Monday musings

So it's Thanksgiving Week...and while I know I have work to do during the next few days, my brain is longing for the "vacation" that is Thursday and Friday.

As much as I love all things social media and the like, I really think I'm going to try and unplug (for the most part) on Thursday and Friday. Granted, my family's turkey day antics will undoubtedly result in a few tweets and/or Facebook posts, but lately I've felt permanently tethered to this damn laptop and...I. Need. A. Break.

In other news....

I might have mentioned here that I'm sort of a big huge Twilight fan. I'm #TeamEdward and I've read all the books (a few times). And yeah, I get it. It's not the best literature and Bella is annoyingly clingy and rather week (as female lit characters go, she's no Katniss Everdeen). But whatever. I don't really care. It's fiction people. Move on.

Last Thursday night my sister and I joined some friends for the Breaking Dawn 1 & 2 "double feature." Oh my Edward. It was so much fun. And (NO SPOILERS!) I'm just going to say, BD2 was the BEST film in the series. The end? Yeah. Left. Me. Breathless. And that's all I'm going to say about that. Except for this: I think it's quite possible that I'm now #TeamGarrett. (Twilighters will understand this).

And since it is Thanksgiving week, we decided to decorate the house for Christmas. Yeah, I get it. I'm as bad as the department stores, right? Why can't Thanksgiving have it's own week without all the holiday crap? I'll tell you why. Because for the last decade we've always put up the Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving. And they come down a day or two after Christmas. It's how things are done around here. (And please, no lectures on the whole "must keep the Christmas tree up until after the new year for the whole 12 days of Christmas." It's just not gonna happen.).

And really, I noticed a lot of people getting their yards "holiday ready" this weekend...so I'm OK with the yard looking like Christmas is tomorrow. I also noticed some yards still "wearing" their Election Day decor - yard signs. Seriously people. It's time to take down the yard signs. The election is over. If your person didn't win, keeping the sign up isn't going to change the outcome. It's time to move on.

So with that....when do you decorate for the holidays? Before turkey day? And when do you "undecorate"?

Why yes, I am a Twilight Mom

All right, I'm going to channel my inner teenager right now and tell you that I'm sort of freaking out with anticipation and excitement today. I'm so excited I might just burst!

Why?

Because in a little more than 24 hours I am headed to the Breaking Dawn double feature with my sister and a group of friends. And I'm so darn excited I could just scream. Very loudly.

In fact, I have warned my sister that for a few seconds tomorrow night, I might be that person who SCREAMS when the opening credits start to roll on Breaking Dawn 2.

Yes, I am a Twilight Mom.
Sue me.

I will admit right here that I have read the entire series ... at least four or five times. Maybe more. No, the books aren't great literature. But they're entertaining and well, I'm Team Edward all the way. Always have been. He's my sparkly vampire, I can't help it.

I have also seen each movie several times (at the theater and at home). Over the past few weeks my sister and I re-watched Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse (and made fun of the dialogue and bad wigs) just to "prepare" for our double feature tomorrow night.

Last night I downloaded the new soundtrack from iTunes and spent about three hours listening to it over and over again ... and it was a lovely distraction I might add.

I'm not ashamed to say that I'm VERY excited about tomorrow night. I can't wait to see how the series ends on film (since I know how it ends in the books). And yes, my sister and I did have an in depth chat today about the reported "surprise ending" ... as long as no one dies, it'll be OK. (ha)

Laugh if you must, but I'm just as excited about this movie as I was about the final film in the Harry Potter series. And while tomorrow night might be the first time I see BD2, it won't be the last. I already have another "date" planned for Black Friday with my mom and sister.

So...who's with me? Anyone else excited for tomorrow?

Frustration Friday

[insert very loud sigh here]

So, it's Friday.
And I'm frustrated.

Granted, I've been frustrated for months (years?...haha)...but this week, it's really been bad. I can feel my temper bubbling up, right under the surface and quite frankly, I want to throw something and have a mini tantrum. And really, that's not what 39 year old women do.

So, I'll blog instead.

I'm frustrated about my "job" .. for more reason than I care to go into right now. Suffice it to say, it has nothing to do with the people (unlike when I worked for the Polyester Troll). It's just a frustrating situation and I'm not sure what to do about it.

And as if today wasn't trying enough ... our refrigerator decided to die. It was on "life support" all week, while I attributed to the "not ice cold" milk to the summer like temps outside (yeah, I was trying to be an optimist)...I had to face the not-so-cold-hard-facts this morning when the "frozen" pancakes were actually thawed out.

$800 later...we have a nice, new fridge in the kitchen.
Thank goodness for 12 months no interest is all I can say.

This has been one of those weeks for certain. What I want right now is: a pedicure, an iced Venti Skinny Caramel Macchiatto from Starbucks, the third book in the "Fifty Shades" trilogy, and some chocolate. Is that too much to ask?

Oh, and while we're on the subject of "Fifty Shades of Grey"...holy hell people. [this would be the point in the post where I talk about sex and things like that].

I've been hearing about this books for months and I finally read devoured the first two books this week. Let me put it this way - if you read the "Twilight" series you will see a bazillion similarities between that series and Fifty Shades (because, after all, it started out as Twilight fanfiction) but with a lot more sex and stuff like that. Just think of it this way: Human Edward + Human Bella + some seriously kinky shenanigans and you have "Fifty Shades of Grey."

I will admit, the writing isn't the strongest writing I've seen ... but there were many, many times in the first two books when the dialogue between the main characters made me smile or laugh out loud. I won't give too much away about the rest of it, except to say ... yeah, there's a LOT of sex in this book. And it's not "vanilla" sex either - when you hear it described as "mommy porn"...yeah that just about sums it up. But, it's not just all about sex either - there really IS a story here.

And as much as I'd like to lock myself away and read for the entire weekend, I can't. Tomorrow is Olivia's First Communion and I'm going to be ridiculously busy. Fifty Shades will just have to wait, along with that pedicure and venti iced coffee.

This is what happens when people take works of fiction a bit too seriously

I saw this link on a friend's Facebook profile today and had to check it out. Apparently, this librarian/blog author has an issue with the entire Twilight saga because it promotes abusive relationships, and teen/tween girls everywhere are going to look for their version of Edward and well, we all know that's not going to end well.

The author of the blog post says that he hates the Twilight series because, (and I am quoting here), "I hate them because of the sexual messaging they impart to teens, especially teen girls, robbing them of agency and normalizing stalking and abusive behavior."

OK.
Let's back up a bit, shall we?

These are works of FICTION. Edward is a vampire who SPARKLES IN THE SUN for crying out loud. There are werewolves and vampires and well...it's all make believe.

Is Edward possessive, a bit obsessed, a bit crazy, and a bit hormonal? Yes, in fact he is all of those things. He's also fictional. And 109 years old. And he's a vampire. Is Bella moody, a bit of an outsider, a bit of an emotional train wreck who just happens to be drawn to the most gorgeous, secretive "bad boy" in school? Yep. And again, she's also fictional and 17 years old.

Is their relationship "healthy" or "normal"? Um, that would be a big, fat no. Then again, he's a vampire who is trying to NOT kill her. See, vampires KILL humans. Any vampire book will tell you that (Have you read Anne Rice? Those are some violent, messed up vampires).

So yeah, Edward is a bit over-protective and possessive and all vampire-like.
But abusive?
Really?

Do we really think that IF Edward and Bella were the poster children for abusive relationships this series of books would be the phenomenon that it is?
Do you think moms would be buying these books for their daughters, and then reading them too?
Do you think it would even be marketable?

No. No. And, no.

I consider myself reasonably intelligent, and not once while reading the books did I think to myself "Well holy crap, Edward is abusive to Bella and that Bella is just some silly, stupid girl who is afraid to stand up to her man." Not once did I think to look up the signs of an abusive relationship and create a checklist based on Bella and Edward's romance.

Why? Well, probably because I knew that (1) I was reading a work of fiction that was (2) full of fictional characters and supernatural beings who don't really exist and (3) I don't have that much free time to ponder things like this.

Maybe I'm just an idiot. Or clueless. Or maybe someone should revoke my "I'm kind of a feminist" card...because I just don't see it. The books aren't perfect - but they also aren't a manual on how to identify an abusive relationship.

And, for anyone who has read the series, you also know there is NO sex (there's a lot of 'fade to black' in the last book...but there are no "real" sex scenes). Oh and (MAJOR SPOILER ALERT HERE. STOP READING IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE LAST BOOK)...Edward and Bella are virgins until after they get married. They don't have sex until their wedding night. Call me crazy, but that seems to be a really GOOD message to send to young women out there.

What I see when I read this book is a vampire who happens to be in love with a human who happens to be best friends with a werewolf. I see a story about love and teenage angst.

Yes, there are a lot of unrealistic notions of first love and true love and "forever" in the book, but it IS a work of fiction. Maybe it's a lot to assume, but I would think that most young girls/young women who read these books would know and understand that no one like Edward really exists, because well...he's a vampire who sparkles in the sunlight and only feeds on animals.

I'm really not trying to be snarky.

I'm all for teaching young girls how to avoid bad, unhealthy and potentially abusive relationships. As a mom to two young girls, I know how important it is.

My point is this: if you really want to do teach teens about healthy relationships, maybe you should avoid using a vampire/human relationship as the example.

Because sparkly, vegetarian vampires aren't real, but abuse is.

-------
Check out this article from The Washington Post. It's very interesting. :)

Yeah, I bought my tickets 2 weeks ago...so what?

That's right....two weeks ago I purchased my tickets to New Moon (I refuse to call it The Twilight Saga: New Moon, because that's just a stupid name. It's New Moon. Period.)

There is a group of us going in the middle of the afternoon on opening day ... and we're hoping (against hope, I'm sure) to avoid many of the screaming tweens because, well, they should still be in school at showtime.

We hope they are still in school and didn't decide to stay home just to watch [SPOILER ALERT] Edward leave Bella.

And then, once that showing is over we're going to grab dinner and drinks and deconstruct the movie and then we're going to see it again. For a second time. On the same day.

Oh yeah, that's right. I'll be watching New Moon twice in one day.

And that makes me very, very happy.

Pizza, vampires and brownies

Last night my sister and I went to mom's house and had a "girl's night in" - we ordered pizza, made brownies and watched "Twilight".

This was the first time mom had seen the movie (and probably the 10th time for me and my sister). A few days ago mom said "I think I'll watch 'Twilight' when your dad is out of town." We couldn't let her watch it by herself...so the girl's night "in" was planned.

And let me say this: my mom is now hooked on Edward Cullen & Co. As the final credits started to roll I said, "So, are you going to see 'New Moon' with us in November?" ... and mom just nodded her head 'yes'!

Oh yeah! We got mom hooked on Twilight! I'm taking her my paperback version of the book today and she even said "I might have to borrow the movie again - just in case I missed anything."

Ha! After months of teasing me and my sister over our "obsession" with Twilight...mom finally gets it!

We're so proud of her.

As an added 'vampire bonus', mom also watched 'True Blood' with us last night (and I have to say this: best episode of the season!)...but I think she prefers her vampires as sparkly vegetarians!

100 days...but until then, you get 14 seconds

I know where I'll be on Nov. 20, 2009.

Acting like a crazy fangirl at the theater watching 'New Moon'.

A lovely surprise in my mailbox today

Oh. My. Edward.

And...as an added bonus Vampire Bill! (And yes, he does look a bit sick or perhaps he's constipated from all the TruBlood...haha).

Personally, I would have preferred it if Edward Cullen (aka Robert Pattinson...swoon!) had the bigger photo...but oh well.

I cannot wait to read this issue -- the 20 greatest vampires of all time! This is what makes me happy tonight.

I guess you'd have to love books/movies/shows about vampires to understand! (Anne Rice, Twilight and Buffy the Vampire Slayer and True Blood just to name a few of my faves!).

OK...off to read.....

....and swoon at the cover a little longer....

[see EW's story about this cover and the new 'poster boys' for vampires]

Party like a vampire!

Ready to party!

Pocket Edward found comfort in a
bowl of just popped popcorn!

P.E. is ready for his close up!

Oh! Twizzlers!

Yes, it's true....my sister and I threw a 'Twilight' viewing party last night. It was a small party...just us and few other Twilight OBSESSED women. Oh, and Pocket Edward was there too. The menu was vegetarian lasagna, garlic bread, mozzarella "bites", red velvet cupcakes. And of course, popcorn and movie candy. Oh...and lots of booze!

Olivia's take on Twilight

Olivia drew Bella under a rainbow in a field..

And then Edward, in a field...and he is sparkling!

And finally, she wanted to tape them together!

This is how these pictures happened. Olivia wanted to draw a rainbow and then she said "I'm going to make this a Twilight rainbow because you love Twilight." She asked the names of the girl and the boy in the movie and then she said "what color should they be?" I told her Edward would sparkle in the sun and that Bella had brown hair. The pictures you see are her versions of a sparkly Edward (colored with a silver crayon, because it was sparkly) and his Bella.

Finally!

All right...I will freely admit that since last fall I have had a (huge?) obsession with all things Twilight. I've read the book series a few times, seen the movie 4 times at the theater, have both soundtracks on my iPod, visit several Twilight-themed blogs and Web sites daily, and am a proud owner of the "Pocket Edward".

And so...today was THE day. March 21...the release date of the Twilight DVD. Never in my life have I: (1) been so excited about a DVD, (2) arrived at a store BEFORE it opened in order to get a copy of said DVD, and (3) wanted to lock myself away in a quiet room so I could watch all 3 discs tonight. Alone.

That being said...these are just a few of the crazy things I've done in the past 24 hours that are related to Twilight:

1. Went with my sister to buy decorations for our Twilight viewing party -- decorations include: plastic red apples, a "red carpet" for our guest to walk, a director's clapboard, movie themed decorations, and red and black M&Ms.

2. Attended the local Border's Twilight Midnight release party...if only for about 20 minutes. We came, we saw, we were surrounded by too many crazy girls and so we left. I will state for the record however, that we were NOT the oldest people in the crowd. Yes, there were many teens in attendance, but also a good number of 30-somethings...all grabbing lots of Twilight related things to purchase. I was thisclose to buying a very cool Twilight tote bag...but couldn't bring myself to pay $25 for it.

3. And this morning, at 7:45 a.m., I arrived at my local Target store and sat in the car w/ my sister and her friend Shannon until 7:58 a.m. when all the other women who were waiting in their cars started descending on the front doors of Target. About 20 crazy Twilighters stood outside the doors (annoyed Target employee: "If you stand in front of the doors they will NOT open. Back up!") and when the doors were opened we quickly made our way to the DVD/Blue-ray display (Target employee: "It's at Aisle 15"). [I would like to add that I did NOT run...I walked calmly and left the running to the tweens....].

So there you have it...the crazy things I will do for my Twilight obsession. And now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go download the movie to my iPod.

Oh. My. Edward.

A Twilight kind of day

Oh yes, it's true.
I have the new issue of GQ.
Cover: Rob Pattinson. Oh, holy hell.
Thanks to my loving husband for humoring
me and my (r)obsession.
And, my sister bought those "Twilight"
Sweethearts. I don't think I can bring
myself to open the boxes.

My current obsession

I am currently obsessed with the Twilight book series. There I admitted it.

I bought book 1 (Twilight) as a spur-of-the-moment purchase about 3 weeks ago at Target. I had read things here and there about the books and I knew the movie was coming out soon...and so I figured, what the hell. I'll give it a shot.

I. Loved. It.

A lot.

I devoured that first book in about 2 days. Then I bought book 2 (New Moon). Again, it was finished in about 2 days. I HAD to buy book 3 (Eclipse) as soon as possible. Then I was done with that. It was as if the pages of these books had some crazy drug on the pages...I could NOT get enough.

I bought book 4 (Breaking Dawn) on Sunday. So far, I'm 300 pages into it. And I'm loving every second of it.

I have the same feelings for these books as I do with Harry Potter -- I love them. I love them a lot. I get totally lost in the pages and lose track of time. I feel connected to the characters. And, I want to read them all again. [For the record, I tend to do this with many books: The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice, The Mayfair Witch stories by Anne Rice, Gone with the Wind -- I've read all of them many, many times].

I guess I'm just a big book nerd. Sue me.

And last night, my sister and I went to see Twilight. It was a really good movie. I've heard some negative things about it -- but really, it was good. It followed the book for the most part (granted, there were some things left out, but that happens with every book-to-movie conversion). And Robert Pattinson as Edward? Perfect casting. Just perfect.

As I walked out of the theater I felt the same urge that I feel after the Harry Potter movies - I want more NOW! I want the next movie NOW! Sadly, I'll have to wait for New Moon just as I have to wait for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. But I guess that just makes the movies THAT much better when they do finally open.