i don't think you're ready for this jelly....

...some guy at the traffic light was collecting donations for the homeless children, and as i acknowledged that i did not have change to give, and he started to walk pass my window to the next car, he stops, smiles and says to me,"you know, you look like Beyonce!"
i was a bit speechless...maybe i'm really black and i just don't know it, cuz i've been told that i look like another actress/singer, Brandy, too.

for the record, i do not look like Beyonce....had he really seen me, he'd probably say, "oooh, no, she ain't bootylicious, baby!"

little night music...

nothing says summer in Philly than going to the Mann for me.  the Mann celebrated its 75th season this year, and a little refection is in order.

in the years i've been going to the summer concerts at the Mann, i've seen an evolution in the pattern of my attendance.  when i was young and enthusiastic (no, i've not been here for 75 years), i remember driving and paying (*gasp*) for parking in the car lot.  plans with friends to scope out the "best" lawn section seats mean getting to the first row of the green seat section (& thinking, "don't people on the grass know that there can actually sit in these seats??")...all for a good view of the actual performers.  and, of course, binoculars are involved. communal food was always organized and prepped for dinning al fresco. over the years, i learned to park not in the pay lot but in the adjacent (free) street--parts of it sketchy, but hey, it's free...learned the fine art of sneaking to the covered section when it rained, and getting the "good" programs, not the one sheet hand-out for the lawn section.
now, these days, dinning on a blanket on the actual lawn is the norm, sometimes with thought out meals, but most times, just things thrown together last minute, depending on the company, but always with vino! and as for the good viewing?  ah, view of the stars and the cityscape is good. laying on the blanket and just listening to the music is a nice escape from the busyness of the day/week. when the rain comes? it's fun to get wet when it's hot out.

the orchestra themselves have relaxed as well.  no longer do the "lawn people" who clap in between movements of a piece, the paying patrons do as well...AND the conductor will even acknowledge the clapping....far from the days when it was quite embarrassing to be the "lawn people", and be caught unaware of the etiquette of the cultured classical music snobs elites.  i guess if classical music is to survive the times, its presentation needs to adapt as well. 

so now after all these years, my Mann experience has relaxed, and so....yes, i am the "lawn people" too (though i will still refuse to clap between movements).

USA vs. England

World Cup fever has begun!

the hills are alive with the sound of....

...Cowbells! the big bike race was today. rode over to Lemon Hill on my beast to catch the action toward the end of the 156mi race. brutal day for the bikers, but they are so much...fun... to watch! GO guy in the green jersey!

no, Cavendish was not there...

rolling sculptures....

the Kensington Kinetic Sculptures Derby was held today.  what an amaaaaazing event!  great energy and fun from both participants and spectators.  some of us went out in support of our friend, Steffen and his team--their sculpture based on the children's book "the very hungry caterpillar" was a crowd pleaser...the kids on the team did a little performance complete with brass instruments sounding out the Rocky theme as Lea, the 6 yo, donning butterfly wings, crawled out of the caterpillar cocoon...they won the people's choice award at the end of the day!  mind you, we were pretty vocal about our favorite choice to all who would lend their ears, but we honestly believed that their entry was definitely worthy of the title they won.

singing for your supper...

thankfully that's not what i had to do for this lovely meal at "supper", where i had the most amazing asparagus salad. the clam flatbread was yummy, as were our larger plates, duck and waffles (yes, belgium waffles), and ahi tuna with a couple of dry roasted olives...my very first time eating these- an interesting texture, not bad except for the fact that it was like downing a cup of salt into your mouth (i actually liked it).

special beast...

took me long enough to finally plunk down the money to get a nice road bike....the sticker shock is slowly wearing off, as i'm fantasizing riding in the tour de france....yeah, right.   well, it's definitely a sweeeeeet ride, and i'm finding myself plotting times to get out to the trail to ride.

go Unions!

went to my very first professional league soccer game this evening...Philadelphia Unions vs. DC United. It was quite exciting and I found myself getting into the frenzy of the Union fans, though it must be a sign of my age that I found some of the fans extremely obnoxious...either that or I just lack 'passion'.
I think I figured out why girls watching this game... have you seen these soccer guys?! (besides Beckham, that is.) I'd rather look at any of these footballers over the over weight 'American' football players any day!

spring is here....sky is blue...

rung in the first day of Spring by going to Atlantic City. it was sunny and warm(ish)...but still too chilly/windy to lay on the beach. we sat by the boardwalk and soaked in the sun while some random guy pissed behind us thinking he was alone under the boardwalk...there was a St. Patrick's Day parade and lots of drunk people in the middle of the day....very classy....though we did buy some 40s so i shouldn't judge.

introducing a new couple...

 

in an age of Brangelinas, combining celebrity couples' names ought to be use for everyday objects as well...i like to call this union: "Del-pple."

i had extra mac stickers floating around and thought a little makeover was necessary for my friend's laptop.  i think he secretly wants a mac anyway, or else he would've stood his ground and be like the PC guy on the commercials.  hum, maybe this is another idea for Steve Jobs....you know, for those closet mac people out there....

aches and pains....

it's amazing how one little, unintentional movement can cause so much pain....  as i was brushing my teeth this morning, i bent over the sink and felt a little "snap" between my shoulder and neck.  that little snap caused excurciating pain like you wouldn't believe...so much so that i really wanted to call out sick. if it wasn't for another type of pain that i wanted to avoid, i went into work gladly.

isn't it just like life? you have all these things you are trying to balance, and sometimes you end up doing things not because you want to or feel passionate about, but just to avoid the pain of something else.

okay, forget being contemplative...because this still remains: DAMN! (add other expletives of your choosing here)  i'm still in a lot of pain and in need of some pain killers and a nice massage.  drinking wine and using my hair dryer as a "heating pad" is not working out so well....

getting to know you...

.....getting to know all about you...

i just spent my weekend in bed with my new love:

oh, iphone, i know we've just met, and it's probably too soon to say, but i think i'm falling in love with you....what's extra sweet about you is that you don't come with any commitment baggage, and thus allowing me, in my own way,  to "stick it to the man"... i ♥ u!

*President's day/anti-Valentines day...

on the local news tonight there was a story on how you can turn all those jewelry that your ex has given you into cash....turning painful reminders of broken hearts to...well, cash.

now, it would've been much more of an interesting story had they done it ON Valentines day...

*this post is dedicated to all the single ladies out there....

year of the tiger...

so my new (lunar) year was kicked off last night with a party....what says Chinese New Year more than a karneval/world cup 2010 themed party at the German society, with me wearing a huge afro wig, painting various flags on people's faces...including hearts, or broken hearts for those who want to give a nod, or face punch to St Valentine?
.....ahh, a melting pot of celebrations...so American.

Giant snowball fight!

....through the social networking technology of FB. those of us who were crazy enough to brave the storm to get out to Washington Sq. Park for the snowball fight.  i was aiming for a guy dresses as Santa....is that wrong?

sweet.

oh the weather outside is frightful....

but yes, the fire is so delightful.....let it snow!

i do like the powdery stuff, it's pretty....let's just hope this time no plow trucks/car/people damages my car--now that would not be pretty.

 

audit nation...

the annual internal audit for the program i'm responsible for is happening right now.
for my board certification, i was a lucky candidate to be selected for their "random audit"...just got the letter. great.
anyone else want to audit me??

boston...

went up to Boston for First Night to ring in 2010....got to visit the ICA in boston, which has great views of the harbor, and very cool architecture.