Happy holidays and happy new year!

Just got back from a trip home, and it was great. I feel more homesick when I go home, though, and it makes me wonder when it'll be my time to pack up from the Big Apple. Regardless, I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season and best wishes for the brand new 2009 year!

Sign me up!

Um, where can I find a 19 year old Hugo Boss model for myself? NOT to say I condone this type of behavior...but just...you know...hypothetically speaking...

President-Elect

President Obama. It has a nice ring to it.

Thanks for getting it right this time, America.

New Kids on the Block, Part Deux

Floor seats at Madison Square Garden.

I

touched

Joey's

jacket.*

Lemme just say....AIIIIEEEEEE!!!!!!! (Yes, I screamed like a ten year old girl throughout the concert.)

*Question: Does this count as touching Joey?

Either way...*swoooooon*

New Kids on the Block

This weekend. Atlantic City. Me, my friend from high school, 3000 others of New Kids' closest fans (who bought tickets that sold out in 5 minutes), and the NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK.

Seriously one of the best experiences of my life.

And, yeah, I was within 10 people of Joey Joe McIntyre.

Oldboy

I watched "Oldboy" for the first time today. Hot damn. What a ride. It was really really really good, but definitely disturbing. Let's just say...it takes a lot to shock me movies-wise and I'm not given to much profanity in the normal course of things, but this is the first time in a long time that I've exclaimed (out loud, alone) " what the fuck??" and "holy shit."

I might lose fans for saying this, but...

I hope McCain's wrong in thinking that snubbed Hillary supporters will be happy just to vote for a vagina...

Feed me!

When I'm lying on my stomach and reading and Nico really REALLY wants something, he just jumps up and stalks back and forth between my face and the book. Effective.

Mr. Darcy

If you love (1) Mr. Darcy and (2) BBC miniseries as much as I do, then you definitely need to check out "North and South," all four hours of which I watched the other night...and finished up wishing there were more!

Mr. Thornton is this gal's new Mr. Darcy. :)

Munch is my hero.

Watch this lost Sesame Street video and chung-chung-chuckle. :)

The "Twilight" Series Phenomenon

So, I don't know if you all know this, but I have a thing for vampire movies and characters. Apparently I am not alone. I never got into Buffy (I know I know -- sacrilege!), but I dig "Interview with the Vampire" and was into all of those vampire teen books when I was growing up. I recently was made aware of the whole "Twilight" series phenomenon, which was originally a series for young adults, but which, like Harry Potter, has taken on a life of its own in the adult books category. Is it worth it for me to take up these books? Will I be wholly consumed in the way that Harry Potter ended up taking over my nights during that first-night-of-release? And I know this will sound horrible, but can a Mormon housewife come up with enough stuff to keep me interested? Thoughts?

The Bar Exam -- It should be noted...that you'll [probably] be just fine!

...Or..."how I can make all of you feel better by sharing my Bar Exam experience."

As people gear up for the home stretch of this summer's Bar Exam season, take comfort in my slackerdom as I share some words of (maybe not so wise?) wisdom:

1. Don't freak out.
   
• No, really, with this one I'm serious. DON'T freak out.
  
2. It's okay to go to the Argo Tea/Starbuck's/Insert-Indie-Coffee-House-Name-Here and use the wireless while you "study." Just don't spill tea/coffee/free-trade-coffee on the BarBri materials, okay?
   
• The truth: Really, I spent my days after the BarBri course from around noon/1PM until 5PM or 6PM at the Argo Tea, sorta studying and um...sorta chatting online...
  
3. It's also okay to skip a couple of the BarBri essays. Just make sure you do a couple on your own and do a couple that are graded -- just to light the fire under your butt!
   
• The truth: Really, I think I only turned in two essays for grading -- the first one and the last one.
  
4. While it's okay to cram a little the day before (no matter what they say at BarBri, you're gonna do what you're gonna do in the end), it's NOT a good idea to be awake (and definitely 100% NOT a good idea to be STUDYING) at 3AM the morning of the Bar Exam.
   
• The truth: I spent the day before the Bar Exam cramming while sequestered in my hotel room, only leaving to acquire [and bring back to my room] sustenance. Around 3AM, I took an email break and went from the dining table to the desk. I checked my email. I got up and headed back to the dining table. And my laptop CAME WITH ME as my foot caught on the cord. Yes, my laptop, ON WHICH I WOULD BE TAKING THE EXAM IN A SHORT 6 HOURS, slid off the desk. As I watched my laptop come tumbling from the desk to the floor in slooooooow moooootion, it hit the carpet on one corner and then cartwheeled off another corner only to come full stop at my feet, lid shut. A thousand thoughts flew through my head as I watched The Fall in horror. Thoughts ranged from "Ohmigod, where can I buy a laptop at 3AM??" to "Will they let me download the software for the Bar Exam on a new, unregistered laptop...???" I gingerly picked up The Fallen. I placed it on the bed, kneeling before it in what I now realize is something of a prayer-like position. I closed my eyes. I took a deep breath. And I slowly lifted the lid. And...IT'S ALIIIIIIIIVE!!! My breath whooshed out of me as I took in the blessedly NORMAL-looking screen, and I typed a couple of nonsense words for good measure. Lesson: Sometimes you just get stupidly lucky, but it helps if you ARE NOT awake at 3AM the day of the Bar Exam.
5. Finally, it's okay to think you failed. Seriously. Everyone feels dumb after the Bar Exam, and if you don't, then...let's just say the one person I know who said it was "easy" ended up um...not really on the "pass" list.
   
• The truth: After two grueling days of spewing out and applying arcane law to situations that were 99% likely never to arise in my practicing career, I felt like I made up about half the stuff I said in the essays, and the other half I threw in within the context of one of those infamous BarBri-advised "It should be noted..." sentences. I felt pretty terrible and had a feeling um...February would NOT be out of the question. This feeling, it seems, is actually quite normal. In case you didn't know, I passed. And all went well. And, if you've been attending your classes and doing at least half of your homework, all will likely go well with you, too. BUT...even if it doesn't, allow me to reiterate point 1 above: DON'T FREAK OUT. It's not the end of the world. Because...if it were...then I'd guess at least half the lawyers out there -- including the former dean of Stanford Law School -- would not be lawyers.

That's all I got for now, y'all. Break a pencil!*

*But not a laptop! :)

This makes me sick.

Usually I'm the epitome of not-religious, and I'm more than happy to let bygones be bygones, as long as it's not hurting anyone, etc etc.

Even so, this story about how a number of church groups are trying to stop an 11-year-old from having an abortion (after she became pregnant when her uncle raped her) makes me angry. Very angry.

Teenage Mothers

A "pact"...?!?!?

Are you FREAKING KIDDING ME?!?

Reef Flip Flop Built-In Bottle Opener

The title says it all -- Reef has created a flip flop that has a built-in bottle opener in the sole.

While I usually admire innovation, and while this new product of convenience will likely find an audience with the beach-bonfire crew, something just kind of...grosses me out at the idea of using the BOTTOM of your shoe to open up the top of your bottle, out of the mouth of which you will be drinking.

Done 4.

I paid off my (high-interest private) loans this week.

Feels...

pretty
darn
good. :)

Hodgepodge

Berlin and London were awesome.

As a side matter, what's up with Clinton supporters who are saying that they will vote for McCain if/when Obama is on the ballot? Isn't that cutting off your nose to spite your face?

"Ich bin ein Berliner."

In fuenfzehn Stuenden werde ich nach Berlin fliegen. Ohne Woerterbuch.

!

This is really funny.

THIS

Hehehehehehe...

I knoes my maffs.

It's not that I was BAD at math; it's just that I never really LIKED it. In school, I was always a good math student, and I scored well on the typical tests that measure such things. HOWEVER, may I just say that I think that this New York Times article is spot on??? Give me a 40(t+1) = 400 - 50t equation ANY DAY over the damn "two trains going in opposite directions" example. Those trains were the bane of my K through 12 existence!

Maybe I'm naive, but...

I don't understand how being First Lady gives you that much "experience."

Being a Lawyer v. Something Else

I think I figured out the typical professional conundrum many of us face:

Time, money, sleep -- pick two.

I'm...ah....ah....AH-CHOO...sick. :(

Once in a while, a random thought process leads me to wonder which of the five senses I'd be willing to "lose" if I had to choose one (morbid as that sounds). Okay, so while the "five" number may be debatable amongst the fantastical sixth-sense believers, work with me here: sight, smell, sound, taste, touch. 99 days out of 100, I'd say "smell." I never think I'd miss it much (at least, not as much as the OTHER senses), and it always sort of made sense to me in an evolutionary way. If memory serves me correctly from my days way back when in Psychobiology class, the part of the brain that processes the sense of smell was one of the earliest to develop in our ancestors. As such, evolutionarily, getting rid of my sense of smell kind of made sense (hardy har har) in light of the new and fabulous other senses that we've developed.

BUT...that being said...I've been sick the past couple of days. Can't smell worth crap. Heck, can't SMELL crap (but maybe that's a good thing). This would be that one day out of 100 that I think to myself "man...I'd really love to smell (1) that burger, (2) the furry smell of Nico, my kitty (hey, it may sound weird, but it's a comforting smell!), or (3) the fresh laundry that just got back from the laundromat.

And, as an aside, why am I sick again??? I'm like.....NEVER sick. Before my sparring bout with the flu last month, it had been seriously YEARS since I'd been sick. But this cold marks TWICE in two months. W-T-F...!

Two Things

1. I just got home from work. (Sux.)
2. They're filming this outside my apartment right now: New York, I Love You.
   

Desert Island Food?

Someone I was talking with recently said something about a "desert island" food. This statement got me thinking...what would I bring on a desert island?

Specific answers to that question aside, I've reached a point where I think I might just be satisfied with the initial response I have of "I don't know."

For the most part, I don't understand "favorites." People have favorite brands, favorite colors, favorite drinks, favorite cars, favorite animals, favorite celebrities, favorite websites, and the list just goes on and ON.

Maybe I'm just really...UNopinionated (?), but I have always wondered how you can pick ONE thing and have that be your end-all and be-all favorite [fill in the blank]. Rather than unopinionated, I've instead always seen this kind of non-favoritism in my life as something of a desire more to be fair and weigh all the options. How am I to decide that this one person/place/thing is The It of that category for me?

I guess what I'm saying is...in the end, isn't there a season (turn turn turn) and a time to every purpose for everything?

N.B.: Thus ends my 2AM musings for this week.

Eliot Spitzer

Okay. So I'm sure a big reason it's getting SOOOOO much press is that he made his name, to paraphrase the nytimes.com homepage's description, enforcing standards of ethics in public life.

But really...

Am I the only one who's kinda thinking "who gives a flying f who the Governor f'd?"

Who needs the outside world, anyway??

Recently I joined Netflix, and let's just say that things have gotten a little *ahem A LOT ahem* out of hand. I've discovered not only the DVD portion of the site, but also the "Watch Instantly" portion, which has been my downfall. Seriously.

In the past three weeks, Netflix has been responsible for my becoming a serious recluse as I have watched the following thanks to its oh so awesome "Watch Instantly" and overnight delivery of DVDs:

DVD:
The Namesake
Becoming Jane
Donnie Darko: Director's Cut
Once
The Assassination of Jesse James
Little Miss Sunshine

Watch Instantly:
The entire season 1 of "Heroes" in the span of 5 days. (Yes, that's 24 episodes...)
The Way We Were
Pan's Labyrinth
Stand By me
The Seat Filler
The Usual Suspects
Helvetica
Right At Your Door
The Good German
The Shining

Yes, that's over the course of THREE weeks. My name is odderie, and...I have a problem.

spazierengehen

Today I meandered my way to Chinatown, going through the Village, SoHo, and some of Little Italy en route. On the way back, I spotted a playground game of street hockey. There is something inexplicably beautiful in its simplicity in using tipped over trash cans as the "goal."

It IS easy being GREEN.

According to this article, 500,000 plastic bags are used worldwide each MINUTE. Please consider bringing a reusable bag next time you go grocery shopping. This website sells them or you may already have some tote bags or canvas bags lying around the house, just waiting to do their part to save a little corner of mother earth.

C'mon...you know y'all wanna do your part. :)

Birthday Wishlist (A Work In Progress)

DVDs

10 Things I Hate About You
Step Up
True Lies

Different?

One of the drawbacks to being friends/chatty with one of your parents is you end up hearing the dirt. The bad stuff. The "I don't think I should be hearing this" stuff.

And it makes you wonder..."why?"

"Why" what?

Why...all of it?

You may always be just a "dumb kid" in their eyes, but at this point, are you ever actually still a kid after hearing all the dirt?

And then you think...maybe it would be better off...different.

And then you think you're a traitor (to your parent, to your other parent, to your sibling, to your family) for thinking that.

This Ain't Your Average Delta

Call me a dork, but I think this video is SO cool.

OSU v. LSU

How bad is it that a part of the reason I like college football better than professional football is that, in college football, those smooth and muscley calves are bare and nekkid?