I feel a little odd about my trip to NYC ...

This is the first time in I can't think of how long that I went on a trip and didn't at least buy postcards with the intention to send them. Usually I at least mean to send them even if I don't quite get around to it.

This time I bought a package of panoramic postcards as mementos of my trip, but none for my friends. I keep telling myself it is alright since I also forgot to write their addresses down on paper before I left town ...

... but still ... I miss the idea of the smile people get when they find something unexpected and personal in their mailbox at the end of the day

Posted by: Princess Cat at 02:26 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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It feels like I've been gone for-ever...

I managed to find myself coming down with something the day before my family rolled into town on the 17th and I have yet to get completely over it. Just my luck that stress-induced immuno-suppression would lead to a nasty cold on my own graduation.

NYC was a trip to say the least ...
I have never appreciated the pace of DC so much in my life!
Day 1 we were there I vowed to take advantage of the benefits of DC and never complain that the crowds or attitude of the people were the worst I'd seen in my life. I was amazed at how true stereotypes really can be.

I did, however, have a pretty good time. I went looking for the history and that was mostly what I found. The Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the Brooklyn Bridge, Ground Zero, St. Paul's Chapel, St. Patricks Cathedral, the Empire State Building, the Flat Iron Building, Carnegie Hall, Rockefeller Center, Radio City Music Hall, South Street Seaport, Greenwich Village, Times Square, a Broadway Show, Central Park ... and of course ... FAO Schwarz for a teddy bear

I was supposed to be on a plane last night in order to be at a hearing for my grandmother's court case but medical advise kept me from flying. So I'm uneasy today as the hearing went on without me.

But I am gradually crawling back into my life that seems to have been put on hold for the last several weeks ... and trying to get used to 2 extra letters some job might attach to my name ...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 01:56 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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... But I'll really be in NYC ...

I had hoped to blog more while the family was in town but it just didn't happen with all the running and the inevitable drama.

I'll be back as soon ... but I hope to send a few folks over to look in on the place while I'm off continuing to meet family obligations.

Everyone have a safe & happy Memorial Day weekend!!

Posted by: Princess Cat at 11:30 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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I survived ceremony #1 ... and ...

I am now officially an alum of yet another University.

I think that means I'm old, twice.

Now I just have to wait until ceremony #2 is over on Sunday to say I'm officially done with Grad School.

Posted by: Princess Cat at 04:03 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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The things you told me in just a little while,
wouldn've taken me a hundred years.
I can't imagine travelin these miles
without somebody like you here.

Chorus
Guess I knew all along, he'd take his angels home,
cuz he loves them to much to let them stay,
guess I knew all along, he'd take his angels home,
but I didn't know it was gonna be today.

I remember the places that we've been and the little things we used to do.
Looking back now thats when I began to realize that I'm alot like you

Guess I knew all along, he'd take his angels home,
cuz he loves them to much to let them stay,
guess I knew all along, he'd take his angels home,
but I didn't know it was gonna be today.

(interlude)

Friends and family help to pass the time,
while thumbing through pictures of you
feelin lonesome missin you and cryin,
but thats not what you'd want me to do.

Guess I knew all along, he'd take his angels home,
cuz he loves them to much to let them stay,
guess I knew all along, he'd take his angels home,
but I didn't know it was gonna be today.

guess I knew all along, he'd take his angels home,
but I didn't know it was gonna be today

No, I didn't know it was gonna be today.

I'll miss you tomorrow, Grammy. I know you would have wanted to be there more than anyone else.

Posted by: Princess Cat at 04:03 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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I will be primping for my final day and stressing about getting everyone there on time.

Tomorrow is the day I can walk across the stage, flipping the bird to those who well deserve it, and genuinely thank those that helped me maintain my desire and fueled my passion.

Too bad my sickness is getting worse by the day ...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 06:58 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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I conducted a bit of an experiment on my hair last night ... Curlers ...

They were an enormous bitch to put in and almost as awful to get out.

The result? A long list of lessons learned:

- I hate sleeping with shit on my head
- my hair takes over 12 hrs to dry when wrapped up
- curlers mean extra body ... in the form of frizz
- poofy does not equal pretty
- always practice a hairstyle before you really need one to work

I look like a mangy, disheveled lion today. You know what mean ... that old scrawny looking one they show on Discovery channel that used to get all the ass in the pride but now just lays around waiting for patches of his mane to fall out as the lionesses ignore him.

Thank god for hats and bandanas!

Posted by: Princess Cat at 11:09 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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My parents aren't even in town yet and already they are arguing ...

I'm not sure the Marriott can handle them both in the same building for the four nights they will both be staying.

Maybe I can check them into rooms on opposite corners of the hotel and on floors as far away from one another as possible?

Let's hope so ...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 03:41 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Three more days ...

Count 'em with me - one. two. three

I'm sure as hell not ready for it to be here, but it's about damn time

Posted by: Princess Cat at 11:19 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I just flew back into D.C. .... and boy my arms are tired ...

The blogging has sucked lately since I've been out of town and it doesn't look like it will get any better any time soon...

Mom gets to town tomorrow
Dad/Bro/Aunt/Friend get to town Thurs
No idea when g-ma gets to town ... last I heard her plans to drive were foiled by the power steering in her car that couldn't be readily fixed.

I'll be with at least 2 family members every day for the rest of the entire month ... I may need someone to come break me out of the looney bin or jail by the time this is overwith. With my luck, probably both at some point ...

The worst part is that I'm really starting to miss being able to write about what's going through my head ... stupid responsibilities ...

I've been severely interrupted

Posted by: Princess Cat at 07:15 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Congratulations, Penn State University graduates!

Today marks the day you are finally free ...

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I've been a fairly loyal fan of ER for many years now. I've watched the characters come and go and the storylines change, but this season has almost convinced me to change the channel on Thursday nights.

Last week's episode was entirely in Africa. An entire hour of political, social commentary on the situation in Darfur. This is not what I watch ER for. At first I thought to myself, "they'll get back to Chicago after the commercial," but every commercial went by and the show went right back to Darfur.

I started yelling at the TV, literally. I was so pissed.
And to top it off, it isn't even subtle commentary!

Last night's episode had characters screaming lefty drivel at Soldiers who were there to notify a doctor that her husband had been killed in action. I get that people are angry when their friends die, but do we need multiple characters to burst into screaming fits about how they think the war is wrong?

I get it ER writers - you're anti-Iraq, you're pro-Darfur - how about not insult my intelligence about it, ok?

In fact, I'm almost pissed off enough to just stop watching NBC all together ...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 06:54 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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... SWG ...

Yep, Eric of SWG should become the 'sphere car salesman. How do I know? Listen to the dream I woke from this morning.

Setting: Large-scale blogmeet of some kind, as best as I can figure

Everyone is having a good time, chit-chatting, laughing (lots of laughing), having some munchies and a few drinks. Most everyone knows each other in some capacity, but there's this one guy ....

He's a big guy. Very tall, large bone structure, and of formidable weight. No one seems to know who he is or where he came from. People try to include him in conversation and be polite, but he is a master of concealing any meaningful information that may reveal his identity or connection to the gathering. He looks no one in the face as he talks and focuses his attention in a general downward direction. There remains a purposeful air of mystery around him and confusion in his wake.

::: Enter Eric :::

From somewhere in the house Eric stumbles upon the scene, determined to bring some comedy to the scene. The next thing you know, the big guy is fairly drunk. Yet, he is still far more interested in keeping his head down, curt conversation, and the snack table than much blogger-style socialization. So Eric presses the envelope a little more.

Eric starts chatting up the big guy about anything he has expressed an interest in or a desire for. Given his attention on the snack plate, many food items were discussed. Suddenly, Eric starts offering to sell him things.

"5 bucks for a bag of those cashews to take home with you, Buddy"
"How about some of those olives for later? Just a couple dollars"

And the offers expanded...

"Seems you really like the style of this table. ItÂ’s yours if you've got about 45 greenbacks you want to part with"
"The ring? Yeah, it's a nice ring. I tell you what, I'll let it go for a C note if you really want it that bad. You're a good guy."

We all stood around in amazement. This guy was taking every offer Eric threw his way. Big dude's wallet was hemorrhaging. At some point it became a sport that we all started betting on.

The big money was on how much trouble Eric was going to be in with Mrs. SWG though. She walked out and we all got dead silent. Eric took his new customer to investigate more potential sales. All that could be heard behind them was nervous laughter and shuffling, uneasy feet.

We reluctantly clued Mrs. SWG in that her husband was auctioning off their belongings to a stranger. She paused for a minute and her face tightened. Until she got curious, "How much is he selling us down the river for?"

We relayed the prices on things and she burst into a fit of laughter. Seems Eric was taking the big guy for the ride of his life. All the prices were at least 75% above the item's real value, if not twice that.

So personally, I think Eric would be perfect for 'sphere car salesman. Just don't buy a car from him now that you know why he got the job. But the ellipses would really put newbies at ease ...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 10:22 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Looks like the life of an unemployed, job seeking graduate is much busier than I had imagined it might be.

I've been doing my best at cleaning out the crap from my life and organizing the rest, but alas ... I am Queen of the Packrats. Overhauling this mess is nothing short of a thank-less, tedious, burden. But I am making progress...

- several department store bags full of clothes donated to a women's shelter
- several large bags filled with trash
- papers sorted to determine scratch from important (since I try not to throw away paper still good enough for the printer)
- academic papers from graduate school hole punched & bound

But there are still 3 or 4 piles of paper in my room that have yet to be dealt with. Ugh!

Today though, I got to see my lovely Miss Teacher from San Diego - She's in town with students from her school. Seeing good people like her is a good kind of busy.

Tomorrow ... another job fair ...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 05:11 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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Hi, I'm Princess Cat and I suffer from cinematic challenge syndrome ...

As I've been repeatedly told in recent months by the male persuasion, I am severely lacking in the movie viewing department. They argue that the viewing of a set of movies is required for understanding the inner workings and important personality aspects of any husband-potential mate.

So, male readers ... I'm sending out a call for help ...

What movie(s) do you believe are required for my new netflix queue?

Posted by: Princess Cat at 10:38 AM | Comments (29) | Add Comment
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1 Monty Python and the Holy Grail. The Blues Brothers (uncut).

Posted by: Ogre at May 04, 2006 02:08 PM (/k+l4)

2 Serenity and the Boondock saints.

Posted by: Jesse at May 04, 2006 02:26 PM (2VE+/)

3 Any James Bond movie Any John Wayne movie Blazing Saddles Blue Collar Comedy Tour

Posted by: dave at May 04, 2006 04:40 PM (/W4tR)

4 Damn, I forgot Blazing Saddles when I emailed you. You might want to add "History of the World Part I" by Mel Brooks. It's better than Blazing Saddles in my opinion. As for Serenity? You remember Darren from Brown? He thought Serenity was the worst movie ever. Boondock Saints is a good movie too.

Posted by: Dorothy at May 04, 2006 04:46 PM (c1bX0)

5 The original Frankenstein, and The Mummy. Go for some silent classics too, like Metropolis, Phantom of the Opera, and Nosferatu. You'll be amazed at how good they are.

Posted by: Ted at May 04, 2006 10:02 PM (+OVgL)

6 No darling...don't put all your cards on the table like that...keep 'em guessin'... Besides, you pick husband kinda guys from the lot who watch chick flicks and your favorite movies....without complaining!!! Then take orders! Hey, I heard from another blog that you are open to having congratulations about your recent academic accomplishments. With your accomplishments, who needs movies????

Posted by: vicki at May 04, 2006 11:11 PM (Ffvoi)

7 "Full Metal Jacket" gives the three stages of male conflict-resolution: shout at it; swarm on it; shoot it. "Glengarry Glen Ross" shows why we need women in the workplace.

Posted by: The Yell at May 05, 2006 05:23 AM (cpIqb)

8 Movies aren't real life. You don't need them and people who live there lives after a movie they've seen are sad indeed.

Posted by: Dick at May 05, 2006 08:45 AM (XlQVK)

9 Young Frankenstein, Fear of a Black Hat, Clerks, The Return of Hercules (an aussie film)

Posted by: the Pirate at May 05, 2006 10:29 AM (0ZKi5)

10 Lord of the Flies. I remembered that one last night.

Posted by: Dorothy at May 05, 2006 11:20 AM (c1bX0)

11 Resevoir Dogs From Dusk Till Dawn Blue Velvet The GodFather Taxi Driver Appocyolpse Now Starship Troopers Team America Now will it make the relationship easier? That is doubtful, however, you are armed with knowledge of the running "quotes" out of his mouth.....

Posted by: armywifetoddlermom at May 05, 2006 11:43 AM (C981N)

12 fletch

Posted by: me at May 05, 2006 08:53 PM (rzbLI)

13 I agree with most of the above. Add to your list The Lion In Winter (goes well with a Beef Wellington and a nice Merlot) Groundhog Day (beer and anything salty, or rum & coke with a squeeze and nachos) Godfather Trilogy (need a weekend, lots of pizza, and some burgling sparkundy) What About Bob? (popcorn or chex mix with Pepsi chilled in the can) Anne of the Thousand Days (roast chicken & ale) The Thomas Crown Affair (original) (burgers & fries with Coke on ice) Gotta go now. Checked in here 'cause GOC told me to so's I could offer my congrats & kudos.

Posted by: babalu at May 05, 2006 09:26 PM (K3iM2)

14 Forgot one -- mea culpa Life of Brian (fish & chips with a Rhine wine)

Posted by: babalu at May 05, 2006 09:29 PM (K3iM2)

15 It all comes down to the fellow that you want to hang with. If you want a suit type watch all those old lawyer movies, if ya want a redneck go find Smoky and the Bandit, and the bad news bears, if ya want a tech nerd, Starwars and Star trek are a must. For good conversation, catch european news, sports and sit com reruns, always helps to talk up us fellows. good hunting

Posted by: fiacha at May 05, 2006 11:59 PM (jvG2F)

16 Second Hand Lions-Great movie!

Posted by: Bob at May 06, 2006 09:23 AM (uKCKK)

17 Hard to displease a man with the early works of Arnold Schwarzenegger. "Commando" and "Raw Deal" spring to mind.

Posted by: Harvey at May 06, 2006 03:12 PM (L7a63)

18 porn, lots of porn.....

Posted by: notarmywifetoddlermom at May 06, 2006 06:23 PM (C981N)

19 Monty Python and the Holy Grail King Kong (1933) Citizen Kane Galaxy Quest ...and congrats on yer graduation!

Posted by: Elisson at May 06, 2006 06:24 PM (NGCz1)

20 First, congrats on your recent accomplishments. Seems like you have gotten some pretty good lists. But I am a bit surprised that no one has listed Caddyshack and Princess Bride. With these and the Godfather trilogy, I have been assured that all aspects of life can be managed via the quotes from these.

Posted by: jck at May 06, 2006 08:32 PM (DXAp+)

21 My take on movies: Equilibrium Firfly TV Series Any Bogart Any Harrison Ford/Clint Eastwood War Movie Band of Brothers Series Excalibur Event Horizon Heavy Metal Akira Ghost in the Shell Hammer Horror Films w/Christopher Lee and/or Peter Cushing Bram Stoker's Dracula Dracula starring Frank Langela Zorro the Gay Blade Enjoy these with him!!!! -Eric

Posted by: Eric Duckworth at May 07, 2006 09:08 AM (ZJZMt)

22 I would just like to state for the record that I did list Caddyshack in an email list I sent to Cat. Just for the record! I think we've given her enough (ahem, bad) movies to watch for months.

Posted by: Dorothy at May 07, 2006 01:24 PM (c1bX0)

23 WTF??? Some of these suggestions are crackin' me up. Congrats, Cat. I do believe you have weirder readers than I do.

Posted by: zonker at May 07, 2006 01:54 PM (XOKKD)

24 .... "Krakatoa".... yeah, sister.... just trust me.... it'll make like being in DC seem like a cake-eating contest...

Posted by: Eric at May 07, 2006 05:01 PM (czDMb)

25 Understand your man by viewing: The Godfather True Grit Dirty Harry Patton Tombstone

Posted by: Barry at May 08, 2006 07:19 AM (kKjaJ)

26 Anything with Joe Don Baker, rats, Humphrey Bogart, monkeys, or zombies in it. Sports Movies: Slapshot Field of Dreams Major league Pride of the Yankees Bull Durham (even if Sarandon & Robbins are in it). Classics: Mitchell Sunset Boulevard M Star Wars Blue Velvet (but Dennis Hopper will give you bad dreams) Carnival of Souls (1962) Clerks Dogma Silents: Metropolis The Last Command The General The Crowd So Bad They're Good: Anything by Edward D. Wood, Jr Anything with Beverly Garland (especially if it was directed by Roger Corman) Uhhh...that's enough!

Posted by: Victor at May 08, 2006 12:49 PM (L3qPK)

27 Babalu, if I may, I'd like to suggest something different to go w/ the Godfather trilogy: cannolis and oranges.

Posted by: Victor at May 09, 2006 06:52 AM (L3qPK)

28 How can any guy flick list be complete without "Grosse Pointe Blank"? Any movie with John AND Joan Cosack has to be a winner. - T

Posted by: Tim at May 09, 2006 05:52 PM (Iq9Sk)

29 Blues Brothers Animal House Wanted Dead or Alive Any Monty Python Taxi Driver All the Lethal Weapons Platoon Full Metal Jacket Backdraft

Posted by: Chuck at May 09, 2006 07:08 PM (/lwt1)

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I'm off to see my first Nationals game...

WEEEE!!

Posted by: Princess Cat at 03:58 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I've spent the majority of my day planning a graduation/birthday trip to New York. There is a broadway show I actually want to see and ticketmaster won't let me. But at least they were honest about how they treat their customers (this time) ...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 04:44 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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MOM!!

The stupid zipper on my stupid backback got stuck .... and I can't undo it!!!

Good thing tonight was the last day of grad school...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 08:57 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Happy May Day!!

Take a minute and be a kid today ...
Go leave a little basket of popcorn and jelly beans on your neighbors porch with a few little flowers you picked on the way over, just for good measure.

At least that's how I spent May Day when I was a kid...

Posted by: Princess Cat at 11:35 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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