Little Miss Snowman

Here's this year's comic strip. Enjoy!

Part 1:

Part 2:

Rewind to April 8-26, 2010:Vacation, All I Ever Wanted

Here's an abbreviated rundown of everything that went down during my April vacay/RM visit. Warning, if you get tired easily, you may not want to keep reading.

4/8

Almost late for my flight. Arrived at the gate 15 minutes before takeoff. Landed at the Orange County airport on time but had to wait for sister to get her butt in gear. Got into fight about two hours after being in CA (a new record) about her significantly older boyfriend. Said hello to the puppies and passed out.

4/9

Woke up early, made amends with sister and prepared for 8-hour trip to San Francisco that ended up being a 10-hour trip because of traffic.

4/10

Drove sister to Sonoma so she could stay with her friend. Dropped mom off in Union Square so she could visit with her friend. Met up with my friends for a little quality time. Met AB's brand-new baby boy and BV's newest boy toy. Had tons of fun catching up. Always nice to see those girls. I miss them. After visit I picked up mom and we had dinner at Fisherman's Wharf.

4/11

Mom and I met up with JM in Novato. She took us to Bodega Bay--where one of my favorite movies of all time, The Birds, was filmed. It was rainy and gloomy all day, which made it the perfect weather for a Bodega Bay visit. After an awesome lunch, we drove around exploring the small towns in the area. We picked up sister from friend's house in Sonoma, said our goodbyes to JM and AM, then headed back to San Francisco for dinner with cousin.

4/12

Packed everything into the car and headed back down to SoCal.

4/13

Woke up early to go walking by the beach in Dana Point with AD. Spent the day with her and hung out with her kids for a little bit. Spent time with the family that night.

4/14

Had one of the worst birthdays ever, but it ended with a nice dinner with family and friends at one of my fave burger joints--Islands.

4/15

Woke up early again to go on a hike in Laguna Woods with AD then had a lovely dinner with DS and NG at The Block.

4/16

For my bday present, RJ took me to the Taylor Swift concert at the Staples center. Had an awesome dinner at Trader Vic's before the big show. Awesome concert--lots of fun.

4/17

Breakfast with RJ and RM at Madison Square Cafe in Laguna Beach. Had the best pancakes ever! Spent the afternoon with PB, HB and their adorable daughters. Thankfully SB didn't run away from me screaming. I think we're making progress. Finished off the day with a visit to Yogurtland. YUM!

4/18

Low-key day full of packing and napping before boarding the red-eye flight back to NJ.

4/19

Back at work. Time to get ready for RM's visit. Estimated date of arrival: Thursday 4/22.

4/22

RM and MP arrive from Boston. Met up with them after work and found out our Nobu dinner is that night, not Friday night. I'm really stylin' in my black Converse sneakers at Nobu Next Door. Thanks guys for the heads up!

4/23

Spent the day in the city. Here's what we did: Breakfast at Dean & DeLuca's in Rockefellar Center, short stop in St. Patrick's Cathedral, strolled up Fifth Ave to Lexington Ave., went downtown for lunch at Momofuku (best ramen ever!), headed down Broadway into Chinatown and Little Italy, had a snack at the really cheap dumpling place in Chinatown (soooo goood! can't beat 5 fried for $1 and 10 steamed for $1), picked up another snack at Rice to Riches, headed to Katz's for dinner, picked up dessert at Crumb's and Magnolia's, went home to relax. Since RM is a foodie, this day was all about the NYC food tour. I need to detox as soon as she leaves.

4/24

Another gorgeous day in the city--headed in to take in the sites. Here's what we did: Started with the best breakfast at Alice's Tea Cup, took a stroll through Central Park, sat in Bryant Park and ate some scones, took in a puppet show at the New York Public Library, wandered around Grand Central Station, walked part of the Brooklyn Bridge, saw the Statue of Liberty from Battery Park, walked by Ground Zero, had dinner at Lombardi's on Spring st., took a peek at Serendipity and Dylan's Candy Bar, went home and conked out. Phew...long day.

4/25

RM wasn't feeling well, so we opted to have a lazy day. Spent the entire time watching romantic comedies. We did manage to leave the house around five to get some hot dogs from Rutt's Hut in Clifton, NJ.

4/26

Went to work while RM got her things together for her early AM exit the next day. Stopped by Gray's Papaya to get her some hot dogs and picked up some White Castle burgers in Jersey. Such a nutritious dinner! It's salads for me for the rest of this week and next week.

Phew...all done. Next up...May Madness.

Party Down!

I have a new favorite show. Well, a new one to add to the already long list. Thanks to Netflix, I just finished watching all 10 episodes of the first season of Party Down. Let me tell you--it is LOL funny!


The show is about a group of struggling dreamers (mostly actors) working for a catering company and waiting for that one big break. Maybe I'm a little biased because Rob Thomas is one of the creators and many former Veronica Mars cast members make an appearance, but really, this shit is funny.

I'm attracted to pathetic but likable characters and this show definitely has no shortage of them. They're completely ridiculous, but your heart goes out to them. They're kind of like the great Michael Scott. You shake your heads at them, but at the same time you just want to give them a hug.

When the last ep ended, I actually said "Nooooooooooooo" out loud. I was so sad. I can't wait until the second season! If you like these types of comedies and you've got Netflix, I highly suggest adding this to the list.

Back to Bayside

If you're a fan of Saved by the Bell and didn't see Zack Morris on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon last night, you have to check out the video below. It's so awesome! I totally signed the petition for a reunion on the show. I mean really, who doesn't want to see Zack, Kelly, Slater, Jessie, Lisa and Screech together again?!

Adventures in NYC

I've lived here for about six years now, but some days I still feel like a tourist. One of the great things about having out-of-town guests is they give me an excuse to do things in this city I've never done before. I originally wanted to give you a rundown of everything I did while they were here, but I'm in no mood to write a really long post. So I'll just give you a few highlights.

While WH was here, we decided to hop on the 1 train and take it to Battery Park. This was my first time down there, and I was not disappointed. It's a gorgeous park with some incredible views. If you're reading this, could you send me some of the pics, WH? I was a lame tourist and forgot to bring my camera. After walking around a little bit and trying to avoid some very large snakes that were on display, we found ourselves by the Wall Street Bull. Of course everyone and their mama was there taking pics on the bull and at the bull's ass. Then it was off to St. Paul's Church and Trinity Church. Although I'd never hang out at a cemetery at night, there's something about walking around a really old one that's fascinating to me. It was cool to look at all the headstones and how they'd aged over the years. If you can look past the creepiness and forget the horror movies, there really is this unexplainable beauty about a cemetery--especially the old ones.

While the Mizzou Boys were here, we saw a ton of things and walked just about everywhere. This time, I actually managed to snap a few photos.

I finally got to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. Although I have this total fear of heights, I was able to look straight ahead and get to the other side--and then do it all over again since the car was parked in Brooklyn. Here are a few pics:

Welcome to Brooklyn

The Brooklyn Bridge

A view of the Manhattan Bridge from the Brooklyn Bridge

We also decided to make a trip to Coney Island--another first for me:

The boardwalk

The Cyclone rollercoaster

Freaky posters

We spent an entire day devoted to all things Japan. I attended my first-ever Japan Day in Central Park. Of course Hello Kitty was there to make an appearance:

Hello Kitty in a traditional Japanese outfit

L-Dawg and I visited one of the Japanese bookstores on his list. This is where I found a book I totally wanted called Brown Diary. It's kind of odd because it's filled with pictures of a teddy bear doing all sorts of things--kind of like that garden gnome that travels the world. Anyway, when I saw the picture below, I totally wanted it but didn't really think paying $20 for the book was the best thing to do given my economic state. I thought I'd be able to snag a bunch of photos from the website, but apparently it doesn't exist anymore. Luckily, L-Dawg was able to find this for me:

Too cute! I love that he's in his PJs!

After the bookstore, we all met up again to eat at Ninja New York. This was truly an experience--ninjas serving our food, dishes served in flames, ninjas trying to stab us with their plastic swords--very fun! I don't have any pics of this, but hopefully one of my guests will be kind enough to send me their pictures from the trip. ;)

Those were just a few things I'd never done in the city and was happy to do for the first time with some of my favorite people. Another cool highlight was our celebrity sighting at Cafe Habana. We're pretty sure we saw Blake Lively eating at the table near the door. I'm pretty sure it was her because I'd just seen her at the CW upfronts the week before. Yes, I was able to see a few celebrities as I stood outside of MSG waiting like the fangirl I am, but sadly, I did not see the people I really liked. All the actors from the old-school WB shows were not in attendance. Instead, I was only able to see the casts of 90210, Gossip Girl, Melrose Place, the new vampire show and the new show about models. It was a little disappointing.

Before I sign off for tonight, I have one last thing I'd like to share. The other day, I received a package in the mail from DS. When I opened it, I found the first season of October Road staring at me. I love that show, and I love Bryan Greenberg even more. I saw him in concert last December (yes, he's a singer/musician, too) and I'll be seeing him in concert again on June 18. So excited! Anyway, I called DS to thank her, not realizing there was more to her present. She told me to open it up and when I did I totally freaked out. When she went to his L.A. concert, she was kind enough to get an autograph for me since she knew I'd never get the cajones to do it myself. Bryan Greenberg signed my DVD with her Bono sharpie! Check it out:


That's right, you read it correctly--he wished I was there. LOL! How awesome is that?! She's a total rockstar! I'm so lucky to have such awesome friends. I really am--they're all awesome in their own special way. Sometimes I just feel so undeserving, but I'm so very thankful I have them.

Speaking of friends, a few of them have been going through a rough time lately. Without naming names (I think you know who you are) and broadcasting your business across the net, I just wanted to take this opportunity to let you know that my thoughts and prayers are with you. I know you're dealing with a lot right now, but if you need anything, just let me know.

I hope all the readers of my little blog are happy and doing well. Have a great week!

My Album Cover

My good friend at Perpetual Mixtape posted this fun little activity: What Would Your Album Cover Look Like? Head over there to check out the directions so you can create your own. It basically involves three random search results. Here's the end product of my searches:

I know, it looks like an adult contemporary album filled with love songs. Here are the links to the pages that inspired this album cover: Alibeg River, Such a Method is Love and The Photo.

I Like Funny

I felt like I needed a good laugh before I went to bed, so I went to YouTube to find one of my favorite Super Bowl commercials. Now, normally the talking E*TRADE babies freak me out a little, but the first time I saw this I busted up laughing. It was mainly because the singing baby reminded me of a friend. When the baby sang then added that last little line at the end, I could totally hear L-Dawg doing that and sounding exactly the same. Plus, I could imagine his face kind of making the same expressions. I guess something makes me laugh when it reminds me of someone who makes me laugh. Here's the commercial just in case any of you forgot it. Take, these broken wings...and learn to fly again...LMAO!