honey bunches of oats

Hello to you! :-)

Hil! Your post is great!! :-) I'm not sure how to follow such great and fun writing!...
Also, I heard about your job at Hallmark!! AWESOMEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How's it going?? Please do tell! :-)
How were everyone's Thanksgiving's? I feel that I am about 5 pounds heavier...it doesn't help when you're pms'ing during the Thanksgiving break because then I eat EVEN MORE than I normally would, haha, oh well! But I was in Pittsburgh visiting the g-parents and relatives. Normally when we go out there we just sit and eat and watch tv and take a few naps throughout the day...however, this time we painted their basement...fun!! haha It wasn't too bad, but we're getting their house ready to sell because they're going to be moving out here- we're putting an addition on our house......so it should be interesting :-)
Also, I was wondering if it was ok to add a book to my list if that's ok!....I heard that 'The Pilot's Wife" is good...
And a Christmas party would be so fun! Good idea! :-)
As far as I know my last final is Dec 17th.....so I feel like maybe anytime after that would be good, but I could definitely work something out if the weekend before that is better!!!
I can't wait to see you!!!!!!!
LOVE YOU!

The (good) Buisness:
Joy-good plan. December is looking crazy for me, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Let's make this happen. Maybe we could venture to your neck of the woods soon? Or you all are welcome to come to my abode. Or somewhere in the middle. Or anywhere together.

The Pleasure:
Here's the 822 (twice as interesting as the 411). I'm bored. A lackluster lifestyle at present, to say the least, but luster is not something I need (want?!) (all the time). Overkill on the parentheses? Let's start a new paragraph.

Stemming from my Saturday night boredom, and recent internet media jaunts, I bring you my (very!) likes as of late. Trailer likes. Music likes... Everywhere a like-like, old McDonald had a...

Perusing the streets of IMDb I found myself at the corner of romantic and comedy, so here ya go ladies. Maybe something to look forward to crying, laughing, or should Tyra and her team of literary experts protest, "craughing" about.

And then after that there's some music I like. Some of which is out of character. Dare I say... country? (I dared.)

Film Winnebagos

• New York, I Love You - Celebs and their on-the-cusp counterparts join film strip for a bunch of mini stories a la Love Actually.
• Leap Year - Amy Adams travels through Wales with a rugged man, trying to get to her boyfriend. Cue the scenery. Cue the "I want to go to Europe" thoughts. Cue stick (I was on a roll, I don't know).
• Valentines Day - Seems like it might be sort of like New York, I Love You, Love Actually, and He's Just Not That Into You getting together for a sterroids summit. Full of people you've heard of being FUNny.
• Dear John - Nicholas Sparks bringing home the bacon. Channing Tatum with no shirt meets girl from Mama Mia and Mean Girls for a lot of romance (and what appears to be a nice soundtrack!)
• When In Rome - Girl from Veronica Mars and Forgetting Sarah Marshall goes to Italy for her sister's wedding... meets a bunch of people. Kind of a silly looking thing, but there's Italy, funnies, and Josh Duhamel. Sounds like a movie where you don't need to be ready to put your thinking cap on. And that's just fine with me!

Listening Chomps
College Acapella hits the scene (Ben Folds even dedicated a whole ALBUM to it), with an appearance by country, oldschoolish-country, and mindless slow pop with a catchy chorus. These, along with a few natural, 104.5 choices, round out the music playing constantly between the ears. Oh yeah, and Michael :o) . My hope is that you will all be bored enough to enjoy some of this, my (cornu)copious blabbing on about the media hype in my head. Sorry if this sounds as self-centered as I think it might. Not the intent!

• "1901" - Phoenix (Fallin', fallin', fallin' ... from the car commercial)
• "Haven't Met You Yet" - Michael Buble (Joy, how do you make that accent on letters? I think Michael's name really needs to pop!)
• "Hollywood's Not America" - Ferras-We've all heard it, but come now, let's sing it, Hooold on, put your bluuue jeans back onnnnn...
• "Happy" - Nevershoutnever - It's light and fluffy and I heard it on a TLC commercial.
• "Would You Go With Me?" - Josh Turner, or, if you prefer acapella frat boys version, the Academical Village People from UVA. Also, it's country.
• "The Story" - Brandi Carlile ... liked it about the same time last year, too. My favorite version is by the UVA Sil'hooettes. I can't help their silly names, but their voices speak (sing!) for themselves. There's a recording of them I found as a link to their website when they sang it at the Kennedy Center, I believe. The main girl is really just a lot good.
• "Wagon Wheel" - Old Crow Medicine Show (and many others, but this version is my favorite)
• Anything from the Glee soundtrack. Have you guys been watching? Hilarious, both subtlely and outright, and tons of great music and cute little storylines. And this guy sings "Sweet Caroline." [Although the music is all pre-recorded, no voices are substituted. If the characters are singing it in the show, they are the ones on the soundtrack. Watch out Efron!]
• "Bonfire" - Third Eye Blind, from their new album "Ursa Major." Saw/heard them last year in Harrisburg. Older but they've still got it. It sounds a lot like their older stuff. Catchy. Very 90s. Let's all reminisce.
• "Daylight" - Matt & Kim. Pump you up. (This, and the two following it have a similar vibe, if you will. And you WILL.) (Will you?)
• "Kids" - MGMT. We know this. I'm just reiterating its place in musical society.
• "Fireflies" - Owl City (coming to a Messiah College near you!)
• "Not the Same" - Ben Folds, or any of the many college acapella groups who covered it. But Ben Folds' rendition from his live album ("Ben Folds Live") is my favorite. That whole album really. This song, as Mr. Folds divulges to his listeners on the live album, is about a guy who was at a party tripping on acid, and climbed up a tree. He came down from the tree the next morning and was a Christian.
• "Anytime" - Eve 6. Silly itunes for not having this available. Youtube bound for this one.
• "Secrets" - Becca Hyland. Listen here. I credit her musicianship to being a product of Hess 2nd. :oP

My mind is suffering from involuntary arrested development. And my cold typing hands are soon to follow. Adios muchachos.

... if we were lost in fields of clover?

Love you each very much!

Hil

Yay! Okay, it's almost officially my favorite time of year! This is the only time of year I'm okay with it being cold only at this time of year. It wouldn't be Thanksgiving/Christmas time if you couldn't bundle up and watch football, movies, and snuggle right?

To my point for making this post... I want to see you girls around Christmas time! Wouldn't it be fun to do something Christmas-y together? So I mean, I was thinking we could have a little mini party of sorts together? I'd be willing to host (for a weekend or a few days, if you girls are available) or I'd even be willing to come that way. I definitely want to see you girls though, I got you all a little something :) yay!

Also... we have to pick a new book soon! Exciting!

Any particular weekends you are all free? I can't wait to see all of you! (and see Hil especially, since we missed you last time!!)

Alright that's all.. love you!

Hi all!

I have the list. Hope it was great yesterday! I missed you guys a ton, and wished I could've been there at great 'ol KOP, but it was great to finally see my brother and sister-in-law.

Ahem (this is just in order of when people shared their picks in the emo transformative young adult corner of Borders:

Bri picks...
"The Lovely Bones" by Alice Sebold
"Friday Night Knitting Club," by Kate Jacobs

Hil picks...
"Telex from Cuba," by Rachel Kushner
"The Chocolate Lovers Club," by Carole Matthews
"The Blind Side," by Michael Lewis
"The Recipe Club," (nice job with the club themes, hil...) by Andrea Israel and Nancy Garfinkel

Joy picks...
"Marley and Me," (Kleenex me) by John Grogan
"Firefly Lane," by Kristin Hannah
"The Art of Racing in the Rain," by Garth Stein
"A Lineage of Grace," by Francine Rivers

Amanda picks...
"Songs of the Humpback Whale," (check!) by Jodi Piccoult
"Love in the Time of Cholera," by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
"Any Place I Hang My Hat," by Susan Isaac
"This is Where I Leave You," by Johnathan Trouper

Love you guys super super much!
Hil

Hi Girls! I was wondering if any of you had the list of books that we compiled from our first meeting of the book club :) I seem to have misplaced mine :( I was going to post it! Oh well. Do any of you have the list, can you post it?

Love you all so very much!

Hi girls! Yes, I did dress up. I was Liza Minelli. Our team @ work had a theme that was "iconic music figures". Someone was Elvis, so funny.. Bono.. Madonna.. etc. It was very funny and a lot of fun! Besides that, I didn't dress up.. and we had no tricker treaters at Matts. Guess the rain deterred all the little princes and princesses. Anyways I put some pics on FB if you want to see me in action.. haha.



How is everyone? I miss you all! How's school going Bri? And job hunting Hil? Anymore interviews? Poptarts? I'm sure there's been more poptarts, but I would like to hear about the job interviews :) Amanda I hope your job is going well and you are that much closer to moving to where you want to be.

Things are good on this end.. no hernia ::cheers:: I did pull my groin (lovely) and the doctor said to just lay off the exercise for a little while, to which I responded "Sure no problem.. :)" She also prescribed me acne medicine.... which is a funny story that I got the chance to tell Hil and Amanda... but I'll repeat here for Bri...

So the dr says to me "here's some acne topical stuff.. it may irritate your skin a little, but it'll be okay" So I'm like.. no big deal how bad could it be? Well I put it on at night (to avoid worrying about what I'd look like progressively throughout the day had I put it on in the morning) and I woke up the next morning looking like Jolly Santa Claus went to the tanning salon gone WAAAAY wrong. OMG. I was so red.. it was kind of hilarious. And to top it all off, I was insatiably itchy... like all over my face.. itchy like a giant bug bite... ooooo it was so bad! needless to say, I called the pharmacist and he told me I more than likely had way to sensitive skin to use that medicine, so I should probably only use it like spot treatment... every other 3 days or something. SO funny. Anywhoo, I'm back to normal now (thank the Lord) and after that ordeal, I think I would almost rather have pimples, than have that episode happen again.

That's all she wrote for now, there's not a whole lot else happening on my end. I've made it to chapter 35 in our book, and should probably go back and read some of the beginning chapters to freshen up a little. Can't help it... I'm just a book worm :)

That's me
Love, joyful

happy belated halloween everyone!

i hope you are all are well and have survived the night of candy receiving and giving and baseball playing. did anyone dress up? i know joy did--i'd love to see pictures! on friday night i was the swine flu. i didn't realize that my costume could have looked EXTREMELY scandalous. here's what happened i was wearing about 4 layers of tights and leggings but the ones that you could see were cream, pink and blue. i cut holes in the tights to make it look like i was a disease. the problem: the holes in the tights left you looking at massive cream colored holes in my tights. translation: it looked like skin!!! it looked like you could see my legs through big holes in several pairs of tights! i went to a party and it wasn't until a few people around me got drunk that anyone bothered to tell me that it looked like wasn't wearing very much!!! lovely. i hope that people just assumed that i was decent human being and that i wasn't naked very far from it--i was sweating in all the layers i was wearing!

anyways, that was my little halloween mishap. the next night, which was actually halloween i dressed up all cozy as a lion and gave out candy to all the little soggy wet ghosts and princesses. my mom made slimey rickies which had frozen grapes in them and looked all slimy because of the lime pulp but they were delicious! she also made 'spider webs' out of cheese that were yummy too :)

i hope that if you dressed up, your costumes were a little less of a shamble than mine!

love you all
manda