Me, my dogs, my life.

2/13 randoms

2012-02-13T18:38:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday, friends!

Some bits and pieces:

I am so sad about Whitney Houston. Hers was the first concert I ever saw, back in 1987, at the Hartford Civic Center. (Side note: Kenny G opened.) I loved her so much – and in those days, she really was an excellent role model for my nerdy middle school-self. What a waste of a life, of such great talent. When I was watching her videos that were running all morning on MTV yesterday, I found that I remembered the lyrics to almost all of them, some that I have not heard in years and years. Bobby Brown ruined her life. (I know, it’s probably more true that she ruined her own life, but I think it would have gone much better if she didn’t get mixed up with him.) I’m much more upset about this celebrity death than I have been about any other, including Michael Jackson, and I think it’s just because I looked up to her so much during a particularly vulnerable time of my life. I feel like she betrayed my 12-year-old self. Weird, right?

Did you watch the Grammys last night? I didn’t. But I sure did enjoy reading everyone’s Tweets about them. I’m finding these days that I enjoy big pop culture events (Grammys, Oscars, Super Bowl commercials) much more when having a stream of clever comments about them to read on Twitter and Facebook. I didn’t have to watch a second of the Grammys to know what happened. Things I know I have to YouTube today are Adele’s performance and Jennifer Hudson’s tribute. Things I know I’m just fine with not wasting a second of my life on include anything Grammy-related having to do with Nicki Minaj and Chris Brown. Ooooh – I hate that Chris Brown. What a tremendous douchebag, and one that we should not be awarding. Ass. (Another side note: I stopped watching the Grammys in the late 80s, when Jethro Tull got the Grammy over Metallica. My hair band-loving high school self DID NOT APPROVE.)

Our New York plans for Saturday fell apart, as you know, so I ended up going to the movies with some friends on Saturday night. We saw The Vow. It was an adequate chick flick, and hell, I enjoy just going to the movies at all, never mind what I am seeing, but that Channing Tatum isn’t much of an actor, is he? It didn’t matter, we had lots of fun, and even closed down the restaurant bar we went to after. How bout that?

Valentine’s Day is tomorrow, so I am sending love and virtual candy hearts to you all. I loved Valentine’s Day the most as a child, and so that’s how I approach it. Just a fun day, a little bright spot in the dreariness of winter. I’ve always enjoyed it – even during the many, many Valentine’s Days I’ve spent single. It’s a Hallmark holiday, yeah, but so what? IT INVOLVES CANDY. And who doesn’t love candy? And isn’t that what Valentine’s Day is all about? LOVE OF CANDY? It is for me. Tonight we will be making cupcakes for Jane’s class and getting all of her valentines in order for her friends and teachers. I am sure I will have to taste test one of the cupcakes. Or three. OK, not three. Probably.

What’s up with you?

I am a whiny bitch/weekend update.

2012-02-10T18:12:00.002-05:00

Note: I am a whiny bitch in this post.

You guys. I’m so bummed! I came here to write my weekly (probably boring to everyone else, but whatever) weekend plans post, but I am looking at this space with very little to say. See, tomorrow I was supposed to go to NYC with my friend Lisa and get into all sorts of mischief, and instead, it’s going to snow so we had to reschedule. Sunday I was going to do all of the chores I normally do on Saturday, and it was going to be busy busy, but now I am looking at two days where, yeah, I have to do laundry and stuff, but I have no other real plans. Sunday is supposed to be exceptionally cold, so overall, it looks like we’ll be indoors all weekend as well. Bah. Humbug.

I’m just over it. I am so ready for spring. I don’t even know what else to say. I’ve been good about trying to stay positive this (admittedly, very snow-free and mild-ish) winter, but I’m just plain ready to move on now. I’m – dare I say it? – bored. I want to do a show. I read a possible script for a show we might do this spring. It got me really excited to start up another theater project again. I want to be outside. I want to go to New York. I want to see my friends more. I want I want I want. (I realize I sound like Jane right now.)

So this weekend I will do some reading, and we will watch some of season 7 of Entourage, which I am looking forward to, and I will try to prevent all of us from going completely stir-crazy.

It should be noted that I had a most excellent lunch today with my friends and former work peeps Dwayne and Beth. They make me laugh and laugh. And I had happy hour tonight, so that’s another friends fix. I just don’t like to do all of my weekend socializing before 6 p.m. on Friday, you know? (I’m selfish.)

What are you up to this weekend?

ALERT: Since I wrote this, but before I'm posting it now, Greg has decided he is coming down with a stomach bug. I am surely guaranteed one of those weekends where I desperately wish I could go to work.

hey girl, and other nonsense.

2012-02-07T14:09:00.002-05:00

I had a fabulous weekend up until the point I threw up on Sunday night, shortly after returning home from our Super Bowl festivities. No, it wasn’t from drinking; I seem to have a bit of a stomach bug. I stayed home from work yesterday but went back today, despite not quite being 100%. Thing is, as the new girl, I have to wait until I complete six months of employment before I can use any time off (sick, personal, vacation), so either I will make up my hours from Monday or take them unpaid. Let’s hope March 14 comes quickly (my six monthivarsary).

I spent a good deal of my weekend catching up on Downton Abbey, my absolute favorite new show. I know it’s not new, really, but it is to me, and I am completely and totally obsessed. I just want to live in 1900s England now – is that too much to ask? (Of course, this is obviously not really true, as the life of a woman during those times – whether you were a fancypants or a servant – was not ideal, but everything was so proper in a way I find very appealing. Obviously, I am in no way proper in my real life, so maybe this is just the stomach bug talking. Either way, I adore this show.)

I recorded Smash last night, and I certainly don’t have to explain to you what this is, as I don’t think I’ve ever seen a show more heavily promoted. What I will say is that it seems like it was created just for my own personal nerdtacular Broadway-loving entertainment, so I have extremely high hopes. I heard it starts off a bit slow, but picks up after a couple of episodes, and ratings were good last night. Never mind – if I can stick with the shitstorm that is Glee, I can certainly stick with this. And I know, I know, I could have watched it on iTunes for the past month, but I never got to it, OK?

And, oh hell, now that this is obviously just an update on my television watching, I will tell you that I am counting down the days until I get my Don Draper fix on March 25, when Mad Men returns after an EIGHTEEN MONTH break. Did you hear the premiere will be two hours? One hundred and twenty minutes of Don Draper? Please and thank you.

And speaking of completely hot guys, has anyone seen those Ryan Gosling “Hey Girl” memes around and about? This is my favorite favorite (as it speaks to my past job quite well, and my current one in terms of marketing and PR, and has made me laugh an inordinate amount over the past few days).

Hope you’re having a healthy start to your week. What’s shakin’ in your neck of the woods?

weekend. update.

2012-02-03T15:00:00.000-05:00

Well, I thought I’d lighten up the joint after the post about religion the other day with a little weekend update. Things are a little busy up in here this weekend. Here’s what’s up:

Friday: I worked, ran errands (including a trip to the mothership) and am soon off to happy happy, joy joy hour. Tonight we’ll probably watch Hangover 2, which I know isn’t supposed to be that great, but eh, we have it, and I refuse to keep these movies sent to me from Blockbuster in my house for more than a week before I send them back, watched or not. I was getting into the habit of hanging on to the movies for months at a time, which made no sense financially and, really, if I don’t watch something within a few days, I probably don’t want to actually see it. Anyway, after that it would not surprise me even a little bit if I watched another ep or two of Downton Abbey. That show has got me hook, line and sinker, as expected.

Saturday: Well, Saturday morning starts off bright and early with Jane’s first swimming lesson! Hopefully it will go better than the kindergarten meeting on Wednesday. (Short version: she really, really didn’t want me to leave her in the classroom alone with the teacher and kids. She bawled. She was the only kid in that class who bawled! Those other kids have nerves of steel! So I stayed. There we a couple of dads who stayed too. All of the other parents, including Greg, went to the cafeteria to learn more about HOW. IMPORTANT. IT. IS. TO. READ. TO. YOUR. CHILD. (spoiler alert: very.) At one point, while the kids were doing an art project, I told her I had to go to the bathroom and hung in the hallway for about 20 minutes, and she did fine. Baby steps with this, as I suspected. But UGH.) Anyway, swim lessons! Tomorrow night I am going to a fundraiser for a friend (actually, an ex-boyfriend now friend) who had to have a very unexpected heart transplant this year. He’s doing well, thankfully.

Sunday: Well, church. But you already knew that. And then Superbowl! Yay! My friend Heather is having her annual party. It will surprise you not at all to know that I don’t watch the game, really, but am obsessed with the commercials. The one with Matthew Broderick reprising his Ferris Bueller role makes my head explode with joy, never mind the VW one with the dogs barking the Star Wars theme.

And you?

that's me in the corner

2012-01-31T18:11:00.003-05:00

So here is the blog post where I get all churchy on your ass.

I’m seriously conflicted right now. You have no idea. Here’s what’s up.

I was raised a Roman Catholic. My mother took us to church every Sunday, we went to religious education classes every week, I made my first communion, got confirmed, even went to private Catholic school for seventh and eighth grade. Got married in a Catholic church. The whole thing. And I believed it all up until, I don’t know, my late teens.

Then I started to doubt things, as you do. But because I have all of this Catholic guilt instilled in me, my fear of burning in hell remains strong. So I doubt, but yet I still fear. It’s all very fun, as you can imagine.

I guess at the end of the day, I believe in God. I do. Everything else, I don’t know. I really don’t. I hate the Catholic Church’s stance on so many, many social issues. I haven’t gone to church regularly since my mid-20s. I went in spurts after that – before we got married for a while, and before Jane was baptized for a bit – really, just to show my face, so they would remember me. That’s pretty jerky and hypocritical, right? I know, I know.

But I do feel like something is missing, spiritually, in my life. I do miss taking a moment and just thinking and breathing and remembering and focusing. I try to do that every day but life is so busy and hectic and I feel like I’m doing myself a disservice by not addressing this part of me that feels neglected.

Oh man, I know I’m not making any sense here. Bear with me.

Something else that has been weighing heavily on me is how we plan to raise Jane in terms of religion. I got her baptized four years ago and she has not been back to that same church since. She has only been to church two other times, actually – once for my niece’s confirmation and then this past Christmas, when she kept asking if “the show was over yet.”

And then, the other day, she wanted me to check for dinosaurs in her room. (We routinely have to check her room for dinosaurs, robots, monkeys, etc., before bedtime. Hey, you never know.) I told her there were no more dinosaurs. She asked where they were. I said they were dead. She asked where did they go. And then, because it was late and, basically, because I wanted to watch “The Daily Show,” I said that they were in dinosaur heaven. And then she said:

“What’s heaven?”

I feel like I owe this kid something. I would never in a million years force her to believe anything – you can’t make anyone believe anything, anyway – but I want her to know the fundamentals of religion, and what our family has been brought up with, both Greg’s and my own. And then she can decide. I will make it clear to her what I agree with and what I don’t, and that it’s OK to doubt, but I know there is also something very comforting about religion, especially when you are young, especially if you lose people in your life. To believe there is something else out there is a very powerful thing. And when I’ve lost that, I feel very sad.

So next Sunday, I will start to take her to church. And next fall, I will sign her up for religious classes. And we’ll see where this thing takes us.

weekend recap.

2012-01-30T14:00:00.000-05:00

Well, I promised I would report back on the weekend, so here goes (I hope you’ve had a dose of caffeine – this is NOT an exciting post).

On Friday, Greg and I didn’t end up going to the movies – we went to dinner here instead. We had a gift certificate from our anniversary back in October. It was delicious, as always, in particular the Nutella Pie (OMG). I also got to hear about prom drama from my niece, who is a junior in high school, and who babysat Jane while we went out. Jane had a great time looking at the prom dresses in my niece’s magazine – total highlight of her night. I am doomed.

Saturday was basically an errands day – mall, Target, lunch, that sort of nonsense. We watched “The Rise of the Planet of the Apes” at night, at the recommendation of my friend and frequent-blog commenter Dwayne, and it was awful. I mean, the movie itself wasn’t awful, but I forbid myself to watch any and all animal movies, animated or not, and I have no idea why I thought this one would be OK, but basically I was sobbing at the end at poor Greg who had to listen to me go on and on about all the mistreatment of animals (specifically, apes) that happens in the world. Because all of the sudden I was an apes rights activist. A passionate one, at that.

Sunday morning I went to church. I plan on blogging about my feelings on Jane’s religious upbringing in another post – but I was raised Catholic, we got married in a very lovely Catholic church in our town, and I returned there for the first time since Jane’s baptism four years ago yesterday. It was interesting. More later.

Yesterday afternoon we went down to the boat to make sure it was doing OK in its winter home (Greg used to want to check on the boat weekly; we’re now down to once a month or so) and had lunch here. Then we went over to Essex to feed the ducks, and managed to get tangled up in the big crowds for their annual Groundhog Day Parade of Epicness. No seriously, there were tons of people out, and many of them were wearing very lifelike groundhog hats. It was slightly insane, but mostly awesome.

So that was my weekend. Nothing too exciting, pretty standard January weekend, but I’m glad we didn’t slop around the house too much, because that makes me feel like I’ve failed somehow.

One interesting thing that happened this weekend – Jane all of the sudden has a lot of questions about babies. Some things she shared with me this weekend included the fact that girl babies grow in mommies’ bellies and boy babies grown in daddies’ bellies, and also that babies make their way out by way of the mouth. So I set her straight on that, but man oh man, the questions are coming fast and furious right now, and out of nowhere! She hasn’t yet asked how the babies get in the mommies’ bellies but I can only imagine that it is coming soon.

This week features: dance class tonight for Jane, kindergarten visit on Wednesday, a show on Friday night, swimming lessons starting on Saturday, a fundraiser on Saturday night, and Superbowl on Sunday. Oh, and work.

Have a great week!

weekend update.

2012-01-27T13:21:00.005-05:00

Can I just say, as I stare out the window at the rain, that this winter rules? I mean, of course I still battle the seasonal affective disorder plague and whatnot, but I heard on the radio this morning that a year ago today, we were digging out of yet another snowstorm that dumped yet another foot of snow on us. So, rain? Yeah, I can take it. It’s going to be in the mid-40s this weekend. For us, that’s like early spring weather. I have worn my winter coat a grand total of ONCE so far.

(Has anyone noticed that I report on the weather forecast A LOT on this here blog? I think it’s a sign that I’ve gone and gotten incredibly boring. I’ve been toying with the idea of taking a break from the blog/twitter for a while. Do you ever get sick of yourself? I am a little sick of myself. Not sick of my life – sick of reporting my life. Because when I write it all down, I start to feel just a tiny bit like a boring, suburban mom-type person. Which I am. But I still want to allow myself my delusions of grandeur.)

That aside, it’s time for another weekend update! Here’s what’s up for me (this is going to be incredibly short):

Friday: This afternoon I have errands, then the weekly moms’ happy hour, then Greg and I are probably going to the movies – and I say probably because there is nothing playing that we both want to see, really, and this breaks my heart, because I simply adore going to the movies. Come on, movies! Stop sucking! If we don’t go to the movies we’ll go to dinner or something. Point is, we’re going out. And that, friends, is a very good thing.

Saturday: Nothing planned.

Sunday: Nothing planned.

No seriously – look at that. Two whole days with absolutely nothing planned. I am really hoping that means we fill the days with super-fun activities instead of slopping around the house watching TV and not showering. This is my goal. I will report back on Monday to let you know what actually happens.

And what are you up to?

things I am loving today.

2012-01-24T14:31:00.002-05:00

I was just outside doing my exercise bidness in the spring-like weather we are having today, and I was inspired to do a quick little list of the things I am loving today:

51-degree weather in January
Blue skies to go with that temperature
The fact that most of the snow has melted
Some good projects at work that are keeping me busy but not panic-attack-inducing busy
I have a babysitter on Friday night
Going out to dinner with some of my theater ladies tomorrow night
I am about to bring Jimmy to get his anal glands expressed (whoops - I think that belongs on Jimmy's list)

Are you loving anything today?

zillionth verse, same at the first

2012-01-23T13:51:00.004-05:00

I spent the bulk of yesterday half or completely asleep. I have had this recurring sinus-headache-something head pain that mostly sidelined me yesterday. All I could do was lie down. I’ve had this on and off over the past several weeks and I think it also is trigged by changing weather patterns (today we have ice and rain) and something going on with my sinuses. I don’t know. It sucks. I am not someone who sleeps in the middle of the day. I hate wasting weekends. But there you have it. It’s still lingering this afternoon.

So between Saturday’s snow, yesterday’s blah-feeling, and my complete loathing of the dreadmill, I didn’t exercise at all this weekend. Pair that with eating like shit, and I woke up today with a new resolution, AGAIN, to revamp my exercise/eating life.

I know last month I said I was doing really well with exercise, and I haven’t been a total disaster this month – but instead of going six days a week, I am instead going three or four – and that’s not good enough, not even close.

Unless it is truly freezing out, the cold air does me tons of good. It wakes me up and gives me energy. By the time I get home around 7:15 a.m. I have a clear itinerary for the rest of the day. I feel better about myself. And, best of all, I don't have to guilt-trip myself for the rest of the damn day.

Why do I give myself excuses, then? Sure, if I really don’t feel well, that’s fine. But I SHOULD have gotten on that treadmill on Saturday while it snowed outside. I really didn’t have any reason not to, other than my complete and utter hatred of treadmilling. No excuses. No excuses. No excuses.

And my eating is no good. Again – it’s not a total disaster, but I could be doing SO much better. Once again – it’s not good enough, not even close. I’m maintaining in terms of weight, but I still have that stooopid 10 pounds to lose, and I really really want it gone, even more than I want cookies. Unless a cookie is right in front of me. Then it’s all, why, helloooo cookie. But today! Today I avoided not one, but TWO boxes of donuts at work today. That's something.

Another Monday, another resolution to do better. How’s your day?

weekend update.

2012-01-20T15:01:00.002-05:00

So the snow came last night. And more is coming tomorrow. It’s finally winter in CT. And, really, I’m OK with some snow. But after tomorrow, I would like it to be 70 and sunny. Every day. OK? OK.

Despite the fact that the roads were slippery last night, I could not bear to go on that GD treadmill this morning – so I did my walking outside. And I maaay have pulled some strange muscle in my back from navigating the slippery roads and trying not to get hit by cars. But it’s STILL better than going on that blasted machine. (Well, until I get hit by a car, anyway.)

But it’s Friday! And I am exceptionally grateful for that. I don’t know why this week has seemed long, particularly since it’s only been a four-day work week, but that’s just how I feel, and there’s nothing you can do about it. My weekend isn’t really that thrilling, actually, so I’d really love it if you could share your plans in comments! I am already certain they are more exciting than ours.

Friday: Getting my hair cut this afternoon! Oh, it needs it so bad. Usually I just go in and get my bangs trimmed so they are out of my eyes, but this time I need the whole she-bang. Split ends are just not hot, you know? My hair is about as long as it’s ever been, maybe since high school. At some point I’ll cut the whole thing off – probably this summer. After that and assorted errands, it’s my standard Friday night happy hour – whoop, whoop ! – and then I believe the thrilling Friday night plans include us going shopping for a big-kid’s bed for Jane. It’s time to get rid of the toddler one. Ah yes – the thrilling life of suburban parents. I’m sure your envy knows no bounds.

ETA: I wrote the above paragraph before I went to get my hair cut. I am home from that now, and I am annoyed. It's a blah cut and it's expensive and I just found out my hairdresser lady is going to a different salon - locally, but still, this might be a chance to try someone new out. I've gone to her for the past 10 years. She's good and everything but maybe it's time for a change.

Saturday: The aforementioned snow will be falling for much of the day, from what I hear. Hopefully we won’t drive each other crazy from being trapped in the house. I have book club tomorrow night, where I will get to hang with my lovely friends and discuss this. (I liked it.) (Hopefully I will come up with more to say than “I liked it.”)(Because I like to pretend I have the smarts.)(Also, I've helpfully diagnosed several people I know with Asperger's, because I now consider myself an expert.) (I am not.)

Sunday: Going to see some friends in the morning, including one of Jane’s besties, and then going to go visit with my mom, who is returning this weekend from a week in Florida, during which she will have missed two snowstorms here. Jealous? Moi?

So, seriously, what are you up to?

I am a whiny bitch, winter edition.

2012-01-19T13:54:00.002-05:00

I had one of those mornings today.

A morning where I decided I am completely over winter.

I know, I know – our winter has hardly been bad. Not much snow at all yet (although we are supposed to get a couple of inches tonight, and then six more on Saturday), and it’s been pretty mild – lots of days getting up to 40. But still.

I try to go walking in the mornings, five or six days a week. I usually do three or four miles, depending on the route. This requires me to get up before the sun, layer up like nobody’s business, and head out in weather that most people try desperately to avoid. I can handle temps 18 and above (wind chill included). I used to go out in even colder weather, but now, this is what my limit is.

This morning, it was 12. So I had to head down to the dreaded treadmill. The dreadmill, if you will. I hate that GD thing. So much. I would SO much rather be outside, even in the freezing cold – it clears my brain, I see nature and shit (not literal shit) (OK, sometimes dog shit), and watch the sun rise. I can’t say I really enjoy it, because I loathe exercise and much prefer sleep, but it’s infinitely better than marching along on that *(!&*(&!()*& treadmill. Which we are lucky to have, I know, I know.

Also, this morning, I decided I hate every single winter thing in my closet. I hate my sweaters, pants, and dog-hair-covered coat. I hate my scarves and my boots, and I really hate my gloves. I mostly hate how dry my skin is. And itchy. I hate scraping ice off my car, and surprise patches of black ice.

It’s getting lighter out. I noticed this last night. The sky wasn’t completely black by 5 p.m., which is a vast improvement from a month ago. And at 6:30 a.m., the sky was lightening up again, instead of 7:15, like a month ago. Before you know it, I will be able to get out there in my shorts and t-shirt, at a sunny 5:30 a.m., the chirping birds cheering me along the way.

Oh, I can’t wait. Sixty days ‘til spring.

wednesday check-in

2012-01-18T14:44:00.002-05:00

Oh, hey, blog.

So it’s been busy round these parts lately. Last weekend went off great – Jane had a fun time at my in-laws’ house, and we had a blast at the surprise party in Jersey. We even managed to get there without going over the GWB, which we somehow always end up doing, and it always sucks (cue MUCH MUCH swearing from Greg). Tappan Zee Bridge, for the win! Anyway, it was so great to hang with adults, and sleep late (EIGHT O’CLOCK OMG, THE SUN WAS UP AND EVERYTHING), and see friends we haven’t seen in a long time. And, truth be told, it's just all around much easier to socialize when all the kids are with babysitters.

My little theater reunion on Friday night was great too. But man oh man, it made me want to do another show SO BADLY. I had a theater board meeting on Monday night, and we have plans to start rehearsing a show (a straight play) in March to go up at the end of May, and then a bigger musical in the late fall. So I’m really looking forward to being involved in those, in one way or another. I am such an epic nerd, I know.

On Monday evening, I took Jane to her friend’s ballet class – it was “bring a friend” day – and she adored it. If you have been reading this blog for a while, you know that Jane was in another dance class at a different studio when she was 3. I took her out of the class because she just wasn’t ready – she would leave class early all of the time, she wasn’t really paying attention – I think she was just too young. SIDE NOTE: I also couldn’t stand some of the other parents there. They were super-judgmental, and it drove me nuts. I just don’t like discussing body types of four-year-olds, you know? They are just kids! Shit!

But she had so much fun at this class – managed to stay in there the whole time without coming out to see me or use the bathroom or anything! I contacted the school yesterday to register her for the rest of the year, and I was able to get her in the same class with her friend. So that will be Monday nights for us until June. I’m really glad I was able to get my shit together and do this for her, because I know she was really wanting to. Plus their rehearsal space is super new and cool – it’s part of a larger performing arts center at a university, and I love it.

What else, what else – just going back and forth with a friend to figure out our July vacation, trying to get back into exercising (I have divebombed in that area over the past week or so, and I don’t want to lapse too long), trying not to let the dark winter depress me, and keeping my eye on the spring.

How are you this Wednesday?

PS I know I don't have a designing bone in my body, but I really wish I was at this right now.

weekend. update.

2012-01-13T14:00:00.000-05:00

It’s the weeeekend! Yay! I am exceedingly glad it is Friday. Here’s what’s uppity up:

Friday: After my standard weekly moms’ happy hour, I am having the cast/crew of the show I was in in the fall over for a reunion/DVD-watching party. So excited to see everyone again, I cannot even tell you. Not as excited to watch the DVD – I cannot stand hearing myself talk. SIDE NOTE: I always buy the dvd of whatever show I’m in/direct, but I never watch it. It stresses me out too much. I just want to let the show go off into the ether, you know?

Saturday: We are road-tripping to a friend’s 40^th birthday party. This has been quite the production to orchestrate this week, and features three visits from a dog-sitter, an overnight at grandma’s and grandpa’s for Jane, and another babysitter on Sunday. I mean, honest to God. We are going to be gone for, like, 26 hours or something. Why so difficult?

Sunday: Return from road trip, laundry, etc, etc.

Monday: Bonus day off for MLK Day! I have a theater board meeting Monday night, and I may take Jane to an open dance class in the afternoon.

And what are you up to?

class of '25

2012-01-12T13:39:00.001-05:00

So last night Greg and I went to a kindergarten registration meeting at Jane’s future elementary school. As you know (especially if we are friends on FB), I was a tiny bit freaked out about this – it’s not like I can’t handle her going off to school, of course I can – I just can’t believe we’re here already!

At this point, I’m mostly excited about it. The school seems great and the teachers seem awesome, as did the rest of the faculty that spoke at the meeting. They are BIG TIME encouragers of reading to your kid, every day, as much as possible, and as a huge reader myself, I am ALL IN.

Over the next few months, we will be returning to the school with Jane for monthly meetings/activities. This is great, because it gets the kids acclimated to the space and the teachers before they officially start in September. Of course, I had no idea that the kids and parents would be separated beginning at the next meeting, which is three weeks away….this should be interesting, to say the least. Not sure how great Jane will do going off with a teacher and a bunch of kids she doesn’t know right away, but maybe she’ll surprise me and just go with the flow. (SPOILER ALERT: She won’t surprise me. I know my kid.)

There is a part of me that is just so nervous for Jane. It seemed like a lot of parents already knew each other at the meeting, which makes me think their kids know each other too. Of course, I realized that they might know each other because they have older kids in the school too – not everyone is “one and done” like we are. I just want to make sure Jane has friends, you know? I don’t want her to be an outcast, all alone when the other kids are playing together.

In my heart, I have hope this won’t be the case. She certainly hasn’t had any trouble making friends at daycare. She has quite the posse there. I just wish they would all move on together to kindergarten – but unfortunately, that’s not the case. There is a neighbor kid down there street who will be in her grade, but not necessarily her same class. I'm such a nerd to worry about this stuff - I know - but I can't help it.

It really feels like we were here five seconds ago. They are not lying when they say it goes by super-fast. People say that shit all the time - "enjoy it, they grow so fast, blah blah blah" but man. Truth.

PS Nothing made me do a double-take more than seeing the “Welcome Class of 2025” sign when we walked in. WTF?!?! Won’t we all be flying in spaceships by then?

memphis lives in me

2012-01-11T15:17:00.001-05:00

So, I was wildly tweeting yesterday about my excitement in going to see the show MEMPHIS on tour with my niece. I had seen the show on Broadway last year and absolutely loved it – it was one of those shows where I knew very little about it going in, but going out I had tears in my eyes from the sheer talent of the cast. Their voices literally brought me to tears. This does not happen often.

It happened again last night when I saw the touring version. I would see it again tonight if I could.

If you are in the NYC area, I insist you go see this show on Broadway – it currently stars Adam Pascal, who was the original Roger in RENT, which is, as you know, my ULTIMATE FAVORITE SHOW EVAH. So it’s extra special good because he’s in it, I’m sure. And if it comes to a theater near you on tour, I absolutely insist that you go.

In the meantime, check this out.

spring in january.

2012-01-08T13:22:00.000-05:00

So yesterday was just one of those days that we don't get here in New England. It was something like 65 degrees and sunny outside - on JANUARY 7. It was unbelievable. We took full advantage, and spent the day outside walking around a local outdoor shopping area, went to the bookstore, and just enjoyed the feeling of the sun beating on our faces when, on the same day last year, we were getting another six inches on top of the couple of feet of snow we'd already gotten. We currently have absolutely no snow anywhere. We haven't gotten anything since that bullshit 15 inches we got in October. It's amazing.

I know it can't stay like this forever - it's at least 20 degrees cooler today - but it made me want spring soooo much. I've got my eye on the prize - and the prize is long sunny days during which I can wear my flip flops. Just a few more months....

Busy week ahead, including going to see this show on tour, Jane's kindergarten registration meeting at her elementary school (cue the sobbing) (from me), and prepping for our big trip to New Jersey next weekend for Greg's BF's 40th birthday party. SANS CHILD. Holy shit!

This sad little post is my attempt to get back into regular blogging, even if I don't have anything big to say.

weekend update.

2012-01-06T13:26:00.001-05:00

You guys! I always do this. I do a full month of blogging, and then I rely on pictures to carry me through the next couple of weeks. Sorry I've barely posted a word here since reverb, but I hope you've enjoyed my pics from Christmas and New Year's. I thought I'd ease back into this here blogging thang with a weekend update. Here we go:

Today: Resuming my daycare moms' happy hour this afternoon, after a bit of a holiday hiatus. Very excited to hang with the ladies again. Then we're off to the mall to get Jane yet another "special treat" for yet another full week of no crying at daycare drop-off. Sometimes I forget what I share between here, Twitter and Facebook, but she was having horrendous meltdowns at daycare drop-off, and it just sucked. So the teacher suggested a sticker chart - for every good drop-off she gets a sticker, and if she goes though a whole week without puddling on the floor in in an epic pile of tears, she gets a special treat. Sure as shit, as soon as we started this, drop-offs have improved drastically. So it's off to the Disney store yet again - but oh, it's so worth it. I thought sticker charts worked for shit - but I am a true believer now!

Saturday: It's supposed to be near 50 degrees (!!!!!) tomorrow, so maybe we'll head up to UConn to see the horses, cows, etc. Nothing like a big dose of manure stank to liven up a weekend, right? Then we are going out to dinner with the in-laws for my father-in-law's birthday tomorrow night. Lobster roll, here I come....

Sunday: I believe a couple of Jane's daycare peeps (and moms) are coming over in the morning, and then going to my mother's house in the afternoon.

And what are you up to?

auld lang syne.

2012-01-03T14:58:00.001-05:00

So we bid adieu to 2011 and welcomed 2012 with our annual Relaxapalooza at our house on Sunday. Please enjoy these most shitty of pictures, taken in the very last moments of my camera's life. RIP, camera. You suck. But the party was fun!

belated Christmas

2012-01-02T09:08:00.001-05:00

Please do enjoy some extremely belated photos from Christmas. Happy New Year, all!

reverb11 day 31: that's all she wrote.

2011-12-31T08:41:00.002-05:00

Today's prompt asks: Take a moment to think back on your reverb11 responses. Have you learned anything? What surprised you about this experience? Which of your responses was your favourite? (see - I even kept that Canadian spelling, Brad!)

Before I sort of answer this question, I wanted to look back at my last post of reverb10, which was this.

I toot my own horn extremely rarely. Sure, I promote the hell out of projects I'm involved with, but I don't really say many nice things about myself. But I loved my response to that prompt. It felt very right on for how I felt at the time. A lot of it is still true. Most of it, really. And I'm glad that my goals for 2011 were met. I really tried to balance my life this year. And we're getting there. We're getting there.

My life is great. It really is. I am so, so lucky. This horrible thing happened in my state last Sunday, early on Christmas morning. You may have heard the story. I've been thinking about it all week. It really doesn't matter how rich you are, how much success you have in your career, how many toys you have - the most important things rarely lie in those categories, although so many times it feels like they do. It's your family. Your friends. Your health. Those are the most important things. Unequivocally. I bet that woman, who lost it all on Christmas morning, would trade her life with just about anyone right now. It made me feel so sad for her, and so grateful for what I've been blessed with.

But back to reverb11. Because really, it is all tied together. Reverb is a month-long project that looks back on your year, your life, your goals, your aspirations. When it blew up two days before December 1, my Twitter pal, world-traveler and all-around great guy Brad took it over, with help from Brandee and others.

December is such a busy month. These people didn't exactly have time to take over this enormous project. But when Ms. Bell decided that, as part of her "work," she was going to let it go 48 hours before everyone was anticipating their first prompt, they jumped on it. And, quite frankly, made it better.

I've loved this year's reverb. I know some of my favorite writers - and you know who you are - haven't had a chance to really participate this year, but if this carries on next year - and I really hope it does - I hope they join back in. In my opinion, it was miles better than last year. Not to crap on last year, but I found many of the prompts repetitive. This year, that happened, like, once. And it was all Oh So Serious. The best part of this year for me was the mix of serious and not-serious prompts.

With what other project would I be able to sincerely talk extensively about how much I miss both my dad and Don Draper? My love of theater and my hatred of Glee? Forgiving myself and my epic trip to LA? A huge life-changing decision and my secret shame?

I've loved reverb11. I am excited about a little teaser in today's email, hinting at a possible upcoming project early next year. 2011 has been a fabulous year for me. My challenge to next year is to be even more fabulous. Bring it, 2012!

Happy New Year, friends. Thank you for reading.

Cheers!

reverb11 day 30: genie in a bottle

2011-12-30T19:14:00.000-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: If a genie could grant you three wishes for 2012, what would they be?

Well, I’m not going to answer this in any materialistic way. Like, I wish for a pile of money, or a closet full of new clothes, or an unlimited gift certificate to Target (ooooh….that would be amazing though…FOCUS, AMANDA). Here is what I would wish for – and, really, here is what I do wish for, genie or not:

My number one wish, prayer, hope to the universe today and always is for the good health of myself and my family and friends. Nothing else matters above this. Period.

My number two wish would be for the continued strengthening of the relationships within my little immediate family. Marriage and parenthood are two things that are easy at first – it’s simple to be best friends with the guy you just walked down the aisle with and that cute little baby to whom you just gave birth.

But as those relationships endure and lengthen, as we change and hopefully grow as people, as time passes, they take work. I say this not in a negative way – but in a truthful way. Nothing is more worthwhile than investing the time and energy into making your most personal relationships – the ones that are part of your life and your household every single day - strong.

I read recently the idea that marriage should not be work if it’s a good marriage. I could not disagree more. Life is long, hopefully (see wish number one), and all relationships experience highs and lows. If you say I am wrong, you are completely full of shit. So, yes, it does take work. And it’s crucial to make that work a priority – something that is sometimes easy to forget when your heat is broken or the power is out for days on end or the dog is sick or the kid is whiney or the daycare bill is due again or the water isn’t working or you're having car trouble or or or.

(Note: please do not take this to mean more than it does. It’s an observation. Greg and I are fine. My point is that it takes work to be fine. And sometimes I’m not great at prioritizing that work – something I’d like to improve in 2012.)

Same with Jane – in a few short years, if she follows the path of your standard teenager, she will think I’m the biggest idiot/dope/asshole she ever knew. But I’m hoping the roots of our relationship – which are developing now – are strong enough that when she comes out on the other side of that wretched mess we call puberty, we can be great friends. I love nothing more than hearing young women say their mothers are their best friends. Can this be a true thing? I hope so.

My third wish would be for a year bursting with creativity, whether it is a project I am personally involved in, or just a witness to. I want to read, see and hear great stuff. I would love to be part of a meaningful project or two …. or three … all to be determined.

What’s your wish?

reverb11 day 29: shake and bake

2011-12-29T14:48:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: Looking towards 2012, what can you do to shake things up a little next year?

Well, I think I shook things up a good amount this year, I would say. (Anyone want to hear more about me changing my job again? Anyone? Bueller? Well, suffice to say, it shook things up. Like a Polaroid picture.)

I find that life finds a way to shake itself up even when you don’t plan for it; at least, that’s how it’s gone for me. Good or bad, it seems to constantly change. For me, at this stage in my life, it has a lot to do with being a parent. Once you get the hang of taking care of a baby – BOOM! – she is a wobbly toddler. Once you figure that out, you’re potty training. Once that nightmare is over – look at that! – you have a REAL KID. In the middle of all that, you are trying to figure out your new identity as a parent, a person, an employee. It's constantly evolving. And 2012 will bring major changes, because my kid - the one that was born, like, ten seconds ago - will be STARTING SCHOOL.

Jane has been in daycare/preschool since she was three months old. That first day – whoa – was one of the saddest of my life. But I love that place now. So much. I love her teachers, I love everything she’s gotten out of it so far. I’m relieved she still has eight months to go there.

But I know it will go by in a flash. And then another major transition will happen again. Not just for her; for all of us. I’ll have new parent friends to make, new groups to join, a new journey to embark on, with my daughter. School matters, big time – to our whole family. And it will be good, but it will be different.

That ought to shake things up, I think.

reverb11 day 28: second verse, same as the first

2011-12-28T15:20:00.001-05:00

Today's prompt asks: What one thing do you need to forgive yourself for this year?

I thought there was a mistake with this prompt. I thought this was a duplicate of one that was sent out earlier this month. It turns out that that is not the case - but my answer is the same.

reverb11 day 27: in which I don't really answer the question

2011-12-27T15:04:00.000-05:00

Today prompt asks: Share with us the title and inside jacket cover of the book you’d most like to write.

And here we are, day 27, and I don’t have an answer. I really don’t. Here’s why: I don’t think I have a book in me (I am answering in terms of a fictional book; but I won't be writing a non-fiction book either. That's for the experts of....things, which I am not.)

Unlike so, so many of you talented bloggers, I am not a creative writer. I enjoy writing about my life, and about pop culture, and my various and sundry opinions (educated or not) about just about anything, but as much as I loooooove to read fiction – and plow through dozens and dozens of books a year – I don’t have a great, unwritten or unfinished novel in me.

I’ll leave that to you guys.

reverb11 day 26: what you own

2011-12-27T15:00:00.000-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: Think of one song that you turn to time and time again, and describe why it’s important to you.
Because I am a nerd, my number one go-to song is from my number one, all-time favorite musical, RENT.

I remember one particular morning welllll over 10 years ago – actually, closer to 15 – when I was driving to work. I was driving to work at my first real adult job as a newspaper reporter, from my first apartment, and life was grand. And as I barreled down 91 South in my (unbelievably shitty) Ford Probe, I remember the complete joy I felt when the song “What You Own” from RENT came on. I felt like I was flying. At the time, it was a relatively new soundtrack (this was probably in late ’97 or early ’98, and the show opened in 1996) and I had only seen the show professionally once, on Broadway, with my friend Hilary. I had already completely memorized the CD, and "What You Own" was then, and always will be, my favorite show from that show.

Of course, since then, I’ve seen RENT 22 times professionally, and a handful of times on a community level (before it re-opened off-Broadway this year, the rights were briefly available for amateur groups to produce).

Other songs from the cast recording have been incredibly meaningful to me in other ways, but “What You Own” remains my go-to track. I freaking love that song. I have no really deep reason why; it just kicks ass and brings me tons of joy.

Please have a listen.

reverb11 day 15: but how did he know!?!?!

2011-12-27T14:52:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: What’s the most memorable gift you’ve ever received?

Apologies in advance for taking this prompt kind of lightly. No deep and super-meaningful answers from me this week. But something that popped into my head was a gift I received, oh, probably three decades ago.

I didn’t grow up with a lot of grandparents around. Both of my grandmothers and one grandfather were dead before I could ever remember them. But my maternal grandfather lived until I was in 10^th grade, so I have some fun childhood memories with him. (Side note: I really do wish I had a grandmother around when I was growing up. It seems like a really special relationship for kids to have, which is why I make sure Jane spends lots of time with both of her grandmothers.)

So, anyway, I remember one Christmas when I was still in elementary school – maybe fifth or sixth grade – and my grandfather gave me a pottery set. Just a little arts and crafts thing for kids, nothing professional or anything, but HOLY SHIT, I was completely FLOORED. How did he know to get me such a cool gift!?!?!?!

See, I had wanted a pottery set, but never expected to get one from Grandpa – but there it was! He knew me so well! I was totally beside myself.

Now, as an adult, I know that either a) my mother told him to buy it for me or b) my mother bought it herself and he paid her for it (this is the most likely scenario). But she let him have the glory. And, friends, it was a truly glorious gift.

reverb11 day 24: baby, it's cold outside

2011-12-27T14:48:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt was super-easy, just asking for a one-line answer to the prompt: “Somebody has to say it.” But for some reason, I had it in my head that the prompt was “It just has to be said.” Which is a little bit different – the second one prompting a more personal response. (Or maybe not. I don’t know. My brain is full of cookies right now.) Anyway, here is my answer:

It just has to be said that despite my seething rage at the disaster that Glee has become – and, please, I encourage you to read my thoughts on it here – my very favorite Christmas song this year is “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” as performed by Glee cast members Chris Colfer and Darren Criss, and I have listened to it approximately eleventy jillion times over the past month.

SUE ME.

PS Despite my personal rule to never listen to Christmas music after December 25, I have already listened to this twice today (December 27). I am a BAD. ASS.

reverb11 day 23: I'm goin' back to Cali

2011-12-23T14:30:00.002-05:00

Today’s reverb11 prompt asks: Did you visit anywhere new this year? Any plans to travel next year?

Well, reverb11, I DID in fact visit somewhere new this year! I FINALLY got to go to the Los Angeles! And about damn time, thinks this lover of gossip mags and all things showbizzy.

I have always wanted to go to LA. You know….just BECAUSE. But Greg didn’t want to, because, in his words, “it’s gross.” See, he had been there before, and so it was all, been there done that, for him – but WHAT ABOUT MEEEEE? Even when we were in San Diego on TWO SEPARATE TRIPS he didn’t want to make the two hour jaunt north so I could try to spot some celebrities. (And, frankly, San Diego, which is where I will retire if I have ANYTHING AT ALL to say about it, is kind of hard to leave for any reason, so I couldn't really blame him.)

So last spring, when my work bestie Beth and I had the opportunity to spend a grand total of 36 hours for a marketing junket thingy (side note: sometimes, maaaybe once a year, we had to travel for marketing junket thingies) ("thingy" is an official marketing term) in LA. Never had we been invited to one of these things in such a fabulous location! And whilst it was completely INSANE to take two cross-country flights to spend a day and a half, including sleeping time AND working time, in Los Angeles, we were ALL IN.

I have written about this before – click here for pics and details – but I want you to pay attention to the second to last paragraph. I shall copy and paste it here, if you do not care to click over:

PS It needs to be said that I was soooo exhausted on Thursday night at the airport while we were waiting to catch our 10:45 p.m. flight (that's 1:45 a.m. for us East Coasters!) that I was laughing harder than I have laughed in about 10 years. I was like a lunatic - a drunk, stumbling, hysterical lunatic. People were giving me dirty looks.

This trip was truly one big giant you had to be there. But I will look back on it, and my time there with my Beth, very happily for the rest of my life.

PS We did not see ONE SINGLE CELEBRITY. Epic fail, LA!

PPS Please enjoy these additional pics, taken with my Blackberry.

reverb11 day 22: all the world's a stage

2011-12-22T13:07:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: If you could quit your day job and your quality of life wouldn’t change, what would you do?

Well, here’s the thing. I wouldn’t quit working, that’s for sure. Even if I didn’t get a paycheck – I’d work. I think I’d epically suck at being a lady of leisure. A few days a year, sure, but not all of the time. One of my epiphanies this year is that I actually like to work – that I have to work. As much as I’ve complained (here, there, and everywhere else) about being busy busy busy BUUUSSSSYYYY – I thrive on it. So, given the opportunity to not work at all, well, I wouldn’t take it.

But one project I’d love to throw my energy into (and, I assume, money, because we live in a fantasy land here, right?) is creating a theater space for my theater group.

When you don’t have your own space, you are at the mercy of the venues in your area. We pay a LOT of money to run tech rehearsals and perform on the stages in the local schools, and, although we do pay less, it’s still expensive to produce a show at alternate venues like community centers and places like that. It would be so ideal to have our own space – so every time we want to stage something, we don’t have to ask ourselves if we can afford it – if it will be the production that will shut us down forever.

It would take a TON of fundraising and grant-writing and educating and energy, but it would be so worth it, I think. I mean, we are lucky to have a rehearsal hall and storage space - but I want more!

That’s what I would love to do. Theater is one of my passions, as you know, and to help create a home base like this would be phenomenal. And I really do hope it’s something that I can help make happen, day job or not!

reverb11 day 21: party like it's 1999

2011-12-21T16:42:00.002-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: Tell us about the best party you attended this year.

Oh man, do I love parties. I really do! And one of my favorite parties last year was Relaxapalooza 2011.

I started throwing the annual Relaxapalooza party a couple of years ago. New Year’s Eve is kind of a bust for us since we had Jane, of course – we are typically in bed before midnight, although I really do try to stay awake to watch the ball drop (last year was not so spectacular, as I found myself throwing up at 11:50 p.m.). I mean, we DO go to our friends’ house and stuff our faces and have lots of laughs, but I wanted to get back into the tradition of having a big party to celebrate the new year. I just like new beginnings, you know?

So we started hosting Relaxapalooza at our house on January 1. This year's invite reads as such:

Let’s face it – we’re not cool enough to throw a New Year’s Eve party these days. But we can bring it on New Year’s Day like nobody’s business! This is meant to be a casual, laid-back gathering to relax and bring in the new year. Wear your PJs. Don’t shower. We don’t care. (Just please brush your teeth. We have some standards.) We hope you join us for food (think apps and desserts – remember, THIS IS NOT FANCY), friends, and most of all fun!

And, friends, IT IS GREAT FUN. I put a ton of pressure on myself to prep the house and yard for the big summer parties we host (Fourth of July and Jane’s birthday - both epic), but in this case, the idea of relaxing applies to both myself AND my guests. I mean, I clean the house, of course, but I try not to get all OCD about it. We get loads of frozen apps and desserts and just eat (mostly cheese-based and highly-caloric deliciousness) and hang and have fun. The kids play, trash my house, and the adults hang, and it is awesome.

Pretty much can’t think of a better way to bring in the New Year than that.

reverb11 day 20: thank you for being a friend

2011-12-20T13:41:00.002-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: What kind of friend were you in 2011? What kind of a friend do you want to be in 2012?

This is a hard one. A question better asked of my friends, I would think. I will say, as I have said already during this project, that my friendships are vitally important to my life. I love, love, love my friends, and I would hope that they would answer this by saying I am a good friend, a present friend, a loyal friend, a friend that is there when they need someone to lean on. This is the kind of friend I aspire to be, this year, next year, every year. I hope that the fact that many of my friendships are 10+, 20+ and 30+ (!!!) years long is a testament to the fact that I make my friendships a priority, even though it’s sometimes hard, what with working, and being a mom, and having a family.

So with that, some favorite pics of my friends throughout the year. (and I apparently really liked wearing that pink scarf this year, too.)

reverb11 day 19: blackout! (the generosity edition)

2011-12-19T19:05:00.000-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: Tell us about a time this year that you were moved by the generosity of others.

At the end of October, my lovely state got bitch-slapped by a Nor’Easter that dumped 15 inches of snow in my area, and took down trees and powerlines that resulted in nearly the entire state being in the dark for a week or more. And it sucked. Lo, how it sucked. We are on a well, so when we lose power, we also lose water. So all of the sudden it’s like you're camping. Inside your 40-something-degree house. With the added twist that it wasn't even Halloween yet.

Well, we got the hell out of there. We haphazardly packed, forgetting chargers and dog food and lots of other important things, and ran. We got the hell out of there so fast that we were driving over someone’s lawn to avoid the live wires that were crossing either side of our road. We didn’t want to get somehow trapped. When Irene (the hurricane) hit in August, we stayed home during the three-day power outage, save for one night in a shady hotel. We didn’t want to do that again – this time, it was freezing! And also, forcing flushes in your toilet every time you go to the bathroom isn't as glamorous as it sounds. And also not being able to shower. Or brush your teeth. Etc.

We headed to my in-laws, who live down at the shore. Only 45 minutes away, but wow, what a difference. They had maaaaybe a dusting of snow on the ground. Much more importantly they had running water! Heat! Power! It was glorious.

They took us in for five days. (Our power was out for six, but of course we had to stay home that first day when the storm hit.) They have a smallish house, and it certainly was not an easy thing to have a whole family move in, but they offered with no questions asked. My in-laws both work full-time as well, so to have four adults who have to get to work in the morning, plus a four-year-old who thought she was on vacation, definitely created some hectic moments. But we managed.

My mother-in-law was great. She made sure to stock the house with food we liked, entertained Jane, even babysat her one night so Greg and I could go to the movies. She went with us around the neighborhood on Halloween so Jane could trick-or-treat (something most kids in my area had to forgo this year). In a way, it really WAS like being on vacation – except with an hour-commute any time I had to go to work or rehearsal or come up for more supplies.

That week inspired generosity in a lot of people. All over Facebook, people who had generators or – miraculously - actual power were offering up their homes to anyone who needed it. The people I knew who did have power had full houses of friends and family who were without – it was a crazy, dirty, cramped, sleepover party for the bulk of the week for so many people.

It was awesome to see people be so nice to each other. It was inspiring. The moment our power came back on (perhaps one of the happiest days of this year) (no, DEFINITELY one of the happiest days of the year) I put the offer up on Facebook for anyone to stop by, warm up, sleep over, take a shower – whatever.

And you can bet your ass we bought a generator right after that.

reverb11 day 18: the lunch I won't have

2011-12-18T09:38:00.000-05:00

Today's prompt asks: If you could have lunch with anybody, who would it be and what would you like to discuss?

You know, initially I wanted to go a little bit lighter with this one again, like yesterday. And a list of people popped into my head: Michelle Obama, Trey Parker, John Hamm and Jonathan Larson, to name a few, all for very different reasons. Also, I wasn't sure if this was an "anybody living or dead" question. I was going to throw that question out on Twitter to see how other people were going to answer it, but the truth is, there is one person above all the rest that I want to have lunch with. And that's my dad.

Forgive me for being sappy. But the fact is, although he died nearly 12 years ago now, he's been on my mind a lot lately. Probably the holidays. I know a big sob-fest is brewing; I don't know when it will hit, but it certainly won't be convenient.

I remember the first Christmas after my father died. He died in February, so it was a full 10 months later. And my family had been doing a good job (after the intial couple of weeks) of holding our shit together for each other. I don't know why; for me, it was a matter of trying to stay strong for my mom, to try not to be another sad thing in her life, you know? That was my 26-year-old logic at the time.

Anyway, I remember Christmas morning. I went to a gas station across the street from my apartment and bought one of those cheesy wrapped roses, went to the cemetery and left it on his headstone, still totally holding it together. Then I remember walking into my mother's house, balancing laundry and gifts, and just collapsing in tears. I remember her hugging me, and I remember me saying, "It's just so sad." Because there was nothing else to say. I literally have tears running down my face right now, so sad for that version of me.

Holidays and birthdays and anniversaries have gotten immeasurably easier over the past decade-plus. The sadness hits at the strangest times. But I guess it's not strange at all to have a loved one on your mind during the holidays.

My relationship with my father wasn't easy. I've written about it before. We were just of two very different generations, two very different mindsets. Both stubborn Italians with dark hair, short stature and big eyebrows. I look just like him. And he was a super-fun guy. The life of the party, really. People loved him.

Anyway, I'm not answering the question. I'd love to have lunch with my dad. And I want to know what he thinks of me now. So much has happened since he died. I did a complete career jump from journalism to marketing. I lost a bunch of weight. I moved a lot. I had a couple of relationships, serious and not-so-serious. I met Greg, got enagaged, got married. What would he think of Greg? My parents were self-employed, and I always thought that was crazy. It's so hard to work for yourself. There are no excuses. And look- I married someone who is self-employed.

When my two older sisters got married, he walked them down the aisle. To each of them, right before they began that journey to the altar, he said something that made them cry. What would he have said to me? I would ask him that, at lunch.

I would love to see him with Jane. Could I invite her to this lunch too? She has never asked me about my dad; to her, I just don't have one. It's never come up, although I am sure it will, and soon. He would love her, of course, and I wish they had even a day to spend together. Just so I could get a picture of them, and put it up on my piano.

Would he be proud of me? This is mostly what I want to know. He questioned everything I did in my life. Every decision I made. And it pissed me off. And we fought. Of course, now I know he was just looking out for me. He wanted my life to be easier than his. But when you're a teenager, or an early 20-something, you can't see that. Now, as a parent, it's so clear. What would he think of me as a parent? So many questions.

I miss you Dad, so much. And I so much wish we could have this meal together, even though I know it will never happen.

reverb11 day 17: loathing, gleefully

2011-12-17T17:19:00.000-05:00

Please enjoy these two reasons to continue watching Glee

Today's (freaking awesome) prompt asks: Wo or what do you loathe and how have you expressed that in 2011?

May I just take a quick moment to say this is exactly the kind of prompt I was looking for last year? Something not so serious, sprinkled in with all of the reflecting and manifesting and what not? I mean, it's December, people - we're all going nuts. Sometimes you just have to lighten up.

Because of course I'm not going to talk about a real person I loathe or anything. Oh, no. I will take a moment to discuss the thing that I have probably complained about the MOST on Twitter this year. Yes, even more than the dreaded snow.

I am talking about GLEE.

Yes, yes - some of you are nodding your head, perhaps clicking away from the post because you cannot bear to hear me rant against this - comedy? drama? dramedy? WTF is it these days? - yet again. But I am nothing if not a lover of the pop culture, and I have some very, very strong feelings towards this show.

See, when it came out a couple of years ago, it seemed like the IDEAL show for me. I'm a musical theater NERD (you know this). And here was this show, starring some Broadway stars (Lea Michelle, Matthew Morrison) singing and dancing their way through high school shenanigans? SIGN ME UP.

And for about six episodes, I was all in. Loooooved it.

And then it began to suck. Nearly every main character began to piss me off. Like, what is up with Finn's FACE? He looks stoned all the time! And Mr. Shu - oh God. He's so jumpy and annoying and his whole relationship with his compusive wife (I can't remember her name) irritates the living shit out of me. Have you noticed they both carrying lunch boxes to school? And also, remember at the end of last season some random dude in NYC basically convinced him he could have a Broadway career after hearing him sing by himself in a dark theater? But he decided to give up on his dream and continue running glee club? I mean...WTF? I know I'm not really making any sense, but he annoys the ever-loving shit out of me.

As does Rachel, played by the other Broadway star, Lea Michelle. Now, I know I am not alone in my disgust of Rachel. There is truly nothing at all appealing about her character. I want to punch her most of the time. Oh, and what the hell is going on with Quinn? I mean - whatever they did to her this season to turn her into some sort of bass-ass rebel was a truly terrible idea. Her voice! What is up with her new deep voice?

Does anyone remember the episode last year where they all of the sudden were a bunch of in-school drinkers? They never drank at school before or after this ep, but to make all of the songs make sense, they had to create this assinine storyline. It really seems like the writers are given a bunch of songs, and then they try to squeeze some sort of plot around it. And it blows.

I'm not even going to get into how there seems to be a full orchestra hanging out everywhere, and that this Glee club has a bigger budget to produce than the professional theater I worked at up until recently. I can forgive that stuff.

It's the characters. The plots. It's the fact that Sue Sylvester isn't even really making me laugh anymore.

So why do I still watch this thing? I don't know. Mostly I hate myself for it. I do have a new crush on Blaine, so there's that. And then, every once in a while, some Broadway star will make a cameo that gives me great amounts of joy. Like Idina Menzel, and (this does not happen often enough) Cheyenne Jackson.

So, like a total asshole, I still sit there and watch. Loathing.

reverb11 day 16: community

2011-12-16T20:04:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: Online and IRL we’re all part of a multitude of communities. Tell us about one that moves you.

Well, I’ve already talked about my friends here on the internet and my friends IRL – two majorly importantly communities in my life. And I’ve drooled my love of community theater all over this here blog for the past month. So today I’ll talk about a new community that was established this year in my life – the daycare moms’ Friday happy hour community.

Oh yes. It’s true. I’ve become the mother who hits happy hour before she picks up her kid. But it’s not as bad as it sounds. I’ve become friends with a few of the other parents of Jane’s classmates, and one day a few months ago, someone got the idea that we should get a drink next door (there is a restaurant/bar next door to her school) one Friday afternoon. Always one to say “cheers!” to an idea like that, I suggested that very Friday. And pretty much every Friday since, three or four of us have been getting together for a drink and apps and hilariousness for an hour or so before pick-up.

This has become a really fun tradition, and a great kick-off to the weekend. I’ve gotten together with some of them outside of school for playdates and birthday parties, but sans kids, we just have a really great time where we don’t have to supervise anyone. Is there anyone more harried, stressed and, frankly, awesome than working parents? In more ways than one, I feel like I’ve found some awesome new soul sisters in this group.

reverb11 day 15: teacher

2011-12-15T12:57:00.000-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: Sometimes we find teachers in the most unexpected places. Who surprised you as a teacher this year, and what did you learn?

So, this morning I woke up to a kiss on the cheek. It was Jane, who then told me, “Mommy, you’re my best friend.”

Seriously. How cute is that?

As much as Greg and I are responsible for guiding Jane through these first years of her life, she has absolutely been a teacher to me over the past four years. She teaches me to stop. Look around. Look at the trees, or the way the light is hitting a glass to create a rainbow, to notice the shapes of the clouds, to inspect a bug on the ground. And balloons! How amazing are balloons? When you are four, nearly everything is worth stopping for, taking a moment for, and marveling over.

I’m a rusher. Rush rush rush, busy busy busy. It’s just the type of person I’ve grown into, and really, I’m mostly OK with that. In just being the typical, inquisitive four-year-old that she is, Jane has slowed me down. She’s reminded me of life’s daily magic. It’s there, and has been there, all this time – but we forget. We don’t look. Always on to the next thing, and thinking about the thing after that.

Kids are great that way. They demand that you stop – even when you don’t want to, or think you don’t have time to. They insist you take notice. Appreciate. Investigate. Enjoy.

This past Saturday morning, I was running around my house like a lunatic. I had overslept from staying out late after the show the night before, plus I had a show that night, a birthday party in the afternoon, and I needed to drag Jane to the mall to buy a present for said birthday party. At one point, however, Jane decided she had to do my hair. “Like a princess,” she said. So I found myself sitting on my bathroom floor, Jane mangling and tangling my hair, and taking a minute to just breathe. It was exactly what I needed.

To put it simply: Jane teaches me to not just rush through life - but to notice and find joy in the details.

reverb11 day 14: grateful? oh yes.

2011-12-14T13:16:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: What five things are you most grateful for from 2011?

Isn’t it nice that a bunch of things popped into my head?

1) Number one, always and forever, is the health of myself, family and friends. Cliché, perhaps, but it couldn’t be more true. My mother-in-law is a fairly spiritual person, and she says the only thing she will pray for is health. Nothing else matters, really. And certainly, it is the most important thing - losing my father 11 years ago (almost 12, now) taught me that. I have found myself focusing on health a lot this year – and really beginning to recognize what makes me feel good, and, more importantly feel gross (and avoiding the gross-making stuff - see, I'm a total health nut!).

2) The wide, diverse, and awesome group of friends I have in my life. Last night, on the Twitters, I complained about writing out all of my Christmas cards, and how my hand hurt, and blah blah blah. But you know what? I can look at that stack of 50+ cards and know that they are going out to people I truly love and care about, and that – hopefully – on the other side are people who care about and love me. No matter how snarky and sarcastic I can be with my friends, at the end of the day, they are hugely important to me. I never, ever express that enough. And, on that note, I am so grateful for all of the friends I’ve made through this blog, and Twitter, and reverb, and what not. You guys have made a big difference in my life, whether you know it or not.

3) I had the opportunity to direct my favorite comedy, Rumors. Recently on this here blawg, I've talked a lot about the show I did last week (which was total amazeballs, if you haven't heard), but back in the spring, I had the chance to direct what I consider to be one of the absolute most hilarious shows out there. What a treat it was to work with such talented performers, and laugh night after night at rehearsal – and get to stand at the back of the theater during the performances and watch the crowd respond oh-so-positively to our hard work. I truly love directing. I don’t know if it’s a control thing or what, but I love it, and can’t wait to do it again. And, boy, was I a lucky director with the cast and crew I had - I couldn't have hoped for better. One of my top-three favorite theater experiences to date.

4) I got to go away on two vacations with Greg and Jane this summer. The first was to my in-laws’ cottage at the beach in Connecticut (sure, it was only 45 minutes from our house, BUT STILL, it wasn’t OUR HOUSE- oh, staycations, how I loathe you) and then we rented a house in Rhode Island with some friends in July. That, in particular, was an especially awesome trip - it was like a week-long party with a view of the water - and we have plans to do it again in 2012. Can. Not. Wait. Also, for my previous gig, I got to go on two particularly awesome trips with my girl Beth - to LA and NYC. 2011 highlights, both. *NOTE: I will painfully miss trips like this when they come around for Beth and I can't go. I believe I shall hide in her suitcase. Do you think she'll notice?

5) I am incredibly grateful that during this reverb project this year, I am having a hard time thinking about times I’ve struggled and been sad, things I want to change, difficulties I’ve endured – this has been a GOOD year. And for that, I am profoundly grateful.

reverb11 day 13: what scared you?

2011-12-13T15:03:00.003-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: What scared you this year more than anything else? Did you learn anything new about yourself?

Well, I knew I would keep coming back to this. I was scared of changing my job. This was the biggest game-changer for me this year, and was the decision into which I put the most thought, most emotion, and most energy.

I was scared out of my mind. Scared that I would make the wrong choice. Scared that I would feel….less, because I was going part-time, you know? Parents – moms especially – put SO MUCH PRESSURE on themselves to do it all. We’re super-forgiving and encouraging of each other (at least, I know I am), but not so much of ourselves, am I right? We want to do it all. We went to have a career, a social life, time to ourselves, hobbies, the whole nine, while at the same time be a great parent. I want to, anyway. I know that I don’t want to work part-time forever. I like being busy – being crazy-busy, even. It’s who I am, who I’ve always been. I just don’t like being through-the-roof-insane busy. And nobody around me likes it when I’m that way either.

Like with most well-thought-out decisions, I learned a lot about myself. What I expected from myself (everything). What I wanted out of my life (more balance, more creativity, more fun). That I was brave (this was a huge leap). That I could actually still be a theater person, even if I didn’t work at a theater anymore (see: past two months). That my weirdo, spazzy self would be accepted elsewhere, that I would make new friends. That, if even a minor amount of effort is put into it, I can keep up all of the awesome friendships I made at my previous job. That I could pursue freelancing, finally (something I'm planning on going balls-out with next year). That life could be better. That, even at 38, you can make big decisions that can be hugely impactful. That things don’t have to stay the same, just because they have been that way for so long. That ruts are stupid. That change is great. That you’re never stuck if you don’t want to be. That surprising people can be an awesome feeling – especially if you surprise yourself.

Sorry if this is repetitive – I knew the job situation would crop up more than once during reverb!

reverb11 day 12: what don't you need?

2011-12-12T14:55:00.000-05:00

Today's prompt asks: What are 12 things your life doesn’t need in 2012? How will you go about eliminating them? How will getting rid of these 12 things change your life?

Wow. I have to say something – and this is going to be shocking – but I’m pretty happy with life right now. If you remember, during last year's reverb project I made FUN my priority word for 2011. And, even though I have never, ever assigned a word to a year before, I really stuck to this idea for the past 12 months. It was constantly in the back of my head while making decisions throughout the year. And I plan to continue that focus when the calendar flips. Now, it’s not like this was the very best year of my life, or anything, but the idea of thinking of 12 things in my life that I would like to eliminate seems daunting – so I will see how far I get.

1) Snow. My life doesn’t need snow. But what it does need are friends and family. And the fact is, the bulk of my friends and family are right here in CT, with me. Where it is cold. Where we will soon have snow (you know – let’s just pretend that whole 15 inches in October thing didn’t happen). (Oh, who am I fooling – it scarred me for life.) My ideal place to live is San Diego. And maybe someday that will happen. But as much as I talk about it now, I know for a fact it’s not going to happen anytime soon - by choice. So, looks like I won’t be able to eliminate snow after all. Cue the BIG DRAMATIC SIGH.

2) Shitty attitudes. From myself, or anyone else. I am super snarky (I know this is shocking for you to hear) but I really do try not to have a shitty attitude. I go there sometimes; of course. We all do. But it tends to make my stomach hurt when I’m all stuffed up with negativity. I know I'm not all sunshine and ponies - and it freaks people out when I am, frankly - but snark and sarcasm do not equal shitty - at least in my book.

3) These 8 extra pounds. (But hey! Now it’s 8! Instead of 10! Yay!)

4) My Blackberry addiction. I am addicted to this thing like oxygen. It’s pathetic. And I know it. I need to make a practice of leaving it at home sometimes. Stupid blinking red light is like crack.

5) Caffeine. HA HA HAAA there is NO WAY I am totally eliminating caffeine. But I have been having trouble sleeping lately and I think I need to go back to (once again) only having one caffeinated beverage a day. And more water. FINE, MORE WATER.

6) Excuses. Excuses for not exercising (although I have become SO MUCH BETTER at this lately. Proud of that.) and excuses for not writing. Who cares if my life is dull as shit? I can still make you read about it. : )

OK, OK, now I am just digging around in my head trying to come up with something else – so I’ll stop. Six things ain’t so bad. Wish me luck!

curtain call.

2011-12-11T11:17:00.001-05:00

So, the show went fantastically this weekend, and I have some serious post-show letdown, as expected. Everything about this experience reminded me why I love community theater in the first place - the challenge to myself, getting to perform, making great friends and just pursing something that I completely love. I am fused to my couch right now and getting ready to collect my Mom of the Year award for letting Jane watch TV all day. With that, please enjoy these backstage pics from last night (sorry if we're friends on FB and you've already seen them). I especially hope you enjoy my vintage 1970s dress from Act 1. Never have I felt more hottt.

PS I think I might direct the next show in the spring. Shhh...don't tell Greg.

reverb11 day 9 - how Don Draper disappointed me

2011-12-09T15:27:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: What was the one disappointment that has turned out to be a blessing in the last 12 months. How will this affect how you deal with disappointment in the future?

OK – here’s the dealio. I got, like, four hours of sleep last night, I have seven minutes to write this post, and my show opens tonight – so I don’t want to spend a lot of time thinking about the disappointments of 2011. The good news is, a big list of things didn’t immediately come to mind, so I’m going silly on this one – it’s Friday, after all!

So, last year (2010), after several annoying years of people telling me I should be watching Mad Men, and oh, I would love Mad Men, and, Amanda, you REALLY SHOULD WATCH MAD MEN, SERIOUSLY, THIS IS THE SHOW FOR YOU, I decided to give in and watch Mad Men over the summer, when there was nothing else on. So Greg and I started renting the DVDs, and were immediately hooked. This was a big deal, considering we watch maybe two shows together, because we never like the same stuff. But, lo, we became mightily addicted to Mad Men – which we nicknamed “The Don Draper Show.”

Side note: Jon Hamm, who plays Don Draper, is painfully hot. So, so much hotness. I mean, this didn’t even need to be said, but there you go. And he’s funny! Not on Mad Men, but in movies, and on SNL, and 30 Rock, and other things. He is my official TV boyfriend, for those of you keeping track. (Mark Ruffalo is my Hollywood boyfriend, and my Broadway boyfriend slot is currently open – although, really, Cheyenne Jackson would do nicely.)

Anyway, we blew through the first three seasons, caught up to the fourth as it was airing, and watched the rest of the fourth season in real time. And it was wonderful .

And then.

Then there was some sort of contract negotiation bullshit between the creator, Matthew Weiner, and AMC, the network that airs the show, and the season that SHOULD have aired this summer did not. The fifth season will not air until March 2012. What the fuck, AMC? I needed a dose of Don Draper!

BUT. Here is how that disappointment turned into a blessing. This past summer, I managed to get my hands on the iPad (Greg and Jane hog that thing), and realized that Netflix streaming offered Mad Men. So, for shits and giggles, I fired up the first episode – I thought it might be nice to see the gang again, if only for a few minutes.

You know where this is headed.

Several weeks later, I finished up watching ALL FOUR SEASONS AGAIN. And it was good. Good because I got my dose of Don, and good because I noticed things I hadn’t noticed before. And I’m totally primed for the fifth season, which starts in only – sigh – three months.

Maybe I’d better watch it again.

PS This video cracks me up. What?

reverb11 day 8 - joy to the world

2011-12-08T14:16:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: Take us back to a moment this year when you experienced pure, unadulterated joy.

Well, you can imagine my joy when I opened up my reverb email today – because this was one of the prompts I suggested! And even though I suggested it less than two weeks ago, the moment I immediately thought of happened more recently than that.

This past Sunday was a big tech day for my show. So before rehearsal, I was helping out with the transportation of props and set pieces, etc, from our rehearsal hall to venue. One of the things I do as a board member for my group is handle publicity, and one of the things I handle wearing that hat is painting a big sign for our town green and installing it a week or two before the show. Sunday was that day.

So there I was, driving Greg’s SUV, with this giant sign filling up the bulk of the car, squeezed in with other theater-related stuff, me stuffing the Arby’s that I grabbed in the drive-thru down my throat as a I drove to the green to put the sign in, and I just had this moment of joy.

Here’s why: I’ve been involved with this particular group for 15 years. I’ve done shows with other groups as well, but this really is my community theater home, in the town where I grew up. (I only live about 20 minutes away now.) (Pathetic, I know, but whatevs.) I’ve done all kinds of shows in all kinds of capacities, but I’ve also been handling publicity this whole time, which means since I was 23 years old, I have been hauling that sign to and fro, painting, re-painting, installing, taking out, in all kinds of weather.

So much of my life has changed since I started with this group in 1996, since I said, sure, hey, I’ll do props for Rumors, what the hell. This little group has seen me through the highs (getting married, having Jane) and the lows (my father dying), with a million hours logged in our rehearsal hall and various stages in between.

The responsibilities in my life have grown leaps and bounds as well. I used to do five or six shows a year – one right after the other – and now, juggling work, Jane and home, I’m lucky if I do two. And really, I am lucky that Greg is alright with me running out the door at night three times a week for a couple of months a pop. Unlike how things were prior to having Jane, it now affects him too, and keeps him at home while I go play with my friends.

But when I’m doing these shows - and, specifically, last Sunday, when I was dragging my old friend the sign to its appointed place on the town green – I feel like the same person I was when I was 23. The core me I’ve always been, all along, and always will be. And that version of me is pretty damn joyful sometimes.

reverb 11 day 7 - forgiveness

2011-12-07T15:14:00.001-05:00

(PS to yesterday's post: My friend and number-one commenter Dwayne is obviously very funny. There. I said it. Are you happy now, Dwayne?)

Today’s prompt asks: Who have you forgiven this year and what was the journey like that brought you to forgive them?

I will admit it – I almost bailed on this prompt. Nothing immediately popped into my mind and this week is so busy with my show, I didn’t think I’d even have time to half-assedly come up with something, especially on such a heavy topic.

But then I started thinking about it. And, like so many prompts that inspire reflection, it came back to me – or rather, how I see myself. I have said it here, and everywhere, time and time again this year – EVERY year - that I need to lose 10 pounds. I need to lose 10 pounds, and I won’t be happy until I lose 10 pounds, and then I will be the weight I want to be, I should be, and all will be right with the world.

Ever since I turned 12, and puberty settled in for a niiiiice looooong stay, I have never had the ideal body – and by that I mean, what society will tell you the ideal body is. I have hips, I have boobs, I have a stomach – one, that even when I weighed 20 pounds less that I do now, was never flat. I'm rather short. And although I’ve been this way for the bulk of my life – it’s like I can’t forgive myself for it. It’s just not RIGHT.

We get off on trashing ourselves, I think. I know I do. If someone says something bad about themselves, well, don’t we all just jump in and criticize ourselves as well, to somehow make them feel better? It’s so easy. I could name 10 things, off the top of my head, that I can’t stand about myself. That sucks!

Why don’t I look at the positives? I exercise, 5-6 times a week, sometimes every day. I do try to eat right, more and more as I get older, because I realize it actually makes me feel better. Sure, I have shitty days, as we all do, but I certainly wouldn’t say I live a sedentary, unhealthy lifestyle. So why isn’t that good enough? In fact, why isn’t that GREAT? Why can’t I forgive myself for being the way I naturally am? Why can’t I celebrate it?

I try to look at it this way – I need to be a positive example to Jane. I refuse to make it OK to trash myself in front of my daughter. She will be assaulted enough by the images thrown at her from all directions depicting what the ideal is – in the eyes of the media, or celebrity, or magazines etc, anyway. If she sees me exercising, and trying to eat right, and, probably most importantly, NOT MAKING IT OK TO SELF-CRITICIZE, maybe - hopefully – she will do the same for herself. Or at least see that it’s a possibility. That it's just a better way to live, to be.

So, I guess this year – and every year – I continue to make progress on forgiving myself….for being myself.

(this really was written off-the-cuff, and I have no real time to edit – I know it could be better, and certainly more coherent, but I wanted to post something.)

reverb11 day 6 - what made you laugh

2011-12-06T15:29:00.001-05:00

Today’s prompt asks: What made you laugh this year?

I couldn’t think of a specific situation that made me laugh this year (or, rather, I thought of too many situations, and I couldn’t pick just one), so here’s the part where I get dorky about my friends.

I have managed to surround myself with some freaking hilarious people. Yeah, yeah, my friends are supportive, and there when I need them, and blah blah blah, but most days, the most important thing they do is make me laugh. Life’s serious enough, right?

I have been best friends with the same girl since I was 7 years old. THIRTY YEARS. We grew up together, across the street from each other. She and her siblings remain my closest friends to this day. This is a gift, one of the best of my life, I am certain. And one of the best things about Heather is how funny she is.

Greg always knows that when I get together with her, he’s totally lost me. He knows I will just laugh and laugh at whatever Heather says, like I’m her personal laugh track. I don’t even realize it’s happening, but in retrospect, it’s true. He claims I’m never happier or having more fun than when I’m hanging out with Heather.

And she’s just one of the people that crack me up. Now that I’m sitting here thinking about it, I really do have a lot of ridonkulously funny friends. There are people who claim that I’m funny, but I pale in comparison to my peeps. Sarcasm is my favorite kind of funny. If you’re sarcastic, I probably love you. No - I definitely love you.

I am a huge proponent of finding the funny in a situation. I am like my mother this way – she always tries to seek out the humor in whatever is going on. And I have surrounded myself with peeps who feel the same way. What’s better than that?

reverb11 day 5 - five guilty pleasures

2011-12-05T13:52:00.001-05:00

Today’s reverb11 post asks us to name five guilty pleasures.

Well, first, let me say that I do not feel guilty about things that give me pleasure. But I know the intention here – not the BIG things, like family, friendships, etc – the small things in life that give you joy and maybe take the edge off.

Here’s five quick things that I love love love – none of which should surprise you, if you've read this blog for any length of time:

1) Reading gossip magazines and drinking delicious Frappuccinos and other tasty treats at Barnes and Noble (RIP, Borders).

2) Eating chips and salsa. Enormous amounts of it.

3) Reality television: The Biggest Loser and Survivor top that list.

4) Belting out showtunes in my car (currently The Book of Mormon)

5) Obsessing over nerdy theater websites like Broadway.com and Playbill.com.

Love it all.

reverb11 day 4: letting go

2011-12-05T13:48:00.001-05:00

Today’s post asks – what have you let go of this year and how has it affected you?

A major, major change in my life this year was taking a new job – something I would bet you’ll hear about several times this month, as it’s been very impactful. I first wrote about it here. Ooh, and some fun pics of my last day are here.

The decision to take a new job required me to let go of a very comfortable working situation. Yes, there was a lot of work and responsibility involved, and some crazy hours, and some over-the-top personalities, but I was in my zone. I knew what I was doing. I had been at it for over a decade. I knew all of the players, internally and externally. There were moments when I thought it would be where I retired.

While in my heart of hearts I knew taking this new position, in an entirely different industry, was completely right for me and my family, at the same time I had to let go of the comfort of my previous job, and it was extremely hard. I agonized over the decision more than any other one in my life – really. It was difficult for me to let go and take a leap into a new life – I had an internal debate going on for weeks. It kept me up at night. It made my stomach hurt.

But I am so glad I did. I have no regrets. I do miss my friends, but I still see them and am in contact with some of them every day. I’m still getting used to my new life – but I’m glad I took the risk and let go of my comfort zone. This was a huge part of my 2011.

reverb11 day 3 - a moment in time

2011-12-03T09:29:00.001-05:00

Today's reverb11 prompt is: Tell us about one moment that you lived in 2011 that you will never forget.

Well, I don't mean to cheat, but all you have to read is this post. A moment - a very, very loooong moment - that I will never forget. I just re-told this story last night. It's a good one, with thankfully a happy ending.

Damn dog.

reverb11 day 2 - my children will do it differently

2011-12-02T15:13:00.001-05:00

Here we go! Day two's prompt asks: If you could choose one thing that your children will do or experience in a different way than you have, what would it be and why?

I’ve had a lucky life. It’s true. I had a pretty blessed childhood, and my teen years were fairly ideal as well, although I never would have said that at the time. When I read this prompt, I read it to mean what about my childhood would I change so that my children (child, in my case) would experience it differently. And this is what I came up with:

An experience that I hope Jane has that I didn’t, to its fullest potential, anyway, is going away to college. In fact, I did live on-campus for my first semester of college, but I quickly decided to change my major to secondary education, and the best university for that degree was 20 minutes from my house. So rather than live on-campus, I commuted here. I paid for college myself, and it would have been insane to spend the money on housing if my own house was so close. However.

Yes, I loved college. Yes, I spent a decent amount of time on dorm room floors, partying, whatnot. But living at home - no matter how little time I actually spent there (basically just to sleep) - is just not the same as living away (as I well learned when I returned home from that one semester away).

Will it break my heart to see her pack her things up (very eagerly, I’m sure) and (very happily, dammit) walk away from us for months at a time? Oh yes. Do I have a lump in my throat RIGHT NOW just thinking about it? Maaybe. But it’s an experience I want for her so much.

I don’t want her to go too far. Greg went to UConn, which is about 45 minutes away from here. Far enough to live on-campus, but close enough for her to come home when she needs mommy. Or, far more likely, when mommy needs her.

Reverb11, bitches. Back and better than ever!

2011-12-01T14:57:00.001-05:00

You guys. YOU GUYS. If I could express how excited I was right now - well, I don't think I can. It's REVERB TIME, bitches!

OK, let's take a step back. Remember when I did Reverb10 last year? Well, while I found some of the prompts to be somewhat drippy and repetitive, this amazing thing happened as a result of that project: I made a shit-ton of internet friends. Like, real people, far and wide, that I've never met, but check in with pretty much daily. Which is awesome, because THEY are awesome. (I would name-drop here, but I would fuck it up and leave people out, and I don't wanna do that. So I am talking to ALL of you. Especially YOU.)

Chatter about Reverb11 started up a couple of months ago. People were getting excited. I was kind of back and forth about my participation, and settled on the idea that I would sign up for it, but only respond to the prompts that really spoke to me. Besides, December is BUSY (have I mentioned I am in a play? And I have rehearsal practically every night over the next week and a half? And that it's NEXT WEEKEND OMG. Plus Christmas, etc. etc.).

Anyway, Gwen Bell, who I will not link to here because right now I think she kind of sucks (mean, I know, but true) was the main organizer of the Reverbs over the past couple of years, and everyone had been instructed to go to her site to sign up for Reverb11. Which we all did. And then two days ago we all got an email from her saying, basically, too bad, so sad, I'm not really in that place right now, no Reverb for you, and FYI, I'm deleting the mailing list, so good luck with that. Oh, and plan your own Reverb in the next, oh, 36 hours.

But the thing is? It happened. Brad over at geekinhard.com is spearheading a Reverb, and I know there are others floating out there. And because it happened this way - that people I've become close to, over Twitter and blogs and some on Facebook, rallied and made this happen - is how I know that this is going to to be better than ever. I even submitted a couple of prompts - we'll see if they come through.

So, to make a long story short (too late!) (anyone?) - it is time to Reverb. Without further ado, here we go:

Day 1 - One Word. Encapsulate the year 2011 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word.Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2012 for you? If you did Reverb10 then bonus points for also re-posting your 2011 word from last year along with how you feel about that in retrospect.

I think my one word for 2011 is TRANSFORMATIVE. The word I chose last year for 2011 was FUN. And to me, compared to the nightmare of misery, depression, and anxiety that was 2010, the words "fun" and "transformative" are kind of the same. Perhaps my word for 2011 is TRANSFORMATIVELY FUN? 2011 and 2010 were completely different years. And for that, I am grateful, and proud that I was extremely proactive about it.

A major transition for me this year - this decade, really - was leaving my full-time theater marketing position that I had for 11 years to take a part-time marketing position at a college. Here is the story on that. This is a change in my life that I am still getting used to. But I do not regret it. I miss my friends, yes - but I don't regret the decision. It turns out it was right for me, and, more importantly, it was right for my family.

I have consistantly exercised for the past year. And while that 10 pounds I really want to lose won't budge, what HAS transformed is my mindset about it. I KNOW I have to exercise. This is not a choice anymore. As I head into my very late 30s, exercise must be a part of my routine as many days a week as possible. So when I wake up, I don't bargain or hit the snooze button or make excuses. I get up and get out, before the sun rises.

OK, so that part isn't fun. What has been fun this year? So, so much. I have made a huge effort to spend more time with friends. I directed my favorite play. I am currently in a play, and I'm having a complete blast. I have totally been consumed by the theater bug again. I went on vacation with my family. I went on vacation with my friends. I made fun a focus. And you can bet you ass I'm doing that in 2012 too.

As for my 2012 word - I'm not sure. This one might not make sense, because it's more of an action word than an overview word, but a word I want to become part of each day in 2012 is WRITE. It is time that I start writing more.

And what a sweet kick-off Reverb11 is for that. Join us, won't you?

line?

2011-11-28T13:06:00.001-05:00

(trying to blog more. so now you get a small rant from last night.)
So last night was the worst rehearsal I have ever had in my life, in terms of being a performer (vs director, producer, what have you). Greg and I got into a bit of a - tiff - right before I went, and I was distracted. I blew my first line, and proceeded to suck for the rest of the run of act one. Thank God that's all we ran - it was a short rehearsal.

It left me feeling completely unsettled. I KNOW these lines. I run them daily. We have seven rehearsals left. The show is next week. I have no idea what happened. I've forgotten lines before, sure, but not MOST of them, all at once.

Please pray to your friendly neighborhood theater god that this does not happen again. Back to rehearsal tomorrow night. We'll see....

black friday/weekend update.

2011-11-25T09:42:00.001-05:00

So, my Thanksgiving was pretty great, up until the minute I started throwing up at midnight. Watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in the morning (I'm sure all of my Twitter peeps loved my harsh critiques of the Broadway show performances - but if you can't snark about a parade, then what else is there?), and then headed off to my mom's in the afternoon for food and games. We play this absolutely ridiculous dice game called LCR (left, center, right) - it takes exactly zero skill but for some reason it's super exciting - we seriously end up screaming through the whole thing. We play for dollars - so I ended up winning about $50 yesterday. OK, OK, I won about $25 and I took Greg's winning's too.

When I was falling asleep I noticed my stomach didn't feel so hot - and then I woke up at midnight and puked. I HATE stomach bugs - I haven't thrown up since but I really don't feel great. Hoping against hope Jane and Greg don't get it, and that it was just a reaction to eating too much food? Or something? I don't know. Stupid.

Despite feeling like crap, I headed off to the mall this morning at 7 . Everyone thinks I am crazy (though not as crazy as those who were lining up at midnight!) but some of my key stores, like Gap and Disney, have some really great sales today. I did well at Disney, got a bunch of stuff for Jane, struck out at Gap, did well at 77 Kids (the American Eagle for kids), and ended up in line for about a million years at Urban Outfitters for one t-shirt for Greg. Seriously? I tried to be zen about the whole thing, and mostly was, but was really happy to leave. After that I ran through Sephora to try on perfume and came home. So not so bad getting a chunk of shopping done before 9:45 a.m., I say.

This is a busy weekend ahead, so I really hope we all remain healthy. Going to see some friends this afternoon, including one of Jane's besties, and then seeing some other friends tomorrow night. Sunday I have rehearsal. What are you up to?

PS I know I already tweeted this, but my favorite part of my shopping trip this morning was when I walked by two girls who looked me up and down, and then one of them said, "I don't like those boots." Never mind the fact that approximately 98% of the mall was unshowered, and a good percentage was wearing straight-up PJs. I was wearing a baseball hat, a UConn tee, jeans and my fake Uggs. Yeah, I didn't look my best, but REALLY? Fuck you.

Happy Thanksgiving!

weekend update.

2011-11-18T14:50:00.001-05:00

My friend Dwayne (yes, Dwayne, I will call you my friend, here, in public, on the internet. If you want to deny it, start your own blog.) reminded me today, via the Twitters, that I have not done one of my weekend update posts in a while. And since I've been such a shitty blogger lately anyway, I said what the hey. Here is what I am up to this weekend*:

Today: Counting down the minutes (71 to go) until happy hour with my daycare mom friends. If this is not the best tradition I have taken part in this year, I don't know what is. One glass of wine on Friday afternoon, right before pickup? Oh yes. Yes, please. After that, I'm off to my friend Jen's house for dip night, an amazeballs evening of friends and various dips. Dip is, like, my favorite thing. Well, after friends. So basically, best night ever.

Saturday: Chores, etc, during the day, and then at night I'm having another mess of friends over for game night. This has kind of blown up from a small gathering to more of a party. The best part is, I have no games here, except for Candyland. I just wanted to get this particular group of friends together. So I invited them, and then demanded they bring the entertainment. What?

Sunday: I've got rehearsal Sunday afternoon, and that's about all that is officially scheduled. Speaking of rehearsal - three weeks 'til show. Holy shit! I am having the time of my life. Every morning when I do my four miles, I do a brain dump of all of my lines. Out loud, in the middle of the street, at 6 a.m. Like a crazy person!

That's my weekend. What are you up to? Dwayne?

*Just got an email from one of the daycare moms. Her daughter, who Jane is besties with, is puking at school. So this whole intinerary could be replaced with : CLEANING UP PUKE.

empire state of mind.

2011-11-14T13:38:00.001-05:00

So as those of you who follow me on Twitter know (and know very very well), I went to NYC on Saturday with my friend Lisa. What was different about this jaunt to the city was the fact that we had no official plan when we got on the train. Pretty much every time I go to New York I'm going to see a show, which is great and everything, but it more or less keeps me in midtown the whole time, and the day is usually pretty structured.

This time was different. When I posted on Facebook that I was heading to New York for the day, friends of mine that live down there started texting and posting to see if we could meet up. So Lisa and I maneuvered around the subway system (mostly successfully, but not 100%, especially the part where Lisa almost got trapped in the closing subway doors after a last-second decision to get off) and met up with my old theater friend and all-around sarcastically awesome friend Mike in SoHo, my talented friend and former intern Bryan at NYU where he is studying theater, and my super-smart friend Melissa...well, let's just say that we were supposed to meet her for coffee in TriBeCa but instead ended up, after an EXTREMELY roundabout trip, back in SoHo and met her for drinks. Many of them.

It was basically a great day. Lots and lots of laughs, got drunk, got to spend the day in the best city in the world - what's better? These pics are from my Blackberry, so they suck, but enjoy anyway.

tgif. for reals.

2011-11-04T15:35:00.000-04:00

For those of you who follow me on Twitter, you know that we got hit with the freakiest of freak snowstorms last Saturday that dumped 15 inches of heavy wet snow, took down many many trees and wires statewide, plunging nearly a million customers into darkness for days on end, including us. We were out of power for six days, and lived down with our in-laws, who live at the beach an hour away. While INCREDIBLY grateful for their generosity - really - I was about as happy as I've ever been when the lights (and heat) (and water) came back on yesterday. Today I find myself incredibly exhausted. So I am here to say THANK YOU to those of you participating in my little 30 Days of Thanks project. Despite the stress of the past few days, I have been able to look at the bright side of each day. Hope you're joining in. Have a great weekend.

30 days of thanks - a November challenge

2011-10-26T17:28:00.004-04:00

OK, the blog has been quiet lately. I'm sorry! My little life is pretty repetitive these days - work, studying lines, rehearsals, family stuff, etc. So while I was just vaccuuming (did I spell that right? Nope, only one "c" - vacuum is such a weird word. Anyway - vacuuming - that looks funny) - aaanyway, while I was doing that, I was getting that nagging feeling in my gut that you get when you're avoiding your blog. Like - what if this it? What if I never think of anything to write about again? What if it's time to shut the thing down? And then I somehow jumped to the idea of creating a prompt for November.

30 days of thanks.

Each day in November, either here or on Twitter (@asg923) I will name something I am thankful for. It can be serious (family) or silly (CANNNDY) - just something quick to focus my energy before the true chaos of the holidays hits.

Will you join me? I hope you do.

a half-assed Tueday post. I mean, Wednesday. What day is it?

2011-10-19T06:26:00.001-04:00

Seriously, I had to think for a bit there on what day today is. I have not been sleeping well over the past few nights. We were away last weekend in PA to see some friends - had an awesome time, especially because our friends have two young daughters who immediately became Jane's BFFs for life (I want to go see Cam and Mia again...when can we go see Cam and Mia...whaaaahhh). They bonded immediately and wow, I can see why people have more than one kid. You're not the constant source of entertainment all the time, you know? This is not enough to convince my old ass to have another - it was just something I noticed.

Something else aweome that happened during that trip (besides the fact that we survived a 5.5 hour train ride to and fro with Jane) - our friend Jen's cousin is a professional chef. Who happened to have nothing to do on Saturday night. So he and his girlfriend, also a mighty fine cook, came over to cook us dinner. Homemade pumpkin ravioli. Short ribs. Mashed potatoes. A ridiculous pumpkin/chocolate chip cake. Holy shit. Delicious.

Anyway, between our travels and late rehearsals for my show, I have barely been getting 5 hours of sleep a night, and I think last night was less. Which today is really not OK, because I have to go do some voice recording for my job this morning and I feel pretty ugh. Fake it til you make it, right?

Speaking of my show - OMG, I am loving rehearsals so much. Like I said, I haven't been in a show since I was preggo with Jane - been directing and doing tech stuff since then - and I am having a total blast. I have been working my ass off this week to start memorizing my lines. That's the hard part, and wow, I really can't wait until they are all stuffed in my brain. My goal is to loosely have Act 1 in my head by Sunday, then next week focus on Act 2, and then I have another couple of weeks before we have to be totally off book for rehearsals. That script is a crutch, and I want to get rid of it - but there is a loooooong way to go before that. LOOOOOONG. But I love my cast and I am SO happy I'm doing this.

What's up with you on this fine Tuesday? I mean, Wednesday?

here comes the sun.

2011-10-11T15:25:00.001-04:00

We have been incredibly blessed in my little area of the world with a very nice stretch of weather over the past few days. We were due - OH, WERE WE DUE - and the temps in the 80s and abundant sunshine has turned this mid-October into mid-June, with the bonus of fall foliage and Halloween candy in the stores.

But, lord, is it getting darker. The sun sets at some point between 6-6:30, I think, and isn't up until after 7ish a.m. And it's only going to get darker, longer.

I hate this. You know I hate this. I've talked about it a million times. Nothing shoves me into the blahs faster than the everlasting darkness of the fall and winter.

BUT.

I am working half days now. So even though the sun sets early, I still get to see it. And in my new office, I have a window. A WINDOW. I see trees, and sun (and rain. and rain. and rain. but also sun!). Both of these things are game-changers for me. In a really good way.

Anything good going on for you this Tuesday?

weekend update.

2011-10-07T15:36:00.001-04:00

Friday Friday Friday! Yay! The forecast for this weekend is fantastic - mid-80 on Sunday (!!!), and I am psyched. Plus, Monday off for Columbus Day! Here's the plan:

Friday: In just a little bit, I am heading out to happy hour with some daycare moms, our new tradition. It is awesome. Don't worry, I only have one drink, and I usually don't even finish it. Then Jane and I are going over my friends' house for pizza and fun times.

Saturday: I am debating bringing Jane to the fall festival I mentioned last weekend. I never ended up going with her, because my sister and brother-in-law took her instead. But I really want some apple fritters! We'll see. If we go, we will have to go very early, because we are supposed to go to a chili cook-off party in the afternoon, which is kind of far away. But, chili!

Sunday: Greg will be home! Yay! YAAAAY! Maybe we'll go to the boat? Not sure. Depends on how tired he is. Otherwise I am sure we will go on Monday. Oh, and on Sunday I will be incredibly jealous as my mom departs for a two-week cruise that will take her to Italy, Greece and Turkey.

All weekend: Celebrating the fact that the invisible fence guy came and fixed it, so my idiot dogs can be free in the yard once again.

What are you up to?

lost and found.

2011-10-05T13:51:00.002-04:00

So. SO. This has been...A DAY. Let me explain.

Greg left for Mexico for a few days this morning for work. Yeah, MEXICO (nice, right?). Now, we aren't work travelers - I used to have to do a tiny bit for my previous job but now I don't at all, but Greg, who is self-employed, has been ramping up his travel a bit. My point is, we don't have a typical routine for when one of us is not home for a stretch, and, frankly, it blows. Not only will I miss him to help me out with the two idiot dogs and Jane, but I'll just....miss him. You know?

I digress.

So off he went at 5 a.m., and shortly after, I started getting everyone up and ready for the day. Me: showered, hair, makeup, dressed; Jane, breakfast, dressed, properly-entertained whilst I do my preparations; dogs, breakfast, trip outside. We have an invisible fence in our yard, which is a beautiful, amazing thing. On those cold, rainy mornings, you don't have to stand there with your dogs on leashes as they ponder, very thoroughly and with great deliberation, where they are going to, you know, crap.

Yes, it is an amazing thing. Until it doesn't work.

At about 7:10 a.m., I was proud that we were making very good time. I would even have time, after daycare drop-off, to grab coffee before work. Perfect. Just before I get dressed, I open the door to let the dogs in. In comes Jimmy, and he gets his tick-check (once you have Lyme Disease, you become obsessive about ticks. TRUST ME). Strangely, Junior doesn't trail behind, so I go out and call for him.

Sidenote on Junior: If you are new to this blog, Junior is my beloved Great Dane. We have had him for over 8 years, which makes him extremely senior in the world of big dogs. See those big paws up on the masthead for this blog? Junior's. He is my first born dog-child, my love.

And, on occasion, the most monumental pain in the ass. This morning was one of those times.

I look around the yard, expecting to find him somewhere. And even when I realize he's not in the yard, I don't totally panic. The dogs have escaped the fence before - not a lot, but if lightning hits the wires underground, or the batteries in their collars are dead, they will sometimes realize they can meander past the zapping line. But they don't usually go very far.

Because I didn't want to leave Jane back in the house alone, I had to rush her into the car, strap her in, grab a box of bones, and start my drive around the block, arm hanging out the window shaking the box of bones, screaming "JUNIOR!! JUNIOR!!" and trying not to scare Jane.

A couple of trips around the block, and I started to panic. I headed back to the house to check the yard again. By this point, Jimmy was losing his shit in the yard, so once I determined Junior wasn't back there, I put Jimmy in the car, thinking maybe he would bark if he saw Junior (because he's useful like Lassie, right? Except, never). I quickly posted on Facebook that Junior was missing and if anyone was in the area and could they please look for him, and started around the neighborhood again.

Now, I really want you to picture this: at this point my voice is going hoarse from screaming. I am also really starting to cry, but trying not to, because I don't want to scare Jane, who has picked up on the mood and is now semi-crying too, telling me I should call Daddy. Jimmy is full-out HOWLING at this point, like the half-beagle he is, hanging out the window. I still am shaking my box of bones out my window, careening all over the road while looking for Junior, tears dripping down my face.

At this point, I have been looking for him for about 30 minutes. I don't know what to do. A friend of mine who lives nearby saw my message on Facebook and dispatched her husband to look for him as well. I realize I should call animal control. I stop in front of my house, pull out my phone, dial half the number, look up...

And there the douchebag is, in my neighbor's yard, about four doors down.

So I blow down the street, stop my car in front of the house, leave the driver's door open and car running, grab my box of bones and run to get him. Of course, despite the fact that he is approx 1 million years old in dog years, he starts leaping like a goddamned gazelle all over the yard. I finally catch him and grab him by his collar, and....

this is when he decides he is going to sit.

Junior is a 120-pound dog. Now, I do outweigh him, and I'm no wimp, but he is a strong son of a bitch when he wants to be. And he wanted to be. I COULD NOT MOVE HIM. I tried dragging him but was afraid of hurting his neck. After a while, I stopped worrying about his neck and tried to drag as hard as I could. Nothing.

So, now I am standing in my neighbor's yard. Flip-flops, muddy feet, old yoga pants, a tank top that is now covered in dog drool and snot, mascara running down my face from crying, with my car running down the road a little with my other dog and daughter inside. And this was my mantra, on a loop:

JUNIOR LET'S GO I HAVE TO GO TO WORK
Jane! It's OK! Mommy's coming!!!
JIMMY DO NOT GET OUT OF THE CAR
Can anyone help me?

Seriously, I was semi-yelling to see if any of my neighbors would come out to help me. My street is full of very very old people - although there are some younger people filling in here and there, which makes me very happy - and maybe because the weather was cold and their windows were shut, or maybe because they were scared of my big dog, or maybe because they were afraid of the crazy lady out in the street screaming - no one came out to help.

So I figured that my friend, the one who was out looking for my dog, would drive by at some point. So I stood there, holding Junior's collar. And stood there. And stood there. For, like, 15 minutes.

FINALLY, a (younger) neighbor from up the street drove by, saw the scene, and stopped. I begged her to help, which she very nicely did. She held Junior by the collar while I drove my car back home (just a couple of houses, remember), unloaded Jimmy and Jane, went inside to get cheese and Junior's leash, and ran back down to the scene of the crime to relieve my neighbor (who I now really have to bake cookies for).

And after a few minutes of desperately trying to show Junior who's boss (SPOILER ALERT: not me!), I got him to go home. And I got dressed. And I got Jane to daycare. And I was only 10 minutes late to work.

And that was my morning.

Fin.

PS It seems that the fence is down; must've been hit by lightning again. Ah, just another couple hundred bucks to get fixed!

Anyone want a free, slightly-used dog?

wish you were here.

2011-09-29T18:17:00.004-04:00

So, my family is doing some traveling over the new few weeks.

Greg is going to Mexico for a few days next week.

My mother is going on a Mediterannean cruise (Italy, Greece, Turkey) for a couple of weeks in October, and, oh, throwing in a couple of days in Rome at the end, just for fun.

My brother is going to Canada for a long weekend in mid-October.

Oh, and me? I am going to Pennsylvania - PROBABLY - for two days.

Which of these things doesn't belong?

two items of (possible) interest.

2011-09-28T15:26:00.000-04:00

Jimmy, enjoying the ride home

Here are the two things that I have decided to share with you today, to illustrate the glamour of my life.

Thing, the first: I got a part in the play that I auditioned for on Sunday! Yay! I am such a huge community theater nerd, so it is apropos that the play I will be appearing in is called The Nerd. NO, I am not playing the nerd; however, I did get a pretty big part. Since I had Jane, I've mainly directed or helped out on the tech end of shows. The last show I was in was a triumphant production of Love Letters with my friend Alan when I was four months preggo. (OK, "triumphant" might be a big word, but I was and still am extremely proud of that show and the chance to work with my very good friend in a two-person production. Also, I made people cry, which is a triumph, I think.) (NOTE: They were not crying because of my bad acting.) Anyway, rehearsals start on Sunday. Whoo hoo! I hope I can still remember lines!

Thing, the second: This is, what I would call, the polar opposite of the first thing, in terms of glamour. This afternoon I took Jimmy to get his anal glands expressed at the vet. Yeah, that's right: we are blessed with a dog who needs to have this done periodically, and it is just as lovely as it sounds. You can actually learn how to do it yourself, but I would MUCH rather pay the $20 to have someone else do it.

Along with his glandular issues, Young James also gets chronic yeast infections in his ears (it's a good thing he's cute) and so I had them confirm that he had yet another one (which they did) and give me new meds (which, I suspect, list GOLD as a prime ingredient as the total visit ended up costing me $119).

So Jimmy is happy with his empty butt and clean ears, and I am broke, but in a play.

What's up with your week?

birthday weekend update.

2011-09-24T07:54:00.000-04:00

Thank you for the birthday wishes that so many of you sent yesterday! It's true - yesterday I turned 38. I intend to try to have the great year that everyone asked me to have - I certainly had a great birthday! So although this weekend update is a bit late, I will review yesterday too, because it was such a fun day:

Friday: Worked, then went to lunch with my friend Jen, which was delicious. Then I headed off to Barnes & Noble (RIP Borders) for some quality book-buying, magazine-reading and iced latte-drinking time. After that, I rushed off to happy hour with some daycare moms - this is fast becoming a weekly tradition, and we had a blast. Then I ran home to eat cake with Greg and Jane before the babysitter showed up, after which Greg and I went to dinner and a movie (Contagion - gross but good, although not as good as Outbreak - not that it mattered, I just LOVE going to the movies!). Best birthday present? Tix to see The Book of Mormon again (not til the spring, though.) NOTE: Matt Stone and Trey Parker will be on "60 Minutes" talking about BOM and "South Park" tomorrow night. LOVE them.

Saturday: Well, we had plans to go to the Bronx Zoo today, but it's nasty out, so we'll have to do that another time. We do want to head up to UConn to see the cows and horses, and then hit this local pizza place up in Storrs that makes this ridiculous baked potato pizza that is sooooo good.

Sunday: Greg has a boat charter, so Jane and I are solo. I have to help out with a clean-up of our theater rehearsal hall (the basement is where we keep set stuff, costumes, props....soooo much crap) and it needs to be organized big time. I project that Jane will be less than helpful, but she will be joining me nevertheless. Off to my mom's later.

That's my weekend! What are you doing?

wednesday.

2011-09-21T15:25:00.002-04:00

So it's already Wednesday of the first full week at my new job. Things are going well - I've started to do actual work, which is really good (no seriously, I feel much better when I'm producing things). It's been interesting being the new girl after being the long-timer for so many years. I work with some fun peeps, and I'm feeling good about the whole decision.

The afternoons have been somewhat strange, and it's interesting to see how fast I have fallen into a routine. I've had to do some errands like digging through mountains of crap to find my social security card and birth certificate, go to town hall to get Jane's birth certificate (I have not needed a copy for her until now), and go get my new work ID. But even with having to do things like that, I still have loads of free time. I went to Starbucks yesterday and read for a while in the middle of the afternoon (a homeless guy stood up, and then nearly toppled over on top of me at one point - like, it was thisclose). I went to lunch with a friend today (oh - some dude fell off his bar stool and had to be taken away in an ambulance. That was...probably not supposed to be funny). I went to the mall this afternoon to exchange a sweater (I saw an elderly lady wearing Victoria's Secret sweats with flowers on the ass). I'm blogging at 3:19 in the afternoon.

What seemed like an endless stretch of unscheduled time a week ago is now going by pretty fast on a daily basis. My brain is starting to adjust to not being panicky and rushed all the time. Which is, of course, why I'm going to audition for a show next week. Because having all of this glorious free time and not acting like a crazy person is just way too...normal. And I may be many things, but normal is not one of them.

How is your week going?

goin' to the chapel.

2011-09-19T17:47:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, we went to the wedding of two friends and former co-workers, Audrey and Shane. Perhaps you recognize Shane's name as someone who sometimes leaves sarcastic comments on this here blog. As you can see, we had more than a good time.

weekend update.

2011-09-16T13:01:00.003-04:00

After a bit of a weekend update hiatus, we're back! As part of my new, reduced-hour work schedule, I really am going to try to blog more. And when better to start than on a Friday? So here's what's up this weekend:

Friday: I am currently sitting in a Barnes and Noble on my laptop, about to order a Frappuccino. So that's a good thing. Today is the first fall-feeling day of the year - and the first day I'm wearing closed-toe shoes in MONTHS. Sadfacing big-time over that. Anywho, later this afternoon I am going to meet up with some fellow daycare moms for happy hour, then going to my friend's book reading at Barnes and Noble tonight (not the one am sitting in right now). Her book is the one I edited a few months ago. Then hopefully Greg and I can go out to dinner before we have to be back for the sitter.

Saturday: Off to the boat during the day, I believe. Then at night I will be going to a staged-reading of the first half of Angels in America. My friend Todd is part of it. Really psyched about this, as I have never seen that play, and it's such a landmark production in American drama. Although, from what I understand, not so much of a laugh-riot, what with it being about AIDS in the 80s and all.

Sunday: The EPIC WEDDING of my former co-workers Audrey and Shane. Epic. Ness. That is all.

And what are you up to? Let me know in comments!

the happiest of hours.

2011-09-14T15:26:00.000-04:00

As I mentioned, I was given a lovely happy hour farewell last night, and it was most, most excellent. Please enjoy these pics from my last day.

back to school.

2011-09-13T22:29:00.002-04:00

Today was my last day at the job I've had for just under 11 years.

Now, I don't talk about work much on this here blog, but I can say this much: taking a new job was one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make. I was really glad I was doing August Break at the time, because anything else I posted wouldn't have been very honest, as the job situation was pretty much the only thing I was thinking about in my down time.

See, I loved my job in the non-profit theater world. Sure, I complained about it mightily sometimes, but there was never a dull moment (understatement of the year) (truly). Sometimes I got to do glamorous things like go see shows, go to New York and LA, and meet famous people. A large chunk of my job was writing, which, apparently, is one of my skills (not that you'd notice that here). Another large chunk was talking to people, which is definitely one of my skills (with a heavy dose of never staying on topic).

But my favorite favorite part of my job was the people I worked with. I made some friends for life there, for sure - and when this new job opportunity came up, the very first thought I had was, "But I can't leave my friends!"

However. The opportunity was a good one. Heavy on the writing. For a college. Benefits. AND it was part-time. Half the hours.

Now, I need to interrupt myself here to tell you that I had been increasingly concerned with what I was going to do when Jane entered school next year. In my town, kindergarten is half day, which means she would have had to go to before- and after-school care for several hours a day. As you know, she currently goes to daycare full-time, but once she actually entered the school system, I really wanted to be around more for her. But I had no idea how I was going to make that happen. I figured I would start looking for a new job next spring.

But that's when I learned about this new job, from a former co-worker. So I applied. I interviewed. I took a writing test. I got the job.

Giving my notice three weeks ago and leaving today was so, so hard. Yesterday, my lovely friend Beth threw me a farewell party on one of the stages in the theater, and said too many nice things about me. I, in turn, bawled my fool eyes out - I mean, full-on ugly cried - and tried to say all of the nice things I wanted to say back. To express how much the place has meant to me. To express how much more the people have meant to me.

Tonight I was also the lucky recipient of a happy hour farewell, which was epically fun, and luckily featured no bawling. I will post some pics tomorrow. Tomorrow is also the one day I took off in between jobs; I start the new one on Thursday.

It feels very much like the end of an era in my life. And I am excited to start a new one, again. A few months ago, I didn't see this coming. But I went out on the highest of highs, and you can't ask for more than that.

gratitude.

2011-09-10T20:11:00.001-04:00

I am trying to incorporate gratitude into this weekend. Yes, yes, I should do this every weekend, every day, every second. But it's so easy to get wrapped up in our own dramatic bullshit that we forget (in my case, very often) to look around and realize how lucky we are. This is what I am trying to do today.Tomorrow, when we remember the terrible thing that happened in my very favorite city (and DC, and PA), that affected people I know personally, and that changed the psyche of this country forever, I feel like being grateful is the best way to honor and respect the anniversary. xo

scribbling.

2011-09-07T18:38:00.003-04:00

For the first time ever, I am taking an e-course - Chookooloonks' Path Finder course, geared towards people in a transitional point in their lives. For "anyone who is in a place of transition, professionally or personally; or who is just looking to inject a bit more awesome into his/her life," as she puts it. I am definitely in a place of transition, career-wise (more on that soon), so it really seemed perfect for this point in my life.

Basically, five days a week for five weeks, participants receive journal prompts that invite introspection, along with instruction to journal daily in the morning as well. Now, I haven't actually written in a journal in years and years - since my early 20s - so it feels brand-new again. But so far, I like it. It's not too hippy-dippy and it's super-positive. Karen Walrond (the author/photographer of Chookooloonks) is a master journal-keeper, and she gives lots of creative tips to make it fun and easy. There is also a community site for participants.

I know she is planning on having a late fall session as well - so I will update at the end to tell you if it was worth it. If you're interested in the details - go here.

labor day.

2011-09-05T09:40:00.000-04:00

I am sitting here, reading my very favorite issue of Entertainment Weekly of the whole year - the Fall TV Preview - getting ready to make a list of returning and new shows for my DVR. My DVR has had a restful summer, but it will be super busy once next week rolls around. I love new TV! I am also drinking a mega-mug of coffee, and contemlating going to a walk-in clinic, because my neck, and in particular, my ear is covered in poison ivy, and I'm afraid it's gotten INTO my ear canal - is this bad? Or, as I suspect, is there nothing they can really do about it? Because, honestly, I don't want to go to the doctor - I want to go to Mystic today, as planned.

What are you doing?

ch-ch-ch-ch-changes.

2011-09-03T18:57:00.000-04:00

I love September. First off, it's my birthday month - which is epic, of course. I will be 38 on September 23 - which feels insane to me - I mean, that number looks ENORMOUS - but it's a true fact, so I guess I have to live with it. As long as there is cake, I am happy. Presents would be nice too. Just sayin'.

I hate winter, a fact that has been well-documented here, but fall is delicious. Literally, in some ways - it's almost time for fall festivals, where all sorts of delicious treats can be found, including my very favorite apple fritters at my hometown's festival, which is in early October. There are no apple fritters like these anywhere else, I can promise you that.

And I adore summer, but I'm a little over the heat. I think I am a bit excited for weather in the 60s - nothing below that, may I add - but I'm over humid heat at this point (though I will ALWAYS take hazy, hot and humid over cold and snow. ALWAYS AND FOREVER). And I am looking forward to buying some new brown boots this year.

It's back to school time, and, even as an adult, September brings in that new-notebook feeling- a time to start fresh. I am making a pretty major change in my life in a couple of weeks (career-wise) that deserves a separate post, later. For now, I will just say that September has a "back to school" feeling for me for more than one reason.

More to come on that - and I hope you are having a fabulous Labor Day weekend!

naptime.

2011-08-31T22:40:00.001-04:00

You guys. YOU GUYS. The past couple of weeks have been nuts. Our power finally came back on in the middle of the night after being out for three days due to the hurricane. I am currently exhausted right now and heading to bed - but I wanted to share this picture of Jane, who is asleep in a chair in my office at work. There is a story to go with this. And I will share that, after I get a million hours of sleep.

the itsy-bitsy spider

2011-08-26T20:39:00.003-04:00

This is a terrible picture - but check out the size of this spider on my back deck! I think he wants to come in for the duration of the storm.

rock you like a hurricane.

2011-08-25T22:17:00.005-04:00

I do not enjoy that this bitch is headed for my house this weekend.

YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE, IRENE.

weeds.

2011-08-25T11:49:00.001-04:00

My week.

How's yours?

fresh.

2011-08-23T19:50:00.001-04:00

I would like some of this, please.

bookstore!

2011-08-21T15:34:00.004-04:00

Now that Borders has failed us all, we are spending more time at Barnes and Noble. It's almost as good.

playscape.

2011-08-20T17:43:00.002-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, we went to Greg's cousin's annual summer party. As you can see, Jane had a terrible time.

feet.

2011-08-18T18:12:00.003-04:00

A highly fucking disturbing thing happened to a friend today. I'm not wanting to talk about it now - details are scant and scary. For now, I will post the one good thing that happened today - I got a pedicure. Please ignore my beat-up big toe - I slipped in Target the other day (it's so me to do that).

here is where I am at today.

2011-08-17T20:32:00.002-04:00

How are you doing?

photography by Jane.

2011-08-16T17:32:00.009-04:00

As I am sure you have noticed, the bulk of my August Break pics have been taken with my Blackberry. Not ideal by any stretch, but my actual camera broke right before August began, which, of course blows. I need to replace it but I haven't had time....I'm sure you don't want to hear me complain (again) about how busy I am (again), so enjoy these pictures of me and Greg captured by Jane. I'm sure I don't need to point out how hot we both look at the end of the day. Or how I am headless.

manic monday (to say the least).

2011-08-15T18:05:00.003-04:00

The weather outside today matches my mood perfectly.

dock dog.

2011-08-13T17:33:00.002-04:00

We stayed down at the boat last night. This one included. He looks pretty satisfied with his lot in life, eh?

coffee break.

2011-08-12T11:00:00.003-04:00

This morning I had to take a quick walk outside, and man, was it gorgeous. A mid-morning outdoor coffee break is not a typical part of my workday - too bad about that.

workday evening.

2011-08-10T18:27:00.003-04:00

A cup of orange juice, a princess dress, "Blue's Clues" streaming on the iPad and a little time outside. This is how we roll.

(taken just a few minutes ago with my Blackberry.)

friends like these.

2011-08-09T17:14:00.004-04:00

See that girl over there? (Not the nerdy one in the Old Navy flag tee.) That's my BF, Heather. This month, we celebrate 30 (THIRTY!!!) years of friendship. That's insane, right? Girl knows waaay too much about me.

point of view.

2011-08-08T17:59:00.003-04:00

Jane has become very interested in taking pictures with my BlackBerry. Here's one she took on Saturday morning of my "favorite puppies." Jimmy looks like he really lives the hard life, don't you think?

wish I was here.

2011-08-07T19:39:00.004-04:00

I got hit with a summer cold today, which got progressively worse as the day went on, so I can only imagine how swell I will feel for work tomorrow. Also, I seem to have some sort of poison ivy-ish rash on my neck. So, all in all, I feel like shit. I would much, much rather be here (from our RI vacation).

well, that's random.

2011-08-05T17:09:00.002-04:00

Please enjoy this picture 0f me, taking a picture of an ostrich while on vacation. Happy Friday!

break out another thousand.

2011-08-04T17:54:00.002-04:00

Did you know that "boat" stands for "break out another thousand"? Boats are fun - but oh, rather an expensive habit. We had a bit of a kerfuffle out on the high seas recently, and Greg's face in this pic cracks me up.

favorite.

2011-08-03T07:09:00.004-04:00

This is probably my favorite picture to date of Greg and Jane. They were playing Busytown on the front porch at the cottage we were at in Rhode Island a couple of weeks ago. (You will see a lot of vacation shots during August Break - I've been saving them for this project!)

this one is for Shane.

2011-08-02T19:18:00.006-04:00

As promised, I am once again taking part in the August Break. For details, check out Susannah Conway's lovely blog, but here is what it is, in a nutshell, as explained by Susannah herself:

Okay, here’s the plan for the August Break: you simply share one photo (or more!) per day on your blog – Monday to Friday, or every day. Or whenever you feel moved to share. Using any camera – DSLR, compact, Polaroid, Holga, iPhone (my choice), Instax, film or digital – with or without words – anything goes! – for the whole of August. No pressure – just looking at August through your camera lens as a way to be more present this summer. And to have a little break from the pressures and expectations of regular blogging.

There are NO RULES, people! Just sunshine (hopefully) and a bit of fun. And lots of lovely photos to look at.

OK, it's me again. I am already late to the August Break party, because my computer, as it turned out, was intensely messed up. My co-worker and friend (that's right Shane, I called you a friend, for I would only buy friends expensive dishware) Shane has been working on it for a few days, and it's back in action again! I [promised him I would dedicate my return post to him, so here it is. And, in fact, here is Shane, working hard/hardly working. Enjoy!

4.

2011-07-23T20:06:00.002-04:00

Approximately 30 minutes ago, my girl Jane turned four years old. And in this moment, I am sitting next to her after a hectic day returning from vacation, watching her new copy of Tangled, and smelling the grape Tinkerbell lip balm she is generously applying to half of her face. She is so perfectly four.

Today I went on an epic cleaning spree in her toy box and book case. I!m pretty OK with throwing out her old toys, but I really had to steel myself when I weeded out the books from when she was a baby. When we would review over and over the pictures, me asking her to identify things, her pointing proudly, all before she could even speak a word clearly.

Now, well, most days she never stops talking. We needed to make room for more big kid books. And soon - only 13 months - she'll need room for school books. Today she got her first real bike. Sometimes it feels like we'll be shopping for her wedding dress tomorrow.

But she still calls bathing suits "bathing soups." and she still holds my ear for comfort. So, yes - I am perfectly happy with her being perfectly four.

Happy birthday to my favorite girl.

soooooo freaking psyched

2011-07-13T19:21:00.005-04:00

Don't you love how much I complain about how busy I am on this blog? Well, there's more where that came from!

This week has been chaos, between working on my big summer writing project at work, along with purging and moving offices with the rest of my department this week. I'm sadfacing over it, because I'm moving out of the office I've lived in for eight of my 10.5 years at my workplace. At the same time, boy, did I throw out a lot of shit. So that's...good? Right? Glass half full? Plus I will be near a window! With natural light! Did I already tell you this? I can't remember.

In addition, I am packing - OK, I am at least thinking about packing - for vacation number two this summer, which begins this weekend. We are renting a house in Rhode Island with some friends and their kids and I. Can. Not. Wait. Soooo freaking psyched for this.

Right now I am looking out the window, spying on people looking at my next door neighbors' house, which was put up for sale this week. This is another thing I am soooo freaking psyched about. I am not a fan of these neighbors and am happy to see them go. I know this makes me a jerk, but believe me, if you knew the whole story, you would agree.

I am also soooo freaking psyched for Susanna Conway's August Break this year. Do you remember when I did this last year? I posted a photo a day at least five days a week - it was an easy way to blog, without many words, but got me into the habit of stopping by here more often. I've been saving my summer photos for just this occasion! I tweeted her and she said she was doing it again. So stay tuned.

What are you sooooo freaking psyched about these days?

the finish line.

2011-07-08T18:13:00.003-04:00

Wowza, this work week was crayzee. This is of note in particular because I only worked three days. But I got a lot done and am breathing easier than I was earlier this week. I even had some time today to purge files in anticipation of next week's office move. Yes - after eight years in the same office, I'm moving. It is truly astounding how much shit you can accumulate in that amount of time.

VERY pleased that it's the weekend. Jane and I are having a sleepover in my bed because Greg is down at the boat tonight, fixing something or another. He likes sleeping there and I don't so everyone's happy.

Tomorrow we have another birthday party (July is super-heavy with birthday parties amongst my circle) in the afternoon, and I might start thinking of putting things together to pack for our vacation the week after next, but let's be real - this is not going to happen.

Sunday I am working house for my theater group's production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. I am usually VERY involved in the summer production, but this year I'm a lobby worker bee and that's it. I miss it - but I am so relieved that's all I did. It's an awesome show and I'm jealous I don't have my name on it, though!

So, yeah. Low key. Tell me what you are up to this weekend!

Side note: Junior had a vet appointment today. We finally decided to talk to the vet about how he is limping and stiff a lot lately in his back legs. He's an eight-year-old Great Dane - so I was expecting the worst. But she said it was probably some arthritis and gave him some joint supplements. So that was good good good!

weekend over.

2011-07-05T18:28:00.002-04:00

Seriously - I think all weekends should be five days long. Who's with me? At 6:30 p.m. on a Tuesday, I am finally wrapping up my Fourth of July weekend, which began last Thursday night.

We were generously given Friday off at my workplace, and while I had planned to spend the day doing prep work for my Fourth of July party, instead I....well, honestly.....I don't remember what I did. I think I did some reading. I think I did some sitting out in the sun. I know I went out to dinner with an old friend from my newspaper days. That was fun.

On Saturday, I went to my friends' annual family Fourth party (never on the actual Fourth, unless it happens to fall on a Saturday). This is my other family, more or less, and we had a great time. Jane ran herself ragged in the pools and on the water slide and fell asleep on the way home, which is basically my idea of a perfect Saturday night. No bedtime shananigans = A+ day.

Sunday was a down day; we ended up at the boat. Took a long ride in the morning, and then watched the rain fall all afternoon. That wraps up Sunday.

Monday was the day of our big Fourth of July party at our house. Unbeknownst to me, you cannot buy alcohol on holidays in my state (I don't know how I didn't know this - truly, I am an arse sometimes) so I had to drive up over the border to Massachusetts to buy our supply for the festivities - this was after trips to Target and two grocery stores for all of the food and other stuff. By the time 3:30 rolled around and the guests started arriving, I was exhausted.

But we had fun! At least, I think we did - the whole day felt like a complete blur of feeding, cleaning, talking, and watching Greg's epic fireworks display (no limbs lost! yay!). I love having everyone over but I don't think I had one single meaningful conversation.

I took today off because I knew I'd be wrecked from yesterday. After enduring one of the worst, guilt-inducing daycare drop-offs ever (Jane is REALLY NOT HAPPY about transitioning to a new classroom) (REALLY REALLY NOT HAPPY) I headed to the beach, and oh, what a glorious beach day it was. Hot, cloudless July days like today are the days I live for.

So that was my weekend. It's going to be balls to the wall at work this week - seriously, if you see me on Twitter or anywhere else, just tell me to get the hell back to work. I have so much to do....see ya on the flip side!

this is me being serious.

2011-07-01T07:23:00.003-04:00

(steps on soapbox)

If you do follow me on Twitter, you know a couple of weeks ago I was freaking out because my brother got in another serious car accident. He's OK- but I truly consider it a miracle that he and his friend are alive, as they were hit from behind by someone who was going 100 MPH on the highway and was possibly asleep. When I saw a picture of the car, I almost choked. The back half of his car was quite literally crushed into the front half of his car. My brother was knocked unconscious and had a concussion, plus a lot of body pain, but holy shit. It could have been so much worse.

One of the reasons is because 10 years ago, as I've talked about here before, he was in another VERY serious car accident where he had six brain contusions, broken ribs, broken leg that ultimately needed a titatium rod put it in, many many cuts and bruises, and a year-long recovery. It is very, very hard to see someone close to you recover from a brain injury. So, as it stands, he really can't be knocked in the head for fear of permanent damage. He was lucky then, and he is lucky again.

All of this leads me to say, as we head into this party-heavy long weekend- please, please be careful on the road. Hey, I've been guilty of distracted driving, checking my phone while driving, certainly talking on the phone while driving, and driving while on the verge of falling asleep. Cars lull you into a false sense of confidence on the road. But make no mistake- they are extremely dangerous machines.

So buckle up, throw your phone in the trunk if it's that alluring to you, don't drink and drive, and pay attention. Have a great weekend!

(steps off soapbox)

I did this, and now I'm doing something else.

2011-06-29T19:44:00.002-04:00

It just dawned on me that I haven't blogged since I returned from vacation. I am awful. Please, if you care about anything I have to say these days, follow me on Twitter. I am spouting my nonsense there way more frequently. Busy times call for 140-character measures.

Our vacation was very good. Particularily the first half. The first four days featured lots ofsunshine, friends, boat riding, and general merriment. The second three days rained. So.....I am trying to look at it glass-half-full: at least half our vacation was nice, and we did try to entertain ourselves the second half. We went to the Yale Peabody Museum and checked out the dinosaurs and the bedbugs exhibit (featuring a live colony of bedbugs!) (seriously!) (immensely disgusting!), walked around New Havenand had pizza at Pepe's and dessert at Libby's, went to New London, Essex, Madison- all of the lovely Connecticut shoreline towns. But I will not lie - I was happy to come home.

This week I am trying to make serious progress on a writing project for work, and our week got a little shorter when Friday was declared a day off. Whoo! Every night this week I have been cleaning our house and doing yardwork to prep for our big Fourth of July bash. So, yeah, I'm tired.

I promise to post some pics from our vacation this week! I just have to get them off my camera.

What are you up to this week?

I did that, and now I'm doing this.

2011-06-17T15:50:00.007-04:00

So! I am back from LA. Oh man, that was epic fun. The schedule was beyond insane, but in the short time we were there we were able to explore downtown LA, as well as Hollywood and Beverly Hills. It was so freaking cool to see all of the iconic stuff- like the Hollywood sign, Capitol Records, the Chateau Marmont, the Walk of Fame, Grauman's Chinese Theater, etc- in person, after seeing it on TV, movies and in magazines my whole life. Plus, palm trees! I adore palm trees. All of the flights were good and the work part of the trip was good and now I am operating on seven hours of sleep since Wednesday morning and I am not so much hitting the wall as I am faceplanting into it.

I leave for vacation at the beach in about an hour, and I'm not bringing my laptop, so bon voyage for now and I will see you on the flip side!

PPS I am posing with Johnny Depp's handprints. He's my boyfriend. Didn't you know?

writing this post made this week seem even more ridiculous.

2011-06-13T19:06:00.004-04:00

This week feels like it might be one of the craziest of my life. And it goes a little something like this:

Monday: Work as usual. Laundry. Cleaning. Nighttime nonsense as usual.

Tuesday: Work as usual. Pack for epic work trip to LA. Go see my niece perform a song at an event. Go to bed. Don’t sleep because I am worried about waking up early.

Wednesday: Get up at three-something. AYEM, people. Probably not shower. Finish packing. Go pick up Beth (the lucky lady who gets to travel with me) at, like, four-something. AYEM. Get on plane. Stop somewhere (I don’t remember where. DC? Dallas? Somewhere.) Get on another plane. Land in LA. Marvel at sun and palm trees. Crash at hotel. Shower. Wander. Do assorted work-related (read: fun theater stuff) at night. Be jet-lagged.

Thursday: Go to morning meeting for work-related purposes (read: theater stuff). See what LA has to offer in the afternoon and evening. See celebrities. Possibly run off with a celebrity (Jon Hamm? Mark Ruffalo? I'm available!) Hopefully not end up at TGI Fridays. (Because this is what Beth and I do.It is unfortunate. I fear that if we were in Paris, the same thing would happen. I don't even go to Fridays here. Just when I'm in major American cities.) Get on red-eye back to CT at 10:45 p.m.

Friday: Stop somewhere (Chicago? Somewhere?). Get on another plane. Land in Hartford. Drop Beth off at her house. FLY to Jane’s end-of-year picnic at school. If I can’t make it, make sure Greg can (it’s at 11, so we are cutting it extremely close). Come home. Unpack. Laundry. Pack for vacation at the beach. Get dogs’ stuff ready for dogsitter. Clean. Drive to beach. Put sheets on bed. Pass out.

Saturday: Start vacation for reals!

And this is if everything goes as planned. HA HA HA HA OH GOD PLEASE.

GO!

PS If you oh-so-unfortunately follow me on Twitter, you know that I live-tweeted the shit out of the Tonys last night. And my newest love, The Book of Mormon, took home nine shiny awards, including Best Musical. I was super-excited, almost as if I was in the show myself, or a producer or something. But no, no, I am just a tremendous theater dork. Please click on the links below to enjoy three of my favorite parts of the Tonys last night! You won't regret it!