The Beginning of the End

Among the most highly anticipated events that occurred over my aforementioned bloggy hiatus has to be something that I've been waiting about 11 years for -- ever since I finally gave in to my Grandmom's persistence and begrudgingly opened the cover of a "silly children's book" one summer at Bethany Beach -- the beginning of the end...

Yep, that's right: The first installment of the last movie in the Harry Potter series... The Deathly Hallows.

I couldn't have been more excited. Or more prepared... I dressed up as Hermione last Halloween. I re-read books 6 and 7 over the summer. I intently watched as sneak peeks were featured throughout several Harry Potter Marathon Weekends on ABC Family (even though I own all but two of the DVD's...). I eagerly awaited every single new trailer release, and replayed it until no details were left unnoticed. I spent a recent Friday night (ok, two actually) watching the 6th movie, The Half-Blood Prince, with friends. I purchased tickets to the first midnight showing of HP7.1. I nerded out with some of my favorite fellow wizard-wannabes and stood in line with all of the other crazies for over an hour on a Thursday night. And then...

I laughed. I screamed. I hid my eyes. I cried. I woke up the next morning after 3 1/2 hours of magical dreams and was quite disappointed when my thoughts of "Accio Starbucks!!" went unanswered... In short: I loved it.

Sure, some purists are upset with slight deviations from the novel. But as a loyal fan for over a decade, I think that overall the movie did JK Rowling proud. And now I'm left to find ways to get my wizarding world fix until HP7.2 is released in July 2011...

Luckily, little gems like the following keep popping up. It probably comes as no surprise that Daniel Radcliffe has been among my Top 5 celeb crushes for quite some time... and this giggle-inducing video may have just edged him closer to the #1 spot (watch out, Henry Cavill...):

I Am Harry Potter from Daniel Radcliffe

Sigh. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: If loving a teenage wizard is wrong, then I don't want to be right.

You. Are. Welcome.

The first, of what we can hope assume will be many, full length trailer for Eclipse.

Le. Sigh.

Just Call Me Sporty Spice

Some people have dared to suggest that the recent rise in my "sportiness" is only in response to the Frogs' BCS-smashing success (12-0!! MWC Champs!! Wooo wooo!!). Well, while I do get particularly passionate for all things Purple, those claims are just plain silly. Take the last week, for instance:

Last Sunday, I went to my first NFL game ever! About 10 of us from work headed out to the Meadowlands to root on the Giants from some pretty fantastic seats in the 8th row. Not only did I love watching as the Giants beat the Atlanta Falcons in overtime, but I even tossed a football at the tailgate. At least 6 times. That whole spiral thing is kind of tricky, but I think I was really starting to get the hang of it.

Representing the Froggies at Giants Stadium, of course.

Go Blue!

Then today... ooooh, today! Only the Sportiest. Day. Ever. First, I returned to the Meadowlands bright and early for the second Sunday in a row. But this time it was to cheer on the Carolina Panthers while they played Jets. It takes a lot to get me to root against the home team, and the Panthers' precious outstanding long snapper, JJ Jansen, is just the ticket. I guess I might be a tad bit partial... I mean, his cutie wife has been one of my closest friends for the last 4 or 5 years, and his new sister-in-law is just plain fabulous... But even if the Panthers didn't quite win this one, I quite enjoyed every minute of the game - especially the company of the Bliss sisters :). 

JJ (#44) looking back at his Cheering Section... or so we told ourselves.

Pretty Bliss Faces

xoxo.  (... and apparently we made a new friend in the back...??)

After the game wound down, I was headed back to Penn Station and up the stairs to Madison Square Garden for the Knicks game! To say the courtside seats I won from work were "unbelievable" would be an understatement - Tracey and I couldn't have had a better view unless we'd been playing right alongside Nate Robinson and Danilo Gallinari ourselves. The only problem that we saw with sitting just a few rows behind Spike Lee and Mary J. Blige for our very first Knicks game is that it really doesn't leave us with a whole lot of room for improvement. :) No worries though, the waffle fries were delicious enough to keep us coming back regardless of the seats. Oh, and how could I stay away from David Lee after the obvious sparks that were flying between us all night?? Sigh... swoony swoon swooooon.

Date Night with Tracey at the Knicks!

The "Zoo-perstars" i.e. the most confusing Halftime Show ever

Best. Seats. EVER... and #42, my future boyfriend.

So after this action packed week, with nearly 12 straight hours of NFL and NBA games today alone, I think it's about time for this sporty little girl to finish catching up on my dvr and then get some beauty sleep. Even the very sportiest of us need a little balance in life, after all.

The Time Has Come...

New Moon!!! Official release!! TONIGHT!! At Midnight!! Ahhhhhhhh!!!

Ok, sorry. I promise to stop with the tone it down on the exclamation points. I started this post by babbling on about my love for all things Twilight/Robert Pattinson (Team Edward! Wee!), but goodness knows I've done that a time or three already. I think y'all get the picture by now. And if you don't, luckily my Twi-geeky friends have all been on top of their game this week, gushing about their excitement (Well done, ladies).

Oh, and p.s. who here thinks I should get a gold star (or twelve) for not taking today off of work to stalk innocently wander the streets of NYC in hopes of "bumping" into Rob?? I mean, he's here. In. The. City. For the NYC Premiere. And I'm... In. My. Office. Yeah, that took some serious restraint. Sigh.

Regardless though...

I get to see New Moon!! So soon!! Because it's finally premiering!!! TONIGHT!! Can. Not. Wait.

Sorry... I just couldn't resist. :)

Fear the Frog! Part II

In case anyone somehow missed the outcome of the Frogs' big game last night, I'll give you a little hint...

Yaaaay Frogs! As if there was ever any doubt! Rah Rah TCU!!  I was celebrating the 55 to 28 domination over Utah at the Reckless Kelly concert with Kristen, Jim and a room full of Texas Country-loving New Yorkers. If I couldn't be one of the record-breaking 50,307 crowd at Amon Carter, I'd say standing within a foot of Willy Braun while he serenaded me for a couple hours was definitely the next best place.

"Her soul wide open I can see right through

Wears her heart on her sleeve but it's all for you

That girl's got love in her eyes"

-Reckless Kelly, Love in Her Eyes... Swoony swoon swoooooon!

Foiled.

I really figured I'd get at least a week or so into NaBloPoMo before I resorted to gushing/swooning/being a teeny-bopper girl and just posting about one of Hollywood's heartthrobs... But alas, Vanity Fair has foiled my plans! My roomie Renee brightened my Monday and sent me this link to the drool-worthy outtakes of Robert Pattinson's recent photoshoot for VF. And can I just say... O... M... Goodness.

Swoony swoon swooooon! Oh, and the best part? This is only the FIRST of FOUR slideshows from the shoot!! That means three more doses of this deliciousness are in our near future, my vampire-loving friends... y.e.s.

Chick-fil-A v. Boys

All I've wanted to do since last night was blog about the fabulous time that was this weekend, i.e. Alyssa's Return to NYC/Philly Road Trip '09 for Megan's Half Marathon!! However, life/sleep/lack of proper lunch hour just haven't allowed for such things. It will come eventually, but in the meantime, please enjoy Kristen's and my brief and to-the-point Gchat convo on the events:

Kristen: i know you're busy, but i just thought i'd tell you that i'm patiently awaiting a blog post on this weekend :) that's all

me: hahaha you read my mind! it’s annoying when life is too busy to blog ;)

Kristen: i know it

Kristen: i hate it when corporate america rains on my parade

Kristen: btw, any Reid [Rosenthal, a.k.a. Alyssa’s and my adorable husband-to-be Philly native of the latest season of The Bachelorette] sightings?!

Kristen: i figured there would be hysterics

Kristen: so i'm going to err on the "no" side of things...

me: hahahha… sadly, nope. other than Alyssa finding a local Philly mag with his face on the cover

me:but there WAS chick-fil-a involved... which is perhaps just as delicious

Kristen: haha, absolutely

Kristen: chick-fil-a never disappoints, boys do

Ha. Done and... done.

Baby just say, "Yes."

I love Taylor Swift. Her music aside, everything about her is just stinking adorable. A co-worker tried to tease me about my cowboy boots and "y'all's" awhile back by calling me Taylor Swift... imagine his surprise when I squealed with delight and thanked him for the most fabulous of compliments! Jamie, LJ and I even got to meet her a few months ago at a Rolling Stone luncheon. Between her killer purple heels from Top Shop and her bubbly personality, I left plotting a master plan to become her new BFF...

So it's no surprise that when Taylor just Tweet-ed about "an awesome cover of Love Story" by a guy with a "beautiful voice," I clicked through immediately... and discovered this week's Happy Friday! Happy Video! Yessss...

The artist, Gabe, rewrote the lyrics of Taylor's "Love Story" so that it's from Romeo's perspective instead of Juliet's:

Juliet I'll save you, they'll never come between us

Just hold on and love is gonna free us

Don't be afraid, oh we'll make it through this

It's a love story... Baby, just say, "Yes."

The cute spin on the story, combined with Gabe's dreamy voice, pretty much made my heart melt... Sigh.

Hope you enjoy and Happy Friday!

Happy Music

I haven't seen Away We Go yet, but if it's even half as delightful as the movie's "Road Trip Mix" on Pandora that I'm currently listening to, then I will be a happy, happy girl.

Seriously. These twirling-in-Central-Park-worthy songs almost made me forget that I've spent 7 hours (and counting...) of this beautiful Sunday at the office... almost.

And even if this adorable sponsored playlist ends up being misleading, let's be honest... John Krasinski in glasses is definitely presh enough to justify the $12.50 ticket.

"When it comes to settling down... Never Settle." -Away We Go

MTV Wins At Life Tonight

After the debacle/foolishness that was the last MTV Music Awards, thank GOODNESS MTV is seeming to redeem itself with the Movie Awards tonight. I'm still watching on my DVR, but after I rewound the World Premiere of the New Moon trailer several times, I noticed Ryan Seacrest posted it on Twitter!!

... Wait. I'm sorry. Did that last sentence REALLY just happen? Rewinding for New Moon? Ryan Seacrest? Twitter?? Who am I??...

Sigh. Ok. Aaanyways, I couldn't wait any longer to share this fabulousness. Between Rob in his dreamy suit and a shirtless Taylor who is apparently all grown up, I dare you to watch just once... :)

"Maybe Make a Little Magic in the Moonlight"

I know this makes me even more of a cliche of a girl than I already am (as though the pink-themed blog and constant discussion of delicious sugary treats weren't enough...), but it has to be said: 

Kris Allen?! A. Dor. A. Ble. 

Then the American Idol gods go and pair him with the charming Keith Urban and his precious single "Kiss a Girl"... Y'all, I just didn't even stand a chance! I was so busy swooning during the performance last night that I'm surprised I didn't fall right off of the eliptical machine...

Siiigh... Right?? I mean, I know the debate will go on for awhile about who really "deserved" to win (for the record, I totally heart Adam too), but you just can't deny Kris' uber dreamboat factor... And I'll be sure to report back on how well it translates in PERSON after I meet him (and Adam!!) at a Rolling Stone lunch on Tuesday... Weeee! Can. Not. Wait.

Oh, and my office is closed tomorrow for the long weekend (yayyy!), so have a Happy (Pseudo) Friday!