BUSY!!: Wicked, London, Budget, Red Riding Hood & chop

http://www.wickedthemusical.com/page.php#

Today was full of awesomeness. Amber decided on our Wicked tickets and we finally booked them for the night before the big trip to Ontario for her wedding. We even convinced her fiance to come with us, and Mom and Ethan can too, because they will be in town to fly out the next day. Perfect. If you Calgary types haven't booked yet, come the same night as us and we will all have a blast. And if you don't know yet, this is not one you should miss. Amber also cut my formerly super-dry hair (thank you). I love having a sister with skills. And gave me a spring door wreath, which she made. More skills. Then we talked the boys into going to Red Riding Hood because the trailers looked cool. YYUUUUCK! But we had fun making fun of it. Can someone please explain to me how a bunch of people living a rustic life in the snowy wilderness are so beautiful and why they don't wear coats? Oh, because if you wear coats, you can't see flesh. And where did they get all that hair gel? And how do they have such impeccable oral hygeine? Grr...it bugs me because I was hoping this would be one of those cool, "what if this fairy tale were real" movies, and it was definitely not. How Gary Oldman and Julie Christie got involved, I will never know. Maybe they had gambling debts to pay off. To add to the hilariousness of this was the two LARGE groups of females over forty, who were glued to the screen. Are these the women who read Danielle Steele? Not that there's anything wrong with that... After the movie we went to "chop", which I have been to twice before and have had impeccable service and food. So I talked Matt, Joe and Ambi into going, instead of going where we usually go. Well the food was a disaster (the boys' steaks were RAW and my halibut was WAY overcooked) and the service was below what I would expect at a PUB, never mind an upscale steakhouse. The good thing is, we each got a free drink, free dessert, and a free entree for "next time" out of it. So management did try to make up for it. Maybe Sunday afternoon is when they train newbies, I don't know. But we had lots of fun criticizing the cooking too (don't order the crab) and for ONCE Amber got the best meal! She usually gets the bad meal, if there is one. Then I booked our minivan for our London, Ontario family extravaganza, which was the last piece of the puzzle for the wedding trip. At the same time, made play dates with some girlfriends, so all-in-all, today was fun and relaxing, and vacationy, despite the snow.

Inception & Moving Day

There are days that just make you think. About everything. And I already have that problem...thinking too much. Most people know that about me.
I finally finished watching Inception tonight. YUUUUUCK. I appreciate how brilliant it is, but I must be the only person on earth who HATES that movie. Like I needed to question reality MORE than I already do. Not to mention that it gets so LONG and BORING. And I don't give a damn about a single character, so I don't care what happens to them. No thank you.

The other thing that happened today was helping Mom and Ethan move. It is not that I mind this in the least. I love them so much and loved being able to help out. But every time I help with a move, I think about my reality. And basically I want to immediately go straight home, sell almost everything I own, and....what....I don't know. Just not have so many THINGS. Run away. I get overwhelmed by this every few months. I am just this way, and I have come to accept it, though have not totally learned how to live with it. I sometimes feel trapped by "stuff". I would like Carrie Bradshaw's apartment. 500 square feet, a huge closet full of beautiful clothes, a great bed, books, computer, and that's it. With a huge window overlooking a totally quaint street with bakeries and book shops and record stores. And a phone that is always ringing. Just a small home base where I can hang my hat in between adventures.

This makes me sound totally ungrateful, and I don't mean to. Sometimes I just want things to be simple. Plus, I know I am a little gypsy girl...always wanting to be loved, but always wanting to be free and roaming. "Stuff" just doesn't always jive with the gypsy parts of me.

Wow, I am complicated. Thanks for being my friend. It must be exhausting.

What's New?

Sometimes I feel like I have so much to blog about, and other times, I feel like the most uninteresting person on the planet because I "got nothin'", except things that are too diary-ish to blog about. And I am supposed to focus on BIG, not whine, but whining is so much FUNNIER.

Like Wednesday when I walked Scoop in the afternoon. I stepped down into what I thought was four inches of snow, and turned out to be literally UP TO MY KNEES in freezing cold ice water, cleverly disguised by two inches of snow. I was stuck, and panicked, and just kept going to where I knew a sidewalk existed in the park, but by the time I got there I was soaked through from the knees down in ice water, and then had to hobble home with the crazy mutt as fast as I could. I have to confess, I was crying by the time I got to the house to peel off my boots, socks, and jeans. Now is that a positive story? No. But looking back, is it hilariously lame? You bet. It is practically a Chaplin moment, it is so absurd.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dh0qDWzjnGs&feature=related

Someone truly hilarious, whose books and comedy I mostly love, now there is something to talk about. Chelsea Handler is beautiful, voted one of the 99 sexiest women in the world, totally naughty, and makes me laugh and laugh and laugh. I have been re-reading "Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea" while on the treadmill and it makes time fly. She is exactly eight months older than me, and I feel like she is the older, brasher sister I never had. And Tijuana comes up in this interview, which is so weird because I just dreamed about it last night. She is a little out there, but I admire her so much for just telling the truth as it occurs to her. And did I mention she makes my laugh?

Sam Tsui, Ethan, youtube

First things first: I kicked Matt's ASS at Playstation Tennis for hours tonight. Over and over again. This was monumental because I am CRAP at video games and can't play them. Ever. I am so pleased with myself. He won one match. I owned the rest. And then he practiced for a very long time while I went away and did other stuff. So it will never happen again. Oh well.

Now, down to business...I was getting a little carried away on facebook, so decided to switch to here. Blogs are so funny and absurd. I quote from the source of my last blog, Phantom:

This isn't a diary...not in the accepted sense of the term. I've no intention of sitting down dutifully each day to record tedious details of what I had for breakfast, which gown I ordered from my seamstress and who said what to who in the course of rehearsals. It's surely the height of vanity to assume anyone will want to read about your petty, unimportant life...I don't want anyone to read this document ever, for if they do I'll surely be locked up...

So Ethan (my 17-year-old brother) just comes along with little gems from time to time, out of no where that change my world. Ever since he was a baby we have had this surreal connection, and it has always continued. Age is a funny thing. He is 16 years younger than me, but one of my best friends, and one of the few people that I can talk to without any protective bricks blocking the most eccentric aspects of my personality. We just let it all hang out. So he sends me a youtube song, and I send him one, and he sends me this kid's cover of it, which blows me away. I started going gaga (no pun intended) on facebook, and hate those over-posters, so brought the overflow to the blog.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_IWRuryzaY&feature=relmfu

What was the world like before MASHUPS? I remember. It was cold and dark and lonely.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIoSTbPt_PI&feature=related

Okay, this one is Don't Stop Believing and the kid does all the parts! Apparently he auditioned for Glee and didn't make it. Why? Cause he's better than four of them together? I think so...And this is a Glee fan speaking!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQYmSfLAbJ8&feature=related

This is For Good from Wicked, which I notice people on youtube think should be a grad song WHICH I have been saying for YEARS. I suggest listening to it, but not watching because Nick's making out with the mic is a bit much. A little over the top emotionally but sounds cool. Close your eyes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QqAVFwGwaI

Imagine: dedicated to victims of Jan 8 Arizona shooting. Gorgeous. Do you EVER get sick of listening to Imagine?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdMZAeIfM94&feature=related

This one has great acappella instrumental vocals, too.

Ethan just asked me to spread the "No Autotune" message again. Sam doesn't use autotune. Vital to Ethan's appreciation of him as an artist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBF-_WMY8HU&feature=relmfu

And then, there is this whole war between Kurt and Jake, whoever they are. They battle it out playing music on weird, wild, wonderful, and silly instruments. There is a whole series of them. This one is Moonlight Sonata on CROCKenspiel. Too funny.

This is a problem. If no one hears from me for a week, send someone to pry me away from youtube. All these years I have kept away from it, only occasionally clicking on peoples' recommendations. Why? Because I knew I would have a problem. Back away, Karie. Just back away!!