Meno is a cute little child alien that lives in “house of cloud.”  This picture book series is written by Tony and Angela DiTerlizzi of Spiderwick fame.  This is not a book that will help your child learn correct grammar.  But it is a fun read aloud that will make both children and adults laugh.  We passed it around the library where I work and watched each other’s faces as they read it.  In Adventures of Meno Book 2: Wet Friend, Meno’s “friend of jelly” Yamagoo wants a wet friend to live in “Happy Fun Bowl.”  Their cute rainbow bright- looking friend, Wishi, helps Yamagoo find a wet friend.  He does not want to be friends with  plankton or crab.  And he really doesn’t want the surprise friend, as an 80’s TV star makes a camero appearence.  This is the part where you’ll want to watch your friend’s faces.  The books have a Japanese style about them that reminds me of Hello Kitty.  In Adventures of  Meno Book 1, Big Fun, Meno learns about the gas we pass, with cute clouds that say “Toot!”  My children and I read these books over and over again.  My husband loves them too!  I am buying them for Christmas presents because I know my brother and sister-in-law will love it as much as my nephew.   Books 3 and 4 will be released in April of 2010.

This is the first substantial snow Molly has ever seen and her and our others have been having big fun in it.
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Okay, y’all.  Don’t tell my Longhorn husband about this post, but between you and me, there are two things I want:  I want TCU to be able to play in the national championship, and I want to see my dear Huskers, after a decade, beat the Texas Longhorns (and we’ve only beat them once since 1996).  If the latter happens, then the former may happen.  So all you Horned Frog fans and all of you Huskers and all of you Longhorn-haters (I know you’re out there) need to come together to cheer on the Huskers in the Big XII Championship.  I’ve already had visions of Ndamukong Suh sacking Colt McCoy* dancing in my head. 

Saturday night I was on pins and needles as Nebraska faced Kansas State; the winner of this game would be the Big XII North winner and play the Big XII South winner in the championship game on December 5.  And we won!  And we played pretty well!  I knew that a Husker victory over Kansas State would be wonderful and also bad for my marriage.  [Megan:  whom are you going to root for?]

Once someone asked us: “It’s better for the marriage if who wins in a TX/NE game?”  Without hesitation, we both said:  “Nebraska.”

But  here’s the deal:  as a Longhorn, he doesn’t see us as a threat.  With our record and the–I’ll call it attitude–that seems to come w/ being a Longhorn, I understand that.  I guess what’s changed is that even though I will be seething if they beat us–and if I’m being honest, that’s the likeliest possibility–I know how happy Chris will be if they make it to the national championship, and so after my anger cools down I’ll able to genuinely root for the Longehorns in the bowl game.  In fact, I knew it was the real deal with this fella when I found myself rooting for Texas a few years ago, something I never thought would occur.  And I know that it’s the same for him:  if we did achieve an upset, after his anger subsided, he would think back to the many games where I have cursed and cried at the screen, and he would be happy for me that my Huskers are back.   That’s love.

In the meantime: the smack talk will elevate in the coming days, and the game will be tense as we sit side by side in our red and burnt orange.  And whatever happens, it’s good to be back in the Big XII championship.

*Chris heard this weekend during the Texas game that his name is really Daniel McCoy.  One of the insufferable things about their team is their QB names: Major Applewhite, Colt McCoy.  We would say, who names kids this way (only in Texas)?  (Now Vince Young, that’s a cool name.) But knowing his name is really Daniel is almost more annoying.

Imagine my surprise and delight to come home from a long Monday at work to see that I had not one but two belated birthday packages awaiting me! 

The first was from Rae, a lovely mug from our hometown’s centennial celebration that she knew I hated missing.   I’m not sure of the draw of the large glass mug (beer glass?), but it’s the same design as our prom mugs from high school. I believe I will display this somewhere in my office:

The second was from Erin, and Chris also scored a present:  most delightful and homemade coffee cozies (the sleeves you can put over your Starbucks cup).  I think these are both so cute.  The polka-dot one is for me, and the one with the burnt orange is for Chris:

I mean:  how adorable are these?  We will be the envy of all the others at Starbucks.  This is extra motivation for going there to grade once the stacks of portfolios coming in. 

Thank you, Rae and Erin, for these awesome presents! 

(By the way:  I suspect that upon request one could commission his or her own coffee cozy from Erin–she should have a whole little cozy industry going.  I’m not sure what she charges, but it’s well worth it for these cute, eco-friendly coffee cozies.)

Well, as I’m sure you know by now, the TCU Horned Frogs creamed the Utah Utes 55-28 last Saturday.  The stadium was electric, the game riveting throughout. We tried to park two hours before game time and not a spot was left.  Luckily, Lisa and Rob, who live close to campus, let us park (for free!) in their driveway.  Crisis averted.  Then we had nachos to buy at the concession stand (purple tortilla chips, y’all) and to get situated in our seats.  By the end of the first quarter, my mom was doing all the cheers alumni have been saying for years like she’d gone to school there.  I wish I had a picture of us all in our purple shirts of varying shades, but alas, I forgot my camera.  You’ll have to take my word that we were a festive bunch, my mom sporting her Horned Frog earrings, natch.

I told my students today that I didn’t see any of them on ESPN College Game Day but that I hoped their signs were puncuated correctly (a little English prof humor there).  The ESPN gang, except, of course, Lee Corso, raved about how well TCU fans came out for College Game Day–Kirk Herbstreit said it was the best crowd he’s seen all year–and that they’d be back.  I think we’d rather have a fair shot into the national championship like other undefeated teams, but whatever.

And this was just one of the highlights of my parents’ visit.  More to come.

Happy Anniversary, beloved Sesame Street.  Here, for your enjoyment, an awesome Bert and Ernie gangsta remix.  Really–it’s a good one (only a minute and half). 

Though my beloved Huskers had a great victory over OU last weekend, we’re not back to our glory days yet.  Lucky  for me, I’m also a fan of the #4 team in the nation, the undefeated TCU Horned Frogs.  Saturday is their second sellout game since 1984, and we’ll be there cheering them on, frog earrings and all.  They play Utah, ranked #16, and Utah has beat TCU the past three years.  It looks to be an intense game.

So don some purple on Saturday and root for your Horned Frogs  to continue to be BCS spoilers.  And below is a little video to get you in the mood.

I noticed, after the fact, that my last post was my 300th!  Just  marking that for y’all, too.

So Friday was my birthday, and goodness ensued, with highlights as:

• wonderful cards from as far as Wisconsin and Nevada
• tons of e-wishes on Facebook
• a sweet birthday voicemail from New York City
• my annual, wonderful birthday lunch with Nancy, complete with quilting gifts!
• these:

• a card from Chris with–get this–a chorus of cat meows singing Happy Birthday
• yummy dinner at P.F. Chang’s
• going with Chris to see Michael Jackson’s This is It, something I’m not sure he’d have done so graciously were it not a special occasion
• the Huskers beat Oklahoma over the weekend and were ahead the whole game (and how was OU still ranked with three losses?  At least Brent Musberger wasn’t calling the game with his blatant OU/Stoops love)

And this week, more goodness, with some special guests coming to town, one of whom is going to make me one of my old birthday favorites:  pudding cake!  Whee!

5 de noviembre de 2009

How exciting to report that this past Saturday I got to watch my Huskers play in person down in Waco (the Baylor Bears).  We went four years ago, and it was much fun, except the traffic on the way there was a nightmare.  This year we got some inside scoop on how to avoid all that traffic and arrived so early we found ourselves parking nice and close and…near the North Texas Nebraskan headquarters!

Then we came upon this random Herbie-esque Husker, and I just had to take my picture with him (though I was shy, so technically Chris asked him).

The Husker goodness was everywhere–many from Husker Nation filled the Baylor stands, and we actually played a good first half and held them enough in the second to win the game 20-10. 

I’m so glad I live in a place where I can make it to the occasional away Husker game.  GO BIG RED!

So last weekend on Myspace I saw a bulletin from my good Myspace friend Neil Diamond announcing a sneak peek of one of his songs appearing on the forthcoming (now this past Wednesday’s) episode of Glee.   I’ve watched this clip more times than I care to admit:  it combines one of my longstanding favorite things (Neil Diamond!) with one of my new favorite things (Glee!).  I love the way this kid invokes Neil–not a cheesy imitation, but just the right inflection–a dash of Diamond, if  you will.

Enjoy this feel good Friday clip–it especially goes out to Lightning Bug!

Até eu estou surpreso com a seguinte sinceridade, puta preguiça de postar!, olha que eu poderia dar inúmeras desculpas para isso, semana de provas, viajei no feriado ou, o speedy caiu. Pois é, puta preguiça ainda, mas é que depois da música que eu ouvi hoje o Dinonias não ia escapar de jeito nenhum.

O primeiro parágrafo foi fácil, mas agora eu empaquei! Juro, não tenho como definir esse som e o jeito que essa música mexeu comigo! Sabe aquela música que você conhece, ouve vinte vezes seguidas, sonha com ela, e no dia seguinte acorda só pra ouvir mais vinte vezes? Beleza, com vocês não acontece isso desde o colegial, pode me zuar. MAS É A REAL CARAI!!

TOWA TEI – Mind Wall é muito good vibe, ainda mais a guitarrinha no final! Pra que terapia? Ouça 2 vezes essa música, sério!

(Calma, já to acabando..) Então. A pachuca que canta essa música, a tal de Miho Hatori , eu conversei com ela em NY e fiquei “apaixonado”, quando vi que ela cantou nesse disco, já sabe: FIQUEI LOUCO!! talvez venha daí essa minha tara pela música!

FIM

/

obs pós post: acabo de perceber que no youtube cortaram quase 1min e meio da música. Bem a parte da guitarrinha!! Ahhhh

obs pós pós post: acabo de perceber que ESSA música deles também é bem boa!

Oh, man.  Did you see the game?  I’m still in shock!  I was so dismayed for the first three quarters, and then an amazing turnaround the likes of which I can’t remember seeing from my Huskers in so, so long.  From no points to 27 points in one quarter! 

I’m ecstatic.  We beat a ranked team on the road. 

Go Big Red!

Last weekend I had the pleasure of having an extensive phone call with my niece, one of our longest in quite some time.  We hadn’t talked much lately, in part because my pen pal plan has been so successful, though she did inform me that she thinks of writing me back often but is just too busy. 

We covered many topics in our 45-minute call, and here are some of the highlights:

• her soccer game
• her new haircut
• her friend’s three cats, and how they each greet her differently when she visits her friend
• Halloween costumes (she’ll be Hannah Montana this year)
• the book I gave her for her birthday (she really liked it)
• her visit to the pumpkin patch
• hosting her first sleepover

This is truly only a sampling.  She also played for me, in the background, selected favorite Hannah Montana songs. 

What could be a better way to spend a rainy weekend afternoon than in the world of this delightful little second-grader?

I called my mom the other night (this is not, I confess, a rare thing), and she was positively giddy when she answered.  She’d been at an all-day regional conference for her job with the state, and I couldn’t imagine it’d been that exciting, but I was wrong. 

As they were all going about their business, the guy at the mic began introducing the recipient of the lifetime service award.  My mom couldn’t believe her ears when they started describing her twenty-year history from western Nebraska to the capital city.   The man was reading  a nomination letter from two of her co-workers which went on and on describing all she’d done.  They asked her to come and receive her award (a lovely, standing glass plaque), and she got a standing ovation! 

I was also just giddy to hear this news, as my mom has worked diligently and loyally and is most deserving of such an award.  I couldn’t have been more pleased and proud! 

Congratulations, Mom!

I’ve been spending some time on the Gulf of Mexico… or should I say IN the Gulf of Mexico, and I can say the water temp is unusually cool. Gotta be good news for those of us in the region. no storms so far… and cool water seems like it should keep us in the clear.

Of course, this is totally unscientific. I’m just hoping not to have to board up the windows and put all the patio furniture at the bottom of the pool.

Hola peeps. What you guys up to tomorrow, Thurs 24th Sept? We’re going to Big Fun at The Macbeth to see our buddy, Nic Dawson Kelly play, with support from the Amarylas. And guess what – it’s freeeee! Oh yeah. There’s even a free BBQ too – isn’t that nice? Expect it to be rammed – the last one of these that I went to was ridiculous, and it cost a fiver to get in.

So anyway, let me tell you about Nic Dawson Kelly. I met him yonks ago when he was living with theveev. I’ve only ever heard him play once, and that was at someone’s flat at about 7 in the morning – mash-up (hence the reason I’m excited about tomorrow). On 28 September he’s set to release his debut album on new label Runners Club Records. Called ‘Old Valentine’, the album showcases a classic, almost beat-like songwriting style of an emerging talent, and features a host of guest musicians such as Jim Barr (Portishead), Mick Talbot (Style Council, Dexy’s), Tom Mansi (Donovan) and Marco Nelson (Primal Scream, Young Disciples) who lend a country/rock/soul sound to the album.

If you just can’t wait until monday to get your hands on it – fear not, Nic has kindly agreed to giving YOU, our lucky WANARB readers, a couple of exclusive downloads of a couple of tracks RIGHT NOW!! Amazing.

Nic Dawson Kelly - The Musician

Nic Dawson Kelly - Thusday 3-23

Now that you’ve made yourself acquainted with Mr Kelly, get yourselves down to Big Fun tomorrow for free!! Woohoo!

Free BBQ and free entry.

Doors Open 8.00 p.m – 2.00 am

Dj’s from 11.00 p.m

MORE ON NIC DAWSON KELLY:

MYSPACE :: TWITTER :: BUY ALBUM

HazMat

Agfab is in Chicago tonight and I’m pretty stoked on it. Follow the link for a lovely interview with Lauri of Chicagoist as well as more info. Tickets are available at the door at the Playground Theater; I think we’re done with online ticketing at the moment, but the show hasn’t sold out just yet, so you can still put your tuchus in a seat. We’ve got a nice crowd coming in tonight, and I’d love for you to be a part of it.

I haven’t done the show in a few weeks, and I’ve never performed in Chicago. These two things are making me nervous at the moment. A lot of funny people study and perform in Chicago at one point or another, so the audiences there are used to seeing great shit. I want to do a good job. Eeeeeeeeek.

I’m up before dawn with a headache and a disgruntled digestive tract. This used to be par for the course for me on travel days when anxiety attacks were more consistently kicking my ass. This week, I went to a new shrink and couldn’t actually remember the last time I had a panic attack. That was pretty rad. But I’m worried I might have one today, what with the feeling crappy and the not sleeping enough and the impending airplane and car trips.

I guess that’s okay, though, right? I mean, I’m doing a fucking show about panic attacks. I could justify the panic attack to myself as being preshow prep. And it’s funny…earlier, whilst ruminating about life and the alimentary canal upon the toilet, I thought, “Maybe I just shouldn’t go to Chicago. Maybe I should cancel the show and stay home and be sick, because obviously I’m feeling crappy right now, at 4:30 a.m., and it makes me scared to get on an airplane, because what if I feel crappy on the airplane? What if I have a panic attack when my best friend and her husband and their toddlerpants pick me up from the airport? What if I embarrass myself in front of them or their family members by not feeling well?” As if anyone would think less of a friend for not feeling great. As if the toddler would even notice, especially since I’m going to bribe his ass with toys.

And then I realized that kind of obsessive, fearful thinking is exactly why I even have a show to do tonight. Because if I hadn’t gotten all fucked up a few years back, I wouldn’t have gotten better, and if I hadn’t gotten better I wouldn’t have written this fucker.

My philosophy is this: basically, if you’re breathing, you’re winning. You might feel like shit, but if you’re still alive, you’re winning. If you’re really ill, and death takes you of its own accord, you still won because you didn’t bail and you didn’t turn out the lights on yourself. Hopefully you and the Grim Reaper, who probably isn’t really grim at all, high-five each other as you go towards whatever comes next.

And if you’ve ever tried and failed at the fine art of suicide, you’re actually a total winner. I know you’re out there, you lovable fucked-up fellow travelers. I know because some of you write me letters and I send you an Internet high-five for not being dead–the kind of high-five you give somebody who is on your team. And I’m about to tell you why you’re actually a champion. Because if you tried and failed to off yourself, that means some part of you didn’t really want to die. It’s not just because somebody found you or interrupted you and rushed you to the hospital; it’s because some tiny part of you wanted to stay alive and kicking. And that’s fucking great.

I mean, look, I tried to kill myself slowly by not eating and by withdrawing from public life, hoping I’d just get tinier and tinier until I disappeared. And yeah, I got lucky in that I had a couple of great friends who decided to contact my parents and tell on my crazy ass (that’s all in the show) back when I was really losing my shit. But if I had actually wanted to kill myself, I would’ve gone through with it. The fact that I kept breathing meant something.

The show is about life–embarrassed, inelegant, stupid, petty, hilarious, disgusting, spoiled, sick, wonderful life.

It’s also funny. I promise. It’s more funny than sad. If you go, you will probably leave feeling good about yourself. At least I hope you will. At worst, you’ll walk away with a few new fingerbanging jokes under your belt.

Now I’ve got to go attempt to sleep for an hour. Which means I’m going to watch the video from the last show and see what I like and what I don’t like. Which means not sleeping.

There Will Be Napping (later.)

Thanks for reading.

Love,
Sara

This Sunday’s New York Times will feature my beloved city in it’s “36 hours in…” series. It’s already posted on their website —  read it!

Congratulations to Carrie Collins, Irene Longshore, and Andrew Jeffrey Wright — the winners of the Big Fun raffle!

We had the raffle drawing at the final performance of Big Fun on September 15th and they each won a terrific raffle prize pack!

Thanks to all who supported the raffle and all who attended Big Fun during the 2009 Philly Fringe Festival!

As if we were in the midst of a courtroom drama, Big Fun was sketched throughout the opening night performance as part of the 2009 Philly Fringe Festival. We found out about the drawings via Philebrity and then checked out artist Aaron Krolikowski aka The Sketch Book Reporter!

Check out the sketches below:

To check out the rest of Aaron’s sketches,  be sure to visit his website!

Our first performance of Big Fun went off with only a few small glitches and it seemed that those in attendence were enjoying themselves in grand amounts.

Tonight is West Philadelphia Orchestra’s only appearance in BIG FUN. You don’t want to miss it.

Tickets will be available at the door and stay tuned to our Twitter for possible surprise ticket discount offers later today!

Saturday the 120th season of Husker football starts!  The game is on PPV, so I’ll try to get at it via the internet, perhaps a backdrop to some quilting time?  What could be more delightful (besides it not being on PPV, of course)?

Thank goodness one of my dearest Texas friends is a Husker so I don’t feel too isolated from Husker Nation around all these Big XII South teams.  And I just might have tickets to one of the games Pelini and Co. are playing down here in Texas.

And here’s an oldie but goodie from last year (pardon the typos):

GO BIG RED!