Cars I Have Owned

1. 1982 Oldsmobile Cutlass - kind of brownish. Christened The Traveling Honky Tonk by J***** T***** senior year. My parents bought it, but I paid them $60/month so that I would learn the value of a dollar.
2. 1990 Ford Probe - (not neon) blue. This car appeared in my driveway the week before I went to college. It got $5,000 worth of hail damage, and shortly after it was fixed, I crashed into a car on Valley Mills Drive in Waco because I was too busy looking at Hot Spanish Guy (from the student union) driving in the lane next to me.
3. 1999.5 Volkswagen Jetta - white. 10 years and 80,000 miles, and I just learned that the back seats fold ALL the way down, instead of just propped over. Missing one (1) side mirror and one (1) glove compartment handle.

I hope to keep it at 3 for the foreseeable future. No, not a jinx. Right??

Things I Wanted to Make a List About Tonight but Drank Too Much and Got Tired

• A Capella groups on youtube
• Things Jim and I are going to do in August
• Books I'm adapting into screenplays
• Reasons why Vodka works with anything
• How much I hate Derek and DJ for going to Puerto Rico
• Why television shows rarely get it right
• Exercises I HAVEN'T done this year
• People that have never been in my kitchen
  

People who were born on July 30th

people significant to listers, anyway, that I know of...

from the world of Famous Folks:

• Hilary Swank (everyone's-least-favorite-double-Oscar-winner and -karate-kid)

• Lisa Kudrow (star of the only movie Katie and I totally agree on)
  

• Laurence Fishburne (the guy that brought me and Alana together, and started the Daily Poll)
  

• Kate Bush (I don't know, I just love her and couldn't delete her from the list, like I did Vivica Fox, Tom Green, and Edd "Kookie" Byrnes (though I am going to look into him))
  

• Delta Burke (mine and Julie's and probably your favorite Sugarbaker)
  

• Jean Reno (The Professional)
  

• Arnold Schwarzenegger (Alana's Governor and driver of the car in my favorite cinematic car crash ever, See: Commando)

• Emily Bronte (rude not to include...everyone's favorite Bronte? or is that Charlotte?)

• Paul Anka (father-in-law of Jason Bateman, star of everyone's favorite TV show)
  

• Peter Bogdanovich (director of funniest movie ever made, and two of my favorite movies ever, interviewer of Alfred Hitchcock, and I haven't even mentioned Paper Moon)
  

• Henry Ford (Godfather of Julie's early 1990s Neon Blue Probe....so hott)

and

• Ronda

• WHC,IV

Found Lists

There are lots of lists out there on the world wide web and luckily, I spend way too much time on the internet. I am also intrigued by the idea of making a list of lists. So here are the best lists I have seen in the last week:

• 10 Worst Evolutionary Designs
• How to Violate Facebook Etiquette and Piss Off Your Friends
  
• The 20 Best Albums of 2009...So Far
• Top 10 Things Overheard at Sarah Palin's Farewell Party
• 5 Things Movie Trailers need to Stop Doing
• 31 National Geographic Photos
• Obama's Healthcare Press Conference in a Nutshell

And here is the worst list I have seen this week:

• Texas Monthly's 50 Best Burgers in Texas

Vacations I planned having drinks tonight

I made new friends this weekend we will call them AS and AM (husband and wife) Even though they live in Atlanta, we have planned many reunion events together...here they are:

• Weekend in Miami
• UT football game in Austin
• Christmas party in Houston
• Graduation party in Austin
• New Year's in Belize

I am guessing 2 of the above will actually happen. We will see. However I will say. It is very refreshing to meet new people.

My 18 Favorite "Con-Artist" Movies

In order (please note, these are not in order by preference in terms of general filmmaking but rather, how awesome the characters/cons are * also, I just woke up and am pretty sure I have yet to type a cohesive sentence)...

1. Heist
2. Rounders
   
3. The Sting
4. House of Games
   
5. Six Degrees of Separation
6. The Spanish Prisoner
7. Jackie Brown
   
8. Diggstown
9. Used Cars
   
10. The Hustler
11. Nine Queens
12. Ocean's 11
13. Catch Me if You Can
    
14. The Grifters
15. Tin Men
    
16. The Color of Money
    
17. Best Laid Plans
18. Confidence
    

And just for fun...my LEAST favorite...

1. Matchstick Men
2. The Big Bounce
3. The Sting II
4. Boiler Room
5. Heartbreakers
   

Things I did tonight while "working on my screenplay"

• Looked up how many ounces of wine are in a serving (five)
  
• Added two friends on Facebook
• Watched three clips from Karate Kid
• Converted five ounces to cups (almost 2/3)
• Realized candle wasn't lit
  
• Lit candle
  
• Poured glass of wine containing one serving
  
• Gave ratings to two albums in my iTunes library (five stars and three stars)
• Wrote dialogue for one scene
• Watched 20 seconds of trailers for Funny People and Public Enemies
• Thought about dislike of Christian Bale
• Washed dishes
• Reread first 33 pages of script
• Poured glass of wine containing one serving
  
• Checked email
• Wrote this list
  

Supper

Brought to you by Taco Bell®

• 1 Volcano Double Beef Burrito
• 1 Volcano Taco
• 1 Crunchy Taco
• 1 Chicken Quesadilla
• 1 Order of Cinnamon Twists
• 1 Large Pepsi
  

Some Albums I've Been Listening To

- Jason Lytle - Yours Truly, The Commuter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOYOwv7AiZ0

- The Rural Alberta Advantage - Hometowns
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GupdrkZMYpA

- La Strada - La Strada EP
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OK3tEgbqN24

- The Avett Brothers - I and Love and You EP
http://aolradio.podcast.aol.com/aolmusic/mp3s/The_Avett_Brothers_I_and_Love_and_You.mp3

- Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMPF6lpM0XM

- Eels - Hombre Lobo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoqZOR9DTi4

- Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjecYugTbIQ

- Hayden - The Place Where We Lived
http://www.box.net/shared/static/cb2ef4etn8.mp3

- Modest Mouse - No One's First, and You're Next
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZh596lOft4&feature=channel_page

Things to do when you're at a lakehouse by yourself for 6 hours

• Look around
• Drink beer
• Think about getting in the pool
• Listen to music
• Start to watch nascar--then change your mind
• Smoke as many cigarettes as possible
• Ponder life
• Get bored, clean a little
• Stare at the grill and wish you had something to cook
• Think about turning on computer and doing some work
• Decide that work is gay
• Call a friend who doesn't answer
• Practice shuffleboard until you realize that it really isn't too much fun by yourself
• Notice that you are only 1 hour into said 6 hours and think, "Damn, this is gonna be a long list."
• Pee
• Kill bugs
• Go down to the water and look around there
• Stare at the fish under the boathouse and get 15 minutes of pure entertainment watching them try to eat your spit
• Almost step on a snake
• Talk to previously mentioned friend for an hour and a half (that killed some time)
• Decide to get in pool but it's too cold. Sit by pool and listen to frog croak who won't shut the fuck up
• Wish I was as patient as that frog
• Get the hiccups and realize it's only 9:30pm. Only 3.5 more hours to go

I think that was my last coherent thought. I have no idea what I did for the last few hours.

Things I Did Not Make It Home With Saturday Night

• Coozie
• Camera
• Ipod
• Sunglasses
• Cell phone
  
• Shirt
• Car
  
• Dignity

Things that have turned up so far: Camera & ipod (thanks, Karen); cell phone & car (thanks, Mark, a person/angel I just met on Saturday).

Colors of Jello Shots

• Orange
• Green
• Blue
• Purple
• Red
  

Oscars and Biopics

Well, it's that time of year again. We're in the "dead zone" of Oscar movies -- too late for Spring screenplays and too early for Fall performances. Apparently, though, we're just in time for some possible Oscar-nominated biopics.

1) Meryl Streep as nobody's favorite chef: Julie & Julia
http://www.hulu.com/watch/71540/movie-trailers-julie-and-julia

2) Nobody's favorite, 2-time Oscar winner, Hilary Swank, as some famous pilot: Amelia
http://www.hulu.com/watch/80553/movie-trailers-amelia

3) Everyone's favorite (in most cases only) French actress as some designer: Coco Before Chanel
http://www.hulu.com/watch/82147/movie-trailers-coco-before-chanel

*This post was brought to you by Hulu movie trailers and me sitting on my couch for 3 hours and counting.

Bars I Am Going to Tomorrow. On a bus.

• Little Woodrow's Midtown
• Shiloh Club
• Kay's
• (Under the) Volcano
• Tipsy Clover (can you say 2005?!)
  

Congrats, Jenny & Thomas!

Real Facebook Status Updates: True or False?

***'s singn--I gOt ☼sUnShiiiNe☼ , On a cLoUdY daAaaY~! *Lovn the many special and terrific peeps I share this so called life with.."bLeSsEd"..* (oFf 2GeT pRoDuCtIvE!)

*** can’t believe how focused she is at work if she starts her day with a little 5 am 3 mile run, a sit-down, nutritious breakfast with her family, and a some reading time with my little boy. He agrees that the second Harry Potter is the weakest in the series.

*** is 21 weeks pregnant with a healthy 12 ounce baby boy! I have gained 2 pounds which means I still weigh 3 pounds less then when I got pregnant. I think it is all in the boobs and belly. Yipee! Will post his newest mugshot tonight!

*** made her own cheese this morning. I know! But *** likes it better than the store bought stuff ;) I just can’t refuse him when he says, ‘Mama make cheese today?’

*** 's ExCiTED aBoUt tHe sHoRt wEeK/ loOoOnG wK'EnD~! CaNt wAIt tO lOuNgE / hAnG w/ FrIeNdS n FaM "cOoOkOT wHo'S iN?? "gRiLz!*

*** remembered to prepare and pack my macrobiotic lunch today, but forgot to bring beet salad I was hoping to have for a 3 pm snack. What was I thinking??? I’ll have to head to kindermusik on an empty stomach.

Quick Judgements: 2009 Emmy Nominations

Hooray!
22 nods for 30 Rock! 22!! Clearly the best show on the 'tube
How I Met Your Mother sneaks into Best Comedy
(NPH has clear line to victory, see below)
Kristin Wiig!!!
Jemaine Clement, Flight of the Conchords
(Glad to see they've finally caught on)
Family Guy!!!!

Boo!
No Jeremy Piven
(Last season was Entourage's worst, yet it scores a best comedy nod and Ari Gold is left out in the cold? Makes no sense)
Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton shafted...again. And no FNL for best drama? Whatever...
Does anyone even watch House? Or L&O:SVU for that matter?
Elisabeth Moss over January Jones? F*ck no...did you people even watch MM last season?
Boo to me: Why have I not watched a single episode of Damages?
Charlie Sheen and Tony Shalhoub again? Really?
NO MATTHEW FOX????? Ok, just kidding...relax Mr. Morris

Bill Murray movies, in order of my favorites

1. Quick Change
2. Rushmore
3. Groundhog Day
4. Broken Flowers
5. Stripes
6. Lost in Translation
7. Scrooged
   
8. Kingpin
   
9. What About Bob?
10. The Razor's Edge
    

*I am not including ensemble movies, so I have excluded The Royal Tenenbaums, Tootsie, Ed Wood, which would be like 1, 5, and 6.

** This is a difficult exercise. I keep flip-flopping on Groundhog Day and Rushmore. Consider them a tie.

Reasons CSI is one of the worst things to ever happen to television

1) It has since spawned not one, not two, but now officially 3 spin-offs: Miami, New York, and L.A.
2) It made CBS the number 1 network for many many years (and still going).
3) People like my mom can watch that shit every night but then complain about the "brain scene" in Hannibal. I mean, come on. They cut open little kids and grandmothers on that show! Every single episode!
4) William Petersen left the show and Laurence Fishburne took his place. While I like the latter, it just bothers me for some reason that they had to get someone just as nerdy. And why can't Dennis Quaid be the lead on one of these stupid shows? CSI New Orleans! Yeah that's right, send me my check.
5) Red-head bad actor guy on CSI Miami never, not ever, never ever actually contributes to solving any of the crimes. All he does is stand over bodies, put on his sunglasses, and say terrible one-liners.
6) Which reminds me -- I'm no cop, but I'm pretty sure CSI doesn't solve every case by themselves. Oh, and while on the subject, I'm also pretty sure they don't look like ANY of those smokin' hot chicks. Grrrrrrrr.
7) Gary Sinise is the lead on CSI New York and he's awesome but the show sucks. Such a waste.
8) William Petersen, Gary Sinise, and even red-headed bad actor guy have all been around for a long time and each made a shitload of movies, but these crappy shows are what they will end up being famous for. To Live and Die in L.A? Anybody? Manhunter?
9) Finally, and I don't know this for a fact, but I would think that these shows would affect jurors when it comes to murder cases. I'm not sure how, but I just think however it affects them -- it's not good.

Some things I’m anxiously awaiting

- Grass
- An end to the MJ coverage
- The Low Anthem album that should arrive in the mail any day
- Whitney Houston’s new album
- The start of Top Chef and Project Runway

Reasons Why I Hate You

Blaine - You are coming up to visit me on Saturday and haven't written or called to touch base. Sometimes I wonder why we are even friends.

Derek - You ruined movies for sale. You don't care enough like Blaine to even pretend to come visit.

Austen - I told you to come visit with Blaine and Julie and you, apparently, chose to pretend that email exchange never took place.

Michael - You are more popular dead than alive.

Surprising Facts

1. I just learned (after living there 6 years) that my apartment "complex" is called The Chalet. Which I find hilarious. I hope it becomes as ubiquitous as The Condo.
   
2. I know someone whose brother died when he was a baby, and then later when my friend was born, his parents gave him the SAME NAME.
3. My cousin, who is a teacher in Houston and whose parents are from Marshall, got married on 6/27/09 to a guy who works for Marathon Oil. This girl from Marshall, who works for Marathon Oil, got married on 6/27/09 to a guy who is a teacher in Houston.
   
4. Someone--many people, I guess--think it's a good idea to make a Smurfs movie.
   

And so it begins.

Big Brother 11, list 1 - First Impressions:

In order of just-barely-tolerate to hate:

1. Lydia
   
2. Jordan
3. Jeff
4. Kevin
5. Ronnie
6. Michele
7. Russell
8. Laura
9. Braden
10. Natalie
11. Chima
12. Casey
    

Jessie doesn't count because it is not a first impression. As you know, I hate him too. And also feel very sorry for him. It's complicated.

Great Days in 2009

This has got to be one of the best years ever.

• Square Root Day - 03/03/09
  
• Odd Day - 05/07/09
• Date/Time Alignment - 4:56 07/08/09
• Personal Favorite - 04/05/09

And still 09/09/09 to come!

What else?
Which one is your favorite?
Do you have a pencil darling?

3 People Who List Things Because of List Count

• Julie
• Jon
• Karen

I probably would, too, but haven't yet. I shouldn't make fun because I am a nerd for numbers (see next list).

grocery list 07.07

the 7th list in July in honor of 07.07...and i actually wrote down this list before i went to the store

• chicken
• chicken stock
• tuna steak
• zucchini
• carrots
• avocado
• red onion
• scallions
• sweet potatoes
• sesame seeds
• soba noodles
• mirin
• wasabi powder
• limes
• couscous
• rosemary
• cherry tomatoes

9 Favorite dereklm Tweets...so far...

9. "...going to eat mexican food in memory of the fake death of Jeff Goldblum" - no better reason to eat Mexican food...except maybe being in Mexico.

8. "Jenny Lewis = good, Houston crowd = as awful as you could possibly imagine, Jenny Lewis encore" = surprisingly awesome - makes you feel like you were there...plus I have a hard on for Jenny Lewis, so whatever.

7. "http://twitpic.com/80tol - My big catch" -- ohhhh the irony!

6. "bought tickets to Free Press Summer Fest. Houston's acting like an actual city! http://bit.ly/PWFms" - clicking the link and seeing the name "Explosions in the Sky" caused a near heart attack for yours truly.

5. "was going to a movie but Candice fell asleep, shocking. Now watching this abortion of a college baseball game. Come on Virginia" - Love the wordplay, and the back handed comment about one's girlfriend...well played.

4. "is in Marshall. Just saw a girl in a bikini and boots washing motorcycles on the side of the highway. Next task: take picture" - While the aforementioned snap never came, I'm beginning to think that Marshall is Narnia or something.

3. "KNOCK THAT TAX MONKEY OFF YO BACK!! http://bit.ly/PHzR" - No words.

2. "is twittering via text message after being inspired by the Iranians. I want to be ready in case of emergency." - Where it all started. Birth of a nation.

1. "woke up today, no truck outside. Apparently HPD towed it as an abandoned vehicle even though I drive it to work every day." Awesome. - Exactly what Twitter is all about...well that, self-promotion, and celebrity stalking.

soapbox

Yesterday was "the highest single-day [death] total in Afghanistan in nearly a year....Seven Americans, two Canadians and one Briton died in four separate incidents Monday."

So here is a list of Americans who have died since June 25:

1266	07/06/09	NAME NOT RELEASED YET	Not reported yet		U.S. Army	Not reported yet	Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack	southern Afghanistan	Not reported yet	Not reported yet
1265	07/06/09	NAME NOT RELEASED YET	Not reported yet		U.S. Army	Not reported yet	Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack	southern Afghanistan	Not reported yet	Not reported yet
1264	07/06/09	NAME NOT RELEASED YET	Not reported yet		U.S. Army	Not reported yet	Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack	Kunduz	Not reported yet	Not reported yet
1263	07/06/09	NAME NOT RELEASED YET	Not reported yet		U.S. Army	Not reported yet	Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack	Kunduz	Not reported yet	Not reported yet
1262	07/06/09	NAME NOT RELEASED YET	Not reported yet		U.S. Army	Not reported yet	Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack	Kunduz	Not reported yet	Not reported yet
1261	07/06/09	NAME NOT RELEASED YET	Not reported yet		U.S. Army	Not reported yet	Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack	Kunduz	Not reported yet	Not reported yet
1257	07/04/09	Fairbairn, Aaron E.	Private 1st Class	20	U.S. Army	3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division	Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire, indirect fire	Combat Outpost Zerok (eastern Paktika province)	Aberdeen	Washington
1256	07/04/09	Casillas, Justin A.	Private 1st Class	19	U.S. Army	3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division	Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire, indirect fire	Combat Outpost Zerok (eastern Paktika province)	Dunnigan	California
1254	07/02/09	Sharp, Charles S.	Lance Corporal	20	U.S. Marine	2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force	Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack	Helmand province	Adairsville	Georgia
1249	06/29/09	Lynch, Terry J.	Sergeant	22	U.S. Army	3rd Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry)	Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack	Wardak Province	Shepherd	Montana
1251	06/28/09	Drees, Steven T.	Private	19	U.S. Army	2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division	Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire, RPG	Landstuhl Reg. Med. Center	Peshtigo	Wisconsin
1250	06/26/09	Cross, Peter K.	Private 1st Class	20	U.S. Army	2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry)

http://icasualties.org/oef/byNationality.aspx?hndQry=US

And this story is currently the 9th story on CNN.com, after:

• People moving briskly into arena for memorial
• Jackson memorial crowd may rival '84 Olympics 59 min
• iReport.com: How are you honoring MJ today?
• Time: Places to go to honor Michael Jackson
• Web braces for Michael Jackson onslaught
• Ticker: Obama pays his respects to MJ
• Police think South Carolina serial killer is dead
• Slain NFL star's girlfriend bought gun - police

< / soapbox >

Ben's First Annual All-American Tour of Dive Bars

The bars of the first AATDB:

• Ron's Pub and White Horse Inn
• Roll N Saloon
• Leon's Lounge
• Lone Star Saloon
• The GRAB
  
• The Spot Club
• Big Star Bar

RESULTS

Winner: Lone Star Saloon or Roll N Saloon (feel free to add comments to declare a winner)

Loser: Leon's Lounge (suffering from new management, apparently)

Most Fun: The Spot Club

Most Likely to Visit on a Regular Basis: Big Star Bar

Most Dangerous: Ron's Pub and White Horse Inn

Most Out of Business: The GRAB (RIP)

Join us next Independence Day weekend for the 2nd annual AATDB.

Liz Lemon's Pro/Con List for Dennis Duffy

PROS

• basically nice
• takes good care of his feet
• makes good chili
• remembers my birthday
• rarely wants to do it
• is funny when he goofs on his friends
• doesn't care about money
• loyal
• too lazy to cheat
• would increase likelihood of a blue-eyed kid
• loves The Simpsons
• has good hair
• has already seen me throw up two times
• fixed tv
• Jack likes him

CONS

• not super smart
• listens to Winger
• dental hygiene
• wears acid wash denim
• always wants foot rubs
• not much money
• catholic
• doesn't like his mother
• I don't like his mother
• his mother doesn't like me
• loves Family Guy
• reads The Post
• insists on spending holidays with his mother
• has already seen me throw up
• attempted threeway
• racist
• wears Italian horn even though Irish ***this is the only one I couldn't quite make out.
• Jack likes him

***All in all he doesn't sound like a bad guy

what you get for free when you buy a briskett at HEB

• 12-pack of HEB soda
• 20-pack tortillas
• bag of romaine lettuce
• can of black beans
• bag of potato chips
• onion dip
• sausage
• frozen fruit bars

Official State Heroes of Texas

As decreed by the Texas Legislature....

1. Davy Crockett
2. Stephen F. Austin
3. Sam Houston
4. Earl Campbell

In case you don't believe it, because I didn't when I saw it on the news last night.

http://www.texasmonthly.com/2001-09-01/sports.php