10 Things I Want to Have Accomplished by This Time Next Year

1. Find a new job
2. Reconnect with an old friend
3. Watch The West Wing
4. Schedule a trip (DC?)
5. Finish the novel I'm working on
6. The journey stuff
7. Get Tivo or DVR
8. Pay off my credit card debt
9. Get a new cell phone
10. Update photo album

"What is a Friend?

A single soul dwelling in two bodies." ~ Aristotle

Many of the movies and books and TV shows that I truly treasure are focused on friendship. From Anne and Diana to Carrie, Miranda, Samantha, and Charlotte to Elinor and Marianne to the Ya-Yas to Bridget and Shaz and Jude to the movie I watched tonight--the Jane Austen Book Club, the focus on friendship between women is a central theme.

They say that women with strong female friendships are healthier and happier and that even their marriages benefit from it. Although I am really a homebody and not much of a social butterfly, I do agree that there's nothing more comforting than watching old movies while giggling with friends. I feel better and stronger after simply watching a movie that's heavy on the estrogen.

What is that line from Sex and the City about women being the only ones left in the end? The first time I watched Sex and the City, I was very into Mr. Big, and then Steve, and then Aidan, and then Harry, and, of course, Mr. Big again. I find that as I get older and rewatch the shows in syndication, I hold my breath for different moments--Carrie dedicating her book to Charlotte; Samantha giving up her hair appointment to give Miranda a break from the baby; the four women deciding to be each other's soul mates, and--to me, the most poignant of all the episodes--Carrie standing up with Miranda at her mother's funeral. These are the reasons I watch now.

The best part of each of these TV shows and movies and books is that the women recognize what they have--they meddle and they judge and they fight and they disapprove, but at the end of the day, they support and they cheer and they encourage and they stand alongside of and they show up, even if it's reluctantly.

George Santayana said it best when he said, "The loneliest woman in the world is a woman without a close woman friend."

Movies I Want to See:

1. Juno (Maybe I'll see it tonight if I can convince someone to go with me. I don't go see movies by myself in my hometown for fear of having someone awkward sit with me.) (saw 22 March)
2. Silk (Sounds a bit like The Painted Veil, no?)
3. Black Book (Love ALL things like this! Shining Through (esp. the book), Enigma, etc.)
4. Catch and Release (STILL!)
5. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (or whatever it's called. INDY!)
6. Leatherheads (George Clooney! John Krasinski! John Krasinski! George Clooney! Yea!)
7. Vantage Point (if I don't see it in the theatre, I have this feeling I will never see it...)
8. Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell! Jason Siegel! Jason Siegel! ...And did I mention KRISTEN BELL?!?)
9. Baby Mama (My two fave comediennes! Yea!!)
10. Made of Honor
11. Sex and the City Movie
12. The Jane Austen Book Club (saw 23 March)
13. Becoming Jane
14. The Dark Knight (Although I'm bummed that Rachel is now Maggie Gyllenhaal.)
15. Mamma Mia! (Watch the trailer! And the best part is, Sophie is LILLY!!)
16. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
17. Smart People

What am I forgetting? ...

Desert Island

Desert Island Game: If I was stuck on a desert island, what five ... would I bring?

Movies:
1. Star Wars
2. The Sound of Music
3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
4. Amelie
5. Notorious


Books:
1. One for the Money
2. Boy Meets Girl
3. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
4. Welcome to Temptation
5. Me Talk Pretty One Day


TV Shows:
(Comedies)
1. Friends season 2
2. The Office season 2
3. Psych season 1
4. Burn Notice
5. Arrested Development season 1

(Dramas)
1. Alias season 2
2. Lost season 1
3. Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip
4. Veronica Mars season 1
5. BBC's Robin Hood

Thoughts on the Oscars

Loved the opening of the show--computer generated images of famous actors and shots from movies. What a fun and exciting way to start the ceremony! I was reminded again of how much I love Jon Stewart. He is totally current and somehow manages to be a part of Hollywood while poking fun at it. Favorite line: "Usually when there's a black president or woman president, there's an asteroid headed toward the Statue of Liberty. How will we know it's the future?"

How beautiful is Jennifer Garner? She was the perfect choice to present costumes!

80 years of Oscar--yeah!! I live for this crap!! Love the shot of Audrey Hepburn and the Titanic song was surprisingly moving. I'm a little disappointed they didn't show a clip of Halle Berry's historical win.

Anne Hathaway's dress is unusual, but I think I like it. Very striking on her. Favorite line: "Is this being shown in Belgium?" "Oui."

Um, what the hell if Persophone? A little frightening for animated, no? Hey, I just watched Ratatouille on Tuesday. So I've seen TWO nominated films now. Ratatouille and Atonement. One excellent speech by the animated guy. "He gave me excellent training for the movie business."

Excellent speeches: 1

Have yet to see what Nicole Kidman is wearing. Come on! How endearing is the French chick's excitement? (Sidenote: how beautiful is the French chick?)

I am so excited for Amy Adams to sing "That's How She Knows". Three cheers for Amy Adams!! But ... could they not get her a better microphone? Wow! She was amazing!

The Rock: surprisingly funny. The Golden Compass people are very excited to be there. Very cute. Love the quote by Walt Disney they used. I am especially grateful for the short speeches.

I like when Jon Stewart laughs at his own nonsense. It might be pretentious on others, but it is endearing when he does it, like he recognizes his nonsense and it apologizing for it.

Okay, supporting actor. I think I'm rooting for Casey Affleck, mainly because he's so cute. I think's gonna be Javier though. Actually, I'd be okay with anyone. The Hal Holbrook clip was heartbreaking. It reinforces that I will never be seeing that movie. Javier won it. Why is it so fun to listen to foreign languages, even when you don't understand what they are saying?

Next song: Raise It Up from August Rush. I remember that I loved the song in this placement. Tearjerker and very moving. Very nice performance. But I'm still rooting for "That's How She Knows."

Ugh. I hate animated presenters in the Oscars. I hated it when Shrek did it. I hated it when Woody and buzz did it. And I hate it now when Jerry Seinfeld is doing it. Although props for showing a clip from A Room with a View.

More montages--yay!! Best Supporting Actress is up. I am NOT voting for Cate Blanchett. I like her, but I'm over it--too much exposure. I'm voting for Saiorse Ronan or Amy Ryan, mainly because I know neither of them will ever win. I wish Tilda Swinton would wear mascara. It's frightening. Oh, and she just won. Her dress is hideous. Her speech was good though. Ha! The George Clooney stuff was hilarious. "Hanging upside down at lunch" in the Batman suit. Here's a fun fact: Tony Gilroy also wrote The Cutting Edge. Maybe I will see Michael Clayton after all. (Not that I was ever against it.)

Jessica Alba. Ugh. Another person famous for being pretty. Although I will admit that I love her dress.

So far Josh Brolin and James McAvoy are now my favorites. The dancing was great and the scripted lines weren't painful. What more can I ask for? Are the Coen brothers on downers? Good lord, I have more excitement right now sitting on my couch with my dog alseep on my lap.

Yay for Enchanted! Yay for Amy Adams! Wait ... why is Kristin Chenoweth singing this? Where is Amy Adams? I'm confused. Okay, I love Kristin as much as the next person, and maybe more due to my extreme Wicked obsession, but this should be Amy's moment. The girl can sing--she proved that the first time around. Come on! WTF?

I don't know who the guy with Seth Rogen is, but he's equally funny. Favorite line: "Dude, we look exactly the same." Seriously, who is that guy? (Yay--a win for The Bourne Ultimatum! Their speech is a group effort. Funny.) And I like Seth's tie. (Another win for The Bourne Ultimatum. Something about sound again. Not really sure. I was distracted by the Matt Damon clips.)

Okay, the montage of clips for best actress have been by far the best. Best actress. I'm rooting for Ellen Page, I guess. I haven't seen any of these movies. The Savages looks kind of good. I'm betting it will be Cate Blanchett though. Ooh! It was Marion Cotillard. Okay, it's official. I love everything about her.

I like the song from Once. But it's not "That's How You Know."

Ooh--a montage of all the best picture Oscar winners. I've seen 25 of these movies. Best moment of the night. Loved that they played the theme from Dragonheart over this. I love that score. The best best best.

Another win for the Bourne Ultimatum. Wow! Who knew? Okay, quiet, everyone. Nicole Kidman is up. Hmm. I don't like her necklace thing. I think she's had too much Botox. Disappointing.

Last nominated song. Also from Enchanted. Don't remember it at all. Hmm. Now I understand why I don't remember it. It's boring. At least Amy is twirling in her pretty purple dress. And it was introduced by Patrick Dempsey. That helps.

Okay, they are announcing the winner! Fingers crossed!! Hmm. Once won. Love John Travolta!! Dancing. Ack! Too much!

Beautiful clip of Steven Spielberg winning Schindler's List. I'd never seen it before. Too young. Very touching, moving. I'd love to know who the crying woman in the audience was.

All right. This is why I love Jon Stewart. He's bringing the chick from Once out again to give her speech because she was cut off by the Nazi producers. She was adorable. "Let's have [the Oscars] kiss." "But they're both men." "But this is Hollywood."

In Memoriam. One of my favorite parts. Wouldn't it be great if all occupations had ceremonies that celebrated the memories of people who have died in the last year?

Okay, score one for Atonement. Best original score. SCORE!! (That was for Tara.)

Very moving speech from the short subject chicks.

Harrison Ford!! Wa-hoo!! Juno won best screenplay! Yay!!

Best actor. I'm fine with any of them, really, although Johnny would be nice since he's never won. And, of course, I heart George. But I'm betting on Daniel. Yep. It was Daniel Day Lewis. Ha! Helen Mirren just knighted him with his Oscar.

Best director. I guess I'm rooting for Juno. It's hard to say since I've seen zero of the movies. Joel Cohen and Ethan Cohen won. They were slightly more enthusiastic this time around.

Denzel. With a shaved head. He looks much older with no hair.

Best picture. Come on Atonement!! Or Juno. Or Michael Clayton, I guess. No Country for Old Men won. Damn.

So, to wrap up, I can really ony get excited about Best Actress Marion Cotillard and Best Original Screenplay Diablo Cody. It is now nearly eleven and I'm off to bed.

Mornings

Morning is here, the morning's here ...

Mornings are never a good time for me. I am not what you would call a morning person. I'm convinced this is genetic, and so I blame my mother for this. During my childhood, we were not allowed to speak in the morning becuse it caused my mother physical pain--something I readily agreed to, because, let's face it: there's nothing more annoying than cheerfulness in the morning.

Unfortunately for everyone else in the house, my father is nothing but cheerful in the morning. He likes to hum cheerfully and make small talk and talk nonsense. The two most annoying things he does in the morning are (1) whistle happily and (2) say things like, "Are you up for all day?" to which I usually whine, "It's only 9 o'clock. You can't say that until at least 10:30."

The older I get, the earlier I find myself getting up each morning. Still, my 'early' is another person's 'late', which makes the 6:30 rise-and-shine time of the weekdays especially painful.

I usually wake up before 6 to get the dog up. She eats, goes outside and does her business, and then we both go back to bed for an hour. She curls up in a tiny ball as close to me as she can get without actually being on top of me.

When the alarm (my cell phone) goes off, I hit snooze at least three times, sometimes four. I absolutely canNOT get out of bed without hearing Matt and Meredith's voices, so I turn on the Today Show while still in bed. Once they've previewed the top stories, I drag myself out of bed and brush my teeth while watching Today.

Next I hop in the shower, always swearing to be as fast as possible, but usually standing under the scalding hot water as long as possible. Once I'm out, I slather on some lotion and put on my makeup. I comb my hair and put in mousse if it's a curly hair day. Then I get dressed. Once my hair as had a little time to air dry, I blow dry it and fix it as best I can.

After the hair is finished, I usually need to reapply some undereye concealer (damn you, dark circles!) and then put on my accessories: earrings, watch, scarf, belt, shoes, etc. After a last look in the mirror to make sure I don't look too disgusting or sleepy, I say, "Okay," to the dog still sleeping on the bed, who hops up, tail wagging, and runs to the kitchen. I turn off the TV and the light in the bathroom, and head to the kitchen where the dog is waiting excitedly for her treat. I give her a treat and she hops into her kennel, I turn down the heat, throw my coat on, call good-bye to the dog, swear creatively because it's so late, and rush to the garage.

I like routines and I like this one, but that's not to say I wouldn't enjoy it more if it were happening about four hours later each morning!

Movies Seen in 2007

1. The Pursuit of Happyness
2. Night in the Museum
3. The Departed
4. Music and Lyrics
5. The Last Kiss
6. A Good Year
7. Premonition
8. Something New
9. Little Miss Sunshine
10. Talledega Nights
11. Blades of Glory
12. Lollilove
13. Lucky You
14. The Painted Veil
15. Blades of Glory
16. Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End
17. Murder on the Orient Express
18. Spider-Man 3
19. Breach
20. Disturbia
21. In the Land of Women
22. Bandidas
23. License to Wed
24. Ocean's 13
25. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
26. Robin Hood
27. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
28. Hairspray
29. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
30. The Bourne Ultimatum
31. The Bourne Ultimatum
32. Born Yesterday
33. The Illusionist
34. Criminal
35. Enchanted
36. Dan in Real Life
37. The Prestige
38. August Rush
39. I Am Legend
40. Newsies

Books Read in 2007

Here are the books I've read in 2007:

1. Size 14 Is Not Fat Either
2. Murder on the Lusitania
3. Dead Man in Indian Creek
4. The Baby-sitter
5. Romeo & Juliet (x4)
6. Murder on a Hot Tin Roof
7. Peter and the Starcatchers
8. The Westing Game
9. Crazy for You
10. Point of Honour
11. Of Mice and Men
12. Don't Say a Word
13. Taken
14. Murder on Nob Hill
15. In Dublin's Fair City
16. The Pinballs
17. Death of a Salesman
18. The Spice Box
19. Our Husband
20. I Think I Love You
21. The Russian Hill Murders
22. Brigadoom
23. The Giver
24. The Measure of a Lady
25. An Inconvenient Marriage
26. I've Heard That Song Before
27. Plum Lovin
28. Pants on Fire
29. Maisie Dobbs
30. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
31. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
32. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
33. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
34. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
35. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
36. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
37. Lean Mean Thirteen
38. Murder in Chinatown
39. Queen of Babble
40. The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes
41. Welcome to Temptation
42. Faking It
43. Some Nerve
44. Best Enemies
45. Body Movers: 2 Bodies for the Price of 1
46. The Spellman Files
47. Agnes and the Hit Man
48. And Then There Were None
49. Her Royal Spyness
50. Size 12 Is Not Fat
51. Size 14 Is Not Fat Either
52. Big Boned
53. Fairest
54. Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Murder
55. Jinx
56. Ella Enchanted
57. When Day Breaks
58. The Princess Diaries VII: Party Princess
59. Romeo & Juliet (x4)
60. Sense and Sensibility Diaries by Emma Thompson
61. Fair Game by Valerie Plame Wilson
62. The Making of the Sound of Music
63. The Two Princesses of Bamarre
64. Sanctuary
65. The good parts of Still Life With Murder, Murder in a Mill Town, Death on Beacon Hill, Murder on Black Friday, and Murder in the North End
66. A Bucket of Ashes

Top 10 TV Shows of the Year

1. Lost

2. Pushing Daisies

3. Samantha Who?

4. The Office

5. Bones

6. Burn Notice

7. Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip

8. Psych

9. Grey's Anatomy (just for Ava)

10. Robin Hood (this should be first on the list, so revise in your head please)

Romeo & Juliet & the Ninth Graders

We're finishing up Romeo & Juliet in English, and we just got to the part where the friar sends a message to Romeo explaining that Juliet's not really dead. As a refresher over the weekend, I made the ninth graders write the message, including the return address, salutation, p.s., etc. Here are some of the addresses, postscripts, and closings the students wrote:

666 Satan Loves You Road

Verona, Italy

August 5, 1594

666 Satan Road

Verona, Italy

123 Holy Road

123 Church Road (how original)

P.S. Hurry!

P.S. Don't kill yourself! Thanks!

P.S. Don't let Paris try to kill you! (Methinks we have a clairvoyant friar here)

And here are some of the closings:

Your pal,

Friar Lawrence

BFF,

Friar Lawrence

LOVE YOU FOREVER,

Friar Lawrence (the all caps freak me out!!)

I think my favorite is the the "BFF, Friar Lawrence." Ha!!

Things My Parents Say ...

"Gravity."
The reason, according to my father, anything happened. For instance, why my brother was late or why my father is so weird to why my favorite TV show is not airing or why I can't find my book.

"What goes around comes around."
My mother's favorite belief.

"It's nice to be nice to the nice."
My father's response, from M*A*S*H, to anyone whoever uses the word "nice" in a sentence, whether the response is relevant or not.

"Hello, boys."
My mother's favorite greeting a room full of girls. I don't know why.

"When I was a kid, we had to walk all the way over to the TV to change the channel."
My favorite of my father's "When *I* was a kid" stories.

These Are A Few of My Favorite Things

For my sister who is sick and may need something new to read:


The smell of a chlorinated pool. Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Black stiletto boots with blade-sharp pointed toes. These are a few of my favorite things.

Snow days. Summer days. Vacation days. These are a few of my favorite things.

Friends. Meg Cabot books. Movies with romance like While You Were Sleeping and The Bourne Identity and A Room with a View. Books with romance like Welcome to Temptation and Bridget Jones: the Edge of Reason and Weep No More, My Lady. These are a few of my favorite things.


Finishing a piece of writing. Songs being played on the piano by a pianist more accomplished than I. Playing "Sleigh Ride" on the piano. These are a few of my favorite things.

Historical novels like The Witch of Blackbird Pond. Period movies like Pride and Prejudice. Accents like Colin Firth and Rachel Weisz. Rebecca the book and Rebecca the movie.

Dry humor. Sharp wit. Jokes that are playful, not mean. These are a few of my favorite things.

Hot chocolate with whipped cream on top. Lots of good movies playing at a theatre near me. Jeans that fit well. These are a few of my favorite things.

The feeling of being absolutely free like floating in the water after a dive in or going down a hill on a roller coaster. Watching the Academy Awards. Playing Trivial Pursuit or Catch Phrase. These are a few of my favorite things.

Plane trips. Vacations to places I've never been before. Exploring new places by myself. These are a few of my favorite things.

Inside jokes. Secret languages with friends. Traditions. These are a few of my favorite things.

Being kind. Being the recipient of kindness. Laughing with students who are used to being ignored. These are a few of my favorite things.

Christmas lights. Oldies but goodies on the radio. Watching old home movies. These are a few of my favorite things.

I Finished!!

At the beginning of the year, I began plotting out and writing a little story. In February I decided to write one paragraph a day for Lent. Amazingly, I stuck to it and was even motivated enough to continue doing it until mid-June when I left for Paris. After arriving home from Paris, it was hard to get back in the swing of things, but I did pretty well through parts of August and all of September. October was a mess because of Nicole's wedding, the end of first quarter, and conferences, but then, last night I did what I have been working toward since New Years' Eve Day 2006: I finished my novel.

Maybe I should call it my "novel" because it's in very, very rough shape. Some writers and teachers turn their noses up at the words "rough draft" but I NEED that sticker on it--I need people to know that this is NOT the finished product, that I'm going to keep working on it, that by the end, the finished product will look nothing like what it does now.

Even the state it's in doesn't take any of the joy away though from having finished it. I thought about this story and these characters and their motivations in the weekly car trips back to my apartment, in the shower, and especially in bed at night. When things happened in my life, I would think, how can I use this in my story? How would Mariah react to this? I lived with these characters for a year.

I'm excited to begin revisions (unlike many writers, this is one of my favorite part of the writing process). I love to see how the story will change from what I first imagined. Maybe Dacia will grow up. Maybe she'll become more selfish. Maybe Mariah will be angrier at the start of the story. Maybe she'll be more repressed and then become angrier. Maybe Nick will have a backstory ... if I can force myself to think about it. Maybe more characters, a better community will crop up. Who knows!!

But for now, I just wanted to brag that I did it. I finished it.

Wedding Toast ...

Traditionally, it is the maid of honor’s job to make sure the bride has something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue. To prepare for the job, I did a little research to find out why exactly brides wear something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.

The bride wears “something old” to represent her family and where she has come from.

The “something new” is what the bride and groom will bring to the marriage. Nicole and Dustin have many interests they are bringing together. When Nicole first told me the story of how she called Dustin before she’d ever met him, I asked her incredulously, “What did you talk about?” Nicole said, “Well … pigs. I told him I once worked on a hog confinement and he was pretty impressed with that.” Someone once said, “When we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.” This is a pretty good indication of what Nicole and Dustin will be bringing to their marriage: a mutual weirdness and a love of pigs.

“Something borrowed” is the duty of the bride’s friends; to remind her of our friendship and our support. Nicole and I have been inseparable all of our lives. We even used to borrow each other’s clothes right down to our underwear. As the maid of honor, I want her to know that any time she needs to borrow my underwear—metaphorically speaking—I’ll be there. Throughout my entire life, Nicole has always been sitting right next to me. Today I’m so honored to be next to her.

“Something blue” is symbolic of the faithfulness and loyalty between the bride and the groom, a symbol that they will be together the rest of their lives. There are many reasons I know Nicole and Dustin are meant to be together, they’re both very funny and excellent story tellers, they’re extremely family-oriented, but the real reason I know that they belong together is this: for as long as I’ve known Nicole, she’s had a list of qualities that she expects in a husband. That list includes: he must listen to country music, he must be willing to hold her hand in public, and he must not be scrawny. Dustin does listen to country music, he gives public displays of affection, and he is not scrawny. Congratulations, Nicole, you’ve found your dream guy.

My Top 5

Remember that episode of Friends where Ross and Rachel pick their top five celebrities and Ross has his top five laminated? Here are mine.

1. John Krasinski. Oh, Jim. You had me at "if this were my career, I'd have to throw myself in front of a train. "

2. Matt Damon. If Will Hunting hadn't convinced me, Jason Bourne did for sure!

3. Sharif Atkins. He will always be Dr. Gallant to me.

4. Ryan Gosling. Since I can't think of anything to say about him, I suspect that he may be a placeholder for another. Although I really enjoy the part where he smacks himself several times in The Notebook.

5. Corey Reynolds. Even Brenda Leigh Johnson said he was her favorite. Newsflash, Brenda: he's EVERYONE's favorite!!! Plus, he must have made one fabulous Seaweed.

I feel as if I'm forgetting someone! Hmm...

And today makes 13...

Today is the thirteenth anniversary of the day I was diagnosed with diabetes. That means that I have now been diabetic longer than I wasn't. These anniversaries used to mean a lot, but they are becoming less and less significant as I get older. It's weird how that happens....

New York Trip

Wednesday:
Left home at 4:30 a.m. Yeah, that's right. A.M. Flight leaves Cedar Rapids at 8 a.m.
Arrive at Newark at 3:30
Cab ride to hotel seems very overwhelming
Arrive at hotel at 5:00
Eat at pub across the street from hotel called Social (I had hamburger and fries--the fries were awesome!)
Walk around Times Square (Mom bought black I heart NY t-shirts for Tara and me)



Thursday:
Breakfast at Euro Diner (I had French toast and chocolate milk). Took lots of pictures in diner. Brennan forgot his camera and while he and Dad went back to get it, Mom complained about how cold it was. Tara said, "Would you like me to just kill you?" Mom said, "I wish you would and put me out of my misery." And so begins the overreaction to everything.

Walked to Pier 84 of the New York Harbor to go on Circle Line Bus Tour (no sighting of Michelle Pfeiffer or George Clooney). Bought water from a very amusing street vendor who said, "You have made the best decision you will make all day: the decision to hydrate."

Tour took two hours and was very cool. I was very affected by the sight of Lady Liberty, becoming choked up--didn't know that was going to happen.

After the tour, we rode the subway to the Empire State Building. Kinda tricky to figure out the train lines at first, but went very smoothly all vacation. Stood in line at Empire State Building for about an hour. Very amusing little girl ahead of us who was much like Tara. She and her dad were on the elevator with us. When it hit floor 40, he said, "40. That's how old I am." (Blatant lie--he was obviously much closer to 50). The girl goes very loudly, "Nuh-uh! You're--" "Shh!!" he said, and everyone laughed. When the elevator hit 50, she goes, "That's how old you are!" and he said, good-naturedly, "Thank you very much." Very cute! I got cool New York City magnets for $17 at the top.

After Empire State, we ate at the Olive Garden which was awesome. I had thirds of salad and breaksticks. Yum, yum, yum!! Our waiter was funny but also kind of a tool.

After dinner was Curtains. It. Was. AWESOME. When David Hyde Pierce entered I was so excited I could hardly contain myself. The entire cast, music, and story was excellent, and when DHP won the Tony on Sunday, it was even more meaningful. Got pics of him and other cast members afterward. Very exciting for my first Broadway show (and I couldn't believe it was the original cast!)

Walked around Times Square afterward. Brennan tripped over a pothole in the middle of the street and spend the REST OF THE VACATION limping around. He was such a good sport!!



Friday:
Ate at Art Cafe for breakfast. I had a kick-ass omelette and diet Coke. Yum!!! Took pics of Tara and me.

Rode the subway to Central Park. Dad bought hats for Tara and me because it was very sunny and very hot and humid! Gross!! Mine is pink and says NYC on it. Stopped by Strawberry Fields and the John Lennon memorial. Very solemn and respectful. Very cool!

We continued on and took a bunch of pictures under this bridge and then saw lots of schoolkids and dogwalkers. When we emerged from the park we were at the Museum of Natural History where we spent the afternoon. Some of that stuff was a little boring but the planetarium show was really cool. Plus, by that time, my feet were hurting like a bitch, so it was nice to sit. I even took my shoes off while we were in the dark. Aaah!!

After the museum, we ate hot dogs from a vendor across from the museum, and then walked (except for Brennan, who limped) back to the subway. When we got back to Times Square, we split from Tara who went to see The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee while the remaining four of us went to the Yankees game which ROCKED my socks off. We took the subway and it was packed and then had to buy tickets but it was so worth it.

Brennan taught me the names of all the players: (Miguel Cairo #41(?) 1st baseman, Robinson Canu #24 2nd baseman, Derek Jeter #2 shortstop, Alex Rodriguez #13 3rd baseman, Jorge Pasada catcher (can't remember number), Andy Petiette pitcher (can't remember number), Bobby Abreu #53 right fielder, Melky Cabrera #28 center fielder, Matsui #55 left fielder (can't remember first name), Mariano Rivera #42(?) pitcher, Johnny Damon designated hitter. Wow! I remembered more of that than I thought I would. Hope I didn't mess up too much. They played the Pittsburg Pirates. It was an extremely exciting game--went into extra innings, before Derek Jeter finally won the game for them, 4-3.

After we got back to Manhattan we ran into Tara and all got ice cream at McDonald's.



Saturday:
Got up and met at nine. We went to the Art Cafe again to eat lunch. Another kick-ass omelette and a super cute waiter!! After that we did some shopping. I got a green Wicked fitted tee that says "Defying Gravity" on it: Then we went to the Times Square Visitors Center and got tickets for the Lion King at 2 p.m.

After that we took the subway to Grand Central Station. Took lots of pictures and then split up to do some window shopping. Tara and I got drinks and sat and talked in the food court to rest our feet.

Lunch? Can't remember where.

Went to the Lion King at two. It was probably the most amazing theatre experience I've ever had, beating out The Phantom of the Opera which I saw in high school. If you get the chance to see this, RUN, don't walk to it. Totally worth the $111!!

After The Lion King, we went to Planet Hollywood for dinner. I had pizza and it was disgusting. Brennan had the ribs and ate 9 of them.

After dinner, we did some shopping. I got some postcards and a hot pink zip-up sweatshirt that says New York in paler pink ($12). Then, after stopping back at the hotel, we went to Spamalot at the Schubert Theatre. As we were standing in line looking at the Spamalot poster, we got the surprise of a lifetime. Guess who was starring in Spamalot (besides Marin Mazzie as the Lady of the Lake)? CHRISTOPHER SIEBER!!! CHRISTOPHER SIEBER!!! AKA DENNIS GALAHAD!!! And he was the best!!! The other hilarious thing that happened was the scene between Hubert and Lancelot. So funny I cannot even explain it. Maybe the funniest thing I've seen. In my life. Like, ever.

Saw Christopher Sieber after the show and took some pics. Then went into some Broadway shop that had cool stuff but was ridiculously overpriced. I got a Mary Poppins navy blue shirt with silver sparkles over it for $22.



Sunday:
Started off as a weird day. Mom and Dad overslept, Brennan opted to stay at the hotel because of his sore ankle, so Tara and I went to the Times Square Visitors Center to find more tickets to Broadway shows. Then we went to the TKTS booth where Tara (again) and Mom got tickets for Spelling Bee. While Tara was waiting in line, Dad, Mom, and I went to Junior's to have breakfast. I had French toast and we had another very cute waiter!

We parted ways after breakfast for Mom and Tara to go to the show while Dad, Brennan, and I rode to the subway to lower Manhattan. We had to wait in line for tickets to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island for about half an hour, but it felt much faster! Seeing Lady Liberty was very fulfilling and I'm very glad we went since we almost weren't going to.

After seeing it and waiting for the ferry back to lower Manhattan and riding the subway back to Times Square it was about 4:00. I split from Dad and Brennan then. They were going to Rosie O'Grady's so Dad could have a drink. I did some shopping and found lots of great stuff!! I got two pairs of sunglasses, two purses for $5 each, and a shot glass.

Sunday evening we had dinner at the Social again. This time I had Nachos Supreme or something like that. Very good. Then, that night we went to a comedy club where Chelsey Handler performed. Part of her act was to tell stories about all the assholes she knows. It was pretty funny, not gonna lie.

After that, we had ice cream and then headed back to the hotel. Tara, Brennan, and I watched Shrek and then an episode or two of Frasier on TV before going to sleep.



Monday:
Our last full day. We had breakfast at the Art Cafe again. My omelette wasn't as good today. I guess I was due. Then we walked to Rockefeller Center: We passed Radio City Music Hall on the way.

It was pretty cool to see Rockefeller Center since it was so recognizable from 30 Rock. We looked through the NBC gift shop which was really fun. Lots of cool The Office and SNL stuff. After that, Dad and Tara and I went to St. Patrick's Cathedral which was overwhelming and amazing. They had a statue of St. Elizabeth Seton, my confirmation saint. I lit a candle while there. The coolest thing to see/hear were all the different ethnicities and languages at the church:

After St. Pat's; Mom, Tara, and I went shopping. We went into Saks and stopped at a few street vendors on Fifth Avenue before heading back to Broadway to do more street vendor shopping. Tara left to get tickets for Avenue Q, and I got a hot dog. Then we headed back to the hotel discussing whether or not the four of us (minus Tara who was going to Avenue Q) wanted to go see this off-Broadway play called Perfect Crime. We decided we did which was a huge mistake because it sucked.

Before the plays, we all went to Applebee's where we all discussed our favorite parts of the trip. I had the fish and it was delicious!! I've been craving it ever since. It started raining while we were in there, so we had to run to the theatre (actually we killed time in a pharmacy until it was time).

The play was a complete joke. It made no sense and was stupid and not funny. I could say more about it and what the critics think, but I'm trying to forget I spent my last night in New York at this.

After this, Mom and I stopped to get ice cream for everyone and headed back to the hotel. After discussing how bad it was, we headed back to our room, watched Frasier, and stayed up way too late because the shuttle was there at 5:20 the next morning to take us to JFK for our flight home.

Hands down, the best vacation I've ever been on.

Happy Birthday to Tara...

This morning, I got up to eat breakfast and discovered to my surprise (and vast delight) this account of my life written by my sister, from my point-of-view. So funny!!! My favorite parts are the P.S. at the end of each "entry."

THE VERY SECRET DIARY OF RIXIE

Dear Diary,

Plotted today to break spirit of sister Tara. She has no idea what’s coming, poor dolt. Kept going on and on about television shows and opera singing boys with curly hair. Never stopped to think about whether I was interested in what she was saying. Just kept talking and talking and talking. Wanted to shut her up right then, but these things take time. Must remember to pick up arsenic at store tomorrow. Will surely wear her down.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Had cutest outfit at school today.

Dear Diary,

Plans to break spirit of sister Tara thwarted today when she nixed usual morning cup of hot cocoa. Not sure if she suspects. Normally she’s too self-involved to notice anything not involving her curly hair or last night’s guest on Craig Ferguson. But can’t be too careful. Will perhaps try not to seem too overeager when offering to make her a cup (with arsenic) tomorrow.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Wore pink bracelet with black skirt today. Seven compliments.

Dear Diary,

If Tara continues to prattle on so, swear will take her down tonight. Have decided against arsenic—so outdated. And likely to end in death—not necessary. Just need peace and quiet. Instead will fashion device that slowly drains all her electronic devices of battery life. Broken spirit will follow quickly, am sure.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Still the cutest.

Dear Diary,

Was forced to clean Tara’s hair out of drain after shower this morning. Do not know if can keep rage about this quiet. But do not want to let on. Tara seems unusually perceptive today. Like when she noticed how adorable I was looking in new belt and sandals.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Perky new math teacher wore new Capri pants to 9^th grade girls’ delight. Add her to potential hit list.

Dear Diary,

Tara now definitely aware something strange going on. Caught her examining hot cocoa mix for no apparent reason. Must tell her Josh Groban battling life-threatening disease to make her senses go haywire.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Perky new math teacher wore ugly loafers today. Am still the cutest.

Dear Diary,

Have soaked Tara’s iPod and laptop battery in macaroni and cheese, then washed and returned to their places. She seemed listless and forlorn this evening when could not get either to work. Plan going excellently. Also bought new hoop earrings.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Was voted Coolest Teacher by world today. Splendid.

Dear Diary,

Took Tara nearly seven seconds to change channel from “Still Standing” tonight. Strength of loss of electronic devices much higher than anticipated. Am already enjoying effects. Household much more peaceful without constant squealing and obsessing.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Broke nail today. Boo.

Dear Diary,

Plan momentarily set back by surprise appearance by Gerard Butler on Late Late Show tonight. Tara seemed to gain a bit more color. Still, noticed that her curls have a bit less spring. Most excellent.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Have made up for broken nail by adding sparkle polish. Am now both creative and sparkly.

Dear Diary,

Responded to Surprise Gerry Appearance incident with own attack: taped over Tara’s copy of Double, Double, Toil, and Trouble. Reminded her that Olsen twins grew up to be sluts who wear gross clothing. Definitely breaking down her spirit.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Definitely have better clothes than Mary-Kate, if not Ashley.


Dear Diary,

Plan nearly complete. Told Tara that Meg Cabot announced she would no longer include romance in her books. Know spirit must already be suffering, because she believed me and crawled off to lie on bathroom rug for awhile. Am enjoying having all Diet Sunkist to myself more than can really describe.

Love,

Rixie

P.S. Experimented with barrette today, to great success. Six compliments.

Dear Diary,

Have officially broken Tara’s spirit. Over breakfast, said casually, “Lord of the Rings was too long as it is. It didn’t need all those additional scenes on the DVD.” And Tara paused for awhile and then said, “Yeah.” Was able to finish breakfast and read book in total silence. Not one mention of Faramir’s auburn curls or Aragorn’s sword. Mission: accomplished.

P.S. Still the cutest. Life: good.

(By Tara, With Love To Rixie, May 13, 2007.)

Books That Changed My Life

A variety of titles that changed my life. Some titles will be obvious to everyone (see Esme) and some may be clear only to me (see Evanovich).

1. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Perhaps the greatest novel ever written. "Jem and I would get grown, but there wasn't much else for us to learn, except possibly algebra."

2. One for the Money by Janet Evanovich
Hilarity, hijinks, and poignant writing? Too much for anyone to ask for, and yet, Evanovich delivers.

3. Weep No More, My Lady by Mary Higgins Clark
I have probably read this book more than any other in my life--somewhere around ten times, I would imagine. Romance, grief, inner struggle, inner demons, angst--all this in a spa setting and surrounded by Hollywood glamour ... what's not to love?

4. Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
This changed my life in that it changed my writing style. See ... well, all previous blogs for evidence of this--particularly summer of 2003.

5. Educating Esme: Diary of a First Year Teacher by Esme Raji Codell
I heart literature. Now I get to read about someone else hearting literature.

6. Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie
I wish I had written this book. That's the highest compliment I can pay. Even though I've read it four or five times, it still makes my stomach drop every time I read it. And the ending ... wow!!

7. The Boomerang Club (or Why Didn't They Ask Evans?) by Agatha Christie
Bobby and Frankie, Frankie and Bobby. Agatha Christie does romance like nobody's business--subtly, wittily, satisfactorily. EAT IT, Mary Westmacott!! (Oh yeah, and the mystery's pretty good too.)

8. Boy Meets Girl by Meg Cabot
I thought I wanted to write like Mary Higgins Clark or Janet Evanovich, until I read Meg Cabot. She writes like I think ... only funnier. And there's more romance. Basically, Meg Cabot has the career that I wish I had. I've read this one three times and can quote pretty much every hilarious line verbatim. "I saw you hiding behind that potted plant in the lobby. Don't try to deny it." "Love, Mitch. AKA The Fucker." HA!!

9. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
I don't see how any writer could feel more satisfied with a novel's ending than J.K. Rowling MUST have felt at the end of this one. Pure. Genius. Plus, it's funny!!

10. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Spear
This was probably when I first realized that I liked reading romance novels. And technically, this wouldn't be classified as a romance, but as Meg Cabot says, if there's no romance, what's the point? Seriously!!

Other favorite novels (with romance, obviously):
1. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
2. Shining Through by Susan Isaacs
3. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
4. Bridget Jones: the Edge of Reason by Helen Fielding

Speech Coaches Meeting

So yesterday we had the annual spring speech coaches meeting in Cedar Falls. As always, I want to kill myself whenever we have to do something relating to speech, but the reasons for being unable to skip were twofold.
A) K is the president of the northeast district
B) My boss, WOB, wanted to attend for reasons unknown to me. Or K. What. A. Loser.

So here a breakdown of my day:

6:30 Cell phone alarm goes off. I panic and think I overslept and it's K calling me to ask where the hell I am? Realize it's only 6:30. Close my eyes again.

6:31 Suddenly realize I am NOT in my bedroom. Wonder where the hell I am.

6:31:20 Remember that I decided to go to my parents' last night because they are closer to Cedar Falls (only a 40 minute drive instead of an hour and ten minutes) and this way, Darcy could frolic in their house all day, instead of having to stay in the car in her crate. I'm against animal abuse, see?

6:38 Cell phone snooze alarm goes off again. What the hell? Why is it every eight minutes and not nine like the rest of alarm clocks the world over?

6:45 Must beat Mom and Dad in the shower, so finally get up. Realize how used I am to having my own space and doing my own thing whenever I want in my own apartment.

7:45 Leave house. Was weird to have people around in the a.m., but kind of enjoyable. I'd probably want to kill myself if I had to socialize with them every morning because the novelty would wear off, but for one day, it was nice.

7:50-8:30 Belt old-school Shakira the entire way. "Whenever, wherever ..."

8:30 Arrive at the meeting.

8:35 Struggle to get the popcorn holders that I had to beg the local movie theatre for out of the trunk of my car without dropping the six feet tall cut-outs of James Dean and Oscar. It has been raining since 6:32 and the ground is muddy. End up making three trips:
1) CD player and popcorn things
2) James Dean and Oscar
3) my bag and paper towels
(Still reading this? I'm SHOCKED!! Truly!)

8:36 Meet DarlatheBitch as I'm going into the hotel. She's the vice-president and an all-out bitch on wheels. I alternate between wanting to beat the living shit out of her and wanting to run her over in my car, reverse over her mangled corpse, and repeating the process. I smiled and she said hi, and I said, "Hi, Darla, how are you?" and she looked away, breaking eye contact. WHY ARE PEOPLE SO WEIRD???

8:37 Met K in the conference room, looking adorable in a spring skirt and jean jacket, and helped her begin to set things up. Put popcorn and "take 2" clapper thingies all over along with signs that said things like "Sunset Blvd." and such on the walls. Passed out kolatches and candy, etc.

8:41 Carry in the cardboard cut-outs. Can't get the door open. Two cute boys hold it open for me. One is very friendly. My heart is pitter-pattering.

9:00 Sign in. Adorable name tags with pictures of film reels, Oscars, movie tickets, etc. on them. Tell Darla and the secretary, Matt, I have to look through the stack before deciding which one I want. Pull out the Oscar. DarlaTheBitch says, "Isn't that one great? I took that one too!"

9:01 Exchange my Oscar name tage for one with a picture of a film reel on it. Will not willingly allow myself to be like Darla in any way.

9:15 Already hungry. How will I make it until noon before eating?

9:17 To distract myself from my hunger, I ask K, "How late do you think WOB will be?" "An hour," she replies with absolutely no hesitation. I concur.

9:30 K begins with a hilarious multiple choice quiz for all the coaches. She rocked the house. We all applaud like mad when she sits down at 9:40. Craig, the head honcho who I think is an arrogant jackass, K thinks is a "fucking dick," and Vicki (the woman I replaced) calls a "raging Republican" (I don't think he's actually a Republican, that's just the worst comment she can give. Period.) begins speaking.

9:57 WOB walks in. K and I consult our watches and grin at each other. We're only three minutes off.

10:00 I begin to eye the agenda. Craig needs to wrap up his little speech so we can stick to the schedule K has been planning since large group district contest back in January.

10:14 Craig's still talking. K is beginning to look nervous, alternating her glances between the schedule and her watch. I fear I am beginning to look bored. I'm having a hard time concentrating.

10:36 Thirty-six minutes after he's supposed to be finished, Craig finally wraps it up. K stands up and asks, "Are you beginning to sweat over the schedule? Because I am." which get a HUGE laugh and round of applause. She begins introductions. Must tell your name, what you coach, what you teach, where you find scripts, and what scripts you brought. K says some REALLY great stuff about me, including this, which she's told me about before, "I coach large group and individual with Erica. She's been with me for three years now and I would kill myself without her. At our school we have this expression: if we're doing something fun, we like to ask, 'Is it as cool as Miss A?' We all know she is the epitome of cool." Everyone laughed and I was really flattered and embarrassed (but in a good way, obviously).

10:38 K goes, "And no one else can talk as long as me," before sitting down because we are now so far behind schedule. I go next explaining that I brought two choral reading scripts and why choral reading is so hard. Many heads are nodding in agreement. I brought thirty copies of two scripts and they were ALL gone by the time we left yesterday. I rock.

10:39-11:30 Write down many titles of scripts and wish people would hurry up just a tinge. I'm hungry and a little bored and ready to move on.

11:31 WOB talks about himself and says some interesting stuff for once. He explains how much he loves speech and how it's his biggest passion and then he thanked me and then he goes, "I want to thank my English teachers, K and E, for letting me live vicariously through their speech experiences. They have to put up with a lot because I love it so much and I love hosting speech contest." This was the best part of the day because at the same time that K goes, "Oh, you love hosting speech contest? Really?", I go, "Gee, we never would have known that you loved hosting contest? Wow! News to me." which got laughs all around because we've hosted that effing contest longer than I've been alive--EVERYONE knows he loves hosting that damn thing.

11:34-11:50 Script exchange!! Got some good choral readings scripts that give me ideas, even if I never plan on using them. One was called "the House that Jack Built" and was all about different Jacks all through literature. It's a very cool idea and I'd like to write my own--using something else in place of Jack. It wouldn't even have to be a name, it could be something totally different. Only problem is, I can't think of anything else. Ideas anyone???

11:50-12:20 Listen to different coaches' presentations. We are now an hour behind schedule, and these people aren't even making AN EFFORT to speed up this process. Do you WANT to get out at 2:00 or NOT???

12:20-1:00 Break for lunch. Thank GOD because I'm starving. The cottage cheese rocked the house. I saw the following vegetables in the soup: lima beans, peas, and green beans, so I stuck with the sandwiches, obviously.

1:00-1:40 Listened to a presenter from UNI who, to be perfectly honest, was not that great. Bo*ring. K was bored, too, I could tell, even though she's the one who called her to present.

1:40 The two cute boys who held the door open for me this morning give a presentation on musical theatre full of websites. This is VERY, VERY, VERY helpful since K decided it would be a good idea for the two of us to do musical theatre next year (why, God, why???) After the script exchange, this was a great idea!!

2:00 FINALLY FINISHED!! YEA!!! Begin packing up. Glower at DarlaTheBitch who isn't helping at all clean up at all.

2:30 Help K wheel the cart with all our boxes on it. Wave good-bye to the two cute boys from this morning. Wave good-bye to K, hop in the car, and drive to Barnes & Noble.

3:00 Leave B&N with two books for Brennan's birthday. Drive to Target. Buy the new Michael Buble CD (yea "Everything"! yea "Wonderful Tonight"! yea three songs co-written by Michael Buble. yea "Always on my Mind" ... wait, a minute. Never mind. I don't like this version of "Always on my Mind."). Get the game Apples To Apples for Mom. Try on strapless bras for a half hour. No luck.

4:15 Go the mall. Look for photo albums for Dad. No luck. Go to Victoria's Secret. Try on strapless bras for AN HOUR!!!! Finally find one, after a long, discouraging try. Get $10 off and a free pair of underwear (DON'T call them panties) thanks to a coupon I have.

5:45 Go to HobbyLobby. Get photo album for Dad for cool project he's working on for someone. See a Paris poster and contemplate getting it for my recently redecorated room which is looking AWESOME, but needs one or two more things. It's $10 but 50% off. Buy it. Along with a photo album with pictures of New York on it for our NYC trip this summer. Also 50% off. Total cost: $20. Wow. What a bargain.

6:30 Arrive home. Go with the fam out to eat to celebrate Bren's birthday. Lots of laughing and loud talking amonst us. Very fun.

7:45 Arrive back home. Play Apples to Apples until 11:00. SO FUN!!!

11:30 Off to bed. Very exhausted.

This post was for Tara. Very soon she's going to regret ever asking for posts like this.