Straight No Chaser

Last night Eric, Amanda and I went to see an a capella group called Straight No Chaser in concert. And it was AH-MAZING.

Straight No Chaser was founded by ten Indiana University students back in 1996. Their version of "The Twelve Days of Christmas" became a YouTube sensation, and is what first got us interested in the group. Perhaps you have seen this little number before:

VIDEO: Straight No Chaser's arrangement of "The Twelve Days of Christmas"

Awesome, right? They now have released two Christmas albums ("Holiday Spirits" and "Christmas Cheer"). Last year, Eric and I realized they were touring and thought it would be so much fun to see them in concert, but...we were too late and missed their NYC date. This year, however, I was a little more on top of things, and we got tickets!

And what a seriously fantastic show. The singing, of course, was superb, but they are also just great performers. They had such a great interaction with each other and were very funny. The did both Christmas and non-Christmas songs, and a good mix of slow/beautiful and upbeat/funny. And they did such a wide range of music - everything from "Oh Holy Night," to "Dani California" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, to "Jingle Bells," to "Rehab" by Amy Winehouse. I seriously think I smiled through the entire show. I was a little afraid of looking like a grinning idiot, but it was just a REALLY AWESOME CONCERT.

Here are some pics, as well as a video sampler of some of the songs they performed. I also have more complete videos of the Sitcom Medley and Auld Lang Syne, if you're interested in seeing those - just click the titles to see them! (I apologize for the poor video quality, I shot these videos with our point-and-shoot camera rather than our camcorder.)

At the Nokia Theater

The gentlemen of Straight No Chaser

VIDEO: A sample of some of the songs from last night's concert

Aren't they fantastic? I highly recommend looking into their Christmas albums if you're in the market for that sort of thing. They're also going to be touring again in April, and I promise you will not be disappointed if you make it to one of their shows. They have dates set up all over the place - Tampa, D.C., Pittsburgh, etc. - so check the list and try to go if you can. In case I haven't mentioned, they put on a fabulous show - definitely worth the price of admission!

Dexter Throws One Heck of a Party

The last super-fun thing I did this weekend while my husband was out of town was attend a Dexter Season 4 Finale Party at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers. If you remember, Eric and I had attended a Season 4 kickoff celebration at Lord & Taylor (pretty much by accident) earlier this fall. So, it was fun to end the season in a similar fashion. And you know how much we love all things Dexter - just look at our Halloween costumes, for example!

The party was to start at 8:00, so I went around 7:00 to start standing in line. Apparently people had started lining up by 4:30, but I was just fine arriving when I did. The plan had been for me to go at 8:00 when doors opened, and Eric would try to meet me there before the show actually started at 9:00. His flight back to NYC was due in at 8:00 so we figured he should be able to get to the party just in time for the show. Unfortunately, the nasty rainy NYC weather had other plans, and his flight got delayed quite a bit. So, I partied solo.

The party itself was very nice. They had a full open bar, and servers were coming around with Dexter Cosmos and Dexter Margaritas. Yum. (Unfortunately, one of the main ingredients of these cocktails seemed to be Stuff That Turns Your Mouth Really Red, as you will see in pictures later.) They also had a nice buffet of appetizers, and seating set up in front of several different screens to view the finale. Unfortunately there wasn't quite enough seating for everyone, so I ended up standing in the back for the whole thing. That's okay though, my Dexter Cosmos kept me company.

The Dexter logo in lights around the room

Mmmm, Dexter Cosmo

The buffet

The show is starting!

And all I can say about the season finale itself is, HOLY COW. Goodness, is this an incredible show. I am not going to reveal any details because some of my blog readers are not yet caught up on this season (MOLLY WATCH IT ALL NOW SO WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT AT CHRISTMAS!), but seriously, WOW. They had been hyping up the finale as "the biggest twist ever," etc. I have to admit, I was skeptical. There had already been a number of twists this season, so how big could this one be? And as I watched the finale, I actually thought to myself, "this is good, but not as shocking as they tried to make it sound like it would be." Then, the last minutes happened, and my jaw dropped. Literally. This is the only show that has ever repeatedly made my jaw literally drop. It did in the first season, and again many times this season, but this was the most jaw-droppingest moment yet.

Seriously, people. If you do not watch this show, you are crazy people. Go out and rent the earlier seasons. Netflix them. Buy them on iTunes. Whatever you must do, do it. Start with Season 1 and don't stop until you get to the end of this season. The whole show is genius, even down to the opening credits, which I feel perfectly demonstrate the little bits of everyday violence in all of us. LOVE. THIS. SHOW.

Anyway. Enough gushing. After the finale, everyone stared at each other in shock for a few minutes, then I made my way to the other side of the room. I knew there were supposed to be "cast appearances" at this shindig, but I hadn't seen anyone before the show, so I went to scope things out afterwards. Sure enough, I managed to meet Desmond Harrington, who plays Detective Joey Quinn, and Clyde Phillips, the executive producer.

With Desmond Harrington (and my red Cosmo lips)

With Clyde Phillips

And that was my Dexter evening. Eric had arrived back in NYC by this point, so I texted him something eloquent about the finale (I'm pretty sure my text was just, "OMG OMG OMG," but we'll call that eloquent) then hurried off to meet him. As soon as we got home I made him watch the finale for himself. I don't think he minded that I watched it before him - he actually both loves and hates this show, because every episode makes him nervous that Dexter is going to get caught or killed. So he actually prefers it when I already know what's going to happen, I guess it's reassuring that Dexter will be okay. So, I watched that finale for a second time just about an hour later. And it was STILL SHOCKING.

I love Dexter!

We Shared A Moment

Who shared a moment, you ask? I'll tell you. Me, and...TIM TEBOW. It was beautiful.

This Saturday was the Heisman Ceremony once again at the Nokia Theater here in Times Square. Last year we did some serious Tebow stalking on Heisman night, in the freezing cold. We had no idea what to expect and were surprised that there were not more fans lined up, none of the trademark NYC barricades around the entrance, nothing. We were successful in our quest to see Tim Tebow, but before he arrived I accidentally broke our camera in a flurry of excitement. This year I vowed to maintain my composure so we would not have to replace our camera yet again.

Last year, we were very, very early to the ceremony and ended up waiting around and killing time for hours. This year, especially since I was doing the Tebow stalking alone (Eric was in Florida), I arrived at the Nokia Theater much later. And, I was too late. I arrived at 6:45p.m. and was told (by a guy who was there last year too, and recognized me!) that all five Heisman candidates had gone in together around 5:45. I was an hour late. Urban Meyer had already even gone in. Bummer, I missed them!

I was surprised that this year there was a lot more of what we expected last year: barricades set up, and a decent-sized crowd. There were lots of Alabama fans (which means lots of thick southern drawls and "bless your heart"s), a few Texas fans, and even fewer Florida fans. I stood around until the ceremony started in case anyone else I recognized came in (yeah, right). Apparently I saw Tim Brown but I couldn't really tell you who that is, so...eh.

Some of the crowd waiting around (see the two people in alligator hats to the left?)

After the ceremony started at 8:00, people started to leave. But, I heard from one of the Alabama fans near me that a cop told her that everyone would be leaving the same way they came in at 9:10 p.m., and they would be going across the street to the Marriott Marquis Hotel. I figured, hey, I'm a New Yorker now. Waiting around is what we DO. An hour in the cold? No problem at all. So, I hung out, shivered, and made conversation with the people around me. Eventually, my friend Amanda came to meet me too, which helped pass the time. Also, at one point, a man dressed as Batman came running and twirling and leaping through the hallway, so that was entertaining. Only in New York.

With my free time, I developed a plan of attack. I had brought our Gators helmet in the hopes Tebow would sign it (people around me thought that was awesome, and many of them took my picture with the helmet). The plan was for me to hold the helmet and pen in case he came over to give autographs, and Amanda had my camera so she could take my picture while he signed the helmet. But, if he didn't come around to sign things, I was going to throw my helmet at her, grab my camera out of her hands, and chase Tebow down the street. I'm so NOT above chasing Tebow down the street. Totally fool-proof plan.

With our helmet, hoping for an autograph

Sure enough, around 9:10, I heard the fans in front of the door yelling, "Tebow! Tebow!" It was go time. And out he came, followed by Colt McCoy. But, oh no! He didn't come my way! No autographs!

No, Tebow! Come back this way!

So, the plan was set in motion. I threw my helmet at Amanda, grabbed my camera, and literally chased Tebow down the street. And across the street. And nearly into his hotel. As we neared the hotel entrance, the crowd had dispersed and it was just him and me (and his security detail) - I was walking right next to him, just about two feet away. I called out, "Tebow!" And then it happened: our moment. He looked at me. Our eyes met. He smiled. I managed not to die long enough to take this picture, before calling out, "thank you so much!"

HE'S LOOKING AT ME! HE'S LOOKING AT ME!

And then I walked into a parked car. I wish I was kidding. That part kind of sucked. Not exactly the graceful/sophisticated/charming impression I was hoping to give off. But before that, our moment was nothing short of magical.

Unfortunately, I was too busy checking for damage to the car's side mirror that I just collided with at nearly maximum Tebow-chasing speed, so I did not get a closeup picture of Colt McCoy, but he was right there too. So, I got to make a fool of myself in front of not one, but TWO star quarterbacks. Awesome.

After that I went back to find Amanda, and got to her right as Urban Meyer came out. Unfortunately I was not fast enough to chase him down to get a picture of him, too. After that I decided to just go further down the hallway where people were heading to try to get better pictures. By this time, there was quite a crowd lined up.

Fans waiting for more sporty folks to come out

After waiting just a few more moments, this year's Heisman winner, Mark Ingram, came out. I did manage to get a picture of him, even though he seems to be sleeping.

Wake up, Ingram!

I also got a picture of Danny Wuerffel as he left. People hardly seemed to recognize him. I wish I had my helmet at this point, because I would have asked him to sign it. I already have a picture of me with Danny from one of the times he spoke at FCA while I was at UF, so the picture was not my top priority. The plan sort of fell apart here, but what can you do?

With Danny at FCA, fall 2002

Danny on Saturday night - I have to say, I'm liking the bald head look.

And that was the end of my stalking. Amanda and I were cold, so we stopped off at an Irish pub for some heat, beef stew, and beer. What better way to warm up? Then we called it a night.

And what a wonderful night it was. I suppose only time will tell if this (in my mind) tender-yet-steamy glance Tebow and I shared will be as life-changing for me as the time Jesse Palmer touched me, but it is certainly up there on my list of Great Interactions With Florida Quarterbacks. Swoon! It sure is great to be a Florida Gator!

A Blogging Inspiration

This weekend, Eric went to Florida for a quick visit while I stayed in New York. As I mentioned, I had plenty to do to keep myself occupied while he was gone, so I've got a couple of posts brewing over the next couple of days to recap my weekend. This is just the first!

Before I get started, I thought I should post a brief update on Toni, since it has been a while since I shared anything and I know many of you are still praying for her (which we so greatly appreciate). She is out of the ICU now and in a rehab facility. She is continuing to make slow but steady progress. As of last week, she is finally off the ventilator. This is a huge, wonderful step because now they can try things like swallowing (so she can maybe start eating real food) and talking. On the talking front, I hear she even mouthed words to a friend this week! Eric said she is also much more mobile now than when we were last there, and she is able to greet you with a hug. So, these are all positive things. Thank you all so much for your prayers, as always. Hopefully, the positive updates will keep trickling in and progress will only continue. Please continue to pray for her recovery.

Now, on to the recaps! On Friday Eric left for Florida straight from work, so it was my first day on my own. I did some Christmas shopping in the morning (in the absolutely frigid weather), but my evening activity was the most interesting. One of my favorite bloggers, The Pioneer Woman (Ree Drummond), was signing her new cookbook at the Borders near our apartment. I have been reading her blog for years now. It was probably the first blog I started reading regularly...and now, my Google Reader is filled with tons of various blogs that I follow, so a big thanks to the Pioneer Woman for getting that obsession going.

The premise of her blog is that she is a misplaced city girl who found herself living life on a ranch in Oklahoma after marrying a rancher, instead of moving to Chicago for law school as she planned. Her blog is all about her life on the ranch - the cattle, the food, the countryside, her family, etc. She started her blog for the same reason I started mine: to keep her family and friends up to date on her family life and experiences on the ranch. Over time her blog has grown, and she now has a number of different sections to it, including a photography section and a cooking section. Her cooking section has been turned into a cookbook, which is what she was signing on Friday.

I was able to get a great seat for the Q&A portion of the evening, and I found Ree to be very funny and down to earth. She answered a few questions from fans and then started signing. It was very nice to meet someone whose words I have been reading for years!

This pic was taken from Twitter (I didn't take it) - the Q&A portion of the evening.
I'm not in this picture, though. See the blonde all the way on the right (next to the man in a red sweater)? I was just to the right of the blonde.

Ree answering questions

Meeting the Pioneer Woman

My autographed cookbook

Now that I have a blog of my own, I kind of look at her blog as something I might aspire mine to be. Her blog is very popular and well-known. Every post gets thousands of comments. Wikipedia tells me her blog gets millions of hits each month. It seems she has really turned her blog into her career, and now has a book published as a result.

I don't flatter myself to think that millions of people would really care what I have to say here. And to be honest, I'm not completely convinced that I would want that sort of exposure. I love blogging, and I'm amazed that even the few people that do read what I write keep on reading and seem to enjoy it, but I'm afraid that with a larger audience, I might start to feel a little self-conscious and it might suck some of the fun out of it. Trying to entertain that many people just seems like an awful lot of pressure. But, I do love to blog. I love to write. And who doesn't dream of turning a hobby they love into their livelihood?

I have always loved to write. My mom loves to talk about how I was "writing" stories even before I could actually write - I would tell her what I wanted my story to say, and she would write it down for me, and I would draw pictures. When I was a kid I was always reading (we're talking reading-books-on-my-walk-home-from-the-library-because-I-couldn't-wait-to-start-them kind of reading), and writing stories. I even wrote a series of "books" about a little girl named Peggy. The first was called "Peggy and the Old Clown," and it was about Peggy's toy clown, Bebo, that her mother threw away after his arm ripped. He went to the dump and met other discarded toys, and they made the long journey back to Peggy's house. Oh, Bebo!

As I've gotten older my writing hobby has sort of fallen by the wayside...or at least it had until the blog came into being. This certainly isn't the creative writing I used to do, but I still enjoy it very much. I like to have the record of our lives, and I like this outlet for processing things going on in my life. The fact that you all actually like to read it is really icing on the cake.

So, if I could decide that I wouldn't mind having the exposure that comes with having a popular blog, I might aspire to be the Pioneer Woman. I would certainly love to have a book published someday. If my blog was a way to get to that point, that would be all the better. Only time will tell where life (and this blog) leads me, I suppose.

For now, I'm left to publish my OWN blog books, and I have done just that! I recently assembled all my blog posts from 2008 into a book and ordered it from Blurb. I have to say, I am so pleased with how it turned out! And now, I have basically a diary/photo album from 2008 to look back on. I plan on doing the same thing for all my posts from 2009. I put so much work into this blog, it's good to know that my writings won't just disappear into Internet Land someday.

Want to see pictures of my book?

The front cover of my blog book

The back cover

The inside - each of the cover flaps has info about Eric and me "As 2008 Begins" and "As 2008 Ends."
The "Welcome" page includes the little blurb about the blog I have here at the top, as well as the pictures I had on the right side of the blog in 2008.

A sample of the inside - each month is marked by an intro page like as shown on the left, and then the posts from that month follow (obviously).
Side note: The pic on the month pages is one that we took of NYC from the Top of the Rock!

So, congrats to Ree for all her blog success. Maybe someday I'll be on a book tour of my own, either thanks to my blog or through other opportunities. Stay tuned, let's see what happens!

Smittens

In honor of yesterday being the coldest day we've had this year since that March blizzard that extended my mother's first NYC visit, I thought I would share a product I came across this week that I find utterly adorable: Smittens!


Look how cute! It's a three-piece mitten set from Restoration Hardware. The big "tandem" mitten allows you to hold hands with your special someone while still staying warm, and the two single mittens will keep each person's extra hand warm. How adorable is this?! If it were a little less expensive I might have bought it for Eric for Christmas. Alas, $50 for novelty mittens is a bit much. But they are just oh-so-sweet!

Hope you all are enjoying your weekend!

Getting Into the Christmas Spirit

I apologize...I feel like I have been slacking in my blog posting lately. But I have a good excuse: I've had work to do! I actually had some work come in that has kept me busy all week, which is great. So yay, but now it's time to get caught up.

And if we weren't before, we are now officially overcome with the Christmas spirit. Well, I am, at least. Eric has been working a LOT this week so he may be a little less spirited, but still. Even as I type these very words I am admiring our Christmas tree while I listen to Christmas music and sip warm apple cider. I'm all about the multi-tasking.

The impetus for this festivity was Monday night's event: the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. We saw it last year with my dad, and had such a good time we couldn't wait to see it again. This year, we brought Amanda along with us and all had a fantastic evening. I just love that show. How can you not be overcome with the Christmas spirit after such a performance? My two favorite scenes are the Parade of the Wooden Soldiers and the Living Nativity. I am including a video of the Wooden Soldiers below, and if you'd like to see the entire Living Nativity scene (complete with live camels and sheep and everything!), I've got a video of that, too - just click here. It really is beautiful.

Santa gets things started!

The Nutcracker medley (another of my favorites, because I am a sucker for all things Nutcracker)

The Wooden Soldiers

VIDEO: Parade of the Wooden Soldiers

Rockettes in the "New York at Christmas" number

Dancing Santas

The Living Nativity

After the show
(Hey Molly - look how we match! We kept joking about how very "Molly & Arturo" we were that night, ha!)

Striking some Rockette poses with Amanda

After the show, we walked over to Rockefeller Center to get some pictures of the Tree, since it was no longer an "OMG I have been standing in the rain for five hours, take a picture of this stupid tree and GET ME OUT OF HERE" situation like it was the night of the tree lighting. Of course the Plaza was still crowded with tourists, but really, when isn't it? We got some great pictures and really just enjoyed the beautiful Christmas decor.

With the tree behind us

Pretty, pretty!

My favorite part of the Plaza this time of year is the angels along the Promenade, but instead of looking towards the tree, I love to face the other way and admire the stars on the front of Saks. They're so gorgeous, and if you remember from last year, they do a dance to "Carol of the Bells" every fifteen minutes or so. We made sure to stick around so Amanda could see that for herself.

One of the angels with the snowflakes behind her

VIDEO: Dancing snowflakes on Saks

My favorite pictures of the night

Of course, after enjoying the Saks Snowflake show, we had to cross the street to check out the Saks window displays, which are always a big deal. Last year they told the story of Mike, the first individual snowflake. This year, they told the story of Twinkle, the little snowflake who was trying to figure out where she was supposed to end up. She traveled the world and ended up in New York City, where she nearly landed on a "lumbering bear" (who was actually a rather portly lady in a fur coat). But then she saw a crowd of smiling faces and would up landing on a new baby named Noelle - and that little snowflake became the Twinkle in Noelle's eye. Get it? Awww.

The "lumbering bear"

So true, Somewhat-Creepy-Eyed-Snowflake-Named-Twinkle, so true.

And that was really the end of our festive evening. We all walked home together, then called it a night. What a nice evening it was!

More fun stuff on the agenda for this weekend - Eric is heading to Florida for the weekend, but I have lots going on here to keep me occupied while he is away. Stay tuned!

And Now It's Winter

Like, all of a sudden.

As of last week I was still marveling (and knocking on wood) at how much warmer the temperatures have been compared to last year. Even at the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting - sure, the rain was disgusting and awful, but the actual temperature was very pleasant compared to last year.

Then all of a sudden, over the weekend, the sky started to look a little wintery. The temperatures have now dropped by a good 10-15 degrees at least. The winds are a bit more bone-chilling. And Saturday, we were treated to a day of wintery mix, which in my opinion is the nastiest of all nasty weather. Is it rain? Is it ice? Is it snow? Answer: It's all of the above. And it's awful.

So now I'm cold. And Achilles is cold, too. In light of these recent developments, I thought it was appropriate to give Achilles his Christmas gift a little early this year:


Yes, that's right. DOG SNUGGIE. Come on, you knew it had to happen. Don't say I didn't warn you! How could I ever pass up the opportunity for this picture?:


Awesome. We could totally be in a Snuggie advertisement or something, don't you think?

So, even though winter is now upon us, you all can rest easy in the knowledge that we are warm and toasty in this household!

(Rainy) Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting

It's Tree Lighting time!

Last night, I participated in another New York City holiday tradition: the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting. Eric and I did attempt this one last year as well, but were so incredibly wrong about how early we would need to arrive, and were unable to see anything. Plus it was freezing. So, we bailed before the tree even got lit - not that we would have been able to see it even if we had stuck it out.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to try the Tree Lighting again this year, since I knew I would have to be hours and hours early to get any kind of decent spot, and Eric likely wouldn't be able to leave work that early, so I would be waiting for hours and hours alone. Not so appealing. But, now that my friend Amanda is in town and ALL ABOUT anything New Yorky, I knew she would be game to wait with me. So, wait we did. We got there between 3:30 and 4:00 (a full 2 hours earlier than we arrived last year) to try to stake out a spot.

And guess what? That was still almost too late. The pedestrian pens were filling up fast (I just love that they pen us in like cattle at these events). There was no way we would be close enough to any of the stages to see any performers, but after roaming through the Plaza for a bit we did find a relatively uncrowded (at the time) pen that gave us a great view of the Tree and a screen that we could watch the performances on. And so, there we waited.

One of the stages (Barry Manilow performed on this one to open the show)

The tree and the rink ready for the show

The view from our spot. Don't you love the pens? But, we had a good view of the tree, and that screen up on the building to the right.

Since we were settled in to our spot by 4:00, we had three hours to wait until the show started, and five hours until the tree would actually be lit. That's a lot of time to pass. We alternated between standing around (most of the time) and sitting on the street (ewww, but my feet hurt). I also advised Amanda to bring a sandwich or snack, so we did eat a little bit. We chatted and got annoyed with the out-of-control kids next to us (who didn't make it to the show before their parents had enough). We also prayed for the rain to hold off as it started to drizzle. But, hold off it did not.

The rain was light while we were waiting, but as the show finally got started, it got heavier and heavier. People were putting up umbrellas, which was nice for dryness, but bad for blocking views AND just because of the crowd situation. Have you ever been in a crazy crowd with everyone holding umbrellas? It's so cramped and umbrellas are hitting each other and poking people in eyes and dripping all over everybody and it's awful. But, with the way the rain was coming down, it was the lesser of two evils for sure.

A small sampling of the umbrellas in front of us

Amanda and me, huddled under her umbrella

But, the show was underway, so at least we had some entertainment. And as things continued, the rain tapered off for a bit. Of course, it then picked up again, but did slow down enough to lower the umbrellas by the time the tree was lit. And the performances were enjoyable - we saw Barry Manilow, Rob Thomas, Michael Buble, Rod Stewart, Alicia Keys, Aretha Franklin, the Rockettes, and even the Muppets. Good show!

Rod Stewart

Aretha Franklin

VIDEO: Aretha Franklin's Second Performance ("Joy to the World")

The Rockettes

The Muppets

At last, at 8:55 p.m., it was the moment we had all been waiting for: time to light that enormous tree! We all counted down, then TA-DA! Beautiful!

VIDEO: The countdown and lighting!

Hooray! And look what a good job they do with the lights - no dark spots!

Interestingly enough, we had already seen the tree lit up BEFORE the official lighting. Around 6:00, it lit up for just a few seconds! I don't know if they were testing it, or it was an accident, or what, but the crowd all gasped and scrambled for their cameras, but it was off just as quickly as it had turned on. Amanda and I then joked as the rain picked up that we could always just leave because we had already seen it lit!

After the OFFICIAL lighting, we fought our way a little closer to get some pictures before dealing with the mess of getting out of there.

Me and the tree

Amanda and me, our rain hair, and the tree

And that was it! I can officially cross this event off the list now. As soon as we got out of there I hurried home to my warm, dry apartment where my husband and a big ol' bowl of turkey soup were waiting for me. Ahhhh.

Now, let the holiday season officially begin!