My Cat is Terrified of the Furnace

Every time the furnace kicks on at our apartment, poor Michael Jackson becomes petrified with fear, and he just freezes and meows in despair. You can't really see him because it's too dark, but Jacob and I think this is pretty funny. Observe:

2008 with the Hodgens

The End of a Christmas Tradition

Ok so I was going to write a slightly more detailed blog about this, but I need to get my cold little butt to work soon so this will be the super condensed Reader's Digest version.

Once upon a time there was a crazy family whose former English major father decided it would be super cool to have a Christmas Spelling Bee. 10 rounds, 10 words per kid, the words started easy and got harder as we progressed. Then at the end we had the bonus word which was SUPER hard and which you had to wager your points like on Jeopardy (I won quite a few times by simply wagering nothing b/c I knew I'd misspell it). Everyone wins a prize, but obviously the champion's prize was always the best. Actually, it was always a game of some sort. ANYWAY, the spelling bee became an annual tradition which lasted for over a decade, and then the former English major father decided to switch from the knowledge of how words are spelled to the knowledge of random trivia...and a much more Jeopardy-like game emerged, which only lasted for 3 years before Dad decided he was burned out and please stick a fork in that tradition 'cuz it's done. So this year was the last one of those. What we will do next year, I do not know--perhaps my sister and I will come up with something ingenius. Or perhaps we will do nothing. Anyway, here are some photos I took to document the experience:

The white board with the categories of trivia ("Nuts" was about the nuts you eat, you perverts...) and where Dad keeps score...

Dad reading a question to somebody--that's Kaj in the chair, but I don't think it was her turn b/c she would be more concentrated. Those are her hubby's legs on the bottom left...

And lastly, my bearded hubby showing my niece and nephew what we won (and apparently giving them a lecutre or some sort of life's lesson as well...). Jacob got a glow-in-the-dark puzzle for coming in 3rd and I got the Game Trio set (yes, that is Jenga that you see, come over any time and we'll play). And, as you can probably guess, since my prize is a game (well, 3 games actually), I won. Yup, with a score of 400 points exactly, I crushed the competition to become the final Christmas Challenge Champion. Actually, I just got really lucky and got a super easy question on the bonus round--plus I wagered a lot of points this time. :-) Anyway, goodbye Christmas Challenge...we will miss your randomness. But hopefully we will find something just as random as a replacement tradition...stay posted.

An Evening with Neil...

So remember yesterday when it started to snow really hard and the roads got all slippery and it was basically a huge mess? Remember how most of you were probably staying at home, saying "I will take care of ______ (fill in blank w/applicable task requiring driving) later" to yourselves because you're smart like that? Yes, well...I am not that smart. In fact, I waited just long enough for the roads to get really crappy before I climbed in my car and headed out into the muck...why did I do this, you ask? My willingness came from the knowledge that I had a ticket to see the guy whose music I was listening to practically before I was even born:

Yes, that's right...Neil Diamond. Um, he's a bit older now. A lot older, actually. Anyhoo, we all ("we" being myself, my little sister Kaj, and her friends Tom and Emily) met up at my parents' house so we could carpool to the marvelous event that was the Neil Diamond concert. We had a rought start...when Tom's car got stuck in the snow after backing out of the driveway, us girls got out to push and he tried to kill us by "forgetting" to take the car out of reverse...but once we'd all screamed (simultaneously) and he put it into drive, we managed to free the car of its icy prison, jumped back in while it was still moving (we felt so cool), and hit the road. After picking Kaj's hubby Mike up from work, we headed for the Trax station in Sandy where we were supposed to meet Tom's date Kelly. Our awesome plan was to ride Trax up to downtown and then eat dinner before the show. But when we got to the station, Kelly was nowhere to be found. After missing the first train, Tom called her and learned that she was at the next stop up (who knew there was more than 1 stop in Sandy? Um, obviously not us) so we caught the next train and told her where we were so she could hop on. We pulled up to her stop but the dang doors wouldn't open, so then we had to get off at the next stop after that and wait for another train to come so she could get on that one and blah blah blah. We thought this was a good idea, but for some reason there was a huge delay in between trains and we had to wait outside FOREVER. Our toes were numb, we were starving and we were getting really gumpy. FINALLY we were able to all meet up and away we went to the Energy Solutions Arena. By the time we actually got inside we only had 10 minutes to spare (no time for dinner obviously), but we managed to grab nachos and soda (I don't think I've ever inhaled food so quickly in my entire life) and settled in our seats...which were pretty much behind the stage. We didn't care though, because even though we would be staring at the back of Neil, we were still close enough to see the back of him really well. :-)

The concert started, Neil stepped out onto the stage in his sparkly black shirt and all was right with the world. I was so sad that cameras weren't allowed because that left me with only my cell phone to document the experience. Anyway, here's Neil singing "Love on the Rocks" to us.

If we got tired of looking at the back of him, there was this lovely screen to our left so we could actually see his face...I can't remember what he's singing in this one but it could be "Holly Holy."

At one point Neil (compassionate soul that he is) turned around to those of us sitting behind him and said, "What did they tell you to get you to buy those seats? That they were close to the stage? Those are some really bad seats..." (Kaj I thought they were awesome seats) and then he came and sang to us.

All in all, it was one of the best concerts I've ever been to. My favorite part was when he sang "Forever in Blue Jeans" and "Sweet Caroline" (we even got him to sing an extra chorus of that one) and then of course, his encore when he changed from his sparkly black shirt to a sparkly red one and sang "America" for us. Awwwweeeesssooommmmmme. Yeah, I think there's a very good chance I could die now, and not even be that upset about it. Say what you will about the cheesiness of Neil Diamond, but if I could still put on one hell of a show at his age (the place was packed!), I would think I was pretty amazing too.

Why Dogs Are Pathetic and Cats Are Awesome

At 8:00 this morning I was rudely awakened by the sound of my next door neighbor's dog barking. The walls here are very thin, and the sound from other apartments also travels quite well through the vents (we hear our neighbors downstairs fighting quite frequently...awkward). He is a very small dog, not sure of the breed (I want to say chihuahua), and he frequently has a tendency to get extremely distressed (I'm sure when he's left home alone). Annoyed, I rolled over and stuffed my blankets over my ears. That helped a bit, but not enough for me to fall back to sleep.

Friends, it is now 10:30 and he has still not stopped barking, howling, and whining. I keep waiting for him to bark himself hoarse but apparently dogs don't do that. I just hope that my poor husband who worked all night long and is now trying to sleep can't hear it (I pulled a fan out of the closet for white noise in the bedroom--hopefully it's enough).

So incessant barking (for whatever reason) is definitely reason #1 on my "Why dogs are pathetic and cats are awesome" list (neither of my cats has EVER meowed for 2 and a half hours...10-15 minutes maybe, but they always get the hint and realize that whining isn't going to get them what they want so they shut up), but I'd like to share a few more reasons with you:
2-Every dog I've met has the same basic personality: "love me love me love me I'll do anything for you to love me pleeeeeeaaaase pet me I need attention I can't entertain myself!" Each cat I've met has a separate and very distinct personality.
3-When driving along and encountering a dog in the road, 9 times out of 10 they will sit there and stare at you instead of removing themself from harm's way aka your car.
4-How many cats have you seen chase their own tails? Enough said.
5-You can leave a cat home alone all day and it won't whine, destroy your house, or otherwise despair over your absence. But when you come home you still get the same "I'm happy to see you" greeting.
6-Several of my neighbors get up at all hours of the night (and wee hours of the morning) to take their dogs outside to pee or poop on the sidewalk (there's grass everywhere! Come on!). Not me. My cats use this lovely thing called a litter box so I get to stay in my nice, cozy bed.
7-Dogs are stinky and you have to hose them down or try to get them to stay in the bathtub while you give them a bath. Cats clean themselves...and if for some reason I do give them a bath, I can do it in the sink and they sit still for me even if they don't like it.

I could continue, but out of respect for my dog-loving friends, I will leave it there (you may disagree with my overall conclusion but I'm sure you can see that I've made a few very good points...). So here's the skinny of it: dogs are dumb. Cats are smart. Hasn't this been scientifically proven or something (wink wink)?

Sigh. 10:55. Still going strong. It's like the energizer bunny of annoying sounds. I will stick with my cats, thank you very much.

I was insane back then too...

So today while hanging out at my parents' house using their washer and dryer because I feel it's my duty as their child to mooch off of them, I was digging through a box of my old stuff they have so willingly been storing in their basement (again, Julie=mooch). I was actually looking for some sheet music...but then I stumbled across a little blue notebook. I stared at it blankly, remembering writing in it but not remembering what I'd written or why. So I abandoned my sheet music quest and cozied up on the couch for what I hoped would be a good read. The first entry goes a little something like this:

After reading Peter's "notebook of thought," I told him it's healthy to write down one's thoughts and ideas like he's been doing. He suggested that I try it for myself. Why not, right? Hopefully this will be a good means of unscrambling all that goes through my head and help me make sense of it. We'll see how this turns out.

Sweeeeeet, I blogged (well, minus the computer) before I even knew what blogging is! Go me. Most of the entries are the rantings of a selfish 19-year old trying to figure out her place in the world and wondering why life is so hard while dealing with things way over her head. But it's interesting to remember those emotions and experiences, although many of the things I wrote about I can't recall--in an effort to make it strictly about thoughts and not a journal entry, I never wrote any dates and rarely used names--but I do know I started it during my first semester of college, which was fall of 2000. I've decided to post some entries here so you all can have a glimpse into my brain, uncensored.

I like rain. I like the thunder, and lightning really is one of nature's best fireworks. I like the feel of rain, the look of rain, and the smell of rain before, during and after the storm. It's pleasant and cleansing. I'm amazed at how captivated I am by it. I can stand most anyplace and watch the rain for hours. How swiftly it passes though...usually only lasting for minutes at a time, which makes watching it for hours slightly difficult, if you know what I mean.

Conflict is a funny thing. The way something that may seem minimal can absorb an individual's life and become their focus whether they want it to or not...seems stupid to everyone except those involved. Then there are one-sided conflicts; those are the worst. When one person views something as a problem and another sees it as nothing. Is the upset party being over-emotional or is the ignorant party being insensitive? I think it's situational, but to compromise I'm going to say it's both. I think it all comes down to communication. As I told someone today, "Communication is a vital key to any kind of relationship. Without it, you're screwed." I like it...makes my point AND serves as comic relief.

The hall of flags: nice spot to study during your break, or primo meat market for the lustful, lonely and desperate to pass their time by "checking out chicks?" It disgusts me.

Passion is freakin' powerful. It's why poets write sonnets. I'm not going to write a sonnet. Being emotionally involved is taking such an extreme risk on yourself. It can feel so great but it hurts more than anything when you lose. And I'm not talking only about relationships. The concept applies to everything in one way or another, so why get involved for the temporary high only to be crushed by the big let down at the end?

I wish I always had the energy and love for life that possessed me tonight. I haven't been like that in so long. So I'm in a good mood but I'm almost crying (blast we females and our stupid emotions). I need french fries.

"I won't weigh you down with good intention." -Sarah McLachlan
I am not bitter I am not bitter I am not bitter. Although the more I look at it, the more I realize I have every right to be. However, bitterness only causes decay, and I really can't afford that.

Feelings are so very complicated; they ruin everything. And yet, without them life just wouldn't be life and everyone knows that. I just hate not being able to interpret them, especially when they're my own. I suppose the most difficult feelings to interpret would be one's own, but still...it's frustrating. I don't know what or even how I feel. I hate that. It leaves me directionless, and we all know how much I dislike wandering. To feeling nothing would truly make life so much more simple. I've resolved that at this particular time, I'm going to feel as little as I can of select emotions. Some would argue that I'm depriving myself of valuable experiences, but I don't see it that way. As far as I know, I have plenty of time to "feel." This should be interesting.

Only when you remove yourself from the problem can it be observed objectively and then resolved. Or at least that's how it works some of the time. There's not a set standard. Exceptions bite...they're like lipids: no matter what you do, they're always there. Ok, that was really lame. So much for my attempt at clever similes.

So there you have it....excerpts from my first blog. Hooray for trips down memory lane. :-)

Prop 8: The Musical

WARNING: if you were for Prop 8, here's your heads up--you might be very offended by this.

Seriously though, for those of us who were against Prop 8, HERE is one of the coolest things I have ever seen. And I love it with my entire soul.