december 17

a lot of new faces on my blog friend list! yes! i will do some introductions for you all....

kate is my newest and favourite. she was the last person who i thought would get a blog and she finally did it.
miss queenshood herself, my dawnie bean. the girl needed a blog, and she knew this. it was a matter of time. she is seriously my own personal chelsea handler. together, we need to blog together, because our life is shambles with our boys.
we have mb's studly man, mr sk himself. it's a shame he likes the mets, but im a big fan of his girlfriend, so im really letting this slide.
then, last but not least, james, heather and james from the spring standards were cute enough to start a blog of their fall tour!

everyone is goin' blog cah-razy this autumn!
(next up: shea!)

in more exciting news...
*drumroll*

i was presenting my really scary, informative and important graduate abstract to my professor today. this paper is a huge chunk of my graduate preformance, and it gets read by a few important board members, and has potential to be published, if the board agrees it. needless to say, the girl with a 4.0 wants her freggin research paper published and wants an A on it. so i worked hard on my abstract, and worked hard on perfecting my presention to my professor on my commute to school this evening. it wasnt a huge presentation, just your research abstract and he was going to approve it or disapprove it. i choose a topic i knew would be eclectic and present a good counseling problem. i was the fifth presentation to go. so far, my professor was ripping everyone apart. he calls my name. my palms were soo sweaty (shea!) and i thought i was going to seriously throw up. and not to mention, people were totally in business suits for their presentation. i obviously, was not. i begin my presentation, and i notice my professor is distracted. he's not looking at me. weird. i keep going. i am telling him where i am citing things and rolling out statistics and medical journals. he says "i have a headache" and rubs his head. immediately i think "i failed. this man is such a jerk". so i say outloud, "do i have too many statistics this early on?" he keeps rubbing his head. i failed. he is pissed. he looks up, and i keep reading, so embarassed by the fact that i thought i did a good job, and he is being a jerk with his nonverbal gestures. all of a sudden, i glance at him, as your supposed to do to your audience when presenting, and the mans eyes roll behind his head. he fainted. crazy!

well, before this, i got a beautiful voicemail from stef telling me that my dreamboat, RYAN ADAMS is playing MSG this december 17.
who has two thumbs and is going? THIS GIRL. i would put who i was going to the concert with... but he doesnt have a blog. this a subtle hint to him...

the walker's

i always joke around with people and say i cannot get attached to tv shows. honestly, it's VERY true. i cannot be commited to a tv show the same way i cannot be tied down to man this point in my life. there is too much going on with school, work, friends, and social gatherings. plus, i never really want to be the person that says "oh! i cant go! i have to watch tv!"

however, my prince charming, a la television land, did come into my life, and i do make sacrifices.



my favourite family. i feel like home when i watch them. this is the only show i commit to and the only show that if i miss, i will find a way to watch it online the following day. they come back tonight and i am gearing up. with caramel apples and the big screen in the basement.

in other news - i am writing my first psych theme'd research paper, and i wish i could say it was going easier then it really is. it's for my research methodology course, and my professor (although a total babe) is pretty freggin' strict thus far. i was going to orginally do the topic of the effects of ethnic gay men coming out to society, but i have since (last minute) switched it to the increasingly (scary) aids/hiv diagnosis in ethnic gay men. it's terribly time-consuming and straight up research. no analysis and no opinions. straight up research. slaving. my abstract is due tomorrow and it's been eating me alive all week. ive been scouring through research papers after research papers and i feel as though im only spitting out numbers. it needs more depth, but research isnt like that. it's painful.

enough about me, how are you?

susie homemaker.

"what did you do on friday night?" -you, booming person with a wonderful social life.

"oh, i just baked two batches of lemon squares, read through my gramma's recipe book, read the rachel ray magazine cover to cover, forced my best friend to be as equally nerdy as me, where we then proceeded to bake homemade mac and cheese, and read better homes and gardens together. oh, then we baked blueberry muffins (mini ones, thank you), watched the presidential debate (obama nation), yelled at the tv during aforementioned debate, AND then watched young at heart where i thought i was going to turn into a puddle and had to stop my tears from flowing. we then departed ways, and then re-connected when the yankees slammed the red sox, 19-5. CRAZY FRIDAY NIGHT OVER HERE". -melissa, your nerdy friend.

car rides

i happen to drive to and from astoria during peak rush hour times, so needless to say, shea and i waste a lot of time in our cars. we are very go green(!) and car pool (obviously), but sometimes we spend so much time sitting in traffic we go crazy. (like the time we were in tears because shea stuck her finger in my applesauce). we have both developed a strong dislike (or possibly hate in my case) for the way motorcyclists drive and weave inbetween cars (it is a death trap), the way the police put on their flashers just to get through a red light (why cant they just be like everyone else? and why do they get to drive on their cell phones but we get tickets for it?), the obnoxious garbage men in astoria and the really obnoxious 'no left turn between 7am-10am' signs plastered ALL OVER astoria, as well. but at the same time, we both have a killer time listening to a cd twice through (that's how long it takes us to get to work), the smell near the airport, people watching through cars, and for lorna doodles on the car ride home.

anyway! today, shea had off from work so i drove into work alone. melissa sitting in rush hour traffic is another term for melissa going through every mix cd in her car. alone. i apparently decided that i was going to pick up chunk of mix cd's i found in my backseat, that are unlabeled, which all happen to be the mix cd's cody and i made a month or so before we graduated lock haven u. some of the songs were so ridiculous, that i was non stop texting philly and delaware with ridiculous lyrics and memories. we must have made a collection of 'the best of college mix' because every song we have ever sung, were on these cd's. ridiculous. they had me cackling in my car at 7:30 this morning.

college was a breeze compared to grad school. grad school is another term for 'youre going to spend $50K in two years just to write paper after paper after paper'. i miss undergrad so very much. i miss living with my best friends and decorating our apartment for holidays, i miss wine nights and fancy dinner parties, i miss going to class and people watching on campus, i miss getting a school paper and i even miss the cafeteria! i think i took for granted everything my undergrad had to offer, and i realized this when i went to a commuter grad school. a school in the middle of the city with no true campus, just sidewalks, a parking lot and a little outside patio. i have developed some good friends in my program, but nothing and no one compares with the undergrad group. those people and those four years, priceless.

in other news: i have this sick obsession with caramel apples. for our first day of autumn party at work on monday, i bought this caramel dip for fruit. easily i became in love. i was craving it all day yesterday, and ate some more today. on the way home, it was all i could think about. caramel and apples. caramel and apples. today, on my way home, although utterly exhausted and excited to welcome my gramma home from the hospital, i stopped and picked up more apples and *drumroll* a CARAMEL & CHOCOLATE dip! combined! oh lordie.

kiehl's

melissa: "brad pitt just came out with a line through kiehl's"
george: "he is my hero"

it's true, my friends. i think a random weekend visit to george a year or so ago, i was sent back to long island with one of his kiehl's lip balms by mistake, started my love for kiehl's products. the obsession quickly grew, my lips were the happiest they have ever been, and not to mention, one of the only kiehl's stores happens to be in chelsea, walking distance from the apartment. it was love at first site.

my list of love for autumn related things always grows - and naturally, kiehl's needs to make the list. the products work wonders. specifically the lip balm. they even come out with a limited edition lip balm every holiday season. my lips are notorious for getting dry in the cool months, so kiehl's is a melissa-favourite. i suggest you add this to your pocketbooks and jean pockets this season. youll thank me later.

favourite

first day of autumn, absolute favourite. a kick off to my favourite holidays. a time of the season where no matter where you look, everything is beautiful. the cool nights in the morning, the smell of leaves and pumpkins in the early morning. the first cup of hot chocolate, wearing a big, cozy robe and silly slippers. an excuse to break out the boots and scarves, maybe even wearing a hat here and there. it's beautiful. happy first day of autumn, to you! hope it's celebrated well!

"let the beauty we love be what we do. there are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground."
— Rumi

“you have never really lived until you've done something for someone who can never repay you.”

the most wonderful time of the year

mary's blog has been updated with photos, stories, thoughts and lots of love from her travels of the world, thus far. today, she leaves for south east asia, so her european adventure is over. stop by and at least look at the gorgeous views from greece, turkey, budapest and everywhere else in europe. she's been gone for two months, and has seriously seen more and done more then people see and do in a year. lovin' it.

fall is among us, and i am going to be brave and finally break out my boots today. i have been waiting patiently for this season to come for a few reasons.

a.) boots. yes yes yes. i love my boots! boots with tights, boots with straight leg jeans, boots with anything. i am all about boots.

b.) concerts. the three biggest: jason mraz with eric in october. girl talk with george, aaron & co in november. (ps: girl talk's one show date was so popular he added two more dates in nyc!). and lastly (the favourite!) vampire weekend in december with the same gang that saw them in central park this spring. (ps: they also added a second date!). every month there is a new exciting concert to look forward to and i will be there! (in boots).

c.) candy corn. this says it all.

d.) the events coming up at catherine sheridan house. autumn parties. pumpkin carving. thanksgiving lunch. trim-a-tree tea. you name it, we're celebrating it!

e.) a fall vineyard tour with stephen for his birthday. mmmm.

f.) the holiday collection gap and jcrew put out hits stores in two weeks. (cordoury! velvets! burnt orange!).

and lastly -

g.) SCARFS! (as if i was going to say something different?).

"the best counselors are the most creative counselors"
- my research methodolgy professor.

i figure that once upon a time i was an ocean
but now i'm a mountain range
something unstoppable set into motion
nothing's different but
everything's changed

7

seven years ago to this day, our world changed as we know it. seven years ago, i sat with my grandmother, a cold birthday dinner, and cried in her arms. i stayed up all night, afraid to sleep, because i wasn't sure what i could expect. going to school in the morning, the air was different. the faint scent of burning bodies was all around us. eyes were bloodshot. hallways were silent. the skyline from my beach was filled with smoke and flames. life was going to be different. especially life in new york.

seven years later, life is different. i am fortunte to still be here, with myself and my family by my side. my uncle, an nypd, went missing, but he was later found. alive. tramatized, but alive. my eyes have seen terrorism at it's worst, my eyes have experienced a war, yet i still try and find the hope. the courage. the peace. the beauty. and the love in all of this.

today i am grateful. i live in a country where my freedom is free. i am a woman and i am able to work, get an education and marry who i please. i am not afraid to be who i am, or to speak my mind. i have freedom. i am independent. it's hard to say what life will be for my children, but i hope it's gentle. i hope they never have to experience the horror that came crashing into my life on september 11, 2001. my perfect world was hit with a something too close to home. in my own backyard, there was a war right before my eyes. hate was plastered everywhere i looked, read and breathe. i can only pray, have hope and faith that things are not like this for them. i hope they can look back on september 11, 2001, and see all the good that has come from it. the coming together. the support. the charity. the need for hope, prayer and saying 'thank you'.

although it is cliche, today is my day to share my upmost love and graitude for everyone in my life. although i may never say it, i am truly blessed by every person who is reading this right now. without all of you in my life, i wouldnt be who i am or where i am today. we should all take time to thank those in our life, and realize that we should never take them for granted. and not just on september 11, but everyday.
today is a reminder that we should look around and remember that so many individuals lost mothers, fathers, brothers, daughters, sons, sisters, cousins, friends and soulmates, all because of an act of hate. we need to take the words they wish they said to their beloved ones that morning as they left their homes, and tell them to our loved ones every night. we need to let go of the anger, hostility and give a hug, be thankful and let go. & more importantly, we need to be there for another. stranger or friend, let's be there. let's show some compassion and respect.