Nightmare.

I had the creepiest nightmare last night with a million details. I won't tell you all of them, but it basically involved me running around a hotel with gunmen, etc. It ended with me running out of the hotel, wearing a white dress. A guy in a car caught my eye, and I knew I was caught. To my surprise I saw my friend Emily from college and said to her, "I am about to get shot, watch out." And then, I was shot in the stomach. I sat on a lawn with Notorious ALG and my friend J.Pa (Emily was gone) and made J.Pa write down my last thoughts, which were as follows:

Tell my parents thank you because I felt loved every single day.
Tell my sisters that I will protect and love their children from heaven.

And that's it. I think those are some pretty decent last words, no?

[then, in the dream, my stomach gurgled and i changed positions and all the blood came running out]

Beanorama & Mo Cheeks to make their Rock n Roll debut...

AFTER 12 YEARS, LEGENDARY ROCK BAND CALLS IT QUITS
Renegade to Play Final Show 4th of July at Johnny Brenda’s

Forget Boyz II Men and John Legend, this Independence Day will see Philadelphians saying farewell to one of the greatest, yet virtually unknown to the mainstream, local rock and roll acts unseen since the likes of the Hooters, Hall & Oates, and Cinderella.

Founded in 1996 by frontman and only original member, Brian Adoff, Renegade will play its final show on July 4th, 2008 at Johnny Brenda’s in Fishtown. Rounding out this year’s Renegade lineup is Philadelphia Daily News gossip columnist Dan Gross on Bass, Hey Angel guitarist and high school biology teacher Dave Adoff on guitar, Richie Roxas and Matt Maraldo from Hail Social on guitar and drums, respectively, and newcomer Jeff Ziga from Armalite and Affirmative Action Jackson. Surprise guest singers and musicians can be expected as well.

In true Renegade fashion, this show will be more of a party than anything. Helping to celebrate the birth of our nation and the death of the renowned band will be good friends YMD (formerly Yah Mos Def) and Sweatheart opening and DJ Russ Alexander of Immediate and Rocktits! fame spinning patriotic rock tunes late into the night.

more info:

www. myspace. com/thegreatestbandinthehistoryoftheuniverse
www. r5productions. com
http://www. johnnybrendas. com/


***Note to SoUn Rock n Rollers - you too can be a Renegirl! Due to an incredibly small stage we can't all rock out but we can all join in the fun and help out. Let me know if you're interested and you might just get a crazy cool t-shirt and the opportunity to hand out flashlights and other amazing tasks.***

p.s. buy your tix online at one of the sites above - they're $8 ! you can afford it!

If This Doesn't Warm Your Heart, Then You Are Bitch

Ramona.

Not that I don't want to look at my engagement photos forever, but I just wanted to remind those book club members about our conversation last evening. Ah, Ramona Quimby. One of the most beloved characters of youth fiction. I remember when I was sick with yet another ear infection, my Mom bought me Ramona Forever. And a few years ago, Beanorama sent me an article about Beverly Cleary that was so charming.

This book cover is not at all what mine looked like, but I loved her so much. Even though she said, "Tommy Toes" instead of tomatoes.

CONGRATULATIONS!

At 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, right after book club, we dropped off Notorious ALG then drove 3 blocks to my house. I ran upstairs, put on my pj's, and heard my phone ring. It was no later than 9:45. It was Notorious ALG:

"Beanorama? I'm getting married!"
"Wait, what? But I just saw you!" Once I got over my shock, much screaming ensued. Then like the classy broad I am, I put on clothes, ran down the street with ring pops and Boone's Farm in hand, and screamed and hugged and snapped photos of my dearly beloved Notorious ALG and her husband-to-be, Jonasty.

I am so lucky I got to see them in the aftermath of their betrothal.

Congratulations, Al. You deserve many lifetimes of joy and happiness. And Jonas... you better protect and honor and cherish this gal o' mine.

Huzzah!

Nine Years of Wondering...

...and I find the answer in Rittenhouse Nail Salon.

as some of you may know, i have a small japanese character tattooed on my right inner ankle. i got it 9 years ago when i was in art school. i was told at the time (by an american woman named Jackie Brown on south street) that it meant, "Creative Power".

predictably, i have come to regret said tatt, not because i think tattoos are wrong or anything. i just wish i would have gotten it in a more discreet place, ya know? i also am sick of hearing people ask me the same four questions when they see it:

1. YOU have a tattoo???
2. What does it mean???
3. Do you REALLY believe that?
4. Do you ever wonder if it really means something awful like, RAT or WHORE???

you can imagine how much fun this has been over the years...

well, today, i feel slightly good about my tatt, for the first time since i proudly came home and showed my mom. the japanese woman at Rittenhouse Nail Salon complimented me on it and remarked how beautifully done it was as she gave me a pedicure...I asked her what she thought it meant, and at first she told me "Power". but after consulting with two of her co-workers, she added "King" and ended up translating it as "Powerful King".

ok, so it's not actually "Creative Power"...but at least its not "Rat" or "Whore" right?

Big and Little.

[Despite having a Mac for a year and a half, I still sometimes don't know how to use it. In absence of a right-click function, I had to do a screen shot. D'oh!]

Thoughts by Sam:

My big brudder Bendy thinks he is so cute. Well, you know what? He may be cute, but he's a giant. I mean, look at that giant man-foot. That's not normal for an eighteen-month-old! And why does my Aunt want to bite Ben's thighs? I have no idea. Also, I wish I could wear a Sandy Island shirt.

Thoughts by me: Aren't my nephies just the NUTS? Ugh. I love them.

I had a dream.

I had a dream. And now it is realized. It is a self-centered dream, and it involved having my likeness created, a la Kate Winslet in Titanic minus the nudity (maybe) and the ugly blue heart necklace.

But now, thanks to Notorious ALG, my dream has been realized! I am forever immortalized on a pretty green plate (and I love green). And the nice lady even gave us a photo of the sketch to boot!

Thanks for the giftie, Allie.

Now I am a Philadelphian.

Although the Hallahan girlz used to scare the crap out of me when I rode the #27 bus with them (they were tough! and taller than I am!), I now feel like maybe I am one of them. Just as the plaid-jumpered gals swim in dirty Love Park fountain water do on graduation, we celebrated Unusual Suspect's work graduation in style.

Props to Mo Cheeks for climbing in in skinny jeans. And for giving me the biggest splash evah.

Bam-boopet.

I can't sleep, and I know I shouldn't get on my computer, but here I am. Also, I am a bad blogger and I haven't posted in a decade. I think my last post prob had something to do with Ruby's dreads so I will pick up that theme and tell you our next step:

Today for my birthday, I got the Bamboo Pet cat comb from my sister MKVOB. As you can see in earlier comments, I read this as "Bam-boopet." Anyway, it seriously works! The picture is only the beginning of the fur I removed from my raven haired beauty. Unforch, Rubes likes to eat the fur as it piles around her, and I have cleaned up two hairballs today.

You win some, you lose some.

Wasn't It Odd?

that Angelina chose Entertainment Weekly to give such a personally candid and forthcoming interview? i for some reason get this in the mail every week (have no idea how or why) and wasn't really expecting much when i saw her on the cover. those mags always tend to write more fluff than anything, right?

well! it was more than a couple of pages of dish, let me tell you. she talked about her and brad A LOT more than i think she ever has and it was quite the interesting little window into what must be there awesome lives.

just sayin, but if i were her (god, please, god) i would've prob saved that shit for vanity fair or vogue or something. not a weekly, rag-a-muffin pub like EW. the editors there must have been climaxing for hours when they knew what they were publishing. lucky bastards :)

The slutification of America's youth

I know we've touched on this before, but I must post again about the grossness that is Victoria's Secret these days. I do shop there, but I am referring mostly to the messages conveyed inside the stores. Yesterday I decided to try on a swimsuit cover-up - exciting, I know. So, I walked into the dressing room, threw my purse on the chair, looked into the mirror and almost threw up. No, not from the sight of myself. On the mirror the word "strip" is written in big, neon letters. I was disgusted. Young girls shop at VS too and this is the type of thing they see there. It must be said - so unpretty.

My New Favorite Dance/Gym Song

The Knife: "Heartbeats"



absolutely obsessed with this song since i heard it saturday night at Johnny Brenda's. it makes me want to stop whatever i'm doing and start groovin'. now, when's the last time you did that?

Celeb Sighting

This weekend, I was celebrating the birthdays of a few of my favorite people and learned that a movie was being filmed near the park where we were. I forced Beanorama and Mo Cheeks to walk over to the fence where we were told they were filming. And then, I saw my girl crush, Megan Fox. She is so pretty. Beanorama remarked that she had perfect eyebrows. I didn't like that she was sticking out her lips. It annoyed me. And she got yelled at by the director. But it was still cool. Real cool.

Two Crew For School

getting a new job is a lot like going to a new school. a lot of perks come with it, especially the excuse to get new clothes! SUH AWE-SUUUUUM! (said in Hillz-like style).

last night i was given a $100 gift card to the crew. i was grateful of course, but i also don't shop there too often. i actually can't remember what the last thing was that i bought there for myself. they're just too expensive, ya know? now, don't get me wrong...i used to sweat them in my college years (98-03) but had resigned myself to finding clothes elsewhere when i realized that seemingly overnight they wanted $100 for a sweater instead of $60.

however, getting a gift card there has allowed me to dip my toe back in the crew pool and i think i came up with something very swimmingly.

behold. my favorite summer outfit of 2008. i ordered online last night so hopefully it will be here soon. and i found a code on one of those weird web sites which saved me $15 on shipping!

whatcha think?!

Now this just pisses me off..

seriously: what was wrong with Strawberry Shortcake?? she was ADORABLE.
red yarn hair? adorable.
pink fluffy kitty? adorable.
chunky brown loafers? adorable.
chubby freckled cheeks? adorable.
freaking bloomers for heaven's sake??? adorable!
see what i mean??

why did they have to make her so... vapid? she has a pink blow-out and green eyes now! and seems to have lost a lot of weight for a SHORTCAKE PERSON.

i know it is useless at this point... but somebody needs to save all the little girls of the world. go drag them from their bikini waxers and sit them down in front of the REAL miss shortcake.

Could I Handle the G-Force, Though?

So last night, I watched "When We Left Earth," a new mini-series on the Discovery Channel about the United States' space program in the 60s. It was unreal. For as long as I can remember, I have been absolutely fascinated by space travel. I think it may be rooted in a combination of my love for the movie Space Camp and freeze-dried ice cream.

When I was younger, I had a desire to become an astronaut, but that was short-lived once I saw the space capsules they used to use at the Air and Space Museum and realized I may not be able to handle the claustrophobia. Of course, they transitioned to the space shuttles, but I was still apprehensive about the G-Force upon lift-off and when coming back into Earth.

So, I will keep my feet on the ground, but I can live vicariously through Gus Grissom and Buzz Aldrin in this awesome series.

Another time waster.

Draw My Thing. Sounds pervy, but is hilarious. And I can't access it from work, thank god. From the blog I'm In Like With You, written by a friend of Internet Doyenne Julia Allison. CLICK HERE TO DRAW!

Time waster.

Want to waste time? Think you have damn good secretarial skillz? Typeracer at your service.

No Cheating!!

I just noticed the The Other Boleyn Girl comes out on DVD this upcoming Tuesday, June 10th. If you've started reading the book (I'm more than halfway through it 'cause it's so damn good...nah,nah,nah) - then you may be tempted to watch the movie just to see what spin Hollywood has to it.

Or, you may be tempted to watch the movie to get around reading the book.
However, no one can watch this movie until we've met, discussed the book & agreed on a book club movie night!

Agreed?

Hot or Ugly Hot?

Ok, ladies. Here's the quintessential age-old question again. This time the subject is Daniel Craig. I just saw him in Casino Royale & over the summer he caught my eye in a Truman Capote movie. Not the one with Philip Seymour Hoffman, the other one. Anyway, I think that he's intense looking & attractive, just not in the traditional sense.

What do you think?

Me So Hungry

watching Top Chef makes me salivate.

salivate...what a delicious word.

My Hairdresser is Worried

Not with my locks, but with her stocks. as she cut and colored my hair last week she asked me if I had seen Suze Orman on The View last week.

No, of course i hadnt, because i was busy sorting/organizing/cleaning the house and sadly missed out on the joys of daytime TV.

she then went on to tell me that Suze's advice for the next coming year or so, was to not buy anything new-a house, a car, anything. this was the year to save and pay down your debt. all this because of the recession. my hairdresser was freaked out and she was starting to freak me out too.

i tried to search for a video of this online, but could not track it down. i know a lot can get lost in translation and people hear things differently, so i wanted to hear it for myself. plus, i was a little nervous because me and my husband just broke her first two rules (new house and a new honda element).

anyone else hear about this? and really, what does recession really mean for you and me? should we be really concerned? i'm a little scared, but i don't know if i should be or not...