there's something special about going to the movies

on the way to the hunger games midnight showing last night, i kept rambling on about not having a passion.  it tripped me up so badly in interviews when i was asked, 'what can you tell me about yourself?' because i'm pretty much what you see on my resume.  besides some awkward and/or inappropriate stories to share with prospective bosses (which for the record, i have no prospective bosses now as i'm loving my new job to a ridiculous degree), i've got nothing.

zilch. a goose egg. love. ... however you say it, i essentially don't have anything that i really enjoy in the way you are supposed to love something when asked what you do for fun.

and okay, i do love reality television. and i do love gossip magazines (and gossiping for that matter). and don't even get me started on how much i love painting my nails.  but none of those do anything for making me appear like a self-sufficient, mature adult.  which i am ... for the most part.

i semi-started my passion quest last summer when i took a photography class and bought one of those snazzy (aka expensive) cameras, but that fizzled out as i got busy.  i'm hoping time presents itself to enjoy that again, but it wasn't something that stuck.  i also started sewing and enjoyed that for quite a while, but i have yet to complete a skirt i started last july because i can't figure out the darned elastic.

but there's got to be something i enjoy.  there just has to be.  i've got to be able to say something other than sleep when people ask what i do for fun.  which if we're honest, sleep truly is my favorite thing, but since i'm not a hibernating bear that's not seen as a socially acceptable hobbie past those late night college days.

which brings me to my real point for this post (which we all know i never get to until the end anyways):  i really enjoy going to the movies.

not just watching movies (although i do love that), but going there.  i'm a sucker for the whole experience from the big screen, semi-sticky floors, and tearing of the tickets (and the inevitable 'WHERE IS MY STUB?!' panic when i have to go to the bathroom), to the delicious popcorn smells and crunching that waft down from the end of the aisle when someone brings back an [overpriced] enjoyable treat.

and seeing the hunger games premiere at midnight (in imax ... HOLY OVERWHELMING SCREEN SIZE) was quite the treat.  all of those movie loving elements were there, but add to that the costumes and squeals from the expectant and giddy crowd and you've got yourself an event.

i'm not saying that going to the movies will be the next thing on my passion quest list because after all, movies are expensive.  but let's just say that regardless of the price, there is truly something special about going to the movies.  it's more than just a visual story you subject yourself to for a couple of hours ... it's an experience.  and a beautiful one at that.

seeing stars is underrated.

hello lovely blog readers!  it seems as though i have a terrible time of blogging during life transition times.  and as many of you already know, the past year has been full of life transitions in the world of megan.

if you know me [which you should ... otherwise, why are you reading my blog?], you know that even during non-transition periods in my life, my world is often like a small hurricane ... calm (okay, calm might be a stretch) in the center with lots of gusts and craziness before that point actually comes.  i actually think that's one reason i have such an obsession with lists.  when life hurricanes on me, i compartmentalize everything and tackle it one to-do list at a time.

anyways, if you've ever been writing a thesis, graduating from college, looking for jobs, moving, or doing all of those at the same time, you'll begin to understand some of the transitions that have been happening in my life.  while my situation is far from unique, adding these potentially life-changing events into an already gusty world only further fuels the fire.

while i of course find comfort in the art of list-making during these times, another thing i've come to look forward to in the past few weeks is the simple joy of looking at the stars.  not the jersey shore - kardashian - bieber type stars (although maybe that would be comforting too), but those twinkling little balls of fire so many miles away.

i never could quite see the stars during college (even during my semester of astronomy ... although that is most likely because i didn't listen in class and i refused to read my textbook), but i've found myself looking forward to my nightly walks with macy as we look for orion's belt or one of the dippers (and okay, macy's really just looking for a place to pee, but it's nice to think i have an astronomy-loving dog).

maybe i'm just catching up on my well-passed-due astronomy homework. or maybe i'm just associating stargazing with the many joyous summer nights at camp cheerio.  but regardless of the real reason why, being able to see the stars is completely underrated, yet it comes highly recommended ... especially for those of you like myself that often forget to look up because you're so consumed by the gusts around you.

so go stargazing. and enjoy!

the social media trifecta: procrastination at its finest

i have come to the realization that while i hate the fact that college is over and i'm in the 'real world' (whatever that means), i never would have graduated from college today.

now that might seem like a strange thought to those of you that know that i did, in fact, just graduate from undergrad in '09, but hear me out on this one.

i wasted many an hour just a few short years ago 'studying' in the library when in fact i was really on facebook or goofing off with some of my best friends (even if they actually did need to study).  i'm the first to admit that i didn't study that much in college as most of my classes required papers instead of tests, but when i did need to study, i put in my time.  however, when these situations did arise, i usually locked myself in my room or went off somewhere alone, cell phone turned off, wireless disabled.  when i had to rock 'n roll on the books, i did.

however, today i have wasted the majority of my day, despite the fact that i have hours worth of work (in the form of packing) to do.  i'm not sure in what delusional world i'm living in where i think i can just waste away the day and everything will be peachy, but apparently i have become a permanent resident of this alternate universe.

so why would i never have survived college if i was still enrolled?  well nowadays there are so many tempting distractions that a girl can't just choose one.  facebook was enough of a distraction for me in college that hours of my life were wasted that i'll never get back.  but now there's twitter.  and pinterest (which i just joined today ... hence the procrastination).  and everyone and their mom (except my mom) has a smartphone so there's always something new i feel compelled to check.

but just for the record, i'm not complaining about it.  i know i do it to myself.  no one is forcing me to have a facebook account.  and no one sends me directions that include tweeting or pining crafty things that will only add to my procrastination.

but i just want to.  so i do.  but goodness knows i would have flunked out of college after a semester of the social media trifecta.

you're killing me, smalls!

today i woke up and was delighted to learn that the absolute best baseball movie EVER was on tv today.  that's right, folks.  the sandlot was on for my (and hopefully your) viewing pleasure.  if you missed it, well let's take this little walk down memory lane.

now that we're all caught up, let's play a little connect the dots game.  because you see, the sandlot was more than just a movie to me.  in fact, it's the reason i started loving baseball.  did it inspire me to strap on some cleats and start sweating out in the middle of the diamond?  heavens no.  don't be crazy.  but did it instill a love of watching this classic, timeless game?  absolutely.

and you know what else?  when the 6 year old version of myself first saw this movie, i fell for it.  i fell hard.  and not just for the movie.  i fell flat on my little face for benny.  and i honestly don't believe it was simply for his athletic prowess or his dark and mysterious good looks.  (yes, even as a little tot i was very well informed about what was hot).  

you know what made my barely-in-elementary-school self melt?  it was his kindness.  when smalls would rather run a ball (which he couldn't catch in the first place) back to the pitcher instead of throwing it, and when  all the other guys were shouting that smalls was an L-7 weenie, benny stood strong.  his heart was kind.  and when you move around every 3-4 years as a kid, you cling to kind people for all they're worth knowing that they'll always have your back.

so you know what?  the sandlot may have tipped off the younger version of myself that baseball players were drool worthy, but it showed me something more important about myself.  that i like kind people.  and i think that's the best kind of thing a 6 year old can learn.  

and of course, it doesn't hurt when those kind people are hot.  

[side note: did i know i liked kind people at the age of 6?  probably not.  but hindsight's 20/20.  did benny's hottness help me love him initially?  probably.  but his kindness kept me rooting for him even when hotty phillips came on screen.]

resolution bandwagon

happy new year, friends.  somehow the holidays came and flew away and now it's 2012.  holy freight train.

as the new year comes and goes, i can't help but notice that everyone around me is talking the resolution talk.  people want to do all kinds of inspiring things, but frankly, i've never even pretended to make a resolution.  i can't even manage picking up a flossing habit (something i try to lie to my obsessively hot dentist about) so i wasn't particularly optimistic regarding the successful completion of a resolution for an entire year.

in fact, even as i write this post, i feel like resolutions may be our masochistic way of reminding ourselves that we're human.  that we aren't perfect and that we have to try to better ourselves ... which seems to be one heck of a battle.

however, just like i jumped on the tebow bandwagon, i've decided to jump on the resolution bandwagon.  really i just don't want to be left out in conversations for the rest of january, but whatever the reason, i'm making a resolution this year.

so what is it, you might ask?

i resolve to stop freaking out ... or at least give it one heck of a run.  okay, this is a ridiculous resolution to make, isn't it?  if you ask my mother (or any of my truly close friends), it really isn't ridiculous ... at least not for me.  i don't know when i started being higher strung than my obsessively high-strung sister, but somewhere between high school and real life i became restless, skeptical (okay ... i've always been skeptical), and constantly tense.

and trust me, not sleeping at night is just not fun.  it's one thing because macy is being a crazy fool dog running around barking at spiders and invisible people (which i refuse to believe are ghosts), but it's another thing entirely to lose sleep because i'm high-strung.

and don't worry, i'm not foolish enough to think i can just up and erase the high-strung-can't-relax-to-save-my-life persona i've spent 6 years perfecting.  however, if i want to keep hair that's a shade other than gray and i want to keep from having stomach ulcers visit me every few months, i've got to learn to chill.

so that's what i'll do this year.  i'm going to stop freaking out.  in fact, i'm going to learn to chill out ... take things in stride and take a lot of deep breaths.  and of course, make a lot of lists.

and i'm going to love it.  rock on, 2012.

meet macy!

happy second day of hanukkah, folks.  can you believe it's already here?  for those of you that don't celebrate the festival of lights, i'm sure you're just as busy in the holiday season.

and while i don't technically celebrate the festival of lights in the traditional way (due largely to the fact that i'm not actually jewish...), i do have the most wonderful menorah and continue to be team hanukkah.  so spin that dreidel and eat those latkes and have a jolly good time.

quite a few events have happened since i've last updated the blog so let's do a quick catch up session, shall we?

updates:

fiffy came to see me graduate. hooray!

1.  i experienced my first middle school "winter ball" on friday.  it was a nonstop good time and all the little tweens looked so sharp in their ball attire.

2.  i officially graduated on sunday ... aka my parents got a raise.  until i manipulate tom into paying for another degree.

3.  I GOT A PUPPY!

macy loves to play ... aka chew holes in plastic toys.

so the 3rd one is the most exciting, let's be honest.  mom and i actually adopted her (or rescued? whatever you want to say) over thanksgiving but she stayed with the 'rents until i was home from school because she had quite a few appointments to go to.  she's already such a busy girl!

the original plan for wanting a puppy was to get a boy dachshund and name him doodle (aka dude for short). however, as the fates would have it, mom and i were out shopping and we happened upon the petco where a rescue agency was trying to find good homes for a few of their balls of fluff.  we went in just to see what was going on and BAM.  we got a little girl dog...who cannot be named doodle because that is for a boy dog despite tom telling me 'doodle' isn't a sexed name.  it is.  trust me on that one.

she's pouting because of the bow and having to be still.

macy noelle (or mace-face as i like to call her) just turned two and is just the most hyperactive thing you've ever met.  seriously though...it's like unleashing a firecracker into the house every time she decides to move around.  she doesn't quite understand sit and lay, but we're working on it.  she does understand run around like a crazy person though so at least some commands are understood.  she's nonstop fun and the best graduation present ever.

also, since i DID get a little dog, i'm editing the original 30 things to do before i'm 30 and crossing number 7 off the list.  YES!!!

i promise she's not an alien despite the eye color.
i also promise she was pissed at me for making her pose for pics.

speaking teenage is trickier than you think.

i was never good at spanish.  there's no point even denying it.  in fact, sophomore year of high school i was actually told i was bad at it and that despite testing well, i'd never get it.  inspiring, right?

but let's be honest.  it's the truth.  i took italian when i started college and lasted a semester where again, i could test the mess out of the language.  but speaking it?  as if.

however, in order to graduate from unc, i had to take something.  so i signed up for the party language of portuguese with all the athletes and hunkered down.  again ... testing?  no problem.  speaking?  well let's just say it's a good thing i partnered up for ALL speaking presentations with a guy majoring in foreign languages.  this girl knows how to play it, kids.

anyways, my newest foreign language is teenage.  and it has got to be the hardest of them all.  i'm not even very good at speaking adult most days since i find i'm too old to be a teenager but i'm easily bored by adult conversations.  but teenage?  holy cow.

for almost four weeks i've been working on learning teenage, but sad as it is, i don't know that i'm much closer to mastering the language.  i don't even think i'd test well on this one.

in fact, today a group of boys were listening to my classroom expectations (score one for listening!) and when i said 'does that sound like something we can handle?' i got three responses of 'word.'

i just stared at them in complete confusion as i didn't know what the heck they were talking about.  word?  did they misunderstand a word i said?  were they asking me to repeat one of my words?  were they mumbling and i couldn't actually hear them say "yes sweet teacher lady we DO think we can handle this"?

no, none of these were correct.  they actually said word.  and they meant it.

after school i asked their teacher about speaking teenage boy and he gave me a few inside tips and informed me that word meant they agreed and understood.  GOOD TO KNOW.  there needs to be a manual on this somewhere.

so as any good librarian would, i did my research when i came home.  here's what word actually means in teeange (in case you, much like myself, were uninformed of the language of teenage):

[thanks to http://www.urbandictionary.com for the example below]

word
	a phrase originally meaning: a) to agree with b) without a doubt c) true Meaning A: R: You know your momma's gonna have a fit when she finds that you burned down the house. D: Word.

good to know, right?  i'm sure i'll add to my teenage vocabulary the longer i practice, but i think i'll start with word.

and i challenge you to learn a little teenage.  word.