party... party... party...

Here is it... the Readers' Digest Condensed Version of the Memorial Day Parties.
The first party was Rich & Heather's on Sunday night. The cliffnotes: lots of food, lots of beer, dirty dice (mostly just rolling and laughing at the combinations - like "slap toes" and "lick ear"), scary garden statue, Sharpie marker tattoos. Good times indeed. Plus, Erin drove me, so I got drunk. Woo-hoo!

On Monday, Doug & I party-hopped (we're the uber-popular brother-sister sing-along duo... we get invited to all the good parties). We went to Ray's barbecue first. Lots of fun. In addition to the cool things that were already at the house (pool table, horseshoes and slot machine), one of the guests saw fit to make a trip to Target (source of all goodness) to buy a Slip 'N Slide. Hey, it's not a party until someone takes a running bellyflop onto a wet piece of plastic, right? Unfortunately, Doug & I had to leave just as the party was getting into full swing. Damnit. I was up next for beer pong, too. I totally would've lost (Kay was kicking serious ass), but I was ready to give it the ol' college try. Next time... next time...

After a brief stop at Dunkin' Donuts to refuel with a Coolatta , we were on our way to Phoenixville, where Doug's friend Jim was having a barbecue. It was a small gathering, consisting mostly of Jim's old friends. After about an hour, the sing-along began. Doug & Jim traded off bass & acoustic, performing originals and covers. I joined in with some singing and some percussion (in the form of a shaker-egg).
We finally made our way back to the good old Northeast by 11 PM... just enough time for me to crawl into bed and try (unsucessfully) to get a good night's sleep. Needless to say, I was exhausted all day today.

And now I'm looking forward to the next party - who's having it??? Let's go, people, it's summer! Bring it on!!!

about last night...

For all interested parties...

A little rubbing alcohol will take off a Sharpie tattoo real fast. :)

my addiction

The perks of teaching in Catholic school are that I don't work on holy days. Yesterday was Ascension Thursday and today is commonly known by Catholic school teachers as Ascension Friday. And of course, Monday is Memorial Day. So I wound up with a 5 day weekend (don't hate, people, please...) and pretty much nothing to do. Well, not until Sunday, anyway. I've been invited to one party and two barbecues this weekend. It's beginning to look a lot like summer!

You may recall the book dilemma I had in my previous post. Well, the saga continues. Yesterday I finally got the new book club selection in the mail (The House of the Scorpion, by Nancy Farmer). I started reading it right away, and I'm up to chapter seven already. It's a quick and easy read, and it's not too bad as far as plot goes.

I intended to put Everyone Worth Knowing (Lauren Weisberger) aside until I finished some of the other books, but I got bored last night and stayed up til 3 AM to finish it. A good beach read - lots of name dropping and celeb mentions. And one of those perfect romantic endings that makes me believe that there is a Mr. Right out there. Damnit, chick lit. You always get my hopes up.

Still re-reading The DaVinci Code (Dan Brown), but I put it aside in lieu of The House of the Scorpion. Haven't even touched Secret Supper (Javier Sierra). Soon... soon...

Today I went to Neshaminy Mall to kill time. I went to the bookstore to buy the book I'm reading for my grad school class lit circle, Esperanza Rising (Pam Munoz Ryan). I also bought one of the other books on the list (Pictures of Hollis Woods, by Patricia Reilly Giff), just because it looks good. I'm gonna wait and read that one later. Then... things got out hand. I spotted the new-in-paperback Jennifer Weiner novel, Goodnight, Nobody. Then I saw The Mermaid Chair (by Sue Monk Kidd, who also wrote The Secret Life of Bees... awesome book), so I picked that up as well. Went in for one book, came out with FOUR. Go figure.

So my new plan is this. I'm going to continue reading The House of the Scorpion and start reading Esperanza Rising. It'll be neat to read both at once. Both books are award-winning young adult fiction. Esperanza is about a little girl and her abuelita, set in Mexico during the Great Depression. Scorpion is about a young boy who is the clone of a drug lord, and it's set in Mexico sometime in the future. Should be a lot of interesting comparisons. Hope I don't get the two plots mixed up!

And that's about it for now. Enjoy the holiday weekend, all!

decisions, decisions

I don't quite know how it happened, but I somehow wound up with way too many books to read. Back in the day, I would have considered reading (gasp!) two books at once... but Summer I semester of grad school started tonight, and I know I won't have time to do that.

After finishing The Turn of the Screw (Henry James) for book club, I ordered our next bookclub pick, The House of the Scorpion (Nancy Farmer), from Half.com. It was taking too long to arrive, so I started reading Everyone Worth Knowing (by Lauren Weisberger, author of The Devil Wears Prada, soon to be a major motion picture which will probably pale in comparison to the book). I got about halfway through that, when our school's secretary lent me The Secret Supper (Javier Sierra), a novel that deals with the secrets hidden in the works of the late, great DaVinci. I was planning to start that, but then I got into a discussion with my brother about The DaVinci Code (Dan Brown). He just saw the movie, and I plan to see it, but I'd like to re-read the book again (for the third time) before I do. So I started reading that last night.

Tonight I went to class (The Structure of School Reading Programs) and one of our class assignments is to choose one of four young adult novels to read and discuss as part of a literature circle (kind of like a book club). I chose Esperanza Rising (Pam Munoz Ryan) for the assignment. I need to have chapter one read by next Thursday. But one of the other books on the list, Pictures of Hollis Woods (Patricia Reilly Giff), sounded so interesting that I want to read that, too.

And on top of that, I have textbook chapters to read each week.

So much to read, so little time.

why so blue, panda bear?

Today, I'm veggin'. I woke up unusually early for a Saturday (6:40 AM ) and couldn't fall back asleep. So I decided to just get out of bed and see what the world looks like that early on a weekend. (Not much different than usual, it turns out.)

I've spent my day doing little errand-y things... cleaned the bathroom, did a load of laundry, went through my old People magazines and bagged them for recycling... nothing interesting. And I've been watching bad TV all day. "Dharma and Greg," "Full House," and a cheesy-ass Lifetime movie called "The Wedding Dress." Read the paper. Read a few chapters of a book. Good stuff.

Might sound boring, but the thought of a whole day with no obligations is bliss. Especially after my week at work. It wasn't a bad week, just a bit stressful... schedule changes, behavior problems... one thing after another. It's nice to have a relaxing
day.

The story of Mark-Greg

Yeah, I know... two blogs in one day. I must be really bored, right? Well, I actually got a lot done today. I finally took out all my summer clothes, packed away my winter stuff, baked brownies from scratch, cooked a fabulous spaghetti and meatball dinner....

... Oh, right... the Mark-Greg story. So, last night at Club Glam, there were quite a few nice-looking guys. I had noticed one in particular standing on the edge of the dance floor, watching everyone. Pretty cute, too. He made his way over to us and began dancing with Erin (damn my luck). His name was Greg, but Erin and I both thought he bore a resemblance to Mark Ruffalo. So he'll be known as Mark-Greg from now on.

Allow me a brief digression. If a guy wants to dance with a girl at a club, it is apparently quite acceptable for said guy to just sneak up behind her and start grinding her. Um, hello? Could you try asking first? Do guys do this because they're drunk? Because they're cocky assholes? Because they're too insecure to actually take a risk and ask if the girl wants to dance? (By the way, Dane Cook has an awesome bit about this on his first CD.)

So, back to the story. This guy is dancing with Erin - not speaking to her, as far as I can see - and I'm now left to dance by myself. That's always an awkward feeling. Especially with the floor to ceiling mirrors that line the wall behind the dance floor. Nothing quite like watching yourself dance alone. Yikes. And then, Mark-Greg pulls another infamous guy move - he pulls me over to dance with him and Erin. As if dancing alone weren't bad enough, now I get the "pity dance." I sound bitter... really, I'm not. But this has happened before, so I know the signs when I see them. See, what happens is that the guy (in this case, Mark-Greg), senses that it would behoove him to get on my good side if he wants to get anywhere with Erin. (However, unbeknownst to Mark-Greg, Erin is quite unavailable.)

At about 1:45 AM, Erin and I hit the bathroom and made plans to slip out of the bar. On our way out, they started playing a good song, and I insisted that we stay until it was over. We started dancing, and Mark-Greg slipped right back into place behind Erin. Several songs later, we finally managed to leave, only after Mark-Greg convinced Erin to give him her number. I told her she should have fake-numbered him, but she didn't think fast enough.

And thus ends the tale of Mark-Greg.

my friday night

Last night I decided to throw caution to the wind and go out WITHOUT MAKING PLANS IN ADVANCE.

*Gasp*

Early in the week, I had read online that Ike was playing at the Tin Angel last night, and I had toyed with the idea of going. Then Erin called me yesterday afternoon to share teacher-related anecdotes (which, really, only another teacher could fully appreciate), and we got to talking about weekend plans, or the lack thereof. I mentioned the Ike show, and plans just sort of fell together.

So off we went. We managed to find parking directly across from the Tin Angel, but it came at a steep price. (I'm one of those people who can't be bothered with driving around looking for a street spot or a cheap lot. I just park where it's close and convenient and pay whatever.) I just gotta say, Tin Angel is a neat little place, but totally not conducive to seeing a band. It's a long narrow bar with a dim, coffee house feel. Better for whiny solo guitar acts (like Ike's opening act, who I deemed too "emotional" for my liking). But Ike was awesome, as always.

When they finished, it was still early (like 1 AM early), so we decided to see what else was around. We bypassed an Irish pub because it looked kinda lame, and wound up at a club called Glam. Strange little place. Tiny dancefloor area with a platform for the club's dancing girls (NOT strippers, but they may as well have been, based on their clothing and the type of dancing they were doing). Some interesting characters in that place. Including the two guys in loud print shirts who high-fived each other for reasons known only to them. High-five??? Seriously?

Turned out to be a weird and rather pricey night... but fun. Made me realize that I miss seeing good local bands, and I miss going clubbing. I'm not too old to give that stuff up yet.

The downside is that I've been feeling crappy as of late (mostly due to allergies), and the smoky bars did not help. I started coughing as soon as I got into bed, and that kept me up until after 4 AM. I finally fell asleep, but didn't wake up until after 10, which killed my morning plans of going to a baptism (one of my first graders and a few second graders that I taught last year were being baptized).

So now it's almost noon and I'm feeling unproductive. I think I'll go find something to do.

every breath I take

I haven't been able to breathe through my nose for the past three days. It's annoying. I have allergies, or a cold, or some twisted combination of both. Either way, this congestion is killing me. Since I can only breathe through my mouth, things like talking and eating become more of a challenge. And teaching? Forget it. It's torture. After talking for an extended period of time, I get winded from not breathing normally, and that makes me light-headed. (I truly believe that my brain is becoming deprived of oxygen. Seriously.) By lunch today, I was exhausted. Like eyelids drooping shut exhausted. I tried to read the kids a story after lunch, but I had to take a breath after every sentence. Same goes with eating. Bite, chew, chew, chew, chew, swallow, take huge gulping breaths. Start over.

Stupid congestion.

Oh well. Hey, does anyone else watch "Lost"? DAMN, that show is getting good. And of course, last night's episode raised like a zillion more questions. I can just tell that there's gonna be a hella cool cliffhanger.

dress addendum

So, I was going to post comments to respond to the people who voiced opinions about my dress dilemma (thanks for the advice, by the way!), but then I got another call from the bride-to-be. She said that she was on the David's Bridal website again, and she found two other dresses that she likes better... and they're both currently on sale! One is $80, the other is $100. They both come with wraps. The first one she picked out was $110, but she wanted us to wear shawls with it, which would be an added expense.

Aside from the decent price, the plus side is that I like both of these dresses MUCH better than her original choice. The skirts aren't as fitted and they will most likely be pretty flattering.

Possible downsides - one dress has spaghetti straps, the other is strapless. I HATE my arms, but I'm willing to overlook that because a) I like both dresses and b) they both come with shawls. Also, she's not sure how long they'll be on sale, so we may have to move fast on this. Like, within the week. And the wedding isn't untl next April.

But anyway, it seems like my dress crisis is over. Wasn't much of a crisis, really. I didn't even get a chance to complain about it. :)

all about dresses (the boys can skip this one)

Okay, so I'm in this wedding next April. The bride-to-be called me today to "chat" (bride-speak for "talk about wedding") and I discovered that she's already picked out dresses and accessories for the bridesmaids. She's got a Spanish theme going... she's very creative like that. She wants red dresses (David's Bridal calls it Apple), gold shoes, shawls, red flowers in our hair, and possibly Spanish-style fans instead of bouquets. All well and good, in theory. However, when I looked at the dress online, I kinda panicked. David's Bridal advertises dresses "in sizes from 2-26!", but we all know that there's no guarantee that everyone will look good in a particular style. The dress she selected is one of those styles that would look best on someone with the same proportions as Barbie. It's sleeveless, very fitted, slim skirt. It will not be a very flattering look for me. I know this about myself. I'm okay with not looking good in certain styles. But how do I tell my friend that I'm not comfortable wearing such a fitted dress without sounding like I'm being petty or spoiled? After all, it is her day. Does it really matter how I look?

Before I launch into full-fledged panic, I'm going to David's Bridal to try it on. And then I'll just have to go from there, I guess. But in the meantime, any suggestions would be welcome.

another one bites the dust

Got a phone call this afternoon. One of my good friends is engaged. The wedding's next April. I'm a bridesmaid. Again. Yikes.

I'm totally, completely, extremely thrilled for her. Seriously. I just need to be selfish for a few minutes and throw myself a mini pity-party. I'm entitled. This will be the fifth wedding I've been to in four years... and I was a bridesmaid twice in two years (third time's a charm!). Good thing I didn't throw out the number of the woman who altered my bridesmaid dresses.

Well... maybe my friend's fiance will have some cute, single friends. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Sidebar - LET'S GO FLYERS!!!