and even more my heart is the same

i'd like you all to know that i've seen both my favorite friends quotes ever today.

joey: i know what to do. you play hard to get!

ross: she already LIVES in LONDON.

joey: [pause] you go to tokyo!

rachel: still in love with? i'm not in love with ross. i like ross as much as the next guy... clearly, i have feelings for him, but feelings don't mean LOVE. i mean, i still have loving feelings for ross. i have continuing feelings of love, but that doesn't mean that i am still IN love with him. i have sexual feelings for him, but i do love him - oh, my God. WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?

phoebe: we thought you knew! we talk about it all the time!

i'd rather blog than grade, obviously.

also, posting things like this when i should be doing work reminds me of how much i miss AIM, and i think this pretty much sums up why.

m: b, I don't know if you know that there is a typo in your profile of the worst kind.

b: are you serious?

g: oh my gosh yes.

m: yes. not a typo that just looks like a typo, but one that looks like you don't know the difference between an adverb and a preposition.

b: OH MY GOODNESS

g: I would laugh, but this is not a laughing matter.

m: I have to agree. my mouth is set in a grim line.

b: your face was already pretty grim.

it's kind of awkward [i mean, and awesome] that i have a co-worker now who remembers when i used to do things like, um, change my AIM profile several times a day. it was ARTSY, dammit. and i should mention that i originally started this blog because 1024 characters just weren't enough for me.

okay, i just signed on to AIM, just to see what would happen. guys, here's what my profile looked like last time i signed on, which i think was about two years ago. [i signed off again really really quickly, because i was afraid of what might happen if i relapsed.]

xxx-xxx-xxxx celly

L: what's sexier than God??

am i headed for the same brick wall?

is there anything i can do about anything at all?

except go back to that corner in manhattan

and dig deeper

dig deeper this time

- ani

there is an insane amount of power in choice.

all things have changed except my mind

and even more my heart is the same

"i suspect you're handling everything with your usual grace..."

drive until you lose the road

we are embarrassed by the intolerable compliment, by too much love, not too little.

- c.s. lewis

yes, all the spaces are necessary. [i can't believe you'd even ask.] and what an interesting look back in my life. am i headed for the same brick wall? well, i'll keep you all posted.

storypeople fixes everything?

so i was in a little bit of a mood today, and not really up for jewel's bullshit.

b: can you help me find something? spicy v-8.

jewel manager: hmm, yes. it's in the juice aisle.

b: THIS isn't the juice aisle?

jm: no. this is the pop and snacks aisle.

b: i looked over by the orange juice. that's not the juice aisle?

jm: no, that's the dairy aisle. [decides i need a lot of help] here, i'll walk you over there.

b: [feeling snarky] what if i want spicy v-8 as a snack?

jm: what? oh, well that's the thing. some people do. but see, it's not a refrigerated juice.

b: yeah, i wasn't sure whether you had to refrigerate it or not...

jm: [solemnly] only after you open it.

in my defense, i don't really drink juice unless i'm sick. and also, jewel sucks. i swear that they put things in the wrong places just to make you buy more stuff. it took me like six months to realize that they have on the border salsa, because it's in the chip aisle with the tostitos salsa and not in the mexican aisle with every other salsa. grrr, branding.

in better news, look what i got today!

for the record, i did NOT steal it from kristen. she put it back. THEN i picked it up.

i may also be suffering from a little thing called "i saw a lot of people i love this weekend, and then all of a sudden they all went home." let's hang out more, friends.

if you're looking for a theme, this post is about love.

so the irresistible revolution is pretty much rocking my life. i'm going to go ahead and recommend it to anyone who's interested in ending poverty, loving jesus, or changing their lives. or all three. i mean, i've had a crush on shane claiborne since i first read his stuff on the God's politics blog. [his commitment to the single life apparently isn't a problem for me.] i'm still halfway through the book, though, so hang on and i'll see if i can blog about it later. i think my favorite think about it so far is how honest he is about his own conversion. it's not preachy. so far, very well done.

i'm pretty sure i saw someone sharing candy with a stranger on the bus today. then he goes, "they're making these chocolate-covered now. werther's originals? i work in a store, so i know. we're getting them in next week." nice.

had one of the best waiters of my life today at the outdoor cafe - pretty sure he helped us pull together like nine tables, split our checks, and made sure we all got what we wanted and extra napkins, too. i mean, it was a busy touristy place on a holiday weekend, and he stopped to ask us why we were so dressed up. awesome. [we were like, oh, this is just what we do on sundays.] then i flirted with the barista at intelligentsia and got two punches in my punch card. took the bus to my favorite falafel place, and made friends with the guy there, too. [i said my falafel was for here, and he goes, "so you're eating dinner with us! yay."] and i mention all this because i think i either need to translate my flirting skills into the real world OR start dating people who work at places i like to eat. actually, that second one might be a good option. hmm.

i'm watching SVU and feeling really frustrated that i can't rewind it to figure out what just happened. [stupid parents' house, getting me all spoiled with your DVR.] i think fin just called eliot a "rat bastard," though, so that's something.

man, i had missed this commercial:

dad: did you kids choose your five yet?

sister: sarah, beth, crystal, jackie, and jenny.

little brother: that's funny, i chose sarah, beth, crystal, jackie, and jenny. [pause] your friends are HOT.

sister: [protests to dad] are you going to do anything?!

dad: maybe you should have uglier friends.

my pretty friends went to a wedding today, in which the minister apparently talked about how people think that marriage restricts your freedom. there were some comments [at the classic between wedding and reception get-together] about how there are always negative things about marriage in wedding sermons. today, after some debate, the people who were actually at the wedding decided that the minister turned it around by saying that marriage makes you more free because you can succeed or fail in life and still be loved. [note that i already feel that way, thanks to all of you...]

interesting, though - what do you say about marriage in a society with a marriage track record like ours? i think that the most badass marriage homily i ever heard started with negative statistics, then turned around with the phrase "but we know that our God lives." our God LIVES. BAM.

watch out - a gossip girl copycat is out and about in real life and causing some controversy, obviously. but does anyone else think this is really good writing for an eighth grader?

"you're a teacher?!"

NEW INDIANA JONES MOVIE IS SO AWESOME. so awesome, because it's just like the other ones, only better. no pretending to be something it's not. this is a classic, cheesy-as-hell indiana jones movie. lots of car chases and communists in this one - if you liked the other ones, you've got to see it.

there was a guy behind me in the theater who, in response to the annoying movie preview guy, said, "give me a shovel. somebody needs to die." i mean, a shovel? really?

guy behind me: it's amazing. we'd never watch all these commercials at home, but here, they make us watch them.

woman with him: yeah, i think that's exactly their evil plan!

gbm: it's like being on lost.

one of the commercials before the movie was about how cops are now enforcing seat belt laws. it's one of those commercials i really love to hate. in it, a 20-something cop pulls over another 20-something guy. the guy in the car's like, "hey, seriously? what did i do?" and the cop tells him he forgot his turn signal and isn't wearing his seat belt. the guy's like, oh, sorry - and the cop says he'll give him a warning for the turn signal. we're supposed to notice that they're friends. then the guy in the car's like, "you coming to the game watch saturday? hey, wait, what are you writing?" the cop writes him a ticket for the seat belt, and is like, "see you saturday, man." the voice over's all, "we're cracking down on seat belt violations, ohio."

i hate this commercial because apparently the message is that you have to wear your seat belt even if the cop who pulls you over happens to be your friend. not really a useful message for me.

n: i hate that noise. don't you?

b: not as much as i hate your FACE.

n: ahhh, we look alike. making all face jokes and your mom jokes invalid!

i always say that my brother is the only person who gets all my jokes. problem is, he also one-ups all my insults.

throwdown!

sitting at my brother's graduation, i perked up when the student speaker said, "as jesus said..." because, you know, i'm always looking for more jesus-y things to talk about. then he goes, "there is no greater love than this, to lay down your life for your friends. but mary did something even more difficult." so are you saying jesus was wrong, mr. new high school graduate? ARE YOU?

[the argument that watching someone you love die is even harder is probably valid. but calling jesus wrong is still in pretty bad taste, if you ask me.]

his high school's motto is "the lord has chosen new wars." isn't that interesting? it's judges 5:8, in the douay-rheims translation, if you're interested. we're talking about a new kind of warrior. now THAT is a new jesus-y thing for me to talk about.

the other highlight of the ceremony was when they were talking about the valedictorian and how he's going to harvard to be an environmental engineer to work to find a energy alternative to fuel. i mean, kind of a specific goal, but whatever - anyway, a random lady in my row just goes, "YESSS!!" like, FINALLY someone notices the fuel crisis and wants to do something about it. 

so, when the dean was talking about their transition from being high school students to graduates, he said, "in a few minutes, when you hopefully get your diplomas..." because yeah, they had just given them diploma covers until after the ceremony. from what i remember, we got our diplomas as we graduated - but if you didn't graduate, you'd find out right then when they gave you an empty diploma cover. ouch. and at my other brother's high school graduation, there was a whole section of kids at the end of the line of graduates who had just fulfilled their requirements that day - in his district, you could finish your classes online. 

for one of his friends, i believe that my brother went over to his house with a box of coffee and a box of donuts, sat him in front of the computer, and said, "you're graduating. today."

straight from the outgoing president - "popularity is fleeting. principles are forever." he's all myspace inspirational about it, isn't he? i clicked on it because it's the interview in which he talks about how he's [apparently] not playing golf because of the war. but it's so bizarre to read his actual words. what a disturbing worldview he has, right?

meanwhile, i'm watching the episode of JAG in which harm gets hit by a car, then goes to a hospital that immediately gets taken over by terrorists. he's currently trying to deliver a baby, diffuse a bomb, and convince a terrorist to defect at the same time. LOVE THIS SHOW.

quotations roundup.

"i'm telling you, i'm quitting. that's it. i'm talking to my boss right now. yes i am. yes i am yes i am yes i am yes i am. okay bye, call me when you get this message!"

- rachel, on the phone with monica.

i need more friends like this - the ones who can give me advice without even being there. 

surely all this is not without meaning.

- melville, moby-dick.

this is why i'm going to continue to stalk my english major friends on facebook. i really, really love this.

you shall know.

just wanted to let you all know - i have noticed how i've seemed pretty sure about the nature of God lately. it might be my high opinion of myself, but i'm also thinking about how much it has to do with what i want God to be like. if God's not all-good, all-powerful, all-knowing, well - that's not the God i believe in. for what it's worth, i realize that i'm being kind of a know-it-all about this. but that's where i'm coming from on this blog.

i just called a friend to leave an excited voice mail, and her voice mail stopped in the middle and played my message back to me. i mean, what? did i sound too ridiculous? say "i meannnn" too much? [on listening, i decide that, in fact, i sound great.]

on a completely unrelated note, i love this article on gossip girl.

truth is mighty and will prevail.

yayyy for hearing martin sheen talk about how much he loves notre dame - oh, and also, hearing people from notre dame talk about how amazing he is. there's a video of him on the home page, too, but who knows how the hell the new site works. too many videos for me. he's so amazing, though, and graduation's going on right now, so stay tuned for more updates.

a very old, very good friend moved in this weekend, and i brought over some housewarming treats in a reusable jewel bag. and you know what she said when i gave them to her? "here, don't forget your democrat bag." love it. i love having friends who have been around long enough to re-start talking about politics, after we stopped talking about politics to save our friendship about seven years ago.

this is kind of like the time i was wearing my "army sister" sweatshirt and another friend told me that it made me look like a republican. i'm just the victim of all kinds of stereotypes, apparently.

:)

i sat down on the bus the other morning, and an old man in a newsies-style hat said, "i see you have a book, there." this was the beginning of a conversation about how you need to have a master's degree to earn any kind of money in this city. i'm starting to feel like random conversations with strangers are kind of normal.

npr + religion

so this is pretty interesting. i sat in the back of mass tuesday, WITH A PRIEST, and therefore got called out to do a reading. [which i like to do, but i'm just saying.] and then i had this one, which i don't remember hearing ever [you know, letter of james] but will be pretty useful, i think.

No one experiencing temptation should say,
“I am being tempted by God”;
for God is not subject to temptation to evil,
and he himself tempts no one.

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers and sisters:
all good giving and every perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of lights,
with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.

- James 1:12-18

[i was also inspired by this post from my blogpast that i stumbled on, umm, while reading my own blog. check out how semi-apologetic i am for writing about something you all might not be interested in. boy, THAT'S changed.]

so "all good giving and every perfect gift is from above." and God doesn't send us bad things to test us. i mean, some of the rest of the reading that i left out is pretty weird. but i like the sentiment, because i try to argue this all the time. i hate that some people have this image of God, trying to trick us or get us to trip up or sending us suffering as a test. this is one for the "harmful misconceptions that people have about God" file.

i've recommended or mentioned this a couple times, so here it is on the blog - "waiting for joe" from this american life a few weeks ago. it's kind of disturbing if you love God, but also a really really interesting take on religion.

also, you've got to read this gospel. same day. [what a weird day of readings.]

The disciples had forgotten to bring bread,
and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.
Jesus enjoined them, “Watch out,
guard against the leaven of the Pharisees
and the leaven of Herod.”
They concluded among themselves that
it was because they had no bread.
When he became aware of this he said to them,
“Why do you conclude that it is because you have no bread?
Do you not yet understand or comprehend? Are your hearts hardened?
Do you have eyes and not see, ears and not hear?
And do you not remember,
when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand,
how many wicker baskets full of fragments you picked up?”
They answered him, “Twelve.”
“When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand,
how many full baskets of fragments did you pick up?”
They answered him, “Seven.”
He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”

- Mark 8:14-21

i mean, this is a twofer. first, we have metaphor. i only wish that the disciples had used the word "literally." [as in, "i would literally die if that happened."] then, we have the disciples being stupid, which i love. i love that we're here 2000 years later like "what are the theological implications..." when it turns out the disciples had no IDEA what was going on, ever.

this blog post is actually more of a fastball.

There is a constant debate among baseball hitters who deal with the question, “If you could know what pitch was coming, would you want to know?”

this column about curveballs in life and in baseball is cheesy as hell. yessss baseball season! i love baseball, even as cubs fans make me long for the baseball fans in a certain less-cool midwestern city.

opinionator yesterday blogs about two opinions on gender aspects of hillary's campaign. i don't know enough about any of this to form a clear opinion. but i DO love the fact that it's getting more and more difficult to determine what a female candidate should be like. i think that gender is becoming less of an issue [as is race] as the issue goes on, or at least it's becoming more and more difficult to write about it. it's a good sign that these things are becoming less and less of an issue at all.

and here's something else i've been talking about for a long time...

Yet, Paulsen insists, parishes can’t afford not to welcome these Catholics at a significant moment of “settling,” such as marriage, baptism of a child or the decision to put down roots. “People are out there,” he said. “They’re spiritually hungry, but they want a place where they feel nurtured, not just where they’re told they are wrong. If they think they’re going to be yelled at, or put to sleep or just asked for money, they’re not going.”

maybe it's not a coincidence that it's in an article written by my friend greg? [not that any of you actually though i was writing any sort of impartial blog, or that i'm doing any kind of pretending that i'm well-read.] but this is what i'm talking about! i've heard a lot of stories about parishes doing marriage prep well, but also a lot of stories about them doing it unexcusably poorly. it makes me so mad. i mean, everyone's looking for something. if those of us in the business think that we have the connection to something greater that they're looking for, we need to present it in the best possible way. at the very least, we need to be authentic about how our faith calls us to treat other people. otherwise, when people say that this church stuff is all bullshit, we can't really blame them.

and, even though he's a brilliant and insightful writer about serious things, i'm still partial to greg's barbaro responds to fans. it's not even current anymore - like, who's barbaro again? but it still makes me giggle every single time.

you're going to love this.

you all have to hear this - this year's high school winner of the poetry out loud contest, reading "frederick douglass." what an amazing poem. and i mean, this girl has talent. "when it is finally ours..." it's difficult to hear something as amazing as this on the train when you don't have anyone to share it with, you know?

shut up, all of you. i didn't talk to any strangers about it. i didn't i didn't.

mothers' day?

actual conversation between my mom and my brother's friend, about another friend.

a: he... won't be joining us this morning.
mom: haha, is he still in bed?
a: he's in someone's bed...
mom: well. [pause] well, good for him!

count on my mom to smooth things over. as always.