Best. Week. Ever.

Monday night: super secret Coldplay concert at MSG.


Tuesday: got my computer back from the geeks, fixed and ready to go, complemented by super good indian food from the tiffin wallah and a tremendously fun companion.

Wednesday: finished my book Wikinomics (thoughts to come later). I now feel a bit smarter.

Thursday: sushi at Kiku (mmm, the spicy king crab roll) and my first ballet.




It was an incredible and incredibly intense experience for me. The fusion of music and movement was almost too much to handle emotionally. I haven't been moved by expressiveness in such a long time.

Friday: maxin and relaxin chez moi - something I haven't done yet!

I'm one of the luckiest people in the world!

baby steps to the next stoplight...

Maturity is relative. I've noticed that some of the girls I went to college with are off and married now - opting to start that type of life. My own sister is about to have the first grandchild in our family and is married.

I have, by a combination of choice, circumstance and luck, not stomped that gas pedal (only, in my opinion, to hit the brakes at the next stoplight). Instead, I've opted for baby steps, with a combination of pure observance and guarded fear. Its been a long time, if really ever, since I've even thought seriously about relationships. Vulnerability is needy.

But, as things progress, I'm beginning to come around to the idea in my own way - if only to be supportive of the people that mean the world to me.

A month without drinking

I think I'm going to try something new...a month without drinking. If I go from this past Saturday to the 21st of July, it should be a moderately easy task, and ease me into some sort of comprimise between my body and my spirit.

Gum Chewing: my new emotional crutch

Sitting at my desk, trying to do my work (without my headphones on and music in my ears, which I'm learning, is uber counter productive), I hear the admins and the other intern talking about where they thought their lives would have been by now.

Someone wanted an MBA, but is happy she now has 2 kids. Someone thought they'd have their PhD, another thought she'd be an artist but got married instead. All of them are under 33. It makes me sad, really sad. These women didn't get to live up to their dreams - and they're justifying it with kids and personal committments and the like. I wonder if guys were having this conversation, if the justifications would be accepted. In the case of these ladies, they certainly are...and the justifications are considered almost romantic.

At hearing this type of disappointment in my own sex, this type of settlement, I reach for my new crutch - a piece of gum. And it helps me to drown out the voices of disappointment in my head and helps me to fight the urge to cry.

The end of civilization

Strange thoughts race through my head at inopportune times. What brought about the fall of other great civilizations? What will, inevitably, be the downfall of the west? have we already initiated this decline?

Parallel - in this interconnected world, is it possible to decline? Probably. Can we ever really learn from the mistakes of our past? Are endings always fitting and wholly ironic?

what will happen when our day comes? I'm personally of the pay it forward philosophy, but these are just sentiments that keep me up at night.

And that was just the appetizer???

Everyone knows how HUGE of a fan I am of DMB...but when a friend came through with some sweet tickets for the band's CT show this weekend, I couldn't believe it!

With a rental car, a hobo, a super secretly stolen bottle of wine (ok, not really stolen) and ambition, we set out from NYC...

And what a freaking awesome concert - even the lightening that almost cancelled the show added to the surreal-ness of it. Everything right and good was played - dancing nancies, granny, #41, crash, two step, bartender (the opener - although this isn't as impressive as it used to be), and a couple other new songs that, I almost hate to admit, I liked!

The best part of all this - the rain was so cool! I've never been at a concert where it actually rained during the action before. Mud was everywhere, but it was cool! It definitely added to the earthy-ness and deepened my connection to the band...that and finding I'm 4 degrees of seperation from Dave himself...ahh! I have to make good friends with the triz's co-worker...freaking crazy!

The other best part - this was only an appetizer. I have at least one more show to look forward to at the Gorge in Seattle later this summer - something I've been saving for since I got a job! Woo Freaking hoo!

love, love love

The C-train has a new stop...midtown!

My leetol venezuelan got a new job, one that pays what she's due, and one that has a mission - who knew such a thing existed? I am so happy for her I could explode! Haveing happy, incredibly talented and intelligent friends is something I am so grateful for!

And on top of that, we're all in the same city...or will be soon. Life couldn't get much better!

The cost of advertising

In today's WSJ, there's an article on "Google facing growing anger from big advertisers who are upset over smaller advertisers' use of trademarked words in the text of search and ads."

This got me thinking about cost-benifit. If the big hotels, like intercontinental and marriott want to maintain their brands, they now have to budget for kicking out piggybackers.

Should this be a cost for companies? or should it be more strictly regulated? This begs a larger question - Can anyone really have control of their brand on the internet any more?