Harriet the Spy

Is this really an appropriate toy for a kids' meal?

2008-08-31T12:50:00.002-04:00

I drove through Chick-Fil-A yesterday for a late lunch and I ordered a 4 pack kids nugget meal. I almost always order off the kids menu, because (1) I really don't need 8 nuggets and medium fries, and (2) it's way cheaper. Like by half. Anyway, if you order off the kids menu, you get a fun little prize in your bag. Sometimes, the prizes are pretty good. I collected all four foreign language CD's (Spanish, Italian, Chinese and Russian, if you must know.....and yes, I did listen to them). The prize yesterday left me scratching my head, though. It was a "Between the Lions" bookmark with a magnifying glass at the top. Seriously, whose idea was this? I mean, if you're old enough to read, but young enough to still be ordering off the kids menu (myself excepted), should you really need a MAGNIFYING GLASS to be able to see what you're reading?!? Maybe they're catching on to the fact that it isn't just the 5-9 year-old-group that's ordering off the kids menu these days....

Time to bring back the blog?

2008-08-27T23:18:00.002-04:00

Yeah, so it's been a while, huh? I think I might bring this blog back-- more for myself than anyone else, as I'm sure I've lost nearly all of my "readers."

Anyway, so I was listening to The Decemberists this evening and I bought a couple of songs from the Live iTunes thing that they did a while back. That got me thinking about the way we buy music these days. It's such an instant gratification thing now. I remember "back in the day" when you actually had to go to the store to buy (insert generational physical manifestation of music here). For me it was tapes, and then CDs. I can still recall the first CDs I bought. (The Meat Puppets and the Les Miserables soundtrack, in case you were wondering). One could easily spend hours in a music store browsing through everything. For me, Sensuous Sound was the place to go. "All CDs just $10.99!" In reality, they just wanted to get you through the door to look at all of their really high end audio and home theater stuff, but man, you couldn't beat that price on CDs. I kind of wonder what interesting things I'm missing by just dialing in whatever in iTunes now. I definitely love being able to get what I want when I want it, but I kind of miss the whole music store experience. Where am I going with this? I'm not really sure... but man, the Decemberists need to tour again soon. They put on a great show.

Interesting side note (or maybe not)-- The Decemberists' "Crane Wife" is based on a Japanese Folk tale that was once featured on Reading Rainbow. So if you listened to it and found yourself going, "man, I know that story from somewhere" maybe you have Lavar Burton to thank.

2008-03-22T20:16:00.002-04:00

As promised...

2007-03-22T22:53:00.000-04:00

Woot woot...

2007-03-10T01:23:00.000-05:00

Colorado, here I come! (Pictures, etc, may be forthcoming depending on how good a time I am having).

The weekend package should come with a free colonic...

2007-02-28T01:37:00.000-05:00

For Christmas this past year, Chad was kind enough to get us weekend passes to the South Beach Wine & Food Festival. We've gone to the Grand Tasting events for the past two years, but we figured since we'd have to get a hotel this year anyway, we might as well do it right.

Let me just say-- doing the full weekend thing is like a marathon-- you really need to be training for all the eating and learning how to pace yourself, or you'll be sorry.

Friday night started off with the Moet & Chandon BubbleQ, hosted by Al Roker. The food was great, especially the ribs from Mike & Amy Mills' of Chicago. We saw Martha Stewart cutting the line at Al Roker's station....kind of made me wonder if she got to cut the line in prison, too. And I guess no one told her, but her anorak or whatever the heck she was wearing wasn't quite the recommended "SOBE chic" attire. The champagne was also wonderful, but they ran out before the event was over...boo Moet & Chandon! Shaq showed up toward the end of the event, which was unexpected, but very cool. After that, we headed over to the Ocean Drive afterparty, which was probably a mistake for me. This event was sponsored by Absolut and they were making a bunch of drinks with their new "Apear" vodka, including an awesome pear mojito. I never want to have another pear mojito in my life. We'll leave it at that. Suffice it to say that I didn't really feel like drinking a whole lot at the Grand Tasting on Saturday.

The Grand Tasting on Saturday was a lot of fun, but I have to say I really think that last year's tasting was better. Delta did an awesome job with the check-in station, which in past years was just a bunch of FIU students handing out glasses and bags from cardboard boxes. It seemed like they sold a LOT more tickets for this year's event, because the tasting tents were absolutely packed. They opened at one, and by three a lot of restaurants had already run out of food. We spoke with the rep from Sheba Restaurant (where I had my birthday party last year) and he told us that they were told to prepare for 2,200 tasters-- I know that they sold at least 6,000 tickets to the event, and the Herald estimated it at more like 10,000. I think it's great that there's so much interest in the event, but if they're going to sell that many tickets, they really need to make sure that that many people are going to be accommodated. Also, it would be nice if more restaurants had access to electricity. I noticed last year that many restaurants were serving ceviche, and this year it seemed like every third restaurant had ceviche. Don't get me wrong, I love ceviche-- but there are only certain restaurants that I think highly enough of to want to eat their raw fish, especially if I know that fish has been sitting out on the beach for a couple hours.

We also enjoyed the food demos, although we only saw Giada, Emeril, and some of Dave Lieberman on Saturday. I felt sort of bad for Giada, because it seemed like none of the equipment wanted to work for her. I don't know whose fault that was, but seriously-- the girl can't do a pasta cooking demo if she can't get her water to boil. Emeril demoed a couple dishes from a spa menu that he's created for the Lowes hotel......which is kind of ironic. I mean, it's "pork fat" Emeril for goodness sake. Granted, all the food looked pretty good, especially the ahi tuna poke. It's definitely gonna need more sesame oil for me, though.

After eating all day, we headed back to the hotel to get ready to eat some more. (See? I bet you thought I was exaggerating three paragraphs ago when I said it was like a marathon). The dinner we attended was a five course tribute to Maguy Le Coze and Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin in New York. The dinner was very good, but some of the dishes were just kind of strange, to be honest. The first course was some kind of duck thing that reminded me of an olive loaf. It was a little round slice of something that appeared to have a type of blood orange jelly on the inside, surrounded by something that tasted a lot like pate, surrounded by what I think was duck. It was paired with an excellent Riesling, however. The second course was a dish that included some yummy prawns in a creamy corn sauce. I liked this one a lot. This was followed by foie gras raviolis with black truffles on top. These were also very good, but the dish was so rich I don't think I'd want to eat a serving any larger than what we were given. The next course was a sea bass topped with something that I couldn't quite identify. The topping could best be described as very thin, translucent strips of something that had a sort of rubbery consistency, covered in a gold spray. The bass was awesome, but I didn't eat a whole lot of the topping. The final dish of the main courses was Kobe beef cheek with some other stuff that I couldn't identify. Unfortunately, I really didn't care much for this dish. It was very odd, and I couldn't quite tell from the menu exactly what it was that I was eating. (It reminded me of a time back before I knew that 'haricots verts' were just green beans....). The dessert was a little chocolate tart-type thing that had nuts on the bottom-- it was great. After the tribute, the dinner finished up and we headed to the Belvedere afterparty at the National hotel. I hadn't been to the National before, so it was fun to check it out even though we only stayed about 15 minutes. Belvedere did an awesome job with decorating, though. They had a bar completely made out of ice, and they filled the pool with three foot high lit up letters that spelled out "Belvedere." In all, the evening was really nice, but after the long day of eating I was exhausted and ready for bed.

I can see that this is turning into a really long post, so you'll have to stay tuned for part II-- the Martha Stewart tribute brunch and Grand Tasting day II.

I know, I haven't updated this thing in a while....

2007-01-05T02:09:00.000-05:00

Sorry. I've been busy.

Now that we have that cleared up, I'd like to introduce you to my new best friend, the Logitech Harmony 880 Universal Remote Control. I got this for Chad as a Christmas gift, and it is probably one of the best purchases I have ever made. (He likes it too, just fyi). At the moment, we have 7 devices hooked up to our entertainment center, which meant 4 remotes and three different game controllers. If you have a similar set up, you know what a pain in the ass it is to have one remote to turn on the TV and switch between the different video inputs, another remote to control the volume, etc on the receiver, another remote to control the cable box, another remote to control the DVD player....you get the picture. No one can sit on the couch next to you because you're all snuggled up with your sixteen remotes. Alas, no more, thanks to the Harmony 880. One remote does it all. After downloading the set-up software from Logitech, inputting the information about all of our devices and uploading it to the remote, we were in business. The software is a breeze to use, and it is highly customizable. It works using IR technology, so if you have a lighting system or fan that works on IR, you can actually control that via this remote as well. (Unfortunately, ours uses RF...apparently the upgrade to this remote can handle RF as well. Wish I would have known that before). You set up "activities" on the remote as well, so if you want to use the DVR for example, you push "watch DVR" and the remote turns on the TV, cable box, receiver (set to TV/SAT), and pulls up your DVR guide. It also makes sure all other unused devices (like the DVD player) are switched off. It's so smart. I love it. You should get one too.

The Nintendo Wii is Awesome (and the PS3 ain't bad, either)

2006-12-05T02:08:00.000-05:00

First off, let it be known-- I don't play video games. I really haven't been interested in video games since Super Nintendo. However, I live with a man (boy?), which means that we have video game systems. And of course, with all of the hype about the PS3 and the Nintendo Wii, my man (boy?) had to have them both. There's no such thing as waiting for Santa Claus with him. So, on Saturday a PS3 arrived from Houston, and today a Wii arrived via the JC Penney catalog. (Yeah, no one else knew that they were selling them either....guess that's why it wasn't so hard to order one). As a non-gamer female, I thought I would offer up my opinions of both systems just in case you're looking for something to buy your man (boy?) for Christmas.

The Wii is awesome, in my opinion. Although it will only support up to 480p in terms of graphics, the system itself is nice and small, and the setup is a breeze. It also supports Dolby Digital surround sound, so you can listen to that great Nintendo music in 5.1 channels. The best thing about the Wii is the controllers, though. It comes with this little "stick" that responds to your actual motions. The system comes with a sports game, so you really get to try out all of the controller motions. To play the baseball game, you motion like you're swinging a bat (or pitching). To play golf, you motion like you're swinging a club. There's also bowling, tennis, boxing....you get the idea. The system itself is set up around various "channels" that you get to choose from, your game being one. There is another channel where you can create a "Mii" (a character that looks like you that you can play in certain games), a photo channel, and a news and weather channel will be coming soon. It also features a shopping channel where you can purchase and download games from old Nintendo systems all the way back to the good 'ol NES. My man (boy?) bought two other games-- ExciteTruck and a surgery game, and both are pretty fun. We've been trying to get a second controller for the system, but they are apparently sold out everywhere. (Duh, Nintendo-- it's called the "Wii," not the "Iii").

The PS3 is also a neat system, but not nearly as fun as the Wii in my opinion. I was also a little disappointed to find out a few truths about the system that were certainly not advertised. First off, the PS3 is capable of displaying graphics up to 1080p, which is awesome. However, none of the games that we bought can support higher than 720p. You can connect the PS3 optically to your surround sound system, but it seems a bit buggy so far. One of the games sounds great (Resistance: Fall of Man), while the other one has NO sound through the surround sound (Tony Hawk's Project 8). I don't know if this problem is unique to us, but it seemed like quite a few people on the PS3 message board were having a similar issue. Boo. A $600 machine with $50+ games should just work right. Period. The PS3 also comes with a wireless controller (and extras were readily available), however, they run on a rechargeable battery, so you have to make sure to keep them charged up via the USB port on the front of the PS3. The PS3 is also REALLY heavy for some reason. This won't be a game system that you're going to throw in your carry-on bag and take with you on vacation. Overall, the games look very nice, but they are definitely man (boy?) oriented. Of the initial offering, like at least 3 or more are "shooting" games where you walk your army man around and shoot stuff. Woo hoo. Granted, we didn't get the Sonic the Hedgehog game, but the available PS3 games don't get that many girlfriend points. The big bonus you get with the PS3 is an integrated Blu-Ray player. This probably doesn't mean all that much to most people, but if you have a TV that accepts a native 1080p signal, this is the highest quality picture that you'll be able to get out of your television. Even your HDTV channels are only broadcasting in 1080i. We haven't watched an entire movie on it yet, so I can't say whether it makes a huge difference, but I'm excited that at least we have the option to play the Blu-Ray discs now. Unfortunately, a lot of the titles that are out on Blu-Ray don't interest me that much. Talladega nights came free with the PS3, but you'd have to pay me to sit through that again, so it hasn't been opened yet. The opening to Superman looked nice, however.

So, which system do you buy for your man (boy?)? If you don't have a TV that will handle 1080p, definitely go with the Wii. Even if you do, you should still consider the Wii. It's cheaper, the games are more appealing to a wider audience, and overall it seems less buggy. On the other hand, the PS3 is a good choice if you have a pimped-out home entertainment system and if you're more into watching movies and leaving the gaming to your man (boy?).

Gov't Mule is like...

2006-11-06T23:17:00.000-05:00

...Soul Food. Not the prettiest gourmet dish you'll ever see, but damn tasty all the same.

Chad and I went to see Gov't Mule last night at Tampa Theatre and they did not disappoint. It has been literally years since I've seen them--the last time was with original bassist Allen Woody, and he must have died at least four or five years ago. They still put on one of the best live shows in rock 'n roll in my opinion. Not only is Warren Haynes incredibly talented, but he also has the gift of awesome tone. He has a very distinct, recognizable sound-- case in point, Chad put in a Flying Frog Brigade (Les Claypool's side project) album a couple years back on a trip from Tampa to Miami, and part way into one of the songs, I had to find the liner notes, because I was convinced that Warren was playing. Sure enough, he was a special guest on that song.

The band just sounds good, too. I usually wear earplugs to concerts, regardless of who is playing. Last night, I didn't for most of the evening, because it was just so nice to hear a mix where all of the instruments were complementary and no one overpowered any other. I also like the "2 set" formula that a lot of the "jam bands" have adopted. Play for an hour, take a 30 minute break so that everyone can hit the bathroom and refill their drink, and then play for another hour or so. Luckily no one was sitting in the row in front of us so we could stretch out a bit and enjoy everything (Tampa Theatre is old and cramped that way...). Even Chad gave the show a thumbs up, and I'm convinced that he'd rather spend an evening at home knitting than see any band that is even remotely considered a jam band. I'm not really sure where I'm going with this post, but I just wanted to make the point that Gov't Mule is still awesome after 10 years, and you should go and see them when they're in you're town. As a matter of fact, I think they're playing in Gainesville tomorrow night....

Calling all cooks....

2006-11-04T03:54:00.000-05:00

Since a few of you seemed to take issue with my turkey meatloaf, maybe you can help me find something else to make. Pork Vesuvio. Let me preface that, actually.

Around the fall of 2001 or 2002 (I really can't remember....college is a little hazy), Chad was making a documentary about street performers in Key West for an independent study he was doing. This was all OK with me, because we got to go to the Keys like every other week or so. I also got to use his mom's washing machine, which was an added bonus, since the washing machines in the dorms sucked. What does this have to do with pork vesuvio you might be wondering? Well, there used to be a fantastic Italian restaurant around mile marker 80-something called Dino's. This was a family run place where the little Italian grandma made the desserts. They also had a special called Pork Vesuvio that was absolutely awesome. I was told that it had been roasting in the oven for over four hours before you ever even ordered it. If they had it on the menu when we went, I ordered it--no need to look at the menu or anything. Anyway, Dino's closed a few years back, which is a real shame. If I would have known it was going to close, I would have done just about anything to get that recipe. I've searched all over the internet to find a similar recipe, but the closest thing I've come up with is chicken vesuvio, and it doesn't sound anything like my beloved pork dish. As best I can remember, this was like a pork shank or something-- it definitely had a bone in it--and I seem to remember some type of brown sauce or gravy on it. If any of you have any clue what I'm talking about, or better yet, a recipe, please share! I'll even make it for you!

Only 1 Kalorie!

2006-11-02T17:15:00.000-05:00

They've finally arrived. My delicious European Coca-Cola Lights. They appear to be from Germany via the UK. I'm making Rachael Ray's delicious Turkey and Wild Mushroom Meat Loaf Patties with Pan Gravy and Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes for dinner tonight, and I think I'll be enjoying that with a nice, cold, wonderful glass of Coca-Cola Light. Mmmmm.....

We really need more art education in our schools....

2006-10-31T17:20:00.000-05:00

This year Chad and I went to Fantasy Fest as Pablo Picasso and his Blue Period. Like 2 people got it. I think maybe 5 people got it after we told them what we were. I always designed my costumes with the thought in mind that if you couldn't figure out what I was, I probably didn't want to talk to you. And you know what? I still kind of feel that way.

Donovan Puke Count - 1

2006-10-22T15:33:00.000-04:00

Serves the Eagles right for reserving all of Fleming's Steak House last night so I couldn't get a reservation. I hope Donovan enjoyed it all over again today.

Chad is the luckiest guy I know...

2006-10-08T03:08:00.000-04:00

...and no, it isn't just because he's dating me.

We went to the Lightning's first home game tonight, and during the second period, this lady with a microphone came over to him and asked him if he wanted to participate in a contest. He reluctantly agreed, admitting later that he was afraid it was one of those contests where they make the contestants ride a bike across the ice with their shirt off.

It turns out he had to watch the screen at center ice where they turned over "cards" with images of players on them (for only like 1 second, too). Then, he had to identify which cards had Nikita Alexeev under them. Granted, Chad is somewhat of a sports nut, but Alexeev isn't like a player who everyone knows by name. Last year he played in Russia, and the year before that he played in the AHL. So, when Chad picked the right cards, I have to say, even I was impressed. He won a year's worth of Brighthouse Digital Phone service, too, which is actually an awesome prize compared to some of the other prizes that people win in these contests.

Anyway, I guess now I have to stop giving him a hard time about some of his sports lunacy...

I guess there ARE some benefits to living in "God's Waiting Room"...

2006-10-07T00:00:00.000-04:00

Chad has been wanting to check out the St. Pete Shuffleboard Club for some time now, and I finally relented tonight. It was actually really, really fun.

We pulled up to this place in downtown St. Pete that is straight out of the 1920's and headed over to the shuffleboard court area. Quite an eclectic group of folks were already assembled, including everyone from teens to the elderly. They also were piping in some pretty hip tunes for a Friday night at the shuffleboard courts. (The Flaming Lips?? The White Stripes? Has Grandpa been hanging out with the hipsters again??) We were greeted by a friendly fellow with a beard named Peter, who took us into the lunchroom and got us hooked up with some cues-- he highly recommended the fiberglass ones, but Chad had to be old school and pick out a wooden one. We were directed over to a court next to Ronny, Livi, and Apu, the mostly non-english-speaking Hungarians. Having never played real shuffleboard before, Peter explained the rules to us and let us have at it. And so we did.

Chad, after starting out in the first game with negative 10 points, rallied to a strong finish to beat yours truly. We were neck and neck in the second game, and when I thought Chad had won again, we went over to examine his final disk but it was actually touching the line. (You touch the line, you don't get any points). This riveting match went into "overtime" and I was able to pull out the victory with a score of 78 to 77. You're fascinated-- I can tell.

Anyway, after all the excitement, we packed up and left for dinner, but we couldn't get over the fact that we had had fun participating in an activity that was totally free. We laughed about the fact that in Miami, we first would have had to pay to park, and then pay to get in, and then pay to rent the equipment, and then pay for drinks, etc, etc, etc. All of the shuffleboard veterans were incredibly friendly and helpful, offering pointers and clarifications on the rules. And no charge for anything! Had I not been so hungry, I'm sure we would have stuck around for a tie breaker match. I guess it will just have to wait until next Friday's Social Shuffle!

Want it now....

2006-09-29T01:26:00.000-04:00

Some of you are no doubt familiar with my fondness for Coca-cola Light. Coca-cola Light from Europe-- not any of that other shit. And ESPECIALLY not Diet Coke. Well, I found someone in London who is willing to trade me Coke Light for, get this-- Hostess Twinkies. Is that not awesome? I think so, anyway. I put up a "want it now" post on E-bay a few weeks back and I didn't think anyone would actually respond.....but I guess I was wrong! Anyway, I just had to share my delicious news. My Cokes will wind up costing about $5 a pop, but when you think about the price of a foreign beer in a restaurant, I'd say that's fair!

Carrot wine?

2006-09-27T00:02:00.000-04:00

I know-- it sounds gross. But honestly, it tastes kind of like Chardonnay.

Today we ventured over to Florida Orange Groves and Winery to find out what the buzz on all their citrus and non-grape-based wines was all about. We'd seen the sign for the "winery" in south St. Pete before, but always figured "what the hell kind of winery would be any good here?" Well, I'm glad we stopped by. This place has 36 different varieties of wine made out of everything from mangos to blueberries. And yes, carrots, too. They're more than happy to pour for you, so we tried quite a variety of their wines. First we were offered the carrot wine, but the main ingredient wasn't revealed until after we'd tasted. It really didn't taste a thing like carrots. The blueberry wine was also quite tasty and we were told that a reduction of the blueberry wine tastes mighty fine over ice cream. Some of the other flavors we tried included blackberry, raspberry, peach, passionfruit, orange, orange/chocolate, mango, grapefruit and a five flavor white sangria blend. They weren't bottling anything in the back today, but when they are, they're happy to take you back for a tour so you can see just exactly what it is that they do there. If you're ever in the St. Pete area and looking for something a little different to do, definitely check this place out. It won't take too much time out of your day, and it's free, too! (Unless, of course, you wind up going home with 4 bottles of wine like we did....)

Nip/Tuck

2006-09-26T03:54:00.000-04:00

We've been watching a lot of Nip/Tuck here lately, since most everything on TV sucks right now. (Although I have to say, the new Survivor is brilliant. I think the Asians are gonna win, fo' sure. Not that I'm hatin' on my white peeps or anything...). Anyway, the first season was kind of cheesy, but cheesy in a way that you still wanted to keep watching. The writing in season two is much better, but each episode has a sort of preachy, in-your-face theme. Where do they come up with this stuff, though? The lying whore who allows a nun to fake her stigmata so she can stay in the church housing? Brilliant. I love the whole Dr. Troy is really Dr. McNamara's kid's father story line, too. I hope Dr. McNamara sticks to his guns and divorces his annoying, emotional wife. Something about how television shows work make me think that isn't going to be the case, though. Anyway, yes, I realize we're like 2 seasons behind, so DON'T E-MAIL ME ANY SPOILERS PLEASE! Any suggestions about other good TV-on-DVD shows that we can pick up would be swell, though.

Little frustrations....

2006-09-22T14:53:00.000-04:00

So I mentioned a while back how Chad got this home theater system for his birthday, right? Well, his birthday was at the end of July. Our TV showed up on the 31st and our receiver and speakers showed up shortly thereafter. Do you think we've gotten this thing set up yet? No. (And I assure you it has nothing to do with incompetence on the part of either of us). First, we ordered a new stand for the TV, which took a couple weeks to arrive. It was here and set up before Labor Day weekend. Now that we finally had a place to put the receiver, we opened that box up and one of the dang knobs on the receiver was broken. So, we had to return that and wait for another one to be delivered. (Why can't they just stock these things in the store??) The speakers have this nifty automatic microphone set-up thing where, once you've positioned your speakers, you place the microphone where you will be sitting and it automatically syncs them so you don't need to worry about the length of your speaker wire or anything like that. Based on this fact, we've been waiting for our speaker stands to show up so that we can put the speakers exactly where we want them before we run the automatic set-up. Well, we ordered the corresponding speaker stands like, over a week ago. The web site said that you would receive a "pair" of stands and I EVEN CALLED THE PLACE and verified this! Well, apparently FedEx has been trying to deliver the stands for 3 days now, but since they needed a signature, they couldn't just drop them off. Chad finally went to the FedEx hub to pick them up today and I got to work on setting them up. Well, I opened the box, and guess what? Apparently, a "pair" now means "one." So, instead of getting four speaker stands like we wanted, we have two. I guess this wouldn't be all that frustrating, but I Tivo'ed this Keane concert in HD like, a million years ago and have been waiting for the surround sound to watch it! Grrrr. I guess it isn't the end of the world, but geez-- I got my damn bar exam scores faster than we've been able to hook this up!

Being unemployed is awesome.

2006-09-21T03:16:00.000-04:00

What I did today:

1. Slept in reeeeal late.

2. Ate some Indian food for lunch.

3. Went wakeboarding at the OWC in Orlando.

4. Saw the Raconteurs at Hard Rock Live.

My life is tough-- I know. Maybe I'll go hit some golf balls tomorrow? Hmm....

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

2006-09-19T23:30:00.000-04:00

I passed the bar exam. I am also officially eligible to be sworn in to the Florida Bar.

Just thought you'd like to know!

Love,
JB

About as exciting as Hurricane Ernesto got....

2006-08-30T14:12:00.000-04:00

The drink was really good, though.

Who's petting who?

2006-08-04T21:30:00.000-04:00

Grand Cayman

2006-08-04T01:03:00.000-04:00

is neato.

My teef hurt...

2006-07-28T10:20:00.000-04:00

(and oh yeah-- the test is over too...)

So the big test is done with (thank God). It was hard. And long. And exhausting. To those not taking it I explained that it was kind of like a marathon, but at the end, you're not quite sure if you actually crossed the finish line, or if you were even on the right path. Anyway, it's out of my hands now, so all I can do is wait and hope that I passed.

Life is finally returning to normal, which is swell. I'm no longer on the 2pm-5am schedule, and I actually have the time to do stuff like get a haircut. And whiten my teeth. Which probably was a bad idea. Ever since I went through a course of whitening back in the 8th grade, my teeth have been particularly sensitive and they happen to be killing me at the moment. Vicoprofen hasn't made a dent in the pain. I think tooth pain is just about the worst kind of pain you can have.

My awesome and very understanding boyfriend got me a super new toy for finishing the big test, too. Check it out. I can't wait to try it out. Planning on taking it up to Maine, so I hope that the water is a little warmer than last year.

Chad's birthday is this weekend and he is trying to decide between going to the OWC to wakeboard or going to the indoor skydiving place. We're hoping it doesn't rain, because then we won't be doing either. Bah. He's getting a new TV for the big birthday gift (and by big, I mean 60 inches big). It probably won't be here before we leave for vacation, so don't bother trying to rob us. All you'll find is a messy apartment. And if anyone who knows me in real life (or not, even) is interested in buying my old entertainment center, drop me a line. Pictures can be sent if you'd like to see it. (It's a modern-looking light maple. Could probably fit a 36 inch TV I would guess....)

Anyway, time for the haircut!

Time marches on...

2006-07-24T23:24:00.000-04:00

In a little over 48 hours I will be done with the Hell that is the Florida Bar Exam. Where did June and July go?? Who knows.... I've been tense off and on for the past two weeks, so in true form, I'm sure I will catch a cold right after this is all over and just in time to be miserable on vacation. (This always seems to happen right before, during, or after an exam period). I've developed strange and unusual habits over these past two weeks, including chewing gum (which I never really do...but gosh, the flavor of Stride gum really *does* last a long time!) and compulsively touching my hair. I dunno....can you catch trichotillomania from too much bar exam studying? Maybe I can sue them for negligent infliction of emotional distress? God, this needs to be over with....

In the news....

2006-07-18T03:14:00.000-04:00

Numbered, for the benefit of all you bar examiner essay readers out there.

1. I am going to Grand Cayman.

2. I am going to Maine.

3. I am going to pass the bar exam, dammit! (My positive affirmation)

4. I am going to puke if I have to study for this test much longer.

Damnit.....I want to go shopping!

2006-07-14T00:40:00.000-04:00

Stupid bar exam.....I hate you. I want to go shopping NOW because all of the nice things in my size will be sold out at Nordstrom's Anniversary sale after July 26th, I just know it! That nifty zebra Diane von Furstenburg dress is way more interesting than the fact that Florida hasn't adopted a strict liability standard for roaming cattle. That's right, a potential plaintiff will have to prove that you were at least negligent for allowing your cattle to roam the streets! DVF. Cows. You make the call.

Starbucks on Westshore.....

2006-07-06T02:41:00.000-04:00

.....you are terrible.

Generally, I don't like Starbucks coffee anyway, but you can't even seem to get the prepared beverages right. Or hot. And for some reason, you always manage to get sticky on the outside of my cup. And you never give me a napkin unless I ask for it. Even Subway gives you a napkin without asking. I wish you had a comment box so I could tell you how I feel. You need to go drive across the bridge and spend a day at the Feathersound Starbucks, because they seem to get things right over there. Consider this your warning. Next time I might have to write a letter.

Dear Victoria's Secret,

2006-06-28T05:36:00.000-04:00

What's the point of sending me a catalog announcing your great swimwear sale when you know that everything in my size is sold out? If you already have my new address then you must also know what size I order. If it's sold out, don't taunt me. (And no, it isn't an XL, thanks for asking). Also, why even bother selling something that is backordered until the end of August? I mean, come on.....

Love,
JB

ZZZZZZzzzzzzzz.........

2006-06-19T01:28:00.000-04:00

What is it about certain people's voices that just put me to sleep? It doesn't matter what they're saying, or how interesting the topic is.....10 minutes into their speech/lecture/whatever, I am asleep. Case in point, Mr. Nash, my High School Calc teacher. Now, this may have had something to do with the fact that class started at 7:25 in the morning....who knows. But, 10 minutes into class I was sound asleep, only to awaken 30-40 minutes later and dig into my lunch (usually cold leftovers from some restaurant. I can't tell you how many strange looks I got chawing on cold veal marsala at 8:00 in the morning...). Amy Boyers, my abnormal psych professor from undergrad also had this affect on me. Good thing she taught straight from the book. Most currently, the Florida Facts man from the BarBri contracts lecture is the culprit. He's more effective than 10 mg of Valium when it comes to sedation. (Though his half life is much shorter--as soon as he finishes speaking, I seem to perk right up). Anyway, this is somewhat of a problem, seeing as though I actually care about learning this material. At least until July 27th, anyhow. Good thing we got a new coffee maker this weekend.

Hi, you've reached JB. I can't come to the phone right now...

2006-06-11T14:31:00.000-04:00

After I moved, I got a new phone number in my new local area code. I haven't given it out to anyone-- I just couldn't stand not giving money to my local phone company every month. But now, when the phone rings, I don't answer it. I don't even look to see who's calling, because I know that it couldn't possibly be anyone I know. (Plus, no one ever leaves a message). In reality, I think I got the local phone number so that I could buzz people in at our guard gate, but the gate has been broken for quite some time now, so not only do I have a phone number that I don't use, but I also have a gate opener that is useless. Anyway....

Apparently, Alberto is coming to visit the West Central Florida area. I hope he decides not to be too much of a little bitch, because I have 2nd row tickets to see the Sumo wrestlers battle it out in their diapers tomorrow night.

Oh yeah-- for those of you who live in Miami-- might want to keep a close eye on the Gables Diner. Looks like they've cleaned up their act since, but 19 critical violations as of 11/17 is a little scary.

I think it's funny...

2006-05-08T22:31:00.000-04:00

...when my dog dreams. I wonder where she is going in her little head? I remember a long time ago a short cartoon called "The Family Dog" involving dog dreams. Anyone else remember this?

I want a Piano...

2006-05-04T02:45:00.000-04:00

No, I don't really play. Although I did get an "A" that semester I took piano in college. If I were independently weathly I would have a Steinway right this minute. But I'm not. So, maybe this would do?

Coming Soon to a Theater Near You!

2006-05-04T00:35:00.000-04:00

I haven't really been all that impressed with Hollywood's movie selection as of late, but there are a few films coming out soon that I'm actually interested in seeing. First off, if you haven't seen it already, Thank You For Smoking was excellent. I saw it at the Miami International Film Festival down here, but it's in wide release now and should be playing just about everywhere. For a first time director, I think Jason Reitman did a teriffic job (though he probably has a few people he can turn to when he needs a favor or has a question). Also soon to be released is Art School Confidential, based on a graphic novel by the same artist who wrote Ghostworld. (Chad actually made a silkscreen of one of the panels from the book, but that's another story for another day...). Anyway, it looks interesting and a little different from the other crap playing now. And finally, I'm also interested in checking out Hoot. Yeah, I know this is a kids movie, but it's based on a Carl Hiassen book and it's set and filmed mostly in Florida, so it holds some other interest for me besides the plot. I love to try and figure out where they shot certain things, and it looks like a lot of it was actually shot in the Keys. Not that I will really have much time to see any movies in the next couple of weeks, but these are on my radar and should be on yours too!

Anniversary....

2006-05-02T02:47:00.000-04:00

Ok, so I missed the one year anniversary of my blog by a few days. I'll just chalk that up to the influence of "cuban time" down here in Miami.

This time last year seems like a million years ago, and when I think back on everything that I've done, it really does seem like a lot. Seeing as though school is wrapping up and I'll be moving soon, it just seems like the appropriate time to do a little stream of consciousness year-end wrap up. So, here goes:

Summer, '05.....Chad's Graduation, Blue Door and the Beautiful People, Jekyll Island with Stu, Having everyone down to the Keys, Running the boat aground, Jai Alai and the Allman Brothers with mom, job search, ADR on Saturdays, working @ WGM, dinner parties at Stu's, June is a fucking blur, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory & Fondue, TS Dennis, Chad's birthday at Madame's, Tim's wedding in Chicago, seeing Dara and eating frushi and way too many hot dogs, Chad moves back to the 727, Rafting in Maine, standing Lobsters on their heads, poker with the boys, Back to school, Hurricane Katrina, clubbing with no A/C and swimming to cool off...

Fall/Winter, '05.....less time for fun, VIP treatment @ Metropolis, the little dog at Jai Alai, watching Hurricane Wilma with Stu, eating all the meat rescued from the freezer at Jai Alai, smoking cigars with Stu and Jason in the dark, fleeing to Tampa, good times with Chad at the expense of the MPRE, the Commodore's Ball, rescuing puppy Wilma, the Bankruptcy Dinner at Capital Grille, going on a "date" with Stu's date, Fantasy Fest, Strongbow and Irish Car Bombs, New Year's with Chad and Kira in KW, bringing Wilma home, snow in Cleveland, a funeral, the cousins, Tampa Jai Alai premieres, the realization that I'd been duped, VIP @ Varekai, a birthday, gorging ourselves at the Food and Wine festival...

Spring '06....visiting the Rubber Hilton, Thank You for Smoking with Lauren, Ski lessons with the Australian, Beautiful Tahoe with Chad and Kira, the All-or-Nothing slot machine, Asst. Manager Aaron Hagar at the Cabo Wabo, many movie days at Stu's, Easter in the Keys and Wilma's first trip, the angry Bum on Chad's doorstep, Bloc Party with Corey......what's next?

New Mac ads...

2006-05-02T00:14:00.000-04:00

I like 'em. Check 'em out.

Don't tell too many people, though. It may become infinitely more difficult to determine who the cool kids at school are.

Doesn't it suck....

2006-04-29T21:12:00.000-04:00

when you burn your palate right behind your teeth? I wish I had a popsicle. That is all.

Coke Blaq.....Blech....

2006-04-18T19:32:00.000-04:00

In my attempt to keep you readers informed of all new Coca-Cola products, I bring you my review of the new "Coke Blaq." This product is disgusting. I don't know how it got past the "idea" stage, because frankly, it sucks. If you haven't been keeping up with the new Coke products, this particular product is like diet coke infused with coffee. Yes, that's correct. Coke and Coffee. Now, I can understand Cherry Coke, or Vanilla Coke, but Coffee Coke? Yuck. Now, granted, I could only stomach one sip of this stuff.....perhaps it grows on you? Or maybe its like cigarettes--gross at first, but then you're addicted and you don't really care. Who knows. All I know is that I'm glad my boyfriend purchased this product and not me. (He didn't like it either, just fyi). Save your money, folks. If you really want to know what it tastes like, go pour some cold coffee in your diet Coke.

Ugh....

2006-04-12T10:22:00.000-04:00

Apparently UM disconnected my school Internet access because somewhere on my computer I have 'file sharing software.' So nice that they're monitoring that for me. Of course, you ARE allowed to have the school-sanctioned file sharing software, Napster, but that won't run on a Mac, so pffffbt.....

My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard...

2006-04-07T11:05:00.000-04:00

Why don't things like this ever happen in Miami?

Oh my.....

2006-04-06T22:28:00.000-04:00

I can't decide whether these are awesome or revolting. I kinda sorta want one. A little pricey for synthetic though, no?

When did TLC become the Horror channel?

2006-04-05T20:44:00.000-04:00

TLC's prime-time program lineup for this evening:

8:00 p.m. - "Born without a Face"

9:00 p.m. - "The Facemakers"

10:00 p.m. - "Face Eating Tumor"

And it repeats again at 11, folks!

Price check on aisle 3, price check on aisle 3....

2006-03-30T22:51:00.000-05:00

I actually did something interesting tonight--something worth blogging about. I went to the Illegal Art exhibit, which is currently at the Hollywood Art and Cultural Center through April 9th. (Yes, it was something for class, but this is a COOL class, dammit!)

Anyway, I must mention one particular "piece" that had me in stitches. An artist named Packard Jennings decided to come up with a collection of phony products and plant them in Wal-Mart stores to see what would happen. One of those products was a Benito Mussolini action figure, complete with bar code and authentic-looking packaging. After planting a group of these figures in the toy aisle at Wal-Mart, he attempted to purchase one, which he was ACTUALLY ABLE TO DO! Awesome. I love it. Wish I would have thought of it. Anyway, the video of his purchase, along with some of his other products are here.

Semi-alphabetical order...

2006-02-26T20:24:00.000-05:00

So it seems that Blockbuster has gotten a little lazy since everyone uses Netflix now anyway. Chad and I went in to Blockbuster today to locate a comedy in the "B" section and could not locate said comedy. And it wasn't because they didn't have it. As a matter of fact, they did have it, we just weren't aware of how to find it in their new, semi-alphabetical system. Luckily, one of their employees was familiar with the system and was able to locate it for us. I'm really not sure about why they've switched to this new system--a system in which "Billy Madison" might come before "Better Off Dead," or "Big Momma's House" before "Best in Show." I thought perhaps it might have something to do with the language barrier in Miami, but then I thought better. The alphabet is the same in Spanish as it is in English, as far as I know (with the exception of "ch" and "n with the ~", which I can assure you was NOT the problem). I think the problem is just that people are stupid. Or lazy. Or both. Netflix, folks. Much easier and no alphabet difficulties.

Call me anal...

2006-02-17T00:46:00.000-05:00

I recently acquired a wonderful friend of the canine variety named Wilma (after our hurricane....which she survived at Miami Jai Alai). Well, my little canine friend came with a winning personality as well as some skin fungus, demodex mites, and some anal gland issues. The fungus and mites were not a problem compared to this little anal issue. Wilma started smelling a little funky on Sunday, so I got her an appointment to be groomed on Thursday. They express the anal glands at the groomer, so I figured I would have a sweet smelling dog by Thursday afternoon. Well, what I got was a dog with a stinky butt wearing perfume. (Kind of like the French, as Stu put it). I've learned more about anal glands in the past few days than I had ever hoped to. Anyway, Wilma has an appointment at the vet for Saturday, but I'm hoping I can get off work a little early and take her in tomorrow. Seriously...anal glands smell like ass.

The great hair catastrophe of 2006.....

2006-02-06T21:10:00.000-05:00

So at the end of December I purchased this "salon package" for $40. It included a haircut, a manicure, and a mini-facial, which is a pretty good deal, considering the going rate for these services in Miami. All you had to do was pay a gratuity of 20%, which I figured was an OK amount since this was such a good deal. I had been to this salon before, and had a good experience there, so I thought there wouldn't be any problems. Well, I was wrong. In case you weren't aware, we have sort of a language problem in this here part of Florida (or should I say, Latin America?). I really don't have any problem with Spanish-speakers and I don't think it affects their ability to cut hair, per se. However, the next time I go somewhere to get my haircut and the stylist speaks virtually no English, expect to see me running from the salon as if it were on fire. Anyway, back to the story. I was very glad to be getting my haircut on Saturday, since the b/f is coming into town this week and we have several engagements to attend. I attempted to tell the stylist what I wanted, and I showed her some pictures to help illustrate the point. I even attempted to explain what I wanted in my broken Spanish. Well, apparently what I said translated to "please, cut my hair as unevenlly as possible and put some terrible layers in so that it looks like I have two different haircuts," because that is exactly what she did. I didn't really notice right away because when she blew it out she tucked it under a bit. However, when I took a shower the next day, I realized what a mess she had made. I thought maybe I could wait it out until it was time for another haircut, but after seeing myself in the mirror at work today, I was like, "I need a hair appointment NOW." The girl that I really like to go to had moved salons and the last time I tried to get an appointment with her I was told the new salon was not open yet. Well, thank the lord it is open now. So, I went to see Sonia, the French Scissor Wizard, who was able to fix my "catastrophe" as she put it. Unfortunately, my hair is a bit shorter now than I would like, but at least it looks good. So, if you are looking for a good haircut in Miami, go see Sonia at Jean-Claude Biguine on Brickell Bay Blvd. Moral of the story, ladies and gentlemen: don't get your haircut by a crazy Spanish lady who doesn't speak English. Things will not turn out well.

I....am awesome.

2006-01-29T11:50:00.000-05:00

Let me preface this blog by stating that I am *not* a handywoman. I tried to fix a closet door that had come off its track earlier this year, and I wound up having to call my landlord to come and do it. But, calling people to fix things is a pain in my ass. They never come when they say they're going to come, and then they usually charge you an arm and a leg on top of that. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I fixed my freezer. I am awesome.

Yesterday evening after I went grocery shopping (of course) I noticed that my refrigerator was less than cool. My freezer also seemed to have accumulated some ice and frost. I had had a problem with this before, back when my building was an apartment building. The maintenance guy figured out that the motor on the evaporator fan in the freezer had stopped working. Instead of fixing it, though, since he didn't have the part, he just swapped my unit out for another one in the building. So, I figured that this was what was wrong with this unit as well and sure enough, when I opened up the plastic thing in the back of the freezer, the fan had stopped. After doing a little research on the internet, I was confident (?) that I could change the motor out myself. Unfortunately, Home Depot didn't carry the part and no appliance repair/part shops were open on a Saturday night. (You're totally surprised, I know...). Anyway, when I took everything apart, there was a lot of ice and wet and yuck. I tried to dry everything off the best I could, and since I couldn't get the part, i decided to put it all back together. But not before blow drying the fan motor. I thought perhaps it wasn't working properly because it was all wet. Well, who knows what the problem really was, but once I put it all back together, the fan worked! I was amazed. I *fixed* something. And, more importantly, all my groceries didn't spoil. You're impressed--I can tell.

The weatherman on channel 7....

2006-01-25T23:22:00.000-05:00

just said "Mee-ah-mee." Why?? I mean, he doesn't say "Aventoorah" or anything like that. Frankly, I'd be terribly amused if he called it "My-am-ah" like the long-time residents (or, alternatively, my Civ Pro professor). Anyway...

Randomness.....

2006-01-11T22:19:00.000-05:00

Why would Esserman Nissan put someone named Chris Assmar on TV as their spokesperson? I mean, really....is that some kind of joke?

In other news, I believe I've learned something very valuable and time saving recently. The best time to run your errands in Miami is at night. You can actually get from point A to point B in a reasonable amount of time, and there aren't 10,000 people in the store so you can get in and out quickly. And who really feels all that bad about missing Entertainment Tonight or Extra?

Final random note.....I had to go to Babies R Us today to get a gate. Is it just me, or is it hard to tell which of the women there are pregnant or just fat?

Happy New Year! (A little late, I know...)

2006-01-08T18:50:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone had a nice, relaxing New Year. I know I did and am dreading going back to school, although this semester shows promise. (I'm getting to take some classes I have been wanting to take for a while and have also been assigned a book to read that is--GASP--NOT a law book! In fact, it's actually quite interesting so far). I posted a few pictures from my oh-so-exciting break to share with you, dear readers. The first is myself and Kira trying on some beautiful masks at the Leather Master in Key West. To ring in the New Year we watched a lovely drag queen descend from the top of the Bourbon Street bar in a giant red pump. Definitely a first for me. Also tried out Chad's new toy, a "slack line" kit. Kind of like a tight-rope, but you can hook it up between different kinds of things. Like the house. Or the world trade center. (Well, not anymore).

Skiing in Florida?

2005-12-28T01:45:00.000-05:00

Yes, it is possible....albeit on a magic carpet treadmill-type thing. In celebration of my last spring break ever (boo), I'm planning on going out to Lake Tahoe to ski in March. Chad is an accomplished skiier and has been trying to get me to go for a while now, so for Christmas I got a nice new ski jacket and a lesson on this indoor machine at Bill Jackson's in St. Pete. Apparently, according to the instructor, I did really well, so that's a good thing. I learned about three different ways to get up if you fall down.....although I'd like to avoid that as much as possible. Anyway, it was pretty cool and I'm looking forward to March.

Yes, as a matter of fact....

2005-12-14T18:23:00.000-05:00

...I am still alive. And that's a good thing...I think. It's the night before my last final exam, so things could be better, but tomorrow is the last final for the semester! Things have been busy busy around here for the most part. I attended the rescheduled Fantasy Fest this past weekend (I went as a "spelling bee" for those of you who are wondering...). I had a lot of fun, but it certainly wasn't as festive, what with it being in December as opposed to Halloween weekend. I guess one good thing about the rescheduling is that I only have to wait another 10 months until the next one rather than 12. (I already have my costume idea too--"All the Way Mae" from A League of their Own!)

Anyway, tomorrow after the exam I will be doing my holiday baking.....Ricotta Pies for our office party and cookies for my dear friends. (Read: I am poor and can't afford to get people real gifts this year). ;-)

Blogging to ya from the 813....

2005-10-30T01:17:00.000-05:00

So I stayed with my friend Stu during Hurricane Wilma up in Weston and after 3 days of no power and increasing temperatures, I fled to Tampa like a lameass. According to my answering machine, my power returned on Friday, but I'm sure I would have been terribly bored at home all alone. Despite all of the inconveniences associated with the hurricane, I must say it wasn't all that bad. Lots of trees down (pictures will be forthcoming), but most of the homes in Stu's neighborhood did pretty well. Fantasy Fest was postponed to December 10th, which falls right in the middle of exams for me, but I'm still planning on being there. Unfortunately, the reschedule date doesn't work out for some of our guests, which really sucks. I got to spend some quality time with Chad up in Tampa, which was very nice, but I'm kind of freaking out about returning to school. I already feel like I am behind in some of my classes, plus, I have to take the MPRE this Friday, which I'm really not prepared for. Furthermore, I missed a week at work, so I'm really not happy about missing most of Friday for the damn test. ....deep breaths.....Valium.....Xanax.....something...please.....

Batten down the hatches....

2005-10-20T01:01:00.000-04:00

Looks like we've got another hurricane headed our way, folks. Not particularly looking forward to it, especially since it appears that it will be interfering with the weekend plans. Why do these things always seem to come just in time for the weekend? The power was out for 3 days when little 'ol Cat 1 Katrina pulled through, so I hate to think what will happen this time. No A/C and cold showers get old really fast. At least I did make it to the gas station and the grocery store last night before the hispanic panic fully set in. Unfortunately, I need to pick up a prescription at Publix tomorrow. Fortunately, last hurricane I sweet-talked the bag boy into giving me the code to the elevator so that I could park my car on the second floor of the parking garage with the Publix employees.....hehehe. If you know the Publix I am speaking of, and wish to have the code as well, perhaps you should drop me a line and let me know what you have to offer.
;-)

The sounds of my apartment building....

2005-10-17T21:04:00.000-04:00

I am very sensitive to noise--hence, why I prefer to live alone rather than with a roommate. When I first moved into my apartment building, it was like heaven. Nice, quiet neighbors...no noise....perfect place to study. When my building converted to condos last year, things changed a bit. People bought units and decided to remodel them. During exams, conveniently. I figured this would be temporary, and for the most part it was. Lately, though, there are a few things that are just driving me up the wall. First off, there is the neighbor who likes to play this one particularly repetitive dance-music song every morning, over and over and over again. This has been going on for a good two weeks now. The same fucking song. Again. And again. And again. I can't figure out exactly where it is coming from, which I guess is a good thing for the neighbor, because if I could, they would regret they ever heard that song. Now, apparently I have another neighbor who either has a baby or a very loud, insistent cat. I get to enjoy the crying noise of this whatever-it-is every evening. Fortunately, my walls are actually pretty good at blocking out noises. The walls in my boyfriend's old place were a lot worse. Still, I find it incredibly distracting and annoying. Perhaps I should play the "Numa Numa" song for my neighbors' pleasure a few times before I go to bed from now on. Grrr...

Apparently, Emeril thinks we take onions for granted....

2005-10-17T00:02:00.000-04:00

...he's probably right.

So, needless to say, I'm hopelessly bored. Chad left town today and I had my MPRE review class, which was rather torturous. Imagine 4.5 hours of filling in the blanks on a handout while listening to a woman on a videotape. Kind of like Mad Libs....but not fun. Instead of coming home afterward and doing something productive like studying, preparing for class, or attempting to make some headway with my overflowing laundry basket, I decided to vegetate on the couch instead. Both Desperate Housewives and Curb Your Enthusiasm were disappointing tonight, so now I've flipped over to my old standby, the Food Network. Unwrapped just finished a program on the Easy Bake Oven. I never had one as a child and now I feel an overwhelming desire to own one. Apparently someone published a cookbook featuring actual recipes you can prepare with the Easy Bake Oven. Who'd have thunk it? And now Emeril is on exalting the joys of onions. Yuck. Only for "flavor" or carmelized, folks. Don't let him brainwash you!

Addendum: Emeril says Americans consume 20 lbs. of onions per year. No way, man.

I have a sneaking suspicion......

2005-10-13T11:39:00.000-04:00

.....that I'm not going to do very well on my Con Law II exam. I can't seem to concentrate for more than about 15 minutes in this class. On top of that, Prof. Con Law has an attendance policy. I'm not crazy about those. Plus, I know of at least 2 occasions (including today...) on which he hasn't passed around the attendance sheet. Now, I know, I know, it is a Jewish holiday.....but, what about my personal holidays? Anyone know if 'ol Prof. Con Law actually counts your absences at any point?

In other news, I went to see Henry Rollins' spoken word show last night. Henry was great (as usual), but conditions at the theater left a lot to be desired. It felt like they decided to leave the A/C off for the entire show, and then when the show was over, I don't think they opened the exit doors for a full 5 minutes. I wound up climbing over the seats to get out. (Unfortunately for the exit, I had a great ticket down front.....I should have just lied to security and told them I needed the emergency exit because I was incredibly clausterphobic). Anyway, if you get a chance to see Mr. Rollins, I definitely recommend it. Hot topics from yesterday evening included: vomiting in the 'people's toilet' on the Trans-Siberian Express, his USO tours in Iraq, Egypt, Afghanistan, etc, Spina Bifida boy and lecturing a 19-yr-old beggar, and of course, our fearless leader's command of the English language. Favorite quote from the evening: "We're all going to die, I just hope not of mediocrity!"

Where can I.....

2005-10-06T21:14:00.000-04:00

...go ice skating in Miami?

...find a Vienna Beef hotdog in S. Florida?

...get Scaciatta around here?

...find a nice beach with no one else on it?

...go to a Ford dealership where they speak English and will fix my car without ripping me off?

Hard to believe I've lived in Miami for going on 7 years now and can't answer these questions. I guess Tampa does have a couple up on Miami. (Then again, Miami probably has more than a couple up on Tampa....)

In other news, Emeril made Russian Tea Cakes on his program this evening. They looked excellent and easy to make....perhaps that will be my project post-bench trial. (Of course, I don't plan to make a big mess by throwing my cookies in powdered sugar when they're done. Must be nice to have someone to clean up your giant messes, eh, Emeril??)

Happy October!

2005-10-03T11:51:00.000-04:00

I love October in Miami.....still warm, but there are the occasional days, like today, where the sun is shining and the humidity subsides for a bit. It may be time to pull out my hammock again after our long, hot, dismal summer. People have started putting up their halloween decorations already and I was quite amused by a few displays that I saw today on the way to school. A lot of people in Coral Gables have been left with knarled stumps of Banyan trees in their yards thanks to Hurricane Katrina and one particular yard took advantage of the creepy stumps to hang decorations on. Way to make lemonade out of lemons, folks. Maybe I'll take a picture for you readers later today. Fantasy Fest is coming up in just a few short weeks and that's always one of my favorite events. (Though I still don't have a costume idea yet--$20 to anyone who suggests a great costume that I wind up wearing!) It's hard to believe that this will be my 7th Fantasy Fest......it makes me feel a little old. No matter-- we should have a great group of guests this year (all FF virgins, if I recall correctly) and I am certainly looking forward to it.

For those of you where it gets cold--I'm sorry; For those of you in Miami--take some time to enjoy this lovely day today!

Actual telephone conversation:

2005-09-30T19:55:00.000-04:00

(Caller ID: "Philadelphia Suburbs")

Me: Wow, someone's calling me, cool! Who do I know that lives in Philadelphia? Guess I'll find out....

Caller: "Hi! I'm Jason calling from blah blah blah Market Research firm and we're doing a study about local banks in your area when it comes to banking, what banks come to mind blah blah blah blah blah...."

Me: "I'm sorry, I don't have time for this right now."

Caller: "When would be a better time to call back?"

Me: "Uh, Never?"

Click.

(Post Script: The sad thing is, I really *did* have time to answer the guy's questions and actually contemplated it for a split second....)

Subway Stank.....

2005-09-23T13:12:00.000-04:00

So, apparently some people actually read this blog and brought to my attention the fact that I've been terribly remiss in updating it as of late. So, I promised to be more attentive to the needs of you, my valued readers.

That said, an observation: Subway (the sandwich place) smells bad. If you spend any amount of time in a Subway, you will also smell bad. Why is this? At first, I thought this trait was unique to our Subway at the Law School. Not so. We got a new Subway in my building at work this summer and it, too, stinks. Having had a ham and cheese sandwich for lunch, I now stink as well. Uck.

In other news: I finally upgraded my PowerBook to Tiger. Widgets are neat. Other than that, I can't say I notice a huge difference. Also, if anyone knows where I can get a good deal on a new power brick (Apple-- not 3rd party), please let me know! (Dropping your Powerbook = not a super idea).

My new addiction....

2005-08-14T22:10:00.000-04:00

So I was given a satellite radio a few months ago by my fabulous friend Stu who got a new car and no longer needed it. It is the coolest thing ever. I'd played around with satellite radio in my mom and my brother's cars before, but I never realized quite how addicting it could become. At first, I was just listening in the car, on the way to and from work. But that just wasn't enough--I had to have more. Good thing XM offers free streaming radio to its subscribers because I couldn't take much more of the Kelly Clarkson crap that my cellmates at work wanted to listen to. Now I plug my little earbuds into my laptop, and it's XM from 9 to 5 as well. It's turned me on to a lot of cool new bands and I've also heard a lot of songs that I haven't heard in ages. I seriously had a 7th grade school bus flashback the other day when I heard "My Sister" by the Juliana Hatfield Three. (Thank you Jr. High crush Billy Shaughnessy for the Juliana Hatfield mix tape...sorry you turned out gay--you were so cute). And for $6.99 a month, you certainly can't beat the entertainment value. I'm going on a short vay-cay this week before school starts back up and I'm afraid I'm going to experience some withdrawal. Perhaps I need to get one of those fun new portable satellite radios? Hmmm.....

My apologies....

2005-07-27T14:43:00.000-04:00

To those of you who read this on a regular basis......I've been terrible about updating lately. I've been sort of all over the place, both physically and mentally, but hopefully things will be getting back to normal in 3 or 4 weeks, what with school starting back up again and all.

So, here's a short re-cap of the past week for those of you who care:

Monday - Friday.....I recall being at work a lot......and not much else. Chad has been in and out of town in the process of moving his stuff back to Tampa. Did enjoy dinner with Stuart on Wednesday (?) and dinner and movies on Friday night. :-)

Saturday - Last Saturday class - yea!! Honestly, the class wasn't all that bad, it was the getting up on Saturdays that sucked. Saturday evening 6 of us went out to "Madame's," the finest drag club in Sunny Isles Beach, to celebrate Chad's birthday. This was followed by slightly inebriated cosmic bowling. Awesomeness.

Sunday - Sleeping and dinner with Lauren and Karl. (Not at the same time..) Lauren (owner of the fantastic franchise Latte Da) also hooked me up with my favorite beverage, Swiss-T Peach Iced Tea. Mmmmm..... no high fructose corn syrup.... Awesomeness.

Today - Hopping a plane to Orlando shortly to see Franz Ferdinand tape their Hard Rock Live show. Should be fun. Hopping another plane eeeeearly the next morning so I can be back at work. Shouldn't be much fun.

I'll be in Chicago this weekend for a wedding and seeing an old friend. Awesomeness. :-)

2005-07-19T18:43:00.000-04:00

I've been feeling awfully out of sorts lately, but I think I'm more or less aware of why. First off, I am not a morning person. I don't think this is ever going to change. I thought, perhaps, if I had a job that required me to get up early in the morning, I would "become" a morning person, but this hasn't happened. Instead, I have become an overtired, cranky, volatile person. Despite being tired, I just can't force myself to get to sleep any earlier, hence my irritable mood. I'm worried that once I graduate and can no longer make my own schedule, I will be a miserable person for the rest of my life. So, I either need to find a job that allows me to telecommute to the west coast, or one that doesn't require me to be there at 9am or before.

In other news, I saw three movies this past weekend and I have only one more Saturday class left...woo hoo! Regarding the movies: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (in IMAX) and March of the Penguins - Recommended; Me and You and Everyone We Know - NOT Recommended (unless you're into pretentious bullshit). And if you happen to go see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, make sure to make your Melting Pot reservations beforehand, as you will not be able to resist the prospect of chocolate fondue afterwards.

Scary...

2005-07-12T16:58:00.000-04:00

This guy is so right-on - I wonder if he's been reading my thoughts?

The Quarter-life Crisis

Can you relate?

No need to worry about that little hurricane, folks, mmm'kay?

2005-07-08T22:09:00.000-04:00

So of course I have been listening to the Hurricane Dennis coverage like all the other schmucks in South Florida (and hoping and praying that UM closes tomorrow so I don't have to go to class and take a quiz). In the course of doing so, the news stations have been speaking regularly with Max Mayfield, the Deputy Director of the National Hurricane Center. Now, I'm sure Max is a swell guy, and probably pretty bright.....but he sounds like an inbred idiot. In fact, he sounds a heck of a lot like Mr. Mackey from South Park. Don't believe me? Take a listen.

Anyway, things haven't gotten too bad here yet. We had two or three bands that were kind of exciting, but they moved through fairly quickly. I did see some transformers sparking, though, which was pretty cool. Weather is kind of fun when you're nice and dry inside and have power and water.

From the Redneck Riviera...

2005-07-06T21:31:00.000-04:00

...also known as my boyfriend's hometown, and a stone's throw from mine:

Man Charged With Stealing Wi-Fi Signal

Honestly, if the "offender" was parked outside this guy's house in an SUV, then he probably deserved to get caught. However, I think the signal owner was asking for trouble leaving his network unprotected. And if he isn't bright enough to figure out how to password protect his signal, then his stupidity shouldn't be the court's problem.

Just my humble opinion....(and yes, my wifi signal is encrypted AND unbroadcasted!)

We need more holidays....

2005-07-03T16:47:00.000-04:00

We're way too stingy with our holidays in America. I mean, in Europe, every other day is Saint-so-and-so's day, and if it happens to be the patron saint of your town--big party for like a whole week! Now, don't get me wrong, a few of my favorite places in the U.S. know how to do it right. Fantasy Fest in Key West goes on for a whole week (though most people don't see more than the Saturday parade.....and even at that it's doubtful that they "see" it), and in Tampa we celebrate the invasion of our city by the pirate Jose Gaspar with a couple of different parades. Overall, though, I think we're way too caught up with the rat race. Personally, I'm very happy about the 4th of July holiday, since I am getting some laundry done and will actually get two full days off. Chad and I have been invited to watch fireworks from the roof of The World's Fastest Game, which should also make for an excellent time. Unfortunately, though, it will be back to document review and data entry Tuesday morning. Barf.

And one more thing-- what the hell ever happened to Columbus day?? In Catholic school we used to make Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria boats out of hot dog buns and egg salad. Now all of a sudden we're too freaked out about the raping and pillaging of the natives that we can't celebrate the discovery of our great nation? (And come on-- we're still raping and pillaging, just on different terms....and people seem to be OK with that!) Argh.

If you have a blog...

2005-07-02T15:33:00.000-04:00

Genius...

2005-06-28T00:24:00.000-04:00

Heat wave alert as southern Europe bakes

"The southern region of Andalucia has already put in place a text-messaging alert system to warn the elderly and the infirm living alone, as well as parents of very young children, of impending high temperatures above 41 Celsius."

I don't know about you, but my elderly, infirm Grandma is totally into texting!

Still alive....

2005-06-23T22:11:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to let all my loyal readers know that I am still here. Why I thought working 40 hours a week and taking a Saturday class would be a good idea, I don't know. Props to those of you who do it on a regular basis.

More this weekend after I catch up on sleep (I hope...)

The ultimate in instant gratification....

2005-06-13T22:05:00.000-04:00

Usually I don't have much good to say about Comcast, especially since they're like 2 years behind other companies like Brighthouse in rolling out new services, but I must say that I was surprised to find that I now have "on demand" service. My "guide" screen has had an "on demand" channel for about a month now, but whenever I clicked on it, nothing happened. Well, I guess Comcast has finally worked out the kinks, and it's pretty darn cool. If you subscribe to a premium channel, you get all of that channel's on demand programming for free. Plus, they have a bunch of other random programming like guitar lessons (also free) and "Dating on Demand" (Ok, that's a little weird...). And the best part about all this--I get to start and stop it whenever I want! Don't feel like hearing anymore about the Michael Jackson verdict? Click--movie time! Don't care that Katie Holmes is converting to Scientology? Click--Sopranos episode! Tired of trying to come up with something clever for the blog? Click--cooking show! I'll be watching TV if you need me...

Welcome to the Sunshine State!

2005-06-10T12:53:00.000-04:00

On days like this, I just want to sit inside and do nothing. Not only is it dumping buckets outside, but it's blowing them at you at a good 27 mph as well (gusting to 37, according to the weather channel). Try filling your gas tank up in that mess. Plus, it doesn't help that my wonderful boyfriend just left town this morning for a week of skiing on a glacier in Canada. Sigh......I miss March.

Snap, crackle, pop....

2005-06-06T14:29:00.000-04:00

When I think about strong binding agents, I naturally think about things like super glue, epoxy, etc. I've recently come to the conclusion that Rice Krispies should also be added to that list. If, in a lazy mood, you've ever left your mostly-empty bowl of Rice Krispies in the sink for an extended period of time you probably know what I am talking about. It is next to impossible to scrape those dried-on suckers off of your bowl. The dishwasher seems to be able to handle the job, but my scrubby sponge has a great deal of difficulty with the task. So, next time you are in a pinch and have run out of glue or whatever you may use to affix things, you can be all MacGuyver-like and use some Krispies and a little milk instead. And, if you get hungry in the process, you're all set!

It's coming.....but when???

2005-06-04T00:48:00.000-04:00

Dear Coca-Cola Company:

It's June. I'm waiting. Your press release clearly stated that Coca-Cola Zero would be launched in June. Where is it?

Waiting with baited breath,

jb

Explanation for the uninitiated:

I've never really been extremely partial to any soft drink--frankly, the bubbles bother me. However, last summer I became enamored with "Coca-Cola Light." Our summer romance was short lived, but I vowed one day that I would return to Europe to claim my dear Coca Light. Alas, weeks turned into months and I attempted to satiate my craving with the similarly formulated yet somewhat inferior Mexican Coca Light. (I got several strange looks when I lugged my shopping bag full of Coke home from Mexico this past spring break). Well, it appears that perhaps my darling Coca Light has found me here in America--cleverly disguised as "Coca-Cola Zero." Like my Mexican Coca Light, it is sweetened with both aspartame and acesulfame potassium, giving it that delicious real Coca-Cola flavor without all those pesky calories. I can only hope that Coca Cola Zero can fill the emptiness in my soul and the longing that I have been feeling since being torn away from dear Coca Light. Only time will tell. (And please, don't you dare suggest anything about that vile, vile beverage "diet coke." Blech.)

Interesting glimpse...

2005-06-02T12:55:00.000-04:00

PostSecret

Yea for the mailman....

2005-06-02T02:11:00.000-04:00

My samples from Mario Badescu came yesterday along with my personal skin consultation info. Am very excited to try the prescribed regimen, as my skin has been in the toilet as of late. Am trying out the (rather stinky) "drying mask" as I type. My reviews will be forthcoming. Anyone else try this line? Care to comment?

Wanting something you know you can never have...

2005-06-02T02:10:00.000-04:00

sucks.

That is all.

A little nostalgia, a little something new...

2005-05-30T12:30:00.000-04:00

I haven't really written much about music on here, mostly because I think you need to hear it in order to discuss it. I always found it difficult to read music reviews without having heard the album. (Funny, considering I used to write them for my Jr. High paper...)

Anyway, here are two songs that have been making the rounds on the Powerbook lately:

"Special" - Garbage; a super-catchy late-90's favorite. Shirley Manson rocks. Normally, I'm not a lyrics person (because in most songs I can't really make them out), but I do like these.

"Jingle Jangle" - Hot Hot Heat; If you haven't heard this one yet, hopefully you will soon. Steve Bays' vocal hooks will get you for sure. This is off the new Hot Hot Heat release, Elevator. It's on the poppy side, but I like it. Good music to clean the apartment to.

Law Students--Common Sense in the Toilet?

2005-05-28T13:08:00.000-04:00

So I am at school on a Saturday of my own free will. Never thought that would happen, but a pass/fail summer class one day a week seemed like less of an imposition than a graded 4-day-a-week class. But that's not really the point of this post. Recently, the law school has upgraded our bathrooms here, since they thought that would really be the best use of our tuition money. We now have automatic paper towel dispensers and auto-flush toilets. Except sometimes those fancy toilets just don't flush. What's a law student to do when confronted with an auto-flush toilet that doesn't know when to flush? Well, most of us would know to look for the little "flush" button, no? Apparently this is not a given. There was a sign in the bathroom today above the toilet stating, "If the toilet does not automatically flush, please push the 'Flush' button." It's not that I really have a problem with the sign, it's just that, if you got into law school, do you really need to be told that? Frankly, I felt a little insulted and perturbed. Not quite as perturbed as I was when I discovered the egregious waste of our tuition money, though. I mean, if they're going to spend that kind of money on fancy toilets I would hope that they would at least work!

My first Jai Alai injury....

2005-05-27T23:43:00.000-04:00

And no, losing money doesn't count.

Went over to Jai Alai yesterday and caught the end of the matinee, which mom enjoyed very much, as did I--especially because we both won twice. I think I pocketed around $40, so it was definitely a good day. I figured that if I could consistently win $40 for 2 hours of "work," 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, this "summer job search" would become a whole lot less pressing.

Afterwards we met up with Stuart for dinner and then headed back over to the Fronton for our Jai Alai lesson. I must say that I was much improved over the last time we went on the court, and Chad even moreso. Perhaps if the whole filmmaker-by-day, sommelier-by-night gig doesn't work out for Chad, there may be a spot for him on the Ft. Pierce roster after all. I also got my first Jai Alai injury, courtesy of mom. While I was fiddling with my camera and not paying attention, she lobbed a wild one at the wall that wound up making contact with my left ring finger. It doesn't look so bad right now, but it was a little uglier last night. Don't worry--I'll live.

In other news, I must give a plug to my current favorite ass-fattening treat, delicious cheesecake ice cream with blueberries and pie crust mixed in from Coldstone Creamery. Apparently there is one opening in the Gables soon....good news for my mouth, bad news for my thighs. Sigh.

"We had to ban it because of the children"

2005-05-26T01:06:00.000-04:00

Hardcore teddy banned from bear parade

Oh, Reuters, with all of the politics, war, and human tragedy in the news these days, wherever do you find the time to cover such uplifting human interest stories?

No matter...I just hope "Baervers" finds a home where she can be truly appreciated.

Technology-schmology.....just make it work, damnit!

2005-05-25T17:35:00.000-04:00

So I'm one of the many that has been caught in the AT&T-Cingular merger and have been told that if I "switch" to Cingular I can benefit from rollover minutes and free mobile to mobile calling. Well, that's all fine and dandy, but the catch is that you have to buy a new "Cingular" phone. I've had my current phone, a Sony-Ericsson t68i for nearly 3 years now and despite the fact that it isn't as "hip" as it used to be, it's hella functional. It has built-in Bluetooth, infrared, and international band functionality. No, it doesn't play cutesy songs, but I can hook it up to my Palm Pilot and check my e-mail from a cruise ship in the middle of the Aegean sea, so put that in your pipe and smoke it. Anyway, the point of my rant is that none of the current offerings from Cingular can do what my little phone can for less than $400. (And those phones are all big and bulky anyway). Why is it so difficult for these companies to grasp the fact that not everyone wants to take pictures on their phone? I have a super camera for that. I just want to have a cell phone that works where I want it to, and with whatever gadgets I'd like to pair it up with. (Maybe that's why I like my Mac so much--so functional without all the bullshit). In any event, the closest thing Cingular has is the Motorola V551, which doesn't have infrared. (But, luckily, Gomadic makes a cable that I can use to pair it with my Palm). Anyway, I may hold off for a while but I am curious if any of you have the V551 and what you think of it. Drop me a line in the comments section with your advice!

Brown, brown run aground....

2005-05-24T01:56:00.000-04:00

Well, vacation time is over and I am definitely sad about that, but I had a fantastic time and I think our guests did as well. We lucked out and had great weather and managed to avoid the rain that I was told paid a visit to Miami on Saturday. Cap'n Chad also did a great job of driving the boat with the exception of missing the channel on the way in, which required a bit of "man power" to remedy (See above). Other than that, we managed to leave the Keys unscathed with the exception of several pesky mosquito bites on my feet and ankles.

In other news, the "Mary Fairy" (aka my mom) is in town for a few days to enjoy her mother's day present (2nd row tickets to see the Allman Brothers) and to do special mom-things like make the towels that have been sitting in my living room since exams get up and magically fold themselves. I wouldn't be surprised if she also alerted the kitchen elves that there are some dishes in the dishwasher just waiting to be placed in the cabinet. She is also excited to get the behind-the-scenes tour of Jai Alai that has been promised.

Anyway, not much else to report--just wanted to assure all (3) of my loyal readers that we were not lost to the sea or a similarly horrible stranding in Margaritaville.

Michael Bolton, Time Off, and dealing with Stupid People...

2005-05-19T22:02:00.000-04:00

So you're probably wondering what these things all have to do with one another, huh? Well, nothing really.....I just haven't posted to this thing in a few days and need to catch up a little.

That said, I will address my points in true lawyerly fashion:

1. Michael Bolton: It's funny how hearing a song you haven't heard in a while will bring back memories. Sometimes not necessarily welcome memories. Well, lately my apartment building has been playing Michael Bolton non-stop in our lobby. I used to be quite the Michael Bolton fan when I was in fifth grade. (Yes, I know what you're thinking, and yes, you are right.....I was a total dork). I saw the Time, Love and Tenderness tour and by god I have the t-shirt to prove it. Hearing "Steel Bars" or some other such awful song brings me back to a place that I really don't want to go, however. I quite like the place that I am at in life right now (for the most part, anyway) and everytime I go to get my mail I am reminded of the goofy 11 year old that I once was. I don't appreciate it. So, Da Vinci apartment building manager, if you're reading this, please put the Gipsy Kings CD back on so I can check my mail again. Thanks.

2. Time Off: Thank god for that. Went to Jekyll Island, GA for the first time earlier this week courtesy of the always-thoughtful Stu and had a fantastic time. Am currently at Chad's place in the Keys where we will be joined by some of our fabulous friends this weekend for a little R&R. Planning on going out to the Looe Key reef on Saturday, so pray for good weather and well-maintained boat engines for us. If there are no posts here by next Tuesday, please alert the coast guard. Thanks.

3. Stupid people: Today's winners include Bank of America for cancelling my debit card for "suspicious activity" that I explained entirely to them (thereby forcing me to have to go to a banking center if I want any cash). UM Law comes in a close second for details I won't get into at this point. Argh. I can't deal with the frustration anymore, so I'll just leave it at that.

The Rolling Stones, Palindromes, and other random thoughts...

2005-05-14T13:33:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm done....at least for a few weeks anyway. The summer job hunt must begin in earnest now and I must admit that I'm not all that thrilled about it. However, I do have a couple prospects for some side income, which will be great if they pan out.

Unfortunately one of those prospects does not include being a fluffer on the upcoming Rolling Stones tour. Seeing as though tickets are going for upwards of four hundred dollars I imagine their staff (fluffers included) should be well compensated. Nah....who am I kidding? We all know Mick and Keith will be keeping that money for themselves. I know I won't be contributing, though. Having seen the Bridges to Babylon and No (Social) Security tours, I must say that (1) I would never see the Stones in an indoor venue again, and (2) The experience isn't worth more than about a hundred bucks.

On a completely unrelated note, Chad and I went to see Todd Solondz' new film, Palindromes, yesterday. I haven't really been to the movies much lately, but I will always go out of my way to see something by Solondz. (And when I mean out of my way, I mean, like 30 miles out of my way....to the one theater's one show time). Palindromes was definitely on the heavy side. Not really a good date movie unless you like to discuss issues like abortion, Christian fundamentalism, and pedophilia. But, nonetheless a very well done and thought-provoking film. The main character, Aviva, was actually played by something like 8 very different actresses. (In our post-film discussion Chad and I hypothesized that that choice was made so that the audience would focus on the character rather than the particular person playing the character....hmm). Anyway, I definitely recommend it if you are looking to see something a little different.

That is all. You may go back to searching the Internet for porn now.

What a day.....

2005-05-12T10:34:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was something else. I had my four hour family law exam which was tons of fun. It was preceeded by yet another event that will remain in my memory the next time UM, or more specifically UM Law, calls me for a donation. I pay a lot of money to go to school at UM. I'm really not a leach of their facilities--as a matter of fact, I try to be there as little as possible. But, when I do desperately need to use something that my tuition pays for, I would appreciate it if it would fucking work! I had to print my outline and Florida Statutes for the exam, since we were allowed to use these on the test, so I showed up about 30 minutes early to go to the library and do just that. We have multiple printers at the law library--at least one on every floor if I am correct. Well, yesterday, during arguably the most important and stressful part of the year--exam time--the third floor printer was jammed, the second floor printer was offline, and the first floor printer was taking its good 'ol time printing someone's 100 page law review article front and back. Did I dare wait until my stuff decided to come out of the first floor printer? No, I ran over to the undergrad library and printed it there. Thanks to the efficiency of the UM law library, I showed up to the test at exactly 1pm. Grrr.

On a lighter note, after the exam was Chad's graduation dinner at Blue Door. Blue Door is at the Delano hotel, which apparently is one of the many South Beach hot spots where the "beautiful people" hang out. (And, if we were to believe our waiter, we were "beautiful" too...). The ambience of the restaurant was very interesting--sort of Haunted Mansion-esque, with long, flowing curtains, and fur covered couches. The place just screamed "orgy." The food was decent, too, but I was a little disappointed in my entree. My appetizer, the "crabavocat" was super, but my "marou cajou" (that's pretention-speak for black grouper in a brown butter sauce) was a little dry and the sauce a little on the salty side. Dessert made up for it, though. Overall, it was a very enjoyable evening and I think Chad really enjoyed his gifts. And my new Betsey Johnson dress was pretty hot too.

Huh??

2005-05-10T17:27:00.000-04:00

Stevie Wonder releases video for blind

I don't get it. (And apparently, neither does the person who wrote the article). How do you create a music video especially for blind people? I mean, doesn't narration kind of get in the way of the music? I don't imagine there would be much to say about a lot of what currently plays on MTV. And really, aren't the booty-shaking ho-bags better left to the imagination anyway?

I honked my horn in traffic today...

2005-05-09T19:13:00.000-04:00

...and it felt good.

There are few things I hate more than driving in Miami. If you've ever spent any time here, I think you know what I mean. It seems like no one ever knows where they are going and they're certainly not in a hurry to get there. They play by different rules down here, too. Like, the rule where if you need to make a left turn, it's OK for 3 cars to run the red light in order to do it. It boils my blood.

Today I was following a red Miata in traffic. The people in the Miata were apparently tourists, since they felt the need to drive really slowly in the left lane. They also took their damn time to notice when lights turned green. I hate these people. I hate them almost as much as I hate the milfs who aren't paying attention because they're blabbing on their cell phone or yelling at their three brats in the back seat. I realize that they are on vacation--however, I am not and do not appreciate them getting in my way. Normally, I go around these people, which I did today. Yet, somehow, they managed to get back in front of me and resume their crawl down the road. So I tailed them and gave 'em a nice double-honk when they tried to stop and make a left turn in the middle of an intersection that had a separate turning lane. Welcome to Miami, fuckers.

I think I'm really beginning to understand road rage now. When you hear about people that attempt to shoot others in traffic, you automatically think they're nuts, right? Well, before you get up on your high horse, I suggest you spend a little time in Miami--trust me, you'll empathize. If you're down here long enough, you may even be able to empathize with OJ. Or not.

5 Reasons why Law School sucks:

2005-05-08T00:01:00.000-04:00

1. Exams on Sunday at 9am.
2. It is possible to attend nearly every class, have 31 pages of typed notes for said class, have done the reading in said class and still feel like you learned absolutely nothing and will fail miserably on the exam.
3. Grade in class = grade on final exam. Grade. Singular.
4. Mandatory curve, and not one in which everyone's grade is bumped up based on the difference between the highest grade received and the highest possible grade.
5. Did I mention exams on a Sunday??

Moral of the story: Don't go to law school. Law school sucks.

Serendipity is...

2005-05-07T02:31:00.000-04:00

...my awesome, and totally-by-mistake trifecta at Jai Alai tonight.

Let me start out with a little background for those of you who aren't exactly up with what's been going on with my recent life. Chad and I have been going to Jai Alai for a little over a year now. At first it was just something for us to do. Then, he decided he wanted to make his thesis film about Jai Alai. So, we started going more often. (For those of you who are unaware, Jai Alai is one of the few sports that you can gamble on legally in Florida). I got better at the gambling the more we went, but I don't think I've ever hit a payoff of more than $50 or so. Well, tonight was the night, and entirely by mistake. I usually place my bets at the window, but tonight I was using one of the betting machines because we were there with a big group of people and it was just more convenient. Normally, I'm pretty good with technology, but I sort of screwed up at the betting machine. Chad and I were going to place our normal quinella box bets, and he also wanted a trifecta box of the same 3 numbers. Well, in making his bet for him, I screwed up and pushed the buttons to bet a $1 1-3-5 straight trifecta. So, being the good girlfriend that I am, I re-placed his box bet for those numbers ($6) and figured I would eat the $1 loss for my mistake. What a fortunate mistake it was. We both wound up hitting the trifecta for around $100 each, plus we won our quinella bets too ($18 each). It was fucking awesome.

To top it off, Stuart took us up to the simulcast box to watch the last match, which, I know now, is the only way to watch Jai Alai. Best seats in the house.

I really like Jai Alai, but in a way it kind of makes me sad, too. I wish I was around to see it in it's hey-day, when thousands of people would be in the audience rather than a few hundred. I'm really excited about Chad's film, though. If nothing else I hope it introduces a new audience to a really amazing and exhilarating sport.

And, now I don't feel so bad about buying those new jeans this week. Yea Jai Alai.

Now for something completely different....

2005-05-05T20:59:00.000-04:00

In an attempt to see if people actually read this thing (and maybe create a slightly more interactive environment), I am taking a poll. Most of those social networking sites (Friendster, MySpace, etc) have spaces for you to list your favorite movies, books, TV shows, yada yada... Well, I want to know your favorite broadway musicals and/or plays. I know my friends are a cultured bunch, so c'mon, here's your chance to prove it.

Here are my top 5 (in alpha order, because I don't know if I could pick a #1):

1. A Chorus Line
2. Annie
3. Avenue Q
4. Kiss of the Spider Woman
5. Tommy

Leave yours in the comments section!

Ho-hum.....

2005-05-05T12:38:00.000-04:00

Not much exciting going on in Jillville today. I really need to get cracking on getting stuff done, though. However, instead of studying like I am supposed to be doing, I am cleaning up some graphics for Chad's film. (Which, should be awesome in case anyone is wondering). I don't mind doing it, it's just tedious. I also need to make a run to the tailor to get my dress taken in for the big graduation dinner. Nevermind that it has been sitting here for over a month....hopefully Nami will be able to fix it before the 11th. (BTW-- if you need an awesome tailor and live in Miami, drop me a line). Had a lovely (but late) evening with Stuart and his adorable doggies yesterday. We watched "Judgment at Nuremberg," which I guess could count as studying for comparative criminal law if you stretch your imagination a little. I was shocked to see how "pleasantly plump" Judy Garland was in that movie. Speaking of celebrities looking bad, check out Clapton from the Cream reunion. He's looking a little rough for 60. Wish I woulda been at the show, though.

Time to get back to work I suppose...

So now what happens when bums steal the carts?

2005-05-04T12:04:00.000-04:00

Will this nifty item tell them what alley to find their crack in? I never imagined there would come a time when anyone would need GPS technology to navigate their way through the grocery store. It actually might be kind of useful....like, for those times that you need to find chipotle peppers in adobo and suddenly no one at Publix speaks English anymore. I just can't imagine my dad using one. Somehow I don't see these arriving at my Publix anytime soon...

Can you imagine the children??

2005-05-03T15:17:00.000-04:00

I can't tell if he's happy or sad. Apparently, he still wants to marry 'ol crazy eyes. They're perfect for each other. Let's hope for the children's sake that she's sterile or he's impotent.

I'm so tired.....I haven't slept a wink....

2005-05-03T05:47:00.000-04:00

But at least I don't have to think about UPA, RUPA, the RMBCA, or shareholder derivative suits for at least another year (provided I did get at least a C on the exam...). As an exciting reward for my half-assed attempt at studying this week, Chad and I spent the evening at Jai Alai taking a much deserved break. I won a whopping $33.60, which puts me up $75.40 since I started keeping track on March 25th. Yea me. Time for bed.

"To cross out with lines or other markings; to annul or invalidate."

2005-05-01T12:40:00.000-04:00

That would be the definition of cancelled. Or is it canceled? To my surprise and amazement, both are correct. Frankly, I don't understand the need for two correct spellings of "cancelled" (my choice of spelling). With the English language already in steady decline thanks to rappers and AOL IM, why increase the frustration of those of us who actually care if they're spelling something correctly? Argh.

...All the luck I can get

2005-04-30T20:23:00.000-04:00

It has been brought to my attention that there is a patron saint of exam taking. Yes, that's right, when you need that little bit of extra help to ace those law school finals just say a prayer to St. Joseph......of Cupertino. Apparently, in return for a good grade I am obligated to get the word out about 'ol Joe, so this is my effort. And for those of you with exams right around the corner, here ya go:

"O St. Joseph of Cupertino who by your prayer obtained from God to be asked at your examination, the only preposition you knew. Grant that I may like you succeed in the (here mention the name of Examination eg. History paper I ) examination.
In return I promise to make you known and cause you to be invoked.
O St. Joseph of Cupertino pray for me
O Holy Ghost enlighten me
Our Lady of Good Studies pray for me
Sacred Head of Jesus, Seat of divine wisdom, enlighten me."

Amen to that!

If I ever go missing...

2005-04-30T00:53:00.000-04:00

Please, please, find a good picture of me to put on the milk carton. Not to be insensitive, but the lady that disappeared in Atlanta--I'm sure she's a lot better looking than this. What is *up* with those eyes?!?
(Update: She turned up. Maybe she saw the picture?)