Thanksgiving aka There Can Never Be Too Many Quotes From Pangs
Willow: "Thanksgiving isn't about blending of two cultures. It's about one culture wiping out another! And then they make animated specials about the part where... with the maize and the big, big belt buckles. They don't show you the next scene, where all the bison die, and Squanto takes a musketball in the stomach!"
I know, it's a day late, but I was running around all day yesterday, and didn't have time for a proper Thanksgiving post. I hope everyone who celebrated had a wonderful day. Well, I hope those that didn't celebrate had one, too, now that I think about it. So yay everyone.
I had actually picked yesterday to do my grocery shopping. It wasn't too bad, everyone was heading for turkey day fixins, I had just done my regular shopping.
Buffy: "It was pretty darn scary. It was more like a riot than a Ralphs. I thought I was going to have to use Slayer moves on this one woman who was completely hoarding the pumpkin pie filling."
Afterward, Pops and I headed to the restaurant to meet up with my SIL for dinner. We've gone out to restaurants the past two years because of the lower number of atendees. Last year's meal was expensive, but delicious. I can't even remember the restaurant, just that it was somewhere near South Coast Plaza. But this year we chose The Reef, a really nice restaurant right on the water, down by the Queen Mary. Our reservation was for 4pm so that, as my Pops kept mentioning, we could watch the sunset on the buildings across the water. Keep in mind, this whole idea to schedule dinner around sunset was very important to him, and he was very proud of the idea.
Anya: "I love a ritual sacrifice."
Buffy: "Not really a one of those."
Anya: "To commemorate a past event, you kill and eat an animal. It's a ritual sacrifice...with pie."
Yeah, okay. Works in theory, I suppose. We get there at 3:45 and put our name in, and request a table by the window (to see aforementioned sunset blah blah). As we were waiting outside, we kept waiting to hear our name and it never came. Finally, at 4:15, we find out that the superbitchyhostess had called our name already. I guess she assumed that we put our name in and left. Because that makes the most sense in this situation, apparently. After Pops passive-aggressively reamed her a new one, he found out from a man who was inside the whole time that no, our name was never called. Hah! But it changed nothing, we still had to wait. THE SUN WAS SETTING, PEOPLE!! WE'RE MISSING PRECIOUS DAYLIGHT! Do they not understand? My father had this all planned out!
Spike: "I just can't take all this namby-pamby boo-hooing about the bloody Indians."
Willow: "Uh, the preferred term is-"
Spike: "You won. All right? You came in and you killed them and you took their land. That's what conquering nations do. That's what Caesar did, and he's not going around saying, 'I came, I conquered, I felt really bad about it.' The history of the world is not people making friends. You had better weapons, and you massacred them. End of story."
Buffy: "Well, I think the Spaniards actually did a lot of-- Not that I don't like Spaniards."
Spike: "Listen to you. How you gonna fight anyone with that attitude?"
Willow: "We don't wanna fight anyone."
Buffy: "I just wanna have Thanksgiving."
Spike: "Heh heh. Yeah...Good luck."
We then decide to wait inside so we would be sure not to miss our names, and the superbitchyhostess calls us and takes us to our seat. We weren't seated upstairs or downstairs in either of those dining areas, no, we got sent to the big party hall where they had makeshift tables set up. It was like a mess hall. This was a really nice place, and we were being shoveled in like cattle. We were not pleased. Even more so when we realized our seat was nowhere near that precious, precious window. So Pops called her on it. I didn't hear the whole confrontation, I simply heard "I saw her (points to me), I saw her when I called your name." OH REALLY. Well, congratulations. You know, if you saw me, then you probably could've come and GET us, no? Because what are the chances that I stood there, heard our names, and CHOSE to ignore you?
Buffy: "It is a sham. But...it's a sham with yams. It's a yam-sham."
What happened afterward consisted of lots of free champagne and really bad food. But we had wonderful conversation, as I just don't get to hang out with my SIL enough. But for the money we spent, my Pops was very unhappy and plans to leave really negative feedback on their website. hmph! But the most important thing was that we spent it together. Given the atrocities that are happening abroad, it was important to remember these things. My brother was spending the holiday in North Carolina with his girlfriend and her daughter. Hopefully, he'll be able to join us for Christmas.
The rest of my Thanksgiving evening was spent pre-planning my big weekend project!
= You see, I've been trying to redecorate my apartment for the better part of the 5 years I've lived here. I've tweaked one thing here or there, added a little color on walls, added shelving and new drapes, etc. But none of it got me excited about the design. I finally decided what the problem was. So Wednesday I went to Home Depot and got a whole new paint color for all of my living room walls. After that, I'll be slowly re-installing shelving and maybe even some crown molding if I'm feeling adventurous.
I live in an apartment the size of a shoebox, so the living room is where most of my time is spent and I need it to be pretty. A few years ago, I had painted two walls a pale blue and I absolutely loved it. I still do, but I wanted something in more of an icy plum, and I want it on all four walls. So that's my project. All weekend, since I have today off. Starting this afternoon, I'm going in. It's a big job, especially since I have no room to move all my bigass couch furniture. It will take precision choreography with my furniture and painting supplies. If you don't hear from me after this, I'll have given my life to something more important than I. Interior decorating.
If I survive, I'll hope to have before and after photos for all to see. Wish me luck.
ETA: I also picked up my pink Christmas tree on Wednesday, so all my decorations will be going up along with the paint! It's a complete overhaul, omggg!
= Stolen from dixie_chicken: Put your MP3 player on shuffle, and write down the first line of the first twenty songs. Post the poem that results. The first line of the twenty-first is the title.
Gypsy, Sitting Looking Pretty
Have a drink, they're buying
Knew you'd be here tonight
I was so high I did not recognize
Wake up, it's time
New York City, center of the universe
It was not tricky to enjoy
This is what is
I gave me away
Welcome to the grand illusion
Well I thought about the Army
Movin' to the country
I don't, I don't know why
So if you're lonely
Any way you want it
I'm gonna be lonely without you
Do you feel this?
I could have been a sailor, could have been a cook
What's with these homies dissin' my girl?
After school, walking home
I never wanted another
Watch out
= Best part of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade: (youtube)
= I found a great new channel that actually plays music videos: MTVU. Sure, some of it is music I've never heard before, but that's not a bad thing. Aside from a few fun commercials, it's pretty much all videos, all the time. Me likey.
= I saw Twilight. Huh. Interesting. It needed a bigger budget and better actors. Then maybe i wouldn't have laughed as much as I did. But that's just my little opinion.
= I'm not eligible to upgrade my phone until Feb 2010, but my SIL has offered to give me her Blackberry Curve that she doesn't use since she got her iPhone. Yayz. She had suggested no gifts this year since the economy's so sucky and she's worried she might be laid off in the next few weeks. I told her that it's fine, she can wrap up the phone and consider that my gift, because I'm stoked to be getting it. I don't think she had used it much before she got her iPhone, so it's in great shape. Woot.
= Upcoming Christmas episodes to keep note of:
== The Office returns next week with The Surplus, but on December 11th, we're blessed with Moroccan Christmas.
== And PSYCH FANS! They come out of hiatus tonight for their annual Christmas episode, entitled Christmas Joy!
= I have to get started on my painting, so have a great weekend! :)