My last post so long ago talked about my crochet classes. Well, nearly a year later and I'm happy to report I did not give up! I'm much better at crochet than keeping up with this blog! :P

Here are the first two things I made! A simple hat and this awesome ripple scarf! The weird thing about crocheting this scarf was that it is done lengthwise, so I had to start with a chain of like 250 or something. There are ways to do a scarf the other way, but not to get the ripples, I don't think. Anyway, that was a big change from when I knitted scarves years ago. (My knitting never got that great, I might take some knitting classes soon too. I think I like crocheting better but it doesn't hurt to have multiple skills!)

I was particularly proud of this hat. It looks so professional! It was a lot easier than I thought! The yarn I used was super soft, but it fuzzes up pretty easy. I eventually want to make another one with a better yarn. (I think this was Red Heart Soft or whatever.)

 

Here are a couple ear warmers I made for when I've got my hair up in a ponytail. The pink one I made from a tutorial on youtube and the other one I think from a pattern on line. The flower I added was from a different pattern. I made it before I knew what I was going to do with it. It's a little big for the headband, but I like it anyway.

 

I have quite a few friends with children so I have a lot of kids I can make stuff for. This is a hat/leg warmer set I made for my friends' daughter's first birthday. The leg warmers were a request because apparently the carrier thing you have on your body makes their pants ride up so there's always a little bit of leg that's exposed. Or something. I added the snowflakes so they'd look like they actually went together. 

All babies look adorable with little ears on their hats!

This one I'm super proud of. My friends' 4-year-old daughter is a huge frozen fan (aren't they all?) so I made this super cute Elsa-inspired hat I saw in another friend's Instagram post. Wasn't hard to track down the pattern online but I did have to adjust it. I had my friend measure her daughter's head so I could make sure it fit. (PS She absolutely loved it and I couldn't have been happier.)

I wish I had hair as awesome as Elsa!

And lastly (for this post), here's my first foray into amigurumi! I initially started these classes because I wanted to learn how to crochet dolls so I could make a Doctor doll. I have now made around 5 or 6 amigurumi but I have yet to start on the Doctor. I keep making things for other people, or just smaller things that are quick. Amigurumi are super cute but not super fun to make. The tiny stitches make my hands hurt. But the results are pretty great. Here's my first:

 

 

 

I bought a Sanrio pattern book. Duh.

How cute is he?! The hat didn't come out as great as I'd like but overall, he's awesome. The very next thing I made was at least Doctor-related. Here's my Adipose! (He's in front of a giant Adipose doll I got for Christmas.)

"The fat just walks away!"

So those are the beginnings of my crochet "career"! I will post more. Hopefully soon. I don't know why it's so hard to keep up with this. I think it's because of all the tweets/tumbles/facebooks/Instagrams, etc. Anyway, if you have any interest in crochet, you can check out Craftsy.com. They have a bunch of lessons at a reasonable price. (If you're in NYC though, I highly recommend Lion Brand Yarn Studio for live classes.) There's also free lessons on youtube all over the place. Later!

Talking About Stuff and Things

So I finally, FINALLY, decided to take a crochet class. I am very happy I did. I found the class on Course Horse (pretty cool place to find classes, check it out!) and the class is through Lion Brand Studio. Conveniently located near Union Square! They also sell yarn there, it's a super cute store. I signed up for Crochet 1, it's a two-day class, two hours each. I still have one class left and I already signed up for Crochet 2. The instructor was super friendly and there were only five people in the class so you get plenty of one-on-one if you need it. I'm pretty psyched to keep learning, probably evidenced by the fact that all I've done this weekend besides watch The West Wing, is practice crocheting while watching. :P

My first ever bit of crochet!

 I'm looking forward to working my way up to crocheting dolls, because surprisingly there are no Doctor dolls available for purchase and I need a little Doctor doll to squeeze while I'm crying as the Doctor says "I don't wanna go." (Because y'all KNOW I'm going to watch that again and again.)

Speaking of TV, after I plowed through all of the modern Doctor Who episodes for the second time in less than a year, I am finally finishing up The West Wing. I blazed through the first four seasons, but due to current TV, Doctor Who and people telling me seasons 5-7 just aren't as good, I had put the brakes on watching it. I finally started watching the rest last week. I spent the entirety of the day yesterday watching season six and I have to say, I still love the show. I honestly don't think I would've noticed that Sorkin left if I wasn't told. Maybe I'm just not a discerning enough viewer, but I still thoroughly enjoy the show. Not the least of which is CJ Cregg.

CJ Cregg is my hero.

Holy crap, is that woman amazing. I've been a huge fan of hers since day one, but she actually kicks even more ass in the later seasons. This woman is like the number one female role model I've come across on TV. haha I mean I haven't really studied it, so maybe I'm wrong but man I love her. She's funny, she's smart and she's so damn powerful. Gah. I can't get enough. I'm going to be sad when I'm done. Though I think Newsroom will be starting soon, so at least I'll have that. And I still have yet to watch Sports Night. Oh yeah, I'm one of those people that LOVES Sorkin. :) After I watched the first season of Newsroom, I realized I was one of those people and so I needed to watch The West Wing. [I'm one of the few that loved Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (I even own the DVDs).]

Ned and Jory. They lead a simple life.

I also started playing with this gif app I found called Camoji, so you might be seeing some more gifs on here... (I still really need to learn how to make them out of pre-existing images or videos.)

So I think I have some West Wing to watch... although... I DO need to go for a run... but like, it's so HOT out this weekend... Dammit. I'm already making excuses. At least I haven't been eating a lot this weekend... although I did drink almost a whole bottle of wine... Sigh.

Weddings and Pull-ups!

So last post I mentioned that I got depressed trying on dresses for a wedding. BUT I didn't mention that I'd found an AWESOME dress for that wedding that fit pretty nicely! Thanks H&M! Granted I had to get a fairly large size...largest I've ever had to get...BUT I will comfort myself in the knowledge that sizes are weird there and I even had to go smaller on a different dress I tried on.

Anyway, I ended up buying a couple dresses in a similar style because they fit me well. Though I do hope to be losing a bit of weight eventually. Guess I'll just have to wear these dresses soon. :)

So here's the dress!

Totally sucking it in.

 Twas a very comfortable dress as well. This was the last wedding of the year for me (phew). I have seriously been to a minimum of one wedding a year for the last 10 years, with many years have 2-3 (I had three this year). Insane. But I do LOVE weddings (for the most part), so I don't mind. I mostly just mind how much money I have to spend, since as a woman, I have to double-dip with the bridal showers too. Being single, this shit adds up.

Standard wedding selfie. But with beer.

So today I did another 2 miles run/walk this morning. Yay! I did have Chinese food for dinner last night, which isn't the healthiest, but I didn't follow up with cookies or some other snack. Just another couple glasses of water. I've been doing really well drinking a lot of water the last couple weeks. Pretty much like two liters a day. Which makes me get up more often to pee, so more walking! haha

More like the alcohol.

I also am trying to do this pull-up thing program thing which started with 5 sets (though I could only do 4) of negative chin-ups (cuz I can't even do ONE real one yet). After the first time I did it, my arms were INSANELY sore for days! It hurt just to get dressed! So I waited like five days (instead of two like the guy on YouTube said), but then when I tried to do my second day, I felt a pain in my shoulder that hurt like a real pain, not like an exercise soreness, so I'm waiting a couple more days. But I've always wanted to be able to do a pull-up (or even a chin-up) so I really want to try to stick to this.

Trying

So recently I had to try on some dresses for a wedding and in the process became incredibly depressed about it. I swear dressing room lighting is the absolute worst in the world for feeling good about yourself.

I'm definitely the heaviest I've ever been in my life. (And to think, I thought I was fat back in college when I was 30 lbs. lighter. So dumb.) I know it's partially age, the older you get, the harder it is to lose weight. Plus you (or at least I) get tired more easily. But it's mostly the fact that I'm so god damned lazy! Too lazy to cook healthy meals, too lazy to burn off calories. Oh and I LOVE TV. I know everyone does but man, do I. One of my BFFs always jokes that I watch EVERYTHING (this is untrue of course but an indication of how much TV I watch). Even I don't understand where I find the time.

But anyway, that was a depressing week in dressing rooms but it's motivated me more than I've been in ages. A year or so ago I ran three days a week for at least five months, but I think more. Once that winter hit, though, I basically stopped. Now I run like once every few months. But no more!! (I hope.) Today I ran/walked for the third time since last Monday.

One reason to run. This view!

And I'm trying hard to cut back on the food intake. It's hard to say "no" to yourself. And when you're in a city full of delicious food all around... And when the main form of socialization consists of dinners and boozing... And when you've got one hell of a sweet tooth... More excuses. But I'm trying.

So I heard blogging helps. You tell people what you're up to and don't want to be embarrassed when you don't do what you say. So we'll see. But considering I'm too lazy to blog about FUN stuff, I don't know. But I'll try.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:21st Ave,New York,United States

Ich lerne Deutsch!

I did a quite scroll through all the posts I've made on here through the years (man, I did so many back in that first year! In 2008, I made 78 posts and that was only the last four months! Shameful.), and I found that I never told you guys that I started studying German!

I've wanted to study German for as long as I can remember. I don't know why, but as a kid I thought it was cooler that I was half German than it was that I was half Italian. (I like to say it's because of all the guidos on Staten Island, but I really don't know for sure.) I even remember making German food for the two international fairs we had in junior high school (German potato salad & apple strudel). I also remember that before I started junior high school, I thought I would have the option to learn German, but when I got there the only options I had were Italian or Spanish. (I took Italian, hated it, but still did pretty well because I'm a nerd.)

Then when I got to high school I went to Staten Island Technical High School where they only teach you Russian (it's something to do with looking good on your college resume). At first I was terrified of this language (I even went to summer school BEFORE school started to get a jump on it — I told you I was a nerd), but I instantly fell in love with the language. There's something really cool about learning an entirely new alphabet — not the least of which is that you can write secret notes to your friends in English but using Russian letters that most teachers and parents could not read! You are required to take 3 years of Russian, but I ended up taking an AP class in my final year because I loved it. I wanted to continue in college but they only offered beginner Russian. I took that anyway because I needed the language credits and it was an easy A. I never let myself forget the alphabet through the years, though, and while I can't really translate much, I can still read it, which is the only way to use a Russian dictionary, so it's something.

I've often thought about continuing my Russian studies. But then in 2010, during the World Cup, after USA & England had dropped out, I was on to rooting for my third team, Germany (they've moved up to #2 since then). During matches, my dad would text me some things in German. Now, he doesn't speak fluent German. When he was three, he was brought to the US by his parents and didn't speak fluent English until about 8 years old, but his parents encouraged their family to be AMERICAN. Which meant, stop speaking German. So he stopped. I now remember all the times my dad would tell me one word or one phrase in German during my childhood, but I never really payed too close attention. It's amazing how much still stuck with him even though he never really spoke it. To this day, he can understand a lot of German when spoken to him, but the opposite is a little more difficult.

So anyway, these little German texts about the World Cup games got me really thinking about learning German again. While a part of me still wanted (still wants, really) to continue learning Russian since I think it's such a cool language and I'd already started, a bigger part of me wanted to connect to something that was actually ME. Back when I was living in London for a semester (2001!), I took a 4-day trip to Munich on my own. I know it's silly, but I just felt this little connection to it. It's all in my head, I know, I had never been there or even really had any interaction with my German relatives, but still, it felt cool. And I wanted more of that. Again, I don't know why I don't have that yearning for my Italian side. Maybe it is BECAUSE I've had no real connection to that side of my family growing up, while I grew up very close with my mother's side of the family, eating Italian food, etc. But there it was.

So one day about 2 years ago I saw a Groupon for 5 classes at Rennert and they offered German, so I grabbed it. I've been going there since. Not non-stop, mind you, but tonight I started my fifth semester (they're 10-week semesters, 1 2-hour class per week)! I'm FAAAAAR from being fluent, in fact I KNOW that will never happen without living in Germany, but it's pretty amazing how much I've learned after just 80 hours. And it's really fun TO learn. It's funny how much you miss school when you've not done it in forever. I mean, not all those classes you hated but had to take or all the homework and tests, but there were definitely a few classes you just loved being in the classroom for, learning stuff. Taking a class for pure interest is so amazing. You WANT to be there, the homework is not really that difficult (and it's only for practice, no "points off" for not doing it) and there's no tests. There's no grades, it's just about doing it because you WANT to know. It's awesome. I can't recommend it enough.

And as an added bonus, learning German has been a cool bonding experience with my dad. Often when I'm visiting my parents we'll just start saying words to each other. Me practising, him trying to remember. I help him remember, he helps me pronounce. It's pretty cool. My poor mother feels left out, but that's ok because usually I'm talking to her most of the time anyway.  (The other thing that my dad and I do that kind of ignores my mom is the crossword. haha)

So that's about it really, I'm learning German, I love it, and I hope to one day be able to live in Germany for a few years so I can really get this shit down pat. :) I have no pictures of me learning German to share here, so here's a picture of some wine I bought just because of the label!

Eins, zwei, drei, vier... FÜNF!

Best Photo Booth

I'm a very big fan of photo booths. I mean, who isn't?! This weekend I went to a wedding that had the coolest photo booth ever! Well, technically it wasn't really a booth. These two guys dressed sort of old-timey (adorable) had a digital camera that looked like an old-timey camera and they had props. They took three photos and you chose your favourite and they printed them out for you. Here's the only one I took by myself. I love it!

Fancy!

If you're interested in such a booth for your party or wedding or whatever, they are called Shoot Booth! I can't recommend them enough!

I Dashed! Warrior Style!

I'm a warrior!! Again!

Finally did my second Warrior Dash! I did the first one two Octobers ago (as mentioned here) where I was out until 4AM the night before getting drunk at the Marvel NYCC party and had to get up at 8AM to get to the race. I finished it in approx. 45 minutes which was pretty good, but considering I couldn't run for more than 2 minutes straight back then, I thought THIS time I would do even better! Now I can run for 35 minutes STRAIGHT since I've recently completed a couch to 5K program!! (BOO-YAH!)

And then I saw the hill. O_O For this Warrior Dash, I went all the way up to New Hampshire! (OK, I also visited an old friend, but this was what we planned our weekend around.) It was held at Gunstock in Gilford, NH. This is where people go skiing/snowboarding. So...HILLS. More like MOUNTAINS. The obstacles in the Warrior Dash can be challenging but not TOO bad. Some are downright easy, but the first thing we had to do in the New Hampshire dash was a giant hill. It seemed to never end. In fact we went uphill for the first 1.5 miles of a 3.1 mile run!! And it was STEEP. At some points it was almost like I could be on all fours and still be upright. It was brutal. BUT I DID IT! 

Medal #2! More to come!

The hardest obstacle was, I think, the straight wall we had to climb. It had a rope and little ledges, but it was still pretty difficult. The only other one I found hard was the balance beam, but that was mostly difficult because my legs were wobbly from all the climbing. The end was the best part, as we jumped over fire and trudged through a mud pit! Anyway, so I finished this one a LOT slower. Took me an hour & 19 minutes. I blame that hill. No way I was running up it, I was barely able to walk it!! All that running training came in NOT HANDY. Sigh. I guess I would probably have been worse without it.


Well, it was fun regardless. And we couldn't have asked for better weather, sunny but still breezy and cool! And I got an extra free beer (you get one) because a girl didn't want hers and then we bought giant turkey legs. Cuz that's what warriors eat.

Meal of Warriors!

So anyway, if you have any interest in fun mixed with a bit of fitness, I recommend a warrior dash! They go all over the country, so hopefully you can find one near you!

I Run!

I can't believe I'm doing it, but I'm running! My entire life I hated running. Well... I guess I didn't hate it as a kid. I remember from the age range of about 10-12 there was this kid on my block that was really fast and I was the only one that was able to catch him (sometimes), so I know I ran at SOME point. But those runs were just short bursts anyway.

But I remember in high school, before I started, I was trying to start my high school career out right and doing extracurriculars in the preceding summer. Not only was I taking Russian and Electronics classes AHEAD of time (yes, I took summer school to get AHEAD. I am a nerd.) — I went to a technical high school that taught us drafting and electronics and we had to learn Russian — but I also decided I would try joining the track team. I had absolutely NO sports skills whatsoever. My parents never forced me to play any sports like most of my friends and I thought that was awesome (now I wish they had), so I wasn't about to join a school team where I could show off my LACK of skill. So instead I thought, "well everyone can run." Or something equally dumb. I think I went to two meets. I remember stretching beforehand and I remember we had to run around the school's grounds. I was dead so quickly. I remember feeling like I was going to throw up.

But NOW! Now I'm doing it!! A couple of months ago my friend posted on facebook that he was doing the NY Giant Run of Champions 5K that ended on the field at Giants Stadium! You got to run into the endzone!! THIS I needed to do. At first I though, "Eh, I'll just jog/mostly walk it, just so I can get to the field." But my friend suggested I try one of the couch-to-5K programs that are so popular these days. So of course I looked for an "app for that" and I found the 5K Runner (which, by the way, I HIGHLY recommend). It starts you off really slowly and in a way that is doable, doing like 4 sets of running like a minute or two followed by a minute or two walk. Which is great because at first three minutes felt awful and impossible. But by the time I got to the Giants run, I was running like 10 minutes straight, followed by a 3 minute walk and then another 5 minutes (not exactly this I'm sure, it was a few months ago)! Here's my results from that:

NY Giants Run of Champions 5K

I did it in 38 minutes!! I still can't believe it. But the best part? I haven't stopped! I decided I was going to do this thing! I've signed up for a 5K every month since then (except July). This week alone I did TWO! Last Sunday I ran the Color Run — the happiest 5K on the planet! It was amazing, you get hit with coloured powder as you run and at the end there's basically a giant rave of people dancing and throwing MORE colour at each other!

Here's me hamming it up, mostly green.

It was a great time. Then last night I did a 4-mile NYRR Back to Football Run! It was a run in Central Park to celebrate the return of football season! It was great! And I'm proud to say I didn't really walk very much at all. We stopped a couple of times at the beginning but not very long at all and from about the start of mile 3 to the end of 4 I only stopped for a few seconds to drink water. My pace was slightly slower than the Giants 5K but I definitely felt better for this one:

NYRR Back to Football Run

I still haven't technically finished the 5K program. I struggled with the 25 minute run mark, but a week or two ago I ran those 25 minutes, then added 5 more! Very soon I should be able to run a 5K without stopping! I can't wait!

Next month I'm visiting a friend in New Hampshire and I'll be doing my second Warrior Dash! It's a 5K in the mud with obstacles! I did one a couple years ago and the obstacles were fun but the running was so horrible for me. This time it should be much better. Then I've got a 5K on the boardwalk at Coney Island to raise money to help walruses in October and the Race to the Finish 5K in November (runs part of the NY Marathon course... the END part). I think for December I'll do the Jingle Bell Jog. :) Signing up for races keeps me from slacking off in between. 

Yay for running!!

PS One other app that really helped me get this running thing going, that I would be remiss not to mention, is the Zombies Run app. This app is so cool and so entertaining, I really push anyone who wants to run or who already does to check it out. It's not cheap, but it's worth it! Happy running!

Frank

I just found out a friend of mine has passed. I don't know what happened. I can't claim that we were the best of friends as I haven't seen him in over two years, but I really liked him and I actually recently was thinking that I needed to reconnect with him. I am completely shocked and I can't really process this. He was such a sweet, funny guy. I missed him already and now I will miss him always. I'm just so glad I actually DID get to know him. Here's how we met:

I used to see Frank on the Staten Island train all the time. (There's one train, it goes down one side of the island and ends at the SI Ferry which is how most Staten Islanders get to their Manhattan jobs.) At first he just reminded me a lot of another friend of mine, which may be why I had this strange feeling that he was a comic book fan. I remember once at the ferry terminal I dropped a printout of a Marvel handbook I was editing and he was the one that picked it up for me and I remember wondering if he looked at it. I saw him a few times a month but never talked to him. I just remember feeling that we would be friends if we knew each other. I don't know why, I just knew it.

Then one day at the New York Comic Con (might've been the first one, I can't remember), I'm working the Marvel booth and I look over and see him talking to Brian Michael Bendis. Worlds colliding! I went over to Brian and said to him "I see this guy on my train all the time!" Frank looks at me and says "You're the comic book girl!! That's what I call you in my head!" Brian tells me Frank is a member of his message board, of which I also belong.

Later, I'm talking to Brian and he has this whole idea that there was going to be some romance here. I said he's crazy and just then Frank walks back over to the booth and says hello. "What are you doing here still?" "I work at Marvel." "Oh shit! I thought you just liked comics, I had no idea!" Then he mentions how he either just got from or was going to Jamaica with his fiancée. We talk a little more and he leaves and I turn to Brian and say "see??" (I later met his fiancée, she's a sweet, lovely woman who I imagine is a mess right now. I hope she gets through this ok.)

What followed after that were a series of train rides where we got to know each other. Talked about Bendis message board gossip, Staten Island gossip, his art, my job, our mutual friends, all the stuff you talk about with a new friend. I went to one of his art shows in Manhattan. I remember seeing him at a Halloween show on Staten Island. I was dressed as V (for Vendetta) and he was the first person to guess it was me. He had an art show on Staten Island, from which I bought one of his paintings (so glad I did that). I really liked being his friend.

Eventually he bought a house in a different part of Staten Island and I didn't see him on the train anymore. We communicated a little bit via various internet means. Then I moved to Queens and we were even further separated. It's one of those things where you always think there will be time to reconnect. There isn't. I am so crushed by this. The reality of "I will never see this person again" is just so... heartbreaking.

Everyone goes through their daily lives and sees the same people there every day, it's so rare you see someone and take note and just KNOW that you would be friends if you met. That we actually DID become friends is so amazing and I am so happy for that.

I will always miss him.

Frank drew this robot version of me.

I Decorates!

FINALLY. I said I was going to do this Thanksgiving weekend but I spent that weekend playing Zelda in my pajamas, so no. Finally got 'round to it this past weekend. Here are some pictures!

I used to always get a real tree in my old apartment, but that one was much bigger. So last year I bought my first fake tree! I figured, if I was gonna get one, I might as well make it easy on myself and get a pre-lit one. Oh man, SO nice. And I got this nice skinny pencil tree to fit right in this corner (where I keep a fan in summer months)!

Here's a little close up of one of my favourite ornaments! ;-)

He has a great responsibility to make my tree look good.

The tree-topper that has adorned my tree for the last 5 years or so! I don't even remember where I got him, but I'm guessing at some sample sale at work!

Hulk SMASH if you no give presents!

I decorate as much as possible, including lights in the bathroom, in my room, around the door outside and one the windows. I also decorate the banisters with red ribbon and THESE guys at the ends! :)

Here's my kitchen table thiset-up (it's one of those ones that like comes out of the wall).

Yes, that is a Chris Giarrusso Mini Marvels as Peanuts framed card!

I have these guys (their names are all Harry) above my doorway (they used to be in my bathroom in the old place) and I've been decorating them for Christmas every year (just below them are these little Sanrio stamps I just got of the characters with Santa hats on!)!

Don't mess with me or you'll end up like the Harrys.

And last but not least, my favourite decoration, I've had it since I was 10 or so!

Merry Christmas, dudes! Cowabunga!

So there you go. This smart-ass atheist still loves Christmas. It's not about Jesus for me (nor for a lot of people, REALLY) and never really has been. I just love the holiday cheer! I love the decorations, the parties, the music (YES, the music), the family time, sending out and getting cards (I MISS SNAIL MAIL) , giving/receiving gifts, just the general good feeling! (And really, you KNOW all this Christmas tree stuff, etc. has NOTHING to do with Jesus in the first place, right? ;-P)

So happy holidays everyone!!!!

<3, 

Jen!

The End.

I Gets Another Religious Blog Comment!

I haven't been keeping up with this. I know it, you know it, we ALL know it. I'm sorry! I know I don't have a TON of readers but it's pretty cool to have the amount that I do...or rather, DID. Unfortunately with the twitter and the tumblr, I just go straight there when I want to share something. This blog is definitely better for longer form posts and I have plenty of ideas for things I want to post, but... I just don't. (A big reason is that blogger is now blocked at my job so I can't post during lunch which I used to do.)

Anyway, I still get emails when I get a comment (which obviously isn't as often lately), and one of the posts I get a lot from is the "Kirk Cameron is an Idiot" post (one of my favourites)! And yesterday I got this comment that made me happy. haha Happy because I see comments like this on atheist blogs I read and it's just exciting to get one of my own. :) And it's not a cruel one, just a misguided one. So I thought I'd share it and my response. Let me know what you think!

 Anonymous said...

I feel so sorry for you Jennifer! You sound like a really lost soul! Apparently youve never lost someone that you love so much or believing in a God and a heaven that promises we will see our loved ones again wouldnt be so hard for you to accept! I will keep you in my prayers because not only is there a heaven, theres also a hell!

October 19, 2011 9:14 AM

 Jennifer Juniper said...

So let me get this straight. You feel bad for me because I HAVEN'T lost someone I really love? (Which is not true by the way.)

You seemed to be confused between WANTING there to be a god and an afterlife and whether or not there actually IS one. SURE it would be nice to know that when I die I will see the family & friends I've lost again, but that's just highly unlikely. Simply wanting it doesn't make it true.

Not only is there not a heaven, there's not a hell. Don't waste your time praying. Go out there and live the life you DO have to its fullest!

Memory Lane

I took a Google Maps trip down memory lane, "walking" around the neighborhood I lived in when I "studied" in London for three months back in 2001. I can't believe it was 10 years ago that I lived there! This is the building I lived in, my flat was on the top floor, which our landlord had had priced at $1 million pounds back then. 

The Landward! My flat # was 45!

Flat 45 was at the top floor!

Should'a spent more time here!

The Victory pub was directly across the street and I regret never really spending any time in there. I was near tears looking at this and I'm sure I WILL be in tears when I'm in London in September and walk around there as I do every time I go back to London. I went back to London every year for 5 consecutive years after my semester there, but I've not been able to afford it since 2006. I'm so happy to finally be able to go back to my second home. I would give so much relive that time again. It's definitely in the top 3 greatest experiences of my life. I still really wish I could live in London again. As long as I'm loving working at Marvel, though, I just can't do it. Maybe one day...

I also used Google maps to "walk past" my favourite street in London (at least of the ones I've seen). I used to pass this little street on the way to school and I just feel in love with how cool it looked. Funnily enough, only until I was there in 2005 with my friend did I ever actually walk down it. It just seemed so private, I felt like I shouldn't. This street is Montagu Mews West. "Mews" streets are super awesome, I wish I could live in one, but they must be super expensive. Man, why can't I just be rich and have everything I want!?!?


Well, at least I get to go back and visit soon! I really can't wait, I think about it every single day. Yay! (And also, I'm EXTRA excited to visit Berlin for the first time too and try out some of the German I've been studying!)


The End.

Watch Your Fucking Language!

I was directed to this fantastic short clip about swearing (from a bog I frequent called "The Good Atheist") in witch the bloody brilliant Stephen Fry basically says "Fuck off!" (Side note: it also contains clips starring Hugh Laurie! ♥♥♥♥)



I love this. I've been saying this for years. "Swear" words are what we make them! If we all suddenly decided "blanket" was a swear word, it would be. They're fucking WORDS. They're used for effect just like ANY other word! Don't tell me when I can and cannot use them!

That being said, I do try to curb my foul mouth around children, old people and my family. It's just a manners thing I suppose, but I don't think I NEED to do it. I wouldn't cry if I accidentally did. With kids I suppose it's more A) I don't want to hear it from their parents and B) I don't want to have to explain what the words mean to them. Fortunately, I avoid kids like the plague so this is not a huge concern for me. haha With old people, again, I just don't want to hear it and I don't want to be mean to them if they yell at me, so I'd rather just avoid the situation altogether. Family...I don't know, just how I was raised I guess.

But I get shit for in the office on occasion (though mostly, it's just the volume of my voice! haha), and I think it's silly. It's amazing how people are sometimes SHOCKED when I curse a lot! I think it also has to do with being female. I'd probably get less attention from it if I were male. Which ultimately, I think, is why I love it. I love breaking that male/female barrier. Any fucking thing HE can do, I can bloody well do too! ;-)

It's pretty funny to me, though, when I think back to the fifth grade when all my classmates were cursing and I refused to. I don't really know why. I listened to my parents, I guess. I was raised a little nerd, which is why I didn't get drunk before I was twenty-one and never smoked a cigarette. I'm not complaining, mind you, I think these are all good things. One can be a little rebellious in their lives without harming oneself (hey, I had a mohawk at 14!). Needless to say, by junior high I was cursing here and there...and by the time I started working at Marvel, I had been given the (short-lived) nickname "F-Bomb."

The ironic thing is that if everyone were to stop caring about curse words or just use them all the time, they would eventually lose their meaning and would cease to be shocking!


The Fucking End.

PEE-WEE'S PLAYHOUSE!

So I saw the Pee-wee play!!! Yes. Just add that to the incredibly long list of reasons to love living in New York City! Now let me start by saying something that you'll probably get mad at me for: I wasn't really a huge Pee-wee fan. I know, I know. I just didn't remember ever being REALLY into it. I knew I watched it as a kid, but I would've called myself a fan. That's all changed now. :)

First, let me just tell you HOW I got to see this show. Frakkin' FOURSQUARE, that's how! As you may have known if you follow my twitter, I'm a little addicted to foursquare badges. They do absolutely nothing and I can't even get stickers of them like you can from GetGlue. But I still need to get as many as I can. I will just walk around the city to check into places to get badges. ANYWAY, a few months back, when the Pee-wee show on Broadway first opened, Pee-wee started a little campaign with fourquare, in which one could earn a Pee-wee badge by first being his friend on foursquare, and then checking into 2 or 3 places Pee-wee checked in to. There were plenty right near my office, so I got this fairly easily. It's a great badge, it looks like his suit. I was happy. I did not know anything else would come of it.

THEN, a couple months after that, I get an email that basically says: "Dear Foursquare Badge-holder, We're having a drawing for free tickets to see Pee-wee on Broadway for a special taping of the show to air on HBO. To enter, blah blah blah." So I entered. AND I WON! 'Twas VERY exciting. Luckily I had nothing planned for that day, so I went.


And it WAS GREAT! I realised once the show started that I knew A LOT more than I thought I did about Pee-wee. I remembered SO much! I completely forgot about Penny, which was my favourite bit on that show. Not to mention Ptery and Globey! Of course there was Chairy, but I never forgot her. It was a GREAT show. Funny and fun and very nostalgic. If I hadn't been watching the last ever production, I would've been telling EVERYONE to go see it. So I'm super glad I got the chance and I thank you very much, foursquare!

But it gets better! More fourquare awesomeness! SO, at the end of the show, Pee-wee mentions that in a couple days there will be a foursquare PARTY at the new Bowlmor Lanes in Times Square (the original is in Union Square) for a select few of the badge-holders who ask to participate. I get ANOTHER email asking about this and I RSVP and the next day I'm told I can go! WOOT! Now, while this was a bowling party, I really didn't feel like bowling, so I just sat at the bar with my friend and tried some of their food. About an hour in, Pee-wee shows up and makes his way around the entire party saying hello to everyone that came. SUCH a sweetheart. He even actually OFFERED to take pictures without me even asking! I absolutely adore him now. He won me over. Too bad it's at the end of the Pee-wee train... I don't know how much more he can do with the character, but I'm considering buying the DVD set of the show... :-P

So meeting Pee-wee was definitely the highlight, but the whole experience was really cool and I only have foursquare to thank. So no longer can I be made fun of for my badge addiction! :-) (Side note: I also got $5 admission to the Whitney with my Whitney badge the other day — that's a $13 savings people!!!)

Anyway, last thing I want to tell you peeps, is that the HBO taping I went to IS AIRING THIS WEEKEND! March 19th, to be exact! Set your DVRs and watch this! I will admit, if you know NOTHING of Pee-wee, you might not enjoy it quite as much, but it's still a good time. Check it out: Pee-wee on HBO!

Trailer

The End.

I Suck

I'm just posting that I suck for not posting. I might just pretend that time hasn't passed and just post about stuff I've been doing as if I just did them. haha

Yeah... that's the ticket!


The End.

PS I blame twitter! All my good stuff goes there!

Busy Bee Part 2

OK! SO! After getting home at 4AM, I was VERY lazy on Saturday and didn't make it to the convention until around 5PM. Yes. I spent a mere 2 HOURS at NYCC (not counting my booth shift on Friday) in total. I just went directly to Artist's Alley to hang out with friends and get a few sketches. I managed to get three from Katie Cook, Declun Shalvey & Leandro Fernandez (I don't have them scanned right now, but I'll post 'em eventually)!

After that a bunch of us went out for dinner. I forget the name of the place, but THIS is what I saw on the wall on the way out. Why?!?!?!?!?!

Saturday night was also the Marvel after-party, hosted by none other than the famous C.B. Cebulski! I was PLANNING on not staying out too late because I had to be up at 8AM to drive to Pennsylvania the next morning...but I should've known better. Here are the only pics from that night I will share...

Me, Jeph Loeb & Brea Grant!


And this is me with Scott Porter (of the famous Friday Night Lights that I have to watch soon)!

This guy decided around 2AM that we should turn the party into a karaoke party! It was a great idea. Everyone went nuts and had a fantastic time. I left AGAIN around 4AM, but this party was still going STRONG. Scott was a sweetheart and definitely helped turn this party up a notch. (Also, Brea was so adorable that night when she sang! haha)

So, as I mentioned I had to get up at 8AM the next morning. Which I managed to do (ok, 8:30!). And this is why. For the 8 weeks preceding this day, I had be VERY good about keeping up with the gym 2-3 times a week (a big deal for me as ever since I stopped kickboxing, I've been VERY lazy). What finally got me motivated? THE WARRIOR DASH!

What is the Warrior Dash, you ask? Well, it's an approx. 3 mile race complete with obstacle! There's climbing cargo ropes, schlepping through ICE FUCKING COLD WATER and over logs, climbing up muddy hills, crawling through mud under barbed wire, jumping over fire and MORE. So after 4 nights of drinking and being out late, and about 4 hours of sleep, I took a 3 hour drive to Quarryville, PA to compete in this.

Don't get me wrong, I didn't expect to win. Actual athletes will compete in this. My main goal was to a) FINISH it and b) NOT be the last of my group of friends. And in these two things I succeeded! WOOT!

Yeah, they give you a little finisher medal at the end which was pretty cool. The race was really fun. It would have been MORE fun had I properly prepared for it. I was out of breath JUST WAITING AT THE FINISH LINE. And the hardest part of the whole race was the RUNNING. I HATE running and my stamina is CRAP. Most of the obstacles were fairly easy to complete, but all the running throughout was ROUGH. Also, at about the second obstacle — climbing up and over these truck-like constructions — I jumped down off the second one and really hurt my leg, so I had to go through most of the race with THAT pain (which I'm JUST this week FINALLY getting over). But I made it through in 45 minutes! 7th out of my group of 16 friends! (Approx. 3800th out of 5111 people. haha) The best of us did it in 24 minutes (I have no idea how that's possible! :-P) and the last of us I THINK in like 58 minutes. Still pretty fucking impressive!

Throughout the race, Brightroom Photography was taking pictures of us, this is the only cool one of me that I found from the very end (I really wanted one crawling through the mud-pit under the barbed wire) but I'm not buying it b/c they are RIDICULOUSLY expensive. Jerks. (Hence the copyright logo over it, it's just the preview so you can choose which to buy.)


Here's a great group shot someone took of us. So fun.


After the race, you get hosed down (though it only does so much) and a free beer. You can also buy more beer and food and stuff. It really is a lot of fun and we're already planning on doing it again next year. This time I WILL GET A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP!! :)

Oh and these were my poor knees at the end of it...


So, that being the ROUGHEST part of my crazy-busy month of October, there's still so much more to come! The following Tues, I finally went back to The Comic Book Club (a weekly, live talkshow about comics that's REALLY funny) since my friend Declun was a guest on it and I had been neglecting the show (I used to go very frequently). I LOVE the guys who run the show and since I hadn't been there in so long, I hung out afterwards with them AGAIN a little too late that I should've. Oh well. It was fun.

I then followed it up on Wednesday with a ladies night with some of my favourite ladies. We had a delicious meal at Josie's East with lots of girl talk. I actually made it home at a decent hour THIS time. The other thing to happen to me on Wednesday was my good pal Scott Adsit (who plays Pete Hornberger on 30 Rock) invited me and a friend to watch the 30 Rock live episode from the luxury of the SNL Green Room! I decided to bring Declun because I honestly can't think of a bigger fan of the show (and also because my poor little cousin who I originally asked was out of state and couldn't come).

So then on Thursday we went to the SNL studio (EEEEEE!!!!) and did just that! There was free pizza, sushi, wine, coffee and cookies in there. I saw Brian Williams in there (too nervous to talk to him, he's AWESOME) and watched the HILARIOUS east coast taping of the show on the many big screens they have there.

The guy who runs the 30 Rock twitter account took a pic of our group hanging out in the green room before the taping started and posted it on twitter:


Scott took us around for a tour of the set in between the east and the west coast tapings. We got to meet Tina Fey, Julia-Louis Dreyfus, John Lutz, Jack McBrayer, Bill Hader, Judah Friedlander and more. (I actually have met Tina, Bill & Judah before and they are super awesome.) We then took this awesome picture in front of their fake FOX news set:


Then we went back to the green room to await the west coast taping. We noticed that the screen where we watched the show was just showing the floor of the set (meaning the camera was just sitting on the floor). So when Scott left to go tape the next show, he found it and brought Rachel Dratch to say hello to us:


I have to say, it was pretty hilarious to see that in the room all of a sudden. haha I wonder what everyone else in there thought of that...

Anyway, the second taping was just as awesome as the first and included a couple of little differences that made it fun.

I got a couple more shots of the SNL studio before I left. Here's some retired costumes that are great. That's Church Lady in the middle who I LOVED when I was a kid:


In this very hall, I also met MATT DAMON!!!!!! Just a quick handshake and hello, but that was so cool. He's so awesome.


Part of the 30 Rock set being taken down at the end.


Unfortunately I don't have any pics from what followed but we ALSO went to the after party!!! Free booze, free cupcakes, mini hamburgers and other snack foods, and even free milkshakes!! I met Dot com and Tracy Morgan bumped into me. Talked to Jane Krakowski about the fatty milkshakes and stood there while Alec Baldwin talked to her right over my shoulder (it was very crowded). Had a great time hanging with Scott and his lovely lady Sandy, and also Christina Gausas who is such a doll! (She and Scott do a 2-person improv show at UCB theater called Adsit & Gausas. The next one is 11/10! GO!)

So, yet another late night home, but WELL worth it. I had such a great time and now Declun owes me for the rest of his life. haha I was so wiped out I just spent the entire weekend home playing Final Fantasy XIII, watching TV and knitting. I needed to replenish for the REST of October....


To be continued...