Tienes un Amigo en Mi

Once again I find myself doing my movie ticket year-in-review far from the friends who began the tradition with me back in Philadelphia. This morning I pulled my ticket stubs out of my wallet and was shocked that I’d only seen five movies in 2010. While discussing that with a friend later in the day I realized I’d switched wallets midway through the year. A quick check of the old wallet yielded five more ticket stubs. So here are the 9 movies I saw in 2010.

January 1—Up in the Air. Ah, Clooney. Great film, definitely lived up to the hype and the Oscar buzz. And, again, Clooney. He never goes out of style. Up in the Air was the first movie I saw in my quest to see as many Oscar movies as I could.

February 14—Avatar. If it weren’t for the Oscar buzz, my deep love for Titanic, and the friend who got us in for free, I probably would’ve skipped this one. It was fathoms away from Titanic. My favorite critique of this movie called it Dances with Aliens.

February 20—Valentine’s Day. Gary Marshall directing lots of famous people, what’s not to like? Fluffy, forgettable, a fine way to pass a Saturday afternoon.

February 24—Crazy Heart. This is one of those movies that sent me right out to get the soundtrack. Jeff Bridges as a washed-up country star was absolutely deserving of his Oscar. My friend Katy had to point out Colin Farrell. Country music is the last place I look for smoldering Irishmen—and believe me, I do look for them.

May 28—Sex and the City 2. How could the creators of such a smart, funny, sharp series turn out such a rotten movie? My fingers are crossed that this was the “dark” film of the trilogy (like The Empire Strikes Back) and that there is a third installment that will restore Carrie and the girls to their usual class.

June 20—Toy Story 3. My family loved the Toy Story Mania ride in Disney World, so it seemed like a fitting way to celebrate Father’s Day, a trip to see Buzz and Woody on the big screen. There aren’t enough superlatives for this one. At one point, choking on my sobs, I turned to my brother and said, “This has to end!” It was that affecting and that darn good.

July 1—Eclipse. They tell me this is the best of the Twilight movies yet. I honestly couldn’t tell—all I could think about was how tired I was of seeing Rob and Kristen. Taylore Lautner’s abs never get old.

July 2—Toy Story 3. I accompanied my friend and her three-year-old this time. He had never been to a movie and we were very worried about how he’d do with the whole incinerator thing. Surprisingly, the things that upset him most were when Woody lost his hat, when Bullseye stayed behind in daycare and when it was over.

August 17—Inception. Did I understand it? No. Did I enjoy it? Yes. Have I missed Leo? Heck yeah (refer back to Titanic comments). I’m looking forward to a second look at this one on DVD. I also remember this as a sweet occasion—seeing a movie with my friend Anna the night before she left for college.

August 28—Eat Pray Love. My friend Michelle summed it up best: she went around the world to wind up back where she started—being defined by a relationship with a man. There were many things about Liz Gilbert’s story that resonated with me and Julia Roberts is such a movie star, so I did enjoy the movie. I’m just not ready to put Liz on a pedestal as so many other women have done.

Ten trips to the theater, nine movies—doesn’t seem anywhere near my usual total. I blame the Netflix.

Don't Leave Me This Way

Sometimes it's hard to do the right thing.

Yesterday, I bought my first "real" television--real, as in, it's the TV people watch when they come over to visit. I've managed to live into my mid-30's without buying a big TV, so I've never had to dispose of one. Once, I donated a TV to the church yard sale, but a good friend and a minivan took care of it pretty easily. Today I found myself stuck with a big TV.

First, I left it by the curb. Today is my neighborhood's bulk trash pick-up, so I figured my timing was excellent. As the trucks left and the TV remained, I realized I was in trouble.

I did what any smart girl would do--I Googled. Surely some charity would come pick up my television. Nope.

So I loaded the TV onto my passenger's seat and drove to Goodwill. There, an agreeable young man told me that Goodwill doesn't take TVs, but the Salvation Army does.

Onward to the Salvation Army, where another agreeable young man informed me they weren't taking wood-paneled TVs. (To clarify: this was not a console TV from the 70's, it was just old and happened to have a laminate coating.) When the gentleman at the Salvation Army told me he couldn't let me throw it in their dumpster, I asked if he knew where the city's bulk trash facility was.

Off I went. While in transit, I called my helpful friend Emily who Googled the city's trash facilities and found that none of them wanted my television.

So, donating was a bust. Trash was a bust. Riding around with it on my passenger's seat was not an option. So I did something I'm not proud of. I drove back uptown, less than a mile from my house, less than a mile from the Goodwill that rejected me, and went to my old apartment complex. There, I stopped in front of the dumpster and unloaded my unwanted TV. I don't feel great about it. I'm waiting for someone to run the license plate on my car so the city can send me a fine.

In the heat of the moment, I wasn't thinking about Freecycle. And I've since learned there is another city facility for hazardous trash that would've taken the TV. All I can hope is that it finds its way from the apartment dumpster to that facility and that the harm I did is outweighed by my attempts to do good.

Hail to the Chief

Last night I had the opportunity to hear former President Bill Clinton offer a lecture. Here are some of my reflections:
--instead of the charismatic, "swaggery" guy I remember from the '90s, he was a laid-back Southern gentleman
--he is really, REALLY smart. His ideas for how we could create jobs and get out of the recession made a lot of sense. Some of the other things he said were so far out of my league, I glazed over.
--he has long fingers
--people still love him. From the dude who yelled, "We love you, Bill!" in the crowd to a co-worker of mine who threatened to run off with him if the chance presented itself--he is still a favorite. I guess there's a statute of limitations on sleaze.

I don't think much about politics, and I especially don't think much about the recent political past. But I have always been fascinated by the presidency. Presidents can be such polarizing figures, but love them or hate them, their job is extremely hard. As I listened to Bill Clinton speaking, I was struck by how much he must love this country to sacrifice any sense of normalcy in exchange for being its Chief.

Listening to President Clinton speak was like a trip in a time machine back to the 90's. I remembered all the Lewinsky jokes (I even emailed a friend about wearing a Gap dress to the lecture). I remembered how much money I made at my first teaching job. I remembered a bizarre day in 1992 when my friend Nicole and I went door-to-door with Clinton/Gore campaign flyers--and were abandoned by the other campaign workers and had to take a bus back to the headquarters downtown.

Now I will remember a rainy night in North Carolina when I was in the same room as a US President. It was a large room, but still...

Papa Don't Preach

When Glee came on the air, I was completely smitten. A story of high school misfits finding community in their glee club? An hour of TV peppered with pop songs, Broadway anthems and a lot of silliness? I'm. So. There. If the show got too silly, too campy, there'd be a mash-up of Gary Puckett and the Police, and everything would be all right again.

To say I'm disappointed by the second season is an understatement. It's as if that misfit high school kid has now found himself sitting at the table with the popular kids and is using his platform to teach everyone a lesson. What was once escapist fun is now an after-school special with a random guest appearance by Britney Spears.

This season, instead of a fake pregnancy and an obsessive compulsive guidance counselor, we're getting schooled. God can't be trusted. The arts are undervalued. School administration lets bullying abound. Remember when Glee used to be joyful? Dare I say it, gleeful?

I see the change in the show's mood pretty clearly in Kurt. He's been my favorite from day one. His relationship with his dad moves me. But lately, he's been angry and bitter. He's been pushing away the people who love and accept him.

And that's what Glee is doing to me. It's pushing me away with its sermonizing and angsty story lines. I'm sad about it. All last year, I loved hearing my high school friends (the real ones, not the TV ones) singing Broadway tunes and old pop songs. They were being exposed to music I've known and loved for years. Suddenly, songs they skipped on my iPod were awesome (yes you, Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart). Now, when we talk about the show, we sigh and grudgingly admit that it wasn't that great this week.

Please, Glee, remember your old friends who loved you before you ruled the school. Broaden our musical horizons and remind us to be kind to the misfits without shoving us into an intellectual locker.

I Want to Go Home

Has anyone ever died from nostalgia? Were they so caught up in memories and reveries that they just burst open on the spot? I was driving along a particularly unattractive stretch of road that connects Harrisburg to the Pennsylvania Turnpike this morning and, I swear, it left me breathless. And not because of the tricky merge along that route, but because of the memories of driving home from Susquehanna and, a few years later, driving home from visiting my friend Ben. Something about seeing "Swatara" on an exit sign had me undone. (For the record, I've never been to Swatara.)

As I left the unpleasant road and proceeded east, I was driving through Pennsylvania farm country. The sights, the smells, and suddenly, I was missing my grandfather. (For the record, my grandfather was not a farmer.)

And so I found myself, as I often have lately, thinking about home. When I first moved to Carolina, it was still easy to call Philadelphia home. My parents were still there in the house where they'd raised us and I was able to make frequent visits. When my parents joined us in Carolina, the visits North became fewer, but it hasn't stopped feeling any less like home.

Which leads to the next series of thoughts...maybe I'm supposed to come back? And as soon as I think it, I'll see a face--Katie on a morning jog, Shannon in the classroom next door--and I'll think, "How could I leave?" Or I'll throw my Tim Keller book (that I'm studying in my awesome home group!) in my reusable bag (that I got at the State Fair with Emily!) and come into Panera to write a blog (that Tracey will read!).

I think my conflicted feelings about home are illustrating a spiritual lesson I need to learn. As Christians, we are called to hold dual citizenship: we belong here in the world, but we also belong in Heaven. As long as we are here, we aren't truly home. If I'm trying to find home in Philadelphia or North Carolina, I'm never going to be satisfied.

At the risk of sounding like a nerdy Presbyterian, I will quote C.S. Lewis, “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world."

I suppose that means I should enjoy my weekend--the time with friends, the opportunity to buy Tastykakes, the memories that surface when I behold the mighty Susquehanna River. I should also be happy to go back to Carolina, to my comfortable house, to my circle of friends, to my overstimulating gym. What I must remember, though, is that neither of these places are where I'm ultimately meant to be and that my desire should be for something much bigger than an earthly home.

After One or Two False Starts

Laura and I are good planners, thus we are good travelers and even better travel partners. Both fed up with the structure and demands of our day-to-day lives, we decided to blow off some steam and head to the coast for a relaxing weekend at the beach. Our plans were set in sand, not so much in stone. So what happens when good planners cut loose?

Upon arriving in Carolina Beach we drove around to scope out restaurants. Finally settling on Havana’s, we got a table, opened the menus and realized we’d been had. High-top tables on a deck do not always mean casual dining. With nothing on the menu under $18.95, we scrambled out of the restaurant and back to the car before anyone could take our drink order.

A few laps around town later, we found The Dive. The help was not quite helpful when Laura asked what to do about getting a table, although our waitress really hustled once we were seated. A man with a banjo wandered through the place, picking aimlessly while his bluegrass band warmed up. The couple across the way had a rip-snorting fight while the cook shouted out to anyone who’d listen that he was working as hard as he could but there was no way he could keep up with the demand.

Bellies full, we proceeded to Carolina Beach State Park. Turns out “Park closes at 8” doesn’t just mean the staff goes home, it means the gate is locked. We parked outside the gate and walked along the entrance road a ways, wondering if it would be possible to get to our campsite on foot, but the empty darkness of it all was a little too scary for me. I was on Hotwire on my Blackberry before we made it back to the car. Too many Dateline pieces about hikers being lost/slayed in parks sent us back to Wilmington in search of a decent hotel deal.

Another 45 minutes of aimless driving passed until we happened into the Red Roof Inn that boasted “Great Last Minute Deals” on its sign. Great is probably something of an overstatement. The deal was mediocre, but it was 11:00 at night and we were done driving around with no destination.

On Saturday, we wanted to welcome the new day with a run on the beach. After making sure we got our free continental breakfast, we headed toward Wrightsville Beach where there was a triathlon in progress. So we sat in traffic, played “Don’t Stop Believin’” loudly to inspire the athletes riding/running alongside the car, and eventually arrived at a parking lot.

The next part of the day went very smoothly. We had a good run/walk, got back to the Red Roof for quick showers and checkout.


Next stop: the USS North Carolina in pursuit of Charlie the Alligator letterbox. No sign of Charlie, so we headed over to Oakdale Cemetery in Wilmington. We didn’t have a map to find our letterbox, but how hard could it be to find our way around a cemetery? Once Laura called her dad and had him looking at the map on his home computer, it wasn’t very hard at all. Mr. Eck helped us find the 400 unmarked graves of malaria victims, and from there we found a letterbox with a fun mosquito stamp. Since we were in the neighborhood, we also checked out David Brinkley’s gravesite.


From there, it was smooth sailing. We loved our lunch at the Front Street Brewery and took a lovely stroll along the river in Wilmington (just like Dawson and Joey). We logged a few late-afternoon hours on a Wrightsville beach, parked next to another Phillies fan/Susquehanna alum. After de-gritting ourselves from a windy day, we stopped at Rita’s where I enjoyed a Krimpets water ice. Three hours later, we were back in the ‘boro.

It was a fun weekend. It wasn’t as relaxing as I’d imagined, but it was good to be unplanned and unscheduled. It was good to think about things unrelated to my routines and to be on the road with Laura.



On our road trip playlist was the Jimmy Buffett song "Coast of Carolina" and we found these lyrics oddly appropriate:

From the bottom of my heart
Off the coast of Carolina
After one or two false starts
I believe we found our stride

And the walls that won't come down
We can decorate or climb
or find some way to get around

I, for One, Don't Turn My Cheek for Anyone

Dear marketers of toilet paper,

I am one person. I have one bottom. I am responsible for two bathrooms. I live in a relatively small house with limited storage. Given these qualities, it is completely unnecessary for me to invest in 24, 36, or 48 rolls of toilet paper at one time. I fondly recall the days when a single roll of toilet paper could be bought in a color to match one's bathroom.

Today, I found myself overwhelmed by the packages of toilet paper in my grocery store. The closet where I keep my toilet paper has a nook just the right size for an 8-roll package. Specifically, 8 normal-sized rolls of toilet paper. Not 8 double rolls (equivalent to 16!), not 8 mega rolls (enough to cover the Captiol Building!), not a 12-pack, not a fork-lift pallet of 96 rolls. So I abandoned hope at the grocery store and proceeded to Target. To my chagrin, the situation was no better. In order to use your coupon and save $1.00, I would have to buy 36 rolls of toilet paper.

Furthermore, while I like a little comfort in my toilet paper, I do not need anything soft or thick enough to substitute for a sweater. Surely there is a middle ground between chafing and feathery cherub's wings?

In the end (!), I wound up choosing toilet paper by the size of the package. I think there are 18 non-mega rolls of super-thin toilet paper now nestled in my closet. If there is one upside to this purchase, it is that, with 18 rolls on-hand, I will not have to buy toilet paper for quite a while.

As you consider future packaging for your products, let me remind you that there are still some Americans who have not super-sized. Please consider packages that can fit in a Honda Civic and that be stored in a townhouse. And, if it's not too much trouble, please mention this letter to your counterparts in the paper towel department. I'm afraid it's becoming impossible to buy both your products on the same day without making two trips.

Cordially,
JW