How much is too much?

If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you know that I mostly post about random, silly things or fun stuff that I'm doing. But I recently had a great conversation with a friend who challenged me to be more transparent on my blog. (Don't you sometimes hate that friend who challenges you? Just a little bit?)

If you only read this, you probably think life is all fun and games. But, like everyone else, I have my issues. Plenty of them.

My question is this: How transparent should one be on her blog? Obviously it's a matter of personal preference and comfort, so maybe the better question is how transparent should I be on MY blog?

This seems like an appropriate time for a Pro/Con list:

PROs of Sharing

-Accountability

-Might be encouraging someone without knowing it

-Possibility of turning into the next Julie Powell (as in, Julie and Julia)?

CONs of Sharing

-Totally opening yourself up to criticism from people you don't even know

-One word: Stalkers

-General creepiness of putting your junk out there for everyone to see, including co-workers and future employers

What do you think?

For those of you who are sharers, what are your motives?

Tales from the 'Single Living' Section

I'm thinking about writing a book called I Make Fun of the Books in the Single Living Section.

I'll admit, I read Lady in Waiting in 1999 and enjoyed it (and was glad to see yesterday that they have redesigned the cover). I may even own a copy of a little book called Marriable (don't tell anyone).

Until yesterday, it had probably been well over a year since I'd set foot in a Christian bookstore. As I was perusing the aisles, a bright pink book grabbed my attention. Upon further examination, I saw that this book was called No Sex in the City. (I promptly took a photo with my phone and sent it to a friend.) I looked up and, you guessed it, I had found my way to the "Single Living" section.

Then I checked out some of the other titles:

• God Is My Matchmaker
• Sacred Singleness: The Set-Apart Girl's Guide to Purpose and Fulfillment
• Living Whole without a Better Half
• Sassy, Single and Satisfied

I like to think of myself as pretty experienced in being a single person. I could probably write a few books on the subject as well. Here are some of my title ideas:

• I'm Not Splitting the Cost in Half with You Because There Are Two of You and One of Me
• Living Without a Kitchen-Aid Mixer
• Don't Complain to Me About Your Husband Being Out of Town
• I Make Stupid, Impulsive Decisions Because No One Is Here to Tell Me 'No'

What would you call your book?

Life Lessons from TV Movies

I recently spent eight days on my couch. Eight. I guess that's what you get when you complain about being busy. Very funny. My days included - in no particular order - lots of music videos, parts of the Today Show when I woke up in time, reruns of Friends, Ellen (except for the day I slept until 12:30), and lots of movies.

Since I'm a glass-half-full kind of girl, I guess I was lucky that I was stricken during Christmas TV-movie season. Because I learned so many important, valuable lessons, like:

• If there's a man in town who does random good deeds, but you can never seem to find him, he is probably an angel.
• If it's your first Christmas together as a blended family, it would be wise to forgo your individual family traditions and begin a new one.
• If you are reluctant to move from the big city to a small town, give it a try and you'll most likely fall in love and end up staying in said small town.
• If you bring your girlfriend home and your friends and family hate her and try to get you back together with your high school sweetheart, chances are, that high school sweetheart is really your soulmate.
• If you meet a guy/girl you can't stand, you'll probably fall in love with him/her in less than two hours.

Thanks, Hallmark channel. Three cheers for you, Lifetime (and Lifetime Movie Network). You helped me though when times were rough.

I [finally] have a voice, though I am still unsure it is mine. Coughing fits are becoming fewer and further between. Today is my last day of antibiotics. Life is good.

Fall Trip #8: New York City

(Yes, NYC was both fall trip #5 and #8.)

For as long as I can remember, I've wanted to go to the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. So in my spirit of "why not?" I decided this was the year. I'm going to stray from my "top three things" lists because this trip had many more than three.

Jess and I flew out very early the day before Thanksgiving. (Props to Mark for being our chauffeur.) Before 11 am, we had already been on the Today Show (Kathie Lee and Hoda hour!), gotten cupcakes from Magnolia and done some shopping at the NBC store. A productive morning, indeed.

We met up with the Higgins family for lunch as Dos Caminos. It was fun seeing them and we had some fantastic food.

Holly and me

Then we decided we'd head uptown, where they were inflating the balloons for the parade. If you ever go, this is a must-see! Balloons line two streets as they are inflated, and we saw them all, from Santa to Dora to Mickey. The inflation is an official parade event, and there were lots of staff available to answer questions about the balloons, and in some cases, tell us what the flat ones would soon be. Along the way, we received free Tollhouse cookies from the Nestle people, who were everywhere, as well as free Pringles.

Inflating the Smurf

After the balloon fun, we walked back (in the rain) to our hotel. After a short rest, it was time for Rock of Ages. Upon seeing the list of songs on the soundtrack, I knew I would love this show, but I had no idea how much. It may just be my favorite show ever. Basically, they make a story using lots of 80s songs from artists like Night Ranger, Journey, Bon Jovi and Foreigner. Constantine, of American Idol fame, stars. They even gave us little lighter flashlights to use for the ballads.

Thursday was another early morning. We left the hotel at 6am, took a taxi uptown, then walked across Central Park to get to our parade viewing location. I'd heard that people start getting there at 6:30, but that's not true. They get there way earlier! By the time we arrived, there were no spots directly behind the barricades, so we staked out a spot as close as we could get. Looking at the other people around us, it was obvious that we were amateurs. We had no blankets, coolers, chairs, or portable DVD players. We sat on the sidewalk at 70th and Central Park West. And sat. And sat. Until someone yelled, "watch out! coffee!" Someone had spilled coffee so we had to stand up to avoid wet jeans. By this time, it was about 8:30 anyway, so it was fine. We really lucked out in two ways: the weather and the folding chairs in front of us. Had it been really cold like it has been some years, we would've been miserable. The people behind us were angry with the people in front of us because they wouldn't fold up their chairs. But that worked out well for us because it gave us a little extra breathing room and we didn't get pushed as much as we would've otherwise.

Finally... it was 9am and the parade began. It was one of the coolest things ever. And I've done quite a few cool things. The atmosphere is fun, and seeing the ginormous balloons coming down the streets of NYC is indescribable. I can't say the celebrities were exactly 'A List,' but we saw Cyndi Lauper, Carly Simon, and Andrea Bocelli, among others. Because we were near the beginning of the parade route, it finished about 10:30. So we went back to our hotel and watched the end of the tv broadcast.

We were pretty exhausted the rest of the day, but we had some excellent Thanksgiving breakfast food at Norma's - not exactly your traditional Thanksgiving fare, but I thoroughly enjoyed my omelette. Most of the shows were dark that night, but there were a few with tix available from TKTS, so we got a good deal for a play called Perfect Crime. It had a cast of four, and one lady has been playing the same role in it for over 20 years. Crazy. Anyhow, it was a fun way to end our evening.

We slept in a bit on Friday, got breakfast, and then our adventure came to an end. I thought the parade might be one of those things where you do it once and then never need to do it again. But that wasn't the case. I don't plan to go back next year or anything, but I definitely see a return trip in my future!

And that, my friends, concludes my fall trip series. What have we learned? Eight trips + three classes + work + life = serious overcommitment and a crazy few months.

Very Clever, AirTran

It's like they know I drive by this everyday and will likely go home, get online, and book a trip. Doesn't take much to convince me!

(I know it's not a good photo. I was driving and it was raining. In case you can't tell, it says, "Rationalize your shopping spree. Low fares to New York.")

Crossing her fingers.

Earlier this week, I thought to myself, "Stephanie is crossing her fingers." Maybe grad school really is making me think more critically, because that thought led to these:

1. I think in [third person] Facebook statuses. I've done this for a long time now, but every once in awhile, the ridiculousness of it hits me. Really? Facebook has changed the way I think? That's a little scary to me.

Stephanie is really tired but she is watching Annie on ABC Family instead of going to sleep.

Stephanie thinks singing angry girl songs on Wii karaoke can right many wrongs.

Stephanie hopes her group won't wait until 11:48 pm Sunday night to complete and submit their project.

Stephanie made a big mistake by seriously overcommitting herself this fall.

2. What does it mean to cross your fingers? Where did that expression come from? When you think about it, it's kind of silly. How is crossing my fingers going to make something happen - or not happen? To further investigate this phenomenon, I turned to Wikipedia. [I know, I know. Wikipedia is NOT an acceptable source for scholarly work. But this blog is far from scholarly.] Here's what I learned:

To cross one's fingers is a hand gesture used to superstitiously wish for good luck or to nullify a promise. The supposed loophole of crossing one's fingers whilst making a promise is usually exploited by school-aged children. So you're saying I think like a school-aged child? Thanks, Wikipedia.

Crossing one's fingers, by curling the middle finger over the index, is thought to bring good luck. Sure glad you clarified how one crosses her fingers. This dates back to when crossed fingers were used as a gesture to ward off witches and others considered to be or possess evil spirits. It is also seen as bad luck to cross your fingers on both hands.

Some believe that the gesture originates from pre-Christian times and, in many early European cultures, two people were required to use their index fingers to form the sign, one to make a wish and the other to support it. It was believed that the cross was a symbol of unity and that benign spirits dwelt at its intersecting point—to wish on a cross was a figurative way of securing the wish at the intersection until it came true. Over the years, the custom was modified so one person could make a wish on his/her own. I found this interesting. It used to be a two-person activity, and now it's just one. Yeah, I'm an independent woman.

So much for living in the present.

16... Days till New York City

32... Days till the semester ends (!)

95... Days till the Olympics Opening Ceremony

102... Days till Bon Jovi concert #1

188... Days till graduation

215... Days till my birthday/U2 concert

263... Days till Bon Jovi concert #2

[Really? You think I did the math? No way. Definitely cheated.]