quote of the day: 5.31.07

a gilmore girls favorite

how cool is this?

only $24.99

tailgating anyone?

Everything they touch turns to gold

By Dan Shaughnessy, Globe Columnist May 30, 2007

Josh Beckett is back, a 4-2 winner over the Tribe last night. The Red Sox have won five in a row, lead the Yankees by 14 1/2 games, and own the best record in baseball. And the reeling Yanks are afraid to pitch Roger Clemens in Fenway Park this weekend.

Could life be any better?

We suddenly have a San Diego weather mass over our region. The tunnels are open again and you can get where you are going in no time. The Patriots have a chance to go 16-0 and it feels like we all might win the lottery. Next thing you know, some dietician will discover that hot fudge sundaes cause you to lose weight. You'll be able to drink water from the Charles, all college tuition will be free, and the Celtics will experience good luck.

These are heady days over on Yawkey Way, and the return of Beckett is just one more brick in the wall of wonder that is the 2007 Red Sox season.

"This is a real special group of guys," said Beckett, whose seven innings of stellar work improved his record to 8-0.

There is something distinctly Patriotlike about the fall and rise of Beckett in this special spring. He was the winningest pitcher in baseball when he went to the disabled list. He appeared to be bound for a start in the All-Star Game in San Francisco before suffering an "avulsion" on his right middle finger while throwing a pitch against the Orioles in what turned out to be the most memorable game of this young season (a.k.a. the "Mother's Day Miracle"). Remember, boys and girls, this was not a blister -- it was an avulsion.

The Patriot Way holds that a team will plug gaps with unselfish players when a star goes down with an injury. This is how you can lose a Rodney Harrison and still make it to a championship game. The Red Sox got some unexpected heroics when Beckett went to the shelf. Rookie lefty Kason Gabbard came in and threw a Billy Rohr-type game. Meanwhile, Julian Tavarez continued to dominate the Yankees and the Sox kept rolling.

Boston led the American League East by seven games when Beckett left the May 13 game. When Beckett threw the first pitch of his return, the Sox led the AL East by 11 1/2 games.
There seems to be no limit to the positivity. Kevin Youkilis is Steve Garvey. Mike Lowell is Mike Schmidt. Dustin Pedroia is Bill Mazeroski and Jonathan Papelbon is Dick Radatz. Manny is Manny, and David Ortiz can take a few days off without anyone noticing. Theo Epstein is Red Auerbach and Terry Francona is Bill Belichick.

The Yankees have no pitching and the Red Sox have a glut of moundsmen. Did we mention that Jon Lester made another rehab start last night, and threw 95 miles per hour in five innings of shutout ball? Where to put him? What would they do with Willie McGee?

It doesn't matter whom the Red Sox play. The Indians were hot when they came to Boston. No problem. Detroit? Atlanta? The Yankees? Surely you jest. The Sox are 21 games over .500 and it is not yet June. They look like a threat to surpass the 2001 Mariners, who won 116 games. At this hour, the '07 Sox make the '27 Yankees look like the '62 Mets (OK, now we're exaggerating).

Naturally, Beckett's return went according to form. After his stint on the disabled list, the big righty came back in Walter Johnson fashion, throwing only 75 pitches while hurling a one-hit shutout over the first six innings. He faced the minimum 18 batters through six.
He threw all of his pitches and had great command. He looked like the best pitcher in the American League -- with the possible exceptions of Curt Schilling and Daisuke Matsuzaka.

"It's really a testament to his work ethic," said Francona. "For him to not really skip a beat is pretty phenomenal. He really pitched a heck of a game. He did everything in his power to be the same pitcher he was two weeks ago."

Beckett gave up a couple of runs in the seventh but left with a 4-2 lead after throwing a mere 91 pitches. He gave up only three hits and fanned seven in seven innings. He walked one.
Before the game, Globe photographer Jim Davis snapped a shot of Beckett dipping his finger into a gooey substance on the bench, something Davis said he has seen before.

"That's just stuff from the Band-Aid I was wearing," said Beckett.

Whatever the remedy, it worked. Just like everything works at Fenway this year.

"The finger is something I have to monitor all the time," Beckett said. "I don't know how much time I needed, but I think this was enough. I think we made the smart decision."

Whatever the remedy, it worked. Just like everything works at Fenway this year.

He'll make his next start Sunday night on ESPN against the Yankees. You remember the Yankees. They are the team that paid a prorated $28 million to bring back Roger Clemens so he can pitch Monday in Chicago against the White Sox instead of Sunday against Beckett and the Red Sox. The Yankees are the once-great team with the saggy 21-29 record posted near the bottom of the Green Monster. Springsteen's broken heroes on a last-chance power drive.
If you remember when Mike Dukakis was governor, perhaps you'll resist the urge to gloat and mock the New Yorkers, but that was 29 years ago. It's not going to happen this time. The Red Sox are 36-15. And Josh Beckett is back.

quote of the day: 5.30.07

from felicity

memorial day

ready to hit the beach...

...if only there was one nearby...

my new bathing suit arrived yesterday. hooray!

got these pants too (at eamon's request)

(not the boobs though)

no hoodie, though. i have enough of those!

pictures from victorias secret

quote of the day: 5.24.07

from the first episode of friends

jumping on the bandwagon

1. What time did you get up this morning? Woke up with my alarm at 5:45, then fell back asleep till 6:30 – ‘late’ to work. (quotes because it really doesn’t matter)

2. Diamonds or Pearls? Pearls. It’s my birthstone. Though I am extremely attached to some diamonds on my left hand…

3. What was the last film you saw at the theater? Spiderman 3 with eamon, anne and dave

4. What is your favorite TV show? Greys Anatomy, West Wing, Gilmore Girls

5. What did you have for breakfast? Yougurt

6. What is your middle name? Nmn. No middle name (that’s how it read on my diploma)

7. What is your favorite cuisine? Foods: fajitas/quesadillas, sushi, stir-fry

8. What foods do you dislike? tomatoes, anything with buffalo sauce, anything on a bone

9. Your favorite Potato chip? ruffles

10. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Michael buble

11. What kind of car do you drive? Mazda millenia

12. Favorite sandwich? turkey

13. What characteristics do you despise? Small minded people, people who feel they are superior, but strangely equally annoyed with people who think they are inferior (and whine saying nobody likes them)

14. Favorite item of clothing? Pleated mini skirts (and high heels)

15. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? On a cruise (doesn’t matter where), Ireland and Scotland, Australia, Hawaii

16. What color is your bathroom? White

17. Favorite brand of clothing? Not really loyal to any brand

18. Where would you want to retire to? The tailgating circuit/opening a bar in boston

19. Favorite time of day? An hour after I get off work (gotta leave room for the commute)

20. Where were you born? Providence

21. Favorite Sports to watch? Red Sox, college football
22. Who do you least expect to send this back? It’s on my blog

23. Person who will respond first? Noone

24. What laundry detergent do you use? I send my laundry out

25. Coke or Pepsi? Coke (rarely) usually iced tea or sweet tea. God, I love sweet tea

26. Are you a morning person or night owl? morning person who likes to party

27. What size shoe do you wear? 9-10

28.Favorite animal? My sister’s dog

29. Any news you'd like to share with everyone? I’m still not pregnant (Me either, Whitney)

30. What did you want to be when you were little? Jockey. Until I realized that you had to be short.

31. Favorite candy bar? Kit Kat

32. What are your favorite childhood memories? Watching nick at nite with my family.

33. What are the different jobs you have had in your life? Waitress, tuitionpay representative, communications manager, event specialist, publicist, bacardi girl, miller lite girl, jim beam girl, (etc. etc.), promotional specialist, public relations writer

34. What color underwear are you wearing? Pink with black bows

35. Nicknames? Homewrecka, gNiki, Niki the Toe, Muffin

36. What happened to 36?

37. Eye color? Brown

38. Ever been to Africa? no

39. Ever been toilet papering? Not that I can remember

40. Ever loved someone so much it made you cry? Thankfully, yes

41. Ever been in a car accident? 2 that i can remember

42. Ever gotten a ticket? Nope

43. Most romantic spot you have ever been? First kiss on top of the Eiffel Tower

44. Favorite restaurant? In the Fort: Suheiro, the Hibachi, Chipotle Home: Venus, O’ Gils

45. Favorite ice cream? Chocolate peanut butter cup from half pints

46. Favorite flower? Too many to have a favorite

47. Disney or Warner Brothers? Disney

48. Favorite fast food restaurant? Taco Bell

49 What color is your bedroom carpet? Greyish blue?

50. Where did you take your drivers test? Massachusetts

51. Before this one, from whom did you get your last email? Cultural events secretary

52. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Nordstroms

53. What do you do when you are bored? Look up stuff on the internet

54. What time do you go to bed? Between 11 and 2

55. Who are you most curious about their responses to this questionnaire? Everyones

56. Last person you went to dinner with? Mel

57 What are you listening to right now? My new digital voice recorder

58. What is your favorite color? Pink, blue, green. It changes

59. River or Lake ? Ocean.

60. Country or City? Need to at least be near a city.

61. How many tattoos do you have? I have a hypothetical tattoo

62. Which came first, the chicken or the egg? To controversial

63. How many people are you sending this Email to? Whoever reads my blog..

64. Who sent this to you and what is something you didn't know about him/her? I took this off Keelees/Whitneys blog.

65. What materialistic thing would you ask for if you had one wish to make? My dream house.

quote of the day: 5.23.07

if you have never seen the ending of a few good men, don't watch this clip. though you have probably at least heard it before.

freaking awesome

we were talking the other day about things/places we would actually miss about colorado after we left. but we don't have to! they added a location right outside boston - totally within reach.

we will have to go without:

quote of the day: 5.22.07

i don't what i like best: the truffle shuffle or the mousetrap-like mechanism used to open the fence.

going out with a good ol' western bang

the plan is that we are leaving colorado on august 1. eamon will be heading to california for training (and probably stopping in vegas on the way), while i will be heading east with my designated helper (t.b.a. at a later date). my last day at work is july 31 (yes - the day before), but it seemed to make the most sense. our lease is up end of july, everything will already be packed and the townhouse will need to be professionally cleaned. so i told myself i could handle it. i do pretty well (some would say better) under pressure or time constraints.

now i have to throw cheyenne frontier days into the mix, which is always held during the last full week of july. i had volunteered for and was accepted on to their public relations committee. i made the commitment before i knew about the move. granted, i could un-volunteer - which i admit i considered - but decided it would be the perfect way to end my time out west.

maybe i'm crazy, but i think i'll have fun.

and i look good in boots.

quote of the day: 5.21.07

my.favorite.movie.ever.

during world war II, europeans who were fleeing from the germans, sought refuge in america. but to get there they would first have to go casablanca and once they get there, they have to obtain exit visas which are at a premium.

the hottest spot in casablanca is rick's cafe which is operated by the cynical rick blaine, an american expatriate, who for some reason can't return there. two german couriers were killed and the letters of transit they were carrying were taken. captain renault, the chief of police (and corrupt vichy official), informs rick that victor laszlo, the european resistance leader, is in casablanca and will do anything to get an exit visa but renault has been "told" by major strasser of the gestapo, to keep laszlo in casablanca. accompanying him is ilsa lund, rick's ex-lover, whose appearance reopens old wounds.

in the list of afi's most memorable lines in film history, casablanca led with six different quotes (gone with the wind and wizard of oz were next with three each.)

the following clip shows two different scenes that have some of my favorite quotes that did not make the list.

i'm late for a very important date

a (very) late happy mother's day to caroline.

i'm #1

...in fantasy baseball.

after beating kieran last week (and eamon's poor showing against the guy who is last in our league), i am beating eamon by two games.

of course, this week i will play against eamon's team. wish me luck. i don't think my lead is going to last.

quote of the day: 5.20.07

a classic.
shawshank redemption.

congrats greg!

one of my favorite people in the world graduated on saturday. my longtime friend greg is finally done with architecture school - and i couldn't be prouder.

it wasn't an easy ride for him, but he now has his degree and already has a job lined up. he will start work for a firm in foxboro on june 25.

congrats again!

(greg and i at our junior semi-formal, many many moons ago)

quote of the day: 5.19.07

everyone, especially eamon, makes fun of me for my obsession with little old men. i have a soft spot for them. (before you get grossed out, this totally a not sexual thing. well...maybe paul newman and robert redford. but they never age).

travers and i have an ongoing collection. i think it started with a little old man we saw in new orleans. he had on plaid pants, argyle sweater and cap with a pom pom on it. i fell in love instantly.

i have a tendacy to develop a strong attachment to old men on television shows and movies. peter boyle. richard farnsworth. walter matthau. jerry orbach. etc. etc.

but noone compares to the admiration i have for john spencer. he played leo mcgarry on west wing (one of my favorite television shows ever.) he passed away december of 2005, and i was really affected by it. (more on my abnormal connection to televsion and movie stars at a later date).

in this scene on west wing, chief of staff leo mcgarry (spencer) is talking to deputy chief of staff josh lyman (played by bradley whitford) after josh had been told to see a counselor. josh had been shot by a white supremecist who was targeting the presidents personal aide, and was struggling to deal with his emotions during the aftermath. josh had stood by leo during problems with alchohol and drug addiction, and this is leo's way of saying that he would do the same for josh.

note: video is a little longer than just the quote i was going for, but still worth watching

if you knew me two years ago, this is funny

three people today have asked me for relationship advice.

even ryan.

hilarious.

this would never have happened two years ago.

quote of the day: 5.18.07

here's a secret.

i really liked buffy the vampire slayer.

the problem growing up was, while i like btvs, my sister was completely OBSESSED with it. it really kinda ruined it for me. and it wasn't just buffy. the same thing happened with the backstreet boys (actually happy for hating that), rent and more recently, wicked. i still manage to love rent and wicked (so expect quotes from those two to come).

anyway, here is one of my favorite buffy quotes.

dear iTunes, i am really not a huge loser

i've mentioned before that one of eamon's influenced on me has been watching (select) shows on the sci-fi channel. i don't do the gory stuff, but we do watch battlestar gallactica, stargate sg-1, stargate atlantic, eureka and the dresden files.

out tivo has been on the fritz, so i had to download last friday's stargate sg-1 and atlantis off iTunes. they didn't have they newest sg-1, but they did have atlantis. after downloading it i realized that it was actually the sg-1 episode and it was mislabeled.

i decided to e-mail iTunes to request a complimentary download of the stargate atlantis (they don't know that i wanted both). i can't imagine what they think of me when they read my letter.

"This was labeled as a stargate atlantis episode: the tao of rodney, when it was actually stargate sg-1: the shroud episode. I am hoping to either get my money back, or a complimentary download of the episode i was trying to download - stargate atlantis: the tao of rodney. thank you!"

i know i would be imagining a huge scifi convention geek. maybe i should send them a picture of me sayng 'see? i really am pretty!'

be prepared for more dorkiness when i get around to writing about saying 'frak' and playing world of warcraft.

youtube/ blog issues demystified

i was talking to someone the other day about how they couldn't figure out how to have their youtube videos play within their blog, without having a whole other page pop up.

it turns out, it's not something to do with the blogger as much as the reader. if the reader clicks the pig play button in the middle., they will be bale to view the video through your blog. if they click anywhere else on the video, it opens up a new page and brings you to the video on youtube.

you can test my theory on any of the videos below.

quote of the day: 5.17.07

a wonder how many takes this took?

note: every time i watch this movie, the accent comes out wicked thick.

(not) too cool for school

eamon signed up for his first classes at umass yesterday. he will need to take at least 2 prerequisite courses before being admitted to the professional mba program, which he can complete entirely online while in greenland. luckily, he can take up to 6 credits of (transferable) mba classes before being admitted to the program. so, starting june 4, he will be back at school, taking accounting (prereq) and marketing management. he will take the gmat on june 5.

when we were looking at classes and books yesterday, part of me was kind of jealous that he would be going back to school. i want to be in college again! but i know when the time comes for his first exam or paper, i’ll be pretty happy that it’s him and not me.

quote of the day: 5.16.07

my friend sent me this clip from grey's anatomy the other day, knowing it was one of my favorites.

if you don't watch grey's, it probably won't mean as much to you. in this scene, derek is angry at meredith because she slept with their dog's veterinarian and another intern, george. meredith stands up for herself, saying that derek has no right to be mad at her because he left her to try to work things out with his estranged wife. the acting is some of the best i have seen on the show, and you can really tell that they still have feelings for each other.

new: quote of the day posts

i am beyond obsessed with quotes, happy or sad, funny or thought-provoking. i plan to add a quote everyday - if it's part of a movie or television show, i will hopefully find it in video so that you get the full effect!

in honor of this, here is a montage of the afi's top 100 movie quotes of all time:

dad vails

two years ago this weekend was what i considered my official college graduation: the dad vail regatta. a week after graduation, we still had to stay on campus and practice, so my actual graduation was pretty anti-climatic.

rowing was college for me, so there was no better way to end it than crossing the finish line first in the premier women's event at the oldest collegiate regatta in the country. because our 2v8 and n8 also placed (2nd and 3rd respectively) we beat out the other teams and won the women's points trophy.

while the team didn't do as well at the race this year, my coach did win coach of the year for her work these past few seasons. congrats to her and to all the girls.

pictures from 2005:

after a win, people get thrown in the water. always the coxswain, but sometimes the coach. jen was a good sport about it.

the seniors got thrown in as well. this is a must, usually on the last day of practice. don't worry. those who pushed me got dragged in as well. i'm scrappy.

mother's day

my grandmother had a pretty rough mother's day. she fell in the airport parking lot in providence, and spent saturday night at the hospital. she had to get some stutches and she's bruised pretty badly, but she's doing okay.

my aunt took her and her sister out for dinner and then met up with my sister and her fiance for ice cream. (i was pretty jealous) sorry i missed it!

my grandmother hates having her picture taken, but liz's mom snagged this one of me and my grandparents after my college graduation:

mimi time

my grandmother came out to visit last week for a short visit. she and my aunt were originally supposed to come together a few weeks ago, but my grandmother ended up in the hospital for a few days. she was feeling sad that she wouldn't be able to come before we moved back. but thanks to southwest ding! i was able to get her a pretty cheap flight out here ($50 each way + fees). totally random luck.

we drove down to denver wednesday night to pick her up, planning on spending the night at fado. unfortunately, brian's daughter was graduating that night so he wasn't performing. we ended up just driving to the airport at playing war and poker until her flight got in. we drove back to the fort and ate a late dinner at old c's.

thursday i took the day off and showed her around fort collins. it was so beautiful out!we walked around old town and mimi did a lot of shopping! we ate dinner at coopersmith's pubside before heading to sundance for a texas hold 'em tournament (where i made the final table) and beer pong (our team name was 'my grandmother plays beer pong'). we didn't do too badly - and mimi even made a cup.

friday morning we headed up to cheyenne and i introduced her to all my co-workers. she sat in the office while i got some copy editing done and then we met up with eamon for lunch at sanford's and a tour of the base.

we went to the rio for dinner and margarita's. because of graduation, the place was packed! the food wasn't that good, but the drinks always are. we went home and played the wii for awhile. i hate to admit that i lost to my 74 year old grandmother.

i was sad to bring her back to the airport saturday morning, but we had a good visit and i will see her in june!

bridal shower craziness

seeing as i am a few thousand miles away from home, my grandmother, my great-aunt and my aunt maureen have been super helpful in planning my sister's bridal shower. last week i sent a (very) long e0mail to my grandmother and maureen to hammer out responsibilities.

i was feeling pretty good about it all - and very accomplished and on track. i was talking about it to my friend dave prior to going to see superman 3. he and his fiancee anne are getting married the same weekend back east, and i had planned the shower accordingly.

but as we were talking about it, dave told me that his wedding was on sunday - not saturday as i had been told. freaking out about it all night, i tried to figure out a way that i could hold the shower and make it to a 2:30 ceremony, or at least a 4 p.m. reception at a venue that's about 3 hours away.

not going to happen.

luckily all of the important players in the bridal shower - and the few guests that knew the date - were completely flexible. i redesigned the invites and printed them out again on wednesday. no rushing to the church necessary - it all worked out!

(so far)

invitations: check

i am done designing the invitations for my sister's bridal shower and they are printing and cutting them down now. thank goodness for having your own printshop.

here's what i went with, with most of the personal info erased.

a talent i don't have

i hate dieting

i blogged yesterday about how i was going to start eating healthier and exercising regularly. fantastic. i ran (which i hate) yesterday for a good amount of time, and i didn't eat anything that was bad for me. i didn't even have any beer at coopersmith's last night.

this morning i come into my office and these are sitting there:





are you frakking kidding me?

only in wyoming: lccc security report

April 11
Horse injury
Numerous horses were in the outdoor arena. Someone put a stud horse in a round pen. The stud horse proceeded to gain the attention of some mares.

While the stud was showing its male vigor, a yearling attempted to break it up. This yearling got his leg caught in a panel. His left rear leg was skinned, and he tore some tendons. The college veterinarian was called and treated the horse.

will ferrell meets his landlord

a lot of people think this is inappropriate, but i laughed so incredibly hard (does that make me a bad person? oh well) that i had to share it.

may = diet

it's the first of may and i'm starting the new month off right. eamon and i have decided that we have gotten too soft and squishy. so, we are going to eat healthier and hit the gym more consistently.

that means no mochas in the morning. it's green tea in the morning for me until i can learn to drink cofee black (or at least with less sugar). also, no egg mcmuffins or crunchwrap supremes for awhile. after i lose some weight i will reevaluate my eating habits so that i am not missing out on some of my favorite things!

a proposal without a ring

caroline called me this weekend while i was mia. she left me a message that she had a proposal without a ring. of course i was intrigued.

i spoke with her (briefly) at work yesterday and she asked me to be avery's godmother. of course i said yes! here's yet another picture of my cute godbaby.

vegas, baby!

i was in vegas this past weekend with eamon and adam, and stupid me forgot my phone in the car at the airport. so i wasn't ignoring you... well...probably not.

pictures to come later tonight when i upload them.