6.26.2007

My Day with Nick Lachey (A Social Experiment, Ahem)

The other day I was getting dressed for a day at the movie theatre, a bit of drooling over electronics at Best Buy, and dinner out with the family. Honestly, I need to do some laundry (I've still got tons of clean stuff, but most of it really isn't really that desirable for public venues), so I had to be creative when it came to my wardrobe decisions.

A few weeks ago I had acquired the pictured American Idol t-shirt for free. How did I do that? I suppose I'll just say my talents are many. ANYHOW... I sort of like the design of the shirt - not bad considering I payed $0 for it. However, something about wearing an American Idol shirt without some sort of flair or oddity seemed somehow wrong.

I got to thinking... What could I possibly pair that would finish off my jeans/free t-shirt ensemble? Not my plaid scarf... too warm. Not my passport... too much secure information out there for the masses. Not my cello... too big, too random, completely unrelated. I was almost at a loss, when -- EUREKA! Why had I not thought of it sooner?

My Nick Lachey pin that I got for a dollar... priceless! I mean, perfect! I put it on, sort of as a joke, but then my sister didn't think I would leave the house and that and, well, clearly I had to prove her wrong.

I must say my day with Lachey was rather disappointing. Not only is he the dullest conversationalist EVER, but I also received no questions from store clerks, no sideways glances from too-cool-for-the-Lachey-inator high schoolers, not even a "Mommy, look at that girl's silly pin!" comment. What a bummer! I have concluded one of the following about our society:

Choice A: People wearing Nick Lachey pins is hardly out of the ordinary or noteworthy in this part of NH... this sort of scares me.

Choice B: Everyone politely averted their eyes away from my chest therefore missing the pin all together. This is both a comforting thought and an alarming thought (depending on person and circumstances).

I won't/can't really answer the question I am sure that is now at the forefront of all of your minds: WHY DID YOU BUY A NICK LACHEY PIN? Oh, never you mind that.

6.21.2007

The Best Part of Summer

Strawberries.

I am ecstatic because my favorite time of the summer (hell, perhaps the whole year) has arrived! I live about a mile away from a "pick your own" strawberry field, and they opened for the season today!

I can barely contain my excitement. The mere thought fresh strawberries, strawberries in yogurt, strawberries in smoothies, strawberry rhubarb pie, strawberry shortcake, strawberry shrimp, strawberry oatmeal gulash, mexican night with strawberries and guacamole (you get the picture) makes me faint with enthusiasm!

Now I really need to get a hold of Amanda... I need her biscuit recipe urgently!!! Once I have it, I will share it with my vast number of readers (haha, I'm so funny). Just to give you a heads up, it's like 90% butter, so you might want to start stocking your fridge now!

6.19.2007

In the Immortal Words of Sasha...

"gah." That is how this week has been.

The computers in the room where I work went through a major overhaul this past weekend. Basically all their drives were wiped, moved to system 10 (shocker, 2 machines were still on 9... for shame!), and had everything reinstalled. This is a good thing, but hugely annoying for the following reasons:

- On Monday my computer would not even start. That's right, it was dead. I had to use this other computer which had no fonts on it. Let me just say, that if you know anything about layout, you'll know that fonts are of the essence.

- Today my computer is working, however it's missing a key program. I believe our computer guy said: "You've got everything but Quark," which was as if he said to me, "You've got your whole body, you're just missing your head." All I ever use is Quark.

- Luckily, I did have one project in InDesign... unfortunately it was created in the CS2 suite, and I only have CS1, so I could not open it.

- Our website was down, our email was down, and our service provider is impossible to get a hold of.

Blah blah. Before I go into any more of the depressing details, let me just sum it up in one word: "gah."

On the plus side, I have been reading Meg Cabot books, which I love. I know, I know, childish you might be thinking. Actually, the current book I am reading I actually found in the ADULT fiction section (go me). It's delightfully fluffy and the perfect way to unwind after a long day of cursing under my breath and heave-howing computers out the window... or, you know, thinking about it.

6.18.2007

Facebook Paper Doll Feature

If you have not tried this out yet, I recommend you do, it's really cool. Apparently there's a new feature on Facebook which allows you to take photos of your friends (from their site) and dress them up in different outfits like a paper doll. You can save your creations and post them in new albums, email them to your friends, or (my personal favorite) put them to sound and leave a talking wall message.

Seriously, Facebook, your features are out of control. Thank goodness you don't have the paper doll feature, but it seems like every day I log in to find another new intricacy added to your site.

I remember the good old days when you filled out a few questions, threw some photos on-line, and had a good time laughing at the horrible photos of your friends. But times are a changing... today I logged on to write an entry about Shel Silverstein's "Runny Babbit" (a bood gook that is feally runny) but got distracted by a "question" alert in my inbox.

I have no idea what this business is all about, but I don't think I like it.

6.17.2007

Snail Mail

When I was a child I rocked at sticking stickers all over things, cutting, pasting, licking, stamping... you name it! If it was slightly messy or annoying to my parents in any way, I was all over it.

My natural affinity for all things destructive makes me ask a natural question... since when did mailing something become so hard for me? Think about it - stamps and envelopes are the stickers and glue of the adult generation!

I have written so many letters this past year (recently and not so recently... those of you still waiting on your Christmas cards, I swear they're coming!) and none of them have made it in the mail. I really wish I was better at sending people random letters and mail, because I find it's the impetus for them to keep in touch with me.

Let me explain... I used to send out emails all the time to people, and they would respond about a third of the time. However, if I sent out a letter to someone I might not get a letter but I'd certainly get an email or a phone call. Letters and personalized mail guilt people into staying in touch with you.

Not to gripe, but lately I've been feeling totally disconnected from many different people. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that my hatred for our computer at home prevents me from using the internet unless absolutely necessary, but I also think people in general are just not as communicative as they used to be.

Sob sob, I know.

The thing is, I am really looking forward to moving to New York for several reasons, but mostly because it's a place I can see myself staying for a while. I'm looking forward to making friends that I might not have to say goodbye to in less than four years.

I'm also looking forward to apartment hunting. Call me crazy, but I love looking at the insides of different houses/apartments. I can't wait!

6.02.2007

A Night on the Town

Someone who works for my family has a band, and they were going to be performing for the first time in my town at a new restaurant/performance place that just opened. He'd been reminding people for two weeks to go, and my sister and I had said we'd be there, so last night we went.

My parents decided to come, too.

This is not a bad thing... I love my family, and we had a lot of fun. But it certainly does make the entire situation more amusing.

To start, let me lay the scene. The restaurant that opened up is targeted at a younger generation (let's say college to late thirties, or those who are young at heart). They have a full bar, close to those under 21 after 9, serve meals that aren't gourmet but are tasty and fit your budget, play music that was recorded after 1990... you get my drift.

My dad was saying how he wasn't sure he was going to make it to 9 pm to see the band perform, and when we got there both my parents were a little flustered by how crowded it was (no tables, but it's not like the line was out the door). There were 4 spots at the bar open, though, so we all just sat there and waited for the entertainment!

Well, my dad is the sort of guy who knows everyone in town. If he goes somewhere and doesn't know everyone there, he'll make sure to meet everyone so he knows them all next time. So he immediately struck up a conversation with the guy next to him. They were discussing the roads in our town and how this guy recently lost his license in the state of NH, etc. etc. I wasn't really paying attention. Eventually that person left and a new woman sat down.

Before I know it, my dad is buying raffle tickets from her for some benefit to send women on a reservation to a day at the spa (not really something I would support, but whatever). He's chatting along, gives the bartender a raffle ticket, passes them down, and is having a grand old time. A few minutes later the talk turns to the cosmos, astrological signs and other such related topics. It turns out the woman is a numerologer (is that the right word? Whatever. I'll go with it).

The band strikes up and the first song is about marijuana, at which point my dad says that his relationship with his employee (the one in the band) can never be the same. The numerologer left, and as soon as she did my dad was waving to someone else he knew, and when they left someone else came over that he knew, too. That's basically how it went until Sarah and I got up to go.

Two things: First, I love that my dad can go anywhere and talk to anyone. I wish I were more like that. Second, I'm really glad that this place has opened. My town has previously had NOTHING where people me and my sister's age can go to have a good time. My parents don't think it will last (bouncers, mid-range meals, raucous music and heavy drinking are the exact opposites of what the retirees want to see happening in our quaint, New England town), and I really thinks that's a shame. I, for one, will be returning.

And yes, the band rocked! Well done.