Reflecting on 2008

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."

That's one of those quotes that's oddly applicable most years given the highs and lows of life, but it definitely hits the nail on the head this year. In some respects, 2008 has been the best year of my life and in others, the worst.

I never thought I'd end the year without a job in the middle of the worst recession this country has seen since the Great Depression! I never thought in a million years I would ever be fired from a job. It doesn't matter that it was for completely arbitrary reasons having very little to do with me. Even if you loathe your boss and the company you work for, it's still a kick in the gut to be told that. And now I have the joy of figuring out how to explain being fired in future interviews without completely bashing my old company because as we all know that's a big interview no-no. But as I remind myself every morning, if that's the worst the year had for me, then I'm a pretty lucky gal!

Enough with the bad! On to the good! I started out the year with all of my friends moving away and in search of a church. I'm ending the year as a member of the most awesome church in all of LA where I have made the most awesome friends in all of LA. They have become my LA family and as a single gal in a big city far away from your own family, I can't stress how important that is. Given my ample time off, I got to spend a month back home visiting friends and family and made my way across the ocean to visit the crew in Germany. Then my parents finally got to come visit me for Thanksgiving. And for all of this, I feel truly blessed.

I thought I'd just end with a quick little list of some of my favorites of 2008.

Favorite Movies
Iron Man
The Dark Knight
Doubt
Slumdog Millionaire
Wall-E

Favorite TV Shows
Battlestar Galactica
Pushing Daisies
30 Rock
How I Met Your Mother
The Office
Lost

Favorite Music - I'm not a big music aficionado like I am with movies and TV, but here are some things I liked
Beyonce, Single Ladies (the one song I can't get out of my head)
Jenny Lewis, Acid Tongue
Alicia Keys, As I Am
Katy Perry, One of the Boys
Britney Spears, Circus (because I'm still a teeny-bopper at heart!)
Rihanna, Good Girls Gone Bad

I hope everyone had a great year and if not, here's to a better year ahead! I'll leave you with my favorite picture from my favorite event of 2008 - finally getting to go to Paris like I've always dreamed about...made even better because I got to go with my sister!!


HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Christmas Movies

I've seen 4 movies in the last 4 days. That may be a new record for me. But I can't help it that all of the sudden there were a bunch of movies I want to see. Since the fall has been kind of a drought when it comes to good flicks, I indulged a little. I'm just going to attack these mini-reviews in the order I saw them.

The Spirit
Like I said, this was a wierd pick for a Christmas day movie, but it worked. If you're a reader of reviews, then you know this movie has gotten royally panned. Rarely do I disagree completely with the general consensus on Rotten Tomatoes, but this is one such time. Now don't get me wrong, a lot of their criticisms were valid, but it was still a fun movie. I feel like Batman, et al have ruined people's expectations of comic book movies. They don't all have to be super-deep and dark. This film reminded me a lot of Dick Tracy, which I love. The dialogue was hokey, the character's were paper-thin, but it looked cool and I had fun watching it. I felt like someone took the comic book, cut it up, and made a little moving picture of it. Plus, I think the Sin City style of filmmaking is just plain awesome. I hated Sin City. I almost walked out of the movie. I wanted to like it purely because of the visualization, but I just couldn't. It was too graphic and gory and gratuitous. Then 300 came out and I had the same criticisms. I didn't see it, but my thoughts were confirmed by people who did. So I may have overly enjoyed The Spirit because it's a tamer story that let me fully enjoy the awesome visuals.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
I don't have much to write about this movie because I was kind of disappointed. I thought how they aged Brad Pitt was really neat, but that was about it. I didn't care about the characters (with the exception of Queenie); I didn't care about the story; and I got bored halfway through. I realize I'm criticizing this movie for what I let slide with The Spirit, but I feel justified because the former is meant to be a serious, Oscar-contending, character piece while the latter is just meant to be a fun popcorn flick.

Doubt
Ah, Doubt! How I love thee, let me count the ways. This is, hands down, the best movie I've seen this year. I can't find anything wrong with it. The topic was so relevant and thought provoking and the performances were amazing! If you want to see great acting, then watch this movie. There's a scene between Meryl Streep and Amy Adams that involves no words, but it so utterly expressive that I was left in awe. Meryl Streep and Phillip Seymour Hoffman are two of the best, if not the best, actors working today. Give them anything, and they're gonna knock it out of the park. But the revelation of the movie was Viola Davis. She has got to win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, or I'm going to hurt someone! I don't want to spoil anything about her performance, but holy crap it was just about the most amazing thing I have ever seen on screen. If you haven't seen this movie, what are you waiting for?

Slumdog Millionaire
Another great movie, this will definitely go down as one of my top movies of 2009. Since you may not be aware of this film, let me give you a little summary. This is an Indian film that follows a young man on India's version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. He is accused of cheating because he is from the slums and there is no way a kid from the streets could know all of these answers. The movie cuts back and forth between him answering the question on the game show and flashbacks that reveal how he grew up and why he knows the answer to that particular question. The story is just so original and so well directed, and you will walk out of the theater feeling good. If this is playing in your neck of the woods, then please go out and see it.

So there you have it. My Christmas-time movie reviews. Did you see anything you would recommend?

Christmas Day Fun

Despite being away from home, Christmas day was a busy one. First up, opening presents! I had Jolee send gifts to LA, so that I would have something to open up on Christmas day. I got the magnet I asked for (though I don't know what the heck it says!), plus I got the Eiffel Tower figurine I had been eyeing in Paris. Sneaky Jolee! How'd you get that without me knowing? Must've been when I would get claustrophobic and have to get out of those tight little shops. Plus, I got a kickin' Hard Rock pin to add to my collection, a cute candle, and some good ol' Belgian chocolate!

Then it was time for what turned out to be the first movie of the day, The Spirit. I quite enjoyed it and it made for a weird Christmas day pick, but that was part of the fun (I'll have more to say about that and some other movies later). Then I headed home to clean up because I had people (a whole heckuva lot of people) coming over for a late lunch/early dinner.

After I cleaned, I popped in the lasagnas that my friend Michelle had pre-made and waited for my company to arrive. We played a game of how many people can actually fit into Terri's apartment. Turns out at least 16, and I think there was room for more. We played Catch Phrase, conversed, and enjoyed a lovely Italian Christmas dinner with lots of yummy desserts. Then we all decided to get up and go see Benjamin Button.

After the movie, I headed home, cleaned up a little, and called it a day. It was a fun Christmas, and I'm thankful I have great friends to celebrate with. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, too!

Christmas Travels

I've been an absentee blogger due to Christmas activities, but now I'm back and I've brought you a nice little (ok, probably massively long!) summary of my Arkansas visit.

I flew through Chicago where it had just started snowing. It kept snowing and snowing and snowing some more. I had a 2 hour layover and was beginning to fear I might get stuck there. But thankfully, I got out of there after about a two hour delay. I arrived in LR where it was freezing. And the freezing continued the entire time I was there!

I got to hang out with the fam, including a visit with my grandparents, going on a shopping date with my mom and aunt, and spending time playing with the kiddos. Plus, I got to hang out with two of my best friends. It was a busy week, but a fun one. We topped it off by exchanging gifts and a good time was had by all. I got kitchen utensils!! Woohoo, it's exactly what I asked for!! How boring do we get when we become adults that we ask for whisks and serving spoons and decorative pillows?! Next year, I'm asking for a Wii!

The day I was to fly back to LA, we awoke to freezing rain. We made our way to the airport without too much trouble. I got myself and my baggage all checked in and then waited til the last minute to go through security. As we said our goodbyes, mom started to cry (as usual), which then made me start to cry (also as usual). Then I scurried off while removing my shoes and my belt to expedite the process.

I got to my gate and everything was looking good, until it came time to board. Our plane wasn't there for us to board, so we waited. It finally arrived and we got on our way an hour late. Did I mention that I only had a 55 minute layover?! We arrived at DFW, and I immediately forgot how much I hate that airport as the pilot informed us that we had to taxi to the complete opposite side. Of course, this only takes about 15 or 20 minutes. Argh! At that point, I wasn't in much of a hurry because I was pretty confident that I'd missed my flight. I got off the plane pretty quickly though and soon realized that my connecting flight was also delayed. Yay! I ran through the airport (which is not something I've ever done!) and made it to my gate in time to board my flight.

I arrived in LA about and hour or so after I was scheduled to land, so it didn't turn out too bad. Or so I thought. I waited for my luggage and waited and waited and waited. Evidently, it wasn't as fortunate as I was in making that connecting flight. After about an hour ordeal where I waited for the next plane in from DFW only to find my luggage didn't arrive on it either, I was finally able to file my claim and go home. Only now it was 5 pm....in LA...which means TRAFFIC!!! Argh again! I always time my flights early in the afternoon or late in the evening to avoid traffic. But given the setbacks, I was right smack in the middle of rush hour. Now I live 13.8 miles from the airport. Any guesses on how long it took to get there? A whopping hour and a half!!

But it gets better. I have no luggage and I need some essentials (e.g. contact solution, toothpaste, hairbrush, deodorant, etc.). So after that ordeal I get the pleasure of going to Target on the evening of December 23rd. It was chaos and it was all I could do but laugh at the situation. Here I am, completely done with my Christmas, fighting the last minute shoppers to stock up on things that were in my suitcase, which was who knows where!

Then I headed over to help set-up for our Christmas eve service and had a marvelous evening and realized how trivial my day had really been. So what if my bag was gone, I could replace it. No big deal. I made it back safely and that was most important. After a late night helping out, I awoke the next morning to a phone call at 7:45 saying they found my luggage and it would be delivered between 10 and 12. Woohoo!! I got a happy ending!

I'll be back a little later with a posting about Christmas day. This was getting kinda long, so I figured I should break it up.

Twilight - The Movie Edition

If you haven't seen the movie or read the book (and plan to), then read at your own risk.


I finally got around to seeing Twilight, and I'm full of thoughts. First off, I was underwhelmed. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it, because I did. But I just expected so much more from it.

I thought the casting was pretty spot-on. Most everyone was exactly how I pictured him/her with the exception of Jasper. And I liked that they were faithful to the story and used dialogue plucked straight from the book. Plus, I liked the look (i.e. colors, settings, etc.) of the film.

What I didn't like was the lack of character development, the rushed feeling of Edward and Bella's relationship, and the overall cheesiness of some of it.

I realize it's hard to condense a 500+ page book into a 2 hour movie, but I was disappointed. The book was so great at developing all of the peripheral characters, and I especially liked the backstories of all the members of the vampire "family." But these weren't even addressed in the movie. And I felt like Edward and Bella just magically fell for each other in the movie very quickly, and I don't recall this being the case in the book. It's a much longer mutual fascination with each other that slowly develops into a relationship.

And the effects were just cheesy. I chalk this up to a director who had no previous experience with CG, so I'll let it slide. I thought some of the direction in the vampire confrontation was too campy. I get that they're vampires and there's some hissing and grandstanding, but I'm not supposed to suppress a laugh at that moment. It's intended to be very serious, and I don't think it came across that way. Plus, there was some careless editing that created too many noticeable continuity issues. Sooo.....

That being said, I'm really looking forward to the future installments since they're getting a new director. I think the new guy will better weave the teenage love story/character development/CG given his background and not make it so darn cheesy.

By the way, I've only read the first book, so if you want to leave comments please keep that in mind. I don't want any spoilers!

Australia

I have all the time in the world to post blogs, yet somehow manage not to. Though it's mainly because I haven't had much to say lately, which I know is shocking. Maybe ideas/words will come back to me over the next couple of weeks.

I don't really have much to say right now, but I thought I would see if anyone has seen Australia. I went with a group of friends to a 9:45 showing and none of them really liked it. Granted, I found out afterwards that none of them new it was almost 3 hours long and they'd been at work all day, so I really think this is what caused their dislike. I, on the other hand, loved it! And, more importantly, knew it was a long flick, so I was prepared.

I love epics and romance and Baz Luhrmann movies so it was pretty much a given that I was going to like it. But I liked it even more than I thought. It reminded me of a beautiful old school film circa the 40's or 50's. And the little boy in the film was just too adorable! That being said, it was a bit too long.

If you haven't seen it yet, I would recommend it. Just make sure you're prepared to stay seated for 3 hours!

An American Turner Thanksgiving (not to be confused with the German one)

My parents just left to head back to Arkansas after a nice 10 day visit to the left coast for the Thanksgiving holiday. The other siblings hooked up in Germany, so my parents came to visit me. I've been trying to get them to visit for awhile, so I was happy that they finally came! We had a lot of fun and did a lot of stuff. We even managed to do some stuff none of us had ever done. There are always new and exciting things to do in the big city!

We tooled around downtown and went to a Clippers game...



Mom and Dad had their first ever subway excursion...



We had Thanksgiving dinner with some of my friends...



We went to the Reagan library (so much better than Clinton's!)...



Then we went to the Nixon library (which I don't have good pics of because my battery died)...



And we topped it off with some window shopping on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills...



We sprinkled in a trip to Hollywood to see the stars on the Walk of Fame and Grauman's Chinese Theatre, a brief hike at Runyon Canyon (where we just missed Justin Timberlake by a day!), a tour of the media capital of the world aka Burbank, a trip to the Grove (where we just missed Gwen Stefani by a mere couple of hours!), a taping of Craig Ferguson where we saw Betty White, a visit to Saddleback Church, a trip to the beach where it was super foggy, and a breakfast at IHOP where we saw David Spade!

A good time was had by all...at least, I think! Thanks for coming to visit, Mom and Dad. Come back soon!

Update

I forgot that I was going to update my Hugh Jackman post. Since I've posted since then, I thought I'd give the update its own special space.

Without further ado, me and one of the future sexiest men circa 1998...

Oy vey!

eHarmony to create same-sex service, settling complaint

What the heck?! Are you kidding me?!

This is just a load of you-know-what. I can't believe they settled this and didn't take it to court. I guess it's just a big PR stunt for them. Gonna make more money from a new group of people, and the time is right to jump on the gay rights bandwagon.

I know you might be confused given my stance on gay marriage, but this is a private business. And it's not being discriminatory in any way. There are gay dating websites. Go join them! This is like telling REI that they have to cater to indoor sports as well. Or more simply (courtesy of my roommate), telling Taco Bell they have to sell hamburgers. A private business should be able to cater to whomever they want!!

But like I said, it's all about the PR in the end. Sad.

Yes, I approve

After dropping the ball last year with Matt Damon (sorry, but he's cute - not sexy), People got it right with Hugh Jackman. He's a notch below George, Ben, and Jake in my book, but just barely. Way to go People!

If I remember to, I'll update the post later about my encounter with one of the picks included in this year's issue.

Today's SNL Installment

Shawn and Belle...on GH?!

Today I discovered that Belle and Shawn are on General Hospital. When did this happen and why is it allowed? My sister got me hooked on Days of Our Lives when we had surgery on our knees and were rehabbing. I've watched it off and on since then, though I've been off for the last 2 or 3 years. I have no idea what's going on on that show now. And I'm trying to keep it that way. But today, I was flipping channels and there was Shawn in scrubs on GH. And then, in the very next scene, Belle got attacked by some hoodlums. And people were calling them by different names. I was so confused!! I did some research and even came across this shot below, which makes me wonder if they are trying to steal the Shelle magic and make them a couple. I don't know how I feel about this.


It's weird how soap actors can jump from show to show. I guess it's not really a big deal since most soap fans are loyal to one show.

Yep...I officially have too much time on my hands.

Peace Out TRL

I watched the final showing of TRL last night. I was reminded of how much I used to love watching that, and I got all sentimental. I watched that show practically everyday in college. But then I graduated and moved on, though I would check in from time to time if I knew Justin was going to be on. For me, TRL meant 'NSync and Britney Spears. It was all about pop music and that's the music I love.

I realize that I didn't know half the djs that had been on the show. When I watched it, it was Carson Daly and Hillarie Burton (so I smudged everyone else out in the picture). It was funny watching all of the old clips. I loved the final top 10 video countdown. It included pretty much everything I loved in college. A little 'NSync, a little Britney Spears, a little Christina Aguilera, with some Eminem and Blink 182 thrown in for good measure. Good times.

Farewell TRL! You were my American Bandstand, and I will remember you fondly.

Does this mean there's officially no more music on MTV?

SNL

Does anyone still watch this show? I feared it was going to lack the funny when Tina and Maya and Amy left, but it's been pretty darn funny this season. Mainly thanks to the election stuff and Kristen Wiig. She could read the phone book and I'd still die laughing. While there is rarely an episode that makes me laugh from start to finish, there have been some pretty hilarious sketches this season. Ones that make me not want to delete it off of my DVR so that I can watch it over and over and over again. Thankfully they've been posting them on the internet, so I'm going to share a few of the sketches that have made me laugh the hardest.

I really wanted to share my most favorite sketch first, but I think I'm going to build up to it. I've already posted the Amy Poehler rap, so you've had the chance to watch one of the sketches. Since it was most recent, I'll share with you the sketch that had me falling off the couch laughing in last night's episode. It's funny on its own, but it's extra funny if you know the back story on Beyonce's video. For some reason SNL doesn't have this sketch up, but I found it elsewhere.

Check it out...

Aww shucks! They've removed the video. I knew it was coming, but was hoping it would take longer. I hope you got to watch it because that's some hilarious stuff. I wonder why SNL hasn't put the clip up. I'm guessing either Beyonce or Justin won't give them permission. Who knows.

LA is on fire...again

Alright, this has been about the craziest fire season since I've been out here. Like I've said before, I live too far in the city to be affected. However, I know lots of people that live up in the Sylmar area, which is where one of the big ones is raging. I already know of several people that have been evacuated. The fire destroyed a mobile home park (yes, we have those in LA, too), and I'm hearing that June, an elderly woman at my church, lived there. Though I don't have confirmation on this because evidently 600 of the 700 mobile homes were destroyed, which obviously means there are some still standing. So I'd appreciate it if you could add June and the other evacuees and potential evacuees to your prayer list. I know they would appreciate it as well.

Update: Just got word that June did, in fact, lose her home. But she got out safely, so praise God!

Christmas Fun

I rarely reply to forwarded surveys, but this one was fun. Rather than forward it on via email, I thought I'd just post it to ye ol' blog.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper

2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial. I've never had a real tree. I wouldn't know what to do with one.

3. When do you put up the tree? I try to get it up Thanksgiving weekend.

4. Favorite holiday tradition? Hmmm, I can't really think of any traditions. Oh wait, I love having breakfast on Christmas. We always have a full-on breakfast spread after we open gifts. Yummy!

5. Do you like eggnog? I've honestly never tried it, but I don't think I'd like it. I much prefer Peppermint Mocha Frappuccinos!

6. Favorite gift received as a child? My cabbage patch dolls!!

7. Hardest person to buy for? The adults

8. Easiest person to buy for? The kids. They like everything. And I like any excuse to mess around in the toy section.

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, I have a dreamsicle angel one and it is very cute.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? I prefer to receive good old fashioned mail. I haven't ever sent Christmas cards myself. I guess I should, but I don't feel like I have anything interesting to report or a cute picture of kids to include. What do I say really? Merry Christmas from the still single, childless gal in LA!

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I can't really think of anything bad. I usually like what I get. And honestly, I wouldn't admit to not liking anything if I did. I think it's rude. Just be thankful for the thought and move on.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? How the Grinch Stole Christmas (cartoon edition) and A Christmas Story. The season is not complete without a viewing of both of these classics.

13. When do you start shopping? Usually last minute, but the Rowlands foray into Germany has really thrown a kink in my plans - got to get them done in early November.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Nope

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Peanut Brittle

16. Lights on the tree? Ummm, yes? I like all white.

17. Favorite Christmas song? Anything on the 'NSync Christmas album!!

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Considering I'm the odd man out, I usually travel back to AR.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Absolutely.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? A pretty, pretty star.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Always Christmas morning. I don't get the Christmas Eve tradition. When does Santa come?!

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? People being all PC and saying Happy Holidays. It's Merry Christmas people!! And if you're Jewish, you can tell me Happy Hanukkah. I'm not going to get offended.

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Hmm, I don't do themes. I just put up what I've got.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? I don't know. Ham, I guess. That seems Christmasy. Though I prefer Turkey and think we should just do Thanksgiving dinner for a second time.

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? A job!!!!!!

Holiday Season Has Arrived

How do I know?...







Red cups!!

One last political post...

...for awhile at least.

I thought my last post was going to be my last political post. I told myself I was going to hold my tongue on how certain things turned out in CA and AR. But I've been listening to helicopters circling overhead covering the big protest against Prop 8 that was staged tonight. I'm watching the news coverage. People are marching, blocking traffic, getting arrested (though for the most part pretty peaceful). So as much as I was trying to let it go, it won't go away.

One of the arguments I've made from the beginning is that passing Prop 8 isn't going to make the issue go away. Someone will file suit, the courts will rule it unconstitutional (because it is), and we'll be back in the same place in the next election or the following one. They're not going to give up. This is absolutely the most important issue for them right now. Is this a fight we really want to continue?

And I'm not even going to get started on the Arkansas ban on unmarried couples (read: gays) serving as foster or adoptive parents. There are so many kids in need of loving homes. Isn't it more important to place them in loving homes where they will be cared for rather than have them sitting in state run institutions? I read that on any given day 3,000 children are left in state custody and looking for a permanent home. 3,000! If you voted for the ban, are you prepared to open up your homes to these children?

Let me also state that I'm in the minority amongst my friends (who happen to all go to my church) in my views. I don't want you to think I've not gone and joined some hippie-dippie liberal church that's tainted my mind. Far from it. They're all uber-conservative just like most of you.

I'm going to try to stop posting about this for awhile because I get it's not your favorite thing to read about. But let me warn you...the longer this goes on, the more passionate I get.

Congratulations Mr. Obama

Can I just say how awesome it is to be a part of history?! Either way the election would've turned out, we have made giant strides in the notion of equality for all. While I was a supporter of McCain, I've always been a fan of Obama. I don't think the world is coming to an end. I don't think we're going to become a socialist country. Obama has the potential to be one of our greatest presidents, and I'm hoping he is. This country needs a change, and now we know that change is Barack Obama.

Mr. Obama, I didn't vote for you, but you're my president now and I will support you. You became a bit of a centrist in the general election. Here's hoping you govern that way. You're a smart man, and I think you realize that in no way did you get a mandate. Seven million does not an overwhelming victory make. Your speech was inspiring, and I'm on board. Here's to brighter days ahead! And more importantly....no more Bush!!!

Happy Election Day

GO VOTE!!

I heart my church.

That is all.

Halloween Madness

There are two things West Hollywood goes all out for - the gay pride parade and Halloween. While the gay pride parade is heavily attended by the gay community, the Halloween Carnival attracts a good chunk of LA. I had been warned by friends who used to live in the neighborhood that it would be crazy. Lots of people. Lots of traffic. But my friend insisted I had to check it out. And she's a preacher's wife, so if she says it's all right, then I trust her.

Santa Monica Blvd. was completely shut down in West Hollywood for the festivities. Now, mind you, this is a main east-west thoroughfare through Los Angeles and pretty much the main drag through WeHo. It's such a big ordeal that the city even sends out postcards to all the residents reminding them of the event and listing all the road closures.


A couple of friends came over and we ventured out into the wild unknown. We walked up and down Santa Monica checking out all the crazy costumes. We had a bet going to see what the most popular costume would be. The girls picked the Joker. The boys picked Sarah Palin. While it was a very close race, I'm happy to say the Joker pulled it out. It's really amazing some of the creativity of the costumes. But LA is where creative people come, so I guess it makes sense. I said my costume was An Arkie in LA since I didn't want to dress up. Then we decided I looked kinda like Sweet Dee from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. She and I rock the same style, so I think it worked. Though I don't think that really counts because truthfully, I was just rockin' it Terri style.

All in all, it was a fun evening. Much tamer than I expected. The real craziness happened when we got back to the apartment and 12 people managed to get stuck in the elevator. We had to call the firefighters to come get them out. Stupid drunk people! You can't fit 12 people in our little elevator. Geniuses! Oh well, it made for an interesting evening.

Craig & Lauren

Today, I went to a taping of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. I've wanted to go to a taping of his for awhile now, but just haven't gotten around to it. I find him incredibly funny and think he's the best late night guy there is. Though, in all honesty, I rarely watch his show because it's on so late. But I record it from time to time when someone is on that I want to see.

Actually, I don't watch any of the late night shows unless there's someone on I want to see. Usually what I do is check the TV guide on Sunday to see if there are any guests that I'm interested in seeing. For some reason, I didn't do that this week. But I remembered yesterday morning, so I checked out the remaining week's episodes. And I saw that Lauren Graham was going to be on Craig's show on Friday, so I set it to record. Then I realized that I wasn't doing anything, so I should see if I could get a ticket to see the taping. And low and behold, I did!

Now, to fully understand my excitement, I'm going to have to reveal a little something about me that only a few of my friends know. I keep it under wraps for whatever reason. So here's the deal, there are two little known actresses out there that I am borderline obsessed with. I call them girl crushes, but I say that in jest. I just think they're extremely talented...and that we should be best friends. One of those actresses is Lauren Graham. Most of you would know her from Gilmore Girls, though she's been in a lot of stuff. Lauren entered my radar back in high school when she was on a short-lived show called Townies. That show starred Molly Ringwald, but I remember thinking that the two sidekicks were much more talented and thought they deserved better shows. Those two sidekicks were Lauren and Jenna Elfman (of Dharma & Greg fame). Anyway, I kept up with Lauren after that. And let's just say, I've seen almost everything on her IMDb listing.

So today, I got to see Lauren Graham! And it was AWESOME!! And I don't know how to convey my excitement anymore than that. It's times like these that I walk around with a smile on my face thinking about how great it is to live in LA and how I get to do cool things like this. It just makes me happy.

It's down!!

I drove by the house with the Palin effigy hanging by a noose on my way home from Bible study, and it looks like the homeowners finally took it down! Hallelujah!

Here's a grainy picture...


I've got more to say on the issue, but right now I'm going to watch Pushing Daisies. I'll be back.

Alright, I'm back. But now I'm realizing I don't really have that much to say. I drive by this house all the time, and I'm going to be honest, I barely even noticed it. So many people out here decorate for Halloween (which is just bizarre) that it didn't even stand out to me. I just noticed in passing that part of the decorations was a mannequin hanging by a noose, and I remember thinking that was just tacky. I didn't even realize that it was dressed like Sarah Palin until I saw it on the news. Then I was more disturbed. Y'all are all probably thinking the same way, so I'm not going to get into it.

I'm just going to state that I'm thankful it came down. And I'm astounded by all the protests that have gone on over the last few days. Who knew there were so many Republicans (and/or sympathizing Democrats) in LA?!

My bike!

I bought a bike

I've been wanting a bike to ride around my neighborhood to save money on gas and be healthier and such. I looked for a long time and was being very picky. I decided I wanted a green bike. Do you know how hard it is to find a green bike?! I finally found the perfect green bike at Target right before I left for Germany. I decided I'd wait until I got back to get it. Well, fast-forward to my return and you'll arrive at the beginning of my 3 week journey to find this bike. Of course it was gone when I got back! I searched all of the Targets around LA, but no one had it.

I was making a last ditch effort Monday night to see if I missed a Target in my search. I finally found a Target in Northridge that the website said had it. Since Northridge is a good 20 miles away, which is about 45 minutes LA time, I called to double check before I made the trip. They had it, and they put it on hold for me! I was getting excited. I had to talk my roommate into making the trip because he has an SUV and there wasn't anyway I could fit a bike into my little Civic. As we got closer to Northridge, I started having a sinking feeling that the guy I talked to got the wrong bike. Sure enough, I walked in and saw a silver bike with my name on it. I told the guy the stocking number and even said it was green so as not to create any confusion! I thought great, this was a pointless trip. But I decided to go back to the bike section and check for myself. Maybe the kid just got confused. I made my way to the back of the store and as I turned down the aisle, the heavens parted and angels sang. There on the top shelf was the green bike I'd been searching all over LA for!!

I was going to take it out for a spin today, but it was too hot. It's supposed to be cooler tomorrow, so I'll try again. I'll at least take some pictures so y'all can see the prettiest bike in the whole world! I know you're excited!

Halloween

My favorite treats to get on Halloween were chocolate (excluding tootsie rolls) and those peanut butter taffy things in the orange and black wax paper. I know, those are one of those candies that you either love or hate. I happen to fall in the love category.
I've searched high and low and haven't found my beloved peanut butter treats this year. And by high and low, I really mean Target and several grocery stores. I'm giving it one last shot by hitting up the drug stores. I haven't checked there yet. But my hopes are low. I believe this may just be a peanut butter taffy free Halloween. Sad.

Pushing Daisies

Back to non-political posts. Though I'm about to do some campaigning, so get ready.

Please, please, please, please, please watch Pushing Daisies!! PLEASE!!

This is my favorite show on TV right now and no one is watching it. This is just a travesty. It's one of the most original, creative shows I've ever seen.

Why will America sit and watch every unoriginal CSI-ish crime show or unfunny, you can see the joke coming a mile away Two and a Half Men type show, but not give Pushing Daisies a chance? I guess I just don't understand everyone's taste. And don't get me wrong. I don't mean to knock those other shows. There's a place for all of them. I just wish people would expand their horizons a little bit.

Tune into Pushing Daisies Wednesday night and check out a sweet, non-sex obssessed, non-blood and guts showing, fun, intelligent show that's mastered the lost art of storytelling.

Pretty please!

Prop 8

This is the first year I get to vote in California. Prop 8, the marriage protection amendment, is the hot non-presidential topic out here, and that puts me in a unique position. This is the second time I'll get to vote for or against a marriage protection amendment. I got to vote on Arkansas' proposition in the last election, and now I get to vote on California's. I wonder how many people have gotten to vote on this issue twice?

If you noticed the picture I posted, you already now how I feel. I didn't vote for the amendment in Arkansas, and I absolutely will not vote for it in California. This is another one of those issues where I'm in the minority and feel that Christians have it all wrong. How am I ever going to be able to minister to a homosexual when I voted against this amendment? They won't be able to look past what they perceive as my hatred for them as a person.

Prop 8 and all these similar marriage amendments are discrimination, plain and simple. I'm not asking churches to start marrying homosexuals. I am absolutely opposed to that. I'm simply voting to allow homosexuals to marry in the eyes of the state. What does that mean? They can file a joint tax return, they can visit their partner in the hospital when only family members are allowed, the child they're raising together won't go into a foster home when the biological parent passes away. It's simply a matter of rights, and I don't understand why people are so adament about denying them.

We're so wrapped up in protecting an institution that's falling apart. Who decided that fighting against gay marriage is a way to preserve the institution? Gay people aren't corrupting marriage and the family. Godless marriages, too easily obtained divorces, absentee fathers...those are the things tainting marriage and the family.

Bottom line, I think we need to get our priorities straight. A lot of money has been spent on supporting these amendments that would've gone a long way in assisting the homeless, the poor, the jobless. Oh, but wait, if Prop 8 passes, we've preserved marriage! I ask you...have we? Or is marriage in the same state it was before while we've managed to further alienate a group of people we are trying to reach?

Crack me up!

I can see! I can see!

I've lived most of my life with bad eyes. It's the one thing that annoys me about my brother and sister. They have perfect vision. Only now I think they're finally starting to experience vision problems associated with aging, which I enjoy. I know that's mean, but it's true. I've worn glasses or contacts since I was 9. Though I'm pretty certain I needed them before that. It just took me a little while to convince my parents that I really couldn't see and wasn't just wanting glasses for the sake of having glasses. Thanks Dad for finally believing me!

Everything was hunky dory until college when my eyeballs decided to go insane. They decided they no longer liked to have contacts on them. I spent a year living with bloodshot eyes and mostly wearing glasses while my doctor tried contact after contact to see if anything would work. Luckily, my eyeballs finally decided that they would allow daily disposable lenses to rest on them without throwing a fit. Problem is, daily lenses at the time didn't correct for astigmatism. So I've spent the last 8 years walking around in contacts that still don't completely correct my vision. I could see pretty clearly within a few feet in front of me, but beyond that...out of focus. I did a lot of squinting to read signs and just had to realize I wouldn't be able to read it until I was right up on it. But I learned to deal. At least I could wear contacts and not have to deal with glasses. I hate glasses!

Fear has kept me from trying any new contacts. That was a crappy year, and I really don't want to relive it. But I finally decided that I was sick of not being able to see and honestly, those daily lenses were breaking my wallet! Plus, Mom was always telling me there were now disposable Toric lenses. So yesterday, I went to a new doctor and he fixed me up with some good ol' 2 week disposable Toric lenses. And now, I can see!! He told me my vision with the old contacts shouldn't have passed the eye exam on the driver's test in California. I actually just passed that test about a year and a half ago, albeit with a lot of squinting! Oops!

It's amazing how you learn to deal with something and don't think it's that bad until it's corrected and you actually experience how much better it is.

Trickle-down

I know what you're thinking. "Yay! Another political blog!! Keep 'em coming, Terri!"

The good news for you is that the election is almost over, which means my political blogs will taper off. And I'll be back to blogging only about frivolous things once more.

So here's the deal. I haven't watched the debate yet and I haven't read about it, so this post in no way reflects my views post-debate. But I want to rant a little, and I hope you'll humor me.

I'm a Hillary supporter. Still am. I still believe she's the best person for the job right now and that Americans made a colossal mistake by not nominating her. But obviously she's not running, and after she lost, I threw my support behind McCain...which means I'm about to be 0 for 3 in presidential elections unless something crazy happens. (And yes, that does mean I voted for Al Gore and John Kerry and I'm not ashamed to say it.)

But what I wanted to write about was how I've been screaming at my TV and the Internet over these last couple of weeks. Here's why...I'm a fiscal conservative. What does that mean? It means my Republicanness has overtaken my social Democraticness in these times of economic hardships.

I wish every American had to take some economics classes, so they could be informed in situations like this. I majored in economics, so it's hard-wired in my brain. Joe Schmo America doesn't understand economics, so he sees Obama saying he's going to cut taxes and he's like "hell yeah! There's the candidate that's going to help me out." But what he doesn't understand is that doesn't work. Sure he'll have a little bit more money at the end of the year that he'll either use to buy something he doesn't need (typical of the poor) or put in the bank (typical of the middle class). But he'll still be sitting there without a job because the small businesses and corporations are still in the hole and they're still laying people off left and right.

Then we have McCain who's telling us he's going to cut taxes for the small business and the corporations, and Joe Schmo America just hears that he's still going to have to pay the same amount thinking "the rich get richer." But what he doesn't understand is that when you cut the corporate tax rate, they don't put it in the bank or go out and buy a fancy new car...they create more jobs! Wait, what?! More jobs? Yes, more jobs! But what does this mean, you may be asking. It means that Joe Schmo America now has a job to actually earn income and become a contributing member of society. Sure he still has to pay taxes on it, but isn't it nice to have a steady job and be able to provide for your family?

This is why I've been screaming. Why can't people understand these things? Why can't politicians do a better job of explaining these things?

Oh, and FYI...Hillary and Bill would actually be classified as fiscal conservatives. George W. Bush...not so much. But that would require a little more explanation in regards to spending, and I'm not going to bore you with another lecture. You know what I like to say...look it up!

I danced with Ellen and other random stuff

I got a last minute invite to go see a taping of The Ellen Degeneres Show today. Lucky for me, I had no plans. It was a lot of fun. Everyone needs to watch tomorrow's show with Dakota Fanning and look for me. I'm in the very back row and I had on an orange shirt with a black sweater. I doubt you can see me, but you all need to look! Oh, and I actually did dance! That's saying a lot if you know me because I don't dance...unless I'm alone! And don't be jealous of my Tiddy Bear. See how I dangled that out there? Now you have to watch the show so you know what I'm talking about. I learned that in Marketing 101.

Have y'all been watching Dancing with the Stars? The girl's costumes on that show are getting ridiculous. I mean, it's supposed to be a family show right? There's no way I would let my kids watch it with those slinky costumes! Alright, done with my rant.

I recorded a couple of videos while I was in Europe. I'm going to upload them to YouTube and post them on here over the next few days. Y'all probably won't care to watch most of them, but I'm putting them up anyway because they make me laugh and I think mom and dad would like to see them.

Let me set the stage for the first one. Picture if you will the most famous museum in the world, The Louvre...the very quiet Louvre.

Day 3

Ok, so I forgot about day 3, mainly because there wasn't much to it. We got up, checked out of our hotel, then headed out for a few more hours of activity before we departed. First, we went to the Arc de Triomphe to officially take pictures. We'd been by it a couple of times the previous two days, but always at night and we didn't stop to take pics.

Then we did some souvenir shopping along the Champs-Elysees. Most of the stores were closed since it was Sunday, but all the little touristy spots were open. We stopped in at Laduree and got some treats for the road. I love madeleines and absolutely had to get one in Paris. Jolee got some macarons - not to be confused with macaroons - and they were equally delicious.

Once again, we ate at a little cafe on the Champs-Elysees. I decided we should get french food since we were in France. We settled on french onion soup and a croque monsieur. It was the best french onion soup I've ever had - I'm guessing because we were actually in France! After enjoying our delicious food, we got the bill and realized that the cokes we ordered cost 10 euro!! That's 15 freakin' dollars!! Holy crap! After double checking with our waiter, we begrudgingly paid for it and headed off to the Eiffel Tower.

We got some better pictures of the Parisian landmark because the sun was in a better position. Then we sat and enjoyed a crepe with nutella for dessert even though neither of us was all that hungry. But it was scrumptious! We then hopped on the subway and headed back to our hotel to collect the car and our luggage and leave Paris behind.

It was a fantastic trip, and I hope to go back someday! Thanks for being my tour guide, Jolee. I had a blast!