How was my 2008?

So, it's that time of the year again to make resolutions and see which ones I can stick to. But first, let's take a look back at what I said I'd do in 2008 and see how it went:

Ten resolutions for 2008

10. Make time to read a lot of good books this year.

David and I wanted to start a book club between the two of us, or pretty much just make an effort to read the same book and then discuss it. It's a very romantic idea but didn't take off much in 2008.

I started reading the "Twilight" book series, and am 1.5 books from the finish. I also got into the "Dexter" books after having seen an episode of the Showtime series. Individually, I also conquered "The Kite Runner" and "I Am America (And So Can You)."

Goodreads.com has proven to be a great resource for this goal. I didn't do quite as well as I'd hoped, but I definitely put forth an effort.

9. Blog every day. Something, anything, just blog.

I slacked a little on this one, but it's hard when you have a billion blogs to find something to write on them. Though I didn't blog every day, I bet if you look through all of them you'll find I blogged a lot. Better luck in 2009, now that I have my own Web site. ;)

8. Get more violin practice in each week.

Due to money restraints, I have not taken lessons in many months. I haven't even picked up the instrument in awhile - mostly because I was practicing one day and some ppl down at the Muddy Pub were making fun. How discouraging! Also, David accidentally pulled off the chin rest because I was not specific when I told him to remove the shoulder rest. I need to get back into that...

7. Move out of my parents' house.

Check!

6. Volunteer more.

I served as the Jersey County Relay for Life's Fight Back chair person last year, but I thought I'd take it back a notch this time. Christmas went by so fast I didn't get to ring bells for the Salvation Army. I need to do more research and budget my time better in '09.

5. Get along with parents/brother more often.

My brother is still somewhat of an issue because he is quite possibly one of the grumpiest people I've ever met. My parents and I still get into tiffs every so often but they are two of my best friends these days. It really does pay to move out and have your own space. You really appreciate family more.

4. Eat better, excercise regularly -- come up with a plan and stick to it!

For awhile, I went on a big yoga kick and was doing great. Then school started and it threw my schedule off. Later in the year, I started walking with my dad twice a week at the mall, something that fell off around the holidays, but is expected to pick up again in the new year. Living with a boy has caused me to eat more than I usually would so as not to waste (and there's a lot of food for just two people to eat usually). Also, we eat out a lot. We need to get better in 2009.

3. Get better at drawing/sketching and photography.

I have not done a lot of this at all.

2. Keep in regular contact with old friends via phone, e-mail, text, snail mail, whatever.

I get better at this and then I do worse. I am pretty decent with e-mail, but not the phone. I did get some stationery and a quill late in the year, so look out people!

1. Get my clips organized. Figure out how to be happy professionally and start doing it. (Or at least actively working toward it.)

I'll work on it in '09.

Fancy Christmas comes to the Griffith household

This year has been so busy for everyone in my family that it just wasn't feasible to open presents from Santa on Christmas Day.

Our solution?

We had Christmas at our house last night. And when we planned it, which was kind of last minute, I thought this was a chance to make it my own.

Inspired from all the parties I'd been to this year featuring fancy appetizers and party gifts, we put together a few items of our own, even if it was just for our little family and David (who came late because Dominoe's kept him at work 2 + hours late).

We had cookies and candy galore, pecans my aunt picked herself and gave to my parents as a gift, spinach-stuffed mushrooms and cream cheese bacon crescents mom helped me make (kraftfoods.com), rye bread mini pizzas and a meat, cheese and vegetable tray no one touched as well as a plethora of chips, pretzels and dip. (And fancy G napkins :))

I made some sweet wine glasses for everyone to have as party favors. Altogether the materials cost me about $8. And I could have made at least 10 more for $1 more per glass.

Read my work blog for more details and tips.

I got a Wii Fit (FUN!!!!), a great set of luggage and lots of other goodies I love.

For entertainment, we played a game called "Pay Me" and watched Christmas videos from mine and James' childhood (cute AND funny!)

I tried to record the whole thing but my camera died halfway through James opening his presents. I wanted to make things last longer so we opened presents one at a time starting with him. By the video though, one would think he was an only child.

More Christmas stuff going on tonight and tomorrow, but for now, everyone have a very Merry Christmas!!

Omy God, I want this

:)

Fancy holiday party fun

I spent most of last week feeling sick, but I caught a break near the weekend and was able to accompany Lynne to a girls' night in Christmas party she and her friends been planning at least a month. Turns out it was just what I needed for a relaxing night of fun, and the added excitement of meeting some new people was the icing on the cake.

The party was held at her friend's place in University City, which was decked out in classy Christmas style - I was amazed at all the preparations, so I sat there and took it all in while I tried to make friendly conversation.

The women there were very friendly and, might I add, pretty good cooks. It was a change of pace from the Christmas parties I was used to - bags of chips, store-bought cookies, pizza and beer. That being said, I was a little embarrassed with my non-cooking skills and Christmas popcorn tin, but at least people ate some.

 

Instead, Christmas platters filled with Cream Cheese Bacon Crescents and Bruschetta covered the tables as we hovered around the kitchen, talking and refilling our holiday decorated glasses with mulled wine and Sangria.

 

Read more on my work blog and get the recipe for the crescents, which were TASTY.

Lauranette.com

Hey everyone,

So I bought a domain name, lauranette.com (for lack of a better name at the current moment) and am using it as a professional site. I don't have much up currently, so the home page says "under construction."

However, Stephen helped me load WordPress (thanks Haas, if you read this) and I imported a blog I started months ago on journalism and the Web that I wanted to keep separate from this one, which is more personal.

Check it out and stay tuned for updates. The links and everything are not how I want them to be but I figure this is a good starting point.

http://lauranette.com/blog

Dear online diary

Today, I naively volunteered myself for the early shift on Black Friday. That's right - shopping watch.

 

My shift will start at 4 a.m. at Kohl's (yay! i've even got permission to go inside for some shopping!) and then I'll head over to Target where I've been told there have been riots the last two years.

 

Apparently what they do is hover in the parking lot and when the doors open, they try to cram themselves into the doorways amongst the people who properly waited in line. How rude.

 

Anyway, an early shift is a one-time thing (or at least once per year) but the good thing is it gives me the potential to start my holiday weekend at 1:30 p.m. instead of 7. I'll take it.

I'm a Shining Star!

It's about a month late but I have been recognized by corporate for my work! I've never gotten a trophy before... certificates, yes, but not trophy.

 

Here's why:

 

LAURA GRIFFITH, The Telegraph, Alton, Ill.

Laura Griffith, Alton's Web news editor, is our Shining Star. She has been a leader in our transformation, spearheading the video and multimedia effort.

 

Laura has trained staff on posting to the Web, blogging and shooting and posting video. She holds weekly meetings to update staff on how The Telegraph is doing on the Web. She gathers stats from corporate and explains Web traffic to fellow staffers in a way they can use to improve.

 

Here's what else she has accomplished since becoming Web news editor:

 

— Laura oversees the posting of Web content, making sure to include links, maps and other multimedia. She helped extend reach on the Web by creating and maintaining a Telegraph MySpace page, by creating a Twitter page and feeds that pull in our latest stories, by creating a Facebook page and application for The Telegraph, by Digging stories to get them out to readers.

 

— She has created a number of widgets at widgetbox.com that pull RSS feeds from our site and our blogs to our MySpace page. She has gone so far as to put those widgets on other outside sites and monitor hits on those.

 

— She has actively worked to "friend" and recruit people to "follow" us on these social networking sites. We have at least a new user or two per day. Laura posted news stories at thetelegraph.com to explain new features and invite readers to make the most of them online. She started a blog called Insider's Look that is another way to tell readers about these features. And she has started a "how-to" video series online to teach people visually how to use new features.

 

—She started a Telegraph page at YouTube.com for posting videos to our blogs until WordPress and Brightcove can get along.

 

—She started working on promotion videos or little commercial shorts we will be able to add to our news videos when we want to promote a feature on the site. She has put a promotional Telegraph commercial on our MySpace page.

 

Laura has started a weekly Web cast called First Edition where she reads upcoming headlines to tease the online and print editions. Also, she is active on Pluck and interacts with users and encourages staffers to do so. She monitors comments and removes those that violate the user agreement.

 

Laura has worked to revamp the navigation bar at thetelegraph.com and has worked to make the site easier to navigate and more user-friendly.

 

— Nominated by Dan Brannan, Editor, The Telegraph, Alton, Ill.

 

Yay for me.

Birthday weekend and more

Because my birthday was on a Monday this year, I knew I had to live it up over the weekend.

 

Friday night, David's friend Josh came into town and he, David, I, Amy, Justin, Clancy and Cory went to Bossanova. I drank wine all night, on Josh's bill, and had a great time. McDonalds before bed made me sure I wasn't going to wake up with a hangover.

 

Saturday I woke up feeling groggy, but that's about it, which is completely OK for a lazy day. I laid in bed and read, and cleaned, and laid in bed and read and watched some TV until David came home. At 8:30, we had reservations at EF Carpenters in Jerseyville, Ill. I had written about them when they opened - it was pretty decent. I had steak, he had the "cowboy porkchop," which was topped with nuts and a cherry glaze giving it a very Christmassy taste. The spinach and artichoke dip was delightful.

 

Sunday David went to go watch the Bears/Green Bay game at the Beagle but on my birthday weekend there was to be no football. So I went to my parents' house for presents, cheesecake and visiting. I got a pine scented Christmas candle, a cat grooming glove (more for her than for me), a Christmas tree, a French press coffeemaker, and a fall jacket. The cheesecake has chocolate chips in it ;) Later, David met us at my parents' house and we ate at Hodak's in St. Louis.

 

Monday was my birthday, but David went to work. I went to visit with Dad and we walked at the mall, but pretty much the rest of my day was spent reading "The Kite Runner" and going to class. At least I had a personal day. Any day without work is a good one in my book.

David bought a new car

It's a 2007 Chevy Cobalt, bright red (the color, I don't think, was his choice although I don't mind it), it has 32,000 miles on it and has power everything. Weber even gave him $4,000 down on his new car for his old car - and the Cavalier was only really worth $1100 or less.

 

Because he was able to make this purchase, he knows he won't have to pay for any repairs this week which means I get to go somewhere nice for my birthday! He's taking me to EF Carpenters in Jerseyville, my choice. One of our photgraphers at The Telegraph LOVES that place and said it's amazing, and she knows food and fine dining. Plus, I did the story on the place and I'm excited to check it out.

 

Another good thing is that I might not have to drive everywhere anymore! The "my car has no tail lights" thing is no longer valid at least. I'm very happy for him, and also myself. I'll post photos when I take some. Everybody likes having photos of their first car purchases, don't they?

Thankful Thursday of my own

I totally stole this blog post idea from Erin Miller because in a time when I've been incredibly cynical I thought it would be fun to find out what I can actually be thankful for. Thanksgiving is coming up you know.

*I'm thankful for a boyfriend who loves me and is crazy about me even though I am the single most disgusting person, scratch that - girl - I know. (Can't forget about Ben can we? Sir Barfs-a-Lot over there. And still, we love the guy;))



*I'm thankful that my dad didn't die all those years ago when he had his heart attack and that he is still down for walking at the mall every Tuesday and Thursday to be with me (and attempt to keep healthy).

*I'm thankful that my mom keeps giving me all these decorations and stuff for holidays, which I could never afford on my own :)

*I'm thankful for friends that don't forget about me even though they live far away, and for the fact that I can meet up with them and feel like we haven't spend a day apart after all this time.

*I'm thankful for my kitty, who absorbs more love than any small animal should without exploding.



I think that pretty much covers it.

I watched the new Halloween!

I don't think David liked Rob Zombie's version of "Halloween." He kept saying things were different from the original and that he didn't want to see Michael as a human. I did.

 

I, for one, appreciate backstories on killers and interesting subjects like Michael Myers, and the older movies just made me want more (not that I didn't like them, because I di). Plus that little kid creeped me the hell out and everything was a little scarier because it was so vulgar.

 

I did miss Jamie Leigh Curtis as Laurie Strode, though I didn't mind this girl. I liked how they made her a little bit like him - in that she had some sort of metal band jacket or something that made her look hard. And at the same time, they showed that she was sweet because she was raised by the Strode family. They totally didn't deserve to die, by the way.

 

I read somewhere online that there is supposed to be a sequel to this version. More "Halloween," to me, is always a good idea.

Weather changing, holidays are near

Whenever the weather changes, I start feeling a little poopy. That's the case lately as nice, warm weather has made way for shiver-inducing winter cold.

The good news is holiday season is under way, starting with my birthday on Monday. Well, it's technically on Monday but let's face it, the action begins the minute I leave work on Friday.

Josh is coming back to town and we're all going out to Bossanova - whoever wants to come is welcome. Saturday, David is supposed to be taking me to dinner somewhere nice. Who knows what's in store Sunday and then Monday, I have taken the day off work. I still have class, but that pales in comparison to having to work.

A week after that is Thanksgiving and the official start of shopping season, which means stores will be open late, which I love. Then, Christmas and New Years will be around the corner. Yay for holiday season!

Aww look who remembered

Gives me the warm fuzzies for EIU all over again. They are about 10 days early tho.

Yes, We Did

I went out for a drink last night with some of my co-workers after a llooooonnggg election shift (I got off around midnight, which I understand is actually early for election night), and thank God I wasn't seeking a place to drown my sorrows.

It was indeed, a celebratory Bud Light, for America (or at least more than half of it) has given up its racist ideals in favor of a promising, strapping young candidate with much potential that promises the change we need. (And I think he can deliver it.)

Long gone are the days of depression that followed the 2004 Election, and America has finally restored the hope in me that was all but completely killed off during the Bush administration's terrifying reign.

Yes, We Can, and Yes, We Did.

(Did I mention we're 'bout to have a hot president? Well, we are. Get used to it ;))

Covering the 2008 election with Twitter

I used Twitter last night as one of The Telegraph's means of covering the election. Currently, the paper only has 75 followers, but I thought if nothing else the experience would be good practice for me and a good tool to show readers what is possible with the Twitter web site.

For those of you that don't know, The Telegraph is at http://twitter.com/altontelegraph. I encourage those of you who haven't to sign up for an ID and click to "follow us."

I posted 43 updates from 5:30 p.m. (ish) yesterday to 11 a.m. today. Those updates included advisories, full stories, notices about multimedia postings and notices about anything and everything I observed in the newsroom or on CNN.

I think it worked pretty well.

Check out our work at http://twitter.com/altontelegraph and at www.thetelegraph.com.

A Lincoln Lofts Halloween

A Lincoln Lofts Halloween turned out to be more like Laura and David's Halloween party inside the Lincoln Lofts, but I'd say all (or at least most) went well.



See my complete photo collection.

As you can see, even my mom and dad dressed up. We had snacks and played "Halloween," "Suspiria" and "The Exorcist." We had plenty of beer and even a Halloween-themed vodka drink (Dracula's kiss is grenadine, Black Cherry vodka and cola).

Friends and co-workers were in and out all night. We even dropped by the parade and stopped in Bossanova to catch the costume contest. We ended the night at Tony's and then McDonald's and then were in bed by 2:30, but it was all I could have asked for.

(Except somebody stole my Frankenstein cake and no doubt threw it at something rather than eating it)



:( Bastards.

Enough with the Issues

I was gonna do a scorecard for every issue at issues2008.com but I have decided I am done. I will say I am excited for Election night. Obviously, I wasn't in a professional newsroom the last time a presidential election rolled around, but ever since I have worked at The Telegraph I've gotten banished to a lonely one man (meaning me) Jerseyville office while everyone back in Alton enjoyed the excitement (and pizza) without me.

Not this year.

My most recent post as Web news editor has positioned me in front of my computer, posting stories, making phone calls and monitoring up-to-the-minute results.

Hold onto your pants, I'm in for a wild ride.

My 2008 Issues Scorecard 2

Part two of this wonderful commentary by me.
If you don't like it, don't read it. It's that simple.

Corporations/Regulation

To improve the American economy, there needs to be some tax penalities on corporations that ship their jobs overseas and for those who outsource jobs. Let's stimulate the American workforce, eh? And on the company bankruptcy note? I say those CEOs that leave these companies that are going banrupt, and taking with them millions upon millions of dollars, need to be thrown in jail and that money needs to go toward whatever that corporation owes. After all, whose fault is it that the company failed? The big important guys, making all the wrong decisions.

Crime and Punishment

I'm not sure what I think about the death penalty. Obama thinks that it is necessary in some "heinous" crimes, which I kind of agree with. On the one hand though, it seems like the Justice System can't be right 100 percent of the time and there's no fail safe way to not condemn innocent people to death. On the other hand, it is extremely costly for the feds and the state to keep these people locked up, and the world might be better off. I don't know.

Drug Policy

Obama apparently has admitted to using marijuana and sees the draw they have on young people. I think that's commendable, although young people who are drawn to hardcore drugs, in my opinion, are just uneducated. McCain says he would never want to legalize marijuana because it is a gateway drug. Marijuana is a gateway drug because people on the streets lace it with other drugs that are highly addictive and dangerous. If it were legal, I think there would be far fewer people getting hooked on drugs they didn't even mean to take in the first place. And there would be fewer deaths. I admit, to some people, marijuana is addictive. But it's not addictive like cigarettes, when users' bodies feel the craving. Marijuana's addiction is one of the mind. It would probably be a lot like alcohol, which also is addictive to some people and not others (you can't stop anything 100 percent). Anyway, I think it would be farr less harmful if legal.

Stay tuned for more before Election 08.
Leave me a mean comment, go ahead, you know you want to.

My 2008 Issues Scorecard

I'm going down the list at http://www.issues2008.com/ and keeping an ongoing scorecard for my first round of political ...er, commentating. Bear with me.

Abortion

I agree with Obama. Women should be trusted to make their own decisions and emphasis should be put on education and preventative measures, no matter how young or old a woman is. McCain voted against education and contraception for teens. That's terrible. I do agree with McCain though that partial-birth abortions should be banned. A decision regarding a woman and a family's well-being should be made WAY before a baby is old enough to be born if you're going to go the other way. That is murder, any way you slice it.

Budget and Spending

I agree with Obama. What's this about taking an ax to spending? Take it from a person who's worked under "spending freeze" conditions for more than two years - this is a HORRIBLE idea. It doesn't take into account what might/will happen during the freeze that might require some spending to get better. When you cut EVERYTHING then you're cutting the good with the bad and the situation just gets worse. The scalpel method, rather, should be used to cut in places where we can stand to see programs go - not where they need to remain, like health care and education.

Civil Rights

Both candidates, not surprisingly, support rights for women and minorities. That's not what I'd like to talk about here. I do want to say, who knows more about the need for equality than a person who is both black and white? Plus, I think electing Obama would speak to the progress America has made over the years. Not voting for him simply because he is black even though he is obviously intelligent and capable, which many people will do this election, is everything against what this country has been working for in recent decades. And what's with people using his middle name to refer to him as a terrorist even though he is a Christian and not (check the records) from the Middle East? And what's with people yelling things like "Kill him" at McCain/Palin rallies? Get your people/lynch mob under control for God's sake.

Election 2008: Some things I know

John McCain has a bad temper and doesn't appear to be a very likeable guy. During debates and in his reactions he looks like he's smug and just so happy with himself, when I don't know how someone who's behind in the poll projections 95.1 to 4.9 percent (or close to that, updated daily at http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/), could be that way.

He's probably qualified to be president he's been around so long and had so much experience, I'll give him that, but his ideas just don't line up with mine. At all. At least that's more than I can say for W.

And another thing - he's OLD, has a history of cancer and many times looks as if he is sick and could die at any minute. That's NOW, so there's no telling how long, if elected, he might last. It's true that Obama could die in office also, death has no age restrictions, but here's the difference. If McCain died, THIS

Could be our president.

I'd trust the Tina Fey version to run the free world more than the real one at this point.

http://www.palinaspresident.com/

Come on people, she might be an OK lady but she sure does not speak to women's intelligence and/or the power to lead an entire country now, does she?

Bout to get political

Alright kids, you knew it was going to be time sooner or later. I must rant about politics at some point before the election.

I took notes on the first debate, and I admit that I liked some things about both candidates, but one is obviously the better choice. Stay tuned.

Tonight should be HILARIOUS. I'll be tackling that gem as well.
Good night for now.

UPDATE: 10/16/08

I did not do the things I said I would in this post because I was trying to hold off on pissing people who don't agree with me off, but I can't hold off any longer. See subsequent posts.

Project Lauranette

I've decided I need to crack down on myself, diet and exercise wise. I was eating well and going to yoga on a regular basis and feeling a lot better, then I got sick and stopped caring. Now I feel like doody again.

With the help of http://www.thedailyplate.com/ and the Couch-to-5k running plan I think I can pave my way to new habits I can make stick. I was doing it before, after all. And I need to make use of my Metro Sports membership, which I now pay for.

I'm keeping my progress logged online, but I won't be sharing that information unless I start seeing some results. Wish me luck, though!

Out with Prowler, back in with Billy!

My EIU alumni newsletter arrived in my e-mail today with fun news - Billy Panther is back!

While I was in school, we had Prowler (who dated back to 2002), but nobody loved him. Nobody felt "out with the old, in with the new" applied to the school's beloved mascot. Everyone missed Billy.

FUN FACT: According to this, Billy was never the official name of EIU's panther mascot, rather a name created by fans.

Even though he was a bit before my time, I knew of Billy from Old Main Vein: the EIU Hall of Fame blog, where he made fun of Tony Romo on an almost constant basis. Unfortunately, the site went down in January of 2007 (or sometime around then). "Billy" still has a MySpace, though it appears that he stopped updating that when he stopped blogging.

Regardless, I'm glad to see EIU fans like me are getting what they want.
More Billy.

I have WAY too many blogs

I have recently been trying to think about consolidation.

It is way too much of a pain in the @$$ to update all these blogs on a constant basis. I have already privated several of them until I can figure out what to do with them. HELP!

What do I mean by way too many blogs?

WORK-RELATED

Here and There - Here and There is a travel/what to do in your own backyard blog that also serves as my official Telegraph work blog. I don't see getting rid of this unless I end up not working here. Gotta set an example for the others, you know. The issue here is that - because I'm poor and because I have much more going on in my mind - this blog sometimes plays host to some of my stupid thoughts instead of just things to do. Problem is, I usually end up posting the same thing in this blog only less tame.


Insider's Look - This is not so much a blog as it is a running list of the efforts that we're taking here at The Telegraph to make the transition from print to the Web. Its purpose at thetelegraph.com is to introduce readers to new features on the site and teach them how to use them.

Online is the new black - I took it upon myself to chronicle my work here at The Telegraph as Web news editor. I use it as a more professional blog, which I can link other journalism professionals to, like at wiredjournalists.com. Some of them read the posts and give me ideas, which I appreciate. That's what that's for I guess. To share advice, get advice, whatever pertaining to my new line of work.

SILLY PROJECT BLOGS

I'm a Bonnaroo Virgin - I started this blog last year because I was listening to a bunch of new music and preparing for this big music festival and then.... I didn't go. Devastating. I haven't posted on it much lately but since I've made Bonnaroo an absolute priority in 2009, I'll start it back up when new festival news comes about.

I love STL- I initially started this blog to comment on St. Louis news and to write about stuff I went to do in St. Louis. The truth is, I don't go into the city as much as I used to, so I think this is one that I've privated and marked for possible termination.

That's a winner - This was my personal blog on Xanga until I decided to switch over to blogger permanently. Yet I kept it around and used it to blog about baseball. That didn't last very long. I think it warrants possible termination. However, I've got some archived items on there I wouldn't mind copying over onto Word first.

GROUP/COMMUNITY BLOGS

What the fu?!!?! - I've had this blog around the longest and I've always hesitated to take it down because of all the memories. That and because it gets ressurrected by one or two of us once every couple of years before it fades out again, most recently by Emily. You see, this blog was useful for keeping up with friends who had moved out of the area since we had such a big group in high school. It also got us into some trouble around the Bush/Kerry election because some of us are hardcore Dems and others hardcore GOP. Regardless, it worked for awhile. Some of us have outgrown it. You know I always love a blog though, so I think I'll keep it.

We used to be newsies - This was originally meant to do for the DEN crew what Whatthefu did to my group of high school friends. The real difference is - no one ever got into posting except me and Stephen. I'm going to send out messages to people and then this one is getting the ax if something doesn't happen.

NEVER TURNED INTO ANYTHING

Laura M. Griffith blog - This is a blogger blog I reserved to use as a personal or professional blog one day when I was bored. Never turned into anything, but I'm undecided because someone else might take my address if I delete it.

Here is my mind- I've never posted on Here is My Mind, but I want to. One day. Here is My Mind is likely the future replacement of One Too Many Blogs. Once I know more about XHTML and can make it my own more easily, I may migrate to WordPress. I don't know though. Mostly I think Blogger is better, because it's more user friendly if nothing else. Keeper?

OTHER

Thought o' the Day, a MySpace blog - Go to my MySpace page and check this bit of nothingness out. I started posting random thoughts and announcments sometimes just so there wouldn't be so much blank space up there. This really isn't an issue.

Finally, we have this one:
One too many blogs.

Name makes sense now doesn't it? Only, I'm not sure I like the address anymore...
I wish I had a single hobby or one idea for a blog instead of 8 bajillion.

Any advice?
When it all comes down to it, I just don't have anything important enough to fill this many blogs that no one reads.

Stay tuned to find out what I do about this issue.

Awards = resume update

So I've updated my resume for the first time in awhile because I won a couple of my first awards as a professional journalist -

Oddly enough, only one was even remotely for writing. Mainly, they were for video. Never thought I'd say that.

My boss wants to send me to a dinner (I feel important) to accept the awards. That's if I can get off that night because I'm supposed to fill in with newspaper design, but I'll keep you posted.

In the meantime, who wants to critique my resume?
Let me know and I'll send you a full version in Word.

Vampire Weekend in St. Louis

Before the show, Mr. Matt Poli said he didn't think Vampire Weekend was very good live. I respectfully disagree. Read more of my thoughts on the show:

Visit my work blog, where I posted about it.
And for God's sake, leave a comment!

Have you seen VW live? What did you think?

I work at Dunder-Mifflin

So I finally bought season 4 of "The Office," which was funny but also short and just left me wanting more. Come on Sept. 25!

Anyway, because I've been working hard all day I took a break along with the initiative to visit The Office's official Web site at nbc.com which features a video blog by the real Angela and text blogs by Dwight Shrute (Shrute Space) and Creed Bratton's www.creedthoughts.gov.www\creedthoughts (Don't click that link, click this: http://blog.nbc.com/CreedThoughts/).

It also has a user community at www.dundermifflininfinity.com, which I joined and am exploring presently.

Instead of registering, you "apply" to be a part of a branch. I am a "temp" at the Peoria branch, which I think is the closest one to here.

There are different tasks you have to complete to earn Schrute-bucks and rise up in the company. You can watch videos by people who have been around long enough to "apply" for the position of "regional branch manager."

It's so funny, it's like a real company. Only fun.
Back I go...

Jealousy and the Mississippi Landing Lofts

So, I just went into the Mississippi Landing lofts for the first time and WOW.

My building is nice, but take my unit times about 5 and then you have the one I visited today. The loft space is the home of "God's Portion" author Judy Hoffman, resident expert on Benjamin Godfrey, after whom the town where I was born was named.

I wasn't there to look at the loft, I was there to learn about Godfrey, which I did. But you can't help but notice something as breathtaking as this place. Every room was open, the ceilings were high and there were windows EVERYWHERE. I'll bet the fireworks, had they had any this year in Alton, would have been amazing from that view.

The big difference between these lofts and our building is that the people living there have purchased the spaces, whereas we rent them. Oh, how I wish we could afford to buy a place ;)

At this point in my life, I love the loft we live in, and I love all the furnishings we put together from what we already had and what friends and family could supply us with. But oh, what I would do with an unlimited budget and that much space...

No TV, no beer makes LaLa ...

"Go crazy?"

"DON'T MIND IF I DO"

(Replace Lala with Homer and) that "Simpsons" spoof of "The Shining" always made me laugh ... but on to the real point. 

There will be plenty of TV (and beer if I so choose) in the coming weeks because it's TV premiere season! Just in time, too, because David and I only have one more episode of "Twin Peaks" before we've finished the show for good. (I know it was canceled a long time ago, but since I just started watching it, I'm feeling the pain all over again.)

And there is plenty to be excited about. 

"Fringe," from J.J. Abrams (producer of "Lost") begins tonight, which David is really excited about. I don't know if I am, but I wasn't excited about "Lost" either then look what happened. 

Wikipedia says: 

The plot deals with a research scientist named Walter Bishop (has been described as "Frankenstein mixed with Albert Einstein"), his son, and a female FBI agent who brings them back together. The show is described as a cross between "The X-Files," "Altered States" and "The Twilight Zone." Like Abrams' previous shows, it will have an overarching mythology.

I could probably be into that. After all, I love shows with "mythology." (Look below and you'll see a pattern.)

After that, I'm not really too excited about any NEW shows, but I couldn't be more pumped about some returning favorites. 

When we last left "Heroes," which returns  on Sept. 22, the Petrelli brothers had saved the world once again, but because of the writer's strike, we didn't get to see much of what became of Sylar and the "villains." That's why Volume 3 is all about "Villains." It's supposed to be bigger, badder and more intense. I can't wait. (Side note: I love Peter Petrelli) 

"Pushing Daisies" is another show that won my heart last year. In fact, I felt so strongly, I wrote a blog about it. So as not to rehash, go ahead and read that one before moving on... How, oh how will Ned and Chuck fall further in love this season if they still can't touch each other (first touch alive, second touch, dead, again, forever)? Stay tuned to find out. "Pushing Daisies" returns on Oct. 1. 

"The Office" returns on Sept. 25, and I haven't even finished season 4 yet! We meant to buy it on DVD but have been a little low on the cash flow. I can't wait to watch Jim and Dwight in real time (at least on a weekly basis). I'm sad that Toby is gone, but I'll move on. I don't know how much longer I can hold out (that's what she said) so I'm glad the season premiere is almost here. (Bears, beets, Battlestar Galactica.)

*SPOILER ALERT (if you haven't seen it)*

JAN IS PREGNANT? What the hell?!? I gotta get in the know on that one.

*OK, continue*

Last year, I was forced into making a decision, and this year's decision is only getting tougher. "The Office" joins "Grey's Anatomy" and "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" as a member of the "we're on at the exact same time" club.  

Last year, I chose "Grey's Anatomy" over "CSI" with the idea in mind that "Grey's" follows more of a storyline and "CSI" can stand better on its own should I have to watch episodes out of sequence. Well, I was just on the "CSI" Web site and I discovered that I may have made the wrong choice. 

*SPOILER ALERT*

WARRICK BROWN DIES IN SEASON 8!!?!??!!!???
GRISSOM IS LEAVING??!?!?!!

*Ok, I knew the latter bit of information, but WOW. Continue*

"Grey's" was good, but I obviously missed out. "CSI" returns Oct. 9 with what looks to be the most dramatic and intense episode of the show to date. The team is investigating one murder and one murder only, the one that matters, Warrick's. I've followed the show through Nick being buried alive and through Sara being captured by the model maker/serial killer, but they both pulled through. I can't wait to see how they handle this. I need to get caught up quickly! (*Probably the most excited about this season premiere than all the others.)

As for "Grey's," which returns Sept. 25, I just wanna see what (and who) the doctors of Seattle Grace are getting into this season. In my opinion, "Grey's" is the best of the doctor/hospital  shows out there today. (Although I do think "House" is entertaining. Also, I am aware that "ER" set the pace in the beginning, but now it's just getting old. John Stamos? Please.)

That's my fall TV roundup. Stay tuned for reactions after the fact. 

Illini crush Panthers 47-21

But that really wasn't my main concern. In fact, I really didn't have any concerns.

The Panthers were expected to lose against the Big 10 conference team. No surprise there. Also, I don't mind the U of I. In fact, if I had to pick a college team to cheer for, I guess the Illini would be the one. The fact of the matter is, I don't really care much about football and I was just there to cheer on my alma mater (and bc David loves the Illini). And because it promised to be a new and exciting experience.

We were in Bradley-Kankakee for April's wedding on Friday, which was very pretty. I always knew we had similar tastes - her bridesmaid's dresses were brown and the groomsmen wore brown and pink (I would have gone green instead of pink but that's where we differ). Anyway, April, the new Mrs. Bobby Hawes, looked beautiful and incredibly happy. Plus we got to see Rachel and Matt at the wedding, so it was a good trip.

To make the absolute most of our weekend, we took advantage of the chance a week earlier to buy tickets to EIU v. U of I in Champaign-Urbana. So we went. We had never been to a U of I game before. It was fun! I think we should go every year when they play EIU. I took some photos, as you can see.

David, the Illini fan

Me, representing the Romo in Illini country.

The newly renovated Memorial Stadium.

Football.

The signs said something like ILL- INI BEAT EIU.

Scoreboard.

I put together a video you can watch here:

Oh, and on the way home, we stopped in Charleston so we could eat McHugh's. Ain't life grand? (On a side note, I had a brain fart and ordered the 1/2 pound cheesburger... I'm still recovering.)

I meant to post this on Saturday when we got back but I had technical difficulties uploading the photos.

Palin pregnancy

I couldn't have said it better.

In light of this weekend's wedding

Since David and I are going to April Mae's wedding this weekend, I have been in a matrimonial mood - and where might that bring a single woman like myself?

Theknot.com, that's where.

I got to thinking. If David proposed to me tomorrow, would he know to get the right ring? You see and hear all those horror stories in movies and on TV where the clueless guy the heroine thought she'd end up with picks the wrong ring and she ends up doubting their love. Not that that would ever happen to me, but just in case ;), I put him to the test:

I showed him several pages of rings and asked him to pick the cuts/shapes/colors he thought I'd like most, and guess what?





He passed :)

Although expensive, the rings you see above were my faves.
I'm such a girl sometimes.

I slept all Labor Day

You're supposed to relax on Labor Day right?

Yes, but I did more than that, to an extreme.
I laid in bed until 7 p.m. It makes me sick to think about it.

Granted, I did some school work and ate some food - I did it all from my comfy place.

I felt so bad - I meant to do some yoga, visit my dad, walk my rent check down the street... but NO.

Bottom line? No more holidays in bed for Laura.
Back to work.

Beth posted some pics of Madden

And since it might be a little bit before we get to meet him in person, I wanted to post this as an update. Way to go, guys!

Look at that little smirk. It's like he knows he's cute or something.

Last year I posted a pic of Kevin holding Brianne so I thought I'd steal this one from Beth also. Awww, my friends are so grown up!

Late additions: 9/2/08

Beth put some more pics up and I noticed Madden was wearing the little "Daddy's Wingman" shirt I bought him. Cute!

Welcome to the world, Madden Thomas

Thomas and Beth had their baby!

I don't know a lot of the details yet. I found out from Justin yesterday and texted Thomas, who called back while I was at yoga. I had some schoolwork to do and didn't get a chance to call him back and get the scoop!

I do know he was 6 lbs 13 oz (or close to that) and that his name is Madden Thomas Richards. Isn't that cute?

I can't wait until they get some pics posted and/or I get to see the little guy. I imagined he would already have a fro, which I hear he doesn't, but he probably will soon enough...

That's two, now, from our high school group that are married with children (man, I really used to love that show...).

So I think I've found the design

How do you like it?
It's very black and filled with my friends.

Michael Phelps' magic touch

I was engrossed in the Michael Phelps phenomena four years ago when I was watching from my dorm room in Taylor Hall (Eastern Illinois University). I am engrossed in Michael Phelps phenomena now that he has won his 8th gold medal in a single Olympics to overtake Mark Spitz' previous record.

How can a girl help herself?

I missed the final relay by about 30 minutes and am being forced to find the coverage online to watch it after the fact. At least I get to see it right? I did see the 100 m butterfly, which Phelps won to tie Spitz and which nearly gave me a heart attack.

There he is, on the right. Cavic (whom I'm willing to bet feels terrible about this shot) is in the foreground.

Anyway, congratulations to that guy. I can't go into too much detail - I think David gets jealous that I like him so much.

It's not that I think he's all that cute... although he does have this going for him:

He just amazes me. I'm not in love, I'm infatuated. Give me a break! (Sigh... four more years until I get to watch that again.)

My trip to Chicago in less than 6 minutes

You read about it, now you can watch it. Feel free to comment.

Cubs fans are mean

And that's the truth, though the headline was mainly to pull you in so that you'd read about my weekend.

I took the train to Chicago on Saturday to catch Sunday's Cubs v. Cards game, but we did a whole lot more than that. it's always nice to see Brian and Erin. Also, I was reading the "Diary of Anne Frank" so I was especially motivated to journal my every move. Here's a shortened and very modified (especially toward the end) version of my travel journal:

Saturday, Aug. 9

David's not along on this trip, though I wish he was. The sun always shines a bit brighter when he's around.

Left home around 6:50 a.m. Getting up early is terrible, especially when I know I'm won't be back in my own bed for awhile.

There were quite a few people at the Alton Amtrak station. Must be taking day trips to Chicago - no one really had their bags with them. Many of them were older. Am I going to have to share a seat?

Train arrived just before 7:30 a.m. My ticket to the Windy City cost $40, probably because it's the busy time. My ticket back was only $20.

Between 8:30 and 9 a.m. - Most of those people got off in Springfield. I forgot the State Fair was going on. Wierd Al is supposed to be playing this weekend.

I'm on page 81 of "The Diary of a Young Girl: Anne Frank." I know I read this in middle school but it seems like it was in play form. Train rides are great for reading. Passed Lincoln, Ill. about 10 minutes ago. It's 9:24 a.m.

11 a.m. Waiting for the train to switch tracks. Delay. Some bratty kid keeps touching me while I'm trying to rest. Her mom needs to take care of that. Sorry, I sound like a grumpus.

Arrived around 1 p.m., about a half hour late.

Brian and I drove around forever looking for a parking spot so we could hoof it to Navy Pier. We never plan anymore because visits are more fun when we're flying by the seat of our pants. Having a car in Chicago sucks.

Made it to Navy Pier on foot. Rode the Ferris wheel and took TONS of photos while listening to different versions of "Sweet Home Chicago" and some digital tour guide. Bought a sweet photo of us in front of the ride. Couldn't resist a ride on the swings next. Total cost (souvenier photo plus rides) $17.50.

Went inside the Navy Pier shopping center - they have fountains like at Ameristar Casino. (I'f you've been there, you know.) Took more photos in a photo booth. Pure gold, only $2.

Walked part of the way back. Almost got squirted up the butt by some crazy fountain. It would have been funny but very uncomfortable. Took water taxi from Pier to Michigan Ave., close to where we parked. Took more photos. Cost $3.

Evening. Met Erin and her new man Gable. That's his first name. Wanted to eat a Chicago style pizza but Erin and Gable preferred some Irish pub called the Atlantic. I had a caesar salad. It wasn't too bad, but def. nothing special. After dinner went for drinks and bowling at Lincoln Lanes, a bowling alley above an Ace Hardware. You'd never know it was up there. Got a refresher course in manual scorekeeping. Still can't believe I paid $3 apiece for Pabst Blue Ribbon.

Sunday, Aug. 10

Slept several hours and am now watching the Olympics, which Brian has been taping. Brian's dad got us donuts, and his mom cooked mac 'n' cheese and hotdogs. What a combo, the three. Planning on hitting up a different beach this time. North Avenue is all good but there's tons of people and it's farther away than we'd like.

We found Foster Beach, which I now prefer. Much more private and the sand is more fine. Water is deeper too. We were swimming and having a great time until a giant wave knocked Brian's glasses straight off his face. Did I mention it was windy and cool out and that the waves were as big as they are in the Atlantic Ocean? Strangely, the water felt great! Unfortunately, Brian went partially blind. Took lots of photos and videos here too. I drove back to Brian's so we wouldn't crash.

Brian found contacts so he could see the game and we headed to Wrigleyville for Cards v. Cubs, game three. Brian's sister apparently was choking on a hot dog at the game and his mom gave her the Heimlich maneuver. Luckily, she's OK but this was an unlucky day for the O'Malleys. Couldn't find a Jim Edmonds shirt. That's the only one I can bring myself to buy if I wanna stick with my "T-shirt jerseys from every stadium" idea. Will try outside after the game.

Took photos/video of Rick Ankiel's backside. Wow. Just... wow.

Wrigley is cool, but I still prefer Busch. (I AM partial to the Cards after all.) So many people are going to find that statement to be ridiculous. Sure, Wrigley's great if you are into history and want to feel like you're watching a game in the 1900's. Me? I like to be able to hear what's being said over the loudspeaker and see some faces on a digital screen. (Half the fun of baseball is the hot boys, after all.)

Cubs won. Go fig. 6-2. I got yelled at by some asshole, and booed by a couple more friendly rivals.

I saw Matt Poli! He was even seated in our section! What are the chances? We meant to meet up with him after the game for a drink but must have missed him at Goose Island, then his phone was dead. We did talk as we walked out of the stadium though. Some guy literally bought his hat straight off his head for $20 (right in front of us), trying to prove that Cubs fans aren't loyal. Poli said he had gotten it for free in the first place and wasn't attached to it, then spent the $20 on a fitted hat he really liked. I guess that guy didn't prove anything.

Finally found my Edmonds shirt for $25.

Took the train and bus back to Brian's. Watched some more Olympics. Michael Phelps is the shit.

Monday, Aug. 11

Left about an hour early and got to Union Station just as my train was boarding. Scheduled to leave at 9:25 a.m.

An older lady named Alberta sat next to me on the way home from either Joliet or Bloomington. Helped me figure out Sudoku.

Got home at 2:15 p.m. Dad didn't get my message and had been waiting for over an hour. I felt bad, but it was great to be home.

The End.

Stay tuned for photos and video to be added later.

Update: I added photos but have since accidentally deleted the post. Visit www.flickr.com/viewsfromlalaland/ for more

Twitter me

http://twitter.com/oohlala1983

I like this Web site. I need to use it more.

I'm not wedded to this design

but for now, look at all the pretty books!

Working on a new look

Pardon my dust, so they say. LaLa Land's gettin' a facelift.

The Telegraph wants to keep up with you on Twitter

To find out more about Twitter, visit the link below:

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Thanks,
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Live off the Levee video is up

View it on my YouTube page or at thetelegraph.com or right here on this blog:



Telegraph.com link:
http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1155236442/bclid1155106981/bctid1691159150

New vids uploaded on YouTube!

I recently discovered that I DO have Windows Movie Maker on my computer and so I decided to catch up and edit a lot of the video I've shot since I got my new digital camera on Christmas. (My old camera's files are not compatible with Movie Maker and I haven't gotten around to doing them yet.)

I uploaded them onto my YouTube page, which you can view at http://www.youtube.com/user/marryme29.

Here are the new ones:











Stay tuned and thanks for watching!

OLC/One Republic ~ Live OFF the Levee 2008

Last night I saw my first OneRepublic show.

The chance to catch them live and see my brothers' friends' band open for them was one I couldn't possibly pass by. Plus it was free, and there were fireworks. Did I mention all the fireworks in Alton were canceled this year?

Anyway, the show and the fireworks were a part of Celebrate St. Louis - http://www.celebratestlouis.org/. It was called "Live OFF the Levee" this year instead of "on" since it was moved due to Mississippi River flooding, and it was held at Soldier's Memorial Park at Market and 14th Streets instead.

I hadn't seen One Lone Car since they got a new singer and, up until last night, I hadn't seen them in a venue larger than the Pageant (which I thought then was a pretty big deal since the Pageant hosts acts like The Flaming Lips and Nas, etc.). I'm not sure how big the crowd at the park was last night was but I know there were A LOT of people there.

Their new singer Aaron Kellim (well, new since the last time I saw them) didn't sound too different from their former singer Dei Plegge so the old songs worked well, but he sure was easier on the eyes (Good move guys, especially if you're looking for that boy-crazy girl fanbase. I'm sure you picked up quite a few groupies with that move :))

Here's a shot I found of OLC on stage (I haven't uploaded my own photos yet, which are from a side angle but are about this far away).

I just wanted to say that One Lone Car did me proud. Later on in the night I saw Neal, their guitarist and James' buddy, and told him what a great job they did. I'm definitely happy that he and Michael, the bassist and another of James' friends, are doing so well and I wish them the best of luck as time goes on.

You can check out the band/listen to some of their music (and I suggest you do) on their MySpace page, www.myspace.com/onelonecar.

OneRepublic was next. I already knew I loved singer Ryan Tedder's Justin Timerlake-esque voice, but I didn't realize how much I would like them as a band. Guess what? LOVED them.

They sound somewhat similar to Coldplay and the Fray and I love the piano and various string instruments that add a little something special to their sound. Favorites were "Apologize," which Z107.7 has played to death (made famous by Timbaland's remix of the band's original), a cover of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth" and "All I Need," the video of which you can view for free at http://www.onerepublic.net/. (P.S. For another awesome song called "All I Need," see Radiohead's "In Rainbows." http://www.radiohead.com/deadairspace/)

You may also remember Tedder from the 2008 finale of "American Idol" when he performed with "the Chosen One" David Archuleta.



I took video clips of much of the concert and am working on a snippet from the experience, which I plan to post soon. So stay tuned and thanks for listening!

Look what I did to my face

I look spiffy as hell.
Wanna play with your face?
Visit the Makeover-O-Matic

Look what I get to do at work

The Telegraph now has a MySpace page, and I run it.

In an effort to reach more and more people and to give the community more outlets with which to communicate with us as a newspaper, The Telegraph
now has a MySpace page.

Check us out at: http://www.myspace.com/altontelegraph

You don't have to be a member of MySpace to check out the page, but you do in order to send us messages or comments there. If you already have a MySpace, friend us! If you don't, you can sign up for free if you choose.

Visitors to our MySpace page, members or not, can view a widget that updates automatically as we add new stories to our main site, www.thetelegraph.com. By
clicking on stories via our MySpace page, users will be directed to our main site.

Like our main site, our MySpace page lists contact information for employees of The Telegraph. Our MySpace friends will additionally be able to post comments and fliers to our page and can send us messages through the networking site.

Our MySpace friends will also receive bulletin board and blog updates about what's new with our main site, such as blogging features, forum features and more. (These updates are also regularly posted at www.thetelegraph.com.)

Our MySpace page is more or less an outreach site geared toward people who wouldn't normally make their way onto thetelegraph.com on a regular basis but often spend time on social networking sites like MySpace. It has dual purposes - to bring more hits to the main site and to make it easier for readers to communicate with us.

Feel free to check us out and make us your friend!

Since we posted notice on http://www.thetelegraph.com/, we've racked up the friends. Is it dorky that I'm kind of excited??

Great Flood of 2008

Someone forwarded me this guy's photos of the flood. They show a lot more than mine did so here you go:

http://picasaweb.google.com/Jason.Elmendorf/Flood2008?authkey=hSApj9uZh70

Quick hits ~ July 9

It's been awhile since I've updated and I just have a few quick moments to update so I'll leave you with this:

1. My cat is getting big!

2. Beth's baby shower was super cute and I bought lil "T-Rex" Richards a "Daddy's wingman" T and a Cardinals jumper. Look for photos later.

3. Fourth of July was a blast!
Cousins at Aunt Becky's pool

Watch this guy's funny dance.

4. I HATE that Rich Hardin is a Cub. I can't possibly cheer for him now and since he's the stud on my fantasy team I am sad.

That is all for now or I'll be late for yoga!