At the end of July, I found out about this Summer Book Swap that Debbi from the Christiansen Chronicles was hosting. Basically, you have a small budget and you can either buy books from the bookstore, a used bookstore or just send old books you have read and are done with to your assigned swap buddy.
At the beginning of the swap, you write a small bio about yourself so the person who gets you has an idea of your interests. Debbi, the swap hostess, assigns everyone a swap partner; except the person who you get isn't the person who gets you, so everyone has someone different.
When I received my assignment, I was so excited because I've never done a swap before of any kind, but I love nothing more than to shop for and buy books! My assigned person was Kim Scadlock from Beckham & Co. Here was the bio I received:
"I'm a wife to 1 male nurse, and a mother to two crazy kiddos!I spend most of my days indoor because my youngest had a heart transplant (and other medical issues) and has to stay away from others so that he does not catch anything.Don't worry though, because I love it and it's worth every second of being in seclusion.I love to read, exercise, cook, play with my kiddos, watch HGTV, take my kids for walks outside, etc. "
After reading her blog, Beckham & Co. before going out book shopping, I felt completely uprooted. I knew immediately I had to make her package special. So that's what I tried to do.
After a lot of thought and a little bit of money, I sent her six books in a special package:
The package included:
Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates
A cute animal book about having bad days
The Real Sex Kitten's Handbook by Val Sampson
The Pilot's Wife by Anita Shreve
Abode A La Mode: 44 Projects for the Hip Home Decorator by Jeanee Ledoux
Waiter Rant: Thanks for the tip, confessions of a cynical waiter by Steve Dublanica
When you enter into things like this, you kind of do it blindly. There is no guarantee that you'll get anything back at all. Or if you do get something, it may not match the quality or quantity of what you sent out. I had heard stories about people who had been in swaps and been forgotten about by their partner. It was a risk I was willing to take. Here was the bio I sent:
"I just bought a house with my boyfriend of three years. We have two dachshunds. I love the Twilight series although currently I'm reading a book called The 19th Wife. I do PR for a living. I am very athletic; I played volleyball competitively in college. I live in the city, but I am a southerner to the core. I could spend, literally, all day in a Barnes & Noble."
MUCH to my surprise, last Thursday I received a package in the mail! In that big package were a bunch of books and notes from Auprielle Ellis; and man, did she do a beautiful job!
Talk about an impressive package! She hit everything in my bio: a do-it-herself book for the new homeowner and even two young adult series books!
The following books were in my package:
Do-it-Herself Guide
The Gaurdian by Nicholas Sparks
The Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
She even sent me a picture of the book, Charly by Jack Weyland, and said because she wanted to include it but couldn't get it in time, she had Amazon ship it directly to my house! (HOW SWEET!)
I am so very thankful that someone put as much thought and care into a package for me as I did for someone else. All in all, Operation Summer Book Swap was a huge success! And I encourage all my fellow bloggers and non-bloggers to try one if you haven't before!
Yes it's a risk, but you have to give to get. Happy swapping and thank you Debbi for hosting such a wonderful book swap! Bridget Marie
Sunday Blues(sŭn'dē, -dā' - blüz) noun. Low in spirits or melancholy on the first day of the week, also known as the day after Saturday. Symptoms are commonly temporary to Sunday and may include some or all of the following: self-reflection, dissatisfaction with self, homesickness, nostalgia, prolonged sadness, and/or introspective depression. A cure has yet to be produced, though symptoms worsen in solitary confinement.
Have you ever had the Sunday Blues? It's something my college roommate, Nicole and I invented back in school. Her chemotherapy treatments would often leave her, and voluntarily, I, stranded indoors on the weekends and by the time Sunday rolled around, depression hit us hard. Well, we didn't really invent the Sunday Blues. Perhaps we should call it a self-diagnosis that came about after many long hours of therapeutic “girl chats,” some of which lasted well into Monday morning. Unfortunately, sometimes that's the only cure. In my experience, people are most likely to fall victim to the Sunday Blues during the afternoon times. It's what happens when you're being so introspective that you doubt almost everything about yourself, who you are and what you're doing. Other symptoms of the Sunday Blues include homesickness, nostalgia, and/or depression, as you can read from the above *cough*MEDICAL*cough* definition.
And though I'm no doctor, if I had to guess, I'd say cases of Sunday Blues are much more likely to occur in urban and metropolitan areas. Why? Because what's to be sad about in the country? Nothing.
My biggest Sunday Blues symptom is probably homesickness. The second, I'm embarrassed to say, could possibly be the lack of an engagement. Obviously, everyone's Sunday Blues symptoms are different. If you don't have a boyfriend, maybe it's a longing for companionship. Maybe you're a post-grad and struggling in the current job market; your Sunday Blues could be a self evaluation of your life that comes dangerously close to sending you into a state of depression. - Lord knows I've been there before.
As far as I know, there is no cure. Though, I've found that hour-long “girl chats” (as previously stated) and honest best friend-to-best friend confessions help with the pain. Sunday Blues is one of those things that makes you want to lock yourself in a darkened, chilled room listening to sad country music, even though you know you shouldn't be.
It's tough on me at times. I mean, I come from the south; from the place of “That's What I Love About Sundays!” Shoot, I was brought up to love everything about this day!
Still, it seems like every Sunday, all I can think about is being at home...in the country. All I can hear is my dad laughing hysterically. He has one of those laughs that just makes you want to laugh, even if what he's laughing at isn't funny at all. All I can smell is my mom just as she's getting out of her bath. It just smells like home. All I can feel is a longing for my other half. It's not easy living without your best friend for months at a time.
Chalk it up to another case of the Sunday Blues.
The only good thing about Sunday Blues...Monday is just around the corner.
I have been watching the Teen Choice Awards ever since my parents starting leaving me home alone with my little sister for a night out on the town. I can't say I've watched it religiously every year since that time, but I found the same enjoyment watching it now as I ever did. Last night marked the 2009 Teen Choice Awards, their 11th annual awards show, marking the best choices in music, movies, TV, celebrities, and this year even, “Choice TWIT”!
Maybe five years ago, that award would have been interpreted as an insult, but with the latest Twitter craze, it was clear that Ellen Degeneres was the Choice Twitter-er-er-er.
The mass-adored Jonas brothers were the hosts for the night and took the challenge of a few viewer-fueled "dares." One of them included a dare for Joe Jonas to cut off all his hair on stage. Next thing you know, former heavy wieght champion Mike Tyson comes out with a pair of shears and starts hacking away at the boy's beautiful long locks. I guess it was all a stunt, though, because no more than ten minutes later Joe introduces Miley with a full head of hair. To top it off, the brothers took home six surf boards of their own last night.
Sean Kingston made our ears bleed with his performance of "Fire Burnin'". I love the song and even love Sean, but sadly, there weren't enough Jamaican flags in the entire northern hemisphere to make his lip-syncing look natural. Some artists just don't perform well live.
Twilight, of course, was the big winner for the night with eleven total wins. There were only 87 categories. That's close to 13% of the show gone to Twilight. And they deserved every minute of it. While Rob was looking a little rough around the edges, Kristin stood out in her signature contemporary punk look. Though I'm not sure if I'm entirely in love with it, it's not like anyone else out there, so she gets an “O” for Originality from me. Sadly, I'm sure that's what she was going for. Regardless, according to multiple celebrity gossip sources, Rob and Kristin left together and were spotted all over LA together that weekend prior to the red carpet. That makes me happy, as I'm sure it would anyone else who idolizes the Edward/Bella love story. You just want it to be true in real life!
Another big winner from the night was Miley Cyrus, who also performed her new single, “Party in the U.S.A.” live. Miley took home six awards from the show, and also some public scrutiny to boot. While performing, an ice cream push truck with a pole attached picks her up off the balcony. Miley's gripping of said pole while a dancer pushes the truck across the stage was misconstrued by many as "stripper-esque." I don't think the shorty-shorts and exposed bra helped her cause much. Daddy Cyrus had a front row seat.
So what's wrong with wearing short shorts? Who hasn't had a bra strap showing here and there before? What? You've never danced on a stripper pole!? PLEASE!
At 16, I was definitely wearing short shorts, and occasionally had a bra strap showing, I'm sure. So, I'm not really in a position to judge. But I still defend her "pole-dancing" as more of a "holding-on-so-I-don't-fall-off-while-trying-to-make-eye-contact-with-the-audience-dancing."
Things we can look forward to next year: awards for Twilight sequel, New Moon; Miley Cyrus turns 17, more controversy ahead; and who will be the "Choice Twit" of 2010!?, only time will tell.
Here's looking forward to TCA 2010,
Bridget Marie
www.numbersnotinvited.com
Winners from the 11th annual Teen Choice Awards (AssociatedPress):
Choice Movie Action Adventure: "X-Men Origins: Wolverine."
Choice Movie Drama: "Twilight."
Choice Movie Bromantic Comedy: "Marley & Me."
Choice Movie Comedy: "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian."
Choice Movie Chick Flick: "27 Dresses."
Choice Movie Horror/Thriller: "Friday the 13th."
Choice Movie Music/Dance: "High School Musical 3: Senior Year."
Choice Movie Hissy Fit: Miley Cyrus, "Hannah Montana: The Movie."
Choice Movie Actor Drama: Robert Pattinson, "Twilight."
Choice Movie Actress Drama: Kristen Stewart, "Twilight."
Choice Movie Actor Action Adventure: Hugh Jackman, "X-Men Origins: Wolverine."
Choice Movie Actress Action Adventure: Jordana Brewster, "Fast & Furious."
Choice Movie Actor Comedy: Zac Efron, "17 Again."
Choice Movie Actress Comedy: Anne Hathaway, "Bride Wars."
Choice Movie Actress Music/Dance: Miley Cyrus, "Hannah Montana: The Movie."
Choice Movie Actor Music/Dance: Zac Efron, "High School Musical 3: Senior Year."
Choice Movie Villain: Cam Gigandet, "Twilight."
Choice Movie Fresh Face Female: Ashley Greene, "Twilight."
Choice Movie Fresh Face Male: Taylor Lautner, "Twilight."
Choice Movie Liplock: Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, "Twilight."
Choice Movie Rumble: Robert Pattinson vs. Cam Gigandet, "Twilight."
Choice Movie Rockstar Moment: Zac Efron, "17 Again."
Choice Summer Movie Drama: "My Sister's Keeper."
Choice Summer Movie Comedy: "Up."
Choice Summer Movie Romance: "The Proposal."
Choice Summer Movie Action Adventure: "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince."
Choice Summer Movie Star Male: Shia LaBeouf, "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
Choice Summer Movie Star Female: Megan Fox, "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
Choice TV Show Drama: "Gossip Girl."
Choice TV Show Action Adventure: "Heroes."
Choice TV Show Comedy: "Hannah Montana."
Choice TV Animated Show: "SpongeBob SquarePants."
Choice TV Reality: "The Hills."
Choice TV Reality Competition: "American Idol."
Choice TV Actor Drama: Chace Crawford, "Gossip Girl."
Choice TV Actress Drama: Leighton Meester, "Gossip Girl."
Choice TV Actor Action Adventure: Tom Welling, "Smallville."
Choice TV Actress Action Adventure: Hayden Panettiere, "Heroes."
Choice TV Actor Comedy: Jonas Brothers, "Jonas."
Choice TV Actress Comedy: Miley Cyrus, "Hannah Montana."
Choice TV Breakout Show: "Jonas."
Choice TV Breakout Star Female: Demi Lovato, "Sonny with a Chance."
Choice TV Breakout Star Male: Frankie Jonas, "Jonas."
Choice TV Male Reality/Variety Star: Adam Lambert, "American Idol."
Choice TV Female Reality/Variety Star: Lauren Conrad, "The Hills."
Choice TV Villain: Ed Westwick, "Gossip Girl."
Choice Fab-u-lous: Jay Alexander, "America's Next Top Model."
Choice TV Sidekick: Emily Osment, "Hannah Montana."
Choice TV Late Night Show: "Chelsea Lately."
Choice TV Parental Unit: Billy Ray Cyrus, "Hannah Montana."
Choice Summer TV Show: "Princess Protection Program."
Choice Summer TV Star Female: Selena Gomez, "Princess Protection Program."
Choice Summer TV Star Male: Daren Kagasoff, "The Secret Life of the American Teenager."
Choice Music Single: Miley Cyrus, "The Climb."
Choice Music Hook-Up: Lady Ga Ga and Colby O'Donis, "Just Dance."
Choice Music Male Artist: Jason Mraz.
Choice Music Female Artist: Taylor Swift.
Choice Music Rap Artist: Kanye West.
Choice Music R&B Artist: Beyonce.
Choice Music Rock Group: Paramore.
Choice Music Breakout Artist: David Archuleta.
Choice Music Love Song: David Archuleta, "Crush."
Choice Music R&B Track: Beyonce, "Single Ladies."
Choice Music Rap/Hip-Hop Track: Black Eyed Peas, "Boom Boom Pow."
Choice Music Rock Track: Paramore, "Decode."
Choice Music Album Male Artist: Jason Mraz, "We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things."
Choice Music Album Female Artist: Taylor Swift, "Fearless."
Choice Music Soundtrack: "Twilight."
Choice Music Tour: Demi Lovato and David Archuleta.
Choice Summer Song: Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus, "Before the Storm."
Recently, I went to see Julie & Julia, a movie that just hit theaters this past Friday. This is not a movie I would normally go see, especially on it's opening weekend. Not to discriminate, because I love old people dearly, but the theater for the movie viewing looked like a Golden Girls reunion, bless their hearts. I came into the theater a fan of Meryl Streep, but I left as an admirer of Julia Child.
Julie & Julia is based on a book, that began as a blog, that began as a project: 524 recipes in 365 days. The movie is blended by two stories, one contemporary (that of Julie Powell's) and one of the past (that of Julia Child's), decades apart. I am overwhelmed with emotion just thinking about what this movie, book, and “project” means to me, what it means for women. I never followed Julie Powell's blog, or read her book. To be completely honest, and embarrassed, call me a product of my generation, but I'd never even heard of Julia Child until this movie surfaced and Barnes & Noble set out a special selection of books under a sign reading, “Getting to know Julia Child.”
Still probably one of the best ideas hatched under a blog, that I've seen or read, at least: Julie Powell, a woman wasting away her twenties in a thankless government job, and her thirties coming up on her fast, seeks gratification and acknowledgment as a writer by embarking on the project of cooking all 524 recipes in Julia Child's cookbook over the course of one year. And who doesn't want to be acknowledged as a writer? I'm sure there must be a million people out there with book ideas, or dreams of being published. Julie cracked the code and, by the production of this film, achieved her dream of being a sanctioned writer. This movie was about real women, for real women and of course, the joy of cooking.
The institution of marriage is a focal point in the film as it is an important aspect in the lives of both Julie and Julia. Here, it's not just about the women involved, but their men. And not so much their men, as the support of their men. I think you can tell a lot about a man by the gift he gives his wife/girlfriend/significant other, and in Julie & Julia, it's one of the many ways their men show their undying love and support. Paul Child, in the face of his wife trying to find herself and her way through cooking school, gives her a gift that engages her interests by buying her a mortar & pestle set for her birthday, something her teacher preached every good cook must have. Eric Powell, in the face of his wife's crazy obsession with Julia Child and her devotion to the Julie/Julia project, buys her a set of pearls for her birthday, just like Julia Child always wore on her cooking show, so she could be more like the heroine she admired. Both gifts brought tears of appreciation and adoration to each woman's eyes, lifetimes apart.
Eric, knowing the project was making Julie crazy, and not necessarily a woman he wanted to be around all the time, supported her (almost) every step of her way because he knew she wanted to do it for herself. Paul, knowing that Julia was possibly looking to fill a void in her life caused by her barrenness, supported every interest Julia pursued from hat-making to Bridge lessons and beyond. I guess my conclusion to these past two paragraphs, is that a true gift from the heart, is a gift of support. And only someone who truly loves you and knows your interests, knows where and what your heart is enveloped in or with, would know the right gift for you.
Above all, this was about two women who both felt unfulfilled in some way, changed their lifestyles because of it, and in turn, it changed their lives. Julie was an artist of writing, but unable to express her thoughts. Julia was an artist in cooking, but had an unrealized potential. One theme in this movie is one I live by every day and believe in very strongly: if you're not happy with your life, change it; if you want to do something with your life, however crazy it may seem, do it.
Walking out of the theater, I felt an overwhelming push of encouragement to not be lazy. Sometimes, I get so lazy with life, that all I do is eat, sleep, work and watch the occasional TV show. If Julie & Julia taught me anything, it's that as a woman, it's important to have something, and do it every day. Life can be so busy. Work can often suck. Why not do something that makes you happy every day? It would make Jay happy every day if my something were cooking, but unfortunately I just don't find the same pleasure in doing it as Julie and Julia do.
Both of these women pursued cooking through a restless sense of drift, and it ended up changing both of their lives forever. I'm not cooking, but I am blogging; I am volleyball; I am writing; I am running. Julie & Julia is about finding the something that makes you happy; the something that changes your lifestyle, doing it every day, with conviction and determination, and maybe, it could change your life.
Happily blogging,
Bridget Marie
www.NumbersNotInvited.com
P.S. You should all know that the performances of Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci were impeccably played.
As many of my lovely friends and family already know, this past Tuesday was the grand opening party to celebrate the newest restaurant in Baltimore, B&O American Brasserie! As many of my lovely friends and family always WANT to know, here are the great women I work with on a daily basis! This is Team Profiles! From left to right: Amy Larimore, Amy Burke, Amy Elias, Jamie Watt, Jessie Benson, and ME! Aren't we cute!? Have a beautiful weekend everyone! XO, Bridget Marie www.numbersnotinvited.com
The package included:
Here was the bio I sent:
The package included:
Here was the bio I sent:
Talk about an impressive package! She hit everything in my bio: a do-it-herself book for the new homeowner and even two young adult series books!
I would love to hear from you! Email me at bridget (DOT) forney (AT) gmail.com or find me on Twitter at twitter.com/BridgetForney.