a kinder, gentler Jeffrey

I didn't get to watch Project Runway on Wednesday, but I taped it and watched it last night, hence the lateness of this recap post. I just know how you all anxiously await these things. :)

I gotta say, I think it's pretty sweet that they took all four of the remaining contestants to the finals. That means that all of my favorites get to compete, and Laura too, one-trick-pony though she is.

As for the designs this week, I thought they were severly lacking. I hate to admit it, but Michael probably should have been eliminated for the boring (and somewhat slutty) dress he came up with. He could have (and has!!) done so much better. And haven't we seen that exact dress from Laura before? Like a million times? Uli's dress was very pretty, and she made a good decision to rework her original idea. She was getting stuck in a rut. And even though the judges didn't care for Jeffrey's dress, I kinda liked it. I think I would have liked it better if it hadn't gathered at the bottom like that (I don't understand that look at all), but I commend him for taking a chance and showing a different side of his personality.

Side note: Don't people wear pants anymore??

Aside from the big surprise at the end, my favorite part of the episode was when Jeffrey watched a video of his son on his phone, that his girlfriend sent him for Father's Day. It really showed a softer side of him, which I think the audience needed to see. He's not such a tough guy after all, as was also evidenced by his design this week.

Gah! I'm glad it's Friday and I'm feeling a little burned out, so pardon me if this entry is a bit choppy. Have a good weekend everyone!

The End.

epeolatry

As I moved widdershins around the room, I tried to make sense of the walla-walla of the tohubohu. I got the fantods when I saw the napiform energumen in the corner. His nothosonomia took me by surprise, and of course the esprit d'escalier ocurred to me much later. The eesome ecdysiast was entertaining, but squiffed. I didn't envy the katzenjammer she'd have, but her hallux and her oxter were mesmerizing. I footled around. The facilities were puckeroo and quisquilious, and were out of bumf, and the latrinalia was raunchy. I met a bibliobibulus who'd forgotten to infucate so I could see all her fernticles. She asked me something nudiustertian and I told her to perendinate. There was a psithurism, and the hebdomedal gathering came to an abrupt end when a snollygoster spanghewed.


http://rinkworks.com/words/funwords.shtml

do you hear what I see?

Something I've come to realize about myself over the years is that I am a very visual person. I discovered in college that I learned best by seeing things written down on paper, as opposed to hearing it spoken aloud. I'd remember reading specific sentences and even know approximately where they were on a page, but I could convince myself that a lecturing professor said the complete opposite of what he actually said. Knowing this, you'd think I'd learn to take really good notes and play to my strengths ... but alas, my laziness usually won out over my desire to be a good student. How I managed to graduate with a decent GPA, I'll never know.

A more recent example of this trait of mine (and the thought that triggered this post), is the way I tend to describe the concerts I go to. I have been going to quite a few of them as of late, and when people ask me how they were, I go into great detail about what the venue was like, who was in the crowd, how the stage was set up, and what the performers looked like, or what they wore. The music itself usually gets a much shorter description. Sometimes as concise and vague as, "It was good." It's not that I don't enjoy the music at a concert. I love music! And that's the reason you go to a concert in the first place. I guess it's just that visual images make more of an impression on me than aural. The experience of going to a concert involves all of the senses, and though the focus is on what you hear, my most trusted sense is my vision, so that's what really sticks with me. It's only in those rare instances when the emotions evoked by the music mesh perfectly with what my other senses are experiencing that the music itself leaves a lasting impression. Or perhaps it's just because I am not as good with descriptions of sounds as I am with images. What's that saying? "Talking about music is like singing about architecture"? I think I may have that wrong. But I believe that statement is very true.

On the topic of how one experiences a concert, I've also realized that my experiences are shaped largely by outside influences. For example, last night, Jillybean and I went to the Sufjan Stevens show at the Riv. The crowd there seemed to be very young - much younger than I would have expected, actually. There were several groups of high school aged kids around the area we were standing, and I realized afterwards that they ended up giving me a slightly lower opinion of the concert than I might have had otherwise. There was a kid to one side of us who was shouting annoying requests between each song. There was a girl next to me who kept bumping me with her purse in the same spot on my shoulder over and over again (though this could have been anyone, not necessarily a teenager). And THEN. Then there was the kid behind us, who will, in my memory, always be known as the "Oh My God!" guy. Let's just say he was VERY EXCITED to see Sufjan. So much so that between every song, he'd shout "Oh My God!" like he just couldn't believe that Sufjan Stevens was right there in front of him. Seriously, you'd have thought he was having an orgasm each time he said it. Oh, and his breathing was erratic and very heavy. I know because I could feel it on the back of my neck through the entire show, whipping my hair into my face, even though he was a couple feet behind me.

And those are the things that I'm going to remember most about that concert. Those people in the crowd, the butterfly costumes that the band was wearing, and the fact that for most of the show, all I could see of Mr. Stevens was the end of his guitar and the tip of his wing (too many tall people).

But the music was very good. :)

kitty update

Well, the kitty had her surgery last Friday, and she seems to be doing well. The roomie brought her back home on Saturday, and she had a new green cast on her arm (leg?) and brand new shaved spots. Her injured arm was shaved all the way to her shoulder, the wrist-area on her other arm was shaved (presumably for an IV), and the previously shaved patch on her side had been re-shaved in order to give her a new pain-reliever patch. Needless to say, she looks a little funny. And she's kinda out of it. We're keeping her in the roomie's large walk-in closet until the vet gives us the okay to let her roam about the apartment again. She's supposed to stay in there for 10 weeks! Not fun for poor kitty. But as a human will stay still and limit movement if you tell them to, a kitty will not, so she must be penned up. Giving her pills is not a fun activity, but it has to be done twice a day. The roommate has enlisted my help for this a couple of times, and we've gotten it done, but not before feeling like animal abusers somehow. Forcing open the mouth of a cat and inducing swallowing is not something I'd like to ever become GOOD AT, but it'll probably happen before this is all over and done with. Yuck.

But yes, she is doing well, and hopefully soon she'll be back to her old kitty ways ... perhaps thinner and a little healthier? Well, thinner anyway. Which will actually be healthier since she's kind of a fatty to begin with. But a cute fatty. :)

adventures in commuting

As you may or may not know, I usually take the train to work on Fridays. Some people ask me why I don't take the train every day. But believe it or not, it takes waaaay longer to get to work via train than it does by car. Yes, even on Fridays. But I do the train thing on Fridays for two reasons. 1) to save my car a little mileage in its old age, and 2) 'cause my coworkers and I often make it a "beer train." However, if there is one instance I can cite to support my opinion that driving can be far easier and less stressful than taking the train, it is last Friday.

About a half hour before quittin' time on Friday, I got an e-mail from a coworker asking if anyone wanted to take the early shuttle and go grab some beer before the train arrived. Okay, let me back up a little and explain the shuttle thing real quick. At around the 4:00 hour, there are two shuttles that leave work headed for the train station at Arlington Park. The one at 4:10 gets to the station in time for commuters to catch the outbound train, and the 4:26 shuttle gets people there in time to catch the inbound train. (Note: there used to only be one shuttle, at 4:10, so the inbound commuters would have quite a long wait at the station - another reason for my initial hesitation to take the train every day) Anyhoo, Nilsa, the coworker, wanted to take the 4:10 shuttle, and have the very accomodating bus driver drop us off at the liquor store next to Arlington Park, where we'd buy our beer, then hoof it back over to the station. I was the only one who was done with my work for the day and didn't need that extra 15 minutes to finish up, so I agreed to go along.

We met up in the Post 1 lobby where the shuttle picks us up. It was kind of yucky outside, so we stayed inside and watched for the bus to arrive. It didn't. There was a very nervous man in the lobby making all sorts of phone calls to Laidlaw, and to our company's other location, trying to figure out where the bus was. Since he was trying to make the outbound train, we could understand his nervousness, but he was freakin' everyone out! Seriously! Turned out there was a substitute bus driver that day and she didn't know where she was going or what her schedule was, so she was running very late. Nervous Guy and a couple other commuters ended up getting rides to the station so they could make their train. Since Nilsa and I were in no hurry, we waited a few more minutes to see if the bus would come. When it became evident that it wasn't coming, we decided to take another coworker up on his offer to drive us to the liquor store ... ahem, I mean, the train station. :) Actually, he WAS nice enough to drop us off at the liquor store, so we were in pretty good shape. We bought our drinks (only for ourselves, tee hee), and walked back to the station in plenty of time to make the inbound train. However, it was beginning to rain harder as we walked, and even though we had umbrellas, we were grateful for the shelters at the stop. There was a very interesting group of people huddled under the shelter who were headed into the city for some kind of event, and who were very amused by our drinks concealed in paper bags. Of course, they had a whole cooler full of booze, so who were they to talk? :)

So it got closer and closer to the time the train was supposed to arrive, and we saw no bus arriving from work with the rest of our friends and coworkers. Were they going to make it in time? Would the sub bus driver know where she was going? Suddenly, in the distance, we saw the giant headlight of the train approaching the station. Just about the same time, the bus arrived! But see, the thing about the Arlington Park station is that the drop off location is on the opposite side of the tracks as the platform you need to be on to catch the inbound train. So, needless to say, the bus came to a screeching halt, and out came a steady stream of my coworkers RUNNING AT FULL SPEED to cross the tracks in time to 1) catch the train, and 2) not get HIT by the train. Thankfully, all made it across in time and in one piece ... but just barely. I heard one of them say as we boarded the train, "If the bus driver hadn't gone through that yellow light, we wouldn't have made it!" Also, keep in mind that by this time, the rain was coming down pretty hard.

Cut to a few stops down the line, when the train came to a stop somewhere just after the Mount Prospect stop, and we didn't know why. In answer to our question, the conductor got on the intercom and announced that the train wass stopping because of a tornado warning, they didn't know when they'd be able to get moving again, and that we should all be patient because this was for our own safety. Oh, wonderful. We're stopped on the tracks for our SAFETY in a train that would be shredded to pieces were a tornado to actually hit it. At this point, Nilsa and I were very glad we had our beers, and the people with the cooler full of liquor, who were sitting right above us, were very glad they had that cooler full of liquor. I believe we were stopped on the tracks for about 45 minutes, which in the grand scheme of things, isn't that long. But when you're trying to get home after work and start your weekend, it's an eternity. I sent text messages, I talked on the phone, I drank my beer and joked around with fellow passengers. I even attempted to read the book I had with me (I think I only read a page). Meanwhile, Mother Nature was rearing her ugly head outside. It rained, it hailed, it rained some more. We DID NOT get hit by a tornado, and as far as I know, no one in the vicinity did either. So that was good. The delay in my commute was not so good.

FINALLY we started moving. We were a bit concerned that the train might skip some stops to get itself back on schedule, but luckily, it made all scheduled stops, so there weren't any further delays. HOWEVER, the minute we arrived at the Irving Park stop was the same minute that Ma Nature decided to release her bladder. So of course, the absolute worst five minutes of this storm were the five minutes when I was walking from the train to my car. I was incredibly thankful for my Nightmare Before Christmas umbrella. Or at least my upper half was. From the waist down, I was completely drenched. To the skin. Even through my shoes and socks. I can honestly say that I've never been outside during a worse downpour. The thunder cracked directly overhead at one point and literally stopped me in my tracks. And of course, in keeping with the theme, the rain let up dramatically as soon as I got in my car.

For the last leg of my journey, I had to make a stop at the pharmacy to pick up a prescription. It was mighty embarrassing sloshing down the aisles at CVS while everyone else who had been outside was only mildly damp, because they had the common sense (and good luck) to NOT be outside during the worst of the downpour.

But anyway, I got home. That's the point, right?

In conclusion, it's those kinds of days that make you appreciate the days when commuting goes smoothly. But it's also those kinds of days that make for really fun blog posts. :) It was an adventure.

kitty post

The kitty cat belonging to my roommate has not been so good lately. We think she was trying to jump from the edge of the bathtub to the bathroom counter, like she frequently does, and missed the mark. She somehow tumbled to the ground and injured her front paw. She hasn't been putting any weight on it for a week, and she might actually have to have surgery!! Scariness! But we've been giving her a lot of love to distract her from her pain. :) Cosequently, she has been getting a bit spoiled. The following is an interaction from this morning.

Kitty is laying on the floor in my bedroom as I get ready for work. (I don't usually have her in there, but she was especially wanting of attention today, so I figured what the hay.) It is time for me to go, so I stand by my bedroom door.

Me: Come on kitty, you gotta get out of my room now so I can close the door.

Cat: (still sitting) Meow.

Me: Yes.

Cat: (still sitting) Meow.

Me: Yes!

Cat: (still sitting) Meow!

Me: Yes! Now come on!

Cat: (finally getting up and SLOWLY moving towards the door) Mrrrrrrrroooowwrrrooowrrrooooowwwwwww.

She was totally giving me lip, and then when I MADE her get up and get out of my room, she complained and whined and grumbled and dragged her feet the entire way. And to top it off, she stopped right at the entryway, so I had to start closing the door and literally use it to push her out of the room.

Such a teenager.

they're ba-ack!

I was APPALLED to see Vincent and Angela back on last night's episode of Project Runway. Could they possibly have picked two worse people? I think not. However, I was ELATED to see them get eliminated YET AGAIN for designing craptastic pieces of crap. But in my opinion, there was actually a LOT of crap on that runway last night.

Okay, let's back up. The reason Vincent and Angela came back in the first place was because they had won challenges prior to their elimination, and Ms. Klum had been saying that there were certain advantages to winning that would be revealed in a later challenge. Apparently the advantage was a SECOND FRIGGING CHANCE!! How cool is that ... for someone who may have actually had TALENT and only got eliminated for ONE lapse of style judgement. Not for piece of crap designers who the producers seemed to have dragged off the street. Well, I'm sure they thought it was pretty cool ... but I digress.

So, Vincent and Angela come back for the black-and-white cocktail dress challenge, but the catch is that they have to WIN the challenge in order to stay in the game. Otherwise they're out on their asses yet again. And the rest of the contestants are none to happy to see these people back. Can you blame them? They've worked hard and designed some kick-ass clothes time and time again in order to stay in the game, and here come these clowns with another chance just because they may have won ONE challenge. Seriously. Even Laura had some choice words for Angela who's win was for a group challenge. One where the "group" actually did a lot of the designing and reining-in of Angela, because had she been left on her own, the pants on her outfit would have been COVERED with those atrocious little rosettes, and no way would it have won that challenge (IMO).

So anyway, back to the game. Three people were going to be eliminated that night, so the remaining designers had to work EXTRA hard in order to stay in. However, there was really only one dress that I liked, and it didn't even win. I loooooved Michael's dress. But the judges loooooved Laura's dress more. I guess congrats to her for finally winning a challenge, but my question is, did the judges give her the win just because she FINALLY listened to them and designed something someone younger than 40 might actually wear? Is that a good reason to give her the prize? Methinks no. But hey, I'm not a judge, so what do I know? Anyhoo, her dress was okay I guess. Vincent's was a piece of crap - it's a really bad sign when even a MODEL can't make a dress look good. Angela's was just odd and ugly in true Angela fashion. I honestly don't think ANYONE would wear that. Uli's was very ... Uli. But not in a good way, unfortunately. I'm kind of getting tired (?) of her stuff. Is tired the right word? I don't know. Maybe bored is more appropriate. Kayne's dress was quite tacky, as is Kayne, so that's pretty fitting. And I hate to admit it, but I despised Jeffrey's dress this week! Michael said that Kayne's dress was starting to look hooker-ish, but if ANYONE looked like a hooker last night, it was Jeffry's model! The leggings were TOO MUCH. There is a fine line between rock 'n' roll and trash.

So the eliminations ... I was very surprised that Michael didn't win, but Laura's dress was my second favorite, so if anyone else had to win, I was glad it was her. No big surprise that Angela and Vincent both lost ... again. But what a relief! If one of them had been brought back in the game at the price of one of my favorites I don't think I could go on watching the show!! Well, I probably wouldn't have gone that far considering I AM addicted (the withdrawal symptoms wouldn't have been worth it), but anyway. The elimination portion was a definite nail-biter. I was CONVINCED that Jeffrey was going to get Auf'd, but the judges did a good thing and let him stay. Even though his dress may have been worse-looking than Kayne's, I think they took Kayne's overall taste level into consideration and realized that Jeffrey has some real potential whereas Kayne is just tacky all over the place. Good for them. :)

So I breathed a heavy sign of relief because my faves are still in there, and there's only one more elimination to get to the final three. I'm thinking now, though, that if Laura were to take the place of, maybe, Uli, in the top three, I might not be TOO disappointed. But Michael and Jeffrey NEED to be in there. Can't wait till next week!!

On a side note, bravo to Bravo for tricksy editing in their promos for this most recent episode! In the ads, they showed Heidi Klum saying to the contestants right before she introduced their special guests, "there are two of them." Cut to a soundbite of Laura saying to Tim Gunn how she didn't want to exhaust herself "designing a dress for the Olson twins." Sneaky devils.

On ANOTHER side note ... DO I LOVE THE CAPS IN THIS POST OR WHAT??!!

from 'tatious

-Five best (current or former) roommates, listed in order from most best to least best (with "best" not necessarily referring to Nora Best, who might have an unfair advantage.)

1. Kristentatious
1. Nora B.
1. Jillybean
1. Scott

Ha!! You're all number one!! See how crafty I am?? :)

-Five things on your "list" that you still want to do. (You know, the list that everybody keeps, either on paper or in their head, of things they would like to do before they die)

5. Go to New Zealand
4. Write a screenplay
3. Learn photogaphy
2. Go to the Oscars
1. Dye my hair pink

FYI - my list is actually written down, and I somehow managed to find it so I could make this accurate!

-Five things from your list that you have already done.

5. Get a college degree
4. Work on a TV show/movie
3. Act in a play
2. Go skydiving
1. Go to Disney World

-Top five movies in your queue

5. Mrs. Henderson Presents
4. The Aviator
3. Everything is Illuminated
2. Dead Like Me Season 2 Disc 4
1. Clue

Voila! There you have it!! :) Whew, that was a lot of work!

from Ms. greenfish herself

- Five People You'd Like to be Stuck on an Elevator With (real or fake)

5. Johnny Depp
4. Francois Truffaut (if he was still alive)
3. J. K. Rowling
2. Dr. McDreamy
1. Orlando Bloom

- Five Foods You Will Never Eat

5. a triple cheeseburger (I think I gained a pound just typing that out)
4. head cheese (just eew)
3. an egg white omelet (without the yolk, it's just not an egg)
2. placenta (sorry, just had to put that in there)
1. foie gras!!! (thanks to the ban in Chicago, and the fact that I never wanted to try it in the first place)


- Five Worst Hypothetical First Dates

5. Kenny Chesney concert
4. anything involving a trip to the Emergency Room
3. anything involving getting arrested (actually, that may depend on what we're getting arrested for ...)
2. Golf
1. the one in "When Harry Met Sally" where Sally's date pulls a hair out of her head and flosses with it

can I play too?

Got this from greenfish.

You post a topic, list, category, whatever, in my comments section. (examples: "5 vampires Buffy ran away from", or "5 jobs Dwight has held"). Then, in a separate post, I'll post the answers to all your Top 5 ideas, according to me. Serious or fun! Then you post this offer in your own journal, if the mood takes you.

But just FYI, I don't watch Buffy, and I have no idea who Dwight is. Think more along the lines of "High Fidelity" Top 5 lists.

:)

even though Klepto beat me to it

I am obliged to post my Project Runway summary this week, even though Klepto beat me to the punch on Wednesday night with his two-sentence analysis. Dam you, Klepto!!! Actually, I'm just impressed that you watched it!! Or maybe La F summarized?? Either way ...

I'm actually having a hard time remembering much of what happened this episode. Guess it wasn't all that exciting. The only really happy thing to happen was the elimination of Crazy Vincent! Yay! And Jeffrey got his second win in a row, winning this one even with his immunity scored from his last win. Apparently that's never happened before. Pretty sweet.

So this episode was all about couture. The designers had to make a couture gown in only two days. This is a definite challenge because the definition of a couture gown is one that is made with a lot of hand-work, like hand beading, or ruching, or hand-stitching. I have to say, though, that the results of this competition were a bit disappointing. The only dress that I liked was Jeffrey's. I loved that he made it out of a yellow plaid cotton. :) Uli's dress got raves from the judges, but I thought it was boring as all hell and looked too much like stuff I've seen before. Kayne's dress was pretty tacky, but I did like the skirt part of it. And I really really disliked the other three dresses. They were just plain UGLY. So needless to say, I was extremely relieved when the first person to be safe was Michael. I was convinced he'd be eliminated because his "couture" gown looked like a Prom dress gone terribly wrong. My other two favorites were the next to be "in," so I breathed a sigh of relief at this point. Vincent then got eliminated, and it's about damn time!

I'm not going to post a "likes," "dislikes," and "ambivalent" list anymore because there are so few people left, but y'all know who my picks for the final three are (Michael, Jeffrey and Uli). Hopefully I am right!!

One more thing ... Laura mentions this episode that she is three months preggers, and she (unwisely) decides to wear a midriff bearing top to show off this fact. My question is, are people usually showing THAT MUCH at only three months??? Maybe I'm just misinformed, but I always thought that at three months is when a woman just BEGINS to show. Hm.

the wierd world of my dreams

I had a very odd dream two nights ago. I dreamt I was inside a house, and Kristentatious was also there. She walked outside, and then called to me frantically to come outside. When I got out there, I looked towards the backyard of this house. There was a fence around the yard, and it had these thick wooden posts, with wire strung between them. There were a couple of dogs inside the yard, and a couple on the other side of the fence, but none of them belonged to me. I quickly saw the reason that Kristi had called me out there. A few of the dogs had apparently just been fighting, somehow, through the fence. One of the wooden fence posts had splintered, and there was a little black and brown puppy caught on it. The wood splinter had gone through one side of his stomach, and out the other side, just under the skin, and he was hanging there, struggling and squirming, in pain and bleeding, trying to get down. I ran out to him, and yelled back to Kristi to call the vet. But before I got to him, I began to wake up. In that sort of half-asleep, half-awake state, where I tend to try and finish up dreams I was in the middle of, I imagined that I had gotten the puppy off the splintered post, pressed down on his tummy to stop the bleeding, and brought him inside. And when the vet arrived, she got him all fixed up and he was good as new. Had I actually stayed asleep, I don't know if this is the way it would have worked out, but I'd like to think so.

The wierd thing now, is that every time I see a dog, or a picture of one, or even the roomie's cat, I remember that dream, and it's kind of disturbing. Let's just hope I never have to see a puppy skewered on a splintered fencepost in real life! Actually, let's hope no one has to.

this is a lot of questions

Let me preface this by saying that I may or may not have done this survey before (too lazy to check). Actually, I think it might be a combination of a couple different ones because some of the questions I know I have done before (Best room for a fire place), and some I know I've never seen before (Favorite fish). So anyway, it's a lot of questions - 100 to be exact - and I won't be offended if you choose not to read all my answers. However, if you do, I'd appreciate it if you then fill it out for yourself, and let me know where I can find it, so I can bask in the glow of my new knowledge of 100 things about my friends.

All right, here we go ...

1. Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed?
Closed, so the monsters can't come out.

2. Do you take the shampoos and conditioner bottles from hotel?
Nope. It usually smells funny.

3. Have you ever 'done it' in a hotel room?
Nope.

4. Have you ever stolen a street sign before?
No, but I bought a Stop sign at a flea market once, and a coworker once gave me a couple of those yellow and black striped caution signs.

5. Do you like to use post-it notes?
They are indispensable.

6. Do you cut out coupons but then never use them?
I usually won't go through the trouble of actually cutting them out, but I may save the paper they were in, and then forget why I saved it and end up throwing it out.

7. Would you rather be attacked by a big bear or a swarm of a bees?
Maybe bees, because there is always the possibility that my incredibly calming zen-like presence would prevent them from stinging me ... too much.

8. There was no number 8, so I'm making up one of my own. Do you think blogging is a self-indulgent hobby?
Sometimes yes. I debate with myself (fitting). Mostly I just do it out of boredom.

9. Do you always smile for pictures?
Nope. If I'm not feelin' it, I don't smile.

10. What is your biggest pet peeve?
Bad drivers, and bad-grammar-users (yes, I am guilty of both)

11. No number 11, either, so here's one of mine. What was the name of your Kindergarten teacher?
Mrs. Patterson

12. Do you ever count your steps when you walk?
Can't say that I do.

13. Have you ever peed in the woods?
Yep. But I've never used leaves as toilet paper.

14. Do you ever dance even if there's no music playing?
If I'm happy, or feeling goofy.

15. Do you ever chew on your pens or pencils?
Not usually.

16. How many people have you slept with this week?
Zero.

17. Do you like popcorn from those big tins?
Only at Christmas.

18. What is your "Song of the week"?
This is maybe for last week, but "Dark Blue" by Jack's Mannequin.

19. Is it okay for guys to wear pink?
If they feel confident in it, I think it's pretty cool.

20. Favorite Fish?
Orange Roughy

21. Whats your favorite scary movie?
I don't watch many scary movies, but I did really like The Ring.

22. Where would you bury hidden treasure if you had some?
How do you know I don't? ;)

23. What do you drink with dinner?
Water, juice, pop ... whatever is around, really.

24. What do you dip a chicken nugget in?
BBQ sauce

25. What is your favorite food/ cuisine?
My Mom's pot roast is my favorite dish (speaking of which, I should request it for my b-day dinner!). For foreign cuisine, I'd have to say either Italian or Chinese.

26. What movies could you watch over and over and still love?
When Harry Met Sally, Ever After, The Goonies, 10 Things I Hate About You, Sixteen Candles, The Princess Bride ... and lots more.

27. Last person you kissed?
The top of the cat's head on my way out the door this morning. (Shut Up! She IS TOO a person!!)

28. Were you ever a boy/girl scout?
Yep. Guess which one!

29. Would you ever strip or pose nude in a magazine?
Don't think so. I'm too self conscious about my body.

30. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper?
I wrote a couple that I did not send. Mysterious.

31. Can you change the oil on a car?
Nope. I prefer to let the professionals handle that stuff.

32. Ever gotten a speeding ticket?
Yes, but only one. I was too tired to argue. Plus, I was TOTALLY speeding.

33. Ran out of gas?
Once in the car with my Mom (she was driving) when I was a kid. We had been following a hot-air balloon as it looked for a place to land out in the fields (that used to be) surrounding my house. We were so empty by the time we got to a gas station, that we literally coasted up to the pump.

34. Favorite kind of sandwich?
Grilled cheese, or tuna melt, if it's made right.

35. Best thing to eat for breakfast?
Scrambled eggs with cheese, crispy bacon, and toast with jelly. (Man, that sounds really good right now.)

36. What is your usual bedtime?
If I'm being responsible, 9:30. (No laughing, I get up at 5:30!!)

37. Are you lazy?
Hells yeah.

38. When you were a kid, what did you dress up as for halloween?
One of my favorite costumes was a bunny suit that my Mom made for me. I also went as a hobo a few times, just cause it was so easy (I tended to wait until the last minute).

39. Number 39 is another homemade question. How many pairs of blue jeans do you own?
Two that I wear with any regularity (these are full-length jeans, mind you). Two more that I will occasionally break out if the other two are dirty. And about six pairs that I haven't worn in years and don't even know if they fit anymore.

40. How many languages can you speak?
One fluently. One not so fluently. And one that I can understand some of, but don't speak very well.

41. Do you have any magazine subscriptions?
Nope. But my roomie does, and has a huge stack of them in the bathroom. Why people choose the toilet as a place to catch up on reading, I will never understand ...

42..Which are better legos or lincoln logs?
Legos, totally.

43. Are you stubborn?
Uh, yeah.

44. Who is better...Leno or Letterman?
I've never found Leno funny - only Headlines, which he cannot take credit for. I used to think Letterman was funny, until I didn't anymore.

45. Ever watch soap operas?
I watched them with my Mom when I was a kid, and I went through a General Hospital (and the occasional One Life to Live) phase in college.

46. Afraid of heights?
Nope. Love 'em!

47. Sing in the car?
Hah! Yes, but only when nobody is with me. Wait, that's not true ...

48. Dance in the shower?
Not really. Slipping hazard.

49. Dance in the car?
No, but I'd like to see the cars that people have that have enough room to dance in!!

50. Ever used a gun?
Only squirt.

51. Last time you got a portrait taken by a photographer?
Actually, a few weeks ago, for a project involving angel wings.

52. Do you think musicals are cheesy?
Yes, but it's part of their charm.

53. Is christmas stressful?
Personally, I don't get stressed out by it, but I've never had to cook a massive dinner for a ravenous family, or spend too much money on gifts people won't appreciate.

54. Ever eat a pierogie?
Yes, I love pierogies!!

55. Favorite type of fruit pie?
Cherry - my Mom made an amazing cherry pie once with Door County cherries. I'll never forget it. FYI, she doesn't bake much ... or well.

56. Occupations you wanted to be when you were a kid?
Fashion Designer, hence all the Project Runway blogs!! :)

57. Do you believe in ghosts?
Definitely.

58. Another missing question that I will see to replacing. Can you touch your toes?
Yep! I can lay my palms flat against the ground, actually.

59. Take a vitamin daily?
Only folic acid, which is prescription.

60. Wear slippers?
Not really, though I have some.

61. Wear a bath robe?
After I get out of the shower.

62. What do you wear to bed?
Boxers or flannel pants and a t-shirt or tank top. Or a pretty nighty.

63. First concert?
Oasis

64. Wal-Mart, Target or K-Mart?
Target

65. Nike or Adidas?
Adidas

66.Cheetos Or Fritos?
Cheetos

67. Peanuts or Sunflower seeds?
Peanuts

68. Ever hear of, "gorp"?
Of course! See question 28.

69. Ever take dance lessons?
A few here and there.

70. Is there a profession you picture your future spouse doing?
No there is not.

71. Can you curl your tongue?
I sure can!! Wanna see??

72. Ever won a spelling bee?
Never really been in one. Not officially anyway. Unless you count the one on Jed's roof. And I didn't win that one.

73. Ever cried cause you were so happy?
Sure.

74. Own any record albums?
Not personally, no.

75. Own a record player?
Nope

76. Regularly burn incense?
Can't stand the stuff.

77. Ever been in love?
Don't think so.

78. Who would you like to see in concert?
Lots of people. Too many to mention right now.

79. What was your last concert you saw?
Lollapalooza, where there was a plethora of lovely bands.

80.Hot tea or cold tea?
Hot fruit teas.

81.Tea or coffee?
Tea please.

82.Favorite kind of cookie?
Sugar

83.Can you swim well?
I can swim, but not well.

84.Can you hold your breath w/o manually holding your nose?
Nope. Never mastered that skill. I think my nose is defective.

85. Are you patient?
When it counts, yes.

86. DJ or band, at a wedding?
Maybe a band if it's a friend's band or something, but probably a DJ.

87. Ever won a contest?
I won an Easter egg hunt in the village of Elburn when I was about 4. That was the highlight of my contest-winning days.

88. Ever have plastic surgery?
Nope, never.

89. Which are better black or green olives?
They're both yummy.

90.Can you knit or crochet?
No, but I'd be interested in learning.

91. Best room for a fireplace?
The Study. I want a house that has a Study (that will always be capitalized) with a fireplace. I think I could die happy then.

92. Do you want to get married?
Meh.

93. If married, how long have you been married?
N/A

94. Who was/is your HS crush?
His name was Fred (names have been changed to protect the innocent).

95. Do you cry and throw a fit until you get your own way?
Nah.

96. Do you have kids?
Not last time I checked.

97. Do you want kids?
Kinda. Adoption might be more my cuppa tea.

98. Whats your favorite color?
Right now blue, because I'm wearing blue.

99. Do you miss anyone right now?
I miss my baby brother. He's in Seattle and I'm a slacker and haven't been to visit.

100. Who do you wanna see right now?
A handsome gentleman come into my cubicle and sweep me off my feet, saying, "I will take care of you so you'll never have to endure this drudgery again!"

valuable life lessons

Upon examination of the last year or so of my life, I have come to learn something very valuable that I feel the need to share with my friends.

**Not everyone is going to like you and there's nothing you can do about it.**

People may hate you for no apparent reason. Or they may have a reason that makes no sense to you at all. You can do everything in your power to be friends with these people, to be nice to them, to put aside any differences you might have and peacefully coexist. But sometimes even the best intentions will make no difference at all. Occasionally, you will come across (and I mean you WILL come across, not you MAY come across) a person who has decided for one reason or another that you are not a person with whom they get along. Or you will come across a vindictive person who has decided to never forgive you for some indiscretion. Or you will come across one of those most difficult creatures who by all outward appearances seems to get along with you, but when it comes right down to it, hates your guts.

This was a hard lesson for me to learn. Maybe because I'm a Libra and I value balance and harmony, or maybe just because I'm a nice person. But I always thought that with a little bit of caring, and maybe a candid discussion or two, any differences between two rational people could be worked out.

I'm here to tell you that this is not the case. Not everyone is all that rational.

But don't let this get to you. The other half of this life lesson is that you have to be satisfied with knowing that you did everything in your power to create a peaceful relationship with this person. Once you've done that, and things still haven't changed, then the problem is obviously theirs, and not yours. That act of being satisfied with yourself is the trick to getting to sleep at night. At some point you have to say to yourself that this person is not worth all this trouble you've gone to because they haven't shown you the same respect that you've shown them. At some point you just have to say, "I don't care anymore."

It may be a hard thing to do (it was a definite hurdle for me), but it's necessary to live a happy life. Believe you me! :)