everybody wants to be closer to free

sigh. i've finished watching 22 episodes of some of the best dramatic television ever aired.

okay, i'm a bit dramatic myself. but seriously, i love love love the show Party of Five. I got Season 1 on dvd with my Best Buy gift card and have managed to watch the entire 5 discs in a matter of a week and a half. Now I'm jonesin' the rest of the seasons and they're not even close to being out yet. booo. let's not forget that my baby boy bears an uncanny resemblence to one Matthew Fox.
:::harps play and birds chirp while i swoon:::

tonight the plan is dinner with mark & trent and then off to see The Polar Express at the IMAX theater. then a visit to our long lost love City Club. will we stay longer than 20 minutes? tune in to tomorrow's post to find out!

robbie's nuts

Tonight turned out to be a nice lackadaisical (used in the best sense of the word... you know, like, mello) evening with Trent. We had planned on doing dinner & a movie but since we couldn't really decide on a theater and the movie wasn't until 10-ish, we just went to eat at Mongolian. Hung out there, debated on whether to go out for drinks, ended up just stopping at Border's and browsing. I didn't get anything, but Trent used his gift card for a couple cd's and we headed home where he did a mad search for the photo he saw of Robbie Williams in Attitude magazine tonight. I must say, it is a nice photo. There's a nut-sac involved. Check the blog. You know you wanna see it now.

Quotes of the night:
me: he's so going home to play dungeons & dragons
him: with his wife he met online but hasn't seen in person yet
me: awww, he looks like he likes lord of the rings A LOT.

snow day

As the younger michiganians (and their teachers) spent today curled up in their homes (or shoveling their walks or venturing out on a shopping adventure), i spent it at boring ol' work. I actually fantasized a little this morning, as i watched school after school pop up on the morning news as "closed," that I'd see my company listed there when it reached the appropriate letter. Sigh. I really wanted that euphoric feeling i remember having when i was little and we got a "snow day." It didn't happen. And there was nothing going on here so i spent the morning and afternoon researching vacation spots in Virginia. I also looked at several sporting goods sites to get the best price for the beloved gazelle. Looks like Dick's Sporting Goods is the current winner! Even cheaper than the evil WalMart, which i am ever so thankful for. I did not want to have to stoop down to shopping there, but i'm also not really rolling in the dough right now, so i was considering it. egads.

whoopsie of the day: just told my boss about my rash. who DOES that!?

oh, you'd better believe it

i will be the proud owner soon. ridiculous girly-man not included.

pityriasis rosea

Pityriasis rosea is a benign non-contagious skin condition. It can occur at any age but is more common in persons between the ages of 10 and 35 years. The rash typically is found as pink patches on the chest and back and lasts from several weeks to several months. It heals without scarring ... The cause of pityriasis rosea is not known. It definitely is not caused by a fungus or bacterial infection, and it is not caused by anything that a person has eaten ... Occasionally there may be other symptoms, including tiredness, aching, nausea, fever and headache ... The rash usually fades and disappears within six weeks after peak activity ... Reoccurance is rare ... Prevelance in females in the U.S. is about 0.14%

I am THAT special.

on the topic of death...

my mind was triggered back to a book i read when i was younger. a junior or senior in high school, can't remember which. but my memory took me back to a night i spent reading a book that was all too real to me. i remember it vividly; it only took me one night to read the whole book. i sat, holed up in my room, with only my shabby little girly bedside lamp to light the pages. my neck cramped from sitting in one spot too long, my hands got tired of holding the book up to my face. still, i couldn't put it down.

Death Be Not Proud

John Gunther wrote the book in the 40's about his son who died of a brain tumor at the young age of seventeen. every detail in that book, every sadness and every joy, was like someone writing about my house & my family, circa 1980-82. and i thought about that book again tonight. why? do i want to read it again? do i want to remember so intensely again? will it do me good? i don't know. but i know that i am glad that my mind took me back to that place. if only for the one line that i took from that book; that, at age sixteen, i vowed to always live by:

"Live while you live, then die and be done with"

crass sounding, maybe. but something to live by.

well this is a heartwarming way to start the new year...

If you'd like to receive the "good news" about your own life, go here.

Blah. I've been feeling kinda crappy lately ... just made about a zillion doctor appointments, so we'll see...

Lots went on over the holiday break. I guess much more than I feel like rehashing. I'm sure some of it will come out here and there in my daily thoughts. But, now that I'm back to work I assume I'll be writing here more. Good news for you readers, right? I'm SO thrilling to read about. hah! Ugh.
The cheery mood continues...

sleeps with butterflies

ACK! ACK! ACK!

a sweet little birdy (named trent) helped me hear (sent me) the latest tori song before its release (leaked, thanks to Kylie fans!). It's utterly AMAZING. I can't wait for the entire CD and, of course, the NYC show that we MUST get tickets for!

WEE!

filled with christ's love, eh?

errr.... i thought mandy moore always boasted not wanting to use sexuality to her advantage or anything? hmmm.

anna paquin didn't make me pee

so it's been a whirlwind few days. since i last posted i've seen most of Mark's entire family on both sides (sans the immediate members) and my entire family (including all in-laws), all 34 of them. visiting family is tiring. especially when you're trying to make a good impression. again. but it was a nice holiday visit with everyone, i'll say that. good food, nice conversations, even some gifts.

tonight was the first night there were no actual plans. for me, at least. Mark planned on having "the boys" over tonight for a bit of a sausage fest and everyone else seemed to be low-key. there was talk of hanging with angi & tony, but that didn't pan out. instead, trent ended up coming by and we decided to order pizza and hang back to watch junk tv and then go to a midnight movie. after all, we ARE on vacation! so while we waited for tonight's episode of Real World/Road Rules Battle of the Sexes to come on, we played a friendly game of Trivial Pursuit: The 90's Edition. :) Let's recall that Trent has always claimed (and usually, with good reason) to be THE champ at the TP games. But let's point out that tonight ... he was defeated. With 3 wedges and the center question still to go! ahhh, feels good to finally win a TP game. and without the help of a team, too! i must admit, i'm usually awful at that game. but this edition? i rock!

we went on to watch RR/RW and then head out to see Darkness, quite possibly the WORST movie ever made, EVER. we were hoping for a little "i'm-so-scared-i-wet-myself-like-anna-paquin" action. no luck. Anna Paquin sucked balls in this movie! as well as all the other actors, the script, the cinematography, the direction, the production.... well, you get the drift. SO bad. the only justification i have for having chosen to see it, was it was the luck of the die. we rolled one of the TP dice to pick between that and Closer. well, that and our laziness from getting our arses off the couch in time to see Closer.

sigh. damn that die. but you'll see. one day, soon, when it's on your cable station and you have nothing else going on, you'll watch it. and you'll remember this post and think "she was right!"

'twas the night before the night before xmas

party was a success, if i do say so myself. the only bad thing about hosting one of these is that you don't get to mingle as much as you'd like. there's always a drink to be made or something that has spilled (well, in this case, a storm window that has broken!) or something needing to be done. I have to say, though, that this party i was able to hang back and chat a little more, which was nice. lots of food, lots of good people, and a very fun gift exchange which showcased the true alchy's ... the cosmo mix and margarita mix were the hot items to be stolen! Although, not to be ignored: the awesome mixed cd, book & incense from Ben as well as the adorable purse, lip balm combo from Melanie ... and of course many more cool ass things.

The same old Christmastime crew hung around (indeed, crashed!) until the wee hours of the morning: me, mark, jeff, adriana, trent and ben and sam, who did go home but not until 4am. The next morning we all piled in my bed and then out on the futon to watch any and all kinds of tv.

Sigh... one party down, more to come this vacation. :) actually, i should be getting ready for the main event (christmas with the family) right now! eep.

psst - if you'd like to see pictures from the shindig, check out trent's blog post here.

argh!

don't you hate it when you have a ton of running around to do and you go to 1001 places and get 4001 things and you get home and unpack everything, put it all away, and realize that you forgot to get one thing? one crucial, must-have-for-THAT-night thing?

yeah, that just happened to me.

and the headache....staarrrrrts...... NOW!

(ps - by no means does the arctic amount of snow we got today mean that the party tonight is off or that you are off the hook. the roads are getting better by the hour. by 7 or 8 tonight, they should be perfect. forge thru the snow!)

a poem

I received an email from the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) asking for a donation and in return, a holiday e-card will be sent to GWB. The card's poem reads as follows:

Dear Mr. President,

A holiday greeting from some voters who care,

About things like land and water and air.

We don't mean to spoil the good holiday cheer,

But your election has prompted some Christmastime fear.

In your first term, you had a bad hobby,

You'd bow and you'd scrape to the energy lobby.
You'd follow the plans of Vice President Dick,

And the fumes that resulted made our children sick.

The Senate, so wise, called your plan full-of-gas,

But now you're determined to make it all pass.
Like a big Christmas dinner,

you'll keep adding more pork,

Till every last Member has some on their fork.

Your bill is not wise (indeed, couldn't be dumber),

It endangers our nation, to fill up the Hummer.

Yes, you won (by 2 mighty per-cent),

But do not misread the message we sent.
None of us voted for dirtier air,

Or payouts to Oil, so grossly unfair.

So please check your list, and consider one thought,

That might clear the air, and help us a lot:

A holiday gift that you give to the nation…

An energy plan, with REAL conservation.

Sincerely, [Names of LCV supporters]

bite me.

It's so disgusting. I just read that GWB's inauguration bullshit will be a $40 million event! completely insane. repulsive. no matter who is being inaugurated, $40 million is absurd. the fact that it's GWB again, well ... that just makes my gut churn all the more.

However, there are many anti-war, anti-GWB rallies in the works for January 20th. Supposedly a mass of people will have their backs turned to the parade procession. (ooh, big whoop.) But another source made mention to some civil disobedience ... hmm, now that's more like it! har.

Check the whole story out here.

cinderelly, cinderelly

tonight was cleaning night and boy did it suck. i guess it helps if you don't put it off all the time, only to make the time you actually take to clean seem to never end.

Hi, my name is Sarah and I'm ... uh, ... I'm a procrastinator. [small applause]

yes, it's true. i'm sure it comes to no surprise to most of you reading this: i put things off until the last minute. this time 'round it was a thorough cleaning of my house. oh, sure, i'll keep it tidy enough. i'll wash my dishes and clean my sinks and toilet. but scrub floors? move every last knick-knack to dust? actually CLEAN OFF the top of my computer desk? nuh-uh - that takes an act of god (or a lot of people coming over in two days) to get me to go to those lengths.

how i ever cleaned other people's houses for side money is beyond me. ew.

alone on a Tuesday

appropriate title, since everyone here (work) is gone and i'm, basically, alone here. yay-uh, getting ready to skate on out, too. preach.

but really, i've just had that April March song in my head all day:

"Hang up the chick habit
Hang it up daddy
You're alone on a Tuesday..."

fa la la la laa

back. aches.
mind. is. blank.
fingers. are. sticky.
bits. of. paper. EVERYwhere.

i cannot believe that i've been wrapping gifts since 9pm (it is now 1am) and i'm STILL not done. you mutha-suckas getting these gifts better be damn thankful...

...or just return the favor of exquistite gifts wrapped in a lovely manner. [grin]

either way, the yuletide spirit has kept me busy lately and I haven't been able to post in detail. will have to remedy that soon. after the cleaning of the house, the last-minute shopping, the cooking and the partying, the decking of the halls...

normally, not a fan of bees....

But I think I might be able to conquer my fear with the new Tori Amos release of
The Beekeeper. The cover art has been revealed!

THE BEEKEEPER TRACKLISTING:

Parasol

Sweet the Sting

The Power of Orange Knickers

Jamaica Inn

Barons of Suburbia

Sleeps with Butterflies

General Joy

Mother Revolution

Ribbons Undone

Cars and Guitars

Witness

Original Sinsuality

Ireland

The Beekeeper

Martha's Foolish Ginger

Hoochie Woman

Goodbye Pisces

Marys of the Sea

Toast

Another shot of the gorgeous Tori, from her official site:

Politically Correct Holiday Greetings

To go along with the holiday "term" ... heh heh ...

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender- neutral, celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all . . .and a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2005, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great, (not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country or is the only “AMERICA” in the western hemisphere), and without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith, choice of computer platform, or sexual preference of the wishee.

(By accepting this greeting, you are accepting these terms. This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.)

chrismahanukwanztice

In an effort to respect everyone this season, I've devised my own word to wish those I encounter well this season.

"Merry Chrismahanukwanztice!"

Maybe this will thwart the bitching?