I think I have dementia

A few summers ago Kate and I read this book called 'Still Alice' It's about a woman who's a professor at Harvard and develops early on-set dementia. Slowly Alice, who had been at the top of her professional, and respected for her intellect, begins to forget things. First, it's small things, like her keys. Then it's larger things, like her way home. After some time, Alice can't really be left on her own.

Sad story, but a good read.

Why do I bring this up you might ask...?

I think I'm Alice. Or rather, I know my name is Becky but I think I have early on-set dementia.

Take for example my last blog entry. I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF BLOGGING, paused to go get coffee or gchat or WHATEVER it is that I do with my time, came back, and started to blog about something different. What? Who does that?

Or, take for example, yesterday. Kate and I were in the car with my lil' nephews / nephewitos. As we drove to my Aunt's house we played some songs...which I couldn't really remember the words to. I definitely made up some of the lyrics to 'Kiss From a Rose' by Seal. Kate couldn't really remember the words either but she just had babies / is slower than me.

The same thing happened when I was on my way to DC last weekend with Debbie and we were listening to 'Rent'.

And then on Monday I left my cell phone at work by accident.

And the other day I wound up in Newark when I accidentally took a NJ Transit train home instead of the subway!

JUST. KIDDING. Seriously?

In conclusion, I don't really know but that whole 'switching my blog entry in the middle of the blog entry' thing was odd.

1.5 more hours of work and then: lunch with Debbie and Jason and a MASSAGE! BYEBYEBYE

Things I like about 'Parks and Rec'.

OH GOSH. In addition to the cheese and yoga DVD / mat I got last week, I FINALLY got my birthday present from Debbie, too (did I say 'FINALLY'? she was sitting on that thing for.ever. FOREVVVVVVER) I gave Debbie a list of some shows I'd be interested in getting on DVD as a birthday present, 'Community Season 1', 'Mash Season 4' and 'Parks and Recreation Season 2' (The 'Mash' thing is a joke...though not a very good one. They can't all be home runs, ok?). Debbie opted for 'Parks and Recreation Season 2' as it is apparently her mission to get everyone to watch that and 'The Wire' (which I'm also watching...does Debbie run my life? hmmm).

I started watching it last Sunday and I am just about hooked (by 'just about hooked' I mean that I think about watching the show when I'm not watching the show and when I AM watching the show I think about NOTHING ELSE) WHAT A FUNNY SHOW!

I swear that in half (I'm being generous) of my conversations in the last week have talked about Amy Poehler / Leslie Knope as if I know her which is not weird and doesn't show that I need a life. The show's real, right? I'm not dreaming am I? Why are all of my teeth falling out? uh

Things I like about 'Parks and Rec'
1) Ethnic diversity. I know. I come from Connecticut. I didn't even see a Black person or an I-talian until I was 22. True story (no it's not). But, I appreciate sitcoms with more than just whiteys.

2) DONALD GLOVER. See above (too soon?). Wow. Donald Glover is really funny. Like, REALLY FUNNY. He has a nerd chic kind of thing going in on the show and I, as someone who is obviously not a nerd but loves them from afar, dig that. He also raps. And does stand up comedy. And he used to write for '30 Rock'. Case. Closed.

3) Follow through. So, there are a lot of shows that come up with ideas for plot lines and then...forget about them / don't follow through with them. 'Community' is not guilty of that at all. Take for example the plot line where Troy and Abed host a party at their new apartment. A pizza is ordered and the study group rolls dice to see who will have to answer the door when it arrives. Abed explains that rolling dice creates parallel realities...and the episode proceeds to play out each those realities...6 scenes where the door bell rings and a different character answers the door. See? In a world where a guy you go on four dates with can't even call you back, commitment is a big deal. Follow through is something to be valued and praised. 'WOO HOO COMMUNITY!'

4) Ensemble comedy. There aren't enough TRUE ensemble comedies, where each character represents a unique world / could have their own ACTUALLY funny spin off series, you know what I mean?

I'm not even kidding...I just realized in the middle of this entry that I switched from talking about 'Parks and Rec' to talking about 'Community'. You want to know how I realized? Because I sat back for a second and thought to myself 'Wow, I'm having a whole 'Parks and Rec' themed day. I'm writing this blog and then I'm going to go watch some more episodes. Wait...I'm blogging about 'Community' right now.'

I have to start a different entry now because it's kind of too funny to erase this, but I can't go back to talking about 'Parks and Rec'.

Things to celebrate

Quite often I am angsty about something. Well...I don't know if that's accurate. What do you think?...Well? UGH! WHY ARE YOU TAKING SO LONG?!

OH. How about that...

But, anyway. Yeah. Sometimes things are on bothering me. And sometimes I let those things compound...and then I'm just like 'Dear World, STTTTTTTTOPPPPPPPPPP. Sincerely, Becky'. This, however, is not one of those times.

Things are going pretty well on my end. I'd like to tell you about those things as one of them relates to the future of this very blog.

Shall we begin? We've wasted enough time already!

Things to celebrate

1) I GOT A NEW JOB! OH MY GOSH! I can finally go public with this news. YES. YES. A thousand times yes! (aside: what am I going to be like if I ever get engaged? yikes). It's a writing job at a corporate travel company. WRITING. TRAVEL. COMPANY (read: not a non-profit). Is this really happening? And my new boss really likes me? And thinks I'm funny? And smart? And wants to give me ownership of my projects? Not that my current job doesn't have those same features uh...I do get free health coverage now...? ?

2) I GOT A NEW LAPTOP! OK, so before when I was like 'One of the good things that's happened recently pertains to the future of this blog' you were probably like 'what?' and then you were like 'why am I saying what?' and then you were like 'what?' again. And then finally you were like 'How could something that happened to Becky recently, that's good, relate to this blog?'. YUP.

Well, now that I have a working laptop in my place of residence, I'll be able to blog a bit more because, you know, like, since I have a laptop, I can blog at home, even if I don't have time to blog at work. I can't make any promises...but blogging makes me feel pretty jazzy so...couldn't hurt to do a bit more o fit.

3) I GOT FANCY CHEESE! YES! It was my birthday a few weeks ago (awkward if you didn't remember, I know. I'm not too mad at you. Don't worry) and slowly presents from people I know are trickling in. Kate sent me a yoga DVD and mat (THANKS!) and last week Laura gave me an assortment of really tasty and FANCY cheese and a cute card! IT CAME IN A BOX

4) I've been reading a lot of good books lately / 2 out of 3 books that I requested from the New York Public Library website came in to the library branch by my office. YES. I really enjoy reading. I really enjoy the rush of shopping. I really enjoy when I am able to feel that rush from acquiring new things in an online marketplace without having to...um...actually spend money. P.S. the books are 'Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs' and 'The Camino' by Shirley MacLaine.

5) Pennsylvania! Well, this is more of a past tense thing but...I did celebrate Pennsylvania two weekends ago at the first annual PennsylvaniaFest weekend. Carly & Co. were nice enough to include me in the festivities. To sort of give you an idea, we had matching t-shirts, went to the Yuengling Factory / A CR@zY sporting goods store with like...every type of taxidermi'd animal in existence, ate a lot of cheese and ice cream and beer and perogies and danced. It was pretty epic. Did I mention the matching t-shirt shirts?

6) DC! I went to DC this past weekend (am I ever in NYC over the weekends? yikes) to visit my former coworker / friend (I guess...jk) Michelle. Debbie came, too. Well actually, it was more like Debbie made plans with Michelle and then I tagged along...I think? It was really fun! Michelle just got a new job so we were like 'oh does your new office have bla bla bla?' to each other while Debbie sat and poked out her eyes. We played with Michelle's adorable dog, Cooper. We went to GOOD STUFF EATERY and OYAMEL (Kristyn and Julia came and met us for that) and FOUNDING FARMERS and in between that gorging we went to a museum AND to the new MLK memorial and then to a BAR to celebrate Shari's birthday (Jason and Michelle...do I have to call her 'other Michelle'?...were there, too!). We are productive and awesome. CELEBRATION!

UM...I'm ending this entry now. But, see? I don't always just complain? Sometimes I celebrate, too. BYE!

Things I got for free today at work

OK. Enough of my catty fashion commentary. No one appreciates it and it's not nice. Bla bla bla thing bla. Blah blah blah thing blah (it looks like I'm repeating myself but you'll notice that some of the blas don't have h's and some of them do. Tricky)

Let's talk instead about my LOVE of free THINGS.

Well, this might seem obvious, but I love free things! It might be the Jew in me. It might be the non-profit worker. It might be the hoarder. But, if something is free (read: BIG Styrofoam avocado cooler from Christine's office) I will probably take it.

Well, imagine my delight when there was LOTS of free stuff in the kitchen for me to take today. Let me tell you about my wares...

1) Cup of coffee. Yeah, I know that's not really something...but...some offices don't even have coffee for their employees so it's not something I should take for granted.

2) CRAZY PINK and PURPLE birthday cake (yeah I'm talking to you Sarah). Not sure how I feel about it tbh

3) Holocaust Calendar. Huh. I do need a 2012 calendar...but do I want to be reminder of Holocaust artifacts every time I check the date? Is that a horrible thing to admit outloud? Yes. Yes it is.

4) SPICY CHEETOS. Hm. They're red. They're spicy. They make my hands dirty. I've still eaten about 50 of them.

5) ICE CREAM CAKE. I've had pieces of THREE different ice cream cakes since Thursday night. I think they call this being the luckiest girl in the world. When I ultimately gain 20 pounds from eating things like ice cream cake and bagel sandwiches on a regular basis I think that's be called being the marshmallowiest girl in the world but we'll cross that bridge when we...what?

6) Fantastick! Well, I didn't get it, but I did use some of this cleaning solution for my keyboard and desk today...and I didn't have to pay for it. Why did I need it? See. Above.

Things people are wearing

I'm quite the fashion plate. (It is 'plate', right? Not cup? or spoon?)

Sometimes I wear black and brown together. Other times I wear necklaces. Pretty much every day I wear make up. And then other days, I even wear pants that don't have an elastic waist band. New York has had a real impact on my sense of fashion.

As I walked around midtown east today on my lunch break (I would mention a specific location but THIS IS THE INTERNET and ANYONE could be reading this....) I stared at people in the hopes that they wouldn't notice me doing so. I noticed a lot of things. Apparently I'm not the only fashionable person in this city.

Things people are wearing

1) Clogs. Some of my coworkers wear clogs and they look really cute in them. But, should more than a few people be wearing them at any given time? Should clogs be a 'thing'? It reads milkmaid / nurse on the average bear.

2) Short boots. I think these are cute. I think these make people's calves look big but hey, we're all in this together.

3) Capes. Or are we calling them 'cloaks'? I support anything that's 'fashionable' and shapeless (read: allows me to eat a lot of cheese and cookies)

(This is a glorified snuggies. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. I almost said 'butts'. Whoops)

4) Pants that don't fit. No, I don't think that's a look for fall...but...it's happening anyway.

5) Braids. Braids are fun! I can't really do braids in my own hair because it's not long enough / has too many layers / makes me look 14 .

6) Jackets. I guess that makes sense...since it's fall. Fall? Capital L? Capitol L?

Now that I really have this list going, I realize it's actually a platform for me to make fun of everyone and what they're wearing as I sit at my desk with cheez doodle on my hand in work pants that are actually sweat pants.


Let me see if I can turn this thing around and maybe start a new list?

GUILT PARTY - guest list 1

Wow. Every time I find a minute to click over to blogger.com and see my 'last published post date' I feel like a piece of poop. A turd. I feel like a turd!

Is it so hard to consistently come up with good writing material while you're social life is busy, and your sister has twins (T W I N S) and there are a heap of Jewish holidays going on, and you're going cray cray at work. Oh wait. Maybe it is.

That being said, I'm feeling guilty that my last post was September 1. How am I supposed to ever have more than 7.2 readers (war veteran - too soon?) + my super fan Debbie (not you Debbie who I actually know) if I don't write?

Good question. Any of you in PR? Any of you out there? Ground control to Major Tom?

I guess the biggest piece of news on the docket is that I'm going to see 'Newsies'! on Saturday with Debbie (not fan Debbie, Debbie Debbie), Michelle and Katelyn.

OH. and my sister Kate had twins! YEAH!!

It's been great being an Aunt for 8 whole days. I've learned a lot about myself. I've learned a lot about the world. I've learned the difference between alot and a lot and Eilat (Israel - get a map!). I've learned about 'milk coming in' and 'infant jaundice'. As I reflect on these nuggets-of-info ( MMM 'nugget' reminded me of 'chicken wings' and now I'm kind of salivating...but I'm also having a lollipop so maybe that's why?)...let me share with you the reasons that I'm going to be a great aunt

1) Some of my facebook friends posted that on my wall. Who are my facebook friends to lie to me?

2) My mom (not to be confused with my other facebook friends since she and I are technically 'friends' online, too) also said I was going to be a great aunt. She smiled with her eyes, and her mouth, and said 'Becky, you're going to be great!' (were you hoping for her to say something fancier? sorry my mom isn't Abraham Lincoln.)

3) I am sometimes smart. Not all the time. Sometimes I do things like bump into tables...and trip over cords...or I misspell chord and cord...actually...none of those things have to do with being smart. UH...but I am smart sometimes. And I will be a good Aunt because of that? If the twins are like 'OH Aunt (ONT) Becky, what's 2+2?' I'll totally know what to tell them. 56.

4) I am sometimes nice. Not all the time. Sometimes I do things like bump into tables...what? No, but really. I generally think of myself as someone I'd like to know if I wasn't conveniently / inconveniently stuck in my own body.My nephews could benefit from being around a sometimes nice person because a) being around nice people is...nice and b) being around people who are inconsistent teaches you to think on your toes.

(My answers: Cheese, chewing gum and a shoe...telling...)

5) I am creative. I can think of ALL KINDS OF FUN stuff that we can do and not tell mom about. (bacon anyone? shit...Kate is probably reading this UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH)

6) I am supportive. I mean, I'm no bra or anything, but I can be your shoulder to cry on (as long as you're not wearing mascara - GROSS), and I will be my nephews cool adult friend / relative who they can talk to when undoubtedly they defy their mom (hopefully only for a week or two).

7) They're so cute. I'm really awesome at interacting with adorable people / things so the fact that these little studs are the CUTEST BABIES EVER will just, without really being too specific, make me a great Aunt to them.

In conclusion, obviously I'm a bit rusty at this whole 'writing' and 'making sense' thing but be patient. I'm bound to get my laptop fixed soon and my boss is out of town for two days next week so..



xoxo
MISSEWE

Things I've been watching on TV

Well, it's been just about a month. I feel great that I haven't written in here. FALSE. I don't feel great about it. To be fair, I don't feel badly about it...but, let me make a little bit more of an effort, ok? At first, sure, I was all about complimenting you and asking you what you wanted to do. And about your feelings. And then slowly I stopped texting as much and wasn't e-mailing you those cute little animal pictures that you like at work. And then...you wouldn't hear from me for a few days at a time. Then a week. Then a month. But, when I did get in touch, I swore I was still interested. That everything was OK. Well, let's rekindle this romance, shall we?

In addition to, you know, like, going to Cape Cod (YAY!) and to PA to visit Kate (YAY! YAY! YAY! - three since she's pregnant with twins. YES. You heard it here!) and seeing friends and doing other fun things, I've been watching a fair amount of TV this summer. I'm sure you'd rather hear about the TV I've been watching than, say, the culinary delights I ate at M. Wells a few weeks ago for brunch. I'm sure you've been wondering 'What is Becky EVEN DVR'ing these days?' more than 'What has Becky been thinking about?'. To be fair, some of what I've been thinking about is TV...

(I don't get this, either...)

Things I've been watching on TV

1) Oprah. OH YES. So her show has gone off the air, however, my DVR is picking up episodes that weren't originally recorded...so I'm catching all the episodes I missed the first time around including a RIVETING interview with Ralph Lauren. No seriously. It was riveting.

2) Oprah's network - OWN. Yeah, so, you should know about OWN...unless you've been living under a rock (in which case, I'm compelled to make the same joke I've made about 2302039x in here which is 'how can you access the internet if you're living under a rock then?! HUH!?'. I'm funny). Granted, the network has some holes in programming (for example, sometimes it will play old 'Dr. Phil' episodes over and over again instead of, say, offering new programs...but), but sometimes, she offers INTERESTING shows...like...a show called 'Primetime' where Diane Sawyers visits different parts of the country and interviews people living there. I watched an episode a few days ago about children living in Appalachia. WHAT. THE. FUCK. YO. ?.

3) Teen Mom. I was bound to start caring about this show again. Check out Amber's stink face. She is horrible. No I didn't doctor this to make her look hideous. That is just how she looks.

4) The Wire. HA HA HA. So, I was really good about finishing up season 1 of 'The Wire'...well...if 'really good' means it took me about 3 months to finish 14 episodes. I started season 2 three weeks ago...I'm now 1 episode in. OH BOY.

5) Tia & Tamara. Well, I watched one episode of this...so I don't want to imply that I've been habitually watching it. That being said, I would habitually watch it because I found it very entertaining. Do you remember the Mowry twins? From 'Sister Sister'? Weren't you all young girls in the early 90's who would have enjoyed a show like that? Anyway, the twins are now ALL GROWNNNNNNNNN UP and one of them is pregnant and the other is planning a wedding. Talk about LIFE MOMENTS, am I right?

6) 30 Rock. Well, not really. But last night Joel and I watched the ep from season 4 that James Franco is in. He looks weird, no? Looked weird - past tense? Anyway...didn't do it for me the way I thought it would.

In conclusion, lots of TV. Maybe tomorrow I'll update you on what books I've been reading (read: you all now have something to live for)...!!!!