Okay...

So I know that, as an intelligent human being, I am not supposed to watch "The Bachelorette," and I'm certainly not supposed to actually become invested in it, but I can't believe Jen told Jerry no! Just horrifically disappointing. All right, must go watch the rest of the finale. :)

Random Thought

I think Renee Zellweger has a dark future ahead of her. I'm not trying to be a naysayer or anything, but, man, if she doesn't look like she's on the verge...

Okay, back to grading papers and watching pre-Oscars.

Stolen Poetry

I was robbed two weeks ago tomorrow night, and every day I realize something else that is gone. They took my two (new) LCD flat screen tvs, my computer, my cameras, cash, my cordless phone, all my jewelry -- not to mention my already-tenuous sense of security.

Tonight I was standing in Barnes & Noble, trying to find a birthday present for my little brother but instead staring at the shelves of poetry wishing I felt anything resembling poetic these days, and I realized: they got all of my poems from inside my laptop. They weren't very good. Ask Mark Scroggins or anyone in the Poem in Practice class, but still. Still, there I am standing in front of the poetry books on the verge of tears (but just on the verge, which is a step in the right direction).

On the subject of poetry, I've always been a Bukowski fan, but just thumbing through his latest, I think he's run dry. Loneliness/sadness as gnawing dog? Have we not seen that before, like, a whole lot? Plus -- and maybe this is just me -- aren't we maybe tired of hearing about loneliness/sadness? It is what it is.

...

In my mind, no matter how hard I try to think of other things, it's Sunday February 13th around 11:30 at night and I keep walking up to my back door that goes in from the garage, trying the handle, finding it locked, saying to my friend on the phone, "I didn't lock this door. Something's not right." I convince myself I've locked it accidentally. I try the key. When it won't work, I realize it's been locked from the inside. I flee to the safety of my car, call my sister and ask my brother-in-law to come over. I feel bad, asking him to come over so late on a work night. I decide there's a logical explanation. I walk around the side of the house to the front door. Glass. Everywhere. And then I'm really fleeing and calling the police and hyperventilating and crying and it's just the beginning of the horrible realization of everything that's gone and the frustration at myself for not taking out that renter's insurance and then moving again and being surrounded, once again, with boxes that had only recently been unpacked.

I wish I could stop running to the backdoor to look out the peep hole to see if someone's in my garage. I wish I could stop turning off my iTunes to see if that noise I just heard was someone in my house. I wish my mother, as much as I dearly love her, would not have called tonight to tell me Dr. Phil's remedies for clutter. Among them: deny yourself wearing makeup until you've accomplished a specific cleaning goal. Somehow, that's just not helpful. Plus, well, I look so much better with makeup on. ;)


On a totally random note:
Here's a beautiful song to download: "Home" by Michael Buble.

Room for Cream

What does it say about me that my new XM station of choice is Hear Music: the voice of Starbucks?

Survey 5, 3, 1...

Feel free to post your own responses as comments! See http://egyptiansally.blogspot.com for my dear friend Sally's answers...

PART ONE:
The Fives…
-5 movies you'd watch over & over:
1.When Harry Met Sally
2.Office Space
3.Kicking & Screaming
4.Clueless
5.Bridget Jones's Diary (but not Part II...)

-5 best concerts:
1. Rufus Wainwright at Billboard Live in Miami. Hands down.
2. The Strokes at Mizner Park in Boca
3. Barenaked Ladies at the Troubador in LA
4. Red Hot Chili Peppers in West Palm Beach
5. Jude in Austin

-5 best trips:
1. Disney World - all 4 times between 2001-2004
2. New York w/Mom & Dad at Thanksgiving 2002
3. St. Petersburg, Russia - June 2002
4. New Orleans (@ Easter)/Atlanta for conferences (tie)
5. Hawaii for conference

-5 material things you can't live without (or don't want to…):
1. Bonne Belle Dr. Pepper Lipsmacker
2. Curel/Carmex (tie)
3. TV
4. the Jetta
5. cell phone

-5 best gifts you've ever received:
1. I went out of town once & came back to find that Anthony hadcleaned my entire apartment. Definitely an amazing gift, especiallyif you'd seen my apartment before I left. :)
2. I once saw a framed pencil drawing in a Pottery Barn catalog (thatwasn't for sale) of a little rabbit with the words, "Bunny. Safe fromharm." Carrie recreated it for me and framed it as a going-awaypresent when I moved from LA.
3. I saw a painting I loved in Alexandria at a closed art gallery.Joel went back and got it and had it sent to me as a house-warmingpresent.
4. When I was in elementary school, my dad latch-hooked my name. :)
5. One time when I had a horrible sore throat, I was trying to tellMollie a story and she made me hot tea and said, "Take your time. I'lllisten," even though it took me forever to get the story out. I'vealways remembered that.
5+. When I was at the end of my rope, packing in Boca, and Mannyshowed up, took one look at my face, and said, "I'llbe back in half an hour to help you pack," then stayed for hours doing just that.

-5 guilty pleasures:
1. Reality TV (I know, it's terrible, but so very, very addictive)
2. Lemonheads by the bagful
3. The Internet. I know I've been on too long when I start searchingfor something to search for. Yay, Google.
4. Text messaging. Now that I've discovered it, I'm hooked.
5. Baja Fresh/Starbucks.

PART TWO: The threes…
-3 quotes you love:
1. "What matters most is how well you walk through the fire." - Charles Bukowski
2. "Don't be afraid to write sh*tty first drafts." - Anne Lamott
3. "How do you make God laugh? Make a plan." – Chet, _Kicking & Screaming_

-3 favorite stores:
1. Target
2. Banana Republic
3. Paul Frank/Lucky (tie)

-3 days you'd repeat:
1. The day Neneh gave me her five-treatment spa day at Burke Williams. Heaven.
2. M.F.A. graduation day
3. 30th Birthday Party

-3 movies/TV shows you wish you'd made/created:
1. Showtime's _Out of Order_ (now available on DVD, FYI)
2. _My So-Called Life_/_West Wing_ (tie)
3. _Jesus' Son_

-3 books you wish you'd written:
1. _The Ragged Way People Fall Out of Love_ - Elizabeth Cox
2. _Jesus' Son_ - Denis Johnson
3. _A Million Little Pieces_ – James Frey

-3 songs you've recently downloaded:
1. "True" – Ryan Cabrera
2. "I'm Moving On" – Rascal Flatts
3. "Oh Happy Day" – The Edwin Hawkins Singers

PART THREE: The ones…
-1 thing you'd change if you could:
1. Most of the last two years I lived in LA. Not all of it, but alot. (Can that count as one thing?)

-1 thing you're proud of:
1. Pursuing dreams

-1 person (not in your family) who you admire:
1. Theresa. She's overflowing with love & I miss her very much.

-1 gift you'd give everyone you love if it were possible:
1. Tivo. :) Or, you know, love & happiness.

Well, hello, blog...

I haven't posted here in months, but Sally's blog inspired me to start again. So I'm officially a Texan again. I moved to Dallas January 15 -- then left town a week later to go to Colorado Springs to work with my uncle on a book we're co-authoring. I've been back about a week and a half, and am slowly settling in. Unpacking goes forever. I still need to hang pictures. I have a gorgeous dining table from Crate & Barrel but not chairs, b/c once I'd bought the table, well... couldn't really see spending another $1000 on chairs. I'm thinking Target. :) Also need something to put my stupidly-expensive flat screen TV on instead of the $10 flea market table where it currently resides. Once I get all set up (which has to happen sooner than later -- I have houseguests starting 2/21), I'll post some pictures.

I'm missing spending time with friends, though I've gotten to spend a lot of time with my sister & her family, and that's been great. My niece Emma cracks me up. We "play" American Idol, where we audition for each other. On my first audition for "Miss Paula," as she calls herself, she gave some serious thought to my performance of "Lean on Me," then said, "That would be a yes. You're going to Hollywood." Adorable.

Tomorrow night, I have actual plans w/my long-time friend Christie; and another friend from home, Amy, is moving into the townhouse across from mine. So that will be good. Displacement is interesting. I've been displaced, really, since the end of June when I left Boca behind. Though, in theory, I'm settled, or on my way to being settled, I can't help but remain feeling residually unsettled.

I've been staying up way too late for no good reason. Can't seem to get myself to go to bed at any kind of decent hour. I'm holding firm to Ellen DeGeneres's advice: "Life is short. Procrastinate now."

So, for now, I'll go check each of my five email accounts again, see what else I can find that I feel like eating, perhaps wash some dishes, feed the bunnies, then consider the possibility of putting on my eye mask and calling it a night...

Or maybe I'll watch my Ellen DeGeneres DVD instead. :)

Hi, bunnies. 

Parker at Christmas 

New Year's in Alexandria, VA 

Jasmine loves her paper sleeping bag. 

Sidney is cute.