For God's Sake: NEVER BUY A JETTA

For those of you that know me, my car serves as an endless string of headaches for me, my brother and my parents and tonight, it was a migraine.

I was hurrying up with a TON of errands I needed to do after work: change into soccer-playing clothes for practice, pick up/drop off dry cleaning, fix my broken tail light and buy new black pumps (my heel broke off...long story, another post). Then, I was off to drop off some paperwork at the Pi Beta Phi house. When I jumped back on my car ready to speed off to soccer practice, it came as a huge and rather annoying surprise to find that my car would not come out of park. Mind you, this has happened to me before, so despite my calm curses, I started and restarted the engine to see if I could get it to work. Then, I panicked and called my dad.

Thank God for dad and the crank flashlight he gave me in my stocking last year. He talked me through how he had fixed my brother's Jetta last time when it did the same thing, but no such luck. And because I am a stupid girl, my brother's roommate, Isaac, came to my rescue and tried to fix it as well. Turns out we aren't mechanics and it is now still in the Pi Phi parking lot, where it will remain until my knight in shining armor brother brings me his truck in the morning to take care of the issue and get my car towed to the dealership, where I will tell the man that sold me the car to shove it where the sun doesn't shine.

Let's Play "One of These Things Doesn't Belong"

Drinking at the neighbor's house, where I am affectionately known as "The Neighbor."


Things I am loving at the moment:
The new Alicia Keys album
Snowboarding THIS WEEKEND!
Sunday matinees
Having a clean bathroom
My raise at work!

Not loving:
Having to write an essay for a class I HAVEN'T EVEN BEEN TO YET
Working without my Anela
Being broke because I can't seem to get a handle on the finances
Not having much time to run anymore
Realizing I will have to get up early to run every day (see above)

I am...

I love celebrity gossip almost as much as I love politics.
I have an irrational fear of bad things happening to the people I love.
I fear the dentist.
I can’t stand it when people leave things messy, but it’s acceptable if I leave things a mess.
I want a puppy so bad I can cry.
I judge guys on their grammar, spelling and punctuation.
I am afraid of ending up alone.
I want to lose 20 pounds, but I refuse to give up ice cream, beer or French fries.
I believe in God, but I dislike organized religion.
I feel like a dork because I love puzzles, board games and bowling (but they all make me happy).
I love to travel, but I rarely have the money to do so.
I'm scared that I'm not good enough for the guys I think are great, and that the guys that want me aren't good enough for me.
I can’t cook. Not even a little.
I only sleep on one side of the bed, even though I sleep alone.
There is a stack of books on my nightstand that I have started, but can’t seem to finish.
Sometimes I feel that I am too lazy to try for the things I want, but a lot of times, it’s just that I am too afraid of failing.
I buy books for the thrill of it.
I love being involved and busy; it makes me more productive.
There is one guy from my past that I regret breaking up with…and to this day, I think about what might have been.
I have an unreasonable addiction to America’s Next Top Model.
I can’t manage money, but I have cute shoes.
Christmas surpasses any other holiday except the Fourth of July (because of the family).
I am genuinely happy with my life and the opportunities I have been given.
I am anal retentive with everything but the paperwork that is stacked in my desk at home.
I organize my closet by color and/or style (jeans, slacks, khakis, skirts, dress shirt, “going out” shirts, etc.).
I can’t get enough water or eat enough cereal.
I listen to music and think about what it would be like to dance to at my wedding.
I wish I were more creative or played the guitar.
I will live in D.C. someday.

Better Late Than Never

"The only normal people on that show are the guys," he said.

"No way...that's stupid," I said. "They are all messed up."

"No, the girls are messed up."

"What about Sloan? He is crazy."

"No--he's normal...all guys are like that."

That was the extent of my conversation the other night about the latest (and last) installment of what I like to call the "World's Greatest Show." I am personally invested, so I take all statements and/or discussions very seriously, so when my good friend made a statement like that, I wanted to know why. He tried to explain it, but I wasn't having it. Turns out--I was wrong.

I watched last week's show tonight and I have discovered that this is an accurate statement...the guys on Grey's Anatomy are the normal ones.

Take McDreamy, for example. He just wants to be loved. He is like any guy "at a certain time" in his life, who wants the wife, the kids, the white picket fence...but has chosen a "damaged" woman who has never had the normal, everyday kind of life. That's why he is finally starting to realize that Meredith is not what he is looking for...and to be honest--thank God--I am sick and tired of the "we're together" "we're not together" bullshit that has been occurring more and more frequently. I mean, come on...they were together a day! (Which, by the way, felt more like an eternity because there was such a huge time lapse since the last episode.)

Then there is Mark Sloan...the hottest man alive. And he knows it. And he is completely normal. Play hard to get, the guys just want you more...so well played, Dr. Hahn. Make him beg.

Alex is probably one of the more complicated-normal ones...the one with a dark childhood (which I think they will develop further later--when the writers are done striking)...but who still has a heart for his patients and for Izzy.

George is a pansy. He is the typical guy...lost, sullen, like a whiny baby. So he might be the closest to normal on the entire show. Suck it up...your marriage is over, you are a failure and you keep getting less and less attractive as the season goes on. Pull yourself up and give us more of that "George" we know and love. Maybe some tequila and women would do you good.

Ethical Dilemma

So where does the "stranger" code end and the "just being a good person" code begin?

I faced this dilemma last night as I was taking my short 30-minute break at the bookstore last night. Like so many nights before, I grabbed my purse from the back, yanked off my name tag and ventured out into the mall to grab a bite at Chik-fil-A...because really...where else do you eat in the mall?

I walked up to find a short line and thought to myself, "What luck!" I was waiting a short time and observed the high school-age girl behind the counter being overly loud and obnoxious, claiming that her friend who was working with her was "not paying attention" to her. She proceeded to complain in this overly whiny, "I am acting like a damn child" kind of way, which promptly caused what I like to call my "eye-rolling" reflex. I thought to myself, "Where do people learn their customer service skills?" Clearly, she hadn't been taught to only pay attention to the customer, smile, be courteous or anything...you know, all of those things that people in customer service positions learn through default, by having to deal everyday with people who treat them like second class citizens or as their own personal shoppers and "go-getters."

I ordered a small box of nuggets, she typed this into the computer and did not even make eye contact with me. I said the standard "Thank You" and she didn't look up at me even then. As I waited for her to hand me my bag of chicken, I looked down and noticed her fly was down. I kind of laughed to myself and proceeded to listen to her go on and on with her friend about what they had done the night before. I thanked the Karma gods as she handed me my bag of food, I said thank you and she went back to her story with her coworker.

I thought to myself about telling her and saving her the embarrassment of walking around for the rest of the night with her fly down, but after asking myself the question of where the "stranger" code ends...I decided that she didn't treat me with enough of the "just being a good person" code for me to do the same.

I walked away, still chuckling, and thinking about how Karma might come to bite me in the ass for this...but what the hell? Chalk it up to a lesson in customer service that she won't forget.

Juno

Yes, it's true...this flick is one of the best of the year. Granted, it is only January 6, but who's counting?

While I did not know quite how to explain this movie to friends who asked me what it was about; and I didn't know what to expect as I walked into the theater, I soon found myself laughing out loud to the witty humor riddled throughout the production. Ellen Page is quick, comical and really, really convincing as a girl who "was bored" and decided to have sex with her non-boyfriend, Michael Cera, a Tic Tac eating dork, who runs and is not seen without a gold headband and short running shorts.

All I will say from here is that it is a must-see...if not for the hilarity, than for the warm feeling it gives you when you watch the really good ending. That's all. Peace out, friends!

New Year's Resolutions

This is the year. I feel it.

1. Keep in touch with real, good friends
2. Be more spontaneous
3. Enjoy the day-to-day of life
4. Be happier (as a general rule)
5. Be more frugal
6. Pay down my debt

Help me keep them, friends (and family)!

Happy New Year!