Summer Lov'n

Today is officially the first day of the Fall season and that means a big good-bye to summer 2010! And although I am more than happy to leave behind the humidity, the burning seatbelt buckle, and unflattering swimsuit, summers always seem to bring a renewing effect -- projects get done, vacations, down-time (this is mostly from our school years), big movie releases, the infamous summer love that can occasionally (or frequently) come your way. A lot happens in summer.

Movie: INCEPTION

Among the horrible sequels of Iron Man and Sex and the City came a movie whose enticing and original premises of implanting ideas within the human mind drew me in immediately. Inception was everything a summer movie should be -- a visually stunning, intectually stimulating thriller with characters you root for and a storyline complex enough to keep you debating after the credits role.

Book: THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO -- This trilogy by the late Stieg Larsson of Sweden has been sweeping the world with millions of books sold, one Swedish movie version, and an English movie currently filming. Who wouldn't be intrigued? And for good reason because I could not put this book down. I don't know if it was the compelling characters of Mikeal Blomvist and Lisbeth Salander (who has been called the new feminist hero of the decade), the edgy and dark subject matter that blows any fluffy romance off its rocker (a warning to sensitive readers -- there is some disturbing content), or the great storyline mystery that keeps you guessing (no skimming pages or skipping boring chapters). Oh, and P.S. -- if you like the book, the Swedish movie version is available which I would highly recommend.

Project Finished: I have caught up on my scrapbooking of newspaper articles and movie ticket stubs from the last 3 years and have successfully created my own recipe book to put the infinate number of recipes I've collected and thrown carelessly into a shoe box. No more!

Fear Conquered: In my ever-evolving quest to conquer my anxiety of driving in populated areas, I have successfully driven almost the whole length of Interstate 355 --even with the constructions that I'm betting will be completed when the Apocalypse occurs.

Makeup Trick Learned: For all the pale faces out there, I learned that putting a bit (bit is the key word here) of blush across the hairline at the top of the forehead does give you a sun-kissed, bright face. Don't knock it til you try it! And don't use a dark blush....lighter is better.

Beverage: Sparkling Water -- I found this treasure by accident when I thought I had bought plain bottled water. Refreshing and without the sugar and heavy syrup of soda.

Go-To Summer T-Shirt for Lazy Days: It was all Blackhawks love since they won the World Cup and a bright red shirt with the mascot in front was this summers perfect tee.

Television Show: GLEE -- Summer television is not my thing as reality television gets dumber and many of the shows worth watching are on hiatus til fall. However, I was pushed to watch Glee by a friend and through my stalling and procrastinating I finally did.....and was hooked from the 1st episode. I'm a Gleek and proud of it!

Music: GLEE SOUNDTRACKS -- See above....they go hand-in-hand. For those of you who are just getting into Glee, I recommend the wonderful mash-up songs of Halo/Sunshine and It's My Life/Confessions and of course the song that started it all Don't Stop Believing.

Place to Go: A Cubs Rooftop game -- Yes, it is a bit pricey but it is an experience that every Cubs fan should have. The one price you pay includes the game, all food (better than any food you will find inside the park), and all drinks, including alcohol. Still not convinced? With 3 floors to choose from (one indoor, one partial indoor, and the rooftop with stadium seating), it fits for everyone's preferences. It is never crowded inside and there's no fighting the 40,000 people trying to squeeze their way out of the exits after the game. The best part? The bathrooms! And if you've been to the bathrooms at Wrigley, you will understand this immediately.

New Drinking Haven: Marina Bars -- the down-to-earth feel, hanging lantern lights (or tiki torches), and great summer night weather make drinking by the lake the comforting place to be. Add some great music and I'm there!

New Guilty Pleasure: Pedicures -- I've been avoiding them as I believed my tickilish feet would result in some poor girl's broken nose. I'm so glad I was wrong.

What I Learned This Summer: To let go -- There are people and things that were only meant to be in our lives for a little while....to help us grow and get us to the next part of our journey. And it wasn't meant to last forever, even if we wanted it to. Keep moving forward and remember those things as great memories. It may not make sense now but looking back later in life, connect the dots and realize that it happened for a reason.

Goodbye Summer 2010. Thanks for the memories. :)

Stephanie

Everything I Need To Learn, I Learned From Andre Dawson

I've been a Cubs fan all my life and being a fan of sports, I can say it is easy to remember the bad moments. I'm sure every Cubs fan can remember the Sammy Sosa "cork-in-the bat" scandal, the Kyle Farnsworth caught-sleeping-in-the-dug-out incident, the Milton Bradley whine-a-thon of last year, and more recently Carlos Zambrano's berating his entire team and getting suspended. It makes you wonder if all baseball players have become classless, overpaid athlethes whose sportmanship abilities have all but flown out the window.

Enter Andre Dawson, who was just inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame this past week. Not only was he a respectful and classy guy, but his message was stuff that works not only in the game of baseball but in life as well. I had to share!

"Love the game and it will love you back." -- Apply this to life: Love life and it will love you back. Simple right? Putting it in baseball terms makes it all the sweeter.

If One Door Closes, Find Another One -- When Andre Dawson's contract was up in Montreal, they did not renew it and no other team seemed too interested. Instead of continuing to face a closed door, Andre Dawson wanted to play for the Cubs, so he sent a blank and signed contract to the Cubs manager in Chicago, said this is the team he wanted to play for and he didn't care what number they put down for his salary. This is where he wanted to play. The Cubs signed him and he became one of the most beloved Cubs players ever at Wrigley Field.

Show Thanks -- Cubs fans made a ritual of bowing to Andre Dawson as he ran out onto the field at Wrigley. Andre has since said there are no fans as great as Cub fans and on his last home game, he in turn bowed to them.

You Always Have a Choice -- Andre mentioned briefly about his disappointment in the use of steriods that has plagued the Major League Baseball teams and caused numerous scandals. It is one of the greatest gifts we have -- the power of choice.

Play Hard. Be Thankful. Be Respectful. Love the Game and It Will Love You Back.

Living In Low Gear

I am sooooo bad at keeping this thing up.....and the thing is...I love to blog and read other blogs! But at times, especially lately, I feel I have nothing to contribute to the blog-reading world. Life has been a bit stagnant for me since I have graduated college. I am currently unemployed, single, and living with my parents. The one thing I owned that was truly mine (my beloved 1998 Hyundai Accent car) unfortunately met its maker last November so I have also been driving my mom's car. I feel like I own nothing in my own life. And plus, living at home means living in the middle of a small town where your high school friends have moved on to bigger and better places and your college friends live hours away, so the loneliness gets to me sometimes. Sorry, just laying it all out there -- what are personal blogs for right?

I am determined not to let the depression sink too far into my mind and heart like I let it a few years ago where it took a fair amount of counseling sessions to bring me out of it. I just wish I could clear my head of all this doubt and anxiety and feel at ease....balanced....happy. I wish I could regain an apetite for living my life. Embracing it. Loving it. Actively pursuing it and fulfilling it. Kicking it into high gear instead of settling for low gear the whole time. That's how I feel now -- puttering along with no clue as to where I am. But how do I do this? Something needs to change....I need to change. I don't know. Wow, it is late!! And I gotta get up in the morn. I promise my blogs will get better so don't count me out if this one is a downer and hopefully I can blog sooner this time than later. Take care!

The Must-Read Book -- "Devil in the White City"

Hey ya'll, I haven't blogged in such a long time! This is something I'm vowing to change. With school and work being so hectic as I near the end of my Masters program, it has been hard for me to find time to do something leisurely that I love -- reading! My reading list has been piling and piling. And in order for me to truly remember the contents of a book, I have to read it twice....so the reading list is twice as long! Haha. But I have usually switched on and off reading the "cheap entertainment" books to books with more depth. So after I attempted the first "Twilight" book (which I thoroughly did not like), I needed something to really intrigue me. I had my mother pick my next book from my enormous pile which would be The Devil in the White City by Eric Larson.

This non-fiction book, set up in novel style, revolves around two true stories with little historial sub-stories mixed in surrounding the creating, planning, executing, and aftermath of the World's Fair Exposition of Chicago in 1893 (White City) and the story of an owner of a World's Fair Hotel who became known as the first American Serial Killer H.H. Holmes (the Devil). I will admit that it gets off to a slow start but as the characters and fair start to evolve, you as a reader get pulled in to the history, stories, and people surrounding a year that changed Chicago forever. You invest in these characters, root for them. And it's all true...the places, the people, the events. They lived and breathed and transformed Chicago to start its journey on becoming the great city that it is. In fact, you can still see reminants of the fair...just tour the Museum of Science and Industry or the Art Institute...both built for the fair and continuing to be visited and admired today. It made me want to be there and immerse myself in that excitement (I think had Chicago won the Olympic bid, we would have experienced a similar excitement). But I'm satisfied knowing there are authors like Larson who bring us as close to the fair as possible through through the written word. Pick it up and give it a read!

P.S. If you have read it and are as interested as I am, there are "Devil in the White City" tours available in Chicago. There are a few out there so research (some focus on the architecture and others focus on the H.H. Holmes murders).

And That's How I Fell in Love With Zombies

This last Monday, I went to downtown Naperville, IL (a small pleasantville-like community where it actually feels safe to walk around at night) with a friend to an author reading at a local bookstore. I had never heard of the author but figured it was something new and a nice night to walk around town. The author was Carrie Ryan, author of "The Forest of Hands and Feet" and a sequel book called "The Dead-Tossed Waves." Both books are based on post-apocalytic worlds where a contained society exists within barracaded walls and zombies exists outside the walls. This books seems to be building a following and has been recently added to the New York Times Bestseller list.

I've never been to an author reading before so I wasn't sure what to expect. But as soon as Carrie Ryan began speaking, I immediately liked her. She talked about how scared she was of scary movies until she was forced to go to see the "Dawn of the Dead" remake with her boyfriend and fell in love with zombies. Her passion for writing continued and even after going through everything that law school makes you go through, she knew that a career in law wasn't for her. So she set out to write with a 10 year plan....if she didn't make it happen in 10 years, she would give it up. However, her writing found an audience and there she was tonight...doing what she loved and answering questions -- most of them about zombies. The one thing that really made me liked her was the fact that even though she went to law school and got a degree, once she knew that law wasn't for her, she allowed herself to change her course....it would be hard not to feel obligated to follow the original plan. But she knew what her passion was and went with it and you could tell she was happy....that she was proud of her work and loved what she had done and what she will do (she's in the revision process of her third book). Needless to say, I bought her first book. She sold me.

And We Raise Our Glass

In the last ten years or so, I have been to countless weddings, been part of two wedding parties, and will be part of two more this year. The weddings are as unique as the couples that have them. I love weddings. It's a celebration of love that is purposefully designed to reflect the two people that it's bringing together. And seeing two people at their happiest makes me happy. But this post is about the wedding experiences from the guest's point-of-view (well, in this case, my point of view) and the little tidbits and memories that have been my favorite through my wedding-attending days. Some are cherishable, some are sad, some are bizarre, and others are clever. Here's a list of some of the memorable wedding tidbits:



1. The Memorable Pastor -- For most wedding ceremonies, the pastor (or priest or other dude) will recite verses and conduct a sermon. However, at one wedding I went to, the pastor personalized and focused his entire sermon on the guy and girl getting married. He used stories that they had told him, talked about their hobbies and passions and future plans. He used quotes from them about what they loved about each other and intertwined those quotes into the sermon. It was so personal, so beautiful, and so sincere that even after the sermon was done, I wanted to hear more.



2. The Memory Candle -- At one wedding, the couple had an "In Memory" candle at the back of the church by the guest book. The candle was engraved with all the names of loved one who had passed away. It was something so small but to me was such a statement -- "we know you can't be here but you are not forgotton."



3. The Backyard -- This wedding will stand out as one of the more non-traditional weddings. It was a country backyard wedding complete with: a random dog wondering the aisles, an uncle who showed up with no shirt, another couple sucking each other's faces while waiting for it to start, and an interruption of the wedding vows by a group of 50 or so bikers driving by whose motorcycles were so loud, we couldn't hear, well, anything.

4. The Dream Wedding -- The bride of this wedding was her own master wedding planner. She had every minute planned, every detail down, and no flower petal out of place. I had never seen a wedding so meticulously planned as this one. After over a year of her life invested into this one day, it was so fun to see her revel in it. Oh, and if you are wondering if this dream wedding came with a horse-drawn carriage?...yes, yes it did.

5. The Fire Truck -- This couple met while working for the Fire Deptment so it was only fitting to them that they would leave the church and climb up on a fire truck to take them to their reception. The wedding cake had a fire truck at the top with ladders connecting each teir and the bride herself had a white dress lined with navy blue -- to commerate the colors of the fire dept. Many might say "tacky" but these two people were paying homage to the passion that brought them together and they continue to share.

6. CD Wedding Favors -- At one wedding, the favors we received were copies of a CD where the bride and groom burnt some of their favorite songs played at the wedding. So very clever!

7. "I Loved Her First" song -- This beautiful father/daughter dance song can still make me cry but hearing it while watching a father and daughter dance to it? Priceless.

8. The Unwedding -- As I was on my way to a small wedding of a friend who was hosting it in her own backyard, I got a call saying that just an hour before the wedding, the groom-to-be called it off. Instead of wanting people to leave, the former bride asked that we still come and just be with her. She was calm and non-emotional -- as I think she was still in shock -- and we came and talked with her at what would have been the reception tables and ate the food that had been catered in and paid for. The part of that afternoon that stood out to me was when she refused to open the fridge where her wedding cake lay untouched. It was a sad moment.

9. The Mansion -- This wedding was held in a gorgeous old mansion. Did I mention it was suposedly haunted? That fact alone would put it on this list! This place beat any reception hall in beauty and elegance. I would go back to this place anyday!

10. The Champagne -- I had to finish out this list by mentioning my first wedding ever. I was 8 and it was the first event where I really did "dance like nobody's watching." My brother did cartwheels across the dance floor and since we couldn't have this odd drink called "champagne" that the adults got to have, we made our own -- we mixed Coke and Sprite and called it the same thing. We even made a toast with it. Unforgettable.

Conan O'Brien: Long May You Run

I'm a fan of late night talk shows and a big fan of Conan O'Brien. After a busy day, Conan with his self-deprecating humor and whit, always made me smile and laugh (out loud, might I add -- has anyone seen his skit -- In the Year 3000?) I was overjoyed after learning he would be taking over The Tonight Show after Leno stepped down. And unless you have been living under a rock, I'm sure you heard or saw the ongoing dispute among Conan, Jay Leno, and NBC Studios. For those of you who are under-rock dwellers (or just don't care about pop culture), I will catch you up.

Jay Leno left the Tonight Show to pursue his own television show that would air before The Tonight Show, which would be hosted by Conan O'Brien. The Jay Leno show was cancelled due to poor ratings and NBC decided to offer Leno back The Tonight Show and move Conan back to his original spot. Conan refused and the ongoing fued was captured through the television with verbal jabs at each other on their own shows as well as from other hosts (like David Letterman and Jimmy Kimmel). Actors/guest stars lined up behind Conan to support him and he stood his ground against NBC. Finally, last week, both announced a deal. Conan O'Brien would leave The Tonight Show and receive $33 million dollars out of the total payout of $45 million. The remaineder would be split among his producers and writers of the show. So on Friday, January 22nd, Conan made his last appearance on NBC as a talk show.

I know stereotypes are made about people and their professions, and I confess that I can tend to make unknown claims too. I tend to think that stand-up comedians or people who make humor their career only know how to make people laugh --when it comes to the serious stuff, they lack emotion and poise. But I could not have been more wrong when Conan took the last part of his show to completely surprise me with his emotional and graceful goodbye (including a perfect song performed by Neil Young -- "Long May You Run":

"Before we end this rodeo, a few things need to be said. There has been a lot of speculation in the press about what I legally can and can't say about NBC. To set the record straight, tonight I am allowed to say anything I want. And what I want to say is this: between my time at Saturday Night Live, the Late Night show, and my brief run here on The Tonight Show, I have worked with NBC for over twenty years. "Yes, we have our differences right now and yes, we're going to go our separate ways. But this company has been my home for most of my adult life. I am enormously proud of the work we have done together, and I want to thank NBC for making it all possible.

Walking away from The Tonight Show is the hardest thing I have ever had to do. Making this choice has been enormously difficult. This is the best job in the world, I absolutely love doing it, and I have the best staff and crew in the history of the medium. But despite this sense of loss, I really feel this should be a happy moment. Every comedian dreams of hosting The Tonight Show and, for seven months, I got to. I did it my way, with people I love, and I do not regret a second. I've had more good fortune than anyone I know and if our next gig is doing a show in a 7-Eleven parking lot, we'll find a way to make it fun.

And finally, I have to say something to our fans. The massive outpouring of support and passion from so many people has been overwhelming. The rallies, the signs, all the goofy, outrageous creativity on the internet, and the fact that people have traveled long distances and camped out all night in the pouring rain to be in our audience, made a sad situation joyous and inspirational. To all the people watching, I can never thank you enough for your kindness to me and I'll think about it for the rest of my life. All I ask of you is one thing: please don't be cynical. I hate cynicism — it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere.

"Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen. "

Conan, I will always be a fan. I know great things are in store for you. Stay humble. Stay cheerful. Stay passionate. Long May You Run.