midweek. moodswing.

Is everyone having one of those weeks? If so, hop on the bandwagon. What’s with today, today?

Some things to lighten your mood..

The twin’s stuffed animals from China:

Texts from last night:

(501): I changed the name of my iPod to ‘The Titanic’ so when I plug it in it says ‘The Titanic is syncing.’

(215): is it bad that i have made the decision to never travel to vienna simply b/c of that transvestite that won the bachelor?

[More] Bachelor commentary:

“he’s going to pick the horse’s ass named after sausage instead of this adorable little doll?”

Just announced: CHOCOLATE COVERED PEEPS!

Seriously!

And if that’s not enough, three words:

Giant. Inflatable. Beavers.

Happy hump day, ya’ll.

no! crash!

Hooray! Survived my first crash-free race weekend of the season.

QOTD:
“So fabulous….what i would do for a little Mike’s [Hard Lemonade] right now….even more fabulous — your biking outfit. get some.” -Pink

Cycling weekend recap

Spotted: The Brit on gchat, who has not changed her status message in literally two years.

So I’ve been afflicted with the Black Lung for about two weeks now. Did you know that eating a whole bag of cough drops means you consume well over 400 calories? Over the span of two days per package, this is probably not a good pace to be keeping.

Spotten in Chelsea Market: Sesame Street!

This isn’t a cupcake.. it’s a vessel for frosting.

Did you know.. bacon was invented by the romans in 300 BCE? First aqueducts, now this.

My heart rate monitor just broke on hill climbs, which means either A) it was a cheap piece of crap ($20) or B) my heart exploded. Cast your vote.

nyc. nation.

Did you see this number blazing down Manhattan?

Perhaps it was just a blur:

Yes, that’s a 1:38:01 half marathon (13.1 miles) at a 7:28 per mile pace. Almost two minutes faster than I thought I’d go. Which is also elite team qualifying. Booyah!

Times Square

A little rain at the beginning, no biggie. Started strong in the park, didn’t even notice the hills. Sponge station = genius. Running through Times Square = epic. Skipped the gel zone cause they frighten me. At mile 10, swore that I was done with running forever. Held on til the finish. 2nd half marathon ever.. can’t complain. Oh, and don’t knock the white shorts. They rule.

QOTD: “haha. Yes, quitting the sport entirely in the midst of a PR might have been a bit premature Awesomeness” -Beth (future in-house council)

After the race, my brother inexplicably wouldn’t give me a hug.

This is about as close as he would get. (Okay, so I was reeeeally sweaty).

Also worth mentioning: The Twin completed the half, with hip and foot intact.

Official race pics have just been posted on brightroom.com. You can search by name.

freedom. frites.

Buon giorno Bonjour! Back from Paris, where you need more than cropped pants and skirts to combat the 60 degree temps. Oops. I thought France was hot? Also, much harder this time around not knowing the least bit of French. Especially when I kept trying to use Italian on them.

French Kinder: just as delicious, and comes with Tony Parker!

Quote of the vacation:
DP: [after looking at some fancy kid stroller] I wish they made strollers for adults.
The Twin: Yeah, they’re called wheelchairs.

Honorable mention:
DP: So who was Charles de Gaulle and why does he have an airport named after him?
The Twin: I think he was some famous explorer.
Mom: Um, he was a French President.

Moment of enlightenment: They just call it ‘onion soup’ over there.

The Good: French people were actually a lot nicer than expected and most spoke English. Probably because there are so many tourists in Paris.
The Bad: said tourists really clog up the lines at places like the Lourve. Take a picture of Mona and be done with it already!
The Ugly: the first night back in the states, we have a company dinner.. at a French restaurant. It wasn’t good. But I guess that goes without saying.
And The Brutal: The US dollar to Euro conversion rate.

Unfortunately, my camera cord is in Boston, so until I figure out a workaround (anyone got a Sony card reader?), they will remain stuck. In the meantime, you can picture danaheads abound: Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, at the Lourve with the Nike goddess (no not me, the actual Winged Victory of Samothrace, the original Nike goddess), ancient castles, Arc de Triomphe, Marie Antoinette’s holding cell, et al.

This is my first summer in 3 years I haven’t been able to watch the Tour de France daily. Sigh. GO CVV (current boyfriend of the moment is in 3rd place in the overall GC).

BTW, the Nike Paris has some pretty sweet TdF gear. And so much more soccer football stuff. But again, the Euro conversion just made things downright depressing.

Back in The City, with some last ditch half marathon training efforts. Mike came down from the bean to eat dumplings with me. Decided that New York bagels have magical hangover healing powers. Still have not gotten paid. You know, the usual.

on. notice.

This is even better than the threatdown..

The current On Notice/Dead to me list can be found here. And by current, that really means like, a few months ago in Boston.. where all the website files are.

QOTD: and while you’re looking, you have to say “well all my clothes will fit in this closet, but where will my boyfriend’s stuff go?” -Shannon, on me being on House Hunters

Paris in T-minus one week.

qotd

Life at home:

“Kevin’s the lawyer, Jenny can be the doctor, and Dana.. well, Dana can be the indian chief.” -Mom

qotd

Skybil: Do you have any posterboard?
DP: Only black posterboard leftover from my peeps diorama.

Completely normal.

after. math.

Nothing like recovering from a weekend like watching the Bravos beat up the Red Sux while getting paid to do so. (And, avoiding the rain in my nice dry newsroom).

Weekender wisdom and quotables:

ohnocheese: what
Auto response from SPOON10: omg.. atlanta diner
ohnocheese: get me a pork chop
—– (did you know they have beef patties now too?)

Taxi driver: “Ma’am, you need to put out that cigarette”
Edith: “It’s 3am and we’re in Midtown. You’re just gonna have to deal with it.”

Cab Driver: “I have to put on some Billy Jean for you”
Greatest. Cab. Ever.

Atlanta Diner wisdom: “I can’t wait for my life.”

Julie solidifies her spot as ‘the drunk girl’ at Screen on the Green.
Manav (via text at SOTG): “You will never ride my bicycle.”
—– [take me back, damnit!]

Life Lesson #9047823377: You get a lot more booze when paying with a $100 bill.

Leasing agent: “I’m sorry I was just dancing to Rhianna.”

Two coworkers today, separately: “Are you sober yet?”

Anyone remember anything else?

ass. pain.

rmhtarheel (11:37:03 AM): see i would have thought the opposite

Auto response from SPOON10 (11:37:03 AM): “you know, you look like a pain in the ass, but you’re actually somewhat useful.”
-coworker

rmhtarheel (11:37:20 AM): you look useful, but you’re actually a pain in the ass

booze. crew.

guyzbliss: i guess…hmmm, maybe 10 years ago? that’s pushing it, though…alkfdj;

Auto response from SPOON10: phattatattat: when was the last time you were 100% sober?

hallo. drunk.

dwells on dreams: several comments on the pics

Auto response from SPOON10: http://picasaweb.google.com/djprey/HalloWHAT

dwells on dreams: a) love it
dwells on dreams: b) i love sparks!!! recently realized how awesome it is
dwells on dreams: c) disappointed about the red sox hat
dwells on dreams: d) but the guy w/the usc hat makes up for it

alcoholics not so anonymous

dwells on dreams: meeeeeeee tooooooooo!
Auto response from SPOON10: waaaaaaasted
dwells on dreams: wish we were wasted together so we could talk all things espn and cynical

culinary. expert.

Rebel2524: i am not entirely sure if making jello shots counts as “slaving away in the kitchen”…then again, who am I to judge?

Auto response from SPOON10: tomorrow i slave away in the kitchen preparing for the party.. more specifically, making jello shots

survey. says.

Proust Questionnaire

Your most marked characteristic?
hair/headwear – eg pineapple head!

The quality you most like in a man?
simplicity, drive, good hygiene

The quality you most like in a woman?
self sufficiency

What do you most value in your friends?
dependency, perception

Your favorite virtue?
honor/respect

What is your principle defect?
impatient, anal

What is your favorite occupation?
pro athlete/quasi celebrity

What is your dream of happiness?
some beach, somewhere.. rolling in piles of money

What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes?
being an underachiever

What would you like to be?
the first notable alum mentioned at alma maters

In what country would you like to live?
USA! USA! USA! (possibly italia or new zealand, or in the clouds with the carebears)

What is your favorite color?
carolina blue

What is your favorite flower?
tulip

What is your favorite bird?
cockatiel

Who are your favorite prose writers?
chaucer – anyone else requires cliffs notes

Who are your favorite poets?
shel silverstein, sylvia plath

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
legolas, luke skywalker, batman (mostly for utility belt and cool gadgets)

Who are your favorite heroines of fiction?
wonder woman, sydney bristow

Who are your favorite composers?
shubert, beethoven

Who are your favorite musicians?
howie day, michelle branch, something corporate, keith urban, martina mcbride

Who are your favorite painters?
picasso, van gogh, ed hopper, escher

Who are your heroes in real life?
grammy and gramps, julia reed

What was the last book you read?
the world is flat – friedman

What is it you most dislike?
disorder, bugs, being cold, uncomfortable silence

Your favorite food and drink?
chicken nuggets, mac & cheese and diet coke

Your favorite names?
cole, grace, kip

Your pet aversion?
liars, jerks

What natural gift would you most like to possess?
good luck/intuition

What is your most treasured possession?
tivo!

On what occasion do you lie?
when the truth hurts

When and where were you happiest?
madeira senior year, villanova spring break 2003, sienna w/ my mom

How would you like to die?
not tragically and not anytime soon

What is your present state of mind?
restless

To what faults do you feel most indulgent?
overeating, shopping, manicures, my new bike

What is your motto?
it’s more than a look, it’s a lifestyle

proust. yourself.

A subject of conversation this afternoon.. the Vanity Fair Proust Questionnaire.

Related:
Wiki

Hopefully my answers can top my now infamous response to “If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?”
[DP - a Christmas tree - they laughed for days on that one]

inside. jokes.

I love pulling things out of context..

permanent. prep.

jep4s (3:55:51 PM): hahhaaha
Auto Response from SPOON10 (3:55:52 PM): “you always look like you came in from the golf course or sailing.” -coworker
jep4s (3:55:52 PM): nice
jep4s (3:56:06 PM): thats a good villanova/madeira girl

Fwd: you are fa-bu-lous

And remember, Christian always speaks the truth.. usually because she’s drunk.

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Christian
Date: Aug 4, 2006 11:09 AM
Subject: you are fa-bu-lous
To: DP

“- there’s just something wrong about people putting up their wedding pictures in their facebook profile.”

well said. its so tacky.

—–
Related: http://www.dpnation.net/dpism.htm#aug06

sweet. south.

“Growing up Southern is a privilege, really. It’s more than where you’re born – it’s an idea, a state of mind that seems imparted at birth. It’s more than loving fried chicken, sweet tea, high school football, beer, and acoustic guitars. It’s being hospitable, being devoted to screened porches, moon pies, sun drop, and each other. We don’t become Southern – we’re born that way.”

name. dropping.

Schmitty057: Oh and ps when we did our powerpoint on boarding schools I stuck your name in with the famous people
Celebrity Prep Schools – some of Madeira’s include Julia Reed (editor of Vogue and other various stuff like Newsweek), Katherine Graham (the owner of the best newspaper in the world), Alice Rivlin (former economic tsar), Blair Brown and Stockard Channing (yes, Grease).

p.2
Marquette: So much for the “Gold.” Fans hated the new nickname so much that it lasted all of a week; now they’ll hold an internet vote to pick a NEW one.
http://www.marquette.edu/opa/newsroom/nickname/index.shtml

Plug for a cheaper and pretty decent answer to Napster and Ipod: Yahoo Music Unlimited.

need. caffiene.