friends in blog places

When I first started this blog I had big dreams. BIG.  I was going to have the best little bloggy and the best little bloggy friends and together we were all going to live in the best little bloggy world. That has turned into more of me creepin' up on other people's blogs while they live in perfect bliss having never known me OR my blog. 

Well folks, times are changing. One of the blogs I follow, Crowley Party, linked up with some other bloggers and created this big 'ole blog gift exchange party. What could be better than getting to meet new bloggers AND exchanging gifts? Honestly, nothing. Except if Santa had delivered them down the chimney, but I digress. I waited anxiously for the e-mail telling me with whom I was paired for this party. 

and then I got the e-mail...

and it said...

that I was paired with...

(are you anxious enough yet?)

Meet Gina from Contemplating Beauty. I can't imagine a more appropriate title for her blog. After a few weeks of getting to know Gina (and getting to read up on another blog), I was truly inspired by her story, her exquisite blog design, and her lively posts. Go check it out! 

There is nothing better than getting mail while at college.

pretty presents

Honestly, this week is already that kind of week where you're like, "Uh, it's only Tuesday??" You know what I'm talking about. I can sense all the head nods and "chyeah, totes" coming from you all. Nothing can quite turn a week around like participating in a fun gift exchange, making a new little bloggy friend, and receiving a really sweet little bloggy present. Gina, thank you for the gifts! Everyone else, get a blog and then maybe we can be blog friends and exchange blog presents too...

I think I win the award for using the word blog, in several forms, more in this post than any one else has ever used in a post. Winner!

all about robbie

This is a blog about Robbie.

Things about Robbie: He is a man. He has vlogs.  (Check them out). He has a dog named Roger. He is a stage actor, no not a Broadway actor. 

That was a blog about Robbie.

on not sleeping and that kind of stuff

Here it is! The much anticipated post about my recent trip to the Big Apple. I have put off writing it because I couldn't decide the best way to go about sharing this trip. Longest post ever with every single story and memory? Highlights? Just pictures? What to do??

Okay, it's too hard. I just won't talk about my trip at all. 

Kidding kidding. I know y'all would rather hear about the Big Apple than life back in the Big Peach.

The most important thing I learned from this trip was that New York City is definitely the city that never sleeps. And when you (I) visit New York City, you are (I am) definitely the tourist that never sleeps in the city that never sleeps. But who doesn't love a good ole Zombie tourist walking around?

FRIDAY

Friday began with our arrival in the city around noon. This was after a 14 hour van ride...with 2 hours maximum of sleep. We then had to make a decision, a really hard one. Were we going to nap and go out sightseeing later that night, or were we going to shower and rally up and go out immediately? This is what my body said: No rest for the weary, duh! Sleep when you're dead Emily, duh! This is what my brain said: .... 

That is my brain being too tired to respond which means I went with my body and hit up the city. Hitting up the city on Friday included: Subway rides, Times Square, burgers and shakes at Shake Shack, first Broadway show of the trip, and sleepy time.

But only 5 hours of sleepy time because on SATURDAY

I got up before the sun in order to do something crazy. In fact, it was something absolutely insane but absolutely worth it. John-Luke and I stood outside in the 20 degree weather for 7 hours in order to get cheap tickets to see Book of Mormon! About 6.5 hours into the waiting game, my frozen toes and frostbitten fingers were screaming at me. About 6 seconds into the show, I was laughing so hard that I complete forgot about all of my frozen body parts. The moral of the story: only stand out in below freezing weather for one show--Book or Mormon. Saturday finished with meeting lots of famous people, our second Broadway show of the day (Seminar), a 2.5 mile midnight jaunt around the West Village, and fun times wining and dining until 3 am with MC, Jason, and Jeff.

SUNDAY

By Sunday morning my body was begging for sleep. But that was crazy talk because we had another full day of fun ahead of us. Mother Nature was feeling super grumpy nice that day and decided to make the temperature a toasty 3 degrees! That girl, so generous. Because we were feeling brave and ever so New Yorkish we decided to spend the 3 degree day walking around Central Park for 2 hours! Naturally. This is what that experience was like:

Ann: Oh my gosh!!!! This is the bridge where Giselle stood in Enchanted!
Mom: Ann, there are a lot of bridges. Jeff, which way are we supposed to go?
Jeff: Guys, wrong way. This way is south.
Emily: I can't feel my face.
Ann: Ahhhh! This is where Kate Hudson jogs in Bride Wars!
Emily: It smells like horse poop. Oh look, horses. Can you feel your face?
Mom: Jeff, what kind of dog is that?
Ann: Movies! blah blah blah. Movies!
Jeff: We should go this way...

Post-Central Park Sunday included: a view of the Plaza Hotel, scary Subway rides, amazingly delicious pizza, Mary Caroline hailing a cab with one look, our last show of the trip (Anything Goes, amazing! Tapping!), supper with the lovely and wonderful Emily Lester, and comedy clubs with Jason.

There you have it. A very touristy amazing fantastic New York trip crammed into 3 days. I know earlier I said the most important thing I learned was that you really don't sleep in the city that never sleeps, but sorry guys, I lied. The most important thing I learned was that the fastest way to make awesome/rad new friends is to spend 14 hours in a crammed van with them on the way to NYC...then do it all over again on the way back to Georgia. Get ready for the longest person shout out ever: Hey Paul, Jason, Jeff, John-Luke, Karlee, and Paige, you guys rock. Let's go some place even farther away next time so we have extra time to sing songs and exchange tacky presents. 

vests of the furry nature

I am a lot of things. Left-handed, loud (rarely), sarcastic (rarely), and Ann just told me I was high maintenance. So take that with a grain of salt. One thing I am not: daring. Or, to show off my newfound GRE vocabulary, audacious. I don't like putting myself out there or being different or doing new things or meeting new people or blahblah you get the picture. Because of this lack of audacity, I have a wardrobe that consists mostly of gray clothing. As my sister puts it, I wear b-o-r-i-n-g clothes. 

Sorry that I think the color gray is fantastic and goes well with my coloring! What does that say about my coloring? My dad does say my eyes are "mossy stone"... I also am terrified of accessorizing because well earrings are the opposite of boring so I couldn't possibly wear those. So there, now you know just how boring my boring gray boring wardrobe is. 

That all changed today. Today I became fearless! Daring! I walked right up to Mr. Audacious and linked arms with him and walked away with my head held high. Did I mention I was wearing my newly purchased fur vest when I walked away? 

MLE say whaaaat? Yep, you nay-sayers (it's faux fur so let's all take a chill pill) can kiss my fur because I bought one and I am sportin' it harder than Billy Ray Cyrus sported/continues to sport a mullet. Or Michael Jackson sported a single sequined glove. Or Joseph sported his coat of many colors.

Enough with the analogies. Just know that I am wearing it right now with my jammies. Because everyone knows it is tres important to break in fur. 

rawr. Also, high five on the taking pics of myself. That is so 2003 and MySpace-y.

p.s.--New York tomorrow which means Book of Mormon soon which means cold weather soon which means I should probably wear my new meow vest soon. 

Also, as I began writing this post I asked my dad and sister what adjectives they would use to describe me. This is how that went down:

Dad: Funny. Brilliant. Smart. Wonderful daughter.

Ann: High maintenance. Annoying. Oh, (hearing Dad) uh...amazing. 

Ann, too late you can never borrow my not boring awesome furry vest. Dad, you are more than welcome to it anytime. 

start spreading the news

I really wanted to write about something rad. Yes, rad is the right word. Lately my posts have been lacking. I know you're thinking Emily! Come on. I love your blog and have it bookmarked and check it several times a day. Well, duh I did know that and thank you. But y'all, compared to my ancient posts these new posts are nothing. Nowhere near the rad-iness side of the rad-ometer. Also, I can make fun of Ann just about any day so I'll spare you from any new Ann stories. Even though I have a really funny one from today. She hates all this bloggy blog attention. Hey, Ann!

Anyways, like I was saying, I wasn't sure about what to write. I already wrote about cowlicks and how them cows loved on me back in 1989. Thinking about that hair-edy made me think about how much I despise the whispy and frisky baby hairs that take residence upon the left side of my hairline but then it's like Sheesh Emily, how about you write about something new and original and non-complainy every once and awhile? But then again, I haven't been doing anything exciting like being an extra in a movie or anything so...oh wait! I just remembered I am going to New York City this week! Now that is something exciting. 

New York City, the city never sleeps. And I'm going to wake up in that never sleepin' city come Friday morning. Now, for most human beings and possibly some movie starring animals this is the city of opportunities. The one place where it is fun to live and work and try to accomplish all of your hopes and dreams. Personally, NYC is the place where all of my fears come true. All of them. Follow along, blogees.

1. Public transportation. I've been scared not enjoyed public transportation since the day I was born. While that is probably an exaggeration, we'll just go with it. To sum it up, MARTA is not SMARTA and the only kind of Subway I want is the one where I can buy a 6 in. sub combo and eat my way to a Jared diet.  
2. Stranger danger. What is worse than being by yourself? Being by yourself in a city full of people you. don't. know. This fear probably coincides with #1, but all you need to know is that I need a bodyguard slash lifetime companion to just go with me everywhere. I'm just going to pretend that you also do not like being alone but also do not like being around people you do not know. 
3. Getting in trouble. I'm not really sure this irrational fear fits with being in NYC. Oh wait, yes it does. I get yelled at everywhere for doing nothing wrong at all. Even the happy-go-lucky workers at Disney yell at me while I just mind my own business. If those Happy Hollies yell at me then just imagine the things I could get yelled at for "not" doing while walking around a huge island. 

pausies: my family made so much fun of me today and everyday for being crazy awesome so join the club.

So, why am I going to NYC? Uh, duh! Because the only way to overcome your fears is to confront them, right? Wrong. Mostly because I get to see four, yes FOUR, Broadway plays! And I get to see friends from high school! And I get to be so cold and wear real winter clothes as opposed to these fake winter clothes sold in Georgia! Did I mention that one of the Broadway plays I might be seeing is The Book of Mormon.

oh. my. goodness. time to end this blog early because immabout to go do cartwheels all over this house. Book! Of! Mormon! Cold! Weather! Big! City! Lotsa! People! Book of Mormonnnnnnnn!

!!!

p.s.--this is a picture from the last time I was in NYC. My goal is to look even more touristy this time. Bringing the Keds? Check.

p.p.s.--shout out to Granddaddy Ray because he reads every single one of this darn blog posts and sends me a sweet e-mail afterwards. Even though he is a journalist and could probably write in circles around me. 

on the time the pope came over to georgia

There are many things that I love about Ann. Her hair (that is more of a love/hate thing). Her ability to eat 20 oz. of steak in one sitting. (and still be hungry!) (and still weigh 90 lbs!) But what I really love about Ann is her ability to say the craziest things.

Wi was home for the holidays and whenever she's around we like to reminisce. Reminisce about our old ballet days, about our weird we-are-losers days (still in those days, huh?), and oh yeah, about how that child, Ann Moore, said the darndest things in her younger years. Mind you, Ann-y Banany is still in her younger years so these things are still occurring for our and your entertainment. 

There are so many stories from which to choose. The majority of which Ann would kill me for posting on the internet. Hey, Ann! What Ann doesn't know is that only our family reads my blog so she's already screwed since they all know these stories. Hey again, Ann!

Should I tell the one about Ann asking point blank if Santa was real? And then calling everyone a liar for telling the truth. Or the time everything fell out of Ann's brain in PE class? Ann would literally hurt me if I told that one even though it is so so funny. But my favorite, my most absolute favorite up to date, is when the Pope hit Ann.

Intrigued yet? 

Betcha don't hear a lot of stories about the Pope going around hitting people...

back story/what you need to know: Ann went to a Catholic church for the first time with our family friends. The end. Now you are all-knowing and all ready to hear this short but super sweet Ann tale.

Ann tales...I feel a whole new section of my blog being born...

MC: How was church?

A: The Pope hit me!!!

MC: What?! Ann, what in the world are you talking about?

A: The Pope hit me at their church! He hit my forehead!

MC: Ann there is no way the Pope was there, much less hit you.

A (growing more emphatic): Mooooooom, he did! He hit me! Mary Frances made me go up during communion and said he would bless me and he did this thing and then hit me on my forehead! It hurt!! I'm not kidding!

MC: Ann! The Pope lives in Italy. There is no way the Pope came all the way to Brooks, Georgia to hit you on the forehead. You probably mean the priest.
A: Huh? No, it was the Pope. He hit me hard and I'm serious. 

Oh yeah, did I mention that one time we made Ann dress up as Troy from High School Musical? and it was super adorable...

the cuteness! I'm dying!


Ann, repeat after me: This is not embarrassing. I am funny and everyone loves me and that is why they give me attention and write about me in blogs even though it is not my birthday. 

twelve rhymes with shelve. and delve.

2012 snuck in on us last night around midnight(ish) and it is already looking like a good year. Hopefully you all did wonderful things today since these things are what you will be doing for the rest of the year. I ate a cheeseburger today so I guess I will be eating cheeseburgers all year. High five. 

Everyone keeps listing all the wonderful things that happened to them in 2011 so I am going to list all the horrible things that happened to me.

Just kidding. 

Nothing horrible ever happens, duh! I could only think of shiny happy moments from this past year so a shiny happy list is what you get. 

In January, we survived an ice storm. It was icy and cold. 

In February, I ran my first 5k. And I'm still alive to tell you about it. That is doubly exciting and impressive--3.1 miles is a lot, okay? Except for all the people that run 3 miles on their off days. I don't like you people. 

In between running and driving on ice, I got to nanny some really awesome kids. I also learned how to juggle watching four kids, helping with homework, making lunches, changing diapers, cleaning messes, and oh yeah, having fun. 

In March, I went on a date with a guy named Freddie and fell for his contagious laugh and dancer legs.  FreddieFriend was like totally the best thing of 2011 in my book. 

July brought along lots of excitement. We survived the Great Thunderstorm (and fireworks show!) of July 4, 2011 with only super wet clothes and quilts and shoes and etc. I also celebrated my birthdaymonth even though I turned a redundant not-so-exciting age. Can I rent a car already?

In August (after a short pausesies), I began my senior year of college. This will be a lot more exciting when I make my best of 2012 list and can say I finished college. what whaaaat.

In September, we celebrated Freddie's birthday and then I got my first speeding ticket.  (and then in October I peed my pants with nervousness about the most ridiculous court experience ever. Why would they call my name FIRST?).

2011 ended with a Christmas trip to Disney. Which happened to be my third trip to Disney in 2011. Life is hard. Joseph, please don't stop working there for at least a few more years.

2012 has a lot of unknowns. What am I doing after graduation? What box Where will I be living? Will my fall semester grades really come out on January 3? Who makes you wait until a whole new year to get your grades?! The good thing is that I am certain it will be great no matter what because my horoscope says so. Oh and because I have a great family, friends, Freddie, and other words that start with "F" in my life!

2012, you mysterious year you, let's see what you've got.

Happy New Year!