Today is the day that many of us gather with family, overeat, watch some football and get ready for shopping the next morning. What sometimes get lost is the fact that this is a day to express all we are thankful for. For people like me, who tend to dwell on the negative, days like today are even more important. It also helps that I am not really looking forward to gathering with family and probably won't get to watch much football. So today, here are the things I am grateful for, both big and small:
- I am most thankful for my immediate family and my friends, who make up my extended family. They all bring so much to me and give me much needed support and joy. I am lucky to have all of them in my life.
- I am thankful that I have my health - I may have blips every once in a while, but overall I have been very lucky.
- I am thankful that I have a place to live - especially as so many people have lost their houses this year.
- I am thankful that Barack Obama was elected president and really thankful that the George W. Bush reign will soon be over.
- I am thankful for my job. Remind me that I said this in a few weeks.
- I am thankful that Lost starts up in a few months. I so miss that show!
- I am thankful that my biggest problem is that I am in love with a boy who doesn't love me the same way and who is going to marry someone else. It doesn't mean it doesn't suck, but in the grand scheme of things, there are a lot worse problems to have. Even I realize that.
- I am thankful for the Internet, which makes it so much easier to keep in touch with people and to waste time at work,
- I am thankful that the Bills are back in the play off hunt, no matter how remote that may be.
- I am thankful for DVR. I have no idea how I watched TV without it before. Same for HD.
- I am thankful that I have so much to be thankful for!
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone!
I think I have finally warmed up from our Monday Night Football experience. What an oh-so chilly night that was. Fortunately, I was very bundled up and actually wasn't all that cold. I am sure the alcohol didn't hurt. The expected snow didn't come, and despite the loss (wide right - seriously? The good people of Buffalo didn't deserve that!) it was an enjoyable experience. I love the 2nd picture - I look like a Russian spy. I could be the next Bond girl!
I also fiddled around with the video feature on my camera - LOL - I'll spare you the finished project during the game, as it has a very Blair Witch feel to it and I tended to forget that while taping everything I said would be recorded, including singing along to "Highway to Hell" during warm ups and cursing when I realized I was out of beer. Yup - I am pretty classy at these games.
On to the random observations:
- My co-workers and I love to eat. Like we have had entire lunch discussions about food - good restaurants, what we are having for dinner, etc. One day we were kicking it old school and were discussing going to Ponderosa. When we discovered that there were still a few open in the area, it was a done deal. We had to go. So today a group of us made the trek to Johnstown (about 45 minutes away) to hit the 'Rosa. And it is a good thing we did - unbeknownst to us, this was the final weekend that the Johnstown Ponderosa would be open. So we made it there for its swan song (and boy would we have been p*ssed if we drove all the way out there and it was closed!). It was a fun time - the food obviously wasn't award winning, but we knew that going in. It was a nice dose of nostalgia, served up buffet style.
- I rocked the Christmas shopping season today and basically started and finished my holiday shopping, including all the birthdays I have in the next few months. I had done some recon and basically knew what I was getting people. There are a few loose ends - I have to get part of Brian's gift on Black Friday and my brother isn't finished yet.
- While I was shopping, I got myself a present. I don't pay for the heat in my apartment, which is totally awesome. However, I also do not control the heat in my apartment - I am at the whim of the apartment downstairs, which my landlord lives in. However, he is a law school professor and I am pretty sure he isn't here full time, which I think means he turns the heat down when he is away. I honestly don't know if he is aware that he controls my heat in his apartment. Regardless, it is sometimes darn chilly in my apartment. I don't like to complain - after all, he is footing the bill - so I usually just wear a lot of clothes when it gets cold. That is why I was interested in the slanket. I mean, a blanket with arms - who doesn't love that. Well today in Macy's I got myself the Charter Club version of the slanket and it is awesome. It is a little long (apparently it does not come in petite), but I am nice and toasty. LOL - and I wonder why I am still single. This slanket is so not sexy.
- I was very sad to hear that Days of Our Lives let go two of their best known actors - Marlena and John (aka Deidre Hall and Drake Hogestyn). This is crap. Now, I haven't watched Days for years. I wasn't a soap opera person until I went to college and my friends introduced me to General Hospital and Days. I even skipped class a few times to watch Days with Brigette. I stuck with GH much longer (I still tune in occasionally on Soapnet to see what Jason and Sonny are up to). But even people who don't know anything about soap operas know who John and Marlena are. This is only going to alienate their core audience.
- I don't even have word to articulate my reaction to this commercial. Let me just say, I was having a crappy day Thursday and this turned it right around. I just wonder what kind of blackmail they had on these athletes to make them appear in this - although in the case of A-Rod and Kobe, I have some idea:
And on that note, I am laughing way too hard to continue. Somewhere Shaq is laughing too.
- 13:03 Is watching new James Bond movie in VIP room while drinking white wedding cake martini. #
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No, this entry is not about the character from Boogie Nights, though I do enjoy that movie. Instead Saturday night my friend Barbara and I headed out to see the season opener of the women's Roller Derby league in Albany.
Going into this experience, I didn't know too much about roller derby. I used to watch roller derby on TV when I was a kid, but that was more along the lines of pro wrestling - the outcomes were preordained, there were stunts and fights broke out on a regular basis. As far as rules and scoring went, I had absolutely no idea how things worked. I also expected, foolishly in retrospect, that the roller derby track would be elevated like it was on TV.
Walking into the gym, the first thing I noticed was that there wasn't really a track - at least not what I expected. The track was actually just taped off on the floor of the basketball court (the Washington Avenue Armory, where the Derby was being held, is also the home of the Albany Patroons basketball team. Brian and I also went to a concert here earlier this year, so the facility is multifunctional). Before the match started, there was a band (Slick Fitty) playing oldies up on the stage. The whole thing had a very retro vibe.
Much like professional wrestling, all the skaters have aliases. All the names have a sense of fun to them - on the Albany Team some of the skaters included Dottie Damage, K.D. Bang, Sin and Tonic, Big Headed Honkey and Merry Pain. Barbara and I tried to come up with what our roller derby names would be. I figured I could just keep my nickname of T-bone. That seemed to be fairly threatening and I would be more fitting for the derby rink than in the office (though I do get memos addressed to T-bone). Even the referees got into the act - my favorite was this guy:
Thankfully, the program gave a quick overview of the general rules of roller derby. A quick primer: there are three types of skaters out on the track. The jammers are the people who can score points, the blockers mainly try to knock down the skaters from the other team and the pivot skaters set the pace. Each round is called a jam. At the first whistle, all the skaters except for the jammers start around the track, with the pivots for each team out in front. At the second whistle, the jammers from each team start to skate. The goal of the jammers is to be the first skater to get past all the other skaters, including the pivot. The first jammer to do that becomes the "lead jammer" and is the only person that scores points. The lead jammer then earns points for every member of the opposing team that they lap. Of course, all the players on the other team are trying to take out the lead jammer to prevent them from passing. The jam lasts two minutes or until the lead jammer calls the jam off by putting her hands on her hips. Players can be penalized for elbows, tripping, punching, etc, though I never got a clear handle on what was allowed and what was not.
The whole thing was a lot less violent than I expected. While there was of course pushing and shoving, there weren't any all out brawls. Some of the skaters were pretty amazing - as someone who can barely stay up on skates, I was very impressed with how some of them were able to maneuver in and out of the crowd. The first half was a lot less exciting than the second half. I don't know if that is because I finally got a grasp on what was going on or if the skaters were just more aggressive. Regardless, the second half flew by and the Albany All-Stars soundly beat the Beasts of the Northeast. It was definitely something new to try out and I am glad I went. It isn't something I would want to go to a lot, but since they have only a few matches and they are usually at least a month apart I might be up for another one in a few months. I imagine the enjoyment of this increases with alcohol consumption - I had a fine time stone cold sober, but I imagine after a few beers you would get even more into it. And who knows - they have an interest meeting this week for new skaters, so even I could become a skater (though don't hold your breath!).
Programing note: I am off to Buffalo tomorrow for Monday Night Football, meaning there is a chance Brian and I could wind up on national TV. So if you don't have anything else going on, tune in and see if you can spot us (we sit in the end zone, about 20 rows up). I should be easy to spot - I will be the fan with so many layers of clothing on that I can barely move. Since the forecast calls for the low to be 26, winds of 14 miles an hour and snow showers, I am trying to be prepared as I will be outside for 8 hours (tailgating commences at 3:30 pm; games starts at 8:30). I did a dry run tonight to make sure everything fit and to see how much would fit under the jacket. All systems are go. Buffalo here I come!
Friday night I went with a bunch of my co-workers to go see Ron White perform at Proctor's in Schenectady. I never thought that I would be paying to go see one of the members of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour. I assumed based on the DVDs name and the fact that one of the featured comedians was named Larry the Cable Guy that this wouldn't be my cup of tea. However, one day when I was over at Brian's apartment he needed to work on some resumes. To entertain me while he needed to focus, he put the Blue Collar Comedy Tour DVD. While I didn't love all of it (as I suspected, Larry the Cable Guy is not my taste), I did really enjoy Ron White. My favorite routine that he did is also the one he is most famous for, Tater Salad.
So when the opportunity presented itself for me to go see him with a fun group of people, I was glad to take advantage of it. We made a night of it and first went to dinner at Clinton's Ditch Bar and Grill. They are working very hard to try to revitalize downtown Schenectady, especially the area around the theater, but I wasn't too impressed with the restaurant. It wasn't bad - it was just average. Fairly limited menu of pub food and the service was spotty. LOL - my main problem was the music was just way too loud so it was hard to have a conversation. Another sign that I am not as young as I used to be.
However, we were all in high spirits as we walked over to the show. We had good seats - 7th and 8th row. The opening act was a comedian I had not heard of - Alejandro Reymundo. He was quite good and I would like to see more of his stuff. He only did twenty minutes, but they were quite good. He had a good stage presence and the audience seemed to enjoy him as well. He does a lot about his family - he is Mexican and he refers to his wife as a hillbilly (she is from Kentucky) so he calls his kids Hick-spanic. A little crude for some - not me, but someone in our group mentioned it. But she still thought he was good.
Then it was time for the man of the hour. Ron White is known for drinking and smoking during his set and he did not disappoint. On stage with him was an ice bucket, a bottle of scotch and an ashtray for his cigars. And he was hilarious from the very first bit that he did. He started off talking about the self-warming toilet at the hotel he stayed at in NYC and never looked back. He is just a natural story teller. He hit on a lot of topics - his arrest for pot possession in Florida, his battle with a parking valet, his third wife, being attacked by a bear, and homeland security. He had a few slips, perhaps from the scotch, such as calling the USO tour the UFO tour or saying that he would send a guy going for the world record of fattest man peaches, or completely forgetting where he was going with a story about getting a pedicure, but he recovered nicely and even made fun of himself. While a lot of his stories veered into more crude category, he didn't go overboard. Most of the time the audience was constantly laughing. I wiped tears from my eyes more than once.
When the show was over, we all agreed that it was a really good time and that he was very funny. I am glad that I didn't let me preconceptions prevent me from giving his comedy a try or I would have missed out on a very fun evening. But don't expect to see me at a Larry the Cable guy show any time soon.
I am way too all over the place today to have a singular theme for this entry. So this will be a stream of consciousness type thing, which when it is my consciousness means it will be pretty all over the place. Consider this insight into Heather's brain, served buffet style:
- I have mentioned earlier my real disappointment in the passing of Proposition 8 in California, rescinding the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry. I thought this commentary by Keith Olbermann was very well done. I really like Olbermann - he rubs some people the wrong way, but I agree with his politics and I have enjoyed him since his SportsCenter days. I'll be interested in what he does now with a President he agrees with in power.
- I know the economy is in the tank, but if you have any spare cash, you might want to consider investing in stock for Orville Redenbacher's 100 calorie bags of Kettle Corn. I seriously eat this stuff constantly - it is low in point value and usually fills me up for a while. I am going through these things like they are going out of style.
- The Country Music Awards have knocked out almost my entire TV line-up for Wednesday night. I don't know whether to be happy for the free time or annoyed.
- Dear Lord - the baby from the cover of the Nirvana "Nevermind" cover is SEVENTEEN years old now. How is that possible? Hard to believe I was a senior in high school when Kurt Cobain killed himself.
- Am I the only one who is really sick of the Angelina-Brad-Jennifer love triangle? I agree it was kind of crappy for Angelina to confirm that she and Brad were involved before he was divorced - we all knew it was true, but she didn't really have to confirm it - but it's been 3 years and almost 6 kids later. We're all over it already.
- What is Gossip Girl doing wasting it's time on Jenny story lines? Give me more Chuck Bass already! And I realize this complaint makes me sound like I am seventeen.
- I enjoy that Obama's secret service name is "Renegade" (mostly since it is a synonym for maverick - ha!), but what is the point of these names if they are made public? Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose of code names? Maybe we should call them the not-so-Secret Service. Seriously - I know eighth graders that can keep a secret longer.
- I need to trick someone into buying me the new Sopranos: the Complete Series DVD box set. Know anyone who thinks I am worth $255.00?
- I think Beyonce may be in need of an intervention. I think she is losing it. Not only has she created this weird alter-ego 'Sasha Fierce,' but she has taken to wearing this weird black metallic claw/glove all the time and appears to have this weird fascination with all things robotic. Jay-Z may have "99 problems," but I am beginning to think he may be wrong about "a b*tch ain't one." His wife may in fact be a problem.
- How great is it that I actually worked rap lyrics into my blog?
- Not a fan of the proposed Karate Kid remake.
- The New Oxford American Dictionary has announced its word of 2008, and it is one I have never heard used by anyone: hypermiling. I think they may be making it up.
- All episodes of the Cosby Show with cousin Pam should be destroyed. Then we can all pretend they never happened.
- If I say on Facebook that I will be attending Obama's inauguration, does that mean someone will send me tickets?
So there you have it - the randomness of what I think about all day. Frightening, no?
While today was mostly just a day off for me, I did take the time to call my father to wish him a happy Veteran's Day and thank him for his service to our country. My dad was drafted and served in Vietnam. Though it wasn't his choice to serve, I still appreciate that he honored his obligation and that I got a cool army jacket out of it that I used to wear in high school. Of course I used to wear it with a tie-dyed shirt, so I was kind of sending mixed messages. But regardless, here is a shout out to all the veterans and people currently serving (even if I don't agree with the current war). Hopefully all will be home soon.
I pretty much wasted my work-free day, in that I didn't do much of anything that was productive. I caught up on last night's episode of Heroes (a show that is barely retaining its status on my must see list) and then got sucked into the vortex of re-runs. Between the Cosby Show, Good Times and the Jeffersons, my morning kind of slipped away from me. It was then off to meet Brigette for lunch at Malt River Brewing Company. They have the best sweet potato fries and going there always reminds me of my friends Amanda and Cody, since for some reason I have been there a lot with them. We both had the very yummy portabella sandwich. After a brief stop at Target, I was then off to meet my friend Carrie at Starbucks for a little pumpkin spice latte. Unfortunately, I think the gift card I received for my birthday to Starbucks is just about out of money, so now I need to actually start paying out of pocket for these little excursions. We walked around Stuyvesant Plaza and I think I have a few ideas for what to get people for Christmas.
Speaking of Christmas...it is two weeks before Thanksgiving and yet I am already having Christmas anxiety. It seems like today Christmas was everywhere - I heard holiday carols on the radio, television commercials are holiday themed and the park already has the holiday decorations on the lamp posts. I know the stores have had Christmas stuff out since before Halloween, but I feel like it has hit critical mass already. Heck - as I type this I am watching a holiday themed episode of Everybody Loves Raymond. I like the holiday season, but I don't want to be sick of it before it even gets here. Let me get through Thanksgiving before I start worrying about getting my shopping done! I have enough stress in my life already.
Blah - speaking of which - time to get mentally prepared to go to work tomorrow.
I am enjoying the fact that after putting in one day of work, I have tomorrow off. There are some real perks working for the state, but foremost among them is we get a lot of holidays and time off. November is looking especially good - I earned Election Day as a floater, have Veteran's day off, I am using some of my vacation days next Monday and Tuesday to go to Buffalo and then two days off for Thanksgiving. Excellent! The downside, however, is that after tomorrow I have to go back to work for the rest of the week. I prefer this every other day thing.
Despite having the day off, I have no real plans. I'm not 100% sure what I am going to do with my day. I had thought about going to get my hair cut, but I forgot to call today to see if there were any openings. I started my abridged version of Weight Watchers (aka borrowing the books from someone else and not going to meetings) on Sunday, so I don't really want to go out to lunch since that proves to be difficult for figuring out the point values. I'm getting bored with watching the DVR or movies. I'm just not too sure what to do with myself. I guess I could do something productive around the house - though that doesn't sound too exciting either.
One thing I need to do soon is go shopping for a new winter jacket. Brian informed me today that Buffalo is expecting snow for next weekend. Since it is a night game, it will probably be cold - really cold. I was hoping that we would get through more of the season before I had to worry about snow. So my mission is to find something that will keep a person who is always cold be able to handle 7 hours outside in the Buffalo winter. Why couldn't I have liked a boy who liked a team in a warmer climate?
But until I hatch a grand plan for my day off, I will settle for watching all the episodes of What Not to Wear I have DVRed. I don't think I am a fashionista by any stretch of the imagination, but some of the things these people wear make me feel way better about myself. However, they show this show so often, I may very well not need to come up with anything to do tomorrow - it may be all Stacy and Clinton all the time.
All authors invest themselves in their works but Tolstoy wants to preach to the reader. He has an agenda and he makes his ideas plain and clear. The "hero" is the one the has the right ideas and the "bad guy" is the one who doesn't. One of the ideas that Tolstoy wants the reader to understand in Anna Karenina is that man has become distanced from nature. He believes that the laborers have a better life than the wealthy, upper class because the laborers get their hands dirty. Tolstoy doesn't necessarily want to give up his position of power. So instead, he sends his "good guy" to thresh with his serfs. In modern language, we would call this "slumming."
It is two days after Election Day and I think I am finally off cloud 9 to go back to blogging. What an exciting few days it has been. I wasn't sure it would happen, but thankfully, it did.
I have been a fan of presidential elections for as long as I can remember. I voted in my first presidential election in 1996 and I also worked on the Clinton campaign. I was a big fan of Bill Clinton. Still am, really. But I don't remember any election affecting people the way this one did. Watching the coverage Tuesday night was simply energizing. When Pennsylvania went blue, I cheered as loud as I have at any Yankee game. When they announced Obama had won the presidency, I am not ashamed to say I burst into tears. Both of the speeches were amazing. McCain returned to the old McCain. He struck just the right cord and handled his more vocal supporters well. I hope he meant what he said.
Walking out of my apartment, it was like you could feel the optimism in the air. I am lucky that I work with mostly pro-Obama people or at least people who could appreciate the historical significance of the moment. Good thing to, since I said "Yes We Can" just about every chance I could. I am sure it got annoying. But the promise of change was so great that I was just too giddy to care.
My only disappointment was that while many were rejoicing at the breaking of a barrier and the spirit of tolerance, another group was facing discrimination at the polls. Gay and lesbian Americans lost their ability to marry and to adopt or be foster parents to children. I am so sorry that they could not fully join in the celebration. I only hope that it will not take them as long to achieve equality that it has taken others. The times are definitely changing, but there is still more change that needs to come.
However, today I discovered that I can actually profit from this election. Apparently there was a run on copies of the New York Times, as people wanted to have a copy to commemorate the occasion. My boss gets the Times and now that he is out of the office, I get his paper and I thought to save my copy. I looked on eBay today and copies were going for as high as $200. If demand remains high, I might be able to retire. Yes I can.
