Random Happiness

It's really weird sometimes, the things that make me feel happy. Today, it's gorgeous weather, a little bit cold for my tastes, but sunny and cloudless. There is still snow on the ground. And for some unknown reason it makes me happy that I live somewhere that it snows. Totally nonsensical.

I guess a big reason I moved up here in the first place was that I wanted to be somewhere different than where I had always been before. Somewhere that people had common interests to me, where there was some respect for culture and individuality, somewhere that people enjoy getting dressed and don't just wear jeans and t-shirts or khaki capri pants every day, somewhere with seasons!

I really like that I live in a city--with tall buildings, and cute neighborhoods, and people walking their dogs, and restaurants, and museums, and theaters, and pubs, and coffeehouses, and teahouses, and celebrities, and taxis, etc. and etc. I don't take as much advantage of all of it as I should, but at least I appreciate it! (Except for Midtown in December!)

Another thing that is making me happy is the fact that I might FINALLY get to visit England and Scotland in 2008. My friend Desiree and I are hoping / planning to go around Labor Day! As exciting as it will be to see England, I'm really more looking forward to going to Scotland. It's another thing I can't really explain, but Scotland is calling to me! Has been for years now. Maybe it's the accents, maybe it's my Ewan McGregor love, maybe it's the Loch Ness Monster. I don't know but I can't wait.

The Politics of Complacency

I was thinking this morning after reading a few different articles in the New York Times, that although I hate what (Fake) President George W. Bush has done to our country, at least his incompetency and refusal to do anything decent has motivated so many other, "regular" people to take action for causes in which they believe.

Maybe I just like the idea of resistance. But I also really like seeing people realize that change comes from within. There's no way you can rely on other people, especially your government (even when it's a government you voted for), to do the hard work and make the right choices.

It just proves that the U.S., no matter what conflicted feelings I or you or the rest of the world have about it, is really in the end what it sets out to be. A place where new ideas and individuality are safe, even though sometimes it feels like it will take forever for them to be fully realized or accepted. It still moves a lot faster than in a lot of other places in the world. Not ALL places, but a lot.

And I can't say enough about freedom of expression, so I won't even try.
Suffice it to say, although I and millions of others will continue to question it and criticize it, the idea of what we could be still means something to me. And that doesn't just go for the U.S., that goes for all of humanity.

Two inspirational pieces were titled:
"A Broken City. A Tree. Evening."
"The People We Have Been Waiting For"

If you have some time look for them on the site. It's free to register!

My Morning Ritual

For some reason, when I am on the 7 train in the morning on my way to work, I always start thinking about incredibly serious crap--life, death, God, the war, people I haven't seen in ages, my childhood, whatever. This never happens on the way home--I suppose because I am too tired, and also I usually take a different route home, so I am on the 7 train longer in the morning than in the evening.

Maybe I'm just trying to distract myself from the constant poopy smell? Maybe the poopy smell that I smell everytime I get on the train is just my brain's way of expressing to me that I think the 7 line is a piece of crap and there really is no poopy smell? I've just convinced myself that there is a poopy smell, so I automatically smell it everyday after being on the train for approximately one minute? It sure makes me miss the maple syrup smell that we got a few times in Manhattan, though!

That's what I was wondering this morning, so maybe not all my thoughts are that serious, huh?

I used to write every day. Not really important or serious stuff, but sometimes I would really be happy with whatever I had done. There was some poetry that I thought was decent, not too self-indulgent, and also some essays that I was pleased about. In college I tried to write a novel, and it was crap, but at least it had my brain in use, practicing my skill. Actually, it was my second novel if I count that NKOTB thing I wrote when I was 13 or so (which, if I ever did become a famed writer, would be pretty funny tp publish one day). But nowadays, I don't write much anymore at all. And I still think I get really good ideas for things sometimes, but it's as if I've forgotten how to properly execute them. Or maybe I was never that good at the actual writing, and I was just better with the ideas? If that's the case I should probably write for a soap opera or something. I guess I could always go back and try my hand at a Harlequin romance, just to get back in the habit of doing it daily.

Celeb City

I was thinking the other day about how I haven't seen any celebs around on the city streets in quite some time. And that made me sad. So I decided to make a list of the ones I have seen in the past, to cheer me up a little. Hopefully, the recent dearth just means there will be a nice major sighting in the near future?

Martin Scorcese, at whom I almost cursed for stopping in front of me as I was walking, before I realized who it was

Julianne Moore on 14th St. holding a kid

David Duchovny, almost bumped into him as he jumped out of a cab while filming some crap movie I never saw

Natalie Portman filming the final scene of Closer in Times Square

Fred Schneider (of the B-52s) in Union Square

James Iha (of Smashing Pumpkins) several times as he used to live near me and hang out at some of the same events as my roommates and I at the time

David Byrne (Talking Heads)stood next to my friend Chris and I at a They Might Be Giants concert

Ric Ocasek (The Cars) in the Meatpacking District one afternoon

Shepard Smith (Faux News) in Times Square. (Does he count? I'm putting it, whatev.)

Jared Leto, I think it was in SoHo off on some weird side street

Ludacris, ate at the Olive Garden

Method Man, same

Neil Patrick Harris, same, sadly enough

Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter, promoting his movie by hanging out of a limo in Times Square

Tracy Morgan, OG again

Joanna Cassidy and Cybill Shepard, filming that Martha Stewart tv movie in Times Square

Kristen Chenowith, outside of a B'way premiere

Chris Noth, two or three separate times

Karolina Kurkova, TriBeCa area

Kate Bosworth, shopping in Flat Iron District

Steven Weber, in Hell's Kitchen

Martha Plimpton, on an uptown N train

Mos Def, leaving the W Hotel in Union Square

One of those Madden brothers from Good Charlotte, the LAST time I ever went to MisShapes

Here are some I met when I was working in radio:
Margaret Cho, Scott Thompson, Dave Attell, Michelle Rodriguez, Vin Diesel, Bryan Norcross (only SoFla people will know him)
Also, when I was at Zeta I spoke on the phone to Michael Vartan and Christopher Masterson.

Okay, I feel a little better now!