10 things that made me happy this week . . .

1. going to midnight showings of movies and indulging in the silly hysteria that prevails.
2. spray-in shampoo, which gives me a couple of extra days between having to wash my hair . . . which i hate doing.
3. christmas and classical music played rock-n-roll style and punctuated by pyrotechnics (thank you tso).
4. wildly uncouth dinner-table topics that ALWAYS seem to make it to the table at our house.
5. mazur bustin' a move in the middle of the store when he likes the music.
6. falling asleep to the sound of rain outside.
7. rainy days (what can i say, i love the rain).
8. canceled math class.
9. drinking herbal tea/hot chocolate/apple cider when it's cold outside.
10. that incredulous-and-impressed look on peoples faces when they find out you have jumper cables in your trunk and you know how to use them . . . even though you're a girl . . .

10 things that made me happy this week . . .

1. old gaudy jewelry handed down from my grandmother.
2. DVR - thank you, thank you, thank you to the person who invented this!!!! it has liberated me!
3. action movies with an excessive amount of explosions, guns and fistfights but an almost completely un-discernable plot.
4. sweater-vests (especially when boys wear them).
5. justin timberlake wearing a black leotard and doing a beyonce routine on snl (i laughed hysterically).
6. coming up with devious plans in your head (whether or not you ever carry them out)
7. days that start off perfectly normal and devolve into utter chaos, but amuse you fantastically in the process.
8. old-school breakfasts like biscuits and gravy.
9. my sexy-man-voice that presents itself whenever i'm sick.
10. anticipation.

sniffle sniffle . . . no sleep

it's official. i have my first cold of the season. i probably should have foreseen it . . . the best way for me to get over a cold is to get an excessive amount of sleep. alas, that will not be possible this week. here's what's on the docket:

1. schoolwork. i'm getting a little anxious about my history class. yes, i have an "A", but the semester is fast coming to an end and i have a lot of reading to do and a paper to write and studying for the final comprehensive test . . . . if i become a professor, i think i'm going to forego comprehensive finals. it's just cruel.

2. wednesday my family and i are going to see the trans-siberian orchestra. we're pretty psyched about it. we saw them a few years ago and it was fan-tastic. even my dad liked it enough to want to go again, which is impressive since he only listens to old-school country. worry not, dear readers, we are sitting far, far in the back . . . so we won't be incinerated by the pyrotechnics.

3. thursday night at 12:00 a.m. dear regina and i are going to make like a couple of maniacally besotted 14-year old girls and see "twilight" the second it comes out. i can hear the sighing and squealing already . . . .

4. after my juvenile adventure on thursday night, i will then drag myself out of bed for a math test at 8:00 a.m. friday morning.

5. on top of all of this, i have 2 books i'm reading for book clubs that i'm in . . . not to mention stuff i want to read on my own . . . i wish i could speed read.

also, seeing as how next week is thanksgiving and we will have visitors, my mother will be sure to have some deep-cleaning activities for this weekend . . . and it's not like the boys are going to do those . . . .

the other half of the list . . .

51. i have to match when i go to bed.
52. i'm pretty good at floral arranging. i've done wedding bouquets for 5 or 6 people. i love it.
53. one of my secret talents is making paper snowflakes.
54. i love to dance.
55. my favorite flowers are lily's.
56. i keep magazines forever. it's really hard for me to throw them away.
58. i really like pirates. i think they're super cool. and for the record, it was my favorite ride at disneyland long before they ever made the movies (which i also love).
59. if I had to pick one book as my favorite, it would be "little women" by louisa may alcott.
60. i am very religious.
61. i've always wanted my nose pierced. i doubt i ever will, but the desire is still there . . .
62. i think idiosyncracies are the best things about a person
63. one of my secret talents is reading out loud.
64. i don't get nervous about talking in front of big groups of people.
65. i like poetry. my favorite poem is "variations on the word sleep" by margaret atwood.
66. i hate washing my hair.
67. i hate the dentist.
68. i love to wear hats.
69. i really love scary movies, but i can't go in those haunted houses at halloween. i get so scared i cry. it's pretty funny.
70. i wish i could paint.
71. hairy men gross me out. seriously. i'm gaging just thinking about it.
72. my mom and i get really excited every year about those super cheesy made-for-tv christmas movies. we watch a LOT of them.
73. i LOVE the rain. i should probably move to washington or something.
74. i'm really loyal.
75. i'm really protective.
76. i like black nail polish.
77. i almost never tie my shoes.
78. technology kind of creeps me out.
79. i wish i were ambidextrous.
80. there are songs that getting me insanely hyper every time i hear them. some of the songs are smooth criminal, oh l'amour, you can't stop the beat, and dancing with myself.
81. i have fallen asleep in the bathtub . . . more than once . . .
82. i've hiked mt. whitney.
83. sometimes i snore.
84. when people tell me they "need to talk to me" i get this sick panicky feeling because i always assume that i've done something wrong and i'm in trouble. i have no idea why . . .
85. i love scarves.
86. i have contact lenses in about 5 different colors that i wear sometimes. it's fun.
87. people are intimidated by me when they first meet me. i have no idea why. i don't even try.
88. i LOVE it when boys kiss your hand. it's beyond adorable.
89. my dad calls me "claybasket." he got it from the michener novel "centennial". it's the name of one of the indian women in the book. apparently i looked like a little indian baby when i was born (my mom is part indian). NOBODY else calls me that.
90. i have fallen off a run-away horse.
91. i've had stitches in my eyelid.
92. i have personal space issues. i hate it when people read over my shoulder or stand really close to me all the time or lean in really close when they talk to me. some people i don't mind, but most people . . . i need my 3 feet!
93. i'm really good at glaring. my death looks are quite menacing . . . or so I'm told.
94. i believe that fun is an attitude, not an activity.
95. i love to play games . . . board games, card games . . . but not mind games. that's lame.
96. i love doing problem solving exercises like crossword puzzles, sudoku, puzzles, etc.
97. i love going to the movies.
98. i love slow dancing.
99. i can't stand needy people.
100. formality makes me really uncomfortable.

happy list

things that made me happy this week:

1. my mad-traffic-weaving skills
2. seeing 4-week old afton and the promise of seeing her again in 2 weeks
3. monstrously big bathtubs
4. spending time in my big, fluffy bed, which is the most comfortable thing in this entire world
5. celebrity crushes
6. beating neal at scrabble . . . again (even though i'm pretty sure he's going to SCHOOL me when he gets into town on holiday)
7. being non-encumbered by the mtv-mind-set that plagues several generations
8. searching for walter. seriously! how do you lose a 4-foot iguana? yet - it happens at least once a week and i am amused every time
9. iPod's - enabling me to have access to a completely unnecessary amount of music at all times
10. old-school grandpa style cardigans

10 things that made me happy this week . . .

1. i currently have the highest grade in my math class, which is amazing considering that at the beginning of the semester i was afraid i would barely pass the class . . . .
2. my right to vote.
3. re-reading a favorite book.
4. the ability to disagree without disliking.
5. the passing of proposition 8.
6. "brisk" weather.
7. winning the affection of a decidedly NON-affectionate cat.
8. that feeling you get when you realize you don't HAVE to . . . .
9. a messy bun/ponytail + a headband/scarf ends up looking glamorous on me (instead of lazy, which is what it really is).
10. living through significant moments in history.

four things i love

1. patty griffin

i love, love, love patty griffin!! her music is so amazing.
i discovered her on accident one day. her cd was in a listening station at borders (when i was working there). one listen to her song "rain" and i was hooked forever.
other songs that i highly recommend are "forgiveness,"

"dear old friend," and "oh heavenly day."
but really, i love almost every song i've ever heard by her.
*sigh*
she's perfect.

2. cranford

my mom and i saw the bbc production of "cranford" on masterpiece theatre this past winter.
we. love. it.
we just watched it again yesterday.

it was a perfect lazy sunday afternoon/night.
the boys were all gone so we indulged outselfes for 291 minutes.
if you like movies like "pride & prejudice" and "sense & sensibility"
chances are you will love it too.

3. etsy.com

heidi introduced me to this website. it's fantastic. it a grouping of individual sellers of homemade goods.

she finds cute little barrettes and headbands for afton.

i find all kinds of hats and headband and cuffs that are so unique and crazy/beautiful. i'm filling up my christmas wish list with items that i'm finding.

4. how i live now

this novel by meg rosoff rocks my world every time i read it (thus, the title of my blog). every time i finish it i have to stop myself from turning right back to page one and immediately re-reading it. we just read it for one of the book clubs i'm in and it was really cool to hear everyone else's reaction to it. i don't know that it's a book that everyone would like . . .

but it is, hands down, my favorite young adult novel.

ever.

happy halloween

i know, technically it's november 1, so i'm a day late. but i wanted to wait till i had my pictures to post . . .

last night my friends and i went to the old warnor's theatre in downtown fresno. it's fantastic! it's one of those theatres that was built when they still did intricate carving and gold leaving and art deco until you think your brain is going to explode from having too much to look at. it's beyond beautiful.

this is the ceiling . . .

and this is the front entryway . . .

for halloween they did a screening of the old black and white silent movie dr. jekyll and mr. hyde. the best part . . . they had someone doing live organ accompaniment. it was amazing.

there was also a guest organist from england who was kicking off his 25th organ tour of america . . . who knew? he played for about a half hour before the movie started. he did this medly of old music including blue moon, bie meir bist du schein, and somewhere over the rainbow. it's crazy to watch those people switching switches, jumping from keyboard to keyboard and playing with their feet too!! anyway, the point is this, folks, if you get the chance to go see an old school silent black-and-white movie with live organ accompaniment in your life . . . DO IT! it was a blast.

after the movie, we headed over to the young single adult halloween dance. it was a really good turnout and about 98% of the people were in costume, which impressed me. congratulations ysa's of the fresno area. even more impressive, most of the girls had figured out that halloween is NOT an excuse to dress up like trashy versions of whatever . . . only one or two girls looked like, well, i'm not going to use that kind of language here . . . . but you all know what i'm talking about. so again, job well done fresno ysa's.

craig got the award for the creepiest costume . . . which he TOTALLY deserved.

here we are . . .
















mike was shane sparks (he had a friend come as 'lil mama) and john was a jabawokee. if you don't know who they are . . . well, my friend, all i can say is you're missing out.

i hope everyone had a safe and happy halloween!