Day 13 - your favorite book/series of books

Ah, ok. Books. For this question I usually throw The Fountainhead out there. When it really comes down to it, though, I'm not entirely certain that it's my ultimate fave book of life. I love it, I love the characters, I love the writing. I don't love author Ayn Rand's philosophy (if that's what you're calling it) and I'll bet dollars to doughnuts Rand was a super bitch (not sure why I think this).

My reading time has been shamefully dwindling these months. But since I was just talking about this novel with my sissy yesterday, here's my unsolicited plug for what I thought was a champion book: Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible. I'm stunned that it appeared on a summer reading list for Holy Angels Academy, since they mostly like to waste time with weepy contemporary lit that deplores the state of helpless African Americans. True, Poisonwood is a member of Oprah's Book Club, and it does deplore the state of helpless Africans. I don't care. I'll even call it an important book. So there.

While we're on the topic of books, and for once I don't feel like I'm about to collapse from staggering fatigue - can you believe that guy who's rewriting Huck Finn?!? OK, not totally rewriting, but he's removed every occurrence of the word "nigger," and replaced it with the word "slave." Does this outrage anyone else? Am I completely overreacting? Possibly. I'm almost delirious with anger when I think about it. Just another instance of this crazy world's obsession with sterilizing anything that's not perfectly P.C. Go ahead - remove the N-word so you can teach the book in schools. Makes sense to me. While you're at it, why not modify the history textbooks too? Hey, let's go nuts and rewrite anything we please to suit our finicky, sensitive tastes. A load of hooey.

Day 12 - anything that makes you smile, every time

babies/toddlers in sunglasses.

Day 11 - your favorite meal to eat for dinner

I'm taking the liberty to tweak this one. Instead of my favorite meal to eat for dinner, how's about we talk "last meals." Last meals are a funny thing. Ask someone what they'd eat for their final meal on the planet and you may turn up some startling revelations. Take my sister, for instance. She's been a staunch vegetarian for 2 or 3 years, and you know what she's got on her menu? Freakin' meatloaf.

I'm distractedly tired, so let's cut to the chase.

Liz's Last Meal Menu:

- Spanakopita. An impossibility, but I'd have it the way my grandmother used to make it - the old Albanian way: with cottage cheese replacing the usual feta so that it's oh so creamy and perfect. We called it "spinach pie," and it is honestly one of the things I miss most about holidays from my childhood.

- Lobster.

- A custard from Anderson's. Twist. On a sugar cone, please.

- An assortment of expensive sushi.

- 4 slices of bacon.

- Veal parmesan.

Day 10 - a picture of you and your best friend(s)

First: The King's Speech was phenom.

Second: My computer is kaput. Meaning my picture selection is limited to what's already posted on facebook. Meaning these pictures are old and outdated. But still, they represent some of the best times spent with some of the best people.

One of many nights spent dancing in Marty's basement to The Who with the lovely Jessica Page and Christina Patti. The Keystone Light can is just a prop. We were drinking something much better...yeah.

I often feel wistful for the carefree exuberance that we felt in these photos. I mean, I had red hair and a rainbow flag - life just doesn't get better than that.

This shot includes a few of my favorite people. On a gorgeous spring day by the water. Oh, to be young again. jk. but really.

We interrupt this 30 days (or 30 weeks...) challenge to bring you the Gabriel quote of the day:

Aunt Liz: "So Gabe, where does Santa live? He lives at the North Pole, right?"

Gabe: "Yeah. And at the mall, too."

Day 9 - a song that makes you cry. good or bad cry.

I am a champion crier. Beauty and the Beast? Cry. A sublime line from Shakespeare? Cry. Stumbling upon a forgotten toy from my childhood? Tissues, please.

I don't know what it is. People used to tell me I was devoid of emotion. They would say: "Liz, you need to tell me when you're excited or mad because I can never tell what you're actually feeling." But the truth is: I am incredibly emotional. I feel huge feelings all the time. At every little thing. But those feelings are for me. I don't broadcast them. Just me being my solitary, introverted self.

So, ahem, sad song?

Wild Horses, as covered by The Sundays



This song has made me cry on more than one occasion. Was it a good or bad cry? Probably good. I love crying. Usually. It's so refreshing. Also, I will bawl at mostly anything from Sufjan Steven's Michigan album. And U2's All I Want is You. God, that song makes me ache all over.

Day 8 - your favorite movie of all time

Like I said, I don't do favorites. So this is like, I dunno, one of my top movies. Top 10? Top 50? Something like that.

As Good As it Gets, 1997

It's funny, it's sad, it's romantic. Greg Kinnear is a doll. And the dog is cute in that ugly-dog way, which is the best kind of cute. If this movie is on TV, I'll probably put the remote down. I think that qualifies as a favorite. All time? Sure. Why the hell not.

If my posts have been less than bombastic (which is what I aim for) blame it on 60-hour work weeks. The writer'y part of my brain is sloppy.

Day 7 - who you would meet, if you could meet anyone you wanted

Since most of my icons tend to be literary: Sebastian Flyte from Brideshead Revisited.


1. He epitomizes youthful decadence and beauty.
2. He carries around a teddy bear named Aloysius.
3. He is perpetually drunk. (he meets Brideshead's protagonist after vomiting through his dorm window...)
4. His name is Sebastian.
5. He has an extraordinarily dysfunctional Catholic family.
6. He would be like a fabulous gay best friend. Every gal needs one of those.
7. He says things like: "Charles! You're to come away at once. I've got a basket of strawberries and a bottle of Chateau Peyraguey, which isn't a wine you've ever tasted so don't pretend."

Such a shame that most of my favorite people are not actually people at all.

Day 6 - anything that makes you smile, every time

Dudley Moore's narration in Milo and Otis. Soooooo good!

Day 5 - a song that brings back good memories

I can see myself changing my mind immediately after this is posted. But I'm sticking with the first song that popped into my head:

Wednesday Morning, 3 AM by Simon and Garfunkel

It was the first month that I met Paul and we played this while carving pumpkins in his apartment. It was perfectly Autumn. And I very much knew that I completely loved the first boy of my life. And this song (and most of the subsequent tracks) always remind of how that felt. How that feels.

Day 4 - an actor who you think is underrated and why

There are several ways we could go about this, depending on one's definition of "underrated." Are we talking about those unlucky thespians who, however well-liked and respected, have been criminally overlooked by the Academy? Because that list runs for miles. Or perhaps we go with a total no-name, one of those brilliant performers whose talent hasn't yet hit the mainstream? Or we could take underrated to mean those actors whose talent goes unnoticed because they are associated with the fluffy crapola movies they star in. A la Leo Dicaprio minus 13 years. (thank heavens he surfaced from the murky depths of Titanic...though, hell, who doesn't love that shit!)

Hm. This is weird, maybe, but I'm going with John C. Reilly. Sure, he's in a couple Will Ferrell stupidhead movies. But he's ALSO in Magnolia and The Hours. AND he's awesome in both.


Admittedly, I didn't understand a damn thing about Magnolia, but it was interesting nonetheless. Reilly was grand. I thought. I'm not up to elaborating, so take it or leave it.

Day 3 - your favorite band/singer and why

The Beatles

Favorite bands work on a sort of rotating basis. One album will hold your attention for weeks on end, then it's something new that wins you over. Maybe I'm being uncreative with my choices here, but that's how favorites work for me - my favorite things are familiar things, old things, things that cozily signify the best times. And The Beatles have been with me for as long I can remember.

Want to drive me up a wall? - tell me that The Beatles are overrated. That kills me.

This band has so many different sounds, so many different looks.

George was my favorite guy. Abbey Road is my favorite album. Don't ask me my favorite song.

Day 2 - your favorite song of all time

I'm terrible at favorites. I'd be hard-pressed to come up with a top 10 songs of all time, so asking me to single out one favorite song is like asking me which of my children I love best (though, that's probably easier than most protesting parents would allow you to believe).

I'm picking a song that is probably an obvious choice, but whatever 30 days challenge - who doesn't get goosebumps from Jeff Buckley's version of "Hallelujah?" I try to only play this song on special occasions because I don't want its gorgeousness to ever wear off. If that makes sense. It does to me. This song is so achingly sorrowful and sublimely uplifting at the same time. Play it after a night of drinking while sitting on a porch in the cold of winter. Good stuff.

Day 1 - your life story in 8 sentences

After a 7-year birthing hiatus my parents decided to give this Catholic stuff another go, so I was conceived and named after a popular American Saint. Walking was a skill I was slow to master, but my mom says it was because I was so content to sit and observe all the beautiful new things right at my fingertips. Thankfully this grew into a full-time occupation, and the past 24 years have afforded me a wealth of heavenly items to marvel at. The first decade of my existence was a blissful one, spent in hand-me-down plaid jumpers, summer Bible school, and sweet ignorance. Things got hairy once I turned 11, but that's a fact found in most life stories, even 8-sentence ones isn't it? Nowadays I balance a tightrope poised between unequivocal joy and a sort of anxious melancholy, but I've learned to waste no time repositioning myself should I falter. Falling in love has always been my favorite thing. To date, I have fallen in love 6,294 times.

30 days challenge

Day 1- your life story in eight sentences.

Day 2- your favorite song of all time.

Day 3- your favorite band/singer, and why.

Day 4- an actor who you think is underrated and why.

Day 5- a song that brings back good memories.

Day 6- anything that makes you smile, every time.

Day 7- who you would meet, if you could meet anyone you wanted.

Day 8- your favorite movie of all time.

Day 9- a song that makes you cry. good or bad cry.

Day 10- a picture of you and your best friend.

Day 11- your favorite meal to eat for dinner.

Day 12- anything that makes you smile, every time.

Day 13- your favorite book/series of books.

Day 14- what’s happened in the past two weeks, in eight sentences.

Day 15- a song that reminds you of someone important in your life.

Day 16- a picture of you doing a school/recreational sport.

Day 17- a YouTube video you could watch a billion times and never get bored.

Day 18- anything that makes you smile, every time.

Day 19- your favorite place to go, out of state.

Day 20- something that makes you sad every time you see/hear/watch it.

Day 21- your favorite thing to do in the summer, with who.

Day 22- a song on the radio that you actually don’t mind.

Day 23- a picture you found on Tumblr that you’ll never forget.

Day 24- anything that makes you smile, every time.

Day 25- five things you want to accomplish in before the end of the year.

Day 26- a picture or video of yourself 5-10 years ago.

Day 27- a picture or video of yourself taken within the past week.

Day 28- a song that will always make you happy.

Day 29- something happening in the next month that you’re very excited for.

Day 30- anything that makes you smile, every time



(yes, Maureen, I copied this from your tumblr the day I say it.)

walk like an egyptian

And I'm onto my final unread Jane Austen novel. Lift your hands up.

Squirrely vomit-inducing family drama-rama aside, the following has my tummy in a bind:

1. check engine light, flitting in and out of existence.
2. check brakes light, ditto.
3. balding tires.
4. um, no heat. which, IMO, is the most distressing item since I like live in Buffalo. And it's November.

But I won't let the Silver Bullet get me down because I had a mighty fine weekend. Halloween is the only holiday that actually gets radder once you become an adult. Christmas, Thanksgiving, eh. More depressing than anything, and they're usually workdays for me, anyway. Halloween, on the other hand, is always a good time. Provided you don't spend it with your head in the toilet. As kids you get to eat all the candy you want; as adults you get to drink all the beer you want. Maybe try the best of both worlds with a Sam Adams Chocolate Bock. Whoa baby.

Tanget: I sat Rick Jeanneret at work. Always cool to encounter sports-related celebrities (sort of). Except for that one time when Paul Gaustad's girlfriend/date was totally rude to me. Skank.

the rape scene went pretty well

Please, will someone do "The Night Man Cometh" with me for Halloween?

I got a new job.

Wait.

I'm sounding repetitive, I know.

I got ANOTHER new job. Because things never go as planned. When I have a sec I'll tell you about how things never go as planned. No promises, though. I'm pretty booked, and I'm pretty pooped.

But I will say: Chef Ramsey is hot. In his way.

That's it.

the extent of my interest in politics = inane youtube videos

Someone in the mood to gimmie a present? Just for being as kick-ass as I am? Alrighty then.

I can't help myself: I'm addicted to "Modcloth.com." I want eeeeeverything!

so pretty. so cute. so weeeeee!