Elizabeth Stamatina “Tina” Fey

Today’s Funny Valentine is Tina Fey. The epitome of geek chic, The Second City alum first sparked my interest in the film “Mean Girls”. I had seen Fey many times on SNL’s Weekend Update and but in “Mean Girls” she unveiled a librarian-esque sultriness that has haunted me ever since. I mean, I always thought Tina was cute but now she became hot.

Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t one of the bandwagoners who flocked after she lost 30 lbs. and started doing photo shoots with typewriters. My “Fey”-cination (lame word that I made up) started when she made her on-screen début as a portly extra on SNL in 1998. Fey began writing for SNL in 1997 and by 1999 she became the show’s first female head writer, “a milestone she downplays in light of the fact that there have not been very many head writers.”

In 2004 Fey made her film debut as writer and co-star of the teen comedy “Mean Girls” and she soon left SNL in 2006 to star in her own situation comedy (30 Rock), one that she had pitched to NBC in 2002.

In 2008 Fey solidified her sexy when she portrayed Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin, who was already somewhat of a sex symbol at the time. Her “freakishly spot-on” impersonation even won her an Emmy.

Here she is in action as Sarah Palin:

Here’s our weekend update:  We were at Flashcube doing some corporate shoots for Centdessin.  We were doing product shots for an outdoor billiard table that can transform into a patio set that can accomodate 4 chairs included with the table set.  The photos will be used for the clients upcoming website, catalogues, brochures and for anything else marketing.    

It’s fun doing product shots because there are no limits!  We can bend all rules as long as we get creative shots of the product being showcased.  And transforming the pool table into a patio table took us less than 5 minutes!  It was a breeze and I’m sure we’ll be seeing a few of  these in some of your backyards this summer : ) I know I’ll have one in mine!

Check it out.

one of my goals since i started playing ultimate was to join the annual bangkok hat. i was originally planning to go in 2008 but that didn’t push through. then somehow it totally slipped my mind in 2009. when some of my friends started booking for 2010, i knew it was now or never.

i was uncertain on whether or not i really wanted till play even when i was there because truth be told, i’m not so confident with disc anymore. i played with the pink with blue sleeves team, the molly ringwalds. (yeah, i don’t get why the sleeves were blue either. haha!) i was just glad i didn’t get neon orange or neon green or neon yellow because that would’ve really clashed with my color.

yeah mollies!!!

my nerves were gone when i made the assist on the very first point we scored. whew! i played really well actually… handling on some points, cutting hard when on mid and even running in the cup on defense. it was such an exhilarating and confidence-boosting experience!

throwing a forehand

yeah, not my best action shot

my team ended up playing undefeated till the finals which we lost to a team we had previously beaten the day before. sucks when that happens, huh? actually, i was a bit disappointed when we kept winning because i really was looking forward to partying and drinking on the sidelines during the finals, not actually playing it. every time someone congratulated me on making it to the final, i replied… i just want to drink already. haha! oh well, at least i got to take home a medal! not too shabby for my first international hat.

claire and me kissing our sweet medals during the sunday field party —>

aside from playing the finals, my best memories of the weekend include:

• apple pie shots! can’t post a pic of me here ‘coz it looked like i was puking it out because of all the vodka sol put in my mouth
• the food on the field, which enjoyed too little of ‘coz i couldn’t run on a full stomach
• bonding with the girls (on and off the field)


with the apple pie shot gals, who i wanted to be a part of so much. oh well, next year!

claire and me with jody, who i ended up teaching some carmen electra moves to. haha!

with rox and ther, going old school at the saturday night party. i came as an 80’s explosion of pink

• taking care of three of my drunk/high girlfriends after the saturday party. i texted nina the next day, when did i become the responsible one?
• bonding with a toilet seat in pat pong, sunday night. i sped drank myself after we played my finals on a practically empty stomach. no wonder i started puking after a one-hour cab ride to the red light district of bangkok. it also was quite an experience seeing girls do stuff with their va-jay-jays that i assure you normal women would not be able to do.
• the shopping would have been a great experience if not for my aching legs. we met up at a fashion mall at around 1pm, ate lunch then agreed to meet at 530pm. by 3pm, most of us were crying no more shopping so we decided to call it quits a bit earlier. next time, shopping should come before the playing. haha!


having beers after an exhausting shopping trip on monday afternoon

if you’re waiting for the dirt about the boys on the trip, sorry to disappoint but i was a good girl during that weekend. to be honest, i wasn’t planning to be but you know what they say about best laid plans right? haha! i ended up playing the finals, taking care of my drunk friends and being too lazy to really flirt and mingle with any of the cuties on the field. i kinda disappointed my friend, sol, who until now still keeps saying i was too pathetically good. i’m still kinda confused at the moment kasi eh. haha!

all-in-all, that weekend was awesome! not quite what i was expecting, but still perfect in it’s own way. sign me up for bangkok hat 2011!

Only four more sleeps until Mercedes Benz Fashion Week or, as I like to call it, New York Fashion Week. The big and little names of American Fashion will premiere their Fall/Winter 2010 ready-to-wear collections at the tents at Bryant Park (for the last time *sniff*).

• If you’ve always wanted to go to a fashion show, now is your chance! Naomi Campbell is putting on a charity catwalk extravaganza for Haiti. Anyone with $100 to $150 can attend. Proceeds, which are expected to reach $100,000, will be donated to Fashion for Relief. Via The Cut.

• Back in olden times, Fashion Week was called 7th on 6th. The first time I went in 1993 was also the first time the shows were held in the tents at Bryant Park on 6th Avenue behind the public library. In those sepia-tinted years, you could actually see garment workers pushing racks of schmattes in the middle of the road. This year will be the last year for the tents. I feel old.

• If this happens, then New York Fashion Week has officially jumped the shark. Via Page Six.

Image from last season’s shows courtesy Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week

The Weather: Dudes. THE SNOWPOCALYPSE. IT’S HERE.

The Social Life: Not this weekend! Two feet of snow on the ground is a little prohibitive to any plans I made, especially ones that involved, oh, I dunno, LEAVING THE HOUSE? No sushi. No goodbye parties. No Superbowl parties. Just me, my brother, and the parents. Killer.

The Living Situation: Okay, I’m really not that miserable about being stuck at home with my family. I love them, and we haven’t driven each other crazy (yet). Plus, there have significant improvements to my general quality of life in the last few weeks.

For instance, I put a microwave in my room the other day so I didn’t have to run to the kitchen every five minutes to reheat my handwarmers, and if I can be honest, it was the most BRILLIANT thing I’ve ever done. Okay, maybe not ever, but I can make hot chocolate and popcorn from my bed. I am all about making life more convenient, and this was definitely one of those things.

I’m also really (REALLY) determined to move out soon. Again, not because I don’t love my family, but I’m in need of some independence and a change of scenery. Focusing on that goal is going to get me through the rest of this month as things get shaken up.

The Job(s): No report this week, I’m being sneaky

Song Playlist of the Week: I’ve had this Blizzard of 2010 mix on repeat the past two days. If I had to pick favorites, “Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space” and “Blood Bank” — songs I’d also have on a soundtrack for falling in love. Perfect.

Show of the week: ALL OF IT. The past month has been so hectic that I didn’t have time for any of my trashy reality favorites. But now, thanks to the snowmageddon, I finally have time to catch up on Teen Mom, For the Love of Ray J 2 — there’s even a Jersey Shore marathon tomorrow and you better believe I will be fistpumping all day long!

ALSO!

Ladies and gentlemen, it is VALENTINE SEASON. Now I know some people are not a huge fan of the holiday because it’s “just invented by Hallmark” and totally bogus if you’re single and blah blah blah — but Valentine’s Day is my favorite. The pink! The sparkles! I could even care less about having a date, because my favorite part is being crafty and sending love notes to all my friends. Love notes with obscene amounts of glitter.

And guess what! I want to send one to YOU. If you want some extra love in your mailbox this year, email or Twitter me your address. Or if you want one but you’re not cool with me stalking you later knowing your address, I’ll even make you one, take pictures, and email them to you so you can still feel the love. Let me know by Tuesday though, so it gets to you in time!

with everything that’s happened in january, i somehow feel as though i’m already right smack in the middle of 2010 rather than just in the first quarter.

2010 started out really rough. scratch that, it started out pretty awesome actually with an impromptu beach trip with some of my high school classmates. having been stuck to the house most of the time i’m in davao, i haven’t really explored the beaches in samal island. i’m glad that during my latest vacation home i was able to go to the beach not once but two times. the first time with my high school barkada and the second time with a handful of my high school classmates.

davao beaches are gorgeous!

looking back now, only the first week of 2010 back in manila was a wreck. first, i lost my ipod, which i am absolutely attached to. then i saw something i wasn’t quite sure i wanted to see. then i spent the rest of the week in horrid anticipation of the dinner in relation to that something i wasn’t quite sure i wanted to see. then we had the dinner and “the talk” and everything felt right again. sorry for being cryptic, i really don’t want to air out my dirty laundry in public. so there, i finally was able to close a chapter that’s been haunting me since 2008. as i was telling a friend of mine, it felt so good to be totally free and unencumbered with that burden anymore.

after that stressful week, things started perking up. work was a bit stressful but when is it isn’t, right? nina and i joined another ultimate team, the Breakfast Club, where we get to wear pink. haha!

…and i met someone. but it’s too soon to tell whether or not this someone is someone special. in the two weeks i spent getting to know him, i’ve started questioning a lot of stuff in my life. so much of my life now is spent in the search of fun and enjoyment: ultimate frisbee, drinking, partying, etc. and yet there’s always been that nagging thought at the back of my mind, what about God? i’ve always been open about my life before and my constant struggle with my own Christianity, i’ve even written about it. 2010 was supposed to be about enjoyment, the way 2009 was but now i’m starting to re-evaluate the way i’ve been living my life. yeah, there are some pretty heavy stuff happening in my mind right now and it’s all so hard to explain at the moment. i feel as though God has finally found a way to get through to me once again and this time i think He used the strongest ammunition of all, a boy. hahahahahahaha! but i’m going way ahead of myself right now. i really can’t help that i have a strong imagination right? at this point, only time will tell. i’ll try to keep you posted as much as i can.

We wrapped up the Money series last week (still blown away by the response and can’t wait to see what God creates in us and through us over the next few weeks, months, years, decades…) and we don’t start the Love and Marriage series until next Sunday.

So…

I’m going to teach on a fairly well-known text that I’ve never taught before.

And you won’t ever read this text the same way again.

Which means that your mind is going to be blown, your heart is going to melt and your life is going to change.

Matthew 28:16-20.

Read it. Journal about it. Pray over it. Invite friends to come with you on Sunday as we experience it together.

The day has finally comeeeee!! I’m moving into fucking Versailles! Ok, not really, but almost!

Today I picked up the key to my new place (to anyone and everyone who has my address, it is staying the same so don’t worry about having the wrong one!) and it is fucking brilliant…oops haha some of that British/Irish slang is wearing off on me. But seriously. idk how to explain the splendor that I am about to live in any way except by using the word brilliant.

Here is a little history of my nomadic journey through the Résidences Universitaires of Rennes:

1. Sunday August 30th, 2009: Arrived in France, took the train to Rennes, and stayed in a hostel.

2. Monday, August 31st, 2009: My coordinator François picked me up and took me to my first dorm.  It was called Maine I, but it was quickly dubbed “the ghetto” due to the sketchy-ass parking lots where intimidating men would hang out. To make its less than ideal location seem even worse, when you opened the door to ghetto number 1, it was like entering a 1960’s time warp.  Thanks in part to an allergy to mold, I fled this building’s mauve walls and sketchy parking lots on…

3. Monday, November 2nd: The day that I moved from Maine I to Alsace.  Alsace is right next to the University and in a much less sketchy area. It’s right next to the metro as well so I didn’t have to worry about being late as often.  The complex is composed of many buildings- all of which are new or remodeled, except the one in which I was placed. This room was infinitely better, and actually rather spacious compared to my previous accommodations, however I still shared three disgusting toilets (in the US these toilets, which are a trillion times better than what I had in ghetto number 1, would not even be considered real toilets) four showers with 30+ people.  Even worse were the kitchen facilities, which consisted of two hot plates and a microwave, none of which worked regularly. The absolute worst part about ghetto number two, however, was the refrigerator. I shared this mini-fridge, sans freezer, mind you, with 8 filthy people.  There were constantly packages of raw chicken and other indistinguishable forms of meat that had been opened and left exposed to the rest of the items in the fridge, some of which were large cans (tins, to all you British/Irish) that appeared to have been opened with a pair of scissors, or teeth, judging by the jagged edges I had to navigate around while trying to put my milk away. In all honesty, I might even miss ghetto number 2.  When I recieved the notice saying that I would be have to be relocated by January 10th, I didn’t want to move because I had just begun to get settled in my new environment. But on…

By Lucia Holm

4. Thursday February 4th, 2010 (today!): I received the key to my new room so that I can begin to move out. And I can honestly say, now that I’ve seen the freshly remodeled Palace I’m about to move into, fuck that! I’m in heaven!  I’ll add video later (I wish I had some photographic evidence of ghetto number 1, but sadly I do not.) so you can see the gorgeousness of my new place, but in the meantime, here are the perks: ridiculous amounts of storage, colorful!, tables in the communal kitchens, new appliances, MY OWN TOILET, SINK, SHOWER, AND MINI-FRIDGE WITH FREEZER IN MY ROOM, and likely a better internet connection because instead of crappy wireless I’ll be plugged in via ethernet cord.  I’m still shocked and overwhelmed and excited and…!

This is the beginning of a very beautiful four months.  I can feel it!

Anyone in Rennes feel like getting a celebratory drink ce soir?! Wish me luck with the move

xxo bisous

p.s. I postponed my trip to Paris until tomorrow

It was a thrill packed weekend…well, not exactly.

Friday night we spent the evening with friends having dinner and celebrating my birthday a week or so late. Dinner was pot pie which hit the spot followed up by this over the top chocolate cake with all kinds of chocolate shavings and sauce on top. My wife really knows the way to my heart. After dinner we had some hot tea, great conversation and head to head battle for wii supremacy in which I came out on top. We were out late…

And up early on Saturday. Sport girl had an early game on Saturday morning. We needed to be at the fields @ 8:00 am. Yikes! You can read the long version here but the shot story is Lakeside got their rears handed to them. Scoring only one goal in 3 games the afternoon was topped off by a blow up complete with F-bombs and storming off with his girl not to come back for the third and final humiliation of the afternoon. The bottom line is that we went 1-4 for the tournament shut out three times and only scored 5 goals in 5 games.

That night we skipped church and decided to go out to dinner. The kids like Applebee’s and I can choke it down. We ended a day that was pretty much of a downer in a nice way.

Sunday came early with the dog whining at 6:00am. The good thing was that this was the first time that night that she made noise. The down side is that it was late enough in the morning that my body could not get back to sleep after I got her to relieve herself outside. I was up for the day, and there was no football to look forward to.

With no excuses, I had to look busy so I went to work painting the bathroom…for the third time. Painting is not my gifting at all, I’m messy, not all that detailed, and I really just don’t like doing it. Luckily it’s a small room sp it only took an hour or so. Thinking about it, as much as I hate painting the house, I’ve pretty much painted every room in the place in the last 12 months. Now Big M has her sights set on the outside. That is a job I think I’ll leave to the professionals.

I see the Lord seated on the throne: This was a Sunday morning and if you know anything about the book of Isaiah I took the time to Seat the new Throne in the bathroom, with the new tile and backer board it was a double ringer.  We spent over $200 for the new toilet. It was more than we wanted to spend, but it came with a rebate, and it is so much more efficient than our 25 year old model that we replaced. It didn’t take long, and one of the kids broke the thing in without so much as a ribbon cutting ceremony.

All this is left is to get the new mirror, move the light back to the place that I moved it from two years ago and trim out the floorboards. Not a bad project and if I get it done by Friday it will have been 4 weeks exactly since I started. Not bad for a guy like me

i picked up a lovely new scarf this weekend, and i really don’t want to take it off.  it’s soft, and thin, and makes everything a little more fun.  $8 at the buffalo exchange, compliments of my french boyfriend who (as usual) graciously bought it for me upon my realization (as usual) that i left my wallet in the car (as usual).  ignore the bad hair and tired look on my face, and look at how GREAT this scarf is.  LOOK!  SCARF!  PUNCTUATION!

we were in denver spending the evening with our good friends garrett and courtney (and their dog, jetski) having drinks and dinner at steuben’s, where we refrained from ordering the drink for six people that is served in a fish bowl.  this was followed by inappropriate laughter at select awkward phrases from garrett’s ancient mountaineering book and lots of throwing jetski’s gross stuffed animal around for fetching.

in the morning we met ben and holly, my good friends from nashville and some of my favorite people in the world, who were in town for a long weekend.  they were in already good company, bringing along their friend erin and colby & tiffany, nashville transplants who now live in denver.

we ate at city o city, which won many accolades from our somewhat skeptical crowd.  their breakfast choices are not vast, but who needs many choices when everything tastes so good?  not me.  i recommend the sweet potato cinnamon bun, and having brunch conversation that ranges from horse vets to gun control to shady rock and roll venues to the state of education.

after perusing the buffalo exchange where i acquired the aforementioned scarf, we hightailed it down to the springs to make it to our pre-marital counseling session somewhat on time, which required someone to run a light because it refused to turn to green.  i then learned that i have no problems whatsoever, and am practically perfect in every way, including our relationship.  but of course!

[kidding.]

scheduling things on the weekends reminds me to have a life.   and if i forget, fitz (my teacher at Unnamed High School) shoves me out the door on fridays and yells at me to LET IT GO ALREADY and forget all about teaching for awhile.

i’m surrounded by really great people.  [this means you.]

Ripley’s in the dog house right now.

As I said, this weekend I was taking care of her by myself. Part of that meant making sure she goes to the bathroom outside. I didn’t really want to take the dog for a walk with the baby so I decided to just let her do her business in our front yard and pick it up later. Well she’d urinate, but wouldn’t pass anything solid so I thought she didn’t have to.

Well she did. And she did, right in our living room, as Evy and I sat on the carpet beside her. Sunday afternoon when I was already frazzled from a bad nights sleep and Evy’s need for a lot of attention.

I was SO upset! She’s pooped in the front lawn before, so it’s not as if she just didn’t know she could. And I took her out REPEATEDLY when she didn’t go the first time. But she chooses not to and then chooses to go in our living room instead.

Out for the day!

Fast forward to Sunday night. Paul’s finally home. I’ve stuffed Evy with enough rice cereal to make a good sized water ballon, and she’s playing happily on the carpet. Ripley, out of no where that I can see, SNAPS AT HER! She actually bit her, on her right cheek. Broke the skin enough to cause bleeding.

Out for the night!

Paul and I decided that we’d just keep her out if the baby was crawling around, so once the baby was asleep for the night we let her back in. I’m not going to hold it against her if she has an accident – and I’m not going to hold it against her if she can’t play with the baby.

Then this morning we come out, and I dont’ know how we missed it, but last night she pooped in the living room AGAIN!

I don’t know what is the matter with her, but she’s not going to be indoors for a bit. She can’t seem to hold it when she has to go to the bathroom and I’m not going to deal with that. Evy need to be able to play on that carpet and further more it’s not our house so I’m not going to even try and work with it.

Evy’s going through a growth spurt – which has been hard considering I’ve been dieting and not producing as much milk. She’s been up at least once every night this week – which is not like her at all. What’s worse is that she’s getting more and more frustrated when she wakes up. It’s almost as though it bothers her to get up in the middle of the night as much as it bothers me.

Saturday night was the pits because she woke up around 2am and then I couldn’t get back to sleep! I only got about four hours of sleep that night and Sunday was hard. All I wanted was to have some peace and quiet – but that was not happening. She needed me to hold her all the time and I needed to take care of washing bottles, packing diaper bags, folding baby clothes and then showering myself. I’m used to her needing our 100% attention, but usually we’re able to switch off between each other and Paul was still at his parents house.

Sunday when we went to Zeke’s birthday party she was acting very strange, but I realize now that’s just Evy. She doesn’t do well in crowds or people she doesn’t know. She was so shy and quiet and anytime I moved she thought I was going to put her down or hand her to someone and she freaked out. She toppled twice while playing and while that would never bother her before she broke into hysteria both times. She was having a hard day. Fruit Loops helped a bit

Last night was also hard, she woke up two hours after I put her down and had another nursing and still woke up at 2am for more. I told Paul tonight we’re preparing with some bottles as my supply is too low now for two feedings at night. I just hope this growth spurt passes soon…

This weekend – starting on Friday – I failed on counting, and caring about, my food. I was just really hungry on Friday and I was curious to see whether eating a lot would boost my milk supply, which it did. I made some better choices than usual but didn’t count anything so I feel like I still failed.

I meant to wake up this morning fresh, starting over again, but then realized I didn’t go food shopping so I had nothing to take to work with me. So I’m stuck here trying to fill my calories through the vending machine I’m still going to try though. Then tonight I’ll go food shopping and start again tomorrow.

rant/

Why is it that Red Robin will charge TEN DOLLARS AND FIFTY CENTS for a salad, and they can’t even use something more nutritionally beneficial than iceberg lettuce?! Why can I get a burger bigger than my head for two dollars and fifty cents cheaper? WHY?!

/rant

You know, here in California they’ve made it mandatory that restaurants (with multiple chains) offer nutritional information. Why can’t they make it mandatory that healthy food not only be made available but be priced comparable to the unhealthy stuff? I really doubt that it costs more to make a salad than it does to make a burger and a bottomless basket of steak fries.

Last week was a hard one, and I was dealing with a few things so I’m going to split them up into a few posts instead of just one huge one.

We found out on Wednesday that my sister had a miscarriage. She was at 14 weeks when she found out, though they said the baby likely stopped developing at 12 weeks.  This would have been my sister’s 3rd child.  I left work early to be with her, but I felt as though I couldn’t offer much than company – as there is really nothing that can make a mother feel better after a miscarriage. Luckily she’s taking a lot of comfort from her two sons and she’s taking each day as they come.

My husband’s grandfather, who is nearing 90 years old, went into the hospital early last week (in fact, it was the weekend before) and hasn’t left and likely never will. He’s dealing with a lot of health issues that started with a pneumonia and has turned into a mild heart attack, kidney failure and a staff infection. His kidneys are only working at 12% and they want to jump-start them by pumping a lot of fluids in him but his heart is so weak his body can’t deal with the extra fluids. Fluid is filling his lungs from the pneumonia and when they tried to extract it they found that it was actually a gelatinous material. Lung surgery placed him in the ICU because his lungs were so weak from 65 years of smoking and he now has some internal bleeding that is causing him to lose blood in a rate quicker than they can pump it in him.

Paul’s mother is very close with her parents, and she’s very emotional to begin with, so Paul went down there to support her on Saturday and ended up staying the entire weekend. It’s after he’s gone that I realize how much I depend on him. I want him there for his mother but I really hope he doesn’t have to leave for another weekend. If it were just Evy I had to take care I could probably “survive” but I’ve also got our dog Ripley and our cat Junior. Both of which are not very demanding but you put all three together and I’m over-whelmed. Needless to say, I was happy to have him home last night.

It was a busy week.

Got appointed to the Board at the East Toledo Family Center.  Attended the Central Committee meeting to appoint a new secretary.  Got my petitions signed for the ballot.  Got re-elected as VP of the LCYD.

I want to say next week will be calmer, but I’d be wrong.

Let’s see here…..I wanted to mention that I made the Presidential dinner last night and it was indeed fantastic and totally Presidential.  I used this rye bread that I got at the grocery that was both dill seed and caraway seed and that was nice.  I just bought deli sliced swiss and that tasted good so I will remember that.  I bought the tuna in a can from Whole Foods and it was less fishy than other brands so I will only buy that from now on, I think.

Moving on to cupcakes I made the Vanilla Cupcake recipe from Nigella Lawsom and thought it was about the WORST recipe I have ever made in my life, frosting and all (SORRY NIGELLA!!!!!!!).  I’m wondering if I converted the flour measurements wrongly?  It said 4 OZ. flour, soft butter and sugar and I ooked online for a conversion which told me that would be a 1/2 cup?   Anyway, my husband called them greasy and that would be a good description!    So if anyone has a tried and true vanilla cupcake recipe please pass it on or also tips about the measurement thing or about using Nigella’s recipe…..Thanks!

Lastly, I signed up for swap-bot and am very exicted to see how that turns out!  I love sending things in the mail and also getting things in the mail PLUS surprises and making new friends so it couldn’t be a better mix for me, we’ll see.  I will of course photograph the things I send and recieve and post about the whole thing in more depth as we go along!

Hope your weekend is going GREAT!

~Ruby

I love getting emails from past clients that show us photos we’ve shot that they’ve used in their marketing/fashion/corporate campaign or businesses.  Marie-Orphée Duval is the successful owner of Duval Design Communication specializing in services from design to print and electronic media and writing. 

We photographed her in the studio (www.flashcube.ca) before the holidays and had a great time.  Check out her website to see her photo and find out more on what she does at http://www.duvaldc.com/ (under “meet us”)

Happy Friday! (You can see more of her photos in the month of December 2009 blog posts.)

There is a possibility that Emily might come visit for the weekend, arriving tomorrow!!!! Yayyyyyy

yes, i do realize we are already towards the end of the 3rd week of January, maybe a bit too late to be waving 2009 goodbye but you can’t blame a girl for being busy. and i can’t really welcome 2010 without saying goodbye to 2009 first. so here goes… (and yes, i just copied this from last year.

DRINKING BUDDIES OF THE YEAR?

nina, mela & the frenchies. partying and dancing till the wee hours in the morning were a big part of my 2009. nothing makes me feel older than going to a club nowadays, so many kids. but when i’m with these people, i really couldn’t care less about anyone else.

YOUR SONG FOR 2009

Mr. Brightside – The Killers

this song came out earlier i do realize that but i grew to love it so much in 2009. here’s a pic of me and nina looking at each other and singing… it was only a kiss! it was only a kiss!… during the spirits ‘09 party.

DATE AWARD

nina – my constant companion, partner-in-crime and my other half. we spend so much time in each other’s company that people constantly ask if we live together. hahaha!

HIGH POINT OF THE YEAR?

watching Wicked at the Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco!

Something has changed within me
Something is not the same
I’m through with playing by the rules
Of someone else’s game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It’s time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes: and leap!
 ~ Defying Gravity

LOW POINT OF THE YEAR?

i guess that harrowing experience with Ondoy.

BEST HOLIDAY

i really thought i’d only have the 3-week US vacation as my only trip for 2009 since i would be consuming all my vacation leaves for it. luckily i was still able to fit some more trips specifically 2 trips to boracay and 1 to iligan. i was also booked for a bacolod trip but wasn’t able to go because of work.

if i have to choose which one was most memorable i would say it was the boracay halloween trip. i met a bunch of new friends and bonded with both mela & nina. it was a crazy and yet laidback fun trip. we plan to go there every halloween from now on.

BEST MOVIE FOR 2009

500 Days of Summer. for this…

Glee was also one of the biggest highlights of 2009 for me. love love love it!

VALENTINE’S DAY DATE

i really can’t remember. probably went out with nina to some club or somewhere. but yeah, my love life for 2009 was zip, zilch, zero, nada.

WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR NEXT YEAR?

• Bangkok Hat 2010!!!
• Planned trips to Boracay, Siargao, Palawan, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok. yey!
• Rekindle my love affair with the piano.
• Go on beach trips as much as I can.
• Another tattoo.
• Write more.

Hmm…. Yan lang maisip ko for now. Will try to make my 2010 list early next year. 

MOST STUPID IDEA WHEN DRUNK

ahhh… yes… sorry can’t really broadcast that out.

MOST MEMORABLE FIRSTS

Oh, I have a few of these!

• something to do with the most stupid idea while drunk category.
• river tubing in cagayan de oro. we capsized in the “washing machine”, that was an experience.
• surfing. i was able to stand on the board but it’s not for me. next time i’ll just watch while my friends surf.

BIGGEST CHANGE OF THE YEAR

not getting drunk at parties anymore. after that awful work party experience i had in 2008, i’ve actually learned to stop drinking at a certain point. i’m proud to say that i got wasted only once in 2009. in my opinion, a big big improvement from 2008.

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION

Live. Love. Learn.

GENERAL FEELING FOR 2010

Be gentle, 2010! 

First of all, i’m watching The Bachelor.  I don’t know why I can’t stop watching.  It horrifies me, but i’m hooked.  Right now, Jake and Gia are playing spin the bottle and according to Gia, it was the best kiss of her life.  I think i’m going to try that on my next date.  Take the guy to a vineyard and play a two person game of spin the bottle. 

My dates this weekend didn’t involve playing hide and seek in a vineyard or cruising up the California coast on a motorcycle, but they were pretty fun.  I had two nice first dates with two different guys from match.com.   Conversation was easy and I laughed a lot with both of them.  On top of that, they were both very polite and asked a lot of questions, picked up the check and walked me home.  All first dates should be so easy going and polite. 

I have a second date planned with one of them and am hoping to hear from the other one as well.  He was a bit reserved and he was a bit awkward when we said goodnight.  I couldn’t tell if he was just shy, or if he just wasn’t in to me.   I sent him a friendly text letting him know I enjoyed the date, and the rest is up to him.

If he doesn’t call, I have some back up options.  The young paul mccartney lookalike finally asked me out and we are meeting for happy hour tomorrow.  I also received this offer:

Hi Teri,

I have some great news. Since our last email, I’ve met someone!   I am moving slowly toward a polyamorous/non-monogamous relationship. You seem like a fun and interesting person and I’m sorry that we haven’t met. If you’re not freaked out by the polyamory thing, I would be open to continuing/re-opening our conversation with different expectations.  I have room in my life for more than one love.
If you’re interested:  XXXX
Take care,
XXXX

It’s a nice offer, but I’m totally not looking to join in on somebody’s new, polyamorous relationship.

This weekend was unlike any I’ve had in awhile. My best friend from college came down from Chicago for a weekend visit. We had ourselves a lazy, goofy drunken good time (with LOTS of games of Guess Who played.) Something my heart and soul really needed. We talked about everything from her new love interest to the details of Evel’s birth and death. She seen the pictures that are now in plain sight for all to see. She cried and told me how much she can see myself and the hub in our little baby. She asked about the future, our plans to eventually try again some day. But mostly, we talked about the ‘good old days’ of being in school, going to class hungover – sometimes even drunk. How we miss some of our instructions and all the projects we collaborated on. We bitched about the industry and how somehow we both slipped through the cracks of ‘making it’ in the graphic design world. How we’d give our left arm (and leg) for a job in our beloved field. I’m pretty sure we even cried through our sheer anger and frustration at where were are in our lives, career wise, while everyone else is ‘making it.’ It felt good to rant about it, it always lays heavy on my heart.

And we laughed. A lot. Boy did we laugh…

But when any of my friends leave, their absence crushes me. I know I can’t keep all my friends locked up in my basement for my enjoyment, but having them here really puts my loneliness in clear sight. I love my house, where we live and am generally happy – but I still miss everyone. But the memories will always remain, and I hope she knows just how happy she made me coming here – how happy I feel when anyone comes for a visit. My doors are always willingly open for whomever makes the trip, and I am anxious to meet her new boy.

:::::

At any rate, now I have to navigate back to day to day life. This afternoon I had a total break-down while speaking my order at a fast food joint. ALL I wanted was a three-piece cheese stick, yet here is how my order played out.

Take My Order Guy: What can I get you?
Me: I’d like a three-piece cheese stick.
Take My Order Guy: Three piece? Don’t you want a five piece instead, …you know the kids will want some.
Me: I don’t have kids.
LOOOOOOOOOOOONG WEIRD PAUSE.
(Me During Long Pause: Fuck this place, I’m out of there…)
Me: Hellllllo?
New Take My Order Gal: Please go on with your order…

I cried as I held my credit card out the window for someone to snatch it out of my hand. The hub kept telling me to calm down, but having to say “I don’t have kids” wasn’t exactly something I planned on saying, especially to a fucking drive thru guy. I know we live in a world where ’super sizing’ is the norm but seriously, getting your heart broken at a drive thru window isn’t cool.

:::::

They canceled schools here for tomorrow for a storm we haven’t had, again. This town is stupid…