Christmas Greeting From Soldiers

I've teared up a little while watching soldiers abroad tell thier families "Merry Christmas" through the various news sources, but today I had to quickly change the channel. I have no clue how I'm supposed to feel or think about the war in general. My heart hates it. I want my brother home. I want peace in the middle east. I want forgiveness and everyone to forgive. I don't want to burst out in tears every time I hear the words "Afghanistan," "casualty" (p.s. there is nothing casual about a fallen soldier, let's find a new word for that), "more troops" (I repeat "YOU LIE") or I see a train pulling a load of army jeeps traveling down the tracks so long that I can't find the end. Maybe I'm a pacifist or an idealist or a tenderheart, but I have to let this feeling out there. I don't think I can change anything or that I'm smart enough that I should, but I can't be the only one who feels this way. Meh...
Merry Christmas to my little brother and all the men and women fighting to keep all of us playing games on facebook and writing blogs and going to our 9-5s and wrapping presents and baking cookies and watching movies and sending texts safe and kissing our kids and free. Like my brother said about his birthday, I know it will be "different" but I hope you can find a little joy of the season in your heart, because you deserve it more than all of us.

The Red(collars) versus the Yanks

I squealed with delight last week when I noticed Ricky Gervais's face as an icon for an episode of The Office on my DVR... literally- squealed- out loud. Turns out the Brit episodes have made an American debut on Adult Swim. Oh happy day! This has prompted me to record my stream of consciousness comparison of my favorite comdedic show and share it with my blessed readers... enjoy! This list will likely grow and change over time like my check back again and again if you're nearly as obsessed as I am.

Round 1: David Brent v. Michael Scott
=Os I love Ricky Gervais and Steve Corelle equally (side note: I can quickly remember "Michael" and Ricky's names, but had to think a bit for "David" and Steve)
+BO David is a more of a badass/sinner... he doesn't just always play up silly stuff- he really does some hard stuff
-BO David's humor is more mean spirited
I see David as
+AO Michael Scott
***Winner*** Tie... how can you choose between the two most hilarious characters invented.

Round 2: Tim v. Jim
+BO Tim's pranks are much better and more frequent
+AO I think Jim is every red blooded American girls dream, plus he has had so much nerve in pursing Pam... I love that he just keeps on putting it all out there
***Winner*** Jim!

Round 3: Dawn v. Pam Beasley
***Winner*** Pam (but I think Dawn is more "real")

Round 4: Garreth Keenan v. Dwight Schrute
-BO Garreth is actually quite dull
+BO Garreth's character is intense which makes me love him(awkwardly)
+AO Dwight is great because he is totally spontaneous
+AO 2 words: BEET FARMER
***Winner*** Dwight

Round 5: Lesser charachters
-BO As there were very episodes of the English office charachter development suffered a bit
+AO I can see myself in every single Scrantonite. I've got an Accounting/people-hating Angela side, I can be clueless, goofy, and hungry like Kevin, I find myself sticking my foot in my mouth like Michael, the alcoholic grandmother began just like Merideth, Kelly and I could've a helluva snarky gossip boy crazed d-hall dinner together at Berry... you get the picture
+AO Every Scranton employee lends a necessary and
***Winner*** Scranton!

Round: Theme song
+EO Love Handbags and Gladrags!
+EO My idol Rod Stewart has a version of the song

Wishing Well

I'm reading a book called The Year of Wishes (or something like that) by a lady named something Oxenhandler. (I am feeling way too lazy to even google it, pathetic.) Its pretty good so far and has me wishing. She talks about making concrete things to symbolize your wishes like writing them down or building shrines to them. I've tried it out for a few little things here and there since I started reading the book last weekend. So far my results have been mixed, but I like the idea of wishing.

Heres a wish I just want to throw out there. I want a bike: Free. Adult size. I don't really care what kind, just would like a metal frame with a seat and two wheels. I'd love for Remi to have one of the really nice sit down ones for free too, but I won't be too extreme for my first public wish. I just want an exploration aid. I'm dreaming of taking long bike rides on the Silver Comet Trail during my free time. Maybe go all the way to Alabama, at least to downtown Rockmart and see new things.

You only get what you give.

Life is coming at me like a train full of tons of bricks. I am an odd decision maker. I never quite know what I want whether I'm trying to pick out a movie, a color, something to eat, a career, or a path. I usually let others pick it and go along for the ride. When I have to pick the choices always seem strange at best. That being said, I've made a shitton of decisions that make no sense to me today. I am the most introverted/antisocial person I know and I have a SOCIAL work degree. How I ever got away with that is beyond me. How I made almost all As in my classes at GSU while hardly speaking to a soul and locking myself up in my intern's office is totally beyond me. I want to say we were all wishful thinking at best. That choice is perhaps the strangest, but not the only weird choice I've made along the way. But as timid as I can sound I am a fighter to my core. Even though I never feel totally comfortable making decisions when I do I pick something and I follow through with it. I'm going down with this ship. (Well, maybe not the Social Work ship exactly.) This means more forks are just up ahead. Honestly, I will be tagging along some of them. I'm comfortable with that because I'm comfortable with one of the craziest decisions I've made in my past and fighting to see it through. If you want to join along on the journey and be a (less annoying) cheerleader please be my guest and if you don't that is fine too. I'm pursing happiness and I don't even have a clue what that really means right now. This will get interesting.

Conversation With a Ghost

I'm bored to death and haunted by the puzzle of the Conversation With a Ghost song for some reason so heres what I'm thinking:

Conversation (This song isn't two sided. So why is it titled conversation?) With a Ghost (I get the feeling this song is someone rereading a letter from a soldier whom they loved, old lover, or their father who has died while away)

I'll respond to you in letters.
Sorry so slow, sorry so few. (Slow because he's far away, few because he's busy)
So far I'm much better. (Maybe he was sick in his last letter.)
The complaints here have been few. (But this kind of makes me think it isn't a soldier. Also, would the complaints be coming from other people?)

How have you been?
Have you been to the races? (Horse races? Car Races? Track and field races?)
Did you take my mother? (If it is a father- taking your grandmother makes sense maybe, if it is an old lover- why are you still that close to his mother?)
Is your sister in braces? (Braces on teeth? I also get an antique feeling from this song that makes me think maybe these could be braces for polio? This is the father asking about younger sister to show he cares or the lover making small talk)
I wish I could have been there to see you through. (Is this about the braces? Could a sister in braces have been that bad? I feel like this is a masked statement about something else though. An abortion if it is a lover? Childhood/hard life if it is a father?)
Hey, are all those things you told me still true? (This makes me feel like its a soldier looking for something to hang onto for when he comes back, but it could still be a dad seeing if he's still loved.)

Do you remember that time It was cold in the park?
You were running a race. (The same kind of race as "the races?")
I was there on a lark.
Who would've thought that New York could be such a small town? (Just reminising on a time they reconnected. I'll take this verse at face value.)

Margaret is tired.
Let's let her get some sleep.
Bored with these letters.
Let her count her sheep. (Who is Margaret? The reader or someone near him while he's writing the letter telling him to turn off the light?)
So goodbye love, goodbye love.

I need to get a life right?

Movies I Want to See

12 Rounds
Across the Universe
Adam
August Rush
Away We Go
Burn After Reading
Changeling So amazing. I deeply love Angelina Jolie and this only added to my awe of her. Powerful story, beautiful direction, so glad I saw it.
Crossroads
Date Night
(500) Days of Summer
Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood
Doubt
Eleven Minutes
Fireproof
Funny People
The Fountain
Ghost Town
Gigantic I'm semiobsessed with Zooey right now so I rented it redbox style. All I can say is that it is not normal, I am a weird decision maker, and surprise Chinese babies follow me everywhere I go.
He's Not That Into You
Julie & Julia
Lakeview Terrace
The Lazarus Project
Mama Mia!
Milk
My Sister's Keeper
Nick and Nora's Infinate Playlist
Obsessed
The Princess and the Frog
Push
Rachel Getting Married
Religulous
Repo! The Genetic Opera
Second Coming
The Secret Life of Bees
Seven Pounds Sweetly depressing, but overall I didn't love it... What good is giving a girl your heart if by giving it to her you break it?
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants II
Slumdog Millionare
Sunshine Cleaning Great movie, pretty typical pick for me plus plenty of inside jokes from our days as janitors.
Synecdoche, New York
The Time Traveler's Wife Loved it!
Thirteen
Traitor
Transamerica
Up
The Virgin Suicides
Where the Wild Things Are I had such high expectations for this, but was wholly dissapointed.
Zodiac

Xanga is so 2003

Jumping on the bandwagon and starting a new blog.
Time to bury BerryPrincess07. I'm CaseyMcSmith now, get used to it.