A Question, Sir July 22, 2009

So, I was reading through some of my old blogs today (oops, did that just tag me as a narcissist?) and one thought was running through my mind: when did I get so effing boring?  In other words, when did I start to take myself so seriously?  Sheesh.  I started this blog with references to Zach Braff’s unfortunate profile and lists of words I love or hate.  Now it’s all heavy quotes from heavy books leading to heavy pondering about life.  Who am I?  Like, seriously, who writes about sun-warmed tomatoes?  I have to laugh at myself.  Okay, here are some justifications, though – 1) I’ve been going through re-entry (not just from Norway back to the States, but from one lifestyle to a totally different lifestyle) and so I’ve found writing to be a natural and helpful outlet for me.  And once I finish a piece, I think, why not throw that up on the ol’ blog?  2) I’m not working so much, and I have a crappy Internet connection at home, so I don’t really have oodles of time to piece together fluffy blogs filled with images and links to Amazon and Wikipedia.  3) I don’t know, I just feel like there needs to be a third.  Maybe I’ve become a bit of a snob?  Maybe I think my readers have come to expect more from me than valley-girl reviews of movies and TV shows?

So I just wanted you to know that I understand this blog has evolved into a bit of a literary review, philosophical/spiritual journal type of blog.  And that’s not all bad…but is there still room on here for current events and confessions of guilty pleasures and celebrity crushes?  Or is the only place for that now my status updates on Facebook?  Bah.

Okay, here are a few randoms running through my mind that I (generously) put pictures with:

- I read an interview with Jennifer Aniston in Marie Claire where she called Diet Coke her “brown monkey.”  Love it!  And if Jennifer Aniston, with her amazing yoga body and glowing skin and there-is-NO-WAY-she’s-40 looks, can still be semi-addicted to Diet Coke, I think it’s just fine that I drink it a few times a week.  Thanks, Jen!

- Do you think that wearing a hat is ALWAYS making a statement?  I read somwhere (poss. Esquire) that it is.  My sister gave me a freaking sweet straw fedora for my birthday and I’ve worn it a lot already, always with many compliments and girls being like, “No, seriously, where did you get that, and do you think they’ve already closed for the day?”  The hat had its big debut at a friend’s bbq/mini-concert/dance party (yeah, it was fun) on Saturday and was warmly received.  But I couldn’t help feeling like that girl the whole time…you know?  Plus, I might look cute in a hat but I NEVER look cute when photographed in a hat.  Sucko.

- Seriously, are they EVER going to make a Gilmore Girls movie?  Because I would totally watch it.  Logan, I didn’t forget about your proposal and the house in California with an avocado tree in the yard.  If Rory’s still following Obama around, I’ll come hang out.  (NERD ALERT)

- …and The Bachelorette.  So, SO good.  Could you believe the Men Tell All special?  Those guys were crazy!  Even Chris Harrison was later quoted to say that they came off as “knuckle dragging cavemen.”  I fully agree.  I also stand by my theory that men are worse gossips than women.  The only thing is, they don’t get as hurt when someone talks crap about them.  If a tree falls in the forest and nobody is there to hear it, does it make a sound?  If a guy talks crap about his friend and said friend doesn’t care, is it still gossip?  Oops…I’m wandering too far into pondering mode.  Back to The Bachelorette.  Who will she choose?  I think my vote is for Kiptyn.  He’s totally cute and grew on me, but I’m scared that when the going gets tough, he’ll drop out and go back to having tacos at Wahoo’s in San Diego.  I love Reid for her, but I think she’ll never be satisfied because he seems to be too much “in her league.”  What do you guys think?  And would you still love me if I was the new Bachelorette?  It would be so fun and you would get so many cute clothes!

And…comment!

But What Would My Name Be? March 1, 2009

If I were a super heroine, here are some super powers I would want:

1. Power to consume any foods I want without gaining weight or damaging my health.

2. Ability to learn any language in the world in a matter of minutes.

3. Teleportation (and not like that guy from X-Men, who has to be able to see where he’s teleporting to or whatever.  What’s the use of that?  I just want to go from Valencia to France in a matter of seconds).

4. The ability to memorize entire books, verbatim.  Top choices are the Bible, the Chronicles of Narnia, several of Brennan Manning’s books, and various Anne Lamott essays.

5. Power to disembark an international flight and look like I’m fresh off a Neutrogena commercial.  (I tend to look absolutely haggard even after a 45 minute commuter flight).  Although, if I obtained #3, I guess this would be a non-issue.

I realize a couple of my dream superpowers reveal my nerd status.  What do yours reveal about you?  Share!  Discuss!  What else are you doing at work, anyway?

*Btw, just realized this is my 200th post on Eeper!  Yay!

I Know He’s Not Santa Claus, But… February 23, 2009

Dear God,

I would like one of these, please.  As I’m sure you know, my birthday is on July 3rd.  

Thank you,

Amen.

Confessions of a Californian Foodie November 21, 2008

So you all know that I’m a bit of a foodie, right?  I think my Norwegian friends actually find it quite strange and amusing.  Whatever, it runs in the family!  Anyway, considering my love of food, it’s only natural that when anticipating my trip home to California for my sister’s wedding, I was not only excited about spending time with family and friends and basking in the weather that makes Southern California paradise, I was pretty much just as pumped about all the good food I would eat while I was there.  And, as my friend Jackson advised, I did not waste a single meal.  Or a single opportunity to go to Starbucks.  On the way home from the airport my mom and I stopped at the neighborhood Starbs, or Buckies, whatever you like to call it, and I spent 20 minutes discovering all their new merchandise, drinks, sandwiches, and pastries.  I was enthralled.  And to hear English spoken on top of all of it…sigh.  What a homecoming.

Well, I had this bright idea to take a picture of every single meal I ate while I was in Cali, but that got a little boring and also, I forgot too many times.  I was on vacation, you guys.  I was busy with things a little more interesting than my dear little Eeper.  But I did take a lot, so here are some of them, along with their descriptions.  Californians, you are lucky dogs.  Norwegians and others…I’m sorry.  Try not to salivate on your keyboard. (Pictures after the jump).

What I’ve Always Wanted October 24, 2008

Sometimes I will want something for a really long time, and for some unknown reason, deprive myself of it.  Like, I don’t know how long I loved Jason Mraz’s cover of “Melt With You” before I finally got it…and, come to think of it, I didn’t buy it – my friend gave it to me on a mix CD.  

Nerd Files, Vol. 4 September 25, 2008

I’m not sure if I should be embarrassed of this or proud of it, but I just read through a bunch of my old blog posts and they made me laugh.  I think cracking yourself up is possibly a sign of being a nerd, but also it is a sign that at least I’m not bored with my life.  And maybe even more so, that I’m actually starting to like myself.

Nerd Files, No. 3 July 22, 2008

More confessions of a 24 year old nerd:

…I’m the only person I know who actually checks magazines out at the library.

Facebook Status: Clever or Cry for Attention? July 10, 2008

I used to be the queen of the Facebook status, delighting in crafting witty little phrases to attach to “Joy Moyal is…” so that they piqued interest (and maybe triggered some harmless jealousy) in my “friends.”  But suddenly I was struck by the inanity of it all.  I know that last sentence sounded completely pompous, and maybe it is.  But after reading this article, in which the author calls Facebook a “monument to mediocrity,” I felt prickly and ashamed.  

School House Rock, Vol. 2 June 18, 2008

5 more words I love:

1. archipelago *

2. papaya

3. incandescent

4. ellipses

5. penguin

 

5 More Words I Hate

1. fib

2. cup

3. behoove

4. fiscal

5. oops and/or whoops

* Last night I read the word “archipelago” in a story in Jhumpa Lahiri’s Interpreter of Maladies.  When I picked up my phone to add it to my “words I love” list, I realized I had already added it.  Random, no?  I mean, how often does one come across that word?

Nerd Files, No. 2 May 15, 2008

I actually like to research stuff.  Especially places I’m going.  If I’m going to a new restaurant that evening, I’ll look up their menu and reviews online and suggest appetizers to friends once we’re there.  When I got to Adelaide, in South Australia, I picked up all the free brochures at the airport and familiarized myself with the city while riding to the house we were staying at.  Our hostess, Kathy, was telling us how Adelaide had a bunch of art and music festivals and I said, “Well, it is ‘The Festival State’,” thus revealing myself to be a total nerd.  Hey, it was on their freaking license plates. When I asked if it would be easy to head up to Waterfall Gully for a hike, she laughed and said I knew more about Adelaide than most of its residents.

Oh, and dictionary.com?  That’s like my best friend.  I love when I’m reading an article or a book and come across a word I don’t know, relishing the entry and trying to get the pronunciation down perfectly.

I even find myself wanting to research fictional concepts.  I’m reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and found myself wishing I could find Apparition vs. Disapparition on Wikipedia to further understand its laws and limitations.  Although, considering the popularity of the series, I probably could find it on Wikipedia…I’m just not going to try until I’ve finished the books, for fear of accidentally coming across a spoiler.  And did I mention how I kind of have a crush on Harry?  I think this crush on, as my friend Jackson put it, “a fictional teenage wizard” further exposes my geek status.