Thanksgiving Eve is like Christmas..but better

There must be a HUGE preface to this post because this year's Thanksgiving Eve will unfortunately be without the Stapleton-Levi duo and that saddens me. It deeply saddens me but in their honor I will be sure that the ladies take it to the house on the guys for the THIRD consecutive year in the never-ending game of flip cup.

I digress...let's focus on Thanksgiving for a split second. How could any holiday be better than this?!?! It combines two of the greatest things in the world: tons of food AND football. What could be better? Well that's exactly what I'm about to tell you.

I'm very lucky in that I have a very, very close group of friends that I have pretty much grown up with. And even as some have moved away or what not - we still make a point to all get together and let it rip as often as possible. Thanksgiving Eve is the culmination of all of those other 'minor' gatherings. Between Foxworth's rants, Jessica's dancing on chairs, Olson's just being Olson and the occasional 'trash-talking' sessions, this evening provides enough laughs and just utter nonsense that will last the entire year. The real question is this...

How on earth are we all going to make it to Donna B's amazing breakfast of champions on Thanksgiving? Should be interesting.

I'd love to hear what everyone else does on Thanksgiving Eve...maybe we can throw some madness into our evening tomorrow night.

Happy Turkey Day everyone!

Ooo PBR....How I love thee.

After quite the hiatus from my blog, I have decided that I'm coming back with a vengeance. I'm not quite sure what to blame this leave of absence on. Could be the 'give it a go again' with P90X that leaves me so tired that I can barely walk at work. Or it could be my inability to not go out because I have so much fun every time I do that it's actually reached the point where I can't say no. And this brings me to my brief story.

Last night I had a lovely evening out with a couple girl friends. The night began with a very nice dinner at this fantastic Mexican restaurant in Philly called El Vez - which can only be described by saying - best case scenario. Turns out they serve 5 different kinds of guacamole. We order one...they bring another...we have no idea and we get both. All for the price of one. Fantastic. The rest of the food is phenomenal as well. Oh and PS - they have a photo booth in this place. Super. My favorite things in the world: guacamole and taking silly pictures.

The night took an even better turn when we walked down the road to Drinkers. All I had to hear about this place prior to going was that you could get PBRs (that's Pabst Blue Ribbon for the foreign) for $1 if you shotgunned them. What could be better? I love PBR and I love shotgunning. Sold.

Turns out they are actually $2 nowadays...the economy really has taken its toll. Nevertheless, it was definitely worth the extra buck considering I had three and only paid for one. Apparently the people in Philly are not accustomed to seeing a central Jersey girl shotgun a bunch of beers on a random Wednesday night. Who knew?

And what could be better than this you ask? They even had photo hunt. Quite possibly the best bar game of all time. I can't say that my performance there was as strong as the shotguns but I mean I showed up.

So there you have it. PBR may be one of the cheapest, most underrated beers but let me tell you something. This was crisp, frost-brewed and delicious and do you want to know what made Drinkers my new favorite place in Philly even beyond all of these other things? Of course you do. They didn't serve Coors Light. At all. And for that I love them.

Stop by Drinkers next time you're in town. And rock out with the PBR.

Odd Girl Out

I had the pleasure of sitting through a keynote speech the other day at the NJEA Conference - which in one word could be categorized as overpopulated - and I have to say that this woman was a very good speaker. Rachel Simmons was her name and she is a well-known, published author whose first book, Odd Girl Out was a New York Times best seller and later made into a Lifetime movie. For speaking at a conference where I'm convinced most teachers are not in attendance because they use this time as an extended vacation, and where others go to get the free stuff that goes along with having a tradeshow booth...this woman was a breathe of fresh air.

That being said, there are a couple of things I need to comment on about her speech. She was obviously up there to talk about her book and about bullying that occurs between girls, etc. Now this of course has stemmed from a traumatizing childhood that she had with another girl and she has managed to make a living out of this. She travels the world/country speaking to students, teachers, parents, administrators about the issue of bullying and how detrimental it can be to a young girl's life and general upbringing.

Of course I agree that bullying and any hurtful girl on girl behavior is awful and it's extremely serious and needs to be addressed at an earlier stage. The one point that she brought up that really hit for me was how the victims of bullying very often avoid conflict all together for fear that actually standing up for themselves will result in a 'lost' friend or more worry than they are willing to deal with. This, for me, was the root of all of the problems and maybe something that should be addressed more thoroughly.

And here is my five second therapist moment of the day:

If you are in a situation where one of your so-called 'friends' has done something hurtful, something that you don't agree with or just something that has bothered you or caused you to think, and you do not address them because you are afraid that that will cause further problems and that said 'friend' will terminate the friendship -- this is not a true friend.

I have been lucky enough in my life to have amazing friends. And over time we have grown up (obviously) and are perfectly capable of being up front and honest with each other in ways that I'm sure most groups of friends have not reached at this point. Which is why I'm putting this out there. And here is my final profound thought before 10AM on a Sunday:

If you are afraid to confront someone who you consider a friend with a truly genuine statement for fear that he/she might no longer be your friend after that conversation, that is not a true friend and you should really reevaluate the situation.

So what do you think? Should I be given a PhD right away...because I think so.

Have a great Sunday and Go Giants!

When is it Appropriate to Fake It?

Gotcha with that title, huh? For a number of reasons, I cannot go down that road but maybe (hopefully not) at a later date... if all that has become the norm for me remains the same...I will be able to do so.

Good luck with that last sentence.

What I'm referring to here are situations in life that leave you utterly flabbergasted. When you cannot...with all of the brainpower that you yourself possess figure out how certain things have ended up the way they have. When this happens, and it reaches the point where it is completely out of your control and you have several choices but the main ones being 1) Choose to be happy for that person (if that is the given situation....in this case it is) 2) Argue about your disliking of the situation on a regular basis; thus, creating perpetual animosity....what do you do?

I happen to be in this very situation right now. Out of respect I will try to be as anonymous as possible. This particular person...who is extremely important to me...has chosen to surround himself with someone who I have not been fond of since day one. This is not my problem...you say...because its his choice and I should just be happy for him, right?

No. And I cannot, for the life of me, be any more fake to this other person than I have been and that is not saying much. By fake I mean I am as courteous as one can be when they not only have not a thing in common with this person but when the other person in question is generally unfriendly. Unfriendly might not be the right word...anti-social, uninterested. I can't really pinpoint it at this point and it's been long enough where I should have a good grasp on this but MY GOODNESS!!!

No social skills, brings nothing to the table...we're talking barely has a pulse as far as I can tell. What is appealing about this? Not sure and at this point I can't even think about it anymore because it gives me terrible pains in my stomach.

Even with all of this pent up anger and utter unhappiness with the decisions that have been made on the part of this person who I care so much about....I still try as hard as I can to be as nice as possible. I know that's the right thing to do, but for once...JUST ONCE..I want to say what I'm really thinking. I know that may come as a surprise to some of you that I do not always say exactly what I'm thinking but it happens quite often. In some ways I'm thankful of this and in others I wish I would just let it rip and be honest.

When is the right time to say what is probably the wrong thing? Despite the fact that the wrong thing might very well be exactly what you're feeling, it is more than likely hurtful and that should never be your intention. But this particular situation has left me in such a predicament because it pains me to say nothing...but I have said close to nothing to be mindful of people's feelings. I'm sure that's the right thing but it feels wrong.

Please help..and sympathize :)

Would you Say you're Happy or just not Unhappy?

Often times...or better yet on a regular basis...I have people asking me what I'm on. I'm assuming they think I'm on some sort of drug that gives me incredible energy or just keeps me in a good mood, but after 26 years of hearing this, I have come to somewhat of a conclusion: It's pretty clear that most people aren't generally happy, but they would instead categorize themselves as not unhappy. And after this much contemplation, I am still clueless as to how everyone is settling for this.

I had someone ask me at work a while back - 'How do you stay so positive when things are so crazy around here?' So I said, "Well...why would I be negative when I could be positive?" Sounds pretty simple, right? It is and I can't seem to figure out how this seems so foreign to most everyone I come into contact with.

Is it strange that I like to sing 80s songs throughout the day at work at my desk? Probably not to the people who sit around me because it's on a regular basis at this point. Is it strange that I got some of my co-workers to do Journey over the intercom at the end of the day yesterday...at the top of our lungs? No, but only because the big boss wasn't in the office :)

Would you consider it odd that at every wedding I have been to I have had to take multiple trips to the bathroom or nearest 'towel off' area because I am sweating at such a fast pace that my dress changes colors? Hell.. I had a girl who I didn't know at this most recent wedding tell me that I had to be at her wedding. She wasn't even engaged! She says - you are a ridiculous dancer and I want you to be at my wedding. I said yes, of course.

Back to my point...why am I the strange one in these situations? Does that mean that people find it odd that there are other people out there who are just genuinely happy? If that is the case, which I think is true, then that is very very sad, my friends. And I honestly hope that after reading this blog...all 20 of you (and that's generous)...one person turns over a new leaf and starts tomorrow on the up and up. We all know that's what I would do :)

Stay classy.

Can you Ever be on the Same Page if it's Casual?

A friend recently asked me this so I figured I would ask my growing audience. Let me try to set this up nicely for you though...

Imagine yourself a deer.

Kidding. That's from My Cousin Vinny.

It may come as a surprise to some of you reading this that there are girls out there who are interested in what I've deemed 'casual relations.' I could say casual sex which is what most of you will probably think I'm referring to, but that doesn't cover it all. 'Casual relations' is like casual sex on steroids I guess. There is still the understanding that at the end of the night you're more than likely going to get laid, but...sometimes you can throw in some of the unheard of...

- Random trips to Best Buy to play Rockband...for free!
- Batting cages
- Making food...for groups of more than 2

And you get the drift. But...and here is the kicker...it's at this point where it seems impossible for both parties involved to stay on the same page. I'm assuming here that most guys think that all girls want a relationship. No matter what they say, there is no way that a girl doesn't want a boyfriend....or at least a guy who will remain relatively faithful to her. Why though? Why is there this huge cloud over girls that is just screaming with emotions, needyness, whining, shopping, apple picking and so on that sends guys to the looney bin?

Can't a girl just want to get hers too? I mean let's say...for shits sake...that the said girl in this situation has already been in a few relationships...obviously unsuccessful ones because she is now single...and she just wants to do what she wants, when she wants, with whoever she wants. When does the assuming start on the guy's end? Is it with multiple text messages in the same day? Does this mean she is needy and wants to spend all of her time with you? Or...does it just mean that she had something funny to say and thought you would find it funny too? Do guys even overthink things like this or am I taking crazy pills?

So let's help a girl out here....is there ever a mutual understanding when things are kept casual? Or is that why people ultimately want to be in relationships? Because they can't handle the ambiguity? Hmmmm.

Let's find out :)

Should Facebook be Censored?

I often find myself prefacing my entries with a statement that sounds something like, I don't mean to offend anyone, but...and then I take a step back and realize that that's the point of a blog. To discuss the often un-discussed and leave it up for debate...if that's how things pan out.

So here goes...

I originally joined Facebook for one reason: to look at pictures. In my honest opinion, this is probably how a lot of people spend their time on Facebook...well....that is before this 'Farmville' thing came into the picture. What the hell is up with that anyway? I don't get it. Anyway...pictures are a great way to keep up with people who you maybe don't do such a great job keeping in touch with. And this is to no one's fault. People fall out of touch and that is just a way of life. There are some things, however, that are not meant to be as public as Facebook makes them and I feel quite obligated to bring this to the forefront in the hopes that it will come to a screaming hault.

Let it be known that I am in envy of any woman who gives birth to a child. This is probably the most amazing thing that any woman can do and I'm sure when (if) that day works out for me I'm sure it will be the miracle of life that I have been hearing about all these years. However...and this is a HUGE however...I'm pretty sure I'm not alone in thinking that it is a little much to post pictures of your newborn AS SOON AS he/she has been removed from the womb. Not only is it probably illegal to be taking pictures in a birthing room (I should look that up but I'm not going to) but it is just not something that everyone needs to see....EVER! I will repeat the fact that YES this is an amazing thing - child birth. But there are other ways to put it on display. Here are a couple that I appreciate.

1. The ever-classy birth announcement....sent through the REGULAR MAIL. This is usually an adorable picture involving some stuffed animals that are holding the baby in place and very often is sent in black and white for dramatic effect.
2. Newspaper announcement - I'm sure this is considered old school...and may not even be available in this day and age but if it is not available, it should be reinstated because I think that has a nice personal touch to it.
3. Email announcement - This way you can select those individuals who you are close enough with to share this special moment with you...NOT all of the so-called 'friends' you have on Facebook. Own up to the fact that you don't speak...actually ever speak...to more than half of them.

And the list goes on and on. I can also say without hesitation that I unfriended someone on Facebook because she posted her sonogram for the world to see. Too...much....information. Seriously. I'm much more comfortable seeing pictures of a woman turned to the side to show the baby bump. In fact I think this is borderline adorable. But a sonogram? Isn't that sort of private? I mean that's inside your body...think about that. Would you like to see what it looks like inside of my body? Probably not. So let's keep that all to ourselves.

I think I'm done ranting here. I really want to know what you all think because as always, I feel badly for calling people out...but my goodness. Before the child is even cleaned off? That's aggressive and in my opinion uncalled for.

Please share and my apologies, as usual, for any offense taken. Just making conversation.

Goodnight all.