Cheery chipmunks, I got my Christmas tree this weekend! Huzzah!
We went to one of the three Christmas tree farms near our house in western Jersey; this one was a self-serve farm, so we made good use of our chainsaw and lived to tell the tale got an amazing deal.
Peppermeister putting on his best Grinch face.
I busted out my favorite Christmas CD, John Denver and the Muppets, while I decorated (a long-honored tradition).
Of course, no tree of mine is complete without animals dressed as other animals.
"F my life."
And animals dressed as food:
"Eat me."
Or homemade ornaments featuring Uncle Jesse in his Christmas sweater:
"My mother needs a hobby."
And there was only one casualty.
Ah well. This one was kind of ugly anyway.
Even Uncle Jesse got in on the fun.
Have a very doodle-y Christmas!
To see what else I was up to this weekend, check out these cookies (more on this new site later)!
Funky chipmunks, it’s Black Friday and I’m doing a number of things that don’t involve straying too far from the house. My sister and I used to get into some hair-pulling, nail-scratching fights when we were kids, and I now know better than to mess with a woman and her half-price designer jeans.
So, how am I going to keep the Christmas anxiety down and the guilty pleasures high? Well, stay tuned for my annual gingerbread house and the decorations I plan to put up this weekend.
For now, it’s time to bust out my favorite holiday tunes and movies!
This one goes on ‘repeat’ while I decorate:
"This year, Alfie asked me to ask you..." to rock out on guilty pleasures!
And here’s My Holiday Movie Trifecta:
Yes. Double yes. Triple yes.
Did you do any Black Friday shopping (and lived to tell the tale?)? What are your must-hear/must-see holiday songs and films?
Cherubic chipmunks, today is the most magical day ever. It’s:
11–11–11!!!
What, you mean you don’t always make a wish every time the clock hits 11:11? And your favorite actor‘s birthday isn’t today? …Hmm. Okay. If you don’t think today is special, maybe we should talk about other special things. Things for which you will not be able to deny their specialness.
On this most bewitching day, I’d like to introduce you to [some of] the people I hold nearest and dearest. Also known as…
PeopleWhoRockMyGuiltyPleasure World
1. Babs
Don't worry. She likes surprises.
Babs is the Mommasita extraordinaire. She taught me everything I know about guilty pleasures, namely, how to harmlessly stalk celebrities. Babs also showed me the way around a Long Island Iced Tea (or seven) and how to write a proper greeting card. Sometimes I don’t even know why I bothered with school.
Babs is special because she agreed to have a third child when she only wanted two. Also because she makes people feel good just by being around, and she doesn’t even know it.
2. Peppermeister
Look at this little baby-faced couple (circa 2005)!
My hubster, the one and only Peppermeister, taught me how to embrace guilty pleasures that I might have otherwise been too embarassed to share (er, like this one). He’s also the person who convinced me to start a blog, and is there any greater guilty pleasure than blogging about guilty pleasures (as I’ve mentioned before, it’s like trying to stare at the sun)?
Peppermeister is special because he once told a college english class -before we were dating- that I was “appropriately feminine.” Also because he’s the funniest, most selfless person I’ve ever met.
3. Bee-atch
On one of our more conservative shopping trips to Wal-Mart.
My Big Sis (actually, not-so-big – homegirl has lost almost 100 lbs. in the past year!) knows a thing or two about guilty pleasures. What she does with Pilsbury crescent rolls could blow your mind. She’s an inspiration!
Bee-atch is special because she lets me live vicariously through her dating life and is super-fun when she’s drunk. Also because she’s the only person I know who can dish it out as well as she can take it.
4. Bestie
I don't know why she didn't marry me. Look how happy I make her.
Some of you know Bestie, a.k.a. Jenn, from our stellar interview on JM Randolph’s blog. More than 11 years ago, Bestie rescued me from the depths of bad poetry despair and told me to have some g.d. fun! From animals dressed as other animals to vodka to hilarious Hallmark cards, she gets it.
Bestie is special because she thinks it’s funny when I’m angry. Also because she’s one of the smartest, most talented chicks on the planet. (Let’s see if I can convince her to introduce her music to the blogosphere…)
5. SIL
What a nice sister and girlfriend this band dude had - wearing his face on our shirts! And yes, this is in front of the legendary Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ.
SIL (sister-in-law) helped me write an entire blog post, and in fact it’s one of the most popular to this day. If that isn’t guilty pleasure inspiration, I don’t know what is!
SIL is special because she remembers more things about my life than I do. Also because she welcomes people into her heart and home even when they’re trying to secretly date her only sibling.
6. YOU!
Duh! You are totally special, too! I mean for starters, you have impeccable taste. You are also overwhelmingly attractive, and that counts for a lot everything.
You are special because you knew me when I was just an awesome blogger. Also because you take the time out of your busy day to encourage your fellow writers.
P.S. – If you’d like to repay me for all the compliments, please email me the secret(s) to levitation.
Once upon a time, Mother Nature had a stroke and decided New Jersey was getting off too easy. Sure, sure, there’s tolls on the highways and you can’t bring beer on the beach, but…no scorpions! So, she threw us a heaping scoop of hurricane with a sprinkling of tornado. Nah, she thought, still not cutting it. I know!Earthquake! That seemed to satisfy her for a while, but when October 29th rolled around, she was restless again.
Mother Nature decided she’d start with a smattering of snow. Odd, I thought, but pretty.
Who doesn't like a Christmas tree farm dusted with snow?
Then…BAM!
FULL-ON SNOW STORM!
By the way, that ‘bam’ was the sound of every tree in New Jersey falling on every power line. As the most densely populated state in the U.S., that’s a lot of power lines. The snow was too heavy and the leaves too plentiful; giant branches bowed and then broke.
We weren’t anticipating a true storm (there’s no storm like it on record [for October] since the Civil War), so when it really started coming down and we lost power at 1 o’clock last Saturday afternoon, we headed out in search of a generator and bottled water (we have a well that doesn’t work when we lose power).
We encountered 5 power lines down in under an hour...which is how long it took us to go 6 miles.
We got the last generator, and it was enough to power the fridge. Not the heat or the water. So we waited in the dark. And waited and waited. We blanched at the news that 95% of New Jersey Central Power and Light’s customers would have power restored by the following Thursday, the remaining 5% on Friday. By Thursday?! That was 6 full days away! We had needs! …Like showering for work.
Guess who was in the 5%? Yup. That’s right. 7 days of flushing the toilet with melted snow and creek water later…
I’M BACK!
Of course, I have to return with a bang, so for your viewing pleasure…
Uncle Jesse in costume!!!
I'm not sure he grasps what a privilege it is to be a chipmunk.
There are many like-minded souls out there, which fills my guilty pleasure heart to the brim. For example, I discovered via Twitter that last Halloween Second Husband bought a squirrel costume from Target for his brother’s dog:
He's carrying an acorn! OMG. (Click on picture for photo credit, but only if you dare.)
Annnnnd this is why Second Husband is about to get upgraded to Soul Mate status. I mean, a squirrel is almost a chipmunk. Does anyone else see interwoven destiny here? …No? Pssh. See if I try to pawn off my leftover candy corn on you this year.
All right. Cut it out. That wasn’t the funny part.
I was recently interviewed for Girl on the Contrary’s “Interviews with Celebrities” feature, and she posted the interview today. Check it out here! But only if you like things like smiling, rainbows and music. Or if you’ve been dying to know my thoughts on Bret Michaels. Either or.
Harry Potter is a subject matter that, like Buffy, Glee or Twilight, I could discuss ad nauseam. Beyond reading the books each at least twice, I’ve watched ALL of the DVD special features. If you’ve done this yourself, you know Harry Potter special features trump them all. They’re very thorough, and it’s just so damn cool to see how they create this magical world. To think it all started in the mind of a lil’ writer named Jo! A lil’ writer like you. …Or me!
So, yes, I watched this Biography feature, fixated. I pondered very serious things: How did they know Emma Watson would grow up to be so pretty, and not taller than Daniel or Rupert? When my boss told me I reminded her of Luna Lovegood last Friday, what was the proper reaction?Peppermeister knew better than to interrupt. Until he couldn’t help himself and added his own deep thoughts.
“How much money does J.K. Rowling have?” He paused. “All of it?”
Well...she's brave. And she makes her own jewelry. That's...something.
If you were called a Harry Potter character, who would it be and why? (And what have you been geeking out on lately??)
People who know me personally often refer to me as their fashion guru. People who know me via this blog have been blown away by my sultry romance novel book covers. By and large, the world outside my bedroom considers me one of the great style icons of our time.
Wal-Mart didn't even see this coming.
However, inside my bedroom, more specifically, my closet, there are some shameful guilty pleasure secrets.
My wrinkly t-shirt collection.
#1 – Julie Davidoski Cullen
Here's the first fictional high school (from Twilight) I pretend to attend. (Actually, this high school exists, but you know what I mean.)
#2 – Julie van der Geek
Annnd the second fictional high school I pretend to attend. This one is located right near Dawson's Creek.
#3 – Julie Timberfake
Yeah. I was totally part of the local crew for the 2000 'NSync World Tour. ...Not.
#4 – Julie “Team Lame” Davidoski
Tribute to the Jimmy Fallon Twilight/Robert Pattinson skit, Robert is Bothered. (The back says, "Team Fallon.") You don't even want to know how excited I was to get this last Christmas.
#5 – Julie TwiLies
For gym class at the Twilight high school. Oh. The Shame.
I love love. Even as a teenager with braces, extra chins and a permanent seat at the ‘Geek Table,’ I couldn’t get enough of Valentine’s Day. While others lucky enough to have a valentine would grumble and groan about the commercial nature of the holiday, I couldn’t find a single reason not to embrace a day that celebrated love. Not just romantic love, but love for family and friends, too.
It’s far from February, but there are lots of lovey dovey vibes out there this weekend that were just too wonderful not to share with you sweet little chipmunks.
There are so many things I love about The Byronic Man’s latest post – I’m sure you’ll understand as soon as you read it.
My cousin recently shared this fantastic video on YouTube (Fran & Marlo Cowan, married 62 years, playing an impromptu recital together in the atrium of the Mayo Clinic):
And for some real guilty pleasure love, I discovered this weekend that Second Husband participated in a Funny or Die LOLCat skit (as the voice of Leopold in “Life of Leopold”). You can watch it here. …Sigh. Isn’t he so smart and funny and dreamy, even (especially?) with whiskers?
Not long ago, I added “Go Guilty Pleasures” to my blog banner in scandalously cursive, deliciously red text. I constantly occasionally amuse myself imagining people getting caught by their spouses/significant others/cats reading my blog on their lap tops, in the dark.
Imaginary spouse/significant other/cat: What is that?
You: N-nothing. Slams lap top shut.
Imaginary spouse/significant other/cat: No, no. I saw some girl and the words “guilty pleasures.”
You (laughing nervously): Ohh. It’s just a blog I like to read sometimes.
Imaginary spouse/significant other/cat: Is that code for… never mind. I don’t even want to know. Walks away.
It also makes me think about my first romance novel book cover. I mean, the one I imagine being on after I’m done picturing you getting busted for reading my blog in the dark.
It looks at lot like this:
"I swear I felt a bobby pin in there somewhere. No?"
What would your smutty romance novel book cover look like? …If that question makes you uncomfortable (and it really should), here’s an alternate: how often do you read my blog before you go to bed?
Hi cutie-patootie critters! You’re probably gonna want to play this while you read:
There is definitely something in the air today. Fridays usually bring out a certain level of giddiness, it’s true, but today takes the [ooey, gooey, chocolate-filled, cream cheese icing-topped, chipmunk-decorated] cake.
And now, I leave you with a fact that’s never before wormed its way into this blog: Ten years ago (!!), I met The Peppermeister while working at a special needs elementary school. We plan to leverage our combined awesomeness expertise, and barn, into an enchanting special ed summer camp within the next year or two (for realsies). Anyhoo, “Shake Your Sillies Out” was the best song I learned in those two years working at the school. Maybe the best song I’ve ever learned, well, period. What’s your favorite silly song? (Doesn’t have to be a kid song. I’m sure you guys remember this one from Ace of Base.)
P.S. – Why, yes, yes I did actually shake my sillies out before posting this. So enthusiastically that I forgot I let the dog out (…crud, don’t tell Peppermeister).
Go Jules Go 