You're Gonna Make It After All

Last night I was home alone; I should have been packing or doing homework but I was sort of restless, bored and mopey so I was watching television. I saw an ad for Nick At Nite and had a flashback to the Mary Tyler Moore Show. That was my favorite show when I was ten--during the summer, Nick at Nite used to have "Very Mary Mondays" or something like that and they would show four episodes in a row. I got hooked and would spend every Monday night watching Mary Tyler Moore while all of my friends in my neighborhood played kick the can. I thought Mary was the coolest thing ever; I wanted to be just like her, moving to the city, throwing horrible parties, wearing cute mini skirts and sleeping on a pull-out sofa. I haven't watched the show in a few years but I still think that Mary has had an effect on me. So, being the good time waster that I am, I went on YouTube and found the theme song to Mary Tyler Moore. I think one of the main reasons I loved the Mary Tyler Moore Show was because of the theme song. Now there's two versions to the theme song. There's the version that everyone seems to know which starts "Who can turn the world on with her smile? Who can take a nothing day and suddenly make it all seem worthwhile?" However, this post has to do with the first theme song for the Mary Tyler Moore Show. Same delightful melody, same heartwarming theme of "Love is All Around, No Need to Waste It..." But, this version is all about Mary leaving her happy, safe secure life behind and moving to the big city to make it on her own. It all seems very pertinent. I'm ready to move--well, emotionally because lord knows I haven't packed more than one box. I'm ready to leave Madison behind (but come back to visit of course) in favor of a new city with new people and new challenges. And maybe I'll be lucky enough to meet my very own Rhoda, Ted, Murray or Mr. Grant. That being said, I really must go find a beret! Or is that more of a tam?

Nobody Does It Better....

I knew a guy back in college who was your basic hipster, intellectual nightmare with the most emo taste in music ever. When it came to music, he was very often exhausting. Every concert he ever went to was "the best concert ever." Now, I'm going to pull a him and tell you that the concert I went to on Saturday was the best concert ever. I've gone to a lot of concerts--I've seen a lot of darn good musicians who play darn good concerts. I've seen these concerts at quite impressive venues. And yet, this one trumped them all and I can see this concert staying the cream of the crop for a very long time. You're intrigued aren't you?

Four words: Old Crow Medicine Show.

Why was this concert the best one I've ever seen? Many reasons... here's a handy list in order from small reasons to big reasons:

1) I was in the first row. I spent most of my time leaning up against the stage and keeping beat by drumming my hands on the stage. ON THE STAGE! I was so close to Ketch Secor that I got hit with harmonica spit a few times (I was not complaining).

2) Speaking of Ketch: this band is comprised of five men, three of whom have the craziest, coolest names ever. Namely (ha!), Critter Fuqua, Willie Watson (not crazy but it sounds nice) and Ketch Secor. For some reason, that makes me like them even more.

3) Not only do they have some great names, they also have some very good looking boys in O.C.M.S. Yowza. Don't believe me? Tada... it takes a while to load but it's worth it. And actually, they're better looking in person. I would know, I was about 5 feet away from them :)

4) Now, good looking with nice names? We both know that does not a good concert make, much less the best concert ever. To use a phrase I don't feel comfortable using, these boys can play. Their musicianship and their understanding of the genre is so impressive. They sound better in concert than on the record. They have enthusiasm and stage presence and you can tell they love playing together. And as a crowd member, it's hard not to be impressed by that. I was stomping and clapping and when I left, I was sweaty, giddy and hoarse (I think I once yelled out what sounded like a "yee haw"!)

5) Here's the final reason... I'm not really a bluegrass fan. (Someone told me they weren't bluegrass--they were an old string band. Either or.) Generally, I avoid that style of music like the plague because most of it feels very cheesy, old fashioned and stale sounding. But, Old Crow Medicine Show won me over--they're that good.

And even though I find myspace rather irritating and strange (no reasons why... just do), I would recommend checking out their myspace page. Listen to a few of their songs (my personal favorite is Wagon Wheel), watch their video for Down Home Girl and check out their beautiful faces.

A,B,C... Easy as 1,2,3

I could tell you about my weekend... or I could just fill out this meme and write about my weekend later. And if you think that I'll probably never write about my weekend, you're probably right :)

[A is for age]: 24
[B is for beer of choice]: Oh it's so hard to chose. Newcastle or Smithwicks or a nice local brew but I also love Miller Lite and other cheep beer i.e. Natural Light or High Life or PBR (I blame that on my genes--my dad will only drink cheap beer)
[C is for career]: Children's Librarian!
[D is for your dog’s name]: Sneakers--a smooth haired daschund. She was named that when we got her and I wanted to rename her Brain ala Inspector Gadget (I was also seven). She was the cutest thing ever and I miss her horribly. I can't wait to get my own dog... hopefully a doxie.
[E is for your essential daily item]: Underwear?
[F is for favorite song at the moment]: Never My Love by the Association. It's so sappy and it's lovely to listen to through headphones.
[G is for favorite games]: Dominoes
[H is for Hometown]: Neenah, WI
[I is for the instrument you play]: Well, as I've mentioned before, I'm a quitter, so instead of instrument you play, let's rephrase and say instrument you've quit: piano, clarinet and voice.
[J is for favorite flavor of juice]: Cran-grape juice... yum.
[K is for kids]: They're cute? I like them? What should I be saying? I don't know if I want to have children... but working with them/for them will be wonderful and crazy, I'm sure.
[L is for last hug?]: From my parents who came down to visit yesterday
[M is for marriage]: I'd like to but it scares the bejeezus out of me.
[N is for name of your crush]: Celebrity crush? Clive Owen (hubba hubba), Robert Sean Leonard, John Krasinski... quite a nice sample, really.
[O is for overnight hospital stays]: I had my appendix out when I was four, so that was a nice long stay.
[P is for phobias]: Spiders, clowns, heights, falling down stairs, commitment? :)
[Q is for quote]: “Drama is very important in life: You have to come on with a bang. You never want to go out with a whimper. Everything can have drama if it's done right. Even a pancake."
-Julia Child
[R is for biggest regret]: Overthinking and being scared and letting some good things slip away. And that I let it keep happening--I don't learn from it. To quote Jackson Browne, "These days I seem to think a lot about the things that I forgot to do and all the times I had the chance to."
[S is for status]: ummm single?
[T is for time you wake up]: Either 7:30 or 8:30 depending on the day.
[U is for underwear]: Currently, mine are blue. I bought them at Target.
[V is for vegetable you love]: Zucchini, edamame (not really a vegetable), artichoke hearts, red peppers, peas (again, not really a vegetable)
[W is for worst habit]: Pushing away nice boys, being messy, procrastination, eating when I'm bored
[X is for x-rays you’ve had]: Lots of them when I broke my wrists, significantly more when I kept spraining my wrist and they figured out that my bone had healed in the wrong spot when they reset in the emergency room, my hips during a visit to the chiropractor when I was 14
[Y is for yummy food you make]: I make a fine zucchini melt--of course, it's not my recipe but it's pretty much the only thing I can make.
[Z is for zodiac]: Scorpio. To quote some random website: "Determined and forceful. Emotional and intuitive. Powerful and passionate. Exciting and magnetic. Jealous and resentful. Compulsive and obsessive. Secretive and obstinate." It's no wonder I'm so crazy. ;)

Okay, back to work... Oh and Happy National Library Week! Sidenote: Could the ALA website be any more ugly or any less user friendly? Bleech.

Back to Life, Back to Reality

When I decided to join my fellow SLISers (and friends of SLISers) on a trip to Florida, I knew it would be my last hurrah. I understood that after I returned, I'd finish up school while packing to move on the last day of classes then come back for a week, graduate, move permanently to Cedarburg and start preparing for the summer reading program. Even though I knew this, I'm still having immense issues adjusting to life after vacation. As much as I love vacations, it's my understanding that life hits you with a stress bomb when you get off the plane. And really, how are supposed to cope with life when your surroundings looked like this just a few days ago?


Particularly when you you spent those days hang outing with these ridiculously nice and fun people...



Quite difficult, right? After I got back from vacation, I had to find an apartment in Cedarburg. Initially I was excited about this; I thought it would be fun! Ha! No! Not fun at all! Luckily, though, I found a wonderful apartment just slightly out of my price range (just slightly) with two bedrooms, huge closets, an air conditioner, a dishwasher and a garbage disposal, all located a mile away from the library, with a bike path to connect the two. You really can't ask for much more. And when I called the landlady this morning to tell her she'd be receiving my application soon, she said, "Are you the librarian? Oh good, I was hoping you'd call back." Hopefully, I will sign the lease within the next few days and not be homeless for the upcoming year.

So, big relief--the apartment is basically set. However, of course, in my worry filled world, the next worry is a financial one. I'm quickly running out of loan money (damn me spending my money on earrings from Target and episodes of The Office on iTunes!) and I have to put down a security deposit and a month of rent for two places by May! Holy wake up call batman. I'm seriously considering eating ramen for the rest of the school year, giving plasma, finding a sugar daddy, or doing a medical research study. It's quite (okay, extremely) nerve wracking and this entire becoming a grown up thing has given me lots of nice big issues to think about when I'm trying to fall asleep. When those moments arise, I'm trying to remember to channel "Vacation Katie" and calm the fuck down:

*a rare moment of serenity*