Wild on Wednesday

Happy August - my birthday month! Here are the things I'm wild about right now (besides my new car):

Bunheads on ABC Family. I am CRAZY for this show about a dancer and former Vegas showgirl who finds herself helping to run a dance studio in small-town California. I still haven't seen Gilmore Girls, but I'm told the dialogue and main components of Bunheads are just like it. This is the only series on TV right now that I look forward to watching regularly. My favorite scene so far involved a long conversation about layaway at Contempo Casuals.

Loft Eyelet Hem Skirt. I scored one of these (in black) for $15 before my NYC trip. I ended up not even taking it to New York, but it's quickly becoming my favorite skirt at home. I wear it at least once a week. It's cute, cool, and comfortable. I want to get another one while the getting is good!

 
The Olympics, of course.  I love the excitement, the surprises, the focus on sports that you don't hear about at any other time, and cheering on Team USA and my other randomly-chosen favorite countries. :) The Olympics are basically an extended good cry for me. Every night I sit weeping quietly at all the medal ceremonies, even if I have no personal attachment to the competitors. The high concentration of people's lifelong dreams coming true is just too much for me. I'm not kidding, I even got choked up typing that.

Last weekend I saw Katy Perry: Part of Me 3D with my friend Elizabeth. We were each other's only friends who wanted to see it. :) I've felt a growing kinship with Katy since her divorce from Russell Brand, and this documentary/concert film sealed the deal. Like me, she grew up Pentecostal (there's an old clip of her singing Crystal Lewis's song "I Now Live," which I listened to constantly as a teenager). Like me, she's one of three kids and is close to her sister and younger brother, and considers herself a writer. Like me, she deeply loved a man who wasn't equally invested in the relationship, and fought unsuccessfully to save her marriage. From what I've seen and heard over the years, I think she's the real deal. I refuse to write her off as many other Christians have. It's clear to me that she has a very loving heart, a God-given talent, and an amazing work ethic. Even if you don't agree, the movie is great and surprisingly moving (in between fun songs).

New York Part One

I flew to New York on July 11. Emily flew direct from Nashville and met me at LaGuardia. We checked into our hotel and immediately headed for the TKTS booth in Times Square. By then it was about 3:00 and I desperately needed food, so my first meal in NYC was at the Times Square Sbarro. However, we had dinner at a nice French place later. :) Most of the new shows were already sold out, so we got tickets to Chicago, which neither of us had seen on the stage. Em had assured me that New Yorkers don't dress up for the theater, and it's true. You see most everything there, style-wise. I've seen much fancier crowds at the Orpheum. The play was great - I liked it way better than the movie version! Some things just don't work as movies.

After Chicago we went back to Times Square so I could see it in its glory! It was as bright as day, and I was surprised to see that they leave the New Year's Eve ball and 2012 sign up all year. Apparently that started a few years ago.

Thursday was THE BEST DAY. We started off with a Central Park Bike Tour. They have several tours through the actual park, but I had signed us up for the City Tour, which goes downtown through the heart of the city. Our guide said it was ten miles, but it felt like a LOT more than ten miles! We saw Times Square (again), Herald Square, Madison Square, and Washington Square. And maybe Union Square? I'm not sure.

The Flatiron Building

Iconic When Harry Met Sally location

We rode onto the Brooklyn Bridge, then through Battery Park. We got a great view of the harbor and saw the sculpture that was saved from the wreckage of the World Trade Center. (We never made it to the memorial or the new tower, though.)

After returning our bikes, we were both exhausted and just had lunch at the first sandwich place we (literally) stumbled upon. Then we went back to the hotel to basically start over for the day. :)

Once recovered, we went to Rockefeller Center to check in for Late Night With Jimmy Fallon! Getting tickets was one of the first things I did after booking my flight - you can find info here. The tickets are free and fairly easy to get, although a lot of it is up to chance and scheduling. We went over early to get our line number, giving us a better chance of actually getting in. At 4:30, we lined up by numbers on the second floor of 30 Rock, and NBC pages led us in groups through security and put us in an elevator to the studio. Em and I were seated on the end of a short row (prime spots!). Once everyone was seated, a funny comedian/staff guy came out to warm up the crowd. Then they brought out The Roots (who played a whole mini-set) and Higgins (the announcer). Finally the show started and Jimmy was onstage!! He looks exactly the same in person as on TV - SUPER CUTE. ♥ (I've had a crush on him since 1998.)

The guests were Queen Latifah and Noah Wyle. I had forgotten that Queen and Jimmy were in a movie together a few years ago, but they clearly know each other well and had a blast. Noah Wyle mostly talked about his recent arrest at a political protest. :) The musical guest was a band I'd never heard of (Cloud Nothings).

I DVRed the show and just got around to watching it last night. At the end of the monologue Jimmy came into the audience to give someone a few rows ahead of us his cue cards, and you can see us clearly! This was the best shot I could get on pause. I took a picture of the TV. I'm a little embarrassed that due to my excitement, I was ACTUALLY FLAILING. Oh well, I can't be the first.

I knew from the internet that Jimmy would run up and down the aisles at the end, so I was ready with my hand out, and I got to give him five!! Overall, it was an awesome experience. Em had fun too.

After the show, we felt re-energized and headed down Fifth toward the Empire State Building. On the way we did some window shopping, saw the library, and had sandwiches at Potbelly (Em loved Potbelly when she lived in DC and misses it greatly). The line at the building wasn't too long, and we got to the top right after sunset. The light was perfect and the city looked so beautiful! Despite the number of people up there, it was pretty quiet and peaceful, everyone just enjoying the amazing view. I LOVED it.

It was an awesome ending to an awesome day. More to come!

Recovering

Sorry I haven't been posting much. Making time to work on a novel in addition to all my existing online stuff has been tough. Then I got sick. I had a great weekend, but woke up Monday morning feeling nauseated and awful. I've spent most of the past 48 hours going back and forth between my bed and the couch. But after lots of naps, hours of TV, and adding and removing multiple things from my online cart at Old Navy, I think I'm on an upswing and should be able to go back to work tomorrow.

At least I've been able to catch some shows and movies. I watched Away We Go on TV yesterday (with Maya Rudolph and John Krasinski) and it was great - like an older, pregnant version of Garden State. I also rented Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close this weekend and am still thinking about it. It was difficult to watch, but really good. (I haven't read the book yet.) Yesterday the highlight of my day was a new episode of my new favorite show, Bunheads. And I'm enjoying the Olympic trials - more swimming tonight! Although nothing makes me feel wimpier than watching elite athletes qualify for the Olympics while I'm too sick to even get off the couch. Anyway, I never sit around like this normally, so  it's kind of nice to rest without any pressure.

My cats have been happy to have me at home too. :)

My Top 7 Unwatched TV Shows

Since I'm usually pretty busy (and reading when I'm not busy), I can't keep up with very many TV shows. This often works to my detriment when all my friends are obsessing over a show together, and I know I would love it too, but I'll never have time to catch up. Several such conversations have inspired me to make a list of the unwatched shows that I most want to see from beginning to end. With one exception, I've stuck to shows that are complete - adding in-process series would make it too overwhelming. (#1 would be Downton Abbey. Not watching it is seriously starting to affect my social life.)

1. Friday Night Lights. It's crazy that I wasn't immediately obsessed with this well-loved tale of triumph over adversity through football in small-town Texas. It has everything I look for in a story.

(source)

2. Battlestar Galactica. I've heard it ends terribly, but so did Lost, and I still didn't regret getting involved in that. It seems like another show that's important to the cultural conversation.

3. Gilmore Girls. I know. I know. I know.

4. Doctor Who. If the constant raves of friends with good taste weren't enough to convince me, this graph would do it.

5. Avatar: The Last Airbender. I'm not into anime, but I've heard this is a must watch for writers because the plot writing is phenomenal.

6. Freaks and Geeks. I was the target age/audience for this show when it aired, but I missed it somehow. It features a lot of now-famous actors, including Jason Segel, whom I find very endearing.

7. Felicity. One of the most popular melodramas of my college years, but again, I never saw it. Plus, I think it was J.J. Abrams' first show.


Basically, if I ever have to be on bed rest for an extended time, I already have a plan in place!

Friday Friends Moment

Most readers of this blog probably know that I'm a huge Friends fan. I'm re-connecting with the show lately - when I visited my sister a few weeks ago, we blew through two and a half DVDs of Season 5 (still my favorite!). Then, last weekend, Alanna and her roommate hosted a Friends party. We played two rounds of Friends Scene It and enjoyed a menu of meatball sandwiches and mac and cheese (for Joey), with cheesecake, muffins, and coffee for dessert. We decided to forgo the trifle with a layer of chipped beef with peas and onions. :)

Anyway, one of the Friends episodes I reference often is Alec Baldwin's guest-starring episode as Parker, an overenthusiastic man who dates Phoebe. (Season 8, The One In Massapequa.) I'm randomly thinking about it today. I've realized that it's so good because almost everyone knows someone like that character. I'm even related to a few people like him!

I can't embed a clip, but you can watch one here. Next time you find yourself frazzled by an intensely enthused person, just exclaim, THIS ROOM! THIS NIGHT!!!

Wild On Wednesday

As I often post on Wednesdays, here are a few things I'm currently wild about:

(source)

Tarragon vinegar. It's the best salad-dressing vinegar ever. Trust me.

 

These skirts (from Banana Republic and J. Crew). I'll probably try to find similar patterns - all Butterick patterns are a dollar at Hancock this week. I really wish I had more time for sewing.

Karmin. If you haven't heard of them, they're an adorable couple who make fun, clean party music. Their album comes out in just a few weeks! I love the singles they've released so far, and of course, their impressive rap covers. This one is still my favorite:

Aaaand.... the finale of One Tree Hill airs tonight! I discovered OTH in reruns on SoapNet a few years ago and was instantly hooked. I've seen the first four seasons multiple times, but haven't kept up as well with the later seasons - though I've stayed current since January since I knew this was the last season. In terms of major plotlines, the show has never been realistic: teen marriage, teens in trouble with the mob, teens going on concert tours, a group of college-aged friends all becoming millionaires and running business empires, heart transplants derailed by stray dogs, evil men and evil nannies wreaking havoc, multiple kidnappings, repeated near-fatal car accidents, and PTSD severe enough to make a man forget he has a son... just to name a few. But under all the ridiculousness, I love the heart of the show. I love the depth and complicated quality of the relationships. Over time, OTH has inspired me as a writer in a way I can't really put into words. I hope it gets a worthy ending!

Goodbye Oprah

I can't believe the Oprah show is over! I haven't seen the finale yet - I DVRed it (yeah, I admit it) yesterday, but heard it was pre-empted by severe weather coverage, so I'm waiting to watch the full re-airing today. I've never been a serious Oprah watcher, but her show has run for most of my life. In my childhood, Oprah being on meant that my mom was cooking dinner and my dad would be home soon. The show still carries those connotations of comfort to me. Since college, on the rare occasions I've been home at 4:00, I've usually turned it on in the background just to experience that nice homey feeling (and I know I'm not the only one).

I don't agree with Oprah's politics or Scientology, and this last-minute adoration of her has really been over the top. But she's done a lot of great things, and the world is in some ways a better place because of her. I think everyone can be inspired by that!

If you've never seen this, prepare to laugh hysterically:

Oprah Invites Hundreds Of Lucky Fans To Be Buried With Her In Massive Tomb

An Open Letter to Hollywood

Grand Champions, 1996

Dear Hollywood,

The success of Glee, The Sing-Off, and other musical series is proof that the time has come for band nerds to take the spotlight. We've waited patiently. We buried our disappointment back in '95 when Mr. Holland's Opus turned out to be about Mr. Holland and hardly about his band at all. We felt that 2002's Drumline was a solid 8-to-5 step in the right direction, but there's plenty more field to cover. Choirs might be full of drama, but clearly you're unfamiliar with the groups of 100+ teenagers around the country spending most of their waking hours together, making music together, fainting from heat exhaustion together, winning grand championships together, doing pushups on the side of a lonely highway in the middle of the night together. Trust me, there are many seasons' worth of stories to be had.

Now is the time. And if you need writers, I'm happy to offer my services.

Sincerely,

Brenda W.
Kirby High School Sound of Blue, c/o '97

Extreme Couponing

A couple of weeks ago, TLC aired a show called Extreme Couponing. I missed the first airing, but saw so many violent reactions to it from friends that I set aside time to watch a rerun of it the next day. It profiled several serious couponers - two young middle-class wives, an older woman, and a thirtysomething man. Each person was shown at home, talking about their couponing philosophies, and then on an actual grocery shopping trip.

While I was impressed by the hundreds of dollars saved at the register, my main reaction to the show was sadness. Most of the participants seemed completely, unhealthily consumed with couponing - it's not an exaggeration to say that they have made it their religion. One of the women was filmed passionately "witnessing" about couponing to neighbors, fellow shoppers, and random people she met on the street. One regularly took her young child dumpster diving for extra coupons. Another cheerfully admitted that she's sacrificed a healthy marriage and social life to keep up with her couponing, and her husband's resigned and frustrated reactions to it all were heartbreaking to me. Obviously, there are also serious hoarding elements; I think the man couponer said he had fifteen years' worth of food and toiletries in his stockpile room, which used to be a garage. (Maybe he's also a survivalist, but if so, he didn't mention it.) It also seemed like a few people were driven to a financial and physical hoarding mindset by past poverty or job loss, but I'm not a psychologist.

I started couponing fairly seriously about two years ago. I have a small stockpile cabinet and a well-organized coupon file. I know what these people mean when they describe the thrill of watching your total go down at the end of a shopping trip - I understand how it could be addictive. I think couponing is a great and relatively low-effort way to save money, and I'm glad it's available to us. But I don't believe in couponing just so I can haul home truckloads of free stuff I don't need and will probably never consume. (Waste is one of the things that bothers me most about extreme couponing. The man on the show said he frequently gives his extras to missions that his church supports, which is wonderful, but he was the only one.) I believe in rational couponing. No stockpiling for the apocalypse, no buying stuff I don't already use. I find coupons for my usual grocery items, via newspapers and circulars that are easily available, and I try to buy enough during a sale to last me until the next sale. That's it. It works for me.

In conclusion, I hope I never watch another show that includes the voiceover line, "Two hours into her checkout..."

Edited to add: The popular couponing site Southern Savers has a great response to the show.

This is just a tribute.

About three years ago, my company upgraded our exercise room with new exercise machines, each with its own built-in TV. Before this, there was only one TV for the whole room, and passive-aggressive channel-changing was common. I happened to exercise on the same schedule as a group of women who were addicted to The Bold and the Beautiful. But that's a story for another day.

For a few weeks, I flipped channels on the elliptical, never really interested in anything I saw (but glad to have options). Then a show on SoapNet caught my attention. It was about a pair of feuding, basketball-playing teenage guys, who were somehow brothers even though they were the same age and not twins. I had to have a friend explain it all to me. And that's how I discovered my now all-time favorite guilty pleasure show, One Tree Hill.

OTH is a teen soap. But it has better overall character development than any other teen soap I've seen. The main characters are all passionate about something – art, basketball, writing, fashion, music, whatever. They care about doing something important with their lives. They make a lot of mistakes, but they (mostly) face their personal demons and overcome them. They're devoted to each other. Some of them sleep around, but that choice usually results in real consequences. On top of all this, there's an older generation of characters (a coach, a hero, a villain, two women caught in the middle) and the sins of the father frequently catch up to the sons.

I have to admit that I haven't seen most of the later/current seasons. I've seen season 5 (which jumped forward four years) on SoapNet, and while it's pretty good, some of the plotlines are 100% absurd (one climactic moment even made it onto The Soup). Since then, most of the original actors have left the show. But I've watched seasons 1-4 multiple times. And the season 6 wedding always makes me cry because it's a fulfillment of everything that came before. I am a total sucker for relationships with long-term history and layers of meaning, real or fictional, friendly or romantic. In the end, that's probably why I love this show.

I've also fallen in love with Wilmington, North Carolina (the fictional Tree Hill of the title, where the show is filmed). I know it's a strange tourist destination, but I want to go there and see it for myself. It seems like an ideal place for me - a small, cute city that has seasons, trees, and a river, but is also like 15 minutes from the ocean.