The death of Facebook

As I'm sure no one has noticed, I decided to delete my facebook profile yesterday. It might have been a spontaneous decision on my part, but one I feel will pay off in the long run. As a person who sits behind their desk for 8 hours a day it was just too tempting. Work is busy again for me so I just didn't need the added distraction - besides, I already have a blog! I've now ridded myself of both Myspace and Facebook and I'm waiting for the world to end and for my friends to forget who I am.

Truthfully, I had a hard time ignoring certain comments, especially during the last few weeks. Don't ask me why I take these things to heart when they have nothing to do with me, but it happened. I found myself wanting to toss my monitor on the floor in a very aggressive manner. These traits are not becoming of a lady, so I did the next best thing...just deleted the darn thing. I'm going to miss out on connecting with that handful of people that I don't hear from regularly, but wish I did. I think there are certain things that are just better left pre-1999. So I hope no one forgets who I am and we can still connect via email, phone, text message, blog post or what the hell...in person.

I hope there will be more entertaining blog posts this week. We've really been taking a prolonged mental vacation! Next Tuesday we see the diva queen herself Madonna, so I'm sure we'll have some photos from our rooftop seats to post!

Rex

Look closely at the Tyrannosaurus Rex on the left of this picture.  If you recognize him you're already awesome in my book because you watched the totally brilliant Claymation Christmas as a child.  That's Rex the witty host...and you might notice something else....perhaps a slight resemblance to Lisa's inauguration date?

Amazing call Cil... 

Looking back, Looking forward

I was just reading an article on CNN about how most of the hotel rooms in D.C. are already completely booked for the Obama Inauguration (or as I like to call it "The Rapture"). The article instantly transported me back to a time of hopelessness and darkness. The year was 2005, the month January. It was a bitterly cold and snowy week in our nation's capital. I found myself standing on the lawn of the Capitol Building surrounded by thousands of screaming and cheering lunatics. No, I wasn't at a rock and roll show; I was at the Inauguration of George W. Bush. How does a bleeding heart liberal such as myself find themself at a Republican lovefest? Well, first of all I never say no to a party. Secondly, it was a chance to go undercover into the dark underbelly of the Republican Party. I wanted to see how Bush and his crew really operated. Questions flew through my mind: Could Rove pull off a killer party as well as he pulled off that killer campaign? Would Ashcroft serenade the crowd with "Let the Eagle Soar"?, would the Bush twins get so drunk that they appear in a Girls Gone Wild film? Serious questions need serious answers and I was prepared to find out the truth.

I had an invitation and a date. My dear college friend Kevin was working for Rep. Fred Upton at his D.C. office and asked me to fly down for the long weekend and experience history first hand. Not only did he have tickets to the actual Inauguration, he also had tickets to the Inaugural Ball! Thoughts of Cinderella and glass slippers raced through my mind -- I had never been to an actual Ball before! And a Republican Ball is still a Ball...just maybe a tad more conservative. The pressure was on to find the perfect ball gown. Kevin instructed me to purchase something long and extremely formal, so I knew that next to my wedding dress this was going to be the fanciest gown I ever wore. I was seeing sparkles and beads and satin and big poofy skirts! I was clearly on crack. I decided to purchase a large, satin, beaded, violet colored gown -- witness the photo.

I don't think I have to tell you that that dress in the dress bag weighed at least 10 pounds. I was wholly unprepared to lug that thing through two of the nation's busiest airports, onto a very small airplane and across the city lines to Virginia. The friendly flight attendant struggled for 10 minutes to fit the bag into the airplane closet to no avail. Finally, she relented and gave it back so I could prop it up on the empty seat next to me. The dress and I had a very comfortable flight and I was shocked to find it in one piece when I finally arrived at my destination in Alexandria. Kevin and I had a great time exploring Alexandria and D.C. for a couple days before the main event. It was actually incredibly cool to be there during a major historical event such as an Inauguration. I had a hard time shaking that creepy feeling that any large group of Republicans gives me, but after a couple days I was fitting right in. Rep. Fred Upton welcomed me into his offices and even gave me an autographed photo. Kevin took me on a really cool tour of the Rayburn House Office Building and the underground tunnel that connects it to the Senate building. We saw all the Senate offices and walked through the Library of Congress as well as the Senate Chamber. It was a whirlwind of American history. That night I went to bed early with plans to wake up before dawn so we could get the best spot on the Capitol lawn.

It was freezing and I was wearing a goofy hat, but nonetheless the Inauguration went on as planned. I might have been the only person in attendance who didn't brutily boo John Kerry as he was announced as a Senator to the crowd. At some point I think the temperature overtook my body and I completely froze standing up. All I remember of Bush's speech are the words "freedom" and "liberty" used over and over again. He could have been reciting the Pledge of Allegiance for an hour for all I know. Once that was over it was on to a private brunch for Fred Upton. Swanky food and swanky company followed by a few swanky mimosas. I tried to be a good Democrat and not act too excited as the day progressed, but I couldn't pretend not to be excited about my first real life Ball that evening. Back in Alexandria I must have spent two hours getting into the dress and doing my own hair (the horror!)...poor Kevin was ready to go in 10 minutes. Our car arrived and we headed to the National Museum of American History. I'll never forget the feeling of walking up those museum stairs, snow falling all around, and my giant violet ball gown swishing as I tried not to trip on it. It was a magical moment. Maybe the Republicans really weren't so bad after all. Maybe they really knew how to throw a party and maybe I was going to have the best night of my life! That's when I saw Donald Rumsfeld. The guest of honor was Rummy. I was suddenly snapped back from the brink of letting this whole conservative gala get to my head...reality came back into focus. I was there on a covert operation and the rest of the night must be spent snickering at all the greed and excess I was witnessing with my own two eyes. So what if I had 10 free top shelf drinks and a plate of shrimp cocktail so high I could barely see over it. I was sabotaging their party by drinking all of their booze! I did my best party frown during Rumsfeld's speech and tried hard not to shake my booty to the live band. It was an exercise in self control.

Looking back I realize how fortunate I was to attend a Presidential Inauguration, no matter who was being inaugurated. It was a fun-filled long weekend in D.C. and one that I'm sure I'll never forget. My only regret is that I can't relive the experience for a President that I actually voted for. Now that would be a party!

Diary of a Newlywed...my least favorite Fall activity

For all of us Michigander's and our faithful readers in Chicago and North Carolina, (dumb question but do you have trees with leaves that change colors in Southern Cali Iron Squirrel?) one can't help but notice the beautiful Fall weather we've had this year. Currently we're enjoying an unprecedented 68° for a Michigan November day and while it's about to end I've taken every opportunity to be outside and enjoy the gorgeous colors and warm weather. Fall brings many wonderful things like cider, donuts, Halloween, cozy sweaters and colorful walks one thing it results in is a lawn full of fallen leaves. The worst thing about Fall by far has to be the leaf clean-up and somehow we ended up with the worst lot in the entire sub for this task. Our house is almost at the end of a dead-end street and one half of our lot is lined with trees and bushes which act as a barrier to stop all the leaves that blow into our yard from the neighbors. Add this to the fact that we have several large trees of our own with big red leaves, (I don't even know what kind of trees they are but they're big leaves to rake!), and the result is a completely covered lawn, not even a blade of grass can be seen underneath all the damn leaves! So consider me a little overly cocky, and a lot under-prepared when I set out this past weekend with my trusty rake and a 4-pack of refuse bags to take care of the blanket of leaves. Our neighbor generously offered me her leaf-blower to which I said, "thanks but I could use the exercise and it should only take an hour or so." Cut to me panting, sweating, blistered and dirty three hours later with only half the lawn raked into 10 enormous piles. Fortunately my bags ran out after the first half hour so I couldn't finish and I figured surely Nick would help me bag them after all the raking I did. Cut to me waving goodbye to Nick 4 days later (last night, which was trash night), as he drove off to the AC/DC concert leaving me with 20 new empty leaf bags, 6 piles left to bag after he and Ressler helped me for 15 minutes (thanks Marc!!), and half a lawn left to rake. So when it was so dark that I couldn't find the rake I'd set on the ground I called it quits and realized sadly that I'd only finished bagging the already existing piles. I haven't even touched the back yard or the side of the house and I don't even want to start thinking about what I'll find in the gutters when I clean those out. I completely underestimated the amount of work this whole Fall cleanup thing would be and I'm really going to have to invest in a blower or landscaper to do it for us or this picture is totally going to be me in 5 years after all the wear and tear on my body!!

In case you haven't heard...

There isn't really anything I can add to the conversation and make it sound intelligent, so I'll just say that I'm happy. I think today I woke up a little less cynical and a little more hopeful. He has a huge weight on his shoulders and I can only hope that he can pull some of it off. Michigan really came through on the props...good news all around. Is it too much to ask that Prop 8 gets rejected too??

Our Halloween: As told to me by those who remember

It's Halloween party recap time! You might have noticed that we've been a tad quiet around here lately. First, an apology. We really have no excuse except for the fact that we might have killed most of our remaining brain cells on Friday night. I don't think it was any crazier than any other Halloween celebration we've had in the past 10 years, but there is one small detail this year that makes all the difference. We're all a year older! I am beginning to see the hangovers last well into the next day, if not the day after the next day. But that just means that Friday nights are the way to go and I can't feel guilty for remaining immobile all day Saturday. Small adjustments make all the difference. Oh and water water water.

Live at PJ's was our bar of choice for the second year in a row. It's not that we really love this place, it's just that none of the college kids that go here are smart enough to call in advance for a table. That means that we get the pickings of all the tables in the place, and this year we moved on up to VIP status with our corner lounge area. No more fighting that slutty nurse for a place to stand, we had our own couches (to stand on). When we got there at 9pm, my heart sank to see the place completely empty, but then I remembered that people in A2 don't party like us geriatrics in Plymouth. They come out at 11 (remember those college days?). Thankfully by 11, there was a sea of costumed revelers and the hot mess could truly begin. The next thing I know, we're eating at Panchero's, I'm wigless, and it's 3am. Fortunately, Leigh is always there at every sloppy moment to capture the memories on film. I'll just share a few of our faves and maybe not so fave moments from the night. The rest was just a fantastic blank spot in my memory. Shout out to Deb though for being entered into the "Best Costume" contest. I don't think she won (mostly because we were all too busy jumping on couches to know she was in the contest), but she won in our hearts!

Happy Voting Day!

So I'm not nearly as excited for the results of this election as much as I am excited for it to all be over!! No more political conversations, no more awful TV ads, constant sound bytes, grand speeches that don't answer any real questions, I have had enough! I apologize to all of you Poli-Sci nuts out there if this is your favorite time of year but seriously I can't stand it anymore. I think I reached my max after seeing the "Proposal 2 goes 2 far" ad which is against loosening the restrictions on stem cell research and uses an animal analogy ad that starts with, "this is not a cat, it's a feline" while a poor little barn cat stares into the camera, then it moves onto, "this is not a pig, it's a swine," as little Babe snorts for the camera. Then it describes, in about 10 seconds, what they really think the proposal means for Michigan, (they don't want public funding for it), and really drives the point home when Daisy the cow flashes on the screen and the voice over says, "this is not a cow, this is bull"... honestly whoever let this ad get on prime time TV should be caned until they're ass is purple, it's so bad! I miss watching those cute little Clorox Scrubbing Bubbles as they whisk away the soap scum on the tub, and the cave-men Geico commercials that still make me laugh even though they're completely overplayed, and I even miss the ladies from the Yoga Booty Ballet infomercials, boy can they get funky in downward facing dog! I'm ready to go back to, normal TV, normal news, and anything less frequent then daily political discussions. We blog purely to promote our divaness around the globe, not our political agendas, but no matter what happens by tomorrow morning, I think we can all raise a glass to moving ahead with a new president. Cheers!