Top Twelve Lines: Rocky Horror Glee Show

So...since i'm almost a full week behind on this, I'll skip right to the countdown.  there weren't as many lines to pick from this week as usual, simply because there was a lot more performance-driven material in this episode than others.  without further ado...

12.  Emma:  I've got the Carl
11.  Finn:  I don't need to hide behind my muscles like you do.
10.  Sue:  People who dress like librarians...all sex addicts.
9.  Will:  This is the face of a guy who stepped in it.
8.  Sam:  Ain't no carpool lane to sexy.
7.  Sue:  We've lost the true meaning of Halloween:  FEAR.
6.  Santana:  Earlier today Artie asked if he could make a gigantic ommelette when I'm done with the ostrich eggs I'm smuggling in my bra. 
5.  Sam:  Are you kidding me?  You can cut glass with these babies.
4.  Mercedes:  I'd like to preserve you...in a jar...in my basement.
3.  Sue:  Seventy percent of all teeth in this school are wooden.
2.  Brittany:  I'm going as a peanut allergy.
1.  Becky:  Give me some chocolate or I will cut you.

Top Twelve Delay...Friday Night Lights

I know you guys might be wondering where my Top Twelve Lines from Rocky Horror Glee Show might be.  Well, suffice it to say that yesterday I didn't have internet access, and today I walked out of the house without the list.  So, unfortunately, I will have to wait until the next time I am at work to post the list.  I also forgot my personal computer, so, I'm breaking my own rules now and am using my work computer during my lunch break to type up this short notice.

Please forgive me.  The list is coming soon.

Last night was the season 5 premier of Friday Night Lights on the 101 channel on DirecTV.  If you haven't checked this show out in the four previous years, shame on you.  It is a wonderful, beautifully accurate portrayal of small town Texas and football.  But, if you're not a huge football fan, you'll still enjoy the wonderful characters because, though football is the "vehicle" the show uses, it is not necessarily the primary focal point.  This is no Any Give Sunday with a bunch of teeth-jarring, bone-crunching aggression going on.  It falls more into the realm of The Mighty Ducks, but with football instead of hockey.  You care about the characters a great deal, which makes you want to see them have success.  If you don't have direcTV, you'll have to wait until the summer of 2011 to see the 5th (and final) season.  But, that gives you plenty of time to Netflix or iTunes the previous four seasons.  trust me when I say: It's worth it!

riese

Playlist Tuesday 10-26-10

"Fever"  Michael Buble
"The Mowtown Song"  Rod Stewart
"Tusk"  Fleetwood Mac
"Love That Conquers"  The Swell Season
"The Longest Time"  Billy Joel
"Swim"  Jack's Mannequin
"Can't Smile Without You"  Barry Mannilow
"Ten Cent Blues"  Eisley
"Accompany Me"  Bob Seger
"Volare"  Dean Martin

Today's Playlist

"The Freshman"  The Verve Pipe
"Dust in the Wind"  Kansas
"De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" The Police
"Lights" Journey
"New Slang"  The Shins
"Richard Cory"  Simon and Garfunkel
"Apres Moi" Regina Spektor
"One of These Things First"  Nick Drake
"Dancing Bear"  The Mama's and the Papa's
"Too Bad on Your Birthday"  Joan Jett

Beautiful

little brothers are so much fun!

Sam spent the night last Saturday.  I know...I'm way behind sharing this blog, but I left my camera's usb cable at mom's house.  anyway...we had fun.  And Sam was hilarious.

tender Sam and beautiful teaching moments

so...yesterday at mom's we were outside playing: me, sam, tristan, mom, and Brylin (my niece). anyway...we were losing daylight. it was probably 7:30 or later, and definitely time to come in and get baths and finish up homework before sending the boys to bed. sam got upset because he wanted to stay outside and play - he actually wanted to climb on top off a storage shed and jump down from about 7 or 8 feet up, and when he was told "no" and scolded a little, he stomped off toward the house, stopping to intentionally break off a branch from a bush in the yard. a sign of his anger (and a bad habit mom is trying to break). well, i saw it, and immediately snatched him up and got him in trouble for what he did: one little swat to the backside that wasn't hard enough to hurt him or even make him flinch. and then i told him he needed to go tell mom what he did and apologize. well...he fell apart, poor kid. huge tears come spilling out of his eyes as mom and I stood there talking to him about the difference between feeling angry and being ugly.

I got this wonderful teaching moment with him: "It's okay to feel angry, Sam. You will never get in trouble for how you feel, but you will get in trouble for what you do. You aren't in trouble because you're angry. You're in trouble because you acted ugly when you came over here and broke the limb on purpose."

Later, he was still pouting a little, and i went into his room and he said, "everybody's being mean today." I asked him who was mean, and he said, "you." (of course, I knew where it stemmed from.) and I said, "do you think i was mean because I got you in trouble?" and he nodded his head.

so i got another teaching moment: "Sam, when grownups get little kids in trouble, they don't do it because they want to be mean. It's a grownup's responsibility to teach little kids how to be good and do what's right. " he looked puzzled, and I asked him if he knew what "responsibility" meant, and he said no. so, I said "responsibility is like a job. It's a grownup's job to show little kids how to be good and do the right thing. so, when little kids act ugly and do the wrong thing, we have to get them in trouble so they know not to do it anymore."

Well, he's so tender-hearted that he started crying again. And i had to remind him that he wasn't in trouble. we were just talking. and then he said, "tristan was mean to me." and I asked, "Well, isn't he mean to you every day?" and Sam nodded, so I said, "well, if he's mean to you every day, you really shouldn't be so upset about it."

And as i said that i realized, that it's a truth bigger than just that small little relationship between two brothers. It's applicable throughout life in every situation...especially as Christians. when the world comes against us, when the Enemy of our souls comes against us daily, why do we get all bent out of shape over it? The devil has been doing this ever since his fall from grace; we really shouldn't get so upset and emotional about it. just like it's a parent's job to teach one's child to do the right thing, it is the devil's job to try and destroy humanity. at some point, we just need to get past the emotionality of feeling attacked and hated and get to the place where we can just shrug it off and keep on doing what's right.

So, not only did i get two wonderful teaching moments with my sweet, tender Sam. I also got a beautiful teaching moment from the Lord.

Good day...aside from Sam bursting into tears twice. that always breaks my heart.

bry, the boys, and billy joel

so, yesterday I went over to mom's and hung out with her and the boys. And then my sweet niece, Brylin came over to stay at her Gigi's house because, unfortunately, my sister was sick, sick, sick...and was headed to the doctor. So...I got to spend bonus time with my favorite girl. always a plus!

The boys are so good with her. they get a little wound up at times and get too excited and play a little too hard around her, but it is so much fun to watch them dote on her. and mom, too. mom LOVES getting to spend time with her grandbaby.

Bry and the boys have a favorite game. the boys go hide behind a loveseat, and bry goes to look for them, and they come tromping out on hands and knees and chase her, and she turns on one foot and goes running into Gigi's lap, squealing and laughing. I wish I'd caught it on camera, but anytime i pull the camera out, Bry stops playing and wants to mess with the camera. but last night i was able to snatch a picture of her being silly. you can't really tell, but she's trying to be a monster. it was so funny, and I wish i'd gotten a picture of her facing the camera, but it didn't happen.

Anyway...needless to say, last night was loads of fun with Bry and the boys. And tonight, I'm gonna go back and see the boys again. Bry will be home with my sister, but the boys and I will still have fun.

And now...as a sort of unrelated adendum to a post about my niece and little brothers, I will just say that I purchased Billy Joel's greatest hits Vol 1&2 on iTunes today. So, I get to listen to the wonderful, "Piano Man" and "Only the Good die Young" and "Uptown Girl."

Yeah...it's a good day.

It's fun to be a blessing

So...last night I went to mom's house again because I didn't get to watch Castle the night before, and I also wanted to watch Tuesday's 19 Kids and Counting. (Love me some Duggars). Plus, any day I get to see my little brothers is a bonus. Anyway, I got there around 7:20 or so and found out mom felt bad. She was sick; the boys were all over the place, and she was all wrapped up in her robe on the back porch shivering.

Anyway...the boys went to bed around 9, and mom laid down and crashed with them, and, I was still there watching TV, and I looked around the messy kitchen with all the dirty dishes from that day, and just mess from having two boys...and I thought...well, why not? So, the clean dishes went in the cabinets, the dirty dishes were washed, the stovetop, counters, and kitchen table were cleaned. The floor got swept and the trash got taken out. And I'm excited for mom to get up today and see that someone took care of her for a change.

I loved the opportunity to love on my mom a little.

Top Twelve Lines/Moments from Glee: Duets

So, I'm going to preface this by expressing a few opinions on the show. This show was full of wonderful moments. I think the song choices for all characters involved were wonderful and spot on. Especially Mike and Tina's duet, and in actuality, I feel like theirs was the best duet of all. Don't get me wrong. I enjoyed the set up of the Sam/Quinn romance, and I'm eager to see what direction they're going to take them. Namely if Quinn will maintain her self-esteem and individuality. I just hope their budding relationship doesn't obliterate her "independent woman" attitude set up so well by last years choice to sing "It's a Man's World" (in what I personally believe was her best vocal performance all year) for a class assignment, and her insistence that she doesn't want to get lost in "needing" someone like she needed Puck last year.

I loved the hints of humanity they gave Brittany: that's she's more than just stupid one-liners and an easy lay. She's really not just snark. She has some heart. I also loved how they explored the depths of emotional pain Artie feels about his paraplegia, adn the huge ramifications of seemingly simple decisions. I loved the selfishness that drove Rachel to make a sacrifice, realizing that winning the competition might be bad for the overall goodness and cohesiveness of the group. Who cares that it was all just so Sam would stay and help them get to and win Nationals? Classic narcissistic Rachel, but this had a tint of thoughtfulness. And I loved how the plumbed the depths of Kurt's loneliness and isolation as the only openly homosexual person in school. Gay or straight, that truth resonates with everyone. We have all felt alone and isolated at some point in our lives because of some struggle we're going through.

I will say that if I have one ax to grind with the show it is their over-sexualization of Santana and Brittany - not only as individuals, but also in this grotesque bisexual co-dependency they have with one another. The scene with the two of them on Britt's bed all kissy, kissy was too much. At least they didn't go lip to lip. I've honestly never met anyone as sexualized as the two of them...but especially Santana. Somehow with her character it's more offensive. Maybe it's the fact that she's all up in everyone's face about it. Maybe it's because she has a guy's perspective of sex as some self-satisfying pleasure to be had as often as she wants. I'm not really sure, but I feel as though her character is little more than a high-school hooker in a cheerleading outfit. They took Santana a little too far this week...making her almost depraved. It's disgusting, even if it produces hilarious lines. And, because I'm so disgusted by it, I have to leave out some of her little snarky comments from my countdown because I honestly find them more offensive than Rachel and Finn dressing up like a Catholic priest and nun and singing about being "born again" in each other's love. (I will say that I thought they handled that number well. It was intentionally offensive to serve a purpose, and I don't feel they did it out of disrespect. I feel like by showing that it was disrespectful, that it produced a small teaching moment for people watching the show: that there is a thing as TOO far. Maybe they should listen to their own preaching and relax on the sexualization of the teens.)

So, now that I've written a novel about my opinion of last night's episode, let's get down to the list. Some of these will be multiple lines from multiple parties that lead up to a punchline:

12. Brittany (about Puck): He might be the dumbest person on this planet, and that's coming from me.

11. Rachel: The fact is, I'm only really generous when there's something in it for me.
Finn: Yeah, but I still like you.

10. Kurt (speaking about Sam's blond hair): I have three gifts: my voice, my ability to spot trends in men's fashion, and my ability to know when it comes from a bottle.

9. Finn: You tried to kiss her? Major Glee party foul, dude!

8. Mike: You can get salad at Dim Sum. My mom got salad last night.
Tina: There were chicken feet in it. It was a chicken feet salad. All I want is a normal salad that doesn't have chicken feet in it!

7. Santana: Look, I don't mean to be a B****, well, actually, I do.

6. Brittany: So, i just wanted to you to know...I'm really into you.
Artie: Sorry, I'm a little confused. You've never even made eye-contact with me
Brittany: I know. For a while I thought you were a robot.

5. Sam: He sent me like, sixty MP3's of him singing and I thought it was Faith Hill.

4. Quinn: The blueberry flavor is the worst. Especially if it gets down your pants. I looked like a creature out of Avatar down there when I got slushied.

3. Mercedes: Okay, do I even need to say it?
Sam: That was really rude.
Tina: But like REALLY rude.
Quinn: I seriously wanted to punch both of you.

2. Kurt: Once again, your closeted homophobia seeps to the surface like the contents of a crack cesspool.

1. Santana: I'm like a lizard. I need something warm beneath me or I can't digest my food.

Things that tasted better when I was a kid

I recently purchased a snack that I used to love when I was a kid, and was sorely disappointed by how "blah" it tasted. So...I started thinking about all the things that I LOVED eating as a child that I've had in the past few years that have left me decidedly dissatisfied.

1. Sugar Wafer cookies. Maybe it was because the ones I ate recently were sugar free, but I was sorely disappointed. They tasted a little like vanilla flavored cardboard and were almost not sweet. Cookies that aren't sweet are just unnatural. And pretty gross.

2. Cheese Waffles. I used to eat these in droves as a child. potato chips sandwiched together with that fake cheddar powdery cheese. My sister and I went in together adn bought a case of them a few years back, adn I couldn't make it through an entire bag.

3. Vienna Sausages. Maybe it's because I now understand what it means when they take the spare parts of beef, chicken, and pork and put it together in a sausage-like item. Maybe it's because when i was a kid I smothered them in ketchup and couldn't tell what they actually tasted like. But now...YUCK.

4. Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup (condensed). I know it shouldn't be on the list, but it is. I've never really liked the chicken bits in that soup - I would venture to say they aren't real chicken bits. Nevertheless, the soup as a child was a comforting thing. Now, it makes me want to gag.

5. Circus Peanuts. You know the orange rubbery things that are some amalgamation of sugar and foam rubber? Yeah...used to love them as a kid. I ate part of one yesterday and almost puked. Who likes them? That's what I want to know. I don't even know what flavor they're supposed to simulate. It sure as heck isn't peanut.

6. Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli. Used to eat that like it was going out of style. It was the quick dinner I'd make myself on Fridays before getting on the band bus to head to the football games, or getting home from football games at midnight, or between after school volleyball practice and marching practice. Now...meh. As I said with the chicken in the soup, I'm not sure that's real beef in the ravioli.

I'm sure there are other things, but for now, those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. anyone else have those childhood favorites that you've gone back and tried and been sorely disappointed over? If so, don't be afraid to share.

Top Twelve Lines from Glee: Grilled Cheesus

I have to say that this week's list was difficult, simply because the episode was so serious. It's a departure for Glee, which I liked, but it made finding funny lines pretty hard. At least, I had a hard time finding funny lines that weren't completely sacreligious. So, while most of these lines are funny, I did throw in a couple that actually had some resonance in them. Hope you enjoy.

12. Puck: At this time, I'd like to continue my streak of only doing songs by Jewish artists.
11. Kurt: Suzanne Sommers says that skipping breakfast is suicide.
10. Coach Bieste: It's in your hands now, Lurch.
9. Emma: God works in a lot of mysterious ways, but I'm pretty sure He doesn't spend a whole lot of time trying to speak to us through sandwiches.
8. Tina: Last week we were too sexy. This week, we're too religious. We just can't win
Brittany: Now I know how Miley feels.
7. Finn: Thank you, grilled cheesus.
6. Brittany: I did a book report on heart attacks, if you want to give it to the doctor. It got knocked down an entire letter grade 'cause it's written in crayon.
5. Finn: Jesus appeared to me on a sandwich.
4. Brittany: I made him a card that says, "heart attacks are just from moving too much."
3. Rachel: Let's discuss your newfound love for Jesus, and how it's affecting me.
2. Sue: This country isn't a monarchy, William. Trust me, I've tried.
1. Jean: God never makes mistakes. That's what I believe.

The back room project

So, i had this entire blog all but finished, and I hit some mysterious button and it deleted everything. I'm not going to put forth the effort to rewrite everything i already wrote once. So, i'm just giong to say this. I have a spare bedroom that for years has looked like a UPS truck threw up in it. I finally got tired of tripping over everything when I wanted to get back and work on my computer. So, i decided to clean it up. The following shots are some before and after pictures. And, because I'm not much of an organizer, I'm pretty proud at what I accomplished. Proud enough to embarrass myself by admitting it was this bad to begin with.

Before:

After:

Sam and Sidewalk Chalk

So, Sam spent the night Thursday night because he didn't have school, and I didn't have work. He'd been begging for most of the week, and when he asked Thursday while I was at mom's I said, "Maybe." Of course, with Sam, maybe actually means "yes." so, he immediately set about getting his bag packed. I had actually anticipated him asking and was prepared to invite him if he didn't ask, so, even though I said "maybe", the answer was always giong to be "yes." Anyway, when Sam spends the night, we always do fun things. Sometimes we break out Jenga or coloring books. Sometimes we watch Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoons. Sometimes we play the Wii or my Super Nintendo. (Yes, I said Super Nintendo.) But there are a few things that we ALWAYS do, and they both involve sidewalk chalk. The first, which i don't have pictures of, is that I draw a target on the side of the duplex, and we throw a raquetball at the target. each ring is a different color, and the chalk comes off the wall onto the ball and we can see if we got a bullseye or one of the other rings. The other thing we always do is cover my driveway with chalk drawings. This time, Sam insisted on us tracing each other's outlines...as you will see below.

This is an outline of me that he did. you can see that my head and left arm are unfinished, as well as my left leg. what you may also see is that he made a "hole" in the groin area of my body once i stood up. Now, the explanation to this is very funny. in an outline before this one he'd crossed his right foot over his left knee, so, to get an appropriate outline, i drew the empty space between his legs. Apparently, after that he thought that every outline had to have an empty space between the legs. Thus...the "hole."

Another "hole." this one much more easily distinguishable than the last.

Sam at work on our driveway full of outlines.

Sam next to an outline he made of me. You will see that he gave me hair and a strange, disproportionate face. Sam next to one of his outlines. you can see my appropriate hole between his feet, which led to all future holes in my outlines.

And Sam with another of his outlines. i tried to get him perfectly positioned, but, well, he's five. this was close enough.