— A Friday night gathering with dear friends Beth, Betsy, and Mere (you know … my “clique” from high school.) We sat around Beth’s dining room table, we drank wine, we talked, laughed, told stories, we ate so much food that we scared ourselves and finally had to just push the damn plates away. Beth’s house is a haven for us. We convene there as often as we can.
— A post-sunset walk on the beach with my sister and her dog. The sand was flat, hard, and the tide was very low, leaving the beach wide and long. The coastline curves around, and you can see the orange lamplights shining through the night, like a necklace. Jean’s dog had a ball of a time – he’s a black lab – so we couldn’t really see him in the darkness, but we could hear his collar jingling, as he raced about.
— Lots of conversations about Arthur Miller.
— A clothes-shopping extravaganza with my mother. Excuse me, but Marshall’s ROCKS. I got something like 7 pieces of clothing for 70 bucks. And we’re talking really nice name-brand skirts, cool shirts … I felt greedy and very excited. I love my new skirts. (Jean, they’re the brand-name you recommended – member the chick you pointed out at D’Angelos? There’s a ton of those skirts at Marshall’s and I got two. I love them.)
— My dad made a wood fire. I loved walking up the flagstone path to the front of the house, and you can smell the smoke from the chimney. Such a homey cozy smell.
— Dinner at Giro’s – a restaurant/bar that has always been there, it is a landmark … I haven’t been there in years. Funnily enough: it was just bought by a person I grew up with, his family lived across the street from mine. I remember him as a small freckled mischievous 5 year old boy. Jean remembers that he had a bike with an orange banana seat. And now – he is a tall married man, his wife is pregnant, and he owns Giro’s. He came over to the table to say hello to all of us, and it was just awesome. He looks EXACTLY the same, except that he is 6 feet tall. And time keeps rolling on … Nice to meet those people again, the ones who knew you when.
— I walked down to the pond at the end of my street. It’s now frozen, and someone has placed benches out on the ice. The trees surround the pond, bare ranks of grey and brown. There’s much more snow up here than there is down in New York. I used to go skating on that pond when I was a teenager. I dragged Mere along once, as I recall.
— I hung out at Jean and Pat’s on Saturday night, after we came back from Giro’s, and we watched Saturday Night Live, guest-hosted by the new love of my life: Jason Bateman. And Kelly Clarkson was the musical guest. Now – that girl has some pipes. I think she has an inCREDible instrument – member her singing “God Bless America” at, I think it was the first game of the World Series? She did a great job – she’s got one of those God-given gifts in that voice. So I do not know WHAT she was thinking with the hard-rock songs she chose … her voice is made for big power ballads. There was something weird about having an electric guitar jamming out … her voice was drowned out. Strange. Not a good choice. Also – Kelly: did you really knock over that microphone stand? Why? Are you like a hard-rock chick now? I don’t think so!
— Tearing through East of Eden. I can’t stop. I’ll write more of my thoughts on it later.
— Somehow, my parents and I got to talking about “Google” and how it has changed our lives. Oh, I know how it came up. It was because of the “bimulous night” thing. It’s hard to imagine life without Google now, it has changed research, etc. My dad is a librarian, and he said, “I don’t know what librarians will call themselves in the future … and what their job will actually be anymore … but it sure won’t be what it was in the past.” Later, he said, in regards to where the profession of “librarian” is going, in lieu of Google: “I feel like I’m a blacksmith in 1910.”
No way, bee-yatch. Jason Bateman is the new love of my life. I’ll fight you for him.
I saw him first!
*{rolling up sleeves}*
Would you care to step outside, Miss?
I remember seeing him on Silver Spoons and thinking: He will grow up to be a hottie.
That was a lie I just told. Sorry. It was really Dodgeball that made me take notice.
Emily, we have even more competition. From Blind Cave Fish who writes: Jason? Consider yourself my new boyfriend.
Remember It’s Your Move? I loved him in that — the chick that played his sister went on to play Nina on Y&R.
I remember the pond! we went skating there!
mere – Yes!! We had a snow day, I think … and we went skating. I might even have pictures of our time there somewhere …
Great to see you, Mere! Also – loved to see you and Natalie waving from your car at me and my mom!
haha! i was driving behind you two for a while…PJ’s Pizza?
Actually, we were stopping to drop off my pants with the broken zipper at that little tailor-shop right there.
Sheila,
My deep love for Jason began when he starred as the peach-fuzz mustachioed gangster lieutenant in Starsky and Hutch. I will not let a saucy tart like you come between us.
I would suggest, Emily, that we share him, but I’m not good at sharing. Saucy tarts usually aren’t.
Death first.
With any luck, red, your father will be retired before he has to worry about it. Otherwise he can become an “Information Services Professional.” Which will apparently involve moving homeless people off the computers so 14 year old boys can look at nekkid wimmen.
I myself am a librarian of sorts, though the Archives world usually means I still have paper to worry about for a while.
And I knew I remembered useless trivia correctly. Your heart-throb did indeed star in the delightful romp known as Teen Wolf Too..
I never really thought the first one was crying out for a sequel, but what do I know?
My dad’s not worried – he just thinks it’s a rather amusing phenomenon. I liked his analogy with the blacksmith … once one of the most important people in any village … but in 1910? hmmmm … looking at the end of things!
I saw Teen Wolf Too. I did not see Starsky & Hutch. I am a bad girlfriend to my new boyfriend.
I’m not so sure. He might be just as happy to have you (& everyone else) forget that particular “film.”
Don’t make me slap you, hussy.
The true test, Sheila, is whether or not you’re watching Arrested Development. Because I am. Every week. Without fail. Which makes me a loyal and devoted girlfriend.
Actually, the blacksmith is a good analogy. There are still blacksmiths around, just a lot fewer, and catering to the high-value horsey set.
Librarians are going to need to specialize in archives that are not digitized, and locked-away low use digital collections that are not linked to the net: high value stuff., but not of commercial interest to a wide variaety of people. And that means there will be a lot fewer of them.
Ok, ok, I know it’s probably short for Mirabelle or something.
Now, it IS a sign of low expectations if you name your kid “Daniel Champion.”
meredith.
Good, good.
If I make myself look like an idiot during the day, I sleep a little better at night.
The tailor is “May Tailor” run by these three Vietnamese sisters. Everything costs “…uhhhh, fie dolla”. SORRY I fell asleep on you guys Friday night- I remember closing my eyes “for a minute” and then I woke up at 4am with the cat sleeping on my chest-someone covered me with blankets, turned out the lights and removed my glasses! I love how you guys don’t judge, just carry on. “Oh, look, Beth is sleeping away. We’ll just sit here and converse a while more, then let ourselves out…” Now THAT’S true friendship! Happy Valentine’s Day!!!
Beth – Yes!! We were told to go to see “the Vietnamese lady” to fix my zipper. Actually, mine is going to be six dollahs.
Oh, and no problem with the sleeping. I loved it. I did address one comment to you, before I realized what had happened … “Isn’t that right, Beth?” Long long silence. hmmmm
heh heh
we had a great time … thanks, as always, for hosting