Happy Birthday to Me OR Another Year Older

Song Lyric of the Day:

Time to redifine me / Let the word out / I’ve got to get out / Whoa, I’m feeling better now

Collective Soul / “Better Now”

11:41AM.
Well, I’m a year older today. Yay.

I still have a sleep hangover from going to bed around 2 last night since Rich and I were out late. Jonathan had a little movie/birthday get together at his and Curry’s house (she’s out of town right now). Finley and Suzanne were there, as were Benjamin and Shay. Brent drove in with Andy and Elizabeth, who we were happy to finally meet after hearing so much about them. We grilled out and watched “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” which I enjoyed more the second time around. Rich and I both caught things that somehow got past us when we saw it in a theater. Once Brent, Andy, and Elizabeth arrived, I cut into the delicious whipped-topping covered chocolate cake Jonathan had for the occasion; it was adorned with cherries, including cherry filling inside. Then we all kicked back and watched “Orange County,” which I’d never seen before. It was actually pretty funny. As an aspiring writer, I have to recommend it because of the plot alone. Colin Hanks plays Shaun Brumder, an aspiring writer who decides that the only way he can succeed is to leave his home in Orange County and attend Stanford. After his high school career counselor sends Stanford the wrong transcript, Shaun is denied admission. He and his girlfriend, Ashley (Schulyer Fisk) then hatch a plan to gain him admission. Needless to say, with a perpetually stoned brother, Lance, (Jack Black), lush mother (Catherine O’Hara), half-dead stepfather, and dim-bulb surfer buddies, their plan goes completely awry. The movie really kicked into high gear at this point. It only got crazier and funnier once Shaun, Ashley, and Lance hit the road to go to Stanford and personally get Shaun admitted. After all is said and done, Shaun realizes that being a great writer has nothing to do with where you are, as long as you know who and what inspires you. Personally, it motivated me to force myself to make the time to write more. Which is a very good thing.

Well, I’ve got to run some errands now. If I have time today, I’ll try to post a list about me which is completely, totally, and directly inspired by Stephanie Klein’s 100 Things About Me list on her blog, Greek Tragedy. See, I give credit where credit is due. I’m nice that way.

11:57PM.
Alright, here goes. This is a list of 100 things that give some insight into why I am who I am. I could probably come up with at least 100 more.

1. I can not fall asleep unless the sheet is pulled all the way up, covering my neck, due to a childhood fear of being bitten by a vampire while I slept.
2. I will get rid of my broken-in, ratty, 18-year-old black sweatshirt when Rich gets rid of his 20+ year old pillow.
3. If I could have chosen, I’d have straight black hair and emerald green eyes.
4. I want bigger boobs but don’t believe in getting implants.
5. I will never, ever get tired of watching “When Harry Met Sally.” I can act it out in my sleep. I am Sally.
6. I am convinced Rich is my soulmate. No one has ever known me better.
7. I wish I had more time to read.
8. I should be in Los Angeles or New York so I could work in the entertainment industry.
9. I had lunch with David Prowse, the actor in Darth Vader’s suit in the original Star Wars movies, at a Japanese steakhouse and have a picture of me sitting on his lap.
10. I always did well in math in school.
11. I wanted to major in photography when I started college, but it wasn’t offered at the time. So I went with English.
12. If I were in college now, I would major in criminology, probably forensics.
13. I want to take an acting class.
14. I want to learn how to fence.
15. I love my cats even though I hate that they are destructive.
16. I wish I could save all pit bulls.
17. I have acted in two television shows and in one movie.
18. I love survival horror video games even though they scare the cr@p out of me.
19. I’m glad I lived alone for a while before I got married.
20. My secret single behavior (SSB) was soaking in the tub with the door open and disco music blaring.
21. I just don’t like ice cream all that much.
22. I am convinced the Samoa Girl Scout cookies have heroin in them based on how many boxes I consume each year.
23. I’ve gained 20 pounds since my wedding day 5 years ago, and I’m at the healthiest weight I’ve ever been even though I’ve never had an eating disorder.
24. Fried anything is my comfort food.
25. I wish I had half of Rich’s artistic talent. I can barely draw.
26. I am a good photographer, especially nature photography.
27. I don’t get fevers when I’m sick; I get cold instead.
28. I want to try sushi again someday, but just can’t psyche myself up to do it.
29. After seeing it dozens of times, the ending of “The Shawshank Redemption” still makes me cry every time.
30. I am deeply loyal to my family and friends.
31. I am proud of the adults my younger sisters have become. I like to think I was a halfway decent role model.
32. My biggest regret in life is not getting to know either of my grandfathers.
33. I took French in high school even though I am Puerto Rican and speak Spanish.
34. I love that I found a straight man who doesn’t follow sports.
35. I still think about my ex-best friend almost every day.
36. I love when I’m in New York City and can pop into any pizzeria and know it will be good.
37. It makes me sad that there will never be any more new episodes of “Sex and the City.”
38. I have faith I will be a paid writer before this year is over.
39. I do not trust myself to ever get a Target credit card.
40. I heard my dog, Spot, bark the day after he died. One single bark.
41. I am grateful for my years in Virginia because of all the wonderful friends I made.
42. I wish I had straight hair.
43. If I could have played any role in any movie or TV show, I’d pick Tea Leoni’s character in “Flirting with Disaster.”
44. When I don’t like someone, they know it. Life’s too short to pretend I do.
45. I am a great listener.
46. I am drawn like a moth to a flame to chick flicks, even though I know exactly how they will play out.
47. I love seeing my friends be great parents to their kids but I am nowhere near being ready to have a kid of my own.
48. I love when my pit bull, Caleb, puts his head in the crook of my neck for a hug.
49. I would kill anyone who laid one hand on either of my sisters.
50. I go nuts when the checkbook is even one penny off. I obsess until I find it.
51. Other movies I will never, ever get tired of: “So I Married an Ax Murderer,” “Young Frankenstein,” “Clue,” and “The Princess Bride.”
52. I would make a terrific infotainment reporter thanks to my head for TV and movie knowledge. Or, as Rich calls it, my useless gift.
53. I can finish an online crossword puzzle in under 3 minutes.
54. I will usually pick Twix over other candy bars. Kit Kat is a very close second.
55. If I were ever to own a business, I’d want to run the children’s bookstore in “You’ve Got Mail.”
56. I can only drink chocolate milk. Plain milk makes me sick.
57. I am a good cook. It’s cleaning up afterwards that I hate.
58. David Sedaris’ writing makes me laugh out loud.
59. The literary character I relate the most to is Stephanie Plum in Janet Evanovich’s books. I, too, can be lured home with food.
60. I want to visit Spain and Egypt.
61. This time next year, Rich and I will have visited Rio de Janeiro.
62. I hate flying, but have accepted that it is much easier than driving.
63. My friends Jonathan and Curry inspire me to do more for the community.
64. My grandmother thought I was too young to go to my grandfather’s funeral, then she, too, died only 4 months later.
65. I have never done any drugs or even smoked a cigarette. Of any kind.
66. I pay close attention to how much alcohol I drink at any given time on account of my family history.
67. I hate feet. They are for walking and running, end of story.
68. I vividly remember my pediatrician’s office as a prison thanks to the doorknob at the top of the exam room door that I was too small to reach.
69. I hate coffee and feel left out sometimes because I don’t drink it.
70. I like to eat potato chips with ketchup.
71. My friends are all afraid to play my “Simpsons” trivia game against me because they know I’ll win.
72. I can relate everything in life back to “The Simpsons.”
73. I like eating tuna out of the can, which grosses everyone out.
74. I think I would have to be drunk to try karaoke.
75. I didn’t find out until he died that John Ritter, who I adored, had the same birthday as me.
76. I am ¾ Puerto Rican and ¼ Mexican, Manhattan-born.
77. My normal walking speed helps me fit right in on the streets of New York City.
78. I wish that I could have seen New Orleans before.
79. I hate beer. It all tastes exactly the same to me.
80. I found out last year that I’m better at camping than I expected to be.
81. Nothing is more fun than watching a horror movie with my sisters during a sleepover.
82. “Mr. Wrong” was the only movie I couldn’t finish. Then I saw “After Hours,” which I also couldn’t finish.
83. I met “Weird” Al Yankovic and impressed him with how I used to scare my sisters by playing his song “Nature Trail to Hell.”
84. I always pick up after myself after a movie since I worked in a theater for years and know how awful it is picking up after strangers.
85. I made it through all of college without once drinking alcohol. I didn’t try drinking until I was 24.
86. I hate change in my wallet.
87. The only time I actively watch sports is when the New York Yankees make it to the World Series.
88. My youngest cat, Yum Yum, always meows in response to anything I say to him.
89. I would be perfectly happy doing nothing but watching movies and TV, and reading books.
90. I totally relate to Winona Ryder’s line in “Beetlejuice,” “I myself am strange and unusual.”
91. Every male celebrity I find attractive has dark hair and dark eyes. The Brad Pitts of the world do absolutely nothing for me.
92. In the wintertime, I love wearing warm clothes straight out of the dryer.
93. I will myself not to sweat because I don’t like to.
94. Someday I want to be able to afford to buy a pair of Manolo Blahnik or Jimmy Choo shoes. I don’t know if I’d actually buy them, though.
95. I’d rather buy lingerie from Frederick’s of Hollywood than Victoria’s Secret.
96. I love that my husband also loves shopping at Kohl’s. I’ll take what I can get.
97. My boss at my first real job spoiled me rotten. We’re still friends.
98. I love sharks. My favorite movie as a kid was “Jaws.”
99. Over the years, I have been told I look like Alyssa Milano, Julia Roberts, and Julia Louis-Dreyfuss. I don’t look like any of them.
100. I don’t believe in self help books. I enjoyed actual therapy instead.