09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 23

Sunday. Monopoly with Nick. My 9-year-old nephew kicked my ass at Monopoly today. I'm not ashamed to say I let him win. At one point during the game, he told me proudly that once he buys all 4 Railroads, he is unbeatable. That is his formula for victory, and he's never lost. He even generously offered me the better end of a trade because he was so sure he was going to win. The thing of it is, he couldn't possibly beat me because while he had soooooo much cash, I had all the buildings. So, when he was in the bathroom, I slipped him a few extra hundreds and when I landed on Park Place, I didn't buy it because, I said, I was unwilling to mortgage any property. So eventually he won. He was very sweet, telling me of all the grown ups he's ever played, I gave him the hardest time.

Sunday Stealing

Sunday Stealing: Jodi's Meme

INSTRUCTIONS: Using only song names from ONE ARTIST, cleverly answer these questions. Try not to repeat a song title. It's a lot harder than you think! Post as "Jodi's Meme: My Life According to (BAND/ARTIST NAME)" The great thing is that if you have already done this meme, you can do it again with a different artist! Please do!

MY LIFE ACCORDING TO THE LADS FROM LIVERPOOL

-Are you a male or female? Girl

-Describe yourself: Baby's in Black

-How do you feel right now? Cry, Baby, Cry

-If you could go anywhere, where would you go? Octopus' Garden

-Your favorite form of transportation Yellow Submarine

-Describe Your Morning Routine: Twist & Shout

-Your best friend is The Fool on the Hill

-What's the weather like? Good Day, Sunshine

-Pet Peeve? You Never Give Me Your Money

-If your life was a TV show, what would it be called? She Came in Through the Bathroom Window

-Your relationship? For No One

-Your Fear? Maxwell's Silver Hammer

-What is the best advice you have to give? All You Need Is Love

-If you could change your name, you would change it to Michelle

-What do you say when you are frustrated? I'm a Loser

-Thought for the day: Got to Get You Into My Life

-How you would like to die? Happiness Is a Warm Gun

-Your soul's present condition: Norwegian Wood

-Your motto We Can Work It Out

About Inglourious Basterds

I enjoyed this movie as I was watching it, but I won't see it again and again and again as I do Pulp Fiction. Because while Tarantino's earlier work rocks my world and stimulates my imagination, Inglourious Basterds encourages my blood lust. It's like a hot one night stand that's fun while it lasts, but you don't like yourself very much the morning after.

At the heart of this funny and well made movie is the revenge Jewish vigilantes perpetrate against Nazis. Brad Pitt's talented and vicious little band isn't in France to capture Nazis and bring them to justice. Their goal is to, literally, scalp them. There is a subplot about a young woman whose family is killed by the Nazi's terrifying Jew Hunter. I don't want to spoil the movie for anyone, but I felt especially guilty about rooting for her revenge as I did.

I'd call the Nazis "animals," but that would be unfair to animals. Their cruelty and viciousness is almost unfathomable. While it makes them very good screen villains, and easy targets, all these years later, we should be careful never to emulate them and cheer for atrocity against them. Atrocities are soul-numbing, regardless of who the victims are. That's what bothers me about Inglourious Basterds -- I feel as though I took leave of my humanity for two hours.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 22

Saturday. We found each other. The animal shelter that was once home to two of my cats was sponsoring an adoption event at the local Petco. I looked at all those sweet kitties and I felt my heart grow a couple sizes. Partly because I longed to take them all home with me, and partly because I feel so lucky that the cats I adopted from that shelter -- Joey and Charlotte -- came into my life. I love my big old tub of guts and my little diva so much.

If you're grateful for the furry friends in your life, it will make you happy to make a contribution to your local shelter or to the ASPCA. In this economy, charities are hit hard. Summer is especially trying for animal shelters because they have so many puppies and kittens, combined with the dogs and cats that are turned in because their owners can no longer afford them. It's a heartbreaking situation -- and it makes me just that much more grateful that I can give my cats love and stability.

Don't know why, but I gots to have it

Back to Black came out a couple years ago, and yet suddenly, I can't hear it enough. Specifically this song.

"He walks away,
The sun goes down,
He takes the day but I'm grown.
And it's OK,
In this blue shade,
My tears dry on their own …"

Yes, she's a hot mess. But she's so great.

Saturday 9

Saturday 9: I Ran

1. When's the last time you ran? One afternoon last week I ran up the stairs to the platform to catch the Green Line el train. I made it!

2. Do your jeans have rips, tears, and holes in them? My weekend playclothes jeans are rather worn around the seams. But my work clothes are in good shape.

3. What are you dreading right now? The return of The New Mom. She's my most difficult coworker, and it's been so nice at the office when she's been on maternity leave.

4. Do you like Mexican food? No. Because spicy food doesn't like me, if you know what I'm saying here.

5. Favorite ice cream? Mint chocolate chip.

6. When was your last doctor's visit? I saw my shrink last Thursday and I go to the dermatologist next Tuesday.

7. Do you get the full 8 hours of sleep a night? Not usually, but I did last night.

8. How many pets do you have? I share my home with three absolutely fabulous felines.

9. "First Loves Are Never Over;" is this true for you? No. I'm very over my first love. Unless we're talking about Paul McCartney, who I love as much today as I did when I was six years old and I first saw The Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show.

To play yourself, click here.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 21

Friday. Little Women. Tonight I watched the 1990s Winona Ryder version. I prefer the Katharine Hepburn version, of course, but this is lovely, too. Book, movie, or musical, my favorite scene is always at the end, when the professor proposes to Jo from under the umbrella.

Under Each Other's Skin

My best friend and I have hit a stormy patch. I won't go into gory detail, but here's the dynamic in a nutshell: One of us does something to annoy the other;* somehow it escalates and I get more emotional and he gets more withdrawn and soon something that should be nothing has become a painful rift.

This has happened to us three or four times over the last five years. The physical distance between us (I'm here in Chicago, he's in Denver) exacerbates problems and makes them harder to resolve, of course, but the fact is that we're just gifted at pressing one another's buttons.

As I was spinning out of control, infuriated beyond reason by his sullen pouting, he finally addressed what was going on between us, saying that when the more I "push," the more he wants to "dig in his heels" and resist.

But "everything is fine between us and I am not mad at you. Sometimes frustrated, but never mad. And don't you feel the same about me?"

Yes, yes, I most certainly do. He went on to say that when something is important to me, no matter what, he's there. Yes, yes, he certainly is. I will always be there for him, too.

I just wish we could act like the responsible adults we are (at least in other aspects of our lives) and not drive each other crazy like this. I pray that we never go too far. Strong though the bond between us is, I don't want to test it. I can't imagine my life without him.


* In this case, he started it. I know it shouldn't matter, but it does.

This isn't the year

Today the Cubs were sold to the Ricketts Family. I don't care, really, except that it's given me an opportunity to reflect on what they are buying ... and I think it's time for me to admit that my Boys in Blues aren't going to three-peat as the Division Champions. They may not even make the play offs.

If I make peace with that now, the next few weeks will be easier. From here on, even if I'm not watching a team in contention, I am enjoying healthy men in tight white pants playing an entertaining game under the sun (or lights). What's not to love about that?

Go, Cubs, Go!

09 August Happines Challenge -- Day 20

Thursday. Maggie. She's the coworker who gave me a ride home from today's downstate client presentation. It was great to chat with her. She's an independent contractor -- not an agency employee. She's filling in for a coworker who has been on maternity leave. Since the new mom returns to work on Monday, we'll still have Maggie for two more weeks as she helps the new mom transition back.

It's been great to have Maggie here. Not only because she's neat in her own right, but because the new mom can be a real pill. Maggie gave me insights into the new mom that will help me deal with her when we have to work together going forward.

I don't like the new mom any more today than I did months ago when she left for maternity leave. But I don't have to like her. We aren't going to date, we're going to work together. The insights Maggie shared will make it easier for me to maintain my professionalism.

Naturally I had a big presentation today

This morning, as I was getting ready for today's big client presentation, I lost a tooth. It just popped off. Fortunately it was a porcelain crown, so there's no pain. It was embarrassment I was worried about. I didn't want to look like Hillbilly Gal as I stood at the head of the conference table, presenting new ways to excite consumers about investing in mutual funds while I had a conspicuous hole in my smile.

Since the tooth is lower left, towards the back, it doesn't show when I talk. The crown is now safely in a little blue case along with my teeth whitening tray. Hopefully my dentist will be able to just affix it back in place.

In the meantime, I suppose I should be glad that the presentation went off without a hitch, and grateful that life throws these little curves at me so I'm never bored.

I'd like to think this is true

You Are Humor

You love to laugh at life, and if possible, get others to laugh along with you. You believe there's always a humorous side to everything. And your sense of humor ranges from upbeat to very dark. You are outrageous and very honest. You're often the only one willing to say what everyone else is thinking. You are witty and verbally talented. You like to play with words and say things in interesting ways.

What Kind of Book Are You?

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 19

Thursday. The Beatles: Rock Band. I saw a preview on MTV and am so impressed. Not only because of the quality (it shows them in an updated but delightfully trippy Yellow Submarine kinda way, and the songs come from the original masters), but because it means that the Lads remain relevant and are being embraced by ever younger fans. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I think this is a good thing

Elmo, Sesame Street's most giggly spokesmonster, is going through some tough economic times. His mommy has lost her job.

Elmo's daddy is still working. But because money is tight, the family will have to cut back -- eating meals at home instead of at restaurants. A trip to the pirate amusement park is out, and movie night has become game night. But the message of Families Stand Together: Feeling Secure in Tough Times, an excellent program airing next month on PBS, is that Elmo's situation is not unusual, especially with the jobless rate expected to top 10 percent before the end of the year.

Presenting unemployment as a rather common occurrence will de-stigmatize it for kids and make it easier for parents to discuss finances with the whole family in a way they'll understand. For the rest of the article, click here.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 18

Tuesday. Mommy's home! My mom was on vacation with my kid sister's family from the 8th through the 15th. We have spoken to one another's voice mail, but tonight was the first time we got to talk in real time. She updated me on my niece and nephew, who we agree are completely fantastic kids. I updated her on the goings-on in my life. I am glad she was feeling well enough to go on this trip, but I missed her and I'm glad she's back.

Me and Brooooooce

I mentioned this incident in a recent post about my most memorable moments, and several commenters asked me to elaborate. So here goes:

Back in 1981, Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band kept criss-crossing the country, promoting The River. "Hungry Heart" was a hit and he was selling out progressively bigger halls. My friends and I had seen him in Chicago but we couldn't get close enough to the stage for our liking. So we scored good tickets for nearby Indianapolis (they were easier to get in a smaller market), rented a car, blew off work after lunch and hit the road.

We were in our work clothes when we arrived at Market Square Arena's "will call" window to pick up our tickets. Five girls in skirts and heels. As we were walking back to our car, we saw ... HIM. Broooooce! Riding in the passenger seat of a car, leaving the arena after the afternoon soundcheck. We all spontaneously raced after his car, completely unable to catch it (high heels and handbags). He laughed and waved.

Some roadies thought we were cute and asked us if we wanted to party with Bruce. Ah, yeah! They told us which hotel everyone connected with the tour was staying at, and told us to ask for "The Stanley Kowalski Suite." They'd meet us there.

Naturally after the concert we raced to the hotel. We found we couldn't get near "The Stanley Kowalski Suite" unless we had a roomkey. So we checked in and, armed with our roomkeys, wandered the halls until we found the party. When we got to the Security checkpoint we pretended to be affiliated with the tour, and Security pretended to believe us.

Once we were in .... Ah! The bathtub was filled with ice and bottles of champagne. There were platters of food everywhere. I got to meet Gary Tallent, Clarence Clemmons and ... BROOOOOCE! He was a little drunk and very happy. He told us he remembered us from the arena parking lot, "You were all dressed up like you just left a building or somethin'." I was flattered that we made an impression, but a little disappointed.

I mean, this was the man who wrote, "Show a little faith, there's magic in the night." I wanted to hear something poetic or profound!

I somehow found myself alone in conversation with him and he didn't disappoint. We talked about something that was still very much on both of our minds: John Lennon's murder just three months prior. I asked Bruce if he'd ever met John and he said no, but he was so thrilled that John had mentioned him in one of the last interviews. Bruce said he didn't know John was even aware of his existence, and to read that Lennon was a fan of "Hungry Heart" meant so much to him. He could tell that I was a still sad and shocked Beatle fan and patted my hand. "If it wasn't for John, we'd be somewhere different tonight, huh?" Meaning we both rocked tonight -- Bruce onstage, me in the audience -- because of John. It was very sweet, perceptive and true. Then Bruce got swept away by other, more raucous partygoers.

At the end of the night, he stood at the door like pastor at the end of church, thanking all the guests for coming to the party and for their contribution to the tour. He knew we didn't belong there, but he was very gracious. Very drunk and very gracious. Like a big brother he asked us if we got enough to eat and if we had a good time. I complained that here I had partied with world-famous rockers but hadn't done anything to regret.

"I'll fix that," said Bruce and .... oh my God ... he took me in his arms, dipped me back (the only man who has ever done this), and ... oh my God ... KISSED ME! Alas, no tongue. He smelled and tasted of beer ... and that's all right with me.

That was March 5, 1981.

The Queen's Meme #5

Completed because I am "terminally single." And because Mimi is my Queen and she told me to.

#6 The Bachelor's Dating Meme

Are you up for the challenge? Take a look at these seven dating profile headlines from real dating sites. Imagine you are trying to find a date and these gems have just landed in your inbox. How would you respond to them? Write a comeback response to each one. Be sarcastic, be funny, be brave! Spelling errors not my own. Names and locations have been changed to protect the terminally single.

1. Birdbrain looking for a mate. Good luck with that.

2. Where Are All The Bad Girls? I don't know. I stopped being any type of "girl" approximately 30 years ago.

3. A Good Woman Is Hard To Fine. That's because we commit no major infractions.

4. Does God Know You've Escaped From Heaven? Yes. Before I left He warned me to avoid men like you.

5. I Put the Fun in DysFUNctional. Then you're probably a relative of mine and we shouldn't intermingle.

6. Does this profile make me look fat? No, but it does make you appear trite.

7. I'm a no nonsince person with little tolorrance for stupitity. Congratulations. You have left me speechless. That's very hard to do. Please accept your parting gift on the way out.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 17

Monday. Big Mac. I haven't had one in ages! A QP w/cheese is fewer calories, so if I'm at McDonald's that's now what I order. But it's not the same as two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions on a sesame seed bun. I grabbed one this evening at the train station and snarfed it down on the way home. Sigh. If loving you is wrong, I don't want to be right. (I'm still within my 1890-calorie limit.)

Give Me Five Monday

I haven't played this one in ages! This week's theme:

GIVE ME FIVE
MEMORABLE THINGS
YOU HAVE DONE

Here they are, listed in terms of recency.

1) Was in Grant Park for the Obama Rally on Election Night. An inspiring historical event, experienced with thousands of positive, joyous people. It was a privilege to participate.

2) Went to a play-off game in Wrigley Field. My family has been loyally supporting the Cubs for generations, but only I can make that claim!

3) Saw Paul McCartney in concert. OK, so I was too young to see The Beatles. I got to see MY Beatle.

4) Made my niece's dream come true. She was 6 or 7 and dreamed she found a store that carried nothing but Anastasia-themed toys, books, and puzzles. I bought up everything Anastasia I could find on eBay and laid it out around my living room like a store. Oh, her face when she came in the front door! How often does one person get to literally make another's come to life?

5) Been kissed by Bruce Springsteen, and yes, I got to kiss him back

To play along, and to see how others responded, click here.

Monday Movie Meme

This week's theme: FEAR

Share on your blog movies that caused you to hide under the covers and then link back here at The Bumbles.

Psycho. I've seen it so many times that I know exactly when the two big shock/horror scenes are coming (the shower scene, of course, and when the detective meets his demise). I also know that as we creep toward the end, when we finally meet Mom, I won't be frightened at all. And yet, when those two big shock/horror scenes come, I'm still scared pissless. I guess that's what makes Hitch the master.

Dressed to Kill. Brian de Palma's homage to Psycho takes the crucial elements, updates them, and also scares me pissless.

I almost included March of the Penguins, because I was so upset when that first, pudgy penguin died that I was on the edge of my seat for the whole rest of the movie, wondering which other cute tuxedo'd bird would get it next. Remember that shocking scene in the water, and how one of the mamas didn't make it back to feed her baby? Can you see why I'm in therapy?

It's gotta be Judy

This morning's Google Ad (at right) was publicizing a "Gay Man's Life Coach." It was quickly followed by "High Heels for Men." While I have dear friends of that persuasion, I haven't written about them recently. So I wondered what key word triggered these ads.

Then it hit me. Garland. Of course! My August "Get Happy!" girl is one of the great gay icons of all time.

She's also one of the great singers, actresses, performers and cautionary tales of all time. This pudgy, middle-aged heterosexual woman loves you, too, Judy.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 16

Sunday. Mad Men and Joey. Comfy on the sofa, watching the season premiere of my favorite show with my big ol' gray tomcat pressed tight beside me. Joey and I are the picture of contentment.

A whimsical investment in the future

My niece has spent much of this summer between her junior and senior years pursuing her career goal -- to be a chef. She's also a new generation Beatles fan. So, as I wandered the flea market at The Fest for Beatle Fans, I was tickled to find the perfect little tzotchke to show my support for her ambitions: an official Yellow Submarine cookie cutter.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 15

Saturday. Having the time. This weekend my oldest friend and I checked into the Hyatt O'Hare and spent Saturday/Sunday at The Fest for Beatle Fans. I don't know how many times she and I have attended this fan convention, but it's a safe to say we have been together at this fest longer than the Beatles were together as a band. It's appropriate that we attend this together because we bonded over the Beatles back when we were first graders in Mrs. Krach's class. This year, though, it wasn't really so much about The Lads. For she's been struggling with health and life issues that have been troubling us both. There were things I was reluctant to say before yesterday because I wanted us to have the time and privacy to understand one another -- her to share more of how she feels, me to make sure she understood I was not criticizing but instead trying to help. It was emotional and tiring, but I feel better. More importantly, I hope she feels better, too.

From one daughter to another, "Atta, Girl!"

Maria Shriver's eulogy of her mother, delivered with Eunice's coffin before her and her brothers behind her, made me mist up a little. And I don't mist easily. But this was well written and universal, and like Maria I'm almost 52 and facing the fact of my own mother's mortality.


Here are excerpts, courtesy of boston.com:


Over the past few days, our mother has been called everything from a saint, to a pioneer, to a trailblazer, to a true original, to a civil rights advocate of legendary proportions, to a force of human nature who more than held her own in a family of highly competitive, high-achieving men. She was indeed a transformative figure.

But to her five children -- Mark, Bobby, Timmy, and Anthony -- to all of us, she was simply, "Mummy."

Mummy was our hero. She was scary smart and not afraid to show it. She was tough, but also compassionate. Driven, but also really fun and funny. Competitive, but also empathetic. Restless and patient. Curious and prayerful.

She liked to hang with the guys, but all her heroes -- except for her brother Jack -- were women.

… She had five kids who adored her and loved to be with her, and you have the ultimate role model. Mummy was all of our best friends, and it was an honor for all of us to be her children, and a special privilege for me to be her daughter.

Now that's not to say it was always easy being her kid, because she wasn't exactly like any other mother you'd ever seen. As a young girl, I didn't actually know how to process her appearance much at the time, because most of the mothers were dressed up and neatly coiffed. Mummy wore men's pants, she smoked Cuban cigars, and she played tackle football.

She would come to pick us all up at school in her blue Lincoln convertible, her hair would be flying in the wind, there usually would be some pencils or pens in it. The car would be filled with all these boys and their friends and their animals. She'd have on a cashmere sweater with little notes pinned to it to remind her of what she needed to do when she got home. And more often than not, the sweater would be covering a bathing suit, so she could lose no time jumping into the pool to beat us all in a water polo game. Needless to say, when the nuns would announce her arrival, I would try to run for cover.

Mummy, when she wasn't trying to beat each of us in a game of tennis or on the football field, you could usually find her at Mass with our father, praying or working. And I mean really working. She was, as you all know, determined to change the world for people with intellectual disabilities, and she did, and you had no choice but to join her in her mission, which took all of us from our backyard to every state in this nation and just as many countries around the world. Our mother never rested, she never stopped; she was momentum on wheels. She was focused, relentless, and she got the job done.

Today when I close my mind, and I'm sure this goes for my brothers as well and we think about our mother, we see her clapping her hands and cheering us all on in everything we did. I see her encouraging me to beat my brothers in tennis. I see her moving my books from the back of the bookstore to the front of the bookstore, and when the manager would call and tell her she couldn't do that, she'd tell him to go right back behind the desk where he belonged and be quiet. I hear her when I would call her on the phone.

Mummy was indeed a trailblazer. She showed up in her life as herself, and that takes courage. She took adversity and turned it into advantage. Inspired by the rejection she saw many women face, especially her sister Rosemary and her mother, and other mothers of special children, she turned that into her life's focus and her life's passion and mission. Her own brand of what I'd call maternal feminism. She believed 100 percent in the power and the gifts of women to change the language, the tempo, and the character of this world. Her heroes were the Virgin Mary, Mother Teresa, Dorothy Day, her own mother, her sister Rosemary. All of whom in her eyes had already done that, and she would always challenge each of us to do the same. You will, she said, you must, you can.

If she were here today and speaking here -- and I think we all wish she were -- she would pound this podium, she would quote Teilhard de Chardin, and ask each of you what you have done today to better the world. She would tell you stories about her special friends and what they have accomplished, and she would ask each and every one of you to join her in making this world a more tolerant, just, and compassionate place. She would end by talking about her own family, how grateful she was to her parents and to her brothers and sisters, all of whom she absolutely adored. She'd tell you how proud she was of Sargent, and then she'd tell you how proud she was of each of us.

And she would tell you about each thing each of us did, and she'd ask you for money, for all four of our brothers who run non-profits they'll probably ask you later, but she would ask you. So on behalf of them -- [pointing to each of her brothers] Save the Children, Bread, Best Buddies, Special Olympics -- and then she would remind all of you that you hadn�t done enough and there was much more to do, and you would leave this church simply in awe of her.

Mummy was indeed a towering figure. I'm sure everybody in this church has a story about her, a story that would make you laugh, make you cry, a story that would make you roll your eyes at her audacity and her brilliance. She was the real deal, a woman who did everything women aspired to. She had a great husband, she had a great family, a deep, deep faith in God, and she combined that with being a fearless warrior for the voiceless. I am so thrilled, as I know my brothers are, that people all over the world are hearing about her this week, in editorials and on television, because they need to hear stories about individuals like Mummy.

She let all the different parts of her go out, and that's what made her unique. She didn't allow herself to be tamed, or contained. She achieved herself, her true authentic self. The very same woman who made grown men quake in their boots when she stepped foot on Capitol Hill was the very same woman who spent quality time with each and every one of us, making us feel loved, making us believe in our self. She spent quality time with each of those grandchildren you saw here on this altar, building sandcastles, looking for leprechauns, looking for mermaids. She didn't choose between being strong and soft, complex or simple.

As her story goes out this week, I believe that she will become a new torchbearer for women of our time, sending a new message. That you don't have to be a certain way, you don't have to fit a stereotype, that over your life you can have a full, complete, spiritual life -- a life that is about others and a life that is about family. Her story, I believe, teaches that women are complex and they can live out every simple, single aspect of that complexity.

In closing, let me say that in the last few years of her life, I found Mummy to be almost more awe-inspiring than in her 85 years. She who never sat still was forced to confront stillness, and it was hard for her, but she never complained and she never asked for pity. She fought, and she fought, and she fought, right up until her very last breath.

Over the years, all of us learned so much from her, by listening to her, by watching her, and this past year, I learned from her as well. As she softened, she gave me permission to do the same. As she sat still, she taught me how important that is in one's life. She taught us that real strength can also be found in real vulnerability, and that it's OK -- even important -- to lean on those who love you.

To be honest, I think it's impossible for each of us to think about our life without Mummy. It's interesting, as we've talked amongst us the last couple of days, each of us felt like an only child. Each of us felt as though our mother was our best friend. Each of us talked to her every day, and sometimes more than once. And of course, I think if I said to my mother, which I often did, "I can't go on without you, I don't know how to live without you," she'd say, "You're fine, I've raised you well, now get out there, I don't want to hear one more yip, get going, your brothers will be nice to you."

And so I will, we all will, get up and get going.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 14

Friday. 17 freaking runs! Today the Cubs ended their losing streak in the most explosive way, beating the Pirates 17-2. D Lee got 7 RBIs, and he didn't even finish the game! Before the game, Lou Piniella warned us not to write off this season as "doom and gloom." Sweet Lou clearly knows what he's talking about. That makes me happy.

Aw, I love this movie.

I realize I'm a cult of one. The conventional wisdom about 1983's Romantic Comedy is that it's lightweight and glib, with a singularly unlikeable lead character. Whatever. I guess lightweight and glib lines mouthed by an unlikeable lead actor just appeal to me.

Mary Steenburgen plays Phoebe, a sweet, rumpled, diffident writer wanna-be who is teamed with Jason, a celebrated, sophisticated and egocentric playwright who has suddenly lost his touch when it comes to hitmaking. Played by Dudley Moore he is a bit of a pill, but that doesn't bother me because I suspect that successful and gifted playwrights probably are more than a little difficult to get along with.

Jason's agent hopes that having a writing partner will give his career a jumpstart, and it works. Phoebe and Jason go from being unlikely writing partners to close friends to a kind of heterosexual Will and Grace -- more than friends but less than lovers. As months turn to years, everyone can see they're in love but them. (Shades of Olivia and Elliott on SVU.) Unfortunately they never seem to be single at the same time. It's never illicit; one very sweet scene shows Jason's wife affectionately rubbing a sleepy Phoebe's feet because she fears her husband's other partner is cold. It's about fate and timing and romance and longing and I like it. If it happens to turn up on a cable channel near you some night, give it a try.

Things I hope to accomplish today!

My office closes at noon on Fridays in summer. Since I have given my "writer's roughs" to my art director and she needs more than just a few hours to work her magic -- and since I think she's lazy and she thinks I'm over the top "Type A" and we can't stand the sight of each other any more -- I have taken this morning off. Giving me a (drumroll, please) THREE DAY WEEKEND!

Here is what I wish to accomplish today:

• Laundry (don't laugh at my undies!)
• Grocery shopping
• Visit to the post office
• Pay bills
• A coffee shop lunch or brunch with my book (For the Thrill of It -- fascinating!)

Or I may end up just sitting on the sofa and farting around on the computer.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 13

Thursday. Free cookies. My admin always puts cookies outside her cubicle. God bless her. Some days I don't touch them. Some days I need a burst of energy, or to feel like I'm treating myself. Today it's lemon creme, so I took four.

Beautiful day, ugly game

Oh, my poor Cubs! My heroes in blue are on a skid and it makes me so sad. Sunny days like this should be celebrated with hot dogs, cold beer and a victory. Not the spanking we're getting today.

Oh well. We still have time to put together an awesome win streak and leave the Cardinals in the dust by season-end. I just wish there was a slaughter rule, or perhaps euthanasia, so we could put this Phillies game behind us and focus on the future already!

The newest magnet on my refrigerator door

Well I, on the other hand, think it's funny. 

Rockin' with AARP's cover boy

Weird, busy day at work and I have to keep my energy up. So I've declared this SPRINGSTEEN DAY in my office. As I was bopping along (in my deskchair -- I probably look like a hideous dweeb) to a live, bootleg version of "Raise Your Hand," I remembered that the Boss himself is waiting for me at home ... on the dining room table ... as he graces the cover of the new AARP magazine.

Bruce makes me think that 60 is the new 35.

09 August Happiness Challenge -- Day 12

Wednesday. My cellphone. I've finally got the hang of it! I worked late, and on the train ride home I checked my voicemail, my email and the Cub score (though the less we say about that, the better). I may be among the least tech-savvy people I know, but in this round of Gal vs. Machine, I reign supreme! (Though my DVD player is still mocking me ...)

It could mean everything, anything, or nothing

My boss (Mr. Big, shown at right) spent an hour behind closed doors with his boss (Fearless Leader). It's self-appraisal time again, so this caused me concern. I'm probably being silly. But since my office is only a couple doors down from Fearless Leader's, I can't help but notice.

Somebody misses her endorphin rush

I haven't been able to work out at lunchtime this week, and I've been too damn lazy to go in the evenings. Something's got to give, because I'm getting very short tempered. It's not hormones or depression, it's just plain grumpiness because I miss exercising.

Well, imagine that! I miss exercising! Isn't that something!