye carumba. The meetings are super important and I'm feeling a little nervous, seeing as it will be my fifth day on the job and a lot is riding on this international site redesign. Here's hoping for the best!

So I guess I'll try to keep it to a dull roar here for the time being. I'm in all day meetings Monday and Tuesday, and in Portland for work Wednesday to the following Friday. The jury is out on how much desire I'll have to be blogging in the evenings as the baptism by fire at the new j continues. Ready for some shortisms? LEt's do it up.

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The weather got nice, the Boston Sailing Association had an Open House; what else to do but check it out? I definitely didn't help sail the boat one minute; it was like a mini cruise in the harbor!

I tried to dress as Ralph Lauren as possible.



















Looking at the picture above and to the left, it's okay if 1) your insides feel a little weird because I have a scarf made of human hair. 2) You think my hair is the exact RBG value of the Cowardly Lion's mane.
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I was sitting on the floor yesterday at Staples, perusing over some clearance items for my sister, when a guy in a maroon shirt started making comments. Assuming he worked there, I responded about the product. Mistake. This creeper skeever proceeded to drop this doozy on me:

I can tell by your sweater and hair that you must be part of the upper class.

Um, what? Folks. I'll be the first to admit that I can definitely dress to impress. Was I so adorned at Staples yesterday? No. I was wearing an H&M sweater and had beach ratty hair (though it had been washed that morning, it had minimal product and had air dried).

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Last night was LPug's giant "Under the Big Top" circus-themed birthday party. The invitation explicitly said to dress up in crazy/wacky colors. You don't tell me these things unless you mean them. So there I am, at a party with 40+ people in the ward, and there are three people dressed up. I am one of them. Oh well; I rocked my purple and blue nylon overalls like they haven't been rocked since stake dances. Oh yeah, I wore my "wacky" makeup dancing that night too.

I keep expecting to find the line where I should be embarrassed by the things I do.
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I made cupcakes today. One box, one batch. Strawberry cheesecake. I learn something new every time I make cupcakes. Today's tidbit has to do with the paper holders. Key word: PAPER. Don't use the aluminium ones. They lose their shape easily, don't cook evenly, and tear easily when they come out of the tin. THese were the least "pretty" and uniform of any of the cupcakes I've made thus far. Just a point to note.
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Sometimes I dread having to fight the formatting in Blogger that I don't blog. Especially posts with photos.
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We had a picnic today at a local Arboretum. Picnicking (if the spelling looks wrong, blame Blogger) on the lawns is only allowed ONE day of the year; how fortunate it coincided with Mother's Day, Laura's birthday, AND her engagement day! A cause for celebration on all four fronts. The weather was gorgeous, the colors were vibrant, and spirits were high.

I'm only sorry I had to wear my glasses. I can definitely see how no one recognized Superman in his CLark Kent glasses. I feel like no one will recognize me when I wear my glasses; it's the strangest mindset.
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In the latest mouth update, I'm nearly healed. I'll admit, things were pretty dodgy for about a week. After my latest post, I developed a smattering of pretty intense canker sores that were swelling my mouth. But save one dime-sized friend still keeping me company, I'm on the up and up. TMI?
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Okay! Late. Blogger was taking forever to upload pics, so I'm up later than I wish. Let's hope my cutting off Coke Zero at 6pm was enough to ensure I fall asleep without much drama. BIG meetings! BIG work travel! BIG WEEK!

Keep a kind thought for me.

And lastly, a shout out to all the Moms I know and love. Thanks for having and raising the babies I can't have and don't want.(Ha. Ha.) For the rest of you, keep a smile on your face when you think of this phrase my sisters and I get a hoot from every year (circa church 2003): "I'm a woman, I'm a mother." If you're a boy and reading this blog, I don't believe it.

To bed I said!

Unrelated Thoughts

My 500th blog and my two-year blogaversary passed with little self-celebrated fanfare.

Somehow, the world kept turning. Obama and Hillary are still wearing out the newscasters with their tennis match for the Democratic heart and vote. TNT is airing the same commercials during all the playoff games (you'd think 40 games in 40 nights would get old, but no.). Mariah Carey is still somewhat of a nutjob.

A few things have changed in the last two years. Back then, Brad and Ang hadn't yet assembled themselves a home-grown army. (I hadn't either.) Now? New job(s), new home, new state. (For me that is, not the Saviors of the Third Worlds.)

And here I am, still one blog at a time, reporting on nothing. I still love it, even if I'm sparse. Maybe my well has finally dried up!

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While I was in Utah last week, the bestie Krista was able to get us discounted seats to a Real Major League Soccer game. Lucky for us, the Beckster was in town with the LA Galaxy.

After screaming, "I wanna see him bend it!" for most of the first half, homeboy lived up to his name. Once during play and once from a penalty kick, I saw Beckam bend it twice. In less than 10 minutes. I'm not going to lie, it was pretty amazing.











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My newest grand annoyance is clammy legs in bed. It's too cold here at night for just a sheet, but my legs get kind of sticky where skin touches skin under my full covers. It's a bad, bad feeling.

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Two blogs in one day! It's true what they say, miracles in our day haven't ceased.

Wounds can't bring me down

Do you know what it's like to have a swollen taste bud? The worst, right?

Wrong.

In my twenty-five year infinite wisdom, I decided to bite the thing off. Easy enough, right? Teeth are sharp, that's what they do—bite stuff off. Well friends, I made a grave mistake. I've learned that it's impossible to bite off a singular taste bud. It's impossible to bite of a few taste buds. So instead of being the Destroyer of the Swollen, I'm now She of the Gaping Mouth Wound.

Three days of exposed muscle, irritated with every breath and bite is pretty freakin' miserable.

What's not so miserable (and may or may not be touched upon at a later date)? The rest of my Utah trip, the Celtics finally getting past the first round, Little Women (the book), a brand new laptop purchased and ready for me at my new job, Lebron's 2-for 18, an after vacation DVR chocked-full of Must See TV, Dan in Real Life, Spring weather in Boston, 14th-floor views of the Back Bay, Downtown, an the Charles from the bend in the river at my office in Kendall Square, being chosen to manage a huge and exciting account site redesign, my own bed, fun plans for the weekend, and all KINDS of free snacks and drinks at my new job's building. Every kind of fruit, yogurt, oatmeal, chip, cracker, soda, juice you can imagine… I discovered the individually sliced/packaged/rounded-wax cheeses today.

For someone with an open mouth wound and a kitchen full of free foods, this gal is doin' alright.

**6:27pm update: Just got off the phone with my insurance company for the ninth time. My $2k leg break bill has finally been approved. The tragic break only cost me $237. You have no idea how happy that $237 makes me.

too late for a title

It's 2:51 MST. Pretty late. Really late. Even for my low-key, laid-back Utah vacation, this is late. But I want to blog; and if I don't now, it'll be next weekend before I get another chance. And you have no idea how true that will probably prove to be.

Today was my fourth full day in Pleasant Grove, and a delightful one at that. Far and away, the majority of my time has been spent at my sister Alaina's; mostly while she's at work, dinking around in my borrowed pajamas, surfing the web and walking to Panda Express for lunch. (One day I made the 1.5 mile trek to the Del Taco in gale force dirty wind. It was more than worth it... Mmmmm... spicy jack quesadilla.) I haven't spend this much time in Utah County since I graduated from BYU three years ago. It's been a different trip on a lot of levels--I have thoroughly enjoyed the time spent with my older sister and niece (even if she screams "no!" every time she even sees me after a tragic two hours I spent babysitting Monday night didn't go so hot), but I have loved revisiting my true Utah roots -- my time spent at BYU.

I've spent two nights in Provo with friends from my freshman year--kids I don't see very often. It's been super fun reliving old old memories. I've also eaten three Smart Cookies.

Speaking of the Utah goods I've eaten; Costa Vida, Cafe Rio, Brick Oven, the Del, my favorite Albertson's donut, Panda, cinnamon bears, and Chili's chicken enchilada soup (that's right, they don't make it in the 617). Did you know Utah is also the home of the Big Gulp? It's socially acceptable to drink large fountain drinks here--I've been a frequent user. I need to leave this state before I get fat.

I'm sleeping with a legitimate white noise machine. It's not the same as my fan and took a minute to get used to. I wouldn't even give waterfall, rainforest, ocean, songbirds, or running stream a chance. The closest noise I could find is static--imagine your TV on a channel without a signal and that's what you've got. After awhile it starts to sound like someone is in the shower. Using this machine actually makes me feel pretty high maintenance.

Utah is also home of the amazing deal. I'm a bargain-hunter, I can't help it. My new job will probably require me to dress up a bit; so I have a few(!) new pieces to add to my business-casual collection. And one vintage pattern to give sewing a go once get to Portland in less than two weeks. (Did you know I'm becoming slightly domesticated? We made jam on Monday for pete's sake.)

At dinner Tuesday night, Alicia dropped my new favorite saying. In reply to my saying "Every Jack has his Jill" (meaning wow! i can't believe he actually found someone to marry), she taught me "Every garbage can has a lid." Ha! I can't get over it. Genius.

Alaina takes pretty amazing people-photos. My other sisters have had their shoots, and she was insistent I have one. She also insisted I link to the post of my photos. Believe me, I'm lucky I got out with this many photos; I deleted at least 200 bad ones. I'd get kicked of Top Model for sure. Anyway, if you're in Utah and ever need family photos, she's reasonably priced and easy to work with. End plug.

Downloaded an "Umbrella" cover by Marie Digby. It's amazingly fantastic. Acoustic, folksy, and all around amazing.

You may have noticed I have a new header on my page. Time to switch it up. (I know it looks pretty crappy. It's 3:20AM and I stopped freaking over details an hour ago. Will fix soon. End semi-related tangent.) Funny story about the photo the image was cropped from -- just as we were headed over to shoot, a hundred-million pigeons landed on this tin-roofed shed. Hate hate hating birds, I had a mini-freak out (which always leads with riger mortis hands) and walked away. The photo was snapped in that instant. I feel it's a pretty good representation of who I am -- 1) hater of birds and 2) awkward hands. Update: Header image is updated. Still not an A+ project, but I can't be good at everything.

Big city weekend on the horizon! That's right folks, I'm headed to the bright lights and the big city--the Salt Lake City tomorrow. (Ever notice that people who haven't lived or visited Salt Lake often always call it "Salt Lake City"? It always feels weird to hear it called the full, formal name.) Dancing, the Real/Galaxy soccer game, G-parents back in town, the junk store, and who knows what other crazy stuff happens in the Capitol City.

No other randoms to report. Or rather none that I can remember. Or none that you care about. Are you still reading? Did you skip this post since there were no photos? Have you counted the number of grammatical errors? There are several I found in a reread, but now I've forgotten where they are and don't care to hunt them down. BUT, this isn't me asking you to point them out to me, believe me, I know they're there. And a their just to get all three in a five word proximity. You know? Their, there, and they're? One of grammars biggest faux pas? Oy. Now I'm going off on grammar errors. No one cares now, three hours ago, or five hours from now.

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