This is not another post about the environment...
I was watching the Tony Awards and they featured "American Idiot," the musical based on Green Day's music. It made me think of some Green Day associated memories.
I first started listening to Green Day during freshman year of college. I mostly knew what I heard on the radio though, so basically just their top hits. My first boyfriend happened to like them and gave me "Dookie" on cassette when we were in the early phases of dating. He had this thing where he liked this one guitar chord in "When I Come Around." He got me to listen for it and now I hear it automatically. The hidden track on "Dookie" is really weird though. The first time I heard it, it freaked me out. They kept saying "I was all by myself."
After the hype of "Dookie" went away and they came out with a second album, I started losing interest. I didn't really give them much thought again until "Good Riddance" came around in the late 90's. I found it odd that they used that song on "ER" when someone's kid died. I know they talk about having the time of your life, but the title just seems odd for that type of situation.
In 2005, they started putting out more songs. "Wake Me Up When September Ends" and "Holiday" both remind me of the time when my first son was born. "Wake Me..." was playing a lot during that time and since I was due in September, it just fit. It also makes sense because I didn't get much sleep during the first couple of weeks after his birth. It would have been nice to sleep long enough to get into October. Also, I was watching a lot of TBS shows around that time and they used "Holiday" for one of the commercials promoting the channel. So that stuck in my mind and I made the association once again.
That's really all of my history surrounding Green Day. I don't know that I'll want to see "American Idiot." Some parts reminded me of "Rent," but it really just seems like a long music video.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Friday, June 11, 2010
We'll always have La Costa
This week's Friendship Friday post is about two friends.
I wanted to put R.S. and L.R. in the same post because they are sisters and I've known them both in different ways since we were all too young to remember.
Our parents met in Lamaze class while they were expecting the arrivals of R.S. and myself. They became close and got together often so that we could have play dates and they could talk. We managed to get into mischief every so often, such as stuffing an entire roll of toilet paper in the toilet. (I think we're going to get payback from our kids sooner or later.) We grew up as best friends and enjoyed hanging out whenever our families got together. We always had stuff to joke and laugh about. We watched "Punky Brewster" a lot and traded books.
L.R. was born less than a year ahead of my sister so our parents paired them up as friends too. It was nice because we had our own friendships to focus on (instead of having to share one another's attention with a sibling).
Around the time I was in 3rd grade, our families started spending winter vacations in Florida. The first year, we stayed with my grandma while R.S. and L.R. stayed at La Costa, a timeshare in Pompano Beach. We joined them at La Costa the following year and for a few more years after that. We have a lot of funny stories from those family trips, such as Tish (a.k.a. Tush), the "factory," Goo Goo Clusters, pukemobile, Green Rivers, etc. We'd spend most of the day together at the pool or beach and then our families would go out for meals together.
As R.S. and I got older, our lives took us in different directions but we still got together when our families made plans. We'd go to the mall on days off from school or attend important events. We'd also send letters (which is funny because we lived only a few towns over) or call each other. My favorite story is when I was on the phone with her and my dad beeped in to ask my mom to turn on the grill. My mom thought R.S. had asked and we would joke about it each time we called each other.
When we started college, our lives really became separate entities. For a while, it became bothersome to me that we had grown apart so much and I didn't make an effort to stay in touch. After her grandma passed away in 1996, we started talking again like the lapse in communication had ever happened. I don't know if she noticed me distancing myself. That summer, we got together more often during our break from school. When we returned to school in the fall, R.S. got into a terrible car accident over Labor Day weekend. Thankfully someone had rescued her. However, she had to have multiple surgeries to look somewhat like herself again. It didn't stop her from reaching her goals. She took classes through the mail and completed her degree before me, going on to do something she really wanted afterward. I admire her determination and unwillingness to let a traumatic experience get in the way of achieving her dreams.
R.S. and I got engaged and married half a year apart from each other. She and I had our first children 2 weeks apart and our second children 2 months apart. (All boys.) We get together whenever my family and I are in town for a visit and our kids all get along well. I enjoy spending time with her, as well. We don't e-mail as often as we could, but we catch up on Facebook and we know that we can always contact each other whenever we want to catch up.
Moving on to L.R....When we were little, I transferred my sibling rivalry issues onto her and didn't really want much to do with her because she was my friend's baby sister. I'll admit that I was mean to her at times and I totally regret it now. (I treated her like one of my sister's friends and I picked on most of them, as a rite of--big sister--passage.) Aside from that, we were still a part of each others' lives, whether it was through celebrating special occasions or going on vacations together.
When L.R. started college, we started e-mailing a lot and connected as grown-ups. We'd talk about guys, books, TV shows, movies, guys, school, work, and guys. She came to me a lot for dating advice, which I appreciated. Our interest in books became even more similar than the shared interest I had with her sister. Our e-mails were usually pretty short, almost like a chat conversation, but we kept them going and still do.
When L.R. got married in 2008, I took a train to Chicago with my husband and kids so that I could be there for her wedding. It was one of the few I refused to miss. She's now days away from becoming a mom (b'shaah tovah) and I am very excited for her. I know we'll have even more to talk about as a result, if we didn't already. (I felt like I was experiencing her pregnancy vicariously, if that says anything about our connection as friends).
As I said before, my friendships with R.S. and L.R. have taken different paths. I never expected that I'd connect more with the younger sister as we all got older. Oddly enough, I think my sister talks to R.S. more often these days. I'm fond of them both and I appreciate their friendship. I hope our kids will stay friends over time, no matter how many miles there are between them. No matter what path our lives take us in, I know we'll always find a way to stay connected and we'll always have La Costa and the memories of fun (and funny) family trips.
I wanted to put R.S. and L.R. in the same post because they are sisters and I've known them both in different ways since we were all too young to remember.
Our parents met in Lamaze class while they were expecting the arrivals of R.S. and myself. They became close and got together often so that we could have play dates and they could talk. We managed to get into mischief every so often, such as stuffing an entire roll of toilet paper in the toilet. (I think we're going to get payback from our kids sooner or later.) We grew up as best friends and enjoyed hanging out whenever our families got together. We always had stuff to joke and laugh about. We watched "Punky Brewster" a lot and traded books.
L.R. was born less than a year ahead of my sister so our parents paired them up as friends too. It was nice because we had our own friendships to focus on (instead of having to share one another's attention with a sibling).
Around the time I was in 3rd grade, our families started spending winter vacations in Florida. The first year, we stayed with my grandma while R.S. and L.R. stayed at La Costa, a timeshare in Pompano Beach. We joined them at La Costa the following year and for a few more years after that. We have a lot of funny stories from those family trips, such as Tish (a.k.a. Tush), the "factory," Goo Goo Clusters, pukemobile, Green Rivers, etc. We'd spend most of the day together at the pool or beach and then our families would go out for meals together.
As R.S. and I got older, our lives took us in different directions but we still got together when our families made plans. We'd go to the mall on days off from school or attend important events. We'd also send letters (which is funny because we lived only a few towns over) or call each other. My favorite story is when I was on the phone with her and my dad beeped in to ask my mom to turn on the grill. My mom thought R.S. had asked and we would joke about it each time we called each other.
When we started college, our lives really became separate entities. For a while, it became bothersome to me that we had grown apart so much and I didn't make an effort to stay in touch. After her grandma passed away in 1996, we started talking again like the lapse in communication had ever happened. I don't know if she noticed me distancing myself. That summer, we got together more often during our break from school. When we returned to school in the fall, R.S. got into a terrible car accident over Labor Day weekend. Thankfully someone had rescued her. However, she had to have multiple surgeries to look somewhat like herself again. It didn't stop her from reaching her goals. She took classes through the mail and completed her degree before me, going on to do something she really wanted afterward. I admire her determination and unwillingness to let a traumatic experience get in the way of achieving her dreams.
R.S. and I got engaged and married half a year apart from each other. She and I had our first children 2 weeks apart and our second children 2 months apart. (All boys.) We get together whenever my family and I are in town for a visit and our kids all get along well. I enjoy spending time with her, as well. We don't e-mail as often as we could, but we catch up on Facebook and we know that we can always contact each other whenever we want to catch up.
Moving on to L.R....When we were little, I transferred my sibling rivalry issues onto her and didn't really want much to do with her because she was my friend's baby sister. I'll admit that I was mean to her at times and I totally regret it now. (I treated her like one of my sister's friends and I picked on most of them, as a rite of--big sister--passage.) Aside from that, we were still a part of each others' lives, whether it was through celebrating special occasions or going on vacations together.
When L.R. started college, we started e-mailing a lot and connected as grown-ups. We'd talk about guys, books, TV shows, movies, guys, school, work, and guys. She came to me a lot for dating advice, which I appreciated. Our interest in books became even more similar than the shared interest I had with her sister. Our e-mails were usually pretty short, almost like a chat conversation, but we kept them going and still do.
When L.R. got married in 2008, I took a train to Chicago with my husband and kids so that I could be there for her wedding. It was one of the few I refused to miss. She's now days away from becoming a mom (b'shaah tovah) and I am very excited for her. I know we'll have even more to talk about as a result, if we didn't already. (I felt like I was experiencing her pregnancy vicariously, if that says anything about our connection as friends).
As I said before, my friendships with R.S. and L.R. have taken different paths. I never expected that I'd connect more with the younger sister as we all got older. Oddly enough, I think my sister talks to R.S. more often these days. I'm fond of them both and I appreciate their friendship. I hope our kids will stay friends over time, no matter how many miles there are between them. No matter what path our lives take us in, I know we'll always find a way to stay connected and we'll always have La Costa and the memories of fun (and funny) family trips.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
In a state of being merry....
I have a few friends who knit and blog and we've decided to embark on a blog project that has nothing to do with knitting. We're going to take turns coming up with a topic every Thursday and we each have to blog about it by the end of that day and post links to each others' blogs so that people can see our different perspectives on the same topic.
Check out the backstory about how the project was conceived and how we all came together.
Here are the other blogs:
Froggie Knits Like Crazy
Charmingly Random
Desperate Madness
This week's topic came from Froggie: One of my favorite parts about my life is . . .
I thought the topic was perfect for what I wanted to talk about this week. It's been a year since we bid on our house and started making plans to move to Maryland. It has led us to one of my favorite parts about my life, which is where I live.
A while back, I put together a "Top 10" list of everything I missed about living in NJ. To explain why I love living in Maryland (at least in the DC area), I'm putting together another "Top 10" list.
Here are my reasons, in no particular order:
1. Living so close to Washington DC. I absolutely love it there and it's nice to be able to hop onto a Metro and be there in 30 minutes or less. I love how historical everything is and how it is not centered around shopping.
2. Our house. I love our house and know we couldn't have found something this great at such a reasonable price in NJ. It fits our personalities and it's so comfortable.
3. The community in which we live. Our community is primarily Modern Orthodox and we know most of our neighbors. It's nice to see people we know outside of shul, such as at the grocery store, at a restaurant, etc. There's even a listserv for the community to keep up on the latest news or get valuable information that we need. My love for the community extends to and from the shul we attend every Shabbos and holiday. It's such a great shul and it meets every need possible.
4. Our friends. I love the friends we have made in Maryland so far. I've blogged about some of them and will blog about more in the future. Everyone is so friendly and social. I even received an indirect compliment from one of them recently. It was so heartwarming! There are also the friends who live outside our community. We may not get to see them as often, but the possibility is always there.
5. Being close to family members. My brother-in-law lives in Baltimore with his family. They live close enough to be able to make impromptu dinner plans on a rainy Sunday (not even a blackout at the restaurant could keep them away). We also have cousins in Virginia, with whom we enjoy getting together. It's nice for the kids to have a lot of cousins their age to play with.
6. My job. I've been at my job for 6 months now and I really love working here. It's a great organization and the work is meaningful. I've assisted at a couple of bigger events and it is such an amazing feeling to be a part of the greater good.
7. The schools. The public school system is very reputable and that makes me feel better about the possibility of putting our kids in public school vs. a yeshiva. I really love how wonderful my older son's school has been in just his first year there. And my younger son's school is fabulous too (right now, he is in a Jewish program).
8. How easy it is to get around. The streets are clearly labeled and there are even shortcuts to avoid traffic on the beltway.
9. Two words: Value Village. It's my favorite new shopping experience. It has turned me into a thrift store junkie!
10. All the nature around us. When we get seasons in Maryland, it is truly obvious. I didn't mind the insane snowfall because the cherry blossoms growing on all the trees in the spring made it worth the wait. And the fall colors are everything I've wanted out of one season. This will be our first full summer living here, so we'll have to see what is in store.
Honorable mentions also go to having a country music station (there wasn't one in NY or NJ), the ongoing used book sale at the library, the cheese fries at our favorite Kosher pizza place, and finally the feeling of contentment and confidence I have from living here. It really should be pronounced as it looks--Merry-land--for I feel truly merry where I live now.
Check out the backstory about how the project was conceived and how we all came together.
Here are the other blogs:
Froggie Knits Like Crazy
Charmingly Random
Desperate Madness
This week's topic came from Froggie: One of my favorite parts about my life is . . .
I thought the topic was perfect for what I wanted to talk about this week. It's been a year since we bid on our house and started making plans to move to Maryland. It has led us to one of my favorite parts about my life, which is where I live.
A while back, I put together a "Top 10" list of everything I missed about living in NJ. To explain why I love living in Maryland (at least in the DC area), I'm putting together another "Top 10" list.
Here are my reasons, in no particular order:
1. Living so close to Washington DC. I absolutely love it there and it's nice to be able to hop onto a Metro and be there in 30 minutes or less. I love how historical everything is and how it is not centered around shopping.
2. Our house. I love our house and know we couldn't have found something this great at such a reasonable price in NJ. It fits our personalities and it's so comfortable.
3. The community in which we live. Our community is primarily Modern Orthodox and we know most of our neighbors. It's nice to see people we know outside of shul, such as at the grocery store, at a restaurant, etc. There's even a listserv for the community to keep up on the latest news or get valuable information that we need. My love for the community extends to and from the shul we attend every Shabbos and holiday. It's such a great shul and it meets every need possible.
4. Our friends. I love the friends we have made in Maryland so far. I've blogged about some of them and will blog about more in the future. Everyone is so friendly and social. I even received an indirect compliment from one of them recently. It was so heartwarming! There are also the friends who live outside our community. We may not get to see them as often, but the possibility is always there.
5. Being close to family members. My brother-in-law lives in Baltimore with his family. They live close enough to be able to make impromptu dinner plans on a rainy Sunday (not even a blackout at the restaurant could keep them away). We also have cousins in Virginia, with whom we enjoy getting together. It's nice for the kids to have a lot of cousins their age to play with.
6. My job. I've been at my job for 6 months now and I really love working here. It's a great organization and the work is meaningful. I've assisted at a couple of bigger events and it is such an amazing feeling to be a part of the greater good.
7. The schools. The public school system is very reputable and that makes me feel better about the possibility of putting our kids in public school vs. a yeshiva. I really love how wonderful my older son's school has been in just his first year there. And my younger son's school is fabulous too (right now, he is in a Jewish program).
8. How easy it is to get around. The streets are clearly labeled and there are even shortcuts to avoid traffic on the beltway.
9. Two words: Value Village. It's my favorite new shopping experience. It has turned me into a thrift store junkie!
10. All the nature around us. When we get seasons in Maryland, it is truly obvious. I didn't mind the insane snowfall because the cherry blossoms growing on all the trees in the spring made it worth the wait. And the fall colors are everything I've wanted out of one season. This will be our first full summer living here, so we'll have to see what is in store.
Honorable mentions also go to having a country music station (there wasn't one in NY or NJ), the ongoing used book sale at the library, the cheese fries at our favorite Kosher pizza place, and finally the feeling of contentment and confidence I have from living here. It really should be pronounced as it looks--Merry-land--for I feel truly merry where I live now.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Time + Travel
March 12th, 2007
11:40 am - 3 years and still going strong
We had a nice time celebrating our anniversary this past weekend. My friend came over to watch Eitan on Saturday night, so that we could go dancing. We went to this place we were at 2 years ago (same group, different location) and it was fun to dance completely uninhibited because no one knew us. It was funny because we forgot a lot of what we learned 3 years ago at ballroom dance lessons. This one couple was trying to teach us how to do this cha-cha at one point. The DJ was weird and didn't have any of the songs I requested, but he'd play these crazy songs like a fast dance version of "Memory" from Cats. They had free cake there, which was nice. It had a cream cheese frosting and strawberry filling. There was one couple that danced really well and it was hard not to watch them. It made me think that if we had time to practice and go dancing more, we'd be that good. Oh well!
Sunday, we went to a classical concert at our temple. One of the congregants is a really good pianist and he played some songs on his own and some as duets with another pianist. Then another congregant (also someone I grew up with from my old temple and became friends with again over the last year or so) is a professional violinist. The combination of the piano and violin was beautiful and the acoustics in the sanctuary were perfect for the show. It's funny...the violinist's parents were at our wedding, but he wasn't because we hadn't been in touch with him and I didn't see him until after I had Eitan. However, if we had been close with him before we got married, I would have asked him to play for our ceremony. I know he's played at weddings before.
After the show, we went to Maggiano's for dinner. It only cost us the price of the tip because we had some gift certificates, thanks to "Will" and one of DH's colleagues. The food was great! We tried these zucchini frittes. I used to not like zucchini until later in my pregnancy, but I'm glad I do now (cooked only, not raw). They were really good. The funniest thing was that the really good dancers from Saturday night were at the table next to us. What a small world?!?
After dinner, we went to Barnes and Noble to see what books are new. Not too many really interested me. The ones I want, I already have on reserve at the library. I didn't really see anything else that I wanted to reserve though. Maybe some more of my favorite authors will put out books this summer. A friend of mine told me to read the "Traveling Pants" series and said that they're not just for teens. I loved "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" as a movie, so maybe I'll look into that sometime. I'm still in this Jodi Picoult mood and am not done with "Harvesting the Heart" yet. Eitan's speech therapist loaned me a book about the Holocaust called "The Seamstress". It looks interesting and she said she really liked it. We have similar tastes in books.
On that topic...during the show I was thinking of "Mr. Holland's Opus" because they were playing Beethoven and he was talking about how Beethoven cut off the legs of his piano to hear the vibration of the keys, in order to compose music. I remember that he started talking about it after realizing his son was deaf. It made me think of how I feel a connection to Beethoven now that Eitan is hearing impaired. Oddly enough, "Mr. Holland's Opus" was one of the movies we watched shortly after Eitan was born. How little we knew back then. I am very thankful that he is not completely deaf and can hear music and understand it. He has better rhythm than I do. :) Then I was thinking of how Holland was an appropriate last name for the character. This is because of a passage I read somewhere about how having a child with a disability is like ending up in Holland when you were supposed to go to France and planned everything in regards to France. However, it's not a bad thing, just different. I think about the people I never would have met if Eitan could hear normally. These are very kind-hearted people, such as his speech therapist, that I feel very fortunate to know now. In the grand scheme of things, his hearing impairment is not awful, compared to what some people have to contend with in their lives. Many people have survived with even less hearing than he has and have made good lives for themselves. Marlee Matlin is a good example of this. I'm very thankful that he is learning how to listen and speak now. It will only help him learn more quickly in the future. I'm glad we don't take his hearing for granted and that we have a bond with him from working on speech development. I'm thankful for every utterance he makes, whether it's a giggle or an actual word. I wouldn't have given it as much thought, other than he said a first word, if he heard perfectly. Eitan is a blessing to us and I can't imagine him as anything different than how he is.
Now I'm all verklempt, so I'll be heading off....
Follow up:
I found this post interesting for several reasons:
1. I was recently accepted by Empowering Parents as a parent blogger. I'm not going to be paid for my posts, but it's a great opportunity to expand upon my writing. The post that got me this "position" was about Holland. I actually said Italy was the other country. I'm sure the other country doesn't matter as much as the point being made. When it shows up on the site, I'll be sure to let everyone know!
2. Since I started Chick Lit Central, I've been contacting authors about doing giveaways through the related blog. Some authors have offered me copies of their books for my own reading pleasure, as a thank you for the publicity. I think it's extremely nice and I appreciate each offer. There's a PR agency that will soon be supplying me with some books to review. I've also won books through other Facebook pages and blogs. I haven't had to buy a book in a while, as a result. :) I'm just impressed with how nice and accessible authors are and how excited they are to do giveaways for their books. Running this group is a lot of fun and we're now reaching 500 members. A friend even told me I was the Perez Hilton of chick lit. I've been savoring that comment!
Also, I have the "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" series now. I haven't read the books yet, but another friend has also recommended them and she and I have similar tastes in books.
3. I haven't heard from my violinist friend since sometime in 2007. It annoys me because he was a good friend to both my husband and myself. We all would spend hours talking (along with another mutual friend). I know he wasn't the greatest about staying in contact to begin with, but we're friends on Facebook so I don't get why he can't send a friendly message to say hi and share what is new with him. I can only do so much from my end to maintain friendships. On the upside, he did introduce us to Bailey's ice cream from Haagen Dazs.
4. We haven't gone out dancing other than at a wedding in 2008. It would be nice to do again sometime.
5. I started liking asparagus toward the end of my second pregnancy, and shortly after that I started liking cauliflower. I still like (cooked) zucchini.
11:40 am - 3 years and still going strong
We had a nice time celebrating our anniversary this past weekend. My friend came over to watch Eitan on Saturday night, so that we could go dancing. We went to this place we were at 2 years ago (same group, different location) and it was fun to dance completely uninhibited because no one knew us. It was funny because we forgot a lot of what we learned 3 years ago at ballroom dance lessons. This one couple was trying to teach us how to do this cha-cha at one point. The DJ was weird and didn't have any of the songs I requested, but he'd play these crazy songs like a fast dance version of "Memory" from Cats. They had free cake there, which was nice. It had a cream cheese frosting and strawberry filling. There was one couple that danced really well and it was hard not to watch them. It made me think that if we had time to practice and go dancing more, we'd be that good. Oh well!
Sunday, we went to a classical concert at our temple. One of the congregants is a really good pianist and he played some songs on his own and some as duets with another pianist. Then another congregant (also someone I grew up with from my old temple and became friends with again over the last year or so) is a professional violinist. The combination of the piano and violin was beautiful and the acoustics in the sanctuary were perfect for the show. It's funny...the violinist's parents were at our wedding, but he wasn't because we hadn't been in touch with him and I didn't see him until after I had Eitan. However, if we had been close with him before we got married, I would have asked him to play for our ceremony. I know he's played at weddings before.
After the show, we went to Maggiano's for dinner. It only cost us the price of the tip because we had some gift certificates, thanks to "Will" and one of DH's colleagues. The food was great! We tried these zucchini frittes. I used to not like zucchini until later in my pregnancy, but I'm glad I do now (cooked only, not raw). They were really good. The funniest thing was that the really good dancers from Saturday night were at the table next to us. What a small world?!?
After dinner, we went to Barnes and Noble to see what books are new. Not too many really interested me. The ones I want, I already have on reserve at the library. I didn't really see anything else that I wanted to reserve though. Maybe some more of my favorite authors will put out books this summer. A friend of mine told me to read the "Traveling Pants" series and said that they're not just for teens. I loved "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" as a movie, so maybe I'll look into that sometime. I'm still in this Jodi Picoult mood and am not done with "Harvesting the Heart" yet. Eitan's speech therapist loaned me a book about the Holocaust called "The Seamstress". It looks interesting and she said she really liked it. We have similar tastes in books.
On that topic...during the show I was thinking of "Mr. Holland's Opus" because they were playing Beethoven and he was talking about how Beethoven cut off the legs of his piano to hear the vibration of the keys, in order to compose music. I remember that he started talking about it after realizing his son was deaf. It made me think of how I feel a connection to Beethoven now that Eitan is hearing impaired. Oddly enough, "Mr. Holland's Opus" was one of the movies we watched shortly after Eitan was born. How little we knew back then. I am very thankful that he is not completely deaf and can hear music and understand it. He has better rhythm than I do. :) Then I was thinking of how Holland was an appropriate last name for the character. This is because of a passage I read somewhere about how having a child with a disability is like ending up in Holland when you were supposed to go to France and planned everything in regards to France. However, it's not a bad thing, just different. I think about the people I never would have met if Eitan could hear normally. These are very kind-hearted people, such as his speech therapist, that I feel very fortunate to know now. In the grand scheme of things, his hearing impairment is not awful, compared to what some people have to contend with in their lives. Many people have survived with even less hearing than he has and have made good lives for themselves. Marlee Matlin is a good example of this. I'm very thankful that he is learning how to listen and speak now. It will only help him learn more quickly in the future. I'm glad we don't take his hearing for granted and that we have a bond with him from working on speech development. I'm thankful for every utterance he makes, whether it's a giggle or an actual word. I wouldn't have given it as much thought, other than he said a first word, if he heard perfectly. Eitan is a blessing to us and I can't imagine him as anything different than how he is.
Now I'm all verklempt, so I'll be heading off....
Follow up:
I found this post interesting for several reasons:
1. I was recently accepted by Empowering Parents as a parent blogger. I'm not going to be paid for my posts, but it's a great opportunity to expand upon my writing. The post that got me this "position" was about Holland. I actually said Italy was the other country. I'm sure the other country doesn't matter as much as the point being made. When it shows up on the site, I'll be sure to let everyone know!
2. Since I started Chick Lit Central, I've been contacting authors about doing giveaways through the related blog. Some authors have offered me copies of their books for my own reading pleasure, as a thank you for the publicity. I think it's extremely nice and I appreciate each offer. There's a PR agency that will soon be supplying me with some books to review. I've also won books through other Facebook pages and blogs. I haven't had to buy a book in a while, as a result. :) I'm just impressed with how nice and accessible authors are and how excited they are to do giveaways for their books. Running this group is a lot of fun and we're now reaching 500 members. A friend even told me I was the Perez Hilton of chick lit. I've been savoring that comment!
Also, I have the "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" series now. I haven't read the books yet, but another friend has also recommended them and she and I have similar tastes in books.
3. I haven't heard from my violinist friend since sometime in 2007. It annoys me because he was a good friend to both my husband and myself. We all would spend hours talking (along with another mutual friend). I know he wasn't the greatest about staying in contact to begin with, but we're friends on Facebook so I don't get why he can't send a friendly message to say hi and share what is new with him. I can only do so much from my end to maintain friendships. On the upside, he did introduce us to Bailey's ice cream from Haagen Dazs.
4. We haven't gone out dancing other than at a wedding in 2008. It would be nice to do again sometime.
5. I started liking asparagus toward the end of my second pregnancy, and shortly after that I started liking cauliflower. I still like (cooked) zucchini.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
We'll always have "Billy Madison"
This week's Friendship Friday post is about R.T., another guy friend of mine.
I met R.T. during my freshman year of college. (He was a sophomore.) We were at a meeting to learn about Best Buddies, which is a program to pair up with adults who have developmental disabilities. He was genuinely nice and I liked that about him. He later got incorporated into my circle of friends. Then I introduced him to a different circle of friends the following semester.
Throughout our time in college, we would hang out a lot at school or during the summer. We had a lot of similar interests, such as "Rocky Horror," theater, Adam Sandler movies, our views on certain topics, etc. We always were platonic friends but he was good for a hug or two, as he loves sharing hugs with all his friends. :) After college, I introduced him to yet another circle of friends and he became part of that circle now. A lot of the time, he'd end up being the "token male" when a group of us went out, but he was so easygoing and fun to be around that it didn't matter.
R.T. has a great sense of humor and is very creative. He's able to write song parodies that could rival anything Weird Al does. He comes up with interesting ideas for movies and stories. I just hope he'll channel his creative energy to put his mark on the world someday. I think he'd be a good comedy film writer. He's performed in several plays that I've seen and his personality has always allowed him to shine on stage. He could have one line and still find a way to make himself the one to watch.
Anytime R.T. and I got together, we would watch MST3K or Adam Sandler movies. Our favorite is "Billy Madison" and we have fun quoting the lines together. He does a funny Adam Sandler impression too. He also does some other really good impressions of actors and characters. He told me that his nickname in high school was Kermit because he did a convincing Kermit impression. My favorite is still his impression of when Adam Sandler talked about improvised Halloween costumes (i.e. crazy spoon head).
R.T. and I even worked together one summer, at a home for adults with developmental disabilities, oddly enough. It was nice to see his friendly face when we were on the same shift and we had inside jokes about some of the people who worked with us but drove us crazy. Other times during that summer, as well as other summers, we went to a lot of movies and hung out at Buffalo (a diner known for their delicious ice cream sundaes).
Some things that stick out to me when I think of R.T. are his kindness and his passion. He is always thinking of his friends and putting them first. He has sent me cards for things that I wouldn't expect him to remember, such as Jewish holidays. He also got my children gifts when they were born. When he comes to parties, he can always be counted on to stay after and clean up. I've never even had to ask him for such help. He also loves kids and is really nice to them, whether they're my kids or someone else's. I remember one time when I was stuck at a bad job interview (long story), he came and picked me up to drive me back to my car, even though it was totally out of his way. (I got him lunch at Buffalo to thank him.) That's the kind of friend he is. As for his passion, R.T. is not afraid to speak his mind, especially when it's something really important to him. Even if his opinion isn't popular, he will still voice it loudly. He's currently single, but I know he'll make any girl he falls in love with feel incredibly happy and lucky. He has a lot of love in his heart and I know he'd treat the love of his life even better than he treats his friends, if that's even possible!
I don't get to spend time with R.T. as much as before, since he lives in Illinois. I try to see him when we're in town though, even if it's for a short time. He's very reliable and will always make a point to see me if he knows I'm around. When we're separated by distance, I like sending him articles and videos online because they usually fit his sense of humor or remind me of an inside joke. I look forward to seeing R.T. the next time I'm in town for a visit and hope that he'll come out my way on his yearly east coast trip. In the meantime and for the long run, I know we'll always have "Billy Madison."
I met R.T. during my freshman year of college. (He was a sophomore.) We were at a meeting to learn about Best Buddies, which is a program to pair up with adults who have developmental disabilities. He was genuinely nice and I liked that about him. He later got incorporated into my circle of friends. Then I introduced him to a different circle of friends the following semester.
Throughout our time in college, we would hang out a lot at school or during the summer. We had a lot of similar interests, such as "Rocky Horror," theater, Adam Sandler movies, our views on certain topics, etc. We always were platonic friends but he was good for a hug or two, as he loves sharing hugs with all his friends. :) After college, I introduced him to yet another circle of friends and he became part of that circle now. A lot of the time, he'd end up being the "token male" when a group of us went out, but he was so easygoing and fun to be around that it didn't matter.
R.T. has a great sense of humor and is very creative. He's able to write song parodies that could rival anything Weird Al does. He comes up with interesting ideas for movies and stories. I just hope he'll channel his creative energy to put his mark on the world someday. I think he'd be a good comedy film writer. He's performed in several plays that I've seen and his personality has always allowed him to shine on stage. He could have one line and still find a way to make himself the one to watch.
Anytime R.T. and I got together, we would watch MST3K or Adam Sandler movies. Our favorite is "Billy Madison" and we have fun quoting the lines together. He does a funny Adam Sandler impression too. He also does some other really good impressions of actors and characters. He told me that his nickname in high school was Kermit because he did a convincing Kermit impression. My favorite is still his impression of when Adam Sandler talked about improvised Halloween costumes (i.e. crazy spoon head).
R.T. and I even worked together one summer, at a home for adults with developmental disabilities, oddly enough. It was nice to see his friendly face when we were on the same shift and we had inside jokes about some of the people who worked with us but drove us crazy. Other times during that summer, as well as other summers, we went to a lot of movies and hung out at Buffalo (a diner known for their delicious ice cream sundaes).
Some things that stick out to me when I think of R.T. are his kindness and his passion. He is always thinking of his friends and putting them first. He has sent me cards for things that I wouldn't expect him to remember, such as Jewish holidays. He also got my children gifts when they were born. When he comes to parties, he can always be counted on to stay after and clean up. I've never even had to ask him for such help. He also loves kids and is really nice to them, whether they're my kids or someone else's. I remember one time when I was stuck at a bad job interview (long story), he came and picked me up to drive me back to my car, even though it was totally out of his way. (I got him lunch at Buffalo to thank him.) That's the kind of friend he is. As for his passion, R.T. is not afraid to speak his mind, especially when it's something really important to him. Even if his opinion isn't popular, he will still voice it loudly. He's currently single, but I know he'll make any girl he falls in love with feel incredibly happy and lucky. He has a lot of love in his heart and I know he'd treat the love of his life even better than he treats his friends, if that's even possible!
I don't get to spend time with R.T. as much as before, since he lives in Illinois. I try to see him when we're in town though, even if it's for a short time. He's very reliable and will always make a point to see me if he knows I'm around. When we're separated by distance, I like sending him articles and videos online because they usually fit his sense of humor or remind me of an inside joke. I look forward to seeing R.T. the next time I'm in town for a visit and hope that he'll come out my way on his yearly east coast trip. In the meantime and for the long run, I know we'll always have "Billy Madison."
'Til we meet....
I have a few friends who knit and blog and we've decided to embark on a blog project that has nothing to do with knitting. We're going to take turns coming up with a topic every Thursday and we each have to blog about it by the end of that day and post links to each others' blogs so that people can see our different perspectives on the same topic.
Check out the backstory about how the project was conceived and how we all came together.
Here are the other blogs:
Froggie Knits Like Crazy
Charmingly Random
Desperate Madness
This week it was my turn to pick the topic: What is the longest relationship you've had with someone whom you've never met in person? (Talk about how you met, what your friendship has been like, etc.) Do you think you'll ever get to meet them?
The topic was inspired when I realized that the other three bloggers involved with this project have not met in person and they all live in the same state. (I'm the only one of the group who lives in a different state.)
I have a lot of long time Internet friends (with whom I've been in touch on and off over the years), but I think my longest relationship without having met in person is with Katydid. (I'm using the nickname by which I first came to know her.)
I met Katydid on #CentPerk, which was this online chat group back in the mid-90's that was started in order to connect fans of "Friends." I don't even know how she and I started becoming close or what drew us together within the group. We just started e-mailing and became each other's online sister. She lived (and still lives) in Canada, so it wasn't like we could easily meet. I had only been to Canada once and that was freshman year of high school. I don't know if she had traveled to America at all, but if she did, it wasn't to Illinois.
Over time, we broke away from the chat group and were e-mailing on a regular basis, as well as sending each other packages with mix tapes and other fun items. (My favorite package was the Degrassi movie!) I felt I could really bare my soul to her, as I knew her outside my family and usual circle of friends. I would send her long e-mails and she'd send long ones back to me. I'd even write her letters on stationery when I was away from a computer but had a lot to tell her.
Then we lost contact in 2003. I don't know how it happened, but it just did. I don't know why I gave up so easily either. After I got on Facebook in 2007, I'd try to see if she had joined and would occasionally do searches. I didn't come up with much other than a lot of girls with the same name but a different face....until a few months ago. I found someone with her name who looked like her and had similar interests to the Katydid I remembered from years ago. I took a chance and wrote to her to see if she'd want to get back in contact. I received a nice e-mail in return, saying that she was hoping to find me too. It was so nice to reconnect with her. We e-mail shorter messages and it's more sporadic, but it's nice to know that she's around and that we can pick up where we left off. I hope we'll get to meet in person someday but I don't know who will make the trip first. I guess time will tell.
Check out the backstory about how the project was conceived and how we all came together.
Here are the other blogs:
Froggie Knits Like Crazy
Charmingly Random
Desperate Madness
This week it was my turn to pick the topic: What is the longest relationship you've had with someone whom you've never met in person? (Talk about how you met, what your friendship has been like, etc.) Do you think you'll ever get to meet them?
The topic was inspired when I realized that the other three bloggers involved with this project have not met in person and they all live in the same state. (I'm the only one of the group who lives in a different state.)
I have a lot of long time Internet friends (with whom I've been in touch on and off over the years), but I think my longest relationship without having met in person is with Katydid. (I'm using the nickname by which I first came to know her.)
I met Katydid on #CentPerk, which was this online chat group back in the mid-90's that was started in order to connect fans of "Friends." I don't even know how she and I started becoming close or what drew us together within the group. We just started e-mailing and became each other's online sister. She lived (and still lives) in Canada, so it wasn't like we could easily meet. I had only been to Canada once and that was freshman year of high school. I don't know if she had traveled to America at all, but if she did, it wasn't to Illinois.
Over time, we broke away from the chat group and were e-mailing on a regular basis, as well as sending each other packages with mix tapes and other fun items. (My favorite package was the Degrassi movie!) I felt I could really bare my soul to her, as I knew her outside my family and usual circle of friends. I would send her long e-mails and she'd send long ones back to me. I'd even write her letters on stationery when I was away from a computer but had a lot to tell her.
Then we lost contact in 2003. I don't know how it happened, but it just did. I don't know why I gave up so easily either. After I got on Facebook in 2007, I'd try to see if she had joined and would occasionally do searches. I didn't come up with much other than a lot of girls with the same name but a different face....until a few months ago. I found someone with her name who looked like her and had similar interests to the Katydid I remembered from years ago. I took a chance and wrote to her to see if she'd want to get back in contact. I received a nice e-mail in return, saying that she was hoping to find me too. It was so nice to reconnect with her. We e-mail shorter messages and it's more sporadic, but it's nice to know that she's around and that we can pick up where we left off. I hope we'll get to meet in person someday but I don't know who will make the trip first. I guess time will tell.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
A different kind of time warp
I’m running out of blog entries to share on this weekly time warp theme. So I thought I’d add a new twist to it...
I know I’m always talking about how different songs take me back to certain time periods in my life. I thought I’d do posts about this for Time Warp Tuesday, whenever the mood strikes. It will allow me to reach even further back than the five years my blog and livejournal posts encompass.
Today, I heard “I Get Weak” by Belinda Carlisle and I immediately flashed back to the first time I hung out with my BFF after camp season had ended. I don’t know why we waited until the following January (in 1988) to get together, but I guess that’s what happened. Anyway, I remember that we met up at Deerbrook Mall (which is now a run-down mall with maybe one or two shops still open inside) and walked around for a while to do the usual “girlfriend” type of shopping. In 6th grade, we usually spent most of our time in music and accessory stores. At one point during this shopping trip, we ended up at The Flip Side, which was a record store around at the time. I don’t remember what cassette tape she purchased, but I do remember that I bought the Belinda Carlisle album "Heaven on Earth" (yes, I grew up during a time when records still existed) which had "I Get Weak" as one of the songs.
After that point, we continued to get together and usually met up at a hair salon in Buffalo Grove and got hot dogs at a nearby place called Wiener Take All. We still went to the mall a lot, but we also found other fun things to do and had lots of overnighters (or slumber parties, as one would call them). We even saw NKOTB in concert in 1989.
I could turn this into a huge post about my BFF, but I’ll save that for a Friendship Friday sometime. :) I just know that the first mall meet-up was a turning point in our friendship and I appreciate her being there for me when I was an awkward geek in junior high and had barely any friends to hang out with outside of school. She made those 3 years a lot easier!
I know I’m always talking about how different songs take me back to certain time periods in my life. I thought I’d do posts about this for Time Warp Tuesday, whenever the mood strikes. It will allow me to reach even further back than the five years my blog and livejournal posts encompass.
Today, I heard “I Get Weak” by Belinda Carlisle and I immediately flashed back to the first time I hung out with my BFF after camp season had ended. I don’t know why we waited until the following January (in 1988) to get together, but I guess that’s what happened. Anyway, I remember that we met up at Deerbrook Mall (which is now a run-down mall with maybe one or two shops still open inside) and walked around for a while to do the usual “girlfriend” type of shopping. In 6th grade, we usually spent most of our time in music and accessory stores. At one point during this shopping trip, we ended up at The Flip Side, which was a record store around at the time. I don’t remember what cassette tape she purchased, but I do remember that I bought the Belinda Carlisle album "Heaven on Earth" (yes, I grew up during a time when records still existed) which had "I Get Weak" as one of the songs.
After that point, we continued to get together and usually met up at a hair salon in Buffalo Grove and got hot dogs at a nearby place called Wiener Take All. We still went to the mall a lot, but we also found other fun things to do and had lots of overnighters (or slumber parties, as one would call them). We even saw NKOTB in concert in 1989.
I could turn this into a huge post about my BFF, but I’ll save that for a Friendship Friday sometime. :) I just know that the first mall meet-up was a turning point in our friendship and I appreciate her being there for me when I was an awkward geek in junior high and had barely any friends to hang out with outside of school. She made those 3 years a lot easier!
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