My new resolution.

So, with New Year's lurking around the corner, most people are probably taking this time to think about resolutions. They are making decisions to change something about themselves in the coming year, beginning on 01/01/09 and last for 365.24 days after that.

Not I.

I am going to use this opportunity to take a snapshot in time of the things that sum up my life right now and see how those change throughout the year and then ultimately at the year's end. Kind of a micro-level time capsule.

I will post the list either on New Year's or the Eve, depending on how lazy I get between now and then and when I am around fast internet access. But I wanted to put it out there now, because I would like your input.

What are some things that make you think of me - in this moment? Not the Emily you remember from high school or something stupid I did at that one party at that one fraternity house or even things you think I have coming for me in the future.

I'm not expecting many responses, since it's the holidays after all. But if there's something that should go in my personal time capsule, let me know. I'll even give you a head start:

• Headbands with bows
• Caffeine-free
• Loves Edward Cullen

XOXO - I need you!

I am going into serious Gossip GIrl withdrawals. I need my weekly dose of Blair, Chuck, man bangs and Dorota. Not to mention my weekly snark from Daily Intel's coverage of "The Greatest Show of Our Time". Luckily, Gossip Girl's return to glory is just over a week away. In the meantime, I've been filling my need for media consumption in various forms, from the high-brow to the basest of interests.

Listening to: my old school Blair Waldorf playlist (told you I was having withdrawals; Lil Wayne, Bare cast album; Girl Talk

Reading: Serena, by Ron Rash; Entertainment Weekly; LJ posts from oxymoronassoc; and no, I swear I didn't finish rereading the Twilight series. okay, I lied.

Watching: Dexter (Season 1); College Football bowl games; The Dark Knight and various other findings from the local video store

What I Like About You

As promised, here's a semi-comprehensive list of "Things That Are Awesome About Texas that I May or May Not Have Even Realized That I Missed".

1. My family. This one's a no-brainer.

2. Playing with our spastic Chihuahua, Fred. Fred, darling, if you will. You know, like Breakfast at Tiffany's. He's so spoiled, he makes me look well-adjusted and non-materialistic. :)

3. Driving on the highway. Hot, nasty, bad-ass speed, as Eleanor Roosevelt would say. It's pretty bad that I had forgotten that you're supposed to buckle your seatbelt when riding in cars.

4. Cheap beer. I'm sorry, NYC, but a $6 draft is NOT a special. It's even better when you go to the one bar in town where everyone under the age of 30 congregates and have a good time without paying a dime.

5. Wal-Mart. Okay, this one's actually a toss-up. I enjoy the huge grocery section and the kitschy High School Musical merch on every aisle. However, I was slightly nervous that I was going to have to stop and talk to a ton of people with whom I had no desire to carry on a conversation. Fortunately, I only saw two people I knew and I actually like them.

6. Movie tickets that are $2-$4. Pardon me if I spend an entire day just watching everything I want to see for the price of one ticket in the city.

7. Mexican food.

8. My favorite hole-in-the-wall local restaurants. A short list (of which I probably won't hit up in its entirety): Sandwich Etc., Burger Land, La Familia, Taco Delite, Magel's, Capizzi's, and then the chains I've been missing - Braum's and Sonic.

9. Speaking of Sonic - Sonic ice should get it's own distinction on this list.

10. Friends from high school. I don't feel the need to make this visit a high school reunion, but there are a few friends that are high on my list of need-to-see while I'm in town.

Texas, my Texas

I arrived in The Greatest State at around 4:00 p.m. Friday afternoon, and it is simply delightful. The main thing I keep thinking of is that there were so many things I didn't even realize that I missed!

This is another disappointing post, but I'll take the time to actually compose a comprehensive list and update with it later. I just wanted to say "Howdy" from Texas, y'all!

Hark, the herald angels SING!

I know I should be talking about the holidays, since it's December 24 and all, but I have something different in mind. If you know me at all, you know that music is a very big deal to me. In fact, it might be my very favorite thing. I'm kind of weird in the way I listen to music, though. Maybe I have an obsessive personality, but I get on these kicks where I have a few favorite songs that I just listen to on repeat - over and over and over again. I don't even notice that I've listened to a song 50 times in one day until someone points out the fact that they might like to hear something else. Oops. So, since it's the gift giving season, I will give you the gift of my current playlist. I know, I'm so generous.

1. Supermassive Black Hole, by Muse
Sometimes a song just makes you feel like a superhero. This is one of those. Seriously, it comes on when I'm walking down the street and I feel like I can conquer anything. Needless to say, I have to put this one on at work a lot.

2. Are You There, from Bare
Any song sung by Matt Doyle is amazing in my book. There's just something so uplifting about this song, in which two very different people connect over sharing similar feelings of confusion and doubt. The song is beautifully composed and wonderfully sung. It also happens to be my current ringtone.

3. Cathedrals, by Jump Little Children
This song is so haunting. The sweet, simple melody and the poignant lyrics make it something I could listen to a million times and more. I've been working on playing it on the guitar and piano this week, and I think I've just about got it right.

4. All My Bells Are Ringing, by Lenka
I love non-traditional Christmas songs. Don't get me wrong, I will always prefer some O Holy Night or Silent Night, but you also need a little bit of upbeat Christmas goodness. Lenka's song has a great retro-vibe and makes me want to dance every single time.

5. Mannequin, by Britney Spears
Britney's back, y'all. I do love her entire Circus album, but for some reason this song sticks out me. I think that I'm noticing a vibe here at the end of this very short playlist. I like dancing songs. While Lenka's is great for Christmas, I feel like I will be doing a lot of champagne-induced moves to Britney on New Year's Eve.

That's it for now. Be prepared for several new posts in the next few days, because I'm only 8 away from hitting my goal of 100 before 2009!

My "Christmasy" Christmas Eve Post

My dear friend Sam asked me to do a guest post over on her blog today, so in lieu of double-posting my Christmas Eve sentiments, I will just link you on over to the post I did at The RubyTurtleHippieTimes.

Oh, and it's T-minus 4 hours until the greatest holiday of the year. Get excited!

When did Christmas get so close?!

I apologize for my sub-par blog posts lately. It's just that there's been a whirlwind of activity leading up to the holidays and just no time to get my thoughts in order.

I do think there are a few important things to point out, though.

1. I am at my mom's in Tennessee for the first stop on my Christmas vacation. Then I'm off to Paris after Christmas.
2. You know that earlier post -- the one about what I wanted for Christmas? Well, I got my #1. Sort of. Mom got me an Edward action figure. Oh heck yes. It's quite possibly the nerdiest thing ever, but too funny at the same time.
3. Speaking of Twilight, I am currently in the game room watching my bootleg DVD of it with my mom and stepdad. I don't think either of them will like it -- Mom, because it's "scary" and Monty because it's a teenage love story. Oh well.
4. I might actually have New Year's plans that involve me being in Norman. Nothing's finalized yet, so I won't get my hopes up too high, but Jordan and I have a plan in the works.
5. There are two things here that get a lot more of a workout when I'm home than otherwise -- my dog, Bridget, and the piano. I have probably spent 5 hours on the keyboard already, and nearly as much playing with the pup. Oh, how I love vacations.

I'll be back with a real blog post soon. Promise! And it will be BEFORE Christmas -- which just happens to be four days away. Whoa.

You watch me, just watch me...

Read this:
http://mattdoyleweb.blogspot.com/2008/12/last-night.html


Yeah, I was there. And I did the crazy fan-at-the-stagedoor thing. And I still love his voice more than anyone I've ever heard sing.

FREEDOM!

I'm about 40 minutes away from Christmas vacation. I do have to work from home on Monday/Tuesday, but it's a little different when I'm in the comforts of my mom's house instead of in the office. I don't really have time for a thought-provoking insightful post, so here's more linkage and video!

OU people, if you haven't seen this yet... Well, there are no words really.





And I'm in love with this guy:

Can it just be Christmas yet?

We're obviously working very hard. Clearly, Christmas break needs to get here soon.

In case you were wondering, here's what we're discussing.

Also... this makes me smile:

Gabriella Van der Vyer

Some really fun things have happened in the last 24 hours, y'all.

Let's begin with the scene I caused in the middle of our Christmas party last night. Even though I had it set to be recorded, I really wanted to see the announcement of the Heisman winner live. So we paused our revelries to watch the last 10 minutes, and boy was it worth it. We're all in silence as the envelope is opened, followed by a lot of screams and cheers coming from yours truly after the name Sam Bradford was announced. Everyone kind of stared at me like I had gone crazy, but I wasn't worried.

There aren't a whole lot of details to share about the party otherwise. I mean, it was full of baked goods, wine and champagne, and "put your chin on the table." Yeah, that about sums it up. We might have even watched part of Elf sometime in there.

Today was Christmas shopping day with Justin and Jericho. We met up this afternoon in Chinatown and set off on a knock-off expedition. Sadly, their 9-room purse emporium had been shut down since last weekend (oopsy!), so we had to settle for following enthusiastic salesmen/women into nondescript storefronts. The decision had been made well in advance that we were absolutely not climbing into any vans.

With a little background knowlege on good fakes and a lot of bargaining skills, we ended up hitting the jackpot. I got a very good-looking Chanel 2.55 bag that I will proudly be rocking this holiday. Hmm, I probably shouldn't have announced that it's fake on the internet. Oh well, I'm not concerned. I really wanted to find some black Ray-Ban Wayfarers, but I had no luck there. I even busted out a photo of Rob Pattinson at the MTV Movie Awards on my phone to show the salespeople.

Speaking of RPattz, there was another great purchase I made in Chinatown: High School Musical 3, Australia, oh and TWILIGHT on DVD. Too bad it won't let me fast forward, because if so I'd be watching the baseball scene over and over and over again. And that part where he's rocking the Wayfarers in the parking lot. But I digress...

Our next adventure took us beyond Chinatown down to the Young Designers Showcase in SoHo. This is basically a bunch of trunk shows piled into one gymnasium-style room. The talent in this place was sensational, and they made everything from hand-stitched pillows to crazy "Project Runway" style fashion to the most gorgeous jewelry I've ever seen to really random crap. I picked up a few Christmas gifts, along with a great hat/headband type thing for myself that I simply fell in love with and could not pass up.

Around this point in time is when Justin and Jericho revealed to me that they (along with our friend Christa) had decided yesterday that we needed alter egos. These characters are the much wealthier, highly entitled and somewhat snooty versions of ourselves that can be implemented when shopping at high-end realtors. (Or whenever the mood strikes, really.) Their names are Kennedy Vaughn, Duncan McDougal and Anastasia Beaverhausen - yes, it is a Will & Grace reference. Now, my first name was chosen for me during an earlier discussion from which I was absent. They picked Gabriella because, "It just sounds bad ass. It suits you." After a little research and brainstorming, Gabriella No-Last-Name became Gabriella Van der Vyer. I know, you're jealous of how awesome we are.

So Kennedy, Duncan, Gabriella and our friend who doesn't have an alter ego then went for dinner at Little Italy. And by dinner, I of course mean some random pasta dish and lots of sangria. Gotta go big or go home.

There was one final stop on this holiday express, and that was the Union Square Holiday Market, which is basically tents set up around the square where they sell all kinds of crazy crap. Some of it is quite strange, and some of it is straight up awesome. Since we had already done considerable damage to our pocketbooks at this point, we didn't spend quite as much time here, but it was still a lot of fun to peruse.

Now I'm kicked back, blogging, Facebooking and watching Twilight in the comfort of my apartment that happens to smell like Henri Bendel's "Holiday" and "Winter Spruce" candles, aka the best scents in the world. I'm also fantasizing about the fact that only four days of work stand between me and kicking off my winter holiday.

Let's talk about our feelings.

Or, more specifically, since this is my blog, let's talk about MY feelings.

A) Excited
There are two very good reasons for this feeling. First, I am going to the Apple store today to get my Christmas present - an iPhone! Prepare to hear me speaking in my "iPhone voice" all Christmas break. You love it. The second reason is that in one week I will be at my mom's house for the first half of my holidays.

B) Annoyed
I think it's a good sign that I need a break when everything around here starts to annoy me. I honestly am not feeling annoyed at this particular moment; however, it has cropped up a lot this week. However, if you know me, you know the best way for me to cure a bad mood. Last night I checked another Broadway show off my list, "All My Sons."

C) Nostalgic
This is solely due to the fact that Jordan did his annual "reflection on the last year of my life" post on his blog today and I just finished reading it. But it did make me think about how much things have changed from January 1st until now.

D) Christmas-y
Come on, y'all. It's the most wonderful time of the year. How could I not be in a Christmas spirit?!

Let's also talk about the fact that in order to hit and/or surpass 100 posts, I need 14 more. Totally doable, as long as I don't forget while my brain is shut down over break and I'm not looking for distractions. So maybe I'll do a little double duty this next week as a precaution.

P.S. How awesomely creepy are those pictures?

Stupid narcissist.

I have another rant - completely unrelated to my feminist/politics discussion just a few minutes ago - brewing in my head right now. However, since it is about specific person, it's probably best not broadcast over blogspot.

That's all. I feel a little better now.

It's my inalienable right to post this blog. :)

I've been so full of Christmas cheer lately, but now for something completely different:

I am not, and never will be, a feminist.

I care about equal rights for all people - regardless of race, gender, age, or creed. However, I am not a feminist. I am a woman, but women's rights aren't an issue that gets me riled up. I'm not hot and bothered over abortion law. It's not the most important thing that needs to be upheld/reformed (depending on your view), at least not in my opinion.

Because that's the key to my view on the beauty of America. We have the ability to choose our own beliefs. We can think what we want, whether our beliefs are based in faith, family tradition, "facts", what the media says, being too lazy to care, or whether we like a particular public figure's persona.

That's what America is about. Both sides of things call the other "closed-minded", but I really think that the people throwing that term around are the most closed-minded of all. I wish they would stop preaching from their soapboxes and understand that both opinions are valuable and deserve to be taken with a little perspective. Engage in discussion, but don't discount the other side wholly - and don't belittle them as a person just for disagreeing.

Though I suppose that their right to be smug, self-righteous and condescending goes along with all the other freedoms we have as American. So disagree with me, if you would like. Please do; it's your right.

All I want for Christmas...

I feel like since Christmas is just over two weeks away, I should probably fill you guys in on my wish list. I mean, that way you have time to scour the stores to find the best deals. Here are my top three Christmas wishes:

3.




















2.















1.



















Thanks in advance. I mean, I have been so good this year. And just remember:

OMFG.

Y'all, this is serious. OU's going to the 'ship.

Tonight, as usual, I watched the game at the OU Club's designated bar, The Press Box. Lauren and I met up super early to guarantee that we would have a table upstairs for the Big XII Championship.

That game was mind-blowing. OU is officially the first team in NCAA history to score 60+ points in five straight games. Suck on that, Texas.

The energy in the place was great. I think my favorite part was the two guys who were battling it out over which one got to yell "BOOMER" first after we scored.

No, no... wait. The best part was, toward the end when "Boomer Sooner, Boomer Sooner, Boomer Sooner" was followed by "Florida Sucks."

Now for Saturday, let's hope the voters pull through for Sammy B. And then it's off to party in the city where the heat is on. Boomer Sooner, everybody.

A little bit random.

A few things I'm currently loving:

1. Britney's new CD - It's all great, but I especially enjoy "Blur" and "Mannequin."
2. Sour Patch Kids - The yellow ones are my favorite.
3. Robert Pattinson's singing voice - It's definitely not expected. There's something gritty about it that I really love.
4. The weather in NYC - The cold is my friend, when I'm bundled. As long as the rain stays away while I'm outdoors.
5. August: Osage County - I saw it last night and it was seriously the best play I've ever seen.
6. The Christmas spirit - I haven't grimaced at a tourist all week.
7. Festive nail polish - By this, I don't mean snowflakes and trees drawn on. I mean, deep reds and greens.
8. Counting down the days until I get to go home for the holidays! Not counting today, 13 days (only 9 work days)!

I've decided I want to hit 100 posts by the new year. This one is #80, so expect a little less than a post-a-day between now and then. It's Christmas-Blog-a-Palooza! Sure, I might sacrifice content, but it's not like I'm going for a Pulitzer here.

I've regressed to 7th grade.

I think my mind is rebelling against adulthood by making me think like a 14-year-old schoolgirl. That's the only explanation I can come up with for some of my recent interests. I mean, Jonas Brothers... really?

And Twilight. Why do I love it so much? It's embarrassing, really. But, my friends are enablers to my addiction, so at least I'm not in it alone. I really shouldn't have downloaded the soundtrack, though. I had no idea Rob Pattinson could sing, and now I'm even more infatuated. Sick.

At least Zac Efron isn't the background for my work computer anymore.

Christmas is in fashion.

You guys. Ashanti stole my look.
I totally have (and rock) that hat. Though you'd never catch me in boots or a coat that hideous. I wore my awesome beanie to the Rockefeller Center tree lighting tonight. Four hours in the cold to see some sparkly lights... so worth it.

Fabulosity.

My good friend Sam gave me the "Your Blog is Fabulous" award! I must say that this fact should go without saying, without an award, but I'm fully appreciative that someone else acknowledges my fabulosity. Haha, she's known it for years. So now I have to list 5 of my fabulous addictions and then pass it on to five others.


1. Headbands
Not just any headbands will steal my heart. It takes something fabulous, typically from the magical hair accessory department at Henri Bendel's. I love them all, particularly the ones with bows, sparkles, and big accents that sit to the side. I got four new ones this weekend - though all but one is wrapped up for Christmas.

2. "The theatahhh..."
It's an awesome predicament when there are no shows left on TDF that I haven't seen that I'm remotely interested in. I have a huge collection of Playbills stacked up from this season, and I'm not done yet. Next up is Pal Joey, Billy Elliot, Vanities, 9 to 5, West Side Story, Guys and Dolls, Hair, Shrek, and a couple of plays I still haven't seen, like August and All My Sons.

3. Christmas, the whole thing.
The music is blaring from the week before Thanksgiving until New Year's Eve. And I have quite the collection. The decorations go up promptly at Thanksgiving, if not before. Nativity scenes and snowglobes are my favorites, which is the extent of my decorations in the apartment this year, sadly enough. Shopping might have to be cut down a little bit this year, but I'm going to make up for that with sight-seeing! I can't wait for the Rockefeller Tree Lighting, White Christmas the Musical, the Gay Men's Chorus Holiday Spectacular, ice skating, and all the decorations around the city.

4. Amazing perfumes
I have a thing for scents. I mean, it's the strongest sense tied to memory, which is saying something. I have quite the formidable perfume collection, though it's been so long since I've replenished it that it's dwindling rapidly. My current favorites are Bond No. 9 Bryant Park and West Side, Miss Cherie Dior, and the one I'm getting for Christmas, Miss Charming from the Juliette Has a Gun line.

5. Gossip Girl and the New York fan mentality.
Just click here and here, no further explanation required.

Now it's my turn to bestow the award on 5 people. So I'm going to go with... Megan, Leslie, Katie, Cherilyn, and Virginia.