Surviving Football Season

Football is NOT my best thing.  But I live with two boys who are really REALLY into it.  Even Jina, my female roomie, gets into some games (though I'm sure she'd prefer most of what I included below).  Here's how I survive the season:

Burning fall-scented candles

image source: bathandbodyworks.com



Napping with my cat

Drinking hot cider

image source: bravoalphaevents.com

Catching up on my reading

image source: thisismarilyn.com

(Yep, that's Ms. Monroe)

Replenishing my wardrobe

image source: biggabox.com




Wearing my Ohio State stuff even though it drives them crazy

image source: amazon.com

GO BUCKS!

;-)

OLYMPICS!

I'M EXCITED FOR THE OLYMPICS TO START TONIGHT!!


Here are some photos from past Beer Olympics we used to host when I lived in Hollywood:

WHOOOOHOOOOO!!!

it's not beer olympics without Beer Pong

we lost our twister mat, but of course that didn't stop us from playing some Jell-O Shot Twister

right hand on yellow = 1 yellow jell-o shot

Dave still holds the record for most medals won

Becca (not sure which nation she was representing) takes a medal!

one thing's for sure: Kate is the most epically skilled Survivor Flip Cup player i've ever seen

ridiculously dangerous but hilarious Equestrian event

not the last time Dave would jump in the pool fully clothed

Denmark takes a gold too!

i don't remember the significance of the crowns

one of my all-time favorite pictures

Events not pictured:

• Ice-Cube-Tray-Relay

Actually, that's it.

What's your favorite Olympic event?

The Puppy Bowl: OBVIOUSLY IMBT

GUYS.

The starting line-up was released today.  I haven't been able to get past the first picture:

This puppy's name is Aberdeen.  Aren't you just DYING of cute?  I love the fun facts for each puppy - Aberdeen's is that she's saving to buy a sailboat.

Whoever at Animal Planet came up with this inspired bit of counter-programming is a genius.  I will actually sit and watch the entire show from start to finish.  Did you know that all the puppies that play in the Puppy Bowl are available for adoption?  I'm sure the applications come pouring in right away.  And if puppies aren't your thing (really? who are you?) there's always the kitty half-time show, the chicken cheerleaders (they used to be bunnies - I wonder why they made that change?) and the hamster blimp pilots.  SO MUCH CUTE!

Wondering how it all comes together?  Check out this little behind-the-scenes video:  http://animal.discovery.com/videos/puppy-bowl-vii-behind-the-scenes/

I've been invited to what sounds like an EPIC Super Bowl party this year, but I'm considering not going because I'd rather stay home and watch the Puppy Bowl in my pajamas.  Decisions, decisions.  In the meantime, which is your favorite puppy?

HAPPY FRIDAY!!! It's EVRYONE'S best thing! (1/6 Edition)

First:  A huge HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! to my roomie Aaron (who will probably never read this).

Me & Aaron - probably at least 4 or 5 years ago

Second:  IT'S BAAAAAAAACK!!!!!!!!  America's favorite Guidos & Guidettes and the inspiration for this blog returned to TV last night.  Did you watch?  Did you catch these gems from PaulyD and The Situation?:

"I'm tanorexic!"
"I just have unbelievable genetics."

Truth be told, it wasn't the most exciting or interesting episode.  The most surprising part was that they picked up *right* where we left off with them departing from Italy and returning directly to the shore house.  No wonder the break seemed so short.  But frankly I'm getting tired of Mike starting fake drama - who gives a sh*t at this point whether or not he hooked up with Snooki?  Let's move on please.  I just hope Vinny doesn't leave for good - the show just won't be the same!

image source: mtv.com

Third:  Has anyone out there been watching the HBO* Sports Documentary Series "24/7Road to the Winter Classic"?  The last of four episodes aired last night and I just want to say how much I enjoyed it.  The series follows the two teams who have been selected to play in the NHL Winter Classic - an outdoor hockey game played on New Year's Day (or in this year's case, the day after) - in the weeks leading up to it.

image source: projects.accessatlanta.com

Boyfriend first got me into the show last year (in it's first season) when it featured the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Washington Capitals.  As you know, he's a huge Pens fan and was understandably very excited for both the show and the Winter Classic.  I didn't expect to like it, but the storytelling - both the stories themselves and the "how on earth did they get those shots??" moments (I'm referring primarily to camera, but also to hockey) - just sucked me in.  Since Boyfriend had managed to get tickets to the Winter Classic (being played at the Steelers' stadium in Pittsburgh), and since I was driving down from Cleveland to go with him, I was extra invested.

This year featured the New York Rangers and the Philadelphia Flyers - two teams I knew NOTHING about, but now can name at least 5-10 of the players & coaches off the top of my head.  Once again I was sucked in by the superb storytelling, only this time I didn't have any biases going in.

image source: tonightshealthyscratches.com

My favorite moment over the four episodes was probably when my new crush, Rangers Center Brian Boyle, dressed up as Buddy the Elf (see left) for the Rangers Christmas party.  They used the soundbite of him yelling out "SANTAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!  I KNOW HIM!!!" at least twice, which made me very happy (I love that movie so much).  The show also followed him to his family's Christmas dinner where we met his TWELVE siblings!!  And then of course my least favorite moment was when they showed him making out with his date(? hopefully not girlfriend?) on NYE.  Vom.

I'm dying to know what they shoot on, as it looks f*cking amazing.  The interviews in particular are lit SO WELL - huge props to the DP and camera teams on this show.  I'm also dying to know how many crews there are and how the producers map out when to shoot and who to follow.

By the way, I'm not the only one who finds the show fascinating.  Check out this write-up in the New York Times, this write-up on ESPN.com, and this write-up on NHL.com (who I guess kind of have to like it, but whatever).  The bottom line, as ESPN puts it, "For a fan of the game at any level, the HBO experience gives us the game shot through a completely different prism.  At its best, the HBO series continues to tell us hockey stories in terrifically unique ways and show us things that even those of us intimately involved in the game don’t see."

If you missed the series and want to see what all the fuss is about, sign on to HBOGo - there are a few short, promo-y videos and the full Episode 1.  The rest of the episodes will undoubtedly be added soon.  Trust me, you won't regret it.

*An an employee of HBO I am required to say: These are my own views and they donʼt necessarily reflect the views of HBO.

Last:  I leave you with this incredible selection of photographs - hopefully it will put a smile on your face as we break for our first weekend of 2012.  My favorite is below.

Happy Friday Y'all!!

Penguins in LA: This Past Weekend's BT

I'm not a huge sports person - I go to maybe 2-3 games/events a year.  It's the price of the ticket and physically getting there (specifically, fighting LA traffic from the west side to downtown or to Dodger stadium) that usually lessen the appeal.  When I do go though, I usually end up having a fun time, which was definitely the case on Saturday night.

Boyfriend's team, the Pittsburgh Penguins, were in town on Saturday to play the Los Angeles Kings.  (The sport in question is hockey for those of you not familiar.)  Because these two teams don't play each other that often and the game was on a Saturday night, Boyfriend was super excited.  We left the west side with almost 3 hours to spare so that we could find parking (we got a street spot!), eat dinner, and make our way to the Staples Center without feeling too stressed for time.  This all worked out really well.

"Welcome to the MAIN EVENT!"

Boyfriend bought our tickets on StubHub - they were $65 plus fees, but he claimed they were "decent".  In reality they were almost on the ceiling.  I got altitude sickness climbing to get to them!  Juuuust kidding, but they were 4 rows from the very top.  At least we were surrounded by other Pens fans - very very spirited Pens fans, but Pens fans nonetheless.

decked out in our Penguins fan gear

Meanwhile, one of our coworkers who has season tickets was down in his seats with his wife, their son, and their son's friend.  He texted Boyfriend to let him know that there were a couple open seats next to them that we might be able to come sit in, but to wait until the end of the period just in case.  A couple minutes later the Penguins scored the first point of the game, at which point our coworker told us he "lost" his ticket stubs he was going to use to get us into his section.  ;-)

When we did go join them we were pretty amazed by how great their seats were.  Though there were definitely not as many Pens fans in their section.  When the Kings tied it up in the second period the other season ticket holders gave us a bit of a hard time, but it was all in good fun.  As a native of Cleveland you might be wondering how I could root for a team from Pittsburgh.  The way I see it, Cleveland doesn't have an NHL team so I get a pass.  Plus, penguins in general are really cute.

The third period turned into quite the nail-biter when the Kings scored for a second time, taking the lead.  Having watched last year's HBO sports doc series "Road to the Winter Classic" which followed the Penguins, I was familiar with a small handful of the players and was excited to see my favorite, No. 9 Pascal Dupuis, on the ice quite a bit.  With 2:57 left in the third (and final) period the Penguins scored once more, tying it back up.  Despite much effort on both sides and a lot of really intense back-and-forth across the ice, neither team was able to score again in the remainder of the 3rd period nor in the 5 minute sudden death overtime and the game went into a SHOOTOUT!

Adding "ride a Zamboni" to the Bucket List

I had said to Boyfriend earlier in the evening that I really hoped we'd see a shootout so I was super excited.  The entire audience was on its feet and cheering.  It took 4 rounds but the Penguins' Chris Kunitz finally scored the game-winning goal.  Hooray!  GO PENS!!

What a great game - I'm definitely glad we went.  And a HUUUUGE Thank You to our coworker and to the people who sit next to him who didn't show.  Sitting with him and his wife was really fun and waaay cooler than sitting in the nosebleeds.  If only it always worked out this well - I would go to games a lot more often!

Biking is My [New] Best Thing (not really, but let's pretend)

I recently moved and now only live 1.1 miles from my place of work.  I've been trying to get in the habit of walking and not using my car to get to and from the office.  Walking, however, still takes >20 minutes and requires me to carry a heavy backpack with a change of clothes/shoes, deodorant, a water bottle, my purse, etc.  When a coworker offered to loan me her extra bike of course I jumped at the chance.  I figured it would be "so much faster and easier!" and would save me on those days I'm in a rush.

So it's Tuesday morning and I'm about to leave for my first ride in on my new (well, new to me.  It's actually pretty old) purple bike.  I have a helmet (also on loan) and a brand new shiny/sturdy lock so I am READY.  As I get to the end of the driveway a whole handful of things occur to me simultaneously:  1) With the exception of spinning classes and one leisurely ride to the beach on a special bike path, I have not actually ridden a bike since living with my parents (and certainly not as a means of transportation).  2) I have to share the road with CARS and this is LOS ANGELES.  3) The seat of the bike is wayyyy too low , 4) the helmet won't stay on properly, 5) and my backpack is even heavier than when I walk because the super heavy lock is in it.  5) This is going to be far more difficult than I imagined.  Basically this could have happened at any moment:

Image credit: newfunnypictures.com

While I did make to the office without incident (thank goodness), every other biker in the vicinity flew past me.  I was also a lot sweatier than I anticipated (yum), but that might have been from fear, not exertion.  Either way it took me so long to figure out how to lock the bike up in the garage that I'm sure I would have gotten there faster if I had walked.  *Sigh*

But I will not give up!  This afternoon I will take the bike to the shop across the street for help adjusting the seat and handlebars, and I will look into getting a basket and a mount for the lock.  I'm sure with time I'll get used to sharing the road, and let's be honest, it's really not that far and it's all side streets.  So even though biking may not be My Best Thing just yet, I'm sure it's just a matter of time...  Right?

For anyone out there who's Best Thing is biking, check out this awesome tidbit from Curbed LA.  And any tips/bits of advice for a new biker are welcome in the comments!