Randomness, Thy Name Is BB

Point 50: World, Point 2: BB

2012-01-20T11:59:00.000-05:00

This is the most nightmarish week I've ever experienced...maybe in my whole life. And that's even counting the week I had to wrap 300 company Holiday gifts in the span of 2 days while trying to get all of my other work done.

Let's start at the very beginning (it's a very good place to start).

Kate and I are moving to Jersey [INSERT worst Jersey trash joke you can come up with HERE]. We're tired of the city and want a change in scenery for awhile. After weeks of searching we found the perfect place. We were supposed to move in on January 28th to this newly renovated dream.

PROBLEM 1: This week we found out that our apartment won't be ready until February 15th. We still have to move out over next weekend so Kate and I will we homeless for 2 weeks. Luckily we have amazing friends that are already living in Jersey and are willing to put us up for the full 2 weeks (bless their hearts). Also, the moving company we hired can put our stuff in storage and then move it to the new place for us on the 15th.

So, we're feeling relatively better about that. Also, the new landlords have been extremely responsive and seemingly genuinely concerned about losing us as tenants. That's more than we get from the current place. Speaking of which - we've had a sublet in the apartment since December 1st. She's young and pretty cool... or so we thought.

PROBLEM 2: We've been concerned about our sublet for the last 3 days because she's been in her room every time we get home and not being responsive. I of course, thinking of the worst case scenario, have already imagined her dead in her room rotting slowly - the strong smell of her perfume covering up the smell of the 2 day young corpse....Unfortunately that's not what happened. IPJ came home last night and said to me "I've been thinking about [Name Withheld] and I think she moved out without telling us." I couldn't believe it - no - wouldn't believe it. We ran down the hall to her room and, after knocking twice and yelling her name, we opened the door. Everything was gone.
COMPLICATION 1: I immediately checked my bank account to see if the 2nd rent check she gave me (after the first one bounced) deposited ok. It didn't and, instead, followed in it's brother's footsteps by bouncing as well. So that means that I covered her rent of $675.00 this month. Great.
COMPLICATION 2: She's CLEARLY not applying for the lease in out current apartment (from hell) like she said that she was. So, I have to call the current Management Company (from hell) to make sure they know that she's NOT going to sign any lease that they send her.
COMPLICATION 3: This is about the time of year that I have some kind of mental breakdown - but boy, did this one take the cake. I called my Mom and sobbed to her on the phone for 20 minutes. I'm sure that you can imagine me sitting on the floor in the bathroom pathetically weeping to my Mom about the injustice of it all.

Also, last week I went to the doctor and he diagnosed me with extreme exhaustion and severe stress. Yep, you read that correctly. It's probably because the stress is causing me to not sleep.

PROBLEM 3: See Problem 1 and 2 and imagine how that can effect my sleep. I mis-set my alarm last night. Instead of setting it to 8:00 AM it was set to 8:00 PM. As you can imagine I didn't sleep well last night so when my alarm DIDN'T go off I did what any other exhausted and emotionally drained person would do....I slept in. This of course caused me to be 40 minutes late for work.

And the problems keep on coming....

Ok, I just had to get that off my chest. Thanks for bearing with me.

I leave you humming "Carry On (My Wayword Son)."

Really Facebook Ad?

2011-11-01T13:05:00.000-04:00

Here's one of the advertisements on the side of my Facebook profile:

Rich Man Needs a Princess
richmen.com

Want a man who can provide for you?

Richmen.com only allows men with 100K + income.
FREE for women. Click here to join now!

Yeah, words can't express...

I leave you humming "If I Were a Rich Man."

On a clear day you REALLY can see forever!

2011-10-13T11:23:00.000-04:00

As many of you might know they are doing a revival of On a Clear Day You Can See Forever on Broadway. Now, many people do not know this musical but with a name like Harry Connick, Jr. on the marquee it should do just fine. Our building happens to have amazing studios for Broadway show rehearsals and just happens to be housing rehearsals for On a Clear Day You Can See Forever.

Thus begins one of the best moments of my life:

It had been a long and hard day when BB stepped onto the elevator from the top floor of her building. With her were 2 coworkers (one of boss ranking). She pushed the first floor button praying that it wouldn't stop the whole way down so that she could get to the train (and, subsequently, home) faster. Of course, her express elevator prayers went unanswered as they stopped on the 8th floor to let on another coworker. BB made a small joke about how it was no longer possible to get down to the lobby in under a minute. The elevator stops again. But this time the doors opened to Harry Connick, Jr. Of course, this time no one made a joke as Mr. Connick, Jr. stepped onto the elevator.

BB said "Hi, there" before she could stop herself and Harry (you can use first names after you've physically spoken to a celebrity) said "Hey" back. Boss ranking coworker made a comment that Harry hadn't been able to finish his lunch, because he was carrying a container of salad. He said that it was actually his 5th lunch of the day and, of course, the whole elevator guffawed at his amazing wit. BB told him that it looked good and Harry responded that he was "tired of eating this shit" and that "they made him eat that stuff" so that he "didn't gain weight." The whole elevator laughed again and immediately lost their hearts to this tall, attractive (but tragically) meat and potato-less man. BB said that she was sorry and almost swooned when Harry smiled at her in response.

The elevator got to the first floor and everyone filed out, Harry leading the way. BB and her coworker (from the 8th floor) were the last out. BB grabbed his shoulder and whispered "This was the best moment of my life." Her coworker said, "Yeah, so totally worth the crappy day I had, just for that moment."

Agreed. I danced down the street and immediately called my Mom to tell her. It was magic.

I leave you humming "This Magic Moment."

I knew it! I knew you were bluffing! I knew he was bluffing...

2011-09-15T15:56:00.000-04:00

Dear Copper Chimney,

I've been watching you this whole time. Ever since you made me convulsively vomit for 12 hours straight, I've been waiting for your grade to get posted. Never, in my whole life, have I ever been as sick as I was after eating your food. I kept checking the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene site waiting for your grade to be posted. For a whole year it was marked "Grade Pending." Many people believe that it means the Health Department hasn't gotten around to checking your restaurant yet. But I know that it means you received a low grade and have disputed the Health Department's claim. I knew it was only a matter of time before you were shown for what you really are: a cesspool of filth and disease forcing illness upon people.

So, imagine my pure elation when I looked on the website today and saw:

Also, few people realize that the reasons you got that grade are posted on the website as well. Let's take a look, shall we?

COPPER CHIMNEY

126 EAST 28 STREET MANHATTAN 10016

Tip! "Critical" violations are displayed in red.
Violation points: 28

Sanitary Violations

1) Cold food item held above 41º F (smoked fish and reduced oxygen packaged foods above 38 ºF) except during necessary preparation.
2) Raw, cooked or prepared food is adulterated, contaminated, cross-contaminated, or not discarded in accordance with HACCP plan.
3) Evidence of mice or live mice present in facility's food and/or non-food areas.
4) Facility not vermin proof. Harborage or conditions conducive to attracting vermin to the premises and/or allowing vermin to exist.

Surprisingly you got your violation points down from the 39 you had when I got sick. The only "Critical" Violation that has gone is the "Personal cleanliness inadequate. Outer garment soiled with possible contaminant. Effective hair restraint not worn in an area where food is prepared." Should I congratulate you on that? I think not.

So, thank you once again for contaminating my chicken that night. I was forced to take off 3 days of work because of how sick you made me and I will probably never be able to eat (my once beloved) Indian food again. You suck, and it's not surprising that you got a "C" because good will always triumph over evil (the evil is you, in case you were wondering).

I'll hate you for the rest of your short life,

BB

P.S. I leave you humming Avril Lavigne's "My Happy Ending."

And In Other News...

2011-09-01T11:43:00.000-04:00

Irene was a tropical storm when it hit New York. That's it. I told everyone not to worry about it, but did they listen? Nope. Not that I blame them. It's easy to get caught up in an impending natural disaster that might hit New York. Nothing ever happens here, so people need to overreact when something finally does.

I refused to take this threat serious enough to even take the air conditioner out of my window. How was I supposed to sleep in a stuffy room? I'd rather my air conditioner be ripped out of the window than sleep the whole night without it.

Even though I knew this whole thing was going to blow over (pun intended) without completely destroying Manhattan, my roommates and I prepared a bit on Saturday:

1. We filled up one bathtub with water (for flushing purposes).
2. We filled up all of our water bottles with water (filtered at Ian's insistence).
3. We took the window fans out of the living room windows (making the living room too stuffy for my liking).
4. Ian bought fixings for chocolate chip cookies (which he made before the "hurricane" began, YAY).
5. Kate and I went to Grestides to get groceries and yet bought nothing non-perishable accept a few ingredients for my pasta bake (which I cooked up later, voiding their non-perishable status).
6. I invited my sister over to watch movies and eat my pasta bake.
7. Kate and I made an emergency run back to Gristedes to buy chocolate bars for the S'mores we decided we NEEDED to make.
8. We found whatever flashlights and candles we had and brought them in to the living room (meager findings, believe me).
9. We all overate all day. "If it's the end of the world, I'm going to go out like a glutton." So, says I.
10. Stayed up late watching movies and then finally went to bed.

I woke up Sunday morning at 9:15 and realized that I had completely missed Irene. She came and went with barely a whisper to rouse me from my slumber. I got up and made french toast for everyone (including my sister who had stayed the night) using the power that hadn't gone out, drinking the water that hadn't stopped, and enjoying the absence of the sound of the M-4 Buses that stop in front of our apartment. It was wonderful. I stayed the whole day inside watching episodes of Battlestar Galactica and movies that have been neglected for far too long, all the while saying that the storm was what was keeping me from venturing out into the world. I didn't leave my apartment all day. Glorious, truly glorious.

I hope everyone who reads my blog had as easy a time weathering the storm (pun intended again) as I did.

I leave you humming "Stormy Weather."

Why does it have to end?

2011-07-07T12:25:00.000-04:00

I was on vacation for 8 days down in Florida. Yes, I went to Disney World and yes, I went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal's Islands of Adventure theme park. I loved every minute of my vacation with my family. How many people can say that? I'm sure not many. It was the best possible vacation I could have ever asked for.

Of course, I hoped for a easy transition back to New York, work, responsibility and the "real world." Did I get it? Absolutely not!

It was raining and thunderstorming in New York when we flew in. The assistant to the President is out and I have to cover for her. I have to pay all my bills in the next 2 weeks. My laptop is dying and probably had a horrible virus that no Malware, Adware or Virus scans can find. I got stuck in an elevator in New Jersey for like 10-15 minutes on Independence day (tiny elevator with 9 adults and no ventilation).

The World slapped me right in the face with reality. There goes my post-vacation high. Now, I'm hinging on depression and I want dessert with every meal. (We were on the dining plan at Disney which meant every lunch and dinner meal came with entree, drink and dessert.) I'm trying to find a way to visit home and my parents in September so I can give myself something to look forward to. I'm going vacation crazy right now!! It's all I want, freedom from my life.

However, I did score one point because nothing bad happened to me in Disney World. I wish I could go back.

Point 6: World, Point 2: BB

I leave you humming "A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes."

We'll Follow the Old Man....

2011-06-20T12:15:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was Father's Day and I'd like to dedicate this post to mine.

Musicals that my Dad and I sing together:

Jesus Christ Superstar - I'm Judas and Mary and he's Jesus.
Newsies - I'm Jack and David and he's everyone else.
Rent - he's all chorus and I'm everyone else.
Into the Woods - I'm the Baker's Wife and he's whoever he wants to be in the moment, but not a moment in the woods.
Man of La Mancha - He sings the "Impossible Dream," I sing everything else.
Wicked - He just listens to me sing.

Reasons he's the best dad ever:

1. He makes me laugh with his silly jokes and he laughs at mine.
2. He puts up with my ridiculous nickname for him (Popo Jijo).
3. He's also Super Dad, who can aid any daughter at anytime, anywhere.
4. He always gives me hugs when I want them.
5. He is a huge part of my evacuation from NYC plan. Actually, he's a vital part of it. I'm not forgetting that he's head of the Anti-Zombie Strike Force either.
6. He taught me a fine appreciation of all things Sci-fi.
7. He never got annoyed when I would follow him around the house singing "The Old Man" from White Christmas. (He would, however, retreat into the bathroom where I would NOT follow him. So, the song is actually wrong about "following the old man wherever he wants to go...")
8. He taught me how to ride a bike. (Even though you lied about holding on to the bike, I forgive you. Because you said that I was "pedaling too fast for you to keep up with me."
9. He is the ultimate guru of all things History and he's passed on that love to me.
10. He is my Popo Jijo.

So, Happy Father's Day Dad!!!

I leave you humming "The Old Man" from White Christmas.

Point 5: World, Point 1: BB

2011-06-17T12:05:00.000-04:00

You know, World, you really had me going. Here, I thought that you were super preoccupied with Anthony Weiner, when really you were just biding your time until you could spring your next trap. Last night.....at 4:30 AM.

I went to bed last night saying to myself, "It's ok, I'll get 7 hours of sleep and be able to function." Little did I know...

I was woken up, all of a sudden, by something I don't even think I can describe adequately. At first I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. So, for the first few minutes I was just deliriously wandering around my room trying to get it to stop. Starting with my air conditioner and ending with my clock radio. It wasn't coming from anything in my room. I walked out into the hallway and realized that it was coming from outside our building.

The sound was a piercing, unearthly sound and one that I have NEVER heard before in my life. All of my roommates were woken up by it too. We looked outside and couldn't figure out what it was coming from or what was producing it. That sound was at such a sustained pitch it was setting something off in my head.

We still have no idea what it was. I'm convinced that it was part of an alien invasion that the government has covered up. It got me thinking, while I lie in bed trying to force myself back to sleep (after it FINALLY stopped), that it would be the perfect warning alarm for zombie raids. I was awake before I knew what hit me.

Yeah, World, you did well on this one. But just remember, I'm going on vacation soon and nothing bad can happen to me at Disney World. It's the place of dreams......right?

I leave you humming "Cum On Feel the Noize."

I'm sorry...what?

2011-06-16T18:06:00.002-04:00

I had to share this.

James Franco and Praxis have joined together to create a museum called "MONA." It stands for "Museum of Non-Visible Art." If you haven't put two and two together yet, it's a museum of invisible art.

Yep, that's right. You would walk into the gallery and look at a card describing the "art" that you're supposed to be imagining. You would PAY to see this "art."

Their page on KiskStarter says, "Although the artworks themselves are not visible, the descriptions open our eyes to a parallel world built of images and words."

This sounds like the stupidest thing I've ever heard of. Really, I know I'm from the Midwest, but come on. Even I'm not mesmerized by this part of the "big city."

Oil Painting - "James Franco's Credibility Going Down the Toilet."

I leave you humming "Imagine."

Random question of the day:

2011-06-16T12:03:00.001-04:00

Why is it that soft cookies turn crunchy when they get old and crunchy cookies turn soft when they get old?

It makes no logical sense! I mean, not that I really love cookies or anything, but I love desserts in general and I feel like this applies to most of them. Why? Too bad they can't reverse how they change

I don't know that this can be explained by anyone I know. Maybe it's one of those questions like, "What is the meaning of life?" That question can never really be answered and neither can this one.

Anyone care to take a stab at answering this one? Because I'm at a loss.

I leave you humming "'C' is for Cookie."

Freedom, at last!

2011-06-15T14:24:00.000-04:00

I finally did it. I got a haircut.

It's the best thing that's happened to me since...well, I don't know when. It's above my shoulders and layered and it's everything I wanted it to be.

I'd like to spread the word about the salon that I went to. It's called Sam & Chris Hair Salon and it's on Broadway between 78th and 79th Sts. I can't even begin to tell you what a wonderful experience I had there. Everyone was super nice and friendly. The salon is tiny (only 3 chairs) but what they lack in space, they make up for in talent and personality.

Also, I'm telling you this because normally in the city you can't get a hair package deal less than $50. Especially if you have long hair and want to go short. At this place you can! I was shampooed, conditioned, expertly cut and then meticulously styled all for $57. Remember, that I was going from really long to short, I mean, he cut off 7 inches. I know that it less if you're just going in for a couple of inches cut off.

I think they stay open due to word of mouth, because they don't even have a website. If you're in this city and want an affordable haircut, you need to call them and make an appointment. Look, I'll even give you their number: (212) 873-6868.

I have never been more happy to have my hair short again!

I leave you humming Barry Manilow's "Looks Like We Made It."

I hate the Summer

2011-06-08T17:42:00.000-04:00

I was standing at 72nd Street last night waiting for the local when something happened that is uncontrollable and have everything to do with it being summer. I felt a trickle of sweat slowly roll down my back. So gross. Here's my top ten reasons to leave the city in the Summer, like I can't.

1. Sweat will roll down your back slowly and annoyingly as you wait for a train that seems to take 10 times as long to reach your station.
2. The people are EVERYWHERE and in the way of EVERYTHING.
3. You can't walk down one street without smelling that hot, putrid, garbage smell.
4. The subway cars smell like sweaty people.
5. There are people sweating on the subway cars.
6. My hair looks like a yeti's, with all the humidity.
7. While waiting for the train to come, you stand in the oppressive heat thinking, "Well, at least when the train comes it will bring a breeze." No, the train comes, pushing a horrible cloud or extremely hot, bad smelling air ahead of it.
8. My apartment is UN-air conditioned (luckily, I can sleep because I have an AC unit in my bedroom).
9. The heat gets trapped in the cement buildings, cement streets and cement sidewalks and stays there....Forever...
10. Our freezer doesn't work, because it's old and stupid and the heat kills it.

So, I will say it again, all of you summer lovers: You love summer so much? You can have it. I hope you're all happy, because it's only June and NYC is going to be close to 100 degrees tomorrow.

I leave you humming "Summer in the City."

Out of the mouths of babes...

2011-06-07T15:24:00.000-04:00

Thank you, HL, for introducing me to this video. This is the best speech I've heard since President Whitmore's speech in Independence Day. I thought this also might be able to help you through any hard times!

I leave you humming "Eye of the Tiger."

"Music has charms to soothe the savage breast"

2011-06-06T14:49:00.000-04:00

Someone told me today: "If life is a highway (and I hate to use that metaphor) then music is the gas that keeps us going."

It really resonated within me. This idea of music being the be all, end all, is something so intriguing to me. I told him that my roommates have a lot to do with what's shaped my musical preferences lately. I have three roommates with very unique musical preferences, but somehow we all have common musical interests. Don't ask me how, but they know what kind of music will appeal to me and when.

I also notice that music that didn't appeal to me at one time, now does. I received two CDs when I graduated high school from a close friend. The group that she was so sure that I would love was Hem. Total folksy sound that I was completely unprepared to love at age 18. I think I only listened to it once, before I forgot all about it. I found it on my MP3 player last year and accidentally listened to it. Now at 25, not only does the style fit me, the lyrics mean more to me now than they ever could. I truly believe that music can heal all sorts of pain and ailments. Why else was it created, if not to help us through tough times or deep rooted emotional issues?

So, I ask you to look into yourselves and find that music that will guide you through those times of uncertainty and strife. For some reason, I sense most of my friends are dealing with some really hard things right now and I can't do much to help.

If life is a highway (and now I hate to use that metaphor), then I am only too happy to believe that music will fuel us on to the next resting spot. Or perhaps it is the road signs to help guide us there.

I leave you humming "Half Acre" by Hem.

A Zombie Moment in Time

2011-06-03T16:19:00.000-04:00

This past Saturday night my sisters and I were riding the train home talking about the day we had just had. I was sitting across from a guy who kept looking at us. Turns out he was looking at my shirt which was, of course, a zombie shirt. The reason I know this is because he looked at me and said "Nice shirt. I love zombies."

I replied that I did too and that I loved wearing that shirt. We talked a bit as we stopped at the next station and a girl got on and sat down beside us. My sister Jen said, "Well, all I'm saying is that the subway is the last place I want to be during a Zombie Apocalypse." The girl made a slow turn of her head (with her mouth open) until she was staring at us. All of us stopped talking and looked at her, trying to figure out if she was having some kind of a stroke.

She wasn't. Unless you count realizing there are others in the world that take the inevitable Zombie Apocalypse as serious as you do a stroke.

The rest of the ride was spent going over survival techniques and weapon choices with our new friends. Now that's what I call a great train ride home!

I leave you humming "It Only Take a Moment" from Hello, Dolly!

A Cautionary Tale

2011-06-01T15:43:00.001-04:00

It all started on a hot and sticky day...

BB went to work like she always does on a Tuesday morning. Nothing out of the ordinary happened all day. This was a day that seemed to be going the same way all of the other normal Tuesdays had gone.

BB got off the train and walked to her apartment. She had no idea what would be waiting for her when she arrived. Her thoughts were of simple things, like how she could already smell that horrible sweaty body in the summer smell on the train and how she hoped that the liquid hitting her on the neck was condensation from an AC unit and not bird poop.

She went into her building and upstairs to her apartment. Once there, she got changed into a GIANT t-shirt of her Alma mater but left her black skinny jeans on (please imagine the unattractiveness of this outfit). BB started preparing her dinner. Before she could do that, however, she noticed that there were dirty dishes in the sink and dishwasher. BB thought, "Oh, I should put the rest is so I can run it." So, she did. Less than 3 minutes later the dishwasher was running and she was on her way to preparing dinner. But, she saw that the trash was pretty full. BB thought, "Oh, I should run it downstairs before it starts smelling bad." So, she did. She tied it up and headed out to the hallway.

When BB got outside her front door she immediately saw that there was a young man (a little older than her perhaps) waiting for the elevator with his trash. They said hello and he asked if she would like for him to take her trash down with his. She replied, "Oh no, that's ok. Thank you though." He insisted and she replied, "But, it's really heavy!" He smiled and again insisted, saying, "I have a free hand, it's really no problem." BB thanked him and took him up on the offer. After telling him to have a good night she went back into her apartment wondering how she had never seen him before on the floor and how nice he was.

All of a sudden, the doorbell rang. BB ran down the hallway and opened the front door. It was the young man again. He gave a sheepish grin and asked BB for an extra garbage bag, explaining, "I think your garbage had a leak." BB looked out in the hallway and saw something that would forever haunt her. There, right outside of the elevator door was a pool (yes, a pool) of standing garbage liquid coming from her bag. It was probably one of the most embarrassing things to ever happen to our BB. She immediately ran back in for the paper towels and an extra bag.

Bless his heart, that man stayed out there in the hallway with BB and helped her clean up that disgusting mess that her apartment's garbage had made (you cannot imagine how much liquid came from just one bag). He will now be known as the Garbage Knight.

To this day BB will never know exactly what was in that garbage. Not having been home for 3 days, she knew of nothing that could be in there lurking to spring it's revolting ooziness on the world. So, beware and take care that you don't have the same thing happen to you, my dear reader...

I leave you humming "I Love Trash" from Sesame Street.

Now, that's what I call a weekend!

2011-05-31T15:07:00.000-04:00

My weekend was full of fun and exhaustion. My sister Jen, from Iowa, came in to the city for a visit. This was her first time in the Big Apple and I think she enjoyed herself immensely. Here's a quick list of all we did:

Friday
1. We ate at breakfast Good Enough to Eat in the UWS. Let me tell you people, it was EXTREMELY good enough to eat. Boy did we eat it!
2. We went to the Museum of Natural History and took her picture with the Dum Dum statue. Awesome.
3. We walked through Central Park and saw a cooking show being filmed at Bethesda Fountain.
4. We saw Columbus Circle and stopped in for some Jamba Juice (her first ever).
5. We ate at Junior's in Times Square and yes, we all had cheesecake.
6. We went to How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying and laughed our butts off (especially when the girl in front of us turned around in intermission and asked to "laugh more quietly during the second act because she couldn't hear"). I just want to say for the record, that I was the one doing the laughing and I could still hear, so what was her problem?

Saturday
1. We went down to the Greenwich Village where we walked through a street fair along Washington Square Park.
2. We ate at the Cozy Soup N' Burger, my favorite diner in Manhattan and maybe the world.
3. We walked along Christopher Street to the river where we proceed to walk uptown to 48th Street to see the USS Iwo Jima.
4. We walked over and down to Bryant Park and had more Jamba Juice.
5. We met Loo and ate New York style pizza at John's Pizzeria.
6. We went on The Ride. You all need to do this because it's the best and funniest bus tours in NY.

Sunday
1. We got up early and went down to Battery Park and got our CROWN ACCESS tickets, which I purchase like four months ago.
2. We got on the ferry and headed to Liberty Island to see Lady Liberty. We walked up 354 steps, most of which were in a tiny spiral staircase, up to the Statue's crown. It was intense, wonderful, fun and terrifying all at once.
3. We got back the ferry where we ate hot dogs and headed over to Ellis Island.

4. We got on the ferry one last time back to Battery Park. Upon disembarking we sat and watched 2 cops we had seen when we left like 5 hours before that.
5. We walked over to Ground Zero to see construction of the new Freedom Tower.
6. We headed up to Chinatown and ate the most amazing Chinese food ever at Shanghai Cuisine. Jen also bought 2 pounds of cherries for only $2.50.
7. We took the train over and up to Crumbs Cupcakes and got some to go.

Monday
Loo and I took her to the airport and said our goodbyes.

I had such a great time. We had so much fun and totally took it easy. We just kind of did things one at a time and didn't plan ahead for most of it. It's called relaxation, my friends.

I leave you humming "Jolly Holiday."

Thank God for Fleet Week

2011-05-26T16:18:00.000-04:00

Yes, it's that time of year again: Fleet Week and Memorial weekend. This means that the Hudson is full of military vessels and the streets of New York are full of military personnel. It's one of my favorite times of year. I'm sure you know why.

Last year I went on a tour of the USS Iwo Jima with my roommate (bless her heart, she had to deal with me drooling all day) and had an amazing time. The guys were great, charming and lots were super handsome. This year my sister is visiting from the Midwest for the weekend so we'll have some great eye candy as we do all of the touristy things.

I've been practicing pick up lines for those boys in uniforms:

1. It must be hard to keep those white uniforms clean. If you marry me I'll do your laundry for free.
2. I'll let you be my "Officer" if you promise not to be a "Gentleman."
3. I can cook!
4. You know, I come from a long line of Patriots...
5. I'm not asking you to go to the Halls of Montezuma or the shores of Tripoli, just out to dinner.
6. Heave that ho there Sailor and come with me!

They're still a work in progress. It's not my fault that I have a high appreciation for a man in uniform. Blame it on my Mother; she married a cop.

Happy Fleet Week and Memorial Day! (I'll be out enjoying the festivities with my sister, so I won't be writing until next week.)

I leave you humming "The Boys Are Back in Town." (Oh, yeah. Sorry Dad, for all of the Marine and Navy stuff. Don't worry, I love the Army guys just as much....or maybe you should worry!)

We all scream for ice cream...

2011-05-25T15:11:00.000-04:00

I can't seem to give up on the ice cream front. I'm waging a war with my body to accept that delicious treat that I crave beyond all others. Here's what I've tried to eat and ultimately failed to feel good after doing so:

Black and white milkshake from the Westway Dine
Chocolate cone from a Mr. Softy's truck
Neapolitan milkshake from Schnipper's
Ben and Jerry's Half Baked ice cream
Chocolate chip cookie dough Dippin' Dots
Ben and Jerry's chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream
Chocolate, vanilla and strawberry gelato from Ferrara in Little Italy

I even felt sick after eating Pinkberry last night and that's frozen yogurt. Explain that one to me...

I suppose I should take a hint, but I don't want to! How am I supposed to live without it??!! I can still have all the cake and cupcakes I want. Cookies? No problem. I don't really like cookies though. They aren't ice cream. I'm really close to drowning my sorrows in a bowl full of cookie dough, which is extremely dangerous.

I leave you humming "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You."

New Daily Read

2011-05-24T16:33:00.000-04:00

Now, when you're checking my blog everyday, you should also be checking something else. Add http://damnyouautocorrect.com/ to your list of websites to check. The premise:

People who have been suckered into buying the IPhone have to deal with something called Auto Correct. It's exactly how it sounds. If you accidentally hit the wrong letters while typing (it's a touchscreen, remember) the phone with automatically correct the word in the way that it thinks is correct. People submit their Auto Correct mishaps on the site and you get to laugh at how terrible they are.

Example 1

Example 2

Example 3

There you have it, just 3 examples of why I love this website. Thank you, He Who Laughs, for introducing me to this wonderful site.

I leave you humming "Everyone Makes Mistakes" from Seasame Street.

I Almost Died

2011-05-23T13:51:00.000-04:00

Yep, it's true. I almost died on Friday. My roommates and I went to 6 Flags Great Adventure last week. It rained, it was awesome, we had fun and we went on the Kingda-Ka....

It looks like a giant tombstone, doesn't it?

So, here's what it does:

It shoots you straight from 0 to 128 mph in 3.5 seconds. You travel up vertically at a 90 degree angle of the Earth and then over a deceptively tiny hill and then back down vertically at another 90 degree angle to the Earth. Did I mention that it's 456 feet tall (45 stories)? Well it is. It's also terrifying.

My roommates and I all thought that we were going to die and we had a blast. Best. Ride. Ever.

I did not, however, die with the coming of the Rapture. I notice that we're ALL still here. No one has ascended and no one is writhing in any more agony than usual and I definitely don't see anyone doing so in the mud. I guess one of two things happened.

1. The Rapture did happen, only no one ascended, including those holier-than-thou individuals in Times Square. So, I guess the "writing in agony" bit is a slow burn? It comes on slowly?

2. The Rapture did NOT happen. We're all still here, un-ascended, living the rest of our lives until the Zombie Apocalypse or the implosion of the Sun happens (both more likely to end the world than the Rapture).

I leave you humming "A Little Fall of Rain" from Les Misérables.

Rapture? My Foot!

2011-05-19T14:44:00.000-04:00

I'm sure I'm not the first person to say it; the world is not going to end on Saturday. End of story. Done. Really, the Rapture people in Times Square have it all wrong and I think we ALL agree on that. Things they haven't thought about:

1. Why didn't they quit their jobs?
2. Why did they pay their cable and utility bills?
3. Why aren't they giving away all of their money and worldly possessions?
4. If they're so sure that they're going to "ascend" on Saturday, how are they going to feel waking up on Sunday morning un-ascended?? Oh yeah, supposedly if you don't "ascend" you will spend the next few months writhing in agony in the mud until the world "officially" ends in October.
5. Why are they still preaching in Times Square? Shouldn't they be off with the other "ascending" people getting ready to...well..."ascend?"
6. Why do they have to sound so crazy when they're talking about it? Shouldn't they appear to be logical to get other people to join their cause? They're just attracting other crazies...oh wait....never mind about that one.
7. How do they suggest we "save" ourselves?
8. Do they have a backup plan for when they all wake up on Sunday morning and the world is still here and all the sinners are still sinning? Didn't think so.

Also, if the world is going to end, we all know it's going to be ended by a Zombie Apocalypse. Check out the awesome trailer for this new game coming out later this year. Click here. Mom, you might want to skip this one.

I leave you humming "Final Countdown."

Like you need that much space...

2011-05-18T12:19:00.000-04:00

Dear Men On The Subway,

I can't understand why you sit with your legs open wide enough for a semi to drive through. Your junk cannot be THAT big. Come on. I don't believe it and neither do you, if you're honest with yourself. Now, I'm willing to accept that it isn't as comfortable for you to have your legs together as it is for me, but that doesn't mean that you can take up two seats (one for you and one for your junk).

How many more times are you going to make me sit on the edge of my seat so your leg doesn't rub against mine? It's rude. I don't take up any extra space and you shouldn't either. It's just getting stupid now.

And don't think I didn't notice you too, Boys On The Subway. Just because you're small and sort of cute (sometimes) I'm not going to cut you any slack. You're learning it from your fathers and brothers and you shouldn't be.

This has become problematic.

Seriously perturbed,

BB

P.S. I leave you humming "Don't Fence Me In."

"There is no bathroom!!"

2011-05-17T12:31:00.000-04:00

We've all heard about Arnold Schwarzenegger's love child and now know that's the real reason his wife left him. I hate to say it, but isn't this just what famous people and politicians do?

It isn't a surprise to me. Is it still disappointing? Of course. I love the Arnold. I pretty much love every movie he's ever been in and love every line he's said in every movie he's ever been in.

So, Mr. Schwarzenegger, here's a small list of your movie quotes that might come in handy right now:

1. "Hasta la vista, baby." – Terminator 2

2. "Consider this a divorce." – Total Recall

3. "I'm not into politics. I'm into survival." – The Running Man

4. "This hero stuff has its limits." – Last Action Hero

5. "Oh, you think you're bad, huh? You're a f**king choir boy compared to me! A CHOIR BOY!" – End of Days

6. "My body. MY choice!" – Junior

7. “Get to the choppa!!” – Predator

8. “I lied” – Terminator 3

(Ok, so I guess the Predator quote doesn't make a lot of sense, but it's really one of my favorite lines.)

I leave you humming Bowling for Soup's "A-Hole."

So...this is love?

2011-05-13T15:12:00.000-04:00

I’m going to take this time to forget about yesterday and talk about something I’ve become very passionate about:

Anime.

My roommate, IPJ, introduced me to World of Anime. I have fallen in love with and I want to watch it all of the time. Because we don’t have cable anymore (stupid Time Warner Cable) we’ve been watching Netflix Instant all the time on the Playstation 3. Meaning, I’ve been watching anime all the time. I seriously can’t get enough of it. I live and breathe it.

I haven’t been home a lot, but when I am I’m watching my current obsession, Naruto. Even just typing that name makes me want to watch it right now.

My new soulmate?

I have to give all the credit to IPJ. I’m much happier with anime in my life. What did I do without it? I mean, the storylines are amazing and the characters are so rich and complex. This is really great quality TV. It’s much better than worrying about what cocky upstart is going to win American Idol, that’s for sure.

I leave you humming Disney’s “A Whole New World.” Of course, one day I hope that IPJ and I will sing it at Karaoke together.

Morning Train

2011-05-12T11:16:00.000-04:00

On the train this morning I actually got a seat next to the window, thankfully. I had an old woman sitting beside me and a middle aged woman sitting in front of me.

The old woman leaned on me the whole ride and the middle aged woman kept randomly turning her head to blatantly stare at me.

1. I am not a wall, and therefore, if you wanted to lean on something why didn't you scoot all the way in and lean against the window? This would have allowed me the outside seat and you NOT leaning on me.

2. I had nothing on my face, so why did you think it necessary to stare at me? Did you think, perhaps, that I couldn't see you staring? You were less than 2 feet away from me.

I leave you humming "Stuck in the Middle with You."

I didn't have peanuts or Cracker Jacks, but I did have....

2011-05-11T12:28:00.000-04:00

I, BB, have finally seen a live Yankees game....here in New York....at the new Yankee Stadium. It was awesome and everything that I would have hoped it to be.

View from my seat.

The picture doesn't do the seats justice. We had a great view and the game was well played. The Yankees won 3 to 1 against Kansas City. There was never a doubt in my mind that we would win. Especially against the Royals.

I would like to point out that Yankee Stadium has the biggest TV I've ever seen.

Giant TV

Incidentally, I'm surprised that this picture turned out because I was watching Nick Swisher's amazing catch in the 5th. Looking at the picture you can see the outfielders reacting to the hit. I guess this is a pretty awesome picture bearing all of that in mind.

You should all go, because it's a ton of fun. Take a sweater too. Also, Popo Jijo, you should be happy to hear that Pepsi , not Coke, is a sponsor.

I leave you humming "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." (Yes, I did sing this while I was there.)

It's starting.....

2011-05-10T14:56:00.000-04:00

Here is it. Proof that the Zombie Apocalypse will occur in our future. I just read an article about "Zombie Ants." You heard me! Ants that have been zombified.

So, I guess there's this fungus in places like Thailand and Brazil that normal, everyday ants have come in contact with. Once they come in contact with Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, the fungus will infect the ant's brain and take over. This isn't like the body snatchers though, this fungus causes the ant to leave its colony and to deviate "from their peers in line, seeming to lose direction as the growing fungus seizes control of their basic motor ability."

The fungus forces the little ant to find a leaf and to clamp on to it, "which locks it in place as its jaw becomes dislocated -- subjecting the ant to a painful, self-inflicted death."

So, it's over, right? Nope not even close. The ant dies a horrible, painful death and then the fungus takes over the brain and grows out on to the leave where it can catch the next ant victim.

Dead ant with fungus coming out of it's brain. So wrong.

Do you need any further proof that this is going to happen??!!! I think not. Catch up on your lessons.

I leave you humming "I Put a Spell on You" from Hocus Pocus.

I can't eat ice cream anymore!!

2011-05-09T12:05:00.000-04:00

The worst has happen.

If you read the title of this blog, you now know that I can't eat ice cream anymore. My world has ended and I have no reason to go on. Ok...so I'm being dramatic. But still, this is devastating! How will I go on? How will I survive? (President Whitmore from Independence Day would be disappointed in me.)
Since Lent ended I have tried on a couple of occasions to eat ice cream and every time I end up feeling sick to my stomach. It's no good. My body isn't used to processing it anymore.

Fine....Point 4: World, Point 1: BB

I suppose I should consider this a good thing. Now I can't have it all of the time, like I want it all of the time. In the long run I'm going to be healthier for it. You never know, maybe one day I'll have built my tolerance back up.

The good news is I can still eat cupcakes, cakes and other sweets. (Or is it good news....?)

I leave you humming Leann Rimes' "How Do I Live?"

"Mama...just killed a man..."

2011-05-06T11:20:00.000-04:00

This post is dedicated to my Mama.

Songs that I've sung to her:

Mama Told Me (Not To Come) - Three Dog Night
Mama Said - Shirelles
Mamma Mia - Abba
One Hot Mama - Trace Adkins
Renegade - STYX ("Oh, Mama, I'm in fear for my life from the long arm of the law...")
Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen
This song - From Bringing Down the House (start watching the video at about 1 minute and 30 seconds in)

Reasons she's the best Mom ever:

1. She cooks and bakes like no other...mother.
2. She puts up with my horrible nicknames for her (Mama Llama and Mama-la-booba-la)
3. She laughs at my lame jokes.
4. She always gives me hugs when I want them, even if it means sacrificing her personal space.
5. She gives me permission to buy things when I've guilted myself out of buying them.
6. She guilts me better than I can guilt myself.
7. She is the nicest and most supportive human in existence.
8. She carried me and my twin for 9 months and gave birth to us. (Thanks for that, by the way!)
9. She made me a full-on Civil War era dress for Senior Dress Up Day in high school. She even bought me a hoop skirt to go with it.
10. She is my Mama.

So, Happy Mother's Day Mom!!!

I leave you humming whatever song is stuck in your head after reading this post.

What....is....that?

2011-05-05T12:23:00.000-04:00

WHAT WAS SHE THINKING??!!

I don't know when this picture of Aretha Franklin was taken, but I have to thank He Who Laughs (or hate him) for sending it to me.

I'm equally sorry to burn your retinas. Does she have no respect for herself....?

I leave you humming "Respect." (Did you see how I set that one up?)

Feeling a little "Lost?" Me too.

2011-05-04T12:24:00.000-04:00

I saw that one of my Facebook friends posted yesterday about the last episode of Lost and it got me thinking. I still have unanswered questions!!

For those of you who haven't seen the show and want to do not continue on.

***SPOILER ALERT***

1. Who in the hell built that giant statue? So, the first time we see it, it's just the foot to the ankle. But, we also see it whole in flashbacks and time jumps. We never find out who built it or why. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

2. Why does everyone heal on the island except for Ben? So, Locke wakes up and he magically can walk again. That sweet lady, Rose, doesn't have cancer anymore. But, Ben develops cancer on the island. Weird, right? Maybe it has something to do with Jacob?

3. Who is the Mother? By Mother, I mean the woman that raised Jacob and the Man in Black. So, she killed their Mom and raised one to be good and one to be evil, but who is she? As a character she relays a lot of the information to Jacob and the viewers Why should we take anything she says at face value? We end the show never knowing where she came from or why she knew what she did. I do have to say that it was awesome that Allison Janney was on the show.

4. What was that pregnancy thing? Ok, so women on the island had complications and couldn't give birth on the island. Do we know why? Nope. This question goes unanswered. They go to such lengths to fix this problem (bringing in Juliet) and yet the show concludes and the viewers still don't know what caused it.

5. What's Walt's deal? So he was "special" and everyone wanted him. He was kidnapped, rescued by his Dad, then shipped back to the real world. But, we never understood what his significance was. One episode he gets mad because his parents aren't paying attention to him and then a bird dies. So, again, what's Walt's deal?

6. Why did Aaron have to be raised by Claire? We were told that "something terrible" would happen if Claire didn't raise her baby after it was born. However, Kate raised Aaron when they escaped the island. So.....what was the "terrible" thing? Honestly, Kate should continue to raise Aaron because Claire at the end of the series was totally effed up in the head.

7. WHO WAS SHOOTING AT THEM??!! This is a question I ask myself at least once a week. There was an episode during the time jumping season where Sawyer and friends get in a long boat and start rowing around the island. All of a sudden, someone starts shooting at them from behind. Things look bad for our folks but then, thankfully, there's another time jump and they're saved. WHO WAS SHOOTING AT THEM??!!

These questions will never be answered. Garr...I do miss watching that show though.

I leave you humming Coldplay's "Lost."

Reflection On a Dream of Fallen Heroes

2011-05-03T13:51:00.000-04:00

Of course with everything that happened in the past two days, my mind can't remain still. It's been two full days and nights of reflections.

It probably doesn't help that I'm also reading James Brady's Hero of the Pacific: The Life of Marine Legend John Basilone. Mr. Brady has a very pedestrian style of writing. He makes it easy for even the most unschooled in the arts of military and combat to understand just how amazing Basilone's feats were. My Dad sent this book to me because we watched the HBO series The Pacific together and I was amazed and baffled by this Marine that I had never even heard of before. This Medal of Honor laureate who was rewarded for his brave actions on Guadalcanal.

My mind is all over the place with this book and current events. It immediately goes to "how can anyone do what these guys have to do?" I don't understand it and never will. I don't think I can be as brave as Basilone or these unnamed men that took out bin Laden had to be. I don't believe I have what it takes to defy the odds and come out on the other side unscathed. It's hard enough for me to cross the street while avoiding being hit by cars (in my defense, it is New York City).

These are men that go against everything their animal instincts are telling them. They rush into oncoming bullets, and who knows what else, to get the job done. And boy, do they get the job done. If you look close enough through history there have been so many more people in the armed forces that have done extraordinary things in the name and protection of this country. Many of those were killed because of that duty. Basilone, who had been taken out of the war and sent home to sell war bonds, was killed after requesting to return to the fight on Iwo Jima. That's right, he requested to go back. This man was going back because he was a professional solider and fighting is what he did.

I ask you, have you ever heard of this man?

Yet, I can't stop thinking about what a person has to go through to be able to do what they do. I'm up at night thinking about it. Then when I finally do fall asleep, I have weird dreams.

I leave you humming The Theme to Band of Brothers. Now, I know that this is the "other" show about WWII on HBO, but if this theme doesn't give you cold chills, you're heartless. (Ok, fine. Maybe not everyone feels this strongly about the piece, but I do.)

Ding-Dong, bin Laden's Dead!

2011-05-02T13:58:00.000-04:00

I know, I know.

This is what everyone is talking about, blogging about and reading about. But, how can I not write about it myself? This is a part of what defines my generation.

These are the reasons people my age are celebrating (i.e. going to Ground Zero, the White House and Times Square):

1. Many 20-something people were in grade school through high school when 9/11 happened. This is something that we've been dealing with as we became adults. There hasn't been one second of my adult life that our country hasn't been at war with terrorists.

2. This is something that we said we were going to do. We said, directly following the murder of our citizens on 9/11, that we would bring those responsible to justice. When we say we're going to do something we do it. Yes, it took longer than it should have, but it's done.

3. This man represents every nightmare many of us had growing up. He was the leader of the Al Qaeda (which I had never ever heard of before) and the man responsible for the death of over 3,000 Americans. I know that the War on Terrorism isn't over, but this is the end of one chapter in this long and tragic book. In my opinion, a chapter that has gone on way too long.

4. We're not celebrating the death of a human. We're celebrating the idea that justice was served to a terrorist with the blood of over 3,000 Americans on his hands. September 11, 2001 marked the day that America was attacked on such a destructive level that it exceeded the destruction of Pearl Harbor.

5. This doesn't mean the end of the war, or terrorism, or even the end of the Al Qaeda. I don't care. This could be the beginning of a string of retaliation attempts. I don't care. For once, we as Americans have the chance to truly celebrate patriotism, our troops and the beginnings of, what could be, the end of many evil things on this earth.

6. On a lighter note, May 1st will mark yet another Anniversary. On May 1, 1945 it was also announced that Hitler had committed suicide. (Also, the Battle of Hogwarts started on May 1st and ended on May 2nd when Harry Potter defeated and killed Voldemort.) Coincidence? I think not. April is the worst month, May must be the best.

I leave you humming "Proud to be an American." Because it's been stuck in my head all day.

Milkshake Cupcake?

2011-04-29T14:32:00.002-04:00

I had my doubts about this one, but it was incredibly delicious. I just tried the new Crumbs cupcake.

I give you "Milkshake" made by Crumbs:

Description:

Marble cake filled with vanilla cream cheese frosting mixed with chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs topped with vanilla cream cheese frosting and a chocolate cream cheese frosting swirl edged with chocolate crunchies.

Yeah, guess what, Lent is over. Good way to start the old sweets wagon going again. I promise I've been taking it easy (Mama B). I actually have willpower! Last year I would have gone to Crumbs and bought 4 in preparation of the end of Lent. Look at me now! Almost a week has gone by since Easter Sunday.

So, this cupcake didn't really taste like a milkshake, but it didn't matter to me. It was super yummy and highly recommended if you like frosting, which I do.

I leave you humming "Milkshake" by Kelis.

Humdrum Life

2011-04-28T11:11:00.000-04:00

This is what I see from my desk:

Some days I wake up and remember that I live in New York. Today is one of those days. If only the sun were out...my sisters think I'm a vampire. Maybe I proved them wrong with my humble request for sunshine?

Maybe not.

I leave you humming "New York, New York."

Unacceptable

2011-04-27T10:18:00.001-04:00

Dear Match.com,

You suck.

You send emails with guy matches to my lovely, lesbian roommate. When she investigated to figure out why, you told her that if she has her email settings set up to receive daily emails, you will send her people that she has a few things in common with (with no sexual orientation in mind). However, I know with 100% certainty, that I (a straight woman) would NEVER receive emails with women matches.

I can't accept your double standards and therefore am telling the world (mostly my Facebook friends and/or my few blog followers).

There, now I can go about my day trying not to think on this hypocrisy.

Sincerely and never yours,

BB

P.S. I leave you humming "You Give Love a Bad Name."

The Dueling Pianos

2011-04-26T12:12:00.021-04:00

Yes, I, BB have now been to my first Dueling Pianos Bar. It was an experience, let me tell you.

The concept: there are these two piano players that, over the course of the night, play any song you request (with monetary donation, of course). For this to successfully work you must have the following:

1. Money. Specifically, you should have an assortment of bills; some fives, ones, a ten and at least one twenty. You write your first and second choice of songs on a slip of paper and take your money and request up to the pianists. You can put it on the piano or (depending on how much you have had to drink) hand it right to them so they are forced to address your request.

2. Some really good song choices. Say that you don't have much money but you want them to play your request. You need to pick a song that one of these 2 pianists is going to love playing and that everyone in the bar would want to hear. Then you're guaranteed your song played with even a small tip.

3. Awesome piano players. The two guys were the best possible mix of comedy and musical talent. They kept us laughing all night and they could both sing and play the piano like pros. I didn't regret the money I spent on their tips/my song requests.

4. The best company ever. We went for Nicky T's Birthday celebration. She was awesome, the people she invited were awesome and I was awesome. We all worked together to ensure this to be a Birthday she would never forget.

5. Guts and Glory. They did this thing called "out bidding" someone else's song. For example, say John Smith (not from Pocahontas) gave them $15 to play a horrible country song that no one recognizes and no one wants to. You can run up with $20 and a different request and they will immediately stop playing John Smith's song. That's exactly what happened when I ran up with my $20 and the song request "Renegade" by the STYX. Allow yourself to be the center of attention for less than a minute and you will feel much better about ruining someone else's song request.

Besides, I did the world (especially that bar) a favor by stopping that song. "Renegade" is so much better.

6. (Optional) Alcohol. We had some that were drinking and some that weren't, and we all had a ton of fun. We had the most fun watching the antics of one Birthday girl, Jamie, who was not a part of our party but that was seriously entertaining to watch drunk dancing on the stage for the last half of the night.

Also, I have to give props to the gay guy that convinced his shwasted friend to remove her bra (underneath her shirt, so no nudity, thank God) on stage in front of a whole bar of strangers. Then convince her to swing it around above her head and throw it into the audience. Good for you.

There you have it. Dueling Pianos = Awesome.

I leave you humming "Piano Man" (like I could pick anything else).

Ummm...can we skip this week from now on?

2011-04-20T16:39:00.000-04:00

I started thinking about how many negative anniversaries happen this week and into next. Let's make a list (one that hopefully, my sister KB will appreciate).

-April 12, 1861: Fort Sumter fired upon which begins the American Civil War

-April 12, 1945: President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies

-April 13, 1970: Apollo 13 oxygen tank explodes

-April 14, 1912: RMS Titanic hits an iceberg

-April 14, 1865: President Abraham Lincoln is shot

-April 15, 1912: "Unsinkable” RMS Titanic sinks

-April 15, 1865: President Abraham Lincoln dies

-April 16, 2007: Massacre at Virginia Tech leaves 32 dead

-April 17, 1790: Benjamin Franklin dies

-April 18, 1906: The Great San Francisco Earthquake

-April 19, 1861: The first blood of the American Civil War is shed when a secessionist mob in Baltimore attacks Massachusetts troops bound for Washington, D.C.

-April 19, 1995: Truck bomb explodes in Oklahoma City

-April 20, 1999: A massacre at Columbine High School

-April 20, 2010: Gulf Oil Disaster begins and will not end until September 17, 2010

This is all horrible!! It just proves that April is probably the worst month ever. You know what else? I hate how much it's rained this month. At least in winter we have snow and not rain. Garr...

But, to make you feel a little better, here is one of the ONLY positive events that happened this week in History:

-April 17, 1970: Apollo 13 safely returns to the Earth

I leave you humming "Abraham, Martin and John" by Dion.

This blog post was brought to you by This Day in History.

Zombie Lesson #7

2011-04-19T16:08:00.000-04:00

The time is upon us. Everyone is getting sick, and personally my allergies are the worst! It seems only logical to assume that our bodies are slowly breaking down, thus bringing about the Zombie Apocalypse.

When that time comes you want to surround yourself with the right people. You don't want anyone who will slow you down or become a danger to your group. Here is a list of people to avoid or to have join your team.

Lesson 7: "A good friend is a connection to life - a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world." -Lois Wyse

1. Avoid anyone with a physical handicap that stops them from full on running for their lives. Let's all be honest here, there's going to be no time to help people who will eventually become a burden to your group. Keep walking.

2. Avoid the adventure seekers. We've all seen the movies. You'll have the very adventurous, athletically built, action seekers that convenience a small group of people to go the stupid route because they think they can do a better job leading. Like I even have to say what comes next? At least that group of people will distract the zombies so your group can slip past undetected.

3. Avoid Canadians.

4. Ask those friends that you wish you didn't have along with you. You can throw them in the way when you have to make a quick escape. Then, if the world ever recovers, you don't have to pretend to be friends with them anymore.

5. Ask anyone who hunts along with you for obvious reason. Also ask them to join you if they were even passably good at shooting a bb gun when they were a kid. It wouldn't hurt.

6. Avoid the homeless people. They don't even have the motivation to get a job so they can stop living on the streets, are they going to have the motivation to live and fight against zombies?

7. Ask Christian Bale to join your group. He's totally hot and anyone who's played Batman in a movie has earned the right to be on your team.
Note: The Batman Rule only applies to Christian Bale and Michael Keaton. Val Kilmer is too overweight now and George Clooney was a "phoning-it-in" Batman (Worst mistake ever).

8. Ask anyone who was ever in the military to join your group, this should include the whole group from Battle L.A. If they can take down the aliens they can definitely help with zombies.

9. Avoid anyone who looks or sounds like Paris Hilton. What are those types good for?......Exactly.

10. Avoid people who "weren't made for manual labor." You'll end up doing all the work for them. No good.

11. Ask police officers to join, but avoid firemen. Hose jockeys fit into the same category as adventure seekers.

So, this might be a great time to consider what kind of friends you surround yourself with. Can you count on your friends in a life or death struggle during the Zombie War? If not, ditch them and find some that can.

I leave you humming "That's What Friends Are For" from Disney's The Jungle Book.

Wonderland? More like Awfuland.

2011-04-12T12:30:00.000-04:00

So....I saw Wonderland last week. It was truly one of the worst shows I have ever seen. The plot was horrible and the writing was even worse. Usually the music of a show has the ability to save a show in some small way. In this case, the show was 10 times worse because of the music. I'd like to find Frank Wildhorn and shake him, asking, "What the hell happened and are you a pod person??? Because this music is not Frank Wildhorn's music, it can't be!" This music could not have come from the same man who made us weep with Civil War and be titillated with Jekyll & Hyde. Impossible!

My sister and I spent the last 10 minutes of the play laughing. We weren't laughing at moments that were deliberately humorous, we were laughing because it was THAT bad. Please don't pay to see this show. In fact, don't even see it for free unless you want to see the worst show on Broadway right now. I don't know what they were trying to accomplish with this show but they epically failed. The only redeeming song was "One Knight" because:

Well, you can see why. Also, it was the only song that was intentionally stupid.

I leave you humming "A Very Merry Unbirthday" because it will be a very unmerry unbirthday if you spend 2 hours and 20 minutes of your life seeing this show.

September 14th, 2017

2011-04-11T12:20:00.000-04:00

The above date is something I just figured out. It's the date that I'll finally pay off my student loan. These are the circumstances that will make or break that date:

Make the date:
1. If I continue to pay the same amount every month.
2. If my interest rate doesn't go up.
3. If I don't lose my job.
4. If I don't have children.

Break the date:
1. If I can't continue to pay the same amount every month.
2. If my interest rate goes up.
3. If I lose my job.
4. If I have children.
5. If I win the lottery. (In this case I'll pay it all off early.)
6. If the Zombie Apocalypse occurs. (In this case you should consider all student loans paid in full.)
7. If I marry a rich man who wants to pay off my student loan because he loves me.
8. If I die before I'm 31.

As you can see I have a lot of hope of paying off my student loan on time.....

I don't know if doing the math on this one made or broke my spirit. Why do we have to pay for education? It doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Think about it, especially in college I did all the work. Most of my teachers didn't care so I taught myself. Not only did I have to pay for that education, I didn't get paid for teaching myself. Education should be free in this country! Why isn't that the "change" that every president talks about giving us? Garr...

I'm just in a bad mood because I had a fight with the printer this morning. Stupid thing. I wanted to kick it but it's the company's and not mine. I won anyway, I never doubted that I would. It's just annoying doing battle with an inanimate object that won't win.

I leave you humming David Bowie's "Changes."

I'm sure you're all wondering...

2011-02-09T18:16:00.000-05:00

if I'm tired of the winter yet. The answer: No way.

I'm still wearing my awesome winter coat, my awesome winter sweaters and my awesome winter boots (I could really go on forever, but I won't bore you).

New York City just seems cleaner in the wintertime. Walking down the bare streets, breathing in the crisp cold air, it's something that can be so comforting, like a Diet Pepsi.

Mother Nature, I dare you to bring on your worst. I know the saying, "in like a lamb, out like a lion." Well, you came in like the sheepist lamb I've ever seen, so where's the lion? It that the best you've got? My sweet, 85 year old Grandpa is more of a lion than this winter.

I leave you humming "Hit Me With Your Best Shot."

Why I Love YouTube:

2011-02-02T14:34:00.000-05:00

Reason 1: Dedicated to my roommies.

Reason 2: What led us to the video above.

I leave you humming whichever song you like better. I know...it's hard to pick.

A Brief History of Outbreaks

2011-02-01T13:39:00.001-05:00

Well, here we are. Just waiting for the other shoe to drop. You know what I'm talking about; the ever eventual Zombie Apocalypse. Here's a short (Zombie) History Lesson on the outbreaks that have happened (and been covered up) for you to enjoy.

1. Once upon a time the world was created. Everything seemed to be going fine when all of a sudden God decided that he needed to purge the world of its evil (the Zombies) he sent a great flood that destroyed civilization leaving only a few people left to repopulate the human race.

2. All of us know about the black plague. Just like we all know what kind of "plague" it really was. Funny how the black plague slowed and eventually ended when they started burning the bodies...

3. You might not have heard about the first settlement in America on Roanoke Island. Long story short, all of the colonists disappeared mysteriously. It's not really hard to guess why.

4. Salem Witch Trials and the burning of more people, need I say more?

5. What started the American Revolution was taxation without representation. Stupid Stamp Act....but this was not the only reason. We clearly had an outbreak problem that the English were unable to control. Why else do you think we were being forced to quarter British troops? The Zombie issue only added fuel to that "we need independence" fire.

6. The French Revolution where the Royalty and upper class were beheaded? You guessed it; outbreak suppression.

7. Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre was written. (Okay, so that has nothing to do with Zombies in history, it's just one of my favorite books. It's also nice to know where it falls in the human history.)

8. Don't even get me started on how they covered up one of the BIGGEST outbreaks in human history with the American Civil War; it would take too long.

9. Did you ever wonder why the crew of the Titanic never saw the iceberg? It's hard to see something dead ahead when you're fighting off reanimated passengers and fellow crew members. This is also why many of the ships in the area conveniently "didn't get word of" or "couldn't get there fast enough" after the disaster. They were waiting for the Zombies to freeze in the water.

10. We all know that Hitler was using Zombies.

11. Penicillin (which I'm allergic to) was first used successfully to treat a patient. But, I bet you didn't realize that it was discovered while scientists were trying to come up with a treatment for the Zombie affliction.

12. The Vietnam War was....well, it sucked and was pretty unnecessary. But, I have reason to believe it was yet another cover up.

The End....or is it?

I leave you humming "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)."

Déjà Vu (World, You Suck)

2011-01-30T01:02:00.002-05:00

Well, here we are once again, World. I know it's been awhile but you sure know how to come back strong...

As many of you may remember this post: Point 1: World, Point 0: BB. This was where it all began. Here we are once again; in the middle of the night listening to the very loud and extremely annoying sound of a bulldozer clearing away the snow from in front of my building.

I'm still asking myself why. Why has the City of New York sent a bulldozer to ruin the sleep of the gentle inhabitants of Washington Heights? If it's so important to bulldoze snow from in front of the bus stop, shouldn't it have been done days ago so people could actually wait for the bus?

I guess not...

So....Point 3: World, Point 1: BB. But this year will be different, World. Just you wait and see...

I leave you humming "Just You Wait (Henry Higgins)." Accept that the World is Henry and I'm Eliza and this story will not end with the two of us getting together. Because, unlike Eliza Doolittle, I am tired of your BS and I will NEVER bring you your slippers and I really will run away with that adorable (and underrated hottie) Freddy Eynsford-Hill. Take that!

Time Flies...

2011-01-19T14:09:00.000-05:00

when you're extremely busy.

Because it's a new year and I'm going to be writing in my blog more here's what happened and what you might have missed in 2010:

1. The Earthquake in Haiti
2. AVATAR. The 3D movie, the IMAX 3D movie, the re-released IMAX 3D with additional footage, the DVD release and the Special Edition DVD with additional footage. My soul mate.
3. 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver where we saw many US triumphs and failures.
4. The President of Poland was among 96 people who perished in an airplane crash in Russia
5. The volcanic eruption of Eyjafjallajökull disrupted airplane traffic and the opening of the show performing at the theater I used to work at. Imagine what we had to tell patrons; "Hi Mr. (Insert Name). This is (Insert Name) from the (Inset Name) Theater. Unfortunately, due to the volcanic eruption in Iceland we've had to cancel your scheduled performance."
6. THE OIL SPILL, which did not hinder the schedule at the New Victory, but took several months to plug up.
7. I went to Six Flags!!!!!
8. I started my new job. I'm loving it and doing it well. No more angry patrons yelling at me for something I have no control over.
9. In August, the World Health Organization declared that the H1N1 influenza pandemic was over.
10. I received my first ever bout of food poisoning, and 5 months later, I still can't eat Indian food.
11. Thirty-three miners in Chile were trapped 700 meters underground in a mining accident. After 69 days, they were all brought back to the surface alive.
12. My show Way to Heaven started back up again....and we're...still...doing it.....
13. My sister, Loo, moved to the Big Apple.
14. On November 23rd (Happy Birthday to me) North Korea shelled Yeonpyeong Island, prompting a military response by South Korea.
15. In celebration of the day of my birth, I went to a karaoke place and karaoked in front of people for the first time. (I'm no longer deathly afraid of it.)
16. No Zombie Apocalypse occurred.....this year.

I leave you humming "The Best is Yet to Come."

I know, I know....Don't get me Started

2010-08-31T21:59:00.000-04:00

So here I am, once again. Coming to you live from New York City. It's been quite a while and I hope you've missed me. I know I've missed all of you. So much has happened since I last wrote. Let's do this quickly.

1. I interviewed for, accepted and started a new position. I am now an assistant to an Executive Vice President and a Vice President. One of the best things I've ever done for myself. My mental health is a thousand times better!

2. My show "Way to Heaven" is coming back at the Spanish Repertory Theater in October. We've already started rehearsals on it and it's going to be amazing. You don't have to come see it, because it's a little more expensive than last time.

3. I went home to visit my family and go to a reunion. I had a ton of fun and it was so nice and relaxing to get out of this city.

4. I got food poisoning for the first time in my life. I spent 12 hours lying on my bathroom floor and vomiting every 15 minutes. Thank you Elyse for waking up and sitting with me at 4 AM. After throwing up so violently for so long I threw something off in my inner ear and then vertigo set in. Thus 3 days off from work because of a place call the Copper Chimney on 28th Street between Park and Lexington Avenues. Please avoid this place at all cost. I won't be able to eat Indian for months.

5. I finally bought the DVD of Hello, Dolly!

So now you know of a few things that have happened to me.

I leave you humming "Put on Your Sunday Clothes" (From Hello, Dolly!)

I knew this day would come....

2010-07-08T15:46:00.001-04:00

That's right. I'm back and so is AVATAR. It's been a long time since I saw it on the big screen. I'd like to get a group of people together and go. That way I can share my soul mate with everyone I love. So, If you're in NYC during that time you're going to get a call (or text because most days I hate talking on the phone*) and you had better answer it. I want you to spend time with me, got it?

* As you know I work in Ticket Services for an awesome theater. I spend about 8 hours on the phone listening to other people talk. I hate to say it, but sometimes the last thing I want to do is listen to anyone talk to me on the phone in my personal life. I do love you and think that what you have to say is horribly important. How ever I just accepted a position in my company where I won't be on the phone all day. This doesn't mean that anything will change. But this is good for me in a financial way. I do LOVE money!

Keep your eyes open for the reunion with AVATAR.

I leave you humming "Reunited." (And doesn't it really feel so good?)

An Interesting Take On It....

2010-06-24T13:26:00.000-04:00

This little girl is totally awesome and super cute.

I love the way she says Obi-Wan's name. I just want her to come over to my apartment and give me a synopsis of every movie I own. She's such a smart and talented little one, I hope she's always this enthusiastic about Star Wars.

I leave you humming "Main Title" from Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope.

Morning Train

2010-06-17T15:57:00.000-04:00

It was a very ordinary morning with a pretty ordinary train ride.

I waited for the train. When it came I sat down (actually getting a seat, which is sometimes un-ordinary). I listened to one of the mixes my Dad made for me, all the while wondering what Ian Anderson meant by "Locomotive Breath." I casually checked my own breath to remind myself if I brushed. No worries, I had. I balanced the cupcake holder on my lap, trying to keep it even and realized for the first time that my thighs slope downward. Keeping them even is an impossible task.

I looked across the way and saw a guy and girl casually talking. Without hearing them I relied on body language to decipher their conversation.

Guy: I really like you and think we could have a lot in common if we saw each other more often.
Girl: Yeah, I don't know you well enough to let our bodies touch on this crowded train.
Guy: That's ok, I'll just look down at your beautiful/artificially tanned face.
(Another guy gets up from further down the car and sits beside her. Mind you, he's carrying a backpack and a bright pink purse.)
Girl: (taking the purse from Guy 2) Tall, Greek, overly tanned, godlike boyfriend this is average, slightly pudgy, overly hairy acquaintance.
Guy 2: (gives Guy the head nod) I'm hot and so is my girlfriend.
Guy: You're right, I don't stand a chance. So, for the next 20 minutes I'm going to make jokes and tell stories that will force you to give me pity laughs.

I arrived at 42nd street with time to spare and walked slowly out of the car and up the stairs. I left the awkward trio on the train still wondering how bad "Locomotive Breath" could possibly be.

I leave you humming Jethro Tull's "Locomotive Breath." I'm hoping someone can help me out with the meaning of this one.

Talk about a "Great Adventure"

2010-06-11T14:47:00.000-04:00

I went to Six Flags over New Jersey this week and it was a-mazing. I haven't been to a theme park since I was in high school. I've missed roller coasters, that's for sure.

IPJ invited me to go with him and another friend, so we bought a couple of bus tickets and headed on out to Great Adventure. We ended up staying there the entire day. It was a lot of fun being on a roller coaster again. I forgot how much I love the feeling of near death. I will admit, the first ride we went on scared the crap out of me. I screamed the whole ride. It wasn't even normal screaming it was me screaming things like "Oh my God!!!" and "I'm gonna die!!!!" But I'm still posting so clearly I didn't die.

Our favorite ride of the day was NITRO. It was pretty awesome and we rode it four times. Two of those times we rode in the front. The video that follows is the front car perspective of that ride:

I want to go again and I'm thinking my roller coaster addiction might have resumed. I'm also thinking that anyone who would willing subject themselves to a possible death by roller coaster is just crazy. I'd have to count myself in the bunch though.

Go to Six Flags (or if you're in Ohio, go to Cedar Point, because it beats Six Flags' coolness).

I leave you humming Patsy Cline's "Crazy."

Another "What not to do..."

2010-06-10T14:20:00.000-04:00

I began typing this post while still on the phone with the patron.

Conversation goes as follows:

Me: Ticket Services, how can I help you?
Patron: Hello, do I order tickets through you or can I just buy these online.
Me: You can do either. I see you're already holding seats in your cart; you can just complete the order online. Or, you can remove those seats from your cart and purchase them over the phone with me.
Patron: Do I have to give you all my information that the computer is asking me for? Can't I just say I want them held at the box office under my name?
Me: Yes you'll have to give me the same information you would give our system. No matter how you complete your order we will need a billing address to go along with the credit card used.
Patron: Oh, well I'll just do it on here then...
Me: Great! If you need any other assistance please contact Ticket Services and we can answer any of your questions.
Patron: No wait! I need you to stay on the line with me while I register!
Me: Oooookaaaaay. I'll stay on the line.

Patron proceeds to spend the next 8-10 minutes muttering under his breath about the step by step registration process. Coming on every other minute to assure himself that I'm still there.

Finally, he gets to the end and can't understand why he can't click on the word "receipt" to print. I have to explain to him you are supposed to print the whole page, which acts as a receipt. He spends another minute still not understanding until he reads out loud "Please, print this page for your own records."

13.) Do not make someone in customer service stay on the line with you unnecessarily. There is no reason to keep someone on the line because you're registering on the website. I don't know you or any of your private information. How is there any possible way I can help? There's isn't. You have to pull up your big kid pants and do this on your own. Thanks to you there are 8 minutes of my life that were spent listening to you put all of your information into a website. I wouldn't even allow family to do that to me. 8 minutes wasted, because of you.

I leave you humming "All the Wasted Time."

Splice...

2010-06-07T11:27:00.003-04:00

More like slice my eyeballs out...

IPJ and I saw Splice on Friday. Both of us wish we hadn't. I spent $13.00 to see a movie that put Species and five different Greek Tragedies together and called it a "Sci-fi Horror." It seemed like a good idea at the time. We were both bored and had a free afternoon.

Please don't see this movie...It's just weird and makes you feel squeamishly awkward countless times. And scary? Not this movie. I laughed more than I felt suspense or anxiety. Over all, it was pretty pointless. At least we had fun together.

The whole time I kept thinking "Why aren't they splicing fruits or vegetables?" That's completely harmless. No one can be hurt and they're not pushing any moral boundaries. It seems that's all the movie was relying on; you to be shocked with moral outrage in hopes that you won't notice the giant plot problems. We noticed. (Plus, who wouldn't want to try a strawnana or a pearrot?)

I leave you humming "If I Could Turn Back Time." Man, I wish that I could....

Unbelievable...

2010-05-19T17:36:00.002-04:00

Some people should never be allowed to have children. You don't have to watch the whole video, the beginning minute will give you the gist. This incident happened a year ago:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

The worst thing is these people believe that they deserve to continue raising this baby. My question is; what were they doing when the baby got out of the house? Another question springs to mind as well; how the heck did she get out of the house in the first place? All these questions and no answers for me. I think these people are crazy and they shouldn't be allowed to raise children. EVER.

I don't understand!

I leave you humming Pat Benatar's "Hell Is For Children."

Nice try World, but I see what you're trying to do.

2010-05-17T14:25:00.001-04:00

I just read an article online about a product that came out awhile ago, but one that I had not seen until now.

These are called Sticky Sandals (also called Topless Sandals). There is nothing to hold them on but they're adhesive. You just stick them to your feet and supposedly they stay on. That has to be a disgusting feeling, to stick your shoes to your feet. I guess you don't have to worry about them losing their stick. Supposedly you can wash them with soap and water and they become sticky again.

What kind of material becomes sticky again after washing it with soap and water??!! It's unnatural, I tell you!

Also, one of their ad lines is; "No Tan Lines - No Blisters - No Gooey Glue - Leaving No Residue - Re-Useable!" No Gooey Glue??!! Come on, who's using any kind of glue to keep their shoes on? No one, and if they are, they're stupid. Check out the Tony Danza Show talking about Sticky Sandals:

I leave you humming "Stuck in the Middle (With You)."

This is TOO creepy...

2010-05-14T17:17:00.001-04:00

Sorry IPJ. I know I shouldn't just post video after video but I had to share this one:

I leave you humming "Thriller."

Best ever!

2010-05-13T15:19:00.000-04:00

Best line in Kindergarten Cop ever:

I leave you humming "Bad Boys."

Have you noticed?

2010-05-12T15:05:00.000-04:00

When was the last time I wrote about being involved in a roommate world war? A long time ago, in fact more than 6 months ago. It's the first time since Beau and I moved in together that I've loved all of my roommates. I don't know what I would do without any of them now.

Reasons I Love My Roommates:

1. I never want to go out, because everything I would ever need socially is located in my own living room. Food, television, and great company right there at my fingertips. There are 4 of us, isn't 4 a party?

2. Elyse makes the best baked goods in the world (besides my Mama Llama) and is so willing to share them with us.

3. IPJ brings logic to our sometimes chaotic apartment. Thank you for translating the language of BB into the language of Beau to prevent hostilities between countries.

4. Beau keeps me laughing with bodily functions and she's always my date when I get free tickets to shows.

5. Elyse watches Supernatural and LOST with me, IPJ indulged my lame-ness and watched Tool Academy with me and Beau watches Who Do You Think You Are? with me.

6. Since IPJ moved in I've been able to order even more Chinese food, buy even more ice cream and make up even more songs. (Whiiiiiiiteouuuuuut.......whiteout, whiteout.)

7. My blood pressure hasn't once risen because of my roommates and Beau hasn't had any roommate related hives pop up.

8. Elyse constantly reminds me of my childhood and things I loved growing up. This keeps me young at heart.

9. We have tons of inside jokes and come up with new ones every day.

10. I come home from a long day at work and there they are. Waiting to hug me, love me, and make me feel utterly happy to be home.

I hope you have awesome roommates like I do. I leave you humming "I Don't Need Anything But You."

I scream, you scream....blah, blah, blah

2010-05-10T16:04:00.000-04:00

I had an interesting ice cream weekend.

On Saturday Beau, IPJ and I went to a place called Emack and Bolio's. It's an ice cream shop on Amsterdam Avenue between 78th & 79th. Not a bad location and cute, clean and small. It was a pretty warm day to begin with as we walked there from the 96th St. Subway stop. It was really windy and we held onto each other as we walked. This place serves ice cream made at the beginning of the week, so it tastes really fresh. I had a scoop of Vanilla Speck and one of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. It was nice to sit there eating ice cream and talking with my roommates. The only thing wrong was that Elyse couldn't be there. (Note: You might want to go on a warm day so you can eat your ice cream outside; there are only 3 chairs available inside at the window.)

Then yesterday I got that hankering to have ice cream again. My insatiable sweet tooth was nagging at me and I needed something to ease it. It called for ice cream. I decided to go to the grocery store and buy some. As I walked there I decided I would get some other things to....that....I needed. I get there and grab a basket. I walk through and randomly put items in the basket that I thought I should probably have, all the while muttering to myself as I go. "Yeah, I think I'll want to make an omelet sometime this week." In go the eggs and bacon. "I should probably have something other than water to drink at some point this week." In goes the apple juice. All this is because I don't want the only thing in my basket to be the ice cream my sweet tooth so craves.

I turn the corner to the frozen food aisle...and all of the freezers are off. That's right. At some point this weekend all of the freezers broke. The managers didn't clean them out, so beyond the "Do Not Open These Doors Under Any Circumstances. Thanks, The Management" signs the room temperature ice cream was laughing at me. I slowly made my way to the check-out counter and I'm forced to buy the items in my basket so it's not a wasted trip. Woe is me.

I leave you humming "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen."

That's some bad crack....

2010-05-07T16:06:00.000-04:00

Just close your eyes and listen. You have to be patient, the main event happens about midway through it. But you need to let it build up until that moment. Once that moment is over (I promise you'll know what it is when you hear it) you can feel free to rewind it as many times as you need to just so you can laugh at that poor girl again and again (I promise you'll want to).

This is for TK who showed this to me two years ago. Thank you for keeping the magic alive!

I leave you humming anything that doesn't sound like the video above.

This is for all of you...

2010-05-05T11:15:00.001-04:00

who don't believe Ohio has culture.

Brought to you by my Popo Jijo. I think it's funny that life is becoming more and more like a musical. Go Ohio State Buckeyes!

I leave you humming Glee's "Don't Stop Believin'."

Dedicated to IPJ

2010-05-04T15:12:00.000-04:00

You might have already seen this, but I haven't. Enjoy.

I didn't see him take one breath the whole time. He has to be either a robot or an alien. (I was thinking zombie though....)

The song above is really catchy, so I leave you humming it.

Not the Einstein you're used to

2010-05-03T16:47:00.002-04:00

Meet Einstein. He's a miniature horse....if you couldn't tell. At 14 inches he's the smallest hose in the world. I know that people breed miniature horses, but what do they do with them after they're born? I'm posting about him because I seem to like pygmy animals. Deal with it. (See Hippo Post here.)

His head is a little too big for his body though, but I still think he's cute.

This past weekend was spent with my roommates and was as relaxing as it could be, under the circumstances. We went to see How to Train Your Dragon together and saw it in 3D IMAX. It's an adorable movie and you should all go see it immediately. When Beau and I were on the train to meet Elyse and IPJ, Times Square experienced a car bomb attempt. This caused our train to be held in between two stations for 35-40 minutes. Do you know what it's like to sit in a tunnel with only unnatural light surrounding you? If you live here, I know you do.

I hope that where ever you were during the attempt, you weren't sitting on the train like us. We left an hour and a half before the movie and got there with only 14 minutes to spare. I hate the subway.

I leave you humming "Don't Sleep in the Subway."

You have to give it to them....

2010-05-01T15:35:00.000-04:00

this is really clever:

I leave you humming "Time to Say Goodbye."

Hot off the Press!

2010-04-28T11:42:00.001-04:00

Do these gymnasts look 16 to you?

You're absolutely right! They are NOT 16; in fact they happen to be 14. These girls competed in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. I just read an article about how the International Federation of Gymnastics just learned this fact (even though the world could clearly tell the girls were too young).

It's only a matter of time before they put two and two together and realize that the Chinese gymnasts that competed in the Beijing Olympics in 2008 were also underage. Take that! The article did say that the questions raised during the Beijing games lead to an investigation into the games in 2000. Why didn't these questions lead to an investigation into the Beijing games?! It really makes no sense.

Now the U.S. women's team, by default, will receive the Bronze Medals they deserved in those games. Ten years later. It took them that long to discover something the rest of the world already knew.

I leave you humming "Our Day Will Come."

You think you're having a bad Monday?

2010-04-26T10:20:00.002-04:00

This guy's is obviously worse:

Second angle:

I know it's been a while, but I've been busy and sick for the last couple of weeks. We're back in business!

I leave you humming "Manic Monday."

It's Back....

2010-04-16T14:46:00.002-04:00

I got this email in my inbox today:

Of course, I can't go because I'm sick, tired, and have too much to do this weekend). If only, oh if only I could go.

I really wanted to see my soulmate one more time in the movie theater before my pre-ordered DVD comes in the mail next week. I still can't wait for it to get here!

I leave you humming Carly Simon's "Anticipation."

Sick, sick, sick...

2010-04-14T15:01:00.001-04:00

I'm incredibly tired of being sick this year. I used to have really bad allergies when I lived in Ohio, but since being in New York I've been sick so many times. I think I would rather have the allergies.

My roommate IPJ, is sick too. After waiting in a clinic for 6 hours the doctor told him he had Strep Throat. That's not what I have; it's just a really bad cold. I was starting to think, however, that he had been infected by a Zombie over the weekend.

In my delirious sleep on Monday morning I was dreaming of having to put an end to my roommate's life. It was crazy. Luckily for him, it's just Strep.

I leave you humming "Luck be a Lady Tonight."

What do you see when you look at this picture?

2010-04-07T12:35:00.000-04:00

If you thought of a group with three Ks in it, you're wrong. These are members of a brotherhood called the nazarenos. They are a group of Roman Catholics in Spain celebrating the Easter season by participating in a procession. I know what it looks like, believe me.

But this group has been following this tradition since the 15th Century, so obviously someone else copied. They wear hoods which allow sinners to repent without being identified. Also, they have many different colored robes, including a beautiful Robin's Egg Blue.

I'm torn on this one. On one hand they have every right to follow their traditions and I have complete respect for thier practices. They shouldn't be forced to relinquish that tradition just because an ignorant, disgusting group (that started not even 200 years ago) copied them. On the other hand, there is such a negative connotation on the white robe and hood, maybe they ought to change a few things (without ruining the integrity of their tradition).

I leave you humming Aretha Franklin's "Think."

Homeward Bound

2010-04-05T13:19:00.000-04:00

This weekend was Easter weekend and I spent it with my family in Ohio. Lent ended and so did my vow. I didn't once cheat. On Sunday, I only had 6 small pieces of chocolate, one can of diet Pepsi and one piece of cake. That's it. I didn't make myself sick, I just enjoyed being able to have sweets again.

My sister, Kate actually got up this morning with me to take me to the airport (bless her little heart). I was physically ill because I never get up that early. I'm not going to tell you what time it was, but the sun wasn't even up yet and wasn't up until the end of my flight. It was totally gross. Kate was such a trooper.

My whole family was wonderful and it was great to be home for a heartbeat.

I leave you humming "You'll Be in My Heart."

The MTA is getting worse...if that's possible.

2010-03-31T16:00:00.001-04:00

I heard two completely unrelated pieces of news about the MTA yesterday.

1. They are cutting funding on a lot of different things, including pest control. That's right ladies and gentlemen, pest control, meaning the rats in the subway. It has been bad enough that there are so many rats they crawl all over the train platforms. Now they're going to layoff a bunch of pest controllers. Great idea. Really.

2. Secondly, I just read an article about how half the cameras in our subway system are not turned on to save money. Really good way of keeping us safe NYC. Now that you put it in a article, every criminal now knows this information.

Thank you Mayor Bloomberg and the MTA Committee for raising our fares and lowering pest control, safety measures and slashing services all over the area. While I'm at it, thank you for never running the way you're supposed to below 14th Street and constantly being delayed while smelling like sweaty gym socks. Mostly, I thank you for cutting weekend service so I have to take the local train downtown which doubles my travel time.

Thank you.

I leave you humming Dido's "Thank You."

Lent is almost over!

2010-03-29T11:16:00.000-04:00

As most of you already know, I've given up everything that's good in the food world for Lent. Okay, so not everything that's good, but certainly all sweets. It's been hard, however, I have not once faltered.

Every week has been harder and harder, with the cravings increasing more and more. Yesterday I was walking home from the store and was one block away when I heard music. I turned around and realized the ice cream truck was creeping down the street toward me. Picture if you will a scene from a movie where the heroine is being slowly stalked down the street.

I stopped and the truck stopped, I started walking faster, as did it. I turned the corner onto the street I lived and it followed. I raced up the steps of my building and into the front door. Catching my breath, I turned around and there it was, parked directly in front of my building under the guise of giving the kids across the street some ice cream. Yeah right, I know what it's up to.

Lent is almost over and I have not once cheated! Take that World! BB: Point 1, World: Point 2.

I leave you humming "Theme from JAWS."

I don't want to live in Michigan either

2010-03-24T11:26:00.001-04:00

This is a shout out to my college friends:

I leave you humming "I Don't Want to Live on the Moon." (Hopefully you'll be singing it all day because it's really sweet and catchy.)

Nannies make you cheat?

2010-03-23T11:21:00.000-04:00

I heard on the news this morning that little boys raised by both a mother and a nanny are more likely to cheat on the women in their lives.

I don't know if I believe it or not. They said it is because at such a young age these boys are used to having two women in their lives that supply different needs, they don't see a problem with it when they become adults. I can see what they're trying to say, but I don't think this is necessarily true in all cases. Working moms have to depend on childcare for their children, but most spend as much time and love on their children as possible.

Are they saying then, that a young boy at a daycare surrounded by many women has a higher chance of having multiple women in his life as an adult? I don't fully buy it, but whatever. They did say, however, that I was safe because girls have a much different relationship with their mothers than boys do.

I leave you humming "Your Cheating Heart."

Vampire Hunter

2010-03-22T12:02:00.000-04:00

I'm reading this book called, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter." I knew there was something incredible about Honest Abe that had nothing about his Gettysburg Address or his Emancipation Proclamation. This book claims he was a vampire hunter, and you know what? It seems totally plausible.

I got on the train this morning and the woman I sat down next to was reading it too. I love when people are reading the same books as me. It forces us to have a common interest with a complete stranger.

I also heard today when I got into work that someone is making this book into a movie. This could be really awesome or something completely ridiculous. Or maybe a little of both, which I don't mind. Here is the front and back cover so you can find it easily in the store when you go to buy it. Because you will go to buy it.

I leave you humming "Hold Your Head Up."

I miss it already...

2010-03-18T16:43:00.000-04:00

The snow. The cold temperatures. My winter coat!!

This is what I want to be doing:

Not as a monkey though.

Soon I'll be humming "Pore Coat is Daid" to the tune of "Pore Jud is Daid" while I slowly bury my coat in the back of my closet. It's really only a matter of time now. I don't look forward to it.

I leave you humming (obviously) "Pore Coat is Daid."

What St. Patrick's Day means to me:

2010-03-17T13:29:00.001-04:00

1. Everyone (or everyone should be) wearing green today. It's my favorite color so this is the day that everyone matches me.

2. Times Square is overcrowded. Not only do you have to dodge traffic like usual, you have to dodge large families taking pictures, cops issuing drunk frat boys tickets for being disorderly and tourists coming from the parade (which you didn't get to attend because you had to be at work.)

3. Being able to turn down kegs and eggs. It's gross drinking beer before 7:00 PM, let alone drinking it with breakfast at 8:00 AM

4. Getting to hum Irish tunes all day and no one says anything.

5. Up in the Heights, you can't even tell it's St. Patrick's Day. However, wait until the Dominican Republic's Independence Day. That's when the party happens.

6. A big excuse for everyone and their brother to get wasted. I will be celebrating in and might even order Chinese food. Take that World.

7. Sorting through all of my clothes and trying to figure out which green outfit to wear today. So many choices!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I leave you humming "White, Orange and Green."

One to tell the grandchildren...

2010-03-16T15:22:00.001-04:00

I was walking along 42nd street on my lunch today. That's not unusual; I work in Times Square. I'm used to seeing really strange things and not wasting a second glance on them. However, today I saw something that truly grossed me out.

I had just passed the new mural on 42nd street when I noticed a man walking toward me. He had no shirt on under his long and very dirty trench coat, which caught my eye immediately. While trying not to make eye contact with the guy I got closer and realized he was doing an "I'm totally insane and out of my mind" dance right there in front of me. That's when I saw that his penis was hanging out the fly of his pants.

Yep, he had intentionally pulled it out in addition to his "crazier than Joaquin Phoenix" dance. Well, as you can guess I ran on past him trying not to vomit as I did so.

He Who Laughs convinced me that he was picked up by the police. But I have no guarantee that he actually was arrested. He might still be out there somewhere dancing and showing off his "goods." (Eww...I'm totally gagging over here.) Can he even be counted as a flasher? He just let it hang out!!

I leave you humming "Flash (The Theme Song to Flash Gordon)."

A slightly longer and better soul mate? I'm not complaining.

2010-03-15T10:37:00.000-04:00

Prepare for Pandora-plus!

Fox is considering re-releasing "Avatar" in theaters this summer with additional scenes that were originally left on the cutting-room floor, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The studio plans to show James Cameron's sci-fi epic primarily in 3D theaters, since the Academy Award-nominated movie had to exit digital and IMAX screens when Disney launched "Alice in Wonderland" on March 5.

Although "Avatar" is the highest-grossing movie of all time, Fox feels it could have raked in even more money if it had been able to hold on to some of those 3D screens.

The Academy Award-winning director of "Titanic" told USA Today this week that "the word we're getting back from exhibitors is we probably left a couple hundred million dollars on the table as a result," of making room for "Alice."

The Hollywood Reporter adds that "Avatar" had grossed $127.1 million of its $712.5 million domestic haul in IMAX theaters through March 4, and this week's giant-screen haul was $175,884.

In fact, more than 80% of "Avatar's" domestic business was done in 3D theaters, which represent less than half of its runs, so maybe Fox is on to something.

And with that tantalizing extra footage, even fans who have already seen the flick could be reeled back in for a second viewing.

IMAX CEO Richard Gelfond recently revealed that Cameron had about 40 minutes of material that didn't make the theatrical cut in the rush to make the movie's Dec. 18 release.

Cameron adds that he has 10 to 12 minutes of extra scenes that he could push through postproduction pretty quickly to tack onto a director's cut for a theatrical re-release, or as an extra on the DVD release.

One such scene involves leading man Jake Sully's avatar proving himself to Pandora's Na'vi people. Another features a native festival where tribe member Tsu'tey gets drunk.

However, IMAX sets a 170-minute cap on movies released in its theaters, which means Cameron can only add about 10 minutes to "Avatar's" existing 160-minute runtime if he wants to show the new cut in IMAX locations.
(NYDailyNews.com)

We all knew this day would come.

I leave you humming "Some Day My Prince Will Come."

Point 2: World, Point 0: BB

2010-03-08T15:42:00.000-05:00

Yet again, the World is against me.

Sunday morning I was sleeping, like most people do. It was 8:30 and I was minding my own business when I heard bagpipes (yes, I said bagpipes) then an extremely loud male voice yell, "Good morning, good morning, good morning!! It's a beautiful Sunday morning and a perfect day for a race!!!!!" Someone decided that Fort Washington Ave was the perfect place for a 5K race. And the starting line was...you guessed it...directly in front of our apartment. They had a loud speaker system set up and there were thousands of runners standing in front of our building waiting for the race to start. Well, you can imagine how angry I was. I tore out of my room like a bat out of hell, screaming about the injustice of it all.

Some of the key phrases I used:

"You have GOT to be kidding me!"
"Why does this keep happening to me?!"
"If he says anything about a beautiful Sunday morning again, I'm going to go down there and punch him the balls."
"Why, God????!!!!"
"I could hear his voice through my white noise!"
"Yeah, sure!!! Pick Fort Washington Ave for your stupid race, it just happens to be one of the most residential streets in Manhattan!!"

I calmed down once I realized all three of my roommates had been up for a lot longer. They, not having a white noise machine, had been awoken by the sounds of set up (which, I hear, were pretty awful).

Beau and I ended up doing our laundry nice and early because we refused to listen to that crap all morning. There was no way, at that point, that either of us was going to be able to sleep through the noise.

One of these days, I'm going to have to get a point against the World.....right?

I leave you humming "Maybe This Time."

Point 1: World, Point 0: BB

2010-03-01T14:39:00.001-05:00

I'm not even going to mention how disappointed I was to watch Team USA lose to Canada in hockey yesterday.

Instead I'm going to talk about how disappointed I was to be woken up last night at 1:40 AM.

There I was, sleeping peacefully and being lulled into my deepest REM cycle by my white noise. I thought in my head, prior to me sleeping, how great it would be to wake up feeling completely rested on Monday morning. What a way to start my work week. That's when NYC decided to bring a bulldozer to clean the snow from in front of the bus stop that's in front of my apartment. Really?

Let's list why it was completely senseless for this to happen:

1. It was 1:40 in the morning on a Sunday night.
2. There wasn't that much snow. If it was that important Beau and I could have moved the same amount of snow with the bucket under our kitchen sink in ten minutes.
3. Have they ever heard of good old-fashioned, quiet man labor?
4. I now understand why I have to pay so much in taxes. NYC has a bulldozer coming to clean up 2 FEET OF SNOW!
5. The high today is 46 degrees. 46 degrees!!!!! It would have naturally melted today!!!
6. During the snow storm the roads in Midtown were so clear the plows were pulling up pavement. Washington Heights was completely neglected. How are we patient people repaid?! By a bulldozer. "Clearing" away two square feet of snow from 1:40 to 2:30 AM.

Fine, World. I get it. I'm not allowed to start my work week rested. You know what? You suck.

On a better note, I finally got to see my favorite blog come to life this weekend. "He Who Laughs Live" was really one of the funniest works I've ever seen. (I'm not just saying that because I think the playwright is awesome.) It was wonderful to support such a wonderfully titillating endeavor. Congratulations Hewholaughs!

I leave you humming "You and Me Against the World."

Sad days at the Olympics

2010-02-25T14:33:00.001-05:00

I've been really enjoying watching the Olympics with my roommates. We watch them most nights and it's been surprisingly fun. Well, I guess I'm not surprised because we're pretty awesome.

We've seen event after event and gold medalist after gold medalist. But, we've also seen some terribly sad moments as well.

1. The German, women's bobsled team who was suspposed to take the Gold crashed on their last run. It was the driver, Cathleen Martini's first crash and it happened on their final run at the Olympics.

2. The coach of Dutch speed skater, Sven Kramer accidentally indicated the wrong lane to Kramer leading to his disqualification.

He had come in first and was to receive the Gold medal before his disqualification.

3. Lindsey Vonn crashed on her downhill Slalom ski yesterday. She probably would have medaled.

Because the officials were running skiers 2 at a time, Julia Mancuso was halted on her run because of Vonn's fall and had to go on a second run. Nothing is the same the second time around and Mancuso finished in 18th place.

Having already won the Silver medal in another event, she was a big contender for Gold.

4. After hearing about the unexpected heart attack and death of her Mother, Joannie Rochette decided to go ahead and skate her short program.

As of now she is in third place and is a huge contender to medal. Watching her skate was inspirational for me in so many ways. I know I wouldn't have been able to do it. No matter how much "my Mom would have wanted me to do it." Sorry Mom, I'm not competing in the Olympics if that happens. (By the way, it won't happen because you're going to live forever.)

I leave you humming "Free To Be... You And Me." (It's alright to cry...)

Once again, please.

2010-02-23T11:44:00.002-05:00

I know, I know. I might just be obsessed. I saw Avatar this weekend....again, and this time in I-MAX. It was pretty awesome. This was my first I-MAX movie. Boy was it exciting. I thought it was about time and I knew that Avatar would be an amazing one.

What was even more surprising was the ticket price. I went to the 11:15 AM show on Saturday. I only paid $12.00 for my 3D, I-MAX movie. Awesome! Why doesn't everyone go to the morning shows? We would save so much money!

This was the 3rd time I've seen Avatar and it will not be my last. I can't go too long without my fix.

I leave you humming "So this is Love."

Unbelievable...

2010-02-22T12:09:00.002-05:00

I can't believe that the U.S. Hockey Team won a game against Canada's. It was just a preliminary game so it didn't count for much. But, I don't think we've beat Canada in hockey since 1960 or something. That's a long time to continually lose to Canada. We all know how Canadians are about their hockey...scary. I bet Canada is really pissed at us right now.

My roommates and I watched the last minute of the game. Both teams were trying so hard; the Americans to stay ahead and the Canadians to get ahead. It seemed like a very good fight.

If both teams do well enough, there's a good chance they'll play again. Who knows, team Canada might retaliate in a devastating way and beat the crap out of our team. Until then, Canadians will be licking their wounds from this loss in their beloved sport.

I leave you humming "Sucks To Be You."

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner...

2010-02-18T14:06:00.003-05:00

Well, not for dinner but from Amazon.com on Monday.

That's right. Don't think I haven't been thinking about the terror every waking moment...and some sleeping ones too. This book came out in October but I was busy buying Christmas presents. But, the wait is over.

I can't wait to fill you all in on the Zombies throughout History. It's going to be amazing. You had better brush up on the previous Lessons to be ready. I already love this book and I can't wait to have it in my life.

I leave you humming "You Can't Hurry Love."

When are you getting ashed today?

2010-02-17T16:46:00.000-05:00

Happy Ash Wednesday everyone! That is if you're Catholic. If not, Happy Wednesday to you.

Today is the beginning of Lent. That means no meat on Friday and giving up something you love (or in S's case adding something good). This year I have taken a huge risk. I will be giving up ALL SWEETS. That's all kinds and any kinds of sweets.

This means (and is not limited to):

Ice cream
Cake
Chocolate
All Candy
Donuts
Hot Chocolate
Danishes
All Dessert Breads (No bread made by Elyse)
Cupcakes
Jello
Pudding
Mousse
Pie
Cobbler
Frozen Yogart
All Pop
Cookies
Brownies
Etc...

So, I'm going to be in a lot of pain for the next 40 days and nights. Well, not actual pain, but I will be going through withdrawal.

I leave you humming "I'll Be Seeing You." (Specifically, the part "I'll be looking at the moon, but I'll be seeing you...")

Who brought that Rhinoceros on this bus??

2010-02-16T14:01:00.001-05:00

Here you go Loo:

This is one of my favorite songs from School House Rock. I'm going to force my kids to watch it. I really didn't realize until I was older how much you learn from these songs. Oh Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla.....good times.

TK, you should make Eliza watch School House. She could learn a lot!

President's Day and Valentine's Day

2010-02-15T12:48:00.000-05:00

Yep, I'm blogging today, which means I'm at work. Perfect way to spend a holiday. I was hoping that everyone would be too busy or too lazy to call in today. I was wrong. Nothing is quite how it should be today. Even the train, which I thought would be on time because it's a Monday, was running late and making all local stops.

Oh, brother.

I was sitting there listening to "American Woman" and trying not to curse the MTA into oblivion. Yes, it's a holiday but I (and many other people) have to work and would actually like to be at work on time. I think that if a holiday falls on a weekday, the trains should be running like normal. NORMAL, I TELL YOU!

I asked Elyse yesterday "If I had an anger management problem would you still be friends with me?" She said that she probably would not. I understand why; I'd be crazy....well, crazier. I don't blame her and I applaud her for her honesty.

Speaking of yesterday...it was Valentine's Day. I celebrated with my roommates. It was really great. At three Elyse and I got a phone call from IPJ asking if we wanted to see Stupid Name and the Pagan Gods: The Electricity Robber (I'm just kidding, I just don't like Percy's name...) We're all very excited to see this movie. So, we said yes and ran downtown to see the 4:15, which happened to be sold out. Instead of moping, we all decided to go to Alice's Tea Cup. Great Scones, decent hot chocolate, terrible service.

After that, We met up with Beau and another friend at an Indian restaurant on 6th Street that IPJ picked. This was my first time eating Indian and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Great company, great food and great service. This was by far one of my favorite Valentine's Days ever.

I leave you humming "Lovin' You."

Things I hear on the Street

2010-02-12T16:35:00.001-05:00

Three friends walk down the street toward me. All three are overweight, jovial types. Two men flank the one woman as they meander down 42nd Street.

As I pass them I hear:

"Oh, don't worry. Mama was all lubricated up and ready."

I will leave you to wonder what they were talking about. I don't really want to.

Let's take a nap.

2010-02-11T16:22:00.003-05:00

I'm really, really, really, really tired today.

You might be as well. But, for your sake I hope you aren't.

I'm going home to drift asleep in my glorious bed.

Because I'm too tired to do write anything else, watch this video:

I leave you humming "Sleep Song" by Graham Nash. This is a song that my Popo Jijo sang to me when I was a baby. I couldn't find it on YouTube, so you're going to have to get me to sing it for you.

You call this a Blizzard?

2010-02-10T13:13:00.000-05:00

So, everyone is calling this the 2010 Blizzard. I don't get it. We've only had a few inches and we might actually get a foot of snow. That's nothing. My sister Loo already had a foot of snow when the storm NYC is getting now hit her. Still, that's not what we call a blizzard.

Unless we get more than 2 feet, I'm not going to call this a blizzard. I think the people who might be able to call it so would be D.C. and Philadelphia. If you're not in those places you can't call this a snow storm.

For the supposed "toughest" people, New Yorkers are babies when it comes to a tiny bit of snow. I'm not saying in Ohio it snows all the time, but come on. We've had to deal with outrageous temperatures, snow fall, and weather. The people farther North-West have had to deal with worse.

That's all I'm saying.

I leave you humming "Big Girls Don't Cry."

I've past the 100th!

2010-02-09T14:23:00.001-05:00

I didn't even realize it but this is my 102nd post on this blog. I think I've been pretty successful at keeping my blog going. When I started in August, I honestly didn't think I was going to be able to keep it up. But here we are, 6 months and 102 entries later, still going strong.

I like having an outlet to talk about things in my life. (Or a place to post random nothings that tickle my fancy.) I also got my sister, Kate blogging again. I now know what's going on in her life, which is great because I forget to call her all the time.

I'm glad that you've stuck around through everything with me. Just think about all those good times:

*You met the Chinese von Trapps with me.
*We have lived through multiple World Wars with my roommates.
*You learned that despite what others might say, the pygmy hippo is really darn cute.
*The Yankees won the World Series and we celebrated together, while lamenting the fact that we couldn't go to the Ticker Tape Parade (or if you're me; the Tinker Toy Parade.)
*You were there when I celebrated the big two four and got my picture taken with firemen.
*Remember how loyal you were when I moved my blog due to my "Happy" stalker?
*I was able to teach you what NOT to do when talking to someone in Customer Service.
*We watched the "Total Eclipse of the Heart: Literal Version" video together over, and over, and over, and over again. Honestly we'll probably go look at it again today.
*I have given you multiple Zombie lessons in preparation of the eventual apocalypse.
*You have realized that I have met my one true love and soul mate; Avatar.

So, thank you. Stick with me and we'll make many more beautiful memories together.

I leave you humming "Looks Like We Made It."

The Super Bowl

2010-02-08T12:33:00.000-05:00

I don't watch football so I don't watch the Super Bowl. But, I love watching the commercials that run during it. I always watch them the day after online. This is my favorite:

<a href="http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-us&from=metadatawidget_en-us_foxpsorts_videocentral&vid=f0aab814-4dca-4ae5-8920-af71d05e1287" target="_new" title="Google: Search On">Video: Google: Search On</a>

There's something so sweet about it that just plucks at my heart strings. It's also, the most non-Super Bowl, Super Bowl commercial.

I leave you humming "I Want to Make it With You."

Unbelievable!

2010-02-05T15:36:00.000-05:00

I found the above while looking for the one below:

I don't know which one is more unbelievable; that 15 year old Charice Pempengco sings like a 35 year old black woman or that Miss Arkansas 1994 thinks that she can. You decide.

Also, a BIG thank you to IPJ for introducing me to Miss Arkansas 1994.

It's obvious what you should be humming.

If Only...

2010-02-05T12:29:00.000-05:00

This is what I want NYC to look like after the snow tomorrow:

However, I don't think that our sky will be as clear as at this Dutch lake. Also, I think we have a few more buildings here.

Oh well, one can hope, right?

I leave you humming "Snow" (from White Christmas when they're on the train to Vermont.)

Neighborly Affection

2010-02-04T17:46:00.001-05:00

The other night we made first contact with our neighbors. Not the Chinese Von Trapp, but the ones in the apartment that our apartment looks straight into. We've noticed the girls across the way, how could we not? Our apartments match up perfectly window for window.

I was talking to IPJ and Elyse in the kitchen when something out the window caught my attention. I looked over and realized the girl next door was holding a sign up. It said "Do you want to come over? I made muffins!" I thought it was one of the cutest things I've ever seen. So, we nodded and started to get ready. I put a bra on and IPJ put on pants...an epic night for us both. We trooped down the hall, all wearing the pjs that Beau's mom sent us for Valentine's Day. (Well, except IPJ, who actually put on jeans, go figure.)

We met Rachel and Christy and found out that we all have a lot in common. The two are Opera singers and we love to sing in our apartment. It was a wonderful time and we all enjoyed Christy's blueberry muffins. We also openly admitted to watching each other through our windows. I think they could tell we had roommate drama.

I believe we're going to have an interesting neighbor relationship. We're even going to Opera night at the neighborhood Italian restaurant.

I leave you humming "Won't you be my Neighbor?"

Because everyone needs a good laugh

2010-01-28T21:05:00.001-05:00

Thank you Cher. But, I do believe you sound better as a man.

A very special thank you to Roommate Elyse for bringing this video into my life..

Trouble comes in threes....

2010-01-28T12:09:00.000-05:00

I wiped out on 43rd Street today! It was terrible and I'm in a lot of pain. Well, my knees are.

I was walking down the sidewalk, listening and quietly singing along to "Carry on my Wayward Son," and minding my own business. The next thing I know I'm diving to the pavement and stopping abruptly by my knees smashing into the ground. At this point all I can do is just sit there wondering, how on earth I got down there. A very nice man ran up to me and said "Oh my God Miss, are you okay?!" Of course, I couldn't hear him because my music was still playing, so I read his lips. I pulled my earphones out and responded "How did I get down here?" He told me that he thought the heel of my boot had become stuck on some uneven pavement. Figures, right?

He helped me gather the things that had fallen out of my purse and helped me to my feet. He even asked me if I was alright. I nodded yes. I didn't even have the ability to be embarrassed because I was in shock. He asked me again if I was really okay and I told him that I believed so. He seemed hesitant to leave me there, but I gave him a shaky smile, thanked him and shooed him on his way.

I got my bearings turned my music back on and slowly (and carefully) made my way down the street to work. Talk about traumatizing. Leave it to me to NOT slip on the snow and ice that had accumulated on the ground but instead on uneven pavement that's always there.

My knees were bleeding when I got to the office so I went to the bathroom to put band-aids on. There was a lot of skin on the insides of my tights. So gross. Now my knees feel like they're on fire, which is really an unpleasant feeling.

I was sick yesterday and today I fell. If trouble comes in threes, what's going to happen next? Be careful walking out there today.

I leave you humming "Wipe Out."

Balancing Act

2010-01-26T15:51:00.002-05:00

Reinhard Krause / Reuters

I don't even want to think about the physics involved.

I leave you humming "Man on the Flying Trapeze."