I have so many things to be thankful for right now:
Start of April work count: 3 papers, 3 presentations, 2 final exams, 1 case study, 1 reflection paper. Current work count: 1 presentation, 1 paper. Hallelujah!
I chose my fellowship placement for the summer, and we are all mutually delighted to have me.
I had a great interview as the final source for my last paper; education + networking = awesome.
My intake today consisted of actual foods with recognized nutritional value.
I can go to bed whenever I feel like it tonight, with no guilt about staying up late or going to bed early. I choose early!!
I wasn't sure I'd make it through today successfully - so an extra hooray for that! Thank you, and good night.
OK, so here's my running commentary on Oscar night, for anyone who cares ... I just don't want to be updating my Facebook status every 5 minutes:
7:37
Bouncing back and forth between Barbara Walters and the E! Red Carpet special. I don't know why I'm watching Barbara Walters, because I hate the way she interviews people; but I'm curious about the people she's interviewing.
Great dresses: Anne Hathaway, Beyonce, Marion Cotilliard.
Diane Lane and Josh Brolin ... huh. Didn't know that.
Man, wish I had PIP! That would make this so much easier.
7:42
Oh, yeah, Oscar movies I haven't seen but want to: Frost/Nixon, Tropic Thunder (on the Blockbuster list, coming soon), Changeling, The Reader, Man on Wire (on top of the DVR waiting to be watched as we speak). Things I feel like I should see, even if I'm not super-enthused about it: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Doubt, Milk.
I don't love Kate Winslet's whole dress, but she looks great from the waist up.
Aha, the arrival of Brangelina!! Her dress is so-so.
Apparently, white/cream is the color today, at least according to Jay what's-his-name from Top Model. But I have no idea why he likes Jessica Biel's dress ... uck.
7:55
Ooh, just 5 minutes to the official Red Carpet Special! Hmm ... have I recovered enough to start watching Dancing with the Stars again? Maybe. I'm also very interested in this Castle thing.
What, Hugh Jackman is giving Barbara Walters a lap dance on network TV? My eyes, my eyes!!
8:00
OK, now it's all ABC all the time. Taraji P. Henson is so cute! And really, Kate Winslet is just gorgeous.
Diane Lane is adorable with her husband.
Amy Adams: great dress, needs a better hairstylist to show off that gorgeous red mane.
I don't think Matthew Broderick likes this red carpet deal; he looks kinds uncomfortable.
Did I mention that I love Taraji? :-)
8:05
Oh, other things on my to-see list: Rachel Getting Married, The Wrestler.
Frank Langella and his daughter - too sweet!
Tim Gunn, you're drooling; stop fawning all over Brangelina, it's embarrassing.
8:09
Julia Roberts in Valentino enjoying her Oscar ... "Whoo! I love it up here." :-)
WOOOOO!!! Go Slumdog Millionaire!!!!!!!! That is so awesome that they got so much of the cast there.
8:13
RDJ: "My date tonight? Well, she's my date for the rest of this incarnation." Love it!
I'm torn over Miley Cyrus's dress ... I love it and hate it at the same time.
Oh, it's worth noting that I have IMDb open in the next window, so I can constantly check who's dating/married to who.
8:20
Aw, look at the accountants! I can't imagine the security around those guys on the way here.
I like the parent-child teams ... Meryl Steep and daughter this time.
I like Penelope Cruz's dress. I also dig the little feature when they're interviewing her showing her past outfits, although I wish the pictures were slightly larger.
I think I'm rooting for Richard Jenkins as Lead Actor, although it's probably a long shot.
8:25
Wow, Seth Rogen in formal wear is kind of shocking. He looks really good, though. I wouldn't kick him out of bed ... although by boyfriend probably would! ;-) JK, sweetie.
Do these people creating the set and music for Oscars know that they create the longest, most over-dramatic event in the history of over-dramatic events? Also, that they have inspired terrible emulations like the AIA Convention music and set design? (Seriously, it's so awful it's ridiculous.)
8:31
Hugh Jackman is the sexiest man alive ... that is, among men I'm not already dating. :-) Amusingly, my boyfriend hates Hugh Jackman. I hope he's a good host; he's starting out well. And wow - what an opening number! He talks, he sings, he dances ... what can't he do? Very funny.
Meryl Streep is lovely; I hope I look that good at her age.
What was that with the curtain??
Ooh, I like this thing with having the formers come out to present the nomination. Although it looks a little like being welcomed to a cult by people in shadowy robes ... but the commentary is sweet, and much appreciated by the actresses.
OK, I am not unhappy with the first award. It's actually the only movie I saw in this category, so I guess I'm rooting for this as much as anything. But I still love Taraji! Penelope's speech was overlong, but touching.
8:54
See, the trouble with the Oscars is that I think it's just too big a venue for good comic timing. Even Tina Fey and Steve Martin have a hard time being funny.
I was actually really hoping that Wall-E would win best screenplay. Oh, well.
Yay, Slumdog!!
OK, I know everyone wants to thank everyone, but you've seen enough of these things to know that the litany of thanks is boring. You're creative people; be more creative!
Jen looks better than Angelina. The dress, anyway; I think she and Amy Adams had the same futzy hairdresser.
Aw, man, I meant to see Clone Wars! I think it's on demand now.
Was there ever any doubt that Wall-E would win? I mean really, the others nominated weren't even in the same league.
Dude, I would be so freaked out to accept a major televised award not in my native language. Go you, dude!
9:14
Whew, that bathroom break was a long time in coming! Do you think Oscar commercials are as expensive as Superbowl commercials?
You know, this might be the first time that I've ever watched the Oscars start to finish ... or as close to finish as I'll get before I bail.
That set behind SJP and Daniel Craig is really impressive to me for some reason; I don't know if it's any more complex than any of the others, but it feels like it.
Darn, I was rooting for almost any other movie except Benjamin Button for Art Direction. Of course, I haven't seen it, so maybe it really was the most fabulous. I was rooting for The Duchess, so I'm happy about that. Huh, I didn't think I really cared either way about most of these categories, but I guess I do a little.
I wonder if there's a timer that people can see while they're doing their thank-yous.
I guess if Benjamin Button was nominated for so many categories, it was bound to win some of them. I just really have something against this movie ... what is it?
Hi, Mamma Mia! girl. Sorry I didn't like your movie at all.
That was an awful lot of High School Movie 3 in that romance montage - really? Oh, I meant to see Last Chance Harvey, too! So many movies, so little time.
9:32
Natalie Portman looks pretty! She's not the best comedienne. Please tell me Ben Stiller will take his gum with him when he goes. Ew, he put it back in his mouth ... uck.
Yay 2 for Slumdog! But wait, I thought you weren't thanking anybody? Not a bad speech, though.
9:41
I'm watching on silent right now, because I'm on the phone with my mom; sadly, I'm missing the Seth Rogen/James Franco bit, which looks pretty funny. Might have to rewind and go watch that. I like Seth Rogen's tux much less now that I see it on stage ... James Franco is a hottie, as always.
I want to be the Oscar girl who guides people off the stage. She gets to wear such a pretty outfit, and meet famous people.
Wow, I don't have any sound on, but I can tell that guy who won the short film award was very excited.
9:53
Oh, Hugh Jackman is singing again and I'm missing it! Hey, with Beyonce. Show those legs, girl! I really am going to have to rewind and watch all this.
OK, I've officially decided to rewind back to what I missed, and stop blogging so I can get some work done! If something really interesting happens that I absolutely must blog about, I'll come back and add in.
10:01 (10:34 in real time)
Well, all those things I went back and watched were actually a little more entertaining sans sound, but still had their amusing parts. I think Hugh Jackman should host every year if he's going to spice things up with musical breaks! The musical number itself was kind of mish-mashed together, much like Moulin Rouge - which is why it's no surprise that it was composed by Baz Luhrmann.
Oops! That's OK, Alan Arkin. :-)
I can't imagine how bittersweet it must be to be Heath Ledger's family tonight.
I definitely want to see some of these other documentaries ... The Garden and Encounters at the End of the World look particularly interesting. Oh, but ugh, Bill Maher. I was going to give him a nice tux compliment, but I kind of don't want to.
I was rooting for Man on Wire - yay! Philippe Petit is so hilarious.
Ooh, The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306 may also have to go on my list. Nice dress for the documentary short winner!
10:25 (10:54 in real life)
Is post-production really just all about things blowing up, being shot or smashing into one another? Isn't there interesting post-production in non-action films? Ah, this is one instance where I'm actually glad for the inclusion of Benjamin Button, and I don't even mind that it won.
Wanted was just such an awful, awful movie. I like effects and all, but that was just beyond ridiculous.
Are Slumdog and Benjamin Button tied now? Also, I love how overwhelmed this sound guy is; that's when the Oscars start to feel special. Ooh, and Slumdog again!! The editing really did make that movie work so well.
10:41 (11:06 in real life)
I never thought I'd say this about a TV show, but the Oscars don't have enough commercials! I'm barely making up any time by speeding through them on my DVR.
10:50 (11:09 in real life)
Catching up, slowly. Sometimes the way they shoot the title screen for these scores makes it tough to tell what film they're associated with. Oh, I hope Wall-E wins this, and the Original Song category.
I think there's a little too much Zac Efron in this Oscar evening.
OK, if Wall-E couldn't win, Slumdog was of course my next favorite. But I still wish it had gone the other way.
I love big drums!! And John Legend! And I forgot just how much I loved this song. I do wish they'd let them perform the whole thing. Seriously, big drums are dance and music all in one; so awesome. Ooh, I do kind of like the medley of these songs, much better than the musical thing.
Darn! I think Wall-E got robbed, even if it was by one of my other favorite movies.
11:06 (11:23 in real life)
Also added to the list: The Class.
I like it when Queen Latifah sings. I'd forgotten that Bernie Mac and Michael Crichton had died. And Roy Scheider! And Ricardo Montalban!! Was I just not paying attention? Charlton Heston, Anthony Minghella ... I can't list them any more. Ah, I was wondering who would get to close the dead Oscar montage; Paul Newman, of course.
11:19 (11:32 in real life)
Reese Witherspoon's dress is another one of those that that I start to like, and then I start to hate right after that.
Hmm, will Best Director predict Best Picture? I like the Tigger bit, and Danny Boyle is clearly just so happy. His kids are cute. D'oh! That's not good, to forget someone in your movie credits.
OK, onto the big three!! I have no preference on Best Actress. Oh, man, but Halle Berry was so good in Monster's Ball. I have to watch that again real soon, even thought it's such a tough movie.
Sophia Loren looks a little overbrowned, I have to say. I'm also not sure about Halle Berry's dress. But whatever; I think it would be just so amazing to be spoken to by one of these women about my accomplishments.
I'm sure Angelina Jolie's jewelry is actually incredibly expensive; but it's so big it looks like costume jewelry. The color contrast is truly striking, nonetheless.
OK, actually, I did have a favorite - hooray for Kate Winslet! Wow, I just started to cry at that shampoo bottle thing. And her dad ... aw. I think Best Actress speeches might be my favorite.
Oh, except for Adrien Brody - ha! Nice quote. Robert DeNiro was such a hottie in his day ... and I think this Best Actor crew is like a selection of the best highlights from my favorite actors. How awesome. Adrien Brody needs to cut (and comb!) his hair, and Ben Kingsley rocks.
Who wins, who wins? I dig Sean Penn; I can totally get behind that. What a perfect shot of his wife's face at that moment! I'm not a big fan of these political speeches at the Oscars, but it was unavoidable given this movie.
It's sweet how pleased everyone is at Mickey Rourke's comeback; it must be nice to feel that your community is behind you like that.
11:48 (11:59 in real time)
Just 10 minutes behind time, it's time for the big one! My vote in order: Slumdog, The Reader, Milk, Frost/Nixon, Benjamin Button. And I win! Well, technically, they win, but whatever. :-) It's so great that the whole cast they brought is up there; what a perfect ending to this show.
And that's it, boys and girls; I'm calling it a night. Good job, Hugh Jackman! I clearly got no work done, but I did enjoy myself. We'll pay the price for that tomorrow ... I mean, later today! :-o
... to sign up for iTunes. Stupid iTunes; if I had realized earlier that my DVR was having a recording conflict, and if my cable provider was in the know enough to have the episodes available On Demand, I would never have had to use you. I don't like you, stupid iTunes, and the fact that you make me pay for watching my show. You are sucky! Also, you download to slow. Have I mentioned that I don't like you, even though you happen to be providing me with a helpful service? I definitely don't like your video controls as much as my DVR.
Yet another reason why I love Stephen Colbert; I can't believe I didn't post this the other day:
So funny!
What's not funny? When I predicted that the Red Sox were going to get beaten in the ALCS by Tampa Bay, I did not intend for that to include getting their asses handed to them in Fenway Park. Sheesh, man! I am almost as upset about this as I was about this year's Superbowl ...
(... almost, but not quite. See what happens the following season when you blow a history-making opportunity like that, Pats? See? See???)
So I've been home sick for most of yesterday and today, but the rest actually seems to be working: my throat isn't as sore as it used to be, and my fever seems to be gone. But being sick has its advantages - I get to catch up on about 3 weeks of DVR, including many, many Colbert Reports. I can't believe I denied myself all that Colbert for the last few weeks; and here are my two favorite reasons why.
Stephen Colbert's interview with Jim Cramer:
The Word from September 23, 2008:
I could watch this show all day ... which is pretty much what I did today. :-)
What I did not do, because I love the Red Sox that much, is watch ALCS Game 1. Sound strange? Well, I'm one of those crazy superstitious fans who believes that what I do here in my home actually affects game outcomes; in this case, I discovered last year that the Red Sox do much, much better when I don't watch. I believe this so much that I spent significant portions of the 2007 playoff season asking my friends to text me game updates, and occasionally trying to sneak a peek at MLB.com via my mobile phone, hoping that fate wouldn't notice if I only stayed on for a second. I'm a little afraid to even chance mobile peeks this season ... but you'd best be believing that I'm cheering in my heart. GO RED SOX!!!! Bring it back to Fenway, and win here at home.
So I'm on the bus, sitting next to a guy who was using his laptop. After a while, I noticed that he'd begun to browse websites in Hebrew, which I though was pretty interesting. Later, he began to type an email - also in Hebrew, but using a standard English QWERTY keyboard, which I found utterly fascinating.
Whenever I think about learning a new language, I think about that point you get to when something becomes more native than foreign. For me, Spanish is still a foreign language, and speaking or writing it is a two step process: figure out what I want to say in English, then translate that into Spanish. Some days that process goes quickly, so I don't lose much time in saying what I want to say; but I am definitely not at the point where I truly think in Spanish.
By comparison, people who are truly fluent in a language are able to do their pre-speech processing in that language, without the extra step. And I figure it must be like that with this guy next to me; I don't know which of the languages is first for him (I suspect it's the Hebrew), but both are essentially native speech modes at this point. What's more interesting to me in this case is that they've also both become native typing modes, to the point where he doesn't need the visual aid of the proper symbols on the keyboard to know where to go for what he wants to type. Heck, I still need that on an English keyboard and it's my primary language; so I'm truly impressed.
One of the great things about mass transit: you never know what you're going to discover on the ride!
I don't usually comment on commercials, but I guess Mad Men has me all thinking about my advertising more carefully. :-)
Anyway, BMW has this excellent series of new ads for its X3 and X5 SUVs ... they show these crushed up cars and how long they lasted (e.g., "BMW X3, 2006-2008") and then they show the people who were in the accidents with these cars (e.g., "Brody, 2003-" and "Joan 1969-"). I love the message in that contrast - very simple, very powerful.
A somewhat different commercial in the same campaign shows several people (and even a puppy) with their ages listed after their names and then at the end the tagline, "Their BMWs didn't make it. But they did." I actually like it better when it's not spelled out for you; when you get the connectin yourself, it kind of hits you deeper. Anyway, I'm not plugging for BMW SUVs ... but this campaign seemed really savvy to me.
Happy September! Even though I know that fall is technically still 20 days away, the start of September always feels like the end of summer to me. I find it fascinating that, even though I am not in school and have no children in school, life still seems to run on the school schedule instead of the calendar year. For most of us, it seems that January is much more of a break in the middle than a time for major changes.
Nice things happened this weekend, moreso than I expected. It was really good to visit with my grandpa, and to spend time with my father and sister while I was there. I didn't expect the time to feel especially like a vacation, but it did, and we had fun. We had serious family stuff to deal with, too, but I was glad that didn't overwhelm the simple enjoyment of the weekend.
The dating continues ... I'm trying to keep having fun without spending too much time thinking about what is going on and how to define it. Of course, that's like asking me not to breathe for a while; so instead, I'm working to keep my overthinking from affecting my actual behavior too much. Walking the delicate line between not making more of something than it really is, but not closing myself off from seeing possibilities that may present themselves. Ah, who knows what goes on with boys? Assume nothing, keep myself entertained, and go with the flow as long as I'm having a good time!
I ended the weekend by boosting the economy through the purchase of two chairs at IKEA. It's good to finally have suitable seating; when the couch left, there was only the loveseat, and two people can't share that unless they're very, very comfortable with one another. My roommate isn't super-social ... but even if he wanted to be, there wasn't anywhere for him to sit when I was already in the living room. I'm hoping the new chairs will entice him to come out and share the space with me more often. (Also, the chairs are pretty. :-) I do think they're making me adjust my planned paint scheme somewhat - I pulled out the swatches for the first time in ages, and realized that my chairs make me want to go blue and peach rather than blue and yellow. I'm not in a rush, so I have time to ponder it, as I sit and admire my newly-furnished and newly-arranged living room.)
There were even ripple effects in my bedroom: I acquired (secondhand) a new set of shelves, finally moved my blue cushion chair back in here, and rearranged my pile of mess so I have more of an h-like path around the room, rather than the standard cross. I feel extremely satisfied with my day's work, and well-positioned for the week ahead. A good night's rest should cap off my weekend nicely - hooray for bed before midnight!
Mike Huckabee was on Colbert again tonight; seriously, I dig him a little more every time he talks. I don't love his policy positions, but I would definitely go have a beer with him! :-) Now, since we know that's not a good criteria for the higest office in the land, I don't want to elect him President ... but I sure want to elect him for something. To Mike: Leave Fox News and go be a pundit for a channel I can watch! Pretty please?
So I've been watching Mad Men, this season, and I'm pretty into it. Besides the show itself, one of the things that amuses me is the series of little ad/sales facts that AMC inserts before certain commercials from their advertisers. My favorite fact for today:
Every drop of Jack Daniel's is made in Lynchburg, TN. Lynchburg is located in a dry county.
One of these days I'm going to have to go back and watch Season One, but so far it hasn't been difficult to step right into the series. Thanks R and A for the recommendation!
Another thing I really like is the way the show ends - it always catches me unawares, right in the middle of a scene. I'm constantly surprised that the show is over; there's no clever wrap-up, it just stops right in the middle of the action. It's a great way to keep a viewer on the edge of their seat, primed for the next episode ... the show ends with a questioning look or someone walking away after a significant conversation, and then I'm all, "Wait, what? Hold on, what happened? What happens next?"
I also like that the music from whatever that ending scene was carries over into the credits; it just keeps playing. There's no standard closing credits theme. It's just as if the scene is still going on, but somewhere you can't see anymore and can only hear the background music for. It's a little haunting, and intriguing.
My favorite part of any fireworks show is the end, where they take everything that's left on the barge and light it up. :-) Happy 4th, everybody!
I did not attend any festivities today ... we stayed home from the beach because we were afraid of the rain that's been plaguing the area all week. All in all, I didn't mind, because it gave me a chance to continue packing and planning with my sisters for the great American road trip - departing in a mere 4 days!! Do you know how hard it is to find a camping generator?? Ridiculous.
I also crashed out in the late afternoon, because I've been pretty tired for the past few weeks. When I woke up, I was happy to continue packing; that is, until I heard the F-14s flyover and a sentimental mist of missing the 4th washed over me. So I started watching the Pops concert on TV, the first time I think I've done that since living here. It wasn't quite as good as being there, but it let me get into the spirit.
I did bust out to the top of our local hill for the fireworks at the end of the 1812 Overture - but it's just not the same without the music. So faced with the choice of live visual with no audio or broadcast audio and visual, I chose the later; and while there were a few bursts that I would have loved to see in the open air, I think I made the right choice overall. Next year, however, I think I need to be back on the Esplanade where I belong, even if I have to be by myself with my blanket, my snacks, and my definitely-not-alcoholic-no-sir-officer beverages.
I did pause for a moment of thought in the midst of the explosions when this country song, "American Soldier," came on. The lyrics are basically this soldier talking about how he's willing to do his duty, serve his country and die if needed to defend our country and our liberty. It's an honorable sentiment that few of us can truly echo in our actions - which makes it so important that we only put our soldiers' lives in danger for the most just of causes. Freedom is not free, as the currently popular saying goes; it's very expensive for the people we send to fight, and those doing the sending need to count that cost extremely dear when they are making their decisions.
And now to close out the evening, I leave you with my song of the day, in honor of both Jonathan Papelbon, who can dance a pants-less jig for me anytime, and the movie that made it famous, which I am about to watch. Beware of wrist violence!!
I don't think I ever shared this article and map that appeared in the Boston Globe 3 months ago, but I thought it was hilarious. According to Richard Florida, author of The Creative Class, where you live is an important determinant of your prospects as a single on the dating market:
Despite his positive assessment of Boston and its environs as an evenly-matched area, I'm still pretty sure that this map is clearly telling me I live on the worst side of the country for being a single woman, and that I need to move to California - hopefully, I can find a man and bring him back here before the state falls off or drifts out to sea following the next big one. (Tweety: I could also come join you in the PNW!)
Even if I hang around here, I'm thinking maybe it's time to move back to my hometown in central Mass ... westward ho!
One of the nicest things about my day today was having a totally unexpected conversation with my business planning consultant about his involvement with another progressive Christian organization here in the city. Who knew there were so many of us? A shout out to Steve and his friends at CrossLeft ... what a nice discovery to start off the weekend! It's totally OK that we only spent half our meeting on actual business. :-)
I don't know, you evil mosquitos, but I wish you'd go away!
I am one of those people who apparently have super-delectable blood, the kind a mosquito just can't wait to get his little pricker into. (Wait, that doesn't sound right at all.) Ever since the Boston heat wave started on Saturday, I've been the subject of several tiny, darting attacks that are truly beginning to annoy me. If this is what summer's going to be like this year, I'm so moving to Canada. Of course, global warming will eventually find me there, too, but I still have a couple of years.
Oh, and speaking of brown sugar, I actually bathed in it the other night! This set of lovely-smelling beauty products I bought included a "brown sugar and wild honey" body scrub; and unlike so many beauty products where the natural ingredients are way down on the list after things with names like propyl ethyl glycol, pure cane sugar and brown sugar were 2 of the top 4 ingredients. That may have contributed to my insect attack - but I also smelled and felt delightful. So my standard mantra still applies: sugar makes everything better!
I did not end up having to hold any auditions, although I did go through a couple rounds of invitations before making my present arrangements. In a touch of irony, my dinner dance date is a guy I'd deliberately decided not to ask when I started planning for this whole thing; he'd been busy, and seeming less than interested in seeing me socially, so I decided I was tired of extending invitations to him and getting rejected. It seems this was one invitation he finally accepted ... it could be that he's done with his crazy travel schedule, or it could be the free food and booze. I'm trying not to get too excited about the potential for this date.
At the same time, I am excited; I think it got real for me today when I actually bought my dress, which is simple and exotic and elegant and comfortable and very me. The material makes me feel very sexy, and thinking about it keeps conjuring up visions of little romantic interludes in the midst of this social event. I don't think I've ever had a dress affect me quite that way before, but I'm hoping the reaction is at least somewhat shared by my escort!
I also hope I have fun ... I know there will be some folks there who I know well enough to actually have substantive conversations and catch up on their lives, but there's also a lot of that trying to chat with (and remember the names of!) the many other more remote classmates with whom I haven't kept in touch. I do that kind of networking small talk a lot for work and volunteer stuff, but it's also very draining and I have to be in the right mood; if I'm not, I'm kind of a wallflower, and I tend to cling to the people I feel comfortable with, which sometimes makes me feel a little needy. I guess that's another reason why you bring a good date: not only are they a dancing partner, but they're also your conversation backup. Plus, my escort is actually pretty amazing at being that social person just about anywhere I've seen him, so maybe I can let him do all the talking and enjoy myself watching the crowd. :-)
I have about four posts backed up to write ... these past few weeks have been completely nuts. Today, I'm at the graduation ceremonies for one of my alma maters; this is the fourth time I've attended the graduation. It amazes me how many people I know graduating this year that I didn't even realize had finished up. My school's weird like that. I'm excited because all these people I like are getting lots of awards, which always pleases me (although I also admit to a minor case of hardware envy).
I forgot, though - or maybe I was just being hopeful because the graduating class is a little smaller - that all the awarding and speechifying makes for one long deal. I mean it's beautiful and inspiring and all, but about an hour in you do start checking the watch.
OK, time to stand and clap now. :-) Project Reunion updates, a Sex and the City review and my latest job musings all to come!
For those keeping track - a potential date was identified, and an invitation issued. I did determine that I'm only bringing a date to one event, and going stag to the others, so I get to take advantage of both kinds of recommendations from my wise readers. We're still waiting to hear the results, and wondering what kind of dress we want to wear to the fancy party. Honestly, I have to plan a whole weekend of outfits. (No, of course I'm not using this as an excuse to buy new clothes! How dare you.)
On a different note, I was thinking today how nice it would be to have my new Boston friends meet some of my old college friends. Maybe it's back to the posse thing, but I'd love to have these two groups of people who were/are a part of my life at different stages to connect with one another and see how awesome they are.
Or, I just want to gloat over the fact that I only hang out with the coolest people by getting them all in one place to show them off. =)
I love the Boston Metro (and to a lesser extent, it's now-defunct competitor, Boston NOW). These little mini-papers, ideal for reading on public transportation, are my primary source of news at this point, besides the beloved Colbert Report; some may call them news-lite, since it's at least half made up of stories straight off of the AP newswire, but I don't care, because it takes me at least an hour and a half sitting to read through the Boston Globe, and I only had that kind of time when I was working as an admin assistant and not really doing anything of substance for the first couple hours of my workday.
The Metro has international distribution; my first sighting of it was actually in Paris several years ago. I know here in the States it's distributed in Boston, Philly and New York. In addition to whatever the national and international news may be, they have a good bit of local content, and so I can also keep posted on events happening here in Boston to which I would otherwise be completely oblivious. Granted, most of the time I just ponder all the cool bands coming while knowing that I'm not quite cool enough to go see them, or look longingly at the theater and dance reviews, but every so often I catch something that it's entirely likely I may go see or take advantage of when next I decide to be socially plugged in.
This is what the Metro taught me yesterday:
Farewell to clocks: That's right; it may finally be time for my alarm clock to move on to a better place - a recycling center! According to this article, Boston is offering electronic waste recycling today at UMass-Boston from 9AM to 2PM. I can take the 5 old cell phones and PDAs, the long-out-of-use DSL modem, the old DVD player that no longer works, and a couple other items into the city for environmentally friendly disposal. Mind you, though, I'm actually not sure I can take my clock - the list of acceptable materials on the City of Boston website says no to "household appliances." I can't tell if a clock rises to the level of a household appliance; I'm taking it down anyway, in the hopes that I can sneak it in.
I'm too sexy for your movie house: Unless that movie house is the Somerville or Coolidge Corner Theaters. The Independent Film Festival of Boston is taking place this weekend (or more accurately, since Wednesday), and I was enticed by the possibility of seeing Famke Janssen in real life at the screening of her movie. It's entirely possible that there's no way I'm still getting tickets to this evening's showing, but I'm going to give it a whirl anyway.
In other news, Harold & Kumar Escape Guantanamo Bay opened yesterday, and Neil Patrick Harris will be riding a unicorn. (Don't judge me because I kind of want to see it; you've had those movies, too.)
There are other things going on this weekend, most notably good service stuff like the work Rebuilding Together Boston is doing today at Greenwood Memorial UMC in Dorchester. Unfortunately, I'm still at home blogging at 11AM instead of swinging a hammer ...
My friend Steve tagged me in this little game a few days ago; it seemed like a fun way to peer into the bookshelves of some of my blog friends. But the rest of you can also feel free to post your participation in the comments!
Here’s the drill:
Pickup the nearest book (with at least 123 pages)
Open to page 123.
Find the 5th sentence.
Post the next three sentences.
Tag five people.
And here goes:
He had lost his wallet on his very first night at Belbury and it had never been recovered. O'Hara roared with laughter. "Sure you can have any money you like by asking the Steward."
What's Belbury? Who's O'Hara? Does our protagonist find his wallet? Only C.S. Lewis knows, and his tell-all novel, That Hideous Strength, is available on bookshelves right now. At least it should be in any self-respecting bookstore.
