Seriously, it's almost June? Huh?

How is it May 31st? Seriously? I can't believe that this year is almost half over already. Quickest year ever, in my opinion. Anyway, I've been meaning to update this blog for the past couple of days but frankly, I don't want my Mark Ruffalo picture to go away. I jest - sort of. Truthfully, there's not much to tell. Busy work week, and at night I've been trying to learn my lines for my improv show. My heart hasn't been in it much, but I really need to get the work done before the next rehearsal. Met up with my co-organizers for our summer theater program, and we nailed down the logistics for auditions and rehearsals for Into the Woods, and I'm looking forward to starting that in June. I am once again a person who exercises, after having fallen off that wagon for several months. I've been getting up super-early and getting a few miles in before work. All of my muscles hurt because they're like "hellooooooo - you can't just act like you've been doing this every day! we're not in shape right now!" so we'll see how it all goes. I'm pretty determined to stick to it (again). Oh - Junior's drinking out of the toilet. Gotta run.

My Hollywood boyfriend, part deux (I met Mark Ruffalo!!!)

OK, so as y'all know, I went to see Awake and Sing! in NYC yesterday, a Broadway play starring my Hollywood boyfriend, Mark Ruffalo. It was a great play - really worth all of the Tony noms - but the very best part was, Jen and I got to meet Mark after the show. A friend was able to get us backstage to meet and chat with him for a bit, and it was so great. He was super nice and gracious and normal and friendly, and I was so happy that he didn't disappoint me and turn out to be a jerk. I have a picture and everything, which I will post once I figure out how to do it. It was the best celebrity encounter I have ever had, and I don't think it will be topped soon! Oh, and also - he's super hot.

ETA: The picture.

It's the weekend, baby

I don't have to work tomorrow, so my four-day weekend starts.....................................now. Wahoo! The plans are as follows:

Friday: Enjoy the warm weather, despise the clouds, maybe take my dogs for a ride, go out with mom-in-law for dinner for her bday

Saturday: Going to NYC to see my Hollywood boyfriend, Mark Ruffalo, in the play Awake and Sing!, probably run away with him

Sunday: If I don't run away with Mark, I will be going to Lisa and Luke's fabulous joint 30th birthday party. Fun and merriment will abound.

Monday: Sit on my ass on the deck in the sunshine, read a book, enjoy life. Go to a meeting to plan summer theater program in evening.

The end.

Bright sunshiny day, part three

Today is the most perfect weather day ever.

(I figured you all deserved to hear me say that, since all I ever do is complain about the weather)

I'm Lost

So, big Lost finale last night. I did like it a lot. Greg, however, was screaming at the television, because he's decided the writers have no idea what they are doing or where they are going, and that they are just making stuff up as they go along. I told him he shouldn't watch shows like Lost if he wants everything wrapped up like a pretty package at the end. Shows like this are meant for big cliffhanger season endings - otherwise, why would we tune in in September? It answered some questions, posed some more, there was a good amount of action, and frankly, Desmond is a bit of a hottie, once you start really looking at him. I was happy.

Oh, this does not mean I have any idea what is going on. Because as usual, I don't.

Ugh.

I'm in fine form today. Not only am I getting a cold, I am also hungover from my night out with my theater peeps last night. Why did I think three Cosmolitos (like a Cosmopolitan but take out the vodka and add tequila)? Why did this seem like such a good idea? We had an awesome time. But I'm paying for it today. Ugggghhhh.


ETA: Oooh, oooh, I forgot to add that today, while painful, is also going to RULE, because tonight is the big LOST finale! Wahoooo!

%$#@!*^! weather

Oh my God, you guys. I am about to lose my mind. I heard the forecast this morning for the weekend, and where it was supposed to be sunny, hot and gorgeous, it is now going to be rainy on Friday and Saturday. I can't take it anymore, seriously. I'm moving to San Diego. Call! Write! Visit! I'll miss you.

My best friends (of the canine variety)

OK, this one's for Lisa, because she's annoyed that I'm not talking about my dogs. And I know I haven't posted any pictures, but I promise I will sometime soon.

I know I've referenced my dogs in the title of this blog, but I haven't talked about them much. So let me introduce you. I have two dogs, Junior and Jimmy. They have changed my life.

Junior is my Great Dane. We got him about three years ago, right before we got engaged. He was an adorable brindle puppy, about 18 pounds when we got him, all clumsy big feet. Now he's a 120 lb. adorable dog, and he, as those of you who know me know, is the number one pup of all time. He's truly a gentle giant - well, most of the time, unless he's chewing apart something that doesn't belong to him - and I think you could say he was my first real adult responsibility. No matter where we were, at some point, we had to get home to feed the dog or let the dog out. There was (and is) no way of going away for the night - or, God forbid, a vacation - without paying someone to watch the dog. I have lost countless shoes, t-shirts, even a diamond earring to this dog's curiosity. He hogs the bed more than you could possibly imagine, to the point where I think I'm going to have permanent back problems. His favorite snack is a long drink from the toilet bowl. But it doesn't matter - he's the best dog I have had and ever will have.

Jimmy is the newest member of our family. He is a Beagle-Pug mix and arrived on Christmas morning, after months of me trying to convince Greg that two dogs is better than one. He was only five pounds when we got him, and a bundle of excitable nerves. Where Junior was an extremely laid-back, tired puppy, Jimmy couldn't keep still, and still can't. He was so small that we could give him baths in a bowl in the sink, which was good, because it took him ages to housebreak and he was constantly walking around in his own poop (pretty, I know). He is about 20 lbs now, and has taken over the household. He follows Junior wherever he goes - he really considers Junior his best friend. He's very inquisitive - while Junior prefers to relax in a sunbeam, Jimmy is always - ALWAYS - checking things out.

Our house has dog toys everywhere, we are constantly vaccuuming up dirt and dog hair, we are constantly covered in drool, we can never go anywhere for long periods of time and I am up usually every single night in the middle of the night letting one or both of the dogs out, sometimes multiple times. I get the average sleep of a new mother with an infant, and now that spring is here, I have to be on the constant lookout for ticks. I can't eat a meal without standing up, because if I sit, they will just help themselves to whatever is on my plate, and we pay a fortune in vet bills.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.

They listen to me whenever I need to vent, and they instinctively know when I need some love. They listen to all of the songs I sing about them, and they are mini-celebrities in our neighborhood and beyond. They believe that no matter how big or small they are, they are lap dogs. They get so excited when I come home, it's as if I had been away for years. I wouldn't trade anything for that.

My Hollywood boyfriend

I'm very very very very excited right now, because I found out this weekend that I will be going to see my Hollywood boyfriend, Mark Ruffalo, in the play Awake and Sing! in New York on Saturday. Yes - I'm five short days away from seeing my main movie star squeeze live and in person. And he's just been nominated for a Tony too! He's so cool - not in that super-hot Brad Pitt kind of way (Brad was never my type anyway), but in a seemingly-really-nice-guy, I-could-see-myself-hanging-out-with-him kind of way.

Whatever shall I wear?

This makes me nervous.

OK, so, like, I didn't come to work packin' my umbrella today. This is the first time in weeks that I haven't had it with me. In fact, the 10-day forecast on weather.com has it so it actually gets super sunny and warm this week. (knock on wood, knock on wood, knock on wood). Please, oh weather gods, let it be true - because when I couldn't even see out of my windshield because of all of the rain yesterday on the way to rehearsal, I almost lost my mind. I've tried not to complain too much about the weather (yes, I actually have tried to restrain myself, although it may not seem that way) but I need me some warm weather so I can start wearing my new summer shorts.

So let us all keep our fingers crossed for some nice weather, so Amanda doesn't completely go batty.

Strangely quiet

So here I sit, on a Sunday afternoon (weather check - rainy, cloudy, crappy), instant-messaging with my friend Mike but with little else to do. I mean, I have stuff I can do - books to read, movies to watch, laundry to do, etc. But there is nothing I have to do, at least for the next couple of hours, until I head off to rehearsal for my improv show. This is weird for me - I'm usually running around like an idiot on the weekend, to the point where Monday morning comes around and I'm not sure where the last two days went. It's nice to have a few hours of actual downtime.

I think I'll go finish watching the movie Elizabethtown, which I watched half of yesterday, and really really didn't like that much. So we'll see if I hate the rest of it as much. I'll let you know.

ETA: OK, Elizabethtown seriously was one of the worst movies I've ever seen. And I'm fairly easy to please, chick flick-wise. But Orlando Bloom and, in particular, Kirstin Dunst reached new levels of bad acting. I did like Susan Sarandon, however. Don't waste your time, though.

I'm not bananas for the new...

Banana Coconut Frappuccino at Starbucks. I wanted to be. I sooo wanted to be. I love banana-y tasting things. But I had one this afternoon and it was...eh. It didn't suck or anything, but it wasn't all that, either.

And that's my official review on that.

Weekend Update

This weekend, I plan on really embracing the rain. I love it. No, really. Why would I want sun? Why would I want it to be nice? Why wouldn't I want to feel like I live in Seattle? Or Dublin? Those are very nice places. Sigh.

This weekend is a busy one. Well, more specifically, tomorrow is a busy day. I was invited to a bridal shower, a surprise birthday party, and a baptism, of which I am going to the birthday party and the baptism after-party. Sunday I have my first rehearsal for the improv show I am doing, so that should be fun. I wanted to see the DaVinci Code this weekend, but I'm waiting to see if Heather and I can actually make a plan to see it for next weekend, because I'd like to see it with her, if possible. I am hoping upon hope that the weather doesn't completely suck. I hear it's really going to be beautiful on Monday, which is perfect timing, because I'll be back at my desk at work that day.

Sweet.

America's Next Top Chef

OK, so I just watched my Tivo-ed episodes of America's Next Top Model and Top Chef. Here are my thoughts:

Top Chef - WHAT? Dave is out? I don't get it. I also don't get how Billy Joel's child bride is qualified to be a judge, but whatever. I LOVE this show so much, but I really wanted to see Tiffany go and have Dave and Harold be the final two. Oh well, at least Harold is still in there. I think it's hilarious how much joy I get out of this show, considering my main cooking device is my microwave. Or Wendy's.

America's Next Top Model - YAY! Danielle won. I think she's so pretty, although I liked Joanie too. As long as Jade didn't take it, I'm happy. I also think it's hilarious how much joy I get out of this show, considering, um, I'm about 8 inches too short to be a model, and also about 12 or 14 years too old. Among other reasons.

I promise once I'm done with all of these finales, I will restore my brain to its usual, mostly-intelligent self.

damn those hippies!

Why do I watch The Amazing Race? WHY? Half the time it's boring, every time my favorite teams are eliminated early, and this time, the super-annoying think-they're-funny-but-they're-not hippies won! I am very upset. I know pretty much everyone else I know who watches the show loved those guys, but they just came across as a couple of Fakey McFakersons to me. They just tried too hard, ya know? Either you're funny or you're not - and they were NOT.

At least Lost was interesting - what was UP with that boat at the end? Veeery interested in seeing the season finale next week.....

In awe.

So I'm sitting here, thinking, really thinking about the fact that I graduated high school FIFTEEN YEARS AGO next month. Fifteen years! Holy sh*t! And I graduated college ten years ago this month.

Where the hell has the time gone? I'm serious - what have I done? Besides the obvious go to college, get a job, get married stuff? I guess that's a lot - but it truly feels like I am the same person I was back in 1991, ready to, well, if not take on the world, at least party my last pre-college summer away. Which I did, and also successfully did many summers after that. But I don't really feel older - but I'm guessing back in the day, I must've thought 32 was quite, quite ancient.

Holy crap, I need a drink.

I'm a sucker for the stage

Well, once again I've broken my self-imposed theater hiatus (I think it lasted all of a week and a half this time) and have joined the cast of another show. This time it's a little different though - it's a group that does a "mob murder mystery" interactive dinner theater thing, meaning we rehearse the show and then do it whenever it's booked. The good news is, I'll get paid when we do it, which is cool. It's always a lot of fun and fairly challenging to do improv, and I've arranged it w/the director that if another, more traditional stage show that I want to be involved in conflicts with an improv show booking, I can bag out of the improv show. So for now, I've got about 10 rehearsals to go to before our first booking in July. Once rehearsals are done for this improv show, I will move right into rehearsals for my summer theater show that I will be stage managing - rumor has it we're doing Into the Woods. So, here we go again.

Me=sucker. And I wonder why I'm tired all the time?

OK, seriously, the tribe has now spoken.

A fairly good Survivor finale, if I do say so myself. I was never a huge Aras fan, but I'm glad he won over Danielle, because she annoyed me. And I had no idea that Terry was from Simsbury. Maybe I would have wanted him to win more if I knew he was a local boy. Nah - he was pretentious. Also, Aras looked a lot better when he was skinny and scruffy on the island. Now he looks puffy and weird.

In other news, Jimmy is now on the Old Navy dog mascot contest site, but Junior hasn't made it up there yet. And Junior is the one I think should win!

You can tell me to get a life any time now.

The tribe has spoken

Did anyone see Survivor last night? What? No? Why don't you watch it? This season is GREAT!

Of course, it came down to Cirie and Danielle in a tiebreaker fire contest, and now we don't know who will get kicked off until the season finale on Sunday. My hope is that Danielle goes, because I love Cirie, and Terry's being an ass but I still wouldn't mind if he won, and Aras used to piss me off but now I kind of like him too. Basically what I'm saying is, I don't really hate anyone in the final four! This is a big deal.

What? You don't care? Hmm.

TGIF

I mean, seriously. I'm so happy it's Friday. I don't even have anything exciting planned for this weekend. I have to buy my mother a Mother's Day gift, and we will be over there on Sunday, but other than that, I have no definite plans, which is wonderful. After a crazy week last week doing the show, and then this week just being insane at work, I need me some downtime!

Have a great weekend!

obsession

You guys, I am completely obsessed with Old Navy's new dog mascot competition. It is the cutest thing ever. I have entered Jimmy and Junior, although their pictures have not popped up yet. If you need a smile, check this out. And if you have a dog, enter!

rain, rain, go away

I just looked at the 10-day forecast and it has rain or showers every single day. How depressing is that?

I talk about the weather too much. I think I should re-title this blog Me, my weather, my life.

sad.

Today I went to a funeral for a five-month-old baby. Aside from my father's funeral, it was the saddest thing I have ever been to.

Rest in peace, Max.

Bright, sunshiny day, part deux

Can you tell I'm obsessed with the weather? I so am. I must check weather.com five times a day, look out the window at least as many times, and endlessly talk about the weather right now, what the weather will be like in an hour, tomorrow, next week, next year.

And while I love monitoring the weather, there are certain types of weather I despise. Snow is number one on that list. Followed by: cold, rain, ice, clouds, hail, sleet, hurricanes, etc etc. Can you see a pattern? My dislikes pretty much leave room for only one type of day I like: warm and sunny. I like to watch a big weather event long-distance (unless it's tragic, like Katrina - but even that had a can't-tear-your-eyes-away-from-it aspect), but I sure as hell don't want to experience it myself.

Today is perfection. It's about 75 degrees outside, with a small touch of humidity, and very few clouds to be seen. The kind of weather you see almost every single day in San Diego. Why don't I live there? As I sat outside at lunchtime, realizing how much the sun affected my mood and general happiness, I wondered why myself.

The day that never ended

This week feels like it's just one long day with minor naps in between. Between work from 8-445ish, then rehearsal from 6-11ish, I'm about ready to pass out. Last night I came home and crashed at about 1215 or so. About an hour later, I woke up to a noise that sounded like it was an alarm clock going off really far away. In fact, that's what it was - an alarm clock in Greg's office in the basement was beeping. So I woke him up and he went and shut it off. A half hour later, he woke me up with "Oh God, there it goes again" (God forbid either one of us wakes up in the middle of the night and leaves the other person alone). So this time I went down in the scary dark basement to find the menacing alarm clock. I ended up having to move a file cabinet that weighed about 900 lbs to unplug the offending clock, but we slept in silence for the rest of the night. All four hours we had left.

And I wonder why I feel like hell today.