My Favorite Things of 2008

10. iPhone. I’ve only had this thing for a week and I’m already addicted. If you see me walking down the street, you probably won't even get eye contact from me because I'll be too busy with my iPhone. Yet another way to alienate myself from the world. Sign me up!

9. Olive Snook on Pushing Daisies. I know I’m supposed to root for Chuck and Ned, I know it. They are absolutely great together…but Olive just steals the show for me. Her unrequited love for Ned is sad but she remains spunky and adorable and man-o-man, Itty-Bitty sure can sing! I wish I could go back in time to when she was on Wicked so that I could watch her perform. Here goes my most favorite Pushing Daisies/Olive Snook moment from this year:



8. The arrival of Sprinkles Cupcakes in Scottsdale. The famous Sprinkles cupcakes from LA opened its doors in AZ this year and I was more than happy about that. Ok, so I’m a total cupcake snob, whatever. These babies are delicious! I still think I like NYC’s Magnolia Bakery Cupcakes better but let’s just say that Sprinkles has gotten quite a few visits from the Miller household in the few months that it’s been open. Added Bonus: My sister’s mother in law is a baker there so every once in awhile my sis will show up at our house with a box full of cupcakes!

My favorite: Red Velvet with Cream Cheese Frosting.



7. Slumdog Millionaire. Easily the best movie I've seen this year. In short, it's about a kid from the Indian slums who goes on India's Who Wants to be a Millionare. The authorities think he cheated, because, come on, there's no way a kid from the slums can know all the answers. The movie takes you through the kid's life and shows you how all those questions/answers played a role in his life. It is also a very endearing love story. The story is very well told, the movie very beautifully shot and the music was great. There wasn't a moment where you got bored of the movie. Go watch it.


6. Michael Kors Amherst Shoulder Tote. Raise your hand if you are a purse whore (*raises hand*). It was love at first sight. Well, more like love at first touch. Let me tell you, the leather on this bag feels like buttah. Yeah, the bag is big but that just means more space. The other day when it rained, do you think I got soaked walking from my car to work? Nope. And you know why? Because I had my umbrella in my purse. Yup. There's plenty of room in there for necessities like umbrellas. Plus look at how cute it is! It has the strap for you to carry it on your forearm and another strap in case you want to carry it on your shoulder. How handy and fashionable is that, right?! I have the black one. Love it!


5. Death Cab for Cutie Concert in Mesa. I just don’t think there’s anything more adorable to me than hearing/seeing Matt sing “Soul Meets Body”. There just isn’t. Matt and I had so much fun at this concert over the summer that we decided to trek it out to Tucson for another DCFC concert in early December. Good times.



4. Jim and Pam getting engaged! Nuff said.


3. Cruise to St. John, St. Thomas and the Bahamas. We weren’t just beach bums on this cruise. We actually hiked quite a bit, did some snorkeling and just relaxed. We also got to spend it with Mark and Tima. No, we didn't win $2k in this cruise like last time. That's the only reason this got bumped down to #3.

2. Meeting and working with John Krasinski! Come on. You knew this was going to be on the list, right? So, I didn’t write about it on our blog but I know you heard me talking about it. I got to spend almost a week with the guy… A WEEK! OK, so I didn’t spend the whole week with him, but I did make him laugh and I got a hello from him before he “met me” met me when I was just an extra. But that last day where I got to be a stand-in and really met him…A-W-E (clap-clap) S-O-M-E! We talked basketball and he high-fived me. He high-fived me, y’all! Yeah, he’s totally my sancho, now. A girl can dream, right? I still get goosebumps whenever I look at that picture. Such a sweet, nice, funny and hubba-hubba aooogah kind of guy.



1. Our trip to NYC. Seriously, why didn’t we go to NYC during our senior year in college? We all would have gone and fallen in love with it, like we did this time. The four of us could have gone to grad school at NYU or Columbia and we could have all bunked in a cute little brownstone in Greenwich Village or SoHo or maybe lived in Brooklyn and been Mindy Kaling's neighbors. Sigh. Ah well, hopefully we can get up there again this upcoming year and spend another week up there and do less sightseeing and more shopping and relaxing…and eating of course.

Day One

Day Two

Day Three

Day Four

I can’t wait to see what 2009 has in store for us! I hope you all have a great year!


Happy New Year!

Dude, I SO called it!!!

You remember my TV blog way back in Sept? Remember when I said the dude who attacked Brooke is going to be related to the new girl in Haley's class on One Tree Hill? Remember how I said the attacker would also be connected to Q's death, as in, he was the killer? Remember how I said it would be money? M-O-N-E-Y, baby! Make it RAIN! Well, mostly money, not quite a torrential downpour. But close! The girl in Haley's class turned out to be Sam, Brooke's future foster kid. And as of tonight we finally know the connection between all of them! She got mad that Brooke caught her shoplifting, said something to one of her friends, who in turn had his brother, Q's killer, attack Brooke in revenge! I know, money, right?! :D Just had to mention that. Oh, and how weird/freakin' cool was it to see former WB/CW icon Dawson Leery playing none other than a coke-snorting film producer trying to produce Lucas' film?! Also freakin' cool? He "knows" a thing or two about best friends ending up together. Ha! Except him and Joey didn't end up together, she ended up with Pacey. So...sound anything like the Lucas/Brooke/Peyton love triangle currently playing out on Dawson's Creek's former TV network? Does it make it too weird that they're filming OTH in the same city and on the same sound stage as DC? No? It kinda does to me. Especially since Chad Michael Murray, the aforementioned Lucas, played a guy named Charlie Todd on DC for 12 eps. Seriously, incest! Good, old-fashioned TV incest! In the nicest possible, most freakin' cool way! :) Hahahaha!

Grand Canyon

Last weekend was quite an adventure. Some friends of ours came in from out of town and we decided to go up to the Grand Canyon with them for the day. I am so glad we ended up going with them because we had a blast! Matt and I hadn’t been to the Grand Canyon since we were kids so it was nice to re-experience this together and with some friends.

Matt

Me

Some Badass Chicks

We took a shuttle that dropped us off at the different viewpoints. I was amazed at the fact that there wasn’t any railing at some of the viewpoints. It made me crazy nervous.

Matt freaking me out a little

My favorite pic. Doesn't this look like a portrait?

Yes, I'm holding on to the tree. What?!

We had a late lunch/early dinner at this lodge at the GC. Was it wise of us to have drinks while visiting the GC? Others might not think that’s safe, but you know what? We got back alive so yeah, it was safe. I think we were in the restaurant for a couple of hours and when we were done, the outside was all hazy. No, we weren’t drunk. It was snowing, you guys! It was crazy how it just all hit all of a sudden. It was actually really cool…cold, but really cool.

Lunch with second and third drinks at the lodge.

Snow! The wind was blowing so hard.

The Matt's covering their cold ears


Did I mention it was freezing?


Our view on our drive home

Tweet Me!

Hey guys! I've decided to join the twitter bandwagon. I just started today and am having fun with it. You can find my twitter updates on the right side of the blog. Also, if you wanna follow me on twitter and feel like you want to know about all of the exciting things that happen to me all day, like when I have something stuck in my shoe, just hop on and follow me on twitter. Come on! You know you wanna. Nothing like a little peer pressure to get you out there.

Walking on Air

I must tell you about my new favorite flip flops. They are the greatest! They are made by North Face. They're called Base Camp flip flops. As you can see below they have the egg crate soles and they massage your feet as you walk! They are SO comfortable! My feet generally ache, throb actually, whenever I wear flip flops for any length of time, but I wore these North Face flip flops all weekend long and I actually forgot I was wearing them! That's how comfortable they are. I will admit the first day or two was interesting as I broke them in, but ever since it's been like walking on air. The straps keep the bottoms close to your feet, like they're hugging your feet, and the toe thingy is made of soft cloth (as opposed to painful rigid plastic, one of my worst enemies), and they even have anatomic arch support. I got them in black but NF makes them in other colors like the white and yellow ones below. And they're not expensive, about the same price as Reefs, one of my two other favorite flip flops (the other being the Crocs version). You can find them wherever sandals like this are sold. I found mine at REI in Denver.

North Face Base Camp flip flops

Yogurtlicious

Have I told you guys about Pinkberry? I have a feeling that I’ve mentioned it before because I just love that place. Maybe I’m just falling for the bells and whistles and the fad that is Pinkberry but I just adore it. I miss it when I don’t have it and was pretty bummed that I could only get some berry in LA and NYC. Well, bum no more my friends! No, Pinkberry didn’t open in the Phoenix area…yet. But this other lovely Pinkberry wannabe called Yogurtlicious did. I’ll be the first to admit that I had my Pinkberry snob glasses on when I heard about this new place in town. I thought, “No way will this come close to filling my Pinkberry addiction”. Well guess what y’all? It kinda does. I mean, it’s no Pinkberry…but come, on. You couldn’t expect them to duplicate that awesomeness to the tee. It does come pretty darn close and serves as a great substitute until we get a berry of our own in town. Yogurtlicious had the tart froyo flavor that the berry uses as its signature and it has a lot of the fresh fruit that you can find at the berry. I didn’t see any kiwi but it had my favorites that I like to add to the froyo: mangos, strawberries and rasberries. Both Matt and I really liked it. You guys should definitely check it out. It has the Miller-Rodriguez stamp of approval!

Valley Locations:

Tramonto

3134 W. Carefree Hwy

Phoenix, AZ 85086

Laveen Pavillions

3424 W. Southern Ave

Phoenix, AZ 85041

StageCoach Village (Coming Soon!)

7033 N. Galloway

Cavecreek, AZ 85311

Walmart Neighborhood Market (Coming Soon!)

25155 N. 67th Ave

Phoenix, AZ 85301

The Office is baaaack! Every pot has a lid…even cracked pots.

There is no way in this world that I could be happier, right now. I’m serious. My show is back and whoa did it come back?! Just everything about tonight’s episode was great but could I have doubted it? I mean it WAS written by Gene and Lee, my favorite writing group on The Office. And yes folks, everything in the world is right, today. Jim and Pam are engaged! One of my most favorite things about this show is that it is a comedy that isn’t afraid to put emotion into its episodes. It has so much heart. It makes you feel for these people. When they have a momentous occasion, WE have a momentous occasion. I won’t lie to you, I’m still crying as I type this. Such a simple proposal and it still kicked Beesly’s (and our) ass like Jim said it would. Thank you Jenna Fischer and John Krasinski for playing these characters the way you guys do.

Finally! I LOVE love.

And then we have Michael and Holly. Are they the new Jim and Pam? I won’t mind if they are. I love Holly Flax so much and Amy Ryan plays her so well. That scene where Jim says she’s a dork and then they cut to Holly and Michael rapping was one of my highlights of tonight. I’m going to copy a quote that Amy said herself, “Every pot has a lid…even cracked pots.” Yes, Michael, there is someone out there for you. You better play this right, son! I can't say enough that love what they do with the relationships on this show.


Angerella-ella-ella-ella-ay. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Little miss judgmental is being very naughty. God is not going to like that, Half Pint. What are you doing to poor Andy? I mean, don’t get me wrong. I always thought her and Dwight were made for each other but why does she have to drag Andy into this? Just break up with him already. Poor guy. My heart broke for him when he told her that he didn’t care where they got married as long as he was with her. Andy, you should “take a chance” on somebody else.

There’s so much other great stuff and hilarious moments that happened in this episode but I’ve only seen it once. I haven't even gone over the hilarious parts. Kelly killed it as did Oscar. They rocked my world. Maybe I’ll update after the second viewing. But for now, I leave you guys with this:


Jim and Pam are engaged, y’all!!! (Look at that proposal and that kiss! So perfect. I'm scared to admit how many times I've seen that clip.)

Gene and Lee, I beer you five for this episode!

So, what were your guys' favorite moments?

Whoops, not so fast FireD Guy. First deleted scene is up!

Heeeeere's Premiere Week!

It's here! It's finally here! I love this time of year. I look forward to it every year. It's like Christmas in July...except in September. We finally get to find out what really happened on all of our favorite TV shows, you know, all those cliffhanger season finales, or not. Like, who shot Horatio Caine or will Warrick live or die or who was in the ambulance (or SUV) that exploded? You know, back in the day, before the lightning fast 24/7 speed of the Internet, we just had to make due with 3 months of questions with unknown answers and wonder and wonder and wonder. Unless of course you lived in LA (or NYC) and read the trade magazines and knew which main players were going where. Which I didn't. And didn't. And didn't, again. So I've tried really hard this summer to read only quasi-spoilers, the ones that get you excited but don't tell you much of anything, so that I couldn't be spoiled by opening all my presents before Christmas morning. I've stayed away from any and all Lost spoilers, and most of The Office spoilers (although The Office has been particularly hard because, well, of Eunice, lol), and I've read some others and know a few details about other shows but really don't know the how and the why. And this year I'd like to keep it that way. This is why this season, far more than in recent past seasons, feels so much more like Christmas, because I truly don't know all the answers, or even all the questions. So, now, I'd like to give a run down of my favorite TV shows and give a final season shout out to ER, my favorite show. Of. All. Time. EVER. It's so sad this show is leaving the air but I would love it if the whole gang got back together somehow to reminisce about the good ol' days. It's hard to believe it's survived to reach it's 15th and final season!

And so it begins, Premiere Week 2008!


Monday's shows...
Terminator - No comment actually. Just an interesting show. Save John Conner. Save the world.

Big Bang Theory - A nerdy comedy that is downright hilarious. And I'm such a nerdy nerd I actually understand all the scientific mumbo jumbo lingo that gets spewed around like it's going out of style.

Chuck - This show, among many others, had the unlucky luck of being a brand new show skunked by the writer's strike. It doesn't start until next week but I do hope all is well at Buy More, and if not then Chuck will save the day and make us fall in love with him all over again.

One Tree Hill - This is my one really guilty pleasure of the week. I can't wait to see how the gang handles all the Tree Hill drama and it's been a doozy of a season so far! I'm betting the person who attacked Brooke is the same person who killed Q and is related to the new student in Hayley's class. Who wants to take me up on that bet? It's money, baby.

CSI: Miami - Ah, tonight we might finally find out who shot Horatio Caine! My bet is that it was all a set up to save the innocent, a trap that backfired in the face of those who really did want him dead by gunshot. Although I have no proof I think Ryan may be involved, and not in a good way! Plus, I can't wait to see Calleigh and Eric finally get it on! :) Seriously, writers, get that going already! I did NOT like seeing Jake swoop in for a kiss in the previews. At all. :(


Tuesday's shows...
90210 - I only watched the final season of the original version, but I must say I like this show. It's cute and fun to watch.

Lincoln Heights - I realize this show is meant for tweens and young teens, but I used to have a thing for Russell Hornsby so I watch it just to see his face. :)


Wednesday's shows...
Criminal Minds - Shemar Moore isn't the only reason I watch this show, but he is the nicest to look at. The cliffhanger finale, the misleading previews, and the news of a possibly unhappy cast member skunk the viewers into believing a major cast members was inside the exploding SUV. I'm betting the person who bites the dust is a minor guest character. I hate it when shows do this! Seriously, if you want to grab the fans and suck them in forever, follow Lost's lead and flash forward without anyone actually knowing it. Or move the freakin' island. Otherwise, don't crap out and kill a guest star that wasn't going to appear in any more episodes anyway. Ugh.

CSI: NY - I like this CSI spinoff the least of the 3 CSI shows but I watch it anyway. I can't remember what actually happened in the finale though. The CSI series all know how to parade the eye candy around. Plus, like the others, science is involved and I'm a nerd like that.

Private Practice - Taye Diggs. Enough said. LOL. But seriously, I would have watched anyway because I love Addison Montgomery and wish she had never left Seattle Grace. But I do like where she ended up. Between Taye Diggs, the former Piz Piznarski, and the former Amy Gray, what's not to love?!

Dirty Sexy Money - Probably my other guilty pleasure topped not with cherries but with Blair Underwood. Are you starting to see a pattern here? :) Talk about high falutin' hijinks! Oh and also Peter Krause is back on TV and he will forever be on my radar after starring in one of my favorite shows...Sports Night. What? Did you think I was going to say Six Feet Under?! Ha! But that show too. :)

Lipstick Jungle - Brooke Shields, Kim Zambrano, and Mrs. Steve Sanders. Those 3 alone are enough to make me tune in. Except I didn't. But now that 2-time NBAE League MVP James Lesure is joining the cast I won't have an excuse. If Las Vegas had to go to the big TV heaven in the sky, with an unresolved cliffhanger for a finale I might add (GRRRR!), I'm glad James was able to land in the Jungle. But only as long as he can reprise his flash forward role on Lost at the same time.


Thursday's shows...always must see TV for me
Ugly Betty - Did Betty choose Henry or Gio? Did she move to Arizona or travel to Italy? Me? I'm hoping neither. I love Henry for Betty but he's got baby mama drama now and although I've liked Freddy Rodriguez since SFU I'm not a fan of his character Gio. Nobody does a villainous diva better than Vanessa Williams, plus she can sing with the best of them. I'm so glad she's on TV!

Grey's Anatomy - Meredith FINALLY chose Derek! For real! And I'd give anything to be with someone who'd do something so romantic as to outline our future house in candles on the top of a hill overlooking one of the most beautiful cities on Earth. I'm McDreamin' about MerDer but Bailey is the heart of the show.

CSI - I can't believe the Undersheriff shot Warrick! I can't believe Grissom finds him (he left the restaurant forever ago)! I can't believe Sara comes back! For 1 episode at least. And although I've read enough spoilers to unfortunately know Warrick's final end I do not know if they catch the Undersheriff in the premiere or if it's a multi-episode arc to find the killer. I guess the dreams of Catherine and Warrick sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G, won't come to pass. That's such a bummer but truthfully not as much as a bullet to the neck at point blank range. Yikes.

Flashpoint - Another Veronica Mars vet is back on TV. Enrico Colantoni makes the show what it is and I hope it gets picked up for a full season. CBS can never do without enough hour-long crime dramas!

The Office - I think Eunice has this one covered for me. :)

ER - I just can't say enough about this show. I'll post another blog before Thursday's premiere.


Friday's shows...
The Game - a sports-related show with some very nice looking eye candy. Yup, right up my alley. :)


Sunday's shows...
Brothers & Sisters - I love the Walker clan. Sally Field is awesome. Ron Rifkin will always be the evil Mr. Sloane (from my 2nd favorite show of all time, Alias). This show pulls actors and actresses from Six Feet Under, Everwood, West Wing, ER, Alias, Over There, Wings, Reunion, etc. It's a who's who of former TV and I LOVE it!

Army Wives - A good show, one of my faves since it airs during the TV offseason.


Other shows to air starting midseason - 24, Psych, The Closer, Friday Night Lights (seriously, how can you not like this show?!), My Boys, Law & Order (I think I lost interest when Jesse L. Martin departed last season, but we'll see), Lost (I'll leave this one to Eunice too, she got me hooked on it anyway), In Plain Sight

Emmy Shmemmys

No, I'm not bitter that my show got none...none awards (insert sarcastic emoticon). Whatevs. The best show on tv continues to be legendary and I can't wait until the premiere in...wait for it...four days!

Whoever (whomever?) decided that it would be wise to have five reality tv hosts be the hosts of the Emmys are idiots. These people suuuuucked. There was only one ray of sunshine in this whole show and it involved two of my comedy heroes:


Ricky Gervais and Steve Carell at the 2008 Emmys

I love Steve playing the angry man. Ricky or Steve should have hosted this year. These two were funnier in these three minutes than all the others were in the whole show. Does that surprise me? No. Especially since Steve and Gervais, or Gervais' absence from last year's show rather, were the best part of that Emmys.

Before I forget...this next clip was also a highlight of the Emmys for me. Come on! You didn't think I WASN'T going to post John's clip, right? I thought you guys knew me better. This is from the part in the Emmys where actors where saying their favorite memorable quotes.



If I close my eyes really tight, I can pretend he's saying it to me.

Wiki-wiki-wiki-wha?

I am giddy beyond belief that we got not one, but TWO new Office promos tonight. I missed them but fortunately, I have a great friend who sent them my way (Thanks A!). Here they are for you all:

Promo 1

Promo 2

Wow, it looks like Michael and Holly (Molly? Milly? Hochael? Sklax? Flott? I still don't know what their couple moniker should be) are going to be competing against Jim and Pam for my heart. I even think I got a little girl crush on Holly after that "wiki-wiki-wiki-wha?"...I'm not gay. Ah, who am I kidding! I watched the JAM kiss in that second one about twenty times.

Season 5, here we come!

Ghost Town

Dave, Andrea, Matt and I got to go watch an advanced screening of Ghost Town on Tuesday It stars Ricky Gervais, Tia Leoni and Greg Kinnear. I won’t go into detail on the movie’s plot. You can go to it’s imdb page if you want to read about it. I will say that Ricky Gervais and the other actors did a great job in this movie (and no, I’m not biased because I hero worship Gervais). It’s funny, sweet and it just reels you in. It has this quality to it that makes both men and women like the movie. Kristen Wiig also has some hilarious scenes in the movie. So, what you guys need to do is wait for it to come out next weekend (September 19th), then get into your cars and drive to the movie theatre to watch it. Do it! Do it! 3-2-1…5-4-3-2-1. Do it! Do it! Go watch this movie. STAT…STAT means now! Is that a little overboard? Sorry, but seriously check it out.

I Bleed Gold!

You know what I’m excited about, right now? ASU Football. Matt and I got season tickets and he did a pretty good job. We are on the 40th yard line about 15 rows up. The devils are supposed to be good this year. I’m just going to keep my fingers crossed that they don’t screw the pooch! Bring on Georgia!

View from our seats

Go Devils!

My New Hero

I have thought about two things recently. Heroes and the greatest athletes of all time. I have never been one to have heroes. I often have wondered if anyone, including my own family, will ever become a hero to me (although truthfully I have added my parents to the list so I have at least 2 heroes). But I can finally say there is now someone else I can call a hero. I have also wondered if during my lifetime I would see the greatest athletes ever in their respective sports. We live in the golden age of sports, able to experience so many amazing feats in so many different arenas, courts, tracks, fields, and pools. I was not alive to watch Ali or Pele and there are too many great baseball and football players to even attempt to name the greatest ever. We are currently in the midst of figuring out if Tiger Woods is or will become the greatest golfer of all time and nobody can dispute that Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time. Luckily I was born at a time to be old enough to watch Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan compete at their highest levels, and old enough to appreciate the significance of the USA Dream Team in the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, the greatest collection of basketball players ever on one team. In an era where we have to differentiate between eras (Modern Era, Steroid Era, etc) I wonder if we're witnessing history in any era. With these 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing I have to wonder if we're witnessing the greatest swimmer of all time take aim at the world one race at a time and blow them out of the water (no pun intended).

He's not Superman, he doesn't go and save the world, he's simply a swimmer. Although to call Michael Phelps just a swimmer would be an injustice of epic proportions. The Olympics are fun and exciting and there is no other sporting event in the world where everyone is invited and everyone can compete and have a chance at storied glory and delirious defeat. Michael Phelps came into these Olympic Games hoping to match and maybe surpass fellow American swimmer Mark Spitz and win 7 (or even 8) gold medals in single Olympic Games. A few days ago Phelps surpassed the most successful Olympians of all time and earned his 10th gold medal. And tonight, after winning his 13th gold medal overall and 7th of these Games, he became my hero. I've never really been a Michael Phelps fan but I was never NOT one one either. I just said "eh, good for him" and moved on with my life. But I will admit after watching him tonight I've become a Phelps Phan for life. No worries, as a "Phelps Phan" I have no interest in finding out who he's dating or imitating his eating habits, but I will forever root for him from now on. I am no longer a sideline spectator when he swims. What he did tonight was just amazing. It was hard to get excited before tonight because if you remember Phelps has already won 6 gold medals before (along with 2 bronze). He did it 4 years ago in Athens. Until tonight all he'd done was repeat what he'd done 4 years ago. Until tonight he was merely mortal. But tonight he made history and won his 7th gold medal in the most exciting fashion possible, beating Milorad Cavic by a mere 0.01 seconds, the closest a race can possibly be! True, Mark Spitz still trumps Phelps because Spitz had 7 world records to go with his 7 gold medals and Phelps only managed an Olympic record tonight. But still, with one more win tomorrow in the 4 x 100 medley relay, Phelps can become the most successful Olympian in a single Olympic Games with 8 gold medals. He's already become the most successful Olympian of all time, now standing 4 gold medals above the previous group of most successful. Tomorrow he has a chance to earn his 14th gold and his 16th medal overall. The most amazing thing in all of this? It's not the totally unfathomable come from behind win in the 4 x 100 freestyle relay (thanks Jason Lezak), or the 0.01 second difference in the 100m butterfly tonight. No, the most amazing thing is the fact that tomorrow he can 1 up himself (as if that's possible). And four years from now in London at the 2012 Olympic Games he can add to his medal haul and make even more history.

UPDATE: The USA Men's 4 x 100m medley relay team won the gold medal in world record time on Sunday in Beijing, meaning Michael Phelps won his 8th gold medal of these Olympic Games. He surpassed Mark Spitz in total number of gold medals in a single Olympic Games and tied Spitz with 7 world records (and 1 Olympic record) in a single Games. With his 14th gold medal he is the most successful Olympian of all time by an astonishing 5 gold medals. Phelps now has a total of 16 Olympic medals, breaking the previous male record for total Olympic medals (15) held by Russian gymnast Nikolai Andrianov. The all-time record for total Olympic medals (18) is held by female gymnast Larysa Latynina. Who's rooting for Phelps in London in 2012?! I am! ;)

Laura Mercier’s Flawless Face

Do you guys ever get those pimples on your face that you can’t see or feel but you know they are there because when you touch that area it hurts? I had one of those yesterday. I hate those little bitches! I woke up this morning and although I did not have a bump, I did have a red spot. Really? I’m 28 freaking years old. What the hell?

After my initial freak out, I remembered that I had no need to do that. I had a little something called Laura Mercier’s Flawless Face on my side. Now, I very rarely wear makeup other than mascara and some lipgloss, but when I was getting my makeup done for my wedding, I fell in love with this stuff. It really does wonders, especially their concealers and their foundation. It is kind of pricey but totally worth it when you are trying to hide something like, oh I don’t know, A PIMPLE.

Laura Mercier's Flawless Face

The Wire

Since there pretty much isn’t anything going on tv-wise over the summer (with the exclusion of So You Think You Can Dance and Project Runway-one of my faves), Matt and I took up watching The Wire. This is a show that we’ve been hearing so many good things about but just never got a chance to watch. Some of my favorite writer’s love this show, and well, I am a follower so I figured I’d watch it over the summer.



Without delving into the show much, The Wire is an HBO series that portrays both the Baltimore police unit and the lives of the people on the streets selling/doing drugs or committing other crimes. I like this show because you end up feeling for some of the dealers (not all of them, don’t worry. I won’t show up at your door trying to bust a cap in your ass) but I like how it shows the good in some of the “bad” people and the flaws in some of the" good" people. Also, any tv show that prompts Matt to send me a random email in the middle of the day with “YO STRING! WHERE’S WALLACE? WHERE’S WALLACE, STRING?” in the body gets my vote. We are currently a few episodes into season two. Amy Ryan is introduced in this season and I hear that the writers of The Office wrote the character of Holly specifically for her after seeing her on The Wire. (I loooove her on The Office, so thank you Wire for bringing a little Hollyday into our lives).

She said what?

This past weekend, my MIL wanted to go get her nails done, so I took her to the nail salon that was close to my house. Before I continue, let me just say that I’ve only ever had a mani/pedi done at Dolce Salon and Spa, which I adore…and yes, I know I like to spoil myself, sometimes. Sue me. Anyway, I was feeling girly, so I picked this really cute pink OPI nail polish which is a total 180° from the normal dark purple, almost black, OPI nail polish I usually use.

We sit down on the massage chairs and then the girls go off talking but I can’t understand a word they are saying. The whole time, my MIL is smiling and trying to hold her laughter in because they don’t know she can understand every word they are saying. I guess they didn’t think she looked Vietnamese or something. It turns out the girls were complaining about us…and we hadn’t even done anything! My girl was saying something about “Ugh, I have to take her nail polish off?!”…Uh, yeah. That’s your job, fool. Nothing really bad was said but they did talk about one thing or another about us the whole time we were there. I just found it hilarious that they had no idea that we, I mean my MIL, knew what they were saying.

They did an ok job but I didn’t get the same leg and hand massages that I get at Dolce and I actually understand what the people at Dolce are saying. It was cheap, so I have to give them that. The mani/pedi total for me and MIL together was less than just a pedi for one at Dolce. All things considered, I’d rather pay the Dolce price where at least they have the courtesy to wait until I leave to talk about me. Ignorance is bliss, as they say.

Waiting is the Hardest Part

I've been enjoying the Olympics a lot...a lot. I guess it somewhat has to do with some of the sports but what it really has to do with is that I'm getting my first glimpse of Office stuff for the new season. I know, I know another Office related post. It's nice to have your own blog, isn't it?

Am I the only one missing JAM? I don't think this next promo did anything to satisfy my Jim/Pam craving. Oh, how I miss my little couple. (Thanks chica for posting this!)




Also, did you guys catch Jim, Dwight and Andy playing the next Olympic sport called Slap-Face? Gah, how I miss these guys. I can't wait for September 25th.



Aren't the writers great? Ah, to be a fly on the wall.

Women be Shoppin’ : Century 21

One of my favorite things in NYC is a department store called Century 21. You all know I love to shop at Last Chance here in town. Century 21 is like Last Chance on steroids. It’s a discount department store that carries all kinds of cool designers. I wish I had all day to spend in the store, but alas, I had a hungry husband waiting for me outside. I bought a few Michael Kors tops and even scored some So Low yoga pants for only twenty something bucks! (note: you can imagine my giddiness when I came across an old blog where Mindy Kaling was gushing over these pants. I love her, so it would make sense we would love the same pants. Yet another reason why we should be BFFs. Also, she luurves not paying full price for stuff and all I have to say is ‘haha, I got them for only 20 bucks. Suck it.’ But she would laugh, wouldn’t take it personally and give me a high five for my find…because that’s how I roll).

I think my major finds were in the shoe department. I bought these super-adorable Stuart Weitzman flats. I’m not one to be all Zsa-Zsa Gabor and wear leopard print dresses or anything but these shoes were too adorable to pass up. I think when paired with a solid colored dress or top with some skinny jeans, you can’t go wrong. I saw these shoes at the Saks Off Fifth Avenue at the Cabazon Outlets in Palm Springs and they had the retail price listed as $250 and the outlet price at $150. Guess what I paid for these? Go ahead, guess….$50! Great deal, if I do say so myself.

Stuart Weitzman ChitChat flats in snake. Mine are in leopard.

I also got these adorable black BCBG Max Azria flats. I know they’re similar to my black Michael Kors flats with the silver buckle but these have a gold buckle, y’all…totally different. I also saw these at the outlets priced the same as the Weitzman shoes, and again I scored these for $50. Suh-weet!

BCBG Max Azria flats

The last pair of shoes I bought were these sandals by Naughty Monkey. I love them because they are different and quirky and multicolored, so I can wear them with practically anything.

Naughty Monkey flats. I love the name.

If you guys go to NYC, don’t forget to stop by this store. It’s located in lower Manhattan right next to the WTC.

Iiii don’t wanna work, I just want to bang on this mug all day…

No real rhyme or reason to this post. I just don’t want to work. Here goes a picture of my Dwight bobbleheads watching me do nothing. Aren’t they cute? Just sitting on their biscuit, never having to risk it.

I now have the strength of a grown Dwight bobblehead and a little baby bobblehead.

Ricky Gervais: Not in the hair…e.g. a watermelon

We went to LA this past weekend to see Ricky Gervais’ stand-up show at the Kodak Theatre. Let me start up by saying that I kind of hero worship this guy. He is incredibly talented and one funny mo-fo. His routine had me laughing from beginning to end. My abs had one hell of a workout. So, not only do you laugh while at his show, you also get to workout your core without trying. Sounds like a win-win to me! They are recording the Madison Square Garden show so they can air it as an HBO special. Keep an eye out for that.

Note: Ricky Gervais, if for whatever reason you happen to read this, can you please email me the AIDS pamphlet? Please? Maybe you can post it on your blog after the tour. I would be indebted to you for-e-ver!

On a side note: I kind of feel like NYC Ryan by saying this but who cares. We had quite a few celebrity encounters while at the show. Vince Vaughn was sitting a few rows in front of us. He was wearing the same flannel shirt you see him wearing whenever the paparazzi take pictures of him. After the show, Dave and Andrea had to go to the coat check to get their camera (they didn’t let us take cameras into the Kodak). While they waited in the long line, Matt and I hung around the lobby and guess who we see again? Vince Vaughn. A few minutes later, we see Ben Affleck (! He is really nice to look at.) and Jennifer Garner. Then, we see Jamie Lee Curtis walk by. Then we look at the bar line and see Jonah Hill and his buddies. I was hoping Andrea and Dave would hurry up, so they wouldn’t miss this. When they met up with us, Jamie Lee Curtis walked by again. Then Ryan Gosling walked by and looked up at us. The last person we saw before we left was Craig Robinson. We followed this up with dinner and drinks at the Hungry Cat. Not a bad day if I do say so myself.

I heart NY!: DAY FOUR

We decided that our last day in NY would be a lazy day. We just wanted to enjoy being in the NYC. I had a tummy ache in the morning (probably because of that ginormous sour apple drink from the night before. I mean did you see the size of that thing?), so when Dave and Andrea headed off to visit the Statue of Liberty, Matt and I stayed in and slept a little. I felt better at around 10am-ish and we got ready to go out and do some shopping. We grabbed a quick snack and spent the morning walking around Fifth Avenue. I bought a couple of things and of course Matt had to get some stuff from Nike-Town, but mostly we just enjoyed walking around and doing some people watching (does that make me sound like a skeevy little perv?).

We then walked to Central Park and met up with Dave and Andrea. We had lunch there and then just explored the park. It was so beautiful. It made me wish we would have brought the dogs along. There were cute puppies everywhere! There were trees everywhere, too, which was great because I love shade. I don’t know that Andrea loved walking under the trees since a bird pooped on her arm. I guess this gave her a real reason to give her best Angela Martin impersonation. Poop!

I wonder what he's thinking about...

I don't think there's that many trees in all of Phoenix.

Poop is falling from the ceiling...Poop!

A Bride and Groom were taking pics in front of this fountain.

John Lennon Memorial paid for by Yoko's donation. (Did you say Yoko? Ono..Ono I didn't)

After the fountain, we split up for the day. Matt and I went and took one of the bike/carriage rides around the park. We considered taking the horse carriage rides but I couldn’t stand the stank when I walked next to them, so I don’t think I would have lasted a whole park ride full of stank. My nose thanked me. It was a nice ride and the guide was telling us about everything we were seeing. Next time, I think I want to rent bikes and just ride around the park. Our afternoon flew by fast so we headed back to the hotel to drop off our shopping bags so we could head out to dinner.

Our bike/carriage ride

We decided to go back to Greenwich Village to find the famed Magnolia Bakery. I am so glad we went back to this area of Greenwich Village, as this was my favorite spot in NYC. I absolutely fell in love with this area. While walking around, we just noticed that everyone here was so laid back and everyone was walking their dogs. It was just really refreshing.

(Ooh, cool story. When we were walking over to Bleeker Street, we walked by this tall man and he looked familiar. He walked passed us and I turned around to get a better look at him. As I turned around, so did he and we made eye contact. That’s when it hit me that it was Tim Robbins! He must have seen the realization come across my face because he smiled at me and nodded. I turned to Matt and said, “I think that’s Tim Robbins! Look”. By the time Matt turned around, Tim was further away and Matt only saw his back side. The guy was wearing a backpack and some hockey sticks across his back so Matt said, “That’s probably not him. Why would Tim Robbins have hockey sticks?”. When we came back home, Matt IMDB-ed him and it turns out that Tim Robbins lives in Greenwich Village and plays hockey. I KNEW it was him!)

When we arrived at Magnolia Bakery, there was a long line wrapped around the building of people wanting to get in so we decided to go eat dinner first. We stayed close and walked around Bleeker Street and found this nice little Italian place. The restaurant was so quaint and adorable and the food was deelish! Mmm, I’m getting hunger pains just thinking about it.

Nice little Italian place we ate at in Greenwich Village

After dinner, we walked around the neighborhood and I took pictures of some of the brownstones. When I get the big bucks, buying one of these brownstones is one of the first things I’m going to do. Doesn’t that just look yummy? I mean, I can you envision anything better than a lazy Sunday, sitting on the stoop reading and eating a Magnolia cupcake? (Yes, I’m referencing SNL’s Lazy Sunday. So, what)

My future brownstone

When we went back to Magnolia bakery, the line had gotten a lot shorter and we only had to wait something like five minutes before it was our turn to go into the store. I was in heaven. You all know my love for cupcakes is almost as big as my love for the Kras, so yeah, pretty excited. They were everything I had imagined them to be. We bought eight cupcakes so we could take some to Dave and Andrea and some to bring back home.

Magnolia Bakery

We walked a little more and got more froyo at this Pinkberry like place. (You guys must think that all we did was eat. You know what? You’re right. Don’t hate!) We took the train back to our hotel. Matt became a pro at the whole subway thing. We never got lost once. I’m so proud. Baby boy has grown up!

We still hadn’t gone to the top of the Empire State Building so we made a late night trip out there and went to the top. The view was great and I’m glad we went at night so we could see all of the lights. It got really windy when we were up there but it wasn’t scary at all. I wonder why I got so scared on the bridge and not at all here where it’s like a trabillion times taller. Thems be the mysteries of life.

Matt at the top of the Empire State building.

Andrea and Me at the top of the Empire State Building. No duo shot of the guys. I think they avoided joint pictures after the Puerto Vallarta dolphin picture debacle from two years ago.

Matt and I headed back to Times Square at around midnight to get some last minute souvenirs for my nieces and nephews. This city really never sleeps. Matt wanted to get some White Castle (again with the eating) but we didn’t see one. Ah well, he’ll have to wait for the next trip. After that, we called it a night because we had to wake up early the next morning to catch our flight back home.

Saw this poster of BJ outside of Caroline's in Times Square. What? You know I would take a picture of it.

Yummy Magnolia cupcakes

Me stuffing my face before I go to bed.

Thanks for treating me well, NYC. You and I, we had a good thing going on but it was time for me to come home. I'll miss you dearly. Don't be sad. I'll be back to visit. I promise. But for now, keep close the memories we shared. Fly away sweet little bird. Fly away and be free.

New York is like Phoenix on acid...no, on speed...no, on steriods! : DAY THREE

We did a better job of waking up early on day three. It still wasn’t that early but earlier than any of the other days. We wanted to do the Downtown tour on this day and make a stop at Ground Zero.

Ground Zero is just a big construction site right now. We didn’t do the tour there but we walked around it ourselves. It’s hard to think about all of the horrible things that happened there but they are working diligently to get the new buildings up.

After that, we went to a department store called Century 21. This was a store that was recommended to me and I am SO glad we went. It is this three story discount store that had everything you could dream of at reasonable prices. Everywhere I looked, I saw Michael Kors, Manolo Blahniks, BCBG, Dolce and Gabanna, Sevens, Theory, Juicy, and many many more designers. This place was like Last Chance on steroids! Andrea and I were in heaven. I was able to score three pairs of shoes, a few Kors tops and some other stuff. We didn’t even get to go through the whole store because Matt was complaining about being hungry. I’m going to write a blog just about the store later, so keep an eye out for that.

Our next mission was to go to Chinatown in order to find somewhere to eat pho. I can’t say I liked Chinatown very much. It was packed! The streets were crowded with people trying to get a sweet deal on a fake Coach bag. I felt like I was in Vegas where those people sit on the street passing out nudie bar flyers except these people were trying to convince you to *buy* said fake bags. I should have worn a sign that said, “NO. I do not want a knockoff, douchebag” After walking around and trying to get around the crowd, we finally…finally found a pho place. It was ok. Nothing special.

Tired After a Day of Shopping

We went and tried to catch the tour bus after lunch. The bus took us around to Greenwich Village, Times Square, Empire State Building, SoHo, Little Italy, East Village, Rockefeller Center and more. It was nice to sit while we got to see all of these sights.

At night we ended up going to the Upright Citizen’s Brigade (UCB) Theatre. It is this really famous improv theatre. They have one in LA, as well. That’s where we saw Ed Helms a couple of months ago. Amy Poehler is one of the main players in the NY UCB Theatre. The line for the show was long and we waited FOREVER to get in but once in, we had good seats. It was a pretty funny and raunchy show. I just want to say that they made my day for mentioning Gymkata in one of their sketches. Seriously, I make fun of Matt for watching that movie so having them make fun of it, made my day, kind of like if they were in on our inside joke.

Getting ready to laugh our asses off

After the show, we were starving and were excited to see that Dallas BBQ was open. I had heard good things about this place from a couple of people. I ordered this sour apple drink and it was ginormous. I got a little buzzed off of one drink. Yup. It was pretty funny. The BBQ was pretty good. I ordered the BBQ ribs and I’m pretty sure they served me something straight out of The Flinstones. I looked like I didn’t even touch my food. After a dinner and drinks like that, there’s nothing you can do but hit the sack.