Let's Have a Marriage

"I have a problem when people say something's real or not real, or normal or abnormal. The meaning of those words for me is very personal and subjective. I've always been confused and never had a clear-cut understanding of the meaning of those kinds of words." 
--Tim Burton

I have never understood this fascination with Tim Burton that has been going on with people in my general age group for last fifteen years or so. When A Nightmare Before Christmas came out in 1993, my classmates went absolutely coconuts. And many people stayed in complete awe of his work throughout high school, college and beyond.

I don't think there was ever a time in my life when I jumped on the Tim Burton train. You know what train I did hop on? The train that wants Tim Burton and Johnny Depp to get married. Tim Burton seems to have this really strange fetish of making Johnny Depp look as bizarre as possible. Who knew a single man could look absolutely insane in so many ways? For example:


 



(Side note: This film was directed by Tim Burton).


(Side note: This film was directed by Tim Burton).

(Side note: This film was directed by Tim Burton).

(Side note: This film was directed by Tim Burton).

(Side note: This film was directed by Tim Burton).

(Side note: This film was NOT directed by Tim Burton).

And the thing that really kills me is that like most of the other ladies of the world, I used to have a HUGE crush on Johnny Depp. And now he just annoys me. It seems like every other year Burton/Depp/Helena Bonham Carter are either creating something entirely new and entirely weird, or putting a dark twist on something that was once fine just the way it was (Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Alice in Wonderland).

I can totally appreciate a good director/thespian partnership, but shouldn't there be some kind of limit on how many films you can do together? Especially films like this?

BTdubs, Scorcese and DiCaprio... I love you both, but you might want to slow it down a tad.

Alex's Bookshelf

"I avoid that bleak first hour of the working day during which my still sluggish senses and body make ever chore a penance. I find that in arriving later, the work which I do perform is of a much higher quality."
--A Confederacy of Dunces, John Kennedy Toole

After I graduated college, I went on a pretty long hiatus from reading. I read a lot when I was a kid -- I was a big fan of The Baby-Sitters Club and I think I read all 357 or so -- but I think the required reading from high school and college really turned me off for a while. Not to say that everything I read was horrendous, but by the time I graduated from college I was so bored from rereading Greek mythology and Beloved that I spent way more time with my iPod Touch than I did with any novel.

When I got married, though, all that changed. It might have had something to do with the fact that we were going to be on a beach for eight days and I needed something to do when I grew tired of crossword puzzles. I read three books while on my honeymoon (The Devil in the White City, A Window Across the River, and World's Fair). And with that, I was a reader again.

Being a reader in this day and age is not like it was when I was a kid. My parents got me a Kindle Fire for Christmas, and I've been able to read a few classics on it for free, as well as the Hunger Games trilogy. And I absolutely must recommend this website to you. It's called Shelfari, and it is amazing. It's basically a virtual bookshelf. You can list all of the books you have read, are reading, or want to read, and you can give them a rating between one and five stars. You can write your own reviews of the books you've read, or browse through reviews other people have written and get ideas for what to read next. It's hella-cool, and it's nice to look back at a book that you've read that you might otherwise have completely forgotten about. Sign up, and check out my bookshelf! I've read some good ones!

Decorate Your Desk

Just a quick update today, seeing as I have two minutes left in my lunch break. I decided to spruce up my work desk this week with a few awesome pics:







You're welcome :)

Awoha!

"Girls are weird, and I don't mean that offensively. I just can't put it any other way."
--The Perks of Being a Wallflower

One of my favorite things to do with my family is watching old home videos of my brother and sister and I growing up. My parents were sure to film all of our soccer games and ballet recitals, and there are hours of footage of the three of us playing in the yard, performing songs and skits, and just being kids.

This year for Christmas, my sister Jen smuggled out all of our home movies (seriously, dozens and dozens of VHS tapes), and spent days converting them into DVDs. She also edited them and put together a "Greatest Hits" tape of all of our favorite videos. It was such a wonderful and thoughtful gift, and I've already watched them all (some more than once).

So here is one of my favorite clips, which depicts me as Jen's doll, always willing to do whatever she wanted.



Aren't I just a picture of grace?

Long-Awaited Wedding Photos

"Always remember there is nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name."
-Avett Brothers


Yes, I'm still here.

Married life is still rockin' it! We're getting more adventurous with our cooking, our condo is still relatively clean, and most of the gifts we got at the wedding have been put in their proper place. Some are still like, on top of the fridge and under the counters, but we're working on it. It's a small condo, really.

And BT Dubs (Dad, that is short for BTW, which stands for By The Way. I can just picture you crinkling your brow in confusion right now), our professional wedding pictures DID finally come in a couple months ago!

BAM! Wedding pictured.

While I was planning the wedding, one thing I was really worried about (one of a million things, to be honest, but one thing I had absolutely no control over) was the weather. I always knew there was no way in hell I would ever have an outdoor wedding -- the thought of rain, mud, bugs, allergies, and other disasters was way too much to stress over -- but I really wanted some fun outdoorsy autumny pictures. And the weather was absolutely perfect on October 15th. No rain, partly cloudy, and the leaves just happened to change colors at the perfect time of year. P.S. aren't my bridesmaids just gorgeous?

Here's my now-Hubby with his groomsmen. His gifts for them were Happy Feet slippers, and no, they did not wear them at the actual ceremony. I really love this picture, though. I doubt any other bride has a pic like this one!

Here are two of my cousins, Logan and Carson, as the ring bearers. Omgoodness, they are so cute. They were such a hit at the ceremony -- they kept whispering to each other and making silly faces. My back was to them, though, so I didn't actually see anything until I saw some wedding videos. They were hilarious.


The whole wedding party after we said our "I dos"!
Top, left to right: Matt, Bobby, Jason, Daniel R., Daniel M., Zach
Bottom, left to right: Kaitlyn, Anna, Jen, Me, Kyle, Amanda, Mandi, Kate
I really like this picture.

Our reception was an enormous success! People really got into the photo booth. I think I got the idea for the chalkboards on Pinterest or The Knot or something. They were only like $10 for all of them, and people got pretty creative.


We had a full dance floor pretty much the whole night! It was amazing!

Me and my hubsby. Oh, yeah, I've decided to call him Hubsby. He loves it.



No, he doesn't.

Anyway, the rest of our pictures can be viewed right here. I would have posted all of them, but there are 1,242 of them.

In other news, Kyle just bought a plane ticket to visit his friend Bobby in Japan!
>:-O
(That is an attempt at an emoticon that expresses "Oh, I am so happy for you! But you are going to fantabulous Japan to climb mountains and frolick 'round cherry blossoms whilst I mope in Cincinnati!)

I'm kidding, Hubsby. I love you. :-D