Spring? Here's hoping. This is from April 25th last year. One month to go! 

Got Milk?

Most of the time, people fall into categories. Coffee drinker vs. tea drinker. Sweet cereal eaters vs. plain. Mustard vs. Mayonaise. City-slicker vs. Country-bumpkin (I think I am both). Crest vs. Colgate. Action Movie vs. Romance. Coke vs. Pepsi. Beer vs. Wine. Email vs. snail-mail. It classifies us and occasionally gives us something interesting to talk about. I have a new one....Those that drink the 'used' milk out of their cereal bowls when they are done with the cereal, and those that don't. I fall into the latter category. I am a life-long cereal eater. I have it almost every day. As does my husband (we are simple people, nothing fancy here!). But I WILL NOT drink the milk out of the bowl when I'm done. My Papa used to do it in front of us after he polished off his bowl, and it would make me gag. I just do not like the milk sweetened by the cereal, or the little left-over cereal dregs floating around. Yuck. Give me a plain ol' glass of milk with my cereal, and I will drink the entire thing. But not the leftovers. Call me wastefull, I just can't do it. That would be the deal breaker for me on Fear Factor.

I also do not like flavored, sweet milk. Like chocolate or strawberry or vanilla. I never did as a kid, and I certainly don't now. I like it plain and cold. No sweet milk for me, yuck. I also don't really care for sugar in my coffee, either. Must be something about sweet drinks that I'm not fond of. Hot chocolate, pass. I'd rather have hot coffee. I'm weird, I know.

Which category do you fall into? Are you a dregs drinker?

Is That the Best Use of Your Time?

I read this article today at work, and it made me tired. It's on the heels of another article I read in Newsweek about uber-moms. The latter was enough to make me not want to have kids for another 10 years. The fact of the matter is, I want to have kids in the next few years. But, I digress.

I just want to put my two cents out there about how I hate the fact that people now seem to have their lives revolving around their children. Adult parents have no time to themselves, let alone with each other, because they let their kids run everything! Whatever happened to baby-sitters? Whatever happened to telling your kids no? No, you can't play baseball and hockey and take piano lessons all at the same time because Mommy only has one car. No, you can't have a new video game. Use your imagination. Whatever happened to 'down time?' Kids dream up imaginary friends because they are bored and want someone to play their 'pretend' games with, like house or army (depending on gender). When was the last time you saw a kid who looked bored? If they looke bored, you are probably mis-interpretting the half-closed eyes and lack of attention as boredom, when it's really exhaustion. There's been a lot of articles written on this topic lately, and I will not even begin to pretend that I have an answer to the growing problem of over-scheduling. I also have the luxury of having a job that is pretty much and 8-hour-a-day job, with occasional needs for over-time. But I still would like to know that when we do get around to having children, and I have to decide if I want to work full-time or part-time, or even stay at home, that I will continue to have a life, albeit a very different one, and it won't revolve around my children!

I will leave you with this....when I do have children, you can bet your ass that they can ride in the back-seat of the car and just stare out the windows! We can play 'I Spy' or the license plate game if they get bored.

Send In The Clowns

I got to do something really cool last night to help alleviate my boring, study-filled life. I sang at a tribute to Steven Sondheim. One of the theaters in town puts together a free series called Wall-to-Wall, in which they pay homage/tribute to one particular composer. Last night was Wall-to-Wall Sondheim. The Juilliard Choral Union sang 3 pieces he wrote that Jason Robert Brown composed for us. It was perhaps the coolest thing I have ever gotten to do. And, and, and....I even had a solo in two of the pieces! I sang, by myself, in front of Steven Sondheim! Granted, it wasn't for very long, but it was still by myself! Everyone said I did good, so I guess it was ok. I didn't screw up or anything! Yesterday was Sondheim's 75th birthday, so we even got to sing happy birthday to him! Me, the choir, Alfred Molina, Angela Lansbury, George Hearn, Neil Patrick Harris, Patti LuPone and Barbara Cook, to name a few. It was awesome!!!

The only bad part was that it was an extremely popular event, especially because it was free, and Joel didn't even get in. Lines were around the corner and it was standing room only. It may be the coolest thing I have ever done, or will ever do (although it's still too soon to call that), and my sweet hubby wasn't even able to share it with me. :(

(That was for him, but between you and me, it was AWESOME!!!!! Maybe it will make my singing career take off! Yeah, right.... What career?)

Writer's Block

I have absolutely nothing to write about. But I thought I would check in and see how everyone else is doing! I have no life, I study, go to work, and go to rehearsal. Boring. Nothing to talk about. Although I do get to sing in a concert for Steven Sondheim on Saturday! Google him. Go ahead, I dare you. He's famous, and I'll be singing his songs! Put that in you pipe and smoke it!

Please write me and tell me about your glamourous, warm, fullfilling lives. Please. I'm desperate.

Evil Alcohol

I have a wicked hangover this morning. We went to our local bar after dinner, did not stay out late, and really didn't have that much to drink. So why do I feel like I partied like a rock star? I figured it out, I think. I was not drinking my usual things, either beer, whiskey, or vodka tonic. I was drinking cosmos. My drinking-past has proven that sugar and alcohol in my tummy do not get along. I can drink whiskey straight all night, but had me a fru-fru-girly-pink-drink, and I'm done after about 2 of them. That was an incredibly dumb move on my part. To top it all off, I woke up early this morning, instead of sleeping it off like a normal person. I have to study today, and we are having a party tonight, so there are preparations for that, too. I don't have time to feel this way, because I can't just lay on the couch and watch movies! Argh!!!

Partiers.com lists several hangover remedies that I'd recommend to those of you in the same position I am in. I'm sitting on the couch trying to rest my head and type at the same time, eating toast and honey and drinking coffee and water. I guess I made my bed, so I have to lie in it. Too bad I can't go to sleep in it....