Dr. Seuss + Tim Burton Nativity Scriptures + The Who's Tommy = Trans Siberian Orchestra

Friday was a hectic day for me. I had a meeting from 11-1. Then I had to change into party clothes to go to the College's Holiday soire. Put in my appearance & left only to hit traffic--going west--at 4pm. I hopped into going-out clothes to meet Crak & Blonde at Cozy Mel's for dinner.

Cozy Mel......yum. It was so nice to sit & chat with the gals without the pounding music and the throbbing singles looking for a hook-up.

We wrapped it up & headed over to the Coliseum to see the Trans Siberian Orchestra. Crak had been asking people for three years to attend this concert. And every year I would say "Who?" And she would say "You know the 'dun dun du dun....' song? I want to see them." And by the time I would figure it out, tickets have come and gone. This year I agreed. The three of us drove over to what I thought would be a quiet concert (audience-wise) and an early evening.

So. Wrong.

The Coliseum was packed and people filled in the seats. When the show began, we were greeted with a song and lights and effects. Two of the guitarists would run back & forth and climb two HUGE platforms to excite the crowd with the talent. And then it happened. A man came out on stage and began a narrative. Hmmm. Electric guitars. Electric keyboards. Electric violins. And a narrator? Think the dancer from Mighty Mighty Bosstones. Who gave us some odd rendition of their synthesized version of the Nativity. Some angel flies over the earth and sees that there are no stars in Serejevo. Somewhere in the next hour, the angel found his way to NYC. And was guided to a lost pregnant runaway who couldn't find stars to guide her so she found the neon sign of a bar.

I was lost. And I felt as if I was being sucked in to some cult. Blonde & I just kept looking and Crak. At 9:30, when the odd tale was over, the guitarist came out and said he hoped we enjoyed the first half of the show. First half? What? There's more? Oh no!

The second half was amazing! It opened with 'Flight of the Bumble Bee' and went on for an hour and a half to end with the 'Carol of the Bells'......the one you hear from them on the radio. The man who is credited with putting TSO (that's what people were chanting since Trans Siberian Orchestra would take WAY TOO LONG) came out and said he was beyond honored to introduce the celebrity for the evening. And out came Roger Daultry. You know, The Who. See? I knew there was a touch of 'Tommy' in this. The stadium errupted into screams, shrieks, and an energy level I have never experienced before at any event.

Wow.

A once-in-a-lifetime event.
That's all I am going to say.

Inclement Weather......Inclement Life....Part Two

Cancelled class? No problem? We'll make it up Friday the 21st! Your grades still have to be submitted by Thursday night and everything else will go according to plan, but you will still have to come in and sit there with the students. Who aren't going to show up. To not cover material because the semester is over. But if you don't show up, you will be docked.

If you need me Friday night you know where to find me.

At the sanitarium.

Inclement Weather..............Inclement Life

My evening classes were cancelled last night due to the icy roads. Yippee! Then the post came that the class will be made up on Friday the 21st. Drat! I will have no papers to grade. No work to do. No students who will show up so that I am not a total loser sitting in the building by myself on a Friday night.

To top it off, the Velvet Fog called my house. Half of the times she has called I just don't answer. Mainly because the messages she leaves are priceless. The other times she has called, I am not home and just never get around to calling her back. I now remember why I don't pick up. She asked if I had any weekend plans. I said yes I do & hope that the weather isn't too bad so that we can go and still be safe. She said "So? Make him come to you! Tell him to bring over some dinner and a movie & you can snuggle the evening away. How's that sound?"

I wanted to say "Who is he? There's no 'he'! I'm all alone!" but thought best and just agreed.

So, while sitting home on a Thursday evening, all I could think about was that there is no 'he' and I am alone. Thanks, Velvet Fog, for pointing out the lack in my life!

Ringing in New This Year?

I sent off a resume (with TONS o' help from Crak) to see if I can possibly get a new job for the fall. It had to be postmarked today. Fingers are crossed and prayers are being said. I expect the same from the rest of you!

Why Do They Come Back? (A part of the 'being spotted' issue)

I checked my email the other day to find one from the Math Professor. Bleh! I have not heard from him since July? August? I don't remember but it was one lone email that was sent & to which I never replied. The new one said "Hi! How are you? Just wanted to fill you in on what I've been doing.......blah blah blah.......I know the semester has been so crazy for me and I've let contacts slide. But I was wondering if you still wanted to keep in touch? I saw you the other night in Sephora and didn't know if I should say hello or not. So, I didn't. But I hope all is well with you and that the end of the semester isn't too hectic for you."

So, you saw me in a store and didn't say hi. You then wait a week to email me about the (lack of) encounter and want to know if I want to keep in touch. Hmmmmm. Hard decision here!

Well, in all honesty, part of me wants to respond just for the sake of asking him why he didn't come over and say 'hi' like a 35-year old man should be able to do. I was with KDP. Not with a guy. And he may not have seen me with her at times because we were on opposite sides of the store.....so for all I know I may have been alone when he saw me. And yet, no hello. Which part of me is glad about because I wouldn't wnat that awkwardness while selecting a lipstick. But, at the same time, what the heck is wrong with him? Or with me?

I have not responded. I probably won't because I don't really want to keep in touch with him. But, again, I am so curious to know why he'd not acknowledge me & then wait a week to send it off.

I'm rambling. I know. I want a man. It's the holidays. I'm lonely. I want to do all of the "couple-y" things that there are to enjoy. I'm rambling.

"Haul Out the Holly.....Put Up the Tree Before My Spirit Falls Again..."

I spent last weekend in the Sunshine State. Beautiful. Fun. Warm. I mean a 30degree difference warm. My family went down for our annual holiday kick-off.

We went to the Magic Kingdon for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. There we had amazing hot chocolate and decorated sugar cookies provided by jolly cast members. We saw it snow on Main Street. The castle is covered in white lights so that it looks sugar-coated. Fantasy brought to reality.

Epoct Center brought the Candlelight Processional. Two hundred voices singing traditional songs while a guest speaker, this year it was Monique Coleman, read the scriptures. It's always an uplifting experience and puts one in the "Christmas Spirit".

We had a scrumptious tea at the Garden View Tea Room where I had a pear and gorgonzola sandwich that is still making me sigh longingly.

We then went to this exhibit that we heard about called ICE! It's hundreds of thousands of pounds of ice sculpted into various forms. They had the entire Nativity (full-size), a candy land--with a cupcake bigger than me(!), a train, and a winter wonderland. At the end of the 9-degree exhibit, they had three ice slides......think luge without the sled. It was AMAZING! I walked to the top of a 16-ft staircase, sat down at the top with my knees bent and feet flat, and the worker at the top gave me a push. Whoosh! It was all over before I knew it but so much fun.

I've been singing carols ever since.

Revisiting the Notion of Me Being Famous

If I were famous, I would expect people to recognize me. I'd find it normal for people to stop me and say hi, wave to me, or beckon me over to chat. I would know that they would know that they know me......in that "I've heard about you/seen you on..." sort of knowing level.

Alas, I am not famous. So I do not anticipate people "spotting" me when I am out. Oh, sure, I've had it happen on more than one occassion (gross understatement), but I am never sure how they know it's me.

I was in the city Thursday for some holiday sightseeing and present shopping. It had been a long day & I was heading back to Penn. I'm waiting on the corner of 6th Ave & 41st when I hear "Hey". There are at least 25 other people standing on the corner waiting to cross and a bunch more milling around trying to figure out their direciton and a bunch more walking on by. So I don't even acknowledge the "hey" because I am almost as much of a tourist as the others around me. "Hey".....there it is again. And I, for some unknown reason, spin my head in random directions in the slightest possibility that the 'hey' is for me.

All I see is a cop car. With a hand out of the window..............and a finger beckoning in my direciton. "I know you." Again, look of confusion as my head is glancing in all directions now hoping that the cop is speaking with someone else. "Miss, in the pink coat. Come here. I know you. " Like a magnet drawing in a paperclip, I walk over to the car. "Me? Are you saying you know me?" "Yeah. From Briar. You were my prof." ????????????????

Well now I am looking for cameras and some guy with a microphone doing some 'gotcha' deal. So I lean in to the window (over what was a very attractive partner) and say "What? When? Me?" Yes, I do have a college degree......................such probing questions I ask.

"Yeah. Back in '01. My name's Danny". Danny.............danny......................I looked at the face (much heavier than it had been) and say "Danny? What's your last name?" He mumbles something (yup--briar material) and then it hits me "Dan? From the baseball team?' "Yeah that's me." "So, you're a cop? Did you do the CJ degree?" "Nah. I didn't finish at briar. How are you?" Still in a blondish fog, I just start rambling for a minute and then mumbled something about catching a train.

How does he remember me from 2001? I don't remember much of 2001. Not for any other reason then I don't. And how is it that they spot me in crowds? And why can't a future husband spot me like that?

Snapping back into reality, I realize that being spotted is not fun. It's freaky, creepy, and I miss my anonymity. Had this encounter been something that could catapult my earning power to a better bracket, fine. It's nothing. All it is for me is a reminder that I have to look good at all times. Ugh. Effort.