Terrible Television

I have a painful confession to make, and it may alarm some of you.

I absolutely hate Girls.

I hate it because it purports to be "gritty and raw and realistic" despite being about a group of entirely white twenty-somethings in Brooklyn, none of whom has a job that looks anything like the very real group of people that I actually know.

And because I would never associate with a single person in that show for more than ten minutes. Whiny, entitled Hannah, with her sely-pitying faux self-esteem issues? Or sniveling Marnie, the "art gallery assistant" who has no ability to identify herself by anything other than who she is dating? Or the anti-social hermit boyfriend of Hannah's? The others..."bohemian" Jessa and idiotic Shoshanna, and a bunch of personality-less guys in suits are the kinds of shallow stereotypes that an 8th grader could write.

Oh, and let's add a black Republican for Hannah to date. Oh my God, that will be like, so diversity!

Mostly, I dislike it because the people bear no resemblance to the real people of that age, despite purporting to do exactly that. You know what most 25 year olds are like? Most of them are happy most of the time. Sure, they have issues and concerns and worries, but the vast majority of their interactions with friends involve laughing. Why else would they be your friends?Most people choose to hang around people who make them feel good.

Instead, we get a bunch of perma-angry self-loathers, and a wave of middle-aged media critics telling us that this is the voice of a new generation.

Already?!

Well, seems like it is Christmas again already...how on earth did that happen? Time, as they say, flies...

The whole season sort of snuck up on me, and then hit me with a barrage of parties and commitments and visitors and shopping and decorating and eating. Especially eating!!!

As I mentioned a little whole ago, Munchkin got accepted to her first choice school; the only one she really ever wanted to go to (at least since she moved here and the lobbying effort by said school's alumni began...). She was, not surprisingly, over the moon, and I can safely and confidently say that I will not see many things in my life that bring me more pure joy that being with her when she got the news. She works incredibly hard and she deserves this because she did all the things she needed to to get it. Stating the obvious, she is a great kid, and I am incredibly fortunate to have been able to have the relationship that we have. It's never been the straightest road, but it sure has been a pleasure. I can't wait to see where it goes next!

Frenchie is here, which is contributing to her joyous mood as well. He arrived last week and will be with us until Sunday (except for the day that he went to New York to see another friend). Not a whole lot new there...they continue to figure it out, but he is really easy company and it's actually been really nice to have him around. It has brought some extra festiveness:-) I am fairly certain that he is going to end up in Washington D.C. next year, which is certainly good news. I am fully aware of my irrationality, but I am glad that he isn't coming to Boston...

I am so far behind in my Christmas shopping that I can't really see any way that I get half of it done before next week. A lot of it is just going to have to wait until after Christmas...I can get through the easier stuff (gifts for Admins at work, and for teachers at day care and stuff like that) but the more thoughtful gifts are going to have to wait.

I did, however, get Munchkin's already...she wanted a bike. She wants a bike because, wait for it, she has decided to take up Triathaloning next summer (is Triathaloning a word?). It isn't real hard to connect the dots and guess who else might be doing the same thing (I'm look at my former roomates who may or may not have ever been described as being smoking hot)...but I don't ask questions, I just smile and nod. Other requirements include a wetsuit, goggles and a helmet...

Christmas for the girls is still not that big a deal. They know who Santa is, and Rudolph, and they love the tree and all of the lights, but they don't really know yet that it culminates in lots of presents. I got them a couple of things so that they will have some stuff on Christmas Day, but mostly they are just gonna want to tear up the paper and make a mess:-)

Other than that, there are just a million Christmas parties to go to! Seems like there are two or three every week, and many more that I just can't make it to. Runs a girl a little bit ragged:-)

Also, my new favorite TV show is Hunted. Please discuss...

More responsible parenting

Munchkin is coming home this weekend...she is going to a wedding on Saturday of a girl that she worked with the last couple of years at the beach.

(And yes, the thought of her being at a non-family wedding by herself makes me want to put her in a dress that is clearly marked "I am only 17"...but that is not my point here).

Her plan was to come home Saturday morning, go pretty much straight to the wedding, and then head back to the beach on Sunday. Smoking Hot Roommate and I nixed that plan, however, and we are making her come home on Friday because we have an incredibly important matter to attend to on Friday night.

A monumentally important, potentially life-changing event that will almost certainly mark one of the seminal point or her, or really anyone's life. Magic Mike, of course...

You can admit it, I am the best big sister ever.

Random music thoughts

Selena Gomez? I love YOU like a love song, and that tune has been on repeat-peat-peat-peat in my head for nearly a week now.

Lady Gaga...please correct your grammar errors. There is something about you and me. I am aware that the rhyming may be more difficult, but I have no doubt that you are up for it, and the declining grammar skills of American children would benefit from your proper usage. Many thanks.

Kelly Clarkson...you are still, and will always be, my American Idol. The others are all pretenders! And you totally killed the national anthem at the Super Bowl. Well done.

Adele. I heart you. Heart, heart, heart. Very much.

Florence, I love you and I love your machine.

Adam Levine. You are incredibly pretty. But really, I can't say that you have ever been involved in a song that I like. And you seem to be a very popular guy...you are like this year's Akon.

Bruno Mars. You know what? I don't hate you...

Rihanna. Big fan of "We found love", even if the video looks an awful lot like a Victoria's Secret ad.

LMFAO. Just go away.

I'm sure I have more, but that is what I am feeling this morning:-)

Working Girl

The good news? My work clothes all still fit:-)

While I haven't written much about it, I have held a pretty healthy weight since the girls were born (I am thinking about this now because I had to buy some new clothes because I gained a little weight after the girls were born, and now that I have had to break out all of my work clothes again...well, it comes back to me.) If you have been a long-time reader, you are aware of some of my weight issues. I haven't been paying too much attention to it for a while now, and have settled pretty comfortably at 103-105 pounds. That is just a little bigger than I have been for most of my adult life, but a really good spot for me, I think. I'll take it!

The bad news? I now have to go to work EVERY DAY!!!! It took me four days to get annoyed by this:-) The paycheck is most certainly not bad news, and I still like my job and the people I work with, but the all-day, every-day-ness of it is still a drag. I got used to my part-time-ish schedules of the last couple of years.

Now, on to some geeky-ness. Have any of you ever watched Game of Thrones? I got sucked into watching the whole first season last weekend at various times...and I am now officially dying for the second season (which I think is in April). Not terribly happy about some of the people they killed off already, but I suppose I can deal with that...I am also aware that I could read all of the books and find out what happens, but I kinda don't want to:-)

I am not quite at the point where I wanna go to a medieval festival, but it is getting there...

One more advantage of being a good looking girl

I would like to have an opinion on Casey Anthony's guilt or innocence, I really would, but I haven't spent more than three minutes paying attention to the whole trial. Everyone sure seems convinced that she is guilty, including Kim Kardashian, whose family is obviously a firm believer in innocence until proven guilt.

I think the part of this that I have found most interesting as a non-observer is wondering why this has become THE story. Sure, murders of little kids are not terribly common, but they do happen, and not every one of them becomes a nationwide obsession. Like, for example, this one from earlier this week. A quick Google search showed an entire family of five murdered, a woman convicted of murder for setting a fire that killed an 8 year old, and a man convicted of a second murder: he was already guilty of beating a woman to death, but he was found guilty of the murder of her baby who died nine days after being delivered after the mother died.

(I am just full of cheer today, eh?)

So, why is Casey Anthony such big news? And while we are at it (because the reason is the same), why is Amanda Knox such big news, and why was Natalie Holloway such a colossal story, when plain old vanilla murders like those happen all the time: there were 15,000 of them in the United States in 2009 alone.

Because, obviously, anything involving good looking girls gets sent straight to the front of our attention agenda. I am not really breaking any new ground here, but if Casey Anthony looked like...oh, the 199 other mothers who (allegedly, of course) killed their children last year...then she probably would have been treated like them.

So, what's my point? I dunno...it is too easy to blame "the media", because they basically just report on what we want to hear (or what they think we want to hear, at least). I don't really have anything to offer on ways we can rectify this, or even really know if it is a problem that needs fixing.

I guess, if you feel like killing someone, make sure you are a hot chick so that you get a high-profile attorney to defend you in exchange for the publicity?

Argh...this is the worst post ever!!!

My new favorite TV show.

First, a little clarification...when I said "next weekend" in my last post, I was referring not to the coming weekend (or "this weekend" in me head) but in fact the upcoming weekend. Which is now "this weekend". Follow? It all seems perfectly clear to me...

Anyway, completely random confession: I have a new favorite TV personality, and if I gave you a thousand guesses you would never get it. The winner? Jeremy Wade from River Monsters.

I have a hard time explaining my fascination with him and with the show. I am not a fisher...in fact, I have never been fishing. I have little desire to ever go fishing. My impression has always been that fishing is boring and very smelly. I enjoy eating fish, but let's be honest: they are kinda gross. And the ones he catches are big and mean and nasty and like to eat people with their big ferocious teeth,

But whenever it is on, I can't help but watch. His accent is killer and his crooked teeth make him a lovely combination of rugged and refined. He also seems to own at least 3,000 fishing rods, which is apropos of nothing, really. But mostly, I think the fish are the stars...like this one, which is the scariest thing I have ever seen. And this Giant Japanese Salamander, which is really gross but has the cutest little toes ever. Or the never-ending array of catfish the size of Volkswagens.

So maybe when I get the inevitable invite to go deep sea fishing this summer, I should go? Or maybe just avoid the sea sickness and hang out on the beach...either or.

The Royal Wedding

OK, so I didn't watch the wedding, but I did see the (completely ridiculously over-the-top) recaps of it later in the day. And for now, I will skip over the part of completely not understanding the love of the royal family...

I wanna talk superficial stuff!!! First, William is not aging well: he was better looking at 23 or 25 than he is now. Maybe it is the hairline, but his teeth seem to be getting weird, too.

Kate, however, is a complete fox and always has been.

I liked the dress, but maybe didn't totally love it. I think that she was likely restricted to doing something that is at least a little bit more stuffy than she maybe wanted to, but she did still manage to have a very deep V that gave it some sexiness. But the sleeves and veil and whatnot I could have done without. If you start with the assumption that the dress has to be BIG (anything else wouldn't look grand enough in Westminster Abbey) and somewhat staid, then I guess it was really nice. But I wasn't blow away.

Pippa, on the other had...holy shnikes!!! LOVED, LOVED, LOVED that dress! And I love that she and Kate had the stones to but the maid of honor in white:-) Tradition be damned! And clearly, that dress wouldn't work on anyone who doesn't have her body, but still, that was a complete show-stopper. The pictures of her leading all of the flower girls and ring bearers in look like a scene out of a fairy tale.

The Queen looked super cute, too! Loved the yellow and loved her hat:-) Prince Charles was notably inconspicuous, but I think that makes sense. Everyone seemed so intent on reflecting on Diana during this that he couldn't really be prominent without stirring some likely angry emotions...same with Camilla (but seriously, can we just appreciate that they are happy together?). I do think it is cool that he wore a sword to church:-)

Anyway, that represents my entire thoughts on the event;-)

Jeopardy!

As I think we have gone over, Jeopardy is pretty much my favorite show. Yea, I am that kinda nerd...and while we are at it, I love bar trivia, too. That, however, is kind of unimportant.

Like a lot of people, I watched IBM's computer play Jeopardy the last three nights against the two greatest players in Jeopardy history. And seriously, watching the computer was really amazing...it is a remarkable feat in computing.

That said...the shows were kind of a disappointment. It was great to watch the computer, but as a competitive exercise, it really only highlighted that the computer can ring in faster than the guys could. I think we probably all knew that already. If you watched, both guys knew virtually every answer, they could just never beat the computer in ringing in right after the window opened (also, the computer getting all six daily doubles over two days skewed things).

I think I would have rather that they determined what the average time is for a person to ring in if they try and get in right when the window opens...then made the computer automatically buzz in at that time. That at least would have made it a question-answering contest instead of just a buzzing contest.

Anyway, if this is my biggest disappointment this year, then it will probably be a pretty good year:-)

Bieber

OK, I don't really have an issue with Justin Bieber. I mean, he is cute enough, and he must be really charming because everyone completely loves him. His shtick will get really old when he is 19 instead of 15, but whatever...for now he and his ridiculous hair cut are passable.

However, his new movie? Which seems to stress his lengthy and difficult struggle to pursue his dreams? For serious?

You were famous when you were 14!!! Exactly how much struggling was there?

A Literary Analysis of the ManWhore

So, I just finished the Millenium trilogy (or "The Girl Who...") which is an enormous amount of reading for me, what with the six free minutes a day that I have.

It was kinda awesome, although the third one was a little bit of a let down and I felt like there was a whole bunch of stuff that was just waiting to happen but didn't. The introduction of like 25 new characters was confusing, and the whole think with Berger at the other newspaper was unnecessary. Also, I kept waiting for the sister to show up again, but she didn't, or any of her other siblings. Or, for some more dramatic conclusion scenes...there was one murder attempt, but that was sort of a letdown as the conclusion of a three book series.

But Mikael Blomqvist? MAN WHORE!!! Seriously, I know that the Swedes are a little more liberal than we are, but keep it in your pants! He banged just about everything that moved, save for his sister (thank God for that). And honestly, given her emotional problems, I could have done without him sleeping with Salander, but that was kind of a minor complaint.

And she is just awesome, period. And not just because she is even tinier than me and beats the shit out of some really scary dudes with a variety of golf clubs, sex toys, tasers, shovels and nail guns.

Anyway, I liked them all...the second one was the best, and the third was the worst, but I was pretty well engrossed in the whole thing. And pretty fired up that Daniel Craig (I have discussed my crush on him, correct?) will play the man whore in the American movies.

And now I need something else to read!

Hodgepodge

Seems like my politics post was met with a big fat snooze...

I have learned my lesson...pictures of babies leads to much response, posts about Congressional takeovers not so much. Noted.

The girls had their six month appointment on Monday, and are doing really well. MA is still quite a bit bigger than her sister, but they have both grown well since their four month appointment. LK is now 26.5 inches long and weighs about 15.5 pounds (I think...I should write this down, or remember to bring their little blue books with me) and MA is 27.5 inches long and weighs 17.5 pounds. I know everyone loves percentiles, but I didn't write them down or remember them...they are both at varying stages of the middle for everything, though (except that LK is only like the 10th percentile of weight for her height...she is a skinny minny:-))

OK...now for some brain dumps, much related to television:

Should I care that Brett Favre sent pictures of his junk to a TV host? Should this really be the biggest news story in America?

Loving Mondo's chances to win Project Runway. And love him, too...he has really grown on me as the season has gone along. He is like a little Latin Pee Wee Herman:-)

Jersey Shore: One season was plenty...you try too hard now.

Man vs Food: can next season be Man vs. Diet? Seriously, you are getting fat, Adam.

Juan Williams: should be a bigger story. The case for public radio is sketchy as it is, and when that radio begins deciding what constitutes acceptable free speech versus unacceptable free speech...I think we have a problem.

And finally, just one more politics thought...I can't tell you how many times I have read criticisms of the President lately that he "hasn't done anything". That is incredibly confusing to me. He has re-fashioned the health care industry, dramatically upped a huge number of taxes to pay for it, totally turned the financial services industry upside down, massively upped our commitment in Afghanistan and spent nearly a trillion dollars in economic stimulus money. I could spend hours telling you why I think he has done a bunch of things wrong...but it is pretty hard to argue that he hasn't been doing anything...

Anyway...

Happy Friday!

This is why the terrorists hate us...

Levi Johnston is running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska. Actually, he and a partner are pitching a reality dating show where Levi will simultaneously court some (I am sure) lovely and charming potential mates, run for mayor and serve as Bristol Palin's baby daddy.

If we just sort of ignore the obvious illegality of someone being paid to run for office, and the unethical practice of launching a sham campaign... is this not the best story ever?

Is tax day a bad birthday?

Who knows what tomorrow is? Well, really today, since it is 11:45 and most of you will read on Thursday during the day...

I watched Idol tonight, and actually thought that the guys were pretty good. Overall, they were better than the girls, but I think that the girl with the dreads is the best of the whole bunch overall. At least that is my impression after some very sparse early season watching. Not sure what is up with Kara, she seems to be overly emotional and weepy...something is going on there.

So, let's see...I had a totally uneventful doctor's appointment this morning. No ultrasound, so just a matter of seeing the doctor, having weight, blood pressure and urine tests taken and an oh-so-pleasant cervix length check and pre-term labor swab test. Looks like we are going to schedule a C-section sometime around week 38 just to have it on the books. Obviously, they can come whenever they want, but it would be kinda neat to have a date to look forward to.

It is like 90% that I will have a C section. Both girls are in the wrong position and have been pretty consistently. The chances of them both lining up before I deliver is pretty slim, so the section seems likely. Totally fine with me...my great fear is going through a long labor, delivering one of them naturally and then having the other get all twisted and have to have the section anyway. I am ok with either labor or the recovery of a C section. But I don't want to do both!!!

So, since I sort of get to pick their birthday...I am taking suggestions:-)

In other news, Bono is happy with his singning voice...

Light subject for a Friday...the Victoria's Secret "I love my body" commercials?

Seriously? Am I missing the point? The ads are done as if they are all about embracing your self image and accepting your imperfections. It feels almost exactly like those Dove "real women" ads. A perfectly good and worthwhile message.

Only thing is...you are all fucking underwear models!!! Of course you love your bodies...everyone else, does, too! Hence the healthy paychecks for posing in little or no clothing...

I am just not real sure what message we are supposed to get when Allesandra Ambrosio tells us that she is, for some completely non-obvious reason, pretty comfortable with her physique. Who would have ever guessed that?

[Unrelated note: she gets my vote for official best-looking woman on the planet. Discuss.]

Hodgepodge

Oh yea...I am sick with Olympic fever...bad case and there seems to be no cure, other than a couple hours of speed-skating and luge. And, sorta waiting for Lindsey Vonn with great anticipation...she better be worth all the fuss!!! Her shin seems to be getting more news coverage than the offensive in Afghanistan. The fact that she looks dynamite in a bathing suit is probably not totally unrelated to that level of attention.

Next...the woman who shot up the University of Alabama Huntsville? And may have sent a pipe bomb to someone? And may have murdered her brother? Could that story get weirder..? (And, is this as big a story nationally as it is around here, where the pipe-bombing and brother-murdering may have taken place?)

Finally, a spelling question: President's Day, Presidents' Day or Presidents Day?

Discuss...and enjoy your day off if you have one:-)

The Bachelor

First of all...keep the baby dates coming, this could be fun:-) As a reminded, my due date is May 4th, but it is unlikely that we will get very close to that. The doctor considers April 6th to be a good target date where they should be strong and healthy...anything beyond that is icing on the cake. But, there are no rules that say I can't go full term!!!

In other news, I watched my first ever (I think...at least the first in a VERY long time) full episode of The Bachelor last night. What. The. Fuck. It kinda made me ashamed to be a woman, or at least to be told that these are "amazing, beautiful women".

1) Some of them are sorta cute. One looks like a horse. None are that good-looking. Which would be OK if they were bringing something else to the table. But...
2) I can't even imagine how low your self-opinion has to be to go on a show like that. The whole situation is completely fucked up (we can talk about The Situation some other day...hee hee) and can only exist because of self-esteem issues. Think about it...these girls have to basically show up and beg for attention from one guy, putting on a lengthy show to demonstrate which of them can do the most to please him. Never once do any of them get to ask what he may bring to a relationship...they just have to assume he is awesome and then grovel.
2a) Case in point...I saw on The Soup where a girl got kicked off for flirting with a cameraman. Yet, the guy is allowed to fool around with all of them and spend "romantic overnights" with any of them that he chooses. So, he can bang every one of them and they all love it, but if any of them say hello to another guy, they get booted.
3) If there is a worse way to start a relationship, I can't think of it. There are cameras everywhere...the guy is simultaneously making out with 30 other girls (and sleeping with at least several), everyone is on vacation and you get tiny snippets of time to actually meet each other, each one of which has at least the outline of a script drawn up. Also...how long are they there for? I feel like they all fall madly in love with him sometime between 15 and 25 minutes of meeting him...
4) What is up with the production quality? It seemed like the whole second half of the show was filmed on someones Flip...was there something weird going on last night?

Anyway, I realized that maybe my brief love of the show wasn't gonna work when I noticed that there had been a 30 minute long, tear-filled scene where one of the girls quits (not real sure why, to be honest) and I couldn't muster an ounce of interest. It was supposed to be crushingly emotional and devastating for both of them, but I just couldn't figure out why they were taking it so seriously...can you imagine if you broke down like that every time you went on two dates with someone and realized it was just not happening? At least I know I wouldn't have sat on his lap and flashed my panties to a national audience while I did it;-)

So...anyone care to defend the show? Did I miss something?

Brain Dump

Getting a little slow on the second round of questions, folks...let's keep the answers coming;-)

I am feeling sort of serious today, so you can get some of my catch-up thoughts on important issues (and some not so important ones) of the last couple months. I may write more on these later, but these are the quick thoughts.

Health care reform...Congress continues to suck. They continually shovel cost from one payer to another without actually decreasing the overall cost of the process. That helps no one, since we all end up paying in the end. What's more, Americans have decided that they want immediate, unfettered access to top-quality care...that is going to be expensive, and we just have to deal with it.

George Bush can make a really good case as the "most fiscally irresponsible President ever." But Barack Obama seems determined to absolute shatter that standard and leave no doubt as to who really has the talent for saddling future generations with crippling, unmanageable responsibilities. My favorite part is that he is still widely adored by young people, despite his insistence on pushing all of our current problems off onto them. This is becoming a "he hits me because he loves me" relationship.

Most cities and States are not allowed to run deficits, and for very good reason. Allowing the Federal Government to borrow more just so that they can give it to those cities and towns is not really a solution. Municipal revenues have grown much faster than the economy for like 25 years now, yet a minor pull-back and suddenly every single expenditure is sacred and not a single redundancy or unnecessary service can be located. Government increasingly exists to serve Government employees...

Possibly the single most inane government idea ever..."Cash for Clunkers"? I would bet even money that my little sister's fourth grade class could put their heads together and come up with a more useful stimulus idea than that. And, no, I am not being facetious.

Henry Louis Gates. This has been a big deal around here, obviously. I won't totally disallow that the Police Officer overreacted, because he probably got wrapped up in the moment and escalated it beyond where he needed to. But you simply can not yell at police officers, period. And no, being on your own doorstep does not change that. Heck, being an off-duty police officer doesn't change that! Mostly, it sounds to me like too much testosterone got mixed with two people in really bad moods.

However, neither of them looked nearly as bad as my "Stupidly" himself...

Michael Jackson. Oh. My. God. Why is this still on the news? He made his last good song 20 years ago. And, need I remind you, HE WAS A FUCKING PEDOPHILE!!!

On that note, celebrity news is getting boring. Kim Kardashian and Reggie Bush? Jon and Kate Gosselin? Kendra? Whatever happened to the A list? Jessica Simpson and Tony Romo? She was definitely A-List at one point, but she has been quiet for a while...plus, I always hated her. Also, who cares if she said "Indian Giver", it's a common expression. You don't see the Irish throwing a hissy every time someone refers to the Paddy Wagon. Seriously, this is why Lindsay Lohan needs to make a comeback...I need better gossip. Or even like a breakout from Sienna Miller...that would provide some entertainment, right?

Anyway, that is what I am thinking today;-)

Juliet vs. Hannah

In honor of tomorrow's special day, Smoking Hot Roommate has devoted herself to putting together a little "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way Home" quiz. She plans on quizzing you on things that have either appeared here, or could have been deduced somewhere in the 725 posts I have written since October of 2006. She is one of the few people who has likely read every single one of them, but I think there are others, and tomorrow we are going to test your retention.

Not sure what kind of prize will be available to the winner. Or winners, since we have no rules yet. It will fall somewhere between a "Job Well Done" email and an all-expense paid four month vacation at a spa in Bali. Probably closer to the email;-)

Anyway, I hope you are as excited as me about this...I am dying to see what she comes up with!

In the meantime, let's talk Girly Pop. Let's settle a raging question that threatens to tear apart America at its seams: Taylor Swift or Miley Cyrus? I understand that they are BFF's, even though they both dated (the same? different) Jonas Brothers, but for today's purposes, we are making them into rivals.

I love both Miley Cyrus and Hannah Montana, and I will not apologize for either. I find it amazing that Billy Ray Cyrus spawned something that good looking, and have spent way more of my life watching her show than I care to admit. On the downside, she keeps dating 22 year olds, and that is really creepy.

I also take issue with her mixing metaphors in her new song. What is it Hannah, are we moving mountains or are we climbing them? They mean very different things, you know... You can't have the best of both worlds when mountain-related metaphors are involved, Miley!!!

On to Taylor Swift...and my adoration for her is pretty well documented. And not just because she and Munchkin bear an uncanny resemblance to one another. She makes some of the most listenable bubblegum music I have ever heard...and I love that she sings a song where the guy f's up, and when he asks for a second chance, she tells him to go screw...that is a good message for young girls!!!

I have some issues with her, too. For one, she sings about having really grown-up relationships for a girl who is basically like a sophomore in High School. Second, she tends to also cover marriage a lot, and that is just not cool when you are 16...or 18...or 14 or whatever. Finally, like half of her songs are about the dorky shy girl that can't get the cool boy's attention. Fine, but are you not aware that you are Taylor Swift? Somehow I don't see small-town-football-star-boy not noticing the leggy, gorgeous, pop star in the back of his math class...maybe she wears glasses, that usually throws the boys off;-)

Final analysis, I love them both, and I am comfortable enough to admit it! I dare you to not turn up the radio when Love Song comes on...weird, underage overtones aside...

So, in today's important topic...thoughts?

Ahh...the rain is back. Great.

Anybody else a little weirded out by the outpouring of love for Michael Jackson? Like...you know...Congress taking time to read a resolution saluting him (which is actually OK, since it represents five minutes that Congress is not wrecking something else).

Have we forgotten what a creep he was? Since when do we gloss over pedophilia because he made some excellent music 30 years ago? And yes, I do think he was a pedophile, and yes, I am aware that he was acquitted of those charges.

Anyway, it is too early in the morning for a lengthy rant, so I will get off of this subject and move on...

Fantastic weekend! I ended up leaving work early on Friday and heading to the beach by myself so I would get there in the afternoon. Weather was beautiful when I got there, and Munchkin, Big Sis and I had some spectacular sunset cocktails (and then, of course, it started raining again). Saturday was foggy but really nice, and I got a TON of color because I didn't put on enough sunscreen. The fog always gets me...it is way too easy to underestimate the sun's strength through the fog. So, I am looking like a little bit of a tomato right now:-) Excuse for The Boy to rub lotion on all the parts I can't reach? Yea, I agree...

Yesterday was kinda cloudy, but a really good lazy day. Munchkin and Smoking Hot Roommate had something to do in Chatham, and The Boy, The Rocket Scientist, The Brain Surgeon, Papa Bear and two of his friends were out fishing for most of the day. Big Sis was actually feeling really under the weather and was in bed most of the day (poor thing:-(), which meant that I had a whole lot of peace and quiet!

Then, headed home and finally got back at maybe 8:30 or so...got a head start on that lotion-ing;-) and was sound asleep by 10:00. Pretty darn good couple of days...