doh!

My eagerly awaited duvet cover arrived from West Elm today with a big ole tear in it! So back it goes, and a-waiting I am, again. Bah.

(the photo is from my semester abroad in Florence)

you're welcome

Apparently it is difficult to tell the difference between "accelerating forward" and "accelerating backwards" when one is driving a weinermobile. But, hilarious as that photo is, it's not what this post is about. It's not even about the house suffering from weinermobile-inflicted damage. No, this is about what Oscar Mayer spokeswoman Sydney Lindner had to say about it: "We expect to be back on the hot dog highways spreading miles of smiles in no time."

Yes.

Seriously.

own a piece of history

The Watergate hits the auction block Tuesday. If you've got a serious chunk of change lying around and/or a strong desire to buy a piece of Washington notoriety, step up!

via the DCist

case

My brother turns 21 today, which means we can all stop pretending that this was the last time he had a beer. He won't be getting his gift until we get to Argentina this week, so I can't spill the beans on it yet, unfortunately.

Anyway, happy birthday to my "little" brother--I can't wait to get to Buenos Aires and leap at you!

whimsy parade

Wedding bubbles, originally uploaded by digitalVerve.

This time last year, I had weddings on the brain like mad as I prepared for everyone I'd ever met to get married (figure might be slightly exaggerated). This year, not so much, but when I came across this little story in the "By Invitation Only" section of the paper this morning, I couldn't help imagining just how much fun that wedding will be!

"The tables will be decorated with lawn gnomes and the cupcakes with marzipan toadstools. Nevin and his attendants will wear Chuck Taylors customized by a punk- rock graffiti artist, and the procession will be led by the "Whimsy Parade" — all the kids in attendance blowing bubbles and waving pinwheels."

sprinkler

from the welcome project

There are things I should be doing today, but it's so gosh-darn hot and all I really want to do is go running through the sprinkler.

one day without shoes

I'll be taking my shoes off at school tomorrow--where will you go barefoot?

that man

This is the loud, nosy, frustrating, and fantastic man who is responsible for half of my DNA. He's in Hilton Head today, relaxing and playing golf and raising hell, I'm sure. You're not quite older than dirt yet, but if you keep trying I'm sure you'll get there. Happy birthday, Dad!

on the way to Cape May...

on the way to Cape May..., originally uploaded by GooseGoddessS.

Hey y'all! My spring break officially begins Saturday (oh, such lovely words) and in typical fashion I am just now making plans. I'd like to take a little 2-3 day vacation, and Cape May, NJ was suggested. So! This is a call for suggestions. Have any of you lovely folks ever been to Cape May/know someone who has? I'm looking for advice for B&Bs, places to eat, and stuff to see. Thank you!

the best

This is my mother. Isn't she beautiful? Sometimes it just takes my breath away. Today is my mother's birthday. I won't tell you how old (I value my life, thank you), but she looks at least 10 years younger than she is and people are always shocked to learn her actual age. My mom is hands-down my favourite person in the world. She's my hero and my friend, and there are hundreds of reasons why. For the sake of brevity, here's a short list of examples of awesomeness.

- She's a retired preschool teacher with a masters in Special Ed, and she adores kids. Once while with me at a doctor's office, I came out after the appointment to find her on the floor of the waiting room with a boy of maybe 4. He was pointing things out to her in a book and she was encouraging him to articulate what each one was.

- When I was very sick in high school, she went with me from doctor to doctor, hospital to hospital. Towards the end of the ordeal, we were waiting to see a specialist and had been in the exam room an extremely long time. To distract me, she invited me to waltz with her. It worked!

- She is a Small Mammal Interpreter at the National Zoo, and she loves it. When I was studying abroad in college, I received regular updates not only about the goings-on at home, but how the Golden Lion Tamarins were doing--even photos when they had babies!

- When I was little, she penciled in the names of the keys on our very old, very valuable piano so that I could learn them. She did the same for my brother a few years later.

- She's my favourite travel companion, be it near or far. We always have a marvelous time! We've done Paris, China, and Athens abroad, and lots of little trips in the states!That's just a short list of ways my mom is the best mom anyone could have. She's sweet, creative, and funny and knows just how to make a home feel like a home. She's got a wonderfully quirky sense of humor, but she ain't no pushover, either. I love you, Mama! Happy Birthday!

crowned

I don't care what anyone else might say, I am beyond thrilled that a drag queen was crowned homecoming queen at my alma mater. I may not be the most involved of alums, but I loved my time at Mason and am quick to recommend it to anyone who asks. It's a truly diverse campus, and this is a fantastic example of how the diversity extends beyond the large percentage of minority and international students. Congrats to Ryan Allen!

Thanks for the scoop, V!

electocycle

, originally uploaded by beebo wallace.
Like the title? Yeah, I made that up. Just read that Best Buy is now offering electronics recycling at all of its stores nationwide. There are some caveats to it, as ATDC notes:

Though the recycling is free for most products, there is a $10 charge for TVs, CRTs, monitors and laptops which is offset with a $10 gift certificate for a future purchase at Best Buy. Customers can drop off two products per day for recycling.

Best Buys's in-store recycling will not accept console TVs or TVs large than 32", electronics containing freon, or appliances.

Check out the website for more info. Ah, no more putting off getting rid of that old TV and laptop.

photo source

archer

Archer, my aunt's beloved mutt, passed away today. It may seem odd, offering a tribute to a dog who wasn't even mine, but Archer was something special. He came from the Richmond SPCA, and was the world's greatest testement to the wisdom of adopting pound dogs. Despite his size, Archer was the kindest, most gentle dog I have ever met. My family is unquestionably a dog-loving bunch (each branch has one, if not more), and we always agreed that he was the best. He loved every person he ever met, although none so much as my aunt. Family gatherings just won't be the same without his quiet, steady presence. We should all be so lucky to have had an Archer in our lives.

V

Happy Valentine's Day, y'all! Hope the V Day alien brought you lots of goodies (photo may or may not be of actual alien).

Photo courtesy of Sam.

red days

I have never been in a relationship when V-Day rolled around (except for freshman year in high school...but that's best left forgotten), so it usually passes pretty uneventfully for me. I am not the bitter Valentine's Day-hating type of persistently single person, in fact I rather like the day. My mother gifts me with heart-smattered socks, PJs, and on one memorable day, a crown, and so it goes by, perhaps with slightly more chocolate than usual. All that said, I have actual plans for tomorrow. I am going to make myself some of these.
Mine will not be nearly so pretty, and I will most likely go with store bought icing rather than make my own, but here's hoping they'll be tasty! Happy Valentine's Day, y'all. Eat a cupcake, spread some love.

via Jo

disheveled

Despite the fact that fashion and I are not the best of friends (more like passing acquaintances, really), I faithfully view every one of The Sartorialist's posts. I can't help it. This image stayed with me all day today as I tromped through the slush downtown in my bright red wellies.

How is it that some women manage to look both disheveled and fantastic at the same time? Is it a gene I lack? When I am disheveled, I look disheveled. Deranged. Possibly homeless. I may not be French, but as a direct descendant of a Huguenot immigrè, I feel I have a right to this gene. Yes.

That is all I have to say on the matter.

awesomeness in a box

Look what came in the mail today! It's my winter swap package from Anne! This time, I remembered to take photos.

It was full of goodies! I requested Anne send me snow from Chicago, which is apparently a tough thing to accomplish, so she sent me Blistex instead! The little white bag is full of chocolates...I foresee the need for a longer workout tomorrow...

This was the best part: a recipe book of my very own, with a few of her favourites to get me started. I've never been much of a cook, but I've become more interested in making certain things of late (don't get your hopes up, Mom), so this will come in handy!

As usual (and by "usual" I mean "this has happened twice"), Anne totally beat me to the punch in getting this out--I've only begun to put hers together! Major props go to Jamie Meares for thinking this swap thing up last summer--a box of goodies is just the thing to brighten up a day. It's like when we had pen pals as kids...only better. Thanks, Anne!

did you?

Obama-2596, originally uploaded by timfernando.

Did you watch? I'm sure you did. This was my favourite part:

"To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."

The DCist has the full transcript. At the end of the page.

If you missed it:

photo source

high score

I may not have resolved to get into shape, but it's nonetheless something that's been on my mind. In college, we had a great gym just across campus, and then working at the book store meant that I essentially spent my days on a treadmill. In the last six months I've missed the exercise, so I've been thinking about getting a Wii Fit. I've heard good things from unbiased parties, and assuming it does not hijack my life all HAL-like, it seems like a good bet for me.

What say you, internet? Any Fit users out there with recommendations for me?

image from here

resolute: update

This is my piano. She doesn't have a name (that I know of), as she just turned 80 on January 4th and I've always felt it would be presumptuous for me to give her a name. She's a classy old dame, and that's the truth. She doesn't have all of her original parts (she's had some cosmetic surgery, but you didn't hear it from me), and she falls out of tune faster than she did even a decade ago, but she's still got quite a voice.

Today, in an effort to start as I mean to go on, I decided to sing a little. I started off shaky and nearly got discouraged, but decided to push through. It felt so good to sing again! I started off with You Don't Know this Man from Jason Robert Brown's Parade, then moved on to I Had Myself a True Love from St. Louis Woman. They're both songs I love which I heard first from Audra, so it was like eating comfort food.

Then I ended with the gospel classic Deep River, which has always been a favourite, and William Arms Fisher's arrangement of Sigh No More, Ladies, which is from Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, but isn't the version they sing in the film. I couldn't find a recording of the Fisher, but here's Marian Anderson singing Deep River. She'll give you goosebumps!

I was hoping to join my old church choir, but it turns out I have class the same time as they rehearse. So until I find a different choir (and I would like to find a choir, I love singing choral works), it'll just be the old lady and me. I think we'll be ok.