Wow, it's been almost a month! Typical of me, I guess, to lose enthusiasm after a while and start to taper off. Nevertheless, I've been inspired to write about something...a little off-beat for me.
We had just finished dinner and I had finished cleaning up and everything, so I thought I'd sit outside for a bit. It's been a beautiful day and it's starting to stay light later (one of the things I love most about spring and the time change), so I went and sat on the porch. This is something I like to do from time to time. I just sit there and listen to faint sounds of birds, bugs, cows and goats, wind rustling the tree limbs, things like that. I can also hear the trains roll by down at the bottom of the hill...it's not very loud so it's actually a sound I enjoy. Everything is quiet but not too quiet, just peaceful. I look around at the surrounding land. There's the yard and how amazingly green it is. There's a white picket fence separating my grandmother's land from the neighbors and they have a red barn off in the distance. There are rolling hills all around and it's really kind of perfect how all the colors and contrasts play off each other. It's rather like a painting...incidentally, landscape drawings are my favorite kind of art. My grandmother paints and she painted an ocean landscape with a lighthouse in the distance that I will hang in my own house one of these days. Anyway, tangent there...with the murmurs of nature all around, I realize how incredibly lucky I am to live where I do. It's far enough away from "civilization" that I can have moments like this, but close enough where I don't have to go too far to rejoin the world. I also realize how great God is. I am not the best Christian, for sure, but I absolutely believe in God and Jesus and, when I look around me and see all this, I don't see how anyone couldn't believe. A world that is so beautiful couldn't possibly come about by accident. Being outside on days like this is when I feel the closest to God and I feel most grateful that He has provided this panacea for us to experience.
Now I'm sitting here, relaxed, my mind clear, my body comfortable, warm, without pain. How lucky am I to be in this place right now?! Very lucky, absolutely...and fortunate to have moments like this that remind me to appreciate all that I have.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Saturday, March 26, 2011
That zone thing that's kinda twilight-y...
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| "The Obsolete Man" waiting for his termination http://sharetv.org/ |
Last week, I bought "The Twilight Zone" on DVD, the entire series with a bunch of awesome special features. It was a sort of special treat using some of the tax refund I got back (since I used most of it to pay bills, I felt the need to splurge some). It's a great show and I'm thoroughly enjoying watching old favorites and seeing episodes that I knew nothing about. So far, I'm about halfway through the first season and already I've seen one of the most famous episodes of the whole series: "Time Enough at Last" with Burgess Meredith (I know, right, I'm obsessed). It's pretty amazing that such a memorable episode, one that is considered by many to be the best of the entire run, would be early in the very first season. Usually shows don't hit their stride until at least the second season, but there you go. Actually, though I like the episode, it's not really my favorite; it's not even my favorite of the 4 that Burgess appeared in. My two favorites are "Printer's Devil" where BM plays Mephistopheles (sp?) himself, and "The Obsolete Man" where BM is a librarian who lives in a Dystopian society and is sentenced to death for being insignificant. I'm not sure which is my "favorite" favorite; I kinda go back and forth. Nevertheless, it tells a lot about the quality of the series when you have classic episodes that occur throughout the series run, from first to last season.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
GET ON THE BALL!!! And dreams...
I've only been blogging a little over a week (I think) and already I'm slacking off...geez! Sometimes it's hard to make myself do anything; self-discipline has never been my strong suit. A lot of the time, I'd be content to stare at a TV or computer screen or book all day; it requires very little brain activity. Nevertheless, I started this thing and I need to see it through, wherever that may lead me.
Now, one thing that may hold me up from time to time is lack of a good idea. Sometimes I just don't know what to write about. I feel like a lot of my ideas are lacking in creativity so I dismiss them, but then there's nothing left. So, for better or for worse, I'll write about whatever I think of. Now, on with the show...
I have very strange dreams (see, how creative is that?!). I know that statement could be said (with merit) by virtually every person on the planet, but I happen to think that my dreams are especially strange. There are times when I wake up after having such a dream and, after the initial waking up period, where the dream still feels very real, I think, "What the heck?! Why did that seem so real because it was completely stupid!" I do have a few recurring dreams that probably are universal. I used to dream all the time (though not so much lately) that I am naked in a public place, but my naked dreams are very specific. First off, I'm not completely naked, just topless. Also, I'm always in school, between classes, and the bell rings for class to start. I ask my friends if they have anything I could borrow: a sweater, sweatshirt, anything. And even if they are wearing multiple layers, they always say no. So I go to class with a notebook or sheet of paper covering my chest and that's pretty much it.
Another dream I have a lot is also school-themed. I'm still in college and, somehow, I've gotten to the end of the semester and have managed to not go to a particular class all year (or have only gone a few times). It's usually a science or math class (typical) and apparently it didn't concern me much all through the year, but in the dream I start to freak out because the final exam is nigh, along with the final grade, and I worry that I'm going to fail. I think I've read that the "naked in public places" dream has something to do with the person hiding something or not being completely upfront and worrying that he/she is going to be found out. Not exactly sure what the other dream may mean, though it probably has something to do with feeling like I'm getting overwhelmed by responsibilities that maybe I've been neglecting. That is complete conjecture on my part, but it kinda makes sense.
Then there are the dreams that really mean nothing. Again, I've read or heard that these random dreams are the way that our mind/subconscious/whatever manages to clear out all the crap that's accumulated over time. That makes sense to me because most of the time these random dreams contain things that I haven't thought about for ages but have probably been lingering in the ol' noggin all along. The most recent random goody I can recall is truly bizarre. I dreamed that I was with a group of friends and we were trying to find a specific winery (unnamed in my mind). I'm driving on the interstate and take an exit that I'm not familiar with, then get off on some unknown road and don't know where I'm going. I call my sister (that renowned sage of wineries) to see if she knows how to get to our destination but she doesn't answer the phone or my texts. The most random part of the dream is one of the friends with me. It's Marcus Milburn, a guy I went all through school with but haven't seen or spoken to him since high school. In the car, we discuss the fact that neither of us has a boyfriend/girlfriend (don't know if he's single in real life or not) and, apparently, Valentine's Day is coming up and we had made some kind of agreement that if we were both unattached for the holiday, we would be each other's Valentine. Now we're all ambivalent about it. Anyway, we end up just driving along and that's all I can remember. All together now: WHAAAAT?!?!
I have no words for what the heck this is about, but I can't think of any better explanation than my mind wanting to clear out Marcus, Valentine's Day, and wineries. I'm happy to get rid of Marcus and Valentine's Day (no offense to my old friend, but it has been years and he's just not part of my life anymore), but I'd rather hang on to wineries if it's okay with my brain. Perhaps this means I'll have to visit a winery soon to recover its presence in my mind...if there's a better excuse than that, I can't think of one!
Now, one thing that may hold me up from time to time is lack of a good idea. Sometimes I just don't know what to write about. I feel like a lot of my ideas are lacking in creativity so I dismiss them, but then there's nothing left. So, for better or for worse, I'll write about whatever I think of. Now, on with the show...
I have very strange dreams (see, how creative is that?!). I know that statement could be said (with merit) by virtually every person on the planet, but I happen to think that my dreams are especially strange. There are times when I wake up after having such a dream and, after the initial waking up period, where the dream still feels very real, I think, "What the heck?! Why did that seem so real because it was completely stupid!" I do have a few recurring dreams that probably are universal. I used to dream all the time (though not so much lately) that I am naked in a public place, but my naked dreams are very specific. First off, I'm not completely naked, just topless. Also, I'm always in school, between classes, and the bell rings for class to start. I ask my friends if they have anything I could borrow: a sweater, sweatshirt, anything. And even if they are wearing multiple layers, they always say no. So I go to class with a notebook or sheet of paper covering my chest and that's pretty much it.
Another dream I have a lot is also school-themed. I'm still in college and, somehow, I've gotten to the end of the semester and have managed to not go to a particular class all year (or have only gone a few times). It's usually a science or math class (typical) and apparently it didn't concern me much all through the year, but in the dream I start to freak out because the final exam is nigh, along with the final grade, and I worry that I'm going to fail. I think I've read that the "naked in public places" dream has something to do with the person hiding something or not being completely upfront and worrying that he/she is going to be found out. Not exactly sure what the other dream may mean, though it probably has something to do with feeling like I'm getting overwhelmed by responsibilities that maybe I've been neglecting. That is complete conjecture on my part, but it kinda makes sense.
Then there are the dreams that really mean nothing. Again, I've read or heard that these random dreams are the way that our mind/subconscious/whatever manages to clear out all the crap that's accumulated over time. That makes sense to me because most of the time these random dreams contain things that I haven't thought about for ages but have probably been lingering in the ol' noggin all along. The most recent random goody I can recall is truly bizarre. I dreamed that I was with a group of friends and we were trying to find a specific winery (unnamed in my mind). I'm driving on the interstate and take an exit that I'm not familiar with, then get off on some unknown road and don't know where I'm going. I call my sister (that renowned sage of wineries) to see if she knows how to get to our destination but she doesn't answer the phone or my texts. The most random part of the dream is one of the friends with me. It's Marcus Milburn, a guy I went all through school with but haven't seen or spoken to him since high school. In the car, we discuss the fact that neither of us has a boyfriend/girlfriend (don't know if he's single in real life or not) and, apparently, Valentine's Day is coming up and we had made some kind of agreement that if we were both unattached for the holiday, we would be each other's Valentine. Now we're all ambivalent about it. Anyway, we end up just driving along and that's all I can remember. All together now: WHAAAAT?!?!
I have no words for what the heck this is about, but I can't think of any better explanation than my mind wanting to clear out Marcus, Valentine's Day, and wineries. I'm happy to get rid of Marcus and Valentine's Day (no offense to my old friend, but it has been years and he's just not part of my life anymore), but I'd rather hang on to wineries if it's okay with my brain. Perhaps this means I'll have to visit a winery soon to recover its presence in my mind...if there's a better excuse than that, I can't think of one!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Taking a stand...sort of
Today is the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day. Sadly, I don't really know anything about the history of the day or how it came to be. I may check out Wikipedia, the all-knowing source of knowledge, and gain some insight. Nevertheless, I'm glad that such a day exists because it does bring some troubling things to light (such as the continuing struggle for equal rights and the places where women still suffer barbaric punishment for virtually no reason) as well as celebrating the great things that have been accomplished and the women who made them happen.
Now, I hope I'm not making light of these wonderful women and their bravery by writing what I'm about to write. But I kind of feel like I'm fighting my own little battle in the great war of equal rights. I know a lot of girls my age (or any age, for that matter) are very fond of cooking and taking care of their homes and children and whatnot. And I really think that's great...as long as it's their choice and it's what they want, without feeling like their gender predetermines their fate. However, I don't have these traditional "female" inclinations in the slightest. That's not to say that someday I won't want to have a family of my own, but right now I don't exactly have the burning sensation, so to speak. I hate to cook, I mean really hate it. I've had to cook a lot more than usual lately since my mom's injury and I thought I might start to get a hankering for it...quite the contrary, actually. I dread having to cook when I get home from work and am tempted every night to just pick up a pizza. And I loathe cleaning (which I think is a little more normal than my other shortcomings) and really only do what is absolutely necessary. But the thing I have a little bit of a problem with is the assumption that I will have to do all this "housewife" stuff someday and, what's more, I will actually come to enjoy it.
Again, let me state that I don't think there's anything wrong with the stay-at-home wife and mother, if that's what a woman wants. However, there is a general understanding that all women will eventually get this drive to take on the traditional role. I also get a little bit of a feeling that I'm viewed as a non-woman because I don't have these desires. I'm actually rather proud of my lack of domestic skills (as I've stated before). I probably have a bit of a chip on my shoulder, it's true, and I could be completely fabricating these "slights." Nevertheless, I don't want to be made to feel like less of a woman just because I don't like to cook and don't like to clean and maybe I'll never get married or have children. Those things are not automatic when you are assigned female genitalia. In fact, I love sports, both playing and watching (mostly watching these days), I know quite a bit about cars, I'm fascinated by history and zombies and other seemingly non-feminine things. I also love to shop, have an unhealthy attachment to Coach bags, and could give Imelda Marcos a run for her shoe money. All these qualities make me me and I'm more comfortable with myself now than I've ever been before. I enjoy being a girl!
Now let me be honest...I really do hope that someday I will find a man that I love and want to share my life with. I think that, one day, I will want to have children also. And I know that, when this happens, I'm going to have to, if not change, at least soften my view of stereotypical womanhood. I also know that, in the right situation, I will enjoy cooking and cleaning and taking care of my family because it will be what I want to do. So, right now, I'm a semi-feminist, I guess. I like girly things as well as manly things and that's the way I'm supposed to be.
Happy International Women's Day!!!
Now, I hope I'm not making light of these wonderful women and their bravery by writing what I'm about to write. But I kind of feel like I'm fighting my own little battle in the great war of equal rights. I know a lot of girls my age (or any age, for that matter) are very fond of cooking and taking care of their homes and children and whatnot. And I really think that's great...as long as it's their choice and it's what they want, without feeling like their gender predetermines their fate. However, I don't have these traditional "female" inclinations in the slightest. That's not to say that someday I won't want to have a family of my own, but right now I don't exactly have the burning sensation, so to speak. I hate to cook, I mean really hate it. I've had to cook a lot more than usual lately since my mom's injury and I thought I might start to get a hankering for it...quite the contrary, actually. I dread having to cook when I get home from work and am tempted every night to just pick up a pizza. And I loathe cleaning (which I think is a little more normal than my other shortcomings) and really only do what is absolutely necessary. But the thing I have a little bit of a problem with is the assumption that I will have to do all this "housewife" stuff someday and, what's more, I will actually come to enjoy it.
Again, let me state that I don't think there's anything wrong with the stay-at-home wife and mother, if that's what a woman wants. However, there is a general understanding that all women will eventually get this drive to take on the traditional role. I also get a little bit of a feeling that I'm viewed as a non-woman because I don't have these desires. I'm actually rather proud of my lack of domestic skills (as I've stated before). I probably have a bit of a chip on my shoulder, it's true, and I could be completely fabricating these "slights." Nevertheless, I don't want to be made to feel like less of a woman just because I don't like to cook and don't like to clean and maybe I'll never get married or have children. Those things are not automatic when you are assigned female genitalia. In fact, I love sports, both playing and watching (mostly watching these days), I know quite a bit about cars, I'm fascinated by history and zombies and other seemingly non-feminine things. I also love to shop, have an unhealthy attachment to Coach bags, and could give Imelda Marcos a run for her shoe money. All these qualities make me me and I'm more comfortable with myself now than I've ever been before. I enjoy being a girl!
Now let me be honest...I really do hope that someday I will find a man that I love and want to share my life with. I think that, one day, I will want to have children also. And I know that, when this happens, I'm going to have to, if not change, at least soften my view of stereotypical womanhood. I also know that, in the right situation, I will enjoy cooking and cleaning and taking care of my family because it will be what I want to do. So, right now, I'm a semi-feminist, I guess. I like girly things as well as manly things and that's the way I'm supposed to be.
Happy International Women's Day!!!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
On a day like today...kids stuff
That's sort of a cryptic title (which I hate) but I couldn't think of anything better. Since it's all in the 30's and raining and sleeting (it was in the 50's yesterday and supposed to be back in the 50's tomorrow...what the what?!), I've hunkered down and decided to not brave the elements for any reason. Did go to the grocery store, which was necessary, but nothing else is really vital so no use going out in such cruddy conditions. Filed my and M & D's tax returns, so there's one good thing about lousy weather: it makes you do the crap you hate doing when it's remotely nice outside.
So back to the title, I was thinking about what I could write about next and thought I could share some of the silly things I did and thought when I was a kid. I guess we all have childhood memories like this but, for some reason, we don't often talk about them (or at least I don't). They don't really fit into normal conversation, I guess. Anyway, don't know what exactly made me think of these moments but they are kind of unusual and I'm also wondering if anyone else had similar experiences...
My favorite show when I was little was "I Love Lucy." I still love Lucy but it's not my favorite show anymore; still in my top 10 though. Anyway, I think it must have been the only older TV show that I watched or paid attention to because the fact that it was black and white struck me as odd. It looked different than anything else I watched. So I surmised that, because it was an older show, the world must have been different back in the 1950's. That is, the world must have been in black and white too. Yeah, I thought the people, places, and things were without color and existed in varying shades of black, white, and gray. One thing I didn't understand, though, was why Ricky and the others were always talking about Lucy's red hair. As far as I could tell, her hair was sort of a medium gray, darker than Ethel's but lighter than Ricky's; Fred didn't have hair so he didn't count. It never really occurred to me that this didn't make sense; the analytical skills of a 5 or 6-year-old are not very developed. I don't remember when I discovered that the Ricardos did not, in fact, exist in a black-and-white universe. I also don't remember if/when it dawned on me that I used to believe this; I imagine it wasn't some "epiphany" moment though because I feel like that would have stuck with me.
So back to the title, I was thinking about what I could write about next and thought I could share some of the silly things I did and thought when I was a kid. I guess we all have childhood memories like this but, for some reason, we don't often talk about them (or at least I don't). They don't really fit into normal conversation, I guess. Anyway, don't know what exactly made me think of these moments but they are kind of unusual and I'm also wondering if anyone else had similar experiences...
My favorite show when I was little was "I Love Lucy." I still love Lucy but it's not my favorite show anymore; still in my top 10 though. Anyway, I think it must have been the only older TV show that I watched or paid attention to because the fact that it was black and white struck me as odd. It looked different than anything else I watched. So I surmised that, because it was an older show, the world must have been different back in the 1950's. That is, the world must have been in black and white too. Yeah, I thought the people, places, and things were without color and existed in varying shades of black, white, and gray. One thing I didn't understand, though, was why Ricky and the others were always talking about Lucy's red hair. As far as I could tell, her hair was sort of a medium gray, darker than Ethel's but lighter than Ricky's; Fred didn't have hair so he didn't count. It never really occurred to me that this didn't make sense; the analytical skills of a 5 or 6-year-old are not very developed. I don't remember when I discovered that the Ricardos did not, in fact, exist in a black-and-white universe. I also don't remember if/when it dawned on me that I used to believe this; I imagine it wasn't some "epiphany" moment though because I feel like that would have stuck with me.
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| Lucy and Ricky, courtesy of http://www.tvsquad.com/ |
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| Lucy and Ricky, as they existed in my child-mind, courtesy of kinescopehd.blogspot.com |
Like all kids, I loved stuffed animals and dolls and I remember some of the ones I had distinctly. I had a white tiger with black stripes that was my sleep companion for many years. I had a blonde Cabbage Patch Doll named Roxie. I also remember going to the store (usually Hills') and picking out said stuffed animals and dolls. Walking down those aisles and perusing the selection, I couldn't help but notice that the less attractive or "cute" animals were larger in number. I supposed that, because they weren't as aesthetically pleasing, other children didn't want them either. That made me rather sad. I thought of these poor, lonely animals who were doomed to be eternally stuck on those shelves and would never have children to hold them and love them. Clearly, I was a kid with an overdeveloped sense of empathy. So, every now and then, I would sacrifice my love of a really cute doll or animal and give one of those ugly ones a lucky break. The only one I can remember specifically is a blue teddy bear. It was kind of small and plain, I guess, but it looked sad, so I threw it a bone, so to speak.
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| My friend looked a little like this, but without the white bow. Courtesy of http://www.myblankeeinc.com/ |
I don't know whatever became of my blue bear, but I assume, since me and my parents never get rid of anything, it's probably still in my old bedroom, perhaps in the toy chest. I'm not really pining for him though. I would be more inclined to find the white tiger with the black stripes. That was a good lookin' animal!
That's enough for now...later gators!
Thursday, March 3, 2011
The best trip ever!
I find myself really needing a vacation lately. My big wish is to go somewhere where the water is blue. I love me some Myrtle Beach, but the water's a little murky. However, murky ocean water is better than no ocean water at all, so I'm perfectly happy with it when I get there. I would just like to see some gorgeous, clean, blue water in the not-too-distant future. We'll see how that pans out. Anyway, since I can't go on any vacations anytime soon, I will just have to relive an old one in my imagination...
I can't believe it's been over 2 years since I went to Nashville with Heather, Stephanie, and Jamie. I have to say that particular trip was the best one I've ever been on. Going to a really cool place with the greatest friends is just better than anything. The whole thing started, oddly enough, with my love of all things Dixie Carter. I happened to find out that she and Hal Holbrook were going to be doing a reading of "Tom Sawyer" at her namesake theater in Huntingdon, TN, her hometown. I also happened to realize that it would probably be my best opportunity to get to see Miss Dixie (ended up being the only opportunity, unfortunately). So I sent a feeler email to Heather, taking total advantage of the fact that she lived and worked in Nashville for 8 years, basically saying that it would be awesome if we could go to Nashville with a group of girls and she could show us around the cool spots in Nashville and, while we were in Tennessee, we could just swing by ol' Huntingdon (2 hours away) where, WHAT A COINCIDENCE, Dixie Carter is going to make an appearance! In fact, we would be frickin' idiots if we didn't take this trip, right? Well, lucky for me, Heather was totally up for it and I sent another email out to see if Stephanie might want to go as well. She was game and she asked if Jamie could come too (at the time, we didn't know Jamie too well, though we had hung out and liked her a lot). So in November 2008, we were going to Nashville for about 4 days for girl time...awesome!
Ok, I'm not going to break down the entire trip here because it would take a really long time, but I'll try to bring up the best parts. First off, we got to stay with an old friend of Heather's for free. And I was really grateful just to have a place to stay (because I'm all about free) but this townhouse we stayed in was ah-mazing! And Amanda (our hostess) was so cool and sweet.
We went to the Opryland Hotel, which had all its Christmas decorations up...very beautiful. We went to some of Heather's old haunts, including Bosco's, The Stage on Broadway, and a little diner that I can't remember the name of but they had great milkshakes.
Heather, having worked in the country music industry, knew where some famous musicians lived in and around Nashville, so we drove by them, slowed down, and gawked. We saw Dolly Parton's house and Alan Jackson's (where Stephanie went up to the gate and claimed her devotion to Alan through a speaker in the gate, even though she didn't even know how to spell his name). Then on our last day, we took the 2-hour drive to Huntingdon to see Dixie and Hal. I wish more than anything that I could have taken pictures during the show because Dixie and Hal were so adorable and she was gorgeous and sweet and all good things. However, I did get to take a few pictures of the theater and its museum (that is, until my stupid camera battery went dead).
I was kinda upset afterward because I had expected to meet Dixie in person after the show but she wasn't able to do the usual meet-and-greet because she was going through chemotherapy. But after talking to my Dixie friend Debbi, I felt better and realized I was pretty lucky just to see her at all (and from the second row yet!).
Sadly we had to head home the next day but it was such a wonderful trip. I'm glad the beginning of the trip, with Jamie getting carsick and having to pull off to a rest stop in Rural Retreat, didn't jinx the rest of the excursion. We got to know Jamie much better and see what a sweet and lovely person she is. We got to see what a wonderful city Nashville is from the insider perspective. We got to see the awesomeness that is Ms. Dixie Carter. It was just about a perfect trip...I say "just about" because I'm sure there was something that maybe bugged me or went slightly wrong at the time, but I can't remember anything bad about it now.
The 4 of us have talked about going back to Nashville sometime and I would love to, but I swear I don't see how it could live up to the incredible experience we had the first time. Nevertheless, I'd still like to give it a chance. Or we could go to one of those tropical, blue-water places...either one would be fine with me, I'm not choosy. :)
I can't believe it's been over 2 years since I went to Nashville with Heather, Stephanie, and Jamie. I have to say that particular trip was the best one I've ever been on. Going to a really cool place with the greatest friends is just better than anything. The whole thing started, oddly enough, with my love of all things Dixie Carter. I happened to find out that she and Hal Holbrook were going to be doing a reading of "Tom Sawyer" at her namesake theater in Huntingdon, TN, her hometown. I also happened to realize that it would probably be my best opportunity to get to see Miss Dixie (ended up being the only opportunity, unfortunately). So I sent a feeler email to Heather, taking total advantage of the fact that she lived and worked in Nashville for 8 years, basically saying that it would be awesome if we could go to Nashville with a group of girls and she could show us around the cool spots in Nashville and, while we were in Tennessee, we could just swing by ol' Huntingdon (2 hours away) where, WHAT A COINCIDENCE, Dixie Carter is going to make an appearance! In fact, we would be frickin' idiots if we didn't take this trip, right? Well, lucky for me, Heather was totally up for it and I sent another email out to see if Stephanie might want to go as well. She was game and she asked if Jamie could come too (at the time, we didn't know Jamie too well, though we had hung out and liked her a lot). So in November 2008, we were going to Nashville for about 4 days for girl time...awesome!
Ok, I'm not going to break down the entire trip here because it would take a really long time, but I'll try to bring up the best parts. First off, we got to stay with an old friend of Heather's for free. And I was really grateful just to have a place to stay (because I'm all about free) but this townhouse we stayed in was ah-mazing! And Amanda (our hostess) was so cool and sweet.
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| View from upstairs...I mean, seriously, isn't this place stunning? |
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| Great band playing at The Stage |
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| At Bosco's |
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| A poster from a play Dixie performed and some of her old costumes |
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| Stephanie took this picture so my reflection in the mirror would make it look like I was actually part of the Dixie/Hal world |
Sadly we had to head home the next day but it was such a wonderful trip. I'm glad the beginning of the trip, with Jamie getting carsick and having to pull off to a rest stop in Rural Retreat, didn't jinx the rest of the excursion. We got to know Jamie much better and see what a sweet and lovely person she is. We got to see what a wonderful city Nashville is from the insider perspective. We got to see the awesomeness that is Ms. Dixie Carter. It was just about a perfect trip...I say "just about" because I'm sure there was something that maybe bugged me or went slightly wrong at the time, but I can't remember anything bad about it now.
The 4 of us have talked about going back to Nashville sometime and I would love to, but I swear I don't see how it could live up to the incredible experience we had the first time. Nevertheless, I'd still like to give it a chance. Or we could go to one of those tropical, blue-water places...either one would be fine with me, I'm not choosy. :)
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
My Not-So-Secret Shame
Okay, it's not really a secret, at least to my friends and family. I am a huge fan of old movies and old movie stars. Among my favorites are some of the most famous ones, people like Audrey Hepburn, Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, Paul Newman, and so on. However, I also like a lot of the lesser-known actors from that era. I have a tendency to form these sorts of mini-obsessions sometimes (Dixie Carter, anyone?) where I'll try to find as many of one actor's work as possible (movies, TV shows, etc.) and I'll read biographies and articles and whatever I can find that may have been written by or about that particular actor. Like I said, I'm a little obsessive, but it's been relatively harmless so far :) Anyway, my current "crush" is on Burgess Meredith. He is probably best known as Mickey, the trainer from the "Rocky" movies and as the oldest of the "Grumpy Old Men" in those movies. He was also The Penguin in the 1960's "Batman" TV show, which is hysterical! Anyway, there's not any particular rhyme or reason to who I start to get interested in, though (like I said), I do sometimes tend to gravitate toward the offbeat ones. Burgess Meredith certainly falls into that category. He could (and did) play pretty much any kind of role. He did comedy, drama, horror, the works! And, I have to say, he was pretty darned cute when he was young. A movie that I absolutely love right now is "Tom, Dick, and Harry," an old Ginger Rogers movie. Basically, she has to choose from three different suitors (hence the title) and Burgess is the quirky one who doesn't make a lot of money but definitely has a great outlook on life. He is adorable and (spoiler alert!) she ends up choosing him in the end...smart girl.
I've read Burgess' autobiography and it turns out he was quite the ladies' man in real life. He was married to Paulette Goddard, one of the most beautiful actresses from the 1930's and 40's, and his 4th wife (yes, he was married four times) was a Swedish ballerina half his age who had been on the cover of Life magazine...I saw the cover and, seriously, she was like a supermodel! He also had affairs with Marlene Dietrich, Hedy Lamarr, Ingrid Bergman, Lauren Bacall (not confirmed but sort of hinted at), Tallulah Bankhead, just to name a few. And if you know anything about the actresses I've mentioned, you'll understand that that's quite an impressive roster. To look at him, you wouldn't think that the ladies would be clamoring for him. Physically, he's not unattractive, but he's not exactly a heartthrob either. He's kind of on the short side too. Nevertheless, the more you see him on film and hear his voice, you begin to understand a bit better why he might have been so popular.
Some of the best work he did (in my opinion and of what I've seen) is in "The Twilight Zone." He appeared on the show four times and, in each episode, he plays a completely different type of character. In his most famous appearance, he plays a sort of timid fellow works in a bank and is continually ridiculed by his wife and boss for his love of books. They won't ever let him alone and can't understand why he's so bookish. One day, he goes into the bank vault on his lunch break to read and, while he's in there, there's a nuclear holocaust that basically wipes out the entire population of the world. Turns out he's the only survivor. At first, he's horrified that he's the last person left on Earth; however, he does some exploring and finds himself on the steps of a library and all the books he can ever read are among the rubble (yeah, a nuclear bomb blew up buildings and pretty much decimated all of mankind, but those darn books were made of excellent paper!). Finally, he's got his wish; he's got all the time in the world, plus supplies like food and such, to do the reading he could never do before. Then, in a hilarious and tragic twist, his glasses fall on the steps and break. He's virtually blind without them so, again, fate has played an especially cruel hand. It's really amazing and I highly recommend anyone check it out if they've never seen it before.
The episode I like the best is called "Printer's Devil" and he plays, you guessed it, the Devil! He is charming and sinister and quite lecherous (maybe employing some of his real-life skills...anyway...) toward the ladies he comes across. Again, these two episodes (the first and the last that he did) show the breadth of his talent. These two characters couldn't be more different and he's absolutely believable and wonderful in both. If you're interested, you can find all four of these Twilight Zone shows on YouTube. They are: "Time Enough at Last", "Mr. Dingle, the Strong," "The Obsolete Man," and "Printer's Devil."
I've probably written quite enough about Burgess Meredith (and maybe more than any single person besides me would ever want to read) but it may illuminate some more about me as well. Just one of my pasttimes that I like to share. I'll close with some pictures...
Here's Burgess as a young heartbreaker
Here's Burgess and his third wife, the gorgeous Paulette Goddard
Burgess as that waddling master of foul play, The Penguin
Mickey, the old trainer in "Rocky"
And, finally,Burgess and Jack Lemmon in "Grumpy Old Men"
Sorry this one was a bit long, but occasionally I can't get my fingers to quit typing, haha! I'm off to bed now...til tomorrow, goodnight to all!
I've read Burgess' autobiography and it turns out he was quite the ladies' man in real life. He was married to Paulette Goddard, one of the most beautiful actresses from the 1930's and 40's, and his 4th wife (yes, he was married four times) was a Swedish ballerina half his age who had been on the cover of Life magazine...I saw the cover and, seriously, she was like a supermodel! He also had affairs with Marlene Dietrich, Hedy Lamarr, Ingrid Bergman, Lauren Bacall (not confirmed but sort of hinted at), Tallulah Bankhead, just to name a few. And if you know anything about the actresses I've mentioned, you'll understand that that's quite an impressive roster. To look at him, you wouldn't think that the ladies would be clamoring for him. Physically, he's not unattractive, but he's not exactly a heartthrob either. He's kind of on the short side too. Nevertheless, the more you see him on film and hear his voice, you begin to understand a bit better why he might have been so popular.
Some of the best work he did (in my opinion and of what I've seen) is in "The Twilight Zone." He appeared on the show four times and, in each episode, he plays a completely different type of character. In his most famous appearance, he plays a sort of timid fellow works in a bank and is continually ridiculed by his wife and boss for his love of books. They won't ever let him alone and can't understand why he's so bookish. One day, he goes into the bank vault on his lunch break to read and, while he's in there, there's a nuclear holocaust that basically wipes out the entire population of the world. Turns out he's the only survivor. At first, he's horrified that he's the last person left on Earth; however, he does some exploring and finds himself on the steps of a library and all the books he can ever read are among the rubble (yeah, a nuclear bomb blew up buildings and pretty much decimated all of mankind, but those darn books were made of excellent paper!). Finally, he's got his wish; he's got all the time in the world, plus supplies like food and such, to do the reading he could never do before. Then, in a hilarious and tragic twist, his glasses fall on the steps and break. He's virtually blind without them so, again, fate has played an especially cruel hand. It's really amazing and I highly recommend anyone check it out if they've never seen it before.
The episode I like the best is called "Printer's Devil" and he plays, you guessed it, the Devil! He is charming and sinister and quite lecherous (maybe employing some of his real-life skills...anyway...) toward the ladies he comes across. Again, these two episodes (the first and the last that he did) show the breadth of his talent. These two characters couldn't be more different and he's absolutely believable and wonderful in both. If you're interested, you can find all four of these Twilight Zone shows on YouTube. They are: "Time Enough at Last", "Mr. Dingle, the Strong," "The Obsolete Man," and "Printer's Devil."
I've probably written quite enough about Burgess Meredith (and maybe more than any single person besides me would ever want to read) but it may illuminate some more about me as well. Just one of my pasttimes that I like to share. I'll close with some pictures...
Here's Burgess as a young heartbreaker
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| courtesy of http://www.juggle.com/ |
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| Courtesy of life.com |
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| Courtesy of flickr.com |
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| Courtesy of mediagallery.usatoday.com |
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| Courtesy of http://www.thefancarpet.com/ |
Budget Reconciliation, A.K.A. The Ninth Circle of Hell
Hello again!
Well, today is the day that I dread every month...the day I work on reconciling the budget for the center where I work. As anyone who knows me even remotely well can tell you, I'm terrible at math and I despise it also. It's different from science, which I'm also not good at but at least find some aspects of it interesting. I really don't care anything about math. I know that it has to exist, though. I'm just glad that other people can take care of it. The feeling is mutual, apparently, because ol' Math hasn't been the kindest to me over the years, either. The worst grades I ever got in high school were in Algebra II, which I passed with a D, by the grace of God and Mrs. Kreye. I actually don't see how I even passed because I got an F on literally every single assignment from the midterm exam on. Every test, every small assignment, the final, EVERYTHING. I really believe that Mrs. Kreye gave me the pass because she somewhat liked me and (more likely) because she didn't want to teach my dumb, math-denying ass again. It certainly wasn't mathematically possible that I got anything above a 59 average for the year...but then again, how the heck would I know what's mathematically possible??
Anyway, I look forward to the beginning of every month the same way I look forward to a Pap smear (sorry for the sick reference, but it's the closest I could get to the feeling). Every time I think I get it right, I get asked some question by my boss and I struggle for the answer, which makes it seem as if I don't know what I'm doing (and it seems that way because it's true). I feel like I'm never going to get the hang of it...after all, I've been working here for over a year and I still have about the same amount of trouble as I did in the beginning. It is the one aspect of my job that really makes me want to find something else. In fact, I usually go through a frenzy of job searching around this time every month...it usually only lasts a day or so, though, and then I kind of regain some reason. But it always comes right back the next time. And you know what my favorite day of the month is (as far as work goes)? The day after I complete the budget stuff for the month...because it's the longest amount of time between that day and when I have to do this crap again.
As most people who know me also know, I'm a Christian. I'm not a churchgoer but I believe in most of the general tenets of Christianity. I firmly believe in the traditional Heaven and Hell. However, I was thinking that, if each person had their own personal Hell, mine would be sitting at a desk, permanently doing budget reconciliations and other mathematical enterprises. I could never take a break and I would never be finished...that's enough to make me seriously renounce all the sinful things I've done and would ever do and immediately take up residence at the nearest convent.
Well, I should get back to it now...I think I'm just about done for this particular round of reconciling fun. Which is to say, I'll probably be working on it for another day or so.
Well, today is the day that I dread every month...the day I work on reconciling the budget for the center where I work. As anyone who knows me even remotely well can tell you, I'm terrible at math and I despise it also. It's different from science, which I'm also not good at but at least find some aspects of it interesting. I really don't care anything about math. I know that it has to exist, though. I'm just glad that other people can take care of it. The feeling is mutual, apparently, because ol' Math hasn't been the kindest to me over the years, either. The worst grades I ever got in high school were in Algebra II, which I passed with a D, by the grace of God and Mrs. Kreye. I actually don't see how I even passed because I got an F on literally every single assignment from the midterm exam on. Every test, every small assignment, the final, EVERYTHING. I really believe that Mrs. Kreye gave me the pass because she somewhat liked me and (more likely) because she didn't want to teach my dumb, math-denying ass again. It certainly wasn't mathematically possible that I got anything above a 59 average for the year...but then again, how the heck would I know what's mathematically possible??
Anyway, I look forward to the beginning of every month the same way I look forward to a Pap smear (sorry for the sick reference, but it's the closest I could get to the feeling). Every time I think I get it right, I get asked some question by my boss and I struggle for the answer, which makes it seem as if I don't know what I'm doing (and it seems that way because it's true). I feel like I'm never going to get the hang of it...after all, I've been working here for over a year and I still have about the same amount of trouble as I did in the beginning. It is the one aspect of my job that really makes me want to find something else. In fact, I usually go through a frenzy of job searching around this time every month...it usually only lasts a day or so, though, and then I kind of regain some reason. But it always comes right back the next time. And you know what my favorite day of the month is (as far as work goes)? The day after I complete the budget stuff for the month...because it's the longest amount of time between that day and when I have to do this crap again.
As most people who know me also know, I'm a Christian. I'm not a churchgoer but I believe in most of the general tenets of Christianity. I firmly believe in the traditional Heaven and Hell. However, I was thinking that, if each person had their own personal Hell, mine would be sitting at a desk, permanently doing budget reconciliations and other mathematical enterprises. I could never take a break and I would never be finished...that's enough to make me seriously renounce all the sinful things I've done and would ever do and immediately take up residence at the nearest convent.
Well, I should get back to it now...I think I'm just about done for this particular round of reconciling fun. Which is to say, I'll probably be working on it for another day or so.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
In the beginning...
Hello! If you're reading this, welcome to my world...or this section of it, anyway. I've been meaning to do this for a while, for various reasons. The main reason is that I wanted to have some kind of creative outlet, a place to express myself in writing. This is something I haven't really done since I graduated and it's been entirely too long. So now I'll explain myself a little bit...
The name of the blog was inspired by a Liz Phair album, "Exile in Guyville." And let me confess right here, I've never listened to this album or any individual song on it (that I know of); I just happened to know and like the name. Already, I'm exposing myself as kind of a poseur, but it had to be done. I'll probably be writing a lot about the movies and TV shows that I like because that's something I'm very passionate about and something I'd like to share. I may share some about what's going on in my life, but I feel like this is mostly going to be a place to share what's running through the old brain, however immature or arcane it may be. Eventually I'll probably add pictures and maybe snazz the place up a bit, but for now it's gonna be pretty bare bones. Be patient with me while I feel my way through this.
So, I guess I'll leave it at that for now. I'm already pretty excited about the potential for this blog. This is something I'm mainly doing for selfish reasons, but I sincerely hope that those who choose to read it will get something out of it (even if it's just a better understanding of my dork-like tendencies) and enjoy it. If you have anything you'd like me to write about or have any questions, PLEASE let me know. I'm going to need all the help I can get!
Til next time...
The name of the blog was inspired by a Liz Phair album, "Exile in Guyville." And let me confess right here, I've never listened to this album or any individual song on it (that I know of); I just happened to know and like the name. Already, I'm exposing myself as kind of a poseur, but it had to be done. I'll probably be writing a lot about the movies and TV shows that I like because that's something I'm very passionate about and something I'd like to share. I may share some about what's going on in my life, but I feel like this is mostly going to be a place to share what's running through the old brain, however immature or arcane it may be. Eventually I'll probably add pictures and maybe snazz the place up a bit, but for now it's gonna be pretty bare bones. Be patient with me while I feel my way through this.
So, I guess I'll leave it at that for now. I'm already pretty excited about the potential for this blog. This is something I'm mainly doing for selfish reasons, but I sincerely hope that those who choose to read it will get something out of it (even if it's just a better understanding of my dork-like tendencies) and enjoy it. If you have anything you'd like me to write about or have any questions, PLEASE let me know. I'm going to need all the help I can get!
Til next time...
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