Book meme

I actually collected this from two shorter ones. I would love to hear your answers as well. Do it.
And thank you all for your sympathy and suggestions about my lost photos. It has made me feel much better.

Total number of books owned:
I'm going to say somewhere between 300-500. I may be inspired to count now.

Philosophy on reading:
Reading books is a purely escapist pastime for me. I don't want to read about politics or wars. I read to forget those things. I have enjoyed classic literature in the past, but nowadays I tend to read whatever I feel like, and screw anyone for thinking less of me. Considering 25% of the U.S. population didn't read a book last year, I'm ok with just reading what I like and not forcing anything down my own throat. Sorry, Dostoyevsky.
I made the first ever New Year's resolution that I am trying to stick to. I need to read 20 books this year, not counting re-reading any Harry Potter's or any fics (novel-length or not!). I'm a little short of being on track, but I will do it. Currently reading new book #12.

Last book bought:
Today I was at Borders and finally bought 'Twilight'. I also bought 'The Host' because I was told it was better. =)

Last book read:
I reread 'Deathly Hallows' again, but before that was the ninth Harry Dresden. Currently reading the tenth and wondering how I will cope when it's over.

One book you’d want on a desert island:
For some reason, I could read Michael Crichton's 'Andromeda Strain' over and over again.
Though, I should probably say 'Ulysses' because the only way I will ever willingly read Joyce again is when it is the only reading material available to me.

One book that made you laugh:
Every single Dresden Files has made me laugh out loud while in public.

One book that made you cry:
One?!? I cry at the drop of a (book) hat. The worst was 'The Notebook' - all I did was sob through the whole thing. It's like the Grey's Anatomy of pulp fiction. 'The Amber Spyglass' is probably the saddest thing ever, though.

One book that you wish had been written:
'Lyra and Will - Together Again'.
Seriously though, I wouldn't mind a 'Remus Lupin, the Lost Years'. Good thing there's fanfic. Lol.

One book that you wish had never been written:
The entire Dark Tower series. I found it to be an egregious waste of time (sorry to every other person on the planet that loved them).
Also, 'Wicked'. Egads, that was tedious.

One book you’re currently reading:
'Small Favor', Jim Butcher.

One book you’ve been meaning to read:
'The Host', Stephenie Meyer.

Five books that mean a lot to you:
(I am going to cheat and say that series count here)

The Dragonlance Chronicles, Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman: Trilogy. The very first fantasy that I ever read. My father read 'The Hobbit' to us on a practically yearly basis, but this was the first that I picked up on my own, and I was blown away. Fantasy continues to be my favorite genre.

His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman: Trilogy. I have never heard of so many grown men crying as I have about the end of 'The Amber Spyglass'. I can't even really talk about it without tearing up. There is so much in those books to take in, and I hope to someday meet my dæmon.

Harry Potter, JK Rowling: 7 part series. I don't know what it is about the Potterverse that continues to fascinate me, but I can't stop. I want to talk about it. I want to muse aloud about the adults' personal lives and bad habits and coping mechanisms. I want to wonder how it was possible that we were all saved by a 17 year old. Yet, it's so believable. And they are still my favorite re-reads of all times. Every time I finish a book, I have to fight not to pick up one of them, yet again.

'Stargirl', Jerry Spinelli: Everyone should read this book somewhere around age 14. She gives me faith in humanity by being honest and hopeful and not too cheesy or schmaltzy. I <3 Stargirl.

'Neverwhere', Neil Gaiman: My copy was borrowed a few days before my birthday, taken to a signing without my knowledge, and signed 'Happy birthday, Freya. Mind the gap. Neil Gaiman." (I was also gifted 'The Golden Compass' by the same person (Tim) that year). I've always loved the book for its pure escapism without being insulting to my intelligence.

I drink your pictures. I drink them up!

I worry about a lot of things. It's very cliched, but as I'm trying to fall asleep, random what-ifs jump into my mind. What if the apartment burns down? What if I get fired? What if I don't wake up tomorrow? Very rational, I know. But I also have valid concerns. What if the hard drive on the Mac fries itself and we lose all our pictures and music?
It terrifies me. And no, we don't have a backup system, which is ridiculous and irresponsible, I know. So when I was gifted a Pro Flickr account, I started uploading like crazy. I'm having issues with 2006, so I haven't done that yet, and I haven't started 2008 yet. (Note to self: Upload 2008 immediately!)

For the past month, I've been awful at uploading. I've only grabbed a few select pictures off of my memory card. Tonight, I decided I was going to devote hours to it. Make all the photostrips. Edit all my photos. Upload more things. I plug the camera into the Mac and it pops up "2 items to upload: 1 picture, 1 video".

2!?!??

All I can guess is that somewhere along the line, someone (possibly me) accidentally hit 'delete all' instead of 'delete frame'. It wouldn't be that hard to do. So, this is my fear to a lesser degree. Not all my pictures are gone, but I have lost pictures of people that no longer live in this country. And every single shot from the photobooth party. That kinda really hurts. I'm so sorry to everyone who wanted to see those pictures. Believe me, I feel your pain.

Bottle Shock - the value leader in movies! 5 movies for the price of one!

Disclaimer: Despite what you might read below, I did enjoy this movie. It was one of things where you could feel the great movie underneath what sort of fell flat.

Bottle Shock finally opened in Pittsburgh and I convinced JP, my in-laws, and Will and Shan to all go see it tonight. It's an all-star cast filled with people I love - Alan Rickman, Bill Pullman, Eliza Dushku (who ended up the deus ex machina despite having only a few lines), Bradley Whitford (who was wasted with 3 lines), and some scrungy looking guy with long hair (Chris Pine). And the movie is about WINE! What's not to like? It's even got some come-uppance for the French, if that's your cup of tea (not mine).
So where did they go wrong? The trailer looked promising!



Have you ever read a story/fic/etc. that constantly changes POV? To the extent where you have no idea who is thinking and feeling anything? Bottle Shock was kind of like that. In fact, it was just like the trailer. Did you follow everything that happened in the trailer? That's sort of how the movie felt, too.
It starts out with you thinking, "cool, Spurrier (Alan Rickman), wine snob, will be proven wrong by hippie, his dad, and their people". Then he disappears for about 1/3 of the movie. Where did he go? What is he doing? Why are we now involved in this different subplot? Wait, here's another one. And another? Who's that guy in the suit and what is Bill Pullman doing with a sword?

Subplot #1: Son is a fuck up. This causes drama. Bo's POV.
Subplot #2: Gustavo's dad was a fieldhand, but Gustavo can make wine that instantly makes girls want to have sex with him. Gustavo's POV.
Subplot #3: Bo and Gustavo both like the same girl. Bo and Gustavo's POV.
Subplot #4: Jim (Bill Pullman) doesn't want to fail, but does everything he can to make sure he does. He also makes perfect wine. Too perfect, in fact. Jim's POV.

The awesome part was that with all the crazy life-interaction going on, you kind of forgot what was supposed to be the point of the movie - the Paris tasting. I read a review (that I can no longer find, grrr) where the reviewer said something like "The 1976 Paris tasting is a fascinating story. I wish this movie was about that."

Another reviewer summed it up nicely for me: "While they [Gustavo, Sam, Bo, and Jim] run around an Anthropology catalogue, delivering dramatic monologues about feeling wine in your blood, Alan's tasting Kentucky Friend Chicken for the first time and it's hysterical."
Yeah, it was kind of exactly like that.

Image search meme

Google image search meme. Search for your answer for each one, and pick your favorite from the first 3 pages.
I got naked chicks for several of my answers, but neglected to include them.


Your first name:

Your middle name:


Your last name:

Your age:

A place you would like to visit:


Your favorite place to be:


The name of a past love:


Your college degree or concentration:


Your grandmother's first name:


Where you grew up:


Your childhood pet's name:


Your best friend's nickname:

Your first job:


Your favorite food:


Your favorite color:


What you are doing right now:


One of your bad habits:

I'm not the only crazy one.

See? Look at all the Wizard rock fans.
Wrock, fans, wrock.

• MTV
• Music Videos
• MTV Shows
• Entertainment News

They actually broke the chandelier in the ballroom below, and had to stop jumping up and down at one point.

Ouch.

Remember how when you were a kid and you fell down, you got right back up and continued with whatever you were doing? I am now infinitely jealous of my 8 year old body.
I have discovered that in the evenings and weekends, the park and ride near our house is usually deserted. So I have been blading the 1/2 mile or so there, doing laps around the lot for awhile, and blading home. Some of the sidewalks around here are awful, but I can survive. I do have kneepads and wrist guards that I wear, but after Saturday, I'm considering a giant bubble. I know that would make JP feel better.
After many circuits around the lot (with Olympic-style commentary in my head about my movements), I was bored with simply going forward and occasionally spinning around. Backwards! There's a direction I haven't tried yet.
Surprisingly, it wasn't that difficult. I was going along just fine when i decided to go forward again. Since I can spin while going forward, why not while backwards? I set my foot and spun and suddenly, I've got this amazing gymnast spin through the air. Needless to say, I did not stick my landing. While in the air, I realized what was going to happen a split second before I hit the ground. I landed first on my shoulder, followed by my hip, and then slid a few feet. Ow. And I was still a 1/2 mile from my house, without my cell phone. Good thinking on my part.
Now, I do have to say that I heard my kneepad crash against the concrete, and my wrist guard is horribly scratched up now. I was afforded some protection from them, for which I'm grateful. PSA: No matter how dorky you look, wear pads!

So, I am now the proud owner of my first road rash of my adult life, a large collection of bruises, and a horribly pulled/torn muscle in my arm that makes just about everything painful. I spent most of Saturday and Sunday in a sling, but today I need to work, so I have to use the arm. Luckily, I have helpful friends with leftover pain meds from various dental work that have been donated to me. I would normally happily spend the next few days in a haze of drug-induced comfort, but I have a big phone meeting with my boss tonight. I really hope that I'm coherent enough to deal with this.

Stupid clumsiness. I should not be allowed on wheels.

I love the Potterverse, or how I don't really hate JKR

I am putting together a guide to the HP fandom for some friends of mine, and of course, I had to touch upon The-Case-Which-Shall-Not-Be-Named. In my search to find good info on both sides (I don't presume anyone should take my POV simply because), I stumbled upon the Leaky Forums and have gotten myself all worked up again. It reminds me a bit of this entry that dealt with real-life politics, and not the ones of the fandom.
I found these 3 questions posed by rotfang07 on part 14 of the WB/JKR vs. RDR forum that I would like to respond to.

1. How can you believe you are a fan and simultaneously go against Jo Rowling's wishes?

Because I am not necessarily a fan of her, but of the world she created. I don't know JK Rowling. I know her work. Just because I love what she has made doesn't mean that this should transfer to the person. I think many people have forgotten this in the entire lawsuit hubbub. Yes, it was her decision to challenge the printed Lexicon. She has the right to do that. But (and I am guilty of this as well), why must we be on "her" side or "his" side? It isn't personal! It's a lawsuit. The only people who this should personally affect are people who personally know the plantiffs/defendants/people affected. (And let's not forget that Steve was not actually a defendant.)
I am not "anti-Jo", as so many have accused. I am of the opinion that the law should allow something like this to exist. This is based on research and my personal feelings about copyright and IP. If my husband decided to pursue this same type of lawsuit, I would disagree with him, too. It's not about how I feel about a woman that I've never met; it's about how I feel about the legality of the issue. The people who have contributed to splitting the fandom are the ones that don't see this as a legal issue, but rather, a personal one. It's become "fanning fans", by choosing which "superfan" you want to side with.

Here's the thing. I love the books, of course. But I also love fanfic, fanart, and Wizard rock. These are not things created by her, but rather, inspired by her. All of these things could be called into question as well. Now, I'm sure we could argue about whether wrockers/ficcers/artists make (or could make) the same amount of money as the Lexicon has the potential to do, but I thought this was not about the money. From her testimony, I was under the impression that she wants to have control over her world (again, something she has the right to defend). I also understand that she can pick and choose what to pursue as a violation of her control, and that since she hasn't done so yet for these things, she probably won't. I'm still a little concerned.

2. How can you maintain loyalty to two apparently contradictory goals? i.e. publishing the LM and placating Rowling and/or fandom.

By doing exactly as I explained above - not making it personal. People disagree all the time and still manage to be friends, lovers, coworkers, etc. Why can't we as a fandom say, "this is not about me, but I have an opinion"? And then constructively discuss from there? At its root, this is politics, pure and simple. People get angry about politics. People take sides. People avoid discussing it because it can turn the best of friends into enemies. Why hasn't anyone stood up to point this out?

Of course, I'm sure this is just like saying that Democrats and Republicans should just get along as well. What can I say? I'm a Libra, through and through.

3. How can you apparently believe one thing at one time and apparently believe the opposite the next?

How can you ask the same question three times, making all 3 sound accusatory and causing me to become defensive?

I have a new interest, and it's called Awesome!

I know I emailed this to some of you already, but thought I'd put it out here as a blog entry as well.

I'm sure many of you can remember how excited I was when I met Seth Rogen in January. If you haven't heard the story, "met" in this case means rolling down my window to talk to him and then driving away. It was then that I really accepted my fangirl leanings. They had always been lurking, but getting to do that really just brought it out into the open. And like anything, if you nurture it, it will grow.

As interested in my spritual growth as I'm sure you all are, I do have another point. I've always had a thing for Harry Potter, even moreso than anyone else I know personally. My latest foray into the fandom has been exploring the world of Wizard rock, which I've posted about before.

I don't even know how to really explain the Wizard rock community to you, but I can tell you that these guys are very into promoting literacy and raising money for various social awareness movements, most notably the HP Alliance. Their goal is not so much to make money, but to tour around and get to play. They all eschew big media and record labels, and are proving that you can be a musician without that. They do this with the unerring support of their fans, like me (us?).
One of my favorite Wizard rock bands is launching a fall tour specifically to make money for the HP Alliance and asked their fans to help them book shows. I spent a day contacting various venues and organizations to see if anyone was willing to have them play and have booked a show for them at Your Inner Vagabond in Lawrenceville on November 25th, at 7pm. Cover is $3.

As silly as you might think this sounds, it would be really awesome if as many of you could come as possible.

Pros:

• $2 of your cover goes to the HP Alliance.
• You support me.
• You support a fan movement that has managed to bring people together from all over the country.
• You will avoid my great disappointment by not attending.
• You will prove to Your Inner Vagabond and the bands that Pittsburgh is a place that is willing to make itself available to Wizard rockers.
• If you're lucky, you can meet Matt of the Whomping Willows. If you just read some of his lyrics, I think you'll agree that he is definitely someone that most of us will get along with.
• You can watch me all dressed up in my HP finery, bouncing around and singing all night long.

Cons:

• For 2 hours you're going to have to listen to 2 guys playing music that might not be your cup of tea.
• You'll have to be in the same room as some teenagers.

See, when you break it down like that, isn't it obvious that you should come?
I also have to ask a big favor of someone(s). I need someone(s) to work the door and collect the cover. Normally, jobs like this would fall to my go-to guys (JP and Tim), but they both already have assignments for this (JP is allowing random people to sleep in our apartment, and Tim is doing photography). It would be nice if someone would volunteer for the door, but if you desperately need to be paid, I can pay you in goods and/or services.
I know it's awhile away, but think about it a little.

Wishing much love and Wizard rock your way!

Pittsburgh Pride

You know the rule where you're allowed to make fun of your little brother, but no one else is? Because you know that deep down you love him, so it's ok?
I have much the same affliction with Pittsburgh.

Todd recently posted this on Flickr, linking to a report on how Sienna Miller complained about Pittsburgh.
So, I get it, I really do. You live the swank life in NY and LA, and it's hard for Pittsburgh to compete.

What really bothers me are the comments on the story from regular ol' folk.

"I think it's a nice place but it's not Boston, Chicago or San Francisco and it never will be."
Well, no shit, honey. We have a small fraction of that population. Of course we are not going to have the same amenities.
Population Greater Pittsburgh: 1.3 million
Population Greater San Francisco: 7.2 million
Population Greater Boston: 4.4 million (not including Worcester or Providence, which are within 45 miles)
Population Greater Chicago: 9.5 million

"Slacked jaws, nascar, hunting, and the loss of a football game can make the entire city heartbroken and cease all activity...Not to mention the awful semi-southern white trash accent that is so abundant."
Oh, yikes. It's like the people that meet the one asshole in a city and decide the whole place is full of them. And I have to say, there are people who speak Pittsburghese, sure, but there are plenty that do not. You could hardly say the same in a large Southern city, where people look at "Yankees" funny.

"...the transportation system sucks (ONE metro, to and from South Hills?? Oh, I am sorry, I forgot about the Pat Bus, how fun to ride)."
This person moved from Pittsburgh to DC. I bet if she ever went to Buffalo or KC (comparably sized cities), she'd be begging for the PAT system.

"Doesn’t your Mayor have better things to do than comment on what a two bit actress thinks?"
Um, don't you think someone asked him about it? I somehow doubt he called a press conference to talk about Sienna Miller.

Regardless of how great other cities are, I am in Pittsburgh of my own volition. There is plenty to do if you care to look, and lots of good people here. I was a little surprised to read all of this, because most people I talk to that have been here think it's a fun town. And guess what? I pay much less for my adorable apartment than anyone living in Boston, DC, NY, or San Francisco, which makes my quality of life better. So there.

Are you more important than me?

The more time I spend researching and joining in the Harry Potter fandom, the more I like the idea of belonging to a community with similar interests. It's pretty great to be able to automatically have a conversation with someone you don't know about something you are passionate about. It seems, however, that with any large group of people, drama has ensued.
Matt Maggiacomo from the Whomping Willows recently posted a blog on his MySpace about how someone has created a tiered rating system for how much of a fan you are, "based on how important and influential [you] are within the fandom". No, seriously?

I can't find the original post, and I have no idea who actually did this (Matt never says), but he goes on to berate this person, saying to sum up - "there are only two tiers in this community: J.K. Rowling, and everybody else". He also points out that "there's a weird dynamic within this fandom, where fans of Harry Potter have become fans of other fans". I guess everyone wants some sort of celebrity, and if meeting influential Harry Potter fans is the closest you can get, you'll take it.
The point that the original blogger is missing is a huge one. Where would all these podcasters and Wizard Rock bands be without these people who support them and get excited about these things (the "low-level fans", if you will)? Why would you want to alienate your fanbase by telling them "you're just not as important as I am in this fandom"? It seems so petty.

Of course, I don't want to belittle what many people have done for the fandom. It can be a full-time job to run a website like The Leaky Cauldron or Mugglenet, or tour around the country with your Wizard rock band. Yet it seems that these people are the ones that are humble and grateful for this experience, rather than walking around with your own brand of narcissism because of something that, let's face it, much of the world would classify as "nerdy". Matt says, "One unifying characteristic of these people is that they are hard workers who have made personal sacrifices to pursue their work. Another is that they truly love what they do, and it is their passion for their own creative process that keeps them from susceptibility to the pitfalls of fame." I am sure there are exceptions in this group as well, but I don't think it's necessarily the norm.

I found an interesting editorial by Victoria Loe Hicks about the fandom. "A bunch of adolescent kids suddenly find themselves wielding hitherto undreamed-of powers, faced with a sometimes repressive adult establishment and, in ways few grownups even grasp, engaged in shaping the future of the world." Sound familiar?
And she has a good point. She goes on to say that:

"...the most potent cultural narrative of recent years coincided with an explosion of interactive, Web-based technologies that have become the scaffolding for today's youth culture. Those new platforms have morphed the "fan clubs" of yesteryear, which communicated sporadically via photocopied newsletters delivered by snail mail, into dynamic real-time communities that span the globe."

The editorial then mentions the influence that this fandom has, being millions strong. Dr. Henry Jenkins, director of MIT's Comparative Media Studies program says, "One could argue that this vision of fandom as a political movement might reflect the ideological construction of the books themselves, which encourage us to stand up for what we believe in, to question authority, and to take strength in our own communities". It's easy to see how this has influenced fans. Take the entire Harry Potter Alliance, for example, or look at the Wizard Rock album, "Rock Against Voldemedia". Andrew Slack, the founder of the Harry Potter Alliance had this to say:

"Once Voldemort took over every form of media in the Wizarding World, Dumbledore’s Army and the Order of the Phoenix formed an independent media movement called “Potterwatch.”
Now the HP Alliance and Wizard Rock have come together to fight for a Potterwatch movement in the real world to fight back against Big VoldeMedia from further pushing out local and foreign news, minority representation, and the right to a Free Press."

Hicks also points out that "Ms. Rowling owns the legal rights to Harry Potter, but the fandom owns his zeitgeist". We have been given the canon, and we have created the rest. Every 8 year old Potter fan has contributed to that just as much as George Lippert has. Didn't Harry Potter teach us that the "little people" are just as important? After all, the Wizarding world was saved by 3 teenagers, not the Ministry of Magic.

Post 200

Since I started this blog in October of 2006, I have posted 291 entries. Since I am an editor first, and a writer second, I agonize over many of these. I actually write most of my posts in Gmail, and then send them to myself to have a separate archive. I guess in case the whole internet except for Gmail disappears? Regardless, I only use this method for things that aren't just links or surveys. So, out of these 291 entries, 92 so far have been links or surveys. This is post 200 of the "real" posts.

I knew it was coming up, so I was trying to figure out what I wanted to write about. And in fact, there are two things we can talk about.

1) Yesterday, I received a text from one Stephanie Pierce. A text from her brand new phone in Georgia! For those of you who don't know Steph, she spent from May 2007 until July 2008 deployed in Iraq. And now she's back and coming here in mere weeks to visit.

2) Today would be Harry Potter's 28th birthday. What has he been up to since we last saw him? He married Ginny, of course. They have 2 or 3 children at the moment - James is about 3, Albus is about 2, and Lily is born sometime in 2008 (we just don't know when). Last year, he was appointed Head of the Auror Department at the Ministry of Magic. Seems like he's doing pretty well for himself so far! Good to know that he keeps that up for another 9 years, at least.

So, Happy Homecoming to Steph, and Happy Birthday to Harry.

Oblivion, or why Alex Carpenter might be important

Being completely oblivious and ignorant can have certain advantages, I suppose. Since going to the Wizard rock show on Friday, I have spent much time listening to and finding Wizard rock. I can't get over how adorable it is to listen to songs and sing along about Harry Potter. Seriously, so much fun. Why did I never pay attention to this before?

But it turns out, uneducated in wrock as I was, that meeting Alex Carpenter is a Wizard rock fangirls' dream come true. I also introduced myself to Matt Maggiacomo of The Whomping Willows since he was sitting right there. Since I had missed most of their set, I really had no idea who he was, and have only found out by seeing pictures of him online while finding more wrock.
I wonder if they are so used to squeeing from their fans that they were amused by the fact that I was not? Did they realize I had no idea? If so, was that refreshing or disappointing?

I am definitely glad that I didn't ask for hugs or pictures or such (at least at this first meeting, lol). We'll see if I can contain myself next time, or if the squee will overflow. I figure if I'm surrounded by 15 year olds, I can't possibly be the most excited fan there.

Wizard Rock!

Tonight, I managed to convince LeeAnn and two of the Germans (Marc and Fred) to come to the free outdoor Wizard rock show with me. They sat on the grass at Schenley Plaza while I stood at the back of a very excited group of kids, aged 10-15.

So, the headliners was The Remus Lupins. Head over to his MySpace and listen to 'Seven Potters'. It was my favorite song of the night. The entire experience was absolutely adorable. All these girls (and the two boys) jumping around and singing every word to the songs. It was infectiously awesome. And not unlike the Tom Petty show, except that we could legally drink.

After the show, I wandered over to talk to Alex Carpenter (possibly the only official member of the band?), and also met The Whomping Willows' Matt Maggiacomo. Since this was my first live Wizard rock experience, and the rest of it is from the one night I spent trolling on MySpace to listen to various bands, I had no squeeing fangirl in me. I went to the show because I am a part of the fandom and you do these things to support it. Of course, there hasn't been anything about the fandom that I've rejected yet, so I guess I am now Wizard rock's newest fan.

What do you say to someone you don't know about at all? Naturally, I asked the most controversial question I could think of - where did he stand on the whole JKR vs. RDR thing?

You know how you're not supposed to talk about politics or religion? Yeah, I'm terrible at that rule.

He told me what he thought and we had a good discussion about it. They are playing here again next Sunday, but I'll be out of town. Bummer! This was really tons of fun, as you can see from the 5 second video below:



And here's the artistic interpretation of the really blurry pic I took while jumping up and down (hey, it was also infectious):

Heat seeking missiles, bloodhounds, foxes, barracudas...

It's almost that time. 'Pineapple Express' comes out in 12 days. *squeal!*

I feel like I am far too old to get this excited about:
1) A celebrity
2) Stoner movies
but I am anyways. Based on this review, I have a feeling I may like James Franco's character better than Seth Rogen's. He "immediately wins over the audience with his affable, perpetually stoned demeanor and often hilarious non sequiturs." There's nothing I like more than hilarious non sequiturs.

Though, I never understand why critics review movies like this as if they are expecting something more than stupid high people doing stupid high things. Justin Chang isn't entirely dismissive or critical of it, but he does seem disappointed. Since I'm not expecting it to be nominated for any Academy Awards, I think I'll like it just fine. Plus, it's theme song is the amazing 'Paper Planes' by MIA that I have the EP of. Yup, I bought 5 different versions of this song.

Here's the trailer, in case you haven't seen it yet:
(possibly NSFW...there is drug use and cursing)

Speechless

Yeah, I really have no words for this. Pretty amazingly sums things up.

9 things I hate about everyone

Usually I don't mind getting cheesy forwards. The political ones that my uncle sends just to piss me off? Ok, I mind. But the "Funny things kids say" and "What your cat really thinks of you" usually put a (short-lived) smile on my face.
This one was just ridiculous, though. It's even worse than the "why do we park in a driveway and drive on a parkway?" one.

1. People who point at their wrist while asking for the time.... I know where my watch is pal, where the hell is yours? Do I point at my crotch when I ask where the toilet is?
I actually like this because I am never prepared for random person to talk to me, and if they are pointing at their wrist, I actuallly know what they are saying to me without having to ask "What?"

2. People who are willing to get off their ass to search the entire room for the T.V.. remote because they refuse to walk to the T.V. and change the channel manually.
Yes, because when I watch TV, I put on one channel and would never ever change it or the volume level.

3 When people say 'Oh you just want to have your cake and eat it too'. Damn right! What good is cake if you can't eat it?
What good are idioms if they don't make literal sense?

4. When people say 'it's always the last place you look'. Of course it is. Why the hell would you keep looking after you've found it? Do people do this? Who and where are they? Gonna Kick their asses!
This is just plain stupid. If you looked in many other places first, this makes perfect sense.

5. When people say while watching a film 'did you see that?'. No Loser, I paid $12 to come to the cinema and stare at the damn floor.
I guess they've never sneezed/fallen asleep/wanted to talk about a movie before.

6. People who ask 'Can I ask you a question?'.... Didn't really give me a choice there, did ya sunshine?
"Can I ask you a question?" doesn't actually mean "Am I physically capable of asking a question of you?", SUNSHINE. It means, "Do you have a moment to listen to and talk with me?"

7. When something is 'new and improved!'. Which is it? If it's new, then there has never been anything before it. If it's an improvement, then there must have been something before it, couldn't be new.
By being improved, it is different. "New", you might say.

8. When people say 'life is short'. What the hell?? Life is the longest damn thing anyone ever does!! What can you do that's longer?
I don't know, nonexistence or the afterlife might be, you know, FOREVER.

9. When you are waiting for the bus and someone asks 'Has the bus come yet?'. If the bus came would I be standing here, dumb ass?
These people obviously don't wait at bus stops where more than one bus comes.

Seriously, who writes these things? Taking everything everyone said literally never works. And it's not funny to boot.

No-poo

My apartment has been free of any toxic and non-biodegradable cleaning products for well over a year now, and I have to say that I don't miss them one bit. As I continue my one-woman crusade to save the world, my next stop was the bathroom - specifically the shower.
I love bath and beauty products, but I was starting to feel guilty about dumping all that sodium laureth sulfate down the drain. I have also reasonably guessed that since it's not good for the environment, it's not good for me and my body, either. So I bought a bottle of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap as body wash and some organic shampoo. The shampoo was awful. It made my hair feel both greasy and like straw. So I bought another one, and it's ok, but my hair is still feeling a little weird. Before I bought any more, I figured some research was in order, and I discovered the "no-poo" movement. Yes, you're going to think I'm crazy.

In not using shampoo, you still want to remove dirt and grime from your hair, without stripping all the natural oils out, which is what conventional shampoo does. The solution? 1 tablespoon baking soda dissolved in 1 cup of warm/hot water. Massage it on your scalp and through your hair and rinse well. You can also create a "rinse" that conditions your hair by making a solution of 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar and 1 cup of warm water. Same procedure. I didn't have any apple cider vinegar, but I tried the baking soda solution. I also used my organic leave-in conditioner.
Now, my hair is still wet as we speak, so I don't know how exactly it will feel later, but right now all I can smell is wet dog, and I have a feeling it's my hair. I may abandon this, unless somehow my hair is gorgeous and shiny and perfect later.

Reality-Based Intellectualist

Yup, sure am.

My Liberal Identity:

You are a Reality-Based Intellectualist, also known as the liberal elite. You are a proud member of what’s known as the reality-based community, where science, reason, and non-Jesus-based thought reign supreme.

Take the quiz at www.FightConservatives.com

Thanks Jen!

"You're the only one."

If you hang out with JP and me often enough, you will hear him say to me (fairly frequently), "Why do you struggle through life so much?" I know part of it is my own fault sometimes. Chopping things while on rollerskates - not a good idea. Trying to stack 7 drinking glasses in my arms to avoid an extra trip of 5 feet from the dishwasher to the cabinet - just plain silly. Add these sorts of things to my natural inclination towards clumsiness and you get a difficult life. But other than my misinterpretation of a pregnancy test, this one really takes the cake.

Yesterday, Tim and I went to Giant Eagle. We went through the self-checkout line. He went first, and I bagged for him. I had more groceries, so when I was done ringing out, I went to help him finish bagging. We got everything together and left, with me complaining the whole time about how slow the people in front of us were. We drove the 5 minutes home, and I was getting my groceries out of the back seat when I looked at Tim and said, "I didn't pay for my groceries." He asked me if I was sure, and I thought about it. I had walked down to the other end to help him bag, and then just walked out. I couldn't remember swiping my card, entering my pin, getting a receipt - nothing. So I went inside and called Giant Eagle.
I had to talk to about 4 people before someone told me that I needed to come back in to pay for them. I put away my cold things, got back in the car, drove back, and went to the cashier in the front. I explained it to the guy there, and he rang me out, with me apologizing the whole time. As I was getting ready to leave, I said to him, "I can't be the only one who's done this, right?" to which he replied, "Well, you're the only one who wasn't actually trying to steal to do this. I've been here awhile, and I've never had anyone call us. We usually find them and call them." I apologized again, and he was super nice about it ("No, thanks for calling and coming back. We really appreciate this."), but I have to say that I felt so incredibly stupid. Still do, in fact.
I'm just glad that I remembered, since I had swiped my Advantage card and they would have known it was me. If I had been banned from this Giant Eagle, we would have been screwed. It's where I do 90% of my grocery shopping. JP just chuckled when I explained it to him. I think he knew I wasn't in the position to take any grief over it at that moment.

Christmas in July

If this could be sent in the mail, it would be my Christmas card this year.