I finished watching Orange is the New Black… I need Season 2 now.

So, I think it took me a little over two days to watch all 13 episodes of Season 1 of the Netflix original series Orange is the New Black. (Yes, even us unemployed people are busy and it takes more than a day to watch 13 hours of television…)

I really enjoyed this show and need Season 2 now.

(Spoilers ahead)

This show has a lot of things going for it. As I said in my post the other day, it centers around a female protagonist at an all-female prison. SO MANY LADY CHARACTERS!

Yeah, I ALL-CAPSed that because how many other shows can you name that feature that many women? And how many of those lady-centric shows have such a diverse cast of characters in all shapes, sizes and skin tones?

Yeah… that’s what I thought.

Orange is the New Black is different in that it not only features such a wide array of female characters, but that it features them at their worst.

Because the show is set in a prison, the audience must assume that each inmate was convicted of a crime bad enough to warrant a lengthy prison sentence. (Chapman is in for 13 or 14 months, but some of those other ladies have been in for years and still have years left to go.)

I love that each episode features the backstory of at least one inmate. It is beyond fascinating to see how each woman acted on the outside/in her youth and what lead up to her arrest.

There are some women we haven’t found out about yet and I can only hope we get to see their backstories next season. There are so many characters I adore (Taystee and Poussey, especially), but there are also a couple that terrify me… most specifically Pennsatucky.

Holy hell, that girl is scary.

Taryn Manning plays Pennsatucky with this completely horrifying look in her eye. This backwoods girl is in prison because she shot a person in the abortion clinic because said person commented that Pennsatucky was back for her fifth abortion and that she should have a punch card to get her sixth one free. Pennsatucky then went out to the truck, grabbed a shotgun and then walked back into the clinic and shot the woman who spoke down to her. Pennsatucky was then heralded as a hero among the Jesus-centric crowd who thought she shot the woman for religious reasons whereas she really just shot her because she insulted her. From then on, Pennsatucky believed herself to be a woman of Christ and preached His word to anyone who would listen and would force it on those who wouldn’t.

Though Pennsatucky didn’t show up until mid-season, she ended up being Chapman’s biggest antagonist (besides OC Healy… oh, I dislike him!) by the end of the 13 episodes. Pennsatucky sets out to kill Chapman and the season ends with the two of them fighting out in the courtyard with one of them getting the crap beat out of her. There was a lot of punching and a lot of blood. Since the show centers around Chapman’s story (and because this is all based on an actual woman who went to prison and said woman is a consultant on the show…), you can guess whose blood is spattered in the snow. I just hope Pennsatucky is still around for Season 2 because she is such a great character. Scary… but great.

My favorite character on the show is still OC Bennett (Matt McGorry). He’s in love with Daya and she’s pregnant with his baby, but she had sex with Pornstache/Mendez to keep Bennett’s job safe. Mendez got caught and suspended from his job, but he’s in love with Daya and thinks that she’s going to wait for him, when in reality she is in love with Bennett and has no intentions of being with Mendez. It is all sorts of drama and it is going to be very entertaining next season if Mendez ever gets wind of Daya/Bennett’s relationship. Mendez is a scary guy and I can’t imagine he would be anything except maniacal if he finds out the truth and how he was framed.

The love triangle between Chapman, Vause and Larry is my least favorite aspect of the show because I’m more fascinated by the supporting characters (and I’m just not a huge fan of Laura Prepon or Jason Biggs…). But, it helps drive the story and I will gladly tolerate it so long as I get to find out more about the other ladies in the Litchfield prison.

I read somewhere that this show is a comedy. I don’t believe that in the slightest – it’s definitely a drama with aspects of comedy in it. It’s definitely not a laugh-out-loud all the time kind of show. These women are in prison. There is harassment. There are fights. There is death. It’s not funny – it’s life. Life in prison. (Or a few years, I guess… depending on one’s sentence.)

 

I finally started watching Orange is the New Black – I love it.

Go ahead and judge. I know I’m a month or so behind the rest of society, but I finally started watching Orange is the New Black.

I love it.

I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a show that features so many sizes, shapes and skin tones of WOMEN. Yes, this lady-centric show has characters that are thin, chubby, white, black, tan, tall, short, tiny, large, sassy, shy, loud, quiet, honest, crooked, devious and then some. Though the lead character (Piper Chapman) is a skinny, blondeish (thanks, highlights) WASP, she is surrounded by so many different-looking women and I seriously dig that.

However, even though it’s great to see all these females in one show, my favorite character so far is OC Bennett. I’m only seven episodes in, but as of right now, he’s the most morally centered character. At this point in the show we know absolutely nothing about who he is or where he comes from except that he (1) Does not like being forced to act like a dick, (2) is mostly soft-spoken, (3) is adorable and (4) has a prosthetic leg. He is the complete opposite of “Pornstache” Mendez (oh, Pablo Schreiber, how I love thee…) and has painfully obvious heart eyes for one of the inmates. I can’t imagine that this will end well for Bennett, but I know that I smile every time he’s on screen – especially when he’s acting all winsome.

I like the structure of each episode. While the main plot always centers around Chapman, the writers also focus on another inmate and give a little bit of her backstory and how she came to end up in prison. Their crimes have all been different thus far, and yet they ended up the same place.

Orange is the New Black has been helping me put some stuff into perspective – mostly in that even though my life is really not awesome right now, at least I’m not in prison.

This show is a Netflix original and you can watch all of Season 1 at your leisure through Instant Streaming 🙂

 

Wow, I have been sucking at posting this year, haven’t I?

And wow… that was one of the worst, most ineloquent titles yet.

Yikes.

Sorry I haven’t posted much. I was sick, then I was super busy/tired from work, then I got hooked on a television show on Netflix (more on that later), then I had to finish reading a book. So, blogging didn’t quite fit in too much this past week.

Again, I apologize.

So, how are you?

Good… good.

I’m all right. I worked 4 long days in a row and finally had a day off today, which I spent at the movie theater (more on that later), doing laundry and playing ping-pong w/my mom. It’s freakishly warm here right now, so we wanted to spend part of the day outside… instead of doing chores (for example, I was supposed to be packing, as I am going to a friend’s place this weekend… I got 5 pieces of clothing out thus far. Will need to finish this tomorrow night or Thursday morning. Whoops…)

So, besides job hunting like crazy

(OH, news flash, I didn’t get the thing that I interviewed for a few weeks ago in NYC 😦 I was super bummed about that and cried for a little while. I couldn’t help it… I thought I had a chance. And it turns out I didn’t. Sadness.)

… where was I? OH, so besides job hunting like crazy, I accidentally but kind of on purpose got addicted to the show “White Collar” because (1) it stars Matt Bomer, who will be guesting on Glee when the show comes back in April and (2) its first two seasons are on Netflix instant stream and I like being able to watch episodes back to back so as to keep up with a set of characters for an extended period of time.

Needless to say, I got hooked (well, my mom and I got hooked) and HOW. We are desperate to watch Season 3, but it only just finished a few weeks ago and is not on Netflix yet. We need Season 3 like we need air at this point.

That show is soooooo good. Yes, Matt Bomer is ridiculously attractive (it’s those eyes, man… and he obviously exercises…), but my most favorite thing about this show is that it focuses on the relationship between a convicted felon-turned FBI consultant (Bomer) and the FBI agent who caught him twice … but they now work together to solve crimes and have ended up becoming good friends even though at times they don’t entirely trust each other. So, this show focuses on a working/friend relationship between a lawman and a criminal instead of having everybody sleep around and hook-up with everyone else like practically every other show on television. Plus, this show is actually really funny. It’s a drama, but there is a lot of humor and the various working relationships within the show all have their own quirky dynamic. I love this show. LOVE IT. And I need Season 3 right now… RIGHT NOW.

omg, this show is so good.

But anyway…

I had off today, so I went to the movie theater (movie theaters and Broadway theaters are my sanctuaries… They are my safe places. I feel content and warm and fuzzy when I am in one of these places. Even though sometimes the movie or show I am watching makes me so excited I feel sick to my stomach *cough* When I saw Mandy Patinkin sing “Oh What a Circus” *cough* I still feel really protected and free from the outside world when I am in a movie theater or Broadway theater).

I saw “Friends With Kids” because I am a huge fan of most of the cast (I say “most” of the cast because I am ambivalent about Megan Fox…). I was beyond thrilled when I heard about this movie awhile ago because I love Adam Scott and was pumped to see him in a lead role instead of a supporting one. (If you don’t know who Adam Scott is, you have done yourself a disservice. Go watch “Party Down” or Seasons 3 & 4 of “Parks and Recreation.” NOW.)

The movie was written, directed and co-stars Jennifer Westfeldt. (Most people know her as Jon Hamm’s girlfriend… whereas I am well aware from her from her roles in “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” and “Ira & Abby,” which she also wrote). It’s about a pair of friends who mutually decide to have a kid together and raise it out of wedlock so they don’t have to deal with the marriage aspect of a relationship (and instead they would co-raise the kid, but still get to date around so they could each “find their person”). Needless to say, things don’t entirely work out as planned, but after some ups and downs, there is resolution. I won’t spoil it for you, but I thought this was a pretty good movie and worth the watch.

This movie wasn’t perfect. I curse like a sailor and even I thought some of the dialogue was overtly and unnecessarily crass at times. But, I could overlook this because of the AMAZING performances turned in by Scott, Westfeldt, Jon Hamm, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph and Chris O’Dowd (yes… basically all the main characters from Bridesmaids were in this film… though those 4 were all supporting roles in this film).

I don’t cry at movies (3 folks, THREE), but I almost teared up twice during two of Adam Scott’s monologues. The man knows how to deliver powerful, yet completely vulnerable speeches.

This movie hit home several times and I left the theater thinking about time. Mind you, I’m 10 years younger than the characters in the movie, but it still got me thinking about time and how it’s always winding down.

I don’t know if I want to have kids. It used to be a hard “No,” but I just don’t know anymore. I’m constantly surrounded by a parade of couples and couples with kids where I work and the other day, I was *this close* to having a panic attack because for some reason, I thought to myself “Man, if I am going to have a kid, I should have one soon so in 18 years I’ll still be young-ish enough to help him/her move into his/her dorm room.”

And then I remembered that (A) I am in no financial state to be having a kid, (B) I am not ready to have a kid and (C) there is no way I am having a kid until I figure out my own life first.

Plus, I’m not raising a kid my myself. (i.e. I’m single. This fact gets rubbed in my face by society and my job every single [ha] day and sometimes that really hurts.)

Anyway…

… Time.

Speaking of… I think it’s “time” I get to reading my book. I finally finished “Out of Oz” and now I’m trying to fly through “The Help” so I can get to the last two books in The Hunger Games series. WOOT

Have a good one

P.S. On a slightly funny note… as I was standing in line to buy my ticket at the movie theater, I looked up at the mural of film characters above me on the wall and realized that (1) I was standing underneath Marlon Brando circa “The Wild One” and (2) I was wearing the EXACT SAME OUTFIT with the exception that I didn’t have a hat and instead of a leather coat, I had on an olive green trench coat. But I had on the same shirt, skinny jeans with the cuffs rolled up, and black shoes. I totally walked out of the house this morning looking like I was a member in a 50s youth gang without realizing it… whoops.

 

This will be a short post b/c the Emmys were super boring.

Yep, I said (well, wrote) it… the Emmys were super boring. So, this post won’t be epically long b/c I am sleepy and would like to get to bed already.

I woke up at 6 this morning for some reason (not cool on my day off…) and did some laundry before I finally dragged myself upstairs around 7:30. I signed up for Netflix b/c I need it to do a freelance assignment I’ll be working on, so I watched one and a half episodes of Mad Men from Season 4 (God, I missed this show so much… it’s such a soap opera, but I still dig it immensely).

I played some ping pong and Yahtzee with my mom, then this afternoon I actually took a nap b/c I was so worn out from not sleeping last night. After some much-needed rest, I baked some Banana-Chocolate Chip monkey bread (baking relaxes me… even though while I was baking I was singing and dancing around the kitchen to The Book of Mormon and Glee…).

Then, it was time for the red carpet. Since we don’t have cable, I was stuck just watching all of Fox’s coverage. Since Glee is on Fox, I assumed they would interview a bunch of Glee people or at least show them on the red carpet or indoors at the ceremony. NOPE. I spent the entire red carpet looking at all the ant-sized people in the background trying to see if they would show Darren Criss. (They didn’t… but he was totally there. Check out his 360 glam cam video… he always does a funny pose. Tonight was no exception. 🙂 )

The Emmys kinda sucked. I was super happy for Modern Family and Mildred Pierce and Friday Night Lights and Mad Men, but on a whole, that was one of the most boring telecasts ever. The only couple saving graces were the Best Lead Actress in a Comedy bit (where all the nominees went up on stage like they were competing in a pageant) and when Lonely Island (plus some guests…) sang a medley of their songs. Michael Bolton FTW.

And yeah… boring telecast.

I’m so glad new TV starts up tomorrow night…

Well, I am yawning like you wouldn’t believe, so I’m gonna pack it in.

Have a good one

 

Curiouser and curiouser

I think someone emailed one of my blog posts to someone, but I’m not entirely sure because I still haven’t quite figured this thing out. Like I have the time to know all the intricacies (or lack thereof) of my wordpress account… ha.

A thunderstorm woke me up in the middle of the night last night, but then I drifted back to sleep and had a weird dream about some amusement park water ride (though it was snowing) and then I was in a car in the desert and in my rear view mirror, I could see two ginormous Transformers fighting each other off in the distance. I don’t know why I dreamed about either of those things, but I guess my subconscious had amusement parks and giant robots on its mind. Hmmm…

This morning my mom and I ran to Target as I had to pick some stuff up for my trip next week and we needed some more ping pong balls and the like. We bought our dog some new tennis balls. She was so excited about them (the dog, not my mom…) that she accidentally bit me (really hard) on the hand while I was trying to hand her one of the balls. Luckily it didn’t break the skin, but since I was not expecting to get bit, nor had my dog ever bit me before, it was quite a shock and hurt more than it should have. But, I didn’t bleed or anything, so all was well.

After lunch, my mom and I played ping pong for an hour before she did some chores and I poked around online, looking for jobs and whatnot. How is it that I am under qualified for every single job that sounds super awesome? I’m either lacking experience, or the right kind of degree, or the job starts immediately, etc… I just want to find something that I’m passionate about! I just want to work! I want to live to work, not work to live, you know? There’s gotta be something out there that is a good match for my skills and abilities. I’m a hard worker, for reals.

In the meantime, I’ll keep looking. Plus, I’m going to put together a list of ideas for scripts (not that I have the time to write them out, but perhaps I can at least outline some). I also plan on getting back into writing my autobiographical short stories… I used some for my column writing class and they went over really well. If I can keep up with that kind of quality of writing, perhaps I can submit them to magazines or whatnot. I have some interesting stories to share 🙂

After job hunting for awhile, I helped my mom sort through a bunch of scrapbooking stuff she got from her parents when they visited. I’m talking boxes and boxes and folders and folders worth of stuff. So many stickers. So many sheets of cardstock. We got most of it in pretty good order. I’m gonna need to take up scrapbooking now, I guess. Geez.

I actually need to make one (really two) of those t-shirt blankets. I’ll need to ask my sister for advice/look online for how to do that. Yikes.

When my dad got home, we all sat down and watched Get Low. It was actually really, really good. I was the one who put it in the Netflix queue and they were skeptical at first, but I think they dug it too. No one should ever question my movie recommendations. And I’m not just tooting my own horn here. I make decent recommendations almost all of the time. 🙂

Well, I’m off to bed… I have to work a bit tomorrow and then I have 4 days off where I’ll really need to job hunt like whoa. Maybe run some more errands and whatnot.

Have a good one

 

Sunday, funny Sunday

So, did you watch Saturday Night Live last night? It was not the best episode, by far, but there were moments of wonderfulness. Most notably, the cartoon-turned-live action Ambiguously Gay Duo bit.

This just made me wish even more that Jon Hamm would either join the cast (j’adore him on Mad Men, but he would do so well on SNL), or at least host every other week. I loved his and Jimmy Fallon’s commitments to those characters (normally voiced by Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell… who were totally in the sketch too).

Another highlight of the show was Chris Colfer in the “What Up with That?” sketch. Granted, he didn’t have any lines, but it’s just nice to see my favorite Glee person as a guest on SNL. I could totally see him hosting sometime next season. (Of other Glee people, I could see Darren Criss or Lea Michele hosting as well. Criss has the potential to be Justin Timberlake-funny, while Michele could probably pull off an episode in the same vein as Miley Cyrus. More singing in sketches than having to be physically funny… But that’s just my opinion.)

Anyway…

So, I actually slept last night! I don’t know why or how, but it happened. I woke up at 9:00… and then had to quickly get dressed and scarf down some cereal because my mom and I had to be out of the house by 9:45ish for a 10:30 screening of Bridesmaids. It was PACKED.

I had such high hopes for Bridesmaids.

Those hopes were met and then exceeded… Bridesmaids was hilariously funny and seriously touching/heartfelt all at the same time. I loved it. I would see it again. I can’t wait to own the DVD.

Co-written by lead actress (and SNL staple) Kristen Wiig, Bridesmaids showcased one woman’s struggle to piece together her downward spiraling life as her best friend (Maya Rudolph, one of my comedy idols) gets engaged, prepares for her wedding, and ultimately gets married.

Wiig’s character was surrounded by the good (cop Rhodes, played by the ridiculously adorable Chris O’Dowd), the bad (Jon Hamm’s douche of a f**k buddy), and the crazy (the other bridesmaids, most notably Rose Byrne and Melissa McCarthy… just amazing performances by both).

I won’t spoil the major plot points for anyone who hasn’t seen it yet, but I will say that there were points in the movie where I was laughing so hard I was crying and there were other points where I was really relating to Wiig’s character and just thinking a lot about relationships between best friends and how hitting bottom is an opportunity to reassess oneself and work toward picking yourself up and moving forward.

It would appear that holy matrimony has been a topic I have somehow become surrounded by as of late. There is a wedding this weekend in Ohio, which unfortunately I will not be able to attend 😦 It’s for a girl who is pretty much the Maya Rudolph to my Kristen Wiig. And I would say that right now, we’re at the point in our Bridesmaids where there hasn’t been communication for quite some time. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t think about her every day (which I do), or don’t miss her (which I do), or don’t love her with all my heart (which I do).

When I visited my sister, there was a lot of wedding talk too. She and I probably watched 10 episodes of “Say Yes to the Dress” and discussed her potentially marrying her current boyfriend and what role I would have in the wedding party (Maid of Honor…).

My sister is not engaged, but she and her boyfriend have talked about getting married at some point. I think that’s pretty cool. I’m glad my sister has someone that she wants to spend the rest of her life with. But what I’m really thankful for, is that she and I are still close. We might not get to talk as much as we used to (we lived together for 4 years, so we used to get to talk and hang out almost all the time 🙂 ), but we talked about how we will always be not only sisters, but friends. And that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

(btw – watching Survivor right now. I haven’t watched all season, but tonight’s the finale. I hope Boston Rob wins. This is his 4th Survivor… he deserves the million for that feat alone.)

In addition to seeing Bridesmaids with my mom, she and I also played a bunch of rounds of ping-pong. Though she still won almost all of the games, I finally wore her down and beat her during our last game. Playing left-handed no less… I am more and more convinced that I was born left-handed but was taught to be right-handed. Besides being a better ping-pong played with my left hand, I also throw footballs and frisbees better with this hand. I bowl better using my left hand. I always have to have my purse on my left shoulder. I’m pretty sure I always hold my microphone in my left hand.

After ping-pong, we finished watching the third episode of Sherlock. Oh, how I wish the Second Series was already on Netflix. (It hasn’t even aired yet on television, so of course there is no way that it would be on Netflix yet. I don’t even know when the Second Series is going to come out…) What an amazing series thus far, though. In just three episodes, I am completely hooked. I love how it’s set in the present day. I love the bro-chemistry between Holmes and Watson. I love the music. I love the pace of the show. It just makes for brilliant television.

Well… that’s about it, I guess.

I have to work tomorrow night from 6-9:15. During the day, I’m going to start putting together some sort of presentation for my thesis defense. I suck at Power Points (I’ve only ever made 2 in my entire life…), but it’ll be good to go back through all of my data and results and really have a good grasp on everything before I go onto the thesis defense chopping block next week.

Have a good one

 

So sleepy… but I feel obligated to watch DWTS. Meh

Oh those sleepless nights have returned… I was hoping I was going to get a couple more nights of decent sleep. But, alas. And tonight, there will be a Moose in my bed, so I likely won’t get a good night’s sleep because she’ll probably kick me like she normally does.

(Our dog is named Moose… we don’t have an actual moose. That would be ridiculous.)

I tried to go to sleep early last night, but that didn’t happen. I think I feel asleep after 3 and then was up around 6. My eyelids are heavy right now, but I can go to sleep early tonight. Well, I’ll get in bed at a decent time. Only time will tell if sleep will come, or if it’s another night of tossing and turning.

I have to get up early tomorrow because I have to work all day. But, then I can sleep in on Wednesday, so I’m already looking forward to that 🙂

Today was pretty uneventful. I worked from 9:45-3:45, and then came straight home to play with the dogs and watch some of the movie I got in the mail from Netflix (Never Let Me Go).

I was pretty busy at work today. I was by myself pretty much the whole time, so I was constantly on the move, or if there wasn’t anyone there, I kept busy by straightening up.

When I got home, I got into my comfy clothes and played with the dogs for a bit. Then we all went out of the back deck so I could throw more corn out by the bird feeders for the ducks that frequent our yard/pond (we have a tiered pond in the backyard… ducks totally come and swim on it, and we’ll be putting our fish back out there soon too).

While I had some cold pizza (yum), I watched the first half of Never Let Me Go. I quite like it so far. I’m a huge fan of Fox Searchlight and Film 4, so a joint effort is always appreciated. The cast is great (Carey Mulligan, Kiera Knightey and Andrew Garfield) and the plot is intriguing. The students at this private British school in the 1970s/1980s are being raised to donate their vital organs. My favorite scene thus far was the one between Mulligan and Garfield, when they are on a walk at The Cottages. They are sitting in a wooded area discussing some sort of deferral that their peers heard about and how The Gallery might have something to do with it. That’s a way cryptic description, I know, but it’s the best I can do without spoiling anything. But it’s a beautiful scene – both well acted and the aesthetic of the scenery. I can’t find it on youtube, but it really is a gorgeous moment in film.

Well, I’m gonna watch the end of DWTS and then read a bit before I go to sleep.

Long day tomorrow (work until 4:15, then I need to run to Target for the Warblers CD, The King’s Speech DVD and the latest issue of Billboard magazine 🙂 ) Plus, it’s GLEE TUESDAY!!!!!!!! (Expect a GINORMOUS post tomorrow night)

Have a good one

 

Spent the day with my mom and watched a bunch of movies – glorious :)

Today was my first legitimate day off in a really, really long time. And I thoroughly enjoyed it 🙂

I woke up earlier than I wanted, but it was okay because I rearranged our Netflix queue so that the next movie we get in the mail is something better than the last one that came. (My dad got War of the Worlds 2… yikes bikes) So, I put Never Let Me Go at the top of the queue… I love me a good drama.

This morning my mom and I went to the movies – we saw Arthur. It wasn’t a great movie by any means. And most of the funny parts were in the trailer. But, my mom and I both enjoy Russell Brand and Helen Mirren. And, I am a Greta Gerwig fan from her performance in Greenberg. We chuckled some. It was just nice to be back in a movie theater… I hadn’t been to a movie in about a month. I used to go about once a week. My how times have changed.

After the movie, my mom and I dropped some stuff off at the Goodwill and then went out to lunch before the rest of our errands. After refueling, we went to the library. I got a couple books and some DVDs (Broadcast News – because I have an epic need to rewatch this amazing, amazing movie; The Wiz – in honor of the late Sidney Lumet; and Roadhouse – because j’adore Swayze and I haven’t seen this movie yet).

Upon exiting the library, we went to Target because I was in desperate need of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One DVD (well, Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy) and we needed some groceries.

When we got home from Target, I changed into my comfy clothes, popped in HP7 and watched it with my mom. My mom has seen all of the HP movies (and has inadvertently seen most of both A Very Potter Musical and A Very Potter Sequel), but she doesn’t remember the plot points to most of them, nor has she read the books. So, a few minutes into HP7, we had to press the pause button and I tried to recap Part 6 and remind her about Voldemort’s return (starting with his physical presence in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), what was up with Snape, what happened to Dumbledore, etc…

I saw HP7 twice in theaters and have read the book a few times, so I knew what was going to happen in Part One and what’s likely going to happen in Part Two (as the movies aren’t exactly the same as the books…). So, it was extra fun watching HP7 Part One with my mom since she had no idea about what the Deathly Hallows are, or who dies, etc…

We had to pause the movie about 1/2 hour before it ended to make some enchiladas for dinner. I chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce and provided some sweet Glee tunes from my iPod doc. My mom likes the Glee version of “Baby” for some reason (she likes Sam… that’s why). And, since she’s going to the Glee tour show with me in June, I try to make her listen to Glee as much as I can to get her pumped. I know she’s not going to enjoy the show anywhere near as much as I am. But, I think she’ll like it more than she thinks she will… she totally sings along to a bunch of the songs when I have the music playing in the kitchen. I know, though, she is going to totally laugh at me when I flip the f**k out for Darren Criss and Chris Colfer. And, if the Warblers are on the tour too… forget about it. I am going to lose my shit much like the time when I met Ralph Fiennes outside of the Booth Theater in NYC. (True Story – Fiennes totally chuckled at me when I had a Bridget Jones-esque case of verbal diarrhea and pretty much gushed how I love him, his movies, and how Quiz Show made me want to study film.)

We finished HP7 during dinner and are now watching The Other Guys (well, re-watching The Other Guys… we saw this in theaters over the summer). Mark Wahlberg is so great in this movie… I hope he does more comedies because he truly is a delight to watch.

Well… I think I’m gonna pack it in and watch the rest of the movie. And then I think I’m gonna go to bed as I am friggin’ sleepy. I have to work tomorrow night from 4-11… boo. But then I have Sunday off, which is good b/c I’ll need to do laundry.

Have a good one

 

Killing time until midnight…

So, I’m sitting on the couch in the living room killing time until midnight. That’s when our government is going to shut down if Congress and the President don’t figure out this whole budget mess.

(IMMA RANT NOW… JUST TO LET YOU KNOW)

My dad works for the federal government, so if the government shuts down, he’s out of work until this mess gets fixed. We’re watching the news right now… my dad got interviewed earlier today. The news station will air his interview if the government still is on the verge of shutting down. Our fingers are crossed that we don’t get to see the interview, but I have a feeling that we will be seeing it during the 10:00 news. This is so depressing.

I’ve been watching the news a lot during the past few days. This is definitely out of character for me. Even though I am a journalism student, I don’t really watch the news more than I have to, nor do I really keep up with a lot of political stuff. I’m not proud of this, but it’s just something I’m not super into. I can tell you all of the latest entertainment news (I’m not talking tabloid stuff… more along the lines of movie, television and theater news and headlines), but I’m not a fan of politics and whatnot.

However, since my dad’s job (as well as the good of the whole country, really) is at stake right now, I’ve been trying to keep up with the news as of late. And what seems to be getting thrown around as something that Republicans and Democrats can’t agree on when it comes to the budget fiasco is the funding of Planned Parenthood.

It seems that the Republicans want to defund Planned Parenthood, to which I reply, “WHAT THE F**K?!?!?!?”

Now, I have only stepped inside of a Planned Parenthood one time (to see if they were hiring…). But, I whole heartedly support this organization. I am a firm believer in a woman being able to control what happens to her own body instead of government trying to regulate what she can or cannot do. And I’m not just talking about abortions here (even though I am Pro-Choice)…

If you look at their website, you will see that Planned Parenthood is an organization that provides information and help with birth control, emergency contraception, general health care, relationship issues, STDs, sexual orientation questions, and women’s health (among other areas of interest for people in need of health-related services).

Planned Parenthood offers Breast Cancer Screenings, Pap and HPV Testing, Pelvic exams, and other women’s health tests and information.

To think that there is a large chunk of our government who wants to stop funding an organization that does so much for people (especially women) when it comes to health issues… well that just makes me sick to my stomach.

It is extremely close minded of people in our government to want to stop funding for Planned Parenthood. These close minded individuals are so hung up on the topic of abortion (Which is still legal, right? I mean, it’s not like Roe vs. Wade ever got overturned…). I feel it is wrong to try and defund an entire organization which does so much good for women’s health (among other services) just because they also conduct abortions.

People are entitled to their own opinions about whether they consider themselves Pro-Choice or Pro-Life. However, I do not feel it is right for the government to mandate what goes on inside of a woman’s body. There is supposed to be a separation of Church and State, yet I feel that people’s beliefs have worked their way much to far into government, laws and regulations.

Plus, really in the grand scheme of things, the funding of Planned Parenthood is such a small part of the bajillion dollar deficit our country is in. It’s friggin’ RIDICULOUS to be fighting over funding Planned Parenthood when waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more important things are at stake.

Like, how about… oh, I don’t know… if the government shuts down, the troops won’t get paid but Congress people will. WHAT THE F**K IS WRONG WITH THAT PICTURE? (Answer: Everything)

Pull your head out of your ass, government, and agree on something soon because your shutting down is going to negatively impact a lot of people.

(OKAY, ENOUGH ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT)

I had a pretty productive day today. I probably could have gotten more done, but I am pleased with what I did.

Right before I went to bed last night, I had a thought about how to fix a couple of my charts. So, this morning I did just that… I fixed my charts the best I could, tried to start formatting them to the Thesis and Dissertation people’s standards. I then typed up a couple pages worth of results. I was going to do the results and discussion sections today, but just got the results part done. I will type up the discussion section tomorrow.

I figure I will do the discussion part tomorrow, and maybe start on the conclusion. I have to work on Sunday, but then I have three days off in a row again. Monday I will finish up the conclusion part and then finish formatting my whole paper to TAD standards. Then, Tuesday I will proofread and edit to the best of my ability. I hope to send my finished paper to my thesis chair on Wednesday. Holy hell… lofty goals, but I think I can do it 🙂

Tonight my parents and I watched the movie Jack Goes Boating. Netflix claimed it was a romantic comedy… not as such, Netflix. Not as such. Parts of it were kinda funny… not laugh out loud funny, but more like a knowing chuckle of being able to relate to the awkwardness of the characters. But, I love Philip Seymour Hoffman, so I was glad I saw it.

And that’s really about it… I guess I did also start rewatching Firefly during lunch earlier. I’ve only seen the series all the way through once (and then I did watch Serenity). I love how it’s a mix of Star Wars and a western. Plus, Nathan Fillion is amazing… as always 🙂

And that’s really about it. Oh, and for those wondering, I did post the two codes to unlock “Pink Houses” and “Ice Ice Baby” on Wii Glee Karaoke Revolution Version 2 in the comment section of yesterday’s post.

****This just in at 9:46 pm… it seems the government has placed an extension on their budget mess. So, now we have to wait a few more days (until next Thursday?) for them to figure stuff out. This doesn’t solve anything. It actually makes things worse… just keeping us all on our toes until next week. But will they figure stuff out by then? Are we just postponing the inevitable? BLAH ****

Oh well, I guess I can go to bed soon. I’ll stay up with my parents for awhile more to see if they air my dad’s interview. But then off to bed.

Have a good one

 

I never realized how much I was like my mom until these past few months…

I mean, I knew I totally inherited her anti-socialness… but my fierce need to compete and win is all her fault. And I mean that in the nicest way possible.

So, my mom and I play games against each other on the Wii just about every day. We usually bowl, do our Wii Fitness Age, play billiards and/or dance. We always are trying to one-up the other person. And we’re always yelling at the television, trying to will the other person’s Mii to mess up. The competition really heats up when we are playing billiards or dancing. I kicked her butt in billiards today, but you wouldn’t believe the amount of smack talk that my mom throws down. And then today we started to get back on track with our Wii dancing (while the siblings were here, our schedule was thrown off a bit… but that was a-okay b/c siblings are more important than video games 🙂 ). So, we did our Dance on Broadway game. And I totally beat two of my mom’s scores and she was pissed. Not “I hate you” pissed, but she vowed she would reclaim her scores sooner rather than later…

I love my mom. (I love my dad and siblings too, of course). My mom is awesome. She’s funny. She’s smart. She’s educated. She’s caring. She’s responsible. She’s loving. She’s basically the best person on the planet. She doles out advice and tough love, often in the same sentence. My dad often comments how much my mom and I are alike… usually it’s about how we have the same laugh or make the same faces depending on our moods. Our body language is similar. We are always dancing whenever there is music on. I’m glad to be like my mom. And I hope to continue being like my mom because she is an awesome lady. I know I’m lucky to be her daughter. And I am continually grateful to have been born into my family.

Oh, besides all the Wii stuff, my mom and I played our TCM Scene It game again… I won, but only just. She caught a lucky break by rolling a 4 when she was on the double spot and got an easy question. I know this version of the game is not easy for her, since she hasn’t seen as many films as I have, nor has she researched the amount of film stuff I have. (Even though I haven’t seen a lot of the older movies that the game asks questions about, I am able to come up with correct answers a lot of the time from personal research and/or stuff I learned – and remembered – in my various film classes.) But, she’s a good sport and agrees to play.

I was hoping to make a bit of headway thesis-wise today. I am not going to print up any stats until after my thesis proposal defense on Wednesday, but I was going to plan out some charts/tables that I’ll need. I can work on that tomorrow. My mom opted not to do any housework today and she convinced me to keep playing Wii games and whatnot with her. But, starting tomorrow, game time is pretty much over (or at least greatly reduced) as I need to get work done. For reals.

Besides games and whatnot, I watched a movie today. Winter’s Bone came in the mail through Netflix, so I had to watch it so we could send it back as soon as possible b/c my parents didn’t want to watch it.

I liked Winter’s Bone a lot. I hadn’t really read up much about it, though I knew it was critically acclaimed and that it was nominated for 4 Oscars. It didn’t win any, but the praise it got was well deserved. I’m glad I finally saw it. I just need to see 127 Hours, and then I’ll have seen all of the Best Picture nominees from this year!!

And, really that’s about all for today… my mom and I watched Amazing Race. Then we texted with my brother for awhile (he is back at school but wishes he was not… poor kid). Now I’ll read some stuff and watch last week’s episode of How I Met Your Mother, and maybe some Community and/or Parks and Rec.

I work tomorrow night, but hope to get some thesis stuff done during the day. Then I have a few days off… Must. Get. Lots. Done.

Have a good one