Lucky #4?

I was in a car accident on Sunday night. It was about 11:00 and I was leaving my friend Jon-Michael's place. I took a route home I don't normally take, just because I hadn't been that way in a while and I was trying to switch up my routine. I also thought about stopping by the post office to drop something off, but decided against it at the last second and went on going forward where I was instead of turning off. As I approached the intersection of East Maxwell and South MLK downtown, my light was green. There's a slight curve as you approach the intersection, so visibility isn't that great as far as being able to see the traffic soming down Maxwell (which is one-way). Right up on the intersection I could see there was a car coming, and although his light was red he was not slowing down. I sped up a little bit hoping to beat him past the intersection (because I knew braking would have been futile), but he still hit me. The impact was on the rear passenger side door. That tire also blew out, and I spun at least once before coming to a stop between a utility pole and a walk/don't walk sign post. My side airbags also deployed. I am fine, just a little sore, but my car is going to be in the body shop for possibly three weeks. Unfortunately it is not totalled. That actually would have helped me out tremendously financially if it were.

I am relieved that there was no damage to my body in any way and that I didn't slam into that utility pole before stopping. I have become very cynical lately about the existence of God, but there's no denying a higher power when something like that happens to you and you come out unscathed. I've actually been really worried this year about something happening to me. My uncle died at the age of 25 so I just don't want history to repeat with me. It's interesting, though. He died four months after his 25th birthday, and my 25th was...four months ago.

Weekend of Crap

I drove to Campbellsville after work on Saturday. It rained the entire way there. I went to my aunt and uncle's house, where I attended a birthday party for my cousin who turned 14 on Sunday. Free pizza, cake, and frozen yogurt. Yum. During the night, it snowed. I had already been planning to go shopping out of town with my sister that day, and I was determined to do it. My dad was at work and my mother hates driving in the snow, so I offered to drive her to church before I had to go and pick up my sister. There were a couple of spots on the road where I had medium difficulty, but that was it. The main roads were mostly clear, so I decided that shopping was still a-go. Picked up my sister at 11 and had a nice day of shopping in Elizabethtown. I was pissed because I wanted to go by AT&T and upgrade to an iPhone. I'm not due for an upgrade until January 15th, but I've upgraded early before and thought they might let me. The answer was no.

We drove back to Campbellsville, where a short time later I rode to church with my father to attend the Christmas program that my mom had directed, put on by the children's department. Adorableness, bad acting, and mediocre singing ensued. During the time that we were in church, it snowed way more and the roads got worse. Blah. The kids found out school had been canceled and it was joyous for them. We went to the bowling alley, where an after-party was being held. Free food and bowling. Yay.

The trip to the bowling alley was fun because I drove my mom out there and since I'm not used to driving her car, I didn't realize her headlights weren't on, and we had a little tiff while I was trying to figure out how to turn them on. The woman has no idea how to describe location.

We went home and I conceded that, yes, I should probably wait until morning to travel to Lexington. I was going through my wallet and couldn't find my debit card, so I went out to the car to look for it. I couldn't see, so I got my flashlight out of the trunk. The batteries then died. I went back inside, found my debit card in my wallet behind my driver's license. Twenty minutes later I realized that the light was on in my car. I had left it on the night before as well, having to go back out in the rain and turn it off. So, I went back out, turned off the light, then continued to watch Christmas Cupid with my mother. Dumb title, considering the fact that the story was a kind of rip-off of A Christmas Carol and had nothing to do with a Cupid-like entity.

I got up at 8 this morning so I could find out the weather situation, waited until 10:30 to leave, and went in to work an hour late after dropping off my things at home, feeding my cat, and grabbing something to eat.

I officially hate winter, and I'm not too fond of Christmas any more either.

as yet untitled story

A little snippet from a story I've been working on:

I stood at the bar casually stirring my tequila sunrise. Kathy was late, as usual. They had the TVs on with some sporting event playing, par for the course. I’ve never been much for sports, but every girl enjoys cute guys in tight pants, so I glanced up to see what was on. Just about the same time, a guy sitting at a corner table caught my eye. He looked tall because he had solid posture, despite the fact that his elbows were resting on the small round table and he was leaning into the wood ever so slightly. He was dressed in dark khakis and a navy blue Ralph Lauren polo. He had a beer in one of his oversized hands, and I wondered if he had ever played basketball. Just as my eyes started to travel from the nape of his neck down toward his backside, he caught me observing him. I turned swiftly back to my drink, taking a hard swig as I tapped my index finger on the glass in time. I made sure my glass was at my lips for five solid seconds, giving him a little time to direct his gaze elsewhere. Setting the glass back on the bar, I stared ahead for another moment, hoping to give the impression that I was thinking about something. Time to look again. I turned my head to the left again, but made sure to look at the television first this time. Of course I wasn’t really interested in the football game, but he didn’t have to know that. Not right away, at least. Finally, after a play was completed, I decided it was time to take another peek. I looked down and inadvertently locked eyes with Mystery Man. His eyes were a deep blue, almost cerulean. I pursed my lips into a very faint smile and simultaneously directed my eyes toward the floor. Wow. He was beautiful. I looked quickly at my watch to show that I was waiting for someone, and then I looked in the direction of the front door.


Maybe he would think I was waiting for a date. After all, I was dressed fairly nicely. Pink satin blouse, my pinstriped pencil skirt, a pair of nude heels. I had even curled my hair that morning. Come to think of it, I was looking pretty hot. Oh, Kathy, I remembered. Shit, still not here. Oh well. Time to check out the hottie some more. I tossed my hair off of my left shoulder and as I started to turn my head back toward him, I could feel a presence beside me. Suddenly my eyes were staring right at his firm chest.

Existence is futile.

I have gone through most of my 25 years under the impression that I am intelligent, talented, and unique. Just recently, however, I have realized that these things are all lies.

I have been struggling for some time with my "purpose". What is it? How do I achieve it? And why in hell can't I figure out what it is? Many people would tell me to turn to God, that He will reveal my purpose to me. While my way of trying to find my purpose may not be any more productive than prayer, it is also not any less productive, and I refuse to leave major life decisions up to some higher entity. While in the long run, yes, these things may be up to a higher power and not myself, I can at least actively work toward decisions on my own, that way I feel like I have some semblance of control over my own existence. I have been unhappy in my life because I believe that I am here for some greater reason, and I can't figure out how it is that I am supposed to make my mark on society and create my legacy. I have received no signs, to the best of my knowledge, and if anything, there are only more and more hurdles being placed in the way of me finding my destiny.

I had been thinking about going back to school to get a second degree. I really want a job in the creative industry, but I realize it is very competitive, and I may not even be good enough at creative things to excel in that anyway. Several years ago, inspired by the music of Fleetwood Mac, I briefly considered going into sound mixing so that I could work with recording studios and artists to create new music, but for some reason I didn't ever pursue that. Now I've been thinking again about going into that field, but no one who has given me any advice on the subject seems to think it's a good idea. All I know is I don't want to sit at a desk for the rest of my life. I want to be remembered, and I'm not going to be remembered for processing loans or anything else about my heretofore meaningless existence. I have no doubt in my mind that I could easily get into another college. But would it be fruitful for me to do so? I'm already in a career that has absolutely nothing to do with my college major, and if not for the fact that I had to have a four-year degree to get this job, I would even say that going to college the first time was a waste of money. So going back? Well, one good thing would be the fact that I'd be able to defer my current student loans while enrolled full-time, but if I'm taking out more student loans that's sort of counterproductive. I'd also have to relocate, which part of me desperately wants, but another part of me doesn't. I'm already incredibly lonely, and if I move somewhere where I don't know anyone, those feelings will surely only compound.

On the other hand, moving away from all that I know and enrolling in school again would allow for a fresh start, and a fresh start could lead to a new perspective. I would certainly welcome that. But then again, it goes back to the question of whether or not this would be a smart move financially. I struggle as it is, but with an uncertain future in a niche job market and additional debt, the freedom of this new life may be overshadowed by further financial struggle.

See, if God really did care what happened to me, this would be the time where he would step in and point me in the right direction. Or am I supposed to set up a sign for myself? For example, if I get a year-end raise, then that is my sign that I am supposed to stay in Lexington, and if I don't it's time to move on. Is this what I am to do? Set up that guideline and let Him decide which way to take things? I guess that's all I can do for now. It's not like I can just up and move anyway. I just pray that I get my sign, whatever it may be, by March, that way I can actually start making solid plans.

Oh, and the reasons why I feel I'm not special, talented, or unique? Because if I were, I wouldn't be just another millworker. I don't have anything that makes me stand out in a crowd of thousands, nor do I have anything to make me special to the masses. I may be loved by a handful of people, but if they outlive me, when they die, so does my memory, and I don't see that as me being special at all.

Why Zoey isn't the mother.

A girl I went to high school with posted on Facebook the other night that if it turned out Zoey was the mother (on the show How I Met Your Mother), that she would feel like she wasted these years she's spent watching the show.

I agree. I hate that character, and I'm not terribly fond of the actress that plays her.

But here's why Zoey isn't the mother that we've all waited six seasons, and counting, for. Remember when Ted went out with Cindy (Rachel Bilson)? And it was revealed that the mother was Cindy's roommate, and that all of the guys Cindy dated fell in love with the mother? Well...Zoey can't be the mother because: 1) Zoey is not the kind of woman that guys would fall in love with that easily. 2) Zoey's married, and has been since the age of 22, which we learned a couple episodes ago. Therefore, unless producers want to cheapen Ted's relationship with the mother by beginning it while she is married to someone else, or unless they can come up with a really believable reason why a long-married woman would be living apart from her husband in an apartment with a girlfriend of hers, then there's no way that Zoey is the mother.

And that is my theory for the day.

lyrically challenged

Here's the thing about Stevie Nicks, and I apologize if I have posted anything resembling this statement before, but narratively, her songs make no sense. She changes tenses in the middle of a verse, switches from third to first person, mixes her pronouns, and uses incomplete phrases. Which is why it makes absolutely no sense that I love her music so much. I am such a stickler for grammar and continuity within a story, and tense and person changes are major no-nos. On the other hand, one thing that is so cool about Stevie's stuff is how so many of her songs are connected lyrically, which does create continuity within her entire body of work, and I love that fact. She uses the same characters sometimes in multiple songs, and she will repeat a phrase in one song that she used years before in another, or change it ever so slightly to where you still recognize it as a lyric from a previous song. Here's an example:

from "Illume", on Fleetwood Mac's Say You Will

I like the coastal cities
I like the lights...
I like the way the ocean blends
Into the city at night
Like living on a working river
This coastline is glittering
Like a diamond snake
In a black sky

from "Destiny Rules", on Fleetwood Mac's Say You Will

I like the coastal cities, I like the lights

I like the way the city blends into the ocean at night
It's like living on a working river; the coastline is glittering
Like a diamond snake in a black sky

The first song is about 9/11, and I think that serves as a fantastic description of New York City.

Another lyric cross-reference example:

from "Blue Lamp", from the soundtrack to the movie Heavy Metal

Downstairs the big old house is mine

Upstairs where the stars still laugh and they shine
Downstairs where the big old house is mine
Outside where the stars still laugh and
Stars still laugh and shine
And the stars still laugh and cry and shine
And the stars still laugh and cry and shine
And the stars still laugh and shine and shine

from "Welcome to the Room...Sara", from Fleetwood Mac's Tango in the Night

Ooh, downstairs where the

Big old house is mine
Ooh, upstairs where the
Stars laugh and shine
Oh, Oh well I thought that
You were mine
Well I thought that
You were mine

The first two songs are from the same album, but the other two came years apart. Kinda cool. I think, anyway. I got all of the lyrics from The Nicks Fix, btw.

The reason I mentioned Stevie Nicks is that I was listening to some music last night before bed and was wishing I could write songs. Actually I was listening to The Judds. Other songwriters wrote most of their stuff as far as I know, but they did some great songs with really fantastic lyrics. In my life, I have been touched so much by song lyrics, and can really express my emotion much better through the lyrics of others than I can with my own words. I suppose I should try songwriting again. When I did it before, I was in high school, so the lyrics were sort of lame. But I'm a little older and wiser now, so maybe, just maybe I have a shot at not sucking at it this time around.

Kim Zolciak ruined my life.

I just heard Kim Zolciak (from one of those fucking Real Housewives shows) perform her song "Google Me" on Bravo..."LIVE"! That woman's face is busted, her weave is busted, and her voice is so busted I was ready to physically injure myself just to not have to listen to one more second of her "singing". And you know what? I just let Zolciak fucking win by using her damn name so many times. This blog entry may even show up in a fucking Google search of Kim Zolciak now. I am perpetuating this horrible cycle!

Oh, and Zolciak? You don't "click" keys, you idiot!

Cherilyn Sarkesian...yes bitches, I know her real name.

When you forget for a minute that Cher is about 83% plastic, she actually can look quite good, especially for her age. Check out this picture: http://dlisted.com/node/39706/images/spl228084_038.jpg Cher and her mother both look twenty years younger than they are. It's amazing. There are more pictures below as well, including a couple with Cher's son Chaz.

Cher has been getting some flack in the press lately for forgetting to call Chaz "him". I say, give the woman a break. Having a transgender child has to be complicated, famous or no. Cher had a daughter named Chastity for 40 years. You can't just immediately remember to say Chaz instead of Chastity and he instead of she after 40 years. She's still adjusting to the change. Plus, the woman's 64 for crying out loud. You can't expect her mind to cooperate all the time.

People should also give her a break because she's fucking Cher. If Cher came up to me and called me Fido and tried to pet me like a dog, I would let her. Because she's Cher.

What now?

It would be nice if we could all live our lives the same way that a dog or a cat does: we eat, we sleep, we hump things, and eventually we die. We have no goals or ambitions, no fears (other than the natural fear of creatures that are larger than ourselves), and no plans. All we'd need is sustenance and occasional affection. We would never expect anything, or have hopes and dreams that could be shattered. We'd just exist, and be content with what we could get.

I've been trying to figure out my next step. I'm not getting any closer to the future I have pictured in my head, and I need to figure out which path will get me closer to that picture. I honestly don't know what I want to do. I've always seen myself in a creative career. I'm driven emotionally and have a flair for the abstract. If you had asked me ten years ago where I would be at 25, I would have said I'd be a film actress, or a novelist, or at the very least a mother. I'm not any of those things, nor is it likely that I will be. But if I can't be those things, is it that much to ask that I at least am in a career related to the things I'm interested in?

No one I ask for advice has anything optimistic to say about the options I've mentioned. It has been suggested that I get my MBA, but then I'd still be doing something I consider to be routine, a run-of-the-mill job. Am I giving myself and my creative abilities too much credit? Or do people just not see me as someone with enough drive to succeed in a highly competitive and objective market?

weird dreams

Someone once told me that they would swear I do acid because of all of the bizarre dreams I have. Last night's may have been my strangest yet.

Last night I had this dream that I was apparently best friends with Will Truman and Grace Adler (from Will & Grace, obvs), because we all lived together. There was a blackmail plot involving the kidnapping of Mel Gibson, and it was up to me to find him. I was given this phone number and told that the person that would answer this call would be the one to give me the first clue to finding him. When I called, Barbara Eden answered. We talked for less than two minutes, but I got the information that I needed to take the next step to finding Mel. Unfortunately, she worked in a brothel, and the line I called was some sort of phone sex line. Will got really pissed at me because they charged $600 a minute for calling this line and I was running on his dime. So I apologized profusely and explained the kidnapping, but he still wasn't happy that I had to call this whorehouse in order to get my first clue.

I can understand the Will & Grace part. I've been watching that show a lot lately. But Barbara Eden in a brothel? And why in the name of all that is holy would I give a shit about finding Mel Gibson?

I sincerely apologize to Barbara Eden for dreaming that she was a prostitute.

It may take a long time, but it gets better.

I haven't actually watched any of the "It Gets Better" videos. I should. But now that I don't have Flash on my work computer and am very rarely online anywhere else, I just haven't made the time. I think these videos are a great idea, and it's sad that so many young people had to take their own lives for the world to take notice.

I just read Patton Oswalt's "It Gets Better" blog. What he said really resonated with me, mainly because I have been on both sides of the fence, just as he was. I really don't like to talk about the hot button issues in most cases. I'm not very eloquent, and I am led completely by emotion, so I tend to get heated or upset when I talk about things that I feel any sort of passion for. But bullying is something that really strikes a chord with me. It's something that has followed me as long as I can remember.

My life was pretty normal until about the age of 9. I had endured slight teasing from relatives as a child (their way of showing that they "cared"), but I had a happy childhood up until that point. Then my uncle died in a car accident and everything changed. Mainly, I see my life as two parts at this point: before Ace died, and after. After he died, I changed because everything around me changed. Fifth grade was just awkward. I got glasses, I was going through a lot of physical changes, and I was trying to fit in at school as well as dealing with my family's massive grief. When I went to sixth grade, I made a lot of new friends. But I was hanging out with people who did things I didn't do: curse, smoke, do drugs, have sex. I felt really out of place. I learned how to use my words at that point. Most of the words I used were to make me sound tougher, saltier. I became acquainted with one of my dearest friends to this day, sarcasm, and I threw around curse words like nobody's business. Boys started paying attention to me at that point. Or maybe it was I who started paying attention to them. I often used sarcasm, and still do, as a defense mechanism. I'm sure at some point I hurt someone else by doing this, because I used my sarcasm to deflect the insults of others. My avoidance of pain likely caused some pain of its own.

Middle school was when things started to get harder. I was playing sports and trying to do things to make me seem cooler, but on the inside I was completely insecure. Some of the people I befriended used me. They saw how sweet and naive I was and would be my friend when it was convenient for them, then run and talk about me behind my back (this I found out after the fact). Our lockers were arranged by grade, then alphabetically, so I was privileged to be in the presence of someone who made my life miserable for two years. Ben insulted me because he liked me, but I took it all to heart. He called me Big Riggs (which in retrospect is hilarious because he was probably three times my size, though I was smaller then), he would close my locker while I was trying to get in it; he would run up behind me after math class and kick me in the ass, then run away laughing. I hated him. One morning at our lockers he harassed me so heavily that I broke down into tears and slapped him to get him to go away.

Middle school was also when my unique interests began to blossom. I had always been into pop culture, especially classic film and television, for as long as I could remember. It all grew out of the influences of my parents' interests, but my interests took on a life of their own. By freshman year of high school, I was a full-blown weirdsmobile. (I spent lunches my eighth grade year discussing the virtues of Bette Midler and Meryl Streep, and talked a friend of mine into taking home the new Bette Midler album Bathhouse Betty, which she called weird.) One of my main torturers in high school was someone that was in my circle of friends, a highly intelligent girl who had no ambition or drive, and was still struggling through community college last I heard. Meghann and I were in choir together, both first sopranos so we were around each other a lot, especially our freshman and sophomore years. She confided her sexual exploits in me (and probably anyone who would listen, honestly), and I thought she was my friend. But she insulted me constantly, and also insulted celebrities I had an affinity for just because she knew it bothered me. Sometimes even one of my best friends would jump in on this one. Meghann would throw out these insults and then laugh about it right in front of my face. I had never done anything to her to deserve this treatment. Even though I thought she was a disgusting fat pig with no moral standards, I respected her enough to let her live her life the way she chose without ever offering my own commentary or advice. Meghann made me feel awful about myself. I was worse than dirt to her. And when my friends were around her, she rubbed off on them, and they worked to make me feel like shit too. Although it was my quirks that people mocked me for, the humiliation I felt only made me seclude myself more.

Thankfully, it was life after high school that freed me. I had a few saving graces in high school (my tried and true friend Jade, who has always been there for me; chorus; Mrs. Vivian Elder, my senior English teacher, who was the first adult to treat me with the respect of a peer and to show me that my opinions had value), but it was being out in the adult world that really allowed me to be myself unabashedly. I got a job, where I was surrounded by women of different ages who all valued me, and I them. I was accepted into the University of Kentucky and moved to Lexington, which was like starting life all over again. And each year of my life since high school has been better and better. I've met so many wonderful people who not only accept me for who I am, but embrace my strangeness. Some have even liked me more simply because of my uniqueness, which is something I only dreamed of in high school. Although I am still plagued by insecurities I developed growing up, I have changed considerably, and I know that with each year I become more confident in my own abilities.

Life is only what you make it. Things get better if you let them. There are people out there who will love you for who you are. It may take a while to find them, but they're out there. Self-expression is so important to maintain your sanity. Find something that you can find joy in, and if that's the only thing you have, cling to it. Youth is all about survival, and if you can make it out with your sanity, no matter how you have to maintain it, then that's what's important. The rest will follow.

Bette. HBO. Heaven.

Sorry to cut the last post kind of short. While I was in the midst of trying to make that post, I found out some fucking outstanding news, so it distracted me from my money woes. Not a bad thing, right?

Ever since Bette Midler opened her show in Las Vegas, The Showgirl Must Go On, in February of 2008, all of her fans were wondering if/when this show was coming to DVD. After all, Bette's last live DVD was from 1993's Experience the Divine tour (which is only available in Region 2, boo). While it has been said before that the DVD is not happening, Bette announced on Martha Stewart's TV show today that HBO will be airing a Showgirl concert special on New Year's Eve. This is great news, because Bette's HBO specials in the past have always been released on some form of visual media (usually video, which was ages ago). I am ecstatic over this. I was not able to go see Showgirl in person, so this is my chance to see it finally! The only news I could receive that would be better than this would be that Bette's 2000 sitcom was being released on DVD. Now if that ever happens, I think I will literally keel over.

I hate hate hate money.

Ladies and germs, it's that time of year again. Time for Lora to be stressed out over money! Wheeeeeee! This is when a real-life Karen Walker would come in handy. I could be her little Jackie. And yes, I would perform sexual favors for Karen in exchange for her being my sugar momma.

I decided I needed a new wardrobe, so I've been working on that. Then, I bought Lady Gaga tickets. And I'm going to Chicago this weekend. None of these things can I actually afford. So most of it I'm paying for on credit and paying back. But paying it back is the issue anyway. I doubt I'll get a Christmas bonus because business has not been good for us this year. Starting next month I have to pay $5 extra on rent, plus with the cold weather coming (eventually, I guess) my electric bill will be way higher than it has been. Right now I'm just praying for a raise. I should have nothing to worry about there, but what if they decide not to give raises this year? I'm screwed. Our insurance premiums already went up, and it wasn't that much but I'm making like $3.50 less each month, which doesn't help with my increased rent. I get this way a couple times a year, but to be honest, if I made more money, I would just spend more money.

Bootleg Betty, how I will miss thee.

This article makes me incredibly sad:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/sep/25/lawyers-argue-r-j-stories-web-arent-protected-copy/

Copyright infrigement is bullshit, as far as I'm concerned. The purpose of the internet is for information sharing, so as long as someone isn't trying to pass off a story as their own, then what harm is being done? Due to what you read in this article, my favorite website, my main source of news for my favorite celebrity, is shutting down at the end of this month. I think our country has far worse problems than people sharing articles/files. I'm all about supporting artists and writers, but why should they get a piece of everything? I mean, file sharing, for example. Many files shared between people in the fan communities I am in are files that were not and never have been for sale. So if people share things that were never meant for profit in the first place, then what are they doing wrong? I am so tired of the almighty dollar running everything.

I mean, I have worked my ass off since I turned 18. I worked full-time while attending college full-time, and everything I have I paid for myself. I'm making the payments on my student loans, I'm paying for my car, and I pay every penny of my rent and bills. My dad has worked for over 30 years, earning money to build a home and support a wife and two children, even working nights and working two jobs so that my  mother could stay home with us before we started school. It is not fair for some people to have to work like that when other people do not do a day of work in their lives and get to travel extensively and coast through life, all on someone else's penny. I am sick of it all. I am sick of this country, this government, and people with their self-righteousness.

All of that because my Bette source is getting taken away...geez.

10/25 UPDATE: Bootleg Betty is not closing just yet! Don has decided to hold off at least until the end of the year, and is exploring his options to save the site! Yay!

This is a picture of the ladies of the Cyrus family, minus big sister Brandi. That cute little bundle of joy in the middle is Noah. She is 10.

I cannot begin to say how many things are wrong with this picture. Let's forget the whore on the right and the trash on the left and just focus on Noah. Am I mistaken, or is that blue poking out at the top of her shirt a bra? No one should be seeing this girl's bra! And those shorts are ridiculous. I just cannot understand why someone would let their TEN YEAR OLD out in public in this!

photo via D-Listed

A Note on the Bullying of Gay Teens

It is a sad, sad day for America when young people would rather die than endure one more day of hatred and relentless persecution. As a mother, I am ashamed of all the parents who have failed to teach even the most basic human lessons to their children, "Live and let Live" and "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." The normal, everyday kindness that we took for granted just a few years ago is a thing of the past, and I for one, mourn it deeply. Technology, the Internet, with its anonymity, have allowed people to behave like beasts, pouncing on the weak and howling with laughter when they inflict a wound, that only the strongest could survive. What are we doing to ourselves? How are we to survive as a nation, when hate seems to be the only thing that motivates us??



Four children are dead by their own hand because they just couldn't take any more. How many more are we going to sacrifice to the hyenas? Isn't it time to stop??

-- Bette Midler

Stevie Challenge - Days 29 & 30

Behind again. Sorry. It's been a busy couple of days.

Day 29 - How has Stevie Nicks inspired you?

I find Stevie inspiring in many ways. She is a fantastic role model, a strong female rocker in a time when women were just starting to be taken seriously in music. Her legacy still stands strong today, as she is constantly working, writing and touring. She has overcome adversity (public breakups, multiple drug addictions) and achieved success where many have failed. I admire Stevie for the fact that she doesn't care what other people think of her. She has maintained her own personal style throughout her career, even when many have said she should change her look. She has a unique voice, both literally and metaphorically, and her writing style is unabashedly original. Stevie has also inspired me as a single woman. She is proof positive that a woman can be sexy, successful, and well-respected without the constant presence of a man in her life.

Day 30 - Whatever tickles your fancy

I just love this song.

"Thrown Down"
from the Fleetwood Mac album Say You Will

He fell for her again, she watched it happen
Every day-- day by day
But more important-- night by night
She watched it all come into play
He held her hands, she listened to what he had to say

Thrown down... like a barricade
Maybe now he could prove to her
That he could be good for her
And they should be together

You've shaken your faith in me, no
You've shaken my faith in everything else
A decision no one makes, and now you're going home
Faith is a hard thing to hold on to
Something inside you says I don't have to
You're not like other people, you do what you want to
You're not like other people, you do what you want to
Thrown down... like a barricade
Maybe now he could prove to her
That he could be good for her
And they should be together

You say you're sorry...
Now you should walk away
But it's so overwhelming,
You have nothing left to say
You can sit outside his door and wait
Well, you can dedicate your pain to him

Oh, thrown down... like a barricade
Maybe now he could prove to her
That he could be good for her
And they should be together
About just how much he never really told her...
Thrown down...
About how difficult it had been to be without her...
Thrown down...

Stevie Challenge - Day 28

Day 28 - Favorite Stevie Nicks photo

I love Stevie's profile. There's something about it...I just can't describe.

And those boots again. Gah.

But this photo deserves honorable mention just for one reason: hair!

Stevie Challenge - Days 26 & 27

Day 26 - Favorite Stevie Nicks interview

My favorite interview clips of Stevie and the other Rumours-era line-up of Fleetwood Mac were featured in a made-for-TV documentary called Going Home. Very interesting, although extremely hard to find.

Day 27 - Your favorite outfit/fashion statement

Stevie's style is sooo fantastic and I love everything about it. The chiffon and draping cloth really works so well for her. That being said, my favorite part of her look has to be her shoes.

She still wears platform boots today, and can rock them like nobody else!

Stevie Challenge - Days 24 & 25

Day 24 - Favorite Stevie Nicks tumblr

Don't know any.

Day 25 - Favorite Stevie Nicks song character

This is one I had to tweak a little from the original challenge, since Stevie is not an actress and doesn't have any "movie characters". There have been film characters inspired by Stevie, namely Gypsy from the movie Gypsy 83, but I don't consider that to be close to the same thing. So, I decided to do a song character. Stevie has lots of these. From Jane (Goodall) to Greta Garbo (who has two separate Stevie songs named after her) to Alice (in Wonderland) to Juliet, the list goes on and on. My favorite of these characters, however, has to be Rhiannon, from the song of the same name. The real Rhiannon is a mystical creature, an enchantress, with a basis in mythology. But, in song, Rhiannon is irresistible, beautiful, bewitching - the one you can never have but still can't help but long for. And I for one, would "love to love her."

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

2011 nominees have been announced:

http://www.popeater.com/2010/09/28/rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-2011-nominees/

And my predictions are:
Neil Diamond
Donovan
J. Geils Band
Chic
Tom Waits
Darlene Love
Dr. John

But I do have my fingers crossed for Donna Summer, and the Beastie Boys are a really solid possibility. I just don't like them.

Stevie Challenge - Days 22 & 23

Day 22 - Favorite tour

Gold Dust Tour, 2005, because I got to see her during that tour! First time!

Day 23 - Favorite performance

I loved her live version of "Beauty and the Beast" during this tour. It was incredibly moving.

Stevie Challenge - Day 21

Day 21 - First Stevie Nicks item you ever got

I'm pretty sure it was the DVD of Destiny Rules or Fleetwood Mac's two-disc greatest hits compilation.

Stevie Challenge - Days 19 & 20

Day 19 - Favorite Stevie Nicks magazine cover

It is so hard to find these! Bette sites have these things archived. Stevie sites do not. I was able to find a couple of decent Rolling Stone covers.

Here's one from 1981 that I would consider to be an "iconic" Stevie image.

But I prefer this 1997 cover:



Smoldering!

Day 20 - A Stevie Nicks-related dream you've had

Can't think of one right off-hand. My dream state has been blurring with reality lately due to my weird sleeping habits. I'll get back to you on this one.

Stevie Challenge: Day 18

Day 18 - Favorite album or single artwork



1982, Fleetwood Mac's Mirage

Stevie Challenge - Days 16 & 17

Oh noes! I is behind!

Day 16 - Favorite physical feature of Stevie Nicks'

Oh, her hair, without a doubt.

Day 17 - Least favorite Stevie Nicks song

Difficult question, seeing as how I love pretty much all of them. I think I will say "Docklands" from Street Angel. Not a bad song, but I just don't connect with the lyrics. Of course, Stevie didn't write this, so that could be why. It's a weak album anyway, so I'm not surprised that I would go with a song from this as my least favorite.

Stevie Challenge - Day 15

Day 15 - Favorite Stevie Nicks-related website

For archival stuff, The Nicks Fix is king. Photos, lyrics, articles, links to buy merchandise, Stevie journal entries. For news updates, I'm visiting Stevie Nicks News now. Sometimes there are big lulls (especially compared to Bootleg Betty, which is literally updated almost every day, and often multiple times a day), but all in all it's a very helpful site, especially now that Stevie's working on a new album. I know what articles are where without having to search for them. It's great.

Stevie Challenge - Days 13 & 14

I was away from a computer all day yesterday, so it's catch-up time!

Day 13 - A song that makes you cry

Almost any day, the song that makes me cry the easiest would be "Silver Springs". This song was the B-side to "Go Your Own Way" but was cut from the initial release of Rumours. It gained a little popularity when featured on The Dance, but that version is different and I definitely prefer the earlier recording.

Day 14 - A song that forces you to dance

No matter where I am or what I'm doing, I always have to dance to "Stand Back". The opening bars are irresistible. You can't help but move!

Stevie Challenge - Day 12

Day 12 - Your favorite music video

I can't embed this video because it's an "official" video, but here's the link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IG2r3MMzm2Q

I love this video for a couple of different reasons. First of all, the video is just very well done. Conceptually and visually, it's pretty stunning. (This video is from 2001.) Also, the peach dress that Stevie wears looks PHENOMENAL on her. Unfortunately the quality of the linked video isn't that great. Stevie's skin is too reflective. She isn't supposed to look like a white blob.

This video deserves honorable mention. Watch the breakdown that begins around the 3:26 mark.

D-Listed

D-Listed CAPTION THIS for September 14th - runner up right here!

http://www.dlisted.com/node/38839

UPDATE: I did it again for the 20th!

http://www.dlisted.com/node/38920

Stevie Challenge - Days 10 & 11

Day 10 - A Stevie Nicks-related video

Love this!



Day 11 - A Stevie Nicks-related photo you took

June 19, 2009 - Nashville, TN

Stevie Challenge - Days 8 & 9

Day 8 - A photo that makes you go UNF


Um, hello.

Day 9 - Your favorite era

Difficult question. Vocally and physically, Stevie was at her finest in the early years. But even with weight gain, she was still smoking. Creatively, there have been fluxes, but that's the case with every artist. I'm very fond of '80s Stevie. She made her largest transitions during this decade also. Additionally, I am a huge fan of big hair. HUGE. The mid-late '80s are boosted for me because of Stevie's fantabulous hair. I also like the Stevie of the '00s because she has really pumped up her image again over the last five years or so. Touring, working on new music, and getting her voice back - this is the Stevie of now. Taking all of these things into consideration, I have to say that my "favorite era" is probably the '80s. Her solo career began, hit its stride, flopped; a lot of changes were happening professionally and personally. This decade was full of change for Stevie, and things started and ended so differently that you have to respect all the things that happened to/for Stevie during the 1980s.

Stevie Challenge - Day 7

Day 07 - A photo that makes you laugh



Oh Grammy producers, what were you thinking?

Stevie Challenge - Day 6

Day 06 - Least favorite Stevie Nicks album

As I believe I mentioned in an earlier post, all of Stevie's albums fit to certain moods. Having to choose a least favorite, I guess I'd have to go with 1994's Street Angel. It's not a bad album at all; I actually like quite a few of the songs. It's just not full of bona fide hits. Plus, this was after Stevie left Fleetwood Mac and during the time she was addicted to Klonopin. Having just left Fleetwood Mac, she should have had stronger material built up for this album because her good stuff wasn't being saved for the Mac, but the pill addiction had her sort of sedated so she wasn't quite up to par energy-wise. "Blue Denim" just about single-handedly saves this album though. Fan-fucking-tastic song.

Stevie Challenge - Day 5

Day 05 - A photo of Stevie Nicks in the year that you were born


From the liner of Rock a Little. Photo by Herbert Worthington via The Nicks Fix.

Stevie Challenge - Day 4

Day 04 - Favorite homage to Stevie in film

This is, without a doubt, the scene in School of Rock where Joan Cusack's school principal drunkenly sings "Edge of Seventeen" in a bar. Priceless!

On a sort of Stevie-related note, I'm considering enrolling in an audio engineering certification program of some kind. It's something I've been interested in since watching Destiny Rules, the Fleetwood Mac documentary I mentioned in an earlier Stevie challenge. I'm looking for a change in my life, and pursuing this may be just what I need. I have yet to decide where or when to do this, but I'm looking at SAE in Nashville as a strong possibility. The financial aspect of all this is going to be the major decider, so we'll see what sort of info I can find out about scholarships and financial aid before I make a decision.

Stevie Challenge - Day 3

Day 03 - Favorite quote

Stevie's best "quotes" are song lyrics, but I did find this one on http://inherownwords.com/, a great little compilation of Stevie quotes. The following is from Musicians in Tune in 1992.

"I believe I was definitely sent down here to take people away for a little while, to make them happy."

Stevie Challenge - Day 2

I'm bored, so I'll go ahead and get a jumpstart on the next entry.

Day 02 – Favorite album, and favorite song off that album

Aaaahhh! This is sooo hard. The absolute best thing about Stevie is her songwriting, and it is so hard to pick a favorite album because they all really fit well together. While I love the fact that Bette's style can go all over the place, and with such ease on her part, Stevie's albums always have a similar sound as a whole (sometimes with the exception of one or two songs). The fact that her albums are so cohesive makes it really hard to choose between them. Each one means something to me based upon a mood or situation taking place at a certain time. There is no doubt that her first two albums are her best. She was at a high point both creatively and vocally, and those two albums came before her addictions really started to overwhelm her (cocaine first, then Klonopin later on). Don't get me wrong; I love cocaine-addled, electro-pop Stevie as much as I love Stevie as rock goddess, but the "rock goddess" part in her does contain a certain mystique. Keeping all of these things in mind, I shall now make my decision on favorite album.

Bella Donna, 1981. Stevie's first solo album. This was the beginning of "Is Fleetwood Mac breaking up?", that age old question. 30 years later, and they're still intact, for the most part. Bella Donna featured a lot of great songs, and when it came time for Stevie to release a boxed set 17 years later, eight of the ten tracks on this album made it onto the compilation. While the timeless "Edge of Seventeen", "Leather and Lace", and "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" are on this album, I have to choose "After the Glitter Fades" as my favorite song. It sums up the rock and roll lifestyle so beautifully, and contains this line: "Even though the living is sometimes laced with lies, it's alright. The feeling remains even after the glitter fades." Perfect.

30 Day Stevie Nicks Challenge - Day 1

I am going to have to tweak this challenge just a little bit so that it will fit Stevie since she is not an actress, but I think I can make it work.

Day 01 – When and how were you first introduced to Bette Midler Stevie Nicks?
Day 02 – Favorite album, and favorite song off that album
Day 03 – Favorite quote
Day 04 – Favorite Bette Midler movie character Favorite homage to Stevie in film
Day 05 – A photo of Bette Midler Stevie Nicks in the year that you were born
Day 06 – Least favorite Bette Midler Stevie Nicks album
Day 07 – A photo that makes you laugh
Day 08 – A photo that makes you go UNF
Day 09 – Your favorite era
Day 10 – A Bette Midler Stevie Nicks-related video
Day 11 – A Bette Midler Stevie Nicks-related photo you took
Day 12 – Your favorite music video
Day 13 – A song that makes you cry
Day 14 – A song that forces you to dance
Day 15 – Favorite Bette Midler Stevie Nicks-related website
Day 16 – Favorite physical feature of Bette Midler Stevie Nicks’
Day 17 – Least favorite Bette Midler Stevie Nicks song
Day 18 – Favorite album or single artwork
Day 19 – Favorite Bette Midler Stevie Nicks magazine cover
Day 20 – A Bette Midler Stevie Nicks-related dream you’ve had
Day 21 – First Bette Midler Stevie Nicks item you ever got
Day 22 – Favorite tour
Day 23 – Favorite performance
Day 24 – Favorite Bette Midler Stevie Nicks tumblr
Day 25 – Favorite Bette Midler movie Favorite Stevie Nicks song character
Day 26 – Favorite Bette Midler Stevie Nicks interview
Day 27 – Your favorite outfit/fashion statement
Day 28 – Favorite Bette Midler Stevie Nicks photo
Day 29 – How has Bette Midler Stevie Nicks inspired you?
Day 30 – Whatever tickles your fancy

Let the games begin!

Day 01 – When and how were you first introduced to Stevie Nicks?

Being the music aficionado that I am, and considering my father is a lover of all things classic rock, I had been aware of Stevie Nicks for some time. I knew about her affiliation with Fleetwood Mac and really enjoyed many of their songs. Stevie really became a notable presence in my life in 2003. Fleetwood Mac was releasing a new album and embarking on a world tour, the first in six years. I watched a lot of Vh1 back then, and promos for a new documentary about the making of this album were all over the place. I recorded the documentary, Destiny Rules, and watched it late one night in my room. This was a turning point for me. I was already more than intrigued by Stevie; her voice and her drive, and her sense of humor, in this documentary are why I fell in love with her. This was the beginning of my obsession with both her and Fleetwood Mac. I now have all of her albums in addition to all Fleetwood Mac albums of which Stevie was a part.

Bette Challenge - Days 27-30

Okay, I am a few days behind on my Bette Challenge. It has been a really busy week at work. We just had one person in our department move on to other ventures, one person's wife had a baby, and another person is on vacation. Being short-staffed + end of the month rush = agony. But I digress. I suppose tonight I should finish up the Bette Challenge, but seeing as how it's already past 8:00, I don't know that I can complete my assignment in time.

Day 27 – Your favorite outfit/fashion statement

Bette's been an entertainer for over 40 years. I can't choose one outfit to sum her up. I love Bette as the trashy rocker and the demure humanitarian, but I have to say that I do enjoy my trashy Bette quite a bit. So, in the spirit of the foul-mouthed version of our diva, I shall post this picture. I always did love this dress on her.



Day 28 – Favorite Bette Midler photo



Surely this one needs no explanation.

Day 29 – How has Bette Midler inspired you?

Bette Midler has inspired me to be whatever I want to be, to not take criticism or shit from anyone. She has inspired me to love deeply and passionately with abandon, to think of the legacy I am leaving behind, and to give back to the world in any way that I can. She has inspired me with her humor in every role she has played. Her smile puts love into the world. Bette has inspired me with her voice, one that is not technically perfect but that contains amounts of raw emotion that most singers are not even capable of. She has inspired me in the way that she has raised her daughter, with an appreciation of fine art, hard work and intellect, and a sense of self that is astonishing in people our age. Bette has inspired me in her charity work, and the fact that she is not afraid to get in and get her hands dirty when necessary. She has also inspired me by just being human. She has had messy breakups, personal disappointments, professional failures, and of course has put her foot in her mouth many times (something that I know all too well). Yet she triumphs, through all of this, and I suppose that is the greatest inspiration of all.

Day 30 – Whatever tickles your fancy

I will end my Bette challenge with these lyrics, which I find to be entirely appropriate for the occassion.

"Every Road Leads Back to You"
from the soundtrack to For The Boys

Old friend, here we are,
after all the years and tears
and all that we've been through.
It feels so good to see you.
Lookin' back in time,
there've been other friends and other lovers,
but no other one like you.
All my life, no one ever has known me better.

I must have traveled down a thousand roads.
Been so many places, seen so many faces,
always on my way to somethin' new.
Ohhh, but it doesn't matter,
'cause no matter where I go,
every road leads back,
every road just seems to lead me back to you.

Old friend, there were times
I didn't want to see your face
or hear your name again.
Now those times are far behind me.
It's so good to see your smile.
I'd forgotten how nobody else
could make me smile the way you do.
All this time, you're the one I still want beside me.

I must have traveled down a thousand roads.
Been so many places, seen so many faces,
always on my way to somethin' new.
Ohh, but it doesn't matter,
'cause no matter where I go,
every road leads back,
every road just seems to lead me back to you.

I must have traveled down a thousand roads.
Been so many places, seen so many faces,
always on my way to somethin' new.
Ohh, but it doesn't matter,
'cause no matter where I go,
every road leads back,
every road just seems to lead me back,
every road leads back,
every road just seems to lead me back to you.
Every road just seems to lead me back to you.

Bette Challenge - Day 26

Day 26 - Favorite Bette Midler interview

I can't find more than one really poor quality clip of this on YouTube, but Bette was on Oprah in January of 2008 with her daughter Sophie, and this is my favorite interview just because it is the first time Sophie was ever on TV. I LOVE SOPHIE. The only thing I love more than Bette is seeing Sophie and Bette together. They are the cutest mother-daughter duo of all time, and this Oprah episode was just so full of adorable that I had to choose it as my favorite! I mean, just look at them!

Bette Challenge - Day 25

Day 25 - Favorite Bette Midler movie character

Cecilia Carol Bloom, Beaches. This role was written for Bette, and it shows. The character is so much like her stage persona that it's ridiculous. CC is brash and selfish, but she's also immensely talented and driven. I love that character, and Bette played her so well.

Bette Challenge - Day 24

I'm skipping today's challenge (Favorite Bette Midler tumblr) because I don't know of any since I'm not on tumblr. Plus I'm a little "meh" today, so I'm just gonna go back to listening to the Divine Madness soundtrack now. Bye bye then.

Bette Challenge - Day 23

Day 23 - Favorite performance

Gee, this challenge could be interpreted in a couple different ways. Favorite live vocal performance, favorite acting performance? I don't know!!! I know later I have to choose a favorite movie character, which I already have picked out, but I'm not sure what to do with this one. I guess I can choose one of each.

My favorite live Bette performance, since I haven't physically seen her live, would have to be any of the Delores DeLago bits that she does in her shows. I love Delores! She's my favorite of Bette's characters. I don't know if it's the campy reworkings of classic songs, the wheelchair choreography, or the mermaid costumes, but everything Delores does is phenomenal. Delores for President!

Favorite acting performance without a doubt is in The Rose. She was raw and vulnerable, and also completely unexperienced as an actress at the time. No one could have done with that part what she did, and her vocals from that movie are just astounding and so different from the idea of Bette that everyone has. (Rocker chick versus easy listening queen, what she's known as nowadays.)

Bette Challenge - Days 21 & 22

Day 21 - First Bette Midler item you ever got

The first actual Bette item I ever got was a cassette copy of Experience the Divine, her greatest hits. I bought it myself. Most of my Bette stuff I bought myself. My family is not terribly supportive of my obsession with Bette.

Day 22 - Favorite tour

I can't really pick a favorite tour since I haven't seen any of them :( , but by name alone I think my favorite one is De Tour. I really wish I could have seen her Vegas show The Showgirl Must Go On though.

Bette Challenge - Day 20

Day 20 - A Bette Midler-related dream you've had

I've had a lot of Bette-related dreams in my time. I remember one where I saw her driving around town. What town, I'm not sure exactly, but it was whatever small place I was living in in my dream. Anyway, I saw her get in her car and tried to flag her down because I wanted to meet her, but she didn't see me. So I went to get my sister and said, "Bette is here! We have to go find her!" We followed her trail and ended up at this enormous house. We didn't knock or anything, just went in. But the inside of the house was like a post office, so we kept walking around trying to find the house part of it hoping to find Bette. I don't think we found her in this particular dream, but I had similar ones that followed, all with the same post office/house in the dream. That always struck me as odd. Anyway, there's one of my dreams that I remembered.

I remember another one that really just looked like a TV commercial for a new album. It was a double album of all covers, but she did pretty well known songs, including "You're Still the One" by Shania Twain. As familiar as I am with the nuances of her voice, I was able to recreate her voice in my dream and actually dreamed her singing that entire song. I even visualized Shania Twain's video for that song with Bette in her place. It was so strange.

Bette Challenge - Days 18 & 19

Day 18 – Favorite album or single artwork



Some People's Lives, 1990. The profile, the hair, 'nuff said.

Day 19 – Favorite Bette Midler magazine cover



People Weekly, 1975. I love this cover because she just looks so happy.

Bette Challenge - Days 16 & 17

Day 16 – Favorite physical feature of Bette Midler’s

My favorite feature of Bette's is likely the same one that causes so many other people to find her unattractive - her nose. Much like Barbra Streisand, Bette's nose gives her face character, and also creates a very striking profile.

Day 17 – Least favorite Bette Midler song

I'd say this is a toss-up between "Let Me Just Follow Behind" and "Tragedy" from my least favorite album, Songs For the New Depression. Bette's vocal performance is fine, they're just terribly weak songs. Beneath her talent.

Bette Challenge - Day 15

Day 15 – Favorite Bette Midler-related website

Bootleg Betty!!!! The only Bette website that truly matters. Up-to-date news, archival photos and articles, humor, free streaming music and video, and links to everything else that you might need (if you can't find it on this site, that is). I visit it daily.

Bette Challenge - Day 14

Day 14 – A song that forces you to dance

This is really between three songs, but I will choose the one that, as far as I know, has only been recorded by Bette. This a dance track from her 2000 album Bette, called "Bless You Child". It's a simple song, with an "I'm so glad you're you" message. Incredibly catchy.

Bette Challenge - Days 10, 11, 12 & 13

Sorry for the delay in posting again. My birthday was Saturday and I had three days off from work, so my plate was a little full. Catch-up time again today.

Day 10 – A Bette Midler-related video

Pretty much the greatest moment in television history, as far as I'm concerned.



Day 11 – A Bette Midler-related photo you took



Day 12 – Your favorite music video

The reason why this is my favorite video occurs at about the 3:03 mark.
http://www.spike.com/video/bette-midler-to/2789082

Day 13 – A song that makes you cry

I could name multiple Bette songs that make me cry, but one that many people probably don't know is the Randy Newman-penned "I Think It's Going to Rain Today". The song is moving enough on its own, but what really brings the tears is when I hear this song during Beaches. It comes at a pivotal point in the movie, when Hillary finds out that the disease she has (viral cardiomyopathy) is fatal. I blubber every time.

Bette Challenge - Day 9

Day 09 – Your favorite era

Picture it: Los Angeles, mid 1980s. Coming off of Bette's success in The Rose and the accompanying Academy Award nomination, the pressure was high. There was a small slump with the release of the complete and utter flop Jinxed. Then, Michael Eisner said, "Hey, this lady's been used all wrong. She needs to be in comedy. Let's make it happen." So Disney/Touchstone signed her to a three movie deal, and the Divine One was able to reinvent herself and create a new era in her career.

The mid-to-late 80s is my favorite era because:

1) Bette was able to display her spectacular comedic flair and co-star in three hilariously brilliant movies, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Ruthless People, and Outrageous Fortune.
2) She ended the decade with Beaches, one of my top five favorite movies of all time, and Stella, which was a commercial and critical flop but a movie that I absolutely adore.
3) the soundtrack to Beaches
4) THIS HAIR

Bette Challenge - Day 8

Day 08 – A photo that makes you go UNF



That figure! Rawr!

I am all alone, there is no one here beside me.

I'm a little disappointed today, for a lot of reasons. One of those reasons is because my birthday extravaganza that I had planned for the upcoming weekend isn't going to be as spectacular as I hoped. Secondly, I was going to go through my Bette files on my external hard drive to find a picture for today's challenge. Going through my stuff, I realized that I had deleted all of the pictures I once had. I've cleaned off my computer because I expect it to fail at any moment, and I don't want to lose any files, so I transfered my things to an external hard drive, but decided to delete my celebrity pictures that I had saved because I've "outgrown" that sort of thing. So the pictures I had of Bette, Stevie, Judy Garland, Rosemary Clooney, Agnes Moorehead...all gone. All that was left were the two pictures I have of Bette and Stevie together, and a few collages I had made to use as wallpapers. I understand that I didn't transfer them because they're not "important" and they're not personal documents or pictures or things, but why did I think I wouldn't want them at all anymore? I am terribly sad now.

I'm having a hard time finding good Bette pictures, because no website has a definitive archive. Google searches often bring up "Bette" pictures that aren't of Bette at all, and I don't know what picture I want to use for the one that makes me go UNF. I really want it to be striking, so that other people can see why see makes me go UNF.

Sigh. I'm just a little depressed today. Don't mind me.

Bette Challenge - Day 7

Day 07 – A photo that makes you laugh

Bette Challenge - Days 4, 5 & 6

Saturday's entry slipped my mind, and I wasn't near a computer yesterday, so we're going to hit three in one today!

Day 04 – Favorite Bette Midler movie

The First Wives Club! Beaches is a very close second, but The First Wives Club was my movie back in high school. I saw this movie about 50 times before I ever even owned a copy of it. I had every word memorized, and I still know a lot of it now. Not only is it hysterically funny, it has a great cast and great music. Bette, Diane, and Goldie singing "You Don't Own Me" while reminiscing about their old friend Cynthia is one of my very favorite parts of the movie. Bette is adorable as the "fat friend", a role she always plays with relish. I seriously cannot think of one bad thing about this movie. I will always love it, no matter how cheesy it is or how dated it may be in the future. This movie is a symbol of my youth and my love of Bette. Love it!

Day 05 – A photo of Bette Midler in the year that you were born

Bette with her husband Martin at LiveAid in 1985

Day 06 – Least favorite Bette Midler album

Songs For the New Depression, 1976. After a phenomenal debut album and a sophomore effort that was also fairly well-received, Bette felt incredibly pressured to make her third album up to everyone's standards. The result was, quite frankly, a disaster. "Mr. Rockefeller" is the only song that has held up well over the years, and the Bob Dylan duet "Buckets of Rain" is a take-it-or-leave-it kind of song. "Marahuana" is campily delightful, but the rest of the album sounds the same: somber and way too toned-down. Up to this point, Bette's sultry songstress had been thriving but she just tried to hard to do something different with Depression. While the album does have its moments, it's definitely not a great work, and would not be recommended by any Bette fan to a non-fan.

Bette Challenge - Day 3

Day 03 – Favorite quote

Being as Bette is filled with wonderful jokes as well as wonderful nuggets of wisdom, this is difficult. My old standby, of course, is "Fuck 'em if they can't take a joke!" But I think my favorite Bette-related quote has to be the motto of her All Girl Productions (which no longer exists). The motto was this: "We hold a grudge." I like it because it is very befitting of my own philosophies. I wish I could remember more quotes from interviews instead of just these small little snippets, but these shorter quotes are easier to remember, in addition to being pasted all over the internet to serve as a quick reminder. My mind may not be totally full of Bette to the point that I remember every word she ever uttered, but my heart definitely makes up for what my memory lacks.

Bette Challenge - Day 2

Day 02 – Favorite album, and favorite song off that album

This is likely to be the most difficult day for me, considering how vastly different each of Bette's albums are. Her live stuff is always fantastic just because it gives you a taste of what a great all-around performer she is. Her debut The Divine Miss M is really unique and almost has the sound of something that was independently produced. I love the ...Rosemary Clooney Songbook because that album combines two of my favorite things (Bette and Rosemary, natch). But I guess I would have to say my favorite is Bathhouse Betty. It was the first new album she released after I became a fan, so it holds that sentimental significance for me. Also, she did a live performance of one of the songs off that album on The Rosie O'Donnell Show and the whole portion of the show that she did that day was so much fun! I love the dress and wig she wore on the cover of that album, but really it's just a great album. The songs vary from moving to zany; there's absolutely no way to put a label on it, and that's why I love that album!

Favorite song on Bathhouse Betty has to be "Lullaby in Blue". A song from the point of view of a mother who gave a child up for adoption, this never fails to bring me to tears. It's arguably one of Bette's best vocal performances on record. There are a few that deserve honorable mention as well, but I'd end up naming over half the songs, so we'll just leave it at that.

Bette Challenge - Day 1

Day 01 – When and how were you first introduced to Bette Midler?

I don't remember. God's honest truth.

I can't remember a time in my life without Bette. As crazy as it may sound, life began with her. I remember being vaguely familiar with her at the age of eight or nine. For a time, I thought she sang the song "Let's Hear It For the Boy" from Footloose because I had never heard her sing and knew she had been in a movie called For The Boys. Putting those things together just sort of made sense to me at the time. I remember seeing previews on TV for The First Wives Club and wanting desperately to see it, but I wasn't allowed to go to the theater to see it for some reason. (I was 11 and the movie is only PG. Maybe it was the warning of "mild language.") At this point I began researching her on the internet every time I got the chance. I became obsessed - with her career, her life, her humor, her spirit, her music, her laugh. All of her.

So, I guess, definitively, the answer is because of The First Wives Club (which I have probably seen at least 75 times) but the seed was planted long before that.

30 Day Madonna Bette Midler Challenge

An FB friend of mine had posted this 30 Day Madonna Challenge on her tumblr. I have decided to steal this and apply it to my own personal Madonna, Bette Midler. Should be fun. Here's the rundown:

Day 01 – When and how were you first introduced to Madonna Bette Midler?
Day 02 – Favorite album, and favorite song off that album
Day 03 – Favorite quote
Day 04 – Favorite Madonna Bette Midler movie
Day 05 – A photo of Madonna Bette Midler in the year that you were born
Day 06 – Least favorite Madonna Bette Midler album
Day 07 – A photo that makes you laugh
Day 08 – A photo that makes you go UNF
Day 09 – Your favorite era
Day 10 – A Madonna Bette Midler-related video
Day 11 – A Madonna Bette Midler-related photo you took
Day 12 – Your favorite music video
Day 13 – A song that makes you cry
Day 14 – A song that forces you to dance
Day 15 – Favorite Madonna Bette Midler-related website
Day 16 – Favorite physical feature of Madonna Bette Midler’s
Day 17 – Least favorite Madonna Bette Midler song
Day 18 – Favorite album or single artwork
Day 19 – Favorite Madonna Bette Midler magazine cover
Day 20 – A Madonna Bette Midler-related dream you’ve had
Day 21 – First Madonna Bette Midler item you ever got
Day 22 – Favorite tour
Day 23 – Favorite performance
Day 24 – Favorite Madonna Bette Midler tumblr
Day 25 – Favorite Madonna Bette Midler movie character
Day 26 – Favorite Madonna Bette Midler interview
Day 27 – Your favorite outfit/fashion statement
Day 28 – Favorite Madonna Bette Midler photo
Day 29 – How has Madonna Bette Midler inspired you?
Day 30 – Whatever tickles your fancy

The real "challenge" in all of this will be remembering to actually post every day for a month.

Agnes Moorehead

I went with my friend Jade to Dayton, OH on Friday of last week. I really just wanted to go to have a mini-road trip, but the reason I specifically chose Dayton was because it is the burial place of Agnes Moorehead.

Agnes's name is one I'm sure is not familiar to a lot of people, but she was an intelligent and incredibly talented woman, and she is worth Googling if you ever get bored. She had a very prolific career as a character actress and radio personality, and she also worked as a teacher for a time. (She had a Masters in English - a woman after my own heart!) Most people who are familiar with her would know her as Endora on the beloved '60s sitcom Bewitched.

Visiting celebrity gravesites is sort of a dream of mine, if that's the proper way to phrase it. I would say hobby except for the fact that this would make only the second one I've visited, so I guess interest is a more appropriate term. Anyway, I found it to be an interesting experience this time around, and I am so lucky to have a friend like Jade to do these things with. Many people would be creeped out by it, but she enjoys the history aspect of it. She also accompanied me to Rosemary Clooney's gravesite a few years back.

Aside from the visit to Dayton Memorial Park's mausoleum, we went to the Dayton Art Institute, the Cox Arboretum MetroPark, and ate dinner at the Spaghetti Warehouse in downtown Dayton. We had a very nice and full day, even if it was scorching hot.

The reason I post this now is because last night I had a dream about Aggie. It was present-day and I was at some sort of picnic or outdoor gathering. Jade was there as well. I saw Agnes from far away and kept trying to get closer to her because I wanted to meet her, but I never succeeded. The part about this dream that made it so unusual (I often have dreams about famous people and interacting with them) is that Agnes has been dead for 36 years and would be over 100 if she were alive today. Yet in my dream, she looked very youthful, as perhaps she might have looked if I were to see her up close and personal in the late '40s to early '50s. It was a very pleasant dream, and all I wanted was to be close enough to Agnes to admire her lovely face and hear her speak. A very interesting dream indeed.

Will the real Stevie Nicks please stand up?

I love Twitter, and I will say that the main reason for this is that celebrities are on it. A lot of them probably have their assistants do the actual tweeting, but others do not, which is clear from their incessant rambling. Now, one of my favorite celebrities, Stevie Nicks, is completely technology-illiterate. If things are as they have been, she still doesn't even have a cell phone. Obviously her assistant does, and this is how communications with the outside world occur, but she doesn't do e-mail, none of that. For a while now, Stevie fans on Twitter have been swearing up and down that a completely inactive Twitter account called @RealStevieNicks is indeed Stevie. Personally, I didn't believe it and wanted to know why so many did. I was told that someone on Fox News helped Stevie actually set up the Twitter account on-air. They provided me a link to a video of this, but I actually never watched it. My major reasoning for not believing the hype, aside from Stevie's shun of all things technological, is that Lindsey Buckingham (@Lndsybuckingham) was not following this @RealStevieNicks account. Granted, his account has not been verified, but who is going to create a fake Lindsey Buckingham Twitter? Seriously?

So, sometime yesterday someone started tweeting from this account saying that they were Stevie's assistant Karen and that they were going to answer some fan questions. Stevie fans were FREAKING OUT. But all of the answers to said questions were incredibly vague, things that could have easily been written by someone not associated with Stevie personally. Well, @DaveStewart from the Eurythmics, who has been recording an album with Stevie over the last several weeks, tweeted this earlier today: "the @realstevienicks site is nothing to do with Stevie or karen , I'm on the phone with Karen now talking about tomorrow's recording"

I felt like shouting from the rooftops: "Bitches, I told you so!"

Now, in all this drama, apparently some sweet little girl tweeted something to Dave about how her birthday was today and he should get Stevie to sing to her. All he said was something along the lines of: "I'll show her your tweet, that's all I can do." She has been waiting on Twitter for HOURS for him to reply and let her know what Stevie said about her tweet. Okay. He never said that he would tweet anything to her. She just assumed this. So there she sits, tweeting away about all of her fantasies involving Stevie pulling her up on stage to sing to her, or calling her on the phone to sing to her, and how she's getting impatient waiting for Dave to tweet her back, and I just feel sorry for this girl. I mean, I can be pretty obsessive about my celebs, but this is just ridiculous. But hey, I guess at least it's a good thing that she doesn't have a job, because she might lose it being on Twitter constantly for the past seven hours.

Shirley MacLaine

I watched the film The Apartment on Sunday night. It was the first time I had ever seen it. I am a big Shirley MacLaine fan, and have been ever since I developed a girl crush on her in middle school. I know (and adore) Shirley as the incarnation-believing wacktress that she has been for the last thirty years or so, so it's nice to see her as the wide-eyed ingenue. Her performance in this film was spectacular and really displays the range of her talents all together. Of course, she's also a decent singer/dancer, but as far as her acting talents go, nothing shows her range quite like this movie. It was also really interesting to see Fred MacMurray as sort of the bad guy. The utter sexuality of the movie was the most shocking thing - men in the corporate world openly portrayed as having sexual affairs. Obviously this thing had been alluded to before, but we may as well have been viewing blatant sex scenes it was all so obvious. I loved the dialogue, and the relationships between the characters really developed throughout the course of the movie without it seeming contrived or rushed. Despite his sunny disposition, it's clear from the beginning that Jack Lemmon's character is truly sad within. You want him to succeed and be happy, but yet you feel as embarrassed as he does for the way that this success unfolds. We know he's better than that and he knows he's better than that, but it seems he just doesn't know how to stand out any other way.

Okay, I'm sort of babbling about the movie at this point, but I did really love it and encourage any one to see it, if you can stand watching black and white film. (This movie wouldn't have been right in color; it would have been too distracting.) All this post has really done has kept me from being completely bored for the last ten minutes or so, and it reminded me how fascinating I find Shirley MacLaine and how I need to watch another one of her movies very soon. I may do a Terms of Endearment/The Evening Star marathon if my tear ducts can handle it.

Which reminds me, Shirley MacLaine is the first woman over the age of 60 that I recognized as sexy. Many of my other "loves" have caught up to her now, age-wise, but I loved her as an older woman before I ever saw her work in her younger days.

I like men, I swear I do.

Lindsanity

Considering I have been at work all day, I am slightly embarrassed to admit I have spent the majority of my day watching the Lindsay Lohan court hearing. I have always gotten sucked into real-life crime dramas easily, and actually this is the most minor offense I have ever found this much intrigue in. Of course, that being said, I have never watched any court action go down as it was occurring. There was the Simpson trial that EVERYONE watched, but I was very little when that happened, so even though I saw parts of it, I didn't fully understand what was going on or why it was so important.

I probably watched about 85% of the hearing, maybe slightly more. I did have work to do from time to time, but even when I wasn't watching I was listening. To be honest, I was surprised by the judge's decision. At the same time, I am glad. I think the only thing left that can save Lindsay from herself is the sentence she received. Of course, I realize it's unlikely she'll spend the full 90 days in jail, but I can hope, can't I?

I know it's ridiculous that I even care, but I kind of feel like I grew up with Lindsay and I want her to do well and succeed, and be healthy while doing so. She's in a downward spiral and I sincerely hope rehab will help her. I don't want her to end up like Anna Nicole.

Vicious Cycle

Teeth gnashing,
palms sweating,
the rage takes over.
Loneliness,
fear,
betrayal.
My feelings are useless,
ignored.
Why not me?
Why this?
Why now?
Questions repeating over
and over
in my head.
Loss of control
and lack of self-control
bring me to this point.
Then a kiss,
a reassurance.
Beautiful, loving.
Three words that still
make my heart stop,
even after everything else.
When will it end?
Before I'm ready,
but after it needs to.
And so we are here again.

Oh honey, no.

End of Days

A couple of quotes from Perez Hilton's website today:

(regarding a prop arm from the 1984 movie Terminator) "It's from the private collection of Shay Austin of Los Angeles who was an assistant art director on the movie, and she's kept it for over a quarter-century. No one was saving props for their future value as memorabilia in those days, and that's why original items from this classic film are so hard to find."

"Though most people know Steven Martin as an actor,best known for his role opposite Queen Latifah in Bringing Down The House, he actually is also a musician with a band called Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers."

Granted, the first quote was not from Perez himself, but what kind of world am I living in where Terminator is considered a classic film and Steve Martin's most famous for Bringing Down the House?! Is this a life even worth living?!

Mike

Anyone in Lexington, or at least any woman, should have heard of "Mike". His phone number is posted in restrooms all over town. I decided some time ago to create a map of locations in Lexington in which I have seen Mike's number. This will be accompanied by pictures as well. I have been really slacking on doing this, because my friend Meagan and I actually decided to do this back at the beginning of the year when we were having coffee after a snowstorm. But here is the beginning of it now, and hopefully this weekend I'll be able to add a few more sites to the map and get some pictures posted as well. The pictures will either be on this blog or a separate one. I'll decide that later on. But anyway...


View Mike in a larger map