April 2013 – Waiting on a Word

WOAW’s Girl Talk – Bags

This is the post that got me kicked off WordPress for two nights! Of course I removed the offensive link. Have a nice night!

Hi Everyone! It’s time for the second installment of WOAW’s Girl Talk (boys welcome, of course). In the first installment of Girl Talk, I shared my makeup tackle box, which is apparently called a “caboodle” in the Cool People Club (of which I am not a member– yet). Tonight, I want to share another favorite girly passion of mine.

Bags. By “bags,” I mean handbags, tote bags, makeup bags– basically, anything that I can stick stuff in to carry it around. I love bags.

As a kid, Mom let us pick out a new bookbag every school year. I believe it was the start of third grade when I picked a super rad, plastic, blue see-through bookbag, in the shape of a briefcase. I was so psyched to carry it to school, all my stuff glowing blue through its pockets and panels. How disappointed I was when we had a stupid hurricane that delayed the first day of school! I had to wait a few extra days to show it off.

As a serious dance student, I constantly had some sort of “dance bag.” My favorite was a boxy, pink number with a separate compartment for my ballet shoes. As I got older, I used various forms of duffel bags and totes as my dance bags, filled with shoes, dancewear, leg warmers, towels, and all sorts of fun stuff necessary to the dancer’s life.

Besides my dance bag, I carried around a big, giant purse (the fad during high school in the 80’s in New Jersey) and then in college, graduated to backpacks and messenger bags to tote around all my crap.

Nowadays, I love to buy purses. The odd thing about this fact is that I hardly ever carry a purse. Still, I can’t resist buying them. For instance, here’s a purse I bought from the Coach outlet near my house (yes, a Coach outlet near a handbag addict is dangerous– I try to stay away). The day I bought this I decided I couldn’t live without it. I loved it so much. I still do. The first time I used it even my husband noticed (I told him it cost “about eighty dollars,” which isn’t entirely false depending on how you define “about.” I prefer a looser, more fluid definition myself.).

photo-42 — My Eighty-Dollar-ish Coach Bag

Then there was this adorable bag from Anthropologie. Look at that chain strap and clasp! And the colors and chiffony material! To die for. I couldn’t live without this one either.

photo-44 — Anthropologie Bag I Couldn’t Live Without

What about this cute bag? I stole this bag from my mother’s closet.

photo-41 — That’s a matching makeup bag!

Guess how many times I’ve used these bags in all? Probably a total of ten times. If you look at the colorful bag above, with its matching makeup bag, you can still see the price tag on it. And, here’s a picture of the inside of the Anthro bag…

photo-43 — Yep. That’s the paper that came inside the bag at the time of purchase. How cute is that liner though?

The adorable Anthro bag has not yet been used. Whenever I think I might use it, it doesn’t match, or it’s just not what I’m feeling that day. Don’t think I don’t love it though. I do.

So my question for all of you gals is: What is WRONG with me? I’m not an accessory lover and I don’t even like to shop. Why do I feel the need to buy all these bags? Am I a bag hoarder? Sometimes I purposely keep myself out of the handbag department of stores because I know I won’t be able to resist. Other days I thank god I don’t have money or else I’d be a Designer Handbag Junkie. I see an area full of bags and it’s like some weird, inner demon takes over, whether I’m in Nordstrom or Target. I think I need an exorcism.

Then there’s the issue of the work bag. The people I work with who read my blog are probably groaning and rolling their eyes about now, because I talk about this saga constantly. They are sick of hearing Jess’s Work Bag Whine, but I can’t help it. I am very emotional about the entire thing. Here’s the gist.

Years ago I purchased enough stuff from Lerner (which I think is now New York & Company) to get a free tote. It was shiny and brown and perfect. It became the Work Bag to End All Work Bags. I loved that tote bag more than any other personal possession. When the straps broke, I stapled them to The Bag, refusing to let The Bag die. Finally, my friend Jamie (who bought me a Burberry diaper bag for my baby shower) argued with me to retire the Lerner bag. I would have ignored her crazy talk if my friend Nicole, an Expert Shopper, didn’t back her up. I think it was sometime in 2004 when I gave that bag up to the Big Bag O’ Lost and Abandoned Totes in the sky. I had a relationship with that bag, people. I was devastated to let it go.

Since 2004, I’ve been searching for a replacement. I’ve yet to succeed. I tried this messenger bag from L.L. Bean . . .

. . . but it was too floppy. And heavy. Nowhere near the Excellence of The Bag I Had Lost. Angela, my friend and co-worker, and sometimes Enabler and/or Fixer, provided me a slew of hand-me-downs. She felt my pain. None of her bags stood the test of time.

Currently, I’m using a bag I bought for my mother-in-law for Christmas which I decided to keep for myself (relax– I bought her something else). And of all those handbags I’ve accumulated? I’m using a $12 tiny canvas bag from Target on a day-to-day basis.

Although I keep searching and spending money, I don’t know if I will ever find The Perfect Bags. I don’t know if I will ever truly understand my obsession with buying and stockpiling purses. Is it just me or is it universal? Is handbag love engrained in the double X chromosome combo, or a function of estrogen?

Help me, Blogtropolis. Help me to understand.

Thanks for reading and have a nice night!

Roller Boogie

Back in the early 1980’s roller skating was huge, in my part of the world at least. I think it started with Roller Boogie, a 1979 film starring Linda Blair (of The Exorcist).

Best.

Movie.

Ever.

Okay, maybe not “ever,” but pretty freakin’ awesome.

Roller Boogie was the tale of Terry Barkley (Blair) and Bobby James (played by real-life competitive roller skater Jim Bray). She was a rich girl on her way to Juilliard to study classical flute, and he wanted to be an Olympic Roller Skater (I kid you not). She’s bitchy and he’s cute (albeit, a terrible actor). After shenanigans, this unlikely duo ended up having to save their beloved Venice Beach roller rink from mobsters by competing in a “Roller Boogie” contest. Of course he has to train her to roller skate because she’s god awful and guess what happens?

They hook up. Shocking I know. But in true 70’s form, they go their separate ways at the end, her to Juilliard, and him to Olympic Roller Skating training (is there a camp for that?). Pics:

If you’re having a hard time imagining, think Dirty Dancing but unwatchable (unless you were an eight-year-old girl from New Jersey, because I loved this movie and wanted to alternate between being Terry Barkley and Sandy from Grease at that point ). Do you see the parallels between the two movies? Snarky Handsome Man meets Uptight Bitchy Woman. Man has skill. Woman must learn skill. Man and Woman fall in love. Man and Woman master skill and good will ensues. Man and Woman part with memories, changed people. (How many movies fit that pattern?)

Back to roller skating. After Roller Boogie, my parents bought me a pair of metal skates– the kind with no shoe attached. The skate was basically a metal frame that fit around your sneaker, with four clanky metal wheels (lined up in pairs, young’uns, not rows like you may remember). I loved to tie those skates on and skate up and down our driveway, back and forth on Blue Hill Road, attempting spins and one-legged maneuvers like Terry Barkley.

Eventually, my metal frame skates were replaced with super cool sneaker skates. They were actual sneakers with rubber wheels attached.

Sneaker skates (I think this may be the actual pair I had!)

Then, Utopia. The United Skates of America came to be in Wayne, New Jersey. Heaven. Every Saturday Mom would drop us off for open skate. The roller rink. A place of fun, glory, exercise, and potential lawsuits.

Pre-teens and teens from surrounding towns that seemed like foreign countries gathered for their skating sessions. The dark rink had spinning disco lights and giant speakers, a carpeted area in the center for resting and doing “tricks,” a “penalty box” for the troublemakers, and super cute highly skilled “refs” who wore black and white striped shirts and had whistles to keep everyone in line.

Skaters circled the rink, counterclockwise, except for the dreaded clockwise “reverse skate,” which caused my cross-over turning method to feel awkward and just wrong. “Reverse skate” was not to be confused with “backwards skate,” which entailed going counterclockwise, but back first. It took me a while to master that skill. Despite my vast experience, I was never fully comfortable on the skates. I held my own and kept all bones intact, content staying on my feet and people watching. My brother, however, was a maniac, lapping around the rink like a crazy person.

The roller rink was a tweeny girl’s paradise. My friends and I loved watching the boys. The better the skater, the dreamier the crush. We all loved the refs and anyone else who could skate backwards and do spins. They had celebrity status in our minds and we obsessed like the paparazzi. Since we attended our session every week, we’d get to “know” the regulars– the crushes, the refs, the couples. If a couple we liked to stalk wasn’t skating the “couples’ skate” together (usually an Air Supply song played for the “couples’ skate”) there’d be a lot of talk as to why.

The disco lights would flash and spin to the beats of the best music of the day. A favorite was Hall and Oates “Private Eyes.” As you skated to this song, whenever you heard a clap you were supposed to jump. “Private eyes,” (jump), “they’re watching you” (jump/jump), etc. Even today when I hear that song, I think of the word “jump” during each chorus. Queen was popular too.

USA’s popularity soared in the early 80’s. I even hosted a birthday party there (it was my 11th birthday and I wore a pink shiny sweats ensemble and forced my mom to do my hair in Princess Leia buns). By that point, my parents had bought me white boot skates with red wheels. They were laced up with rainbow glitter shoelaces and sported giant red pom poms on the toes. It was a good look. I loved those skates. Still, it didn’t stop me from visiting the USA Skate Shop in the carpeted part of the building (industrial carpet so you could still skate on it) when I needed a break from the craziness of the rink. Breaks could also be had at the skate-up snack bar. Always a challenge to skate with a tray full of hot dogs and soda!

At some point in the mid-80’s our USA closed. I don’t recall if I outgrew it before then, or if the closing came as a surprise. I still have a lot of nice memories from those days though. I don’t know if there’s anything like that for kids today. A place where parents can drop off the kids and know they’ll be (relatively) safe. A place where friends can hang out and socialize and eat and drink and listen to music. Even get some exercise. The closest I can come up with in today’s world is the mall. Boring!

Let’s bring the roller rink back to its popularity of the late 70’s! Maybe a Roller Boogie remake is the answer! It certainly wouldn’t hurt. Wonder if Jim Bray is still skating these days and available . . . . hmmm . . . .

Thanks for reading and have a nice night.

[Sources: Movie Poster pic: http://www.impawards.com/1979/posters/roller_boogie.jpg; Movie pics: http://s3.amazonaws.com/auteurs_production/images/film/roller-boogie/w448/roller-boogie.jpeg?1320051665 and http://blog.artdivastudios.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/1325875103-film_roller_boogie_screen_shot_cap_shirt_1970.jpeg; Vintage Roller Skates pic: http://img1.etsystatic.com/000/0/5773142/il_fullxfull.126998965.jpg; Sneaker skates pic: http://img2.etsystatic.com/000/0/5513500/il_fullxfull.154217638.jpg; Boot roller skate pic: http://crashtestmommy.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/rollerskate1.jpg]

The Bechdel Test: A Companion Piece (Part One)

Dylan continues the conversation . . . .

WOAW’s What to Watch- Scandal Update! [Spoiler Alert]

I know I’ve been bombarding you with television and movie stuff, but that seems to be what happens with me when the news is bad. I turn to movies and television. Also, the Knicks are on tonight, and my brain is fried, and I wanted to do a quick, easy post, and I really need to dish about Scandal.

I LOVE THIS SHOW (I’ve said this before, I know, actually twice). So much is going on and it’s all over the place. I think a list of characters may help me organize my thoughts.

1. Jake Ballard (Scott Foley)

Any Felicity fans out there? Or are you all too young to remember the Felicity-Noel-Ben love triangle? Felicity was on from 1998 until 2002, and Scott Foley played Noel. Also, I note that Scott Foley was Jennifer Garner’s first husband. Let’s discuss how well Noel is aging. Seriously! I may switch all these years later over to Team Noel from Team Ben. He looks great playing Jake the some-sort-of-military-guy-who’s-bff’s-with-Fitz. Sometimes I wonder if Jen Affleck wonders What if? with regard to Noel when Ben’s giving her grief about going to the Farmer’s Market with the kids. But I digress . . .

To illustrate the Scott Foley Fountain of Youth, here are some pics:

Personally, I don’t see much of a difference from 2002.

So Item Number One for Scandal Discussion: Felicity. Noel’s adorableness. Along those same lines, what about the Olivia/Noel bawm-chika-bawm-bawm love scene? Why does Scandal use porn music for the sex scenes? So sub-topic for discussion under Item Number One: Porn music in television.

2. Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington)

WHAT is GOING ON with that dude breaking into Olivia’s home just after she sleeps with Noel and discovers the morning after that Noel is spying on her? You know . . . right before he (accidentally) slammed her to the floor and gave her a concussion? I DON’T GET IT. Is Noel the Mole? Does Noel really like Liv? What kind of red wine does she drink and how does she manage to keep it off of her mostly white wardrobe? Oh, and I love her wine glasses.

Olivia has the best wine glasses. They are big and round yet delicate.

Funny, I as I draft this post I’m thinking, “I wonder if I can Google Image Olivia’s wine glass,” and lo and behold, it pops right up.

One final note on Liv. At the end there, when Fitz was doing his weird hug thing on the hospital bed, she looked frightened and not at all into it. I guess if I had some unknown dude ransacking my apartment, just slept with Noel who I found out was spying on me, physically fought with him and he cracked my head open putting me in a hospital bed where my ex-lover who happens to be the President awkwardly shows up and hugs me, maybe I’d have the same look. Dunno. Chances are I never will. Which is fine by me, by the way.

Item Number Two for Scandal Discussion: What the heck is happening?

3. Mellie (Bellamy Young)

I am easily becoming Mellie’s Number One fan. I LOVED when she told off Fitz about the kids. I’d definitely vote for her over Fitz any day. I don’t have much more to say about her other than she’s awesomesauce. Item Number Three for Scandal Discussion: Mellie’s future and thoughts on whether or not she’s the Mole. Yep, I said it. Discuss. Here’s a pic:

4. Fitz (Tony Goldwyn)

Fitz is being so weird. He’s the worst President in the history of the world and although I thought I loved him with Liv, nothing would make me happier than for her to call it quits with him. Since he figured out his election was rigged and then murdered the Supreme Court Justice, he’s been a total drag. Really, Fitz. Get over it! All he does now is drink scotch and look miserable.

In the most recent episode, I thought I saw a glimmer of the old Fitz, but I don’t know. Item Number Four for Scandal Discussion: What’s up with Fitz? Fitz: Friend or Foe? Olivia and Fitz: A Disaster or a Dream?

5. Huck (Guillermo Diaz)

Huck’s “family” was murdered by that crazy lady who tried to assasinate Fitz (I forget what happened there- did we catch the person behind that? I’m so confused), and he was waterboarded, and then he was smelly for an episode. Now he was BEATEN and PUSHED into some weird empty box in a storage unit and now he’s all PTSD hovering in the corner of Liv’s office. And the guy that Cyrus previously hired to take out James (but Cyrus called it off last minute thank god), is somehow involved (did you notice the hat on the storage unit video footage?). Also, I point out that the killer dude (whose name is apparently, “Charlie”) kind of looks like a Paul Rudd, who I love. See:

Charlie the Killer (George Newbern- He was in Father of the Bride movies)

So, Item Number Five for Scandal Discussion: Does my love for Paul Rudd mean that I love Charlie the Killer? Is Huck going to recover? Does anyone want to discuss Huck’s “family” issues?

Alright, everyone. This post turned out to be longer than I expected, and the Knicks are in halftime (losing to the Celtics). I’m going to end it here. If there are any, any Scandal fans out there, I need to hear your thoughts.

Thanks for reading, and have a nice night! (Note: Since I’ve edited this, the Knicks are now tied).

Sources: Noel then pic: http://cf.foreveryoungadult.com/_uploads/images/21124/felicity__span.jpg; Noel now pic: http://cartermatt.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/scandal-jake.jpg; Olivia wine glass pic: http://scandalmoments.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/popcornxwine.png; Mellie pic: http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/scandal-mellie-fitz.jpg; Charlie the Killer pic: http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130328063457/scandal/images/5/52/Charlie-spies-like-us.jpg; Paul Rudd pic: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Paul_Rudd_LF.JPG/220px-Paul_Rudd_LF.JPG

The Bechdel Test

My friend and writing partner, Angela, knows lots of stuff in general, but especially about writing. In our writing partnership, I consider her the brains of the operation, while I am just the barfer. I can cough up pages, but she’s the one who cleans the barf, so to speak. Her ability is the result of studying filmmaking and screenplays and keeping her eye on “the industry” and writing trends. Someday I’ll have to learn to do that myself. For now, I rely on her expertise.

This weekend, she told me about the “Bechdel Test” used in evaluating creative writing. The test is named for Alison Bechdel (who attributes the idea to her friend Liz Wallace). Back in 1985, Bechdel wrote a comic strip where a character stated that she only watched movies where the following requirements were met:

(1) It has to have at least two women in it, (2) who talk to each other, (3) about something besides a man.

Later versions of the test revise the two women requirement to two “named women.” Sounds simple, right? Well, go ahead. Think of a movie that meets the requirements. I’ll wait . . .

*Jeopardy tune plays*

You back? Not as easy as it seems. There are movies out there which pass muster, but it definitely takes some thought to name them. A user-generated website called Bechdel Test Movie List lists movies and applies the test to determine whether the movies pass or fail. For movies that fail, an explanation is provided.

For example, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone fails, according to the website, because while there are two or more women in the movie, they don’t talk to each other. Likewise, Oblivion was dinged because although there are two or more women in the movie, they only talk to each other about a man. Again, since the website is user-generated, you may disagree with the results (and leave a comment on the site as to why). I can’t confirm or deny the accuracy.

What does it all mean? According to Neda Ulaby in a 2008 interview for NPR called, “The ‘Bechdel Rule,’ Defining Pop-Culture Character,” (click here to go to the transcript), Ms. Ulaby states that Ms. Bechdel’s cartoon:

…still resonates because it articulates something often missing in popular culture. Not the number of women we see on screen, but the depths of their stories and the range of their concerns.

Depth of women’s stories… range of their concerns… hmm…

I checked the movie list and also noticed that most of the recent kid movies (the exception being Brave, although even Brave is contested) didn’t pass: Jack and the Giant Slayer and Frankenweenie (fewer than two women); Hotel Transylvania, ParaNorman, The Pirate! Band of Misfits, Rise of the Guardians, and The Lorax (two or more women but they don’t talk to each other); Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted (two or more women but they only talk to each other about a man).

I can’t verify these results, as I haven’t seen all of these movies. I am going purely by the website. Still, what does this say about filmmaking and society? Anyone? Anyone?

To me, it kind of bums me out as a woman, a parent, and a writer.

Back to Brave for a bit. I am a huge Pixar fan. I love all the Pixar movies. When I heard that Pixar was doing a female-centered movie, I hoped it would be different. What I craved from Pixar was a story equivalent to Toy Story, with the Woody and/or Buzz characters being female. Finding Nemo with Marlin being Nemo’s mom and Dory being “Donny.” Keep the action! Keep the premise! Keep the dialogue too! Just make the star a girl.

But Brave wasn’t that. Pixar punted and what we got instead was a girl rebelling against marriage and her parents. Meh. Such high hopes for naught.

Now please understand– Brave won an Oscar. It made millions. It received critical acclaim. It was a wonderful movie. But it wasn’t Wall-E or Up. To me, it was a take on a traditional fairy tale about … guess what, surprise surprise … a Princess.

Where does this leave me? Well, how about here: Challenge Accepted. I want to write for Pixar a female-centered film and I want it to win an Oscar, make millions, not mention anything about Princesses, and pass the Bechdel Test with flying colors! Hopefully Angela’s up for the challenge too. We can do it.

Despite the history of filmmaking and Pixar’s track record, I know it’s not impossible. It can be done.

Have a nice evening.

The WordPress Family

Did you know that Clark Kent – yes the Clark Kent – lives in Ohio? He also blogs on WordPress. Okay, I’m not really sure who this elusive Clark Kent is, but I know this . . . Clark posts beautiful, inspiring posts about soulmates and grace, love, and humanity. He recently dinged me for an award: The WordPress Family Award. I am truly grateful. You can see his post and peruse his blog here. Thanks Clark, for the honor you have bestowed upon me.

So, the WordPress Family Award! I hadn’t heard of this one until Clark passed it along. Turns out it was just created on March 4 by a blogger named Shaun, and the best thing about the award – you don’t have to be nominated for it. You can go pick it up for yourself here on Shaun’s blog.

Discussing the award’s origins, Shaun writes:

This is an award for everyone who is part of the “WordPress Family.” I start this award on the basis that the WordPress family has taken me in, and showed me love and a caring side only WordPress can. The way people take a second to be nice, to answer a question and not make things a competition amazes me here. I know I have been given many awards, but I wanted to leave my own legacy on here by creating my own award, as many have done before. This represents “Family” we never meet, but are there for us as family. It is my honour to start this award.

The Rules: (1) Display the logo on your blog (Check!) (2) Link back to the person who nominated you (Check!) (3) Nominate 10 others you see as having an impact on your WordPress experience and family (See below!) (4) Let your 10 family members know you have awarded them (Will do!).

I thought I’d take this opportunity to first, agree with Shaun that although when I started this blog I was nervous as hell hitting that “publish” button, you have all been so nice and welcoming that you make it easy and enjoyable. So thank you, and may I hear a collective “WORDPRESS BLOGGERS ROCK!” Woo-hoo!

Second, I want to use this award to thank those of you who read and comment on WOAW regularly; who help me when I have a technical glitch; and who have recognized WOAW on their own blogs. It’s much appreciated. Therefore, I decided to bend the rules a bit and nominate the top commenters on WOAW (according to today’s stats), who host some of my favorite blogs, for the Family Award.

Nominees for WordPress Family Award

1. Dylan at Eyes Through the Glass- A Blog About Asperger’s. Dylan is an Artist and a Writer who has been Freshly Pressed twice. When he mentioned me as one of his favorite bloggers, and included me in his Daily Prompt post this weekend, I was truly honored. Dylan’s blog is an open, honest account of an adult living with Asperger’s. He also mixes in his artwork, and recently featured his short story, The Castle Aspergis. His blog is one of my faves. Thanks, Dylan for sharing your life.

2. David (my Justin Timberlake) over at Sounds Like Orange. I am fairly certain that I can count on his gravatar picture of an orange to show up at some point during my day, either liking or commenting on one of my posts, or popping up in my inbox announcing one of his new posts. David’s passion is music. Not particularly Justin Timberlake (although he has admitted to enjoying Adele) but really interesting, good . . . different (to me at least) music. I can always count on David for a helpful, insightful comment, help with my son’s math homework, and creative perspectives on life (ex. “an elephant making lasagne” to describe a script). Also, when one of my posts disappeared, David noticed and emailed me. Even though he had taken the day off, when I emailed him back with “HELP MY POST DISAPPEARED,” he ever so calmly walked me through the fix for the glitch. Much appreciation and many thanks to the colorful, wise, and sometimes angry Orange.

3. Megan at The Underground Writer. Megan found me somehow and the next thing I knew, we were emailing about kids spilling Ensure shakes in the refrigerator (trust us, very difficult to clean up). Conversation soon morphed into an exchange of Seinfeld quotes and suddenly I have a new friend. We email just about everyday now and we’ve shared our writing and thoughts and dreams. Someday, we’ll have to actually meet! Despite being a busy mom of two, Megan writes thoughtful, fun posts about life. One of my faves is about the different techniques that old men use to make the moves on younger women (read it here!). Thanks, WordPress for hooking us up, and thanks Megan for being you.

4. Sweetness at Chronicles of a Public Transit User. Seeing a new post from COAPTU makes my day because: (1) I know it’s going to be a quick, funny read, (2) usually including a real-life pic, (3) of something utterly ridiculous, (4) that makes me grateful for my minivan. Ask any COAPTU follower about their favorite or most unforgettable post and they’ll say this one, which ends with a Seinfeld reference: “This guy was definitely not the master of his domain.” EWWWW! This blog is a great follow.

5. Al at Once Written. I’ve referred to him as my George Clooney of Blogtropolis. He and I don’t always agree, but I appreciate that he’s not afraid to touch on the difficult issues– Boston, Same-Sex Marriage, religion, education– and the no-so-difficult issues like reality television. My favorite post is this one honoring his dad on the two-year anniversary of his dad’s death. Al’s one of my top commenters on WOAW, and as a busy father, husband, animal owner (ask him about his pets . . . go on!) and surgeon (yep, he’s a blogging doc) who dabbles in running on the side, I appreciate his time and insight. Go check him out!

6. Kate at Did That Just Happen Blog. Kate is a single mom to a teenager (who she’s teaching to drive– AHH!) who lives in Texas. On the lighter side, she’s obsessed with the television show Supernatural and finds her crack at Taco Bell. Currently though, she is going through a difficult time with a family member’s medical issues. Despite this turn of events in her life, she manages to make time to post, respond to comments, and keep up-to-date with reading her WordPress blogs. She’s been forthcoming and honest about her experiences, the good and the bad, and reading her blog makes you feel like you are part of her life. This Award is perfect for her and I am happy to nominate her.

7. Ish Ism. Drishism is a graduate student in the Pacific Northwest who runs marathons, hikes, adores his wife, takes awesome pics, and backyard farms. He posts it all, from possums getting into the chicken coop to nominating his wife for Wife of the Year. He’s a busy dude, to say the least, but he always manages to stop by WOAW and like or leave a comment, which I much appreciate.

The other top commenter on WOAW is my mom. But she doesn’t have a blog so I can’t nominate her for the WordPress Family Award. I’ll buy her a cupcake or something. 🙂

Thanks for reading and allowing me to take time to appreciate my blogging family. Have a nice night!

Weekly Photo Challenge – “Up”

Another attempt at the Daily Post Weekly Photo Challenge. The challenge is to post a picture that signifies “up.” You can see the Challenge here.

Have a nice night!

Going Lite Today- Movie Quote Reveal

A few days ago I posted a list of some favorite movie quotes. You all responded so positively that I’ll do it again sometime. I promise. Now though, in hopes of lightening up your day, I reveal the movies quoted in the prior post. How’d you all score by the way? Was it too easy? Too difficult? Let me know and I’ll adjust for the next time.

Here we go:

(1) “Look Kids- Big Ben, the Parliament.” European Vacation (1985). Clark gets stuck driving in circles. A google search reveals that he’s driving around Lambeth Bridge Roundabout in London, and he can’t seem to work his way out. Since seeing this movie back in ’85, I use the quote “Big Ben, the Parliament” as a code that I’m lost. Not surprisingly, most people get it, too.

(2) “Dear God. Make me a bird. So I can fly far. Far, far, away from here.” Forrest Gump (1994). A young Jenny says this. I remember her being up in a tree when she says this, but Especially Made pictures her in the middle of a corn field. Guess we’ll just have to watch this EXCELLENT movie again to find out! I think this movie makes my Top Five Movies of All Time list.

(3) “I can’t believe I gave my panties to a geek.” Sixteen Candles (1984). Remember the image of Anthony Michael Hall raising the panties in the boys’ room to the geeks staring up at them amazed? And who didn’t have a crush on Jake Ryan? John Hughes at his finest.

(4) “I’ll make him an offer he can’t refuse.” The Godfather (1972). If you didn’t get that one, I feel sorry for you. If you haven’t seen the movie, I feel even more sorry for you. Get your act together, please. (:

(5) “Tell me about it, stud.” Grease (1978). Can anyone else recite the dialogue and sing every song from this movie, or is that just me?

(6) “Nine million terrorists in the world, and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister.” Die Hard (1988). The world could use a couple extra John McClane’s. Enough said.

(7) “You think I’m hostile now, wait til you see me tonight.” My Cousin Vinny (1992). Marisa Tomei has some great one-liners throughout the film. Joe Pesci’s trial skills, his witnesses, and his “yoots” (“youths”), including the Karate Kid himself, make this one of those films you can watch a gazillion times and never be bored with it.

(8) “You jump, I jump, right?” Titanic (1997). I knew the boat would sink, yet this movie rips me to shreds every time (I posted a bit about that here). In 1997, in 2000, in 2013, whenever I see this movie I lose my sh*t. I can’t even write anything else about it. Stupid Celine Dion and her beautiful song. JACK and ROSE for EVER!

(9) “Hey Trav. Don’t knock her up!” Overboard (1987). Travis’s little brothers give him a hard time when he gets a girlfriend, shouting this line to him as Travis and his girlfriend are walking away together. [Bonus round: Can anyone name the other Proffitt brothers?] This movie is one of my all time favorites, despite the horrific premise. Don’t think about it too hard, or you’ll see what I mean. How can I love this film so much? Is it simply that good? Maybe it’s the Goldie/Kurt factor.

(10) “You ever seen a duck that couldn’t swim?” Convoy (1978). Kris Kristofferson and Ali McGraw star in this gritty 70’s film about a trucker nicknamed the “Rubber Duck” who fights off authorities by creating a convoy of trucks and using a CB radio. I’m dying to tell you the end but I’ll refrain. Okay, I can’t refrain. Stop reading here if you don’t want the spoiler. . . .

So the bad guys (who are really, like, the good guys), fire weapons at Rubber Duck (the first trucker in the convoy, of course) and his truck flies off a bridge into a river. Of course we think he’s dead. They have a funeral. Later, Ali finds Kris in disguise on some weird bus and is delighted he’s alive and upon seeing her reaction he says the line about ducks who can’t swim. YAY! For whatever reason, I LOVED this movie and aspired to a career as a trucker for the sole purpose of creating my own convoy someday (my parents were thrilled, as you can imagine).

By the way, David over at soundslikeorange thinks the actual list of quotes sounds like “the main plot points from a surreal movie script.” Hmm… could be a challenging writing project!

Thanks for reading and have a nice night.

[Source: Jake Ryan pic: http://danishbird.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/SixteenCandleJakeRyan2.jpg]

Boston

It’s 2 AM and despite extreme fatigue, I can’t sleep. What happened– what’s happening– in Boston dominates my thoughts. My heart goes out to the victims of today’s violent bombing, and to everyone in Boston, America, and the world. It’s mind-boggling horrific and I’m feeling angry and sad and in knots over it. I write this post with the hope of being able to settle my thoughts and sleep afterward.

My worst days as a citizen, a parent, and a Human Being, are the days when I am addicted to the news. Good news is glossed over, but bad news is studied. I constantly hit “refresh,” searching for information. First, for the What, When, and Where, which is usually readily apparent. Then, I search for the answers to the more difficult questions of the Who and How, clicking “refresh” for more and more news. Finally, I seek the answer to the most difficult question– the Why. Aurora . . . Newport . . . Boston. Why?

How many times have we heard the phrase “senseless acts of violence”? Unfortunately, too many. Yet, we try to make sense of the senseless. We want to understand and seek answers to the unanswerable questions. Will the “Why” ever really make sense?

Boston makes no sense to me. Nor did the other horrific past events for which I spent the day hitting “refresh” on the newsfeed. But now I am forever changed because of Boston. For the rest of my life, when I hear about a marathon, I will think of the events today in Boston. Like September 11 forever changed my view of airplanes and skyscrapers. Like Colin Ferguson’s mass murder on the Long Island Railroad forever altered my experience of riding a train. Like Aurora forever marred my thoughts when I step into a movie theater. Like Columbine and Newport forever changed my image of the classroom.

I’m not scared or paralyzed– I’m just unsettled. Maybe wary. I will still do things because I don’t think fear is the answer. I’ve flown since 9/11 (once) and been in skyscrapers. I’ve ridden trains and gone to the movies. But now, when I do these things, my first thoughts are sad thoughts of victims and violence. These things are different for me now. Today, Boston’s violence is added to the list of horrendous events that will forever alter my thoughts whenever I am in public surrounded by a crowd of strangers.

Now it’s 3 AM and I’m feeling better that I addressed these feelings. Whether or not I post this remains to be seen. I won’t hit “publish” tonight though. I’m going to rest, wake up and read over my thoughts again, and see how I feel in the morning.

It’s morning and I only add this: When I’m having these anxious thoughts and recalling these terrible events (most recently, at the Opera House where there were a lot of people in a relatively small space), I relax by telling myself that I still believe in people and have faith that everything will be alright. I know I will spend the day looking at the news as the authorities discover the Who and the How of yesterday’s events and I pray that each time I click “refresh” the news gets no more worse than it is right now.

Thanks for reading.

I Love Lists!

Good morning! I found myself with some rare a.m. time and thought I’d surprise you all with a morning appearance. Surprise! Jess lives and breathes during the day, too!

On Friday, I made my first attempt at the Daily Post Weekly Photo Challenge. Today, I give yesterday’s Daily Prompt a try. The Prompt is simply to write a list. You can see the prompt here.

I love lists and debated which list I wanted to present to you. I started a “List of Why I Like Lists,” but then thought this would be more fun. Here’s a list of some of my favorite movie quotes from my favorite movies. I didn’t name the movies in case you wanted to play along.

(1) “Look Kids– Big Ben, the Parliament.”

(2) “Dear God. Make me a bird. So I can fly far. Far, far, away from here.”

(3) “I can’t believe I gave my panties to a geek.”

(4) “I’ll make him an offer he can’t refuse.”

(5) “Tell me about it, stud.”

(6) “Nine million terrorists in the world, and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister.”

(7) “You think I’m hostile now, wait til you see me tonight.”

(8) “You jump, I jump, right?”

(9) “Hey, Trav. Don’t knock her up!”

(10) Challenge quote: “You ever seen a duck that couldn’t swim?”

Thanks for indulging my List Love so early in the morning! Now back to our regularly scheduled programming . . .

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