So, as of Wednesday evening, I’m getting out of Dodge to visit my parents and hang by the pool for a few days. But there are some other things I also plan to do, and here is where I’m going to list them:
Mani/Pedi (as soon as possible on Thursday)
A trip to Sherwin Williams to buy some Easy Change wallpaper
A trip to the antique market to find some cool vintage decor items
Napping
The operative term there is “good”. Unfortunately, I’m watching Halloween: Resurrection, and I don’t think there’ll be anything good about it. I mean, I’m glad that Jamie Lee Curtis got back involved with the Halloween series and all, but H20 sucked a lot. Even with the pretty of Josh Hartnett.
But seriously, when your headliner in a movie is Busta Rhymes, the bar is not set so high. Though, at least they didn’t lead with Tyra Banks’ involvement. And, it’s two minutes into the movie and they’ve already told us that Jamie Lee killed the WRONG dude at the end of H20? What?
Now, I’m used to the retrofitting of story points in order to make a sequel even the slightest bit plausible. But come on. And after all this time, I want to know how Michael Myers can continually find his freaking sister. Is she LoJacked or something?
I’m gonna settle in and see just how bad this movie gets. The mask in this iteration of the series looks slightly effeminate. I hope that the kid from Rookie of the Year doesn’t get killed off too quickly. Oh look. A head in a dryer. How original. Instead of being chilled to the bone, my cynical, desensitized brain just wishes the filmmakers could find more originality than what they stole from the movie Identity.
And also? Characters in Halloween: Resurrection have called Michael Myers a serial killer. And really, he doesn’t fit the profile. People who work in a psychiatric facility should probably know the difference.
Oh, come on. Jamie Lee really thinks she can KILL this thing. He’s not even human. Sure, he’s got anthropomorphic form, but he’s pure freaking evil. Isn’t that the whole point?
So now she’s dead. But Michael Myers still wants to kill? And Haddonfield suddenly has a university? With a girl on a Vespa who will probably somehow end up being a Myers?
Not sure I’ll be able to suspend my disbelief for the whole movie. And someone needs to give that cute boy from Save the Last Dance a REAL job. All of these characters seem like they were written for actors popular 10 years before the film was made.
Vespa girl can break glass with her screams? Please. We won’t even discuss the guy with the bad Christian Slater impression. This movie is half over and the only person to die so far is Jamie Lee Curtis. Brilliant pacing, folks.
Save yourself the two hours. Even Rob Zombie’s remake of the original is better than this dreck.
so, i didn’t end up writing TWO scripts for this competition. but I did complete one, just by the skin of my teeth. and from where i sit now, on my couch, inhaling a pint of haagen-dazs while watching Oprah discuss my second favorite book of all time, Middlesex, i’m pretty proud of it. The script. Not the slothful behavior and lack of a balanced meal. This is the first thing I’ve eaten since approximately 10:30 last night, and before that the week was spent only grazing.
So, this week has put me through the gauntlet physically, mentally and emotionally. Before I crash (I’m operating on no sleep in nearly 36 hours), I have to say that starting this week, I’m gonna take better care of my body. Unless I make some changes, my body’s not going to let me put it through this kind of trial as I age. Right now, however, I am in a wonderful mood. Perhaps it’s the onset of delirium.
But I’m so glad and grateful and proud that I’ve managed to somehow juggle 60-hour work weeks, plus freelance work on the side and participating in a semi-active social life with the consumption of mass quantities of Scrubs, and the planning, writing and rewriting of this script. And I’m thankful for all the people who’ve been supportive of this pursuit.
After a couple weeks off, I’m starting a Big Bang Theory script. But between now and then, I’ve tacked on a couple days to a long weekend and will be getting my life back together on those days.
But first, sleep. Lots and lots of sleep.
Yesterday, I was finding it quite easy to be profound and realistic and mature about things. It’s amazing what kinds of things you can make yourself realize while you’re trying to sort through some emotional issues with 0.2% of your brain while the other 98.8% is focused on survival.
What I realized is that as much as I crave the touch of someone who loves me, as well as the companionship, there are some sacrifices and trade-offs that I’m not willing to make. And overall, that makes me feel good about myself.
A new practice I’m going to begin when I meet someone new, and someone I’d like to know better is to try and hang out with them. I’ll try my best to not hang any expectations on the relationship, and not let my impatience try and rush anything. If the person doesn’t take the bait, I’ll move on and find someone who wants to be friends with me (though this also applies romantically as well. I’m going to try the more organic approach).
Also, I’m going to try to not worry about whether or not someone likes me. It’s not something I can control, and there’s no point sitting around fretting about it. I should go and find someone who DOES like me.
All of this might seem like something you’ve known your whole life, but they are complete revelations to me, discovered in the past 24 hours. And while I might just revert to my normal, obsessive ways once my stress levels have dropped, I hope I don’t. Because I am on a mission. A mission to make myself more deliriously happy than I’ve ever been in my life.
Or, to quote Beck: I’m a driver, I’m a winner. Things are gonna change, I can feel it.
You know, for all of the big, amazing things that come along with a relationship, it’s the small things I find myself craving most of all.
Like, someone who’ll go out and get the good coffee and the paper on Saturday morning. Or walking to get gelato on a warm summer night. Being so hungover that all we have the energy for is to watch an entire DVD box set on a Sunday. Having someone who’ll go grocery shopping with me. Or, whom maybe I could convince to do my laundry while I grocery shop. Or something like that.
OK, dwelling on things that won’t be part of my life for a long while is NOT getting this Scrubs script written. Back at it.
I really really hate my life right now. Every small thing that goes wrong just magnifies that fact. If I actually caught a break every now and again, I might be able to convince myself that I’m happy. But no. All I’ve got is the universe constantly showing me that my life blows. And I don’t know how to find a way to make it better. Why isn’t there a way for me to make it better?
It’s interesting that I managed to convince myself that things were OK for almost three years, and now I’m right back where I was in 2005, only with more debt.
blergh.
Apparently, a residence at the University of Alberta needs to be treated for bed bugs. This is NATIONAL, reported by the mother corporation, news? Seriously? Because the bed bug situation was rampant at more than one residence during my Rye High days.
Maybe it’s a slow news day.
If the post title didn’t give it away, I am in a cheesy, weird mood. I don’t even know what to write about. But I feel like I need to. So, I’m gonna do a survey.
A small update. Things are busy. Busy and cool and full of potential. Seriously. Can’t really talk about any of it, lest I jinx it. But it certainly feels like the universe is conspiring in my favour for once. Which, I have to say, kicks about seventeen kinds of ass.
And now, without further adieu, a cheesy survey stolen from one of my Facebook friends. Or, quite possibly, one of the about 9,000 people in my massive family whom I’m friends with on Facebook. No, seriously. You know how (and you do, shut UP, I know you’ve seen the movie) in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Nia Vardalos says that she has 34 first cousins? So do I. Seriously, my family could be a Breck commercial of their own.
OK. The survey:
1. Would you bang your neighbor?
I only know what one of my neighbors looks like, and I’ll respectfully say no thank you.
2. What describes your relationship status?
Bitter, table for one!
3. Where are you?
My living room in beautiful midtown Toronto.
4. What’s the last movie you’ve seen in theater?
The Happening. Shut up, I know how hard it sucked. YOU probably don’t know how hard it sucked.
5. Do you live with your parents?
Nope.
6. What is your middle name?
Lynne
7. Who have you talked to most today?
Meg
8. Do you carve pumpkins every year?
I don’t remember the last time I carved a pumpkin. Man, now I want a house.
9. Color of your underwear/boxer?
Turquoise
10. Color of your shirt?
Black
11. How many years have you taken a language?
Grades 4 – 12, though I also took OAC French. And I wish that I’d kept it up through uni.
12. Who’s on speed dial 2? 5? 7?
Nobody.
14. Do you wish on 11:11?
When I notice it, absolutely.
15. Good advice if you ever go camping?
Stay in a hotel instead. Or bring lots of bug spray. AND BOOZE.
16. Are you a bad influence?
Sometimes.
17. Do you enjoy Diet Rockstars?
I don’t enjoy any energy drinks, but Diet Rockstar is the one I drink when needed.
18. Rather have your name or your siblings name?
Mine, obviously. I’m not a dude.
19. Would you do anything for someone else?
Could this question BE more vague? I do things for people all the time. If you’re asking me like it’s the Meat Loaf song, not so much.
20. Have you ever been called a bitch?
Certainly. I’m a girl.
21. Favorite colors?
Red.
22. Do you use smiley faces on the computer?
Far too often.
23. What song is on?
No songs. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is on my TV, and I’m listening to the Overwhelming Positivity podcast. Still working through the Atomic Tour. It’s AWESOME.
24. Are your grades good?
I had wicked grades back in the day. Don’t really get grades anymore.
25. Do you ever think people hate you for filling this out?
This question makes no sense. I doubt my friends could muster up hate for having to scroll.
27. Does your best friend have a facebook?
Um, sure?
28. Whose page did you visit last?
Whoever I stole this from.
29. Last time you went out to lunch?
Yesterday.
30. What is to the right of you?
Haaaave you met Ted? He’s my iPod. Also, three remote controls.
31. Who is your favorite character from Friends?
Chandler, before he got all henpecked by Monica. Or Joey.
33. Do you have one or more Britney Spears CDs?
Nope.
35. Are you a Lost fanatic?
Once was, but I could write a dissertation on my feelings about J.J. Abrams and the way he toys with fans of shows he touches.
37. Do you have a song by Ozzy Osbourne in your library?
Numerous ones.
38. iPod or Zune?
iPod.
39. Do you watch Family Guy regularly?
Nope. I think it’s a sad ripoff of The Simpsons. Drawing a joke into awkwardness doesn’t necessarily equal comedy.
40. King of the Hill?
If there’s nothing else on, maybe.
41. Do you read trashy romance novels often?
I’ve read a couple in my lifetime. Mostly when I’m considering writing one to make some cash.
43. Do you sing obnoxiously in the car?
How do you sing obnoxiously?
44. Do you ever sing obnoxiously in the shower?
Not so much.
45. What’s in your CD player right now?
A mixed CD I made. The CD player is my alarm clock.
46. Have you ever pretended your crush was with you?
Like, as in a slippery slope to delusion? Are we talking with me as in dating me, or with me as in occupying the same room as me? Either way, no. I have better things to do with my time.
53. Are you ever a freak about cleanliness or organization?
Not really. I take a laissez-faire approach to organization. I’m untidy, not unclean.
54. Have you ever been to South America or Africa?
Not yet.
55. Do you know how to knit?
Nope. I get people who know how to knit to make me things. (Hi Kirstie, how’s that bunny coming along?)
57. Have you ever written love song lyrics yourself and put them on MySpace?
No. I’ve also never written love song lyrics and NOT put them on MySpace.
59. When you open your closet, what is the dominant color?
White. It’s the color of my walls. I don’t have too much in my closet.
60. Baskin Robbins or Coldstone?
Dairy Queen.
61. Physics or chemistry?
Chemistry.
64. R-rated or G-rated movies?
Depends on the movies in question. There’s crap in both categories, and awesomeness in both.
65:Walk or Run?
Walk
66:Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, or Star Wars?
Harry Potter, hands down.
67:Road trip or fly?
Depends on how much time I have and where I’m going. I’d love to take a vacation that IS a road trip. Having to power through to make it home for something blows goats.
68:Batman, Spiderman, or Superman?
I’m gonna say Batman, based solely on how much I want to freaking see The Dark Knight.
69.What’s your favorite Disney movie?
The Ducks Trilogy, any of the Disney/Pixar collaborations (except for Toy Story 2. LAME)
70: Every been skinny dipping?
Yep.
71: How’s your hair?
Meh.
72: Bug or insects?
The same thing. What is going on with the world of internet memes?
73: Would you rather eat sushi or escargot?
Neither.
74: Do you have a secret crush?
Not really.
75: Do you ever want to get married?
One day, when I grow up. Not in any big rush, though. Or even a slow rush, if that exists.
76:Are you happy?
At this moment in time, yes. I feel really dorky and goofy and giddy.
77: Have you ever been with someone who didn’t treat you right?
Who hasn’t?
78:Have you ever cheated on someone?
Ick, never.
79:Will anyone repost this?
Probably not. And I’m totally cool with that.
80:Why did you take this survey?
Did you not read my preamble? That means I’m gonna have to do another survey. You asked for it!
all about me from a-z.
a – available?:
Yes, for relationships, weddings, writing jobs and bar mitzvahs.
b – best sport?:
Probably rowing.
c – crush?:
Do I have one? Perhaps…
d – dogs name?:
I’ve always wanted a golden retriever named Brady. Who knows if it will happen.
e – easiest person to talk to?
There are a bunch. I try to not make friends with people I find it hard to talk to.
f – favorite color?:
The book is right: Red is Best.
g – gummy bears or gummy worms?
Bears.
h – home?
Hometown: Cambridge. Current Home: Toronto. Where my heart lives: New York City.
i – instrument?
A pen, probably. If I have to choose a musical one, I’ll have to go with tambourine.
j – juice?:
Apple
k – kind of music?:
classic rock.
l – longest car ride?
15 hours, I think.
m- milk flavour?:
Um, MILK flavor?
n – number of siblings?:
1
o – one wish?
To have endless wishes! No. World Peace! Worldwide Domination! Bananas! I don’t know.
p – phobia/fears?:
Being alone forever. Spiders. Irrational fears that arise from urban life and legend.
q -fav quotes?:
“Did he say ‘funky buttloving’?” – Rookie of the Year
r- reason to smile?:
oh, nothing… (cue massively huge smile) …all right, many things.
s – song last heard?
Ummm… something from Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog.
t – time you woke up today?:
6:30
u – unknown fact about me?:
I want to be a cop on a TV show, solving murders that didn’t actually happen.
v – vegetable you don’t like?:
Corn. Onions. Brussels sprouts. Yes, I’m five. Shut up, Poo Poo Head.
w- worst habit?:
Procrastination.
x -x-rays you’ve had?
Head. Teeth. Ankle. Trying to get an MRI of my head. They think it’s too full of awesome for my own good
y – yummy food?
LOTS. If today is any indication, Pop Tarts. Seriously, I think I ate six today.
z – zodiac sign?:
Scorpio. The BEST ONE EVER. I will cut you if you disagree. CUT YOU. We’re INTENSE.
Good God, I need to go to bed already.
During my second-ever Zipcar outing today, I thought I would start taking notes on my opinion of every vehicle I have the opportunity to drive. Because I think that’s my favorite thing about the service: the chance to drive a LOT of different cars.
Seriously, I could spend entire weekends test driving. It’s like how I am about apartments, except I’m imagining how different my life would be if I drove a Mini, or a VW. Today’s car is a Mazda 3. I didn’t notice its trim level, something I’m slapping my hand for. Bad automotive copywriter!
ANYWAY, the Mazda 3. Zipcar calls it Megaboom. I call it a BLAST to drive. Well, once I figured out now not to be in the vehicle’s Sport mode. That made some unhappy sounds. But, once I (quickly) figured out where D was, it was green lights all the way.
I guess the Sport mode transmission is a plus for people who like to shift, but as a major supporter of the automatic transmission, it didn’t matter a whit to me. I care about things like the radio, how fast the a/c cools the car, what I can haul around in it and whether it has any pickup on the highway.
So, the radio was pretty cool. It says hello to you when you turn on the car. The volume control is a knob dead in the centre of the dash, and there are a number of ways to access the radio presets. Satellite radio is also an option on this vehicle, but not on sweet little Megaboom. A feature I didn’t get to try out in my two hour window was the 6-disc in dash changer. But I love the idea of that. I’ve had experience with trunk-mounted changers, and they’re a pain in my butt. Plus, they reduce the amount of crap I can get in a single trip to IKEA.
The air conditioning earned points. BIG points. I spent much of today wandering the streets of my fair city, so the fact that the car was cool in mere moments was a welcome one.
The ride was smooth and quiet. Megaboom drove like a dream, accelerating with confidence and braking without complaint. On winding roads, it handled exceptionally well. The same cannot be said for the out of service city bus that almost toppled over while racing into a curve going at least 70 km/h in the lane beside mine.
There wasn’t much chance to take the car on the highway, but the five minutes I was on North America’s busiest highway were a breeze. Thank God for no traffic.
Now, the bad parts. At IKEA, I parked in a huge carport-style parking structure. One that didn’t have its lights on yet. And, the interior light in the Mazda 3 is not particularly bright. Or positioned in a way where you can look for something on the vehicle floor. Which made looking for the trunk release ridiculously hard.
After 10 minutes (which included consulting the inch-thick owner’s manual), I located the trunk release and got everything into the car.
Overall, it was a fun car to drive. I’m sure Megaboom and I will be hanging out again soon, but my plan is to test out the rest of the vehicles near my place. I’ve already driven the VW Jetta City near me, but I’ll have to drive it again in order to review it. The other vehicles are a Mini Cooper, a Ford Escape, a Toyota Matrix and a Honda Civic. After that, perhaps I’ll branch out into other areas of the city.
Overall Mazda 3 Grade: B+
Growing up, we had premium cable. That means I watched A LOT of movies. On top of my steady diet of sitcoms and game shows (I wasn’t old enough to stay up and watch the dramas, but in the ’80s, sitcoms were king anyway), there were lots of films that could be considered inappropriate for someone under 10 to watch. But, I had the cool parents. And, no idea what the hell was going on a lot of the time. Sex references went WAY over my head (I was older than I probably should’ve been when I realized just what Penny being “knocked up” meant in Dirty Dancing. I had NO clue she was pregnant upon the first 15 million viewings), but I was still addicted to any and all stories I could get my hands on.
This is all a really long winded preamble to me saying that I LOVED the movie “Hairspray” growing up. I was probably around eight the first time I saw it, and I was hooked. The characters were so out there, but still kind of real. They certainly all looked like real people (maybe with the exception of Michael St. Gerard, who was totally dreamy and went on to such illustrious roles as playing Elvis No fewer than three times and of course, the acting teacher who came between AHN-drea Zuckerman and Brenda Walsh on 90210).
Then, the musical version came along, first on Broadway and then on film. It’s one of many movies that I keep watching on a loop. Part of that is because it’s basically on a loop on the movie channel right now. It’s such a different animal than the original movie, I consider them two separate entities that have similar stories.
First of all, if the song “Mama, I’m a Big Girl Now” from the movie soundtrack is any indication, I am INCREDIBLY glad that they cast uber-talented cutie pie Nikki Blonsky as Tracy, because Marissa Jaret Winokur’s voice grates on me so much. It’s so whiny. And when the film already makes me listen to Amanda Bynes’ singing voice, it would’ve been too much to handle.
Seriously, Bynes seems like a sweet girl who has her head on right. And she’s got some comedy chops (no, I’m serious. I’d love to see her dive into the improv scene for a while and come back out a lean, mean comedy machine). But her vocal histrionics are all over the board, and when up against the others, she just doesn’t measure up. Especially someone like Elijah Kelley. The boy has some serious talent.
I LOVED Allison Janney as Prudence Pingleton. She was so perfect. But I feel like she’s perfect in everything she does. The woman is so talented, it makes me want to cry. Christopher Walken rocked his role too, as did the underused Brittany Snow, whom I’ve loved since American Dreams (seriously, put the rest of that freaking show on DVD already!). And seeing Ricki Lake in a cameo made me smile. Even after all these years (and NOT watching her talk show), I still would love to hang out with her and have some beers and get to know her. She seems cool.
The James Marsden factor, I’ve recently realized (partially thanks to this movie), can convince me to watch almost any movie repeatedly. And he’s spot on as Corny Collins, with a progressive stance, a bit of Frank at the Sands, and the right amount of cheese. Plus, he’s dreamy and he can sing. At times he sounds reminiscent of Michael Bublé, which isn’t a bad thing. In my head, Corny Collins and Motormouth Maybelle totally had a thing goin’ on. Just like that dude and Mrs. Jones.
Sadly, Queen Latifah is underused in this film, and I think that the “I Know Where I’ve Been” number doesn’t really show how important the civil rights movement was and still is. That whole section of the film kind of confuses me, actually. Tracy sneaks out super-early in the morning, but they’re marching on WYZT at night.
Overall, the music gets stuck in my head constantly. Like they say, it’s got a good beat and you can dance to it.
Another beef I have with the film is the way they treat Edna. For a start, Edna in the movie is too much of a wallflower. I hate that she’s so shy, especially when Divine played her much more confidently.
If I don’t stop now, this will go on longer than BOTH movie versions of the film. Overall, it’s an enjoyable, possibly even infectious way to spend a couple hours.
Now, if you excuse me, it’s Madison Time. Hit it.