side note

For those of you who may have heard my nightmare haircut story recently...just a clarification: NO...this is NOT where I got my hair cut. I would have taken one look at that sign and kept on walkin'.



(Thanks for the pic, Todd)

sad day

My office friend, described in this post back in July, is wearing a short-sleeve button up shirt with a tie today.

He does get points for the button up shirt, rather than button down - and if you want to know about that, maybe I'll write about it tomorrow - but gets complete disqualifiation for today's ensemble thanks to the short sleeves.

Guys...please pay attention...don't EVER wear a tie with ANY short sleeve shirt. In fact, you shouldn't even OWN a short-sleeve button up in a solid colored "wear this to the office" kind of material.

When I saw it, I sighed "Oh NO" (very Phoebe-esque) audibly. He didn't hear. Thank God for small blessings.

For the record, it's not an eternal deal-breaker...the boy can be taught (I mean, he went to Oxford and all...so surely he's a fast learner), but it's still a sad day.

quotable seuss

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.”
  - Dr. Seuss

don't use your brain

I think this is what the TSA folks tell all their bag-checkers at the airports. I mean, if they were to let people judge for themselves what is safe and what isn't safe to carry on a plane...they might let the wrong person through the line. That's the only way I can reconcile what happened to me on Sunday.

I flew back to the UK from Houston on Sunday night. I dutifully checked online to see what I was now allowed to carry on the aircraft, and it looked like there was nothing in my purse that would be considered contraband. Yay!

I made it through the first security screening without any problems. I did a little shopping and got to the gate with a new book ("This is NOT Chick Lit", more on that after I've actually read it) and a few magazines to enjoy.

When they called our flight for boarding, I passed through the gate and into the hallway leading to the plane...and here's where things went dreadfully wrong.

I saw that we were being put through a secondary security screening after the gate...no problem. I'm a happily compliant traveler. I waited to be called forward, and AS I WAS STEPPING UP TO THE TABLE I hear one of the TSA staff members say "If we haven't called you to the side, please keep moving forward". I immdiately think "Grr...I wouldn't have to wait for this if I'd been here the last time he said that", but in reality I don't mind...I've got nothing to hide.

Then the guy searching my purse says, "Oh...I can't let you take this with you" and pulls out a small almost-empty tube of lip gloss. BLAST! Then he spots the replacement tube for the soon-to-be-discarded one..."Oh...not this one either"...rummage...rummage...then, "What's this one?" My reply: "Well, it's not lip gloss, but it's not a solid lipstick either." TSA guy: "Oh, sorry...that one's out too."

Walking away, I'm thinking "DAMMIT...I just lost at least $25 worth of lip stuff because I didn't hear or realize they were only doing spot checks at the gate!"

Normally, this wouldn't irritate me that much, because, well...maybe I didn't read Continental's website closely enough...and maybe it still says (or implies) that lip gloss isn't ok. So...I decided about 2 minutes after the lip-stuff-confiscation that I was over it.

BUT...somewhere along the way on the flight, I reached into my purse to get my pen (oh, yes...to fill out my landing card) and what did I find? Are you ready for it?

• one remaining tube of lip gloss
• one pointed-tip metal fingernail file

SO many more thoughts on the subject...but I'll just end with this:

SERIOUSLY????

keeping it real

I got some new body lotion. It's from Kiehl's. They make really good stuff. I've liked every single product I've ever had with their label on it.

Their product labels are very old-world apothecary-like (well, that's how they look to me), and just beg to be read (I mean, there's a whole lot of text there, compared to the average label). As I read the label on my new bottle of lotion, I was amused by the claims that it makes...apparently, the marketing folks at Kiehl's belive this particular it's so good that this is what they say about it ON THE BOTTLE: "Continued use for 10 days will provide a skin texture heretofore unattainable."

I think it takes a lot of confidence (to put it lightly) to make that sort of statement.

However, I've had (and have been using) the lotion for 6 days, and I think the good folks at Kiehl's are just keeping it real...I haven't even made it to day 10 yet and I'm already impressed with my new and improved skin texture. No wonder this lotion is one of the best-selling things in their shops.

Now I don't want to hear a peep from all you people out there who are thinking "yeah...sure...10 consecutive days of ANY lotion would probably yield a skin texture heretofore unattainable". I'm not interested in your naysaying. Just let me be with my over-priced lotion. It's the closest to posh I'm ever going to get, so I'd like to enjoy my pseudo-poshness in peace and tranquility...as I smile silently to myself over my soft and supple skin. I deserve to enjoy it - I paid good money for it!

6 random facts

1. The first movie I remember seeing in a theater was Xanadu, and I still sing the theme song in the shower sometimes.
2. I can make a very weird shape with my tongue.
3. I played the flute in middle school, and still regret ever giving it up.
4. I had my first boyfriend in kindergarten.
5. My dad helped build the Astrodome.
6. I can say the Pledge of Allegience in French.

bugger

Has anyone ever noticed that after the first person makes a comment on a blog entry (on the blogspot platform) that the page thereafter reads "1 comments" until another comment is made and all is right in the subject/verb agreement universe again.

Man...that bugs!!

in julia's shoes

Thanks to my good friend Mike, I have some really sweet friends in London that invited me to the BBC Proms on Friday night.



The BBC Proms is a classical concert series that runs for several weeks and features various conductors and orchestras. This year the Proms is celebrating Mozart's 250th birthday, and quite a few performances are of his various works, but we saw a SPECTACULAR performance of Symphony Fantastique by Berlioz.

I felt like I was in Julia Roberts' shoes for two reasons:

1. TOTAL "Pretty Woman" scene - all dressed up, sitting in box seats at the very fancy Royal Albert Hall and sipping champagne.
2. The same piece of music is prominant in another of Julia's movies, "Sleeping with the Enemy".

For the record, the entirety of the piece is much less ominous than the bits that are played in that film.

the irony of it all

So, I have a good friend (we'll call her Heather) who totally goes gaga over the South African accent. I myself am partial to the Scottish accent (as has been well documented).

Now...there's a South African guy at MY office...and a Scottish guy at HER office. And by "at MY/HER office" I mean to say that we both have to speak to these guys daily...it's not like either of them is some random guy at the other end of the floor that we maybe talk to once every few weeks.

What's up with that?!