Overdrive

I feel so scatterbrained at this time of year. My work-focused mind is saying,

(source: http://i.imgur.com/giOntby.gif)

At the same time, my summer-brain is kicking in, saying,

(source: http://s3-ec.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr05/2013/5/20/10/anigif_enhanced-buzz-3254-1369060826-16.gif)

And (what should come as no surprise) it's incredibly difficult to find a happy balance between the two. I want to stay late and crank out work at my desk AND go home early and have a dinner consisting of hummus and red wine. And I can't do both. So, I continue to work in overdrive, but sometimes the lazy is in overdrive, too. So what I'm left with are weird thoughts and mild obsessions that fizzle out as quickly as they arrived. Here's a sampling:

• Were we the only ones who cracked up when Peggy stabbed Abe ("The Better Half")? Because I thought it was HYSTERICAL.
• Two days after a weed-pulling marathon, I'm still in a serious amount of pain. I even dreamt about centipede grass and giant roots. This is just more proof that I need to get my lazy tail to the gym stat.
• I'm happy to not have to work on Memorial Day, but dammit, it really screwed up my work calendar for what little of the semester is left.
• I should give up thinking I'm going to grade everything that is left in my pile. I don't think anyone will care.
• I think we have four episodes of "House of Cards" to watch on Netflix before it's the end of the first season, and most of our reactions are us yelling "WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!"
• With that said, I love it, and Kevin Spacey is fantastically evil. And he's Macbeth. And therefore I love it, because apparently I have a sick mind.
• I still haven't had time to organize/edit/play with photos from California or my friend's wedding. And this makes me sad.
• A trip to Lowe's automatically means a trip to Chick-fil-A. I've had a lot of waffle fries in the past week.
• I feel lucky to be blessed with good neighbors.
• I don't recall loving a team as much as I love this year's Penguins. All of them. Even Tyler Kennedy.
• I've scared my cat with my yelling during hockey games and sent The Husband to quieter areas of the house. I'm nothing if not loud.
• My food laziness the past couple weeks has me worried that I won't complete my summer project. But I also think that feeling will pass once I have a break from work.
• I may have disassociated myself from WVU, but nothing makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside than standing in a circle with The Six, singing "Country Roads." Chills of happiness.
• Need to feel happy? She & Him, Volumes 1, 2, and 3.
• The only thing I've read for pleasure since spring break has been 2/3 of The Great Gatsby (again). I'll fix that soon.

Here's hoping I can kick it down a notch in the next couple weeks!

2012: A Look Back

(I apologize for the lack of posts, as life and work have taken over my soul and have reduced me to stress eating and sleeping and not nearly enough reading and writing.)

If I had to think of a way to describe 2012, I'd have to go with "the new normal." I've had to get used to my house being in a constant state of improvement projects; work sending me on a roller-coaster of emotions; my mind and heart missing loved ones (gone or simply hours away); the idea that people change in good ways and bad; and the idea knowing that no matter how much I want to unf%$& my life, I always am striving to do better. And those are good things, right?

Maybe this is what being 30 is all about.

All in all, 2012 was a good year. Nothing to terribly drastic happened that made me love it or hate it. We made a number of tristate road trips (and I got to get away in Florida for a few days). I taught a summer course on The Hunger Games, which provided me a great amount of professional joy. We're coming to grips with being adults and having to make big financial and job decisions (GAWD, just typing that raises my blood pressure). We continue to celebrate the payoff we're finally starting to see from all of our energy-saving projects (our power bill is almost at ZERO -- take that power companies!). And I realized that I can finally start some interior remodeling and redecorating. All of this sounds like so much work. Rest assured, I found plenty to distract and entertain me, too (not everything was new/released in 2012, just what I watched/listened to/read in this calendar year).

Movies
Favorites of the year? Definitely Argo. Skyfall comes in as a very close runner-up. The Bourne Legacy was fine on its own, but just didn't do enough for me as part of the Bourne franchise.
I know we saw others, but clearly they didn't leave enough of an impression on me. Blah.

Television
I became mildly obsessed with New Girl, and I won't even get in to how great I think Nick Miller's character is (because that could take up an entire blog, let alone post). I love Jess' outfits (though don't think I could pull many of them off) and I can relate to her naive optimism. I think I love it as much as I love Friends, and that's saying a lot.
And then there's Downton Abbey, my other not-so-mild obsession. What do I love about it? It's so smart. It's witty. It's a tear-jerker. It makes me want to have been born in early twentieth-century England to an aristocratic family so I can wear stunning gowns to dinner each night. (Obviously, some of the laws and lack of women's rights don't tickle my fancy, but whatever.)
I also got through 4.5 seasons of Friday Night Lights, and I realize I need to finish it. However, Netflix just started streaming The West Wing, so there's that.

Music
I don't listen to much music. Actually, that's not true. I'll turn on various Pandora stations nearly every day at work and sing along to whatever song plays next. But there's not much I purchased this year, except some not-so-new artists, mainly Duffy and Mumford & Sons (which are on constant repeat on my iPod).

Books
Finally, the solo activity that brings me the most entertainment. Some titles that were among my favorites? The Blue Orchard, When She Woke, Jane Eyre (yes, it took me until this year to read it), The House at Tyneford, A Land More Kind Than Home, Gone Girl, The Casual Vacancy, and The Age of Miracles. But my absolute favorite for this year? Rules of Civility. Jazz-age socialite life in NYC? Fancy clothes and parties? Interesting characters with an air of mystery? Yes, yes, and yes. It will remind you of The Great Gatsby. And you will love it.

So what's in store for 2013? I have no idea. I have a few resolutions (eat even less meat than I did this year, get back in the pool, keep in touch with long-lost friends and maybe even relatives more, stop caring so much about some things, care a little more about others, etc.). There will be some vacations (California dreaming!). A dear friend is getting married. I will bake, write, read, and (most importantly) love. And it will be better than good. :)

Just keep singing, just keep singing

My life as of late has involved grading, prom, more grading, and more prom. Thankfully, both are over. And both were successful.

When I get stressed out, I sing. It's only in my car. It's loud. And it runs the gamut from showtunes to classic rock, from (only a tiny bit) pop country to Madonna. It's random, and that's why I love keeping my iPod on shuffle.

Now, I'm no music connoisseur. I know what I like and what I don't. And I almost never judge (but seriously, if you're listening to today's country music you need.to.stop.). Without further ado, here are some of the songs that recently popped up and made me remember why I loved them so much in the first place.



Barenaked Ladies, "Break Your Heart" (Live)
I have always been a huge BNL fan (like, concert-going, photo-posting-in-the-locker, giant-poster-in-my-dorm-room FAN), but their Rock Spectacle album is forever one of my favorites. And Steven Page's vocals on this one get me every single time. (Bonus: Look at the Mulder & Scully-era cell phone at the 3:39 mark! Love it!)



Vonda Shepard & Robert Downey, Jr., "Chances Are"
First of all, I LOVED Ally McBeal. And then I loved it even more when RDJ joined the cast. And then he started singing, and it was all over from there. Swoon.



Dixie Chicks, "Not Ready to Make Nice"
Confession: I love the Dixie Chicks, but I like Taking the Long Way the best, as it felt like a theme when I decided to go to grad school. And honestly, once the country music industry shunned them for having their own thoughts, I became a bigger fan. The whole album is incredible, but I have a hard time letting things go, and this song just fits me when I'm in one of "those" moods. And who doesn't love signing along with angry chick music (Kelly, Alanis, etc....)



Ke$ha, "Take It Off"
Shush, it's catchy.
Where we go hardcore, and there's glitter on the floor...



Natasha Richardson, "Cabaret" (from the New Broadway Cast Recording)
Because I saw her sing this live. Because her vocals were never incredible, just like Sally Bowles is supposed to be. Because even though I love Liza (and her eyelashes) in the movie, it was Natasha's Sally I saw first.

So there is my list of what makes other drivers stare at me in traffic. Do share what you unabashedly sing, whether it's in the car, in the shower, or while dancing in the kitchen!