Oh for the love of hockey!

I'm not sure I have the words to describe how wonderful the game of ice hockey is. Sure, part of the game plan is hitting the other guy as hard as you can to take him out of play for a few seconds, and it's really expensive so it's primarily upper-middle and upper class white guys out there playing (though women are moving up, so there is that), and the players' bench after a game is a revolting cess pool of spit and snot rockets. All that said, it's still brilliant.

My favorite team, as many of you may know, is the Detroit Red Wings. I love them. One of the things on my lifetime to-do list is to see them play at the Joe in Detroit, that would be awesome. If for some odd reason I end up rich and/or well-connected, we'll make that a playoff game at the Joe. Like any relationship, we have our ups an downs. They've had a hard time since 2002, the last time they won the Stanley Cup. "The winningest coach in history," Scotty Bowman, retired after that season so I think that's why. They had a good season this year, but fell in the first round of the playoffs, that made me sad. I'm happy to say that the Carolina Hurricanes have lifted my spirits since that first round depression. They lost to Detroit in the 2002 finals, it was a really good series and I've liked the Canes as a team since. They've also acquired two new faces since then that make them that much more enjoyable. Commodore who got traded from Calgary is just pretty damn cool, and cutie-pie playmaker Eric Staal, Staal, he's so hot right now, Staal (Zoolander? anyone?), is candy for the eyes (see above), as well as a damn good player. Carolina is currently battling Buffalo for the Eastern Conference title, and the series is tied 2-2. They creamed Buffalo last night, 4-0, it was great.

As I said above, I'm not sure I'm enough of a poet to describe just how great the game is, but watching the playoffs, I've managed to come up with my top ten reasons why hockey is so great, especially come playoff time.

10. During the playoffs, there is a game on TV just about every day, what a wonderful excuse for not getting things done.
9. The player interviews. A large percentage of the NHL is Canadian and listening to them talk aboot the game of hockey is so much fun, eh.
8. The road to the Cup is about endurance and who wants it the most. What's better than watching a team up by three still fighting for every face off and winning the battles along the boards? Not a lot my friend, trust me.
7. Another point on endurance, how great is it when a playoff game goes to five periods and the players are practically falling over they're so tired, but it's still a great game cuz they all want it? Good times.
6. Hockey is a FAST sport. There's no watching out of the corner of your eye while you do something else. It's an all or nothing sport, for the players and the fans. Sweet.
5. Game 3 of a playoff series. If you follow hockey, you know that this is THE game, the turning point where the intensity heats up, the players start to push each others' buttons, and the game becomes ten times better and more exciting than it already was.
4. The new rule changes this year. They did good. My personal favorite is the shoot-out at the end of a tie game. Why didn't anyone think of this sooner?
3. Those three back-to-back-to-back shots that the goalie miraculously saves. How did he do that? It's almost superhuman. Almost.
2. Na-nananana-na, HEY!, na-nana-na (Do other sports have this cheer? I don't know, but it's a fun one, at least when you're team is winning.) Hockey fans are pretty cool (for proof, see previous post.....er.....I mean, ignore previous post!).
1. During the playoffs, most games have that pivotal 10 minutes of frantic skating, huge hits, the quickest line changes you've ever seen, and shots on goal from every angle and out of nowhere. This 10 minutes explains why your quads hurt the next day cuz you leaped up and out of your seat so much, it was like doing squats.

So there it is, some of my favorite things about the game of hockey. If you are already a fan, I hope I filled you with that warm glow, and if you're not, I hope you at least got a little excited by my description of playoff hockey.

I'm not as cool as you think

I had a fun evening last night. My friend Darcy came over, and we had lots of laughs. Towards the end of the evening, however, we were noting that while we had a ton of fun and lots of laughs, the nature of our fun was a perfect example of why it's so hard to answer the question, "So what do you do for fun?" I was thinking about this, and I just think that maybe it's time for me to let everyone in on a little secret: I'm not as cool as you think I am. Don't get me wrong, I am pretty cool, but I'm also not. Here's the story of how dorky we really are.......

The evening started with Darcy asking to look at my dog book. I have a book that has pictures and information about all of the different breeds of dogs, and for awhile now, it's been one of our "things" that Darcy always looks at the book when she comes over. We have passed countless hours looking at and commenting on the pictures in that dog book, not that cool.

We had some serious conversation about this and that, and the other thing, but the real story here picks up after the serious stuff. We decided to take a crack at learning the dance from Napoleon Dynamite. You know, the one he does at the school assembly in support of Pedro. We've been wanting to learn that dance for awhile. The thing is, it's kinda cool if the song comes on and you "spontaneously" bust out with the moves, but the process of learning the dance, that's just not so cool.

Well, we got the first three eight counts down, and then the moves got a little harder, so we decided we'd done enough for one night. I decided I should download the song so that we have it to practice to, thus I opened iTunes and we move into the next dorky phase of the evening. We were listening to clips of songs and singing along. Initially, we were pretty cool cuz it was really cool songs, oldies but goodies, I like to call them. Then we took a turn for the worst. I really don't know how she came up, but we started singing along with Celine Dion. Yes, I have her on my playlist, yes I know all the words, yes, not so cool. Darcy made the really good point that we know a lot of songs that they play on "96.5, KOIT, Light Rock, Less Talk". (Yes, it is necessary to refer to that radio station with the place on the dial, the call letters, AND the slogan.)

For those of you not familiar with this gem, let's take a trip back, oh, 15 or 18 years, when my mom used to drive me to and from school every day, as well as to anywhere we needed to go. What station was number one on my mom's pre-sets? Yes, it was Light Rock, Less Talk. This is the crap that your mom listens to that you are embarrassed to hear, let alone know the words to the songs because you've heard them so many times. I trust you all know this experience. Here's the thing: I am now a dorky adult because apparently, I like 96.5m KOIT, Light Rock, Less Talk now!!!!! I know all the songs, and I have them on my iTunes playlist. So yeah, not so cool.

If you think you have a taste of just how dorky I am, here is the kicker. After singing along to Light Rock, Less Talk, Darcy and I began discussing Disney songs. It was getting late, and we were tired, so lying down to continue our chatting and singing seemed like a good idea. We laid down nice and cozy, my laptop in my lap, and I found the Disney songs that I have on my playlist. Yes, they are on my playlist. We then proceeded to sing along, quite loudly, and with just the right theatrical flair and intonation to match the tracks (thus, you might infer that we have heard and sung along with these songs many a time). A Whole New World, Beauty and the Beast, Can You Feel the Love Tonight?, and the grand finale, everyone's favorite, Part of Your World. The Little Mermaid was out in theaters when I was 9 years old. I wasn't going to be a doctor or lawyer when I grew up, oh no. I was going to be Ariel. Now you can stop wondering about the pic I've attached.

So there you have it. Let me remind you, I AM pretty cool. But just so you know that even the coolest among us are not perfect, I chose to let you in on the real story. This narrative might be featured on VH1's Kate Newlin: Behind the Music, but I wanted you all to have the scoop first.

Lexi and Jenny

I got to clerk my friends Lexi and Jenny's wedding yesterday. If I wasn't before, I sure am hella Quaker now. I feel pretty certain that it was the best wedding I've ever attended. Every thing about it was great, the ceremony was beautiful, the food was great, the music was awesome, and the dance floor packed. There was something extra, though, that made it such a wonderful afternoon and evening. I think it might have something to do with how wonderful Lexi and Jenny are, thus the people they count as friends and family are pretty amazing too, it made for an atmosphere marked by an abundance of energy and joy. I wish I was a better writer so that I could capture a bit more fully just how special it was. I think that Lexi and Jenny are such beautiful people that the beauty overflows and fills those in their presence. Everyone there was so beautiful and I felt as though I would love to sit and chat with anybody and everybody, even though I only knew about 20% of the people there. It was just the kind of experience that fills your heart with joy. Lexi and I grew up in Pacific Yearly Meeting together and she is one amazing woman. She's the kind of person who is kind and caring and full of love, yet you feel surprised and humbled when you figure out that she likes you and considers you a friend. Like, you're not quite sure how someone so good and so cool would even know you were alive, let alone think you're cool or funny. Oh and also, she might be one of the best, if not THE best, dancers I know.

Watching Lexi and Jenny together, I started wondering, do we all get that? I know other couples as well whose partnerships just seem inspiring to me. I like to think that I'll be a part of something like that one day, but sometimes I feel like God is doing everything possible to thwart the possibilities for me. Geography, timing, you name it and I think it's being used to my disadvantage. I don't mean to sound like I'm having a pity party for myself here, I just think it's an interesting thing to ponder in a cosmic sort of way. Things like this always seem very obvious and clear in hindsight, the lessons we have to learn or the hurdles we have to overcome before we say, engage in a committed relationship with perhaps THE person. It overwhelms me sometimes thinking about it because while hindsight is so clear, it can be pretty hard to determine the correct path in the moment. In my prayers I've been focusing a lot in the last month and a half on trust, specifically in God. One of the things that helps keep the anxiousness at bay is to remember that if I trust God and if I am faithful in listening to and following God where I am led, I will make the right choices for me, the ones that will get me to where I want to be in my life and create the opportunities for the relationships I want to have. All that said, I really am quite blessed in my life.

What I learned from last weekend's festivities

While shopping for proper attire:
-It's possible for four girls to each find burlesque outfits in under 30 minutes
-Darcy looks really good in lingerie when she tries it on in the middle of the store with her t-shirt on underneath
-Jelly bracelets are making a comeback
-Frilly bloomers are supposed to be worn under skirts, but we looked WAY hot in just the bloomers

From Bombshell Betty:
-When in doubt, shake it
-Always show inner thigh
-Use a boa to accentuate your curves
-Fishnets are surprisingly hot, you'd think they'd breath a little
-Lipstick on teeth is not a good look
-Burlesque dancers in the days of yore would have taken their clothes off if they could've gotten away with it
-How to make my own pasties

During dinner:
-Vin Diesel has a twin and he's a mover/voiceover artist/waiter in San Francisco - and his name is Alan
-It's possible to fall down upon entering a restaurant and still seem cool
-V-dub is somehow not attracted to Jon Kelly, but has been saying she was so that she could fit in
-One arm in the jacket and one arm out is a good solution to a heat lamp on one side and the cool SF air on the other
-In a group picture, it's good to take the first one with your eyes closed

At AsiaSF:
-A "gender illusionist" is really just a fancy name for a transexual
-Muscled male strippers look good in firemen's gear
-More than one bathroom is needed for a club hosting more than one bachelorette party
-If you're dancing at a club while wearing tighty whities and sagging your pants, DO NOT take off your shirt
-Taking a burlesque dance class then walking to a restaurant 8 blocks away, then to the club 4 blocks away, THEN dancing for a few hours, can really make your feet hurt - not funny, but true

At Meeting the next morning:
-Quakers sure are funny, in their own way

I'm finally done with my finals, so now I am free to worry about some more important issues. Next weekend, I will be attending a bachelorette party in which we are going to take a burlesque dance class. I look forward to this event very much, and I hope they have a pole, but that's neither here nor there. Here's my problem: the suggested attire is heals, fishnets, and hot pants. If you know me well this won't came as very much of a shock, but I don't own fishnets or hot pants, and worse, I don't even know where to buy them! Must I suffer the shame of wearing regular pants? I have a long drive ahead of me, so I have plenty of time to ponder my dilemma, and perhaps I'll even think up some establishments to peruse. I would try Walmart (gasp!), but from what I can tell of the clothes there, it's more trailer park prostitute than high class burlesque dancer. I suppose I could try the Fredrick's of Hollywood at my nearest Galleria, that's classy, right?

my new blog

So I've been meaning to finish up a paper so that I can get started on another, and I thought, now would be a good time to start the blog I've been thinking about. So I'd like to give a shout out first and foremost to the big man upstairs who makes all things possible, my mom who supported and believed in me every step of the way, my friends who got me addicted to blogs in the first place, Tonda for providing me a call name, my homegirl D.Stan who promised to read my blog (she hasn't quite said that to date, but I know she will), my main man the homeless guy on the corner who made me realize that if I have internet access, I should really take advantage of it, all the other people involved in this project, you know who you are, and lastly, I'd like to thank the fans because without them I wouldn't be where I am today. Peace out y'all.