If They Can Do It So Can We: The Movie

I just saw Julie and Julia. Do you think someday, someone will make a movie out of our blog?

I hope we get Michael Bay.

Why We Are Friends

Though Leen and I have had several disagreements over the years, few have been so divisive as the Casey Novak v Alex Cabot debate. For those of you who don't know, Casey and Alex are fictional Assistant District Attorneys who prosecute the cases of the dedicated detectives of the Special Victims Unit on Law and Order, SVU. Alex Cabot served with dedication for nine years before a case involving a Colombian drug lord forced her into the witness protection program. Casey Novak was her replacement, and though Alex was a tough act to follow, Casey was as passionate and committed a public servant as ever worked at the District Attorney's office.

While I am completely head over heals for both of these characers, Leen has, for the past several months, insisted that Casey sucks. I feel that Casey's willingness to risk her career time and time again and to bend the rules in the name of justice make her a better attorney. It also got her disbarred, but that's besides the point. While my friendship with Leen has remained strong throughout the years, her constant comparisons of Casey to Alex, in which Casey always turned up short, touched a nerve. I was Casey Novak for Halloween last year, after all. It felt like Leen was telling me that I was not as badass as Alex Cabot. That all changed tonight, when Leen sent this message:

"Could Casey Novack be any cooler? ONLY if she was Alex Cabot"

You're coming around, Buddy, and I'm glad to see it. You have the right to remain compelled.

Update of the Month

I am going to go ahead and give this post the coveted title of "Update of the Month" in light of the fact that it will most likely be the only update of this month. Blogging is harder than I thought it would be.

I would like to take this opportunity to talk about technology's place in society. Clearly, no one has ever tried to tackle the subject of technology’s role in social interactions, and so you can add “trailblazer” to the list of my many accomplishments. I feel compelled to write this, however, after a drive to the beach with a friend who will remain unnamed. This friend offered to make the 30 minute drive to Irondequoit on the most perfect day for the beach I’ve seen this summer. He offered to go with three of his friends, people he chooses to interact with on a daily basis. However, on the drive there, he pulled out his iPhone at each stoplight to check face book (and other, less family friendly social networking sites) rather than communicating with his passengers. When asked why he felt compelled to do this, he claimed that he would have plenty of time to talk to us at the beach, and he felt no need to chit chat on the ride there. Of course, he was sort of joking when he said that, and after being mocked repeatedly for his iPhone addiction he put the phone down, and whipped out his Speedo.

Technology is great for helping people communicate. A friend who just moved to Maine to work on a farm keeps a blog about her farming experience that enables her to let her whole family know what is going on in her life. My mother is finally learning how to text, and so I’m sure I can look forward to many poorly written sentence fragments from her in the coming weeks. It concerns me, though, that so many people find impersonal interactions on devices like iPhones and Blackberries to be more fulfilling than a conversation with a friend about the woman in the car next to you who was just picking her nose at the red light. Are these people using technology as a way to make up for some kind of social anxiety, as a form of less stressful communication? Or has technology become an unnecessary crutch in the social interactions of people who would be just fine without it?

bootlace, bootleg, bootless, bootlick, bootneck?

Song: "Handle Me" by Robyn
Problem: Potential racial slur
Feelings: Mixed

In the song there is a hard to understand line, that to my ears sounded like "Boot-necked, Hispanic creep." I like to think of myself as being hip with all of the new slang, but boot-necked, was not an expression I was familiar with, which is why I wasn't sure that it was a racial slur. To my knowledge "Hispanic" isn't a slur, and "creep" while not a nice thing to say, doesn't typically apply to one group of people more than another. But for all I knew the combination of innocuous words like Hispanic and creep could become a fatal (and very rude) slur.

After searching urbandictionary.com I found out that boot-necked is an actual thing and it is: Royal Marine (British Special Forces). Known to each other as "Royal" but the rest of the British Forces know them as boot necks. This nickname is derived from them cutting the top from a leather boot and wearing it like a modern neck brace to stop sailors cutting their throat while they guarded officers on board British sailing ships in the days of old. This certainly doesn't have anything to do with Hispanic people.

Finally I caved and searched the various websites that have song lyrics on them. I put it off for a while because they are usually very unreliable. According to three such websites, the line is "Boot licking Nazi creep." In my defense, they blur the Nazi part because apparently you can't sing about fascists without being censored by fascists.


Song: "Handle Me" by Robyn
Problem: Censorship
Feelings: Mixed

the moment i've been waiting for

I've done some pretty exciting things in my life. I've seen great concerts, outstanding comedians, and even been known to stay home alone on a Friday night and watch Foyle's War in bed all night. It's a very glamorous life. However, the greatest night of my life is swiftly approaching and I didn't even know it until yesterday. On May 1st, 2009 one of my life goals will have been accomplished. I will be attending a Sound of Music sing-along at the Palace Theater in Albany, NY. You might wonder, Eileen, who is possibly qualified to host such a magical night? Well, I would tell you that the event is being hosted by Charmian Carr (Liesl von Trapp). You might ask, What actually happens at a Sound of Music sing-along? Where to begin? There will be costume contests, Julie Andrews look-a-likes, goodie bags, and I can finally watch a movie where it is ENCOURAGED that you shout at the screen and sing along with the songs. It will be heaven. To quote the Palace Theater website "the first rule of Sing-Along is THERE ARE NO RULES!" That's right buddy. Julie Andrews look-a-likes, goodie bags, singing, no rules.

not to sound petty but

...Eve 6's highest charting song was "Inside Out", which peaked at number 11 in 1998 on the Top 40. Third Eye Blind had two songs that reached number 1 on the Top 40, "Semi-charmed Life" and "Jumper" in 1997 and 1999 respectively.

I forget, did Third Eye Blind break-up, get back together with only two of the original three members, and only manage to write 2 new songs in 8 years?

Enough said.

In your face!

This weekend I will be reliving middle school. I know, I know. For young people across America, middle school is, was, and ever shall be the most uncomfortable period of an adolescent's life. Why would I want to relive such a time? Well, I will be reliving the good times that I had in middle school (which you were not there for, as we were in the midst of our friendship break) when I see Eve 6 on Saturday. They are playing for free, but I would be willing to pay up to $7 to see them perform.

Try to control your jealousy, and feel free to rub it in my face when Third Eye Blind plays at the Tulip Fest. Also, please note that I am including a photo with this post because I feel the need to compete with your giant Smartee pictures.