Buffy: Does it ever get easy?

Giles: You mean life?
Buffy: Yeah. Does it get easy?
Giles: What do you want me to say?
Buffy: Lie to me.
Giles: Yes, it's terribly simple. The good guys are always stalwart and true, the bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats, and, uh, we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies, and everybody lives happily ever after.
Buffy: Liar.

Ah, Buffy. Thanks for being so kick-ass. I slayed some (figurative) vampires today. It wasn't easy, but it was awesome. Speaking of chicks who kick ass...

I have been listening to "Queens of Noise" nonstop and can't wait to see the movie The Runways!! It's a really simple song, but it's the attitude I can't get enough of.

I also can't get enough of this...

That's right, friends—I've gone electric! If anything is ever really annoying you, the best way to vent your frustrations is to crank up the volume on your electric guitar, turn on some weird-ass distortion, and make all the screamy sounds you wish you could make yourself. MAN is that theraputic!

Funny Face

HOW did it take me 26 years to see this film? Magazine editors? Greenwich Village used-book shops? Trip to Paris?Singing and dancing??

This is what our friend Sam calls "Beth catnip."

Another good film choice I made this week: The original Fame. I had never seen that either. Also enjoyed the snot out of that one.

But I *must* stop staying up so late to watch movies! I can't resist these days. I seem to need the separation from the day, and the day ends later than usual lately. We have this nifty device that allows us to stream Netflix rentals through the TV...this is bound to be the death of me!

Brooklyn

Happy St. Patrick's Day! How appropriate that I finished Colm Tóibín's Brooklyn today. It's about a girl named Eilis who leaves her family in Enniscorthy, Ireland to find work in Brooklyn. It's set in a post-WWII era—the description of Eilis's boat journey to America will certainly stay with me for a while.

I have been reading this book in small doses because I was afraid of racing through it and having it be over. I finished the last page of this book on the train today and wanted to immediately start over.

(I was also thrilled last weekend to see the author chat a bit about Jane Austen in a film shown at the Morgan Library, the precursor to an exhibit showcasing Austen's letters, manuscripts, etc.)

Stuff I don't do anymore

26 feels like a weird age. I feel like time is flying by. I started to think about stuff I haven't been doing these days:

1) Blog. Indeed, I have been remiss.

2) Clean my house. I was feeling like I was prioritizing a clean house a little *too* much, when I could be using the time to either do fun things and relax or take steps toward bigger goals. There is a certain amount of messiness I am OK with (and indeed, I want to maintain this, because I don't want to someday be *that* mom who freaks out over every little crumb or finger-paint accident). But with how little I've been truly "at home" these days, the apartment has been acting as a crash-pad—a very dusty one, at that! Today I finally snapped and had to start cleaning crazily. I really do feel the best when home feels like home—and when I get to be at home a lot!

3) Go to the gym. Work has been in explosion mode and I have made it to the gym about 2 or 3 times in the last month. I've been trying to jam in some Wii Fit when I can to make up for the lack of physical activity!

Whew. Planning on getting a lot done this week, and am going to use tonight to rest up. Then I'm off to see my family this weekend!

Computer skills

I think I need some computer skills so I can work in IT. Those guys are funny. Sighted: Poster of the "happy" bunny ("hey, you made me throw up a little"), bottle of Lemon Pledge, remote-controlled race cars, poster of Muppet hanging his head in front of a computer. Good times.