the most wonderful...

i don't really know if it's the most wonderful time of the year. don't get me wrong, i love a month of parties followed by christmas and my birthday in the same week. but i tend to think that anytime you can spend with the ones you love is the most wonderful time, so i guess i'm pretty lucky that that happens more than once a year.

of course, there are the presents. and i do love getting presents, but i really, truly, not kidding at all, prefer to give them. we did christmas a little different this year- not all the cousins exchanged (all whopping 4 of us) and the aunts/uncles didn't exchange with the nieces/nephews. everyone saved money, but i wanted to buy more stuff for people! hopefully, we'll all be gainfully employed next year and can go back to wanton expressions of selflessness.

remember when i mentioned that i love getting presents? it's the thought that counts. and it's really the quality of the thought that really counts (which is not to say that i don't appreciate the bottles of lotion from coworkers, but you know...) this year i got two of the most thoughtful gifts i've ever received, from someone who has really grown into one of the most thoughtful people i've ever met. my dear baby sister, formerly known as bratty maddie, not only got me one supremely badass batman hoodie, but also made me a ginormous scrapbook of us growing up through the years and the rest of our family. she wanted me to know how much she loves me and will miss me and make sure i had something to help me when i get homesick far away.

some of my haircuts may have been atrocious, but this book is really wonderful.

all i want for christmas is...

the following. any by "all i want for christmas" i mean "all i want on ebay or in a store in this time zone." it's a tad late for christmas wishes, i realize.

LOTDK - annual #5
Batman & Robin - issues 2 and 9 and on and on
Crime Bible - issues 3-5
Four Horsemen - issues 5 and 6
Amazons Attack! - the whole shebang
Wedding Special - all the wedded bliss

and, even more importantly than feeding my comic craving, i hope each and every one of you and yours has a fantastic holiday. enjoy!

and the winner goes to...

this is the time of year when everyone gives their top ten lists and year in reviews. so i'm told. i don't pay much attention to really know if that's true or not. but i felt like doing my own - just in case! you know how i hate feeling left out.

• least favorite month - june. that month was just a bad idea.
• favorite month - august. so much fun was had!
• favorite shoe store - akira. it sounds like an awesome japanime movie and has awesome shoes.
  
• least favorite place to go on vacation - DC. but they keep one of my favorite people there so i'll be back.
• favorite place to go on vacation - my apartment. or chicago. it really depends on whether or not i feel like being deathly ill the week after.
• worst reason to move to chicago - to win a bet. don't worry, i won't actually make you pay me the $10.
• best quote to give if you were actually going to collect on a debt - "i want my money, bitch!" i heart you pearl.
• best reason to move to chiacgo - umm, go there. and then write your own list.
• best double-edged comment i've ever received - "you look really nice tonight. cause ya know, you're normally slutting it up but tonight you look good." i heart you jess.
• favorite mythical creature to be compared to - mermaids. they have a six second attention span and a love of shiny objects.
• most unexpected compliment - that my sports commentary was uncrappy. who knew?!
  
• most traumatic thing that happened to me that i'm willing to post in a public forum - the loss of my hat. i'll never forget you.
• person most likely to render google unnecessary - bob "i'm cutting you off for your own good" g.
• favorite movie to watch in 2007 - "batman begins."
• favorite movie to watch in 2007 that was actually released in 2007 - "superbad." it was supergood!
• best new thing i did this year - go to a comic book convention. how have i never done that before?!
• favorite thing to do at work that doesn't involve working - looking for new work. it's the thing to do.
• favorite comic book title - robin. took me by surprize too.
• comic book title i wish i would have read but i can't find anywhere in buffalo - the wedding planner. comic book heroes get married! what's not to love?!

i think that's a wrap!

that was unexpected

i had to go to the bank today. i forgot that i didn't order more checks because i didn't know when i was going to be moving and then - whoops! - i ran out. i was expecting this to be a terrible experience. full of pain and hatred. instead, it was really nice! the teller was cheerful and pleasant and gave me a bunch of "counter checks," which work like the real thing, only they're not as pretty. she wished me a happy holiday season and i skipped off on my way - ability to pay rent in hand.

i was so elated, in fact, that i decided to boldly go where no one has ever gone before - the manuscript library museum. that place is AWESOME! it's got huge vaulted ceilings and all of these dramatic shadows - i really missed my camera. and it has some awesome letters, i'm sorry, manuscripts. napoleon, mary queen of scots, pope pius the something, al capone, dillinger, the boston strangler, lee harvey oswald... it was cool. you should go. i'll come too.

so, i think i'm going to send out some christmas cards. don't be offended, but probably only to family members. i, uh, think i may have put off the cards a bit too long to actually do the whole shebang. but don't worry, i'll still wishing you a Happy HanuRamaKwanzMas!

things i learned today, which is now technically yesterday

1. i should wear suits more often.
   
2. my last day at the roz is actually january 31.
3. hiring joan rivers impersonators is a lot more complicated than you might think.
   
4. that bottle of wine i bought at the 4th winery we visited is still really tasty even when you start off sober.
   
5. taking tomorrow (today) off is going to be such a great thing.
6. timothy olyphant has remarkable nipples. and by that, i mean it's impossible to not remark on how ludicrously large they are.
7. day-am, that's some good wine.
   

not what i had planned

i sorta pictured tonight to be a pretty easy going night, one where i would put my clothes away, chat on the phone, go to bed early. ya know, a lame night that's awesome at the same time. instead, my ceiling decided to leak. drip drip and then steady stream. thank god i was on the phone with a rational person who suggested that perhaps i stop staring at it and instead call my landlord. which i did. as soon as we were done talking.

so, i haven't unpacked yet. i mean, it's clear that i don't plan on staying here. but somehow, my landlord and his mom thought the place looked great, and that i'm really trying to find a job in buffalo (i look on occasion out of guilt). and then they asked if i might want to meet one of their other tenants who's in need of a roommate. umm, sure?

and now i'm jamming out to nickel creek (listen to "jealous of the moon" and "anthony" now. NOW!) laundry did get put away though.

season's greetings

I just can’t seem to get into the holiday spirit this year. I’ve got pretty dresses, snow, parties and warm holiday tidings, but it’s just not doing it for me. Which is probably why I did such a bang-up job planning the office holiday party. Whoops.

At any rate, there are at least two people who are in the holiday, or at least the nerd-each-day spirit. I was sent 2 awesome presents, which I’m sharing with you in the interest of holiday cheer. Enjoy!

The darkest Knight
The joke’s on you

With friends like these, who needs Google?!

does this taste ok to you?

the problem with being sick and congested is that everything tastes like crud, or, if you're lucky, like cardboard. the real problem with this is that you can't tell if it's your out of commission nose, or if the food really has taken a turn for the worse.

after 9 days of this i'm feeling much better and can breathe and smell again. the troubling part is i had some frozen pizza for lunch and it still tasted like yech. so, my sense of smell is either still jacked up, or i'm having a very delayed reaction to food poisoning. guess which one i'm hoping for.

time flies...

this is the time of year when most people are counting down the days until their birthday (20 for me) or the days until the birth of someone else (14 for jesus, 7 for a wookie, i do believe). i, however, am counting down how many days i have left to wear a roz ID badge. that'd be 12.

it's gonna be really flippin' wierd to no longer be an employee of good ol' RPCI after 6 years, 6 months, 23 days and 8 hours. on the other hand, it's really about damn time.

so, now i just need to answer the following question: what's scarier? moving to c-go without a job lined up or moving home to the 'burbs after 10 years.

i'm leaning towards the pretty city. if i'm going to broke, i might as well do it someplace fun. and if it doesn't work out, the 'burbs'll still be there.

finally, a plan i can follow through on

i want to send this guy money and have him make this a full movie.


and what the heck - these guys too. hopefully they'll make a sequel that has an ending.



so, i've been challenged to write a post that's only about sports and none of that feelings stuff. which i think is a great idea. what good has talking about feelings ever done? i'm pretty sure it's caused war, famine and global warming. but seriously, it's certainly not helping me find a job, figure out what i want out of life, or get my laundry done - so what's the point? from now on, it'll be nothing but facts on this here blog. nothing open to interpretation and certainly nothing emotional.

as far as i can tell, the sabres are doing not so good this year. 13 wins and 14 losses so they're just shy of doing adequately. at leas they're doing better than the leafs. canada may have the stronger dollar but we have the stronger team. w00t! but, if the last ten games are any indication of what the rest of the season holds, i think the sabres are really headed in the right direction. too early for me to say anything about the playoffs, but i'm sure if they keep skating buffalo will keep being proud.

alright, cut me some slack. i'm new at this.

we're going on an adventure, grungie

i have no idea why I’m so intent on finding a music genre that characterizes my personality. maybe it’s because it’s the only thing i have to do that even mildly exercises my brain, but none the less, i think i found one. it’s grunge. granted, i bathe daily and haven’t worn flannel in years, but i think grunge really sums up my penchant for stomping around and finding annoyance with everything due to my insurmountable levels of angst. plus, I’m so congested that no one can understand what I’m saying, so eddie veder and i are really kindred spirits. glad we got that one solved.

today was one of those days that just seemed to drag on forever. probably cause it was my last day as a secretary. people have asked me how i feel about that. the answer?

:)

except, you know, like more so. and right side up. so, as one does when they are a bored and under worked secretary (i will miss the under worked part, but not the bored part) i spent all afternoon emailing my bff. and then my bff and i decided to hang out when i got out of work, which just made the day seem even longer. so we go to dinner and engage in terribly inappropriate conversation and come back to my place so she can be terrified of my cat. my cat once ripped her finger open and now kelly will only enter my house whilst wearing gloves. that should be fun in the summer. at any rate, we decided we should go see a movie. “wanted” hasn’t come out yet which made me sad cause I really need something to get the awful taste of “hitman” out of my mouth. "awake" it was cause everything else wasn’t starting for another 364+6461 hours and i really wanted to see if anakin the mannequin learned how to act yet. and how! the movie was really good. subtle, yet entertaining with a twisty plot. the only problem is that whenever kelly and i watch movies together we always want to do whatever the lead characters do. like, when we saw "gone in 60 seconds" we wanted to be car thieves (yeah, i know) or when we saw "mission: impossible" we wanted to be secret agents. but it’s not like if we saw a dinosaur movie we’d want to be dinosaurs. at any rate, i can assure you, i do not want to be a victim of "anesthetic awareness." yep, you can count me out - just cause i like to tell each of you, with special attention to superfluous adjectives, what surgeons do to me does not mean i actually want to experience the superfluous adjectives. christ, where would be the fun in that?!

so, on the way home, we had to take a detour and the phrase "we’re going on an adventure" was uttered, which made me start talking in an inbred unicorn voice, which then meant that i had to drag kelly back inside to cower from my cat once more to watch charlie the unicorn. and pearl the landlord. i then released her so i could regale each of you with these wonderful tales.

hopefully, i'm still angsty enough for my blog to be entertaining - and for me to maintain my new label.

btw, these decongestants my doc gave me really work! and when he said they might make me hyper, he wasn't kidding. but it's gotta wear off soon, right?

they grow up so fast

i'm so proud of the humanist. it's like he's a real blogger now. almost brings a tear to my eye. i have to admit, he's doing much better at whining than i am at linking. i'm a failure when it comes to finding new websites. so, with that, i give you this. i find it hysterical. there are probably only three other people in the multi-verse who agree, but the rest of you should be able to tolerate it.

that mcginnis is a wiley one.

i went to a shmooze event tonight. it was way more fun than i expected it to be. but i don't know why i was surprized. i went with a good friend which is really all that's needed to make anything fun. granted, i've never been held at gunpoint or stuck in an elevator for days, but i'm sure even that would have comedic moments that could be laughed about years later after lots of therapy. at any rate, i was talking to the commander today about where she wants to hang out for her berfday. she wanted to go to a euro lounge. i was like, "oh year, we've got 17 of those on my block alone. are you kidding me?!" but i finally got her to understand - it doesn't matter where we go, it'll be a blast cause she'll be with a ton of good friends. but just to be safe, we're going to prespa at 9 PM on 12/22. i have a feeling the evening will involve lots of shots and good-natured teasing of jen, so swing by if you wanna join in. and don't forget to remind jen that for 9 days only she'll be 2 years older than me. man, she hates that so much.

emo-rific

no wonder i feel like crap. i have strepth throat and a sinus infection. there are two things terribly wrong with this, other than the two things i just mentioned.

1. everytime i go to chicago i get sick. and sicker every time i go. i don't care how many billboards say "we're glad you're here!" i'm really starting to think that city has it in for me. and i'm really starting to wonder if moving there is really the best idea. really.
   
2. despite the fever and the fact that it hurts to breathe, i almost went into work today. clearly, i'm way too used to being sick to have it be obvious to me when i should stay home. in the end, reason took hold and i went back to bed.
   

on the bright side - my dearest dream did come true! i got to spend all day in bed feeling sorry for myself. not as awesome as the season finale of "heroes," but still pretty awesome. i'd say i could rock emo with the best of them, except i really don't like emo that much. could we instead say i rock the monster ballads like no one else? at least then i won't have to cut my bangs diagonal.

battle cry

too much exposition you say? not enough youtube links? posting links is the easy part. i dare you to write soul-baring posts for a week straight and i'll post a link a day. whoever has the most corporate sponsors come next tuesday wins.

the goods, the bads and the wierd

while in c-go i got a fortune cookie that said "your dearest dream is coming true." i wish i could get a timeframe on that.

my birthday is in 27 days, which means that in 28 days this supremely ass-tastic year will be over. i know some consider it a bad idea, but i'm claiming january as my month. it'll be fun as heck!

i'm so exhausted i woke up this morning and wondered if it made me a worse person to go into work with only 64% brain functionality or to call in sick. i opted to drag myself in. i normally start to feel this way by friday, but the fact that i started feeling like this on a monday does not bode well for this week. especially since this is the first time since early october that i'm working a full 5 days in one week. it's a tough life, but i'm willing to take one for the team. i think what i really need to do is just eat a bunch of food to zap some life into my body and then spend as much time as humanly possible in my supercomfy bed which i missed so much and will never-ever spend a night away from again. unfortunately, i can't eat and sleep at the same time. well, i could try, but the humanist may get annoyed at my table manners then.

my cat was apparently stoned when i picked her up on sunday. this was kinda cool in that she was too baked to meow, but it's started to wear off. so while she's back to her meowing way, i'm glad she didn't suffer any permanent brain damage at the hands of my neighbors. she's still acting pretty mellow (for her) so maybe there are some lasting effects of the not totally terrible kind.

c-goians are wierd. they wear long-sleeve shirts, jeans and sneakers when it's 90 out, and no jackets when it's 30. some girls were even in skirts! i wanted to yell at them and ask them where their stockings were, but then i remembered i'm only 27 and should never use the word "stockings" in public. none the less, i was confuzzed, and not just from the brain freeze.

sellout

apparently winter is here. it happened right when i started looking for apts. this was conveniently after i had left wearing shoes with no traction. but do not fear! through a careful mastery of balance, shuffling, and looking pathetic until someone gave me an elbow to hold, i managed to not be the one who slipped on the ice. go me.

j.crew sent me a very merry gift guide. the second spread is all green things. i want them all. actually, i want the whole catalog, except for the stuff for men and kids, cause i'm a woman.

looking for a job is hard when you have a job. have i already compained about that? it just takes up a lot of time, or it would, if you weren't spending that time at work. i'll figure it out. i'll try calling my head hunter now and explaining very clearly the mysteries and joys of email.

speaking of the head hunter, he wants to know if i'm catholic. the archdiocese of chicago is hiring and they like their peeps to be catholic, although they will accept protestants. i'm having moral issues with this. mostly cause i'm in support of the things the church is against. am i a total sell out if i take the job (provided i get an interview) and keep my beliefs to myself and take my money and then spend it on sinful things like booze and women of ill-repute (i.e. myself and my friends)? what if i have sex and go to work the next day - will i burst into flames? or worse - what if i'm listening to "closer" by NIN on my iPod as i enter the office? i took communion as a maid of honor once and made the church lose power. this could be a dangerous job for me to have. i don't really know if worker's comp covers injuries caused by hedonism.

i'm telling ya, it's a scary world out there.

:(

i lost my hat.

took me by surprise

i go to c-go on tuesday and was homesick for b-lo on wednesday. considering the fact that i'm only here until sunday it was kinda weird. it's not like i moved here, but seeing as how this was the apt. hunting trip, maybe it was setting in. i saw some great apts. that i could really see myself living in, ones that i would actually take the time to unpack in and make a home, but, well, there's really no reason to do that just yet. still, it's nice to know the option exists, if the opportunity arrives.