Ten on Tuesday: The I-Just-Got-Back-From-Vacay-And-Haven't-Yet-Organized-Thoughts-For-A-Real-Blog Edition

Hey all! I don't have a fabulous vacay recap post for you (yet) - I was waiting til I had a chance to get some coherent thoughts together. I wasn't even going to post today, but I saw today's Ten on Tuesday questions and knew I had some decent answers, so here goes.

Here are today's questions, courtesy of Kyria at Travel Spot. You can also join up at Roots and Rings.

1. When you are on a plane and the kid behind you is kicking your seat, what do you do?
Believe it or not, this has never happened to me. I think I probably wouldn't do anything, but I can't guarantee that I would never take the passive-aggressive route and recline that seat so far back the kid's foot ricochets mid-kick and causes injury.

2. What food that you KNOW is bad for you and you shouldn’t have, but you love/eat it anyway?
Oh man, which one? Anything fried. Or breaded. Preferably both.

3. What is your favorite book of all time?
This is a tough one. As my twitter followers know, I read a lot. And fast. In fact, I've recently been lectured to like a surly teenager told by my parents in all seriousness that I read too much and should spend my time doing other "worthwhile" things. (Don't get me started.) In any case, if you asked me right now, I'd have to say my favorite book is Duma Key, by Stephen King. But it could change next week, next month, or tomorrow. I'm a book whore like that.

4. If I came to visit you in your town, where would we eat?For brunch, I'm partial to Michael's Genuine Food and Drink (ohhhh, double-yolk egg! *swoon*). Otherwise, I'll take the lazy way out and say CineBistro because it's awesome. Cheesy and not at all gourmet, but awesome.

5. You have 500 dollars and 40 minutes to spend it at any store you want. Where do you go?
Kate Spade. No question.

6. What blog do you read every day/the most often?
Top three would have to be The Bloggess, Attack of the Redneck Mommy, and Three Ring Mom. But a stellar up-and-comer on my Google Reader queue is Childhood Trauma: The Books that Ruined us for Life.

7. What’s the longest you’ve ever been stuck at an airport?Under "normal" circumstances, there was the time a 4 hour layover at Chicago O'Hare doubled due to snow. Otherwise, we can talk about the trials and tribulations of trying to get a flight out of Iraq.

8. What’s your daily makeup/face/cleansing routine?
I use a Neutrogena Naturals cleaner, follow up with a Neutrogena SPF-based moisturizer, then use Neutrogena Healthy Skin Compact Makeup and Pressed Powder. (Yep, I'm monogamous to certain brands.) If I'm not working, I'll put a little more effort into the routine with mascara, eye shadow, and gloss (all also Neutrogena, of course). I never leave the house without Vera Wang perfume, either - I even took it to the desert a few times.

9. Where is your farthest away friend?
Well, I know a lot of people who are temporarily in Southwest Asia ... and a few Twitter chicas Down Under!

10. Where is your favorite place to go hiking (or to enjoy nature)?
Le sigh. Just came from there: Virginia.

Oh-Mah-Gah

Folks! I was all set to blog yesterday about my plans for resolution number I-forget, which was to find a little more religion in my life. And I will address that issue. But while I was twiddling my thumbs at work, I was called to talk to one of our higher-ups here. Turns out, there's some opportunities to leave the organization within the next 12 months and I won't have to worry about breaking my contract.
Hallelujah!!!!
That being said, there's some incentive if I can get my shit together and leave by October 1st - and of course, I have to commit to this by the end of the month. Otherwise, I'll be obligated to leave by February 1st of next year. So I'm starting to actively work some contacts, push out my resume, and see how warm the waters are for an October departure. Fortunately, I don't have a family to consider, so I just have to worry about getting my own ass in gear. I've also got Wednesday and Thursday off, so I'll be getting a lot of research, planning, and applications work accomplished. I'm honestly not leaning any one way right now, so this may be a difficult decision (timing, that is, not leaving).

On a different note, before this whole work thing came up, I was starting to plan my whole religion agenda: i.e. Lent. It's that time of year folks. And, like the truly lapsed Catholic I am, it's actually been awhile since I've even attempted to follow the rules. So I've made plans to get my heathen arse to mass on Wednesday and abstain from meat on the requisite days. While I recognize I'm also supposed to fast, I can tell you that just is not going to happen. Then there's the other abstenance part ... you know, everyone always asks what you're giving up for Lent. To be honest, I can't really remember the actual rules and rationale behind this (if, in fact, there are any), but I can give up some stuff for 40 days. It'll do me some good in the long run, and it'll definitely help some of my other resolutions from January (which, I'm ashamed to say, I've done completely awful at keeping). So, beginning tomorrow, I'll be giving up alcohol (ALL booze), cigarettes (yes, I've been a habitual smoker on and off for years now. shaddup), and take-out food. Why the take-out food you ask? Well, in my high-rise apartment living, there are many a service that will schlepp to local restaurants and deliver you delishis fare of noms so you don't have to eat in a restaurant all by yourself. And I'm really lazy when I get home from work. So there you go. This will definitely help same a ton of money and really help me break ground on my neverending quest to lose weight.

But, you know, there's going to be a nice little farewell party for my three amigos when I get off work tonight. You can count on it.

Timekilling

It's been awhile since I've posted - much of that has been due to my new job. Which I love, by the way. I've been on almost four weeks on night shift now, which isn't unusual for my line of work. Details aside, the biggest issue is finding out what to do on your nights off. I'm single, so I can keep whatever schedule I want, I don't have to deal with kids or anything else. For me, the key is to keep the same hours, even if I'm not working. So, I've been up since about 2pm (which is actually early). You have to really find ways to occupy those night hours, since you wouldn't really be running errands or anything, as you would during the day.
Thankfully, iTunes lets you rent movies. There have been a number of recent releases that I wanted to see, but didn't feel like buying. So, tonight, I'm catching up on my arts and entertainment. Here are my thoughts:

1. 127 Hours -- Meh. Decent flick. Good for rental and all, but I don't see the big deal. Also not suitable for the faint of heart as this is the story of a guy who had to amputate his own arm. Thankfully I was working on something while watching, so I had an excuse to miss some of the more gory parts. But I don't see the big deal about James Franco, and while I'm glad I saw it, I'm doubly glad I just rented and did not buy.

2. Winter's Bone -- I dug it. It's gritty and not a lot of action, but pretty spellbinding. Jennifer Lawrence was amazing, and I can't wait to see what she does in the future. But again, glad I rented.

3. Love and Other Drugs -- I have to say, very pleasantly surprised. Anne Hathaway deserved a nomination for this one. It's funny yet poignant, and makes me forget that Anne and Jake Gyllenhall were also a couple in the crapfest Brokeback Mountain. I will probably buy this one.

Next up? Guilty pleasure time: Burlesque. It'll probably be another Showgirls, but - at this point - I'm tipsy enough not to care.

Cheers!

Xenophobia

I am a HUGE fan of Shonda Rimes. Ever since I got seasons 1 and 2 of Grey's Anatomy as a Christmas present, I've been hooked. I was even able to follow along as Private Practice was created. Both are staples of my Thursday night drinkfests. So when I heard about Rimes making a new show called Off the Map, I was totally on board. I tuned in last night to see the premiere episode with the highest of expectations.

Oh.
So.
WRONG.

It's like this show catered to the least educated, least traveled of White America. Seriously. I mean, the folks there are bustling around an oasis of a hospital "somewhere in South America" (clearly Hawaii). The newbie doesn't even know what gringo means. It's all very privileged, and the episode is "Saved by the Great White Hope", because clearly your life can only be saved by a white American (although a differently-colored American may, in some cases, do).
It drives me nuts. I'm not the most well-traveled person, but even I know when producers/writes/whatever are catering to the lowest common denominator. You know you've seen that. Scenes in movies so fantastical, you know someone is playing to a stereotype. If you don't know? See the opening scene in Transformers. I mean really. If you think the military base is open to have some local kid just hanging around is just ridiculous. Especially if you've been there. And thank God no one has ever forced me to see Sex in the City 2. Because I know I would have had words. I mean, they went to Dubai of all places. I've never been there, but I know it's fucking amazing.
I think the idea that pissed me off the most was that Americans would go out into a foreign country to get away from their problems, ignorant of the culture and language. I mean seriously. As much as I like to go around thinking people who are in American should speak Ah-mrrrr-ican, it doesn't happen. Almost everyone knows some rudimentary Spanish. Plus, there are plenty of folks doing the same thing in real life who take this shit seriously (even they do hate the military).

So please. Do yourself a favor and ignore this crapfest of a show. Or don't. Revel in the white man's awesomeness. Your choice.