thirteen things i should have learned by now but...whatever

1. Cheese melted to a molten state in the oven will be hot and probably burn my mouth. (But I really wanted brie now!)
2. "The Girls Next Door" is a vapid, ridiculous waste of time & brain cells. (Yet I can't turn the channel).
3. Teenage boys do not genuinely care about creative writing. Ever. (But they will pretend, and write excruciating, interminable stories involving marijuana).
4. Mornings are a complete drag, especially when there are meetings scheduled during them.
5. Some people truly believe that kids with "piercings, weird hair, and you know, stuff like that" are not as reliable as preppy, 4.0 Key Club members. (There was a PTA committee meeting tonight and I had a moment...Of restraint, no worries.)
6. Preteen boys find moms invisible. (My best friend & I went to pick up her son at youth group tonight and he actually looked directly at us in the foyer, then walked into the game room)
7. Mornings are horrible. (Did I already mention that?)
8. If I take my coat in the horrible morning, it will be sunny & delightful by afternoon. Leaving a coat or sweater at home means the day will turn into a natural disaster.
9. I cannot be trusted with a credit card, especially one labeled GAP or Nordstrom. I lose my mind (and paycheck) over cardigans, cosmetics, and underwear.
10. Counting the days until vacation makes me feel guilty but I do it anyway, in my mind.
11. Listening to Queen, Squeeze, or ABBA almost always improves my mood.
12. Breakfast is important. Skipping it causes turmoil, for everyone.
13. There is no shame in OCD.

More, more, more? Click.

thirteen things i'm looking forward to this year

With pictures! Woohoo!

1. Vegas, baby. Technically we're going for a friend's wedding, but I'm cramming as much sinful citying as possible in a weekend.

2. Loads of good books (beyond the scores I already have lying around the house & classroom). I am Legend-reader.

3. A clawfoot tub for reading all those books in bubbly luxury. Look! It comes with a magazine rack! And it's clean...

4. And the award goes to...My Oscar party! I love the movies, the dresses, the hype, the Jon Stewart and I celebrate it all with my indulgent friends. I even have a red carpet & SWAG. You should come.

5. Wii will rock you. After thumbing my nose in its general video gamer direction, I played at my parents' house and became infatuated. The fact that they're creating a fitness module that sounds like it could make exercise tolerable for me puts it on my must-have list. (Don't tell my kids).

6. My Mexican boyfriend must be coming out with a new movie soon...Ay, I miss him mucho.

7. BlogHer conference in San Francisco! I've registered and booked a room and almost booked my flight! I can almost talk about going without using exclamation points! So exciting. (Does my desperation for a girls' weekend getaway after school is out show?)

8. Speaking of BlogHer - THIS is where we're staying! (More exclamations, sorry). When I say "we," I mean whomever I beg & badger enough to attend with me. So far my cyber bff Kate and real life bff Lisa are *thisclose* to saying yes; Mrs. G. has expressed interest but I think I've scared her a tad with my enthusiasm...But this hotel has HEAVENLY BEDS it says! Even Heavenly DOG beds; I kind of want to adopt a pet for that weekend. (But does it have a Heavenly poop scooper?)

9. And speaking of scaring with enthusiasm. I keep stalking checking the Fountains of Wayne website to see if they've added any Portland or Seattle shows for 2008. I have to look online because they still haven't answered any of my e-mails. Weird.

10. Treehouse family vacation - I'm totally serious. These babies are in southern Oregon, and my kids will love me forever for agreeing to go sleep forty feet in the air. But someone else is driving.

11. James McAvoy, doing anything I can watch. *sigh*

12. And whatever he does, too. Hi, Paul. You look tired, weyou should lie down...

13. A kindler, gentler me in the end.

________________________

More Thursday Thirteen goodness here.

resolutions, resolutions, reso LU HU tionnnnns (think "hallelujah chorus")

[Drumroll, please]

1. Wake & go to bed at regular, reasonable times (i.e. more than an hour before school starts and well ahead of midnight, respectively)
2. Post something pithy and/or meaningful daily
3. Read a new blog each day
4. Eat a decent breakfast every morning (falling under the "Lead by example" heading)
5. Delight in my candles more often (hopefully while in a dreamy clawfoot tub...)
6. Get a clawfoot tub
7. Establish joyful a.m./p.m. tea rituals
8. Figure out some form of exercise that I can do before my heart initiates a mutiny
9. Schedule & maintain regular rendezvous with my man, this hottie here at the Ace Hotel:

10. Print my photos and make cards for every occasion, for everyone I know, in a timely manner

11. Breathe deeply & be mindful of the moments. Except the ones that make me say F*ck, I'll let them fade. After I blog about them.