My Boyfriend Can Sing, Too!

In case you missed it. . .

And he can dance, too! (Well, he can dance better than I can, what with my 5 years spent in Baptist school.)

Schwinnnnng!

I mentioned before that Matt and I recently purchased a new elliptical trainer.  And, for those of you who are counting, this is our third elliptical.

The good news is that we actually use our home exercise equipment.  (Well, Matt does, anyway.)

The bad news is that we are so grossly fat that we break all of our home exercise equipment.  (Well, I am, anyway.)

Our former elliptical had gotten to the point where it squeaked and thumped and clicked and scraped and was so incredibly loud that I couldn't even be in the room when Matt was ellipting, much less get on it myself.  I would get on for like 15 seconds, and then become irate and frustrated, and then I'd spend the next hour trying to figure out how to stop the noises.  I had some small successes, but more failures--most of which culminated in me kicking the machine and shouting obscenities.

We needed a new one.  And I looked on Craigslist (where we'd gotten the previous two), but didn't see anything too promising.  Plus, it seemed that we needed a machine with a warranty.

So we researched and read up and checked out Consumer Reports.  And we ended up here, drooling over the Schwinn 430.

Four and a half stars with 518 reviewers!  Shoot yeah!  We talked it over for a day or two, and then decided that it was a good investment.  You know, for health and stuff.

And after some headaches with the transit company (What?  They just forgot to put it in the truck???), we had it at home and Cassie and I put it together.

Along with the alan wrench, we had two very important tools: a knife and some wine.  It's common knowledge that when putting together exercise equipment, one will have much more success if he is drinking wine.  Also, I'm pretty sure that that's in the book of Proverbs.  THE BIBLE, people!

Where was I?

Oh yeah, the elliptical.  We totes got that thing together in two hours.  It might not have taken so long had one of our tools not been wine, but it would have been much less fun, too.  Plus, we told Matt that we put it together in 38 minutes.  Pfffffffffft.

Anyway, the new elliptical is out of control wonderful.  It's smooth and silent and smart and has a smaller footprint than the old clunky one.  And it has a warranty in case we break it.  And now I love to ellipt again, and I can do it whilst watching one of the best shows of all time.

Oh, Dylan.

(Ummmmm, Kelly totes just got shot, y'all.  And Brandon was so precise in describing the shooter to the detective and the detective was all, "Are you sure about this?" and Brandon was all, "Yes, I'm positive.  And I'll tell you something else.  You put him in front of me, and I'll kill him."  All this after the gang returned from Donna's Hawaiian work trip where she completely ruined the modeling shoot and David fell down a cliff when he was trying to tie his hiking boot!  AND!  They were all wearing these hideous long pastel dresses.  The gals from Beverly Hills were looking more like the women from Juniper Creek to me.)

The best part of the new elliptical, though, is that it has a feature that allows me to see into the future.

I see. . .





. . .in about two months. . . .







. . .Matt at the beach. . .

. . .and me, too!

This thing is magical!

This and That

Oh man.  Nothing is going on here.  Oh, wait.  Yes it is.  We got a new elliptical and I had to fight and be bitchy on the phone and then finally drive across town to finally get it.  (F you, super saver free shpping!)  But pretty much next time you see me I'll be super skinny.

And here's the thing.  The world is all important right now, all full of natural disasters and dead terrorists and whatnot.  And because that's all so very important, I feel like I shouldn't bother you with the mundane happenings of everyday life.  Except that you're probably bored with hearing about dead terrorists and natural disasters, so maybe you just want to hear about mundane day-to-day crap.

So here it is.

1. I have five and a half weeks of school left until summer.  I will be very happy when that summertime school-ending day arrives (totes forget when it is--June something or other).  There will be dancing and singing and wine.  And then I'm going to catch up on Brothers & Sisters whilst ellipting.

2.  I loved the White House Correspondents' Dinner.  I also, unabashedly, love Barack Obama with my heart and soul.  And it's not like I agree with him about everything*, but he's just got that winning smile and fantastic sense of humor.  If you've got the time and you can watch it (and if you haven't already because it totally got buried in the other, more significant, news of the days), you need to.  Also, Seth Meyers is the next big thing.  I've been saying this for eight years.



3.  I got an awesome new necklace when I was visiting Grandma and Grandpa in Albuquerque, and I'm completely in love with it.  Isn't it just the most fun?

4.  If Justin and Zev don't win this season of The Amazing Race, I'll never watch that show again.  Never!

\
                                                                                           Zev is wearing Matt's favorite shirt.

Well, I just realized that it's 1:11 a.m. (which is almost as cool as 11:11), and I have to be at work in six hours and 19 minutes.  Shoooooot.

Hope you have a glorious Wednesday, and that it's wonderfully ordinary.



*Don't agree with Matt about everything, either, and I married him.

Dead or Alive? How's about Dead?

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

An already fantastic weekend has been punctuated with some even better news.  Osama Bin Laden, that a-hole, is gone.  I'm not terribly eloquent when it comes to stuff like this, but Andrew Sullivan is.  He said it better than I ever could have, as he live-blogged the news.

12.20 pm One piece of conventional wisdom over-turned: the Pakistani military was not cooperating with the US. It seems they were crucial in the operation, on the ground.

12.17 pm So Donald Rumsfeld's spokesman broke the news in the tweet: “So I’m told by a reputable person they have killed Osama Bin Laden. Hot damn.”

12.08 pm Can I say how deeply moving it is that a man named Barack Hussein Obama gave the order for the operation that killed Osama bin Laden?

The pre-eminent symbol of our the multicultural, multiracial society of the future defeated the pre-eminent symbol of the darkest, bleakest throwback to medieval religious fanaticism. Im not ashamed to use the following language: Good defeated evil. And hope rekindles again.

12.03 pm. This sounds like a highly dangerous, immensely courageous act of daring, a military and intelligence coup that will be taught in high schools for as long as America exists. This wasn't just a lucky bomb or a drone attack; it was an elaborate, carefully planned and successfully completed operation - deep in an urban area in deepest Pakistan. This was one badass achievement.

11.44 pm. The president's announcement walked the fine line between the appropriate sobriety of a profound moment and the immense pride and joy the United States must feel in bringing an end to this monster's threat to the world. It framed the successful attack as a result of a presidential decision to make getting Bin Laden the highest priority of American forces. And the way he revealed how long this has operation has been going on and how persistent the US forces have been, the prouder one becomes.

11.30 pm. I put the video up above for obvious reasons. The TV anchors are all abut the future right now, what the impact will be, how it will interact with the Arab Spring, etc etc. And that's understandable. But can we first take a moment to remember what was done to more than 3,000 human beings nearly ten years ago by this religious mass murderer? It was not just done to them, but to the families and friends of all of them, and to the principle of freedom of religion and freedom itself. That day changed a huge amount for all of us. We thought of it as a war (with all the awful consequences of that definition) because the act that started it was an act of war. And so we feel now that this moment is, in some ways, the end of that war.

We know, of course, that this struggle will go on with new groups and new plots and new atrocities. But this man symbolized its hideous beginning. Almost its meaning.

So victory. Yes, victory. And justice. Yes, justice.

God Bless America.

11.20 pm. What to say? To know that this mass murderer has been killed, and by US forces, brings a sense of joy that surpasses adequate expression. Finally, this ghastly ten year old war feels as if it has been for at least something. Saddam had not attacked us. Bin Laden had. This is the moment of justice for his despicable act of mass murder.




Well, well.  Happy, happy.

Well, It's About F'ing Time!

Today the senate voted to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell.  Shit yeah! 

Three cheers for my man Obam' and his manhandlin' of that lame duck congress.

A Cookie Recipe from the President?

Three things:

1.  I am not always the most careful of readers.
2. Matt and I (not Mitch, apparently, because we've decided that he's decided that he's a Tea-Partyin' Republican) are Obama lovers.  Yes, still.  And we always get emails from him and his friends.  And they must have my email in their list twice, because I usually get them two at a time.
3.  It's no secret that I'm a big fan of Martha Stewart.  She and I are good friends, and she also emails me pretty regularly.

This afternoon, I logged onto my email [for the 27th time today] and was really confused.  Whoa!  Was the president going to take time on this glorious Halloween to share with me his favorite cookie recipe?  Finally, the democrats are going to stop nagging me to make phone calls and they're going to give me something useful like a new cookie recipe!  And what does Kenan Thompson have to do with anything? 

Then I looked a little closer, and it wasn't nearly as exciting.  Shoot.*

*After approximately five seconds of internet research I learned that Obama's favorite cookie is a chocolate chip one from some diner in Des Moines.**

**What did people do before the internet?

This and That

1.  True or false?  I ate a Taco Bell chicken crunchwrap while lying in bed this afternoon.  (True.  Sadly, true.)  I have an amazing husband who will bring me Taco Bell in bed.  If that's not love, then I don't know what is.

2. Got a haircut last week.  I think I'm going to start getting semi-annual haircuts instead of just annual haircuts because it just feels so nice!  Plus, now I'm embracing the crazy curly lioness look more, so I'm saving time on blow drying.  Extra minutes of sleep in the morning?  Yes, please.

3. Went to Publix tonight and spent $222.  Eek!  I don't think we have to go back, though, until Thanksgiving, except for maybe more bananas and milk.  Every time we spend a lot of money at the grocery store Matt and I spend the entire drive home talking about how really we're saving money and how much better it is that we're cooking instead of eating out.  And all that's true, but still, $222?  For two people and a dog?

4. The latest issue of Food Network Magazine is so good!  Tonight we made this Thai Chicken Soup and loved it!  It's a good thing, too, because it made like 8 servings (not four like the recipe says--maybe four servings for giants) and we'll be eating it for days.

[Source: Food Network]

5.  Oh, and on Sunday we ate at Umami.  If you're in Savannah, go there.  It's super good and super cheap and has great service and is clean and nice inside.  I would show you pictures of our food, but I can't because Matt shames me when I pull out the camera in public to photograph food.  Also, I was really hungry and may or may not have resembled the Tazmanian Devil when the food came out.  But seriously, go there.

6. Also, every time I think about Umami I laugh because it reminds me of Unagi and then I think about that episode of Friends where Ross kept trying to scare Rachel and Pheobe.  I can't resist a good Ross episode.  (He's the best one.)  Here's the episode, since apparently YouTube won't let me embed Friends videos.  "Chandler. . .I sensed it was you."

7. We're currently very into Boardwalk Empire.  The show is beautiful and has great characters and is written wonderfully and is basically everything you could ever want in a show.  Even if it was terrible, though, I still might keep watching just to listen to Margaret Schroeder's Irish immigrant accent.  Matt and I like to have whole conversations where we talk like her.



8.  It's the end of the quarter at school, which is kind of hellish.  Ugh.  Get here already, Friday afternoon.

9.  Tomorrow my ninth graders will read the end of To Kill a Mockingbird, specifically the part where Bob Ewell tries to kill the kids and Boo Radley saves them.  I love reading that part with them, and I kind of can't wait to watch their faces as they realize what's happening. 

10.  Obama on The Daily Show tonight?  Well, that's almost too much sexy for a room to handle.

I Heart David Letterman.

Next Wednesday Matt and I will be seeing one of these two handsome gentlemen. 

[source]

I'll give you a hint.  It's not the one who's the president.

But that's okay, because we stalked the president this spring.  But I've been giddy today because WE GOT TICKETS TO SEE LETTERMAN!

[source]

Both Matt and I have been big Letterman fans since we were tweens (I hate that word), so this is kind of like a lifelong dream come true.  About a month ago I posted a video of Dave and Rupert G. harassing people around New York, because that night Matt and I had been talking about our favorite Letterman moments.  When I was younger, I was really into taping my favorite shows with our trusty VCR.  I had recorded the episode on which this particular Rupert stunt aired, and I watched it dozens of times.  The guest that night was Michael Keaton, and he was promoting his latest film, Speechless.  It was a really funny interview, and I could pretty much quote it to you, but that would be more fun for me than it would be for you.  Basically, it's just one of those funny little things that has been seared into my memory.

And who is scheduled to be the guest on Wednesday, when Matt and I will be hanging out with Dave?  Michael-effing-Keaton, that's who.  Michael-the-best-Batman-Keaton.  It's like my life has come full circle.

[source]

Also, there's a good chance that Dave'll lay eyes on me and be in love.  Matt should watch out. 

Here's another of our favorites. 


Set your DVRs for the Wednesday show. I'll be the one in the bright red hoodie (Dave keeps the theater frigid), flapping my arms up and down, completely overcome with excitement.

Bienvenido a Miami

Today, after I took a 5-hour nap (fuck yeah!), and made banana pudding ice cream (double fuck yeah!), and cooked dinner with Matt (delicious cashew chicken made to perfection!), and watched Top Chef (go Alex!), I logged into Facebook [for the 30th time] and saw this recommendation.

Wow.  I mean, I was at first offended.  Do Will Smith and Barack Obama really have that much in common?  The Office and 30 Rock I get.  But Will Smith and Barack Obama?  I'm only really seeing one thing they have in common--being black.  Okay, two--being black and having awesome wives.  Okay, three--being black and having awesome wives and liking basketball (". . .shootin' some b-ball outside of the school. . .").  But that's where it ends.  Last I heard, President Obam' hadn't written what is possibly the best song in the history of music: "Miami." 

"Party in the city where the heat is on, all night on the beach 'til the break of dawn. . ."



Okay, Facebook.  Fine.  You were right.  I do love Will Smith.  Thanks for the recommendation.  But maybe try not to be so racist next time?

Ten Things

I have a lot to say.

1. You should read Caitie's latest post, because it has pictures and video footage of Mitch as a puppy.  I'm in it, too.  Caitie's the best.
2. You should read Cassie's latest post about her adventures in her back yard.  I was laughing so hard that I cried--while waiting in line at the post office.  It was embarrassing, but it was worth it.
3. I would make out with President Obama, if given the chance, and if Michelle condoned the act.
4. Am I the only person in the world who doesn't give a rat's ass about the World Cup?
5. Victoria Secret's semi-annual sale started today.  Did I go there at 9:00 a.m. today?  Did I realize that I've been wearing the wrong bra size and that I do, indeed, have "fat girl" boobs now?  Um, no?  Because I was at work, working diligently, during that time? 
6. Today I discovered the solution to Mitch's thunderstorm neuroses: a Kong filled with high-quality American cheese.  It soothes the soul--both human and dog.
7. Matt is the best griller that I've ever known in real life.
8. I only have two more days of work.  This is that part where you are consumed with envy.

9. John Beohner looks like an Oompa Loompa.  Also, Oompa Loompas are creepy.  I tried to convince my family to dress all of my cousins (when the cousins were about 3 years old) as Oompa Loompas for Halloween, because I thought that would be the creepiest costume of all.  They didn't, and I unfriended all of them on Facebook.  Seriously.  Don't be friends with your family on Facebook.  It's dangerous.
10. Fuck you, BP.  Even though I don't believe in hell, I sometimes wish that there was a hell, so that I could imagine you burning in it eternally. 

Just Stop Working and Watch Some Funny Videos

Parody of Glee, courtesy of a Mr. James Fallon and a Ms. Caitie:



And, just in case you missed it and you want to watch seventeen minutes of a handsome, witty president, it's Obama's speech from the White House Correspondents Dinner. It's no ordinary dinner. . .

The Real World = Lots of Great TV

Weeeeeeeeeeee're baaaaaaaaack. 

Because all good things must come to an end, our perfectly-balanced-between-fun-and-relaxing spring break is over.  I spent nine days getting my body to adjust to staying up late and sleeping in, just in time to have return to work, just in time to have to force myself to wake up early again.  Boo for waking up early.  The good news is that there are only forty-five more school days until summer.  That's really not a lot of days.

And birthday week/month is over; we ate the last vestiges of it tonight.  (PS--Here's a great gift idea. Sneak Fresh Market ribeyes into your friend's refrigerator when you are house and dog sitting.  Your friend will be forever grateful.  Muchas gracias, Cris!)  Year twenty-nine has been pretty great so far, I must say.  If the next fifty point five weeks are as lovely, I'll be a happy, happy girl.

We don't really have anything exciting happening anytime soon, but there is a certain comfort in returning to our routine.  And since we are admitted television addicts, our routine includes way too much of the tube.  Here's what we've been watching of late:

• Breaking Bad.  We (and by we I mean Matt) have been hearing about how great it is for some time, but hadn't gotten around to watching it.  Why is it so good?  In case you haven't heard of it before, here's the premise: unsatisfied high school chemistry teacher finds out that he has terminal cancer, and begins cooking crystal meth to be able to leave money for his family.  And it's got the dad from Malcolm in the Middle, only now he's an evil genius.
• American Idol.  Psych!  We stopped watching this season.  It just sucked too bad and I couldn't stomach Cara.
• Amazing Race.  This season's coming to a close, but it's been great fun.  Plus, three of the five remaining teams are ones we chose: cowboys, gay brother/straight brother, and the idiot models.  Every time we watch Matt curses the models for still being in the race, even though he picked them.  If only the Buffalo Bills could be as successful as the stupid models.
• Top Chef Masters.  This hasn't actually started yet, but it does tomorrow, and we'll be watching and loving every second. 
• Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution.  Hugh and Cassie recommended this show (and Christina was raving about it), and I think Hugh put it really well when he described it as being one of the best-edited shows on tv.  And Jamie Oliver is officially one of my favorite British people. 
• Jeopardy!.  Always.  We're watching it right now.  It's 1:28 a.m.  Matt is ranting about how he would have won this game.
• Lost.  I'm really  not that interested since I know what the numbers mean, and that's all I really cared about, but I watch it anyway.  Just looking for closure, I suppose.  Tonight's episode was pretty good.  I like how Desmond and Jamie Oliver always call people Brother.  It's so endearing. 
• 60 Minutes.  We're really, really old. 
• The Pacific.  Matt's watching this; I'm not.  I'm sure it's good and all, but all those army boys all look the same to me, and I have trouble figuring out who's who.  And, yes, I'm quite stupid.
• Treme.  I will be watching this one.  The guys from The Wire doing a show about post-Katrina New Orleans?  Yes, please.
• 500 Days of Summer.  It's not a tv show, but we just watched it last night and I loved every second.  A modern-day Annie Hall, if you will.  Charming and funny and bittersweet.  Plus, it had the girl from Elf!

And here's a hump day video to get you through the day: President Obama playing HORSE--I mean, POTUS--with Clark Kellog, who is good at basketball.  (Better at basketball than damn Kentucky, who is not as good at basketball as I thought.)

Obama in the SAV

As you know already, my man Obam' was here in Savannah on Tuesday. Matt and I both took the day off work to go on a stalking adventure, or, at the very least, to enjoy a day off together in the middle of the week.

We stood along the road outside Savannah Tech, where Obam' would be giving a speech, where we waited for half an hour or so for the man to show up. It was pretty cool. Matt and I are somewhat politically active (Though if you asked my family they'd tell you that I am a maniacal Democrat who has been brainwashed, who is naive and young and on some wild "democratic streak." Or they might tell you that my disdain for many of them is because of my politics, and not because of, well, them. But that's a story for another time now, isn't it?), but we're not big protestors or anything. So we were signless, and we didn't do any chanting.

The crowd was mostly supportive, but there was a hippie dressed in a pig costume protesting "nuclear pork" (to which Matt says, "Nuclear Pork, that sounds delicious. A spicy pork dish of some kind.") and there a few folks holding their "Stop Obamacare" signs and such. But nothing too juicy.

The crowd chanted a few chants, among them "Fired up! Ready to go!" and "What do we want? Healthcare! When do we want it? Now!" The chanting was cute at first, but got annoying pretty quickly. I mean, I was escaping a classroom full of screaming children only to join a group of screaming adults? Oh, hell.

Even Wanda Sykes (left) came out. I can't really figure out why she felt the need to disguise herself, though.
And then. . .

Motorcycles. . .

And Obama's limousine!

It was at this point that I completely lost my shit and started screaming myself, therefore precluding me from taking good pictures. Oops!

But I gained my composure a little bit after he drove by.

The SUV with the back window open always freaks me out. One wrong move and you're dead!
And around this time some crazy lady jumped the line and ran toward the motorcade. She was quickly caught, and arrested, and is currently undergoing psychological evaluations.
So we saw the motorcade, and knew Obam' would be giving his speech for a bit. We headed downtown for lunch at Saigon, walked around and talked, and then went to Back in the Day Bakery for some dessert (also to open the door for all of my wildest dreams to come true).

Back in the Day was a hit. I got an Old Fashioned cupcake:

A Hanna, some lavender-flavored cookie sandwich awesomeness:
And a chocolate chip cookie for Matt that was the size of his head:

Meanwhile, Obam' went to Mrs. Wilke's, southern cookin' family style restaurant, for lunch. (Foiled!) But at least he rejected Paula Deen.

We missed it. Damn.

But we knew that was likely. We went home, took a long family snuggle nap, and then went to Mexican for dinner. (Three restaurants in one day! That's a Mandy and Matt record!)

So, to sum up: slept in, skipped work, saw Obama's motorcade, hung out with Matt all day, ate way too much, took a nap, and then ate way too much again. Does it get any better than that?

Stalking the President

Obama is coming to Savannah on Tuesday. Matt and I both took the day off work to try to see him, even though we knew our chances would be pretty low. We figure a day off in the middle of the week together will be fun whether we spend it with our buddy Barry or not. And now it's looking more and more like we won't be able to catch a glimpse of Obam', since the events will all be invitation only.

From what we've gathered, he'll be at one of the technical colleges, invitation only. He'll meet with local business leaders, invitation only. And then he'll "tour local businesses." This is where my critical thinking skills [read: stalking skills] will come into play.

Okay, how often have you seen a picture like this?

Man's got to eat. And that man loves his cheeseburgers. And it seems that if he's not eating a cheeseburger he's eating ice cream. And he's almost always visiting some place where the locals go. It's all part of his campaign to pretend like he's just your everyday guy (even though he is clearly smarter and better than 98% of us).

Okay. Cheeseburgers. Or ice cream. Local business. Photo op. Hmmmmmm.

But, I did just see on the news that Barry's cholesterol is too high. So maybe he'll be taking it easy on the junk food?

Where should Matt and Mandy hang out all day Tuesday, trying to "accidentally" run into POTUS?

I've got some ideas:

• Clary's. Place is so old-timey that it doesn't even have a website, but it was featured in Berendt's book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, and it's about as local as a place can get. There's also outdoor seating, which might be nice for photos. But they're calling for rain on Tuesday.
• Moon River Brewing Company. Local business. Tasty food. Right in the heart of downtown. It's pretty inside, but maybe not "everyday folks" enough.
• Vinnie Van Go-Go's pizza. This one's good. Perhaps the thin crust pizza would be lighter fare for a man with high cholesterol? It's in City Market, right in the middle of a bunch of booming local businesses, it's homey, and it's cheap! It would even give the Obam' a chance to pull out money from his own pocket, since Vinnie's only takes cash.
• Lady & Sons. I don't think he'll be stopping at Paula Deen's place, if only because it's too touristy. Not to mention, consuming one hundred pounds of butter can't be good for a guy who's got high cholesterol whose wife is on a campaign against obesity.
• Blowin' Smoke. This is where he should go, but I don't know if he will. Blowin' Smoke has great food, music, and games to boot! Of all of the places on this list, I think this place has the best food. Plus, I wouldn't mind seeing pictures of the president playing cornhole.
• Wild Wings. I don't really think he'll be going there because it's corporate and lost its liquor license for a period last year. Don't go there, Obam'. Wait until you're visiting Buffalo to get wings.
• Back in the Day Bakery. Obama and cupcakes and rosemary chicken salad on ciabatta all rolled into one? I would just die of happiness if that happened. Plus, there's a nice, big parking lot across the street and the area would be easier to secure. Hear that, Secret Service? Easier to secure. Mandy wants to meet Obama. Take him there. We'll eat cupcakes together and talk about our dogs. And then I will die happy.

I really don't know that we'll be able to hang with Mr. Obama, but it sure would be cool. I have two big umbrellas, a camera, and a partner in stalking. If I don't get to see the president, at least I get a day of adventure with the husband.

Saturday Ramblings

January has been a crazy month for Matt, Mandy, and Mitch. If all goes according to plan, though, February will be much more relaxed. With work and life being so crazy, I haven't found much time to blog. (I also haven't found time to take the load of laundry out of the dryer--the same load of laundry that's been there since Sunday night.) My brain is fried, the school year is officially half-way over, and my house is 65% wreck. But it should get better soon. Until then. .

• Last night, I had a dream that I was on a road trip with my girlfriends and we stopped at a farm and saw hot-air balloon races. Races! Oh, and I think there were guns, and Obam'.
• Speaking of Obam', how about that question and answer session yesterday? I want to kiss him on the forehead, and then have him flash that winning smile. Whether we agree on the politics or not, I think we can all agree that that man has an amazing smile.

• And speaking of smiles, the other night we watched Julie & Julia. I wish that it had only been Julia. Julie sucked. I couldn't wipe the big grin off my face during Meryl Streep's scenes, but allowed my face time to rest during Amy Adams' scenes of suck.

• Mitch is still the cutest dog on the planet. No surprises there.
• Yet again, it's snowing everywhere else and not here. F'ing Savannah.
• We've been eating slightly better. In fact, last night we went grocery shopping [for the first time in almost a month], and we have a menu of pretty healthy meals planned for the next couple of weeks. For tonight: spicy pork stew.
• Have grand plans to get back to posting recipes on here. During the last week, most of our meals have been pasta with parmesan cheese, and I expect that you already know how to make that.

Well, I'm off to enjoy a productive Saturday [hopefully]. First up: getting that load of laundry out of the dryer.

Have a great weekend, and make a snow angel for me if you can!

Michelle Obama's State of the Union Dress

Michelle Obam' = sassmonster. And tonight, a purple-adorned sassmonster.

I kind of want to be her. I think I'm too mean, though. And lazy.

Oh well. I guess it's time to throw on a purple t-shirt, brush my hair, and practice my First Lady wave.

This and That

A few things to get you through your Monday. (Mondays are my worst days; I have school and then a class--a dreadful class that sucks my soul from my body--and I don't get home until around 7:00. Boo hiss. The up side is that Matt usually has dinner ready for me when I return home, just like a 1950's housewife.)

• First, if you feel like you just can't find the perfect gift for that special someone, try the above rug. It's only 1K, and if you really want, you can have it autographed by Sarah Palin. (Okay, so that last part's a lie, and no polar bears died for the sake of this rug. It's from Etsy, and you can buy it here.)
• Speaking of Etsy, Matt ordered my "Bad Dingo" tote bag just in time. He got the very last one! I am REALLY excited about walking around carrying the bag. When he emailed the seller, he explained to her that our dogson is an American Dingo and had a tag that said that he's a baby eater. (We got him a different tag when he got bigger and more fierce looking. Now it calls him a professional snuggler.)
• Speaking of Matt, he is currently watching football and yelling and clapping. Mitch is lying by my feet under the desk, terrified of his manic father and loud noises.
• Speaking of football, did you see that Smash Williams won the Heisman? I saw that, and I even got to throw out some fake football knowledge during the show, all stuff I've heard Matt say. "You know, Tebow's game won't really transfer to the pros. He plays much more of a running game and he's not as accurate at passing. . .It's basically the difference between Matt Saracen and J.D. McCoy." Everything I know about football I know from listening to Matt talk to his friends and watching Friday Night Lights.
• Speaking of awesome television, 60 Minutes had both Obam' and Ricky Gervais on tonight. It warmed my soul. I think that Ricky Gervais is perhaps the funniest person alive today.
• Speaking of funny, isn't it weird that I've had two cute kid posts lately? Fear not--I do not have Baby Rabies (thanks for the term, Carly!). That shan't happen anytime soon, or ever.
• But speaking of things that shall happen soon, I've only got five glorious days of school until Mitchmas break. Friday the Savannah family is coming for Mitchmas dinner, and my friend Maureen and her husband are coming for New Year's. She's a vegetarian. Any good vegetarian recipes you'd like to share?
• Speaking of food, I feel like I eat enough on a daily basis to feed a small country, or at least an elementary school. It's disgusting and terrible, yet I won't stop. Matt's going to have to knock out walls in our house and invest in a horse trailer just to get me out of the house.

Happy Monday to you! Anything fun happening? What are your plans for Mitchmas?

Get the Popcorn!

I know what I'll be doing November 3.

Redemption!

Happy birthday, Obama!

To celebrate the birthday of our sexiest president, I went to my new favorite place, Back in the Day Bakery, to lunch with one of my coworkers. In addition to the rosemary chicken salad sandwich I enjoyed and haven't stopped thinking about, I had one of their old-fashioned cupcakes.

Such redemption! This treat has completely redeemed the Savannah cupcake scene for me. It was so pretty that I didn't even want to eat it, but I was quite pleased when I bit into its buttery vanilla goodness. It's worth noting that this cupcake was about ten million times better than those from the Suckcake Emporium.

If you live in Savannah or come to visit (we do have a guest room!), stop by Back in the Day Bakery.

You can even be a friend of the bakery on Facebook! Check out the much prettier picture of these old-fashioneds that I stole off of their page.

And there's more evidence to back up my theory that I am almost exactly the same as Barack Obama. Mr. Cool gave cupcakes to Helen Thomas, the veteran White House reporter who shares a birthday with him.

Also noteworthy is that Obama is a Leo, and I am an Aries. According Cosmopolitan's Bedside Astrologer, the Leo and the Aries are a perfect match. I'm just saying that if this Matt (who also happens to be a Leo) thing doesn't work out, I have a backup. What did you do to celebrate the birthday of Obama and Helen?

My Man Obam'

In case you haven't seen it already, check out this video of Obam' kickin' ass and takin' names.

I think we should hire him to come to our house to protect against all of the deadly creatures in our yard.