Sunday, October 31, 2010

Happy Halloween

Yesterday I went on a costume pub crawl.  It started at 1 pm.  Do you know how many people are dressed up for Halloween at 1 pm? No one.  Do you know how many people stared at/talked about me, in full costume, as I rode the subway alone at 1 pm?  Everyone.  Everyone stared at the zombie schoolgirl smeared in fake blood.  An Asian tourist took a picture of me.  One guy even asked me if I was ok, and I don't think he was joking. 

The costume crawl was a blast.  It's always fun to see guys in costumes, and then girls in slutty versions of those costumes.  My friends and I decided Halloween may be the easiest night of the year to meet someone.  You have an instant icebreaker when you go to caress that chicken, feel that guys grapes or punch a muppet in the head, just to see if he feels it.  Yep, those are all effective icebreakers.

Today I'm going to Jonny Damon's house and then we're going to an apple orchard that his family owns.  Isn't that the cutest date ever?! If only this fake blood would come off...

Monday, October 25, 2010

You had me at HGTV.

I need to gush about my most recent date to someone.  That someone is you. 

On Saturday I went out with Jonny Damon, not the real Johnny Damon (that would be craaaazy), but a guy who I will be calling Jonny Damon for several reasons.  1. Red Sox fan (JD played for the Sox) 2. Beard (in all it's glory) 3. Wicked cute (women would probably be wearing his face on tshirts).

I had high hopes for Jonny Damon.  So high that I was really excited/nervous about our first meeting.  He doesn't live in the city so I met him halfway for dinner.  Yes, dinner for our first meeting, very risky.  But I had a good feeling about JD, and I also had to drive 15 minutes so yeah, I was going to eat dinner.  Firstly, let me tell you how cute he is.  He is sooooo cuuuuuute.  Light brown hair, blue eyes, well trimmed beard.  He is fun to look at.  I almost question if he is too hot for me (but then I remember I am awesome).

Secondly, let me tell you how cool he is.  He's freaking awesome.  He's funny and he thinks I'm funny, which is extremely important to me.  He has a degree in elementary education and wants to teach the second grade (how cute is that?).  Until he finds a teaching job he's been doing carpentry (how hot is that?).  We have a lot in common.  He appreciates 90s Nickelodeon tv just as much, if not more than I do (he owns all episodes of Salute your Shorts and Are you afraid of the Dark?!).   He loves doing home renovations and watches a lot of HGTV (I can not be torn away from renovation/home shows on HGTV!).   He collects sea glass (I just went to a sea glass festival!).  I could go on and on. 

We met for dinner at 7:30, it was packed.  We left around midnight, it was completely deserted.  So yes, I think it's safe to say it went pretty well.  I think we made plans for 4 possible dates in the future.  Things we really want to do but no one else wants to do with us (like horror movies and brewery tours).  I can't get to excited about that yet, one day at a time right?  He texted me today, just to tell me he had a great time on Saturday and that he hopes he can see me this weekend.  This made me ridiculously happy.  Boy, you can see me anytime you want.  Did I mention how cute he is? He's soooo cuuuute.

In the meantime, I not going to turn off OkCupid.  As Violet put it, "In dating, you can't put all your eggs in one basket."  But me liking Jonny Damon so much really made me question if I should see the 35 year old again.  Which I guess I should.  Jonny Damon after all will probably have a date this week so why shouldn't I? 

You cannot be serious

I have been finding recently that every time I log on to Facebook I discover that someone has either got married, got engaged or is having a baby. OK, every time may be an exaggeration, but it is happening an awful lot.

I logged on this afternoon and yet again someone is getting engaged. But it's someone I used to babysit for.

Yes, someone that I used to read bedtime stories to is soon going to be a smug married. And I'm only 24.

What is the world coming to?

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Bridget's Favorite Things

We here at WWBD? have every intention of taking over the world once Oprah relinquishes her crown next spring. What else to do when preparing for World Domination than to compile a list of our favorite things? Unfortunately, current budgetary restraints don't allow for us to share with you, our loyal readers. So while there may not be uniformed caterers popping into your room to serve you, and there certainly won't be the keys to a new vehicle under your chair, we still want to share these new discoveries with you. Mostly because they have made our lives awesome, and we want your lives to be awesome too.





Grayer says...
This is the best invention for women since the birth control pill. Sure, it's about $40 but you'll never have to buy tampons or "sanitary napkins" ever again! To top it off, it's environmentally friendly because those tampons and sanitary napkins create billions of tons waste every year. Gross! The Diva Cup is available at environmentally friendly stores, such as REI or Whole Foods. You can wear it all day and all night with out having to worry about leakage, a spare tampon, or my biggest fear of store brand sanitation, Toxic Shock Syndrome (caused by that pesky Staph aureus). Once you go cup, you won't ever want to give it up.


Violet says...
I am absent-minded and very forgetful, and would therefore always, ALWAYS forget to throw some tampons in whatever purse I was using at the moment. That is why I love the Diva Cup. I can go on with my daily life, and not worry about running to the bathroom, or whether or not I have an extra tampon with me. Especially wonderful when traveling, when bathrooms are at a premium.

Fenella says...
These have not made it over the pond yet. They better pretty soon though.


  • Homemade, Fresh-fruit smoothies

Violet says...
I never owned a blender until my roommate recently acquired one, and now we can't stop making fresh smoothies. Strawberries, half a banana, a bit of orange juice, and some ice, and you've got yourself a refreshing, tasty treat. And several servings of fruit. (Strive for 5, kids!) The other day I made a pineapple/passion fruit smoothie that rocked my socks off. Hint: Even if you don't care for bananas in your smoothie, you still need one to achieve the desired texture.

Grayer says...
I've been way into smoothies lately. They're my on the go breakfast while walking to the T. The great thing about smoothies is no matter what you put in it, it still tastes good. I put frozen fruit in mine along with plain or vanilla yogurt, milk or juice, and some protein for staying power. If everything's cold, there's no need for ice. (And I disagree, you don't need bananas for texture).



  • Glee

Grayer says...
We have a certain weakness for singing and choreographed dancing. If you're not watching it, well, you might as well start. It won't be going away anytime soon. Though I'm not loving this season, it's still damn entertaining.

Violet says...
Nothing makes me wish I had any kind of singing ability more than this show. Or that I had had a teacher like Mr. Schuester (who I would have had a total crush on). And have you heard their version of Britney Spears' Toxic? Awesome.

Fenella says...
Glee makes my Monday evenings. The fact that I live in the backwater that is the UK means that the second series doesn't start until January and I am suffering serious withdrawal symptoms. And Mr Schuester? If he was my teacher I would definitely be fluent in Spanish by now.

  • Seasonal brews
Grayer says...
Guys love a girl that drinks beer, it's a proven fact. Seasonal/Regional brews are the best brews. Nothing says "fall" like Shipyard Pumpkinhead. Nothing says "oooooh, oooh yeahhhh" like Southern Tier's Choklat Stout. This winter stout is like an orgasm in a glass, no joke. This beauty will leave you smiling and satisfied, which is more then I can say for certain men, and at 11%, one glass will leave you with a lovely glazed over look. I call that getting krunked with class.


  • Zumba

Grayer says...
Since I'm a sucker for choreographed dance, I'm a sucker for Zumba. Hip songs with repeating steps that about half way through the song, you actually start picking up. And when I do actually get those steps I feel like I'm dancing back up for Janet Jackson (ok, insert someone cooler here). I don't know why men haven't gotten in on this, with all the booty shaking going on. Some people hate it, but that's usually because they have no rhythm/coordination.



Violet says...
You've never heard of this band, especially if you don't live in Atlanta, but you should. They are definitely unique with their riverboat jazz sound and fun lyrics. Also, I have a total crush on their trombonist, (yes, they have a trombonist) mostly because he looks like Paul Rudd. With a beard. Look them up, and if you like them, download them. They're on iTunes! Don't miss Oh Angela!, March of the Hookers, or Old Man Cabbage.


  • Winter pyjamas
Fenella says...

We all know that scene in Bridget Jones Diary where Ms Bridget is sat in her pyjamas, drinking wine and listening to Sad FM? I too have a pair of pyjamas very similar to these. And they are amazing. Now that the nights are drawing in and it's bitterly cold there is nothing better then getting home from work, getting into my pyjamas and making friends with a bottle of wine. Do I kick my leg up in the air and play guitar with a magazine? You bet I do.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

The Conversation: The Result

On Wednesday night I had drinks with my softball team. Due to the season ending in August it was the first time we'd all got together since the season ended, and the first time we'd all got together since The White Horse and I have got together. I figured it was going to be an interesting evening.

Now, as you all know, TWH and I met through our work softball team, not through work itself. These are all people we both know really well and get on with, and I thought this could be a good opportunity to let people know that the two of us were now more than just friends. The night before I had tried to mention this to TWH but he being a guy didn't really take the bait and I didn't want to push it and come across as all desperate.

Fast-forward to Wednesday evening, I'm two drinks in and feeling a little irritated. We're sat apart, not talking and acting like the past two months haven't happened. *Disclaimer: I didn't want to make a big deal about us. I didn't want to make a big announcement and I certainly didn't want the two of us acting all couply in the bar. All I wanted was my friends to find out, in a subtle way so that I wouldn't have to lie about my social plans like I've had to. TWH walks over and I tell him that I don't this, that it's weird. He agreed and said that he doesn't mind people knowing, he just didn't want to make a big deal out of it. I said that I didn't want to make a big deal out of it either, I just have more friends at work than he does. All of his friends know about me (even his mum knows about me now apparently) but my friends don't know about him because of the whole 'we work together thing' and I don't think that's fair, because let's be honest, girls like to talk.

I think I got my point across. As the evening wore on we gradually acted in more of a couple manner (nothing icky) and people found out, nothing was said and it was all very non-dramatic. As it should be. Later on in the evening (probably 5 drinks in by now) I was speaking to TWH and one of our friends came over to say goodbye because he had to meet his girlfriend. I started asking questions about his girlfriend only for him to respond: "And what about your new boyfriend Fenella? How long have you been with him?" Awkward...didn't he know that TWH and I haven't had The Conversation?! I managed to fend off the question by saying that I was doing the asking, not him.

On the train home I said to TWH that I didn't answer the boyfriend question because we hadn't had the whole boyfriend / girlfriend conversation. (Oh vodka, how I love the confidence you give me). TWH said that we could have the conversation now. I said OK.

TWH: So, you're my girlfriend right?
Me: Yes

And they say romance is dead. So there you have it. I guess TWH now falls into the ACTUAL BOYFRIEND category. Huh.

P.S. And might I just say, the action that you get after having The Conversation? If only you could have The Conversation more than once in a relationship.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Three things..

  1. I went on a second "drinks date" with the 35 year old.  I still had a good time, he's still a fun guy, he's still 35.  Since I met him after work I feel like he's seen the real me.  The after-work Grayer looks a hell of lot different than the Saturday-night-date Grayer.  He still seemed interested.  Maybe I'll see him next week.
  2. I have a date on Saturday that I'm actually super excited about.  So excited about it that I'm actually concerned how excited I am.  This guy has the potential to be awesome and super cute, but he most likely will not be awesome and not cute at all.  So I just keep trying to remind myself that things could go awry.  And that's ok, but we are actually having dinner, which is a huge commitment in the online dating world.  Possible scenarios run through my head.  What if he's a Yankees fan?  What if he does live in him parents basement and owns an ant farm?  What if he does dungeons and dragons role playing?  What if he likes Justin Beiber? 
  3. Remember my Stupid Smug Single friends?  Well guess who showed up as a visitor on OkCupid?  Flora, the Stupid Smug Single friend.  That hypocritical beeyotch.  Either she's decided maybe I was right and she wanted to give it a try, OR she just wanted to see my profile so she could be more judgmental/smug/stupid.  I don't even know how she found my profile (I don't go by my name, obviously) but if she just wanted to check it out just to judge me, that girl has something else coming to her.  Hint: it's not going to be a super cute date who may or may not love Justin Beiber.  Bitch. 

Monday, October 18, 2010

The Singleton Sibling

Yes, Grayer is right. I have been busy snogging The White Horse. That however, is not the reason for my blog absence. Writer's block.

However, this past weekend a conversation I had with my dad helped me to well, unblock.

As it has been previously mentioned, I am the slut of my family. My parents were each other's first boyfriend / girlfriend, same goes for my brother and his girlfriend. Now, these two have been dating for awhile. Seven years.

In that time I have grown used to being 'the single one.' The most prominent example of this I can think of is when the five of us went out for dinner and I was sat on a separate (and rickety) little table. Admittedly it was touching the 'grown ups' table, but it was most definetley tacked on the end for the slut sheep of the family. Let me tell you, sometimes it can suck to be a singleton. It sucks even more to be The Singleton Sibling.

Which was brought home to me this weekend when discussing Christmas plans with my dad. Apparently, my brother and his girlfriend are thinking of spending Christmas with her family. I didn't think much of this, yes it would be nice to spend Christmas with my brother but I'm sure I'll see him soon after and it's ok because I'll be spending Christmas at home with my parents. Right? Wrong.

Me: "So it'll just be the 3 of us this year then."
Dad: "Well. Yes. Your mum and I were thinking of going to a nice country hotel, but then what would we do with you?"

Now, before you go thinking my dad is a horrible parent. He's not. My parents wouldn't dream of actually doing this and he said it in a joking way. Still, it made me feel like a bit of a spare part. Nay, a second class citizen.

Nay, a singleton sibling second class citizen. We singleton siblings do not think that we should be shoved aside, forced to cater to the plans of our smug married (my how my mother wishes they would get married) siblings. Why should we rearrange our schedules because they can't make a certain weekend? But if I can't make a certain weekend...they meet up without me. Seriously.

So here is to all singleton siblings. May you put your foot down to being shoved on a rickety table by yourself. May you insist that your plans are just as important as your smug married siblings. And may you occasionally use your singleton sibling status to guilt trip your parents - my brother gets more Christmas presents because he has a girlfriend. That's not fair...

Hurrah for singleton siblings!

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Smug...singles?!?

I am in a foul mood this evening.  I just spent 3 hours at work stewing about how pissed I was being at work on a Sunday.  When I wasn't stewing about work at work, I was stewing about the conversation I had today with my two single friends, Flora and May.   They really needed to know what I did last night, so I told them.  I met up with a guy for drinks.  A guy I met on OkCupid.  I had never told them about OkCupid before, but they're my single friends who both wish they dated more so why not tell them?  Wrong.  They were judgmental and unsupportive.  What is this 2004?!? Everybody tries online dating nowadays! Everybody! 

I think I've come across the first Smug Singles I've ever known (they don't deserve the Singleton label, as that is not how singletons behave).  Let me give you a snippet of our conversation (and since this is my narrative, please give the Smug singles a stupid whiney voice):
Smug Single: OkCupid? What? How does that work?
Grayer: Like Match.com, but free, etc, etc.  I met up a with a guy last night, and I'm going to meet up with another this week.
SS: To do what?
G: What do you mean to do what?! Get drinks, or coffee or whatever.
SS: You're not even going to get dinner out of it?!
G: No you don't want to first meet them for dinner.  Drinks are best because if they're awful you can leave after one rather then sit through a painful dinner.
SS: Oh. Well, yeah I guess if you know nothing about them.
G: Well you don't just get assigned to meet them, you message back and forth first.
SS: Really?! Who messaged first with the guy from last night?
G: He did.  I've gotten a lot of messages, I only respond to some.
SS: Really?! (the shock in their voices I found to be quite insulting)

I don't need to go on and on about this stupid conversation, in which I basically had to defend myself for online dating.   Clearly they know nothing about it.  Both however, know several people that have found long-term relationships online, so what's the big shock?  I'm not desperately looking for a boyfriend, I'm just sick of hanging out with them.  Especially when Flora makes the comment that her mother met her boyfriend on Match.com but that's ok for her "because at her age how else is she supposed to meet anyone."  Wait, sorry, what are trying to say about me?  Did you just compare me with your 60 year old mother?  You haven't gone on a date since I've known you!  They're not just Smug Singles, they're Stupid Smug Singles. 

Eventually they did ask me about the guy from last night.  I neglected to tell them he was 35 (it would make them think even less of OkC) but I told them the truth otherwise, I had a good time.  Such a good time, that I stayed with him for the evening rather than meeting them out later on.  The 35-year old (this has to be his name because I won't get over the fact that he's 35) was fun and the conversation had a great flow.  He doesn't necessarily look his age but he did date himself quite a bit (oh I don't know, by saying he graduated in '98...).  And yes, he bought the drinks.  We decided to meet up again sometime after work this week.  And as for the Stupid Smug Singles, I've decided not to tell them anything else about this, as I regret that I did in the first place.  Besides, why should I tell them when I can tell you all?

Saturday, October 16, 2010

I got this

I've come to the realization that this blog has been kind of lame dating wise of late.  Violet has an ACTUAL BOYFRIEND, Fenella is too busy snogging the White Horse, and I've just been in a dry spell.  So for the sake of this WWBD? I've decided to get on OkCupid for your reading entertainment.  This is a purely selfless act, that has nothing to do with me being bored and missing hanging out/making out with boys.  Nope, nothing to do with that.

Luckily I already have an account to enable, I had a very brief stint on there back in late March. I met one guy, didn't think much of him, got busy and started seeing the Karaoke Kid so I disabled my account.  Time to try again.  Going pretty well so far. I love being new/recently updated.  It gets you a lot of attention.  Within an hour I had plans to meet up for drinks and to watch baseball tonight.  You should all be very proud of me for even considering this guy: he's 10 years older than me!  See? The things I do for WWBD?!  It totally goes against my cougar nature, but maybe he's rich and he'll buy me things.  That's something you can't get out of a 21 year old....

Let the adventures begin!

Friday, October 15, 2010

Put me in my place?

I am pissed off. Enraged. My blood is boiling. I need to vent. Why? Because of men and their stupid, stupid egos.

As I mentioned before, I've assumed responsibility for my rec-league softball team. As I've also mentioned before, my team has a few whining babies on it that question my authority and complain about where or if they're playing. In last night's game, we started a little short of players, so I made the very strategic decision to go without a second basemen, as there are few lefthanded batters, and even fewer people who can go the other way. It was generally thought to be a very savvy move.

Baldo showed up a little late, and still I stuck with my strategy, playing with 4 outfielders and no second baseman. Not only did we win, but we won with the mercy rule.

Later on in the evening, I was watching TV with the cute neighbor, when our friend and teammate, D.B. called. He told me he had just had the world's longest conversation with Baldo, and that his head hurt from it. (D.B., like me and the cute neighbor, finds Baldo annoying, but takes particular offense at how much he talks.) Apparently, the entire conversation was about me, and how much I had pissed him off. It took us quite awhile to pinpoint just when I had managed to piss him off, as I hadn't really said much to him the whole game. Then I remembered. The one play Baldo made the entire game. He caught a fly ball. Then he proceeded to hold on to the ball for far too long, in the hope that someone would wander off a base, and he could throw them out. However, Baldo could not hit the broad side of a barn, as his throwing arm is terribly wild, and everyone knows it. Therefore, I called to him to get the ball in. He finally did, but then turned to me and said, "I've had about enough of you, woman." This was made to sound like a joke, but apparently it wasn't.

After the game, he railed to D.B. about me, saying that he knows how to play the game of softball (debatable, but apparently wearing not one, but TWO batting gloves, means that he can play. Who needs two batting gloves in slow-pitch?!), and he doesn't need to hear it from me. Then he said, he needed to "put me in my place."

Wait, what? I'm sorry, is this 1954? When women need to be put in their place for telling men what to do? Not only is this ridiculous, but it's offensive. Because I gave a simple instruction to get the ball back to the pitcher, I need to be put in my place? He never, EVER would have said this if anyone else on the team with a penis had given him the same instruction. EVER. Nor would he have ever said "I've had about enough of you, man" had the pitcher said it. There is a good chance I will be taking over the team in the spring, and I can tell you who will NOT be getting invitations to play with us. I don't have room for these guys AND their egos.

Grayer suggested I "accidentally" hit Baldo on the side of the head. Then blame it on my boobs. I think Grayer is onto something.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Ingrid enthusiast

I saw Ingrid Michaelson last night at the House of Blues.  She rocked it.  If you don't know her/haven't heard of her give this one a listen.  How could you not love someone that describes herself as a "music maker and cookie enthusiast"? Her songs are sweet and she sings the truth.  She's also hilarious. I've never laughed so hard at a concert.  She ended her show by playing a cover of 'Toxic' and doing a silly dance with her band, ending with her hoisted in the air.  I want to be her friend.  Oh, and I want to be her drummer's friend too, he's hot.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Happy Birthday To Us!


It just occurred to us that October 12 is the Official Birthday of WWBD?, and since we love nothing more than an excuse to drink wine and eat cake, we're celebrating. In the two years that we've been blogging about our lives, we have somehow, inexplicably, been able to accumulate over a dozen followers. Seriously, we don't know how this is happening, as we keep it top-secret and don't really mention it to anyone, ever, but thank you. And spread the word. We get way too excited every time we see that someone new is even a teensiest bit interested in our mundane lives.

For those of you just joining us, we've decided to compile a list of our finer (and not-so-finer) moments. For your reading pleasure...
A very interesting two years indeed.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Parental preppin'

My (and Violet's) parental units are visiting this weekend. This will be the first time they've visited since I've lived in Boston and I've spent the evening preparing for the occasion. I don't have a special boy to introduce them to or anything (nor can I tell you about introducing them to a special boy) so I feel like I have to make up for it by impressing them with my daily life. You know impress them with my "big city life" i.e. my little apartment, my huge workplace, my easy navigation of public transportation, and my cultured taste for ethnic food (where Violet and I are from, the only "ethnic" food is a Chinese buffet and that doesn't count because they also serve chicken nuggets). So this is what I've been doing this evening:
  1. Cleaning. Obviously. Some people may not notice dust but those some people are not my parents. Ok, so it's not just dust, my room usually looks like a closet threw up in it. And to be honest, I've lived here 7 months now and I still haven't figured out where to put some things. I'm sure my mom will have several opinions on that subject. She's ever so helpful *eyeroll*
  2. Grocery shopping. Can't really say what I've been eating this week. I think mostly apples/applesauce (I went apple picking last weekend). I'm guessing that the parentals won't be too crazy about that idea. Also, I don't want them eating all my apples!
  3. Emailing the roommates. Partly to warn them, partly to beg them to not be giant drunken slutbags this weekend. You think it would be a given, seeing that I rarely have guests over and these happen to be my parents, that maybe they should stay low-key or if nothing else, go elsewhere. It shouldn't be too much to ask, but that would be giving them too much credit. So I specifically asked that they have a low-key weekend and even "paid them off" by taking on all the chores this week. This better work because if I overhear sex moans while sitting on the sofa with my mother I will 1. kill them and 2. immediately escort my parents to the nearest hotel without making eye contact with either of them, yet possibly have to stay with them because I'll be a wanted felon.
  4. Hiding things. So I know I'm an adult and all but my mother has a tendency to get into things. Not really sure how she does it (I hope to inherit this gift) but say if there were some, um, personal items in your dresser drawer she'll somehow come across these, um, items within the first 10 minutes of her visit. And that's not really something I want to experience. That being said those condoms in my nightstand now have a new home. (On a side note I've realized those condoms expire in December and I find myself hoping against hope that I will have a reason to use them before then. Come. On!) One thing I will not be hiding is my "Condoms don't protect the heart" sticker. It was a gift from my mum, afterall.
So I'm all prepared to be visited by my parents. We're going biking on the Cape (thankfully they still have a mini-van so they can bring up their bikes, rearview mirrors, spedometers and all...dorks), stopping by my lab, and eating at a Shabu/Japanese place (I may have to bring them forks in my purse). If you're wondering how many times they'll bring up Violet and her ACTUAL BOYFRIEND, my guess is as good as yours (but I'm leaning towards 7). Happy Friday, everyone!

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Here Comes The Bride(zillas)....


I have a friend who is engaged. It's wedding fever people.

This weekend she invited me and her other bridesmaid to a wedding fair. It was an...interesting experience. There were crazy brides everywhere. Remember that episode of Friends where they go wedding dress shopping at that outlet in Brooklyn? Brooklyn's got nothing on this.

There were flower stalls, cake stalls (which had free cake, I made those my priority) tux stalls, you name it, they had it. You could have a chat about getting married in Italy, the Maldives, or for something a little bit different, Croatia. Couldn't think of what to do for your hen night? Then go visit the 'Ladyboys' stall and have a chat to the topless (but unfortunately not very attractive) male dancers / strippers. But wait! What if it all goes wrong and you end of jilted at the alter?? Well then, you really should visit the wedding insurance stall. Want something a little different? Hire a photo booth for your guests. It's only about £500. For 3 hours.

My two personal favourites? The wedding singer stalls - who sang as you walked by. Where's Simon Cowell when you need him? And, the 'Bridal Confidence' stall. Not sure how to be the confident bride? Come along to our hourly sessions where we teach you, amongst others:

* How to walk in heels
* How to be organised before your big day
and
* How to keep cool, calm and collected on The Day

Then, of course, were, The Dresses. Stall after stall of wedding dresses. Women squabbling for space to go through the racks, looking for The Dress. I was a little bit scared, I'm not going to lie. You had women and their friends debating over every sequin, every ruffle and whether The Dress would look better with a veil or a tiara.

To conclude, this weekend has made me somewhat scared of ever getting married. I don't want to deal with decisions about veils and tiaras, colour schemes, flowers or place settings. The only decisions I feel remotely capable of making is whether to choose between wine or vodka, and even then I sometimes struggle.

But the best moment of the day? One of the (few) grooms there saying to his fiancee: "Just let me know when you get tired and we can go." Thought it was supposed to be the other way round...?

Monday, October 4, 2010

Oh, you shouldn't have!.... but do go on....

When a young lady is single, birthdays can be tricky. Some years, you can spend the majority of your day alone, especially if it's a weekend. Sure, you go out with friends for a bit, but you still come home to an empty house/apartment. Planning something for yourself can be a bit tricky as well, since by nature we don't usually like to throw parties in our own honor. Letting everyone know where you will be for birthday dinner/drinks is generally a good idea. You don't have to worry about a party or a clean-up, or stress if people will show up or not.

That's why I was a little blown away this morning when I received an email from Rebecca. I knew it was a doozy before I even opened it, mostly because I also had an email from the cute neighbor, subject line: "Rebecca's email."

At first, I merely skimmed it, and got what I thought was the gist: Rebecca is turning 30, and to celebrate herself, she has planned 30 events for the month of October. Wow. A bit over-the-top, but whatever.

Then I looked a bit more closely. Rebecca hasn't planned a single thing for the month of October, besides telling people where to meet her for dinner and/or drinks on her birthday. No, she wants the 80 recipients of the email to plan things FOR her. She encouraged everyone to be creative and to think of wonderful ways to celebrate her during the month. Then she actually gave suggestions: from going out for birthday drinks to throwing a swanky party to popping out of a birthday cake (naked!) as a delightful surprise. She encouraged everyone to be creative, and as incentive, is offering to award prizes at the end of the month for most creative, most special, most silly [sic], most romantic, etc.

Am I overreacting or is this just obnoxious?

It sounds to me like the things she mentioned are all things she wants to do, and instead of taking the initiative to actually plan them, she's telling people to plan them for her. Note: You cannot throw yourself a surprise party. It's impossible.

So I need opinions on this one: Am I overreacting? Am I letting my past annoyances get in the way of my opinion? Should this be encouraged? Or just ignored?

Saturday, October 2, 2010

The LBD

Every girl needs one. It's a staple of everyone's closet, but until yesterday, I didn't own a little black dress.

The Other Violet is getting married next weekend, so I was faced with the age-old question of what to wear? All the dresses that I own are very summery, and not appropriate for October in the mountains. I decided to find my very own LBD- preferably on clearance for about $10. Or $20, but definitely on sale.

After purchasing a wedding gift (on sale! woohoo!) I switched focus to myself. I grabbed all the black dresses I could find in my size, and set off for the dressing rooms. I started with the dresses that were indeed on clearance. Naturally, they were a bit frumpy looking and too frilly. I knew I would wear them maybe once and never again. Moving on, I picked up a dress that looked pretty slinky on the hanger, thinking there was no way it would look good actually ON me, as it was far too form-fitting. But as soon as I put it on and looked in the mirror- vaVOOM! I am pretty sure I have never looked this good in any article of clothing ever. Yes, it was slinky, but the ruching (yes, I've watched Project Runway) made it so that it wasn't showing off every flaw, but just hugging curves. I was instantly happy.

Naturally, this was the most expensive dress I picked up. I know $35 sounds like NOTHING when it comes to a dress, but I do not currently have a clothes budget. Seriously, I haven't purchased clothes for myself that weren't a necessity (i.e. tank tops, after discovering I somehow didn't really have any in order to survive the sweltering southern summer), and when I factor in a wedding gift, a night in a hotel, and gas money to get to the wedding, it adds up. I knew, however, that I couldn't leave the store without it (it was the last one in my size. Clearly it's destiny), figuring I could always take it back if necessary.

Is it acceptable to buy a new dress when you really shouldn't be buying anything? I don't have to take it back, do I?

Confession Time?

I'm in a little bit of a dilemma.

Things with the White Horse are still going really well, and after my mini freak out wondering if we needed to have The (Mini) Conversation I am doing very well at just enjoying how things are going and not rushing into anything and just generally having fun. This is indeed progress, especially after Fergus.

People at work still don't know but it may come out eventually which wouldn't be a bad thing because we work in separate offices and most people that I work with don't actually know who he is - and it would save me having to think before I speak when talking about what I did at the weekend / in the evenings. It's mentally exhausting. Especially on a Monday morning.

However, my dilemma is - PWG. Don't worry, things with PWG that went beyond friendship are well and truly in the past, I'm not going there again! My dilemma is: do I tell the White Horse about PWG? You may think I'm crazy for even considering this - after all, we are not obliged to divulge information about our past...conquests? The thing is, he knows PWG and my fear is that he'll find out (I don't know how exactly, only one person knows and they won't say anything, and PWG isn't going to say anything) but what if he does and I haven't told him? Would that be bad?

Violet has said she thinks I don't need to tell him as he won't find out, and like always, she's probably right. There's just a little bit of me that thinks I should just tell him. But then he'd know that he's not the first guy from work I've hooked up with. Dilemma.

Thoughts?