Ahh, Halloween. It's the most wonderful time of the year. Wait, that's Christmas. But Halloween is really the start of the Christmas season, is it not? I mean, right next to the Halloween decorations at Target are the Christmas decorations. It's getting out of control - the holiday season now starts in October. Americans are desperate for anything that takes them away from the everyday mundeneness of their lives, aren't they? And I get to see all the little kids trick or treating tomorrow. I do so love that. Especially the little kids. At first I thought that kids trick or treat at older ages than my friends and I did (it got not cool at some point), then I realized that no, the 12 year olds just LOOK like they are 18 nowdays. (We had this conversation in terms of first kisses, and how we were all teenagers of various ages, but kids are much younger than that nowdays. I can just see kids in Pampers...)

And speaking of of things getting uncool, why is it that we have all these things we like when we are young. Cartoons, toys, all sorts of things. We hit junior high, 6th grade, all of sudden those things are dorky. No longer do we like the things that we once did (though we probably secretly still do). This continues through high school. Oh, the things that are uncool. We go to college, and all those things are cool once again. It's cool to like what we liked in our childhood. Am I the only one who has noticed that? Maybe it's me? And the thing is, I don't think that the answer is we are trying to fit in or something. I really don't. I really think that at some point, we DO stop liking those things. But I think it's more than we are desperate to be an adult, we want to be grown up, and we somehow think that grown ups don't like cartoons or childhood things, so we don't either.

But I digress. That's not what I wanted to say about Halloween (before I got on my tangent). I love people watching. Maybe it's because I'm the sort who always feels removed from whatever situation is going on around me, but people watching is normally one of my favorite activites. And West 6th was great people watching last night. As good as people watching is in general, people watching on Halloween is the greatest thing in the world. Except for a nice MLT... mutton, lettuce and tomato sandwich where the mutton is nice and lean, and the tomato is ripe....they're so perky. I love that. (Name that movie quote. And FYI, the book is much better.) Anyway, seeing everyone dressed up was awesome. People really feel like they are hidden when they are in costume, doing things that they would not otherwise do. And watching that, it was pure fantastic.

Though I didn't realize that the bars would be open to 3 am. Which means that I didn't get home until 5 am. Now I used to live in NYC. The bars were open until 4 am there. And I went out. Often. So every night, I wouldn't get home until 5 am. And not just on the weekends, I could do that during the week and still get to work the next day. But now, on a weekend, I totally can't. I was wiped by the end. Exhausted. And I slept about over 5 hours, and I'm still exhausted. I prefer the days when 3 hours was more than sufficient. Is this what happend when you get old? Does that mean that when 40 approaches, I'll need 10 hours to be ok. I'll be 50 and be doing nothing but sleeping??

The Browns. Are you f-ing kidding me? That's enough commentary. Oh, but how big of a dork am I? I'm sure most people know that I'm a huge dork. But I had to work today. I didn't want to miss the Browns game. So I TiVo'd it. Yes, I'm pathetic. After I saw that they lost, I wanted to delete it, but . Actually, not true, I watched until there was about 50 second left (when they missed on 4th and 17). I guess maybe I thought the game would turn out differently if I watched it??

Ok, yes, I'm pathetic, but I'm tired and going to bed. Judge away.

It's a testament to how much I love soccer that I showed up for my 6.30 game tonight. It was raining at my house, it was cold. I wasn't feeling it. Still, I forced myself to go. And I'd point out that two guys wussed out, probably because it was too cold. Because of that, we played with 7 players (the difference between this week and last week is that we started out with 7 as opposed to 6. Then 2 players didn't get ejected this week so we didn't have 4 on 8 by the time the ref called the game, which is what happened to us last week).

Now, I've been totally up front about that fact that I am the biggest wuss ever when it comes to the cold. So I was wearing lots of layers. As in five layers of shirts. FIVE. Though I took off two layers (a long sleeve t and a sweatshirt). I was wearing a hat and gloves (leather gloves; next week I'll take better soccer gloves with me. Though any gloves make throwing the ball in hard.)

Yet it's even more a testament to how much I love the game that when I was asked to play in the 7,30 game, I did. (That team only had 4 people show up, so they got 2 from my team, and 2 from the team I played against to play with them. I suspect that the other team was not pleased that we stayed. Instead of winning by forfeit, they ended up losing. And it wasn't even close. I think the final score was 6-1. And the only reason they scored their one was because my brother kicked the ball and it nailed me in the stomach, knocking the wind out of me. He just saw me go down and wasn't sure what happened to me (he later said b/c of how I grabbed my side, it looked like I was protecting my hand and he was afraid he broke it.) Anyway, my brother immediately walked over to me, so there was no one guarding the goal. (My damn brother knows better to walk over to a player, even a hurt player, when the play is still going on!) My brother had 3 goals to make up for that stupidity. (For the record, he had only one goal for our team. But our team won 6-0 too. Actually, I usuall play defense, but I played offense today, so I scored too. It was quite different, putting the ball IN the net rather than trying to keep it out of the net.)

Oh, and I agreed to play on a second team b/c they are down players, any week except when we play them. What can I say. I'm a glutton for punishment. And by the way, two straight games on my foot (no subs either game) is really hard on my foot. Part of me wonders how it can still be broken, what, a month later? Maybe 5 weeks later. Then another part of me thinks that maybe if I didn't keep playing on it, it would be easier to heal. It's in a lot of pain right now. And I shudder to think how much pain I'd be in if I wasnt taking pills before the games for the pain.

For those who care (and that might not be any of you, b/c I may not have mentioned it) , my speech today went ok. I was beyond nervous, extremely flustered, and I'm sure that you could tell it by my presentation, but it's over and I guess that's all that really matters.

Goodbye, Rosa Parks.

So I finally relented and turned the heat on this weekend. I had been resisting, because once you turn the heat on, you have accepted that summer is over. That it's not getting warm again for a VERY LONG TIME. It's a bitter, bitter pill to swallow. And I have to confess, it hurts, it really does. But when the highs aren't even going to hit 50, and the lows are in the 30s, I couldn't see an alternative. I put the storm windows down, turned the heat on, and wistfully tried to recall the good old days of summer.

Even worse, it's been grey for about two weeks as well. And so it begins. I really do like living in Cleveland, but this is the stuff that makes me antsy. When I look out my office window, and can't tell the difference between the grey sky and the grey lake, it's depressing.

I had a party on Saturday night. Biggest achievement - getting (and keepting) the campfire going in spite of the rain. What can I say, I'm easily satisfied in life. I even (upon pouting protest) agreed to let my friends play with some of my Sparklers stash (I knew I should have put them away). My one friend said that he hadn't played with Sparklers since he was 3. Clearly, he needs to find his inner child. And there is way too much beer left in my fridge. Anyone have a solutution for that? :) Seriously though, I think that if you bring beer to a party (and this was BYOB) that you should have to take it with you when you leave. And my house still isn't really unpacked, though bless their hearts, no one commented on the stuff just lying on the floor everywhere.

And I went to Giovanni's in Beachwood last week. Super expensive, but super good. We got the salad, meal and dessert. It was, simply put, heavenly. Nothing I can afford in a regular basis, but was fantastic. So I recommend that everyone save your pennies (ok, it will take a lot more than pennies saved) and go. My friends who were with me have essentially asked that I mention them and call them Veronica, Weevil, and Logan. Though I have to say that the person who is assigned "Logan" has little in common with the actual Logan.

So yesterday was a bad day. Other than watching the Browns just basically suck for several hours (and yes, I watched the entire thing. What the hell is WRONG with me??) (Don't answer that...) I was laying on the couch with my laptop, composing an email, and proceeded to spill and entire glass on me and tmy laptop. Now, I can't get the laptop to turn on. I thinkI ruined it. It's rather new, and I haven't enen paid it off yet. Does liquid ever evaporate from the laptop? I doubt it.

And help me!! Does anyone have any Halloween costume ideas? There are parties that are dress-up required. I thought about going as Stephanie, but I always do that all the time. So please, help me. I beseech thee...

I played football this weekend in the mud. Actually, two games; I subbed for a friend's team b/c they didn't have enough girls. (So in other words, I got to learn what it was like to win a football game...) :) My team played at 3; we lost by a touchdown. So in other words, we did great. The fields were a muddy mess (go figure), the ball was impossible to throw, and difficult to catch. I think the guys like that better, there was a lot of unnecessary sliding in the mud to get dirty. What is up with that. Totally unnecessary to leave one's feet...and yet they did. Every time. Without fail. Silly boys... Though I did once feel the need to jump right into a large, muddy puddle. It was there, beckoning me. What else was I to do??

Ahh, yes, Cleveland in the national news. Ok, sure, it was necessary. You know what? I still label her the worst, most evil mother. Well, maybe not 'most evil' as the kids are still alive. But you aren't going to convince me that this was an ok thing to do.

Interesting. Though USC is still No. 1 in the coaches' poll.

Harriet Miers. I still can't say that without laughing. It makes me laugh that Republicans are just as against her - if not more so - than Democrats. Though I hope the reason that many Democrats are being silent is b/c the Republicans are attacking her, and not because they think that she is qualified for the position. I'm not sure if Schumer is correct that she lacks the votes, but it really wouldn't surprise me. So the question - does Bush withdraw her name? I wonder about that. He doesn't like his decisions to be questioned. Though what did he call this? Background chatter? I guess that's all dissent or discussion or criticism is to him. Nothing of consequence.

Maybe Bush does not understand sacrifice. After all, earlier this year, he revealed he did not share the common meaning of "ultimate sacrifice" with most of his countrymen, who reserve that term for Americans who have given their lives in military service, when he spoke of the drawbacks of political life: "It's the ultimate sacrifice, really: sacrifice your privacy. It's sacrifice of time with your kids."

From here.

I just get angry whenever I read or listen to Bush.

Why hasn't Sarah updated her blog? She is worse than me...

I apologize. I'm the people that you hate. I pulled out Christmas music today and listened to it. Yes, it's October. I understand this. But I do so love TransSiberian Orchestra. (I'm going to see them twice this Christmas season. And what happened was totally not my fault. They came on my iPod and it made me want to listen to the entire album. Then the entire second album. And the third album. And yes, I realize that on the one hand, it's October. But on the other hand, it's freaking cold enough outside to be Christmast time. (Ok, not sure in what fantasy world it's in the 60 in Cleveland at Christams.)

Jon Stewart to Bill O'Reilley:
"I will say this. We add insult to injury. You, however, add injury."
"If this were Peanuts, France is Marcy. Go after Lucy. She's the problem."

After doing well with baseball (choosing the Angels, White Sox, Astros, and Cardinals) it appears that I jumped the shark. I had picked the Cardinals over the Angels in the World Series. Well, the Angels aren't there, and it appears that the Cardinals won't be either. Alas. I don't really care, I was just predicting. I really have no opinion on it one way or the other. In fact, of the four teams, perhaps I'd want to see the Angels win the least (it's been recently.) You can go for a team that hasn't won since forever, and isn't even really respected in it's own city (not that I blame Chicago, the Cubs are loveable). Or Houston, a team that has never won. Or St. Louis, which always has great sports fans. Anyway, I don't care, but I hate being wrong.

The dog sitting experience is over. My friend went out of town to go to a wedding, and dropped his dog off Friday afternoon. I had stopped at my house before I went out, it was about 6.30, so he had been home for about 5.5 hours, and I get there, and he's shit in the cage. Ugh. I didn't get much sleep this weekend dogsitting either. On Friday night, I got home around 1.30, walked the dog, and went to bed. My friend explained that he let his dog sleep in his room, not in his cage. So I tried that. Around 3.30 (after not being asleep) I finally decided that I could not have a dog, who insisted on sleeping in my bed, or walking around, making noise, getting into things, and have sleep. So I went and put him in his cage. 20 minutes of him howling (and I mean howling, I went and took him out again and put him in the office. I figured there were less things for him to get into there. Four hours later, I got up and went into the bedroom. In 4 hours, he nad opened the closet and taken out three bags and chewed them up, "read" two books (and by "read" I mean ate) and then shit all over the floor. He SHIT on my floor. Give me a greak. He had just been out 4 hours earlier. Was that really necessary?? So yeah, I had an entire 4 hours of restless sleep Friday night. Then Saturday night...well, let's not talk about Saturday night. It was pretty bad. What does it mean when my friends were excited to see me wasted b/c, "we've never seen you like this, you never let go and lose control." Great...Glad to amuse you all...

Speaking of Friday, I had plans to meet some friends for happy hour in Garfield Heights. Then a second bar in Garfield Heights. And a third bar in Garfield Heights. I haven't really been to Garfield Heights that often, so that was an experience for me. At the third bar, you could barely see the end of the bar it was so smokey. And my friend said that it was better there than most bars in the area. I miss bars in NY where you can't smoke in them. That was heaven.

Also, I am convinced that my friend has no male friends. Friday night it was one guy and five girls. (I also think that we worried him. He took a girl that he has gone out with a few times to a wedding on Sweetest Day. My friends told him that if he takes a girl to a wedding, she's wondering when hers is, and that it was a huge step and it signified something serious with the relationship. (I didn't necessarily agree, but it was somewhat intriguing seeing him somewhat panicked and saying, "What was I thinking? I wasn't thinking." Besides, what the hell do I know about relationships. Maybe it does signify some major step.)

So today was mostly recovering. Dogless from about 2 or so. Lying on my couch. Watching television (boy, did the Browns look bad!), candles lit. There really is no better way to spend a Sunday. I'm supposed to be mowing my lawn, cleaning my house before my party next week, doing laundry, cooking...and yet, I just want to be lazy. I know, I know, I'm awful.

Oh, football yesterday. We lost, as usual, 8-12, but here's my thing. I got to throw the ball twice total. One of those was our lone touchdown. Last week (the game I missed, the QB missed, and the backup QB missed), the lone touchdown was by a girl (she isn't on our team, but was a sub.) The week before, we had 3 touchdowns - that week, all three of the QB threw for one of them. Now, if the girls are throwing the ball only a few times a game, and yet they are scoring more than the guys (3 of 5 TDs)...why aren't the girls the regular QB? These are the things that I wonder...

I discovered this Sudoku puzzle in USA Today last week (which I got while in San Fran) and I'm totally addicted. Surprisingly, I'm even really good at it. I say "surprisingly" because it involves: (1) numbers; and (2) logic, neither of which we can really say are Stephanie's strong points. So what's the appeal? I have no idea. But I'm addicted.

My football team is playing a pretty bad team this week, so we might have a shot to win a game. So...anyone here in town a ringers and want to show up and play?

For work, we are making a video type training thing. So I have lines to learn. My role is essentially a sexual harasser. Though I prefer the title "flirt." So I just wonder, is it bad that the role comes naturally to me?

My soccer team lost in the playoffs last night. Crushing, really. Our defense was completely awsome last night (and I'm not saying that just because my little brother plays essentially sweeper) but our offense could not put the ball in the net at all. So the score at the end of the game was 0-0 (especially crushing because their defense wasn't super strong - their strength were in their crisp passes - and we were winning most of the balls in the air.) So basically, it came down to a shoot out. That's a hell of a way to end the season. Because you just played your guts out for an entire game, to go down like that, open shots on the goal, one and one. It sucks.

There are two parties Saturday night that I want to attend. One this Friday, one night Friday, two the Friday after that, two the Saturday after that. T'is the season for parties, I guess. Though that meant that the only night left for me to have a party was Saturday the 22nd. Oh, well.

This is so cool. That is like the ULTIMATE wedding present!!

I think I'm doomed to be a Midwest girl. When I lived in New York City, I was out of place. New York City is full of world weary, hardened people. You can't look them in the eye - if you were to do so, they would instinctively move away from you. I care too much, my eyes reflect that. But I was out of place in San Francisco as well. They are laid back. I have too much nervous energy. Too much intensity. Perhaps I'm homeless? Out of place everywhere?

So San Francisco. I was finally getting over being sick. Yet spend 5+ hours on a plane twice in a five day period - yeah, I'm sick again. Actually, the time change confused me. I was hungry at 1. And I had eaten breakfast, and I couldn't figure out why. Finally, it occurred to me that it was 4 back East. Yes, I'm just that slow.

I didn't bother packing Tuesday night, so I was doing so at 6 am. Not too mich I can think at am. Which means that I got on the airplane, realizing that I've forgotten: (1) a brush/comb; (2) my watch; and (3) my jewelry. This creates several problems for me. Mainly the fact that I just don't feel complete without my jewelry. You know those dreams where you are walking around naked and everyone is staring at you? Well, ok, no one is staring b/c it's just jewelry, but I feel just as naked. Vulnerable. So I bought a cheap watch (I already have three of them), and picked up a bracelet and two rings. By the end of my trip, I had bought four bracelets and five rings (I wear four at a time - on my two pinkies and my two middle fingers. I found the fifth one and switched it for one that I already bought). One of the bracelets is a mood bracelet - like those cheap rings I wore when I was child - and I'm captivated by the way that it changes color. No, I don't think that it tells me mood - I realize that it's my body temperature - but that doesn't change the fact that I watch it change from black to red, blues, greens and even purples. The red will sometime have a swash of yellor around it. It's fantastic. However, it's not my favorite. The one I bought has become my new favorite bracelet I own. Just under an inch wide, silver (always silver, I hate gold colored jewelry) with words carven into it. Soul... Spirit... Search... Faith... Harmony... Hope... Balance... Inspire... Trust... Dream... Endure... Love... Peace... I have no idea why it's my favorite bracelet, but I love it.

It was a busy week in San Fran. First, the Blue Angels were there. So lots of men in uniform walking around town. It wasn't that long ago that they were here in Cleveland. I feel like I'm stalking them or something. Then, it was Fleet Week (I'm not sure if they are connected or not.) Basically, even more guys in uniform walking around. Unlike Cleveland, where only about half of them were in uniform, here, all were in uniform. I finally learned (or they claimed) that it was mandated. Lots of foreigners. One evening I dined with (and discussed politics with) a New Zealander, who had a charming accent. He was most enjoyable. Another evening I met a nice French girl who was studying here, and she "loved" everything. Though the men in uniform, Ifelt like I was translating everything. Her English wasn't that bad - they were just that drunk. I felt for her through - she's been here a month, and when I asked her why she was alone, she said that she didn't know anyone here. She is going to school, taking classes, shouldn't she have friends?

Finally, there was some PGA tour in San Fran, and evidently all 70 of the golfers were at my hotel. My first night there, I saw Tiger Woods in the lobby. Hotel bar. I was sitting at the table next to him. I said hi. He looked at me like I was bothering him. Don't sit in the hotel lobby if you want to be all inconspicuous. Grr. Then, my last morning there (and I do mean morning, it was about 6.40 am) I'm waiting for the elevator. This guy is waiting with me. We get on the elevator together. He's trying to make small talk, which I make monotone answers to. Maybe they weren't even answers, maybe they are just grunts. I'm not sure. The elevator stops on the 17th floor, and another guy gets on. I don't really pay much attention to him. I'm still sleeping and beyond even caring to be polite and grunt back. But the guy already on the elevator clearly recognizes the new arrival. They start talking - the new one has an accent - about the number of events they have left for the year (one and six - the one with one planned it that way.) As we got off the elevator, the one says to the other "See you later Vijay." It then occurs to me that they are wearing golf pants. Obviously, the one with the accent that the guy on the elevator called "Vijay" was Vijay Singh. No idea who the other guy was though. Guess I should pay more attention at 6.40 am. (I also learned that there was some filming of some movie, and all the cast and crew were there. No idea what movie it was or who was in it. I didn't see anyone.)

Things I hate about fall/winter. Not only is it cold, but its dark out by 8 pm. ALREADY. I though that was bad. Yet in San Fran, it got dark even earlier. Ugh!! Though fall does have some positive traits, mainly the season of ripe apples and in season squash. Squash is my favoritest vegetable, so yes, this is very happy for me. What can I say?? I'm an easy sort of girl.

I somehow have the uncanny ability to manage to make enemies everywhere. Even in line for the airplane bathroom. Just by being me. This particular one: Red Sox fan. I was glad that Boston lost. Swept, in fact. And not just because they beat us for the wild card (or, rather, our team lost the wild card, a more accurate description of their play that last week). But because now that Boston has won, they are the same as the Yankees, they just aren't as good at it. And they don't see it. Before they won, you felt for them and their fans. Now, their payroll is second highest in baseball. They have more players from other teams (and fewer home grown, farm system players) than the Yankees. What made them different is now gone. And let's review. All 8 of the teams in the playoffs were in the top half of payroll. NYY (1), Red Sox (2), LA Angels (5), Cardinals (10), Astros (11), Braves (12), White Sox (13) and Padres (15). For the first time, no "small market" teams (i.e. the Twins or Athletics the last few years) made the playoffs. Ahh, yes, what this illustrated was what Bud Selig stated. The small market teams can't compete. If everything falls right for the small market teams, they can one year or the next, but at the end of the day, they cannot sustain that competitiveness. For the last 10 years, the Yankees have finished #1 in the East every year but one. Tampa Bay has finished last every year but one. I wonder what will happen at the end of '06 (when I believe the current labor contract is up.) The fact is, the fight won't be steroids (like it was last time) because the Union likely realizes that if they don't do something, Congress will. Which leaves the salary cap. The luxury tax hasn't worked. NHL just sat out for a year over this very issue. I expect that baseball is closely watching to see how NHLs fans react to the year off. Testing the market, so to speak. But I'm also sure that it hasn't excaped the Union that at the end of the day, the NHL ended up with a salary cap. I know, I know, baseball is different from all sports. Not subject to anti-trust laws. But at the same time, I dont think that's a challenge that they want to make, because a court case could make that exemption go away. At least now they have the argument.

First, Desperate Housewives. Why is it that on the show, everyone's secrets that they don't share with their neighbors are huge. Like, "I've killed someone." "I've kidnapped someone." "I am keeping someone in chains in my basement." Why aren't they secrets like, "I eat the applesauce right out of the jar and don't put it in a bowl first." Those are my secrets that I don't share with the neighbors...

I am off to San Fran this week. I've never been to San Fran. I'm somewhat irritated b/c I have a seminar Weds-Fri, but it was WAY cheaper not to fly back until Sunday, so I'm not. I'm going to be alone. Without a car. I am not sure if I am pleased about this at all. Actually, I had called my one friend from law school who lives in California, but as we aren't friends anymore, he obviously did not want to see me. Alas, I can't say that I blame him. My friends asked if he called back (I was with them when I called. Mental note: Never call anyone who you haven't spoken to in 5+ years when you are with your friends.) and I said no. They are extremely loyal friends and immediately started dissing him, but I defended him, saying if the situation were reversed, I'm not sure if I'd call back.

I have a costume Halloween party coming up. Any ideas for costumes? The one night stand made me laugh. Or the evil queen.

I dislike my new cell phone. But I do love text messaging. It's my new drunken dialing... Dangerous, I know.

The Indians. I can't go there. Ask later.

The Supreme Court and Harriet Miers. A woman at least. Of course, a white woman with no experience as a Judge, another Bush cronie (oh, I'm sorry, outspoken supporter of the Bush Administration, which are in short supply nowdays). How is one "exceptionally well suited" to be a justice if they've never been a judge? I mean, it's been done before, but is it ideal? Probably not.