Everyone Loves a Boston Girl

My Thanksgiving holidays have officially begun. As have my dogsitting duties. Basically, it goes like this…my aunt and uncle planned their trip and then “whoops, it’s over Thanksgiving…you weren’t planning on doing anything right?” I mean, my family lives 25 minutes away, but yeah I was planning on spending Thanksgiving alone in my apartment this year. Right. Also, my sister hasn’t been home for Thanksgiving for 3 years and is home this year. And won’t be home for Christmas. So, I really want to spend some time with her and her boyfriend. So, I’m going home for two nights, and bringing the dogs with me. Parents are not overly excited to have a rambunctious puppy in their house, but they are dealing with it so they can spend time with their lovely daughter. And my aunt has compensated me aplenty, so I am not at liberty to complain. But I might still a little (only when they wake me up at 5 a.m. to play outside).

Tonight the family came into the city and we dined at the Top of the Hub. The restaurant is 52 floors up in the Prudential Center and is supposed to offer fabulous views of Boston. Which it does. I’ve been there several times and it is extremely romantic and beautiful. Umm yeah. We walked in tonight and it looked like the shades were pulled on the windows. The fog was so thick we couldn’t even see a single city light. Kind of sad, because, although the food is quite good, the views are totally what that place is all about.

I should have said when “I” walked in, actually. After completely stressing, driving my stuff back and forth to my aunt’s, going to the obnoxiously crowded grocery store, and running through the streets in the rain in high heels to get to the restaurant for our reservation (I was told not to be late and it’s kind of a hike to and from the T), my family walked in a full 40 minutes after our scheduled meeting time. Yeah, I was not a happy camper. And I needed a drink badly. So, screw the whole never drinking again thing, because I had an absolutely amazing dirty martini with Grey Goose (clearly, the other night’s Grey Goose did not scar me for very long). And wine. At first I thought going home for a few days would be cleansing for me. Then I remembered how much my family drinks. Yay. Although they normally don’t get out of control like I did the other night. Thank the lord.

Dinner was delicious…baby spinach salad with roasted walnuts, goat cheese, pears, and port wine reduction lemon dressing, yum. And spaghettini with braised baby clams, pancetta, garlic, and roasted tomatoes, sooo amazingly good. And creme brule, yesss. It’s only Tuesday and I’ve already been eating like it’s Thanksgiving. It’s gonna be a long week. But a deliciously good one.

Tonight I’m sleeping with the dogs at my aunt’s beautiful house. Then tomorrow I’m getting up to bake an apple pie and pumpkin chocolate chip squares and then packing the dogs in the car and heading for home. I’ll definitely get some new pics of the pups, but if you want to see them in all of their cuteness, check out my old post. Trust me, they do not always look this calm. At all. But I do love them.

Oh, and check this post out if you want to see what dogsitting consists of for me…this was when there was only one dog. Now there are two. And the puppy is a bit psycho.

The other day, I realized that this will be my first time spending the holiday season as a single girl in 6 years. Wow. Granted last year was not really official and my relationship was still a big mess, the ex and I still bought each other nice presents, we still went Christmas shopping together, he still came to my family friend’s Christmas Eve party, etc., etc. Basically we were still a couple. One thing I can say about my ex is his amazing present-buying skills. In the 2.75 years we dated, I got 3 Coach bags, a Movado watch, Tiffany’s jewelry, various North Face jackets and products, and stockings stuffed with lipgloss, candy, and magazines. And I won’t even start to list the fabulous gifts I bought him. Clearly there is more to life and relationships than present buying. Gosh, who knew.

It’s a bit of a strange feeling to be single at this time of year, but even stranger that it took me until a week before Thanksgiving to have it even cross my mind. And to realize I really don’t care. The only thing I’ll really miss is the potentially fun present giving…and to be honest, I’m pretty sure my parents will have that one covered enough. Not to mention, it will be nice not to have to spend the money I’d usually be dishing on a bf and his family. And the present buying stress (parents are difficult! 12 year-old sisters are fun).

It’s really scary to me that I’ve been in a relationship for 6 years (well 2 relationships to be more specific) and to only now be the happiest I’ve ever been. I am so much on my own schedule these days; something I have never really done since leaving home. College was one endless hang out session with that bf. And as long as I’ve been in Boston, I’ve had the stress of commuting to the ex’s to hang out, making sure I had clothes/makeup/schoolwork/etc. packed (he lived downtown and right near my work and school), and stressing about when I had to be where and how I was going to carry my stuff from the T to his apt or to work and home. It’s also a funny feeling to realize how happy you “thought” you were versus how happy you are now. I’ve always thought of myself as an independent girl, but I’m learning that I really haven’t been since high school…and now the past 7 months. And honestly, I freaking love it.

Sure this holiday season will probably get a bit lonely at some points, but I’m not too worried. I have fabulous friends and a busy enough schedule that I’m sure I’ll be quite content. And sometimes a boy who isn’t a boyfriend is a lot more fun than a boy who is a boyfriend. I think I’m mostly excited though, because I’m really starting to learn what I want and what I need in life and love…and when I do get into another relationship, it’s going to be so different than anything I’ve had before. And I’m pretty sure I’d rather have someone who’s loving and generous with his feelings than a Coach purse anyway.

Happy holidays to me!

Last night was one of those nights where you wake up the next morning (or afternoon…or early evening) and say “Wow. I am never drinking again.” Only it was probably even worse than that. I was on my couch for the entire day today (still here now in fact) and did pretty much nothing, but feel angry at myself for being “that girl” last night. You know the one. The one who you look at and say “Oh my god. What a mess.” I hate that girl so much. And whenever I see her, I make fun of her and shake my head in disgust. I don’t like being her.

It started off low-key enough. Sara and I hanging out at my apartment, catching up and having some Grey Goose and sodas. We wanted to get an early start because the bar we wanted to go to gets really crowded. We were there at 9:30 and there was already a line all the way down the building. But we decided to suck it up and wait and got in about half an hour later.

Before we left my apartment we decided we would not be having any shots as we didn’t want the night to get out of control. That’s an easy enough decision to make, right? You’d think so, until the bartender looks at you and says, “you look like you need a shot.” We laughed and told him no, we didn’t want any. But he started making them anyway and told us “they’re on the house.” Isn’t there something just wrong about refusing free alcohol? Probably. So we took them (FYI: whatever kind of shot it was was sooo good. cherry birthday cake?? I think that’s what he told me). And then he gave us more. I’m not quite sure how many more. But enough to have me dancing and falling on the floor. Enough that when the rest of our friends arrived, I don’t really remember it. And legitimately not remembering half of the things that occurred the rest of the evening. I really really hate myself after nights like last night.

Remember when I was bragging about my amazing drunk contact taking out skills? Yeah. When I woke up this morning, both contacts were in the L portion of the case. I got through a full 4 days of not getting my left and right contacts mixed up. Go me.

I think I had at least 7 straws in my drinks all night long. And if someone said something about it, I would say, “What?? I like straws!”

Allegedly Sas has some photo evidence of the evening (did not realize photos were taken). I think I probably don’t really want to see them.

Thank God for a comfortable couch. Jerry Maguire and The Wedding Planner on TV. And finally feeling like a normal human being at around 5:00 p.m. Kind of. And having friends to reassure me that “You were bad but not soooooo bad. Just really bad.” And now I will sit here and watch the Patriots kick some Buffalo butt. Two touchdowns in the first like 5 minutes?? Umm yeah.

I think I probably owe Chelsee an especially big thank you for keeping me under control as much as she could last night and making sure I didn’t do anything I would really regret (more than I already did). And for filling me in on everything today…even the things I didn’t want to hear.

And Sara…we will never be that girl again. It’s just not cute anymore.

My day was super boring and consisted of doing work, going on a walk to pick up my contacts, deciding it was frigging cold outside and returning home. Tonight was lazy and extremely girly and definitely nothing anyone would want to hear about. So I figured I wouldn’t have anything exciting to blog about (not that that usually stops me), but Katelin tagged me in my first ever meme sooo this blog post will actually have a point. Yay!

I’m supposed to list 7 random facts about myself, then tag 7 people, and leave a comment in their blog to let them know.

So, here’s some randomness about me:

(1) I hate hate hate monkeys and everything involving them. I already disliked them, but then I witnessed a really disturbing scene at a zoo about 6 years ago (use your imagination) and now I cannot even stand the thought of them. My friends love to tease me and tell the story (I don’t like to talk about it), but they pretty much are all creeped out by monkeys now too. Yay.

(2) I’ve never broken a bone in my life. Never gotten the flu. Never had strep. Never had the chicken pox. Can pretty much count the number of times I’ve gotten sick. I come from a family of healthy immune systems and for that I am very very thankful. My body also gives me fair warning if I’m starting to get sick and I always know exactly how to fight it off.

(3) I love music more than anything but I am the least musically inclined person in the world. I took piano lessons for 11 years and pretty much sucked. My lessons were basically really expensive therapy sessions with my teacher. I played flute for 4 years and didn’t learn a thing. My sister used to scream at me when I sang. I tried playing guitar last week and as soon as I learned a chord, I would immediately forget it. I’m not sure what’s wrong with me, but now I have a huge appreciation and respect for people who can do music’y things. And I’m jealous.

(4) I never went through a really rebellious stage or a rough time with my parents growing up. My parents joke that they’re still waiting for me to “turn bad.” But if anything, I’m getting even closer with them. I talk to my mom pretty much every day and often for an hour at a time. And they weren’t the kinds of parents who are bff’s with their kids and let them do anything. They were strict and hard on me, but I respected them for it. And while we obviously had some arguments, I learned soo much from watching my sister screw up. I’m definitely the “good” daughter.

(5) My friends joke that, though I am super girly, I drink like a man. And that includes my coffee- always black. And my alcohol- really dark beer, gin and tonic, tequila shots. Though I’ve recently developed a taste for Grey Goose and soda.

(6) I am addicted to lipgloss. It started when I was 6 with chapstick, moved on to Bonne Bell, and is now stuck on Lancome Juicy Tubes, Maybelline Shiny.Licious, Philosophy, Bigelow, and Tutti Dolci. I have literally hundreds of them, including 10 on my bedside table right now. My dad once referred me to a website for people with lipbalm addiction. I would do anything to have a LipSmacker in coconut cake or cinnamon sugar, but they are discontinued flavors. Seriously depressing.

(7) Whenever I’m feeling down, watching any of the Muppet movies will cheer me up. Love them.

Now I’m supposed to tag this to 7 people. Soooo here’s who I’m tagging. You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to…and chances are you might have already done it, since it looks like everybody and their mom has. But do it if you want. I’ll do the comments in the morning…I am ridiculous when it comes to this whole sleeping thing.

Sas at www.sasidy.com
Chels at http://seeleigh.blogspot.com/ (she abandons her blog and needs to get back on it)
ToKisstheCook at http://tokissthecook.blogspot.com/
Shelley at http://shelleyrantsaway.blogspot.com/
Michelle at http://www.gooseberried.com/starboard/
Peter DeWolf at http://www.islemadame.com/blog/blogger.html
Loo at http://loosquared.blogspot.com/

If you know me, you know it doesn’t take much to put me in a ridiculously good mood and get me really excited. Umm not much at all. Case in point: Last week at the Christmas Tree Shop, Chelsee held up the DVD called Big Bird Goes to Japan and made a joke about it. I legit jumped over bins of stuff and practically fell while grabbing for the DVD and yelling “ohmygodthatsmyfavoritemovieintheworld!!!” The look on Chelsee’s face was priceless. But seriously, I hadn’t thought about that movie in forever and used to watch it non-stop when I was growing up. My dad traveled to Japan a lot so I loved watching Big Bird there (and how can you not love the part where everyone is saying “Ohayou” [good morning in Japanese] to him and he says “Ohio? I thought I was in Japan!”??? OK, I’m a huuuge loser. Stopping now. I promise I did NOT buy the DVD….though I might have come close).

Anyway, if I don’t have lame stuff like that to put me in a good mood, music always really helps. I legit believe that music heals all…or at least can put you in a super ridiculously good mood. Or at least can make you dance around your bedroom all alone. Orrr maybe that’s just me.

Here are the songs that always have the power to make me crazy happy:

“That’s Life” by Michael Buble- I know this is really a Sinatra song, but Michael Buble makes me happy in general so him singing this song is the ultimate. How can you not be cheered right up with these lyrics?? “That’s life. That’s what all the people say. You’re riding high in April. You’re shot down in May. I know I’m gonna change that tune when I’m back on top in June…But I know one thing. Each time I find myself flat on this face, I pick myself up and get back in the race.”

“Find a New Way” by Young Love- I just love the beats in this song and it’s about dancing, so duh. Also an excellent working out song. Not that I know anything about that. But it’s good for pilates too. “We’ll find another way to dance. If you get the chance, you must dance, dance, dance.”

“You Don’t Know What Love is (You Just Do As You’re Told)” by The White Stripes- With each new White Stripes album, I figure they can’t be as good as the last one. But they always seem to get better and better. I just like this song a lot and I can’t sit still when it’s on, much like all of their other songs.

“Semi-Charmed Life” by Third Eye Blind- This was my anthem summer before and after freshman year of high school. I had no idea it was all about drugs and just thought it was a super fun song. And it still is…minus the fact it’s all about meth. “I believe in the sand beneath my toes. The beach gives a feeling, an earthy feeling. I believe in the faith that grows, and the four right chords can make me cry. When I’m with you I feel like I could die. And that would be alright, alright.”

“I Wanna Love You Girl” by Robin Thicke and Pharrell- Besides the fact I want to marry Robin Thicke, I just think this song is fabulous. It basically repeats the same lines over and over: “Wanna love you girl” and “Oh, oh, oh,” in different pitches, and I love it. You’ll see why they stick to those lines when you hear the absolute cheesiness of the other lines…”And now my life is sweeter than berries…I guess if we have sex, our love will turn to wine.” Yup. Or ummm “Big castle on the sea shore, with the Willy Wonka decor…How this sound: Mr. and Mrs. Skateboard” Told ya.

“Young Folks” by Peter Bjorn and John- I hate hearing people whistle in real life but the whistling in this song makes me happy. And I’m a huge fan of the lyrics. The first time I heard this song was when I saw them perform on Leno with Victoria Bergsman and I honestly thought it was a big joke. They were the most awkward people ever. I actually thought they may be slightly retarded and Leno was letting them perform on his show specially. But then I couldn’t get the song out of my head and I realized how amazing Peter Bjorn and John and Victoria are. And that their weirdness fit the song quite well. Um, watch their performance and tell me it’s not a little odd. Seriously, watch it. My basic conclusion is that Swedish people are freaking weird, but they make damn good music.

“Uptown Girl” by Billy Joel- When I was 4 or 5 years old I had a radio, but the only song I liked that they played on the radio was “Uptown Girl” (I was way too addicted to Wee Sing Silly Songs and stuff like that). So, I would sit on my bed with my radio and just go from station to station trying to find “Uptown Girl.” Then I would sing and dance around my room (not much has changed) and be sooo happy that my favorite song everr was playing. I still get really happy when I hear it, though I do not constantly search the radio to find it anymore. I’m growing up. And come on, I can just hit play on my iPod anyway.

“Last night” by Diddy and Keyshia Cole- Who knows. Seriously, I’m not even a huge Diddy fan, but from the moment I first heard this song, I started smiling. It puts me in a good mood.

“Secret Smile” by Rascal Flatts- Another group who generally make me happy with every single thing they do. Their new album is seriously amazing and I did not think would even be able to come close to their last one. In love. This is an extremely cheesy song, but hey, what do you expect? “Love You Out Loud” also makes me reallllyyy happy. I had it as my ring tone at one point and I think it got a little out of control.

“Put Your Records On” by Corrine Bailey Rae- Makes me want to put my records on and dance. hehe. Seriously the whole album is amazing. Though “Like a Star” makes me cry, especially after Chels said it reminded her of me and my ex-boyfriend…story of our lives. But I’ll save that for the sad song list.

“Newport Living” by Cute Is What we Aim For- Just love the lyrics…like all of them. “Everyone’s a let down; it just depends on how far down they can go,” “You are a sell-out but you couldn’t even do that right” I think all of Cute’s songs are just fun and happy. Yay.

Anything by Enrique Iglesias- OK, I realize this makes me a huge weirdo and extremely ridiculous, but I can’t help it. I have actively tried to dislike Enrique and I cannot do it. I’ve watched his pathetic excuses for videos and made fun of them and him A LOT, and yet I am still obsessed with his music. I absolutely love “Escape,” “Don’t Turn Off the Lights,” “Be With You,” “Do You Know,” “Push,” his Spanish songs….See, I can’t freaking stop.

OK that was kind of a lot. I have stuff I need to go get done. Like the work I’ve been slacking on. And the job applying I’ve been slacking on. Maybe I’ll do a sad songs that make me happy list some other time when I need to slack again.