The power of kindness

Memes that make me giggle: Chief Wiggum's slip of the tongue

"Bake him away toys" is one of my favorite ever lines from The Simpsons. I quote it a lot, and then I always giggle, regardless of whether anyone else gets it. Maybe next time you will and we can laugh together :)

Happy Monday!

Comic Con ON my BIRTHDAY!!!!

My birthday this year just happened to coincide with Salt Lake's first ever Comic Con. My brother Aaron, upon learning how excited I was about this event, offered to buy my ticket and experience the crazy day with me. I'm so glad he did. It was seriously the coolest birthday I could ever have wished for!

A slice of the main showroom in the Salt Palace

What is a Comic Con, you ask? It's an event where people can celebrate pop culture, like television, movies, comic books, video games, and so forth. Celebrities come to do question-and-answer sessions and sign autographs, and there are booths for promotion and merchandise. The Salt Lake Con had a film festival and a couple of other events. It's an excuse for people of similar non-sporty interests to get together and celebrate our nerdiness for whatever we happen to love.

One of the highlights for any Comic Con is seeing the fans (and some professionals) dressed in costume. I wasn't thrilled with the idea of dressing up until about a week before, at which time I realized it was going to be my BIRTHDAY; why was I even considering not wearing a tiara that day? So, I posted the following status on Facebook:

I'm looking for ideas: I'm going to the Salt Lake Comicon on my birthday. I'm not completely sold on dressing up, but if I do, I want to wear a tiara (is anyone surprised? No? Moving on). What costume could I wear with a tiara that isn't slutty and wouldn't be out of place at comicon? Any suggestions?

My friends had a LOT of suggestions, several of which I quite liked, and would have tried if I had given myself sufficient time to put a costume together. I ended up as a modified version of Princess Bubblegum from Adventure Time:

The pink hair sold me in the end.
I loved having pink hair all day!

When Aaron and I got to the Con, I looked at all of the elaborate costumes and felt dumb that I hadn't tried harder. I felt that way right up until I saw my first other Princess Bubblegum and she gave me a thumbs up. Pretty soon, I realized that fans of the show absolutely knew who I was! Hooraaaaay! People who didn't know the show wouldn't have known anyway... this was true for ALL of the costumes. It hit me just how nerdy I was based on how many of the characters I recognized. I might not have seen the shows or played the games or read the comic books, but I knew who a lot of people were trying to be! Aaron put together a terrific soldier costume -- no one specific, just someone doing his duty for his country. It was so good that several people, including the actual officer doing the weapons check, asked him if he really was a soldier. Props to Aaron!

Highlights of the day:

About the first thing we saw when we walked in was the crowd
making room for this velociraptor. The man inside it was camouflaged
by raptor-skin-colored tights.
This raptor would also show up at Larissa's wedding, but that's another story!

My friend Carrie spent most of the day with us.
Her costume -- Applejack from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic --
was a huge hit and a lot of people asked to take photos of her. 

My friend Karrie also spent a fun chunk of the day with us,
and we were thrilled to run in to Maida as Kirby from Pokemon

501st Legion: ultimate cosplaying Star Wars fans

The Heroes of Canton, two men they call Jayne
(Firefly) 

Doctor Who's TARDIS

Jareth, the Goblin King, from Labyrinth 

Finally got the courage to ask one of the Finns
(from Adventure Time) to join me in a photo

I also spent most of the day with dear friend Karrie, and we were
thrilled to run in to Maida as Kirby from Pokemon

Q&A with New Zealand actor Manu Bennett, who was witty and funny and charming
and made me want to rewatch The Hobbit, and start watching Arrow

Another friend I spent some of the day with, Kyle
(He almost couldn't get in because the building was maxed out.
Fortunately, a bunch of people left, so they let him in after all.) 

Aaron found his high school friend, and local up-and-coming personality, Deena Marie!

Saw a shortened and "family friendly" version of the Las Vegas show The Evil Dead: The Musical. No blood, just a lot of singing and zombies and laughing at "bleeped" swear words :D

Dean Cain was the only celebrity I met that day. When I told him it was my birthday, he gave me a huge hug, and then another when we said good-bye. Dean was so nice! Thanks, Aaron, for convincing me to meet him!
(Aaron joked while we watched the Manu Bennett Q&A that I should have asked whether he thought he could give me a better hug than Dean Cain, but I chickened out :P )
If I get another chance, I'd like to meet Henry Winkler, too -- his table was next to Dean's, and he was greeting the people who stood in line. He seemed like a favorite uncle -- a genuine, nice person. Yay!

I also saw four short films, two of which starred friends: Black Blood (a zombie western), and Steve in Accounting vs. The Shadow Dwellers. Both were entertaining, though Black Blood had a slightly more original premise and better production values. I'm glad I didn't miss them!

All I ate that day were an Egg McMuffin, a slice of pizza, and a couple of scoops of coffee ice cream with almonds and oreo. I generally eat a LOT more than that during the day, but I was too busy trying to see and do all I could in the nine short hours I was there! Plus, those sound like perfect birthday foods to me!

When we finally decided it was time to go (they'd turned off the lights and all of the shopkeepers were breaking down their booths), we drove to my mom's house so she could see our costumes, and so we could tell her all about the day. It was so hard to describe, except being so, so fun and cool!

The SL Comic Con was hugely successful, and the people in charge are already planning on the next one. Next year, I'm going every day, and I'm taking as my of my friends with me as will go.

Anyone interested? Anyone interested in planning a group costume as characters from Muppet Babies? Or The Princess Bride? Or all of the My Little Ponies... I'm open to suggestions!

My favorite Calvin and Hobbes

Richard Thompson is right: Calvin and Hobbes is the best comic strip ever, for so many reasons. It will always have a special place in my heart, due to my experience with young, precocious brothers and nephews and their friends, and the hours I've spent pouring over the C&H anthologies at my parents' house.

My very favorite gag showed up in my reader feed this morning:

I think about this every time I'm bored in a meeting and want to start screaming. I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to yell this out at least once a week. In the last few months it's felt more like five times a day... Miraculously, I've so far managed to avoid doing it.

Thanks, Calvin, for so accurately representing me, today. You rock!

These made me giggle today

This showed up in my inbox as the "Goodreads Quote of the Day" today:

"Hooray! Hooray! The end of the world has been postponed!"   - Hergé

Yep, truly a reason to celebrate :-D

And then Amy posted this on Facebook:

The caption at the bottom is my favorite part.

If you just laughed out loud as I did: You're welcome!

Happy Wednesday!

No time for my thoughts

I'm burned out. I work 8 or more hours, go directly to rehearsal for three hours, and get home around 10:30p.m, when I need to prepare ALL of my meals for the next day before collapsing into bed (at which point my downstairs neighbors decide to have an argument, or turn on the t.v. in their bedroom, both of which keep me up even more late).

My show opens a week from tomorrow (technically, my cast starts on Saturday, March 31). This means that we have rehearsals every day. Saturday and Sunday I have stuff going on all day. I have chosen my obligations and I'm happy to fulfill them.

But, I'm not necessarily a social being. On a normal week, I need at least one or two evenings to myself. When that doesn't happen, I get crabby, and my thoughts become confused because I have no time to reflect on all that's going on. Well, I haven't had a night to myself in about two weeks, and the thought that I won't get one until after my show opens depresses me even more.

Even more frustrating is when I'm that irritated and haven't worked through why, and then someone insists I tell them what is wrong. I appreciate the support of my friends and understand they're just trying to help, but if I don't know what I'm actually upset about, how the heck am I supposed to explain it to someone else? I end up saying bratty things I later regret. Then I have the guilt of having just been rude to my friend when they were just trying to make me feel better; as someone who is very sensitive to other people's feelings, this is the very worst thing. My moods don't generally last very long, but I do need time to work through them.

I am tired and grouchy. So much so that I'm considering taking tomorrow off. Not even calling in sick, just taking a vacation day. This is HUGE! I hoard my vacation days like Scrooge McDuck hoards his gold coins.

If I were to stay home tomorrow, I would do the following:

• sleep in
• cook breakfast
• do a prolonged, real workout, instead of just taking a walk and calling it "sufficient exercise"
• clean my house (it's in desperate need!)
• cook lunch
• catch up on some of the many t.v. shows piling up in my Hulu queue
• maybe take a nap
• cook dinner (do you see a theme here?)

Okay, I talked myself into it. I'm taking the day off tomorrow. At least from work. I might skip rehearsal, too, 'cause the other cast is running so I don't really need to be there, even though I like going and the other cast is hilarious. Then again, there is such a thing as TOO much time alone, and it's rough not to talk with anyone for an entire day. We'll see how I feel.

Just need to survive today! *Resist the urge to cry*

What are things that you do that relax or cheer yourself up when you're having one of "those" days? Do you like to be around people when you're in a bad mood?

"Pulling a Monica"

There's an episode of Friends where Monica's mom hires her to cater a brunch. Monica is wearing fake nails, and during the course of putting together the meal, one of the nails is lost in one of the mini-quiches. Obviously the quiches are ruined. Unfortunately, this isn't the first time Monica as messed up in such a big way, and Monica's mom calls the event "pulling a Monica." According to the Urban Dictionary, "to pull a Monica" means "any and all screwups by an individual." After this is established, they use the phrase several more times throughout the series, and I've heard it other places, too.

My family has adopted a few of the same types of names-as-verbs situations, based on things typical of us.


"Pulling an Adam"

Definition: A teenager who grows a foot and loses his baby-fat practically overnight.

Check out the tall, handsome fellow on the right!

Backstory: A guy in our ward growing up came home from his two-year mission and didn't even recognize Adam because he had changed so much. My youngest brother, David, did the same to me. When I left, he was shorter than I. When I came home, he was over six foot -- it definitely took some getting used to!


To "Lindsey" something

Definition: To pick up an item in a store, then in the course of shopping decide not to buy it and put it down someplace random (not in the item's original display area).

Retail by Norm Feuti

Backstory: Adam coined the phrase and to Lindsey's dismay, it has stuck. Let's be honest: don't we all do this from time-to-time?


"Pulling a Megan"

Definition: To make up an answer to a question you don't know, and discover later that you were correct.

Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson

Backstory: Okay, so this isn't actually something my family says, but I'm hoping it will catch on ;-) The other day a friend was trying to explain the telegraph to her son, and faltered when she realized she didn't know how the Titanic could telegraph without a wire. I said they probably used radio waves. She didn't think that sounded right, so she looked it up. Sure enough, the wireless telegraph used radio waves. Lucky, guess! It seemed logical when I said it, but I could have just as easily been wrong.


Does your family have these kinds of "inside" family phrases? If so, I'd love to hear them!

Another Dilbert vacation strip

Here is the comic strip I initially wanted for my "What to do with my vacation time?" post. It's what I felt like last year at this time:

Fortunately, I was able to finish everything two weeks early, perform in a play, and still go on two vacations during December.

This year? No Christmas show. No work deadline scheduled for December 31. No plans to leave town.

I fully intend to enjoy this holiday season at home, and all of my accrued vacation time!

Beware the awesome tarantulion!!

Okay, folks. Here's the blog you've been waiting for! One two weeks in the making!

The one that reveals what we think a tarantulion might actually look like! (For my other Tarantulion posts, click here and here.)

Has anticipation been building? Are you ready to have your minds enlarged and/or blown? Well then, let's go!!

First, we have a picture submitted by my friend Keri. Revel in her awesome vision:

I love that it has paw/claws AND spider-legs. Seriously freaky and cool!! Great job, Keri!

And here's mine. My particular brand of artistry made this come out far cuddlier than I would have liked, and there are supposed to be four eyes and two fangs, but you get the general idea:

Anyone else want to submit their drawings? I still want to see what you thought of when you first read the phrase "Tarantulion."

Oh, and I still think it would make a great "B" movie. Anyone up to THAT challenge? Pretty please?

Thank you, Mr. Conley, for giving us something fun to imagine. Your comic strip rocks and your characters are hilarious!

Still time to submit a Tarantulion drawing!

My challenge to draw a tarantulion wasn't met with very much enthusiasm. In fact, one friend said she didn't even read the post because she was afraid she'd see a photo of one on my blog. I suppose I can understand that; I really hate it when people post photos of spiders. I'm just sayin'.

But until Darby Conley posted that comic strip last week, there weren't ANY references to tarantulions anywhere on the internet. Just think of it: the creative field is wide open! You could be the person who sets what future generations imagine when they hear of the fearsome beast.

After all, the only reason everyone thinks Frankenstein looks like this is because of the 1931 movie.

I also blame this movie for giving people the wrongful
impression that "Frankenstein" is the name of the monster.
It is, in fact, the name of the scientist who created the monster.
There's your literary nerd fact of the day.

It's like the Kenneth Brannaugh version never happened.

Don't you want a hint of immortality? How cool would that be?!! And how cool if I discovered you!!!

If you decide to submit a drawing, e-mail it to me at dizzyblonde78 at msn dot com. I'll post them all next week...

Come on! Don't assume someone else will have the same idea you have... and don't let your believed lack of skill discourage you. If it makes you feel better, you can say your nephew drew it. I won't judge!

And, yes, I'll be posting my own sketch. I'm willing to potentially embarrass myself if you are :-D

Happy Thursday!

Tarantulion

Get Fuzzy by Darby Conley

**10-27. I updated my e-mail address below -- what kind of wacko forgets her own addy? If you sent a drawing to "dizzydandelion78" please resend to "dizzyblonde78"!!**

I don't know about you, but I think a "tarantulion" is just about the most horrifying animal ever imagined.

Also, it's a great idea for a B movie.

If anyone wants to draw a picture of what they think a tarantulion would look like, e-mail it to me at dizzy blonde 78 at msn dot com*, and I will post it here for all to see!

Hmmm... I might have to draw a picture myself, if I have time at rehearsal tonight...

I don't know why that idea makes me so happy!

*I updated the e-mail address -- the first one posted was the wrong one. I apologize! Please send your drawings!! I'm so very curious to see what you came up with!

Another Facebook fast

Last year I took about 10 days off from Facebook, for various reasons.

I've decided it's time to do it again.

Two months ago, it would have been because I was jealous of all the moms and kids and weddings and cool vacations.

Baby Blues by Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott

But, happily, I got over my "why not me?" pity-fest.

No, now I need a break because, since the changes Facebook made to the layout last week, I've been spending more time on there than ever. This in spite of the fact I find those changes seriously annoying. I have my friends all organized in little groups like "Extended Family", "Close Friends", and "Entertaining!".... but you can't add pages that you've "Liked" to those groups, so I still have to look at the main feed to see the latest news on Grey's Anatomy, The Big Bang Theory, and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

Doesn't matter what else I'm doing on the computer, I check FB about every 10 minutes. And I don't like it. But I haven't been able to get myself to stop.

No doubt about it: I am addicted to Facebook.

I've been wanting to take a break for awhile, but there's always a reason not to: my play, my birthday, someone else's birthday, vacation photos, birth announcements, cast announcements, etc. So easy to make excuses not to stop. Finally decided to just DO it!

So, Sunday I posted a status update stating that I'd been taking a break for an indeterminate amount of time, e-mailed a few people I generally only communicate with on FB so they'd have my e-mail address, wrote down the dates and times of events that I plan to attend, and smiled at the replies from people who said they'd miss me.

Monday, I "deactivated" my account. I did this so I wouldn't receive any updates and no one could invite me to anything while I'm absent. I didn't really want to delete it and all of the associations I've made in the last couple of years. This is a happy medium.

It's only been two days and, pathetically, I already miss it. A lot. You know me, I miss the stories and pretending I know what's going on. But I'll stay strong. After all, I'll make an effort with the people I really want to keep in touch with (honestly, thank goodness for my friends' blogs--maybe I'll start commenting more), and much of what people post on FB isn't time-sensitive, or even important, anyway. I know most of what I post isn't very interesting

Oh dear, now I'm going to have to read the news to get my updates on world/local events. *Sigh* I can do it!

Hoping to stay off the FB for a couple of weeks, if not the entire month of October (wouldn't that be amazing?!) We'll see how it goes!

Not Skinny!

Is anyone else a little nervous for swimsuit season? I plan to spend a lot of time in my pool this summer, so even if I'm not quite ready at the beginning of the season, I'll look good by the end (and my hair will be nice and green)!

Hopefully the lovely Utah weather starts cooperating soon.

How are you?

I really, really hate it when people ask "How are you?" without expecting or wanting an answer. A few years ago -- in protest -- I tried actually answering the question. Not with strangers, but with people who actually care. It didn't last long. I don't like making my friends sad when I don't have to :-P

But you might notice that I almost never respond "Fine." It's either "I'm happy" or "I'm okay."

I might not conform entirely, but heaven knows I don't want to be like the jerk in this strip! Haha!

Hugs

I need one.

Not because I'm sad. (I'm not.)

Or because I'm having a bad day. (It's too early to tell.)

Just because I do.

It's just one of those things.

The only comic that made me LOL yesterday

(Especially panel 3. I literally laughed out loud.)

Cathy Guisewite, I am going to miss you! Who else understands and satirizes the plight of the modern woman so well? Enjoy your retirement! It's well deserved!

Morning Person

Pearls Before Swine by Stephan Pastis


Since yesterday was a busy, 21-hour day (starting at 4:30), I could relate to this strip this morning.

Yesterday was, however, a really good day. I was out of the house before dawn to join my fellow Joseph castmembers on a local morning news show. I worked a full 8 hour day (needing only a 45 minute nap). We had our best performance yet for Joseph, performing to a very responsive, nearly packed house -- an estimated 700 seats sold, can you believe it? And then I went to my best friends house for good ice cream, good television, and good conversation.

Meanwhile, my show got a great review at Utah Theatre Bloggers. The writer sent us a rough draft yesterday that Kate read while we were waiting to be filmed, and we were thrilled at all of the compliments! For convenience' sake, I posted the final version here:

Cottonwood Heights dreams big with “Joseph”
Written by: Sara Harvey | August 10, 2010.
COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS — The Cottonwood Heights Arts Council, which is only about two years old, has chosen Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, to be its first production. Joseph is a beloved musical, especially to Utah audiences. Thoughts of Donny Osmond and past productions are not far when you hear another group will soon be putting on the show. Did Cottonwood Heights Arts Council deliver?

For me, they definitely did! With a 30 piece live orchestra behind them, this cast of over 50 people—ranging in age 3 to adult—gave a beautiful representation of the play.

A few highlight performances for me were those of the Casey Matern (Narrator), Craig Clifford (Joseph), Jason Wadsworth (Judah), C. Pehrson (Simeon) and the children’s choir. Watching preschooler Abigail Barlow singing “Go, Go, Go Joseph” was the highlight of my week. The children’s choir was very impressive. I love watching children perform especially when they are so focused, engaged and have such a beautiful sound.

The best thing about the production was the spot-on live orchestra directed by Thomas C. Baggaley. I especially enjoyed the electric bass solo.

Choreographer Stephanie Maag definitely met (and surpassed) expectations as she featuredthe cast was doing jazz, hip hop, line dancing and…drill(?).

This production and its cast personify what the musical Joseph and community theater is about, dreams and family. Clifford’s performance as Joseph was one such example. He returns to the stage after a 16 year hiatus with his son, Alex. His natural acting style and beautiful voice makes me hope we will be seeing more of him in the future.

Directed well by Kate Rufener, this is community theater where cast and crew become like a family working toward a common goal. If you are expecting lavish costumes and sets you will be disappointed. If you want to see a solid performance with energetic actors and a fantastic live orchestra you will be delighted to attend this production in Cottonwood Heights.

Congratulations C.H. Arts Council on your first production! Keep on dreaming!

And here are a few of the news spots. Aren't my friends talented?
 
 
 
(I also posted this same post on the Cottonwood Joseph blog. Just for your info!)

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