Thoroughly modern...? Maybe not.

I got the movie Thoroughly Modern Millie from Netflix in the mail yesterday. I got watching it (fantastic...come on, Julie Andrews really can't go wrong in a musical!), and got to the only part I've ever really seen before in this movie: the beads part.

Yes, Millie is trying to "modernify" herself and gets a long string of beads because it's en vogue. She looks down at the necklace, and it's skeewompus (sp?). She looks down several times, and much to her chagrin the beads lay horribly each time.

Then comes the text screen--

"Gee, I wish my fronts weren't so full...they sure ruin the line of your beads."



I looked down at my own long necklace...yep, skeewompus. I guess I need lessons in modern!

Smile!

I feel as though I've been a Negative Nelly lately. And so I give you...(drumroll, please!)--

Things that make me smile:

* The girl at the bookstore who told me she liked my hair, even though I felt like I was having a bad hair day. No, seriously, I had just gotten done telling Ann about how I struggled this morning with a huge piece that didn't want to lay down flat, no matter how much flat ironing or product I subjected it to.

* Discovering the recipe for Cafe Rio's sweet pork and their creamy house dressing. I'm probably never going to that place and paying $8.49 for a salad again.

* Going to town on chopped-down limbs of a tree with a pair of pruners. Talk about getting out some frustration! I showed those suckers that I meant business! (Thanks, Grandma!)

* The Killers concert coming up this Saturday. Brandon Flowers--in some strange way, I find you attractive. I can't help but love a man with musical talent.

* Being told that I helped 'carry the team' in a game called Buzzword on Sunday night. ("I feel like we should high five about that!")

* Getting a notification from Facebook that a cute guy has written on my wall.

* Only having THREE new studies go to my board meeting this week. Sixteen last month...karma really does even things out, I think.

* Understanding cultural literacy references in the book I'm currently reading, The Eyre Affair. People have hilarious names (Thursday Next, Braxton Hicks, etc.) ...and in it, everyone loves literature. It's truly a whimsical delight, and I can't wait to finish it.

* The chef at the Market Street dessert case last night who pulled out the tray of strawberry tarts and chocolate-covered strawberries and whispered, "We just make new ones fresh in the morning...do you want one?" Uh, does a fat kid love candy? YES! Free dessert.

I needed this.

All grown up and savin' China...

I've thought a lot about who I used to be, how far I've come, what I've learned, yadda yadda, bladdy blah... and you know what I decided? Live it up now. I've got to love the moments I've got and not pine for the past or worry for the future.

I even think about how my life has roller coastered up and down, lots of people in and out, even just in my early and mid-twenties. Most of these people have graduated to different phases of their lives...getting degrees, finding true love, having children, some of them becoming actual responsible adults... I can't just call these people up for a random road trip or even dinner. But in my life, at current, I do have people like that (thank goodness!). I believe the older we get and the more connections we make, the more difficult it becomes to truly devote yourself to certain individuals. This isn't bad, necessarily...I've just discovered that life often tugs us all in different directions.

One of my former bishops is just returning from a mission with his wife, and I've been invited to listen to them speak--so have all of the people from that old ward...and it gets the gears jamming in my brain, thinking, "Whoa, it's been awhile since I've seen these people!" I'm guessing it's what it's like to get notification that your high school reunion is coming up. Some of the people you love, but some of them you would be ok to never see or speak to again. The best part about these shindigs? (And this is the TRULY horrible side of me...) Realizing that I have improved vastly from my days of yore. Not many things top being able to be flaunt your newly-found confidence. Yeah, I don't have kids or a husband, but...well, let's just let Kathleen Madigan express my thoughts:

Best line: "But as single people, what are we supposed to send out? Picture of me, sleeping late with extra money?"

Lest this blog post sound like a break-up directed to or a diatribe about my friends who really have gone down different paths than the one I'm on, it's not! Isn't that the beauty of getting to decide? At the risk of sounding like a user, I'm glad that each of you is/was there when I need/needed you most, in whatever unique capicity. And who knows...maybe I could be convinced to become responsible one day. ;) I do want to send out a Christmas letter solely about me, though....

Have you ever noticed...?

A few things that puzzle me...but then again, completely make sense:

* Traffic always seems to be going slowly in the direction you're headed. The oncoming cars are zipping by, and you just know they're laughing at you, saying, "Suckers!" I know I do that on the rare occasion I'm the lucky girl on the fast side of the road.

* There are probably fifty shirts in my closet, but when I browse through my pictures on Facebook or my blog, I'm wearing the same two or three shirts over and over again. And they're not fancy or special...so why do I wear them so much?

* I find that even if I haven't done anything productive at work, I get home and I'm exhausted. And yet, I know some people who actually have jobs where they have to be up and about, and they've got energy up the wazoo!

* Any email I get gives me a sense of excitement. OooooOOOOoooh, what is this? A shipping notification! Score!

* I can smile normally until it comes time to have my picture taken. I don't work well under pressure!

* No matter what, I always run out of conditioner before shampoo. I even make a concerted effort to use the same amount of each. Does conditioner evaporate from the bottle faster...? I have no other explanation.

* The older I get, the more motion sick I get. Just riding on the train, I start to feel a little queasy. And this is from the child who could ride amusement park rides all day and be ready for more! I can't even spend a few hours at Lagoon without a pill in me now.

* Watching videos at work is way more appealing than sitting at home browsing YouTube. At least then you can get everyone to slack with you for a minute and all of you can giggle together.

* When you're doing an impression of yourself, you don't just use your normal voice...it gets all weird and different. Shouldn't it be the same if you're...imitating yourself...?

* I do some of the very things that I mock or that frustrate me. The other night, we were watching multiple cars trying to parallel park in a spot that was just too small. And yet, if it were me, I'd probably do it.

Mario Friday

That old childhood Nintendo favorite has popped up quite a bit today...

From shirt.woot.com. Today's design kinda cracks me up...


From failblog.org. Whomever came up with this was a freakin' genius.

And my bro-in-law sent me this Weezer song that sounds like it's been Nintendo-ified.


Also, for gamers: The Guild, an online show with short episodes (probably not recommended for small children...), written by--and starring!-- Felicia Day (main girl in Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog). I've been watching a few episodes, and one of the girls in it is playing Super Mario Brothers.

What did people do before gaming...?