Tuesday, September 29, 2009

OCTOBERY

Since October is right around the corner, I thought I'd share some fun things that are coming up this month:

Right out of the gate, Auburn-UT game in Knoxville. You may recall that last year, C and I placed a cookie-cake bet on the outcome of this game. We enjoyed the War Eagle cookie cake that he had to buy for me. I'm hoping for a victorious repeat on both the game and the bet.

Steel Magnolias is showing at the local Repertory theater - I'm hoping someone gets offered some gratis tickets but if he doesn't, I want to go see it anyway. I'm interested to see how the movie version and theater version differ.

Then, in two weeks, Evan and I are heading east for the day for Star's wedding. I am excited to sing at the ceremony and meet some of her family and friends, including her husband and my accountant/her mom! And, because I can't resist being in the same zip code as an Ikea without stopping, we're swinging by there and a wine-selling Trader Joe's to stock up on Two Buck Chuck before heading home. And everyone knows a car ride with Evan is always entertaining, so at the very least, there's that.

Rounding out the month, I'm still debating what I want to be for Halloween. My original plan was to be Beyoncé off her Single Ladies video (I provided the link for those of you who haven't Mary Byrne who hasn't seen the video)... but I am not sure I have the guts/figure to prance around in public in a leotard. I don't even know of any parties or plans for Halloween this year, other than a big fat W over Ole Miss down in Auburn, but that doesn't require a costume...

And technically, this is happening in November but one day is close enough - I got tickets to go see This Is It! yesterday and I am excited/nervous. The previews really sort of scare me - MJ looked like a skeleton. Coincidence they are releasing it at Halloween? Nope. I bet there will be loads of people dressed up like they moonwalked right off the Thriller set into the theater.

So factor in fall weather + lots of soup + scarves and Uggs + all these plans = one happy girl! What are you looking forward to this month?

Monday, September 28, 2009

ENERGIZED

Lately I have been trying out some classes at my YMCA. With my work schedule, I've realized I have to schedule a workout just like I would schedule a meeting... only after work.

Last week, Evan and I went to Zumba - it was so hilarious. I didn't love it. Maybe I need to invest in some special Zumba shoes and I might like it more (my tennis shoes weren't enabling smooth moves across the floor). But we had a good time together and enjoyed shaking our rumps.

Then on Wednesday, C and I did two back-to-back classes: a Just Weights class, where you are using... just weights!... and doing repetitions to music. If you're gonna lift weights, that's a good environment to do it in. So after an hour of that, we stayed for the Step/Yoga combo class. We did 30 minutes of step then 30 minutes of yoga ("yogurt"). Then, since I packed my swimsuit, we did the sauna for a little while then kicked around in the pool.

And this weekend, I hit a small milestone in my retraining process that was really exciting and encouraging. When you are starting from scratch (again), it is so, so hard to get those first few two and three-mile runs under your belt and to where you feel good about them. But, it's also so, so rewarding once you do!

I am really excited about bunko on Wednesday. This week our theme is Real Housewives of Nashville. I've never watched a Real Housewives of [insert city here] but I think a miniskirt and some leopard heels will do the trick.

I am also very excited about UT-AU this weekend - will any of you be there?

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

COPIED

My sister reminded me of this clipping my mom shared with us from the Birmingham News. I am totally stealing her blog post for the day, but after reading this wedding announcement, I don't think you'll care.

I present to you The Wedding of the Century. Enjoy!

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

COPPED

Just a thought: what if police pulled you over to offer stars and stickers and rewards for obeying the law instead of just breaking it?

"Do you know why I pulled you over?"
"No sir."
"I just wanted to say I really appreciate the proper pause you gave at the stop sign back there. Way to not roll through it. Please accept this get out of jail free card and have a nice day."

"Do you know how fast you were going back there?"
"No ma'am."
"Just the right amount. Thanks for obeying the law. Here's a lollipop."

I thought of this recently as I was sitting at a red light by my house. It's a one-way street but you cannot turn right on red at this intersection. No, no, no. And to enforce this, there is often a cop hiding behind the church ready to get someone who breaks the law. But he or she is never there when I sit patiently and wait for the light to turn green so I can go right. But I do it anyway. And just once, I wish a cop would come after me and say thanks for doing the right thing.

Monday, September 21, 2009

SORRY

I love monograms. I am so glad my initials monogram nicely together or individually. But for those of you that have a last name that starts with the letter "O", may I recommend you shy away from the single initial monogram, lest the cocktail napkins at your wedding reception look like this:
I took this photo myself - how unfortunate!

Friday, September 18, 2009

FANGY

Last night, Chris and I went to the Predators game. The tickets were free, and when I ordered them a few weeks ago, I really tapped into my inner genius - instead of getting, say, second or third row tickets, I had a moment of intellect and ordered them in the All You Can Eat zone. Unlimited hotdogs and popcorn and nachos? B-R-illiant. I thought I had really done us a solid and C arranged his schedule to come with me. And lucky for us all, he packed his Fang Fingers*:
Other than this picture, the win over Atlanta and some QT with Chris, the game was a FAIL. The tickets (which had All You Can Eat printed on them, mind you) were free so it wasn't too much of a loss, but they don't put the food out for "pre-season" games which - by the way, what a cop out! A game is a game. As far as I'm concerned, when the games start, so does the season. NFL, I'm talking to you as well. But we were in the third deck, with empty seats all around us, and neither one of us are die-hard hockey fans, not to mention someone was cold (me), so naturally we left after the second period.

Which meant all the wonderful TV that was saved up on my DVR was ripe for the watching. First up - the Office. So funny. Welcome back, Michael and the gang. I feel like they went a little off-kilter last year with the whole Michael Scott Paper Company storyline, but I feel like this year we will have a great season. Next up was Project Runway. Raise your hand if you were disappointed in the big huge lie. Also raise your hand if you would go on a reality TV series and tell a lie when there are cameras following your every move. Regardless of his design, Johnny deserved to go home for being really stupid. The whole thing reminded me of Joey and his raccoon. And saving the (arguably) best for last, SNL Weekend Update Thursday. So great! Ahhhh, TV. Welcome back.

And for anyone that is still wondering, I love my DVR. If it wasn't taping Will & Grace for me at all hours of the night, I would totally unplug it and sleep with it in my bed every single night.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

CHEFFY

Yesterday at work, I got to do something new and exciting. We have started a cross-training program, where my department goes into the kitchen to learn the food/beverage side of what I do. You can't fully learn it in a day, but it's a start.

So yesterday, here's what I did all day and yes of course I was rocking a chef hat, apron and gloves:

-Peeled and cut the largest carrots I have ever seen - Bugs Bunny would have had a heart attack!
-Learned how to pare a potato so it looks like a mushroom (and then did it to 150 potatoes!)
-Used a deli slicer to cut turkey and cheese (yes, I cut the cheese... hahaha)
-Stuffed chicken breasts with sundried tomato and artichoke stuffing - that I helped make stirred once or twice
-Used a really, really big knife to cut up lots of zucchini, squash, mushrooms and tomatoes
-Used a channel slicer to cut carrots and cucumbers

All in all, it was really fun. I felt like I was on Top Chef! Even though I did not help cook the food, just prep it.

The great irony is how afraid I was of cutting myself all day long. I managed to make it out unscathed - and then I go home and do dishes and slice my thumb. Nice.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

COMMENTY

Knowing my love for Kanye, a lot of people have come to me asking what I thought about his outburst, his apologies, and the whole situation. I typically would say “no comment” but for whatever reason, today, I feel like sharing. And you know the only thing I love more than Kanye is a list, sooooo:

1. I still love Kanye. He is a crazy, selfish, egotistical SOB, but he’s also very gifted, talented and smart. His problem on Sunday was that he was drunk. There are photos of him carrying around a handle – not a fifth but a handle – of Hennessey. Was it all liquor? Who knows. But he clearly wasn’t in his right mind. Does that make what he did and said okay? No. But it also doesn’t make me delete him from my iPod. Take the late, great King of Pop for example: also gifted, talented and smart. Did he use his best judgment 100% of the time? Heavens no, and he went to court over it. But at his funeral, people were just lining up to sing his praises and proclaim what a troubled, misunderstood but TALENTED soul he was. Don’t the people with the most talent tend to be the most troubled? Look at Lady Gaga - you don't wear outfits like that if you're not troubled and people LOVE him/her! I think the next morning, Kanye woke up, took his shutter shades off and realized what an @$$ he’d made of himself (and that his haircut wasn't helping). Maybe he even realized it earlier than that, since he took to his blog with an apology that was later deleted. But he knows he was out of control. And if he was acting last night on Leno, then he should be at the Oscars not the VMAs, because he looked genuinely embarrassed and deeply ashamed. And Leno wouldn’t stop there--he went for broke and asked him what Donda would have thought. Checkmate. Honestly, the bottom line is he did TS a favor because everyone in the world right now is looking at her and thinking, “what a saint!” So my ultimate opinion: his actions were neither smart nor cool nor condonable nor enviable, but I’m still a fan. And if that makes me not smart, not cool nor condonable, then so be it.

2. ENOUGH about that – let’s talk about the amazing performances!! I left this program in my DVR for Beyonce’s song alone. And Jay-Z and Alicia Keys. And then there's Janet, who was just icing on the cake. Drama be damned, at least we have the performances.

3. How come Pink can wear a pasty and no one says anything, but when Lil Kim did it, all heck broke loose?

4. And really, Lil Mama? Did you think Alicia Keys and Jay-Z needed some help up there? I don’t care how much you like New York, you looked ridiculous! But, the true REALLY?! goes to MTV, who apparently couldn’t be troubled to send a few more guards to the stage after the Kanye incident. Maybe from now on we need to put barbed wire around the stage.

Now. Can we all move on to more pressing items, like what this huge lie on Project Runway is gonna be about?!

Monday, September 14, 2009

JAMESY

Today is my brother-in-law's birthday. Happy birthday, Jamie!
Apparently, I met Jamie once while I was in college and was rude to him (Lindsay 1, Jennie 8). I don't remember it but that's the family lore. He and Jennie were friends and then lost touch (read: they had a big fat crush on each other but she was dating someone). The time I do remember meeting Jamie was when Jennie brought him to the house once they started dating again in March 2006, after they had rekindled things. I remember she instant messaged me, so excited that she had a date with Jamie after all those years. One date led to A-day which led to more dates and lots of miles logged between Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, where Jamie was completing law school.
I was accompanying my sister to her ice-skating lesson sometime that spring (true story) and on the way, we had a nice long talk about Jamie. I told her (based on our family's current status) that she needed to take her time and wait a year to get married. Little did I know they were already planning not just to be engaged but married within the year.
...Which ended up working out just fine! None of us had any doubts after about the third or fourth date. When I moved to Nashville, I tearfully told Jamie he better stick around. He said he was planning to. And in August, he made good on his word and popped the question to Jennie a top the Kennedy Center in their beloved DC. They called me and told me the big news, and after Jennie and I had our girly squeals and excitement, Jamie took the phone and said some very kind words about how much he was looking forward to having me become his only sister and joining the family (although now I bet he thinks he bit off more than he could chew). I told him the feeling was mutual and that I was so happy.
I enjoyed getting to know him more and more at all the wedding parties, holidays, and of course, the time at which you learn the most about any person: his rehearsal dinner. The words that these other respected and educated men had to say about their friend Jamie made everyone in the room cry like a pack of infants. My goodness. Those speeches are supposed to be warm and fuzzy but the ones about Jamie were just inspiring. I left The Club ready to change the world (after the wedding, of course).
I see new ways that Jamie is just perfect for my sister every time I am around him. He is smart, respected, funny, patient and most importantly - loves Jennie with his whole heart. I love that he is just as enamored by all things Kennedy as she is, and I love that they share so many of the same passions and dreams (which is why they are living in DC right now). And the ones that they don't share, they encourage and accommodate. She puts up with baseball; he puts up with Broadway. When they started dating again, I was in a rough place in life, and they truly gave me hope that there is someone out there for everyone just when I was starting to abandon the theory (yes, at the old, old age of 22 - so sad).
Happy birthday, Brother! I am so glad you are in my family. Thanks for being such a kind friend as well as brother-in-law. I know my sister is always in great care as long as you're by her side. Thanks for all the ways you have blessed our family. I look forward to many more happy, happy times as family and as friends. Love you!

Friday, September 11, 2009

LAMBERTY

So I saw Wicked again last night. I loved it - who is surprised?

I have kept Playbills from all the shows I've seen in the past few years, Wicked (x5) included. You just never know who is going to become a big star one day...

Exhibit A:


Adam and I hope you all have a good weekend!

Wednesday, September 09, 2009

WICKED

If Nashville looks a little greener these days, it's because WICKED is in town! I think anyone who reads this blog knows I am *slightly* obsessed with this musical. I first saw the in L.A. production with Eric, and then the tour in Columbus, then in production Chicago and most recently the tour in Birmingham. Back in the spring, I coordinated a group ticket order to secure tickets for the Nashville run, and tomorrow night it's our turn! I am so excited. This is the same cast that I saw in Birmingham and they are amazing.

Just in case my excitement needed any additional piquing, C was offered tickets to a cast and VIP after-show party. So last night we got all polished up and headed downtown to mingle with Oz's finest. I was eager to run away with talk to the cast and tell them what a phenomenal job they do. The folks that I met were all polite and friendly, happy to pose for a photo and sign my Playbill. Can you guess who plays whom?

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

RUNWAYED

So, this just in - Project Runway is amazing.

I know. Don't judge. I just never got hooked on this show before. I heard all about the last winner Christian, aka creator of the phrase "hot tranny mess" but I just never watched it.

UNTIL NOW.

It's glorious. Just glorious. What was Marlin thinking with that chicken egg thing? How much does the model Vanessa look like a brunette Holly Madison? And why haven't I been watching this for years and years and years?

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