home again, home again, hippety hop!

returning from baton rouge on sunday with a couple days off ahead of me, i couldn't help but wishing that i didn't have to spend them at the dmv, doctor's office, and doing laundry. but the pill was a little easier to swallow when i realized that i don't have to make my way back to an airport for a full month.

a month. at home. whatever will i do?

well.  i think i'll start by having dinner with a cute (local and mormon!) guy i met in november.

then i plan to join some friends for the dr. who season premiere (complete with souffles in honor of the doctor's new companion).

then i'll finish off the week by making my way over to wondercon (comic-con's little sister conference) to gawk at nathan fillion and joss whedon at their 'much ado about nothing' panel.

had you heard? did you know that joss had re-made much ado? given that i use emma thompson and kenneth branagh's benedick and beatrice as a model for my ideal relationship, there is much to live up to.  but if anyone can, joss can. (trailer below)

since tickets to the sunday line-up are $10, and it's in my backyard (moved from san francisco due to scheduling conflicts), i could hardly resist. it will be an atypical easter, but i'm hoping the timing works out so that i can join my cousins for dinner to celebrate the holiday.

at some point, i'd also like to see 'the host,' the new movie based on stephenie meyer's book (which by the way, was MUCH better than her more popular vampire series), but, i guess i've got plenty of time for that... uh hip, hip, to the hoppety hip, to the hip hop hippety hop. okay, yeah, i'm a little excited to be home.

two questions

1. who watches amazing race?

2. who watches survivor?

i knew it!

United States of Tara is the new Showtime comedy from Diablo Cody, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of Juno.

Tara stars Toni Collette as a married woman with multiple personalities. John Corbett plays her husband, and the show has been described as "a sort of Weeds meets Sybil or The Three Faces of Eve." Hmm.

The premise came from the mind of Steven Spielberg, and it's scheduled to premiere in 2009. While I'm not too keen on Spielberg's idea, I'm hoping the Collette-Cody combo will make it work.

-Pop Candy

so while i'm not particularly interested in the show, and the multiple personality thing is a little off putting, i will say this, i always knew jon corbett was destined for tara.

sast presents: wednesday night/thursday morning

1. i've become obsessed with the abc family show 'greek'. this is in large part due to the fact that one of my new roommates is responsible for the lack of cable and internet in the house since monday morning. i am currently stealing wireless from 'sharing is caring' and in this case sharing is definitely caring. can't help all the season premieres i'm missing though. ask me how i feel about that.

2. RAE - if you're attending this (as i suspect you are), can you port an extra copy of stardust (pb is fine) on the off chance you are actually able to get close enough to gaiman to get the john hancock?

3. To cap off this special month, don't miss the 7th Annual World’s Largest Ice Cream Social at participating Cold Stone Creamery locations nationwide, a special night to join together and share the simple pleasures of life with a FREE ice cream and family fun. On September 25th from 5:00 - 8:00PM, guests will be treated to a 3 oz. serving of Jack or Emily's Creation. All donations will benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

you're welcome.

i [heart] the olympics

it's true that i have much catching up to do, what with executing the final event for my current employer, visiting family and friends in virginia and new york, and having a friend from north dakota visit me in ca, but i just can't stop watching the olympics.

i love the olympics. i have always loved the olympics. and i love the olympics more after having worked for/at them.

what i loved best about that 2002 experience, is the the same thing i love about all olympics, simply put - excellence. excellence in all forms. there was not a person i worked with or was in contact with in february of 2002 that wasn't at the top of their game. i was surrounded by people who worked, achieved, succeeded, and triumphed in their respective fields. from athletes to bus drivers to reporters to security personnel.

and this is what i love about the 2008 olympics. the excellence. and the inspiration that excellence engenders. and that every night i find myself tearing up at least once, awed and humbled by personal and professional victories achieved in both small and in great measures, but also saddened by the disappointed dreams and the seemingly unrewarded sacrifices.

'seemingly' because both those failures and those successes serve as reminders for the rest of us that dreams are attainable, and even when (as sometimes happens) they remain out of reach, the reaching always justifies itself.

eating my words

i hate the show 'so you think you can dance?' or maybe it's just that mary murphy actually makes me so sick to my stomach that every time i TRY to watch the show, i end up in the bathroom dry heaving.

alright, alright, i'm being melodramatic. but only a little.

that being said, i flipped on the tv in my hotel room last night, and guess what was on? i must have been distracted because i didn't immediately flip the channel. and then i was distracted by the show itself. in fact, i was absolutely mesmerized by this:

there is a story behind it, and maybe that's part of why it was so moving, but watching it again and again, the movement itself is simply magical.

i don't know that i will ever watch again, but there were a couple of minutes there, where i was absolutely transported to a soft peaceful place. and when you're in vegas...that's saying something.

perfect. just perfect.

get your own

an anniversary of sorts

monday marked one month since my arrival in california.

give me a second to process that.

one month. do you remember when a month used to feel like an eternity? in some ways, it still does, but in most, i find myself wondering what happened to all of those days. what did i accomplish? how did i fill my time? did i make the most of it?

often the answer is a disappointing no, but in this case, i feel 'yes' is appropriate. maybe not a resounding yes, but a yes nonetheless.

i've spent a good deal of time job hunting or job pursuing. the bay area job, as i expected, was an option. on wednesday of last week, i had made the final decision not to continue the process, and informed the recruiter of such. what i didn't expect was just how much the company wanted me. on thursday and friday i considered to receive phone calls from various vps at the company...some trying to talk me into accepting the job, some just wanting to find out what reason i might have for not wanting it.

on paper, it was fantastic. a lot of money at a great company. my budgets would be enormous, my clients even more so. so how do you explain 'it just doesn't feel right.' i gave all of the logical reasons i could come up with, but i'm sure they all remain a little baffled. to a certain extent, me too.

but my decision has been confirmed, at least by my own reasoning. friday, i got a call from a company i had submitted my resume to about a month ago. i can't explain what about this particular position or company appealed to me, but as i've carefully tracked all the positions i've applied for, this one somehow stood out. i sent my resume to them three times...just in case.

the short of it is that i interviewed with them on tuesday. i had mixed feelings about how the interview went (the woman was completely unreadable!), but did feel strongly that it would be a good fit all around. the job itself is right up my alley--a corporate event position that seems to have everything i'm looking for...right type of events, right salary, right location (just over 10 minutes from my cousin's house).

the company is looking to move quickly. i have a second interview on friday, and i'm very optimistic. keep your fingers crossed!

so when not job hunting, i've been trying to make new friends and reconnect with old ones. i have been pleasantly surprised to find that in the former case, people here are friendly and open. i haven't met anyone yet with whom there was an instant 'click', but there is definite friendship potential all around. in regards to the latter, i have had a chance to spend more time with my high school friends--brandon and michelle in particular.

a couple of weeks ago, when the party discussion turned to 'buffy', it was suggested to me (as it has been many times over the years) that i really needed to see 'firefly', also created by joss whedon. so last friday we began the marathon to be continued tomorrow night.

it has been immensely fulfilling--the rekindling of these friendships. i have been fortunate enough to have maintained contact with a few old friends. though there are notable exceptions, most of my closest friends are people i've known for a decade or more. i can't help but wonder if that's not because the core of our personalities is formed very early on, so the self of our youth, is the purest self we ever are. we add experiences over the years. we pick up baggage and mature (hopefully), but perhaps the people that resonate with that self of youth, will always have the ability to do so. it's an imperfect theory, i realize, but in my case, i can't think of one close friend from years gone by, one who i chose consciously or unconsciously (not as a result of circumstance, but actual choice) who i think i couldn't/wouldn't be friends with today. and i have most certainly reaped the reward of my imperfect theory.

i got a call from brandon last night, and i didn't get the message until late. michelle sent an email today saying she'd like to chat, and when i called her, i was devastated to learn that last week--the day after our firefly marathon part 1--brandon was diagnosed with cancer. though he has been back in my life for all of two weeks (at least the physical presence part), the news came as an absolute shock. the good news is that it has been caught early, though they don't know yet exactly what they are dealing with. they know it's malignant. they know it's in his lungs (ironic, since he has never been a smoker), but they also know it did not start there. tomorrow morning they will be doing a more invasive procedure to determine the origin and the extent.

needless to say, there are a lot of prayers being said. tomorrow is a big day all around.

woo-hoo!

i'm so happy!

short attention span theater

signature pieces

i am a firm believer in signature pieces. i believe that every girl should have one or two pieces in her jewelry collection that she is known for. classic, versatile, yet unique and fun. several months ago, i found a piece that i fell in love with, and have worn it virtually every day since then. you will see it in the large majority of pictures i'm in during that time period. it looks like this:


now don't get me wrong, i still love this piece. but, something came across my bloglines yesterday that has me longing for a change. if you have seen casino royale (arguably the greatest bond movie of all time), you will know that this year's bond girl (arguably the worst bond girl of all time) had her own signature piece.

i remember thinking, i LOVE that necklace, but it's in gold, not silver (and i just don't DO gold). then, lo and behold, i was made aware of this, and fell a little in love. the only problem of course, is that my budget is too tight too allow for this little splurge for the foreseeable future. with paris, and now having to get serious about saving money to move, it will have to remain a little dream for an indefinite period of time. i am posting it here so you all can see it and imagine how great it would look on me, and then we can all just keep pretending it is my new signature piece..k?

*****
oral surgery, part 721

many of you will remember that last year, i underwent some fairly major dental procedures. though i have a healthy mouth and incredible smile (no snickers please), i had (through no fault of my own) two seriously problematic teeth. one of them was repaired with a root canal and crown, but the other was beyond hope and had to be extracted. that meant that i would have to have an implant. implants are expensive. so i waited. i put a ton of money in my flexible spending account this year, and now that i will most likely be leaving, i needed to get on the stick.

so, tomorrow, the first part of the surgery will take place. they will give me a local anesthetic and laughing gas, and then they will screw a very scary looking corkscrew-like screw made of titanium in my gum. once completed, it will have to sit for four months while the gum adheres to the screw, at which point they will put on a crown and voila!

as someone who thinks she can feel what she can hear and see, even if it is not remotely possible, to say that i am freaked out would be an understatement. last year's procedures were painful, and left me more than once a bit (or more than a bit) swollen, and this is the mommy of all those procedures. the only upsides? laughing gas and codeine. god bless the pain killers.

*****

top 10 paris favorites
(in chronological order)

1. the carte orange-a week long unlimited metro pass that makes it really easy to hop on and hop off where needed. for this special pass, passport photos are affixed to a very official looking card, which, as it turns out, is only necessary if you ride the bus.


2. the arc de triomphe. though we were in many places that provided spectacular views of the city, this was a favorite because the platform at the top is completely open. as such, you have 360 degree access to the bird's eye view. hitting this spot on a beautiful sunny day definitely enhanced it's coolness.


3. random parks in random places. this one happens to be off the champs elysees, but it was one of many. i was seriously impressed by how much the french love their parks and gardens. they are clean, well manicured, quiet, and have many places to put up your feet for a spell.


4. les catacombes. the catacombes were one of three things on my 'must do' list for this trip, and they did not disappoint. the underground tunnels filled with human remains stacked in careful and ornate designs were creepily eerie, and well worth the 7 euro entry fee. i must admit that i have a certain fascination with the morbid, and this was one of two stops (the other being pere lachaise cemetary) catering to that odd interest.


5. what the french have that we don't have. in this case, three of my favorites. on the left, bandages that come in one long roll which can be cut to size and is perfect for breaking in those new shoes. in the middle, a device that boils quickly, and made tea time a lot simpler. and, on the right, diet coke with orange. though it sounds strange, it was delicious. here's hoping it makes it's way to the states!


6. the train ride to versailles. in and of itself, this would not have made the list, but during our journey, deb attempted to take a self-portrait of us. you can see the result below. having sympathy, the couple in the quad next to ours offered to take our photo. that offer sparked a conversation that would last the remainder of the trip. the couple was an older one from argentina. celebrating their 30th anniversary, they had been to london, rome, paris, and were on to new york following that. our conversation was both delightful and entertaining.

delightful in that they were a darling couple, and gave deb and i both cause to hope that we can find husbands who will want to travel with us 30 years into marriage. and entertaining in that one of their first questions to us was if we were single. when we responded affirmatively, out come the wallet, and the pictures of their two sons, 25 and 28, who they then proceeded to try and set us up with. truth be told, they were both cute, and deb and i may have to take up their offer to host us in argentina at some time;) i regret that i don't have a photo of the couple--probably the only regret of the trip. but i do have an email address and plan to stay in touch.


7. versailles itself. my expectations of versailles were low. my expectations of anything with high tourist traffic are low. versailles exceeded all my expectations by leaps and bounds. the chateau is a large house and i'm not really a house girl, but the gardens were the most incredible thing i've ever seen. wandering around in them made me absolutely giddy.


8. pere lachaise. the second 'morbid' stop on the trip was another favorite. i was fascinated at the sheer size and layout of the cemetery, as well as the graves themselves. nary a traditional us type grave to be found, each was dramatic and ornate, or barring that, at least large. though we pit-stopped at jim morrison's grave, the highlight was that of abelard and heloise, the oldest residents of the cemetery. we knew virtually nothing about these two, but that they had been involved in a tragic love story. later, we consulted wiki to learn more. sadly, the monument was under renovation and did not allow for any good shots.


9. new french boyfriends. something i love about the french is their ability to express appreciation for beauty. i don't know why in our culture it is just creepy when you walk by a guy and he tells you you're beautiful, but it is. yet in france, and a few other places, it's culturally integrated and thereby not creepy. this happened to us often throughout the trip, but the most notable encounter was when deb was accosted at notre dame. mirdi was there selling keychains, and instantly took a liking to deb--sneaking up to stand beside her in a photo i was taking.

when he asked her if she was single and she said yes, i knew we were in trouble. i knew she was thinking she would have some fun, and then leave, but i also knew that i was going to have to be the one to get rid of the guy. my suspicions were confirmed when later--much later--she looked at me and said 'you're going to have to ditch this guy. i don't know how.' i find it ironic that this street savvy new yorker couldn't take care of it herself, but alas, that's how the chips ultimately fell. beforehand however, deb's new french boyfriend, who knew 'the guy' at notre dame, ensured that we did not have to wait in line, nor pay to ascend to the top. he also volunteered to take a lot of photos, so there are many of deb and i not taken at an arm's (or quikpod's) length.

at the completion of our notre dame excursion, mirdi took us to meet his 'boat guy' friend who offered to take us on one of the seine cruises. asen instantly declared me his future wife, and truth be told, if the circumstances had been different, i might have played with it a little more. but they were what they were, and eventually i got rid of them both. ultimately, the highlight of this experience was being able to tease deb that my new french boyfriend was way cuter than her new french boyfriend!



10. the food, of course! i had been dreaming of croques and crepes and was not disappointed. in fact, at one point deb made the appropriate comment 'i never thought i could be sick of bread and cheese, but i need a break.' the unexpected surprises though came in the forms of gelato and hot chocolate.

during our first day, wandering around our neighborhood, we stumbled upon a gelato place. never one to pass up such a thing we stopped, and realized we had come upon a treasure. it was delicious and there was such a variety of flavors, that we stopped two more times on the trip. not only tasty, but pretty as well--the gelatiers? took great pride in their work, crafting each cone into a lovely flower.

the other unexpected surprise was hot chocolate. at well known les deux magots cafe, the hot chocolate is made from melting a chocolate bar into mile. you can only imagine how divine this must be, and even then, you would fall short. this 'meal' at les deux magots cost us 32 euros, and worth every penny.

*****
season finale time

it's that time of year again, when good tv goes on hiatus. this year also marks the final farewells of some of the faves, so here are my brief thoughts and comments:

1. gilmore girls.
frankly, i've been an avid watcher since the beginning, and this series has seen it's highs and lows. lately though, it's been mostly lows, with just a few glimpses of it's former glory. it was time for this one to end.

2. veronica mars.
like gilmore girls, me, avid watcher, day 1. yet, unlike gg, definitely not time for this to end, and sadly, my vote doesn't count. in my book, this is one of the most witty, clever, and sardonically written shows out there, and i'm a little heartbroken at it's cancellation. especially with the likes of shows like 'pussycat dolls' being renewed on the network. i'll admit to watching my fair share of reality tv, but things are getting out of hand now. vm will be sorely missed, and i may be off the cw for good.

3. grey's anatomy.
i'll admit. i have loved and defended this show, but i think now, i have to be done. it's a shell of it's former self, and the only redeeming moment of this finale ep was sandra oh's final scene, which was powerful to say the least.

4. heroes.
this is one heck of a show. the season finale for the most part was fabulous, barring the last few minutes, which i felt were a complete let down. that's just not how you end a finale. i need the continuity editors to be at the top of their game, and i didn't feel like they were. if someone can explain to me why peter couldn't just fly himself out of the danger zone, rather than nathan having to do it, or why everyone thinks peter will recover from being blown into a million tiny pieces, when he couldn't recover from a piece of glass being stuck in his head, i would be ever so grateful. p.s. i know it's kind of sick, but sylar is dang hot, and this is one bad guy i really don't want to see killed off.

5. lost.
i have had such a love hate relationship with lost. this show is an emotional roller coaster for me, and this was how a finale should be done. we get some answers, we got some new questions, and my heart was seriously racing. there are a couple of things i just don't get, ie why charlie couldn't have shut the door from the OUTSIDE, thereby saving himself from drowning. i guess some might argue that he had just resigned himself to his fate, and he felt like it was the only way to guarantee the fruition of desmond's visions thereby saving the rest of the losties. i might even buy it, but i would have liked it if that scene was structured in such a way as too remove that question. ultimately what have we learned from this finale? sayid is always right. period. i can't believe i have to wait until february of '08 to see what happens next, but if those eps are anything like the last several, it will be well worth it.

*****

alright folks, i've given you plenty to comment on. free for all, anyone?

oui, merci

thank you to the recent commenters--i feel loved again.

*****

what the heck, i'm a yellow?

i retook the color code personality test earlier this week, and despite having been a red my whole life (and having countless people tell me i am 'sooo red'), imagine my shock and delight at finding i have jumped the red bandwagon for a happier, less dominating overbearing color!

Congratulations. You are YELLOW.

YELLOWS are motivated by FUN. They are inviting and embrace life as a party that they're hosting. They love playful interaction and can be extremely sociable. They are highly persuasive and seek instant gratification. YELLOWS need to be adored and praised. While YELLOWS are carefree, they are sensitive and highly alert to others' agendas to control them. YELLOWS typically carry within themselves the gift of a good heart.

YELLOWS need to look good socially, and friendships command a high priority in their lives. YELLOWS are happy, articulate, engaging of others and crave adventure. Easily distracted, they can never sit still for long. They embrace each day in the "present tense" and choose people who, like themselves, enjoy a curious nature. YELLOWS are charismatic, spontaneous, and positive; but can also be irresponsible, obnoxious, and forgetful. When others interact with you, as a YELLOW you respond to them best if they take a positive, upbeat approach and promote light-hearted, creative, and fun interactions with you.

*****

tomorrow at roughly this time, i will be arriving at the airport to board my flight for amsterdam. thanks to the time difference, deb and i arrive in amsterdam on saturday morning, at which point we will brave the 'windy, 90% chance of rain' conditions to spend some time biking along the tulip fields just outside the city. yeah. we'll see how that goes.

sunday, we will hop on a train to paris, where we will spend the following week in our apartment in st. germain.

the apartment is adorable, and theoretically in a great location, which should mean that we will be able to access a lot of the points of interest by foot.

trusty weather.com tells me that it will be overcast and raining for much of our time there, so hopes of retaking pictures in sunshiney flower blooming paris may be for naught. it comes as a slight disappointment since all of our previous paris pictures include cold, wet, and bedraggled us. in fact, i never remember being so cold as i was during our one day in paris. redemption is nigh, though perhaps not in such grand means as i had hoped.

nonetheless, the most important facets of the trip, namely croques, crepes, and onion soup (not 'french onion soup' because that is just silly), are sure to be in abundance.

i've exhausted my french vocabulary in the subject line of this post, which should make things interesting. oh! i forgot, i also know 'bonne annee', but i don't think 'happy new year' will come in very handy this time around.

*****

holy craap. is anyone watching 'lost'? i was disappointed with the first half of the season, and more disappointed at the extended hiatus, but they have more than made up for it in the post-break episodes. holy craap.

thank god you're here

have you seen the commercials for the new show 'thank god you're here'? the premise is that comedians are given costumes and put on sets and in scenes that they know nothing about. a slightly different take on tv improv.

i am a big lover of improv. all throughout high school, my favorite days were days we had a substitute in drama class. it meant we would spend an entire class period doing improv. sometimes it was funny. sometimes it wasn't. but it was always a blast.

i can appreciate the talent required for this particular theatrical genre, and find that it is one i am always amused by.

the show doesn't premiere for a few more days, but nbc has put the first episode online here.

enjoy.

perhaps the funniest thing i've ever seen on tv

i officially love boston legal now. and it has nothing to do with the fact that the hot brunette is named tara...

by way of interesting oscar stories

Hoffman to bark Oscar speech?

Posted Feb 23rd 2006 9:09PM by Erik Davis
Filed under: Awards, Celebrities and Controversy, DIY/Filmmaking, Waxing Hysterical, Oscar Watch

When you're a kid and have dreams of some day gracing the stage at the Academy Awards, often you may make a few strange and unusual bets with your friends as to what you may say should you have the chance to speak to millions of people across the globe.

Best actor front runner, Philip Seymour Hoffman, made one such bet....and it could come back to bite him in the ass. When he was 16, Hoffman, along with friends Bennett Miller (director of Capote) and Dan Futterman (writer of Capote) got a tiny bit wasted one night. Hoffman explains, "We had this friend at the time, Steven, and we all made this drunken pact that if one of us ever won the Academy Award, that we would bark the whole acceptance speech. We were very serious. Literally, we were like, 'I'll do that. I will definitely commit to that."

Now that they're all grown up and their film, Capote, may play a big role at this year's Oscar ceremony, what have the men decided to do? Well, according to Hoffman, when they met back up with their friend Steven recently, he reminded the Oscar-nominated actor that the bet was still valid...and Hoffman isn't happy. ""The thing is you can't just bark, you have to bark until they pull you off (the stage). Let's hope I don't have to get up there." Oh, what I would give to see this go down.

the oscars are coming, the oscars are coming

and i am getting into the spirit. i've invited some of you (those who i know enjoy movies or who might play even though they don't know what the heck they are talking about) to join my group in the 'world's biggest oscar pool.' it's not a true 'pool' since you do not have to contribute anything but your picks to play.

if i didn't invite you, and you'd like to participate, log on to oscar.com, make your predictions, then join my group using the information below.

url: http://predict.oscar.go.com/predict/frontpage
group name: mo-mo oscars
password: momooscars

it's simple!

1. go to the oscar.com home page and select "entertainment weekly's worlds biggest oscar pool"

2. log in with your abc.com member name and password

3. make your predictions in all 24 awards categories

4. select "join group," then log in using the group name provided above

5. review the predictions of the members in your group

6. tune in to abc on sunday march 5th, 8pm et for the 78th academy awards and see if your predictions come true!

hustle and flow: (pretty good if you can get past the movie being about pimps, prostitutes, and dealers, and get to the music part)

saint ralph: (the 14 year old boy discovering his sexuality part is creepy. too bad. it had a nice ending)

the river king: (i like ed-ward burns, and i liked him in this)

more ross

i really wish that ross the intern's tonight show segments were available on youtube, because they are very delayed on his site. this is the latest one posted (from last friday).

last night's was extremely funny as well (lara-he made out with jo dee messina!), but i can't share it with you yet:(

random and completely unrelated to anything

currently battling it out to be mr. right: chad hedrick vs. seth westcott

chad hedrick

sport: speed skating
birthdate: april 17, 1977
birthplace: houston, tx
hometown: spring, tx
residence: salt lake city, ut
ht./wt.: 5'11" / 167 lbs
olympics: debut


















seth westcott

sport: snowboarding
event(s): snowboard cross
birthdate: june 28, 1976
birthplace: durham, nc
hometown: farmington, me
residence: farmington, me
ht./wt.: 6'2" / 181 lbs
olympics: debut

















oh hell yeah.

no doubt hedrick is fine, but westcott is in the lead right now. he's the right age and height--and the frosting--he was born in the right state.

_________________________________________

brett ratner told the nation (via mtv) that the third film will most definitely mark a close to the x-men franchise. "we wanted to make sure the audiences knew that this was a trilogy. even though they weren't made together like 'lord of the rings,' this is really closure for the x-men series" said ratner. this seems to dispel rumors largely filled by vinnie jones and his contract that a 4th and 5th film could be in the future.

only three movies with hugh jackman and his long spiky fingernails? major disappointment.

_________________________________________

japan's obsession with camera-equipped mobile phones has taken a bizarre twist, with mourners at funerals now using the devices to capture a final picture of the deceased.

i get the sense that people no longer respect the dead. it's disturbing," a funeral director told the mainichi shimbun newspaper.

at one ceremony several people gathered round the coffin and took out their phones to photograph the corpse as preparations were made to begin a cremation, she was quoted as saying.

"i'm sure the deceased would never want their faces photographed," she said.
but others called it a form of a memento in the modern age.

"some can't grasp 'reality' unless they take a photo and share it with others ... it comes from a desire to keep a strong bond with the deceased," social commentator toru takeda told the paper.

okay, this is just plain creepy!

_________________________________________

for the female olympic fans...check it out. (men--you have been warned. avert your eyes or face the consequences.)

have i mentioned i love the olympics?

_________________________________________

if the camera on your mobile has become as indispensable as the phone itself, you might want to liven things up a bit with these add-on lenses from kenko digital in japan. these inexpensive lenses come with a strap so that you can hang them from your phone. the lens itself has an adhesive cushion so that you can stick it temporarily over the lens of the camera.

there are 14 different types to choose from, some offering two special effect lenses on the same strap. you can add a colour tint to your photo or zoom in on your subject, for example. my personal favourite is the one that makes your subject look slimmer - your friends will love you for using it!

oh great, more tools to aid us in our online dating deceptions.

what i've been waiting for

finally, ross the intern's first tonight show segment has been posted on his website!!!

click here.

greetings from baltimore & torino: day 2

yes that's right, after the dumping last night, i waited for the snow to clear and headed to baltimore, where i will be spending the next few days. i was sort of dreading it. i'd still rather be home. when it comes to work, baltimore isn't far enough to be cool, but it's far enough to be a hassle.

immediately upon arriving, i ran into our cfo, who was looking for the rest of the group before heading to dinner. i suggested the bar, and he successfully found them. after getting into my room, i had to turn right back around to drive over to kinkos to pick up the copies i had had made. i sent the files over this morning at about 10, and let them know i would be picking them up around 7. imagine my surprise when i called back at 4:30 to check on the progress (yes, i am anal retentive)and was told that they were closed.

i indicated to the gentleman on the other end of the line, that that was not communicated to me earlier, in the sweetest, flirtiest voice i could muster, and the response was that he would personally see to it that someone was there at 7 to unlock the store for me.

so after missing a couple of turns and only getting slightly lost, i found my way, picked up my copies and came back.

i immediately turned the tv to the olympics, and *shock* *gasp* it was fuzzy! lines all through it. abc is having the same problem, (which is of course, the other channel i was planning on watching this evening). i called down and was told that an engineer would be up to check on it. (do you have to have an engineering degree to jiggle a cable?) but i've just gotten off the phone with the front desk, who is aware of the problem, is sincerely sorry, but the problem is a result of snow, so i can watch two movies on them. which is all good, but what i really want to watch is the olympics and grey's anatomy. baltimore is conspiring against me.

i'm also struggling with nbcolympics.com (which is not the fault of the city of baltimore). all of their online coverage is real time, and all of their televised coverage is not. it is extremely frustrating to click on one of my little 'olympic alerts' with an ambiguous title, only to immediately be confronted with event results for events i was planning on watching later that evening when they actually broadcast it. so frustrating!

moving past the frustration. more nostalgia tonight. ohno is skating, and they keep talking about his controversial gold which came as a result of the korean disqualification (which was totally justified, by the way!). i didn't have the opportunity to attend many events because i was working, but that night, the press chief made an executive decision to shut down the press rooms (and various other areas of responsibility), and the entire team went to watch the race from somebody's phat suite. that's when the pic was taken. i actually think that if the cameramen hadn't been there, it might have been the most brilliant photo i've ever taken. too bad it was on a 2. something megapixel digital camera i had borrowed.

in other news today...(and i won't even mention michelle kwan, because we are all in mourning)...

'grandma luge' injured in crash: anne abernathy, the 52-year-old slider known as 'grandma luge,' was injured during a crash in practice sunday.

abernathy was taken to a hospital with an unspecified arm injury. olympic officials said they did not know the extent of her injury or whether abernathy, who is competing in her sixth olympics, will be able to participate in the games.

u.s. announces team pursuit squads:olympic gold medalist chad hedrick was among five chosen sunday for the u.s. men's team pursuit in speed skating.

also named to the team were kc boutiette , derek parra , clay mull and charles leveille. hedrick won the 5000m saturday.

white a winner, kass comes in second: the flying tomato got his gold.

redheaded snowboarding superstar shaun white punked the competition on the halfpipe sunday, beating out teammate danny kass to win the olympic gold medal that so many expected him to get.

ohno stumbles out of 1500m: apolo anton ohno stumbled out of a chance at gold in his first olympic event, a shocking start to these winter games for the american short-track star.

simply put, apolo made a strategic error tonight. it was an unnecessary move. two skaters were going to qualify for the finals and he was in the second position when he attempted the pass. if you're going to make a move like that, you have to make sure it is clean, and apolo did not. the short answer is that he didn't have to make that move but he did and it cost him.

ohno nearly fell with 1½ laps to go in a semifinal heat of the 1500m sunday night, and wound up last across the line among those still skating. his mistake ruined any chance to defend his olympic title in a much-anticipated showdown against south korea's 1-2 punch - ahn hyun-soo and lee ho-suk .

birthday boy: one of the nicest things was everybody singing "happy birthday" to steve nyman in the finish. today's his 24th birthday. and i mean everyone: teammates, fans, tv people, everyone. it's his first olympics, his first race, and when they sang the song, he was so moved he fell down in the finish and just lay there in the snow. when he came out of the finish, he was just beaming.

miller and rahlves lose out: antoine deneriaz of france, the last man out of the gate with a chance to win, pulled off a startling upset in the olympic downhill sunday to steal what seemed to be a sure gold medal from austrian michael walchhofer .


and just one more reason you can't stop yourself from loving bad boy bode (from the 2005 worlds)

well, back to work for me.

my thoughts on day 1

is it bizarre that every time i hear references to the sale/pelletier 'scandal' of 2002, it brings tears to my eyes? crazy as it may seem, it's due in large part to the fact that that was one of the defining moments of my olympic experience.

me and my co-worker and friend, sara, were responsible for running the press room at the main press center. overall, we had a pretty sweet gig. for one, we were actually being paid. we were also working indoors, in the one venue with every imaginable amenity you could conceive of. and we were working with the best. sports illustrated gave us their extra event tickets on a daily basis, and we could see any band we wanted at the medals plaza by 'volunteering' for about a half hour and corralling athletes to the and from the medal stands. although to be truthful, we rarely had the time off to use those 'free passes'. but since every notable athlete and visiting celebrity came through our press room, we weren't too disappointed.

we scheduled, we coordinated translation, audio visual, the name cards on the table--you name it. we worked with the media, the usoc, the athletes, and and the notable notables to make sure that all press conferences went off without a hitch. it was 18 hour days for a month and a half, with one day off. it was non-stop. press conferences were held from 7 in the morning until sometimes 2 the following morning. and with only two of us to manage all of the details, there wasn't a whole lot of down time.

that was never so true as with the pairs scandal. we were already maxed out, exhausted, and running on sheer adrenaline, we were given challenge after challenge to accommodate the media blitz that ensued. hundreds of people were involved in the little details, down to removing airwalls (to accommodate the larger than average media presence). and sara and i were responsible for overseeing all of it. so when references are made to that scandal, or the judging overhaul that came as a result, it brings me back like almost nothing else does. and suddenly, the time when i felt like i was at my most 'on', and perhaps the most memorable experience of my life, suddenly seems like it was only yesterday.

OH MY GOSH! i just saw myself on tv again. they are doing a piece on the scandal and just showed one of the press conferences we did. uh oh. now they've really done it. tissues please.

and to take the nostalgia trip to uncomfortable lengths, an excerpt from my february 2nd, 2002 journal entry:

last night was a rough one. i got to bed at about 11:00pm and at 3:00am i woke up and could not fall back asleep. so by 7:30am, when i arrived at work, i was ready to pass out. today was 'hit the wall' day. jet lag still has a hold, and the long hours and little sleep have finally started taking their toll.

this morning's sloc briefing was governor leavitt, sloc president mitt romney, and the head of secret service for the olympics. there was more press than usual, and a lot of filming going on. it was an interesting briefing, and the secret service guy even mentioned my friend melissa's dad, who is the utah commissioner for public safety.

this week has largely been spent figuring out what i will be doing come games time. i'm responsible for scheduling three press rooms, the largest of which currently holds about 250 people. however, there will be situations, like the one on the 7th, where we will have to open up air walls and turn the three rooms into one. we'll be joined by jacques rogge, ioc president, and the room will hold approximately 900-1000 people. this of course has created somewhat of a scheduling nightmare, since we had press conferences scheduled in the two smaller rooms and had to figure out how to bump them without creating havoc. all seems to be taken care of though.

i'm also responsible for coordinating the volunteers; asigning their responsibilities, and making sure they have a clue what they are doing. i coordinate with the audio visual people to make sure everything is set, with the caterers to make sure any 'special requests' are met, and with the staff of each of the organizations, whether it be olympic committees or sport committees.

i also have language duties; making sure the translators have the information they need, that the press board is updated, and that translation headsets are working and distributed properly. on average, it takes about an hour to prepare for each conference, and on days like the 7th, when we have 13, you can imagine what a long day that will be.

initially, i was meant to be a floating supervisor, covering the bullpen, main street, print and photgraphy distribution...but the interview rooms have become so consuming (unparallelled in any oter olympic games, i'm told) that this will take up 98% of my time. sara and i are splitting schedules and duties so that hopefully, we will both remain alive throughout the duration of the games.

an added bonus from this experience is the people i am getting to work with. everyone is fun and easy to get a long with, but they are so impressive. i've never worked with such a generally high class of people. everyone excels in their area of expertise, yet are willing to help whenever and wherever they can, which i've never really encountered before. it doesn't matter what it is, if they can help, they will.

when i got out tonight, i called dad. it occurred to him that he will get to see more of the games than i will. and it's absolutely true, since i will be lucky to get out of the press room long enough to see any of them. but as i told him, i'd much rather be working the media center than watching the games on tv! i am absolutely exhausted, and when i start to feel a little whiny, my 'grateful' mode kicks in, and i remind yself how lucky i am to be here--and i truly am. it's worth some fatigue to have an experience like this.

we are expecting guests like desomond tutu, dorothy hammill, wayne gretzky, and of course 95% of the athletes. so even though i'll miss the events, i will get to see those worth seeing.

the journal effort is progressing steadily, in the attempt to keep some of the memories alive for many years to come.