Truth be told I bit off a bit more than I could chew this
Spring. I was working on a second master’s degree, planning a semi formal for
one organization and an open house for another. All while trying to maintain a
social life. Long story short, I wore myself down and made myself sick. Like
really, really sick. It took me nearly six weeks before I started feeling like
myself again.
But now I’m back and feeling well! In fact, I feel better
than I have in a really long time and it’s time to let y’all in on the secret
to my new well being…. Weight Watchers.
I’ve been following the program since March and I wish I
felt like blogging about it before now because the difference it has made in my
life is huge! To date, I have lost more than 15 pounds and I feel great. I went
to the gym last night and did three miles on the elliptical! Can you believe
that? Me! The Couch Potato!
I've wanted to lose weight for a while. Not for vanity reasons, but for health reasons. I've been suffering from Type II diabetes for a few years now and several members of my family are experiencing even worse health problems caused from being overweight. It's time for me to get myself healthy!
Eating better and exercising more has got me feeling less
tired, way less stressed and so much more happy. I know I have a loooong way to
go on this program, but I am excited to take the journey and bring you all
along! I’ll try to post more frequently and keep an update on my progress. Wish
me luck everybody!
By the way, in my absence I've been working with some friends on a second blog, Horizontal Stripes. It's a fun little blog to help women of size find self-acceptance no matter their size. Check it out here!
1. Painting my toenails
2. Watching Veronica Mars again from the beginning
3. Reading the new Jen Lancaster book
4. Watching The Notebook
5. Updating this blog. :-(
Tomorrow is Valentine's Day! As many of you head off to romantic evenings with your significant others, I, in true couch potato fashion, will be spending the evening with one of my TV boyfriends. After all, while it may be quite difficult to meet Mr. Right sitting in my living room working on homework, that's the lot I've chosen right now. No matter, I have a wealth of suitors to choose from right off my TV screen! But whom do I choose for the most romantic of holidays? Let's recap my Top 8 list of TV crushes!
1. Nick Miller from New Girl.
OK, so Nick is a bit of a slacker. And kind of a slob. Like I've never dated any of those before! He's that one. The curmudgeon of the group. The wisecracker, and as Nick himself would say about girls in pink robes, "Smart asses are my catnip." But despite his grouchy demeanor, deep inside he's just a softy, who loves his friends and appears to be quite the passionate kisser, as evidenced below. Can I get a link and an amen, ladies?
2. Jax Teller from Sons of Anarchy.*
We can't sum up everything I love about Jax in a paragraph. He would need an entire blog post unto himself. Believe me, there are times I think I could write one I'm so inspired by his ass character! He's wonderfully complicated!For starters, he's caught up in the uber-violent world of a gun-running motorcycle club. He totally holds his own among gang members, drug cartels and even members of the IRA, yet he comes home to his wife and sons and is completely gentle and loving. Sons of Anarchy is full of dichotomies like Jax's character and I love it. The cast is a gang of misogynist bikers who throw women away like used beer cans, yet the matriarch of the group, Jax's mother, Gemma, is revered like a queen. And trust, Jax loves his mother deeply – they are very close – but he is no momma's boy! What he is, is a reluctant leader, trying to navigate through very violent circumstances in order to make a better life for his family. He's a true anti-hero, in every sense of the word and I love him! *honorable mentions could and should go to many of the men in the Sons of Anarchy cast, including Opie, Chibs and Juice (not you, Clay, you suck!), but heart will always belong to Jax.
3. Matthew Crawley from Downton Abbey.
Oh, sweet Matthew! Through some strange, old-world English legalities middle-class lawyer Matthew, third cousin of Lord Grantham (who has only daughters), becomes heir to the sprawling estate Downton Abbey. Lady Mary, Lord Grantham's eldest daughter, is less than thrilled to have Matthew join the family and live at Downton. She'd much rather find a wealthy husband and have the money stay in the family. But damn that Matthew, he's just so charming it isn't long before stuffy Mary finds herself nursing feelings for him. Just in time for him to go off to fight in WWI and almost get himself killed! But our hero returns in a most romantic manner, sweeps Lady Mary off her feet and the two were married this season! I like to watch the episodes of Downton Abbey as they air here in America, but I have heard **spoiler alert** that my time with Matthew is at an end, as he will not make it past next week's season finale. **sniff, sniff** Poor Matthew. We'll always have Downton.
4. Daryl Dixon from, The Walking Dead.
What can I say about Daryl, except he kicks ass? There's something very attractive about a man who can keep you safe even when shit goes down, like the zombie apocalypse! And Daryl has things covered. With a crossbow, no less! Daryl's had a hard life. So when the world became over run with flesh eating zombies, he wasn't exactly sad to see the old way of things end! Daryl and his horrible brother, Merle, were raised by their alcoholic father. For years all they've had is each other so it's hard for him to let anyone else in. So much so that when his group of fellow survivors took over an old farmhouse, Daryl felt more comfortable sleeping in a tent outside. He's coming around slowly, but surely. He's bonded with battered wife Carol, and crazy Carl, the sheriff's son and only surviving child in the group. That is until Carl's sister is born. Daryl affectionately gives her the name Lil' Ass Kicker. Daryl usually has a serious demeanour, but occasionally makes wry comments and jokes to break the tension. Here's a nice little character study I found on Youtube to honor my TV boyfriend, Daryl.
5. Clark Kent from Smallville.
Anyone who knows me, knows I love Superman. For many, Christopher Reeve will always be Superman. That may be true, but for me, Tom Welling will always be Clark Kent. In Smallville, we meet Clark as a teenager, years before he becomes the Man of Steel. Instead he's just a normal (and seriously hot) high school boy, obsessed with the school's prettiest girl, Lana Lang. Inability to see the awesomeness that is his best friend Chloe aside, Clark is just too dreamy! He is strong and kind but also full of integrity and vulnerability. And did I mention the peepers on that boy/man? For ten years I watched his journey into superhero status and I loved every minute of it. How can I not want him to be my valentine? I mean, he's Superman! What's sexier than a man who can rush to Paris to bring you croissants, heat up your coffee with his X-ray vision and then fly you to the moon and back? Just don't ask him why he missed your birthday party. Again.
6. Damon Salvatore fromThe Vampire Diaries.
Why didn't I have this guy higher on my list again? Talk about an anti-hero! Damon will tell you forget hero period, he's the villain! Oh, but there is good in him. We see it whenever this vampire looks at Elena, the resident heroine on The Vampire Diaries and former girlfriend of Damon's brother, Stefan. Those who are friends with me on Facebook always know when I'm watching TVD because I will post a simple status update that reads, "I love you, Damon Salvatore." Because I do. What makes Damon so attractive is that for hundreds of years, he's done whatever he wants with no worries about the consequences. After all, he's a vampire! And he loves Elena dammit, even if it does make him a better person!Now, when confronted by an even more evil vampire, Klaus (yes, it's a show like that), Damon explains to Klaus why he'll never be loved. He says, "You do bad things for no reason. You do them to be a dick... if you're gonna be bad, be bad with purpose." That'swhat makes Damon so attractive. He's a bad boy with a purpose. It really makes it hard to hate him. And again, look at those eyes! Damon Salvatore, I love you.
7. Dean Winchester on Supernatural.
Ask anyone and they'll tell you Dean Winchester is a dick! He'd probably tell you that himself! But really, what do you want from a guy who allows himself no life, no love and no home? All he has is his car, his brother, and his ability to save the world from evil. Dean and his brother Sam (who is also hot and crush list-worthy) are hunters. They travel the US in their Chevy Impala saving the world from things that go bump in the night. Vampires, werewolves, angels of death, seven deadly sins, Lucifer himself? Yeah, they've fought that. And if he hadn't, Dean probably would not have made my list because, as I said, he's a bit of a dick. He's thoughtless and crass, slovenly and smug. He eats like a pig and belches like one too. He's also sarcastic, sometimes sweet and just generally sexy in a completely masculine way. Another anti-hero here. Dean has been hunting so long, he's become jaded and his shoulders are heavy with the weight of the world. He just needs a hug and I'm here to give him one.
8. Malcolm Reynolds on Firefly.
I mentioned Mal and Firefly in one of my last posts talking about shows that were canceled too soon. But here are four words that sum up why I love Captain Mal Reynolds so much:
Malcolm Reynolds = Han Solo
Yep. Mal shot first. Rakish, charming, a devil-may-care attitude, that's Mal! I'd like to plunder this smuggler's booty. But, beware! This captain is a gentleman in disguise. And that makes him even more swoon-worthy! I had to work really hard to whittle this list down to 8. Truth be told, I wanted it to be a top 5, but I'm a little bit of a TV whore who couldn't tie myself down to that few! There were countless more who almost made the cut: Both Ben and Noel from Felicity (I mean, really, is there a bad coice there? Either way you win!), Sawyer from Lost, Jim Halpert from The Office, Chandler Bing from Friends (In Janice's voice, "I love you, Chandlah Bing!"), oh! Doug Ross from ER, or McDreamy (Derrick) from Grey's Anatomy. Medical dramas provide plenty of eye candy! Did I miss anyone? Tell me, TV or not, who are you spending your Valentine's Day with? Whoever it is, I hope your day is beautiful!
Friday Night Lights, My beloved Veronica Mars, Pushing Daisies.... Arrested Development! What do all these shows have in common? For whatever reason we didn't watch them (I mean we the public. Not me, personally, of course. I watched all these bitches!) and they were cancelled.
All the shows listed above, however, ran for at least two seasons. So at least their networks gave them a chance. But there are shows out there that were never even given the chance... Shows that if perhaps the powers that be threw a little more money behind, could've really taken off. Shows that the cancellation of is nothing less than an egregious error, a blight on television history that cannot be rectified! I count down for you now:
The Top Five Shows That Were Cancelled Before Their Time!
5. Wonderfalls. I can't lie. This is the only show on this list that I did not watch as it aired. Why? Because I never heard of it! I think you really dropped the ball, advertising wise, Fox. Boo! But thanks to the wonderful invention of Netflix, I found this little gem and can include it in this list! Wonderfalls, created byBryan Fuller and executive produced by Tim Minear, tells the story of Jaye, a recent Brown University graduate who now works a dead-end job in a Niagra Falls gift shop where she is surrounded by inanimate objects that communicate with her. Sounds crazy, I know. But it's typical Bryan Fuller genius (he also created Pushing Daisies, Dead Like Me and the first – and best – season of Heroes) and the show was fabulous! Check out a classic scene below:
4. Undeclared. This is the show that actually inspired this list! I find that a story helps distract from the misery I am experiencing when at the gym. Instead of hip-hop or electronica- inspired playlists, I opt to stream comedies on my iPhone and Undeclared fits the bill perfectly! I've been watching it the past two weeks.
Created by the now revered Judd Apatow, Undeclared follows six freshman at an unnamed California university. The series features writing (and acting) by the uber-funny Seth Rogen, Apatow favorites Jay Baruchel and Jason Segel, and who is that playing English cutie Lloyd? Oh, that's right! It's the devastatingly sexy star of Sons of Anarchy (and my dreams), Charlie Hunnam! Every episode of this show has me laughing out loud – the one where Adam Sandler visits, or the one where Ron (Rogen) gets a free keg from the multi-cultural department and demands his roomies help him drink it all – but episode 6... Episode 6 had me cracking up on the elliptical yesterday! Marshall has a cold. He doesn't want to go to the school's health clinic though. He'd rather have the very pretty Rachel take care of him. But Ron knows he needs help. So he pulls Marshall from his bed under the guise of going to get fake IDs made from their student ID card, when the following hijinks occurs. You dropped the ball again, Fox. Dropped. The. Ball!
3. Freaks and Geeks. What can I say about this show that hasn't already been said? It's a critic's darling, yet nobody watched it! Why, people???
Freaks aired for one season on NBC before being dropped for low ratings. But I still to this day don't understand why no one watched it! Hello? James Franco, Jason Segel, Seth Rogen, Busy Phillips, JAMES FRANCO!!! The series made Time magazine's 100 Greatest Shows of All Time list, as well as TV Guide's Top Cult Shows Ever and Entertainment Weekly named it #13 among the best shows of the last 25 years! The show deserves every one of these accolades and more! Created by Paul Feig and Judd Apatow, the series focused on a bunch of teenagers growing up in the 80s. My crowd would've called them burnouts, but watch the show and you will fall in love with each and every one of them. Busy Phillips, anyone who watched one episode of this series knew you were bound for stardom! Feast your eyes on Freaks and Geeks!
2. Firefly. Many have theorized about why this series didn't catch on. I'm still flummoxed. Brought to us by the creator of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Angel and more recently Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog and The Avengers, Joss Whedon, Firefly is part science fiction, part western and all brilliant!
Set in the year 2517, Firefly follows the crew of starship Serenity, captained by the charming, yet crass, Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds. Mal and his first mate, Zoe, are veterans of the Browncoat Rebellion. They currently work as smugglers, trolling the galaxy looking for their next score. The series has a hard core following. They call themselves, of all things, Browncoats! Stop by Comic Con, Dragon Con, Anachro Con, any kind of con, and you're likely to find a Browncoat roaming the halls. In fact, Firefly fans are so vocal, they managed to make enough noise that Whedon got funding to finish up the story with the film, Serenity. Alas, their love was not enough to save the show and it was cancelled after just one season. To blame? What do you know...Fox! You suck, Fox!
I love all members of the Firefly cast, including Nathan Fillion as Mal (Swoon), Gina Torres as Zoe, the hilarious Alan Tudyk as Zoe's husband and Serenity pilot Wash, kick ass Summer Glau as River, the lovely Morena Baccarin as Inara, Chuck's awesome Adam Baldwin as Jayne and the uber-adorable and likable Jewel Staite as ship's mechanic Kaylee.
I couldn't find a good clip of Firefly to share, so you'll just have to take my word for it. It's fabulous. But it on Blu ray, yo!
1. My So-Called Life. I cannot think of my teen years without thinking of My So-Called Life, for nothing summed up what it felt like to be a teenager in the 90s like this show did. And few shows have achieved such cult status as this show either! ABC did this little show a real disservice but putting it on opposite ratings juggernaut, Friends. The show was doomed before it started.
Nevertheless, the show from the creators of Thirtysomething, never ceased to break new ground. I thank them for their offerings. We should all be thanking them for introducing us to Claire Danes, then 15 but already a little dramatic power house! Who could resist those longing looks she'd throw at high school cutie, Jordan Catalano (pretty, pretty Jared Leto)? I'm pretty sure that every woman my age fell in love with Jordan Catalano. Not because he was worthy but because Claire Danes loved him and she could make us feel anything.
I miss this show. I miss Jordan and Angela, Ricky and crazy Rayanne! Thanks to Netflix and Hulu, I can relive my youth any time I choose!
Who knows what would've happened to these shows if they aired today? TBS saved Cougar Town from extinction, as Direct TV did for Friday Night Lights. And Netflix is reviving Arrested Development this Spring! Alas, it's too late for these little gems. Thank goodness for the Internet, so brilliant series such as these, though may be gone, will never be forgotten!
It's been a while since I've done a Sunday Shoutout, so here are a few of the things I've seen and appreciated recently! First, the premier for Season 6 Mad Men was announced! Woot!
AMC will begin airing the next season of the best television show ever created on Sunday, April 7. Spring, here's one more reason you are my favorite season! I can't wait to catch up with Don, Peggy, Joan, sexy silver fox Roger Sterling and even creepy Pete! KMS Free Shape Quick Blow Dry. Those of you with thick hair, heed this! My hairstylist recommended this to me. My individual hair strands are fine, but there's a lot of it on my head and it takes forever to dry of a mornin'. Standing there with your head bent forward waiting for your hair to dry? Ain't nobody got time for that! But the Quick Blow Dry helps hair dry faster while adding heat protection and shine to your hair. Truly, I love it! It did speed up my dry time significantly (now I can actually get it all dry instead of arriving at work with still damp hair because this non-morning person did not get up early enough to dry her entire head of hair)! And my hair is noticeably softer. Thanks for the tip, Rachel! I give this product two enthusiastic thumbs up! Ipsy.com! Have you heard of this site? Well, maybe I should be thanking the uber-beautiful and trendy and sweet Kandee Johnson for turning me onto it! Makeup lovers, remember this website, because it promises to be awesome. For the low, low price of $10 a month you can get a monthly glam bag mailed to you filled with all kinds of beauty goodies – and these are not lame samples, these are high quality, name brand items!
This month's bag contains a sample size of Big Sexy Hair Volumizing Spray, Pacifica's Tuscan Orange Body Butter, a FULL SIZE Nailtini nail color, Josie Maran Argan Oil and a Soho makeup brush! If you're counting, that's worth way more than $10, so in the wise words of philosopher Charlie Sheen, WINNING! The CW's The Carrie Diaries. Based on Candace Bushnell's prequel to her other novel, Sex and the City, The Carrie Diaries should not be compared to the HBO show (also known as a half hour of perfection) or really, to the Carrie Diaries book. Many changes have been made, but the feeling and heart of the show feels true to me, so I'm game!
The show centers around Carrie Bradshaw, a senior in high school trying to regroup after the death of her mother. She lives in small town Connecticut, but dreams of life in the big city - Manhattan! In the pilot, Carrie begins an internship at a law firm, hoping to distract herself from life without Mom. When she snags her hose when falling on the sidewalk (a classic HBO Carrie Bradshaw moment!), she's forced to go buy more at Century 21, where she bumps into an edgy reporter from Interview magazine! Now she's swept up into the glamorous New York lifestyle!
The series takes place in the 80s so the soundtrack is kickin'! And the costumes are totes 80s, so I love them! Of course, as with the original Carrie Bradshaw series, each episode is narrated by our leading lady. But there's no Samantha. No Miranda or Charlotte. Not even a Big. At least not yet. But, fans of Sex and the City, I recommend you check out the Carrie Diaries. But I urge you, don't overanalyze! It's not meant to be a literal prequel to the HBO show. Just sit back and take it for what it is – a fun, fashion-filled romp, a fan letter to New York City through the eyes of one much younger, much more innocent Carrie Bradshaw. Enjoy!
Have you heard of Ipsy.com? If not, you need to! It's a cool little website. Each month for just $10 you can have a personalized "glam bag" sent to your house filled with deluxe samples and full size beauty products for you to try out. I just got my first bag today and I think I'm in love!
First, you get a little makeup bag. This one is cute. It's navy with a star pattern on the inside. I got a sample size of Big Sexy Hair's Spray & Play Volumizing Hairspray. That little baby is hanging out in my drawer for those occasionally necessary afternoon perk-me-ups!
I also got a small tube of Pacifica's Tuscan Blood Orange Body Butter. Mmm-hmm! Can we talk about this stuff smells? Orange and mandarin with a touch of raspberries... I want to eat my hand! It feels amazing too - love it!
Also in the bag? A crease brush from SOHO. The brush is ergonomically designed to be comfortable in your hand. I needed one of these, so yay! The bag also had a full size bottle of Nailtini nail lacquer. I haven't ever used this brand, but I'm surprised because I am a nail polish junky! It's very RED which isn't really my style, but I'll probably try it out anyway.
Lastly, a bottle of Argan Oil! Please, this bottle is worth more than the $10 the bag cost me alone! Argan Oil can be used on your face as a moisturizer, on your hair to smooth out split ends, you can even put it in your bath water as a bath oil! It's just great stuff and I'm excited to have it!
So, if you haven't done it yet, head on over to ipsy and sign up for your own glam bag. I can't wait to see what they send me in February!
So… here’s a little update on the whole resolutions thing.
I’m doing great at the gym!
I’ve been trying to go three times a week. Last week, even
though there were two days I really
didn’t want to go, I dragged myself in and left feeling pretty good afterwards
– I just have to remind myself of that feeling the next time I really don’t
feel like going….
The dating thing? Yeah… That’s a little harder!
Online dating, what you think it will be:
What it actually is:
What is up with men on dating websites?
So, I don’t want to sound like a snob, but… If I put in my profile that I have
a master’s degree and I’m working on a second one, and you can’t even string
together a complete sentence…maybe you can go ahead and assume that I’m not
going to be very interested… Just sayin’.
And I try to hold a conversation, but it’s only been a
couple of weeks and I’m already sick of doing all the work! Example chat room conversation:
Random guy: Hey.
Me: Hi there! How
are you?
RG: What’s up?
(I’m already wondering what kind of response he’s looking
for here… What exactly does he think is up? Obviously not much as I’m clearly
sitting at home chatting on my computer…)
I decide to try and spice things up, so I go peruse his
profile and notice a picture of him and a couple buddies at a comic book
convention. I put in my profile that I like comics though I see no mention of
it in his. I’ll use this as a window.
Me: Saw your
comic con pic. You’re a Spiderman fan?
RG: Yeah.
Yeah.... Yeah?!? What exactly am I supposed to say next? I type some variation of that's cool and then the conversation completely fizzles. And this is just an example of many conversations I've had! It has me asking, has the creation of
Facebook and texting, etc. made it so we no longer know how to hold on a
conversation? Where are the questions bro? Or are you expecting me just to
swoon at your “Hey” and throw my cell number at you so we can meet up for meaningless sex? What about my profile gave you the impression I was that type of girl?
I'm not expecting to meet a rocket scientist in OKcupid or Plenty of Fish, but I do wonder, where does a girl go to meet a decent, semi-intelligent SINGLE man these days? I'm really starting to think, that I think, therefore I'm single!
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