PERFECT DAY:

My birthday is coming up and every year I buy myself a Television DVD box set that I want with money I get for my birthday. This year I have spent my time drooling over the Sports Night 10th Anniversary set. The only problem is that the economy sucks and I'm pretty sure that the money I get for my birthday should go toward more responsible things. This is okay. That DVD box set isn't going anywhere, I can always buy it when things are a little more stable - besides the price might even be lower then!

My point is this is just another string of little things that make me look down on my birthday this year. Aside from the fact that I am turning a nice round number that I would prefer to put off a year, I've been getting the feeling that if I thought people would look down on my being single in my 20s they are going to be even more brutal and judgmental in my 30s. It's unfortunate that I am the only single non-married or non-common-law-married person at my work. Nothing is ever said directly to me but there are lots of comments about people they know who aren't married. They forget I am in the room. And while I'm glad they're not targeting their comments right at me, the ones about getting older and not having a partner to get old with are starting to get to me again. I have to keep reminding myself that it's okay either way and I don't like when I have to remind myself of something that is already true. I may die the old cat lady (except with dogs) and I have to make peace with that.

Once again I've gotten way off track through the need to vent. But I have to say, despite the little shindig I am throwing for my birthday, I would be okay if it just came and went and no one noticed. Between the anxiety over money, the anxiety over not fitting a social mold, the anxiety over just about everything in general... well let's just say I'm not looking forward to my birthday.

But all of this crazy regarding a day that will pass so quickly I won't even notice is ridiculous. I was born on April the 14th and during that year I was born on a Saturday. This was EXCELLENT news because one day before and i would've had the pleasure of being born on Friday the 13th... and a day later I would've been born on Easter AND permanently share my birthday with the day taxes are due. I was born on the perfect day of that weekend, a day that while isn't ONLY my own is not one I have to share with a nationally hated day. And I certainly don't have to worry if my birthday falls on a Friday.

So right now I'm making a pact with myself to shut up and stop complaining about my damn birthday. I was born on a good day, people tell me their 30s are always better than their 20s, I have plenty of my life (cross my fingers and knock on wood) to still determine what path I want to take socially... and like I said... that DVD box set will be mine one day, even if it isn't this month! Things aren't so bad, I just have to remember to look at them in a positive light... as Lloyd Dobler once said "Why can't you be in a good mood? How hard is it to decide to be in a good mood and be in a good mood once in a while?" It's true. I'm deciding to get in a good mood.

Slowing Up

Sorry to say that I just don't have the time to keep up with this blog like I used to. It's a good thing, trust me. I'll still post from time to time when I feel I have something to complain about but don't expect daily updates... obviously. Just wanted to let you know what's up.

:)

I CAVED... BUT IT'S OKAY:

I broke down on Friday, after a week of craving junk food and avoiding it at all costs, I decided I wanted to try the new Johnny Rockets across the street. I caved and stopped on my way home from work. I kept it simple, cheeseburger, fries, and unfortunately I broke and got a shake. Don't do that one people. Trust me, once you look up the calories you won't feel good at all about that shake - no matter how delicious it was. I promise. But the burger and fries, they were high in calories, high in fat and I just didn't care.

The thing is ever since I found out that that silly dinner restaurant was opening across the street I couldn't wait to try it out. It was very important that I did it, because now that I have I'm not in any rush to go back. It was excellent and I really enjoyed it - I'm not trying to scare patrons away from Johnny Rockets - I'll go back eventually. But my point it is was something I really wanted to try and now that I have I can move on.

I put on a lot of weight between the beginning of the holidays and recently. I finally got my butt back in gear and I've been doing pretty well. So really, you would think that I should feel bad about that meal. But I don't. It was damn good and by the next meal I was back in gear so yay for me... but BOO for that stupid shake. 1000 calories. ARE YOU KIDDING?! Lesson learned - ALWAYS look up food BEFORE you eat, not after.

IT'S SO BACK:

Darn it! The Amazing Race just ended didn't it? I wasn't prepared to have to take on so many reality shows at once. Between Idol, The Amazing Race, True Beauty - yes I'm watching - shut up!, Top Chef and sometimes Survivor... I am drowning here. Cut me some slack. I don't want to have to admit I actually LIKE reality television.

Regardless, Amazing Race was awesome. Midgets, Deaf, Old, Hicks, Auburn alumni... all the outcasts were represented. I joke. I didn't mean to offend little people, the deaf, the elderly, or those who live in the sticks... but you Auburn alumni... you deserve it. You don't know why, but you do.

Well you know where I'll be now on Sunday nights... stupid reality television.

IT'S GONNA BE A LONG 4-8 YEARS:

Assuming (knock on wood) that I continue in my job for the next 4 or possibly 8 years, I'm going to have to get used to being surrounded by republicans ALL THE TIME. Christ, I am the only democrat in my office. Guess it's good I've learned to tune out. At least my republican dad will be happy!

CRAP:

As if it wasn't bad enough that I have been addicted to watching some of my favorite shows online, CBS is now streaming past goodies like 90210 (you know - the original) on cbs.com. My life is spent in front of the television and the computer (bad, I know but you'll just have to deal) so adding more options that keep me planted isn't exactly great news. On the other hand - YAY! More options to choose from!

Watch 90210 and your other favorites HERE.

WEST VIRGINIA PHOTOS:

JUST BREATHE:

I had one of my brief panic attacks over money again tonight but this time I handled it much better. See I love my new job but I'm not making a whole lot - it's enough to live on but there won't be a whole lot of extras. The problem is the paychecks just started becoming steady so while I'm not really behind on bills I'm waiting till the last second to pay them. This means that all the money at the beginning of each month is still going to pay the bills for last month when what I want to be doing is putting the money I get in the beginning of the month into savings until it comes time to pay the upcoming bill. Get my point? Maybe it's a little confusing but I'm not sure how better to explain it at 11:31 at night. Sorry. So anyway, life has been looking up and I am getting back on track with a lot of things but the bills needed to be paid and that same old panic I know so well just kicked right in.

But this time I went straight to the computer and decided to take it on before I chickened out again. I was going to deal with it last night, originally, but the idea of facing my bills seemed like too much. But tonight I sat down and got to work. Needless to say I'm not out of the woods, it'll probably take a few months before I'm up to the system I'd like (hopefully by then business will be up and I will get an increase in salary... but if not I have to stick with the idea that what I make now is what I will make then). But the good news is once I took a look at what I owed it wasn't so bad, at least not nearly as bad as I had made it up to be in my head. It's not going to be easy but it's doable. It's time to get back in the budgeting game and stop spending any extras. I'm ready, bring it on.

THE ROO:

The new lineup for Bonnaroo came out. You can see more on that HERE. I'm going to see Phish in Asheville, NC so I'm not too worried about missing Roo this year but still there are a few bands I would've loved to see. Phish was my driving force but it's cheaper to do the Asheville show than Bonnaroo and we all know right now my main theme is cheap. (Plus I hate to say it but the older I get the less appealing sleeping on the ground in a tent for 3-4 nights seems.) Regardless, here is a list of some of my favorites for the coming 2009 Bonnaroo:

Springsteen
Phish
Beastie Boys
Nine Inch Nails
Al Green
Snoop Dogg
Erykah Badu
Ben Harper
Gov't Mule
MGMT
moe. (DAMN THIS WOULD'VE BEEN COOL!)
The Decemberists
Bela Fleck
Band of Horses
Coheed and Cambria
Booker T
Neko Case
Santagold
Citizen Cope
Grace Potter
Kaki King (ridiculous guitarist by the way)

And there are so many more. You can check out more info at STEREOGUM!

SCARLETT COVERS BUCKLEY - The OTHER song...

Look I like Scarlett Johansson's voice - I do. It is a very cool throw back to a jazzier time and a style that I love. But I didn't like her Tom Waits album and I have to say I really don't like her cover of Buckley's Last Goodbye. We all know by now I love Buckley and I'm hypercritical of anyone who covers his stuff but I think maybe Scarlett had the opportunity to really shine here and she just copped out. I guess it's a good fit for the He's Just Not That Into You soundtrack - a cop-out song for a cop-out movie. Listen for yourself:

NOT TO BE MEAN...

...but doesn't this picture look more like good Jen and evil Jen instead of Jen and her older sis?

PETA vs. THE SUPERBOWL:

PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, has a sexy 'eat vegetarian' ad that they were going to run during the Superbowl. Unfortunately NBC has given the no-go to the ad, claiming it is too sexy for NBC programming. You can read more on it HERE.

I am so torn on this. On the one hand if PETA was going to air one of their infamous cruelty to animals spots I would completely be on the side of NBC. But on the other hand I don't know if the Superbowl is the place to start banning 'sexy' ads. I admit... I am not the authority on this matter and I can't really come down firmly on one side or the other. I have no problem with PETA, I am not a vegetarian but I support all of those who are. I tend to "look the other way" when there is meat involved - it's just so damned tasty that I can't seem to stay away from it. But I block my mind from any thought of where the food originated. Since I tend to eat a lot of meat products on game day I don't want to see anything regarding the process of making that meat product. So the hypocrisy is that when I first saw the headline that a PETA ad had been banned I thought - yeah that makes sense. But then when I read it was banned because it was too sexy... well now I don't know that I agree.

After watching the video I am not sure what to think but you can decide for yourself:

VIDEO OF THE DAY:

TWO MOVIES YOU MIGHT BE MISSING:

FIREFLIES IN THE GARDEN: I really enjoyed this film. Ryan Reynolds plays Michael, son of Lisa (Julia Roberts) and Charlie (Willem Dafoe), comes back for his mother's graduation which unfortunately coincides with the same day his mother dies. It's a story about a son dealing with the past and what it means now that his mother has died. I was so impressed with this little indie film and if you have the chance to see it I really think you should take it.


THE EDGE OF LOVE: I really liked this one as well. Keira Knightley is Vera Phillips, the childhood crush and muse of poet Dylan Thomas (Matthew Rhys). The story revolves around Vera and her relationships with Dylan Thomas, Dylan Thomas' wife Caitlin (Sienna Miller), and William Killick (Cillian Murphy). Their relationships were never black and white and it is a great story of what may or may not have happened over the years.

VIDEO OF THE DAY:

So much happened this past week but nothing more important than this:

TO NETFLIX OR NOT TO NETFLIX:

EAGLE EYE: I don't know if it's because I never heard the hype on this one while the movie was in the theaters but I really ended up enjoying this flick. Pick this one up.

HENRY POOLE IS HERE: It was okay, I could really go either way on this one. I'm going to refer you to imdb.com and if you like the description then go ahead and queue it up.

THE HOUSE BUNNY: Nope. I like funny stupid cutesy movies and this had promise but not so good on the delivery. I say skip it.

THE WACKNESS: This movie wasn't all that great. I usually love indies but this movie bugged me for some reason. It was okay but I still say skip it.

SAVAGE GRACE: Holy cow talk about boring! This was supposed to be a crazy scandalous story about a son who kills his mom after one crazy life. But no. SKIP it.

SURFER, DUDE: I was just hoping that the perfect combination of Matthew McConaughey, a stoner flick about surfing and Woody Harrelson would end up being... well perfect. It was not. Skip it.

HAMLET 2: I don't know on this one - kind of cute and quirky but I don't know if I liked it enough to tell you to get it. I refer again to IMDB.com on this one.

THE DUCHESS: Eh... again it was okay. I saw a lot of sub-par movies in my opinion recently. It was good so I guess if you like period flicks you should consider it - otherwise skip it.

BURN AFTER READING: I didn't love it - I didn't hate it. I am getting really sick of Brad Pitt and he was just damn annoying in this film. I know he was supposed to be but that made it seem even MORE annoying. Oh well. You should really decide on this one for yourself.

UNITED STATES OF TARA: EPISODE 1: I loved this! I thought while a little fantastical it was a great 30 minute show and I'll be sure to keep tuning in (you can watch this first episode on netflix.com if you're a member).

THE OFFICE: SEASON 1: (The BRITISH Office I might mention). I've seen this before so it was sort of a cheat but it's been so long I decided to watch it again. No one can make me uncomfortably laugh like Ricky Gervais. Definitely get this one.

FRIDAY NIGHT AWESOMENESS:

Here is my weekly plea for you to watch Friday Night Lights. I won't go on and on about how fantastic it is because by now you know how I feel. Perhaps that little title of the post there tipped you off... could be... yes? No? Huh. I really thought that was pretty obvious. Well I love the show and there is a good chance you will too if you give it a chance! If you didn't see last week I have given you my favorite "can't miss" scene from last week's episode and a 2 minute recap from NBC. Now you have no excuses. However if you want to catch the first episode before tomorrow night's new one you can head over to Hulu.com and watch it.

"Rebound for Jesus..."


2 Minute Recap of the Season 3 Premiere of Friday Night Lights:

A SELFLESS OPEN LETTER TO THE PRESS:

If there was one celebrity that I can say I had an honest to god crush on it was Brad Pitt. Notice I use the word was - that crush no longer exists. And lately I've been wishing that the press really would leave him alone so that I could have a break too. But then this morning I woke up and found out he was nominated for Benjamin Button and already the blogs have gone crazy over the news. And here I am blogging about him now as well. Awesome. So from now until the Oscars and long after if he wins we will be hearing all about Brad Pitt. Yay. So I am going to do my good deed of the day here - my one big selfless act.

Dear Press and other Bloggers,

Please leave Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and their entire clan alone so that they might breathe and live without having to be in the media on a regular basis. I believe that Brad and Angie know the value of having private time where they don't have to see their faces on magazines, television, the internet for quite a very long time. We should allow them that time. We need a time where the word Brangelina sounds new and shiny and exciting all over again and to get to that time... we need a break... they, I mean they, need a break... a long long long... long long long long... break. Please press and bloggers - leave Brad and Angie be with their family - to watch them grow and flourish. I beg you... on their behalf!

Thank You,

E - A very concerned individual.

I LIED... THIS IS THE VIDEO OF THE DAY:

VIDEO OF THE DAY:

LOVE IT!

DAMN DAMN DAMN:

I KNEW I needed to put in my ticket request for the Asheville Phish show by Friday - I knew it and still I forgot. Damn. Now I have to try my luck with the masses on the 30th - wish me luck. Damn.