So much t.v., so little time

What do the following television shows all have in common?

Gilmore Girls
Community
Dr. Who
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Lie to Me
The West Wing
Sports Night
[Star Trek] Enterprise
Battlestar Galactica (the newer version)
Veronica Mars
Portlandia
My So-Called Life

(I am not linking to each one of these shows. I'm pretty sure they wouldn't be difficult to find if you did a search on your own.)

They are all shows that dear friends cannot stop raving about! (I will also give credit for: They are all super awesome.) Each was recommended to me by several people as something that I would love (whoa, bold statement). Subsequently, I put them on my Netflix queue.

Recently, I upgraded from regular Hulu to Hulu Plus, which means that I can stream even more of them online (Netflix only offered Community and Buffy as DVDs)!!

The sad thing is that I don't have a lot of time to watch said shows. So, even though I'm totally jazzed about all of them, it's slow-going. And whenever someone mentions something new to me I cringe internally, sigh, and since I trust them that I'll love it, I add it to the queue. It's possible the queue will never empty. That's okay. It's nice to have something cool to watch while scrapbooking, or cooking, or getting ready for bed...

...You know, when there isn't a new episode of Desperate Housewives, Glee, Grey's Anatomy, Modern Family, The Simpsons, Once Upon a Time, New Girl, Grimm, Pan Am, Suburgatory, Parks and Recreation, Chuck, Revenge, Napoleon Dynamite, Alcatraz, Drop Dead Diva, The Big Bang Theory, 30 Rock, Smash, Downton Abbey, Phineas and Ferb, or Mad Men to catch up on... and no new DVD from Netflix to quickly watch and return.

Gah! How in the world do I ever get anything done?!! It's a mystery!


[UPDATE] It helps that Chuck's finale has aired (I didn't get to watch the final season because it wasn't on Hulu -- LAME!! That's going in the queue), and Pan Am was cancelled. Boo!

Meanwhile in the last few months I have accomplished the following:

• finished Sports Night
• halfway through season 6 of West Wing  (I want to be Allison Janney when I grow up)
• finished season 3 of Buffy (Willow rules!)
• started season 2 of Enterprise
• watched 5 episodes of My So-Called Life (Only one season? Tragedy!)

It's slow-going, but it's going!

What are your favorite shows? Anything you think I'd love that I don't already have on the list above? Am I the only crazy t.v.-watching person on the interweb?

It's about time!!!!!!!!

Remember how six weeks ago I was cast in The Importance of Being Earnest? Then a week after that the rehearsals and performances were postponed? And ever since I've been jumping out of my skin excited and frustrated that we haven't started rehearsals yet?

Well, WE FINALLY GET TO GET STARTED!!!!!!!

We have our first read-through tomorrow, and I'll get to find out who the entire cast is, including maybe new people since our last meeting because the schedule change forced at least one person (that I know of) to drop out. I hope no one else did! We had such a terrific cast -- the show is double-cast and everyone was just so fabulous!!

Next week we start blocking. I can hardly wait!

Guess I'll have a lot less free time in the next three months. That's okay with me :^D It'll be worth it for the opportunity to do a play I've wanted to do for 15 years!

To celebrate, here's a number from the 2002 film. Sadly, this song probably won't be in our play, but it makes me giggle every time!

(The servants carrying the piano around is the BEST part!)

Here is a scene which WILL be in the play, and also makes me giggle every time:

"A haaaaand baaaaag?!"

Happy Friday, everyone!

Breakfast of champions

I have never been a big fan of breakfast. I love breakfast food -- waffles and pancakes and bacon and eggs and english muffins and french toast and yogurt with fruit and smoothies are some of my FAVORITE foods -- but actual breakfast time itself? It's tough for me.

The most likely reason is because I like to stay up late most nights, and generally end up sleeping until the last possible moment before I must drag myself from my bed, get physically ready for and drive myself to work/rehearsal/other activities.

Then again, even when I don't have anywhere to go immediately after deciding to get out of bed, I usually don't eat breakfast right away. The truth is, I'm just not hungry right away! I know that's not a good reason to not eat, but there it is.

So, I usually end up taking something breakfast-y to work and eating it there, or in the car if I'm on the way to something else, like rehearsal. These meals usually involve something like yogurt, or a banana, or peanut butter and honey toast. I just don't have time to make waffles or french toast...

I think this is why I love breakfast-for-dinner so much.

In an effort to try something different, and add more protein and vegetables to my diet, I pulled out The South Beach Diet book and browsed through the breakfast recipes. I found something that looked just right: Vegetable Quiche Cups To Go (click the link for the recipe). Easy to make, freezable and easy to reheat, easy to eat, small portions. BINGO!

Here is the end result, still frozen

The recipe says that you can replace their suggested vegetables with any that you like. I decided to make it up as written this time, and unfortunately, I forgot how much I despise the brand of frozen spinach that I bought.

Oh. My. Gosh. These cups things are DISGUSTING!!

That spinach is AWFUL!! I can't taste anything else because I'm too busy trying not to think about the hideous texture. I don't mind spinach in general, but the rest of the food in the recipe is so bland there isn't anything to help it along, and cooked spinach definitely needs something.

The recipe makes twelve cupcake-sized portions, and like I said you can freeze them for later, so at least I didn't have the eat the darn things all at once. I made them at 1 a.m. (remember I said I like to stay up late?) so I don't know if they were any better freshly-made, but I don't think it would have made a difference.

I will eat them all anyway. I gag them down with vegetable juice, and chew about 80 times which seems to help. There's no way I'm throwing away perfectly good, nutritious food. That would be even more depressing.

I will also be making them again. I'll skip the spinach next time, of course, but maybe I'll add mushrooms and broccoli or asparagus or more peppers or something... oh, that sounds good.

This experiment wasn't an outright failure, but it was pretty bad. Now I know what not to do next time, and at least I have some breakfasts ready to go... and I can eat one in about three bites... and I AM actually eating breakfast like I'm supposed to. C'mon, body! Give me some credit for trying to do right by you!

How about you? What do you eat for breakfast? Are you a breakfast-skipper like I used to be? Do you prefer breakfast-for-dinner instead of at breakfast time? Do you eat cold pizza for breakfast as much as you can (mmmm... cold pizza)?

My first Sundance film!

Have you heard of the Sundance Film Festival? It was started in 1981 by Robert Redford and friends, runs in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, and showcases independent films each January. Filmmakers are given a chance to show their work and, if they're lucky, the films are picked up for more general distribution. (Fun fact: did you know that Napoleon Dynamite, The Brave Little Toaster, and The Blair Witch Project all debuted at Sundance?) In addition, a lot of these films feature established Hollywood stars, and the Festival is known almost as much for "star"-gazing as quality productions.

I have lived in Utah for my entire life, and have never attended the famous Festival.

Until this year!

My adorable friend Jenna invited me to come with her this year. She picked out a few films, and I chose one that seemed interesting and played on a date I was free, and before I knew it, it was Friday the 20th and I met her and her friend Heather at the Salt Lake City Library with ticket in hand!

From left: me, Heather, and Jenna

We saw Putin's Kiss. I admit, I had only read over the overview once several weeks ago, so I was a little surprised to discover it was a documentary... a political, Russian documentary! Haha! So appropriate for my first independent film! Lucky for me, my relationship with NPR helped me understand more of what was going on than I might have otherwise, and I don't mind films with subtitles. On the contrary, it was fascinating to get a glimpse into the Russian political system and see how the main subject changes throughout the film. Knowing that this was real made it feel just a little more brutal, a little more heartbreaking, and a little more hopeful. If you don't mind foreign films, I recommend this one. It was something different for me, but I'm glad I gave it a shot.

Plus, Jenna and Heather are delightful! We're all literary people, so we had no trouble finding things to talk about. One of my favorite moments was when Jenna bravely decided to approach her favorite Junior High school teacher, who she was sure wouldn't remember her. On the contrary, as soon as the teacher saw her she jumped up and climbed over everyone in her row to give Jenna the best hug! It's just so cool when teachers remember their students (even from ten years before). They chatted for several minutes and I could see how thrilled Jenna was that she didn't chicken out -- I'll always regret that I let my chance to thank my favorite teacher go by. Just such a cute moment!

Ah, Sundance. Bringing people together in the most unexpected ways!

I hope to have another chance to go in the future, and maybe (maybe, I'm not excited about the weather and crowds) I'll drive up to Park City sometime where much of the real action goes on. T'would definitely be an adventure!

Thank you for inviting me, Jenna!

Speaking of adventures, my photographer friend Mandie was contracted by the festival this year to take official photos of the venues and volunteers. Her photos are terrific, and her blog posts tickle me 'cause she has such a cute writing style (she is such an upbeat person and writes the way she speaks!) -- go check it out!

Have you ever been to the Sundance Festival? Are you going this year? What have you seen?

Brought to you by the letter "M": what I wore today

Yesterday, I threw together an outfit last minute. As luck would have it, I LOVED it! Hot Pink, black and white? Yes, please!

With the jacket

Without the jacket

Do you see the little squiggle on my left shoulder? Close up, it looks like this:

Yes, I own a sweater with an "M" sewn into the pattern. I bought it years ago and adore the thing. Sadly, it's an awkward length and made of grabby, itchy yarn, so I don't wear it often. However, when I realized the "M" is the same color as the dress I'd thrown on (as a third desperate attempt to find something somewhat flattering to wear to church), I almost skipped for joy! Better yet, it perfectly covered the busy bodice on the dress!

I received multiple compliments on this sweater from women in my ward, many of whom mentioned that it reminded them of the way Laverne in Laverne & Shirley always had an "L" on the front of her blouse/dress/uniform. I admit, that's exactly why I bought it in the first place. Knowing that other people like it for the same reason makes me feel oddly validated, and giddier than I should be -- I love to be frivolous sometimes!

Now, because it cheers me up and makes me smile broadly every time I watch it, here is the theme song sequence for Laverne & Shirley -- notice the "L" on all of Laverne's (Penny Marshall's) clothing:

Happy Monday, all!

Make all YOUR dreams come true!!

The Bark Side

Love dogs? Love Star Wars?

Then this video is for you!


The costumed dogs SLAY me! The AT-AT is definitely my favorite (watch for the very last dog, heehee!)

Happy Friday!