And a beer in a tree.

Merry Christmas Ya'll!


Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Twelve


Alright, you all knew it was coming. My favorite Christmas song on my favorite Christmas day.

Cause it's Christmas day.

Yeah.

Anyway, it seems like every year I just keep adding versions so, without further ado...

Here is this year's new version, along with all the others....

Bob and Doug McKenzie


That's right it's Strange Brew! Well, sort of. And I love it, I've been jamming to it since October. The video is a bit distracting, but it works.


On to the others:

Straight No Chaser's Mashup



Jeff Foxworthy Redneck 12 Days of Christmas



BoyMongoose Indian 12 Days of Christmas



The Voice's 12 Days of Christmas


that is still a valid turtledove question blake.


and of course my favorite of all time.....

Janice Dickinson's 12 Days of Christmas


I especially love 1:02 and 1:13. No, I never watched the show but I still love her.

As the list just continues to grow I'm sure there will be more next year. Though I don't have any more space in my version. It draws from all of them and it's the one I sing on Christmas day. I'm happy with my version.

It goes like this:

12 Boyfriends Begging
11 Charges pending
10 Minute yoga
9 Years probation
8 Table Dancers
7-11 Workers
6 Cans of Spam
5 Mother F*cking Ugly Men
4 Italian Suits
3 Former Husbands
2 Giant Breasts
and a totally insufficient dowry.



2011 Day Twelve - And a totally insufficient dowry.
2012 Day Twelve - Four Italian Suits, Three Former Husbands
2013 Day Twelve - Twelve...monkeys working...what is it?

Fall on your knees, oh hear the angel voices.

Happy Christmas Eve!

Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Eleven

Getting down to my real favorite songs here.


Carol of the Bells - Staring at Lakes


Interesting take on it. Love the accents. Give them a minute, it's worth it.

2013 was the Piano Guys, 2012 was Pentatonix, 2011 was Home Alone soundtrack


Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Anna Kendrick


And see, you think she's just good in Pitch Perfect, but no. She's good on her own without all the effects. Crazy good.

2013 was Christina Perri, 2012 was Xtina with Brian McKnight, 2011 was Judy Garland


Oh Holy Night - Home Free


Yes more from them. Get over it, I bought their Xmas CD as well. It's quite good. Still want to see them live.

2013 was Jordis Unga, 2012 was Hey Monday, 2011 was Glee



2011 Day Eleven - Let all within us praise his holy name
2012 Day Eleven - To the Moon, Alice
2013 Day Eleven - From now on our troubles will be miles away

Wishes I've made, Wishes I might

Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Ten


White Christmas - Lady Gaga


Okay so that wasn't awful. Love the impromptu second verse. She did adlib a bit, but not bad. And she was even dressed tamely. I'm in shock. Not bad.

2013 was Wood and Wire, 2012 was Team Blake from the Voice, 2011 was The Drifters


Welcome Christmas - Ukuleletim


Short and sweet.

2013 was Girls Generation, 2012 was the original Grinch classic, 2011 was Glee


God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - BYU Vocal Point


Not bad. These guys were on the Singoff and have won the ICCA's (International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella) yes from Pitch Perfect, that is a real thing.

2013 was Postmodern Jukebox, 2012 was Barenaked Ladies, 2011 was Glee


Wish List - Alex Zukoff


Not bad for being all by himself.

2013 was Only Seven Left, 2011 was Neon Trees


2011 Day Ten - I just want you, oh darling, I just want you.
2012 Day Ten - Westward Leading, Still Proceeding
2013 Day Ten - "Did you just say your daughter was an Amish dude?" "Honor student, my daughter is an honor student."

If only in my dreams.

Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Nine


Baby it's Cold Outside - Skyler Astin and Briga Heelan


Yes, that is the guy from Pitch Perfect. He stars in this comedy series called Ground Floor. I've seen a few episodes, it's not bad.

2011 was Tallulah Bankhead and Jack Carson - my favorite version - 2012 was She & Him, 2013 was Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Lady Gaga


Silver Bells - Doris Day


Love her, always have. Growing up my favorite movie was Calamity Jane, must have watched it a thousand times.

2011 was Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney, 2012 was Twisted Sister, 2013 was She & Him


Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree - She & Him


I KNOW! It took long enough for me to find one I hadn't already posted. I love their Christmas album, it was the first one I took out to my car this winter. I actually own the physical album instead of just buying it on iTunes. They were also fantastic live.

2011 was Toby Keith, 2012 was Brenda Lee, 2013 was Glee Cast


I'll Be Home For Christmas - Tommy Kraft


Acoustic, love the guitar in this one.

2011 was She & Him, 2012 was Kristin Chenoweth, 2013 was Gabe Bondoc


2011 Day Nine - I'll be home for Christmas, you can count on me
2012 Day Nine - And the game of golf was invented
2013 Day Nine - In the new old fashioned way

Santa make him hurry, tell him he can take the freeway down.

Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Eight 


The Christmas Song - Jayesslee


I know you don't know them, but I love them. I posted stuff by them in previous years (also go by JS) and I still keep going back. Check out their cover of Gangnam Style. Not what you were thinking at all, it's fantastic. Here's another one to watch - Bang Bang. The whole one verse of it that is.

2013 was Nat King Cole, 2012 was Mel Torme and Judy Garland, 2011 was She & Him


Blue Christmas - Postmodern Jukebox (PMJ) feat. Kate Davis


Love their throwback style. I absolutely love Elvis's version of this song so any sort of throwback is awesome. Looks like I posted something by them last year too.

These guys are the kings of throwback, check out their channel. Here's a:
Hoedown version of Nicki Minaj's Anaconda
Jazz version of Britney Spears' Womanizer
"Grandpa style" of Thrift Shop
Barn dance version of Blurred Lines

Just ridiculous. Subscribing, they're awesome.

2013 was David Thibault (WHO WAS RIDICULOUS and actually performed it on Ellen here), 2012 was She & Him, 2011 was Elvis Presley and Martina McBride


Run Run Rudolph - Steven Tyler and Brad Paisley


Wildly entertaining. Once they started jamming that is, not so much the talking part.

2013 was Kelly Clarkson, 2012 was Cee-Lo Green



2011 Day Eight - Christmastime is here, Happiness and cheer
2012 Day Eight - Blue Blue Blue Christmas
2013 Day Eight - Run run Rudolph, Santa's gotta make it to town

Here's a little song I wrote, you might want to sing it note for note.

Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Seven

Jingle Bells - Mike Tompkins


Love this guy so much. I've posted a lot of stuff by him over the past few years. My favorites are probably Paradise and Misery, and of course Acapella. Another one I would love to see live. He actually toured with Karmin last year, jealous.

2013 was Charlie Parra, 2012 was Sungha Jung, 2011 was Glee


In fact I like him so much that I'm adding another song to my list for this post:

Up on the Housetop - Mike Tompkins


Another song I'm not sure why wasn't already on the list of songs to post. Awesome version, love him. Check out his newest mashup of Shake it Off and Pompeii.


Winter Wonderland/Don't Worry Be Happy Mashup - Pentatonix


While I usually scroll through a bunch of options and pick which one I want to post, I knew exactly which version of this one I wanted to post. If you're only going to listen to one out of this entire list of Xmas music, make it this one. Love it so much.

2013 was the Andrews Sisters, 2012 was Jason Mraz, 2011 was Dean Martin


Please Come Home For Christmas - Ben Haenow


While I haven't seen a single episode of The X Factor - mostly cause I can't stand its creator - I do love this clip. He's great. Oh and look, he won. Congrats. Well deserved.

2013 was Bon Jovi, 2012 was CeeLo Green



2011 Day Seven - Dashing through the melted snow in some untied tennis shoes
2012 Day Seven - If not for Christmas, by New Year's night
2013 Day Seven - Do you want an arm or a torso?

You have all the tender sweetness of a seasick crocodile.

Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Six

Sleigh Ride - Pentatonix


Yeah, you're gonna be getting a lot of these guys this year. Get used to it, they're fantastic. They were incredible in person too.

2013 was Jewel, 2012 was Karmin, 2011 was She & Him


Jingle Bell Rock - Billy Idol


Oh my god, it is actually Billy Idol. I thought for sure this was fake when scrolling through Youtube. Upon realization I am posting it. Cause I'm amused. Another fun one to see live. While I didn't see this one - obviously as I did not know it existed - I did see him sing White Wedding at Warped Tour in Denver in '05. It was fantastic.

2013 was Kurt, Max and Macy Kate, 2012 was Chord Overstreet, 2011 was Brenda Lee


You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch - Tay Zonday


Well, he's got the voice for it...

2013 was Urban Method, 2012 was VersaEmerge (MY FAVORITE), 2011 was the original Thurl Ravenscroft Grinch version


2011 Day Six - Troll the ancient yuletide, Carol!
2012 Day Six - What a bright time, it's the right time
2013 Day Six - Dr. Seuss is my favorite rapper

All is calm, All is bright.

Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck: Day Five

Oh Little Town of Bethlehem - Bill & Gloria Gaither feat. David Phelps


Pretty impressive.

2013 was Shawn McDonald, 2012 was Sinatra, 2011 was Sarah McLachlan


Silent Night - Pentatonix


And they stand there awkwardly...Loved seeing these guys live. Had to buy the new album when it came out. That makes 2 Xmas albums, both fantastic.

2013 was Kelly Clarkson, 2012 was SNL, 2011 was Aly & AJ


What Child Is This - Gardiner Sisters


Pretty talented family. Check out their acoustic covers of Radioactive, and Happy, or their Pirates Medley which is super cool.

2013 was Lindsey Stirling, 2012 was Carrie Underwood, 2011 was Charlotte Church



2011 Day Five - Battle of the Blogs, Gypsy Caroling, Fat Cats, Whom Shepherds Guard and Angels Sing
2012 Day Five - I'll Deck Your Halls
2013 Day Five - Merry Christmas ya filthy animal

You can hardly stand to hear three weasels every year...

Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Four


Deck the Halls - Tenth Avenue North


Loving these guys. Very clever video. Check out their song You Are More, it's catchy.

2011 was Mannheim, 2012 was Pomplamoose, 2013 was Mike Tompkins and friends


Oh Come All Ye Faithful - Mackenzie Davis/Danielle Wilson/Grayson Propst


Pretty good for acapella. They're actually quite good with piano too, check out their cover of Stay With Me.

2011 was Twisted Sister, 2012 was JS, 2013 was Pomplamoose


The Chipmunk Song - Bob Rivers


You could hardly stand us then, now here we come again...

This is the twisted version, it's highly entertaining.

2011 was the Chipmunks, 2012 was Straight No Chaser, 2013 was Glee Cast



2011 Day Four - Joyful and Triumphant
2012 Day Four - Do people actually ask Santa for hula hoops?
2013 Day Four - I want a plane that loops the loop

That some day it would lead me back to you...

More Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck: Day Three


Christmas Wrapping - Front Bottoms


Okay so they're nuts, but they don't sound bad.

2011 was The Waitresses, 2012 was The Donnas, 2013 was Save Ferris


Santa Claus is Coming to Town - Im5


Yet another boy band. I especially love their cover of NSync's "It's Gonna be Me" Looks like they lost a member somewhere along the way. They also have a cool mashup of Christmas music here.

2011 was Glee, 2012 was Michael Buble, 2013 was Cimorelli


Let it Snow - Hannah Cho


Okay so she's a bit awkward, but her voice is crazy good. Check out her Frozen cover or my favorite, her cover of Maroon 5's Sunday Morning. Incredible.

2011 was Michael Buble, 2012 was Frank Sinatra, 2013 was Christina Perri



2011 Day Three - You Better Not Pout, I'm Telling You Why
2012 Day Three - You Mean You Forgot Cranberries Too?
2013 Day Three - Darth Vader follows me on Twitter

That mourns in lonely exile here...

More Christmas Music that Doesn't Suck 2014 Edition: Day Two

Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer - Home Free


this bud's for you...

I absolutely love these guys and all their adlibs. Acapella country man. They're wonderful, I wish I could see them live. Speaking of the Sing-Off is coming back next week!

2011 it was Elmo and Patsy, 2012 it was them 30 years later, 2013 was Jesse Hite


Little Drummer Boy - Dave Days


Okay so the baby Jesus is creepy, but these guys are pretty good.

OH MY GOD, do you remember that awful song "Friday" by Rebecca Black? The only anti-music-rec I ever posted EVER?! He made a "Saturday" video with her. Oh my god. Well, at least it's better than Friday.

2011 it was Sean Kingston, 2012 it was Kevin McHale, 2013 was Pentatonix


Santa Baby - Ashanti


Oh my god I totally forgot about her! To be fair it's been like 5 years. She's that chick that sang Rock Wit You and Foolish and Rain on Me. Then disappeared. Now apparently she's making a comeback. If you call collaborating with Rick Ross and French Montana as a comeback that is...

2011 it was PCD, 2012 it was Eartha Kitt, 2013 was Megan Nicole


Alright, I'm adding another song just because I can. Not sure why it wasn't on the list to begin with but...


O Come O Come Emmanuel - Christina Grimmie


That's right, it's my Voice pick from last year! Still got it, very cool. And all acapella, very impressive.



2011 Day Two - "That's just Joe's Finger and Pandemonium"
2012 Day Two - So hurry down the chimney tonight.
2013 Day Two - "I have to work to keep this figure." "You don't work very hard."

And from Taco John's...

Since my last post was ginormous I'll try to keep this one short.

Fun things from this week...hmmm...

My favorite hockey player got to be the hero yesterday. He scored in a shootout and won it for us! And of course it was an away game so I wasn't even there to see it, ugh.

Went out to eat with Mom and Oldest Sister. Had Greek potroast, it was fabulous. Mom gave me money for new clothes for Christmas so Oldest Sister and Second Sister are taking me shopping tomorrow.

That should be an adventure...

You should be so proud to know that I've already started working on my New Years Resolutions.

If you read my previous post you probably already know one - yep, it's time to actually work on getting in shape.

Queen of the Known Universe and I are gonna work together on this one so we can push each other. That means no more junk food, less burgers, more broccoli. Except I hate broccoli so I'll have to find a substitute.

I have been working on meal plans and am making a grocery list. We're not officially starting until January 3rd though so I'm holding off on buying the stuff.

We figured you're doomed to fail if you start before the holidays, plus we have to have time to clean out the fridge and cupboards...you know, eat the rest of the cheesecake and all that so we don't have to later.

I'll have to add blogging more to the resolution list since it makes me happy.

I'm sure there will be more later.

Holidays are coming up which means Christmas music is upon us. As is the blog tradition, here is......


Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck: 2014 Edition

DAY ONE:

Originally Day One started with Pat-a-Pan but I've ran out of good versions to post.

2011 was Mannheim, 2012 was David Archuleta, 2013 was some random choir...

Literally, the rest on Youtube are just too suckish for me to post, so I'm replacing it with Feliz Navidad. This year you get Michael.

Feliz Navidad - Michael Buble and Thalia


the only problem with this is at the end I always have to throw in a "and from taco johns" from those damn commercials from the 90s that stick with you forever.


Auld Lange Syne - Mariah Carey


she's still got it...though this was from a few years ago. she's gotten questionable since.

2011 was Lonesome Travelers, 2012 was Lea Michele, 2013 was Martin Tallstrom


Happy Christmas (War is Over) - The Fray


what happened to these guys? haven't heard anything out of them lately...

2011 was Maroon 5, 2012 was Christina Perri, 2013 was Charice



2011 Day One - Happy Christmas, War is Over
2012 Day One - Don't piss of Pamela Landy
2013 Day One - So this is Christmas

Hot Babes Getting Hotter: You'll See Less Of Us Soon

They're bringing book-it back.
All of us readers know just how to act.
Hit the library, pull books from the stacks.
Pass up on those by literary hacks.

None of them abridged!

Go ahead, read more of it.


Why yes that was a spin on a Justin Timberlake "classic."

Sorry, nerd.

But yes they're bringing it back. Apparently even as an adult you can get free pizza. Did anyone else do that in grade school? You read so many pages and then you get free stuff from Pizza Hut. It was awesome. Will have to look into that.

Dangit...now that's gonna be stuck in my head all night. Moving on.


Interesting couple of weeks with lots to post about. Will attempt to cover them in some semblance of order.

First up: Leadership Award

So, remember when that library patron was having a stroke and we had to call 911 and all that? If not, go here.

Superwoman decided that we handled it well so she nominated me for this leadership award. I didn't win - not that I was expecting to - but I got to go to this luncheon and be honored and all that. She wrote up a very nice summary of what happened and other stuff I'm involved in and they read it all outloud.

It was fun - I got free food, woohoo! Plus Mom came up which was nice. It was amusing cause afterwards Superwoman was like "I thought we had it in the bag!" and Girlscout after asking if I won said "well, did anyone else save someone's life?!"

Really not that big of a deal, but entertaining that they were so passionate about it.

Honestly I'm just glad he came to us and we were able to get him help, I can only imagine what would have happened if he went somewhere else.

Anyway, it's nice to feel appreciated every once in a while. Plus it was a good opportunity to meet people who also work for the city/county and hear their stories and all that.


Next up: Motley Crue/Alice Cooper/Raskins

I don't know what it is with us and concerts lately, but there's been a lot of drama. See this.

Last time it was "I will shoulder a 12-year-old for you, that's love."
This time it was "I would punch that girl in the face for you, that's love."

I took off work early so we could get there with plenty of time to check in to our hotel and find our seats. Hotel room was nice, had a hot tub and all that, huzzah.

Then when we got to the concert we found our seats and watched the first band. People starting filling in around us and suddenly we hear this girl say "they're in our seats." We double check our tickets and they're correct so we assume she's talking about someone else. Suddenly the usher shows up wanting to see our tickets. He confirms they're legit and goes back to the girl. Hers also say the same seats. Turns out she had booked that entire row for her family and we were in the middle of it all. The usher made us get up and go to guest services. We went and they claimed they can't do anything without both sets of tickets and that there's no possible way to have duplicate tickets if they're legit. Since the other people with the tickets didn't come with us they wrote down different seat numbers on the tickets and told us to sit there. They were just a few seats down, but still in the middle of the family. When we pointed that out and that they had that whole row booked the lady said that those two seats were unsold so that wasn't possible.

I assume that means the error was on the family's end if the event center has no record of them having all the tickets, but whatever.

We went back to our section and on the way ran into that girl. I asked if she would go to guest services, she said no and walked away. When we got back to our section we told the usher. He confirmed there were people in that entire row and offered to go to guest services with us. After talking it through with the usher there to back us up they moved us to the opposite side of the concert. Meanwhile we're missing Alice Cooper - not that I'm a huge fan, but the boyfriend missed a song he liked. When we got to our new seats there were people in those too! That meant getting yet another usher who kicked them out and we finally got to sit down and watch the concert. We were glad to be way on the opposite side as that family, but our seats were right behind the exit so there were constantly people standing up in front of us going in and out.

But whatever, eventually it calmed down and it was a good show. Lots of pyrotechnics, though my favorite part was when Tommy Lee and his drumset went into the audience.

Look at this:



See that lighted box toward the left attached to the red bars? That's him strapped on to his drums, doing flips and drumming upside down.

Cool right?

Here are some of my other favorite shots.














After the madness that was the concert we got back to the hotel, ordered pizza - so did everyone else getting back from the concert according to the woman on the phone - and relaxed in our hot tub watching Pawn Stars 'til the pizza arrived.

After having a hot tub in that hotel and the Luxor I have decided that once we're married and have a house our first major purchase should be a hot tub.

Sounds reasonable, right?


Third is a visit from one half of P Squared. 

So after a weekend filled with all of our teams losing we have come to the conclusion that we are no longer allowed to watch sports together. Went to the hockey game and we lost against our rivals. Went to the Husker game and we lost to Minnesota. Watched the Bruins play and they lost to the Canadiens. The only team that did win this weekend was the Blackhawks and that was because - you guessed it - we didn't watch it. So no more sports for us when we're together. Otherwise we'll have to start rooting for teams we don't like so they'll lose. Hmm... Was good to see her though. With the exception of a random lunch a few months ago it's been years since we've hung out which is weird cause we used to all the time. She's a friend from back home and by back home I mean when we were little on the farm. Used to ride the bus together every day. Got separated in high school but still did every New Years together. Yes she's one of P Squared who I did all the New Years, Dance Dance Revolution, running around the house with sparkling cider and shooting it all over the place at midnight with. But I've already rambled to you about that. Was good to hang out though especially now that she's got this fancy new job and is moving yet again. Crazy!


Fourth is Mockingjay Part One. 

When putting together our schedule for this year's TAB events the first thing on their wishlist was to do a Mockingjay party like we did for Catching Fire last year. I got it cleared so we went and it was great. Went to the library early, set stuff up then we all met at the theater. We were in the new one with those fancy seats - I don't know if they have these at your theater or not but in this one they're like barcaloungers. You can put your feet up and they've got cupholders and all that. Just ridiculously cool. The movie was great, then we walked back to the library for trivia, games and snacks. For trivia this year I added something special - if you got your question right you had the opportunity to shoot an arrow at a target for more points. The team that won hit the bullseye twice so in the end it wasn't even close. The string obstacle course was Level 2 compared to last year - much harder. I think I posted pictures of that last year - here's the one from this year.



Much more challenging. Not a single kid made it through without knocking down a string. The rule was you can touch them but if you knock one down 10 seconds was added to your time. The one who got through the fastest was one of mine so I was proud. While some were doing that others were eating snacks and discussing book vs. movie. I was proud that most of them had read it, which made the trivia a lot better cause most of it was from the book instead of the movie.


Fifth is a family reunion.

My cousin just retired after 20 years in the airforce and is making the rounds. Was the first time I've seen him in at least a decade. I can't even remember the last time which probably means it was a funeral back in 2003. He missed out on our Vegas trip a few years back cause he was God knows where. Was good to see him and actually amusing because he flies military airplanes and the boyfriend makes parts for them so they had plenty to talk about.


Sixth is a visit from my favorite team - Stars at the library! 

Two players came for storytime and read hockey picture books to the kids. They even danced and signed posters for them. It was super cute and the kids got really into it. I took a bunch of pictures for the website and then of course had to get a picture with them myself. Not a stalker I promise, though I was wearing my signed jersey. It was awesome. Posted that picture to my Twitter, now one of them follows me, the other one favorited it, and it got retweeted by the team. Then this morning I learned that the team's official Twitter starting following me. Take that Bembridge Scholars.

Don't ask.


Seventh is the Code Word. 

I've been doing a bunch of training lately for two of our new employees. I explained to them our code word to get away from the desk and told them some of my horror/amusing stories from the past. Most notable being "likes ass or jazz" and the double emergency when Queen of the Known Universe coded me so I could get away and then the same guy latched on to her and I had to code her out too. Soon after telling them about the code I was talking to the female security guard and a guy came up to her claiming he was a musician and needed a security guard to escort him around the library so he wouldn't be mobbed by crazy fans. I didn't recognize him but Wordie did and said he was full of crap. Soon after she returned and said he did it to get her alone cause he asked if she was single. Cheesy but slick, I can dig it.


Eighth is Thanksgiving/Day After. 

Did lunch with his family and then afternoon/supper with mine. Lunch was good. The restaurant was packed but I'm glad we went because the other part of the family that was planning to come couldn't make it. After lunch we headed to my sister's place where we watched football, looked through Christmas ads, and then he slept cause he went to work that night afterwards. Voluntarily. Cause he's crazy like that. I stayed over at the farmhouse and the next day set up the trees. I took a break mid-tree to eat lunch with mom and my great aunt at her nursing home. They did a baked potato bar and then had the game going for the residents that wanted to watch. The staff there was quite passionate about the game, chanting the Go Big Red cheer, leading the wave (regular and slow motion with the residents), playing the fight song over the loudspeaker, and then singing Kum-ba-ya when we were doing awful. It was highly entertaining.


Ninth is a list of miscellaneous stuff that I found amusing or interesting:

The Queen of Awesome and I have decided to start eating healthier. We're calling our diet "Hot Babes Getting Hotter: You'll See Less of Us Soon."

While stocking supplies last week I stopped by third floor. I passed our new Supply Queen and told her "I'm here to steal your kleenex's." She paused and then said "All I could think of in response to that was 'blow me' but I didn't think it would be appropriate." I told her I would have given her a thumbs up.

Have done a plethora of exciting displays at work recently. Turned a triangle display into a turkey:



and then a snowman:



And then upstairs we had Movember - I stuck mustaches on books with faces on them -




and Readbox - made up of books that were turned into movies.



Election day came and went. My coworkers and I discussed how many people were running unopposed and my boss said that her daughter is a hardcore democrat so if there were any republicans running unopposed instead of voting for them she was going to write her mother's (aka my boss's) name in the box. I decided that was entertaining so I wrote her in for county sheriff. As that's basically what she does here.

A TAB member told me she learned how to parallel park from a video on Youtube. The problem? It was a British video so she had to learn how to do it backwards.

Got my hair dyed and one of the first people to notice was a security guard. Even before the boyfriend who has yet to say anything about it. It's darker red with blonde highlights. Working away from the fire engine red hair even though I miss it...But it was hilarious, the guard comes up to me, does a double-take and says, "you changed your hair." "yep." "it's red." "yep." "and short." "yep." "looks nice." then walks away.

The boyfriend and I finally watched Jersey Boys.

Was excellent, loved the music, though I fell asleep during part of it. Scale of Awesome says 7/10.

We also watched A Million Ways To Die in The West

It was interesting...had its moments though they were few and far between. People die at the fair. Cameo by Doc Brown. That's about it. Scale of Awesome says 5/10.

And There's Something About Mary

Another one of those movies that my brother and I would have left to get popcorn during the awkward parts. It's amusing that we're similar like that. I just can't sit there and watch when people are in awkward uncomfortable situations, it makes me cringe. If I'm by myself I will fast forward but if I'm with others I'll just leave. Scale of Awesome says 6/10.

And Old School

Interesting to see Ellen Pompeo in this one since I'm so used to her as Meredith. Like a flashback to her college tequila days or something. The boyfriend loved it. It had its moments. Scale of Awesome says 7/10.


Last is: The Voice

Finally we're to the finals. Here's where my top 20 stands.

Damien - Adam - won battle – won knockout - survived 1st/2nd/3rd/4th lives - WILDCARD WINNER
James David Carter - Blake - won battle – won knockout - eliminated in lives
Kelli Douglas - Adam - eliminated in battles
Anita Antoinette - Gwen - won battle – won knockout - survived 1st/2nd lives - eliminated in 3rd lives
Luke Wade - Pharrell - won battle – won knockout - survived 1st/2nd/3rd lives - eliminated in 4th lives

Toia Jones - Pharrell - stolen by Adam – lost in knockouts
Maiya Sykes - Pharrell - eliminated in battles
Joe Kirk - Adam - eliminated in battles
Jessie Pitts - Gwen - stolen by Blake – won knockout - saved by Blake in 1st lives - eliminated in 2nd lives
Taylor Phelan - Pharrell - won battle – stolen by Adam - eliminated in lives

Chris Jamison - Adam - won battle – won knockout - saved by Adam in 1st lives - survived 2nd/3rd lives - saved in 4th lives
Mia Pfirrman - Adam - won battle – won knockout - eliminated in lives
Fernanda Bosch - Blake - eliminated in battles
Beth Spangler - Adam - stolen by Gwen – eliminated in knockouts
Matt McAndrew - Adam - won battle – won knockout - survived 1st/2nd/3rd/4th lives

Taylor John Williams - Gwen - won battle – won knockout - survived 1st/2nd/3rd/4th lives - eliminated in 5th lives
Katriz Trinidad - Pharrell - won battle – eliminated in knockouts
Jean Kelley - Gwen - stolen by Pharrell – won knockout - eliminated in lives
Troy Ritchie - Gwen - won battle – lost in knockouts
Taylor Brashears - Blake - won battle – won knockout - eliminated in lives

Damien got eliminated but then brought back as the WILDCARD! Awesomeness! So not bad since I have 3 out of the 4 remaining. I would have all 4 but for some reason I switched out Craig Wayne Boyd from my top 20 even though his was only one of the few blind audition singles I actually bought.

Even though I'm happy for Damien I'm guessing either Craig or Matt will win. Most likely Matt, but maybe Craig. Right now I'm happy with whoever.


On to the music, here are my rec's for the week:

Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars


new theme song for the Queen of the Known Universe...fitting for our Hot Babes Hotter plan. love mark ronson. reminds me a bit of Ladies Night or James Brown.


Lips are Moving - Meghan Trainor



the more i hear from her the more i love her. she's more than all about that bass, honestly, look into her other stuff, it's fantastic. dear future husband, close your eyes, title, and now this. i'm stoked for the new album coming out soon!

in fact i think she has officially reached Current Top 5 Favorites status, bumping out Eminem cause I don't like his new stuff.

that puts us at:

1. Maroon 5
2. She & Him
3. Lily Allen
4. Karmin
5. Meghan Trainor

and guess what, SHE'S TOURING this spring!! so exciting. now if only Lily Allen were to come back to the US sometime soon....this time not as miley cyrus' opening act...honestly i would have gone to see her and then left before miley. she's too much of a wrecking ball for me.


Hanging Tree - Jennifer Lawrence


heard this in mockingjay and haven't stopped singing it since. totally haunting moment but complete momentum shift in the storyline.


God Only Knows - Matt McAndrew


was so excited since it's one of my favorite songs from my youth. he covered it very well.

i grew up on their music, and mr. tom and i listened to it many times while i was doing my practicum internship. lots of beach boys, eagles, and halloween music playing in the background, it was highly entertaining.


Back Home Baller - Saturday Night Live


i just have the "bowls, bowls, all type of bowls" part stuck in my head. driving me nuts but i love it!


Alright that's all I got. More soon. Already planning out my 12 Days of Christmas Music That Doesn't Suck - woohoo!

RRVN - Take Four

Happy blog anniversary!

Remember, Remember the 5th of November.

4 years, 120,000 views later and I'm still here.

Can you believe I’ve had this thing for 4 years?

Granted lately I haven’t been as good keeping up with it as I was before. Honestly I don't know how I did it every day for that long.

But that’s probably good for you cause you don’t have to put up with my random ramblings 7 days a week. Now it’s just like twice a month. There you go, I did it for you.

Though I've slowed down a bit I still post about the important things.

In true blog anniversary fashion here are a few of my favorite posts from the past year.


1. Family Christmas: "It's alphabetical." "What from W to boobs?" "Are you sure you want to purchase Boobalicious for $10.95?"

IF YOU'RE GOING TO READ JUST ONE GO WITH THIS ONE
2. 1000th Post: Post #1000 My Top Library Moments of All Time "You looked all serious." "I am serious, I gotta get rid of this 7Up!"

3. People's Choice Awards: Nope, it's there forever. Like Maggie Smith and her tramp stamp. "Some of me are definitely dudes."

4. Golden Globes: "It's the story of how George Clooney would rather float away into space and die than spend one more minute with a woman his own age." "Explosion at the wig factory" = alternate title for American Hustle

5. Life Mottos: Walk west 'til your hat floats Because everyone should have someone to scream at in a giant elephant.

6. Grammy Awards: Then I got sober and two robots called me and asked me to make an album. Could anyone understand the words coming out of Beyonce or Jay Z's mouths? It was like Ozzie up there. And then Ozzie was up there...and needed subtitles.

7. Sketch Meets the Parents: It's cold out and I'm not wearing pants, where are you? “What do you think of this dress?” “Stick some candles in it and make a wish?”

8. Trivia Night: I hope I go home with the right dwarfs Heigh ho.

9. Valentine's and Birthday: puck...puck...puck...i should probably move...yep, good plan. The lady in front of me ducked to save her beer. Priorities.

10. Vegas: Vegas Take Two "Take all the dam pictures you want."

11. Hockey/Attachments: "What do you call people who mouth the words when they read?" "Nerds?" We want milk!

12. Library Inservice: My librarian's spicy under-layer. "Think about how much time you spend managing your boobs."

13. Zombie Apocalypse: "The deaf guy's right, you are a nice lady." Yes, these are the thoughts that we have at work.

14. Zombie Apocalypse Part Two/LifeSize Game Day: Keep Calm and Flame On She watches a lot of Survivor and she's good at assembling Ikea furniture.

15. Motorcarring Take Two: We ain't got no room for boring. I'm wondering if they're actually decorative or if it's more like a giant rock monster died in their front lawn and they were too lazy to move them.

16. Librarian Problems: Do I wanna know why there's a bra in the lost and found? Merry unMother's Day.

17. Cher Concert: I hope you took your heart pills cause I'm coming out. I’ve been drinking this forever…Eisenhower was president.

18. Homey G Wigger/Sketch and Edit's Excellent Adventure: Hyvenese = Chinese for Hyvee Plus I had to save Bertha. Don’t ask.

19. Motorcarring Take Three/Paul McCartney Concert: Some people bring spare parts, Popper Boy brings spare cars. It had a picture of a ring with the subtitle: Your Girlfriend Wants Me.

IF YOU'RE GONNA READ TWO GO WITH THIS ONE
20. Camp J Highlights 2014: Hard to be a boy in a cabin named Sioux. Sounds like a car driving through a halftime show.

21. Camp J 2014 Skits: Eat a donut, write a ticket, hands in the air Soap Opera: …Me? You want to marry me? Oh Biff, I, I.... Game Show: ...am so sorry, that's the wrong answer.

22. Bats at the library: Balls to you sir, balls to you sir, up and down the court. Blow me east, blow me west, I like lots of wind.

23. Learn the symptoms of a stroke/Karmin concert: I would shoulder a twelve-year-old for you. That's love.

24. Fun times at the zoo/Staff Association/Hockey Signings and Tour: "Do you work here?" "No." "Oh, well there's a reindeer stuck in the tree." In the meantime I'm on the cheeseball committee.

25. Disney Overload: No one saying do this, no one saying be there, no one saying stop that, no one saying see here. "it starts with an S and the rest is fluff."

26. Sports Harder: "A field goal's like kissing your sister." They looked like something your grandmother would have bought you (like a bird sweater) and then he actually wore them.

27. Mentor: And I'm dying inside and nobody knows it but me. Living in a dream world is great, but sometimes you have to face reality and write letters to the important people in your life before it's too late.

28. Women's Murder Club: That's not coffee that's diabetes on ice. "That's how I ended up with a Rotato."


You can find 2013's highlights here, here and here
And 2011's here, here, here, here, here and here

No idea what happened in 2012.


Continuing on, here are a few of my favorite things lately:

What's green and sings?

Elvis Parsley. That was a Library Judge addition.


Hey Ya - Troy Ritchie


Flashback to high school. I love his quirky style, especially at 0:42. Need to learn that move. It's stylin'.

Twelve Days of Christmas - Bob and Doug McKelvie


Don't look at me like that, it's November, I'm allowed to listen to Christmas music. Aren't you so proud I waited 'til after October to start?

Guess I'll have to add that one to my list to post for 12 Days of Christmas Music coming up in December. A whole 12 days of posting in a row. Perhaps I should go back to posting every day to prepare. I've got plenty of stuff to talk about.


Here's what you've missed since my last post in no order whatsoever.


Today at work was so bizarre. I climbed through a hole in the wall, turned a display into a giant turkey, and stuck mustaches on books. Let me explain.

The hole in the wall was to the garage which I knew we had but didn't know where it was or how to get to it. Turns out it got walled off cause we don't use it but there's still a hole you can go through to get to it. This was where the supervisor watched safely from the sideline as I got covered in spiderwebs and tripped over broken glass. We've been doing a lot of rearranging lately and we're looking for random odds and ends or more places to stash extra odds and ends.

The turkey thing is going in youth services. We have this giant triangle building block display and Superwoman wants us to turn it into a giant turkey so I recruited two of my TAB kids to help. It's a work in progress, but the head is done!



As for the mustaches it is Movember - a month dedicated to men's health - so I took all the YA books with faces on them and stuck mustaches of different colors and sizes on them, then put them all on display. It's got a lot of attention because it's located right between the stairs and the computer lab. I'm proud.



I know I'm highly entertaining.

What else?

October was filled with ups and downs, specifically one weekend in particular. On Friday we celebrated a wedding, on Monday we mourned at a funeral. Unfortunately it was for the same family as the wedding.

The wedding was fun. The boyfriend went with me - he used to be housemates with the groom. I know the groom from school, camp, and apparently we're related somewhere down the line. And he actually met his bride at camp so I knew her too! She is our nurse. They donated a dollar to camp for everyone at the wedding which I thought was amusing. The reception was lego themed and awesome. Each of the tables had a bowl full of legos for us to build stuff. The boyfriend built a spaceship, I built a house. I even got him to dance with me so it was great.

The funeral was not so amusing. Actually it was rather stressful, even before it started. The night before Mom had this idea of releasing balloons at the cemetery so she texted the new bride to see if it would be okay. The next morning she responded saying that the family loved the idea. Immediately after Mom woke me up - you know how much of an early morning person I am - I got dressed and we went to the pharmacy for balloons. We asked for 40 and they were like "only 40?" until we told them we needed them in like 10 minutes. It took 4 of them to get it done. Meanwhile mom and I went across the street to get breakfast. After the balloons were ready she took most of them in her car and I took the rest. We lost about 4 or 5 on the way over. Scared the crap out of me every time one popped cause they were right next to my head.

Note to self, next time whilst transporting balloons turn the heat/air conditioner vents in a different direction otherwise your balloons will pop. Figured that out halfway there.

Once we were there everything was fine. Well, as fine as it could be. The church was packed, as was the basement, so I was proud. He request was that we sing Someday - which has become a camp tradition since 2008. Since I'm the one who usually leads it at camp I led it there. Plus as she was my mentor I felt it was important for me to do something. It wasn't our best, granted everyone was looking at their feet. It became almost an unspoken rule not to look each other in the eye because we knew we'd lose it. As I had lost it twice during the service - we sang at the end - I only looked up when I had to cue people in and out. After the service we went to the cemetery. The Pastor said a few words and then we released our balloons. It was interesting because there was a treeline and I was scared they would hit the trees but almost a second before they shot straight up and over the trees like they were helped or something. I was glad I could help out as she meant a lot to me. Camp won't be the same without her.

Okay, as thinking about that gets me into over-analyzing my life mode let's move on to something more joyful.

Let's go with TAB, that's always fun. This month for our activity the teens recorded a podcast about their favorite books and their favorite TAB memories. I was quite proud they were able to expand more than just "it was cool" or "i liked the cover." They went into writing style, plot twists, and all that, plus they were very passionate while talking about TAB so that was good. Then of course Info-Man made me talk about how to join and our upcoming events. For your info our upcoming events include a books to movie marathon and a Mockingjay party. Similar to our Catching Fire party last year we're going to see it in theaters and then coming back for games and snacks. I have a crapton of trivia so we're going to divide them into teams through a "reaping" of sorts and then they have the opportunity for extra points if they get the question right by hitting a target with a nerf bow and arrow set.

Very exciting, I know you're all jealous.

What else? Halloween was last week. Myself and a bunch of my coworkers dressed up for work. I was a hockey player. Queen of the Known Universe was a Royals baseball player. The New Guy was a fireman - suspenders and hat included. Info-Man was a Ghostbusting vampire in that he wore a Ghostbusters t-shirt and vampire teeth. We took a picture - it's up on Facebook. As for after work, the boyfriend was off in Iowa riding motorcars with his dad so I went to my sister's. We drank wine and watched Rocky Horror and Young Frankenstein. Squirt was throwing a Halloween/birthday party so there were lots of teens around. I thought it was cool because instead of just watching movies they did a scavenger hunt. They went around taking pictures of themselves with certain things like spiders, pumpkin seeds, gravestones and all that and they got points for each thing. The last thing on the list was to turn themselves into a Mummy so she had tons of toilet paper at the house. Bubby was my favorite. Their toilet paper kept ripping so it took them a couple of tries. His partner was his girlfriend. I know, I feel so old. But I'm the cool aunt so I didn't tell any embarrassing stories. She seems nice.

Soon after Halloween was election day. Most of my people won. Except for governor. I don't like Pete Ricketts or his commercials so that's kind of a bummer. I listened to Mitt Romney Style while voting again. It's becoming a tradition.


On to Scale of Awesome's

Gone Girl


This movie was messed up. In the end they deserved each other, seriously, but we literally just sat in the theater and went what? Like what? It's a super long movie so you're waiting and waiting and waiting for stuff to happen and then it finally does and then it's suddenly done with a huge cliffhanger. I picked up the book at work and read the last couple pages and it's the same thing! Ugh. Scale of Awesome says 5/10.

**Spoiler alert** I thought for sure one of them would kill the other at the end. I was rooting for him to kill her, she's a sociopath, oh my god.


Fury


The boyfriend loves WW2 movies, but since he's a history buff he debunks them as we watch them. This one was apparently fine up until the ending, but I didn't care cause I thought it was great. I know everyone keeps saying all this crap about Shia being nuts, but he stole every scene. He was so good. Total method actor, though I guess he is a bit crazy since he pulled out his own tooth for the role. Whatever, Scale of Awesome says 9/10, I'll definitely watch it again.


Taking Chance


I'm not quite sure how I missed this one until now since it's recent and has Kevin Bacon in it. It must not have gotten a lot of advertising. I thought it was great, very emotional and cool to know what is all involved in the process and how respectful they are. Scale of Awesome says 7/10.



Last but not least here's my Voice Top 20. Well, what's left of it.

Damien - Adam - won battle – won knockout
James David Carter - Blake - won battle – won knockout
Kelli Douglas - Adam - eliminated in battles
Anita Antoinette - Gwen - won battle – won knockout
Luke Wade - Pharrell - won battle – won knockout

Toia Jones - Pharrell - stolen by Adam – lost in knockouts
Maiya Sykes - Pharrell - eliminated in battles
Joe Kirk - Adam - eliminated in battles
Jessie Pitts - Gwen - stolen by Blake – won knockout
Taylor Phelan - Pharrell - won battle – stolen by Adam 

Chris Jamison - Adam - won battle – won knockout
Mia Pfirrman - Adam - won battle – won knockout
Fernanda Bosch - Blake - eliminated in battles
Beth Spangler - Adam - stolen by Gwen – eliminated in knockouts
Matt McAndrew - Adam - won battle – won knockout

Taylor John Williams - Gwen - won battle – won knockout
Katriz Trinidad - Pharrell - won battle – eliminated in knockouts
Jean Kelley - Gwen - stolen by Pharrell – won knockout
Troy Ritchie - Gwen - won battle – lost in knockouts
Taylor Brashears - Blake - won battle – won knockout

My number 1 took out numbers 2 and 6, but the rest of my top few have been dominant. Adam has the strongest team going into the live shows by far since they're all 3 or 4 chair turns. Pharrell has Luke, enough said. James has dominated for Blake and I'm liking Taylor's chances as well. Number 21 on my list would have been Craig Wayne Boyd. He got stolen by Gwen then stolen back by Blake which was cool. I'm rooting for him as well. As usual the female coach has the weakest team. I don't know what it is but every year Christina, Shakira and now Gwen just get hosed by the male coaches.


And that's all I got. Here's to another year. Catch you on the B Side.

That's not coffee, that's diabetes on ice.

Because my last post was wildly depressing this time I'm going to post about a few of my favorite things.

One of them I'm still in shock about.

You have no idea.

Seven years in the making.

Guess what finally came out on DVD.

Yep.

Women's Murder Club.

I'm still going nuts.

Apparently my friends and I - yes, I was that big of a fan that I became friends with other fans online - are so stubborn and persistent that they're releasing it by demand.

Take that ABC. They cancelled it way too early.

The problem was that it aired during the writer's strike so it didn't even get a chance.

Well that and they got rid of the 2 creators halfway through the season and the storyline completely changed.

I still say without it Angie Harmon wouldn't be on Rizzoli and Isles. Where do you think they got the idea of her as a cop? Being a fan of both series' I notice so many similarities.

Alright, alright, I know you don't care so I'll shut up.

I'm just so excited. It first aired 10/12/07 so I'm marathoning it on 10/12/14.

Seven years in the making, I'm telling you. And it's still my favorite show. I've got the posters to prove it.

Plus all of Sketch's artwork scattered around my apartment.

This one's my favorite.



It's hanging on my door.

Oo, I should bring back the tattoo.

Check this out.



But I'd have to get Sketch to do it again cause I'd kill it.

This is what happens when you get bored and have an artist for a best friend.

I know. We were nerds, get over it. But I can't help it. It was an awesome show. Based off a book series by James Patterson - which I hope you knew already.

If not you do now.

I got the first few books in the series that year for Christmas and carried them around with me the entire holiday break.

Even after I finished them.

In like two days.

I remember specifically my siblings were staying over so I got stuck sleeping in my dad's office - which is way on the other side of the house - on this ridiculously uncomfortable couch. And I would sleep with a flashlight just so I could read the books.

And then re-read them. And then mark all my favorite parts.



With quote notes.

Yep. Nerd. But I'm okay with that. Even working in a library being surrounded by other books they're still my favorite series.

And yes I know I shelve them incorrectly but it's my shelf so take that.

I love them cause they're both funny and dramatic. While they're a bit different from the show they're also very similar.

And, because I'm watching the show - episode five. "Maybe Baby." Yes I can tell you that without looking, I'm gonna hit you with some quotes. Cause I can.

Here are a few of my favorite one-liners:

Thomas: "Did you know that the crime desk assignment came with a pepperspray keychain and a police scanner? It's like my new Tivo, I can't turn it off."

Boxer: "So you're leaving the beanie babies, the earring tree, and the butt master."
Bernhardt: "It was late at night, couldn't sleep, infomercial."
Washburn: "That's how I ended up with a Rotato."

Boxer: "Know anything about her personal life?"
Thomas: "She had one?"

Thomas: "You're gonna miss me when I stop coming around."
Boxer: "Give me a chance to find out."

Jacobi: *boxer talking to herself* "Do you need me for this conversation?"

Thomas: "Ohhh, defensive sarcasm, it went well."

Thomas: "Please don't give me the laser vision, it makes me really nervous."

Bernhardt: "Worst. Liar. Ever."

Washburn: "But why do something yourself when you can hand it over to a work-shy ill-mannered counterpart?"
Thomas: "Are we supposed to answer her?"
Boxer: "No, that's not necessary."

Bernhardt: "What'd you do, go to a biker bar?"
Thomas: "I went to seven. They're a little scary."

Thomas: "Right, I'll hang. Catch you on the B-Side."

Boxer: "Tell me you didn't drive this here."
Thomas: "Please, I drove Maggie, my little red car."
Boxer: "Then you sweet talked Officer Cho into letting you past the tape. Wait, your car has a name?"
Thomas: "Doesn't yours?"

Thomas: "I'll chat up the locals, see if there's anything more interesting for sale here at the house of lamps lamps and more lamps." (i still quote that line when i drive by that lamp place on o street)

Thomas: "I hope I go in my sleep."
Bernhardt: "I hope I go out on top of Clive Owen. You die your way, I'll die mine."

Washburn: "If you're strong and push through the pain and the fear, you often find that happiness is waiting for you on the other side."
Bernhardt: "And if you're not strong enough?"
Washburn: "Then that is what your friends are for. To give you a gentle push or a kick in the ass..."

Thomas: "I'm a pancake."
Boxer: "Good pancake."

I'm letting you off easy, there are more. Those are just a few that came to mind immediately. So many memories...

I went back and looked through how many posts are about WMC. 22. Yep. I'm a nerd. Every year on the the premiere date and finale date it was mentioned. Go me.


And, because you're groaning by this point, on to favorite thing number two.

The Voice.

Yes, I heard that groan again.

The Blind Auditions are over so here is my top twenty.

Damien - Adam
James David Carter - Blake
Kelli Douglas - Adam
Anita Antoinette - Gwen
Luke Wade - Pharrell

Toia Jones - Pharrel
Maiya Sykes - Pharrel
Joe Kirk - Adam
Jessie Pitts - Gwen
Taylor Phelan - Pharrell

Chris Jamison - Adam
Mia Pfirrman - Adam
Fernanda Bosch - Blake
Beth Spangler - Adam
Matt McAndrew - Adam

Taylor John Williams - Gwen
Katriz Trinidad - Pharrell
Jean Kelley - Gwen
Troy Ritchie - Gwen
Taylor Brashears - Blake

Pharrell and Gwen are forces to be reckoned with, picking up some of the best ones this season, but I am still and will always be Team Adam. Mostly because I love him and Maroon 5, but also because for some reason he always gets the best singer in the bunch (minus cassadee pope who was team blake). Damien is that singer this year.

Blake's team seems to be a bit lacking when compared to previous years, the only real standouts are James David Carter - who I think will be his frontrunner - Fernanda Bosch and Taylor Brashears. But maybe that's a good thing, because sometimes when you have too many good ones you have to put them up against each other and then are forced to get rid of half. For him there would be no competition so nothing holding them back from making the live rounds.


Alright, enough of that. I know you don't care. On to favorite thing number three.

The Boyfriend. 

No these favorite things aren't in order, if they were he'd be number one. Don't worry. I'm not that big of a nerd.

I got him an epic birthday present this year.

Well it's more like birthday, Christmas, and anniversary. Cause it's big. And I'm proud. Oldest Sister says this tops the camera in Vegas story. Which is huge.

For those of you who don't know it already I lost my camera in Vegas, he went to Best Buy, bought me a new one, and then we went and re-took all of my pictures.

Every girl that I tell that too goes "awww." Cause he's sweet like that. And he deserves a big gift from me.

Last year I got him hockey season tickets so I had to top that.

This one is my ALL IN present. Whether he buys me a ring or not, I'm all in. And hopefully the present will convey that AND remain a secret if my family can contain themselves. Mom helped so of course now they all know.

On to favorite thing number four.

Hockey.

As you know the season has started up again and we are rocking it.

Okay not really, but we have won 2 out of our 5 games so that's not awful. I mean it's not good, but it's not awful. Better than our rivals who have only won one.

Take that Lancers.

Since I'm a huge USHL fan I've decided that I need to pick an NHL team. Especially now that I get more sports channels (i caved and got the big ten network for husker football and it came with a sports package).

After extensive research I've narrowed it down to the St. Louis Blues and the Chicago Blackhawks. Though I also like Colorado and Minnesota.

I'm leaning toward St. Louis because they have David Backes (who used to play for us) as their captain and they also have TJ Oshie who was huge at the Olympics. Plus geographically they're probably the closest team to me personally. Followed closely by Colorado.

But it's still up for debate. They did just smash the Flames last night - which I taped. It was highly enjoyable. However, not as good as the USHL, but perhaps that's the difference between watching it on TV and seeing it live.

Though I have a feeling it's gonna be like college vs. pro for me. I love college football but I'm not a huge fan of the NFL. I mean, I like the Titans, (not as much as I used to) but college is much more fun to watch.

I guess we shall see.


Favorite thing number five.

Husker Football.

So even with a huge fourth quarter comeback we lost to Michigan State. I didn't think we'd win but hoped we'd at least put up a fight. What happened offense? Normally I'm a fan of Tommy but did anyone else notice that we didn't score until they put Ryker in? Abdullah got stopped and it was like our offense couldn't function without him. Thank god for Westerkamp, otherwise that would have been bad. I mean, it was bad, but our defense was excellent so they kept it close. And speaking of that, excellent job defense. You seriously rocked it.

Now on to Northwestern which seems to be the unwritten rivalry. I know it's supposed to be Iowa but I feel like our hardest games in this conference have been with either Wisconsin or Northwestern. Both of which are away games this season and both could halt our no-more-losses mentality. Hopefully that doesn't happen and we play Michigan State again in the Big Ten Championship. Which I think we can do if we pull it together offensively.



Alright, that's enough out of me.

I'm going back to WMC.

Songs of the Week:

We're going with some of my favorites from the blind auditions:

Damien - It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday


Luke Wade - That's How Strong My Love Is


James David Carter - Nobody Knows


Taylor Brashears - You Ain't Woman Enough


i grew up listening to this song and had totally forgotten about it. i literally laughed out loud when she sang it cause it's been my themesong as of late. the boyfriend's got this ex that won't leave him alone. even though it's been like 4 years, 3 of which were with me. i'm staying out of it cause i trust him. he loves me, he's not gonna cheat on me. we're gonna get married, what would be the point of that? but i did totally laugh at this refrain.


Alright, I'm officially out.

Catch you on the B-Side.

And I'm dying inside, and nobody knows it but me.

I mailed a letter this week.

Most nerve wracking document I've ever written.

Beating out COMPS, college term papers, applications to grad school, letters of recommendation for my teens, camp stuff.

Mostly because it's the most important thing I've written in a very long time. Possibly ever.

There's a reason I've been so focused on hockey and football and Disney music, and if you know me you probably already know what that reason is.

For those you who don't see me on a daily basis someone very important to me is sick and I'm not handling it very well.

I guess it's easier to focus on things like hockey and football, or spend four hours researching and posting Disney music than it is to face reality.

I've never been worried before because she's always been a fighter. No matter how many times it's come back she's fought it and won.

But it seems as though that's getting harder and harder.

I still have faith. I do. But it's a challenge. She's the best person I know. She doesn't deserve this.

I know she's not my mother, I have a wonderful mother, but outside of my immediate family I can't think of another person who's had as big of an impact on my life as her.

She's taught me everything from my ABC's to how to play guitar to how to run a camp to how to be a good person.

She's the whole reason I still do camp every year and without her there......I don't know. I don't want to think about it.

So I think about hockey. Last night's game rocked. Won it in a shootout. Ludvig Hoff is a stud. Can't believe they don't have peanuts anymore.

Or football. 5-0. Michigan State tonight. If we win we'll be top 10. If we lose I will be sad. Ameer is a stud. Hope Gregory doesn't leave us for the NFL.

Or Disney. Still can't believe my coworkers haven't seen The Little Mermaid. You can never be too old for Disney. Robin Hood and Sword in the Stone are my favorites. Unlike 99% of Americans I didn't like Frozen but I still think Idina Menzel is a stud. Can't believe they're making live action remakes. Well, I guess I can. But they better not be awful.

In summary: Living in a dream world is great, but sometimes you have to face reality and write letters to the important people in your life before it's too late. It also reminds me that I should take the time to thank the others who've had an impact on my life.

Gonna need some new stationary.



Nobody Knows - James David Carter

"A field goal's like kissing your sister"

Look, I'm posting again. And it's only been like a week. Instead of like a month. Woohoo!

Okay, so last time I did stuff in order, this time I'm doing them in reverse order.

Sunday Night: Sushi

Went out for sushi tonight for the Cool Aunt's birthday. Lots of food, lots of fun. Conversations ranging from Halloween parties, to dead people, to Christmas, to sports stuff. Never a shortage of stuff to talk about in our family.

Quote of the night: "How is she doing?"
Second Sister and myself simultaneously: "She's dead..."

Saturday Night: Huskers Game

The Cool Aunt took me to the Huskers game this week. I was super stoked 1, because it was homecoming, and 2, because the last game I went to was the Kansas game in Kansas back when we were still in the Big 12. Also with the Cool Aunt. So it's been a while.

We rocked it. Final score 45-14.

Ameer was unstoppable, Kenny had some awesome catches, and Tommy has really improved since last season. We have a really young team (with the exception of Bell and Abdullah) so we may have a pretty decent team these next few years.

Here were a few of our favorite things:

Ganz's Pants: I don't know if you watched the game but if you did there was no way you missed Joe Ganz's pants. (for those of you who don't know he used to be a QB, now he works with the QB's). Anyway, he was wearing these bright red plaid pants and they were just fantastic. They looked like something your grandmother would have bought you (like a bird sweater) and then he actually wore them. The Cool Aunt has labeled them as "The Gantz." Though we also liked "Gantzers." I'm wondering if they'll show up in the Huskers section at Scheels like those red and white striped overalls.



Joe is the one in the exact middle of this picture. The only non-player on the sideline not in khakis.

Westy's Crop Top: I love Westerkamp, you've gotta know that by now, but did anyone else notice how short his jersey was last night? It was like they ordered the wrong size for him or something. The Cool Aunt started calling him "Crop Top" as did the lady next to us. "Crop Top's back in..."



You can see it here in this photo, he's #1 running on the goal line.

"Sports Harder!": First off you should know that not all of my siblings are die-hard Husker fans like myself. Or sports fans at all. My brother and I are hardcore fans, but Second Sister knows nothing about sports. I taught her the strike zone this summer. Her motto for her children playing sports is "I don't care if he's running around with his shoes untied, he's having fun!" Anyway, halfway through the game I get a text from her and instead of "Go Big Red" or "Go Huskers" or even "Go Team" she texts me "Sports Harder!" We liked it so much it became our battle cry. Actually it reminded me a lot of that scene in the Big Bang Theory where Leonard paints "Go Sports" on his stomach.



Yep, just like that.

Difference between a touchdown and a field goal: You meet some interesting people at Husker games. The lady sitting next to me was very nice, a teacher, knew my boss, etc. But then we had some interesting characters sitting behind us. When we got stopped on 3rd down and were forced to kick a field goal one of them goes, "A field goal's like kissing your sister." I died.

"Just like I said": The Cool Aunt really wanted us to run a reverse and I really wanted Westerkamp to catch one in the endzone so we would periodically call them out. (you know like when a baseball player points his bat to the outfield like he's gonna hit a homerun) we were convinced on certain plays that that's what they were gonna do because of body language or whatever so she would say "they're gonna run a reverse" and then they wouldn't so she would respond "just like I said." Then I would say "Westy's gonna catch it in the endzone" and it would be a run play instead and she would go "just like you said." So we were totally right the whole time. Not.

Fear Ameer: Even the band had Heisman Fever. Check out what they spelled during their halftime show.





Epic. He does deserve the Heisman. I know he has some stiff competition but I think that run against McNeese State should determine it all.



Enough said.

Selfies Galore: Mr. Johnny Rogers made another appearance last night since it was homecoming. Everyone was getting selfies with him, including the cheerleaders. And guess who my cousin got a selfie with! Mr. Abdullah himself. Super coolness. While the Cool Aunt and I are not big on selfies we did snap one in front of Memorial Stadium. But it was backwards so we had a dude take another one for us.


Saturday Afternoon: TAB Game Day

On Saturday TAB hosted its first event - Game Day. With help from the guard I got the wii set up (which took forever) for MarioKart, plus I had all my board games from camp still in my trunk so I pulled those out. And see, the boyfriend says they're wasting trunk space and that I should unload them...but I've pulled them out on multiple occasions so they stay in the trunk. Also because I have nowhere else to put them really. We played some MarioKart - I dominated - "somebody's actually good at this game?" was one boy's remark, apparently he had never played video games against me before - and then we played some Apples to Apples - I also dominated. Now they want to do it again next year. It's on.

Saturday Morning: Adventures in the Parking Lot

Queen of the Known Universe and I need duo name. Like how Girlscout and I are Team Awesome, you know? We're thinking it should have something to do with our initials since they are the same. We did some excellent teamwork Saturday morning when the gate to our parking lot wouldn't let us in. I can't say exactly what it was, but it was brilliance and I'm proud. Thankfully, after multiple emails and phone calls it is now up and running again. Wildly entertaining.


Friday Night: Hockey Game

Friday was the hockey home opener. I was so excited and had been waiting for this night since like April so I was super pumped. Since the boyfriend was out of town I took Queen of the Known Universe. In true date fashion I had to pick her up, then we had to get her a t-shirt, plus she had to take a picture with the zamboni. Only thing missing was blood on the ice. I was surprised there were no major fights this time. I'm sure that will change as the season goes on. Jitters got to us and we started playing sloppy blowing the lead and losing the game in the 3rd period. Tempers were flaring at the end and they wouldn't even let them do their salute to the crowd just in case there were fights as they left. I've never seen that before. The Queen suggested they have one guy with the puck and then make a big circle around him 'til he gets to the other team's net. Would make for an interesting strategy. Like the Flying V from Mighty Ducks.


And that's all I've got for my timeline. Except it's TV season again, so here are my highlights so far:

Blacklist: Red and Liz are back and I'm stoked. With Berlin still out there the team is in hiding, so he sent Lord Baltimore to find Red's wife to draw him out. And guess who plays Red's ex wife. Mary Louise-Parker. I totally screamed. You have no idea, I'm sure my neighbors thought I saw another spider or something. For those of you that did watch it, the mystery figure in black has to be Tom, right? I mean, he can't be dead. And my "Run Lizzy Run" count continues. Scale of Awesome 10/10.

The Voice: Pharrell Williams and Gwen Stefani have joined Blake and Adam as coaches this year and they have been surprisingly persuasive. Gwen keeps playing the fashion and woman cards, and Pharrell writes poetry and calls people silk. I love them both, but that came long before the Voice. I did love when one contestant told Gwen she taught him how to spell Bananas. I remember buying that CD and then making Mom listen to that song on repeat the entire way home. Some pretty good singers this year, should be interesting. I'm working on my top 20 list. Scale of Awesome 9/10.

Scorpion: Based on a true story, this show tells the tales of Walter O'Brien and his group of geniuses. The first episode introduces the characters and then they get hired by the FBI to stop a terrorist plot at an airport. Was pretty good, I'll keep watching it if it keeps that up. And it's got Katherine McPhee which should be interesting. Scale of Awesome 8/10.

How to Get Away with Murder: Another Shonda series - I think Thursday night has become a Shonda-fest on ABC cause you've got Grey's then Scandal and now H2GAWM. It's a legal drama about a bunch of law students and their teacher - loving Viola Davis in that role - in which she basically is defending criminals in court while teaching them how to do it. And apparently in the flash forward her four main students killed someone. Should be interesting. Scale of Awesome 8/10.

Red Band Society: Octavia Spencer plays a nurse in a pediatric ward - yay for The Help stars getting major TV roles - her charges range from boys with cancer to a girl with an eating disorder to a boy in a coma to a snobby cheerleader with a tumor. The show is more about them living in the hospital, but she holds it all together. Scale of Awesome 7/10.

Mysteries of Laura: Debra Messing returns to TV, this time as a detective. It actually aired on the anniversary of Will and Grace which was cool. This series is awesome, mostly because it reminds me a bit of Women's Murder Club. Female detective. Ex-husband becomes her boss. Etc. But the crazy kids are new. Love her assistant - or whatever his official title is - the one who helps find the pre-school and all that. But Messing pulls off the detective which is surprising because it's so different from Grace Adler. I didn't watch Smash but I'm sure she was great in that too. Scale of Awesome 8/10.


Yet to come: Castle, Mom, 2 Broke Girls, Elementary, Grimm, Person of Interest, Bad Judge, Mulaney, Cristela, State of Affairs and Gotham (which I have taped but haven't watched yet).

Those of the shows I still tape. I gave up on Bones, Grey's, NCIS, and Criminal Minds. Bones lost Sweets, Grey's lost Cristina and half its cast, NCIS lost Ziva, and Criminal Minds lost Prentiss so yeah....I'll wait for the DVDs.

Songs of the Week:

Fireball - Pitbull


weird video, but good song. which is weird cause usually i don't like his stuff.

Bang Bang - Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj


i love this song but the only singer i like is jessie j - i love jessie j - but ariana's a bitch and nicki is weird. however they're all huge now so it's huge.

Boss - Fifth Harmony


Next. Love it.

alright, that's all i got. hopefully you will hear more out of me soon.