Undiscovered

October is here! I love this time of year. A few things ...

1) I also love James Morrison. Perfect songs to match any mood.

2) I'm optimistic about October.

3) I'm nostalgic as the massive onset of friends turning 30 begins. I think I'm ready.

Someone Else's Life

It's been a weekend full of Joshua Radin. His music always makes me feel calm ... and somewhat sleepy. "Someone Else's Life" is my pick of the moment.

Yesterday was almost remarkable in how unremarkable it seemed. No breakdowns, no tears, no anger. Just sad sighs of acceptance and restlessness. It's hard to know the "proper" way to acknowledge a day you'd rather not remember. Year three begins. Unbelievable.

"Your absence has gone through me like thread through a needle. Everything I do is stitched with its color."

Intergalactic

Tonight, don't ask me why, I decided to watch ALF on Hulu. Didn't disappoint.

That's it for today. 

August and Everything After

For what it's worth, this is the first post that's been named for an album -- not song -- title. As a milestone month in my life, it just felt appropriate.

As I write this, I am downstairs at Starbucks working on a few other writing projects and listening to dueling playlists (my laptop's v. Starbucks'). I'll be writing for the next two hours, so it probably would have been wise to sit at a table. But it would not be nearly as comfortable as the love seat on which I'm sitting.

My interest in writing, and my ability to focus on writing, has for the past few weeks been in direct opposition to my interest and ability in accomplishing anything else. I was telling my aunt this earlier tonight ... there seems to be a switch that flips once August hits. The anticipatory stress gets the best of me, and I tend to turn inward. This month is agony for me personally. Creatively, though, it's a windfall. 

A few random things have helped fuel my creativity lately, each in different ways ...

1) 500 Days of Summer

2) Mad Men (season 2 commentaries)

3) Julie & Julia

I can't get enough of reading articles about how the screenwriters wrote 500 Days of Summer. I'm impressed with anyone who can take the standard screenplay formula, throw the rules out the window and make an even better, fresh movie. Most impressive is that the movie gets made at all. I can't plug this movie enough. Go see it.

As for Mad Men, I watched half of the first season before I decided whether or not I liked the show. (Do I like it now? I adore it.) The same things that initially gave me pause about the first season are what I now love about the show. It's not afraid to take its time getting through a story arc, and once there it usually takes the story in a completely unanticipated direction. I love all of the characters, especially that they're all deeply flawed. Fantastic casting ... and great clothes. Very excited for the season 3 opener next Sunday.

Julie & Julia was the surprise treat of the weekend. For starters, Meryl Streep can do no wrong. Never would have expected that I would walk out of that movie hoping I could have a marriage like Julia Child's, but that's exactly what happened. I teared up at several parts, many of which were in no way sad but resonated with me anyway, particularly as this woman (Julie) at ages 29/30 made a plan and realized her dream of becoming a writer. It was the perfect movie to see this weekend. 

I would imagine that both Starbucks and my couch will be seeing quite a bit of me over the next few days. This week is a countdown to the most devastating milestone in my life, and the only thing I know is to write through the pain. I've been working on a fiction book for about a year and a half, and I put it away for several months. But I feel a strong pull to come back to it. There's an intense need right now to create something tangible, something that I can control -- no matter how poorly written, initially -- that captures the chaos of events completely out of my control. I guess it's my way of loosely taking my story and controlling the outcome. 

On that note, I'll leave you with this relevant, if not contradictory, quote from David Sedaris:

"Writing gives you the illusion of control, and then you realize it's just an illusion, that people are going to bring their own stuff into it."

 

My List

I finally saw "Chaos Theory" last weekend, and I liked it. If you haven't seen it, here's a quick rundown. The main character is super scheduled and makes a list every morning of things he has to accomplish that day. He won't really stray from the list, though. One day a series of unexpected events leads him to completely abandon the traditional list and instead leave things up to chance. He starts carrying index cards around with him and basically writes down three options for any choice has has to make, shuffling the cards and letting fate determine his next move. (It should be noted that this stars Ryan Reynolds. He might be my favorite thing aboooot Canada.)

This movie made me think a lot about lists, chaos and chance. I have plenty of thoughts on those last two, but this post will only focus on lists. I love lists, but I'm not great at them. I will always go back and add things I've already done, just so I can begin the list on the right footing and feel like I've accomplished something.

I get more satisfaction out of creating odd lists than I do from creating "to-do" lists. My odd lists usually are born out of me getting sidetracked during a standard to-do list. For example, on one recent to-do list I had included the task "bring umbrella home from work." This got me thinking about the song "Umbrella," and that led to "It's Raining Men," and that made me think of the Fish Camp bus leader game where you have to sing as many songs as you can think of that include the word "rain." And the creation of this list -- songs about rain -- led me to develop my "natural disasters" itunes playlist. (Songs include: "Cyclone," "Heat Wave," "Texas Tornado," "You Shook Me All Night Long" and "Thunder Rolls," among others.)

And then THIS list put me in the mood to create a bunch of mini-lists. So here they are, in no particular order.

CLOTHING FEATURES/STYLES THAT TROUBLE ME

1) low rise jeans

2) dresses that zip on the side

3) mock turtlenecks

4) ankle socks that don't stay on your heels

5) American Apparel (the store as a whole)

CLOTHING FEATURES/STYLES THAT DELIGHT ME

1) skirts and dresses with pockets

2) very, very, very high heels

3) tagless shirts

4) deep v-neck shirts

5) any kind of flip flop

RANDOM SONGS I LOVE RIGHT NOW

1) Cigarettes and Coffee (Otis Redding)

2) Love of a Lifetime (Chaka Kahn)

3) Paperweight (Joshua Radin and Schuyler Fisk)

4) Green Eyes (Coldplay)

5) The Heart of the Matter (India.Arie)

MOVIE THEATER PET PEEVES

1) people (other than my date) sitting directly beside, in front of, or behind me

2) talking during previews

3) anyone who laughs at the "please turn off your cell phone" commercials

4) clapping

5) chewing loudly/eating gross foods/kicking my chair (these all tie for 5th)

WORDS I LIKE

1) absolutely

2) definitely

3) glorious

4) akimbo

5) mayhaps

"WORDS" I DISLIKE

1) funner

2) irregardless

3) no-offense-but ...

4) why?

5) potty

THINGS I WILL DO WHEN I TURN 30

1) pretend i was actually born in 1981

2) sky dive

3-5) decide on three more things

SPECIFIC THINGS I'D LIKE TO DO IN SPECIFIC PLACES

1) go to Canada and work the word "eh?" into every conversation

2) run the New York marathon

3) meet with screenwriters in California

4) visit my old neighborhood in Germany

5) have pizza in Italy

DRINKS I LIKE

1) diet coke

2) pink lemonade crystal light

3) green tea

4) orange vitamin water

5) wine

FAVORITE TV SHOWS (still on the air)

1) 30 Rock

2) Mad Men

3) House

4) The Office

5) Friday Night Lights

FAVORITE MOVIE THEATERS IN DALLAS

1) Angelika

2) Magnolia

3) Inwood

4) Northpark AMC

5) everything else is tied for 5th

FAVORITE WEST WING EPISODES

1) Two Cathedrals

2) In Excelsis

3) Celestial Navigation

4) Noel

5) Debate Camp

OPTIONS FOR WHERE I'LL BE LIVING IN 5 YEARS

1) mansion

2) apartment

3) shack

4) house

5) (sorry, no 5th option ... MASH rules)

Jesus Loves the Little Children

Ran across this picture tonight and it made me smile. My sweet niece left my mom a note on her notepad after she got home from Vacation Bible School, and this is what it said ...

"1. God is with me and you forever. 2. I love Jesus. Pink paper clip."

This note made me love my nieces and nephew even more, and it made me miss Vacation Bible School.

The Last Goodbye

"Every experience deeply felt in life needs to be passed along -- whether it be through words or music, chiseled in stone, painted with a brush or sewn with a needle -- it is a way of reaching for immortality." -- Thomas Jefferson

Of my grandmother's 92 years on earth, more than 60 were spent as a mother (to Tom, David and Susie), almost 40 of those were spent as a grandmother (to David Wayne, me, Emily, Chris, Amy and Clay), and the last 8-1/2 were spent as a great-grandmother (to Carly, Avery, Nathan, Shane, Piper and little Jake, her youngest great-grandson who was born on her 90th birthday).  She's leaving a legacy that is already being played out in the lives of her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

When I think of my grandmother, I think of a gentle spirit with fierce intelligence and wit. She was a woman of grace -- both in her poised demeanor and in the way she treated others. She was born and raised in the South, living most of her years in Texas, and yet she knew more about the world than most people who had lived abroad. 

My earliest memories of grandmommy and granddaddy were of sitting in the leather recliner in the bedroom of their house on Call Field Road and watching them work their crossword puzzles. I was amazed that they seemed to know so many words and knew a little bit about every topic you could think of. But that probably would be no surprise to anyone who sat alongside my grandmother in any of her many book clubs.

My grandmother was an avid reader, and she's left an incredible keepsake to prove it. She kept two large, wooden boxes -- one labeled "A-L" and the other "M-Z" -- that served as her own card catalog system. She even cross-referenced the books with cards sorted by both book title and author. The types of books read were incredibly varied, as were her interests. She had an insatiable curiosity and tried to learn as much as she could about everything. Thanks to her record keeping, she's left her family with an incredible keepsake. We have the chance to follow behind her and have a bit of shared knowledge as we read the books she loved.

One of the many legacies my grandmother left us with was her love of simple pleasures. As a child of the Depression, she learned to make her own fun and respect her resources. She enjoyed writing letters to her children and grandchildren. She loved to play games -- especially bingo, Skip-Bo, dominos and Chinese checkers. She loved just sitting and visiting with her friends and family, and -- like many members of our family -- she enjoyed the art of storytelling. (And much like the stories of other family members, her stories tended to change over time.) One fond memory that has been stuck in my head is of a summer visit to Texas when I was little, and the entire host of aunts, uncles and cousins stayed with my grandparents. A rainstorm came through, and we all sat on the front porch for hours watching it and telling stories and eating homemade peach ice cream. Pretty much the perfect day. We learned from grandmommy how to make our own fun, how to appreciate the beauty of nature, how to let our family and friends know we love them, and how to expand our knowledge of the world beyond our own experiences.

Grandmommy taught me how to cross stitch when I was nine years old, and I'll always remember her two main needlework "rules of thumb." The first was to literally always leave your mark on the canvas. You're supposed to stitch your initials into every piece of work you create. The second rule was to create the cross stitch in such a way that you couldn't tell the back from the front. You wanted a clean piece of work that was polished and flawless in design, even if no one ever saw the other side of it. My grandmother lived those rules in her own life. She left her mark on everything she touched ... people will forever see things she created, or meet family members she loved, and know -- "that belongs to Lemmie. She helped create that." She also lived a life that was "polished" and pristine, regardless of whether or not anyone was watching. Hers was a life of integrity and compassion, of faith and family, of learning and teaching, of playing and hard work. She's made an incredible impact in my life, and she's already missed.

I'll Be Seeing You

My grandmother, Lemmie ("Tip") ... December 9, 1916 - June 20, 2009

California

Great trip. I miss it already.

Move Shake Drop

I want for there to be more dancing TV shows. We need more Soul Train, and more So You Think You Can Dance.

Congrats "Move Shake Drop" ... you and "Rock the Boat" have been stuck in my head for the past week. Direct result of my dance classes. Amy and Su, I hope you liked the class tonight, and I promise the full cast of characters should be there next Monday.

If anyone's looking for a good song to work out to, it doesn't get much better than "Move Shake Drop." Good for dance classes? Yes. Spinning? Yes. Running? Yes. Yoga? Probably not. So that's three out of four -- not bad.

You Can't Always Get What You Want

This song always makes me think of House. 

I've had a bit of a House "renaissance" during the past week as I watched the season 4 DVDs. I've decided that for the most part my favorite season finale episodes of House are actually the second to last episodes of the season. The season 4 bus crash episode ("House's Head") might be my favorite episode ever, with my next favorite being "Three Stories" from season 1. The writers for that show are just amazing. The dialogue is always sharp (and acerbic), and the storytelling is fantastic. 

And Hugh Laurie is pretty much a genius. I can't do a British accent for more than one sentence (if that) ... no clue how he has done an American accent so well for 5 years.

I can't wait for season 6. If you've never seen an episode, go buy/rent season 1.

Pain Killer

#1) LOVE the song "Pain Killer" by Turin Brakes. Thanks again, Last Kiss soundtrack.

#2) I'm in quite a bit of pain. Today's workout (not of my choosing):

Run and jump rope (warm up)

100 pull ups

100 push ups

100 sit ups

100 squats

#3) Tonight's pain is nothing compared to what tomorrow might bring. It would be a great day for a snow day so we could stay home. Come on global warming ...

Girls Just Want To Have Fun

"Girls Just Want To Have Fun" always makes me think of Amy, Susan, Thea and Becca (in "poster" order). We love that song, we love that movie, and we love that poster (below). We always try to recreate the poster when we're together, but we always forget a few key details. (Example: everyone but me should be wearing sunglasses -- but for some reason I always think only Becca should be wearing sunglasses.) The gist is always there, though.

Our most recent version of this picture was taken this Christmas. Makes me happy.
Now on to the movie ...

So I read yesterday that they're planning to do a remake of the movie Girls Just Want To Have Fun.

#1) I'm not ok with this. The original version was glorious perfection.

#2) I will be slightly more ok with this if I can be an extra in the movie.

Everything about this movie is greatness to me ... the clothes, the hair, the dialogue and the dancing. Lines such as ... "Decisions are the worst" (which I repeat often) and "Velcro -- next to the walkman and TAB it is the coolest invention of the 20th century."

Watch the trailer and enjoy. They don't make 'em like this anymore. (This rivals the Teen Wolf trailer in terms of ridiculousness, but don't let that fool you. You'll still be hooked.)

We Are Family

Today is my grandmother's 84th birthday. Happy Birthday Bobo!!!

One

Ale and I went to see Every Little Step tonight at the Angelika. Loved it, loved it, loved it. If you haven't seen it or heard of it, it's a documentary about the casting for the 2005 Broadway revival of A Chorus Line.

I'm a fan of A Chorus Line. My dad took me to see it one summer at Fair Park when I was in junior high or high school, and then we saw Pearce HS's production of it our junior year (I think). Incidentally, I am convinced that I remember Jessica Simpson being in that production. I'll verify w/ Scott.

Here's the trailer for Every Little Step. Go see it.

Where Does the Good Go

I could, and frequently do, listen to "Where Does the Good Go" (by Tegan and Sara) on repeat. There's something about it that I love, and I'm determined to find a way to include it in a screenplay.

I've had bits and pieces for two screenplays floating around in my head for the past two years, and I recently wrote out the opening montage for one of them. I was pretty pleased with it, but I had a nervous feeling that a similar scene already existed. So after some research tonight, I realized I had basically just recreated a pivotal scene from Elizabethtown. Heartbreak. 

It's an interesting feeling to have your mind craft a story you feel you need to tell, but you don't really know how it begins or ends. You also have no idea if anyone would care enough to read a book or see a movie about it.

I need some inspiration, and I would like for that to come in the form of a dinner with Aaron Sorkin and Diablo Cody. So if you're looking ahead and trying to figure out what to get me for my 30th birthday, please try to go ahead and hook that up.

Run It

"A bad day for your ego is a great day for your soul."

I like this quote. I'm sure someone has said this before, or at least something like it, but the only person I know to attribute this to is Jillian Michaels. Jillian used to terrify me, but now I'm a fan. I'd like to experience one day of being trained by her -- I can only imagine that it would be agonizing, but it would get the job done. Trainers are amazing. I feel indebted to my trainer, Shay ... we started working together a year ago in May, and she's been such a positive influence in my life. I credit her for helping me crawl out of what was an almost debilitating ten months of grieving. After suddenly losing my dad to heart disease, she helped me channel my grief and fear into something positive and proactive. I only get to see her once a week now, if that, but her "Shay-isms" are always top of mind.

She's helped me set some running goals, so now I'm off for some interval training. My calves are nervous.

A Pirate Looks at Forty

Jimmy Buffett = fin-tastic.

It's Not Easy Being Green (part II)

I really wish I hadn't used this title for one of my first posts last summer -- because it fits so much better with this one. I was in Mississippi the first weekend in April. I'm leaving most of the details vague so that I don't mix blogging with work and wind up on my client's Google alerts. All I'll say is that we went there to pass out food to people in a very small town. 

While there we went to the "Kermit museum" ... twice. (Indicative of how small the town was -- but we had a blast.)

Brown Eyed Girl

Happy 61st Birthday, Mom! I love you!

Shadowboxer

Song of the moment is "Shadowboxer" by Fiona Apple. 

My body is going to absolutely hate me tomorrow because I went to my first (but hopefully not last) Everlast Shadowboxing class tonight. It lived up to the name because it sure did feel like it was going to (ever)last  ... forever. It's definitely a workout. I thought it would be more like kickboxing, which I love. But it really wasn't. It was set up in 30 second intervals ... 30 seconds of fast jumping jacks, then mountain climbers, then push ups, then jumping lunges, then jabs/ upper cuts, then back to push ups, and on and on. I might want to stick to my dance classes.

We got pedometers at work this week for participating in a wellness exam, and we've all been trying to get in our 10,000 steps each day. I was at about 7,000 steps before the shadowboxing class, and I didn't think I'd hit my goal. But my handy little pedometer clocked in at 12,000 steps after the shadowboxing class. I'm pretty sure we can attribute 3,000 steps to the crazy amount of jumping jacks and mountain climbers we did. I love getting new free toys, and I think it's funny that my coworkers and I are so excited about counting our steps ... and competing to see who can take the most. We're easily entertained.

Give It Away

It's funny how the most obvious concepts can be lost on us until we hear/read them in a new way. Case in point ... for the past few months I've tried to be diligent about my coupons. (And as a result, I'm now obsessed with my coupon organizer.) My coupons have obviously saved money in some areas, but I realized I was spending more in other areas. Simply from buying additional discounted items I didn't really need -- but I had coupons for them. So I was working under some flawed logic. 

But the other day, I read an interview that resonated with me. It was with a man giving tips on saving money in a tough economy. He gave several simple tips, as well as some more drastic ones, but the underlying message was this ... instead of looking for tips about how to stretch our money as far as we can to get as many things as we can, why not ask yourself why you feel the need to buy so much stuff you don't absolutely need. I realize it's a very basic idea, and complete common sense, but I think it was still a message I needed to read. It comes on the heels of me shopping around for a new TV. My current TV is about 15 years old, and in no way is it impressive, but it still works. I don't really need a new one -- I just want a new one. But I guess when it comes down to it, I'd rather not spend the money right now.

Then this weekend, I came across a new mention of a book I first read about three years ago. The challenge the book gives is to get rid of 50 items in your house (and magazines only count as one combined item). I tried this a few years ago, and I thought it would be really hard to find 50 different things I should get rid of. But it wasn't bad at all, and it felt great to get rid of stuff I didn't use or need. It also made me wonder why I saved so much stuff. So that's been my project this evening, and it will continue to be my project this week. 

There's not really a good way to tie in this last thought without completely contradicting my entire post, but I'll try ... 

If you are a fan of spa treatments and are looking for some extreme discounts, then get excited for Spa Week (April 13-19). It's one of my favorite weeks of the year because many services (facials, massages, etc.) are only 1/3 of the normal price. That week will leave me super relaxed as I come home to my 1990s RCA TV.

My Stupid Mouth

They're opening some new stores at Mockingbird Station, most of which are exciting. There's one new addition that I just noticed the other night, and I could not be more intrigued.

It's a dentist's office that sits in between the Angelika and a really great sushi place. The picture above is the view from the sidewalk upstairs. I hate going to the dentist. But I have to admit, I'm kind of entertained by the idea of watching other people at their dental appointments. And from what I can tell, anyone walking by would see you getting your teeth cleaned.

I'm considering going there once just so I can have a new story. Plus, if I don't go soon I'm fairly certain I'll need a root canal.

Get Low

My best attempts to work out tonight were slightly thwarted. I fired up my iPod and went to the gym down the hall, but the power was out. Now it's too late (and rainy) to drive to an actual gym, so I made up my own workout with things around my loft. There are a lot of things you can do with a yoga mat, tap shoes and a hula hoop.

Monday night I went to my dance class (aka Cougar Den), excited for another class taught by Kyle. (You know it's going to be an interesting class when everyone is putting on makeup in the locker room before hand, even though it will be sweating down their face in a few minutes.) Sadly Kyle was out sick, so they had a new girl come in and teach a hip-hop/boot camp hybrid. It was a great class that at times could have doubled as a Cougar rap video. New teacher had one routine to "Get Low" that she liked to call "drop and give me fifty." And it was exactly like it sounds -- fifty sets of any move she could think of. I've never walked out of a dance class, but during that "routine" I definitely considered it.

It's ridiculous, but I am so much happier now on Mondays and Wednesdays knowing that I'll get to learn new dances. It's fantastic. I've really missed dance classes. If they could just create a tap class at 24 Hour I would be all set.

Jai Ho

I'm very, very excited because the new gym near my office has started offering dance classes on Monday and Wednesday nights. They're kind of like an exhausting combination of salsa, hip hop and kickboxing. And this week our instructor threw a little Bollywood into the mix. It was fantastic.

She had us do a dance to "Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire (once again, please go see that movie if you haven't already), and she made sure to throw in a bunch of squats/lunges and fan kicks. Much of what she had us do I probably haven't done in about 10 years. So I discovered that high/fan kicking, much like flexibility, definitely belongs in the "use it or lose it" category. It was a super tiring class, but in a great way.

The routines reminded me of this fantastic dance that Ale and Becky showed me from So You Think You Can Dance. It remains one of my favorite pieces of choreography I've ever seen. Enjoy.

Restless

"Our heart is restless until it rests in you." -St. Augustine

James

Today would be my dad's 62nd birthday. Last year we went to his hometown, took flowers to the cemetery and released balloons on his birthday. This year we're each recognizing the day in our own way. For the past month, I've done everything I could to avoid thinking about it. I've also had a minimal amount of patience and a maximum amount of annoyance with anyone near me, and I can't imagine that I've been pleasant to be around. I'm discovering that I get that way in the weeks leading up to a big milestone for my dad. I don't really know how to articulate what are uncharted feelings for me, so right now I'm bottling them more than I should. 

I thought that I would want to write about my dad today, sharing stories about him and paying tribute to some of the things he loved. But I'm finding I don't have any words. It honestly hurts too much to share anything and I just miss him so much. I'd give anything if he could still be here with us. My dad always let people know how much he cared about them. He was always sending thoughtful cards and letters, and he was always there to laugh or cry with. I always told him that I loved him, and he always did the same for me, but I wish I had told him more often how much he meant to me. So in honor of my dad, I'll try to be better about that with the people I love in my life. I feel so lucky to have had such a wonderful father, and I hope he can continue to live on in spirit through the people he loved. Happy Birthday dad.

(Come On Baby) Let The Good Times Roll

Happy Mardi Gras and laissez les bon temps rouler! (How loser that I just wrote that. Don't care. Nothing's too loserish if it's in French.) A few thoughts, though disjointed they might be ...

1) I love Mardi Gras. I took French in junior high and high school, and we always had huge Mardi Gras parties, which I loved. Though I was always jealous of the Spanish classes and their cinqo de mayo parties. But it's silly to be jealous of that ... because does cinco de mayo's tradition include a year of good luck if you find a tiny plastic baby in your cake? Nope. Point Mardi Gras.

2) As much as I love Mardi Gras, I honestly love Lent even more. It's such a wonderful time to refocus and be more disciplined. I usually give something up for Lent (and it's usually diet coke), but this year I've decided to add something during Lent. So I'm interested to see how that change will work out. Through the years I've discovered that Lent "resolutions" are a little like unborn babies' names ... it's best not to share them with other people unless you want a lot of unsolicited feedback. I also think it's funny when people point out to me that I'm Methodist whenever I say I'm giving up something for Lent. Yep, I know I'm Methodist. And no, there are no rules that say we have to give anything up for Lent. But I still like to. 

3) I love stained glass. My dad made a table out of a stained glass door a church had given away, and I was always fascinated by it when I was little. I liked knowing that there was a lot of history in that stained glass. When my mom and I went to D.C. last April, we spent a few hours at National Cathedral. I was trying to find a particular stained glass window that someone had told me about, but there were so many (more than 230) that I couldn't find it. So while we were there, my mom bought me a book that shows every window in National Cathedral and tells its story. I love it. The window I was looking for, and ultimately found, tells Job's story. I adore Job. And his window is beautiful. During Lent I'm going to learn more about some of the other windows. I'll share any interesting tidbits garnered from this book.

That's all for now. Off to Pappadeaux for foods that end in "eole."

Tell Me Something Good

"Who's got two thumbs, speaks limited French, and hasn't cried once today? This moi." 

-Liz Lemon

I've decided this is my new mantra.

#1 in entertainment news ... the wonderful Jon Hamm (aka Don Draper of Mad Men) will be on 30 Rock this Thursday. What a great birthday present. 

#2 in entertainment news ... thank goodness Friday Night Lights is back on the air. That's another show that for some reason makes me cry almost every episode.

#3 in entertainment news ... oh Joaq, Joaq, Joaq ... where have you gone? I'm of the belief that he will end his new rapping career soon, and it's all an elaborate set up for Casey's documentary. (Although I was also convinced that Katie Holmes' pregnancy was faked. But Suri sure does look a lot like her, so I think it was legit after all.)

Before ...

After ...

It's hard to say which look is best ... but he seems happy, so more power to him.