Madrid Madness

I've returned, albeit two days after my scheduled return date. Sunday evening, when I went to check in for my flight home, the airline informed me that the flight to JFK was seriously overbooked. I wasn't leaving that day.

Due to a stupid mistake I would rather not get into on here, I had no protection. None. Nada. Zilch. I guess hindsight is 20-20. So, lesson learned. The people going to NYC had to wait it out in Madrid until Tuesday. The people going to Boston flew to London for an overnight layover before proceeding onto Logan. How I wished I was going to Boston right then and there!

You would think the extra time in Madrid would have proved to be bonus days, right? Wrong! I had to schlep to the airport Monday afternoon to get on the waiting list. Afterwards, an airline representative informed me that it would be in my best interest to just take the Tuesday flight but check my luggage right then and there in order to secure my seat. I kicked myself realizing that I should have done this in the first place. Saturday night, instead of checking my luggage in storage, I could have simply checked in as my flight was less than 24 hours away. Again, lesson learned. I did manage to find some satisfaction during my short time in Spain, even if most of it was hellish.

I arrived in Madrid Saturday night, placed my luggage in a storage locker at the airport, and hopped on the Metro with my overnight bag to the hostel. Thankfully, I had read up on street crime in Spain, because the combination of this knowledge and being a skeptical New Yorker prepared me for the man who tried to pick pocket me shortly after transferring at the Neuvos Ministerios Metro stop.

Being aware of my surroundings, I saw him try and open my purse, which was crossed over my chest. Thankfully, I didn't keep any money there, instead it was in the chest pouch under my coat. However, my camera was in there, in the compartment closest to my stomach and buried under maps. I immediately yelped, put my elbow up to his face, and quietly but firmly told him to get away from me. He obviously was a pro because he stared straight ahead as if nothing just happened and got off at the next stop. Shaken but resolute in my street smarts, I couldn't help but think that I have lived in NYC for ten years without any incidents, and here I am in Spain for an hour and I'm having problems. This colored the way I was to experience the city. Always suspicious and looking for troublemakers.

I arrived at MuchoMadrid hostel, which was really a great place. Small and intimate, it was the two-bed room reserved only for females that appealed to me. I discovered that my roommate was from NYC, which was nice to have the familiarity considering what I just went through. After settling in, I looked for and found Chocolateria San Gines. The churros con chocolate was divine, and filling. Dinner was at a place whose name escapes me. Not surprising since my meal wasn't good. I had wanted to eat at Casa Labra, but it was closed.

Sunday morning I set out for Puerta del Sol, Plaza Mayor, and the Royal Palace. The royal pharmacy was fascinating, but not really worth the money, even with the student discount. At the time, this was all I thought I had time for. Little did I know what was in store for me! I did try to buy cookies from faceless nuns at a convent, with no such luck. They had already run out of product. The day was warm and sunny. The city was bustling with energy. A major change from the quiet calm of Copenhagen. I stopped by the Museo del Jamon for Tapas and a few glasses of sangria. Delicious. Fanta made another appearance in my travels. In Spain my addiction switched over to the limon (lemon) variety, knocking the orange flavor from its first place spot. Too bad the limon flavor is not available in the US.

With the time dispensed against my will courtesy of Iberia airlines on Monday, I did some random walking around the city. Madrid is loaded with shoe stores, which any other time, I would have jumped at the chance to shop till I dropped. Because of my sour mood, I wasn't exactly feeling the shopping love. I tried though and bought yet another pair of slippers. This pair would be my beat around pair. The ones I bought in Denmark are too luxurious to slop around in. Those would be my feet-propped-on-the-sofa pair. How funny that slippers represent my feelings for the respective countries they were each purchased in.

After dealing with head banging airline troubles, it was reassuring to meet some other people at the hostel. On the last night in Madrid, I met up with the roomie from NYC and two other women, one from New Zealand the other London, to drown my sorrows at O'Connell's, an Irish pub. We exchanged e-mail addresses and later added each other to Facebook.

Tuesday morning, I headed back to the airport for yet another whirl. This time, I had a boarding pass, a secured spot. There would be no troubles. Since my luggage was checked the previous night, food to take home would have to be purchased at the airport. I bought olive oil and turron from duty free, most of it gifts for others.

I guess I'll have to reacquaint myself with Spain again at some point. I'm told not Madrid, but Barcelona, baby! And no, I'm not off my affection for long international layovers, I'm just much smarter about how to do them now.

Helsingor and Swedish Sidetrip

Today was quite the travel day. I got out early since I had until noon before my Copenhagen card expired and I would be out of any free travel and discounts on certain services. I first stopped in Helsingor, Denmark to walk around and visit Kronborg Castle. The train ride was smooth and the countryside was lovely. We passed a soccer field that had tons of deer feeding. I've seen deer. I've seen them feeding. But I've never seen so many deer grazing together like that before.

I made it to Helsingor without incident and immediately purchased a ticket for the Scandlines ferry to Sweden. Using the Copenhagen card got me a 20 percent discount off the fare. I also managed to enter the Helsingor Bymuseet just a few minutes before my card turned into a pumpkin.

Helsingor was a quaint town and I had a lot of fun walking around. I fully enjoyed the Jule Market, which appeared to have more locals. Plus, the items for sale were less expensive than down in Copenhagen. My visit to Kronborg Castle was brief as I didn't feel like entering the castle. I did walk around the grounds though.

The ferry to Helsingborg was loaded with Swedes on their way back from Denmark where they go exclusively to buy alcohol. It takes about 20 minutes to cross the Oresund. Although there are major similarities between the two countries, there are marked differences as well. One should never assume that the two are the same. I made sure to keep any comparisons I had to myself.

I immediately found Harry's across from the train station. I was too early for the pub menu, but hungry enough for the buffet. I ordered the penne pasta with broccoli and ham in a thick cream sauce, and chose something called "Rhode Island dressing" for my salad. I grew up in New England and have never heard of anything called Rhode Island dressing. A Google search for it, came up mostly with Swedish sites. It tasted similar to Thousand Island or Russian dressing.

One of the differences between Denmark and Sweden is that in Denmark, it is not customary to tip the wait staff. In Sweden, you tip but there's really no set percentage. I asked the waitress about the tipping protocol and was ecstatic that she understood the culture of tipping in the United States, because she was able to reference it when explaining how much extra I should leave the other waitress for my meal.

With a satisfied belly, I was able to explore a little bit of the town. I snapped photos of Karnan Tower and Jacob Hansen's House. I found that Helsingborg didn't hold my interest so I continued on to Malmo. Since I spent much more time in Helsingor, Denmark than I thought I would, I didn't arrive in Malmo until the evening. It was dark outside and things began to close early so there wasn't much for me to do. I stayed a little over an hour before I headed back to Copenhagen, but not before stopping into a cafe for a snack and some people watching.

I dunno. I wasn't really *feeling* Sweden. It certainly was interesting and I'm grateful for the experience, but if I were ever to visit again, Stockholm would probably be my choice.

Winding Down

My time here in Denmark is coming to a close. I thought I would be able to post at least a little something each night after my adventures, but the hotel had such spotty Internet connection. When it was up and running, other guests were using the computer. At least I tried.

Anyway, tomorrow I finish up and take care of last minute business before flying on out to Madrid.

I hope to visit Nyhavn to take some proper photos. I visited the Nyhavn Jule Market on Tuesday night, and kept walking past it during the daytime on my way to other places. A visit to Copenhagen just isn't complete without a photo of its most famous canal in the world.

Despite the over the top costs here, I was able to buy a few things. It was a relief to find a Christmas gift for my sister. A store called Hemtex had goose down slippers on sale. I bought a pair for her and went back later to snag a pair for myself. These slippers are so adorable, and so unbelievably warm. They were a real steal at 69 DKK (about 14 USD). At that price, I simply couldn't resist.

No trip to a foreign country is complete without a stop at the supermarket! I was able to peruse the aisles of a few stores and purchase a product unique to the country called Ymerdrys. The Danes use this as a topping for yogurt. I've also become addicted to diet orange Fanta. It's much like Polar Orange Dry or Orangina in taste. Lovely.

As for the hotel, it's been sufficient in everything I needed for this trip, especially the breakfast buffet. The buffet is to die for! In addition to cereal, yogurt and fruit, there was an array of meats, Danish cheeses, and wienerbrod on offer. I confess to nicking an extra pastry each morning for my late night snack. I'm sure the staff sees me wrap them up in my napkin and pretends not to notice. Plus, I'm not abusive in my theft of chokoladeboller, the particular kind I have grown addicted to. Besides, the hotel does put out their leftover pastries at night for the guests to take.

Another thing about the hotel is that it's located in the red light district of Copenhagen. However, it's not as sinister as one would expect. You hardly notice the ladies of the evening. Their attire is casually normal, just jeans and a warm coat to protect them from the cold. You would think that such a seedy area would be off putting, but it's not. There are simply too many tourist hotels in this area for it to really be a problem and it's a surprisingly safe neighborhood given the backdrop.

All together, I have zero complaints about my time here. Other than the cold, which I anticipated and (thankfully) prepared myself for. Yeah, I could have done without the early closings of touristy spots, but that was to be expected given the time of year.

Loving Copenhagen

What can I say? I am loving Copenhagen!! It's everything I thought it would be, and more. The only downside I've had so far is that I left my camera battery charger at home, so I had to find a photo shop to purchase one. Since things here are expensive, it cost me a pretty penny. Or kroner.

This mishap caused me to have a late start on my first full day Tuesday because I didn't have a fully charged camera battery and I had to be careful of running out of juice. Anyway, as much as I kicked myself for all of my stupidity in leaving the damn thing at home, I didn't let it stop me from enjoying the city. My first stop was in the tourist information office on Vesterbrogade to purchase the 72 hour Copenhagen Card. The good thing about this card is that it's based on the hour, not the day. I had the card stamped to start at noon so I was able to use it Tuesday up through Friday at noon to my advantage. Because this was the off-season and things closed up so early, I don't think I truly got my money's worth from the card. For those traveling during the summer months, however, this card would be much more beneficial. Still, it did help me a lot in the long run.

I headed down Stroget and off to Amalienborg Slot to see the changing of the guard. This is held daily at noon. When Queen Margrethe is in residence, music accompanies the changing. She must have been away, because it was dead quiet. The interesting thing about this traditional practice is how close you can get to the guards. Afterwards, I visited the Amalienborg museum which is located inside of Christian VIII's palace. It is here where you can view the drawing room of Queen Louise and the study of King Christian IX, among others. Let me tell you. This was definitely a highlight of the trip. For the few who don't know, one of my hobbies is studying royalty, namely the descendants of Queen Victoria and Christian IX. When Christian and Louise passed away, their rooms were locked and left alone never to be touched until years later, when the museum was created. All of the items were then removed and painstakingly relocated to the rooms recreated for the public to see. You aren't allowed to go into the rooms. Instead, they are cordoned off with glass for one to view through.

Thankfully, I was the only one in the museum at the time, because if people had seen me, there would have been serious concerns regarding my sanity. For I was standing there, face pressed against the glass, fogging up from my heavily breathing mouth, eyes wide open, marveling at the photos the late King and Queen had accumulated from their camera happy dynastic offspring. Another exhibit was about the late Queen Ingrid's dresses. Like all museums this one had a gift shop. As much as I was tempted to buy everything there, I ended up purchasing a few postcards, a book about the museum, and A Royal Family, which I had been drooling over for a few years now. It's difficult to get this book in the US and I certainly was not disappointed!

Near to the palace was Alexander Nevsky Church. This had been commissioned by Christian and Louise's daughter Empress Maria of Russia. It was where she worshipped during her visits back to her homeland, and also where her funeral was held after she died in exile in Denmark after the Revolution. I stepped inside and was greeted by the Russian language, the heavy air of incense, and a family preparing for their infant's christening. The interior of the church was absolutely stunning. I obeyed the rules and didn't snap any photos whilst there.

Afterwards, I tried getting a table at Ida Davidsen, but since I didn't have a reservation and was way too hungry to wait another hour before a spot opened up, I was out of luck. This wasn't necessarily a bad thing because I walked over to Magasin du Nord, which is the oldest department store in Scandinavia, and purchased a nice satisfying lunch at the cafe located in the basement level of the store.

That night, I visited Tivoli Gardens. Apparently, this was the inspiration for Disneyland. It certainly didn't disappoint. In fact, I consider it to be a very underrated attraction. If you can, visit at night when it's much more magical. I lucked out because normally the place closes in October, but opens up in late November for "Christmas in Tivoli". It was here where I first sampled Glogg, which tastes, well, like you would probably expect Glogg to taste like. Heavy, medicinal, clove like, and sickly sweet. I didn't care much for it, but I'm glad to have given it a try.

Wednesday was my travel to Ballerup day. Public transport in Denmark is so easy to manage. I had zero problems getting out there. I did have one lip biting moment when I arrived and realized that I should take a city bus to the museum I wanted to visit instead of walking there. For some weird reason, buses freak me out. I will gladly brave any city's subway system, but their bus system always causes me to stress. Thankfully, it was only four stops to the museum and I was immediately glad I didn't walk because I got dropped off in an stark and empty industrial part of the town. My saving grace was a large sign pointing up a side road to the Ballerup Museum. Once I got to the top it was like in the Wizard of Oz when Dorothy steps out of the house and everything turns to glorious technicolor. At the top of the road was a farm community complete with thatched roof cottages and horse and buggy rides. Picture postcard scenery.

Afterwards, I took the bus back to the station and decided to check out the town center which was situated nearby. I ended up buying a cute corduroy blazer at a thrift shop for 6DKK. I don't think I'll be returning to Ballerup anytime in the future, but it was definitely a nice experience.

Since I had the time, when I returned to Copenhagen, I visited Rosenborg Castle to see the crown jewels. The castle gardens (Kongens Have) were beautiful and made me wonder what they looked like in full bloom during the summer. It was in this neighborhood, Norreport, that I really got a better feel for the locals. When I travel, I always try and blend in as much as possible. It's not always possible, but it's something I strive to achieve.

Thursday, was definitely a jam packed day. This was when I did the most touring around Copenhagen. I also discovered that the metro was indeed my friend. All those cobblestones coupled with many miles of walking had finally got the best of me. So, Thursday I would remain active but try and limit the amount of walking I would do. I visited the Rundetarn (Round Tower) for some great views of the city. I made it over to see the Little Mermaid. She really is little! I also visited Kastellet, which was quite picturesque. The neighborhood of Christianshavn was beautiful and reminded me a bit of Amsterdam. I don't recall if Vor Frelser's Kirke was open, but at that point, I was too exhausted and didn't bother to climb the 400 steps to the top. Even if it would have offered spectacular views. The next stop would be Christiania.

Christiania was a trip. You aren't allowed to take photos inside, but what I saw will stay with me for a lifetime! The place smells of weed and incense. There were several fires lit in trash cans. People were just chillin' and socializing while music blared throughout the place. Murals cover the buildings and random art decorates the open spaces. I thought that Pusher Street would literally be a street. It was more like an open area. One thing that appealed to me was that dogs ran freely around the community. I'm a sucker for friendly dog packs. I was disappointed that the buildings were so run down looking. Although it's more akin to a hippie commune, capitalism is necessary to make this machine run. Christiania offers an array of eating establishments and there are several stalls selling various items. It was also the only place in Copenhagen where I found a decent cup of hot tea! I ended up chatting with the girl who worked the stand where I bought my tea and we had an interesting conversation about the community. She had been born and raised there and looked back on her upbringing with much fondness.

Once I got outside I witnessed the funniest fight between two women. Although I couldn't understand Danish, I surmised that one woman (#1) was in some way responsible for the other (#2) falling off her bicycle. After much bickering back and forth, #2 got back on her bike a began to peddle away. #1 with her hands nestled casually in her coat pockets, nonchalantly lifted her leg and kicked #2's bike, sending her sprawling on the ground with all her money falling allover the surface of the road. The two began fist fighting and for a moment, I was relieved that I lived in a country that relied on paper money, because if that were me fighting, not only would I have gotten a serious ass kicking, but I would have walked away poor.


Thursday night, I had "Thanksgiving dinner" at Det lille Apotek. If you ever visit Copenhagen, please try and eat here. I ordered the stone beef, which is their most popular dish. They bring you raw beef on a hot cooking stone. If you're like me and you prefer your beef on the rare side, just cut it in half and give it a swirl all around the stone until it's cooked to your liking. For well done, you cut it in several smallish pieces. They serve it with Hollandaise sauce, along with a baked potato, salad, and a grilled tomato. Delicious!

On Friday I'm off to Helsingor, Denmark where I'll cross the Oresund into Helsingborg, Sweden. Then it's on to Malmo before swinging back into Copenhagen.

I've Arrived!

Safely, I might add. The flight was uneventful, and thankfully, only half full. Good for me because I was able to sprawl out and get some shut eye, so I wasn't too worn out for the rest of the day's travels. The connection in Madrid was smoother and less hectic than I'd originally thought it would be. I arrived in Copenhagen, learned the train system very quickly, and had zero problems finding my hotel.

After settling in, I decided to take a walk around. I got my bearings much easier than expected. I thoroughly enjoyed devouring a Ristet hot dog from the polse cart. The Ristet is a hot dog in a bun topped with ketchup, mustard, fried onions, and pickles. The dog had a nice snap to it. There are loads of 7 Elevens here. Oh, and I'm still not getting the money down properly. It feels weird to spend 15 Danish Kroner on a soda because my mind translates it as 15 American dollars, which it's not (more like $3.00). However, things are much more expensive here, which sucks big time.

I find myself saying "tak" (thanks) a lot. It is the easiest word in the Danish language!

Anyway, I have a long day ahead of me tomorrow. I'm so glad I brought my goose down coat, Copenhagen is COLD!!

I'm Leaving...

Going to catch a 9pm flight. I hope all goes to plan and the flight is uneventful. I just learned that my connection in Madrid, on the way to Copenhagen, is quite a stretch in between terminals. Fingers crossed.

November Shelter Duty 2007

Last night's walk to shelter duty, was a bit breezy. I had accomplished all I could for the trip and only needed to finish packing today. All the preliminaries were complete. There was a sense of necessity in choosing this night because I was doing something the next day that others aren't in the position of doing. On the plus side, I figured that since I rarely get any sleep on volunteer nights, it tire me out for the next day and would allow me to get some sleep on the flight, barring a heavy snorer in my direct vicinity. I stopped off first at Starbucks and chose an Egg Nog Latte - skim please! Now, I loves me my egg nog, and the latte was good, but nothing beats the real McCoy. I was going to be the lone volunteer, and hopefully, the flow of the night would be in my control. It looked like we'd all be fine.

I retrieved the keys, entered, and was confronted with a shit hole. The previous night's volunteers didn't clean up properly. Beds were askew, no pillowcases to be found, crumbs all over the kitchen table, and no milk. A real shit hole. Now, I entered panic mode. The drop-off bus hasn't followed a smooth schedule yet and could have arrived at anytime. So, I ran around like a lunatic cleaning and primping the place. I have to admit, that out of this chaos, there was something peaceful about being alone and accomplishing things by myself. Things then became orderly, and then some. The water for coffee and tea heated up, milk purchased, towels would have to take the place of pillowcases; I even had time to make my own bed before the guests arrived.

I get upset when the shelter lacks the amenities that we normally provide. I don't see it as a reflection on me or the shelter, but a reflection on how the guests think we see them. However, last night they couldn't have been more friendly or understanding about the lack of supplies. All went to plan, except one gentleman who reminded me a few times that the cookie situation wasn't up to snuff. Whatever. I got to chat with a few people and really dish. I feel awkward sometimes, because of the Mary and Martha's of life, I can feel like such a Martha. I like to work in the background getting things done, and that can at times, make me appear stiff and unfriendly.

After lights out, the room was unusually quiet, which did not, unfortunately, interrupt the racing thoughts in my head of all the things I would need to accomplish the next day. Minor things, that sit with a person and dig and annoy one to no end. Naturally, I failed to have a fit sleep, which didn't surprise me, but the next morning went smoothly. I was able to leave just moments after the bus arrived for our guests. I had done most of the cleaning up while they were getting ready. It was nice, to have things under control.

Starring Gramercy P. Riff as Herself

Drawing inspiration from a humorous post by the fabulous Noble Savage (who was inspired from another blog post), I am going to embark on a personal project, a journey if you will. I am going to reread two books from my preteen/young teen years. They were among my favorites and the first two that came to mind when I submitted a comment to her post. I had many favorites growing up. Quite a few. In fact, I could be found with my nose in a book most of the time. But these two came first to mind and there simply has to be a reason for them to linger so freely around my conscious state.

I didn't have what you would call an ideal childhood and books were my saving grace. I could escape from all my troubles and not have to worry about life outside of the pages for a nice block of time. The best was that in addition to being free on loan from the library, my school had age appropriate tomes in each classroom from which the students could "borrow" as needed. I put borrow in full on finger quotes because now in my thirties, I still have to return a few of them back to Mrs. Sadie's fifth grade classroom.

The books I quoted and chose to reread are Judy Blume's Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself, and Deenie. After reading Nobel Savage's post, I got caught up in the idea of learning why these books originally clicked with me. I want to look at the pages with adult eyes and sort of understand my psyche way back when. Why these books? How come I chose them off the shelf? A voracious reader, I did have an air of pickiness, but what was the appeal of these particular two? I was a fan of Blume, having read her work at fairly age appropriate times. Yet, I never bothered to read the ever popular Tiger Eyes, and Are You There God, it's Me Margaret found its way to me after I had started puberty. Which wasn't so hard since I developed breasts at the age of eleven.

Since I will be airplane bound tomorrow, I think this is the perfect time to start rereading and revisiting these stories all over again. Especially since I'm flying an airline that utilizes only a few movie screens for everyone to goggle at in cattle class. It will also give me time to reflect on what it was about them that appealed greatly to me.

It's hard to say what I will discover from this project. It could come to naught and I might discover that I was a perfectly well adjusted child in choosing my reading material. Besides, it's more in the spirit of wonder. But, there is a bit of interest at what my mind might pick up on. Either way, it's definitely going to be fun to revisit these books.

Den-vine Intervention?

Or just dumb luck?

Today's e-mail courtesy of Daily Candy:

Denmark's the Spot.

This never happens to me. Ever. I'm always reading about places to visit, right after I return from the very same spot.

Trip Itinerary

With a little less than a week left, I've pretty much got my plans for Copenhagen sussed out. I'm doing all the stereotypical touristy things and staying at a touristy budget hotel, which is located near to the central train station. Other than a planned excursion to Ballerup, my time in Denmark pretty much follows the guidebook. For Sweden, I figure I'll take the train up to Helsingor, Denmark to see Kronberg Castle then take the ferry over to Helsingborg, Sweden. I'll walk around a bit, taking in the sites, then hop on the train down to Malmo to tour a bit more before heading back to Denmark. A complete circle. Because of it's close proximity to Copenhagen, Malmo is pretty much where everyone goes for their Swedish day trip.

Madrid. What can I say? Incertidumbre. To be honest, it's leaving me a bit anxious considering I am up against the clock with so little time in front of me. I have 22 hours total there, some of them necessary for sleep. Arrival into Barajas Airport is at 7:30pm, leaving the next day for JFK at 5:00pm. I figure I'll walk around Puerta del Sol, eat dinner, and do a bit of shopping. Spain is the only country where I have a to-do list of foods that simply must need to be consumed; savoured if you will. A stop at the Chocolateria San Gines for chocolate con churros is a must. It would be a flat out sin should I leave without sampling some Jamón Ibérico ham. All sound so damn tasty.

The real race against time will be the day I leave for home. Can I see both the Prado and Palacio Real in a matter of hours? Probably not. Considering the state of the lines that might be forming since the Prado is opening a new wing, I might just hot foot it to the Palace instead. Although I know I'll regret it if I don't get to experience both.

Imagine, all this worry and fuss coming from someone who declared herself to be, "not a Spain person."

I'm nervous about locating and ordering food in all three countries. I'm not a foodie, and I'm terribly afraid I'll accidentally order something bizarre. You know those Scandinavians! To help in making sure I order something halfway edible, I bought the Berlitz European Menu Reader from Amazon for only 39 cents. It's an excellently detailed food translator and could be my saving grace on this trip. That said, I never treat myself to a nice restaurant on vacation, so I'm looking forward to testing out Det lille Apotek and Ida Davidson. Both serve classic Danish cuisine. Otherwise, I'm perfectly okay to go with the flow on seeing and experiencing the sites.

I confess to suffering from a bit of travel research fatigue, and with each day that passes, the reality becomes crystal clear that by next week, I will be in countries as foreign to me as outer space.

Guilty Pleasure #72

http://www.travelistic.com

Sometimes you gotta pick through piles of other's odd interpretations of the places they have visited. But if you look enough, you'll come across some real gems.

It helped me brush up on Danish etiquette, phrases, and polse food carts. Plus, the host, Carsten, is way cute! I sure hope I run into him when I'm there!

Come Back To the Five and Dime, Leo D, Leo D

I tuned into The Departed tonight. I first saw this in the theatre and will admit that up until then, I was never much of a Leonardo DiCaprio fan. He's a terrific actor, but looks wise, I always remembered how much his baby face annoyed me.

However, the first time I watched this movie, I realized how absolutely fuckable I think Leo is now.

I Was Born to Live Up to My Name

I've been tagged by the Noble Savage to do this meme. I've been feeling some brain drain with my posts of late, so it's nice to do something community wide and fun. Since I don't know many in the blogging community, I'm going to break the rules and not tag anyone back.

List one fact, word or tidbit that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of your first or middle name. You can theme it to your blog or make it general. Then tag one person for each letter of your name.

T: Tenacious. I'm stubborn to the core and would cut my nose off to spite my face in a heartbeat. Definitely a family trait.

A: Anglo-American. My father is from England, my mother a mix of English and Native American. I am truly my own worst enemy.

B: Bookworm. I love to read. Aliterates confuse the hell out of me.

I: Independent. Sometimes this bites me squarely in the arse. For the most part, it works to plan. I like doing my own thing.

T: Traveler. In the last five years, I have seriously been infected with the travel bug.

H: History Major. I'm forever working towards my Bachelor's degree.

A: Animal Kingdom. I'm a huge animal lover.

Still Yummy After All These Years

Duran Duran were on the Howard Stern Show yesterday. They are still rocking and sounding fantastic as ever.

Their appearance also reminded me how, back in the day, I was so fanatical for them, especially John Taylor. A million years ago, when I was a teenybopper, I truly believed I would marry him. I REALLY believed I would be his wife. Actually, I changed Duran husbands often. First it was Simon, then I had a Nick thing going on for a bit. Roger was the object of my affections at times too. Andy? Gah! No! Blegh! Never Andy. There was a certain "type" of girl who hearted Andy and I just wasn't her. However, for me, the focus of my never changing gushing of emotions and stalkerish feelings, was John.

I've remained a solid Duran Duran fan for well over twenty years now. Through the highs and lows, thick and thin, and plus and minus band members. Unyielding.

I still wouldn't mind being married to John.