Move Over Pixar

The new animated DreamWorks feature Megamind opened this weekend and if you haven't seen it yet you should.  Now I'm not normally one for animated films, I enjoy Pixar, but frankly I find their films to be highly overrated and often lacking in wit or subtlety.  For me Pixar often takes it just a bit too far whether it be with sentimentality on one end of the spectrum or with bathroom humor on the other. They are essentially Disney 2.0 and while that isn't a bad thing I think they get more attention that they deserve.  For instance I enjoyed UP and and found the opening montage particularly heartbreaking and the dog was also pretty hilarious, having a Labrador I could definitely relate to the retriever jokes.  UP was enjoyable, but other than that it wasn't anything special. The same can be said for WALL-E the first 20 minutes were breathtaking genius, but after that the rest of the movie is fairly weak and a bit preachy. 

Anyway enough about Pixar.  I went into Megamind not expecting much, I didn't think it would be awful, but wasn't really expecting brilliance either. But brilliant it was.  To start off this film has an amazing cast Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill and David Cross to name a few. And unlike some animated films that take actors' voices but smother their personalities Megamind managed the delicate balancing act of simultaneously allowing its cast to be themselves without letting any one personality overshadow the plot.  In fact this may be the best Will Ferrell movie I've ever seen, because while he's funny you don't spend the entire movie going "oh look at Will Ferrell hamming it up" in fact I found I was able to totally forget it was him and just enjoy the incredible dialogue.   The dialogue is incredible! It's funny without hitting you over the head or spelling things out, there were tons and I mean tons of jokes that you'd have to be in at least your mid 20s to fully appreciate and that doesn't even count all of the little details you could catch in the background, such as the nods to Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Maltse Falcon.

This film does something that I haven't seen in animation for a long time which is that while it is without question a kid friendly movie it's also peppered throughout with humor for adults.  Not just quick references either, really clever stuff that parents taking their kids to the movies will enjoy and 20 somethings looking for a fun night out will also fully appreciate.  So thank you Alan J. Schoolcraft and Brent Simons for realizing that if you're clever enough cartoons movies don't have to be written just for kids or just for adults, but can actually be written so that both audiences will equally enjoy them.

And if all of that weren't enough the animation itself is really incredible and easily rivals anything Pixar can do.  I saw Megamind in regular D as it were, although it is offered in 3-D and IMAX.  Honestly I don't think it needs either, the film can stand on its own without any gimmicks and I hope it gets the recognition it deserves. 

Happy Mustache --> :{D

Have you ever experienced that ever so disorienting feeling that time is simultaneously speeding up and slowing down?  A week will fly by in a blur and yet be packed with so much brilliance that everything that came before it becomes small and insignificant by comparison.  The past week and a half have been unreal, or rather they have been a new reality. 

I'm so happy it frightens me a little, but I think fear is a good sign.  Many of the things I'm most glad of having done frightened me at the beginning. 

a productive day

Okay so this post is in part just an excuse to post some lovely autumnal pictures and partly an opportunity to write a positive post.

I have a satisfyingly productive day today.

I got a decent start to my day. Allowed myself to sleep in just a bit, but was still up early enough to feel like I hadn't wasted my morning. First things first I finished decorating the house for Halloween, hopefully the rain/wind that started this evening doesn't wreck too much havoc. I particularly love the big spider that you can see climbing the tombstone. I got 3 of those total.

After putting the finishing touches on the decorations I spent a good chunk of my day studying. Pretty uneventful so I won't bore you with the details.


After reading for a few hours I got restless and decided to use some of the apples that I picked on Saturday to bake. I had planned to make pie, but I had to work at 6 today and I was worried that Pie would take too much time. For the heck of it I went online and just looked up "simple apple recipes" and found one that I decided would be worth trying. SUPER YUMMY! The recipe that I found online called them Apple Squares, but I'll have to think of something better to call them.

If you're looking for something to do with some extra apples here's the recipe, I highly recommend it, and I can be picky sometimes.

HERE'S ALL YOU NEED

• 3 large apples, peeled & diced
  
• 1 cup pecans, roughly chopped
• 2 cups flour (1/2 whole wheat, 1/2 all purpose flour)
• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup canola oil or natural applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350ºF degrees.

Prep the apples and pecans, set aside. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, soda, cinnamon and salt together. Make a well, pour in eggs, oil, and vanilla. STIR BY HAND. The batter becomes very thick. Fold in the apples and pecans until well mixed. Pour into a well greased pan. There's enough batter to fill one 9 x 13 inch pan. Bake for 40 minutes.

*Also just a note I used two 8x8 pans because I wanted to take one to work, I also used 6 small apples instead of 3 large ones, I didn't have any whole wheat flour so I just used 2 cups all purpose, and I sprinkled just a little bit of brown sugar on the top when I was done. In spite of all my little alterations or perhaps because of them the result was delicious, crunchy on top warm and gooey on the inside. Some recipes, particularly for desserts, need to be fairly precise. This is definitely not one of them. It was quick easy and as for amount of apple the measurements seem to have some leeway.

Okay, New Day

Where I'd like to be right now

So my frustrations of the last few weeks haven't really lessened, but today is a new day and it happens to be a beautiful fall day.

For the next couple of months I know I'll swing back and forth between stressed out / frustrated and a more mellow controlled I can do this kind of feeling. I am still deeply concerned about the changes at work and the only that is making me reluctant to look for a new job immediately is that I've never liked my co-workers as much as I do right now.

Halloween is coming up and I think I might put up some decorations this afternoon after I get a little studying done. I know that to remain sane right now I need to be sure that I feel I am using my time productively for studying, but I also need to allow myself little breaks. Whether for decorating for Halloween, or baking or just watching a movie, spending time with friends or just spending some time with myself.

Getting time to myself when I can take a break from the studying or whatever else I have on my agenda is really important to me, it allows me to just be for a little bit and feel good about myself. It does make it hard though because I feel guilty about not spending time with friends that I haven't seen in a while, it's not personal I'm not avoiding them, but sometimes even something as simple as going to get a coffee with someone else feels more like work than a break. I find that right now when I have a free hour I'd much rather just take the dog to the park or a walk, or work on some little craft around the house that I've been meaning to get to than go get coffee with anyone. So if you are one of my friends that I haven't seen in a while, I'm sorry I am, but this is what I need to do right now, for my own sanity. I promise you will see me again, in a month or two.

Right so this has been a bit rambling, but I was feeling reflective and I just wanted to get my thoughts down. Thanks for reading, and I hope I didn't bore you.

more misery at the book store

In less than a week work has dropped so much s@%t on us as employees that I'm starting to wonder if we're part of a psychological experiment to see just how far retail employees can be pushed before the snap.

I came into work last Thursday and there is a memo in the break room that starting later this month all of our janitorial staff will be let go and employees will be responsible for cleaning the store. Which means they will need someone to come in mornings and clean the bathrooms vacuum etc. I'm sorry, but actual cleaning staff gets paid very well there is no way I'm going to do their job for my pay. Starting on Sunday the entire back section of the store is being rearranged, not because the current arrangement doesn't work, but because someone at corporate needed to prove that they should keep their job. In fact the new set up is incredibly awkward and inconvenient.

And the final straw, today all of the lovely new chairs that we got in the break room (to replace the perfectly good couch we had) have been moved out onto the floor because customers "need MORE seating." I'm sorry but the people who sit in those chairs all day and don't ever buy anything should not be encouraged! Mean while there is absolutely nowhere comfortable to sit now in the break room. I honestly find the entire thing incredibly disrespectful to the employees. A good business has happy employees, they don't screw them and short change them at every chance they get.

I am so frustrated and unhappy right now. This job may not have been the best job in the world, but I didn't hate it. I didn't dread going to work everyday in fact sometimes I looked forward to it. I love books and I really like all of the people I work with, but now I don't know.

I am so stressed out and unhappy right now.

I feel like I'm under so much pressure right now, and I really don't know how to fix it. The wedding is over, it could not have gone better and the bride and groom both had a wonderful time, but I'm more stressed out than ever. The wedding was a distraction it helped to divert my attention and thus my stress.

Two part time jobs, constant studying, and working on applications/picking the schools I'm applying to. I haven't even picked all of the schools I'm applying to. My mother keeps pressuring me to quit one of my jobs, I'd love to quit one of my jobs, but I fear that while doing so would elevate some of my stress over not having enough time it would create new stress financially.

For almost a year I worked one part time job because I couldn't find either a) a full time job or b) another part time job with a schedule that would work around the job I already had. I finally found a second job last spring and it has been a huge relief financially because it has actually allowed me to put a little bit of money from each paycheck into savings. This is huge for me. See I'm living at home right now and working jobs that I have absolutely no passion for, and before I had my second job it was impossible to save any money, I was so frustrated. At least right now I may be unhappy, but I'm able to save money and that allows me to do things that I want to do every once in a while.

I'll be able to get more hours at my bookstore job over the holidays, but if this year is anything like last year those hours will significantly dry up in late January and then I'll be in the same position I was in last year at that time. One job making less than $100 a week. I would give anything to be able to quite my job at the wine store right now, but I know if I do the chances of me finding another job that will work with my book store schedule are slim to non so I'd be stuck yet again with only one job.

I just hate this I feel so trapped, just thinking about it makes me feel panicky and stressed.

who needs sleep?

I've been having the worst time getting to sleep lately. To start with I put off going to bed much later than I should because I know that as soon as the lights are off and my head hits the pillow it will fill up with the million and one things that are pressing in on me and stressing me out right now.

Some of these things I have a certain degree of control over, others, and these are the worst, I feel I have no control over what so ever. Or that no matter how hard I try it won't be enough. So I lay awake in bed trying to hold down all of the thoughts running through my head and just allow everything to empty out so that I can sleep. Eventually it usually works, but it's a struggle each night as my thoughts fight to push their way up, popping suddenly and without warning back into my field of vision.

I'm feeling frustrated and stressed out right now. Time seems to be slipping through my fingers like so many grains of sand and I just can't seem to hold on to it, or use it as I'd like to, as I need to.

can you hear me now?

So it's about that time again, time for a new cell phone. I don't know if anyone actually reads this, but if you're here reading this blog entry I am looking for suggestions and advice on what kind of phone I should get. I am currently a Verizon customer and I am on a family plan. I pay my portion of the bill, but because it is part of the family plan it is a fairly small amount.

I currently have a very low tech phone, it's just your basic flip phone it has a camera and all the jazz. It doesn't have internet and it doesn't flip open, have a touch screen, or have a keypad or anything like that. It has served me well, but there are very few phones that basic still available on the market and in any case I believe I'm ready for something a bit more high tech. I have only just begun to consider my options and so far I've looked at the Palm Pre, the Palm Pre Pixie, and a couple of Android capable phones. So I'm hoping that people who have these phones might be able to offer me their take on them. Also if you have other kinds of phones that you really like I'd be interested to hear about them too. Though I'm not really interested in a Blackberry phone.

Additionally, while it is less likely that I will actually change my service provider I am intrigued by plans such as Virgin's Beyond Talk plan which offers unlimited texting and internet usage plus 300 talk minutes for $25 a month. So I am open to the idea of switching plans if there is one out that that I see as particularly advantageous. And by that I mean cost effective. I don't have tons of money to throw around on cell phone plans, so I need something cheap that will allow me to send at least 500 of text messages a month. I don't actually talk on my phone that much, but I image I need at least 300 minutes of talk time.

This concern over cost goes for phones as well I get free and or significantly discounted rates on phones with my upgrade, so I'd like to get a either a one of the free ones or not spend more than about $50 on one. For example with my plan I can get the Palm Pre Pixie for free and the Pal Pre for $49.99.

So what do I do? Any suggestions?

a little bit about moi

Okay so it's 11am on Monday morning and I'm fueling up with a cup of coffee that requires me to set the coffee maker to 2 cups in order to fill it. I never used to be a coffee drinker, I don't know that I would qualify as one even now. I've always been rather proud of the fact that I made it through four years of undergrad and an entire M.A. degree without coffee, except as an occasional social activity. However, in the past month coffee has become my dear friend. Granted coming so late to coffee as a means to alertness I can still get by with one cup for an entire day, but that one cup makes a world of difference.

You see I'm currently in the process of studying for a big test I have to take in November. I've been preparing since this past spring, but it's crunch time now and the ability to spend hours at a time studying without falling asleep is crucial to my success.

In addition to constant studying I have two part time jobs, I'm planning a wedding for my little sister's best friend who is like my other little sister, applying to doctoral programs for the fall of 2011 and attempting to maintain at a least a small semblance of a social life.

The wedding is October 9th, so it will be a relief when that is over. You see this all started with me offering to do the center pieces and somehow ended with me planning, well, everything. I believe the hall officially has me listed as the wedding planner. The bride whom I have known her entire life and love like a sister is currently in AZ and her mother's health has not been good for the last year, so I'm happy to be able to do this for their family, but it is definitely contributing to my stress levels.

I like both of my jobs, but having two part time jobs is stressful because you're constantly juggling your schedule. And even though almost by definition you need to have more than one part time job, each part time job you have tends to need you for the same hours because lets face it weekends are when most retail businesses need to most help. My first job is at a large corporate bookstore, which for legal reasons I don't think I'm allowed to name in a personal blog, so lets just say it's a Michigan based store and assume we all know what I'm talking about. My second job is at a small wine shoppe which only just opened this spring and I was lucky enough to get my foot in the door just as they were opening.

I really like my job at the bookstore, the customers are more often than not intolerable, but I really like the people I work with. I've worked in a couple of other retail stores before and by far my co-workers at the bookstore are the most interesting. They like to read (should be a given if you work in a bookstore, but you never do know), they're intelligent, and creative. This works nicely with my attempt to have a social life as I actually enjoy hanging out with my coworkers outside of work. Several of the people I work with at the bookstore are artists, my friend Katherine in particular is amazing and everyone should visit her website killmonkies.com. Her merchandise page in particular is great, she gave a couple of people at work her necklaces and now the store is practically a front for selling her jewelry, so check her out. She's also a very talented writer.

The wine shoppe is fine too, a bit more boring, but I'm happy to have the money so I can't complain

Anyway I am now done with my coffee and it is time to get to studying. It's Poe today so that at least will be fun, I like a good bit of Poe in the autumn as it gets me in the mood for Halloween.

Autumn Delights

I've been in quite the autumnal mood lately and as such I thought I'd share my reviews for two staples of autumn fun- Cider Mills and Apple Orchards (sometimes, but not always one in the same).

All ratings out of 5, 1= piss poor, 2= meh it as alright, 3= good, but not great, 4= really good, 5= Great/bestest ever.


Yates Cider Mill
Overall rating: 3

Here's the deal, Yates is a lovely cider mill with some really nice walking trails and a lovely seating area across the road by a river these aspects if not marred by some rather important details would easily earn Yates a 4. The only major drawback is that it gets incredibility crowded, particularly in the shoppe, and the crowds can make it feel a bit more like a packed in fairground than a quaint cider mill.

The goodies: Here is where things start to go down hill a bit. You can buy all sorts of autumnal goodies at Yates and I'll talk about what I consider to be the four essentials here.

1. Cider, I give it a 2.5 out of 5. Yates's cider is somewhat disappointing and is a little too close to apple juice in color and taste. I'm not sure exactly why this is, but it tastes as though it has been thinned out too much. I like nice dark cider. I am aware that cider varies in taste and yumminess throughout the fall and from batch to batch.

2. Donuts, 3 out of 5, Sadly I can't say I'm overly impressed with their donuts either. They are smallish and usually somewhat dry.

3. Apples, 5 out of 5 they sell bags of apples in their apple tent and I've never gotten bad or mealy apples from them. They have a large variety and are reasonably priced.

4. Caramel Apples 5 out of 5, I'm not sure what kind of apples they use for these, but they don't use the Red Delicious that a lot of places use which are almost always mealy and flavorless. Yates's caramel apples are always delicious and flavorful and one of my favorite fall treats.

Overall Yates isn't a bad place, they lose points for being crowded (although what cider mill isn't this time of year), and for what I feel is a sub par effort in the cider and donuts area two vital components to any good cider mill. On the other hand Yates is a lovely place for a date or an afternoon spent with friends.

Erwin's Apple Orchard
Overall rating 5 of 5
I love love love this place.

Located near Kensington lake Erwin's is a lovely little apple orchard and you couldn't ask for a better atmosphere. Wagons pulled by tractors take you out into the orchard where you can fill your bag with a large variety of apples and the friendly staff is great at filling you in on what kinds of apples are best for your different needs. Oh and they have a pumpkin patch as well!

Treats

1. Cider 5 out of 5, this is seriously the best cider around so much better than Yates. Dark and just a bit tart this is autumn in a glass.

2. Donuts 5 out of 5, warm and never stale these donuts are amazing. Not too small or too big I always end my visit to Erwin's with cider and donuts.

3. Apples 5 out of 5, you just can't beat pick your own.

4. caramel apples 5 out of 5, so delicious and they don't skimp on the caramel.

The Smell of Rain

Rain may be the enemy of summer picnics and days at the beach, but I don't think anyone can deny that rain possesses a certain magical ability to effect our imaginations.

Last night, sometime between 4 and 5am I was awoken by an earth shaking clap of thunder, the kind that triggers car alarms and sets dogs to barking. Thunderstorms always send a little thrill of excitement running through my body, as if the electricity from the storm is literally connecting to my nerve endings and pumping life into them. It isn't hard to see how Shelly came up with her idea for Frankenstein. I don't know how long the storm went on, I drifted on the edge of sleep listening as the thunder retreated into the distance. Eventually all that was left was the patter of rain in the leaves of the tree outside my window and an occasional far away rumble.

When I woke up this morning the air was still damp and the clouds were hanging low in the sky. I wheeled my bike out of the garage and headed to the gym. I love my rides to the gym, or anywhere really. Peddling down the tree lined neighborhood streets I'm always a little surprised by how lovely everything is, and how entirely I miss this sense of beauty when I drive.

Today was especially good for a bike ride, the air smelled of fresh rain and damp wood. Anyone who has ever gone camping in Northern climates will recognize it as the smell that the forest has in the early morning when the dew and perhaps even a little bit of rain from the night before is still hanging in the air. It was overcast, but there was a sort of glow emitting from the vegetation all around me. We've had the kind of summer that toasts lawns to a golden brown and renders sprinklers helpless to revive them. But autumn is creeping in, the last few weeks have been cool and we've been getting more rain. The lawns are looking almost revived lush and emerald green, the earth and exposed tree bark have been stained a dark rich brown by the rain and the first signs of autumn color is beginning to gild the crowns of some of the trees.



I will be sad when winter closes in and my bike is longer be an appropriate mode of transportation.

Halloween

Okay SO I know that it isn't even October yet, but I can barely contain my excitement for Halloween.

Halloween has always been a favorite holiday for me. I'm not exactly one of those people who would place it above Christmas, but that's mainly because I don't really see them as comparable. I love Christmas and I love Halloween, for entirely different reasons. When I think of Christmas I think of family, a fire in the fireplace, a big meal, mulled wine, and of course giving and receiving gifts. When I think of Halloween I think of dressing up, haunted houses, parties with friends, cider, and of course sweet treats of all varieties.

Ever the purest I don't believe I've ever purchased a costume from a store. When I was younger I was blessed with a mother who could not only sew, but who was/is endowed with incredible patience. We would go to the fabric store every year at the end of summer and look for a pattern. Precocious child that I was I always knew exactly what I wanted and there was never a pattern which fit my imagination exactly, so my mother would alter whatever pattern we found that was the closest to my "vision."

Now that I am in my mid twenties I am no less difficult to please when it comes to possessing the perfect costume. The only difference is that my mother has been relieved of her seamstress duties, and I now create my own costumes. Though I posses little of her skill with the sewing machine I have developed over years of imagination games as a child and theatre in my adult life a knack for trolling thrift stores and ebay. I search out different pieces which with the help of a little needle and thread and perhaps a hot glue gun can be transformed into fantastical costumes.

When it comes to costumes, creativity is a must. If you want to look sexy fine, but you'd better find a clever way to do it or chances are I'll think less of you. I'll admit I have my vanities just like everyone else. I want to look good in my costume, but looking good doesn't mean buying some super slutastic costume online and calling it a day. Looking good means coming up with an actual costume and than following through to make it as authentic as possible.

What are you going to be for Halloween?

DIY & Guilt Ridden Sinners.

The Metro Detroit area has certainly not been lacking in weekend activities, having boasted at least one event in the area for the past three weekends.

This past weekend it was DIY Street Fair and the Funky Ferndale Art Fair. The two events separated by no more than the 20 yards or so that makes up with width of Woodward Ave. Last year, unaware that these were two separate events and unimpressed with what I found on the Western side of Woodward, I never ventured over to the DIY. This year I spent nearly 8 hours at the DIY never once feeling inclined to investigate the FFAF.



I have never had so much fun at an art fair before, generally I find art fairs mildly amusing at best. If anything I spend my money on food and grow increasingly frustrated as I drift from booth to booth searching in vain for something anything that interests me. What I liked about DIY was that it is less professional than your typical art fair, and I mean that in the best possible way. Most art fairs have a whole lot of professional to semi professional artists selling prints, enormous sculptures or glass work coasting somewhere in the hundreds. Or they have jewelry made from glass beads, which is usually quite lovely, but that only a grandmother would see as fashionable. In any case I usually find that the items on offer at art fairs are either out of my price range or not to my tastes.

The DIY was entirely different, the art & jewelry for sale was youthful and interesting. There was a lot of re-appropriated pieces where jewelry was made from pieces which had obviously been thrifted or scavenged from garage sales and remade into truly unique and fashionable jewelry. In addition to the many booths which I thoroughly enjoyed visiting multiple times throughout the day, there were food stalls from local restaurants, live music and the piece de la resistance: a beer tent boasting a wide selection of beers from 15 Michigan based breweries.

A brief note on the food, Treat Dreams a new ice cream / cookies / cakes establishment in Ferndale was there offering both traditional and more unique varieties of ice cream. I tried both the Honey & Lavender and the Sunday Breakfast (Maple ice cream, with bits of bacon and waffle mixed in, sounds weird, but is so good). I hope the keep these flavors in the store and that they weren't just for the DIY.

So as I went I took people's cards Here are some of my Favs: Mio Dio , Marcy Davy PrintMaker, Janine's pewter jewelry, Photography by Lori O'Connor, Dang Argyle, and last but certainly not least Courtney Fischer Jewelry. Most of them have etsy shops as well so definitely check them out.


Now lets shift gears completely shall we? I am currently undertaking the masochistic endeavor of reading at least the first two volumes of the Norton Anthology of American Literature. I am currently on the second volume and have reached Nathaniel Hawthorne's short stories, and yes The Scarlet Letter.

Now I read The Scarlet Letter and a couple of his short stories in high school. I had very little patience for them at the time and rather than skip them this time around I thought I would give them a second chance. Unfortunately I am no more impressed now than I was 9 years ago when I had to read them for 10th grade English. Although I am perhaps better equipped, this time around, to identify my disinclination for Hawthorne.

There are a few obvious reasons: 1. he isn't terrifically imaginative when it comes to symbolism I was bored with this even in high school, 2. He may have created several enduring female characters, but it is still clear to me that he didn't care much for women, and 3. He can simply be a tedious writer. Now I love Dickens a man who was lets face it paid by the word, but Hawthorne just doesn't do it for me. I think he sometimes get a little too infatuated with his use of symbolism and metaphor, he also takes a but longer than this reader would like in making his descriptions of people, places, things etc.

But what I have perhaps the most difficulty with is setting aside my feminist sensibilities so that I can read him without being annoyed. As a student of English Lit and History I will be the first person to warn against judging a historical figure or their writings from the standpoint of the 21st century. However, I do not believe that being from a distant historical time period exempts one from being the consideration of criticism. In addition to this difficulty the whole idea of sin and penance around which this story is woven is not something with which I am able to connect. I wouldn't call myself an atheist, but I'm not religious either. I suppose the word is agnostic, but since I rarely think about it I'm not sure that I'm comfortable with any label. The point is that while I realize that even Hawthorne was writing about a historical period with far stricter religious beliefs and practices than his own, I personally cannot help, but see the complete and horrific ignorance of the entire ordeal. I suppose one could argue that this is precisely what Hawthorne is attempting to expose, but my familiarity with his other work leads me to believe otherwise. He may not have felt as deeply about such matters as the puritans he writes about, but I do believe that he sees Hester as a sinner and that he sees her suffering as necessary to her redemption.

Anyway those are my thoughts for the moment, perhaps I will have more to say once I've finished it (for the second time).

Rubicon

Okay so I've been watching AMC's new conspiracy theory show Rubicon, and I'm enjoying it. It has a bunch of interesting characters and so far I find the plot intriguing, but I do have to admit some of my interest in the show may be a bit less to do with it's creative/narrative merits.

Lordy I love me those tall skinny boys (well men) and if that weren't enough to make me a little weak in the knees those curls just seal the deal... yum.

Okay I am now thoroughly embarrassed for myself, but it had to be said.

To be or not to be....

anonymous

Okay so when I first decided to give this whole blog thing a try I wanted to do it without relieving too much that would clue people in to who I am. I'm not really sure why, but I'm not entirely comfortable with sharing certain things in a non anonymous context. Particularly when I'm in a kinda depressed mood, I don't mind when other people do it on their blogs, but I always feel so lame about doing myself.

Anyway I am not currently depressed that is not why I'm writing this post.

I have been thinking a lot about how to use this blog, or if I want to continue to use it at all. Then just the other day I got a possible answer. I've used Yelp! for a good while, but never actually had an account. So this past June I got a user name and all that jazz or that I could write reviews, but the things is that on Yelp! reviews from new users get filtered. This is a really frustrating feature because what I liked about it was the interactive features. It has been over 3 months and non of my reviews are showing up and I put a lot of thought into my reviews and it is incredibly discouraging when they don't get used. So my thought is that perhaps I can share reviews of stores, restaurants, events and whatever else here.

Now when I came up with the solution to my Yelp! induced frustrations I realized that through these proposed reviews enough information about myself will inevitably be reveled, that if someone who actually knows me visits my blog they'll be able to figure out who I am. Anyway I've decided I'm okay with that and I will try not to let myself be self-conscious about that when writing.

Right so I'm going to give it a go. My updates may be fairly sporadic I'm not sure yet, I've got a lot going on in my life right now so I'm not sure how much time I will have for blogging. I think I'll start by adding some of my "filtered" Yelp! reviews to the blog.

I'm lazy...

So is it sad that I have a party to go to tonight and all I really want to do is curl up in bed with a book or my laptop and netflix?

le sigh, okay time to go tart myself up a bit before I hit the town.

I have to at least make an attempt to maintain some semblance of a social life..... Right?

some thoughts on love

You know that feeling of having a crush on someone? When just thinking about them is arousing and makes your whole body feel a little hazy.

Have you ever noticed how sometimes those feelings get a bit more conflicted as you get older?

I still get those feelings for people, but where in the past I might have spent hours day dreaming about them and trying to come up with a way to see them (why do you suppose so many of my crushes did and do live so far away?) I now have a little nagging voice in the back of my head saying "yeah he's great, but..." It's just growing up, it's having a few long term relationships and seeing how and why things don't end up working out. You start to see it and think "yes I'm very attracted to him and want to do unspeakably naughty things to him, but I know we aren't right for each other."

Don't get me wrong I'm not a cynic, if anything I'm a hopeless romantic. Which I actually think might be worse because I want big, enduring, passionate love. I want someone to share my entire life with and I want to still like them 30 years from now. I say "like" because it is my experience that you can love someone and not like them at all. I want someone who I will love, but I also want them to be my best friend. And yeah I know, that may be asking a lot, but like I said I'm a hopeless romantic and that's what I want and I believe I will find it eventually.

Trip no further, pretty sweeting;
Journeys end in lovers meeting,
Every wise man's son doth know.

What is love? 'tis not hereafter;
Present mirth hath present laughter;
What's to come is still unsure:
In delay there lies no plenty;
Then come kiss me, sweet and twenty,
Youth's a stuff will not endure.

An Experiment

So Alice Liddell is obviously not my real name, but I'm attempting to maintain a certain degree of anonymity, and besides I've always felt she was a kindred spirit of sorts.

I'm not sure if anonymity is even technically possible.

I suppose it depends what I write about.

I'm not sure what I want to write about.

I guess I'm just looking for an outlet, perhaps this will be it, and perhaps not.