Photo Friday

(This is because I don't really have anything to say today, except that Tim is out of town still and it sucks having a day off with no one to play with. I guess after I post this, I'll go watch a movie and twiddle my thumbs. I need some friends!!! Any takers? I'm really nice and I can plan excellent field trips.)

The Mermaid Parade

Whoo-hoo! I finally got to go to the Mermaid Parade in Coney Island this year, and let me tell you, it was worth the wait. This year, they celebrated the 25th anniversary of the parade and the weather was perfect (last year it rained and not many people came). I even sported my blue hair for the parade, fashionably tied back in a loose mermaid braid, with a Natalie Dee mermaid t-shirt that I made. We had so much fun.

The parade itself was incredible. So many people dressed up in crazy costumes and prancing around. It was hilarious. And the setting was so perfect, on "Surf Avenue," which faces kitschy Astroland Park with all its shabby pop craziness. (Check out my slide show of the parade here.) I know I've never seen anything like it before. There were all different types of sea creatures, all different types of mermaids, and all different types of people! It can best be described as one giant party that we had great seats to.

Some of my favorite costumes were the silly blends of sea folklore and silly pop culture, like "Evita Piranha" and the Marie Antoinette Jellyfish...

After the FOUR HOUR parade (which, I think we saw at least three hours of), Tim and I grabbed some lunch and headed to the "Wonder Wheel," which is a Coney Island landmark. After fighting for a spot (the suckiest part of our Coney Island experience), we enjoyed the views from the top of the Wheel. It was also worth the wait, since you can see all of Astroland from up there. Incredible.

Then we strolled the boardwalk until the finale of the parade, the throwing of the fruit into the ocean by the King and Queen of the parade to open the Island up for summer. (We got up really close to the main event because of my blue hair and Tim's orange shirt - it looked like the security guards shirts). Tim got some great pictures of King Neptune, Adam Savage from the TV show Myth Busters! We went home very pleased with the day.

You Are: 20% Dog, 80% Cat

You are are almost exactly like a cat. You're intelligent, independent, and set on getting your way. And there's no way you're going to fetch a paper for anyone!

Are You More Cat or Dog?

Thursday

(I couldn't think of anything catchy for my title up there because basically this is an entry that is about nothing and everything and anything in-between.)

First off, I tried to randomly Google image the word "Thursday" and found some hilarious photos - none of which have anything to do with this day of the week. It was fun though. So I decided to litter this post with some of the funny things I found. You may not think it applies, but hey it's my Thursday, so I think it is appropriate.

So, I know this makes me sound like a total loser, and maybe I am, but I am really looking forward to some reality TV tonight (Pirate Master). See, I think that during the school year, the main prime-time shows kinda get the shaft because there are just SO MANY OPTIONS to choose from. But come summer time, you're really limited to a few things, so even cheese ball shows seem more interesting. I guess the powers that be figure that people will all be on vacation, so they may as well show reruns. And since I won't get any more vacation for a while, that leaves me stuck with old shows. No thanks. I'll take cheese ball over repeats any day. (Look - I just wrote an entire paragraph about a dang TV show and the theory of summer TV. I must actually be a loser - well, at least I'm not Emo.)

Hmmm... Another thing I am really looking forward to is this weekend - the Mermaid Parade at Coney Island. I am SO wearing my blue wig. Basically, I will use any excuse to go out in a costume, especially when it involves wearing a wig. This parade will be my first experience, because I didn't get to go last year as planned (it rained). And anyway, I just love the idea of this parade... Here's a quote from their site:

The Mermaid Parade celebrates the sand, the sea, the salt air and the beginning of summer, as well as the history and mythology of Coney Island, Coney Island pride, and artistic self-expression. The Parade is characterized by participants dressed in hand-made costumes as Mermaids, Neptunes, various sea creatures, the occasional wandering lighthouse, Coney Island post card or amusement ride, as well as antique cars, marching bands, drill teams, and the odd yacht pulled on flatbed.

I read The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd last year and the idea of a dedication to the sea just seems so mysterious and elegant to me. You know, the ocean is really the last frontier and all.

Hey, we had a fire at the library today! It was crazy. It's like there is always SOMETHING wacky that happens every time I set foot in that building. One of the people that works there was trying to "crisp" her potato chips. (I don't know... maybe this is a Northern thing?) and the toaster oven lit up. I think that the grease from the chips ignited the fire or something and so we had ourselves a bit of a flaming afternoon! Okay, so the incident itself is wild, but then, if that weren't enough, another coworker decided to take the flaming oven outside of the library and so she picks it up and runs it outdoors, using handfuls of newspapers to keep her hands from getting burned. Yeah. For real. Newspapers. And her son is a fireman. I bet he is gonna be pissed at his momma when he hears about what she did.

So tomorrow, I have to remember to ask the library pyro for some potato chips. Heh.

Happy Thursday.

She's got humor on her side...

Hil - you're rockin' my vote so far... How's about teaming up with Edwards for a dynamic duo? (Watch this video and see why I like Hillary...)

Our Anniversary

We had a really nice 8th anniversary (thanks everyone for your comments and cards). Tim surprised me with an incredible (and expensive!) dinner and tickets to see Romeo and Juliet at the American Ballet Theatre in the Metropolitan Opera House. It was gorgeous.

Dinner was fun - it was at The Compass, which is a trendy restaurant/lounge near the Met. I ate (I think they called it "the muse" or something) the "before appetizer" - it was a spineless anchovy with some tomato stuffing... yuck! But then they brought me this "heritage tomato salad" that was spectacular! It had big fat slices of different fresh tomatoes stacked up with lettuces in-between, drizzled with this raspberry vinaigrette. It was probably the prettiest "salad" I've ever eaten. The meal itself was fantastic, and we also ordered a desert - carrot cake. It was all so good! The coolest thing about the restaurant was when they brought out the bill, they also brought out a take-away bag of coffee cake breakfast for the next day. I think ALL restaurants should adopt this policy.

Romeo and Juliet was equally amazing. Just walking into the Met is an experience itself, with the plush deep red carpeting and the gilded gold railings... the sparkling chandeliers and the glass encased former costumes of Opera's greats. The ballet was beautiful, too. The choreography was stunning. The passion that the girl who played Juliet had! She was incredible. Our favorite part was the death scene of Romeo, which mimicked the balcony scene in form, but Juliet's body was limp (because she had not yet woken). Romeo threw her body around like a rag doll... like he was still trying to dance with her... it was really beautiful and tragic. I loved it.

Anyway, other than my "Emily Post" manners crisis and trying to remember which fork to use first, the night was fabulous. (If you want to brush up on YOUR table manners, take this quiz.)

Happy Times

Me and my guy.

Tomorrow is the anniversary of the eight years Tim and I have been married. Can you believe it?!? Eight years seems like such a long time, but to me, it's flown by.

I know this man. I can read in his big brown eyes when he is happy or angry. I can tell when he needs me. I see when he is overwhelmed and when he is in control. And we have memories - oh such memories! He is my life travel partner, my best friend, my solace, my soul mate. He's given me the best eight years of my life and I look forward to the next eight years. Happy anniversary, my love.

Pros and Cons

There are all kind of pros and cons with living here in the NYC metro area. For example:

PRO = Today I went to the Brooklyn Renegade Craft Fair, which was so amazing and fun and I bought not one, not two, but THREE handmade awesome necklaces there. I also bought a cute patchwork wallet, a baby t-shirt for my niece from The Onion (yes Becky, I'll be sending it soon...), an Andy Warhol inspired zipper bag, and Tim got a cool t-shirt that says "Beards, Not Bombs." CON = Walking through a "park" where there are not one, not two, not three, but at least FOUR various ethnic birthday parties that you must walk through. I've never seen such. I swear, I saw pinatas and pastries that closely resembled wedding cakes. I wish I had a birthday party of such magnitude!

Anyways, you get the idea. But I am a tourist. What a fun day!

Yowsers!

Ugghh. (Shaking my head in total disbelief...) I just found out that someone whom I used to work with, someone who is something like this:
...was an extra dancer in this:
I am now slightly disturbed. Well, librarians are mysterious ladies. You just never know who it is that REALLY recommends your books to you. (I'm just trying to figure out what crazy thing I can do so that someday someone will find out that Miss Suzy, the librarian, did "xyz." Any suggestions?!?)

Remembering

Two weekends ago, before we left Tallahassee, we had a really fun Sunday. The day after my friend Lynnae's wedding, Tim and I kinda took it easy before we had to fly home to NY that night. So we spent the morning at the Maclay Gardens. It's a state and botanic garden, one of the few things I actually had on my Tally to-do list. It was gorgeous. It was actually just what I needed to fill that southern hole that was left in me after moving up north. You never realize the things you take for granted until they are gone. I experienced that sensation pretty much the whole day.

On the surface, the garden really didn't seem that spectacular. (I mean, I am a member at the NY Botanic Gardens which just oozes with flowers.) But to a girl who hasn't been "home" in several years, oak trees covered in spanish moss, wide brick pathways sided with liriope, azalea bushes (yes - even those) and ferns, that woodsy sticky smell, and the sounds of crickets chirping is pretty much just like heaven. Really. Throw in a couple of southern critters, like armadillos, chameleons, and tadpoles, and it really is heaven. And it was me and my guy all alone, strolling down these wide sweeping paths. I felt like Scarlett O'Hara.

After that, we met up once more with one of my dearest old friends, Rachel and her hubby Chris, for lunch. Since Rach and Chris moved to South Africa, we really haven't been able to spend any time with them like we used to. We hadn't even SEEN them for two years! It was a little bit more of that "food for the soul" kinda time, like the southern garden experience. It's really tough being worlds away from someone you love. (Someday though, we plan on having houses right next to each other and we'll sit on our rocking chairs on our porches and hoot at each other. You'll see.)

Well, we had a great mexican food feast lunch with a waiter who liked to twirl things (almost as much as Chris does) and then we went to Tallahassee's Fun Station (ahh yeah) where we played water boats. We didn't realize it was going to be such a dripping wet excursion. The boats were all equipped with water pistols. And yes, I was seriously regretting my choice of wearing a white t-shirt. Chris got sopping wet (and he HATES being wet) so we all laughed at each other until I got the hiccups and they had to leave.

Tim consoled me with losing very graciously at mini golf (he didn't lose on purpose - I'm just that good...) and taking me for a spin on a go-cart track. I'd never been on a go-cart track, so I really had a great time. I laughed so hard that my tummy hurt. And I think I am still picking pieces of rubber out of my hair from that ride; either that or I have freaky black dandruff.

After that, we hit the road and made our way to the airport. We had a safe and not too eventful flight home.

Anyway, it was such a good Sunday that I wanted to blog about it so I could remember how nice a time we had.

13 random things I like...

(Clarification: This absolutely is NOT a "Thursday Thirteen" - I am no longer a part of that outfit. But it is true that yes, today is Thursday and yes, this is a list of thirteen items.)

Number 1 = I love my new niece. I've spent all day thinking about her cute little chubby cheeks. She is so adorable, especially when she smiles at you. It makes you feel like you've just done something incredible to please her. She's great.

Number 2 = I'm really enjoying going to the tanning bed. I know that sounds so incredibly vain, but here's the thing - after a really long rotten day teaching people how to use the shift button on their computers and whatnot, it is so stinkin' nice to go stand naked in a tiny room with straight up UV rays, listening to techno goodness, and searing your troubles away. Ain't nothing like it. I also like the fact that I no longer look like a pale librarian who's too busy straightening shelves and reading the latest book craze to set foot outdoors.

Number 3 = My cat Juno is so roley poley. I love to pet her big ole tummy that drags when she walks by. Sometimes, when she scoots past me, I try and grab her tummy pouch. It freaks her out and she jumps straight up. And that cracks me up, too.

Number 4 = I really like this new reality TV show, The Pirate Master. It is probably doing poorly as far as ratings go, but I don't care. Last week, the crew had to walk through this pit with poisonous snakes. It was crazy. It's on tonight - I'll be watching.

Number 5 = I have this great frame that sits by my desk. The frame looks like book spines with the title Tess of the D'Urbervilles printed on them. The picture I have in this frame is of me and Tim at Stonehenge. I like that no one, except those who have read that book, gets that reference. It gives me a bit of literary snobbery.

Number 6 = I like the way blue hydrangeas look before they fully open. Right now, it looks like I have some kind of crazy purple bush in my back yard.

Number 7 = I'm celebrating not having to work tomorrow. I have to work Saturday, but that is a whole day away from now.

Number 8 = I like that when the phone rings and I am in my office, I have to run down my long hallway to pick it up. Then I call it my exercise for the day. Ahh yeah.

Number 9 = Heh. Every time I write out the words "Number Nine," I think of that weird Beatles song... I warned you that this list was random.

Number 10 = I'm gonna have an OUTBACK salad tonight. When God created the earth and said this is good, I wonder what he had to say about the creation of the OUTBACK salad? Because it is not just good, it is grrr...eat!

Number 11 = I told somebody, that I don't like very much, off yesterday. It felt so great. See, I am the type of gal to hold it in until I just pop. And when I pop, watch out. It ain't pretty. There could be tears... There could be claw marks... You just never know. Anyway, I told her off because she is unbelievably lazy. I ripped her a new one, actually. There were people who were impressed, let's just say.

Number 12 = Tomorrow (on my lovely day off), I believe I am going to make a pretty necklace with the bead kit my awesome husband bought me. He knows that I like to dabble into the creative juices here and there and so he bought me this bead kit that has 4 different types of pliers (? - one of them is needle-nose pliers - I have no clue what to do with the others), a felt beading tray with all kinds of measurements all over it, and a whole bunch of clasps. It was a cool gift - my guy really is great.

Number 13 = And finally, gosh my house smells great. I vacuumed yesterday with that sprinkle on powered stuff that smells like "clean linen" and my house no longer smells like cat or human or anything else that can be stinky. It's kind of like Fabreeze in a way - it's a facade of cleanliness.

The end. Thanks for reading.

Librarian Tats

Today my boss and I had a whole discussion about piercings and tattoos. I wonder what she'd say if I came in wearing this?!? (I could, you know... I bought this while visiting an awesome bookstore in Nantucket.) It's because I'm such a hip librarian - at least that's what I tell myself.

Resting

Well, I am exhausted! I'm running around like a chicken with it's head chopped off, trying to catch up with everything at work and whatnot... clean my house... do laundry... all of the above. I am way behind, but I really did have a nice vacation.


This past week, I got to spend a lot of time with family. My mom, dad, brother, sister, brother-in-law, and baby niece all visited my neck of the woods and we had some good family bonding time together. I didn't blog much because boy, I was BUSY!!! They came in last Wednesday and left early Monday morning. I took them to my library so I could show off my baby niece, to my favorite restaurant (Pizza & Brew), into the city for a brief gallivant, to Queens to the Old World's Fair Expo to see largest scale model of a city in the world, shopping, and I even took them on a photo shoot at my favorite little park. We stayed busy, but we made time to watch the Sopranos finale as a family (that was bizarre - watching NY Phil Leotardo get whacked while my conservative christian father was sitting right next to me...). Anyway, it was a good visit. If you want to see photos, check here.

I think the laundry and whatever is going to have to wait. I think that most of all, what I need to catch up on is SLEEP! I'm off to take a cat nap.

End of Vacation...

Hi ho hi ho... It's back to work I go. Ugg. Well, it has been nice to have some time off and away from the daily grind, but I gotta go get paid, ya know? The weekend with my family was wonderful - pictures and stories shall soon follow. Especially of little miss Emma. (More at 5:00.)

Photo Friday

Hey, it is still Friday for a few more minutes... so here is a photo montage of sweet little Emma at my library. (Don't you just want to kiss those cheeks?!?)

Guess Who's Here?!?

I have a visitor this weekend... she's cute and cuddly and warm and sweet... she has a smile almost as big as she is... and when she talks, she kind of gurgles... can you guess who? It's my little niece! Also visiting is her momma from Canada (my big sister) and her hubby, baby brother, and mom & pops. It's a FULL house, here at Chez Bomgardners. We're all having fun making baby noises.

Tallahassee's Freaky Car Museum

Have you ever wanted to see a Batmobile? What about a Batmobile and an asteroid? How about a Batmobile, an asteroid, and some makeshift weapons confiscated from convicts? Well, sprinkle in some old cars, a REALLY old cave bear skull from Russia, a whole bunch of freaky teddy bears having tea parties, and some other old memorabilia and you have a museum! And an interesting one at that. Welcome to the Tallahassee Antique Car Museum.

First of all, I'd like to remark that we were afraid to enter this museum. This is REALLY the sign that greets you. (It's the blue one... see it?) And the building has this bizarre kind of decorative bars on the windows. Very odd. Tim was all, "Are you sure about this, Suzy?" And I said, "Look - I really want to see a Batmobile and a cave bear skull today. I need it to maintain my sanity during this hectic wedding stuff. Besides, I am about to get my hair done." That last sentence was a warning to him, and so he parked the car.

We entered and paid the man $10 dollars for both us - a small price to pay for the eclectic jems we got to marvel (and giggle) over. I'll name my highlights so if ever you visit, reader, you'll know what to look for and what to expect because I'm just that generous. We saw not one, but TWO Batmobiles. One from Batman Forever and also the one from Batman Returns (the last one is the cooler of the two). Also from Batman Returns, the car museum had the Duckmobile!!! Yes, for real. They also had the Batwing and the Batcycle from the old Adam West TV show. I was thrilled to see all this Batman memorabilia (Andy and I - we're big Batman geeks). Apart from all the Batman stuff; there were taxidermied animals, old baseball stuff, tiny cars for kids - with the car that the Little Rascals rode around in called Casey Jones, an asteriod and a dinosaur egg, a little replica of Sparkie the electric chair, the Bandit (yes, I said the Bandit), the cave bear skull, the horse-drawn hearse that carried Abe Lincoln's body, all kinds of cool cars like a Viper and a Shelby, and even some cool old bikes. I feel like we got our money's worth, for sure. Check out my pictures to see what you think, reader!

A Sad Day

This is a High School picture from about ten years ago. See that cute puppy beside me? That's my Spot. I loved that dog.

Spot passed away today. She was a "found" dog, so we think she was around 13 years old. She's been living in VA with my folks.

I'll never forget that day we (my brother and I) found Spot. A big tropical storm had just come through Savannah and we had all kinds of flooding. Andy and I thought we should go exploring in the woods behind our house to see what kind of damage had been done from the storm. While we were walking along, two dogs started following and playing with us. It was little Spot and this lanky golden retriever. And Spot "followed us home" (at least, that's what I told my dad).

Since the storm was so bad, I was worried about this cute little lost puppy. So I gave this (brown and muddy) dog a bath and some food. While I gave her a bath, I realized that she was actually white and fluffy! She also had spots all over her back - hence the oh so creative name. I sat with Spot outside, brushing out all her tangles. She just laid there, basking in the attention I relished upon her. I loved her from that moment on and knew she would be MY dog.

My folks forced me to go through the motions of posting "found dog" signs, but I secretly hoped no one would claim her. And after a couple of months, there was no way I would have given her back to anyone if they had claimed her anyways. My family fell in love with her too. She's been a good dog.

My folks had to have her put down this afternoon. Spot's been having a lot of health problems lately and my folks knew that it was just a matter of time. Spot was just about totally blind and deaf, she was arthritic and becoming really incontinent, and she had lost all her pep and vigor. She lost all of her "Spotness." The vet noticed that her tongue was turning a color and he said the lumps on her belly were cancerous. So, my folks gave Spot an extra special day, filled with doggie treats and pizza crusts (her favorite). And then they took her to get a shot, so she could go on to doggie heaven. She will be missed. Especially by me.

The Wedding

Okay everyone, let me hear a collective "Ahhh..." for the newly weds. So here they are, Lynnae and Mike Psimas (it's Greek - it sounds kinda like "sea mass"). Aren't they cute?!?

And thank heavens the weather held off!!! That morning, the Florida drought broke and it rained really hard. The Floridians said it was a tropical storm blowing in. All I know is that it finally stopped and that I stepped in a MASSIVE mud puddle coming down that isle, but I kept a smile on my face regardless. And I kept that dopey smile on, even though I was SO cold in that backless dress (the wind was blowing so hard that the preacher had to hold the arbor up during the service).

So, do you want to see how I looked in that dress? The dress I complained about so very much? Are you ready?!? Don't laugh. (Well, I won't know if you laugh or not. But you better not. Karma will know if you laugh at me.) Click here to see it. Hope you like it. I think I cleaned up pretty good.

Bridesmaids

Miss Me? I'm having fun still in Tally with my redhead, Rachel... Here is a picture of just how cute we are. We're gonna give the bride a run for her money for sure! (Rehearsal Dinner Pics)