“There’s a light… over at the Frankenstein Place.”

Today was Rocky Horror Glee Tuesday 🙂 But more on that in a bit…

And before you ask, No, I didn’t do any thesis stuff today. I’m horrible, I know.

After a ridiculously fitful night of sleep (or lack thereof?) last night, I stumbled out of bed around 9:45 this morning. I don’t know why I didn’t sleep… even the alphabet game wasn’t helping. I was on “M” for quite awhile… and will likely pick up there again tonight.

Within a half hour of waking, I ate some applesauce mixed with Grape Nuts, got dressed in my winter coat and rain boots (it was cold, rainy and windy here today) and was out the door with my mom to run some errands.

One of our first stops was Target, as we were in search of a card for her dad’s birthday and we were going to look for a Wii game for ourselves. We saw some different dance games advertised online, so we picked one up in hopes of dancing off some calories over the next few weeks. While on our errands, we saw a lady running around one of the parking lots in shorts. Craziness. After the post office, we went to the library to return some books and pick out some newer ones. I got two production-based books (one about Star Wars and one about Indiana Jones), a book about the behind-the-scenes of the Oscars, a biography on Paul Newman, and some “unauthorized” book about Glee. Woot!

Mom and I got home, let out the dogs and had a sandwich while we played Yahtzee. After lunch, it was time to dance… or at least attempt some dancing/cardio/boxing shenanigans.

I started out in a hoodie, t-shirt, yoga pants, wool socks and house boots and as our dancing ensued, ended up scrapping the hoodie, then the boots, then the socks. The game was pretty intense, and we only made it through some of the practice and beginner levels.

I’m not a horrible dancer, especially when it comes to choreography (if someone shows me some basic steps, I usually can replicate them), but my feet were not mirroring those of the trainers on the screen. Neither were my mom’s… it was pretty hilarious. But, if your arms (and Wii-mote) were in sync with the trainers, then you got the points… so I at least made sure my arms were going in the right directions. The music is pretty good (some Lady Gaga – woot), and after awhile, we were getting the hang of some of the different steps and whatnot. But we didn’t clear enough floor room in the living room and my mom and I each ended up hitting each other a few times. We’d laugh it off and try and keep in time with the trainers (i.e. “those skinny bitches,” as my mom called them). Some of the moves are similar to those in our Dancing with the Stars game, but a lot of it is new. We’ll play more tomorrow.

After those shenanigans, my mom went outside to try and clean up the yard a little and fill our yard waste bin for the yard waste collector tomorrow. But the wind was so strong that she had to come in after a little while. Even as I type this, the wind is howling something fierce.

We played some Yahtzee when she came inside and she asked if I was going to make the Halloween brownies we had in the cupboard. I said yesterday that I was going to make it, but I was so out of it from not sleeping that I forgot. So, I put on my Rock of Ages music and made the brownies… the house smelled sooooo good.

We played some Wii Bowling (I lost my Pro status – sadness) and she fed the dogs, then we made dinner. We watched a couple episodes of Bones Season 2 and then it was time for GLEE!!

(SPOILERS) – I will try and link to video clips tomorrow… there aren’t any available yet, so most/all the links are to just the song recordings, FYI

So, tonight was the Rocky Horror Glee Show. I LOVED how the show started off with Santana’s lips singing “Science Fiction/Double Feature” and how there was a cast list with all of the Glee people. It was a great start of a great episode.

At first I was confused why the show then leapt into “There’s a Light (Over At the Frankenstein Place)“, but then it all made sense with Mr. Schue’s voiceover.

Oh, Mr. Schuester… soooooo jealous of Emma and Carl. So much so that he tells her that he was going to have the glee kids put on Rocky Horror for their musical… but only after Emma tells him how she and Carl have gone to midnight screenings of the show.

The Glee cast is perfectly suited for Rocky Horror – Finn and Rachel make a perfect Brad and Janet, Sam’s perfect for Rocky, Artie’s perfect for the character in the wheelchair, etc… Everything should have fallen into place. But of course this is scripted TV, so nothing ever works out how it should. You need conflict to drive a story.

Conflict on Glee is never far when Sue Sylvester is around. I liked the Barry Bostwick and Meatloaf bit parts as guys who want Sue to do an expose for the news. Regional Emmy… her she comes. She interrupts Finn and Rachel’s “Dammit, Janet” rehearsal to tell Will how much she supports the arts and how she supports the kids doing Rocky Horror because it’s envelope pushing. Awww…

And then comes Carl… Oh, John Stamos. I thought his monologue about how it’d be inappropriate for him to be Frank-N-Furter was awfully tongue-in-cheek (allegedly, he was supposed to play Frank-N-Furter). I also loved his version of “Whatever Happened to Saturday Night?”. Seeing Mr. Schue jealous was great 🙂

I also liked that Mercedes stepped up and said she’d like to play Frank-N-Furter. Talk about colorblind *and* gender-blind casting. Why shouldn’t a girl get to play Frank-N-Furter? And why shouldn’t Frank-N-Furter have some soul behind his/her big solo number? Even though Glee is sooooo fictitious, it’s nice to see those fictional characters get to sing songs that have been stereotypically reserved for other gendered people (see also Kurt singing “Defying Gravity” in season one).

I love that there are two characters on the show with Down syndrome (Though only one, Becky, was on this week. The other character, Jean, is Sue’s older sister.). Since her appearance in Season One, Becky has been on a few episodes. She’s a Cheerio, she’s always got great scenes with Sue, and none of the other characters treat her any differently because she has Down Syndrome. In tonight’s episode, Becky dressed up as Sue for Halloween (brilliant!) and was integral in the plot line of Will finding out that Sue was allowing them to put on Rocky Horror because she was going to condemn it on her Sue’s Corner. Glee has a fairly diverse cast… I appreciate that.

I also appreciate that Glee manages to address social issues that are relevant for high schoolers. Tonight’s episode dealt with body image… from a male’s point of view. Poor Finn – when he found out that his Rocky Horror character, Brad, was going to have to appear on stage in his tighty whiteys, he panicked. It didn’t help that Sam – “you could cut glass with these [abs]” – Evans was more than fine working out all the time and watching everything he ate so he could look like he does. However, it was Sam who finally convinced Finn that he should own his body and that confidence would let the sexiness come through. Finn had nothing to worry about. When he walked down the hall in his Brad costume (glasses, shoes, socks and white boxers), he looked like a healthy person. Sure, he’s not as ripped as Sam (or Mr. Schue during “Toucha Toucha Toucha Touch Me”… or in Vogue a few months ago), but Finn had nothing to be embarrassed about. (Cory Monteith = ridiculously adorable) Really, neither do any of the other characters on that show…

Glee is good about allowing each character to love themselves for who they are. Remember last season when Mercedes tried to crash diet? She got the confidence talk from Quinn about being comfortable in her own body. Kurt has dealt with plot lines revolving around him (and his dad and friends) being proud of who he is. So has Rachel (her looks) and Tina (the way she dresses). So even though Glee isn’t setting out to change the whole world, it’s nice that such a popular show manages to weave important story lines and themes throughout the show.

In the end, Mr. Schue caved and acknowledged that he was only doing Rocky Horror to be closer to Emma. Way to be honest, Mr. Schue. He loves her, but recognizes that her being with Carl is the best thing for her… at least for right now. (Damn straight, we need some more John Stamos face time!)

I was glad to see the show end with “The Time Warp“. Even though I’ve seen the clip on youtube a bajillion times by now, it’s nice to watch it on TV.

So, all in all, I liked the episode. The best line of the night goes to Sam in his too tight/small Rocky outfit… “I’m afraid I’ll show some nuttage up here.” Brilliant.

However, I dare say one of my favorite moments of the whole night was the teaser for the next episode of Glee… which is in 2 weeks (ugh)… looks like the Glee girls are singing “Livin’ on a Prayer“!!!!!!! As cliche as it is, that’s one of my favorite songs of all time… I can’t wait!

(End Glee talk)

Well, I guess I’ll get to reading. I hafta work from 6:15-9:15 tomorrow, so I guess I catch Modern Family online. Looks like it’s gonna be a funny Halloween episode 🙂

Have a good one!

 

Glee Tuesday – It’s Brittany/Britney :)

Before I gush about tonight’s episode of Glee, let me recount my day… I kinda got a lot done. Ish…

I didn’t set my alarm this morning (in fact, I unplugged my alarm clock altogether) as I had today off. I woke up at 8, but that was an hour later than the day before. So – success.

During breakfast, I started watching The Wendell Baker Story… sometimes I wonder if Luke Wilson can act or not. In this movie, he seems to be doing all right. So, I’ll finish it eventually.

After food, I threw in a load of laundry and then got to work on my thesis proposal. I worked on it for a couple hours and got another few articles cited and another page or two typed up. I still have a ways to go, but Thursday I will work on it more, as that is my next day off.

Around noon, I went upstairs to find my mom, who had spent part of the morning trying to net fish out of our pond to put in our fish tank. Since the weather is starting to get colder, she wanted to get all 10 goldfish, some minnows, snails and leeches out of our pond and into the tank in our living room (which already houses 3 catfish, some minnows, snails and leeches).

Mom and I had sandwiches and played a couple rounds of Yahtzee. Then, I had to head out and run some errands…

First on the list was shoes. I went to Payless and was instantly bombarded with a barrage of questions from one of the sale clerks. As I could empathize with the situation, I politely answered her questions and set out to find some shoes. I found some… they are ridonkulously ugly and not in style in any way, shape or form, but they seem like they fit all right and have some sort of cushion on the inside of them. Anything’s gotta be better than the shoes I wore the other day… so we’ll give these new shoes a whirl tomorrow. I’m going to be royally pissed if they don’t work out. I don’t have the money to be buying new pairs of shoes every week. That’s a fact, Jack.

After Payless, I went to Target to see if they had any shoes that would work – nope. I did get my mom a birthday card, some more Band Aids (blisters, yo), and some more socks. The colorful knee-highs were only $1… you can’t pass up argyle knee-highs 🙂

From the Target I went to Half Priced Books. I could spend thousands of dollars in there… but since this is reality, I just looked at a bunch of DVDs and books and left with nothing. I stopped at the library to drop off a stack of books, then went and filled my car up with gas. Fun times, I know.

I got home to find my mom rearranging plants on the back deck. She brought a whole bunch of them in the house to prepare for upcoming frost. We have plants everywhere…

We had a drink and played 2 games of Yahtzee before she went back outside to track down the last of the fish. I went down to my room with full intention of working on my paper more. I ended up watching the Season 5 premiere of Dexter…

(SPOILER ALERTS for those of you who haven’t seen it yet)

I think this was a great premiere. I loved that it started right where Season 4 left off – in that bathroom with all that blood. I find it beyond fascinating how Dexter functions in society. Michael C. Hall is amazing – I can’t even imagine what goes on in his head while he’s in the moment as Dexter… with all that chaos around him, he just was there, trying to emote as one would do in that situation, but not knowing how. He calls himself a monster – the phrase “I did it” being uber important in that episode – and I agree. But he’s not a dangerous monster. I mean, he is in that he kills people. But it’s not entirely his fault that he’s a monster… I blame Harry.

Harry taught Dexter how to fit in, or at least pretend he’s “normal” so he’ll fit in, or at least not be singled out. But in all of this pretend, Dexter never learned how to feel. He goes through the motions, kind of like a robot, but he doesn’t grasp what those feelings actually feel like. And throughout the episode, Hall’s Dexter is visibly struggling with having feelings and emoting them. You can see the wheels turning behind his eyes, but it wasn’t until he was on his boat and then had that encounter with that hick guy in the bathroom that you really saw Dexter as a quasi-functioning/feeling human being. When Dexter is on his hands and knees in the bathroom and sort of cries out/yells/releases emotion… it was really powerful. That was an extremely vulnerable moment and a huge game changer, in my eyes, for Dexter as a character. I believe this was also the first episode where he used a derivation of the word “love” (in this case, “loved”) when talking about Rita. This vocal expression of feeling, I feel, has the capability of cracking open a whole new side of Dexter. He’s still vengeful, but this time, it’s beyond personal.

I thought Jennifer Carpenter really was the glue holding this episode together. The way she plays Deb is great – it’s amazing to see her play this character who is trying to hold everything together while everything else is falling apart around her. She loves Dexter, but doesn’t fully understand him. I’m wondering if the writers are every going to reveal Dexter’s secret to her. I mean, in the books she knows, but on the show she doesn’t. That’ll be a game-changing moment, should they decide to go that route.

I am liking and disliking the character of Quinn more and more – which I think is brilliant. I like him because he’s a good cop… he knows something is up with Dexter because he’s good at his job. I also had a huge hunch last season that he was going to hook up with Deb. I thought the way the writers handled that was solid – and now there is room to expand on that. I also dislike Quinn because I still can’t put my finger on him. Why is he the way he is? His family used to have some money, but he seems more street than that. He looks like he should have been in The Departed, or something. I’m very interested to see where his character goes, plot-wise.

(End Dexter Spoilers)

And then, later tonight, my mom and I watched Glee… and it was glorious.

(Start Glee Spoilers)

So, tonight’s episode was Brittany/Britney. I LOVED how they revealed that Brittany’s name is Brittany S. Pearce (sp?). That’s just too great 🙂

I’m in my mid(ish) twenties, so I very much exposed to Britney Spears music ever since middle school/high school/college. I have her songs on my iPod, on my mix CDs, memorized for all time in my mind grapes. I have seen the music videos. I know about her personal drama via People Magazine, etc… Like the kids in New Directions, Britney music has had an influence on me.

So, I was beyond thrilled when I heard that they were doing a Britney episode. I was super thrilled knowing that Brittany (the amazing Heather Morris) was going to have a couple solos and be recreating some classic Britney videos.

Heather Morris can DANCE. She killed her “I’m a Slave 4 U” and “Me Against the Music” numbers. Her vocals were pretty good, but her dancing is really her best attribute. She’s a better dancer than Britney… yeah, I said (typed?) it.

I liked seeing John Stamos on Glee! I hope he gets a song and dance number at some point… he’s so talented 🙂 He was good on Full House and GREAT on ER, but I am really looking forward to some more of him on Glee.

Oh, Mr. Schue… being all jealous of Carl the Dentist. After all the rapping and whatnot, it was a bit bizarre to see Mr. Schue take on Britney Spears, especially “Toxic” (i.e. one of my most favorite Britney songs ever…). That was a brilliantly choreographed number… very sexy all around with the black and white outfits and use of bowler hats. To use two words from Sue Sylvester – “sex riot.”

I liked how Lea Michele’s version of “Hit Me Baby One More Time” was a direct homage to the Britney video… down to the same athletic pants and bras. However, even though I love “Stronger” and Artie, I wasn’t really feeling that number. It was a bit cheeseball, even for Glee. But, I’m glad to see that he and Finn are on the football team.

And, I liked the Paramore song… I have only heard it a few times, but Lea Michele’s performance makes me want to download her version and the Paramore version 🙂 The lyrics are really pretty.

But, as much as I loved tonight’s episode of Glee, I’m looking forward to next week’s episode. Finn had me smiling at the words “Grilled Cheesus” and then Kurt had me clutching my pearls when I saw him standing next to the hospital bed of his father. Burt Hummel!! Oh No!!! I’m very much looking forward to the music numbers next week – I know Mercedes is taking Kurt to church, so I hope that means we’ll hear some gospel and we, the audience, will be “taken to CHURCH!” Also looking forward to some Billy Joel from Puck… 🙂

(End Glee Spoliers)

And that’s that.

I’m off to bed… gotta 9-5 shift tomorrow. Fingers are crossed that my new shoes don’t kill my feet. My feet are still in huge amounts of pain from the other day… but, as my mom always says, “Suck it up, Kate.”

And so I shall.

Have a good one 🙂

 

Stand Up To Cancer

So, tonight was the Stand Up To Cancer special… I hope you got a chance to watch it and/or donate to the cause. It’s nice to see that the different scientists who are working toward cures are collaborating in the effort and not competing against each other. The show was really moving (even if a few of the music acts left something to be desired – this year’s song was definitely nowhere near as catchy or powerful as the 2008 song “Just Stand Up”).

I’m actually trying to get on the Stand Up To Cancer website right now so I can donate to the cause (cancer has affected several members of my extended family and friends families, so this cause is important to me). I’m having a bit of trouble loading the site (damn Safari), but if I can’t get on tonight, then I will use my sister’s computer tomorrow so I can log on and donate what I can 🙂

Um… today I did some laundry so I could pack for my trip to Kansas. I ran some errands and got gas for my car and a couple DVDs (I Love You, Man and Fever Pitch). Best Buy was disappointing… I wanted the 2-disc edition of The Dark Knight. Didn’t have it. The 2-disc edition of Iron Man. Nope. The 2-disc edition of Quantum of Solace. They didn’t even have the single disc version. The movie The Fall. Nope again. Pushing Daises Season One and/or Two. Nope and Nope. Come on, store!

I packed, played some Yahtzee with my mom. She kicked my ass a bunch of times in ping-pong. We watched several episodes of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. We only have 2 more episodes until we’re done with all of them… this show got overly dramatic way fast. Too many serious/heavy/depressing plot lines going on all at once. And the one plot line that I was getting into (Matthew Albee’s anti-depressant pill problem) hasn’t been addressed for a couple episodes now… isn’t he supposed to be starting withdrawal at this point? Geez, show!

And that’s about it… we watched the Stand Up To Cancer special (but I already said that) and now I should get to bed as I am leaving earlyish tomorrow morning!

Have a great weekend… I know tomorrow is the 9th anniversary of 9/11. I have so much respect for the men and women who lost their lives that day, in addition to the men and women who were at the forefront of the rescue efforts. I know I can’t speak for anyone else but myself, but I have not forgot about you… and I’m sure the same goes for the rest of the country – Thank You for all you did and all you’ve done.

 

Come on Vikings (?)

Well, since I’m living in Minnesota and I had a crush on Brett Favre ever since elementary school, I guess I need to root for the Vikings. I’m not a football fan (which I chalk up to being forced to attend massive amounts of high school football games because of marching band… and our high school team wasn’t all that great), but I guess I will feign interest for the safety of my Minnesota-living well being.

Besides being the official opener of football season (we just saw Harry Connick Jr singing “When the Saints Go Marching In” during the pre-game), today was my mom’s colonoscopy – success! She’s perfectly healthy and they didn’t find any polyps or irregularities. Clean bill of health = 🙂

While my mom was getting her procedure (or as her wrist band said “Event”) done, I sat in the waiting room and finished a book by Nora Ephron that I had been reading. I also played a bunch of games of solitaire on my iPod. After about an hour and a half, a nurse came and got me and let me go back to recovery to see my mom. Having never seen my mom on a hospital bed before, it was a bit jarring for me. But, you gotta do what you gotta do. I sat on the window ledge and talked to her while she was coming out of a sedative-induced haziness. My mom was so cute – she ended up telling me the same story three times during the fifteen minutes or so that we had to wait before another nurse came to bring her some soda and take her blood pressure.

After receiving the good news that all went well during the procedure, my mom was allowed to leave. She was still a little dizzy when we left and held on to my arm as we walked to my car. She called my dad to let him know everything went all right and then we went to Panera for lunch since my mom could eat normal food again.

Because my mom was still a bit out of it, we decided to put off errands (Best Buy, etc…) until tomorrow. We got home, let the dogs out and then played some Yahtzee. Still a bit sluggish from the day (I was tired too… my mom at least had an excuse that she had medical stuff done, but I was super tired and had a huge headache for reasons unbeknownst to me), we went to the living room. I finished watching American Teen while she did her daily USA Today crossword puzzle. Then we watched two episodes of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. I’m a little bit in love with Matthew Perry’s character… but not these pills that he’s been taking. (Drugs are bad, kids.)

I was still tired, but after the second show, my mom was all like, “Let’s play some ping-pong!” Really, my mom?

So, even though I kinda didn’t want to, I played a bunch of ping-pong with my mom. I won one game, but lost a lot. I got a little pissy since I was losing so much and I was tired/still had a headache. So we stopped and played a few more games of Yahtzee (and I took some ibuprophen… which doesn’t seem to have any affect on me anymore. No over the counter pain pills do. That’s because of a neck/back injury from the summer of 1998… but that’s a horse of a different color).

My mom let out the dogs while I read the latest issue of EW – The Fall TV Preview!!! So many shows, no DVR 😦 Thursday nights will be tricky… Community/30 Rock are up against Bones. Blah! I hate watching shows on the computer, so I’ll have to figure something out… like watch it on the internet through the Wii.

I’m posting early tonight so that way when I go to bed later I can just read (or watch a DVD) before I go to sleep. Plus, we have the football game on (Saints just scored a TD), and I’m not the biggest football fan (unless it’s the Superbowl), so I thought that being online and multitasking was a good way to spend my time right now.

Enjoy the game. I hope your team wins.

Have a good one!

 

Wednesday, Wednesday…

A beautiful day in the neighborhood… still a bit chilly, but I dressed for the occasion. (i.e. yoga pants and my Wicked shirt… woot)

Because my mom is getting her colonoscopy tomorrow, today was an unpleasant food/beverage day for her. I felt bad as I ate my granola and nectarine in front of her as we played Yahtzee during breakfast. She had a cup of tea and said she had some Jello before I woke up. A woman cannot live on Jello alone.

Afterward, she did some house chores while I tried to work on my Literature Review… I am now on the second of five parts of my Lit Review, so that’s progress, right?

Around 11:45 I quit and went upstairs to see how my mom was doing. She was drinking tea and reading a book at the breakfast nook. We spilt a can of soup for lunch… she had all the broth and I had the chicken, noodles and vegetables. It was all a bit ridiculous 🙂

After lunch we played some ping-pong, since she only had a couple hours before she had to drink this gross mixture of Gatorade and some powder that was going to pretty much make her down for the count the rest of the day. Even though I know my mom was not at full strength, she still kicked my ass in multiple games of ping-pong. Afterward she did a few more chores and I went back to my Literature Review… I probably got another two pages done (this friggin’ thing is going to be ginormous).

At 3:45, I went back upstairs, as the Gatorade-athon was to begin for my mom at 4. I brought my computer, phone and Snuggie upstairs (in case my mom got cold but still wanted to read her book…). I planted myself at the dining room table and starting making some Playlists for my upcoming road trip. At 4, my mom poured her first glass of Gatorade/powder solution and drank. Her face screwed up and I could tell that whatever this was that she was ingesting was not particularly tasty. For the next couple hours, she drank a glass every fifteen minutes. Gross…

As time wore on, her drinking got a bit slower. I liken it to the scene in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince where Harry has to force feed (drink?) Dumbledore that stuff to get the necklace (except that I never had to force drink my mom anything… she drank that stuff on her own accord the whole time because she is a champion).

My dad got home and we pretty much just all sat in the living room while my mom drank the stuff. She retired to their bedroom to read around 7:30, so my dad and I watched Public Enemies.

I saw Public Enemies in theaters because I am a big fan of Billy Crudup, Johnny Depp and Christian Bale (all with prime positions on my Favorite Actors list, for sure). The movie is pretty good… I am a fan of director Michael Mann and the ensemble cast is solid. Good gun battles, plus the acting is spot on. Johnny Depp can pretty much do no wrong. He’s great in everything… but I think my favorite Johnny Depp performance is in Ed Wood. I LOVE that movie!

Ed Wood

And I still love Christian Bale, even though he kinda went berserk a couple years ago. Even though he’s mostly known for the Batman franchise, I still remember him well from Newsies and Swing Kids when he just sang and/or danced right into my heart!

Newsies

Swing Kids

And let’s not forget Billy Crudup… love him in everything he’s done too. I saw him on Broadway in The Pillowman and almost all of his movies. It’s hard to pick just one clip to share, but check this one out from Big Fish:

Well, off to bed… then errands and maybe some more Lit Review tomorrow. Friday I’ll do laundry, pack and watch the Stand Up 2 Cancer special and then I’ll head to see my sister on Saturday.

Have a good one!

 

I know it’s not “cold” yet by MN standards, but I busted out my grandpa socks…

I get that the low tonight is only 46. And thought that is not in any way “cold” by MN standards, that’s cold enough to make my nose start running and my throat feel scratchy. Ever since I can remember I just can’t handle these sudden changes in the weather. And although I’m perfectly fine in 46 degrees, I totally busted out my grandpa socks. I’m wearing them right now, so my feet are nice and toasty.

Grandpa socks… let me explain.

My siblings and I called our great-grandfather “grandpa”. (We called my mom and dad’s parents “Grammy” and “Pop-Pop”), so I didn’t understand until fairly recently that parents parents are actually grandparents and parents grandparents are great-grandparents… I just assumed everyone had Grammies, Pop-Pops, Grandmas and Grandpas. Anyway, my grandpa (great-grandfather) passed away when I was a sophomore in college. I didn’t get to attend any service for him because he lived in New Jersey and I was at OU and it was finals week. Somehow I ended up with two pairs of his socks… and I think I’m the only one of his three great-grandchildren to end up with anything of his.

So, go ahead and judge if you must, but I totally wear the socks during the fall and winter time. They are super warm and it’s like he’s wrapping me up in a huge hug… or at least a hug that warms my feet. But I think of him every time I wear them and I remember all the good times I got to have with him. I feel lucky that I got to know my great-grandfather and spend a decent amount of time with him, even though we lived far apart. I love my grandpa and I love wearing my grandpa socks 🙂

So, today was a fairly busy day where once again zero point zero school work was done. (Tomorrow, for reals… I already told my mom that I need to work on the paper and not play ping-pong all the time.)

My job interview was at 11:30, but I got to the mall way early because I had never been to the department store before where I was to interview at. I had directions to where I needed to go, but the store had 3 levels and I was under the assumption it had 2. I was wrong, obviously. I found out where I needed to go, then walked around the mall for a bit to kill time and look at purses and Chucks.

You were supposed to check in for your interview 5-10 minutes early. Since I am freakishly early all the time, I checked in fifteen minutes early. I was told to wait outside the office on a chair. I brought a book, so I sat down and read… after 25 minutes no one had come for me. I was a bit peeved. I checked in well before my interview time, and know how important punctuality is at a job interview. So finally I got up and asked again if I was in the right spot. They told me someone would be with me soon.

I finally got called to my interview and was taken to some manager’s office. A nice girl started interviewing me, then saw what my prior retail experience was and called a manager from a specific department (though not the department I had placed my application for…). So, the woman who was interviewing me stopped and had this other manager person interview me for a department that I had not applied for. And after a handful of me awkwardly trying to answer some ridiculous questions (and talking with my hands A LOT), I was offered a position at the store. I said “yes” even though I really would have rather worked in the department that I applied for, but there was an immediate opening in this other department, so I accepted. I need money, and I have prior experience and the manager seems super nice. So, I will be making near minimum wage at a department store that almost makes a billion dollars a year profit (yeah, I read all the information on their website the night before…). But, a job is a job, and I am thankful to have one. I start my training in a week and a half. This weekend is quality time with my sister in Kansas 🙂

An HR woman had me fill out some paperwork and scheduled me for my training and answered some questions. She was also super nice. So far, it’s been a pleasant introduction to the new workplace.

After my interview and job acceptance, I called my mom to tell her the good news. I drove home and we played some Yahtzee during lunch. We then ran errands to the library and grocery store. My mom reads more books than anyone else I have every known in my entire life, which is a huge compliment to her. She likes murder mysteries, and most of them have horrible titles chock full of puns. But my mom can get through an entire stack of books in less than a week (she reads a lot before bed each night… and sometimes during the night if she can’t sleep). I still have about fifty pages left on my Dexter book that I’ve been reading for awhile, and another stack of ten or twelve library books next to my bed. I wish I could read as fast as my mom… I’m never going to get through all I want to read!

After the library we ran to the grocery store to get her another flavor of Gatorade for tomorrow and me some soda for my trip to see my sister. My mom isn’t allowed to eat stuff with fiber in it before the colonoscopy, so we each got a doughnut, because we figured there can’t possibly be any fiber/anything of healthy substance in a doughtnut. She’s not allowed to eat any food besides Jello or popsicles tomorrow, which I know is not ideal for my mom. But, it’s only one day, so I’ll help make sure she gets through everything okay. She’s got instructions for different pills and powders she has to ingest tomorrow. I’ll work on my paper tomorrow morning, but then will try and do whatever I can to make sure my mom is doing okay in the afternoon (she’s a tough cookie, I’m sure everything is going to be just fine). Thursday morning I’ll drive her to her appointment, then we’re celebrating with Panera for lunch *and* she’s getting me a DVD at Best Buy for me being her chauffeur – awesome! But, her health is more important to me than a DVD, just for the record!

After errands, I kicked her ass in Yahtzee while we had a drink/doughnut break. Then she kicked my ass in ping-pong… we played for over an hour, which was probably eight or nine games and I lost every single one. My mom then mowed the front lawn and our neighbor’s lawn while I checked email and my entertainment news… and was super pleased to see on EW.com that Amy Poehler is hosting the SNL season premiere and that Jenny Slate is leaving the cast!! I was not a huge fan of Slate’s, but I will say that I did like her Marcel the Shell with Shoes Ons video. It’s adorable!

My dad got home a bit later and we all watched the two Glee reruns, much to my dad’s chagrin. (Spoiler Alerts ahead if you haven’t seen the episodes…)

Laryngitis – Seeing/hearing Lea Michele sing Miley Cyrus’s “The Climb” is super funny. My mom even said that it must have been hard for Lea Michele to sing that bad on purpose, and I tend to agree with her. This episode hit a lot of serious notes… the whole Puck using Mercedes for popularity was on the low end of the serious spectrum, while Finn’s paralyzed friend and the ongoing Kurt/Burt Hummel story were heavy plot lines to be tackled in one 42 minute program. There were almost too many dramatic moments. But I love Glee, so I’ll watch regardless.

Dream On – Oh, Neil Patrick Harris as Bryan Ryan. Soooooo worthy of the Emmy win for Guest Actor in a Comedy Series 🙂 I wish there was a full length version of the Bryan Ryan/Will Schuester duet of “Piano Man”. I laugh so hard when NPH sings into his beer bottle… as I’m totally the type of person who sings into any bottle, remote, brush, ping-pong paddle, etc. The Artie wanting to walk plot is another one of Glee‘s heavy, yet briefly mentioned themes. His dream sequence of the “Safety Dance” flash mob is great. Kevin McHale is a great dancer 🙂 Besides the return of Jesse St. James (Jonathan Groff!!!!!!!), the other two best parts of the episode are the Bryan/Will duet of “Dream On” and the Rachel/Shelby duet of “I Dreamed a Dream”.

“Dream On” is money… that note that NPH hits at the end is SICK. Just sooooooo good. I love me some Mr. Schue and NPH.

“I Dreamed a Dream” is great because Lea Michel and Idina Menzel can SING. They are well cast as daughter/mother and their singing voices complement each other very well.

And that’s that…

Please remember that the Stand Up 2 Cancer special is on this Friday night on all the major broadcast networks at 8/7c.

Now, off to try and finish my Dexter book… then sleep!!

Have a good one 🙂

 

Let’s just get it out of the way – no I didn’t do any Lit Review today. Sorry.

Yep, it’s been days since i worked on any of my thesis proposal… but the holiday weekend is over, so I will get some of my Lit Review done this week. Just probably not tomorrow…

I have a job interview tomorrow morning. And even though this is not a life or death situation, I’m still a little nervous about the interview. There is nothing to be nervous about… it’s for a retail job. I’ve worked in retail before. It’s certainly not what I want to be doing for the rest of my life, but retail is great part-time/short-term work because you get to work on a team and help people.

My mom even offered to drive me to my interview… awwwwwwwww. I told her I can drive myself (because I totally can), but she said if it’s raining tomorrow morning she would drive me because 1. she won’t be able to do outside chores and B. said retail store is at a ginormous shopping establishment. What better way to spend a rainy morning than by immersing oneself in commerce? (I would probably rather spend it at the movie theater attached to said shopping center, but walking around a mall isn’t so awful now and again:) )

So, since I already admitted to not working on thesis proposal, what did I do today?

Ping-pong (of course)… though I only won one out of a bajillion games played today.

Ran errands with my parents… they needed some frames and scrapbook stuff from Michael’s and then I ran to the grocery store with my mom. She’s on a restricted diet the next few days before her colonoscopy on Thursday, so we picked up some Jello and Lemon Ice. Fun times.

I did some laundry, played some Yahtzee, started watching the documentary American Teen (2008). I wanted to see this when it was in theaters, so I was super excited to see it was available on Netflix Instant Stream (woot!). I have 1/2 hour left, but so far I am super into it. Even though I am several years older than the kids that were followed around for the movie, it’s interesting to see that high school really hasn’t changed much in the past decade. (Well, except for waaaaaaaaay more cell phones and texting.) I highly recommend this movie.

I talked to my sister today for a bit… I’m looking forward to seeing her this weekend. I’m still trying to decide whether I’m going to head down on Friday or Saturday. Regardless, I plan on watching the Stand Up 2 Cancer special that’s on TV on Friday night at 8/7c. It’s on all the major broadcast networks (NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX) and HBO. I remember the last time it was on it was a very powerful and informational show. Plus, there was that awesome song that all those talented singer ladies performed… “Just Stand Up“. I know my family has been affected by cancer. I’m sure someone you know has been too… check it out!

Um… I think that’s it, really. Job interview and more errands tomorrow (library!). Then 2 Glee reruns on tomorrow night 🙂 (Laryngitis and Dream On… I looooooooooooove the Dream On episode. Neil Patrick Harris, how I love thee as Bryan Ryan! Plus, Joss Whedon directed it. And Laryngitis is pretty solid too. I like Finn’s version of “Jesse’s Girl” and Kurt’s take on “Rose’s Turn” from Gypsy. That’s a good one to belt when one is mad…)

Anyway, off to read some more Dexter. I still have a ways to go…

Have a good one!

 

Spring Awakening is coming to MN right around my b-day… woot!

I have to see Spring Awakening again, there is no question about that. And it’s coming to the Twin Cities right around my birthday… Happy Birthday to me 🙂 Tickets go on sale soon… I will be ready. Oh yes, I will be ready.

I actually had a decent night’s sleep last night, which was nice. I got up around 9 and quickly ate some yogurt and fruit so my mom and I could be out the door by 10:15… we ran an errand and then went and saw Going the Distance. Even though I’m not a huge Drew Barrymore fan, I thought her performance in this film was one of her best. Is that because she was playing off of Justin Long? Perhaps. Is it because the script was great? Also perhaps. All I know is that I laughed out loud multiple times, the plot wasn’t cheesy, there were some really honest and vulnerable moments throughout, and it was altogether a very enjoyable movie to watch on a coldish September day. Well played, all around.

After the movie, mom and I dropped off some furniture and whatnot at the Goodwill and then came home to have lunch and play Yahtzee. I then checked to see if my Dexter Season Four DVDs were in yet (nope), so I opted to play outside with the dogs. Moose loves playing catch with her slimy tennis balls, so we did that for awhile on the front lawn.

Afterwards, I played ping-pong with my mom… we played 6 games and I lost them all. However, I am getting better and it’s only a matter of time before I start winning more than just once in a blue moon.

I didn’t get any school work done today – I had a massive headache and just before I came down to my room to type this, I thought I was running a fever. The 98.6 on the thermometer proved me wrong, but I still have a massive headache and feel off. I don’t know what it is, but I’m thinking it has something to do with the change in the weather.

I started watching the 6th episode of Studio 60 but then stopped so I could help my parents make dinner. During said meal we watched The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard. It was pretty cheeseball, but there were a few funny parts. Everyone and their mom seems to be in the movie, so it was at least a great ensemble.

After the flick I played some Boggle with my mom while Dad watched Leviathan. I don’t like monster movies much (or genetically mutated fish as it were), so I didn’t feel like watching that with him. He must have just turned it off, as now I cannot hear it through the vent anymore…

Time to read a couple chapters of my Dexter book and then sleep. I hope to feel better in the morning 🙂

Have a great day!

 

I Love Rock N Roll

Tonight’s Netflix screening was Pirate Radio aka The Boat That Rocked aka a really great movie about Rock N Roll music in the 1960s 🙂 Great cast (Oh Philip Seymour Hoffman, how I love thee), well-paced script, and probably one of the best soundtracks I’ve ever heard in my entire life… classic music, man.

There was a thunderstorm around 2 am which woke me up, so I crawled out of bed to shut my window as rain was coming in. Then around 6:30 am my phone made the “You’ve got a text!” sound. If was from my BFF, but the text was not meant for me… hey, these things do happen 😉

I got up for realsies at 8:45 and played some Yahtzee with my mom while we ate breakfast. Then I went with her to Target to pick up the stuff that was on the list she made. We got home and had some pizza, played more Yahtzee, then split up to do our respective chores. She cleaned up the laundry room, vacuumed and did other tasks around the house while I tried to punch out more of my Literature Review… I got another solid page of single-spaced typing done (so really two pages…).

At 2:45 we met in the garage for some ping-pong. We played five games and I won the last one – woot!

By that time, my dad was home and he needed to run to Walgreens to pick up some prescription. Mom and I tagged along because then we were going to pick up some more stuff for my mom at Wal-Mart (blah) and stop at Half Price Books!! HPB is having a Labor Day sale – everything is an additional 20% off, which is nice. My mom and dad sold them some books and they ended up letting me get this AMAZING book that’s part of a series that I’ve wanted for awhile…

I got the 2006-2007 Playbill Broadway Yearbook!!! Between shows I saw on Broadway that year, as well as touring shows and shows that were still on Broadway that year, I’ve seen 18 of the shows in the book!! This one is the third annual edition and one day I hope to collect them all, but this is a great start! I’ve already scanned through it a few times and will read it more in depth tomorrow… it’s a theater geek’s handbook, basically. Soooooooo good 🙂

When we were done running errands, we came home and watched Pirate Radio. I’m glad my parents liked it – I was a bit worried when I put it in our queue. But, when it was done, they both said that it was good, so I’m glad I picked it!

Tomorrow my mom and I are bringing some furniture to the Goodwill and then seeing a movie. I hope to get some more of my Lit Review done, and then it’s a holiday weekend! I don’t know if my family has plans… we shall see.

I’m bonkers tired. I’m going to close this and read a couple chapters of Dexter by Design and then sleep, sleep, sleep!

Have a good one 🙂

 

EMMYS!!!

I am so freakin’ excited that the Emmys are on tonight, which is why I’m posting now as opposed to right before I go to bed… as right after the Emmys are over, I have to go to sleep right away because we’re going to the Minnesota State Fair freakishly early tomorrow morning. I will post my comments about the Emmys tomorrow.

Red Carpet + Emmys telecast = 🙂

BTW – Today is my parents 29th wedding anniversary…. AWWWWWWWWW! They are the cutest couple ever and they love each other so much its adorable. I’m super thankful for getting to spend this summer/fall/beginning of winter with them! I love my parents and are so happy for them 🙂

So, remember the time when I asked a higher power if I could sleep through the night? Well, that didn’t happen, but I did end up falling back to sleep and sleeping in until 9:15! What?!?!

I went upstairs and found my parents talking at the table – they had already been on their breakfast date and back! I gave them their anniversary and then had breakfast/got my ass handed to me in Yahtzee.

After taking a shower, I called my sister to discuss tonight’s Emmys as well as my upcoming trip to see her in a couple weeks! After living with her for four years, I kinda miss her! It’ll be nice to go visit her in Kansas 🙂

I got upstairs around 12:30 to find that my parents had eaten lunch without me… so I made myself a sandwich and watched the “Ballad” episode of Glee.

After lunch I got my ass handed to me in ping-pong… I think I lost 7 games to my mom. Yikes. After losing real bad, we went in for a drink. Then my dad and I went outside and played catch, which neither of us had done in years. My mitt is so old and falling apart… the lacing is broken in a bunch of places and the leather is frayed or flaking off. But, we had a good catch… I think I might go to Play it Again Sports and try and get a decent used mitt at some point. The one I’m using now was the one I used in middle school and the beginning of high school (my trusty Spaulding), but I swear I still have my Wilson mitt from end of high school somewhere. Hmmm…

My parents went out to the Fleet Farm to get some clay birds and such, then they are picking up pizza for the Red Carpet. I stayed home to put my laundry in the dryer and finish that job application I started yesterday. Right now I’m uploading music to my iPod and watching the Wicked portion of the PBS Broadway DVDs I got from the library 🙂 I have seen this part a bajillion times, but I could watch it everyday and still be completely engrossed 🙂 Wicked in playing in town at the Orpheum… I totally want to go see it, and maybe I will. I saw it up in Cleveland once, but I friggin’ love this show. “It’s good to see me, isn’t it?” Woot!

An hour and a half until the red carpet! I’m soooooo excited! Come on Glee, 30 Rock, Modern Family, Mad Men, Dexter and all the other shows I LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!

Have a great Emmys!!